The University of Guelph’s Independent Student Newspaper

166.10 ◆ thursday, november 10th, 2011 ◆ www.theontarion.com

3facesof activism

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SEE Steven PAGE 8

Brand new Pageformer Barenaked Ladies songwriter brings solo act to guelph

tom beedham

You never would have seen a Barenaked Lady in the River Run Centre: the ushers wear bowties and their shoes are shined; jewelry is available for pur-chase in the lobby. But living up to the dress code of venues like the City of Guelph operated the-atre hall hasn’t been an issue for former Barenaked Ladies (BNL) songwriter Steven Page and his touring band, who have been making their performances suit and tie affairs for some time. That said, the dress code is still rela-tively new for Page’s act, which is in stark contrast with the camp-fire-friendly demeanor of the Canadian alternative rock group he left behind in 2009.

Fitting with the air of his new act and charging into “A New Shore” upon meeting the mic at the centre of the stage on Nov. 3, Page set the tone for an even-ing about fresh starts and blank slates.

Still touring Page One, his latest solo album since his

former Barenaked Ladies songwriter steven Page brought his solo act to Guelph’s river run centre on nov. 3, where he performed tracks from his days in BnL and his solo records Page one and The Vanity Project.

MarIanne PoInTner

Gryphons upset Golden Hawks winning streakThe gryphons women’s hockey team succeeded in debunking the Laurier golden Hawks with a goal by gryphon katie mora in overtime

sasha odesse

The Gryphons women’s hockey team looked a little off their game – a little sloppy even – in the first period of the match against the Laurier Golden Hawks. The tight puck hand-ling skills and the speed of the Hawks players set the pace from the first puck drop, and would continue to set it for the dur-ation of the game.

“We’ve always had this intimidation of Laurier and that’s one of the things I talked about before the game– we can’t go out there and play scared,” said interim head coach Carly Haggard.

It wasn’t until the last min-utes of the scoreless first period that Guelph seemed to wake up.

Scoring early on in the second period, the Hawks took the lead. The goal would be returned by the Gryphons on the powerplay

by Victoria Head who, after scoring, skated to the bench to “pound gloves” with her team-mates on the bench. Gryphons spirits would be dampened however, when Laurier scored again just minutes later.

Guelph seemed to step it up in the third period, but missed a lot of scoring opportunities. Their burst of energy paid off with four minutes left in the

rUGBy cHaMPs!...see PaGe 9

SEE hockey PAGE 12

Kindness is contagiousguelph holds Random act of kindness Day

abigel lemak

Last Friday, Nov. 4, was the Guelph Community Foundations second Random Act of Kind-ness (RAK) Day, and community members were encouraged to “pay it forward”.

“Of course we encourage people to perform a random act of kindness every day,” says Dominique O’Rourke, volun-teer director for Guelph’s RAK day.“But choosing a specific day helps those who may feel awk-ward about doing something for a stranger to give it a try and cre-ates a community celebration of the power of kindness.”

Participants were asked to pass on a card that says “You have been touched by a Random Act of Kindness,” encouraging the recipient to pass on the card, along with an act of kindness.

The Guelph Community Foun-dation noted that it’s important to recognize that RAK day is in no way a fundraiser, but rather a day of celebration for the community.

“It just brightens someone’s day” said O’Rourke.

Some of the days events included MacMillan Marketing hosting a free pancake breakfast in St. George Square, to Delta Guelph handing out coffee at the

corner of the Research Park.“RAK activities are spread

throughout the community, especially because the recipi-ent of a RAK pays it forward so it travels,” said O’Rourke. “Day care kids visit seniors and give them cards. The seniors do something nice for their care-givers who take them home and do something nice for their kids who do something nice for their coach or group leader. You get the picture.”

This year, Guelph’s RAK event

tripled from distributing 25,000 to 75,000 RAK cards, as well as doubled in the number of organ-izations that chose to participate. “People are gaining greater awareness of the day and of the Guelph Community Foundation, so the participation rates are likely to increase next year,” said O’ Rourke.

The University of Guelph also performed its share of RAK this year with Student Life along with Hospitality Services, distributing 300 free beverage cards. Some

students, however, were sur-prised to hear that it was RAK Day last Friday.

“There’s definitely lots of room to improve awareness of RAK Day on campus,” said O’Rourke. “The initiative is completely volunteer led, so we do what we can and are happy to grow our partnership with Student Life. Ideally, we would have a RAK committee on campus to raise awareness.”

For more information you can visit www.guelphcf.ca

activism: your face hereoPiRg holds panel discussion on activism

beth Purdon-mclellan

Students gathered in the UC on Nov. 9 for “The Faces of Activ-ism” panel discussion, where several leaders in the Guelph community spoke about their involvement and experience with activism for environmental and social justice. The event was hosted by OPIRG-Guelph as part of Student Life’s Civic Imprints Speakers Series. The panel speakers were Frank Valeriote, MP for Guelph; Sally Ludwig, co-founder of Transition Guelph; Janice Folk-Dawson, president of CUPE Local 1334 and Drew Garvey, CSA com-munication & corporate affairs commissioner.

The event was created to diversify student’s understand-ing of activism by providing the different perspectives of activism, as well as resources for students who want to get involved on campus.

“More so than anything it was […] to have people come in and speak on what it means to them,” said Dominica McPher-son, event organizer and OPRIG board member. “By doing that, they encourage people that are attending to question what it means to them as well, giving them that opportunity to decide how they want to define it so that they can potentially identify it.”

Holding the event in the UC made the panel more accessible to students who might not nor-mally attend this kind of event. This was an effort on OPRIG’s part to encourage the acknowledge-ment of on-campus activism within the student body.

“I think one of the biggest things is the stigma attached to activism and how it acts as a barrier to participation,” said McPherson. “I think for me, what was the largest driving factor is that there are a lot of students in student activist related work, but that there are certain levels of divide and apprehension about calling it activism or identifying it as being activism.”

The questions revealed the diversity in each panelist’s involvement with activism as well as how each panelist approached More importantly,

the discussion showed that there is a commonality between activ-ists and that is their desire to create positive change for the community.

Hammond Power solutions served a free lasagna lunch to over 300 employees for random act of Kindness day.

MarIanne PoInTner

frank Valeriote speaks with other panelists about his experiences as an activist.

VIcTorIa MarTIn

canada’s plastic dollar billsA new $100 polymer bill is to be released by Nov. 14. This innovative and durable “plastic currency” was created to combat counterfeit money through added security features. However, because of the bill’s design, which features large transparent win-dows, sensors in current ATM’s and money counters are unable to detect the cash. This could pose a financial expense to small institutions that are expected to replace their machines. $50 bills are fixed for a released by March and the rest by the end of 2013. (CBC)

canadian dentist purchased Lennon’s toothOne of the molars of late Beatle artist John Lennon has been sold at an auction in Stockport, Eng-land for £19,500 ($31,707.76)to a Canadian dentist named Michael Zuk. The tooth was said to have been given by the singer to his housekeeper in the 1960’s as a souvenir for her daughter. Until recently, it had been a part of the rock memorabilia collection owned by Alan McGee, a former boss of Creation Records. Zuk, who wrote a book on celebrity teeth, plans to display the tooth on tours for dental surgeries and dental schools. (BBC)

anonymously donated candy after Halloween robberyPolice surprised Michael Harper and his sister Michelle on Nov. 3 with an anonymous donation of 10 pounds of candy, a card, and cash for next year’s Hal-loween costumes. The donation was given after a family member posted a warning on Craig-slist about the robbery incident involving the siblings. The two were trick-or-treating around 9 p.m. Oct. 31 near Myers Ele-mentary School in West Salem, Oregon when two teenage boys stole their candy and caused physical harm to Michael. The incident was reported the next day to the police who said that the suspects could face charges of second or third-degree robbery. (statesmanjournal.com)

Compiled by Adedunmola Adegbusi

correctionThe Ontarion would like to make a correction to article on univer-sity rankings published Nov. 3. The Globe and Mail did rate uni-versities for hospitality services and we are pleased to announce that Guelph was ranked number one for the ninth year in a row. For more info, check out The Globe and Mail’s full list of win-ners at tgam.ca/BDRV.

3nEws 166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011

scientifically Inclined: can’t stomach liquor? Have some strawberries! arielle duhaime-ross

Alcohol can do quite a number on your stomach if you are not care-ful. Its consumption has been linked to gastritis, inflammation of the stomach’s mucous membrane, and stomach ulcers. Now, we’ve all heard that you should avoid drink-ing on an empty stomach but you might be surprised to learn that your pre-partying burrito ritual might be more effective if it was followed by a strawberry smoothie instead of a side of fries, as dem-onstrated by a group of European researchers in the October online edition of PLoS ONE.

The scientists, lead by Dr. Alvarez-Suarez, found that the stomachs of rats that had been fed strawberry extract (40mg/day per kilo of weight) for a period of 10 days suffered far fewer stomach lesions after ingesting ethanol than the rats that were fed a control diet devoid of strawberries. Without the straw-berries, rats had lesions on 22.3 per cent of their stomach’s inner lining, whereas the ones that were fed the strawberry extract maintained their stomach membrane’s integ-rity, suffering lesions on only 3.01 per cent of their stomach mucosa.

It is important to note that dif-ferent types of strawberries will display varying degrees of stomach protection. In this study, the scien-tists looked at three different types of Italian strawberry cultivars, and found that the three cultivars varied between 87 per cent gastric lesion inhibition and 79 per cent inhibition. Nevertheless, all three types of strawberries had signifi-cant protective properties.

Part of these protective prop-erties is believed to be a result of their high flavanoid antho-cyanin content, a polyphenolic compound with significant antioxidant capacity, and their non-flavanoid condensed tannins

content. Interestingly, the straw-berry’s protective action can also be attributed to its capacity to acti-vate antioxidant enzymes already present in the body. Strawberries are also a good source of vitamin C, which has also been demon-strated to have gastroprotective properties.

This study demonstrates that a diet rich in strawberries could slow or curtail the development of stomach ulcers and other gastric pathologies. The researchers hope to learn more about the signalling pathway behind the strawber-ry’s action. It is hypothesized that strawberries might alter the gene expression of antioxidant enzymes, thus increasing their secretion.

What these researchers don’t know is that they might have finally figured out a way to encour-age students to have their full eight to 10 servings of fruits and vegeta-bles a day. On that note, if you are looking to put this scientific study into practice, I invite you to turn to page 14 for some delicious straw-berry drink recipes!

Arielle blogs about science at www.salamanderhours.com

strawberries can protect your stomach from alcohol-induced lesions, making them the perfect drinking companion.

PaM dUynsTee

This study demonstrates

that a diet rich in strawberries could slow or curtail the

development of stomach ulcers

and other gastric pathologies

4 www.theontarion.com nEws

Upholding the human right to education beth Purdon-mclellan

The University of Guelph and the Association for Bahá’í Studies (ABS) welcomed Geoffrey Cam-eron, principal researcher with the Bahá’í Community of Canada, on Nov. 7 to deliver a public talk entitled “The Struggle for Human Rights and Citizenship in Iran: the Case of the Bahá’í Minority”. While Cameron touched on the Bahá’í history of persecution in Iran since the revolution in 1979, the talk focused specifically on the fact that Bahá’í are prohibited from pursu-ing post-secondary education by the Iranian government. In deny-ing Bahá’í access to education, the Iranian government is violating Bahá’í human rights.

Cameron spoke of how in response, the Bahá’í community in Iran has established the Bahá’í Institute for Higher Education (BIHE). Run out of people’s homes, the BIHE provides internation-ally recognized post-secondary degrees to members of the Bahá’í faith. However, the actions of the Iranian government in target-ing the BIHE have become more aggressive in the last year. On May 22, 19 individuals associated with

the BIHE were arrested, and over 80 people interrogated for their connection with the BIHE. Cam-eron stressed that Canada played an integral role to the development of the BIHE because a number of the professors, including three of those who were incarcerated, held post-graduate degrees from Can-adian universities.

“You can imagine the sort of commitment that these people feel to this institution,” said Cameron. “You know, they have all these opportunities available to them in Canada, and have chosen instead to return to a country where, because of their religion, they face persecu-tion, and yet their desire is to work for the betterment of their country by educating other people.”

The University of Guelph’s ABS is part of an international effort to hold the Iranian government accountable for its actions. Since access to education is the issue in focus, support from the academic community is invaluable. Mem-bers of the Guelph community of have spoken out against the Iran-ian government about this specific abuse of human rights, including University of Guelph President Alastair Summerlee who wrote a

letter in a previous initiative three years ago.

“From the perspective of the Association for Bahá’í Studies, which is a CSA club […] we’re really calling out to professors on campus to raise their voices,” said Blair Cameron, member of BAS. “There’s been a stock letter that professors are being invited to add their names to, and the professors I have talked to so far have been very receptive.”

Despite the immense challenges, the BIHE represents an incredibly innovative model of education. The fact that the BIHE can provide such high quality education to so many students with little to no resources demonstrates that it is sustainabil-ity, and could be a potential future model for education.

“We’re beginning to slowly understand the incredible accom-plishment of these Bahá’ís in Iran over the past 20 years,” said Khosrow Farahbakhsh, associ-ate professor with the School of Engineering and member of the Bahá’í faith. “They’ve really put together and built an alternative model of learning and education, something that in a way can pro-vide another model, maybe a more

sustainable model of education, compared to models that we have in the West that are highly organ-ized and centralized.”

The oppression Bahá’ís face is severe, and support from the international community not only helps assert their rights, but also lets the Bahá’í community know that they are not alone in their struggle. However, in the demand for equality it is also important to acknowledge the major accom-plishments of the Bahá’í faith and the BIHE.

“Of course, the whole thing is very sad, very tragic, that something that shouldn’t have happened, happened,” said Farah-bakhsh. “It shouldn’t have happed to anybody, for any reason […] But I think it shows how resilient human spirit is and how resilient a community is when its bonded together under a specific spiritual bond. And foremost these Bahá’í students are not just thinking about their own selves in Iran; they really want to be educated to serve humanity.”

The lecture delivered by Geoffrey cameron (centre) was organized by the association for Bahá’í studies, including members samara Jones (left) and Blair cameron.

MarIanne PoInTner

The starfish gives nod to U of G studentsandrea lamarre

The Starfish, an online community providing information and articles to ignite the environmental activist within, recently released their list of Top 25 Environmentalists Under 25. This online community looks to the media and the scientific world to raise public awareness about current environmental and ecological problems and solu-tions. The criteria for inclusion in the Top 25 included dedication to the environment, past experiences with environmental causes, com-mitment to making a difference, and innovation in difference-making initiatives.

Among those recognized for out-standing environmental leadership were University of Guelph stu-dents Joanna MacDonald and David Lawless. MacDonald, a final-semester student in environ-mental geography, demonstrates her passion for the environment by participating in the Tap In pro-gram to eliminate bottled water on campus, in Canadian Youth Delegations to UN climate change negotiations and in FUN (Friends Uniting for Nature). Lawless, an ecology student, has worked to bring environmental issues into the spotlight as a member of Net Impact and the College of Bio-logical Sciences student council.

“Environmentalism to me means loving and caring for

the incredible planet we live on whether that be through public activism and advocacy or making sustainable choices in day-to-day life,” said MacDonald. “I bring an environmentalist perspective with me to all my classes and it is part of the foundation on which I make both my daily and big life-changing decisions.”

Lawless shares a similar pragmatic philosophy about environmentalism.

“To me, environmentalism means appreciating our place in the natural world,” said Lawless. “It’s recognizing our interactions with other species and eco-systems and realizing that we are dependent on the health of our surroundings. Anyone can become more environmental in the way they think and how they view the world. Environment-alism isn’t so much an esoteric philosophy but rather a function of our very being as humans.”

While the world of environ-mental activism and advocacy might sound difficult to permeate, for these students it has become an integral part of daily life.

“From choosing local food, or making smart decisions about transportation options, students have a lot of means to effect posi-tive environmental change that ensure a sustainable future,” said Lawless. “My advice is to be smart about choices you make everyday,

that is, critically evaluate your actions so that you’re making a positive environmental impact.”

Becoming more environ-mentally conscious is not a daunting task, either. Accord-ing to MacDonald, it’s a matter of appreciating the world around you.

“If you want to be more environmentally conscious just spend time outside. Take a walk, plan a camping trip, go for a bike ride, sit in your backyard. There are plenty of beautiful nature areas in the city of Guelph, so it is easy to take time and simply be in nature.”

Parenti visits Guelphtyler valiquette

On Wednesday Nov. 2, inter-nationally known political analyst, award-winning author and fascin-ating lecturer, Michael Parenti gave a speech and led a discussion at the University of Guelph. The turn-out was excellent. Parenti spoke in a packed room, filled with stu-dents and members of the Guelph community.

Parenti is the author of 23 books. He is currently touring North America promoting his new novel, The Face of Imperialism.

“It is a book about how to think about imperialism,” explained Parenti. “It’s a desperate need for the people who are confused about Libya and Syria and the like.”

Andre Vltchek, author of Western Terror: From Potosi to Baghdad, described the book and the effects of its publication.

“It will be hated by those who run the Empire, and it will beloved by people who are searching for truth amidst the piles of garbage of Western propaganda,” said Vlt-chek. “This book will bring a bright spark of hope to billions of men, women aznd children who are fighting this very moment for sur-vival…against all monstrous faces and masks of imperialism.”

Parenti’s book could not have been released at a better time as it directly relates to the Occupy pro-tests that are happening around

the globe. He made reference to the heated Occupy event happening in Oakland, which is close to his hometown, and was encouraging of such protests.

Parenti made constant refer-ence to “The Empire”, or the United States. He discussed the role of capitalism in society and the tainted notion of socialism. Parenti discussed the elites or essentially the one per cent.

“They don’t want a country that is well educated, rich; they want people to be dumb and hardwork-ing,” said Parenti.

During the discussion, Par-enti urged the audience to re-evaluate the often mocked Bush administration.

“Why call them stupid? They are getting what they want,” said Par-enti. “If the entire population was on a single bus about to go over a cliff, these guys, the one per cent, would be running up and down the aisles trying to sell you seatbelts…at an increased price.”

Michael Parenti did not disappoint. He presented a contro-versial topic and created a stirring discussion. He willingly answered questions from a handful of people at the end of his presentation. This event was made possible through the combined effort and hard work of OPIRG-Guelph, Guelph Young Communist League and the Critical Knowledge Collective.

starfish selected Joanna Macdonald as one of the top 25 environmentalist under 25, along with fellow U of G student david Lawless.

MarIanne PoInTner

5nEws 166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011

Broken, but not brokentom beedham

On August 15, Canadian art rock group Broken Social Scene (BSS) announced that they would commence an indefinite hiatus in the fall. Just prior to a perform-ance in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 8, a post on the group’s Twitter page suggested that they would be following through with their word.

“LAST LIVE SHOW IN RIO TONIGHT: […] Ten years of play-ing our guts out 4 you. Thank you all. Will see ya soon. xox BSS,” the tweet said.

Even if the vast and nebulous group has broken up for good, it’s unlikely its members have shat-tered with it. Despite refusing to be labeled as a “supergroup,” the BSS roster—having listed at least 26 different members over it’s decade of performing with as few as six and as many as 19 onstage—has played host and helped many of its members hone solo acts and side projects throughout the years. In some cases, it’s oper-ated as a platform for getting those projects off the ground.

Founding member Brendan Canning worked in hHead and By Divine Right before BSS, in 2002—along with BSS member Charles Spearin and Godspeed You! Black Emperor members Anthony Seck and Sophie Trudeau—he began working with Valley of the Giants, and he launched a solo album called Something for All of Us in 2008.

Spearin himself, who has also worked with KC Accidental and alongside BSS member Ohad Benchetrit in jazz-fusion group Do Make Say Think, recorded a solo album titled The Happiness Project in 2009. It also includes perform-ances from BSS members Kevin Drew (also of KC Accidental) and Evan Cranley (Stars), and in order to offer insight into the inspiration and concept of the album, Spearin performed samples from the album live during BSS concerts that year.

The group is also partially responsible for launching the career of past member and now indie pop sensation Leslie Feist.

The list just goes on.On Nov. 3, BSS alumnus Jason

Collett brought his solo act to Guelph’s eBar. Although he left

BSS just before a 2005 tour and he previously worked as part of a short-lived alternative country group Bird alongside Hawksley Workman and Andrew Cash, Col-lett often cites BSS as what allowed him to give up his job in wood-working and become a full-time musician.

Having recorded five solo albums since 2001, Collett also performed material that he has been work-ing on for a new album, including a track inspired by his recent fas-cination with the ongoing Occupy Wall Street movement and other responding protests, something he described as “Me paraphrasing

Noam Chomsky paraphrasing talk radio.”

Whether or not Broken Social Scene will bring future recordings or concert performances, it seems certain that its multifarious mem-bers will continue to captivate music listening audiences for quite some time.

album review: david Lynch, crazy clown Timeduncan day-myron

As a filmmaker, David Lynch’s oeuvre is peerless. He is inimitable almost to a fault, creating works of such obliqueness and chaos that, at times, they border on absurd-ity and outright nonsense. Crazy Clown Time, Lynch’s first major creative output since the gargan-tuan, sprawling 2006 film Inland Empire, is no great exception.

Music has been a significant contributing element to many of Lynch’s works and he has been deeply involved in the sound design, with longtime collab-orator Angelo Badalamenti, for much of his recent career, cre-ating soundtracks evoking the ethereal, the mundane and the bizarre, a conflation of ideas which have defined much of Lynch’s career. This album seems more like a natural extension of those experiences rather than any kind of vanity project.

While Badalamenti didn’t have a hand in this record, with the recurring tremolo surf guitar and abstract, atmospheric collages of sound, the influence of his work on Lynch is notable. While, in that sense, elements of the album will be recognizable to those fam-iliar with Lynch’s work, it is by no means a retread.

Lynch’s vocals feature on every track except the opener, which is sung by Yeah Yeah Yeahs

vocalist Karen O, whose pant-ing, troubled wail suits Lynch’s avant garde instrumentation per-fectly. Through his own vocals, Lynch truly challenges whatever expectations there might have been going into the album. Per-haps it’s the unrestrained use of vocoder, but Lynch’s thin, meek, unmistakably Midwestern speak-ing voice is used to great and varied effect. Although he occa-sionally resorts to the monotone and distorted, and on tracks like “Stone’s Gone Up” and “So Glad”, the brooding auteur sings his twisted heart out. When he does record tracks with heavy Bruce Haack-levels of distortion, such as first single “Good Day Today” and “I Know”, it feels more like

a deliberate artistic choice, and not merely a way to hide his poor singing.

While Lynch has never been particularly prolific, the interim between Inland Empire and Crazy Clown Time has been marked with a series of short films, as well as ventures into art, industrial design and coffee. Lynch appears to be in the midst of a creative profusion touching all manner of media, of which this album is but a small part.

Any fans of his film work will undoubtedly find some pleasure in this album. Similarly, anyone with a distaste for his movies will probably be equally as turned off. And for the uninitiated? There are better places to start.

on nov. 3, Broken social scene alumnus Jason collett brought his solo act to Guelph’s eBar. although he left Bss just before a 2005 tour, collett often cites the group as what allowed him to give up his job in woodworking and become a full-time musician. .

MarIanne PoInTner

coUrTesy

6 www.theontarion.com arTs & cULTUre

film review: The rum diary2.5/5

tom beedham

Watching the latest adaptation of a book written by the father of Gonzo Journalism on Guy Fawkes Day seemed only too appropriate. Unfortunately, dir-ector/writer Bruce Robinson’s reworking of Hunter S. Thomp-son’s political powder keg of a novel seems too soggy with rum to deliver any of the good doc-tor’s volatile vitriol.

While entire scenes are inevit-ably altered (or cut) and some characters are nixed completely or divided into other characters for the sake of a more workable screenplay, the plot in Robin-son’s film is mostly faithful to that in Thompson’s novel: jour-nalist Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) travels to Puerto Rico in 1960 to write for an ill-fated English-language newspaper, falls in love with a friend’s girl, and struggles to resist both the local habit of rum drinking and the jaded pol-itical complacency of his editors.

The first release by Depp’s own production company, Infinitum Nihil, Depp—who found The Rum Diary in Thompson’s base-ment while working on Terry Gilliam’s adaptation of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and receiving character guidance from the author, prompting its premiere publicationr—clearly had his heart in the right place making this film, but good

intentions don’t make good adaptations.

A strange liberty Robinson takes with the introductory scene of his film has Depp waking up half naked in a spoiled hotel room, apparently after a night involving some des-perate attempts to access the mini fridge. Perhaps this was born out of an attempt on Robinson’s part to combine Thompson’s real experi-ences with those in the book, but ultimately the ruined rental room is a gag Thompson fans are familiar with, and it borders on gimmick territory in the new movie.

Sorely scarce in this film are the voiceovers that are so rampant throughout Gilliam’s film. With-out these, the audience misses out on so many of Thompson’s blazing words, and where Depp channels Thompson’s narration so naturally in Fear and Loathing and 2008 documentary Gonzo: The Life and Works of Hunter S. Thomp-son, it’s hard to understand their absence here.

Those choices won’t be prop-erly understood until materials like running length commentaries and behind the scenes interviews are available. But an incontestably regrettable alteration that takes place in Robinson’s adaptation of H.S.T.’s Carribbean Künstlerroman is the reversed focus it offers on Puerto Rico; in the novel, Kemp is concerned with the way the nationals are skipping the island, but in the film, all of the focus is on how America is invading it.

This wasn’t an innately bad

alteration, but coupled with the way Robinson approaches the sub-ject of fear, it leads to Robinson extending the most common mis-representation perpetuated about Thompson.

Thompson’s story’s first men-tion of fear comes with a discussion of Puerto Rican emigration; “the Fear” is described as a fight or flight response to colonialism. Alternately, in Robinson’s version, fear’s only mention comes when Kemp’s coworker Sala (Michael Rispoli) starts to have a bad drug trip when Kemp tells him Lucifer has taken control of his tongue. In the end, it’s as if Robinson is reducing one of the good doctor’s greatest enemies to a (completely avoidable) scary drug delirium.

The kids that were introduced to Thompson via Gilliam’s Fear and Loathing and loved it for Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo’s anarchic capers and Gilliam’s trippy CGI tricks but never picked up a book that the good doctor wrote after-wards will enjoy this film; the purists will be insulted by the Hollywood gimmicks used to market the film as simply another abusive romp through a strange land that they are given to under-stand as doomed.

The overall takeaway is the griz-zly reminder that Thompson—a force that seemed larger than life when living—is dead, and that with his death, his long shelf of works became vulnerable in a way that it never was before.

List service: four stories we want to read, but can’t (yet)tom beedham

Autobiography of Mark Twain Vol-umes 2 & 3

Last year, on the 100th anniver-sary of his death, the University of California Press published the first of a three-volume collection of dic-tated anecdotes and ruminations that Twain left behind. Although some of the work has been pub-lished in previously edited versions of the autobiography, about half of the end product is suspected to be seeing publication for the first time.

Hunter s. Thompson’s Prince Jellyfish

Around 1960, Prince Jelly-fish—the first novel H.S.T. ever authored—was being written while Thompson worked as a reporter for the Middletown Daily Record in New York State after some time spent in NYC as a Time Magazine copyboy. After several literary agents rejected, Thompson gave up on publishing the book and packed his bags for Puerto Rico. It’s never since seen the light of day.

Karl Marx’s Scorpion and FelixWritten (but never finished) at

the age of 19, Scorpion and Felix was the only comedic fictional

story the founder of Marxism ever wrote. Although it suppos-edly offers a glimpse at Marx’s lighter side, biographer Francis Wheen called it “a nonsensical torrent of whimsy and persi-flage,” so it seems it might come short in offering any real insight to the philosopher’s thinking.

J.d. salinger’s “The ocean full of Bowling Balls”

Along with short stories “Birthday Boy,” “The Magic Foxhole,” “Two Lonely Men,” “The Children’s Echelon,” The Last and Best of the Peter Pans,” and “Mrs. Hincher,” “The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls” cannot be published until Jan 26, 2060 (50 years after his death) as per J.D. Salinger’s wishes and a legal lock honouring them, but its presence on this list is the re`sult of some (minor) cheat-ing. Technically, we can read this work. It’s available to read at the Princeton library, but only under supervision in a spe-cial reading room after forking over two pieces of ID. The story is said to tell the tale of Kenneth Caulfield, who later became Allie in The Catcher in the Rye.

Josh Guthrie and nick silvani’s round Trip exhibit turned Zavitz Gallery into a dizzying demonstration of symmetry from oct. 31-nov.4. While two half globes of light—one resembling a desolated planet and the other coming off as an homage to diversity—occupied opposing corners of the gallery floor and two projectors shot vague imagery onto walls in a similar fashion, and as if offering an introduction to the entire exhibit, a spiraling charcoal figure drawn onto a large portion of canvas stared out the gallery door from the center of the back wall.

MarIanne PoInTner

7aRts & cuLtuRE 166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011

departure from BNL, half of Page’s set consisted heavily of tracks from the late-2010 release, as well as a sprinkling of songs from his 2005 release The Vanity Project.

The other half of the musician’s setlist drew freely from previous BNL releases—but not without taking some liberties.

With “The Old Apartment,” the addition of a solemn violin solo seemed to augment the emotional impact of Page’s memory mourn-ing vocals, and at the same time, the incorporation of an organ solo lent a celebratory religious tone that seemed to enough to wash away the decay of the lost habitat that Page laments.

On top of “The Old Apartment” Page and his band breathed new life into BNL classics like “It’s All Been Done,” “Jane,” “Call and Answer,” “What a Good Boy,” “Tonight Is the Night I Fell Asleep

at the Wheel,” “Break Your Heart,” and “Enid.” He even closed with “Brian Wilson.”

While seemingly ignoring A Singer Must Die—a cover album that was the first project Page took on after leaving BNL—Page and company did crank out a rendi-tion of Tom Paxton’s “Wasn’t That a Party.”

If the performance had one detraction, it was excess. Page had a roadie run on stage to switch his guitar between every song (a con-servative estimate would peg the total number of guitars on hand—not including the bass—at ten), a distracting interruption that could have been easily avoided had Page kept his guitars on stage. On top of that, ranting about area codes and making crank calls as a kid, dis-cussing the recording of Maroon, and suggesting that Page One song “Over Joy” “answers the age old question, ‘What would happen if Morrissey wrote with Jim Cuddy?’” at times, Page’s banter

even managed to come across as overindulgent, more than once

bringing audience members to cringe when the singer trailed off

and grasped in vain for words that he really could have gone without.

Lifestory: Monologue played the eBar nov. 8 in support of their freshly released full-length, drag your White fur—Make it Grey.

KaTIe MaZ

MarIanne PoInTner

Steven CONTINUED

steven Page, former singer and songwriter with the long-running canadian band Barenaked Ladies, played old and new songs during his stop in Guelph on nov. 3 at the river run centre.

8 www.theontarion.com aRts & cuLtuRE

The Gryphons women’s rugby team travelled to Trent University to compete in the cIs championships. after defeating McMaster 53-19 on nov. 4 and then Laval 38-3 on nov. 5, the team readied themselves for the match against the reigning national champions, st. francis of Xavier. on nov. 6 at Justin chiu stadium, the Gryphons stunned st. fX with a 28-0 victory. The ecstatic Gryphons were presented with the Monilex Trophy, cIs gold medals and the cIs championship banner to take back to Guelph, and to forever serve as a reminder of their triumph. Go Gryphons! v

MaTT sTeTson

choosing vegetarianism and making the switchshwetha chandrashekhar

Every bite counts- beautiful eating for a long and healthy life

The decision to become a vegetarian is a lifestyle choice, not a mere dietary change. There are many reasons one may opt for the vegetarian route. A desire for a change in diet or a shift in moral or ethical values may be the trigger in such a debate.

Vegetarianism does not have to be a compromise or impedi-ment in your standard of living. You shouldn’t have to give up the tastes you love. There are now delicious vegan versions of almost every meat, dairy, and egg product with all the flavour, but without causing animal suffering and environmental degradation. Your taste buds can still thrive, while adequately meeting your nutritional needs; it just requires better planning.

Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of satur-ated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein, as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fibre, mag-nesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants. Evidence suggests that vegetarian eating can offer some additional health benefits such as the prevention of certain diseases. Becoming vegetarian is one of the most important and effective actions you can take to ease the strain on our Earth’s limited resources, protect the planet from pollution, prevent global warming, and save count-less species from extinction. Next time you are at the grocery store, fill your cart with healthy and humane alternatives!

The Health and Perform-ance Centre (HPC) on campus, is a great resource and starting point. If you’re wondering how exactly to make the switch, the HPC can ease your transition to healthy eating and living. In compliment, the Wellness Centre fosters the HEAL (Healthy Eating, Active Living) program. It aims to increase knowledge and awareness on nutrition, diet, exercise and physical fit-ness while helping students and the Guelph community make informed food choices, encour-age regular physical activity and become media literate on issues related to nutrition and physical fitness.

Although, there are a few significant points to consider before you make the switch and choose vegetarianism. Lean meats can be included as a part

of a healthy diet for those who would like to incorporate it into their regular food choices. Choosing vegetarian choices does not necessarily mean you have to completely avoid your regular eating habits. Remem-ber that vegetarianism is not an all or nothing option, it can be a part of your lifestyle, and not a dictating factor.

Lindzie O’Reilly, dietician, RD, recommends to students, that while a vegan diet can be very healthy, it requires quite a bit of thought and planning to ensure it is adequate. Iron is one such nutritional component to contemplate in a vegetarian diet.

“There are many great vegan sources of iron, including pump-kin seeds, lentils, soy beans or tofu, and red kidney beans. Unfortunately our body does not absorb iron from plant sources as well as it does from animal sources. To maximize absorp-tion, it is important to include a good source of vitamin C each time you have a plant source of iron. Examples of vitamin C rich foods include oranges, peppers, tomatoes, steamed broccoli, or white potatoes,” says O’Reilly.

Lisa Armstrong, lead dietician, RD, at the Health and Perform-ance Centre suggests that with careful planning and considera-tion of key nutrients, vegetarian diets can meet energy needs and nutrient requirements.

“Due to the exclusion of cer-tain foods when practicing a vegetarian diet, some key nutri-ents to carefully consider to ensure adequate intake include protein, iron, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium and vita-min D. Each of these nutrients play a unique and important role within the body, so if you choose to eat a vegetarian diet it is critical that to make sure you include a variety of healthy foods containing these nutrients, to ensure optimal health. It can sometimes be difficult to assess whether you meet your nutrient recommendations when follow-ing a vegetarian diet, so it may be helpful to meet with a regis-tered dietician to have them individually assess your food consumption,” says Armstrong.

This healthy alternative to eating only prompts benefits if you eat in a healthy and balanced way. So before you make the switch, thoroughly consider all aspects, and make the decision that’s right for you. As a lifestyle choice or just an incorporation into your daily diet, vegetarian-ism is beautiful eating.

no snow is no obstacle for Gryphons nordic ski teamsasha odesse

No snow does not mean “no go” for the Gryphons Nordic ski team. Dry land training for the team begins in May and continues until late November.

“Because [our dry land season] is so long, what we’re doing is always changing. Early on in the season most of our training hours are spent running, cycling and rollerskiing and these are done for long periods of time but at a low intensity. We also spend a lot of time in the weight room– core strength is really important, as is upper body strength for skiing,” said head coach Ian Ritchie. “As the year progresses we increase the intensity and interval work-outs and we make things more and more specific. This time of year we’ve largely replaced run-ning with rollerskiing [which] is about as [close] to skiing as we can get.”

Throughout the dry land season, training as a team can be extremely beneficial for skiers who will spend the majority of the ski season training and competing on their own.

“To actually get together as a group [and be] surrounded by like-minded people is great,” said Ritchie. “We provide encour-agement for one another and reassurance as well, so that we know we’re not crazy out there, running around with ski poles.”

As well, team training can help skiers improve their ski technique.

“For our skiers, being fit isn’t enough. They really need to spend a lot of time on technique and having other athletes around to look at and imitate and provide feedback is [especially] useful,” explained Ritchie.

The ski season officially kicks off at the end of November, however, it isn’t until January and February that things really pick up for the team.

“In addition to a number of small local races and OUAs, we’re also competing in provincial and national level races at the Ontario Cup Series,” said Ritchie.

Supporting the Gryphons Nordic ski team poses a challenge, as their closest ski competitions this year are about an hour away from Guelph.

“Obviously we’d love it if people would come out to the trails and cheer us on as we ski throughout the race season, but given the obvious geographical issues I don’t think that’s going to happen,” said Ritchie.

On a more positive note, Ritchie is confident that both men’s and women’s teams will finish among the top three universities at OUAs this year.

“We’re also in a position where there are about four athletes that will likely finish in the top 10 and that I think will be able to medal as well.”

If you think there should be a spirit bus for the Gryphons Nordic ski team implemented, write to us at ontarion@uoguelph.ca

one of the ways the nordic ski team practices during the dry land season is through ski striding, which is a mix between classic skiing and running.

coUrTesy

9166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011sPorTs & HeaLTH

J ohn McCrae’s “In Flanders Fields” is usually reserved for November reading, if not only on

Nov. 11, Remembrance Day. But the City of Guelph plays host to another heritage symbol representing the World War I field surgeon Lieutenant-Colonel-cum-poet John McCrae.

McCrae’s birthplace, Guelph’s McCrae House makes remem-brance a year-round occupation.

Built circa 1858, the McCrae family owned the small limestone cottage on Water St. from 1858 to 1873, when others came to occupy its quarters. Several other families have lived in the house since the McCrae family’s departure, but in 1966, a group of three local families that wanted to preserve the small limestone cottage as a privately-operated museum when they learned of its historical significance even mortgaged their homes in order to purchase the home.

Since refurbished to period-specific detail and boasting an award-winning garden that reflects the time period of the mid-to-late 1800s, the house has been operated by the City of Guelph in conjunction with the Guelph Civic Museum since 1983.

McCrae’s service medallions, letters, pictures, tableware and other objects that illustrate chap-ters of McCrae’s life: growing up in Guelph, time spent working as a doctor, and service in the war dominate much of the house. Visitors can even look in on an accurate restoration of what the icon’s bedroom might have looked like, complete with some actual artifacts that McCrae owned.

While exhibitions in the house interpret the life and legacy of John McCrae, the house also concerns itself with a continual focus on other aspects of the WWI era.

Over the years, the house has featured exhibits focusing on significant figures that served in the First World War as well as articles that typify what it was like to be alive during WWI, both at home and on the frontlines.

Outside of the house, summer activities like history camps and special teas in the garden are held, furthering the yearlong opportunities the house offers the Guelph community to be educated on a critical time in our cultural history.

While Remembrance Day occupies but a single space on our cal-endars, the McCrae house serves as a gentle reminder that our wars weren’t fought over the course of a day.

McCrae House remembers year-roundby tom bedham

all Photos by marianne Pointner

Remembering the Poppy

Poppies are a symbol,Of the men who gave the souls,They braved the lonely nights,The winters and the cold.

Men who fought in battle,The loss of many friends,Waiting for the final day,When the war would end.

Enemies that they faced,Battles that were won,Many soldiers lying dead,When it was all done.

Our brave Canadian soldiers,Fought a war in a distant land,They didn’t ask for this to start,But brought it to an end.

Now the war is over,Things will never be the same,A poppy lets us know these men,Had never died in vain.

When you see a poppy,Remember what it’s for,All the men who fought and died,In the name of war.

The freedom that we have,The life we all enjoy,We owe it to our veterans,Their victory brought us joy.

Next time you see a veteran,Stop and shake his hand,Many soldiers just like him,Brought freedom to our land.

– Gary Roy

Many Lonely SoldiersMany lonely soldiers,Who stand on guard for thee,They risk their lives each day,So we could all be free.

Here I’m just a stranger,In a distant foreign land,I know there’s lots of danger,We’ll do the best we can.

The dangers that we face,Every single day,Will we ever make it home,It’s really hard to say.

Crying from the wounded,Silence from the dead,All the eerie voices,Keep going through my head.

Sometimes it’s hard to be,So very far away,We miss our families more and more,Each and every day.

In this hostile land,We stand so proud and tall,Brave men and women soldiers,Are heroes to us all.

Now the time has come,For all of us to go,The memories we left behind,Will never ever go.

Someday when I grow up,I think I’d like to be,Another lonely soldier,So we can all be free.

– Gary Roy

W hen you were in elementary school, or even high school you most likely had to attend a Remembrance Day assembly with your class, where a wreath was carried to the stage, bag-

pipers marched in a veteran who then gave a long and touching speech and “The Last Post” was played either by some musically inclined student or off a CD which was finally followed by two minutes of silence. Most likely, there was that kid that refused to stop talking and during the two minutes of silence you were trying desperately to think about what it would’ve been like

in the trenches or in the midst of battle and failed miserably. And why would the 6-12 year-old versions of ourselves be able to recall such memories? Since you have never experienced, and will

most likely not ever experience, anything even remotely close to the terrors, the guilt, the sorrow, the immense tragedies of war.

Now, as students of the University of Guelph, you aren’t forced to partake in any Remembrance Day activities or spend two minutes in silence at 11 a.m, but perhaps you should. As students, you are now at the age when, if you had lived through WWI or WWII, we would’ve been required to leave our country and fight in the war. We aren’t living in that time, however.

The way in which we engage in Remembrance Day activities is through post-memory. Post-memory can be defined as the memories that are felt by the second generations. These memories are often so powerful that second generation persons feel as if the memory is their own, even if they did not experience it.

There are numerous ways in which students can partake in post-memory ceremonies in Guelph, on and off-campus.

On Nov. 10, Holocaust Survivor, Vera Schiff will speak about her experi-ence in the Theresienstadt concentration camp and her survival of the Holocaust. Schiff is from Prague, Czechoslovakia and was the only member of her family to survive the horrors of the Holocaust. This event is part of both Peace Week, Diversity Week and Genocide Aware-ness month. Peace Week 2011 will take place from N`ov. 9 to 16 with a number of peace-themed activities organized by the university’s Multi-Faith Resource Team.

More information and a schedule of Peace Week events can be found on the U of G Multi-Faith Resource Team Facebook page

On Remembrance Day, services will be held at War Memorial Hall at 10:30 a.m.

As well, Guelph Transit buses will be stopping for a moment of silence at 11 a.m.

John McCrae House will be open by donation from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be a short service held in the McCrae Garden at 9 a.m. organized by the Royal Canadian Legion. The John McCrae Public School will be holding their Remembrance Day Assembly following the service.

The Guelph Amateur Radio Club will be at the McCrae House broadcasting a reading of “In Flanders Fields” and information about John McCrae as well as discussing the significance of Remembrance Day.

There will be a Remembrance Day parade at 9:50 a.m. starting at the Armory on Farquhar Street and marching to the Sleeman Centre, where there will be a service, including the laying of wreaths, prayer, two minutes of silence and the firing salute followed by speeches from Guelph’s political leaders. The parade will then march past the Cenotaph at around 11:30 a.m. and conclude at the Armory.

You can also visit the Cenotaph located at the corner of Eramosa and Woolwich Street.

On Sunday Nov. 13 Rev. Dr. Ronald C. Smeaton will be the guest speaker at Norfolk Street United Church for the celebration of the 85th anniversary of Col. John McCrae Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion and the 145th anniversary of the 11th Field Regiment.

Engaging with post-memories of war and loss can be as easy as taking two minutes of your day to reflect and remember those who served in the war so that we could we be here today, going about our lives, studying for midterms, ordering a coffee, sleeping in late. All of these little things that we take for granted, we owe to the soldiers who fought for these freedoms and so much more. Whether you spend two minutes of your day in silence or attend one of the Remembrance Day events in Guelph, it is important to remember, lest we forget.

RemembranceDay in Guelph

by sasha odesse

game when Erin Smalls sunk a beautiful goal on the powerplay to tie up the game 2-2 and move it into overtime.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better veteran class, [Jacalyn Sollis, Erin Small and Tamara Bell] are doing a phenomenal job leading this group on and off the ice,” said Haggard. “Erin Small is top three in scoring in the whole league so she is really taking on a different role this year on the ice, but all three are doing a phenomenal job of lead-ing this team and setting great examples for everyone.”

Loud, riled-up Gryphon fans set the backdrop for over-time and were rewarded when Katie Mora scored from Jacalyn Sollis and team captain, Tamara Bell to clinch the game for the Gryphons.

This win marks the fourth game in 10 that a Gryphons game has gone into overtime. Hag-gard says she expects there to be more close games to follow.

“There’s so much parity in the league this year, team’s that last year or the year before that were

guaranteed wins, they’re not this year. On any given night, any team can win,” said Hag-gard. “So there’s going to be some great games and some very close games this year.”

The Gryphons team is also a young one, with 10 rookies on the team this year. Haggard says that although many people were under the impression that this was going to be a rebuild-ing year for the Gryphons, that’s not the case.

“In my opinion, it’s not [a rebuilding year for us] and we can compete with any team. We’re having fun and everyone is excited to be out there every game,” said Haggard. “Every game we just go out there with the attitude that we have noth-ing to lose.”

According to Haggard, a big thing that the Gryphon team has struggled with is their consistency.

“Saturday we lost to Water-loo, who, even though they’re a stronger team this year, we should’ve beat. And then on Sunday we beat Laurier who’s undefeated,” said Haggard.

“We need to come out hard

every single night and I think that sometimes people think they can take a night off and

that’s when we lose. Our three games that we have lost– UOIT, Brock and Waterloo, they’re

teams that we should beat. I think we need to realize that, and come to play every night.”

fifth year player, Jacalyn sollis, takes a shot at net during the Gryphons vs. Laurier game on nov. 6 at the Gryphon arena.

VIcTorIa MarTIn

fan of the Gamesasha odesse

This week’s Fan of the Game says that he loves hockey, loves the game, and loves the Gryphons!

Marcel Beneteau, a fourth year music student was watch-ing the Gryphons women’s hockey team as they played the Laurier Golden Hawks with Olivia Mancuso on Oct. 6 at the Gryphon Centre Arena, when he was chosen to be Fan of the Game by The Ontarion.

Beneteau would prove to be correct in predicting that despite the tough tactics boasted by the Golden Hawks, Guelph would ultimately be victorious.

“Guelph is better” said Marcel. “I think they’ll [win today].”

The game was definitely one to witness as the Gryphons turned the game around in the last period tieing up with four minutes left on the clock to overthrow the Hawks in OT.

It’s easy to see why the Gryphons women’s hockey team has so many fans with exciting games like this one.

Will Beneteau continue to support the team throughout the season?

“Yes, absolutely.”

Stand up, stand out and cheer for the Guelph Gryphons and you could be Fan of the Game.

The winner receives two free tickets to another Gryphons varsity home game!

Follow @TheOntarion on Twitter to find out when we’re looking for Fan of the Game.

hockey CONTINUED

VIcTorIa MarTIn

12 www.theontarion.com sPoRts & HEaLtH

a change of direction for Gryphons volleyballduncan day-myron

The year so far for the Gryph-ons women’s volleyball team has been a mixed bag. Although they’ve won two of the three regular season games they’ve played so far– both homegames against the Lakehead Thunder-wolves on Nov. 4 and 5– the majority of their exhibition games didn’t work out in their favour.

For head coach Paul Funk, however, those games are less about winning and more about learning.

“I use our exhibition schedule as a chance for everybody to get playing time,” Funk said. “So that’s what we did, we changed the lineup pretty much every match in the preseason. We only had one set of matches, our very last weekend, against Laval, where I put our first group out on the floor together. It has been very different in the regular season.”

While many teams play opponents from outside their own league in pre-season exhibition games, the women’s volleyball team participated in a tournament in Ottawa from Sept. 30 to Oct. 2, where they played many teams they will again face later in the regular

season, which is both with and without advantages.

“From our perspective, to see other teams and play them once in the preseason is a good thing,” said Funk on the tourna-ment. “But to do that too often is a little bit of overkill. That Ottawa tournament enabled us to see what personnel other teams have but in terms of giving us a real good game plan about what to expect during the regular season, there’s not so much value in that because everyone’s experimenting with their lineup.”

The team this year is a fairly young one, and two-thirds of the players are in first and second year. In addition to that, all three setters on the team are first year. Even if the team doesn’t learn a lot about their opponents, getting as much playing time together is crucial.

“It takes time for a setter and hitters to develop a chemistry,” Funk said on the topic of the rookie setters. “We’re starting from scratch with that.”

And while the pre-season games will help, the team may take longer to get into the kind of swing that took them to OUA finals last year.

“It’ll probably be the second semester before we’re truly

meshing together,” Funk said. “To be honest about it, we’re not as strong as we were last year. We’ve come back to the pack a little bit this year. […] I think for us to get to the final four week-end this year is a good goal for us. Once you’re there you never know what’s going to happen.”

rugby (M)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/05: oUa semi final vs. Western

3 - 28GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T4 3 1

Vol leybal l (M)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/05:Guelph vs. york

4 - 1GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T3 1 0

Ice Hockey (M)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/05: Guelph vs. Waterloo

4 - 5 oTGryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T2 7 0

Vol leybal l (W)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/05:Guelph vs. Lakehead

4 - 0GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T2 1 0

rugby (W)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/06: cIs champoinship vs. st. fX

28 - 0GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T11 0 0

Ice Hockey (W)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/06:Guelph vs. Laurier

3 - 2 oTGryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T7 3 0

fie ld Hockey

LasT GaMe resULTs11/06: cIs Bronze Medal Game vs. Toronto

3 - 0GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T4 5 0

soccer (M)

LasT GaMe resULTs10/30: oUa Quarter final vs. McMaster

0- 2GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T11 5 2

Lacrosse (M)

LasT GaMe resULTs11/05: Baggataway cup semi vs. Laurier

11 - 12GryPHon season

sTandInGs:

W L T9 3 0

SCOREBOARD

The Gryphons women’s volleyball team has won both of their home games this year. We’ll see if they can keep that momentum going when they play their next home games, against Queens and rMc on nov. 11 and 12.

MIcHeLLe PIno

13sPoRts & HEaLtH 166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011

The Ke$ha martinidivinus c. caesar

It’s been the nature and failing of almost all martini “updates” that they reduce the class of the drink. This is less the fault of their cre-ators than of martinis for already being so high class. If it weren’t difficult to improve them, their reputation would be undeserved. The following recipe does not fail like so many of its predecessors, and establishes a new standard of class toward which other drinks will aspire. Much like Ke$ha and art/music/fashion.

The drink requires some advance preparation. Begin with the gin. I’ve opted for Bombay Sapphire, but a strong jenever would work very well. In a large mason jar combine your gin with four or five quartered scotch bonnet peppers, then put it in the freezer overnight. You want the gin to get very hot (spicy) like Ke$ha frequently mentions being, but cold (temperature) like she frequently shows her heart to be.

In the morning, grab some old-fashioned glasses. (They’re also called lowballs, but Ke$ha’s an old fashioned girl, so the

alternative name is more appropri-ate here.) Do not use traditional martini glasses: they are very easy to knock over, especially considering the amount of xanax and speed you’re likely to have coursing through your system this early in the day. You don’t want to have to waste your time dry-cleaning glitter and olive brine out of a white tuxedo jacket just because you made a bad glass choice.

In the glass, pour in a quarter to half an ounce of dry vermouth. The vermouth won’t overpower the drink as easily here, so you don’t have to reduce it to the level of a “splash”, and it pro-vides a nice counter to the scotch bonnets’ hotness.

Next add three ounces or so of your gin from the freezer. (Remember, you’re drinking this

for breakfast, so there’s no need to use heroic amounts of alcohol.)

Add two to three large tea-spoons of olive brine. That may sound like a lot, but this is a Ke$ha martini, so you want it to be ridiculously dirty. (Even so, at some point in life my taste-buds were destroyed, and my overall judgment is questionable, so you may want to experiment with amounts.)

At this point you have a hot-and-dirty (which I think I also invented), a perfectly serviceable martini, but it’s not yet a Ke$ha. To complete the project you need edible, non-soluble glitter. Online glitter manufacturers are currently unwilling to make-to-order $3 worth of golden dollar sign-shaped glitter, so until that day I’d suggest using “golden pearl dust”. It’s available at bulk food stores and works very well. Stir in about half a line of this, and add three Jalapeno-stuffed olives, and you have a Ke$ha martini.

Ingredients:1 Old-Fashioned glass3oz Gin4-5 Scotch Bonnet peppers1/2 oz Dry Vermouth2-3tsp Olive brine1/2 line of gold Pearl Dust3 Jalapeno-stuffed olives

Potent potables: sauced on strawberriesduncan day-myron

Considering some of the recent discoveries about the benefits of strawberries on a drinker’s stomach (which you can learn more about from Arielle Duhaime-Ross’s Scien-tificaly Inclined article on page 5), I thought it might be pretty apt to write about some straw-berry based beverages. While the most common is probably the strawberry daquiri, it’s get-ting a little cold to be proposing people stay in and make frozen, blended drinks. I also never had a taste for frozen drinks. I brain-freeze far too easily. So I invited a friend over, bought some strawberries, cracked open my liquor cabinet, and got creative. Some drinks were disastrous, but not all of them. Here are some of my more suc-cessful endeavours.

sangrietteI made up that name, because it’s like sangria in a hurry. I cut up some strawberries, dropped them in a small Mason jar, and topped it up with cheap wine. Store it in the fridge for a while, and then go to town. The strawberries sweetened up the wine a bit, and it was def-initely reminiscent of sangria, although a little simpler and a lot less sweet. You can certainly keep the strawberries in your drink as your drink it, but I strained them out with the lid, then ate them with some Cool Whip. Ice cream would have been better, and mascarpone or crème fraiche would have been better still.

dIy früliStrawberry Früli is a divisive drink. The Belgian beer is a mix of wheat beer and fruit juice, and is loved by many (including yours truly) and reviled by many more. It’s available at the LCBO season-ally, but now is not that season. Macerate some strawberries in the freezer, or whip them up in a hand blender, and then combine with a good wheat beer in a ratio of about one part fruit to two parts beer. The bottled kind uses just the juice, but if you puree the strawberries well enough, using the entire fruit is a nice change. It’s a different texture, but the flavour is there.

strawberry BlondeInspired by the tradition of fol-lowing a tequila shot with biting a lime wedge, I tried to think of a shooter that would be fol-lowed nicely by biting into a whole strawberry. After a few unsuccessful attempts, the two winners were Goldshläger and peach schnapps, with the schnapps edging out to the win just a bit. It was better when I bit into the strawberry before swal-lowing the drink. Neither drink is as strong as tequila, so it’s slightly more pleasant to drag it out a bit longer.

dIVInUs caesar

coUrTesy

14 www.theontarion.com LIfe

Beth’s craft corner make your own sugar scrubBetween harsh winds and damp weather, the winter ele-ments can do a number on your hands. Chapped and dry skin is a common side effect of winter – especially if, like me, you can’t keep track of a pair of mitts for the life of you. No matter how deeply you stuff your hands in your pockets, you may find the skin on your hands becomes raw from exposure. It doesn’t help that flu season requires frequent hand washing and the harsher soaps dry out your skin.

Here’s a little recipe to make your own sugar scrub. This prod-uct will help sooth your skin and keep it moisturized. Even

manufactured scrubs use the same core ingredients. Once you have the basic formula, you can add other ingredients to make your own special blend.

You will need:

1c Sugar1/2c Olive oil1 jar, cleaned

For variations:Citrus (lemon, lime, grapefruit, orange)Spices (cinnamon, ginger, rosemary)

How to make it:Simply combine the sugar and oil in the jar. If you want to make more scrub than what the recipe

calls for, the basic ratio for a sugar scrub is one unit of sugar for every half unit of oil. If olive oil isn’t your favourite, you can replace it with almond or avocado oil – it will just make your sugar scrub more expensive.

To give your scrub a little more kick, you can add citrus juice and spices to the mix. Just make sure that you don’t add too much citrus. Any more than three tea-spoons will make your scrub too runny.

The possibilities are really up to you. My personal favourite com-bination is lemon and rosemary. Sometimes I will add a little dried mint if I have it. For a holiday feel, a nice mix is vanilla, cinnamon, ginger and a touch of cloves.

cummerbund, friendThe cummerbund saves you from yourself

divinus c caesar

The cummerbund is a sash worn around the waist, covering the top of the pants and rising above it to cover the lower part of the exposed shirt. Cummerbunds are usually black, though maroon is acceptable, and red is common (in every sense of the word).

The cummerbund is a much maligned, mocked, and mis-understood accessory, but if used with a proper understand-ing it can be a valuable tool in the tuxedist lifestyle.

The cummerbund suffers in the popular psyche for three reasons. One, that they imagine it “has no use.” Two, that one’s first experience of it usually lacks understanding or consent, usually at a wedding. Three, that it is too often seen on some disheveled drunk, pulling a full “Paul Giamatti,” with his jacket off, bowtie untied, and bright red cummerbund hanging loose, also usually at a wedding. No one is shocked that this leads to the deepest revulsion. Fortun-ately, a proper understanding of the tuxedist lifestyle and the cummerbund’s role within it will do much to overcome this negativity.

The tuxedist lifestyle is that of those who play the danger-ous game of tuxedo-wearing by choice. The tuxedo is a dangerous tool, which can either afford the wearer an aura of class unpunc-turable by even the crassest of drunken behaviour, or which can turn a Nobel prize accept-ance speech into a disgusting

and pitiful display. The key to achieving the first result is for the tuxedo to appear immacu-late. The route to the second is for anything to be out of place.

The cummerbund protects the wearer against two of the most common problems they will face in this game. First, it covers the difficult pants-zip-per/shirt-buttons meeting area. It is possible for the tuxedist to line these up before attending their function, but by the time they’re drunk and insulting strangers, they will have twisted them out of line. Exposing this is the second most uncouth expos-ure that can happen down there. With a cummerbund tastefully covering the area, no one knows and the aura remains intact.

The second problem is the overwhelming urge a drunk

has to untuck their shirt. A cummerbund doesn’t make this impossible, but it raises the level of the untuck line and makes it more difficult. Without the cummerbund, untucking may be achieved with one hand and a backwards-lean. With the cummerbund it may still be achieved, but will require two hands and some concentration, which is more than someone so drunk can ever hope to coordin-ate. If they do manage to untuck it somewhat, usually the damage is so little that a helpful friend will come help them tuck it back in fully, and maybe even straighten their tie (an added bonus). This gives the tuxedist an opportunity to express the great value of their friendship, and everybody wins. Thank you cummerbund.

sex Geek: some hard truths about erectile dysfunction shireen noble

Okay, let’s deal with this myth right now. You know how in pornographic material, the males are immediately erect and can stay that way for as long as needed? That’s not how things gener-ally work. Like me, many of you probably grew up knowing that Viagra’s a pill that leads to older men looking incredibly happy the next morning. And then at some point, you probably found out what Viagra’s actually used for. Which probably means that as long as you’ve known the term “erectile dysfunction”, you’ve known that there’s a little blue pill that could fix this inevitable prob-lem when you got, well, old.

The thing is, erectile dysfunc-tion isn’t always a problem in the “I-need-a-pill-to-fix-this-prob-lem” kind of way. It’s way more common than people are willing to talk about, and can be brought on by any number of normal experiences. Particularly student experiences. Like being tired, stressed, or having had too much to drink.

We’ve all heard the myths that men are always supposed to want sex and be ready for sex, and then take it as an insult if our male part-ner isn’t up for it. On the other hand, we’re much more inclined to believe women when they say that they’re stressed/have a headache/just not in the mood. Yes, women’s sexuality is more complicated than men’s, but that doesn’t mean that men’s sexual response is always that simple. We need to stop treating it that way.

My point is: erectile dysfunc-tion isn’t just something that happens to old men, or sick men, or whatever other stereo-types you might have about them. Erections change over the course of the life span– the refractory period increases (the amount of time required after ejaculation to recover), skin can lose some of it’s elasticity, and the duration of intercourse can increase. These aren’t necessar-ily bad things, and they don’t make a person any less of a lover. It’s just different.

I read an interview with a col-lege student from the United States in his early twenties who bought erectile dysfunction medication on the black market because he felt he couldn’t per-form as well as he could when he was 15. So he took Viagra to return to that experience. This got me thinking: how often have you actually heard someone lament, “I just wish someone could make love to me like when he was in high school?” Yeah, I didn’t think so. With age, we’ve traded the hormone-riddled lust for experience, skills, and gen-erosity. Sometimes that might mean that things don’t work exactly as planned, and it isn’t the end of the world that phar-maceutical companies seem to want us to believe.

However, if it is something that bothers you, is a chronic issue, or doesn’t have any dis-cernable cause, definitely see a doctor. Erectile dysfunction can be a symptom of some serious medical conditions.

This homemade sugar scrub will keep your skin smooth and protected during the winter months.

MarIanne PoInTner

166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011LifE 15

“Use the earlybird filter on that one, in Instagram.” There’s such a thing as trying too hard to win a breakup, Zelda. you practice your Princess diana eyes for about 10 seconds before every photo. chin down, eyes up. It’s not that hard. now can we please go to Wendy’s and get some nuggets?

sHaUndra Lyanne HInson

Love, loss, and remembering your prioritiescarleigh cathcart

There are many different kinds of pain in life. There’s “the ouch factor”, that sensation that makes you cringe while watching some-one do an all-out belly flop. There’s the groan-worthy emotion elicited from stupid jokes and terrible puns. And, of course, there is the agony of defeat, felt most commonly by those who are fans of the Maple Leafs. My grandfather was a man who experienced all of these and then some.

I say “was” because, last week, I was dealt a blow of my own when my wonderful grandpa passed away. It’s amazing how certain events in your life (usually negative, unfortunately) make you realize just how miniscule our so-called problems truly are. In an instant, my midterm-fuelled stress was replaced with grief and sadness; a

re-evaluation of my priorities was to be made.

My aim is not to preach the “you only live once” mantra, but to enforce how much sense it really does make. Whether you’re a uni-versity student, high schooler, pupil, parent, or senior, the loss of a life will almost always bring with it regrets and ‘what-ifs’. Having run such thoughts through my own head countless times, the realiza-tion grew that it would not change the facts of the situation. Rather than beat myself up over things not done, I have decided to focus on those memories which instead bring a smile to my face. After all, if my grandpa could cheer tirelessly for the Leafs, surely I could be rem-iniscent in the wake of his death.

My grandfather was not a man who laughed often. Yet, he had a unique sense of humour that was displayed in the corniest (and,

retrospectively, fondest) of ways. This man, who did backflips and belly flops into the pool to make me and my younger sisters cheer gleefully with delight, also shared the lamest jokes. He was usually quite flexible, and often with only minor limitations to any of our requests: “You can go swimming, but just make sure you don’t get wet.” When we slept overnight and were preparing our breakfast the next morning: “You can’t have that cereal... it’s only for guests.” Cue the eye-rolling.

There were, of course, my own slip-ups. Imagine his response when, after spotting my sister’s toy on his pecan/pistachio Christmas gift, I exclaimed, “Grandpa! There’s something on your nuts!”.

I also recall fixing myself a grilled cheese one afternoon, noticing a bland taste when I sat down to eat. Thinking it was just that I had used

whole wheat bread for a change, I finished my sandwich anyway. It wasn’t until after I demanded to know why everyone else was (unsuccessfully) stifling giggles that I found out my grandpa had kindly upgraded my grilled cheese– sans cheese. Needless to say, I scoffed thereafter at anyone’s offer to fix me a meal.

If you think the stories I am sharing are descriptive, then you have never met someone like my grandpa. Now there is a man who knows detail. My grandfather had the ability to describe that would make Shakespeare jealous. As a kid, my impatience often resulted in me tuning out, but I would now do any-thing to re-learn the colour, shape, size, and amount of every medicine he has ever taken. I also miss his selective sense of hearing. Funny how it took three “EHS?” for him to hear a simple question, yet from

across the entire first floor he’d yell, “Turn that darn T.V. down!”. As a child, annoying. As a grieving granddaughter? Charming.

Grandpa was many things to many people. He was a fanatic of trains and old cars. He was a loving grandfather who took his admir-ing grandchildren for a fun day at the rink. He was a life partner to my wonderful grandma; a nice date for a quiet night out at Swiss Chalet. He was a hero - not just to me, but to the girl he rescued from a burning home, in the days before you were rewarded with media coverage.

My grandfather is of no common breed. He kept to himself most of the time, preferring one-on-ones over big social groups. He repeated stories untli I myself could recite them word-for-word. He woke up late and went to bed even later.

He wasn’t perfect. And that’s exactly why I love him.

Touchscreens, how do they work?While touchscreens seem like sci-ence fiction come to life, they started cropping up in both sci-fi and the real world about the same time in the mid ‘60s. They didn’t enter the home market until the early 1980s, at which point they used a series of infrared beams across a flat glass surface, which responded to objects in their path. (For an example of just how far infrared technology has come, look no further than the Kinect from last week’s “How Do They Work?” at theontarion.com/10020.)

Infrared technology was mostly abandoned in favour of what is called resistive technology, which is essentially pressure sensitive. Two electrically conductive layers are separated by a small gap, and when an object comes into contact with the screen, the two layers are connected. The electrical current is changed and processed, and the software responds. There are still many examples of resistive touch-screens out there, such as ATMs, and terminals in the medical and hospitality fields, although newer technologies are gaining ground.

Capacitive touch screen tech-nology is becoming increasingly

more common, and is slightly more advanced. It is used primarily by handheld touchscreen devices such as the iPhone, iPad, Blackberry Torch and many others.

Contrary to popular belief, these devices don’t respond to the pres-sure of the object touching them. Capacitive technology responds to static electricity, something our bodies generate and conduct innately.

A glass screen is covered in a coat-ing of a transparent conducting film, such as indium tin oxide, fluorine doped tin oxide or doped zinc oxide. This conducting film is given a small uniform voltage by the device and, as humans conduct electricity through touch, when your fingers come into contact with this film there is a change in the capacitance of the otherwise uniform electrostatic field. This is measured by sensors in each corner of the screen and, based on the changes each sensor regis-ters, the exact coordinates of where contact with the screen was made can be determined.

A different technological mystery will investigated and explained each week in “How do they work?”

Weekly dog

16 www.theontarion.com LifE

Taking inspiration from the wonders of our planetBiomimicry and the influence of the natural world

ethan buchman

The natural world is arranged in such a way that it defines a single, holistic, architectural masterpiece. Our Earth, in all its complexity and magnificent beauty, is really quite like a sculpture – the most spectacular sculpture in our solar system, to be sure. Just as a sculp-tor takes a lump of clay and molds it into a stable sculpting material orbiting on a wheel, so too the Earth was molded out of a dense mass of gas and rock by the caress-ing fingers of the cosmic forces that tell that eiπ=-1 and F=ma. Once, however, our Earth had made it round on her wheel about the billionth time, some really inter-esting things started to happen, things which were not quite so easily described by the cosmic mathematics.

Life appeared.Life: an ever-evolving micro-

structured process of hierarchically

arranged molecularly organic elec-trochemical cycling. Quite a mouthful. If the Earth were a mouth, the extravagance of life here would indeed be quite a mouthful. But we are not con-cerned with mouths. Our interest rather lies in the Earthen Mother as a sculpture: a meticulously pre-cise structural organization and manifestation of material with astounding physical properties and functionality.

How is it that the natural world achieves such expertise in its development and deployment of organic technologies? Are there principles that we can adopt, motifs we can embrace, and inte-gration schemes we can fulfill to enhance our ability to produce sustainably high functioning materials in a way that allows us to connect deeply and authentically with the material world we live in, which is now so thoroughly alien and isolating in its metallic shine and silicon gadgetry?

Indeed, there are. And the grow-ing field of biomimcry is devoted to precisely this task: to find inspiration in nature’s solutions

to the problems and challenges of material reality, and to develop a set of principles by which we can raise the coming generations of motivated artists, designers, scien-tists, and engineers to think with the creative genius of our natural mother Earth. It is our objective to revitalize and transform the inter-action between humanity and its materially constructed world; to produce an economy of materials that are sustainable and coupled in such a way as to maximize effi-ciency and minimize waste; and to celebrate the creativity of struc-tural organization and the human capacity to transform material forms.

Nature has been here for a few billion years. Needless to say, nature has quite a good deal of experience in designing breath-taking dynamic installments and architectural solutions to defy gravity and the relentless pull of entropy. If we are to advance as a species and to sustain our eco-physiology – that is, our bodies and our planet – than we are obliged to practice biomimcry. We are obliged to embrace Nature’s genius

in the design and construction of the materials we use to define our reality and engage our spirit.

For more info about biomimicry,

the annual Biomimicry Confer-ence or Guelph’s own Biomimicry Collaboration, contact bcollab@uoguelph.ca.

The rules of the road applyunsafe use of bike lanes creates a safety hazard for drivers and cyclists

andrea connell

You must have noticed all the new bike lanes the City of Guelph has added to our streets over the past couple of years. It is no small thing to be able to ride in your own lane down Gordon St. from downtown south to Clair Rd., a distance of approximately nine kilometres.

Bike lanes provide a safety cushion for cyclists and driv-ers; that white line reminds both driver and cyclist there is some-body moving along either side of it.

It is also great to see so many people using those lanes to get

to class, work, or do a myriad of other daily activities.

However, I am somewhat dis-heartened when I see people doing ridiculous things in the bike lane. I could list quite a few stupid things. As I am a cyclist and a motorist, I’ve seen it from both sides. But I will settle on what I consider to be the biggest infraction of them all: riding the wrong way in the bike lane.

First of all, the lane is part of the roadway. Laws apply. If you drove your car in the wrong dir-ection on a laneway, you would be ticketed and charged with a driving offence. Not only are you breaking the law, you are impeding cyclists who are, in fact, riding where they should be. What would you have them do, swerve into traffic to avoid you? You are a menace.

I have an idea why sometimes a bike rider takes a shortcut with their riding. For example, many people ride northbound (toward downtown) on Gordon in the southbound lane from College St. to University Ave. so they can turn left. I get it. You want to turn left onto University but you are too inexperienced to negotiate the traffic. I know it’s only one block. I am sorry but that is just not going to cut it. If you don’t feel comfortable then the fact is you must get off your bike and walk it down the side-walk to University Ave. It’s only one block.

One of the other problems riding in the wrong direction is that drivers are not expecting you to be there. If I am turning right and I have just looked right to check for pedestrians, my

attention is then to the left to make sure I can join traffic. You remember your driving test, don’t you? You are travelling much quicker than a pedestrian. If you collide with a car it is

going to hurt. Keep riding your bike. It’s good

for you and the environment but please do so like a grown-up. Despite what they told you the bicycle is not a toy.

MarIanne PoInTner

17166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011LifE

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The ontarion is a non-profit organization governed by a Board of Directors. since the ontarion undertakes the publishing of student work, the opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the ontarion Board of Directors. The ontarion reserves the right to edit or refuse all material deemed sexist, racist, homophobic, or otherwise unfit for publication as determined by the Editor-in-chief. material of any form appearing in this newspaper is copyrighted 2011 and cannot be reprinted without the approval of the Editor-in-chief. The ontarion retains the right of first publication on all material. in the event that an advertiser is not satisfied with an advertisement in the newspaper, they must notify the ontarion within four working days of publication. The ontarion will not be held responsible for advertising mistakes beyond the cost of advertisement. The ontarion is printed by the guelph mercury.

fire away: no fall reading week? Give us a break!stePhanie rennie

Nothing feels better than pack-ing your bags and catching a bus home in the frosty month of Feb-ruary for week long break from the hustle and bustle of University life. In the midst of midterm madness and looming papers, this glorious week provides nine days for stu-dents to catch up on their studies, work ahead, and regain some much needed sanity.

Some students spend their read-ing week doing just that, reading. Others spend their week in tropical destinations or hitting the snow covered slopes. Unfortunately, reading weeks throughout my academic career have been spent doing the former, but this week has often been a stress-relieving life saver. No matter what you spend your reading week doing, this mid-semester break is crucial to keeping up motivation for the remaining weeks of the semester.

Reading week is a crucial aspect of the winter semester as it alleviates a great deal of stress that has been building throughout the year and operates as a safety net for getting work done that would otherwise seem inconceivable. By allowing students to have a week away from the fast pace and high stress levels of University, such a break does wonders for the mental well-being of students and faculty alike.

Many Ontario universities have recognized the importance of reading week and as a result, have implemented reading weeks in both the fall and winter semesters. Students attending universities such as Laurentian and Trent have enjoyed a break in the middle of the chaotic fall semester for many years. Other universities, including University of Ottawa and York, are catching on to this trend and have recently established a fall reading week into their academic calendar.

So why are University of Guelph students expected to persevere through the many weeks of the fall semester without a break?

It is illogical to grant students a winter reading week without con-sidering the equivalent need for a break in the fall semester. In fact, the fall semester is arguably more hectic because the beginning weeks of September are typically spent moving back to Guelph, wait-ing in agonizing lines, and trying to organize the year ahead. It does not make any sense for there to be a break in the winter semester and for students to be expected to keep the momentum strong throughout the fall whilst their friends at other universities enjoy time off.

There is no doubt that winter break provides students a chance to recuperate and reflect to prop-erly study for midterms and to think ahead to what they need to

accomplish in the coming weeks. I feel that the lack of break in the fall semester results in a whirlwind that spins right into the foreboding exam period.

Although Thanksgiving week-end seeks to provide students with three days off, for many it ends up being a weekend of running around, eating and drinking copi-ous amounts and then returning to Guelph without rest and a stack of midterms to look forward to.

I personally feel great agitation when I am bombarded with Face-book status updates and phone calls mid-semester bragging about the glory that is fall reading week while I am nose-to-the-grind

trying desperately hard just to keep my head above water.

While students at other universi-ties are able to improve their marks and their mental health during this week long holiday, students here in Guelph have no such luck in clear-ing and replenishing their minds to prepare for the long weeks between midterms and finals.

For now, students at the Uni-versity of Guelph will be stuck on campus– overwhelmed with midterms, papers and assign-ments– while fellow university students are enjoying a break to catch up with friends, catch up with school work and to catch their breath.

reflections on remembrance daywhy this day is more important than everCanada has welcomed home the last of its soldiers who participated in the NATO Libyan no-fly zone. After international deliberation, the no-fly zone ended on Oct. 31, but it wasn’t until Nov. 5 that soldiers retuned to Canadian soil. The no-fly zone created tension between Libyan-NATO alliances, as 20 of the 28 states contested against entering into the combat initiative with NATO. However, the no-fly zone played a key role in dismantling Moammar Gad-hafi’s regime.

The CBC has quoted that “the mission has been hailed as a suc-cess by NATO’s military and political leaders, who have argued that the bombing raids caused minimal loss of innocent lives.”

While we celebrate the over-throwing of a dictator and the tentative formation of a demo-cratic government, these successes should be taken with a note of caution. It should never be forgotten that what may be a “minimal loss” in numbers is not “a minimal loss.” It can be easy to gloss over the comparatively small casualty rates for the gains

in a bigger picture. However, the loss of innocent lives should never be minimized or disregarded, no matter the context.

In the past, Canadians have prided themselves as being peace-keepers. In the wake of the Libyan no-fly zone and other inter-national initiatives, it is important for us to remember that these peacekeeping tours are not with-out violence. “Peacekeeping” is still a branch of the Department of National Defence, and the term “no-fly zone” sugarcoats the bombing raids that were part of the campaign. The Ontarion in no way means to downplay the major concessions of the Libyan people, nor the efforts of NATO soldiers. However, we are asking you to reflect upon the tragedy of war and violence. Incidentally, the completion of the Libyan no-fly zone coincides with Remem-brance Day, lest we forget.

Remembrance Day, although a celebration of victory, is a way for us to pay respects to soldiers, and the sacrifices they made in both WWI & II. It is also a time to recall the struggle of all those who lived during that time of war. Their struggles and losses are celebrated so that we can understand the

value of living in a country that, at least on the national level, is in a relative state of peace.

When you step back, 65 years is an insignificant amount of time. However, it seems to be long enough to make the younger members of the community feel removed from the horrific events of WWII, as demonstrated by the waning participation in Remembrance Day events and ceremonies. What The Ontarion finds particularly distressing is the lack of participation in the two minutes of silence.

The two-minutes of silence at 11 a.m. is the moment on Remembrance Day that serves as collective pause for reflection so that people never forget the ter-rible events of war. Increasingly, there are a large number of people who will not stop for the two min-utes of silence. Or if they do stop, rather than take part in this intro-spective moment, they continue to send text messages or divert their attention elsewhere.

There are some arguments floating around that Remem-brance Day is obsolete because the veterans who took part in WWI & II have passed away. However, to disregard Remembrance Day on

these grounds is unacceptable: Remembrance Day is not to glorify war, but to remind ourselves of the many losses and why it should never happen again. The mean-ing of Remembrance Day can be translated to all instances of war, and in this light we should be par-ticipating in this day with more enthusiasm than before. Therefore to dismiss it as irrelevant demon-strates a lack of critical thinking and more importantly, a lack of compassion. War continues to happen, and Remembrance Day should be continued with only increasing enthusiasm.

When you refuse to remain silent for those two minutes; when you continue to mix your coffee, walk to your class, or check your email you are inadvertently saying that the actions of others have no value.

One thing hasn’t changed and that is that war is, and always will be a tragedy for all those involved. If we don’t talk about these issues, and allow ourselves to feel the loss of life and human potential, we can’t understand the value of peace.

At the end of the day, the person who benefits the most from reflec-tion is you.

MarIanne PoInTner

18 www.theontarion.com oPinion

edITorIaL

congratulations to this week's crossword winner: Mc McManus. stop by the

ontarion office to pick up your prize!

submit your completed crossword by no later than monday, november 14th at 4Pm for a chance to win two free Bob's dogs!

across1- in what way4- grassy plains of venezuela9- sharp end14- chopper15- Examine account books16- sleep disorder17- male goat19- Bogie, e.g.20- Runs without moving21- Eagle’s home23- class struggle?24- frown27- Pitfall30- cook partly in an oven32- Debate side33- meat-balls37- ___ grows in Brooklyn (2)39- cover with a viscous substance40- grades42- club alternative43- Privily44- Ever

45- fill to surfeit48- Like many Punjabis50- Hives51- verdi heroine55- Dripping57- old stringed instruments58- of Thee ___ (2)60- not to be omitted64- chop into small pieces65- Living in a city66- author Deighton67- ire68- implied69- metal-bearing mineral down1- nun wear2- Rust, e.g.3- water holes4- Puts down5- Pull laboriously6- “much ___ about nothing”, play by shakespeare

7- actress Peeples8- capital of canada9- carson’s predecessor10- footnote abbr.11- Explain12- “The matrix” hero13- Paving material18- court call22- antlered animal24- cure, in a way25- manitoba native26- Delivery room docs28- staggering29- flowery verse30- assumed attitudes31- Large wave caused by tidal flow33- ascends34- Louvre pyramid architect35- aglitter36- Blue38- it’s past due40- Bought the farm41- Prefix with plasm43- sprechen ___ Deutsch?46- Diving bird47- audition

49- Therefore51- summer mo.52- author calvino53- Discourage54- all together56- antiquing agent57- Bits of thread58- ___ little teapot...59- fall from grace61- Bikini top62- telly network63- my ___, vietnam

BesTcrossWord.coM

Last week's solution

19crossWord

for saLeHENDRIX – DYLAN Christmas Photo Sale. November 23 in the UC Courtyard. Original Photographs: Beatles, Doors, Rush, U2, Bob Marley, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Pink Floyd, Stones, Black Keys, Led Zep-pelin. A Great Gift Idea.

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166.10 ◆ november 10th – 16th, 2011

Gorgeous Apartments

Interested in learning more about how your student newspaper is run behind-the-scenes?

Well the Ontarion Board of Directors is looking for volunteers!

Working on a board of directors is a great way to get valuable experience while still an undergraduate student.

Directors are involved in working with human resources, finance, public relations and more!

The next Ontarion BoaThe next Ontarion Board of Directors meeting is scheduled for December 1st.

WANT MORE INFORMATION?FEEL FREE TO INQUIRE AT ONE OF

OUR WEEKLY VOLUNTEER MEETINGS, OR EMAIL

ONTARION@UOGUELPH.CA