Xaverian Weekly the

Mourning our loss since 1895 Thursday, March 12, 2009

issue 18
vol. 117

Nicholas Sheehan
1990-2009

Photo by Danielle Webb

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2 NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009 News Editor Kate Clark
xw.news@stfx.ca

Xaverian Weekly
the

StFX’s student newspaper since 1895

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Volume 117, Issue 18

Next Issue: March 19

EditorialStaff

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Danielle Webb

xw.eic@stfx.ca | (902) 867-5007

MANAGING EDITOR: Will Fitzpatrick

ads@stfx.ca | (902) 867-3732
ASSISTANT BUSINESS MANAGER: Chris Doucette
Ted Smith shows off his product grown for the Cannabis Buyers Club // JOSH THOMSON
NEWS EDITOR: Kate Clark (the Martlet)
xw.news@stfx.ca
CULTURE EDITOR: Shannon Tien
xw.culture@stfx.ca B.C. court makes med
marijuana more legal
SPORTS & HEALTH EDITOR: Matt Skube
xw.sports@stfx.ca
FEATURES EDITOR: Kristen Stallard
xw.feature@stfx.ca
OPINIONS & DISTRACTIONS EDITOR: Xandi Capistrano
xw.distract@stfx.ca Andrew Farris ing that there will be no penalty or clubs “enhanced other people’s
SENIOR REPORTERS: Andrew Lauzon, Devanne O’Brien
The Martlet (University criminal record because Beren had lives at minimal or no risk to soci-

xw.staff@stfx.ca | xw.report@stfx.ca of Victoria)
COPY EDITOR: Andrew Blodgett VICTORIA (CUP) – The quasi-le-
xw.copy@stfx.ca gal status of Victoria’s compassion
clubs may have come a step closer
to resolution this week after a B.C.
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Mary Cranmer-Byng Supreme Court ruling declared
xw.product@stfx.ca parts of Canada’s current medicinal
marijuana laws unconstitutional.
Photography & GRAPHICS Editor: Catherine Fancy The law, which forbids any
xw.photo@stfx.ca supplier from distributing medi-
Senior Photographer: Chris Doucette cal marijuana to more than one
xw.senphoto@stfx.ca patient, has forced the non-profit
clubs into operating illegally, de-
spite the consent of Victoria’s po-
WEBMASTER: Colton White lice.
Distribution Manager: Kristen Stallard The judge has given Health
Canada one year to review the laws
and make it easier for purveyors of
Phone: (902) 867-3732 medicinal marijuana, both inside
Fax: (902) 867-3941 and outside the law, to keep pa-
tients supplied.
Rm. 111D, Bloomfield Centre The verdict comes as a huge
PO Box 924 victory, especially for Mat Beren of
St. Francis Xavier University the Vancouver Island Compassion
Antigonish, NS B2G 2X1 Society. Beren was caught tending
the VICS’ grow-op in Sooke when
police raided the facility in 2004
and confiscated 900 plants.
The Xaverian Weekly is the student newspaper at St. Fran- Although Beren was found
cis Xavier University. The Xaverian Weekly is published on guilty of growing and trafficking
Thursdays by The Xaverian Weekly Publications Board and an illegal substance, the prosecu-
is editorially autonomous. The Xaverian Weekly has a circu- tion’s demands for a stiff sentence
lation of 2,000 copies weekly. were thrown out.
Instead, the judge completely
Opinions expressed in the Xaverian Weekly are those of the discharged the conviction, mean-
been growing the cannabis for the
club.
This ruling brings into light
the legal limbo in which many or-
ganizations such as VICS operate.
The Supreme Court of Canada has
ruled that marijuana, which is ef-
fective for easing the suffering of
those with chronic conditions, is
a constitutional medicine and the
government has a responsibility to
provide it to those with a doctor’s
prescription.
Beren’s defence made the case
that the marijuana provided by
the federal government, grown in
a Manitoba mineshaft, was of poor
quality and obtaining it meant
jumping over “unnecessary bureau-
cratic delays or obstacles.”
Philippe Lucas, the director of
VICS, also points out that the fed-
eral application process can take
weeks or months, time which can
be ill-afforded by those who are in
enough pain to warrant a medici-
nal marijuana prescription.
It was because of these regula-
tory hurdles and the inadequacy
of the federal marijuana that the
compassion clubs were able to
spring into existence – VICS serves
more than 850 doctor-referred
patients on Vancouver Island. Jus-
tice Marvyn Koenigsberg ruled in
Beren’s case that while compassion
ety,” they “did so outside any legal
framework.”
The onus to reform the le-
gal framework lies not with the
compassion clubs, which operate
“openly, and with reasonable safe-
guards,” but with Health Canada
and the Canadian College of Phy-
sicians who failed to make medici-
nal marijuana sufficiently available
for chronic sufferers, said Koenigs-
berg.
Other compassion associations,
like the Cannabis Buyers Club, a
corollary of UVic’s own Hempol-
ogy 101 Society, have greeted the
likely review of the laws surround-
ing clubs with enthusiasm.
The Cannabis Buyers Club has
undergone six police raids on their
headquarters in downtown Victo-
ria, and the operators have spent
several nights in jail, with the
charges overturned by courts each
time.
Kristen Mann, Cannabis Buyers
Club spokesperson, says she’ll wel-
come what a review could mean for
the club, but notes that the system
still needs many changes.
“Although we have been accept-
ed by the Victoria Police and the
B.C. courts, on a federal level, we
are still considered to be distribu-
tors of marijuana, which is illegal,”
Mann said.

@
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Weekly or the Xaverian Weekly Publications Board.

All materials appearing in the Xaverian Weekly are the

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permission.
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The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
First-year student falls from residence window
Sheehan remembered fondly by all who knew him
Danielle Webb
CUP Atlantic Bureau
Chief
ANTIGONISH (CUP) – Nicholas
Sheehan was one of the first people
Michael MacDonald met when he
arrived at St. Francis Xavier Univer-
sity this past September. Little did he
know that only six months later, the
friendship would be cut tragically
short.
At about 8:50 p.m. on March 8,
Antigonish RCMP responded to a
911 call at the university. Upon arriv-
al they found 18 year-old Sheehan, a
first-year student, on the ground after
he fell to his death from a fourth-sto-
ry window in Lane Hall, a residence
building on campus.
Paramedics pronounced him de-
ceased minutes later.
MacDonald was in a neighbouring
residence when he heard the news.
Health Centre re-opens
A long time coming, the newly renvoated Health Center hopes to provide a
wider variety of servies to students // SETH RUTNER
“I heard the news from a text from
someone in [Lane] asking me what
happened. I didn’t know what she
was talking about and then she said
someone fell out the window. I ran
over and went up to the [fourth] floor
and saw everyone sitting at the end of
the hall with their heads buried,” said
MacDonald.
“Nick was a great guy; easy-going
and could always make you smile.”
The university responded im-
mediately to ensure grief counsellors
were on site and available to students
throughout the night, said a release
issued by StFX Communications Di-
rector Kyler Bell.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out
to the family, friends and classmates
of Mr. Sheehan,” said Bell.
An autopsy was conducted March
9 and toxicology testing was complet-
ed to determine whether or not drugs
or alcohol were present in Sheehan’s
system at the time of the fall.
The RCMP has ruled out foul
play.
Eric Goyette was in shock when
he saw the news on a friend’s Face-
book status.
Goyette had known Sheehan since
the two started Grade 6 at Albert
Street Middle School in Fredericton,
N.B.
Goyette remembers playing hock-
ey with Sheehan.
“He was the type of player that on
the ice he would do anything to stop
you and when the game was over he
would go back to being such a nice
guy.”
“Nick was the type of friend that
everyone needs in their life. He may
be gone, but will never be forgotten,”
Goyette said.
Fellow Albert Street alumnus and
best friend of Sheehan, Conrad Fox,
also heard the news through Face-
NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009
Lane Hall mourns the loss of resident Nicholas
Sheehan //CATHERINE FANCY
book.
“My immediate reaction was I
didn’t know what to think. I was in
shock,” said Fox.
“He was a hilarious guy – very,
very smart. He always got along with
everyone and he was always willing to
Kristen Stallard
Features Editor
Students, staff and faculty were invited
to view the new Student Health Cen-
tre during an open house on Wednes-
day, March 4.
The Grand Reopening of the Stu-
dent Health Centre represented the
culmination of a five year process to
renovate the campus clinic and in-
crease staffing. The $500,000 project
took six weeks to complete.
Matt MacGillvary, President of the
Student Union, was excited to see the
long-awaited project completed. He
remembered interest to renovate the
Health Centre was voiced by students
as early as during his first year.
“Honestly, the Health Centre
wasn’t close to what we needed back
then,” MacGillvary explained. “Look-
ing at The U’s health plan, the centre
was not providing all that it should of-
3
help people out,” Fox continued. “Ev-
eryone who knows him is really going
to miss him.”
A candlelight vigil for the residents
of Lane Hall was held Tuesday night,
and a school-wide memorial service
will be held sometime next week.
fer and some services were not easily
accessible.”
Students who have opted in to
the Students’ Union health insurance
plan, Campus Trust, will now pay very
little to nothing for services.
“This has been a long priority for
The U,” he added. Indeed, achieving
the renovations has been a long pro-
cess. After trying to find financing
from StFX administration and the
Board of Governor’s, The U presented
a referendum to students at the end of
the last academic year.
Students passed the motion to
contribute $25 annually for ten years
to finance the project. Delays during
the summer had some concerned that
renovations would be pushed back yet
another year.
The new Health Centre has en-
larged its services and facilities to in-
clude not only nursing and physician
care, but also chiropractic and natu-
ropathic medicine. Expect massage
therapy and a sports medicine doctor
to follow next September, as well.
Physically, the centre, located on
the third floor of the Bloomfield Cen-
tre, received a modern and refreshed
design. The addition of warm hues
and dark wood for the room’s décor
creates a professional entrance and
waiting room for visitors. Television
and wireless internet access is also
available.
MacGillvary informed students
that the new design enhances privacy
as well.
“Before, going to the Health Cen-
tre was awkward. The waiting room
was very open and you had to go up
to the receptionist and tell her what
you were there for in front of every-
body,” MacGillvary said, adding that
the centre is also working towards cut-
ting wait times.
In contrast to one doctor on staff,
four physicians will now staff the
centre while a nurse will also be on
hand. There are also more examining
rooms.
To book an appointment at the
Student Health Centre, contact
nurse@stfx.ca or call 867-2263. Oper-
ating hours are 9am to 4pm Monday
to Friday.
4 NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009
N.S. reaffirms commitment
to tuition freeze
Danielle Webb
CUP Atlantic Bureau
Chief
ANTIGONISH (CUP) – Tuition
in Nova Scotia won’t be going up,
at least for the next two years, as
the premier has vowed to honour
the tuition-freeze agreement with
the province’s universities.
Rumours of a $10-million cut to
post-secondary education funding
began circulating on March 7 when
the province announced that it is
short on funds and will be looking
for places to cut their budget.
Students’ unions and student
lobbying groups across the province
had concerns that the province was
asking the university presidents to
make budget cuts that would affect
the current tuition freeze and pos-
sibly raise fees by $300 per student
next year.
The cutbacks would be a direct
breach of the Memorandum of Un-
derstanding contract between the
province and Nova Scotia’s 11 uni-
versity presidents.
Terms of the contract outline a
tuition freeze until 2010-11 in re-
Write for the Xave-
rian Weekly!
Meetings Monday
at 6 p.m. in the
Newsroom, base-
ment SUB
turn for provincial funds dedicated
to meet operational costs.
The Nova Scotia University
Student Bursary trust was also ru-
moured to be affected.
But the Alliance of Nova Scotia
Student Associations – a provin-
cial student lobby group – received
word from N.S. Premier Rodney
MacDonald on March 10 that the
tuition freeze and the bursary trust
would remain in place as prom-
ised.
“In the May 6, 2006 speech to
the throne, the Rodney MacDon-
ald government made a commit-
ment to make the cost of obtain-
ing a typical undergraduate degree
in Nova Scotia comparable to the
national average within five years,”
said Kelly Wilson, executive direc-
tor for ANSSA.
“We have been assured by gov-
ernment officials that this agree-
ment will not be deviated from.”
“Premier MacDonald and [Edu-
cation] Minister [Judy] Streatch
understand how important this
agreement is to students. This
commitment represents an invest-
ment in students, families, and the
News Editor Kate Clark
xw.news@stfx.ca
economy,” said ANSSA Chair Matt
Risser.
Kyle Steele, president of the
Students’ Union at Acadia Univer-
sity, is pleased the province is keep-
ing their word.
“A deal is a deal,” said Steele.
“We’re extremely happy that the
government has continued to com-
mit resources to the present and
future of post-secondary education
in this province – even in a time of
financial hardships.”
“In tough economic times, peo-
ple who lose jobs will tend to revert
back to improving upon their edu-
cation to open the door to new op-
portunities. Obviously, the govern-
ment understands the importance
of access to education and ensuring
that tuition in Nova Scotia contin-
ues to be lowered to the national
average.”
More than 42,000 students at-
tend university in Nova Scotia, with
an average tuition rate of $5,932 for
in-province students and $6,200
for out-of-province students. Nova
Scotia has the highest tuition in the
country, with the national average
currently resting at $4,724.
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
Getting into the U
Explaining the U’s hiring process
Devanne O’Brien
Senior Reporter
The names of the incoming Stu-
dents’ Union executive are to be
released this week, along with ap-
plications for the multitude of sub-
executive positions available for the
2009-2010 school year.
Current Vice President of the
Students’ Union, Julia Clarke, says
that interviews for the positions of
VP Communications, VP Student
Relations, VP Union Services, VP
Campus Police, and VP Finance,
have taken place this past weekend
and the student body will be in-
formed who the new executives are
by the end of this week.
The application for executive po-
sitions includes the submission of a
proposal outlining the applicant’s
ideas for the given VP post, as well
as a standard resume and referenc-
Could this be U? // SETH RUTNER
es.
Applicants are then short-listed
by the Students’ Union President
Elect and Vice President Elect be-
fore being called to an interview.
The interview panel is comprised
of the individual currently occupy-
ing the executive post if he or she is
not reapplying for the job, either the
current Students’ Union President
or Vice President, two councilors,
and both the President Elect and
Vice President Elect.
Depending on the position, a
full time staff member employed by
the Union may be asked to sit on
the panel.
This year, there were five appli-
cants for the position of VP Cam-
pus Police, four for VP Finance,
eight for VP Student Relations, two
for VP Communications, and two
for VP Union Services.
Clarke explains that the inter-
view panel typically discusses each
candidate after the interview and
comes to a consensus about who
should fill the position.
“If it’s contentious and people
[within the interview panel] are re-
ally against [an applicant being se-
lected] then it goes to a vote,” she
says. “But usually from the inter-
view, it’s kind of clear [which appli-
cant will be selected].”
Clarke says the Union is doing
the best it can to prevent personal
relationships or friendships between
applicants and those on the inter-
view panel from interfering with
hiring decisions.
She says that in some cases, in-
terviewers voluntarily remove them-
selves from the panel if they have
personal ties to the applicant. The
biggest safeguard, however, is hav-
ing a large number of interviewers
on the panel to help ensure the right
NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009 5
person is picked for each job.
As applications for sub-executive
positions will be released shortly, Other Students’
Julia Clarke hopes to debunk the Union jobs avail-
myth that previous experience with able
the Students’ Union is a prerequisite
for these jobs. Marketing and Com-
“Union experience is important, munication :
but if I look at myself, I wasn’t in- - Web administrator
volved in the Union at all and then I - Marketing manager
had this position,” she explains. - Marketing team mem-
Clarke says volunteer work and bers
involvement in the campus commu- - Internal marketing
nity in other areas is generally what manager
impresses interviewers. - X-Army marketing
Applications for sub-executive squad
positions will be released shortly.
The incoming executives are respon- Student Life:
sible for this round of hiring. - House presidents/VPs
“We love to see people getting - Off-campus coordina-
involved,” Clarke concludes. “It or- tors
der to get involved with the Union,
you need to apply for one of these Voice of Students:
jobs.” - Chair of Council
- Deputy Chair of Coun-
cil
- Chief Returning Officer
- Deputy Chief Returning
Officer
- Returning Officer
- Councillors
- 1 Senator
Union Services:
- PhotOstudio Manager
- Environment Officer
- Student Food Bank
Coordinator
- Off-campus Housing
Officer
- X-Helpline Coordinator
- Student Advocates
Campus Police:
- Deputy Campus Police
Chief
- Senior Campus Police
Officer
- Campus Police Officer
Activities and Events:
-Entertainment Coordi-
nator
- Society Coordinator
- O-Crew Co-Chairs
6 NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009
International news
Lisa Rankin
Contributor
Prostitutes available on
Craigslist
The online ad site Craigslist is facing
charges of promoting prostitution.
Charges were laid by an Illinois
sheriff, Thomas Dart, who claimed
the site has done nothing to prevent
the promotion of the sex trade, and
wants the erotic section of the site
shut down.
However, spokespeople from the
site say they are cooperating with
authorities to end any illegal activ-
ity.
Craigslist has already settled
another lawsuit on the issue, and
promised to stop any illegal usage
of the site. However, Dart does not
believe better usage of the ad site has
occurred.
When discussing the site, Dart
expresses the role Craigslist plays in
promoting prostitution is like a vir-
tual pimp, forcing missing children,
runaways, abused women and traf-
ficked women to be forced into the
sex trade.
- With files from the BBC
The road to love
Men from the village of Barwaan
Kala, India, known locally as “the
village of unmarried people,” have
decided to increase their odds. Over
100 men have come together to
build a 6 km road to connect with
the rest of the district in hopes for
better access to potential wives.
The remoteness of the village is
blamed for the lack of marriages, as
the last recorded occurred 50 years
ago.
A major obstacle in the road
construction is its passage through a
wildlife protection zone. Authorities
have stated that the men will face re-
percussions for damage caused.
The village has very poor infra-
structure, as they have no working
water pumps, no teacher at the local
school, and the closest police station
and hospital are over 45 km away,
which has contributed to the refusal
of local fathers to allow their daugh-
ters to marry men from the village.
- With files from the BBC
Man caught with cocaine
cast
A Chilean man attempting to en-
ter Spain with 4.87 kgs of cocaine
was caught by Spanish police after
a flight from Santiago. The cocaine
was dispersed between a hollowed-
out six-pack of beer, two hollowed
out stools and a leg cast made of co-
caine rather than plaster.
Upon examination of the leg, it
was revealed that the man actually
had a fracture in his tibia and fibula,
www.xaverianweekly.ca
News Editor Kate Clark
xw.news@stfx.ca
Former POW calls for
though it is unknown whether the
injury was self inflicted in order to
give legitimacy if x-rayed.
solidarity with Palestine
Spain is a major connection
point for cocaine travelling from Soha Bechara, known for her attempt to assassinate a South
South America to Europe, and the
country has the highest rate of co-
Lebanon Army commander, spoke to students in Montreal
caine consumption in Europe.
After the discovery was made,
the man was taken to hospital where
his injuries were properly treated.
-With files from CNN and the
BBC
Zimbabwe’s PM recovering
in Botswana
Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe’s
recently sworn-in prime minister,
is recovering from injuries suffered
during a car accident which claimed
the life of his wife this week. He will
be treated for neck and back inju-
ries.
Tsvangirai’s rival, President Rob-
ert Mugabe has visited the PM in
hospital, and sent his condolences
for the death of his wife.
Tsvangirai’s vehicle was side-
swiped by a lorry which belonged
to US government funded USAID,
causing the SUV to flip several times.
The collision is not considered sus-
picious by officials, but Tsvangirai’s Former Lebanese prisoner of war Soha Bechara says Palestinians must resist occupa-
political party will be conducting its tion // Giuseppe Valiente
own investigation.
Questions of the new PM’s abil- Giuseppe Valiante of the SLA. She was released from treal. “The occupied doesn’t negotiate
ity to govern the country despite CUP Quebec Bureau prison in 1998. with an occupier. You negotiate with
personal tragedy have arisen, as the Bechara was invited to speak as someone when you are on an equal
Chief
task had already been difficult with- part of Israeli Apartheid Week, a level. The Palestinians are very far
in a power-sharing government. MONTREAL (CUP) – Soha Bechara week of conferences with the goal of from this.”
has never been to Israel. Nor have her highlighting what organizers see as The Palestinians don’t really have
- With files from the BBC toes felt the sand lining Gaza’s beaches. Israeli’s discriminatory policies to- any leadership to negotiate with any-
Yet this timid-looking, middle-aged wards the Palestinians and to grow way, she said.
mother of two commands immense support for the international Boycott, “The occupation has strangled the
Women face difficult times respect internationally as a symbol of Divestment and Sanctions movement leadership,” she said. “When at 14
in Iraq resistance to occupation, especially for against Israel. years old you find yourself in prison
Palestinians. Bechara called on the audience to . . . this is a society that can no longer
A study performed by Oxfam In- When Bechara took the stage last take their “Canadian passports” and produce leaders.”
ternational has shown Iraqi women Tuesday night in Montreal’s north visit the Palestinian territories and She says all the Palestinians can do
have been facing extreme hardship end to give a speech called “Prisoners come back to Canada to testify about is resist.
despite the decrease in violence. of Occupation,” the 200-plus crowd what they have seen. “Its not an Arab or Israeli ques-
It is estimated there are currently rose instantly and clapped with re- “It’s not because I’m Arab; it’s be- tion. It’s a fundamental question for
740,000 widows in the country, as spect and admiration. cause I’m human that I say we must humanity.”
their husbands were killed, abduct- The respect comes from the 10 do something,” said Bechara, who was On the subject of her torture and
ed, disappeared, or incapacitated. years she spent in the notorious born in Lebanon. imprisonment for 10 years, Bechara
Over 35.5% of women surveyed Khiam prison inside then-Israeli- She said the movement to impose says it doesn’t affect her life negatively.
were now the heads of their house- controlled Southern Lebanon. Israel sanctions on Israel is important be- She has mothered two children since
hold. occupied the country from 1982 to cause only the international commu- her release, wrote an autobiography,
Many of these women are un- 2000. Bechara joined the resistance nity that can make a difference in the and now teaches mathematics in her
able to earn a decent living, and are and was captured in 1988 after she lives of Palestinians. home in Switzerland.
therefore forced to make many diffi- tried to assassinate the leader of the The Palestinians should not be ne- “[My imprisonment] was an hon-
cult decisions on the welfare of their South Lebanon Army, Antoine Lahd. gotiating for peace, she said. our. It was a moment very important
children. The SLA was a militia force sup- “I know my position is more mili- for me,” she said. “That I could resist
The survey was conducted last ported by the Israeli forces. Bechara tant than Hamas. No negotiations,” it until the end . . . it brings noth-
summer and included 17,000 was beaten, electrocuted, and forced she said the night after the speech, in ing but pride to have passed this test
women in five provinces across the to endured other tortures at the hands a small apartment in uptown Mon- without failing.”
country.
The Executive Director of Ox-
fam International said the survey BEST SUMMER JOB EVER!
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The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
The big T-dot celebrates a big year. //
Happy birthday, Toronto!
Canada’s largest city turns 175
Kate Clark
News Editor
It is not often in Canada that we
celebrate Toronto.
Their sports teams—sorry, Matt
Skube—suck. Comedian Will Fer-
guson described it as a “slowly ex-
panding blob.” Sometimes, in the
summer, you can’t breathe, and it
frequently smells like pee.
But Toronto really is a great
place, and it’s celebrating its 175th
birthday.
The area had been inhabited by
various First Nations groups before
the French created a permanent
presence around 1750. The earli-
est large influx of English-speak-
ing immigrants was from Loyalists
fleeing the American Revolution
in the 1780s, and became the cap-
ital of Upper Canada in 1788 be-
cause of its distance from the new
American border. They called this
settlement York.
York was razed by the Ameri-
cans during the War of 1812, be-
ginning a movement to change the
name so as to differentiate it from
PAYTON CHUNG
New York City.
Toronto was encorporated
into a city in the midst of a chol-
era epidemic, on March 6, 1834.
The name comes from a Mohawk
name for the area, meaning “where
the trees stand in the water.”
Three years later, it was home
to the Upper Canadian edition of
Rebellion of 1837, which had sev-
eral results—responsible govern-
ment, the six-year incarceration of
this writer’s great-grandfather, Ed-
ward Clark, and a law prohibiting
the dragging of a dead horse down
Yonge Street on a Sunday.
Toronto grew after Confedera-
tion, as southern Ontrario flour-
ished. The city’s multicultural
nature came out in the late nine-
teenth century, as German, Ital-
ian, Jewish, Russian, Polish and
Chinese immigrants came to the
city.
Toronto continued to grow and
diversify in the twentieth century,
becoming English Canada’s cul-
tural and academic capital. Toron-
to encorporated the country’s first
public and seperate (Catholic)
school boards, and was home to
both the T. Eaton Company and
Simpson’s. Babe Ruth played base-
ball in the Exhibition Park, and
Ian Fleming lived in the Annex.
Riots, streetcars and Stanley
Cup victories dominated the city’s
landscape in the years before 1967.
The second century of Confed-
eration brought the Toronto we’ve
come to know and love—the CN
Tower was completed in 1976 and
began to dominate the now-famil-
iar waterfront landscape. The final
two cement sections of the spire
had to be hoisted up with a heli-
copter. Trudeau-era immigration
policies brought in many of the 49
per cent of Torontonians who are
foreign-born.
Toronto today is steeped in his-
tory, both centuries past and in
the making. Celebrations abound
for different cultures and religions
in what is heralded as the most
multicultural city in the world,
but this week, they are all just cel-
ebrating the city they call home.
So Happy demisemiseptennial
Birthday, T-Dot! You deserve it!
NEWS
Mar. 12, 2009
National news
Patrick Connors
Contributor
Li not criminally guilty
When Vince Li stabbed and decapitat-
ed Tim McLean onboard a Greyhound
bus in Manitoba he supposedly believed
God told him to do it.
Justice John Scurfield found him not
criminally responsible, which the law al-
lows in situations where the perpetrator
suffers from a severe mental illness.
Justice Scurfield said that Li was
unable to understand that what he did
was morally wrong, and psychiatrists for
both the Crown and defence testified
that the defendant suffers from schizo-
phrenia.
Mr. Li will appear before a crimi-
nal review board in the next 90 days to
determine how he will be institutional-
ized.
Justice Scurfield tried to assure that
this would not mean Li would go free.
He stated that as long as he was deemed
to be a threat to society he would re-
main in an institution.
The victim’s mother was not pleased
with the result. Carol deDelley ex-
pressed anger over Li not being found
criminally responsible and said the law
needs to change.
- With files from the Globe and Mail
Nova Scotia finance minister
succumbs to cancer
Family, friends and colleagues gathered
last Thursday to say goodbye to a man
who was described by a colleague as
“large in size but also large in heart.”
Nova Scotia Finance Minister Mi-
chael Baker died last week after a three-
year battle with cancer at the age of 52.
Hundreds crammed into two
Lunenburg Churches for his funeral.
Mr. Baker was praised for tireless
public service to his community and
province, his sense of humour, and ded-
ication to his family – all of which he
did not given up during his three-year
struggle.
Premiers, opposition leaders, and
other community leaders praised his ef-
forts. Former NS premier John Hamm
said he was “one of the finest public ser-
vants of his generation.”
Prior to politics Baker practiced law
in Chester and Mahone Bay.
He is survived by his wife Cynthia
and two teenage sons.
- With files from Chronicle Herald
$2 billion university fund
reserved for science and tech
The federal government has told univer-
sities and provincial governments that it
wants a $2 billion infrastructure plan to
be used on science and technology in-
vestments.
Some university leaders and prov-
inces came out in opposition to this de-
mand. They believe that all universities
should receive some of the funding, and
that universities should decide where it
is spent.
The federal government maintains
that the money should be spent on sci-
ence and technology upgrades.
Schools are expected to apply to
the federal government to receive some
money. If approved, the projects will
receive 50 per cent of the funding from
7
the federal government and 50 per cent
from the university or its province.
One Ontario university complained
that the non-science and technology
projects are higher on their list of need-
ed improvements.
Federal Liberals criticized the gov-
ernment for trying to impose strict con-
trols on university spending, noting that
it is the universities who know best how
to spend the money.
- With files from the Globe and Mail
Liberal strategist files lawsuit
against Tories
A Liberal strategist has filed a $1 million
libel suit against the Conservative party
and Public Works Minister Christian
Paradis.
Warren Kinsella alleges that a Feb. 25
news release bearing Conservative party
letterhead implied that he is “unsavoury,
dishonest and that [Liberal Leader] Mi-
chael Ignatieff and the Liberal party of
Canada” should cut ties with him.
The news release quoted Paradis
calling Kinsella, who will run the Lib-
eral war room during the next federal
election campaign, a “disgraced Chré-
tien backroom organizer.”
Kinsella’s lawyers also allege that
Tory MPs have abused their Parliamen-
tary privilege by making “defamatory”
comments in the House of Commons.
A pair of Conservative MPs took verbal
jabs at Kinsella on Tuesday in the Com-
mons before question period.
Kinsella’s Toronto-based lawyer, Bri-
an Shiller, accused the Conservative par-
ty and Paradis of “egregious conduct.”
“It’s a concerted campaign by the
Conservative party to target and defame
and destroy the reputation of a private
citizen who is a volunteer for the Liberal
party and nothing more,” he said.
- With files from the Canadian Press
EU to ban seal products
Inuit leaders say European legislation
intended to ban seal products will hurt
Arctic communities despite exemptions
designed to protect them.
“History has shown that the entire
market collapses when countries talk
about banning seal products,” explained
Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak. “Inuit in
Nunavut will be affected by this deci-
sion, whether or not an exemption is in
place and that is not right.”
Last week, the EU’s internal market
and consumer protection committee
endorsed a bill that would impose a
ban on the import of all seal products
to the 27-member union. The bill con-
tained provisions that would allow Inuit
to continue to trade seal products “for
cultural, educational or ceremonial pur-
poses.”
Environmental groups perceived to
have played a leading role in building
opposition to the hunt are still widely
scorned across the North and “Green-
peacer” is used as an insult.
The Inuit hunt is a small fraction of
Canada’s annual seal harvest, the world’s
largest.
But still, in 2004 – a year of healthy
prices and open markets – sealskins
brought in $450,000 to remote Inuit
communities with few other ways of
earning cash.
The EU parliament is expected to
vote on the proposed measure in April.
- With files from the CBC
 8 OPINIONS
Mar. 12, 2009
In the wake of tragedy Letters to the Editor
Danielle Webb
Editor-in-Chief
“There is no grief which time does not
lessen and soften.” — Cicero
Tragedy struck StFX this week,
and with it, many of our eyes turned
to those closest to us. Those who
knew Nick Sheehan are mourning
the loss of a great friend, confidant
and family member. And those who
didn’t know him are still contem-
plating the loss of someone close.
There is never an adequate rea-
son for the loss of an innocent life.
Those of us left behind, who have
had our closest friends ripped from
our lives, are simply left to pick up
the pieces and try to make sense of a
life ended too soon.
This much we know: Nick was a
good friend; he was a caring brother
and son; nobody will ever know
why he had to leave us so soon; and
he will be missed dearly.
I, like many others on Sunday
night, heard the tragic news through
Facebook and text messages on my
cell phone. I could do nothing but
stare in shock at the screen in front
of me for nearly an hour.
There isn’t a student, faculty
member or administrator on this
campus who has not been touched
deeply by the loss of Nick Sheehan
from our number. The X family is
CentARCUP 2009
CentARCUP 2009
Atlantic Canadian student journalism conference
Featuring:
• Tim Currie — Online journalism professor at the University of
King’s College in Halifax.
• David Swick — Journalism ethics professor at the University of
King’s College in Halifax.
• Marnie Gillis — Production manager at Halifax’s The Coast, an
independent and locally-owned weekly newspaper.
To register: xw.eic@stfx.ca
St. Francis Xavier University,Antigonish, N.S.
March 27-29, 2009
Hosted by the Xaverian Weekly
one student fewer today than this
time last week, and the loss is still
resonating across the campus.
On Tuesday, Nick’s friends and
fellow Lane residents held a candle-
lit vigil in his honour. Proof that
through death comes unity, re-
membrance and faith. His memory
was honoured while it is still being
formed in the minds of those who
loved him, and for that we must be
happy. Nick will never be forgotten.
His memory has left an impression
on this campus that will never fade
away.
There are times in each of our
lives when we question that which
surrounds us every day. When the
haze of our every day lives is lifted
and we can see more clearly, more
sharply, that which we really value.
These are times when we become
closer with those we love, be they
family, friends, teammates or co-
workers. These are times when we
must come together, unify and strive
to move forward together.
I’m proud to say that our cam-
pus is doing just that. As part of the
Xaverian family, we will help each
other get through this.
StFX has suffered a shocking
loss, and Nick’s friends and family
know it better than any of us. May
we all take this opportunity to come
together, to comfort one another,
and remember that which is most
valuable in all of our lives.
Two days of cutting
edge journalism from
some of this country’s
leading professors,
reporters, editors and
designers.
Open to
all students
and faculty
Re: failure is an
option
Dear Editor,
I took offence to the article ‘Failure
is an option’ in the Feb. 19 edition of
the paper, where the choice to do away
with supplementary exams was extolled
as a victory. It did not look at the whole
situation regarding supplementary ex-
ams, ignoring students who struggle
with exams completely, and instead
wrote off all students who write supple-
mentary exams as slackers.
While I do agree it is not right to
allow students who have neglected
their studies throughout the semester
a second chance, you said yourself that
it an exam rarely constituents an entire
grade. In this case, should a student
have failed to comprehend or complete
the coursework, a supplementary exam
is extremely unlikely to give that stu-
dent a passing mark. It should also be
noted that a student needs a mark be-
tween 45-49 and permission from the
professor to even be given the option of
a supplementary exam. It is highly un-
likely that a student who did absolutely
nothing all year would have the option
of a supplementary exam.
I was also annoyed with the implica-
tion that all those who require supple-
mentary exams do so because they have
ignored their coursework. I can assure
you that this is not always the case. I,
unfortunately, suffer from rather severe
test anxiety and consequently do not
tend to perform well on exams, despite
understanding the course work ad-
equately. On an occasion where anxiety
gets the better of me, I can fail the entire
exam, even though I have preformed
reasonably well throughout the semes-
ter, and have burned the midnight oil
studying. This is not an uncommon
problem; I know I am far from the only
student to have this kind of anxiety.
I found that this article very irritat-
ing and felt it did not adequately repre-
sent the situation regarding supplemen-
tary exams at all.
Kelsey MacGillivray
No name drugs
Dear Editor,
Despite being chemically identical,
in some instances generic drugs actually
don’t work as well as brand names.
Aspirin®, for example, works better
than its no-name equivalent, so long as
people know what they are taking. The
reason is that although brand name
drugs affect the body in exactly the
same way as generics, our perception
of how well they work is influenced by
our expectations. We expect expensive
fancy drugs to work better, and so they
do. Branding has an analgesic effect.
But it gets far odder than that! Some
drugs are actually more effective when
they are initially released on the market
Have something to say? Send your thoughts to xw.eic@stfx.
ca. Please keep all letters under 300 words, and include your
name and contact information. Letters are edited for grammar
only. Letters must be submitted by Saturday at 3 p.m.
Opinions Editor Xandi Capistrano
(because we think new is better); pills
of different colour and different shape
work differently; positive media cover-
age of a drug can alter its effectiveness;
and perhaps coolest of all, a drug works
better when we think it costs more.
Welcome to the strange world of the
placebo effect.
So the bottom line is, students
might actually be better off shelling out
a few extra bucks for the Tylenol Ul-
tra. All that packaging and advertising
really does make it a better medicine.
When it comes to subjective phenom-
ena like pain, belief really does make it
so. Weird, eh?
Jason Loxton
Basketball players
Dear Editor,
I am writing this letter in response
to the incident that took place on Feb.
21, and the frenzy of reaction that has
followed.
For those who are unfamiliar, three
X-Men basketball players were involved
in an altercation outside of Pat’s Place
and another StFX student was severely
injured.
The unnamed victim is severely
concussed, needed 35 stitches and is
bruised from shoulder to hips. His girl-
friend was also thrown to the ground
(by her hair) while attempting to help
him.
I know that everyone makes mis-
takes, but after the events that led to
now-ex-coach Garry Gallimore leaving
his position, the academic dishonesty
of two X-Men who were caught cheat-
ing on a final exam last December and
the X-Man who pled guilty to being in
possession of stolen property last April,
I have had enough.
As a former varsity athlete, I am
fully aware of how much time and en-
ergy athletes give up for their sports and
their university — I am not arguing
whether this is fair or not, simply that
it is the truth. Student athletes are often
the face of the university in the eyes of
the public, and as such are often held
to higher standards of responsibility
than other students. Many of our ath-
letes are extremely intelligent, involved
in volunteer endeavours and caring of
their peers. Most members of the men’s
basketball team fall into this category,
so I am truly sorry for those whose im-
age has been tarnished by your not-so-
moral teammates.
A few bad students have ruined the
student athlete image for everyone else.
This most recent story has made news
across the country and, frankly, I am
sick of talking to friends, family and
even other athletes across the country,
and being asked about the situation
with the men’s basketball team. Shar-
ing the same varsity athlete title as these
young men who have broken the law
is insulting.
A fifth-year player and team cap-
tain was allegedly involved in the inci-
dent on Feb. 21. The sad thing is that
xw.distract@stfx.ca
a team’s attitude reflects its leadership,
and when the leadership of a team is
allowing players to get away with viola-
tions of the community code (articles 1,
9, 12 and 29), and the law itself, some-
thing is seriously wrong.
I want to know how a player can
steal, cheat and assault and still be on
the floor at the X-Men’s home game
against Cape Breton on Feb. 26 — per-
haps because it was a 4-point game for
first place in the league? I am aware that
these players are innocent until proven
guilty, but one X-Man has plead guilty
in a court of law and is not only still on
the team, but still playing regularly, so
does it really matter?
The administration does not want
to jump to conclusions based on the
accusations surrounding these young
men, which is understandable. But
while these players are being sidelined
for this weekend’s final 6, the decision
to keep them off the court is being
revisited if the team makes nationals.
That tells me that winning is being
given a higher priority than moral and
judicial integrity.
I want to make myself clear that I
am not placing blame on any one per-
son or committee. I think the athletics
department, dean of students, Coach
Konchalski and team captains are all to
blame. The quality of leadership, more
than any other factor determines the
success or failure of an organization,
and I think that it is safe to say that the
X-Men basketball team is severely lack-
ing in this category.
The fact that one of the players who
was caught cheating on his final exam
was the same player that plead guilty
to stealing electronics from his house-
mates tells me that Coach Konchalski’s
in-house disciplinary measures are not
working. How are these players still al-
lowed to play the sport they love, when
it should be one of the first things taken
away from them? When the captain
of the team is taken out of practice in
handcuffs, what image is set for first-
year players? That it is alright to break
the law because your coach, athletic de-
partment and university will make sure
you get back on the court?
Director of athletics Leo MacPher-
son recently retracted his statement of
support for the three basketball players
that have been charged with this hor-
rific crime, and for that I applaud him.
I would like to remind Coach Kon-
chalski and the entire disciplinary team
at StFX of our motto: Quaecumque
Sunt Vera — Whatsoever things are
true; whatsoever things are honest;
whatsoever things are just; whatsoever
things are pure. Call me an idealist, but
I don’t see breaking both the commu-
nity code and the law as true, honest,
just and pure.
I implore you to take action to en-
sure that the good name of both the
university and the entire athletics de-
partment are returned to a good light.
These young men need to be disciplined
and the varsity athlete image restored.
Pat Hoyland
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
An open letter to every
girl I’ve ever dated
Conor Meade
The Peak (Simon Fraser
University)
BURNABY (CUP) – Hey babe,
You’re a great girl. I really mean
that. But for the love of God, can
you please stop sending me so many
goddamn text messages? I know
you splurged on the unlimited data
package, but it doesn’t mean you
have to send me a “Hey . . . what’s
up? xoxo” quite so often.
A guy’s gotta relax sometimes,
and that’s hard to do when it takes
longer to make a bag of popcorn
than it does for you to send yet an-
other one of your cute, sweet, but
ultimately very time-consuming
“Thinking of you” updates.
It wouldn’t be a problem if I were
make plans.
Also, I accept that you are some-
what emotional and start to miss me
when we spend a few days apart. In
those situations, sure, give me a call.
You caught me at a bad time and
I can only talk for a few minutes,
but it’s no problem. It’s nice to hear
from you.
E-mailing is also cool. If you’re
at school or work, and in front of
a computer, and you think of me,
I understand that you’d want to tell
me such. I’m flattered because, hey,
that’s very sweet of you.
Other forms of communication
I haven’t mentioned, we’ll review
on a case-by-case basis. Smoke sig-
nals, pigeon-messengers, are tin-can
phones are all acceptable.
Any other creative ideas you
ent is deaf. I assure you I am not.
I don’t mean to single you out.
Fully 90 per cent of your otherwise
wonderful gender sends many times
more text messages than is sane or
reasonable. I don’t know why this is
the case, and I doubt I ever will.
I also don’t know why it’s taken
me so long to sack up and make my
dislike of text messages perfectly
clear to you, or why similarly in-
clined men everywhere are hesitant
to tell their girlfriends’ exactly what
I’m telling you: We like you.
Love you, in some cases.
If you want to come over tonight
and hang out, that’d be great. But if
you can’t get a handle on your text
message addiction, or at least refrain
from indulging in it with me, I’m
leaving you for an Amish chick.
OPINIONS
Mar. 12, 2009
Don’t abandon the
Canadian Forces
More military spending is needed,
especially in a recession
Frank Cybulski
Readings from the Right
The current economic downtown has
sent politicians on all sides rushing to
dole out government aid in an effort to
win votes, to be seen as ‘doing some-
thing’ about the crisis and to stimulate
a slowing economy.
However, much of these funds are
being misdirected: one of the biggest
beneficiaries of Canadian public funds
should be the Ministry of National De-
fence and the Canadian Armed Forces.
The Canadian Forces have been
underfunded for decades, with aging
equipment continuing to serve long
after its intended lifespan. It is not un-
9
to fight and to die, attempts to increase
military procurement are met with pac-
ifist hysteria and laments for Canada’s
lost peacekeeping past.
The military’s problems do not stop
with equipment. Recruitment of addi-
tional personnel has been a top priority,
but even the increased incoming flow
of recruits has barely kept pace as more
and more aging members of the Forces
retire and return to civilian life.
Amidst all the cries for billions of
government dollars to be spent on con-
structing infrastructure, the military
has largely been ignored.
This should not be the case. Money
spent on defence largely stays within
Canada, benefiting a significantly sized

allowed to read the message, smile
at your thoughtfulness, and then go
back to whatever I was doing. But I
have learned that ignoring them is
hazardous.
Sure, letting a few consecutive
texts slip by unanswered provides
some short-term peace of mind, but
there will be a steep price to pay
tomorrow, when I ask how you are
doing, and you demand to know
where I was last night, and whether
I was with that whore from my in-
tramural volleyball team.
All that for one text-free eve-
ning? No thanks. Instead, I’ll heed
the sage advice of Dr. Phil and talk
about my feelings: Stop texting me
so goddamn much. I hate it. Sweet-
ie.
It’s not that I don’t like you.
Spending time with you is great.
Talking on the phone is less great,
but it’s a fast and simple way to
”
might have, common to find tanks, planes and oth- defence industry and a large number
run them by er pieces of equipment that are older of vulnerable high-tech industries. As
me. But the one than their operators. well, the military provides jobs and ca-
medium I must While the Conservative govern- reers both directly and indirectly for a
rule out, firmly ment has attempted to address some good number of Canadians.
and without ex-
ception, is the
I also don’t know why of the most pressing concerns, increases
in funding and personnel have lagged
In a time of global economic insta-
bility, investing money in the Canadian
text message. it’s taken me so long to behind the military’s ever-increasing re- Forces is one of the most prudent deci-
I’ve tried sack up and make my sponsibilities. Canada’s levels of defence sions the government could make. The
to understand
your intrinsic
dislike of text messages spending are proportionately some of
the lowest in NATO — an organiza-
men and women risking their lives on
a daily basis overseas should be entitled
need to send perfectly clear to you, tion whose members we often accuse of to the best equipment and protection
and receive text
messages, and
or why similarly inclined ‘not pulling their weight.’
Afghanistan will remain a combat
that money can buy. Spending it will
not only benefit the military, but the
I have failed. men everywhere are zone for Canadian troops until their Canadian economy as a whole.
There is abso- hesitant to tell their withdrawal in 2011, and the past few The first and foremost responsibil-
lutely nothing years of constant combat operations ity of a government is not to dole out
a text message girlfriends’ exactly what have taken a severe toll on the Forces’ welfare and EI payments, but rather to
can accomplish I’m telling you: We like personnel and equipment. protect its citizens from internal and
that cannot be
done faster and
you. Shortages of crucial armoured ve-
hicles and the mechanics to serve them
external threats. Instead of wasting
money on digging unnecessary holes
better with a Love you, in some are becoming a chronic problem. It is in the ground, Canada should keep
phone call, un-
less the recipi-
cases. appalling that while we as a country are
willing to send our soldiers into combat
its people in uniform at the top of its
spending list.

PHOTO CONTEST!
Win concert tickets

The Xaverian Weekly

challenges you to take a photo
of the most creative use of this
newspaper you can think of.
You can submit photos for consideration to
xw.eic@stfx.ca.
The winning photo will be printed in next week’s
issue and the winning photographer will win two
tickets to the upcoming Dirty Deeds concert at
the KMC on April 4.
Dirty Deeds is an AC/DC cover band.
10 DISTRACTIONS
Mar. 12, 2009
Distractions Editor Xandi Capistrano
xw.distract@stfx.ca

HIT! or SH!T
Other people’s children. – HIT!
All the fun and zero responsibility.

The Bachelor dumps his fiancée on na-

tional television and takes back the oth-
er girl. - SH!T
Why you wanna do me like that, love
huh?

Michael Jackson announces a series of

comeback concerts in London, Eng-
land. – HIT!
What’d I’d give to see that man grab his
crotch live.

Hair on a wet floor. – SH!T

Because you know that hair is automati-
cally gross after it leaves someone’s body.

The water pressure in New Rez. –

SHIT!
Obviously.

When you have a party at your house

and people leave alcohol there. - HIT!
It’s better than Christmas.

You tube, we tube, everbody Youtubes!

Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we9_
CdNPuJgwatch?v=IiUVwdpxGss
They call them fainting goats. Or nervous goats…

Want t
o work
Xaveria for the
n Week
You’re
in lu
lookin
ly? ck beca
g for a use we
n e w ’ r e
Apply wi
th resum
For comp e, cover letter an
s t aff!
lete job d d writing
escription or photo
s and gen gr
Apply by eral infor aphy samples to x
mation, e w
Friday, mail xw.e .eic@stfx.ca.
March 20 ic@stfx.c
a.
News Ed
, 20 09 for:
itor
Culture
Editor Senior R
Sports/H eporter (
ealth Ed Managin 2)
Opinion itor g Editor
s/Distrac Producti
tions Ed on Mana
Features itor ger
Editor Photogr
aphy/Gr
Copy Ed aphics E
itor Senior P ditor
hotograp
her
Online E
ditor
Distribu
Students tion Man
are encour ager
aged to ap
ply for m
ultiple po
sitions
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
DISTRACTIONS
Mar. 12, 2009 11
What really grinds my gears
You know what really grinds my gears?

... how the Inn, which is dying for business from us poor starving students, has
the most expensive pitchers in town. And what the hell is with those wings? Bet-
ter give me a straw for all that sauce.
- 0DM

…the lack of discipline that our fine university is handing out to certain X-Men
basketball players. I mean come on, shouldn’t these guys suffer a harsher punish-
ment than being benched for the AUS Championship? Honestly, it is easy to say
that they have been disciplined, but one of them had an injured ankle and prob-
ably wasn’t able to play, and the other two didn’t contribute enough to the team
to make a difference anyway. Maybe the school should finally muster up the guts
and expel these guys. What’s the use of putting together a championship calibre
team if they undermine the integrity and respect of the university?
- StFX’s Moral Compass.

…that on theU.ca, webmail opens up in a new window. I mean, I understand

not navigating away from the website, but a tab would be nice. Oh, and I don’t
like the spelling mistakes on the site either.
- Gertrude

…pedestrians. I don’t enjoy having to creep up at 10 km/h behind you, beep-

ing my horn for you to get out of the way. Let’s be nice and share the concrete,
shall we?
- On your heels

Is anything grinding your gears? Email your rant to xw.distract@stfx.ca.

Street Beats

If you were the eighth dwarf, what

would your name be?
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Steaks Dinners Dinners
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at great prices
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Barfy. – Marci, 3rd year
Antigonish, NS
Marketing 902-863-1925
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held over for another week!!
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Every home has a kitchen & we
have something very special for yours. up to % off!!
Cooking and Entertaining essentials
Lazy. – James, 3rd year Poli Sci
220 Main Street, Antigonish, NS 902-735-1925
12 FEATURE
Mar. 12, 2009
What volunteering means to students
and those they serve
Kristen Stallard
Features Editor
Today, being a student is about so
much more than schoolwork.
In recent years, the emphasis to
become well rounded has driven
students to carry on more than their
studies. Rather than focus solely on
academics, involvement in athletics,
clubs, and the community has be-
come a checklist for the successful
student.
Setting yourself apart
The reasons for this level of in-
volvement for students are plenty.
For some, it’s about setting yourself
apart from your peers.
“Volunteer work and extra-cur-
ricular things figure in a lot when we
look at your application,” explained
StFX Admissions Officer Sarah Mur-
ray of the selection process StFX uses
to choose applicants. “We read every-
thing from cover to cover. It’s about
getting the right fit for the school
and for you so that you do well.”
“I sometimes think students have
72 hours in a day. They can do all
these things and still do well academ-
ically,” she added.
Murray explained that the StFX
admissions process is very compre-
hensive, particularly in comparison
to other universities. Applications ask
for reference letters and resumes. It
is a way for admissions officers such
as Murray to gauge how a potential
student could benefit from attending
StFX and how they will help sustain
and grow the school’s community
spirit.
She added that, while the com-
munity involvement standards of the
StFX application process may not
be the same for every university, this
type of work will continue to be im-
“I named the foundation based on a special quote: in every
acorn there’s an oak tree, and in every child there’s a king.”
– Frances Tibollo, Founder of The Oaklands Foundation
portant for life after graduation. This
includes filling out your next set of
applications to graduate school and
professional programs.
Preparing
For others, volunteer work and
extra-curricular activities represent
the chance to enhance their resumes,
form relationships with contacts and
improve their skills set.
According to a national study
conducted by Statistics Canada, Ca-
nadians, age 15 to 24, are among the
most active volunteers in the coun-
try. This participation is also grow-
ing. Between 1987 and 1997, the
volunteer rate doubled amongst this
age group from 18 to 33 per cent.
More than one out of every two
young volunteers stated they contrib-
uted their time in order to increase
their opportunities for employment,
compared with one in five individu-
als in the 25–44 age group and one
in ten individuals in the 45–64 age
group.
The survey results showed that
amongst individuals aged 15 to 64
who believed their volunteer activi-
ties helped them find jobs, 24 per
cent were in the 15–24 age bracket.
This was a much larger proportion
than respondents in any other age
category.
Tell us about yourself
Murray believes it helps school
admission departments and employ-
ers learn about your interests, priori-
ties and values, as well.
“The average student is involved
in their school somehow. I get to
know a lot of students almost per-
sonally from their description of
themselves and their activities,” Mur-
ray said.
Features Editor Kristen Stallard
the
Discovering what a student is ca-
pable of and interested in becomes
important for a school or business
when trying to distinguish between
an onslaught of applicants. Candi-
dates prove they can stretch them-
selves and handle a wide variety of
tasks in the ways they work outside
of their job descriptions and their
comfort zones.
Passing the test
StFX registrar Tim MacInnes ex-
plained StFX has specifically tailored
their application in order to find stu-
dents who fit such descriptions.
The way to test applicants can be
surprisingly simple. MacInnes says
StFX enlarged their admissions ap-
plication to 13 pages in the belief
that the interested student would
take the time to fill it all out.
“This may seem risky but it’s re-
ally worked for us,” said MacInnes.
He believes this is contributing
to the school’s high retention rates,
proving the application process finds
students who are more likely to suc-
ceed and stay at StFX.
“A lot of universities try to scram-
ble for applications. If you fill out a
card you can even be considered an
applicant who just hasn’t sent in their
complete registration yet,” he said.
“We are a small school with small
resources, so we want to focus our
resources on students who are inter-
ested specifically in coming to StFX,”
MacInnes continued, adding that
StFX was very happy with the results
of their new application process.
Doing unto others
However, as the old adage goes,
the love you take is equal to the love
you make.
After all, once you begin volun-
xw.feature@stfx.ca
lo
teering you are likely to continue,
even after you pass those application
procedures and earn those jobs.
Gina Sampson believes she knows
why. As co-ordinator for Service
Learning at StFX, she oversees ap-
proximately 800 students in place-
ments throughout Antigonish as
they fulfill research requirements for
their courses.
“People may come for broaden-
ing their horizons for jobs but we’re
in it for the learning aspect,” Samp-
son explained. “When it’s done well,
performing service gives the student
time to reflect on what they’re do-
ing.”
In contrast to focused volunteer-
ing and direct service, Service Learn-
ing puts students in a course angle.
They are often behind the scenes
where they perform consulting, ac-
counting, organize funding and ad-
ministrative duties.
While Service Learning does not
follow-up with their students as a
procedure, anecdotally Sampson
knew a student’s service often had a
major affect on their career choices.
Sampson continued by explaining
the learning aspect may not be what
students expect. Instead, the person-
al benefit is something they pick up
often unconsciously and realize after
they finish their work and reflect.
“Most people expect charitable
and service agencies to welcome stu-
dents based on their ability to offer
another set of hands to help with
their work,” Sampson said. “While
they do note the benefit students
have in helping their clients, agen-
cies we work with report the most
important thing is getting students
involved with their causes.”
“They know they’re investing in
students who will leave StFX and
hopefully be advocates for their cli-
ents,” Sampson added.
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
ve
Why do students volunteer?
When Frances Tibollo, a third year
Political Science major, gets in-
volved with her community, it’s no
understatement.
At 17, Tibollo founded a char-
ity, The Oaklands Foundation,
to dedicate resources to building
schools and enhancing education
in Nigeria.
The impetus for Oaklands came
by chance.
In 2006, Tibollo acted as a judge
and interpreter for an international
teakwon-do competition in Ire-
land and Nigeria. Anticipating the
chance to visit her high school’s Ni-
gerian sister school, Mount La Salle
College, she organized a Pen Pal
Pencil Case Drive to bring school
supplies. It was her first of many
fundraising activities for her proj-
ect of passion in Africa.
“Sometimes, the kind of things
you may be volunteering for, oth-
ers don’t have stomach for,” Tibollo
said. “Because of what I’ve seen, I
wanted to do something. What I
saw shook me pretty bad and you
can’t just ignore it.”
FEATURE
Mar. 12, 2009 13
you
take
Frances Tibillo
Since her first fundraising effort,
Tibollo has engaged in letter writ-
ing campaigns and other forms of
fundraising to raise capital for big-
ger projects. Last summer, the non
profit organization, established an
internet café for LaSalle. When
she first visited the school, the en-
tire village did not have access to
a phone.
Tibollo sees the future for The
Oaklands Foundation in extending
their efforts to neighboring coun-
tries. She credits Oaklands’ success
specifically to the vision and en-
thusiasm of her fellow young vol-
unteers who comprise Oaklands’
Executive Council.
“We, as young people, have an
opportunity to ask questions about
things adults couldn’t ask for many
reasons,” she said. “Our genera-
tion’s raw energy and passion hasn’t
been harnessed yet. But if you put
with us adults and people with ex-
perience, we can be easily taken At age 17, Tibollo founded The Oaklands Foun-
seriously more often. Give young dation after her first of several trips to Nigeria
people the opportunity or else it //FRANCES TIBILLO
won’t happen in the future.”
14 CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009
Better side notebooks
Inspiring students to be more mindful of waste
Andrew Lauzon
Senior Reporter
There will soon be a new option for
notebooks on campus, made in an ef-
fort to reduce waste. With note-taking
being a daily aspect of undergraduate
life, notebooks play a big role in stu-
dent life.
Curt Wetmore is the Environmen-
tal Officer for the campus, and he has
been working to improve the relation-
ship between the StFX students and
the environment.
Last semester, Wetmore ran a cam-
paign to educate students on the im-
pact of waste from disposable coffee
cups. Reusable mugs were distributed
in exchange for cleaning up little from
a small portion of the campus. This
campaign was aimed at both raising
awareness, as well as immediately
providing a number of students with
reusable mugs.
His most recent endeavor in-
volves notebooks created from paper
that has only been used on one side.
Given the name ‘Better Side Note-
books’ these come in a variety of sizes,
and are bound with string. The most
striking feature of the books is the
covers, which are each different and
hand drawn with bold graphics and
Third Eye Film Series does it again
The all-star cast of the lastest feature from 3rd Eye //
The MD report
Madeline Driscoll &
Josh Downey
CFXU Music Directors
This past week was our annual radio
FunDrive. Every year, we dedicate
one week to raising money to keep
our little radio station on the air.
This year we took in well over $1000.
We’d like to voice our appreciation
slogans.
While a notebook has a finite lifes-
pan in the number of pages is con-
tains, Wetmore hopes they will have
an impact that lasts much longer.
Wetmore explained where the
idea came from to create notebooks
like these, saying, “There are similar
sorts of campaigns that I have found
out about, run on campuses all over
the country.” He went on to add that
“Schools have so much paper that can
be reused, this is an excellent way to
reduce their waste of paper.”
“The materials used for the books
come from the Students Union, as
they are a steady source of excess pa-
per. The pages are created using post-
ers from the marketing team, printed
on high quality paper that does not
wrinkle easily.”
Wetmore hopes that this can in-
spire students to be more mindful of
the everyday resources they take for
granted.
“It may be only a dollar for a typi-
cal notebook with hundreds of sheets
of paper in it, so the motivation to
conserve isn’t by the financial cost.”
This is why Wetmore is not trying
to use the notebooks to raise funds,
rather just to promote the idea. “The
whole point of this is to show just
for the continued support given us
from those who advertise with us, our
loyal listeners and all of our volunteers
who donate their effort and time into
bringing an alternative voice to the
Antigonish airwaves. Without com-
munity support, running a decent
station would be impossible, so again;
Thank you to everyone who keeps the
Fox foxy!
An alternative to traditional notebooks, Better Side Notebooks hope to en-
courage the use of recyclable paper // CATHERINE FANCY
how easy it is to maximize resources with this project, they can bring any
like paper by reusing sheets on their paper that has one good clean side,
clean side, and make a cool book to and is not wrinkled to the office of
hold your notes. Inspiring this type of the Environment Officer, or the Vice
behavior is what this project is con- President of Union Services.
cerned with.” In addition, the project can be tak-
For anyone interested in helping en further by anyone wishing to get
The Secret Life of Bees
Colby DeMerchant
Contributor
Earlier this year Cory Leblanc, of Anti-
gonish County’s newspaper ‘The Cas-
ket’, boasted that this year’s installments
of the Third Eye film series are the best
collection that the arts council has ever
accumulated. The latest showing this
past Monday on March 9th, definitely
supported Leblanc’s confident specula-
tion. A nearly full capacity crowd at
the Capitol theatre was bedazzled once
again by the latest film in the series -
the highly acclaimed motion picture
“The Secret Life Of Bees”.
Based on Sue Monk Kidd’s novel
of the same name, the film was laced
with an all-star cast that included: Da-
kota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Ameri-
can Idol finalist Jennifer Hudson,
Alicia keys and Paul Bettany. The cast
as a whole was brilliant with Fanning
standing above the rest, while Latifah
IGN.COM was a pleasant surprise (which is more
than anyone can say about her appear-
CFXU Top 10 for this week
1. Strangeboys- Shoot First
2. Mother Mother – O My Heart 6. Chad VanGaalen – Soft Airplane
3. Animal Collective – Merriweather Post 7. The Hylozoists – L’ Île de Sept Villes
Pavillion 8. Bruce Peninsula – A Mountains a
4. Ruby Jean & The Thoughtful Bees - self- Mouth
titled 9. Glory Glory Man United - self-titled
5. Timber Timbre - self-titled 10. K’Naan – Troubadour
Culture Editor Shannon Tien
xw.culture@stfx.ca
involved. Wetmore explained, “The
project is just starting up here, and
its main focus right now is to get stu-
dents thinking. It could easily boom
well beyond this in the near future.”
“Do it yourself as well, it’s such an
easy project, and I mean, why not?”
ance in “Last Holiday” and her pitiful
attempt as a crime fighting cabbie).
The characters in combination with
the superb adaptation to the screen by
Gina Prince - Bythewood had the au-
dience drawn in right from the initial
pull of the curtain.
Set in South Carolina in 1964, the
fictional plot is cleverly embedded into
actual historical facts. Kidd offers an
original modification of the timeless
tale of Huckleberry Finn while dem-
onstrating her uncanny ability of story
telling as those in attendance shared in
the screen players’ laughs and tears. In
the midst of the conflict the audience
members took away a valuable and
heart warming lesson of unconditional
love.
The next Film in the series “I’ve
Loved You Long Time” is showing on
April 13. To any Xavierians who have
not yet had the privilege of taking part
in the Third Eye experience, put this
film on your ‘MUST SEE’ list as you
will not be disappointed.
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009 15
Strangeboys’ strangeness impresses
Haligonian grassfusion band plays for CFXU FunDrive
Jimmy Thomson
Contributor
This past Friday, the place to be
was somewhat unusual. It wasn’t
the Pub, it wasn’t Pat’s Place – it
wasn’t even the Inn. It was the
church – in particular, the base-
ment of St. James United Church
on Main Street, which hosted two
of the strangest and most ridicu-
lously talented bands in Nova Sco-
tia. The show, which had students
and staff mingling with members
of the community, featured Anti-
gonish’s own Mishra’s Dream, who
set the stage brilliantly for Halifax
grassfusion sextet The Strange-
boys.
Gypsy-swing group Mishra’s
Dream - of ever-growing popular-
ity in today’s climate of musical
open-mindedness, and featured on
CFXU’s recent compilation, This
is the Sound a Fox Makes – are set
to release their long-awaited debut
album Saturday, March 14, 8:00,
at the Bauer Theater. The show
is set to have pre-and-post-show
receptions featuring, respectively,
Betsy Macdonald, Max Macdonald
and Greg Melchin, and Mike Mor-
risseau and Kate Paradis.
The band has rotated through
a few members in their short his-
tory, but now with a longer-stand-
ing membership, the full talent of
Mishra’s Dream can come through,
and come through it did on Friday
night.
Once generally known as the Li-
quor Store Band, for their busking
appearances in front of the NSLC,
Mishra’s Dream is a seriously tal-
ented group of musicians ready to
take their spot in the Nova Scotia
indie lineup, and they put on their
typical performance Friday – com-
pletely unique from every other
band and every other show, ever.
No one in the modest sized au-
dience quite knew what to expect
when the Strangeboys stepped on
stage with their mandolin, guitar,
fiddle, banjo, and bass guitar (the
drums, being too large to set up
quickly, had been there all along).
They opened with a blazingly
fast song – a pace they maintained
all night and which quickly emp-
tied half the seats in the house in
favour of the dance floor. There-
after, the front of the stage was
packed with a crowd dancing fe-
verishly to a genre probably not
even heard before by most of those
involved.
The quick pace and friendly in-
strumentation, along with the fun
atmosphere generated by the self-
depreciating and often hilarious
banter broke down all the normal
cross-genre inhibitions that would Strangeboys and Mishra’sDream heated up the stage Friday night as the wrap-up for CFXU’s Fun Drive
normally be present at a show with fundrasing event // CHRIS DOUCETTE
such a style of music so rarely
pursued by university students. A performed however, since the mu- a share of the profits from the auction that raised over $700. featuring The Smokin’ Contra
dance competition suggested by sic was enough to have most of the show, it was organized and hosted A piece of advice: if you see Band on March 21st, and Sam
the band, with a CD as the prize, crowd dancing as it was. by CFXU programming manager, “CFXU presents…” on a poster Ryan Band and The Grass at the
helped as well – at least in getting The concert was the wrap-up Joanna Barker, as a final flexing of from now on, don’t let it be that Inn, March 28) it’s pretty much
people to dance. In the long run, it for last week’s FunDrive, the an- the radio-hippness muscle after a show you missed for 90s night. guaranteed that if you skip those
may have simply encouraged some nual CFXU fundraising event. very successful week of events, in- Given events past and future (such shows without a sick note, you will
of the weirdest dance moves ever Although the station didn’t take cluding a record-breaking celebrity as the upcoming Tanya Davis show end up kicking yourself.
16 CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009
Culture Editor Shannon Tien
xw.culture@stfx.ca

Jeans to suit your genes: making the

latest trends work for you
out what suits you best can definitely bracing it, it can be a nice break from not attract the desired kind of atten- FYI). Pockets that run too far down
Tara MacInnis
become overwhelming. crack-bearing low rise jeans. If you tion. your backside can confuse people
Fashism
The first style to address is the have an hourglass figure, not only am As for the gentlemen, the biggest when it comes to the location of your
The most coveted, and of course dif- skinny jean. We all thought they’d be a I jealous, but this cut of jean is perfect thing you should butt. Jeans that

”
ficult characteristic to find in an article thing of the past by now, but their abil- for you. If you don’t, make sure that be aware of is where are too long get
of clothing is versatility. Something ity to be tucked into boots and worn the waistline hits your natural waist. the waistline of your torn and dirty,
that goes with boots, flats, sweaters, under dresses is making this style a The bell-bottom version of these is un- jeans hits. If you’ve but flood-ready
t-shirts and dresses, in any colour, pat- classic. However, they are a world that fortunately only for taller girls; if you’re got enough cash isn’t good ei-
tern or level of quirkiness. Something needs to be entered with caution. If short, it’ll only make you look shorter. to afford Armani ther. I’m a big
that can dress an outfit up or down, you’re pear shaped, they probably aren’t Your first jean purchase was prob- boxers, that’s super, believer in ask-
and can be worn on any outing, be it your best bet. Getting the right fit is ably boot-cut. They are timeless, and but I don’t want to “There are ing for the help
the bar on a Saturday night or dinner important too. They are supposed to suit everyone. They make legs look see more of them of a salesperson
with your uptight grandparents. be tight, but there is a fine line between longer, butts look sexier, and they bal- than your jeans. countless styles when it comes
All of this may sound impossible,
but if you fit the statistic, you’ve got ap-
tight and painted-on. Also, balance
should be taken into consideration. If
ance out roundness on top. The boot-
cut jean is very popular, but can be in-
It’s called a waist-
line, not an under-
to choose from to the perfect fit,
and you should
proximately six pairs of these miracle you’re going to wear skinny jeans, try terpreted in different ways. Sometimes your-butt line. Find when it comes be too.
garments in your closet: jeans. Jeans to pair them with something looser on it means a flared leg, and sometimes it your hip bones, and Apparently
were originally designed as work-wear, top so as not to look like you’re wearing means looser at the thigh. If you’re not that’s the general to finding the jeans that look
because of the strength of denim, and a cat suit. sure how they’re supposed to fit, check vicinity for where like they offend-
they have kept this strength with the On the opposite end of the spec- with the salesperson, but no matter your jeans should right pair of ed Wolverine
transcendence of the ever fluctuating
world of fashion.
trum is the wide-legged jean. These
are more relaxed and suit almost every
what size you are, they’re bound to
flatter.
sit. Otherwise, I’ve
actually been fairly
jeans. However, are the next big
thing, but this is
They compliment every shape and body type. But please don’t wear long If you find regular blue jeans are impressed with the two most Nova Scotia and
size, and as aforementioned, will fit shirts or dresses with these; it will leave getting a little monotonous, you’re in men’s jeans lately. rips will result
nicely into your wardrobe. However, you looking shapeless and shorter. luck because coloured jeans are steadily They’re always cut important things in drafts. Never
a big contributor to the staying power Tucking wide-legs into boots is also becoming a trend. They come in ev- well, and they aren’t buy a pair of
of jeans is their ability to adapt. Forty not cool. Poufy and overflowing are ery hue imaginable, and are great if as holey as previous to keep in mind jeans that reek
years ago, jeans were embroidered,
painted and psychedelic, and now
not words that should be used to de-
scribe your jeans.
you want to stand out amongst a sea
of stone wash. Going with more of a
years. Take advan-
tage of this; pick up
are fit and of trendy. They
are supposed to
they’re high-waisted, skinny, wide- High-waisted is coming back from neon blue is a good way to transition a new pair if you practicality.” evolve with your
legged, low-rise, boot-cut, dark, light the seventies, and although not many into bright jeans, but don’t push it. need them because wardrobe, so
and everything in between. Figuring people outside of Hollywood are em- Blinding people with your legs might they’ll look great for timelessness is a
a long time. must.
There are count- Patience
less styles to choose from when it comes is key when it comes to finding the
to finding the right pair of jeans. How- perfect pair of jeans, but when you fi-
ever, the two most important things to nally do, it will be the beginning of a
keep in mind are fit and practicality. beautiful relationship. They’ll go with
If you want to love your jeans, the majority of your wardrobe and ac-
make sure they love your body. Too centuate all of your assets, so listen to
low waistlines can result in muffin tops Marky Mark and don’t let anything
or whale tails (that’s when your thong come between you and your Calvins.
makes an appearance above your jeans, Or American Eagles, whatever.

Skinny jeans are fast becoming a wardrobe classic

// CATHERINE FANCY
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
Rock out this summer at Warped Tour //
North American Summer
Music Festivals 2009
The season of sunshine bears musical gifts aplenty
Jessica Fry
Contributor
As the bleak rains of spring descend
upon us, we music-loving university
students have only one thing in mind:
summer music festivals and concerts.
And though they may seem to be in the
distant future, start saving now because
a weekend pass to one of these events
can put you out anywhere from $200
to $300, not including the cost of food,
camping, and transportation.
To some, the experience justifies the
price, but for those without the funds
or the proximity to get there, a simple
download of Pez’s The Festival Song
can do wonders to create the illusion.
So grab a lawnchair and a boombox
because Mom’s back lawn (although
slightly lacking in roaring crowds) is
looking a lot cheaper than these mind-
blowing music blowouts.
Lollapalooza
Location: Grant Park, Chicago IL
Running Date: August 7-9, 2009
History/Vibe: Originally organized
by Perry Farell of Jane’s Addiction in
1991, Lollapalooza started out as a trav-
elling show featuring diverse groups. Its
lineup of grunge and alternative bands
was immensely popular but lost steam
by 1997, causing an indefinite cancel-
lation. Revival attempts were sporadic
until 2005 when the event was changed
from a tour to a single location festival
located in Chicago. The change was a
commercial success, resulting in the
current annual festival format which
features a diverse palette of music on
multiple stages.
2009 Lineup: Yet to be announced
Little Known Fact: Nirvana pulled
out of the 1994 lineup just the day be-
fore the death of Kurt Cobain. This was
a blow to Lollapalooza as it marked the
end of the grunge influence present at
all the previous festivals.
Coachella
Location: Indio, California
MATT KLEINSCHMIDT
Running Date: April 17-19, 2009
History/Vibe: The first Coachella fes-
tival took place in 1999. Despite the
success of the event, there was no fol-
low-up in 2000 because the first festival
had failed to generate enough profit.
The idea was revamped for 2001 and
has been a success every year since, de-
spite the blistering desert heat.
2009 Lineup: Franz Ferdinand, Girl-
talk, Silversun Pickups, The Ting
Tings, The Killers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs,
and others.
Little Known Fact: Sweltering tem-
peratures at Coachella often rise above
100°F (38°C).
Bonnaroo
Location: Manchester, Tennessee
Running Date: June 11-14, 2009
History/Vibe: This festival got its
start in 2002 and has since gained the
reputation of the best summer music
festival around. If multiple stages and
shows weren’t enough, this event boasts
an arcade, cinema, comedy club, the-
ater performers and beer festival.
2009 Lineup: Bruce Springsteen,
Nine Inch Nails, Wilco, Paul Oaken-
fold, MGMT, Beastie Boys, Coheed
and Cambria, and others.
Little Known Fact: Bonnaroo has
been named by Rolling Stone Maga-
zine as one of the 50 moments that
changed the history of rock and roll.
Pitchfork
Location: Union Park, Chicago IL
Running Date: July 17-19, 2009
History/Vibe: Pitchfork joined
the ranks of the great festivals in 2006
when it drew more than 35,000 at-
tendees to its inaugural event. Organiz-
ers claim a focus on diversity of genre
in the lineup and of reasonable ticket
prices. The result is that Pitchfork has
traditionally been more affordable than
its counterparts, with day passes selling
for just $30.
2009 Lineup: Yet to be announced
Little Known Fact: At Pitchfork
2007, headliner Yoko Ono performed
CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009
Brand new world
Social networking takes personal
branding to a new level
Culture is my
Boyfriend
Shannon Tien
Culture Editor
According to a recent report in the
Globe and Mail, e-mail is a thing
of the past. Vulnerable to spam and
incapable of informing your peers of
your most immediate action/feeling/
favorite song lyric, the greatest inven-
tion of the 90s has lost the popularity
contest to social networking.
Facebook and Twitter — along
with blogging sites — are now the
fourth most popular online activity,
taking up the time of one in every 11
minutes spent online.
What does this mean for our gen-
eration? Well, for starters, these social
networking applications are no longer
just nifty address books for university
students attempting to stay in contact
with everyone they meet. The “mem-
ber community” has actually increased
to include an
extra 11.3-mil-
lion people from
the 35-49 demo-
graphic.
‘Mulberries’ with Thurston Moore. She And major
performed the song for just the third companies and “Our Facebook
time in her life. On the previous two
occasions, she was accompanied by
businesses are
starting to recog-
profile has
Sean Lennon and John Lennon respec- nize the impor- now become
tively. tance of viewing
such Internet a cyber space
Sasquatch innovation as a
Location: The Gorge Amphithe- tool rather than a representation
ater, George, WA
Running Date: May 23-25, 2009
threat.
With approxi-
of ourselves
History/Vibe: Sasquatch was mately 175-mil- – or at least a
founded in 2002 as an event aimed lion users, the
at showcasing bands from the Pacific Facebook profile representation
Northwest but also including others. — the king of all
Although the primary concentration is networking ap- of what we
on indie rock, acts representing other
genres are also prevalent.
plications — has,
understandably,
would prefer
2009 Lineup: Kings of Leon, Sun gone through a the other 175
Kil Moon, Jane’s Addiction, Nine Inch dramatic make-
Nails, TV on the Radio, Explosions in over. The once million users to
the Sky, and others. humble ad-
Little Known Fact: The Gorge dress book has view ourselves
Amphitheater is considered one of the
best concert venues in the world. Large
morphed
an
into
interactive
as.”
spectator area and good weather con- site which us-
tribute to this, as well as beautiful views ers can post videos and pictures of
of the Columbia River. The location themselves, as well as chat with their
lies almost due south of Kelowna, BC. friends and display their personal in-
terests and activities.
Warped Tour It seems pretty tame — safe and
Location: Cities throughout North efficient even. People can get to know
America, including Calgary, Vancou- each other, and whether or not they
ver, Toronto, and Montreal. would be compatible as friends with-
Running Date: April 2- August out actually going to the trouble of
23, 2009 engaging in face-to-face interaction
History/Vibe: The 2009 Vans with each other. For the socially awk-
Warped Tour will mark the 15th anni- ward of us, this is quite simply a dream
versary of the event. With roots of early come true, unhealthiness aside.
tours in punk rock, acts in recent years Unfortunately, this transformation
are usually described using pop, punk, has tapped heavily into the self-defi-
rock, or emo classifications. nition market which runs rampant
Lineup: The Ataris, Underoath, among our individuality obsessed
Thrice, Flogging Molly, Lights, Alex- generation. Our Facebook profile has
isonfire, NOFX now become a cyber space representa-
Little Known Fact: Warped Tour is tion of ourselves — or at least a rep-
often criticized for becoming so com- resentation of what we would prefer
mercialized making heavy use of spon- the other 175-million users to view
sors and releasing compilation cds. ourselves as.
Despite this, it has been consistently A recent blog posting on hipster-
supported and well attended over the unoff.com addressed this cultural
years. phenomenon in sardonic terms, spe-
17
cifically speaking of the profile pic-
ture: “It’s really hard to decide who
u want 2 b on the Internet. Like u
have this lil box on your profile, and
u have to choose an image which ‘rep-
resents u.’ U have like 300×300 pixels
to show the world what ur all about.
Seems like a lot of pressure.”
It is a lot of pressure. When 175-
million users are about to judge you
based on your profile picture, it be-
comes extremely important that you
pick the most accurately representa-
tive one.
The writer goes on to categorize
several typical types of “user pics,” in-
cluding: “I’m a bro who likes to hang
with other bros because brotherhood
is important to me,” “I just got mar-
ried and my life is more meaningful
than yours,” “I am spunky,” “I am
artsy because my picture is not cen-
tered,” “I like to go out with my girl-
friends a lot,” “I’m a chill dude who
appreciates formal wear and sunsets,”
“I’m a tween who wants to get laid,”
etc.
”
I think it’s safe
to say that the
profile picture
observation can
be expanded to
include the whole
Facebook profile
as well though.
When one cre-
ates their Face-
book or Myspace
or Twitter profile,
one consciously
decides what cat-
egory they are
placing them-
selves in and
what category of
people they want
to attract. It’s
scarily similar to
a dating service,
in fact.
But in all se-
riousness, how
often have you
accepted a friend
request and then
immediately re-
viewed their pro-
file, subconsciously categorizing them
as someone you liked or didn’t like?
The problem with this is that, really,
these profiles are just socially con-
structed personal brands — not real
people (insofar as one can be a real
person on the internet).
It’s true; people have been brand-
ing themselves for as long as social
interaction has been prevalent in civi-
lization — through fashion choices,
career paths, everyday conversation,
etc.
There is nothing actually wrong
with this, as projecting one’s identity
to the world is a way of coming to
terms with your own actual identity.
The problem instead lies within the
underscored goal of social network-
ing — making (and keeping) friends.
And the incredible rise in popular-
ity of sites such as Facebook suggests
that we are perhaps taking social net-
working too seriously and putting
too much stock in the reality of “user
pics.”
18 CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009
Culture Editor Shannon Tien
xw.culture@stfx.ca

My balogne has a first name…

The Oscars, in review
Meaghan Crowley
Contributor
The Xaverian Weekly has its fair share
of reviews for books, movies, perfor-
mances, and galleries alike. Thus it is
fitting to present a review reviewing the
greatest artistic culmination of them
all: The Academy Awards. Every year
the pageantry that is the Oscars draws
its international audience in. The glitz,
glam, and sheer politics of it all is fasci-
nating, and this fan is not ashamed to
say she is a ten-time Academy Award
viewer.
Over the past few years the Os-
cars have been privy to low ratings.
One would have to sit through three
hours of boring categories like Edit-
ing, or Cinematography just to get to
the good ones, which of course are not
until the very end. This year, the Acad-
emy made a conscious effort to spice
things up, and they started with taking
on Hugh Jackman as this year’s host.
Incorporating his fly dancing skills and
killer chops, Wolverine took us on a
journey to the age of the musical, com-
plete with numbers choreographed
by Baz Luhrmann (mastermind be-
hind “Moulin Rouge” and “William
Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet”) and a
‘surprise’ appearance from Beyonce.
Already it could be concluded that
this was the best awards show in recent The cast of Best Picture winner Slumdog Millionaire // WWW.GREGINHOLLYWOOD.COM
memory. Way to go, “Boy from Oz.”

Recession? What recession? porting Actor, which of course went to this viewers’s humble opinion were
Aside from the Swarovski crys- the late Heath Ledger (rip). His family from Anjelica Houston, the fabulous
tal curtain on the Kodak stage, (a word not to be used lightly) Grand

the red carpet had a few gems
of it’s own. Most of us watch
the Oscars in large part to see
what everyone is wearing. In-
deed, it is now customary be-
fore any major award show to
provide complete coverage of
I earned my the stars’ entrance on the red
undergraduate degree, carpet.
now Some stand-outs included
”
High Witch from Roald Dahl’s “The
Witches” and Christopher Walken (yes,
the Chris Walken). The different faces
representing the many generations of
the movie industry made the process
of watching interesting, enjoyable, and
moved the night along at a nice pace.
“The most It should be noted that presenters were
introduced by a method that never gets
emotional and old for the Oscars: montages.

I want a Natalie Portman’s Rodarte

pink strapless dress, and Kate
rewarding career * Winslet’s grey and lace Yves
Saint Laurent (complete with
* not just a job Grace Kelly hair). Anjelina Jolie
finally made an effort to look
presentable (maybe because
In less than one year, Humber Jennifer Aniston was there?)
postgraduate programs will help wearing a black strapless Elie
you launch your career in: Saab gown accessorized with
emerald earrings and matching
• Financial Planning ring. Brad looked good too.
• Human Resources As much attention as the
• International Development clothes may get, the prestige
and honour of winning an Os-
• International Marketing
car is what the night is actually
• Marketing Management all about. A movie’s commercial
• Public Administration success is determined not just
by how well it did at the box
Building on your university degree, office, but by how many nomi-
Humber’s postgraduate programs offer a nations and awards it receives.
concentrated curriculum, career-focused Without a doubt, the most
courses and practical field placements. exciting awards of the night re-
You’ll gain the real-world experience and flected the films that were the
skills that employers value most. “must sees” of the year; the ma-
jority of these awards coming
Get the career you want – apply now. from the acting categories.
Penelope Cruz won her first
Oscar for her role in “Vicky
business.humber.ca Cristina Barcelona.”
The most emotional and
unforgettable award winner
of the night was for Best Sup-
unforgettable
award winner
of the night
was for Best
Supporting
Actor, which of
course went to
the late Heath
Ledger (rip).”
accepted on his behalf, reminding the
audience of the many legendary per-
formances he gave, most notably that
of Patrick Verona in “10 Things I Hate
About You.”
Kate Winslet won Best Actress for
her role in “The Reader,” and Sean
Penn won his second Oscar for “Milk,”
consequently robbing Mickey Rourke
in the process.
Each of the acting categories were
presented by five winners from previ-
ous years. Notable appearances, in
In fact, everyone loves a good mon-
tage. But when the Oscars run a mon-
tage, they absolutely run it. As if the
legendary scenes from movies flashing
before your eyes aren’t enough, the or-
chestra strikes up an inspirational tune
to really send it home. Most notable
is “In Memoriam,” which of course is
done annually to honour those in the
industry who have died within the past
year.
Normally, the most prominent
figure is displayed last. This year it
was Paul Newman. His legacy is enor-
mous, leaving us with treasures such
as “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance
Kid” and his successful salad dressing
empire, “Newman’s Own.”
Though many dismiss the Oscars as
a commercially driven show, it is easy to
overlook what it represents deep down.
For the longest time, films of all shapes
and sizes have provided us with an es-
cape from an unfair world. Whether it
be from war, terrorist attacks or what
have you, movies have provided us
with the elusive “happily-ever-after,”
which we sometimes need in our lives.
Though the ending may not be realis-
tic, the power of movie-magic makes it
so, allowing and inspiring us to carry
on because after all, “Tomorrow is an-
other day.”
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
Album reviews
Album: Hollow
Crown
Artist: Architects
Keltie Coupar
Contributor
This is the third album from the British
metalcore band Architects. The cover
of “Hollow Crown” alone proves that
the medieval motif hasn’t gone out of
style, just when you thought it finally
would. Unfortunately, compared to
their earlier work, the cover art is the
most innovative aspect of this album.
Don’t read this wrong, it’s a fine col-
lection of some solid songs, but com-
pared to their earlier, near prodigal
work, it’s lacking in inspiration. If
you’re a newcomer to them, however,
just listen to everything in reverse or-
der and it’ll only get better.
For those who aren’t familiar with
the genre of metalcore at all, “Hol-
low Crown” is the textbook example
of the dead centre of it; the death
growling and heavy precision and
bass blended with the clean vocals
and the skilful rifts of hardcore punk
rock. Some bands can make an ab-
solute mess of this, but if Architects
have managed one thing, they’ve got
the perfect balance down to a science.
The problem is, all too often when a
band finds something good, they play
it over and over again without risking
the variation that makes for a wide-
spread album.
Because of their reluctance to take
a chance, the songs are more familiar
than original, but that doesn’t always
equal terrible - just not brand new.
The titular song is usually the best,
and “Hollow Crown” doesn’t disap-
point; it’s post-hardcore in that the
clean vocals aren’t shoved to the side
but the metal side makes itself known.
CULTURE
Mar. 12, 2009 19
“Left With One Last Minute” has a
clear melody, unusual for anything
with a metal slant, but it’s something
a little different. “Early Grave” is one
of the few songs that actually goes out
on a limb and hit’s the mark. But all
the same, it’s something any Architect
fan has heard before. “Dethroned”
feels like two genres sewn together
rather than a smooth blend and it’s
nothing short of distracting. “Follow
the Water” is the musical equivalent
of a bad horror movie in that you see
the ending in the opening chords.
Too long, didn’t read version: If
you’re a die-hard fan of the band, I’d
skip this and put your hope on their
next album. If you’re a newcomer to
metalcore, this is as good a place to
start as any. If you’re a casual listener
and you can get it for a good price,
give it a try. It’s great for when you
want something loud to drown things
out, but not so bad that you can’t
stand it yourself.

Film: He’s Just Not
That Into You
Amanda Sanders
Contributor
Starring Jennifer Aniston, Ben Af-
fleck, Ginnifer Goodwin, Scarlett
Johansson, Drew Barrymore, Justin
Long and Jennifer Connelly and di-
rected by Ken Kwapis, this movie is
based on the book of the same title
written by Greg Behrendt and Liz
Tuccillo.
The movie follows several thirty-
somethings through their relationship
woes, where they are all connected,
through work, dating and friendship.
Ginnifer Goodwin plays GiGi,
a lovesick woman that has bad luck
with men and becomes desperate
when Alex (Justin Long) begins giv-
ing her advice based on his dating ex-
perience. Beth (Jennifer Aniston) and
Neil (Ben Affleck) are a couple who
have been together for seven years
and hit a stand still. Janine (Jennifer
Connelly) and Ben (Bradley Cooper)
play a newlywed couple who have
some indifferences. Mary (Drew
Barrymore) is a successful magazine
worker who is lost in the world of on-
line dating and Conor (Kevin Con-
nolly) is a realtor vying for the affec-
tion of Anna, who has other ideas in
mind.
For those who read the book,
this movie takes a perspective differ-
ent from the original narrative, yet
still gets the points that Behrendt
and Tuccillo wanted to get across
– the fact that, quite simply, he might
not be that into you. Behrendt even
makes a cameo in the film.
Behrendt was formerly a writer on
the TV series “Sex and the City” set
and also had a daily talk show when
this book was released.
Director Kwapis takes a comic ap-
proach to the dog-eat-dog world of
dating and love, and throws it in your
face that maybe, just maybe, he just
isn’t that into you.
Anyone who likes romantic com-
edies will enjoy this star-studded
movie.
Film: Watchmen
Keltie Coupar
Contributor
After having dined many times in de-
velopment Hell, “Watchmen” finally
comes to the big screen, and it proves
itself well worth the wait. Don’t let
the capes and spandex disguise you,
because this isn’t just a superhero
movie; it’s a political film in a mask
and tights with the cinematography
of an animated metaphorical piece.
Whether you’re a fan of historical
politics, a graphics fan, or just like
seeing people beating up on other
people, director Zach Snyder has
made sure you’re going to enjoy this
film - a lot.
Though the film is set in the
1980s, it’s an alternative history that
asks the question “What if America
won in Vietnam because of a blue gi-
ant that could make people explode
at will?” No, seriously. Nixon is still
in power, and in a response to po-
lice strikes and public rioting over
the masked crusaders administrating
anonymous vigilante justice, he puts
a ban on non-government approved
superheroes.
Aforementioned blue giant, more
personally known as Dr. Manhattan,
able to bend material to his will, is
the only thing standing between the to close your eyes for long spans of
Cold War becoming nuclear. He and time.
retired superhero Ozymandias are To be brief about the soundtrack,
working tirelessly on a way to de- it’s everything right about music
velop a free energy source that will in the eighties. I don’t buy many
eliminate the need for war, but prob- soundtracks, but I plan to buy this
lems are developing closer to home one.
when an unknown force begins kill- The final word? Even if you don’t
ing former heroes. think you’ll like it, give this movie a
As cliché as it’s becoming to refer chance. Its whole is a whole lot more
to a film as “gritty”, it’s a word that than the sum of its parts, and at the
fits “Watchmen” like a glove. The very least you’ll find out who watches
characters follow along the line su- the Watchmen.
perheroes are straying to
- the portrayal of them
as real people with very
dark issues - leading to
an almost primal form
of pathos when one sees
their emotions on clear
display.
It has the visual feel
of the “Dick Tracey”
film with the CGI as-
sistance and special ef-
fects to literally bring
the comic book to life.
The opening credits
alone watch like a short
film, and it all escalates
from there. And for the
gore gourmets among
us, there’s a lot of it. I
wouldn’t say it’s gratu-
itous because it is there
to make a point within
the film, but if you’re
squeamish, be prepared

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20 SPORTS
Mar. 12, 2009
Sports & HealthEditor Matt Skube
xw.sports@stfx.ca

Three X-Men basketball to sit

out of CIS championships
Richards, Morrissy and Donkoh face charges of assault

From left to right, Will Donkoh, Tyler Richards, and Eamon Morrissy // CONTRIBUTED

Danielle Webb
Editor-in-Chief
As the X-Men basketball team travel
to Scotiabank Place in Ottawa as the
CIS’s wild-card pick in this weekend’s
nationals, Tyler Richards, Eamon
Morrissy, and William Donkoh will be
sitting out.
All three are facing charges of as-
sault causing bodily harm, announced
on March 2, stemming from an alter-
cation outside Pat’s Place on Feb. 21
that ended with another St.FX student
being sent to the hospital.
The men are scheduled to appear
in a provincial court on May 4 and are
expected to enter pleas at that time.
Dean of students Joe MacDonald is
also conducting an internal investiga-
tion into the matter.
Athletic director Leo MacPherson
and men’s basketball coach Steve Kon-
chalski initially stood behind all three
players, saying they would not be sus-
pended.
“Just because there are charges
pending doesn’t mean they are guilty
of anything. I also met with the stu-
dent-athletes and I’m comfortable
with letting this one go until there are
more facts on the table,” MacPherson
told the Halifax Chronicle Herald on
March 3.
The decision was quickly reversed,
however, in light of the attention sur-
rounding the incident and the subse-
quent decisions. The players were pro-
hibited from playing in last weekend’s
AUS Final 6 championship in Halifax
and, similarly, while the players are
traveling with their teammates to Ot-
tawa, they will not dress for the cham-
pionship games.
Richards has been playing for the
X-Men for five years and is currently
the team captain. He is a four-time
AUS all-star and will finish his career
as the third all-time scorer in X-Men
basketball history.
The X-Men lost in a heartbreaking
upset to Dalhousie in the AUS final
last Saturday.
- with files from the Chronicle Her-
ald

X-Women hockey fall

to Moncton in AUS
championship
StFX still earns berth in national championship as host team
Matt Skube
Sports Editor
It was close but no cigar for the
StFX X-Women’s hockey team last
weekend in Charlottetown.
The X-Women were unable to
defend their regular season title
from last season after going down
to the Universite de Moncton
Aigles Bleues 4-2 in the champi-
onship game.
StFX net minder Katie Har-
vieux had a rough start, allowing
two goals on only three shots in
the first period.
The X-Women out-shot Monc-
ton the entire game, but Aigles
Bleues goaltender and AUS most
valuable player Kathy Desjardins
stood on her head.
StFX’s first marker came from
Carolyn Campbell. Campbell
found the top corner to cut the
Moncton lead in half. Brayden
Ferguson, just off winning a gold
medal for team Canada at the Uni-
versity Games, evened the score at
two with a power play goal in the
second.
Also in the second, Anna Bar-
rett was assessed a five minute
major and game misconduct for
slashing after running into Des-
jardins. Moncton got off easy and
were able to capitalize on a 5-on-3,
with AUS leading scorer Marieve
Provost getting the goal. The score
remained that way until Provost
added an empty-netter with 42
seconds left in the game.
Provost was named the tourna-
ment MVP and received $1000
for her performance. X-Women
Suzanne Fenerty and Ferguson
were both named to the tourna-
ment all-star team.
The win gives Moncton their
second AUS title in three years
and a berth in the CIS national
championship. StFX also quali-
fies for the tournament as the host
team.
The CIS tournament will fea-
ture the top six women’s hockey
teams from across the country
competing for the national cham-
pionship. It is scheduled to take
place at the Keating Millennium The X-Women will have to be at the top of their
Centre from March 19th to the game if they want to capture StFX’s first CIS med-
22nd. al in women’s hockey next weekend as they play
Check back next week for a full host to the championships // EMERY GBODOSSOU
preview of all participating teams.
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
X-Men head to national championship as CIS wild card
Blue and white beat Panthers in semi, edged out by Tigers in the final for the conference banner
Dave Abbass
Contributor
The StFX X-Men were spot on as they
dropped the UPEI Panthers 89-60 in
the Friday night AUS semi final, but
the CIS number five ranked team out
of Antigonish couldn’t keep it going on
Saturday, falling to Dalhousie 72-60 in
the championship game.
Coming into the tournament, the
X-Men knew that they had their work
cut out for them with Tyler Richards sit-
ting out due to involvement with an al-
leged assault in the week prior. Richards,
a fifth year guard out of Halifax, Nova
Scotia, was a conference first team all
star and was second in the league in
scoring, averaging almost 20 points a
game over the regular season.
The Friday night game opened as a
back and forth battle, with UPEI taking
the lead twice in the early minutes until
Christian “T-Bear” Upshaw hit a three
pointer to get the X-Men going. The
blue and white went on a seven point
run and the Panthers continued to look
flat until forward Gamaliel Rose tried to
fire things up with a hard dunk. Rose’s
play was answered by a three point shot
by Jeremy Dunn, an AUS All-Rookie
player. The score leaving the first quarter
was 24 to 18 for StFX.
The second quarter opened slowly,
with misplays by both teams, but once
the X-Men got going, they didn’t stop,
scoring 18 unanswered points before
Andrew Black was able to put some
numbers on the board for the Panthers.
The score heading into the half was 44-
25 for the X-men.
UPEI never recovered as the X-men
cruised to the AUS final. Alberto Ro-
driguez had a double-double with 11
points and 13 rebounds, and four other
StFX players reached double digits in
the win. Andrew Black scored 22 points
and Gamaliel Rose contributed 20 of
UPEI’s 60 in the losing effort.
StFX coach Steve Konchalski credit-
ed his team for their ability to overcome
the loss of their star player.
“Everybody came in focused and
ready to play,” he said. “We knew we
weren’t going to have Tyler Richards
and our bench wasn’t as deep, but at the
same time everybody was really focused
knowing that no one player was going
to make up for Tyler Richards, every-
body’s got to make it up and take it up a
notch or two.”
Konchalski mentioned Alberto
Rodriguez and Terrence Taylor in par-
ticular, who both stepped up and played
UPEI hard inside the paint.
In Saturday’s championship, the
X-Men had a bigger challenge to over-
come. The Dalhousie Tigers were hun-
gry after they barely held on to a win
over Cape Breton the night before,
taking the game by a single point after
letting the Capers crawl back from a 22
point deficit.
The game opened slowly, a defensive
struggle that favoured the Tigers over
the more run-and-gun style X-Men.
The teams went to the locker room at
half with the score a 27-27 tie.
SPORTS
Mar. 12, 2009 21
If defensive is the word to describe
the first half, explosive is the term to
describe the third quarter. Dalhousie
came out hard from the opening min-
ute of play and quickly began building
a bigger lead over X. Second year player
Josh Beattie scored five three point shots
and a jumper in less than five minutes
and second team all star Simon Farine
contributed another five points to put
the Tigers up 49-32 as the Tigers took
command of the game.
By the end of the third quarter, the
X-Men were able to narrow the gap,
making the score 54-45 heading into
the fourth.
StFX began to play very aggressive
defence and had success stealing the
ball away from the Tigers as they tried
to bring the ball up the court. Terrence
Taylor scored an inside basket, and
Will Silver stole the ball as the Tigers
inbounded to put the ball in the net
for another quick score. Jeremy Dunn
drained a three point shot to bring the
X-Men within six.
The score didn’t get any closer, and
the Dalhousie Tigers won their first
championship since the 1995-96 sea-
son. Simon Farine was named tourna-
ment MVP and Josh Beattie was named
Player of the Game.
The season doesn’t end here for the
X-Men. As the highest remaining seed
without a berth to the national champi-
onship, the blue and white will compete
in the final eight as the wild card. The
national championship takes place in Alberto Rodriguez in action this past weekend dur-
Ottawa next weekend, March 13-15. ing the AUS championships // EMERY GBODOSSOU

The more the better?

Does having many children negatively affect a woman’s health and life expectancy?
Jessi Fry theme of the large family is known to First of all, there are the situations in this study died within a year of giv-
Contributor appear in TV and movies as well (Jon where a mother has simply had a lot of ing birth to their last child. Pregnancy
As society has stepped away from a & Kate + 8, Yours Mine and Ours). Al- children. One study conducted by the in general can put a strain on the vital
historical emphasis on producing large though it doesn’t seem to be the norm University of Utah concluded that par- organs and on the body’s supply of nu-
families, Canadians increasingly seem to to have more children than one can ents who raised families of many chil- trients, thus negatively affecting overall
look at cases of mothers bearing many reasonably deal with, Canadian culture dren were more likely to die young. This health. Repeating the process can serve
children as novelties. The media often is very much interested in the idea. But is even more severe for the mother, as to increase this strain.
reports cases of high order multiple can the romanticized depiction of a big she bears the physical cost of delivery. Then there are the more dramatic
births as these stories are sure to garner happy family inappropriately downplay The data showed that the more chil- examples of multiple births. When a
attention. the negative health consequences for the dren a couple produced, the higher the mother finds out that she is expecting
Not only prevalent in the news, this mother? risk of early death. Many of the women more than one child from one pregnan-
cy, excitement is sure to follow. The as-
pect of novelty surrounding these births
is very strong and they receive a lot of
attention. Official numbers of multiple
births have been increasing lately as a
result of increased availability of fertility
drugs and high quality prenatal care in
Canada.
Although the romantic aspect of
multiple births is well explored and dis-
cussed, we are less aware of the negative
effects on the health of the mother of
multiples. We know that the more de-
veloping fetuses there are in the womb,
the higher the risk to their development
and to a healthy outcome for the moth-
er. Prematurity is a big issue, with seven
per cent of twins and 92 per cent of
triplets being born early. When mothers
carry any more than three in the womb,
delivery is inevitably premature.
The longer babies are carried, the less
likely they are to be born without seri-
ous problems and defects. If this weren’t
The highly-publicized TV life of Jon & Kate + 8 // CONTRIBUTED enough of a risk, there are the effects on
the Mom to be considered. At the less
serious end of the spectrum, there is the
possibility for permanent increased foot
size, expansion of both thighs and rib
cage, and hair loss. Also, many moth-
ers of multiples eventually develop iron
deficiency, which can increase the risk of
complications if left untreated.
More serious health issues associ-
ated with high order multiple births are
gestational diabetes, kidney infections,
breakthrough bleeding, anemia, pre-
eclampsia, hypemesis, and incompetent
cervix. Some of these are life threatening
not only to the mother but to the babies
as well.
Frequent checkups throughout the
pregnancy can help to nip complica-
tions in the bud and keep them under
control. Lower order multiples are less
likely to cause serious complications.
Carrying the pregnancy to term seems
to greatly advance the health of the chil-
dren, but often the mother of multiples
will go into labour earlier simply because
the body is not equipped to handle the
strain of carrying many babies at once.
The advancement of medical tech-
nology has made it possible for many
couples to have multiple children born
at once who survive and have good
health. The more extreme the case how-
ever, the higher the risk. This applies
too, to mothers who simply have a lot
of children over the course of a lifetime.
Though it may be desirable to have a big
family, the medical repercussions must
be taken into consideration.
22 SPORTS
Mar. 12, 2009
Birth control could pose risks
Doctors, sexual health specialists split on pros and cons of hormonal contraceptives
Sandy Klowak
The Uniter (University of
Winnipeg)
WINNIPEG (CUP) – Birth con-
trol pills spring to mind the image
of a cute pastel tablet that magically
wards off babies and boasts other fun
tricks, like fighting acne.
“I think we’ve moved to a place
where people think birth control
pills aren’t even drugs; they’re kind of
like vitamins,” said Christine Hitch-
cock, Ph.D. research associate at
the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and
Ovulation Research at the University
of British Columbia.
Hitchcock and others are con-
cerned about the harmful effects of
some types of hormonal contracep-
tives.
The synthetic estradiol and pro-
gestin added to the body by hormon-
al birth control increase women’s risk
for blood clots and affects their bone
density, Hitchcock says – and there
could be other unforeseen conse-
quences.
Hitchcock is particularly con-
cerned with the effects of new ver-
sions of the pill, such as Lybrel, which
is taken continuously and eliminates
monthly periods altogether. She feels
Sports & Health Editor Matt Skube
xw.sports@stfx.ca
there has not been enough research asking specifically for the pill. Laura Wershler, executive director women’s real experience,” she said.
done on these methods. “My biggest agenda is helping of Sexual Health Access Alberta, feels Thomas encountered this dis-
“The hormones of the menstrual people prevent pregnancy if they that those prescribing contraceptives missal when she approached her doc-
cycle act throughout the body, and don’t want to get pregnant,” said Von may be adding to this illusion. tor with birth control related health
interfering with the cycle may have Aweyden. Birth control methods “are pre- concerns.
effects we don’t understand,” she Von Aweyden does not feel that sented in a hierarchical fashion,” She also could not get any in-
said. hormonal contraceptives pose seri- with hormonal contraceptives at the formation on the fertility awareness
But women ous health risks, top, Wershler said. method, which involves charting
”
may not be even with long-term Health risks aren’t the only prob- menstrual cycles so women know to
aware of viable use. In fact, they lems some have with hormonal con- rely on backup protection at their
non-hormonal have been shown traceptives. most fertile times.
alternatives, to prevent endome- “Not everyone likes how they feel “They didn’t know how to handle
like spermici- trial, ovarian, and [emotionally] when they go on the the situation,” she said. “I was more
dal foams and
gels combined
“But most women colorectal she says.
cancers, pill,” Hitchcock said.
When on the Nuva Ring, a
informed than the doctor was.”
Wershler advocates for what she
with barrier wanting birth But most wom- method of hormonal birth control, calls a “body-literacy-positive ap-
methods such control, especially en wanting birth Thomas experienced several side ef- proach” to sexual health, in which
as diaphragms for the first time, control, especially fects, including altered moods. women take initiative to get to know
and condoms.
T h e s e
automatically for the first time,
automatically pre-
“I had sore body, headaches, and
emotions all over the place,” she
how their bodies work and make
birth control decisions based on that
methods are prefer the pill fer the pill because said. knowledge.
very effective because of its of its prominence But, isolating the variety of fac- “What I’d like to turn the spot-
at preventing prominence in in popular culture, tors affecting women’s moods can light on is healthy ovulatory men-
pregnancy and
sexually trans-
popular culture.” says Kisti Thomas, a
volunteer birth con-
be difficult. Teenagers may find it
especially hard to differentiate be-
struation,” she said.
Thomas feels that those writing
mitted diseas- trol and unplanned tween normal emotional fluctuations birth control prescriptions need to
es, says Hitch- pregnancy counsel- and hormonal contraceptive effects, be more knowledgeable on the alter-
cock. lor at Winnipeg’s Hitchcock says. natives because it may directly affect
Friederike Von Aweyden, a nurse Women’s Health Clinic. Wershler is concerned that doc- the choices women make.
practitioner at Klinic Community “It’s more prevalent in the media,” tors and other health practitioners “When I went to get the pill, if
Health Centre in Winnipeg says Thomas said. “It gives the perception may ignore patients’ concerns re- the doctor had said: ‘Do you know
non-hormonal options are discussed that there aren’t as many options [as] garding hormonal contraceptives. about X, Y and Z methods?’ maybe I
less because clients often come in there are.” “There’s a tendency to dismiss wouldn’t have made that choice.”
The Xaverian Weekly
Volume 117 Issue 18
“Canada should stick to hockey”
X-Rated Sports
Matt Skube
Sports & Health Editor
That quote comes from a comment
made by a TSN viewer after Canada
lost to Italy in the World Baseball
Classic. I have to agree with it.
Many questions and second
guesses will be made about Canada’s
early exit from the baseball tourna-
ment. Was it the lack of pitching that
led to their downfall, or was it man-
ager Ernie Whitt’s decision to sit his
better starting pitcher and save him
for the next game – which Canada
did not end up making.
Check out dieticians.ca for useful information Those are just two examples of
and fun facts on Nutrition month // DIETITIANS.CA questions baseball fans from around
the country will debate for the fore-
seeable future. The question I’m ask-
SPORTS
Mar. 12, 2009
league players. It just gets me that
this team, on home soil in Toronto
no less, loses two games in a row.
Their first game against the United
States team was a great game, but
they came out flat against Italy.
Somewhat reminiscent of the Ca-
nadian hockey team and the disaster
that was the 2006 Torino Olympics
— although not even close to the
magnitude.
The WBC is entertaining to
watch. I enjoyed watching the Neth-
erlands earn a huge upset win over a
very talented team from the Domini-
can Republic. But the timing of the
event is something that bothers me.
The tournament takes place at
the same time as spring training for
the major league teams. This means
that major league teams are put-
ting restrictions on their players and
23
ing that it would be any different if
held at a different time of year, but it
would have a very different look for
Canada if those four hurlers were on
the squad.
The timing is a problem though
and the best solution I can come up
with is to break up the off-season.
The World Series isn’t over until Oc-
tober and spring training starts at the
end of February, so there’s really only
four months of time off. I think ear-
lier in February would be the most
opportune time to hold the tourna-
ment.
This gives the players enough time
to rest after a long season. Players are
able to come together and only worry
about playing for their national team,
and not be too concerned about their
major league team.
If you wait until the Superbowl

What’s special ing is what happened to our high-

powered offence?
When you have Russell Martin,
strongly encouraging others not to
play at all. This is understandable be-
cause they want their players healthy
is over, then TV ratings also might
be half decent because there will be
a quick transition from football to

about March?
Joey Votto, Justin Morneau and Ja- for the upcoming season. baseball, for Americans that is. Cana-
son Bay in the heart of a lineup, it The problem is that this is not dians might take more of an interest
is expected that they will produce the best caliber of teams that are in the hockey season, but I still think
more than two runs in a game. Mar- being fielded. Look at the pitching it would work better then it being
tin is arguably the best catcher in the staff for team Canada. I’m not say- right now.
Janine Dueck budget. Although pricey, due to the fast league. Votto is a huge up-and-com-
Something to Chew On pace and hectic schedule of university er in the Cincinnati Reds’ organiza-
life, going to McDonald’s or A&W for tion. Morneau has a National League
Do you ever wonder what healthy mod- food can be an appealing option com- MVP under his belt. Bay was the NL
ifications should be made in your diet pared to making food at home. Rookie of the Year a few seasons ago
if you are an active individual? Or pon- Another valuable information sheet and one of the most well known Ca-
dered the importance of a healthy diet available discusses how to make more nadians in the major leagues.
and physical activity on your future? health conscious options when eating Granted the Canadian team
You are in luck because March is out at fast food restaurants. For those would have been a much different
Nutrition Month (Registered Trade- who enjoy cooking and trying new reci- team with some pitching depth.
mark), and the slogan for this year is pes, there are free recipes from the DC With the likes of Jeff Francis, Rich
“Stay active. Eat like a champion”. This cookbook, Simply Great Food, available Harden, Ryan Dempster and Erik
March is the 28th Nutrition Month, a on the Nutrition Month page, many Bedard all not participating, a lot of
Canadian social marketing campaign which seem absolutely delicious! pressure was put on the offence. And
founded by the Dietitians of Canada, a Additionally for aspiring cooks there they did not deliver.
trusted source of nutrition information. is a recipe analyzer available which not It is embarrassing to a point. I
There are excellent resources available to only analyzes the healthfulness of the grew up playing baseball and Cana-
assist you in learning how to eat healthy current recipe that is being used, but da is slowly producing more major Should Canada “stick to hockey?” // CONTRIBUTED
for an active lifestyle and to emphasize provides suggestions on how to make
the importance the recipe healthier

of physical activ-
ity and nutritious
eating for future
health.
The Dietitians
of Canada (DC)
website is an excel-
lent information
source for accurate
”
while maintaining
a great taste.
Nutrition
Month is an op-
portunistic time
to explore ways
to improve your
“...there is a health through
recipe analyzer making changes

Athletes
nutrition facts.
In the Nutrition
available which in your diet. The
foods and bever-
Month page of not only analyzes ages you fuel your
the website there the healthfulness body with directly
are different topics of the current influence how
covered that are
recipe that is you feel not only
designed to give
insight to how
healthy eating is a but
currently but in
being used, the future. Eating
provides nutritiously can Male Athlete of the Week
of the Female Athlete of the Week
Carolyn Campbell, Hockey
necessary compo- suggestions on help you feel more Will Silver, Basketball
nent of an active
how to make the energetic and satis- X-Women hockey forward Carolyn

week
lifestyle. A Myths fied. I encourage X-Men basketball point guard Will Campbell was named the StFX Female
and Facts section recipe healthier you to check out Silver was named the StFX Male Ath- Athlete of the Week for the week ending
touches important while maintaining the DC website lete of the Week for the week ending Mar. 8, 2009. Carolyn, a second year
misconceptions a great taste.” and to keep an Mar. 8, 2009. Will, a third year Hu- Human Kinetics student from Ottawa,
on eating for ac- eye out for healthy man Kinetics student from Halifax, ON came back from an injury this past
tivity, including food taste test- NS played two strong games for the weekend to score 2 crucial goals for the
the popular energy drinks, the truth on ing in the Bloomfield Center later this X-Men this past weekend at the AUS X-Women in their AUS playoffs. In the
sports drinks and athletic performance, month by the Nutrition Society to championship in Halifax. In Friday’s 3-1 semi-final win Carolyn scored the
as well as the importance of drinking demonstrate how eating healthy can 89-60 semi-final win over UNB he third goal to give the X-Women an all
water. Nutrition Month fact sheets are also be delicious! scored 15 points and had 5 assists important 2 goal lead en route to the
available to provide quick tips on the If you have any comments or nutri- and 3 steals and in Saturday’s 72-60 win, and in Sunday’s close 4-2 loss in
previous myths mentioned. tion related questions you would like loss to Dalhousie he had 6 points, 7 the final to Moncton she scored the
Information about eating healthy addressed in Something to Chew on, rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. Will first X-Women goal to get them into
on budget is available through the DC please e-mail me at x2006nza@stfx.ca finished the season with a 7.2 ppg the game. She finished the season 3rd
website, which can be very helpful for scoring average and was in the top 6 overall in team scoring with 28 pts (11
students who are often eating on a tight -With files from www.dietitians.ca in the AUS in steals and assists. goals, 17 assists).
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