Resogun redefines addiction

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November 25, 2013

It is, perhaps, a little alarming that the most notable launch title for the newly-released Playstation 4 is Resogun: an indie release from Housemarque, the studio that developed the PS3’s addictive asteroids-clone Super Stardust HD. Like Super Stardust HD, Resogun is extremely simplistic, yet also increasingly difficult. Its addictive qualities culminate in one of the few launch titles for the PS4 that will have players compulsively returning, over and over again.

In many ways, Resogun is an exemplary showcase of the power of the PS4. A plethora of voxels fill the environment when each enemy is destroyed by the ship, which players pilot, and an abundance of particle effects are displayed as massive amounts of numbers flood the screen. The goal is simple: maneuver through the barrage of bullets and debris, shooting anything that comes into sight until enough enemies have been decimated for the boss of each level to show up.

What makes Resogun slightly more engaging than its spiritual predecessor is that it adds the extra objective of trying to save all 10 humans in each mission. This is completely optional, and many will skip it because of how challenging the game can become later on, but saving a human will give the benefit of a weapon upgrade, extra bombs, more points, or even an extra life — all of which will come in handy on a very frequent basis.

The game also consists of online co-operative play, allowing users to play with each other to try and get through the unrelenting waves of enemies. The major complaint that Resogun warrants however, is that it does not have local co-op, which would have been great for those players who play together offline.

The game is also extremely short, with only five levels to enjoy, and the environments themselves are not extremely memorable. However, having had the game for a couple days now, it is the one title that I keep playing, despite having beaten it a couple of times already. Replaying it on different difficulties, with different ships, and also trying to save all the humans gives a longevity to the game that is welcoming and maybe a little destructive to one’s social life.

Resogun is so great that it actually makes the rest of the PS4’s line-up feel inferior in quality. While it may not be the graphic powerhouse of a game like Killzone: Shadow Fall or Battlefield 4, its gameplay is above and beyond those titles. After boosting through an onslaught of enemy ships and dealing incredulous amounts of damage with your overdrive — a fancy name for “laser” — addiction becomes an inevitable reality.

The Buck Stops Here

By

EIC

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November 25, 2013

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In the span of a single day, Bitcoin has gone from being seen as “fake online money” (as succinctly described to me by an Electric Owl bouncer), to being recognized by the US Senate as a force to be reckoned with. After recently concluding their two-day hearing on the digital, decentralized currency, government officials ultimately came forward with positive comments on Bitcoin, sending its value skyrocketing to a peak of $900 in fiat money — for a few moments, anyway.

At the same time, the Vancouver Bitcoin Co-op was signing their incorporation papers, a milestone that was filmed by NHK, Japan’s national broadcasting channel. Some enthusiasts are saying that Bitcoin has reached its first tipping point. Its every move is tracked in the headlines of mainstream press, while governments around the world are acknowledging its legitimacy as a means of exchange for goods and services.

The Canada Revenue Agency has elected to treat Bitcoin like legal tender in terms of how businesses and individuals file their taxes, though there has been no discussion around additional legislation yet. Germany recognizes it as legal tender, while the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said they would not regulate it.

However, Bitcoin companies and entrepreneurs are still regularly being denied bank accounts. The press headlines aren’t always favourable. Still in its infancy, Bitcoin’s infrastructure is plagued by security concerns. Investor mania and shadowy acquaintances alike are cause for scepticism from the average person.

Where “real” money has failed us, I say, let cryptocurrencies lead the way.

Bitcoin’s reputation for being the currency of choice in online black marketplaces, particularly the Silk Road, often precedes it, even as the value of the global illegal trading system stands at $400 billion. Advocates argue that buying illegal drugs on Silk Road, which make up 70 per cent of their inventory, is the harm-reduced alternative to buying ecstasy from a street dealer. Because buyers could rate and review products, it was easy to find high-quality drugs at competitive prices.

Think a whole market of Walter Whites circa the first season of Breaking Bad. Big-scale cartels and drug lords aren’t the ones flocking to this particular corner of the Internet.

Even the Secret Service said during the Senate hearing that high-level criminals have not moved towards using Bitcoin and other P2P (peer-to-peer) currencies. Centralized currencies continue to be the go-to choice during criminal activity, because every transaction conducted in Bitcoin is recorded in the system’s public ledger. It is a common misperception that digital currencies can be completely anonymous and private.

“Bitcoin is not anonymous and cannot offer the same level of privacy as cash. The use of Bitcoin leaves extensive public records,” the FAQ of Bitcoin.org states. Forbes staff writer Andy Greenberg has also documented the ease of connecting his “experimental” purchases of marijuana through three separate markets. “On Silk Road […] our online drug buys were visible to practically anyone who took the time to look,” he writes.

This is certainly true for the average user, though — like cash — there are more sophisticated ways to launder bitcoins.

Yet precisely because of its decentralized nature, Bitcoin can never be completely untraceable and anonymous, though it still retains a reasonable measure of privacy compared to credit cards. If someone hacked into the transaction records of a merchant, they would have access to enough information on your credit card to use it. But because your Bitcoin wallet’s private key — which is required to gain control of the wallet — does not get recorded in the same system, your currency remains relatively safe.

The largest threats to the legitimacy of Bitcoin are the security loopholes and inefficiency of trading the currency. At this point in time, the quickest, easiest, and safest way to buy and sell Bitcoins is in person; ironic for a currency that is prized as being the high-tech way of the future. In the last month, there has also been a rash of trading platforms around the world being compromised, as well as the China-based GBL shutting down and taking $4.1 million in user money with them.

To be fair, it’s more accurate to call this an outright scam than hack. Bitcoin advocates say that the users involved could have easily prevented this snafu by immediately transferring their currency to an online “wallet,” created by a service explicitly for the purposes of storing bitcoins, such as Blockchain, or to a wallet created on their personal computer. After all, Bitcoin exchangers — like banks — have the power to move currency around in whichever way they please, and are not necessarily a secure way of storing your money.

Bitcoin is designed to bring us back to a decentralized currency of the people.”

– Gavin Anderson, chief scientist at the Bitcoin Foundation

However, even large-scale, reputable exchanges like Mt. Gox and Canadian Virtual Exchange have been taking inordinately long times to process user verifications and cashouts, leaving money vulnerable for longer than necessary.

For now, Bitcoin is still largely a playground for those with disposable income, much like the stock market. It would be a poor move to invest any money in Bitcoin that you couldn’t afford to lose. While general consensus is that digital currencies are an inevitable part of our future economy, it’s not a guarantee that Bitcoin will be the choice cryptocurrency that becomes adopted in the mainstream.

Since its inception, rival currencies (or hopeless clones, depending on how you see it) have been established, such as Litecoin, Peercoin, and Namecoin. Though less popular than Bitcoin, each of these currencies have their own advantages. Litecoin, like its name implies, allows for shorter transaction times, making it more feasible for transferring microtransactions.

The difference between buying Bitcoin and buying shares on the stock market is that you don’t have to buy one entire Bitcoin. Like fiat money, it can be broken down into millions of parts, and you can convert any dollar amount you want into the cryptocurrency.

So, in the end, the Electric Owl bouncer was right. Bitcoin is fake online money. But after all, Canadian dollars are fake money, too — they just use paper instead of code. Both currencies only have as much value as the people who use them think they do. Both can be easily lost or stolen.

Government policy may never get to a point where you can pay your taxes in bitcoins, but the widespread adoption of a secondary currency in a country is not unheard of. Peru, Uruguay, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Afghanistan accept US dollars as easily as if it were legal tender, and it may well be a developing country that finds itself at the forefront of the worldwide Bitcoin revolution.

The more unstable the national currency and the less a people trusts its government, the more visible the benefits of Bitcoin become. For example, the Cypress government wouldn’t be able to confiscate the money from a citizen’s Bitcoin wallet, because there is no one central power to influence and exert power over. Citizens can rest easy knowing that their money is relatively safe inside their digital pocketbooks.

As Gavin Anderson, the chief scientist at the Bitcoin Foundation, told Forbes magazine: “Bitcoin is designed to bring us back to a decentralized currency of the people.” The greatest success of digital currencies will be to keep the powers that be in check and allow people a way to gain more control of their finances. So where “real” money has failed us, I say, let cryptocurrencies lead the way.

Neither ‘pro-ana’ nor ‘pro-mia’

By

Peak Web

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November 25, 2013

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WEB-anorexia-Jessica Wissel-flickr copy

People in North America are constantly bombarded with the ideology that they should be fitter, smaller, and sexier. There are many media sources that display idealized versions of what women and men should aspire to be, in regards to both their health and body shape. This is taken to the extreme in a section on the blogging site Tumblr.

The site utilizes tags, which are attached to photos, quotes, and other material, and allow the content to be categorized and filtered. While browsing through the main page of the website, I came across a disturbing set of tags on a photo of an extremely thin young woman: “pro-ana” and “pro-mia.”

“Ana” is a short and innocent-sounding version of anorexia nervosa; while “mia” is a shortened version of bulimia nervosa. Out of sheer curiosity, I clicked on one of the tags to see what would be displayed. Tumblr did warn, “If you or someone you know is dealing with an eating disorder, self harm issues, or suicidal thoughts, please visit our Counseling & Prevention Resources page for a list of services that may be able to help.” But this didn’t adequately prepare me for what I was about to see.

To my horror, a click on the tag took me to a section of the website plastered in photos of people with absolutely emaciated figures, and a frightening number of phrases such as “Keep Calm and Stop Eating,” and “I hate every inch of my body.”

I am still repulsed by what I saw. I’m not repulsed by the shapes of the people themselves, but by the fact that these people promote a mental illness, they idolize eating disorders.

I came across a video from a sufferer of anorexia nervosa under the “pro-ana” tag. In it, she detailed the true realities of the disease, and her most recent trip to the hospital at a mere 98 pounds. In it, she tries to reason with those posting glamorized photos of ribcages and thigh gaps, saying that these images are encouraging little girls to kill themselves, and that she wouldn’t wish this upon her worst enemy. She attacks the tags by saying, “I’m not ‘thinspo.’ I’m not ‘thinspiration,’ I’m ‘deathspo,’” hitting home the idiocy of these tags that romanticize diseases that claim lives.

It’s disgusting that the website allows for the existence of such a section, and yet, if they were to take it away, it’d potentially encroach upon the freedom of users to post whatever they wanted. This prompts the equally important, yet enormous question: where do we draw the line?

Our society must begin to tackle the tough issues of regulating speech like this, and deciding whether or not it has a place. Perhaps we won’t be able to reach a decision immediately, but the discussion is important.

Personally, I find it sickly ironic that this subculture of Tumblr seems to be thriving, while many suffering from these disorders certainly are not.

ADVICE COLUMN: Ask Dr Ygor Yvanovich

By

EIC

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November 24, 2013

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DEAR DR. YGOR: I have spent much of my adolescent years growing my reputation as a supreme dick and all around terrible person. My friends, or shall I say acquaintances, have learned that I am irritable, cynical, uncaring, and to just generally avoid me. Children in my neighbourhood have come to the conclusion that I must have serious mental issues in order to summon up this amount of dickishness, and they, too, generally avoid me. That’s the way I like it. I’ve worked 18 hard years to get to where I am.

Today, however, I may have thrown that all down the drain. While waiting for the one acquaintance, that can still stand to be around me, so I could tear down his hopes and dreams, a girl came up to me and asked me for a charitable donation for some cause. Now, normally, I’d come up with some less than witty but still hurtful retort. Today, however, I just froze. The only way I could think of getting out of the situation was giving her my spare change. It was only after running away (and not ruining my friend’s day) that I realized I committed a charitable act. Am I still a dick? Can I repair my reputation as an abomination against humanity?

DEAR DEDICATED COLUMN READER: You have come to the right doctor. In addition to having been Bulgaria’s No. 32nd Psychiatrist, I happened to be Bulgaria’s number one dick. In fact, I lost my license over my refusal to use positive psychiatry, instead belittling my patients, and encouraging their self-doubts and insecurities.

In my years of being a dick, I’ve learned how to exploit any situation as a showcase for my dickery. As such, where you see a failure of character, I see potential. Though most people agree that charity is good, one thing everyone hates is smugness, especially undeserved smugness, my favourite kind of smugness. Now assuming you’re not Bill Gates, your donation was probably no more than 75 cents. Assuming that, I’d say brag about your charitable contribution. Go on and on about how they don’t care about children and that they spend all their money on lattes instead of people in need, and how they get to go back to their comfy, cozy homes and watch their TVs.

Congratulations, you’re now not just an “irritable, cynical and uncaring” dick but an “irritable, cynical, uncaring and pompous dick”. And remember, when anyone asks how much you donated, stand up and proudly state, “75 CENTS!”

Make us dicks proud (or at least only mildly sarcastic)!

-DR. YGOR YVANOVIC

Minds of the Moment #3

By

EIC

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November 24, 2013

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CMYK-Minds_of_the_Moment — Image credit: Kenneth Uzodinma.

A moment of silence

By

EIC

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November 18, 2013

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In November 28, 1998, Rita Hester, a trans woman, was murdered in Allston, Massachusetts. Fifteen years later the crime remains unsolved, but her death — and the deaths of countless other transgender and non-conforming gender folks — continue to be commemorated on November 20: the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Rita Hester’s murder prompted Gwendolyn Ann Smith to start the “Remembering Our Dead” web project, along with a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Since then, commemorative vigils and memorials have taken place across North American cities and around the world. The annual event not only serves to publicly mourn and honour the lives of all who have died because of anti-transgender hatred, but also to draw attention to an issue that the media rarely covers.

While there has been increased media pressure to prosecute hate crimes based on race and sexuality, there is comparably little education and awareness of trans issues. The individuals assaulted or murdered because of transphobia are often not provided the justice they deserve.

In fact, Rita Hester’s murder occurred just over a month after the murder of Matthew Shepard, whose much-publicized story led to such a large response from gay rights activists that it eventually brought about the The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, a criminal justice legislation signed by President Obama which imposes harsher penalties for perpetrators of hate crimes. If this took 11 years to implement, what kind of timeline can we expect to bring justice for transgender and gender non-conforming folk?

In 2009, the brutal murder of Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado was reported as that of a “gay teen,” and the reports used male pronouns. At the time, murder suspect Juan Antonio Martinez Matos’ statement outlined how he had thought Lopez Mercado was female but then “realized that the teenager was actually male.” The media for the most part has neglected to respect the fact that, at the time of her murder, Lopez Mercado self-identified as female.

These facts stand alone to show, first off, that many of these murders occur because the victim in some way does not conform to the perpetrator’s strict understanding of gender. They illustrate a trend wherein the hatred that led to the attack was sparked by an inability to understand identities or lifestyles that don’t conform to the strict rules of gender binary which many internalize.

Individuals assaulted or murdered because of transphobia are often not provided the justice they deserve.

The Trans Murder Monitoring project — in cooperation with Transgender Europe (TGEU), a network of trans rights NGOs across the continent — was initiated in April 2009 to collect, monitor and analyze reports of homicides of trans people worldwide. Today, the project functions in 36 countries. That same year, the update presented information about over 160 people killed because of other people’s violent reactions to their trans presentation or identity — but these numbers fail to tell the whole story.

The media often fails to accurately identify trans folks in their reporting. Chelsea Manning, formerly Bradley Manning, is a recent example. Despite publicly identifying as a woman following her incarceration, Manning has been referred to via male pronouns by many prominent media outlets, including The Washington Times, The New York Times, USA Today and NPR.

This leads to many trans folks feeling that their identities and lived experiences are not being recognized. Apart from the insult of using outdated names and pronouns to define trans people, refusing to identify a victim of a violent crime as transgender or gender non-conforming delegitimizes a case’s status as a hate crime and a trans issue — something that is essential in drawing the public’s attention to the severity and rampancy of violence against transgender and gender non-conforming folks.

TGEU recently published its newest findings, and they are shocking: between January 1 and April 30 of this year, 78 trans people were murdered in 13 countries. Since January 2008, there have been 1,233 reported murders of trans people in 59 countries worldwide.

The report also specifies that these murders tend to be particularly gruesome and violent, often including mutilation and other forms of torture. These were preliminary results, and will probably have grown by the time of this article’s publication. Furthermore, these numbers only include murders that are reported as victimizing trans and gender non-conforming folks. Often trans identities — and even murders themselves — go unreported.

Seventy-eight per cent of the globally reported murders of transgender folks (958 murders) were located in Central and South America, with Brazil alone reporting a whopping 468 murders. The highest numbers are reported in countries with strong trans and LGBTQ advocacy organizations, most of which keep careful track of numbers, meaning that the problem worldwide is surely much greater than these numbers express. In nations with less pronounced trans rights organizations, many murders go undocumented and undiscussed.

Based on the information thus reported, there have been clear patterns that show intersections of oppression that increase the likelihood of transgender individuals being targeted for violent crimes. There is a level of traditional sexism which plays into the murders: most of the reported names are people with a feminine gender presentation. Socioeconomic status, education levels, and race are all factors that further marginalize transgender and gender non-conforming folks.

A large risk factor is involvement in sex work. In Canada, sex workers have been fighting for legislation to bring about better safety and protection on the job; trans sex workers in particular are at a higher risk for violent victimization. Also, unsurprisingly, the lack of a solid support system for trans and gender-nonconforming people increases their marginalization in society. Many of the individuals in these reports having been rejected by friends, family and employers because of their gender identity and presentation.

However, these problems don’t lie exclusively in lack of public awareness and legislation. Law enforcement officers often display insensitivity or, at the very least, lack of education towards trans rights issues. For example, just over a year ago, 26-year-old January Marie Lapuz was fatally stabbed in her New Westminster home. In a press release, police first identified Lapuz by her male birth name, later noting her legal name change to January Marie.

Refusing to identify a victim of a violent crime as transgender delegitimizes a case’s status as a trans issue.

Many of these murders are not investigated properly or are not presented to the public and the media properly, leaving a large number of cases unsolved and leaving entire communities with no sense of justice or closure.

This year marks the 14th Transgender Day of Remembrance. There are more than 120 scheduled vigils and events around the world, in honour of the countless lives that have been lost as a result of transphobia. In an article for the Huffington Post, founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith argued that the Transgender Day of Remembrance “is not a quick and easy one-day way for organizations to get credit for their support of the transgender community. It’s not something to trot out on the 20th of November and forget about. We should be working every day for all of us, living and dead […] We remember for hundreds of others killed around the world in anti-transgender murders.”

By raising awareness that violence against transgender folk is not only present but very rampant, the Day of Remembrance also opens the floor for non-transgender allies to come forward with their support. At SFU, our opportunity comes this week: from November 18 to 20, Out on Campus will set up a display and vigil on campus. Students and faculty are encouraged to come and pay their respects for those trans people who have been murdered and harassed, and to open a forum on the possible actions the school can take in order to minimize the victimization of its trans community.

For Out on Campus, however, these issues are not limited to a single day: the organization is committed to promoting trans rights all year long, and have made efforts to make SFU a safe space for any and all gender identities and presentations. There are several exciting projects that are happening on our campus, in the hopes that education and awareness can contribute to an improvement in the quality of life and rights for folks of all gender identities.

The Trans* & Gender Diversity Project aims to create a resource guide for trans* and gender diverse folks at SFU by collecting personal accounts.

The SFU Queer History Project is working to archive and thus preserve over 40 years of queer organizing and activism at our very own campus. If you have any pertinent information, please contact Out on Campus at [email protected].

Positive Space Network aims to transform our campus into a safe space for all by reducing homophobia and transphobia through an educational program. It is also working to create a network of resource people and safe spaces on campus.

Despite increased legislation and awareness of trans issues since the death of Rita Hester 15 years ago, transphobic murders and assaults still occur with striking frequency in our society. We recognize the Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20 in order to ensure that all of us at SFU are doing our part to ensure that our campus becomes a safe space for trans and gender-nonconforming students, staff and faculty. Take a moment to reflect on what you can do in order to make your school a positive force in the fight for trans rights.

Media Democracy Days marks 13th year in Vancouver

By

EIC

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November 18, 2013

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The 13th annual Media Democracy Days (MDD) — organised by SFU’s School of Communication, OpenMedia.ca, and the Vancouver Public Library — took place on Nov. 8 and 9 in downtown Vancouver at the Vancouver Public Library and The Cinematheque.

MDD is a “gateway event,” according to MDD steering committee chair Kathleen Cross, who is also an assistant professor in the school of communication at SFU. “[It’s about] reaching out to people who have never thought about . . . the importance of media in a functioning democracy,” Cross stated.

Cross went on to quote communications professor and media reform activist Robert McChesney: “Whatever your first issue of concern, media had better be your second.” The event brought together students, citizens and scholars, to discuss and learn about the state of media in Canada.

This year’s main themes reflected the news that has occupied people’s attention over the past 12 months. Information control was chosen in the context of this summer’s NSA and PRISM leaks, while the #IdleNoMore movement, the Northern Gateway Pipeline protests, and the recent RCMP raid on the Mi’kmaq-led anti-fracking blockade in New Brunswick influenced the choice of Aboriginal voices as another main topic.

“Whatever your first issue of concern, media had better be your second.”

– Kathleen Cross, MDD steering committee chair, quoting media reform activist Robert McChesney

MDD’s program included a series of practical workshops — from audio production, to information control in the news, to filing a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. The program also included conferences, a media fair exhibition with about thirty social justice and media reform groups, and a packed film screening of Terms and Conditions May Apply (2013, Cullen Hoback), accompanied by a keynote address by BC’s Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Denham.

“The media today is filled with power, ideology, bias . . . and spectacle that distract us, and yet make possible for each of us to reach out to communicate,” said Stuart Poyntz, programming advisor for MDD and assistant professor in the school of communication at SFU.

He went on to say that a central objective of MDD is to act as “a platform . . . to connect many of us together, around the recognition that social change and democratic reinvention can only happen today in and through our media system.”

Speaking on the issue of information control, privacy commissioner Elizabeth Denham defended privacy and access rights as “critically important for our democracy, for freedom of opinion and also for open societies.”

Evoking BC-specific issues such as the HST debacle and the “fudge-it budget,” Denham stated: “It’s often not the substance of the issue, but the perception of government secrecy that really is dominating the news; so access rights are really important underpinnings of our democratic system.”

Denham also expressed concerns about privacy and the emergence of “dataveillance,” echoing the theme of the film that followed her keynote, Terms and Conditions May Apply — which deals with the implications of clicking on the ‘agree’ button on various services’ license agreements.

Other speakers at MDD expressed distress about access rights in Canada. Mike Larsen, professor in the Criminology Department at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, stated: “Right now the [FOI] system is out-dated, inefficient and over-burdened.”

Gwen Barlee, policy director and spokesperson with the Wilderness Committee, who has filed approximately 45 FOI requests, told The Peak that “privatisation [of public services] is dangerous because as more government services get off-loaded to the private sector, we as a public have less ability to see the inner workings of how the services are delivered.”

Jennifer David, former director of communications at Aboriginal People’s Television Network and author of Original People Original Television introduced the other main topic on the second day, highlighting the need for Aboriginal voices to express themselves “on their own terms and in their own words.”

David explained how the #IdleNoMore movement was illuminating a discrepancy between mainstream media’s coverage of aboriginal news and reality. On #IdleNoMore’s first National Day of Action (Dec. 10, 2012), the IKEA monkey largely overshadowed the protests against Bill C-45 in national mainstream TV coverage.

The MDD event has found national success; this year, not only Vancouver, but Ottawa played host to MDD as well, with Montreal and Waterloo planning to join soon.

Cool Beans: a musical for coffee lovers

By

Peak Web

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November 18, 2013

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Why are there so many people in Vancouver crowding into coffee shops only to sit alone and not talk to all the other lonely people? There might be great romances and friendships waiting to happen, if only we’d let them.

This idea, and coffee shop culture in general, is explored in Cool Beans, a new musical comedy presented by Solo Collective Theatre, written by Anton Lipovetsky — winner of Most Promising Newcomer at the 2013 Jessie Richardson Awards. The show combines caffeine, romance, hipsters, and the coffee shop environment to create a heartfelt and hilarious story that anyone who’s ever sat alone with a latte can relate to.

Running from Nov. 21 to Dec. 1 at Performance Works, Cool Beans is directed by Rachel Peake with music direction by Mishelle Cuttler and set design by John Webber and Drew Facey. The show features four characters, played by Jay Clift, Gilli Roskies, Katey Hoffman, and Josh Epstein.

If all the outsiders are hanging out together, are they really outsiders?”

Josh Epstein, actor

Epstein plays the ambitious Patrick who had removed himself from “coffee culture” and given up on love to chase success in Dubai. When he returns, he finds that his ex-girlfriend has also changed and is now dating a hipster barista and hanging out with the coffee shop regulars. “They’ve both changed, and they’re in a love rectangle,” said Epstein. “He realizes that the best time of his life was when he had nothing, except for her.”

The idea for this play came from Anton Lipovetsky’s interest in self-identity. “He’s interested in exploring that age group when people are trying to identify who they are . . . they’re constantly asking themselves ‘who do you identity with?’” explained Epstein. “The hipster thing is so interesting too — if all the outsiders are hanging out together, are they really outsiders?”

The songs that Lipovetsky has written for the show cover a wide range of styles with varied influences: “There are songs that remind you of Rent, Book of Mormon, Avenue Q, and even Green Day,” said Epstein, adding, “You need to be able to have that range.” One of Epstein’s songs is “Dreams of Dubai” which he said has a Middle Eastern feel and is “an ode to Dubai.” The show also includes a “power modern musical ballad,” and plenty of rock inspired songs.

Epstein said he wanted to work on this project because Lipovetsky is someone special with great talent and a lot of potential. “It’s rare to work on a good new musical,” he said. In light of Lipovetsky’s success with Broken Sex Doll and his multiple recognitions, including his Jessie Award and Vancouver Mayor Arts Award, this is no surprise.

Although this show pokes fun at hipsters and coffee shop culture, Epstein says, “We’re having fun with it. The heart of the piece is about these people trying to find love. Anton has an amazing ability to write heart and humour. People will get attached to these characters, love the music, and laugh until they cry.” Sounds like the perfect combination to me.

We need to be watched

By

EIC

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November 18, 2013

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The lack of theft protection in the SFU Burnaby library is well known. According to campus security, the library is the number one hot-spot for device theft on campus and, while video surveillance has proven to be one of the most powerful mechanisms in crime prevention, as far as I can see, the library is bereft of all but one surveillance camera.

With the number of thefts that occur, it’s time for this university to step into reality and make the worthy investment. Undoubtedly, more camera technologies will help rid the library of crime once and for all.

Those who frequently visit the library may have noticed that security guards are fairly diligent in patrolling the floors. The walls are plastered with theft-precaution notices, too. But let’s face the truth: while these security measures are prominent, they simply aren’t enough to ensure everyone’s security. Video surveillance would actually capture acts of thieving and other crimes, and would preserve these records indefinitely. They would be an invaluable tool for both security and police alike.

Security once told me that they receive around 20 or more theft reports per week, which clearly indicates that criminals are thieving without being caught. Hence, students are at great risk of losing valuable education tools whenever stepping foot in the library. One would assume that, in awareness of theft statistics, SFU would take the utmost precautionary measures to ensure that its students are protected from device-theft while in an environment that promotes academic success.

I encountered my own near-theft incident in Bennett last semester. In my naivety, I’d left my laptop at the study-carrel while visiting the restroom. Two minutes later, I returned just in time to witness a man stuffing my laptop in his bag. The embarrassed man returned my device and feigned innocence, saying he thought it belonged to a friend, before I left him to go to the front desk where I reported the incident and met with security.

If I’d returned from the restroom seconds later, I’d have lost one of my most valuable possessions.

We managed to catch the thief and immediately took an unnerving trip to the security office, while the man pleaded with me not to press charges. While relieved at rescuing my laptop, I felt sickened to realize that if I’d returned from the restroom merely seconds later, I’d have lost one of my most valuable possessions.

Since then, I’ve been frustrated and rather boggled as to why SFU hasn’t implemented as many security measures as it can in Bennett Library. I’m well aware of the issues surrounding privacy rights of library-users; after all, people may not enjoy being “spied on” while they have their laptops open. But if the library respects individual privacy by placing cameras in non-intrusive areas throughout the building, it could successfully up its crime-stopping game.

The Toronto Public Library does it right. They explicitly state, in their video surveillance policy, that the library “recognizes the need to balance an individual’s right to privacy” while ensuring safety through camera-usage “where deemed necessary” in order to keep the library safe and secure.

While the evidence for better security is overwhelming, SFU must think critically about this and realize that its students will be grateful in the end. Therefore, while allowing students to maintain their privacy, a proper video-surveillance system must be installed in places deemed necessary for observation. This security precaution is essential to establishing a crime-free library at SFU Burnaby, and will greatly reduce the risk of lost valuables and devastated students.

Volleyball earns highest GNAC win total yet

By

EIC

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November 18, 2013

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It was another up-and-down week for SFU’s volleyball team, as the Clan returned home, winning one game and losing another in West Gym. The win, however, was the Clan’s fifth of the season, marking the team’s highest win total since entering the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

The record-setting victory came at the expense of the Saint Martin’s University Saints, in what was a very one-sided affair. The Clan narrowly took the first set 25–21, before blowing out the Saints over the final two, 25–13 and 25–15.

Junior middle Madeline Hait led the Clan attack, recording 14 kills, though fellow junior Kelsey Robinson wasn’t far behind with 11. Robinson also led the team with 17 digs, but had help on defense, as Alanna Chan and promising freshman Alison McKay each had 13.

The straight-set victory was one of the Clan’s best of the season.

“I think this game we executed individually and executed well as a team too,” said Hait after the match. “Our offence and defence both played well. We’ve been working a lot on defending and turning saves into kills and I think that showed tonight.”

The win pulled the Clan’s overall record above .500 to 10–9, and their conference record to 5–8. That was until their next game against Western Oregon.

It’s been a running theme for the Clan this season to win one game and drop the next, and the trend continued against the Wolves.

That’s not to say it wasn’t close — it was as close a game as one could hope for. The Wolves took the first set 21–25, before SFU stormed back to take the next two, 25–22 and 25–23, but couldn’t close out Western Oregon in either the fourth or fifth sets, dropping them 23–25 and 12–15, respectively, ultimately falling in five close sets.

“I thought both teams were equally skilled and competitive on the floor but, that in the end, it came down to the fine details,” said sophomore defensive specialist Helen Yan post-game. “Looking forward now, we are going to need to execute as well as we can and close this season on a high note.”

With the loss dropping the conference record to 5–9, the Clan will have to win their final four games to finish with an even record, a tough task for a developing team. But as evidenced by their best-ever fifth win of the year, and even in the close game against Western Oregon, SFU is playing some of its best volleyball in years.