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We all need traditional marriage

By
EIC
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9

Before questions of morality, we should consider the family unit

By Juan Tolentino

Reading Mohamed Sheriffdeen’s article “Moral arguments against same sex marriage don’t have legs to stand on”, I cannot help but wonder if the whole controversy over same-sex marriage is too caught up in what are essentially problems of legalism. After all, marriages of various forms have been present in human society long before the state deigned to grant them legal recognition, so if we are to properly address the matter we must return to a more organic understanding of the relationship between human individuals and the communities in which they live.

The state of society depends upon the state of its fundamental institutions, and no institution is more fundamental than that of the family. It’s easy to see why: families are the principal, normative means by which human beings are socialized and integrated into the larger community but, more importantly, are the means by which they are brought into being in the first place. A child’s mother and father are the very first role models or mentors it has, and its siblings (if any) are usually the child’s very first friends and peer companions. The importance of families in the physical and psychological welfare of human beings is paramount to a robust and functional society.

Which brings us to the main topic in question: same-sex marriage. Much of the debate has focused almost entirely on individual rights and freedoms, neglecting the all-important aspect of social and institutional outcomes. In short, we should really think about how this will affect the children.

Now, I do not suppose for one instant that homosexual couples cannot be loving, devoted couples and parents, nor am I considering the possibility that homosexuals have difficulty integrating with society. However, this debate is not really about preserving the common rights of homosexuals that they share with heterosexuals, such as the right to live their private lives in peace without harassment (the legal protections in this area are quite robust), but about the implicit assumption of same-sex marriage advocates that the state ought to give official recognition to homosexual couples.

As I discussed earlier, strong families are necessary to perpetuate the common welfare of all. Therefore, it stands to reason that the state, which relies upon families for its existence, has an implicit self-interest in upholding marriage, in particular so-called “traditional” marriage because only that form of marriage can reasonably be expected to be the normative one. All other forms (single-parent, adoptive, etc.) only come into being because of the breakdown of traditional marriages; their existence depends upon the destruction of the ideal form of family. To put it churlishly, even homosexuals come into being as a result of having heterosexual parents.

I do not mean to suggest that homosexual couples do not deserve some kind of legal protection and recognition, since in our pluralistic society we must accommodate as many social institutions as we can to preserve freedom. However, such arrangements ought not to displace the exclusive and special place that traditional marriage has in society. After all, everyone, including homosexuals, implicitly benefits from it.

GAP protesters belittle students’ intelligence

By
EIC
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8

Shock tactics are not effective ways of conveying points

By Gloria Mellesmoen

Word on campus is that we are due for another visit from the GAP (Genocide Awareness Project) on Burnaby Mountain. If you are unaware of what this is, I would say that you are lucky. The GAP is a pro-life organization that has put together a series of grotesque images juxtaposing abortion to horrific events in world history, such as genocides and the holocaust.

I do not intend to belittle the beliefs of those who are against abortion, or to condemn them in any form. What I condemn
is the use of an insulting logical fallacy to produce shock value as a cheap method of persuasion.

The comparison of abortion to tragic events in human history is an example of a false analogy. Viewers are shown a fallacious visual connection between graphic images of genocide and unrelated abortions in lieu of an argument. While I can tolerate a well formed opinion, I cannot respect a hollow one hinging on faulty conclusions.

Content aside, the poster presentation is one that demeans the intelligence of the average SFU student. As adults seeking higher education, we should be entitled to a better argument than shocking images. The GAP images presume a lack of critical thinking and inability to form an opinion based on facts alone. We are better than that. We are SFU, the top comprehensive university in Canada, and we can think for ourselves.

Co m p a r i n g a b o r t i o n t o genocide does not just insult our intelligence, it insults both global and personal histor y. “Genocide” is a scary word for those of us who have not experienced it or the profound lost connected to it.

However, those who have lived through a situation like the Holocaust, or felt the impact on their family even years later, are inflicted with a much more traumatic opinion. It is incredibly insensitive to use the global and personal loss of so many to guilt people into opposing abortion.

The GAP does not stop at inflicting guilt on those who consider themselv es pr ochoice. The implication of the exhibit is that aborting a baby is akin to taking the lives of thousands of people. I can say with confidence that there are students, faculty, or visitors to our campus that have had an abortion or supported someone else in their choice to.

Choosing not to carry a baby to term does not put a woman on par with Hitler or anyone else who instigated genocide.
SFU should be a safe place for ever yone, regardless of what they believe.

When the GAP exhibit is displayed for all to see in Convocation Mall, I do not feel safe or comfortable at my school. I have known women and their partners who chose abortion for a plethora of different, and equally valid reasons. In some of these situations, I have seen the profound sorrow and trauma that came with a tough decision.

SFU is a public place that should promote the sharing of opinions in a way that does not vilify bystanders. The campus is frequented by a diverse spectrum of people of different ages from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and experiences. There is no place for GAP’s grotesque statements here.

Canada looking down the barrel of a P.R. nightmare

By
EIC
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0

diplomats

By Kyle Acierno
Illustration By Ben Buckley

Canada, once known around the world as a peaceful nation that advocated strongly to protect the world’s citizens from harm, is unfortunately no more. The new face of Canada, masked by the Harper government, is one that acts for the benefit of the few at a great risk to us all. The Harper government’s recent approach to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT ) negotiations is testimony to this fact.

In the past Canada has been widely praised for its political courage and advocacy in the implementation of weapon treaties. In 1997, under Jean Chretien’s Liberal government, Canada’s foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy shocked the international diplomatic community with his global challenge to sign an international treaty banning anti-personnel land-mines within a year. The result was the unorthodox, historic, and unprecedented Ottawa Process. It led to the signing of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Mine Ban Treaty that is currently in the process of removing destructive mines all over the world.

At the preliminary ATT negotiations in 2012, The Harper Gover nment took Canadian foreign policy in a disturbing direction. Diplomats were instructed to “play a low-key, minimal role.” One of these diplomats was Steve Torino, the president of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association.

Early last year, Torino cochaired a gover nment-appointed advisor y panel that recommended making it easier to obtain and own handguns and assault rifles in Canada.

Canada showed up to negotiate an ATT with the president of one of the largest gun-owner lobbyists in the country.

Since the 1990s, organizations have worked alongside governments at arms trade talks; it is not uncommon for UN member state delegations to be composed of “experts” from civil society. However, generally organizations and lobbyists from both sides of the table sit with a delegation to help inform the debate and give balanced advice to a nation, but Canada has decided they will only use taxpayers’ money to invite pro-gun lobbyists to the negotiations.

Canadian diplomats ended their two-page statement at the opening of the UN ATT in 2012 with a small paragraph that summed up what it felt was the most important issue for Canadians: “Canada stresses . . . that the ATT should recognize the legitimacy of lawful ownership of firearms by responsible citizens for their personal and recreational use, including sports shooting, hunting, and collecting. ”

Although almost all international trade in goods is regulated, there are no globally agreed upon standards that exist for the trading of arms. The result can be the misuse and diversion of arms into illegal markets, where they end up in the hands of criminals, gangs, warlords, and terrorists.

Arms control campaigners say one person every minute dies worldwide as a result of armed violence. According to the UN, repairing the damage caused by crime, gang violence, or piracy vastly exceeds the initial financial profits of selling weapons. United Nations Peacekeeping alone costs the world $7 billion per year, and the global annual burden of armed violence stands at $400 billion.

Suffice to say, the ATT is extremely important, especially for the poorest nations. Canadian delegates used the ATT as a platform to bemoan the hassles of gun registration. I know it is quite a burden for those poor hunters to have to register their guns, but to see Canada taking this ridiculous Conservative platform policy to an international stage is embarrassing.

I used to be able to trek around the planet as a proud citizen, but with these drastic changes in Canada’s foreign policy and the embarrassing invitation of the king of firearms to an ATT, I can only hang my head in shame.

Don’t shoot the messenger

By
EIC
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1

messenger

By Leah Bjornson

I don’t want to live in a society that is ruled by fear and suspicion. Unfortunately, the huge coverage of school shootings in the media has created a culture of fear both on campuses and in classrooms, which permeates our community to the core.

Obviously, such violence is unspeakably sad and deeply disturbing, but it is an aberration, not a norm. You can’t live your life thinking that you’ll be hit by a bus, and neither should you believe that the boy sitting next to you in your English class is compiling a hit list. It’s frustrating that our media is flooded with stories of violence and danger, from school shootings to superbugs, which leave the populace with little option but to panic.

I’ve always felt that the media promotes this “culture of fear,” but only recently did it pervade the walls of my own home. Last week, my brother Chris arrived home deeply distressed after having spent an hour talking with the SFU campus security. It seemed that, after a misunderstanding in class, security had decided to question Chris about a list he’d made during his English seminar that morning.

As the external vice-president of the Altered Reality Club (ARC) and a 4th-year English major, Chris’s days are usually occupied with sleeping, eating, reading, sleeping, and planning one of his online gaming sessions. On the day of the incident, Chris had decided to do a little brainstorming for his forum game, which he hosts online for the ARC, SFU’s “club for gaming, anime, cosplay, comics, and people who love geeky things.”

Chris began to write down some of the weapons for the characters. Some of which, like the shotgun and handgun, could easily have seemed suspicious to the students seated around him. Others, like “mind-bullet,” “itchy-powder,” “mouth-laser,” and “bazooka,” were less cause for alarm.

On the way to his next class, Chris was stopped by the security guards and told to come down with them to the security office. Once seated, they told Chris that they’d received a report that he was making disturbing writings in class; two girls behind him thought he was making a list of weapons and a list of names. I personally doubt a killer would pull out his hit list in the middle of an English tutorial, but Chris patiently explained that he was running a forum game, in which the players were the teachers and staff at a mutant school, like in X-Men. The list of names were in fact characters in the game, not real people at SFU.

At that point, security wanted to address further concerns they’d heard from the students. Apparently, Chris was reported as being “disconnected” in class and falling asleep and reading Game of Thrones — classic terrorist behaviour. SFU security strongly suggested that
he should see a counsellor.

Chris responded, “I’m not a killer. I’m just a geek.”

Although I feel safe knowing that SFU security is cracking down on suspicious behavior, it makes me sad that our society is so paranoid that reading Game of Thrones and creating a Dungeons & Dragons-style character sheet are signs of psychosis and deviancy. Are we harkening back to days of Catcher in the Rye, when books were banned because of the negative effects they might have on adolescents? Is John Snow our new Holden Caulfield? I don’t think so.

How unsafe is our society? In the past year, there have been 17 school shootings in the US, with 42 deaths. In Canada, there have only been three deaths related to school shootings since 2000. This raises the question: are we suffering from the symptoms of a disease which isn’t ours? At times, yes. We should be careful, but we should not let fear overwhelm common sense. In the real world,
‘winter is not coming.’

Don’t throw democracy out with the bathwater

By
EIC
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0

Every motion deserves its due in the House of Commons

By Eric Onderwater

Many of you are aware of Mark Warawa’s attempt to file a motion on sex-selective abortion in the House of Commons in Ottawa. Warawa filed the motion, a parliamentary sub-committee ruled that the motion would not come to a vote.

Warawa then appealed to the full committee in question, and that committee again explicitly stopped the motion from coming to a vote. When Warawa finally appealed to the speaker, the speaker denied him the ability to speak on the issue to the entire House of Commons.

While this may seem like a minor procedural issue, it is not. To not even allow a vote on the motion, for no reason other than that of politics, is to deny Warawa the ability to conduct democracy.

Warawa was elected by the people of Langley, British Columbia, to represent their interests in the legislature. He campaigned vigorously, knocked on thousands of doors, and shook hands with thousands of trusting constituents.

He no doubt helped thousands more of those same constituents with various different problems and difficulties after his election. He’s attended countless events, spoken at hundreds of dinners, and probably kissed more than one baby.

Why did Mr. Warawa expend all of this energy? Why did he go to such enormous lengths to become a representative of the good people in Langley? In short, why is he what he is?

He is what he is because he believes in something larger than himself. He believes in representative democracy. He believes in the right of the people to choose their local representatives.

And it isn’t only him. His constituents believe this. Some of his constituents have given their entire lives for that ideal, by moving
from various oppressive nations around the globe.

Now they’ve all been played as fools. And not only them, but us. Why is this? Because Stephen Harper’s PMO finally went too far by shutting down the very beating heart of representative democracy in this country: the right of the individual MP to represent the interests of his or her constituents. They, without good cause, stopped Mark Warawa from doing his job.

You may not agree with what Mark Warawa believes. But you better damn well believe in his right to represent his constituents as an MP. Without that, representative democracy dies in this country; democracy becomes something different altogether. Instead, it becomes an elected dictatorship. The prime minister is elected, and he rules by absolute decree.

To be sure, we should have seen this coming. Originally the system was designed to prevent this. The system was designed in such a way that the MPs elected their leader.

But over time, a few shortsighted individuals circumvented that system by suggesting that leaders be elected by party convention, by the members of each political party. In one stroke, the local MPs lost their single biggest source of power.

This, and not Stephen Harper, killed the power of the individual MP. Stephen Harper’s PMO was inevitable after this change, although this hardly absolves them of responsibility.

I used to work for a Conservative MP in the House of Commons. I’ve spent countless hours volunteering for the Conservative Party, fought numerous campaigns, and sacrificed personal financial stability for the sake of the ideals I thought the machine held. But this latest action by the PMO is too much. The institution of Parliament is sacred, and I wonder if the PMO might have forgotten that.

Minding your Ds, Gs, Fs, Ns, Ps, Qs, and Rs

By
EIC
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0

Dropping derogatory vocab should be compulsory after age 20

By Rachel Braeuer

I say a lot of dumb shit. I put my foot in my mouth all the time, and I speak aggressively before finding out the whole story. While these are fine “skills” for an opinions editor to have, sometimes they leave me wondering, “Aren’t I an asshole?”

The good news is that I’ve cleaned up my vocabulary significantly since I could legally drink (not for any reason in particular, it just happened that way), but one word has been my last holdout of offensive and politically incorrect speech — the R-word: retard.

I need to stop this. What’s more embarrassing is that I can recall adamantly defending using it in the fairly recent past, as though I had some kind of inherent right to it (although I guess that line of argument is kind of meta). Even in writing this, there’s that small part of me that wants to just keep using it, but my rational for doing so is literally indefensible.

My line of thinking goes a little like this: yeah, but I don’t mean that you actually have some kind of learning disability or impairment, I just mean, like, y’know, dumb, or annoying. I would never do this with other derogatory terms, so why will I backpedal for this one?

A few times I’ve caught myself and replaced the R-word with “developmentally challenged,” as if that isn’t equally offensive. Either way I’m replacing my actual feelings with a cop-out phrase that doesn’t hurt me because I don’t have any kind of actual, medically documented “retardations” that I’m aware of. I’m casually projecting my frustrations onto an othered group instead of articulating what my actual issues are.

For the love of all cottonbased fabrics, I’m an English major. There is no excuse for not coming up with a better word.

The etymology of the word “retard” is actually fairly interesting. For those who remember grade 5 French class, played a musical instrument, and/or giggled every time a teacher told you you were “tardy,” you’ll remember that it’s generally a word that means to be slowed down or late.

It can also mean coming behind or after a person or thing (i.e. somewhat in retard of everyone else, she decided to stop using the R-word in a derogatory way), or it can be used to describe the age of the tide. I don’t really get that one, but apparently it has to do with friction?

My favourite unexpected definition has to do with sparkplugs and ignition systems, where you postpone the initial spark. But then there’s the most common definition, specific to North America, “4.a. (a) Educ. and Psychol. A person displaying or characterized by developmental delay or learning difficulties; (b) Educ. a child whose educational progress or level of attainment has fallen behind that expected for his or her age.”

All of these definitions are irrelevant, quite frankly, except the last. Even if I’m describing something physically behind me, or a knocking sound in my car due to a delayed spark in the ignition line, I can use other words or phrases.

When I call something I don’t like or someone who I feel has wronged me “retarded,” it’s no better than calling a shirt “gay” because we wouldn’t wear it. It’s a derogatory term that aligns an involuntary state of mind with being lesser-than.

The words we choose to use on a regular basis have power. In my tenure as opinions editor, I learned the magnitude of this the hard way — people don’t often like publicly owning up to their words, especially in a forum like this where their name and choice of phrases will be linked forever in both a hard and digital copy.

Working with those of you who contributed, wrote e-mails, commented or responded to tweets made me realize the importance of this, so thank you for that. In return, you have my word to give up an outdated and offensive one.

Larger than Life

By
EIC
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1

the north

The devastating beauty of the North

Words and pictures by Melanie Hackett

You only need to set foot in the Yukon for a split second before it becomes clear why the territory’s motto is “Larger Than Life.”

Home to 14 First Nations groups and some 30,000 people — as well as the backdrop of Canada’s highest mountain and some of the largest and most isolated National Parks — the Yukon is one of the least densely populated places left on earth.

Imagine taking SFU’s entire undergraduate population and spreading it out over an area that is geographically larger than California, and is unadulterated and pristine wilderness.

Most of the population resides in the territory’s capital of Whitehorse. I, on the other hand, live in a self-governed Northern Tutchone First Nation community of 300, several hours north of Whitehorse. Of the seven billion people living on our planet, only about four million of them can claim that they live further north than we do here.

I graduated from SFU’s kinesiology program and got a job with the Health and Social Department of the Selkirk First Nation government as the recreation director for Pelly Crossing. This community is located in the same territory that they have inhabited for thousands of years, passing from generation to generation knowledge like how to survive in the -50 Celsius winters.

In my time here, I’ve had many larger-than-life experiences, and have also faced the sharp paradoxes of the Yukon: there is a contrast between the awe-inspiring experiences that teach you how tiny yet connected to everything you are, and the harsh reality of life in the north.
One of the most amazing northern experiences has been to watch the aurora borealis dancing overhead in electric purples and greens, the particles from the sun interacting with the oxygen and nitrogen in our atmosphere.

One particular November night, it was nearly -50 Celsius. I ran out with two of my friends to watch a huge swan dance into a soaring eagle, a daffodil and finally an angel that raced across the star-filled sky — a sky that was so clear by now that I spotted the Andromeda galaxy, 2.5 million light years away. By contrast, in the summer, it’s chilling to lie in the sunlit tent nestled in the jagged mountains at two in the morning, listening to the eerie call of the wolves. The ground is carpeted with strawberries, cranberries, raspberries, blueberries, and everything else you could imagine.

By autumn, the hills are on fire with the changing leaves, as hundreds of thousands of cranes, swans, geese, and other birds migrate south. Around me, it was common to see bears, lynx, foxes, porcupines, dall sheep, wolves, moose and elk.

Yet even with more this unimaginable beauty, the people here have suffered greatly. There was the sudden colonization that occurred after the Klondike Gold Rush; and then the end of the steamboat days when the Klondike highway was built, forcing the people of Selkirk to relocate. There was the residential school era that forced children away from their hunting-gathering culture, westernized them, and spat them back to families they could no longer understand.

There is so much trauma left in our community. It is a generational cycle, one lacking parenting as a result of being taken from their own families, a generational gap: the elders living here grew up living off the land, and their grandchildren grew up playing video games. It is a suppression of their language, traditions, and culture, and it is a cycle of substance abuse that leads to many more downward spirals.

There is no purpose in sugar-coating it. Girls as young as 14 sell their bodies because they can’t steal enough off their parents anymore to feed their drug habit — after all, their parents are attempting the same thing.

Being part of the Yukon EMS ambulance team, I know that over 50 per cent of our calls are alcohol related. Beginning in February, it is the sunniest place in the country, but don’t let it fool you. There have been several instances this year of teenagers that have passed out drunk and froze to death in the -40 temperatures.

Even sober, if your car breaks down on an isolated strip of highway that has no cell reception, it could be an extremely long and dangerously cold wait. Although difficult to deal with, these issues and history make the discrimination against me — as one of the only “white” people here — more understandable.

I have a girlfriend here who was violently assaulted by a serial rapist; he had previously tied two 13-year-olds and forced the same fate upon them. My friend got pregnant; alcohol and drugs were the only method to temporarily wipe out her horrifying experience, so her child was born with severe fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. This substance abuse however, increased her vulnerability to being raped again.

Eventually, two kids later, she found herself lying in the street close to death. She finally called for help and was flown to Vancouver, where a specialized surgeon reconstructed her slashed wrists. Relocated from her home and with no money or support system, she had nowhere to go. She ended up on the corner of Hastings and Main.

How many of us look from the bus window at that corner and judge the people there for “wasting their lives?” How many of us ignorantly tell kids ogling from the car that that’s where they’ll end up if they make stupid choices? In the best case scenario, we simply don’t give them much thought.

My friend was one of those people — the ones standing on the corner, serving as a lesson of deterrence to children, on the receiving end of our pity and contempt. Today, she is one of the most inspiring “Larger Than Life” characters I have ever met: hardworking, outgoing, and humorous, she is not afraid to share her story.

Sometimes the incredible beauty surrounding us brings even more pain as we try to comprehend the horrors that occurred in such a pristine place; likewise, it is difficult to comprehend how a simple mistake, such as forgetting to antifreeze your lock in the dead of winter, could lead to death by such an aesthetic place.

But the things that bring healing to the community are activities that restore their culture and focus on nature. Along with the staff I manage — some of whom struggle with fetal alcohol syndrome — I’ve worked on implementing a Native dance program.

When the children performed for their elders, the community was transformed. Tears of joy, pain and healing flowed down the faces of elders as they got up from the audience and danced with their youth, bridging that generational gap to finally connect with them.
The stone-faced youth that were so preoccupied with finding their next joint became energetic with smiles after only three days in the wilderness, where they were learning to ice fish, make fire, shoot arrows, make snares and listen to traditional legends.

It will take time — it may take a few more generations — but if any people can overcome such struggles, the Larger Than Life community of Selkirk people will.

These are the people most connected to the land, and they instinctively realize what an integral role it plays in the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of a person. If we are to deal with all of the contemporary issues we’re faced with, we need to listen to the lessons of their stories and culture.

One thing I know for certain is that if there is any place on earth that is larger than life, in both the natural environment and in the character of its inhabitants, it most certainly is the Yukon.

Album Reviews – April 8, 2013

By
EIC
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1

By Max Hill

Artist: The Flaming Lips
Album: The Terror
The Flaming Lips have never been an easy band to categorize, but one mood they’re rarely associated with is melancholy. There’s a wistful, nostalgic quality to their The Soft Bulletin era material, and some of their earlier tracks embrace an apathetic worldview that seems miles away from the life-affirming electro-pop of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.

The Terror marks The Flaming Lips’ first album since 2009’s Embryonic. Following on the heels of a series of high-profile collaborations with artists like Lightning Bolt and Bon Iver, The Terror is the darkest, most abrasive record the band’s ever made.

Inspired by lead singer Wayne Coyne’s split with his partner of 25 years, as well as percussionist Steven Drozd’s struggles with drug addiction, The Terror is an atmospherically and sonically dense record coated in hazy dark ambience and peppered with sparse, chirpy electronics. Wayne’s vocals have never been stronger, or more
emotional: for a band so well-known for its theatricality, both on-stage and on-record, The Terror’s 11 tracks seem uncharacteristically honest and intimate. “Try to explain why you’ve changed/I don’t think I understand,” Wayne sings over underwater background vocals and dissonant, Radiohead-style drum machines.

This is a version of the band we’ve never seen before: if the band’s string of jubilant, Beach Boys-meets-LCD Soundsystem pop records were the party, The Terror is the lonely, selfreflective hangover. The Flaming Lips manage to turn the record into a cathartic, insightful and musically rewarding experience rather than a selfindulgent crawl; that speaks to their ability to adapt and expand their style while remaining one of indie music’s most dependable bands.

Artist: Tyler, The Creator
Album: Wolf
Tyler Gregory Okonma, mouthpiece of Odd Future and aggressive Twitter presence, has a narcissistic streak. If his modesty-shirking stage name didn’t clue you in, his songs surely will. Wolf, like Bastard and Goblin before it, is a solipsistic stage play in which Tyler spins a yarn of alter-egos in order to self-diagnose his many neuroses.

Whether he’s longing for his late grandmother, wilting in the harsh face of his sudden stardom or searching for rapid-fire revenge on his detractors and childhood bullies, Wolf sounds more like an album Tyler wrote for himself than any of his fans. That’s not necessarily a bad thing; the rapper and burgeoning sketch comedy star seems committed to ignoring the reactions of his audience, both positive and negative, and it surely helps him to focus his creative energy towards making the music he wants to make. If only it came off as less uneven and unfocused.

Wolf has its strong points: Tyler’s flow is as strong as always, and although his humour verges towards the juvenility his listeners have come to expect, he clearly flat-out enjoys being an emcee. Tracks like “48” and “Lone” show a surprisingly mature side of the rapper, and lead single “Domo23” is as silly and infectious as anything Odd Future has ever done.

Despite its strong points, Wolf comes off as an unorganized, bloated mess — Tyler is trying to say too many things at once, attempting to balance the misogynistic, anecdotal approach of his earlier albums with a more mature, conscious style inspired by Lupe Fiasco and Nas. Unfortunately for Tyler, he isn’t a talented enough rapper to handle both.

By Alexis Lawton-Smith

Artist: Besnard Lakes
Album: Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO
When Montreal-based band The Besnard Lakes released Are the Roaring Night in 2010, music critics were impressed. With songs clocking in at over six minutes, Are the Roaring Night offered a more chal- lenging listen, each presenting a slow entrance, but always rocketing up to a summit of distorted guitars, ephemeral ef- fects, sharp drumming, synth drones and reverb-laden, breathy vocals. Devout fol- lowers, myself included, soon ensued.

Their new album, Until In Excess, Im- perceptible UFO, presents similar charac- teristics to their previous work, but moves from the crashing crescendos of intermin- gled instruments to dreamier and softer peaks. The band still adheres to the long songs and slow-to-swell climaxes, but lim- its the all-out musical assaults from Are the Roaring Night. And unfortunately, I miss it.

Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO begins with “46 Satires”. There is a full mo- ment of a low synthesizer before the guitar and vocals even enter the song. When the vocals finally hit, Olga Goreas lyrics are, fittingly for the album title, hard to under- stand and imperceptible because of the distortion.
The slow-to-progress momentum is followed by another sleepy track, but the album eventually kicks it up a notch on “People of the Sticks.” This song offers the first up-tempo (or at least awake) melody that finally catches some of my attention.

Lamentably, the effect doesn’t last long, because the next few songs pass without much notice. “And Her Eyes Were Painted Gold” is the last noticeable track, but the dreamy echoes of Beach Boys- esque vocals aren’t nearly enough to save the album.

If you are into 90s shoegaze and are looking for a soft, slightly psychedelic album, then Until in Excess, Impercepti- ble UFO may do the trick. If not, the echo- ing sounds will do what it did to me: sadly, put you to sleep.

THROWBACK REVIEW
By Max Hill
Artist: Elvis Costello
Album: My Aim is True and This Year’s Model

On his incendiary debut My Aim is True, Elvis Costello is to the 70s what Bob Dylan was to the 60s: an angry young man who knew how to turn his 20-something angst into insightful rock and roll brilliance. From the power-pop of opener “Welcome to the Working Week”, to the lyrically dense love balladry of “Alison”, to the early Talking Heads-style New Wave of “Less Than Zero”, it’s one of the most listenable, varied, and downright fantastic rock and roll albums of the 70s — and that might be the best decade rock and roll music will ever know.

If Costello had recorded one of the strongest rock and roll debuts of all time at the tender age of 23 — in 24 studio hours, no less — he would be a legend. But he didn’t just release My Aim is True and fade into obscurity. He followed it up with This Year’s Model, which took its predecessor’s youthful brilliance and fine-tuned it, focused it, and made an even better record out of it. The tender moments dig deeper, the punkrock moments rock harder and faster, the backing band is tighter, and Costello balances raw sex appeal and awkward literacy in the way only he can. How this man didn’t go down as one of the biggest sex symbols of the 70s, I’ll never know.

This Year’s Model is the mature, experienced counterpart to My Aim is True’s youthful exuberance; it’s impossible to review one without mentioning the other, and they always sound best when listened to in sequence.

These two albums, released back-to-back in 1977 and 1978, might be the best one-twopunch in rock and roll history — they’re certainly enough to rival Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. Both pairs of records seem to say everything worth saying about being young and pissed off about it, whether in the swinging 60s or the afterparty of the 70s. I guess some things just never change.

RCMPatriarchy

By
EIC
-
0

rcmp

Sexual harassment and discrimination is still rampant

By Estefania Duran
Image courtesy of Dave Eagles / Flickr

In May 1974, the RCMP announced the recruitment of women for the first time in its 101-year existence. Despite the male officers’ skepticism, 30 out of the 32 women successfully completed their training and became part of a ceremony that would go down in history. After graduation, however, it soon became apparent that allowing women to join did not necessarily mean that the force was equipped to accommodate female officers.

Women have been accepted into the RCMP for over 37 years now, yet there is still evidence of recurring discrimination and sexual harassment within the force. Through discrimination and sexual harassment, men in law enforcement ostracize powerful and capable women from continuing in the force, or even joining it.

Even something like uniforms, which should have been straightforward and unbiased, became an immediate issue: it was not until 1990 that female officers were allowed to wear pants to work instead of a skirt and pumps.

In fact, as recently as 2003, there is evidence that this is ongoing. A female officer that had been with the Force for over 17 years made an official complaint regarding the dress code, which forced women to wear a skirt to all formal events without exception. She felt that such policy was discriminatory, since it differentiated between male and female members. The request was denied twice and was not accepted until 2012 — nine years later.

Regrettably, discrimination based on uniform is neither the only nor the worst of the problems female officers have faced in the force. In April 2012, an internal report based on 426 BC female officers released its results — the results were disturbing and shed light on some of the darker problems within the RCMP.

The study highlights the overwhelming perception that there is a lack of consequences for the harasser — at worst, he will be transferred or even promoted. It is shocking to see how
police organizations, which are committed to protecting the rights and liberties of citizens, are failing to do the same for their own female officers.

Coming forward with a harassment complaint brings more problems to the female officers than it does the perpetrator, resulting in a hesitation among female officers to file complaints.

In regards to harassment complaints within the institution last year, the chief recruiter of the RCMP told The Vancouver Sun that female officers would need to be able to have “… the strength to deal with it.” This message not only adds to the problem but, worse still, serves as a bad example to other men in the force.

Another female RCMP officer who filed a complaint against her superior was left disappointed by the harsh reception from fellow male officers. This officer not only did she not receive support from the RCMP, but was also further humiliated by her aggressor, who publicly labelled her as nothing but a meddler quick to lay sexual harassment charges. This tainted her reputation, and she was never taken seriously again, leaving her with few options for career advancement.

Sadly, there are many cases similar to this one, which is precisely why female officers are faced with the dilemma of whether or not it is worth filing a complaint. If the victim will suffer more consequences than the perpetrator, there is clearly something wrong at the heart of the institution and how it cares for its officers.

Officer MacLean was part of the force for many years. At one point, she saw no option but to complain about a senior officer’s repeated harassment and inappropriate suggestions of ways to advance her career.

When she finally came forward regarding the inappropriate behaviour, she was ignored, and received a negative assessment for her work. After failing to see any action, she finally had no choice but to quit. MacLean is now one of the 200 female RCMP officers filing a lawsuit against the institution.

The lawyer representing the female officers explained that these are problems that the RCMP has been aware of for years, but are just now being brought to light with this lawsuit. Moreover, he suggested that even with the lawsuit, the case will likely not get underway until this year and could take several years to process, showing that even when women decide to take action and speak up, it can still take years for justice to be served.

Even though a class action lawsuit may seem like the right way to hold the RCMP and its male perpetrators accountable, the problem these types of lawsuits is that they are almost always settled out of court. A document is signed that releases the defendant from further liability and explains that the receipt of settlement from the RCMP is not equivalent to admission of wrongdoing.

Accepting settlements out of court allows the RCMP to abstain from admitting liability, which can only further perpetuate the wrongdoings of the institution. If male officers do not suffer the consequences of their actions, and the institution itself denies accountability, then how can change be possible?

Amongst the female officers that came forward in the class action lawsuit was former constable Janet Merlo. One shift, a supervising corporal told everyone that she was the right height “because you can lay a six-pack of beer on her head while she gives you a blow job.” If a supervising corporal can make such statements without any repercussions, then it is vital for society to question not only the institution but also the unethical behaviour they endorse.

Discrimination within law enforcement can vary in its severity; however, the fact that male officers see nothing wrong with leaving lingerie on the lockers of female officers demonstrates how there is an underlying problem that goes beyond a seemingly harmless “practical joke.”

Sometimes senior officers, when interviewing women, ask them whether they are going to “sleep with everyone” because of their gender. If nothing else, this demonstrates their inability to take women in the workplace seriously.

One female officer explained how they wear bulletproof vests to protect themselves from the bad guys out in the world, but what they really need is a vest to protect themselves from the bad guys inside their own organization. Unfortunately, nothing will change until the RCMP realizes there is more than one dimension to the problem; not only is there discrimination and harassment against female officers, but there is also a male-dominated hierarchy that prevents many of them from achieving their full potential.

Within the institution, there appears to be subtle structures that exist and work in favour of men. Since male officers usually run the system and have positions of power, they help one another in the process of attaining administrative positions. This, along with other attitudes towards female officers, creates obstacles caused mainly by the male officers with power in the organization — obstacles that existed within the RCMP in 1975 and exist even after 37 years of women’s successful contributions to the Force.

Today, about 18 per cent of all police officers in Canada are women, and though it is a vast improvement from
1975, an increase in the number of female officers does not necessarily mean they have achieved greater equality. In a study comparing the percentage of active female officers amongst 27 countries, Canada ranked seventh, but what is the merit of ranking so high if women’s working conditions are far from what they should be?

It is essential to look beyond the increasing number of women involved in law enforcement and instead demand accountability from a system that fails to protect its own.

In an attempt to get to the bottom of these issues, the RCMP has hired Insp. Carol Bradley, who is developing a number of different initiatives to better deal with harassment. One of the initiatives posts harassment advisers posted across the province of BC and provides new tools for employees to confidentially report any problems with their colleagues or superiors.

As good as this initiative may be, it is important to recognize that though advisers might be a good first step, how are these advisors going to help if one of the main concerns is the lack of consequences and accountability? Female officers all across Canada are seeking a fair and safe environment to work in, and by failing to shift its rooted ideologies, the RCMP’s attempts will simply have a Band-Aid effect.

The daunting question is whether change is possible, and if so, how can it be achieved? Not all women may be suited to do jobs of this nature, but it is also important to emphasize that not all men are suited for the job either; it has nothing to do with gender.

It is time to demystify the so-called acceptance of women into a field of work traditionally reserved for men — such as law enforcement — by differentiating the relationship between allowing women to be part of a male-dominated occupation and enabling them to achieve equality.

The over whelming patriarchal attitudes and male chauvinism call for immediate action not only from the RCMP, but also from police authorities all around the world. This facade that Canada has been able to maintain by being seventh in the world has to be unveiled
— this ranking hides a disturbing reality.

Helping people say No

By
EIC
-
0

helping people

The fictionalization of Chilean political campaign becomes meta self-commentary

By Will Ross
Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures

At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss No as a member of a long line of platitudinous films dramatizing social and political movements of the 20th century. Films like Gandhi and Milk too often reduce their complex political atmospheres to simplistically motivated acts of martyrdom and common-sense morality, and mistake condescension for sympathy.

Yes, No is one of those films. No, it should not be dismissed, at least not for that.

In 1988, Chilean dictator Augustus Pinochet caved to global political pressure and held a plebiscite. It asked citizens: “Si,” keep Pinochet, or “No,” do not. No is a fictionalization of the ad campaign for the “No” side, which constituted numerous politically conflicting parties.

The most obvious tipoff that the film is not interested in hero worship is its hero, a fictional adver tising executive. Rene, who was for a time exiled from Chile, is sympathetic to his clients, and agrees to serve as an ad consultant for the 27 nights that “No” will be allotted 15 minutes of TV time for persuasion, to be followed by 15 minutes of marketing, for “Si,” and then 23-and-a-half more hours of state-run programming.

Though Rene clearly has some political investment in the campaign, he is disinterested in any result except for the successful sale of “No” as a product. And so he spearheads advertising that downplays mention of the state’s exiles, tortures, and many mysterious
disappearances, and instead fundamentally offers “Happiness is on the way” and some lighthearted smearing.

It’s in this conflict, between educating the public in principles and ideologies or achieving those principles by means of shallow pragmatism, that No hits paydirt. Its political sympathies are unambiguous (after all, it’s not called Si), but its semiotic loyalty is elusive; there is, after all, something insidious about promoting even the noblest of aims in the same way that CocaCola promotes soft drinks.

But for much of its running time No is a bit more conventional than that, and resembles one of those films I mentioned at the beginning. Rene’s home life with his son and non-committal girlfriend have enough dramatic mass to pull some interest, but keep too thematically detached and irresolute to really go anywhere.

An even worse cop to convention is the treatment of antagonists. The scenes involving “Yes” proponents are almost valueless: an early meeting among Pinochet’s people over campaign plans ends with a sinister speech about capitalism’s political usefulness that is artlessly on the nose; and Ren e’s cowo rker-turned-“Si” rival is cartoonishly malicious.

What really sells No as more than a trite inspirational drama, with fleeting glimpses of the “truth vs advertising” issue, is its formal makeup. Most obviously, the entire film is shot on video — the same Betacam video format, in fact, used by all of the ads for “yes” and “no” alike. The format’s conspicuous cheapness constantly reminds us of the film’s own “packaging” as a piece of persuasion, and because it and the campaign ads share identical aesthetics, the movie acts as a sort of meta self-commentary.

Its formal qualities pick up even more speed when the film employs discontinuous editing. Characters have a conversation in a restaurant and, when the film cuts to a park, seem to be still working on the same sentence.

Unfortunately, this gesture of discontinuity is largely dropped. A later scene provides an even better moment when Betacam news footage of a “No” assembly, transitions into Rene at the rally, well out of sight of the news cameras. The change in point of view from state television to protagonist is completely unnoticeable, and it’s very fitting that in the final scene we see Rene do much the same thing he always has, both before and while he helped a country to say “No.”

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Simon Fraser University’s independent student newspaper since 1965.

Contact us: [email protected]

© The Peak Publications Society 1965-2024

Simon Fraser University’s independent student newspaper since 1965.

Contact us:
[email protected]

© The Peak Publications Society 1965-2024