By Adam Dewji and Eleanor Qu
Residence interim contract gouges students
Contract leaves students either in debt or housing purgatory
By Cedric Chen
To the new students who don’t have a clue of the leech on their wallets that’s been going on, I’ll make things clear for you: “the interim contract,” which was first introduced in March, 2011, and first implemented in August, 2011. This system evicts all residents from the Residence between spring and summer semesters, and between summer and fall semesters, and has those who choose to stay — particularly, international students — pay an extra $250 just to stay in Residence for two weeks or to switch into their next-assigned rooms earlier. For those who have too much luggage to deal with, Residence and Housing gives them the not-so-merciful option of the interim storage for $50.
When this system was first introduced, it met fierce resistance from the residents, and the Residence Halls Association campaigned so hard that Residence and Housing had to withdraw it. However, since the RHA isn’t as active during summer semesters, Residence and Housing took the opportunity to finally put the system into practice .
Many long-time residents, including myself, have been completely and whole-heartedly against this system. We see it as taking your life when you’re already sick. Many international students came to Canada with no family connection, so when this system is implemented, they have no choice but to fork over $250 to Residence and Housing again and again. Before this, they could save the $250 for their textbooks for the next semester, or some tickets to their favourite attractions, or their medical insurance bills, but now those are all but a dream. On the other hand, many Canadian students are criticizing Residence and Housing for “seeing nothing but the Lower Mainland.” Since they’re Canadian, they’re seen as “domestic” students and won’t have the priority for interim housing or storage. What Residence and Housing has failed to see is that carrying their luggage to Oak Bay, Kelowna or Prince George is no easier than carrying them to Seattle or Hong Kong.
Sure, the B.C. Liberals are the first to blame for the dramatic cutting to education funding, but that should never be a justification for SFU to suck the students’ blood dry. On the other hand, while SFU has constantly mentioned that they want to construct communities, the interim contract system is torturing the Residence community to near-death. I admit that I’ve made a significant number of life-impacting friends in Residence, but the skyrocketing expenditure is suffocating for myself and may other students.
My demand is very clear: Residence and Housing shall immediately abolish this ridiculous interim contract system and return all money collected under this system to its victims, whether they still live in Residence or not. We’re students, not cash cows. We do not deserve to be treated as a source of revenue. I’m asking the RHA to once again take a very strong stand against the interim contract system. You’ve stopped it once, and you can do it again. If you really want to defend the interests of the residents, you should step up and take this stand.
The Dark Table rises: new dine-out trend sweeps Vancouver
The blind leading the blind never tasted so good.
By Sheliza Thobani
Photos by Dark Table
“How the hell are we supposed to eat?” I hear a voice behind me — my sense of hearing is enhanced by the complete blackness.
“People without sight find a way, so we will too.”
The phenomenon of blind dining is already popular in cities such as London, Paris, Toronto and Montreal. Vancouver has joined the crowd with the recent opening of Dark Table. The concept: eating in darkness in order to enhance the other senses, thus improving the overall dining experience.
Fear overwhelms my emotions as we enter into the darkness; time stands still without the ambiance of streetlights. A waitress guides us to our table, Congo line style, likely to prevent falling or tripping. Sitting in the pitch black is overwhelming, and the initial shock is suffocating.
[pullquote]Unfortunately, they have yet to obtain a liquor license, so if you plan on having a few drinks, I would recommend going somewhere else before or after.[/pullquote]
Blind man Jorge Spielmann, who blind-folded his guests so they could experience their food as a blind person, devised the concept in Switzerland. Dark Table is the third restaurant of its kind in Canada, opened by Moe Alameddine, who was inspired by Spielmann. The restaurant provides job opportunities to blind British Columbians, a demographic in which 70 percent are unemployed; nine of the 24 people on staff at the Vancouver location are legally blind.
As our eyes adjust to the dark, it becomes easier to place where everything is; I gently feel the tip of my knife to ensure that I’m using the appropriate side to butter my bread. Aside from the quiet voices and echoes of “careful,” the room is mostly silent, filled with couples sitting next to each other.
Alameddine refers to the restaurant’s cuisine as “fusion Mediterranean.” The ordering process takes place at an outdoor patio by the entrance, with benches placed along the sides. We were able to pick the main course, but the starters and desserts remained a surprise, so allergies had to be addressed to the server beforehand. As it was opening night, the service was a bit disorganized, but they were extremely friendly and even offered us free swag: blindfolds! Unfortunately, they have yet to obtain a liquor license, so if you plan on having a few drinks, I would recommend going somewhere else before or after.
[pullquote]The purpose of our temporary blindness became clear: a new appreciation for food.[/pullquote]
The first course was a salad with roasted vegetables: we picked up each one, ate it with our hands, and called out what we thought we were eating. One in particular had the resemblance of a potato, but the texture was more rubbery. It wasn’t until we had devoured two of them that I realized we had consumed roasted mushrooms. This was interesting, considering we both usually detest them.
The purpose of our temporary blindness became clear: a new appreciation for food. We all tend to judge food by the way it looks, and we don’t want to eat what we think we won’t like. Overall, this enhanced my eating experience, as I ate everything off my plate, including the battered broccoli and beef tenderloin. Being picky here isn’t an option.
“Now we can say we’ve been on a real blind date,” my boyfriend says to me, and I can see the smile in his voice.
A Cuban convocation
The smoking gun: the beginner’s guide to everything you wanted to know about Cuban cigars.
By Paul Hurst
Photos by Mark Burnham
Although many people object to the perfume of a nice Habana puro, others think a cigar has a nicer scent than a cigarette. Cigars can be a very classy and different way to celebrate your convocation. Here’s a beginner’s guide to the ups and downs of the Cuban cigar.
First off, most serious cigar smokers prefer Cuban hand-rolled cigars from the major brands. A hand-rolled cigar has a bundle of filler leaves that make up most of the body: these are held together by a few binder leaves. After being compressed in a mould for a while, the cigar is finished by putting on the wrapper leaf, which provides the nice appearance and much of the flavour, as it uses the best tobacco. A cap is put on the mouth end of the cigar, and a brand label is attached.
Normally, leaves are aged for a while before being made into cigars. A freshly rolled cigar is the best, otherwise a box of aged cigars is preferable to cigars that are a few months old.
Before you hack the cap off with scissors, consider using a punch cutter, or a normal pen to punch a small hole in the cap end of the cigar. It’s best to use wooden matches to light the cigar, but you can also use a strip of cedar. If you plan on using a lighter, then hit the dollar store and get a torch lighter; they work even on a windy day.
I normally buy my cigars from Cigar Connoisseurs at 346 Water Street in Gastown. The owner is extremely knowledgeable and can help you choose the cigar that will suit you best.
Your cigar should go out regularly, as this is a sign it is properly moist, and has lots of flavourful oils. Make sure to buy your cigars just before you smoke them: a dried out cigar will taste terrible. Store them in a sealed plastic bag before enjoying.
Here’s three cigars that you might want to consider.
1. The Bolivar “Royal Corona” which is a “robusto” size of cigar, for $27. It’s moderately mild, and to be smoked slowly.
2. The Partigas “Serie D No. 4,” also a robusto. For the same price, this one’s a bit stronger and more full-bodied, with pepper notes. To be smoked very slowly.
3. The best of the best: The Cohiba Bihike 52. This cigar rings the register at $70, but if you only smoke one cigar in your life, let it be this one. The Bihike label is relatively new, and uses only wrapper leaves. It’s mild, but perfectly flavoured. It will last a good two hours.
One final note: Cuban cigars are illegal in the United States, so do not take them on a road trip to Bellingham.
What we heard about poetry
Rachel Rose and John Barton celebrate the launch of their new books of poetry.
By Tara Azadmard
Photos by Mark Burnham
“Something that really draws me in writing is saying what is not supposed to be said. Breaking silence, breaking taboos,” says Rachel Rose at the launch of her third book of poetry: Song and Spectacle. At least 60 people cozied up on Sept. 23 together in a jam-packed room at The Beaumont Studios on West 5th to celebrate.
Rachel Rose, former mentor at The Writers Studio at SFU, describes poetry as her first love, despite not having a preferred genre in terms of reading or writing. Readers and listeners of her poetry will pick up on the inspirations from Rumi, Lao Tzu, the Zen, and “many other myths” entrenched in emotion.
[pullquote]“Something that really draws me in writing is saying what is not supposed to be said. Breaking silence, breaking taboos.”[/pullquote]
“All of that, I think, is really powerful and important, and so I always try to do it. And I think it is healing for people to see that example. It’s good to do it because it connects you even if it begins in anger. Anger is the hope that you can change society. If you don’t have any hope, you don’t even bother getting angry,” she says of her writing.
The event, A Poetry Reading by Rachel Rose and John Barton, opened with a reading by Barton from his latest book, For the Boy with the Eyes of the Virgin, released earlier in September by Nightwood Editions.
Barton describes his book, comprised of 41 poems drawn from nine different collections, as a demonstration of the “evolution of [his] artistic sensibility, and the growth of a gay voice.” Written in 1977, the opening poem, “The Pregnant Man” makes change expectant. “It was the first poem that I wrote that I felt was a real poem. I felt that I found something that was worth saying,” Barton said.
Next, Rose, who claims to be one of the many poets Barton has inspired, read a few poems from Song and Spectacle, before moving on to an engaging duet recitation with Vancouver poet Renee Saklikar of “What We Heard About the Americans” and “What We Heard About Canadians,” also from Song and Spectacle.
[pullquote]“The Pregnant Man” makes change expectant. “It was the first poem that I wrote that I felt was a real poem. I felt that I found something that was worth saying”[/pullquote]
Emotions reached their height when in a collaborative experimentation with The Jefferson Rose Band, Rose recited “What We Heard About Death” and “What Death Perhaps Heard” along to tranquil and haunting melodies played by Jefferson Rose (Rachel’s brother) and Tobi Stone. The evening culminated with mingling over glasses of wine while The Jefferson Rose Band maintained the ambient mood.
Both Rose and Barton’s books can be found at Chapters, and at many independent bookstores on the lower mainland and on Vancouver Island.
Throwback Review: The album that was cast Into the Unknown
Bad Religion’s creative departure that took them off track.
Devout followers of punk rock — or even Bad Religion fans — would not hold it against you if you have never heard of Bad Religion’s second album, Into the Unknown. Few hard copies of the album exist today. For the majority of band members, that is something they are quite prepared to live with. It is often joked by the B.R. guitarist, Brett Gurewitz, that the band “[sent out] 10,000 copies and [got] 11,000 back.” The album, released in 1983, still stands as Bad Religion’s most controversial musical production, mostly due to the unprecedented change in style. The album took a progressive rock turn, with a more heightened focus on keyboard and acoustic guitar. Needless to say, Bad Religion’s core audience was not impressed. However, fences would eventually mend themselves with the release of their next album, aptly named Back to the Known.
[pullquote]Into the Unknown does not stand as the group’s most punkish and hard rocking endeavour, but it is a worthy of recognition.[/pullquote]
Although the album stands to the artists as a “creative departure” filled with “youthfulness, naivete and inexperience,” it is my view that the album was just released to the wrong demographic at the wrong time. It is one of their best works. Into the Unknown does not stand as the group’s most punkish and hard rocking endeavour, but it is a worthy of recognition.
Into the Unknown’s relationship between acoustic guitar and keyboard is what ultimately ties the album together: the keyboard captures the album’s themes of space and its wonder, while the acoustic guitar, accompanied by thoughtful lyrics, lets us really stay connected with the songs. The songs on the album range from the energetic and upbeat, like “It’s Only Over When”, to fun and sing-along worthy “Billy Gnosis”, and ultimately to the somber and thought-provoking melodies for which the band is better remembered, as in “Time and Disregard”. All of these songs together make the album a truly unique experience. While it is by no means a head banger, it will leave you pleasantly surprised and relaxed. Into the Unknown is best enjoyed with a beer in one hand and an open mind, along with a dash of affection for science fiction.
Bad Religion has continued to laugh and joke about the failure of this album, rather than celebrating their attempt at something different. The band played it safe from then on, sticking to the signature sound that made them famous. For the majority of fans, this is something they are fully prepared to live with. However, part of me will always wish they would adventure back into the unknown.
B.C. post-secondary has fastest rising tuition dependency
B.C. universities have the fourth lowest tuition in Canada, and are the third most dependent on tuition
By Micki Cowan
VANCOUVER (CUP) — When it comes to depending on tuition to fund universities, B.C. is now the third most tuition-reliant province in the country, following Ontario and Nova Scotia. Statistics Canada data shows that, in the past decade, tuition has come to account for 40.3 per cent of funding for B.C. universities, up from just over 25 per cent in 1999, according to the Canadian Association of University Teachers’ (CAUT) 2012-2013 Almanac of Post-Secondary Education. This marks the largest increase in tuition dependency of any province in Canada during that timespan.
While B.C. is still the province with the fourth-lowest tuition in Canada, responsibility is increasingly being put on the student, rather than the government, to fund post-secondary education.
John Yap, the newly appointed Minister of Advanced Education, said that for the province of B.C., there isn’t yet enough government money available to reduce the dependence on tuition. “In an ideal world, we’d find ways to increase affordability,” said Yap. “Maybe the timing is not right in terms of the funding available.”
The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS), a group that lobbies for lower tuition, says that B.C. needs to take measures to ensure the trend doesn’t continue. They hope B.C. can instead follow the example set by other Canadian provinces that have reduced their dependence on tuition fees — some by nearly 50 per cent in the past 10 years.
“What we’re seeing is an offloading of a public service onto a student demographic,” said CFS B.C. chairperson Katie Marocchi. “Other provinces, such as Newfoundland, have been taking measures to make sure post-secondary education is affordable, and we advocate for the province of B.C. to do so as well.”
Newfoundland decreased its dependency on tuition from 30 per cent in 1999 to 15.9 per cent in 2009. The prairie provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba also reduced their dependency by about five per cent in the past 10 years.
Melanie Greene, a doctoral candidate studying post-secondary education at Memorial University of Newfoundland, said part of Newfoundland’s success story has to do with their unique position of only having a handful of publicly funded post-secondary institutions in the province.
But she also credits a provincial government push to increase access to higher education in 1999 that resulted in an ongoing tuition freeze. As a result, Newfoundland remains the province with the lowest tuition in the country aside from Quebec, whose low tuition rates only apply to residents of the province.
Student support has played a part in the continuation of Newfoundland’s freeze as well, says Greene. “Every time there is a budget coming through, we’re always pushing for a continued tuition [freeze].”
But the example set by Newfoundland is not likely to be mimicked here in the near future, as Minister Yap said he plans to focus on offering grants, rather than reducing tuition, in order to make university more affordable.
Marocchi thinks drastic action, such as freezing tuition entirely, is required to reverse this trend, or else more people in B.C. may decide against pursuing higher education.
“One of the biggest restrictions of people choosing not to get a post-secondary degree is financial reasons. People aren’t in the position where they can pay up front or don’t want to put themselves in a position of massive amounts of debt,” said Marocchi.
“There is an entire demographic that will be less likely to acquire a post-secondary education.”
SFU students work on children’s book application
Four SIAT students with Kibooco Interactive help create a creative computer application
By Graham Cook
A team at the Vancouver-based company Kibooco Interactive, which includes a number of current students and recent grads of Simon Fraser University, has used the power of thinking like a child to create a computer application. The Kibooco Workshop allows children to create and customize their own book using redesigned tools most commonly found on more advanced designing software.
The portion of the team with connections to SFU includes: the technical lead Nathan Sorenson, who graduated with a Master’s of Science in Interactive Art and Technology in 2011; programmer and developer David Choy, who earned his Bachelor’s from SIAT in 2009; usability lead and current IAT PhD student Allen Bevans; and SIAT Media Arts student Allison Koberstein, who was hired on through the Co-Operative education program.
Allen Bevans began working with Kibooco in November of last year during his internship that puts Master’s and PhD students into positions with local in companies. He spoke with The Peak about the project stating that “we reimagined the common Photoshop tools . . . we took the stuff that we learned from Photoshop, like the arrow picks something up, the back button undoes an action . . . the paint bucket is used to fill out a space.” They evaluated which concepts children could grasp to make it easy to use.
Bevans also said that co-founders Molly Schneeberg and Earl Hong Tai had stated that they looked at applicants from other institutions such as Emily Carr University, B.C. Institute of Technology, and Capilano University, but were generally more impressed with the SIAT program at SFU.
One unusual approach to finding mistakes prior to the launch was enlisting children from a local centre to act as testers. “We were working with the kids and they were testing different versions of the interface,” said Bevans. “Getting feedback, seeing what things they struggled with.” They pointed out aspects of the product that would not have been noticed by more mature users.
Allen Bevans said that Kibooco is hoping to launch a basic form of the product sometime later this fall. In this version, users will be able to make things like mugs, t-shirts, and calendars that they can order in time for the holidays. The full book-making application will most likely be accessible sometime in the next year. One reason for the delay, he said, was that they “want to see how well things translate from the computer to the product because [they] are not relying on any single third party.”
Labour update
By Graham Cook
Local 3338 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees represents around 1,200 workers, the majority of which are at SFU campuses. It is comprised of seven bargaining units including employees of SFU, CUPW Vancouver, Highland Pub, Higher Grounds, The Ladle, SFSS, the GSS, and SFPIRG.
Following a strike vote that was held from Sept. 25–27, CUPE’s support workers at Simon Fraser University have voted in favour of strike action. The 78 per cent strike mandate was tallied on Sept. 28, and represents union frustration regarding job security, inflation protection, and wages. 72-hour strike notice at the B.C. Labour Board is required before taking job action.
The Teaching Support Staff Union represents Teaching Assistants, Tutor Markers, Sessional Instructors, and Language Instructors at Simon Fraser University. In June of this year the Union held a strike vote and were given a 90 per cent strike mandate by their membership, putting them in the legal position to take job action. The main issues are wages, a centralized job posting system, equality for ELC instructors, improvements for T.A.s and T.M.s, integrating sessional instructors, and improved working environment.
On Sept. 20, the TSSU made the decision to serve strike notice to Simon Fraser University. At 3 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 27, the Union served 72-hour strike notice to SFU President Andrew Petter’s office. Job action will begin on Monday, Oct. 1, and the first step will be a ban on overtime with further action to follow. This move comes after 26 months at the bargaining table. In a media release, the TSSU’s spokesperson Derek Sahota stated that their goal is a collective agreement rather than a picket line.
– Graham Cook
SFU professor explores the longevity of the Occupy movement
Stephen Collis believes that Occupy is still going strong, and may ultimately change our entire society
By Alison Roach
Stephen Collis, an associate professor of English at SFU, has written a new book that explores the Occupy movement and the philosophical question of how our society affects social, economic, and political change. Last year, Collis was awarded the Shadbolt Fellowship after he presented a plan for a book that was more philosophically concerned about the history of change, but then the Occupy movement happened, and Collis saw the opportunity to look at his subject through this new lens. He says, “The book was sort of an accident in a way.”
The final product, titled Dispatches from the Occupation: A History of Change, was published in mid-August of this year, and is comprised of blogs and short essays Collis wrote while the Occupy movement was happening, as well as critical reflections of change as a larger concept. The book is heralded in its description as a collection of “short manifestos, theoretical musings, and utopian proposals.” Collis explained that his goal was to help the people involved in the Occupy movement understand the issues facing us now as a society, and to realize that these issues all stem from a larger problem. Collis said, “I think what Occupy did to people was represent that it’s all part of one big puzzle. . . . The whole system is built on inequality.”
Collis himself was an active member of the Occupy movement, making his way to downtown Vancouver every day of the occupation, and was recently interviewed by CBC’s The National for his involvement and opinion of the lasting power of Occupy. He believes that the movement left a lasting impact here, that “it introduced a bunch of people to activism and social movement that weren’t involved before.” Many of these activists still meet regularly in groups to discuss the issues that gave birth to Occupy, like, according to Collis, a “lame-duck” government in B.C., a government that favours privatization over public programs, and the fact that corporate profits are at a 50-year high, while wages are at a 50-year low for starters. These groups include the Environment Justice group, Food Not Bombs, and The People’s Library.
Of the people who were involved in Occupy and continue their involvement today, Collis said he was pleasantly surprised and excited that the majority were younger people in their 20s. He said, “I think it’s young people and university students who should be the most concerned,” and cited the fact that Canada — a nation not currently involved in any foreign conflicts — has a $25 billion military budget, while taking only $5 billion away from that would be enough to pay for every student’s tuition in the country. Collis spoke specifically of Brigette DePape, a 23-year-old who participated in the Canadian Senate Page Program, and stood up during the Throne Speech in the Senate silently holding a sign that said “Stop Harper.” Collis has heard DePape speak as an activist and says of the young woman, “She could be prime minister right now as far as I’m concerned.” For him, the idea of an apathetic millennial generation was completely abolished.
For now, Collis is interested in the future of the Occupy movement. He commends the idea of Occupy being leaderless, but said that “at the end of the day, you need to get organized . . . build structures that help you stay organized, but don’t create hierarchical problems.” The Occupy Vancouver movement has taken on a rolling, nomadic life, with pop-up occupations still occurring in the city. With a utopic vision, Collis hopes that the final outcome of Occupy will be a society very different from the one we live in today. He envisions a society based on the “commons” — all the regular people of the world. Collis said, “I’d like to see a movement raising consciousness about the common, the importance of the shared, and that protects the common. . . . To me, it’s a simple idea.”
