Interrobang issue for October 21st, 2013

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Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

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NEWS2 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Nineteen-year-old Nicole Paynetravelled from her hometown of Calgary, Alberta, to attendFanshawe’s Photography pro-gram. “I love creative writing,travelling and almost alwayshave one of my four camerasaround my neck at all times. Iam a proud weekend warriorand a self-proclaimed beer pongchampion.”

1. Why are you here? New experience s and to studywhat I love.2. What was your life-changingmoment?I was travelling through Thailand with my dad when I was 13. Iknew I wanted to show people the

beauty of the world through myeyes (or lens).

3. What music are you currentlylistening to?“Crystalised (Dark Sky Remix)”

by The XX.4. What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?Laughter is the best medicine.5. Who is your role model?My amazing step-sister. Shealways followed her heart and explored the world for years before

deciding to live in Australia. She isnow training to be an MMA fight-er and won silver in the AustralianCup wrestling competition. I missher very much.6. Where in the world have youtravelled?All over Canada and the states,Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, Malaysiaand Thailand.

7. What was your first job?The Calgary Stampede.8. What would your last mealbe?Sushi… all the sushi.9. What makes you uneasy?Watching world news – eventhough I watch it and try to keepconnected.10. What is your passion?Travelling, singing and photogra-

phy. Do you want Fanshawe to know 10Things About You? Just head onover to fsu.ca/interrobang and click on the 10 Things I Know

About You link at the top.

10 Things I Know About You...

Payne a traveller at heart

CREDIT: SUBMITTED

Nicole Payne has wandered around various countries.

CREDIT: STEPHEN ECHAVIA

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NEWS 3 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

September 28 marked the closeof London Police’s one-monthlong initiative, Project L.E.A.R.N.,whi ch st and s fo r Li quo r Enforcement and Reduction of

Noise.Police patrol was focused in

areas with heavier student pres-ence like Fanshawe communities,university communities and down-

town.Media relations officer Ken

St ee ve s pr ev iou sl y t ol d Interrobang that students respond to the Project and problems arisewhen a line is crossed and peopleare disturbing and disrespectingneighbours.

London Police released thisyear’s numbers and felt the pro-gram yielded great success.

In the four weeks Project Learnwas conducted, a total of 77 crimi-nal charges were laid. There was agreat divide between student and non-student offenders: 15 charges

were laid to students and theremaining 62 were non-students.

Last year’s number was slightlylower, where 61 people werecharged; seven of which were stu-dents and 54 were non-students.

When it came to ProvincialOffence Notices, a fairly evendivide between students and non-students was evident. Out of 2,307notices, 1,278 (55.4 per cent) weregiven out to students and the

remaining 1,029 (44.6 per cent)were given out to non-students.

These numbers are almost iden-tical to last year’s results; out of 2,293 notices, 55.6 per cent weregiven out to students and 44.4 per cent were given out to non-stu-dents.

All in all the Police Service sawthe program as a great success.“With no injuries or major inci-dents reported, [London PoliceService] is pleased with the resultsof the Project and plan to continueensuring the safety and enjoymentof all communities in our city.”

STEPHANIE LAI

INTERROBANG

What did weL.E.A.R.N.?

This week is Mental Health and Wellness Week at Fanshawe,which means there are tons of activities to help staff and studentsrelax, take a break and rechargeduring this busy time of year.

On October 21, We Got Gamewill be taking over Forwell Hall,setting up a variety of video gamesavailable for free play from 11 a.m.to 5 p.m. and tournaments from 6to 9 p.m. According to VP InternalOla Akinsara, who is helping toorganize the events, “Video gamesare a great stress reliever,” so thisis the perfect way to kick off astress-reducing week.

On October 22, the YellowWall will be set up in Forwell Hallfrom 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “We’regoing to stop students to ask themwhat made them happy today,what made them smile today,”Akinsara said. “It gives students a

positive thought –‘Out of all the bad things that happened to me,this made me smile, this made melaugh.’” The goal is to fill up thelong black wall in Forwell with

positive Post-It notes to spread smiles around Fanshawe.

On O ct ob er 2 3, A nd re wJohnston will give a hilarious anti-

bullying presentation called It Gets

The Best in Forwell Hall at noon.“He’s a comedian who was bullied as a child … he grew up as the lonegay guy in his hometown,” said Kevin Masterson, supervisor of theBiz Booth, who organized thisevent. “It’s an awesome presenta-tion that has an anti-bullying mes-sage with a comedic flair.” Youmay recognize Johnston fromMuchMusic’s Video On Trial, Yuk Yuk’s, or even Fanshawe’s ownForwell Hall, where he has per-formed stand-up comedy severaltimes.

On October 24, a Wellness Fair

will be set up in F hallway and Forwell Hall from 10 a.m. to 2

p.m. This event is the result of theF an sh aw e S tu de nt U ni on ,F an sh aw e C ol le ge a nd t heOccupational Health and Safetydepartment working together.Dozens of organizations will havetables set up in F hallway, includ-ing mental health website iCopeU,eating disorder support and resource centre Hope’s Garden, thelocal YMCA, Regional HIV/AIDSConnection, Southwest OntarioAboriginal Health Access Centreand the Middlesex London HealthUnit. There will be prizes and

plenty of swag given out.“The Fair is aimed at promoting

health and wellness and providingan opportunity for the students tolearn about the different on-cam-

pus and community resourcesavailable to help them,” said cam-

pus life facilitat or Jennifer Gillespie, an organizer of theevent. “It’s about promoting ahealthy lifestyle.” The Fair willalso include a Farmers Market out-side in the SUB Courtyard, wherelocal farmers will sell fresh fruits,vegetables and other good-for-yougoodies.

That same day, there will also bea free Zumba class taught by aninstructor from Fitness 101 held in

Gym 1 from 12 to 1 p.m. Zumba isa fitness program that involvesdancing and aerobics. “What better way to end a mental health aware-ness week than having a big zumbaclass? Everybody can get all happyand healthy,” said Akinsara.

“Mental health is an issue that alot of students overlook … it can

be one of those things you put onthe back burner,” Akinsara said.“It’s definitely a good idea to bringawareness and get people learningmore about mental health, and get-ting them positive and happy.”

ERIKA FAUST

INTERROBANG

Give your brain a

break this weekOn the morning of November 2 5, d ow nt ow n L on do n a nd

Stratford will be a sight to behold:hundreds of red scarves will bedraped over lampposts, firehydrants, trees and fences to

brighten up the city with a punchof colour and raise awareness for HIV/AIDS. This is the second year of the Regional HIV/AIDSConnection’s Red Scarf Project.

“The Red Scarf Project was ini-tiated as part of our agency’sefforts to raise awareness in thecommunity about HIV/AIDS and its impacts,” said Meredith Fraser,RHAC’s director of education. Thecampaign is run in support of AIDS Awareness Week, from

November 25 to December 1, and

World AIDS Day on December 1.“Most people living in Canada

tend to think of HIV/AIDS in aglobal context as opposed to alocal context. Because the virushas been identified for over 30years, I think sometimes people

become desensitized to its impactand its effect,” said Fraser. “AIDSAwareness Week is an opportunityfor us to put HIV/AIDS back onthe map as an issue of concern,something that affects people inour community every day, and towork to reduce stigma and increaseaccess to appropriate and compe-tent health care.”

Since RHAC is a local agencywith a local focus, its team wanted

to create a visual symbol thatwould draw attention in the com-munity. “We thought about red scarves; when they’re wrapped around someone’s neck, they look like the red ribbon, a symbol of

HIV/AIDS. It’s one of the first –if not the first –health awaren ess rib-

bon.”Last year, a team of volunteers

draped more than 350 red scarvestagged with information aboutHIV/AIDS around downtownLondon and Stratford. People wereencouraged to take a scarf, wear itto keep warm, and spread informa-t io n a nd a wa re ne ss a bo utHIV/AIDS. “The idea was that

people would see them while driv-ing into work,” Fraser said. Shewoke up early so she could seeRichmond Street covered with red scarves. “I got to work just before8 a.m., and [the scarves] werealmost all gone already,” sheremembered. Though she didn’tsee the scarves in their “natural”habitat, she did see people them

wearing them throughout the day.“It was really amazing and won-

derful and impactful,” said Fraser.“We were struck and touched bythe enthusiasm and the kindnessand generosity of spirit extended

by the community who made somany incredible and beautifulworks of art to help raise aware-ness and ensure that folks werecozy in the cold months. It was awonderful success.”

This year, RHAC is hoping tocollect 400 red scarves. “We’reasking for people to contribute inways they’re able to, feel comfort-able with, and enjoy. One of theways people can make a contribu-tion is to knit or crochet or weave a

scarf,” Fraser said. The only twocriteria to follow are that thescarves are red and that they are6x60 in. (15x150 cm.). “Other thanthat, creative licence is up to thevolunteer who’s making them.”

If you’re a knitter, a crocheter or a weaver, you can donate as manyscarves as you like –just giveFraser and her team a heads upfirst. If you can’t knit your way outof a paper bag, RHAC is alsoaccepting donations of red yarn,knitting needles, crochet hooks or money to support the purchase of these materials. All donations must

be submitted to the RHAC office at186 King St. before November 12.

Community members are invit-ed to attend the RHAC’s vigils inStratford on November 30 and inLondon on December 1. Check outhivaidsconnection.ca for more

information. For more informationabout the Red Scarf Project and tolet Fraser know how many scarvesyou plan to donate, contact her [email protected].

ERIKA FAUST

INTERROBANG

Warm and cozy for a cause

CREDIT: FOREVERENGLAND.COM

Red scarves bear a resemblance to

the red HIV/AIDS awareness rib-

bon.



Remember when Joseph Gordon-Levitt played the hopeless-romantic wallflower in500 Days of Summer ? When he was Robinin Batman? Don Jon? Remember whenJustin Timberlake started acting? WhenMichael Jordan played baseball? There isgreat debate amongst artists whether it’s

best to master one art form, or be a dynamicartist, getting one’s brush wet with manydifferent media. But when tackling thisquestion, I believe the most important thingnot to be the medium chosen, but the poten-cy of the message. And in order to assertyour message, it is best to choose the appro-

priate media for the audience.It’s taboo to even utter “art” and “adver-

tising” in the same sentence, let alone equatethe two. But I think the fact that they aresimilar should no longer be a criticism and isactually working to art’s advantage at this

point in time. The difference between artand advertising lies in intention. Intention is,as I’ve stated in previous articles, whatdefines art. Both art and advertising attemptto pitch an idea. But advertising’s motive issolely to make money, whereas art’s is toencourage critical thinking and for the audi-ence to become a manifestation of those

ideals. We’re lucky to be artists in a timewhen it’s a fad in our young demographic to

be “quirky” and “alternative.” Everyoneloves Zooey Deschanel because of this, and as a result, she’s become exceedinglyfamous. We can apply the same strategy toour art to successfully deliver a powerfulmessage to a receptive audience.

If an ad agency is trying to sell a toy car to a little boy, they aren’t going to make it asoccer mom mini-van or an old man’sCadillac. It’s going to be a bright, shiny, fastracecar. The medium an artist chooses tocreate a piece should be viewed similarly tothis: if one is trying to portray an anti-estab-lishment message, they’re not going to cre-ate a tri-fold brochure. It would more effec-tively take the form of graffiti or a docu-mentary. There is an array of mediums tochoose from, each of them with diverse mal-leability to create a desired effect. An artist

should take advantage of these and use themto create the most powerful representation of the message as possible.

Audiences who are part of the fad of indi-viduality/uniqueness may not be in the men-tality whole- heartedly at the sta rt –often it’san adaption of the ideals to fit into a clique –

but what is interesting about this fad is thatalthough many people begin for superficialreasons, they often find reasoning to stick with it: yoga and eating vegetables makesthem more fit; meditation allows them tofocus better; reading makes them smarter;dressing how they want makes them moreconfident. It is my hope that when peopleview the art that this fad brings them to, and it’s presented appropriately for them, thatthey’ll take off their green canvas bomber

jackets and pillowy scarves, and stay awhile.

ARTiculationAMY VAN ES

OPINIONLETTERS TO THE EDITOR

[email protected] Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Ontario’s Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk has released her final report on the cancelled gas plants in Oakville and Mississauga and it’s another crushing blow to the OntarioLiberal Party’s credibility. When the LiberalParty announced that the plans for Oakvillewould be scrapped, they quoted a cost of around $40 million. The final report of theAuditor General put that cost at $675 mil-lion. The combined cost of both cancella-tions: an estimated $1.1 billion.

The crucial point in this entire debaclewas solidified back in February whenPremier Kathleen Wynne publicly admitted that the gas plants were cancelled in a delib-erate attempt to woo voters in the Oakvilleand Mississauga regions where they were to

be built. Her admission is shocking only inthat it shows the pervasive attitude withingovernment that it’s better to ask forgivenessthan permission and the worst part is thatthey’re right. There was a poll taken inSeptember that showed Wynne’s popularityas virtually unchanged when compared witha similar poll taken before the cancellationscandal hit. The same poll showed that more

people thought the government was doing agood job with their energy portfolio after thecancellations than before.

Wynne has made the optics of the issueeven worse by her promise to de-politicizethe process of locating large energy genera-tion projects. While taking full responsibili-ty for the disaster and promising it won’thappen again, she’s ensuring that there’s noopportunity to foul up the process in the

future as opposed to just behaving ethically.Her strategy is the same one used by drugaddicts who go into rehab: I can’t mess upagain if I can’t be near it. Instead of institut-ing some form of oversight or accountabili-ty, she’s simply taking the opportunity for any political involvement in the process,negative or positive, off the table.

Unfortunately for the province, theOntario Liberals have proved they’re willingto make the wrong decisions if they’re the

popular ones. The voters essentially have todecide for themselves whether the OntarioLiberal Party is stupid and dishonest or justdishonest. The latter qualification is self-evi-dent since they allowed concerns over their

poll numbers to affect financial decisionmaking but it has yet to be determined whether they knew their own $40 millionestimate was flawed when they made thedecision.

The issue of credibility is arguably themost influential contributor to a party’schance of success in an election and for some reason people don’t seem to think thatWynne’s has been compromised. Politiciansare expected to claim their party will do a lotof things, but it’s whether people believethem that counts. Voters are unlikely toexamine the fiscal aftermath of every cam-

paign promise and they assume that, whilesome platforms have a heftier price tag, all

platforms could be implemented for a man-ageable fee. The Ontario Liberals promised to cancel the gas plants but failed to includethe disclaimer: at any cost.

The last of the gas plantscandal…again

VICTOR DE JONGINTERROBANG

Canceled gas plants in Ontario are causingheadaches for Premier Kathleen Wynne.

“Artvertising”



Should a convicted Nazi war criminalreceive a funeral?

You may have heard about the death of 100-year-old Erich Priebke. According toIsraelnationalnews.com, he had been livingunder house arrest ever since a court in 1998convicted him of overseeing the massacre of 335 people at the Ardeatine caves near Romein 1944. The massacre was revenge for anItalian attack that killed 33 Germans.Seventy-five of the victims of Ardeatinewere Jews, some were young boys, and onewas a Catholic priest. Victims were shot int he b ac k o f t he h ea d, a cc or di ng t o

International Business News online.To the end, Priebke denied any guilt.Reporters write that he remained unrepen-tant, that he claimed he was “only followingorders.” He has been labeled a Holocaustdenier.

With his death in Rome, there wereoptions regarding the fate of his remains.

Some recommended that the body be takento Germany and incinerated since this is

what happened to millions of victims of the Nazi regime. Another option was for thecorpse to be returned to Argentina for burial.After all, Priebke lived there for 50 years fol-lowing World War II. Or the CatholicChurch in Rome could have provided afuneral. But both Argentina and the CatholicChurch refused the body. The Vatican for-

bade all churches in Rome from providing afuneral for Priebke.

It is easy to accept that Argentina would refuse any further connection with Priebkeand his family. But the Catholic Church?Shouldn’t it have been more accommodat-ing?

A closer look, however, shows the situa-tion to be more complicated. While theVatican did say that no funeral for Priebkecould take place in a church, it did say that a

Catholic priest could officiate for the familyin a private ceremony. And in the end, a priest of a reportedly ultra-conservativ eCatholic society led the funeral in Albano, atown near Rome. There were angry protes-tors, and the priest needed the protection of

police. But the funeral took place.Maybe this was all for the best. It would

have been unwise for the Catholic Church toallow a funeral in a church in Rome. Old

wounds could have been reopened; therecould have been large, ugly protests, perhapsless against the church, and more againstPriebke himself and the memories he left

behind.But there were also other wounds which

perhaps did not need to be revisited, woundsthat do not reflect well on the Church. Itturns out that Priebke received help after thewar from a Catholic Bishop who had pro-

Nazi leanings. He, according toIsraelnationalnews.com, supplied Priebkewith “Vatican travel documents.” LikelyCatholic officials feel that they have done allthey can to come clean about acts of supportfor the Nazis. It is reasonable that theywould not feel obligated to make themselvesthe objects of public anti-Catholic protestsonce again.

So Priebke received a Christian, church burial. A muted one, but a church burialnonetheless.

That the Church gave him a burial is as itshould be. Priebke, in spite of all the horrorsconnected with him and his apparent lack of remorse, was a human being. The Christianunderstanding of human beings starts with

this: We are all created in the “likeness,” inthe image of God, Gn. 1:27.

There is much that we do that disfigures,that desecrates that image. Certainly, some

of those desecrations are public, invite con-demnation, and are not easily forgotten.However, no person should be demonized.For if each, single person is not protected from being demonized, is anyone? Am I?Are you?

Jesus once faced a group of angry menabout to stone to death a woman for behav-iour punishable by death. He told them thatthey were free to cast the first stone –pro-vided that none of them had ever sinned.And that’s just it. We all have. And yet, weall remain human.

NOTES FROM DAY SEVENMICHAEL [email protected]

Nazis are people too?

I discussed in a previous week that the twotopics, Christianity and social justice, arethemes that have informed the way I viewthe world. These two topics can of courseeasily be separated, but in my life, I find thatthey are often linked. I’d like to share why ithas been the case for me that my Christianvalues and my desire to see social justicethriving in our society are closely linked.

Social Justice as a Christian

Since social justice is often misunderstood and criticized, when first introduced to thesubject I asked myself, “Is God really con-cerned about social in-/justice?” This mightnot be the first question for everyone and Ican understand and respect that, but for me itwas something I needed to know. Well sure-

ly it is no surprise that I have indeed come tothe conclusion that God is concerned aboutwhat is referred to as “social justice” -things such as equality, respect, dignity and

love for our fellow human beings.In my search I had discovered that the

Judeo-Christian faith is packed with a wealthof examples regarding God’s concern for social justice (far too many to mention in

just one article). God’s compassion and lovefor the neglected is a popular theme in scrip-ture. I believe that studying the scriptureswill clearly show the reader that God caresabout and loves every human being and therefore cares about social justice.

For example the psalmist says that God “secures justice for the poor and upholds thecause of the needy,” Ps. 140:12, and “listensto their cry, defending the fatherless and theoppressed,” Ps. 10:17-18. The great histori-an, doctor and Gospel writer Luke wrote thatGod sent His Son to “preach good news tothe poor … proclaim freedom for the prison-ers [and] release the oppressed,” Lk. 4:18-19.

There is no shortage of scriptural examples, and will not bore you with any more.But the simple point here is that social jus-

tice is linked to the Christian life because itis something scripture and Christian tradi-tion highlight as important to God. Simplyexplained God loves us all, and to Him every

single human being is an image bearer with purpose and value.

By way of contrast, then, social injusticeundermines this train of thought and is aninsult to God’s plan and purpose and a denial

of the Scriptures that believers hold so dear-ly.

To disregard human beings, to not respecttheir dignity, to not treat each as equal and tonot fight for love is quite simply at odds witha well-informed and researched view of scripture, tradition and human experience.

So where do we go from here? Well, firstof all I’d like to make clear that embracingsocial justice is not exclusively a Christianthing and that all humans should embrace it.I simply find that the lens I often see the sub-

ject through is my personal faith, whichincludes study, service of the community,relationships with others, cultural influence,

personal experiences and more.Therefore I’d like to put forth three attrib-

utes of social justice that we can all embrace:a caring heart for all those around us, strong

convictions to speak up for those who havenot been given a voice and active involve-ment in any small or big way.

Social justice in the Bible

We are living at a turning point in history.This is a very exciting time to be alive, yetthe vast majority of people seem to be lost ina hypnotizing black hole of generic brain-washing culture. I’m not saying that individ-uality is dead, but the culture that permeatesour society is like a poison that tells uswhat’s important, what we like, what we do

and leaves everything else unimportant and irrelevant.

Some people have argued that we live in azombie society. This is a pretty valid point,especially among the youth. There have

been reports of public school tests from 100years ago that some adults can’t successful-ly pass. It’s no surprise that education hasfallen steadily in its standards. It seems likewith the rise of television and the digital age,education sunk lower and people’s braindevelopment dulled.

The priorities of our generation have beenset terribly askew. Most people don’t knowwhat’s going on around the world –theythink it’s unimportant. They don’t even

know about the corruption of their own gov-ernment and the poisons in their food and water which slowly sicken them and setthem up with a future of disease and debt.Over the summer, an Alberta court reached aconclusion that Stephen Harper’s reelectionwas fraudulent. This never made it to themainstream media, so no protests, no reper-cussions set in place. Canada has chosen tofollow the example of America, fluoridating

water and growing genetically modified organisms. We are pretty much part of amassive experiment on our health. Where isthe self-informed youth fighting for a

brighter future?October 12 was World Food Day. It was

also International March on Monsanto Day.If you don’t know about Monsanto, do someresearch. This company dumped thousandsupon thousands of Agent Orange in Vietnam

back in another one of America’s twisted wars built on self-interest. In addition tomassive environmental damage, the chemi-cal scarred the Vietnamese, leaving themwith generations of disabled and deformed.

Now, this company which was also recently

awarded the most prestigious food prize isgrowing our food. The number of crimes

being done to our population is overwhelm-ing. Obesity, genetic damage, allergies and diabetes are only few of the problems thatweren’t around on such a large scale 50years ago. Consider autism, the massiveincrease of its prevalence through recentyears. On a side note, you should think twice

before getting your flu shot.

If you consider history and news unimportant, you are very wrong and you are becoming exactly the type of mindless con-sumer that the people in control want. If youlook to the mainstream media for all your information, you are likely terribly unin-formed. History is fascinating, and if youlook closely enough, you will realize itrepeats itself. The Internet is pure anarchy.That is why SOPA and CISPA happened,they know the danger the internet poses totheir control. So take advantage. Doresearch, arm yourself with knowledge. Bethe change.

OPINIONLETTERS TO THE EDITOR

[email protected] 5 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

FSU Publications OfficeSC1012

www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Publications Manager John Said [email protected] • 519.453.3720 ext. 224

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Letters to the Editor

[email protected] Design Contributors:Hannah Marshall, Matt Van Lieshout

Photographer: Stephanie Lai, Stephen Echavia

Illustrator:

Amy Van Es

Contributors:

Susan Coyne, Victor De Jong, Connor Dunster, Nauman

Farooq, Bobby Foley, Allen Gaynor, Stuart Gooden,

Roswell Greeniaus, Eshaan Gupta,Wendy Lycett, Jacob

Mattinson, Alison McGee, Megan McPhaden, Hai Ha

Nguyen, Johan Padilla, Rose Cora Perry, Natalie

Quinlan, Brittany Roach, Gabby Scheyen, Marty

Thompson, Nikki Ufimzeff, Michael Veenema, Amy Van

Es,Andrew Vidler, Joshua Waller

Comics:Dustin Adrian, Laura Billson, Robert Catherwood,Charles Colling, Eshann Gupta, Chris Miszczak, andAndres Silva

Cover Credit:HANNAH MARSHALL

Editorial opinions or comments expressed

in this newspaper reflect the views of the

wri te r and are n ot t ho se o f t he

Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student

Union. All photographs are copyright 2011

by Fanshawe Student Union. All rights

reserved.The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe

Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., Room SC1012,

London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the

Fanshawe College community.

Letters to the editor are welcome.All letters are subject to edit-

ing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by

contact information. Letters can also be submitted online at

www.fsu.ca/interrobang/ by following the Interrobang links.

CREDIT: TELEGRAPH.CO.UK

Convicted Nazi war criminal Erich Priebkedied on Octover 11, 2013 at the age of 100.

Misguided youthJOHAN PADILLA

INTERROBANG

WORLDVIEW ON CAMPUSJACOB MATTINSON



LIFESTYLES6 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Great music from down the 403

I write about random things alot. I write a lot about randomthings. This week I’m excited for the punk rock show coming to TheOut Back Shack; the October 25edition of New Music Night fea-tures The Dirty Nil, Bombing

Neverland and The Penske File ina show that will make you oddlyfond of the soft ringing in your earsover the rest of the weekend.

The show is all ages with a valid Fanshawe student ID or 19-pluswithout, doors open at 9 p.m. And at the risk of sounding somethinglike a tourism commercial for the

Hamilton/Burlington area, these bands are among the finest theregion has to offer.

The Dirty Nil are Hamiltonfavourites, gaining momentum and notoriety since debuting their song“Fuckin’ Up Young” a couple of summers ago. A three-piece with a

penchant for big guitar tones, The Nil have been playing select showsthroughout the year, including atop bill spot at Grossman’s Tavernduring NXNE in Toronto –a non-festival gig that stole focus fromsurrounding venues to become ahighlight of the week.

At the time, the band was build-ing momentum for the release of their limited-edition cassette

release Summer Mix-Tape Vol. 2:Covers, sadly so limited that it nolonger appears on the band’s siteon Bandcamp. Physically availableonly at live performances, coversof songs by The Misfits, Iggy Popand even Merle Haggard appeared on a run of only 30 cassettes, thefirst release since the band’s split7-inch with Northern Primitivefrom last winter.

The key to The Dirty Nil’s hard-hitting garage rock sound is partlyrooted in their love of vintage gear,

particula rly frontman LukeBentham. The band capture their

sound in as uncomplicated a setup

as possible, and Bentham’s shred-ded voice is well at place leadingthe crowd in singing along. Theseguys make rock music look effort-less and they’re good at drawing acrowd, so get there early and get inclose.

Hailing from Burlington,Bombing Neverland may be thetightest, most dynamic act of theevening. Comprised of scene vet-erans from bands like Out Of Options and The Spicolis, the band flexes considerable songwritingmuscle, pairing complex har-monies with fast-paced rock inways you might see from an arena

band.Gathering by the new material

they’ve previewed live so far thisyear, the group has found a lot of room to breathe in finding their strengths together as a unit. A five-

piece band since guitarist KurtisBrown was added to the lineup thisspring –introduced at their gig atS.C.E.N.E. Fest this year in St.Catharines –the band is buildingmomentum for their new album,currently being recorded at front-man John Fielding’s studio inBurlington.

Not least of all, The Penske Filewer e t he f irs t s ign ing t oBurlington-based Young Heart

Music early this year. Their debut

full-length A Restless Symphonywas the imprint’s first release back in April, and since then the band has toured considerably acrossCanada and the U.S., making festi-val appearances across Ontario and Quebec this summer.

Playing together since they werein grade school, The Penske File isa traditional punk trio with a tingeof folk influe nce –energetic, p ow-erful music at times complemented

by singer Travis Miles on harmon-ica. Fans of 1990s punk bands willenjoy this set, a purer West Coastrock sound harkening back to

before skate punk became synony-mous with emo rock.

More information on New

Music Night featuring The Dirty Nil, Bombing Neverland and TheP en sk e F il e i s a va il ab le i nFacebook or on fsu.ca. Each band is also active on Twitter, follow@thedirtynil, @bombingneverlnd and @the_penskefile to keep up todate.

And for the latest in music news,reviews and upcoming show pre-views, consider following this col-umn on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms.This is going to be a good show, besure to show up early.

I’m out of words.

BOBBYISMS

BOBBY FOLEY

CREDIT: GRACE CAVARRA

The Dirty Nil is coming to Fanshawe for New Music Night on October 25.

CREDIT: HANDSOMEHARLOT

Made up of four second-year Music Industry Arts students,grunge-rock band HandsomeHarlot is tuned up and ready torock.

Allie Gilbert (vocals), Cameron Naraine (guitar), Spencer Jones(bass), and John Abreu (drums)met at Fanshawe College in the fallof 2012. After numerous late-night

jam sessions and lineup changes,these four rockers have created ahigh energy, raw, sexy show thatcould captivate any passerby.

Strongly influenced by bands sucha s N ir va na a nd T he P re tt yReckless, Handsome Harlot hascreated the perfect fusion betweensome of the world’s most beloved music genres.

Gilbert described the band’ssound as rock with “big drums,

bigger guitars and raspy vocals!We pull a lot of influences fromother genres through grunge and alternative rock. A big componentto our sound is that it needs to beloud and in-your-face to the pointit’s almost offensive.”

When asked about lyrical con-tent and their connection with their audience, she said, “One thing wereally hope to do as a band is have

our songs connect with the audi-ence. I write my songs for me, butI hope that what I learned and share with the fans helps themthrough similar experiences.”

The band seems to have every-thing going for them, when itcomes to live performance. “Well,I am commonly known for being

provocativ e on stage,” Gilbertsaid. “That always gets the crowd interested. We try to be very inclu-sive with our audience to make itmore of an experience than just ashow. And we have a blind drum-mer, so that’s pretty cool.” Not

many bands have blind drummers,so if that’s not reason enough to goand check them out, then I don’tknow what is.

Keep an eye out, as HandsomeHarlot will be playing shows atvarious venues throughout theLondon area this month, includinga show at The Roxbury on October 24 –doors open at 9 p.m. Also besure to Like the band at face-

book.com/HandsomeHarlot to stayin the loop because the band is alsorecording their debut EP with thehelp of fellow MIA students. Don’tmiss out because Handsome Harlotwill definitely rock your socks off!

KELSI SMIRLIES

INTERROBANG

Falcons of afeather form a

grunge-rock band

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Fanshawe students Tom, Mateusz, Milosz line up at the annual Fanshawe asset sale. The group arrived early ataround 6:30 am, making them the first in line with the hopes of picking up a few of the Nikon D90 digital SLRcameras on sale at the event.



LIFESTYLES 7 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Bookshelves may be one of thehardest items in your home to dec-orate. It can take several hours of researching pictures in magazinesand on Pinterest just to get ideas onhow to set up your books alongwith accessories. Here are a fewsimple tips to get you started withdecorating your bookshelf.

One of the biggest trends that Ihave been noticing in all the homedecor magazines is to have contrastor a print on the back of the book shelf. To add wallpaper or paintthe back of your bookshelf a dif-

ferent colour will had personalityand interest to your bookshelf rightaway. This will customise it toyour style and leave you with aone-of-a-kind bookshelf.

Whether or not you decide tochange the back of your bookshelf,you can still have a well-decorated

bookshelf that will leave a lastingimpression.

Your next step is covering any book that has a tacky cover withwhite paper. You simply find white paper that is big enough towrap around the cover of the book.If this is done to several books youcan write the name of the book onthe new front cover. Coveringsome of your books with white

paper will give you colour unity onyour bookshelf.

To have a unique bookshelf, youmust have more than just books onyour shelf. Baskets and accessoriesis must on every bookshelf! Some

good ideas for bookshelf acces-sories are flowers, letters, vases,glass ball, candles, sea shells and

pictures to add some personality!The baskets and accessories should reflect the theme of your book shelf.

Placing the books and acces-sories on the shelf can be verytricky. I suggest having a variationof how you place your books.Have books standing vertical and some place lying horizontal. Withyour books that are standing verti-cal it would be a great spot to add a vase or a picture.

On top of books that are lyinghorizontal, you could place some-

thing like a glass ball or seashells.You do not need to add accessoriesto every shelf, and to keep your

bookshelves from looking clut-tered do not fill a shelf entirelywith books. Last but not least Ialways place baskets at the bottomof the bookshelf and store my oddsand ends in them.

No one ever said decorating a bookshelf would be easy, but it justgot a little easier with these simpletips on how to decorate your book-shelf. Remember, always pick atheme first and have a bit of avision to how you want your book-shelf to look like. Good luck and have fun redoing your bookshelf!

How to decorate a bookshelf

CREDIT:WWW.BHG.COM/TIPS-FOR-STYLISH-BOOKCASES

Wearing makeup can be fun and exciting, and can even boost one’sconfidence, but every once in awhile, makeup can do things thata re c om pl et el y a nn oy in g.Sometimes it may be the mixtureof two products you are using,sometimes it can be an improper application, or sometimes it can

just be a poor quality cosmetic.Here are some of the top annoy-ances with makeup and how youcan stop them from happening!

One problem that is very appar-ent (especially with primers, somefoundations and face creams) is

products that will “roll” or ball upon the face. You’ll normally seethis when you are applying a face

product and then it starts to justmake a mess of the entire applica-tion, usually resulting in a re-appli-cation. The number one cause of this is applying way too much

product; products like primers donot need a heavy application, espe-cially if they have a silicone base.Applying too much moisturizer can cause this as well, as the skincan only absorb so much productuntil it starts to roll off the face.Sometimes, less really is more.

Another makeup pet peeve iswhen an eyeliner simply won’tsharpen and just keeps breaking.The main culprit of this is usually

the sharpener you are using; if it’sa non-makeup pencil sharpener, if it’s old or if it hasn’t been cleaned in a while, this is definitely the rootof your problem. If the sharpener isold, the blade gets really dull,which prohibits a smooth sharpen-

ing and will just keep constantlycracking the wood. The same goesif there are excess eyeliner or lip-liner bits in it. Another possibilityis that the pencil wasn’t manufac-tured properly so the product isseparated from the wood, causingit to be very weak.

One of the most irritating make-up blunders is when a foundationstarts to look “cakey,” flaky or just

plain uneven. This can be due to anumber of reasons: not enoughmoisturizer (dry skin), mixing anoil-based product and a water-

based product, or using too muchcompact powder. When the skin is

too dry, foundation will apply dif-ferently to the drier patches of skin, causing it to look flaky and uneven, so using a proper moistur-izer is critical. Also, if you areusing a compact powder as either your foundation or setting powder,

it can quickly start to make the facelook “cakey” as compacts have alot of gum and binders in them,which will cause product buildup.Lower quality compacts tend tohave even more fillers, so if cost isan issue, stick with a loose powder.

Even though these pet peevescan pop up every once in a while,makeup should always be a funthing and nothing to stress over!There are always solutions and answers to makeup annoyances. If you have any other pet peeves,send me an email and I’d be morethan happy to help you solve them!

Makeup pet peeves

BEAUTY BOY

JOSHUA R. WALLER [email protected]

Fall is the ultimate season for layering and flexing your stylingskills with the many pieces avail-able. When it comes to street fash-ion, pretty much anything goes,

just as long as you wear it withconviction and you pick a few fab-u lo us p ie ce s t o g o w it h i t.Considering the weather can bevery unexpected throughout theday and can be downright cold, my

preference is to dress comfortablywhile still maintaining stylishensemble.

The colours of fall are alwayssubdued, darker and wearable –

mix these colours with a few neu-tral accessories and the outfit will

be pleasantly balanced. Some of the key pieces of this fall are croptops, circular scarves, military-inspired combat boots, jackets and details. These casual pieces mixed with high fashion pieces make for a polished layered fall look.

A lot of this fall’s clothes have been popular pieces from previousyears, but fashion –and especiallystreet fashion –is a cycle, so itcommon for these looks to carryover with a few details extradetails added.

This week’s outfit starts with a black short-sleeved crop top with black high-waisted pants with two

thick elastic patches on the side. Athick-knit circular scarf in beigecomplements the army green jack-et that is the hot item of the season!To keep warm on a windy day,long grey socks that can bunch upor worn over the knee provide ver-satility and can change up the

black pants for different looks.Beige combat boots paired withthe grey socks make for great con-trast and match the circular scarf.To finish, a nice gold watch on thewrist with some black rectangular wayfarers inspired by Chanel pro-tect your eyes from a sunny fallday.

1. Crop Top: This crop top is perfect for layering or to wear onits own for a night out with any-thing high-waist, a little peek-a-

boo of skin done tasteful ly.(Garage, $12)

2 . H ig h- Wa is te d P an ts :Comfortable, durable and flatter-ing, these black pants are a must-have for a comfortable season!(Dynamite, $29)

3. Army Green Jacket: Thehottest piece of the season, it can

be layered with pretty much withanything. It can even be dressed up

by simply changing the shoes of the outfit. (Garage, $15)

4. Beige Scarf: This thick-knitrounded scar f is fuss-f ree –just putit on and it looks fabulous and good to go. (Aldo Accessories,$25)

5. Combat Boots and Socks:

Combat boots are found prettymuch in any shoe store these days.They can have studs, jewels, hard-ware –anything you want –but Ilike the basic so there is more flex-ibility in styling. The socks arethick and slightly loose so that theycan be easily scrunched. (Boots:$80 to $130 in most shoe stores;Socks: Aldo Accessories $12 to$15)

6. Watch and Sunglasses:Watches have become a staple inevery accessory box for the pastfive years. The thick wayfarer

black shades are inspired that theChanel ones that the Olsen twinsoften wear. (Aldo Accessories,Watch: $35, Sunglasses: $2.98)

With all the layers you can towear to keep warm without havingto wear a winter jacket, no wonder fall is the time where you can getcreative with your wardrobe. It’seasy to mix new key pieces withthe hot styles from last season or even last fall!

Hai Ha Nguyen loves to discov-er the new trends in street fashion,accessories and styling. Followher on Instagram at instagram.com/misshaihanguyen

for the trendiest pieces this season! If you have a suggestion or feed-back for her column, send her anemail at [email protected].

The layers of street fashion

CREDIT: HAI HA NGUYEN

THE SHOPPING BAG

HAI HA [email protected]

TURN BORINGSPACES BEAUTIFUL

BRITTANY ROACH

Contact Kathy at [email protected]

Lucrative part time opportunity for males




I will admit, I felt like I wascheating by reviewing a book thatwas required reading for my elec-tive credit this year, but then again,Calculating God by Robert J.Sawyer is probably one of the mostengrossing novels I’ve ever beensucked into in a long time. Hell, I

practically finished the thing in anovernight sitting.

It really exemplifies its positionof being the type of novel to mix infactuality (and not religious apolo-getics as the title seems to suggest)with (science) fiction, like DanBrown but without the over-wrought prose to suffer through.Although its story is largely just a

background for the characters’ var-ious conversations and debates thatdoesn’t truly progress much untilthe very end of the final act, noth-ing suffers in delivering an absorb-ing experience.

Tom Jericho is an average man,save for his scientific knowledgeas paleontologist for the RoyalOntario Museum of Toronto, whohas been thrust into extraordinary

circumstance; namely, being oneof the first humans to initiate con-tact with extraterrestrials. Thisalien being, a Forhilnor named Hollous, has come from lightyearsaway with his companions to dis-

cuss the existence of a god. Well,the visitors aren’t quite proselytiz-ers as much as scientists findingreason to believe that their exis-tence is the work of a hyper-intelli-gent being that co-ordinated thedevelopment of various civiliza-tions to reach technologies withina few hundred years of each other.Coupled with Tom’s discovery of having terminal lung cancer, the

book creates an emotionally crueldynamic of a man trying to scien-tifically refute the existence of acreator while dealing with his ownmortality.

Like I mentioned earlier,

Calculating God is NOT, and never comes close to, religiousapologetics. It doesn’t attempt to

provide ammunition for either sides of the debate, but rather,remains strictly agnostic. Oh yes,Jericho and Hollus debate through-out the book on why a creator doesn’t and does exist respective-ly, but those debates largely followthe logic of the book’s world, onewhere alien civilizations exist innear-synchronous development.Don’t fault the book’s Earth-based sciences, though –it’s pretty solid in its own regard.

Philosophical talking pointsaside, how does Calculating God fare as a purely science-fiction

book? Pretty well, among the reli-gious debate. The two alien speciesactually seen in the book, theForhilnors and the Wreeds, aredetailed in ways most people don’teven think about when imagining a

species completely unlike us, and definitely move away from a man-in-a-rubber-suit mentality. Outsidefrom simple language barriers, for example, the three species havedifficulty in communication due tothe ways they’re wired to think, thehumans more deductive, and thealien beings more moralistic. Their differences from us are much morefleshed out than just lookingunusual and carrying odd culturaltraits. Conversely, the aliens arenot all that much unlike us, and ascharacters, are written to be sym-

pathetic and relatable despite look-ing like giant, super-intelligent spi-

ders.Calculating God can be emo-

tionally tiring at times, simply because of how much you’ll end up liking the characters. A largechunk of Calculating God , outsideof Tom’s cancer being the mostactive subplot, is conversation

between Hollus and Tom, but writ-ten well enough that you wouldn’tnotice entire chapters are dedicated t o t hei r va ri ou s de ba tes .Calculating God ’s rather flimsystory is perfect for the kind of book it is; character-driven while lettingyou learn a thing or two along thehero’s trials.

Reading Between The Linesexplores books that you may have

missed out on that are worth your while. If you have a book to sug-gest, email Eshaan at [email protected].

READING BETWEEN

THE LINES

ESHAAN [email protected]

Alien proselytizers or kindred

extraterrestrial scientists?

With horror games seeminglyshedding atmosphere in favour of

big, badass, totally- not-scaryaction, it would appear that there isa real drought of interactive enter-tainment that can give you the hee-

bie-jeebie s this Halloween. Tok ee p y ou r t hi rs t f or h or ro r quenched as you wait, hopeful, for the next truly great horror game,here are some past entries that aresure to keep you on your toes.

Fatal Frame II (PS2, Xbox)Easily one of the creepiest

Japanese horror games ever made,Fatal Frame II refined its uniquecombat mechanics from its prede-cessor, eschewing conventionalweapons in favour of the CameraObscura, a camera with the capa-

bilities of trapping supernaturalspirits by photographing them.While some might find the game’scontrol scheme and inventorymanagement too similar to early

Resident Evil games for their lik-ing, the entertaining story and overall competent execution of scare moments make the tank-likecontrols worth suffering for.

Frictional Games’ horror

entries (PC)Yes, shut up, I know it’s cheat-ing to include a whole catalogue of games by one developer, but thePenumbra and Amnesia series aresome of the finest horror gamesyou’ll ever sweat through.Penumbra’s combat is deliberatelyweak (and Amnesia’s is missingaltogether), adding hide-and-seek element to the game, as you areforced to crouch behind crates and hug walls with bated breath as youwatch the various freaks pass you

by, hoping they don’t notice youand dish out a through ripping-

apart unto you.Condemned (PS3, Xbox 360,

PC)

Even though the series has beenMIA s in ce t he r el eas e of Condemned 2 in 2008, both gamesremain cult classics with a balanceof heavy, visceral, hand-to-hand first-person combat, and some seri-ously freaky setups. Set in adecayed American city drippingwith Film Noir, you play DetectiveEthan Thomas, who must navigatehis way through various run-down

buildings, fighting the city’sdenizens and hobos, armed withonly his fists, his wits, and impro-vised weapons, in the hunt to track down a serial killer. For those who

want a raw action-horror game thatdoesn’t include the plodding paceof inventory management,Condemned will easily satisfy thecarnal urge to cave in skulls.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R series (PC)

Developed by Ukranian studioGSC Gameworld, the first entry tothe series, S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadowof Chernobyl, remained nothingmore than a gamer’s dream for nearly seven years, dodging and missing release dates routinely.Finally, with its (buggy) 2007release, the game delivered on its

promise of a beautifully decayed open-world first-person horror environment ripe for exploration,as the player protagonist must find

and kill a mysterious bountyhunter named Strelok, and formalliances with various factionsalong the way. The game’s setting,a Chernobyl heavily poisoned by asecond disaster, features variousterrifying creatures that seem near-ly unstoppable, even in the face of your salvaged machine guns. Theentire series is quite brilliant, and is worth playing despite the fairlysteep learning curve and high diffi-culty.

To be continued in Interrobang ’s Halloween issuenext week!

Ghoulishgaming, Part 1

GAMING THE

SYSTEM

ESHAAN [email protected]

CREDIT: STALKER-GAME.COM

A decent PC and a spare change of underpants is recommended to playS.T.A.L.K.E.R.

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I’ll let you in on a little secret:The fact that you’re reading thisright now sort of terrifies me. I stillcan’t pick up this paper and read my own writing, knowing thatsomeone else has or will.

I used to hate talking to peopleand avoided one-to-one chats fromanyone but friends. Conferenceswith teachers, for example, were

brutal. I struggled to deliver mywords in proper order without trip-

ping over themselves; my brainseemed to process things at half-speed; and often my ears would wander beyond the conversation athand, constantly forcing me into anawkward, “Sorry, could you saythat again... again?” Eye contact

guillotined my breath, while order-ing food over a counter or check-ing out items with a cashier required accompaniment. Talkingon the phone? A nightmare.

Needless to say, the online world was my escape and has been, untilrecently, what I considered to bethe most ideal mode of communi-cation. Text was so much moremanageable, conversation muchmore tactile. Words could be said then a moment later retracted.There was less pressure to replyinstantly and my half-speed brainactually had leeway when it cameto responses. Best of all, no eyecontact. With a computer in my

home at all times, I think it’s safeto assume I cultivated my social

anxieties at an early age withoutrealizing. And grow them I did, asit was only a few months ago that Imade my first phone call –by myown will –in years. (It literallyrequired a pep talk and a concen-trated, cross-legged position in thesilence of my mother’s walk-incloset, I kid you not.)

Years passed before I realized my tendency to gravitate to the vir-tual worlds, as I hid my socialineptitude well from even myself.With situations that I knew weretypically prone to evoking socialanxiety, such as presentations and

performances, I seemed to do fineand rarely was nervous –so I clear -ly had no problem! I joined in

school clubs, too –it’s not like Iwas willingly a recluse! I con-vinced myself. But these feats of socialization were all done with theassistance of others (class presen-tations were in groups, drama per-formances depended on severalactors, I never soloed in band) and in the familiar environment of school. Ordering pizza by myself?Well, that was a separate sea tosail.

Most disappointing in thosetimes of need was the lack of receptivity from those around me,a problem I’ve only realized after recognizing these issues as requir-ing concrete solutions. My friends

were fine with online relationships,as most of my generation and

beyond seem to prefer, so theytook no notice. My parents were of no help and simply pegged my notwanting to go out as laziness. For awhile in Grade 10, I had a Child and Youth counsellor; she metwith me for a few weeks becausemy science teacher couldn’t get meto make eye contact. My problemsweren’t really addressed with thecounsellor, though: I tried express-ing to her that everyone seemed tohave a manual for life, and that Iwas clueless in comparison, onlyfor her to reply, “Everyone feelsthat way.” The only thing weestablished was that I “give a pret-ty good death stare.”

Oddly enough, it was that (dubi-

ous) compliment that allowed meto break my bad habits. It wasn’tuntil I started routinely forcingmyself into really uncomfortablesituations through attending and hosting parties, or going out to eat

by myself for no particular reason,or using my “death stare” as an ad hoc social interaction tool that I

began to improve. It was my ownmakeshift therapy. Only after bid-ing through so many tedious,online rows with friends –friendswith whom I was more than jolly in

person –did I realize how ineffec-tive virtual communication is.Only after accepting my problemsdid I get better. Because it was an

illness, still is an illness that lingersas I tell you I haven’t read over asingle published article I’ve writ-ten for this paper. But this will bethe first one I’ll read.

The problem is that there is no problem, as far as the louder voic-es of society will have you believe,

as far as I was led to believe. It’sone thing to be glued to a comput-er screen all day by choice; it’sanother to cling to a machine for fear of what lies beyond, and that’sexactly what I did. This is a prob-lem, and it will continue to be a

problem, as endless waves of developed-country kids grow upwith and become increasinglyreliant on their Internet-enabled third parent. I don’t think there isor will be a perfect solution for thetechnological ocean in which weunconsciously drown deeper,every new smartphone a wave

pushing us farther down. I do knowthat shutting the issue away, pre-

tending it doesn’t exist, suffocatingthe elephant in the room is far fromhelpful or healthy.

In order to address the impend-ing Age of Antisocial, we mustfirst accept mental health and byextension mental illness. Socialanxiety, depression, and phobias

are just as valid as cancers, broken bones or the flu. I’d even arguethey’re more dangerous becausethey can remain undetected byeven the patient. These illnesses,too, require medicine, healing,therapy. But dedicated recovery is

preceded by acknowledg ement.Mental health resides in the brain,which is part of your body as muchas your heart and your lungs, somental health is ultimately physi-cal health. It’s real. So if betweenclogged arteries and deep-rooted insecurity you’re still imagining agreat divisive fence, I think it’stime you just get over it.

ROSWELL GREENIAUS

INTERROBANG

Just get over it

CREDIT: FORBES.COM

Breaking free from a virtual world isn’t an easy task.




ME NT A L HE A LT H A NDW E LLNE S S A W A RE NE S S W E E K

OC T OBE R 21S T - 25T H

www.fsu.ca

When I started working on thisarticle, I originally wanted toi nv es ti ga te t he c or re la ti on

between what we eat and theresulting status of our mentalhealth. I thought that eating junk meant that mental health would suffer.

But after talking to MarnieWedlake, support and educationteam leader with the CanadianMental Health AssociationLondon-Middlesex charter, and Tom Gantert, Fanshawe instruc-tor and endurance athlete (whoalso holds a PhD in nursing), Igained knowledge from twosomewhat different views.

Wedlake approached the subject much like I did –that what Ieat in turn affects my mentalhealth.

“You are what you eat, and it’snot just your body; it’s your mind as well,” she said. “If you canhave food that is not chock full of all kinds of preservatives and chemicals, then it’s always good for the body. If it’s good for the

body, then it’s good for themind.”

“If our brain is affected by put-ting all kinds of contrary sub-s ta nc es i nt o o ur s ys te ms – whether it’s additives, too muchcaffeine, too much alcohol, street

drugs, preservatives –it’s going

to have an effect,” said Wedlake.But Gantert sees bad eatingchoices as a coping mechanismfor poor mental health, and also“lack of proper nutrition and lack of activity can lead to lower phys-ical and mental health.”

“Junk will contribute to poor mental health,” he added. “If I’mstressed out and I don’t have thecoping or belief in myself … I’mgoing to go to [junk food] for release.”

Why? He said junk food makes people ha ppy –it’s ins tant grat ifi-cation. The temporary bout of happiness will most likely resultin minor weight gain, and that’sthe short-term outcome, some-thing small and easy to overlook.

Gantert said peer groups don’thelp either. “You will never exceed beyond the expectationsof your peers. ‘It’s not that bad.You look fine.’” He said affirma-tions like this help justify self-

perception as “not that bad.”But long-term consequences

follow when great intake of junk food results in noticeable weightgain, compromising mental healthstatus.

“Might have disordered eating patterns … then we might get into body image dist urban ces, ”Gantert said. “It’s a roundaboutway. We’re using the junk food

becau se of our poor menta l

health.”Gantert said students are moresusceptible to climb aboard theunhealthy-eating train when theyare emotionally drained becauseof studying. “It [makes it] thatmuch easier to make bad food choices because their willpower is shot, and vice versa.”

This is particularly true duringhigh-stress periods of midtermsand finals. “When people get anx-ious, they just want that to go[away],” Gantert said. “Peopleoften don’t eat junk food whenit’s not there or when they’recalm and relaxed.”

“We’re not telling you to stop, just know why you’re doing it,”said Gantert. “Is it because you’restressed? Know that you have achoice and know the long-termconsequences.”

If unhealthy eating is some-thing you suffer (and let’s be hon-est, who isn’t reaching for theoccasional candy bar?), it might

be time to re-evaluate your ownmental health and make changeswith your physical health.

Gantert said, “How do wechange any behaviour? It has to

be a must, then you get used to it… you see the benefits.”

This all gave me a lot to think about. How about you?

STEPHANIE LAI

INTERROBANG

I’m sad so I eat;I eat because I’m sad

The days are getting shorter, theweather is getting colder and the

amount of sunlight that we are being exposed to is drasticallydecreasing. The closer we get tothe winter months, the more wemay all start feeling the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

SAD has been categorized as atype of depression that occurs dur-ing the fall and winter months. If you have been struggling to sleepor concentrate, feeling tired or irri-table, unexplainably crying, expe-riencing body aches, loss of sexdrive or increased appetite and weight gain, you may be sufferingthe effects of SAD.

These symptoms usually start inthe fall and will gradually worsen

into the winter months. People begin to feel these symptoms because they are not being exposed to enough sunlight or vitamin D ona daily basis. Much of our vitaminD intake comes from the sun. Inthe winter months, we can’t get asufficient amount of natural vita-min D, so we need to make surethat we find it in other sources.

In a perfect world, when we feelsymptoms of the winter blues, wewould just hop on a plane and goon a tropical vacation to beexposed to more sunlight. Sincewe can’t all pack up our bags and

head to the Caribbean, here aresome tips that can help you cope athome:

If you find yourself experienc-

ing mild symptoms of SAD, youmay want to simply try addingmore vitamin D to your diet. Thefirst and most simple way to dothis is to head to your local phar-macy and pick up a bottle of vita-min D or a liquid or capsule formof cod liver oil. These options willgive you the highest concentrationof the vitamin.

If taking supplements isn’t rightfor you, you can add some differ-ent foods to your diet to increaseyour intake of vitamin D. Some of the foods that you can add to your diet that will help lessen the symp-toms of SAD include: fish, broc-coli, salami, ham, sausage, eggsand mushrooms. While at the gro-

cery store, try looking for some of your favourite foods that come infortified variations, like bread,noodles, soy products or orange

juice. This means that vitamin Dand other nutrients have beenadded to these foods to make themeven healthier.

Trying a few of these simple tipscan help kick the winter blues and improve your mood. If these tipsdon’t do the trick, there are evenmore options that you can talk toyour doctor about, like bright lighttherapy and various prescriptionmedications.

KORI FREDERICK

INTERROBANG

Don’t get stuck with SAD



Can you agree that writing

comes easier to some than others?Creative writing instructor Meg

Howald, a former teacher at H.B.Beal Secondary School, has a longhistory of writing, which started ata young age. Most recently,Howald signed three contracts withSolstice Publishing to immortalizeher characters in print.

But the grandmother of threeshows zero signs of slowing down

–she told me she has 30 novels leftto write.

“I’ve always written,” she said.“I love dialogue; I love people and having them speak.”

But she didn’t always write nov-els.

“The poetry and the screenplay

[writing] came first,” she recalled.“When my agent said, ‘Eighty per cent of all films are based on nov-els,’ I decided I’d better write anovel, even if it takes twice as longas a screenplay!”

“I’m warming up to the process[of writing novels], but it is a longcommitment.”

Her novels not only require acommitment from the author her-self, but also from her readers.

“They have to have a certainamount of an intellectual and emo-tional commitment to read mystuff,” she said. “It’s very deep, it’ssymbolic … I love to use figurativelanguage and illusions.”

“They’re not easy reads,” sheadded.

Her novels are often classified

under the mystery/thriller genre; alabel that she isn’t necessarily fond of.

“It’s terrible [my books] have to be labeled, but there were murdersand killings in The Handmaid’sTale by Margaret [Atwood], and you don’t want to label it as aneasy read. But it can’t be literary

because it has a murder in it,” shedivulged.

“It just so happens that when Ido research and I find things thatare historical and there could be anopportunity for a murder to take

place, then bingo –I have a set-ting.”

The truth of the matter is, her books are riddled with historic

events and details; all of which shedevotes hours upon hours of research into.

In one of her upcoming novels,The Drowning of Margaret

Hannagh, she modeled the settingaround the sinking of the Victoriasteamer, which happened inLondon.

“I had to do a lot of research onclothes, foods, alcohol, patterns of

behaviour … to make the mysteryauthentic,” she said.

Research ties into her charactersas well, making them

“I do more research on [charac-ters’] roles, on their jobs; then myimagination kicks in to give them a

background story,” she said.Howald then takes time to bring

a visual component to her charac-

ters. “Now I take the time to getsome imaginative narrative abouthow they look and how theymove,” she said. An artist in her own right, she said describingcharacters seemed like a waste of time, but is something she has todo.

Keeping ideas fresh and originalis not easy. Howald said ideas aredone over and over again. But onething she tries to do is withhold information from her readers.

“You do want to seduce thereader into [the] world you’re cre-ating. And then you want to hitthem with all sorts of revelationsthey’re not expecting,” she said.“My one goal, to be masterful of

delaying the impact of the outcomeuntil the last two or three pages – that’s what gets me excited aboutwriting.”

Howald expressed that shewould for like her novels to be putinto the awards circuit, but doesn’thope for one. “I have a love for the

process, the invention of creativi-ty,” she said. “If someone likeswhat I do, then that’s a bonus.”

She also finds inspiration in thecreativity of her colleagues and her students.

Howald’s first novel published by Solstice, Are But Shadows, will be available on Amazon onOctober 30.


STEPHANIE LAI

INTERROBANG

Fanshawe instructor lives double life as a writer



We see it in pop culture once ina while. An episode of the intense-ly popular show Community was

based on it. The name “Dungeonsand Dragons” is one that sticks tous as the ultimate geek experience

–one that we envision to be a bunch of people sitting in a base-ment wearing costumes and

immersing themselves in total fan-tasy.

To be honest, in some casesthat’s not too far off, and I think those types of players trulyembody the beauty of traditionalrole playing games. Today, wethink of Role Playing Games(RPGs) and immediately of the sta-

ple titles such as World of Warcraft , Final Fantasy, and thePokémon handheld games. Our idea is sitting in front of a comput-er grinding away at a character inhopes to make him a force to bereckoned with.

In traditional tabletop games thatare played with paper, dice, and sometimes maps or miniatures, the

element of building a character and making him deity-like is still there,

but these games are not based oncompetition or individuality.Games like Dungeons and

Dragons are all about co-opera-tion, storytelling, and overcomingchallenges using means of imagi-nation that are impossible to repli-cate in video games. In the game,

players come forth to challengesset out by the Dungeon Master (DM), who acts as a sort of refereeas opposed to a protagonist. TheDM role is incredibly importantand many folks, including myself,

put a lot of thought and effort into building the worlds for our playersto explore.

I found my entry into the RPGworld very recently with a former roommate of mine after watchingthe aforementioned Communityepisode. We headed to LA Mood, a

popular game shop downtown, and pitched in some coin to buy the“red box,” which is essentially astarter kit with everything youneed to get ready to play Dungeonsand Dragons. Over the course of time, I routinely worked at my DMskills and learned the game fairlywell. I now run a couple games and

participa te in some others. Assomeone who doesn’t exactly get

into fantasy as a genre, the game- play of traditional RPGs is oneexperience that I can never getenough of and its sometimes cornysetting is more than humorous.Fantasy still not your thing? Thereare tons of other settings for post-apocalyptic, horror, western, sci-fi,you name it. Want a setting you’refamiliar with? They have all kindsof other systems: Star Wars,

Marvel universe, Fallout , and evenTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Tabletop games are sometimessaid to be a dying industry. For tra-ditional RPGs, this is more evidentas the current Dungeons and

Dragons edition is modelled after video games much to the dismay of older veterans of the game whowant to create detailed charactersin an immersive world. Currently,Pathfinder is a budding RPG sys-tem right now as it takes the ele-ments of previous D&D systemsand tweaks it slightly to offer adetailed and well balanced experi-ence. Having said this, I also

believe that getting more players

into these hobbies might requiresome sort of similarity to computer games. I believe the RPG marketdesperately needs revitalizationand I also believe that it will hap-

pen eventually as programmed games still are unable to beat the

power of the imagination.Video games are great and I

enjoy them, but there’s somethingabout imagining yourself in fantas-

tical worlds that makes the experi-ence so much different from some-one’s pre-disposed image. There’ssomething also to be said about thesocial aspect. It’s incredibly fun to

play these games with friends youhang around with as they totallyopen the ability to add humoroussituations to which the playersrespond. These are not the kind of games where you want to kick your friend in the face because hewins every time.

The attitude I always get from agood session is, “That was awe-some, guys. I can’t wait for nextweek.” Take the leap and acquirethe red box to see for yourself.

PRESTON LOBZUN

INTERROBANG

Back to the tabletop


Previously in this column I took a look back on the history of thePokémon series, as well as the peo-

ple who have helped to turn it intoa massive pop culture force over the last 16 years, and across numer-ous forms of media. The retrospec-tive was in preparation for what isarguably the biggest step that thefranchise has taken since its 1996debut, breaking out of its tradition-al two-dimensional shell to makethe jump to 3D with the release of Pokémon X and Y on October 12.

While the handheld Role PlayingGame (RPG) series that has alwaysformed the backbone of the fran-chise has seen more than a decadeof steady commercial and criticalsuccess, with each title consistently

becoming the highest-selling gameon its respective console, and aver-aging high scores from game crit-ics, long-time observers of theseries had begun to note that thegameplay had started to become a

bit stale. This is a valid argument,as the core mechanics and plot thatmake up the game have not seen amassive overhaul since the originalGameBoy, with minor aestheticchanges and the addition of newcharacters and features being the

primary draw to each new title.The jump to 3D is one that fans

of the series have been cravingsince the beginning, many desiringan experience to resemble the visu-al style provided by the cartoon,

but technologically impossible for Nintendo to give its fans with thehandheld systems that theyreleased. To make such a drasticchange after so many years could have been a risky move for the

company to make, as the failure todo it properly could, as with anylong-standing series, see the massalienation of the people who havesupported it for so long.

After a week on the streets, long-time fans will be happy to knowthat the release of Pokémon X and Y has been an astounding success,selling 5.5 million copies on thefirst day alone, a record for the

Nintendo 3DS and the second- biggest game opening this year, behind only last month’s Grand Theft Auto V . While the massivecommercial success of the games is

important, the millions of peopleworldwide who play are morefocused on whether or not the newtitles are the important step forward that the franchise needed.

While remaining spoiler-free, Iam happy to say that for anybodywho has been a fan of the Pokémongames in the past, this is the titlethat many of us have been waitingfor since we were 10 years old.Perhaps of the utmost importance isthat the games world and its char-acters have made the transition tofully animated three-dimensionalmodels beautifully, providinggamers with a level of immersioninto the world they are exploringthat previous titles have never beenable to provide. Gone are the stub-

by-bodied, large-headed humancharacters that people have takencontrol of in the past, replaced byexpressive characters that would not look out of place in the ’90sanime, a design feat that stretcheson to the true stars of the franchise,the Pokémon themselves, finally

bringing the game to life in a waythat is deserving for these popular characters.

Going beyond the surface, thenew games offer players a wider

variety of things to do than ever before, with a variety of minigames and other activities that mayseem silly on the surface, but

before you know it you have easilyspent 20 minutes feeding your Pikachu a cupcake.

The amount of fan service and callbacks to the history of the fran-chise will be enough to put a smileon the face of any long-time fan,yet the game is instantly accessiblefor anybody who is experiencingthe series for the first time, or thefirst time since they were young.As for the older gamers in the fan

base, the deep RPG mechanics thatspawned one of the largest compet-itive gaming communities world-

wide are better, and more compli-cated, than they ever have been

beforeThe Pokémon series has never

looked more whimsical, nor played as adult as they have with therelease of X and Y , and with thefrantic pace that the games have

been selling in the first week, thetitle is on pace to break every salesrecord that Nintendo has seen itslong history of well-received titles.It’s a remarkable feat for a game toreinvent itself, yet stay familiar successfully, but this series hasdone it again.

Third dimensionevolution

G33K LYFE

ANDREW VIDLER

CREDIT:ALLEN GAYNOR

Devon Van Dyk won an iPad Mini by winning a contest on the FanshaweStudent Union’s website. Check out www.fsu.ca/contest often, as we areconstantly giving away prizes, including tickets to the upcoming DixieChicks show at Budweiser Gardens.

COSTUMES$14

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Second year Fashion Design students Sarah Gaito and Ashley Eliot sell baked goods to fundraise for their year-end fashion show Unbound.



The Haunted World ofEl Superbeasto (2009)

The Cinema Connoisseur’sHalloween Spooktacular FrightFilm Festival is in full swing, and this week, I’ll be taking a look at afilm that features three trademarksof Halloween: demons, men wear-ing masks, and scantily clad women. More accurately, no-clad

women. Let me welcome you toTh e H au nt ed W or ld of E lSuperbeasto.

T he Hau nt ed Wor ld o f ElSuperbeasto is an animated hor-ror/comedy written and directed byRob Zombie… although it isentirely possible he sub-contracted the writing duties out to a group of hyperactive children who forgot totake their Ritalin doses for a fewdays. Don’t get me wrong –I think the children did an excellent job.The film moves at a breakneck

pace, and features everything fromthe disembodied head of Hitler toSatan himself to an appearance byCanada’s greatest rock band,Loverboy. This has to be the mostover-the-top film I have ever seen

–even more so than the Sylvester Stallone arm wrestling film Over The Top.

El Superbeasto is an extremely

arrogant masked former profes-sional wrestler (or luchador) whonow concentrates on producingadult films, starring in commer-cials, and occasionally saving theworld. During the course of thisfilm, he must prevent Dr. Satan(voiced by Paul Giammatti) frommarrying exotic dancer Velvet VonBlack, a nasty woman, even bystripper standards. If you are astripper and are reading thisreview, I apologize for the last

comment, but really, that has to beat best the fifth most offensivecomment directed at you today.Von Black has a 666 mark on her

backside, and the joining of herself and Dr. Satan in unholy matrimonywill cause Satan’s powers toincrease dramatically and enablehim to take over the world.

El Superbeasto is joined in thisall important quest by his eye-

patch-wearing sister, secret agentSusie-X. Susie brings along her

personal servant Murray TheRobot, who is more interested ininserting his input device intoSusie than in saving the world.

The movie features plenty of laughs and chills along the way,

but it also contains a bare assload of nudity. Donald Duck has ruffled some feathers by waddling around

pantless for decades, but this filmtakes it to a whole new level. Ihaven’t seen so many cartoonishexposed nipples since Tara Reid quit partying.

I cannot recommend this filmenough. It has everything a trulygreat film should have. A maincharacter who is a pro wrestler?Check? A supporting robot charac-ter? Check. Gratuitous nudity?Check. With this outing, RobZombie has proven himself to bethe greatest horror director of alltime. Sorry, Alfred Hitchcock,maybe if you had thought toinclude an animated topless cat-fight as a key scene in one of your

movies, I’d be singing your praisesright now. The highest complimentthat I can pay this film is that it fea-tures a prominent character who isa gorilla who speaks with a Britishaccent, and I didn’t even mentionthat until now. Normally thatwould be the selling point of afilm, but in this case, it’s justgravy.

Lastly, I’ll also add that this filmcan actually be quite the education-al tool for parents. If you have beenstruggling with talking to your children about the birds and the

bees, just discreetly slip a copy of t hi s f il m i nt o y ou r c hi ld ’sHalloween bag while you are pre-tending to examine it for suspi-cious-looking candies at the end of the night. They’ll spot the film,watch it, and all the cartoon coituswill teach them everything theyneed to know about the male,female and robot sex organs.

Dear Nat, I’ve been having trouble seeing

the positive side of things lately.Finding the silver lining in situa-tions usually comes so naturally tome, but between work, school and hardly having time for a decent social life, I’ve just been feelingbummed out. I’m not depressed,but I’m definitely in a funk. Howcan I start seeing the good inthings again?

Debbie Downer Dear Debbie Downer,A positive outlook on life is one

of the most important aspectswhen trying to achieve a healthier

lifestyle. Whether you’re faced with a ton of work, relationship problems, or shedding that stub- born 5 lbs after Thanksgivi ngweekend, seeing the good in everysituation will make tackling toughdays a breeze.

Put things in perspective: It’sall about mind over matter! Bysimply taking a step back fromyour situation and analyzing itfrom a third-party point-of-view,you’ll be separating yourself and your problems long enough to seethings more clearly. Oftentimes,we immerse ourselves so heavily

in our own dilemmas that we end up drowning in a pool of self-pity.It’s up to you to throw yourself aring buoy and swim to dry land!Furthermore, try the “if” and

“then” approach when trying tofind reassuring answers in your hectic life. For example: “If I failmy exam tomorrow, then I’ll justhave to study harder next time. If this exam flunked me from mycourse, then I’ll have to face theconsequences and talk to a guid-ance counsellor to get back ontrack!”

Take time for yourself: A lot of people are guilty of putting every-thing before themselves. Sure it’simportant to get our everyday to-do lists out of the way, but starvingyourself of anything else is goingto leave you feeling like you’vehardly accomplished anything. As

philosopher Aristotle once said:

“Man is by nature a social animal;an individual who is unsocial natu-rally and not accidentally is either

beneath our notice or more thanhuman.” To cut to the chase, even

back in 384 BC, considering your-self too busy to socialize was con-sidered a blasphemous trait. To anextent, the same can be thought of today, in that no one should con-sider themselves too busy to stopand smell the roses every once in awhile.

Fake it till you make it: Eveno n t he d ay s w he re y ou f ee labsolutely exhausted, try to smile.

Studies have shown that once our smiling muscles in our face are inmotion, positive signals are sent toour brain to reinforce a feeling of

joy throughout our body. Some say

that, “smiling can stimulate our brain’s reward mechanisms in away that even chocolate, a well-regarded pleasure-inducer, cannotmatch.” So skip the sweets and simply smile.

Never rob your body of theessentials: Sleep, exercise and

proper nutrition will never steer you in the wrong direction. When

practiced regularly, all three willcontribute to you making morerational decisions, lowering your stress levels and feeling stronger overall. And if life has taught meanything, feeling and believingthat you’re physical and mentallyfit will have you achieving morethan you might have originally

thought possible.To reiterate, always put things in perspective (remember the “if” and “then” method), take time for yourself, smile even when youdon’t feel like it, and remember tonever starve yourself of life’severyday essentials –you’ll feelhappier in no time.

If you’ve got a query for Quinlan, shoot her an email at [email protected]. All

published questions will be entered into monthly random draws to wina $10 FSU coupon for Oasis and Out Back Shack.


CHAT WITH NATNATALIE [email protected]

In a funk and unable to findlife’s silver linings

CREDIT: SPECTACLE ENTERTAINMENT GROUP

Superbeasto is super goodCinema ConnoisseurALLEN GAYNORwww.cinemaconn.com




Got a question, concern, orcomment about college policies?

ph: 519-452-4458

fx: [email protected]

Clayton GreeneStudent Representative to

the Board of Governors

THE TONIGHT SHOWwith Jay Leno

Kris Jenner said she doesn’t knowif she and Bruce will get divorced.

Like the rest of us, she’ll have towait until the writers are done with

the script for next season.Georgia Republican Congressman

Phil Gingrey said it’s time for his party to have a Braveheart moment

for the American people. Really?This whole government shutdown

feels like another Mel Gibson movie: Ransom.

Military officials say a former al-Qaida explosives expert may be

released from Guantanamo becausehe now weighs 420 pounds. He’s

420 pounds and former al-Qaida. Sounds more like

“former Al Roker,” does-n’t it?

BEST IN LATE NIGHTCOMIC RELIEF

REAL TIMEwith Bill Maher

Republicans’ Thanksgiving is alittle different; before eating they go

around the table and everybody sayswhat they’re hateful for.

Ted Cruz was speaking to theValue Voters Convention. Oh, it’s a

great convention they have. It washim, Michele Bachmann, Glenn

Beck, and Rick Santorum. Theentrance was pretty spectacular; theyall arrived in a short bus.

John Boehner led a group of 20Republicans to see President Obama.

Unfortunately when they got to theWhite House, the president was still

black.Here’s the idea: Step 1,

stop paying our bills. Step2, everything’s fine. The

last guy who tried thiswas Wesley Snipes.

LATE NIGHTwith Jimmy Fallon

I don’t how I feel about this. ButFrito-Lay just announced that they’re

comingout with new glow-in-the-dark Cheetos just in time for Halloween.

Glow-in-the-dark Cheetos. Peopleasked, “Are they safe to eat?” And

Frito-Lay said, “Were they ever?”Researchers say there might be

diamonds on both Jupiter and

Saturn. Apparently, the diamonds

form on the planets because of immense pressure. So it’s nice toknow that planets get diamonds for

the same reason husbands do onEarth.

A new study found thatdogs can actually feel gen-

uine love for their owners.While cats just keep a jour-

nal of all the things theyhate about you.

THE LATE LATE SHOWwith Craig Ferguson

As if we didn’t have enough toworry about here in Los Angeles,

something happened today that putus all on high alert. It rained. In fact,it was so wet that Kris and Bruce

Jenner are battling for custody of their umbrella.

Ernest Hemingway once won the Nobel Prize for litera ture.

Hemingway told an interviewer thatthe Nobel Prize was his second

greatest achievement. I don’t knowwhat the first one was, probably

catching a big fish while drunk.If you’ve never seen The Walking

Dead , it’s basically a bunch of bloodthirsty zombies slowly

devouring what’s left of America. No wait,

that’s C-SPAN.

THE LATE SHOWwith David LettermanAt Starbucks you can now pick up

something called a duffin. A duffinis a combination of a doughnut and a

muffin. I have an idea for Starbucks:

cheap coffee — “Choffee.”They passed out the Nobel Prize

for medicine. It went to the doctor

who developed a pill that will allowyou to keep up with the Kardashians.

If you go to the country of Kuwait,they give you something called a gay

test. It’s apparently illegal to be gayin Kuwait, so they ask one question,

“Do you watch the Tony Awards?”They passed out the Nobel Prizes.

The Nobel Prize for lack of chemistry — that’s an inter-

esting category — went toJohn Boehner and Barack

Obama.

JIMMY KIMMEL LIVEwith Jimmy Kimmel

There is a depressing new product

called “Tikker.” It’s a watch thatcounts down the moments until your

death. It calculates the probable date

of your death based on your healthand other factors. Technically, isn’tyour heart a watch that is counting

down to your death? Mine is.China issued a warning because we

owe them $1.3 trillion. If we default,they have threatened to cutoff oursup-

ply of cheap plastic crap made by kids.A historian has evidence that the

Chinese discovered America beforeChristopher Columbus did. He said

the Chinese were the first to sailacross the ocean to North

America. Then they real-ized they’d forgotten the

sweet and sour sauce and had to go back.

There is no question that wehave at our fingertips one of themost revolutionary methods of looking for employment… the

Internet . Using the Internet is agreat way to access advertised jobsor to research employers. Makesure you are utilizing all the onlineresources you can, such as jobsearch sites, job search engines,networking sites such as LinkedInand resume posting sites.

When using search engines,make sure you focus your job

search by using appropriate searchwords. ‘Jobs in Canada’ is obvi-ously too large to search, butsearching for a specific job titleand location won’t be as over-whelming.

Remember, if you want toincrease the chances of getting a

job, you need to balance searchingfor advertised jobs with an activeapproach to networking in the hid-den job market.

Here are some steps to get youstarted:

Resume and covering letter:To conduct an effective job search,it is imperative you have a relevantresume and covering letter. Need assistance? Check out the informa-

tion on how to write resumes and covering letters distributed byFanshawe’s Career Services Officelocated in Room D1063. Ask tohave your resume critiqued by theCareer Services Consultantresponsible for your program. Or,if you are prepared to be over-whelmed, go online and search for “Resumes and Covering Letters”for sample formats.

Research your chosen field:Develop a list of employers either

by location or industry. Don’toverthink your search, for example“IT employers in London” or something similar to your career search. Also, search for directories,

professional associations or publi-cations as possible sources.

Narrow down your list: Focuson only 20 or so employers fromyour list at one time. Break the task down into smaller ones by notfocusing on too many employers atonce. Once you have your list, startfinding out specific details aboutthe organization by visiting their websites.

Access advertised jobs: Thereare a number of sites that postemployment opportunities such as

i nd ee d.ca o r w ow jo bs .c a.Fanshawe Career Services posts allstudent and graduate jobs directlyto our job posting system, whichyou can access through www.fan-shaweonline.ca or www.fan-shawec.ca/careerservices. Alsocheck out the “Related Job SearchWebsites” link for many usefullinks to other job posting sites,directories and other resources.

Follow up: Keep track of whomyou sent your resume to. Contactthem by email or telephoneapproximately four to seven dayslater and inquire about the status of your application. Offer to answer any questions they may have and express your interest in arranging

an interview.Network to access the hidden job market: Approximately 80 per cent of jobs never get adver-tised. Your first step in developinga professional network to help youin your job search is to gather information and contacts. Thismeans developing a list of every-one you know, including friends,relatives, professors, former

employers, fellow classmates,social groups, professional associ-

ations, etc. Call or email these people and explain that you’re not ask-ing them for a job, but rather gath-ering information to learn moreabout a job. Be candid and ask for some advice in your work search.

Accessing information has never been easier or more readily avail-able and you should realize thatemployers are also pretty savvy intheir search for suitable employ-ees. If you have a Facebook profileand you’re job searching, you mayhave heard that you need to becareful about the information you

post. Hiring managers can and willcheck the web for informationabout prospective candidates, and Facebook is among the sites they

are checking. You do need to becareful about what information(and pictures) you make public vs.

private; a sure way to be eliminat-ed from a job competition is tohave embarrassing pictures of yourself out there for all to see.

Go ahead… Google yourself.After reviewing what you find,answer this question: “Would youhire this person?”

Need assistance with your jobsearch or writing a resume and covering letter? Drop by theCareer Services office in D1063.The Career Services staff areavailable to assist you on an indi-vidual basis. Visit the office in

D1063 to arrange an appointment

with the consultant responsible for your program or call 519-452-4294. To access job listings for Fanshawe students and graduates,visit www.fanshaweonline.ca or www.fanshawec.ca/careerservices.Follow us on Facebook face-book.com/FanshaweCS, Twitter @FanshaweCS and Pinterest

pinterest.com/FanshaweCS.

Googling for jobsCAREER CORNERSusan CoyneCareer ServicesConsultantFanshawe Career Services

School, work, family, friends.Your schedule most likely revolvesaround these main aspects thatkeep you constantly on the go.

It is easy to become over-whelmed with an endless mountainof things to do. Seeing a growingto-do list can sometimes add toanxiety and stress. Even thoughyou may be organized and ontrack, you can still feel uneasy and unrested.

What makes it so hard to focusand concentrate effectively? Thismay be because your mental

health, according to the MentalHealth Foundation website as your “emotional health” or “well-

being,” is in jeopardy and is beingoverlooked. Our mental healthfluctuates naturally with our dailylives, but can sometimes takelonger to readjust and recover when impacted more negatively.

The problems that plague usoften take form as everyday wor-ries and affect the way you think,feel and behave.

Are you feeling frazzled and unfocused? Despite how urgentyour list of tasks may be, listen to

the hints your body is giving and take that step back. Try some of thefollowing tips to help you recali-

brate in order to move forward.• D o o ne t hi ng a t a t im e:

Multitasking is often valued in afast-paced lifestyle, but it can actu-ally create more stress and a lack of attention to detail. Give your mind a rest and focus on one thingat a time. Concentrate on a maintask to achieve better quality and let your mind rest from racingeverywhere.

• Exercise: A common miscon-ception is that exercising will makeyou more tired and contribute more

stress. But physical activity releas-es endorphins in your body, whichtrigger positive emotions. Even if it is simply a walk around theneighbourhood or your house, youwill feel more energized and alert.

• Treat yourself: It is easy towear yourself thin while keeping

busy. Do something fun and treatyourself with a small reward for your hard work. Eat your favouritefood, take a bath or watch a movie.Choose something that you enjoyand might not normally have thetime to do. You can also use theserewards as motivation to complete

tasks.• Change environments: Feeling

in a rut? Switch up the scenery bychanging locations, especiallywhen studying. Give yourself anew environment, the change inatmosphere will help you recollectand refresh mentally.

• Walk away: The hardest thingto do is to stop and walk away. If you meet that mental block, takethe cue and momentarily stop whatyou are doing. Taking this break may be the best thing to clear your mind and approach it later with anew perspective.

Amongst the flurry of activities

it is hard to schedule time in for yourself. “Me” time should be sep-arate from any designated home-work time and should give you

peace of mind. As suggested by theCa na di an Men tal He alt hAssociation, take the time to eval-uate the demands of your everydaylife and tell yourself that it is okayto stop and relax. Your mind can

be cluttered, so prevent yourself from burning out by pressing amental pause button and rejuvenateyour wellbeing.

HOPE AQUINO-CHIENINTERROBANG

Take a break – a little

goes a long way



LIFESTYLES

Across1. Vapid

5. Changed location

10. Idiom #1: In a ___ (in an

embarrassing or difficult situation)

14. Feminine name

15. Grammarian’s concern

16. Small barrels17. Horsefly

18. “Beat it”

19. Region

20. Highest and most active vol-

cano in Europe

21. __ Arabia

22. Layer

23. Looks slyly

25. Avail

27. Idiom #2: In a ___ (very soon)

30. Roof supports

34. Steep or rugged rocks

35. Hold royal office

37. Jungfrau, for one

38. Steal

39. Having no weapons

41. New (comb. form)

42. Feminine name

43. Basic monetary unit of India

44. Taken __ (surprised)

46. Valences

48. Revolve around a fixed point

49. Driver’s licenses, i.e. (abbr.)

50. Describe a word grammatical-

ly

52. Farm building

55. Caribbean nation

57. Inquires

61. Shrub

62. Prevent by law

63. Feminine name

64. Memo

65. Sierra ___ (West African

country)

66. Little Mermaid’s love

67. Below average grades

68. Narrow roads69. Student’s furniture

Down

1. Idiom #4: In your ___ (An

aggressive and bold confrontation)

2. Walk with a light springing gait

3. Port in Yemen

4. Principal Philippine language

5. Made untidy (informal)

6. Academy of Motion Picture

Arts and Sciences award

7. Deformity involving the inward

displacement of the hand

8. Mild oath

9. Gnostic’s heavenly being

10. Glides on ice

11. Fairy-like being

12. S-shaped line

13. Formerly title of Russian

emperor 24. Made certain

26. Idiom #4: In a month of ___

(in a very long time)

27. Discard

28. Wear away

29. Secret conspiracy

30. “___ heals all wounds.”

31. Capital of Yemen

32. Vote for

33. Orated

35. Strikes briskly

36. Bard’s before

40. Idiom #5: In a ___ (briefly)

45. Prepared fish to eat (one

method)

47. Flirtatious girls

48. Complains (informal)

50. Mountain climber’s need

51. Expiate

52. Idiom #6: In a ___ (in trouble)

53. Healing plant

54. Blood vessel network

56. On the ocean58. Painful

59. Indonesian dagger

60. Plunder and destroy

Solution on page 19

1. Canada has more lakes thanthe rest of the world combined.

2. There are more than 150 mil-lion sheep in Australia, and onlysome 20 million people.

3. In France, there’s a placecalled Y.

4. China is the source of 70 per cent of pirated goods.

5. The University of Alaskastretches over four

time zones.6 . I n 1 94 8,

Costa Rica abol-ished its military and

spends the money oneducation and culture

instead.7. In 2011 Russia acknowledged

beer as an alcoholic beverage.Before then, any drink under 10

per cent volume was considered asoft drink.

8. T he re is a ci ty c al led “Batman” in Turkey.

9. First aid training is mandatoryin order to obtain a driver’s licensein Germany.

10. The province of Alberta,Canada is free of the common rat.

11. More than 30 Africannations have more cell phones thanland lines.

12. Japanese schools do not have proms.

13. In Bangladesh, $5 will buy a beer or a first-class train ticket for a cross-country trip.

14. Almost half the newspapersin the world are published in theUnited States and Canada!

15. Iceland has the most Internetusers per capita of any country inthe world with over 86 per cent of

people using the Web, compared with only 69 per cent of Americans.

16. Somalia, a north-Africancountry, boasts the highest per-centage growth of Internet users inthe world going from a mere 200 in2000 to 90,000 in 2007

17. Wyoming was the first stateto allow women to vote.

18. Windmills always turncounter-clockwise. Except for thewindmills in Ireland!

19. The United States has thehighest minimum drinking age inthe world.

20. The three wealthiest familiesin the world have more assets thanthe combined wealth of the 48

poorest nations.

2 1. T he P ac if ic i sl an d o f Nauru’s economy is almost entire-ly based on bird droppings.

22. The Canary Islands were notnamed after a bird called thecanary. They were named after a

breed of dogs.23. Halifax, Nova Scotia, has the

most bars per capita than anywhereelse in the world.

24. Mexico has more Americanresidents than any other countryexcept the United States.

25. Last 2 European countries tolet women vote: Switzerland (1971) and Leichtenstein (1984).

Aries (March 21 - April 19)You’re entitled to any opportu-

nity. It’s obvious to all that Aries isthe most likely candidate for good luck and high adventure. With somuch positive energy focused onyou, sadness can’t exist.

Taurus (April 20 - May 20)Sometimes it’s better to be out

of the way when big events arehappening. You could show peoplea thing or two if they were actuallyinterested. There are no deadlinesin your life right now.

Gemini (May 21 - June 20)Branch out among those in your

professional or social circle. Newconversation always stimulatesGemini. You eagerly anticipatedevelopments that are just around the corner.

Cancer (June 21 - July 22)Don’t make a big deal out of

small potatoes. Remember whateventually happened to the boywho cried wolf. Drive slowly,count your change and be polite.

Leo (July 23 - August 22)Leo spends the next few days

among their favourite people. Your standards are high, but everyoneseems to meet them. There’s noneed for leadership when all play-ers are equal.

Virgo (August 23 - Sept. 22)You get to preview a surprise

that you don’t think will be popu-lar. It may be better to take care of yourself instead of warning others.

Apologies will make more senseafter events have run their course.

Libra (Sept. 23 - Oct. 22)You are paid back for some pastinconvenience or pressure. Libra,of all people, should recognizethat fair is fair. Be proud that youcan still do what is necessary.

Scorpio (Oct. 23 - Nov. 21)If worry sets in, spend some

time alone in a soothing environ-ment, nurturing your health. Tryto save all of this highly efficientworry energy for a real crisis.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21)You understand loved ones bet-

ter than they understand them-selves. You are at the centre of allthe fun for the next few days. Youcan still master the art of play.

Capricorn (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19)You have a hard time keeping

secrets. Capricorn may not be anymore talkative than usual, but oth-ers are especially perceptive. Behonest with the people who knowyou best.

Aquarius (Jan. 20 - Feb. 18)Favourable events unfold in

record time. You lust after the realthing and have no patience for anything less. Luckily for you,most of those nearby want you to

be happy.Pisces (Feb. 18 - March 20)After a good look at someone

else’s problems, count yourself lucky that you’re an outsider.These days, you’re best-suited byfew attachments and no complica-tions. Relax and wait for your

moment.

Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 grid con-tains the digits 1 through 9. That means no number is repeated in any col-umn, row or box. Solution can be found on page 19.

Sudoku Puzzle

puzzle rating: hard


OCT. 15 2013

A BUS PASS COSTS $25 TO REPLACE THEFIRST TIME, $182 FOR EACH ADDITIONALREPLACEMENT.

PRIZES SPONSORED BY CHARTWELLS

Word SearchM

E

B

R

A

S

SE

S

W

Y

F

H

W

H

C C A R T H Y S N W O R B U

Q R U S S E L L T Y T O A Q

I T N E S R M H S O M S N S

H O D G E S O S T J N G D O

N U Q U M C S Z O R D E R W

O P W T D S S N K P M Q E P

S E F L T S I K E O S C W RN R K U E I R V S S A L S H

H D X C E D G Y I H N A A E

I L L O W S J J Y T D N D I

J L K G Y W S I D L E G C L

A S H D O N M C A Z R S J K

D R O B B I N S V N S T Z C

T R U X L S T S E T O O P E

B P F I N L A Y O D A N J G

CSI characters(Words in parentheses not in puzzle)

(Henry) Andrews(Capt. Jim) Brass

(Morgan) Brody(Warrick) Brown

(Conrad) Ecklie

(Julie) Finlay(Gil) Grissom

(David) Hodges(Dr. Raymond) Langston

(Dr. Al) Robbins

(D.B.) Russell(Greg) Sanders

(Sara) Sidle(Nick) Stokes

(Catherine) Willows



SPORTS& LEISURE18 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Rival Watch: Eastern ConferenceLast week, we looked at the

class of the West; the LondonKnights’ biggest rivals headinginto the 2013/14 season. This week it’s time to take a look at theEastern conference. What makes ita little easier for London and other Western Conference teams is thefact that East meets West just twicea season –once at home and onceaway.

Here’s looking at teams thatcould make noise in the EasternConference.

Kingston FrontenacsWhere do we begin with the

Kingston Frontenacs?T he F ro nt s w er e a n O HL

anonymity for a number of sea-sons, having not made the playoffsor out of round one for over adecade. This season, they’re heavyfavourites to capture top seed inthe East.

What changed? Max Domi.The Frontenacs drafted Domi

back in 2011 with their first round pick, despite the young Domi notwanting to play in Kingston. Theend result –the Frontenacs got amega package deal from theKnights and that’s what’s reapingthe rewards this season.

The core of this team is young,all 1996-born players, and eligibleto be drafted into the NHL in 2014.Sam Bennett and London nativeSpencer Watson spearhead the

Frontenacs offense –Bennett theteam’s 2012 compensatory pick,for failing to sign Domi and Watson, their second round selec-tion. Added to that are defensemenDylan DiPerna and Roland McKeown, all poised for massiveseasons, while only aged 17 or younger.

That isn’t where Kingston stops,though. They acquired Corey

Pawley from London to add more

offensive potential. But their biggest off-season coup wasacquiring Plymouth’s MattMahalak in net. The overager

brings a wealth of OHL experienceto the crease, to steady the ship.

Barrie ColtsThe Barrie Colts might not be

the same team that faced Londonin the 2012 OHL finals. They are,however, still as dangerous.

Mark Schiefele is no longer around as he’s now graduated tothe Winnipeg Jets. AdditionallyAnthony Camara, goalie Mathias

Niederberger and captain RyanO’Connor have all moved on. TheColts do have overagers MitchellTheoret and Zach Hall this season.Hall was top scorer last season, and there’s much expected from him.

But there’s even more expected from former Knight AndreasAthanasiou. At 19 years of age,he’s likely entering his final OHLs ea so n, a nd t he R ed Win gs

prospect can and should feature atthe top of the Colts scoring chart.

On the blueline, Barrie boastsAaron Ekblad, the second player to

be granted exceptional status in theOHL. Ekblad brings with him acalm demeanor to the Colts, and with his offensive and defensivetalents, it’s hard to get anything byhim.

Their biggest concern will be innet. Barrie lost overager Mathias

Niederberger after last season, and

his backup, 17 year old AlexFotinos will have to carry the load this season. Whether or not he’ll beable to, is left to be seen.

With the Memorial Cup beinghosted by the OHL, an additionalOHL team will get a berth nextMay. Perhaps this time it’ll belucky for Barrie, after coming ever so close last season.

Sudbury WolvesThere’s something about the

Wolves that draws people to themthis season. Perhaps it’s the factthat they’re pretty much the sameteam as last year. In a generallyweaker Eastern Conference, theWolves are primed to stake their claim for top spot.

They return their top three pointgetters from l ast season –MatthewCampagna, Nick Baptiste and

Nathan Pancel. That’s 172 pointsfrom last season, and there’sexpectation for more this season;

particularly from Baptiste.The Wolves were busy in the off

season, adding Connor Crisp fromthe Erie Otters, perhaps hintingthat they have Memorial Cup aspi-rations. On defence, JimmyMcDonnell was another acquisi-tion in the Crisp trade and he,along with former Knights’ fanfavourite Kevin Raine will stabi-lize a young, eager defence corps.

Veteran netminder FrankyPalazzese, who was acquired fromKitchener last season, will return innet as the third and final overager,rounding out what looks like asolid roster of players.

Perhaps with a couple of tradesin season, the Wolves, like theBarrie Colts, are poised to make arun for the Cup.

Other teams to keep an eye outfor:

North Bay Battalion: This will be a season to remember for thecity of North Bay. The erstwhile

Brampton Battalion packed up and moved north in the off season,

bringing junior hockey back to North Bay for the first time since2002.

Bolstered by the return of their captain Barclay Goodrow, theTroops are joined by 2014 project-ed first rounder Blake Clarke, aswell as Nick Paul and MikeAmadio on offence.

Goaltending could be a shortfall,as Matej Machovsky went back tothe Czech Republic. That left JakeSmith to take over as the starter inonly his second OHL season and it’s to be seen how he fares withthe added workload. They do haveformer Sudbury netminder Brendan O’Neill for cover.

North Bay rejoices, though;they’ve got the OHL back.

Oshawa Generals: Lost severalkey players to the pro ranks,including Dorchester native BooneJenner. However, the Generals

were boosted by the return of ScottLaughton from the PhiladelphiaFlyers.

Daniel Altshuller returns in goal bringing his experience along.Their defensive corps is led byJosh Brown, Chris Carlisle and Colin Sullentrop –not as dominat-ing as many other OHL franchises,

but still steady enough to make lifedifficult for other OHL teams.

VICTOR KAISAR

INTERROBANG

CREDIT: ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE

Kingston Frontenacs expect big things from 2014 NHL Draft eligible trio of (left), Sam Bennett, RolandMcKeown and Spencer Watson.

Not many people know this, butHonda was the first among theJapanese brands to come up with aluxury division, named Acura.

The brand got off to a great startwith their initial models, theIntegra and the Legend, being verywell received by the buying public.

Sadly, the brand has struggled inthe last decade. While some mod-els have done well, like the MDX,some have done quite poorly insales, like the last generation RL.

For 2014, Acura has come up

with new versions of those vehi-cles. The question is, will the RLX

become much more successfulthan the RL it replaces, and will theMDX continue to sell in hugenumbers?

This week, I’m going to take alook at both these vehicles and tellyou what the future might hold for these models.

Let’s start with the RLX, theflagship model for the brand, untilthe new NSX arrives. The 2014RLX is bigger and roomier thanthe RL it replaces, it offers a six-speed automatic (the old RL had a

five-speed auto) and while havingmore power, the new model ismuch more fuel efficient than theone it replaces –I averaged 9.6-litres/100km.

However, while it has gained insome areas, it has lost in others.For instance, the SH-AWD (Super Handling All Wheel Drive) systemis not currently offered on thismodel, so the RLX is just a front-wheel drive car.

To compensate for the lack of all-wheel drive, Acura has giventhe RLX a system it calls PAWS(Precision All Wheel Steer).PAWS allows the rear wheels toturn a fraction, which lets this vehi-cle turn very sharply. This systemtakes a little getting used to. Onoff-ramps, when the system would

kick in, it would feel a little nerv-ous, and at first it caught me off guard. While I can appreciate theengineering behind it, I don’t quitethink it is necessary for a car likethe RLX. I’d rather have a clever all-wheel drive system than activerear steer any day.

While I preferred the handling of the old RL over the new RLX, I dolike the extra ponies on offer here.The 3.5-litre V6 motor produces310 hp, which is plenty for movingthis big car along. Along with itsnew six-speed automatic, theengine can spread its power more

evenly across the range. While thisis no road rocket, it is sufficientlyfast enough for most of us. It cer-tainly is much more efficient.Thanks to its extra gear and cylin-der deactivation, the RLX can shutoff half its cylinders and just cruiseon the highway, where it canaccomplish an incredible 6.4litres/100km.

You get lots of room, front and back, and you get plenty of toys,which includes the new Krellsound system, which makes the car feel like a concert hall. I like that alot.

I also like the technology offered in here, like its lane departure and lane assist feature, along with blind spot monitoring, forward collisionwarning, and an active cruise con-

trol system that works all the waydown to a full stop. All these fea-tures take some of your stressaway. However, I somehow wasnever quite comfortable in its dri-ver’s seat. I felt the seatback justdidn’t arch to the curvature of my

back and I was never comfortablein it. I asked a few other journalistswho had driven one, and they did-n’t recall having this issue, but nomatter how I set my seat, I could never get it quite right. Go for along enough test drive and test theseat out for yourself.

All in all, the new RLX is a fine

automobile. It might not be toeveryone’s taste, and personally Idon’t think it’ll do much better than the old RL, but if want themost prestigious Honda product,the RLX will do you just fine.Prices start at $49,990.

Personally, I’d rather spend myhard-earned on the new MDX.

The MDX has been a hit since itwas first launched back in 2001.When the second generation modelcame out in 2006, it became evenmore popular, and Acura keptimproving it with more and moretechnology. In 2010, it got a six-speed automatic, which made itmore frugal, and now for 2014,there is a new model.

Well, it isn’t quite all new. It ismore of a facelift than an all-new

model. Given how popular theMDX has been, Acura didn’t wantto mess with their winner.

So, while the shell and most of the interior is quite similar, thereare a few changes. At first, it justseems to have a new bumper and headlights, but in detail, there are afew more things.

You now get keyless entry and go, plus you get lane departure and lane keeping assist, along with

blind spot monitoring and forward collision warning, and an adaptivecruise control system that works allthe way down to zero km/h. A spe-

cial feature the MDX offers is thesurround view camera system,which turns parking into a videogame (I love that).

It is packed with features, and asalways, there is plenty of room for seven passengers in here (althoughthe back-row passengers need to beshort). While I had an issue withthe seat in the RLX, I did not havesuch an issue with the MDX. Thisis a comfortable place to be in.

It’s not exactly fast. You get a3.5-litre V6 motor that produces290 hp. That is not a lot when

pulling nearly two tons, but it willdo the job just fine for most. WhatI really like is that Acura retained the SH-AWD system in the MDXand it really does help make thishuge SUV handle like a much

smaller vehicle. All-wheel driveshould make this quite capable inthe wet and in the snow also.However, due to its weight and all-wheel drive, I only managed 11.1litres/100km in the MDX, which isstill quite good for a vehicle of itssize.

The MDX continues to improveand I do firmly believe that itssales numbers will stay on the upand up. With prices starting at$49,990, this is quite a vehicle for the money.

MOTORING

NAUMAN [email protected]

Comparing the Acura RLX and MDX



Could North American soccer be, at least partially, played duringthe winter? That’s what Major League Soccer is continuing to ask as they move closer to a winter schedule. The game on this side of the pond has embraced many of theEuropean ideas of how footballshould be run and supported. A

winter schedule would be another one of these ideas. But is it possi-

ble.Let’s look at the limitations. The

rumoured changes to the schedulewould mean the season would startin July or August (depending oninternational competitions, likely),take a four- to six-week break inthe dead of winter, and then finishthe season in May or June. It does-n’t take a smart person to realize

playing soccer in Toronto inFebruary is a terrible idea, so Iwon’t dwell on that. What I willargue against is the length of the

break.In Europe, two- or three-week

breaks are common, to avoid games being snowed out during thecolder parts of winter. Sure,Europe’s winters aren’t as harsh as

North America’s, but more impor-tantly, they are much shorter. InEurope, the temperature tends torise come February, with snowvery rarely falling in March.

In North America (specificallyCanada and northern U.S. states),snow is common to fall anywherefrom December to March –that’s a

bit longer than four- to six-weeks.

If MLS thinks taking a European-style six-week break will preventsnowy games, they are very wrong.

Also, why stop playing in thesummer? The North AmericanSoccer League, the league belowMLS, has implemented a “split-season” schedule –playing in thespring, taking a couple weeks off in the summer, then have another half in the fall (the winners of each“season” play each other in a finalat the end of the year).

What good does that do? If theleague isn’t playing during some of the nicest weather of the year, what

a bo ut f an s? W ou ld c as ua lMontreal Impact fans come to amatch in July, or in February?You’re losing money not playingduring the summer.

Finally, think about where your players are coming from. There isno outdoor, competitive soccer

being played in North Americaduring the winter, so why would your top league suddenly change?It will throw the system out of whack, with developmentalleagues working at different timesthan the main league.

Besides, these smaller leagues

and teams can’t switch over to awinter schedule either, becausethey can’t afford things like under-soil heating and whatnot.

Overall, switching the calendar for whatever reason does moreharm than good to the game in

North America. There will befewer fans, more games cancelled due to the weather and lower qual-ity on the field because players willnot be used to playing in those con-ditions. Why change, and whychange now?

SPORTS& LEISURE 19 Volume 46 Issue No. 9 October 21, 2013 www.fsu.ca/interrobang/

Can MLS weather the winter weather?

FANSHAWE FCMARTY [email protected]: @martythompson_

Fanshawe College Athleticswww.fanshawec.ca/athletics | J 1034 | 519-452-4202

VolleyballMen's andWomen'sFriday,Oct. 25 Vs Humber Hawks

GlennJohnstonAthleticCentre–JGym

Women's @ 6 pm, Men @ 8 pm

BasketballMen's andWomen'sSaturday,Oct. 26 Vs Cambrian Golden Shield

GlennJohnstonAthleticCentre–JGymWomen @ 6 pm, Men @ 8 pm

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Freeman bolts back to the Lightning

Freebird has landed. After join-ing the London Lightning duringthe team’s first season two yearsago, Gabe Freeman took the

National Basketball League of Canada by storm, eventually win-ning the inaugural Most ValuablePlayer award. After going to thePhilippines for a year, he’s back with the Lightning. Has this rapid-ly changing league passed him by?

Arguments that the league hasadvanced a lot over the past year are certainly valid. When Freeman

played in the inaugural season of

the league, he was third in scoringat 18.1 points per game. No other

players broke the 20 point per game (ppg) barrier that season.This season there were three:Moncton Miracle Devin Sweetney(24ppg), Saint John Mill RatAnthony Anderson (21ppg) and Summerside Storm’s BrandonRobinson (20ppg). Perhaps the topthree shooters don’t representleague scoring as a whole, but itdoes show there are some very tal-ented players coming through asstar players. Freeman’s 2011/12

numbers wouldn’t crack the topfive this past year.

But what sets Freeman apart on

his stat line is his variety. He aver-aged just over 12 rebounds per game (rpg) in 2011/12, along with18 points per game. These sorts of double-double numbers are so rarethat he was the only one in the

NBLC to end the season with adouble-double (two point per gamevalues being over 10, so doubledigits).

Now, the small forward positionwas taken last year by players likeJermaine Blackburn and JeremyWilliams, two pieces Freeman mayneed to cover. Blackburn wasdropped late last season due to

behaviour problems, and Williamswas simply not invited back tocamp. Blackburn was one of the

lesser pieces of the puzzle for theLightning last year, rarely puttingup big games. He was very effec-tive on the free throw line, notch-ing a percentage of .875 (not animportant stat, but the only total heseemed to put decent numbers upin). Williams was a big guy, stand-ing at 6 ft. 7 in., but was unable toever influence the game on the

boards, holding an average of 4 rpgthrough his time there. On paper, itseems as if Freeman will have notrouble replacing both Williamsand Blackburn.

But in the end, it boils down toefficiency. The efficiency stat is anumber-cruncher’s best friend,

because it shows how effective the player is in one simple number. Itadds things like points, assists,rebounds and steals, but takes

away values like turnovers and missed field goals. Imagine if Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill used a singlenumber to evaluate players in themovie Moneyball. This is the statof Hollywood. Freeman had anEfficiency number of 22.9 back in2011/12 –the best in the NB LC bytwo percentage points. A 22 is amassive number in Eff, with verygood games being graded in the

high 20s. Freeman has shown hecan contribute to several different parts of the game at a high level,and perhaps that all-around playwill keep him on the court all sea-

son long.Freeman is a favourite to make

the team this year and hold on to astarter’s spot. An old crowd favourite should return to glory,when his Lightning take the courtat the Budweiser Gardens on

November 2. Marty Thompson is the play-by-

play voice of the London Lightning for their livest ream,

SportsLive24.net. This is just oneof a four part set, previewing theupcoming season.

CREDIT: METRONEWS.CA

Gabe Freeman blows by a defender in 2011 – can he do it in 2013?

LIGHTNING

WATCH

MARTY [email protected]: @martythompson_

CREDIT: REUTERS

February’s World Cup Qualifier between the U.S. and Costa Rica. This scene could be more common shouldMLS change their schedule.

Interrobang issue for October 21st, 2013

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Transcript of Interrobang issue for October 21st, 2013