Issue 10 - November 10 2011

In July, Canada ended its combat mission in Afghani-stan, leaving a small number of troops to advise and train the Afghan National Security Forces until total withdrawal in 2014. Last Tuesday, Bill Graham, chancellor of Trinity College and former minister of Foreign Affairs and Nation-al Defence, met with Omar Samad, Afghan ambassador in Ottawa from 2004 to 2009, at the Munk School of Global Af-fairs to reflect on the war - the longest in Canadian history - and to discuss the future of Afghanistan.

The consensus: Despite some flaws in its execution, the war in Afghanistan was certainly justified. Although the country is still a long way from peace and stability, much progress has been made.

Samad saluted the Canadi-ans deployed to Afghanistan and expressed his sympathy for the families of the 158 soldiers who gave their lives, including Master Corporal Bryan Greff who was killed in action two weeks ago.

After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, Sa-

mad became a political refu-gee and moved to the United States where he studied at the American University in Washington, D.C. and at Tufts University. However, Samad said, “Afghanistan always re-mained the focus of my life.” Following his service as the Afghan ambassador to Canada he was appointed ambassador to France.

Drawing on years of diplo-matic experience, Graham and

Samad untangled the web of complications preventing a firm resolution to the war in Afghanistan: ethnic divisions, corrupt Afghan politicians, in-coherent and conflicting for-eign policies, and - most impor-tantly - the tension between India and Pakistan. “In my understanding,” Graham said, “a lot of the problems stem from the fact that Afghanistan

The University of Toronto’s Independent Weekly Since 1978 VOL XXXIV Issue 10 • November 10, 2011

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A long way to goFormer diplomats discuss war in Afghanistan and challenges ahead

by Robby Müff

Bill Graham (left) listens intently as Omar Samad speculates about Afghanistan’s future BO

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by Geoffrey Vendeville

THE NEWSICC the filmPage 3

THE NEWSHappy birthday, Insulin!Page 3

THE ARTSDunst depressedPage 7

see page 2

New funding makes history

With Remembrance Day ap-proaching, the Government of Canada announced that it would donate $3 million over three years to the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, a joint project between the University of Toronto and Laval University documenting the lives of impor-tant Canadians, including war veterans.

U of T President David Naylor, general editors of the DCB Pro-fessors John English and Réal Béllanger, and representatives of Heritage Canada made the announcement at Hart House on Monday. Professor English said the new funding will be used to expand the Dictionary by commissioning biographies into the 1950s and 1960s, and to improve past entries.

The DCB comprises more than 8,400 biographies, avail-able in English and French, covering the period between the 11th and early 20th century. There are also a few entries for people who lived after 1940, such as the 18,000-word article on Pierre Trudeau.

The DCB chronicles the lives

of historical figures of all back-grounds: politicians, business-men, explorers, artists, and sol-diers - such as U of T graduate Lt. Col. John McRae, author of In Flanders Fields. The Dictionary is also the “single largest source for Aboriginal history in Can-ada,” editor John English said. The first volumes of the DCB were published in 1966. It went online in October 2003 and now receives more than a million visits per year.

President Naylor called the DCP, “A great Canadian resource [made possible by] the close and longstanding partnership,” which began in 1959 between Laval and Toronto. “The diction-ary is an unparalleled survey of the men and women who have shaped Canada’s history. It is free, highly accessible and it touches the greater Canadian public,” said Naylor.

MP for Oakridges-Markham and parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heri-tage, Paul Calandra, represented the Canadian Government at the event. “The Dictionary of Canadian Biography,” said Ca-

Government pledges millions for biographical dictionary, may prove Canadian history’s not so dull

see page 2

When U of T went to warPage 4^̂

Historians Ramsey Cook (left) and John English chat in Soldiers’ Tower.

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Inside this issue...

2 November 10, 2011 THE NEWS

the newspaper

the newspaper1 Spadina Crescent Suite 245Toronto, ON M5S 1A1

Editorial: [email protected]

the newspaper is published by Planet Publications Inc., a non-profit corporation.

All U of T community members, including students, staff and faculty, are encouraged to contribute to the newspaper.

Editor-in-ChiefCara Sabatini

News EditorGeoff Vendeville

Associate News EditorYukon Damov

Photo EditorBodi Bold

Web EditorAndrew Walt

Copy EditorTalia Gordon

Arts EditorVanessa Purdy

ContributorsAberdeen Berry, Bodi Bold, Dan Christensen, Yukon Damov, Talia Gordon, Robby Muff, Paul Trza-ski, Geoffrey Vendeville, Andrew Walt.

the newspaper is the University of Toronto’s independent weekly paper, published since 1978.

VOL XXXIV No. 10Circulation: 17,000

Finest Cutting and StyleColour and Highlights

7 HART HOUSE CIRCLEMONDAY TO FRIDAY, 8:30 - 5:30

SATURDAY, 9:00 - 5:00For Appointments Call: 416-978-2431

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Speaker:Professor Faye Mishna,Dean and Professor, Factor Inwentash

Faculty of Social Work, UofT November 16, 2011 4:30–6:30pm, Kruger Hall Commons, Woodsworth College, 119 St. George St.Reception follows lecture

Register online:www.alumni.utoronto.ca/woodsworthor Email: [email protected] phone: 416-978-5301

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Free eventVisit Woodsworth College

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landra, “is widely recognized as the fundamental research and educational tool as a mas-terpiece of scholarship. In fact, it is arguably one of the best biographical dictionaries in the world . . .” Calandra continued, “the Government of Canada is pleased to have supported this important project.”

With the federal govern-ment’s donation, access to the DCB will thankfully remain free of charge, while equivalent na-tional collections of biography in other countries require paid subscriptions. The British Ox-ford National Dictionary of Bi-ography, for example, costs £205 ($344) to use per year.

Unlike the “free encyclope-dia,” Wikipedia, the DCB’s en-tries are carefully researched, objective, and parsed for errors. In addition, many of the DCB articles are based on original re-

search of primary sources. “The Wikipedia biographies are cer-tainly not always reliable,” Eng-lish said. “It’s not edited in the way we’re talking about... I went to Tony Blair, for example, and read that he had a homosexual love affair with Gordon Brown, and it was all about Iraq. It’s sim-ply not reliable.”

The editors of the DCB hope it will help dispel certain mis-conceptions Canadians have about their own history - most of all, that Canadian history is dull. “There’s a lot of lively people in this biography,” said English, “You’d be surprised go-ing through it. We’ve got prosti-tutes, miners, Chinese business-men from 1900. If you sit down a read the biography it will change many of your percep-tions.”

“We don’t have many projects like this - in fact, this is the only one.”

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is caught in the middle of the India-Pakistan rivalry.” Iranian and Chinese involvement in Afghanistan has further aggra-vated the situation, he added.

“You have just described how complex the situation is,” Sam-ad replied. “We in Afghanistan feel that we are seen by strate-gists in both countries [India and Pakistan] as a side player for their rivalry… Our strategy is not to use any third coun-try against somebody else. We would not like to be a target of the same game - whether it’s the Iranians playing it, or the Indians, or anyone.”

Still, Samad remains “cau-tiously optimistic” that condi-tions in Afghanistan will im-

prove. “Education, healthcare, civil society – these are all ar-eas in which gains have been significant,” he told the news-paper. The priority now, he argued, is to prevent any back-sliding and to resist defeatism. “There is a lot at stake in Af-ghanistan…We cannot totally dismiss it and say, ‘Well, things are not going to change.’ They will change.”

Samad described Canada’s new advisory role in Afghani-stan as a “natural transition and essential program, not only for state building, but also for consolidating past gains and making future progress.”

At the end of the discussion Samad took questions from the audience. Mohammad Rustam Zadran, an Afghan stu-

dent majoring in International Relations at U of T, asked if the existence of terrorist hideouts in Pakistan is crippling Af-ghanistan’s foreign policy. Sa-mad agreed that Afghan policy is inconsistent. “That question is on the minds of many Af-ghan policymakers,” he said. “They are critical of Afghan policy... There seems to be a disconnect in the government somewhere.”

For Graham, the war in Af-ghanistan underscored the need to strike a proper bal-ance between “soft” and “hard” power, moral persuasion and military might. “As we said in the ministry: a robust defense is derivative of foreign policy, but foreign policy is depend-ent on military capacity.”

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www.thenewspaper.ca 3 THE NEWS

‘It’s very radical, the beginning of a world of government’ documentary screening features ICC history and chief prosecutor luis Moreno-Ocampo

As Prosecutor for the Interna-tional Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo has made inquiries into the al-leged war crimes committed in Sudan, Kenya, and Uganda. He has dealt with the geno-cide of Darfur, and recently led an investigation into the crimes against humanity committed under the Gad-dafi regime. Prosecutor, a doc-umentary by Barry Stevens, explores both the exploits of this exceptional man and the history of the ICC.

“It’s very radical… it’s the beginning of a world govern-ment,” said filmmaker Barry Stevens on the International Criminal Court. “The ICC is permanent and global. No society is stable without law and order. Without these el-ements, there’s no hope for permanent peace.”

Presented by the Faculty of Law at U of T in collaboration with its International Hu-man Rights Program (IHRP), a free public screening of Prosecutor will be hosted this

upcoming Monday evening at the Isabel Bader Theatre. Moreno-Campo himself will be in attendance to take ques-tions from the audience after the screening, as will other prominent figures involved with global diplomacy.

“This event will be a fan-tastic way for the students at the University of Toronto to learn more about the In-ternational Criminal Court in an entertaining and acces-sible format,” said Renu Man-dhane, Director of the IHRP. “It will also offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear the Luis Moreno-Ocampo in conversation with Canadian humanitarian envoy Stephan Lewis, and to pose questions to these leaders in the field of international human rights.”

Moreno-Ocampo first be-came renowned for his work in Argentina, where he served as one of two main pros-ecutors in the Trial of Jun-tas against members of the country’s de facto military government. His recent work focused on the revolution in Libya, indicting and calling

for the arrest of the country’s previous leader Muammar Gaddafi and his son Seif al-Islam, as well as investigating the alleged crimes of Bashar al-Assad in Syria.

The film provides a deeper look into the daily life of Moreno-Ocampo, following his activities since 2009, five years after his appointment to Chief Prosecutor. It exam-ines his first case, that of war criminal and Congolese mili-tia leader Thomas Lubanga, and the various difficulties he faced as its prosecutor.

The film also considers the ICC operations under-taken since its establishment in 2002, aiming to address the different controversies emerging from its attempts to promote justice around the world.

“Students will gain a deep-er understanding of interna-tional criminal law, includ-ing the complexities of the International Criminal Court and some of its challenges and limitations,” Mandhane added with regards to the event’s overall purpose and

message.“We hope the November 14

event will create a space for reflection and debate on the role of international criminal

courts in terms of facilitating transition from dictatorship to democracy and fostering long-term peace,” concluded Mandhane.

by Paul Trzaski

GSU ANNUAL

GENERAL MEETING Graduate Students’ Union

University of Toronto

MONDAY, NOV. 21, 2011 6:10 p.m. SHARP

Sandford Fleming, Room 1105

10 King’s College Road _______________________

Agenda: 2010-11 Financial Statement &

Audit Appointment of the Auditor

Approval of Minutes By-law Amendments

All graduate students have voice & vote

[email protected] www.utgsu.ca

dear Suzie

Dear Suzie,Is there such thing as serendipity? This summer I met my “perfect guy” [on vaca-tion]. I felt butterflies. We didn’t kiss or any of that but just hung out. He now lives a good 4-hour flight away from me, and I am left here hoping that one day maybe some-thing will happen. We send emails about once a week...maybe I’m being silly but I just feel like such a hopeless romantic. Should I just let it go?

Signed, Maybe Someday

Dear Maybe,I wholeheartedly believe in serendipity, and I also am a huge supporter of going with your gut. You had a strong reaction to this guy for a reason, so don’t beat yourself up for wanting something more. Although it is unfortunate that you are so far away, I think you should continue this friendship with him, but for now, don’t expect anymore. Letting go of any expec-tations will help you see the bright side in not worrying so much about what might or might not happen. If it’s meant to be, it will be.

Sincerely,Suzie

Got a question for Suzie? E-mail her at: [email protected]

A stroke of serendipity

by Talia Gordon

Insulin: U of T’s gift to the world

This year marked the 90th an-niversary of the discovery of insulin by University of To-ronto darlings, Frederick Bant-ing and Charles Best. A new permanent exhibit, INSULIN: Toronto’s Gift to the World opened recently at the MaRS Discovery Centre to celebrate and commemorate their land-mark contribution to the world of diabetes.

“It’s a very inspirational and exciting story,” said Dr. Gary Lewis, director of the Bant-ing and Best Diabetes Centre. “We’re hoping the exhibit will excite young people, the gen-eral public and anyone inter-ested in research,” he added. Until the inauguration of ex-hibit last week, there had nev-er been a formal display at the University of Toronto, home of the historical discovery.

“The discovery of insulin in 1921 is really a huge legacy; it makes Toronto quite famous

in the world of diabetes re-search,” Lewis said. Located on the first floor of the MaRS Cen-tre, the exhibit is free of charge and open to the public all year round. Lewis described the ex-

hibit as “long, long overdue” and spoke enthusiastically about its attractive potential for visitors.

“Certainly, for fundrais-ing it’s important,” Lewis ac-knowledged. Today, the Uni-versity of Toronto is a leading centre for diabetes research. Named after the legendary duo, the Banting and Best Diabetes Centre is an extra-

departmental unit that coor-dinates and innovates diabetes research across U of T. Lewis explained that the Centre is in the process of expanding its academic purview and con-necting with other groups not traditionally in the domain of diabetes research.

U of T currently has more than 100 researchers involved in diabetes in one way or an-other. According to Lewis, dia-betes is a disease that affects more people than any other, and costs the public a lot of health dollars. Funding is cru-cial to research, and it is hoped that the new insulin exhibit will raise the public profile of diabetes.

“These guys managed to make a huge impact with con-sequences for human health,” said Lewis. It is hoped that the new insulin exhibit will inspire others to continue the legacy of groundbreaking re-search at the University of To-ronto.

MaRS exhibit celebrates major contribution to diabetes treatment

“It’s a very inspirational and exciting story. We’re hoping the exhibit will excite young people, the general public, and anyone else interested in research.”

4 November 10, 2011 THE INSIdE

34

Remembering U of T’s role in WWI‘Any young man with courage and guts would obviously want to serve the Empire’“This is the greatest of moral struggles,” said University of Toronto President Sir Robert Falconer in his commencement address in 1914. “Be ready to defend your life which, with its freedom, has been won for you by others. Live a life of sacrifice this winter and thereby con-

tribute something to help the nation in relieving its suffering. The world is in agony, let this agony reach the depths of our nature also, so that it may purge our selfishness.” With senti-ments like these echoing across the campus and country alike, U of T and Canada mobilized for the Great War.

“Any young man with cour-age and guts would obviously want to serve the Empire,” said historian and U of T professor emeritus Desmond Morton to the newspaper. “If you didn’t want to serve, you lacked guts. We all know how young men respond to that.”

In its patriotic fervor, U of T became a hub of military activ-ity between 1914 and 1918. “The university was so heavily in-volved in the war effort that ev-eryone was focused on one goal, which was to win the war,” said Kathy Parks, chair of the Sol-diers’ Tower Committee. Sports seasons were suspended until 1919. Fraternities were closed. The Faculty of Medicine orga-nized two military hospitals and professional faculties such as engineering and dentistry became involved. The Canadian Officers’ Training Corps operat-ed on campus. U of T professors gave hundreds of war-inspired public lectures throughout the city.

When the 1915 school term began, enrollment was down by 650 men. Six hundred more were absent by September 1916, and another 600 left by next January. By the time conscrip-tion was imposed in 1917 by the Military Service Act, it had little effect because there were so few fit men left to serve.

University grounds and build-

ings were heavily utilized by the military. The Royal Flying Corps established a training centre for the Dominion in the spring of 1917 and put its headquarters in Toronto. They took over the front and back lawns, parts of the Engineering Building, Con-vocation Hall, most of Burwash Hall, and the University Resi-dences. Hart House acted as a kind of epicentre.

Even before the interior of Hart House was finished, it was filled with military activity. Five different battalions operated from Hart House, and according to Facilities Manager and resi-dent Hart House historian, Chris Lea, the Justina M. Barnicke Gal-lery and upper halls were previ-ously used as infirmaries. In the upper gym, workshops were given on how to build planes. Here too was Canada’s first reha-bilitation centre, originally des-ignated for returning veterans.

And of the honourable and courageous but faceless people whose names are inscribed in the walls of Soldiers’ Tower, some figures stand beside them, and yet above them as heroes in our memory. Men like John McCrae, author of In Flanders Fields, Lester Pearson, Frederick Banting, and Capt. MacDowell, one of two members of U of T awarded the Victoria Cross. Capt. Macdowell crossed into enemy territory and with assis-

tance of two runners, captured two machine guns, two officers and seventy-five men. One of those guns is now in Soldiers’ Tower.

As the war came to its end, plans began for its memorializa-tion. Soldier’s Tower formed the centre of these plans, its sym-bolism heightened by its central location on campus, to link Uni-versity College and Hart House.

In 1918, at his fall commence-ment address, President Fal-coner expressed the conflicted nature of his time, which was a mixture of victorious delight and disillusionment. “It came upon us with a terrific sudden-ness. We had to face it as best we might. We have lost many of our best ... Canadians have clothed themselves with glory until the very end.”

Whatever its lasting impor-tance, something of that war is not entirely lost on us. Morton asked, “Who worries about the widows, the mothers, the fam-ily members, the children who are left without fathers who can help them in their future?”

Lea answered, “Those guys, they gave a big piece of their life, they put themselves in harm’s way -- they did it because they were thinking about me, and they were thinking about you, and we weren’t even born yet.”

by Yukon Damov

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1. The Tower, as we know it today

Images two through four are photographs from World War I2. U of T students drill, 1914

3. Royal Flying Corps tents on back campus, 1918

4. RFC tents, plane overhead, 1918

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www.thenewspaper.ca 5 THE INSIdE

Macbeth adaptation, ‘full of sound and fury’

by Aberdeen Berry

Hart House Theatre’s latest ad-aptation of Macbeth, directed by Jeremy Hutton, opened its cur-tains on Wednesday, November 9. The show is marked by well-designed and versatile scenery, stylish costumes, and more-than-adequate use of strobe lights. Imagined as an almost Wagnerian drama, and acted in a style reminiscent of Orson Welles, Hutton’s Macbeth is un-doubtedly a thrilling piece.

With an evident dedication to well-conceived production values, special effects includ-ing coloured lights, fog, sound, and mobile set pieces are incor-porated for maximum effect. The disruption of natural order as a dominant theme comes through in Hutton’s emphasis on these stylistic production el-ements.

In the banquet scene where Macbeth believes he is seeing Banquo’s ghost, special effects underscore the main action and create a sense of heightened emotional tension. At times,

however, these trappings threat-en to overwhelm the actors. For

instance, when Macbeth returns to the witches and demands to

be given further prophecies, the scenes are permeated by an overly effect-laden (and al-most incomprehensible) voice, which gives a campy quality to the overall performance.

William Foley and Jackie Rowland play the roles of Mac-beth and Lady Macbeth respec-tively; however Rowland is the standout actor in the show. Rowland’s first monologue is particularly impressive; howev-er her onstage chemistry with Foley was inconsistent, despite Hutton’s emphasis on the sen-suality of the couple.

Foley’s performance effective-ly portrayed Macbeth as a sym-pathetic everyman, caught up in matters beyond his control. Unfortunately, for both actors’ character arcs were limited by the show’s tendency to present an ever-increasing crescendo of madness. However, the stylistic emphasis on madness is effec-tive for the three witches, who are gleefully wicked figures. During Act II, Macbeth and the other players rage across the stage, roaring and grunting and

spilling blood, which signify their insanity.

A lack of subtlety was ap-parent in the incessant dron-ing of the theme music behind almost every monologue. Clearly, there was an effort to convey that something unpleas-ant and unnatural was afoot. These musical moments often gave way to beautifully cho-reographed sword fights, one of the few things the director really seemed to relish in this production. In the case of the showdown between Macbeth and Macduff, the music seemed almost an afterthought to a feast of on-stage gore and athleticism.

Given the attention to spe-cial effects and theatrics, it ap-peared that what Hutton truly wanted to do was produce a film verison of Macbeth (Brave-heart?). While the acting was commendable, this production unfortunately runs the risk of being a tale “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Jeremy Hutton’s Macbeth plays at the Hart House Theatre until No-vember 26.

Shakespeare’s classic gets the special (effect) treatment, far from subtle

6

To a student’s ear, there is no sweeter combination of words than “free” and “stuff.” A few days ago, Trash nothing! (trash-nothing.com), founded by U of T grad Andrew Trusty, opened its virtual doors to people at the University of Toronto St. George Campus.

Based on the concept of “freecycling” - the act of giving away usable unwanted items instead of sending them to the dump - Trash nothing! lets members post descriptions of things they have (and want to get rid of), and of things they want. In keeping with the prin-ciples of freecycling, the site is free to use and prohibits any trading or selling.

“We try to make it very clear on the site that everything is free,” Trusty said. “The whole point of the site is to keep reus-able things from going to the landfill.” The site is monitored to make sure members are re-specting this golden rule. Users

are encouraged to report those who abuse the system by trad-ing, selling, or spamming.

Members of Trash nothing! are asked to join their local neighbourhood “group” on the site. The St. George group is the newest in Toronto and already has 136 members offering to give away treasures such as a “women’s small elephant print top” and a pair of “candy striped pajamas.” The Etobicoke, Mis-sassauga, and Scarborough groups have thousands of mem-bers each. Trash nothing! now lists more than 1700 groups across the world. Trusty is ac-tively involved in the Ottawa group, which is the largest at 10,000 members.

Trusty discovered the freecy-cling while completing his B.A. in Atlanta. The city had a num-ber of large freecycle groups that each sent out over 100 emails a day. The enormity of these groups and their lack of organi-zation made it difficult for peo-ple to follow posts and use the site. “Being a computer scientist

I thought, ‘I’ll just make this easier.’ So it started off as a per-sonal thing, and I kept thinking of more and more ways to make it easier to use.” His site makes virtual freecyling “more of an eBay experience” for users.

The website’s straightfor-ward, colour-coded interface (beige posts are “offers;” green ones are “wants”) makes Trash nothing! very easy to use. The site also allows users to join its mailing list indirectly and to ac-cess all local freecycle groups at once.

Trusty, who studied human-computer interaction at the graduate level at U of T, sees Trash nothing! as an extension of his Master’s work. The part of the project that most appeals to him is its potential to help people living in the same com-munity get to know each other better. “With freecycling, you can meet someone with the same interests, or spark differ-ent types of relationships.”

For seasoned freecyclers and newcomers alike, Trash noth-

ing! provides a sustainable and uncomplicated way for people to offload usable things gather-ing dust in their basement, and to acquire things they want for free. The site also gives people the opportunity to become part of a virtual community.

Some people create found-art projects with the things they acquire through the site while others rebuild computers and other electronics for non-profit organizations. “Personally, I find the most interesting things are the things you wouldn’t think would be recycled,” Trusty said.

Balls of yarn, old computer pro-gram CDs and other items of seemingly little value almost always find a taker.

While Trusty hopes the St George Trash nothing! group will appeal to students, he also wanted to make it clear that it is open to anyone on or near cam-pus, including staff, faculty, and people living in the neighbour-hood.

Trash nothing! and the freec-yle movement confirm the old garage sale adage that “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

Trashnothing! On St. George CampusU of T grad’s website now offers St. George students easy way to get rid of junk (and acquire other people’s) for free by Talia Gordon

These treasures could be yours. For free.

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3

GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTOBalance SheetAs at August 31

2011 2010ASSETS

Current assetsCash and cash equivalents $ 412,938 $ 480,170Short-term investments (note 4) 100,793 - Accounts receivable 35,902 27,304Loan receivable (note 5) 4,800 6,000Prepaid expenses 9,341 17,378

563,774 530,852

Property and equipment (note 6) 58,050 67,871

$ 621,824 $ 598,723

LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS

Current liabilitiesAccounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 70,377 $ 69,480Deferred income (note 7) 187,079 165,374

257,456 234,854

Net assetsInvested in property and equipment 58,050 67,871Internally restricted for specific purposes (notes 3 and 8) 142,812 149,812Unrestricted 163,506 146,186

364,368 363,869

$ 621,824 $ 598,723

See accompanying notes

On behalf of Council:

Daniel Vandervoort Ann McPhersonExternal Commissioner Internal and Finance Commissioner

4

GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTOStatement of Operations and Changes in Net AssetsYear ended August 31

2011 2010Invested in Internally

Property and RestrictedEquipment (note 8) Unrestricted Total Total

RevenueFees (note 9) $ - $ - $ 5,746,545 $ 5,746,545 $ 5,503,495Sundry and interest - - 27,601 27,601 19,119

- - 5,774,146 5,774,146 5,522,614

ExpensesGrants and fees (schedule 1) - - 5,055,850 5,055,850 4,886,199Salaries and benefits

(schedule 2) - - 493,961 493,961 442,072House (schedule 3) - - 197,751 197,751 198,267Donations - 7,000 - 7,000 38,550Amortization 13,721 - - 13,721 14,026Restaurant and bar

(schedule 4) - - 5,364 5,364 4,801

13,721 7,000 5,752,926 5,773,647 5,583,915

Excess (deficiency) of revenue over expenses (13,721) (7,000) 21,220 499 (61,301)

Interfund transfer 3,900 - (3,900) - -

Net assets, beginning of yearAs previously stated 67,871 149,812 146,186 363,869 461,075Accounting change - - - - (35,905)

As restated 67,871 149,812 146,186 363,869 425,170

Net assets, end of year $ 58,050 $ 142,812 $ 163,506 $ 364,368 $ 363,869


5

GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTOStatement of Cash FlowsYear ended August 31

2011 2010

Operating activitiesExcess (deficiency) of revenue over expenses $ 499 $ (61,301)Item not involving cash

Amortization 13,721 14,026

14,220 (47,275)

Net change in non-cash working capital itemsAccounts receivable (8,598) (4,460)Prepaid expenses 8,037 38,217Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 897 6,483Deferred income 21,705 (232)

22,041 40,008

Cash flows from operating activities 36,261 (7,267)

Investing activitiesShort-term investments (100,793) 404,333Loan receivable 1,200 (6,000)Purchases of property and equipment (3,900) (8,332)

Cash flows from investing activities (103,493) 390,001

Net change in cash and cash equivalents during the year (67,232) 382,734

Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of year 480,170 97,436

Cash and cash equivalents, end of year $ 412,938 $ 480,170

Cash and cash equivalents consist of:Cash $ 161,438 $ 237,954Cash equivalents 251,500 242,216

$ 412,938 $ 480,170


Grant Thornton LLP Suite 200 41 Valleybrook Drive Toronto, ON M3B 2S6

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Audit • Tax • Advisory Grant Thornton LLP. A Canadian Member of Grant Thornton International Ltd

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Independent Auditor’s Report

To the Members ofGraduate Students’ Union,University of Toronto

We have audited the accompanying financial statements of Graduate Students’ Union, University of Toronto, whichcomprise the balance sheet as at August 31, 2011, and the statement of operations and changes in net assets andstatement of cash flows for the year then ended, and a summary of significant accounting policies and otherexplanatory information.

Management's responsibility for the financial statementsManagement is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of these financial statements in accordancewith Canadian generally accepted accounting principles, and for such internal control as management determinesis necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whetherdue to fraud or error.

Auditor's responsibilityOur responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit. We conducted ouraudit in accordance with Canadian generally accepted auditing standards. Those standards require that we complywith ethical requirements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether thefinancial statements are free from material misstatement.

An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financialstatements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor's judgment, including the assessment of the risks ofmaterial misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments,the auditor considers internal control relevant to the entity's preparation and fair presentation of the financialstatements in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purposeof expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity's internal control. An audit also includes evaluating theappropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates made bymanagement, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our auditopinion.

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OpinionIn our opinion the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of GraduateStudents’ Union, University of Toronto, as at August 31, 2011, and the results of its operations and its cash flowsfor the year then ended in accordance with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles.

Chartered Accountants, Licensed Public Accountants (License Number 18393)Toronto, CanadaNovember 7, 2011

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GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTOSchedules to Financial StatementsYear ended August 31, 2011

Restaurant and bar Schedule 4

2011 2010

Insurance $ 6,568 $ 6,272Sundry 1,000 999Repairs and maintenance 424 390Contract rebate (2,628) (2,860)

$ 5,364 $ 4,801


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GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTOSchedules to Financial StatementsYear ended August 31, 2011

Grants and fees Schedule 1

2011 2010

Health insurance fees $ 4,494,683 $ 4,350,236Graduate Students’ Union Course Union Head Grants 232,702 224,802Canadian Federation of Students’ fees - National 106,085 104,083Canadian Federation of Students’ fees - Ontario 88,360 87,046Ontario Public Interest Research Group fees 66,137 65,216Downtown Legal Services fees 39,682 39,129Bikechain fees 13,228 - Women’s Centre fees 13,228 13,043Special grants 1,745 2,644

$ 5,055,850 $ 4,886,199

Salaries and benefits Schedule 2

2011 2010

Staff $ 323,767 $ 281,343Benefits 89,521 87,847Executive officers 80,673 72,882

$ 493,961 $ 442,072

House Schedule 3

2011 2010

Health insurance administration $ 89,858 $ 78,602Handbook 19,619 19,241Professional fees 14,456 12,199Student conferences 11,425 13,975General council meetings 7,509 10,174Travel and conferences 7,134 8,240Orientation 5,975 6,495Insurance 5,622 5,615Office and general 5,498 5,551Photocopying 5,153 5,153Duplicating and printing 4,858 5,533Elections 3,953 3,765Telephone 3,652 3,619Sub-committees, caucuses and sundry 3,614 4,525Communications 2,835 3,828Campaigns 2,726 5,156Repairs and maintenance 1,843 946Gym 990 602Bank charges and interest 472 195Security monitoring 300 500Small equipment 221 1,323Women’s caucus 38 - Metropass sales contribution - 3,000Subscriptions - 30

$ 197,751 $ 198,267


GRADUATE STUDENTS’ UNION,UNIVERSITY OF TORONTONotes to Financial StatementsYear ended August 31, 2011

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9. Fees

Fees received from University of Toronto are as follows:

September 2010 $ 3,308,087January 2011 1,802,297March 2011 482,411May 2011 1,772June 2011 105,928July 2011 52,964

5,753,459

Deferred fees received from University of Toronto, current year (150,862)Deferred fees received from University of Toronto, prior year 143,948

$ 5,746,545

10. Objectives, policies and processes for managing capital

The Union’s capital consists of net assets invested in property and equipment, internally restricted andunrestricted. The Union invests in computer and other equipment as required and in building improvementsto improve the office and student areas of the building, which is owned by the University of Toronto.

The internally restricted net assets have been set up for specific purposes from the unrestricted net assets.The unrestricted net assets represents the accumulated annual operating surpluses. The Union is not subjectto any external capital requirements.

Recommendations for new property and equipment purchases are discussed by the staff and the Executiveand noted in the annual operating budget. Expenditures from the internally restricted funds are discussed bythe Executive and, in most cases, are approved by the Union Council.

Property and equipment purchases in 2011 included upgraded electrical and computer equipment for theUnion’s office, including the installation of extra plugs and wireless internet. A new grease trap was installedat Sylvester’s Café and the electrical work was upgraded.

11. Financial instruments

It is management’s opinion that the Union is not exposed to significant interest, currency or credit risks arisingfrom its financial instruments.


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6. Property and equipment2011 2010

AccumulatedCost Amortization Net Net

Renovations, furniture and equipment $ 122,366 $ 73,626 $ 48,740 $ 53,170Security system 25,842 21,085 4,757 7,341Computer equipment 31,195 26,642 4,553 7,360

$ 179,403 $ 121,353 $ 58,050 $ 67,871

7. Deferred income

Deferred income received from University of Toronto and graduate students consists of:

2011 2010ThesisCabinet

Fund Fees Total Total

Balance, beginning of year $ 1,626 $ 163,748 $ 165,374 $ 165,606Amounts received - 185,453 185,453 163,748Amounts disbursed and recognized as

revenue - (163,748) (163,748) (163,980)

Balance, end of year $ 1,626 $ 185,453 $ 187,079 $ 165,374

8. Internally restricted funds

Fund Balances FundBeginning of Balances

Year Revenue Expenses End of Year

Building Fund $ 21,341 $ - $ - $ 21,341Thesis Cabinet Fund 1,000 - - 1,000Directors’ Liability Fund 40,000 - - 40,000Accessibility Fund 40,000 - - 40,000Health and Dental Insurance Administration

Fund 24,000 - - 24,000Student Services and Resources Fund 23,471 - 7,000 16,471

$ 149,812 $ - $ 7,000 $ 142,812


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3. Net assets internally restricted for specific purposes

The Union has set up internally restricted funds to support the following activities:

Building Fund

The Building Fund was established to finance capital improvements to the facilities of the Union.

Thesis Cabinet Fund

The Thesis Cabinet Fund was established to finance the costs associated with the Union’s Thesis Cabinet,including thesis reproduction expenditures.

Directors’ Liability Fund

The Directors’ Liability Fund was established to protect the Directors of the Union in the event that the Unionceases operations.

Accessibility Fund

The Accessibility Fund was established to finance accessibility-related improvements to the facilities,communications, and services of the Union.

Health and Dental Insurance Administration Fund

The Health and Dental Insurance Administration Fund was established to offset the administrative costs ofthe increased demand on the health and dental plans.

Student Services and Resources Fund

The Student Services and Resources Fund was established with the remaining funds from the 2007/2008Peer Review levy. A student services and resources working group will make recommendations on the useof the funds.

4. Short-term investments

2011 2010

Royal Bank GIC, 4.75%, maturing December 7, 2011 $ 24,974 $ - Royal Bank GIC, 4.30%, maturing December 12, 2011 25,777 - Royal Bank GIC, 1.81%, maturing December 14, 2011 50,042 -

$ 100,793 $ -

5. Loan receivable

Loan receivable is from a non-related party, is due on demand, repayable in monthly instalments of $100 andis non-interest bearing.


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1. Nature of the organization

The Graduate Students’ Union, University of Toronto (the “Union”) is incorporated under the Corporations Act(Ontario) as a not-for-profit organization. The Union was established to meet the needs of and provideservices to the graduate students of the University of Toronto.

As a not-for-profit organization, the Union is exempt from income taxes under Part I of the Income Tax Act.

2. Summary of significant accounting policies

The statements have been prepared by management in accordance with Canadian generally acceptedaccounting principles, the more significant of which are outlined below.

Use of estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with Canadian generally accepted accounting principlesrequires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amount of assets, liabilities,revenue and expenses. Actual results could differ from these estimates.

Financial instruments

The CICA provides a choice for financial instruments disclosure and presentation and the Union has chosento apply Section 3861, Financial Instruments - Disclosure and Presentation, in place of Section 3862, FinancialInstruments - Disclosure, and Section 3863, Financial Instruments - Presentation.

The Union’s financial instruments are comprised of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments,accounts receivable, loan receivable and accounts payable. Cash and cash equivalents, short-terminvestments, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate fair value due to their short-termmaturities. The loan receivable is recorded at face value, which approximates fair value, as it is due ondemand.

Cash equivalents consist of high interest savings account mutual funds.

Property and equipment

Property and equipment is recorded at cost and is amortized on a straight-line basis over its estimated usefullife as follows:

Renovations, furniture and equipment 10 yearsSecurity system 10 yearsComputer equipment 5 years

Revenue recognition

The Union follows the deferral method of accounting whereby externally restricted contributions are deferredand recognized as revenue in the period in which the related expenses are incurred.

Fees are recognized as revenue in the fiscal year to which they relate.

Fees received from the University of Toronto for insurance premiums are shown gross of the related insurancepremium expenses. The fees from extended or family insurance premiums are presented net of the relatedinsurance expenses.

www.thenewspaper.ca 7 THE ARTS

Melancholia goes out in styleNew lars von Trier film leaves you wanting moreby Aberdeen Berry

Films about the apocalypse often tend towards hyperbolic acts of heroism and villainy, as people push themselves to the limit to survive against seem-ingly insurmountable odds.

This is not the case in the latest offering from Lars von Trier, Melancholia. By way of of a visually arresting intro-duction, viewers are informed that despite any doubts char-acters in the film might have about the impending destruc-tion of Earth by a rogue planet (also referred to as “Melancho-lia”), the Earth is going to be destroyed, and there will be no survivors.

Spoilers now set aside, von Trier gets down to the busi-ness of showing a portrait of how the world will end for one family. It appears the world will end very stylishly, indeed.

The film begins with an hour-long scene of a wedding of depressed Justine (Kirsten Dunst), which perfectly and

excruciatingly captures her descent into a state of melan-cholia.

The second half is increas-ingly otherworldly, and most-ly concerns Justine’s sister Claire (Charlotte Gainsbourg) waiting with her family for the impending apocalypse.

Von Trier especially empha-sizes the connection between protagonist Justine’s descent into depression during the first half, and Claire’s psycho-logical unraveling of during the second.

Melancholia is most suc-cessful as an examination of depression – notably in its de-piction of the gradual narrow-ing of the world and a sense of disconnectedness.

However, the film suffers from a few flaws, mostly in the second half, where it is some-what more concerned with genre-bending. These include one or two completely baffling moments, such as Justine’s semi-credible announcement that she has psychic abilities. Ultimately, this is a worth-

while if somewhat odd film, though its tendencies towards sparseness will likely leave au-diences wanting to see more.

Melancholia will screen Saturdays, November 10 at 6 p.m. and No-vember 17 at 2:45 p.m. in the Ryerson Theatre.

by Dan Christensen

Rehearsing’s not for RatnerFrom the opening notes of Christophe Beck’s classy and brassy score for “Tower Heist,” we feel safely in the hands of real blockbuster pros.

Project helmsmen Brian Grazer (producer) and Brett Ratner (director) have put their hands out on front street, with the title telling you plainly what to expect going in, and boasting one of the most high-profile casts in recent memory.

While each actor is not best known for his comedic chops, casting three of the biggest comedy stars from their re-spective decades – Alan Alda, Eddie Murphy, and Ben Stiller – makes up for it.

Josh Kovacs (Stiller) starts us off with his 4:30 a.m. rou-tine, which is mirrored by that of billionaire investor Arthur Shaw (Alda), propri-etor of the penthouse suite in the New York high-rise Josh manages.

The pair meet in the middle for an early morning online chess match (a harbinger of things to come) before meet-ing in person at the Tower,

where Josh fastidiously launches into his workday routine, behind the scenes in the personal lives of the su-per rich building inhabitants.

He does so alongside the likes of inattentive concierge Charlie (Casey Affleck), (pre-dictably) sassy maid Odessa (Gabourey Sidibe, of “Pre-cious” fame), and not-ready-for-upper-class bellhop Dev’reaux (Michael Pena), a new hire forced upon Josh by his boss Mr. Simon, played by Judd Hirsch in a disappoint-ingly humourless turn.

With the help of FBI Agent Claire Denham (Tea Leoni), we discover that Mr. Shaw is accused of high-scale invest-ment fraud having stolen $2 billion, including the pen-sions belonging to the Tow-er’s staff.

Josh, along with a few afore-mentioned staff accomplices and Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick), a Tower dweller and former Wall Street inves-tor on the edge of eviction as a result of the financial crisis, decide to take matters into their own hands and rob Shaw for all that he’s still worth.

All rookies in the art of

crime, Josh enlists the help of his street-wise thief neigh-bour (and, conveniently, childhood acquaintance,) Slide, a role written for Mur-phy in the best possible ways, which vividly and hilari-ously recalls his Beverly Hills Cop/48 Hours glory days.

Fearing the script was read-ing like an Ocean’s Eleven knock-off, Ratner hired Ted Griffin, Ocean’s Eleven screenwriter, to take a pass, a strangely backwards effort with backwards results. We get the feeling the film’s hu-mour was injected solely by the actors’ virtuous perfor-mances, while the filmmak-ers focused on crafty plot twists.

Despite a sense of predict-ability that permeates the film, as well as conspicuous shortcomings in the tension department, the heist aspects are pulled off quite well, which in turn play oil to the humour’s water. The film-makers were unable to com-bine the two elements in any moment, which left the latter to vastly outshine the former.

Alda manages to turn his effortless sincerity on its head, to find effortless taunt-

ing of Stiller’s character on the other side of the coin; he impresses us with his ability to play an insufferable ass-hole while only adjusting his performance in the smallest degree.

In essence, Alda lets our real life experience (and ha-tred) of Mr. Bernie Madoff – the man after whom Arthur Shaw is most obviously mod-elled – do all of the work for him.

This context is vaguely poignant; it is obvious that the issues were not as near

and dear to the hearts of the filmmakers as they were in other recent films gesturing towards the economic crisis, such as last week’s In Time, or in a more appropriate com-parison, last year’s The Other Guys.

This is the kind of big bud-get comedy where the trailer – heck, the poster even – tells you everything you need to know. What Tower Heist promises, it delivers; and you can take that to the bank.

brett Ratner’s Tower Heist delivers on promises (unlike its director at this year’s Oscars)

THE blOCKbUSTER^̂

Crime rookies, Murphy and Stiller, take matters into their own hands

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the campus comment the newspaper asked:

Are you supporting Movember by growing a moustache?

TOM Computer Science, 4th year“No, I just think it’s a silly idea.”

“

BRYAN Economics & Philosophy, 4th year“I’m part of a fraternity and one of our members is indirectly affected by the prostate cancer. All of us are growing our mous-taches for charity.

JOHN International Relations, 2nd year“Women would laugh at me, so it would be emasculating

MARGOT Diablo’s employee“We at Diablo’s support moustache growth!”

SHAWN Economics, 2nd year“Biologically, I’m struggling with it. But I would if I could. Awareness is the first step to dealing with a problem.

JON Linguistics, 2nd year It’s more of an excuse for me not to shave. Coincidentally, I’m also supporting the cause.”

Across1. Floor padding4. 6 down’s question7. Feminine pronoun

22. Concluded23. Factual24. Denouement25. Make28. Circle segment29. Time of life32. Tangible33. Exam type34. Adriatic or Aegean35. Garbage36. Not bright37. Mate, significant ___39. Industrious insect40. What a hammer pounds42. Looks upon43. Agree to; say ___44. Fasten45. Travolta film musical47. That girl48. Stained, as cloth49. Vegetable starter52. Results of addition53. Opening56. Sword substance57. Clear a table58. Harm61. Enjoy this newspaper62. Play partition63. “___ rather than later”64. Something or someone at random65. Archaic pronoun/adjective66. Attempt

Down1. Mother2. Appropriate3. Often free promotional item4. “___ my guitar gently weeps”

10. Infantry13. H in W5H14. Rip16. Heat

17. Beastie Boy’s license18. Too19. Single20. Inert

5. Aperture6. Nocturnal bird7. Oppose; take a ___8. Restrained; ___ back9. Difficulty10. Duet11. Sprinted12. Raw mineral15. Fishing tool21. Deadline; ___ date22. Blocked off23. Skillful24. Epoch25. Long-legged bird26. Takes a break27. Consume food28. Equip29. Cremation creation30. Canadian flock31. Aural organ33. 45 across, alternatively35. Path36. Be killed38. British breakfast beverage41. Atmosphere45. Workout facility46. Hold out47. Pragmatically gifted48. ___ Springfield49. Elton John or Paul McCartney50. Length times width51. Unconventional type of shark52. “___ Great Heights”53. Pistol54. “Who do you think you ___?”55. In itself; ___ se57. Bruce Wayne’s fear, evidently59. Neither... ___60. Happiness

The Crossword

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by Andrew Walt

Issue 10 - November 10 2011

Documents

Transcript of Issue 10 - November 10 2011