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a, Opinion

Election 2015: Parties struggle to stay focused on youth issues

by David Watson on

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Last week, as federal parties continued to court the youth vote, students at the University of Calgary got a strange surprise. Photos quickly surfaced online of a controversial Conservative pamphlet being handed out on campus: “Let the lefties run your campus. Help the Conservatives run the country,” boasted one side. The back featured photos of a family looking way too stock to be real, a bomb-laden fighter jet, and a grimy jail cell, with the caption: “Dropping taxes for families. Dropping bombs on ISIS. Dropping crooks in jail.”

With its cheap shot at unnamed campus leftists and its flippant remarks about crime and terrorism, it’s easy to see why some found the pamphlet upsetting. But the pamphlet is worrisome for another important reason as well. In a campaign that has seen all three major parties go to great lengths in order to win youth support, it’s an example of how some of the promotional material they aim at young voters still lack the substance and seriousness needed to be effective.

The approach behind the Conservative pamphlet, for example, is clear: Appeal to a generation that Tory strategists see as obsessed with Twitter, Snapchat, and Vine, the Conservatives felt the need to cut their message down to byte-sized form. This format, combined with the cringeworthy attempts to seem casual (When would Stephen Harper ever use a word like “lefties?”) is an ineffective way for the Conservatives to get their message across. In their platform, the Conservatives promise to double educational grants to low and middle-income students, but for some reason “dropping crooks in jail” seemed a more relevant slogan for a pamphlet aimed at students. The resulting pamphlet sounds less like a summary of the Conservative platform, and more like a George W. Bush attempt at a haiku. At least the last line has five syllables.

Some promotional material lacks the substance it needs to attract the youth vote.

While the Conservative pamphlet is definitely the worst offender, the Liberals and the NDP also struggle to get their message across when marketing to young voters. Despite solid groundwork from local candidates, and engaging rhetoric from party leaders, some promotional material lack the substance needed to attract the youth vote. In order to reach young voters, both the Liberals and the NDP have set up dedicated youth websites. Yet these websites, which would be a great way for parties to present youth issues, are instead superficial and off-base.

On the Liberal youth website, the guiding philosophy seems to be that every bit of content aimed at youth needs its own social media tie-in. The site itself, called #GenerationTrudeau, features tabs such as #ReadyToVote, and numberless pleas to share every last detail on Facebook or Twitter. There’s even an endorsement for their Facebook and Twitter accounts within a larger endorsement for their Instagram page; however, #GenerationTrudeau does deserve some credit: After sifting through the sea of hashtags, one can find a clear and concise rundown of Liberal policy promises. Nonetheless, the implicit message that drives their site—that youth only care about something if it has a hashtag—is disappointing to see coming from the party with the youngest leader. Justin Trudeau and his fellow Liberal candidates have been doing a good job of engaging young voters by addressing issues they care about, such as putting a price on carbon emissions, managing student debt, and legalizing marijuana—and these should be the focus of their online efforts as well.

The NDP’s youth website, Young new democrats, takes a different approach. The homepage features a large picture of a backpack, captioned “What’s Stephen Harper putting in your backpack?” It’s followed by a brief paragraph criticizing the incumbent prime minister, then ends: “Keep Stephen Harper’s hands off your backpack and your future.” The backpack metaphor is a lame cliché, and the heavy-handedness of it almost makes it seem as if the NDP really believes young voters are incapable of grasping abstract concepts like ‘the future’ without repeated reference to backpacks. Yet unlike #GenerationTrudeau, there is no NDP policy proposals to be found anywhere on the site. How they hope to woo young voters with a site that offers no real content remains a mystery.

Perhaps what’s most surprising about this lacklustre promotional material is how much it clashes with the parties’ other attempts to attract youth voters. Party leaders and candidates alike are willing to discuss youth issues seriously and in depth; at last week’s CKUT debate on campus, candidates held a substantive and focused discussion on how their parties’ policies would impact young Canadians. Targeted advertising campaigns, like pamphlets and websites can be a great way to get young people involved, but only if parties stop focusing on distracting hashtags and dumbed-down slogans instead of presenting policy content that will engage and excite youth.

 

David Watson is a U2 McGill student, majoring in political science and minoring in history.

@McGillTribOp | [email protected]

 

a, McGill, News

AUS announces $6,000 Frosh surplus

by James Ward on

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The Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) announced at their latest council meeting that they are projecting an approximate surplus of $6,000 from this year’s Arts Frosh. This comes as a distinct contrast to last year’s $30,000 deficit. 

AUS Vice-President (VP) Finance Mizra Ali Shakir and VP Social Christine Koppenaal were responsible for preparing the Frosh budget. According to Shakir, AUS intends to use the profits to fund events and programs for first-year Arts students.

“One of the main reasons for the surplus this year was a revamped Frosh budgeting process that was more thorough and more integrated than past years,” Shakir said. “The VP Social and I prepared a comprehensive budget for Frosh and updated it at least twice a week. Additionally, we ran Frosh very systematically this year in the sense that we spent what we got from ticket sales. Frosh sold out and we ended up selling more tickets than what we had projected.”

Arts Frosh brought in nearly $218,000 in revenue, $177,000 of which came from ticket sales. The remaining revenue came from fees paid by Frosh leaders and orientation staff, as well as $20,000 in sponsorships.

“We placed a lot of emphasis on sponsorship to mitigate our costs,” Shakir said.  

The single largest Arts Frosh expense was a concert at New City Gas, which cost upwards of $46,000. Other major expenses included the two boat cruises, which together will amount to nearly $38,000, and the Montreal Alouettes game, which cost $18,000 at a price of $11 per ticket. To account for the cost of these events, ticket prices were raised, and overall expenses per day were lowered. 

“[Frosh] ticket prices were raised to $145 from $125 last year to account for the extra day,” Shakir said.“Revenues per day this year amount to $43,600 compared to $38,500 last year, while costs per day this year are $42,400 versus $46,000 last year.”

AUS bylaws state that if there is a surplus in the Frosh budget, the money will be allocated to events planned for first-year students by the VP Social in collaboration with the First-Year Events, Academic, and Representative Council (FEARC).

“This article was included in the Frosh bylaws because as an event planned primarily by first-year students and funded mainly by tickets sold to first-year students, the surplus should be returned to first-year students through events later in the year planned specifically for them,” Shakir said.

While Frosh events prior to 2014 have returned significantly greater profits than this year’s $6,000, Shakir explained that the nature of the AUS makes a smaller profit more ideal.

“As a non-profit corporation, the AUS is mandated to break even and that we aim to keep ticket prices—our main Frosh revenue source—as low as possible,” Shakir said. “A profit of five to 6,000 dollars is better […] because we are much closer to breaking even.” 

U3 Arts Frosh leader Rhiannon Turgel spoke to the management of this year’s Frosh.

“This year was my third Frosh and I felt as though it was better organized than past years,” she said. “I felt like the coordinators realized [what] had gone wrong in previous years and made it better.”

The Science Undergraduate Society (SUS) also ran a surplus for Frosh, explained SUS President Jeremy Goh.

“Our surplus was around $18,000, and previous years also ran surpluses, as SUS usually doesn’t run deficits for Frosh.” Goh said. “The money will be used to complete logistical audits, [and] new initiatives like […] the career fair, and give more money to our current events.”

a, Features

An affront to humanity: Syria’s cultural heritage under fire

by Sofia Misenheimer on

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A 

 brutal war is grinding Syria’s magnificent cultural heritage into dust. In addition to the conflict’s horrific human toll—with over 220,000 killed to date, according to the United Nations—remarkable monuments that have stood for millennia are currently threatened or under fire. Syria’s historical treasures such as the ancient Norias of Hama, and the medieval Citadel of Aleppo encompass irreplaceable structures and artifacts that document a thousand years of Roman and Byzantine civilization, the first years of Islam and Christianity, and successive periods of great achievement by many cultures. 

As the war in Syria rages through its fourth year, the country’s humanitarian catastrophe overshadows media coverage of the continuing destruction of cultural heritage sites.  But the ongoing assault on Syria’s historical legacy must not be forgotten, nor accepted.  

“The protection of cultural heritage is inseparable from the protection of human lives, and should be an integral part of humanitarian and peacebuilding efforts,” said Ghalia Elkerdi, vice president of the Syrian Students’ Association at McGill. “The destruction of our precious heritage gravely affects our identity and history and all humanity.”

This sentiment reflects a worldwide consensus dating back to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. The international treaty, which was written in response to The Second World War, articulates that, “damage to cultural property [is] damage to the cultural heritage of all mankind.” Syria is a signatory of the Hague Convention and the two protocols that have amended it over the years. Yet in Syria today, there is no evidence of the Convention’s fundamental affirmation that the protection of cultural heritage is a global responsibility.

Six Syrian World Heritage Sites remain inscribed to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) List of World Heritage in Danger—the most in any one country worldwide. And no international initiatives seem slated to prevent the further demolition of Palmyra, a World Heritage Site no longer simply under threat, but already partially lost.

In May, when Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham  (ISIS) forces seized control of Palmyra, militants took sledgehammers to statues, tombs, and shrines, pulverizing some of the most well-preserved relics of Greco-Roman, Byzantine, and early Islamic culture in the world. They declared the antiquities were idolatrous, according to ISIS’ strict interpretation of Islamic law, although the group continues to profit from the looting and black market sale of such artifacts. 

Islamic State fighters later tortured and beheaded Khaled al-Assad, the 82-year-old Palmyran chief archaeologist and site caretaker, for refusing to reveal the location of hidden antiquities. They detonated explosives within the Temple of Bel and Temple of Baalshamin last month, razing both 2,000 year-old structures to the ground. Just last week, militants also blew up the iconic Arch of Triumph that once welcomed visitors to Syria’s oasis city, a renowned cultural centre of the ancient world.

“The disgusting affront to cultural heritage in Syria is reflective of many war patterns throughout history,” said Marion Hunter, U3 Arts. “The Nazis [destroyed] and stole an immense amount of art during World War II, and many private cultural belongings were sold in the black market. The global community reprimanded the Nazis for this war crime, yet the same thing is happening today in Syria.”

Palmyra’s cultural treasures, including those al-Asaad protected with his life, represent part of the collective human history that binds global citizens. They represent the continuity of human existence and commemorate the contributions of past cultures to the development of modern beliefs, social values and technologies. 

“Civilizations are built upon landmarks that hold the identity of cities and cultures,” said Hunter. “When longstanding pieces of architecture are destroyed, it wipes out not just the physical landmarks, but also the history behind them.” 

The degradation of cultural property during conflict has long been a means of asserting cultural dominance and inflicting maximum damage on an opposing side. For instance, the capture of Constantinople—now the city of Istanbul—by the invading Ottoman army in 1453, resulted in the destruction of Christian heritage sites dating back hundreds of years.

“Currently, scholars are trying to find remnants of the old Christian city, but it’s inaccessible because a whole new civilization was built on top. Finding the old city would mean destroying the current one that has been built upon for centuries,” Hunter said. “History shows that protecting Syrian cultural heritage is of utmost importance, because of how simple it is to wipe out centuries of history during war.” 

This view was shared by Philosopher Emer de Vattel, who wrote in his influential treatise, The Law of Nations, “For whatever cause a country is ravaged, we ought to spare those edifices which do honor to human society [….] It is declaring one’s self to be an enemy of mankind, thus wantonly to deprive them of these wonders.” 

Over 200 years later, his words still ring true. But the list of cultural property in Syria deserving both the attention and protection of the global community remains extensive. If action is not taken to prevent the further loss of Syria’s cultural heritage, it is unlikely that future generations will enjoy the same tangible connection to Syria’s unique and diverse history as those in the past.

 

Syria’s rich cultural harvest

 

For centuries, Syria was a popular destination for the devout, the scholarly, and the adventurous, eager to connect with humanity’s history.  Among the most notable of Syria’s 19th century visitors was Johann Ludwig Burckhardt, best known today as the first European to encounter the city of Petra, in what is now Jordan.  Burckhardt’s 1812 excursion to Petra was a side trip from Syria, where he resided for several years while documenting historical sites throughout the country. His depiction of Syria’s lush cultural landscape in Travels in Syria and the Holy Land (1812) makes for painful reading against the backdrop of today’s war. 

Burckhardt recounts his sojourn in and around the northwestern city of Idlib, frequently in the news over the past four years as an early opposition stronghold captured by Syrian regime forces in 2012. Since the outbreak of the conflict, ongoing clashes in Idlib have resulted in countless casualties and the urban centre has been mostly levelled. Today, Idlib’s strategic location as a provincial capital ensures that it will remain a locus of conflict, and nearby antiquities are under constant threat.

But in Burckhardt’s time, the city of about 1,000 houses was a regional hub for textiles with a thriving industry in olive-based soap, as well as home to a diverse population of Arab and Turkish Muslims, and Christians of Armenian and Greek Orthodox communities. Burckhardt reported on rivalries among prominent local families, and noted that local industry paid an annual percentage to defray the expenses of the holy cities, Mecca and Medina. The payment was traditionally sent with the annual pilgrim caravan, which Burckhardt once accompanied as a convert making the Hajj pilgrimage.  

Burckhardt’s later travels brought him to a crowded corner of the Hama souk, where he chanced upon an elaborately carved stone with striking inscriptions he couldn’t decipher. Unable to attribute the artifact to any known ancient civilization, Burckhardt recorded his discovery and moved on.

Nearly six decades later, Syriologist William Wright tracked down the stone and three others similar to it. He arranged the transfer of the “Hama stones” to a museum in Istanbul for further study. Subsequent scholarship determined that the petroglyphs were among the first proofs of a previously unknown advanced Hittite civilization that had flourished in Hama over two millennia prior. The Hama stones were the first fruits of a rich harvest of Hittite language artifacts from an ancient culture that used the earliest known Indo-European language with hieroglyphic and cuneiform scripts. The stones demonstrate that each antiquity is an irreplaceable clue to humanity’s past. Few places on earth rival Syria for the wealth of clues that it holds.

Tayfun Bilgin, a PhD. student in the Department of Near Eastern Studies in the University of Michigan, says the prevailing pro-Greek bias in the West tends to obscure the fact that Ancient Syria was home to highly sophisticated cultures long before the Greeks of Ionia began to hit their stride late in the seventh century BCE.

“The written history of Syria goes as far back as the third millennium BCE. Many civilizations developed in the region prior to the Greeks,” Bilgin said. “Coastal city states of the Syro-Palestine area were rich trading centres throughout the second and first millenniums.” 

As such, they were prized targets over the centuries for surrounding empires looking to expand their boundaries through conquest. The incredible multitude of artifacts in Syria illustrate this storied past.

 

Ancient cultural achievements versus contemporary cultural atrocities

 

For more than a thousand years the Omari Mosque in Daraa remained practically unblemished, as one of the first Islamic monuments in Syria.  With a square minaret and arched entryways, this seventh-century structure exemplified an architectural style seen only in first generation mosques erected during the initial expansion of the faith.  Due to its historical and religious significance, the mosque became a symbolic centre of popular peaceful demonstrations at the onset of the Syrian war in 2011 and was later used as a hospital for wounded protesters.  But bombardment by the Syrian Army two years later toppled the mosque’s ancient minaret and reduced its façade to rubble. 

Not only have the rate of physical attacks on cultural sites increased in Syria over the last few years, but so has the unprecedented scale of organized looting, illicit trafficking, and sale of cultural objects. 

“The looting is even worse than the shelling,” said Dr. Rafah Jwejati, a scholar of late antiquity and early Christianity, who received her PhD from McGill in 2009.  “It tears away our history forever. When it’s gone, it’s gone.”  

A Damascus-born Montrealer, Jwejati is personally familiar with the adverse effects of the war on Syria’s cultural heritage. She remains connected to her country of origin through her work on Syria’s early Christian artifacts. But one by one, the artifacts that Jwejati specializes in have disappeared.

One early Byzantine mosaic Jewjati studied for over a decade, featuring a fifth century CE representation of the Holy Sepulchre, a highly sacred Christian site, was stolen from the Hama museum and presumably sold on the black market. While Jwejati provided authorities with the only image of the ancient mosaic, one taken for her work, she has little hope that the artifact will be found and returned to the museum.

Syria remains largely unexplored, with thousands of unstudied archaeological sites, leaving a vast selection of undocumented artifacts at risk of illicit trafficking.  Although the practice has been ongoing since before the conflict, the pace of looting has increased at vulnerable sites. According to the Association for the Protection of Syrian Archaeology (APSA), at least one third of Syria’s archaeological sites are ISIS-controlled and have been largely emptied of valuables.

 

Can the lost past live again?

 

Syria has survived the passage of many forces that have strewn the landscape with ruins, making her citizens undeniably resilient and carving a strong reputation for the country as a crossroads of civilizations. But the tragic humanitarian consequences of the Syrian war are unfortunately all many know about the country.  

Idlib gained attention at the start of the conflict as a brutal combat zone, but the region is actually one of great archaeological significance. The ancient city of Palmyra was a global tourism magnet for years, but has become nothing more than a crossroads for tanks. While the ancient ruins of Apamea, which housed centuries worth of stunning mosaics, have been ransacked and thieves have bulldozed priceless artifacts. These episodes are mere pages in the book of international human patrimony that have been shredded by conflict. 

Syria is a unique repository of irreplaceable treasures drawn from the shared legacy of the human race and home to a diverse population directly affected by the erosion of the country’s cultural patrimony. 

 “Syria’s cultural heritage is a source of national identity and pride,” said Jwejati.  “Our land houses memories of the first human settlers; our past reflects on the character of the people.  Beyond cultural or political divides, our humanity is at stake.” 

As the wellbeing of Syria’s people must be an urgent priority for the international community, so too must the preservation of their culture and heritage. For now, however, Syria’s war continues, and those targeting museums and ancient sites for looting and destruction clearly have the upper hand. The already devastating effects of the war on Syria’s cultural heritage demand urgent action.  It’s not too late, but the loss is already beyond reckoning.

a, Montreal, News

Meet local candidates for the 2015 federal election

by Shrinkhala Dawadi, Laura Hanrahan, Aislinn Kalob, Jenna Stanwood, Morgan Alexander on

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Click on one of the candidates’ pictures to get started!

  • Liberal Party of Canada: Marc Miller

  • New Democratic Party: Allison Turner

  • Conservative Party of Canada: Richard Sagala

  • Bloc Québécois: Simon Marchand

  • Green Party of Canada: Daniel Green

  • Communist Party of Canada: Miguel Figueroa

 

a, Out on the Town, Student Life

Thrift shopping on Boulevard Saint-Laurent

by Ariella Garmaise on

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Rue Sainte-Catherine is Montreal’s shopping Mecca—a Fifth Avenue of sorts that boasts mega brands like H&M, Zara, and American Eagle; however, often overlooked is Boulevard Saint-Laurent, a street that has more to offer than just Frappe, Biftek, and the ghost of Korova. With Urban Outfitter’s hipster energy and Forever XXI’s cheap prices, Saint-Laurent thrift shopping provides a far more eclectic look for your dollar.

Kilo Fripe

KILO Fripe neighbours Cul-de-Sac, and the two often collaborate by hosting fashion shows together. Kilo Fripe, however, is noticeably more eccentric. It hosts a similar jacket collection, but also flaunts a rack of sequin tops, a shelf of cowboy boots, decorative ties, a pair of seventy dollar wolf-print pants. The decision to be expansive is intentional, explained sales assistant Penelope Hard.

“The customers are all ages, French, English, tourists,” she said. “You have to be open-minded, and the clothes are a reflection of that.”

Cul-de-Sac

Cul-de-Sac is a store ideal for university students—it exudes an alternative vibe not dissimilar to that of cult classic shows like Freaks and Geeks and My So Called Life, while maintaining relatively inexpensive prices. Cul-de-Sac has an impressive coat collection; the back half of the shop showcases denim, leather, army, and letterman jackets.

“I prepare all the clothes; I wash, sew, repair—I like the process,” explained store owner Melissa Turgeon, who is particularly dedicated to her stock. “New is new—you have to do nothing. Here, you have to work on it.”

The Beatles and The Police blast over the sound-system—just like with her clothes, Turgeon creates an aura that is retro, but not obnoxiously so.

T. Westcott

Terry Westcott’s eponymous secondhand bookshop is perhaps the most picturesque storefront on Saint-Laurent, reminiscent of quaint British boutiques. His store is filled with books from wall to wall, novels dripping over the checkout counter, and reference books tripping customers as they scuffle through the walkways. Westcott’s genuine dedication to literature is a revolt against the faceless Barnes and Nobles and Indigos that use their square footage for faddish gimmicks and spaciously frivolous displays. “I just love reading,” said Westcott. “I was tripping over books in my apartment and my landlord was giving me the evil eye. So, I opened up a store.”

T. Wescott offers an expansive range of books—“The books just have to be interesting,” said Westcott in reference to the only qualifier for the books he shelves. Customers can find everything from Pretty Little Liars, to a McGill sociology course pack; from Shirly MacLaine’s autobiography to Agatha Christie novels.

La Boutique Du Collectionneur

The “La Boutique Du Collectionneur” knick-knack shop is whimsically disorienting; random suitcases, baskets, and chairs hang on the front window, and the sign is obstructed by a poster for the ’90s French film Laura Cadieux. A good place to find furnishing for an apartment or windowsill trinkets for a dorm room, the store has older, less fashionable light fixtures, but also zany finds, like an exit sign or the bottom half of a mannequin. Most alarming, however, is a wall of Nazi paraphernalia, an aisle that tends to unease customers.

“I’m actually Jewish,” explained storeowner Ivan Botines. “I think it would be a big mistake if everyone buried and forgot these historical items. It’s a sin—it’s part of history and it’s evidence.”

Botines’ whole shop is a family business, and he maintains the philosophy of holding on to the past.

 

Friperie Saint-Laurent

Friperie Saint-Laurent is cozy and warm. The interior is papered in tiger-print wallpaper, Montreal Canadiens memorabilia line the ceiling, and the salespeople are helpful and personable. The store only sells merchandise that predates the seventies, so items that are stereotypically ‘thrift shop’ are slightly underwhelming—the letterman jacket collection is limited, and the shoe rack is dedicated mostly to monotonous pointed-toe kitten heels; however, they also have more unique and flashy buys like a rack of gorgeous ’60s shift dresses, and Oxford slip-ons. Unlike their counterparts, Friperie is willing to haggle, offering exciting bargains.

“When you go to the Gap it’s cold; people are scrambling to find something very straight,” storeowner Dider Duram said, beaming. “Here, people come freely looking for items that are unique and funny, or even to say ‘Why not?’”

Demilitarize McGill Shockwave Physics Group
a, Science & Technology

Demilitarize McGill: The unexpected applications of military research

by Daniel Galef on

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Demilitarize McGill is one of the most well-known and controversial groups on campus. Those unfamiliar with Demilitarize McGill from their ubiquitous stickers and posters will have heard about their Remembrance Day protest last year, which drew large amounts of media attention in. Their goal continues to be the condemnation of military research and associated programs on campus. 

During these campaigns, Demilitarize McGill’s main concern has been with research solely with military applications. The group recognizes that several modern technologies such as GPS and the internet have come from what was originally military research; however, it believes this does not apply to the military research at McGill.

“The forms of broad, fundamental scientific research that led to the development of technologies like the internet can be clearly distinguished from projects going on today at McGill—projects that aim to improve the versatility and lethal capabilities of specific weapons systems in use by Western militaries,” the Demilitarize McGill website reads.

Alternative applications of military research can be hard to see, however, they do exist. Research with only one purpose is rare. Often, a closer look at some of these projects is necessary to see what other uses they may have.

The Shockwave Physics Group

The Shockwave Physics Group (SWPG) is the most frequent target of Demilitarize McGill’s attacks, as its areas of research include detonation, the initiation of detonation, and combustion synthesis.

“The Shockwave Physics Group (SWPG) at McGill University […] has a long history of the study of […] detonation phenomena,” the group wrote on its website.

One of their researchers is Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor Andrew Higgins. Higgins specializes in shock waves, blast waves, and explosions, and his work has covered things ranging from hypervelocity launchers to developing new fuels for ramjets and scramjets. Faster than turbojets, but slower than rockets, ramjets and scramjets are engines that have a prominent place in missile development. Although they have potential for spaceflight, they are primarily used in weapons, and have been said to be able to target anywhere in the world in one hour.

Hypervelocity propulsions, implosions, and explosions are frequenty used by the military; however, this work is also valuable in other fields.

Space debris and the McGill Launcher

The SWPG is trying to decrease the amount of space debris in the atmosphere. To do this, the lab has created a ‘gun’ called the McGill Launcher, which fires dense projectiles at velocities of up to 10 kilometres per second in order to simulate the effects of orbital collisions. The McGill Launcher is not being sought by any arms dealer. The ‘gun’ contains no gunpowder, can only be operated in an enormous vacuum chamber bolted onto the floor, and has no potential military application—because it is not a weapon. The entire launcher is totally destroyed after each firing, and, if the gun were ever to be fired outside a near-total vacuum, the projectile would instantly vaporize like a shooting star.

Powdered metals as hydrocarbon alternatives

In 2001, Higgins published a paper titled Powdered Metals as Fuel for Hypersonic Ramjets. The paper, which was mentioned by Demilitarize McGill as an example of McGill’s military-sponsored research that they protest, evaluated the use of metals as energy sources. Research for this was funded by the Department of Defense and later the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

This past December, McGill Mechanical Engineering Professor David Frost, another researcher from The Shockwave Group, published a paper in Applied Energy titled Direct Combustion of Recyclable Metal Fuels for Zero-Carbon Heat and Power. The paper examined powdered metal as an alternative fuel source to hydrocarbons. Fine dusts of aluminium, lithium, and iron are mixed into air and combusted, leaving metal oxides as waste. Of these, iron proves to be the most promising; tests show it provides more energy by volume than gasoline, and instead of carbon dioxide, this combustion produces nothing but iron oxide—rust—as a byproduct. Because rust doesn’t escape into the atmosphere, it can be easily collected and processed back into iron. 

The idea has a broad application. According to Higgins, research into the use of metal dusts as fuel, would not have materialized without the preliminary research conducted by the SWPG.

“It’s a direct outcome of [the 2001 paper],” Higgins said. “The expertise was developed while we were doing [the] work funded by the Department of Defense.” 

Magnetized target fusion

This same explosives and detonation research that led to the McGill Launcher is also showing potential application in a surprising field: Nuclear fusion.  General Fusion, a British-Columbia-based company working toward using fusion power as a practical energy source, is funding the SWPG to develop a new type of fusion reactor.  

The idea is to fill a sphere with liquid lithium and lead and spin it until a cavity is formed in the centre. The cavity is then injected with a 10-million-degree plasma of deuterium and tritium—isotopes of hydrogen—and pounded with shock waves from hundreds of steam-driven pistons. These waves collapse the cavity, raising the temperature to 100 million degrees, and the plasma undergoes fusion, releasing neutrons. The neutrons then heat up the lead and lithium, which can be used to create steam and turn turbines, similar to a conventional fission reactor.

Right now, the team is trying to stabilize the process by determining how to prevent the tiny imperfections in the geometry of the machine from interfering with the shockwaves. The machine itself is years away, but the SWPG is using the knowledge garnered from from projects Demilitarize McGill swore could only be used for military use. Nuclear fusion requires a huge amount of energy and work to achieve, but the math shows it’s worth it.  

“You get 10 times more power out [than you put in],” said Higgins. “If they pull this off, if this works, and they get this full-scale device to work, this will be bigger than the discovery of fire.” 

Fundamental and applied research

Higgins explained that university research groups conduct research based on fundamental principles, simply to learn, as opposed to applicational research, which has a goal in mind. The results produced by labs like SWPG tend to be the first step towards designing a product that can have various different applications. 

“You come to a department of engineering and you might expect [there to be] professors trying to build better car engines [or] trying to make robots that can work in assembly lines faster,” Higgins said. “Engineering professors don’t really do any of those things. What we do is probably closer to what you do in math. We tend to focus on really fundamental things. We study phenomena.”

In Canada, where funding is shifted more towards application, researchers are forced to make do with what they can.

“[The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada] NSERC [is] under more and more [pressure] to make sure they fund things that have application,” explained Higgins. “You can’t just fund people to pursue their own curiosity. It always has to strike a balance.”

Drake Crying
a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Pop Rhetoric: Has Drake Gone Too Far?

by April Barrett on

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“Hotline Bling” was released this summer, peaking at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 charts and becoming Drake’s highest rated single since 2009’s “Best I Ever Had.” Maybe the reason “Hotline Bling” gained so much popularity was its tenderness, especially when compared to Drake’s other summer singles, the cocky Meek Mill diss tracks, “Back to Back” and “Charged Up.” “Hotline Bling” is refreshingly smooth, moody and tropical; the production is what makes the song charming, with its slow, electronic cha-cha beat. Still, the lyrics should be given some credit in explaining its popularity. Pitchfork called the track “an old-model Drake song.” It’s classic Drake, all up in his feelings again, reminiscing about an ex that used to call him late at night. Drake’s sensitive persona proves itself meme-worthy time and time again, but “Hotline Bling” takes this persona to the next level. This time, the lyrics don’t feel like a thoughtful meditation on how Drake just can’t make love work, instead they are a scathing reprimand of an ex-girlfriend whose behaviour is making him anxious. And as loving concern begins to come across as obsessive and controlling, one has to wonder if Drake really is the “nice guy” of rap that we can all relate to.

The song is allegedly about Drake’s ex Nebby, a stylist who he dated on and off when he still lived in Toronto. Drake moans on verse one: “Ever since I left the city, you / started wearing less and going out more/ glasses of champagne out on the dance floor/ hanging with some girls I never seen before.” His ex has a new group of friends, is dressing sexily and is obviously living a kind of lifestyle that would afford her bottle service. It’s a lavish lifestyle, but it certainly isn’t a problem. The accusations just get weirder from there: “You got exactly what you asked for / running out of pages in your passport” in verse two, as if Drake is personally offended that Nebby would take advantage of her opportunities and travel. All of this might seem a little less out of line if Drake himself wasn’t spending time expressing joy at his own bottle-popping, jet-setting lifestyle. While Champagne Papi justifies his extravagance by claiming that he’s on his worst behaviour, he denies his exes the chance at enjoying the same kind of revelry in being a little bit bad.

Drake solidifies the distinction between sensitive and straight-up manipulative in the bridge. Drake’s real stake in the issue is clear in the line: “Doing things I taught you, getting nasty for someone else.” Drake’s investment in Nebby’s life, after so much has changed between them, reveals an anxiety around the idea of her not belonging to him anymore. He criticizes her for never being alone and praises her for staying home in the past. Even the potential idea of her with another man is indicative that she is in fact not the “good girl” that she used to be. 

Why is “Hotline Bling” different from Drake’s other fine whines? It’s in the tone and the position from which Drake is talking. He’s not convincing as a nice guy from Toronto anymore, instead he sounds more like a spoiled king. More than totally killing her vibe, he’s shaming his ex for expressing her sexuality in a way that isn’t directly for his enjoyment. “Hotline Bling” is obviously misogynistic, but because of Drake’s image as a sensitive creature whose insights into the trials of love make him a moral voice in rap music, it’s too easy for listeners to ignore the bad taste that this track should leave in their mouths. 

Even if Drake is slut shaming with confidence, it’s questionable whether the song still can be justifiably enjoyed. If the selfishness of the lyrics can be bared, listeners can still appreciate Drake’s consistency in making honest, emotional rap music. “Hotline Bling” can be taken as a reminder to be critical of our idols and how they influence the way we think about the world.

a, Student Life

Understanding why McGill residences are the most expensive in Canada

by Jordan Sinder on

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McGill University has a reputation as one of the most prestigious schools in North America, attracting thousands of out-of-province and international students each year. However, the complete university experience, including living in residence, is becoming gradually less affordable for many first-year students. In fact, McGill residences are now some of the most expensive in Canada.

Student housing is comprised of 16 McGill residences which, in total, house over 3,000 new students each year. Many first-year students choose to live in residence for a variety of reasons including convenience, location, and the opportunity to make new friends from across the world.

Accounting for both housing and meal plans, the current total cost of living in a McGill residence for one academic year is approximately $15,000. Over the past decade, the cost has continued to increase anywhere from two to seven per cent each year. Inflation rates, the recent acquisition of new buildings to be converted to hotel-style residences, and building renovations are all factors in the rising cost of residences.

“Our fees, without question, are amongst the top in Canada for housing,” managing director of Student Housing and Hospitality Services (SHHS), Janice Johnson, said. “As long as I’ve been at McGill, we’ve always been top of the heap.”

 

 

McGill residences now rival traditionally expensive real estate markets at schools such as University of Toronto and University of British Columbia. In comparison to the majority of other Canadian universities, McGill students pay significantly more to live in residence. Given that McGill’s main campus is located in the centre of downtown Montreal, the property expenses associated with an urban location are naturally quite substantial. 

Another major price factor for SHHS is simply the cost of building maintenance and renovations.

“One of the reasons why our fees are so expensive is that our buildings are really old and cost a lot to maintain,” Johnson explained. “We have buildings that need millions of dollars’ worth of work on them.”

Yet another major expense for students is the mandatory meal plan, which at $5,350 comprises one-third the cost of residence. Interestingly, the meal plan is made mandatory for students at nearly all residences, excluding Solin Hall and More housing. According to SHHS, mandatory meal plans are in place due to the inability of the residences to house adequate cooking facilities, and the belief that communal dining areas promote a sense of community for students. 

There are many access barriers associated with the high cost of living in residence. For many students and families, residence is simply unaffordable; for others, it requires significant financial sacrifice.

“Absolutely it creates access barriers,” Johnson noted. “At some point, we’re going to price ourselves out of the market, and we have to be sensitive to that.”

But perhaps there already have been indications that the cost of McGill residences have begun to dissuade an increasingly greater number of students. 

 

 

In June 2015, SHHS extended the application deadline for residence as not all vacancies were immediately occupied for the following academic year. This has been rare in previous years, and the deadline extension is potentially indicative of a decreasing demand to live in residence.

The disparity of cost amongst different residences also creates certain access barriers. The difference between living in McGill’s least expensive and most expensive residence is nearly $4,000.

According to Johnson, SHHS makes every effort to minimize socio-economic divisions by strategically distributing overall maintenance costs—and also major renovation costs—across all residences.

“One of the things that we have chosen to do […] is to not necessarily directly pass on the cost of one change in a building just to the students of that building,” Johnson said. “We spread the operating costs so that [they are] increasing out over the whole system.”

For example, New Residence has renovated a few floors over the past two years. While students living on a renovated floor pay slightly more than students in non-renovated rooms, the overall living fees are increased throughout all of New Residence. Furthermore, the price of other residences is also increased in order to mitigate the financial impact on one demographic of students.

Nevertheless, McGill residences are notoriously expensive in contrast to other living options. Evo and Varcity515 are two alternative student housing options that have been growing in popularity. Many of these off-campus residences offer a familiar sense of community, support services, and opportunities to form friendships.

“The living costs [at Evo] are similar to those established by McGill, but the nature of supply and demand has inflated the quality of off-campus residences to compete,” said Zack Month, ambassador at Evo Centre-Ville. “Evo not only has floor fellows, but also full-time employees dedicated to improving the living experience.”

Month also argues that many off-campus residences such as Evo can actually offer a more unique and broader experience than a McGill residence.

“Evo attracts students from all of Montreal’s universities, creating a new opportunity to learn from neighbours,” stated Month. “Evo offers events from Yoga nights in our gym, to cooking competitions in our dining complex, to viewing parties, and more.”

Many students also choose to live in an apartment off-campus, which is typically much less expensive than living in residence. In terms of pure accommodation costs (residence fees excluding the mandatory meal plan), apartments within walking distance of McGill are often half the price of a McGill residence.

However, there are several distinguishing features of living in a McGill residence. The rez community presents an incredible opportunity to build lasting friendships while having access to crucial support systems. Perhaps most significantly, McGill Rez Life is a trailblazer in consent education, anti-oppression training, and inclusivity.

“We are at the leading edge of some of the programming and social educations of students that are happening in Canada,” Johnson said. “We’re driving our students to understand what it really means to have a place in the larger community.”

While Johnson acknowledged that the high price of residence creates financial access barriers, for many past residents, living in a McGill residence ultimately provides much more than student accommodations. The availability of exceptional resources and the diverse community fostered within a McGill residence is arguably unmatched by most other universities or any off-campus housing options.

“I understand that some families can’t afford rez, and that’s totally understandable,” Jemark Earle, Royal Victoria College floor fellow, and a former resident at La Citadelle, said. “But despite the cost, the experience is invaluable.”

a, Opinion

Election 2015: Horse race or federal election?

by Zachary Carson on

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Major Canadian news outlets pay extensive attention to who is currently winning the election. Either through the use of extensive polling data detailing which party is in the lead (sometimes by a fraction of a per cent) on any given day or by analyzing which federal leader won the most recent debate, the media seems to be obsessed with which party is currently winning prior to the actual election day on Oct. 19. Although Canadians are naturally interested in this, the focus on which party is currently winning is eclipsing the question of which party Canadians think should win. As put by Luke Savage in his recent article for Canadaland, this focus discourages Canadians from thinking about the reasoning behind their preferences—the what? obstructs the why?

Polling data and analysis eats up a large portion of election coverage in Canada. For example, CBC’s Poll Tracker allows you to follow how parties are polling to the tenth of a percentage on a weekly, if not daily basis. This is likely to change the mindset of a typical Canadian voter. A party that better represents a Canadian’s interests may look less appealing if you can see that it is behind in the polls. This changing mindset has been exacerbated by the fact that articles supposedly covering policy mainly reference polling data. Thus, even campaign promises are perceived within the lens of how parties are currently polling instead of what parties are promising to do.

Even campaign promises are perceived within the lens of how parties are currently polling instead of what parties are promising to do.

Debates also contribute to the tendency to frame the campaign in terms of winners and losers. At the close of each debate, a panel of political pundits seeks to answer the same question: Who won? Even when pundits moved from discussing which leader won to what they actually said, analysis was still constantly drenched in data. This was especially evident in the three English-language debates, where the head of Facebook Canada provided info on which leader was discussed most over Facebook, as well as which specific moment in the debate was most talked about. The public increasingly depends on social media for a summary of the debates. This takes away from what leaders actually said, or what was actually discussed in that moment, instead focusing on how many Canadians talked about it.

The tendency to view elections as a horse race has been further exacerbated by the nature of the debates this election. Because the Conservative Party pulled out of the consortium debate this election, it was replaced with five smaller debates hosted by different Canadian news organizations. Although there have been four more debates than usual, they were not broadcast by CBC or any other Canadian broadcaster (although they were offered for free). Because the debates were more difficult to view, the number of Canadians who watched live broadcasts was a fraction of the 10.6 million viewers in 2011. In this election, only 3.8 million viewers tuned in to the Maclean’s debate. More Canadians rely on post-debate analysis, which focuses on who won rather than the issues and policies discussed.

There needs to be more discussion of policy absent polling data to allow Canadians to formulate opinions outside of the optics of the political horse race. More coverage should be given to what parties and their leaders promise outside of the lens of how they are polling. Polling could also include questions about why Canadians are voting for a certain party, thus putting what? and why? on more equal footing. Ultimately, it all comes down to what you perceive as being an effective democracy. Voting is only truly effective when people vote with their conscience for the party that best represents them, rather than based on who is winning in the polls.

Zachary Carson is a fourth year joint honours political science and international development student. He enjoys listening to Canadaland podcasts, watching Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and dogs.

@McGillTribOp | [email protected]
Arms Cover
a, Arts & Entertainment, Books

Book Review – Arms: The Culture and Credo of the Gun

by Maya Reid on

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A.J. Somerset blends a barrell full of personal anecdotes with historical analysis in Arms: The Culture and Credo of the Gun to explore the rise of gun culture in North America. 

Somerset, a former Canadian soldier and avid sport shooter, offers a unique perspective into how and why guns have morphed from a tool of war, hunting, and protection to a polarizing symbol. Deeply critical of the political ideologies connected to gun usage, Somerset looks to differentiate himself from other self-identified gun enthusiasts. 

“Although I like guns,” he writes in his introduction, “I do not like gun nuts.” 

The rest of Arms follows this general theme, criticizing right-wing extremism and dogmatic positions on gun control. By tracing the lineage of gun lobbying, Somerset explains in detail how the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Canadian lobbying groups like the National Firearms Association (NFA) were able to exercise control over legislation and court decisions. Their advocacy is increasingly divorced from mainstream thought, but their supporters still represent a powerful constituency.  

Somerset does not limit this book just to issues of public policy. The notion of a national ‘gun culture’ expands beyond how the term is usually used in public discourse. He provides the context for how the United States developed “a culture that declares the gun to be as American as mom and apple pie, and as sacred as Jesus himself.”

Somerset’s exploration of the psychology behind gun ownership is where Arms truly shines. The later chapters examine the way media, politics, and historical perceptions have carved out the social space for this culture to thrive. Highlights include the chapter “Kingdom of Fear,” an analysis on self-defense preparation and mass paranoia, as well as a section titled “A Woman’s Right,” a more methodical examination of how gun advocates appropriated feminist messaging. The chapter in which Somerset argues “gun control in the United States was about race from the start” is also particularly thought-provoking due to the current political and social climates. 

Throughout the book, Arms includes anecdotes and metaphors to enhance his arguments. Sometimes these personal stories are refreshing and insightful because they sharply deviate from traditional non-fiction prose on this topic; however, other times they muddy up his reasoning and make Arms difficult to follow. 

Furthermore, although Arms attempts to holistically explain gun culture in the United States and Canada, Somerset focuses almost entirely on radicalized elements within the subculture. The less fanatical—but still influential—voices are ignored, and the book does not discuss how more commonplace gun usage affects culture. The end result is an enforcement of a rigid dichotomy between what is presented as well-reasoned liberal beliefs and crazy far-right extremism. Society’s issues surrounding gun control are more nuanced.

Regardless of readers’ personal positions on firearms issues, nobody can deny the relevance of Arms today. Horrific mass shootings have characterized the American socio-political landscape. Guns have been presented as both the cause of and solution to these tragedies. Additionally, Somerset reminds Canadians that they are not exempt from these problems. 

“These ideas have come across the border and taken hold in Canada, even as the mass of the Canadian public congratulates itself on living where there is no gun culture,” he writes. Arms offers a well-researched perspective on political and cultural issues that are constantly developing, and provides entertaining insights into gun culture that can appeal to gun rights novices and those who are already well-versed in this debate.

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