While it may only be the beginning of February, the storm is already brewing. The Varsity has already published a few articles about the UTSU, and even has a weekly column dedicated to the upcoming election just for the sole purpose of keeping us updated. Sadly, if last year’s election turnout is any indication, few people care what really happens. Why? Well, we all say U of T has no school spirit. I really hope that this year we can prove that wrong and perhaps get some dialogue going about something that actually concerns all the undergrads on campus. I’m not just saying this to sound corny and important– UTSU elections actually matter!

Before I get down to it, I want to be very clear that right now I have no particular side I’m writing for. Everything I am saying here is meant to be presented in the most critical and objective way possible. If it appears otherwise, please accept my apologies.

Today, I’m writing about the potential opposition slate, Stop The Salaries. Campaigning hasn’t started yet, but even keeping that in mind, I say “potential” because, as of right now, I really don’t see them gaining much momentum. Why? Well…

1. Their Premise

As a union, UTSU is supposed to look out for our rights and interests. According to Stop The Salaries, our executives have not only cut spending on services, but they have also given themselves a fancy $100,000 raise.

That is basically the whole premise the Stop The Salaries. We are paying a group of elite students and getting nothing in return. Seems valid. Year after year, U of T students are subject to higher and higher tuition and fees. Your regular Joe isn’t going to see where the money is going, or how it’s being used. Even campus club executives, who deal with the UTSU and club funding on a regular basis, can feel the frustration when they see their club funding decrease year by year. As a general whole, it feels like we’re paying more and getting less, and the most logical explanation is that the UTSU are high rollers and that is that.

Current UTSU president Danielle Sandhu has already explained in a response published in The Varsity that the executive board members did not receive any raise, as any salary increases have to be passed by the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors are college and undergraduate faculty representatives that we elect along with the president and vice-presidents. The thing is that this is true. Regardless of what Stop the Salaries says, sources say that salaries haven’t been in meeting agendas for the past two years. By basing their whole premise and campaign on something that isn’t true, they have shown that they are taking the easy way out.

2. The Easy Way Out

(┛◉Д◉)┛彡┻━┻

It’s a trend, I think, that when we find something unsatisfactory about the incumbent, we immediately go “rah rah rah” over funding and how the money is spent. Students are no different. We want to know where our money goes, probably more so that your average voter because a good chunk of us are on student loans. It wasn’t until I took on an executive position in my own club that I saw just how quickly money is used up. For an organization as big as UTSU, it would seem logical that their budget would be much harder to balance.

I’m getting off topic… My point is simple: by saying that the UTSU is misusing student funding, they are basically saying “UTSU SUCKS BECAUSE IT DOES.” The “misused funding” slogan is old school. We hear it all the time. Even their explanations are subpar. If you take a look at their website, their “evidence” for the hikes and cuts are too simple. Anyone who has worked with million dollar budgets (that much is true) would know that one line doesn’t usually tell you the whole story. Again, Danielle did a very thorough job going through the budget, line by every contested line.

What I’m looking for are concrete criticisms. Okay, so UTSU is bad. Why?

Is there something wrong with current services?

Are they neglecting or marginalizing any groups on campus?

Is there a fundamental difference in ideology or is Stop the Salaries just there for the sake of being anti-UTSU?

How can you do better?

3. What can they do better?

(I’m seriously on a segue roll here.)

Varsity associate news editor Simon Bredin is starting a column this week covering UTSU elections. Despite a momentous opposition slate campaign in 2008, Bredin discusses how every opposition that had run against the incumbency (which is really what it is) loses steam with each progressive year. Why is that?

The fact that UTSU has been around for so long tells may tell us a few things:

• Perhaps the student body is so passive that, as long as someone is there to take care of things, we don’t really care who it is.
• If it’s not that the student body doesn’t care, then it’s because they don’t know, which is just as bad.
• What if UTSU incumbents are actually doing something right? People only notice something is wrong when it is blatantly obvious. Unless a campus wide scandal with a chasm as soul sucking as Con Hall classes erupts, people are going to go for what they know.

Stop The Salaries has to have a platform that is far-reaching, progressive, and realistic. Maybe it’s just me, but Stop The Salaries seems to have been established for the sake of opposing UTSU. If their purpose is to be the new governing body of our campus, they have to go beyond just being an anti-UTSU slate whose sole purpose is to oppose the current office.  They must come up with better campaign methods and introduce changes that actually matter to students.

Since I was in my pre-UofT years, I’m going to have to take Simon’s word for it and go with his explanation as to why the 2008 Change slate was very close to running the election. He said that the biggest reason why 2008 Change was so close to winning is because they had a very experienced team. There needs to be a team in which every single person knows what they’re doing. Stop The Salaries of 2012 has to remember that they’re running against a well-oiled machine that has executive members and officers that have been in the game for a long time.

Last year, executive board candidates of United For Action (which is the name of the incumbent slate) ran virtually uncontested. The opposition slate equivalents were disqualified and voter turnout was dismal. Stop The Salaries must be careful and not commit the same mistakes as its predecessor. They must also have a well-built and solid team.

However, the one thing they must do in order to even stand a chance against the incumbent slate, whoever they will be, is promote, promote, promote. Be strategic. Don’t just resort to traditional methods. The benefit to this is twofold:

1. Depending on their strategy, they can be perceived as being more in touch with the student population
2. More people will be aware of elections, which will give students a more representative vote.

If Stop The Salaries does it right, they might be able to tap into a pool of votes that never really bothered to participate before.

Yes. Promote until Anthony Dodson has something to sing about again.

Of course, it may just be too early to tell. We don’t know who’s going to be running for what, but something tells me that Brett Chang and current Trinity Representative Michael Scott (infamous for his need to motion for clause-by-clause voting during board of director meetings) will be there. There is no real platform yet from anyone. Hell, we don’t even know who from the current executive board and board of directors are going to be rerunning. A lot of things are still up in the air.

As students and members of the student body, keep yourselves informed. I’m really glad that The Varsity is starting a weekly column covering the elections this year. If we want better services, want better representation, and want a better campus, it is our responsibility to know.

As always, I want to know what you think. Comment below! Any critics ready to rip those panties into shreds? I really have to stop laughing at my own jokes.

If you’re up for it, run for the election. Nominations open Monday, February 13. Visit the UTSU website to learn more about how you can be nominated. Being nominated doesn’t mean you necessarily have to run with a slate.

Source: Letters from Iran (Unfortunately the video I watched that fueled this post seems to have been removed from the Al Jazeera website)

In Iran, the planned and controlled oppression of the young voice is drowning the brightest minds of a country daily.

Iran’s sons and daughters know no freedom.  But freedom knows them.

The fabric of restraint tied around the throats of a nation is slowly ripping and that indomitable force known as the human spirit, is like a dull knife becoming sharper over time; cutting and cutting through the binds of modern slavery to a new era of Arab freedom.

Our lives involve a much less violent form of oppression and control. Gone are the days of unveiled open slavery inflicted on us by others.  We now suffer collectively as western nations from forms of self-inflicted restraint.  Wars are now waged internally; man against himself.

We have become our own greatest enemies.

In the 20th century, the ocean of freedom washed over our western nations and swept away plights of racism, sexism and other basic human rights.  Upon the water’s receding, we entered a new era of freedom of expression, liberation and innovation.  Freedom reigned, whilst in the background the once powerful human spirit, which brought on our evolution to free selves, began quietening and regressing ,as we deservedly began enjoying the fruits of our toils, the spoils of our innovation.

Consequently, less thought oriented we have become.  The poison of laze runs through many of us and a new self-imposed slavery binds us to our halls of freedom where we once triumphantly marched.  Self-progression is halting, but thankfully we are noticing.

Hear today the voices again crying out:

“Repression, we are living lives of repression……”

“Our governments hold us back……”

“We don’t receive what we deserve……”

“Our dreams never realized; our struggles never cease…….”

Do you feel this very fabric tightening around your own throat?  Does difficulty plague your everyday living?

Is your answer, Yes?  If it is, I challenge you to rip the fabric.

You were born into a free world.  You were given the opportunity of a level playing field.  What will you do with these gifts and advantages?  It is time that we return to our grass roots nature, as the power to change; to obtain; to excel, exists within us all.  Pursue what you deserve!  Why are you playing small?  Why are you settling?  Make today the final day tht you live driven by acceptance.  Instead, drive your life forward with your influence.

The same powerful human spirit that broke chains and rewrote history in the 20th century exists inside of all of us.  Believe in yourself and your rights to success and to the true life you were born to live. Like the youth of Iran, step forward in defiance of all forms of oppression; internal and external.  Do not allow self-pity to slow your progress.

You were born into freedom and with more power than you know.

Rip the fabric holding YOUR OWN development back.

Surge forward and prosper.

You’re on the Internet right now, so you’ve probably already heard of SOPA and PIPA. That is, the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act. And you probably know that many major Internet companies/groups have been opposing this bill. Wiki blacked out for a day to draw awareness, along with Reddit and other information-sharing sites. Google, Facebook, and Mozilla are opposed too, just to name a few.

In short: This bill, if passed by the US congress, will give big companies an advantage in suing non-US companies for copyright infringement. It will most notably not allow sites to have links to pirated material or to other sites that break copyright laws. In a way, it will censor a lot of the Internet. Considering that the Internet has become THE place to share files and information and, considering today’s global community, well… not the greatest idea from the US congress.

Basically, any site that links to pirated information is a target for this new bill, regardless of whether or not the site was responsible for the pirating in the first place. This is censoring the Internet of almost anything that is copyrighted. And it almost sounds legit until you consider that many people use the Internet as a way to share files that they legitimately own. YouTube videos can be taken down… hell, YouTube itself can be taken down. Going to share a link on Facebook? It better not link to a site that links to a pirating site. Even Google will have to watch out for what it shows in its results. Does this not go completely against the idea of the Internet?

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought that the Internet would be humankind’s way to connect with other people. It’s a global community – a place for us to share our ideas, interests, and, yes our music, videos, and other copyrighted things. I mean, I’ve shared the Harry Potters movies in real life, so why am I not allowed to do so on the Internet? If they ban sharing of copyrighted materials on sites, then are they going to stop us from EMAILING files to each other too? What’s next? No more USBs because, clearly, we can copy and paste files and share with those as well!

As a student, I feel like this could have major effects on our lives. I mentioned the Wiki blackout – what if it got permanently banned for linking to copyrighted information? Sure, we can’t cite Wiki, but that’s always the first place I look when I start doing research because it’s a wonderful background information resource. And YouTube – there are a lot of good, educational videos that I would really like to stay there.

It’s unfortunate that, as Canadians, we can’t exactly call up a congress member and protest the bill… well, we could, but I doubt it would sway them much. But you should know that SOPA will have the ability to shut down Canadian-run sites, even if no Canadian laws were broken. Piracy certainly is a major issue, but there’s always the issue of when a law would do justice and when it would go completely against what’s fair.

The worst part is, SOPA seems unnecessary. The bill’s actually on hold now due to the Internet blackout a few days ago but, regardless of that, Megaupload’s founder was still arrested and Megaupload remains down. This is exactly the form of legal action that SOPA seeks to bring… but the US authorities managed to do this based on current copyright laws. The action was drastic, of course. Megaupload has been a big help to many of us, and few avid internet users are happy to see it go, but the point is that piracy has been thwarted without the need to censor 90% of the Internet.

But, really, growing up in the Information Age, I think we’ve all learned to appreciate the wonders of the Internet in all its file-sharing glory. And, in all honestly, I don’t think that SOPA, even if passed, would be able to stop the millions of people who use the Internet from finding a way to continue to share. It’s called the World Wide Web for a reason, and severing the threads that link things together will tear the whole thing apart.

Sites threatened by SOPA: http://www.thisblogrules.com/2012/01/top-13-endangered-websites-if-sopa-passes.html

How it could affect Canadians: http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/What+SOPA+means+Canada/6019152/story.html

Google’s Anti-SOPA Petition information: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2012/01/google-anti-sopa-petition.html

Jan. 23, 2012: UPDATE! IT’S BEEN STOPPED!

I wish I had something more to say now, but I think I got my ranting done with. Opinions and thoughts in Comments, please!

]]> http://www.blogut.ca/2012/01/25/sopa/feed/ 4 http://www.blogut.ca/2011/12/22/sugar-the-bitter-truth/ http://www.blogut.ca/2011/12/22/sugar-the-bitter-truth/#comments Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:00:16 +0000 Marina http://www.blogut.ca/?p=9788 My mind has just been blown by this video and I felt like I needed to get the word out:

Sugar: The Bitter Truth

Yeah ok, fine it’s an hour and a half long. Here’s the summary for you people who somehow still have no time even though exams are over:

Summary:

• Today High Fructose Corn Syrup is used in basically every processed food as a substitute for regular sugar since fructose is much sweeter
• Sucrose (made up of 1 glucose and 1 fructose) is also found everywhere since it is also sweeter and cheaper than glucose
• Fructose is evil
• We eat fructose much more than we drink alcohol but fructose is metabolized ONLY in the liver through a pathway similar to alcohol
• 30% of Fructose turns into fat whereas less than 1% of glucose turns into fat
• Fructose turns off brain sensitivity to hormones involved in feelings of satiety after meals so you never feel full
• Fructose can desensitize cells to insulin to cause Type II diabetes
• One pop drink or fruit juice is basically one serving of food; but you still don’t feel full

SAVE THE DATE!
You’re invited to Journalism for Human Rights’ (jhr) annual HOLLERDAY: a day dedicated to raising awareness about sexual violence in the DRC.

When: Tuesday, November 15th from 5-10pm
Where: East Common Room, Hart House
Why: STOP RAPE IN THE CONGO!

This event will feature an interactive HOLLERDAY wall, a workshop, speakers and an education centre featuring different campus groups giving their perspective on the topic of sexual violence in the DRC.

Why do we care about this particular issue? Stories like Clementine’s (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8677637.stm) serve to remind us that this issue is not one that can be ignored and people like her cannot just be left behind or forgotten.

HOLLERDAY is jhr’s chapter flagship awareness building event for 2011.  Students from  universities across Canada participate collectively in a day of action to “holler” about human rights issues.  2011’s focus is human rights issues in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Students will use their voices publicly through creative expression about human rights.

Here is the Facebook event – check it out! https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=267179723316093

About jhr: We are a collective of inspired, approachable and enthusiastic individuals. We are worldly without pretense, knowledgeable, inclusive, inquisitive and most importantly – we passionately believe in positive change. Our entrepreneurial, can-do spirit is focused on making positive contributions to the quality of life of others as well as achieving success and fulfillment in our own lives.
jhr is Canada’s largest international media development organization. Our goal – to make everyone in the world fully aware of their rights – is as unique as it is powerful. jhruoft.org

I have no clue why but educational systems fascinate me… and what interest me more are the differences between them, across cultures. It’s funny, stepping out of the University of Toronto and into Sciences Po in Paris. Both are very well-reputed schools on their own terms, but so different from each other. Below is a bit of a post slash ramble put together after my first week of classes at Sciences Po. I’ve put in edits wherever I feel like I have gained a bit of insight since first writing the post. Hope you get something out of it!

————————————————————————————————

I suppose I should start with school in France in general.

When een Franz:

The French system is hilarious. Instead of marking in percentages, it marks out of 20. Not only that, but the grades it assigns aren’t proportional to the percent grades we’d assign in Toronto at all. Whereas it was pretty much possible to get a 90 in some courses back home in Econ and Philosophy, 18-20/20 here is reserved for Gods… pretty much impossible as we’ve been told time and time again. A ‘great mark’ is usually considered anything from 13 onwards.  We’ll just have to see what this all turns out to mean because it’s gibberish to me right now!  (Note. 2 months after writing this, I come back with good news: I’ve debunked this theory and got my first 18! Take that, intimidating men in suits.) My grades here matter if I decide to pursue further studies. The transcript officer back home is aware of these differences, though, which is all that matters in terms of transferring things, so no worries. It’s just a matter of jumping in and getting the hang of new things, I guess.

The structure of teaching and assignments is also super different. I find that teachers here tend to talk at us rather than with us in most of my classes (not all). This is more like what I thought university lectures would be like when I was a kid. All my profs are IMPECCABLY dressed. Duuude. It’s a huge contrast to philosophy classes back home where my ancient philo prof would come to lecture in a lumberjack shirt and sandals… something about Paris, I guess. Sometimes I wonder how these professors have enough time to think AND to dress themselves so well. Seriously. It’s actually been troubling me. Hahaha. A pashmina here, a green watch and silk tie there…

Pheelosophee

I’d been told that Philosophy in France is a lot more history-based than theme/argument-based as it is in America, a difference that I didn’t dig at aaaalll. Thing is, it turns out that nearly all my philosophy courses here are taught by profs who favor the American way of philosophising, so it’s been nice.

It’s funny, though: I’m so used to just thinking and formulating things and talking a few seconds later and it’s always been a very dynamic process in philo classes… it’s funny now in some of my French philosophy classes, to spend time figuring out what the hell is being said first before I can figure out what to make of it!

At the same time, the philo class with the densest material is being taught by a very flamboyant American professor who makes it all easy to understand, so I’m not scared. (He made a that’s-what-she-said joke when reading Plato, though. Actually, not much of a ‘though’… just really funny hahahaha) Some things might require a little more work, but everything is interesting and so, it’s worth it.

Ze Skewl

As for Sciences Po in particular…. whew! Now this is an elite school if I’ve ever seen one, hahaha. Guys walk around in suits to class sometimes. We have big, big, big shots who stop their political life to teach here. Sci Po isn’t well known outside of France because it’s fairly new in comparison to really entrenched institutions like the Sorbonne. I didn’t even know much about it back home aside from what past friends/students there had told me — in fact, I only chose the school because it had solid economics and philosophy courses (rare to have such crossover in France), and an excellent system for integrating study-abroad students, but knew little else. But then I come here and am told that 3 of the last French prime ministers came from this school! The students have to pass a ‘contest’ (translated literally from ‘concours’) to get in, and even then only the top 5% of them are admitted. It’s funny, how much easier it is for study abroad students to get into here.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that all the French kids here are geniuses. There are some here who just surf on Facebook throughout class and say the silliest things when they feel like it (just quoting a great thinker here, another philosopher there… even if it has little relevance). Also, it doesn’t mean the lecturers are perfect; there are times when lectures seem so history-based that they lose reason. But I do have really thought-provoking classes/students and really clear teachers for the most part, so it’s been great.

“Why does Everyone like ze Camembert if it is so smelly?”

The Sciences Po way of doing things is very distinct. They have a certain methodology that students are meant to abide by, a certain structure for writing essays. It goes something along the line of “pose a question (a paradox, they say… like ‘why does everyone love Camembert cheese here if it is so smelly?’)”; “show one way to answer; “show the contrasting way”; “tie them together to show that there’s no one answer”; “throw in another question”. That’s super different from the American way of “I’ll show you this. I’m showing you this. I’ve shown you this.” I like the difference, though. I always felt like essays back home made me sound like I was asserting way more than I actually knew.

Talk to Me

Another thing that Sciences Po is super serious about is… talking. Oral presentations are mandatory for nearly all the classes and make up a good chunk of marks! I find this interesting because I suppose the school’s trying to hone a next generation of diplomats and general movers in society. But at the same time, I have a feeling like spending large chunks of a class’s time listening to a student ramble on about what he/she thinks is right can make things superficial. We’ll see.

I had my first presentation today – not an exposé, but a critical reading worth a quarter of my mark. (Just after the first week too!) It went really well. I suppose that’s just because the class I’m in (Politics and Ethics) gets you thinking. The reading was on Kant, too, and he’s fun to get confused by. So all was well. We’ll take it from here.

It’s interesting stuff, these courses. They’re making me think and learn French, 2 awesome things. There’s a philosophy talk next month at Café de Flore, Sartre’s hideout as a writer. I’m thinking of checking it out with a few friends. It should be great, or funny at worst (actually, boring at worst… but the people-watching is always super at that place…) (Note. 2 months after writing this — it was a hilarious time! I went to the talk last month with a friend. The conversation topic was ‘Why do we believe what we believe?’  The talk was a good way to see an interesting cross-section of Parisians: students, scientists, philosophers, fashionable retirees, and I swear, a witch).

Well there’s the uber-long post on how school was! I was super curious about this before coming and still have a lot to learn about the structure of France’s education system. It’s interesting stuff.

I am falling a little sick from God-knows-what (everything is new! Where does one start?), so off to take a bit of a nap. Talk to you soon!

Bises

Raha

THE END

Mes chers amis, la SPECQUE c’est la Simulation du parlement européen Canada-Québec-Europe. Ne vous laissez pas être détournés par le mot “parliament” (ou “simulation”, ou quoi que ce soit). En fait la SPECQUE présente à chacun une opportunité inoubliable de pousser ses limites, apprendre beacoup sur le monde et les actualités, et finalement voyager et rencontrer des gens inspirants!

Il s’agit d’une semaine intense passée en débats, en commissions, en sessions plénières…on dort peu, on boit beaucoup de caffé…On joue le rôle d’un eurodéputé au sein du parlement européen, ou bien un commissaire qui propose une pièce de législation, ou un rapporteur qui la critique dans son rapport. On peut également être un lobbyiste, un journaliste, un photographe, le président de commission – il y a plein de rôles pour tous les goûts! Donc si vous vous intéressez aux questions de politique européen, la SPECQUE est pour vous!

Elle est peut-être plus chère aux canadiens qu’aux autres, parce que elle a été fondée au Québec en 1998. C’est vrai, la simulation du parlement européen a été proposée par une étudiante de l’Université Laval. La SPECQUE a lieu dans un endroit different chaque an, alternativement en Europe et au Canada. Cet été la ville hôte était Luxembourg, tandis qu’en 2012 Montréal aura ce privilège.

Voilà ce que le site web officiel de la SPECQUE en dit:

“En tant que simulation parlementaire, la SPECQUE permet à ses participants de se développer. Les qualités oratoires, le sens de l’initiative et de la négociation, l’art de la persuasion ainsi que la capacité à analyser en profondeur des questions sensibles, et les aborder sous un angle législatif, sont certaines compétences que la SPECQUE permet de cultiver. La Simulation permet aussi à ses participants d’élargir leurs horizons par la découverte de jeunes issus de milieux et de cultures différentes. Cette découverte, et l’ouverture d’esprit qui en découle, sont d’une valeur inestimable dans le contexte de mondialisation que nous connaissons actuellement.”

Je pourrai ajouter de ma part que je n’aurai jamais imaginé combien la SPECQUE pourrait être intéressante, stimulante et comment elle peut créer une dépendence. Si on y participe une fois, on veut retourner, c’est sûr!

Alors, si vous croyez que la SPECQUE c’est pour vous, contactez-moi pour plus de détails.

Le batîment de la commission européenne où la SPECQUE se déroulait cet été. Je mens pas quand je dis que c’est impressionnant!

U of T Greens is a political advocacy club on campus that is affiliated with the Green Party of Canada and of Ontario. However, our primary concern is not converting every U of T student to ‘Green’, but doing our best to encourage every student to become more politically aware and especially to vote.

When meetings happen, they are usually e-meetings focused around either planning for specific events or discussion in response to political factors (ex. the dropping of the writ in the federal election, election day, etc.). Items of discussion include planning different events and approaches to canvassing in order to get students more politically engaged, aware of the Green Party, and excited to vote in upcoming elections. We frame political issues through a ‘Green’ perspective, where priorities include, but are not limited to: sustainable energy; representation of women and other minorities in politics; accessible education and healthcare; public transit; and a economy focused on efficiency and innovation.

This year, U of T Greens organized events that included a documentary night screening environmental/social justice piece Wasteland, as well as a meet-the-candidate pub night. Members of the Greens also participated in U of T’s Vote Mob (video).

U of T Greens is currently working with the Green Party of Ontario to prepare for the upcoming provincial election. Some events on the horizon include an informal pub-style political forum where students of all political leanings can meet and debate local Green candidates (late September), as well as a VIP fundraiser reception and dinner with Elizabeth May (early September) for which we are hoping to have student-priced tickets available.

For more information, please visit our website. If you have any further questions or would like to get involved, feel free to email the group or contact me directly.