I am of the exact opposite opinion of Zoe Daniels in her article “The Over-Hyped Olympics” (2.3.10). Right off the bat, she got my blood pounding by claiming that the Olympics “feature sports that are generally boring to watch.” I don’t see where she gets the idea that the incredible TV ratings that the Winter Olympics generate, be it for cross-country skiing or for the gold-medal hockey game – which had 10.
Author: Admin
RIGHT MINDED: National insecurity
A culture that refuses to allow Canada’s intelligence service to do its job is putting the safety of Canadian citizens at risk. Canada’s state intelligence agency, the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service, has come under attack for defending national interests abroad.
Resettling and rebuilding
One would be hard-pressed to find two places with less in common than southern Bhutan and the town of Saint-Jérôme. In the south of Bhutan, the soaring peaks of the Himalayas descend into subtropical plains and fields of rice. Bhutan is primarily Buddhist and shares many cultural ties with its northern neighbour, Tibet.
MARCH MADNESS: EAST
Preview: Top-seeded Kentucky and freshman sensation John Wall cast a long shadow over the East bracket, though they’ll need to play better than they did against Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament Final in order to advance. West Virginia, the No. 2 seed, has the most momentum after winning the Big East title in dramatic fashion over the weekend.
EDITORIAL: Jean (Charest) and Kate plus 8: Quebec funds in-vitro
Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc announced last week that the Quebec government will fully fund up to three cycles of in-vitro treatment for infertile couples. This announcement, which fulfills a pre-election promise made by Jean Charest in 2008, makes Quebec the first province to adopt such a policy.
EDITORIAL: Let us do our jobs; Mr. Neilson tear down this bylaw!
Last week, 10 McGill Tribune editors were forced to take leaves of absence in order to campaign for the creation of a $3 fee to support an independent Tribune. And while we’re ecstatic that students voted “yes” to the fee, the bylaw that required half of our editorial board to resign needs to be changed.
John le Carré: the spy who loved fiction
The 2010 International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA) in Montreal kicks off on March 18, featuring 230 films from 23 countries. Shortlisted from this group are a competitive selection of 43 films from 14 countries (including eight entries from Quebec). Buzzed films from the competitive group include Je M’Appelle Denis Gagnon, a documentary about the Quebec fashion designer who made quite an impression at Montreal Fashion Week; The Real World of Peter Gabriel, on the Genesis lead singer; and perhaps most intriguing, King of Spies: John le Carré, a documentary about the life’s work of a spy-turned-fiction writer.
POP RHETORIC: Burton’s formula
Tim Burton has a distinct, dark, and quirky style that puts him in a cinematic class apart from any other director. The problem is that after creating so many successful films, his new projects are always going to be compared to his earlier “glory days.” The empire he has created is subject to unwarranted, faulty criticism merely because of the expectations that he’s planted in viewers’ minds.
The White Stripes trade stage lights for Northern lights
Jack White is a busy guy. Playing in three successful bands (The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, and The Dead Weather), taking on small roles in feature films, and running a production company in Tennessee doesn’t seem to be enough. White claims he likes to make things difficult for himself, so within a single year he signed on for two documentary films; It Might Get Loud was released at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2008, and Emmett Malloy’s The White Stripes Under Great White Northern Lights – filmed during the band’s tour across Canada in 2007 – premiered there last year.
Car-puccino
Many people drink coffee to wake themselves up in the morning or stay focussed throughout their day. But a team of scientists from BBC’s Bang Goes the Theory have taken the term “running on coffee” to another extreme: they have built a car that runs on coffee rather than gasoline.