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Montreal, News

CITY: Cessna lands on Parc

by Kayvon Afshari on

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Tam-tams participants quickly became eyewitnesses to a private Cessna airplane safely landing on Avenue du Parc near the George-Étienne Cartier monument at 4 p.m. Sunday. Bill Berenholc, 49, owner of the family-run Lester’s Deli, had asked the pilot to take him and his ten-year-old son, Sammy, flying above Montreal to get a bird’s eye view of the city and of the family deli. Engine failure soon turned the outing into a terrifying close-call.

“We lost power to our engine and we came down on Parc Avenue,” Berenholc said. “We had no choice; we were over downtown Montreal with big buildings. There was very little open space, this was it. We were just looking out to find a street to get down as fast as we can. There were cars on the road and people, but we got lucky and we even got the green light. How hard is it to get a green light on Parc!”

The two passengers and pilot suffered no injuries, and the Cessna, which hit a pole during its descent, managed to land while only suffering damage to the left wing. No pedestrians, bicyclists, or cars were hurt.

According to Robert Mansueto, officer of Media Relations with the Montreal Police Department, “[The police] weren’t advised ahead of time that it was going to land on Parc Avenue. Obviously if that was the case, we would have tried to stop traffic and advise pedestrians and cyclists in the area. As you know, there was Tam-tams going on and so there were a lot of people in the area.”

Eyewitnesses said that there was very light traffic during the landing and that the cars formed a ‘Y’ to avoid the oncoming plane.

“It’s a miracle that no one was hurt on the plane and on the ground,” Mansueto said. “It probably was the best case scenario for this type of event to happen.”

Berenholc’s daughter rushed to the scene after receiving a call from her distraught father.

“I came here as fast as I could because my dad’s voice was panicked and he said that ‘we had an emergency crash landing on Parc Avenue and we need a ride, come get us,” said Candice Berenholc, third-year Commerce student at Dawson College.

Upon arriving at the scene, the police closed off the area and had investigators from Transport Canada come to do an investigation to find out why the plane went down.

Jay Cochrane, a vendor at Tam-tams, was an eyewitness to the entire incident.

“Everyone from all over the mountain came running down to see what was going on,” Cochrane said. “The guy selling next to me ran down and grabbed onto the back wing of the plane to slow it down. He was just sort of pulling it down. Then he just came back up here and kept on selling after that.”

Geremi Vespa, second year Masters student in engineering, was with friends at Tam-tams when he witnessed the plane touch down.

“The plane was perfectly quiet when it landed,” said Vespa. “The pilot and everyone inside looked really calm. There was the smell of leaking gas in the air, but no one seemed to care.”

The pilot has worked for Aerogram, an aerial media company, and has flown banners for Berenholc’s family deli on special occasions.

“The pilot does most of the banner flying around Montreal,” Bill Berenholc said, “And he does some for Lester’s deli also, he flies our banners around for special events. I asked him to take us up one day and just show us what it’s like up there because I’ve never flown over Montreal.”

While reflecting over the situation, Bill Berenholc said, “All in all, I would say that it’s one of my luckiest days.”

Opinion

INFORMATIONATION: Ideas are cheap in the digital age

by Andrew Schaaf on

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There is one massive economic difference separating ideas from physical goods: The marginal cost of an idea is now zero. If I eat a sandwich, you cannot also eat it, but once an idea, an essay, a song or a better web browser comes around, it can be shared, from anyone and to everyone, network to network, at a negligible additional cost. As Thomas Jefferson put it, “He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me.”

In fact, rather than facing the Tragedy of the Commons, where farmers over-graze and wear down the shared physical pasture, we now have the Bounty of the Inverse Commons, in which the grass gets greener the more we graze: the more people use Wikipedia, the more people will actively contribute: The more people use open source software like OpenOffice and Firefox, the more active their user and developer communities become.Society benefits more than ever before from the ability to share, remix and collaborate, now that tools for virtually unlimited information transfer exist.

File sharing immensely benefits the public, and Wikipedia makes tangible to all of us the unexpected power of decentralized creativity on open work, which has been obvious to people in the open source software community for over a decade.

But resistance from entrenched interests is strong, reactionary and fearful of new technologies outside their control.

They have become shrill about their unbalanced interpretations of copyright. In the 80s, the Motion Picture Association of America’s president Jack Valenti told Congress that “the VCR is to the American film producer and the American public as the Boston Strangler is to the woman home alone.” Software companies’ attacks have called open source software “acancer.” And school campaigns have ranged from the old don’t copy that floppy campaign, to the blatant elementary school propaganda of Captain Copyright (captaincopyright.ca).

Their political lobbying has taken a large toll. At the outset of US copyright law, a work was restricted for as little as 14 years before becoming public domain. Thanks to lobbyists, the duration is now 95 years or 70 years after the author’s death. What possible additional incentive do the last 10 years of the copyright add? When starting to write a book, do you rely on what happens 60 years after your death? Yet classic worksare kept from the public domain almost indefinitely.

More significantly, the scope of copyright has increased. Originally it applied in practice only to published works. But in the computer age, every online interaction involves communicating information “in a tangible medium” and is thus under the control of copyright. Worse, particular laws like the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in the US and similar laws elsewhere have given copyright holders powers far beyond the basic nature of copyright. Rights holders are now allowed to censor security research on their products, artificially segregate world DVD markets and censor Web sites, creating chilling effects for everyone.

In the information age, and in finding the utilitarian balance of copyright, we have reasons to value openness, sharing and remixing more than ever before, not less. Industry lobbying has distorted the balance to an inefficient and amoral extreme.It’s up to us to reshape the debate and move to something more reasonable, something actually in the interest of our society. Copyright still has a role, just not the overly pervasive and restrictive one it has acquired. Let’s move to a proper balance, promote the ability to share and remix, and more fully unleash the power of decentralized creativity.

Student Life

JUMBO SHRIMP: University life and other oxymorons

by J.F. Kostruck on

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If Martha Stewart has taught me nothing else, it is to never apologize for a meal before you serve it. By all means, apologize as your guests are being carted off on stretchers by EMS, but not a moment before that lobster-lychee casserole hits the table.

Thankfully, Martha Stewart’s credibility is completely shot, and thus I unabashedly forgiveness culpa, dear reader. This article was intended to be a coming-of-age tale, one which inspired thousands, and warmed various cockles en masse. The subject was Frosh, and I planned to deliver a cautionary yet enlightening tale of all things alcoholic from the perspective of a person who has both been there and done that.

My literary delirium was abruptly shattered when I came to a startling realization: no one cared. Or, to be more specific, no one cared anymore.

Freshman frosh guides were a dime a dozen, and they were all remarkably homogenous. After all, there is only so much one can say about sex and liquor. Or is there? Perhaps one could put a humanizing spin on the idea by including a personal anecdote about one’s own Frosh.

Well, maybe not. The thought only came to me when I got sexiled by my roommate and had to spend the night in the common room. Perhaps instead, I could litter my column with pop culture references, in the hopes of disguising the ghastly unoriginal premise of the piece. Wait, no, South Park already did that about the Simpsons already doing that. The bottom line is, writing a freshman advice article in this day and age is akin to sleeping with Paris Hilton: You just don’t do it. And if you do, you don’t leave your real name at the end of the night.

The problem is not, by any means, lack of readership – quite the opposite. First-year students go to great lengths to educate themselves in all things Frosh. The well-researched freshman already knows to avoid the eggs in the dining hall and can erect an Ikea bookshelf in 60 seconds flat. University is a pro football game, and incoming freshmen know the playbook through and through even though they’re rookies.

With total disregard to future columnists scrambling for September ideas, our literary forefathers have covered every possible topic from move-in to mescaline. To even attempt to rewrite their sacred and scholarly scripture would be like Dan Brown writing the sequel to the Bible. It would be an artistic coup d’etat that has not been seen since Limp Bizkit covered The Who’s Behind Blue Eyes.

Maybe it is time for something fresh, something modern. The epoch of evolution is upon us, and with it must come innovative and enticing new articles directed at freshmen. There must be another way to open the academic year than with vaguely witty observations on the buffet of insanity that is Frosh. A literary renaissance is in order; one sculpted to cater to the tastes of the next wave of post-secondary students.

One revolutionary article is all it would take. Just don’t ask me to write it; I’m not a chef, I just play one on TV.

Opinion

UNCOMMONLY THOUGHTFUL: Distinctly Confused

by Jesse Chaser on

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My name is androgynous. Upon hearing it, you cannot tell if I am a boy or a girl. Some people say that they can tell if they know how it’s spelled: Jessie is a girl and Jesse is a boy. I doubt my parents meant to spell my name the “boy” way, but I sometimes wonder whether it was a Freudian slip; whether somehow, even then, they knew. Occasionally, I think it’s fate being cruel. At other times, I think it’s fate being kind. Either way, it has certainly been fortuitous.

Other gender variant people struggle with the name issue. Imagine showing up to a conference and having to respond to “Cassandra” when your outer appearance suggests that you’re more of a “Mark.” In this sense, I am undoubtedly lucky.For most of my life I have felt sorry for myself. Why couldn’t I just be normal? The truth is that the desire to be normal is really just the desire to be like everyone else. It is not so much a desire to be “normal” (whatever that may mean) as a desire to be common.

I find this desire to be ironic, especially at a place like McGill where everyone is trying to distinguish themselves. Awards and accolades are by definition distinctions. There is even a category of awards called “distinction.” You can graduate with distinction, or great distinction. This implies that the greater the distinction, the better. This is true as long as you are distinguishing yourself in the normal, nay, commonly accepted way.

There are many reasons why I feel sorry for myself. I do not fit in to society’s mould of either “man” or “woman.” I confuse others. I confuse myself. My parents aren’t sure what to make of me. They try to be kind. They try to understand – and I try to help them – but the truth is that I’m not sure what to make of myself. I have constantly struggled with what it means to be me and how I can show the world who I really am.

I no longer feel sorry for myself. I’m still confused, but I have accepted that maybe that’s the way things are supposed to be. Maybe everyone is confused. Maybe life is meant to be confusing. If so, then maybe realizing that you’re confused and having to deal with the fact that you don’t fit into a box brings you one step closer to really understanding the world. Or maybe I just tell myself that in order to cope.

I’m not trying to elicit pity. In many ways my life has been a good one: I’ve never had to worry about finding something to eat or how to pay tuition, I do not have any serious health problems, I have good parents and great friends. However, my struggle has allowed me to see and experience the world from a different vantage point. I do not claim to know everything, to have seen everything, or to have experienced everything – but during the coming months I hope to share with you my uncommon, if not unique, point of view.

McGill, News

CAMPUS: McGill to STOP laptop theft

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As more students choose to bring laptops to campus the opportunities for thieves to take them has increased. Last year over 120 laptops were reported stolen by students and unfortunately for laptop owners, the numbers are increasing.This is one reason why Security Services launched a new laptop tracking program for students in partnership with Connecticut-based Security Tracking of Office Property (STOP).

The program works by attaching a security plate with a tracking number to the top of the laptop. The security plate and accompanying warning label act as a deterrent to theft. The adhesive requires more than 800 pounds of force to remove, and if it is pried off leaves “Stolen Property” etched into the laptop casing, along with STOP’s phone number. The company claims that this makes the computer impossible to resell.

Having bought the equipment less than two weeks ago, Assistant Manager for Security Services Pierre Barbarie has already received a significant amount of positive feedback from students. As an incentive to get students to sign up for the service, Security Services will tag the first 500 laptops registered in the program for free. After that, students who wish to have their notebook tagged will be charged a one-time fee of $20.

“We were due to get a process like this,” said Barbarie. “Pawn shops aren’t going to buy laptops with these stickers.”

U0 Arts student Megan Stewart first learned about the new program during the Discover McGill street fair outside the Shatner building. “It would work really well,” she said as her new graduation present was being tagged. “It does look a bit ugly, but that’s okay. I made sure to put the red sticker on the bottom.”

The program itself costs between $6,000 and $7,000. However, Security Services stressed that the program was well worth the cost, which is roughly the equivalent of four or five laptops.Communications graduate student and laptop owner Dwayne Avery wasn’t fully aware of the new program, but thought it was a good idea.

“I’ve seen so many [personal] posters saying the thief could keep the laptop, but victims just wanted a copy of their documents.”

The sticker didn’t turn off Avery, who has friends who’ve lost their notebooks in previous years. “It’s not like computers are that aesthetically pleasing anyway.”

In addition to the new program, Security Services has also compiled a list of safety tips for notebook storage. Mostly common sense, the tips include locking your dormitory door, storing your laptop in a secure place and never leaving it in a parked car.

News

NATIONAL: Schools quit rankings

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Some of Canada’s largest research universities delivered a pointed message to the editors of Maclean’s magazine last month when they announced in an open letter that they would no longer assist the publication in preparing its annual university rankings issue.

The issue, popular with prospective students and their parents since its debut 15 years ago, has been controversial among top university officials. Principals and presidents have often complained about the magazine’s methodology and have had problems with its conclusions.

In their letter, the leaders of the 11 universities, including the Université de Montréal, University of British Columbia and top-ranked University of Toronto, cite the magazine’s reliance on surveys with low response rates, as well as its practice of lumping together diverse rankings to get a single rank, as reasons for their decision.

“Consider how such an approach might pervert one’s understanding of a general hospital that is ranked number one in obstetrics and number ten in cancer care,” the letter reads. “Averaging these rankings would result in this hospital being ranked number five overall.”

The letter goes on to point out that for a patient looking for care in just one of the areas, the ranking would be “useless at best, and misleading at worst.”

Last week, Concordia University joined Montreal neighbour U de M in withdrawing its cooperation with the ranking.

In an open letter published Aug 29 on Concordia’s Web site, the school acknowledged its participation in the rankings had benefited Maclean’s, but said “we maintain that the benefits to Concordia have been far less clear.”

Concordia Director of Institutional Planning Brad Tucker said that the university’s withdrawal would not make the eventual ranking less reflective of the university.

“They’ve never been reflective in the first place,” he said.

He also questioned the use of the Maclean’s issue as a recruiting device.

“Do we attract students? Our studies have shown our Web site to be far more a factor in recruitment than Maclean’s magazine.”

However, Tony Keller, the Maclean’s editor in charge of the ranking, disputes the universities’ reasons for withdrawing.

“They’re questioning the very idea of a ranking,” Keller said. “Universities engage in rankings all the time, always comparing themselves to other schools. They just don’t want journalists doing the ranking. They want to be the players and the referees.”

Keller has had lengthy conversations about the issue with most university presidents. He indicated that it is difficult to arrive at a consensus with so many schools making different and even contrary demands.

“It’s sort of like the federal government dealing with the premiers, except in this case we have 47 different universities with 47 different points of view.”

The schools boycotting Maclean’s also said the magazine was unresponsive to their suggestions and demands. Tucker indicated that Concordia has been involved in a cordial dialogue with the magazine about improving the methodology, but hasn’t seen any efforts on behalf of Maclean’s to make any serious adjustments.

Keller disagreed with Tucker’s characterization.

“It’s like they’re saying, ‘We want to negotiate with you about how you cover us,'” he said. “We’re journalists!”

Keller said that Maclean’s has made numerous changes over the years, incorporating many suggestions from post-secondary institutions. For example, they’ve introduced three new features at the request of various schools for the upcoming issue.

“[In the past] we never provided a score. The US News has always given you a score. We will now, and I believe it will be helpful for readers.”

The magazine is also introducing a graduate studies issue as well as an interactive section on its Web site where students can create personalized university rankings by taking into account factors that are most important to them.

McGill Deputy Provost Morton Mendelson indicated that the school will be participating in the rankings.

“We know there are problems with the methodology. We’ve been expressing them. However, there are problems with every kind of ranking.”

Mendelson pointed out that universities across the country take these rankings quite seriously. In fact, many schools go out of their way to improve on weak areas in efforts to boost their ranking.

“It’s important to be publicly accountable to our various constitutents,” he said.However, Mendelson admitted that the Maclean’s rankings are easy to take in stride because the university does well. Last year U of T and McGill tied for first place in the medical/doctoral category.

News

CAMPUS: Muslim students association still searching

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Students walking through campus will once again pass Muslim students praying in stairwells and on fields as the ongoing dispute between McGill and the Muslim Student Association over providing a prayer space drags into its second year.

The dispute began in May 2005 when the university declined to renew MSA’s lease on a prayer space in the basement of Peterson Hall. Muslim students were left with no dedicated prayer space on campus, though the university maintained that any student was welcome to use empty classrooms on campus for quiet reflection or prayer. MSA executives found this solution unacceptable, and last year protested numerous times in front of the James Administration building, even holding a sit-in in the principal’s office. However, a solution has yet to be found.

Over the summer months, a multi-faith prayer area was provided by the Students’ Society in room B-29 of the Shatner building. According to MSA President Ayaz Hyder, SSMU has been more helpful than the McGill administration.

“The impression we have gotten from [SSMU] is that they are very supportive and they are trying to work with us and meet with us to resolve this issue as soon as possible. The SSMU has been very helpful,” Hyder said.

Unfortunately, according to SSMU Vice-President Clubs and Services Floh Herra-Vega, SSMU will be unable to provide a more long-term solution by reserving B-29 as a prayer space during the year.

“Over the summer, Shatner is fairly empty,” she said. “We saw an option to give them a place to pray, but during the school year Shatner is booked to the max. It’s just crazy-busy, which is why we can’t provide space otherwise.”

Herra-Vega said she would like to see a permanent solution but added that it was not SSMU’s duty to provide a prayer space.

“We firmly believe that the university should be providing prayer space for students that is adequate for all sorts of religions, which currently isn’t available,” she said. “I think that it’s a university responsibility because it’s not just students but also faculty that would use it.”

In April, the MSA filed a complaint with the Quebec Human Rights Commission, hoping for a ruling that would affirm McGill’s responsibility to provide prayer space. In March, the HRC ruled on a similar case between Muslim students at Montréal’s École de technologie supérieure and that university’s administration. That decision held that ETS had a responsibility to accommodate the religious practices of its students.

“The root of the problem is that the university has not created enough rooms for student’s needs,” Hyder said. “Concordia was just given a prayer space that was furnished with carpets and ablution facilities and creative ways to incorporate men and women to be able to pray on a daily basis,” Hyder said.

He said the university has to cater to more than academic needs. “McGill does not spend enough or give the SSMU enough to allocate to us. The needs for students are not only academic, they also have their spiritual needs.”

While there has been no interaction between the MSA and the administration over the summer, the administration has argued that because of McGill’s role as a secular institution, it should not be required to provide space dedicated to accommodate students’ religious needs.

“I agree that students have many needs besides academic needs; it’s also a fact of life that the university cannot undertake to fulfill all of our students needs,” said Deputy Provost Morton Mendelson, “but we certainly can support students in areas of student life, and that is something that we tried to do in terms of helping the Muslim students find suitable space off campus for their prayer.”

Mendelson mentioned the Newman House, Hillel House and the Ismaili Students House as off-campus models that the MSA should aim for.

Hyder believes that this is not a feasible solution.

“Off-campus costs are extremely high,” Hyder said, ” and to ask students to go off campus and try to find a space is quite unethical.”

According to Hyder, the cost to buy, renovate and run a facility on Peel Street or University Street would be about $2.8-million.

Ayesha Yousuf, a Muslim student at McGill, has found the lack of a prayer space to be a frustrating reality.

“[Prayer] is such an important part of my daily schedule, and I feel like an outsider since McGill is so unaccommodating,” Yousuf said.

Nonetheless, Yousuf stressed her moderation.

“I understand McGill’s take on the issue, but it’s just that when I look at all of these other universities across Canada, none of them have this problem.”

Off the Board, Opinion

OFF THE BOARD: Vexed in the city

by Elizabeth Nieto on

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Sex and the City is the physical embodiment of everything that is wrong with the universe. Yes. I said everything. If you have not heard of Sex and the City, stop reading now; not because you won’t understand what is to follow, but because you are a filthy liar and I have no patience for you.

The series is about four women who are over 30 and *gasp* single in New York City. Sarah Jessica Parker plays a successful dating columnist named Carrie, who begins each show with reflections from her work, such as: “What is love? Do I love, love? What if love doesn’t love, love? God I love my Manolo shoes.” Luckily the show has ended, but, unfortunately, it was not because of waning popularity. You may not watch it, but your friends do. All of them. It’s like an STI, except easier to catch and more destructive to your womanhood.

Just because a show considers itself scandalous enough to use the term “sex” in the title certainly does not make it sexually liberating. When its core audience begs to differ, do not listen to them; they have been brainwashed by the show’s glossy people, shiny high heels and one too many of Carrie’s fluffy, pink tutu-dresses. Sex and the City is, indeed, the most treacherous offshoot of the so-called “female empowerment TV” genre: It follows the lives of four women who are independent and have their own economic means, parading themselves as progressive simply because they can have sex with whomever they want.

The series is “unique” (or, at least, uncommon) in that it does depict women enjoying sex. Unfortunately, that is its only value. And come on, four women who spend every moment together obsessing about shopping, marriage, men and babies? Oh, the stereotypes. In the end, Sex and the City is the exact opposite of everything it claims to be: sexually enlightened, feminist and heck, even intelligent.

In one noteworthy episode, the four women break into a “debate” about which of the past presidents of the United States they would most like to sleep with. Then, over the martinis and salads, Parker’s sugary voice suddenly emerges and perceptively points out the political nature of their conversation. Apparently, the mere mention of a president’s name makes the sentence intensely political (even if the words “against a wall” or “hunk-a-licious” follow), and obviously this is not to be expected from a discussion between four successful and educated women during their lunch break. I mean, women… talking politics? Inconceivable!

All else aside, if Carrie’s lessons from Sex and the City really do boast some semblance of insight into female life, then the series finale would have probably been the most telling. In the show’s final scenes-where Carrie is finally reunited with a certain someone-the audiences are inadvertently told that at the end of every dating dilemma and relationship gone wrong, all every girl ultimately needs to find herself is a man who is “Big” (if you know what I mean).

Editorial, Opinion

EDITORIAL: The Tribune: Under new management

by James Gotowiec on

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The beginnings are the hardest to write. It’s always about looking for a witty way to say what has been said before (basically: welcome back), and staring at a white screen with a slowly blinking cursor is no way to get inspired. Consulting the archives for advice from former editors doesn’t really work either-it makes you feel unoriginal. So instead you cast about for ideas, hoping they’ll turn up before your deadline hits. Such is the life of a newspaper editor.

To the outside observer, the start of school must be an interesting sight. One day Lower Field is empty except for pigeons, the next it’s filled with parents on the brink of tears, and the next only nervous-looking freshmen remain, along with a large inflatable jumping castle and far too many two-fours. Soon other students begin to trickle back, some fondly remembering their frosh week from the year before; others wishing they were first-years again, living a life free of the stress of GPAs and looming grad school applications. The clubs and services start up again, activities night comes and goes, and student life returns to something approximating normal just in time for exams to come along.

September, though it arrives too early, can be seen as something of a blessing in disguise. The first week of class is almost my favourite time of year-everyone’s relaxed, free of the stress of class, and you can have a drink or two or three at OAP (or your bar of choice) pretty much guilt-free. Before the leaves fall, the cold hits, and we seek refuge in the libraries studying for midterms and writing papers, we’re given four precious weeks to slowly get ourselves back into academic mode and get our bearings.

Over in Student Newspaperland (also known as our Shatner building office) the process is somewhat condensed. Arriving back on campus just a week before class, new editors have little time to get their bearings, instead facing trial by fire in an attempt to get the first issue out on time. Eager to learn and do well, they struggle through, so that you, our readers, can wander through these pages over the next week when you’re looking to pass the time.

For that we thank you. If it weren’t for you returning to the newsstand to pick up our issues week after week, then we wouldn’t have much reason to be here. When it comes down to it, we’re here to serve you and your interests.

In that spirit, we’ve made some changes to the paper over the summer. We’ve modified our masthead slightly and started using a new font in response to your comments. We’ve expanded our Editorial Board, adding an editor who will be responsible for the opinion section and will work with our columnists and guest columnists. And we’ve launched a new Web site, which we hope will eventually include polls and forums where you can share your thoughts on the stories and events we report on.

I invite you all to contribute to the Trib in some way this year. This is your newspaper as much as it is ours. Like our coverage? Don’t like our coverage? Write us a letter. We’ll print as many of them as we can fit. Want to see an event or story covered? Come in and talk to an editor, or send us an e-mail. Itching to let everyone on campus know about your point of view? Write a guest column.

All I ask for in return is your understanding. We will undoubtedly make mistakes. That’s not to say we want to, and we will try our best week after week to keep them to a minimum, but we’re learning too, and we’re only human.

Opinion

Letters to the Editor

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PrayerDo you sometimes look at your watch and don’t know what time it is?Do you sometime go to sleep, wake up thinking you’re somewhere but discover you’re somewhere else?Do you sometimes go to a room in your house and wonder why you went there?Do you sometime feel so helpless that you say to yourself “God help me,” regardless of what your religion is?I do too!I can go on with an exhaustive list of those little things that we have in common and define us as human beings…Does one have any right to decide the fate of others?We could go on and point out responsibles and blame them for the death of innocent people because it’s the easiest we can do, but would the problem be solved?Some of you blame Israelis or Arabs, others Islam or Judaism, others the CIA and the United States. Would this bring the innocent victims back to life?Many of you think “those are war casualties,” for me they’re human beings and I feel ashamed if that Arab little boy or that Israeli little girl asks me “Why did I die?”…Why did they die? Did they die for any reason at all? Was the “Cause” worth the blood they spilled?Almost 58 years and our people are still suffering. Now show me if you can tell little Mohammed and little Sarah if their blood helped for anything!Do you deserve Qatioshas? – no you don’t! But my people and my family members who have F-16s and Apaches flying over their beds do not deserve to die either.For what? For the personal egos of Olmert and Nasrallah, who think they’re saviors?Let’s send the slaughtered jewish and arab babies to them both and see what God they worship!That’s enough! We’re tired of their flying gadgets, we’re tired of their stupid politics and beliefs!We have grown-ups with a 12-year-old-child’s slang fighting their own war by sending other people’s children to die!That’s enough! I want Sarah as much as Mohammed to live the life they are meant to have!Shed your tears people, shed your tears to this human cruelty instead of encouraging this party or that to keep fighting!Let’s mourn these innocent people who are dying by hundreds but are not seen because of our media!Whichever God you worship, no religion tells you to kill and to those who do not concur, go read the books!My sympathy to all the victims and I urge every single one of you who still has some compassion to read these lines in the name of all the victims who died asking “Why?!”:”We are sorry for the pain the human cruelty imposed on you.We are sorry for the blood you shed for the weakness of our governors.You do not deserve to die and for that we cannot but cry.Your names will be remembered and your souls never forgotten.Were you a Sarah or a Mohammed, we shall weep you equally as your lives were equally important.Peace to all of us…”

Dory A.AzarAlumnus, Computer Engineering

McGill’s fundraising effortsEric Alper (“Mo’ money, no problems,” 4.4.06) is absolutely right that McGill’s fundraising strategy is extremely weak. As a thriving McGill alum, all I get is cards in the mail saying vaguely that “McGill Would Not Be the Same Without You” and a call to give some money. I’d be happy to donate, but these mailings are so faceless and disconnected from reality they are rather depressing. McGill alumni are loyal and in many cases quite successful. There’s no need to be bashful about asking for substantial donations-the administration just needs fundraising savvy, and if the buildings are still crumbling like they were when I was a student, it’s a shame McGill hasn’t learned to leverage the power of the alumni to improve the state of affairs.

Christopher AllenB.Eng ’98

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