Latest News

a, News, SSMU

SSMU finances jeopardized by University Centre Fee referendum failure

by Sam Pinto on

More in a:

The failure of the University Centre Building Fee question in the Winter referendum could lead to drastic cuts to the services provided by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU).

The proposed fee would have cost $6.08 for full-time students and $3.04 for part-time students per semester and was intended to cover the cost of rent and utilities for the SSMU Building under the new lease agreement between SSMU and McGill.

Results released by Elections SSMU on March 21 show that 53.6 per cent of students voted against the first part of this two-part question and 60.8 per cent against the second part, which would have indexed the fee for inflation.

“This is catastrophic for SSMU,” Vice-President Finance and Operations Tyler Hofmeister said. “This is going to mean a huge reduction in the services the SSMU is able to provide and jeopardize our sustainability in the long term.”

According to Vice-President University Affairs Joey Shea, the budget cuts needed to meet this lack of funding could run up to $200,000.

“We ran a $90,000 deficit this year because we couldn’t afford to pay what was thought [would be] the fees if we were to have signed the lease,” Shea said. “Next year, it’s another $200,000 more […] so it’s $300,000 worth of services that will be cut from students.”

Services that may face cuts include Gerts, the Student-Run Café, the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students’ Society (SACOMSS), and the McGill Student Emergency Response Team (M-SERT), according to Shea.

One option for SSMU is to hold a special referendum period before the end of classes, putting the same question to the vote again. However, unless the bylaws are amended at Council on Thursday, there will not be enough time in the remainder of the school year to do so.

“Currently there isn’t enough time based on the guidelines set out by the bylaws,” said Chief Electoral Officer Ben Fung. “That being said, the bylaws can still change.”

Hofmeister said SSMU had already begun to take precautions in case funding for the lease could not be secured before the end of the academic year.

“I’ve been in talks with many of the services, creating their budgets for the new fiscal year, with many services relying on the SSMU lease fee,” he said. “I’ll likely have to make two budgets; one in the case that we can pass a special referendum and one if we can’t.”

SSMU President Katie Larson said students did not do their part to understand the stakes of the referendum question.

“People clearly didn’t read the context of the question,” she said. “They don’t understand that we had to pass it because we now have to pay that much more money, and we don’t have that money coming in.”

However, students have criticized the SSMU executive for not explaining the reasoning and importance of such a fee. Kylar Daigle, U0 Arts, said he was confused about the question because it was not clearly explained on the ballot.

“I think the referendum poorly expressed what the consequences of this vote could be,” Daigle said. “I am certain that specification or more emphasis on the “cut services” would have changed the outcome. Surely the student population is willing to pay a mere $12—relatively nothing next to their tuition costs—to avoid losing Gerts and various student clubs and programs.”

The phrasing of the question does not specify what services would be affected or the consequences of a “No” vote.

“Without this fee, the SSMU would have to cut services to students in order to afford rent and utilities payments to McGill,” the preamble reads.

In addition, there was no “Yes” committee formed to campaign and raise awareness of the question. Shea acknowledged that SSMU had not done enough throughout the referendum period to inform students.

“I think we didn’t make it clear enough to students how necessary this fee was, which was obviously the fault of myself and Katie [Larson],” she said.

Larson said she hopes students will reconsider their vote in a special referendum for the question.

In order to hold a special referendum, a motion must be submitted to the council steering committee, and then pass by majority in Council.

Ben Reedijk, a member of the steering committee, confirmed that a motion to hold a special referendum had been submitted Monday.

Larson stressed the necessity of passing the motion.

“We literally can’t wait,” Larson said. “We have to pay it this year—it’s not an option.”

a, News, PGSS

New PGSS executive to tackle case against Canadian Federation of Students

by Mayaz Alam on

More in a:

Uncontested candidate Juan Camilo Pinto was elected as secretary-general for the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) last Friday with 61.3 per cent of the vote.

The remaining six executives for the 2014-15 academic year will be Jennifer Murray, Julien Ouellet, Nikki Meadows, Ge Sa, and Brighita Lungu.

Five of the six executive positions were uncontested. The only contested position was academic affairs officer, where Murray ousted competitor Behrang Sharif with 76.18 per cent of the vote.

Murray attributed her victory to her platform and campaign strategies.

“I tried to raise awareness about my campaign [and] tried to be clear about my platform,” Murray said. “One of the first things I did before running was [making] sure that I understood student needs […] and what they wanted to do in the future.”

Given the number of positions that were unopposed, many of the executives had the opportunity to work with each other prior to their election. According to Pinto, they were able to forge bonds and recognize each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

“They’re all very competent, they all have impressive CVs and they have been involved with the [PGSS] for a very long time,” Pinto said. “I think they’re awesome, they’re intelligent, and they’re hard-working. I’ve already talked to them about how we’re all going to manage our resources and projects.”

Incoming Internal Affairs Officer, Sa, expressed excitement at the official results.

“I didn’t know some of the members of our slate before this election but we have grown to understand each other a lot more,” Sa said. “We’ve already began working together and we will continue to work with each other until June when we take office. We’ll continue to work together as a team.”

Many of the new executives cited their primary concern as the looming legal battle with the Canadian Federation for Students (CFS), an organization that the PGSS has been trying to leave for the past seven years but has been unable to exit despite a successful referendum. For Meadows, the next financial affairs officer, the ability to move past the CFS will allow her to readjust the budget to better cater toward student interests.

“It’s such a huge drain of our resources, and if we can get out of it we will have so many more opportunities,” Meadows said. “It’ll really broaden my portfolio because there will be less money going to a specific place.”

Incoming External Affairs Officer Ouellet said his goal will be to lobby both the provincial and federal Government for assistance in the CFS case.

“I have a plan as to how I want to start the lobbying process […] but in the next year or the next two years we are going to see a major breakthrough in that case,” Ouellet said. “It’s clear that the CFS has a very weak case against us.”

Saturday also marked the end of the PGSS Winter 2014 referendum period. Members voted against an increase of the PGSS membership fee, as well as against both the McGill Athletics Building Fund and the Graduate Fee Application fee.

The Midnight Kitchen Fee Levy passed with 61.21 per cent of the vote. Students also voted to increase the PGSS grants program fee, decrease the Needs-Based Bursary fee, and renew the PGSS Health and Dental Plan for the next three years.

a, News, SSMU

Khan wins SSMU presidency by 78 votes

by Natalie Wong on

More in a:

A mere 78 votes decided the winner of the presidency for the 2014-15 Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executive in results released Friday at Gerts.

Tariq Khan, U3 Engineering, was elected as SSMU president with 29.8 per cent of the vote, beating out runner-up Courtney Ayukawa.

Other members of the 2014-2015 SSMU executive team will include Claire Stewart-Kanigan, Stefan Fong, Kathleen Bradley, Amina Moustaqim-Barrette, and J. Daniel Chaim.

Tariq Khan elected as new president

As SSMU president, Khan said he is determined to build strong connections in the coming months.

“Winning these elections is a very small part of [gaining respect],” he said. “[The important thing is] winning the representation, and winning the heart—I know I have to earn a lot of trust. I need to work with you all and I look forward to that.”

Khan explained that his upcoming goals as SSMU president would include increasing a sense of cohesion among SSMU members.

“The first step is uniting the team and that will be a big challenge,” he said. “The long-term goal will be earning the trust back from students [….] We will advocate for accountability, and I will start off [with] myself.”

SSMU Clubs Representative Billy Liu said he was looking forward to see what next year’s executives, including Khan, would bring forward.

“I’m interested in seeing how sustainability will be incorporated into [Khan’s] portfolio,” Liu said. “For example, what steps he has planned in sustainability, like specific events, forums, etc., or whether he will hold consultations with other campus groups.”

Elections SSMU issued a public censure on Khan the morning of the last day of voting, which stated that Khan had disregarded the bylaws by asking a non-campaign committee member to send unsolicited text messages to the public.

Khan denied the accusation.

“I was not informed before the censure happened,” Khan said. “I think I should have been consulted and given a chance to represent myself [….] I consulted my campaign manager and he assured me that something from our campaign team did not happen [.…] We will be investigating the entire thing.”

Elections SSMU Chief Electoral Officer Ben Fung said a censure would not affect a candidate after they have won unless there is definitive evidence that the elections were skewed in their favour.

 Other candidates

In the race for vice-president clubs and services, incumbent Stefan Fong received 56.1 per cent of the vote, while his opponent Sandhya Sabapathy received 43.9 per cent. Amina Moustaqim-Barrette defeated opponent Enbal Singer for the position of vice-president external with 60.2 per cent of the votes.

Three uncontested candidates were also elected—Claire Stewart-Kanigan as vice-president university affairs, Kathleen Bradley as vice-president finances and operations, and J. Daniel Chaim as vice-president internal.

 Increase in voter turnout

According to Fung, voter turnout this elections period was impressive in comparison with last year—29.1 per cent in 2013 versus 31.4 per cent this year.

“That’s almost 500 more people,” he said. “Our job as Elections SSMU is to make sure that it’s a fair and equal election, and [to] get as many people to vote as possible [.…] I think we did our best to ensure that both of those things happened.”

Fung also described Elections SSMU’s goals to improve future elections.

“We’re looking into expanding the number of events that are going to happen,” he said. “We’re also going to try to rearrange the voting period and polling period in a way that gives the candidates more time to campaign before the polling period starts.”

 Referendum questions

Students voted in favour of all referendum questions except for the implementation of the University Centre Building Fee.

Questions that passed included those regarding the SSMU First-Year Council Fee, the Organic Campus Fee, disaffiliation from TaCEQ, the Legal Information Clinic at McGill Fee, the Athletics and Recreation Facilities Improvement Fee, the SSMU Access Bursary Fund, the SSMU Ambassador Fund, the SSMU Campus Life Fund, and the SSMU Library Improvement Fund.

 

a, News, SSMU

SSMU rescinds decision mandating Farnan apology

by Sara Cullen on

More in a:

SSMU Council has rescinded its decision to mandate Vice-President Internal Brian Farnan to issue a public apology for an Obama .GIF included in a listserv.

The previous decision, which the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council made in a confidential session on Dec. 5, was revoked by Council last Thursday. Farnan’s apology provoked widespread debate about equity and the decision-making process in SSMU.

Élie Lubendo, Services Representative and mover of the motion explained the background to the motion.

“I feel that we need to realize that we made a mistake, then move on from there,” Lubendo said. “Then we need to start educating students [….] and start rebuilding with equity.”

David Benrimoh, medicine representative, voiced concern that rescinding the apology would negatively affect those who brought about the complaint.

“[We] are going to be sending a message to those who did feel marginalized and oppressed by the .GIF that […] public opinion rules the equity process and that there is no real protection for them,” he said.

Lubendo said the issue lay in the form of a public apology and not in the microaggression itself. He said that Farnan’s apology was a poor example for the undergraduate student body and created more negative public backlash than the initial use of the Obama .GIF.

Delane Efua Boakye, an executive of the Black Students’ Network (BSN) spoke in favour of the motion and related the student backlash to the public opinion of the SSMU-funded BSN. Although the BSN did not take part in the complaint filed against Farnan, some students wrongly blamed the BSN for the controversy.

“We often deal with the tension of ‘Why does the BSN exist?, ‘Why do we need a BSN?’”she said. “When we have issues like this, it further delegitimizes our organization because people feel that we’re looking for something to do, [that] we’re raising complaints for the sake of doing it.”

Boakye said the motion would attempt to counter the issues created by the apology.

“[There is a] line between offering an apology to an individual who was hurt and offering a public apology,” Boakye said. “[The public apology] decreased our credibility […] and we are a part of SSMU.”

The motion to rescind the apology passed.

Council also voted in favour of a motion that will require the Equity Complaints Investigation Committee (ECIC) to prepare a written explanation of their recommendation that mandated Farnan to publicly apologize.

Lubendo, one of the movers of the motion, gave an overview of the motion and highlighted its importance.

“[They] should be able to know what the background is and how [the ECIC has] come to the conclusion that they have,” he said.

SSMU President Katie Larson also spoke in favour of the motion.

“I think any way that we can encourage governance transparency, especially when we demand it so often in university, is a good example to set among ourselves of asking for explanations when we are not clear,” Larson said.

The motion also mandates that explanations of such nature become a part of the equity procedure in the future.

a, Basketball, Sports

March Madness Preview

on

More in a:

Cinderella Teams

 

Mercer Bears

We all know that scoring points leads to winning basketball games, and, dare I say, sudden-death basketball tournaments. If you’re searching for an unknown sleeper even trendier than the fountain pen you’re using to fill out your bracket, look no further than the Mercer Bears, one of seven teams in Division 1 to feature three 1,000-point scorers That’s a lot of points. The headliner is sophomore guard Jibri Bryan, who has the potential to be a deadly weapon for the Bears if his name is pronounced at all like Jabari.

After completing a ritualistic slaying of last year’s Cinderella team, Florida Gulf Coast University (AKA “Dunk City”) last Sunday, the Bears sacrificed freshman James Bento to the March Madness gods to secure their blessings for the tournament. Watch out for this team to make a push for the Elite Eight.

 — Elie Waitzer

Manhattan Jaspers

Manhattan last made the tournament 10 years ago, upsetting fifth seed Florida before bowing out in the second round. This year’s team is a tough, physical group with plenty of experience, and has drawn comparisons to Woody Allen’s classic film of the same name. Senior George Beamon plays a high-strung, anxious brand of basketball that would be complemented perfectly by Diane Keaton, were she about a foot taller. Coach Steve Masiello, taking Allen’s lead, has previously said that having strong characters is the key to the team’s success. Though often overshadowed by fellow New York mid-major Annie Hall University, this team shouldn’t be taken lightly. Don’t be surprised if Rhapsody in Blue is playing in AT&T Stadium as this year’s tournament comes to a close.

 —Wyatt Fine-Gagé

Eastern Kentucky Colonels

Don’t sleep on the Eastern Kentucky Colonels, as the least well-known squad from the bluegrass state can make it rain from deep. They enter the tournament as the second best three-point shooting team, averaging 9.2 makes per game. The Colonels live and die by the three-ball, so if it is falling, a scoring outburst may just turn into an upset win. They face an ailing Kansas team, which is 2-3 without its star centre Joel Embiid. Expect senior guard Glenn Cosey to wreak havoc in the tournament. With the right opponents, the Colonels could quickly find themselves becoming the nation’s Cinderella story.

— Aaron Rose

Harvard Crimson

It’s time for the revenge of the nerds in this year’s rendition of March Madness. The Harvard Crimson—yes, that Harvard, America’s McGill. After Head Coach Tommy Amaker came to town and began selling potential recruits on the benefits of becoming a student-athlete at Harvard, the fortune of the men’s basketball program has turned around. The Crimson are seeded 12th in the East Region, and face a tough Cincinnati squad that won its regular season conference crown. But this isn’t your parents’ Harvard. Well, it is in the classroom; but on the court this is a talented, experienced, and determined team that is no stranger to upsetting higher-seeded opponents—the Crimson knocked out no. 3 seed New Mexico in last year’s big dance.

— Mayaz Alam

St. Joseph’s Hawks

It was 2004 when the St. Joseph’s Hawks earned a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. That team was laden with talent, led by future NBA stars—well, also-rans—Jameer Nelson and Delonte West. This year’s squad is certainly lesser-known, but has the makings to do even more damage in March. One part of the program hasn’t changed: Head Coach Phil Martelli, who will draw upon previous tournament experience to motivate his players. Fresh off the Atlantic-10 title and featuring a dominant “Big 3” in seniors Langston Galloway, Ronald Roberts Jr., and Halil Kanacevic, don’t be surprised when the Hawks are dancing in the deeper rounds. Make Jameer and Delonte proud, team!

 — Steven Lampert

a, Arts & Entertainment

Wrapping up MOSAICA McGill’s milestone year

by Kia Pouliot on

More in a:

Speaking with MOSAICA McGill coordinators and dancers Alexandra Phillips and Nicole Aarssen just before the opening night of their end-of-year show last Thursday, I get a little glimpse into what it’s like to be a part of an entirely student-run dance group. This year’s finale show is called R: Three Decades of Dance, alluding to the company’s 30th anniversary, which makes it one of the oldest arts groups on campus.

Encompassing everything from ballet to hip-hop, Thursday’s performances certainly don’t disappoint, displaying the range of impressive talent that is MOSAICA McGill’s 19 dancers. As Aarssen shares excitedly, the group’s versatility is seen as one of its strengths.

“We really pride ourselves on being diverse,” she says. “Like you’ll see tonight, we have a point ballet dance, a hip-hop dance, a tap dance, a jazz dance, and a lyrical dance all in the same show, so that’s pretty cool.”

It goes as no surprise that these dedicated dancers devote a great many hours to their craft. On a basic weekend, they rehearse between 8-10 hours; though, as Phillips explains, when they are close to a performance MOSAICA pretty much takes over their lives.

“This week was crazy,” Phillips says. “We were rehearsing all day Sunday, Monday night, all day Wednesday, and all day today […] It’s definitely a huge time commitment but we all love it.”

Both Aarsen and Phillips explain that the group does many non-MOSAICA social activities together, but they also make a point of fostering closeness while they work.

“We start each company rehearsal with a circle, where we sit down and just sort of chat for a bit, tell everyone what’s going on” says Aarssen. “It’s a nice sort of ‘What happened in your week’ moment before we get to work.”

Although the end of year performance is MOSAICA’s main focus—they begin working on it as soon as school starts in September—they also have a number of smaller performances throughout the year such as the CASCO charity show that raises money for The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Phillips also mentions MOSAICA’s Gert’s nights, the last of which takes place on April 3.

“We do mini dances throughout the night; it gives people the chance to get to know us and it’s pretty casual, a lot more laid back,” she says.

Not only do the members of MOSAICA sport exceptional talent as dancers, they also get to try their hand at choreography.

“Each number you see MOSAICA perform is a member’s piece,” explains Phillips. “They get to choose the music, who’s in their dance, what costumes they wear and what kind of style they do. They are completely in charge of it. A lot of us only choreographed for the first time when we came to MOSAICA. […] Most of us came from very competitive strict backgrounds where you have very little say, [and] there’s a lot of hierarchy. We’re really all on equal ground here, so I feel like a lot of people grow when they’re in MOSAICA.”

For any dancers at McGill looking to join MOSAICA’s vibrant community, Phillip’s has some advice.

“We look for someone who may not be the best, but someone who has style and looks like they could grow into [more advanced dancing],” she says. “We’re looking for someone who is very open to trying all sorts of things”

And to anyone whose first audition was not successful, Aarssen has some words of encouragement.

“Keep coming back!” she exclaims. “It changes from year to year who we can take, and it’s always great to see people come out [….] We’re always looking for fresh faces.

 

MOSAICA’s Gert’s night is on Thursday, April 3. Admission is $3 at the door.

a, News, PGSS

PGSS predicts surplus for academic year, votes to retain exec titles

by Catherine-Laure Juste on

More in a:

Last Wednesday, the Post-Graduate Students’ Society of McGill University (PGSS) Council voted  changing the titles of two executive positions.

A motion presented at Council proposed changing “secretary general” to “president” and “financial affairs officer” to “chancellor of the exchequer.”

Councillor Juan Camilo Pinto, mover of the motion, explained that the changes would more accurately reflect their corresponding roles.

“[For] financial affairs officers […] there are a lot of people asking [about] the responsibility of the title,” Pinto said. “After researching a bit, we found that Chancellor of the Exchequer fits quite well with the title and the responsibilities.”

Member Services Officer [MSO] Elizabeth Cawley questioned the efficiency of the name change, citing the decision to change the secretary position to secretary-general two years ago.

“I have personally witnessed all the emails and information that have been missed in our previous name change from secretary to secretary- general or [in] the creation of MSO,” she said.

According to Cawley, a name change is very time consuming because it takes time for the university to adapt to the change. For instance, there would be difficulties from the need to adjust the executives’ emails, which reflect their current titles.

“We have finally figured things out,” Cawley said. “Let’s leave things the same for efficiency’s sake.”

Language of governing documents

PGSS Also held its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday. One motion passed at the meeting requires that all governing documents of the PGSS except contracts be made available in English and French.

In case of future conflict, the original language document will take precedence, while in the case of bilingually drafted documents, the English language document will take precedence.

Regarding the financial impact of the motion, Secretary-General Jonathan Mooney explained that PGSS currently has a translator who has been working on existing governing documents and will soon be available to work on any new documents that may require translation.

“It is really a matter of switching what he is spending his time on to things that are permanent from things that come up periodically,” Mooney said. “I don’t think it will affect our budget.”

Motion to expand the purpose of the corporation is tabled

PGSS members at the general meeting also tabled a motion to amend bylaws to expand the purpose of the PGSS to support students’ right to freedom of association in light of the ongoing Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) court case.

Mooney argued in favour of the motion.

“It is our purpose as a corporation to promote freedom of association, and we want to work with all the student associations across Canada to make sure that they have the right to choose whom they want to affiliate with,” he said.

Economics Graduate Student Association (EGSA) Representative Guillaume Lord expressed his concern about mandating freedom of association as one of PGSS’s purposes. Lord said this is a goal for a political organization rather than a student association.

“If you look at the purposes of the corporation as they are now, they are all about the members—advocacy for the members, promoting collegiality among members,” Lord said. “This is much broader [….It] sounds like the goal of a purely political association or a lobby group.”

The motion was tabled for future discussion at a date that has yet to be determined.

Annual report predicts surplus for 2013-2014 year

As Chair of the PGSS Board of Directors, Mooney presented a report on the financial state of Thomson House.

“A couple years ago, we were making about break-even, maybe a small surplus, but we got a lot of complaints from the people about the quality of services they were receiving,” he said.

According to Mooney, PGSS faced a deficit as a result of measures taken to improve the quality of PGSS services. However, after improvements were finished, the deficit decreased as more students frequented Thomson House, thereby increasing revenue.

“We upgraded the kitchen equipment and we made some changes to ensure that people would actually enjoy the experience here and like to come to Thomson House to eat,” Mooney said. “The revenues went up, so people are making more use of Thomson House. We changed the way we do service standards and the way we do service staffing. We have much more revenue than before, and we are on the road to make a surplus.”

a, Opinion

Some of us are wrong: why we need a culture of debate

by Eric Tweel on

More in a:

Relativism is one of the biggest threats to academic rigour in the humanities.

Institutions such as the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) and the McGill Daily, with their commitment to this dangerous brand of relativism—the concept that truth and morality are not absolute—validate the deep worries about educational trends  professor Allan Bloom expressed in his seminal work, The Closing of the American Mind. Bloom’s arguments were originally presented within an American context, but today, they apply to McGill as much as any university in the U.S.

Bloom’s specific concern, the absence of the seminal texts of the Western canon in university reading lists, does not apply to McGill—the ‘Great Books’ are studied here. Yet, Bloom’s perceptive understanding of the process by which the ‘openness’ espoused by relativism leads to the ‘closing’ of meaningless discourse strikes at the core of what is wrong with the debate of ideas at McGill: Opinions are sacred, and knowledge is arrogance. Seeking to promote tolerance, students avoid challenging the views of others completely. Thus, the cultivation of fruitful dialogue, which comprises the real value of diversity, is lost.  People’s ideas about the world are all considered equal, and derive their sole worth from having been chosen by their holder. If it’s my idea, it’s alright for me.

There is a widespread failure to distinguish between showing sympathy towards the ideas of others and blindly accepting them as equally valid as one’s own. The possibility of another person’s ideas being less valid, or, importantly, more valid, is absent in the consciousness of students today, and this absence of a belief in objective truth ruins campus politics and academic discourse. Its effect is particularly striking in the humanities, which are perceived as less capable of achieving objectivity.

This issue runs throughout contemporary society. Carlos Fraenkel, an associate professor of philosophy and Jewish studies at McGill, spoke to the importance of intellectual engagement in his Sept. 2, 2012 New York Times op-ed, “In Praise of the Clash of Cultures.” Fraenkel noted that “the privatization of moral, religious, and philosophical views in liberal democracies and the cultural relativism that often underlies Western multicultural agendas” pose serious threats to the culture of debate we ought to promote. Although the problem of extreme relativism is widespread, it is particularly pronounced here at McGill.

“Objectivity is dead,” or so the front cover of the Feb. 24 edition of the McGill Daily would have you believe. Any student who would deny the dominance of thoughtless relativism on campus need only refer to that edition’s feature article, “Unmasking Objectivity,” a disgusting progression of unjustified claims and an unsurprisingly selective collection of quotations. The self-referential article was prompted by a complaint about the Daily’s journalistic standards. In the Daily’s defence, the author presents a rambling and paradoxical assertion that objectivity is somehow bias towards those in power, because, as the piece assumes without substantiation, everything is ultimately subjective. Indeed, even the professions of those quoted were taken to be subjective aspects of reality; a Mr. Stefan Christoff is introduced as someone who “identifies as both a community activist and journalist” (emphasis mine). In some sense, their insistence on relativisim is fair; Objectivity is dead, but only at the Daily.

Moreover, the prevalent hostility to epistemic certainty creates a moral vacuum into which specific and often unsavoury moral agendas can enter. Hence SSMU has claimed for itself the institutional authority to force VP Internal Brian Farnan to make a public apology for emailing a harmless and funny GIF image to his fellow students., and hence, feminism and gender issues are given an exclusive spotlight in the moral program pushed by McGill Residences, Rez Project. It is not enough to attribute these cases to the general political apathy of university students, as is often done. Those who are involved in student politics have always been in the minority—the question is what accounts for the character of those in power now.

Only once we start taking each other seriously can we make any progress. Rather than being contrary to the liberal spirit, a recognition that not all ideas or values are created equal is conducive to productive debate. The basic acknowledgement that some ideas are true and some are false is a requirement for genuine intellectual activity. This is especially important for the functioning of the humanities, which lose their essential value when they degenerate into an undifferentiated chaos of opinion. To aspire to anything less is to succumb to intellectual laziness.

a, McGill, News

Osler library to close for six months due to renovations

by Natalie Wong on

More in a:

The Osler Library’s rare and circulating collections will be unavailable for six months beginning in April, due to a major renovation project for the McIntyre Medical Building.

According to Marilena Cafaro, building director of the Faculty of Medicine, the renovation program consists of two projects—the updating of the  heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems on  floors one to six of the McIntyre Building, as well as construction to the roof on the McIntyre terrace—both of which affect the Osler library.

Christopher Lyons, Head Librarian of the Osler Library, said plans for the renovations began just over a year ago. He emphasized the need for the renovations.

“Roofs are always an issue with rare books and special collections,” Lyons said. “[Our roofs] are over 20 years old [….] There are drainage pipes under the roofs, so you need to drain the water otherwise you end up with bad leaks [….] The pipes themselves are almost 50 years old. They haven’t leaked yet, but you never know.”

According to Lyons, the drainage pipes will be replaced and upgraded to stainless steel.

Between April and October 2014, the Osler Library’s collections will be mostly inaccessible, although circulating materials loaned before April 1 can be held throughout the duration of the renovations.

Additionally, rare materials requiring special conditions for storage can be accessed through the Rare Collections Library in McLennan if requested before renovations begin. Otherwise, they will be transported to a secure storage area.

Lyons said that despite the inaccessibility of the collection, library staff would be available to assist with supplementing materials throughout the months.

“All McGill users can get books through interlibrary loans for free, so we should be able to get anything that is in the Osler circulating collection (and more) from other libraries,” he said. “There is also a great deal of material that is available online, including the medical journals and historical ones […] as well as a growing number of scholarly eBooks.”

David Benrimoh, Medicine representative at the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), noted that the repairs would have minimal effect on students.

“The move is a necessity for the HVAC repairs,” Benrimoh said. “The average student might make more use of the general Osler collection, but I don’t think the rare books will really affect the [medical] students […] They’re not directly in use in the curriculum everyday.”

Lyons said he is optimistic that the changes would pose few problems for students.

“For the few students who may be doing in depth medical projects who need those books, maybe it’ll affect them, but since they will be able to request the books ahead of time, I don’t think it will affect the average student at all,” he said.

Tessa Battistin, U1 Arts student and frequent user of Osler, agreed with Lyons, saying that she was open to the changes facing the library in upcoming months.

“Although it’s inconvenient, I appreciate everything McGill is doing to make the material available if we need [it],” she said. “I don’t really see any potential problems based on the services McGill and Osler is offering.”

The Life Sciences Library on the third floor of the McIntyre Building will remain accessible.

a, Opinion

EUS Student Space Fund debate

by Alexander Dow and Morgan Grobin on

More in a:

During the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) referendum period, which runs from March 24 to 28, Engineering students will be asked to vote on a referendum question that seeks to create a $15 per semester ($7.50 for part-time students) opt-outable fee for a Student Space Fund (SSF). The SSF would exist to improve, maintain, and create EUS space through capital expenditures, and to ensure that students who pay into the fund have a say in the use, maintenance, and future of space improved by the fund. The proposed bylaws can be viewed online on the EUS’ website. 

Vote Yes

Enrolment in Engineering has risen by over 50 per cent in the last decade, meaning that the EUS is representing and providing services to almost 1,000 more students than before. Without the SSF, the EUS will  not be capable of sustaining services at a rate that matches the current student enrolment.

For instance, initial income generated from the SSF could go towards the Engineering Design Teams. Their workspace is being renovated to bring it up to critical fire code and safety requirements, an initiative that has already depleted all of the existing EUS funds available for long-term projects.  By implementing new revenue resources, students will no longer need to depend on unpredictable surpluses of the EUS operating budget to fund large improvements to student space.

Furthermore, the fee will allow the initiation of other important five-year projects, which we—as current U0 and U1—students will see come to fruition. In particular, engineering students desperately require more room as our space is among the smallest of Engineering societies in Canada. Blues Pub on Fridays is over capacity, and departmental lounges are too small to fit Council meetings; the SSF could be the solution to these issues.

This fund is a concerted effort to look out for the long-term interests of the society. Not only do groups such as Engineers Without Borders, design teams, and departmental councils stand to gain from the fund, individual students will get more of what is probably the most undervalued thing on campus: space.

—Alexander Dow,  member of the “Yes” committee and EUS Junior Council VP Communications, U0 General Engineering

Vote No

There are many fundamental issues with this referendum question. First, the proposed bylaws are far too vague, leaving this fund open to be used for practically anything. This includes (as per Article 5.1): “Capital improvements to […] student space, […] emergency funding, and new initiatives […].” For a fund that exists to “improve, maintain, and create engineering undergraduate student space,” there is no apparent requirement that the money actually be spent on space at all; it may be spent on undefined ‘emergencies’ or even ‘new initiatives.’ It’s possible this fund will be depleted before a penny of it is used to fund student space.

Second, students are being asked to pay a fee that will not solve the underlying problem. The scarcity of useable student space at McGill is an important issue, but unfortunately, we are hemmed in by the constrained geography of downtown Montreal. Throwing money at a problem that is inherent to all McGill faculties and student societies will not fix it, as there is no way to purchase space that doesn’t exist in the first place.

Finally, we don’t need this fee. Money for space renovation has been coming out of the EUS operating budget for years, such as funding the recent renovations to both the Nook and the Common Room, with no impact on the services provided by the EUS. As funding for EUS projects comes from multiple sources, including OAP, Copi-EUS and major sponsorship deals, it seems reasonable that the esxecutive committee just plan more intelligently to take money out of future operating budgets for renovation projects.

 —Morgan Grobin, Chair of the “No” committee U2 Electrical Engineering

1 … 935 936 937 938 939 … 1,363

Read the latest issue

Read the latest issue