NFB documentary Pink Ribbons, Inc. examines the business behind breast cancer

by on January 27, 2012 in Arts

Pink Ribbons, Inc. emphasizes the realities behind corporate breast cancer awareness campaigns.

Directed by Léa Pool and produced by the National Film Board of Canada, the documentary explores breast cancer culture and what happens to all the funds raised from pink-ribbon products. It focuses specifically on the marketing schemes big corporations use on a public frightened by the realities of the disease and eager to be comforted and reassured that if victims fight hard enough they will beat the odds. At the same time, they irresponsibly imply that those who die of cancer do not try hard enough.

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1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds: Huskies forward Michael Lieffers angling for second championship

by on January 27, 2012 in Sports

When the Huskies men’s basketball team hosts the Brandon University Bobcats at home on Jan. 27 and 28, it is very likely that Michael Lieffers will cross a career milestone.

The 6-8 forward from Saskatoon became the 37th Huskie ever to reach 1,000 career points on Jan. 20 when he put up eight points in a game against the University of British Columbia Okanagan Heat. He is also only 14 boards shy of becoming the fifth Huskie ever to grab 1,000 rebounds.

Lieffers, however, isn’t paying attention to the numbers.

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What will the end of the Wheat Board look like?

by on January 26, 2012 in News

Passed on Nov. 28, 2011, the Conservative-introduced Bill C-18 will go into effect on Aug. 1, 2012, and will end the CWB’s monopoly on selling Western Canadian wheat and barley internationally. Western Canadian farmers produce 21 tonnes of wheat, barley and durum annually, 80 per cent of which is exported overseas.

While the bill does not legislate the dismantling of the board, it remains to be seen what, if any, kind of role the board will play in a deregulated grain market.

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DegreeWorks: university to launch new online degree mapping tool in PAWS

by on January 26, 2012 in Technology

Understatement of the century: mapping out your degree progress can sometimes be confusing. Come on. Up until now, making sense of your academic achievements — total credits earned, actual program requirements, and how everything all fits together — has been like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle with Jenga blocks. Frustration levels have been known to shoot off the charts.

Believe it or not, the university is aware of this. And they’re finally doing something about it.

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University area sidewalks could be dangerously icy, so get out there and shovel!

by on January 26, 2012 in Opinions

Every day, I walk to university. I see many of my kind, heads down against the wind, squinting into the sun checking for traffic and shifting anxiously, waiting for the College Drive crosswalk light to turn.

Lately, however, we have faced a new enemy on our daily jaunts. I see my comrades’ eyes glued to the sidewalk, their feet placed carefully, walking in fear of the slippery ice that causes gymnastic feats more appropriate for some twisted Cirque du Soleil performance.

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Huskies basketball roundup: both men’s and women’s teams have flawless weekend

by on January 26, 2012 in Sports

A 92-55 stomping over the University of British Columbia Okanagan Heat on Jan. 20 didn’t go to the Huskies’ women’s basketball team’s heads when they faced the Thompson Rivers Wolf Pack the following night. Saskatchewan knew they would be facing a much stronger opponent.

Meanwhile, the men’s team, led by Peter Lomuro and Jamelle Barrett, walked all over the visiting UBC Okanagan Heat and Thompson Rivers Wolf Pack Jan. 20 and 21, respectively.

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The insatiable thirst of consumers: Timmy’s steps it up a cup

by on January 26, 2012 in Opinions

On Jan. 23, Tim Hortons hot cup sizes were shuffled down in scale to accommodate the new and improved extra large size.

Your small double-double is now an extra-small, your medium is now a small and so forth. The newest addition to the homegrown franchise’s cup family is a rather large 24 ounces. This new size sits neatly between the McDonald’s medium (21 ounces) and large (32 ounces) soft drink sizes, and stands a couple ounces shy of that two-six one must have consumed the previous night to warrant a coffee so large.

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Human rights campaigner Grahame Russell says Canada’s mining giants exploit the South

by on January 25, 2012 in News

For many pampered Canadians, it is difficult to imagine a foreign company evicting an entire community, claiming the land for mining purposes and doing so without any form of government intervention.

Sadly, this is the reality for thousands of displaced families living in South America — and at least 500,000 people in Guatemala alone. What’s even more difficult to fathom is that a handful of these mining companies are Canadian. Also surprising is that Canadian citizens greatly benefit from investments in these companies — perhaps in ways they haven’t considered.

According to Canadian human rights activist Grahame Russell, this is only one example of “global economic order” at work.

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We the Artists, hear us roar

by on January 25, 2012 in Arts

When I walked into the upper gallery of TCU Place on Jan. 21, I was struck by something unusual. It was classy — a little too classy. But that is the life of the fine arts student: spend your daylight hours shuffling through the hallway in black sweatpants or paint-covered jeans, but be prepared at any moment to clean up and dazzle your audience with elegance and charisma.

We the Artists was one such occasion.

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Huskies women’s hockey team split wins with Bisons on home ice

by on January 25, 2012 in Sports

It was a controversial finish.

On Jan. 21, in the second of two games the Huskies women’s hockey team played against the visiting Manitoba Bisons, the Dogs lost 4-3 in a shootout.

Both teams had to send five shooters before Bisons forward Nellie Minshull scored the only goal of the breakaway contest. Minshull, however, fumbled the puck on her way to the net and had to stop to reach back and retrieve the puck before she fired it through Huskies goaltender Mackenzie Rizos’ five-hole. The crowd and the Huskies bench erupted when the goal was allowed, thinking that the play should have been considered dead when Minshull was forced to stop and turn back. After some referee deliberation the goal was still counted, giving Manitoba the extra point and the win.

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