Stephen Harper managed to secure a majority and take complete control of the Canadian government on May 2. He did it by a margin of just over 6 200 votes spread across 14 ridings throughout the country. If you’re one of the 61 per cent of Canadians who voted for someone other than his Conservative benchwarmers, you’re probably pretty pissed that Harper got away with it.
After a whirlwind start to their inaugural MLS season, Vancouver Whitecaps FC have been brought back down to earth.
Knots of anxiety coursed through me on election day and were only made bearable by the sense of possibility that comes from working on a campaign that has a chance at succeeding.
Whenever an election is called, I hear someone in their 20s say they hate politicians, or they hate the government for not listening to them, or for doing something they disagree with. When I ask them what they’re going to do about it, they say they don’t care about politics and they do something I find supremely stupid: they don’t vote.
Protest politely, please
Last May the ship Mavi Marmara (carrying aid to the citizens of Gaza) was attacked by the Israeli navy in international waters, resulting in deaths and serious injuries. On March 29, Kevin Neish, who was aboard the Mavi Marmara, presented live video footage taken during the attack.
More than 2.1 million 18- to 24-year-olds are unhappy. Harper has been throwing us out of election campaign rallies and trying to get Elections Canada to quash our votes. He’s avoiding us and hoping we’ll stay away from the ballot box. We’re finally paying attention, and that damages his lustful campaign for lordship over our country.
On March 27, German citizens in the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg elected their first Green state governor. On March 30, Canada’s major broadcasting networks decided to exclude Elizabeth May, Canada’s Green Party leader, from their televised debates. The contrast in outcomes could not be greater.
I know all about voter apathy. I’m 35 years old and I did not vote until I was 30. I won’t attempt to justify those years of cynical and snide disregard for the democratic process. In fact, if there is one thing I regret in my life, it’s putting off voting for as long as I did.
On March 29, Prime Minister Harper played keyboard while singing John Lennon’s “Imagine” at a Winnipeg photo op. Another song on Lennon’s 1971 album Imagine is “How Do You Sleep?” The original song is directed at Paul McCartney. If you’re familiar with the melody, try these new lyrics. All together now!
If you’re not planning on voting in the federal election on May 2, you’re part of what’s wrong with our democracy.
The parking rates and spaces at UVic are too expensive and scarce, respectively; both need to be changed.
It’s been a pretty big year for us here at the Martlet.
Things are rapidly changing when it comes to media. Most of us get our news via Twitter or Facebook or some other app that we’ve got our noses buried in as we dash across campus or sit on a packed bus. We at the Martlet understand. And we want to keep up.
When nearly 700 students from across the province held a rally in front of the B.C. Legislature on March 16 to protest high tuition fees and increasing levels of student debt, the government proclaimed its policies reasonable.
Prince Harry graces the cover of GQ Magazine this month, promoting “Walking with the Wounded,” a charity event for men and women injured while serving in wars. He is preparing for a 320-kilometre trek to the North Pole with four disabled servicemen. Each man will drag a 100-kilogram sack in temperatures as low as -45°C.
Most people have played the “Would you rather” game at some point in their life. Would you rather be 4-foot-1 or 7-foot-9? Would you rather hear your parents having sex or have your parents hear you having sex? No matter what the question, the format is the same: choose between two equally unappealing options.
Everyone knows the guy in their class with the laptop who sits at the back and snickers every five minutes at Cracked.com like a hyena from The Lion King. Maybe the prof will embarrass them from time to time by quizzing them on Durkheim or whatever, relishing the turnaround as the class twists in their seats to sneer sourly back at the interloper. Sure, most of us are guilty of occasionally scanning our minifeeds in the midst of our prof’s 45-minute Youtube link, but that just comes with the territory, right? You’re not really missing anything.
Japan’s recent natural disaster has brought an enormous amount of attention to the field of modern nuclear power.
While in a pub on St. Paddy’s day, I found myself in a heated argument with a friend over a pint of Guinness. We discussed whether the United Nations (UN) had the right to launch air strikes to support the rebellion against Colonel Gaddafi in Libya.
Pennies have become more of an inconvenience than a necessity. It is time for the penny to be phased out.
When I was 13, I would darken my cheeks with eyeliner, wear a black turtleneck and spy with my best friend on middle-aged couples walking their dogs at night. None of my 13-year-old friends owned a Sebring, and I was definitely not making thousands and thousands of dollars from iTunes downloads.
