Photo by Cole Breiland

Confederation College’s “student” newspaper taken over by fearful student union

Brandi Cameron
Editor-in-Chief

On February 9th, the cover of Confederation College’s student newspaper, The Opus, asked, “Is The Opus Bigger Than Jesus?”
The Opus has since been taken over by the president of the Student Union of Confederation College Incorporated (SUCCI), Ryan West, allegedly because of the controversial cover. It appears that the paper is not actually of the students, but of their student union. West would not comment on the matter.
Gavin MacVicar, the previous director of communications for SUCCI and editor-in-chief of The Opus, resigned from the position after many accusations, emails, arguments, and conversations with SUCCI members.
MacVicar has made some significant changes to the paper, including external advertising, colour front pages, and Confederation student columns. The paper’s readership and student participation have increased relative to previous years.
However, in Volume 30, Issue 8 of The Opus, Brennan Van Brenk, the SUCCI Senator of Aviation, wrote a letter to the editor claiming the content is “vulgar and controversial.”
MacVicar stated in an interview that SUCCI called a meeting with the board in regard to the content, with the Jesus cover being made an issue mainly by SUCCI president West.
“It was even brought to the point where Ryan tried to personally stop the cover from going to press. To do this in the 11th hour before it goes to press; I feel it is gutless to say the least,” wrote MacVicar. The board voted 50/50 with two abstentions on the issue, and the cover went to print.
In same issue MacVicar wrote, “It should be known that the board is divided on this issue, and although I had little options, it is my decision to run this cover the way it was intended. It was never intended to offend people but rather entice students to open up the paper and have an opinion!”
Later that week, West asked MacVicar to resign from his position. MacVicar considered, but realized the inappropriate nature of West’s request.
He then received an email from West, stating, “As President of SUCCI, I feel I have no other alternative than to take control of the contents of the next edition of OPUS until the question around your competence as the SUCCI Director of Communications is resolved at our next board meeting. SUCCI is the publisher and responsible for the publication.”
Constitutionally, SUCCI has rights over the finances of The Opus (as per their non-current 1997 constitution), but the rights and journalism have changed since then. The Opus is also a member of CUP (Canadian University Press) and should be in conversation with other Canadian student papers. Editorial autonomy exists regardless of the financial dependence of the publication on its student union. The point is: firing the editor of The Argus would be a drawn-out process, and that it is incumbent upon students to create content, and change as they see fit. The Opus appears to be a mere newsletter for SUCCI, not existing as a service to students, but as a service to the union.
Editorial autonomy does not make racism, homophobic, or discriminatory content admissible, it means students can put forth articles for which the editor is accountable.  LUSU for instance, can contest content, but Human Resources handle individual issues such as Van Brenk’s.
A paper cannot stop delivering to a building because someone dislikes it. It does not matter how offensive—until the proper constitutional process was followed, MacVicar was not responsible for their opinions. Also, in terms of advertising, SUCCI and the paper make money because the contracts state the paper is in that building.
It is not as cut and dry as, ‘we don’t like it, so take it away.’ Although The Argus may have content some students find more “intelligible,” it is a properly constructed constitution that makes this possible.
For instance, The Argus has many paid staff members, a few paid contributors, and a larger scale distribution. There are specific rules as to LUSU’s allowed involvement in the paper, which allows the paper to look at LUSU meetings objectively. MacVicar was both director of communications and editor, a clear conflict of interest. The (again, 1997) Opus-SUCCI constitution states that the positions are separate – clearly to eliminate this conflict of interest in reporting on SUCCI.
Because the meetings represent decisions made for students, the student paper has a right to publish what occurs. Simple.
MacVicar wanted to run a story on a particular SUCCI meeting, and the process of decisions that changed how student finances were allocated before his resignation. The story dealt with the VP position, and that students were not notified of the vacant position, and that interviews were not held.
As per the September 1st meeting in 2009, West motioned, and was seconded by Josh Iredale (the former elected VP who had just decided to vacate the position over the summer) to make this position into two positions: SUCCI Internal and External VP. The vote on the minutes was 10-0-0. No contention apparently.
Then, it was announced that they ‘found’ someone, Jenn Bowerman, to fill one position: VP External. The vote on the position was also 10-0-0; the minutes read Jenn was out of this vote, but she would have had to be included to have a total of 10 votes. She then voted on the interview committee for the other VP position. When asked about this by MacVicar – in an open forum – West commented that it is common courtesy to promote internally, MacVicar revealed.
The SUCCI constitution states in Article IV, Section IX, “Any positions vacant after an election may be filled by appointment by an interview board after a period of one week to allow for advertising of the position”.
The constitution is not posted online for students to view, nor are the minutes of the September 1st meeting, in which the constitution was breached.
To make things worse, Dallas Pedri, the previous candidate during the actual election, was not contacted when the position became available. When asked about this, he stated, “I really wanted the position and I think that anybody that went to Confed last year recognized this. I sacrificed several aspects of my life in order to compete for the position of VP for the student union. One of these sacrifices included my school work and although this may have been frowned upon, getting into a position where I believed I could make a difference was more important.”
When asked if he was contacted by SUCCI, Pedri revealed, “Surprisingly, no—Mr Iredale only obtained 30 more votes than I did. 195 students voted for me. That is 195 people that believed in me, and my ability to represent the student union. Wasn’t there value in this?”
Pedri added that he would have taken the full VP position, and that he was not approached in regard to the vacant position of Internal VP: “It was not until I was in my 2nd week of school, and after SUCCI was unable to find an applicant for the second position of the VP split, that I was asked if I would like to apply for the position.”
The director of communications position also became vacant due to drop out, and SUCCI approached Warren Trochimchuk, who, when interviewed, stated, “I said no because it will be too hard to juggle that with school and working 25-30 hours a week.”
This brings up the question: why was Pedri not approached when he was in second place for SUCCI VP? In regard to this fact, Tromchimchuk commented, “I definitely think that people who attempted to run for a position should be given the opportunity to interview for the position (not have it handed to them).”
That is the story MacVicar wanted to run before his ‘take over’: “I never got a chance to do the story; it was going to be the last one I did.”
McVicar’s last Opus should have been published two days before the SUCCI election. He wanted students to have a fairly elected student union, regardless of who won. It is about making decisions constitutionally, and with student input.
Within the ‘take over Opus’ issue, West wrote a letter to the editor addressed to MacVicar, even though West had already supplanted him as editor-in-chief. He said, “In your article last issue you say I’m gutless for standing up for something I believe in, I beg to differ. To quote you from a previous article you wrote ‘Speak loud enough for people to hear! Speak your mind! Speak from the heart! Speak what you feel and what you believe.’ I believe so strongly in this organization (SUCCI), its mission, its values, and its purpose that I will stand up to defend it.”
In addition, West remarked, “It’s important to value the opinions of others and to have intelligent debate when it’s done in a tasteful and respectful manner. I truly believe that our newspaper can be student issue focused, promote a positive environment and still be controversial.”
MacVicar felt that a marijuana leaf and a depiction of Jesus are not distasteful promotions, but merely attempts to arouse student interest in the paper. The point of a student newspaper is that students can write in with their opinions, and have them published to add to the debate. Yes, the papers write an article taking a certain stance at times, but every student newspaper in CUP encourages and strives for student debate.
There will always be debate with regard to the content of a student paper, but in order for it to be handled “respectfully,” as West suggests, it has to go both ways. Showing a yet-unpublished cover at the 11th hour before print without the editor’s permission is a violation, MacVicar suggests. He is the one who approves the paper, and the SUCCI president also knew of the cover much earlier that day.
MacVicar stated, “I can’t just let this go.” He may not be the editor of The Opus any longer, but he still feels strongly about free speech, editorial autonomy, as well as the fact that students should be aware and involved in SUCCI’s dealings. Afterall, it’s their money and their paper.

Photo by Cole Breiland

The Study will host some great local bands for the sake of The Argus

Derek Wall
A&E Editor

In order to raise some awareness toward the fantastic student publication that is the Argus (*cough cough*), The Argus executive is hosting a concert at The Study coffeehouse here on the Lakehead campus. If you’ve got some time, love live music, and want to support LU’s student paper, come spend some time with us on Friday night.
The band’s lined up to perform are Thunder Bay performers Jon Reid, Marley Giunta, The Other Colour, and The Promise.
The Promise is made of vocalist Alex Onski, guitarist Timo Pehkonen, keyboardist Sara Salokari, bassist Taylor Perrault, and Master’s degree-holding percussionist Michael Wright. Onski describes the group’s sound as, “a mixture of indie rock, blues, jazz, [and] a tiny bit of folk.” This makes narrowing the sound genre difficult, and Onski further commented, “We don’t really know what to call it!”
The Promise’s line up will consist of both original material and cover tunes.
Jon Reid will also be entertaining the crowd with Jared Schaaf accompanying on guitar. Jon Reid, along with Matt Sellick, won the Youth Talent competition in Thunder Bay last year, so we can expect a solid show from the young entertainer.
In order to get some live talent to perform at the party, The Argus has written off pulling in any profound amount of money from the event. The purpose of the concert is to get as many people out as possible and have a good time. “I like that it’s not so much about raising money,” quoted Argus Editor-In-Chief, Brandi Cameron, “It’s a community event and more about raising awareness and just have people hang out.” The hope is that people, Argus readers or otherwise, come out and just have a good time.
The acoustic theme of the concert will fit right in at Lakehead’s relaxed Study Coffeehouse and should prove to be a great way to kick off the weekend.
The Argus hopes to see many people out at the concert. Price of admission is a mere $5, but remember that if you wish to criticize or complain about The Argus, it is customary to buy the executive a round of beer before doing so. Not sure why this is a custom, it just is.

Photo by Cole Breiland

Men’s hockey team sweeps past Western to earn OUA Championship birth and hosting duties

Lyle Morissette
Sports Editor

With the Cavendish Cup just weeks away, the ‘Wolves wanted to keep the momentum going into the National Finals, and what better way to do that than to keep sharp by staying on the ice and handily dishing out beatings along the way. And while they are at it, why not pick up a little hardware as a prize.
During this season’s OUA playoffs, the obstacles that the ‘Wolves have thus far faced have resembled speed bumps, not mountains; last week’s OUA West Division finals series against rivals the Western Mustangs proved to be no different—too much bewilderment. The Wolves easily swept the three-game series two games to nothing and now find themselves on the doorstep of winning the OUA Championship, where they will face the OUA East Champion McGill Redmen.
In what was a surprisingly lopsided series against the #1 Mustangs, the ‘Wolves easily dispatched their rival foes in consecutive games, outscoring Western 9-3 in the series two games. And LU’s brightest star during the matchup, just like the rest of the playoffs, was once again goaltender Alex Dupuis, who earned the victories in both games and now sits a perfect 6-0 in the playoffs since taking over the net for the Wolves back in the first round.
In the decisive series clincher in London on Saturday night, the ‘Wolves came back from behind and scored five unanswered goals to close out the game, beating the Western Mustangs 5-2 to earn the much celebrated sweep and the OUA West Champions moniker.
Dupuis stopped 28 of 30 shots on the night while five different ‘Wolves scored including Ryan McDonald, Dan Speer, Scott Dobben, Shandor Alphonso and Mark Soares – all of which were scored in either the second or third periods.
On Wednesday night, the series opener played out quite differently as the ‘Wolves easily controlled the game all night as Dupuis had yet another fantastic game, tossing aside 34 of the 35 shots he faced as the ‘Wolves easily won 4-1 at the Fort William Gardens to take the early series lead.
Lakehead got goals from defensemen Ryan Baird and Jordan Smith—LU’s leading playoff goal-scorer—while Alphonso potted another and Kris Hogg also tallied as the ‘Wolves and ‘Stangs each had 35 shots.
“The road to the nationals or an OUA championship always seems to go through Western. That’s kind of how you measure yourself and your success,” said coach Scherban earlier on in the week. Thankfully for the ‘Wolves the series turned out to be just peachy. And if they measure themselves based on these recent performances, future aspirations and championship hopes look very fruitful.
With the win at the Gardens, the ‘Wolves stayed undefeated all-time at home in the playoffs against the Mustangs and with the series sweep they improved their overall playoff record against Western to 10-6, having won four of the six playoff series meetings between the two.
Now, too many fans delight the ‘Wolves will not only be the National Championship hosts—and possible victors—but they now to will play and host the provincial title as well, with the ‘Wolves being able to possibly capture both on home ice.
The Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay will play host to this Saturday’s (March 13) one game OUA Championship final.

Ian Kaufman
Features Editor

The party’s over. The tourists, athletes, journalists, and members of the International Olympic Committee’s prestigious “Olympic family” have all gone home, weighed down with medals, souvenirs, and other Olympic loot. And with last week’s closing ceremonies bringing the games to a conclusion that would have been laughable, were if not for the colossal squandering of resources it represented (around $40 million, together with the opening ceremonies), it’s generally understood that the media moves on to talk about something else – gender-neutral O Canada lyrics, anyone?
But although the medal count is already etched into the proverbial history books, for Vancouverites – and, to a lesser degree, all Canadians – the story of the 2010 Olympics is still playing itself out. This is something the citizens of Montreal, who finally paid off the debt on their 1976 Olympic stadium in 2006, know all too well: the full effects of holding the games often aren’t clear until long afterwards. It’s still early, but Vancouver’s Olympics look to have cost $6-9 billion. Meanwhile, BC has posted a record deficit and slashed social programs.
But some ask, isn’t hosting the Olympics like throwing a big party? Most of us unbegrudgingly spend money on booze, snacks, and maybe some decorations when holding a party – and we know that a few weeks later, a friend will do the same for us. Olympics boosters point out that two years later, another place bears the cost of holding the event, opening their city up for the world’s biggest party. This reasoning appeals to all the rosiest ideals of global community and reciprocity. But it’s worth asking: who pays for the party, and who pulls a profit?
The first nail in that metaphor’s coffin is that this is one hell of an expensive party: when was the last time you spent six or seven times your annual budget to show some friends a good time? This Magazine recently assessed the total cost of the 2010 games to be over $9.2 billion. To put this in perspective, Vancouver’s annual budget is around $1 billion, while BC’s total spending for this year is estimated at $40 billion. This may have highballed the tab a bit, depending on who’s counting, but it seems certain that the figure is at least $6 billion, and possibly much more – a far cry from the $1.76 billion official budget of the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC).
The crucial variable in tabulating the cost of the games is infrastructure, such as the expansion of the Sea-to-Sky Highway connecting Vancouver and Whistler. This Magazine factored the expansion into their estimate, saying the work would not have been undertaken if not for the Olympics. As one of the province’s most dangerous stretches of road, however, it was destined for some kind of renovation. But pressure from the IOC, who made the expansion an unofficial precondition of awarding Vancouver the bid, was related to speeding up the travel time to Whistler, not increasing safety. Without this pressure, work would certainly have proceeded at a more measured pace.
That might have saved the section of Eagleridge Bluffs that was blown up and paved over for the project. The Bluffs are a gorgeous chunk of BC’s coastline, home to a handful of endangered species and rare trees. The decision to build the highway over the Bluffs rather than running a tunnel under them (the lesser of two evils) might have been avoided, had Vancouver followed the twenty-year timeframe proposed for the expansion before the Olympic bid. Perhaps environmental activist Harriet Nahanee would not have had to spend some of her last days in prison after participating in a blockade of construction on the Bluffs. Nahanee, who was in poor health at the time, was sentenced with contempt of court, contracted pneumonia in jail, and died shortly after her release.
A less contentious example of Olympics-related infrastructure spending is the Canada Line, a high-speed rail project connecting Vancouver International Airport with Richmond and downtown Vancouver. The line is touted as a “green” project with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of car trips per day.
Both the Sea-to-Sky expansion and the Canada Line can be generously seen as projects which would have taken place regardless, albeit much more slowly and cheaply. Still, if we completely remove both projects from the Olympic ledger, as BC Premier Gordon Campbell insists, this leaves the total bill at around $6 billion.
The other notable slices in this multi-billion dollar pie are the original bidding process, venue construction and upgrading, the Athletes Village, expenses for government and IOC members, and security. In a remarkable example of teamwork, the three levels of government somehow managed to rack up $1 billion in security costs. Official projections had allotted only $175 million – but that’s the cost of holding the games in the “post-9/11 world”, according to the IOC.
So who pays for all of this? VANOC’s $1.76 billion budget is financed roughly equally by three sources: provincial funding, federal funding, and the %49 of sponsorship and television revenue not claimed by the IOC. Although that budget is technically supposed to cover the full cost of staging the Olympics, the extra four or five billion dollars will be made up by Vancouver, BC, and Canada. Governments must assume legal responsibility for overruns in order to be selected by the IOC, as well as granting the organization tax-exempt status.
While it’s all well and good to talk about the legacy of the Olympics in dollars, all of those zeros can obscure the real effects of holding the games. Government money may increasingly seem to come out of nowhere, but a week after the games wrapped up, some palpable effects of this diversion of funding can already be observed.
BC posted a record $2.8 billion deficit in September. This cash crunch made itself felt in the province’s social programs, while the province spared no expense for the upcoming Olympics. After featuring the arts prominently in the opening and closing ceremonies of the games, the BC Liberals are now reducing arts funding by at least a third. Post-secondary student aid was cut by $17 million, while an anticipated $110 million in school maintenance grants was scrapped. Healthcare funding was cut by $360 million. The province is also set to eliminate more than one tenth of government jobs over the next three years, which adds up to about 3,500 full-time position lost.
These cuts in social programs take place against a backdrop of swelling poverty rates and homelessness, a phenomenon much harder to quantify. The PIVOT Legal Society estimates that homelessness in Vancouver has more than doubled since 2002, largely thanks to evictions and the abandonment of affordable housing programs.
Neither Vancouver’s social issues nor BC’s economic problems are ultimately attributable to the Olympics. But what is certain is that the 2010 Olympic games leave Vancouver’s citizens, and to a lesser extent all Canadians, with a debt that will take years to pay off. As is becoming increasingly clear, this debt manifests itself in the exacerbation of existing problems, thanks to cuts to social programs.
What makes all of this especially infuriating is the culture of corruption that infamously surrounds the IOC. In their expose The Lords of the Rings, Vyv Simpson and Andrew Jennings portray the Olympics as they are experienced by the members of the IOC and their families. “All Olympic gatherings are a constant and glittering round of first-class travel, five-star hotels, champagne receptions, extravagant banquets, mountains of gifts and lavish entertainments. And frequently, not even an athlete in sight.”
With politicians, businessmen, IOC members and their families being wined and dined with Olympic money, citizens paying to attend the events and to use the facilities once the games are over, and our governments picking up the tab, the Olympics are looking increasingly like just another way to transfer public wealth to private hands.

Photo by Cole Breiland

Men’s basketball defeat Waterloo 64-59 to advance to OUA West finals

Lyle Morissette
Sports Editor

When something comes around once every 22 or so years, it should not be taken lightly. Thankfully, the ‘Wolves men’s basketball team did not let the opportunity slip away in winning—and hosting—their first playoff home game since 1988, defeating the Waterloo Warriors 64-59 in their OUA West semi-final matchup.
As they have consistently done all season, the ‘Wolves sparked another thrilling second-half comeback after trailing by 11 points at halftime. With a resilience to be admired, and a Waterloo team with its tail between its legs, LU stormed back, outscoring the visitors by seven in the third quarter and winning the decisive fourth quarter 16-7.
Forward Ryan Thomson kept the ‘Wolves in it in the first half by scoring 17 of his 20 points in the first two quarters, while big-man Yoosrie Salhia took over in the second half by battling his way to a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds despite not registering a single point or rebound in the opening 20 minutes. Greg Carter added 11 points with three steals, but more importantly helped cement his reputation as one of the nation’s top defensive players by harassing the Warriors’ leading scorer Cam McIntyre into a porous 1-9 shooting night.
‘Wolves head coach Scott Morrison said the team may have initially been star struck by the importance of the game and the intense crowd.
“I think the environment played a little bit of a role. We were a little star struck, but give the guys credit. They made a living all year on fourth quarter comebacks and we finished off the home season with another one.”
After taking the 58-57 lead on a pull-up jumper by Carter late in the fourth, the ‘Wolves did not look back despite Cam McIntyre’s game-tying free throws with under two minutes left. Those would be Waterloo’s last points on the board though as Salhia sealed the game with the winning basketball on a tough inside finish moments later. The game was officially capped off when guard Jamie Searle finished a broken play with a big layup that sent the sold-out home crowd into a frenzy.
“Waterloo played a strong defensive game in the first half and their experienced players were not affected by the sell-out crowd. We had to really be perfect in the second half with our defensive fundamentals. Credit goes out to both teams for playing playoff basketball tonight and to our guys for hanging in there and taking it one possession at a time in the second half,” said Morrison.
The Thunderwolves now find themselves travelling to Windsor to face the Lancers in the OUA West finals this coming Saturday.

Photo by Cole Breiland

Two straight overtime victories has Wolves on the edge of title recognition

Lyle Morissette
Sports Editor

Two shots was all it took—one on Wednesday, one on Friday—for the Wolves to advance to the OUA West finals. They completed what was an alarming two-game overtime sweep over the Guelph Gryphons in last week’s OUA West semifinal clash.
It may sound simple, just two shots, but the shots delivered the victories. What happened in between was nothing short of exhilarating, as the Wolves won both Wednesday’s contest in Guelph, and Friday’s rematch at Fort William Gardens in overtime. Both games involved a constant barrage of back-and-forth action that surely entertained fans.
Even with the posts working against them—the Wolves hit three posts in the first period alone—and a surprisingly goal-deprived Matt Dias, who finally managed to cash in a hat-trick including the overtime game winner, the Wolves persevered in the series clinching affair on Friday night at the Gardens, winning 5-4.
“I like to see my guys rise to the occasion,” said Wolves head coach Joel Scherban.
Dias was even more relieved with finally tickling the twine in the playoffs and seemingly found solace with his, and the team’s, overall performance.
“A hat trick feels great, and the OT winner feels even better. It just finally felt good to be scoring again,” commented Scherban.
After giving up the lead on Wednesday night, the Wolves found themselves on the other side, having to come back from behind twice in the third period on Friday night to send it into the extra session. The last of the Wolves come-from-behind goals came from Scott Dobben with a mere 62 seconds remaining in the third. Dobben’s goal sent it into overtime where Dias penned the concluding chapter by scoring the eventual winner.
Between the iron posts, ‘Wolves goalie Alex Dupuis cemented yet another win for the team and now has won all four of his playoff appearances and is really starting to blossom at the most opportune of times. Lakehead’s other goal came courtesy of Andy Zulyniak and Matt Caria added three assists.
Wednesday’s series opener played out to almost a mirror result, with a very similar ending: the Wolves conquering in overtime. But instead of winning 5-4, the Wolves edged the Gryphons 4-3. Sespite not only being outshot on the night 34-23, they also dropped the ball in the third period, allowing Guelph to climb back into the saddle and send it into overtime.
Yet, the Wolves were undeterred by giving up a 3-1 third period lead and eventually stole back the game with Andy Hyvarinen’s blast in ovetime. Dan Speer, Ryan McDonald, and Caria added the ‘Wolves three regulation goals, and Dupuis backstopped the Wolves to victory once again.
The ‘Wolves now continue their conquest with an OUA West finals matchup against the Western Mustangs. The first game of the best of three series goes this Wednesday at the Fort William Gardens.