6 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOV. 17, 2016 EDITOR BRIAN KUROKAWA lewpoints Don't go to bars to hear live music t alot of restaurants and bars Ae offer live music the experience can actually be very unpleasant. Depending on where you go, the venue will usually end up playing the act through extremely loud speakers, which makes it really difficult to hold a conversation with someone or even to hear your own thoughts. The appeal of live music is that you plan on paying attention to the artist, not just having it tacked on to whatever the plan is for the night. If the plan is to see a performer, go see them in a OPINION: sciine BRIAN KUROKAWA For many, the opportunity to see a live music performance is a deal maker when planning on where to go for dinner or a drink. The lack of places offering live music is apparent in South Vancou- ver. One of the only places in the area offering live music is Dublin Crossing Irish Pub. An argument can be made r4 4 that venues will blast whatever If the plan music they have is to seea playing, regardless of performer, whether it is go see live or not. . In most cases, them ma unless the dedicated venue is more . of a club setting setting, then they will keep the music down if it is prerecorded. Venues should do the same with live performers. If someone does want to hear the act better, then they can move closer to them, without being forced to have it drown out everything around them. A lot of the time, most venues do not have adequate equipment to support playing music loudly without distortion, which ruins the sound of the act that you hoped to enjoy. If your bar can’t support a band through their speaker system, just use the band’s amps. If venues decide to take that approach with their performers, then it would be worth planning for. But until then, a quieter place is a better plan for the night. Your voice matters to us Got a story idea? Any issues you want us to cover? Write to thevoice@langara.be.ca Problems with something we've said? Let us know. Think we got a fact wrong? Tell us. Journalism instructor Erica Bulman oversees The Voice. Email her at ebulman@langara.be.ca You should get the flu shot etting the flu shot is the responsible thing to do for yourself and for your commu- nity — there should not be any excuses. The flu shot contains an inacti- vated virus that will provide immunity from that strain for one year. The key word is inacti- vated, meaning the virus is dead, and it is impos- sible to contract the flu from it. To reiterate: you cannot get the flu from the shot. In Canada, diseases that are preventable OPINION through vaccines are experiencing a rise, with some people choosing to not to immunize themselves. What you may experience after CHELSEA POWRIE the shot are side effects such as a sore arm, a mild fever, chills or a headache. These are your body’s reaction to the vaccine and will subside in a few days at most. It’s annoying, yes, but if you’re not willing to put up with some mild discomfort to help protect vulner- able members of your society, then you need to re-examine your priorities. I used to avoid the flu shot. I hated the feeling, and I didn’t understand the science. Then my brother was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, which leaves him at high risk for complications from the flu. Now I get the flu shot every year. My brother isn’t alone in needing protection. Elderly people, cancer patients, pregnant women and infants are just a few example of vulnerable populations. Babies are especially at risk because they can’t receive their own vaccine until they are at least six 66 months old. Around 3,500 people die from There are the flu in no excuses Canada each year. Just last to not get May, a mother a flu shot in Ontario woke ° up to find her if you do two-year-old not have the flu. There are no reason to excuses to not avoid it get a flu shot if you do not have a medical reason to avoid it. Think about the vulnerable people in your life, and ask yourself how you would feel if they ended up in the hospital with the flu because somebody they interacted with just didn’t like needles, or didn’t bother to educate themselves. Go get your shot. “Man, we really shoulda got that shot, hey?” VERONNICA MACKILLOP and CHANDLER WALTER comic Culture clubs build strong connections share a particular culture and are learning a new language are popular at Langara and benefit students in different ways. Specific culture and language clubs are the main type of C:= that have students who clubs that promote multicultural- ism on campus. People are drawn to others ‘2 who are similar “ OPINION to them. MICHELE PAULSE Students who belong to clubs where they can interact with others who share their cultural traits gain from the experience of being with others of similar social backgrounds. For this reason and because the clubs are part of college life in general, they do not lead to isola- tion. Rather, the clubs function as a means of support, giving students a place where they can express cultural norms and behaviours. These norms might be muted when engaging with other pupils at the college at large, but they are necessary because they inform identity. In addition, members of the clubs help to educate other students through cultural events they organize. In this way, the clubs also validate multiculturalism among students. Specific culture clubs are espe- cially useful to international students because they function as a resource to become familiar with liv- ing in Vancouver. These clubs also offer academic support for students from different cultures that share an interest in learning a particular cultural language. Club activities such as practicing a language with other students who are also learning the tongue help students build their competence alongside their peers in a space where they don’t mind making mistakes. Because these clubs draw students from different cultures, the cross-cultural aspect of the member- ship adds to the benefit of the group. Culture clubs allow students to cultivate friendships with people who share their outlook and interests and can help to attract new students to Langara. Fil fay ce) The Voice is published by Langara College's journalism department. Editorial opinions are those of the staff and are independent of views of the student government and administration. We welcome letters to the editor. They may be edited for brevity. Your letter must include your name and phone number. HOW TO REACH US PHONE 604-323-5396 FAX 604-323-5398 E-MAIL thevoice@langara.bc.ca DROP-IN Room A226 Langara College SNAIL MAIL The Voice 100 West 49th Ave. Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 226 WEBSITE wwwiangaravoice.ca EDITORIAL STAFF MANAGING EDITOR Jenna Tytgat PAGE EDITORS PAGE 1 Chandler Walter PAGE 2 Alyd Llewellyn PAGE 3 Chantelle Deacon PAGE 4 Simran Gill PAGE 5 Jake Wray PAGE 7 Chahira Merarsi PAGE 8 Reuben Dongalen Ji. MANAGING WEB EDITOR Roberto Teixeira WEB EDITORS Anna Tilley Alison Pudsey Scott Forbes Ashley Singh Nico Hemandez Linda Nguyen COPY/WEB EDITOR Veronnica Mackillop REPORTERS Alyse Kotyk Bonnie Lee La Madeleine Bala Yogesh Cheryl Whiting Chelsea Powrie Clare Hennig Emelie Peacock Jessica Purver Kristyn Anthony Lauren Boothby Michele Paulse Melanie Green Sean Hitrec Stuart Neatby Tanner Bokor Contact us: Online at langaravoice.ca Twitter: @LangaraVoice