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Burlesque show returns to Vancouver at the Rickshaw Theatre after six-year break

Imaginary space program
created by university
employees dupes hundreds
of disappointed students

By KARLY BLATS

April Fool’s Day this year by going
above and beyond.

Creative employees from various de-
partments at the university planned
and launched a fake space program to
fool the school, and it worked.

Over 300 applications were submit-
ted online to the fake program, said
SFU spokeswoman Fiona Burrows.
Anyone could apply but once appli-
cants got past the initial application
page the joke was revealed with an
“April Fool’s Day!” banner appearing
across a new page.

The fictitious space program pur-
ported to send students to space for a
semester and provide them with an
“out of this world” experience. Bur-
rows said the prank gained a lot of me-
dia attention on Twitter and that stu-
dents involved were “bewildered”
when they found out there was not go-
ing to be a semester in space.

Even the students involved in film-
ing the program’s mock promotional
video didn’t know it was fake, said Bur-
rows. Planning for the prank began in
January and filming took place
throughout February and March.

In other April Fool’s Day antics
UBC’s newspaper, The Ubyssey, pub-
lished an online parody newspaper
called the Vanshitty Buzz.

“Every year we spoof a publication,”
said Geoff Lister, coordinating editor
for The Ubyssey. Lister said they start
planning early and target a local publi-
cation that has been on the radar lately
to use for the next spoof.

The outrageous stories included an
announcement of Rob Ford becoming
president of a student group, a list of
seven reasons why the Canucks are so
cool and a report of the Canadian Fore-
skin Awareness Project using TED
Talks’ 30" anniversary to “rub offideas
of foreskin preservation.”

These schools have proven there’s
more to April Fool’s Day than putting
plastic wrap over a toilet seat.

Ss Fraser University embraced

Printed on recycled paper

~

APRIL 2, 2014 + VOL. 46 NO. 22 >» VANCOUVER, B.C.

MIKE HODDER photo

Any students who choose to ride the bus or SkyTrain without a pass could face a fine of $156 from TransLink if caught by transit police.

No U-Pass for you!!

Machines around campus ran out of passes on Monday afternoon

By MIKE HODDER

angara students thought they
were April’s fools yesterday when
campus U-Pass machines ran out
and couldn’t provide their passes.
The Langara bookstore, where one
of the machines is located, tweeted
Tuesday morning that the machines
would be running by the afternoon.
That didn’t stop students from bang-
ing on the windows of the bookstore -
which was closed for inventory for the
day - wanting to know where to get
their passes.

While the new passes were available
last month, they ran out sometime be-
fore Monday afternoon. The machines
in the Students’ Union Building and the
library were restocked again around 10
am. Tuesday morning, but are sup-
posed to be restocked by the 17” of
each month with passes for the follow-
ing month.

The mandatory U-Pass program
costs students $36.75 per month and is
factored into students’ fees.

“Since you have to pay for it, itreally
should be there on time,” said arts stu-
dent Abby Pelaez.

If students choose to take transit
without a valid pass they could face a
$156 fine from TransLink for fare eva-
sion.

“Td be pretty upset because $150 is a
lot,” said Pelaez, who was lucky enough
to get her U-Pass before they ran out.
“That’s like half a course, a day’s wage.”

General studies student Mackenzie
Fawcett said the problem is frustrating
but it’s up to students to make sure
they have fare.

“Td be upset but it’s my responsibili-
ty to have other currency to pay for my
ticket if ’'m going to ride transit.”

66

Since you
have to
pay for it,
it really
should be
there on
time

ABBY PELAEZ
ARTS STUDENT

Ex-premier Harcourt bails on NDP

Adrian Dix’s opposition to pipeline was the last straw for former Vancouver mayor Michael Harcourt

By RENEE SUTTON

court announced he has given up
his membership in the NDP.

In an interview with CBC’s Early
Edition on Tuesday, Harcourt said his
decision had “been brewing for a
while,” and explained some of the rea-
sons for letting his membership lapse.

Harcourt said the proverbial straw
that broke the camel’s back was when
Adrian Dix decided to oppose the Kind-
er Morgan pipeline last spring.

“ve been pretty disgusted and
alienated since last May, and I just let
my membership lapse,” Harcourt said
in the CBC interview. He said Dix’s de-

Fes B.C. premier Michael Har-

cision is not supportive of B.C. commu-
nities that are dependent on resources
such as mining and forestry.

BC Liberal party spokesman Emile
Scheffel said Harcourt’s departure re-
flected frustrations from within the
NDP about which direction it’s going.

“It kind of points to the fact that the
NDP is getting farther and farther
away from its roots with private sector,
blue collar workers, [and] people who
make a living in B.C. by working hard,
especially in resource communities,”
Scheffel said.

Harry Bains, NDP MLA for Surrey-
Newton, said Harcourt was a valuable
member, but the party still has the
same principles of social and economic

justice for all.

“Just because you disagree with cer-
tain people at a given time, it doesn’t
mean that the party has gone in a dif-
ferent direction,” Bains said.

Langara political science instructor
Peter Prontzos said he was surprised
by Harcourt’s announcement.

“Tf he’s really concerned with the is-
sues that he brought up, then this is
not a very rational way to do it and it’s
obviously not good for the party,”
Prontzos said.

Harcourt was the leader of the NDP
and B.C. premier from 1991 to 1996. Be-
fore that he was mayor of Vancouver
from 1980 to 1986.

66

I’ve been
pretty dis-
gusted and
alienated
since last
May and I
just let my
member-
ship lapse

MICHAEL
HARCOURT

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