6 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2012 EDITOR CLAYTON PATERSON [18s | feee-born people Ser their kine we leyalived marijuana. | |The stake has no business Pun | ttereakional choices. Are we \pot a eee country ? ByKevin Hampson Meanwhile, Vancouveritts assert tet Eeeedom... S sini no, ( | x bun ' oe Wow, Tis gome is like, totally \ —————$— Hey, You wanna wo see nat new Tom Howke \ movie? Apporentiy iF 5 peal \gloour Yow wedce all Connecre intereshnG: TFs) || dAand stufl/ i fy ——, Wow, Fnad's \ixe Kir “en-p- Time to legalize pot in Canada ast month B.C. municipal leaders Lv for a resolution that calls for the decriminalization of marijuana. While this action is a step in the right direction and a move towards abandon- ing a failed policy, decriminalization does not go far enough. Washington State is poised to become the first U.S. state to legalize marijuana. Oregon and Colorado also have marijuana le- galization on their November 6 ballots. If parts of the U.S.A are finally seeing the light on the absurdity of criminal- izing pot, then shouldn’t Canada step up to the plate as well? “The war on drugs,” a term coined by former U.S. President Richard Nixon, 40 years ago, has “resulted in 45 million arrests, cost one trillion dollars, and led the U.S. to amass ay the largest prison |/ ‘ populationinthe | -~ world,” said } fm Douglas Haddow, fiGl = communications { x Ss coordinator at the |% . Canadian Drug a # ge Policy Coalition : in a recent article. 0 P| N 10 N lthough we may like to think TANYA BILL of Canada as more progressive than the U.S.A, increasingly many of our social and economic policies seem to mimic and coincide with the Americans. When the federal government introduced mandatory minimum sentencing in Canada under its “tough on crime bill” (Bill C-10) current and former U.S. law enforcement officials were scratch- ing their heads. They sent a letter to the Canadian government stating “We are ... extremely concerned that Canada is implementing mandatory minimum sentencing legislation for minor marijuana- related offences similar to those that have been such costly failures in the United States.” Legalization does not mean that the government is encouraging youth or the public to smoke pot; 25 per cent of Canadians between the age of 15-24 are already doing that. Legalization would help create a drug policy that “help shape healthier attitudes, reduce harm in our communities, and decrease the levels of violence, organized crime and corruption within our public institutions.” Let's give the LSU a break e Langara Students’ Union has been the official representative voice of the Langara student community since 1969, and since that time has promoted itself on their official website as a “democratically run organization that represents and advocates for its member- ship at the col- lege level and in the wider com- munity, includ- ing the provincial and federal govern- ment.” We all pay membership dues to the LSU when our tuition is col- lected each year with the promise that our money will then be turned around into services and events for us, the students. We’re even the reason these people have jobs, since they are in elected positions. Earlier this year, news broke that the LSU had around $42,000 in left over student fees from the 2011/12 school year, but were refusing to OPINION CLAY PATERSON present that year’s meeting minutes to give an idea of what that money would be used for. Clearly we should just blindly trust these people, they are here to represent us after all. When the LSU executives deny requests to present a copy of their new collective bargaining agree- ment between the union and its staff, which is supposed to be a public document filed with the Labour Relations Board of B.C., claiming it is private and confiden- tial, we shouldn’t press the issue. Why do we need to know how much money they make and what kind of benefits they have? Full-time LSU staff make $30 per hour, significantly more than the average salary for similar adminis- trative positions. The generous pay makes sense though, because after all, the LSU is watching out for student interests and it takes a lot of time and effort to deny media requests for information, they deserve that money. A copy of the new bargaining agreement was obtained by a Voice reporter and has revealed even more privileges enjoyed by the LSU staff. For instance, what happens if a staff member is incarcerated? Don’t worry, the agreement has that problem covered. Leave without pay will be granted to any member sentenced to less than two years in prison, but if that member was incarcerated as a result of action taken at the LSU’s request, he or she will receive full pay, benefits, and will not lose their seniority while in jail. Because really, why wouldn’t we want criminals whose conviction was initiated by the LSU back running the show? So the LSU has an impressive contract, a surplus of funds, the ability to operate under 50 shades of grey, and continues to ignore requests by the media to inform the Langara community what goes on behind the scenes. But before you go calling the LSU a shady organization that may or may not have the student body’s best interests in mind, just remember one thing: we elected these people. Free HPV vaccine? No thank you explains the exuberant reception of the first cancer vaccine in 2006. It is now offered free of charge to young people in B.C. But should we run to health ser- vices like bargain hunters? I don’t think so. Recently, I was contacted by my daughter’s school nurse about the HPV vaccine. I could give my consent over the phone, she said. I replied that to my knowledge, this vaccine is offered in the early teens, before the first sexual contact. My daughter is just nine years old, and this is a new vaccine with unknown Pe: crave a cure for cancer. This OPINION KATJA DE BOCK side effects. The nurse’s counter argument: The vaccine is totally safe. Totally safe. That rings a bell. During my prolonged stay in Germany, I worked intensely with thalidomide victims, people born in the early 1960s without limbs and sometimes without vital organs. People whose mothers had taken “totally safe” pills against morning sickness. I do not distrust doctors or nurses. I believe most are hard-working professionals who take their oath seriously. But I have less faith in the pharmaceutical industry. Let’s have a look at who produced Canada’s first HPV vaccine, Garda- sil: the company Merck Frosst Canada Ltd. According to the Toronto Star, Merck’s lobbyist at the time was Ken Boessenkool, who later became Stephen Harper’s strat- egist and recently got dismissed as Christy Clark’s chief of staff. Other lobbyists later found jobs in the Ontario government. No wonder Gardasil’s success increased with seven-league boots. According to Statistics Canada, the mortality rate for cervical cancer has steadily declined over the past several decades to 1.2 per cent of all cancer deaths in women. This means the chances of my daughter dying of an HPV-caused cancer are low to begin with. Additionally, long-term consequenc- es of the HPV vaccine are not known. All this makes me skeptical about the Vancouver Coastal Health promo-calls for HPV-vaccination. My view: when in doubt, discuss your concerns with your doctor. But don’t let vaccinations through on the nod, and write to your MLA to request more research. In the Oct. 18 Voice, it was reported that the counselling department has had to offer personal counselling through group sessions in order to meet the increasing demand for personal counselling services on campus. This is not the case. While it is true that the requests for personal counselling are increasing, the counselling department has not started offering personal counselling services in a group environment. All personal counselling is still provided on a one-on one basis in private with a counsel- lor in their office. 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. All letters must be signed. They may be edited for brevity. Names may be withheld in special cases, but 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.be.ca DROP-IN Room A226 Langara College There is a mailbox at the entrance to the journalism rooms. SNAIL MAIL The Voice 100 West 49th Ave. Vancouver, B.C. VSY 226 WEBSITE wwwilangaravoice.com EDITORIAL STAFF THIS ISSUE: MANAGING EDITOR/ PAGE 6 Clayton Paterson PAGE EDITORS PAGE 1 Lev Jackson PAGE 2 Brandon Reid PAGE 3 Audrey McKinnon PAGE 4 Cara McKenna PAGE 5 Carissa Thorpe PAGE 7 Stacy Thomas PAGE 8 Carly Smith WEB EDITORS Dennis Page Sasha Porteous Ashley Viens REPORTERS Ryan Banagan Judy Chem Anne Ellison Jules Knox Bronwyn Scott Jennifer Thuncher Steven Chua Katja De Bock Gillian Hames Kevin Hampson Tanya Hill Richard Hodges Simone Pfeiffer Sam Reynolds Michael Letendre Jana Minor Brandon Kostinuk Contact us: Online at langaravoice.com Twitter at @langaraVoice