PurE COMEDY COLD senccuceuececeeceeneeseesnes4l Vancouver’s Metro Theatre’s latest production “Lend Me a Tenor” receiving rave reviews Remembering those who fought Many Remembrance Day events are being held around Vancouver By KATJA DE BOCK f you are staying in South Vancou- ver for Remembrance Day, you could visit the local parade from John Oliver Secondary School to the cenotaph in Memorial South Park. The parade starts at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012 at 530 East 41st Avenue. When Major Garth Newlands led his bagpipe band onto the field of BC Place on Saturday evening in a tribute to vet- erans, 36,000 football fans cheered “thank you.” “Tt’s all about passing on the torch,” said New- lands, whose Sur- rey bagpipe band includes members of all ages. The tribute was one of many events featured in this DAVID SCOUGAL year’s Veterans’ Photo-imaging instructor Week, which will culminate in cele- brations on Sunday, November 11. Re- membrance Day celebrates the end of hostilities on Nov. 11, 1918, and recalls fallen soldiers and veterans of all wars in the Commonwealth. Canada’s last First World War vet- eran died in 2010, and many Second World War veterans are in their 80s and older. This prompted David Scou- gal, photography instructor at Langara College, to portrait dozens of veterans in a photo series for the Royal Canadi- an Legion. Scougal’s motivation was to never forget that generation, including his own father, who had served in the navy for 25 years. Kevin Berry, 29, is a student at Si- mon Fraser University. He served and was severely injured in Afghanistan, later suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Together with five other plaintiffs, he started a class action lawsuit against the government’s new compensation plan, which bans lifelong pensions and other benefits for war veterans. Berry was moved while visiting war cemeteries in Belgium and the Nether- lands. “The vast majority of them was under 22. It was a bunch of kids.” Technology specialist Noy Kong- takane purchased a poppy at the Lan- gara reception desk. “My family was never touched by war. But I like the no- tion of supporting the troops and re- membering the past,” she said. The poppy boxes at Langara are col- lected by the local legion’s Branch No. 16, and the donations go to the Poppy Fund. Berry has one message to students: “Take the time to go to a cenotaph and pay respect to those who guaranteed that you can now get an education and live an a country that is free of war.” St. John’s Shaughnessy Anglican Church will be hosting an evening of music and poetry about immortality and our collective memory of the dead on Nov. 11 starting at 7:30 p.m. For more information about veteran services and Remembrance Day events in the Vancouver area, visit www.vet- erans.gc.ca. KATJA DE BOCK photo Veterans paraded at BC Place during a Remembrance Day tribute for 36,000 people during the half-time show of the BC Lions game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday Nov. 3 EVENTS in the city UBC REMEMBRANCE DAY CEREMONY Starts at 10 a.m. on Nov. Tin the UBC War Memorial Gym STANLEY PARK JAPANESE MEMORIAL A celebration to honor Vancouver's Japanese soldiers. Starts at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 11 near the Stanley Park Pavillion LSU Treasurer a UBC student Board member not taking classes at Langara, but questions emerge about his eligibility to be in the LSU By SAM REYNOLDS dents’ Union is enrolled in classes at the University of British Colum- bia’s Vancouver campus and is not a student at Langara College. The current bylaws of the LSU (which are in the process of revision) do not directly specify that a director must be a student at the college. The bylaws only state that a director must be a “member of the Union” which is obtained through payment of member- ship fees that are attached to tuition. James Li, the LSU’s treasurer, would not return initial requests for comment sent to his LSU email address. The Voice was able to contact Li via his Facebook account. A representative of Langara’s stu- dent accounts department explained that if a student decides to drop classes and is eligible for a tuition refund (mid- September) their LSU fees are refund- ed. The bylaws also include a provision that directors may take a “leave of ab- sence from the Board for a period of up to one semester” subject to the will of the Board. Based on the language in the bylaws — which Li pointed to argue that he was still eligible to be Treasurer — it is not clear if he would have to give up his See TREASURER, page 3 Te treasurer of the Langara Stu- Many local restaurant owners are on board with the proposed ban, but others in the Chinese commu- nity are citing the controver- sial dish’s cultural significance &, ue By BRANDON KOSTINUK oun. Kerry Jang is pursuing a Ce ban on the sale of shark fin products in Vancouver, Richmond and Burnaby because of the decimation the trade has wrought on shark species and the environment. But establishments that serve the culturally popular shark fin soup are opposed to the proposed regional ban because of the potential for lost reve- nue. “Restaurants can’t do without it,” said Michael Kwok, manager at Red Star Seafood Restaurant in Marpole. “We’re just serving our customers’ demands,” he added. But this isn’t the case for all restau- rants. “Shark fin has not been on my menu for many years,” said Joseph Lee, own- er of the Flamingo House Chinese res- taurant. “Thave a [culturally] diverse custom- er base so if I’m not serving shark fin I won't die,” he said. Shark’s fin is a status symbol in Chi- nese culture, said Lee, because the product garners such a high price tag. So serving shark’s fin is a show of wealth and generosity, he added, which makes it a customary item at weddings. “But I don’t do banquets,” said Lee. The Red Star Seafood Restaurant does, and all of their dinner packages contain shark’s fin soup, among other lavish food, because, according to Kwok, customers demand it. “Banquet functions are important to our business,” said Kwok. For a small bow] of shark’s fin soup, the Red Star Seafood Restaurant charges $36.80, while banquet packages range from $598 to $1,998. Kevin Shu, a first-year science stu- dent at Langara, said he likes shark fin soup because of the texture and aroma. Shark fin soup debate continues to divide people “But it’s expensive and I’m conscious of the environment so I’m supportive of the ban,” added Shu. Edward Yao, a first-year human ki- netics student, said he too was support- ive of the ban. “It’s basically killing off a species,” said Yao. “There’s not much nutrition in it... [and] it’s destroying the ecosystem.” Lee, despite admitting he would be unaffected by the ban, still hands out a petition customers can voluntarily sign to express their opposition. Lee said he does this because he is a member of the B.C. Asian Restaurant and Café Owners Association, where the petition originated. Since September, he has been able to accumulate only a handful of signa- tures. The president of the association, and fellow restaurateur, David Chung, was not available for comment. ad iy | BRANDON KOSTINUK photo Some restaurants, such as the Fla- mingo House, have not had the soup on their menu for years.