6 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2012

EDITOR CARLY RHIANNA SMITH

Langara's lunches lacklustre

angara falls short when it comes L:: healthy, affordable food options for its student body.

Obesity is a concern for many Canadians. Statistics Canada reported that almost a third of Canadian children aged five to 17 are overweight or obese, while one-quar- ter of adults fall into those same categories.

Yet, on campus, high-calorie, high-sodium fast food products surround staff and students. Triple O’s, Quizno’s and Tim Hortons provide quick and easy solutions to appease one’s hunger, but they don’t offer the healthiest of options.

Furthermore, the few designated healthy items these establishments do offer such as grilled chicken or bottled water aren’t the most reasonably priced, and one dares not whisper the words “Starbucks” and “affordability” in the same sentence

') | for fear of being iil ridiculed. ' Meanwhile, 0 P| N 10 N Chartwells, promoted as the ISSTINDK “provider of

nutrition to the campus commu- nity at Langara College,” isn’t much better cost wise.

On average, students said they spend about $10 for a meal (food and drink) at almost all campus estab- lishments. Simple mathematics can explain the detriment $10 a day can cause to a full-time student’s already thin wallet.

The only solution: B.Y.O.L.

However, having to prepare and bring a healthy lunch to school defeats the purpose of having a cafeteria. The cafeteria should be able to fulfill the needs of its cus- tomer base. After all, who else is there to pander to?

Moreover, judging from Langara’s Dine on Campus website where nutrition information abounds, it’s clear the institution agrees healthy food options are important.

The question is: why is there such disconnect between the college’s pledge that nutritional food is a staple in its food program and general student opinion?

What’s more, the campus doesn’t even have a gym or facility where students could go and work off any extra calories.

But the college must start with the basics: food.

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Journalism instructor

Nicholas Read oversees The Voice. Email him at nread@langara.be.ca

AFETERIA) —

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Well, at lenct Las ata provwids healthy, ophons|

CARLY RHIANNA SMITH cartoon

Xmas saturation could turn you into a Grinch

hat ever happened to the 12 days of Christmas? It’s starting to feel like two months.

When I was walking through the mall the other day, my ears were bombarded with the shrill sound of recorded children’s voices caroling away. They were soon replaced by Bing Crosby’s soothing croons.

Bing, honey, “I’m dreaming of a white Christmas,” too, but here in Vancouver it’s still November. The only thing falling from the sky is wet, soggy rain - no snow or Rudolph in sight.

The fact is, as a student, I can’t even start thinking about Christmas until classes are over in early December. And starting Christmas as early as Nov. 1? At least give everyone a chance to get over their Halloween hangovers and change out of their costumes before they’re expected to jingle any bells.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not a Scrooge; I deck my halls, trim my tree and wrap presents like every- one else. I feel warm and happy at Christmas time, surrounded by

festive joy and people I care about.

However, forcing Christmas down the throats of the masses is an ill marketing strategy by companies and retailers to milk the biggest cash cow of all holidays for all it’s worth.

I don’t appreciate Christmas cheer being exploited and profited on for the pure point of consumerism.

It’s a pretty sick culture when the holiday season is rung in with a seasonal drink menu at Starbucks.

I’m not alone ~ Shoppers Drug Mart, who usually starts playing seasonal music in early November, recently ceased playing Christmas carols in its stores after receiving an inordinate amount of complaints from customers.

Really, isn’t listening to “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” while purchasing that 50 per cent off bag of Halloween candy a bit ofa disconnect?

On a further note, pushing the Christmas spirit in a way that borders on propaganda is willfully disrespectul of the other holidays in November.

Remembrance Day is a somber and reverent holiday. Can we at least wait until the red poppies have disappeared from people’s lapels before we start peddling poinsettias?

In a city so culturally diverse, I don’t see why Christmas deserves more hoopla in Novem- ber than Diwali, for example.

There are no menorahs or Kwanzaa candles going up this month, so why are the shopping plazas festooned in tinsel the moment the bell tolls the end of Halloween’s witching hour?

But don’t deck the halls with boughs of apathy just yet. All that being said, I will gladly roast chestnuts over an open fire and go dashing through the snow in the true spirit of the holidays.

I’m just waiting until December.

OPINION

CARLY RHIANNA SMITH

Who governs the Langara Students’ Union?

ith the Langara Students’ Wis: where does the buck stop?

Part of the role of governance and leadership is taking responsibility for the outcome of the political process. Harry Truman’s desk adorned a sign during his presidency that read “the buck stops here”, a perfect exemplifica- tion of the ultimate responsibility of a leader to take ownership and account- ability.

The LSU’s structure has it without a president. The lack of a defined leader means nobody has to take responsibili- ty in its horizontal, non-hierarchical power structure.

In 1961, American political scientist Robert Dahl published the book Who Governs, an analysis of the power structure and struggles of a small but

well-to-do town in America’s north- east.

The town that was the subject of Dahl’s_ study, New Haven, is largely insubstantial, but the findings of Dahl’s work are. The role of those who govern is to be a moderator of the competing groups who are vying for power.

With the lack of a leader, there is no one to keep a check and balance over each competing power group.

Part student apathy and part domi- nance of the union in the political pro- cess means the LSU is never seriously reformed in order to protect the inter-

OPINION

SAM REYNOLDS

ests of those who run it.

As with many other student unions, the LSU’s collective bargaining agree- ment — the document that defines the relationship between the employees and the employers — is negotiated by skilled union negotiators on one end of the table and students on the other end.

The result is a document that is heavily weighted in favour of the staff.

It doesn’t stop with the collective agreement: the bylaws that govern the LSU are in the process of revision. But how many students are involved in the process of revising this document? Nil, most likely.

Who, then, is drafting the new laws?

Who governs?

Not the political class of the student body, but a clique of bureaucrats and their most loyal sycophants.

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Editorial opinions are those of the staff and are independent of views of the student government and administration.

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EDITORIAL STAFF THIS ISSUE:

MANAGING EDITOR/ PAGE 6 Carly Rhianna Smith

PAGE EDITORS PAGE 1

Sascha Porteous

PAGE 2 Omar Shariff

PAGE 3 Alexander Skerdzhev

PAGE 4 Ley Doctor

PAGE 5

Cara McKenna

PAGE 7 Brandon Reid

PAGE 8 Audrey McKinnon

WEB EDITORS Jeremy Sally Stacy Thomas Michelle Gamage

REPORTERS Ross Armour Ryan Banagan Judy Chem Steven Chua Katja De Bock Annie Ellison Gillian Hames Kevin Hampson Tanya Hill Richard Hodges Jules Knox Brandon Kostinuk Michael Letendre Jana Minor Dennis Page Simone Pfeiffer Sam Reynolds Bronwyn Scott Carissa Thorpe Jennifer Thuncher

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