But I WASN'T bully: him @ tasfe of free 4 ai Ni XxX x % MOXKAKOAX Si - wr nate i Dear Stud letter: not opinion of Over the Edge By Sera N. Noosbig >> submitter I would like to make it entirely clear that the article “Men in the Modern World” appearing in the last issue of OTE has no connec- tions what-so-ever to the UNBC Women’s Center, or to their direc- tor Sarah Boyd-Noel. (XY Wa, YY SS AX o ¢ XY Letters In fact their organization took particular offence to the extreme feminist perspective in the article, and with good reason. Some peo- ple mistakenly assumed that such a standpoint would come out of the Women’s Center, but in reality their organization is opposed to every kind of inequality. I apologize to Sarah and the “| may not agree with what you have to say, but | will defend to the. ng! I was giving ~\ dom Ind démocracy! ee Ee, \ See ee entire Women’s Center for inad- vertently reflecting a negative image on their organization, and am currently making it public knowledge that the Women’s Center is far too advanced to har- bor such a backward point of view as my own. Sincerely Sera N. Noosbig Is your Roommate an Oat in the Nose? letter-not opinion of Over the Edge By Gillian Edwards >> submitter Is your roommate driving: you up the wall? Have you been searching for just the right insult to express your extreme annoy- ance at someone? If so, I have just the phrase for you. As you can probably. imagine, it is rather irritating and a bit painful to have an oat nestled in your nasal cavity. In fact, you may be wondering, iHow the heck do you insert such an object up there anyway?i Well, this phrase, soon to be known world-wide, origi- nated last year in a little apart- ment in Germany. One night at dinner my godsister, Carol, arid her husband Corey, were eating an apple crisp Carol had baked earlier that day, Ever the witty one, Corey had just made Carol laugh hysterically after she had just raised a spoonful of crisp to her mouth. Without warning, that sharp intake of breath caused an oat to fly off the spoon and up Carolis nose. The devilsome oat came to rest securely up one nos- tril, and proceeded to bother the heck out of Carol, much to Coreyis amusement. In the re- telling of the story, it is somewhat unclear just how said oat was removed, but in the end it thank- fully was. But thatis not the end of the story. A few days later, Corey was really getting under Carolis skin, so she suddenly snapped at him: Corey! You're just like an oat in the nose!f and thus, the expres- sion was born. Realizing the highly comical nature of this, and also feeling very patriotic, living in another country, the couple decided to make this the new Canadian phrase. They then made it their purpose in life to spread this phrase, which is- how I came to hear about it one summeris day at the lake. It was then that I became a convert, and pledged to aid the dispersion of the ioat in the nose. Indeed when you think about it, it is a perfect, yet fairly un-offen- sive, description for someone or something that is just rubbing you the wrong way. And so I pass the torch to you, students of UNBC. It is your mis- sion to spread the inew Canadian phrasei far and wide, never rest- ing until that oatful phrase comes back to you. Be a part of creating the Canadian identity, and enjoy the ever-so-satisfying feeling that comes from saying Geez, O room- mate of mine, youire such an oat in the nose! death your right to say it” -Voltaire In Other words: The Opinions in this section are not necessarily the views of Over the Edge or UNBC. , Letters Re: Men in the modern world, Sept. 15 2004 To the Editor of Over the Edge As UNBC’s Harassment and Discrimination (H&D) Advisor, I am pleased to be given this opportunity to share information about the uni- versity’s H&D Policy. In Canada, we all have freedom of speech and belief. At the same time, our laws protect us from acts of hate and dis- crimination. Certain acts that would not otherwise be unlawful become unlawful if they are discriminatory. In the context of BC’s publicly-fund- ed universities, our laws do not permit discrimination in services, publi- cations, or employment. UNBC’s H&D Policy is in place to help the uni- versity community prevent and respond to situations that make individ- uals feel unwelcome at the university and that are directed at individu- als because of personal characteristics protected under the BC Human Rights Code (e.g., sex; see side bar for complete list). It is my role as H&D Advisor to educate the university community about discrimination and to help parties resolve situations involving discrimination. In the latter case, my goal is to help involved parties move forward in a posi- tive and productive fashion. I ask that any member of the UNBC com- munity who has concerns related to discrimination and harassment con- tact me for information and guidance. - Cindy Hardy 960-6618 Benefits Of Legalizing letter: not opinion of Over the Edge By Ehsan Mehrabi >> submitter by Ehsan Mehrabi Out of all the countries in the world, Canada has the best means for consumption and production of making marijuana available for its people. If you don’t believe me, ask a student whether he or she knows an individual that sells and provides marijuana. Approximately 3 out of 10 high school students will most likely know someone that provides mar- ijuana. Thirty to Fifty percent of Canadians aged 15 to 24 have used marijuana, seven percent of Canadians smoke marijuana recre- ationally (2 million people), twen- ty-five percent of adult Canadians have had experience of usage in their life time ,more than 9 million people are currently using it, and I'll guarantee you that the number of marijuana users is likely to increase. Although Marijuana grow ops can be found throughout Canada, we all know British Columbia is the most successful in grow ops operations, and we all know its marijuana as “BC Bud”. In 2002, nearly 3,400 marijuana grow ops were busted, and recent- ly the police seized about 4 million dollars worth of marijuana in only one trafficking operation. If you look at it my way, mari- juana has a lot of benefits for the economy and for the crime rate in Canada. If marijuana was to be illegal, and be sold as a product like alco- hol, it would mean a great amount of money for the economy. If the Marijuana government sells it like the way alcohol is sold, and regulates it a much as possible - keeping it under the hands of. people under 19 - things would be better in the long run term. If it becomes a reg- ular product in the business indus- try, why not put tax towards it and even raise the price from 10 dollars for a gram to perhaps 15 dollars a gram. Estimates put the value of the marijuana industry to the B.C. economy at anywhere between $2 billion and $10 billion dollars, making it one of B.C.’s top three industries. Come on, that’s a lot of money we are talking bout here! According to the most recent audi- tor-generals report, the Canadian government spends more than 500 million dollars annually enforcing drug laws, most of which goes towards marijuana related issues. In other words the taxpayers will save a total of 150 million dol- lars a year. So instead of paying the police to research on grow op houses and marijuana related issues, why not put that money towards fixing and changing the community for a bet- ter place to live in, or spend that money or cancer research or some- thing. Around 50,000 Canadians are arrested each year for marijuana related crimes, so legalizing it would keep people out of jail, therefore our tax rates would slightly drop. So if we treat marijuana like other products, and regulate it, the government can make benefit out of it instead of ignoring it and keeping it behind closed doors.