8 _+Qpinion March 22, 2006 + Over the Edge Editorial The Art of the Future ANDREW KURJATA NEWS EDITOR Generally, no justification is needed to provide degrees in science, Science and technology, after all, are the eco- nomic engines of most societies. Get a degree in math, chemistry, biology, engineering, forestry, or anything else in this area, and there is little question that you will have a “real” job waiting for you on the other end, something that will allow you to be a valuable member of society. Other areas, such as political science or law, are less empir- ical but still have reasonably definable purposes. Fine arts, in coritrast, are over on the other end of things. Govern- ment grants for scientific purposes are rarely questioned, grants for authors or musicians are seen as a drain on society. When high schools make budget cuts, the arts are first to go, And if a new university wants to attract students, its best bet is focusing on growth areas - arts are nice, but not vital. So if one wants to allocate a piece of the pie to developing arts, how do they defend this position? Inevitably, it comes back to the economy. The utilitarian argument that is used goes something along the lines of “people who study music do’well‘in math,” or “movies help people relax after a long day at work.’ In other words, arts are just a tool to help people with “real” jobs work better. They are important only in relation to that which seems to be self-evidently important - the pur-" “have managed té'bring UNBC its first suit of truth or the pursuit of money, depending on how high-minded a critic you are dealing with, (Please note: this is not an attack on the sciences, but a defence of the arts.) And yet, for some reason, human- kind is consistently drawn to artistry. There is no evidence of a human so- ciety that has not developed its own form of artistic expression, at any point in history. The United Nations has de- fined the ability “to enjoy the arts” as a basic human right, and, resorting to an economic argument, people are willing to spend billions upon billions of dol- lars on music, movies, books, and other artistic products. It’s hard to imagine that something this persistent isn't im- portant. It has been said that if food makes life possible, then art makes life mean- ingful, There is no empirical evidence ‘of love, only the subjective meaning we give to our relationships with other human beings. You cannot scientific- ally measure where one community ends and another begins, and yet com- munity is central. to our conception of who weare. It is the same spark of imagination that inspired Shakespeare and Newton. Art is‘no less central than science to our quest-to understand and evaluate our lives. Fortunately, there are those who agree and have made moves to do something about it. Thank-yous and congratulations should go to those who ever fine arts degree, thanks to a proto- col agreement with the Emily Carr In- stitute. Having something of this sort has been a dream of many attending UNBC, as evidenced by organizations such as the Fine Arts club, the Arts Collective, and other such groups that have sprung up throughout UNBC’s short history. Though it is still a long ways away, it is hoped that this signals the coming of the day when one will no longer have to go to Vancouver or Alberta to get training in music, film, drama, or painting, A home-grown art- istic community is already present in the North, and something of this sort would be infinitely valuable to helping it develop. As communities and as individuals, we are not made unique by our scien- tific beliefs. When one thinks of the essence of New York or Paris, it is jazz clubs, poetry, and art galleries that spring to mind. Everything in our lives is viewed through a cultural lens that is shaped by the stories we tell, the mean- ing we imbue, and the dreams we cre- ate. Airplanes would never have been_ made if it weren't for the imagination of the Wright Brothers, the very same imagination that inspired the Greek legend of Icarus’ wings centuries before. Art is the essence not just of who we are, but of who we wish to be, A vision has been set out. Let's see where we go. On the Digital Front Keep Up to Date Over Summer JEREMY JOHNSON STAFF WRITER The end of classes is almost here for many of us. What that means is that Over the Edge is also nearing its last | distribution, Although ‘On the Digital Front’ will essentially come to an end for this semester (and hopefully pick up in the Fall again), that doesn't mean the digital news will stop. Next week will be.a food-themed magazine andT'll © try to get some interesting information on how food is actually increasingly be- ing related to digital technology. In the mean time, I was trying to find a good article that would wrap up a very successful first year. I thought about just doing another news piece, but I decided against that and opted for something that will allow you, the reader, to keep up to date on digital news even without ‘On the Digital Front. A good website to start off with would easily be www.eff.org, EFF is the Electronic Frontier Foundation which has been around for a very long time. They have their own press releases typ- ically featured on their front page, but if you look along the top of the site, you'll also notice the link “Deep Links. This section of the site features gen- eral digital news that generally tends to be more diverse than just the press releases issued by the EFF. Next up is a great website that has all sorts of interesting and weird news that you might not have even dreamed of hearing otherwise. That site is www. boingboing.net. It’s a general blog mod- erated by several people including the ever famous Cory Doctorow. Let's shift to more Canadian based websites that deal with digital technol- ogy now. A great blog to keep tabs on is www.michaelgeist.ca. That site is, of . course, put together by internet law professor Michael Geist. He always has an interesting take on what is hap- pening around Canada. He's also very fast when it comes to news as well. A good site that aggregates news is a site maintained by Russell McOrmond. He has the website www.digital-copyright. ca, I personally don’t think the website looks quite as elaborate as some others, but there is a lot of great quick-on-the- draw news on there. A good website for digital law information (they also respond well to e-mails too, so the ad- dresses are not just there for looks) is www.cippic.ca. It's a digital law univer- sity that occasionally has some interest- ing news as well. The website is better for informational purposes though. Lastly, there is the Canadian equiva- lent to the EFF, www.onlinerights.ca. Online Rights Canada is a website de- voted to Canadian consumer rights on the internet and other digital mediums. They're worth checking out and sup- porting as well. My experience has been - that they are also good with e-mails. Saving the best two for last, these sites I make active contributions in (well, one I kind of have to since it’s my site). The big news site I write news for (I go under the name Drew Wilson) is www.slyck.com. This website has everything but the kitchen sink when it comes to news and information on file-sharing (both legally and illegally) It features comprehensive guides and well-researched articles. Then there is my blog: web.unbe.ca/~johnso9/blog. I promise to. fill it with more actual digital news and less entries on my per- sonal real life ramblings. There's more to the techno-world than the crummy WIPO treaty. Al- ways keep an eye on both sides of the debate and keep safe. KAMIL KISIEL The F Word ANNA-GRADOWSKA STAFF WRITER Unfortunately, my title does not refer to socially accepted words like fuck. I am talking about the word Feminist. Possibly a more feared title to be placed on women than bitch or slut, when people hear the word fem- inism come out a womatis mouth, she is suddenly a man hating lesbian with a passion for creating social issues out of thin air, She becomes an over dra- matic malcontent who is too angry to accept society for what it is, egalitar- ian. Iam writing this because Lam tired of the hatred and oppression of the . feminist. movement by,.people who, fail to even consider that we might not live in some magical land of equal rights, equal consideration, and non- discriminatory behavior. The truth is, that we are FAR from this ideal society, but it seems to me that every- one would rather turn a blind eye to the truth than try and face it. Women are discriminated against today and here, No amount of de- nial will make this disappear. I hear people talks about gender disctimina- tion as if it’s some long dead behay- ior, but it’s all around us in Canada. Though buried under a thin veil of ignorance, discrimination and preju- dice on the basis of distinctions such as race, class, religion, and gender are _ all alive and well in our streets, jobs, classrooms, and especially in our be- haviors. Women's sexual and intellectual rights are trampled on everyday in our society. From over sexualized media pressures to glass ceilings in business. The female role in society is still rigid. Women are mother and lovers, they are more than that, but never encour- aged to be. Women who claim power in society are often stripped of their femininity, since power is perceived to be an exclusively masculine attribute. Women with power and equality are seen as threatening and undesirable, Women shrink themselves and twist into the mold of societal demands on appearance and demeanor in order to escape the ridicule of assuming many “masculine attributes’. The perspec- KAMIL KISIEL tives and biases of the male mind still control the perspectives our society, government, and business. Issues as simple as wage equality are still a ma- jor problem all over this country. : Feminism is a fight for equality. Equality in wages and jobs, but also equality and freedom in the more subtle ‘issues of gender, such as sex- ual rights and identity, sexual harass- ment, family roles, stereotyping, vio- lence and rape. There may be many variations within feminism, as there is in any ideology, but the goals are the same. Feminism strives to identify and repair problems in the way this society deals with women in order to create equality, Equality does not include: killing all men, subjugating men, or creating more conflict and hate, People frequently share many of the ideals of feminism, but shun the word because of the negative stereo- typing of those who fail to see the truth and those who choose to hide it. Many women are afraid to stand up and speak out against injustices done to them for fear of the brand of “feminist”. If you believe that our society should have equality between the sexes and think that improving women’s role in society is part of the solution, you are a part of the femin- ist movement. Denying the word, and with it the true meaning and power, only prevents the awareness and cooperation we all need to solve these problems. ; I am sick of women being accosted for identifying ‘the battles necessary in order to truly bring equality out of the fantasy world of ideals and into reality, Feminism strives for equality, and there is no other way to seek jus- tice but to question our institutions and behaviors. I feel that people who fear this word and all that it stands for, I think they may just be too afraid to confront the uncomfortable truth that sexism is still all around us. Feminist is not a bad word, though it is hushed throughout our society. Its time that it stopped and people looked around themselves and ad- dressed the issues, not buried then under fantasy. The opinions expressed in editorials or letters to the editor that are submitted to Over the Edge are not the opinions of Over the Edge or UNBC. The views expressed in a letter submitted to Over the Edge are the views of the original authors, and therefore, do not reflect the views of Over the Edge, or its staff. Over the Edge welcomes your submissions to our opinion section. Due to the high volume of letters we receive, we would appreciate it if letters were kept at 500 words or less. To submit a letter, e-mail over-the-edge@unbc.ca.