The Asian country of Myanmar, formerly Burma, has been under military rule for 45 years, and, since mid-August, has been facing its most violent anti-junta uprising yet after the government further increased gas prices. After protestors garnered the support of Myanmar’s much-revered monk population, the demonstrations gained momentum and became increasingly volatile in the past week.

It’s been almost three weeks since the incoming ArtSci ’11 students have been taunted by the Frosh Week chants telling them they’re doomed to work at McDonald’s. Three years ago, I was one of the frosh hearing those chants, but today I would like to tell those frosh they will never have to ask, “Would you like fries with that?”

When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived to speak at Columbia University this Monday, he was met with taunts from the press and thousands of protestors. The University had already faced a division amongst students and faculty as to whether the school should have invited Ahmadinejad as a speaker at its World Leaders Forum.

Coming into the last September of my undergraduate year, I expected no surprises and smooth sailing—only to find out quickly that it’s never safe to assume anything out of life.
At the end of the first week at my new apartment, my roommate and I had no idea why we developed severe allergies and shortness of breath, until we spotted large quantities of black mould behind the kitchen cupboard and the stove. The problem hit a climax when my roommate found out the mould had spread to her bedframe; as I was sipping coffee at the Common Ground, she called and said, “I’m not living here anymore.”

In June, the Athletics and Recreation Review suggested Queen’s re-evaluate the way its programs are funded compared to other universities and look into charging additional fees for instructional programs, intramurals and tickets to varsity games.

This year at London Fashion Week models were given, instead of their usual makeup and bath products, goodie bags of condescension and belittlement, labelled as sandwiches and fresh fruit.

All University departments are being forced to tighten their belts following four per cent budget cuts across the board. These cuts were necessary because of higher than normal wage, salary and pension increases and insufficient government funding, said Vice-Principal (Operations and Finance) Andrew Simpson. They caused the mechanical engineering department to cut six of its courses. Now students—many of them entering their final year—are left baffled by the suddenness of their current situation. Some are unsure they will graduate on time, or worry they won’t have the requirements they need when they enter the workforce.

Grade 1 was the first year I ever bought into the materialistic trend of have-to-have, won’t-be-cool-without latest collectible item. At that age, it was a cutthroat competition to have the biggest, sparkliest, fuzziest sticker collection. If you had scratch-n-sniff, you were sailing. My array of stickers was pretty average, but I had one page in my collection book that no one could even contend with—my page of traditional Hindu bindis.

Two recent sexual assaults at Carleton University in Ottawa and York University in Toronto stunned not only faculty and students, but anyone who had presumed campuses to be secure environments.

When I was six years old, my favourite song was a Sesame Street ditty called, “I don’t want to live on the moon.” I sympathized with Ernie because, quite frankly, I didn’t want to live on the moon, either. My little six-year-old self was horrified by the thought.

On Tuesday a small forum of Quebeckers gathered in Gatineau to discuss the implications of the province’s diversifying population. The commission, endorsed by the provincial government and Premier Jean Charest, is intended to explore the extent to which Quebec should make “reasonable accommodations” for its growing minority populations while preserving its distinct culture. The issue of cultural accommodation has increasingly become an issue in Quebec over the past several months.

Last Thursday started off like any other—after a late night of putting an issue of the Journal together, I set out on my usual route home. Though the walk is a particularly precarious route through patches of unlit sidewalk and creepy old houses, I’ve only recently started to become wary of it. After the recent sexual assaults at Carleton and York University, who can blame me?

Politicians are no strangers to the taste of a foot in their mouth, and Ontario Progressive Conservative leader John Tory is no exception. Last week, he unveiled his plan to bring faith-based schools into the publicly funded education system. He told reporters he would support these schools teaching creationism and “other theories.” Several hours later, the PC leader backtracked on his remarks qualifying his proposal with the caveat that such theories should be taught only in religion classes.