“We’ve been too timid,” said Erich Weingartner, a human-security research Fellow at York’s Centre for International and Security Studies, in a Globe and Mail story Jan. 17 about whether Canada should do more to help defuse a standoff between North Korea and the United States. “We’re following the lead of the United States, which means we are doing nothing. The problem is in Ottawa. It’s not willing to take risks or put resources into the relationship.” Canada is well-positioned to contribute to resolving the nuclear crisis if it is willing to become more active, Weingartner said. “We have an excellent reputation in North Korea and we are trusted there. There have been many human contacts which could be built upon. The North Koreans know us and appreciate us. We have a relationship at the highest level.” He listed several steps that Canada could have taken to try to help resolve the crisis, including playing host to negotiations between US and North Korean officials.
Child pornography difficult to investigate
The problem today, concerning rooting out and charging child pornographers, is not one of prosecution but of investigation and the unwieldy nature of the Internet itself, says law professor Alan Young, in a Toronto Star story Jan. 17 following charges laid against 41 people in Ontario involved in a child pornography ring. Young said the amount of material on a Web site can be overwhelming and tracking down the source of the material a complex task.
On air
As Jan. 15 was the deadline for graduating high school students — the double cohort – to apply to universities in Ontario, York University was mentioned on the following shows: “Metro Morning” (CBL-FM), Toronto; “London News” (CBCL-FM), London; “680 News” (CFTR-AM), Toronto; and “Studio Aperto” (CFMT-TV), Toronto, which interviewed Sheila Embleton, York University vice-president academic, and Gabriella Colussi-Arthur, professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics in York’s Faculty of Arts, about the 50 per cent increase in applications this year.