In a review in The Montreal Gazette, National Defence historian Yves Tremblay says Professor Emeritus J.L. Granatstein’s battle descriptions are as good as they can be, given the space allotted in his new book Canada’s Army: Waging War and Keeping the Peace.
CAN lit a fire under him
“I wanted to get students excited about literature and more specifically, to get them interested in Canadian writers of whom we have so many great ones now,” Canadian literature Professor John Unrau told The North York Mirror Oct. 4. He spoke about his popular Canadian Writers in Person evening course at Atkinson Faculty of Liberal and Professional Studies, which he said “has been a marvellous success”.
Jews singled out
Irving Abella, York University history professor, said most criticism of Israel is not anti-Semitic, reported The Toronto Star Oct. 7 in a story about Jews as campus targets. But he criticized the media as well as academics for singling out Jews, Jewish institutions and Israel for special scrutiny. “When other nations make errors, it is usually sufficient to call for a change of policy or a change of government. When Israel makes a mistake, or even when she doesn’t … the demand is heard on campus that the state is illegitimate and should be replaced.”
Go for buses for now
Ted Spence, a professor of urban planning at York University, and a member of the residents advisory group for the Markham Centre plan, says if delivery of the light rapid transit does not coincide with the influx of new residents, then higher-frequency, multi-stop buses are an interim solution, reported the National Post Oct. 5.
Corruption leads to voter dropout
Political science Professor Ian Greene says the scent of corruption is a damper on voter turnout, reported The Ottawa Citizen Oct. 7. “We’ve found the perception of corruption creates a great deal of cynicism and leads to not participating in the political process,” he said, referring to a national survey of voter attitudes that show 70 per cent of Canadians believe the political system is corrupt.
“out of step”
In a discussion of decriminalizing marijuana on CanWest Global’s “Global Sunday,” Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Allan Young commented on resistance south of the border: “The United States is out of step with the rest of the world. The western world has decriminalized largely and Canada should follow suit. And we should show the United States we are a sovereign nation in terms of domestic policy. We should not be afraid of them.”
American here for diversity
In response to an Oct. 6 letter to The Toronto Star saying keep Canadian schools for Canadians, York University music student and American citizen Katherine R. Stimson wrote : “While the cost of a post-secondary education in the United States was certainly a factor in my university decision-making process … Toronto’s status as the most successful culturally diverse city in the world (as named by the United Nations) was very important to me and I feel that such diversity is reflected in my university experience at York.”
Forgiveness improves self-esteem
“Expressing one’s softer, attachment-oriented feelings that are being obscured by one’s harder, self-protective feelings will lead to both partners feeling better rather than bitter,” York psychologist Leslie Greenberg told The North York Mirror Oct. 4 about his study showing that forgiveness improves self-esteem.
Expanding arts granting
Jeannine Marchessault, director of the graduate program in film and video, is one of the du Maurier Arts council committee directors responsible for assessing grant applications. She will be busier now that the council has announced it is expanding the granting program for individuals to all of Canada, reported Canada News-Wire Oct. 8.
Stadium sees playoffs for first time
Since York University founded its football program in 1968, the Yeomen’s home stadium has been empty during the Ontario University Athletics playoffs, reported The Toronto Sun Oct. 6. With one more win this season, the Yeomen finally will be able to make their home playoff debut. CFTO’s Night Beat News in Toronto carried this news Oct. 7.
On air
Peter Gizewski, of York’s Centre for International and Securities Studies, told CBC’s “St. John’s Morning” Oct. 3 that Bush’s plan puts the world’s security at risk. … ROB-TV’s “AM Business” interviewed political science Professor Saeed Rahnema about the U.S. Congress being poised to give U.S. President George W. Bush approval to wage war against Iraq with or without approval from the United Nations. … “Canada Now” in Toronto talked to Graham Wise, York University hockey coach, and two Yeomen, Peter Mccague and John Murphy at Beatrice Ice Gardens about playing university hockey as a stepping stone to professional hockey. … Global TV carried an interview with Alan Young, an Osgoode Hall law professor, on Oct. 6. He suggested that something should have been done 30 years ago and that the reason that marijuana laws have become a hot topic is because more people than ever are smoking it and more people than ever are policing it.