Drinking: A ban on advertising high-octane brew?

BY SUSAN GUZZO (CUP) THE BREWERS ASSOCIATION OF Canada wants to stop the advertising of high- alcohol beers on university campuses.

The association’s proposed “National Responsible Marketing Code” calls for a voluntary ban on the promotion of such high- octane brewas Labatt Maximum Ice and Molson Triple X in pubs, student residences and fraternities.

But Andre Boudreau, manager of the University of Toronto's pub The Hanger, says the code is merely a public relations ploy on the part of the Brewers Association.

“They are just trying to look good to people who don't understand the real issues,”

said Boudreau.

Boudreau said he sees no need for an advertising ban on extra-strength beers. He said consumers decide what beer to drink

it’s going to cost more. So awareness is the key, a ban on promotion is not.”

According to Jan Westcott, executive director for the Brewers of Ontario, the

“We have to operate according to demand. If people want it and we don’t have it, they’ll get it elsewhere.”

based on their prices, not their promotions. “It is interesting that no one says we should ban the promotion of sherry or double scotch on the rocks-- yet people drink the stuff,” said Boudreau. “The difference is that they know

Party turfs candidate because he’s a witch

BY JOHN THRELFALL (CUP) IT WAS ONLY THURSDAY THE thirteenth, but B.C. Premier Mike Harcourt and the rest of his NDP were cursing their luck when their candidate in an upcoming by-election announced that he’s a witch.

Despite his longtime service, the NDP has withdrawn their support for Samual Wagar on the basis of his religion.

Wagar was to run in Matsqui, a riding in the heart of the province's “bible belt” which has never seen an NDP victory. He has been a party member for the past nine years, actively supporting the party's traditional line of individual freedoms, minority rights and green politics.

He is also a priest in the Wicca church, and has never tried to keep his religion a secret.

Citing party concerns over Wagar’s failure to disclose his religion at the nomination interview, NDP provincial secretary Keith Reynolds announced Wagar’s nomination papers will not be signed, disqualifying him from running for the NDP in the by-election.

In 1989, Wagner was interviewed on provincial television and featured on the front page of the Vancouver Sun, a fact overlooked by the NDP upon his nomination.

However, the party was quick to react when Province readers awoke that Thursday morning to the headline, “NDP Bewitched.”

Wagar contends religion was never brought up at any time by the NDP and insists it is the issues, not his beliefs, that are important.

“If | was Sikh or Ba’hai, would this be an issue?”, Wagar asked inan interview with CBC radio.

“The whole question of witchcraft is something that is of concern,” Premier ’ Harcourt replied on provincial T.V. news. “This isn't a question of religion. There are

very different kinds of witchcraft.”

When asked what kind of witchcraft is acceptable to him, Harcourt said, “I’m not going to get into that.”

Following the initial controversy, the NDP announced they will be holding another nomination in the riding within two weeks.

“The NDP is concerned that media attention will impede Wagar’s ability to carry the NDP’s message in the campaign,” said Reynolds.

Wagar remains optimistic about his chances in Matsqui, despite the lukewarm support of the NDP.

“It’s unfortunate that he [Harcourt] doesn’t know more about my religion, that’s all,” Wagar told the Vancouver Sun.

“There appears to be an assumption that people in Matsqui who are conservative Christians are also going to be bigots or rednecks,” Wagar told the Globe and Mail. “That's not true.”

Media attention to Wagar’s candidacy has been brisk, with both Vancouver's and Victoria's local papers and media outlets covering the story. few of them, however, seem to have done much research on what witchcraft is or isn’t.

One T.V. news show called Wagar a “self- proclaimed witch” and focused on “naked rituals worshipping a horned god.”

The Vancouver Sun was concerned with Wagar’s ritual of “placing oil on the breasts and pubic hair” of another worshipper. Both of these statements take practices of Wicca out of context, muchas it would be to describe the Christian eucharist as ritual cannibalism, Wagar said.

The Globe and Mail was the only media outlet that unquestionably said, “Mr. Wagar’s religion is not connected to satanism.”

provincial chapter of the national association, the brewers are simply being more cautious in promoting the stronger beers, which have up to twice the alcohol content of regular beers.

“The beer industry regularly conducts

promotions of its products on university campuses; however, we decided to be more circumspect in the case of high-alcohol beer. This means that we are not actively going on campuses to promote high-alcohol beer,” Westcott said.

Jim Delaney, U of T’s student affairs liaison responsible for alcohol policy, said he felt discounting the sale of the beers might be more harmful in the end.

“We have to operate according to demand. If people want it and we don't have it, they'll get it elsewhere. Frankly, | would rather see them get it from us because | know that our staff serves more responsibly.”

Twentysomething Trek

The quest for a generation

BY ALEX KEAVENY

WHERE IS OUR FRONTIER? WITH THIS | do not mean why are we here, nor what will be our end, but rather what are we going to do? Are we going to merely continue to live our passive, apathetic lives following the paths laid out for us by the media, our god? Or is something going to happen?

Everyone knows the 60's were a time of revolution, Sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, Peace, love, etc., etc., amen. Other generations probably had claims to fame (I think | remember learning about something once in history class called colonization or reconstruction or something in that chapter on pre-60’s history), and now it’s our turn.

What are we going to do? What are we going to hold onto for the rest of our lives? What are we going to talk about and submit our children to? What will be our... Woodstock? Will there be something to tell? If not, | fear we will have to simply adopt the claims to fame that our parents adopted. | mean, if our parents can say that they were at Woodstock, why can’t we? (note: | wish | could talk of other generations besides the 60's. Alas, media-baby as | am, all | know is what T.V. has taught me,

LI TVAAAMAANSSS

[ x.press january twenty-fifth 1994 page 6 |

and that is that the glorious 60’s are all that exists or is worth considering.)

My question for you my peers is: What will be our love-beads and tie-dye? Fimo? Flannel? Birkenstocks? Even these are not our own inventions but merely products sold to us by the boomer-dictatorship and their...television.

But wait! It is all becoming clear! Yes! Yes | see it now! We must reject the boomer- culture, we must rise up from their couches, walk out of their malls, and turn off their T.V.’s! Yes, yes, especially that, for T.V. is their most powerful weapon of control. We must do all of this and we must do it now (or at least soon). We must do all of this, but what is more important is that we do this our way, theirs - was a violent revolution, their energy spent all at once- that is why their revolution all but failed (They did manage to keep the myth alive) and they ended up exactly where they swore they never would- they became that which they abhorred. No, we must learn from their mistakes, climb every mountain, swim every sea, la, la, la, lala, etc...

So what will it be? Or should | say: “Hi welcome to the 90's, may | take your order, please?”

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