October 3, 1985

EDITORIAL

. Do They Know .It’s Christmas?

I was frantically trying to get to work on time (for a change) the other day when a rusty old blue van cut out in front of me. I began to mutter something rather unprintablejust as I noticed a spanking brand new bumpersticker on the dented chromium of the bumper in front of me. “DO YOU HAVE YOUR SEARS CHRISTMAS WISHBOOK YET?" Well, I managed not to ram that person‘s bumpersticker up their (you know what!), but It did set me to thinking zébout busmess‘s biggest sales period of

{he vear - (HR STMA

l)'on‘t think for a minute that I am out to get Sears, but they DO make a great example of turning Christmas into Ca$hmasl Every year. Labour Day rolls around and people rush into tneir local Sears outlet with “The Sears Christmas Wishbook Notice“ clenched in their sweaty palms. It has become a part of the pre~Ca$h—mass rushtofind out what will be the “Ultimate' .,(iift“‘for the season. Undoubtedly. you know that this year the

l

“truly great gift to give your loved one is a $20,000.00 pool

table. .or a $2000 outdoor barbeque...or a $4000 fur coat (a t'ilesslexpensive model). It seems that Sears would like to do us a f fa_v0ur by making ‘the less expensive gifts appear to be less ‘ sincere. Somewhere amongst the “Merry Widow" outfits and ' li/ard skin shoes. is there a real gift, one that has meaning and

thoughfulness‘.’ I Wish I knew.

Then again, shopping malls are equally gauche. The Christmas decorations were up before Remembrance Day at the Charlottetown Mall last year. The festive colors and the garish "XMAS" signs began to appear in the shop windows,- and customers instinctively began to shop early “so as to beat the Christmas Rush“. It has taken business years to in- doctrinate society with such beliefs. and the effort seems to be

paying off very well.

However. the biggest players in the Ca $hmas game are the to) companies..."Watch for the Cabbage Patch Twins for this Christmas." My sister is hoping to increase her patch this year to three from two. This year‘s models include TEETH and even EYEGLASSES!!! Perhaps next year we will see Cabbage Patch dolls with their very own social diseases...

So where does it end? Low-649 seems to have the answer —— double the number of games. double the take. I’m sure that Sears could manage a “Summer Wishbook". and Coleco could

work on Cabbage Patch Tripl

ClS.

.\nd what about me? I‘m going to follow that rusty blue van to Sears and order my own gift from the Wishbook right away. The 530.000 pool table has to be ordered by the end of October lNo C.().I).'s. please) so as to arrive for Christmas delivery. and I'd hate to miss a good game of billiards.

ACCLAMATIONS

Do you realize that there uere onl_\ two elected posi— tions for this year‘s Student Council. Student Executive. etc)? What in heck is going on here'.’ Only the President and the \'.l’. ()perations had to prove themselves to the stu- dent body in order to gain their seats in office. All of the rest just showed up at the right time to hand in their nomination sheets. I am not saying that the acclaimed peo—

‘l)anny Mullen Staff Member

ple arc incompetent; in fact, I know some who are not. but acclaiming all those people to their scats‘certainly says something about student in— terest in political affairs.

I‘ve heard lots of people complaining already about the way the Student Union runs itself. It‘s your own fault!

Once you start to take it upon yourselves to get more involved in the affairs of Stu-

dent (iovernment. will you

U.P.E.Il , Volunteer Network

By Jonathan Orlowski

“The U.P.E.I. Commu- nit‘y Volunteer Network is a number of volunteer services open to any member (stu- dents, staff, faculty) of the U.P.E.I. community,” said Inge Dorsey, co-ordinator in an interview with the Netted Gem. Inge also commented that the program “is co- sponsored by the Student Union and Student Services.”

“The main reason whywe are bringing this to the at- tention of the students is because it will, hopefully, get students to volunteer a few hours a week in relation to their future careers. For ex- aomple,a social worker at

Anderson House, or a deve-~

lopmental psychologist at the

News

child .day care. These people receive valuable experience within their fields.

This Volunteer Network will act as a liaison or con- tact point between the stu- dents and the community, trying to dissolve some of the sterotypical views the community has about stu- dents. ‘ .

“The contact point for students and community members is with either Sister Alma MacLeIlan or Reverend Leslie Jay at the Chaplaincy Centre, Or at the Chaplain’s office at Student Services in the Main Building,” ex- plained Dorsey.

The list of volunteer ser- vices is not ready as of yet, but the list will appear in next week’s newspaper.

MUIroney #1 Among Students

by Robert Bodrog-Goodland

In a recent opinion poll of Ontario university students. 46% said they considered Prime Minister Brian Mulroney as the most capable among the three party leaders.

The campus study showed Liberal leader John Turner well behind with a mere 26%, while NDP leader Ed Broad- bent was preferred by 23%. Five percent were either un-

decided or indicated no

preference.

lfthe poll is taken to reflect youth opinion across the country. this would definitely indicate a marked shift to the right among the nation‘s young people. who. according to many sociologists have been recently (returning to

more traditional and conser- vative minded values.‘

According to a Decima poll this past spring. out of ap- proximately one million first- time voters agcds l8-22. ‘over fifty percent supported the Progressive Conservative party in last September’s federal election. These strong trends have raised eyebrows on all sides of the political arena. as the three parties realize that ifthey hope to re- main formidable contenders live to ten years down the road. it‘s essential that they appeal to the country‘s youth today.

The Ontario study. con— ducted during the second week of September. is con- sidered accurate to within plus or minus three percen- tage points.

THE BREAKDOWN

The Question: “Among the three federal party leaders, who do you condider to be the most capable?”

Mulroney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Turner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Broadbent . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . Undecided . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

then earn your say.

Apathy is rampant 0n the Island. and you people are only contributing to the status quo.

THE NETTED GEM

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5%

Since we know that all of you university students love tests and exams, we will now present to you a very‘ short, one. question quiz.. v

“To easy," you say? We don’t think so, since we know that many of you fail this simple test every day 7

Here it is: What is maroon, white and green,

~sc-9020mntall, 58 cm wide and has breeded itself all over campus? Big Hint: r rsome of them have round, _ white :“helmets” on top a a, IlUOfthfim: ' self you.;don’t know by now, thenlyou may be one of persons; who [fails this test everyday. Our elusive object is known by many names.- lf:you think that you knowvwhat it is, put your answer here “Time’s up, put down your pens!” The correct answer to our quiz is a “Garbage Can” (pronounced “Garr’badge kanne”). Have you ever heard of one? From the looks of certain parts of the campus, many people obviously do not know of it’s function. These “gar- bage cans” are designed to hold garbage. The univery sity grounds are designed to, look elegant and clean. Do not confuse the two.

The University is “home” to many of us. To the rest of us, it is a second home. We do not appreciate all of you near- sighted people who mis- take the grounds for gar- bage cans. There are plenty of cans all over the campus — use them! I hope that you do not fail this test the next time you take it.

I Don Lane

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t. INE

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THE NETTED GEM

The staff consists of: Carol Doiron, Jill Warburton, Jim Lai. Jonathan Orlowski, Don. Lane, James Connolly. Bill Harwood,

Danny Mullen, Ron Lewis, Howard Beattie, Bob Stanley, Rober Bodrog-Goodland, Mike Zinck, HeatherK Chase, Mel Wilson, Brian Linkietter,

Rob Kelley, Nils Connor, G.R. Boswell. Karen Cough/in, Jane Armstrong, and Sheila

' Marlene Cole, Marg Shelli Wheaton

Lund, Editor,

— . Views expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Student Union Viz" the staff or of anyone in particular. We reserve the right to edit cop l for space, style, or legal reasons. Letters to the editor must be typed, double spaced and submitted before noon on Mondays. All letter must be signed, by their authors, but names may be withheld upo consultation with the editor. Phone 566-0629. Staff meetings or

w" F'- held on Monday. beginning at 6:30 p.m. All students are welcom

to join the staff.