Tag: opinion
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Best left cold? Considering JonBenét Ramsey, Tupac Shakur and Ariel Castro
Reading the headline, you may not know much about those three names. Maybe you have heard of Tupac from his short lived (but highly rewarded) career as a rapper, and maybe…
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Stick families: Narcissistic and dangerous
Everybody has seen them – you know, those stupid little white families on the back of every single mini-van. There are zombie families, Disney families, sporty families, and families with way too…
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Man, I’m so depressed
I’ll be honest. When I’m stressed about an upcoming exam that I’ve hardly read any of the relevant material for, or when I’m looking outside and see storm clouds in the distance,…
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Mental health awareness: We have a long way to go
Mental health awareness, as a movement, has gained a lot of momentum over the last couple of years. In Canada, it’s had a huge boost in part by Bell contributing monetary donations…
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My friend, Hitler
I wasn’t sure if shock was the appropriate word, or amazement, or even anger for what I read one day while online. As a bit of context, my late grandfather, as well…
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Boston bombing calendars: Monetizing a tragedy
I was just leaving a meeting with Toronto City Councillor Mike Layton (Ward 19) on April 15th, when, as I always do, I decided to check Twitter. It wasn’t quite sure what…
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Last Call
I leafed through Arthur and Junie B Jones picture books in the downtown library. I ate Super-kid ice cream cones on the benches in Victoria Park. I watched the Lion King, for…
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Female politicians aren’t “cute”
I’ve had the chance to do some pretty extensive journalism, which has been both enrapturing and informative. Some of the stories I have been able to hear, and some of the people…
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The evolutions of the “f” word
I used to cringe at the sound of the “F” word. It is a word exclaimed – not just said – under the most undesirable circumstances, such as when your finger gets…
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There is no ‘fair’
My grandfather used to say to my mother, “There is no ‘fair’.” It wasn’t an old adage or a philosophy to live by, but rather a sign of exasperation at the state…
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Turnitin.com losing ground
Plagiarism, like most dirty laundry, isn’t often aired in the proverbial public square of academia. For the most part, it’s a problem that flies under the radar, reintroduced to students only when…
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9/11 ten years later
This past week, airwaves all over the world have been full, nay, clogged with news and analysis of what happened on that fateful day ten years ago. September 11th had become the…
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Notes from the Gold Coast: First World Problems
Have you ever received that chain-email with pictures of the less fortunate in Africa? They usually remind us to be thankful for what we have with graphic images of Africans living in…
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Butterfly wings
“It has been said something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.” – Chaos Theory If you Google for long enough,…
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Irene: A debate in media hype
Before Hurricane Irene hit the eastern shores of the United States, one tuning in to CNN may have expected the apocalypse to rain down. Reporters in bright red or yellow rain jackets…
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A letter from the editor
Greetings, and congratulations on choosing Laurier Brantford for your post-secondary career. This special edition of The Sputnik is all yours, guided to help introduce you to both the City of Brantford as…
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Notes from the Gold Coast: A lesson in patience
It has been over a month since I first set foot on Ghanaian soil and, I must say, my urge to do everything fast has been greatly reduced. Thanks to the laid-back…
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How to think and talk about Brantford
(The following is a sarcasm-laden satirical piece inspired by Binyawanga Wainaina’s “How to Write about Africa,” published in Granta 92) When you picture Brantford, confine your imagination to the immediate downtown area.…
