Shis issue:

(¥Y Emerging from beneath the Beijing umbrella

(¥ When entering the political scenario
( Not a walk in a park(ing lot)

And more!

Ello, Ello, what's all this then?

» Reducing our social networks

 

¢>

     

| Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

eae networks are a part
of our everyday lives. The
majority of the population uses
Facebook daily, and most of us
use Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram,
or another social media platform
to view photos and news,
communicate with others, and
organize meetings and events.

However one feels about or
uses social media, Facebook is
likely here to stay, as are all the
other popular social networks.

A recent social network
based out of Silicon Valley called

Ello started gaining popularity in
the last few weeks. Many claimed :
: site fora price. Perhaps more

: questionable is Ello’s start-up

: funds from a venture capitalist

: firm, something not disclosed

: to the users anywhere on the

: site. This type of funding means
: profit is the goal, an interesting

: component for a site that

: claims to always remain ad-free.
: Although Ello is still in the very
: early stages, their future as an

: ad-free easy-to-use network that :

it to be a Facebook replacement,
although the website is currently
in an invite-only beta testing.

It follows a minimalist design
and has several key policies that
many users may find attractive.
They promise never to sell user
data, have a rule about using
real names, and will never show
advertisements, which are some
of Facebook’s most common
criticisms.

I quietly joined Ello this

: week after asking around for

: an invite—something I already

: found troubling—to see what

: the hype was about. Why is a

: social network that promotes

: user freedom under a model of

: exclusivity to start? Using the

: site for 10 minutes, I found their
: minimalist approach to be off-

: putting and bland. Where was

: the content? Most people I knew
: weren't on the site, and all there
: was to do was read postings. It

: was like a weird rip-off hybrid of
: Google+ and Twitter.

Behind the scenes, Ello has

: some funding models that may

: trouble some users. Due to their
: ad-free nature, they plan to

: operate ona “freemium” model,

offering certain features of the

: values anonymity may not pan
: out.

Ello offers nothing that

: isn’t already covered by several

: other networks. Their biggest

: attraction is not having to use

: your real name—just like on

: Twitter. Understandably, using a
: real identity on social networks is
: a safety issue for some, but that’s
: a matter of personal privacy.

: Currently, any Ello account can

: “friend” (offer full-size content)

: auser or “noise” (compressed

: browsing layout) another.

: There’s not even an option to

: block users, an important issue
regarding safety and harassment.

Ello delivers little of what

: it suggests, and its business

: model doesn’t bode well in the

: longterm. It wouldn’t surprise

: me in the slightest if it gets

: purchased by a major social

: network in the next five years.

: The big networks, like Facebook
: and Twitter, are free, contain a

: lot of content, and aren't going

: anywhere. Perhaps the solution
: is to use fewer social networks,

: put down our phones, and

: communicate using the real

: world.

Have your voice heard!
Contact: Elliot Chan, Opinions Editor
M opinions@theotherpress.ca

www. theotherpress.ca

 

 

Parliamentary madness

» Question Period should provide more substance, less rhetoric

Patrick Vaillancourt
Columnist

[ has been said time and
again that politicians,
as public figures and
representatives of the
country’s citizenry, should set
a higher moral standard. It
may be an unfair statement to
make, but when you witness
the kind of behaviours our
elected officials so commonly
resort to, Canadians should
probably strive to have their
politicians simply be civil.
One of the key pillars of
human civility is to provide
an answer to a question posed
to you. Canadians from coast
to coast should be dismayed
that our federal politicians
cannot seem to even do that.
Last week, a fairly major
controversy erupted during
Question Period in the House

: of Commons. NDP leader

: Thomas Mulcair asked a

: question about Canadian

: involvement in Iraq in the

: fight against ISIS. As Prime

: Minister Stephen Harper

: was not in the chamber, his

: parliamentary secretary, Paul
: Calandra, issued this response
: to Leader of the Official

: Opposition: “Our friends in

: Israel are on the front lines,

: fighting terrorism everyday.”

: He then went on to attack the
: NDP, calling out one of their

: staffers who allegedly said in

: the media that Israel is guilty
: of “genocide” in Palestine.

The exchange would

: spark a wider controversy,

: calling into question the

: House Speaker’s neutrality,

: eventually leading toa teary-
: eyed apology from Calandra
: at the end of the week.

It’s this kind of chicanery

: within the hallowed walls

: of Parliament that makes

: Question Period a must-see

: spectacle for any Canadian

: political junkie. People aren’t
: tuning in for information,

: which is the intended purpose
: of Question Period, but rather
: for the kinds of ludicrous

: responses that'll be offered

: up by the government.

Since the Senate expenses

scandal, Mulcair has beenfar  :
: and away Question Period’s top :
: performer, not forthe rhetoric, :
: but for what has become his

: trademark—short, simple,

: and poignant questions on the
: issues of the day. Canadians

: understand the questions

: Mulcair is asking, and see an

: ocean of disconnect when they
: listen to the government's

: habitual non-answers.

Taxpayers in this

: country demand services
: of their government, but if
: that government is unable

: toanswer simple questions
: from the confines of the

: House of Commons, what

: gives our government the

: right to demand any taxes

: of us? We deserve much

: better, and a good start

: would be to change the rules
; tomake Question Period a
: time for the government to
: really inform Canadians,

: through their members of

Parliament, on its activities.
Calandra and the

: rest of the Conservative

: government can save the

: stump speeches and tearful
: apologies for the campaign

: trail. Canadians expect

: Harper and the government
: to lead us by example, and

: display some civility in

: the House of Commons.

This starts with the

straightforward notion that
: a simple question deserves
: arelevant answer.