Siraton Opportunities at Douglas Have your voice heard, write for the Other Press By Trevor Doré, Opinions Editor at Douglas and the perfect time to check out all of the opportunities available to students. Even though Douglas has been called a school without community on a couple of occasions, a multitude of extracurricular actives are available to the entire student body. The Student Union hosts pub nights and various other events throughout the semester. There are also different clubs that cater to various hobbies, sports and interests. And, if you don’t see one that interests you, you can always start one of your own. Now all of these are great, however, you might possibly be holding the best opportunity in your own two hands. The Other Press is the official newspaper of the Douglas College student body. It is run and funded by students. Seriously, our operating budget comes from a student levy collected through tuition fees every semester, along with revenue generated from local and national advertising. You already pay for it, so why not take advantage of it? Now you might be thinking “what a bogus deal,” considering you don’t really have any say in the matter. But pause for a second and consider the potential that exists within the pages of this newspaper. Every Monday, we at the Other Press gather in the cavernous confines of room 1020 at the New West campus to discuss the content of the next issue. Every week, we start with a more or less blank slate. Aside from some minor restrictions in article size and page layout, we are always open to new ideas. Anyone and everyone is welcome to come out, throw down some suggestions I: the start of another semester 14 and submit articles. Some full-time students might ask, “why would I want to write more than necessary, especially when I already have to write papers for every single one of my classes?” Well, let me explain. A student newspaper is the perfect forum for the student voice. If you’ve got a beef or something that you think everyone should know about, send it to us. Or, better yet come and talk to us and we will set the wheels in motion and go about making it public. I can personally assure you, as the editor of the opinions section, that just about anything you submit — as long as it’s not complete bigotry — will be published. You never know, your thoughts may lead to a cascade of discussion between people that you otherwise would not have been able to reach. Overall, the more you air your ideas, the more power and momentum they gain. Writing your own articles and reading the articles of other students at the college will allow you to give further thought and consideration to new ideas. Even if you don’t agree with the content, articles will no doubt challenge and solidify or perhaps change your current opinions and pre-conceived notions. In a college that supposedly has no community, there are many opportunities to enhance your post- secondary experience and education outside of class. Picking up the weekly issue of the Other Press is one of these opportunities. Now that you’ ve taken the first step, why not make your voice heard? Put something down on paper and help diversify the pages of YOUR student newspaper. Professional athletes are NOT overpaid A response to last month’s article regarding overpaid athletes By Garth McLennan es, professional athletes _make a lot of money, but they aren’t overpaid. Think about it. It’s the owners who pay athletes. The public does not pay athletes like they do health care and education professionals. If people are willing to pack GM Place to the rafters every night, why shouldn’t athletes make millions of dollars? That money has to go somewhere, and if it isn’t going to the players, it’s going to the owners, who have billions more than the players do to begin with. Also, let me eliminate a common myth. Player salaries are NOT the reason ticket prices get jacked up. That is a complete and utter lie told by owners to try and gain public favor before collective bargaining. Gate receipts (the money collected from ticket sales), are not even close to being the primary source of revenue for most pro sports franchises. The bulk of their money comes from television networks that pay to show NHL/NFL/MLB/NBA games on T.V. They in turn get their money from advertising. Pro sports clubs also make vast sums from advertisers, much more then they do from ticket sales. Ticket prices go up radically because of simple supply and demand. The average ticket to a Canucks game in Vancouver costs upwards of $100, but down in Florida, you can purchase a seat for as little as $5 per game, and that includes a beer. Why? Because people LOVE hockey in Vancouver, and they couldn’t care less about it in Florida. The Canucks and the Florida Panthers have almost the exact same payroll, so why aren’t there tickets the same price? Because of supply and demand. There’s demand in Vancouver. There isn’t any in Florida. THAT is why ticket prices are so high here and in places like Toronto, Montreal and New York, and why they are so low in Miami, Tampa Bay and Nashville. Supply and demand. So why should players NOT make millions when T.V. contracts and big time ad monies are rolling in? As long as people want to see pro sports, that money is always going to be there, and it isn’t like the owners will just give it back to the public. It will just end up fattening their wallets. I understand that it looks bad to have a guy who can’t even stop a puck making $10 million per year while police and firefighters make much, much less. Unfortunately, it’s way more complicated than “which is more important”. Think about it this way: Because of the Canucks, the Vancouver economy flourishes. Bars, restaurants, taxi companies, public transit and loads more make money and provide jobs to people. Isn’t that important? If you have any doubt about that, just go and ask any bar owner in downtown what business was like during the NHL lockout six years ago.