Opinions Laura Kelsey drsexysex@yahoo.ca Bhutto One Giant © Leap for Women Laura . Kelsey . Opinions editor Many claimed Benazir Bhutto was the lesser of two evils. But regardless of her stance on the issues or her party’s “We are Stilla of Alberta Ralph Klein made a dirty reference about her in a speech, the instances were laughed off and treated as nothing more than jokes. But when Liberal leader Stephane Dion suggested Stephen Harper get some exercise, the Conservatives were in an uproar. Helena Guergis, a junior minister for the Tories, said “real leaders .. do not go around making fun of other people’s weight.” But what about the litany of personal disrespect the Conservatives threw at Stronach when she left their party? Politics are not the only areas past dealings, Bhutto long way off Ir OFM slated for chauvinism. was well loved in : ‘ A quick flip through Pakistan, as the world S@@1N g WOMEN LN __ interationalandlocal can tell from the fiery ae news reports show backlash occurring DOSItIONS Of FeAl gender bias alive from her December : and well throughout assassination. power in the West. North America. Most As news 6:00 PM broadcasters stations show streets full of mourners, it is amazing to see that it is mainly men who are the most distraught over her death. How come a woman politician garnered more respect in an Islamic republic than any woman can achieve in North America? North America is © awash with passive sexism. It is blatant in our television programs and in our parliament. If a woman shows strength in the West, she is either a bitch or a lesbian. Or ambitious. Take the treatment of Belinda Stronach. As a good-looking female in an old and ugly male-dominated role, she was scrutinized by the media and members of parliament on everything from her wardrobe to her personal relationships. Ex-party member and boyfriend Peter MacKay may or may not have called her a dog in Canada’s House of Commons, and former Premier 8 are men, not just men, but old men, and usually overweight and unattractive. Besides Barbara Walters, it is rare to see a woman past fifty years old—without ten pounds of injected botox on her face—in the big seat. Global BC offers a prime example of televised sexism. After faithfully remaining with the station for years, Deborra Hope was passed over for the PM anchor position for newcomer Chris Gailus. And you won’t see a single sagging female face in the Global cast—but plenty of overweight, aging men. Hillary Clinton is a lesbian. Meg Griffin is a loser. Britney Spears is a whore. We are still a long way off from seeing women in positions of real power in the West. Rest in peace, Bhutto, for showing the world a woman can make a difference. Free Newspapers Strong-Arm a Win From NW City Council By Nikalas Kryzanowski Dc. the fall, the city council of New Westminster passed a motion favouring the removal of all free newspapers boxes around parts of the city effective January 1, 2008. The proposal was justified on the grounds that the papers contribute to what the city sees as a growing problem with litter in the downtown, which impedes the livability and mobility of residents as well as contributing to other social problems. Thanks to pressure and legal threats from the newspapers, however, council ultimately decided to postpone the ban indefinitely and explore other ways of combating the identified problems with the core. The predictable backlash from newspaper publishers suggests that the removal of the boxes violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and freedom of the press. This argument, which evokes terrible oppression, doesn’t seem to actually hold much water in what is essentially a business decision. Public space is licensed by the city of New Westminster. It is up to the city to decide whether they want to lease the space. The city has the right to administer its own property however it chooses. That’s the bottom line. If I were denied a license to set up a lemonade stand on a downtown sidewalk or prevented from hanging my own personal banner (complete with sponsor) permanently from the roof of city hall, it would be the same situation. As is the case with all of us, the newspapers have absolutely no inherent claim to any civic real estate without the approval of City Council The dissemination of information to the public is certainly a key facet of any democratic environment. But, in this technological age, access to media is as simple as pushing a button and it’s now gotten to the point of over- oes saturation. The removal of the freebies will not prevent anyone from accessing information or exchanging ideas. Free papers will continue to permeate and circulate freely throughout the city. Private stores are still able to distribute the papers if they so: choose. Newsies at the Skytrain station will continue to thrust them at us whenever we pass by. Each paper also has a website which can be easily accessed from a home or library computer. Also, most freebies atso-simply obtain much of their content from the “wire” of their larger mother news networks available in other (same company owned) publications. The real issue the newspapers have here is not that they are trying to protect a reader’s right to read, but simply the existence of their advertising space. According to a 2004 analysis of content in 52 US Daily Newspapers by the Readership Institute, 50 percent of. the spaces within the papers were made up of advertising content with the other half making up editorial content. One specimen of each of the affected dailies garnered roughly the same result. Without the ad space the papers would definitely cease to provide what Georgia Straight director of operations and circulation Nick Collier calls a “public service.” This term most often refers. to a service provided by government to citizens, mainly to under-represented or remote areas with little interest in profit as a motive—hardly the business model and vision shared by these newspapers. If the populous doesn’t like the direction of council, they can make known in the next municipal election. Itis purely self-serving and shallow for these papers to use the people of New West as a vehicle to dictate public policy by manufacturing a phony crisis over rights and freedoms on this business decision of the City of New Westminster.