Editor, the Gauntlet,

As a Canadian, I am thankful for the rights and freedoms enshrined in our constitution, including freedom of speech. Many countries, governments and private or semi-public institutions engage in tactics aimed at curtailing the rights and freedoms of others. Along with those rights come responsibilities and limits that come out of consideration of the rights and safety of other individuals, or the collective good.

Editor, the Gauntlet,

Editor, the Gauntlet,

By now, professor Flanagan's comments on the CBC have achieved infamy and offended citizens across this country. More importantly, they have sullied the name of our university. Flanagan's joke or call [about] Julian Assange was serious. As he will soon discover, it is a criminal offence to incite violence.

Editor, the Gauntlet,

Dear University of Calgary President Elizabeth Cannon,

If you have ventured into the fitness centre this semester, you have likely seen him. He struts between the pull-up bar and the parallel bars with a hardened face to match the intimidating hammer and sickle tattoo prominently displayed on his shoulder. When he arrives at the apparatus he desires, he performs the most outrageous feats of strength you have probably seen, short of dubious YouTube videos.

It appears we need help preventing our society from going down the drain. Big Brother is back, but this time to control what we drink.

The Alberta Games and Liquor Commission has banned the sale of beer with an alcohol content higher than 11.9 per cent until it can establish the effects high-alcohol beer has on binge drinking. Liquor stores may sell the remainder of their stock but are not allowed to order more until the AGLC report is presented, likely in the spring. Is this really the role of the AGLC?

On Dec. 6, the National Day of Remembrance and Violence Against Women, the University of Calgary held a memorial to commemorate the murder of 14 women at L'Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal in 1989. On that day, Marc Lepine, armed with a rifle, terrorized a class of 60 engineering students. Lepine separated the women from the men, declared his hate for feminists and shot at the group. Lepine killed 14 women.

During the U of C memorial, 14 female students lit a candle for each woman killed.

Researchers at the University of Calgary have discovered that after dinosaurs went extinct, mammals quickly got bigger before eventually reaching their maximum size.

"You go from about ten kilos to about ten tonnes in about 25 million years, so that's pretty rapid," said researcher and co-author of the paper Jessica Theodor, a U of C biology associate professor.

The Students' Union gave over 120 students the chance to show off their research Nov. 25. Many students walked away with awards for their work.

SU vice-president academic Alyssa Stacy organized the undergraduate research symposium and said the event has more than double the number of entries of 2009.

"Last year they felt like it was a very closed event and this year we were able to really open it up so people walking by felt like they could just go check it out," said Stacy.

A new biking icon can now be found next to the bus, car and walking options on Google Maps, encouraging local cyclists to plan their routes better. Google Maps added biking routes to select regions in Canada, including Calgary, on Dec. 2.

Calgary tour de nuit Society president Gary Beaton said the new Google Maps application helps cyclists avoid risky commutes during the height of winter storms.