The master of spin is whirling like a dervish yet again folks. There have been many press conferences, CNN always has breaking news and, to top it all off, Dubya is drawling out drivel. The winds blowing in from the Eastern seaboard are the White House public relations machine kicked into overdrive. You see, one of the United States' dearest friends is behaving badly and Washington isn't wearing it well.

It never fails to amaze me when laymen don't ask or request but dictate that experts do their jobs in a specific way.

Let's talk about no sex, baby.

CNN recently posted a poll on its website, accompanying an article on the Vatican's "new" predicament over the astounding rates of child molestation among Catholic priests. The poll asked if the Catholic Church should outlaw the requirement of celibacy among the priesthood. I, like the whopping majority of CNN readers, submitted a vote in the affirmative.

We are all about to embark on new lives.

We've spent the majority of our time on this Earth preparing for the next, all the while ignoring the now. With four weeks until graduation I feel ready for the next inevitable step into the working world. As much as I am prepared for the rest of my life, I have felt an unsettling feeling of nostalgia lately.

The other day, as I backed out of my garage on my way to work, I caught sight of two little girls playing hockey in their driveway.

Every year about this time, the Gauntlet holds a Students' Union General Election pool. We don't bet on the winners like you might think-president would be an easy guess. No, we're betting on voter turnout. During the October by-election, a lucky Gauntleteer took home over forty big ones for an optimistic guess of 2.4 per cent turnout, just a hair over the actual 2.38.

While there will be cries that the Gauntlet is unduly influencing the Students' Union General Election, a fine example of true aborted democracy is on display in Zimbabwe.

When laws outlawing anti-government media and campaigning by opposition parties are coupled with growing numbers of dead or beaten political opponents, it is painfully clear that no election could be legitimate. Hell, this year's SU is more democratic than Zimbabwe and that's with over 80 per cent of the positions acclaimed.

Don't believe everything you read, especially numbers.

Using opinion polls, media outlets create stories and perspectives. Because they're numbers,
people tend to accept them as fact. However, it's not only the accuracy of the statistics, but the way they're presented and interpreted that can sway or reinforce beliefs. We must learn to interpret for ourselves.

I don't care that a drunk on some plane kicked down a cockpit door a week ago. Really. Giving "breaking news" coverage to every inconsequential airplane-related incident wastes not only my time, but that of everyone else who tuned in for real news that matters.

In nature, each animal has a certain niche. They all do their part. If they all started acting like one another, it'd get ugly. Imagine a beaver, pressured and intimidated by an eagle, trying to fly. Thunk… splat. Everything has its place in the world, and the conflicts and disputes that erupt from these differences can have positive results.

While the massive January snowfalls have become less frequent recently, threats of strikes by the Alberta Teachers Association at the beginning of the year are starting to happen with a frightening consistency. Continuing this trend, over 90 per cent of the union's members recently voted in support of strike action and, by all indications, a walkout is imminent. This course of action is disturbingly flawed.