Ah, Orientation.

An important time in the career of any student. A time to adjust, acclimatize and begin your education. As The ‘Bang's self-appointed political muckracker, I feel it's my duty to keep everyone up to speed on political matters. Last year I wrote a lot about provincial and national politics but this year I'm going to keep a better watch on what's happening in London. The political back-alleys of Fanshawe, Western and City Hall are in need of greater exposure, literally, I think.

Don't worry, though. With a potential federal election in Canada this fall and the U.S. presidential election in November, I'll still have the bigger picture in mind.

To those who say that politics is boring, or doesn't matter, or that all politicians from student reps like Fanshawe's Prez Jon Hillis to Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper are genetically incapable of telling the truth in any recognizable form, I humbly agree. Because politics can be boring, and most of the people involved are to the shady side of purely honest.

The trick is to recognize that politics matters to our everyday lives, a lot. From the food we eat every day, the streets we drive on, to the hallways of this school, to our health care system and the workplace - all greatly influenced by whoever is running the political show.

Real world politics is hard to describe. Think of a combination of NFL football and, I don't know, “The Hills,” or whatever TV show includes a lot of stylish clothes, sex, drama, power schemers and other generally unreal situations. Unless you know the rules of the game, and get to know the characters, you're going to find paying attention a little boring and you'll likely write off the entire process as pointless. But unlike ignoring where Brett Favre is playing, or not giving a fuck about who's doing who on “The Hills,” the real world political game is not something we can afford to ignore. Not if you care about tuition fees, the environment, our economy, or war.

The real fun of getting up to speed on political matters is when you start categorizing the lies, and can recognize when a politician is playing you, the voter, for a dunce.

So it was with a cynical muckracker's grin that I read Jon Hillis' online introduction to the Fanshawe students of 2008 (availible here: www.fsu.on.ca/president.asp). Prez Hillis quotes his predecessor, last year's FSU head honcho Travis Mazereeuw, he of the unpronounceable name, and solemnly promises to follow in Travis' footsteps.

Considering that during Orientation last year I watched Mazereeuw sitting cross-legged on the floor between the computer and book store, with several extremely good-looking young women, asking them how they felt, while confused students and concerned looking parents milled around like lost cattle, I can only assume that Hillis will gladly follow such a strong example.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.