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Vancouver Riots: Could take up to 2 years before charges are made

_MG_1031Charges for the Vancouver riots will not be made until 2013.

According to Vancouver police, more than 15,000 criminal acts were committed after investigators looked through 5,000 hours of footage.

Between 500 to 700 people could be charged by the time the enquiry is completed.

Police say they want to make sure the maximum charges are made, which is the reason the 2 year delay.

They have also asked the province for more funding to help with the investigation.

The riots happened after the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup final in Game 7 on June 15.

 

Occupy Wall Street reaches one month birthday

Occupy Wall Street turns one month old today. It has taken the world by force, driving other cities worldwide to protest, including Montreal.

On Sunday, Square Victoria looked nothing like it used to. Tents sprawled everywhere, a makeshift kitchen, a children’s area and even a media center were installed.

Being a movement without leader, decision-making has been an issue for Occupy Montreal protesters.

Some criticize Occupy Montreal for their lack of a clear goal, but others support them. They’ve been given loads of donations from people who wanted to help, but couldn’t stay the night.

As for the Montreal police force, they say that camping in a public square is illegal, but for now they’ll just keep a close watch.

Protesters see this as a sign that as long as they remain peaceful, this protest will run just fine.

Photo by Pauline Mauche

October 17th 2011

Produced By Melissa Mulligan

Read By Joel Balsam

Stories By Gregory Wilson, Audrey Folliot, Joel Balsam and Sofia Gay

Raising awareness one step at a time

Phillips Square, in downtown Montreal, was crowded on Sunday morning. It was the starting point for this year’s Montreal Walks for mental health with Margaret Trudeau as one of its honorary chairs. Esther Viragh reports. 

The event united those struck by a mental illness and those who were there to offer their support. The 5 km walk was in its third consecutive year. Its aim was to sensitize the public and to raise awareness on mental health issues. Margaret Trudeau has been part of the event from the beginning.

"I support everything that people do to get the conversation started on mental health issues. Everybody is affected by mental health. It’s becoming the number one cost to our health care in the country."  

One in five Canadians will be struck by mental illness in their lifetime. Two thirds of those will never seek professional help. This is due in large part to the stigma associated with mental health. Dave Smaill says: education is key.

"They should be aware, they should understand, they should empathize, sympathize and contribute because it’s a human thing. It’s not unusual, it’s not bizarre, it’s not strange, it’s not crazy, it’s human."

Researcher and clinical psychologist Howard Steiger explains: mental illness is no different from any other illness one can contract.

"It’s not weakness. It’s the same kind of vulnerabilities that underlie other medical problems but that express themselves in people’s emotional reactivities and behaviour."

As the crowd began to walk, the theme of the event resonated in their movement. “Walk towards a world without stigma,” they said, bringing hope for a more tolerant future.

Esther Viragh, CJLO News

The end of a journey

Béliveau almost in MontrealJean Béliveau finally came home to his wife Luce yesterday morning in Montreal after walking around the world for 11 years.

The 56 year-old Quebec globetrotter had invited people to join him for the last few kilometers as he crossed the Lachapelle Bridge into the city. A reception had been organized in his honor at the official end point of his walk at Place Jacques Cartier.

He had begun his journey in the midst of a mid-life crisis after closing his business in the year 2000. Béliveau had the objective to promote peace and non-violence for children around the world.

The globetrotter was alone for most of the 75,000 kilometers he walked and only carried basic supplies with him in a three-wheeled trailer. As he walked, he also attempted to assimilate the cultures of the countries he walked into.

Jean Béliveau will gives conferences and plans on writing books about his journey.

After using up 54 pairs of shoes, Béliveau is ready for a new beginning surrounded by family and friends.

Liste des 477 prisonniers palestiniens

La liste des 477 prisonniers Palestiniens libérés en échange du soldat Israélien Gilad Shalit a été publiée dimanche.

Les prisonniers dont 450 hommes et 27 femmes, devraient être libérés mardi. Parmi les prisonniers sur la liste se trouvent :

Ahlam Tamimi, connue pour avoir participer au choix du lieu de plusieurs attentats suicides et pour y avoir acheminé des kamikazes. Elle a été condamnée 16 fois à la prison à vie.

Mohammed al Sharatha, arrêté pour l'enlèvement de deux militaires israéliens en 1989. Il a été condamné deux fois à perpétuité et une fois à 30 ans de réclusion.

550 autres prisonniers doivent être libérés dans deux mois. 

Don Cherry apologizes for rant

2008-12-15 Don CherryA week after his rant on Coach’s Corner, Don Cherry is apologizing to the insulted hockey players. Stu Grimson, Chris Nilan and Jim Thomson are the offended ex-players. 

Cherry says he was wrong on a lot of things and that he is sorry. He’s apologizing for calling them pukes and turncoats. He also admits to being wrong when he said Nilan and Grimson link fighting with drug abuse.

In the rant, Cherry accused the men of saying fighting should be taken out of hockey. He also called them hypocrites and said they didn’t want other players to benefit from fighting.

Grimson denied saying he wanted fighting gone from hockey and that he had drug problems. Nilan said he has drug issues, but he doesn’t blame them on hockey. But Thomson says fighting should be removed from hockey. He also blames his drug addictions on fighting.

 

QPIRG Lounge Speakers Series talks Occupy Montreal demonstrations

The Occupy movement loomed over QPIRG’s latest edition of its Lounge Speakers series.

On hand were community and public affairs professor Anna Kruzynski, Concordia Student Union president Lex Gill, and activist Jaggi Singh.

Doctor Kruzynski made a case for the empowering nature of grassroots action. 

"When you participate int hese street actions often times you end up feeling a sense of power which is very important when you a break with these feelings that things are too large to change

CSU president Gill discussed her recent brush with security agents when being ushered out of a corporate event.

What she heard before being kicked out shocked her.

"There was this one quote fromt he president of Pfizer that minds need to conform to the needs of the market. It just points to this incestuous relationship between the state and the private sector."

Singh was on hand to discuss the importance of research in activism. He made it clear that there are only two sides in the fight against the current political order.

"There's no such thing as neutrality, by saying you're neutral you're helping the oppression happen. So I'm not sure anyone can look themselves in the mirror when they understand things that way and say, 'wow I'm part of the problem.'"

For CJLO news, I’m Shaun Malley

ASFA by-election results in

The Arts and Science Federation of Associations now has a full team of executives. Paul Jeajian will take over the VP External and Sustainability position. While Alexis Suzuki will be the VP Communications and Promotions.

Filling the vacant independent councilor position was Yasmeen Zahar.

The two by-law reform questions were also passed. 

Wild Beasts + Life Stil Life @ Cabaret du Mile End

The last time I found myself at the Cabaret du Mile End, I was watching a devoted-but-small crowd politely enjoy Jolie Holland, and wondered if it was a place the talented go to not get enough appreciation. Not so; a sizeable crowd had turned up for the first-ever Montreal performance by Wild Beasts, a UK quartet (with the occasional extra percussive work courtesy of a shifty extra figure) who have issued three increasingly great records over the last four years. When bands make their first leap across the pond, it tends to be a bit of a crapshoot, but Wild Beasts seem to have waited just long enough to build up a faithful and decently-sized following. Good on 'em.

First up, though, was Toronto five-piece Still Life Still, who appeared to have a few buddies in the audience. Had I caught the very same set eight or nine years ago, their brand of uptempo indie-pop might well have seemed impressive. Now, though, they come across as a fiercely typical Arts & Crafts act - even moreso than, say, Immaculate Machine. That means treble-heavy arrangements, multiple guitars (often where one, more creative player would suffice), aw-shucks vocals with simple harmonies, and some mild rhythmic variation for the sake of friskiness. Credit's due to drummer Aaron Romaniuk, whose tricky parts seemed to emerge from a more interesting act, but there wasn't a moment of their 40-odd minute set that felt individual to the band. The music disappeared moments after exhibition, never to leave the slightest impression.

After a tortuously long wait (roughly 80 minutes or so), Wild Beasts finally emerged to a surprisingly amped crowd. They opened with Smother's one-two opening punch of "Lion's Share" and "Bed of Nails." It had escaped my attention that they have not one, but two vocalists, both of whom were remarkably assured - Hayden Thorpe's warbly tenor and Tom Fleming's more forceful, slightly lower register sounded great both together and apart. The latter got a stunning showcase in the form of terse Smother highlight "Deeper." After the hurried, too-dense approach Still Life Still took to arrangements, Wild Beasts' sense of spaciousness and invention was a welcome tonic. With minimal, though amusing, stage banter (including some confusion between the terms "poutine" and "putain"), they continued to power through a colorful 11-song set, with the obvious highlights being "We Still Got the Taste Dancin' On Our Tongues" (the Two Dancers single introduced as "Leonard Cohen doing disco") and surprise Limbo, Panto cut "The Devil's Crayon," which both upped the energy level and pointed out just how much their sound has evolved over a few short years.

After a short break, the boys (and sometimes girl, on aforementioned added percussion) returned for a stellar three-song encore, including Fleming's awesome, and slightly shocking, falsetto-driven turn on "All the King's Men" and a suitably epic closing take on "End Come Too Soon," complete with thoroughly convincing false ending. Having clearly become seasoned pros in their homeland, they're welcome back anytime.

-Simon H hosts Sucker Blues on Wednesdays from 4-5pm

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