Article published in OutWords’ April 2013 issue
Finding Love Online
According to a survey by Stagg, a dating app launched in December, 77 per cent of gay men do not know how to find men like themselves to date. The same survey showed that while gay men face barriers when it comes to meeting other men to date, apps are becoming increasingly important in the hunt for long-term romantic relationships.
Apps are relatively new on the dating scene. GayDatingSites.net, an online resource that regularly updates information about dating sites gay men can use, has yet to include information about dating apps. The website ranks the top 20 dating sites for gay men, offers tips on staying safe and posts coupons. Stagg's survey showed that dating sites are ranked as being friendlier than apps, but some users lump them in the same category as being useful for finding hook-ups, not relationships.
"Any dates I find are usually from talking online to other gay men via the Internet or dating apps," said Brandon Luner, a student at George Brown College in Toronto, who has yet to have a long-term relationship. "The apps work great often if you are just looking for a quick hook-up... Some conversations and dates can come from it but the underlying constant goal is to get into the others' pants as soon as possible."
As a guest on Gwissues' "Finding Love Online" episode, documentarian Chase Whiteside said that most people on dating websites and apps are actually just looking for a hook-up, not a long-term romantic relationship.
"They take away from a lot of the things that we used to experience when we met people in the flesh one on one," said Whiteside, who thinks that human complexities are too great to be simplified into an online profile. "We're people. We're not online profiles. Were not cell phones."
Stagg tries to distinguish itself from other dating apps by telling more about members than just location.
Participants are regularly quizzed, and the app uses these answers to create collections of words about members personality traits, likes and interests, replacing traditional self-made profiles. The app also rates the compatibility of members.
The Power of Social Networks
Joseph F. Moynham lives with his long-term partner Andr in Montreal. "We actually met in the place you shouldnt meet someone for a long-term relationship – we met in a bar," said Moynham. Previously Moynham had found dates through friends, but said that the best way to find guys is to be involved in something, like an activity or a group. There are many groups for single gay men and women to get together, including bowling and breakfast get-togethers.Matchmakers can help those seeking love find partners interested in the same type of relationship. A matchmaker will help a person break bad dating patterns and find people with similar intentions. Some professionals work with private investigators and do criminal record checks, which helps ensure clients' safety. However, there are no matchmakers in Winnipeg who will work with LGBT people.
So clearly professional matchmakers are not accessible to everyone, but friends and family can work just as well. Dr. Mike Dow, another guest on Gwissues' "Finding Love Online" episode, said that telling loved ones that you are looking for a long-term romantic relationship will encourage them to seek out potential partners with similar intentions for you. Your family and friends will begin acting as your own personal matchmakers – and as people who know you better than a stranger taking your cheque, they may be able to do a better job.
The Whole Package
So whats one to do? With so many options of finding a gay lover, what is the best?"Pull out all the stops... Do everything it takes," was Dow's advice.
Try out dating apps and websites with good reputations – they will connect you with people you may never meet otherwise. The Stagg survey found that 66 per cent of men using apps now are actually looking for long-term relationships, and 64 per cent are interested in making friends, so the reputation they have may be misleading.
Instead of using the apps in public or when hanging out with friends, actually stay engaged in your surroundings and actively look for dateable partners. Mr. or Ms. Right could walk right out the door when you're flipping through your phone. Go to places where people with similar interests like you will be, such as clubs or groups, and put yourself out there.
Tell friends and family you are seriously interested in a long-term romantic relationship and ask if they know anyone who might be suited for you. Make it clear to everyone you know that this is what you want. If you live somewhere with professional matchmakers who cater to the LGBT community, you might want to consider using their services.
There isn't one perfect, magic path to your special someone. The road can be rocky, painful and sometimes dangerous. So be safe. But also remember to have some fun.
News article published on the front cover of the Winnipeg Metro on Dec. 21, 2012
Charities see a dip in donations
Manitobans may be known as the most charitable in the country, but several Winnipeg charities say they’re struggling this year.Winnipeg Harvest has received fewer donations than they did last year, said volunteer Samantha Gladue.
Many hygiene products, such as lotion and soaps, and “girl toys” have been donated, but there are many food items they are in need of, said Gladue.
“We have a most wanted list,” Gladue said, which can be found on their website.
The United Way set a goal to raise more than $20 million this year, according to Douglas Finkbeiner the United Way 2012 campaign chair.
“We’re going to be about $300,000 short,” estimated Finkbeiner.
The goal is $700,000 over last year’s, said Finkbeiner, so likely more money will be brought in this year.
However, the money is needed to fund important community projects, he added.
The Christmas Cheer Board is coming up short this year as well.
“We’re behind, but we’re not desperate,” said Linda Grayston, a volunteer with the Christmas Cheer Board.
They are asking for everyone who gave last year to help them out again, Grayston said.
Siloam Mission is in the same position.
Each year’s budget assumes Siloam Mission will get the same amount of money as the previous year, said Director of Development Judy Richichi. Currently, donations are down five per cent from last year.
“We don’t have a budget that has any extras, any frills,” said Richichi. “We are a little bit concerned.”
News article published in The Projector March 18, 2013
The controversial
meat: Canadians debate
about horse meat
The horse meat scandal
became global news when horse DNA was found in frozen burgers sold in Ireland and then in other meat products across Europe.
“We may yet see a link to Canada in this
whole horse meat crisis,” said Shelley Grainger, eastern region director for
the Canadian Horse Defence Coalition (CHDC).
According to Grainger, 98
per cent of the horse meat produced in Canada is shipped overseas.
“It’s a $70 million
industry,” said Grainger.
The CHDC is working with
Member of Parliament Alex Atamanenko (BC Southern Interior), to pass Bill
C-322. The bill would make the slaughter of horses for human consumption
illegal.
“The basis of this bill is
the fact that horses are not food-producing animals and many are treated with
drugs that are prohibited from entering the human food chain,” reads A Bill to
Ban Horse Slaughter in Canada:
What You Can do to Help! on the CHDC website, referring primarily to the
anti-inflammatory drug phenylbutazone (PBZ).
CHDC has found proof that
horses that have been treated with PBZ have been turned into meat deemed
acceptable for human consumption, said Grainger. This proof has been posted on
its website.
“We don’t have a lot of
evidence to show it’s being used widespread,” said Grainger, but CHDC’s
research indicates that it probably is.
CHDC also opposes the
slaughter of horses because of the suffering caused to the animals, said
Grainger.
“Cattle can be handled and
contained in ways horses can’t,” she continued. “A horse walks into a kill box
and it is furious.”
Unlike cows and pigs, horses
can violently thrash – often leading to injuries to itself or the destruction
of equipment, said Grainger. Because of the thrashing, it is often difficult to
kill them in one shot.
“They’re not killing them
efficiently. They’re stringing them up when they’re still conscious,” said
Grainger.
The Horse Welfare Alliance
of Canada (HWAC) is also concerned about the wellbeing of horses, but it is in
favour of horse meat.
“In Canada, it’s a democratic right to
eat what you want to,” said Bill deBarres, a member of the executive committee
of HWAC. “But it’s wise to buy your food in a place that is licensed.”
Food bought from licensed
retailers comes from places licensed to produce meat, said deBarres.
According to him, quality of
the meat is monitored by the Canada Food Inspection Agency so it will be safe
for consumption.
Horse Slaughter in Canada, an
article on the HWAC website, indicates that PBZ is not often found in horse
meat.
DeBarres said Canada has one
of the most highly regarded food inspection agencies in the world, and part of
their job is also to regulate the treatment of animals.
“It is absolutely incorrect
that the slaughter of horses is less humane than the slaughter of cattle or
pigs,” said deBarres.
HWAC puts a lot of energy
into the welfare of horses and has done extensive research into the way they
are treated on their way to the slaughterhouse.
While the level of cruelty
involved in killing a horse may be on par with killing other domestic animals
for food, horse meat is superior in nutrition.
“It’s a red meat that has
more protein, more iron and less total fat, less saturated fat, less
cholesterol and less sodium than beef,” said deBarres.
According to Sarah Miller, a
nutritionist at Nutritional Sciences in Winnipeg,
there is no negative health impact of eating horse meat.
“It’s pretty much the same
as beef or pork. Except a bit healthier,” said Miller.
Horse meat is hard to find
in Winnipeg
said Chef Alexander Svenne of Bistro 7 ¼, who said he doesn’t know where in the
city it can be found anymore.
This is good news for the
CHDC, whose website’s “Help Now!” page has information about how individuals
can end the slaughter of horses for their meat.
News article published in The Projector Jan. 7, 2013
Harsher penalties for impaired drivers
Newly introduced provincial penalties mean that anyone caught drinking and
driving for the first time in Manitoba
will have an ignition interlock system installed in their vehicle for one year.“Most Manitobans know, they have to know, that if you drink and drive in Manitoba you can lose your car permanently, you could have your driver’s license taken away, you may go to jail,” said Attorney General Andrew Swan. “You will pay thousands of dollars in fines, assessments and higher insurance costs, and you’ll be stuck with a criminal record for the rest of your life. Yet, we know there are some drivers who still do not get the message.”
Swan announced at a Dec. 13 press conference that as of Dec. 15, anyone caught driving impaired would, on top of all other penalties, have to enroll in the ignition interlock program before having their license reinstated.
In the past, the ignition interlock was only for repeat offenders and the most serious first time offenders. Now, offenders will have to pay administration fees, which add up to approximately $2,000 a year.
“We think that it is a very useful tool, and we don’t think that other Manitoba taxpayers or drivers should have to pay for the bad decisions someone’s made,” said Swan.
Offenders found not using the ignition interlock system may be fined up to $5,000, incarcerated for up to one year, have their vehicle impounded, and face an additional automatic driving suspension.
“A driver, prior to starting the vehicle, has to provide a breath sample, and the breath sample will determine whether there’s alcohol in the system,” said MPI registrar of motor vehicles Ward Keith. “If there is, then the vehicle won’t start. The system also requires random breath testing as the vehicle is in operation for the driver.”
During random testing while the car is in motion, if alcohol is found on the breath an alarm will sound until the vehicle is turned off. All results are sent to MPI, Keith said.
An impaired driver could get a passenger who has not been drinking to blow into the system for them, Keith explained.
He added it would only make sense for this passenger to be driving, unless that passenger was a child. Only human breath will work with the system.
Joanne van Dyck’s close friend was killed by an impaired driver 25 years ago. Though she supports the legislation, she worries penalties are still not harsh enough.
“I like the idea of the breathalyser,” said van Dyck. “But, how many chances do people get? I mean, people lose their lives.”
Feature article published in the Winnipeg Metro Dec. 19, 2012
Freegans say dumpster diving should be legal in Winnipeg to reduce waste
“It’s just amazing how many people are surviving purely based on the free food we can find in the city,” said Hoogstraten, whose family relied on the kindness of a couple of “squeegee punks” to find food in Dumpsters.
Such people are referred to as ‘Freegans.’
The Public Health Act of Manitoba says that food not up to the minimum standard must be disposed up. Such food, which may have been improperly handled or contaminated with disease, ends up in the garbage.
For this, among other, reasons, taking items from trash and recycling bins is illegal under Winnipeg’s Anti-Litter By-Law.
Jason Holland, co-owner of Mondragόn thinks this is “absurd.”
“There’s a lot of waste in our culture,” Holland said. “If there’s people out there that want to divert waste from the landfills in order to fill their bellies, I think that’s admirable.”
Food left at the end of the day that cannot be sold at Mondragόn the following day is given to street people or staff, said Holland.
“There are businesses that will dump toxins on it and bleach and I just think it’s disgraceful actually,” Holland said, adding he thinks that practice should be illegal.
Hoogstraten has been concerned about her safety in some industrial dumpsters due to broken glass, but said she doesn’t worry much about the smaller ones.
“I think the people out there who are dumpster diving know the safe places through experience,” Holland said. “I’ve found some beautiful salad material, or like, found 30 organic yogurts that just expired yesterday,” said Hoogstraten.
Quickfacts
-400,000 tons of waste is dumped annually in the Brady Road Landfill according to a report done by Stantec Consulting Ltd. for the City of Winnipeg
-According to the David Suzuki Foundation, about 40 per cent of household waste is organic waste, such as food
-In 2011, Winnipeg Harvest distributed approximately 4 989 tons of food to Manitobans
Arts article published in The Projector Oct. 22, 2012
Dissing Winnipeg
Sarasvati Productions will be touring Diss to Manitoba high schools
through until Decenber to discuss gang-related issues with students. Rex Deverell, the playwright behind Diss, in partnership with Mixed Company Theatre of Toronto, wanted to address issues of increasing gun violence among Toronto youth using theatre and forum theatre techniques.
“It is a kind of hybrid – where the audience watches a play with a bad outcome and then suggests strategies for the characters to change the outcome for the better,” Deverell said on the forum theatre style via email.
To continue engaging the audience after the curtain falls, Hope McIntyre, Artistic Director at Sarasvati Productions and director of Diss, said that educators packages have been put together and will be handed out to teachers after their students see the show.
Although this marks Diss’s Winnipeg premiere, the production originally toured Toronto high schools.
“To develop the script, we worked with young people who had been involved with gangs, interviewed youth workers, and police in high priority areas of the city,” said Deverell.
After Sarasvati Productions expressed interest in bringing Diss to Winnipeg, Deverell began reworking the script after touring the show and receiving feedback.
“The play is seen as a tool for change, to help kids who may be facing choices about gangs in their schools or neighborhoods, to help them see the issues and, one hopes, to give them the confidence to avoid the dangers,” said Deverell.
Deverell tailored the piece to the community where it would be performed. The Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba was brought in to give input into making the script more relevant to Winnipeg students.
“We hope for the Winnipeg community that if more youth are aware of the risk and warning signs, that they won’t get involved with gangs and those who are witnessing it will know how to deal with it. So hopefully the youth violence, the gun violence, that we’re seeing too much of in Winnipeg will decrease,” said McIntyre.
While McIntyre said this will be the only time Diss will be shown in Winnipeg by Sarasvati Productions, it will likely not be the last play the company tours through Winnipeg high schools to help students deal with tough issues.
“This is the third school tour we’ve done, so we probably will be doing another one, but another script,” said McIntyre.
Diss will be touring Manitoba high schools from Oct. 15 to Dec. 14.
If you are interested in checking out Diss, drop by the Millennium Library Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m. to catch their only public show. There is no entry fee, but donations are welcome.
International and Local News Briefs published in The Uniter Jan. 31, 2013
Syrian refugees trying to make their way out
JORDAN: More than half a million Syrian refugees continue to put pressure on the Middle East, the BBC reports. Since Jan. 1, 26,500 refugees have arrived in Jordan alone, most of them traveling by foot, with 3,000 crossing each day. Another 50,000 refugees are waiting to cross, according to the report. The Jordan government has already threatened to close its border to Syria. United Nation’s humanitarian coordinator Andrew Harper is calling for more international aid. Conflict in Syria started two years ago when demonstrations against President Bashar al-Assad’s government began. During this time, 60,000 people were killed and another two million were displaced.
North Korea threatens the US
CHINA: It is no secret that satellites, long-range rockets and high level nuclear tests are aimed at the United States, North Korea’s National Defense Commission said in a news statement. According to a Los Angeles Times article, the comments come after the United Nations decided earlier last week to expand sanctions over the country’s missile and nuclear programs. North Korea has already performed two nuclear tests, one in 2006 and another in 2009. South Korean intelligence believes that preparations are already underway to undergo a third test. China has been a longtime ally of North Korea, but is now calling for the UN to intervene.
Ethics of drone attacks under investigation
LONDON: The United Nations has launched an inquiry into the impact of military drones, the BBC reported. The impact of drone strikes will be investigated in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, the Palestinian territories and Somalia to determine the extent of civilian casualties, identity of militant targets and legality of strikes where the UN has not recognized conflict. Those in favour of drones say civilian causalities are reduced, but opponents of drones do not believe this to be true. Currently, 51 states have the technology to use drones. The UN wants to determine a legal framework around the use of drones. In some circumstances, attacking with drones could be considered a war crime.
Troops move into Mali
MALI: United Nations-mandated troops are moving towards Mali’s centre, the Mail & Guardian reported. Some 2,000 troops from Chad and 3,300 from the West African States, as well as 2,300 soldiers from France have moved in to help stop extremists, made up mostly of Tuaregs and Arabs. Evidence of more than 30 executions have surfaced, with allegations that some of the bodies have been dumped in wells for disposal. Reports of sexual violence have also been made. The crisis in Mali began a year ago when Tuaregs and extremists began a rebellion for independence of the North. The extremists broke off after major towns had been seized and implemented extreme forms of Islamic law.
A 5,000 square-foot casino scheduled to open this spring in Cityplace has been in the works for years, the Winnipeg Free Press reports. A deal was struck between True North and Manitoba Lotteries before construction of the MTS Centre even started. The Tavern United pub and restaurant has been home to 50 VLTs since the MTS Centre opened. When it was announced the Winnipeg Jets would be returning to Winnipeg, it became clear more machines would be needed. Construction for the casino has already started on the second floor of Cityplace. There will be 140 slot machines, two poker tables and four blackjack tables. Once it opens, the VLTs at the Tavern United will be removed.
Winnipeg bus company sells shares
A Brazilian bus company is buying a 20 per cent stake in Winnipeg’s New Flyer Industries for $116 million, reports the Winnipeg Sun. Marcopolo, which specializes in bus body production, said it could help New Flyer reduce manufacturing costs and that, together, the companies could pursue new international clients. The two companies will cooperate with engineering, technical, purchasing and operational matters. New Flyer is currently working on manufacturing electric buses that can withstand harsh Manitoba weather conditions, with funding from the federal and provincial governments. It also recently made deals to manufacture buses for New York Transit, Maryland Transit Authority and Los Angeles.
Biker sentenced for murder of rival gang leader
Sean Heickert, who is associated with the Hells Angels, was convicted of the first-degree murder of Bekim Zeneli, leader of the LHS (loyalty, honour, silence) gang, the Winnipeg Free Press reports. Heickert received a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years. In November 2007, Heickert shot Zeneli to death in his Thompson apartment. The Hells Angels and LHS gang had been competing for control of the drug trade in Northern Manitoba. Days after the murder, police became aware that there was a plot to kill Heickert. His brother James Heickert, and Thompson residents Dean Gurniak and Stanley Lucovic, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and received prison sentences.
Paddlewheel closes for good
On Jan. 24, many Winnipeggers made their way up to the Paddlewheel on the sixth floor of the Bay to say goodbye to the restaurant, reports the Winnipeg Free Press. Some brought electronic devices to record their last moments in the restaurant, which opened in 1954 and closed its doors for good later that day. Though the Paddlewheel was empty of the water it once churned, patrons still tossed coins into the enclosure where it stands. The Bay and Compass Group, a company hired to run in-store food operations, announced earlier this month that the Paddlewheel would be closing and would not be replaced by another restaurant.
Podcasts from the radio show Femme Frequency I co-host on Red River Radio.
