Group 4
Summary of Events (Veronica)
On the day of March 16th in the year two thousand and ninety nine, the University of Toronto experienced a terrorist attack at the St. George campus located at 27 King's College Circle. Former associate professor, Dr. Erwin Van der Wood began brainwashing his pupils during his introduction to capitalism and capitalist systems, forcing them to adopt extreme anti-capitalist ideals while under the influence of their government mandated study drug, which makes the user extremely impressionable to new information absorbed while under its influence. For the entirety of the fall semester, the now disgraced Dr. Van der Wood took advantage of students who per government mandate arrived to each class having taken their dose of Neurovance, the attention maximizing drug, in order to create an army of mindless rebels to destroy this historic institution. Neurovance, which was developed by graduate students of the university was created to extend one's attention spans after decades of citizens slowly losing their ability to focus due to increased smartphone usage. Having initially been approved for students to use as a stimulant similar to typical ADHD medication, the provincial and federal government eventually mandated usage of Neurovance for all citizens of Canada currently in the education system, from kindergarten to post secondary.
With anti-government, anti-capitalist, fascist ideals now unwillingly implanted in the minds of over a thousand students across the three sections Dr. Van der Wood taught, terrorist propaganda began to spread amongst the student population. Overnight, the once idyllic and peaceful university campus became wrought with strife as student protests broke out and escalated into full blown warfare as Dr. Van der Wood's brainwashed students began to attack professors, their peers, and miscellaneous staff members. This attack ended with the death of thirty and the destruction of the historic Gerstein Science Information Centre. These brainwashed militant students then formed into a loosely-organised extremist group under the name Glendonites, who continue to operate as Canadian authorities attempt to seek out and neutralize the group's cells scattered throughout Toronto and increasingly throughtout Ontario as a whole.
Testimony and investigation into the matter revealed that the majority of the perpetrators attended Dr. Van der Wood's lectures. Upon inspection of his home and personal devices, a hard drive and several handwritten journals were discovered which extensively detailed his plans for his students. Dr. Van der Wood's plans included inciting a riot at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, overthrowing the idea of academia as a systemic institution, and destroying the Neurovance industry. According to his notes, Dr. Van der Wood sought to restore Canadian society to what he claims is their prime before the province-wide ban of cellphones in school, in Ontario in the 2024 academic year. Allegedly, he is in possession of a handful of relics from the 1990s to the mid 2010s which were passed down to him from his grandfather. These relics and a deep disdain for the usage of Neurovance are what spurred his plan into action, fuelling him to pursue a masters and doctorate for the sole intent of brainwashing students so that they too "woke up" as he did.
Dr. Van der Wood is currently being held without bail while he ungoes advanced interrogation in the 51st Division at 51 Parliament Street, Toronto, Ontario. A trial date has not been set yet as evidence continues to be collected and witness statements are taken. At this time, the University of Toronto and police are working together to ensure all of Dr. Van der Wood's victims are treated to ensure a peaceful and safe community once again.
Aftereffects of Attack (Lauren)
Further Repercussions
Changes in Government Policy Post-Incident
Key Figures (Arianna)
Dr. Erin Van der Wood
[[|thumb|Pictured, Dr. Erwin Van der Wood. Photo taken from his Linkedin profile.]]
Glendonites
Neurovance (Damien)
Neurovance is a nootropic stimulant drug developped in 2095 by the Canadian Pharmaceutical and Biotech conglomerate Nofrills. Originally developed as the next generation of medications to treat ADHD, it's effects on concentration as well as information retention were remarkable, and just a few years later the medication was being prescribed freely to many as a nootropic supplement. After lobbying efforts by Nofrills, this drug was permitted to be sold over-the-counter within Canada, and after further lobbying efforts, the Canadian government realized the benefits that this drug had on learning, and began distributing it to all students in Canadian schools, colleges and universities. This was followed by a remarkable increase in standardized test scores as students were able to absorb and retain information far more efficiently than they were previously capable of achieving. Neurovance however has no effects on creativity, so these improvements heavily favoured performance in standardized testing, where the average performance of Canadian students on these tests surpassed those of any other country in the world, though this improvement was not necessarily reflected in the performance of Canadians in a dynamic workplace setting.
Neurovance is widely considered a miracle-drug within Canada for it's unparalleled ability to temporarily boost memory and learning while under it's influence and also presenting no side effects, purportedly. Neurovance has been approved for use in children, adults, the elderly and pregnant women due to it's unrivalled level of safety. In the past few years Neurovance has been considered by some to be the new equivalent to coffee as a drug that is so widely used and accepted on a societal level that it is almost impossible to cease it's use, as so many Canadians are now dependant on it's performance enhancing properties in order to function on a daily basis.
Alleged Side Effects of Neurovance Usage
Neurovance has only been approved for human consumption for 4 years since it's invention in 2095, so it's long-term effects have not yet been fully studied. Nofrills has steadfastly maintained it's stance that Neurovance is the world's only medication with absolutely no side effects, but in recent years reports have begun to immerge of adverse health outcomes connected to long-term exposure to Neurovance. Reports of alleged permanent reduction in cognition and academic performance after cessation of Neurovance has been reported by some frequent heavy users, as well as a concerning rise in reports of psychosis, mood disorders and mental instability in some users, though the Nofrills corporation has been quick to label these reports as unfounded or as targeted attempts at defamation. Despite the recent reports of adverse mental effects of Neurovance use, the Canadian Ministry of Health has continued to support the absolute safety of this medication, and has not shown any signs that it is considering changing it's policies of the distribution of this medication to any and all Canadians participating in any level of education in the country.
Some Canadians are showing signs of worry however, as these serious reports are already beginning to emerge about Neurovance after just 4 years of being available to the public. Some believe that now that it's use has become so widespread and the frequency of use so chronic, the coming years will see a huge rise in adverse effects related to Neurovance that could, due to the large contingent of the populaton that uses it regularly, create a public health crisis in Canada related to mental health complications among those in the Canadian educational system due to this drug.
Foreign Interference Conspiracies (Damien)
Rumours supported by members of the Canadian government and authorities have begun to circulate that these events were not caused by dissatisfaction with Canadian society, but that foreign actors are the ones resposible for supporting and inciting unrest as a way to destabilize Canada. Fingers are being pointed at Bolivia as the perpetrators, especially as tensions between Canada and Bolivia have risen to never before seen heights since 2082 due to recent clashes between Bolivian and Canadian forces over conflicting colonial interests in South America. Since the middle of the 21st century, both Canada and Bolivia have undergone military operations within the area formerly known as Brazil to establish military bases and resource extraction colonies within the area. Both Canada and Bolivia have undergone extreme changes in their foreign policy as well as geopolitical positions in recent decades, and this has put the two countries at odds on the South American continent. Canadian politicians have stated off-the-record that they believe that Bolivia is attempting to create domestic crises within Canada in order to redirect Canadian interest away from the South American continent, though none of these statements have been substantiated by any real evidence. The rise of extremist movements that lack any real coherence to any one ideology or system of values and that instead propose empty, vague promises to restore a country to it's former glory have been a cause for concern among many world governments, and it is unclear whether it is foreign actors instigating the rise in these groups, or that countries are simply using this worldwide phenomenon to find excuses for the civil unrest within their own countries.
Since the rise in prevalence of the Glendonites within Ontario, the Canadian government has been uncharacteristically permissive of discussion of foreign interference contributing to these events, and it is still unclear whether or not these claims are true. However, it can be said that Bolivia has much to gain from these periods of social instability within Canada, though there is still much debate about whether these events in Canada were directly influenced by the Bolivian government, or they are simply the geopolitical benefactors of Canada's lack of maintenance of social cohesion and wellbeing within it's own borders. Since the University of Toronto attacks and subsequent shifting of Canadian interest away from colonial pursuits and towards the re-establishment of domestic social stability, Bolivian forces have accumulated in growing numbers in South America and are poised to redouble their efforts in the region. Regardless of the uncertainty of the causes of this social instabiility within Canada, the unchecked rise of extremism within it's borders has caused geopolitical instability within North and South America, and no clear perpetrators have been established by any domestic or foreign investigating bodies. The only thing that has been made clear by these series of events within North and South America is that rises in extremist populist groups has radicalized both civilian actions and government policy within countries throughout the two continents, with no signs of imminent change unless something can be done to restore general order in the regions.
Individual Narratives
Blog Posts of Weff Flannigan gathered by authorities in the aftermath (Damien)
Journal Entries of Valentina Suarez found by her niece and given to police on suspicious of truancy (Veronica)
Notes App Apology from Dr Arthur Rodriguez discovered by his attending team and handed over to law enforcement (Lauren)