Volume 16 Issue 7

FREE STUDENT NEWSPAPER | VOL 16, ISSUE 7 | 12 JAN 2015

NEWS

INSIDE

NUI Galway narrowly missed out on the win after checking in to Bali as their final destination.

With a whopping 17,223km between them and their beloved campus, Kyryll and Salim bagged the win for Trinity College Dublin. The dynamic duo managed to make their way to Sydney, Australia all without spending a single penny.

After last year’s charitable extravaganza with over 40,000 euro being raised for both charities hopes are high for Jailbreak 2015 - will it be you representing our glorious college this time around?

Jailbreak HQ will be holding information evenings leading up to the closure of applications on 17 January 2015 revealing more about this year’s upcoming competition.

This year’s race will be taking place from 6-7 March 2015.

Those unable to take part in the competition will be able to follow live coverage of events taking place on both the Jailbreak Facebook and Twitter page.

The main aim of the Jailbreak competition is to raise much needed funds for poverty and human rights issues while creating a memorable event for students across Ireland. Last year’s act is a tough one to follow but all involved are certain this year will be just as big of a success.

Keep your eyes peeled in the months leading up to the competition to see if any familiar faces are representing NUI Galway and make sure to get involved by donating and supporting both causes.

For more information on upcoming events and to apply check out facebook. com/JailbreakHQ.

Pictured are the participants of last year’s Jailbreak in which several NUI Galway students took part.

FINAL WORD

SPORT

ENTERTAINMENT

2015 marks the return of the biggest college event of the year, a challenge that encourages students from colleges across the country to travel far and wide in aid of two deserving causes.

Jailbreak challenges students to get as far away from their respective colleges in no more than 36 hours, all done with zero money. It is Ireland’s largest and most creative charity event raising much needed funds for both Amnesty International and St. Vincent de Paul.

Jailbreak 2015 marks a change in the competition with students racing to be the first at a mystery location entitled, ‘Location X’.

As stated by Jailbreak HQ: “Jailbreak is no longer 'how far will you go?', but 'how fast will you get there?’”

Applications for the 2015 competition are now open for any students who believe they have what it takes to brave the journey to Location X. Jailbreak are seeking fun loving, adventurous and unique teams from the participating colleges to get involved in this year’s race.

Jailbreak 2014 was certainly an event to remember, grabbing media attention across the country.

71 of the 75 teams taking part managed to beg and borrow their way out of Ireland in record time. Students reached a variety of exotic destinations from Dubai to Sydney, all done without any cash whatsoever.

As the competition reached its final few hours it was a head to head race between Trinity College Dublin’s Kyryll and Salim and NUI Galway’s very own Sean Kearns and Aoife Ní Shuilleabháin. As the intense competition drew to a close

LIFESTYLE

By Rebecca Fisher

FEATURES

JAILBREAK 2015: THE RACE IS ON

NUI Galway student uses Social Media skills to win an Electric Car

2

NUI Galway graduate nominated for major movie award

2

NUI Galway announce link with Tsinghua University

2

Targets set for various Back-To-Work schemes were not met in 2014

4

THIS WEEK’S DEBATE: The Interview

6

#RebootIreland

7

An Interview With: Panti Bliss

12

‘Appy’ New Year: Top apps to help you with your resolutions

13

Bearded Backpacker: Planning the trip

18

New Year New Wardrobe: Beautiful You by Patricia O’Toole

19

Sports Luxe: Chavvy or fashion-savvy?

20

6 Tried and tested beauty hacks that will save you so much time

21

REVIEW: The Hobbit; The Battle of the Five Armies

22

First person or third?

23

Dean of Letters

23

Give it a Tri... NUI Galway Triathlon Club

26

NUIG-GMIT karate to hold Intervarsities

26 31

NUI Ladies qualify for Intervarsities

26

Diary of the Smokey’s Pigeon

35

College Insider

35

2 NEWS

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

NUI Galway graduate nominated for major movie award

By Claire Stone An NUI Galway graduate has found himself in the position he “only dreamed of” being in while completing his MA studies in Screenwriting.

Will Collins, a graduate from NUI Galway’s Huston School of Film and Digital Media, has secured an ANNIE nomination based on his screenplay excellence for the upcoming movie Song of the Sea. As the animation industry’s equivalent to the Academy Awards, success at the prestigious ceremony usually points

toward further success at the Oscars (in the Best Animated Film Category). Song of the Sea holds the honour alongside recent blockbuster movies such as The Lego Movie, How to Train your Dragon 2, Box Trolls and Big Hero 6.

Speaking about his fortune, Will, who is originally from Kanturk, Co. Cork, went on to say: “Honestly, I was completely shocked to see my name on the list of nominees alongside some of this year's Hollywood big-hitters. I'm delighted.”

Despite its smaller budget,

Song of the Sea has received seven nominations in the most competitive categories of Best Film, Direction, Writing, Art Direction, and Editing. Will believes that this “is a clear indication” that the nomination is no “fluke”.

Directed by Tomm Moore with funding, development and production support from Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB), Song of the Sea is set to share with the world a story based on Irish folklore. The movie follows Saoirse, a child who is the last of the ‘selkies’ - creatures who, in

Irish and Scottish myths, hold the power to transform from seals into people.

The film features the famous voices of Brendan Gleeson, Fionnula Flanagan, Lisa Hannigan and also includes music from Irish folk band Kila.

Having opened in US cinemas in December, Will claims it that is “great to see the critics and audiences fall in love” with the fruits of his six years labour.

Already receiving critical acclaim, the film is due to hit local cinemas in March later this year. Sara Stewart from the New York Post described it

NUI Galway holds shoe drive for charity

By Aisling Bonner Over the Christmas period, students and staff of the NUI Galway podiatry department engaged in a charity Shoe Drive in aid of the growing number of homeless people in Galway.

The initiative was part of an NUI Galway EXPLORE project in association with two homeless charities, COPE Galway and the Galway Simon Community.

EXPLORE is a student-staff initiative which was set up in 2012 and has since seen almost 70 different projects take place by students and staff of NUI Galway. It is jointly supported by the Students’ Union and the university itself.

The shoe drive aimed to collect new or unworn men’s shoes and socks to be distributed to homeless men across the city.

There were various locations on campus allocated to collecting

donations along with the Galway Simon and COPE shops in the city.

Along with the collection of shoes, the podiatry staff and students have also provided podiatry services and treatments free of charge to those who were homeless over the Christmas period. First Year podiatry student, Sarah Benn, coined the catchy phrase, ‘help a soul, give a sole’ in response to the project.

The initiative comes in response to the alarming growth of homelessness in Galway over the past year.

This is in part a result of a lack of government owned social housing and a sharp increase in housing and rent prices. The problem now rests not only with individuals but with entire families unable to acquire a place to live and spending lengthy spells in emergency accommodation.

The average length of time

spent in emergency dwellings in 2014 per family was 60 nights, a sharp increase from 49 nights in 2013.

COPE Galway and the Galway Simon Community are two charities which deal with the issue of homelessness among other issues in Galway and the surrounding areas. The Shoe Drive is one of many different attempts by these charities to raise money and other essentials this winter. Other attempts included the COPE Galway annual Christmas Day swim, the Sleep Out 2014, bag packing, concerts and arranging food hampers.

The COPE Galway end of year address accurately explained the reasons for the growth of homelessness in Galway.

Chairman John Concannon states: “Due to a shortage of social housing our clients are mainly reliant on the private

rental market. A shortage of housing in this sector, combined with ever increasing rents, has contributed to a situation where more and more families are becoming homeless, and where individuals and families who do become homeless remain so for longer as they cannot find affordable accommodation.”

COPE also revealed that they worked with approximately 700 households this year which had all been affected by homelessness. At least 17 families in Galway in December alone have had no option but to share a home with family and friends.

The two charities live in hope that with the continued support of NUI Galway and the people of Galway, along with optimistic government plans to provide more government housing in the future, they will be able to prevent the further growth of homelessness in 2015.

NUI Galway announce link with Tsinghua University

By Kieran Kilkelly In a recent state visit to China by President Michael D. Higgins to China a collaboration agreement between NUI Galway and leading Chinese university, Tsinghua University, was signed.

Both Chairman of Tsinghua University, Chen Xu and NUI Galway President Jim Browne signed the Memorandum of Understanding on 9 December on behalf of their respective universities.

This new link comes as a result of there being close ties between the two universities with 27 Tsinghua graduates making the decision to study a post-graduate degree at NUI

Galway over the last 20 years.

On top of this there is a number of NUI Galway graduates holding senior academic positions within the Chinese university.

This collaboration was further helped along by the fact the both state representatives, Irish president Michael D. Higgins and President Xi Jinping of China attended their country's universities, NUI Galway and Tsinghua University respectively. They were both present to witness the signing of the agreement.

This new connection is furthermore example of the traditions of NUI Galway to build on the area of educational and research exchange.

It is noted that science and engineering research and teaching are among the strongest areas for both universities and particular focus will be put on these areas. There are already plans for the 2015/16 academic year for an undergraduate engineering student exchange program and increased post-graduate mobility.

Faculty member and researcher exchanges are also part of the agreement along with; joint organisation of seminars and meetings; exchange of education material; exchange of research, publication and academic information and joint research in fields of mutual interest.

The new joint research pro-

jects that will be undertaken will not be the first that the two universities have work together on.

Tsinghua University was a partner of a recent significant three year project on cancer biomarkers which was led by NUI Galway.

President Jim Browne said that he looked "forward to deepening the collaboration, resulting in great student mobility between the two universities at under-graduate and post-graduate levels, as well as building new partnerships on a range of research fronts."

Both universities are of similar size with over 17,000 enrolled in NUI Galway and just under 26,000 attending Tsinghua University.

as the “season’s masterpiece” going on to claim that “they don’t make movies like this anymore”.

Aside from his recent success Will remains reminiscent of the inspiration and goal behind his work.

“The nominations are great but the true joy is in the creative collaboration and telling stories that are seen and connect with audiences”, Will continued.

The “incredible creative collaboration” began for Will back in 2008 when the producers of The Secret of Kells got in touch with him to write their

next film.

“The director, Tomm Moore, and myself hit it off from the start. We had the same influences and we were about the same age so we had similar childhood cultural experiences.

Also, one of my favourite animated films is My Neighbour Totoro which was one of the influences of Tomm as he was dreaming up the project,” Will added.

The award winners will be announced at a black tie ceremony on Saturday 31 January 2015 at UCLA’s Royce Hall in Los Angeles.

Savvy NUI Galway student uses Social Media skills to win an Electric Car What do you normally achieve after four months of food growing? Delicious, fresh home-grown food? Feeling healthier? Saving money? What about winning an electric car for your efforts?

In July 2014 Renault Ireland came on board with Grow It Yourself (GIY) to ‘electrify’ their annual food-growing challenge, Operation GIY Nation.

GIY selected four enthusiastic pioneers to take part in a unique four month Eco adventure involving monthly food growing projects and electric vehicle challenges.

The lucky pioneers got to test drive an electric Renault Fluence Z.E. for the four months and each month tracked their CO2 and financial savings to try and achieve the longest range.

At the same time, they grew their own food with monthly food growing challenges like growing strawberries, French beans, rocket and micro-greens.

Like all good pioneers they encouraged the rest of the Grow It Yourself Nation, sharing their experiences on social media and uploading motivational photos and videos!

The overall winner of the challenge was Galway girl Móna

Wise, who graduated from NUI Galway’s MA in Journalism in November, and her husband Ron, a baker at Morton’s of Galway.

The couple strive to live as sustainably as possible by recycling, growing veggies, raising ducks, chickens and turkeys, buying local where possible and being as energy efficient as they can. This challenge has helped them to make more healthful and environmental decisions every day.

“The car has been a dream to drive. It runs very quietly, which is especially nice as we have a house full of kids, but it was the huge costs savings it afforded us that made us covet this car. We went from spending on average €80.00 per week down to less than €20 per week, as the running costs of the Renault Fluence eCar are minimal,” said Miss Wise.

“At this time, all charging points in the country offer free charging and the cost to fully charge the vehicle (with a range of 110 km) is less than €2.00 per charge at home. Electric cars are the way of the future and we are only too delighted to have this one plugged in and ready to go at home.”

NEWS 3

January 12 2015

Have you visited sin.ie yet?

New Year, New Attitude… and all that jazz

By Jessica Thompson There’s nothing quite like coming back to work and college after the Christmas holidays. Not even coming back from the summer holidays compares to it.

During the summer, you might find yourself at festivals, travelling, soaking in as many rays of sun as possible, eating fresh fruit and veg, spending time with your friends.

Christmas, however, is a totally different tin of roses.

At Christmas, you’re recovering from the stress and pressure of exam season. You’re collapsing into your bed and basking in the glory of your parents’ home cooking. You’re looking at the twinkling lights on the well-decorated tree in your own home.

Best of all, you’re relaxing.

Naturally, there’s a good deal of partying too.

But the Christmas holidays, unlike the summer holidays, are considered a time to spend with family.

Because you spend so much time just relaxing, stuffing your face and visiting relatives, you come back to college feeling refreshed (from all that extra sleeping), nourished (i.e.: overstuffed), and eager to get back to reality.

Then come the New Year’s resolutions ; the whole ‘New Year, New Me’ mentality where we spend

a fortune on gym membership, workout gear and a fridge full of fruit and vegetables, swearing to ourselves that we’ll actually stick to it this time.

I myself have started Insanit y training. My calves have been in pain for about a week now, but I must… keep… going….

For the sake of health and fitness and burning off the mince pies, we’re all looking towards new ways of getting fit.

In fact, the college bar is getting on board with the New Year’s resolutions.

The beginning of the New Year brings with it the start of another series of Operation Transformation on RTE. We’ve all heard of it, and now it’s coming to NUI Galway.

For those of you who don’t watch it, Operation Transformation involves participants taking on a rigid regime of exercise and healthy eating.

The folks at the College Bar are planning on doing their bit to help promote healthy eating and exercise and Head Chef Kieran Lyons is the man behind the idea and he’ll be heavily involved in the running of it.

He said; “Two years ago I was part of the Tuam group who managed to get on TV with what we were doing. It was mighty fun and in the process we all managed to shift a few pounds.

“I am asking if there is anyone interested in starting a Walking Club during our lunch time break. Our walk would last approximately 15 minutes.

“I will have an Operation transformation Dish of the Day on every day in the Deli, Carvery and Smokey’s (Gourmet Tart).

This will be calorie counted and also if you wish, I will

32 pages once a fortnight simply isn’t enough when it comes to covering all the great stories on campus and entertaining our readers every day.

This year, we’ll be ensuring our website is constantly updated with great news stories, opinion pieces, fashion, sport and much more.

Visit our website at www.sin.ie or simply scan the QR code. have the printed recipe for people who want to try it at home.”

The campaign got going on Monday 12 January with the first walk and healthy dish, and it will continue every lunch time (one o'clock), starting at the College Bar and lasting only 15 minutes – an easy lifestyle change for 2015, right?

The New Year is very much the focus of this issue of Sin, with many of our most talented writers taking to their laptops to give you their top tips for 2015.

Cathy Lee has written a piece on how to beat the January blues on page 14.

Aisling Bonner has written an essential guide to the gym, walking you through the gear bag, the outfit and the workout itself. You can find her tips on page 13.

Kieran Kilkelly has written a guide to 2015, covering plenty of sporting and musical events that you can look forward to this year. And in our lifestyle section, Niamh Potter has written a piece on beauty resolutions, which I personally found extremely interesting. You can find this on page 21.

And if you’re finding it difficult to keep up with your New Year’s resolutions, Claire Stone has written an excellent article on the various iPhone and Android apps that are available to keep you on track, whether you want to manage your time better for college, drink more water, or eat healthy. Check out page 13 for more.

Editor in Chief: Jessica Thompson editor@sin.ie Layout: Shannon Reeves | contact via Ed. NEWS

Ciara Treacy | localnews.sined@gmail.com

Chelsea Tabert | nationalnews.sined@gmail.com FEATURES

Eoin Molloy | opinion.sined@gmail.com

Áine O’Donnell | features.sined@gmail.com LIFESTYLE

Jenna Hodgins | fashion.sined@gmail.com

But there are other articles in our brand new issue of Sin that have nothing to do with changing something about your lifestyle.

Our debate this issue is about the controversial movie, The Interview, which has caused a bit of a stir between North Korea and the United States.

Our writers discuss free speech, censorship, and the fact that North Korea’s issues were turned into a comedy on page 6 of this issue.

You’ll notice from our cover story that Jailbreak ’15 is quickly approaching. Jailbreak is a fantastic opportunity for you to travel, while also improving your communication and blagging skills. So why not grab a friend and apply? You won’t regret it; it’s bound to be an unbelievable experience, and I can’t wait to see where in the world people will end up.

And speaking of travelling, John Brennan is back with his Bearded Backpacker series. If you’re planning on travelling this summer, John’s column is your best bet when you’re preparing for your trip.

Over the next few issues, he’ll be helping you prepare, drawing on his own extensive travel experience.

But travel isn’t the only thing John is giving advice on. He’s back with his #SinBeards column, helping those with chins and potential to grow their very own beard and nurture it to greatness. Both of John’s articles can be found on page 18.

ENTERTAINMENT

Austin Maloney | artsentertainment.sined@gmail.com

Ken Glennon | arts.sined@gmail.com

Dean Buckley | literature.sined@gmail.com

Thomas Murray | entsonline.sined@gmail.com SPORT

Kieran Kilkelly | sport.sined@gmail.com

Michael Farrell | sport.sined@gmail.com Matthew Cassidy | sportonline.sined@gmail.com PHOTOGRAPHY Daniel O'Loughlin | photography.sined@gmail.com

WEB EDITOR John Brennan | web.sined@gmail.com

Get in touch with Sin:

Email: Facebook: Twitter:

editor@sin.ie Sin Newspaper NUI Galway @Sin_News

Send us your tweets and we may publish them in future issues of Sin. Other columns that are returning this semester include Yellow Brick Road, in which Hazel reminds us that, according to Back to the Future, we should have hover boards by now – but it’s probably best that we don’t due to the probable need of insurance and a licence.

Ciara is also back with Catch 21, in which she discusses gender equality – a topic that seems to pop up in every issue of Sin over the past few months.

So enjoy this issue – it’s bound to keep you entertained for a while now that

exams are behind you for another few months and you’ve turned over a new leaf.

Bu t h ow e ve r ma ny leaves you turn and however many changes you make this year, don’t change who you are; “New Year, New You” is all well and good while it lasts, but if you start anew every single year, you’ll never get anywhere.

Happy New Year!

Until next time,

Jess @Jess__Thompson

4 NEWS

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

Irish water previously made offers to Saudi partners

By Odhrán Donovan Documents released under the state’s thirty year archival disclosure rule, have detailed a former government ambition of providing Saudi Arabia with the majority of its water supplies in 1983. The papers, recommended a commercial agreement between the Saudi Kingdom and the Irish State, offered fresh water in exchange for crude oil.

The arrangement was proposed by then Energy Minister, and future Taoiseach, John Bruton at the 1983 summit with his Saudi counterpart Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani.

Minister Bruton hoped to guarantee a “long-term relationship” between the two nations through the deal, with Irish water being pitched at $5 per barrel to their prospective Arabian partners. The partnership

would have provided the Irish government with a secure economic footing in the Middle East, 25% of the world’s known oil reserves being under Saudi jurisdiction at the time.

Tankers delivering oil to Western Europe were expected to refill at opulent wells located on Whiddy Island as part of the pact, transporting water supplies to the Kingdom on their return journey. Coincidently, the water reserves identified by the Irish bid were the scene of the Whiddy Island Disaster just four years prior. Fifty people, including seven Irish nationals, lost their lives when an oil tanker exploded travelling to a Gulf Oil terminal located on the Cork Island.

Upon return from his Saudi mission, Minister Bruton received a polite refusal of his “gracious intentions” in a

state letter from Sheikh Yamani. The Sheikh confessed that “various proposals of this type” had been presented to Saudi Arabia and its neighbours in recent years, before declining the Irish offer on the grounds of a “lack of supportive economic justifications.”

Presently, Saudi Arabia with an area of 2,150,00km squared, is the world’s largest country with an absence of a permanent river. Only 10% of Saudi drinking water is currently sourced from surface reserves. The water that these reserves provide can be entirely attributed to small land depressions which seasonally contain fresh water supplies. 60% of the Kingdom’s water is provided through desalination, while the remaining 30% is extracted by the mining of non-renewable underground reserves.

Despite Leo’s intervention, abortion referendum will not take place soon

By Mark Laherty Minister for Health Leo Varadkar’s speech on the abortion issue is not a prelude to a referendum in the life of this government.

The government has been in hot water for several years with regards to the controversial Eighth Amendment in the Irish constitution, which gives the rights of mothers and the unborn equal status.

Those on the pro-choice side of the abortion debate take the position that the mother’s bodily autonomy takes precedence over the rights of the unborn, thereby allowing for less restrictive legislation on abortion.

Tánaiste Joan Burton has explicitly opposed the Eighth Amendment. Labour will almost certainly include a commitment

to repeal the Eighth in its next manifesto.

However, Labour being re-elected to government is uncertain. All eyes are on Fine Gael, a party whose intentions are often considered less certain. Although Varadkar made his position on the issue itself clear, a close reading of his speech will show that his commitment to a post-election referendum isn’t necessarily unconditional or beyond compromise.

On the other hand, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald told the Irish Independent that she backed constitutional change.

All this contradicts the position of Enda Kenny who was quick to point out that Varadkar was speaking in “a personal capacity” - a phrase in which he has frequently used. Some analysis has stated that this is the first

indication that a referendum will not be happening anytime soon.

The issue regarding the Eighth Amendment will have to be debated within the party.

However, the abortion issue is politically inconvenient for a party who may or potentially be struggling with internal conflict not far from elections.

Independent John Halligan described the fear among government deputies: “I saw fear in TDs’ eyes. I saw TDs who didn’t want to take part in the debate, would not go on the radio, would not go on the television, for fear of intimidation.”

The most likely result is that the government will distance themselves from the subject as much as possible for now. Even the next administration, whoever may be in power, can be expected to approach the topic nervously.

Joan Burton Hints at a ‘spring statement’

By Tomás M. Creamer December 2014, Tánaiste and Labour Party Leader Joan Burton indicated that the Government may hold a ‘spring statement’ in relation to the economy in early April.

The idea has gained support within Government circles, since the October budget in 2014, despite tax cuts and spending increases worth 1 Billion euro had failed to revive the coalition’s poor standing in the opinion polls.

With headline growth figures of 4% of GDP over 2014, the Irish government hopes that such a spring statement would focus political debate around the economy.

Because there are several months between the final government budget that is yet to come in October 2015, and the 2016 Election, there is some speculation that the government holds worries that the benefits from the budget will be forgotten about by those future dates.

Burton confirmed this is part of the motivation behind a the idea of a spring statement.

In that same statement, Burton also said: “In terms of a spring statement, one of the areas in relation to public expenditure that has suffered most during the crash has been the whole area of capital investment... So, come every April, if we were to move to a spring

statement, I think that that would be a good time to look at how is the Irish economy performing and, in particular, what are the capital investment programmes that we’re committing to.”

She then proceeded to criticise the opposition for not been constructive: “I’ve been a bit bemused I have to say, in the last year and a half, there has been no general economic resolution or private member’s motion put down by the opposition at any point” This is despite the fact that private member’s motions cannot allocate spending. Both Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail have offered their own alternative budget proposals each year during the current Dáil.

Targets set for various Back-To-Work schemes were not met in 2014

By Tomás M. Creamer Although figures are only available for the first 11 months of 2014, the failure of several of the Government’s back-towork schemes, including their flagship Internship scheme, JobBridge, to reach their end-ofyear targets for 2014 – despite a growing economy and reduced unemployment.

In 2014, the Government set a target of 5,000 JobsBridge internship places to be filled by the end of the year. As of Novem-

ber 2014, only 2,939 people had taken up the placements.

S o m e s ch e m e s have underperformed even more dramatically. The JobsPlus scheme and CEB/MFI micro-loans for young people had targets of 1,500 and 150 respectively. The JobsPlus scheme only took in 357 by November, while only 2 people applied for CEB/MFI micro-loans.

Other schemes exceed their targets – the Tús scheme took in 1,410 people by November, surpassing it’s end-of-year tar-

get of 1,000 by a notable margin.

However, on balance, out of the overall target of 28,350 for all of the Government’s back-to-work schemes, only 20,382 actually used these schemes.

Tánaiste and Social Protection Minister Joan Burton recently told the Dáil that more people are expected to engage with the schemes as the Youth Guarantee is fully rolled out in 2015.

The initiative aims to provide training, education or work experience for those aged 18-24 years.

NEWS 5

January 12 2015

US ends war in Afghanistan

By Laura Roddy The United States and NATO have officially ended their war in Afghanistan.

A ceremony was held at their military headquarters in Kabul on Sunday 28 December. This marked the end of the US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) which will now transition to a supporting role.

US President Barack Obama said that after 13 years of war in Afghanistan it has come to a “responsible conclusion”; in a speech he made on Christmas day to US troops in Hawaii, he stated the Afghan government was now strong enough to rebuild itself.

According to Democracy Now 17,000 foreign troops will remain in the country- 10,000 of which are American.

In a written statement Obama acknowledged that Afghanistan was still “a dangerous place” and that the who remain in the country still face risk; however, he thanked the troops that fought in the war, saying they had made America a safer place.

Gen John Campbell, commander of ISAF told an audience of Afghan and international military officials that “Resolute Support will serve as the bedrock of an enduring partnership” between NATO and Afghanistan.

He also paid tribute to the troops that had died during this

AirAsia Flight QZ8501

By Yvonne Clinton Sunday 28 December, the third aviation tragedy of 2014 occurred. AirAsia flight QZ8501, carrying 162 passengers and crew from Surabaya, Indonesia, to Singapore lost contact with air traffic control at 6:30am local time.

4 January, wreckage and thirty bodies had been recovered from the Java Sea, in an international search operation led by Indonesia. The disaster follows the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 in March, and the shooting-down of the carrier’s MH17 flight over the Ukraine in July of 2014.

The search has been hampered by stormy weather conditions at the crash site, with waves four metres high stopping divers from reaching the fuselage, and also hindering the recovery of bodies.

Sophisticated sonar equipment is being put to use, under the close supervision of experts from France. However, poor weather may prevent the use of hydrophones to detect locator beacons from the airliner’s ‘black box’ flight recorders, which contain information on the airplane’s engine temperature, speed and altitude.

Alongside the cockpit voice recorder, the black box being found will be key in piecing together the jet’s final moments and identifying the cause of the accident. As the crash site is in shallow water, less than thirty metres in depth, the search will not be as technically challenging as previous search operations.

A theory advanced for the crash suggests that the airplane stalled while trying to avoid a “catastrophic” storm. The pilot requested permission to climb from 32,000ft to 38,000ft.

According to an Indonesian Transport Ministry official the request “could not be approved at that time due to traffic, there was a flight above, and five minutes later [the flight] disappeared from radar".

A source close to the investigation said that radar data showed the aircraft making an “unbelievably steep” climb before the crash, that “appears to be beyond the performance envelope of the aircraft”.

AirAsia, a short-haul carrier headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, was founded in 2001

by Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes. Speaking in the immediate aftermath of the crash, Fernandes declared that the scenario “ is a massive shock to us and we are devastated by what has happened. It's unbelievable."

While only four bodies had been identified and returned to their families a week after the disaster, director of the search operation, Indonesian Supriadi, remained confident of recovering more. “With the increasing amount of evidence and data, it’s very likely we’re getting closer to the fuselage of the AirAsia aircraft”.

"Our concern right now is for the relatives and next-of-kin.

There is nothing more important now than our crews' families and passengers' families, and we'll look after them," he said.

insurgency, both international and Afghanistan, saying that the road before us remains challenging but we will triumph.”

Approximately 3,500 foreign troops lost their lives over the course of this war; 2,224 of these American, and 453 British.

New President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, took office in September 2014 and signed security agreements with Washington and NATO allowing the enduring military presence of US troops.

As of January 2015 the new mission will provide training and support for the Afghanistan army who will continue their fight against the Taliban.

This transition follows the

worst year for killings in Afghanistan since 2001. According to the UN 3,200 Afghanistan civilians have died, and another 5,000 members of the Afghan security forces.

The US’s decision has led to a spike in violence as the Taliban sees it as an excuse to destabilize the government. The Taliban is still strong in rural areas of Afghanistan and has reached its terrorist attacks into the once safe city of Kabul.

After three months with Ghani in power, the country still has no cabinet in place and according to The Guardian economic growth is near zero due to the reduction of the international military and aid juggernauts.

Pope-lar ice caps: Pope to discuss climate change with UN

By Sylvia Power Pope Francis has been named a controversial leader of the Catholic Church. Cited by President Barack Obama as a key player in the thawing relations between the US and Cuba, the Argentinian pontiff followed that by lecturing his cardinals on the need to clean up Vatican politics.

Claims that Pope Francis has been interfering with political matters recently resurfaced when the Pope revealed that he will be taking a stand against climate change, and is reportedly preparing an encyclical - essentially a letter to the world's 5000 Bishops that calls on Catholics to address global warming. The letter is planned to be circulated worldwide in 2015. This follows suit after the Pope spoke openly about the responsibility of his fellow Christians to “become custodians of creation”, as the pontiff issued a warning about the imminent catastrophic effects of climate change.

Fellow Argentinian who is known to be close to Pope Francis, said: “Just as humanity confronted revolutionary change in the 19th century at the time of industrialisation, today we have changed the natural environment so much. If current trends continue, the century will witness unprecedented climate change and destruction of the ecosystem with tragic consequences.”

The stance taken by the head of the Catholic church has been greeted with outrage from right-wing Catholics worldwide, who either deny the results of climate change despite what many experts call overwhelming scientific evidence,

or simply feel that the pontiff should not be involved in political affairs.

Pope Francis is seeking to tackle social exclusion in this encyclical and it is expected that at the UN's climate meeting in 2015, he will urge Catholics to act out of morality and abide by ethical principles which will aid the promotion of religious unity.

Dan Misleh, director of the Catholic climate covenant, said: “There will always be 5-10% of people who will take offence. They are very vocal and have political clout.

This encyclical will threaten some people and bring joy to others. The arguments are around economics and science rather than morality.

Beijing’s ‘airpocalypse’ - the city made almost uninhabitable by pollution

By Tomás M. Creamer The capital of China appears to be engaged in a city-wide rehearsal for life on an inhospitable planet. For the Chinese government, one of these reasons happens to be the air quality under which the city’s 21 million citizens that work, play and live in.

Recently, there have been instances where the readings on the Air Quality Index (AQI) have topped the charts, reading at over 700. According to the AQI, a reading of over 100 is considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups”, and 400 and above is considered “hazardous” for all. The index is meant to max out at 500.

These high levels are made up of a particular type of particulate matter, called PM 2.5, and named after their size in microns, to which human respiratory systems are highly vulnerable. The average concentration of such particles in Beijing’s atmosphere, measured by micrograms per cubic metre, ranged from around 80 to 120 through the last 6 years.

This is roughly three to five times the cut-off point where such air quality is considered unacceptable by the World Health Organisation, which is currently set at levels of at 25

micrograms per cubic metre.

The contributing factors to Beijing’s infamous smog includes the sheer polluting output produced by the capital’s numerous factories and private vehicles - a by-product of China’s rapid economic development.

As a result, the Chinese Authorities have begun to take quite extraordinary measures to reduce the smog when the city is due to hold International events or when hosting guests of honour. In the week leading up to the APEC Summit in November 2014, the Chinese authorities suspended factory production within a 125-mile radius of the city, closed down virtually the entire public sector, and banned half of all cars from the road Despite their best efforts, experts advise this is not a viable long-term solution to the smog and pollution problem in Beijing.

Despite some measures being placed, such introducing fines for environmental violations, and attempting to shut down high carbon-emission factories, it is a lack of enforcement capabilities and other limitations that do not allow for sufficient pollution management. Despite expert advice Beijing’s poisonous, and nearly apocalyptic environment is not declining or cleansing itself fast enough.

Before the Christmas break, NUI Galway Gaisce Society celebrated in St. Pauls’ Secondary school in Oughterard the achievement of 22 students attaining the Bronze Award from the President of Ireland.

The Gaisce Society planned and delivered a great ceremony with special guest speaker Gold Gaisce Award recipient and NUI Galway Alumni Christina Quinn.

Attendees include the Gaisce PAL, Barry Dillion, Clann Resource Center Oughterard; Hugh MacConville, Gaisce; Lorraine Tansey, NUI Galway ALIVE; Orla Malone Principal and Micheal O Frighil Vice Principal.

Pictured are Gaisce Society and 2nd Commerce Skills for Work Life students, Ben Donohue, Paul Gavin, Jack McDevitt and Emmet King with Christina Quinn and St. Pauls’ Secondary school Gaisce Bronze Award recipients.

6 FEATURES

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

THIS WEEK’S DEBATE: The Interview has provoked a standoff between the US and North Korea. Is it disrespectful to depict the assassination of the head of a country in a comedy (dictator or not), or is it simply free speech?

A movie’s a movie – If North Korea is the bad guy, The you don’t like it, you don’t Interview is their superweapon have to see it

By Dean Buckley

By Tomás M. Creamer I haven’t seen The Interview, even though I probably would find it somewhere on the internet, if I looked hard enough. So I base my analysis of the movie on various reviews that I have read. However, regardless of whether I saw it or not, I don’t see any problems with The Interview, from what I’ve read about it.

Does The Interview really deserve to be censored, because it depicts the assassination of a living, named world leader?

I know why people might think that it should – after all, it’s not exactly the “done thing” to depict a current, active ruler in film, especially not when they are assassinated in the end.

A similar movie that depicted a brutal world leader, The Interpreter, did clearly refer to Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, but that movie at least changed the leader’s name, and the country he ruled with an iron fist. The Interview doesn’t even try to be subtle – it explicitly depicts both Kim Jong-un and North Korea.

Like The Interpreter, The Interview did get pretty mixed reviews – each of these movies scored 57% and 52% respectively on Rotten Tomatoes. Sure, The Interview has its moments – it does apparently depict the mechanisms of the Kim family’s rule over North Korea pretty accurately, and it does have humorous moments. However, it probably would be remembered far more for its balls in depicting Kin Jung-un, than its actual quality as a movie.

Does the above merit the belief that this movie should have been censored, just so that the North Korean leadership isn’t too annoyed? I don’t think so.

Why do I think that this movie should not be censored? For one thing, freedom of speech is a thing, you know – if people want to make a mediocre, juvenile movie about North Korea, what business it is to us, anyways?

It would be tempting to just ban rubbish movies in general – I mean, who wouldn’t secretly like to never have to worry about wasting two hours of your life over something that turns out to be pure torture?

But then again, I guess that you wouldn’t have that many films to watch in the cinemas if that sort of thing could happen. And you aren’t forced to watch these movies anyways – I certainly never watched many movies in the cinemas myself.

However, the reality is, if we do find a way to watch The Interview now, we are going to end up watching it, right? Why? Because we want to see what all the fuss was about – why did North Korea go all insane over this movie, and why did a shadowy hacker organisation threaten another 9/11 if Sony did release the movie?

That is another reason why censorship wouldn’t work – because if it wasn’t for the big story and controversy surrounding the showing of this movie, few, if any of us would have really heard of it, much less actually watch it.

Even if Sony did not go through with a (limited) release by Christmas, sooner or later some other group of hackers or something would have got a hold of this movie, and released it for all to see. One way or another – once you have some authorities banning something, you are going to try it out. It’s human psychology.

As a result, The Interview is now so infamous that you have this debate column in NUI Galway’s student paper taken over to discuss the merits of this case. Of course, it seems as if the whole world knows about The Interview by now.

If “Fat Boy Kim” had just “let it go” this Christmas, then he could have let the movie fade into obscurity – instead, he probably achieved the exact opposite. And that is why censorship never works.

No one is making a comedy film about the Rwandan Genocide, or at least no one is making one that will be seen by anyone, or one that stars some of the most popular actors alive today.

If anyone tried to make a comedy film about the Rwandan Genocide, even the most feeble-minded right-wing pundit wouldn’t be stupid enough to defend its existence or to call attempts to quash it “political correctness” or “moral terrorism” or whatever their latest buzzword is these days.

But when the appalling crime against humanity is the Democratic Republic of North Korea instead of the Rwandan Genocide, suddenly things are different.

Why? Because of that kooky Kim dynasty.

Kim Jong-Il used to hang out with Dennis Rodman and claimed to have invented basketball and built a whole stadium just to house a signed basketball. What a loon.

And his son is fat. And they think they’re actually a threat to other countries, constantly throwing around their imaginary weight, promising nuclear strikes with delivery systems that they totally have and aren’t just making up. Crazy.

Laugh out loud! Roll on floor laughing!

Laugh my ass off! Roll on floor laughing my ass off out loud!

And I bet it really ruffles their feathers when we don’t take them seriously, eh?

Because it would be ludicrous to consider the alternative.

The alternative being the truth; the government of North Korea is not stupid or crazy. In fact, they’re pretty much geopolitical geniuses.

North Korea is the longest and most devastating humanitarian crisis in the world.

The country has been in a continuous state of famine for twenty years. Right now, it’s as good as it’s ever been, and food self-sufficiency is still a distant pipe dream. If the steady flow of international food aid on which the country is dependent was interrupted, millions would die.

But then again, it’s not like the ordinary people are getting that food aid. The armyfirst policy of the North Korean government ensures almost all the food goes to the military, which obviously makes their job of oppressing the starving masses even easier.

Meanwhile, the government itself operates as one of the world’s largest producers and distributors of crystal meth, allowing its upper echelons to live in the lap of luxury while the rest of the country decays around them.

Meanwhile, we stand by and let it happen.

Why? I mean, I understand why our states don’t want to do anything about it. Actually doing the right thing is almost always a costly and difficult endeavour. Why waste diplomatic and military resources, or economic and political capital, on liberating a poverty-stricken country with virtually nothing valuable to seize?

There’s no financial benefit to stopping the North Korean regime for our states, so they’re happy to just keep on doing the minimum necessary to not consign the general population of the country to immediate death while allowing the tyrants to do whatever they want as long as they don’t bother anyone else.

And any time the possibility of this state of affairs ceasing rears its head, North Korea makes some loud noises and throws a tantrum to remind these states that, under its goofy image, it’s a brutal military dictatorship that may not be able to nuke North America, but can certainly murder a lot of South Koreans.

The geopolitical balancing scales on the Korean Peninsula are a massive extortion racket tipped heavily in the favour of North Korea, to the detriment of the millions of people who have to live in horror, poverty and despair, with the threat of concentration camps or summary execution hanging over their head at all times.

How can we stand for this? Our governments are actively supporting North Korea by complying with their game, yet there is virtually no public pressure on them to do anything about it.

Because North Korea is just a punchline to us. As long as we’re laughing, we’re not lobbying. Our states don’t risk the reputational damage of actually justifying what they do, and the government of North Korea continues on their merry way.

And that’s why, whatever else has happened, The Interview can only be a monstrous and immoral film.

OPINION 7

January 12 2015

Lucinda Creighton Terrorism rears its ugly and rebooting Ireland head in Europe once more

By Eoin Molloy

By John Brennan

has no official stance on ongoing people’s issues like the water charges. Lucinda does not want to reveal her hand just yet.

Also, the very fact that she was joined by Eddie Hobbs (the man who advised Irish people to take out loans to buy foreign property during the boom) should be raising alarm bells for anyone considering voting for this new party.

We all know Lucinda to be very conservative when it comes to social matters. She voted against allowing abortions even in cases where mother’s lives are at risk. She has no stance on the upcoming same-sex marriage referendum, even referring to it as the ‘gay marriage referendum’.

She believes the current political system to be ‘past its sell-by date’, much like her views on abortion. However, one area where she is correct is that no party should enforce a party whip (whereby if you vote against your party you are automatically expelled). Lucinda’s new creation will not apply a whip to ‘matters of conscience’, but will apply then to money bills and votes of confidence.

The new party is not exactly attracting the most popular of candidates. Billy Timmins, another former Fine Gael TD who lost the party whip for voting against abortions, is said to be interested in standing as a candidate for the new party. Timmins famously said that the way to eradicate homelessness is to make it illegal for people to sleep rough on the streets. No, seriously.

Senator Fidelma Healy-Eames (of Facebook frape fame) is also said to be interested in joining up. She famously appealed a fine of 100 euros for failing to purchase a ticket for an intercity train.

She was also taken to court by a plumber for failing to pay 10,000 euros in unpaid fees. On top of all of this, the Senator’s car was impounded in July 2012 for not having an in-date tax disc. It is worth noting that she claimed one of the highest expenses packages of any Senator last year.

If Timmins and Healy-Eames are to be taken as examples of the type of candidate that is being accepted, it is therefore clear that Lucinda’s new party will be a far cry from revolutionary.

Ireland needs a new party. To invert an old Batman quote: #rebootireland is not the new party Ireland needs, nor is it the party we deserve.

It is a party that will continue to put business interests ahead of the wellbeing of citizens, and we already have plenty of those.

“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is Lucinda Creighton, the former Fine Gael TD who an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the left the party over the Protection of Life during ocean does not become dirty.” - Mahatma Gandhi Pregnancy Bill last year, is forming a new political On 7 January three Islamist extremists carried party. The announcement came at a press conout, with military precision, an attack on the Charference on January 2 attended by Eddie Hobbs, lie Hedbo offices in Paris which left 12 dead and independent Offaly councillor John Leahy and over 20 injured. Among the dead were journalists, Creighton herself. cartoonists, security guards and police officers.

Having toyed with the idea of a ‘Reform AlliCharlie Hedbo is a satirical magazine, with a ance’ last year, Lucinda appears no closer to marked history of publishing controversial and having a name for her new party. While the party biting politically driven cartoons. The attacks have may not have a name as of yet, it has a hashtag: been seen as reprisals for depictions of Moham#rebootireland. Ireland isn’t working any more, med and Islam extremists published in the past. this much is true, but the solution isn’t as simple This was clearly a well thought-out attack exemas turning the nation on and off again. plified by the fact that the offices were attacked in The movement’s website, rebootireland.com, broad daylight during a weekly editorial meeting. states that the new party will ‘change the way It is important to note that this wasn’t just an we do politics’ as well as ‘championing human attack on Charlie Hedbo’s offices, but one on freeinventiveness’, whatever that means. dom of expression. In the past 12 months the world The website asks users if they want to ‘get has witnessed the systematic murder of journalists by involved’ or ‘become a candidate’. The seeming radicalized Islamists in the Middle-East, but with the easiness of standing as a candidate for the Dail murders carried out in the centre of Paris yesterday as part Lucinda’s new party will suit stranded one has to think that terrorism has struck right at the stragglers like Senator Fidelma Healy-Eames heart of Europe for the first time in almost a decade. down to the ground.

The assault on the paper is a stark contrast to This new ‘Rent-A-Party’ has four main aims. the ‘would be’ terrorist attack in Sydney prior to The first of which seems to support small busiChristmas which had all the hallmarks of a lone nesses. Lucinda wants to build an economy for wolf attack, this was far from that. It was calcuentrepreneurs. The party also aims to ‘make the lated, clinical and worryingly professional. This public sector public by fostering a sense of entrecould be a watershed moment for terrorism in preneurship in the public sector’.

Western Europe.

The new group wants to ‘give politics back to the people’. To this I say: why not give politics to the entrepreneurs while we’re at it? Finally, Lucinda’s party also seeks to measure government with a clear social target, also referred to

By John Brennan as a ‘minimum lifestyle standard’.

Unfortunately for people who want actual When the PD’s launched back in 1985, they used change in Ireland, Lucinda’s four point plan is the lull in news over the festive period as a platform flawed far beyond its awkward phrasing. The aims are all ridiculously vague, open-ended for a successful launch.

Lucinda Creighton, alongside Eddie Hobbs and and filled with ambiguous buzzwords. Tangithe relatively obscure John Leahy announced the ble change through clearly-defined policies is launch of a nameless and policy-less political party not on offer here. recently under the visage of #RebootIreland. This However, one thing we know for sure has been met with hashtag confusion. about Lucinda’s brainchild is that it is entirely The problem is that this move seems totally business-oriented. Various forms of the word rushed and convoluted. The onus placed on the ‘entrepreneur’ were mentioned over twenty business centred approach seems trite considering times at her hour-long press connference.

Creightons links with the current administration and What Lucinda envisions seems to be what the fact she voted for many of the economic policies economist Jeffrey D. Sachs calls a ‘corportocracy’ currently being complained of. whereby business exercises control over the entire ecoThis has instantly put people on guard. The twitter reaction nomic and political system has varied from vaguely posiof a nation. This is a highly tive to utterly scathing, but she, undemocratic way of thinking, despite this has made a bold and and can lead to totalitarianism brave step. (as happened in fascist Italy).

Ireland needs an alternative Lucinda believes that the and perhaps #RebootIreland is ‘old paradigms of left and right’ just the alternative wanted by the are now obsolete. Either she is completely delusional and disenfranchised masses.

Concern about this though believes that centuries of havseems well grounded. Announcing political lefts and rights are ing the launch of a party with no now behind us, or she intends Independent Offaly Councillor John Leahy, former Fine Gael Minister real policies, with no real concrete for her new party to hug the Lucinda Creighton and financial commentator Eddie Hobbs at the information and the fact that they centre of the political spectrum. announcement of the new #RebootIreland party in Dublin. are looking for nearly a million in Unsurprisingly, the party

Immigration has become an issue across Europe, coupling this with Islamophobia and the general sway right in democracies across mainland Europe this is undoubtedly a recipe for further conflict and a hardening stance from both sides. Recently seen in Dresden in early January where an estimated 17,000 people marched against immigration in Germany, while counter marches took place in Koln, Berlin and Stuttgart to name a few.

One cannot help but feel that attacks of this nature will only stoke these tensions further and undoubtedly play into the hands of far right parties dotted across Europe.

France and Europe in a wider sense are hurting after the barbaric attacks, but the unity and solidarity on display show that humanity will not be held ransom to the whims of radicalized people who want to tear down the fabric of freedom of expression, the hallmark of any democratic society.

Terrorism has been defined as the unofficial or unauthorized use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political or religious aims, under this definition the terrorist attacks in Paris failed. 12 people are dead, but the immediate fallout has seen free speech advocates rally on a global scale, with solidarity marches across French cities and the #JeSuisCharlie movement show that people are united in their grief and, in their defiance in the face of the threat of heinous acts of violence like this.

#RebootIreland donations according to both her and her website seems utterly ludicrous when written down.

People have no idea what the party means, so in essence giving her money is akin to buying magic beans. Potentially a worthwhile investment, but how can you know?

While it would be fantastic to see something fresh on our political spectrum, it’s difficult for ordinary people to trust party politics any longer.

The rise of the independents exemplifies this and the fact Shane Ross has not got on board with this project is damaging in itself.

Word around Leinster House back in November was that Lucinda was struggling to get enough support to launch or even start a new party. Yet here we are, on the precipice of a huge year in Irish politics. This party could feasibly split the waning Fine Gael vote, which would have huge ramifications for the tit-for-tat civil war politics evident since the foundation of the state.

40 years ago Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Labour between them had 93% of the popular vote.

Now collectively they have under 50%. There is undoubtedly room for a new political party and popularity of the Independents is symptomatic of this desire for change.

Whether or not #RebootIreland will be anything other than a flash in the pan remains to be seen. The next few weeks will be crucial for the fledgling nameless party. The easy part is over for Lucinda, now she needs to win over people across the political spectrum.

8 OPINION

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

Political landscape set to change, or not?

By Cathal Mullaney

Ultimately, the rise of Sinn Féin was the big story of the local elections, and indeed their European standing In recent times, post the 2008 economic crash, Irish (they won three MEP seats last May), means that they politics in particular has entered unchartered territory. have become a force to be reckoned with. Indeed, many Fianna Fáil, for so long the dominant force, are now see Sinn Féin as the main party of opposition in Dáil Eiremerely a shadow of their former selves, Fine Gael are ann, where, despite some decent performances, Michéal by far the largest party in terms of Dáil seats, and the Martin and Fianna Fáil have failed to make traction. rise of Sinn Féin has signalled that this is no ordinary They won only one European seat – Brian Crowley time in the Irish political system. subsequently defected from the party upon his reAgain, 2014 certainly proved that change, in politics, election – and perhaps indicates that the electorate can happen extremely quickly. This time last year, the still recognises Fianna Fáil as the party who led the government was waving goodbye to the Troika, leading country into the economic abyss. Whether that feeling the country into the next stage of economic recovery remains at the next general election is another quesand in a seemingly unassailable position. tion, but Fianna Fáil will struggle to make the 40-seat What followed, though, was a calamity of errors, barrier regardless. leading to a very poor local election showing and disAppalling political judgement by Fine Gael led to astrous poll ratings by year’s end. the John McNulty appointment debacle in September, The medical cards fiasco prior to the local election, and their incompetence continued with the fiasco that coupled with various other instances of incompetence was – and still is – Irish Water. For the first time since led to an exceptionally poor performance by Fine Gael the crash, people took to the streets in their thousands and Labour, who traditionally excelled at local govern- to protest at the new charges, which are set to come ment level. into force in 2015.

Fine Gael lost 105 seats – a catastrophic drop – while Eventually, the government made changes, but will Labour lost an equally damaging 81, leading to the these successions help stem the ever-strengthening subsequent resignation of party leader and Tanaiste, tide against Fine Gael and Labour?

Eamon Gilmore.

Perhaps, when positive budget modifications Fianna Fáil became the largest party locally with 267 come into play next year, the government’s support seats and 25.3% of the vote, while Sinn Féin were the big will recover somewhat, but their current standings winners gaining 105 seats and increasing their vote to in the polls will have backbench TDs quaking in their SINPortrait_PGOD_Nov15_NUIG_Layout 1 22/12/2014 16:31 Page 1 15.2%, a substantial increase on their 2009 performance. Dáil seats.

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Fine Gael are as low as 2003 levels on 21% in some surveys; Labour cuts a sorry figure on 5%; meaning that the government parties would be effectively destroyed by the electorate should current trends continue. In addition, Lucinda Creighton’s ambition to found a new political party this spring is something that Fine Gael in particular could do without.

Ultimately, 2014 was a disastrous year for the government – and what makes it worse, it was all avoidable.

The naivety on the government’s part in making decisions overshadowed what, on the face of it, was a good year for Ireland’s economy.

A modest decrease in live register figures from October 2013 to the corresponding point in 2014 (a decrease of 1.4% was registered, according to the Central Statistics Office) shows progress, while Ireland is now branded as the fastest growing economy in Europe.

However, with mutterings of a possible general election in 2015, the Government needs to avoid unnecessary controversies to thwart the rise of Sinn Féin, in order to have any chance of securing a second term in office.

How the Water Charges have recently highlighted the limitations of the Presidency

By Tomás M. Creamer President Michael D. Higgins has recently come under fire by some for signing into law recent amendments to the government’s new water charges legislation on the 28 December, 2014.

In late December, 2014, a total of 49 Senators and TDs, consisting mainly of Sinn Fein and Technical Group (i.e. Independents and the various Socialist parties) members, put their names to two different petitions against the government’s new water clegislation.

The first petition was an attempt to activate a relatively obscure provision in the constitution that would have put the legislation to a vote. This petition failed, and a second petition to request that the President to refer the bill to the Supreme Court (which is something that is undeniably within a president’s power to do) was ignored.

This former aforementioned provision, outlined in Article 27 of the constitution, is the really interesting one. Why? Because it allows a President to help trigger a referendum on “a proposal of such national importance that the will of the people thereon ought to be ascertained”.

Therefore, due to a citation of the huge opposition to water charges, and fears that there were not adequate protections to prevent the privatisation of Irish Water in the future, there did seem to be hope that the provision could be activated.

Why is this article so obscure? Because the provision has never, ever been activated throughout the 90-odd year history of our current constitution. And why has this article never been activated? Because the procedures that you need to go through to activate it makes it all but useless.

For a start, the President cannot initiate such a provision. In fact, it is, in theory, meant to provide the

Seanad a check on Dáil legislation that it opposes. By having the majority of Senators and a third of TDs sign a petition against a bill passed by the Dail, the President may then choose to accept or reject the petition.

However, because the legislation had already passed through both the Dail and the Seanad, the provision could not be activated.

And even if such a referendum was activated, in order to actually reject a bill that was passed by the Dail, a third of all registered voters have to vote against it - meaning that, save for an abnormally high turnout for a referendum, the procedure cannot prevent a government from getting its own way at the end of the day.

With all these obstacles, is it any wonder why this article was never activated? Who would honestly go through the bother?

In comparison, the Icelandic Presidency was pretty much identical to the Irish Presidency – traditionally, both were merely powerless figureheads that were created to replace the role of a monarchy. However, there was a provision in the Icelandic Constitution that allowed a President to refuse to sign a law passed by Parliament, which can only be overturned by a referendum.

It was first activated in 2004, against a bill that the sitting President, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, thought would restrict media freedoms. It was also used to block legislation that would have compensated British and Dutch savers for investing in a large Icelandic bank that subsequently went bust during the 2008 crash, and in two subsequent referendums, the voters agreed with the President.

Instead of simply voting on the minimum candidacy age of the President, like what the Government are proposing next year (along with the same-sex marriage vote), maybe such a provision might actually make the President somewhat worth the 200,000-plus annual salary?

Tug of war over Ukraine may have nuclear consequences

By Valeri Tarassov

Wednesday 4th February 2015 12 pm–4 pm

Bailey Allen Hall, NUI Galway BOOK YOUR PLACE www.nuigalway.ie/postgraduate-open-day

It seems that Ukraine has set a strong course on joining the EU. The Black Sea nation is being extremely loyal to its partners overseas.

In order to agitate the Russians, Ukraine has decided to switch from Russian nuclear fuel to fuel from the United States. The fuel in question was to be used at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.

The only problem is that this particular power plant was built during the Soviet times and was designed for Soviet or Russian made fuels. US fuels, however, are much more powerful. The only problem is that using different fuels can cause a reactor meltdown, and we would have another Chernobyl on our hands.

It was claimed on the 28 November that the radiation levels around Zaporizhia plant were 14 times over the normal range, but no official statement from the Ukrainian government was released. The same day the energy

minister of Ukraine, Volodymyr Demchyshyn, claimed that an accident had happened in the energy transfer system on the plant Nr 3. This prompted the authorities to disconnect plant Nr 3. This unit has 6 1000 megawatt reactors.

Later, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, demanded an explanation. The next day an official statement confirmed that no radiation had leaked.

I would only hope it is a coincidence that the problems on the power plant occurred exactly at the same time as they were switching fuels.

The International Atomic Agency requires any state that uses nuclear energy to report any incidents immediately as they can have dangerous effects far from the borders of that state.

If we remember Chernobyl, it took weeks for Soviet Union to report the issue. The latest event at Zaporizhia nuclear power plant was also not reported in time. Two grave mishaps in 50 years is far too many where nuclear energy is concerned.

FEATURES 9

January 12 2015

9 steps to an amazing 2015

By John Mulry So here we are; a new year is upon us. I for one am extremely excited about the New Year. January is usually the time for setting

Market Thyself

goals and looking ahead with hopes and dreams of achieving all of our goals. It’s also a time of reflection, of looking back.

To kick off the new semester this article will focus on starting afresh for the New Year. We will then continue as normal with the regular ‘foot in the door’ series of articles where I’ll be giving you specific strategies you can use to get yourself out there, get noticed by potential employers and maximise your time in college.

The month of January is named after the Roman god Janus from Roman mythology. Janus is the god of beginnings and transition. Janus was two-faced because he looked to the future and the past.

Taking a leaf out of mighty Janus’ book, have you looked back on the year gone by? Did 2014 live up to your expectations? What were some of your highlights?

Where did you really excel? Were there any areas where you fell short?

Taking time to reflect on the good and bad is an important step in setting targets for the year ahead. If you don’t know where you are, you cannot get to where you want to go.

Personally, 2014 was a mixed year; there were lots of ups but also plenty of downs. Not all of my goals were achieved and there is plenty of work to be done. In my business I went through an in depth nine step process to map out my goals and targets for 2015 and I’ve adapted them to be suitable for your own goals.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

Take a candid review of 2014 Create a target list of ideal employers Set your specific subject/module goals Plan for ways to be more active contributor on campus Brainstorm ways you can interact and communicate with your target list of ideal employers How can you improve your skill set this year?

What commitments/events can you put into your diary?

Do some big picture planning Update your personal calendar

Taking three or four hours away from student life to focus on these nine areas will give you a roadmap and plan to follow in the upcoming semester and I encourage you to do so.

The easiest thing you can do at the start of the year from a planning point of view is map out your calendar for 2015. Look at the calendar (preferably a big wall chart one) and map out: Holidays, birthdays (yours, families and your friends).

Write down your busiest times of the semester (prepare in advance leading up to exams/placement).

Write down quieter times - brainstorm ideas or activities that you participate in that will increase your skillset, increase your circle of influence and build your network.

Write down any events/trade shows/exhibits you should be going to that (a) will act as self improvement for you and (b) where your target market employers are.

This strategic planning calendar combined with the nine steps above will set you on the road to achieving your goals. It puts you in the right frame of mind, it positions you for success.

For those of you who are interested, I have a number of new initiatives and products coming out this year that I’ll keep you informed about as well as the launch of my second book, numerous speaking engagements I’m planning, as well as our complimentary monthly marketing events in the Ballybane Enterprise Centre and which if you’re interested in I highly recommend you attend.

If there are some marketing, commerce or business interns interested in volunteering to help out in exchange for some experience I’d be happy to discuss it with you.

As always I’m available to be interviewed or to speak at events or groups on request. Contact me on John@johnmulry.com for more details.

In closing this new issue for the New Year, I truly hope you achieve everything you set out to achieve.

Poor postgrad me (and the generalisation of imagination)

By Gabriel Bourke Summa cum what? Little did I know when applying to PAC what lay ahead. Gone are the days where I didn’t have a clue what it meant to receive a 2.1, or even a 2nd class hons, for that matter… Or how many egg custard tarts (ECTS) I needed to finish a Bachelor or MPhil… Or who the president is, never mind the registrar…

The black or green gown is dead and gone with O’Leary in the grave. Now it’s scarlet, as well as me feeling like a scratched record when shaking the president’s hand for the third time (never mind the registrar’s…).

I am one of those pale-looking creatures that perpetually asks fag-smoking students to move aside, so that I can swipe my way into the mysteriously secret-looking side entrance of the AHSSRB (cf. the Hardiman research building, or other similarly confusing nomenclature) and climb concrete stairs into a high-security office where my desk, with all its paraphernalia, awaits me.

I am one of those, who thinks he or she has found the answer to a question and must prove it, either through a deep qualitative look at gaps in the literature, or through a quantitative look at and subsequent design of airtight randomised controlled trials. Either way, I have a difficult road behind me as well as ahead.

Now, I must run my idea through three experimental design cycles and try to publish in any high impactfactor peer-review journal (that will accept my verbal hallucinations). I must also elaborate on my idea, in a small essay of 100,000 words So why do I do it?

It’s all because of an idea, folks, one I thought I could prove. An idea that our ability to derive new relations (so-called derived relational responding, or DRR) is behind all forms of language and cognition. Learning and communicating are just two of many skills that separate us from the animals.

Now, I must run my idea through three experimental design cycles and try to publish in any high impact-factor peer-review journal (that will accept my verbal hallucinations).

I must also elaborate on my idea, in a small essay of 100,000 words (where “to elaborate on” will be naturally disallowed…) as well as take the daily beatings of my supervisor… Only kidding, he’s not that bad.

I firmly believe that people can learn in a completely different way than what society

and educational convention impose. My idea is that the ability to learn the two-plustwos is not about learning the products i.e. the number themselves, but rather the process, i.e., the act of adding.

An exam shouldn’t really assess the products, but rather the processes, i.e., not what the right answer is but rather how to do something.

Imagine a world where an MCQ asked “how do you add two plus two?” rather than “what is two plus two?” Or “what database will produce the best articles on the Battle of Hastings?” rather than “When was the battle of Hastings?”

Which of those questions are more valuable to the child, from an educational perspective, or to the scholar and potential future knowledge worker of the new Irish economy? All or none of the above?

Think carefully before answering the

question (and never leave any question unanswered).

Here is the crux of my argument (that, again, hopes to separate us from the animals).

You cannot generalise learned products to other areas e.g. the number two when looking at five plus five. However, you can generalise the process e.g. mapping the process of adding two plus two to the process of adding five plus five.

Similarly, you cannot map the product “1066” to the battle of the Boyne, but you can generalise the process of looking up the Battle of Hastings, to looking up the Battle of the Boyne. Catch my… damn, now I’ve given away my age.

So, dear student, it’s not about products, it’s about processes and your ability to generalise them to other areas. This ability is what we call imagination (especially when contrasted with the ability to rote learn products).

So what type are you, a product or process type? Do you have the ability to generalise a skill to other sometimes unrelated areas?

Well, hopefully, one day (when I, or my romantic notions, are dead and gone with O’Leary in the grave) some of my postgrad research mud may stick to the walls of Irish educational legislation… and kids will not learn what two plus two is, but rather how to add them.

10 FEATURES

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

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In the same vain as other important issues, I gained an insightful grounding about feminism at a young age from an episode of The Simpsons.

You know the one – Lisa protests against the introduction of a Malibu Stacey doll which endorses mantras including “let’s bake some cookies for the boys” and “don’t ask me, I’m just a girl”.

Sadly, the latter phrase came to mind upon hearing the findings of the Equality Tribunal against this university before Christmas.

Evidence of gender discrimination was found against Micheline Sheehy-Skeffington in her application for the post of senior lecturer, based on procedures pursued by NUI Galway which the Tribunal described as “ramshackle”.

Now five more female lecturers, who were turned down for promotion in 2009 and again in the 2013/2014 period, are considering taking their cases to the courts with help from the highly generous donation of Ms Sheehy-Skeffington towards their cause.

Although this is a demonstration of remarkable bravery on the part of these academics, it’s disheartening that their time is occupied defending one of their most basic human rights in an institution which should be a safeguard for equality.

The whole story reads like a tale belonging to another century.

Of course, in spite of what has happened, NUI Galway cannot be branded as an advocate of unfair practices. Its history alone proves it has made strides towards equality, particularly for women, who are repeatedly found in studies to be underrepresented in third-level institutions.

The university has been officially recognised in the past for its commitment to equality in science, and also boasts a Centre for Global Women’s Studies as well as many modules and courses incorporating gender issues.

Additionally, alumna Alice Perry is believed to be the first female engineering graduate in the world. When Ms Perry encountered difficult circumstances in her life, commentators say she lacked the age and experience to progress in her field without family support.

Therefore, is the rhetoric that had she been equipped with the relevant skills and experience, the engineer would have been guaranteed to progress?

Because in the present situation, 100 years later, these lecturers have undoubtedly contributed towards the university and their respective fields but have not progressed to a position which sufficiently reflects their work.

It did not help the situation that a male had been promoted who was not even eligible to apply.

This is not intended as a series of man-bashing statements, especially as foolhardy accusations of sexism often personally make me feel uncomfortable rather than empowered. Gender equality is a battle for both men and women to fight, and it just so happens that this particular case involves unfair treatment towards females.

Misandry is certainly an underreported issue, and when instances of this and misogyny come into play it is vital that both genders work together to eliminate any potential for distrust or begrudgery. Indeed, in the case of the position filled by the inexperienced candidate, the Tribunal found that this was a place which could have been filled by a man or a woman, based on merit rather than gender. The NUI Galway case is a result of the failings of a minority, but the institution as a whole has taken the blame.

In my four years as a student here, seeing images of the campus accompanying these reports on national news is the first time I have felt disappointed in the college I love so dearly. Juxtaposed with this, I was also instilled with a sense of admiration that there are people (regardless of gender) ready to fight for their rights whatever the cost.

It has to be noted that relevant higher powers have pledged to remedy the problem, which they have acknowledged “unreservedly” – albeit after initially arguing its promotion process was “fair and transparent” and rebutting the lecturer’s case point blank.

This further emphasises the vital role Ms Sheehy-Skeffington has played in setting a precedent for others, and the conditions she fights for are not things to be forgotten with a new term and post-Christmas turkey-induced coma.

FEATURES 11

January 12 2015

Eoin Neylon Year of graduation: 2008 Course at NUI Galway: BE (Civil Engineering) Current Occupation: Self-employed building

contractor / President of Ógra Fianna Fáil

What is your fondest memory of NUI Galway?

After four great years spent studying in NUIG, I would find it very hard to pick one distinct memory ahead of the others. From faculty balls, to playing GAA for the college, Cumann de Barra meetings and helping friends in SU elections, I definitely enjoyed my time in Galway.

Has NUI Galway changed since you were here?

It certainly has from the redesigned Bialann to the brand new state of the art Engineering Faculty building and Gym. It’s a quicklydeveloping modern, riverside campus with a rich history. It still has the same attitude and atmosphere however I’m happy to say.

How did attending NUI Galway develop you as a person?

Third level education is always about broadening one’s horizons and NUIG was more than able to do that. Challenging your preconceptions and outlook on the world seemed to be something life in and around the college did daily just for sport. I definitely left with a far greater appreciation of the various philosophies on life and a greatly expanded skill set which have stood to me ever since.

Did you partake in any societies, sports clubs or volunteering at NUI Galway?

Cumann de Barra took up a lot of my time over the four years, eventually serving as its Cathaoirleach. This early involvement led directly to me eventually becoming Uachtarán Ógra Fhianna Fáil. Rotaract and the GAA club also kept me busy leading me to have to do a lot of my assignments last minute but I wouldn’t change that for anything.

What was the college newspaper like when you were in NUI Galway? Did you write for it?

I never wrote for the paper but I did do a couple of interviews for it during the course of my time there due to involvement in societies and clubs. In that period I remember the paper being hugely popular and the stands getting cleaned out regularly after each new issue was

20 new projects awarded EXPLORE funding Congratulations to the 20 new project teams that were recently awarded EXPLORE Innovation funding.

Initiated as a partnership between the Students’ Union and NUI Galway, EXPLORE provides seed funding and support for students and staff to work in partnership on innovative new projects to benefit NUI Galway and the wider community. To date, tens of thousands of people have engaged with EXPLORE projects.

“As EXPLORE celebrates its third anniversary the impact of the initiative continues to grow, as does interest from both students and staff here at NUI Galway. The ongoing success of former EXPLORE projects in a wide varieties of areas is extremely encouraging,” says Students’ Union President Declan Higgins.

Find out more about EXPLORE at www. su.nuigalway.ie/explore.

EXPLORE PROJECTS 2014/2015 Title

Lead Student Partner

Lead Staff Partner

Aether Drone Project

Fionn Delahunty

Dr Eugene Farrell

Bike Park Plan Bright Sparks (Neuroscience outreach) ConnectAgain (connecting rurally isolated elderly people with teenagers with intellectual disabilities in a learning environment that encourages enterprise) Eat Your Words (raising awareness of communication disability among catering staff and their role in suuporting successful communication) Eco-Explorers Web TV Enabling the Undergraduate Research Voice: The First Annual NUI Galway Undergraduate Research Conference European Union on Campus Forward Footsteps in Diabetes Initiative

David Van Story Mark Glennon

Kevin O'Sullivan Dr Siobhán O’Higgins

Elizabeth O'Brien

Michael Campion

Nicole Guinan

Clare Carroll

Michael English

Dr Michel Dugon

Sadhbh Ó Cinnseala

Lorraine Tansey

Aaron Molloy Elaine Thompson Mari-Liis Rongelep & Eoghan Daly Stephen Moloney Jack Trá Billy Delaney Elaine Byrnes Laura Boyle Fiona Mullins

Josephine Walsh Dr Claire MacGilchrist

Prof Vincent O'Flaherty Fiona Kennedy Dr Eoghan Clifford Dr Pádraig MacNeela Dr Matt Redman Dr Elaine Hyslop

Joanne Cregg

Dr Kerry Thompson

Shane O Speallain

Dr John Cunningham

Katie Fallon

Dr John Cunningham

Rosie HowlettSourthgate

Dr Kathy Reilly

Geo-bogs: Conserving Ireland's Natural Heritage Heat Ensilage Recovery Systems Please Talk (student and staff-led Please Talk mental health campus hub) Rate My Trip: An app remodelling commuter travel patterns Sexy Consent': Devising Workshops on Consenting Sex for University Students Student Astronomy Nights The Gift of Healthy Feet Under the Microscope (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths outreach in collaboration with the Royal Microscopical Society) University College Galway Students in World War One What's in a Name (making students and staff aware of the stories behind the names of the lecture halls on the concourse) YOLO (Young Peoples' Life Opportunities - development of an 'employment opportunities' toolkit for use by community development workers

Dr Terry Morley

released. Maybe that had something to do with the “out and about” photographs however!

Do you ever miss NUI Galway?

Every time I visit I’m reminded of the great times I spent there. It’s always a place I’ll miss but luckily I’m very capable of finding excuses to visit from time to time.

Any juicy stories of your time here?

Is there anyone who ever went to NUIG that doesn’t have at least one?! Being involved in the GAA club and SU election campaigns means I’ve got some great ones! However, for other people’s reputations, it’s best I not have them printed.

What advice would you give to current NUI Galway students?

Get involved. Whatever your interest, there’s a club or society there to cater for it. If there isn’t, then start one. Clubs and Societies and the lifelong friends I made through them enriched my time in Galway immeasurably. The university not only offers a great formal education but a phenomenal life education though extra circulars. If you’re not involved, you’re missing out.

If you could go back and do it all again, what would you do differently?

Found a reason to stay on in NUIG longer!

Bodies of Knowledge The Special Collections Lunchtime Lectures Series 2014-2015 will continue on Wednesday 4 February with "Bodies of knowledge: the early days of anatomy in Galway" by Alexander Black of the Anatomy Department.

Anatomy was one of the founding departments of Queen's College Galway in the 1840s. At the time anatomy was seen as a rather distasteful, if necessary, field of study, and had yet to be completely separated from its sibling discipline physiology.

Anatomy is a visual and tactile subject, and perhaps relies on images and illustrations more than any other academic discipline. This talk will cover the early days of anatomy in Galway, and will illustrate the importance of anatomy to society, society to anatomy, and medical imaging to medicine.

Some anatomy material from the Old Library Collection will be on display during the talk, and an exhibition of material will run in the Special Collections Reading Room during the month of February.

12 FEATURES

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

An Interview With: Panti Bliss In her fabulously, hilarious show ‘High Heels in Low Places’, Panti Bliss, the Queen of Irish Drag, confidently makes the claim that she is now a “National Treasure”. Two hours before the performance at NUI Galway, I sat down with the man behind the make-up, Rory O’Neill. O’Neill made headlines early last year when his comments regarding homophobia in the media set RTÉ back ¤85,000 in pay outs. I met Rory to talk about his life, ‘Pantigate’, Pope Francis, and the upcoming Marriage Equality Referendum.

By Aisling Bonner So, you grew up in Ballinrobe, County Mayo. What was that like for you?

Well, I think growing up in a small Irish town is rather idyllic until you get to be about 12 or 13. I loved it as a kid but once you get to Secondary school, especially for me, I needed more after that.

What was the reaction when you ‘came out’? I believe your parents were very supportive.

My parents have always been great.

I think a lot of parents, certainly my mother included, take a little time to

adjust to it all, but they’ve always been great about everything so I’ve been lucky in that sense.

What advice would you give to someone who was struggling to ‘come out’?

I would tell them to take their courage in their hands and do it. You can’t really be happy when you’re hiding something about yourself. Until you tell your family, they’re not really your family because you’re hiding something so big from them that you can’t actually be yourself around them.

It turns your family into acquaint-

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• Find vacancies for all disciplines • Get e-mail alerts for the jobs you want • Exciting graduate job opportunities added daily • Find out about employer events on campus • Make an appointment to discuss your options

Register today at www.nuigalway.ie/careers

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ances, who don’t really know you. That’s a sad thing. I know it’s a scary thing to do, but I’ve never, ever in my whole life met a single gay person who regretted coming out.

I’m not going to suggest that every family is perfect. Usually, it’s a surprise or a shock, or sometimes they feel that they don’t know you, because the person they imagine you to be is different from the person you are. But that only takes a little while to get past.

How did you get into drag?

I got into it because I was always into club culture and performance and that kind of thing. I started it like so many people do as a laugh and then it became a career. There was never a plan for it to be a career. I do my own make-up as it’s a special effects job and most make-up artists aren’t used to that.

in charge; but actually, in the end what it showed was that old Ireland really is dying because most people’s reaction was very positive.

Did you expect anywhere near the kind of response it generated?

Absolutely not. I got into trouble on that chat show and I never saw that coming. I thought we had a very reasonable, honest discussion. The idea that there was any problem at all after that was utterly bizarre. As for the speech? Sure, I thought nobody would see that other than the people in the auditorium that night. I certainly didn’t think that people all over the world would care. I was absolutely shocked.

So with regards to ‘Pantigate’ and the famous Abbey Theatre speech, the response from the international community was huge. Tell me about that.

Still to this day I get a constant stream of emails from all around the world from people who’ve seen it. At the time, everywhere from Channel 4 to CNN had it. I do a lot of travelling now and I speak to universities from Canada to Germany and most of that is all to do with the speech.

How do you feel about Pope Francis’ attempt to acknowledge same-sex relationships?

I think the Pope is a good guy in a difficult situation. I suspect the Pope is absolutely fine with gay people but he’s the head of an organisation that absolutely is not fine with them. That’s a problem.

I suspect he’s a good person and you could probably go for a pint with him unlike his predecessors, who I don’t think were good people. They were so far removed from real people and real people’s lives. All they were concerned about was doctoring, and dusty old books.

I think Francis is a different kind of person that would be more interested in real people and less interested in dusty old books. However, I don’t think he’s going to be able to transform the Church and make any great changes.

It’ll take a lot more Popes than him to do it, but it’s a start.

Has the response from other countries been different to the Irish reaction?

In world terms, we’re way ahead of the pack. Most countries are not as far along as we are. All countries have their homophobic rumps, they exist everywhere. People don’t like people who are different, and gay people will always be different.

I think that whole episode that I was involved in, in the beginning looked like it said something negative about Ireland. It looked like this old Ireland was

Finally, the Marriage Equality Referendum is coming up. Do you think it will be passed?

I’m optimistic, but I don’t think it’s a done deal at all. The worry at the moment is that people might vote against it just because they want to kick the politicians. That’s a big fear. Also, I think that young people are going to be super, spectacularly important in this.

I think it’s an opportunity for young people to make a real change in our country, so I think it’s a thing that young people should really want to vote on.

And you also opened the gay bar, ‘Pantibar’?

Yes, it’s been there seven years and it’s going great guns! I spent 25 years or so working in these places and filling other peoples’ venues. There are not that many options for an aging drag queen so that seemed like an obvious one.

January 12 2015

FEATURES 13

‘Appy’ New Year

How to fit in at the gym

By Claire Stone

By Aisling Bonner

of exactly what you spent your money on.

Yes, it sucks to see your money disappearWhen your conscience isn’t enough to ing but if your resolution is to improve guide you onto New Year resolution vic- your spending then this is the reality tory; use your phone. you’ve got to let yourself face.

Why? Lets face it, you see more of it The app won’t be as aggravating once than your friends. You trust it to keep hold you have gotten a handle on how you of a large part of your life (relationships, spend. Alternatively Debt Manager helps pictures, videos). It already has power over you reach your goals to pay people off or you. to save for something special. You can set Now it is time you directed that power deadlines for your goals and watch yourinto the right places. Your phone is smart, self get closer to reaching them. so let yourself be smarter. Use it to conquer Don’t underestimate the power of setyour demons and help you change into the ting general reminders. Notifications, once person you’ve always wanted to be. a night, asking yourself how your progress Plenty of apps prois can be very useful moting healthy living For those super serious to keeping yourself on are available for both track. Look at it as a about healthy living, Android and iPhones. way to guarantee you Water Your Body will at least think of download PACT, an app your resolution proand WaterLogged gress once a day. are apps that help that literally pays you Personalise the you keep track of how much water you reminder to say the to be healthy (by those stuff you wish your are drinking daily.

It sends you regular friends might say, who aren’t). Prove you such as; “I want you reminders to keep drinking in case you to do this because…”, are being healthy by are trying to ignore “don’t give up” and any pesky guilt. “remember XYZ”.

While in the first using your GPS to check If you are determined to begin few days the app in at the gym or your notifications may be studying this semesannoying, soon you ter, TimeLogger is camera to take pictures an app that helps won’t need them to you monitor the time remember what you should be drinking. of your food. With other you spend on given activities. It allows It becomes second users having to approve you to set a time limit nature to you; resulting in New Year ’s so you can track how your success stories, resolution success. much you go over it.

Alternatively, It makes pie charts to if your resolution there is no room to cheat emphasis your time breakdown, putting requires you to cut down on alcohol consumption, why not the time you spend on Netflix into absouse the app to log what you’ve been con- lute perspective. suming. Afraid to log while on a night out?

FitLine monitors the time you spend on Get a receipt and do it in the morning. certain apps on your phone. It may be the Set goals, so if you don’t reach them, wakeup call you need to cut down on the being able to see them on something solid time you spend on Facebook and the limlike your phone will seem all the more real, ited time you spend talking to your family. allowing yourself to stay motivated.

While you may ignore the notifications at For those super serious about healthy the start, given time, closing the apps will living, download PACT, an app that liter- become a natural reflex. ally pays you to be healthy (by those who CollegeTimeTable allows you to keep a timetable and schedule list of assignments aren’t).

Prove you are being healthy by using and readings you’ve got to complete. Much your GPS to check in at the gym or your easier than relying on a combination of camera to take pictures of your food. So, Facebook pages, blackboard and email to if you aim to eat three vegetables in every keep yourself organised. You are looking dinner, this app will make sure you suc- for a clear er mind, after all. ceed As you can see, there are tonnes of apps With other users having to approve your out there to help you on your way to a hapsuccess stories, there is no room to cheat. pier 2015. Just remember, the apps alone You control how much is at stake so the aren’t enough. You’ve got to take them app shouldn’t rob you – just motivate you. seriously.

If you have promised yourself you If you feel yourself failing, don’t put it would be better at saving and managing down to the inevitable. You’ve got to fight your money then Mint Money and Debt (and keep fighting) for change. Focus on Manager are for you. the process and not the end goal. Get lost Online banking is not always crystal in it. Enjoy the current visit to the gym clear about where your money has gone without worrying about the next five. to. Mint Money allows you to keep track Good luck and happy downloading.

If you’re like me, and well, practically everyone, you made the confident prediction just before Christmas that 2015 is going to be your year and you’re going to get fit.

However, if you are even more like me, that plan hasn’t exactly sprung into motion just yet. It’s not that we’re doing anything wrong; it’s just that we’re doing nothing at all.

But have no fear your four-step gym guide is here and sure to have you looking like a pro.

1. Gear bag. Check.

Before you even say the word “membership” let alone think about going near the gym, you need to have the basics. An oversized gear bag with some form of neon logo obnoxiously emblazoned on the side is a sure fire way to suggest you have got your gym career together. It’s the bag that screams “Oh, I just got gym stuff for Christmas, my old stuff was so 2012 Olympics”.

The contents of the bag: a small hand towel and giant drinks bottle. The bag must be more than half empty, otherwise it’s not big enough.

their self-esteem plummet. Voilà, you have just become a fitness guru! Now, where is that Instagram post? For lads, it is more difficult.

The tracksuit bottoms run the risk of the “is he going to the gym or is he just hungover?” debate. Unless you’ve got your game face on and your gear bag is an obnoxious as they come, I’d suggest shorts are the way forward.

3. The Grand Entrance. Check.

Rustle the hair and take a sip from your water bottle on arrival as if you’ve just jogged to the gym.

Swipe the card without any fuss. Nonchalance is key. Know where you’re going. Confusion is a sign of weakness and instantly your cover is blown. Leave your bag in the lockers avoiding the mirrors at all costs – you know you look good.

Throw you’re towel over your shoulder, put your headphones in even if nothing is playing, swing your bottle casually by your side, and enter.

4. Departure. Check.

There’s a fine line between looking gym savvy and just badly dressed. For girls it comes down to one key accessory: the sport’s bra. Whether you’re a double A or a triple D, wear a sports bra. No one can question anything about your outfit en route to the gym because you’ve got the bag and the bra and you’ve already made

Realistically, you’ve no clue how to work the machines. You’ve found comfort on the bike because it is the only thing that isn’t completely foreign to you. After 10 minutes of leg rotations and no notion of what good it is doing, it’s time to leave.

Slow the rotations gradually. Grab the towel and wipe down the machine because you’re the sound kind of gymer. Rise slowly, stretch unnecessarily, drink desperately and leave proudly. It is your first day, you are taking it easy. You go home, watch some treadmill and weights tutorials then more than likely decide that you’ll leave it ‘til next year.

I don't know what she's doing right now, where she is or who she is with. She could be cuddled into a new lover or he into her and it would not matter to me because I am over her. There is no romantic way to say it, no arrangements to make it sound positive because it isn't; it's terrible.

It is terrible because it is to no longer be in love with that person that you once shared a drunken mid-April night's first kiss with; it is not being able to smile melancholically at the thought of her and it is not craving her touch - the way she used to trace her finger so gently across the crease in my lips as I lay there, her wanting and me ever-willing.

At first there was that lull that you get when you fall out of love. The feeling that makes you feel like a nobody, or rather a somebody that is not in romance of any kind.

You become just a person in a room and beyond that room lies a house and after that a neighbourhood and a town and life itself as you breathe inwards. Inhaling, always inhaling but having no one to help you exhale the tightness in your chest.

Because the heart is not a singular muscle, it does not beat by itself - it beats for

someone else, always. And when it stops it is the hardest thing to restart and rebuild because a heart is never truly broken, just scarred. Damaged. And because of it everything becomes flat; your whole world.

But I have suffered this array of feelings, this rollercoaster of emotions and come out the other side. I have fallen for someone else. My heart thuds steadily wanting to know more about this person. My mind gets excited by the prospect of it all.

It may never fully happen, we might not share another kiss or another moment but if we do I want it to happen slowly so I can savour it. I want her eyes to light up mine as I enjoy the simplicity of it all in the complicated beginnings that will be forged by us.

As I reflect back on those early sultry secluded kisses that I shared with my previous girlfriend, I want it again. I want to exchange lips with someone else as I also reveal my soul, reveal the true me, a different me to that which I show on the outside every day.

And I will have it again. Perhaps not now.

But it will happen and my true loving self will be revealed and someone will blossom under the shade of my oak tree as I grow and nurture.

2. Balanced Attire. Check.

14 FEATURES

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

Things to look forward to in 2015

By Kieran Kilkelly

in such a major world sport is something to get excited about in 2015.

IRELAND WINNING THE RUGBY WORLD CUP (AND RETAINING THE SIX NATIONS)

TOP ACTS COMING TO IRELAND

Yes our BOD - Brian O'Driscoll - has retired and it was a sad time for Irish Rugby but a new era is upon us and there is reason for optimism.

Our results against Australia and South Africa in the Autumn Internationals make for good reading and if we reproduce that form we could be celebrating come October.

The fact that the tournament is being held in Britain adds another special dimension to things with it being so close.

Before that tournament begins we must try and regain our Six Nations crown in February and March. There are no certainties in sport but for an island as small as us to have hopes and aspirations of being number one

We can leave the Garth Brooks scandal of 2014 behind us and try to look forward to all the monumental acts coming to our shores over the next 12 months; and believe me there are some big names here.

The biggest boyband of today, One Direction, hit the 3 Arena for a three night date in October but before they make their appearance in the same venue Nicki Minaj, Olly Murs, Ben Howard, The Who and various others perform there.

AC/DC play the Aviva Stadium in June, three days after The Script play their sell-out Croke Park gig and The Foo Fighters rock out Slane in May. Of course these may only be things to look

forward to if you've actually gotten tickets but you never know, something may happen that sees you dancing in the front row at one of these concerts.

Saul, Battle Creek, Man Seeking Woman and Last Man on Earth among the ones that are the most talked about.

THE RISE OF ACTUAL CONVERSATION

BINGE WATCHING TV SHOWS

2014 was a great year for television with the whole of the new series of shows such as House of Cards and Orange is the New Black being added on Netflix prompting people to brace themselves for the long haul and stick it out until the end.

This highlights the way we watch TV is changing and both of the aforementioned shows’ new seasons will be released this year along with many other original Netflix programs including Daredevil and Narcos.

Of course Game of Thrones, True Detective and many more are returning too along with much anticipated new shows - Better Call

Perhaps it is just me but when I meet up with friends it is to talk and catch up, not to be part of their most recent Snapchat story.

Conversation is something which is becoming lost ever since the introduction of more advanced technology. I'm hoping that in this coming year Facebook status updates and Instagram posts drop significantly to be replaced with eye contact and use of real words – not made up ones like “twerk” and “crunk”.

If not, maybe this will be the year machines rise up against us and we then have no choice but to engage in a meaningful conversation with someone, albeit probably our last one.

How to beat the January blues

By Cathy Lee Want to know how to beat those so-called “January blues”? Want to take back that life that January is so cruelly trying to take from you?

Well we here at Sin have just the advice for you on that. It’s time to wrestle, beat, slap, fight, kick or smack those blues out of January. Here are some simple ways that you can take back your life from the torment of January blues.

Who came up with the term “January blues” anyway? What cruel person dictated

that one must be blue and down in January? Sure, the weather isn’t the best and the merry Christmas season is over but that doesn’t mean you have to let the weather influence your personal life.

Tell you what, why don’t we just forget about that hanging over us for now? I’m sure you all know that the Irish weather is one that is everchanging and to me a new year and a new January come as an opportunity for personal change.

Now I won’t be jumping on the bandwagon of the “new year, new me” lark that

Ball Season is coming: E&N Wall Street Ball 2015 Wall Street is coming to Galway on 4 February 2015. The indulgent parties from New York’s most infamous street will hit the Radisson Blu Hotel for the annual Engineering and Nursing Ball.

It will be a party set in the late ’80s and early ’90 – a time of freedom and spontaneity with over-the-top food, drink, entertainment and penny stocks. As Jordan Belfort says; “More is never enough.”

Full ticket holders will be treated to a lavish champagne reception in the Radisson front lobby followed by a delicious three-course meal.

Meanwhile, ‘afters’ ticket holders will enjoy a pre-party at BiteClub (upstairs in Electric Garden) and all ticket holders are welcome to the after party in Electric Garden and Theatre the following day.

The lineup includes: DELORENTOS: Having received the Meteor Choice Music Prize for Irish album of the year in 2013, Delorentos have once again risen with their recent release of Unbroken, United which has just been shortlisted for Album of the Year 2014.

LE GALAXIE: If you were at Electric Picnic or Longitude during the summer you couldn’t

but know how good these guys are. “Le Galaxie have firmly put themselves up there as one of the best live bands in the country, just ask anyone who's been to one of their gigs."

– Joe.ie.

WATERMÄT: This French DJ took to fame over summer 2014 with “Bullit” which received huge acclaim throughout Ireland, the UK and the rest of Europe with over eight million views on Youtube.

POROMA: A newly-established Irish cover band consisting of four guys in their early 20s who perform fantastic acoustic covers from Macklemore to Kiesza with some crazy mash-ups.

Tickets will be on sale on Wednesday 21 January from 12pm to 2pm in the Engineering Building, Áras Moyola and the Socs Box. Full tickets will be available to final year students in the colleges of Engineering/Informatics, Nursing/Midwifery and Health Sciences on Tuesday 20 January from 12pm to 2pm in the foyer of Engineering building and Áras Moyola.

All past E&N Ballers will tell you this is one of the largest events on NUI Galway’s student calendar and a guaranteed epic night out.

people go on with because honestly, I think that is a little too much pressure for us students. Does January demand the ultimate sacrifice from us of changing who we are as people? No, I think not exactly.

See I would begin by changing or doing some little things that you know will help and develop you for the better. Being kinder to yourself will certainly help shift these lingering January blues. Take the opportunity to do so as it presents itself.

January represents a time for a new beginning in our calendar. It is most certainly a new beginning for us in the starting of the second semester of this college year.

Why not take that opportunity for a new beginning or two of your own?

As I’m sure you’re all aware, Socs Day 2 will be taking place on January 14 in the Bailey Allen Hall. Be a little spontaneous and go along to see what is there on offer, maybe a society that you hadn’t known about will catch your eye. It’s all about stepping out and taking a chance on unknown possibilities.

Around this time of year a lot of people make New Year resolutions and accumulate huge pressure to become a better version of themselves. If you’re the one that wants to do that, go right ahead I say.

I agree with those who say hard work pays off and it’s all about your own attitude.

If you want to take on new challenges to develop your skills, take it on one step at a time. What January gives us is a fresh injection of time; 365 days to be exact.

This is your 2015 to make of what you wish and that idea does not give me any form of January blues whatsoever. The weather outside may not be delightful but it’s time to bring your own delights into your life for yourself in this New Year. Take this opportunity to be a little kinder to yourself, even if that means changing up your lifestyle in some small way.

Make it worthwhile for you, take what it is you can get from 2015 and make it your own and of course – no pressure.

#firstworldproblems

By Chelsea Tabert First World problems have become known as a term that is generally used to refer to issues in First World nations that are complained about only because of the absence of more pressing concerns.

1. The upscale deli I frequently visit played Mumford & Sons today, so now I have to find a new deli. #firstworldproblems 2. I love the iPhone 6 but it's gonna take some time to get used to the power button being on the side and not the top... Makes it difficult to screen shot lol. Especially when snapchat only gives you 6 seconds. #firstworldproblems

3. I have too much leftover food from the holidays. Most of it will expire before I get to eat it. #firstworldproblems 4. 4. The beverage I want is in the back of the fridge and I now have to rearrange the other drinks to get to the one I want. #firsworldproblems 5. I made tea over an hour ago and forgot about it. Now I just have cold, over-steeped tea. #firstworldproblems 6. So I was sent home today from school for having a little nose-piercing. I'm not being funny, it seriously was the world’s smallest piercing. Other people have them too. It's ridiculous. I'd rather be in prison... at least then I'd be allowed to have a little individuality. @whitewhine #firstworldproblems

FEATURES 15

January 12 2015

Happy New Year

By Hazel Doyle Happy ‘twenny-fifteen’! Hap-pee New Year! What’re your New Year’s Resolutions? Did you make any? Have you kept them so far?

It’s like Lent primary-school style, isn’t it? All this giving-up craic. In the words of our generation: ‘YOLO’. Sure you only live once. Are you going to throw away your youth by giving yourself a burden to bear for 2015?

Things never work out like they’re supposed to anyway, but they work out for the better often enough. I mean,

Erasmus Diary of an Student

By Aoife Barry Spending a semester in France I anticipated the communal kitchen of my student residence to be wafting with the aromas of French cuisine – pungent cheeses, the enticing warmth of freshly baked baguettes, juicy tomatoes soaked in a melody of provincial herbs.

My eager nose did a double take when it was met with a wave of sickly sweet spices. Instead of a gathering of sun-kissed southern French students donning their traditional horizontally stripped shirts and berets, the kitchen was invaded by a gaggle of Korean girls.

I plunged in with an eager, “What are you cooking? It smells delicious!”

I was met by a natural smile and in what seemed comfortable French was informed; “We are cooking Gimbap, we can cook it together sometime if you want! My name is Yeain.”

Thus blossomed my first friendship in France; Yeain, a 20-year-old South Korean studying the French language here. My original stereotype of an Asian girl my age included a shy, timid, subdued personality wearing an assortment of “cute” clothing more suited to a young teenager.

This image was replaced by Yeain’s

Back to the Future 2 promised us hoverskateboards, and while they would be super-cool, they’d be just another thing you need insurance and a licence for. So, that’s a blessing really; no hover-boards.

So, back to the point ; things never work out like they’re supposed to, but often it’s for the better. This time last year, what were you at? Did everything go to plan? And would you change any of it?

Those people who didn’t get their first choice on the CEO, would you go back and ditch us for UCD now? Huh? No, I thought not. So, that worked out okay for you.

If you’re on a tea-break in Smokey’s and you’re trying to look like you’re not a big loner, you’re just super independent and you’ve happened to pick up a copy of our dear Student Independent Newspaper, because you’re also super interested in current affairs – we’ve all done it, don’t pretend – then maybe take a moment and go back over all the major events in your 2014 life. Did they all go to plan? Would you change them?

Did some disaster happen that you were able to learn something from?

Did you pop your cherry? Did you shift someone you weren’t supposed to? Did your Mam buy you that jacket that you had to have, and then you lost it on a night out?

Did you go on a J1 or take a holiday somewhere? Did you read a good book

that made you want to try and be a better person? Was there an addition to your family? Did you get addicted to ‘tinder’, meet your boyfriend while swiping, but then actually tell people that you met on a night out, because you’re too embarrassed to tell the truth?

Did you do badly in an exam that you were pretty sure you should’ve gotten a clean 1.1 in? Did it make you want to try harder, or did you have to challenge a lecturer about it?

Did you get Ebola? Come on now; own up if you did. Or were you secretly grateful that it wasn’t anywhere near you? Maybe don’t own up to that. Karma and all. You can’t be too careful.

Have you taken your moment? Did you come up with something? I hope whatever you thought of made you realise how far you’ve come in twelve months.

In 2013, on the cusp of the brand new year, myself and my housemate wrote down a list of goals and sealed them in an envelope. The intention was to look at them on New Year’s Day 2014. Sure, of course we lost the envelope over the summer, when we parted ways for a few months. And I haven’t a clue what I was hoping for.

Things never really work out like they were supposed to. But between 2013 and 2015 – so far – there’s not really much that I’d change. They all led me to where I am today. Which is a slightly older ver-

sion of myself, who has since plucked out, but refused to really acknowledge, one whole grey hair.

I’d maybe not buy those flip-flops that made a big cut between my big toe and the one beside it. That looked pretty unattractive for a few weeks. But like, I really wanted them, so at least now I know the craic for next time. Footwear is always a risky business, isn’t it?

But if you could make a life-plan that was going to always go to plan forever, wouldn’t life be fairly boring? It’s like those people that read the end of the book before actually beginning the book (weirdos).

Isn’t it better to realise that resolutions aren’t always the best means to an end? You’ve had some great times so far. There’s no need for a whole new you.

When you finish this article and you go back to the library, via a pitt-stop in the jaxx, take a look in the mirror.

Don’t beat yourself up for that tin of Roses now sitting above your jeans, or don’t berate yourself for not sticking to your new study-plan. Give yourself a smile. You’re doing a good job so far.

Fair play to you. You deserved to let your hair down over Christmas. And sure, you’re all interested in current affairs and stuff. You’ve just been reading a paper! You’re doing grand!

2015 might not go exactly as planned, but who wants to skip the epic climax bit in the middle of the novel?

I found Korea in… a Frenchless place live-life-to-the-full attitude, her hunger for travel and her classy elegance in fashion. I do not recall a time I saw her wearing any other colour but black or white. Less is more. The epitome of French beauty.

And Korean it seems.

Sunday evening. Collapsed on my bed after a day out hiking the stony mountain that is Saint Victoire, my numb legs struggled to make it to meet the knocks on my door.

“Aoife, we are going to make Gimbap with you! Come!”

Although my bed seemed very tempting I was ravenous after my demanding day and accepted the invitation.

Gimbap is basically the Korean equivalent of sushi. Koreans will try to tell you otherwise but take my word for it; it is sushi.

I have never eaten sushi, let alone made it so this was a whole new experience for me. The rice was mixed with sesame oil, sesame seeds and a sprinkling of soy sauce. We then prepared the filling for the gimbap rolls.

Carrots, cucumber, and turnip was dissected and cut with precision into slim sticks of exactly 1cm in width. The spinach was heated; the omelettes were fried and subsequently transformed into strips.

Tuna was soaked in a mild coating of mayonnaise and voila, preparation finished. Now for the scary part; out came the strips of fishy dried seaweeds. Each strip was placed upon a placemat-like piece of equipment made from bamboo.

I placed a line of sticky white rice across the bottom of the seaweed strip and carefully decorated it with the various sticks of vegetables, omelette and tuna. I rolled up the whole concoction, along with the bamboo placemat, and squeezed it tightly.

At this stage my forehead was beaded with sweat and my hands shaking with anticipation. This was the moment. When released from my grasp, would my gimbap roll remain intact or disintegrate into a collapsed failure? I was betting on the latter.

To my utter surprise, my roll remained in a roll-like form. I cut it into three parts.

I was informed I was a natural and would make a potentially perfect Korean wife.

Hold your chopsticks!

Now for the tasting; I picked up a roll and took a small bite.

This was all wrong. Each roll is supposed to be consumed in one mouthful with the help of steel chopsticks. Steel chopsticks. I was informed that South Korea is the only Asian county which uses steel chopsticks and not ones made from wood.

Never a fan of Asian cuisine and expecting the Gimbap to prove tasteless I was pleasantly surprised at how satisfyingly yummy there were. The contrast made magic in my mouth. Plus, the whole novelty of stuffing my mouth with these rolls was pretty fun and fulfilled my childhood dream of becoming Mulan.

I learned a lot about Korea from Yeain.

I will admit that the only fact I knew about Korea before I befriended Yeain was that you were fined a ridiculous amount of money if you were seen disposing of your chewing gum on the street.

This fact fed my idea of Korea as an extremely controlled and supressed nation, not too unlike its counterpart further north. Yeain’s shining personality proved this untrue.

So she wasn’t the “Emilie” or the “JeanPierre” that I had expected but I am so grateful that I had the chance to befriend such an able, elegant and fun-loving girl.

She opened my eyes to another culture and foreign cuisine and my ears to Korean boy band music. She opened my heart to her ideas of art and fashion.

Above all, she became a very good friend of mine who I will miss dearly.

My home in Ireland will always be open to her.

18 LIFESTYLE New Year: Planning the trip

By John Brennan The New Year is upon us. Time to start planning that trip of a lifetime, whether

maurauding across Europe or half the world away in South East Asia you need to start planning as soon as possible.

The New Year is a perfect time to plan a trip, so get to it. My initial trip around Europe was planned over a few cans of Bavaria on a rainy Tuesday night back in 2010; it’s a case of sitting down and bashing out a rough plan as to what you want to see and do and the logistics of covering as much ground without spreading yourself too thin. Plan it between a few of you and you can double it up as a productive evening and a good session too.

The trip through Asia was a much more carefully planned trip, but it had to be. Do your research; you don’t necessarily need to fork out hardearned cash for extraneous guides, after all the internet is there to be

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

Bearded Backpacker used, there are plenty of apps and websites stocked full of information designed to help you create a trip to your liking. I mentioned a few in my previous articles.

The preliminary stuff: Get a map.

Figure out where you want to go. Knowing this much will act as the skeleton to the trip you will spend the next few months fleshing out. You’ll need to save towards this, obviously. Different trips, different budgets. But inter-rail passes generally stay the same prices; it’s the flights and hostels you’ll want to start looking into Also, a decent backpack can cost you anywhere from €70 to €200, depending on the quality you want. Travel insurance is worth every penny and generally won’t break the bank, also make sure you know whether or not you’ll need vaccinations for your trip and book them well ahead of your departure.

Budgetary stuff is the hardest part of any trip. How much will you spend in a day is the same as asking how long is a length of rope; it depends.

For my Eurotrip I budgeted €50 a day and still overspent, but that was more than enough to get through the trip, just be sensible with expenditure. It’s a case of knowing the trip you want, knowing where you want your money to go and more importantly where you want to go yourself.

Your expenditure prior to leaving on your trip will generally be on the following things: Flights: Use Skyscanner, Kayak and other apps and websites to price lowest available flights. Shopping around can save money and do this well in advance. These obviously depend on where you’re going.

Inter-rail Pass: Book your European inter-rail pass in good time after you have a good idea of the route you plan to take, research here will help you buy the pass that’s right for you and potentially save you a fair bit of coin as there are several different options.

Backpack: You’ll be condensing your life into a backpack for a few weeks/ months, make sure the backpack is comfortable, otherwise it’ll be a strenuous and blister laden few trip for your shoulders.

Medication: Likes of ibuprofen, paracetamol, small first aid kits, plasters, disinfectant sprays and a few alkaseltzer and berroccas won’t go amiss in your toiletries bag.

Travel Insurance: Shop around online, if you have health insurance already talk to your provider and see what they’re offering. Really good to have in case anything goes wrong or you randomly slash your leg open on a rusty nail sticking out of a park bench in Berlin. This happened to me.

After this you’ll need to have money to eat, drink and sleep. That’s the hard part…

Get planning the bones of that trip. Over the next few weeks we’ll flesh out potential itineraries. Tweet me any queries.

Happy New Year! @Jbrennan88

The Year of the Goat By John Brennan 2014 was a fairly stellar year for beards, to be fair. However, that year is behind us. I have spent the festive period locked away from the world nurturing my freshly masculine beard again after the calamitous shave-gate back in October/November.

With the New Year; new resolutions seem to be the done thing. I’ve set three out for myself. One, to continue my work in bringing beards to lives of every capable face littering the NUI Galway campus. Two, read a book a week. As we all know the only thing better than a beard is a well-read beard.

Three, to have at least three sojourns (sojourn is a holiday or a break, like Russell Brand, I like to cater for the thick) to places I haven’t been before. I have been contemplating bringing my beard to Estonia, Italy and Serbia at some stage throughout this calendar year and spreading the good word further.

When it comes to resolutions, don’t be too ridiculous with them. This is solid man advice here, set a low number of them, keep them specific to things you actually think you can achieve.

If you don’t think you can achieve something, simply put, you’ve lost the battle already. It’s all about having a positive bearded outlook on things. A new beard has given me immense insight and inner peace.

In terms of the Christmas break, the cold, blustery weather of yuletide Ireland absolutely encouraged my beard growth. I spent Christmas across five counties and on both sides of the border reading on myriad forms of public transport and maligning low battery levels on iPods. Typical festive period problems.

Now for January, I take a step back from the world of excess only Christmas can offer. Alcohol is replaced with fitness. Food is replaced with less copious amounts of food.

I’ll be reading more as I’ve mentioned. I am still a literary Luddite in terms of reading, I don’t like Kindles. I see everything positive about them and everything practical. I just prefer their papery counterparts.

I read some quintessential man books over the break too. Grapes of Wrath, Slaughterhouse 5 and some not so manly books like Wild, which because of my beard became manly by association. That’s literally how these things work. Probably.

I also signed up to the dictionary.com app and get a new word every single day, thus improving my vocabulary and hence the allure of beardiness grows exponentially.

Combining my swelling vocabulary with my cavalcade of new aftershaves my beard is a prime specimen as it currently stands. I have added several rich odours to my collection of musks. Hugo Boss, Emporio Armani and Diesel to mention a few.

This is ultimately a New Year, the year of the Goat. Goats have beards. Thus this is the year of the beard. Get growing guys. @Jbrennan88 #SinBeards

LIFESTYLE 19

January 12 2015

New Year New Wardrobe: Beautiful You by Patricia O’Toole

By Jessica Thompson

W

ITH CHRISTMAS OVER and done with, we’re starting to think about slimming down after all the mince pies, and looking our best, but it would be nice to have something to wear that will make us look and feel gorgeous while we slowly but surely shed those extra pounds.

That’s where Patricia O’Toole comes in.

With her new line of slimming clothes, you’ll feel slim, comfortable, gorgeous and most of all, confident. The clothing line, Beautiful You, all started with “an idea and a blank page”, according to Patricia.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Patricia before testing out a dress from the line myself and I was impressed with the journey she has taken to launch her Beautiful You line.

T

HE LINE IS designed with the female body in mind, using fabrics that flow with the curves of the body, providing support for the tummy area in particular, enhancing the natural shape of the body. And it all began with an internet search.

“About three years ago I was searching online for a wrap-around top. Wrap-around tops are synonymous with hiding the tummy area,” she says.

“I couldn’t find one anywhere and I couldn’t believe that on the worldwide web, nobody was doing a wrap-around top all the time – an affordable one.

“So I spent a couple of months researching it and then I decided ‘wouldn’t it be great to have a clothing line that focused on hiding the tummy area?’”

The ‘Gráinne’ wrap-around top is only one of the pieces in Miss O’Toole’s collection, which also includes a ‘Gráinne’ wrap-around dress, both of which have built-in shapewear designed to work with the body to give women the support where they need it most.

The line is designed for every woman, and Patricia was kind enough to send me a dress to try out. I’m quite slim but even the slimmest of us can have off days and be self-conscious about the tummy area, so when I tried this dress on and felt the support around my midriff I knew it would be my party dress for the Christmas.

The dress is called the Breda, and has cap sleeves and side ruching, with built-in shapewear, which makes for an elegant and flattering

fit. It skims the problem areas, such as the tummy, creating a slim, elegant look. With fabric that is smooth to touch, it comes in a range of colours and is a simple, elegant piece that is sophisticated enough for work, while also being suitable for a night out.

“The idea was to create an online space for women that addressed the issue of primarily the tummy; creating this online space where women could go and they’d know that every piece had been designed with the tummy in mind – the tummy that’s left over after having children, or going into menopause, or anything like that,” Patricia told me.

B

UT WHAT MAKES this product stand out from so many others is the comfort it provides compared to the solution to which many women turn: spanx. The Beautiful You line is designed with comfort in mind, but also makes women feel “pulled in”.

The built-in slimming support is carefully designed to give women a smoother silhouette, without discomfort, thanks to the comfortable fabrics. I felt so slim and elegant in this dress. I’ve always found spanx to be uncomfortable, and at times quite painful to wear. But all the clothes from this line give you the support you want, without the discomfort.

“I got annoyed that women feel that they have to put on these spanx in order to fit into regular clothes and I wanted to have something that gave them everything in one piece.

“So there’s built-in shapewear in every piece. The design works with you and the fabrics work with you, so the brand itself has to have those elements going through it the whole time,” Patricia explained.

Patricia O’Toole is working from a very remote location in Connemara but feels like she has all the resources she needs there when she needs them. In fact, it was in Connemara that she got the grant to get started on her business.

“For any entrepreneur starting off, cash flow is always an issue and things always invariably end up costing you twice as much as you imagined, no matter how good a business plan you have,” she said.

“I was lucky enough to apply to and get a grant from FORUM Connemara to the National Development Programme for start-up costs.

“So I was able to get a grant for things like my computer and my printer and the initial start-up costs of the website and various things like that. And that takes a huge weight off your mind; that you don’t have to be worrying about every single penny.”

The hardest part, she said, is right now – launching the brand and getting people to try the pieces in the collection and endorsing them. The hardest part is making herself stand apart from all the other clothing lines out there, and endorsements really help her with that.

“I spent many years living in New York and what I love about doing this in Ireland is that if you have a good product, you do get in front of people who matter very quickly and I have found that to be so true in terms of what I’m trying to do.

“And I do have people who have endorsed the product in their own way at national level. Building relationships is vital for that,” she said.

The line is designed with the female body in mind, using fabrics that flow with the curves of the body, providing support for the tummy area in particular, enhancing the natural shape of the body. And it all began with an internet search.

"I couldn’t believe that on the worldwide web, nobody was doing a wrap-around top all the time – an affordable one. I decided ‘wouldn’t it be great to have a clothing line that focused on hiding the tummy area?’”

W

ITH THE BEAUTIFUL YOU collection launching for winter, Patricia O’Toole is wasting no time and is already planning to expand.

The product is all about building a global brand. It’s a “solution product” for women and Patricia sees Ireland as the very first test market before she moves to London – “hopefully in the Spring/Summer of 2015”.

She has no intention of stopping there and plans to use her contacts in New York to make the brand as global as possible.

While she admitted she doesn’t know if it will work out in her set time frame, she is confident her business will grow and with a product like this, I personally have no doubt it will.

This clothing line is a solution to an age-old problem, and it will help so many women to feel more confident in their own bodies. So why wouldn’t it work?

“People often ask me ‘what are the most important steps when setting up a business?’. And to me it’s about recognising your markets – you have to have a market for what you’re going to sell,” said Patricia.

“And the second thing would be getting your product right. And getting your product right is vital. Forget about your business cards. Forget about your website. Forget about spending money on branding or anything like that – get your product right first.

“And for me the third step would be building relationships and getting people to understand what you’re trying to do so that you have people behind you; that you have endorsements before you start spending money on promotion or anything like that.

“I think those are the three most important things you need to do so that when you do start doing your website, the people who matter already know something about you.”

P

ERSONALLY, I FOUND Patricia to be very lovely to deal with. She posted a dress to me immediately, meaning I had less than 24 hours to wait before it arrived, neatly packaged and carefully wrapped in paper, at my door.

Because I chose to get the Breda dress in black, it’s extremely versatile. I’m a big fan of coloured blazers and shoes, so this can be dressed up with different shoes, coats and accessories to give it a completely different look.

So if you’re looking for something new and comfortable this New Year, have a look at Patricia’s website. You never know what you might find.

Patricia O’Toole’s Beautiful You collection is available on the website www.patriciaotoole.ie.

20 LIFESTYLE

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

SPORTS LUXE:

Top five Spring trends for Chavvy or fashion-savvy? men and women’s fashion

By Jenna Hodgins Over the past 3 or 4 seasons, sports luxe has been a looming trend on both the catwalk and high-street. An accessible trend; readyto-wear styles transferable from high-end to high-street, allowing all salaries a bit of legroom metaphorically and physically. The 2012 London Olympics acted like a catalyst to the trend, with SS12 catwalks exploding with pastel sporty-wear and patriotic baseball cap prints.

Like all trends, sports luxe has evolved.

First appearing on our town centre hangers with oversized baseball jerseys and mesh numbered crop tops. These now key musthave pieces debuted in sports shops such as a Lifestyle and JD sports, then took to the shelves of major fashion chains such as Topshop and River Island on the upper levels of shopping centres and complexes alike.

It wasn’t long after its first high-street breakthrough did the sports luxe revolutionise itself in the designer fast-fashion market, dispensing glorified boxing shorts and sheeny crops with Alexander Wang for H&M marketing themselves as eveningwear instead of well, sportswear. This is where my problem lies.

First things first (I’m a realest [sorry had to be done!]), fashion is all dependent on individual tastes, and as a foreword and a slight disclaimer I’d like to begin by saying this is only my personal opinion. Likely one with little weight in worth, but hey freedom of speech and all that jazz. Anyway…

A few issues back, Sin covered the surprisingly mature stiletto apocalypse (which has since, like a phoenix, risen from the ashes thanks to both its killer and maker: the 90s trend) wherein high-heels in general were dying at the hands of more functional footwear for example, runners (or trainers y’get me). This is the wormhole sports luxe travelled through, reintroducing sweatshop-branded footwear flashbacks into the 2014 fashion market. I am slightly biased, as a lover of heels and expert in breaking them in (trained from a young age, some call it child cruelty, I thought of it as a life lesson), the death of the high heel was a rough but brief period in fashion for me.

It didn’t help studying in cobbled-stoned central European city for 4 months where they don’t dress-up on nights out at all and heels may as well not exist.

What was salt to the wound was looking at my favourite alternative bloggers giving into the sports luxe trend and ditching their roots in Doc Martens and Converse, and trading them in for the footwear of Chavs. You can call me a sentimentalist or just plain grumpy, but I’m still angry about Chavs reclaiming Converse as their own after years of pre-teen torture for wearing “freaker sneakers” and now, the other side are doing the same except with really ugly scruffy runners. Lily Allen ‘Alright Now’ era combos of Nike Air Maxes and dresses made a comeback in sports luxe.

Fair enough, Lily rocked it in the noughties giving the prom dress a breath of workingclass fresh air. However, with regards to the likes of grunge and goth trends, I think it’s

By Heather Robinson Now that Christmas is officially behind us, it’s time to put away those festive jumpers and look ahead to the season coming; Spring.

Spring fashion is a chance to break away from the weighty but cosy trends of the Winter and set your sights on loftier, more pastel and floral looks. Here’s the breakdown on the top five trends you’ll enjoy this year:

FOR THE WOMEN:

It’ll look good on a night out and on a rainy day in college. Rose pink is a win-win.

MILITARY: Yes khakis are coming back.

Cargo pockets are upon us and khakis green will probably reign supreme. The big pockets are a win in my opinion – no more pocketless jeans please. Keep it tailored and tidy so you’ll look right off of the runway, not like an Action Man doll.

FOR THE MEN: BOXY SHORTS: Apparently wide-legged boxy

FLORALS: No surprise here but florals are big

this year. Think densely crowded flower patterns and an out-of-date but so-in-right-now vintage vibe. It’s best to let your floral design shine and keep the rest of your outfit clean and crisp so as to avoid becoming an eyesore.

Other patterns to look out for are polka dots.

Yes, it’s true.

PINK: If you’ve noticed already, shop window displays are rocking a touch of rose pink.

It’s light, it’s feminine and it softens any look.

The baby-cute colour is a breath of fresh air from the heavy red theme of Christmas past. similar to chalk and cheese. It’s like combining high heels with Canterbury trackies – it just looks weird. To me, this is dangerous territory ironically borderline chavvy and cheap as opposed to on-trend and savvy.

I understand runners and trainers are comfortable and functional. I own a grand pair of cheapy knock-offs that I wear to do some messages on fashion-lazy days and

shorts will be all the rage for you men folk.

These will take you from Spring to Summer with ease and give you loads of space and comfort for your day-to-day activities. Just throw them on with a t-shirt and you’re good to go.

LONG JACKETS: The more tailored, the better. The runway for Spring 2015 Menswear was overloaded with long, tailored jackets and coats in muted tones like greys, cream, black and navy. They’re simple without much fanfare but they’ll pull any look together nicely. at the gym, but I wouldn’t go as far as to cheapen a beautiful dress or goth-chic outfit and claim it as ‘fashionable’. Fashion designers, if you want to be comfortable then just say it but please don’t try cover up your chronic bunions and corns with couture.

It’s just a trend I struggle with. In my opinion sports luxe should be controlled or should just stay in the 90s alongside bumbags and Fila windbreaker jackets. The keyword is ‘luxe’, luxury. Let’s glamour-up sporty tops and shorts, but not dress-down beautiful pieces with smelly gym trainers. But like I said before, each to their own and just rock what you’ve got. If sports luxe is for you, then work it sisters and misters.

SO SUE ME: Suzanne Jackson to visit NUI Galway The College Bar in partnership with the NUI Galway Business Society are delighted to welcome leading blogger, hair and beauty expert and entrepreneur Suzanne Jackson (of So Sue Me) to the Baily Allen Hall on Tuesday 3 February.

At the event, Suzanne will give a hair and make-up demonstration and also discuss her career as an entrepreneur so far.

The evening will be sponsored by Vero Moda (Eyre Square Shopping Centre) and the House Hotel, and the College Bar will be donating the proceeds to Console.

The event will take place on Tuesday 3 February at 7pm. Tickets are on sale at Smokey’s, the College Bar, Vero Moda, Belissimo Hair Salon and online on Eventbrite. The Eventbrite link can be found on the College Bar’s Facebook page.

Tickets are selling fast and cannot be purchased on the night as places are limited, so get yours now at €7 for students or €10 for general admission.

LIFESTYLE 21

January 12 2015

Get duped! High street cop-offs for high-end brands

By Emer Flaherty Let’s face it money doesn’t grow trees and we college students don’t always have the funds to satisfy our makeup cravings.

However you can often find products that perform just as well as your favorites at a fraction of the price. I mean who wants to spend €50 or so on some makeup product when you can easily get a cheaper product that does the exact same thing? No one that’s who.

So without further ado I give you my top four makeup dupes to help you look fab in the New Year.

6 Tried and tested beauty hacks that will save you so much time 4.

1.

5.

2.

6.

3.

By Jenna Hodgins

CURL THOSE LASHES and get the perfect line at the same time. Simply coat the top curved bar of your eyelash curler with gel liner and gently apply like normal. Result, a minimal perfect line that you can leave or add to. Time saved: a lifetime of uneven liner and smudges.

lightly dip it into the product build-up on your mascara wand and use as normal. This trick cannot be used as a replacement for lining the waterline unless you like the blood-shot eye look.

GET A SALON-WORTHY OMBRÉ manicure at home. Using just a sponge, apply your desired colours in stripes across your nail then pat with your wee sponge. Top with clear varnish, et voila!

WAVY HAIR USING A ­STRAIGHTENER: plait your hair in sections then simply run over with a heated flat iron. Allow the hair to cool down and untied the braids.

Add some hairspray or salt spray to keep those beach waves at bay.

USE WHITE EYESHADOW or even better, white eyeliner chubby sticks as an eyeshadow primer. This trick will make your shadows more pigmented and vibrant.

HAVE YOU STAINED YOUR SHIRT collar with makeup again? Remove those nasty foundation marks using shaving foam and a wet cloth, it’s like magic.

Disclaimer: chose the shaving foam wisely, the scented stuff stays well, smelly.

RUN OUT OF LIQUID EYELINER? Calm down, just use your mascara! Using an angled brush,

My New Year’s beauty resolutions

By Niamh Potter

a carefully constructed spoon shape (they will fight back!!)

Beauty resolutions: because let’s face it, not everyone can become a first class honours/ athlete/volunteering/solving-world-hunger type student in 2015. But hey, at least you won’t have bad eyebrows this year!

Here are my top 7 beauty resolutions for 2015:

3.

4.

1.

TO ALWAYS CLEANSE and moisturise every morning and night inclusive of all 4am post-night-out Friday mornings. Waking up in the morning with your make-up already off will be one less hungover mountain to climb.

2.

TO LET MY EYEBROWS GROW naturally with only a few tweaks of maintenance, not to force then into

NEVER TO GO A MONTH without washing my makeup brushes. Two words: spots, apocalypse.

TO LOOK AFTER MY HAIR with regular trims every 6 weeks. Even if you are growing it long, find a hairdresser you can trust, and one who listens when you say “ONLY THE DEAD ENDS!” Once you find this hairdresser it will be a God-send and you can get your regular trims with peace of mind.

5.

TO EAT LESS ARTIFICIAL FOOD. Your body is the product of what you put into it, so feed it well! For clearer skin, shinier hair and stronger nails, feed your body with food rich in nutrients.

6.

TO FLOSS MY TEETH at least once a day and visit the hygienist twice a year. If you do not floss regularly you are at risk of tartar build up- the stuff that only the dentist can remove, gum inflammation and even gum disease. If that doesn`t scare you enough, it has been proven that if you are not flossing your teeth chances are you have smelly breath throughout the day!

7.

TO FIND AN EXERCISE I LOVE and practice it as often as I can (because a healthy body means a healthy mind). Obviously everyone wants to physically look better but my resolution is to find an exercise I truly enjoy doing and focus on how it will benefit my mood, not my appearance.

This way, I reckon I have a better chance of sticking with it (even in the beautiful climate of Galway).

1. NARS RADIANT CREAMY CONCEALER VS COLLECTION 2000 LASTING PERFECTION CONCEALER: The highly raged about Nars concealer is great for aluminising your skin and concealing all major blemishes but the steep price tag is somewhat of a downer, which leads me to my first dupe, the collection 2000 concealer.

Its thick creamy consistency is easy to apply and will cover even the biggest of spots. It prices at €6.45 which is a major bonus!

2. URBAN DECAY’S EYESHADOW PRIMER POTION VS L’OREAL MAGIC DECREASE POUR: Urban decays primer is known to be brilliant for keeping your shadow in place but I’ve found a primer that works equally as a good and is whole lot cheaper too. Voila, I give you the ‘L’Oreal magic decrease pour’, this baby will have your eye shadow staying put for any night out and will increase colour pay-out on your shadow.

3. BENEFIT’S ‘HELLO FLAWLESS!’ FOUNDATION VS RIMMEL ‘WAKE ME UP’ FOUNDATION: Benefit’s foundations are known for their flawless effect, hence the name; however paying €35.00 for a single product can seem like somewhat of an injustice when there is a cheaper alternative out there. The Rimmel wake me up foundation produces the same fresh faced look for a lot less.

4. URBAN DECAY’S NAKED PALETTE VS W7 IN THE BUFF, LIGHTLY TOASTED: Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years you’ve probably heard of the ‘Urban Decay’s Naked palette’. This coveted palette prices at €42.00 which is enough to put a damper on anyone’s bank account, but luckily I’ve managed to find a palette that is insanely similar. The ‘W7, in the buff, lightly toasted palette’ includes all the same shades for only €7.99.

22 FILM REVIEWS REVIEW: Time Is Illmatic

By Niamh Kelly From serving as a platform for the underprivileged and marginalised to make their voices heard, to accusations of materialism, misogyny and violence, hip-hop has proved to be a highly provocative, often political and sometimes controversial genre of music.

However, amidst all the arguing, it is a music that has produced artists and records that exemplify all that is important, authentic and impassioned about the genre, proving just how valuable it is to the expression of the African-American experience in contemporary America.

Perhaps the most influential of all these records is Nas’ 1994 debut Illmatic. Written when Nas was only 19 years old, the album is often cited as the genre’s defining record, a musical template to which all subsequent hiphop albums are compared, and quite simply a classic. It is this record and the subject matter that inspired it that is central to Time Is Illmatic.

More concerned with the ‘why’ of the music rather than the ‘how’, the documentary does

not dwell on the legacy of the album, taking for granted that the viewer is already well aware of the record’s enduring influence, and nor does it delve too deeply into the technicalities behind the creation of such an album.

Instead the film decides to focus on the circumstances that shaped the music, from Nas’ family roots Mississippi and a musical heritage passed down through generations, through to his difficult upbringing in the urban nightmare that was the housing projects of Queensbridge, New York.

Music is interwoven with interviews with Nas’ father, brother and a school teacher that paint a portrait of the artist as an expressive and thoughtful young man who was attracted to instrumentation from a young age and was surrounded by literature from around the world which would inform his lyricism in later life.

However, the film avoids simply becoming a laudatory piece. We are also provided with an essential social context for the album, a context which seems painfully enduring today.

With Illmatic, Nas provided a blistering exposé of the miserable quality of life in

Queensbridge, touching on everything from drug crime and poverty to police brutality and the housing crisis, and it is those issues that are looked at in greater detail in the film.

We learn how the white flight to the suburbs during Nas’ early childhood leads to the ghettoization of inner city America and the creation of housing projects, chronically underfunded schools leads to what Nas calls a “no-money education”, and perhaps most importantly, a lack of opportunities leads to a spike in crime.

This seemingly hopeless situation reaches its fever pitch in Nas’ narrative with the murder of his childhood friend and early musical collaborator, Willy Graham, an incident which had a seismic effect on the young Nas and served as a catalyst for the creation of Illmatic.

The tragedy of life in the projects and the sense that Nas’ life really could have gone one of two ways is emphasised yet again in a beautifully shot scene involving his brother and a photograph of various neighbourhood kids which was taken for the cover of Illmatic.

We are introduced to each of the individuals in the photograph and informed of how each of them have since been either incarcerated or murdered.

The matter-of-fact way in which the doomed fate of each of those kids is rhymed off is dis-

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

turbing, and illustrates just how normalized the destruction of young lives has become in these parts.

In this sense, the film feels like more than simply a music documentary, but also an exploration of young lives which have been failed by institutions and lost to drugs and crime.

Co-directed by music journalist Erik Parker and street artist One9, the documentary is clearly a labour of love, a film about an artist and an album both directors sincerely feel passionately about.

Lingering shots of poignant and evocative images are effectively contrasted with presentday interviews and performances of tracks off the album, and the passion of the film’s directors is very easy to share given how deeply humbling the story is.

More than simply a rags-to-riches story, the film explains how Illmatic is an album which gave voice to the very real experiences of many young black men in America and sadly shows just how relevant much of its content still is today.

At the end of the film Nas explains that he wanted to make music to serve as “proof that I was here”. Not only does the album prove that Nas was here, but it also stands as testament to the lives of many other young men just like him who didn’t make it – they were here too.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

By Ken Glennon Thirteen years removed from his monumental first venture into Middle-Earth, Peter Jackson finally runs out of steam in this laboured conclusion to his Hobbit trilogy.

It’s no pleasure to leave the confines of this wonderful creation, first glimpsed with genuine awe in 2001 with little more than a shrug.

After approximately nine hours of his epic Rings trilogy and five mostly enjoyable hours following the travails of Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), his merry band of Dwarves in their attempt to retake their kingdom from a fire-breathing dragon (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) the series’ bloat has viciously caught up.

In adapting a slim 330 page source material and expanding it to include all manner of material from Tolkien appendices (as well as some original material) this prequel series has taken a very long time to cover ground that was probably better suited to the original two-

parter under Guillermo Del Toro.

Battle of the Five Armies picks up immediately after the events of The Desolation of Smaug, which saw the eponymous dragon descend ominously towards Lake-Town. It serves as an arresting opening here, Smaug one of the highlights of the series and imbued with magnificent malevolence by Cumberbatch and an army of effects wizards.

Unfortunately this confrontation isn’t well matched by the consequent title-battle: a mass of elves, orcs, men, dwarves and giant worms and bats. None of whom or which have a semblance of the investment found in previous occupants of Tolkien wars gone by.

At the root of the final Hobbit’s issue is the dearth of characters worth investing in after almost eight hours. Driven mad with greed having seized the Lonely Mountain and it’s hordes of treasures Thorin spends much of the film holed up behind stone.

More grievously Martin Freeman’s Bilbo and Ian McKellan are sidelined in favour of

REVIEW: The Salvation Review by Ken Glennon Death and brutality shape Kristian Levring’s satisfyingly bleak revenge western.

The Salvation begins with an off-screen rape and murder that sends a Danish settler and his brother (Mads Mikkelsen and Mikael Persbrandt respectively) down a path of revenge and bloodshed, in this magnificently shot Nordic take on the Wild West.

As a scene setter it’s a striking opening, as the two Danes-Jon and Peter await the former’s wife and 10-year-old son. After seven years earning a living in America, Jon brings over his wife and son. Their joy is short-lived

after a coach journey with two heinous locals ends in tragedy.

It’s as stark an opening as I recall from recent memory. Mikkelsen’s helplessness in this horrendous ordeal so simply played as the film effectively robs the lead of any reason to live, beyond a revenge which he achieves almost immediately.

What follows is the attempt of a classic Western town bully (played by Watchmen actor Jeffrey Dean-Morgan) to avenge his brother, the rapist who Jon kills. This involves ransoming a beleaguered town in exchange for his brother’s killer.

Also involved is Eva Green as the bereaved

a host of uninteresting side characters occupying a battle which pales in significance and scales to the conflicts found in its predecessors.

Among which there’s Evangeline Lilly’s elf-warrior Tauriel and a woeful love triangle, involving Bloom’s Legolas and Aidan Turner’s Dwarf Kili.

A sample piece of dialogue concerning love: “it hurts so much… that is how you know it’s real” rings so uncharacteristically hollow to leave one wonder if the writers gave up the ghost of this tacked-on romance.

Another major failing of this chapter is the Star Wars prequel levels of CGI which dulls much of the desired impact of the combat that takes up much of the final hour.

With previous stand-out performers Ken Stott (Balin) and James Nesbitt (Bofur) all but relegated to peripheral cameos we’re left with too few characters of genuine note save, maybe

for Luke Evans’ heroic archer Bard.

Some interest remains in the bitter feud between Thorin and head-orc honcho Azog (Manu Bennett) which is tied up inventively, whilst all too minor appearances by Smaug and Rings main antagonist Sauron evoke some of the series higher points.

There is less a sense of epic conclusion than lumbering from one fracas to another with little in the way of rooting interest. Battle of the Five Armies is the weakest, by a wide margin of all six Middle-Earth epics.

In the context of this new trilogy a tame finish for a mostly enjoyable extended romp back among Tolkien’s world.

wife, the victim of an Indian attack in her youth which left her mute. Deprived of her voice, Green gives a performance heavy on her eyes which hint madness and suffering past and current. For reasons that escape me Eric Cantona has a peripheral role as one of Morgan’s henchmen.

Visually this is an inventive, vibrant and thoroughly sharp experience which utilities the vast and not especially inviting terrain of Johannesburg (doing a fine job substituting for 1870s America).

As Levring’s camera roams freely through an archetypal western town, there is a sense of grace to accompany the grotesque violence on-screen.

From a sudden rush on on-coming horses, to the sight of Jon running hopelessly behind a carriage or the sudden appearance of a body

dragged across the screen by horse, this is western rich in evocative imagery; the violence casual, indifferent and upsetting.

At the heart of this confident production Mads Mikkelsen conveys all manner of personal turmoil, whilst somehow providing a traditional heroic gunslinger an audience can root for it.

This is no small achievement given how utterly desolate his position is at the film’s beginning.

Of the supporting cast Eva Green is reliably impactful, lending a slightly rabid quality to her mute character. As the reprehensible town bully Jeffrey Dean-Morgan is left with a part that utilises his formidable screen presence but offers little in the way of nuance.

A visual feast and for the opening hour a relentless downer, The Salvation often makes for grim viewing but a terrific central turn and striking production make for a potent revenge tale.

LITERATURE 23

January 12 2015

First person or third?

By Heather Robinson

What the hell is literary fiction?

By Dean Buckley

One of the most important, and good, novels recently published in Ireland is Kevin To hear it told, the world of fiction is a dark Barry’s City of Bohane, a post-apocalyptic dyspit in which the scum of the earth – popular, topian crime novel. Dystopia and post-apoc commercial and genre fiction – wear down often get an easy pass into the world of literary their talons trying to scramble up the walls fiction, but a crime novel? Oh my. so that they may join the one true fiction – And, you know what? City of Bohane did literary fiction – as it illuminates the world. get the attention it deserved, it was reviewed and it did win awards. But only because it was That’s a load of highfalutin crap.

Literary fiction is not even slightly an marketed as literary fiction. actual thing that exists. Publishers made it In another world, under the thumb of a up as a marketing ploy, because if you mark different publisher, a different marketing comout a book as an important work of art, it’s pany, City of Bohane is on the fantasy shelf in more likely to get reviewed, it’s more likely Eason, segregated from the real books, lest it to get touted as something that everyone has somehow infect them with a plot. to read, it’s more likely to make you bucket That’s a tragic world, because City of load of money.

Bohane is so rich in powerful thematic mateAnd if publishers are clinging ever more rial, the kind that provokes thought and virulently to this farce, it’s because the kind discussion and change. On a more basic but of fiction usually classed as “literary”, realism no less important level, it’s a world where and post-modernism, struggle in the wider fewer people have been entertained by City reading public, precisely because so much of of Bohane, because they snobbily refuse to it is drowned in obscurantist literary notions lower themselves to genre fiction. as a way to signify that it’s worthy of the label.

And that world is a hypothetical world, Meanwhile, the literary establishment with one book in the difference, but in the real supports the arbitrary designation of “liter- world, that’s constantly happening to thouary” for their own reasons. Because of their sands of books every year. elitist pretensions as the arbiters of good taste Can you imagine what we’re missing out on? What the world is missLiterary fiction is not even slightly an ing out on? Honestly, I can’t, but I have an inkling. actual thing that exists. Publishers made One of my favourite books of all time is Max Brooks’ World it up as a marketing ploy, because if you War Z, a work of alternative history set after a zombie apocmark out a book as an important work alypse that nearly wiped out humanity. Again, post-apoc of art, it’s more likely to get reviewed, and even the odd alt-history book can slip into the literary and social importance, because it validates bracket with a bit of effort, but zombies? their own existing bias toward certain genres.

That’s a bridge too far for the literati so And partially because they can’t admit they let a book with some of the most poignthey’ve been duped, I reckon. ant writing in modern times and with some of The fact of the matter is that whether the most subtle and cutting social and political you’re an ordinary reader who only cares critiques, slip past them without many even about finding good fiction or a curator of the reading it, let alone reviewing it. canon looking for important fiction, you’ll Because it’s not like a zombie novel could miss out on both if you don’t read broadly articulate human issues better than several as well as deeply. winners of the Booker Prize, right? Oh, wait.

The Pillowman comes to Galway Galway’s Decadent Theatre company returns to the Town Hall Theatre this February to perform playwright and filmmaker Martin McDonagh’s (In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths) award winning play The Pillowman.

First performed in London in 2003, The Pillowman tells the story of Katurian, a young short fiction writer whose violent stories bear an uncanny resemblance to the gruesome murders of children which have begun to plague the authoritarian town he lives in.

Interrogated by “good cop” Tupolski and

“bad cop” Ariel, Katurain is forced to prove his innocence whilst protecting his stories from destruction.

Starring Gary Lydon (The Guard, Calvary) and David McSavage (The Savage Eye), Decadent’s production of The Pillowman is not to be missed by English students or anyone who enjoys the black comedy of Martin McDonagh.

The play opens in the Town Hall Theatre on February 19 and will run until February 28. Student tickets are priced at €16.

each other. I’m inclined to agree because I can see what he means.

The third person shows the complex relationships we have with people and how our actions and reactions create the environment and lead to consequences we must face.

If it isn’t realistic enough it can read like bad fanfiction and no-one wants

The narrative of a story or any work of fiction is the primary basis of its appeal.

A first person narrative is the most common, I find. People love using the word ‘I’ to start a sentence.

I love reading a book written in the first person. The experience is heightened by the inclusion of the My dad claims that the third reader to the events of the novel.

I’m sucked into their world and I feel what they feel and see person is infinitely better because how they think. It’s a chance to it encourages people to talk to explore someone else’s mind while escaping my own. themselves. He’s joking, I think.

And sometimes when things get a little crazy, jumping into a different life for a brief time helps. that. Mostly though the third person But it can be limiting. Without the lends a storytelling vibe to the piece. switching points of view chapter-by- Take The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien for chapter (e.g. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow example.

Rowell) the story is encapsulated by how It’s so fantastically written as a chilone person saw it. dren’s book but let’s be honest, when has As a reader I’m stuck with the hero to the age demographic stopped any of us the bitter end, even if I can’t stand them. from loving Disney movies?

Sometimes I won’t finish a book Tolkien’s use of the third person because I hate the narrator. If they’re too enhanced the story for me. It made the whiney or just too static it can be hard to words come to life in my imagination so trudge on if I don’t see any light at the when I put the book down, I could play it all back like a movie in my head. end of the tunnel.

A first person story can be enlightenThere’s still a growing attachment ing but it can also be very, very bad. I between myself and the story but my need to like them or a supporting char- world is broadened because I’m in the acter strongly enough to stick it out. audience rather than a character in the My dad claims that the third person story. is infinitely better because it encourages The third person is the very essence people to talk to themselves. He’s joking, of a long-lasting and memorable piece I think. of work. The end result is that it’s usuBut he made a good point when he ally something universally enjoyed or said that he thinks that it’s a better rep- admired. It’s not subject to my flaky resentation of how people interact with approach to the first person.

REVIEW: Wild by Cheryl Strayed

By John Brennan Wild is one of the better things I’ve read in the few months and is also the subject of an upcoming film starring Reese Witherspoon, but don’t let that put you off.

Wild is a story which traces the re-emergence of a woman from the maelstrom of loss, divorce and drug abuse.

The long shadow cast by the death of Cheryl’s mother is evident throughout the book, as Cheryl undertakes to spend three months in the wilderness hiking, marching, crying, shouting and sleeping with Monster (her gigantic backpack) and a handful of books to get her through varying terrains of the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) and help her make sense of her life.

She recounts with harrowing honesty how her life began to spiral out of control after her mother’s death, how her family unit disintegrated, how a series of infidelities destroyed her marriage and how she turned to heroin, by the age of 26 she was a mess.

Her honesty makes this seem more real, gives it grounding in a way that many of these “finding yourself” books simply come across as pretentious or just wide of the mark.

Themes like loss and more importantly the fact that things often don’t pan out the way you’d like in life are dealt with expertly, you feel at the books end that you’ve been on this journey with Cheryl all the way.

From the painfully awkward early paragraphs where she makes questionable decisions to her would-be vindication towards the books end, it is a book that rewards slow reading, full of perspective and magnitude.

This is a true story and as well as this, it is an easy and rewarding read. Strayed’s book is beautifully written and often poetic in its simplicity.

One cannot help but notice the courage displayed in both the narrative and the penning of such a raw and insightful autobiographical piece.

Thoroughly recommend this as a New Year read.

GET OFF THE COUCH, GET ACTIVE THIS SEMESTER!!

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Check out our new free Clubs NUIG Eventr App and receive messages from NUIG clubs you are following and use the app to keep up-to-date with club events. Available on the App Store for IOS Devices and the Play Store for Android Devices

Get Off The Couch and Get Moving with our Sports Clubs and Clubs Activity Programme www.clubs.nuigalway.ie

Futsal Blitz!!

Futsal Blitz In the Sports Hall, Kingfisher Monday 19th Jan & 26th Jan

• Recreational Football • Family Events • Primary Schools • Secondary Schools • Birthday Kick-abouts • Corporate Bonding Days

Safe and secure environment – café and shop on site.

For more information contact Kevin Cassidy on 0861772589.

Bookings being taken now.

5-Aside Corrib Cages, Newcastle.

Futsal Blitz Monday 19th Jan & 26th Jan 8-10pm

8-10pm

League starts February 2nd !!

ALL LEVELS OF ABILITY GREAT PRIZES FOR PARTICIPATION AND COMPETITION Just turn up for the Blitz Further information contact: kevin.cassidy@nuigalway.ie www.otc.nuigalway.ie

In the Kingfisher See you there!!

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS 2014 -2015.

A Happy New YEAR AND THANK YO U. Our sponsors have been helping us helping you by supporting our Recreational programme.

Ticket to our world famous Sports Ball. Mr Waffle’s food voucher.

players per team. - Great value. Contact Kevin.cassidy@nuigalway. ie 0r 086177589 oR on to www.otc.nuigalway.ie.The details of the competition will be up in the next few days.

A Happy and Healthy New Year to all from the sports and recreation unit.

Don’t let the January blues take hold of you this semester, get involved with University Sports clubs and the Get off the couch programme.

You choose your team – you choose your name, its great fun and if you want to play and you don’t have a team Kevin Cassidy will help you find a team. Semester 1 winners “Pleased to Michu” received compression suits, tops, shorts and leggings, ticket to our world famous Sports Ball. Mr Waffle’s food voucher.

Our sponsors “Atak Sport’s , “Mr waffles” and “Barnacles Hostels” have all provided either clothes food or reduced accommodation costs to our students . Thank you Guys it has been great working with you all.

“ATAK” Sports a Galway owned company managed by Pat and Paul Fleming. ATAK have been fabulous supporters of the NUIG Futsalfive aside indoor leagues for the past 4 years. ATAK have provided top of the range compression suits not only to the Winners and Runners-up of Futsal but each week they provide a compression top to 4 of the players. The tops are awarded by our own refs under the guidance of Kevin Cassidy, to those players who have shown, Fairness, respect for their fellow players and who work hard to develop the futsal community spirit. Each semester “ATAK” provide a choice of compression tops leggings and shorts all in a variety of colours.

The Futsal leagues take place each Monday evening 8-10pm.Futsal Blitz commence 19th and 26th January –Free , so start gathering your teams. League commences February 2nd ¤40.00 max 8

JOIN A CLUB! Any Day!

Any Time!

We will see you on Thursday

Clubs Day 15th January 2015 10am—5pm In the Kingfisher

15th January 2015 for Clubs Day in the

Kingfisher from

10am—5pm

Mr WAFFLES –a great venue for breakfast, lunch and tea. On the corner OF Newcastle road by the hospital Kevin Nugent owner and restaurateur - offers special deals for NUIG STUDENTS. Kevin also offers with prior notice a venue for club meeting. So just around the corner with WIFI – a great little spot. You need to book .

24 hour notice is needed. Check in with the Sports Unit office .

Mr Waffles will be providing free Food on the 15th January at Club days.

Barnacles fabulous value for accommodation in Galway and Dublin Please make sure you say you are from NUIG –you may be asked for your Student ID. Meet all the Sponsors with great opportunities to get free vouchers and tasters on Clubs Day 15th January .

SASSI - Student Activity and Sport Study Ireland Survey.

SASSI Student Survey has come to an end, on behalf of the SASSI research team; I would like to pass on a huge and sincere thank you to you all for your work in making this a success.

31 colleges took part in the student survey, with an overall response of 9,197 (87% of total quota). This data set, in conjunction with the SAR data has given us a fantastic opportunity to create a clear picture of sport and physical activity participation/provision in Irish colleges.

The final figures for NUIG are:

College

Total Quota

Total Collected

% Complete

NUIG

622

672

108

Well done to all who took the time to complete the survey!

Best of all it’s

FREE!!!!

Download our EVENTR APP or come in to the SPORTS UNIT in the Kingfisher Building to find out more!

For Club news and calendar go to Www.clubs.nuigalway.ie

We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you back & we wish you a very Happy New Year!

From All the staff in the Sports Unit!

The sports Office has sent an email to all those who participated to please come and collect your prize for participating.

Siobhan in the Sports office is still waiting for the pre-Christmas stragglers to collect their prize –so check your emails if you completed the survey and collect your prize.

We are eager to move ahead and award the overall prize for participating in the survey of a mini IPad.The Vice president of the student experience Dr Pat Morgan will be completing this draw on Clubs day, 15th January in the University sports complex- Kingfisher Club. You could be lucky again.

Many thanks to all who participated.

Kathy Hynes Sports Officer Clubs and Participation.

26 SPORT

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

NUI Ladies qualify Give it a Tri... for Intervarsities

By Patrick Kennedy

By NUI Galway Ladies Soccer NUI Galway Ladies Soccer club has reached the 2015 Intervarsities in Waterford next March courtesy of their undefeated group stage campaign in Limerick Institute of Technology in November. Qualification required the team to play their three group games on the same day, a daunting task, but one the ladies were more than able for.

They started in the best possible fashion with a 3-0 win over Mary Immaculate College, before holding out for a 0-0 draw with Carlow I.T. sport's FAI/FAS course team and a 1-1 draw with Dublin Institute of Technology. The great squad effort throughout the day ensured that the team achieved their goal of reaching the Intervarsities.

Captain Rachel Keys was very proud of her teammates’ work rate, tackling and especially their finishing, on the day. The goals came from 1st year scholarship student Lisa Casserley, the ever present and long term medical student Jennifer Byrne and Donegal’s Paula McGrory, who were all delighted to hit the back of the net.

The NUI Galway Ladies had good performances from all over the park, in particular, Goalkeeper Aisling Hanley made some exceptional saves, in all three matches, during the day and defender Aoife Bell, who bravely played on after a painful hand injury. This does not discount the performances of first year defender Sarah Peters, who was also outstanding in defence, especially when playing against Carlow’s dangerous forward line, who scored 6 goals on the day.

More top displays from Meadh Coleman, Sarah O' Connell, Sinead Dilworth, Eimear Foley and first year Canadian medical student Connor Oisteach, means the long term future of the club looks bright. The management team of Johnny Hynes and Padraic De Burka have plenty of time to plan for the Intervarsities, which will be held in Waterford during March, and will hope to bring back some silverware in 2015.

A big thank you from the club, as always, to Kathy Hynes and Ellen in the sports office, and to American student Michael Donadio for all the fitness work with the girls this semester, which was very much appreciated by all involved.

Sport has always been an integral part of life for the staff and students of NUI Galway.

Over the years, the individual disciplines of swimming, cycling and running have been well catered for by their respective clubs. In September, the NUI Galway Triathlon Club was formed by Ciarán Walsh, a student and avid triathlete, with the overarching aim of bridging the sporting gap between the three disciplines, while adding a triathlon specific focal point for the staff, student and alumni community of NUI Galway.

NUI Galway Triathlon Club caters for all skill levels, from the complete beginners right through to the seasoned athletes, by providing a friendly community for members to train, race and socialize. The club operates throughout the year by providing seasonal training options.

The club recently held its first training triathlon in November, a super-sprint consisting of a 400 meter swim, a 10 kilometer cycle and finishing off with a 2.5 kilometer run, all held within the confines of the Kingfisher Gym. This was a great opportunity for club members to see all their hard work throughout the semester pay off.

For many of our members it was actually their first ever triathlon and following

on from this, the club hopes to run several more over the upcoming semester. Throughout the winter months, training consisted of midday runs, spinning classes and indoor swim sessions alongside the NUI Galway swimming club.

These sessions are aimed at conditioning members for spring races and the triathlon season, which takes place over the summer. They also aim to prepare athletes for the 2015 triathlon and duathlon National Series.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to cater to everyone, as lecture and work commitments can make attending all the sessions problematic. To help combat this, the club utilizes a free training aid called Strava, an app compatible with most smartphones and GPS watches, to help record, compare and motivate members to put in that extra effort while training. Alongside Strava, the club operates a Facebook group to help keep everyone up to date on any activities or events within the club.

For more information on the Triathlon Club, check us out on the clubs website or call in to us on Clubs Day in the Kingfisher.

NUIG-GMIT karate to hold Intervarsities

By NUIG-GMIT karate Between hosting nationally and internationally acclaimed seminars, the all-Ireland Intervarsities and arranging gradings and signups, the NUIG-GMIT karate club has been very busy recently. These events, along with the club’s largest beginner training class in recent memory, have ensured that there hasn’t been a dull moment in the last few months.

This past summer, the club has hosted Hanshi Patrick McCarthy, an internationally acclaimed and accredited instructor, researcher and author, who has experience in a multitude of different styles of martial arts.

His seminar was a week long and attracted karate practitioners from all over Ireland, England and mainland Europe.

The event was well covered online and Ireland’s own Irish Fighter magazine also published an article on the event, with very positive reviews. At the seminar, a large number of members who attended were graded, four members receiving their provisional Yudansha black belt and one member received his 1st Dan black belt.

The success of the seminar inspired the club members and the committee to organize and arrange a subsequent series of day long seminars, which are held on a monthly basis.

The focus of these seminars is Yamaneryu Bojutsu and they are taught by one of the clubs own instructors, renshi-ho Damien Costello, who has a black belt in bo-jutsu.

Karate practitioners, of various levels, ages and karate styles, have come from all over

Ireland to attend. The second seminar in the series was held on Sunday 4 January, where the focus was bo kata and two person drills using the bo.

These seminars were not the only events the club hosted this year. The club also hosted the All-Ireland Karate Intervarsities in GMIT. Not only did the club receive great praise for the how well the event was run, but the club’s members also took away gold, silver and bronze medals, across various categories, in both the male and female events.

This is the second year in a row where the club has won gold medals in the kata discipline and this year, there was both an increase in team size and awards won by the club. Due to the success and how smoothly the event ran, the club is hosting the Intervarsities again

this year with approval from other colleges.

Hosting the event for two subsequent years will help to celebrate both NUI Galway’s 30th anniversary as a club this past year and GMIT’s 10th anniversary as a club, which will be this coming year.

With the Intervarsities waiting in the future, you might think the club isn’t busy.

However, the club is hosting its first grading of the academic year on Tuesday. Knowing that three 4th degree black belts will be evaluating their progress, everybody is putting in 100% into their preparation. After the grading the club’s committee has organised a celebration in the college bar for everyone to celebrate all the hard work that they have put in over the past few months. For more details about karate, email: karate@clubs.nuigalway.ie

SPORT 27

January 12 2015

A year of change for Connacht

By Michael Farrell Coming into 2014, Connacht were at an all too familiar point. They had just lost Mike McCarthy, their only Ireland international, before the new season began. An all too familiar scenario for Connacht fans, who had watched Sean Cronin, Fionn Carr and Ian Keatley leave to join their Irish rivals in recent years. The team’s performances also followed a recurring template; a win against the Italians or Scots, followed by a big defeat to one of the top sides and then a moral victory or two every season.

Pat Lam was the man appointed to change all of this and although it took time, there were signs of improvement, like the win over Toulouse in the Heineken Cup. However, the 2013-2014 season petered out and although Connacht beat Treviso, Edinburgh, Zebre and the Dragons in consecutive games, they could not beat any of the top seven teams and finished in their usual tenth place.

The scale of the task ahead of the management was put into view by the fact that their four game winning streak was the longest the province had in 11 years.

The team’s inbuilt inferiority complex was clearly something Pat Lam had to change.

To do this he knew he had to bring the right players and a winning mentality to Connacht, while also holding on to his top performers.

Experience was a key element needed, especially after the departure of Dan Parks, and this was one area that the Connacht management certainly exceeded expectations. It isn’t too often any Irish province

can attract the services of a 100 cap AllBlack, let alone Connacht, so there were a few admiring glances when the signing of Mils Muliaina was announced. Although he has only made a handful of appearances so far, it is unquantifiable how much of an effect his presence has had on Connacht’s mindset.

With Muliaina joined by fellow New Zealander Bundee Aki, Connacht’s back line was really starting to take shape, especially considering the rise of homegrown players in the previous season, namely Robbie Henshaw, Darragh Leader and Kieran Marmion. Of course all three players went on to join Joe Schimdt’s Ireland squad during the November internationals, along with Rodney Ah You, confirming their talent is to be taken seriously.

Starting in September, a new Connacht have emerged. Beginning with three straight wins, including an attritional 10-9 win over Leinster, Lam’s men put out a marker and showed a new

level of maturity. Although the Cardiff Blues snatched a draw in the Sportsground, that they never should have been allowed, Connacht are still unbeaten at home since the start of the season.

They have lost away to Leinster, Ulster, Glasgow Warriors and the Ospreys, but in a highly competitive league, a good home record will take a team far. The increased competitiveness of the Pro12 is of course due to the new method of Champions Cup qualification. Connacht are in an excellent position to claim sixth place and the last automatic

qualification spot, provided that they can maintain their home form and pick up a few scalps on the road.

At this stage, Connacht fans should be looking smugly down the table at some of the Welsh regions. In the course of a BBC scrum V debate, notorious Welsh pundit Stephen Jones claimed that; “You can have a great European tournament where you don’t have to go to Connacht”. Unfortunately for him, teams may have no choice in the matter if Connacht keep up their form.

At the moment, Ospreys are the only Welsh side on course to qualify for the Champions Cup next season.

Champions Cup rugby back in the Sportsground would be a huge boost to the province, but they still have European Rugby to play this season in the Challenge Cup, all courtesy of a huge performance, against Bayonne on their home soil, by a second string side. Qualification for the quarter finals will rest on avenging the 33-13 loss that Connacht suffered away to the Exeter Chiefs.

There have been false dawns before, but this time it really seems that Connacht have finally emerged on level terms with the other Irish provinces. This newfound optimism on the field has translated to more ambition off the pitch, with Pat Lam recently suggesting that a 20,000 seater stadium might be needed to house the ever increasing fan base. Attendances have been steadily growing over the course of the year and the hope for 2015 is, as the team grows on the pitch, so too will the crowd in the stands.

Galway United F.C going up

By Michael Farrell In years to come, it is very likely that Galway United F.C fans will look back at 2014 as the most important season in their history.

At the start of the year, Galway F.C was created by the newly formed alliance, which was comprised of Galway United Supporters Trust, Mervue United, Salthill Devon, and Galway F.A. Representatives from each individual club came together and put their longstanding rivalries aside, in order to focus doing the right thing for football in the county.

Great credit must be given to this alliance and the success of the team on the field was a testament to the effort and collective teamwork of all the members. A club beset with internal differences could not have stormed the first division like Tommy Dunne’s team did.

Of course this is circular and it’s easy to get along once a team is winning, but there is now a professionalism around Galway United F.C that will be the foundation for future success.

The first half of the season is not likely to be remembered in vivid detail. The Galway men picked up points where they could and waited

patiently for the squad to gain the chemistry that a completely new group of players lacks.

The turning point of the season may have been Ryan Connolly’s last minute winner, away to eventual champions Longford

Shelbourne stood in the way of the westerner’s progress yet again, but the previous draw in Tolka Park seemed to have given Tommy Dunne’s charges the momentum. A 2-0 win at Eamonn Deacy Park sent Galway

The turning point of the season may have been Ryan Connolly’s last minute winner, away to eventual champions Longford Town, on 16 August. Five straight wins followed Town, on 16 August. Five straight wins followed against Dundalk, Waterford United, Shamrock Rovers B, Finn Harps and Cobh Ramblers. This great run of form had really put Galway into the promotion hunt and meant that they played their direct rivals, Shelbourne and Wexford Youths in the last two league games.

A nervy 1-1 draw in Tolka Park proved key, as the Maroon Army watched their team come back from a goal down and to equalize in the final minutes through Padraic Cunningham. This result, along with a 2-2 draw with Wexford Youths, meant Galway F.C were heading to the playoffs.

F.C back to Tolka Park, again looking for a result. Galway’s star men proved the difference between the sides. Ireland under-19 international Ryan Manning netted Galway’s first goal in reply to an early Shel’s strike, while top scoring American striker Jake Keegan showed his class in front of goal, when he poached another late winner.

Tommy Dunne’s charges were unbeaten in nine league games going into the Relegation/Promotion playoff with UCD and fancied their chances against the students.

Late goals were a big theme of Galway F.C’s season, but they had saved best for last. In the first leg, trailing by a goal late on, Paddy

Barrett headed the equaliser in the last minute of normal time. Then, in injury time, the Maroon Army were sent into dreamland, when Ryan Manning found the space to slot home the winner.

A great result for the Galway men, but they knew they had to finish the job in Eamonn Deacy Park. Following the emotional rollercoaster in the UCD Bowl, the Galway F.C fans may have been bracing themselves for another nervous finish, but their team controlled the game for most of the match and ran out convincing 3-0 winners.

While it was a season to remember for the club, nobody involved with Galway United F.C will be congratulating themselves just yet. The next challenge is establishing the team as a Premier Division side. Key to this will be retaining the nucleus of last season’s squad, while adding quality players like Corkman David O’Leary and former Wexford Youths defender Killian Cantwell, who have already signed for the team. The next month will be crucial for the club to bring in the right players, in the hope that 2015 will be as successful as 2014.

28 SPORT

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

The best and worst January transfers

By Kieran Kilkelly Since the introduction of the January transfer window in 2003 there have been advocates both for it and against it. While there has been no clear cut evidence in favour of getting rid of it or keeping it, there have been plenty of examples of its benefits and disadvantages; here are some of the best and worst transfers conducted in January

THE BEST ASMIR BEGOVIC TO STOKE - £3.25 MILLION Tony Pulis took advantage of the poor financial situation at Portsmouth in January 2010 to sign the Bosnian shot-stopper.

While £3 million for a sub keeper seemed like a lot at the time to Stoke, it has since been vindicated.

Begovic took nine months to break into the first-team - courtesy of a Tomas Sorensen injury - but once he got the number one jersey he never gave it back. A total of 41 clean sheets (4 this season) in 145

Premier League appearances means he is one of the best goalkeepers in the league and has attracted much attention from top clubs since his move to the Brittania Stadium.

BRANISLAV IVANOVIC TO CHELSEA - £9.7 MILLION Whoever the scout was that found Branislav Ivanovic deserves a pay increase at the very minimum due to impact he has made since being signed. He didn't feature in any matches of the 2007/08 season because of fitness problems and it was looking like he could be another transfer flop.

However, eight months after he signed for Chelsea he made his debut. It took him a while to secure that regular first-team place but when he did he showed good reason for keeping it.

A no nonsense defender, he is feared by Premier League attackers due to the sheer stature and size of him. Not only can he defend but he has also the ability to score having got 17 in his seven year spell.

In his time with the club he has been key to helping them win 3 FA Cups, 1 Europa League, a Premier League title and the

Champion's League once in 2012. He was also named on the PFA Team of the Year for the Chelsea's 2009/10 Premier League winning season which further highlights the success he has had since moving from Lokomotiv Moscow in 2008.

CLINT DEMPSEY TO FULHAM - £2 MILLION It is hard to believe that a player that made such an impact on the Premier League cost so little; such is the bargains that can be got in January. Of course it was 2007 when transfer fees didn't really reach ridiculous heights but still, at only £2 million it was cheap.

It took him a while to settle - such is the way with mid-season transfers - but when he did he hit the ground running.

Six goals in his first full season and he had announced himself to English football. A total of 26 in the next three years meant his name was on the lips of every Fulham fan.

However, it was his final season with the club where he scored 17 goals, bringing his total to 50, where his value was truly established. This prompted Tottenham to peak their interest and he signed for a reported £6 million - three times his initial transfer fee - not a bad January investment in the end.

NEMANJA VIDIC TO MANCHESTER UNITED - £7 MILLION The hard-hitting centre-back could have featured on the other side of the list had he not gotten his act together. What can only be described as a disastrous debut, Vidic thought about not wanting to be at the club after the 4-1 hammering at the hands of derby rivals Manchester City.

Thankfully for both himself and Manchester United fans he stayed and the rest they say is history. He became one of the best central defenders in the world and won a total of 15 honours at the Theatre of Dreams including 5 Premier League titles and a Champion's League.

THE WORST DANNY GRAHAM TO SUNDERLAND - £5 MILLION It was meant to be his "get out of jail free card" but it turned out so differently for the Gateshead-born striker. Having fallen down the pecking order at Swansea he desired a move away from The Liberty Stadium and Martin O'Neill decided to splash out on the centre-forward.

Failing to score in any of his 13 appearances for the Black Cats the fans got on top of him and thus ended his playing days at the Stadium of Light. He is still on the books at Sunderland after unsuccessful loan spells at Hull, Middelsborough and Wolves and this January transfer window may see him move on with better fortune.

KONSTANTINOS MITROGLOU TO FULHAM - £12.4 MILLION He was a goalscoring machine in Greece notching up 50 goals in 62 appearances in the three and a half years previous to signing for the Cottagers. So it is no wonder they broke their transfer fee record to bring him to England.

However the impact was not as it was expected to be. Injuries and fitness problems plagued the six months that he spent there and he only played 151 minutes of football meaning he cost over £80,000 per minute (excluding his wages).

Fulham got relegated that season and he is now doing what he does best scoring; except he is back at former club Olympiakos on loan and has got 8 in 12 appearances.

ANDY CARROLL TO LIVERPOOL - £35 MILLION This was the deal that shocked the whole footballing world. It did, however, come as a knock-on effect of another transfer but that was no excuse. It was an incredible sum of money even if the young English striker had netted 11 times in 19 appearances so far that season.

He managed to get 2 league goals in 448 minutes that he played in the remainder of the season and followed that up with 4 in 35 the following season. The poor goalscoring return meant he was loaned out to West Ham before completing a permanent £15 million move the following year.

He is currently coming into a bit of form at West Ham which may justify Damien Comolli's (former Director of Football at Liverpool decision) to sign him four years ago - just not for £35 million.

FERNANDO TORRES TO CHELSEA - £50 MILLION It may be harsh to say this but the transfer of Fernando Torres to Chelsea could not only be reason to shut down the January transfer window but the summer one as well.

It was a British transfer record fee at the time but that was the only record broken as the Spaniard failed to set Stamford Bridge alight.; not even by means of a few sparks.

His one league goal for the rest of the 2010/11 season was followed up by a mediocre six, eight and five goals in the following consecutive three seasons while featuring in 110 games. He was the subject of frequent taunts and jeers from opposing fans as he struggled for form and even went over 11 hours without hitting the back of the net.

His Chelsea nightmare ended when he went on loan to AC Milan earlier this season before the deal was made permanent in this transfer window. Since then he has moved back to his home club Atletico Madrid on loan for the remainder of the season hoping to find that initial form that made him one of the best around.

SPORT  29

January 12 2015

Gary Anderson is newly crowned champion at Alexandra Palace

By Kieran Kilkelly The anticipation around this year's PDC World Darts Championship wasn't like any other year; Phil 'The Power' Taylor was looking to make amends for his early round knockout last year; Adrian 'The Jackpot' Lewis wanted to put the humiliating 6-0 semi-final defeat at the hands of Michael van Gerwen behind him and van Gerwen himself had to prove that he was a true champion and not a one-hit wonder.

There was also recent beaten finalists Peter Wright and Gary Anderson to contend with as well as current BDO dart champion Stephen Bunting and former PDC winner Raymond van Barneveld who were all hungry to prove their worth.

The heated competition of the tournament was seen early on when nine seeded players were knocked out in the first round. It was a case of young triumphing over old as former champion John Part fell at the hands of current PDC World Youth Champion, Keegan Brown and number 10 seed Mervyn King was dumped out by 18-year-old German Max Hopp.

Aussie, Simon Whitlock who was a semi-finalist last year and a beaten final-

ist in 2010 failed to make it past the first round as well as number 13 seed Wes Newton - quarter-finalist last year - who was defeated by impressive Spaniard Cristo Reyes.

The second round went more smoothly for the top players with Dave Chisnall (8) the only real scalp of the round. Unseeded 21-year-old Dutch player Benito van de Pas took him out impressively 4-2 to keep the theme of young guns making a name for themselves going.

Two new PDC darts players were also out to put their names on everyone's lips. Reyes continued his good form by seeing off Kevin Painter 4-3. While Stephen Bunting was beginning to put himself in contention with a 4-1 hammering of James Wade to put himself through to the third round.

With the warm-up round out of the way the real contenders began to emerge with Lewis even getting the only 9-darter of the tournament against van Barneveld. That wasn't enough to save him though as the classy Dutchman disposed of him with a 4-3 victory.

Wright had an exceptional 4-0 victory over Andy Hamilton and both van Gerwen and Anderson won easily 4-1 with the latter of the two getting the

Steven Gerrard set to leave Anfield at the end of the season

By Kieran Kilkelly It was announced earlier this month that Liverpool club captain Steven Gerrard would leave the club at the end of the season. The 34-year old has decided that it is "in the best interests of all involved, including his family and the club itself" to move on.

In his statement he said it was "the toughest decision of his life" before going on to thank "Brendan [Rodgers], the owners and everyone at the club" and also thanked his "team-mates and all the staff for their help and continued support".

He further went on to state to the fans that it was a "privilege" to represent them "as a player and as a captain".

The decision to leave marks the end of an almost 17 year love-affair with the club in which he has notched up almost 700 appearances and scored over 180

times in that period to date. He has also won 10 honours with the club - six as captain - which include 3 League Cups, 2 FA Cups, a UEFA Cup and a Champion's League title.

He will no doubt go down as one of the best players to dawn a Liverpool shirt and one of the greats in Premier League history but it is a melancholic end for a player who was deserving of a Premier League title but never got one.

Gerrard will team up with former Liverpool team-mate and Irish international striker Robbie Keane at LA Galaxy when his contract expires in July. The 18-month contract signed is reported to be worth around ÂŁ6 million to the player.

LA Galaxy president, Chris Klein said that he was "a perfect fit" and Gerrard himself stated that it was a "match made in heaven" before going on to say that he wants to "add more medals and trophies to his collection".

second highest average - 104.54. Phil Taylor, Stephen Bunting, Vincent van der Voort and Robert Thornton were the other players to put themselves through to the quarter-finals.

It was here where 'Might Mike' van Gerwen roared and seen off the Scotsman, Thornton 5-2 and in the process knocked up the highest average of the tournament - 105.26.

But that wasn't the only impressive performance as Anderson destroyed fellow Scot and last year's runner-up Peter Wright 5-1 to make people take note.

Van Barneveld and Bunting had a duel that ended 5-4 in the favour of 'Barney' but it is doubtful that it is the last we'll see of Bunting. Taylor routinely beat van der Voort 5-3 to set-up a repeat of the 2007 and 2009 finals in the semifinal.

It was Taylor that showed his class and also that despite the new contenders coming through he was still to be considered one. Taylor was on form going 2-0 up early on but then let it slip as van Barneveld got things level after a 3-0 leg win and a miss from Taylor which was taken advantage of.

However that was to be the end of the Dutchman's surge as Taylor went on to win the next four sets to take victory 6-2 and book himself a place in the final; his 18th appearance in the PDC Championship.

The other semi-final consisted of reigning champion Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson who since his poor first round average of 86.20 had gotten his act together and posted a remarkable 103.23 average across the three games he played.

Revenge was on the cards for Anderson as he was knocked out at the last 16 stage by the champion last year and it showed early on. The Scot raced into a 3-1 lead and had the bit between his teeth looking for his second final appearance.

But it wasn't to be that easy with van Gerwen showing real class to bring things back level to 3-3 and put himself in contention of retaining his crown. However things changed in the eighth set when van Gerwen missed two oppurtunities at double eight to let Anderson in for a 5-3 lead.

That was curtains for van Gerwen and Anderson seen out the sixth set and booked himself in for a final appearance on the Sunday night.

Taylor and Anderson had met 37 times previous to the final with Taylor winning 27 times and Anderson eight - the other two finished in draws. However, this was the first time that both had appeared against each other in the

World Championships and the pressure was there for all to see.

Anderson had been the most talked about player in the tournament with the way he took out both of last year's finalists - Peter Wright and Michael van Gerwen. While, Phil Taylor was looking to regain that status that seen him voted runner-up in the 2010 BBC Sport's Personality of the Year awards.

The heated competition of the tournament was seen early on when nine seeded players were knocked out in the first round. It was a case of young triumphing over old as former champion John Part fell at the hands of current PDC World Youth Champion, Keegan Brown It was Anderson who started the better and much like the semi-final against van Gerwen he got into an early 3-1 lead. The experienced Taylor wasn't going to let it be an easy fairytale night for Anderson and brought him straight back to reality by winning six consecutive legs to level it at 3-3.

Nerves began to set in in this close contest as Taylor took the lead 4-3 but let Anderson back in with three missed darts at double 12. It looked like in the ninth set that it wasn't going to be Anderson's night when two embedded in the treble 20 were knocked out by the third to give him a no-score. Taylor hit 180 and took the first leg in the ninth set.

But Anderson showed resilience and fought back to lead 5-4 before adding another set and going 6-4 up. Taylor was not finished yet though and hit back with a 3-0 victory in the 11th before a 3-3 victory in the 12th to set-up a deciding set.

It wasn't to be a heroic ending for Taylor as he misses three at double 16 to give Anderson a 2-0 lead and a chance of winning the match with throw. Taylor slumped and looked the defeated man he was before the 'Flying Scotsman' took out double 12 to become only the seventh person to be crowned PDC World Dart's Champion.

30 SPORT

Sin Vol. 16 Issue 7

Sporting review of the year – 2014 2015 is upon us and now that the final whistle has blown on 2014, it’s time to look back on the ups and downs of the sporting year that has been (and yes, you read correctly, I did just use a really bad sport related pun on the year ending.) So, without further ado (and in no particular order), the top sport moments of the year were as follows:

By Sorcha O'Connor

THE ALL-IRELAND HURLING FINAL REPLAY It was an interesting year for the GAA, what with the controversial presence of Hawk-Eye, the unpopular purchase of the rights to show matches by Sky – the bemused tweets from first time British viewers only slightly lightening the mood for many disgruntled fans (who didn’t giggle at #gaylick?) – and who could forget the scandalous decision to hold a semifinal replay between Kerry and Mayo in Limerick’s Gaelic Grounds?

What’s more, who could’ve predicted the Donegal footballers semi-final triumph against a seemingly invincible Dublin side?

However, it was the All-Ireland final day in hurling that really had the country talking. Kilkenny and Tipperary couldn’t be separated and had to meet once more in a thrilling replay, Kilkenny finally securing their 10th All-Ireland victory under the steerage of Brian Cody by three points.

The display of skill, speed and stamina from both teams of players made this a gripping encounter for spectators but the performance of Kilkenny’s Power brothers was what broke Tipperary hearts and etched this final into the minds of the nation.

The brothers scored a goal apiece in the space of four minutes in the latter stages of the second half and the Liam McCarthy cup returned to Kilkenny for a 35th time.

STEPHANIE ROCHE AND THE PUSKAS AWARD 25 year old Stephanie Roche came out of the woodwork this year when, in November, she was nominated amongst the biggest names of the soccer world, including Robin van Persie, Diego Costa and James Rodriguez, for FIFA’s Puskas award for her phenomenal left-footed volley in October 2013 against Wexford Youths.

Her brilliance was caught only on the off-chance by a rickety recording by the opposing team but it was enough for the former Peamount United girl to gain enough notice to be nominated for the top ten goals of the year.

An extensive twitter campaign saw Roche reach the final three with van Persie and

Rodriguez. The winner will be announced on January 12 2015, and here’s hoping the Irish international can go all the way.

DJOKOVIC v FEDERER The Wimbledon final is something that comes around every year but for some reason the thrill of eating strawberries and cream on the couch during the summer holidays while two grunting tennis extraordinaires have it out never seems to fade.

Of course, it could be topped by sitting beside the likes of Jude Law or Bradley Cooper on centre court but you can’t have everything and the strawberries they serve over there probably aren’t even of the exquisite Wexford variety anyway.

The 2014 final was one of the finest displays of tennis to be seen in a while and tennis fans everywhere were faced with the hard task of picking who to cheer on – the finalists, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer were quite inseparable.

Djokovic had had the close-but-no-cigar experience in the previous years of the tournament, rendering him a sort-of underdog and Federer was a Wimbledon stalwart, someone we had all rooted for many a time.

The match was a gruelling contest but it was Djokovic who reigned supreme on the day and won 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 in three hours and 56 minutes, returning to his position of world number one.

MARK ENGLISH AT THE EUROPEAN ATHLETIC CHAMPIONSHIPS Mark English represented our nation brilliantly in Zurich, Switzerland at the European Athletic Championships during the summer, returning home with an 800m Bronze medal – a first for Ireland in the twolap event at any outdoor championship.

The 21 year old Donegal native and UCD student gave a fantastic performance on the night and went on to be named Athlete of the Year at the National Athletic Awards in November for his outstanding efforts.

IRISH MEN TRIUMPH IN PARIS It was a fateful day for Irish rugby in March that saw Brian O’Driscoll finish off his international career in the very stadium he shot to fame in with a hat-trick of tries 14 years previously. The Stade de France played host

to an exciting contest between Ireland and Les Bleus, Ireland edging out France with a 22-20 victory to secure only their second RBS Six Nations title in 42 years.

Johnathan Sexton and Andrew Trimble were the try-scorers for the men in green on the day but the Irish victory was not without its difficulties; only a last minute TMO decision to disallow a French try due to a forward pass kept the well-known feeling of Parisian defeat at bay.

It was a day to be remembered with the O’Driscoll retirement but also perhaps the sign of the magic touch Irish coach Joe Schmidt had on this team; an outstanding Guinness series followed in the Autumn and O’Driscoll’s boots were certainly well filled

by Robbie Henshaw.

IRISH WOMEN EXCEL AGAINST THE ALL-BLACKS The men did the business in France but it can’t be forgotten that the Irish women’s team did the business too. They beat out the world champions New Zealand in the World Cup, something the Irish men have failed to do for the past century. It was a brilliant day for Irish sport but also for women’s rugby in Ireland on the back of their 2013 Grand Slam victory.

THE WORLD CUP It almost goes without saying that this was the sporting event of the year. Steeped in controversy, the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was one to remember. There was the awful reality of stadiums built in areas in which residents normally couldn’t even access clean water but focusing on the soccer itself, the World Cup was something special this year It saw Tim Howard, the American goalkeeper, become a household name in the States which in itself was quite an event – it’s not often that America is seen as the underdog but in soccer that is the case and the valiant efforts of Howard against Belgium in the final sixteen stage of the Cup were unforgettable.

We also saw Spain, former World champions crash out of the tournament in spectacular fashion with a 5-1 defeat to the Netherlands but it was the performanceor lack thereof some may say- of Brazil that stood out for most.

Brazil were shaky from the get-go despite being favourites to win and Germany annihilated them once and for all with a whopping 7-1 win in the semi-final at the Estádio Mineirão.

The Guardian’s Hadley Freeman also gave an extensive alternative view on the goings on in Brazil, which made the World Cup enjoyable even for the less enthusiastic World Cup viewers.

KATIE TAYLOR’S FIFTH WORLD TITLE Katie Taylor is at this stage a national treasure and this year she secured a fifth consecutive world title at the AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships in Jeju, South Korea. She finished off Yana Allekseevana of Azerbaijan in style and showed the world once more how much of a great she really is.

The Irish boxing scene had further success with Paddy Barnes winning at the Commonwealth Games (and his little quip of ‘Not my anthem’ when getting his medal getting caught on camera during the playing of Danny Boy was TV gold) and the legendary Andy Lee became World middleweight Champion when he defeated the previously undefeated Matt Korobov in Las Vegas in December.

NICHOLAS ROCHE SIGNS FOR TEAM SKY The son of 1987 Tour de France winner Steven Roche, Nicholas Roche signed for the 2015 Sky Team in September of 2014. Cycling has been through the ringer with doping allegations – and admittances (here’s looking at you Lance) – in recent times. However, focusing on the positives, this is a great achievement for Roche and he will certainly strengthen the pack for Chris Froome next year.

THE GERRARD SLIP Man City may have won the Premier League title this year but as we look back on the 2014 competition, it does cross one’s mind of how different things could have been if poor Steven Gerrard hadn’t literally slipped up for Liverpool that day against Chelsea in April.

It was a pivotal moment for the Liverpudlians when Gerrard lost his balance and Chelsea’s Demba Ba scored, the muchwanted return to Liverpool’s glory days of the 80's being kicked straight to the back of the net with the ball and decidedly out the window.

It may have caused many tears for Liverpool fans but let’s face it, it was kind of funny when you watched it twenty times in a row on YouTube.

FINAL WORD 31

January 12 2015

THE COLLEGE INSIDER

By Eoin Molloy

‘New year, new me’ unchanged woman says for fifth year running 32-YEAR-OLD GLASNEVIN native and mature student at NUI Galway, Lucille Kendrick, took to Twitter on 1 January to let her 58 followers know that “2015 will be the year of the new Luce”.

Ms Kendrick, who is currently studying Public and Social Policy at our fine college, also promised to “give up the junk and go on the dry for the whole month of January”.

Seven days later, this reporter noticed that Lucille’s Twitter feed featured pictures of her and “the girlies” enjoying cocktails at an undisclosed Galway bar.

When contacted by Sin, Lucille initially denied drinking the now infamous cocktails.

“I wasn’t even sure if there was alcohol in them or not, like,” Lucille implored. She went on to say that ascertaining the alco-

hol content in a Pina Colada is impossible as they are “fruitier than Derek Mooney”.

We dug deeper and eventually, Lucille broke down into tears, sobbing uncontrollably about breaking her promises for the New Year just days into January the past five years in a row.

Unfortunately, Lucille’s tears are just a tiny part of a yearly culture of failing willpower and broken dreams.

According to a completely not made-up survey by the Cayman Island-based research group, Dodgey and Co., 82% of New Years’ resolutions end in disappointment and or tears around midway through January.

So do yourself a favour this year, and make not making New Years’ resolutions your New Year’s resolution. My head hurts. That punctuation can’t be right.

France’s right-wing parties in talks with the US about ‘having another crack’ at invading Iraq following Paris shooting (barely satire) MARINE LE PEN, the leader of France’s controversial Front National party, has called for the death penalty to be reinstated in her country in order to protect ‘life and liberty’. No, seriously.

She also called upon America to elect Jeb Bush in order to create a world climate that would accommodate another invasion of Iraq.

Speaking to France25, Ms Le Pen said:

“It is in times like these that we look to our sister Republic, America. We have long hoped for an excuse to crusade in, or rather, impose our values of liberty, fraternity and equality for all in the Middle-East. I believe that if we managed to impose secularism and democracy in these war-torn areas, terrorism will be eradicated.”

When asked about the 38 people killed by a car bomb in Yemen the same

diary of the SMOKEY’S PIGEON

By Smokey the Pigeon "New year, new me", that's all I seem to overhear recently.

It doesn't work, I tried and failed last year - I think it was a salt and vinegar tayto that got the better of me in the end.

No, this year I'm going to indulge myself as best I can. While everyone else is going to the gym I'm going to be tucked into my secret stash of food I've hidden away on top of the vending machine.

I don't care if I put on weight, I think it might suit me, bring out the true colour of my feathers and not the pale grey that everyone seems to think they are.

They were once silver and I wasn't a thing to be feared as I am now. People never used to scream at me and throw food scraps at me before.

Maybe I am wrong and I need to change? Maybe if I look after myself and wash twice a month instead of once people won't be so scared?

New Year, new me?

Follow @Smokeys_Pigeon on Twitter for regular pigeon musings

day as the Paris shooting, Ms Le Pen replied: “Quoi?”

The Paris shooting was a disgusting slaughter. It was an affront to free speech, but more importantly, an affront to human life.

Albert Einstein famously defined madness as: “doing the same thing and expecting different results”. If we have learned anything from the global phenomenon that has become known as

domestic terrorism, it is this: responding drastically to minority radicals only legitimises their savage attacks.

France should treat the Charlie Hebdo shooting as what it was: a savage massmurder perpetrated by criminals. This is not a struggle. This is not a cultureclash. This is not a war of religions. Do not justify these criminals by deploying military tactics against them.

Satire to return next week.

2015

WORKING & TRAVELLING

R I A F D A ABRO

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CM

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CMY

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TAISTIL & E R B I O H C A AON

2015

THAR LEAR CHOMHALTAS

LLIMH I A G É O , na MAC LÉINN

12pm-3pm Wednesday 28th January in Áras na Mac Léinn 12 i.n. - 3 i.n., Dé Céadaoin, an 28 Eanáir in Áras na Mac Léinn

Start planning your best summer EVER!

Tosaigh ag pleanáil an tsamhraidh is fearr a bheidh agat GO DEO!

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