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From the Editor Hey everyone, I hope all is well and assignments aren’t causing too much stress. We have a packed issue for you this month covering everything from MMORPGs to the conflict in Libya and how Griffith’s own Abdullah Neihum organised an aid convoy, for more check out Jonathan Keane’s article on page 30.
Cover by: Oscar Finn Issue 43 March 2011
Editor: Oscar Finn Sub-Editor: Jonathan Keane Layout & Design: Oscar Finn Contributers: Abdullah Neihum Adeel Mukhtar Chandio Brendan Beagon Brian O’Donoghue Ciara Brennan Ciara Karagianni Darren Cleary Elliott Doak Ian Donnegan Ian Fleming Ivan Cummins Jonathan Sheils Laura Mullett Muhammad Shaharyar Nicola Byrne Piaras O Midheach Rory O’Neil Sam Burgess Wayne Doyle Advertising Enquiries: (01) 4150463 Printed by: Speciality Print Griffiti Magazine Griffith College Students’ Union South Circular Road Dublin 8 Ireland Ph: (01) 4151463 Email: griffiti@gcd.ie www.gcd.ie/griffiti Griffiti Magazine is a publication of Griffith College Students’ Union established in 2004. All contents copyright of Griffiti, Reproduction of any part of the magazine without permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. The views expressed in Griffiti do not necessarily reflect that of the college or the Students’ Union
This month’s Sabbatical portraits were taken by Sam Burgess, I’m sure many of you have already seen his work on Facebook, if not you should definitely check it out. This month’s cover is an image I shot while on the day trip to the Zoo and National Botanic Gardens, for more check out the SU news section. This month’s In Focus section looks at this year’s nominees for the sMedias, this year 19 students from Griffith College have been shortlisted, including Griffiti for small college publication of the year, and we will let you know how everyone gets on in the next (and last issue of the year) Griffiti. The lads over at the Genuine Article have been working hard this month to get the real stories on and about campus so check it out. We have also put together the magazines first dedicated sports section so if you are interested in sports journalism here is your chance to shine. The next issue of Griffiti will be the last for the year and we have a lot to cover, the sMedias, the Griffith Ball, the international trip and of course the Students’ Union elections so if you want to cover an event or write a feature get to it and send it in to me at griffiti@gcd.ie. Bye for now. Oscar Finn - Editor
Contents
4 state of the union 6 students union news 9 rag week revisited 12 party people 16 Its a man’s world, of warcraft 18 In Focus: Smedias 20 Music 22 Griffiti At the movies 26 the genuine article 28 griffiti sports 30 conflict in liibya 3
StATE OF THE UNION student grant scheme to students in private colleges and made this view strongly during the Committee Stage of the Student Support Act 2011 which had been passing through the Houses of the Oireachtas since 2008. I hope to meet the new Minister before the end of my term in office to ensure he will follow through on his commitment while the power is with him to do so.
i guys,I hope you all enjoyed the mid-semester break and made full use of the assignment week to take a breather. We’ve been busy working away on your behalf here in the SU anyway. Saint Patrick’s Day was more colourful than ever this year and wherever you celebrated it, at home or here in Dublin, that you made the best of it.
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Just before the week off, RAG Week took place on campus where we were raising money for Our Lady’s Hospice & Care Service in Harold’s Cross. It is an important local charity in the community and I’d like to thank everyone who came to an event, contributed to the campaign and put up with the volunteers going to everyone with the charity buckets. We’ll be presenting the Hospice with the cheque in the coming weeks. Another great campaign which took place on campus was the push by a group of Business students who raised awareness and funds for the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. Congratulations to them, who ran a successful Treasure Hunt, brought the guide dogs on campus and had some fantastic prizes that people won. For trips, we recently went to the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin and to Dublin Zoo in the Phoenix Park. Thankfully the weather was kind to us and a great day
was had by all. At the beginning of April we’ll be visiting Cork and Kerry on a ‘road trip’ taking in such sights as Fota Wildlife Park, Blarney Castle and the Lakes of Killarney. If it is anything like the last weekend trip we had in the first semester, it’s definitely going to be a good time. I’m delighted to announce that Griffiti, this magazine has been nominated and shortlisted for ‘Best Small College Publication of the Year’ in the upcoming National Student Media Awards, also known as the ‘Smedias’. Oscar Finn, who has been working away on it tirelessly while also managing to complete his finals. He will go head-to-head with Jonathan Keane in the same category with his magazine, ‘Dub 8’. I wish them the very best of luck along with all the other Griffith College students that made the final cut. The awards ceremony will take place in the Mansion House in Dublin on Wednesday 6th April. We’d welcome all students that wish to come along and lend their support to fellow students. Since the last time I wrote, the General Election took place and there is a new Minister in the hot seat at the Department of Education and Skills. Ruairi Quinn, a long-time Labour TD of Dublin South East now holds the position and will sit at the Cabinet table. While in opposition, Minister Quinn was an advocate of extending the
Office Opening Hours: Monday - Thursday: 09:30 - 19:30 Friday: 09:30 - 17:30 email: su.president@gcd.ie Ph: (01) 415 0418 4
There’s an exciting opportunity for students who are interested in international culture coming up soon. One of Griffith College’s partner’s in China, the Hunan University of Commerce have invited a contingent of students from Griffith to spend two weeks on an exchange programme this summer. It will be involved an intensive Chinese language course, provincial travel to Zhangjiajie and a visit to the ancient city of Phoenix. Keep an eye on posters around campus for a chance to come on this exciting venture! The Griffith Ball is getting ever closer – Friday 15th April and it’s Willy Wonka themed. We’re taking names now for students who’d like to sit together for dinner so just drop us an email and we’ll sort that out for you. Don’t forget that formal dress is a requirement! Look out for the special guest on the night..! The Students’ Union Elections are upon us soon. All the candidates and their introductions are on Page 6 that are competing to fill mine, Joe’s and Oscar’s shoes for the 2011/2012 academic year. I can’t wait to read all their manifestos and policy’s which they hope to implement next year providing that they are elected. I wish them all good luck in their campaigns for President, Vice President & Communications, and Clubs & Societies Officer. As always, I’ll be in my office in the Meagher Building if you need me! Your Students’ Union President, Graham Butler
Graham Butler President Students’ Union
StATE OF THE UNION i everyone, I would first of all like to thank everyone for making sports and societies exciting this year, especially those who have participated or are currently participating.
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I would like to like remind everyone that sports are still going on as usual, in fact there are more matches being organised for the following months. Football: As usual, training session is on every Friday from 3pm till 5pm at the Iveagh Grounds. Training sessions are open to everyone who wishes to attend. There are many matches scheduled for the next couple of weeks including a Griffith College staff versus students match. I’m pleased to see record breaking numbers at the training sessions. Basketball: This year basketball has been the most successful sport in the college. The team made it all the way to Basketball Ireland college league division three final where the team gained the first silver medal the college has ever got. At the moment though, the league is over and the college team seeks to improve upon this success by entering into intervarsities where it will face tougher competition. I have hope for this team as I believe they can go the entire way next year to the final and win the cup. Rugby: I would like to urge those interested in the game to contact me as soon as possible as there is a chance to represent Griffith at the rugby Super Sevens tournament on the 13th of April 2011. Cricket: I would like to wish the cricket team best of luck as they are scheduled to play their first match of the 2011 Cricket I ntervarsities on Friday the 8th April against NUI Galway. The societies have had a good boost this year as numbers attending the societies have increased. Mondays: Rock and Roll: a genre of popular music originating in the 1950s; a blend of black rhythm-and-blues with white country-and-western; "rock is a generic term for the range of styles that evolved out of rock
and roll.”This society is a new addition to the list of societies hosted by the Students’ Union. Rock and roll is on every Monday from 6pm till 7.30pm Creative writing as always is an opportunity for students who are interested in honing their writing skills; be it in plays or in the form of lyrics for songs. The creative writing class runs on Mondays from 6pm till 7.30 pm for more information drop into the Students’ Union. Tuesdays: I would also like to remind everyone that yoga classes run every Tuesday at 7pm till 9pm. Poker is also running on Tuesday as well at the Students’ Union from 6pm till 8 pm as usual all are welcome to attend. Wednesday: Salsa is running every Wednesday at the Students’ Union from 6pm till 7pm . This is an opportunity to experience Latin music at its finest. The society is open to everyone at different levels of dancing.
Pool Tournament: Another Pool tournament is to be hosted on the 11th of April 2011. Everyone who wishes to enter is welcome to do so right up till 1pm on the day. Paint Ball: Finally a paint ball trip is to take place on Good Friday the 22nd of April for more information, be sure to check the SU Facebook page for regular updates or watch out posters around the college. As always I would like to encourage everyone to attend a society as it is a very good way to meet people. At the Students’ Union we encourage people with ideas related to any sport or societies please do not hesitate to approach me. For more updates on sports or societies drop into the Students’ Union to see me or simply if you want to have a chat you are also welcome to do so. Your Clubs and Societies Officer, Joe Uzah
Thursdays: Every Thursday in the Students’ Union, hip-pop classes are hosted in the Meagher building from 6 till 9 pm. This class is broken down into free style and choreographed dance steps. Table Tennis League: The table tennis tournament has now changed from being a monthly league to a yearlong league. If any wishes to enter the league you are welcome to do so by sending your name and student number to 086 0379926 or su.sports@gcd.ie.
Joseph Uzah Clubs & Societies Officer Students’ Union
Office Opening Hours: Monday - Thursday: 09:30 - 19:30 Friday: 09:30 - 17:30 email: su.sports@gcd.ie Ph: (01) 415 0460 5
Elections 2011 Meet the Candidates
Another college year is coming to a close and thus arises another opportunity for Griffith students to have their voices heard. The Students’ Union elections are taking place in Arthur’s Bar on April 13th. Here are your candidates for the roles of Students’ Union President, Vice President & Communications Officer and Clubs & Societies Officer.
Brian O’Donoghue
Howaya!, I'm Brian O'Donoghue and I want to be President of your Students' Union next year! You’re not going to find a friendlier President in the country and should you elect me I promise to have the most open office on campus! I don't want to represent my own issues I want to represent your issues, because that is what will make the difference, it's what you want not what I want. I have the experience and the know-how and a vote for me is a vote for you! Please vote in Arthur's Restaurant on the 13th of April and vote for Brian O'Donoghue, we'll have the craic, so vote for me and I've got your back!
Claire Aston
Hi, My name is Claire, I am running for SU President. My main aims if elected are to organise a podcast to update students on the progress of the SU and give students the opportunity to voice their opinions on different college events, promote the option of erasmus around the college and much more! My policies cater for the needs of all students within the college. I aim to be an approachable figure within the college that students can contact with any needs or worries that they may have. I aim to be the best SU President that Griffith College has ever seen and put my own twist on the role.
Rain Aly
Hello Everyone! My name is Rain Aly. I want to be President of your Students’ Union. I would like to continue to be a part of this institution which has given me so much over the past three years. I recall all the good memories during my time here as a student. I have been fortunate to create lasting friendships with my peers who come from all around the globe. As this is a multicultural institution, I aim to bring a lot more entertainments that will cater to every student’s needs and wants. For my final year, I would like to do something incredible like running in the Students’ Union elections and leave my mark on the Students’ Union. Thank you all and I hope that you will vote for me.
Zhan Valter Hi, there students of Griffith College. My name is Zhan Sergejev and I am a Journalism Student. I am running for student Union President because I want to challenge myself Sergejev and represent the needs of Students in Griffith College. I believe that I will be the most suitable person for this position because as a student myself I am aware of the issues students are confronted with on a daily basis, and I believe that I have knowhow to deal with them and help students get through college. I believe that being SU President will give me a chance to make life for students of Griffith College easier. Vote for Zhan Number One.
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Aimee Doyle
If I get elected Vice President & Communications Officer I will develop the magazine further and expand its online presence. As I have a passion for radio I intend to make regular podcasts for the students to access, with updates and announcements from the SU. I feel this would encourage more students to interact with the SU in ways they have never done before. As Vice President I will take on board all of the ideas of the new President and add my own input. The Students’ Union has always been an open environment where students can get their voices heard and I will do everything as Vice President to listen to all opinions and help make it a better place for all students.
Shane Ronan-Duggan
I’m running for Clubs and Societies, and famous in Navan for various undisclosed reasons. What I want to do if elected as Clubs and Societies Officer is firstly get students more involved in the many great sports and societies that we have here in Griffith. I want this college to be recognised for something other than just academic achievements. There is great potential here to really achieve some great things in sport and other activities. With the right people behind it, things can really begin to look up for this college and I think I am the right person for the job. As far as clubs are concerned, involvement is key. I feel there is not enough knowledge about each society and people find it hard to understand what each actually does.
Elections 2011 Meet the Candidates Ian Donegan
Hi, Ian Donegan here and I really, really want to be Vice President of the Students’ Union. As VP I would make sure that the elected president does not go mad with power and burn the place to the ground. Your vote would also make me Griffiti Editor, a position I dearly want to take over after Oscar Finn has thrown the towel in. I am a good problem solver and an even better listener, I love writing and I would make sure that all the issues facing Griffith students are addressed, and remember, having a problem brought to light is half the battle. Vote for me and I will ensure the very best of reading material in each and every edition as well as a friendly atmosphere in the SU at all times.
Now its up to you to vote! Election Day is Wednesday 13th April 2011 Students’ Union News Bring a book, buy a book
student Council Meeting The Student Council met on February 28th. Among the issues discussed were the new roles of the Students’ Union officers. In the forthcoming SU elections there will now be three elected positions. The SU President’s position remains unchanged; however the Griffiti editor will be amalgamated with the Vice President and will serve also as the Communications Officer. This will be a full time position. The sports officer will be changed to a part time position which will allow them the space to focus solely on developing sports on and off campus. The class reps also agreed on changing the system with which SU elections are held. Previous elections ran on a Proportional Representation system. From now on the elections will be First Past The Post. At the previous meeting, students raised concerns over the safety and cleanliness of the gym. Since then the SU has met with the college and it has been agreed that more funding will be made available for the gym’s upkeep. Complaints were made previously by law students over four Tort lectures on Friday mornings. This has been changed to spread over Tuesdays and Thursdays.
There was a book sale in Arthur’s on March 10th, hosted by Griffith librarian Patricia Kelly. Students were able to donate any old books and pick up a new one. The Sale was a great success making over 300 Euros, with a great selection of books available. We here in the SU are looking forward to the next sale.
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rag week revisited
Griffith College RAG Week 2011 took place March 7th-11th. It was another successful raise and give for Griffith with funds being raised for Our Lady’s Hospice in Harold’s Cross. An estimated €2,000 was raised for this more than worthy organisation. Thank you to everyone that came out to all the events and took part in any and all fundraising. Here’s a quick look back at some of the highlights of the week. The proceedings kicked off on Monday morning. It’s almost like a tradition at this stage, but the giant inflatables returned to the green. The Vodafone Red Line Party was in Arthur’s too with competitions and offers for students, and giving away various prizes. That night, Arthur’s hosted its first county/country colours, BYOB ‘house party’. People were out proudly supporting their county and country colours. Also, the night saw the Battle of the DJs. Tuesday’s RAG Ball in dTwo was a huge success. A great crowd was out for the Mardi Gras themed night and to avail of free beads, because, well, they were free. Face paint too, we mustn’t forget the face paint. On Wednesday night, the Headline Bar was subjected to the gifted and not so gifted voices of Griffith students. The free pint on entry was quite the incentive too and undoubtedly, warmed up those lungs of all participants. Once again, thank you to everyone who helped make RAG week 2011 a success. Enjoy the rest of the semester and we’ll see you at the Griffith Ball!
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Students’ Union News Day Trip To The Zoo & National Botanic Gardens On Friday March 25th, a group of thirty Griffith students visited Dublin Zoo and National Botanic Gardens. The beautiful weather complemented the day and was enjoyed by all.
The Students’ Union is planning its next day trip on Friday April 8th, to Wicklow. The trip will include visits to Glendalough and Powerscourt Gardens. The trip will cost €12; contact the SU to reserve your place now.
Free Recycling Day On Saturday March 9th, WEEE (Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment) Ireland was on campus to collect any electric junk you may have to be recycled safely and correctly.
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Students’ Union News New Price structure for Arthur’s
Treasure hunt On Wednesday March 23rd, Arthur’s Bar was the location of the treasure hunt in aid of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, organised by the first year students from Higher Certificate in Business Studies. Students participated in the hunt as well as other challenges to raise money for the cause as well as selling raffle tickets for various prizes. The event was supported greatly by local businesses. Thanks to those who took part, much awareness was raised for this more than worthy cause.
Long Term Food Inflation from underlying causes of global macro-economics including increased food prices, a reduction in arable land, westernised diets and an increasing global population will cause a slight increase in food prices in Arthur’s Bar. For core commodities, speculation in food prices has recently driven the global cost of food upwards. Over the past six months, Arthur’s Bar has taken on this significant cost and are no longer in a position to offset the price. The Financial Times has noted that “globally, both food and mineral prices are elevated and going higher”. The increased prices will only be slight and only on a selection of goods. By normal canteen standards, the price of the food is lower compared to others on the high-street. Special offers recently introduced in Arthur’s will remain in place. There will be no change to the bar prices, sandwiches remain the same, as will the hot breakfast served in the mornings. Fruit will also be unaffected by this. On a positive note, the manager of Arthur’s Bar, Chris Brownill is now allowing students to bring in packed lunches into Arthur’s Bar at any time as long as they are not preventing normal business trade. This is a welcome development as it had been mooted for some time. We’d like to thank the staff in Arthur’s for their co-operation in this matter.
New Computers on Campus Griffith College has been updated with new computers and Wi-Fi access areas. Open computer labs have been fitted with new Dell computers running Windows 7 and Office 2010. Also, there are new Apple Macs to appease those on the other side on the age old battle of Macs and PCs. There have been five new Wi-Fi access points installed in Arthur’s bar, the design studio, the Wellington Building and the V blocks. The new Wi-Fi devices are six times faster.
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It’s a man’s world, of Warcraft. here are generally three types of girls out there when it comes to MMORPGs. Type A; those who play them, type B; those that are oblivious to their existence, and type C; those whom have thrown many a tantrum over their boyfriend’s utter devotion to the games. Generally type B can evolve into either type A or C. However, A can never become C, as a boyfriend is usually not attainable to begin with.
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I myself have many times been cast into type C, hauled out from my B comfortzone. Having zero tolerance and general ignorance when it comes to these games, rarely worked in my favour. “Why can’t you be like Stephanie? She’s a level 60 paladin!” He’s dumped. “Can’t come around later I’m playing DOTA with the lads.” He’s dumped-er. “I want to dedicate my life to achieving immortality on Warcraft, you can’t hold me back, this, is my destiny.” Just got dumped? Well enough is enough. This is my education. First things first. Lucky type Bers may be asking, what exactly is an MMORPG? It’s an acronym for “Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game.” So basically, ‘a game on the internet’. The basic premise is that you design a character and control their role in a fantasy world. You are sent on ‘quests’ to earn items and gain more power, with the aim to reach the highest level possible. These things are hugely profitable with
worldwide revenues for MMORPGs exceeding $1.4 billion a year, a figure which is expected to grow. Although there are many MMORPGs out there for your enjoyment, World of Warcraft (WoW) seems to be top of the list for most gamers, and became widely known after being the subject of South Park’s mockery in their ‘Make Love, Not Warcraft’ episode.
“I want to dedicate my life to achieving immortality on Warcraft, you can’t hold me back, this, is my destiny.” While I was never oblivious to WoW’s existence, I had never played it before. In fact, I have always considered myself to be too socially-functional and productive to impose such a thing on my life. It was way more fun to moan to my girlfriends about the fact that my boyfriend would rather be killing virtual seals than carry my bags after me while I clothes-shop. What, an, asshole. He won’t even play a real game, like Farmville or The Sims. OK so maybe the game is really amazing and worth every minute of life lost and every repetitive-strain injury acquired. I needed to try it for myself. With my positive, open-minded attitude and all, I’m sure to give you an unbiased evaluation. I asked one of my good friends, a computer science student at Trinity College,
what’s so great and addictive about the game? “It’s just fun,” is his lengthy reply. In fairness, communication is not a skill often well-developed among MMORPG players. Enough pleasantries, let’s get down to my WoW experience. “You’re already saying wow instead of World of Warcraft. Next you’ll be referring to the ATM as a ‘currently’,” The laptop starts up with a glow that hits my face; the perfect timing to highlight my disdain. He loads everything up and I pick my character, making sure it’s the ugliest, most inhuman thing on offer, just in-case he failed to notice my mockery of this whole experiment. I spend the next 10 minutes killing virtual wolves with great difficulty, and earn a glove for my efforts. I was promoted to level two. WoW domination; it is within my grasp. My dear friend, who was now sitting beside me laughing at my inability to comprehend basic character controls, was a level 80. I had a lot of catching up to do, and not nearly enough ‘dysfunctionality’ to do it. But is it all as unsociable as popular media would have us believe? “You know, you can talk to other people,” he encourages. ‘Hi’ I type. Enter. The guy standing beside me takes off, obviously sensing I was a girl and had no idea what to do with me. Nick Yee, an American researcher, concluded that many players fall in love while playing MMORPGs, to the extent that
8.7% of male and 23.2% of female players have had an online wedding. Many of these have pursued ‘real life’ relationships, and have showcased themselves in the very interesting documentary, Second Skin. It’s hardly surprising that fantasy love blooms in fantasy lands, what with more than 11.5 million monthly subscriptions on WoW, you’re bound to find someone suited to you. Newly-single males abandoned by their unsympathetic girlfriends turn to that bashful yet attractive orc with nice eyes that he bumped into the other day on a quest. Yeah, she had something special. Back to the home screen, I’ve had enough for today, or you know, a lifetime. Up pops his original character, it’s a gnome – a little female, gnome. Her pleasant grin beams back at me from the screen, almost expecting and inviting my mockery. Bite your tongue, Nicola. He might stop helping you. The exact ratio of female players to male players in WoW is not known, but it is presumed to be far lower number than in the real world – whatever that is. The amount of genderbending going on is scandalous. Nick Yee
found that 57% of gamers create their characters in the opposite gender! Therefore, it would be a tough job to seek out the real girl-gamers from the guys.
These things are hugely profitable with worldwide revenues for MMORPGs exceeding $1.4 billion a year Little cute gnome-girl-man logs on and sprints through the pixel terrain with ease, simply gliding through the controls like it is second nature. I asked him what would happen if he died. “Your spirit is released and you have to go back and find your body,” So what’s the point of it then if you’re basically immortal? “Ah, your weapons loose a bit of power as well.” Tragic. His little pet rabbit that follows him around is the only thing that maintains my attention for more than two minutes. Adorable.
how many ‘days’ you’ve spent playing the game, by converting how many hours you’ve logged up. Thank you, WarcraftWiki. I ask him to perform my amazing discovery. His tally: 316 days! That’s 7,584 hours! 455,040 minutes! I could go on. Do you know what you could have instead achieved in 316 days?! Why not: make like Obama and win a nobel peace prize. Revive capitalism. Sail around the world. Almost come to a basic decision in the Dáil. Get a job and earn around *15,570 on minimum wage. The list is endless, much like the list of words to describe a person who wastes this much time and similarly shocking amounts of genuine money on a game. After a bit more prancing around the game, showing off a few cool animals and accessories he’d acquired on his vast quests, he could sense my unqualified contempt. “It’s not that great like,” he adds, clicking the laptop shut. Nicola Byrne
Prior to my ventures in the WW (Warcraft World), I figured out a little trick to find out
music
Jonathan Sheils talks to Fox Avenue about their stealthy rise to the top
f ever a band seemed poised to take over the world, it is Fox Avenue. This three-piece band from Dublin consists of Patrick Rhatigan (vocals & piano), Dara Quilty (vocals & guitar) and Sean Maxx (drums). Despite being relatively new to the Dublin music scene, the band has quickly grown a huge fan base and has gained a lot of recognition through the social networking site myspace, gaining over a quarter of a million hits.
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They have played with some of the biggest bands in the world such as 30 Seconds to Mars, Carolina Liar and Scouting For Girls, to name but a few. I had the chance to meet up with the lads at a quiet pub in Stillorgan to ask them about their newfound success. But first, how did a name as crazy as Fox Avenue first come about? “We had fake ID cards in San Diego because we weren’t 18,” says Dara. “They said we were from Fox Avenue in Portmarnock, which is a made-up place. Plus Paddy had already said he wanted to put Fox in the name because of the TV show Fox Force Five in the movie Pulp Fiction and I always had a fixation with wanting to call the band Avenue.” Fox Avenue say their musical genre is Pop/Rock and that they are a live band that plays “nice melodic tunes.”
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“You could watch us on Kerrang,” says Dara, “but you could also watch us on Smash Hits, you know. We write catchy pop tunes but we are a live band. Everything you hear in the record, all the pianos, guitars, it’s all live and we do it live. We don’t play to backing tracks.”
“You could watch us on Kerrang,” says Dara, “but you could also watch us on Smash Hits, you know.” The band’s first headline show in Dublin managed to sell out four weeks in advance and the lads really seem happiest when on stage. “When we do a show, we actually try to put on a show,” explains Paddy. “Dara and Sean both said when they were younger they would’ve gone to see bands like Blink 182 and Green Day and I grew up listening to Paul McCartney and Eric Clapton, so we come from completely different genres of music, but their musical influences would all have put on big shows and that’s what we try to do.” Drummer Sean Maxx agrees: “We definitely try to put on a show way beyond our means just to make it as good as possible for the fans. In our forthcoming Academy show we are getting way too much stuff,
like lighting and better sound, that we can’t really afford just to make the show better.” Fox Avenue’s song ‘Tonight’ made it onto the Zoo Crew Hot 30 on Spin 103.8, but like many successful bands their musicmaking process is far from conventional. “We all write the music in the band,” says Dara. “I don’t think we have any main topics we like to write about, like it’s just whatever comes to mind. But we always try to keep within out genre.” Fox Avenue have played alongside some high profile bands and each member has their own favourite moment. Sean says: “For me it would have to be Jimmy Eat World. They were a band that I grew up loving. I also love Minus The Bear who we replaced once in a concert when they couldn’t turn up as support.” Dara has a different story: “In early 2010 we just sold out our first headliner in the Academy 2 and I specifically remember going out with Niall, our booker, and all he said to me was ‘there is a bit of progress with 30 Seconds To Mars, I’ll let you know during the week.’ “This was downstairs in the Academy 2, in a tiny venue but three weeks later were playing in the O2 playing with 30 Seconds To Mars, which was crazy. But then the next day we went to Lucan to play at an
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eighteenth birthday party in a shed, which was very depressing. “Another good moment was when we supported Scouting For Girls. After the concert we were up in the dressing rooms, three or four stories above the stage in the Olympia, and everyone was backstage packing up when all you heard outside was people chanting Fox Avenue, not Scouting For Girls.”
in Japanese and went around handing them out at her college.” “So how about that, we’re famous not only in Ireland but also in Japan!” Jonathan Sheils
With that Paddy agrees. ‘Yes,’ he says. ‘That was the greatest feeling ever. All the promoters were looking around and wondering ‘who the hell are these guys?’”
The Academy February 25th
Who Fox Avenue are, however, is no longer a problem for their growing battalions of fans – not only in Ireland but as far away as Japan. It’s a story we can’t fail to mention before ending. “There’s a girl in Japan who has a tattoo of Fox Avenue,” says Dara. “It wasn’t her first tattoo, she has a couple, but she only discovered us on the internet and what she did was she printed out Fox Avenue flyers
I arrived at The Academy to an atmosphere that was nothing short of electric. Fox Avenue had attracted an excitable and sizable crowd of hysterical and screaming teenage girls. As I made my way up the stairs I felt an energy in the venue that was forcefully infectious, and the anticipation in the air was thick. The fans were treated to not one but three support bands, all of which were extremely well received. The true excitement however came when the lights went down to announce the imminent entrance of Pop/Rock sensation Fox Avenue. The lads were welcomed with high-decibel screams as they began to play their hugely popular, catchy songs, working the crowd into a frenzy. All in all, this was an impressive and hugely enjoyable performance by any standards and was most certainly a night to remember.
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Griffiti At the Movies
Title: Limitless Cert: 15A Running Time: 104 minutes Release Date: 18th March
Bradley Cooper unimaginatively narrates us throughout the film, obviously to save us from gouging our eyes out if we were to be subjected to another sped up travel sequence. The title of Limitless is somewhat misleading, as all the drug seems to allow is to learn a few languages and engage with maths like a nerd on speed.
Title: The Resident Cert: 16 Running Time: 90 mins Release Date: 11th March
The star of The Hangover tries his hand at being in a film that isn’t a complete self-parody for the first time in this Neil Burger adaption of the 2001 novel The Dark Fields. It’s also the first time that he hasn’t had a large entourage of buddies within the story to postpone the realisation that although he may look good in a suit, the boy just doesn’t have it. Sadly for this film however, he’s just one notch in a pretty long belt of mediocrities.
The first half of the film is decent, Only for the fact that we’re under the impression his powers might actually be limitless, however it lulls substantially when he spends the rest of the film working in the financial sector. All the while we have to deal with analogies of the economic crash. “I finally realised what I had to do”, needless to say that really isn’t as interesting as it sounds.
Hilary Swank plays an ER doctor who having recently separated from her boyfriend needs to find a new apartment in New York for an affordable price. She duly finds such a place, and with a handsome landlord to boot, hilariously played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. However things are not as cosy as they seem in her new place…
Eddie Morra is some kind of a writer with a book contract that he can’t quite get the inspiration to fulfil. He lives rough and alone, drinks a bit and doesn’t seem to have any friends. Yet inexplicably manages to seem pretty upbeat about things.
Robert De Niro lets us down again, although this is no Rocky& Bullwinkle or Meet the Parents Part 6, one has to wonder if some kind of dementia is setting in with the roles churning out. Is he running short of cash or does he really think these films are modern day Mean Streets material?
radley Cooper does his best to guide us through this limply paced story of an ailing writer who finds a way to make his dreams come true, at least for a while anyway.
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He runs into his ex-wife’s brother in the street and is offered a new supposedly FDA approved drug which allows one to utilize heightened powers of creativity, intellectualism and access to one’s subconscious. On the downside it is highly addictive and has interesting ‘come down’ symptoms.
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A plain film that is caught between having wafer thin characters or a wafer thin plot, ultimately we’re left with the worst of both worlds, overall worth the watch, but only just. Elliott Doak
he thougth she was living alone bellows the tagline to The Resident, which takes the worst elements of modern slasher and psychological thriller flicks to give us a 90 minute life sapper.
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The film takes the usual slasher build up, unfortunately this build up is probably the best bit of the film, I can imagine the director panicking when he realised that he might actually have to do something for the second half of the show, because it really is a shambles. There’s no doubt director Antti Jokinen watched Pyscho and enjoyed Anthony Perkins spying through the hole in the wall. so much so that it influenced him to use it in every second scene in this film. The main problem with it here is that our villain is far too bland, whereas Perkins was a pretty freaky guy. In order for the story to play out here at all our perverted landlord has to seem a
pretty charming and harmless guy for most of the film, so needless to say a dramatic twist into becoming a first time homicidal rapist in the space of a few days doesn’t really sink well into the plot. Despite a valiant effort by both double academy award winning actress Hilary Swank and director Annti Jokinen to claim the Razzie for their respective outings here as instigators in this tragic tale of murder most foul, the prize for the ultimate clanger has to go to the legend that is Christopher Lee. He can really take a bow with this one. His inexplicable performance as the landlord’s grandfather really defies belief. After looking like he might actually have something to do with the story with his hovering in dark doorways and creeping around his room late at night, he disappears from the tale altogether. Yet not before some comical moments spearheaded by his superbly gruff American accent. Thankfully though there are plenty more of those magic moments as the story unfolds and our scary landlord just gets even more daring in his pursuit of satisfaction, you’ll know what I mean when you see it… Elliott Doak
Griffiti At the Movies
Title: Your Highness Cert: 16 Running Time: 102 mins Release Date: 15th April anny McBride and Ben Best would like to introduce you to YOUR HIGHNESS. The hilarious medieval comedy boasts Oscar nominees James Franco and Natalie Portman, the dashing Zooey Deschanel, Damian Lewis, Toby Jones, Charles Dance, Justin Theroux and you can’t have a wedding without………The McBride (Danny)!
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Prince Fabious (James Franco) is brave, handsome and valiant in a medieval world where rescuing damsels, slaying dragons and conquering evil are second nature to any heroic knight. His brother Thadeous (Danny McBride) on the other hand………not so much. Lazy, foul mouthed, useless and tired of being passed over for adventure, adoration and the throne, Thadeous has settled for a life
of wizard’s weed, hard meed and easy maidens. But all changes when Fabious’s beautiful fiancée Belladonna (Zooey Deschanel) is kidnapped and Thadeous is ordered by the King to buck up and join Prince Fabious on a quest to rescue her from the evil clutches of the wizard Leezar (Justin Theroux). Thadeous must prove to all that he can rise to the challenge and join his brother on the quest of a life time that will seem them face all sorts of obstacles including a giant hand snake, well endowed minotaurs, Dwarf Queens, magic mother fuckers and wacked out wise wizards.
Title: Jackass 3D Cert:18 Running Time: 94mins Release Date: On DVD Now ackass 3D is one of the most disappointing movies of the 21st century which is a strange thing to say about a film that does everything you would expect from a third cinematic outing by the Jackass crew.
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Johnny Knoxville and his cohorts are back doing what they do best, being morons, but sadly it’s just not funny anymore. After years spent in Copper Face Jacks the novelty of seeing a group of idiots, who are older than they think they are fall over, agitate cattle and pee on each other just isn’t funny anymore. I’ll admit after seeing the trailer I thought this could be a silly yet enjoyable caper and after having actually met the cast I figured it would be worthy of my attention, sadly no. The film is just a poor parody of the Jackass glory days (I’m not
quite sure when that was exactly), the film repeats gags and stunts already done on the original TV show and not even as well as the original. The novelty of this film was that it was shot in 3D so perhaps it would have been better to see it in cinema but watching the guys getting covered in poo and blue paint is hardly worth the price of admission. The DVD is crammed with the usual collection of making of documentaries, out takes and deleted scenes none of which show anything better than what is in the final film. Of course I could be looking at this film the wrong way and not realizing that it is in fact a hardhitting documentary about a bunch of 40 year old millionaires with Man-Child Syndrome, a couple cases of beer and a lot of free time. Oscar Finn
Hey everyone, As the next issue of Griffiti will be the last of the semester we are looking for someone to write a Summer preview for the Movies we can look forward to when we are all free of exams and assignments. So if you are interested drop us a line at Griffiti@gcd.ie 23
A major stigma in 21st century Ireland The stigma of mental health remains a strong issue in Ireland today and over 300,000 people in the country suffer from depression. Griffiti’s Wayne Doyle shines a light on the issue. y Name is James. I am Twenty one years old. I suffer from anxiety and depression. James has taken the first positive steps in tackling his mental health problems in a mature and responsible way. Research has shown that over half of students would rather tackle depression on their own as oppose to speaking with friends or family members about mental health issues.
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Mental health problems, such as depression are very common and the chances are you or someone close to you has or will experience depression during their lifetime. Upsetting events or situations derail the regular routine of an individual, leaving then saddened and with a sense of isolation. This is only the beginning of the process; problems will escalate as the desire to remain stagnant in time takes hold. You will begin to feel as if the world is passing you by, as all efforts to continue daily tasks eludes you, driving you further and further into a shell of negativity and despair. Share the burden and remove the stigma from mental health problems in Ireland today. Mental health issues are easily dealt with once you acknowledge the problem and speak about it. The feeling of despair and isolation can engulf you with doubt and restlessness, which will inevitably become too much for you on your own if you do not know how to handle it. Society and individuals need to promote understanding and compassion when dealing with depression. We as a society need to promote awareness and tackle problems such as mental health issues head on.
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Times have changed dramatically but still youngsters and adults alike refuse to speak openly. In the current economic climate students are especially vulnerable to periods of depression, anxiety and worry. Firstly: everyone experiences times in their life where they think they can no longer cope with the pressures of daily life. Mental health is both complex and multidimensional with many layers. Depression does not simply arrive one day and go in a week or two. There are currently 300,000 people in Ireland who are experiencing some form of depression as you read this now. Depression is the steady increase of anxiety and pressure, and once this becomes too much for the individual, rational thinking and actions evaporates. “It’s something that nobody wants to talk about, I was afraid to bring it up with any of my friends in case they thought I was being a drama queen”. Sometimes life becomes too much. Sometimes young adults cannot deal with mental health problems easily. Students and young adults tend to ignore mental health issues and opt for going it alone. Friends and family should promote speaking about mental health issues amongst each other, we as a society need to break the mould; we need to welcome discussions and problems amongst young people. As Harry Truman, former president of the United States, once said “the buck stops here”.
We need to take action if any kind of halt is brought to the stigma associated with mental health issues. Times have changed dramatically but still youngsters and adults alike refuse to speak openly. I would urge anybody feeling under, down, exhausted or consumed by daily life, to stop and acknowledge that maybe you’re not ok, and that is perfectly fine and easily rectifiable once the correct steps are taken. Wayne Doyle
Symptoms Of Depression: Feeling Unhappy Finding It Harder To Make Decisions Finding It Difficult To Preform Daily Task No Interest In Daily Life Loss Of Desire To Succeed A Feeling Of Isolation And Defeat
THE GENUINE ARTICLE
POTTY TRAINING INITIATIVE HUGE SUCCESS IN SU
NEW SPEED MOUNTAIN INSTALLED AT GATES By Gaye Barr To all of you Griffith students who don’t drive to this fine institution on a daily basis, stop reading now. To all those who do, we feel your pain! Have you felt it? Have you seen it? The newly installed “Speed Bump” at the entrance gate is a nightmare. On close inspection it’s very clear that monkeys with hammers installed the monstrous bump. It’s clearly far too big for the purpose it’s supposed to serve and it is destroying cars. To date the new bump has caused 3 million euro worth of
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damage, and that’s just to Heggo’s car! Current SU President Graham Butler has been walking to college every day since the bump was installed after his Golf crumbled to pieces. Butler exclusively told the Genuine Article “Awh yeah moy cawr was totally totalled” he complained about having to walk to work every day but the Genuine Article will not entertain such nonsense as the man has for too long ignored the plight of pedestrians in the greater South Circular Road area.
A campaign is underway to have the new bump removed as soon as possible before some real disaster happens such as the Heggo-mobile breaking down permanently. On the mention of the word campaign Graham Butler suddenly appeared at the editorial meeting of the Genuine Article to make sure everyone would vote in the upcoming elections. The Genuine Article gives two thumbs up!
ARTHUR’S TOILETS REACH RED ALERT By Craven Moorehead The smell in Arthur’s toilets has reached a toxic intensity. The product left behind by Student elections to be decided by Russian Griffith Students has started to stagnate to a degree that both staff and students find their Roulette lives at risk. President Graham Butler was inArthur’s sausages made from DCU drop-outs terviewed about the phenomenon. Narnian students demand more fantasy based Genuine Article: Are the students in danger? events Butler: Yes’ Genuine Article: Mortal danger? Next SU house party to be hosted by library Butler: ‘Is there any other kind?’ Car insurance premiums rise with popularity of It later transpired that Butler had in fact Cricket on campus spent the previous night watching ‘A Few Good Men’ and did not actually have any Griffith Ball is large and hairy idea what we were talking about. Butler puts forward idea of ‘President For Life’ Drastic measures will need to be taken to resolve this problem. It may come to be that Under the Spotlight the college will have to fork out to have the toilets cleaned on a weekly basis. ‘Over my dead body’ exclaimed Heggo. One of the main reasons for this, besides the lack of ventilation, is recession stricken, starving students resorting to eating the urinal cakes taking from the facilities, once funky, freshness.
BUTLER UNVEILS NEW CABINET Name: Bernard A. White Occupation: Chief Overseer of Law Society Hobbies: Collecting rare pens Likes: Judge Dredd & bespoke leisure suits Dislikes: The political elite & city dwellers Interesting fact: Bernard once represented Ireland in curling at the Winter Olympics The contents of this section are satirical and may offend. The views expressed do not represent the views of the SU
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Griffiti Sports The Winds of Change? The issue of equality in sports is still one that flickers brightly. Griffiti’s Ciara Brennan takes a look at the state of the game. ho would have thought in this day and age that sports would be still stuck in the past? Women’s sport, sexuality and there are still even traces of racism to be seen in some sports such as cricket.
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Recently I attended a track day in Mondello Park. I noticed a girl driving an EG Civic about to head onto to track and I automatically said out loud "There's a girl
driving". Now that I think about it, why was there even a need to say that? Because women, as much as we protest our right as equals, will never truly be considered as equals compared to men, in the world of sports. The response I got from the five young men standing beside me was laughter. They joked about her ability to drive on the track and in so many words claimed before even seeing her drive that she would be slow and unable to do well in comparison to some of the other drivers, who were all male and quite possibly more inexperienced.
I personally have never picked up a newspaper and noticed a story about women in sport on the front cover or even a headline indicating a story in the back. But if I'm honest, I have never really been interested in looking for a story in regards to women’s sports because in today’s society we are trained to relate the majority of sports back to men. You hear about girls who would love to be WAGS or date rugby players because they are seen to be macho and of course because they are in the spotlight. But being in the spotlight has clearly caused problems for many pro-footballers as their lives are played out on the front of every tabloid paper and gossip magazine.
I am not the only one in thinking that football fans can be quite brutal on the players I for one, love to pick up Heat magazine every week and read about how Wayne Rooney doesn't seem to be able to stop sleeping with prostitutes or how Peter Crouch cheated on his pregnant girlfriend at a fellow footballer’s stag. It's a guilty pleasure but most girls are the same. This might be the reason why out of 2000 pro-footballers we have not seen one come out as being a homosexual and I am sure I am not the only one in thinking that football fans can be quite brutal on the players. For example most will remember when David Beckham got a red card in England’s match against Argentina during the 1998 World Cup, in which England went on to lose the game in a penalty shoot out. Many fans as well as journalists blamed Beckham, who in turn received death threats for this. A bit harsh right? But one would be curious as to whether some fans would react similarly to a football player who was gay. I personally think that a football player would not be as easily accepted as the
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likes of Steven Davis, the England wicket-keeper who announced he was gay this week. Football fans as well as players can be quite critical at times, but maybe Davis's courage to come out will make other people in sport realise that they can too. But sadly, I do not see that time for football players anytime soon. I think football still has a while to go compared to other sports such a rugby, as rugby legend and former captain of Wales, Gareth Thomas came out and in return gained respect and love for his honesty. Racism is clearly not an issue in a lot of sports these days, especially football, as most of the players are from abroad. But there are some examples, such as cricket, which is sometimes dubbed as 'the white man's game'. Hopefully these issues will change in time, as society has begun to embrace this notion of everyone being equal and have clearly become more accepting of people in today’s society. Maybe in the world of sports they will do the same. Ciara Brennan
Griffiti Sports Basketball team gets to Final The Griffith College basketball team were defeated on March 2nd in the Basketball Ireland Mens Division three final. Griffith competed against National College of Ireland (NCI), with the final score as 63 - 50 in favour of NCI. The Griffith team were awarded the runners up medal for their efforts.
The Team Rheda Bouguetof Kui Zhan Jianxiong Li Yan Wu Soy Yae Philip Yong Zhou Mike Yudien Kevin Nelms Jasmine Nakic Damir Causevic Mahir Omerhodzic Dino Bojcic Brion Evers Kyle Emil Jankech
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Conflict in Li ibya
Griffiti speaks with Griffith student Abdullah Neihum and Neil D'arcy who have been working towards sending medical aid and supplies to Libya, a country torn apart by its uprising. he crisis in Libya has been one of the most intense of the year. Beginning in mid February, protesters took to the streets to rally against Col Muammar Gaddafi and his 40-plus year rule over the North African nation. In early March Griffith students Abdullah Neihum and Neil Darcy fundraised and collected a cargo of medical aid and supplies to reach those in Libya most in need.
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Abdullah is Libyan but has been living in Ireland for the last 15 years. “When the whole crisis started in Libya I felt like we needed to do something. It was frustrating to sit there and hear that people are dying everyday and not do anything about it”, he says. Neil, Abdullah and his mother, a doctor in Drogheda, set up the organisation Libyan Emergency Aid in a bid to help in some way. “I networked with hospitals and made sure that they had donations,” says Abdullah. His mother’s contacts proved pivotal in dealing with hospitals. “Together we were
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able to network our way to get medical aid donations from hospitals and storehouses in the country that’s in excess, that can’t be used again, which is good to use but because of regulations couldn’t be used again here. We collected a load of things like beds, crutches, braces, bandages and slings.”
We were able to send over close enough to the value of €500,000 worth of medical aid “Between the three of us we were able to send over close enough to the value of €500,000 worth of medical aid to Libya. Some of it is only landing today [March 22nd] because it took about two or three weeks to go by boat”, he reveals. The figure is staggering for three people to accumulate, equipped just with the drive and ambition to help in any way they could. What awaited them now was travelling to the unstable Libya to ensure their cargo
arrived and it was also an opportunity for Abdullah to see some of his family, for the first time in ten years. Liaising with another group on the Libyan/Egyptian border, he and Neil travelled into Libya’s second largest city, Benghazi. “Myself and Neil, being journalism students, picked up a cameraman and between the three of us filmed a documentary where we were in Libya. We filmed a lot of footage and hopefully we’ll have a documentary within the next two to three weeks.” “We got a very human look into what’s going on there, very passionate people talked to us. We interviewed a lot of the people about the massacres that happened on the streets.” This human look, Abdullah hopes, will “get some Libyan voices out there”. Abdullah arrived in Benghazi on a Friday night after rebels took hold of the city and describes it as “like a festival”. He continued: “people were happy that Benghazi and Tobruk were finally free in the east. Mainly those two towns were the
beacon of hope for the rest of Libya.” “It was on Sunday when the whole mood changed”, he says “there was a grimness to that day. On Saturday night the Al Jazeera photojournalist [Ali Hassan Al Jaber] was killed by Gaddafi loyalists and there was a real sense of tension that journalists were now being targeted because he was actually chased and shot in his car.” “It moved from being a sense of security in Benghazi to journalists not knowing if they should stay anymore, which is actually what happened. A lot of journalists left for the border and stayed until they knew it was safe to go back in. Mary Fitzgerald of the Times went back to the border a couple of days after we did.” With this insecurity now a foreboding presence in the country, Abdullah still visited family as intended. “I met my grandmother on the Friday night. I had to see someone there from my family. It was sort of an overwhelming thing to go over there and see people I haven’t seen in a decade because I haven’t been since 2001. It was good to see her and it was also bad to know that she was living that kind of horror.” Since then, phone lines in the entire eastern region of the country were cut off and making contact became near impossible. “That made it a little more grim. You get this real sense of insecurity once they cut off something as small as a phoneline.”
We got a very human look into what’s going on there, very passionate people talked to us. “I was very worried for my family; we couldn’t get in touch with any of them. But before that we heard that my family on my mother’s side were moving east because they knew there was something bad coming”, he notes. “I don’t know anything about my father’s side because the phone lines have been cut off and we couldn’t contact any of them. Hopefully they’re safe but you never know. I’ve just got to wait until the phones are back up.”
Regardless, Abdullah and Libyan Emergency Aid will be continuing their mission to deliver as much aid to the Libyan people as possible. “It’s become critical now with direct bombings of Benghazi. They are far more desperately in need of supplies”, reinforces Abdullah. Visit libyanemergencyaid.com for more details and to donate. They can also be found on Twitter. Jonathan Keane Photos: Ivan Cummins If you want to read more Peter McKeever has an interview with Abdullah Neihum on the Griffiti Blog, check it out at griffitimag.blogspot.com
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