SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

NUACHTÁIN SAOR IN AISCE VOL.18 Issue 10. 28 FEB 2017

Student Independent News

SU President highlights role of the Students’ NUI Galway Alumni Award Union as election race commences

By Sorcha O’Connor Thursday 23 February saw the start of another Student Union election race in NUI Galway.

Students are competing for the role of President, Welfare Officer and Education Officer, the three full-time positions in the Students’ Union.

As candidates launch their campaigns over the next week, Student Independent News spoke with current Students’ Union President Jimmy McGovern. Reflecting on his term as President, he explained his role, the importance of the Union, and why the 18,000 strong student population of NUI

Galway need to get out and vote for the candidates come Thursday 2 March.

“It’s been the greatest experience of my life,” he said. “You’re the principle spokesperson and you’re the team leader of a democratic organisation of 18,000 members - which is huge. The biggest part of the job is learning about your members, the students and what their needs are because at the end of the day you’re going to be the person speaking on behalf of others in all the committees.

It’s great that within the university we’re recognised, we’re put on to all the boards, right up to governing authority.”

Jimmy expressed how the role of President will be an extremely varied job for his successor.

“It’s an incredible job,” he explained.

“One thing we always say about our jobs is that if anyone could do them for one week every single student would run.

“Although it’s hard to know what it entails, every single day is different. On a Monday morning you could be on Galway Bay FM or talking to the Irish Times or then you could be in a board room meeting talking about the finances of the university and then you could be at a disciplinary hearing with a student, you could have a student

SU FULL TIME ELECTIONS WHEN

Thursday 2 March

WHERE TO VOTE

An Bhialann (10am-7pm) Áras na Mac Léinn (11am-8pm) Engineering Building (12pm-4pm)

REMOTE VOTE

On the SU Website 10am-8pm (pre-registration required before midnight Wednesday 1 March).

REFERENDUM

Yes or No to the motion: “NUI Galway Students’ Union supports the reunification of the island of Ireland and calls on the State to hold a national referendum on the question of such reunification.”

MEET THE CANDIDATES Interviews with the candidates inside this issue of SIN. call in needing support for SUSI, or needing to appeal an exam.

“Then you could be at a charity table quiz – it’s just constantly changing every single day. You’re working from first years who are just coming into college right up to the university president on a daily basis and it is an incredible experience.”

Irrelevant Jimmy was aware that some students may feel distant from the Students’ Union, think that it is irrelevant and may not feel the urge to vote.

Continued on page 2

winners 2017 announced

By Heather Robinson NUI Galway have announced the winners for the 17th annual Alumni Awards which will be presented on Saturday 4 March at a gala banquet hosted in the Bailey Allen Hall. The seven winners, including our current lecturers Mike McCormack in the English Department whose novel Solar Bones was voted Irish Book of the Year 2016 and Dr Eoghan Clifford in the School of Engineering, who won a gold medal in the Rio Paralympic Games 2016, have been chosen for the award based on their relevant successes in their chosen fields.

There are six categories in the Alumni Awards and the winners are as follows; Mike McCormack for Arts, Literature and Celtic Studies, Tara McCarthy for Business and Commerce, Dr Tom Courtney for Law, Public Policy and Government, Ann Marie Farrell for Engineering, Science and Technology and in a joint award for Contribution to Sport there is Dr Eoghan Clifford and Deirdre Mongan.

The Alumni Awards began in the year 2000 with only three categorical winners in Engineering, IT and Maths, Business and Commerce, and Health Care and Medical Science. It has since grown and developed to include a more diverse variety of categories and to recognise the achievements of a wider set of alumni. When speaking of the alumni award winners, the President of NUI Galway, Dr Jim Browne said “these awards celebrate the life-long value of an NUI Galway education and recognise individual achievements among the University’s more than 90,000 graduates worldwide.” The awards are sponsored by companies and foundations such as Bank of Ireland, Medtronic and the Galway University Foundation.

Previous alumni winners include names like Uachtarán na hÉireann Micheal D. Higgins, Gráinne Séoige the broadcaster and Helen Ryan, a tony-award winning actress. The recognition of these three and of other equally successful winners brings further glory to the university. Young students who look up to these public figures and hear them honour their alma mater NUI Galway will feel pride that they are following in the same footsteps. Aside from rewarding alumni for their hard work and dedication, the Alumni Awards also bring hope and inspiration to young people. Tickets and booking information for the gala banquet can be found through contacting the alumni office at 091 494310 or email alumni@nuigalway.ie. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.guf.ie.

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SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

NUI Galway student investigates link between alcohol and falls in university students

Editorial

By Sorcha O’Connor

Hey everyone! You’ll notice this week we’ve included a pull-out of all the candidates who are running for the full-time positions in the Students’ Union elections: Presid e n t , We l f a r e Officer and Education Officer.

T h e r e ’s b e e n enough election scandals in the recent past (Brexit, Trump, here’s looking at you) so if you want someone in particular to represent you in the Not-So-Oval-But-Rectangle Office in Aras na Mac Léinn be sure to read on before you go out and vote on 2 March.

There will also be a referendum on Irish unity. Voters will have to answer yes or no to the motion ‘NUI Galway Students’ Union supports the reunification of the island of Ireland and calls on the State to hold a national referendum on the question of such reunification’. Two of our writers took the liberty of debating the issue so check that out too before hitting the polling booth.

Voting gives you a direct say in how your Students’ Union is run, how your issues are dealt with and how your money gets spent.

It’s important to pick the people you want as it’s the Union who will be representing your views to the University and on a local, regional and national level.

Polling Stations will be open: 10am-7pm (An Bhialann), 11am-8pm (Áras na Mac Léinn), 12pm-4pm (Engineering Building).

If you are not on campus on Thursday 2 March and wish to vote in the Students’ Union elections and referendum, you can use Remote Vote to cast your vote online.

You can log on to the Students’ Union website before midnight on Wednesday 1st March and register for Remote Vote then log on to the Students’ Union website between 10am and 8pm on Thursday 2nd March. Remote Vote is easy to use and is completely confidential.

Elections aside, what else has SIN to offer this fortnight? Well, as usual we have plenty of features, fiery opinions, great fashion advice, and much more from our lifestyle, entertainment and sport sections. There’s everything from book and play reviews, to dissecting global and current affairs, to how to dress like Alexa Chung.

However, with so much going on around campus, we understand it can be hard to sit down and read SIN cover to cover every time (we won’t take it personally!). Luckily, our website sin.ie always has more for you to sink your teeth into on the go. Give our Facebook page Student Independent News, NUI Galway a like too to see all the latest! You’ll find a great mix of interviews, opinion and much more besides so you’ve no choice but to get SINformed. Yes, that’s a word now.

Hope you all have a great fortnight and remember – vote, vote, vote!

A final year Occupational Therapy student in NUI Galway is conducting research into the relationship between alcohol-induced falls on nights out and the occupational dysfunction of Irish university students.

Sarah Rath has invited students in NUI Galway who may have experienced a fall or a fall-related injury on a night out to take part in her cross-sectional study. This is the first study of its kind and to date there has been a large response of 114 people to the online survey.

“I was very happy with the response. I thought it would be slower but it seems that this is something a lot of students can relate to and have experienced unfortunately,” said Sarah.

Sarah explained how the injuries sustained from falls on nights out could have an impact of the day-to-day lives of students. She came up with the idea with her supervisor, who was aware of someone who had fallen on a night out which had a drastic effect on the person afterwards.

“In occupational therapy or if you’re in any hospital setting, there’s huge emphasis on falls in older adults, preventing falls and the impact of falls.

When I was on placement, my supervisor and I were discussing ideas … She had known someone who had had a serious fall whilst drunk in a night club and that really impacted her life in many ways.

So I started looking into it after that.”

Participants in the survey have to outline the injuries they sustained from their fall – with one noting that a bruised ego was the worst part of it all!

Injuries included concussion, fractured skulls, the loss of feeling in the leg due to nerve damage, and broken bones.

Sarah also asked participants where the falls had taken place.

“The night club was the most popular one,” she explained.

“Some said they weren’t sure, some people said at home and then others ranged from at an after-party, the

bar, getting into taxis, falling off a roof, falling on rocks on a beach, falling into the canal, and on the street.”

People also noted what areas of their lives had been affected in the survey. These included physical appearance, involvement in sport, their studies and employment.

Sarah elaborated on how she explored the correlation of alcohol and falls in students.

“We’re trying to determine the relationship between alcohol and falls so what we did in the survey was ask how many standard drinks you had on the night of the fall - which I know isn’t 100% accurate and is a flaw in the study, but there is no other way of measuring,” she said.

“And then there is the alcohol use disorders identification test, a screening tool developed by the World Health Organisation that helps to identify hazardous drinking behaviours. That’s the last part of the questionnaire.”

Sarah will analyse the data she has collected later this month.

Students' Union Election race underway Continued from front page “Some of the most important work we do isn’t advertised. We also have drop in services for anyone who needs support so the two vice presidents deal with a lot of students and case work; Students who are maybe in financial

hardship, having mental health difficulties, promoting sexual health on campus, if you failed an exam, if you need to appeal that, things like that,” he explained.

“We are aware that we’re not experts but we will find people who are. Our job is constantly networking within the college. It is important we can go to the

Head of the School or the Dean of the College about a student who might need to appeal an exam while the student might not be able to do it themselves.”

He summed it up; “We are almost like an insurance policy – you might not need us till you realise something goes wrong.”

Voting Choosing someone to vote for can be hard. Jimmy offered the advice that when you are deciding “you have to think does that person come across that they could make a good argument”.

And is it all a popularity test?

“There will obviously be a few people who think it is but in general you can be as popular as you want but once you get the role you’re going to be in these positions,” said Jimmy.

After nearly a year in the job and another year as the Union’s Welfare Officer, Jimmy had a well of knowledge for candidates.

“The number one thing you can do is go into lecture halls and say ‘I’m going to run for this job and going to take on these responsibilities and this is what I have done to date and this is what I’ve planned to do’,” advised Jimmy.

“Go in and you can show that you’re genuine, sincere and willing to work hard, and talk about why the job is important,” he said.

“When I ran for Welfare, a big part for me was suicide awareness - people tend to get involved in the Students’ Union because of something they’re passionate about. Suicide awareness for me was a huge one as I had lost a friend and I promised myself when I came to college I was going to do something.

And then I saw the job.

“I had done a lot of training around suicide intervention and I thought this is a key thing - I know students can drop in on a daily basis and I’ll be willing to get them help they need. I said to a lot of people in lectures; ‘Look you might not use the Students’ Union but I can guarantee you know someone who will.’”

The election takes place Thursday 2 March with polling stations in An Bhialann (10am-7pm), Áras na Mac Léinn (11am-8pm), Engineering Building (12pm-4pm) and on the SU Website via Remote Vote 10am-8pm (pre-registration required before midnight Wednesday 1 March). Voters will also be asked to vote Yes or No to the motion: “NUI Galway Students’ Union supports the reunification of the island of Ireland and calls on the State to hold a national referendum on the question of such reunification.”

Until next time,

Sorcha.

NUACHT

February 28 2017

OPINION EDITORIAL: EOIN MOLLOY We live in the most polarised political climate in modern history. Our brave new internet-based world is one of hyper-partisanship, with folks becoming increasingly more divided on issues where we used to enjoy a modicum of common ground. The current online feud between conservatism and liberalism is a digital War of the Roses fought on keyboards the world over. Tensions can be best illustrated by the fact that President Trump enjoys a 91% approval

rating amongst Republicans, whilst holding support from less than 10% of Democrats. With all of this talk of ‘fake news’, slanted reporting and whistleblower scandals, it’s easy to get jaded.

No-one is focusing on the real issues. I mean, the Icelandic President has called for a ban on pineapples as a pizza topping!? Talk about being out of touch with the electorate. Head on over to our Opinion section for some real talk, where we aim to help you get Sinformed.

LIFESTYLE EDITORIAL: KAYLEIGH MCCOY These last few weeks I feel like I’ve been absolutely submerged in the land of technology; doing an assignment, editing articles, reading the news? On my laptop. Chatting to my friends, procrastinating, checking emails? On my phone.

It only dawned on me this week that I’m completely reliant on all the technology in my life; I bought a physical newspaper

instead of reading the news online after this revelation, but that was about all I could do to curb my over-dependency on all my gadgets. This prompted me to question whether our obsession with technology is healthy, resulting in this issue’s lifestyle section dealing with the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to the age of technology!

INSIDE

Interactive Map to be launched to help NUI Galway students find their way 4 Trump talk 5 DIARY OF A FINAL YEAR: what do you want to be when you grow up?

5 California Dreamin’ 6 Do celebrities have a political duty?

7 Lent: were you a sweet slacker or a hardcore hoarder?

8 Hate speech in ‘Trump’s America’ 10 HEAD TO HEAD: Should RAG week be reinstated in Galway?

11 Conservatism as counter-culture 12 ELECTION SPECIAL: Meet the candidates!

13–24 Students' Union President 14-16 Vice President: Education Officer 18 Vice President: Welfare Officer 20–21 Referendum Debate 23 Loneliness in the fashion world 26 CALM: can this sleeping app really improve your health?

28 Reconnecting with the old me 29 REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child 30 The best of the Brits 31 Is Ireland’s 6 Nations campaign in trouble?

34 Jesus loss the nail in City’s title challenge 35

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITORIAL: AISLING BONNER It’s all drama this fortnight – GRAMMYs drama, BRIT drama and drama drama.

Deirdre Leonard has a review of Dramsoc’s last play Eurydice to ease you in. NUIGs societies are knocking it out of the park this fortnight with countless events to

pencil in. And if your Valentine’s Day was spent watching re-runs of Dating in the Dark like mine definitely wasn’t (I swear), don’t feel ashamed, because Bridget Fox has a great piece on dating shows and why we love them so damn much. Enjoy!

PRESIDENTIAL AWARD FOR VOLUNTEERING

THE

SPORTS EDITORIAL: TREVOR MURRAY When you’re over halfway through the semester there’s only one thing to do – procrastinate. We have you covered in this edition’s sports pages with a look at Leicester City’s problems in the English Premier League,

an analysis of Ireland’s 6 Nations campaign so far as well as a reflection on Super Bowl LI, one of the mostwatched sporting event of the year so far. Grab a coffee and get stuck in to all that and more.

CERTIFICATE CEREMONY Tuesday 28th March 2017 at 11:30am in the

Bailey Allen Hall, Aras na Mac Leinn, NUI Galway

All welcome to celebrate and recognise campus and community student volunteering.

EDITOR: Sorcha O’Connor editor@sin.ie LAYOUT: Shannon Reeves

Find us online:

www.sin.ie

Deadline for applications: Tuesday 14th March 2017 An bhfuil rud éigin le rá agat?

Cur litir chuig an Eagarthóir chuig editor@sin.ie.

3

alive@nuigalway.ie SAVE THE DATE

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SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

NUI Galway Students’ Union launches SHAG Week with sugar and spice

By Georgia Feeney The second annual SHAG week (sexual health and guidance week) kicked off on 6 February with a packed schedule of events, competitions and condom runs planned for the entire week. The theme of the week was sugar and spice.

The spice of the week was provided by the dirty circus organised by the Students’ Union which took place in SULT on Wednesday 8 February.

The free event saw a night of cabaret comedy and sauciness followed by a Traffic Light Party in 44. There was a great turnout with SULT packed on the night.

The event also received national media attention with RTÉ filming and doing interviews on the night with Students’ Union Welfare Officer/VP Daniel Khan.

Sweetening the week with a pre-Valentines treat on Friday 10 volunteers of the Students’ Union Welfare Crew headed up campus to hand out roses and chocolates to students, something which put a smile on a lot of people’s faces.

SHAG Week however wasn’t all fun and games with practical and informative training and exhibitions also set up. For the entire week a gallery of Tinder-style profiles of Sexual Transmitted Infections (STI’s) was assembled in Áras na Macleinn.

A number of informative and practical training sessions and exhibitions were also set up. The NUI Galway Students’ Union wanted students to have fun and enjoy the many events of SHAG week but its main purpose could not be forgotten. As President of the Students’ Union Jimmy McGovern explained before the week: “We hope that our SHAG Week will encourage NUI Galway students to take a responsible attitude to their sexual health and to be comfortable talking about it. It is vital that such issues are not viewed as embarrassing and that all sexually active students are able to get tested regularly. Last year we secured funding for the free STI Clinic on campus and we encourage all NUI Galway students to use this great facility.”

The training and workshops on offer during SHAG Week included a free disclosure training hosted by Galway Rape Crisis centre. The workshop was aimed at increasing students’ awareness of the causes and effects of sexual violence as well as giving participants the opportunity to practice scenarios involving a disclosure of sexual violence.

Also on offer during SHAG Week were Smart Consent workshops. During the workshop students’ were able to delve into the concept of consent and what it really means in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Without such a week and the organisation of the Students’ Union its likely even less students would truly understand how to give consent and what is not consent.

SIN spoke to one of the attendees of the Smart Consent workshop, Students’ Union Equality Officer Megan Reilly, to hear how she found the event: “I would have thought that I already held sufficient knowledge surrounding Consent, but having attended the workshop I have learned a great deal more. There was a great quote from the workshop ‘sex is optional, consent is mandatory’. I think this is something everyone should keep in mind.”

Reilly also expressed how open and friendly the workshop was; “The Smart Consent Workshops are run in a way that is very interactive and memorable. It was a great addition to SHAG Week as it opened up the conversation around sex, further breaking down the taboo which will hopefully lead to more conversations about consent.”

The Equality Officer definitely recognised the benefit of such training and workshops, encouraging students to attend similar events in the future; “I think everyone should do one of the workshops!”

It was certainly a week of success, with lots of fun and most importantly more talk of sex, consent and staying safe.

Interactive Map to be launched to help NUI Galway students find their way

By Ferghus O’Donoghue Meryem Crehan, Kevin Cusack and Barry Murphy, three second-year Computer Science mature students, are currently developing a webpage which will help students (particularly newcomers) find their way around the campus, by interactively navigating their way around the campus.

The team was put together by Kevin for a class project, and the idea was put forward by Meryem.

The project was started last year, according to Barry, but the team started working in earnest last semester. Meryem is responsible for the directions given in the app and the involved diagrams.

Barry is using a program called Unity to put together and design the map. Kevin is doing the pivotal work to fix efforts together- working with HTML code, and a program called Meteor, an updated form of old but

standard software.

Students will be able to use drop-down lists (or typing) to specify where they are and where they want to get to, and the webpage will display a route from building to building along with a list of directions, which will further describe how to reach a particular room or lecture theatre within a building.

Students will also be able to leave messages at buildings- a bit like apps such as Yelp - which other students will be able to view.

“Say you want to go to IT250, then all of a sudden there’s a fire…

It’s actually of use,” Kevin explained.

“I don’t know if any [universities] go into as much depth as we do, specifically looking for students,” Barry said, indicating the program to be tailored to students, though it is also open to use by anyone.

When asked if they believed the idea would spread to other universities, Kevin said it depended on a

few factors.

“It depends on what size the university is. They all have some form of it, it’s just that this one’s a lot more user friendly.”

“None of us have ever actually worked on anything quite as practical as this, so it’s new territory,” Barry explains when asked about the difficulties of the project.

“You’ll have five or six different types of systems going into it. There’s quite a bit of troubleshooting.”

Regardless, the three students are adamant that the program will serve its purpose well. Meryem added that there would be people from the Blackstone Launchpad initiative attending the class when all groups are required to present their projects - could it be that this interactive map will have more life in it than its creators suspect?

The webpage is set to come out around April, and will be available to use both on mobile and computer.

CÚRAM becomes partner in research consortium 3D-NEO-NET

By Grace O’Doherty NUIG-based CÚRAM, the National Centre for Research in Medical Devices, has joined new international research consortium 3D-NEO-NET. The consortium consists of nine academic and nine commercial institutions from across Europe, who will be working in partnership to develop treatments for cancer and eye disease.

The Drug Discovery & Delivery Network for Oncology and Eye Therapeutics (3D- NEO-NET) will receive €945,000 in funding over the next four years under the EU Horizon 2020 programme Marie Sklodowska-Curie Research and Innovation Staff Exchange (MSCA-RISE). 3D-NEO-NET will facilitate staff exchanges among

the participating organisations which can last from one month to one year, in order to promote the sharing of knowledge and to provide skilled training for those involved. UCD, Trinity College Dublin, and Queens University Belfast are also partners in the programme, alongside Irish companies Vornia and ICR-FireCrest.

According to Associate Professor in the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science and Fellow of THE Conway Institute Dr Breandán Kennedy, who will be leading the consortium, the project will address issues facing research and innovation in Europe such as graduate employment, the utilization of new technology and experienced staff in SMEs, and the unnecessary doubling up of resources.

The Scientific Director of CÚRAM Professor Abhay Pandit said: “We are delighted to be part of this consortium and we hope that the continued sharing of expertise and knowledge will lead to efficient translation of research results that benefit the patient as well as upskilling Irish researchers involved in developing the next generation of medical devices.”

Spanish company ZeClinics will exchange staff with CÚRAM at NUI Galway. The CEO of ZeClinics Dr. Javier Terriente said: “We are eager to share our experience in drug discovery with top students in the ocular and oncology fields. For ZeClinics students, it will be great to learn from the best minds in these relevant therapeutic areas.”

New site created by TG4 and NUI Galway to help Irish students

By Amy McMahon TG4 has been working with NUI Galway to create a new site called TG4 Foghlaim for secondary level students preparing for their Leaving Certificate Irish Oral Examinations. It is an innovative and attractive new audiovisual resource website targeted specifically to help students. It is available at www.tg4.ie/ foghlaim.

The famous Donegal ‘Colscaradh’ poet Pádraig Mac Suibhne officially launched the event on the 2 February 2017 in Áras na nGaeilge, NUI Galway. Mac Suibhne was joined by

TG4 presenter Fiona Ní Fhlatharta and TG4’s Deputy CEO, Pádhraic Ó Ciardha. CEO of Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge Dónall Ó Braonán also attended along with Leaving Certificate students from Coláiste na Coiribe, Gaillimh.

Seeing as the Oral Exam is worth 40% of the overall grade for Irish, TG4 aimed to create a site that is focused and well-informed to assist students in performing to their highest standard.

The free site is designed to help both students and teachers to engage with audio-visual content and downloadable lesson plans.

Other learners of all levels and ages, both nationally and internationally, are also encouraged to avail of the website free of charge to improve their oral Irish fluency.

TG4 Foghlaim has ensured to include all three dialects on the site. It also offers visual interpretations of the poetry set for the Oral Exam, as well as feature video profiles of the five poets who composed the works in question to aid students grasps a better understanding of the meaning behind the poetry on their course.

TG4’s Deputy CEO Pádhraic Ó Ciardha has revealed that this project has

been the result of regular and increasing feedback from both teachers and students over recent years: “We are delighted to launch this important and highly visual project which illustrates the importance that TG4 places on the development of Irish throughout the world.”

CEO of Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, Dónall Ó Braonáin, points to the relevance of the project: “It is terrific that Leaving Certificate students and teachers will benefit directly from leading research in language acquisition through first-class learning resources.”

GNÉ -ALTANNA

February 28 2017

Trump talk

By Heather Robinson In a recent scandal that aired on the weekend of the great American Super bowl, Trump was interviewed by Bill O’Reilly on Fox News regarding Mr Putin. The interviewer implied that Putin was “a killer” and Trump replied “We have a lot of killers. Well, you think our country is so innocent?”

Maybe this has gone a little over my head but the massive backlash Trump suffered for this remark from the media seemed a bit sour and untoward, in my opinion.

Trump is renowned for saying outrageous things and for speaking his mind. Everything he says is stark and unfluffed. He is offensive to the

ears, the eyes and the soul. Everyone knows this.

Despite disagreeing with him on many things, you must admire his penchant for straight talking and for not wasting time. Trump doesn’t bother with niceties. So why did the media react with such scorn? Is it because what he said was true and it hit Americans where it hurt? Or does it have something to do with the general attitude Trump evokes from the media – rebel and resist every one of his actions even if he’s making rational and good decisions?

I’m not writing with a pro-Trump objective, I am simply acknowledging that there is no absolutism in good and evil. Mr Trump cannot be all evil, as Obama was not inherently all good. You cannot report objectively on Trump with a grudge behind every sentence. People just don’t like him and they are bitter over losing a president like Obama, who was funny and kind and well liked by people in other countries besides America.

I can’t comprehend why people are shocked by his admission that America has “a lot of killers”.

He wasn’t saying it to condone the behaviour of Mr Putin, he was being - can I dare say it - diplomatic. Trump has not been quiet about his intentions to improve relations between Moscow and the United States. He doesn’t want to be at war with Russia. He hasn’t stated that he will rescind the sanctions made for Russia’s actions in eastern Ukraine but he has made a statement where he promises to help restore peace along the border. So when Trump responded to Mr O’Reilly’s question about respecting a man who has murdered people, Trump basically said ‘Who are we to judge? We’re the pot calling the kettle black!’

America is definitely not the role model it says it is. America is a country founded on brutality and murder. For decades they’ve shrouded their debauchery in language laden with national pride, a sense of honour, entitlement and moral obligation. They’ve done really bad things but

they talked about it with such self-importance, you could be fooled into thinking their actions honorable. Take the glorification of savagery in the movie American Sniper. This film glossed over the realities of war and the hand US troops played in Iraq to make something sensational and patriotic.

When Trump says that there are murderers living in the United States, he’s not excusing the behaviour of Mr Putin. His words are plain and to the point and his meaning even plainer. As the president he is more likely privy to certain information that the public is not. He is acknowledging that his country does not uphold itself to the moral code it advertises but he is also not

criticising that fact. A strong moral compass is not part of his agenda for making America great again. When Trump made his remark in the interview on Fox News, he was letting it be known that brutality was not an issue he was concerned with.

DIARY OF A FINAL YEAR: what do you want to be when you grow up?

By Caoimhe Tully Remember when we were eight years old and the teacher would ask the class what we were going to be when we grew up?

The majority were going to have secure, mostly public service jobs. “I’m going to be a teacher/doctor/Garda,” they’d announce, with a sure smile, as they dropped their colouring pencils to think of the nice pension plan that lay ahead in sixty years’ time.

Next, there would be a solid show of hands for fireman, singer, ballerina and vet.

Then, came the two dreamers. One would be sitting at the front of the class, shouting about how they were going to be “The President of The United States”, even though we were in a small school in a rural town in Ireland.

The other, was me.

“I am going to be a mother, or a writer... Or both,” I would say, my cheeks burning as 24 pairs of eyes would turn towards me and my unpopular dream.

The other day, I had a reflective hungover moment at The Yellow Thing on campus, where I realised I only have half a semester of college left – and my answer is still the same. Eighteen years of education, and I haven’t changed my mind.

Now, I am a Cancer, so I’m naturally stubborn – but I think the fact that I haven’t changed my mind on this one has to be talked about. Have you a couple of minutes? Could we talk about it? Thanks.

Oh, you want me to lie down and talk about my childhood?

Okay, well I think I can blame Mammy Tull-

Meister for a lot of this (what kind of Irish Mammy would she be if she didn’t get the blame for almost everything?). Mammy Tull-Meister is a beautiful, all-knowing being, you see. She is grace incarnate.

So, I suppose it’s only normal that when I was a little girl, I wanted to be “Mammy Tull-Meister, new and improved millennial version, with real live baby instead of sticky Baby Born” when I grew up.

But I’m not entirely sure what the writer dream was created from. Perhaps it came from a muddle of Roald Dahl books, a fascination with people, and the fact I received fancy stationery for every birthday or Christmas present ever (I still do). Perhaps Mammy Tull-Meister read too many Maeve Binchy books when she was expecting me.

Look, I don’t know. We could be here all day trying to figure it out, and I know you don’t have that kind of time. I know you’re busy studying to be/being a teacher, nurse, computer engineer, or maybe you really did become the President of the USA (Obama, Trump - I know you read my articles…).

Anyway, the point is, I haven’t changed my mind. And I don’t need to. What needs to change, is the question.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” is a future orientated question - and the future can be a magically dazzling place of possibilities.

Or it can be a frighteningly uncertain place, for those of us whose career choices mightn’t be as straightforward as others.

So, instead of asking ourselves what we want to be, maybe it’s time start to ask how we want to be.

I want to be happy, and writing makes me happy. How about you?

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6 F E AT UR E S

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

California Dreamin’

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Another exciting two weeks have passed as spring has sprung in California. I have walked across the Golden Gate Bridge (which is in fact red). I’ve seen sea lions piled on top of one another at Pier 39, I’ve experienced the excitement of the Super bowl and I’ve attended a college basketball game that nearly had me off my feet shouting ‘What team?!’, mirroring a certain musical.

We are already over half way through our first ‘quarter semester’ at UC Irvine, California. I forgot that I wasn’t just here for a sun holiday and have been reminded by the murmuring echoes in the halls that ‘exams’ have begun. Nevertheless, exams aren’t a part of the weekend and I’ve had time to explore, observe and experience life in America.

As I entered the ‘supermarket’, I noticed something was somewhat different. Crisps, Nachos and ‘sodas’ were at every shop corner accompanied by a banner that informed an outsider, the Super Bowl was coming. After watching the Super Bowl for the first time, I’m wondering how short of an attention spam America believes the nation has.

There were advertisements so often, I’m not sure whether I learnt more about American football or how Pepsi can ‘refresh your world’. I compared this national event to the All-Ireland Final, and wondered how the Irish would react if Lady Gaga performed at half time in Croke Park…

Despite the questionable relevance of the materialistic aspects of the event, it was a great game; its greatness was completed by free pizza. The supermarkets are now decorated in red with Valentines’ Day balloons, teddies, cards, and chocolates. I’m beginning to realise that every national holiday and event here is an excuse to spend money.

UCI held a basketball game last week that confirmed the movies aren’t over-exaggerating the team spirit in American games; in fact, they underexaggerate it. Even if you don’t like basketball, I don’t think anyone couldn’t enjoy this event.

There were cheerleaders, dancers, an orchestra, flashing lights and dancing mascots. Free stuff fell from the sky in mini parachutes and pizza was given to whoever danced the best in the crowd.

There was a massive screen replaying every score and fun activities to get the crowd involved in.

I found myself amazed at the preparation that must go into every game, and also shocked at my eager reaction as I tried to catch any of the free stuff thrown into the crowd. The crowd roared

‘ZOT, ZOT, ZOT’ when UCI scored. Our team won and I’ve never felt such a vibrant upbeat atmosphere at a game with beating drums and cheering cheerleaders.

Apart from watching sporting events, I’ve dined on the rooftop of a fancy restaurant in LA, but I’ve also witnessed streets with hundreds of tents on them where the homeless call a ‘home’. The sun has been shining brightly on many days and it’s been pouring rain on others. I’ve danced to Turkish pop, and united with fellow Irish students chanting the Rubber Bandits ‘Horse Outside’ to a very confused international crowd. It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride so far, and with Las Vegas awaiting me next week? I expect no different.

UC Irvine basketball fans showing their support courtside. Photo: UC Irvine Athletics

Confessions of a provisional driver

By Aisling Bonner From what I can imagine, graduating is a funny thing. You leave four years of study behind and replace it with a dramatic cape, a dubiously symbolic hat and a scroll. But not even. You don’t even get to keep the cape and hat. What kind of deal is that?

From what I have learned from my graduate friends, you also leave without a clue – a notion – of where in the name of God to go from here. I have felt like this for the past 2 months since graduating from The School of Trying not to Die. The School of Perpetual Terror. More commonly known as driving lessons.

There’s one thing worse than having the fear and that’s when you think the fear has a scent.

When you think that every car you pass and

every passenger you carry can smell the fear wafting from your very core. You know what effect this has? It increases the fear.

One such group that I know can smell it is the Guards. Every time one passes, I seize-up, and do something ridiculous like beeping, flashing, or turning on the hazard lights for no reason whatsoever. It’s as if I am expecting them to expect me to malfunction in some way. And of course, I’d hate to disappoint their expectations.

The reason why my response to spotting the Guards on the road is so irrational is because I’m never in a position to be justifiably afraid.

My trusty mother by my side, I couldn’t be any more law-abiding if I tried. But once that hint of neon yellow enters my periphery I’m looking at my mam quizzically and drafting some ridiculous subplot in my head that involves her not having a licence, NCT or road tax. I mean I’ve never asked, but I’m pretty sure I’m wrong.

Last week, I came up close and personal with, not one Garda, but two Nnnyardeee. So there I am, a TGIF kind of night, driving a few friends home from a trip to Eddie Rockets.

Elbow-deep in a self-inflicted burger-garlic-chip-and-Oreomilkshake-coma my mobility and reactivity is… compromised, to say the least.

I spot it well in advance, that familiar neon shade, interspersed with flashing blue – my first checkpoint. Oh, boy. I frantically whip around, just to make doubly, triply sure that my licence holding friend (who I’m actually in conversation with) is definitely, definitely still in the car. I secretly lock the doors from the inside as there’s a good chance he might hop out just to watch me sweat. My brain is abuzz with controls. Gear. Breaking. Breaking. Gear. DIP THE HEADLIGHTS, shit. Breaking. Breaking.

“Eh Ais, you should probably turn the music off”.

“WHAT?” The surround sound function of my brain powers on again and I remember that my friend has just put on Big Sean’s ‘I Don’t F*** With You’ on full volume. I mean, the title is appropriate, depending on how you look at it, but the chorus of the song makes it harder to see that perspective. In a desperate attempt to turn down the volume, my friend, who clearly can’t tell the difference between a plus and a minus, cranks it up a several notches.

Is it too late to pull a U-turn? Would it really be that incriminating? I’ll never know because the answer to the first question was yes. When you’re feet away from the two Nnnyardeee, it is definitely too late to pull a U-turn. With a wince that says ‘I’m sorry my friends are idiots and I’m sorry for overdoing it with the Oreo milkshake. I’m just a stupid ass b*tch who wants to get her degree’, he lets me pass.

Big mistake Mr Garda, the neon fear has been faced and conquered.

Well, until the next checkpoint.

GNÉ -ALTANNA

February 28 2017

7

Is the future of film online? Selfies and self-worth

By Heather Robinson Six film and TV studios, all members of the Motion Picture Association, are suing Irish internet service providers (ISPs) for allowing access to websites that illegally stream films and TV shows. Eircom, Sky and Virgin are just some under fire for this alleged offence which says that nearly 1.3 million people in Ireland have viewed content online on an unauthorised platform. Illegally downloading or streaming movies is wrong, but a giant lawsuit is not going to solve the problem.

Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros Entertainment and Disney Enterprises are three of the well known studios taking legal action in Commercial Court. These studios claim that online streaming has cost them “hundreds of millions annually” according to an article in The Irish Times and people have lost their jobs as a result. It is clearly a huge problem for the film industry. How can the integrity of film be maintained when Johnny from next door knows a guy who does pirate copies of the latest blockbusters?

But is a lawsuit against ISPs really going to help in the long-term? How is it going to deter people from getting what they want – which is to simply watch a movie. The studios may win the suit, they may receive a nice settlement, the problem may be quashed for a short time... but it will surely sprout back up again in an uglier and harder to defeat form. There will always be people who can find a way around it. Rather than fighting fire with fire, they should learn to understand the reasons people turn to online streaming sites for their TV shows and movie nights.

Simply put, it’s really easy to do. To go online and click into a reliable video host and watch ten episodes of your favourite show is really, really easy. Some websites don’t have pesky ads like watching a real television, you can pause and play when you like and watch however much as you please. This is also precisely the same reason people pay for Netflix subscriptions.

If the content was so readily available in first air. If people waited for it to show great quality and for a small fee, no-one on RTÉ after seeing the trailers on Youwould mind paying for it. The attitude Tube and accidentally spoiling plotlines here behind the lawsuit is that people are for themselves through social media, too cheap to buy the DVD or to go to the the industry would die. Because no-one cinema. This is not a true representation would wait that long. They’d forget about of online streamers. it and move onto something else. StreamFilm and TV trailers are released ing online has been a revitalisation for TV months before the airdate. People are shows, it’s becoming more popular than teased and excited for movies long before the film world. they come to the cinemas. But people also If Netflix was granted the rights to air live busy lives and getting to the cinema more content that people really want to can be difficult. Maybe the show times watch, or if these film studios provided don’t suit your work schedule and the some online platform for their own protraffic is too bad in the evenings. Maybe ductions, streaming poor quality episodes you hate cinemas. Once it leaves the big online would become a thing of the past. screen, it takes a further several few Imagine a Paramount Pictures subscripmonths for the DVD to be released and tion site that allowed you to watch any who wants to pay twenty euro for some- of their films whenever you wanted a lá thing you mightn’t enjoy? If you are a Netflix. Imagine if these sites were availcinema snob, you may only watch films able to people in Ireland. I’m aware that if the surroundings are to your liking; services like this exist, but everyone has the lighting has to be a certain way, the experienced the frustration of trying to screen a particular size and you might use them and discovering that it’s impostravel longer distances to go to a cinema sible for copyright issues. plex that caters to your desires. There There is a long term solution to online are real cinephiles who are like this and streaming and squeezing our Internet they will not go to the omniplex down providers for money is not going to work. the road just because it’s more conveni- The glamour of the film industry should ent or cheaper if the screens aren’t up be restored through investing in our cineto scratch. mas and providing better services online.

The quality of cinemas should be A sly lawsuit tarnishes the integrity of enhanced as a positive step towards stop- film more than these streaming sites do. ping online streaming. A cinephile can create their perfect environment at home, but if it’s already there for them, they won’t have any problem paying for a ticket. There are other variables too that may encourage someone to watch things online.

Why did streaming TV The MPA is comprised of Walt Disney become a trend in the Studios Motion Pictures, Paramount first place? Most AmeriPictures Corporation, Sony Pictures can produced TV shows Entertainment Inc., Twentieth Century Fox are not available in IreFilm Corporation, Universal City Studios land readily, sometimes LLC, and Warner Bros Entertainment Inc. not for years after they

By Aoife O Donoghue Not so long ago, I found myself in a funny kind of situation, but not the funny ‘haha’ kind. It was a funny, makes your insides squirm kind. And the thing was, it wasn’t the situation itself, but my reaction to it that made me feel this way. See, I am in a Facebook group chat full of boys, because they just happen to be some of my best friends. They talk about football and send stupid memes and generally I just laugh at them. But recently, a screenshot of a girl’s Instagram picture was taken and it was sent to our chat. She was beautiful and things were said about her. Some of them nice, some of them… not so much.

You would think my immediate reaction would be to say “that’s disgusting”, or “I don’t think she asked for your opinion”, but no. For some reason, my first thought was; “Why don’t they think those things about me?” followed by “I bet no one would ever send my photo to their group chat.” And then I realised what I was saying to myself and I was horrified. I was asking to be objectified, to be sized up and approved of by some lads, like I couldn’t determine my own self-worth. That is not me, I don’t do that. I am strong and independent and above such ridiculousness.

Aren’t I? Since that incident, I have caught myself so many times in acts of shallowness: “Christ, she got 100 likes on her Instagram, I only ever get about 30” … “I can’t believe he didn’t like my profile picture” … and I have to check myself every single time, remind

myself of who I am, and what I stand for, because, it certainly isn’t this. What is it that makes me think this way? Whose approval am I seeking? Do we all feel like this? At times I feel like I’m stuck in a Louise O’Neill novel. This is the age of the selfie, the swipe right culture, the rat race for Insta-worthy ‘perfection’ and I sometimes I fear I’m going to get lost in it.

Every day, on my phone, on my laptop, on my TV, there are images of women with bronzed skin and endless legs and perfect faces. Mostly, I admire them but some days I envy them because I will never look like that. At those times, I have to remind myself that I look like me and that’s okay, because it’s just the way I’m supposed to look. I’m 5’5” and have the short legs that goes with it, my top is totally out of proportion to my bottom, I have weird slanted shoulders and tiny thumbs. I also have bright eyes and a warm smile and shiny hair. They are parts of me.

But I am more than just a collection of mismatched body parts. I am hot-headed and warm-hearted. I am brilliant at English, terrible at Maths.

I’m awful at sports, yet I love my job in a sports shop. I sing in the shower, smile at babies and hug my mother constantly. I am all these things and a million more. We define ourselves and we determine our own value. We do not need to focus on physical appearance and social media popularity as the determining factors of our lives, to be decided by people on the outside looking in, even if some days it feels like that.

So let go of conventions and expectations. Make mistakes, make memories and be your own person, not who you think people want you to be.

Because boys will take screenshots of girls and girls will do the same to boys and they will all make comments.

They don’t decide our worth.

Do celebrities have a political duty?

By Amy McMahon Following Lady Gaga’s phenomenal performance at Super Bowl 51 in Texas, the world criticised the singer songwriter as she did not give a strong political statement during her time on stage. This begs the question do performers have to front their political opinions and views? Is it part of the job description now?

For those of you that stayed up until the early hours to watch Lady Gaga’s halftime show, you would’ve seen acrobatic suspension tricks, intense dance routines and faultless vocals. So why has the world focused not on the amazing performance, but on the politics? Some say Gaga did in fact subtly make a stand on stage by performing the gay anthem “Born This Way”. It was arguably the very first time the Super Bowl halftime show has featured a line like “no matter gay, straight or bi, lesbian, transgendered life” in history and seeing as the Vice President, Mike Pence, has made his anti-gay views very clear, she was indeed making a political stance in that sense.

However, was there any need? The Super Bowl was a night of celebration for the Patriots, yet the media heavily focused Lady Gaga’s political, or non-political depending on how you view it, performance. Should artists make a stand and use their platform at every opportunity, or should they leave it to the politicians?

For instance take the Women’s March on Washington - Taylor Swift tweeted her support but did not attend the march and the internet went into a frenzy, complaining about the ‘so-called feminist’ not being there. An article in Forbes even announced the “line-up” of celebrities that confirmed they would attend the Women’s March, as if it were a festival. At the end of the day celebrities are just people and it’s likely that Swift, and other A-listers, could’ve had a prior arrangement on the day, but with her ever-growing following, some say she had a duty to attend. Others even argued that Swift can’t just decide when and when not to be feminist.

Undeniably it is terrific when a demonstration like the Women’s March gets so much publicity and celebrity endorsement. Most celebrities are actually skilled public speakers and often share their political views. President Donald Trump has definitely fuelled many celebrities to act more frequently including Lady Gaga who took to Trump Towers in protest the day he was elected. But where does their duty as a singer or actor end and the new role of politician begin?

Award shows also highlight this phenomenon. For example, Leonardo Dicaprio delivered a speech on the increasing threat of global warming at the 2016 Academy Awards. After years and years of nominations and endless waiting for the moment to finally claim an Oscar as his own, he used his acceptance speech to address a political issue. Knowing the significance of his win, he opted to share the limelight with a cause close to his heart rather than hogging all the glory.

Meryl Streep is another legendary celebrity that used her opportunity to deliver a speech at the Golden Globes this year to subtly attack President Donald Trump for six full minutes.

Trump retaliated with a tweet saying “Meryl Streep, one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood, doesn’t know me but attacked last night at the Golden Globes. She is a Hilary flunky who lost big”.

Is there any need to use award shows to highlight political concerns when they were initially introduced to celebrate the arts? Maybe celebrities should partake in press conferences instead.

I completely agree that they should use their platforms and millions of supporters to try to make a difference in the world. However, I’m not so sure that it is a necessity for all performers to have strong political views and furthermore act on them. In the past celebrities have always crossed over and dabbled in politics but is it time to leave it to the professionals? Sometimes a performance should just be a performance.

8 FE AT UR E S

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

Making the most of the final few weeks

By Aileen O’Leary Whether you’re looking to get back on track, start revising early, or just trying to make the most of these last few weeks at college, I’ve got five tips on staying organised and getting the most out of this last stretch of the semester. I’ve narrowed down the best ways to stay on top of college work, without making your social life suffer too much in the process.

Make a plan Every year I promise myself I’ll never let my studies pile up until the last week of college, and every year without fail I turn into a stressed out, caffeine-fuelled mess during study week. My advice to avoid the chaos is to make a plan early in the semester before the end of lectures so you can start revising as soon as possible. If like me you’ve got less than five hours a day in college, maybe head to the reading room after lectures and start looking over those notes, make a timetable and stick to it. Don’t overload your timetable and balance out your days to avoid work overload.

Stay active One of the worst things that can happen during the last few weeks is spending all your time inside and not getting some fresh air. If you’re sitting in a chair

all day or slumped over a desk, you’re going to tire out more quickly than someone who takes a break and goes for a walk. By stepping away from the work, you can clear your head and get a better perspective on things. If the weather is miraculously great, I’d suggest taking a stroll out to Salthill with some friends, but don’t ignore your work for the day. Take a break but don’t forget to go back and finish what you started.

Get out I’m not condoning going on the tear every night and staying in bed watching Jeremy Kyle as ‘the cure’ for it, but give yourself a break. Maybe go out once or twice a week on a Monday and a Thursday, but don’t go too wild - you still want to make those lectures for the last few weeks. At the end of the day though, college isn’t just about the academics. This is your time to go out and experience new things after all, so if you’ve had enough of hitting the books for the week don’t feel you can’t head to SULT or the Skeff for a bit of socialising.

Take care of yourself The worst thing you could do over the next few weeks is neglect your own health and wellbeing, so maybe ordering Chinese twice a week could be replaced by cooking a veggie stir fry instead. Or try swapping out

white pasta for whole grain or just adding in a few extra veggies to your dinner. Sweet potato fries go great with Cajun chicken and you can add in some mixed veggies like roasted peppers or green beans for colour. If you find yourself snacking a lot, swap out the sweets for fruit but be careful because fruit can be like sweets, it contains natural sugars, so just be mindful of portion control. Things like a small lunch box of grapes and some crackers with peanut butter will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Also up the H2o intake instead of sports drinks or energy drinks while you study and go for water or herbal tea to keep you alert.

Enjoy it These are your last few weeks in college before a long summer off so make the most of it. Get out of the house and get to see the best parts of the city. I’d highly recommend going to Dough Bros or giving that restaurant you’ve always wanted to try a go. Take a stroll down Salthill to the diving boards at Blackrock, take a spin out to Connemara or maybe head to the Roisín for the silent disco. Try and catch a gig in Monroes or try the cocktail menu in the Skeff. Take this time to enjoy yourself most of all, because college is short, and for a lot of us it flies by. We have the rest of our lives to be stressed out working around the clock and this is the time we have to be a bit more care-free, so make the most of it.

Lent: were you a sweet slacker or a hardcore hoarder?

By Brigid Fox Ah, remember Lent as a child? Forty gruelling days of being apart from your beloved confectionary and

spending your time missing everything from rich tea biscuits to chocolate layered cake. All this build up just for one Easter Sunday where you can guiltily eat copious amounts of chocolate and no one can say anything (even

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though your family probably told you to be quiet after you complained about a sore stomach shortly after). Ah yes, Lent was truly a magical time. Reflecting on my childhood experience it seems that lent took two forms when it came to how people treated it; the slackers and the hoarders.

First, the slackers. These were the sort of kids who didn’t really consider Nutella sandwiches “chocolate” and actively sought out birthday parties and special occasions during the Lent season just to try and get away with a sneaky packet of Mighty Munch here and there.

With that, Sundays were met with the demolishment of all confectioneries left in the house from the week prior. These were also the kids who were inclined to segregate their sweetish sacrifices into different junk food categories just so they wouldn’t have to give up everything they hold dear just for one Easter Egg; “This year it’s Tayto crisps, the next year I’ll give up Cadbury’s Chocolate!” Slackers never took Lent too seriously and they always seemed to “accidently” forget the occasion all together when someone whipped out a box of Roses...

(I was that child).

This is followed by the hardcore hoarders, the extremists, the ‘so determined to make it to Easter they hide all the sweets they get in an empty biscuit tin’ sort of people. Their commitment was praised by aunts and uncles across the country only rendering their battle more necessary. These were the same people who didn’t even take Sunday as a day of rest. Sundays were for the slackers. Their determination rendered them triumphant when they produced the biggest and fullest box of hoarded sweets at the Easter Sunday dinner table. Quite an achievement if you ask me.

Deciding your team was pretty simple, like a game of poker you were either all in or all out. Choosing which side also made a large impact on how your Easter Sunday would plan out. For the slackers, it was no big deal you would’ve probably had chocolate the day previous to that anyways. Parents care less with slackers because they knew you weren’t in the game to win, you were there to have a good time (and maybe get a good Easter Egg).

But for those who have been waiting for that Sunday for forty days and forty nights the chocolate feast was a celebration of their achievements and were most likely awarded with an amazingly crafted Easter egg, followed by a Crème Egg mug (is it just me or does every house in Ireland have one of those?) Unfortunately, all of that effort was often met with a sick stomach and even puking as your system couldn’t handle the chocolate overload for every meal of the day.

No matter what side you were on I think we can all agree Lent was a pretty rough time as a kid and whether you still end up doing its traditions or not, no matter what, we always have Pancake Tuesday to look forward to!

SIN Resurrections: Birthday Parties

By Heather Robinson

We were invited to all kinds of birthday parties when we were growing up! They were fun, there was always loads of cake and even your biggest enemies in the classroom became your best friend if you invited them to your birthday party. As fledgling adults we’re facing into 30 odd years of marquee-DJ-same-old-thing birthday parties before finally giving up.

The kinds of parties you had as a kid aren’t just for children and you definitely haven’t grown out of them. It’s time to resurrect birthday parties!

The Bowling Party There was always one kid who needed the bowling ball ramp and everyone needed the safety barriers – let’s be honest. The Planet do student specials on Tuesdays and Thursdays where you buy a pint for a free game. Bowling is way more fun than you probably remember, especially when you can get a group together for a few drinks and a friendly to-the-death match!

The Cinema Party

Birthday person always chose the movie and you would all get dressed up for the party at the cinema. Shake up your average movie night and get your friends to celebrate your birthday at the cinema. Be like kids again and buy the popcorn and drinks and go to McDonald’s for food and cake after.

The Bouncing Castle Party

Who said it’s only for children and middle aged adults? Organise a real classic party with lots of balloons, some party games and a bouncing castle if you have the space for it. Or get an entertainer… you don’t have to get a clown anymore, entertainers come in all varieties these days so use your imagination and get what you want.

The Sleepover

Real sleepovers back in the day consisted of all-nighters, movie marathons running in the background, junk food and all your best friends sitting together talking. Sure you might do this with your roommates regularly, but what if you invited other friends too?

Microwave some popcorn, paint your nails, play Xbox all night, make beds on the floor with pillows and blankets.

You can add some adult beverages to the menu to spice things up. Why don’t we do sleepovers like this anymore?

The Day-out Party

Was it to the circus? Or did you go GoKarting? Organise a real day out for your birthday party and let it be different to the usual kind. People take holidays for their birthdays, or go to gigs. What’s to stop you from trying something new?

GNÉ -ALTANNA

February 28 2017

9

ILL-INFORMED: Building your own empire

By Jennifer O’Connor There are hopeless moments that seep through the positivity of our college lives – no one can deny that. Such moments do not skip anyone. I try to remember this whenever I feel anxious walking past Smokey’s, where I imagine everyone turns their heads and takes more notice of me than they likely do. Perhaps that girl with the pastel jumper I couldn’t afford from Topshop is struggling to stay smiling for her own reasons. Some days it is easier to be generous than others, so I will not lie that I used to purposely withhold the benefit of the doubt from people, just to be as cruel as I view life at any given moment.

Recently, I and a few of my friends attended what will be our last Arts Ball, as we’re now halfway through our final semester as undergrads. If you haven’t attended a college ball, I’ll paint the scene for you. Everyone shimmers and glitters - even the

boys in their suits seem to gleam a little more than usual. The ballroom is backlit with pink and peach lights that makes everything rose-tinted and warm. There is beauty there, that is true. But what I see too is all the usual tinges of grey that affect my enjoyment of any night out. Everything is loud and everyone wobbles. I spot two girls crying on the floor of the lobby and I pass a boy who drops his drink, laughing when the glass shatters.

Since depression first took hold of me and spawned other mental illnesses, I have been privy to a horrifyingly unaltered view of those around me.

I will lie to no one about my past with mental illness, nor will I speak as though ashamed. I was mentally unwell during my first year at NUI Galway and several years preceding it, and the onset of my physical illnesses.

These years should be described as hell, but truly, I can feel nothing as I look back at a time when I forced myself to visit the Student Health

Unit and immediately lost my voice when asked to describe my anxiety and depression. When the nurse wrapped me in a blanket and told me to take a moment to breathe, I felt nothing. Perhaps this was because there was only a hollowness which became a vacuum for drunken nights out and damaging behaviours. That hollowness remains, only now I fill it with different things.

By being empty of any emotion worth preserving, I was starting from the ground up, as a mass of untapped potential for positivity. I was a plot of land where my empire would grow into the vision I had long since imagined to be impossible.

It was not easy. My body ached with every rung of the ladder that recovery forced me to climb. I lost conscious awareness of who I was and became dissociative. This is not being lost in a fog. Instead, you become the fog - everywhere and nowhere, never fully intact.

If you are mentally unwell, now is the time to get specific about the situation at hand. You can dance in your mind and deny yourself from using the words that seem to be a condemnation rather than a proclamation of the foundations for your Empire.

Depression. Anxiety. Eating disorder. Suicidal. These are words which I once viewed as an irate God, in charge of my life. These words danced in my mind as diagnoses of my inability to love or be loved and my ineptitude for all things social. These words were puppeteers in every situation that required a light and breezy answer.

Strings would pull against my cheeks and I would smile. I will not tell you that I cut such strings and alas, I was magically mentally well. Instead, as the puppet, I looked up at my dictators and saw my own reflection staring back. Blue eyes, pale skin, uneven lips - identical.

This was the liberating factor: I hold the strings of my own recovery.

I hold the strings of whom is worthy of my love, including myself. At this realisation, the foundations of my Empire fell and fused with my mind.

Now, my life was taking on the likeness of the goodness I deserved. Since then, such foundations have become glorious and my life is my life. I am solid now, never again to be fog.

Should you feel as though your very being is fading into the air around you, and your lungs are decreasing in size, all you need is within your grasp. To build your empire you do not need to work alone, but rather with a team of people whom are only ever five minutes away. Contact the Student Health Unit. Cry or became silent and stoic. React as you need to and they will aid you with the rest.

There is no other way for a village to become an empire, and you will truly never regret it.

If you’d like to, you’re free to contact me at jenniferpoyntz.wordpress. com

New project to help get students home safely

Giving up looking for love for Lent

Dash officially launched in the Galway city last Thursday the 23rd and will allow students to get taxis even when they have no cash, bank card or phone while ensuring the drivers paid. Dash was invented by NUI Galway Business Information System student Richie Commins. He has since teamed up with 4 other final year students to take the project nationwide.

The team of students have launched a nationwide campaign where they aim to create an invisible network for students all over the country. What started out as just a college project has already launched in Carlow and Cork

By Micaela Depinna

after extensive research and testing in Galway City. Galway is the next stop for the Dash team as they travel the country rapidly making the service available to students nationwide.

Students can sign up for free at www. projectdash.ie, upload an ID photo of themselves, add a bank card to pay for emergency taxis, and create a four-digit pin. The students then simply tell the taxi driver their name and Dash Pin, which allows the driver to check their account on a driver app. The driver then uses the photo to verify the fare, before the app processes the payment upon arrival at the destination.

Richie said: “Since testing the concept in Galway and perfecting it at its simplest form, we look forward to rolling it out city by city till we’ve created a network that helps students, taxis and parents. We have lots of tricks and features up our sleeve and can’t wait to make a few massive announcements over the next few months.

It’s tough work when we have a few assignments to get done but we’re getting there!”

For further information on the initiative visit www.projectdash.ie/ or https://www.facebook.com/projectdash.ie/

So the title of this week’s column might inspire shock in some of you at the mere thought of such a suggestion, but as someone who purposefully steered clear of boys for nearly a full year (pretty sure it was just over 10 months) in a bid to figure out how to be happy being single, let me tell you, it’s not a half bad idea.

For as long as I can remember I’ve been a hopeless romantic, striving to find my person, never happy with the fact that I was single. But spending time focusing just on me was the best thing I’ve ever done (no really, it actually didn’t suck).

It gave me the time to figure out who I wanted to be as a person, not because a boy might find this aspect or that aspect attractive, but because I liked it about me. So, naturally, I bleached half my (very dark brown) hair blonde because I’d always wanted to mess about with hair colours, and I got two more piercings ( just the slightly boring ear kind before anyone gets too excited…) because I really liked the way they looked. I wore the kind of clothes I felt best in, and did my makeup the way I wanted to. I didn’t bother worrying about whether people would think the blonde looked horrible, or whether they would deem a dark burgundy lip too much for a daytime look, because I didn’t care about other people’s opinions of me.

Now of course this indifference to other people’s opinions wasn’t unwavering. An encounter in semester one ruined my 10 month streak of “You

know what? I don’t need a boy, I’m actually happy by myself”. But hey, it was an inevitable occurrence. And I’m not saying that by giving up dating for Lent you’ll be cured of your tendency to be blinded by infatuation, or your tendency to pick the ‘wrong’ one, but you’ll have freed yourself up for a few weeks to focus on figuring out what it is that you actually want, rather than what you find yourself normally going for.

I wish I could tell you that spending time away from boys improved my taste but it really really didn’t.

However, what did improve was my sense of self.

I do not need someone to save me, I can handle life all on my own. Nor am I looking for someone to give me direction, I have plenty of direction, as well as the ambition and drive to get me there. What I want is someone who will be my best friend, who I’m insanely attracted to and vice-versa, and who wants to keep me company on this crazy journey that is life. I am not looking for my other half, because I am whole all by myself - but I’m looking for my person because two awesome people are better than one.

I hope that by challenging yourself to spend these few weeks actively getting to know yourself better that you will come out the other end at Easter with a more solid sense of who you are. A sense of self that may waver, but will never break. Because if you accept this challenge, no matter what happens in the future, you will know undoubtedly who you are and what you want.

10 OPI NI O N

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

EOIN DRONES: open borders and the politics of emotion

By Eoin Molloy As the opposition to President Trump’s sevencountry travel embargo grows ever louder, there are serious aspects of this debate that have gone undiscussed amid the furore. The overriding sentiment of the Trump presidency thus far has been that of border control. From Executive Orders for a ‘big, beautiful wall’ to the so-called ‘Muslim ban’ that is currently being arbitrated in the courts, it would seem as though Trump’s ultimate goal is cracking down on the amount of pesky foreigners in the U.S. As a populist, The Donald adheres to a conception of protectionism that was surely lifted from the Eamonn de Valera governance playbook: How to Decrease GDP and Alienate People. As his pomp and posturing over that darned wall in Doonbeg would surely indicate, Trump believes in barriers. His presidency will be characterised by division, both internal and external. There will

be barriers to the influx of people, to trade, to investment – you name it. From the get go, the message emanating from the White House has been that of America First.

A lot of the discourse on Trump’s immigration policies have been emotional in nature. No one is really discussing the economic implications of restricting access to a country. In a manner similar to Brexit, the widely-resisted travel ban was certainly motivated by xenophobia and a desire to preserve a Trumpian conception of American cultural homogeneity. However, there are other reasons for restricting immigration that may not involve the aforementioned restrictor being a white supremacist, racist and several other words ending in ‘ist’.

In the midst of all of the outraged Guardian opeds, it falls to lowly Sinions like myself to attempt to cut through the noise and provide objective analysis of what I think he is attempting to do here. Trump promised better paying manufacturing jobs. Therefore, it is plausible that his anti-immigration ideology could be borne from the supply-and-demand theory as applied to the labour market.

The logic at play here is that cutting down on the amount of available workers in the economy will result in increased wages for the ‘native’

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workforce – and yes, the irony of using that phrase when talking about American workers is not lost on me. It could be that Trump believes cutting the amount of amenable workers entering the US will result in a jump in wage rates for the disenchanted working class voters who propelled him into the White House in the first place.

As always, there are two schools of thought on this and many economists will refute the theory of supply and demand as applied to labour because ‘work’, as it were, is not a singular commodity but rather varied by its very nature. In the modern world, all workers should be viewed as selling a unique product and open borders enables workers who are skilled in an area to relocate to an area where that skill is most needed. Think of Irish carpenters being enticed away to Canada and Australia in the immediate post-Recession fallout. That being said, it definitely applies to unskilled workers. In a largely rural economy, all labour done by farmhands constitutes a clearly quantifiable commodity as they are all fulfilling the same role.

Had Hillary Clinton have won, she would no doubt have continued Obama’s immigration policies – and she would have done so to endless applause from a fawning media. Ms Clinton, like most other elites, is an ardent advocate for open borders. According to a transcript of a 2013 speech released by WikiLeaks, Clinton is in favour of a ‘hemispheric free market with open borders’ – a NAFTA-esque emulation of the European Union.

A cynic would also observe that Democrats tend to favour naturalising illegal immigrants because it creates ready-made Democratic voters – as they literally owe their right of suffrage to one party, how could they possibly switch affiliations?

Hate speech in ‘Trump’s America’

By Aoife O Donoghue

All disciplines and students are welcome to attend!

Refreshments provided!

APPLICATIONS TO SPEAK BY 20TH MARCH 2017 VIA WEBSITE www.nuigalway.ie/undergrad-research undergradconference@nuigalway.ie

This talk of placing economics ahead of morality is not to be misconstrued, we are all deeply lucky to be born where we were and not in a war-torn hellhole that has become embroiled in a globalised proxy war like Syria has. The western world has worked to help accommodate the embattled refugees of Syria but the relocation of people from one area of the world to another is not a long-term solution – it cannot be. Surely Syrians would rather their own homeland was made safe and prosperous.

The only thing that can be done here is to make Syria, and other embattled regions of the world, safe for their own citizens. It is disingenuous for world leaders like Barack Obama, who himself played a huge role in destabilising Syria, to extend a hand of welcome to the very refugees his policies helped to displace.

The Obama administration were directly involved in funding and training Al-Nusra rebels in the Lebanon. This was done with the aim of undermining and overthrowing Bashar-al-Assad, the strongman dictator who himself owed his position of power to the meddling of colonial powers.

Surely it is the place of no nation to directly or indirectly drum up conflict in far-flung parts of the world, and then castigate other world leaders for not housing the victims of your incessant geopolitical meddling. These are the kind of details we miss when we discuss topics like this in terms of pure morality and emotion.

There is a place for emotional thinking in politics but when you are over 20 trillion dollars in debt (looking at you, America), the bottom line becomes all too important and pure economics must be allowed to dictate most areas of policy.

Last week, a viral post on Facebook told the story of a group of New Yorkers banding together to remove Nazi symbolism and anti-Semitic graffiti from a carriage of a subway train. It was a feel-good story, reminiscent of a ‘Humans of New York’ piece. It was imbued with a sense of solidarity in the face of injustice, a ‘New York Stubbornness’ that would stand in the way of adversity. At the heart of it, however, it is tinged with horror and serves as a damning indictment of aspects of modern American society.

Swastika symbols and phrases like “Jews belong in the oven” are not just offensive, they are hate speech. Hate speech is the advocacy of hatred based on nationality, race or religion and is prohibited under international law. While freedom of speech is protected by Articles 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Article 20.2 of the ICCPR explicitly states that “Any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence shall be prohibited by law.” So anti-Semitic graffiti is not ignorance nor is it defiance. It is a crime.

The Facebook post from whence the story originated made reference to ‘Trump’s America’ and in the context of Trump’s attempted Immigration ban, it is easy to see why this conclusion is reached.

Trump has enabled an atmosphere of intolerance and of narrow-mindedness in the United States,

in which bigots have emerged from the shadows and are attempting to spread their prejudice once again. It was not Trump who took a sharpie to the walls of a subway train, but he has made those that did, feel like they could. There will always be people who are bigoted and intolerant and afraid of what is different to them. The problem is when those people start to feel powerful.

Since the end of the Second World War and the downfall of the Nazi regime, the world worked to become a very different place where the atrocities of the past could never happen again. The creation of the United Nations has spawned countless Human Rights treaties, conventions and declarations that strive to prevent discrimination and injustice. The Security Council is supposed to encourage international cooperation to prevent conflict and war.

After 1945, the world was supposed to see peace. In all honesty, it never truly has. Wars on Terror rage, conflicts continue over race, land and religion. Who knows if it will ever really stop?

While it may seem that the world has become desensitised to the chaos around it, the act of someone drawing a swastika on a New York train made people stop and think. We don’t know if conflict will ever truly end, but as long as it doesn’t stop, we shouldn’t stop either. Hate speech should not be tolerated, prejudice should not be tolerated, discrimination should not be tolerated. The world is far from perfect, but it could also get so much worse. We might not be able to do much, but we can trump hate with love.

TUAIRIM

February 28 2017

HEAD to head

Should RAG week be reinstated in Galway?

To condone RAG Week is to Bring back RAG week condone carnage

By Aileen O’Leary

By Eoghan O Connaire In the second month of the year of our lord two thousand and ten, Galway descended into anarchy.

Cans littered the streets, flares illuminated the skies and a young student reveller took a dump on a nice couple’s porch in Newcastle.

This is all part of the tainted legacy of RAG Week that the central authorities of the University sought to distance themselves from when they exerted considerable pressure on the Students’ Union to ban the god-awful week of debauchery in 2011.

The common argument raised is that banning RAG Week simply erodes the authority of any student who wishes to hold a sanctioned event to raise much-needed funds for charity, while allowing the afore-mentioned debauchery to continue unencumbered.

However, this strawman argument is refutable simply by making reference to the simple truth that it is not illegal to organise University-sanctioned charity events outside of that fabled week in February.

That being said, there is undeniable merit in harnessing the general student body’s infinite ‘fondness for a pint’ and using it to raise money for charity, only a witless worm would think otherwise. The uncomfortable reality here is that things got too out-of-hand in Galway about 6 years ago.

Students occupy a precarious position in a society with taxpayer-funded third level education (for now, at least). We must simultaneously expand our own personal and intellectual horizons while also remaining keenly aware of the need to toe the line.

All SUSI recipients, myself included, owe a debt of gratitude to the state and the taxpayers underpinning it. We must remain mindful of the fact that over-indulgence during RAG Week, be it official or unofficial, simply adds fuel to the fire of the detractors of free third-level education. Why should taxpayers continue to finance the schooling o someone who doesn’t appear to be studying diligently, instead eagerly partaking in the week-long general ruination of the idyllic town that hosts him/her?

The other point that arises commonly on the outraged comment threads of RAG-related Connacht Tribune articles is what I like to call ‘irrelevant race week reference’. The general supposition amongst pro-RAG Week students is that since Race Week is on a par with RAG Week in terms of citywide carnage and destruction, it should be re-instated in the name of equity. Alas, two wrongs can’t make a right, and two weeks of general anarchy are not better than one.

The decision to ban RAG Week was made by the University out of consideration for their image, their standing in the world. I can sympathise with the University’s governing bodies for wanting to be known for their commitment to innovation and research as opposed to late-night pole climbing parties. Actually, that last one was pretty cool and if you haven’t seen it then YouTube it.

11

any violence or fights during the week, or at least provide students with information in relation to binge drinking and its effects.

As the SU has said in the past it isn’t an issue of all students engaging in antisocial behaviour but a minority of them have in the past. By banning RAG week the college has only given students more reason to try to keep the tradition going.

Students are being drawn into the unofficial RAG week events hosted across the city, but they are no longer fundraising for local charities or taking part in college-run events.

It’s a shame to see an opportunity to give back to the community being wasted. The college can distance itself from these events, but at the end of the day it gives the University a bad image if its students are organising their own version of the week despite the ban - if anything it has made rag week more popular in Galway.

Students are drawn in by the viral videos online, the tweets about lining up for the Hole in the Wall at 8am and the college still makes the headlines even though they banned RAG week.

The antisocial behaviour is a problem, that we can all agree on, but this severe punishment not only affects those responsible but also all the students who were taking part to give back. In the eyes of the college and the Gardaí however it would seem we are all the same and they do not differentiate trouble-making students from those merely having a good time for a good cause.

By reinstating RAG Week, we could change that image, we could give back to the community.

College based events would keep students off the streets and in a more safe and secure environment. There will always be a few black sheep in the herd, but if NUIG were to allow us to reinstate RAG week, the bottom line is that the antisocial behaviour could decrease.

Rag week is a tradition amongst most colleges.

To return to the topic at hand, the rampant Traditionally a week of ‘raising and giving’, the carnage of RAG Week is more of a consequence Students’ Union and students themselves would of the University and not its sole aim. Race Week help charities out through events such as on camis essentially a week of drinking and enjoyment pus gigs. In 2011, the SU of NUI Galway voted to by definition, it serves no higher purpose unlike scrap RAG week, on the basis that five concessions our venerable University. Moreover, it seems need- would be made by the college. less to point out that the thousands of punters According to an RTE article at the time those five who attend the Galway Races dispense with a lot concessions were as follows: ‘a one-day concert to more funds over the course of the week than your replace RAG Week, an extra €60,000 a year, indexaverage 6 cans for 10 euro student. Therefore, if linked contribution to the Student Assistance Fund, it came down to a choice between the two weeks the abolition of a €2 charge for the student gym, you would surely have to advocate banning the and a guarantee not to introduce charges to visit week which supports less jobs. a doctor or nurse at the Student Health Unit and According to The Irish Times¸4000 ecstasy tab- extra notice boards were also agreed.’ lets were seized in Galway in the run up to this While we do have a free college doctor and extra year’s unofficial RAG Week, seemingly ‘destined funding, the ban has taken away from a fundafor the student market’. My sources inform me mental part of college life. I also think we chose that no percentage of the proceeds of sale on these RAG week as a scapegoat for antisocial behaviour disco biscuits was going to the beloved charities in general in Galway. that champions of RAG Week love to mention.

RAG was a week where students were able to These are not the kind of headlines the University give back to the community: in 2009, the Students’ wants to be associated with. Imagine being a per- Union raised over thirty thousand euro for local spective student from the US scoping out potential charities through non-alcoholic events. It’s true Universities and googling NUI Galway around this there are a few instances of antisocial behaviour, time of year. They say no publicity is bad publicity but look at the likes of Freshers week or the Galbut I would argue that having your 10000 euro a way Races, neither of those have been cancelled. year (for non-EU students) University seemingly I believe the decision to ban RAG week was rash. implicated by name in a drugs bust is not an ideal There were a number of arrests in recent years but business strategy. of those how many can we be sure were from NUI If the charitable aspect of RAG Week is so Galway? Furthermore, as the college and the Gardai dearly important to the students who advocate like to make students out to be the problem, the re-instating the week in its entirety, then why decision that was made at the time has not curbed not come together and resolve to make Unoffi- the antisocial behaviour in Galway during this time cial RAG Week a week of charity fundraising as of year, if anything it has only added fuel to the fire. opposed to one of senseless hedonism? If nothIf RAG week was official at least there would ing else, it would convince the University of the be some system in place that could help prevent merits of re-instating our beloved week and generate some positive headlines, which NUI Galway absolutely crave.

While it would be much better for local Galway Charities if RAG Week were official, it is not hard to understand why it was banned in the first place.

The SU were granted concessions to do away with it, yet the carnage continues. The banning of RAG Week allows the University to maintain its stellar reputation while also enabling the depravity to continue. Perhaps we could copy the line of UCD (who have had their own RAG Week re-instated after a five-year absence), and host a number of non-alcoholic charitable events to prove A famous scene from outside Supermac's on Eyre Square, RAG Week 2013. Photo: theviewinside on Youtube. our worthiness.

12 OPI NI O N

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

Conservatism as counter-culture

By Martina Baldissera “There is no question that today’s counterculture is conservative”. Such is the epitaph delivered by American broadcaster Rusty Humphries on a piece recently appeared in The Washington Times.

This is quite a challenging issue if we refer to the dome under which the typical opposition against the stifling, authoritarian culture has always gathered itself: liberalism. Its high-waving banner collects many threads that feel they belong to the same texture, even though they don’t boast a very clear idea of what the far-off general idea they appeal to really is about.

Counterculture implies the idea of a group of “rebels”, whose lifestyle, beliefs and actions aim to disrupt the general ideology around them. Their activities have always attracted proselytes in the past, as the subtle danger of dissent brings the thrill of feeling one’s own individuality being created, the affirmation of personal will over the collective thoughtless brain.

If counterculture moves through annoying, provoking, tickling and dissent against the evenness of the flux, that’s exactly what’s happening with the growing adherence to conservatism as a way to oppose what is perceived to be a stifling, externally-imposed attitude, namely the one standing for “liberalism”.

We feel forced to guarantee unchecked freedom of choice. Unrestrained possibility is the holy trampoline from which everyone is supposed to jump off to whatever yearning they may point their eyes on, as if we were due it, as if receding from this chance was an act of chosen unfulfillment.

Conservatism also implies that certain applied rights and freedoms are not for granted, that an amount of engagement and struggle must come into play to achieve them, that some restraints are necessary to freedom. Maybe we can’t feel freedom if we don’t have them, hampering our way.

Perhaps something we get without personal involvement is not recognised as a free condition at all. On a daily basis, this life attitude forces us to be ourselves. Or better, to become ourselves, that is, as usual, how it would be more convenient for us to be in order to “find our real freedom”.

We’re required to shun away greyness, to come up with instant outstanding intuitions, to loathe routine, to aim at continuous exceptionality, ever-stunning experiences; to follow is boring, to adapt predictable, if we don’t challenge and argue and stand against, there’s no place for us in this new world.

Suppressed the social compulsion of “Don’t be so eccentric”, I fear we’re assisting to the “you aren’t alternative enough” rising.

“Alternative” to what respect, by the way?

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From which point of comparison?

We collectively push the people around us to “unleash their hidden spontaneity”, to act recklessly “against the homogenising system”, to “be different”. If all this asks us to take life as it comes, to follow the random ebb of the tide and getting by with as much fun and drunkenness (figuratively and not) as we can, what is it that exactly makes you a rebel?

You’re not spitting in the face of authority, you’re underestimating the length of your time and taking as established your chance to do so. Under these lenses, the authentic rebels are those who engage into what they love, who care about it, who stay focused on it, and who (perhaps unconsciously and unwillingly) show dissent against “the system” by employing their time and their strengths for it. This is provoking, this is disruptive, this is irritating.

A student who renounces going out five days a week because he cares at doing well in what he loves, for example. We don’t need to be seen as nerds for doing that, only authentically serious about what counts for us.

Authenticity raises another issue in this debate, since “being nerdy” previously referred to an obscure sub-culture, is now the new social trend to test how introspective, profound and different you are. If everyone we’ve prompted towards alternativity actu-

ally embraced it, wouldn’t we disappear in a melting-pot of hundreds of weirdly-coloured spots?

In such a rainbowish mash who could, from the outside, acknowledge how original and creative and anti-establishment I am? But we do it anyway, because our personality is psychologically established through a recognition as similar to and a separation from.

We wish to give vent to what we are in a protected environment, one in which some attitudes that the major social group sees as peculiar are pretty much the norm, accepted and usual; freaking out, but with the guarantee of never being estranged, left aside and alone.

No matter how far in our alternativity we want to push, we’ll always need to reconduct our minds to a set of patterns, because routine, whatever it may be comprised of, is necessary to feel at ease.

Alternativity, weirdness and peculiarity are not a label to stick on one’s forehead in order to act consequently; it is the other way around. We end up behaving in a certain way as a result of what has been seething under our skin, and that ultimately was blown out the way it did. That’s what authenticity means, and has nothing to do with either liberalism (‘’I’m not like the others’’) or conservatism (‘’I’m a good and dull guy’’’) - these are only labels and stereotypes in their turn.

Selling off students

By Grace Kieran Growing up in European Britain, there were plenty of things I had to be happy about. I saw the Olympics visit our capital for the first time in sixty-four years, saw Lizzy become the longest reigning British Monarch and even the birth of The Great British Bake Off. Politically though, there was not much to be optimistic about. One of the first elections I would have been conscious of was in 2010, when even my secondary school promoted civil responsibility by holding a mock election. Our school’s result was overwhelmingly the Liberal Democrats, which is unsurprising when you consider both the young demographic and Nick Clegg’s pledge not to sabotage our future by raising tuition fees.

In a post-Brexit, post-Trump, apocalyptic political landscape, it is laughable that I never considered the possibility of political betrayal. Of course, when Clegg got into a position of power, he suddenly contradicted his main selling point. ‘Can you believe politicians lie?’ my eleven-year-old-self asked. Tuition fees were hiked almost as high as the nation’s pitch forks, and young Grace said goodbye to any faith she had had in the British Government.

Student loans in England work on an incomecontingent basis, which means students do not have to pay their loans until after college. However, once they are earning above a minimum income level later in their career, a payment scheme will be set up with the Student Finance body. These schemes are synonymous with high interest rates and dismal futures, as many would avoid earning enough to break the threshold, waiting for the debt to be wiped after thirty years of underachieving and maintaining a mediocre career.

Ironically, the government challenged the English at their own sport – queuing. Turns out, we are very good at waiting for loans to magically dissipate into the national debt and every miniscule administra-

tion cost at sending out the mildly threatening letters was a monumental waste.

The British government has announced this month that due to this defective structure for funding third-level education, which only serves to deepen national debt, they are going to sell off student loans to private investors. The loans will be sold at lower than face value, and will provide temporary relief for national debt. The government insists that controls will be put in place meaning investors cannot fiddle with the original terms and conditions. Insist all you like, even pre-teen Grace learned that you cannot trust promises like this from the government.

It’s typically English for me to complain about problems only relevant to the Queen’s country, it may seem, but it’s also typically Irish to follow the English and walk right off the plank into debt-infested waters. Over the past few years, the issue of thirdlevel education funding has been debated in Ireland.

Only last summer, Minister for Education Richard Bruton announced that he wanted to change the status quo. Neglecting the lack of funding is only going to make a bigger mess to clear up. He outlined three plans to revamp the current scheme and one which mentions ‘deferred fees’, a pretty name for the English system, would initially appear to cost the least for the state – therefore the most attractive solution.

The crux of the matter is, at least in the English context, gambling with students’ futures seems to become addictive. When they hike up tuition fees or interest rates, they are stopping someone achieving their dream as they’ll have to pay for it - both literally and figuratively. The rate of people entering thirdlevel education decreases, therefore the amount of skilled workers does too. Then they sell loans for less than they are worth to rich guys in suits who probably made their fortune by not going to college. The initial system is flawed and the short-term solution is greedy and stupid. Please, do not follow suit.

NUI GALWAY STUDENTS' UNION

ELECTION SPECIAL

with CANDIDATE INTERVIEWS e m i t l l u for f : s n o i t i s o p Eoghan FINN STUDENTS' Niall GAFFNEY Cillian MORAN UNION Diarmuid Ó CURRAOIN RYAN PRESIDENT Catherine Lorcán Ó MAOILEANNAIGH VICE PRESIDENT Andrew FORDE EDUCATION Ciarán MAC CHONCARRAIGE OFFICER VICE PRESIDENT Sharon MURRAY REILLY WELFARE Megan Rebecca TIERNEY OFFICER : e t a b e d Plus will be asked to vote on the motion: REFERENDUM You “NUI Galway Students’ Union

Election: THURSDAY 2 MARCH Where to vote

Remote vote

AN BHIALANN (10am-7pm) ON THE SU WEBSITE 10am-8pm ÁRAS NA MAC LÉINN Pre-registration required before (11am-8pm) ENGINEERING BUILDING midnight Wednesday 1 March.

(12pm-4pm)

supports the reunification of the island of Ireland and calls on the State to hold a national referendum on the question of such reunification.”

14 STUDENTS' UNION PRESIDENT

Eoghan FINN

STUDENTS' UNION PRESIDENT

Why are you running for election?

I’m running for election because I want to help. I want to reclaim the Students' Union for students essentially; I think it’s gotten distracted from its purpose over the past few years. That’s not a reflection on the people in it, they’re doing a great job, but it’s simply that I want to change the discussion around the Students’ Union. I want to play my part as best I can.

What are the key skills/personality traits that an SU President should have?

That’s quite a question! An ability to step back and represent people based on the mandate you’re given, step back no matter what your personal opinions are and do what the students want, because that’s essentially your job, to separate the personal from the professional.

As well, to be able to manage the team, to be able to facilitate all the other people on the executive and to be savvy with the finances. You’re going to be dealing with a lot of that, a lot of committees, a lot of people and meeting people one on one.

So, I think you need a passion for people and an ability to be reasonable and number and figures and everything.

Niall GAFFNEY Interviewed by Sorcha O’Connor

Why are you running for election?

I think the role of Students' Union President is an absolutely essential one and I think the person who fills that role has to be confident, experienced and passionate about the role – and I think I fit that category.

What key skills/personality traits should an SU President have?

In my opinion an absolutely essential set of skills that a president has to have is negotiation. You have to be a mediator between students and the university management and staff. I think from my undergrad in Law and I think from my experience in the Students Union as convenor that I have acquired that set of skills.

Describe what you think being SU President is about.

I think the Students’ Union President is the physical embodiment of the student voice. You’re put there by students with a very strong mandate to stand up for people who haven’t the time or can’t stand up to university staff, or to be the voice for the many student services that are at risk.

Outline your main objectives if elected.

I’ve categorised everything into four areas: campaigns, student services, engagement and representation.

Describe what you think being SU President is about.

It’s about representation, it’s about managing the team, it’s about you standing up for students and never giving up. It’s about making sure that even if it’s hard, even if you want to get on with everyone in the university, be it with the authorities or whoever, that you stand up for what students want and keep fighting for it and that you motivate people to get out. Because the most important thing about the Student’s Union is having numbers behind it, having people voting, having people turn out so that you can go up to the University President and say that “these people are behind me, I stand for these people” and get the job done.

Outline your main objectives if elected.

Okay so my main objectives, I have three: First of all, to stop spending money from the SU, stop spending our money, because we all put money into it, stop spending our money on national political issues and prioritise standing up against University authorities when we need to, and working with them to make sure that issues that matter are dealt with and that things change.

Secondly, to stop the wasteful spending of money. I mean that by stopping spending our money on alcohol for class reps, on networking events that aren’t necessary and on awareness campaigns that aren’t reaching students. The Students’ Union needs to get outside of Arás Na MacLeinn and get into the actual Engineering building, the Moyola, go out there and talk to people and make them aware in a way that isn’t happening now. That’s what I want to change.

And thirdly, to fight forcefully, like I said, to make sure that you never give up and that includes issues like demanding a repeal of the repeat fee hike that happened

For campaigns, we run some fantastic weeks during the year here from SHAG week to Mental Health Week to Destress Week but I truly think we need to ground more of our campaigns. I think we need to get them back to really prioritising student issues, many things that effect every student rather than just closed groups.

With student services, we’ve seen so many services cut in the last couple of years and in the last couple of years we’ve just been dealt blow after blow. We’ve seen repeat fees skyrocket, we’ve seen the cloakroom closed down to almost unworkable hours, we’ve seen shops, services, cut altogether and coffee stations disappear. I think it’s important we focus back on these, these were utilities that were used by students nearly every day.

Enagement: Engagement is a very difficult thing and at the moment, it is unfortunate thing to say, it’s at an all-time low. I think to boost engagement and to get everyone involved and passionate about the Union in some capacity is to have a bigger presence and we need to run more campaigns, especially on North Campus. We have a station up there, we really need to push it.

Finally, representation. A lot of people wouldn’t know the role the president plays at a national level as well as at university, meeting with USI on the president’s board and debating policy on a national level, which will ultimately be submitted to TDs or many bodies like the Higher Education Authority.

last year, with very little action to change it. To try and get exams to be anonymised, it’s something that a lot of students have asked me to do. To get free buses to exam centres off campus. To improve and demand the investment in educational and health-care facilities on campus. And if we’re going to be handing out free condoms, we need to be handing out free tampons as much as possible as well, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t.

As well, respect for the Irish language is something I care very passionately about and I think it’s something we as a Students’ Union need to stand up for. And, reducing the cost of living for students because it’s something that everyone deals with especially people who are coming here who aren’t from Galway who need help. That’s what I want to change and I want to be here for them.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

I’ll keep it simple. My manifesto is about cutting funding for national campaigns and prioritising on-campus campaigns, cutting wasteful spending on things like alcohol, junket networking trips and awareness campaigns that aren’t working and replacing them with things that actually improve turnout and motivation and finally, bringing in things that students have been demanding for years, for example ending the repeat fee hike that came in a few years ago, anonymising exams, free buses to exam centres, educational and healthcare investment, especially in the student health centre, free tampons, it’s just plain and simple. And, absolute respect for the Irish language; the Students’ Union should be doing it as much as any University President, and as President I will speak in Irish to whoever is elected.

Vote 1 Eoghan Finn for President in #NUIGSU on March 2 to bring the SU back to on-campus issues and fight for you #ReclaimtheSU #WinWithFinn

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Yeah, I just want to add, no matter who you’re going to vote for, turn out. Because even if I don’t get the position - and I really would love the position to be able to do these things – no matter who gets the position, they need a mandate, they need as many of you as possible to be there behind them so that they can approach the University President, be it Jim Browne, be it whoever comes in next year, that is very important, so that they can say we have these people behind us, we are a voice for these people and we will, as one, fight against you if you do not help us, but we will happily work with you if you do. That’s very important, turn out to vote, no matter who you’re voting for.

Cillian MORAN

A vote for me as President is a vote against treating students like cash cows. It's time students got the respect they deserve! #NUIGAFFNEY

we really are going to ground the Students’ Union, we’re going to bring it back to every student.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

Anything else you’d like to add?

So hopefully when people look at my manifesto, people will see that I am students first, number one priority, everything. Student services are absolutely essential – when I say services, I mean the likes of cloakroom, or free services and very, very cheap services that students can use and I really hope they capture the essence of the manifesto,

I’d just like to stress that at this time of turnover of Students' Union President that it is extremely important that students have their voices heard at maximum capacity and I really do feel with my experience, passion and the support of the Students’ Union behind me, we can put students at number one.

Cillian Moran, candidate for the role of Students' Union President, was not available for comment at the time of going to print.

STUDENTS' UNION PRESIDENT

Diarmuid Ó CURRAOIN

The SU President should have very good communication skills. So being able to get the students’ voice across is a very important skill when you’re approaching the university on things such as the cloakroom or water fountains. And even approaching politicians – we had a march for free education back in October and that had a very, very big impact in terms of national decision making. That wouldn’t have been able to be done unless the students got behind it and feel like the President Jimmy McGovern did a brilliant job communicating it across to students and how important it is to have free education so that would be one key skill a president should have.

A personality trait is to be approachable. If you’re not, people are going to be reluctant to say anything. If you are, you’re going to get way more done and students are more comfortable about the Union and the President is going to listen to them and get their point across.

Being SU President is quite an important job, you’re representing 18,000 students on campus and it’s a big role and responsibility. You’re trying to get students’ opinion, students’ voices, and students’ issues and needs across to the university and across to locals – and society in general.

I’d like to make stronger ties with our satellite colleges. So for one example Shannon School for Hotel Management don’t have any Union reresentaion so they can feel they can come up here with any issues – or even send a Students’ Union down there.

I hope everyone comes out and votes on 2 March. If you vote for me or vote for someone else, it’s important to be an active citizen. If you vote you are getting your voice across – and I highly advise you give me your No 1 on Thursday!

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Gaeilge is a big one. So working with staff to make modules more interesting, to have a weekly podcast as Gaeilge for students who love speaking Irish but maybe don’t feel comfortable enough doing it. It lets them talk about the issues they want to speak about through Irish and it will be published on the SU website.

I’d like to have a bilingual Blackboard and bilingual mail – something that can be easily done. And just making Gaeilge and the Irish culture stronger on campus.

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Engagement is the main one. As we know last year a tenth of the student population came out to vote. I think that is an unreasonable reflection on the Union itself as nine tenths of the students didn’t vote, didn’t know it was on, or were annoyed by canvassers. I think more engagement and intuition from the Union to know exactly what students want, to know exactly what kind of campaigns we want to run. Although we have great campaigns at the moment, I’m sure there are more issues in terms of accommodation for example.

Another one is Gaeilge. Is Gaeilgoir líofa mé as Cathair na Gaillimhe. My parents, both from Connemara, brought me up with Irish. I think the recent decision from the university to take away the requirement for the new university president to not have Irish is a step in the wrong direction. Irish needs to be promoted more – I always hear people saying they wish they had Irish or that they didn’t learn it properly in secondary school. I think the Union should promote Irish more as an accessible way of learning and if I was elected I would be

What do you think being SU president is about?

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Outline your main objectives if elected.

I propose to address a range of issues currently facing students while also introducing new initiatives to simply make your lives that little bit easier #VoteDiarmuid

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What are the key skills/personality traits an SU President should have?

Campaigns – so free education is a big one. Education is a public good. I’ll always say it: education is a right not a privilege.

Postgraduate grants to be reinstated to 2011 levels which will make education more accessible.

Fixing the grant system: 51.4% of students in NUI Galway are on the grant on some level. The system at the moment is flawed. It doesn’t fit the requirements of modern society.

As we know, rent has gone up, the price of food is gone up.

We need to lobby the government.

We have a big shortage of accommodation. There’s going to be more accommodation by 2018 just on the outskirts of campus and I want to keep the pressure on the university to make sure it’ll be in for September 2018. We saw the SU and the Accommodation Office invite landlords from around the county last summer to take in students. 100 students were given accommodation on that day during the conference, but that wasn’t enough to ease the pressure. Demand keeps rising, especially for international students. More information needs to be given.

Work closely with the Welfare Officer to keep putting pressure on the Government to keep increasing the budget on mental health. Mental Health is just as important as Physical Health. A lot of resources are being stretched and you can even see it in the university; the counselling services are stretched. We need to keep going – the stigma is broken down – but this is what we need.

Online elections on Blackboard to elect class reps instead of someone having to put up their hand and talk for five minutes. In Queens, Belfast they managed to elect 300 class reps in one day so it takes pressure off, people will be voting for who they actually want.

A book rental scheme would allow students to get their recommended reading done. I’d like to extend the library opening hours too. Students are crying out for more hours, especially during study week. It would ease the pressure on the Reading Room as well; that becomes a bit tense to say the least!

STUDENTS' UNION PRESIDENT

I’m running for election because I would like to make a positive contribution to the student body and indeed the university.

I’ve been an executive officer for the past year, I’ve been the convenor for business, law and public policy and in my time there I’ve noticed there’s a few things that need to be adjusted – and I know students feel they are a bit disconnected from the Union itself. I think this is something that needs to be addressed more. Although there is six candidates this year, student engagement needs to be implemented upon even more.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

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Why are you running for election?

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The president should be able to tackle issues about accommodation, education, anything within the university at all, between parking, the bus service – such as the Dangan bus service.

The President should be a very outgoing person. Rather than being cooked up in the office in Áras na Mac Léinn, you have to be outgoing, you have to know what students want and more importantly, need. I’ve heard many things from students – we need more microwaves at Smokey’s is a big one. You can see during lunchtime there’s a big queue and it’s quite irritating – and a bit of a health hazard; if there’s people rushing through and others have hot food in their hands for example. There needs to be more microwaves around campus. The Engineers are saying it as well, they can’t trek over to Smokey’s on their break and have a class in 15 minutes.

I hope the SU president, whoever gets it – hopefully me – can be an outgoing person and be able to deal with all these issues, no matter how big or small.

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Interviewed by Sorcha O’Connor

working with university staff to come up with plans to tackle this issue and keep the bilingual status that we have, as the only bilingual university in the country.

The role of class reps is very important and I would hope to provide even more effective training to class reps so more voices can be heard and engagement will be at an all-time high. I’d like to market the SU, to promote the services that we have and advertise these facilities within the university.

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Catherine RYAN Interviewed by Heather Robinson

STUDENTS' UNION PRESIDENT

Why are you running for election?

There is probably a lot I could definitely say here but I honestly do feel like I’m the best and most experienced person for the job. I suppose running for Student Union President is not something you do consider lightly and although I did only decide a week ago, it’s not something that came out of the blue for me, and anyone who knows me can definitely testify to that. They can definitely testify to the level of dedication I do have for the Union and ethic for everything I do get involved with. I pride myself on being approachable and that’s one of the main factors of a president I feel, so that’s something I want to bring back to the forefront of the Union.

What key skills/personality traits should an SU president have?

I think definitely, as I said there, approachability is a massive one as well as motivation and passion – but it’s important to be really cool-headed, especially in the likes of University management meetings and everything like that, you have to take everything with a pinch of salt and get the best you can for the students that are around you.

Describe what you think being SU President is about.

That’s a really interesting question. I could spend all day listing off the duties of an SU President. I think the most important one would be to lead the team around them,

you know, from being the mediator to making the actual hard decisions that will upset, let’s say, your education officer but you’re giving the welfare officer what they want and kind of being able to manage expectations in your group as well. Other than that you’re managing the student finances to being the leader of campaigns and lobbying for change among the national Union as well as that. Then again, we could never fully understand that till we are in the role ourselves and things often change throughout the year and can change during your term as president so that is definitely one you’d have to see as you go along.

Outline your main objectives if you are elected.

My main objectives other than to lead the team of the exec, would be to publish the exam centre seat numbers online beforehand. I think it is very important as students have enough to worry about when going into their exams other than where they’re sitting or they can’t get to the board, or maybe it is not accessible to them; they may have fallen the week before that and they’re limping or don’t even see their number on the board because it is miniscule writing.

My second point would be to lobby the University management to investigate all the current academic committees to make sure there is appropriate student membership as well as gender balance – and that would be something I have raised already in academic council as the undergraduate representative and is something I’d like to push forward in the next year, regardless of whether I’m elected or not.

I’d also like to enact an entertainment and campaign crew, focusing on the charity fundraising events to how to actually get the students to engage with the Students’ Union. Not many students vote for us or turn out to vote, or know about us, know where the office is it’s so far

Lorcán Ó MAOILEANNAIGH Interviewed by Sorcha O’Connor

Why are you running for election?

Over the past four years in college I’ve been heavily involved in class rep duties, student union duties, being involved in societies and I believe that this role is perfect, that I can completely fulfil it. I think it’s something I can hugely contribute in and people can rely on me.

What key skills/personality traits should an SU President have?

I think the number one thing is approachable. We’re in a college where there is huge diversity, over 120 nationalities I think in the college, and especially coming from a course like Medicine, I think there is over 40 nationalities represented in the course alone. Being approachable regardless of your views, of your political views, of your sexuality, whatever it may be, that you are able to talk to the President if you see them in Smokeys, or if you see them in their office. That is the number one trait to have.

Describe what you think being SU president is about.

Again being approachable but also being able to lead and take initiative. The SU President has a wide range of responsibilities, be it sitting on boards, speaking to students one on one, being able to come up with something new or maybe bold, and bringing something new to the table that students haven’t seen before and I think that I will definitely be able to do that.

Outline your main objectives if you are elected.

My main objectives – the first one is increase community engagement. I’ve been heavily involved in charitable work with organisations and over the past four years I’ve raised over €120,000 from new charity

events that I started myself. I identify an issue, see what I can do about it, and then I follow through with it. To give an example, my family had a brief experience with cancer. I was like, “Right, what can I do about this?”

I started a shave or dye myself and I brought it to the college, and to date it has made over €8,000.

Last year I was availing of the counselling service and I thought how can I help other people in this situation? I identified Jigsaw as being a brilliant charity and ran an event and raised €12,000 for them. So year upon year, I’m building upon charitable events and it feels like the Students’ Union can definitely have a greater impact on the local community in Galway. These are the initiatives that the Students’ Union should be taking – definitely not going back to the days of RAG week, but definitely having a better impact on the community as a whole through charitable events.

Another part of my objectives is the student meal planning service. We all know it can be hard living away from home and you’re out alone. I’m advocating a student meal planning service where basically you subscribe to it with a wide range in cost, between €25 to 55 depending what meal plan you chose. The food will be delivered to you on a Sunday night and in it will be all the ingredients that will last you from Monday till the Friday with recipe tutorials and you’ll also have access to online tutorials.

Firstly it eliminates food wastage; we’ve all been there when we buy the five chicken fillets and we say I’m definitely going to eat these but then by the end of the week they’re not cooked. You’re eating healthily and learning basic life skills, it ties in with the college’s sustainability initiative. I think it will be a valuable service and I think it will impact students more – the Students’ Union do a lot of work behind the scenes and people might not appreciate that. By having a service that would be used on a weekly basis, I think the students would really appreciate that and it is something they we are doing to help students in their day to day lives.

away from the likes of the Concourse, the Engineering Building, the Nursing Building… So it is important to get those social events back on campus and more so events that are particularly accessible to students who are parents, students who are part-time, and students who have disabilities. You know, it’s a different story if part-time students are coming in here at 6pm and that is when everything is starting in the likes of SULT, everything is kind of on society-wise. They don’t really have access to that and they’re so tired then by the end of the day, they could’ve worked all day and then to go home and just study what they’ve previously learned.

And then as well as that – I’ve two more, I’ll try keep it short – it is to work with the international office to make sure international students are made aware of the housing crisis before they come over. They often don’t understand their rights and responsibilities as a tenant and I think there definitely needs to be that push that they’re kind of told straight off the bat that they actually have rights here as a tenant in Ireland and not to get blown over with a rent of 500/600 euro because landlords see they don’t understand the current crisis.

My last one then would be to communicate with the local businesses in Galway and ask them when they are promoting jobs are they student friendly, are they 20 hours or less or more, and kind of point that out from the beginning because even this year a lot of friends of mine and a lot of other students have come to me being like, ‘It said it was 20 hours’ and now they’re working full-time and they’ve no time for the college really, no time for societies outside of that, and they can often feel overwhelmed and not know where to go to. There are kind of my main objectives but what I will be doing each day of the campaign is uploading a detailed manifesto point on my Facebook and that will be detailing what I’ve done for this so far and what I am intending to do in the next year.

My last main point is the Green Star Campaign. It relates back to the mental health initiative that I came up with, basically reducing the stigma around mental health. When I had to go see a counselling service, I think I walked past the counselling service four or five times, I didn’t exactly know what I was looking for or where it was on campus.

My initiative was initially to put up signs pointing to counselling services or the health unit. But at the same time you want to give people their privacy, as they are availing of a health service. My plan would be that people would become accustomed to what is the green star. A green star would indicate that there is a mental health service close by, so there’d be green stars and signals left and right to point you in the direction so at the same time, somebody seeing someone going into a building with a green star beside it won’t initially think it’s a mental health service but at the same time it makes people aware of that’s where they are.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

I’m also promoting the Irish language. That part of NUI Galway needs to be nourished. All my posters, all my brochures are all in Irish and all my social media presence is all through Irish and I will always work with Oifigeach na Gaeilge to really pushed that.

Also to reduce the burden on students repeating.

Repeating exams is a huge burden mentally and I don’t think there should be a financial burden along with that, especially at the time. I am calling firstly for a fee back to the €195 that it was and also to promote that fees can be paid after the exams; people could focus on their exams first and then move on.

Also I’ll be working with the USI to oppose the student loan scheme. One thing that I did was house to house calls or ‘student residence runs’. On that point, it’s one thing for the Students’ Union to be above the hub working like a well-oiled machine but lecture shout outs are really important when you’re trying to get campaigns off the ground and get people interested. I’d be doing those things at least once a month because you might bypass an issue until you’re talking to someone and they say, “That needs to be done”.

Cat Ryan - Approachable, Dedicated and Passionate. Vote Cat Ryan #1 this Thursday for a President you can rely on. #Cat4Prez #BackCat

What are the key points of your manifesto?

So the basis of my objectives would be to increase student engagement with the Union. I suppose access for students who might not be able to go to the social events, as well as student engagement with the university committees. As much as our lecturers can helps us in any way they want to, they have been out of college awhile, even the new online systems and everything like that they mightn’t be as up to date as us, so we should definitely have our voice at the table heard when we are saying, ‘This is working for us and this isn’t’. So stuff like that would be my main objectives.

#CountOnLorcán for an engaging and approachable SU #VoteLorcánforPresident Also the bus service for nursing and health sciences students. If you’re in nursing or some of the other health sciences courses, you’re on placement from November of First Year onwards. You’re a first year and these aren’t placements when you go in at ten and leave at five – you’re in at seven in the morning during the winter months. Most of these, primarily girls, are going across town and Quincentenary bridge at half six in the morning and I don’t think that is right. A bus service wouldn’t be much to ask and I think it would make a huge difference.

More microwaves and water fountains will help reduce waste. If the college really wants to push this NUI Galway sustainability initiative then I’m hoping that they’d work with us. Make sure these are all available, especially on the north campus – in Aras Moyola there’s no microwaves and I think one water fountain.

Postgraduates, they are making the biggest sacrifices and taking the biggest financial hit. I would abolish the repeat fee. If exams don’t go their way, chances are it isn’t their own fault.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Best of luck to all the other candidates – they’re all great and have their own unique style, so I wish them all the best of luck.

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Lá an Toghcháin: Déardaoin, an 2 Márta 2017

Election Poster.indd 2

07/12/2016 13:00

VICE PRESIDENT: EDUCATION OFFICER

18 VICE PRESIDENT: EDUCATION OFFICER

Andrew FORDE

Why are you running for election?

I’m running for election so that I can lobby for policies that will bring practical change for the students of NUI, Galway.

I’m someone who’s been through the ups and downs of college – I know what it’s like to have your grant taken away, I know what it’s like to hold down a job to pay off student fees, and I know what it’s like to deal with an exam system that’s all over the place. These are all areas where sensible policies would have made my time in university easier, and since I know that there are students who face the same challenges I have, I’m running for Education Officer to give them a better chance of making the most of their time in college.

What key skills/personality traits should an Education Officer have?

I think, most importantly, an Education Officer needs to really know their stuff. When a student comes to the SU about their grant application or about their fees, they’re relying on the Education Officer to understand the issue, to know how everything works, and to be able to advise on the best course of action to take. That’s a big responsibility, and when you remember that these are mostly academic and financial issues that are being dealt with, it really highlights the importance of having an Education Officer who knows what they’re talking about. Now as I’ve said before, I have had plenty of experience of how this university works in relation to fees and exams and so on, so I think I’m in a good position to be an advocate for students there.

But I think there’s also a broader issue to keep in mind.

The Education Officer, like everyone in the SU, needs to know how to best work with the university itself. Any candidate can come along and promise the world, but without knowing how to lobby the university, nothing gets done.

For instance, in my manifesto I’m pledging to bring about significant reforms to our examination system. I know that can be done, because at the end of the day a fairer examination system for students means better academic results, and that’s good PR for the university. But without thinking about how I’d go about selling it to the university, examination reform would just be an empty promise. So I think being savvy about how you bring about change is a key skill for the Education Officer to have, and I think I have it.

What are they main Education issues affecting students in NUI Galway?

Well as I’ve been saying, the exam system is in dire need of reform. Exams are the most stressful and difficult period during the college year for students, and every single student that passes through this university will have to go through them, so it’s ridiculous that our exams system has the shortcomings that it has. In terms of academic issues, exam reform is a huge priority, which is why I’ve made a firm commitment to it in my manifesto.

On the financial side of things, fees and grants are obviously massively important too. Now, I’m committed to making sure fees don’t rise and grants aren’t cut, because ultimately those things hurt the most disadvantaged students hardest. But it’s not just about lobbying for the student body as a whole, it’s about making sure that each individual student who comes to me is best able to deal with the Fees Office, or SUSI, and knows theirs rights. It’s important that university is made accessible to students who struggle to afford it, and often those same students aren’t aware of the resources and workarounds that are

Ciarán

MAC CHONCARRAIGE Interviewed by Heather Robinson

Why are you running for election?

An event that really swayed me was the National Demonstration that the Union did with the USI back in October. I was really involved with rallying students to get involved in that, I even organised a session to make posters upstairs in the art room. I really realised at that rally how important your education is and how important it is to have good representation. That was when I made the decision.

I have two years of experience representing students on the Students’ Union and I’ve enjoyed every second of it. When I first stood up in first year to volunteer to be a class rep, Students’ Union has been really central to my life as a student.

Since the first day I have gone on to be a class rep in every subject that I study, I currently represent the College of Arts in the Students’ Union and I know what it means to represent a body of people. I think that the role I have at the moment as Convenor of Arts and even my role as Class Rep are kind of mini Education Officer roles in themselves; a lot of the case work I had to deal with would’ve been to do with academic affairs and problems students had with their education so I think I have the right experience.

What key skills/personality traits should an Education Officer have?

I think an Education Officer needs to be driven. Hard work and organisation are key. Long story short, an Education Officer should be strong voice for students, somebody who has the backbone to stand up for the students for the betterment of the quality of their education.

Organisation is essential because not only does an education officer represent students on college boards and committees, but one of their main responsibilities is actually the co-ordination of Class Rep Council, and the general informing of the student body about what the Union are doing at any given time.

I think all officers at the Students’ Union not just the Education Officer need to be approachable. I can’t emphasise that enough; general friendliness and enthusiasm are extremely important and I would encourage any student to approach me about issues that are affecting them now in my role.

What are they main Education issues affecting students in NUI Galway?

Two of the main student issues would be financial hardship and the lack of adequate peer to peer academic support.

As I mentioned earlier, we participated in the National Demonstration with USI back in October because we recognised that one of the biggest barriers for students in their education is a financial one. Over 38% of students nationwide avail of a SUSI grant – and that includes people in their thousands in this University. An Education Officer has a direct line with SUSI, the fees office, all relevant committees and organisations, and they deal with that case work daily. It’s extremely important to me that a student’s potential in their education isn’t hindered by a lack of financial stability.

The second point then would be academic support. It is extremely important to support sudents throughout their academic careers. We have a lack of adequate support system there in terms of peer to peer mentorship.

We have Céim which is excellent. It’s a Students’ Union lead initiative but it only currently applies to a select group of students; engineering students, and legal studies and geography in Arts. I believe if we expanded this programme college-wide you would see two things: there’d be a decline in drop-out rates and repeats, and there’d be an increase in students’ ability to tackle the challenges third level education presents to them. One statistic about Céim for instance is, on average, students who participated have achieved 7% higher in their marks in comparison with those who haven’t.

there, so I think making all the information available and being a reliable source of information myself is an important role that I’d play as Education Officer.

Outline your main objectives if elected.

If you look at my manifesto, you’ll see that my main objective is simply to find ways of making the university work better for students. I don’t believe in promising eye-catching policies that can’t be made a reality. So when I say that I want lecturers to be mandated to use Blackboard, or that I want more subject modules to be given tutorials and better training for tutorial teachers, it’s because I believe that those things can be delivered and should be delivered. My primary objective, ultimately, is to be an Education Officer who doesn’t grandstand, but who finds useful policies he can put in place, and then makes it happen.

And then the other side of that is being accountable. My number one priority is to the individual student who comes to me looking for help and support with their academic or financial issues. Protest and being a part of the student movement is of course important, my objective is to be the best advocate for the students who need my help as I can be.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

In terms of exam reform, I want to see the timetabling system updated so students will no longer have three exams in a twenty-four hour period; I want to see the library and computer suites open for longer on weekends during exams; and I want to see the exam repeat fee brought back down to its old level since the increase a year ago was deeply unfair.

I also think the appeals process is a shambles, since at the moment students have to wait until the summer before they can appeal the results they got for their Christmas exams.

I think leaving students in the dark about their academic situation is ridiculous and needs to be reformed.

In terms of grants, students need to receive their grants quicker from SUSI and more information needs to be made available to students through the SU in terms of dealing with SUSI. I also think the postgrad grant should return in full. But a big thing I would like to see is increased participation directly by students of NUIG in protecting their interests. It’s of course the SU’s job to advocate as best it can, but I think sometimes the only way to get the university to stand up and take notice is for students themselves to take action through strikes and sit-ins. I want to coordinate and facilitate that, and help students advocate better on their own behalf.

Just to finish, I think not nearly enough is done to help students face challenges that aren’t related to their studies. I’d like to set up exam preparation and exam stress workshops, as well as workshops on skills needed after college like job interviews and presentation skills. This information is around, but it should all be in one place and coordinated through the SU, and I think that would be a very useful addition to the SU’s role.

I conducted a survey on students in Arts with 350 people who have participated in it and there seems to be a general higher satisfaction rate with Céim than opposed to the alternate student mentorship that’s in place at the moment. I think if we provided that support we’d improve the entire student experience.

Outline your main objectives if elected.

As I said before Céim needs to be funded and expanded more throughout the college. I remember back in First Year when I first heard of Céim I really wanted to participate in it. Then of course I found out it was only available for engineering and legal studies students so I couldn’t participate as I’m not a student in either of those programmes.

Expansion would lead to the betterment of education for a large group of people.

I want the Students’ Union to engage better with students on a base level. For my nominations – I think when people are running they go to their friends – I set myself a challenge and I said I would approach random students instead because you’ll find there’s a large amount of students in this college who have never had some sort of engagement with the Students’ Union at all. And why would you run for a position representing students if you’re not going to talk to them?

In terms of engagement, trying to make Class Rep Council and activities of SU being more accessible and visible to students as a whole. One thing would be a campaign in First Semester called Represent! I’d involve the National Student Engagement Programme. They provide class rep training but it would be great to have them in as key note speakers and make a real event of it.

Livestreaming class rep council: the amount of people scrolling through Facebook, even if they were a little bit curious they’d watch for five minutes and it’d make a huge difference.

I’m trying to achieve empowerment. A lot of my manifesto points are around that. This year we have seen a huge surge in the number of students who are participating in elections, there’s a lot more nominations and candidate. A lot of the points I touch on in my manifesto would aim to give students the best possible opportunities in their education to develop themselves. Education isn’t limited to what people learn in the classroom either. I’ve developed a lot of my

own skills through extra-curricular activities and working as Education officer my work would emphasise that.

Key points of your manifesto.

They fall under four main headings. That’d be: mentorship, so Céim, and an alumni mentorship scheme. We have an excellent alumni in this college and we need to engage with them more. The idea is that alumni come in and take second year students an hour every month, alumni who are working in the sectors these students would like to work in with two results: a tangible link for alumni with the alma mater but also a tangible link with the work place.

A general improvement on the timetable and the website. There is a lack of standardisation across the college in terms of timetabling. There are several colleges who have a system in which is called CIMS Go which is an automatic timetabling system.

Looking at the website itself, come registration time, traffic is getting to a criminal level. Students are applying for competitive modules and the website crashes and they don’t get their place. That’s affecting the opportunities students have within their courses and that is wrong.

The skills workshops idea that I had circulates around the idea of your education as a whole, expanding the lifeskills courses; languages, graphic design, and digital literacy using basic programmes. If we had somewhere below a diploma, it’d cost less and give students the opportunity to develop for example language skills, and increase their employability.

VICE PRESIDENT: WELFARE OFFICER

20 VICE PRESIDENT: EDUCATION OFFICER

Sharon MURRAY Interviewed by Sorcha O’Connor

Why are you running for election?

Personally comes from my own background, I’ve had to use the services and I felt it wasn’t until someone had notified me about them that I really understood their uses. They were fantastic! I ended up in first semester of second year, I was homeless and literally had nowhere, packed my bags and went home to Mayo. I didn’t know what was going to happen and straight in there, Jimmy was brilliant. He got me into the accommodation office and got me immediate funding and got me a roof over my head. It was fantastic.

I feel like I am a new voice, I have an open approach.

I have people who feel like they can come to me and confide in me. I literally love helping people, it’s my thing, I just love it. I’m highly motivated, like getting a result when I know that someone is in need is what really, really drives me. I will neglect all avenues until I get that result. I have years of experience dealing with students, I am the current auditor of the Law Society and I’ve been in that since I was in first year. In secondary school I was the class rep and I’ve continued that role in college. I’m a current class rep for corporate law students and I feel like, I want to listen to the students of NUI and get their real issues and get them out there and heard and try to promote different aspects of the services and try to really get their best use out of them.

What are the key skills/personality traits a Welfare Officer should have?

Definitely compassionate and a good listener because you never know what’s going to come through your

Megan REILLY

Interviewed by Heather Robinson Why are you running for the election?

Well, the simple reason is because I feel ready. I’ve basically been involved with the Student’s Union for a few years and this job that I’m doing right now has just given me so much experience to run so many campaigns and I’ve met incredible people and I’m kind of at that point where I want to take it further. I mean, in terms of from a personal point of view, I’ve been that person who takes someone to Health Unit for mental health issues or finds someone having a panic attack outside of a lecture you know? While it’s a horrendous situation to be in, being able to point someone in the right direction, or even just help them in some way, or kind of be there as a friend, there’s just no putting words to it and I kind of feel like I’ve been doing this for years for people who might not even know me that well, so it’s something I’ve always been passionate about anyway, and like I said, I feel completely ready to take the next step.

What key skills/personality traits should a Welfare Officer have?

Yes. I think empathy and compassion are the two main ones for me. Not to be like absolutely drowning in it to the point where you can’t see past someone else’s problems, but to be able to empathise with a student, or anybody, on a human level. To say ‘God I know’, even if you’ve never been in that situation before. To be nonjudgemental and just kind of like ‘that must be hard’ and of course, compassion, it’s just vital to be able to

door. It could be a multitude of personal problems or it could be literally the turning point of someone staying in college and having to leave. So I definitely think if you can engage with students and have that open, friendly approach, be very relatable. Obviously be very compassionate, but not to take everything on your shoulders. You can’t bring everyone’s personal problems home with you but while you’re in the office definitely. Give your all and help and there are so many service I feel people just don’t know about and that’s really important that this gets out there. Be chatty and out-going and of course, available.

What are the main welfare issues affecting students in NUI Galway?

From a personal level, I think the disability services in a sense of room availability in the library, I myself am a user of that service – I’m dyslexic – and I feel, so come exam times, it’s nearly a march run to get a seat in that and it’s impossible for it facilitate the demand.

It’s not being met at the moment.

Obviously the lack of housing has been an issue but there has been addressed. There’s an absolutely brilliant seeing progress being made on that, new student accommodation coming on board!

Financial pressures is a massive fact. I have students, some of them friends of mine, coming to me at the moment, still no grant got. We’re in second semester, one lad he’s dropping out of college because he literally cannot continue. So, I know there’s only so much the college can do but if it can help send students through the year and it’s fantastic in that sense.

Quicker or more efficient access to counselling services is definitely [a main issue]. I have two friends that were at a very unstable time and they were turned away, they weren’t getting the help they needed because they weren’t at the threshold that was evaluated as immediate help. But like, that was the difference in them not being heard and they felt like their voice wasn’t being heard. So I feel like that’s very important. see all these issues. I think there’s other elements to it as well, I could probably talk a lot on this, but I think organisational skills are very important because the Welfare Officer co-ordinates the Welfare crew and the SU Volunteers, so there’s a lot of organisation involved in terms of like getting campaigns run on time like SHAG Week and Mental Health Week. The third tier of it, I would say, is advocacy because you have to sit on these intimidating university committees and basically be the voice for students, when students are being forgotten about at the table. I think I’ve sat at one of those scary university committees this year, so I think I have experience in the advocacy section as well and I’ve run a lot of campaigns this year like I said.

What are the main welfare issues affecting students in NUI Galway?

I mean, there’s so many because sometimes something like an accommodation crisis is very much a welfare issue. At the risk of sounding clichéd, mental health is still one of the biggest issues facing Ireland today and I think it’s a cliché for a reason. I think that all other aspects of people’s health, just like not knowing how to look after your physical health or your sexual health is going to impact on your mental health and I do worry about students not being able to look after themselves properly or going through a rough time. Then, I mean, you worry about drug and alcohol abuse or gambling addictions and things like that, but I think all of this feeds into mental health. We live in very precarious times as well so I think we could do a lot more on that, just encouraging, not even encouraging dialogue around it, but letting people know about all the different options that are out there outside of counselling, like medication is an option as well.

Outline your main objectives if you were elected The whole premise of my manifesto is that I want to make things simple. As in a lot of people don’t under-

Could you outline your main objectives if elected?

Definitely more student involvement. I know myself from previous experience and in societies, when you open the platform for students to be heard, they love it! They absolutely love it. They won’t come to you and give you ideas unless you go out and engage with them. And I’ve gotten some wonderful ideas from students, just ask them, take the time, it doesn’t have to be a formal meeting. It could be just like a little chat. They’ll give you fantastic feedback. So definitely, more student engagement. More outlets to let students give their views, if it’s a survey, like open up an area, call in and have a cup tea. Just completely casual.

I also think to educate on the side effects of drugs. There’s no dismissing the fact that there are issues there. It’s used, we have to accept that fact, it’s a thing. So I think rather than, ‘oh no banish them, they’re never going to happen we’ll get rid of them’, basically that’s not working. So I think to educate students, mainly first year students. If you tackle that on, give them a workshop and educate them on side effects. The safe use I think, is an important issue.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

One act of kindness per month across the campus.

So, one day where I will go out and just a random act of kindness. I’ve seen it done and it uplifts people.

You can see the expression on their face, they’re absolutely delighted. Might be having a crap day but a bar of chocolate literally uplifts them.

Drugs awareness; workshops, understanding the use of them and the safe use of them.

I know there might be something like this going on, a student out of hours running a console-like helpline, but ran by students who have participated in the assist workshop. I myself have completed stand what welfare is and if you started talking about all the different sections of it, they’d start getting very bogged down in it. So, I want to say that I think there are some very tangible things that the Students Union could do to put in place on campus. So, basically, I took a tangible kind of view of it and I said let’s get more microwaves and water coolers on campus and let’s do out maps of those, because people don’t know where the water coolers are. And the microwave thing is a big issue for me, because currently, there aren’t really microwaves on north campus and they’ve removed some in the engineering building as well and up here around Aras na Mac Leinn. There used to be one near where the Hub is, but there isn’t anymore. So, I just think this is an issue that feeds into mental health because if you’re bringing lunch to college, or you’re trying to stay hydrated during the day, just not having a place to eat a warm meal, or be able to heat it. I think we need more nap spaces on campus as well; as in like relaxation spaces, instead of people trying to slump on the cold concourse floor. There’s comfy couches in the engineering building.

Just creating somewhere if people need to flake out, or say for students with disabilities, some of them might need, even invisible disabilities, might need to take a rest somewhere throughout the day. There aren’t a lot of places on campus that just the average student could go and relax in, that isn’t a restaurant, or a very packed area, so that was another one of my points.

Self-care workshops was something I wanted to do, and I think this would be particularly important for first years coming in on orientation, and also for people who are about to go on Erasmus. That, once again, is the all-encompassing thing about your health. As in, knowing what to do when things get tough. Not even, who to turn to, but what to do for yourself. Self-care can be something as simple as taking out an adult colouring book, or for other people it might be taking your medication on time, or knowing when you need to step back and take a rest you know? Some people use

I want to be the voice of all NUIG students and I will not stop till I get the results that are needed! Remember if Shazza can't no one can! assist and I find that it’s absolutely fantastic. You never know what situation you’re going to find yourself in. If it’s run by students, you’re on a more even playing field and students are more open to other students. So once out of hours, I think that’s a more vulnerable time during the week. It’s definitely something.

Then from just like a more academic point of view, I’m a final year doing law and there are no tutorials. Absolutely nothing. That’s definitely something I’d like to see be pushed. It’s due to say, funding, but I think if they’re doing it for first years and I think definitely in your final year if you’re not grasping something in a lecture, it puts more pressure and stress on students who can’t get it. And then again it’s only a small thing that might go a long way.

Final year student.

Equality Officer. Wants more microwaves and comfy couches on campus. Frequently asks 'have you had breakfast today?' physical exercise and things like that, so I would love to roll out those workshops for people. I think as part of that, Trinity do a body and soul week, which is kind of about self-esteem and self-confidence and I would love to bring something like that here, which would kind of come into the whole self-care thing as well.

Themed weeks are great and all that and let’s have more of them. Often, people only hear about the Student’s Union when they’re on. The more themed weeks the better because if you could pull off something big, like photo and video campaigns can be very effective, it’s not always about going out and talking to people, which is also very effective but it’s about creating something that sends a very strong message. (Key points of manifesto covered in this answer.)

Rebecca TIERNEY Interviewed by Sorcha O’Connor

Why are you running for election?

The main reason I’m running, I feel there’s been a disconnect between the SU and the student body itself. I feel like they’re a little bit unapproachable, that’s it’s become an ‘us versus them’ thing and it’s become a little bit exclusive. I want it to be inclusive for everybody, that if I got elected I could walk down a corridor and nobody feels worried or apprehensive about coming over to say hello to me or if they have a problem. If I’m walking down the concourse for example and somebody’s got an issue that they need to talk about that they could stop me in the middle of the corridor. And I’ll stop with them and I’ll have a conversation with them. I think that’s the main thing.

That’s one of the big reasons why I’m running.

On my flyers you’ll see #r4wr which is Rebecca for Welfare Representative. I changed it from officer to representative because I feel like if you’re going to do this job you need to represent the student body of the college so I think officer is a bit like elitism, a bit unapproachable. If I become a representative, I’m representing you for a reason.

What are the key skills and personality traits you think a Welfare Representative should have?

They need to be approachable! People need to feel comfortable with you enough that they can come over and tell you their problems. You need to be patient with them, you need to have the time to help them. Sometimes with delicate issues, that they don’t want to talk about, for example money; I think it’s a very Irish thing that you don’t talk about money at all! I think certain things like that you need to be able to talk about with somebody if there’s issues, especially if you

can’t pay your rent or if you are living on a minimal budget.

I think also you need to have leadership. I have to be honest with you all, I am bad with technology. I don’t do technology, I don’t get it, I don’t like it. I feel important if I can open Facebook and it actually works. So I have somebody on my team who does that for me. I think that’s one thing you’re going to need if you have a team: you’re going to need to trust your team. You need to be able to trust in their skills and their personalities. I’m really good at talking. I like talking to people, I like having conversations and finding out about them and their story and that’s important.

I think you need to be able to work as part of a team.

You need to be able to get on with people and maybe have a difficult conversation.

What are the main welfare issues affecting students in NUI Galway?

I think Condom Wednesdays; it needs to be more visible. A few years ago, every Wednesday, it didn’t matter what was going on, you always knew the Welfare Officer and his Welfare team would be there at a certain time. That they would always be there for two or three hours and they could hand them out.

And people could approach them and not feel uncomfortable.

I also have to praise Megan Reilly for her equality campaign that she did last week for tampons because she’s raising such an important issue that needs to be highlighted, that a lot of people don’t know about. Imagine only having €10 for your week and knowing your period is coming and knowing you can’t afford sanitary towels and tampons. I think that needs to be expanded a little bit more.

I’m running on a mental health platform. I want to make a Mental Health week per semester, so one run in October with Mental Health week nationally but also another one coming in January, say after our provisional results are released. So this semester they were released on a Friday, waiting an entire week to get your results and then you’ve got the weekend to be thinking about it, over and over in your head. The week after there needs to be an event to make people realise that these results are only provisional and that they’re not the end of the world. I saw people who were very upset about it

and I just wanted to remind them that no matter what, there’s always supports there.

I want to do sessions for students, later on in the semester when they have got a risk of stress or anxiety. There are fantastic workshops going on for students on anxiety, like not able to do your work and stuff like that but it’s all in early January, early February. I think I very much want to move that to late February or early March, nearer deadlines.

Could you outline your main objectives?

I want to be approachable. I also want to make everybody aware of their financial rights and their accommodation rights. Accommodation is such a huge issue. I can inform students of their rights, help them and direct them to the right people who would be able to answer their questions. I could have a basic overview of it if I looked into it and studied what your question is or whatever your problem is I could probably come up with it, because I’m a law student – it does come in handy for something!

SUSI is such a huge issue and you have to be on them, on them, on them. I want to help somebody, if they come in and they’re at that point where they are between can’t afford to go to college and they know that SUSI is coming, they just haven’t gotten it yet. The welfare officer has a direct line to SUSI. So they can raise problems or specific queries with SUSI related to a particular person’s account. If you are in any sort of difficulty, that’s what we are here for.

What are the key points of your manifesto?

I want to make more mental health workshops and events throughout the year to give you the support that you need. I want to bring in counselling sessions, especially for people who have suffered a loss through suicide or cancer because it’s such a huge issue that not a lot of people are talking about or they’re going through this and feel like they’re going through it by themselves. I want to make a support group, a safe environment where they can talk and they don’t have to pussyfoot about it. They can just say what they’re thinking and get it out. You need to be able to say it to somebody

#Rebecca4Welfare a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, a crusader for mental health awareness. Creating a college where people can #R4WR that you trust where you know that there’s not going to be backlash from that.

Another thing I want to raise awareness on is drink spiking – show people how to help their friends, how to prevent it.

Another thing I want to bring in is confidence workshops.

I was looking at the counselling website and they do a report for 2015/2016 and I was taking a wee glance at it and the majority of people are going in – 36% I hope I’m not wrong – are going in for anxiety. I can’t speak to the reason why they’re going in for anxiety, but I can guess the reasons around it, and maybe it’s due to people being afraid they can’t speak in large groups. So I want to help people with that because it’s a skill you’re going to need for the rest of your life. It’s a skill you’ll need for presentations or even just to go up and talk to somebody at a job interview. You need to be able to have that confidence in yourself.

VICE PRESIDENT: WELFARE OFFICER

VICE PRESIDENT: EDUCATION OFFICER 21

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DEBATE: STUDENTS' UNION REFERENDUM 23 When you cast your vote on Thursday 2nd March you will also be asked to vote Yes or No to the motion: “NUI Galway Students’ Union supports the reunification of the island of Ireland and calls on the State to hold a national referendum on the question of such reunification.”

VOTE YES: An argument in favour of reunification

By Aileen O’Leary On 2 March students have the opportunity to vote for the reunification of the island of Ireland and call upon the state to hold a referendum on this topic.

Reunification would be beneficial for Northern Ireland, as well as the South, for a number of reasons.

In a 2016 Journal.ie article, an extract from Northern Ireland Finance Minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir was published. He argued that ‘uniting Ireland north and south would be to everyone’s economic benefit.’ He went on to highlight how Ireland could no longer afford the cost of partition.

Another reason is the wage gap between the north and south; ‘The North now lags behind the south on all growth indices: average wages south of the Border are €37,000, but just €25,500 in the North.

Economic growth rates in the South are estimated at 3.6% for 2017 but at just over 1% in the North’.

He went on to discuss the difficulty in having two separate entities on one island: ‘Marketing the island as a business destination is also difficult

with two economies and tax systems. A reunited Ireland would be easier to promote on the global stage and, as a result, would act as a lever to attract inward investment’.

In the wake of one of the worst recessions that Ireland has ever seen, it would make sense to reunite with the North to grow our economy again, to build industry, to provide jobs north and south of the country.

In the years that have elapsed since the divide, there have been two separate identities on this emerald isle, Ireland and Northern Ireland. The mistake of our predecessors all those years ago has left a divide that has been felt by generations since then.

There are those who would say that reuniting Ireland would lead to violence and destroy the peace keeping efforts that were made in the Good Friday Agreement. And there is no denying violence is the strength of emotion, that there is a bloodied past between the North and South, a past that has shaped both sides of the border since then.

We are not the generation of the Troubles though. We have grown up in an era of peace and it is that peace that will sustain us as we reunite both parts of the country. It is in good faith that we should treat reunification. This was an island of 32 counties once upon a time, and the day it became 26 was a dark day for all of us.

For those who have grown up in Northern Ireland I can’t imagine how difficult this topic must be, and I admit that the SU bringing it up is quite awkward for some - but these conversations have to happen. We can’t go on living our lives separated by this border, separated by location, by religion, by politics. It is our issue, maybe we aren’t the decision makers or policies enforcers - but we can make a hell of a lot of noise.

Not only would a United Ireland be good for the economy of Northern Ireland but it would also help revive the Irish language in the North. More funding could be put into Ghaeltacht areas. The Irish language needs to be revived in the North and by joining with the South there are resources

there to make that happen. This will also make the language stronger as a whole – ní neart go cur le chéile.

The transition will be complicated and stressful for all parties involved but ultimately we have a chance to correct the mistakes that were made in the past by our predecessors. We have the ability to build bridges and move forward as one unit, as one country and stand in solidarity together.

I grew up in the South, in a new Ireland that was accepting of all people regardless of gender, religion, nationality, sexual orientation or status. We need to say no to partition and say yes to reunification. We can make history, we can be the voices of the new Ireland, we can usher in an era of peace and growth.

I implore you to please go vote on 2 March, vote for unity and for progress. We have lost too much to stay divided, it’s time to leave the past in the past and embrace a brighter future - one where we are no longer divided by borders, where we can all stand together forever.

VOTE NO: This proposition will alienate current/potential students, and do little else

By Tomás M. Creamer Let us clarify what this vote means - this referendum will oblige our Students’ Union (SU) to intervene on a serious geopolitical issue, that affects nearly two million people in Northern Ireland – people who are owed the right, after 30 years of conflict, to deliberate on what they want their national future to be, without being talked over or lectured by people or Unions in the South (or by those from Britain, for that matter).

This proposal would politicise the very act of attending this college for anyone who comes from a non-Nationalist background in Northern Ireland, further reducing the opportunities for cross-sectional discourse relating to the North, and narrowing horizons across the island as a result.

Given that those from a Unionist background have plenty of choice, both in the North and in the UK, for places to study, it’s hard to see this proposal having a positive effect on applications from that group to NUI Galway if studying here requires mandatory payments towards an actively and overtly Nationalist SU. The proposal states that our SU should lobby “the State” i.e. the Republic of Ireland (the ROI), to hold a poll on reunification. However, the ROI does not have power to initiate an actionable “Border Poll”.

Under the Good Friday Agreement (GFA), that power belongs to the Northern Irish Secretary of State and, only “if…it appears likely to him that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom and form part of a united Ireland.”

Therefore, the premise of lobbying the government of the ROI regarding a border poll completely ignores the provisions of the GFA. Even if the ROI did some sneaky backroom stuff to encourage one, that would do nothing but hurt the cause of a border poll among the “swing” voters within the (majority) Unionist community.

Similar to the backlash from many Scottish people, whenever any English institutions or individuals published arguments against Scottish Independence during their 2014 Independence Referendum, it is likely that similar backlash would result from many non-Nationalist Northern Irish people, if the ROI Government, or our SU, decided to jump the gun on reunification without considering their concerns, which is what is being proposed.

While Northern Ireland, unlike the UK as a whole, opposed Brexit, there is no evidence that this disharmony has resulted in a demand for a border poll.

A recent poll (LucidTalk, September 2016) indicates that 57.6% of people in the North would say no to

having a border poll, and that if there was one, 68% would vote to remain in the UK (excluding the ‘don’t knows’). So, why should we in the South lobby for a poll for which there is no demand in the North?

Even with an apathetic Tory government, people in the North still enjoy public services that are in some ways superior to those in the South, and are ran at a deficit equal to around €6-12 billion, depending on who you ask.

One could quibble with the exact extent of that deficit, or argue that reunification will pay in the long-run (it might), but it would be unwise to deny that transitioning to a fiscally viable all-Ireland state will be challenging for both the North and the South, in the short term, during a very volatile global period.

Beyond the financial concerns, it is still the case that most people in the North grew up in a religious and cultural community that sees the foundation of their identity tied up with the Union between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. For many, the Union is about more than economic specifics, and they would be no more convinced of any of the “obvious” benefits to themselves of a United Ireland, than Nationalists at the turn of the 20th Century would have been on the “obvious” economic benefits of staying within the UK.

Some argue that a United Ireland would benefit Northern Irish students, because a hard border (post-Brexit) would impact heavily on them should they wish to pursue opportunities south of the border – therefore, the SU has an obligation to support a United Ireland.

That has the same logical premise as a British Students’ Union lobbying for the South to re-join the UK, because of a post-Brexit hard border would also impact heavily on students from the ROI who wish to study in the UK. We’d find that patronising, as would many Northerners from a non-Nationalist background.

Overall, this proposal would decrease trust among the “swing voters” within the Unionist community, who would be vital for obtaining a majority in favour of Reunification. It obliges our SU to lobby a Government body that cannot formally initiate a border poll, and overlooks the fact that most people in the North do not wish to hold one at present.

It’s also unclear, given that the vast majority of the members of our SU neither came from, live in or work in Northern Ireland, why our SU’s lobbying would have any influence upon decision-makers in the North, and why they would care about said lobbying.

This proposal will not do anything to increase the likelihood of Reunification, but would only serve to divide this island even further. Please vote “No”.

SUSEU E

#NUIGSU17

1717 2020

O I T N C S E L CTIONS E L #NUIGSU17

✓President FULL TIME ✓Vice President/Education Officer President OFFICERS ✓ ✓Vice President/Welfare Officer FULL TIME ✓Vice President/Education Officer OFFICERS Nominations Open: 10am Thursday 16th February 2017 ✓ Vice President/Welfare Offi cer Nominations Close: 5pm Wednesday T H 22nd February 2017

4 TH 4O F

Nominations Day: Open: 10am Thursday 2nd 16th February Election Thursday March2017 2017 www.su.nuigalway.ie

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Nominations Close: 5pm Wednesday 22nd February 2017 www.su.nuigalway.ie www.su.nuigalway.ie

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Election Day: Thursday 2nd March 2017

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07/12/2016 13:00

Coiste Gnó Executive Committee

2016 - 2017 17

Vice President/Education Officer Leas Uachtarán/Oifigeach Oideachais

President Uachtarán

Vice President/Welfare Officer Leas Uachtarán/Oifigeach Leasa

su.education@nuigalway.ie 086 385 3658

su.president@nuigalway.ie 086 385 5502

su.welfare@nuigalway.ie 086 385 3659

Cathal Sherlock

Oifigeach na Gaeilge

Clíodhna Nic Giolla Chomháill

su.gaeilge@nuigalway.ie 0044 7534 459 894

Societies Chairperson Cathaoirleach na gCumann

Patrick O’Flaherty su.socs@nuigalway.ie 086 852 3417

Convenor of the College of Science Tionólaí Choláiste na hEolaíochta

Christopher Mc Brearty

su.science@nuigalway.ie 087 656 5387

Jimmy McGovern

Equality Officer Oifigeach Comhionnais

Daniel Khan

Mature Students’ Officer Oifigeach Mic Léinn Lánfhásta

Postgraduate Officer An tOifigeach Iarchéime

Megan Reilly

Damian Duddy

Colm Duffy

Clubs Captain Captaen na gClubanna

SU Council Chairperson | Cathaoirleach na Comhairle do Chomhaltas na Mac Léinn

Convenor of the College of Arts, Social Sciences & Celtic Studies | Tionólaí Choláiste na nDán, na nEolaíochtaí Sóisialta & an Léinn Cheiltigh

su.clubs@nuigalway.ie 089 975 4741

su.council@nuigalway.ie 087 269 7232

su.equality@nuigalway.ie 086 228 3856

Caitlin Jansen

su.maturestudents@nuigalway.ie 091 524 810

Aaron Reeves

su.postgrad@nuigalway.ie 086 275 8527

Ciarán MacChoncarraige su.arts@nuigalway.ie 087 054 4499

Convenor of the College of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences | Tionólaí Choláiste an Leighis, an Altranais & na nEolaíochtaí Sláinte

Convenor of the College of Business, Public Policy & Law | Tionólaí Choláiste an Ghnó, an Bhearais Phoiblí agus an Dlí

Convenor of the College of Engineering & Informatics | Tionólaí Choláiste na hInnealtóireachtaagus na Faisnéisíochta

su.medicine@nuigalway.ie 087 768 7892

su.business@nuigalway.ie 087 065 5357

su.engineering@nuigalway.ie 086 026 0500

Lorcán Ó Maoileannaigh

Diarmuid Ó Curraoin

Tim Murphy

26 FA SHI O N

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

Loneliness in the fashion world

STYLE STEAL: Alexa Chung

By Georgia Feeney

By Amanda Leeson

Blogger Sinead Burke, creator of Minnie Mélange, recently spoke out on her blog about how the fashion industry deals with disability. In an industry where “being different” is celebrated, Burke rejects this telling the story of her life with a love of fashion but feeling like fashion hated her for being different.

The Irish writer admits to feeling lonely for a great part of her adolescents and early adulthood having “not been catered for in shops” as she stands at 3ft 5inches. In a series of articles exploring different individual’s loneliness, the Irish Times spoke to Sinead Burke about her shopping struggles.

For most young girls and women alike, shopping is a joyful experience one of bonding with friends or spend-

ing time with our mom’s and going wild spending our pocket money. But the same could not be said by Sinead of her own experience. The fashion blogger admitted to the Irish Times that the task of clothes shopping filled her with “poisonous emotions of jealousy, envy, regret and disappointed”. She was made to feel unwanted by the retailers and fashion and the objects accessible to girls her age were not to her.

The Minnie Mélange creator expressed her view of the power of clothes; while waking up tired and throwing together an outfit was simple, it made her feel good and that was able to send her off to face the day feeling empowered. This is something I think we can all attest to.

The purpose of doing the interview was to make the point that women

should be able to find clothes that make them feel good and work for them no matter their physicality. Burke wants to change how people view the topic of clothes, it being a subject that is quite often belittled.

Her blog has given her new found confidence, and finally being able to find the clothes to suit her personality means a lot to the Irish blogger.

Having found peace with clothes she has decided to use her area of the internet to inspire others, speak out about her struggles to raise more awareness in the fashion industry, as well as interviewing other influential female role models in Ireland and abroad.

To read the full interview check out Sinead Burkes blog Minnie Mélange for a link to the Irish Times article.

Fashion takes its next big move forward

By Georgia Feeney New York fashion week has begun and the city has been inundated with the most stylish humans of the world all who wish to see what the next big trends will be. Models strut the catwalks in the spectacular creations of prestigious designers. While each and every show is different and warrants a lot of attention, it was one fashion show that has the media talking and it’s not because of their new line.

Michael Kors has broken down the boundary that many activists have been working towards for years. At his annual NYFW show, spectators were welcomed

by model, Ashley Graham on the runway as the first plus size model to walk in a Kors show. The American model is known for being awarded a lot of firsts, having been the first plus size model to grace the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2016, and just this year getting photographed for the cover of both British and American Vogue-the first of any plus size model to do so.

Many would say it seems this season is finally welcoming of all body shapes and sizes, something which the model has been actively arguing for since the early days of her career in the fashion industry. As Teen Vogue puts it: “It’s the season of body positivity”.

It was certainly a major step for the fashion designer who in the past explained that it wouldn’t work logistically, having a plus sized model walk his runway, despite the fact that his clothes go up to a size 16. The model, however, looked radiant with sleeked back hair, a no-makeup make-up look wearing a grey ribbed knit sweater dress, belted at the waist, and a cropped fur jacket.

Who knows, maybe the popular appraisal of Kors decision to include Graham in his fashion show will inspire others alike? We might just end up seeing a lot more models similar to Ashley’s size in the next season of New Fashion shows and a further breakdown of such labels for size. It’s certainly a welcome change.

Now that it’s February we can finally start to think of dressing for warmer weather. For the ultimate casual street style inspiration we need look no further than the fabulous Alexa Chung.

The model, presenter and author certainly knows how to make jeans and a top look a little bit more than just being the look of plain Jane.

This look is also perfect because you probably already have most of these pieces in your wardrobe. You can change this look up by adding a different top; band t-shirts are back this year and bigger than ever. The simple yet stylish look is so simple to just throw on if you’re running late but you will still look put-together.

Simple and comfy is definitely the way to go.

• Mid blue jeans – Topshop €55.00 • Black waterfall duster coat – New Look €44.99 • Frill sleeve tee-shirt – Topshop €12.00 • Silver tassel pendent – New Look €7.99 • Black and white sk8 –hi suede vans – Schuh.ie €69.00

Review of NYX Contour Palette

By Amy McMahon Last week I splurged a little and finally bought the NYX powder contour palette. It costs €25 and is definitely worth every penny! I have been using this palette every day since I got it, not only for contouring but for use as a highlight and eye-shadow too. I

don’t think I can recommend this product enough, everyone needs it in their life. It’s versatile, highly pigmented and very little product is needed.

It blends like a dream too which is always a plus. The fact that it doubles for a gorgeous warm eyeshadow look

(using the four darker contour shades) is the icing on the cake. I wasn’t sure how good the highlight would be after using Mac’s ‘soft and gentle’ highlighter for so long, but I was pleasantly surprised. It actually gives a great glow that is perfect for both night out looks and everyday makeup. Also, the fact that the palette has four different contour shades makes for the product more universal and easier to find the perfect shade for you. Two words; Holy Grail!

Bernie Sanders a fashion icon?

By Christina O’Reilly He’s certainly the unexpected choice, but last weekend Bernie Sanders reacted to the fact that none other than luxury fashion house, Balenciaga featured him as a muse in their recent catwalk show.

A month ago, the renowned French fashion brand featured a pinch of Burlington in their Autumn/Winter 2017 collection. Their creative brand director, Demma Gvasalia decided to dress their male models in clothing inspired

by Sander’s usual attire he was seen in throughout his Presidential campaign.

The models donned clothes at last month’s Paris fashion week that were reminiscent of Bernie’s khaki trousers, comfy shoes and knitted jumpers. The unique feature of this collection were pieces inscribed with Sander’s signature used by the politician for his election logo. However, the word Balenciaga was inscribed instead of Bernie.

Jake Tapper questioned the recent US presidential candidate on what his

thoughts were when he discovered that he had ironically been made into somewhat of a fashion icon last Sunday.

“I want to ask you about this bizarre sighting at Paris fashion week from Balenciaga”, Tapper said. “Did you ever think you would become a fashion icon?”

Sanders replied with a laugh saying; “Not quite”.

Sanders who turned 75 last year admitted that he was quite startled by the whole fiasco and found it pretty “bizarre”. If you think back to his televised campaign appearances last year, this is in fact a man who dresses more like a typical school principal rather than one who is influenced by the latest trends and who wore a Burton ski jacket to the presidential inauguration.

Sanders rejected his status as a sartorial trendsetter while jokingly admitting, “When I think of my many attributes, being a fashion maven is not one of them”.

The fashion world clearly thinks differently, Bernie.

28 LI F E STY L E

SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

CALM: can this sleeping app really improve your health?

By Aileen O Leary This week I took a look at the online world of the health industry and put one of the best apps on the market to the test. Calm is an app designed to help destress and help aid better sleep patterns.

For most students getting a solid eight hours every night can be hard, especially around deadlines and exam time. The extra stress of revising and getting work done can be detrimental to your physical and mental health. If you’re looking for some extra help destressing or getting those extra forty winks

then this is the app for you.

The way the app works is pretty straight forward: sign up for free with your email or Facebook and you’re all set. The app offers in app purchases and membership but most of the basic functions are free. There are three modes on the app: breathe, meditate and sleep. The breathing mode is pretty much for moments when you need to a break, you can adjust the clock as you go along so you can make the breathes longer or shorter with the goal being that you can hold your breath for longer over time, and centre your breathing so that it’s not too deep or too shallow. It runs on a clockwork scale and chimes every quarter so it lets you know when to breath in and out and hold.

Personally it didn’t make a huge difference to my health over the week but over time I can see how it would help.

The next feature is meditation; it goes on a seven day programme starting with concentration.

Each session is explained starting with a breathing technique followed by a guided meditation. All you need is a quiet space, a chair or cushion and you’re all set. I did see a difference in my overall wellbeing during the week by using the app, not only was I more well rested, I had more energy, I was more focused and got a lot more work done. I think meditation and a good sleep pattern are both essential in your day to day – it’s simply taking the

time out to switch off and really just relax and have that ‘me’ time. Away from all the stresses of college, deadlines, work, and just creating that mind space to really just sit still and focus on yourself and your breathing was really a huge benefit for me. I don’t really slow down that often or take time to just relax - there’s always something to do whether its college, or working at the weekend, going out etc.

At the beginning of this week I was sceptical about how an app could really improve your health, but from just using Calm for a few days I

can already see the difference. By taking the time to meditate or switch off before bed I felt less tired the next day, I was able to concentrate in class and sit down and do assignments for a longer period of time. For anyone feeling stressed or losing sleep over college I’d highly recommend ‘Calm’, it’s free to download on the app store and if you end up loving it you can sign up for a monthly membership to the app and get even more guided meditation sessions, personalised sessions, extra breathing techniques and tools to help you get a good night’s sleep. Overall I’d give ‘Calm’ 4/5.

Fitness and technology working together

By Sequoia Hornsby During the Christmas holidays my aunt showed me her shiny new Fitbit and, as she described everything it could do, my mind started to bubble with amazement at the extent to which technology has evolved. Real life was (finally) starting to feel like a sci-fi movie! I couldn’t afford a Fitbit for myself, of course, but that moment made me consider the potential technology has to help me reach my fitness goals, if I could just get my act together.

These days, technology is inextricably woven into most of our lives. It’s things as simple as using your smartphone to take before and after pictures, or liking an inspirational gym post on Instagram – we overlook them, but we have an amazing opportunity to use technology to achieve the level of fitness we dream about.

The key is to know what you want and to do a little research about your goals so that you know what it is you’re trying to achieve. I used to decide to “get fit” a few times a month. I’d Google how to lose weight in ten days whenever I had an important event coming up, and I owned two pairs of running pants before I’d ever set foot inside a gym. One pair was actually a size too small, in anticipation of the chub I planned to lose.

Now, fitness obviously isn’t always about losing weight, and there are plenty of resources for whatever you’re trying to accomplish. Most apps can be used for weight gain or weight maintenance too. Currently, the trend is to make an app for everything, which we should take advantage of.

There is everything from simple pedometer apps which count your steps and distance covered, to apps to track your runs, the food you eat, your sleeping and exercise patterns, and everything you could possibly need.

MyFitnessPal, one of the most popular and widely-used food and exercise tracking apps, can scan barcodes on food items to instantly provide the nutritional information and add it to your food diary. After a few days of getting used to the app and setting up your preferences, it becomes easy to add food and

monitor your progress in your fitness journey. Keeping a food journal has been proven to increase weight loss, and apps like MyFitnessPal are excellent for this reason. You can input your ideal weight and when you want to achieve it by, and it will advise you on how many calories to eat each day.

Another benefit of these apps is that they include a community that can make you feel like you’re not alone in working towards something. This is vital for some people and can add an important dimension to their fitness journey, providing a place to discuss their issues, and get motivation and share tips.

Technology is also great for anyone a little more introverted, because instead of being limited to an expensive gym membership or playing a team sport, you can exercise by yourself. There are videos and workout regimes available online which you can use at your own pace to get fit from your bedroom floor.

If working out in private suits you, or you just want to double-check how to do a plank before attempting one in front of strangers at the gym, YouTube videos are incredibly helpful. There are also video game options that can keep you active. They have a reputation for keeping people trapped on the sofa, but there are now options like the Wii Fit and Dance Dance Revolution which offer fun ways of staying fit without having to leave the house or even change out of your pyjamas.

That said, there are no magical, guaranteed-weight-loss solutions, we all know well it’s not that simple. In the past I’d download an app and use it diligently for a day, maybe two, but then I’d get distracted and eventually delete the app because the notifications were making me feel guilty. There’s also the pitfall one of my housemates fell into, where he obediently filled in the food diary but completely ignored his suggested calorie limit every single day.

Unfortunately, until technology catches up with the sci-fi world and invents a gadget that can instil motivation inside your mind, it’s down to each one of us to find the drive to get fit. Thankfully, technological resources like the ones mentioned can do a lot to make reaching your fitness goals more enjoyable and, frankly, more achievable.

NÓS MAIRE ACHTÁLA

February 28 2017

29

Who can we trust in a world of ‘fake news?’

By Deirdre Leonard There is no doubt that 2016 was the year of ‘fake news’. It infiltrated everyday life in an almost unnoticed way until it contributed to the US Democrats losing the election and could be ignored no longer. Now the term ‘fake news’ is thrown around by media outlets and the US President himself on an almost daily basis. In a minefield pumped full of information, how is the everyday person to know who can be trusted and who can’t when it comes to providing factual news?

Here in Ireland, ‘fake news’ has not been as problematic as it has been in the US. We have less of a right versus left political mentality to begin with. The older people of Ireland usually have lifelong affiliations with a particular party from the ‘golden days’ of their youth, while young people tend to vote by issue rather than party. In the US, the right versus left mentality is deeply entrenched in their society and the division between the two tends to be deep and usually geographical. The coastal states have always swung more liberal, while Middle America and the South have long-standing Republican roots.

The media are still grappling with the rapidly changing landscape of a Trump Presidency. When lies are coming from the top down, it will be almost impossible to ensure that everyone is getting the facts and not being swayed by propaganda.

It’s down to the people themselves to read widely and research the facts.

This causes a bigger problem when it comes to fake news in the US. Websites like Facebook and Twitter, where most people get their news from, create timelines for you that show the activities of your friends and the accounts or pages that you’ve chosen to follow. If you follow right-wing websites and all of your friends are Republicans, there’s a high chance that you won’t be seeing liberal leaning op-eds from The New York Times on your timeline anytime soon. Likewise, Democrats couldn’t see the effect of right-wing websites, so it wasn’t the issue it should have been until it was too late.

This division was a major problem prior to the US election. Due to news coverage, Democrats were seeing Trump as either a joke, an outrage or, maybe more dangerously, as someone who wasn’t a threat.

Meanwhile, outside of the sphere of the more liberal or celebrity driven media, a lot of American states were seeing news coverage of a man who pitched himself as a successful business owner, someone who was ready to revolutionise the tired politics of Washington and bring real change.

Jokes on Saturday Night Live or damning coverage from the likes of The Washington Post meant nothing

to people who were desperate for someone who they felt would understand and address their needs.

Fake news was more media based before the election, driven by extremist websites, hackers or conspiracy theorists. However, since Trump’s inauguration, we’ve discovered that perhaps the biggest source of fake news has come from The White House itself. Trump has repeatedly made use of fake facts, from fabricated employment and crime rates at televised meetings, to his continuing assertion that his inauguration drew in millions more than it did on the day. He has proven himself to be a liar, or at the very least, someone who embellishes facts regularly in his first few weeks in office.

Even more worryingly, has been his administration’s repeated lies to the media. Recently, KellyAnne Conway referenced a terrorist event called the ‘Bowling Green Massacre’ live on air, which never in fact happened.

While two men who lived in Bowling Green had been in arrested in 2011 for sending money to Al Qaeda, there was no killings, explosives or ‘massacres’ involved at all. The Independent reported that over 50% of Trump supporters surveyed then claimed that the ‘Bowling Green Massacre’ proved that

Trump’s hardline border control policies were needed. If lies, or ‘alternative facts’, as Conway herself has called it, are coming from the very top, who are the people to believe?

For many, the answer is more fact based media outlets like CNN or The New York Times. We need to look for papers and journalists who avoid the sensational clickbait headlines of Fox News or tabloid newspapers, and report facts that are verified and impartial. But when your President is calling these media outlets ‘fake news’, who do you trust?

The media are still grappling with the rapidly changing landscape of a Trump Presidency. When lies are coming from the top down, it will be almost impossible to ensure that everyone is getting the facts and not being swayed by propaganda. The media may never figure out a way to ensure that facts reach more than ‘coastal liberals’. It’s down to the people themselves to read widely and research the facts. In the age of clickbait headlines, skim reading, short attention spans and ‘fake news’, knowledge is more powerful than ever and making sure you have the right kind of factual knowledge will be the key going forward with the Trump administration in charge.

Living two lives at once Reconnecting with the old me

By Grace O’Doherty Blurred photoshopped lines, carefully chosen emojis, self-directed Snapchat movies- the daily task of managing a virtual self is one that we don’t even think too much about anymore because the use of social media is second nature for our generation. Over the past few years we’ve become accustomed to using it, or at the very least seeing it used, in a very particular way. It’s free self-publicity, and we’re quickly learning how to make the most of having a second self to play around with who is often shinier and happier and far more composed than we could ever imagine our day-to-day selves being.

Do you ever find yourself making the same face as the emojii you’ve just typed, half trying out the emotion for size to see if it reflects or contradicts what you’ve just said, half you didn’t even realise you were doing it and now you’re wondering whether you actually felt the emotion or the emoji, in fact, felt you?

We laugh now looking back at the stiff black-and-white family group portraits from years and years ago for their almost painful artificiality- with everyone in their Sunday suits and dresses and a child with a thunderous frown on someone’s knee- but all girls know the rigorous routine of the group photo on a typical night out. Demure smiles, colour coding, a nice blank background - almost as much care and planning goes into these photos as went into the

old ones, and we’ll probably look just as ridiculous to future generations as they look to us.

Lads on the session are no different, if not worse, sheepishly posing with their pointed-gun hands hovering uncertainly over each other’s navels.

We are less natural than ever; even our spontaneous photos have been engineered. We’ve become extremely self-conscious of our own image, more assertive when it comes to how we present ourselves and where our images will be displayed. Facebook and Instagram are the online galleries in which we curate our second selves; we are constantly aware of the eyes on the other side of the screen.

There are times when it feels as though we’re losing the ability to experience moments as they happen; the process of reflection beginning the second after the picture has been taken. Fun is captured and edited and captioned and saved. We’ve always had the urge to document and to preserve, but there’s just a different, driven kind of edge to it these days, which has to do with self-promotion and the desire to present a great exterior. We’re the first generation to really capitalise on that aspect of social media, and it’s hard to tell how it will affect us in the long run.

Our sense of ourselves is shaped more than ever by comparison to others and by how much approval we get online, and that online self seems to only get more filtered by the day.

By Cathy Lee Do you ever look back on yourself and feel embarrassed? Maybe it was something you did, said or even dated. But there are other times when you look back, and it really helps you move forward. I always say that reflection is something good, that everyone should take part in. Even though I’m bad at taking my own advice admittedly, I think this time around I actually mean it.

We’re regularly reminded of our lovely past selves on our Facebook newsfeed with the “memories of the

Have you ever thought about the trends you’ve experienced in your lifetime? I was born in the mid-90s, grew up in the 00s and was a teenager by the 10s. There has been a lot of change in that time. I’d love to try out a retro look and maybe attempt to create the outfits that I absolutely adored back in the day.

I mean matching outfits with your best friends and/or cousins. That’d be great for Carbon next week.

Also in our childhoods, we try out a lot of sports. I did swimming, badminton, gymnastics, dancing (both Irish and a little more modern), GAA, and basketball to name a few. Do you ever wonder

I think tracing your past makes you figure out the you that’s in the now. I went through a couple of groups of friends until I found those that have lasted and meant the most to me. I think before you drift with various commitments, you find out what kind of people suit you best. day” making an appearance, with everything from the dodgy selfies to the inspiring teenage quotes (I hope that’s not just me). But honestly, it brings a laugh with it and a reminder that this was how we once carried on.

I think this reminder is something to cherish, like a little blast from the past we should welcome.

why you let these things go? I know I question my best ways and maybe, just maybe the missed opportunities for greatness (at a stretch possibly).

My only claim to fame is that I competed in the All Ireland’s for Trampoline gymnastics back in 2007. That’s ten years ago yes but if you know me, I’ll speak to you like it was yesterday. I was

placed eight in that competition but considering we were in Belfast during an Orange Parade and made the long trip, it was as memorable as if I’d taken the first place title.

I also used to read a lot more often.

Sneaking small torches to bed and using the street light as an extra lamp to read into the late hours of the night (probably 1am if I am being realistic). I still have a small portion of the books I once collected but really they should be dug out. There’s nothing better than going up to the attic and collecting the memories to celebrate the you that was and maybe even made you who you are, more than you realise.

I think tracing your past makes you figure out the you that’s in the now. I went through a couple of groups of friends until I found those that have lasted and meant the most to me. I think before you drift with various commitments, you find out what kind of people suit you best. Who is worth your time and makes you enjoy the day that much more.

So my advice would be to put yourself and your life into review, under the microscope of understanding where you are now. Once you trace it back this way, you can go about that reconnection and maybe discover a love you left behind.

There’s nothing wrong with admitting to liking something that’s maybe not really on trend anymore. Sure isn’t that where you’ll find your own take on originality?

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SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

By Aoife O Donoghue In the last edition of SIN I laid bare my inner nerd and shared my hopes and dreams for Harry Potter and The Cursed Child. So, having read it, I can now tell you that while it’s not the best book I’ve ever read, nor the perfect addition to the Harry Potter series, I still really enjoyed it. Once more, I got to roam the halls of Hogwarts, getting to know new characters and reconnecting with the ones I felt I knew so well.

It has a very different feel from the main series, mainly down to the fact that it is, of course, a play and not a novel. It therefore relies predominantly on dialogue to set the tone, the mood and the atmosphere, with only short stage directions to replace longer descriptive passages. It’s more difficult to provide the long gaze a novel can, on either a character or a setting. However, I also think that another factor is that JK Rowling was not the primary writer of this piece, and that shows throughout the play. While it is based off her world, her characters and her story, it was written for the stage by John Tiffany and the differing styles is STI Test Poster.pdf

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notable. John Tiffany’s style is not bad, in fact, I thought it was very good, but when you associate Harry Potter with the style of JK Rowling, it takes a while to get used to that of another.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child also departs from its predecessors in that it’s actually not so much about learning magic and defeating dark forces, but about much more human things, much more ‘muggle’ things. It explores relationships, friendships, conflicts and challenges that any and all of us can face. The father-son relationship between Harry and Albus is the predominant theme, with the weight of Harry’s fame and success a weight on Albus’ young shoulders. We see Albus act out, reject the things that Harry treasured, and he forms a toxic relationship with Hogwarts, the place that should help him grow to his potential.

Harry, who has overcome so many seemingly impossible challenges in the past seems to hit a wall with his own son, and we remember that he doesn’t have his own father figure as a guide.

It’s real, it’s human and it’s touching.

There are moments in the play that are really quite beautiful. The strength of the

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relationship between Albus and Scorpious Malfoy leads to a healing of wounds between Harry and Draco; something which I feel Draco in particular deeply needed. The alternative realities caused by the time-turner present us with drastically altered worlds, but the love between Ron and Hermione is always there, even if it’s below the

surface. There are odes to Dumbledore and to Snape providing a wonderful mix of the old and the new. Ultimately, the play is about fighting and overcoming darkness, that can come both from within and without. And while magic is powerful, love is more so. Lily Potter taught us that, and now, Harry and Albus remind us.

Review: Dramsoc’s Eurydice

By Deirdre Leonard An envelope titled ‘Open Me’ awaited us on our seats on the closing night of NUI Galway’s Dramsoc production of Eurydice. Inside lay a short poem from Hades welcoming us to the Underworld. It was a nice touch that set the tone for what was to be an interesting and innovatively staged play, unlike anything I had seen before.

Written by Sarah Ruhl, the 2003 play is an adaption of the Greek tale of Orpheus and his wife Eurydice. After their wedding, Eurydice ends up in the Underworld where she is reunited with her long dead father while Orpheus desperately tries to find a way to get her back to the land of the living again. It’s a fresh take on the Greek myth which walks the line between comedy and tragedy very well, a challenge that was easily met by director Zita McLoughlin and her superb cast.

The production was centred around an excellent cast led by Amy Walsh as Eurydice and Cathal Ryan as Orpheus. The pair had an easy chemistry that served their scenes together well and lent a sweet poignancy to any moment that they managed to communicate while separated by worlds. Ryan’s performance as Orpheus was as earnest as it was comedic and his physicality earned him a lot of much deserved laughter in the play’s lighter scenes. Walsh played Eurydice with a grace and honesty that served the character’s ‘torn between two worlds’ storyline beautifully. Both played their parts with nuance and care while also being unafraid to go for physicality and comedy, a braveness that really endeared me to both characters throughout.

They were supported by an excellent cast.

The chorus of stones - Big Stone, Little Stone and Loud Stone, played by Niamh Ní Flatharta, Emily White and Clare O’Toole respectively were excellent comedic additions to the casting.

Each played their part perfectly and earned big laughs from the crowd, with the less than intelligent Big Stone being a particular favourite amongst the trio. They made excellent use of the stage and really added to the uniqueness of the play by greeting the audience at the door and interacting with us before the play began.

Their costumes and makeup were a highlight of the cast wardrobe, making clever use of striking blue handprints across the face and stone grey outfits that helped them blend in on stage when desired.

The Underworld was home to more than just the Stones though, with Narain Kumar giving a

heartfelt performance as Eurydice’s father, who shows her how to get her memory back after she dies. He tried to communicate with her before her death but it was only in the Underworld could they reunite again. The two shared some great scenes where they got to really explore the father-daughter relationship that both had missed out on for years with a childish freedom that was played beautifully by the pair. The so called ‘Interesting Man’ was played excellently

by Tomás Clayton whose expressions and mannerisms created the perfect storm of comedy and smarm in a character that you just couldn’t take your eyes off. It was Pimapsorn Thavornnart’s Hades who stole the show comedically though, riding into her scenes on a small tricycle to huge laughs and making incredible use of the stage. Her physicality was mesmerising to watch and the innovative makeup and costume design ensured that she truly was unnerving in her devil child interpretation of Hades.

Director Zita McLaughlin handled set design in this production too and the the staging itself was incredibly innovative, unlike anything I had seen in a Dramsoc production before. It made excellent use of the space in the Bank of Ireland Theatre, using the balcony and booth normally reserved for sound directing and crew seating to full effect by seating the audience facing them and the main entrance door directly.

The balcony and stairs transformed from a high rise apartment building to the land of the living to an eventual elevator to the Underworld, aided by an excellent use of lighting that really was one of the high points of the production.

The mainstage itself was simple, with only letters hanging on strings, a column, a suitcase and three strings being used to great effect by the whole cast. With such a bare stage and a much larger playing field than normal in the BOI, it was really down to the cast to make use of the space and they did so, to great effect.

There was great choreography and music smattered throughout, much to my surprise, an element I hadn’t been expecting entering the play. Although some lines had a tendency to be lost among the choreography or when dialogue was being shouted, the cast performed with the ease of those who were finishing up a successful run of shows.

Overall, I was incredibly impressed by the staging and production value of Eurydice, a play that was as filled with heart as it was with creativity thanks to an inspired director, great behind the scenes work and a committed and talented cast.

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The best of the Brits

How to pick the right movie

By Christina O’Reilly

4. The audience gets a blow from KLF: KLF

By Michael Glynn

Down through the years the Brit Awards have certainly produced little treasures of unscripted television gold. Which moments of TV madness do we remember the most?

While certainly the Brit Awards can be a platform to demonstrate all that is wonderful about the UK music industry, it can also be a severe warning about what can actually go pear-shaped when you pack a bunch of fragile egos, television cameras and free alcohol into the one room.

Although it is certainly the case that the Brit Awards have become a lot more polished, scripted and less outrageous in the last number of years, the general population never fail to watch on in their millions. This is of course because it seems to be the only awards show nowadays that is sure to deliver the unexpected and bizarre.

Traditionally, the Brits have certainly shined in terms of awkward moments, crude outbursts and questionable duets, never failing to guarantee headline news the following day. With this unique cocktail in mind, let’s recap on the top seven moments from the Brit Awards down through the years.

1. Robbie Williams challenges Liam Gallagher to a televised boxing match: The millennium Brits was surely memorable as countless people across the country watched on as Robbie Williams challenged Liam Gallagher to a televised boxing match for £100,000. Later in the show Ronnie Wood squared up to Brandon Block by throwing his drink on him and causing quite the commotion.

2. Jarvis Cocker bears his butt to Michael Jackson: Jarvis Cocker from Pulp certainly became an overnight celeb after he shoved his bum in front of the King of Pop. Cocker later declared that he did so simply because of Michael’s pretentiousness and not because he was rather drunk or looking to steal the limelight.

3. John Prescot gets drenched: The alternative pop group Chumbawamba surely landed themselves in hot water as the deputy Prime Minister got a full bucket of ice cold water thrown over him. He was actually questioned by the police, but was later released.

decided to open up the audience with an elaborate display of machine guns blowing pieces of wood from all angles. However, it could have turned out a lot worse as the band initially wanted to fire buckets of blood into the audience until their lawyers thankfully stopped them.

5. Joss Stone developed an American accent: Joss Stone who is originally from Devon came onto the Brit stage in 2007 speaking in a questionable and forced West Coast American accent. The audience painfully listened in disbelief and Joss certainly got magazine coverage the following day over the incident.

But what made the moment memorable was when host Russell Brand later remarked, ‘I’m a bit worried about that poor cow’.

6. Adele’s middle finger salute: Even though Adele is Britain’s biggest singing export in the last ten years and has an audience eagerly hanging on her every breath, even she wasn’t immune to the strict timing schedule that shut her acceptance speech short by the hilarious James Cordon. This feisty diva reacted accordingly and sassily by throwing her middle fingers up in anger.

7. Madonna’s almighty fall: At an awards ceremony, which was lacking that wow factor moment, Madonna arrived. She appeared on stage wearing Armani, looking like an elaborate cross between a bullfighter and a mysterious wizard. She was dressed in a full-length intricate cape and hood piece.

Unfortunately Madonna’s shaky fingers weren’t quite able to open the detailed fastening, which attached the unique cape ensemble to Madonna’s body. Therefore, when Madonna’s dancers, who were ironically actually dressed as little devils, tried to pull the cloak she was pulled completely backwards and fell to the floor abruptly.

Instead of interrupting her song and complaining that she was in pain, she carried on and instead chose to later hit up Instagram to declare that she was fine and that her Armani cloak, which actually later received its own account, was ‘tied too tight’. What a ­professional!

You’re snuggled up on the couch, got your blanky, got your snacks, and all that’s left to do is pick a film.

But how do you decide? It’s got a great actor in it that you like, but there’s no actor that hasn’t done a bad film. All your friends are talking about the next one, but your friends have horrible taste. So you decide to turn to IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes, they rate movies, they’ll know which one you should watch!

Or maybe not, they can be wrong too.

Look, movie taste is subjective like most things, nobody can tell you what you like, but using IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes is a good first step, but you have to know how they work.

IMDb rates movies out of 10 based on votes from users and critics alike, although critics scores carry a slightly heavier weight than users, and this seems like a fair enough way to do it - right? Seemingly not, because there are certain genres whose fans won’t accept that a movie isn’t as good as they think, namely superhero and fantasy movies. It’s rare enough to see a superhero film with a rating below 7 on IMDb. Next up is Rotten Tomatoes, this is your best bet for picking a film. It rates a film as being fresh if it’s at 60% or above and rotten if it’s under. It factors in ratings by users and critics alike but unlike IMDb it separates them.

So while a film may not have been a big hit with critics, it could have been a hit with fans for one reason or another.

Ironically, as I write this I’m also deliberating over Netflix with my mother, and it’s taking us ages. I’ve got both IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes in front of me, we both have recommendations from friends and colleagues and it still took us 20 minutes to pick a film.

Do you know what we picked? Bedazzled with Brendan Fraiser and Elizabeth Hurley. It is currently rated 6/10 on IMDb and it has an audience rating of 42% on Rotten Tomatoes with the critics being slightly more favourable with 49%. And do you know why we picked it?

Because it’s one of our favourite comedies!

Because sometimes you’ll like a movie that nobody else or very few other people enjoy.

Because you have a unique taste in everything, nobody else is going to love exactly the same things as you. And that is absolutely fine.

Has this article been the most helpful? Probably not no, so I’ll try to give a bit of advice. If you want to get hung up on critics reviews, read the good reviews

4 Grammys moments that rocked us

By Christina O’Reilly

Adele confessing her admiration for Beyoncé: Adele was seen teary-eyed and distraught that her album, 25, bet Beyoncé’s Lemonade for Album of the Year. She also found it extremely bizarre that her song ‘Hello’ won over Beyoncé’s ‘Formation’. Adele appeared on stage emotionally shocked, stating to Beyoncé, “I adore you”. Adele’s final award of the night proved too much for the Tottenham lady to handle as she confessed, “I can’t possibly accept this award”, then dramatically dedicated Album of the Year to the glorious Beyoncé.

In her acceptance speech she said Lemonade was “so well thought out and so beautiful and soul bearing”, and continued by saying “we all got to see another side to you that you don’t always let us see. We appreciate that and all of us artists here adore you. You are our light”. Beyoncé looked up, equally as teary-eyed and mouthed “I love you” right back.

Adele restarting her George Michael tribute: Adele was in the middle of performing a tribute song to George Michael when she accidentally made a blunder and uttered a swear word. The 15-time Grammy-winner became the very first artist to ever win album, record and song of the year twice. She previously received this accomplishment in 2012 with her album 21 and single ‘Rolling in the Deep’. After performing her spectacular ‘Hello, she took to the stage again, this time to pay tribute to George Michael. She cursed during her performance of George’s ‘Fast Love’. She panicked and couldn’t bear to continue saying, “I’m sorry, I can’t mess this up for him. Can we start over?”

Katy Perry getting political: While James Corden dramatically expressed that he was anti-Trump during the awards, Katy expressed her political opinions in a more demure manner.

She appeared on stage dressed in a Hillary Clinton inspired white pant suit and paired this with apparent armbands which read ‘persist’. She had

a set that spun around and was a representation of Chain’s lyrics about escaping from your comfort zone and contentment. Katy was placed behind a white fence, which suddenly burst into hundreds of little flying pieces. Before the song commenced the US Constitution appeared on the backdrop, while Katy held hands with Skip Marley.

James Corden’s opening: James Corden’s opening number may have gone embarrassingly downhill, but the Late Late presenter charmingly amused the crowd for the rest of the night, with some extremely entertaining results. James decided to recreate his viral Carpool Karaoke show. He brought guests including Jennifer Lopez, Tim McGraw, John Legend and Neil Diamond to sing Neil’s song ‘Sweet Caroline’. What made the moment most entertaining was when Beyoncé’s daughter Blue Ivy Carter, jumped on stage and stole the show. Later on in the night, Corden’s parents joined Heidi Klum and Nick Jonas in the vehicle for their 45th wedding anniversary and gushed that they both had a ‘free pass’.

from films you know you love already - those are the critics who might have similar taste to you and it’d be a good idea to watch the films they recommend.

Apart from that, just go with your gut feeling, sometimes a terrible movie can be fun.

Still not helpful? I’m also going to depart with a selection of films from different genres that this critic thinks you should see.

FANTASY: The Princess Bride ACTION: Lethal Weapon ROMANCE: Love Actually HORROR: Hard Candy COMEDY: Wet Hot American Summer Enjoy, and don’t forget the popcorn!

You gave away the sun

By Deirdre Leonard You will brush shoulders with the stars and live among them, away from the paper people that line your city streets so narrow.

They blow back and forth beneath street lights Stories etched onto their skin, words bleeding from their eyes, dreams dripping onto the concrete.

Puddles of hope gather where they stand, forgotten spilling into unmanned sewers, hidden from pleading eyes.

Black and white lives, set in type, chosen for the world to read.

But not you starling.

Your skin is canvas, exploding, dripping in colour.

Freckle galaxies scatter your arms, music bursts ever twitching fingers, tapping salsa beats onto every surface, the wind throws itself at your unfurling curls, begging to see them dance.

Sunlight peeks through the gap in your teeth, The ocean’s secrets hide beneath your November noon eyes.

The pain of a 3D heart beating among paper people, pouring out for the world to ignore.

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SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

THE CURSE OF THE DATING SHOW are we a generation bored with conventional dating?

By Brigid Fox From online dating websites such as Tinder, Grindr and Match.com, to dating shows like Naked Attraction and Dating in the Dark, it seems we are always looking for new, unique and somewhat controversial methods of finding love. Having strayed far away from the conventional and traditional ‘movie and a dinner’ date to something a lot more complex and controversial it has to be questioned where has this interest in obscure and surreal dating come from?

It seems that our obsession with alternative dating shows began innocently enough. With the introduction to Dinner Date, The Millionaire Matchmaker and The Bachelor(ette) in the early to late 00s that consisted of people doing generally quite regular things (often with wades of cash) to find true love. It was a simple twist on a modern traditional method of dating that was recorded for television to entertain us all on lazy Sunday mornings. These sorts of shows have become aged in their method of matchmaking in recent years.

It's not just the dating shows that are getting a new revamp, sexual health and education shows such as Sex Pod and The Sex Education Show are definitely giving more air time as our society loosens the chains on sexual expression and desire.

But how far can this go?

Jump ahead to the present dating shows where if someone isn’t showing something in the nude it is seen as too conventional, over done and slightly childish.

Listing a couple including Dating in the Dark and Naked Attraction, it appears that we are becoming a generation fixated on what’s on the outside that matters – first-off anyway. Could this just be a progressive stance on a societal embracement of sexuality that has escalated in recent years? As we become more accepting of sexualities and sexual expression, it’s not surprising that dating shows like this have become rampant on our televisions today. And its not just the dating shows that are getting a new revamp, sexual health and education shows such as Sex Pod and The Sex Education Show are definitely giving more air time as our society loosens the chains on sexual expression and desire. But how far can this go?

Being completely honest, I’m not entirely sure how these sorts of dating shows could escalate any greater than they already have, leading me to question their shelf life. Yes, it could be a new-age dating method that allows all, or it could just be your typical run of the mill ‘shock’ factor phase that generally fades out in a couple

of years and is only remembered by journalists who are forced to revive old embarrassing TV shows from the past for their throwback Thursday articles. Nevertheless they are here now, and what I think everyone really wants to know is this: do these contemporary, new age, exotic dating shows actually work? Does the obscure, obscene and risqué content really find you true love, or is it a matter of sticking to what we already know?

Frankly, it depends on a lot of factors whether or not any of these methods of dating are successful: the person themselves, their own belief in expressing their sexuality, and most importantly the person they are matched up with. Whether your clothes are on or off, whether you only hear their voice or see them with masks on, being compatible with the person you’re set up with is the main component in making shows like this a success.

Some may say these controversial, boundary-breaking shows are just a phase, or a society pushing its public sexualities to the extremes. But aside from all of the glitz, the naked bits or the traditional dinner and a movie, our true obsession seems to be with finding love, no matter what way we can.

What’s going on in Galway 21 February – 6 March?

By Aisling Bonner

aimed at achieving maximum social soakage.

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Jamnesty (2 March)

OW ON EARTH did March get in that title?

As always, the year is absolutely flying in and the business end of the semester is getting suited and booted quicker than we can say Exam Invigilator. But don’t fret just yet. Now is the time to soak up all the social you can muster – because let’s face it, you’re going to need it. Luckily, here at SIN, we have the perfect mix of events

NUIG’s Amnesty Soc is cranking up the volume in aid of the #IWelcome campaign with a gig on 2 March in The Loft Venue, at Galway’s Seven bar.

The #IWelcome campaign is fronted by Amnesty International and is a movement to welcome refugees into countries and communities around the world. Jamnesty will see performances from

a number of local talents namely, Ignition, The JobSeekerz, 5th Element and Bicurious. Ticket are €5 and available in the Socs Box and include free finger food and entry into 4/4.

Sign-up for Cancer Soc’s Relay for Life (21 February) CancerSoc’s biggest event of the year, Relay for Life, takes place on Thursday 9 March. Now in its third year, the event is one of the most popular

in the academic year, providing much needed funds for the Irish Cancer Society. Cancer Soc will be in Smokeys on 21 February from 10 – 2 taking sign-ups for this year’s event. For just €10 you can enjoy a night of fun and remembrance, and the ultimate celebration of life.

Stand-up for SVP (27 February) NUIG’s societies are knocking it out of the park this fortnight! Comedy Soc and SVP Soc’s Stand up for SVP comedy night is sure to be a match made in heaven. Special guest Davey Reilly will get the lols rolling along with support from other local and national comedians. Davey Reilly has played at major comedy festivals including Edinburgh Fringe, Vodafone Comedy Festival and Longitude. The gig takes place from 6pm in the Meeting Rooms, Aras na Mac Leinn. At only €4 for some laughs and free pizza you’d be mad to miss it!

Connacht vs Zebre (3 March) While Ireland’s Six Nations dreams were as good as squashed after day 1, what better time to cheer on our beloved Connacht Rugby.

The local boys will take on Italy’s Zebre at the Sportsground on College Road in Round 17 of the Guinness PRO 12. Get your special student rate of €15 from the SU from February 21 to make sure you don’t miss one of the last home games of the tournament.

February 28 2017

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SIN Vol. 18 Issue 10

Ranieri’s Leicester in perfect storm once again

By Graham Gillespie “Last season everything was right for us. This season everything is wrong for us,” commented Claudio Ranieri forlornly in his post-match interview after Leicester City got February off to a stuttering start with a dismal 3-0 defeat to Manchester United. A simple comparison with the Premier League table now and at this point last season strongly backs up the Italian manager’s suggestion.

On February 8 2016 Leicester were in the middle of their fairy-tale, five points clear at the top of the league having just outplayed Manchester City in a season defining 3-1 victory.

Fast forward a year, and at time of writing the Foxes are just a solitary point off the drop zone.

Now they will be hoping that this season’s February clash with Mancunian opposition doesn’t also epitomise their campaign come May. With this change in fortune, the FIFA Men’s Coach of the

What has gone wrong this year?

Ranieri is not far off in stating ‘everything’, and at times it almost feels as if his team are being cruelly repaid for the fortune they enjoyed last season.

Year award-winner now finds himself under pressure with the Leicester board having to give a vote of confidence, which in modern football parlance basically equates to a kiss of death.

Whilst it is true that Leicester have been disappointing this season, it seems harsh that the veteran Italian could lose his job after leading a team who had odds of 6000-1 at the start of last season to the league title.

A sense of perspective is often absent in the world of football and the extent of the Yorkshire club’s heroics last season should not be understated. The freakish nature of their run to the league also needs to be noted because Leicester capitalised upon a perfect confluence of circumstances.

All the traditional title challengers were stumbling either due to being in transitional phases or incompetence and Ranieri was able to play the same group of injury-free players week in, week out with several of them having the

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episode of the Second Captains podcast Riyad Mahrez has not scored a league goal from open play since he picked up his PFA Player of the Year award last April. The totemic centre back pairing of Robert Huth and Wes Morgan have also been mistakeridden shadows of themselves which is something that has permeated throughout the whole squad.

Ranieri is also not completely blameless in Leicester’s downturn in form. It could be argued he has shown too much loyalty to certain players. According to the BBC, club captain Morgan had played 49 straight games before being dropped for the FA Cup fourth round replay against Derby County.

Also after spending all of last year playing 4-4-2, there has been a number of formation changes which have reminded us of why he was dubbed “the Tinkerman” in his Chelsea days.

Recently, he decided to deploy a disjointed diamond midfield against Southampton which resulted in a 3-0 loss. Also if the

recent allegations of Ranieri losing the dressing room are true then the club’s owners may be left with no choice but to look for a replacement.

Despite these issues Leicester are still in the UEFA Champions League having topped their group, their reward for which is a challenging tie against surprise La Liga title challengers Sevilla. Their FA Cup hopes are also still alive with Millwall awaiting in the fifth round albeit only after making heavy work of Derby in the previous round.

Whilst last season was a perfect storm that propelled Leicester to the title, this year could again be a perfect storm of sorts which plunges the Foxes to the depths of the Championship. However, as Gary Lineker tweeted, surely echoing most Leicester fans’ thoughts, “if it were a choice I’d prefer Leicester to drop three divisions than take away last season’s miracle” and Ranieri was the man who performed this ‘miracle’.

Is Ireland’s 6 Nations campaign in trouble?

T H IG sd e n d e

season of their careers. To use another league table from the past, Leicester were dead last in February 2015 which is further evidence of the anomalous nature of the 2015/16 season.

So, what has gone wrong this year? Ranieri is not far off in stating ‘everything’, and at times it almost feels as if his team are being cruelly repaid for the fortune they enjoyed last season. The loss of N’Golo Kante is an obvious starting point. The inexhaustible French midfielder has made more tackles than any player in the English top flight during the past three seasons despite having only played in the league for two of those campaigns. It is no coincidence that his new club Chelsea currently sit top of the table.

The players that did stay have almost all had drastic dips in form. Jamie Vardy has not looked remotely as menacing as he did a year ago when his pace terrorised defences, and as Guardian correspondent Stuart James pointed out in a recent

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Ireland’s bubble of hope which had been swelling after a positive Autumn International campaign was well and truly burst at Murrayfield as they lost to Scotland.

After endless false dawns, the Scots finally managed to win an opening game for the first time since 2006. So, what does this mean for the rest of Ireland’s 6 Nations campaign?

Ireland’s first round loss against a team in which many experts assured us that Ireland would get a bonus point victory means that both of the competition’s “Holy Grails” – the Grand Slam and Triple Crown are both completely out of reach.

With the English juggernaut still conquering all in front of them, it would seem that the championship is headed their way. While Ireland’s slip-up does undoubtedly put England in the driving seat and with a couple of the big prizes now certainly gone, it doesn’t mean that the championship is still an impossibility. Their bonus-point win against Italy hints that there is still plenty of fight remaining in the Irish ranks.

Plus, England have already shown some real frailties. They

haven’t yet reached the heights that was seen in the Autumn Internationals. For large periods of their first two games they were dominated by France and Wales respectively. England showed little guile within their general play.

Their main tactic was to savagely beat against the rear-guard until they eventually forced Wales to submit. If Ireland are able to match England physically, they will have a great chance of beating them when the two meet in Dublin in a few weeks’ time.

However, Ireland will need to straighten out the kinks that they have shown with their defence.

Time and time again, Ireland have looked exposed when a team moves the ball quickly to the outside. Explicit examples of this have come against Argentina, in the World Cup, and more recently against Scotland. Even against Italy there were certain instances where it looked like they could be unlocked by a very sluggish Italian attack.

It’s for this reason that Andrew Trimble must start the next game against France. Trimble is once again available for selection and provides Ireland with more cover defensively than Keith Earls does. When Trimble plays, Ireland don’t look as vulnerable

on the wing as he showed against New Zealand during the Autumn International.

While Trimble does have his shortcomings in attack, his prowess in defence will more than make up for it, particularly when the other attack-minded players in the Irish team are considered.

The panache and exuberance of players such as Simon Zebo and Garry Ringrose always threaten to unlock stubborn defences. The class of Johnny Sexton and Conor Murray are more than capable of producing a bit of magic to bring others into the game.

With the bonus point victory against Italy under their belt, the Irish squad have gained a bit of momentum going through to the back end of the Championship.

If they can keep this momentum going through until the showdown in Dublin against England, there is always a great chance of the upset.

Ireland have done this to England before, back in 2011. The visitors came to the Aviva Stadium hoping to secure a Grand Slam win. However, Ireland showed great character to run out 24-8 winners on that day. History does have a habit of repeating itself and it would be a sweet victory if Ireland could pull it off.

SPÓIRT

February 28 2017

35

Jesus loss the nail in City’s title challenge

By Trevor Murray

SUPER BOWL LI Falcons choke-job more than Patriots panache

By Ryan Mc Guinness Super Bowl LI will go down as one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history. Tom Brady rallied from 25 points behind in the third quarter to come back and eventually win the game in over-time. It was miraculous, stupendous; whatever synonym you want to use, the fight-back was probably that, too. The magic of Brady and Bill Belichick dominated the news coverage for the following days as the Patriots were hailed the greatest of the modern era.

While these levels of praise were clearly deserved, attributing to 16 years of excellence on the Patriots part, such praise glossed over the true reason the Patriots earned their coveted fifth Super Bowl: The Atlanta Falcons choked. Big time.

The first half of the game had been all Atlanta. Matt Ryan had a perfect passer rating of 158.3 and he had connected with Austin Hooper to make the game 14-0 Falcons. Devonta Freeman ran in an easy touchdown for the

initial score and Julio Jones was catching anything and everything thrown his way, including a late fourth-quarter side-line catch that is arguably the greatest catch in Super Bowl history.

Tom Brady attempted to rally his team to a score during the second quarter but he was sniped expertly by Robert Alford for a pick-six. The half ended with the score 21-3 and the game looked all but over. The Falcons could do no wrong and the Patriots were looking like their run to the big game had been a genuine fluke.

With four minutes to go in the fourth quarter the Falcons were leading the game 28–20. Despite the resurgence of the Patriots, the Falcons still had the game in control. It was second-and-11 on the Patriots 23-yard line and the Falcons had the momentum.

A field goal would’ve made the game a two-possession lead, a near impossibility to come back from. Two running plays or even two kneels would’ve led to the field goal and Atlanta’s probable victory.

On the play, however, Ryan took an awful sack which put the Falcons back to third-and-23, and then in the same set of downs Atlanta got a holding penalty, putting them out of field goal range. If Ryan threw the ball away instead of getting sacked, the loss of yards would never have occurred. This resulted in the Patriots getting the ball back with well over two minutes to go on the clock.

The Patriots started deep in their own half but a bevy of accurate throws got them out of trouble. The drive led to another miraculous catch, this time by Julian Edelman who jostled with three Atlanta defenders to come down with the ball. Everything that happened after the Falcons failed to kick the field goal worked against them. It was the true turning point in the game because after that the Falcons looked demoralised, especially the defence which at that point was just plain tired.

The Patriots scored and got the two extra points to take the game into overtime, proceeded to win the coin toss and easily strove down the field to win Super Bowl LI. You can blame bad play-calling or Matt Ryan for the choke but there’s no doubt that without it the New England Patriots would never have won the game.

Tom Brady was indeed mounting a serious comeback late in the fourth quarter which he should be given immense credit for in the first place, but the sheer fact that Atlanta handed them the game can’t be ignored.

Chelsea fans were surely rubbing their hands in glee at the news that their rivals Manchester City will be without prodigious Brazilian attacker Gabriel Jesus for several weeks after the teenage sensation suffered a broken metatarsal 15 minutes into their eventual 2-0 Premier League victory over AFC Bournemouth. Such is the harsh nature of modern football where anybody else’s misfortune is almost always another team’s good news.

Indeed, while it might seem harsh to celebrate a footballer’s foot injury, the truth of the matter is that without Jesus in their ranks, the Citizens lack that vital threatening option up front which they need every ounce of between now and the end of the season; if they are to successfully catch up with the Blues, they need all their best performers in form on a regular basis. While the former Palmeiras star has only been in manager Pep Guardiola’s set-up for a few weeks, he has already become indispensable to their make-up, forcing team-mate Sergio Aguero out of the starting line-up on a number of occasions since his £27 million

transfer. Indeed, it was Aguero who came on to take his place at the Vitality Stadium.

Having a striker of Aguero’s obvious quality sitting on the bench might seem like the most off-piste managerial decision of Guardiola’s incredibly brilliant career considering how many goals the diminutive fox-in-the-box has scored in the English top flight since his arrival (it’s currently at 113 by the way), but the early brilliance of Jesus has hinted that leaving the Argentine on the bench is the first step in a major tactical overhaul set to eventually take place around the Etihad Stadium.

However, the injury will surely set those plans back until mid-March at the earliest, and by then it will surely be too late.

Reflecting on Guardiola’s treatment of strikers in the past it could be suggested that the Spaniard isn’t a fan of the out-and-out attacking number 9s – the players who are the spearhead of the attack and are looked to, constantly, to conjure goals by turning home the assists of his team-mates. Mario Mandzukic, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Samuel Eto’o have all had trouble fitting in with Pep’s idea of what a centre-forward should be, and how they should behave, in the past so

it’s perhaps not all that odd to see Aguero shunned to the sidelines by his manager.

There is a real opportunity, once Jesus returns from injury for the Sky Blues, to remodel themselves offensively. With Raheem Sterling, Leroy Sane and Kevin de Bruyne all capable of expressing themselves amazingly with the ball at their feet, they have the perfect mix of attacking stars to mount a title challenge but with City keen to spread much of their attacking play wide, they need a false nine who is willing to sit back as well as spring forward, and Jesus is that figure. He knows how to read the play in front of him, when to involve himself in the 18 and six-yard boxes and when to pull the trigger.

His absence will now force Guardiola to revert to the City of old, the model he is currently attempting to move away from and rebuild in his own image, and that is not good news for the club. As is they can’t afford to see the gap between themselves and Antonio Conte’s Chelsea widen any further, but it is quite difficult to fathom just how they will avoid that inevitability considering Pep will now be fighting against his own re-design and attempting to make things work that he already knows are destined to fail.

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