THE NAB HALLOWEEN SPECIAL NONA THE VAMPIRE INTERVIEWS KEN LIVING-DEAD
Beaver “Not a Fit and Proper Issue 816 | 28.10.14
the
newspaper of the LSE Students’ Union
Person to Run the LSE” Sweeney Slams Calhoun
• Questions opaque Chinese state funding • Attacks LSE handling of North Korea doc • Criticises Putin meeting and says Calhoun ‘morally dead from neck up’ over tweet Jon Allsop Executive Editor Alexander Fyfe Managing Editor TELEVISION JOURNALIST John Sweeney has slammed the Director of the LSE over his “ridiculous” decision to call for last year’s Panorama documentary ‘North Korea Undercover’ to be pulled, his stance on China and the School’s lack of openness about its funding from the Chinese state. In an exclusive interview with The Beaver, the investigative journalist and LSE alumnus claimed Professor Craig Calhoun “is not a fit and proper person to be running an elite university like the LSE”. In addition, he criticised Professor Calhoun for calling for the programme not to be broadcast and for attending a private meeting with the Russian President Vladimir Putin, along with business leaders and journalists. He also gave his personal account of the ‘North Korea Undercover’ affair, offering his strongest refutation yet to the accusation that students on the trip were not given the opportunity to consent to his involve-
ment. Mr Sweeney’s post at Panorama is in the process of being closed but he currently still works for the BBC and doorstepped Russian President Vladimir Putin in September for Panorama. He spoke to The Beaver in a personal capacity as an LSE alumnus. At the height of the row about ‘North Korea Undercover’, Professor Calhoun tweeted that the “BBC story put LSE students at danger but seems to have found no new information and only shown what North Korea wants tourists to see”. Mr Sweeney disputed Professor Calhoun’s suggestion that the programme had little journalistic value, saying that it was important for “anyone who cares about free speech. Our Panorama showed interviews with three North Korean defectors. This is not tourist fare but new information on the tyranny which Professor Calhoun professed to ignore.” On China, Mr Sweeney referenced a passage in Professor Calhoun’s book, ‘Neither Gods Nor Emperors’ on the Tiananmen Square massacre, in which the LSE Director writes: ‘‘The official line is not simply
a blatant lie. It is a historical construction, an interpretation of events not altogether different in kind from those that give the student protesters martyrs’ crowns or saints’ halos. It makes sense, within its own frame of reference and evaluation, of a great many empirical claims. It is, however, a construction in which a peaceful protest is a “riot” because it disrupts “public order,” which in turn constitutes docile adherence to the wishes of Party leaders… It is intended to promote a favourable view of the military and the government and to minimize both the killing of civilians and the plausibility of the protest. But as a more or less complete interpretation, factual wherever possible, it has much more potential for influencing Chinese popular understandings and history than a simple lie or denial.” (pp.150-1). He also referenced Professor Calhoun’s assertion that: “the preponderance of evidence suggests that if any students were killed in Tiananmen Square that night, they were few… Very little carnage, if any, seems actually to have taken place in the Square. That millions of people around were virtually sure there had been, and almost thought they had seen it, was due largely to the deceptiveness of television reportage and editing.” (p.139).
Continued pp2-3
Comment News
The Beaver met John Sweeney near Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens
Debating NUS Disaffiliation Saw Swee Hock Grand Opening Pages 8-9 Pages 4-5
Room 2.02, Saw Swee Hock Student Centre, LSE Students’ Union London WC2A 2AE
Beaver
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Executive Editor Jon Allsop
editor@thebeaveronline.co.uk
Managing Editor Alexander Fyfe
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Established in 1949 Issue No. 816 - Tuesday 28 October 2014 - tinyurl.com/beaver816 Telephone: 0207 955 6705 Email: editor@thebeaveronline.co.uk Website: www.beaveronline.co.uk Twitter: @beaveronline
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Features Editors Rachel Chua Liam Hill
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Continued from p1 Mr Sweeney said that “Calhoun does criticise the Chinese state in the book but to blame the Western media for our lack of understanding about the Tiananmen Square massacre is absurd. The fault lies with the Chinese Communist Party. What further worries me as a former LSE student is that the LSE today receives unknown and undeclared sums of money from the Chinese state. I invite Director Calhoun to come clean about how much money the LSE gets from China. He is in danger of seeming like China’s useful idiot.” [EDITORIAL NOTE: Whilst The Beaver does not pass comment on the accuracy of Professor Calhoun’s description of the picture painted by the Western media of these tragic events, it notes that the tone of this passage remains strictly analytical. The Beaver further notes that several copies of this book are available in the LSE library.] Mr Sweeney name-checked the Executive Public Policy Training Programme (EPPTP) which the official LSE website describes as “specifically developed for senior Chinese govern-
Jon Allsop on why the NUS must work much harder to prove its worth to students
From the Executive Editor LSE WILL THIS WEEK vote on whether or not to disaffiliate from the National Union of Students (NUS). I expect that, this time next week, our attachment to the organisation will still in be intact. It is highly doubtful, however, that this result will reflect a glowing endorsement of the organisation. For disaffiliation to be quorate, 15 per cent of the student body must participate in the referendum and a ‘yes’ vote must be returned. It is possible that the latter requirement could be fulfilled, as it is evidently easier to motivate people to turnout to change the status quo than to convince them to vote in defence of it. Frankly, however, it seems extremely improbable that a sufficient number of people will care enough to vote at all. Our membership of the NUS will not arouse the sort of
debate that it should this week because, quite simply, our membership now seems irrelevant to all but a very small group of students. The perception that, in or out, life would not noticeably change for most people on campus reflects the sad reality that an organisation that could do so much for students has imploded in spasms of undemocratic infighting. The modern NUS is a bureaucratic monster operating several steps removed from students’ votes and thus several steps removed from the majority of student opinion. Its farcical recent failure to back the Kurds against ISIS was a complete disgrace on its merits, but the broader point remains that the majority of students don’t want their representatives weighing in on debates about the Middle East when they exert absolutely no influence in that area. It is difficult not to
agree with Dan Cooper’s recent assertion that the NUS leadership is ‘politically degenerate’, and you will not often find me agreeing with a man who, during his time at ULU, tried to cast the Remembrance Day poppy as glorifying imperialist slaughter. It seems to me, however, that leaving the NUS is a step too far. It provides concrete benefits to our Students’ Union, and in particular to liberation officers, who simply could not run such a comprehensive range of services for vulnerable students without it. Those who would have us stay inside the NUS must spell out more explicitly exactly what these benefits are, rather than reducing the argument to free pizza. They must then lobby for significant internal reform of the organisation itself. If they don’t, they may not win the argument next time.
ment officials, to develop their understanding and skill-set in public policy and policy making” and which is delivered in partnership with the stateowned University of Peking. Mr Sweeney told The Beaver that more questions must be asked about the opacity of the funding arrangements for this and other programmes involving Chinese institutions, pointing out that “nobody knows how much it [the funding] is” and that “there is no commercial [interests] category” in LSE’s online accounts for Professor Calhoun. Questioning the appropriateness of links with the Chinese state which “in my lifetime, in Tiananmen Square, shot hundreds of protesters”, he sardonically asked “what do they (the EPPTP) teach them: how to crack down on a demonstration in Hong Kong?”. Mr Sweeney concluded that, having hit the headlines for their funding relationship with Libya in 2011, “the LSE does not know the phrase ‘all that glitters is not gold’” and were “in danger of stepping on the same rake twice”. Questioning the ethical dimension of the LSE-China links, Mr Sweeney asked “what are we doing here,
has the LSE got a soul?”.
‘Does he think that information is dark?’ Calhoun and the LSE’s botched response to ‘North Korea Undercover’
“I invite Director Calhoun to come clean about how much money the LSE gets from China. He is in danger of seeming like China’s useful idiot... The LSE does not know the phrase ‘all that glitters is not gold’... Has the LSE got a soul?” Mr Sweeney said that eleven British universities, including the LSE, have Chinese-state funded Confucian Centres planned or up-and-running, adding “clearly, this is not just a matter for the LSE”.
MR SWEENEY ALSO SPOKE about his trip to North Korea in April 2013, which he made along with ten LSE students from the Grimshaw Society and during which he posed as an LSE History professor in order to film a documentary exposing living conditions and human rights abuses in the secretive dictatorship. The resulting footage was broadcast by the BBC on their flagship ‘Panorama’ show on the 15th April to an audience of 5.4 million viewers. Shortly before the programme was aired, the LSE discovered that Mr Sweeney had been on the trip and raised concerns that the BBC had been complicit in endangering students. The LSE requested that the programme not be broadcast, but the BBC went ahead with the transmission. Despite continuing to defend the ‘strong public interest’ in it be-
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ing broadcast, a subsequent BBC Trust ruling resulted in a public apology to the LSE. Sweeney was bitingly critical of Professor Calhoun’s management of the Panorama controversy. He alleged that in the run-up to the broadcast, LSE representatives in dialogue with the BBC, who did not include Professor Calhoun, did not call for the programme to be killed, a position later publicly overruled by Calhoun and the LSE Chairman Peter Sutherland. Mr Sweeney told the Beaver that, in his opinion, the hierarchy of the LSE should not be objecting to the dissemination of information, particularly when that information has already been obtained. Whilst he admitted that “you can have an argument about how we got to broadcast it”, he insists that “nobody’s objected to the content”, asking of Calhoun “does he think that information is dark?” He continued “I don’t think they [Professor Calhoun and Sutherland] understand the nature of free speech or intellectual thought, nor the LSE’s place in fighting that fight”. He argued that he “cannot believe” that
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Beaver Special Report
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Continued from p2
Specifically, Mr Sweeney referenced Professor Calhoun’s presence at a meeting between Vladimir Putin and high-profile British financial and business leaders which took place in London on June 17th last year. Professor Calhoun attended the meeting along with the Chief Executive of British Petroleum Bob Dudley, the Chief Executive of Pi Capital David Giampaolo, the chairman of the London Stock Exchange Chris GibsonSmith and other journalists and economists. It is not known what was discussed. Arguing that “I don’t think Putin is worthy of any kind of academic respect”, Mr Sweeney questioned Professor Calhoun’s presence at the meeting, querying “what were you talking to Putin about and why have you remained silent to this day about it?” In reference to a tweet authored by Professor Calhoun, in which he talks of Putin’s ‘deft’ timing’ in dealing with the chemical weapons stocks in Syria, Mr Sweeney accused the LSE Director of being “morally dead from the neck up”, adding that “you can’t have a free discussion with people who use chemical weapons.”
Ralf Dahrendorf, the Director of the LSE when Sweeney was a student who had previously spent time in a Nazi concentration camp, “would have called for the programme not to be broadcast”. Mr Sweeney also claimed that widespread allegations that students did not even know who he was were on flimsy grounds. He told The Beaver that the student who lodged the formal complaint over the incident, henceforth ‘Student X’, had attended a Grimshaw Society lecture that he had given in January 2013, three months prior to the trip to Pyongyang in March. At the Grimshaw talk, he spoke about his undercover reporting in Belarus for BBC Newsnight, at the end of which students were invited to go on a private trip to North Korea. Mr Sweeney claims that Student X left the lecture early, and had had to push past him to exit in a “strange moment”, at which point he joked to them “are you a member of the Church of Scientology?”
“[Student X] was engaged in the whole project as they were interested in a career in journalism... they got up at 6am to lead the way” Mr Sweeney is famous for his investigations into the cult, with a clip in which he argues fiercely with a Scientologist having received over 1.5 million views on YouTube. Adding that he used his real name on a list distributed to all trip participants well in advance of the visit, Mr Sweeney insisted that Student X readily assisted him in gaining covert footage inside North Korea. Referring to a crucial moment in the documentary where he is filmed looking over a vista of North Korean slums at sunrise without the knowledge of their state-employed tour guides, Mr Sweeney claims that student X was “initially full-on for this” and “was engaged in the whole project as they were interested in a career in investigative journalism... they got up at 6am to lead the way, and I can prove that as we filmed it”. When asked why he believed that why Mr X, the father of Student X might have lodged a complaint, Mr Sweeney suggested that Student X “became very friendly with the female [tour] guide” and that this may
“What were you talking to Putin about and why have you remained silent about it to this day?”
have prompted them to become less enthusiastic about obtaining illicit footage likely to have severe repercussions for the state representatives featured in the programme. Mr Sweeney describes Mr X as “a man who had an argument with legislators in his country... who was accused of not doing enough to combat child labour”. Mr Sweeney suggests that Mr X may have initiated the complaint as “perhaps he had an axe to grind with the BBC”, as the broadcaster had previously investigated his firm’s activities. In a candid and wide-ranging interview, Mr Sweeney admitted that he regrets elements of the way the production of the film was handled. He said that “I never apologised for the programme and maybe that was cocky” adding that “we got some things wrong” and that “if I had my time again I would have told them exactly who I
was.” He insists however that it is entirely unfair to cast his presence as having put students at risk on an otherwise innocuous trip. He emphasised that the students went “voluntarily” to a country “which had just blasted its third [nuclear] round” on a visit that “wasn’t a school trip... to Torremelinos”, adding that “you have to think about it all, not just the theoretical risk to student volunteers who paid £3000 for a holiday to a totalitarian regime”. Mr Sweeney said it was “a useful piece of journalism”, particularly in a climate of escalating nuclear tensions, as he “worries absolutely about democratic apathy”, stating “we could show people absolutely how terrible it all is... in a relatively simple way”. He further described North Korea as “the darkest place I’ve ever been”. On allegations that he damaged academic access to the country, he responded that “no subse-
quent trip has been imperilled... [with] two BBC journalists going to North Korea and doing a Panorama documentary after ours”. Mr Sweeney seemed convinced that the LSE and its management do not reflect the School’s history of radical support of dissent and free speech.
Calhoun meets Putin HE ALSO QUESTIONED THE ethics of the School’s links to other authoritarian regimes and big business. While he insisted that he doesn’t support academic bans, Mr Sweeney said that conversations between academics and undemocratic regimes were unlikely to exert a reformist influence and should always be critical, stating that “when you talk to the Chinese, you should also mention the Tibetans, the Uighurs and the Hong Kong people: it’s a conversation with an authoritarian power”.
Professor Calhoun did not respond directly to the Beaver’s request for an interview regarding Mr Sweeney’s allegations. Instead, a school spokesperson gave the following statement: “Following an investigation, the BBC issued an apology to LSE for the conduct of Mr Sweeney and the Panorama team responsible for its ‘North Korea Undercover’ programme broadcast in April 2013. “Serious failings were identified in Mr Sweeney’s journalism by the BBC’s own standards watchdog; it was found that the programme-makers had misled students and had unfairly represented the School. “Mr Sweeney has since been sacked by Panorama.” Responding to this statement, Mr Sweeney said that: “The LSE, on behalf of the Director, does not address how much money it gets from the Chinese state. Oh – and I’ve haven’t been fired by the BBC. At least, not yet. Ask Mr Putin. I will happily debate LSE’s money from China, the North Korea row and the Director’s meeting with Putin at anytime with Professor Calhoun.” ‘North Korea Undercover’ is out now in paperback
Saw Swee Hock Bringing LSE Together: The Saw Swee Hock is Officially Opened Channon Gray FRIDAY SAW THE OFFICIAL opening of the LSE’s Saw Swee Hock Student Centre (SAW). The day hosted a fantastic array of activities including exhibitions from the Visual Arts Society and The Beaver, a comedy gala in the Three Tuns, interactive talks from Lord Holmes MBE, Commonwealth Games gold medallist Zoe Smith and the former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, as well as a vast amount of live music courtsesy of LSESU Music Society and freebies. LSE’s version of University Challenge brought together the Students’ Union, starring special guests Professor Charlie Beckett, the founding director of thinktank POLIS and a leading figure in International Journalism at the LSE, alongside Professor in Economics and International Development Danny Quah. This light-hearted version of the serious quiz show presented a loose set of rules and left the audience in hysterics. One of the bonus themes was “YouTube”, featuring the question ‘how many years’ worth of videos are watched on YouTube daily?’ The answer, much to everyone’s surprise, was “500 years”, an insane figure illustrating the constantly evolving social networking world. The questionably educational event contained some controversial questions, especially when Florence Nightingale appeared under the ‘Celebrity’ category. Overall the University Challenge special edition was a huge success. The all-day comedy event in
the Student Bar, the Three Tuns, was opened by ‘I am, I am’, National Musical Comedy Awards finalists, who kindly, as a part of their set, wrote individual songs for members of the audience. One depicted a musical rendition of a young man whose favourite food was chicken, due to a viewer snacking on a Chicken Burrito from the free food stall outside. Meanwhile the third floor of SAW was incredibly busy once the ‘word on the street’ about free pic ‘n’ mix floated around campus. Many students joined the large queue in order to grab some milk bottles, jelly beans and sherbet straws. After all, who doesn’t love free sweets? The sixth floor also had free cream tea on offer, which many enjoyed whilst sitting out on the Terrace over-looking London and listening to pianist Jeff Carpenter. SAW calmed down after four o’clock, as many disappeared to get ready for the Opening Ceremony hosted by Professor Craig Calhoun, Director of the School, a ticketed event. Others went to plan their night ahead at Super Saucy, a student Friday club night, whose special guests this week were Pendulum, who performed a DJ Set. The afternoon events had a relaxed vibe, bringing everyone together for a boogie in the courtyard outside the building. The LSE Music Society had a live band playing numerous dance hits; including a cover of the 1961 hit “Twist and Shout” which had everyone up on their feet, followed by Chuck Berry’s hit “Johnny B. Goode”
Features p23 The Beaver meets former Mayor Ken Livingstone to talk investment, Boris and NUS.
Tuesday October 28, 2014
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The Beaver Interviews Comedians Pierre Nov Liam Hill Features Editor THE BEAVER SPENT MUCH of the day interviewing the acts invited to perform at the opening of the Saw Swee Hock Centre. “We wouldn’t be drag queens if we didn’t have negative opinions,” the drag troupe Denim told The Beaver when asked about the Saw Swee Hock Centre. How could it be improved? “Ski slopes” were among the suggestions by the (normally) five-strong comedy drag act. Denim also had their say on LSE student politics. “LGBT+ is something we really take to,” they said in reaction to UGM passing the LGBT+ motion. As well as LSE student politics, Denim had their say on world politics and football politics. Asked if Russia should be hosting the
World Cup in 2018, they said “Russia should be ashamed of itself. And so should FIFA.” Denim ended the interview on a rousing note: “People need to keep fighting, stay politically active.” Comedian Pierre Novellie (below with The Beaver) was a little more bemused by the Saw Swee Hock building: “Why are there bricks in front of the win-
dows?” asked Novellie, “Is that like an energy saving thing?” The South African comedian, who has lived for most of his life on the Isle of Man, was more impressed with other aspects of the building: “It’s got some cool angles happening. What an age we live in.” From a man who has performed comedy at the Large Hadron Collider, this certainly seems like high praise. Sporting an impressive beard, Novellie said “I’m only twentythree. I look like an old fisherman. I look like I’ve had a hard life.” On the Men’s Rugby scandal, he said “Even saying it is bad enough, but printing it on a flyer is the stupidest, like they thought that no-one would keep these permanent, tangible things we’ve put our names on”. Is there some language banned in any context though? “I’ll swear whenever I feel like swearing, but swearing should be surgical.
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
Official Opening Ceremony Calhoun and Saw ‘Cut the Tape’ on Student Centre
Jon Allsop Executive Editor
Photo Credit: Ottavia Ampuero-Villagran
vellie and Ed Gamble and Drag Group Denim
Photo Credit: Mekaj Jalim
A well-timed ‘shit’ is very funny.” Ed Gamble (below with Jon Allsop and Alessandro Ceretti), who was compering comedy at the opening, said of the Saw Swee Hock building “I’m not a fan of modern buildings in general, but you seem to have nailed it.” Gamble was interviewed by Beaver editor Jon Allsop and PuLSE Radio Station Manager Alessandro Ceretti. When quizzed by Ceretti on his com-
edy career he noted that “It was terrifying to start with, but five gigs in and you realise it’s nothing to worry about really.” Talking about his work as a warmup act for comedians like Greg Davies, he joked that “Britain is the only country where you get something extra for free, and people get annoyed.” Weighing in on the use of controversial language in comedy he insisted that “You will
struggle to find a comedian who doesn’t fall on the side of context being everything. The whole idea is that we’re allowed to talk about whatever we want and make it funny.” When asked about his brief impressions of the LSE he finished that “You can tell it’s a good university. It’s been quite an intelligent crowd. The bar is open at two o’clock! You’d expect some kind of sick somewhere by now!”
T H E S AW S W E E H O C K Student Centre was officially opened by Professor Craig Calhoun, the Director of the LSE, and Professor Saw Swee Hock in a ticketed ceremony held in The Venue on Friday evening. Professor Calhoun thanked the many donors whose contributions enabled the building to be constructed, singling out Professor Saw for his donation of over one million pounds to the project. Professor Saw, who is currently based in Singapore, then presented the centrepiece of the ceremony, which was a light display projecting animations onto a screen shaped like the Saw Swee Hock building (see right). The Beaver has heard reports that this display cost upwards of £14,000 but this was unconfirmed at the time of going to print. The ceremony was attended by LSE academics and other staff, as well as those students who successfully balloted for a ticket. Current and former Sabbatical officers were also in attendance.
Sport p30 Zoe Smith and Lord Holmes drop in on the opening of our new building. Robin Park met them.
News
Tuesday October 28, 2014
The Word on
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Michaelmas Term Election Season Begins
Kanan Parida
Do you want to be our roving reporter for a week? E-mail news@thebeaveronline.co.uk Last week, the Students’ Union changed the position of the LGBT Officer to the LGBT+ Officer. This addition of the “+” was cause for some debate amongst LSE students. Should the title have remained LGBT officer? Does adding the “+” make a difference? What do LSE students have to say? I think this change from LGBT officer to LGBT+ officer is small but significant. It allows people to identify with the officer, no matter what their sexuality. People don’t have to fit into a specific, socially constructed mould and they have someone who represents them fully, whether they’re asexual or sex addicts. Anonymous, third year undergraduate, LLB Bachelor of Laws This decision is both positive and negative. On the one hand, it represents the move away from following mainstream norms, fostering an environment of greater inclusion for people of all sexualities. However, by giving greater consideration to predetermined ‘labels’ of sexuality, this may actually work to create more divisions. Amber Naveed, third year undergraduate, BSc Government and Economics It sounds like a good idea, as it would make the Student’s Union more inclusive to all LSE students. Many other universities have started adding the plus to their respective positions as well; it is a good move, even if we aren’t the first to propose it. Bryan Tse, Msc Political Economy of Late Development It goes against my religious principles to even consider any alternative sexuality. However, I am not intolerant, and do think that the Students’ Union’s move to showcase that they’re not intolerant either is a good move. Anonymous, second year undergraduate, BSc Actuarial Sciences
A SUGGESTION BOX LOCATED ON THE THIRD FLOOR of the Saw Swee Hock during its grand opening on Friday 24th October 2014. Students were given the opportunity to write down any suggestions or changes they would make to the School; these were anything from ‘more desk space’ and ‘longer book loans’ to ‘better pay for GTAs’. These suggestions have come about over Michaelmas elections, urging students to think about the change they want to see in the School before the Thursday 30th’s election results.
It is a good move, as it promotes diversity of an already rich and diverse student body. This move embodies the ideas of tolerance and acceptance so inculcated into the LSE community. Naho Nakakubo, LLM Master of Laws How relevant is the “+”? To me, changing the name does not seem very relevant. Rather than LGBT+, why not rename the position altogether? By simply adding a plus, the post does not automatically become more inclusive to people who do not fit certain social constructs. Louise Kessler, PHD Geography I’d say it makes the post more inclusive. I suppose one could make the argument that with the just the LGBT it appears that the officer’s post is only concerned with issues involving people in one of hose four categories, whereas the LGBT+ makes clear that the officer’s duties are meant to include representing the views of individuals of any sexual orientation. Ben Helfand, General Course I do not agree with this move, as sexuality in some cases can be a sensitive topic. Society acts in different manners and it would be better not to make this move. Mishaal Shah, first year undergraduate, BSc Management This matter does not affect me personally but I think it does make a difference. The importance is inclusion after all and I can’t see there being any negatives to the addition. Amba Tadaa, first year undergraduate, BSc International Relations and History
THIS WEEK’S UGM HOSTED THE HUSTINGS FOR Postgraduate Student’s Officer and a debate on the LSESU’s disaffiliation from the National Union of Students (NUS). Sixteen postgraduate candidates are standing in the Michaelmas Term elections, the majority of whom attended the hustings. Candidates were subjected to questioning and microwaves were a popular topic in the debate. One candidate promised to get a microwave in every building. The last third of the UGM was devoted to discussing the motion for the LSESU to disaffiliate from the NUS. Hari Prabu and Josh Hitchens argued for the union’s disaffiliation while Tom Maksymiw and Katie Budd argued against the proposed motion.
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News
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Megan Crockett From the New News Editor SO THE VOTES ARE IN AND I am super excited to say I am your new News Editor. I am so excited to be involved and hope-
fully get many more of you involved in the paper too; whether it’s just reading the Beaver every week, suggesting articles or, hopefully, writing: regardless whether it’s week-on-week or just the odd article, getting more students involved is one of my main aims. Investigative journalism is something I will also endeavour to push in my new position. There is so much going on on and around Houghton Street
#AskTheDirector? #What’sThePoint? Joe Grabiner Staff Reporter FOR ONE HOUR LAST WEEK Craig Calhoun, the Director of the London School of Economics (LSE), took to the great internet stage of Twitter to answer questions from LSE students, academics, and alumni. Between 3pm-4pm on Wednesday 22nd October, Calhoun hosted his ‘#AsktheDirector’ Twitter slot during which time many people posed searching questions, yet invariably only some of them got answers. The dialogue started with Nona Buckley-Irvine, General Secretary of the LSE’s Student Union asking, ‘Why is LSE named as one of the most middle class unis, and what are you doing about it?’ Calhoun responded with the vague sounding, ‘We need special efforts to recruit top students who haven’t benefitted from private schools and other privileges.’ Buckley-Irvine tweeted a follow up question asking more specifically ‘what are these special efforts?’ yet was not given the honour of a second response from the Director. Calhoun’s foray into Twitter dialogue comes at a time where there is a growing movement in
online journalism to interview public figures over Twitter allowing only for the purposefully short 140 character answers. Of course there was not time for him to answer every question yet one that seemed pertinently left without a response (yet that did justify a retweet) was a tweet from ‘@emilyxhaimeed’ who asked ‘What is LSE doing to ensure that the uni does not have links with companies that are complicit in human rights abuses?’ Instead, Calhoun moved swiftly to taking questions relating to the Alumni network in East Africa, the delights of milk in tea, and whether postmodernism was a movement that’s here to stay when it comes to the study of nationalism. In a moment of radical openness ‘Polis@LSE’ asked ‘What is your favourite British newspaper to read in the mornings?’ to which Calhoun responded ‘tough call. My politics say Guardian but my actual habits say more often Financial Times’. It seemed as though complex issues raised by students, such as diversity, academic value for money, and sexism were not given the consideration they might otherwise have been if the Director had not been limited to such short responses. One is left to ask, what really is the point of #AsktheDirector?
and I think it is extremely important that it is out in the open for all to know, plus, it’s wicked fun and you get to feel like a secret agent for a moment or two! In other news, it is election week this week and I hope all of you are getting into the spirit, attending hustings, being held victim to shameless canvassing by candidates and their friends as well as having a genuine think about who you’ll be voting for come Wednesday.
In Brief LSE IDEAS to bid farewell to Odd Arne Westad at end of this academic year ODD ARNE WESTAD, THE director of LSE IDEAS, has announced that he will be stepping down as head of the centre at the end of the academic year 2014/15. Professor Westad has been director of LSE IDEAS – a centre he co-founded with Professor Michael Cox – since 2008. Professor Westad will be taking up the ST Lee Chair in US-Asian Relations at Harvard from next academic year and will be teaching in the Kennedy School of Government there.
LSESU Beekeeping Society Honey Festival DID YOU KNOW WE HAD beehives at LSE? Or do you just love honey? Then the LSE SU Beekeeping Society Honey Festival is for you! From 2-4pm Wednesday 29 October 2014 we’ll be outside the Saw Swee Hock Student Centre with all sorts of fun activities to get involved in. You can test your knowledge of beekeeping (and be in to win some great prizes) in our honey quiz at 2.45pm - but don’t forget to come to our resident bee expert, Dr Luke Dixon’s talk on ‘Beekeeping: The Basics’ at 2.15pm to get some clues beforehand! You can dress up like a beekeeper, and talk to the members of the society and LSE Sustainability who help take care of the bees and learn about how you can get involved. You can also buy some of LSE’s honey only £6 a jar for the best honey you’ll ever taste.
Green Impact - sign up now GREEN IMPACT 2014 IS HERE! Now in its sixth year at LSE, Green Impact is a national environmental awards scheme aimed at reducing carbon footprint in universities across the country. If you would like to take part in Green Impact this year, you can find out more on the LSE Sustainability pages or email v.evans@lse.ac.uk . If you are an LSE staff member, student or alumnus with an announcement to make then News in Brief wants to hear from you! Email news@thebeaveronline.
Comment Section Editorial: HARI PRABU’S ARTICLE last week on the reasons for disaffiliating from the NUS is like the Helen of Troy of Comment- it’s the article that launched a thousand more. Or three if we’re being a little more precise. Details aside, this week’s double page spread on the NUS Debate is a great example of the right to response and the atmoshphere of friendly debate we encourage here at The Beaver and especially in Comment. If you’re trying to make up your mind about which way to vote like our good friend Mark Malik, then here is a good place to start. Otherwise I sight a few more controversial ships on the horizon. If you turn overleaf you’ll see Tim Zandbergen and our very own News Editor Sophie Donszelmann making some excellent points about the school community that I hope will give pause for thought. I hope to see more of you adding your two cents to the wealth of good opinions we have so far.
Comment
Sebastien Ash
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Section Editor: Sebastien Ash Deputy Editors: Mallika Iyer, Natasha Su Sivarajah comment@thebeaveronline.co.uk
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NUS Disaffiliation Debate Choosing Sides
Trying to weigh up the arguments on both sides of the NUS debate
Mark Malik
LSESU Disabled Students’ Officer I SPENT THE SUMMER IN Scotland, so I witnessed the referendum on whether it should secede from the UK. Both sides of the debate had their fanatics. The nationalists would not entertain the possibility that there were risks associated with separation; the NO campaign painted such an apocalyptic picture of an independent Scotland that it wouldn’t have surprised me if they had warned that Nessie would emerge from her loch and lay waste to everything north of Hadrian’s Wall. Most Scots were somewhere between these two extremes. And the final result was decided by people who carefully considered both sides of the argument before casting their vote. Indeed, I have never seen a political campaign engage so many people, nor one where people have engaged so meaningfully and given such weight to issues as opposed to ideology. Our referendum on NUS membership will be very similar. It won’t be the hacks on the stage at UGM that decide the outcome – it will be students who have formed their opinion after listening to reasoned debate, perhaps voting on a UGM motion for the first time. I am one of those undecided students. Had the question been asked last year, I would have been a firm YES. In fact, I would have probably proposed the referendum myself if I had known what the procedure was. Put simply, I do not like the NUS. It is an opaque, bureaucratic mess. I do not feel represented by it. I do not have the slightest idea how, as an individual student, I can engage with the NUS. I think that some,
or most, of the motions it passes are completely ridiculous. I do not see why a body that supposedly represents students should waste its time passing motions declaring that the banking industry should be nationalised. Much has been made of the NUS’ rejection of a motion to show solidarity with the Kurds and condemn Islamic State on the grounds that it is Islamophobic. I’ve heard that it was rejected because there was one contentious clause. I gather that because the NUS has no mechanism for amending motions, the entire motion was rejected and a new one will be proposed in due course. This only serves to highlight how dysfunctional the NUS is. And even if the NUS passed such a motion, what would be its impact? The Kurds don’t need solidarity from a glorified debating club – the Peshmerga want modern equipment to defend themselves from the jihadis. And I very much doubt that Islamic State would take notice of such condemnation. They should instead be focusing on issues that affect the students it supposedly represents, and can enact meaningful change. Unfortunately, its record on this isn’t great. I cannot recall a single NUS campaign that has changed government policy. Apart from creating a lot of mess in Central London, the protest against £9k fees achieved nothing. I watched the riots live on BBC News in the old Sabbs’ office (yes, I’ve been here a while) – quite frankly, I was ashamed to call myself a student when I saw the fire extinguisher thrown from the top of Millbank Tower.
“I am one of those undecided students. Had the question been asked last year, I would have been a firm ‘Yes’.” The NUS has recently been commended for forcing the gov-
ernment to U-turn on cuts to the Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA). Sadly, this is not the whole story. The policy has been merely delayed – the changes will still happen. Also, my understanding is that the change came not from the NUS, but from universities themselves. In my opinion, the NUS’ campaign missed the mark. Yet, I said I was undecided as to whether LSESU should disaffiliate. Despite the chaos and incompetence, the NUS does do some very good work. Its network of officers, the research it produces and the training it offers to SU officers like myself is a real benefit. I know that I will be using the NUS quite a lot this year in my role as Disabled Students’ Officer, not least with regards to the Disabled Students’ Allowance. Even so early in the academic year, the NUS has already been incredibly helpful to the SU in providing advice about the Men’s Rugby issue and being a ready-made network for the officers of the SU. There has been nothing from the YES side to suggest how this vital function of the NUS could be replicated at LSE. I accept that other students’ unions have disaffiliated, but I have heard nothing as to how they provide this support to their officers and at what cost. There has been a vague suggestion that we could form our own network with these other unions, but this begs the question as to why such a network does not currently exist. I haven’t heard that the YES side have even contacted these other unions to gauge whether there is an appetite for this. I have no doubt that LSESU could stand on its own two feet with a large number of issues. We have had much more than our fair share of controversy, and we have always been represented extremely well in the national media. Even before Nona and the Men’s Rugby scandal, our GenSecs have had a tradition of doing us proud. Think back to Jay Stoll last year after the ASH t-shirt controversy, or Alex Peters-Day acting as the voice of students during the row with the BBC over North Korea. But in the NUS, we can make
the most of their national campaigns. Whether it is the “I <3 Consent” project, or the “Student Switch-Off ”, I don’t think we could achieve alone what we have as part of the NUS. Again, there is no plan from the YES side. Also, the NUS provides us with a buying service for the shop and the Tuns, enabling us to get better bulk discounts and keep costs down in the SU. Yes, I acknowledge that other buying services do exist, but I have seen no calculations as to what the financial impact of this would be. This is another question that needs to be answered. I’m glad that the referendum motion has been amended. The original proposal to ring-fence any money saved by disaffiliating for mitigation of the effects of cuts to the DSA was, whilst well-intentioned, deplorable. It stank of the kind of divide-andrule politics of Scotland’s referendum campaign.
“If we stay, it’s easy to ignore the bits we don’t like and focus on what we do like.” Still, there are questions that need to be answered. I would really like to leave the NUS, but I still need to be convinced before I can tick the YES box. The NO side does not deny that there is much wrong with NUS, but argue that the advantages of remaining part of it outweigh any benefits of disaffiliation. That seems a reasoned conclusion. But much like in Scotland, it isn’t the hardcore hacks on either side that will swing this vote; it is the as-yet undecided. I hope that, as in Scotland, this referendum campaign engages as many students as possible in the political process, and makes the NUS more relevant to everyone. At the moment, the NUS is ignored far too much. But then, that may be one of the campaign’s biggest selling points – if we stay, it’s easy to ignore the bits we don’t like and focus on what we do like.
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Comment
Tuesday October 28, 2014
A Vote For All LSE Students
The impact of the NUS is greater than you imagine Greg Sproston THIS TIME LAST YEAR, I was voted in as the President of a student union in a further education college. I was tasked with representing a student body of 27,000 and sitting on a governing board that was considering a £50m estates strategy. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. Without the assistance of the NUS, without their workshops on effective governance and leadership training, without their tireless help and support, I wouldn’t have been able to act as an advocate for the union that elected me in any meaningful way. At the Politics & Forum Question Time debate, this opinion was echoed by LSESU General Secretary Nona IrvineBuckley and Women’s Officer Gee Linford-Grayson. Despite this, the Conservative and Lib-Dem Society - led by individuals who have never
had direct interaction with the NUS - has proposed that LSESU disaffiliate itself from the NUS. The petulance and ignorance of this motion is only surpassed by the reasoning behind it. First, they claim, the NUS is active on issues that don’t impact upon students. Things like, to use their example, the situation in Gaza; rather mind boggling when you only have to spend ten minutes on campus to realise that the Middle Eastern situation strikes a chord with students. It’s rare to see consistency in the political arena, but how wonderful that the out-oftouch coalition government is so accurately reflected in our university microcosm. This, of course, is part of a wider claim that the NUS is not representative of the students it represents as it pursues left-wing policy. This, of course, is a different way of saying ‘we don’t like what they’re doing so we’ll
throw our toys out of the pram’. Aware that left wing policies resonate with young people, the Lib Dem and Conservative understand they won’t be able to gain control of the NUS and so they want out - consequences be damned. Let this not be a defence of a Labour Party that lacks conviction in local councils, Westminster and student politics, though. Their failure to offer a robust response to this motion is a sad indictment of the state of politics and activism in an institution that has always been fiercely proud of both. Incompetent as Labour may be, they at least escape without being branded cynical and selfish, which is more than can be said for the proposers of this motion. The money that LSESU gives to the NUS each year (around £35,000) could be used to ‘spend’ on disabled students, according to the motion. Where
do I begin? The attempt to turn disability into a political football is disgraceful, as is the ridiculously naive notion that £35,000 would be a significant addition to the money earmarked for disability-related causes at the University. These are just principles though, so what about pragmatism? Well, consider that £5 of the £12 you paid for an NUS extra card is returned to LSESU. Consider how much you personally save with your NUS Extra card each academic year. Consider the benefits LSESU enjoys from being able to consult specialist advice independent from the school. Consider the size of the NUS and how much more wide-reaching and impactful their research is when developing policy compared with the research LSESU could carry out on their own. Consider all of this and ask yourself if £35,000 a year is too great a price to pay
when compared to the isolationist irrelevance that the LSESU ConDem coalition wishes for us to pursue.
“This isn’t just a vote for you but a vote for every LSE student in the future.” Most of all, consider that this isn’t just a vote for you but a vote for every LSE student in the future. This Union has an incredibly proud history of activism and direct action, much of which wouldn’t have been possible without NUS coordination and interaction. Don’t deprive the future generations of this university what those before us were able to do. Vote NO for NUS disaffiliation.
A Good Deal For Students
The arguments against the NUS just don’t make sense
Samantha Jury-Dada LSESU Labour and Cooperative Society Chair AS SOMEONE WHO wholeheartedly believes that LSESU is better off inside the NUS, I feel it is my duty to debunk some of the misinformation emanating from the ‘yes’ campaign. One of the favourite arguments put forward by disaffiliation campaigners is that ‘NUS membership costs us thirty six thousand pounds a year’, yet this simply does not stand up to scrutiny. Disaffiliation campaigners simply have not done the maths. Every year, LSESU receives roughly £7000 from NUS Extra card sales, as for every NUS Extra card sold, our SU receives money. LSESU also benefits from around £34,000 in trading and discounts from being in the NUS. If we leave, far from saving money, LSESU will find itself facing a £5,000 deficit, where will the SU find that money, what services or societies will be effected first? The
sums simply don’t add up. For our affiliation fee, we get access to training and resources for our full time and part time officers, which equip them to deal with a wide range of situations and help them effectively lobby for LSE students. But it would be wrong to think it is all about our executive. Students at LSE have a proud history of campaigning on important national and international issues, and so does the NUS. The NUS produces groundbreaking research into important topics— such as Further and Higher Education funding, the LGBT student experience and lad culture—that affects students throughout the country, supporting them in their campaigning on campus. When I put this to the proposers of the motion at the LSESU Politics and Forum Society Question Time debate, the response was that LSESU could carry out such research. Naturally, they neglect to mention that the salary for a policy researcher in London is £28,000 and we would need more than one researcher to produce the same amount the NUS does each year. Another claim is that ‘the NUS is an ineffective campaigning organisation’- so ineffective in fact that the proposers had to change the text of their motion due to successful NUS campaigning? The original motion called for the affiliation fee
to be used to compensate disabled students at LSE who were facing their Disabled Students Allowance being axed due to the coalition’s government cuts. However, the NUS ran an effective nationwide campaign, which involved students from both Higher Education and Further Education, lobbying MPs and government ministers, ultimately leading to a government U-turn. The NUS needs internal reform, and no one is arguing differently. However, reform is best achieved from within the or-
ganisation. If the proposers of the motion had actually tried to reform the NUS, then I would be more sympathetic to their push for disaffiliation. But they have not. In fact, a quick google of ‘NUS reform campaign’ shows that no such campaign exists. Disaffiliation should be our last option, so why are we taking extreme measures before even putting forward proposals for reform? The idea that we should disaffiliate and then set up a rival organisation is questionable. Which organisation do you think would have more bar-
gaining power- an organisation with a handful of members or one with hundreds of thousands of members? In short, LSESU is financially better off in the NUS, the NUS has a proven record of effective campaigning, and reform should be pursued within the NUS. Plus, at the end of the day, who doesn’t enjoy 40 per cent off their bill at Pizza Express? The NUS Disaffiliation referendum will take place on Wednesday and Thursday.
Comment
Tuesday October 28, 2014
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Let’s Open Up the Doors of LSE
Getting around and fitting in are two sides of the same coin Tim Zandbergen WHAT IS UNIVERSITY about? It is, in my view, about community. A community that includes everyone: all its staff and students. In order for you to feel part of our LSE community, you would need to feel welcome and equal. My question to you is: would you feel welcome if you could not move freely around campus? If you could not enter some buildings? If you could not reach lecture halls or study rooms by yourself ? And if you met these obstacles every single day, could you be expected to feel part of our community?
“What is university about? It is, in my view, about community.” For most of us these questions may sound strange, as we have not considered them before. And that is completely understandable. But I, being chained to a wheelchair, assure you I am being forced to consider them every day because of the inaccessibility issues on our campus. I would ask you, or even dare you, that when you go about your business on campus today, tomorrow, or whenever it comes to mind: to imagine you could not walk up the stairs. To imagine that most elevators are as large as a toilet cubicle. To imagine you could not open all those dreadfully heavy double doors everywhere without asking for help. I can answer those questions for you, because since I started studying at the LSE, I have wrestled with all of them, and subsequently I have struggled feeling an equal part of our community. Now I admit there are relatively few disabled students for who these issues are an insurmountable problem. For that reason accessibility might not seem like a big priority – contrary to the amount of wall plugs for charging laptops, for example. Puns aside, for me a great university is not defined by the amount of publications of its staff, or the height it can ask for its tuition fees. For me the quality of a university is defined exactly by its motivation and ambition to make every student, no matter how many or few, feel part of its community. Check out LSE Accessibility Campaign on Facebook or YouTube.
A Questionable Beginning
An act at the opening of the Saw Swee Hock Student Centre raises eyebrows about the SU’s policy towards prejudice Sophie Donszelmann
News Editor
DESPITE THE TEN MONTHS of its use by students, LSE and LSESU have decided that the Saw Swee Hock Student Center would now be officially opened. To celebrate, students were invited to an all-day “event like no other” with a “host of activities, events, talks, performances, [and] celebrity guests,” which took place this past Friday. In preparation for the event, the SU sent all students within the union an enthusiastic e-mail announcing that it was with “HUGE pleasure” that the headlining act would be comedian Tim Key. Mr. Key is an actor, writer, and performance poet of comedy fame from his widely praised performances of “The Slut in the Hut”; “Single White Slut”; “Slutcracker”; “Father Slutmas”; and most recently “Masterslut”. LSE students had the unique opportunity to hear parts of his award-winning work in the Tuns this past Friday. As the Students’ Union said themselves, Friday’s open-
ing day was expected be “sensational.” Mr. Key was scheduled to deliver this comedy routine less than three weeks after the Men’s Rugby Club was disbanded for distributing flyers that the Secretary General of the Students’ Union labeled as “clearly sexist” which perpetuated a culture of “misogyny” and “sexism.” The athletics club themselves came forward and called it “inexcusably offensive and stigmatising language.” Dragged under the national spotlight once again, the liberation officers held meetings, the School issued several statements condemning their acts and students across campus expressed outrage, disgust and sadness that they must hear this language on campus. It seemed, at least, that everyone agreed that this kind of language had no place in our prestigious institution. Yet, this still brings us back to “Masterslut”. Somewhere in the Old Building, a panel of LSE administrators are conducting a disciplinary review of
select students due to their use of misogynistic language in the Freshers’ Fair flyer. Elsewhere, in the Three Tuns of the new Saw Swee Hock Student Center, every student in the university was invited to listen to Mr. Key’s headlining performance whose title uses this same language. I’m sure it’s for exactly these kinds of events that Mr. Saw Swee Hock made his very generous donation. This is not an unfortunate coincidence or a case of poor timing. It’s not that the SU should not have hosted this “comedian” given this recent incident and the tension this brought to campus. The SU should never have considered this act at all. The title of his previous work, and the connotations it carries with it, is simply offensive. We should not be at risk of hearing derogatory jokes about “sluts” or women in a developed society and we definitely shouldn’t have to hear them in “London’s best university.” What is unfortunate is that the Students’ Union believed
this kind of “humour” was not only acceptable, but something to be promoted. It is safe to assume that the SU did have to pay Mr. Key for this performance and that it was booked well in advance, before the beginning of this year, before “rugby-gate” became an issue at all. Worse yet, it is possible that had we not had this incident at Freshers’ Fair which brought the discussion of sexism and misogyny back to campus, this kind of normalised, institutionalised, derogatory language may have gone unnoticed. As our General Secretary told the BBC with regards to the rugby scandal, “we have these prejudices in our society and we can’t tolerate things that seek to perpetuate the existing culture of misogyny and sexism.” Well put. I agree. But I think inviting and promoting comedians whose bread and butter comes from shows called “Masterslut” also perpetuates this “existing culture of misogyny and sexism.” And this cannot be tolerated.
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Comment
Tuesday October 28, 2014
British Politics In Focus A Liberal Dilemma
UKIP should remember that freedom of speech does not entitle freedom to mislead Ryan O’Rourke THE FAMOUS LINE BY JUSTICE Holmes of the United States, “the right of freedom of speech does not include the right to shout fire in a crowded theatre” loosely implies that to create a panic out of fear or irrationality is not acceptable. Similarly playing to peoples fear without explaining the whole picture, whether that be in a financial crisis or at a time when people are losing their jobs creates an environment of panic. Such a scenario exists in British Politics today. Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, has largely been responsible for bringing the issue of immigration back into the political conversation. His main issue, that being part of Europe means we cannot control our borders and so the British Parliament cannot decide who comes, resonates well with many at a time when unemployment is high and jobs
are at a premium in some parts of the country. It also plays nicely to a growing divide in opinion between those who live in urban areas an see the benefits of immigration, and those who do not. That Mr Farage raises the issue of immigration is not in itself a bad thing; in many ways it is both the right thing to do and it reaffirms the merits of a democratic society where members are entitled to voice their opinions. However, it is the methods and language which he and his party use that is the issue. It is misleading and takes advantage of people’s fears. An example, although outdated, was Mr Farage’s arguments surrounding the issue of Romanian and Bulgarian citizens being allowed freedom of movement in Europe. On several media outlets he and members of his party referred to how 24 or 25 million migrants could descend on local communities when restrictions where lifted;
this was often followed up by stating how these countries where in the grip of a crime wave. There are many other examples, from financial policy to the dynamics of labour markets where Mr Farage applies such reductionist thinking to issues which in reality are far more complex then what he makes them out to be. Two broad issues come through from this. First, that fact checking is not UKIP’s greatest strength. That a leaflet was posted through people’s letter boxes last year saying 29 million immigrants could flood into Britain when the combined population of Romania and Bulgaria was 27.5 million shows a willful ignorance of basic facts. In a debate where rational thought can quickly succumb to prejudice and bigotry, this should be worrying. Second, it demonstrates how Mr Farage believes ignorance is the best form of political communication. It is the last issue which should be of most concern. A demo-
cratic society is only as healthy as its members are informed. Of course each person has to be held responsible for whether or not they are informed. But poli-
“Scaring people through the methods UKIP uses constrains people’s freedom to think.” ticians and influential members of society, both in the media and in the public domain should show some responsibility in ensuring public discussion is well informed and based on facts. It is not acceptable to say such a scenario is down to the political process. To put it down to such an issue is to dismiss the reasons for it and the consequences it can have; it also implies ignorance in public debate
is acceptable. It is not. This is in light of Mr Farage’s party securing its first MP. This is a phenomenal achievement for a party one dismissed as being full of clowns and fruit-cakes. Mr Farage and his party deserve some credit for having the courage for raising contentious but real issues- this is a refreshing change in politics. But it also shows how far public opinion has shifted and it has come at the cost of debasing the public discourse of several issues, immigration being one. Engaging the public either through dishonesty or blatant lies is deplorable, it can lead to stigmitisation and a blame-game culture- that is only a small step from purposeful persecution. There is nothing wrong with raising an issue in public. That is the purpose of free speech. Scaring people through the methods UKIP uses constrains people’s freedom to think for themselves. Mr Farage, a self-proclaimed libertarian should remember this.
Three Big Problems, One Simple Solution Ed Miliband, UKIP, and its handling of the economy James Evans THE LABOUR PARTY HAS three big problems that have the potential to cause irreversible electoral damage. The first is their leader. Ed Miliband is an insipid waffler. He lacks charisma, energy and passion. He’s annoying to look at, listen to and even think about. Mean? No, simply true. To date, Ed Milliband’s approval rating is as low as Nick Clegg’s, a club no one wants to be in. The truth is he’s probably a nice guy, and I am in no doubt that he often means well. Freezing energy prices, attacking zero hour contracts and shouting about the struggling NHS are issues that matter to real people everyday. Regardless of however much you support such policies, the moment, they are announced, supported or defended by Ed Milliband they lose credibility. The problem is you don’t look at Ed Milliband and think leader – you just think loser. The second big problem for Labour is the unstoppable power of UKIP, a political force that the Labour Party has failed to take seriously. When
Nigel Farage announced the other week that UKIP was ‘targeting all voters,’ he meant it. The recent Heywood and Middleton by election should have been a walk in the park for the Labour party as not only were they defending a 6000 majority but also they are in opposition and should be reaping the electoral awards that come with such a position. But this by election was no walk in the park; it was quite frankly a disaster. The good news for the Labour Party is that they won – there ends the good news. A majority of 6000 was slashed to a measly 617. Yet to my amazement the Labour Party celebrated this appalling result. The parties faithful were paraded in front of the cameras around the country to jeer the Tories and applaud their successful campaign in the hope of kidding us into believing it was a victorious day for Labour. Ironically, the only people they were kidding were themselves. This result should not be celebrated. Instead they should be panicking, going on the attack and winning back their loyal supporters. If UKIP can dismantle a Labour safe seat that effectively in a by
election, what damage could this cause in the next election? UKIP is not the party of the right that Labour desperately wanted them to be, they are the party of the fed up, the disengaged and the ignored and their next target is the North. The third big problem for Labour is their economic credibility. The Labour party still carries the scars of 2010. It is true that they have changed, but they just haven’t changed enough. They are simply not trusted with the economy. Businesses don’t trust them; the public doesn’t trust them and many people in the party itself have their doubts too. This tarnished reputation is the sad reality of being the governing party during one of the worst economic recessions in modern times. Although they are not necessarily to blame, people are cautious. The Conservative out poll the Labour party on the economy time and time again and by a significant margin. Until the Labour party regains their economic credibility, many will struggle to trust them with the keys to number 10. But these three big problems can be solved with one simple
solution: lose the next election. Obviously to some this advice seems crazy. Why would a political party deliberately lose an election? By losing the next election, they could solve the three biggest problems keeping them out of power. In 2015, if Labour loses, Ed Milliband would without a doubt be replaced along with the rest of his uninspiring team. Currently, the Labour front benches are made up of a patchwork of political faces washed up from yesteryear. Balls, Eagle and Alexander are players from the previous labour government and are tainted by that previous government’s mistakes. Losing the next election will breathe new life into the Labour leadership (perhaps Stella Creasy, Chuka Umunna, Rachel Reeves and their ilk). This untainted group are the future of the Labour party. But it is important to note that the key word here is ‘future’. They just aren’t ready yet. In addition, with time, the UKIP problem will also resolve itself. UKIPs biggest electoral attraction is that they are not part of the so-called ‘Westminster elite’. However following the inevitable election of several UKIP MP’s
in 2015, this claim will become hollow. Furthermore, they may even have to take on the responsibility and sacrifices of a government if a coalition requires a shade of purple. In time their true colours will be shown to the benefit of the Labour party. In addition, if a referendum on Europe does happen, the very platform, which UKIP presents itself, will be whipped from beneath them, undermining their appeal further. Finally, the issue of Labour’s economic credibility will be resolved or at least improved. Not only will the bad memories of 2010 have faded but also by 2020, a Tory government of some form will have been in power for nearly ten years. The austerity days will be over, but the austerity policies of low public spending will remain. The Conservatives don’t like public spending, but during an economic upturn the public want to see investments in public services, in schools, hospitals and roads. And conveniently, the only party which will make such a commitment, is the Labour Party. Three big problems, one simple solution – problem solved.
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
Clockwise from top left: Drag Group Denim welcomes guests, All that glitters is not gold, The Women’s Panel on the First Floor, The Law’s Department’s Prof Conor Gearty is grilled on video by Nona Buckley-Irvine Students and Gold Men outside the front entrance, The Venue fills up for the Grand Opening
Ottavia Ampuero-Villagran Mekaj Jalim and Liam Hill
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Inset: (top) A still from the opening light show in The Venue (bottom) Professor Saw Swee Hock officially opens his eponymous building Clockwise from right: Beaver editors past and present Jon Allsop and Sheree Dodd, Alastair Duncan hosts a special University Challenge, The Fourth Floor and Professor Saw Swee Hock spots himself in The NAB
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The Beaver 09.10.2012 WPAR
PartB COVER ARTWORK BY JADE JACKMAN.
PartB
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
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FASHION BY SANYA
GET TO KNOW: ANNA WINTOUR
Photo credits: kekkoz
• The influential editor-in-chief of American Vogue. • One of Wintour's former assistants, Lauren Weisberger, wrote The Devil Wears Prada (2003), a fictionalized account of her days at Vogue. • Best known for her oversized dark glasses, high heels, sharp bob hairstyle and icy demeanor • The eldest daughter of Charles Wintour, the editor of the London Evening Standard newspaper • As a teenager, she made the decision to forgo academics, dropping out of her fancy finishing school and opting instead for a life that revolved around the tony London life of the 1960s • Wintour frequented the same London clubs of pop culture's biggest stars, including members of the Beatles and Rolling Stones • Wintour landed the editorship of American Vogue in 1988. She revived the publication and became one of the most influential figures in the fashion industry. • Wintour's sharp critiques and lack of patience soon earned a few memorable nicknames: "Nuclear Wintour" and "Wintour of Our Discontent.” • Wintour demonstrated fearlessness about forging new ground. She decisively called an end to the supermodel era, showcasing a preference for celebrities rather than models on her covers. • Wintour was the first to truly mix low-end fashion items with more expensive pieces in her photo shoots. • The movie, entitled The September Issue, was released in August 2009. The movie showed, for the first time, the exacting work required to produce an issue of Vogue. • In February 2012, she co-hosted a fundraising event for President Barack Obama with actress Scarlett Johansson. This "Runway to Win" soiree offered up Obama-themed fashions and accessories from such designers as Diane Von Furstenberg, Marc Jacobs and Tory Burch.
Quotes: “I want Vogue to be pacy, sharp, and sexy, I'm not interested in the super-rich or infinitely leisured. I want our readers to be energetic, executive women, with money of their own and a wide range of interests” "There is a new kind of woman out there. She's interested in business and money. She doesn't have time to shop anymore. She wants to know what and why and where and how" “People respond well to people who are sure of what they want” “The runway is no longer just a runway, it’s now a force for change in politics” Photo credits: Chillaxing ROAD
PARTB EDITORIAL TEAM PARTB
FASHION
FILM
Jade Jackman Vikki Hui
Sanya-Jeet Thandi
Jade Jackman Maryam Akram
partb@thebeaveronline.co.uk
FOOD
Dorothy Wong food@thebeaveronline.co.uk
fashion@thebeaveronline.co.uk
film@thebeaveronline.co.uk
LITERATURE
MUSIC
TECHNOLOGY
THEATRE
VISUAL ARTS
Ellen Wilkie
Conor Doherty, Will Locke & Dominic Tighe
Rohan Soni
Vacant
techonology@thebeaveronline.co.uk
theatre@thebeaveronline.co.uk
Jade Jackman Maryam Akram
literature@thebeaveronline.co.uk
music@thebeaveronline.co.uk
visualarts@thebeaveronline.co.uk
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
TECHNOLOGY
Back to UniversityBest Apps
We all use our phones during the day, and we often underestimate how versatile they can be. Here are some great apps you may not have heard of, which could be useful in making your life at LSE more productive and streamlined.
DROPBOX (free) : this online service gives 2GB of free space with moce avaliable to purchase or earn. It allows access to your files on any device with an Internet connection. Downloading the Mac or windows appliccation gives a folder into which documents can be dropped and synced with your online account. Great for finishing your coursework in the Library or picking up readings on Tube.
If you have any more suggestions, email Technology@thebeaveronline. co.uk and we will publish your favourites! ROHAN SONI
LSE MOBILE (FREE): we couldn’t write this article without mentioning the LSE app, which allows you to view your timetable, find free computers, locate buildings on campus and much more.
Class Timetable by Ice Media (£0.99): although we read our LSE timetables and try to remember classes, this handy little app can display all of your classes and lectures in one place. You can colour code specific modules and also set notification reminders a few minutes before your class is due to start, just so that coffee doesn’t accidentally overrun!
DISCOVER (FREE): essentially, this app is just Wikipedia, but presented in a beautiful way. Also exploring the homepage allows you to find random Wiki pages each day, so you may even learn something new.
GUARDIAN EYEWITNESS (FREE):
a new beautiful HD picture from a news story each day, perfect for browsing some stunning photography and learning about current events simultaneously.
Wunderlist (Free): a simple reminders app, which can be downloaded onto all of your devices, including your laptop, and allows you to add all of your assignments (classwork, readings, problem sets) and check them off once they have been completed. You can also set deadlines for when they have to be completed by, to increase your efficiency and ability to prioritise tasks.
Pocket (Free): this clever app allows you to save online articles, webpages and videos to view offline. So you can continue reading that FT article or watching that YouTube video of kittens even when you are on the Underground
CITYMAPPER (FREE): along the theme of commuting around London, this simple app can get you anywhere, showing you the best bus, tube, train, bike and walking routes. The best part is the bus stop location directions, and the countdown for how many minutes it will take for your bus to arrive at a particular stop!
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
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ART GRAFFITI... SANCTIONED RESISTANCE?
Graffiti and the romanticism of resistance are hopelessly intertwined. The walls of the city, blackened by exhaust from car engines and tired minds, get given a new lease of life. Even the most mediocre scrawls are purported to bring delight, they still show a disregard for longstanding walls. Therefore, it is of little surprise that the stealthy silhouette of Banksy has curled into our consciousness. His politically charged work makes him a revolutionary of the street. He’s a hero! He’s a maverick! Wow! Isn’t he brave? He sometimes dresses up, pretends to be unknown and sells his paintings $60! My god, well, haven’t we been bought cheap… Are we so burdened by the mundane that our hearts become enflamed by anyone who appears to transgress the norm? Look anywhere - you’ll see white men controlling space. Street art emerged as a way for the displaced to gain some authority over public space. Tricia Rose, in Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America, traces the beginnings of the hip-hop tradition in South Bronx to the building of the Cross Bronx railway. She argues that this generated feelings of desperation and further marginalisation within the predominately coloured and working class community. Graffiti was a reaction; names on trains screamed ‘I am here’. So, why have we let graffiti become a continuum of mainstream society? Bambi, one of the world’s most famous street artists, had £20,000 worth of paintings stolen. Each headline dubbed her as the ‘female Banksy’, one might have mentioned her own name, but for the main part she was defined by her gender and through a man. Hope might lead you to believe that street art existed in a vacuum, unconstrained by the laws that govern the rest of society. But as I chatted to celebrated graffiti artist, Boxhead, it became clear that ‘street art is just as male dominated as any other field in our society and the rest of the art world’. However, she laughed, her smile oozing with confidence, ‘that isn’t because there aren’t lots of female artists! I know a lot! Art schools are mainly populated by female students… Life matters make it harder for those women to take a professional path after our studies. Street art is especially hard! Just consider the risks of painting in a public space, the illegality of it and the time you might spend aboard’. Boxhead’s comments illuminated the gendered pitfalls of her career choice but did not explain why the women on the scene attracted less commercial attention. Double the risk so double the prestige would make logical sense. Did she ever worry about the repercussions of her work, I wondered. ‘I make art because it is what I do best, it is what makes me feel fuller and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I’m not afraid of being misinterpreted, and you will never reach all hearts and opinions… although I’d wish to’. Her resolve and conviction was electrifying. There is nothing more exciting than someone whose artistic fervour is derived from a belief in human’s emotional potential. Moreover, her style is unique. There is no debate about where her motifs originated from unlike the feud between Banksy and Blek Le Rat. Her tag, a figure with a box upon it’s head, came to her a dream back in 2009 and has been a reoccurring image in her work ever since. Much of her inspiration was drawn from theories surrounding urbanism and the way people interact with one another in the city. One of her pieces demands that we ‘reclaim our box’… sure, it might seem comical, but it is as brave and political of the works of her male contemporaries. This is not to decry the cultural contributions of such artists but rather to ask why even ‘radical’ art forms seek out conventional heroes.
There is a worrying conclusion to be drawn; graffiti is sanctioned resistance. Banksy might claim that ‘if graffiti could change anything it would be illegal’ but criminalisation is only one barrier. The public space that graffiti takes over has the creative potential for change. Sadly, the truth is that we are policing ourselves. The city walls might be ‘neutral’ but as long as we only celebrate certain voices we might as well be paying homage to the institutionalised circuits.
A BIT MORE ABOUT BOXHEAD: HOW AND WHY DID YOU GET INTO STREET ART? I started experimenting with spray cans when I was a teenager but I left the streets when I went to college. At university I painted canvases during the first year and worked in more 'theoretical' venues... I was very interested in the Situationists. I used to wonder around Barcelona taking pictures of random stuff, writing about urbanism and people's behaviours in the city. I moved to Amsterdam in 2007. I became friends with a group of street artists and they made my passion for visual art come back. My urbanism interests found the perfect match with my visual and aesthetic needs! HOW DID YOUR NAME COME ABOUT? I started drawing Boxhead in 2009, it literally came to my mind one night... just before I fell asleep! The morning after I began making stickers, then paste ups, walls and finally canvases. WHY DO YOU THINK STREET ART EXISTS? I think it reflects a natural human need to express ourselves, doing it in a public space serves as a faster more direct way to communicate with others. DO YOU THINK STREET ART IS MORE IMPORTANT IN LESS DEVELOPED COUNTRIES WHERE PEOPLE HAVE LESS ACCESS TO ARTISITIC MATERIALS? I don't think it is related at all. When someone has the need to express their emotions or opinions in artistic way they'll find the way to do it even using non-conventional art matierals. You have people in Cuba melting plastic to turn into sculptures. If anything it would have to do with a lack of institutionalised and private gallery / museum circuits. DO YOU THINK THAT GRAFFITI IS REALLY BECOMING MORE SOUGHT AFTER BY THE WEALTHY? Not graffiti but street art. As with any other trend, 'the wealthy' will want to invest in what is presented to them as a worthy product. Now it is street art related stuff, soon it will be something else.
BY JADE JACKMAN
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
FOOD/LITERATURE CHATIME: Taiwan's best export is now in London
If tea brings to your mind images of pensioners sipping from dainty cups, Chatime will prove you wrong. Hailing from Taiwan, which boasts tea plantatios that produce the likes of Ali Shan and other premium leaves, Chatime has a differet Taiwanese tea export - Bubble, or Boba, Tea. There are mind boggling number of combinations on offer, but Cha-holics favorites are the: Chatime Milk Tea with Pearl, Roasted Milk Tea with Grass Jelly, Peach Green Tea with Pearl, Matcha Milk Tea with Red Bean and Mango QQ. In the spirit of customisation that brought you build-you-own salad, burger, and bear, that allowed every diner to stick it to chefs who thought they knew best, Chatime lets you pair what you want together. Try our customisation guide below.
Step 1: Choose your base Will it be one of the 13 flavours of milk tea, or a fruit flavoured black/ green/white tea (9 choices)? 11 classic teas are also avaiable, and of late Chai has also been introduced. If you're adamant on having high-street coffee chain fare, coffees and lattes are available too. Finally, for the fitness buff, fruit juice and smoothies to get your 1of 5. Photo taken from Cha Time MY
Step 4: Fire & Ice Some like it hot. You can have your tea hot, or go the other way and have it cold and icy. Chatime lets your choose your ice level, albeit with a small charge for moe tea and less ice.
The standard for a cup is 500ml, but cold drinks can be upsized to 700ml for just 50p.
Step 3: Sugar Sugar Sugar
Choose from a wide range of options, from boba, the eponymous chewy tapoica balls to coconut, coffee, aloe vera, rainbow jelly, even "pudding", sweet adzuki beans, "mousses" and "QQ".
From the 0% of dieters to the diabetes-inducing 100%, you can choose your addiction level.
Aloe vera, natural and refreshing, with any fruit tea.
Fruit: Mango, Peach, Passionfruit, Kumquat
Sweet adzuki beans with the classic, roasted or matcha milk teas
Milk: Milk, Roasted, Matcha
"Pudding" with most milk teas
Soho 11, Old Compton Street W1D 5JF
Perhaps the most popular - and moderate - choice is the 50% level.
We recommend:
We recommend:
Where to find your Cha: Bonus: Size Matters
Step 2: Dress it up
We can't really recommend anything, except that 100% probably isn't good in the long run and 0% seems too sad and deprived.
The Brunswick No. 34, The Brunswick WC1N 1AE
Chinatown 4,Gerrard Street, Chinatown W1D 5PE
Portobello Market 236. Portobello Road W11 1LJ
http://www.chatimeuk.com/
The latest part in our LSE reading list series....
READING LIST FOR A POST-KPMG AU
T
he AU hasn’t had a great month, all things considered. By rough estimation, one national media scandal, one disbanded rugby club and £22,000 worth of withdrawn funding sum to a dejected exec team with an empty club bank account. This might be the time that the AU start appealing for donations, but considering that RAG have already picked their charities for this year (and as far as I’m aware, none of them have ever been described as sexist, classist or homophobic) and the self service checkouts at Kingsway Sainsbury’s aren’t conducive to a fundraising bag pack then it might be wise for the AU to look to literature for inspiration on how to deal with poverty, shame and hundreds of unwearable kits. They may even like to use the lint from the bottom of their wallets as a bookmark. Down and Out in Paris in London The Absolute Beginner's Guide to The Scarlet Letter by George Orwell Patchwork, Quilting and Applique by Nathaniel Hawthorne
This first hand account of a middle class boy fallen on hard times might ring a few bells to the AU. Orwell’s work as a dishwasher in Paris was a lot less lucrative than the standard investment banking spring week, but take heed as there are less entry qualifications and they’re unlikely to bear enough interest in your CV to find out that about your regrettable involvement in LSE Men’s Rugby. A lesson in stoicism through adversity and poverty, that will serve the AU well in their economic hardship; although Orwell’s complaints of the poor quality of the tea and bread he was given in London workhouses are feeble considering that he has never sampled the floor sweepings of Wrights Bar.
by Elaine Hammond
Whether non-fiction is strictly part of my onus as Literature editor is debatable, but this step-by-step will definitely come in handy when it comes to dealing with the heap of newly unwearable KPMG branded kit. At the time, an A level in Further Maths might have seemed more valuable to LSE life than a BTec in Design Technology but now we’re here it’s evident that some needlepoint skills to stitch your way out of a scandal is all that really counts.
The story of Hester Prynne, a woman shamed for conceiving a child through adultery and forced to wear a scarlet ‘A’ on her chest as punishment. A useful lesson in dealing with disgrace following perceived sexual impropriety/pulling a ‘sloppy bird’, whichever way you want to put it. For their sins, should Men’s Rugby be branded with their own red ‘A’s (perhaps followed by a ‘U’ for added relevance) to mark them responsible for the loss of KPMG? Probably not but at least after the kit debacle then the blanket stitching round the letters would have been impeccable. ELLEN WILKIE
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
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FILM/TV REVIEW:THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU "Never fully convincing as either a sharp comedy or a deep family drama, this ultimately coasts on the charms of its very likable cast." 3/5 STARS
S
hawn Levy has made his share of middle-ofthe-road, family-centric comedies, but his latest could well be his most frustrating. A dramedy that has more in common with Real Steel than Night at the Museum, it makes an admirable attempt to root a comedy in some heavy real-life crises; right from the off, it aims for ennui as much as entertainment. Yet, in lieu of clever writing, it never finds a satisfactory way of reconciling the two tones, too often leaving its cracking ensemble cast to save the day. Based on the novel by Jonathan Tropper, this plays out a lot like a melancholic version of Arrested Development. Thus, we see the affairs of a circus-like family through the eyes of Jason Bateman’s Judd, who is hit with the double whammy of a cheating wife and a dead father. And it gets worse, for when his mother rigidly imposes her husband’s dying wish (that the family stay housebound for Shiva, a 7-day period of mourning), he and his siblings have nowhere to hide from their troubled domestic lives.
Predictably, secrets come to light, egos are bruised, and Jane Fonda (brilliant as the overbearing, over sharing matriarch) provides a running gag on account of her prosthetic breasts. Sadly, like that joke, the material is mostly one-note and prosaic, and Levy’s musings lack any sharp observations or insights into family life. In a film packed with subplots – a loveless marriage here, some infertility drama there – few of them actually come with rewarding pay-offs, and one – linking Tina Fey to her tragically brain-damaged childhood sweetheart (Timothy Olyphant) – at times feels like a fullblown soap opera. By the end, after all of the epiphanies and digressions, you leave feeling exhausted rather than emotionally cleansed. Thank god then, for the cast, who have enough natural charm to shine through some rote characterization. No-one really plays a character that you wouldn’t have seen from them before in better films, but they make a bad film into a decent one; Bateman is reliable as an even more sober version of his usual straight man, Rose Byrne is charming as Judd’s criminally underwritten love interest, Fey has a good line in witty put-downs, and Adam Driver continues to be a breath of fresh air as a reckless, aberrant man-child. You’d only wish that the script had a smidgen of his breezy energy. RYAN CRANE
Photo credits: 2014 Warner Bros. Pictures Photo credits: 2014 Warner Bros. Pictures
REVIEW: HOW
TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER
I
Photo credits: Ahmet Sönmez
would be the first one to admit, the name of this drama is totally intimidating. One must be expecting a Sherlock-ish crime series about a psychopath killer (Hannibal Lector, James Moriarty maybe?). How to Get Away with Murder documents the adventures of a group of ambitious law students taught by professor Annalise Keating, who is a genius barrister in her own right, with strange methods. These innocent students become unconsciously entwined in Keating’s personal life and even, a case of murder. Each episode involves the students and Keating defending a tricky case and shows flashbacks of the (SPOILER) murder of Keating’s unfaithful husband. Firstly, the different cases in each episode were more than fascinating. Sudden plot twists- shocking revelations, unexpected confessions or sudden disappearances of the client, Keating is up to an acute challenge each and every time. Her own brilliance, coupled with the genius of her group of four extremely bright students that assisted her in pre-
paring her defenses, have her resolving thorny cases continuously. The novel way Keating and her students’ approach one after another seemingly insolvable case is simply mind-blowing (and puts me, as a fellow law student, to complete and utter shame). There is more- the flashbacks of the murder of Keating’s husband with the four utterly baffled students trying to omit all traces of evidence fearfully add to the complexity of the drama. With each episode, more and more is revealed about this mind-boggling murder case. In the first episode, I was completely confused: What part did the four student play in the crime? Who exactly was murdered? With each episode, my myriad of questions gradually gets answered one by one. One is left to anticipate the next episode to reveal more about this shocking murder. It is almost, as if, the whole drama is one giant case. Apart from me studying law, Viola Davis is the other incentive for me to ‘embark’ on my journey of following the drama every Thursday. Delivering one
stunning performance after another (‘The Help’, ‘Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close’, just to name a few), Viola Davis never disappoints. Her portrayal of the domineering, brilliant law professor, who carries the bundles of her darkest sorrows within is moving. Aja Naomi King pleasantly surprised me with her performance as Michaela Pratt, one of the four students, who hides her vulnerability behind a façade of selfindulgence. Nevertheless, Alfred Enoch, the lead character of the series never moved far from his Harry- Potter- Dean-Thomas days. His handsome features fail to compensate for his awkward acting and expressionless face. How to Get Away with Murder is beyond amazing. It is a mind-game. I hasten to give away too much as only a mere four episodes have aired. I urge everyone, law students and nonlaw students alike, to give the drama a go, and you’ll find- you can never get away from it. ZITA CHAN
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
MUSIC: WHERE TO BE THIS WEEK:
FRIDAY - Black Butter Halloween Special @ Village Underground 23:00 - 54 Holywell Lane; Shoreditch; London EC2A 3PQ
by Conor Doherty
It's Halloween, and as such there are myriad worthwhile nights to attend. The author has selected the above because that's where he'll be going. A small number of tickets on the door are still available at £10+.
MONDAY - Intercollegiate and LSE Halls Party @ XOYO Show a little appreciation for the Residences Ambassadors as they throw their final official event. As is subtly put on the event's Facebook page 'FRESHERS IS OFFICIALLY OVER BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN THE FUN HAS TO END'. The sentiment of the night is apparent; at £4 for students (with this link http://intercollegiateparty.fatsoma.com/) the night should be thoroughly entertaining.
SATURDAY - Simian Mobile Disco @ XOYO 23:00 - 32-37 Cowper St, London EC2A 4AP
TUESDAY - New Build @ Basing House /20:00 5 Kingsland Road E2 8AA London For those interested in electronic indie, New Build are something of a supergroup. Comprised of two members of Hot Chip - one of whom was involved with dance-punk outfit LCD Soundsystem - and the composer Tom Hopkins those in attendance can expect something special. New WEDNESDAY Build illustrate the UK's electronic Dead Prez @ Jazz Cafe musical heritage both sonically and linguistically, with their performing title also evoking the inaugural album 19:00 - 5 Parkway, Camden, London NW1 of the venerated 808 State. Much 7PGDead Prez are one of the US' premier like the other side-projects of Hot political hip hop outfits still in operation, Chip members, such as Goddard's exhibiting profoundly socialist lyricism The 2 Bears, critical success could with some seriously high-standard produchave been easily anticipated. Tickets tion. Their confrontational style stems for the show at the Dalston venue much more from the Public Enemy school are priced at face-value of £8.50 of Hip Hop rather than that of N.W.A
(although that subject to much debate) whilst still intelligently intimating the rage that can only develop out of systematic oppression. Contemporary listeners may well remember the loosely recent dubstep remix of their classic single "Hip Hop". For intellectual stimulation this gig is a must; alternatively it's a Wednesday so there's always Zoo. Face-value tickets are on sale at £20.
THURSDAY - Sessions @ Corsica Studios Sessions at Corsica Studios is one of the most consistently worthwhile nights in London, and this Thursday is no exception with Hackman headlining. The 24 year old has remixed for a range of artists from TEED to Lana Del Rey and his debut album 'As Above, So Below' is due for release in 2015.
Whilst reluctant to list the same venue twice in a week, this is certainly an exception. The seminal Simian Mobile Disco have seen a recent resurgence in popularity and will be performing their new album "Whorl" live, as well as taking a DJ Slot themselves. They aren't however, the most attractive artist on Saturday's bill. San Proper, the eccentric Dutch producer/DJ hailing from Amsterdam's underground scene will be performing in Room 2. Anyone in attendance must be prepared for his endearing high-octane activity on stage as well as shrewd and seamless track-mixing. Eclectic simply isn't descriptive enough.Tickets are available from £13.50. SUNDAY - Honestly, it's not worth going out. You'll be feeling exhausted following the Halloween weekend, and there's nothing worthwhile on anyway.
THE HOMELESS FILM FESTIVAL BEGINS ON THE 1ST OF NOVEMBER WITH 'THE OVERNIGHTERS'. THE HOMELESS FILM FESTIVAL SEEKS TO EMPOWER THOSE ON STREETS WITH FILM WORKSHOPS AND AIMS TO HIGHLIGHT THE ISSUES THAT SURROUND HOMELESSNESS THROUGH FILM. THE HOMLESS FILM FESTIVAL IS OFFERING FREE TICKETS TO LONDON STUDENTS, IF INTERESTED EMAIL HOMELESSFILMFESTIVAL@GMAIL. COM. THE DOCUMENTARY HAS BEEN PRODUCED BY DOGWOOF, THE UK'S LEADING DOCUMENTARY FILM DISTRIBUTOR.
The Beaver 09.10.2012
PartB
Photo credit: WikiCommons
21
The City
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Section Editorial:
Section Editor: Julia Wacket city@thebeaveronline.co.uk
A WARM WELCOME TO the new section of the Beaver: ‘The City’, covering news related to economics, business and finance. A section, which I think is long overdue if you look at the sectors where most LSE students want to work in. Coming from a politics background myself, I know that reading business news can sometimes be a bit dry and hard to understand, so the writers and I will try to keep it light, the language simple and we will offer you a broad range of topics. We had a great start this week, exploring how Facebook wants to connect more people in India to the Internet and how London earned itself the reputation ‘Divorce Capital of the World’. I look forward to to expanding this section even more over the next couple of weeks, so if you want to be part of it, drop me a message. I look forward to reading your stories!
The City
Julia Wacket
Features: Sport: The Rise of Regionalism? Oscar Pistorius Page 22 Page 31
London: Hot Spot for Untying the Knot Perdita Blinkhorn City Correspondent IT SEEMS LOVE IS MOST certainly not in the air; not in London at least as several high-profile divorce cases have recently been battled out in the capital. Divorce lawyers are gleefully lining their pockets as wealthy couples, many of whom either own property in Britain or are employed in the City of London’s financial district, choose London as their battle arena. Among the very public and very expensive cases of recent times, one of the most notable is that of business man Khoo Kay Peng and the former Miss Malaysia, Pauline Chai, who wish to end their marriage of 40 years. Mrs Chai and her lawyers insisted on having the divorce case in London, arguing that she had lived long enough in her £30 million mansion just outside of London to have a strong connection to Britain. But why are foreign millionaires so desperate to end their marriages in London? The answer may tend to lie more with the women involved. Today, men are still (unfortu-
nately) the main money makers in marriages and support their wives, along with their often luxurious lifestyle. For starters, Law students may be aware that England is one of the few countries in the world where pre-nuptial agreements are not legally binding. This means that any such existing agreement may be over-ridden, thus benefiting the lower income earner in the relationship. This is only one reason why the London has earned the reputation of the world’s divorce capital. Additionally, judges in the UK take into account more assets than judges in other countries, further increasing pay outs. Following the White versus White divorce case of 2000, a consolation by the Law Commission found that a couples’ assets are far more likely to be split equally in English courts. The consultation reported that “As a result of [the precedent set by the White v White case], English law has come to be perceived as more generous than the law elsewhere”. The greater likelihood of a 50/50 divide in wealth, often spelling bad news for the primary “money earners” , has made divorcing in London worth fighting over for those who are hop-
ing for a big pay out. Sandra Davis, head of the family law department at Mishcon de Reya, who has represented notable clients such as Diana, Princess of Wales in her divorce from Prince Charles, has summarised the phenomenon; “England has become very attractive for wives, in particular because awards here are considerably higher than almost anywhere in the world”. It also appears that not-so-rich foreigners see the UK as an attractive divorce hotspot, as of August 179 Italian couples had enlisted the help of agencies to provide them with fake documents so they could obtain their divorces in the UK. However, one of the most important questions to consider is what does this mean for London and indeed the UK? Some readers may see this as an excellent career move, as London based divorce lawyers are finding this surge to cut martial bonds locally a very lucrative opportunity. Despite this, it is putting some strain on the British legal system; some judges such as Judge David Bodey, the judge presiding over the Peng v Chai case, are urging couples to reach speedy financial agreements instead of
Internet.org: Conceit or Salvation? Zita Chan City Correspondent INDIA HAS BEEN ONE OF the fastest growing economies in the world in recent years, with its vast economic markets and its copious amounts of resources available. Yet, only around half of the population is enrolled in secondary school education. In every 100 Indian citizen, only a mere 13 has access to the internet – not the best condition to keep the country’s growth rate of 5.6 percent this year going. There is, seemingly though, light at the end of the tunnel – Internet.org has vowed to provide Internet access to 5 billion people in India. Internet.org is a partnership between social networking service company Facebook and six mobile phone companies (Samsung, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia,Opera Software, and Qualcomm) that has bestowed upon itself the ambition of making affordable Internet access available to the two thirds of the world not yet connected. Though a very admirable goal, this inevitably leads one to question (as we question everything these days): Is
Internet.org’s truly going to make things better for India? The first problem with the project is feasibility. The primary problem looming over any developing economy, including India, is the poverty cycle. The remedy to this endless spiral is education. Whilst one may argue that Internet access is the precise panacea needed, I question that view. When almost half of the population fails to receive secondary education, should the priority still be technological literacy? Or rather, should the emphasis be placed on promoting actual, academic literacy? Academic literacy is the prerequisite to any form of prospect. Promoting computer literacy is analogous to teaching the citizens to learn how to run before they even know how to walk. This simply throws the good cause that Internet.org strives to achieve down the drain. Poverty is the perpetual problem that haunts over India, with over 30% of the population living under the international poverty line. With the majority of the population working low- skilled jobs, unable to own a mobile phone or
a computer, how far is Internet access going to bring them? The other problem is the infrastructure of India that is simply incompatible with Internet access. Hotspot and network coverage is lacking. The infrastructure of the country simply fails to facilitate Internet.org’s ambitious plans to engage 5 billion people in using the internet. Even though Ericsson is working on ways to improve connectivity without the need for expensive infrastructure, there is bound to be much red tape and delays whilst liaising with the Indian government. Nevertheless, it is undeniable that providing better Internet access is the key to unlock India’s door to establish better connections with developed economies to give the Indian economy the dose of steroids it needs. Internet.org’s brainchild is however unlikely to fully materialise unless India has established more solid foundation in terms of its economy and political milieu. Furthermore, there are more pressing social issues, such as inequality in income distribution and gender discrimination awaiting urgent remedy and mitigation.
bringing cases to court “with all the strength I can muster”. Moreover, while divorces are often necessary and a right all married individuals are entitled to, I’m not sure holding the title of “Best place in the world to get divorced” is the most positive or inviting title our capital can have.
‘The City’ News of the Week Tesco’s profits black hole bigger than expected
Britain’s biggest retailer reported a 92 per cent fall in pre-tax profits and revealed that the accounting black hole in its profits was £263m, larger than the £250m initially forecast. Sir Richard Broadbent, chairman of Tesco, stepped down. Following the news, shares in Tesco fell 8.5 per cent to an 11-year low, leading Tesco to lose half its market value this year.
ECB fails 25 banks in Stress Test
25 of the Eurozone’s 130 biggest banks have failed the European Banking Authority’s (EBA) stress test, designed to measure their ability to withstand another economic crisis. The banks ended last year with a collective capital shortfall of 25 billion euros. They include nine Italian banks, three Greek banks and three Cypriot banks. Of the 25 banks, 13 have still not raised enough capital to make up the shortfall. The banks now have nine months to shore up their finances or risk being shut down.
Amazon shares tumble after profit losses
Amazon has reported a thirdquarter loss of £273m in the three months to the end of September, leading to questioning about its ability to generate long-term profits. Amazon’s profits have been sapped by big investments in new Kindle devices, cloud computing infrastructure and warehouses across the world.The internet retailing giant also said it expected to report a bigger-than-expected loss in the next three-month period. Investors punished Amazon for the disappointing results, with shares plunging at 11 per cent in after-hours trading on Thursday.
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
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Section editorial:
Section Editors: Rachel Chua and Liam Hill
Politics, humour, serious discourse - where else do these disparate things come together more fraternally than the LSE? The official opening of the new Saw Swee Hock Student Centre saw all this come together in style and with a bang, with comedian Tim Key putting on a show, academics facing off against each other, and Ken Livingstone making an appearance. Features this week brings you all of that, but without losing sight of key global debates. It’s easy to get lost amidst the fanfare of this week’s special issue, but don’t forget to look out for our articles on regionalism’s rise, or genocide denial. Rachel Chua
Genocide Denial: History, Liberalism and Objectivity
Features
This week in Features, our first week as fully elected proper section editors, I am again overwhelmed by the keeness of our writers and the quality of their contributions, my own shabby write up of our interview with Ken excepted. What remains a fantastic achievement of the section so far is the number of first years who have engaged with us by writing. Please carry on. The first step in an illustrious career at The Beaver is available to anyone who wants one. Email us to get involved. Liam Hill
features@thebeaveronline.co.uk
Zwan Mahmod First year undergraduate GENOCIDE DENIAL IS perhaps not a common problem, but can its punishment by law ever be warranted? The significance of the cases of outlawing genocide denial is that it shows both democracies and non-democracies can have surprisingly similar laws limiting free speech. This may seem like an over-exaggeration because, after all, who is really in the business of genocide denial? David Irving is a British historian and a Holocaust denier. When he travelled to Vienna to meet a group of neo-Nazis he was imprisoned by the Austrian state for 3 years. He ended up serving 13 months and the question has to be asked: in a free society, should we
denying genocide, who is, without doubt, the one who thinks differently. Freedom of speech is otherwise meaningless: we can all accept views which slightly deviate from our own or have some respectable base of support. But, if there is one person who thinks differently to us, then his right to speech is more important than anything else, for if his can be defended then that is the measure of a free society. In Austria and Germany denying the Holocaust is illegal. in France, denying the Armenian genocide is illegal. Similar laws apply in Rwanda to the genocide which took pace there in the 1990s. The reason for these laws is understandable and perhaps obvious. These crimes were committed in the past and were not prevented. Does this not mean that we in the present should, at the very least, acknowl-
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obvious infringement on freedom of inquiry. The BBC released a programme called Rwanda's Untold Story on October 1 disputing the official story of the Rwandan genocide. It is important to note that by no means did the documentary deny the mass killing of the Tutsis by the Hutus but simply disputes events leading up to the genocide and states that crimes were committed on both sides. Despite this, the government of Rwanda banned the broadcast of the BBC and considered legal action. This returns to the notion of a state-sanctioned official version of history. A fundamental and central issue to this debate is the acknowledgement that no state or person can have a monopoly on truth, no matter how much a particular chain of events it be scandalous to
exercise of scepticism is a harmful precedent to set. This issue raises another crucial point: the necessity of critical self-examination. If a topic can be forbidden as a point of discussion then complacency about it is fostered and encouraged. That it may not be necessary to examine how, when and why a genocide, or any other significant historical event, took place, but simply to accept that it did seems to be what the proponents of such laws are saying. It is not our business to understand and discuss history just to listen and accept. If we cannot discuss then we cannot self examine. Why did the Rwandan genocide occur and can such a tragedy be prevented from happening again? That exact question seems to be enough to get you into trouble in Rwanda. Reconciliation in Rwanda Cesarie Mukabutera Survivor “Now you accept and you forgive.” Deogratias Habyarimana Perpetrator “When she granted me pardon, all the things in my heart that had made her look at me like a wicked man faded away.” Photo credit: Pieter Hugo for the New York Times
imprison and attempt to silence those whom we find reprehensible in their views? Rosa Luxemburg's summation of the liberal position is apt as a starting point. She said: "Freedom is always the freedom of the one who thinks differently". This means freedom even for the one who is
edge and protect the victims from those who seek to refute they even existed as victims? The central issue with this is its limit on freedom of speech. Aside from that objection is the issue of giving the state the right to sanction an official version of history, however true it may be. This is a dangerous practice and an
question. For anyone who has seen the documentary the accusation of genocide denial is not only untrue, but is more importantly irrelevant. False accusations are an insult to the intelligence of viewers but as already stated the possibility of imprisoning, in this case, journalists for the act of investigation and an
The shame that stains so many should be seen and not obscured by law. The German government rightly feels shame about its past but should not be able to argue against historical inquiry in an illusory attempt at overcompensation. In a world that remains so full of potential threats, can anyone afford to be so careless? To end, let us remember Rosa Luxemburg's quote about the freedom of the one who thinks differently. Agreement is essentially irrelevant in these matters. If we accept a few modest liberal assumptions about truth and inquiry, then true freedom of speech and inquiry must apply to even the most horrific things, even if this means tolerating genocide denial.
The Features section is the home of analysis, essays and interviews in The Beaver. Sign up on www.beaveronline.co.uk to write for us, and tag your posts under ‘Features’. If you have an idea for an article or an interview, let us know. Email features@thebeaveronline.co.uk
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
Ken Livingstone interview
“The next Tory candidate for Mayor cannot be worse than Boris. Jimmy Savile is dead” Liam Hill Features Editor
KEN LIVINGSTONE IS AN oddly affable figure. Sitting across from us in his signature blue shirt and yellowy-gold suit, the former Mayor of London’s nasal voice and quiet articulation seem capable of endearing even those who see no merit in any of his agenda, who admit minimal crossover between their own politics and Livingstone’s, at least personally if not politically. “It’s always pleasant to come back” to the LSE, he tells us, recalling climbing over desks in an old lecture hall to speak to a crowded theatre full of people back in 1981, during his first visit to the LSE. At that point, having “spent the previous ten years talking to six or ten people in empty halls” before this point, Ken says, “that was when I realised the scale of media attention here”. Seven months from his seventieth birthday, Livingstone is liberated from ever having to mince his words or self-censor. W e ask him who the
next Tory candidate for Mayor of London might be, and he tells us dryly, “There couldn’t be anyone worse than Boris,” before pausing for a moment for the punchline, “Jimmy Savile’s dead.” The combination of laughter and shock in the room prompts him to add, “Just joking,” though I suspect that was the only part of the sentence he improvised. Not five minutes before this risqué joke, Ken seems equally happy reeling off lists of remembered statistics about the proportion of GDP different countries have invested at different times in public infrastructure spending as he makes a broader point “that investment outweighs every other factor in terms of economic growth”. This is, Ken tells us, the conclusion of a Vietnamese economist, the author of the most recent book Ken has read. Whether or not Livingstone sees himself as bookish, he seems acutely aware
of the accusation. He says of Ed Miliband that, “people say ‘he’s nerdy’. That’s what they used to say about me.” Ken is very complimentary of Ed Miliband during the interview. It is difficult to know whether this is indicative of a genuine admiration for Ed or whether Ken calculates that an Ed Miliband-led government is simply the closest thing to what he calls “a genuinely Labour government” he is likely to see. Ed Miliband, however, will not benefit from the factors which most benefited Ken during the latter’s 2000 and 2004 Mayoral campaigns. In 2000, Livingstone was not selected by Labour after an electoral college was imposed on the selection process, so he stood as an independent and won, with Labour’s Frank Dobson, MP for Holborn, finishing in third place. Ken benefited from the kind of anti-establishment sentiment UKIP is now reaping in much of the country beyond London. And in 2004, Livingstone’s incumbency and the population’s broad satisfaction with his performance were factors Miliband will not enjoy next May.
owned by five billionaires, who are all tax dodgers and desperately don’t want a Labour government, a genuinely Labour government.” Whether or not Ken’s praise for Ed Miliband is genuine or not, and it is perhaps more likely that it is given how Livingstone speaks about other politicians, the simple fact that he does is remarkable given that other figures on the Labour left have been swift to criticise Miliband for his lack of radicalism or for failing to propose that ‘radical alternative’ that Owen Jones and Len McLuskey ensure us Labour must offer. On Boris’ run for parliament, Ken is at his most sardonic. He perks up and says, “he hasn’t done the job, so it makes no difference.” Beyond the personal animosity that exists between them, one suspects that part of Livingstone’s hostility to Boris may also be born out of concern for legavy, what Ken regards as his own achievements between 2000 and 2008. He is not even much more flattering to other politicians in his own party. “Careerists,” he mumbles about Jack Straw. Re f e r e n c i n g Straw’s presidency
Despite this, Livingstone makes several further comparisons between Miliband and himself. “He’s got the same problem I had. Seventy per cent of the ‘papers people read a r e
of the NUS in the late sixties, he says, “Half the people who swarmed into the Labour Party during the Blair abomination were all careerists from the NUS.” When asked what advice Ken has for LSE students considering how to vote in the referendum on our SU’s membership of the NUS this week, he says, “I haven’t been involved in the NUS in decades. I’m thinking back to the sixties and the seventies. You really shouldn’t be looking to me as a source of advice and guidance about the state of the NUS. But try and push it in the right direction would be my broad view.” But based on his experience with the NUS in the sixties and seventies, he says, “I don’t look to the
NUS for a radical challenge to the establishment.” On the subject of the NUS, their NEC’s recent decision not to back a motion supporting the Kurds comes up. Ken hasn’t heard about this, but says, “I’ve been supporting the Kurds since I knew they existed. They have been one of the most shat upon peoples on the face of the planet.” Up until now Ken’s tone has been mostly jovial and casual, but he becomes a little more animated as he begins to talk about foreign policy, and the former firebrand in him becomes momentarily visible. “This is the nightmare of Turkish policy,” he says, “to stand back and do nothing about ISIL because that would strengthen the Kurds. It’s old ‘my enemy’s enemy’ crap.” Livingstone’s unfulfilled ambition is on show. He refers to “all those Labour people who panicked and voted for Blair, rather than look for someone like Robin Cook or myself, they just want someone they think can win”. The Enoch Powell misquote about all political careers ending in failure perhaps does apply to Ken. Thwarted by Margaret Thatcher’s abolition of the Greater London Council in the 1980s, and after losing two Mayoral elections in a row more recently, Livingstone is in danger ofhaving comitted the most grave political sin any conviction politician can commit: not having a substantial political legacy. Perhaps all political careers end in failure, but only because most politicians, like Ken Livingstone, would always have done more given the chance. We are wary of the time because our slot with Ken is immediately before his scheduled event in discussion with LSESU General Secretary Nona BuckleyIrvine. “Do we actually think anybody’s going to turn up and listen to a politician on a Friday night,” Ken asks as we finish the interview, “when they could be getting pissed?” Interview conducted by Jon Allsop, Liam Hill and Megan Crockett. To read the full transcript of Ken’s interview with The Beaver visit www.beaveronline.co.uk
Features
Tuesday October 28, 2014
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The Rise of Regionalism LGBT+: Who is George Harrison First year undergraduate NOT A SINGLE STATE IN THE entirety of the United Nations recognises the autonomous province of Somaliland as an independent nation; indeed, the only international community that formally recognises it is the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation. This has, however, hardly perturbed the administration, who have proclaimed their right to selfdetermination as an independent state ever since the collapse of the Somalian central government in 1991. Against the unpredictable social and economic backdrop of the 21st Century, the plight of Somaliland is not an isolated example of extreme regionalism. South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Catalonia and, of course, Scotland are all examples of regions in which vast swathes of the population are vying for recognition as a completely independent state, with varying degrees of success. Whilst Scotland is more than merely an autonomous province, it remains a high profile example of the growing consensus that independence and devolution represent attractive propositions for many. Many of these regionalists need look no further for motivation than to the European Union- perhaps the most ambitious and wide reaching example of true federalism in modern history. Whilst support does still exist for the federal
European project, it is regarded by others as a deteriorating, undemocratic and cumbersome behemoth of bureaucracy. This vision of federalism entices many to believe that sometimes it is better to “go it alone”, with less interference from politicians who are apathetic towards the specific issues of the region or province in question. This is perhaps exacerbated by global economic uncertainty, which has historically induced insular attitudes and general desire for radical change. Some regionalists feel neglected by national or international government, whilst others believe in independence as an avenue to escape the weaker links in their national or federal chains, which inadvertently hold back prosperity elsewhere. Indeed, the increasing calls for devolution and regional governance may not so much be the result of a rise in regionalist sentiment as a decline in federalist sentiment. If EU member states are considered as “regions” in the United States of Europe, then this is certainly the case with the current prevalence of Euroscepticism. This trend does serve to reinforce the importance of self-determination in empowering and engaging the population; the Scottish referendum achieved a UK record breaking voter turnout of 84.5%, whilst the remarkable Falklands referendum of 2013 saw a turnout of 91.9%. Even though the embarrassed president of Argentina, Cristina Kirchner, is still loath to accept it, referenda and self-deter-
mination remain integral components of international democracy. As the Somaliland regionalists will reaffirm, it is not easy to achieve self-determination in the face of national adversity. Although democracy has already run its course in the internally divided nation of Scotland and on the hotly contested Falkland Islands, the populations of many de facto independent states will never get the opportunity to achieve their dreams of recognition as true sovereign nations. Surviving as an independent nation would likely prove to be impossible for many of these regions, although this doesn’t deter the supporters of the respective liberation and independence movements they contain. Achieving recognition in itself is a vast enough struggle, as nations ally to quell their regionalist problems; Spain would almost certainly have decided to VETO an independent Scotland’s petition to join the EU, simply to send a message to their own rebellious Catalan contingent that the only hope for prosperity lies with unity. The rise of regionalism perhaps represents a cultural and political shift away from the very notion of “big government” and federal unity towards self-governance, something which has proven to engage voters on levels never before envisaged. Whilst the “Somaliland Shilling” may not be featuring on the international currency markets any time soon, this regionalist renaissance could end up having profound global impacts.
Source: Flickr: Ashitaka San
A Minute with Michael Moszynski Rachel Chua Features Editor LSE ALUMNI HAVE LONG been a stalwart pillar of the university, going on to contribute greatly to society and further frontiers in various fields. Michael Moszynski obtained his BSc in Economics from the LSE in 1986, and has gone on to become
CEO and Founder of the London Advertising Agency, an advertising and marketing firm. “I was a hopeless public speaker,” claims Moszynski, chuckling a little. “Taking part in student politics, and being put in a position where I had to be on a stage and campaign, that all helped a great deal.” When asked what being the Treasurer of the SU was like, Mo-
szynski recalls the weekly Union General Meetings. “In the 1980s, the LSE was very left-wing,” he says. “I remember these weekly UGM motions against America on the issue of Nicaragua.” Moszynski spends the interview good-naturedly recalling his time at the LSE. But what does he think of the new Student Centre? He says it has “great architectural vision”, and thinks it looks fantastic.
our movement for?
Source: Flickr: See-ming Lee
Rachel Bleetman LGBT+ Alliance President ACROSS THE LSE CAMPUS and throughout the young, liberal minds of enthusiastic and active students across the globe, two terms ring loud and clear in hot debate and vivacious pub chat. The LGBT+ movement is no stranger to these terms either. Could it be that in this important pillar for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and queer rights, women and minorities are still being left out in the cold? Shiri Eisner, bisexual, feminist and queer activist argues that the LGBT movement is in fact the ‘GGGG’ movement: Gay, gay, gay and gay. By this Eisner refers to the image of the LGBT movement as being the fight for our rights by the white, middle to upper class cis gay man (think Neil Patrick Harris or Ricky Martin). The type of ‘gay’ that your grandmother might find adorable or your girlfriends google topless. Whilst this image may help the movement by rallying support from your grandmother and your friends, it forgets a huge number of women, minorities and transsexuals who struggle to have their voice heard over the middle aged women’s yelps for Elton John. This is the ‘gay’ that society is comfortable with, the one we can just about ‘tolerate’, but what about everyone else in the movement who seems to be forgotten? For example, according to a 2011 study, bisexual women were at greater risk of depression and anxiety than women who were straight or gay, usually due to stigma around bisexuality. (Anna North 2013). Furthermore, thirtysix percent of African American lesbians compared to 21 percent of White lesbians and 32 percent of African American gay males com-
pared to 27 percent of White gay males attempted suicide before age eighteen (Bell and Weinberg 1978). Other areas of the forgotten women and minorities are in the media. By placing a good looking, middle class gay cis man in a show or film, they are praised as dealing with LGBT+ issues or being progressive, (think Modern Family or Will and Grace). Thanks for the token gay, but the LGBT+ movement is a little broader than what suits Cam and Mitch will wear to match their shoes. LSE students don’t really need another rant about these issues as we all know them pretty well. White privilege and sexism is rife throughout everything we study, but is important to remember that it is also rife in the LGBT+ movement. Just because it’s easier for society to accept the LGBT+ movement through a hot, gay, cis, white man, doesn’t mean we should leave the rest forgotten. One of the biggest fights for the LGBT+ movement this decade will be to dismantle damaging stereotypes and expand the movement from equal marriage to equal recognition in all walks of life. Recognition that the butch lesbian and the feminine gay man aren’t the whole movement and we don’t just want marriage and gay pride marches. So, a quick thanks to the mainstream media and society for the awesome topless gay men that grace our televisions and computers so frequently and help us ever so slightly in our constant fight for equal rights. Without seeming ungrateful, all we ask for is a little more fair representation of who we are and what we stand for. It’s not grandma’s GGGG it’s our LGBT.
Write the Liberation column next week by emailing the editors.
features@thebeaveronline.co.uk
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
Britain’s Hidden Hunger Crisis Beth Carlow First year undergraduate IN SEPTEMBER 2014 UNIVERSAL free school meals were implemented in primary schools across the UK for those in reception, year one and year two. As good as this is, there will still be at least 16.3% of secondary school pupils claiming free school meals and, if trends continue, this is set to rise. Between March 2013 and March 2014 913,138 people in the UK were given three days emergency food by food banks. Is there a hidden food crisis in the UK? Both food bank usage and the percentage of children claiming free school meals are indicators of struggles in food provision. As dramatic as a ‘food crisis’ sounds, It is clear from the statistics that many household incomes are insufficient to even afford basic amenities, such as food. Surely, in the United Kingdom it should be considered a disgrace that an increasing number of the population are having to rely on emergency food supplies because they simply cannot afford to feed their families. Obviously, the government cannot always intervene financially with every social issue and their intervention with the universal free school meals should be praised. Surely, though, this needs to go further and structural issues which are leading to families in the
UK not having food should be addressed. There needs to be a greater explanation as to exactly why so many people are needing help to eat, and from this the causes need to be tackled. Taking into consideration the fact that the top 10% wage earners in the UK have seen their incomes doubled in the last decade it seems even more ridiculous that there is an increasing number of people without the money to buy the basic human need that is food. Taking this topic back to its root, I interviewed one of the founders of a food bank in Wimborne (Dorset) to find out what is going on from someone who’s met people facing this crisis. She outlined her experiences in setting up a food bank, “I learnt that there was a great need in our community – despite the fact we live in an affluent area, there is a real pocket of need that you wouldn’t expect and, therefore, this community often gets overlooked”, she also went on to add that the extent of generosity towards the food bank was overwhelming. I was also interested to hear how far she thought the need went beyond what the general public and government perceive. She informed me that “most of us can’t quite believe that there is real poverty in this country. We probably think of hunger as a third world issue and not one that is on our own doorsteps. If the government are aware then they either can’t, don’t know, or won’t deal with it.
corner Katie Budd RAG President
Source: Flickr: Coventry City Council
I guess a lot of them live lives that are far removed from the man on the street and some people’s reality – as are most of us”. Following this, I researched some local London areas to try and see how close to home this issue really is and found that boroughs such as Islington and Tower Hamlets had some of the highest percentages of children claiming free school meals in the country, with Islington at a shocking 40% (ONS, 2014).
These facts highlight that not only is this a huge issue in the UK, but on our doorstep here in London. Clearly, the fact people cannot afford food needs to be addressed. It’s very easy to pass the blame to institutions but there are things we can do to help right now. There are many ways that you can help provide some relief to these struggling families such as getting in touch with your local MP, church or searching for food banks online.
Mullah’s Death Invites Questions About Iran’s Future Adrienne Mahsa First year postgraduate AYATOLLAH MOHAMMAD Reza Mahdavi Kani (right) passed away at 83 years old last Tuesday morning, after almost five months of being in a coma. A moderate conservative, Mahdavi Kani was serving as Chairman of Iran’s Assembly of Experts, an elected body of 86 members which monitors and has the power to elect or dismiss the country’s Supreme Leader. Essentially, this is the only body in the government that the Supreme Leader is accountable to. While power is distributed in Iran’s government among a variety of different institutions, the Supreme Leader still holds a lot of power in the country. He has control over the country’s judiciary, armed forces, radio and TV, as well as the Guardian Council, the government body which vets all laws and election candidates. Equally important, as was made
clear during the 2009 presidential elections, the Supreme Leader also confirms the president. To date, the Assembly has never challenged the supreme leader, but Mahdavi Kani’s death is still important in two regards. First, there have been concerns about current Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s health, especially after he underwent prostrate surgery last month. As such, any changes in the institution that will choose his successor become incredibly important. Second, the Assembly of Experts plays a large role in power politics in Iran. Many analysts believe that the majority of the Assembly can hurt or help the president in power. Which way the majority leans, including Mahdavi Kani's replacement, could have a large impact on President Hassan Rouhani’s outreach to the West as well as the current infighting between the conservatives and moderates in power. Keep in mind that Assembly and parliamentary elections will
both be held in 2016. “If pragmatists and moderates can secure a majority in the upcoming parliamentary and the Assembly elections, surely they will have an upper hand in Iran's political arena," political analyst Mansour Marvi told Reuters. It is not yet certain who will be the next Chairman of the Assembly of Experts, but speculation has already begun. One possibility is former head of judiciary Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi. Hashemi Shahroudi is remembered for the prosecution of several reformist members of parliament under reformist President Mohammad Khatami, claiming the members weakened parliament by defending "Westernized" journalists and other liberals. He is also known, however, for submitting a bill to parliament which aimed at substituting imprisonment and execution with educational workshops and social penalties. Another possibility is former President and former Assem-
bly of Experts Chairman Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. A centrist, Rafsanjani is remembered for his economic reform of the country, but he has also been accused of corruption by both conservatives and reformists. He entered the 2013 presidential elections, but his candidacy was disqualified by the Guardian Council. It is interesting, and perhaps indicative, to note that the Supreme Leader tweeted a picture of Rafsanjani in expressing his condolences for Mahdavi Kani Tuesday.
Last week saw over 200 LSE students vote for our local, national and international charities of the year. The votes were counted and the results are in. Our charities of the year are: Spires (local), IntoUniversity (national) and War Child (international). Spires is a day centre for homeless people, operating in South London. Theirs is already a familiar name on campus, mainly because they were also one of our chosen charities last year. It’s unprecedented for RAG to support the same charity two years in a row, but as a committee we felt compelled to have them on our shortlist for another year. In my two and a bit years on the RAG committee I’ve never seen such engagement with a charity that we’ve worked with from the student community, be that during our events, our sleep out or on our hitch hike to Croatia. Over the last five years or so the numbers of people sleeping rough on our streets has dramatically increased, presumably in part because of economic crisis and ever-increasing house prices. A major misconception with homelessness, however, is that the term solely refers to those sleeping on the streets. So often we ignore the people who sleep under a roof, but are sleeping on sofas or in emergency accommodation or are vulnerable in other senses. Spires works, on a small and achievable scale, to battle this. They provide their services to any homeless or vulnerable person who visits - from hot meals, to clothes, to showers. As well as providing support, Spires also acts as a referral charity, directing its service users to relevant agencies that help with specific issues, such as long term housing. During my previous visits to Spires, I have been nothing but impressed by the incredible work that Spires does. I hope that this year you get the chance to fundraise for them and see the work they do yourself ! Disagree with any of our writers’ analyses? Send in your own to features@thebeaveronline.co.uk or submit online!
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Departing Ian Pullout exacts his final revenge with ageing hex on Tom Maksymiw
HALLOWEEN SPECIAL
NONA THE VAMPIRE MEETS KEN LIVING-DEAD
The Opening Ceremony of the SAW Swee Hock building was ruined, as the ghost of Ken Living-dead’s political career rose from the grave to terrify LSE students.
SWEE HOCK OFFICIAL OPENING
In an event originally billed as ‘Tired left-wing dictator interviews Ken Livingstone’, Living-dead shocked students by arriving in a coffin painted with the words ‘RIP SOCIALISM’.
Mr Living-dead used the event to announce that he will run against Zombie Boris Johnson for the #London2030 Mayoralty (see last week, ed.). Host Nona the Vampire sang ‘He’s an old white man in a patriarchal world, Show us your privilege’ before yelling ‘HEY NONA!’ and flying off on her Seb Bruhnstick to stroke her black cat Tom Maksy-miaow.
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Name: Khawaja akbar Subject: Third-year law LSE, read the instructions with care Getting to the London School of Economics requires a certain level of intelligence, individuality and drive. However, the capabilities of individuals at the LSE are often tested only in the form of examinations. Except for certain Anthropology and some other rare modules, I have not come across any qualitative subject which is ultimately also assessed through summative coursework. Quite surprisingly, class participation in assessment is quite unheard off at a university that claims to be progressive and encouraging of debate. Ultimately, a student’s performance and degree classification is decided considering their ability to memorise and reproduce material when there is so much more that matters. This includes how consistently the student performed in class, the teacher’s reports and the coursework.
There are two solutions to this and they are not mutually exclusive. Either or both could be implemented by the School: 1) Please consider our coursework [30 marks] We spend hours, days and often weeks writing coursework. The tutor’s comments do help us gain a better understanding of the subject matter and our writing but these time-consuming essays
10 THINGS THAT EVERY FRESHER SHOULD KNOW
We are told that the coursework guides us to how we are expected to write in the exams. However, it is generally very dif-
ficult to reproduce the same level of argument in timed conditions. Although the importance of timed assessment cannot be denied, some people just need more time to think. While that can be classified as a drawback, it does not make them any less smart or less capable in the practical world which is ultimately what LSE trains us for. However, not being perfect at examinations prevents gaining a degree classification that truly represents an individual’s understanding, and knowledge of a subject.
1) You start out with a huge group of friends. You’re very excited taking down all their numbers and adding them on Facebook. Truth is, most of these will probably be reduced to an awkward hello on campus, if even that by the end of the year. By third year, you will cease to acknowledge each other’s presence. It could be very true that you haven’t even met your best friend yet, or that close group of people who will be in most of your pictures on Facebook. So hang in there! 2) Go hard or go home. This is the motto most first years tend to abide by. Yes, you should have a great time every time you go out. No, drinking body mass in alcohol will not make you the coolest kid. You don’t want to be the one passed out in the corner somewhere or puking your way to sanity again while strangers who you met just two weeks ago hold your hair back. 3) Careers fair!! Stop for just a minute before taking out your suit and hitting the next internship fair. Yes, you need to worry about your career and your future but that doesn’t mean you immerse yourself in worrying about getting that spring internship the hour after you move into halls. Your next three years in LSE will pretty much be about this and the stress just keeps building up by the year. Take some time to settle into university life first. Internship fairs and careers events, dare I say, can wait.
by Maria Chawla
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at s E m a LS x E
seem to have no value otherwise. I usually get more attached to and identify with what I write in the essays in Michaelmas and Lent as compared to the answers that I give in a hurry in the Summer exam. This coursework needs to be considered and not trivialised in the way that it is currently is by the School. Moreover, anyone can have a bad day. You can fall ill, suddenly get dumped or something terribly awful can happen at home. Unfortunately, if this day is your examination day, then you are quite doomed. Again, this prevents the grade ultimately awarded based on an examination from representing the true potential of an individual in a certain module. For example, having taken my 2nd year exams whilst encountering a spell of ill-health, my degree classification could have possibly changed if my course work was even considered as 30 per cent of each module. Although I find it really difficult to praise King College for obvious reasons, a 2500
4) Try out new things! LSE offers so many extra-curricular activities. Be it a sport that you like or a new hobby you want to take up. Maybe diversify your memberships to make them less LSESU Business Society et all and more LSE Hummus Society, Literature Society, maybe some swing dancing? 5) If you’re doing a finance course and want to go into the banking sector, big whoop for you! You may skip this point. For those of you pursuing a degree in the social sciences, get ready to really enjoy your course! All those people who scrunch their noses at you for taking up Social Anthropology will come crying to you when they start seeing their courses as a one-way ticket to bored-to-death shire. Meanwhile, you’ll be studying gender roles, dynamics of society and if you’re lucky enough, cattle marriages in the Nuer. 6) Getting a place in the LSE Library during exam time will become your utopian fantasy. You will need to start studying at odd hours, make the library your permanent residence or make a few mortal enemies fighting over booked seats. You could head up to the fifth floor, if you’re OK with getting the irksome feeling of constantly being watched. 7) Expect rain at ALL times. If you’re an international student, you are unaware of the moody weather of this great city. Carry an umbrella with you at all times to avoid catching a flu/ leaving a water trail when entering a class.
word coursework determines 30 per cent of the final grade awarded in each module in the Law department. This means that their students are assessed through a broader means. A bad day or timed-condition nervousness does not determine the fate of the Law student there. 2) Please return our exam papers after you mark them. We want to know why! [70 marks] While we improve on the deficiencies in our formative essays pointed out by our tutors, we often have no idea how to get better at taking exams. One possible means of achieving this would be getting back our exam papers. We often do not know where we go wrong when the clock is ticking and what mistakes we make. Not only does receiving a marked paper reassure us of why we got the mark we did (whether good or bad), but it also assists in determining the flaws in our essays so that one can work on them and not make the same mistakes next time.
8) Your friends will become your family. They will always be there for you and provide the same level of comfort. Let yourself be vulnerable to them! You won’t regret it. 9) In these three years, all of us do more growing up that we have done in the last 18 years of our life. If you make mistakes or encounter failure, just pick yourself up and try again. Step out of your comfort zone and set high targets. Don’t underestimate your abilities. This is the time to figure out what drives you, what you’re passionate about and the kind of person you want to be. Don’t be afraid to defy boundaries! 10) Before you know it, you’ll be acting like an oh so wise third year (umm sorry?) ready to take on the next step of your life. You’ll still vividly remember your first day at university and will be quickly moving towards the last. These three years fly by in the blink of an eye so cherish every minute of it! Disclaimer: I am not a happy person. These are just my clever musings. Sorry if I sound like an LSE promotion leaflet…. aah well. Back to my reading.
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Tuesday October 28, 2014
Society Listings LSESU ENACTUS SOCIETY Facebook: LSESU Enactus We’d like to raise awareness about Enactus amongst LSE students and the opportunities that we can provide, be it in developing their existing enterprises, learning more about social entrepreneurship or gaining transferable skills that will definitely become a great asset regardless of the career path they choose to take. Enactus is a student led international organisation that connects student, academic and business leaders through entrepreneurialbased projects that empower people to transform opportunities into real, sustainable progress for themselves and their communities. Below is a brief description of the social projects LSESU Enactus are running this year: Creative Cycle: a project which provides vulnerable women in London with the technical and entrepreneurial skills to expand their businesses onto the online market. Pathways: a student mentoring scheme designed to raise aspirations of young people in deprived areas. Gates to Knowledge: a project aiming to allow a secular school for underprivileged minority children in New Delhi to become financially sustainable. Your Project: In addition, we are also sourcing for new project ideas and we are planning to start 2-3 new projects this year. We also have plans to expand our commercial arm (essentially for-profit projects) in order to improve our financial sustainability and provide funding to enable our social projects to continue. Contact: wangy117@lse.ac.uk What Enactus can do for you: Enactus isn’t just about volunteering. It’s about volunteering with an entrepreneurial approach. At Enactus you get to create your own entrepreneurial projects with a social dimension to help those who are socially disadvantaged. You will actively be able to participate in either an existing project or your own project to make a positive impact on someone’s life. But Enactus isn’t only about you giving to society: by undertaking our projects you are also developing yourself and gaining a wider perspective on the world and society we all live in. When you join Enactus you will be joining a global network of over 57,000 students worldwide with business advisors including JP Morgan, HSBC, Slaughter and May, Clifford Chance, Accenture, EY and many more.
LSESU CYCLING CLUB The Cycling Club will be holding a casual ride on Sunday 2nd November to Abbey Road - meeting on the Old Building steps at 2.45pm to leave at 3pm. People just need to bring helmets and money for a Boris Bike (£3) and refreshments at the cafe stop (£4). It’s a relaxed 30 minute ride each way with people of all abilities welcome. The casual rides are an introduction to cycling in London.
LSESU LGBT+ ALLIANCE Wednesday 29th October: 3-4pm Asexual Round Table Discussion, Joint event with LSESU Feminist Society Fleet River Bakery Wednesday 29th October: LGBT+ Black History Month Houghton Street 11am-3pm, Social at Black Cap 9pm
LSESU WOMEN IN BUSINESS SOCIETY: CMB Image Workshop: “Branding – it’s personal” Thursday 30th October, 18:00 - 20:00, STC.S75 Sign up here : http://goo.gl/vHqwQt This workshop, the first of a series of four workshops, will be conducted by Mandy Lehto, an Executive Coach and a Corporate Image Consultant. It will be covering points like ‘why is branding important’, ‘first impressions - how they happen and how we can influence them’, and ‘how do I define my brand’?
LSESU RAISING AND GIVING (RAG): RAG Gets LOST Info Session Tuesday 28th October, 6pm, CLM.1.01
Enactus has a place for you!
LSESU UKRAINE SOCIETY: “The LSESU Ukrainian Society is proud to invite all members of LSE to our unique lecture with Svyatoslav Vakarchuk on the ‘Ukrainian Crisis and its Future’, which will take place on Monday, 17th November from 19:00-21:00 in Clement House (CLM 2.02). Svyatoslav Vakarchuk is an outstanding singer and a leader of Okea Elzy which is arguably the most successful rock band in all post-Soviet nations. Mr Vakarchuk actively supported the ‘Orange Revolution’ in 2004 and was a Member of the Ukrainian Parliament from 2007-2008. He has taken part in various social and cultural projects as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for the Ukraine. Since 2013, he has been one of the leading activists of the Euromaidan, and one of the main supporters of the Ukrainian sovereignty and independence. According to correspondents, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk was voted one of the most influential figures in Ukraine. Having such a broad background Mr Vakarchuk would greatly contribute to our understanding of the causes, implications and solutions to this appalling issue of the Ukranian Crisis, which has recently seen plenty of publicity from all around the world. Bearing that in mind, we hope that Society members and all people concerned about current affairs in Ukraine will highly benefit
from attending this lecture, as they will gain an invaluable insight from a man who has witnessed the catastrophe from the beginning.
Sport
Tuesday October 28, 2014
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Elite Athletes Visit LSE for Student Centre Opening
Lord Holmes, Paralympic Gold Medallist and Conservative Party Peer in the House of Lords Robin Park Sport Editor RP: How did you first get into swimming? CH: My mum taught me when I was two, so I got into it at a very early age. I joined the local swimming club when I was five and just about from there really.
CH: Yeah I did a lot sports. Played rugby, I was number 8 for my school, and also cricket, so I was very involved in a lot of things. Just loved all sports really. RP: How did you first get involved in the Paralympics? CH: I first swam for my local club and then competed in the county championship, so I was a county
and my senior tutor were very supportive and they were definitely part of the team. I couldn’t have achieved what I did without their support. They were especially good in understanding my plans for the future, and they were really good in supporting my professional ambitions.
RP: How much time did you spend on training?
RP: Financial assistance for high performance sport is often a controversial topic. Do you think universities should be more involved in supporting high performance sport and elite athletes, or should they take a more detached approach and let external organizations take charge?
CH: Around 4 hours a day in the pool. The alarm clock would go off at 4:40 in the morning and I would get to the pool and train for 2 hours. After school, I would do 8000m sessions, and on top of that I would spend a few hours in the gym as well. RP: Did you receive any support from your university regarding your swimming career? CH: They were really good. The Director of Studies at Cambridge
CH: I think it should be a partnership exercise between all the outside agencies and the university. You really want universities to back elite sport and to support talented athletes. You really want to see it being championed by everyone at the university, because
it’s not just good for sport, it’s also good for the university’s reputation, and it’s also good for the students. You see it in Cambridge, where they’ve always been behind rugby, cricket and rowing, but now they’re really getting behind the full range of sports, which you also see in Bath and Loughborough. I think all good universities should champion sport. It’s not for everybody and it’s not for everybody to be part of elite level sport. However participation, alongside studies, make for better exam results and better people, so when graduates leave employers know that they’ve got students who’ve done something alongside their studies.
CH: I did a fair amount of journalism and I was writing for the Telegraph and the Observer, and also some work for BBC Radio. I then thought about how to move on to the next chapter of my career and I figured commercial law would be a good way of using a lot of the lessons I learned, from both swimming and also from my time at university, in a work context.
Photo Credit: Flickr: John Curnow
RP: Did you play any other sports?
swimmer. Then when I was 14 I lost my sight, so I had to plan out everything on how to move forward and achieve what I wanted to. I qualified for the Junior World Championships in Moscow when I was 15 and the following year was the Paralympics trial for Seoul 1988, which I qualified for.
RP: You mentioned employers and you actually worked for a commercial law firm. What made you consider commercial law as a career option after swimming?
Zoe Smith, Commonwealth Gold Medallist and member of Team GB at the 2012 Olympics Kazakhstan. I do 5 days a week of training and before big events especially I would spend a couple of those days in Loughborough. Practice just involves standard snatch, clean and jerk, and going to the gym. RP: Do you have any particular routine you go through before competitions?
Photo Credit: Liam Hill
RP: What sports did you play when you were young?
RP: How did you get involved in weightlifting?
ZS: My mum taught me swimming when I was really, really tiny, and I also did a bit of dance, tap and modern. I suppose my first ‘proper’ sport was gymnastics, which I started at a very young age but I wasn’t particularly good. I must admit I was always a bit scared, which is actually quite logical. Throwing yourself backwards in a somersault on a piece of wood that’s about 6 inches wide isn’t really sensible for anyone!
ZS: So I just found a natural affinity for lifting weights basically. I found I could pick up the techniques really quickly, so I was pretty good at it within a few weeks of practising and I really enjoyed it, which is why I decided to pursue it as a full-time career. RP: What does training involve? ZS: Currently I’m training for the World Championships in
ZS: I listen to Blink-182 before lifts, which has been going on since I was about 12. I also spend a lot of time in the sauna the night before competitions, because I actually struggle to make weight a lot of the time. RP: How do you cope with injuries? ZS: Quite badly! I was injured for most of last year and I found it quite hard to come back. Having a good strength and conditioning coach helped me a lot. Having an end goal is also good. Working towards an end goal helped me keep on track, because I wouldn’t lose sight of it. RP: What’s been the high-
light of your career so far? ZS: There are so many, but the Olympics come to mind. I grew up in South-East London so I could more or less get the DLR. Not many athletes get to go to a home Olympics and even then not many get to go to an Olympics close to where you grew up. And of course the Commonwealth Games this year and the gold medal. RP: What sort of financial assistance do you receive from organizations? ZS: So we’re funded by UK Sport, but it covers mostly sporting costs and doesn’t cover any living costs. RP: Do you think there should be more financial support for high performance athletes? ZS: It’s a difficult one. Some sports are more favoured but it makes complete sense. Cycling for example is funded to produce full-time athletes and they go to a lot of competitions and bring back
loads of medals. UK Sport sees this and it gives them confidence to fund a successful programme. The thing with weightlifting is that there isn’t a massive worldwide profile as such, so we might pick up a European medal here and there, but for UK Sport that’s not a priority. What they’re really interested in is the Olympics and we don’t medal there very often, so UK Sport doesn’t have as much confidence to fund a programme. On the flipside, you need funding to produce full-time athletes. So I can see it from both sides. RP: What are your plans for the immediate future? ZS: So there’s obviously Kazakhstan in mid November and then there’s also the European Junior Championships in Cyprus. This is the final year I’ll be able to compete as a junior so hopefully I’ll be able to bring home some shiny medals. Lord Holmes and Zoe Smith were visiting LSE for the Grand Opening of the Saw Swee Hock Student Centre.
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Sport
Tuesday October 28, 2014
Oscar Pistorius: A Legal Injustice? Rohan Soni Technology Editor
“Traditionally, racial prejudice, classism and injustice have been rife within South African courts. circumstances in the matter, I am of the view that a non-custodial sentence would send the wrong message to the community.” Despite this, public responses have been overwhelmingly negative, suggesting the sentence is far too favourable, and the charge of ‘Culpable Homicide’ deserves a much more stringent custodial element. The justification for not issuing a long prison sentence was
Pistorius judgement renews worry that these beliefs may in face be inherent in the legal system. So, was this particular decision fair? The judiciary attempts to strike a balance between justified punishment to provide a deterrent effect and fairness to prevent unjustified punishment and wasting public resources. However, the response to the Pistorius trial, from
Photo Credit: Flickr: Lwp Kommunikáció
THIS WEEK, THE PRETORIA court trialling Oscar Pistorius for the death of Reeva Steenkamp revealed their sentence. Judge Thokozile Masipa sentenced Pistorius to 5-years, however it is likely the former Olympian and Paralympian will only serve around 10 months of the sentence in prison, before being moved back home and placed under house arrest. The Judge said in her ruling, “Having regard to the
to influence an element of mercy, since the culpability part of the charge essentially downgrades the charge from a murder sentence (which would have a mandatory life sentence). A significant proportion of public criticism has followed, shifting the focus of media coverage about Pistorius instead to Reeva Steenkamp, the victim in this case. The following is a quote from one of Reeva’s childhood friends: “Nothing is going to bring her back. Nothing will ever feel just… But everybody has done their best. I want people to always remember what she stood for… To remember Reeva. She was an extraordinary human being. That’s what’s important. I really don’t think that any of us will heal any time soon… but it’s one step closer.” Questions have been extrapolated from the judgement regarding the impartiality and objectivity of the South African legal system. Traditionally, racial prejudice, classism and injustice have been rife within South African courts. It is hoped that this trend has disappeared into irrelevance and ignorance; however, the
The reaction seems to indicate the sentence is too light and does not adequately correlate to the harm caused by Pistorius. public response, media coverage and emotive reaction all seem to indicate the sentence is too light and does not adequately correlate to the harm caused by Pistorius taking away the life of an innocent woman resulting from the four bullets fired in the middle of the night on that fateful Valentine’s Day. The legal system in South Africa, although attempting to be rational, must learn the gravity upon a victim, and the charge of culpable homicide should not be taken with such credence to the element of mercy to the defendant.
Fantasy Football Update Join online: 1923555-432233 HABIB RAHMAN continues to lead the way in The Beaver Sports League, as his ‘Black Hand Gang’ topped the overall and October league tables. Renowned Arse Harry Philpot had a good month as he came second for October, although he still languishes 19th in the overall table. His meteoric rise up the October standings was secured in Fergietime, as
his (not at all biased) decision to reward Alexis Sanchez with the captaincy reaped a 32 point dividend after the Chilean tore through the porous sponge that is Sunderland’s defence at the weekend. Executive editor Jon Allsop tops the editorial charts, meanwhile, whilst league founder Gareth Rosser languishes in last place. Maybe time to get rid of Marouane Chamakh?
October Team of the Month Habib Rahman, Black Hand Gang 186 points
Sport
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Editor: Robin Park Email: sports@thebeaveronline.co.uk
Historic Victory for Netball Sixths
Saran Richards Sixths Captain FOR THE FIRST TIME IN over a year, LSE’s Sixth netball team won a match. And it was glorious. Having finally been placed in an appropriate league, the girls blossomed. Playing their first match this term against Heythrop College Firsts, the team won 14-4. Equipped with a mixture of first, second and third years and a brand new ball, the sixth team was excited to challenge Heythrop to their first game with a slight prospect of victory. At first, it appeared unlikely that the match would even go ahead due to a no show from the opposition. However, half an hour later, seven girls appeared at Berrylands ready to challenge the LSE Sixth team. The girls’ excitement faded as they realised that each of these seven girls were substantially taller than all of them and the possibility of a win seemed almost as far away as it had done the previous year. Within a few seconds of the
By Ollie Subheader (Additional rumour-mongering by Marry Haxwell) INGRID BERGMAN ONCE wrote, “A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech
first whistle, faith was restored as LSE scored the first goal. As the first quarter drew to an end, LSE Sixth team had won their very first quarter of a match. It would have been easy to let this minor victory to go their heads and lose sight of the bigger picture. However, the girls, though inexperienced in winning, were inspired by their lead and channeled it into proceeding in the same, victorious manner for the remainder of the match. The star of the match was unsurprisingly the talented Amy Bremner. Scoring well over half the goals and displaying sheer determination in motivating the other team members, Amy proved vital in the win. Abbie True also contributed to the team’s goalscoring in her very first match for the team. For one member of the team it was a first ever attempt at a netball match. Despite her lack of experience, Wing Attack Salina Tang was key in the team’s win as she developed her netball skills at an incredible pace during that hour. Lowri Williams demonstrated her versatility in her ability to
play both Wing Attack and Wing Defence at a very high standard as she ensured that she was always available to direct the ball in a favourble direction for her team. First year Molly Farrance also made her debut and impressed everyone with her stamina and determination as she shared the role of Center with the sixth team’s veteran, Miriam Cable. Miriam, as always, dominated the court as she directed the players in an orderly manner and constantly reminded them to use short passes in order to downplay the opposition’s height advantage. Sara Watkins took full advantage of her height whilst playing Goal Defence as she competed with the opposition’s Goal Attack and made their attempts at shooting anything but easy. Also defending for the team, Martha Averley was nothing short of brutal in this match. As Goal Keeper, she rarely ever let a ball come near her part of the court without making sure it was subtly hit out of the opposition’s hands. Another veteran, Joanne Bywater, once again demonstrated her capabilities and experience in
when words become superfluous. Or when there is a shit song in Zoo Bar”. Like this quote, most other beautiful words are synonymous with that romantic Leicester Square establishment; and love is abundant. Lol. The Tuns, however, was especially empty this week, with most clubs holding team dinners at Brick Lane or doing initiations (I sincerely hope nobody was coerced into downing a pint). There were only a few nonAU members cluttering up the space in the venue. Zoo Bar, nonetheless, was as packed and disgusting as ever. One NOT Rugby player may have taken the Brick Lane theme a bit far. At the time of print we are unaware of whether or not
they took a trip up the Ganges. A particularly Cunning hockey player managed to find love after claiming he could pull Amything he wanted. The Beaver’s very own most self-gratifying, self-adoring, egotistical nobody got with a girl. In case you need more of a clue to who that is, he was on a TV show 5 years ago, he writes his own Wikipedia page (sad), and his name rhymes with Twatwell. Living up to that name, he continued his night by objectifying the Women’s Officer. Way to go, mate. The Bain of the FC returned choosing just one of her conquests from last week this time. We’re not sure why, maybe she’s just getting Colder.
quickly analysing the opposition and assisting her team in keeping possession of the ball. As the final whistle blew, the girls could not quite believe that they had actually just won their first ever netball match. This dis-
The man from hockey with that face you just want to punch avoided any confrontation by getting his Cap On and hiding it. The former News of the World editor was spotted on the dance floor in the company of a Fresher. Although she claims that she did not get with him, did not wake up with him in Rosebery, and most certainly did not look at his text messages. Finally, the Bev Report can neither confirm nor deny the rumours that I am Ollie Subheader. Despite being omnipotent and benevolent, the Bev Report lacks omniscience. Send in the escapades you witnessed to sports@thebeaveronline.co.uk
belief required a sit down, and a celebratory drink at the Berrylands pub. This victory will certainly motivate the team to ensure that this momentous, joyous, wonderful occasion will not be the only one of its kind.