College Tribune, Issue 3, Volume XXV

COLLEGE TRIBUNE CELEBRATING 25 VOLUMES

Volume XXV 11th October 2011

Issue 3

INDEPENDENT STUDENT MEDIA SINCE 1989

collegetribune.ie

Trailer Park Boys

Presidential Focus

We talk to Daniel James

talks to

Page 7

Page 19

Higgins tops national student poll University Students’ Intention to vote

DON’T KNOW

74%

NO

22%

YES

4%

Peter Sutherland, non-executive chairman of Goldman Sachs, with Francis McNamara, Law Soc auditor. Sutherland, who has donated €4 million to the building of a new Law school on campus, became a Vice President of Law Soc last Thursday

DONIE O’SULLIVAN - 1,962 students surveyed across Ireland

- Norris loses out to Higgins in Trinity

- Higgins, Norris, Gallagher make top three

- 603 students surveyed in UCD, 2 will vote Dana

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ichael D. Higgins is the most popular Presidential candidate amongst university students a national student poll, coordinated by the College Tribune, has revealed.

34% of university students who intend on voting in the election say they will

give their first preference to Higgins. Norris is second in the national poll on 25%, Gallagher on 17% and McGuinness on 12%.

Davis, Mitchell and Dana performed poorly with 6%, 4% and 2% respectively.

Continued on page 8

Low turnout as reps elected SHANE SCOTT Class rep elections were held throughout campus on October 4th and 5th with positions for student council up for grabs. Despite a record amount of nominations, 65 constituencies remained vacant at the time of going to press, with a further 25 representatives unopposed in election.

In addition to the vacan-

cies, turnout for the election remained low overall, with candidates elected on the strength of a small fraction of their class.

When Campaigns and Communications Officer Brendan Lacey was asked if the Students’ Union had made enough effort to inform students of the elections, he replied, “I think we have made a huge effort to get the word out there… We have taken a page out in the Observer,

sent a text out to prospective candidates, and the information was on all forms which people had to take to be nominated.”

The efforts of the Student’s Union, while significant, rely on the competency of the prospective candidates to get the word out to the students they hope to represent. There have been very few direct attempts from the Students’ Union to inform students about the processes

of the election.

While this year has been among the best in voter turnout in recent years, and Lacey is “delighted”, relative to the size of the constituencies, voter turnout is still very poor. This was demonstrated in a successful candidate’s victory Facebook status: “thanks to those 10 other people who voted for me.”

Continued on page 4

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2

NEWS

News in Brief PETER HAMILTON FINAL CAFÉS TO OPEN Michael Gleeson of Kylemore services group has told the College Tribune that Pulse Café in the Health Sciences Building will open on Wednesday October 12th . Readers Café, which will replace Nine-One-One in the Library building, is due to open in the last week of October. The delay in the opening of the cafés was caused by a legal challenge that was pursued by a previous proprietor of one of the cafés that has recently been taken over

by Kylemore. Kylemore are promising “exciting new food and beverage concepts” which will be introduced across the campus with the opening of the two new cafés.

news@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

The Paradox of Choice To kill an unborn It seems a little churlish to ties of scheduling high profile complain that the L&H and guests and that considering child?

LawSoc committees have engaged too many guests. At least these ones turned up.

The potential for embarrassment certainly seems to have reduced, replaced only by an embarrassment of riches from UCD’s two largest societies.

As students, we can only hope that the bonanza week that saw Law Society host Bobby Kerr, Shay Cullen and Peter Sutherland and the resurgent L&H welcome Republican Representitive Phil Jenson and Lord David Owen is not a once off.

High-quality choice is obviously welcome, front-loading schedules to appeal to Freshers is less so.

While engaging guests with the pedegree of Lord Owen is an exemplary achievement, the timetabling clash with Dragon’s Den star Bobby Kerr’s address to the Law Society has surely diminished the impact of one of the finest lectures the L&H has delivered over the last few years.

Auditor Christine Simpson has pointed out the difficul-

their competitors’ line upfor it seem this year the two are genuinely competing for the same audience- comes a distant second.

Simpson has argued that a small group of genuinely interested attendees produce better questions but aside from elitist sentiments this skates over the issue that those people would have turned up anyway. Kosovo and meetings with Tony Blair would have been touched on regardless of the size of audience.

While the busy lives of the rich and famous obviously dictate the activities of mere student organisations, better communication between the societies council would hopefully lead to a more streamlined student calendar.

With further potentially excellent talks to come in the next fortnight, LawSoc and L&H must be commended for their hard work so far. It can only be for the benefit of UCD students if their performance is maintained.

PETER HAMILTON

mitted to seeing out the current recession.

In 2003 Insomnia opened in The Quinn School and 2004 saw Insomnia opening in Conway. This year however Kerr’s business in UCD came to an abrupt end when the tendering process ended in the transfer of both his oncampus outlets to Kylemore services group. Kerr claims that he “didn’t want to have a public row” and thus didn’t pursue legal action against Kylemore.

As the tender process in UCD was ending, Kerr was opening another deal with Eason’s bookshop and the entrepreneur stated that “the loss in UCD will be supplemented by our deal with Eason’s.” The Insomnia outlets in Eason are gradually being rolled out across the country.

Kerr also expressed his grievances with the tender process and claimed, “the biggest stakeholder, the students, weren’t represented.”

Kerr claimed to know little about the tender process however he stated, “now Kylemore are running the businesses and there is a situation where there is one operator on campus. I don’t think that’s good for the consumer it’s probably good for Kylemore, but not for anybody else.”

ROBERT NIELSEN

A

bortion is probably the most controversial issue in Ireland.

Debates are generally heated, passionate, dramatic and often sensational. In this context, the L&H’s debate on Wednesday the 5th, on the motion of “This House Believes It Is Right to Kill an Unborn Child” was something of a damp squib.

The proposition made repeated use of the ‘kidney metaphor’. This is that if someone will die if they do not receive a transplant it would be nice if you gave them your kidney but you have no responsibility to do so. Likewise it would be good

of you to help starving African children but you have no moral obligation to do so.

Similarly, you have no moral obligation to carry a foetus in your womb.

The opposition based their arguments on emotional appeals to the house’s sense of morality. They argued that there is no difference between a foetus and a living child, so the prochoice arguments could be used to justify killing children. Their arguments did stray into the sensationalist however, such as when Liam Gibson from the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child, casually linked the pro-choice side with Nazi war criminals and said they had the same views as the

current Tánaiste. Will Courtney continued the theme by graphically described the “dismemberment” piece by piece of a “child”, in “human abattoirs”. He claimed that the legalisation of abortion in America had led to “50 million dead babies” and began clicking his fingers, each click representing an abortion.

The Q&A that followed soon descended into complex philosophical technicalities on morality and the value of life. There was a lot of confusion and little insight.

The brief exception was one man who pointed out that the debate was irrelevant because women could have abortions in the UK regardless of whether it was legal in Ireland.

See this debate in full on the L&H Facebook page.

Dragon draws crowds UCD GIVES BLOOD The Irish Blood Transfusion Service was outside the UCD student centre last week between Tuesday October 4th and Friday October 7th. Their campaign to donate blood targeted students who were on breaks from lectures. For those who missed the clinic in UCD it is possible to check your eligibility on www. giveblood.ie. There is also a permanent clinic in D’Olier street and in Stillorgan for anyone wishing to give blood. In 2010 there were 93,556 donations to the Irish blood transfusion service and this figure is down from 2009.

B

obby Kerr, CEO of Insomnia coffee company and panelist on RTE’s Dragons Den, received an honorary conferral from Lawsoc on Tuesday October 4th. Giving a speech on the grounds of UCD, where the entrepreneur’s chain had until recently held a major presence, Kerr’s speech had local interest.

Kerr began his talk with references to his extensive experience in business. He began his career by working in his father’s hotel in Kilkenny before going to DIT to study Catering management.

Kerr worked in The Peppermint restaurant in Dublin and subsequently moved to Canada to work in Stadia where he was in management.

When he returned to Ireland he managed Bewleys Café chain and then he opened his own café chain.

After a period of un-successful trading and subsequently a thriving business, Kerr merged with his competitor Insomnia, and from then on he became the CEO of Insomnia coffee company. Kerr now believes that “value is the only show in town” and with over 60 Insomnia outlets countrywide he is com-

Bobby Kerr’s top ten tips for success.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Forget begrudgers, don’t listen to Joe Duffy.

Enjoy what you do.

Be thankful for your health and your family.

Search for value, there is massive value to be found.

Surround yourself in positivity.

6.

7.

Set goals for yourself.

Keep your integrity, if you mess up you will pay the price.

8. Don’t be afraid to modify your plan in life.

9. Network, you can learn from others.

10. Stay in the ring, because it get’s better.

Curse of hubris ROBERT NIELSEN MATTHEW COSTELLO

L

ord Owen delivered a fascinating lecture on Tuesday night with the air of a grand British statesman, which he is. Opening with a long and rambling discussion of James Joyce that led him through Greek mythology and the psychoanalysis of Freud gave way to a reminder that he was once at the centre of British politics with stories of meetings with Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair. He talked with ease and in detail about such issues as the Balkans, Iraq, Afghanistan, EU, the role of the cabinet and the civil service in a modern democracy.

The theme of the lecture

was the Hubris syndrome; a theory developed by Owen himself that, once in power, hubris sets in and “messianic” arrogance and self-confidence sets in. Some symptoms of the syndrome are seeing the world as a place for self-glorification, tendency to conflate self and nation, excessive self-confidence, contempt for others, lack of reality and practicality, a belief that they are only accountable to God or history and that future generations will vindicate them.

Owen’s medical background and scientific bent are evident throughout the address, and it is clear that this approach has informed many aspects of his career beyond the development of Hubris syndrome. The calm,

calculated manner in which the former Foreign Secretary assessed his rapt audience’s questions gave the impression of a man never flustered even under the greatest of stress.

The calmness with which he talked of holding the power of life and death seemed to astound his audience, as did the sheer breadth of the speaker’s influence. A well informed Q&A session, mostly unrelated to the topic at hand, threatened to overshadow the main speech but the few who attended enjoyed possibly the best guest UCD has seen since Jesse Jackson.

Lord Owen has written a book on the subject called The Hubris Syndrome: Bush, Blair and the Intoxication of Power

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NEWS

news@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

UCD slides in THE rankings CONOR FOX

CONOR MCKENNA

U

niversity College Dublin and Trinity College have both fallen out of the top 100 of a prestigious international league table. In the recently published Times Higher Education (THE) World University rankings, UCD fell from 94 to 159 while Trinity College dropped forty one places, from 76 to 117.

The Rankings are developed with data provider Thomson Reuters and input received from over fifty leading figures in the sector from fifteen countries across each continent. The Times Higher Education website states that it “believes [they] have created the gold standard in international university performance comparison”.

In 2010, UCD received an overall score of 57.5% which fell this year to 45.9%. Similarly, Trinity College dropped 9.2% from 60.3% to 51.1%.

Performance indicators are grouped into five areas.

UCD’s rating under ‘Teaching’ has collapsed from 42.4% to 25.2%, compared to Trinity College’s 51.1%.

This category examines the

Chemical apparatus found in UCD lake

A

UCD president Hugh Brady with Taoiseach Enda Kenny opening the new science centre last month perceived prestige of institutions among academics.

The category of ‘International Outlook’ examines the diversity on the campuses of institutions and how often university academics collaborate with international colleagues on research projects.

UCD was given a high rating of 83.2% in this category; however, it was a drop of 3.8% from the previous year.

Trinity College was given a higher ranking of this year of 89.4% as opposed to 84.2% in 2010.

UCD’s lowest rating came under the heading of ‘Research’ with a rating of 23.7% as opposed to 36.6% in 2010.

Again, the institution’s reputation amongst its peers is looked at, the focus being on a reputation for research excellence. The THE website recognises that this can be influenced by economic circumstances and national policy but defends the measure as ‘research income is crucial to the development of world class research’. The

number of objects containing chemicals have been found floating in the UCD lake.

The discovery was made by the College Tribune at the lakeside in UCD on Saturday 8th October. The equipment included a number of plastic measurement tubes containing a clear liquid. Odourless and of water-like viscosity, the liquid within these tubes could easily be mistaken for water. Smaller tubes, also found in the lake, contained a blue liquid.

The origin of these tubes remains a mystery.

“I am not aware of any ongoing experimentation in the lake,” Pat de Brún, UCDSU President, stated, “The SU wouldn’t consider this particularly serious as students are not permitted into the lake regardless.

However if the nature of the experimentation is in any way a safety risk, we would be very concerned.”

UCD were unavailable for comment at the time of publication.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the College Tribune

category also considers the research productivity of institutions.

For the first time, Times Higher Education World University Rankings reveal the ‘Best of the Rest’ – the two hundred instructions which fall outside the official top two hundred. This reveals University College Cork sits between 300 and 350.

NUI Galway and NUI Maynooth are both ranked between 351 and 400. No other Irish institutions are ranked.

UCD kicks off Mental Health tour MATTHEW FARRELLY

U

CD yesterday hosted Republic of Loose to help raise awareness for World Mental Health Day. The event, held in the student bar, kicked off the First Fortnight “Student Tour”, a project that has set itself the challenge of fighting mental health prejudice and discrimination in Ireland through the arts.

The bands were preceded by a viewing of a special edit of ‘I See a Darkness’ – an RTE documentary featuring Caroline McGuigan, CEO of SOS(Suicide or Survive), for students. This was followed by a discussion about how to remove the stigma associated with mental health.

The three day tour, which started at UCD yesterday continues today at GalwayMayo IT and finishes on Wednesday at Waterford IT, is being led through a collaboration of First Fortnight and SOS and See Change.

The main goal of the arts based mental health project, this year, according to First Fortnight was “to reduce stigma in mental health in Ireland.”

J.P Swaine, a founder of

First Fortnight back in 2009, said on a special Welfare show on Belfield FM that the idea was “aimed at bringing a serious topic to colleges in a good environment.”

He stressed the importance of raising awareness

Ms McGuigan also announced that they will be running a ‘Wellness Workshop’ for the college in the coming weeks. These workshops, she said will focus on helping “to educate and empower people - to put them

by the World Federation for Mental Health as a day for global mental health education, awareness and advocacy.

Mental Health Ireland, with the current economic climate is running two na-

Low turnout as reps elected Continued from page 1

and breaking down the stigma associated with mental health which “is a huge problem” that exists in Ireland where 1 in 4 people over their lifetime will experience a mental health problem.

in a position to be able to provide support to anyone who feels that they are struggling.”

The 10th of October since 1992 has been marked as World Mental Health Day

tional campaigns for the rest of the week, Building Resilience Together Project which was launched in 2010 and the National Choral Singing Week.

The Students’ Union’s push for getting people out to run for class rep however, has proved a success. “There have been more nominations in than in any time in recent memory”, Lacey declared.

The SU’s video on running for class rep has over three thousand hits on YouTube.

Second year arts student Sarah O’Brien suggested, “The same video for voting in the Students’ Council would have been useful”.

The vast majority of stage one courses have seats contested by at least two candidates, with the notable exception of Classics, Archaeology, and Art History. No candidate has come forward to fill this seat and so it will remain vacant until a student calls for a by-election to fill the seat.

Any students who are interested in calling a by-election

for a vacant seat in their constituency can obtain an application form from the union website and the SU promise that “they will be actively recruiting reps for the vacant seats”.

There is also a large divergence in the breadth of certain constituencies. While each individual school of Arts elects at least one representative, Science is treated as an omnibus constituency electing five seats. This year, in stage one alone; twenty eight candidates have been nominated.

On the other end of the spectrum, the majority of Masters and PhD programmes across the University have vacant class rep seats. Either a student will come forward at a later date to call a byelection to fill the seat, or the seat(s) will remain vacant for the year and the class will not be represented at the Student Council meeting.

news@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

NEWS IN FOCUS

One for the Road?

TIMOTHY POTENZ

- Alcohol limit to be halved - “Alco-locks” to prevent drunk drivers starting the ignition

T

he blood alcohol limit for drivers is to be cut nearly in half by the end of this month.

Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar has said he hopes for the new limit to be in place by the Bank Holiday weekend, if he can get the legislation passed quickly.

They are part of a wide range of road safety initiatives that may come into effect in the next year.

The new laws would see the alcohol limit to be lowered from 0.08% to 0.05%.

For drivers on a provisional licence the limit would be lowered to 0.02%. This would effectively mean a zero tolerance policy. If you drank at all you would not be able to drive.

“Sure people would do it anyway,” says one unnamed 3rd year student of Commerce. “They break the law now and they’ll break it later.”

This might not be the case. A European Parliament report issued last week is seeking the mandatory introduction of “alco-locks” into every car in Europe. The alco-lock is a breathalyser that the driver would have to blow into before starting the ignition. If they are over the limit the car would not start.

The report goes on to recommend the introduction

of a ban on in-car texting and internet browsing. Cars would be fitted with an “ecall” device which would notify authorities if a car went off the road and came to a sudden halt. The initiatives aim to cut EU road deaths in half, to about 17,500, by 2020.

The new legislation has been met with some resistance. The road safety group PARC have expressed anger at the fact that drivers found to have between 0.05% and 0.08% will not lose their li-

cence but instead be fined €200 and receive three penalty points. PARC’s spokesperson, Ann Fogarty, has described the new proposals as “disgraceful,” saying that anyone found over the limit should be banned from driving.

The introduction of alcolocks would do more than just stop students from driving to and from a night out.

It would prevent those hungover the next morning from driving to university or going home on the weekend.

A nationwide poll conducted in August of this year showed that over a quarter of 17-24 year olds have been in a car with a driver they believe was over the limit. 1 in 10 have been in a car with a driver they suspected was on drugs. 45% have driven while hungover.

This reporter asked a few students what they knew about alcohol and the current legislation. Questions asked included “Do you think it is unsafe to drive while hungover?” “How long

does it take alcohol to leave your system?” and “How many pints do you think it takes to reach the blood alcohol limit?”

“You’re not going to crash when you’re hungover,” comments Máirín Byrne, a student of Arts. “Yeah you feel queasy but you can concentrate like. The alcohol’s out of your system by then.”

“After sleeping for 4 hours there’s no alcohol in your system anymore, I think.

It leaves when you get the sweats,” offered Hannah

5

O’Donovan of North Dublin.

“3 pints, which is the same as a shot I think,” answered Brendan Dunne, student of Business and Law. The current alcohol limit of 0.08% is the equivalent of just over one pint. A standard pint is the same as one and one third standard shots.

Alcohol leaves the system at a different rate for different people.

If you are a 10stone male between ages 17 and 24, and you drink the equivalent of 3 pints and 2 shots between 10pm and 1am, you will still be over the limit until midday the next day, if you eat a meal by then. If you are female or lighter or older, then you would have to wait even longer.

The Irish relationship with alcohol is notorious worldwide. We did not have the Road Safety Authority until 2006, and at this point in time we still have no system to check drivers for having taken drugs.

However, the new legislation proposal comes as Dublin’s roads were declared “the safest roads of any capital city in Europe” by the Road Safety Authority. According to the European Transport Safety Council, Dublin has achieved a 12% annual reduction in casualty numbers in the last ten years.

If the alcohol limit is lowered to an effectively zero tolerance policy, and alcolocks were installed in all cars so as to prevent those over the limit from driving, this might mean the end of drink-driving in Ireland.

However, it also might mean that many students will step into their car in the morning, turn the ignition, and nothing will happen.

We may have to adapt.

EU Reform Plan for Third Level Education ROISIN CARLOS

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he European Commission has released a Reform Plan for Third Level Education. The plan aims to boost employment opportunities and economic growth in Europe’s worsening debt crisis, by the year 2020.

These shared education objectives on the “modernisation” of Europe’s Higher Education system aim to allow European institutions to compete with other world class universities, at a time when only 200 of Europe’s 4000 Higher Education institutions are recognized in the latest World University rankings.

The headline target stipulates that by 2020, “40% of young people should successfully complete higher education or equivalent studies,” an ambitious increase from the recorded 33.6% in 2010. Other targets include the outreach to a broader cross section of society including vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, a reduction in school dropout rates, research intensive economies and national qualification frameworks.

The EU has pledged its support to this strategy with the significant increase in budget devoted in education research and innovation.

This, along with the EU target demanding the creation of effective funding mecha-

nisms, as well as financial support and increased access, raises the issue of Irish Third Level fees.

Though the EU’s reform plan shows no commitment to the future of Irish fees, it does stipulate that there should be an increase in the quantity of higher education graduates at all levels and a widened participation by diverse groups of all social backgrounds. With students facing increasing difficulties in financing their educations and the significant cuts in student grants, Irish universities will find it tough to reach their targets of 40% completion rates.

It is likely that an increase in third level fees would deter many potential students

from entering third level education, resulting in a failure to attract a broader cross section of society. This would go against European targets.

The EU recognizes that the responsibility for delivering reforms in Higher Education is a matter of national competence. However, recent research shows that the challenges and policy responses transcend national borders. For this reason, this initiative is rooted in integrated guidelines and it urges all EU member states to collaborate and to reach the targets set by the Europe 2020 strategy.

However, with Ireland’s ranking in the league tables dropping drastically from 89 to 134 in the last two years, it

is questionable that the Irish government can commit to these European guidelines.

In spite of a deceptive 15% increase in first year enrollment rates in recent years, along with Ireland currently holding one of the highest attendance rates in Europe, Ireland falls short of reaching the other EU targets.

Since 2008, Irish third level college budgets have been slashed by up to 9% and have suffered up to 6% staff reduction. The combination of high enrollment rates with both staff and budget cuts, has led to serious questions being raised regarding the quality of Irish third level education within the context relative overcrowding in Irish universities.

With such factors influencing the dramatic drop in Irish University rankings compared to other higher education institutions, a rapid amelioration of Irish rankings seems unlikely within the context of the current economic climate.

Though facing many challenges, this reform plan appears innovative. Above all it focuses on the young people of today who, according to Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner of Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth, can “use their education as a powerful diver of economic growth” to “open doors to better standards of living and opportunities.”

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

news@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

America Ends UCD academics condemn “Don’t Ask human rights abuses Dublin doctors sentenced for part in Arab Spring Don’t Tell” ROBERT NEILSON US gay activists celebrated the ending of the controversial “don’t ask don’t tell” in the US military last week.

The law had meant gay men and women could only serve in the military if they kept their sexual orientation a secret.

The law was passed in 1993 under President Clinton after a fractious debate in which conservatives in Congress attempted to keep a total ban on gays serving in the military. If military officers were to admit to being homosexual, they would be expelled from the military.

Since 1993, 13,500 gay men were expelled from the military under this law, according to Serviceman’s Legal Defence Network. The repeal was welcomed as a historic landmark in terms of removing discrimination against homosexuals.

The repeal was criticized

by the head of the Marine Corps, Commandant James Amos who said it could endanger the lives of soldiers by weakening discipline and unit cohesion. He said allowing gay men to serve could be a “distraction.”

This repeal comes during a rising conflict over the separation of church and state in New York. Rose Marie Belforti, the town clerk in the small town Ledyard has caused controversy by refusing to marry same-sex couples. Belforti stated that God has condemned homosexuality as a sin and thus believes it is against her religion to allow same-sex marriages.

She said “God doesn’t want me to do this, so I can’t do what God doesn’t want me to do, just like I can’t steal, or any of the other things that God doesn’t want me to do.” A Protestant and elected Republican, Belforti believes “this is about religious freedom. It is not about trashing gay people.”

The controversy erupted when lesbian couple, Deirdre DiBaggio and Kate Car-

michael attempted to marry.

They believe Belforti’s actions are discriminatory and US gay activists celebrated the ending of the controversial “don’t ask don’t tell” in the US military last week.

The law had meant gay men and women could only serve in the military if they kept their sexual orientation a secret.

The law was passed in 1993 under President Clinton after a fractious debate in which conservatives in Congress attempted to keep a total ban on gays serving in the military. If military officers were to admit to being homosexual, they would be expelled from the military.

Since 1993, 13,500 gay men were expelled from the military under this law, according to Serviceman’s Legal Defence Network. The repeal was welcomed as a historic landmark in terms of removing discrimination against homosexuals.

The repeal was criticized by the head of the Marine Corps, Commandant James Amos who said it could endanger the lives of soldiers by weakening discipline and unit cohesion. He said allowing gay men to serve could be a “distraction.”

This repeal comes during a rising conflict over the separation of church and state in New York. Rose Marie Belforti, the town clerk in the small town Ledyard has caused controversy by refusing to marry same-sex couples. Belforti stated that God has condemned homosexuality as a sin and thus believes it is against her religion to allow same-sex marriages.

She said “God doesn’t want me to do this, so I can’t do what God doesn’t want me to do, just like I can’t steal, or any of the other things that God doesn’t want me to do.” A Protestant and elected Republican, Belforti believes “this is about religious freedom. It is not about trashing gay people.”

The controversy erupted when lesbian couple, Deirdre DiBaggio and Kate Carmichael attempted to marry.

They believe Belforti’s actions are discriminatory and are taking a lawsuit.

TIMOTHY POTENZ

S

ix doctors from Dublin have been sentenced to prison in Bahrain for treating protestors involved in the pro-democracy unrest earlier this year.

The RCSI trained doctors, who are among a group of 20 others, have been given sentences of between 5 and 15 years in prison. Foreign Affairs Minister Eamon Gilmore has expressed “deep concern” over the length of the sentences.

UCD Professor Eoin O’Brien of the Conway Institute travelled to Bahrain as part of an Irish delega-

tion to offer support to the detained. Upon returning, he stated that he was “in no doubt that the doctors and medical personnel had been subjected to human rights abuses, including kidnapping, detention without trial in solitary confinement, and the extraction of confessions under torture.”

Doctors and nurses have expressed shock at the sentences. Sheila Dickinson, president of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, said there was “no justification” for the treatment and sentences of the medics.

The Irish government has contacted the Bahraini

government in the last week concerning the abuses of human rights that the prisoners have suffered. A UN spokesperson has expressed “severe concerns” over sentences given out in a military court with “serious due process irregularities.”

The RCSI, which has invested €60 million in a campus in Bahrain, has “noted” the sentences passed down.

UCD Professor Muiris Fitzgerald of the medical faculty has criticised the RCSI’s response.

Dr. Ali al-Akri, one of the convicted, has said that “I will do what I have to do, if that means Bahrain will be a

better place. All of the doctors convicted with me will do the same.”

Other protestors in Bahrain have described the prodemocracy unrest earlier this year as a “stillborn promise.”

The rising was crushed soon after it began, and was overshadowed in the wider political world by events in Libya and Syria. The aftermath of the events has left former hopefuls “crushed and dispirited.”

Dr. al-Akri has recalled the day that the injured protestors flooded to his hospital and were placed in his charge. He says that in that moment when all that was being done was of medical necessity “we knew that our issue was about politics.”

EU students oppose erasmus funding cuts FRANCES IVENS

T

he European council of the European Union is aiming to cut €60 million from Education in its 2012 budget. The news comes in the shadow of announcements by the EU that it is placing education at the centre of its economic and development ‘strategy

EU2020’.

The cuts will affect current education schemes including the Life Long learning (LLP) programme and the Erasmus scheme.

In opposition to these proposals the Education and culture committee of the European parliament has proposed an increase to the budget with €45 million for

the LLP. From a student perspective the budget may have implications for funding opportunities.

In the academic year 2009-2010 Erasmus facilitated 213,266 exchanges across the union. European Students’ Union (ESU) chairperson Bert Vandenkendelaere described the cuts as “a setback to all Eu-

ropean students”. The ESU, of which UCD is a member through its affiliation with the Union of Students in Ireland (USI), has called on the European parliament not only to reverse the cuts but to increase funding and restore education as the “cornerstone of the European welfare society”.

features@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE

11th October 2011

FEATURES

7

Talking Heads: Should the presidential nomination system be changed?

YES

PROFESSOR DAVID FARRELL, SCHOOL OF POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, UCD

T

he President, as head of state, is supposed to be above party politics. It would be nice to think that this principle could be extended to how presidential candidates are nominated.

In the bulk of cases, the candidates are nominated by the political parties and in virtually all cases (the partial exception being Mary Robinson), the successful candidate has been a party nominee (usually Fianna Fáil).

The recent debacle over presidential nominations reveals some of the shortcomings of the current system.

At one point, there was the very real potential that David Norris could have failed in his bid to be nominated, despite consistently being one of the most popular candidates in opinion poll after opinion poll. There was a mad last-minute scurrying to chase votes from every possible quarter.

Accusations flew of heavyhanded practices to try and win doubters around. Rumours were rampant of possible last minute moves by embarrassed party leaders to help him over the bar. In the end, it needed a dramatic gesture by Michael D Higgins to get him his final Council nomination – a move that earned candidate Higgins much kudos. All of this was pretty unseemly.

The bar that non-party candidates have to reach – 20 Oireachtas members or four Councils – is high, and could be about to get much higher.

If the government proceeds with its proposals to abolish the Seanad and reduce the size of the Dáil, it will reduce significantly the number of Oireachtas members that presidential aspirants can approach, down from the current number of 226 TDs and Senators to possibly as few as 150 TDs – demonstrating once again the unintended consequences of institutional reform.

Given such a scenario, this issue can no longer be ignored. At the very least, it would require a relaxing of the current requirement.

As my colleague, Professor Michael Gallagher (TCD) suggests (on www.politicalreform.ie), the current rules could be redrafted to make the bar something like 5 percent of Oireachtas members or 5 percent of council members.

But surely if we are going to have to go down the road of change anyway, then why opt for something so piecemeal? Why not consider more radical alternatives?

This is not the first time that questions have been raised over our presidential nomination process; indeed, the matter was reviewed at length by the Constitution Review Group in 1996, though it felt unable to make firm recommendations, other than that the issue should not be forgotten. The simple fact of the matter is that there is no easy solution to this.

The problem that the Con-

stitution Review Group had to contend with is that many of the likely alternative nomination procedures come at a cost. For instance, requiring candidates to pay a monetary deposit (say, €5,000) could quite fairly be seen as discriminating in favour of the well heeled. The other option of requiring candidates to gather a minimum number of signatures (say, 10,000) may be more equitable and more consistent with the practice of other jurisdictions; however, it too comes at a cost – in this case to the tax-payer, who would have to pony up for the costs of validating the signature process so as to prevent fraud.

But should that be accepted as a reason not to make such a change?

Democracy does not come cheaply.

Sometimes it simply has to be accepted that if a process is to be organized well it may require some resourcing. The Presidency should be above party politics, and that also means in where and how candidates emerge for this high office.

We need to move away from the current system where, in essence, it is the party leaderships – by whipping their Oireachtas members and councilors into line – who determine the fate of potential presidential nominees. For a truly independent presidency we need a system that facilitates the emergence of truly independent candidates.

NO

BRENDAN LANNOYE

I

f it ain’t broke, don’t fix it - that’s a popular saying, right? Yep, and it’s popular for a reason: it’s correct.

There is absolutely no need to change the presidential candidate nomination system because, quite frankly, this election proves that it works just fine.

The 2011 race for the Áras has provided a record seven candidates. The nomination procedure states that either 20 members of the Oireachtas, drawn either from the Dáil or the Seanad, or four County Councils may nominate a candidate.

This year there were a possible 225 signatures available from the Oireachtas for nomination. While the Party Whip System largely dictates the availability of this route to the candidates, the 2011 race has still proven that all major political parties had no problem nominating a candidate.

It is of note that while Fianna Fáil didn’t nominate a candidate, they could have. In their case they just couldn’t find the ‘right candidate’ amongst themselves, i.e. Michael Martin couldn’t convince Usain Bolt to run with a fist full of medals.

But that’s hardly fair, what about the independents? Well, the fact that there are more independentbacked candidates than party-backed candidates further alludes to the effectiveness of the nomination system.

While Mr. Norris and others bemoaned the system that forced the candidates into a late dash, realistically who lost out? No one! In fact, nearly every candidate that seriously sought after a nomination has received it.

However, it must be conceded that in the past there have been some less than optimal nomination scenarios. Six of the thirteen presidential elections have been uncontested, an unfortunate occurrence indeed.

On the other hand, this election proves that if those seeking nomination are sufficiently motivated, it is possible. It seems more likely that the low level of candidates nominated throughout our electoral history is more to do with an unwillingness of people to take on the largely puppet-like and unspectacular role that is being the president.

Much has been made of the criteria to be nominated too. According to Bunreacht na hÉireann, one must be over 35 and hold Irish citizenship to be. While this rules out people like Brian O’Driscoll and Barack Obama, I get the impression that these people could be doing something slightly more worthwhile with their time.

I say this because the role of the President is largely ceremonial, i.e. it’s not very important. Even Professor David Farrell, a leading political scientist, did not include Electoral System Reform in his 25 issue points while calculating the Political Reform Scorecard for the General Election this year, let alone Presidential Electoral Nomination Reform.

When it comes down to it, the current Government have enough things to be reforming without worrying about improving on our current, pretty decent, presidential candidate nomination procedure.

Changing the procedure means a costly referendum and bumping down things like Local Government and Committee System reform, which are actually important.

We could get all philosophical too and say we should always strive for the best. But just because I want a pony, and a pony would be awesome, doesn’t mean I’ll get a pony. That’s just ridiculous.

We’ve got to be sensible here. Why should we all take an hour off work to have another referendum on the nomination procedure for a pretty unimportant office?

Because the candidates, who got the nomination in the end, told us it was difficult?

Because it’s broken (even though there were a record number of nominations this year)? Because we look archaic on the global stage?

I somehow doubt that the Troika leaders have deep set feelings on the topic.

The reform card is whipped out with other phrases such as ‘broken system’ and ‘catastrophic consequences’ purely to garner public support. It gets people excited, it’s the proverbial get-in-the-media-for-freecard, but it is cast aside once it has served its purpose.

Changing our Constitution is a very serious thing; it should only be done in response to very serious faults, none of which exist here.

88

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

features@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

University Breakdown Candidate

UCD

Trinity

DCU

UCC

UL 11%

NUI Maynooth 4%

NUI Galway 4%

Davis

4%

8%

7%

4%

Gallagher

17%

11.5%

19%

14%

22%

23%

13%

Higgins

33%

44%

27%

37%

30%

18%

41%

McGuinness 17%

3%

10%

12%

17%

14%

10%

Mitchell

4%

3%

4%

6%

2%

3%

5%

Norris

24%

30%

29%

21%

18%

36%

24%

Dana

1%

.5%

4%

6%

0%

2%

3%

Higgins tops national student poll Continued from front 1,962 students were polled across Ireland’s seven universities last Thursday by various student media outlets.

74% of students intend voting, however with only two weeks to go to polling day almost a third of these have still not decided to whom they will give their first preference.

Despite performing well amongst students nationally David Norris, Trinity College Dublin Senator, came second in the university (30%) to Michael D. Higgins (44%).

The result will be a source of disappointment for Norris who has represented the university in the Seanad since 1987 and was also a lecturer and a student in the college.

Higgins is more popular in Trinity than in any other university in the country. The seventy year old also com-

manded a high percentage in NUI Galway, his hometown, with 41%. Higgins was the candidate of choice in every university apart from DCU and the University of Limerick where Norris was favoured.

The students poll underlined a recent trend in polls conducted by national newspapers with Dragon’s Den star Sean Gallagher remaining popular. 17% of those polled say they will give him their first preference. Gallagher scored highest in NUI Maynooth and in the University of Limerick with 23% and 22% respectively.

Sinn Fein candidate Martin McGuinness polled 12% nationally, However opinion on the ex-IRA man contrasted sharply between campuses. McGuinness proved particularly popular in UCD and the University of Limerick with 17% in each university however only 3% of Trinity College Dublin students say they will give him their first preference.

Independent Mary Davis and Fine Gael’s Gay Mitch-

ell performed poorly in all universities. Trinity College were the most supportive campus of Davis with 8%, having obtained 6% nationally. Mitchell scored 4% nationally with highest support for him coming from the students of UCC, 6% say they will give him their first preference.

Only 2% of students nationally support Dana Rosemary Scallon. 603 students were surveyed in UCD by the College Tribune, only two students said she would be their first preference for President. Dana polled 0% in the University of Limerick, where ULFM and An Focal student newspaper conducted the poll.

Although 74% of university students intend voting on Thursday, 27th October, 27% of these have still not decided who they will vote for. 28% of students in UCD who plan to vote remain undecided. 86% of UCD students have their mind made up compared to only 58% of NUI Maynooth who know who they will be voting for.

University Poll National Result Michael Higgins

34%

David Norris

25%

Seán Gallagher

17%

Martin McGuinness

12%

Mary Davis

6%

Gay Mitchell

4%

Dana Scallon

2%

Gender doesn’t appear to be an issue in this election for students, with male and female students surveyed following similar trends.

In UCD more males intend voting than females.

79% of male students surveyed here say they will cast a vote whilst only 63% of females surveyed plan to do so.

Of those female UCD students who plan on voting 38% have not yet decided who they will give their first preference to compared to 20% of UCD male students.

Davis is slightly more popular amongst female students in UCD with 5% saying they will give her their first preference only 3% of UCD males say they will do the same.

Likewise Mitchell is more popular amongst male students in UCD than female students. With 6% of male students planning on giving him their first preference in comparison to 1% of female UCD voters.

22% of university students say they will not vote in the election with 4% still

undecided.

In UCD, 17% of students who are not casting a vote say they cannot do so because they are unable to get home on polling day, a Thursday.

20% of UCD students who are not voting say they simply do not care about the presidential election, compared to 16% in Trinity College Dublin, where the poll was conducted by the University Times newspaper, and 34% in DCU, where the poll was carried out by student radio station DCUFM. 24% of UCD students who will not be voting in the election say they are eligible but are not registered to vote.

The poll was carried out by a variety of student media outlets including studentnews.ie in Cork, Sin newspaper in Galway and The Print newspaper in Maynooth.

Students from every university faculty were surveyed and the national results are a weighted figure based on overall student populations in each of the seven universities.

features@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

Opinion Polls: Students compared to the rest of the population DONIE O’SULLIVAN A poll conducted by Red C for Paddy Power within 24 hours of the student survey last Thursday shows that students’ candidate preferences differ substantially from the rest of the population.

Michael D. Higgins tops both polls, however it appears a higher percentage of students will give him their first preference than the rest of the population. The Labour Party candidate is at 16% in

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

9

to Michael D. Higgins.

Martin McGuinness is in third place in the Red C poll at 16% but seems like a less attractive candidate to university students in fourth place at 12%.

Fine Gael candidate Gay Mitchell who is at 4% in the student poll is fares significantly better in the Red C poll at 10%.

Mary Davis and Dana also performed better in the Red C poll compared to the student poll. Davis on 6% with students but 9% with the rest

Thursday election causes difficulty for some students LISA GORRY

T the Red C poll while at 34% in the student poll.

The Red C poll shows Sean Gallagher in second at 21% while the student poll has Senator David Norris at 25% with Gallagher in third at 17%. Norris is fourth in the Red C poll at 14% - 11% less than the student poll.

Norris has blamed negative stories in the national press

for his fall in support but he still appears to be an attractive candidate to student voters. Despite this the Senator came second in a poll of Trinity College Dublin students

of the population and Dana on 2% with students and 5% in the Red C. The Red C Paddy Power poll also asked voters which candidate they would most like to invite for dinner. The largest group (20%) said there was no candidate they would ask to dinner. Apart from this David Norris was the most popular choice at 19% followed by Sean Gallagher

on 17% and Martin McGuinness and Michael D. Higgins both on 13%. Gay Mitchell was the candidate people would least like to invite for dinner with only 5%.

he College Tribune poll found that 17% of UCD students who are not voting in the election are not doing so simply because they cannot get home on polling day. The same is the case in DCU 15% and in UL 12%..

The election will be held on Thursday, 24th October.

The date has been criticised

Ireland President, Gary Redmond criticised the government’s decision to hold the election on a Saturday.

“Minister [Phil] Hogan’s comments that the election must be held on a Thursday

cludes thousands of students across Ireland. It is physically impossible for students and other people to get home from work and college in good time to vote on a weekday.

press released condemning it because it’s completely unfair to students and disenfranchises a huge part of the population, and a vital part.

I know people like myself who can’t get home; it’ll be very difficult for me to vote

“It’s just another incident of the Government letting young people down.”

“It is physically

impossible for students and other people to get home from work and college in good time to vote on a weekday.” by student representative bodies as it means students will either have to travel home to vote, or have registered for a postal vote, for which the deadline has passed. Another option for students was to have registered a change of consistuency, but this deadline has also passed.

The Union of Students in

to avoid paying overtime for a weekend count are nothing short of laughable. Before being elected to Government, both the Fine Gael and Labour parties insisted that all elections to be held on a weekend date. However, now that they are in Government, they have changed their tune,” he said.

“The fact that the impending Presidential Election is to be held on a Thursday has excluded many people from being able to vote. This in-

All elections and referenda need to be accessible for the students of Ireland, who are the future taxpayers of this country and will be ultimately responsible for the recovery of the economy,” he added.

Pat De Brun, president of the UCD Student’s Union, also weighed in on the issue of those students not voting in the election as a result of not being able to get home: “When the date of the election was announced, we

myself. We have requested repeatedly in the past, as we did for the General Election, that the election be held at the weekend, or at the very least on a Friday ; I mean, for someone who’s traveling to Donegal or Cork it’s just not possible and it’s completely unfair. It’s just another incident of the Government letting young people down.”

24% of students in UCD who are not voting in the election are not doing so as they have not registered to vote. This is also the case in Trinity, 22%, DCU, 27% and 40% in UL. Pat De Brun said “For the people who don’t intend to vote, I’d encourage everyone to vote. It’s the only way to make our voices heard.”

10 FEATURES

features@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

It’s all relative Conor Manning explains the significance of recent results at CERN

S

cientists recently released results that suggested that they had found particles which travel faster than the speed of light.

This news, if verified, would have huge implications for the world of Physics and its applications. Why is this result so important?

In 1905, Albert Einstein changed science forever when he introduced the Special Theory of Relativity.

This improved on Newton’s Laws, which physicists had been using for more than 200 years. Einstein’s theory is very simple and it says just two things: the laws of physics are the same for all observers moving at a constant velocity away from each other, and the speed of light is the same for any observer.

In simple language, it makes no sense to say that something is travelling with a certain speed without mentioning where you measure this speed from. An observer passing a train from another train travelling in the opposite direction will measure the other train’s speed as be-

ing faster than it should be, since the observer’s train is moving in the other direction as he tries to measure the speed of the other train.

Einstein and other great thinkers at the start of the century performed a series of thought-experiments and showed that this theory

Dot Sexsexsex?

Lisa Gorry examines the proposed safety index for porn websites

I

f you were to pull search engine keyword request trends, you would find that in 2006, and in a worldwide poll, Ireland ranked second for the keyword “porn”. Pornography in time would go a little something like this: every second, $3,075.64 is spent on pornography, 28,258 internet users are viewing pornography and 372 internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines. Every 39 minutes, a new pornographic video is made in the United States.

Of course, these are all just statistics if you’re a legal and consenting adult, free to make your own decisions based on rational decisions and desires. However, consider the idea that a child or young adolescent types these popular keywords into Google: “porn” “xxx” “sex”.

In the highly sexualised society that has developed given the ease with which we can obtain information, it is not surprising that measures

need to be taken in order to prevent such material falling into more vulnerable hands. 12% of sites on the internet are pornographic; that’s 24,644,172 chances of

was inspired by the former Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) “X” rating, used in grading pornographic movies as “XXX.” The IFFOR Charter says that

the wrong material being exposed to the wrong people. .xxx is what is called a sponsored top-level domain (sTLD) proposed as a voluntary option to replace the .com of pornography sites, sponsored by the International Foundation for Online Responsibility (IFFOR). It

“the .xxx TLD is intended to primarily serve the needs of the global responsible online adult-entertainment community.”

It defines the online adult-entertainment community as “those individuals, businesses, and entities that provide sexually-oriented

means that the Universe effectively has a speed limit.

Nothing can travel faster than the speed of light. Scientists at the OPERA experiinformation, services, or products intended for consenting adults.” They go on to say that the terms “adult entertainment” and “sexually-oriented” are “intended to be understood broadly for a global medium, and are not to be construed as legal or regulatory categories.” When referring to the community, they refer generally to websites that “convey sexuallyoriented information and for which a system of self-identi-

fication would be beneficial.”

Sites can register for a .xxx TLD with a 50 day Sunrise period, ending on October 28, giving businesses inside and out of the adult industry an exclusive chance to register for the TLD, or to exclude their names from it.

ment at CERN in Switzerland have measured the speed of particles known as muon neutrinos to be faster than the speed of light. These particles are, in a sense, breaking the laws of the Universe.

What people outside of the field want to know is how likely it is that there is an error in the experiment performed at CERN and if not, what effect this would have on areas like Chemistry and Engineering that rely on physics. Certainly having to redo 106 years of work would mean a lot of work for physicists.

This is why the discovery that particles travel faster than the speed of light is so huge, if true. If the result can be verified, then scientists will either need to replace the Theory of Relativity with a new one, or else come up with a new theory of particle physics that would explain why this certain type of particle is an exception to the rule.

The scientists at CERN have taken multiple steps to reduce the error in their experiment. This includes taking the curvature of the Earth into account when measuring lengths and an upgrade of the timing system in place at the detector. Scientists have statistical methods to find out how unlikely an event is to happen if they

assume a theory. The result in this case was exceptionally improbable. In fact, such a result would be considered in the realms of impossible by people in other fields that use statistics in this way.

What this all means is that it seems that the result is genuine, unless there was some error in how the experiment was carried out. The group at CERN refused to speculate on what the outcome of their experiment might mean. “Despite the large significance of the measurement reported here and the stability of the analysis, the potentially great impact of the result motivates the continuation of our studies in order to investigate possible still unknown systematic effects that could explain the observed anomaly.”

The Sunrise A period concerns registration from the adult community, while the Sunrise B period, running at the same time, concerns companies outside the adult industry. After the close of Sunrise period, a “land rush” period will commence on November 8 and will run for 17 days, where businesses from the adult entertainment industry will have premium access to remaining web addresses, following which there will be general availability.

A generic toplevel domain (gTLD) for sexually explicit material was proposed as a way for dealing with conflict between those who wish to provide and access such material through the internet, and those who wish to prevent access to it, either by children and adolescents, or by employees at the workplace.

Arguments for the idea propose that it’ll be easier for parents and employers to block the entire TLD, rather than using more complex and error-prone contentbased filtering, without im-

posing any restrictions on those who wish to access it.

What editors of explicit content sites are afraid of is that the use of a single gTLD like .xxx will make it easier for search engines to block all of their content.

Critics of the idea argue that because the TLF is voluntary, sexually explicit material will still be commonplace in other domains, making it essentially ineffective at restricting access and simply creating a new rush as registrants of .com domains hosting explicit material attempt to duplicate their registrations in the .xxx domain, competing with operators who hope to register desirable names unavailable in other TLDs. There is also concern that the existence of .xxx will lead to legislation making its use mandatory for sexually explicit material, leading to legal conflicts over the definition of “sexually explicit”, free speech rights, and jurisdiction.

It will be known whether there was a mistake in their method if the result can be independently checked by another group. Scientists at the MINOS experiment in America first flagged the possibility of neutrinos travelling faster than the speed of light in 2007 and will now try to upgrade their experiment to try to test this result.

One thing is certain; the physics community will be holding its breath.

features@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

HEALTH

11

Accident awareness Conor Fox explores first aid kits and what to do with the contents.

Y

ou’ve moved away from home for the first time (or are finally returning to college after a dragged-out summer), away from the over-protective gaze of “the Mammy,” when disaster strikes. You accidentally spill hot oil on yourself (don’t drink and fry) or cut your finger with a new knife.

It’s not feasible to immediately get the next bus home, so hopefully the Mammy will have packed you off to college with a well-stocked first aid kit and a basic knowledge of first aid procedures.

The basic essentials for a first aid kit include adhesive plasters in a variation of sizes; a non-stick gauze bandage; a crepe bandage; triangular bandages; wound dressings; paper tape; a large and small Burn shield dressing; sterile eye wash; and disinfectant wipes. Ideally, it will also contain a small scissors, a number of safety pins, a (non-glass) thermometer and a tweezers. While you can purchase these items separately, many pharmacies sell fully equipped first aid kits and can advise on additional items required.

Students will also find it useful to have some medication on hand. For the relief of nausea and vomiting, motilium or a similar alternative can ease the symptoms. Arret should aid the suffering of diarrhoea, while dioralyte can be taken to replace fluids which have been lost due to diarrhoea. Sufferers of headaches and minor aches and pains may consider taking paracetamol or ibuprofen (also useful for relief of fevers). Cough and cold medication (you may wish to seek medical advice first) can be an important item for winter; while sore throat lozenges may help you escape angry glares from final years in the library due to an incessant cough.

Consumers are free to ask their pharmacist to supply them with a generic product opposed to the brand name.

It is often cheaper to purchase a generic brand which contains the same strength medicine and the same quantity.

What to do if... ...you receive a small cut

Ask Annie Anything Dear Annie,

I’ve just finished my first month in U.C.D. and obviously I totally love it, but I miss my friends from home and they’re beginning to say that we’re growing apart.

They’re all in colleges down the country and we don’t see each other anymore...any advice?

Clare.

Dear Clare,

I don’t particularly enjoy being harsh and to the point (Ed.’s note – since when?) but in your case I’ll make an exception. You have two options. The first is to drop them like a hot G.H.D.; I’ll explain why in a second. Your second (and frankly, your best) option is to gather a few of your new true UCD girls and visit one of your friends in whatever B.O.D. forsaken place they attend. Once you get there, let slip a few back handed compliments about her clothing

choices (ew), make disparaging remarks about the strange smell lingering in the local “disco” and score a few inbred culchies – including the one she has her eye on.

The next morning, hop in one of the girl’s Peugeots, while sipping your Evian and wave goodbye to her and, ultimately, your friendship.

Clare, this brings me back to your first option.

Like, in all honesty, if your friends can’t even manage to get into Arts in the premier university in Ireland and end up studying in some bog in Galway, Sligo or even Dundalk, do you really want to be friends with them? Wave goodbye to old friendships and say hello to success.

No need to thank me, Annie.

Clean the cut with an antiseptic wipe.

Cover with a clean plaster. ...you receive a more serious cut Apply pressure to the cut.

Stop the bleeding.

Seek medical attention. ...you get a burn Decide if it is a first, second or third degree burn.

A first degree burn will usually produce pain, minor swelling and redness. It is limited to the first layer of skin, and should be dry without blisters.

A second degree burn is more severe and involves the skin layers beneath the top layer. It will produce blisters, severe pain, and redness.

The most serious type of burn is a third-degree burn, the skin appears dry and there may be little pain due to nerve damage.

For second and third degree burns or if the burn is large, seek emergency medical care immediately.

For minor burns, gently flood the area with cool water for fifteen minutes, apply a burn ease gel, followed by a paraffin gauze dressing and lightly bandage the area. ...you have a hangover Gulp down a Berocca Boost.

Suffer in silence.

Dread the Facebook “... has tagged 5 photos of you” notifications.

Students are advised to seek medical attention if they are in any way concerned about an injury which they have received. The Student Health Service is located on the first floor of the Student Centre Building and it can be contacted on either (01) 7163133 or (01) 7163143. General

opening hours on Monday to Friday are from 9.30 am to 12.30 pm and from 2 pm to 4.30 pm. Emergencies receive priority and are dealt with immediately by the doctors and nurses during normal opening hours. Students who live in on-campus accommodation may find it useful to note that Accident and Emergency at St. Vincent’s Hospital can be accessed twenty four hours a day.

It’s Satire, STUPID!

INSIDE P is for president Teen pregnancy drops dramatically after age of 25 Steve Jobs ; He lived life to the macs Elton John unveils falsetto arsehole Martin McGuinness – “A vision of Ireland through the eyes of a balaclava” “Anne Doyles throat a mockery” claims disgruntled turkey Dead sea scrolls not compatable with iPhone 4s

T

he race for the Áras heats up as the leading candidates begin to close in on one another.

Dana, whom the Turbine backed in our last issue, has fallen far behind the more charismatic candidates, such as Michael D. Higgins, Sean Gallagher and of course Martin McGuinness, the darling of the Northern people. At present it seems certain that one of these fine gentlemen will be sitting in the Áras by the end of the month.

Higgins, the hobbitesque man in red, who champions the people’s flag, is polling ahead of the rest in the run-up to the election. His leprechaun like joviality has endeared him to the Irish people, whilst it is hoped his petit proportions will be a good advert for the government’s new fairy hunting

package holidays, aimed at American tourists.

Gallagher, now the leading independent candidate, following David Norris’ fall from grace, is filling the people with confidence and empty promises of jobs and wonders he is constitutionally unable to provide. Dana, guardian of the constitution, would of course have something to say about this. Gallagher assures us he only played a minor role in the Fianna Fáil party and had nothing whatsoever to do with the disastrous policies that brought the country to its knees. In fact he spent the boom years establishing youth clubs up and down the length and breadth of the country and increasing entrepreneurship through dragons den.

McGuinness, the “former”

IRA leader, has, rather surprisingly, shot up in the polls.

Is it his charming Derry accent? Surely not, it doesn’t seem to be doing Dana any favours. Is it his pledge to live on the average industrial wage? Perhaps so, though with a free mansion, driver and food, it’s difficult to see what exactly the president would spend their money on.

Festive balaclavas have been one suggestion. McGuinness is said to be excited about the possibility of meeting with HRH Prince Charles, whose

79-year-old uncle, his “former” organisation blew up in 1979. The Prince must be waiting with bated breadth.

The other candidates are

now lagging behind in the race. Norris who spent a considerable time on top is now sliding to the bottom. Davis, it seems clear, won’t be the third Mary at the foot of the cross. Sales of Special K have, however, risen considerably since her posters were erected around the country.

Gay Mitchell has failed so far to garner enough support to launch him ahead in the polls, though the party machine may kick into gear soon enough. As for us at the Turbine, well, we like piña colada and dancing in the rain. Vote right, vote hard.

Third World children for sale at knockdown prices Has the recession hit you hard?

Have you had to find a second job and now don’t have time to do menial tasks around the home?

Do you just wish you had help around the house and garden?

Why not invest in a Third World child? The Turbine offices have received a fresh batch of willing and ready to work children from the UN who can be used for all your labour needs, both inside and outside the home. You can have your rubbish sorted to perfection, have your shoes and clothes mended by the very people who make them or even have a child soldier guard your house for less than half the price of a dog.

Third World children need little or no food, and work for around three cent a week. Make your purchase soon as limited numbers are available and demand is high.

COLLEGE TRIBUNE - CELEBRATING 25 VOLUMES : The page below featured in Volume 1 Issue 1.

editor@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE

When the dust settles

T

he talk of the day for the past few weeks has been regarding the Irish Presidential Election 2011.

The student poll organised by the College Tribune and conducted by student media outlets has shown Higgins has a clear lead in support. However the degree of indecision among students is still considerable.

Recent elections held in Ireland have been plagued with ever-decreasing voter turnouts. While the current economic climate has led to an increase in political debate, the debate has predominantly focussed on the mistakes of politicians and

has emphasised how they are not to be trusted.

The democratic allowance to ‘throw the rascals out’ is somewhat mired when there are ought but rascals to replace them.

The race for the presidency has become heated and charged with different facts and controversies emerging about each candidate almost daily. There has been little or no debate (unless you read page 7) on the relevancy of the office in the modern era.

Talk regarding the President has been limited to ‘the office is what you make of it’ however the real charges of our Head of State are few.

Perhaps once the controver-

sies have abated, talk of reforming the office will begin.

While our colleagues at the Turbine have come out in clear support, the College Tribune will remain in support of but one political ideal: the right to vote is important but not as crucial as the responsibility to make an informed choice.

TRIBLEX

11th October 2011

Contributors Olivia Reidy, Conor Manning, Lisa Gorry, Róisín Carlos, Shane Scott, Frances Ivens, Conor Fox, Peter Hamilton, Robert Nielsen, Sophie Kelly, Oisín Peat, Aoife Harrison, Aoife Nannery, Hayley Maher, Fiona Daly, Dawn Lonergan, Alice Morris, Alissa Karpick, Breadán Mac Ardghail, Ciarán Carey, Donal Fallon, Amy Eustace,

EDITORIAL

Seán Grennan, Graham Luby, Daniel Nolan, Daniel Cooney, Thomas Cullen, Keith Lematti, Donal Lucey, Darragh O’Connor, Julie Kirwin, Roisin Sweeney, Ciara Louise Murphy.

Interested in writing for the College Tribune? Contact editor@ collegetribune.ie or call into the office in LG20 in the Newman Building

NO. 3 TRIBOKU

15

COLLEGE TRIBUNE Editors: Conor McKenna and Ryan Cullen editor@collegetribune.ie News Editor: Matt Costello news@collegetribune.ie Deputy News Editor: Timothy Potenz Features Editor: Sinéad Williams features@collegetribune.ie Turbine Editor: James Grannell Eagarthóir Gaeilge Ciarán Ó Braonáin gaeilge@collegetribune.ie Sports Editors: Conall Devlin and Patrick Fleming sport@collegetribune.ie Chief Writer: Donie O’Sullivan donie@collegetribune.ie

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16 GAEILGE

gaelige@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

Níl aon rud réabhlóideach faoi McGuinness CIARÁN Ó BRAONÁIN

I

dir Sheanadóirí, Theachtaí Dála agus Thaoisigh bheadh sé dodhéanta liosta cuimsitheach a scríobh d’iar-bhaill an IRA a rinne ionadaíocht pholaitiúil ar son mhuintir na hÉireann.

Ach, in ainneoin an mhéid sin tá feachtas faoi lán seoil faoi láthair i measc mheáin agus roinnt pholaiteoirí na tíre i gcoinne iarratas Martin McGuinness sa toghchán uachtaránachta. Ach cad í an chúis go bhfuil sé chomh conspóideach sin mar iarrthóir?

Go dtí seo níor thug nuachtán ar bith míniú suntasach ar an bhfáth go raibh Dan Breen ceart go leor mar ionadaí do mhuintir Thiobraid Árann, go raibh Seán Lemass agus Éamon de Valera sásúil mar cheannaire an rialtais agus mar uachtarán faoi seach, ach nach bhfeileann Martin

McGuinness don Áras.

An raibh saol Bhaile Átha Cliath faoi smacht na Breataine i bhfad Éireann ní ba mheasa nuair a chuaigh de Valera i mbun foréigin sa bhliain 1916 is a bhí saol na Náisiúnach i gCathair Dhoire nuair a chuaigh McGuinness i muinín an ghunna?

N’fheadar an raibh.

Nó an é gurbh fhiú daoine neamhurchóideacha a mharú ar son neamhspleáchas an Deiscirt ach ní an Tuaiscirt?

Gan moladh, cáineadh, nó breithiúnas ar bith a thabhairt ar scéal McGuinness is gá líomhain aineolach Gay Mitchell a lochtú go poiblí: “There wouldn’t have been a problem in the North if it wasn’t for Adams and McGuinness”. Is cosúil, ní hamháin go bhfuil roinnt i mbun dearmad a dhéanamh ar stair agus oidhreacht Éire na sé chondae is fiche, ach go bhfuil iarrthóir Fhine Gael ag

Póstaer de chuid Joseph McGuinness ón mbliain 1917 Náisiúnaí eile a rinne an dá thrá a fhreastal idir an foréigean agus an pholaitíocht.

iarraidh an stair a athscríobh amach is amach.

Níor thosaigh stair na hÉireann le Gerry Adams agus Martin McGuinness.

Anuas ar sin, ní raibh Tuaisceart Éireann ina Neamh ar talamh roimh fheachtas na Provos.

Níl aon agó ach gur chúisigh IRA McGuinness fulaingt as cuimse ach fós féin ní fíor gur chúis na dTrioblóidí iad. D’fhéadfá an líomhain chéanna a chur i leith Arm na Breataine nó rialtas seicteach Stormont agus cos ar bolg acu ar Ghluaiseacht na gCeart Sibhialta. D’fhéadfá an Conradh Angla-Éireannach nó fiú Cogadh na Saoirse a lochtú fosta. Ar ndóigh, ní fhéadfá Éirí Amach na Cásca, Conradh agus Cúnant Sollúnta Uladh, bunú Óglaigh Uladh, nó cliseadh na mBillí Rialtas Dúchais a fhágáil ar lár ach oiread, chomh maith leis an uafás rudaí eile nach iad.

Gan aon amhras is ceist fhíor-thromchúiseach í an féidir neamhoird a dhéanamh ar fhoréigean McGuinness fiú má chuirtear cúiseanna a ghníomhartha nó a obair shíochána ina dhiaidh sin san áireamh. É sin ráite, ní féidir ligean d’éinne an stair a athscríobh ó bhun.

Níor eascair an tír neamhspleách darb ainm Éire as an bpolaitíocht amháin.

Murach cogaíocht laoich mhóir de chuid pháirtí Gay Mitchell, Michael Collins, na daoine neamhurchóideacha a maraíodh faoina stiúir san áireamh, ní bheadh post Uachtarán na hÉireann ann ar an gcéad dul síos.

Arsenal Ainnis

MARC Ó FEARÁIN

C

éard atá tarlaithe do Arsenal le déanaí?

Téann siad in olcas le caitheamh gach seachtaine agus tá roinnt ann den tuairim cheana féin go mbeidh deacrachtaí acu críochnú sa chéad ocht n-áit i mbliana fiú.

Is í sin tuairim Lee Dixon, iar-imreoir Arsenal a dhéanann anailís don BBC i láthair na huaire. D’imir seisean faoi stiúir Arsene Wenger le linn ré órga na Gunners, idir 1998-2005, nuair a d’éirigh leo an tsraith a bhuachan trí huaire agus an Corn FA a ghabháil ceithre huaire. Ó shin i leith, níor éirigh leo faic a bhuachan agus is léir do Dixon nach bhfuil misneach ar bith ag imreoirí Arsenal an lae inniu agus cé go raibh foighne ag sluaite thuaisceart Londan le tamall anuas, tá siad tagtha chun deireadh na feide anois.

Ní féidir le duine ar bith a shéanadh go n-imríonn Arsenal an pheil is galánta i Sasana, in amanna tá siad cosúil le Barcelona fiú. Is í an fhadhb is mó atá acu ná go bhfuil sé de chumas acu peil den scoth a chur os comhair an lucht féachana ach gan an cluiche céanna a bhuachan.

Anuraidh sílim go rabhadar mar an bhfoireann ba tharraingtí i Sasana agus an-chuid pointí á gcailliúint ag leithéidí Manchester United agus Chelsea. Ba é sin a seans seilbh a ghlacadh ar an tsraith don chéad uair i seacht mbliana. Níor tharla sé áfach, agus d’éirigh le Manchester United í a ghoid uathu, go héasca i ndeireadh na dála. Ón tráth sin tá an captaen, Cesc Fabregas, imithe go Barcelona agus tá a pháirtnéir lár na páirce, Samir Nasri, imithe le páirt a ghlacadh i réabhlóid Manchester City. Is fógra suntasach é seo nach bhfuil na himreoirí is fearr ag Arsenal sásta crochadh timpeall a thuilleadh gan onóracha a bhaint amach.

Fós féin ní féidir a rá nach bainisteoir iontach é Arsene Wenger.

Tá sé i ndiaidh ceithre bliana déag a chaitheamh mar shearbhónta den chéad scoth ag Arsenal agus le

Cófra na gCorn de chuid Arsenal.

linn an thréimhse ama sin cháiligh siad do Shraithchomórtas Sheaimpíní na hEorpa chuile bhliain.

D’aistrigh sé leithéidí Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires agus Marc Overmars ó imreoirí maithe isteach ina réaltaí domhanda agus tá sé freagrach go mór as ógánaigh úra ar nós Nicolas Anelka, Ashley Cole, Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas agus, le déanaí, Jack Wilshere a thógáil ina bpeileadóirí iontacha.

I ndiaidh do Manchester United iad a bhuaileadh 8-2 thart ar mhí ó shin, tá ardú tagtha ar mhéid an bhrú ar Wenger. Tá rud déanta aige anois nach ndearna sé roimhe - cheannaigh sé slua imreoirí gan mórán machnaimh. In io-

nad Fabregas agus Nasri, tá Mikel Arteta agus Yossi Benayoun tagtha isteach.

Is imreoirí maithe iad siúd ach is é sin an méid. Tá an bheirt acu 30 bliain d’aois agus sílim féin nach n-oireann siad d’fhoireann ar an gcéim is airde. I gcás Benayoun, tá sé tar éis cúpla bliain a chaitheamh ag imirt anois agus arís amháin le Chelsea agus Liverpool, agus is cinnte nach bhfuil sé ar comhchéim le Samir Nasri ar chor ar bith.

Bhí buille trom eile acu sa chluiche ba dheireanaí agus iad ag cailliúint in aghaidh a gcéile comhraic Spurs, is tá an tuairim ann ag mórán anois nach bhfuil na himreoirí maith a dhóthain le cáiliú do Shraithchomórtas na Seaimpíní, gan trácht ar iarracht a dhéanamh an tsraith a bhaint ó United.

Tá dhá chlub Mhanchain, Chelsea, Spurs agus Liverpool tar éis dul i bhfeabhas i mbliana, de réir cosúlachta, agus sílim féin go bhfuil tuilleadh laethanta gruama i ndán do Arsenal agus Arsene Wenger amach anseo.

sport@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

London Calling AMY EUSTACE

T

here are 193 steps from the Covent Garden underground to ground level.

I didn’t count, if you’re wondering; there’s just so many that the nice folks at the London Underground put up a sign warning anyone with health issues to take the lifts. I learnt that little fact when I took the Piccadilly Line there on Thursday afternoon - a scorching day in the centre of London.

As we ascended those 193 steps with considerable effort, we heard something you wouldn’t hear very often in the capital of England. Dozens of Irish voices, singing - to the tune of the refrain in ‘Hey Jude’ - “Ta-la-la-Ta-la-lala-la, Ta-la-la-la-la, ROVERS!”.

It was a bit weird coming up for air at long last and seeing throngs of green-and-white clad supporters crowding a crossroads just outside the Tube station. They had congregated outside a pub called The Nag’s Head, though most of them had nipped up to a nearby Tesco for crates of beer (much to the irritation of the publican, no doubt).

Covent Garden was the Shamrock Rovers supporters’ designated meeting point for the day, and it had been invaded. But annoying the English really was just the icing on the cake for the loyal Hoops fans who had made the short trip to London.

Not so long ago, Rovers were in examinership, perched precariously on the brink of extinction.

On Thursday, they were preparing to face Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League group stages.

Londoners did a great job of making us Rovers fans feel at home. Everywhere we went people were eager to help us get around, and congratulate us on what even they knew was a massive achievement.

In North London, Arsenal fans were keen to express their support, but even Spurs supporters had kind words to say before the face off. The atmosphere in the build up was casual, jovial and light-hearted. Club chairman, Jonathan Roche, dipped in and out of The Nag’s Head, mingling

Hoops poured into White Hart Lane, it was business as usual. Non-stop singing in the away stand injected a great deal of atmosphere into an otherwise stagnant Tottenham crowd.

Meanwhile, on the pitch, the supporters had cause for pride. Rovers survived a Spurs onslaught for the first half, and just over

iser. In quick succession, Jermain Defoe and Giovani Dos Santos made it 3-1. If it weren’t for those goals, though, we might have thought ourselves alone in the stadium.

“Shall we sing a song for you?” chanted the Rovers supporters. And we did.

Lots of them.

Even in the face of an-

lence.

But the pride reaches beyond Tallaght; it reaches into every League of Ireland ground. For those yet to discover the very well hidden treasures of the league at home, consider this a call to arms.

With our domestic game constantly playing second fiddle to the lure of

SPORT

17

Clubhouse PATRICK FELMMING Men’s Hockey UCD Men’s first team were in Irish senior cup action last Saturday down in Bandon where they secured a 5-1 win. The team’s first competitive win of the season came courtesy of two goals

by Shane O’Donoghue and a goal each by Patrick Shanahan, David Watkins and Rob Anderson.

UCD took the lead early and were two up after ten minutes as new signing Shane O’Donoghue scored twice.

Melvin Beamish pulled one back though for the home side but Anderson responded to score College’s third on twenty minutes.

There was a wait of almost forty minutes before Shanahan put in UCD’s fourth and Watkins finished off the scoring before full time.

UCD has been drawn against Glenanne in the second round of the tournament.

Women’s Hockey

with the hundred-odd Rovers fans that had set up camp outside, with no airs and graces. Even though most - if not all Hoops in London that day expected a fairly comprehensive thrashing, everyone was in high spirits. And it wasn’t just the Tesco booze.

That evening though, when temperatures cooled slightly and the

five minutes into the second, took the lead through Stephen Rice. The Rovers support swelled forward encouraged, and the next ten minutes the match itself took a back seat to a new, unexpected optimism. Can we? Could we?

Surely not?

We can’t. We couldn’t.

Of course not. Ten minutes later, Roman Pavlyuchenko scored the equal-

other European defeat, our collective morale was unharmed. But who could complain, knowing how close Rovers had been to nothing just a few years back?

After the final whistle, the few thousand Hoops that had made the journey had much to be proud of: a performance that was surprisingly competent in comparison to the opposition, and moreover a display of support that will live long in our memories and, hopefully, in the memories of Tottenham fans too.

Indeed, on the bus back to our hotel one devoted Spurs gentleman told us how impressed he was.

Amazing though it would have been to win, I doubt many Rovers supporters would have traded three points for a night of si-

the Premiership’s devastatingly high wages and multi million pound sponsorships, an Irish team making a name for themselves abroad on a shoestring budget should encourage more interest in the League of Ireland.

After all, who isn’t a little bit tired of the Premier League’s prima donnas and greed? Ask yourself this, what’s more admirable? Carlos Tevez, refusing to do the job he’s paid in excess of £150,000 per week to do, or another of Rovers’ European heroes and a UCD graduate, Pat Sullivan, who has to supplement the minimal wage he earns playing football by working another job. If you have to think about it, you’ve probably lost sight of what the game is all about.

The Women’s first team were also in Irish Senior Cup action down in Cork as they had the task of taking on Cork Harlequins. They too advanced to the next round as they ran out 4-0 winners on Saturday.

The game was a tight affair as neither team could find a goal before half time. It wasn’t until the 40th minute that UCD scored the game’s first goal. Chloe Watkins scored that one before three of the fourteen newcomers to the line-up this season, Anna O’Flanagan, Nicola Gray and Deirdre Duke all scored to late to put the game beyond reach.

They have been drawn against the Catholic Institute in the second round of the cup to be played on the 12th of November.

Soccer UCD’s under 19 team had a 3-1 win against St. Pats in Richmond Park on Wednesday. Two first half goals from Robbie Murray and Dean Clarke gave UCD the lead against the side currently sitting joint first in the league.

Pats managed to draw one back having missed a penalty earlier in the game but College managed to put the game beyond doubt with a Ross King goal after he was picked out by a Glen Trainor through ball.

18 18 SPORT

sport@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

Ireland’s Euro Vision Seán Grennan looks ahead to the climax of Ireland’s Euro 2012 qualification campaign.

F

ollowing Ireland’s loss to Wales in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday morning, qualification for next year’s UEFA European Championship would be exactly what is needed to cheer up a forlorn nation. And that’s what Giovanni Trapattoni’s men aim to do on Tuesday night when they face Armenia in their final game in Group B. There is a lot of worry surrounding Robbie Keane’s fitness going into the clash with Armenia but the general feeling is that Shane Long should be able to come in and lead the front line alongside Kevin Doyle. Richard Dunne should return following his one-match suspension against Armenia on Friday evening.

Mathematically, Ireland can still gain automatic qualification. Of course, they have to beat Armenia and Andorra would have to pull off a major shock in beating

group-toppers Russia. If this does not happen, then a point in Lansdowne Road on Tuesday night would be enough to secure a play-off place and a chance to get their record in play-off games back on track.

Of course, the last one ended in heartbreak with that famous handball in Paris nearly two years ago.

Beating Iran in 2001 and qualifying for the 2002 World Cup was massive.

There was a buzz and excitement around Irish football that hasn’t been seen since.

The country’s football fans (and pubs) went into overdrive. Just the thought that they were in with a chance to play against the top teams in the world was enough.

People really got behind the team, with bunting flags and banners decorating the whole length of streets.

But before we get our hopes up, we have the challenge of getting a point from a resilient Armenia side, as

Kevin Doyle explains; “We cannot take anything for granted, Armenia have had a great run” he said, “they made it very difficult for us in their place when we won 1-0 and we would be happy with that again”. His teammate Aiden McGeady agrees: “We beat Armenia first time out but they are on a good run and it has turned a little now. It will be a close game and one we are going to have to take points from.”

Last Friday’s 2-0 victory in Andorra was in fact thanks to both Doyle and McGeady, who both found the net. Ireland carved out a convincing victory and set themselves up for tonight’s game. They will be hoping that a strong Lansdowne Road crowd will help them secure qualification, whether it is by qualification for a play-off tie or through automatic qualification, depending on how the Russians fare against Andorra. But when you look at the

stats, they actually make for good reading. For example, Ireland has now managed to play 720 minutes of football without conceding one goal.

If the midfield and forwards can match their defensive

counterparts, then Ireland will be looking to win well and give themselves plenty of confidence going into a play-off tie.

A place in Poland and Ukraine next year will hinge

on tonight’s game. But for all the good work this campaign, it would become worthless if Ireland can’t secure at least a point.

Down the Line PATRICK FLEMING

I

n bleary, sleepy-eyed depression a nation of zombies went about its business Saturday. The bright sunshine and brisk autumn breeze did little to waken the people from their stupor and neither could all the coffee and fried breakfasts in the world.

No, despite the people disrupting their beauty sleeps and dutifully donning the green jersey for some unnaturally early morning patriotism, it was not so much the sleeplessness that had caused the malaise. This was a sate of incredulity. The people were struck dumb by the weight of questions unanswerable, of faith rocked and the inevitable helplessness of it all.

After all, what was it that we all got out of bed at six in the morning for? Before the Irish rugby team took the “Cake Tin” field in Wellington Saturday we might have been taken in by the narratives, the fairytales and the propaganda. For

the first time in years the Sexton/O’Gara question was virtually a non-starter. To overcome partisanship that spiteful can only come about as the product of some major seismic activity.

But had this focus on Ireland’s achievements clouded our judgement in the lead up to Saturday’s game?

For instance, while the great triumphs of Ireland’s campaign were extolled with vigour, very little attention was paid to Wales’s consistency and composure in coming through the widely acknowledged “pool of death.”

What they had shown in that group, and before the World Cup, was that they had a solid and coherent game plan.

When it came down to the game on Saturday, It was most likely that solid platform that was the difference.

After all, Ireland had made it through that far more so on their wits than on any distinct game plan. Against Australia, Ireland found a momentary renaissance in their scrum and it was also the only game in which they

could find any joy with the “choke tackle.” But continuity, especially between backs and forwards, was rare. The backline was an afterthought rather than an integrated part of the team.

Wales, on the other hand, did have continuity and they did have an all encompassing game plan. They have a clear idea of how they win games.

The first two minutes of the game on Saturday went off almost like it was completely choreographed. Every Welsh player knew what he had to do and where his part in the ensemble performance came. Ireland couldn’t even muster the composure to take three points when it was given to them.

What Wales have is somewhat unique in Northern hemisphere rugby right now in that they play a brand of rugby which looks to create a system whereby backs and forwards complement each other. It is a game that is not too dissimilar to New Zealand. In fact Wales probably have more balance, in that they will play territory

when it suits, like they did for much of the second half on Saturday.

But Wales are not the

most talented team in this tournament. They are not more talented than Ireland.

The key is tactics. Wales de-

served to win Saturday and they deserve a final appearance for playing the game the right way.

sport@collegetribune.ie

COLLEGE TRIBUNE 11th October 2011

Neptune Sinks College

PATRICK FLEMING

UCD Marian -75 Neptune - 85

U

CD Marian hosted Neptune of Cork in their first home game of the Superleague season on Saturday evening and although they matched Neptune for most of the game, the Leesiders held their composure to finish out the game 85-75 victors.

The lively crowd were provided plenty of entertainment during the opening quarter as both sides found joy going forward. The high tempo led to a score of 18-24 in favour of the Corkonians.

A pattern was beginning to emerge as College had a lot of success in disrupting Neptune around the basket and off of rebounds. As a result, they had some of their best success on offense in picking up the scraps and scoring on the fast break.

Niall Meany, Daniel James and Conor Meany all created scores through intricate passing and incisive moves into the key for layups.

Neptune continued to create scores despite UCD’s defence as the American

Ron Thompson used his power and stature to keep the scoreboard ticking over, while Phillip Taylor was proving lethal from distance as he sank three pointer after three pointer. The result was Neptune moving out to a nine point lead early in the second quarter.

The momentum shifted in favour of College however after Ron Thompson left the court and so did the influence he had on the Neptune offense. UCD took their chance and good scores from last year’s top Irish scorer in the league, Kevin Foley saw the margin draw close. With the half drawing to its end and with the reintroduction of Thompson, UCD brought the game to within three as new American signing, Donnie Stith, drove to the post and in scoring the layup, drew the foul. With the free throw the sides were 39-42 in favour of the Cork side at half time.

UCD continued their good play after the break as they took the lead. The theme of strong defence followed by clinical breaks kept them scoring. Phillip Taylor continued to sink three pointers for the visitors though and throughout the third quarter the sides traded the lead.

SPORT

19

One such change in the lead came from an emphatic Donnie Stith dunk which roused the home crowd.

The pace somewhat lessened as the quarter went on though. UCD, perhaps suffering from fatigue, weren’t quite able to generate the fast break as easily as before and the offense was getting bogged down. The defence remained as strong as ever and at the end of the third Neptune held a two point lead.

Early scores from Thompson and Gary Walsh meant Neptune were able to pull away but a nice three point effort from Conor James kept UCD in contention. As the final period continued Neptune started to dominate but missed free throws were costing them. A confrontation broke out as Thompson took exception to a Cathal Finn foul and the result of two free throws to the American was met with dismay by the UCD team. But the game in general was beginning to slip out of College’s hands anyway.

Late valiant efforts from Conor Meany and Dan James weren’t enough to turn the tide and the game finished with Neptune running out 85-75 winners.

Basketball star James talks sense UCD Marian starlet Daniel James speaks to Conall Devlin about the upcoming basketball season as the team look to build on last year’s National Cup success and a solid campaign in the Superleague.

1. How do you feel the team is shaping up this year?

I can do my bit to help that’s the main goal.

The team’s shaping up like we could really compete for both the league and cup. In our pre-season we’ve won two tournaments and beaten the likes of Killester, DCU Saints, UL, and Neptune.

We go into our first game of the season looking for our tenth win in a row.

4. What do you feel are Marian’s strengths and weaknesses as a team?

2. What impact do you think new American recruit Donnie Stith will have?

Donnie’s a big presence at both ends, he’ll discourage players getting to the ring with his shot blocking ability and he’ll get both offensive and defensive rebounds as well as contributing to the scoring.

3. Do you have any individual goals for the new season?

Eh, well to be honest if I can continue the way I’ve been playing in the last two years and continue to get better I’ll be happy. The success of the team comes first so once

Our main strength is probably the depth of our squad, we’ve 12 guys who can come in and do a job when called upon. We’ve focused on our defense a lot in preseason and we’ve been seeing the results so far in our wins so hopefully we can keep that up. We’ve got into a habit of closing out close games too which is something that we haven’t always been able to do. As far as weaknesses go, the only thing that can cause us problems is if we come out of the offence and lose our shape but we’ve worked hard to get that out of our game.

5. Who would you say is your closest college/NBA player comparison? Who is your favourite college/NBA player?

Eh, tough question, I don’t know if I can compare my-

self to someone in the NBA! My favourite NBA player would be, maybe Kevin Durant or Dirk Nowitski, both great scorers and always seem to come good in the big games.

6. Are you confident that Marian can retain the National Cup and who do you believe to be the strongest teams in the Superleague this season?

I think we can win both the league and cup this year, we’ve a big 1st game in the cup, away to Limerick but a win there and we can certainly go far again. As we proved in the cup run last year anything’s possible in a knockout game.

The league is quite open, as I said we’ve beaten good teams in our preseason and if we can keep it up we should make a good run at it, but the likes of Killester Demons and UL will all be contending for it.

20

SPORT

COLLEGE TRIBUNE

sport@collegetribune.ie

11th October 2011

TRIB SPORT

UCD come out top in close encounter UCD - 23 UCC - 16

CIARAN CAREY

U

Mixed Week for UCD Soccer UCD - 2 St. Patrick’s Athletic - 1 UCD - 0 Bohemians - 2

DONAL LUCEY

O

n Monday night at the Belfield Bowl, UCD continued their brilliant form of late defeating St. Patrick’s Athletics’ 2-1 with a terrific late goal by Darren Meenan. It was the students’ third league win in a row and their fifth consecutive home win.

It was a curling effort from outside the box in the final minutes that sealed the points for the Students.

They had taken advantage of the weakened Saints side in the first half to take the lead through defender David O’ Connor but were pegged back just after the break with a David McMillan strike.

The Saints were guilty of a lack of clinical finishing due perhaps to absence of their two top scorers, Danny North and Daryl Kavanagh. They paid for it just before half time when Danny Meenan whipped in a pin point cross to find the head of David O’ Connor for the opener. Pete Mahon sent out a rejuvenated team in the second half however and some great build up play led to David McMillan equalizing from close range. But it was the inform Students that finished

the strongest and were rewarded when Paul O’ Connor found Meenan on the edge of the box. He had the presence of mind to take a step in and curl a fantastic strike into the top corner, leaving the Saints’ keeper Gary Rogers helpless.

UCD boss Martin Russell would have looked for his side to take their form into Saturday night’s game against Bohemians. But unfortunately his side never showed up and failed to produce any real goal scoring opportunities. Goals from Christy Fagan and Keith Buckley secured a comfortable win for Bohemians at Dalymount Park. But in truth it could have been a lot more as Bohemians peppered

McGinley’s UCD goal, hitting the bar, having a ball cleared off the line, a goal disallowed and even missing penalty in the closing minutes.

After a great win Monday night, it was a disappointing end to UCD’s run of good form. With Bohemians squandering chance after chance, it was a shame the students could never really get a foothold in the game.

UCD could still have a big say in where the championship goes as they have games against Sligo Rovers and Shamrock Rovers to come.

Martin Russell will be hoping that his players will relish the challenge of facing the title contenders and recapture their recent good form.

CD fought well against both strong opponent and a stronger wind to secure a 7 point victory against UCC. Good performances across the squad and a sensational two try individual display from Sam Coughlin Murray gave UCD the edge on the day.

Coughlin Murray provided the standout moment of the game when, in the twelfth minute of the second half, he took off from his own ten metre line to burn past the Cork defence who looked statuesque in comparison. It was his, and UCD’s, second try of the match and was the score that proved to be the difference between the teams at the game’s end.

The fixture’s beginning was tentative affair with both sides slowly feeling their way into the match, conscious not to take risks in their own half which lead to the game being played between the 22s.

UCD grew into the game with time and by the tenth minute were looking the better side dominating possession, if not in the most dangerous of pitch positions.

The opening score ghteenth minute with the move stating from possession secured by Shane Grannell’s lineout catch. The ball was spread quickly to the far sideline where Coughlin Murray had the pace to beat his man on the outside, the skill to chip over the covering defenders and the composure to ground the ball for a tr y. Niall Earls converted to give a seven point lead.

As is so often the case in sport, once UCD had scored, the opposition immediately

stepped up their performance. Cork began to own the ball and finally entered UCD’s 22 after 25 minutes.

After two quickly taken penalties their third brought them into a kicking position where outhalf Brian Kingston narrowed UCD’s lead to four.

Not content with simply closing the gap, UCC kept up their momentum and crossed the try line four minutes later.

Flanker Willie Ryan, receiving the possession from quick ruck ball, broke down the left wing passing inside just before being hit hard.

The pass went to ground but number eight Brian O’Callaghan had the wherewithal to kick it on touching it down beside the posts.

This meant a simple conversion for Kinston and a lead of three for the Cork side.

UCD then came back into the game through the boot of Earls. He levelled matters in the 33rd minute with a penalty 20m from goal and five minutes after that he gave UCD the lead from half way.

The second half was quite even with UCD having more possession but Cork better territory. Except for Coughlin Murray’s try neither defence looked like opening.

Two kicks from Kinston either side of one by UCD sub James Thornton brought UCC within seven but Collidge held on for a deserved victory.

Michael Twomey, Sam Coughlin Murray, Andy Cummiskey (capt.), David Lynch, Tom Fletcher, Niall Earls, Rob Shanley, Kieran Moloney, Neill Foley, Brian Hall, Brian Cawley, Mark Flanagan, Keelan McKenna, Danny Kenny