The Founder - Volume 6, Issue 6

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SURHUL: From behind padded doors by Ashley Coates

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Julia’s list of books we should all be ashamed of, yet somehow aren’t...

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Volume 6 | Issue 6 Wednesday 14 March 2012 thefounder.co.uk

the independent student newspaper of royal holloway, university of london

Live DJ Set

Edith Bowman

Liquid Windsor - www.facebook.com/fuzzylogicwindsor

Insanity launches on 103.2 FM

David Bowman, Ashley Coates & Sarah Honeycombe Five years after applying, Insanity Radio has successfully moved to 103.2FM. Following an application submitted by former Station Manager Joe Friel, Insanity was successfully awarded a Community FM

licence in February 2010.

Following two years of upgrades undertaken by the station, begun by former Station Manager Charlie Pagliero (2010-2011), Insanity had its frequency cleared in November 2011, though suffered a set back in January 2012 when the Station Manager, Gunanika Singh resigned, covered by The Founder in our last issue.

The launch week, which ran from 5th March to the 10th, held its most high profile event on Wednesday 7th March in the Students’ Union, where Station Manager David Lamb and Students’ Union Vice President (Communications and Campaigns), Sarah Honeycombe, last year’s Assistant Station Manager, took part in the live countdown to the FM switchover from the main stage at

the Station’s space-themed launch party at midnight.

Retweeted by both Stephen Fry and Royal Holloway alumni Robin Ince, Insanity Radio caught high profile support in the lead up to their launch week, including that of Capital drivetime presenter and Insanity founder Rich Clarke.

With over 150 presenters and a schedule encompassing everything

Music

Features

Best of...

Harun Musho’d interviews Andrew ‘Whitey’ White of the Kaiser Chiefs

In the Land of Golden Pagodas, Carolin Goethel on Myanmar and her experiences

...the tweets from our very own, @SURHUL_Pres

8»

17»

HARBEN LETS your oldest and largest private landlord www.harbenlets.co.uk 07973 224125

from new music to musicals, Insanity are attempting to create a wideranging schedule that will now include local students and young people following the move to Community FM. The culmination of Insanity’s launch week saw the election of Station Manager Phillip Nutter and Assistant Station Manager Angus Wyatt.

23»

HL

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The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

The Founder The Independent Student Newspaper of Royal Holloway, University of London Email: editor@thefounder.co.uk

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tf editorial team Editor-in-Chief Jack Lenox Editors Ashley Coates & David Bowman

News Editor Jessica Phillipson Comment Editor Toby Fuller Features Editor Felicity (Fizz) King Film Editor Nathaniel Horne Arts Editor Julia Armfield Music Editor Harun Musho’d

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The Founder is the independent student newspaper of Royal Holloway, University of London. We distribute at least 4,000 free copies every fortnight during term time around campus and to popular student venues in and around Egham.

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Cambridge students sell drugs to fund studies

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ULU Elections Lydia Mahon In the recent ULU elections, both Royal Holloway candidates Daniel Lemberger Cooper and Craig Gent were successfully elected. Gent is appointed as ULU Student Trustee, whilst Cooper is Vice President of the organisation. Cooper gained more votes than any other candidate in the election, exceeding those for uncontended presidential candidate Sean Rillo Raczka.

Both ULU and Royal Holloway are renowned for political inactivity, but Cooper’s motivated left-wing manifesto has shaken student politics. Until 2010, ULU was engaged in no political campaigning, but in the current political climate, with government cuts and increased tuition fees, students sincerely need representation. Speaking to Solidarity, Cooper advises: “the transformation of students’ unions into combative bodies”.

As president of Royal Holloway’s Student Union, Cooper organised an anti-cuts campaign involving a forty-eight hour occupation of the Principal’s corridor on 23rd November 2011. Despite formally being widely regarded as a rightwing environment, the left-wing representative of Alliance for Workers’ Liberty has roused the

reational use. One undergraduate noted that the results weren’t surprising, stating: “many students use One in every seven students from drugs as a way to relax and comthe University of Cambridge deal pletely disconnect” when faced with drugs in order to help towards their the high-stress environment seen expenses, according to a survey at the university. Another student sample of 434 students led by stureiterated this, saying that they had dent newspaper, Varsity. turned to drugs in order to manage opinion: “If it can be done at Royal the elections three hours prior to The results revealed that twothe stress from heavy workloads.

Holloway, it can be done anywhere”. the start of voting. Drummond thirds of students admit to taking “It’s hard to juggle a job and Cooper says: “Royal Holloway has maintained that a third candidate, drugs whilst at university, with studying at Cambridge, so dealing a long history of political inertia, Ross Speer, was the “best placed is a quick and easy way for them apathy and students that commend candidate to keep a commitment to the most popular substance being pedestrian values. This is certainly anti-war, pro-Palestinian, and anti- cannabis. Many have also turned to to make cash to pay for the fees”, a selling drugs in order to pay their Kings College student commented changing”. fascist activism central to ULU’s way through their education. One when considering the reasons As Vice-President, Cooper campaigning”. In a subsequent intends to boost ULU’s solidarquarter of students claimed to have behind the results. Another understatement, Drummond attacked graduate claimed that the “relative ity with the whole of London and the AWL as fascist and Islamapho- snorted cocaine at some point, affluence of Cambridge students” open up the federation to all of the bic. He warned against voting for as the survey revealed it to be the could also provide an understandcity’s colleges and universities, as most used Class A substance, with Cooper: “this is no time to entrust well as employees of these instiULU’s campaigning to someone fol- 14% of those students having need- ing of the vast drug consumption seen. The results have provided tutes. Cooper plans to structure ed medical attention or visited a lowing such a dismal and dangerULU around the “backbone” of the ous political line”. It is thought that hospital due to this. Many students a blow to Cambridge, which was labelled as the best university in the city, so that the organisation can claimed that the drug was more this action from Socialist Workers world in the QS World University “use its weight to get what London Party (SWP) organisers was in rewidely used at Cambridge than at Rankings last year. In response, students need.” Cooper says: “We sponse to the large body of support any other university to which they understand and seek to push the had been. One-third of Cambridge a spokesman for the university Cooper gained from SWP student importance of workers and students activists. Speer’s campaign focused students also admitted to knowing claimed: “There is no indication one or more of their friends with a of the validity of this survey, but linking up. Unity is strength, non?” heavily on issues of Israel and Pal“serious drug problem”, and almost clearly the university doesn’t conULU Vice-President Candiestine with the unfortunate consedone dealing in illegal substances.” date and opponent to Cooper, quence that Cooper’s campaign was two in five students claimed they used prescription drugs for recIan Drummond, withdrew from wrongly accused of Islamaphobia.

Ramona Saigol

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We look forward to receiving your application. We will be holding interviews on Monday 19th March 2012 between 2pm and 5pm at the Gower and Wedderburn Common Room at RHUL.

4

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

News

NUS executive resigns over sex simulation controversy Rosie Pentreath A photograph recently circulated the internet showing a woman kneeling directly in front of a man. She imitated a sexual act. He simultaneously ‘downed’ a pint.

At first glance this is typical of a student night out and the inevitable Facebook posts that follow. But in this situation a position of authority was compromised. The woman was a student. The man was President of Aberystwyth Guild of Students and member of the executive committee of the National Union of Students (Wales).

The 21-year old student representative, Ben Meakin, consequently resigned from his position in the NUS executive committee.

NUS Wales President, Luke Young, highlighted the inappropriate nature of Meakin’s involvement in such an act, stating: “His actions have shown a serious lack of sound judgement. This is unacceptable for a member of the NUS Wales executive and is why I asked him to resign.”

In a formal statement, Meakin spoke of his ‘regret’ over the incident: “I sincerely regret my participation in the social event held outside the Guild...I compromised

‘I have more pressing matters, I doth protest!’

Jessica Phillipson Despite the fact that no such support has ever been discussed at Royal Holloway’s General Meetings, the university’s name has been used on a petition supporting Birmingham University’s occupation.

Over one hundred students occupied Birmingham University’s corporate conference centre in protest at the injunction banning occupations and stationary protests at the university. Their demands included

the abandonment of the injunction and no repercussions for students involved in the occupation.

SURHUL President, Dan Lemberger-Cooper, attended the protests at Birmingham University, despite not taking any leave from service to Royal Holloway. In addition, he announced his attendance at two meetings with the College – one with the Estates Management Committee and another with College Finance – on the same day as the Birmingham visit, despite not actually attending.

Want to write for The Founder? Just get in touch!

my role as Guild president. This morning [Tuesday 28th February], I resigned as a member of the NUS Wales national executive committee. My actions go against the fantastic work of the women’s liberation movement, which I fully support. Personally, I am a strong advocate for the women’s movement. This is clear through my work banning the event Carnage coming to the Guild this year. I have learned from this experience and plan to carry on my work here at Aberystwyth University.”

Opinions on the incident are inevitably divided. Many see Meakin’s participation in the game as hypo-

critical and sexist considering his role in the NUS and his stance on the rights of women. Others are less critical of the Guild president, recognising the informal setting and light-hearted nature of the act. It is a dilemma. Meakin holds a position of authority and of course should act with appropriate responsibly, even whilst on a night out. But he is unavoidably part of a liberal student culture in which such acts are more-often-than-not carried out in good humour. Meakin has shown fellow students respect by resigning his post in the NUS, as well as issuing a formal apology.

The incident demonstrates that

issues regarding sexism and sexual exploitation are extremely prevalent, and should never be treated lightly. NUS Wales Women’s Officer, Stephanie Lloyd, spoke against sexism on campus, stating: “We must do everything we can to fight against it. Whilst Ben has joined our movement in the past, his recent actions are unacceptable.”

Furthermore, the importance of projecting an image appropriate to a chosen role or position of authority can never be emphasised enough.

Britain’s premier student newspaper is looking for a new team.

We’re opening up the following positions to all the students at Royal Holloway.

Could you be the next…

»Editor »Sub-Editor »Designer (training provided) »Business Manager »News Editor »Sports Editor »Film Editor »Music Editor »Arts Editor Please apply to: editor@thefounder.co.uk

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No democracy is required, just write to us explaining why you want the position, plus an example of your writing, and we will arrange an interview.

5

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

Students muck in for the Big Spring Clean Royal Holloway students were out in force this week as part of the annual Big Spring Clean.

More than 100 volunteers took part in the projects, including clearing litter, painting school classrooms and sprucing up gardens in Egham, Englefield Green, and neighbouring villages. This Big Spring Clean was the sixth of its kind at Royal Holloway and coincides yearly with national Student Volunteering Week.

Sports and Societies were keen to get involved, with several teams putting their skills to good use. The Women’s Football team tidied up the gardens at St Cuthbert’s Primary School in Englefield Green, whilst the Bio Sciences Society were kept busy cleaning the basketball pitch at Egham Community Action Assistant Youth Centre, as well as painting walls, Volunteer Manager, Beth Rowly, said: planting seeds, and generally lending “Once again our students have come a helping hand. out in force for the annual Big Spring

Clean and have been busy working in schools, community centres, and youth centres to make the local area a better place for everyone.”

The Big Spring Clean wasn’t the only latest volunteering celebration. The Volunteering England Gold Awards were also recently presented to five current Royal Holloway students.

The recognition comes after their dedication to volunteering in the local community. Jaanki Bhojani, Will Clark, Sophie Crockett, Jade Kearney and Olivia Davis all received VE Gold Awards.

Phil Simcock, Community Action Volunteer Manager, said: “Royal Holloway’s volunteers are active all year round from summer to Christmas projects, as individual volunteers with charities and community organisations to project teams within the local community, and getting involved with one-off events. It is good to stop for a moment and celebrate with our community partners all that is being achieved with the help of the student volunteers.”

Coping with exam stress Helen Groenendaal Many students will be starting to feel anxious about the upcoming examination term and the pressures this can bring, so it’s a useful time to remind you of the support that is available to help you in the lead up to, and during, exams.

The Student Counselling team has lots of fantastic advice about exams at www.rhul.ac.uk/forstudents/support/ counselling/commonproblemslinkpages/examhelp.aspx. This looks at helping you with key questions such

as what to revise, planning revision, how to revise, testing yourself, maintaining a balanced lifestyle during this time, and how to prepare for and sit an exam.

Exam stress affects everyone but to varying degrees. Don’t forget it is healthy to be worried about your performance in exams – if you are not concerned you are not likely to perform at your best – but it is important to be able to deal with this worry effectively. If you find yourself getting stressed in an exam it might be helpful to put into practice a quick relaxation

technique to refocus your attention.

The time you spend doing this will pay back dividends with increased performance through the remainder of the exam – the worst thing you can do is ‘freeze’ with panic. If you need to refocus stop writing, put down your pen, shut your eyes and say (not out loud!) ‘Stop’. Then breathe in and hold for breath for a moment before slowly exhaling whilst relaxing your shoulders and hands. Pause for a moment, as you breathe in slowly, relaxing your facial muscles. Stay quiet for a few moments, blocking out the rest of the

Have your say - the National Student Survey 2012 The National Student Survey (NSS) 2012 is well under way at Royal Holloway.

The NSS is an annual survey of undergraduates, mostly final year, in the United Kingdom. It invites their opinions on what they liked about their learning experience as well as things that they felt could have been improved. An independent research company, Ipsos MORI, conducts the survey from January-April, and the questions allow space for feedback

on a range of topics. These include academic support and the organisation and management of your course, with space to write any positive or negative comments you may have. All responses are anonymous and results are made publicly available to help prospective students make informed decisions about where and what to study.

Universities and Student’s Unions also use the feedback to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in order

room and get on with the exam, not hurrying things. In addition the exam techniques resource in Moodle contains short videos, tips, materials, a revision planner and much more. You can also find an exam skills module in skills4studycampus.

The whole of Support & Advisory Services are here to help with any aspects of exam worry that you may encounter - please do get in touch so we can help you.

Email SupportAndAdvisory@rhul. ac.uk or call 01784 443394.

will make a difference. It may also be worth your while as Royal Holloway is offering four Summer Ball tickets for to help bring about improvements to completing the survey. The first and the student experience for future gen- second winner have been drawn, Feberations. At Royal Holloway a range of ruary’s winner going to a Psychology innovations and improvements have student. However, there are still two recently been implemented, including more opportunities for you to win. To extending student study spaces in the enter, print your confirmation email off library, improving IT facilities and the and drop it in the NSS ballot box, loquality of teaching rooms, refurbishing cated in the Students’ Union reception the Students’ Union, and extending or forward your email confirmation to the graduate employability schemes. studentcomms@rhul.ac.uk.

The success of the NSS depends on You can also complete the survey your feedback, so please set aside a online or via your smartphone at www. few minutes to get involved as it really thestudentsurvey.com.

6

Debate & SURHUL: From

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

tf Comment

T

he last days of the Pearson presidency were not a pretty sight.

The General Meetings were hilarious but they were out of control. One of the most enjoyable was the AGM, where a group of nutters got to vote on what the Students’ Union spends its money on. This practice should end immediately. The people that turn up to SURHUL’s GMs are in no way qualified to vote on the SU’s budget. Not that many people turned up at all. Voting was repeatedly delayed because someone had gone to the loo, meaning that there was not enough people in the room for the vote to count. I had to leave early (midnight) and as I left the Union Chair shouted after me from outside what is now Rialto as my leaving was bringing the meeting dangerously close to quoracy. A beleaguered Rachel Pearson, whose time in office was hopelessly distracted by the AntiCuts Alliance, attempted to tell the GM-attendees that the SU had been running a £90,000/year deficit in the year 2010/11 and that they were now trying to resolve this by making cuts to the budget. It was like watching one of those parish council meetings in the Vicar of Dibley where Dawn French tries to explain something to the other villagers. She was besieged by madness, suddenly Rachel Pearson had been transformed into the evil lovechild of Paul Layzell and David Cameron. Fiscal responsibility at SURHUL! But that is surely the cause of evil!

Ironically, given its selfproclaimed anti-snob agenda, SURHUL’s problems are actually very similar to that of a private members’ club. A guaranteed income results in endemic managerial sloppiness and a partially elected management results in some bizarre people getting elected.

By managerial sloppiness I am referring to the £11,000 of stock lost in just 6 weeks of trading last year, setting up a relationship with the SU’s web designers that cost £1,293 per month (over £15,000/year) and ordering an iPad for the SU’s lettings manager before the position had even been listed, amongst a range of other issues. I don’t know what was a greater demonstration of idiocy, “loosing” the £11,000 of stock in the first place or issuing a memo to everyone working at the SU telling them not to tell anyone else what had happened. The memo itself reinforces the enormity of the problem: ‘To put the size of this deficit in perspective it is equiva-

behind padded doors Ashley Coates argues for meritocracy over democracy at the Students’ Union lent to us having given away free of charge every drink, ticket (advance and door) and piece of food served last Friday, day and night, at all venues.’ What is perhaps more irritating than anything else is that an organisation with a proven track-record of managerial incompetence avoids the sort of criticism the Senior Management Team receives simply because it does not stand in the way of the inane and deluded agenda of the extreme left at RHUL, probably because the SU has ordained them with titles and/ or salaries.

I have a suggestion as to how SURHUL can reduce its spending: don’t allocate £37,000 per year to membership of the NUS. You could buy a brand new M Sport version of the BMW 528i every year and still have money left over for some optional extras. It is a stunning amount of money to give an organisation that has proven itself to be so useless. During the one moment in recent times when it could have actually helped students during a really important campaign, the tuition fees protest, the NUS was hesitant and half-hearted. Its leadership consists of slightly odd and self interested career politicians, resisting getting a normal job for as long as possible because they know they are not suited to the normal world.

We have heard a lot this year about increasing student involvement in the running of the college.

I believe the college needs to be more open about what it is up to, I find the level of secrecy actually quite strange given how open other schools and universities are. However, I do think that having student reps and two SU members (the President and the Union Chair) on the College Council should be the furthest extent of student involvement in the college. Look at how they run the SU. Easily one of the most dysfunctional organisations I have ever had to work with in my life. The idea that the very

on how well they have performed at the university as well as the extent of their involvement in Student Union activities. They should be the former Insanity Radio Station Managers, Orbital Editors and RAG Chairs, people who have proven same people who run the Students’ themselves capable of putting the time and effort into working hard Union should be allowed greater for the SU and actually turning out access to the management of the to be good at it. I do not buy the university itself should be extinargument that the election is some guished forever. It would be like a sort of cultural contribution to life bull in a china shop. It would be like letting Jeremy Clarkson run an at the college because it is not, most outreach programme for Mexicans. students find the elections irritating.

I also resent a blatant attempt at One of the inevitable problems power-grapping being masked as with a popularity contest is that you an exercise in widening equality are voting in the people who have because of course it is only the sespent a disproportionate amount lect few that would become “more equal”. Moreover, the SU, who told of time socialising and not enough me not too long ago that the selec- time doing the things that would make them good at what is a largely tion process for the ratification of administrative job. They should societies was “closed business” is hardly the most open organisation have spent their time at RHUL in the world either. All its amusing belligerently dealing with Student problems are generally discussed in Activities, getting to grips with budgets, trying to install an FM hushed tones amongst the evermast, or lobbying the college. This decreasing group of students that should come naturally to them. take any interest in it.

Instead you end up with people Rather than increasing student who I know are sitting on Facebook involvement in the college, I think during their office hours because I we need more college interference in the Students’ Union. The SU gets can see them on Facebook chat. I am referring to no-one in particular roughly £600,000 a year from the and I am happy to provide a lengthy college and is run out of its propdisclaimer by email. I would also erty. As such, it should be treated like the ailing subsidiary of a larger like to stress at this stage that I am aware of the SU’s many triumphs, business. The Sabbatical Officers for example, the under-reported should not be elected. CVs and a cover letter should be handed in to news of £41,000-plus being raised

by RAG last year but this is a small the Vice Principal (Students and paper and I must restrict myself to Staff), Geoff Ward. Then they get its problems for this article. interviewed and chosen by comManchester’s Fuse FM selects mittee. There could be a democratic element but it should be like one of their board through CVs and interthose democracies where the result views and I believe it is that – and a bigger budget – that has meant the is ignored. The Sabbatical Officers station has avoided the ups-andCommittee would be given access downs Insanity has experienced to the candidates’ full academic over the last few years. Putting the record, as well as their record for unexplained attendance. References FM issues aside, Insanity Radio from previous employers as well as has repeatedly suffered from board their academic departments would members simply giving up on their jobs whilst no-doubt putting the be required just like any other job. position on their CV. The candidates should be assessed

‘The SU needs to stop acting as if it were a country’

...section continued on page 19

The eventual decision not to reduce The Orbital’s budget for 2011/12 by £1000 has turned out to be a good idea but based on its previous performance you can see why the outgoing Sabbs thought it needed its wings clipped. The year I got here it bankrupted itself (see “Orbitoil”, The Founder, 2010).

The problem with elections is that you get a more-or-less total staff turnover each year, resulting in inexperienced and often incompetent people getting the job. Getting a good board is a bit like the summer equinox, where every now and then chance would have it that everything aligns perfectly and the paper, radio, club, or society, is actually run properly but it is rare. Sadly I think that acquiring a title is quite often treated as an aim in itself, which is bizarre because it hardly infers any measure of real status in the world outside of SURHUL. The SU needs to stop acting as if it were a country. It is a small Surrey entertainments venue, not the UN General Assembly. It does not need to elect everyone or propose motions on Palestine or Dale Farm.

That sort of behaviour should be restricted to the Model United Nations group and PSHE lessons.

The world’s problems are not going to be solved with poetry readings, the SU needs a serious campaigns budget, it should not be up to the President to secure funding. In the main, from what little I know, the SU has spent too little on constructive student activities Insanity Radio (£4000 per year), the Orbital (£7000 per year), campaigns (£3000 per year) and too much on the NUS and the SU website. Insanity Radio, easily one of the most popular co-curricular activities on campus has received one third of the funds allocated towards the SU’s terrible website. Fortunately, the era of high website costs is coming to an end thanks to the belligerency of Sarah Honeycombe but the SU’s site has cost roughly £15,000 per year for at least three years. How on Earth was this allowed to happen?!

To summarise, there is an endemic operational peculiarity to the Students’ Union, some of which is on display and well known, but most is hidden from view. The solution, to adopt the SU’s mantra is to “Get Involved!!!” because “it’s your SU!!!” but I must leave the issue of participation for another time.

In the next instalment: student politicians and the 3-year vacation in cloud cuckoo land – is the university experience giving us a deranged worldview? Find out in our Summer Edition.

EXTRA

Inside:

Kaiser Chiefs

Music editor Harun Musho’d interviews guitarist Andrew ‘Whitey’ White.

8

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

EXTRA

Interview: Kaiser Chiefs Harun Musho’d Music Editor

Guitarist Andrew White, or Whitey, who I am meeting backstage at the HMV Hammersmith Apollo, is slightly older than the rest of the Kaiser Chiefs and the last to join the band. It seemed a typical band-formation story: a group of friends form a band, but can’t play properly and so recruit a proper musician to give them some credibility.

As Whitey put it, “Nick [Hodgson – drummer and main songwriter] just came up to me said, ‘Would you like to be in a band.’ I said, ‘Yeah sure.’ ‘Good. Can you play guitar?’ ‘Yes.’ “But I couldn’t really,” added Whitey drily. So much for that theory.

The Kaiser Chiefs went through a number of incarnations. In 2003 they released an album while under the name Parva, called 22, but it didn’t do well and the band were dropped by their record label.

“We were tainted, people wouldn’t even come and see us,” says Whitey. “So we changed our look and scrapped every single song and started afresh. We wrote ‘Oh My God!’ which was, as far as

album, released in 2008, Off With Their Heads, only managed 10% of the two million sales of their debut.

“We’d been touring for six years and we’d been doing the same thing. We were releasing albums like any other band – six months before, you’re in the studio recording it, and by the time it comes out you’re bored ... or at least we’re bored. We needed a shot in the arm to rejuvenate us because we were tired.”

The band decided to take a break.

In 2010 lead singer Ricky Wilson came up with the idea of fans assembling their own album. According to Whitey it worked like this: “We wrote 20 songs. Fans could go to our website, choose which 10 songs they wanted, put them in any order, and create their own artwork because each song came with its own piece of art. We also gave the opportunity to sell it on. Once they had created their own album, they could put their own link on Face-

Music Live review:

Somewhat oddly, when Kaiser Chiefs released the album conventionally they chose the tracks and running order themselves.

“We went for the ones that we as a band liked best. Commercially, it would have made more sense to choose the more commercial ones, but this was about choice, and this was our choice,” Whitey explained.

Having gone through the tailoring exercise I can only say that whilst the conventional release is one of the better albums from last year, my version of it is one of the best albums of 2011. “The only downfall is that there were no real singles,” said Whitey. “We weren’t writing to

“Commercially, it would have made more sense to choose the more commercial ones”

a plan, we were just writing songs.”

Whitey is wary of the Kaiser “...and by the time it Chiefs being seen as a purely comes out you’re bored, commercial phenomenon. “I read or at least we’re bored. in a newspaper our music being We needed a shot in the referred to as ‘the Kaiser Chiefs’ brand of playful indie’. That was arm...” kind of a pisser for me because we book. Every time someone bought take our songs seriously.”

“Take, for example ‘Angry Mob.’ their version of the album they You get guys that obviously read would get a pound back. It really the Star or the Sun and they believe “We were tainted, people was an amazing idea. It gave fans what they read but they’re singing, a sense of ownership over digital wouldn’t even come and music. This way people got into it, ‘We are the Angry Mob/ We are the see us,” Angry Mob/ We read the papers they looked at the artwork; had a every day/ We like what we like/ we sense of worth even though it was we were concerned in 2004, one hate …’ and they don’t get it. I don’t still a virtual thing.” of the weirdest songs we could think people are willing to look a The resulting album, The Future have written.” The resulting album, is Medieval was released, without bit deeper. Take Morrissey’s lyrics, Employment, was the second-best amazing lyrics, but you get them any pre-publicity, through the selling album of 2005 (after Coldstraight away. But with us we kind website last year, shortly before a play’s X&Y). more conventional album release of of need you to listen to them.”

Since then the band have folWill the Kaiser Chiefs release the twelve of the tracks chosen by the lowed a career trajectory common band. “We knew from the start that follow-up in the same way? “No,” to many acts – each subsequent it was never going to be a commer- said Whitey bluntly, then added, album, although doing well by most cial success, but without the idea I “we don’t even know if there is standards, sold a fraction of its going to be a new album. If there don’t think there would have been predecessor (c.f. Arctic Monkeys, an album. It was an experiment. We is, we would do it slightly more Franz Ferdinand, Kooks). The third got a lot of press.” conventionally.”

Harun Musho’d reviews Kaiser Chiefs at the HMV Hammersmith Apollo, 23/02 I last saw Kaiser Chiefs at Glastonbury in 2005. Back then, the band came across as a livelier and cheekier version of art-poppy Franz Ferdinand, with frontman Ricky Wilson pulling off a very charismatic performance. None of that materialised tonight.

The Kaiser Chiefs came on to their traditional ‘Money for Nothing’ fanfare before launching into a poor version of one of my favourite songs, ‘Every day I love you less and less’. The crowd chanted along, and I thought about what guitarist Whitey had said earlier about not wanting to be seen as just a playful indie band, with people not getting their songs. I came to the conclusion that I disagreed with him.

Kaiser Chiefs were more likely to be seen as a playful indie band if people listened to their lyrics carefully, precisely because their lyrics are clever. Their opening song was a perfect example – it reverses the classic love song by taking every cli-

chéd expression of love and inverting it. Yet the way they played it, which was noisily, just encouraged the audience to chant along to the chorus. The fact that it’s the worst sound I’ve ever heard coming out of the Hammersmith Apollo didn’t help. On top of that it just didn’t feel like the band were enjoying themselves on stage.

I’m sure for many the greatest hits setlist was welcome, but I regretted that there wasn’t more material from their last album. In fairness they did play four songs (out of a setlist of 17) either from it or from the just-released American version, but of those only the single ‘Little Shocks’ is much cop. The gig improved in the second half by focusing on their more raucous hits – ‘Angry Mob,’ ‘Ruby’, ‘I Predict a Riot,’ and predictably closing the show with ‘Oh My God,’ but I didn’t leave with a sense of satisfaction, and I suspect the band didn’t either.

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Music

Album review:

Enter Shikari A Flash Flood of Colour Harun Musho’d

It can sometimes be hard to find an album that is good, let alone one that is musically surprising, but Enter Shikari’s A Flash Flood of Colour is just that. The album is

a coalition of fast paced electronics and crushing breakdowns that flow perfectly into catchy choruses.

Whilst the band hasn’t strayed from the style of their previous albums, their music remains inventive and deserving of more credit than the creators seem to receive.

Whilst ‘Hello Tyrannosaurus, Meet Tyrannicide’ is the most interesting bass-heavy song they have ever produced, ‘Meltdown’ combines the majority of the band’s styles – exemplifying the band’s punk energy and passion. Reflective, rhythmic tracks sit next to screaming, dubstep mash-ups so comfortably to the point where the listener may ask, “Why aren’t more people making these sounds?”

Enter Shikari is one of the few bands today not afraid to release an album that strays from the lyricalnorm by exploring the troubled times in which we all currently find ourselves. At first listen you would be forgiven for thinking this is a political album as it covers everything from the polar ice-caps melting to the state”of the economy.

Listen again and instead you’ll find a strong anti-political message. According to ‘Gandhi Mate, Gandhi’, ‘We need to build a whole new system’. Will this album incite the common people to unite against the political system? …Probably not. But it would make a fantastic soundtrack to a musical revolution.

Album review:

The Shins Port of Morrow Matt La Faci

The revelation that the Portland Oregon based indie band The Shins were to release a new album, whilst not earth-shattering, did intrigue me somewhat. I was introduced to the band by Natalie Portman’s character in the film, Garden State.

Whilst sitting in a doctor’s wait-

ing room with the guy who plays JD in Scrubs, Portman’s character explains to him that the band’s song ‘New Slang’ from their debut album Oh Inverted World will ‘change your life, I swear’. A tad hyperbolic this statement may be, but the sentiments behind it are not completely unfounded as the song showcases the bands quirky pop sensibilities and remains their defining moment.

Their fourth album Port of Morrow comes with a weight of expectation as to whether Joseph Mercer can maintain this high standard of song writing. It starts off auspiciously, with both opening track ‘The Rifle’s Spiral’ and the band’s first single ‘Simple Song’ setting up a spirited and airy tone that promises an expansion into full-blown stadium pop. However, the album tails off in the middle.

The ethereal ‘September’ is quaint

but includes the unforgivable lyric ‘Love is the ink in the well/ when her body writes’. The album doesn’t really pick up until it arrives at the Beck-lite track ‘Fall of ‘82’, with the subtle post-modern nod to Bryan Adams doing nothing to diminish the claim that the band are essentially hipster-fodder. The quirkiness dial is turned up to eleven with the inclusion of a trumpet solo so brazen it would have Louis Armstrong shaking his head in disappointment.

The album floats along with some pleasant pop flourishes here and there, but the melodies are not strong enough to anchor it to your consciousness. This results in it wafting away and leaving you like a despondent toddler, bereft of the balloon you’ve clutched onto all afternoon. None of these songs will be changing Natalie Portman’s life any time soon.

Live review:

Love To Make Noise Katie Osmon If you’ve said, “there’s never any good music on campus”, you clearly weren’t at the Love To Make Noise show. With the stage set in the corner of Tommy’s Bar, a beer in my hand and a few losses on the quiz machine to my name, Wildeflower began to play their set. For an improv set, it sounded pretty streamlined. Undeterred by the loss of a tom-tom drum and a being initially marred by a few technical issues, the band jammed on. First thing to note: there’s a lot of long hair going on with this band. And second: psychedelic folk, although perhaps an odd concept, is surprisingly good!

The second act promised to kick up a proper racket in Egham town, and man did Playlounge not disappoint! They play so loud that you have to see them to believe they’re only a two-piece band. Imagine, if you will, The Subways minus the

girl and with A LOT more attitude, excitement and intensity. If you missed this, you missed out.

Simple.

Last up was Digits. Having already released his first album, Hold It Close, followed by the Lost Dream EP last year, Alt Altman is on the rise in the world of music.

Despite there not being enough room to swing a cat in the bar, his sweeping synths and electronic pop made the perfect excuse for audience dance participation. Almost like a melancholic Hot Chip (the band, not an unhappy McCains), Digits layers gloomy lyrics with synthesisers to create dance music with soul.

Tune after tune, Love To Make Noise guaranteed a killer line-up and honestly, Tommy’s Bar has never sounded so good.

NB: “Love To Make Noise is an alternative music & arts society at Royal Holloway. We put on gigs, clubnights and parties at RHUL, as well as print zines and CDs, and host a weekly radio show from our bedroom. We’re always looking for DJs, bands, illustrators and photographers to get involved - visit lovetomakenoise.tumblr.com or email lovetomakenoise@gmail.com for more information!”

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Music

Up and Coming

Vivienne Youel Live and Unsigned

Live preview: The winners will be crowned the UK’s best unsigned act. Celebrity judges involved in previous years include Noddy Holder, Shola Ama, RHUL singer-songwriter Vivienne Youel (third year English and Radio 1’s Annie Nightingale, and members of top bands such as The Drama undergraduate), and her Libertines and The Bloodhound band have got through the audiGang. tion stage of Live and Unsigned, The prizes include: £10,000 for the UK’s biggest original music development; a £10,000 publiccompetition. Vivienne will now ity investment; gigs at festivals in be competing against other bands and artists in the country at the Re- Canada, Italy and Latvia; a UK tour of up to 100 shows and a UK gional Final Showcase of Live and Unsigned 2012 in a bid to make the festival tour including guaranteed slots at Strawberry Fields Festival, Grand Final at The O2.

Brownstock, London Summer Jam, Vivienne, with drummer Adam Williams and bassist Tom Campbell and Butserfest.

You can hear Vivienne Youel (both second year music undergraduates at RHUL), battled against and her band’s music at www. soundcloud.com/vivienneyouel . hundreds of other auditioners to secure a spot in the live shows. Acts For updates on gigs and the band’s progress in the competition search that made it through the audi‘Vivienne Youel’ on Facebook, Twittions will now take part in a live Regional Final Showcase in front of ter or MySpace.

More information on the competihundreds of live spectators and Sky TV audience as part of a fly-on-the- tion itself is at www.LiveandUnwall documentary. signed.UK.com.

All the acts in the competition You can buy tickets from the are battling it out for the chance to website http://www.liveandunsigned. play at Live Fest at The O2 in July. uk.com/tickets/purchase.

Victoria McKinney

Harun Musho’d

Hotly tipped as one of the biggest upcoming bands of the year, Toy rereleased their debut single ‘Left Myself Behind’ in January of this year.

Most likely to be found somewhere in a corner of the Shacklewell Arms pub in Dalston, when they’re not performing or writing über-cool tracks, this progressive five-man band produce a sound that could only be described as psychedelic rock. Listen to them and you’d think you were listening to The Horrors. Rumours abound say that a full-length album is expected at the end of 2012. If you don’t want to wait until then head to their website where you can get your hands on two free downloads.

Brother and sister duo Natalie and Elliott Bergman are creating quite a stir. They are possibly the most exciting act to come out of the US since well, Lana Del Ray. Listen to ‘Keep You’, their debut track and you’ll feel cross-genre inspiration: a little bit of Reggae, a little bit of Moloko interspersed with Natalie’s 1960s vocals ‘Same song again and again/…Tell me what the matter is little man, I got a pretty face and I wear a nice dress’. With tour dates planned in the US, we hope to see them play more live dates in the Big Smoke soon.

Another sibling duo in the form of two sisters Hannah and Colette Thurlow bringing a little grunge onto the UK music scene. Listening to their debut single (released last year) ‘On a Wire’ you’d be forgiven for detecting a little Lush or an echo of art-rockers Warpaint.

Having just been signed to Fat Possum Records in the US (the label responsible for the Black Keys and Yuck), they’ve just announced a list of gigs Stateside as well as a bunch across the UK in April. These two are doing us Brits proud.

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Film

Review:

The Artist ence for his charm and stage tricks, tolerated by Kinograph studios and producer Al Zimmer (John Goodman) due to his enormous success.

However, with the emergence of talkies, Valentin’s silent star fades The Artist, directed by Michael and is no longer needed by the Hazanavicius, was released at a number of festivals and was the last studio, as Zimmer’s gaze turns to newcomer Peppy Miller (Berenice film to be released in cinemas in Bejo) and her stunning smile. the end of 2011, becoming one of The film with its themes and the most talked about movies of the charismatic main protagonist bear year. The irony is that it is a silent a slight resemblance to the subject film, screened in black and white. matter of Singin’ in the Rain and The story of the film takes place Gene Kelly, which is why one might in late 1920s Hollywood, where question how original it is in its silent films are still at their peak. plot and characters.

Well, maybe it’s There, George Valentin, played by not particularly innovative in the Jean Dujardin, is loved by the audi-

Zlatina Nikolova

*****

them with a rather white shark-like smile, like Valentin does to his “It goes back to the notion that dialogue is fans. It goes back to the notion that dialogue is not a necessity for the not a necessity” art of the picture house, as it can be replaced by intertitles. The film’s story department, but that is not its simple story outlines what happurpose. pens to a man who has dedicated The emphasis in The Artist is ac- himself to his career and to his art, tually not on how colour and sound and how technical innovations we improved cinematic art, supported are used to today and were once by sequences with people who can’t celebrated bring about his downfall. pronounce properly. Instead it is As if making a point about conon what cinema represented in temporary blockbusters, The Artist its dawn when it was just moving makes use of old-fashioned and images: connecting to the audience basic concepts, which used to apthrough acting, dancing and allur- peal to audiences in the beginning ing behaviour, including flashing of the 20th century such as charm-

ing characters, music and – well, is there anyone who doesn’t like Uggy (the principal dog actor who played the role of Valentin’s constant companion)?

Going back to the silent era, The Artist implies that a film doesn’t need flashy special effects, big budgets and complicated storylines to entertain us. It just needs simplicity. Nevertheless, it is this simplicity that places it at a disadvantage, as modern-day audiences are used to being presented with a film’s entire world instead of actively engaging with it and understanding its gags in order to enjoy it.

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G

osh but isn’t that Piccadilly Waterstones big? It seems to start about two minutes after you turn left out of Regent Street and just goes on and on. I note this only in passing, really, and mainly because it was one of the two things that primarily came to occupy my mind last week when I dropped in after work on what I assumed would be a simple enough quest to find something new to read. Unfortunately, the other main thing that came to occupy my mind after a good forty-five minutes of increasingly bewildered trawling (interspersed at fifteen minute intervals with selfgranted compassionate leave to beat my head against bookcases, rend my hair and weep) was that there really is an awful lot of crap about.

You cannot believe – no, you really cannot believe – the awfulness, the jaw-slackening direness of a truly bad book. And I say a bad book as entirely distinct from a trashy book, let’s just be clear about that. We have all, in our time, had our moments in the sun with “The Big Book of Lesbian Horse Stories”. We have all spent a day in the adjective-free world of Tom Clancy

Books

A Practical Guide to Bad Books

with Julia Armfield

without any lasting damage done to our souls or vocabularies. We have all had reason, I am quite sure, to spend an evening or two pruning attractively in the bath with a freewith-every-Galaxy-purchase piece of chick lit or a well-thumbed copy of something awful and alliterative from Mills and Boon and there is nothing fundamentally wrong with that (although that having been said, did you know that one of the writing requirements on a recent “Advice For Authors” page on the Mills and Boon website stipulated that any hero “must look capable of raping you” and that conflict is encouraged to include “such compelling dilemmas as kidnap by a Muslim or sheik”? Get writing, ladies). Trashy literature, for all its market heft and often disturbinglydrawn gender lines, can never be as troublesome as truly bad literature, owing to the simple fact of its

near-universal recognition as dross.

Even when you find yourself having to choose between your holiday suitcase dregs of “Shopaholic Goes To Jail For Credit Card Fraud” and “Manson in His Own Words” by Charles Manson (Fun Fact: one of those is actually real), you can at least rest easy in the knowledge that you and the world know that neither of these are anything but rubbish and no one is going to go ape if you fall asleep and drop them off the sun lounger and into the pool.

Sophie Kinsella and Dick Francis may sell more books in a year than Jeffrey Eugenides sells in seven and the sheer number of chocolate box paperbacks that surrounded me on my Waterstones trawl may have been positively depressing, but at least we all know that we should be ashamed for letting them reproduce in such multitudes. Or at least, I know and am ashamed of you all.

What is far more troubling – nay, maddening – is when a bad book somehow transcends its content and gains both commercial and critical acclaim; when those of us usually happy to accept that something is enjoyable trash suddenly start to stick up for a novel that in no way deserves to be defended.

Bad books come in many forms, all of them disagreeable. Often they can be the work of previously interesting or intellectual authors who have simply gone that step too far and disappeared up their own post-modern rectums (Paul Auster’s “Oracle Night” still leaves me in a betrayed rage when I disobey my grief counsellor and let myself think about it). Even oftener they are the experimental novels and the Booker Prize winners, positively designed to divide opinion.

Sometimes they are simply novels by authors with good head for plot

who just can’t get a hold on that whole “writing” concept. Sometimes they are honestly just bad.

Combine any one of these prototypes with mass success, critical acclaim, movie deals, award and/ or teen vampire cult status and you have, I am convinced, possibly the most distilled and perfect form of pure, unsullied evil. In some ways, I suppose it stands to reason that a bad book that gains either critical or commercial success is by definition a good book, but I would prefer to contest this notion by presenting you now with a list of popular books that a thousand five star reviews on Amazon could not make into anything more than the most compelling argument possible for systematic book burning. As Voltaire once said, “It is far better to be silent than merely to increase the quantity of bad books”, so here for your education is a list of literary duds whose authors really ought to have kept their mouths shut. If you need me, I’ll be downloading myself a copy of “To Touch a Sheik”, running a very hot bath and drowning myself in the shallow end. I feel it’s what Voltaire would have wanted.

Now recruiting reps for next student year, please apply to windsor@liquidclubs.com

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Books

Julia’s list of books we should all be ashamed of, yet somehow aren’t...

3. Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte Sacrilegious in many factions of the English Department, I know, but I’m just not having it, kids.

Two frightfully unpleasant people breathe heavily for about four hundred pages and everyone talks about the moors. Dear God are we done with this list yet?

1. The Twilight Saga – Stephenie Meyer Saga is right. With characters so wooden and prose so purple you’d think she bought the entire series from the painting and decorating section of Homebase, Meyer somehow manages to construct a “modern fairytale” that simultaneously destroys the seminal trope of the nineteenth-century gothic vampire and replaces it with an inert Mormon fantasia about glittering idiots who talk about their cars a lot whilst lying in meadows. All whilst cheerfully setting the feminist movement back about ninety years and siring an entire generation of tweenaged girls who believe that a conversationally-challenged Botoxface who takes the engine out of your car to stop you cheating and wants to eat you for tea is the only path to true romantic fulfilment.

Choice quote: “He lay perfectly still in the grass, his shirt open over his sculpted, incandescent chest, his scintillating arms bare.”

Excuse me whilst I haemorrhage on adjectives.

2. On Chesil Beach – Ian McEwan And I’m side-eyeing “Saturday” very hard too. A classic case of an author so full of his own press that he clearly came to the conclusion that any old sludge was still gold so long as it came from his pen. A torpid narrative that goes nowhere, shrilly-scripted characters and yet another example of McEwan’s frankly baffling belief that bad sex always counts as a compelling plotpoint. One leaves this book feeling both cheated and utterly irritated as McEwan again proves that one can sometimes hang too much on one tricksy plot device and a talent for maudlin dialogue.

4. One Day – David Nicholls This one in particular is objectionable more for the sheer force of its popularity than because there is actually so very much wrong with it. Boy meets girl, boy sleeps with girl, boy and girl continue to meet as their lives intertwine over the course of twenty years. So far, so mediocre. And that is honestly all I can say. With a basic and, at times, enjoyable romantic plot, serviceable characters and an ending twist so obvious I’m pretty sure I saw it before the book was even written, this is a book that would never have done anything to hurt anyone had it not somehow become the only thing you saw anyone reading on

the tube for the entirety of 2010.

And it also eclipsed the far superior Starter For Ten and gave us Anne Hathaway doing what I can only assume was supposed to be a Bosnian accent in the film adaptation. Bad things, all.

5. Mortal Instruments – Cassandra Clare A wildly successful fantasy novel by a former internet fanfiction writer and plagiarist, who has apparently ripped off pretty much every idea for her ponderous prose from a combination of Harry Potter, Buffy, Star Wars and her own fanfiction.

Choice Quote: “He had electric blue dyed hair that stuck up around his head like the tendrils of a startled octopus.”

Because octopi are plants. We all know that.

Soon to be a major motion picture. Aren’t you just thrilled?

9. Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert I had intended to keep this list 7. The Satanic Verses entirely fictional but the sheer, – Salman Rushdie unparalleled awfulness of this book Where to even begin with this unfortunately caused me to break mess? A magical realist extravagan- that rule. In brief, a rich white za of self-importance and bad taste woman dumps her husband and that manages to be about as boring proceeds on a whirlwind journey as any novel with a fatwa issued of me, me, me; sleeping with all the against it can be. men, eating all the pizza in Italy and meditating all the…meditations in India. And then she has the temerity to expect us all to think of her as some kind of courageous superwoman for doing do. If I may clarify, there is absolutely nothing at all wrong with spending a year travelling, eating and enjoying oneself – we should all be so lucky to have the money and the wherewithal to do that – but please do not ask me to think of you as some kind of visionary hero if that is what you want to go and do. This book uses the words “brave” and “courage” so loosely and so frequently that they should literally be removed from the dictionary, scrubbed down with 6. Pride and Prejudice a hose and a loofah and given new – Jane Austen meanings entirely. As I say, by all A far inferior beast both to “Persua- 8. The Lovely Bones means use your money to take fabsion” and “Emma”, yet somehow ulous holidays and enjoy yourself, – Alice Sebold the novel that is supposed to have So basically, you discover when you but don’t then write a book about it touched all our starry female souls, die that heaven is what you make and make even more money telling because obviously social satires it and that what you make it sucks. us all about your great and heroic about mercenary marriages are just Gee, thanks, I feel a whole lot better struggle with eating all the pizza or what one thinks of when romance whatever. Some of us actually have now. is mentioned. work to do.

Want to write for the Arts section of The Founder?

Get in touch with Julia! arts@thefounder.co.uk

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Arts

Theatre Review:

The Madness of George III Nicholas Hyder Alan Bennett fans are in for a good year. Not only do we have a new play, “People”, arriving later in the year to look forward to, but we are treated to this now twenty-year-old work. And what a treat it is; it’s a triumphant revival, with the cast drawing out the best of Bennett’s fantastic play and Bennett’s play drawing out the best of a top-notch cast, not least David Haig reigning supreme in the title role.

As plots go, “The Madness of George III” doesn’t hinge on very much. We meet the ruling monarch, he goes mad, he gets better, curtain. But this is no more about madness than “A Cream Cracker under the Settee” is about Jacob’s Biscuits. If you look for it, you’ll find much about kingship, about politics, about reputations and lots beside. Or, you can simply enjoy a

grand piece of entertainment and a great lead.

Bennett’s King George is a rich theatrical creation. It requires an actor to convincingly take him from his affable, loveable start to the madness that dominates the play – from stuttering to spouting monologues, from raging furiously to suffering quietly – and through ‘cures’ that put him through the wringer. And when someone gets such acclaim as Sir Nigel Hawthorne did in the original production and film (for which he was Oscar nominated), the pressure is on for the next actor to pick up the torch. Luckily, that next actor is David Haig. He takes to the role like a duck to water. It is a performance of complete dedication and astonishing versatility, going from the highest of the high, effortlessly convincing as the able monarch, to the lowest of the low, tortured physically by doctors and men-

tally by madness, with the same panache. He is never anything less than scintillating. Most importantly, however, he is always sincere and sympathetic, and if any element deserved this play’s ovation (and it’s hard to pick just one), it would be him.

This is a very elegant production, with a stunning simple set, costumes designed to a tee and phenomenal use of Handel’s music that elevates already superb scenes – the first half close, for example, would send shivers down your spine regardless, but once the slow crescendo of the music starts it becomes so much more powerful.

And it’s hard to express, despite its emotional intensity, just how funny it is. Christopher Luscombe’s nimble direction highlights both the ludicrous decadence of the court and the gruelling medical practices.

Where Haig is (suitably) grand, the less-is-more staging works a charm.

In such a strong ensemble, it seems churlish to single out anyone, given that almost everyone offers a performance and a half. Even with such consistency, though, there are stand-outs. Beatie Edney as Queen Charlotte, or “Mrs King”, is beautifully understated, and with such an expressive face it’s hard not to be touched. Very entertaining as Prince of Wales, Christopher Keegan is a more Machiavellian Hugh Laurie from Blackadder, which is no bad thing. Entering late in the first half though practically the second lead, Clive Francis as the doctor who may be able to help, Doctor Willis, is just as varied and striking as Haig; when they go head-to-head it could be a twohander. And I felt that Nicholas Rowe as William Pitt, under a layer of restraint, gave a great (and easy to underrate) portrayal of withheld concern that not only worked next to larger performances but shone

on its own merits. However, picking out these undermines not only the other performances but to the rapport of the cast.

Perhaps, if you wanted to be cynical, you might say that the first ten or fifteen minutes, with an awful lot of Georgian exposition, drag just a little. Or you might say that some of the minor characters, with little stage time, haven’t the chance to make much of a mark. Or, simply, that Bennett has written better plays (though with his oeuvre, that’s like saying Shakespeare’s written better plays than Romeo and Juliet). Minor quibbles (if you have any) aside, it’s hard not to be won over by this production. Orbiting around David Haig’s brilliant central performance, an exceptional cast and crew deliver an exceptional play. Now, “People” has a lot to live up to.

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EXTRA

Arts

Royal Holloway student blog gains exclusive access to Danny DeVito’s West End debut Danny DeVito and British theatre legend Richard Griffiths.

Neil Simon’s comedy The Sunshine The theatre blog ‘What’s Peen Boys tells the story of the once Seen?’ - www.whatspeenseen. famous vaudevillian act ‘Lewis and co.uk - run by Royal Holloway Clark’ in their attempts at a sucUniversity of London drama and cessful revival. The production will theatre students, has been offered begin previews on the 27th April, exclusive coverage of the up and at the Savoy Theatre, before a short coming West End show The Sun12 week run finishing on 28th July. shine Boys, starring Hollywood star ‘What’s Peen Seen?’ are delighted to

Julia Armfield

have the chance to cover this exciting revival and to be graced with DeVito’s west end debut. Throughout the production’s run, the blog will release exclusive content about the show and potentially offer other exciting opportunities to its readers and subscribers.

This new venture bares evidence of the distance the blog has come and the effort put in by the bloggers

since forming in a Royal Holloway Theatre Criticism class in the Autumn term of 2011. What began as a single student’s project now has over 15 bloggers covering the vast range of theatre found in and around London.

Founder of the blog Adam ‘Peeny’ Penny said, ‘this is a brilliant and overwhelmingly exciting opportunity. I am thrilled at how much the

blog has grown in such a short period of time and I am really grateful to all the friends and colleagues involved. Hopefully this will be a step on the way to many more great things.’

Check out www.whatspeenseen. co.uk for the exclusive coverage of this exciting West End event over the next few months and other London theatre updates.

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Features

EXTRA

In the Land of Golden Pagodas Carolin Goethel “May you be free from enmity” was the blessing I received frequently from Ujotiparla, a Buddhist monk who attended my English classes at the Bagan Language Centre in Myanmar. During class he had to be politely addressed as U Zin meaning ‘monk’.

When he invited me and my fellow German volunteer Sophie to his monastery for tea and lae pae ye -tea leaf salad- we talked a lot about cultural differences, in particular, Theravada Buddhism, the religion that is being practiced by 89% of the Burmese people. I came to learn that monks in Myanmar do not eat after 12pm and never buy food nor cook themselves. Instead, they collect food in their alms bowls during their morning walks through the village.

In Theravada Buddhism the concept of karma -the idea of a cycle of cause and effect- very much determines everyone’s behaviour.

Feeding monks, as well as donating to temples and performing regular worship at the local paya, is a pious Buddhist’s way of accumulating merit. Such deeds, as well as abiding to the five moral rules, (prohibition of killing, stealing, adultery, lying and intoxicating substances), are believed to help Buddhists to be reborn into a better life.

Indeed, what immediately struck me on my visit, was the warm and genuinely welcoming Burmese attitude, leaving me feeling very safe throughout my entire stay in the country. The atmosphere, especially in Bagan, was extremely peaceful and friendly, and this, I am convinced of, can be attributed to the people’s sincere adherence to Buddhist principles. I never locked my bike, and one of the many incidents where the Burmese proved ready to lend a hand was when I got a puncture in the middle of nowhere. A sand painter drove me and my bike on his moped to the next repair centre and even lent me the money I was charged there.

One of my daily highlights was my route to work. Each morning I rode my bike to a school where I was teaching English over a period of two months. Somehow, I had chosen one of the most magical places in the world. Bagan is Myanmar’s greatest ancient architectural site where over 2500 red brick pagodas, golden- topped temples and other religious sites are spread out

across a plain the size of Manhattan Island. Every morning I would ride along a dirt road passing hundreds of these ancient pagodas, which had been constructed by several kings from the 11th to 13th century when Bagan served as the cultural and religious capital of the First Burmese Empire. A couple of times I saw a line of about 30 novice monks, walking in height order

in their bright red robes, carrying their empty alms bowls in order to collect breakfast.

One of my most interesting experiences was my first meditation lesson, held by a toothless old monk who didn’t speak any English. One of my teaching colleagues had to accompany me and translated his 15-minute instruction into 5 sentences. It was only

when I tried to sit in a comfortable position, eyes closed and concentrating entirely on my breathing – whilst also trying to keep an empty mind free from any thoughts – that my suspicions were confirmed; her translation must have missed some essential part of his instructions. Unfortunately, but maybe not unsurprisingly, a second meditation lesson never took place.

Myanmar is actually still considered a military dictatorship, and although it is not obvious at first sight I soon came to observe some bizarre rules and practices. One of them is the prohibition to have non-family members staying over at night. Although there is no direct control mechanism, neighbours, or other government loyalists, could always report such incidents. The majority of university degrees are taught via correspondence and the different faculties of one university are often located at opposite ends of the city; all of these regulations will surely serve the purpose of avoiding mass gatherings of people, especially of students, which could lead to the discussion of common ideology, criticising of the government and ultimately further protests.

I was delighted when I succeeded to get hold of some editions of the “New Light of Myanmar” -the government controlled, English speaking newspaper whose last page is always the ultimate propaganda revelation: an appeal for patriotism and loyalty to the ‘Democratic Republic’ and other demands such as ‘not to allow ourselves to be swayed by killer broadcasts designed to cause troubles’.

One should know that, because of its ongoing human right abuses, Myanmar is still placed under sanctions by the majority of Western countries. However, since the general elections of 2010 and the following government reforms of 2011 towards liberal democracy and reconciliation, Myanmar’s foreign relations seem to improve.

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been released from house arrest and allowed to meet with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who visited Myanmar recently announcing several initiatives, including the possibility of full diplomatic relations.

Nevertheless, it is possibly just because of its long Western isolation that Myanmar has kept a unique charm, and its people a particular authenticity, I have not encountered anywhere else. It is just a matter of time when I will be back.

Write features for The Founder: features@ thefounder.co.uk

18

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

EXTRA

Features

The Real Jailbirds

on ‘Mock the Week’; to which I had learnt to chuckle obligingly while secretly wanting to pull out my own The other day I got slightly lost in eyebrows and wear them as ear Camden. This in itself is not surmuffs. However, only once I saw the prising, I get lost in my own head prison did this dislike of the joke sometimes, I can’t read maps and I reach new heights. Women prisons have a terrible habit of not looking in themselves are far from funny, where I’m going, which has lead they are a horrible reality. to enough near-death experiences For most of us, our understandto make me grateful I’m not a cat, ing of women’s prisons goes as what with their whole nine lives far as the second not-quite-asthing. good-but-meh-it-still-had-ColinMy getting lost isn’t that interest- Firth-in-it ‘Bridget Jones’ film. It ing; it’s pretty standard fizz behavappeared on that to be more like iour. What is important, however, an American sorority house than a well to me at any rate, is where my prison, just with fewer fairylights getting lost left me. It left me in a and very different kinds of bars. place called Holloway, in front of a The women would sit around sign directing me to ‘Her Majesty’s sharing life stories and bra sizes Holloway Prison’. The combinawhile singing Madonna, it didn’t tion of the words Holloway and look so bad. However, much as I’d Her Majesty left me temporarily love to believe this fiction it simply convinced I’d somehow managed isn’t true, like most things in these to wander back to RHUL. Indeed sort of romantic comedies it is a the building I ended up facing was lie, told to make us feel better and huge and red bricked as Founders more comfortable. Prison itself is a is, the only difference was, however, very real thing and therefore so are that this massive red monster had prisoners; it would be wrong for us no windows. And it was then that to ignore them. Indeed, ex prison my slow, confused brain processed officers have come forward with the word prison, and I realised some startling and upsetting stories where I was. about the reality of women prisons Telling people I went to Royal that we simply cannot ignore.

Holloway had led to this mistake Clive Chatterton, who used many times. Plenty of frankly anto be Governor of the women noying people with a deluded sense prison ‘Styal’, has told the Guardian of their own comedic value had some harrowing stories about his asked me where I was studying, and experiences there; most strikingly, on hearing me say Royal Holloway the shockingly high level of self had responded with a ‘haha, in harm. The number of instances of prison are we?’ remark as if they self-injury in 2010 reached 12,663, thought they were a guest starring and considering women make up

Felicity King

only 5% of the prison population, they account for nearly half of all self-harming instances. Though this is incredibly upsetting it is hardly surprising considering that, on Chatterton’s estimation, 6 out of 10 female inmates have a significant mental health problem.

A lot of the women in prison are not the mouthy teenagers society paints them to be but vulnerable and ill young people, often who have been severely physically or sexually abused. Many of them have never had a stable home, or a proper education; since childhood they have been caught up in an illegal world of drugs and crime where they have never properly learnt how to look after themselves or be independent.

I can’t generalise, and I won’t.

There are plenty of women in prison who have committed terrible crimes. However, what Chatterton and other prison officers have a problem with, is the high number of first time or minor offences which women are being jailed for.

Many magistrates and judges, Chatterton argues, have acknowledged that these women serving two or three weeks in a jail should not really be there, but say they don’t know what else to do with them.

There is a far too ready assumption that once you have been convicted as guilty you should be marched straight from the dock into a dungeon and deprived of the sky for an appropriate period of time. Clearly this isn’t working and it is time we asked whether this was the best

thing to do, not only for our society, but for the prisoners themselves, who, however much we may like to dehumanise them, are still, and always will be, real people.

There are examples of vulnerable, mentally unstable women being sent to jail for 12 days for stealing something as small as a three pound sandwich. Some will argue that the price of the sandwich is irrelevant, it is the principle. I would argue that we need to stop dealing with principles and start dealing with people. Surely the emotional cost to that young woman is far higher than the three pounds that Tesco, or some other multimillion company lost. Prison should be a last resort and it should never be a replacement for hospitals or other mental health institutes. There are too many examples of female inmates, recognised as needing psychiatric help, but deprived of it simply because the hospitals don’t have enough beds. While missing out on crucial psychological treatment is in itself disgraceful, the idea that these unhappy and unwell women aren’t even at home being cared for by their loved ones but are in an isolating, unnatural and often upsetting environment seems shocking.

Ever since I started watching Judge John Deed with my mum, I have had a terrifying fear that I will be walking along the street one day, humming to myself, when I’m suddenly arrested by a police officer and falsely accused of a crime. No seriously, I really do worry about

this. I try to counteract this fear by befriending as many successful lawyers as possible, hoping then that should my worst nightmare come true I could just ring up Steve on speed-dial and he’d whip me out in an instance. Bridget Jones, for example, had the ever so lovely Colin Firth to fall back on when she had cocaine hidden in her suitcase, and I am, unfortunately, built from the same mould as Bridget Jones.

This silly, childhood fear built on my excessive paranoia and the fact I can’t live without having something to worry about, has changed now though, into something darker and deeper. It is far too easy to fall far too far in today’s society and I would argue we aren’t given enough help getting back up. Drugs and alcohol is rife, it is easy to get sucked into a gang culture, and somebody as ditzy as me could easily walk out of Boots and forget to pay for my tofu wrap. It is easy enough to say ‘I will never go to prison’, and yes, as long as you behave yourself you probably won’t. But that doesn’t mean the people that do don’t matter, or that they deserve to be forgotten about and given up on completely. Many female inmates are actual criminals; but there is plenty of evidence showing that a lot of them are more victims than anything else. They say we’d all be vegetarians if slaughter houses had glass walls; maybe if prisons had them too we wouldn’t be as quick to send vulnerable people there to be punished when what they really need is help.

19

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

Features/Comment

On the Reverend John Suddard the attack. In 2001, Father David Paget of Fulham Fields in SouthThe murder of Reverend John Sud- West London was murdered in his dard called into question any rural vicarage where he had been giving parish idyll imagined by the public accommodation to the homeless. and broadcast by television shows In 1996, Revered Christopher Gray such as The Vicar of Dibley and was murdered in Anfield, LiverFather Ted. The unmarried 59-year pool, by an ex-offender he had preold man from Essex moved to the viously befriended whilst working medieval market town of Thornas a prison Chaplin. bury in South Gloucestershire last The attack on Reverend Suddard July for a quiet retirement but was does not stand alone. Associations stabbed repeatedly by a stranger at such as the National Churchwatch his doorstep this week. provide advice for parishioners The Church of England offers a regarding their safety but do not service to communities that govprovide any direct support. An asernment and public services cannot sault against a public service worker fulfil by opening its doors day and is reported to a higher authority or night and offering indiscriminate a union but parishioners lack any shelter, safety and spiritual comsimilar system. fort. Reverend Suddard showed a Nick Tolson, a former policeprophetic awareness of the risks in- man who co-ordinates the National volved in his Christian duty whilst Churchwatch told the Telegraph: during a sermon before his death “Around 50% of the violence comes he announced: “it’s a bit risky” and from their parishioners, so they added: “you don’t know who you’re feel awkward about involving the letting into your home”. police. And there isn’t any other The trend of violence towards system. A GP can report attacks clergymen is staggering. To ilthrough the NHS, but because of luminate a few: In 2007, a violent vicars’ employment status, as efschizophrenic in Aberdare stabbed fectively freelance, it is unclear who Father Paul Bennett to death is responsible for their safety – the outside his home whilst he put out parish, the diocese or the Church of his garbage. In 2005, Reverend England. At the moment, no one is, Ian Brady in Harrow, North-West and very few dioceses, for example, London was also stabbed on his will pay the £500 or so necessary doorstep, he thankfully survived for a personal safety alarm.”

Lydia Mohan

The lack of support offered to parishioners was stressed when at the end of last year, Reverend Mark Sharpe was told to drop legal action against God after he suffered a series of abusive incidents in his local community.

The Christian community of Teme Valley South drove Sharpe and his family from their village with four years of severe harassment but a court ruled that Sharpe had no grounds to sue for unfair dismissal as he is “employed by God” and in such circumstances cannot sue his employer.

In court, Sharpe accused members of the village, near Tenbury Wells, of poisoning Sasha the family dog, rubbing excrement on his car, slashing his tyres, cutting his phone lines and stealing his heating oil.

The Reverend likened his tormentors to “The League of Gentlemen”.

Sharpe also claims to have suffered abuse for growing a beard despite confessing to an embarrassing skin condition that he conceals with the facial hair.

The Reverend alongside his wife, two daughters and young son were granted no protection from the persecution of the community. Appealing to the diocese of Worcester for support, Sharpe was told: “We are not dealing with it. Doors shut, end of.” The accused defend their

position citing “ecclesiastical laws” which state that Reverend Sharpe is “employed by God” and therefore may not appeal for grievance management from any lower authority.

The Church takes no responsibility for the working conditions of its ministers. Church union, Unite, historically claims that clergymen are “office holders” earning a “living” and are therefore exempt from employment regulations.

Labour’s 1999 Employment Relations Act excluded ministers from employment laws. Courts however argued that: “Ministers tend to religious needs on behalf of a church just as doctors tend to physical needs on behalf of an NHS trust and neither group should be denied employment rights.” In 2006 the Employment Appeal Tribunal ruled that the ordaining of a minister “has many of the characteristics of a contract of employment”.

The Department of Health and Social Care at Royal Holloway University conducted research in 2000 which showed evidence that 71% of parishioners admitted to verbal abuse in the two years prior to the investigation. The research

by David Denney, Jonathon Gabe and Marie O’Beirne concluded: “The rise in violence against clergy can be part explained by the significant changes that have

occurred in the Church since the 1960s. With the constant change of people in inner city areas and the amalgamation of smaller parishes, there is added pressure on clergy to establish working relationships with parishioners.”

“In addition, they have a very different relationship with their parishioners in comparison to other groups of professionals. Members of the public turn to the clergy for guidance and support, thus often placing them in a vulnerable situation or at risk.”

Reverend John Suddard joined the ministry twenty two years ago when the aftermath of a major car crash left him with the impression of God calling him to the clergy.

He reverently fulfilled his Christian duty throughout his servitude. The Right Reverend Christopher Morgan, Bishop of Colchester responded to the death with these words: “He has been cruelly snatched away: may he now rest in peace and rise to glory.”

Despite this token of respect, the diocese refuses to take responsibility for the safety of its employees.

The underhand operation of the Church of England affords parishioners little security and instead treats its representatives of love, peace and goodwill rather like illegal workers.

We did it: Insanity launches on FM having built a studio), Insanity Radio is one of the reasons I applied to Royal Holloway in the first place: In a very small, very green, supdetermined to present the news, I posedly very temporary building didn’t apply anywhere that didn’t opposite Reid - the Queen’s Anhave its own station. It was less than nexe for the uninitiated - students two days after arriving in Egham have spent more than a decade sat that I found the studio and I’ve behind microphones, in front of spent a fair amount of the last four computer screens and stressing years - three of them as a member over cables in the name of broadof the Insanity Radio Board - praccasting on Insanity Radio. tically living in the Queen’s Annexe.

The Station, now almost 15 years Looking back, I did spend a few old, is almost unrecognisable from weeks literally living there, but the when it was first set up. It started less said about that the better. broadcasting in 1998, but not in With the exception of it’s home in the way we’d know it now. Withthe scruffy, leaking and somehowstill-standing Queen’s Annexe, Inout a studio, a proper budget or a full-time licence, presenters used to sanity Radio is not the same station carry the mixing desk - no easy feat, it was when I arrived. The tech’s changed, the people have changed, the thing is both huge and heavy even the logo has changed.

- between rooms in Founder’s to But, most importantly and most broadcast for 28 days, twice a year. obviously, it became the third stuIt is safe to say things changed.

With ten Student Radio Awards to dent radio station in the country to be given a Community FM licence its name, eleven years on a fulltime AM licence and broadcasting and, five years after applying, two years after being granted the licence internationally on its website (and

Sarah Honeycombe VPComCam

and five months after being cleared a frequency, Insanity Radio has finally gone FM. And, because of the seemingly endless hard work of those who applied for the licence and the two boards since it being awarded (2010-2012) who’ve been working to implement it, at 23:59 on Wednesday 7th March I found myself standing on the stage in the Students’ Union with Insanity’s Station Manager, David Lamb, counting down to midnight announcing the live switchover onto 103.2FM. Mission: Launch, the largest event of Insanity’s FM launch week, marked the culmination of years of work and an entirely new era for Insanity: no longer just a student station, Insanity is now “Community Radio,” providing shows, training and experience for students and young people from local schools and youth groups as well as everyone at Royal Holloway.

The future for Insanity looks incredible and I have no doubt that the next set of people to take the

reigns at Insanity will do an amazing job, but it’s not Insanity’s future I want to focus on, I want to look at the incredible achievement of the current board and the ones who came before them: Insanity has gone from being problem-riddled and unplayed on campus to having achieved SRA Gold Award for Best Technical Achievement, thanks due entirely to the 2010-2011 Head of Tech, James Harrison and his wonderful tech team. It’s played in Medicine, the College Shop and will be played throughout the SU long before I have to pack my bags and vacate my office.

This year’s Board, led by David Lamb, and their teams have worked incredibly hard to build on the work already done to make Insanity Radio one of the most successful student radio stations in the country, which it has doubtlessly become and deserve far more credit than they will ever be given.

Underfunded and, at times, shamefully neglected, Insanity Radio is a

testament to what an exceptionally dedicated group of students can do and what has been achieved is, without question, incredible.

I am incredibly lucky to have been at Royal Holloway to see the launch of Insanity onto FM and become a station not just for Royal Holloway, but for the 400,000 others that live within its broadcast range and I owe it all to those who set up Insanity, applied for this licence and those who worked to implement it, and none more than those who’ve made up the Board for the last two years. It is an utter joy to turn on a radio, turn the dial to 103.2FM and tune into one of the 150+ presenters and hear fantastic shows and fantastic playlists (cheers, Music Team) day in, day out.

We did it: after almost fifteen years, countless shows, around a thousand presenters, hundreds of board members and a gargantuan effort, for Insanity Radio it is, finally, “Mission: Accomplished.”

20

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

Comment

Protest Bans and Students’ Unions eral Democrat Conference – and was jailed for ten days in custody until a mass protest demanding his release secured his bail until trial.

On Wednesday 15th January I Bauer had consistently stood for attended the ‘Protest the “Protest up students’ rights, and made no Ban”’ demonstration held at Birhesitation to confront members of mingham University. The protest the university administration who had been called by the National attacked their students – let alone Campaign Against Fees and Cuts, members of parliament. the National Committee of which The alternative vision of what a I was re-elected to this January, Students’ Union officer could do alongside many other activist is that of Birmingham’s President, groups. The protest was formally Mark Harrop. It was Harrop who endorsed by the National Union of overturned democratic procedure Students, with many officers and by unilaterally suspending Bauer, activists from the country present. without any consultation of the student body and despite huge After an occupation held at the University of Birmingham on protests. Even more worryingly, November 23rd (the NCAFC’s Harrop turned up to the November Day of Action against privatisation occupation because of his welfare responsibilities, and pledged to held a week before the Novemsupport students in that capacity. ber 30th public sector strikes), a (Although it is telling that despite student named Simon Furse had policy being passed within Birbeen singled out by members of the university senior managemingham’s Guild of Students in ment team. He was suspended and support of occupations, he could threatened with expulsion. This only bring himself to assist in a came just weeks after Edd Bauer, welfare capacity rather than as an the Vice President of Education at active participant.)

However, it later transpired that Birmingham Guild of Students, was suspended for 3 months for partici- Harrop did no such thing at the pating in a banner drop at the Lib- occupation, but instead took names

Daniel Cooper SU President

of those involved and passed them lar injunction, criminalising its own onto members of management. It RHUL students. Had the occupiers was directly on Harrop’s evidence not left the corridor, this injunction that members of management were would be in force right now. able to victimise Furse. Instead of Most important of all is to look defending his student, he attacked at why members of management him. He then lied about this to his are trying to ban protest in this members. way. They fear what we can do. As As a result of Harrop’s collusion, students, we cannot withdraw our the Birmingham management also work, but we can withdraw the use took out an injunction banning of space, and it is this they fear. Ocall protest on campus for a whole cupations win demands. To come year. From letter writing to prison- back to the University of Birmingers of conscience, to political disham, all the student representation cussions with the Politics Society, to they have on university committees holding a vigil for innocent death was won in 1968 when 800 students penalty victims – let alone the occupied the Great Hall demandStudents’ Union fighting to defend ing a democratic input into the way its members from course closures – their university was run. After the all protest was banned. This move protest I attend which resulted in was condemned by human rights an occupation, Simon Furse’s disorganisations Liberty and Amnesty ciplinary hearing was indefinitely International, and in fact led to an rescheduled, and Edd Bauer’s case early day motion being scheduled for the banner drop was dropped, in parliament because of how much just a few weeks after his reinstatepressure the injunction had caused. ment.

This is deadly serious and could I was inspired last summer when affect us all. At the occupation of the RMT took unprecedented the senior management corridor action after two trade unionists, Eawhich started on November 30th at monn Lynch and Arwyn Thomas, Royal Holloway, our own manage- were sacked because of their trade ment team started legal proceedunion activity. The RMT decided ings immediately to take out a simi- that as a union it would take six

days of strike action to protest against the unfair dismissal of these two activists. 1500 tube drivers on 11 different lines all went on strike for just 2 members and they won their jobs back. On the back of the strength of this campaign, the RMT won another 7 jobs back that year.

It is on this basis that I stand in solidarity with victimised students like Simon Furse, in solidarity with all students having their right to protest being limited. We must recognise that an attack on one is an attack on all, and that the only way we can defend our right to protest is to stand up every single time a student is victimised, an injunction is threatened or a demonstration is cancelled.

If by attending that demonstration I helped stop another student being victimised, then not only do I defend such action but implore you all to join me. So I ask you all, would you rather have a President who attends demonstrations and occupations in support of your rights, or one who looks to collude against you and undermine them?

This is a question every elected official in our union and in every union should ask of themselves.

Are we living in a scratch-card society? morale at an all time low.

Aside from this anecdote being a display of my own embarrassing lack of self-restraint, I think within The scratch-card, a phenomena that originates from 1974 America it one can also discover a deeper when the “Scientific Games Corpo- truth about society at large. Particuration” produced the first comput- larly, the consumerist culture that has become dominant as of late; the er-generated games ticket. Since then its popularity has proliferated, culture of instantaneity.

I would argue that the scratchand now for one to frequent any card, in a metaphorical sense, is the good corner-shop without noticing its presence would be akin to a antithesis of the concept of deferred life walking without shoes; initially gratification; that is, the employment of patience, hard-work and liberating but ultimately missed. sensible choices that eventually lead My own experience of the to success and prosperity in the scratch-card was a whirlwind of long-term. All too often in conemotion. I purchased the card as a temporary society are we presented necessity, my bill falling just short of the £5 minimum for card usage. with ‘quick-fix’ solutions to longterm problems. To use social-media As I scratched my thoughts were filled with burgeoning self-doubt as as an example, the information that one inputs into sites such as faceto why I’d just wasted a pound on such a useless commodity. I glanced book is interpreted and fed back to them in the form of not-so-subtle down at my messy handiwork and adverts crying out at the user from was shocked to find that I’d won the peripheries of the webpage. £25! Of course at this point the Prophecies of ‘5 day HUGE weight rational individual would bow out loss programs’ and ‘Get RIPPED gracefully, grateful for their stroke like the actors from 300 in a week’ of luck. That individual, unfortuepitomises this sense of instantanenately, is not I - 70 scratch cards ity that is rife in modern society. later, my profits lay at £1, and my

Jamie Moore

These are a very small-scale symptom of a large-scale problem.

There are numerous other examples of this culture of instantaneity to be found in almost every realm of society. The culture isn’t confined to material and service consumption; popular entertainment forms such as cinema are all too often fast-paced, all singing, all dancing thrillers designed to give the audience member their fix of adrenaline and very little else – something that the Sylvester Stallone’s of this world have consummately cashed in on.

The top music charts, although perhaps not the indicator they once were, are saturated with mass-produced, cleverly written short songs designed to ensnare the audience with a pretty face, a catchy hook and basic, repetitive lyrics.

The serious issue that arises from this culture can be palpably seen in the form of the riots of the summer of 2011. An iconic video of the riots was the appalling display of moral deterioration as a group of men can be seen helping up an injured Malaysian student Ashraf Rossli, 20, whom they subsequently

robbed. The accused Kafunda, 22 and Donovan, 24 were found guilty of robbery and violent disorder and are to be sentenced on the 13th of March.

What this incident and the widespread looting that accompanied the riots highlight is the danger of living in this culture of instantaneity. The majority of those involved in the riots were from working class backgrounds, many unemployed; the question that presents itself is: can we blame them for acting in this way? Of course it’s easy to condemn their actions from positions of economic stability, but we live in a society where the poor live closely alongside the rich, who serve as a constant reminder of what they do not/will never have. Every day we are bombarded with adverts depicting material goods to be consumed, goods that these individuals cannot afford.

There were political motivations amongst the riots, details of which can be found in the Guardian and LSE’s study, published December 5th last year with 86% and 85% of the rioter stating that poverty

and policing were ‘important’ or ‘very important’ causes of the riots respectively. However, any political motives were drowned amongst the terrible displays of greed and material desire in the form of the widespread looting that was of course, amplified by the mass media.

This article was not designed to link the innocent scratch-card minding its own business in a sleepy convenience store with one of the biggest occasions of civil unrest that has occurred in the last century. That would be a little unfair. What needs to be considered for the continued improvement and expansion of society is in what way social and economic policy can be adapted to allow for the proliferation of this phenomenon of the “scratch-card society”. Next time you find yourself being subversively wooed by the temptress that is the scratch-card, perhaps you’ll spare a thought for society and the dangers posed to it by the associated cultural trend. Failing that, purchase 70 and have a fantastic afternoon of meaningless entertainment.

21

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

Comment

The Importance of Non-Belief

ty witnessed an aggressive violation of its debate on Sharia Law in the UK. The opposition stormed the lecture theatre film audience members and then inform participants n 1811 the young Oxford undergraduate Percy Bysche that people knew where they lived.

Simultaneously, University College Shelley, who later was to London has faced the full force of a become one of the greatest media campaign to prohibit satiripoets of the English canon, cal cartoons of Mohammad, stating published and distributed his esthat the offence of an image of the say The Necessity of Atheism. The pamphlets were burned and Shelley alleged prophet drinking at a pub was expelled from the university. To with Jesus was simply too much to bear. many of us this challenge of social Whilst a handful of writers and mores and the establishment exemplifies the free and critical thought commentators speak out for a secular society based upon freedom of of the Enlightenment. Yet within the past few months the University speech, the sphere of public debate of London has brought shame upon remains dominated by the incoherits institutions through a deteriora- ent religious fervour that pours tion of moral fibre and intellectual from the pulpit and minbar alike. integrity.

Cultural sensitivity blinds reason At the turn of the year the Queen and the fear of offence restrains Mary’s Atheist and Humanist Socie- critics from expressing alternative

Toby Fuller Comment & Debate Editor

I

arguments.

The first criticism of censorship based upon religious grounds is a common one. No person has the right not to be offended. We are all offended every day of our lives.

Ed Milliband offends me, as does the poetry of Carol Anne Duffy.

However, I somehow find the inner strength to hold back from public burnings of books and effigies.

Why? How can we know our own beliefs to be true unless we hear the opposing criticism?

The second issue lies in the nature of belief. The word belief itself means a trust or faith in something lacking in evidence and proof. We must accept that all beliefs, including religious ones, are not necessary truths and most certainly are not absolute. One man may believe in the Marxist school of thought, another the philosophy of Edmund

Burke. Neither is correct, yet only through discussion and inquiry can they begin to approach something that resembles truth. Religion, by its own definition as a faith, lacks evidence and proof and therefore holds no more truth or validity than a belief in a political theory.

These arguments are not new and have been established in Western Philosophy since the age of the Enlightenment. Yet we still find ourselves fighting the same battle, reason and liberty versus ‘cultural sensitivity’, the great euphemism of cowardice.

As a mature and civilised society we cannot subject our citizens to the fascistic demands of extreme religiosity any longer. It is time for our press and media to publish work that has not been censored by the pressure of violent gangs who have been fed religious propa-

ganda by clerics verging on lunacy.

Perhaps then we can reach a level of civility where Salman Rushdie can go to a literary festival in India without having a dozen hired killers warning him to remain in London and Britain can truly claim to be a society with a free press.

Shelley demonstrated that British universities have given birth to some of the greatest minds in history, even in the face of censorship and oppression. When our fellow colleges of the University of London have been subjected to the monstrous and tyrannical criticism of a minority, we must demonstrate solidarity. Only through open debate and inquiry can we progress intellectually and culturally. Through satirical criticism we unveil the ‘vice, folly and humbug’ of the world in which we live.

22

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

Comment

Iran: Let he who is without sin cast the first stone

million of her sons and daughters.

Then there was what is perhaps the most famous of ‘Bushisms’ when From within the uproar surround- in 2002 George Jr. included Iran in ing Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the his comic book-esque “Axis of Evil.” spectre of yet another western-led Now, considering what the United military adventure into West Asia States did to Iran’s neighbors, Afhas reared its disfigured head. Yet ghanistan and Iraq, both of whose war with Iran would be utterly con- former regimes arguably owed their temptible, an unqualified disaster existence to past U.S. financing and yet another example of the and regional policies, one can only western hubris and hypocrisy that imagine with anxiety what it has in so often leaves thousands demoral- store for Iran. ized, dispossessed, or worse dead.

Yet disregarding the possibility There is no defending Iran’s of yet another U.S-led invasion, oppressive government and so there is enough regional militaobvious are its failings that it needs ristic sentiment, underwritten by no introduction, especially to the nuclear weaponry, and punctuIranian people it so often brutalated by destabilising religious and izes. It is however, worth noting political instability to make Iran the context of its emergence. The nervous. Nuclear-armed Pakistan is situation in Iran is largely a beast one well-placed bullet from internal of western creation; repeated meltdown, the consequences of interference in Iranian affairs which will be firmly felt in nuclearcreated a deep animosity towards armed India, and the U.S military the western imperial powers and base that is Wahhabi Saudi Arabia the regimes they propped up, and has recently voiced its desire to it was largely this sentiment that acquire nuclear weapons in the enabled Ayatollah Khomeini and near future. More importantly, the religious networks to mobilize the regime in Teheran exhibits no the disparate Iranian population. more of the Messianic-apocalyptic Over thirty years since the Iranian tendencies we here so much about revolution, Iranian attitudes have than its biggest critic and enemy, scarcely changed, and justifiably nuclear-armed Israel. One only has so. The ‘international community’ to look at the hugely influential made no secret of its disapproval of ultra-orthodox, extreme right-wing the Iranian revolution and did next political parties that shape Israeli to nothing when Iraq invaded Iran politics, most notably Shahs, of in 1980, a conflict that cost Iran one whose members four hold cabinet

Andrew Dolan

posts and whose rhetoric contains more than a hint of millenarian expectation. But then again, didn’t the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad express his desire to wipe Israel off the map? Well, not Israel in a geographical sense, or its people for that matter, but most certainly “Zionism” and the distinctly fascist and institutionally racist state it has given us. Admittedly, Ahmadinejad is no champion of justice, nor is he any better than the lunatics running Israel, but one cannot say his rabble-rousing rhetoric is any more offensive than the semi-poetical musings of Israel’s first president Chaim Weizmann and many more like him, that describe the Palestinians as “rocks of Judea, obstacles to be cleared on a difficult path.” Yet there is of course a difference between words and actions, and one of these obscene statements is being seen through to the very dirt on the ground. However with all this media furor and talk of military action, you would be forgiven for assuming it is the former, and the culprit Iran.

Yet let us return to the crux of the issue. West Asia is undoubtedly the most unstable region on the planet, and in such this hostile environment is Iran not justified in seeking nuclear weapons? And will the world really be any more dangerous if Iran succeeds in adding to the thousands of nuclear weapons

that sit in (mainly western owned) silos, knowing that to use them will bring about her own destruction?

Disregarding the swathe of ‘expert’ analyses and the ethno-religious prejudice that often underlines such assessments, and considering the facts, the answer is not one that warrants the (radicalising) sanctions we are now witnessing, much less military action. After all, in an age in which there is enough nuclear weaponry to destroy the world numerous times over, the appeal of such devastating technology lies solely in its value as a deterrent, and one that Iran is arguably justified in seeking to acquire. On the other hand however, the world will become an infinitely more dangerous place if even more troops start mobilizing, war planes bombing, and the United States and Israel create yet another warzone in a region already flooded with conflict.

But let’s not forget that Iran has supposedly been on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon since the 1980’s, and if we are to believe a number of highly respected intelligence reports—compiled largely by U.S agencies—and not the crackpots that led us into the disaster that was and is Iraq, then Iran does not have nuclear weapons, nor does it present a sizeable threat for that matter. According to one such report, the only threat Iran possesses is in its ability to act as a deterrent

to future U.S operations in the region. Hardly the apocalyptic potential certain people would have you believe, but certainly a dent to U.S regional ambition. Yet regardless of Iran’s military limitations, it seems Israel is contemplating a ‘preemptive’ strike: Expect missiles, hope for the best. Worryingly, if Israel does strike, the United States will no doubt support. After all, it is that time of year when those extra dollars come in handy for those politicians seeking re-election to office, and the Israel Lobby has lots of dollars.

If in the event of a ‘tactical strike’ and even without the nuclear weapons it does not possess, Iran will still respond with a ferocity that will have bloody and far reaching consequences. And a warning to the war-mongering, arm chair liberal crusader types: If we find ourselves once more hanging on the tails of the U.S. and Israeli dogs of war, pursuing a course of action that is unjustifiable and contemptible at best, we may feel the consequences much closer to home than anticipated. But let us hope for all our sakes, and especially those of the Iranian people, that such talk of war and the bloody thoughts it conjures, remain restricted to the page, after all, in the words of Bertrand Russell: “War does not determine who is right - only who is left.”

23

The Founder | Wednesday 14 March 2012

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7 Jan - HA! Sorry.

I missed my train, had to buy a new ticket=galling. & reading ppl cheerlead despots= laugh or cry or smash up shit.

Danie

17 Jan - Tories showing their homophobic colours again..

23 Jan - Shake a leg, your leg, yeah that leg.

16 Feb - COME CLEAN on how you’re going to fuck us. yeah, that’s what we want you to do.. 23 Jan - INSTEAD OF BEING BAD, CAPITAL SHOULD BE COME CLEAN. GOOD. 15 Jan - Everyone’s a bit up their own ass

15 Jan - Going to see poetry at the Southbank later, TS Elliot readings with lots of interesting artists

16 Jan - I smell bull...

10 Jan - I hate the term ‘student politics’ #surhulgm.

9 Jan - otis redding yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh 7 Jan - I loathe Stalinists.

7 Jan - Theres one at Rhul..he can’t stop foaming at the mouth.

9 Jan - http://www.youtube. com/watch?feature=player_ embedded&v=jyzUDxq4laE “fuck yeah, the working class” - have a watch.

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