Volume 4 issue 1

Freshers Review Freshers

Your take on Heythrop Freshers Week

5

An Election to Remember

7

Chloe May talks Aussie Politics

The Volume 4 Issue 1 8th October 2013 theheythroplion.co.uk

Breaking Bad

A review of the hit series - watch out for spoilers!

11

Lion

President Leaves Office One Day into Freshers’ Week • Peter O’Neil publicly states: “They Knew What They Were Getting” • No Confidence Vote Passes - Only Two Executive Officers Vote To Keep Him On • Executive Remains Silent on the Reasons Behind the Vote Daniel Tripp Editor-in-Chief Peter O’Neil was removed from his position as President of the Heythrop Students’ Union, after a single day of Freshers’ week. As already reported by the Heythrop Lion on the day of the occurrence, Mr. O’Neil, who rose to the position on the basis of his work as Academic Affairs Officer and being President of the Heythrop Philosophy Society, was subjected to a vote of no confidence by his Union Executive, a grouping of ten elected officers and one appointed officer, which he was not present for. As such, it is unclear at this time whether Mr.

O’Neil was granted right of reply during the meeting, though differing accounts by the Executive and Mr. O’Neil’s side are confusing matters to an extent. Mr. O’Neil has spoken on frequent occasions now of how he did not fight the decision, but has stated that he believed the actions to have possibly been unconstitutional. Previous Vice-President, Alex Hackett, has explained to the Heythrop Lion that the actions of the current executive were, in his opinion, most certainly constitutional. The constitution does indeed state that the President of the Heythrop Students’ Union can be removed by the executive, and Mr. Hackett has claimed that Union Executives have followed the constitu-

tion rightly in this instance.

Samuel English, current Vice-President, spoke to us regarding the issue, and stated the following: ‘ ‘The Union Executive have been allowed to speak freely about the reasons for Peter O’Neil’s no-confidence if they so wished.

The Exective Officers have up until this point refrained from commenting in order to allow Peter to return to his studies unihibited by the events of recent weeks. The Executive Officers took that decision of their own accord and I would like to commend them for their professionalism thus far.

We do intend to release the minutes of the meeting in which the...

Continued on Page Three

Heythrop College Invests £500,000 in Staff and Student Facilities Daniel Tripp Editor-in-Chief Heythrop has spent the summer investing heavily in enhancements to the college, including many of great benefit to students. The most prominent improvement has been the Heythrop JCR, or Common Room, which has received a complete makeover, including a fully stocked bar. The old sofas have also been replaced with more modern furnishings and the lighting has been improved. There is now also disabled access to the front half of

the common room, something that many Sabbatical and Union Officers campaigned for, before the start of the summer break. Other improvements have included a refurbishment of the bathroom facilities in the basement to a much more modern standard, a new cooling system in the philosophy and theology libraries, and a remodelled front entrance to college, which has preserved Heythrop’s antique front door, but has added an electric glass door which has provided the college with a more welcoming feel. There has also been a great deal of work in St. Catherine’s House, which has recently been refitted in order

to house new students and guests.

The College has now increased its number of available rooms to 109 single study rooms. Fifteen of these rooms are now available with en-suite toilets. Judith Crimmins, Facilities and Services Manager, stated that, ‘We are very grateful to the Maintenance Team who worked very hard to ensure that two of these floors [in the St. Catherine’s Wing] were ready in time for the students moving in at the start of the term.’ It has also been revealed that the cost of these new rooms with be £6,750 for the academic year, which is higher than a room in the standard Alban Halls build-

ing. It was also noted that there has been a 40% increase in Heythrop Students living in Alban Halls compared to last year, a comforting statistic.

The total investment, as stated by Martin Grundy, director of finance at Heythrop, has been over half a million pounds, which has been made possible due to donations received from the Society of Jesus.

He went on to state that ‘We expect further refurbishment work to take place over the course of the next 12 months as part of a longer term project to improve the quality of facilities on site’.

The changes have been well re-

ceived by many current students, and looked upon with poorly hidden envy by alumni. The bar opening event, which took place on Friday 27th September, was a great success, and it was noted by many that amongst the current Heythrop students there was a fair number of ‘students’ attending who were in fact alumni who had come to inspect their old common room.

There was also a fine game of table football which took place between the more junior staff of Student Services, which the marketing team won after a nitterly fought contest.

Photos of new rooms on Page 3

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TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

NEWS The

Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief Daniel Tripp daniel@theheythroplion.co.uk Managing Editor Faye West faye@theheythroplion.co.uk News Editor Rory Phillips news@theheythroplion.co.uk Comment Editor Ben Mercer comment@theheythroplion.co.uk Culture Editor Robert Leftwich culture@theheythroplion.co.uk Sport and Societies Editor Nazia Begum societies@theheythroplion.co.uk

The

Lion

The Lion is the independent student newspaper of Heythrop College, University of London. We distribute at least 1000 free copies during term time around campus and to popular student venues in and around Kensington.

The Lion is published by HackJack Ltd. and printed by Mortons Print Ltd. All Copyright is the exclusive property of HackJack Ltd. No part of this publication is to be reproduced, stored on a retrieval system or submitted in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Please send your submissions to: submit@theheythroplion.co.uk NEXT ISSUE RELEASE DATE

23rd October During HSU SHAG Week

The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Editors or of the Heythrop Students’ Union. Every effort has been made to contact the holders of copyright for any material used in this issue, and to ensure the accuracy of this fortnight’s stories.

There has been an unexpected, though not unwelcome, addition to the Heythrop Students’ Union Common Room in the form of a Costa Coffee machine. It is believed that the installation is due to a partnership between ABM, who run Heythrop’s catering provisions, and Costa Coffee. The Coffee chain, notorious for it’s expensively priced coffees and also, more positivity, for actually paying its taxes unlike its rival Starbucks, has been well received by most students. Though, at time of print, the machine is yet to start working.

No Booze in the Lion Magazine Huge Success Office?

A Safer Spaces motion that is set to be put forward on Monday’s OGM would seemingly ban the consumption of alcohol in the Heythrop Students’ Union Office and would also give powers to officers to eject someone from the office if they are intoxicated. A similar safer spaces motion was passed at the University of London Union at Senate. Mr. O’Neil, who was still President at the time, abstained the vote, choosing to wait until he had heard the outcome of Heythrop’s internal vote on the subject.

The proposal was written up by Nori McIntyre, female-welfare officer of the Heythrop Students’ Union and previous President of the Heythrop W.I. Under the motion measures would be put in place to protect against, amongst other things, racist, homophobic, transphobic or disablist comments or actions. Many seem to be split on the motion and it will be interesting to see how The Lion will be covering OGM and it would appear to definitely be one to watch.

The Heythrop Lion has branched out into a new production named ‘The Heythrop Lion Magazine’. The imaginatively named magazine is a spiritual successor to a previous effort for the Lion team in their magazine ‘Paws’. The magazine was released to almost unilateral praise, including comment from Principal Michael Holman SJ, who stated that he very much liked the design.

Imperial Leave Halls

The top two floors of Alban halls are once again the home of Heythrop Students. The floors, which last year were rented out to students of Imperial College London, have been filled along with the other floors of Alban Halls with purely Heythrop Students. In a change of tact by the college, there will only be six Resident Associates this year as well, and they are all housed on the ground floor. The effectiveness of this new arrangement is yet to be seen.

London Student in Financial Trouble

ULU Vice President Daniel Cooper Arrested

The future of the pan-London student newspaper ‘London Student’ is looking somewhat bleak following the release of email correspondence between current editor Oscar Webb and Vice-Chancellor Paul Webley. The email thread starts with Mr. Webb enquiring into the ULU Review group’s plan as to the future of London Student, and is followed Professor Webley stating that, ‘There is no plan’. Professor Webley continues, to state that the future of the London Student will be determined by a survey into what students value in the current services and facilities. After a poor year last year for the London Student, which culminated in a protracted and messy election, Mr. Webb faces an uphill struggle to protect the future of the paper; however he has recently stated that he believes it is ‘my role to ensure that London Student continues beyond my tenure as editor.’ The Heythrop Lion wishes him all the best in his endeavour to protect the pan-London newspaper.

The Vice-President of the University of London Union, Daniel Cooper, was arrested at Royal Holloway University after he attempted to obstruct a police search on black students. Mr. Cooper did so as believed that the police were disproportionately singling our black students. He was arrested a later released with a caution. There has been wide-spread condemnation of the arrest, though the police have spoken out claiming that, as reported in on the Times Higher Education website, ‘The students who were searched were those who had provoked a reaction from the passive drug dog,’ The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) claimed the Mr. Cooper was ‘man-handled to the ground by seven officers and subsequently arrested’ and have stated that they, ‘Further condemn the arrest of Daniel Cooper for merely challenging the police on their stop and search policy.’

The Heythrop Students’ Union has announced the timings of the Presidential By-Election. Campaigning will officially begin after 6pm on the 4th October and Hustings will take place in the SU Bar on Monday 7th October, at 7pm. Voting will open as soon as Hustings is over, and close on Thursday 10th. The position will require the candidate to take a year off from their studies, and they will only be paid for the months they serve in office, the remainder of the Presidential salary having been paid to ex-President Peter O’Neil. This will no doubt cause problems for interest in the position, though it is believed that at least one person has already put their name forward for the position. Samuel English, VicePresident of the Heythrop Students’ Union, made the following statement in his email to potential candidates: “I should note that the role of President is first and foremost a role of service... There is a temptation to take the role of President and to twist it into a position of power which can be abused, to do this does the role a disservice. Your power comes through the trust of students.”

Samuel English’s full statement has been emailed to students around the college as well as information about putting your name forward for a position.

The Heythrop Lion will be covering the by-election in full including filming candiates at the Hustings event.

Beyond W8

17 October th

Ashley Doolan and Alex Hackett, the previous President and VicePresident of Heythrop College Students’ Union, have joined the ranks of Heythrop Student Services after their year in office. They join Heythrop’s first sabbatical President, Ben Lund-Conlon, in administration. Whether the trend will continue is unclear, Samuel English current Vice-President has plans to persue a Masters Degree after his year. The Lion is currently unaware if the college has any plans to employ Peter O’Neil, ex-President, but enquiries are ongoing.

Costa Coffee Presidential Common Room By-Election

What’s going on, In Bloomsbury and Beyond?

NEXT DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS

Hackett and Doolan Join SS

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TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

NEWS

A Campaign For Heythrop

New Marketing Manager Aquisition Results in Greater Number of Acceptances

Heythrop College Marks its 400th Year Anniversary With a Campaign to Raise £400,000 for Scholarships

Amy Fenton and marketing department pave the way for a rise in full-time undergraduate applications and acceptances at Heythrop

Heythrop College has begun its celebration of its 400 year anniversary by kick-starting a fund-raising campaign to raise over £400,000 for the college. The college has outlined two main areas that this money will be spent on, which include ‘targeted scholarships’ and ‘dedicated funding through the Annual Fund to support the capacity of the College to engage with society on key issues.’ The Annual Fund that the college speaks of will be used to fund several projects of note, including attracting and retaining world-class teaching, developing the college’s profile and staging public lectures with a view to ‘challenge the status quo’. The money will also be used to provide a more religious focus with developing projects to help understanding of religions and ‘how they must work together’, and ‘conduct research into issues of importance to the Church in its interaction with wider society.

The scholarships take the form of three levels of support; bronze, silver and gold. These levels, £5,000, £10,000 and £15,000 respectively, are to be used to support students;

there will be three scholarships available for each level. The programme is intended to support those of any background, culture or faith, however it seems that the college intends for them to be provided to students ‘for whom it would otherwise not be possible to enter Higher Education’.

The information comes to light as the Heythrop Students’ Union begins moves to make Academic Excellence Scholarships available to international students. The beginning of that campaign, alongside these moves by the college to introduce nine new scholarships, seems to point to a brighter future for students for whom studying at Heythrop College might have seemed an impossibility. With that in mind, however, whether these new college scholarships will be made available to international students, who must pay their tuition fees in advance with no help from the student loans company, is unclear.

The news that money raised from this campaign will be going to students, however, is something that we should all be able to get behind and support.

New Rooms for Heythrop

The Heythrop marketing departments work over the last year has resulted in an increase in full-time applications to Heythrop and also an increase in acceptances. Amy Fenton, manager of the marketing department and who joined Heythrop college on the 22nd August 2012, gave the following statement to the Lion: ‘Additional marketing and recruitment events took place throughout the applicant cycle to encourage this such as revised Open Day formats, employing additional student ambassadors, building closer links with schools and colleges and additional communications to applicants. All of which have enabled us to ensure prospective students have a greater chance to experience what studying at Heythrop is like before making their firm and insurance choices. Acceptances of places nationally have increased 9% on last year. Before Clearing, there had been a 1.8% national rise in applications to our subject areas (classed by UCAS as ‘Historical and Philosophical studies’) compared to the previous year. And at that stage we were in a particularly strong position with a greater number of firm acceptances than

cepted their places to date.’

Amy Fenton also praised the work of the student ambassadors, saying that, ‘Working with our student ambassadors who have been a great source of information and [they] have been so enthusiastic in the various duties they have undertaken. The results of which are evidenced by the number of new students who remember meeting them at events during the past year.’

With previous Vice-President Alex Hackett joining the marketing department, the Heythrop Lion looks forward to reporting more good news from student services.

No Confidence in President Continued from Front Page: no-confidence was passsed in due course. I would also like to add that Mr O’Neil was given right of reply, in a seperate meeting directly after the no-confidence was passed at which he made only a filppant re-

The Constitution

The new rooms are believed to be marginally smaller, but feature carpeted floors and limited en-suite facilities.

the College had received in several years. This meant that there were fewer places available in Clearing this year. However, the change of government policy which now discounts applicants who achieve at least ABB at A level, (or equivalent), from our Student Number Control (the number of undergraduate students we are allowed to admit) meant that like many other universities, we have been able to accommodate additional students during the Clearing cycle as well. Overall it has been a positive recruitment round and we are delighted to welcome the 150 new full-time students who have ac-

‘In the case of the Executive Committee feeling that the President is not fulfilling their responsibilities (as set out in Schedule one), the Executive committee shall delegate to not more than three members of the Executive Committee authorisation to talk the them to try and reach an agreement on what the President should be doing.

If the President is deemed to continue to be falling short of their responsibilities, the persons delegated to talk to the President must write to them, outlining the agreements made and in what way they are not being met.

If the President continues to fail to meet their responsibilities they shall following a resolution of the Executive Committee be deemed to have resigned and will be notified of this in writing by the person authorised by the Executive Committee.’

mark.’

The more pressing issue, however, is the reason for this vote. Mr. O’Neil has been a controversial and opinion splitting figure during his brief time in office. He earned notoriety at the famously left-wing University of London Union for being an outspoken supporter of the United Kingdom Independence Party.

There was also visible tension between Mr. English and Mr. O’Neil at Senate, when Mr. O’Neil chose not to back a motion that involved fighting a move by the University of London to house first-year students in private accommodation, due to the temporary closure of an intercollegiate hall.

The motion contained within it much talk of the supposed perils of privatisation, something that Mr. O’Neil does not subscribe to, making many in attendance question his ability to act for the student body rather than his own personal beliefs. Further problems include the odd abstention when it came to the women’s officer Susuana Antubam’s election to the Laurels

Committee. Rumour abounded that Mr. O’Neil has absteined due to her pro-choice stance on abortion. Mr. O’Neil spoke out saying: “In my own words - It is not being pro-choice that is the specific problem - but it is leading a campaign to actively silence those who wish to express pro-life views that I have an issue with. I can’t accept any campaigns against freedom of speech.”

Tensions seemed to come to a boil, however, during a pre-Freshers’ week quiz organised by college administration for the new residents of Alban Halls. During the quiz Mr. O’Neil was observed as being noticeably intoxicated at the event where he was expected to be in a position of authority and responsibility. The vote of no confidence occurred the day after this event occurred, further cementing it as a significant contributing factor to his removal. A search for a single reason for his departure seems futile, and rather a culmination of events seems the more likely answer at this time. Enquiries are still ongoing.

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TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

FEATURE

Freshers’ Week Reviews The Quiz

Pub Crawl

Keith Kaylan First Year Undergraduate

Cat Johnson First Year Undergraduate

I arrived just before midday, with slight feelings of apprehension and excitement which made me a little nauseous (not helped by my empty stomach).I was escorted to my room by an RA called Tom (lovely chap) and then I was promptly abandoned! 29 years old and left feeling like a ten year old... I decide to walk around aimlessly to see if I can find others in my situation, thankfully I did. We complained at length as to the general lack of structure before we found something do while left to our own devices! What seemed like a lifetime later, we were, (to my elation) informed there was an event occurring. This was short lived and quickly turned to horror, as the event was frickin pub quiz! Apparently my horror was a shared consensus! This was mixed with the fact that we all had rumbling stomachs and the prospect of answering a bunch of general knowledge questions seemed grim to say the least! My first night at university and a pub quiz was the last thing we wanted. A better alternative would have been music, beers and some food. The Loyola hall would have been perfect venue to meet our peers dance and fill our bellies!

Maybe next year’s fresher will have a better night for their first experience, as our gets a thumbs down!

Monday and it’s the first (real) day at Heythrop; a nervous excitement flutters through the air. People are making friends and forming allegiances and it’s a tense time for us all. So, being British, we head off down the pub with the promise of a fun-filled night of beers and banter.

A couple of pints in and it’s an alright night. A few more pints and we’re having a riot. A number of Jagerbombs and a round of gin and tonics later and we’re thrust onto the adventure of our lifetime. No, we didn’t accept anything from the creepy guy down the bar (lots of them about). No, we didn’t pass out and start dreaming about unicorns and fairies (surprisingly, didn’t happen to anyone).

We got lost. The baton of leadership was passed from one of those orange tee-shirt-wearing, responsible-type Fresher parents to some drunk bloke who knew where the next pub was and we found ourselves stumbling our way to the other side of Hyde Park (after irresponsible drunk man did terrible job at guiding), all alone in the big, wide, never-been-before-exceptthat-one-time-on-that-school-trip city of London. So there we are, us

The Piccadilly Institute

Connor Mur-Cochran First Year Undergraduate two gals who met approximately 30 hours before - everyone else is having a whale of time (I can’t actually comment on how good an evening it was after the fourth pub having finished the night a few miles away from everyone else but it sounds like it was nice and average).

We’re talking and laughing and it’s not that terrible; we’re accomplishing the task of the evening, but there’s that lingering ‘we’re going to get stabbed and never make it home’ feeling encroaching on the journey back. Luckily, the night only ends with us getting a night bus (Yay, my first time on a bus in London, what a treasured moment!) and making it back sometime after the planned night had ended. In all, what should have been a great pub crawl kind of fell flat on its arse like I did at one point walking down Bayswater.

There were overarching themes of jovialness and bonding so, kudos for that, but due to what I’m going to blame on poor planning and leadership skills, there was a distinct lack of that safe and welcoming feel I was expecting from the first night of Fresher’s week.

The Piccadilly Institute claims to have “The unexpected, the beautiful and the bizarre” at every turn.

Now, unexpected and bizarre I could let them off. Certainly finding drinks for three pounds fifty in the middle of Piccadilly seemed agreeable to most. (I can only presume from those individuals yelling “Let’s get highly inebriated!

Quaff quaff”-or something along those lines) And bizarre? Well… it certainly wasn’t normal.

Beautiful however, it was not.

Beautiful is not playing all of the songs that were hits when you were young, in some perpetual guilt trip at what an awful human being you used to be for having such a bad taste in music. Furthermore, nothing is beautiful when made to resemble 90’s Brit pop. The “Spice Girl” like dresses the waitresses donned, and the display of music videos on the far wall WAS NOT BEAUTIFUL. There were only two reasons why people would genuinely enjoy that place, that the theme of the room conjured up memories of childhood innocence, or if they liked in an ironic way.

In fact the night was a hipster’s wet dream. But drinks were three pounds fifty so who can argue.

My only real problem (as well as the mirrors near the toilets that reminded you how progressively worse you looked as the night progressed) was that it just seemed a little tacky. The dance floor was certainly one of the highlights, but it was tacky. The leather seats were luscious, but in that room, it just seemed tacky. The big screen playing the chart toppers was impressive, but tacky. Maybe it was just my distaste for the music that tainted it in such a bad light for me, I’m not sure. But I do know that I had a better time in the other room that was far more subtle and had, most importantly, better music.

But I can’t complain the drinks were three pounds fifty.

To be fair, I’ve probably given the club far more shtick than it deserves. It was a fun night and I had a great time. I got to dad dance without looking like a fool (to an extent), and everybody else seemed to have a good time. And before, I think maybe I was being a bit cynical. Maybe through the music people embraced the loser within.

I certainly did when Year Three Thousand by Busted came on. And, at the end of the day, drinks were three pounds fifty.

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TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

By The Freshers Who Were There Comedy Central

Blag Club

Proud Camden

Megan and Tabitha First Year Undergraduates

Elizabeth Middleton First Year Undergraduate

Katie Milne First Year Undergraduate

Fresher’s week, a week of fun and a week of memories; such as Wednesday! The Comedy Night!

Within the homely settings of the Greyhound, just off Kensington Square, the new students of Heythrop College were involved in what can only be described as one of the more…comical nights of Fresher’s week.

After some witty anecdotes from the host, we were introduced to 17-year old Elliot, a stereotypical cockney from Croydon. With his mix of stories and muggings, he filled the room with laughter. ‘I thought I was being a gentleman, taking the moral high ground!’ By the end of his routine, everyone in the room was smiling…he had obviously done something right!

Second up, after a few more tales from the host was the Spanish Senorita Ruth, who gave us all a new outlook on life, after reaching ‘middle-age’. (She was only 38!) She told us all about her life, the highs and lows of growing up, something we all have to do at some point.

One of the highlights of her routine was the story of coming out to her strictly Spanish mother, who seemed to be more worried about her daughter becoming a vegetarian!

All in all, a fun and hilarious night was expected, and we think it’s safe to say that we got what we wanted!

At the peak of Freshers’ Week, the parents and union leaders rounded up all us first years and guided us through Notting Hill to get to the Blag Club. It’s safe to say that we did not have to ‘blag’ our way in! The kind doorman led us upstairs to a comfortable sized room, perfect for a dainty college such as ours. As it was mid-week, people were already starting to discover who their new friends were but the possibility of making new friends was still there. That’s why this event was so brilliantly timed. With the help of the Union we were taught some traditional 1920’s dance moves, encouraging us to pair up with people we knew, and even people we didn’t. The atmosphere was exemplified by a playlist of music that everyone knew and could dance to; making this night even more special (and the drinks weren’t too shabby either!) As well as the very popular dance floor there was a small seating area where you could talk to the people you’d just danced with!

The ambience around the table made it easy to introduce yourself to new people and it had taken away any stress or anxiety that one could have had about meeting your future friends.

Like with most of these events, as the night drew on, the majority of the action moved to the outside area. By this time, alcohol had done its job and we had all descended to the floor, literally!

Listening to every one talking to one another and about what they thought about the night and the week so far just shows what a brilliant job the Freshers’ organisers had done.

Arriving at Camden Proud on Saturday of Freshers week, I was excited for the night ahead. All week the anticipation for one of the “best venues in the UK” had been building and hype surrounding the event was spreading around the Heythrop campus.

We endured a forty minute bus journey from Kensington High Street to Camden Market but I felt safe in the knowledge that it would be worth the wait, had I known what awaited me inside the club I would have waited in the cold for the next bus back.

Disaster first struck in the queue when we were informed that despite having already spent £25 on a ‘HSU Freshers Week’ wristband, we would also have to pay £10 entry to Camden Proud - at this point many members of the group left the queue and either went home or to find a cheaper night out - as it turns out, they had the right idea.

However, myself and my friends decided to stay and see what all the hype was for, especially as HSU promised to refund our entry fee at a later date.

When I first entered I was pleased, the music was as good as I had expected and the set up inside looked amazing, if stripper poles in the

middle of the seating areas is your idea of amazing. I headed straight for the loos to check my hair after having to stand out in the rain, queuing for twenty minutes, and was immediately approached by one of the ‘Fresher Parents’ who sadly informed me that she’d just spent £8.50 on a vodka mixer. At this point I was still optimistic but slightly disheartened and went back into the club to tell my friends the news.

I decided that, having already spent £10, I would have a sober night as I was sure I’d enjoy the music and atmosphere enough without alcohol - I approached the bar to buy a bottle of water and was left waiting for 15 minutes despite the fact that the bar area was almost empty, apparently the bar staff would rather be showing each other photos on their “iPhones” and raucously laughing than doing their job.

By now the dance floor had filled up and as I pushed through the idle crowd I was approached by several middle aged men who “liked my dress”, a young Middle Eastern man who whispered in my ear several times in a language I didn’t understand, two men who wanted to “keep me for a science experiment”, and a man who simply sidled up

to and asked in a heavy, unrecognisable accent “can we dance?”. I was also repeatedly harassed by a young man who grabbed me and spoke enthusiastically about “only wanting me” two inches away from my face every time he spotted me from across the room - I even had to recruit a male friend to help me escape via a diversion like a scene out of some idiotic comedy.

The final straw came when my friends and I were sitting having a chat in the seating area when a drunken man we had never seen before jumped on the stripper pole, clearly demonstrating his best moves. His friends filmed from outside while we watched, dumbstruck, twenty sober university students watching a grown man be escorted away by security for taking his shirt off was too much for us to handle and we caught the next bus home.

The next morning the word about ‘Camden Proud’ had shifted from excitable murmuring to scathing assessments of the night before.

The catastrophe of the event was summed up by one of the ‘Fresher Parents’ comments; “We’ve never had a HSU event like this before, it won’t be happening again.”

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TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

“COMMENT.” Edited by Ben Mercer | comment@theheythroplion.co.uk

Have we learnt the lessons of Iraq?

Andy Coghill Third Year Undergradaute I used to question the point of studying history at school. As far as I was concerned, it was just a boring subject about events which happened in the past, and which had no bearing on life today. The response I got was that we needed history to learn of humanity’s past mistakes in order to avoid making them again.

This has always seemed to me to be a satisfactory explanation. I therefore find it rather concerning that the Prime Minister, and others in positions of power, seem to be ignoring the lessons of history when it comes to the current crisis in Syria.

First of all, let me emphasise a point which has been pushed pretty hard by those in support of military intervention; this is not Iraq. There are many differences between the two. However, they are not without their similarities.

First, decisions have been rushed.

The debate over intervention in Iraq was conducted and concluded

before any real proof of the existence of weapons of mass destruction was found. The fate of a nation was decided on fabricated evidence and lies about weapons which did not exist.

The general consensus seems to be that Bashar Al-Assad is in possession of chemical weapons and was responsible for the recent chemical attack on Damascus which resulted in over a thousand gruesome deaths.

However, as yet, there is no hard evidence that this is the case. As George Galloway pointed out in the Commons during the debate on military action, logic would suggest that the regime was not responsible. “Everybody knows they’re bad enough to do it. The question is: are they mad enough to do it? To launch a chemical weapons attack in Damascus on the very day that a United Nations chemical weapons inspection team arrives in Damascus must be a new definition of madness.”

The way in which intelligence was fabricated in the Iraq case suggests that we were always going to invade. That no such fabrications have taken place to support the

Mall Attack Matthew Peach Third Year Undergraduate DanielDa

In the wake of the atrocities committed by a number of individuals in the Mall attack in Nairobi, we must mourn the loss of those who did not want nor deserve such brutality in their lives. It would be easy to throw caution to the wind and lose hope with humanity when peo-

ple commit such horrifying acts in the name of their ‘cause’. However, it is of my belief that these people are not representative of any group as a whole; these people would find any possible reason to justify their actions. They may always exist, as is evident throughout history, however empty their cause is.

Much of the news has been focused on the actions of these individuals, and indeed, I imagine this is why they undertook a method of such

case for intervention in Syria might mean that we are, honestly, motivated by the interests of the wider Syrian community.

Nevertheless, this does not change the fact that David Cameron recalled MPs at vast public expense, in response to an attack which was not known to have been carried out using chemical weapons, nor to have been carried out by the Assad regime, to debate whether or not we should take military action in Syria, based on evidence that had yet to be presented. If lessons from Iraq had indeed been learnt, surely the Prime Minister would have been reluctant to take decisions on military action until such evidence had been found.

Another concern would be the nature of proposed military intervention. In the course of the Iraq war, some 120,000 Iraqi civilians were killed. To me, this fact alone is enough to brand the conflict an unmitigated disaster.

It is worrying, then, that our plan for Syria would appear to consist of air strikes and bombing campaigns, which may well produce similar results. How can we possibly condemn the indiscriminate

attacks by the Assad regime if our plan is to devastate the country with air strikes? It would surely be the case that, as in Iraq, such action would only serve to make the situation worse.

I’d like to make it known at this point that I am not entirely opposed to the idea of intervention per se, but if we were to take action against Syria, the only way to be successful would be to make it more focussed; to target the root of the problem.

It is only by disposing of Assad that peace can be restored in Syria, and this should be the ultimate aim of any country planning to take action against them. But why put the civilians, who we are trying to protect, at risk? We have the resources at our disposal to mount a concentrated operation against Assad, without the need for bombing campaigns which would kill at least as many civilians as he has.

Finally, I would like to draw attention to one crucial difference between the situations in Syria and Iraq; one which I feel should rule out military intervention as an option: the need to pick sides.

In Iraq, we (supposedly) had no

problem siding with the Iraqi people. There was a common aim: to rid the country of the tyrannical leadership of Saddam Hussein.

However, in Syria, the rebels are every bit as bad as the government.

This is an army, members of which filmed themselves killing a soldier and eating his heart. Surely this is not something we want to be supporting.

We consider ourselves to be a civilised nation, and, as such, able to intervene in these situations from the moral high ground. And yet here we would be on the side of barbarity.

I’m not suggesting for a moment that this lends any justification to the misdeeds of the Assad regime, but it is important to ensure that we are on the side of the good, fighting for justice and liberty. The fact that we would be battling such an oppressive regime as that of Bashar Al-Assad most certainly does not mean that the army we would be supporting are any better, and the fact that the two opposing forces in this conflict are both so inhumanely evil surely means that military action in Syria must be out of the question.

brutality. However, one must find hope within the dark and even in an attack like this, ordinary citizens shine through. You probably haven’t heard of Abdul Haji. Before the vicious Mall attack, he was just an ordinary man. However, when his brother was trapped inside the Mall, he stood up to the evil and decided he must act. Along with several other members of the community and some of the Mall security, he managed to rescue his

brother and made his way through various floors of the Mall. In the four hours he spent in the mall, he saved dozens of citizens from death including many young children.

It is examples of such selflessness which highlight the good that can be found within humanity in spite of the situation in which they occur. From this example and from the many others which go on anonymously, we can and should find hope. The media tend

to focus a lot on the negative acts that man commits and they omit the good that also comes. I firmly believe that man is fundamentally good and such examples deserve more acknowledgement.

So, whilst it is imperative that we mourn the loss of those whose lives have been taken from us, we must not give in to the people who wish to destroy our livelihoods. They are but a shadow and shadows pass.

7

TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

COMMENT

My First Election Chloe May Academic Affairs Officer

When I was 15 years old, Stuart Robert, Federal Member for Fadden and Shadow Minister for Defence, Science, Technology and Personnel, gave a speech at my school on the Gold Coast outlining the importance of leadership and service to the state. Afterwards I approached him and introduced myself as a future Prime-Minister of Australia.

In hindsight I may have been a little arrogant, but he indulged my ambition and wished me all the best.

Five years later I found myself stuffing envelopes, handing out flyers adorned with pictures of his face, and absolutely loving it.

The political atmosphere in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast in the weeks leading up to the election was one of excitement. Like the previous election, polling suggested it was going to be a close call, with neither party confident

of victory. The media outlined and analysed policy initiatives, and scrutinized comments made by ministers around the country.

Lunch time conversations at work centred on the latest announcements made by party leaders and the streets were filled with posters and campaigners. For a political junkie like myself, it was pure bliss.

I was a campaign assistant for two candidates: Stuart Robert and Dr Bill Glasson. Robert’s seat on the Gold Coast was a safe Liberal one, so the team were relatively relaxed in the weeks leading up to the election. Dr Bill Glasson, however, was running for the marginal seat of Griffith, Brisbane, which was held

by Prime-Minister Kevin Rudd.

In the first weeks we were slaughtered. I remember one particular morning in a western suburb of Brisbane when other LNP (Liberal National Party) volunteers and I, wearing promotional material and handing out flyers, were harassed by countless shoppers. Shouting from cars, disapproving glances, mandarin peels thrown. We took

one for the team that day.

However, as Kevin Rudd’s popularity plummeted nationally and Bill’s team grew, we started to gain momentum. Locals began to recognize his posters and the dozens of people wearing blue shirts holding balloons in his honour. The media caught on and started to seriously consider the possibility of the Prime-Minister losing his seat, and a fortnight before the election, polling showed Glasson leading Rudd 52% to 48%.

And then Election Day arrived.

I was placed in one of the most left-leaning polling booths in Brisbane – Hill End. For 10 hours I was heckled, spat on, and glared at

by Labor and Greens voters. One man continuously pulled down our posters, kicked away our balloons, and verbally intimidated some of the younger LNP volunteers. I later learnt that he was a Union official.

I was fortunate enough to be appointed as a scrutineer, so when the polling booths closed I was persistent in checking that every ballot paper adhered to the guide-

lines provided by the Australian Electoral Commission.

After a long day of enthusiastic smiles and pestering strangers, it was time to sit and wait for the results. There was a sense of accomplishment in the air. I have to admit that I was quietly confident in the LNP’s chances of success, but wasn’t sure of a victory for Glasson.

In an absolutely stunning defeat the Liberal National Party won 88 seats to Labor’s 57. When each Liberal seat was announced there were cheers and shots for everyone.

Kevin Rudd retained his seat, but not out of popularity. The primary vote indicated that Bill Glasson received hundreds more votes than Mr Rudd. However, the Greens allocated their preferences to the Labor party, and pushed him over the line.

Glasson was gracious in defeat, wishing his opponent all the best in representing the people of Griffith. Kevin Rudd however, did not display in kind, shouting proudly when the results were called; “Bill Glasson eat your heart out.”

As you can imagine, that didn’t go down very well at the after party, and beer cans were thrown at the television screen.

Tony Abbott’s acceptance speech left me with a tear in my eye. He articulates the humility and intellect that we have been longing for in an Australian Prime-minister for far too long, and it gave me hope to hear Mr Abbott declare that Australia is, once again, ‘open for business’.

The past few months have been a surreal experience, and I don’t think the finality of the election result will sink in for another couple of days. All that I know at this stage is that I am grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in the democratic process. The politicians and support staff I met have reignited whatever political ambition I have left from my naïve years in high school. It’s a strange world these people live in, and it’s a world I’d like to spend my life exploring.

George, Help Me To Work!

Terry Sibley First Year Undergraduate George Osborne is extending the “help to work” scheme.

At a cost of £300 million a year, it will force those who have been unemployed for two years (approximately 474,000 people) to do one of three things: attend the Jobcentre daily, take part in intensive training or perform menial work. The reason they give for this new legislature is, as usual, to cut down on benefit fraud.

I will now explain why this is wrong.

Firstly, the fundamental reason they give is illegitimate; ben-

efit fraud making up 0.7% (by the government’s own statistics) of benefit expenditure, which is around £59 per benefit claimant. Now, if it where something like £1,858 per claimant (the figure for the MP’s expenses fraud), I would concede that it is something on which you should alter policy, but at the moment, it is not.

Now for the options: the first being daily attendance at the Jobcentre. Putting the well known lack of quality of the establishment aside, economically, this is not realistic.

Jobseeker’s allowance runs currently at £71.70 a week for a single person aged 25 or over. This is not enough to run a car, so with this

you need to take public transport.

But here a problem arises. They are asking someone to spend approximately a seventh of their income on bus fare (going by a four week stagecoach ticket). This is completely insane.

The second option is training, but that training according to Osborne is only there for “those with underlying problems like drug addiction and illiteracy”.

Well thanks, but with a 99% literacy rate we really do not need more support than there already is. Osborne approaches the problem of drug addiction, illiteracy and mental health as if the fundamental evil of these disadvantages

is that it leaves the individual less likely to get a job. We do need to help these people, but we were already doing it while he cut the budget for those very same issues.

The only choice for the vast majority of the 474,000 people eligible for this scheme is work placement, and here we see the true nature of the beast: Osborne wants slave labour. This scheme would have people forced to work full time for less than a third of minimum wage (based on a 40 hour week), when the minimum wage (£6.31) is already lower than the living wage (£7.45). It is inevitable that, in a system such as ours, those with the means of production - the

wealthy business owners - will continuously seek to attain more productivity for less cost. In this equation our living wage is the cost, and Osborne is the representative of the business owners.

It is worth pointing out that the first round of government cuts came in the 2010-2011 period, and as a result, many public sector workers where made redundant.

Well, Mr. Osborne has the solution coming in just in time. Luckily, all of those public sector workers lost their jobs early enough to be able to participate in this scheme!

Welcome back to the new job! It’s just like the old job, but at £2 an hour.

8

TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

COMMENT

Confessions of a Residential Assistant The following is an anonymously submitted article by a former Resident Assistant at Heythrop. The views of the writer are the writer’s own and are in no way indicitive of the views of the Heythrop Lion.

I didn’t re- apply for the RA position. I didn’t think I’d get the job again, and I know that any desire I had to re-apply was largely born out of the unshakable feeling that I had failed. Now I am no longer serving as an RA, and have moved on from the frankly traumatic experience, I’d like to talk about it.

There are a number of variables, many of which are random, but getting them right is the key to a successful tenure. Forming a relationship with one’s flatmates is particularly important, as is the nature of the problems you are asked to help with, and the dif-

ferent needs you are there to facilitate. I took up the position with optimism and appreciated the privilege.

Before I started, I was given a week’s training in everything from the fire drills, first aid, skills in listening and counselling, and various other devices. However, I felt that the true extent of my responsibilities was never made clear.

I was given basic guidance on what I should and should not attempt to deal with, and I was led to believe that this was the foundation of an information exchange, between myself and the accommodation and peripatetic staff, that would create the most effective support network for a student in need.

This just wasn’t the case. We had one meeting early on, but after that, I was given nothing else. No

more than any other resident. I did not have the information necessary to do the job I was hired for.

and paranoid, but I was told that I couldn’t possibly be given anything more.

Needless to say, there are very important laws regarding confidentiality, and these were properly upheld. But that is not the sort of information I am referring to. I only received feedback when I had done something wrong; when I made a decision based on the little information I had in the moment.

I raised the point several times in meetings. I felt I should have known, for example, when someone was no longer living in halls.

Not being given this most basic information made my responsibilities blurred and indistinct. How could I be responsible for someone who wasn’t there? What if someone left for a while and I wasn’t made aware? What, exactly, could I be blamed for?

The RA job is important. Even if I was forgetful, even if I was unable to fully uphold my responsibilities, I took the approach that I should do something to help whenever someone came to me. I did my best.

I spent most of my time feeling underappreciated, under informed

So, when I returned this year, to be told that there are now only six RAs, serving 8 floors, and who won’t be living with the people they are responsible for, I was shocked. These new RAs will have to deal with the same unpredictable and occasionally terrifying situations as I did.

It’s a hard job and you have to be able to rely on your relationships with staff, but also with the students themselves. And without living with them, I can’t imagine how much more difficult that would be.

R A

The World of Diving Domitilla Selvaggi

Second Year Undergraduate I would be delighted to share with you my experiences of, and thoughts on, the world of diving.

I am ‘heythroper’ just like you, and when it comes to summer, I fly away to remote and paradisal islands. If I were to describe you the scenes, you would be drooling. So I won’t.

What attracts people to these places? To some it’s the sun, the tan, the parties and... well, I know for men, it’s to see women in bikinis! But, for me, it’s the sea.

There is something about the sea that makes me feel comfortable. I look at the ocean and get lost in my thoughts. What’s in there? Do mermaids really exist?

I didn’t know there was so much to see! There are, apparently, more species underwater than there are stars you can look at night. Just to name you a few I have seen: turtles, cuttlefish, squids, lion fish, puffer fish, box fish, pipefish, morays, octopus, crocodile fish, and shrimp.

There are fascinating microorganisms, too. My instructor once found a mini arachnid, and put it in my hand. It jumped in the water on my palm as if it was an astronaut on the moon!

As well as marine life, you can find wrecks. In three days I am going to dive to see a sunken boat from the second world war, with bullets still lying on the sand! How exciting is that?!

My favourite time to dive is at night, though. Did you know that some creatures have bioluminescence? This means they glow in the dark! Once, I saw a small jellyfish that had rainbow colours wiring all the way down it’s tails by an electrical pulse.

I have been on marine conservation projects, helping to gather data on dolphins and sharks.

Sharks are amazing creatures; they are not to be afraid of, as

one might think. Would you believe me if I told you I touched one? In fact, in South Africa, I swam with 20 sharks around me!

I have been diving in the Caribbean, Madagascar, Thailand, and Indonesia as well, and I can’t wait to go to Egypt. It’s supposed to be one of the best dive sites in the world.

During the dives, I have continued education to become a better diver, and I am now certified as an instructor. But how does it connect with me studying philosophy?

Well, I study philosophy because I want to know more about the world and it’s metaphysical truth. But, while I could stay inside and study all day, diving, being outdoors and

exploring the world is what makes me feel more knowledgeable about what’s ‘actually’ there. What is the point of living life locked in a room when there is a world out there to be discovered and enjoyed?

I believe that nature is God’s gift to us, and that our purpose of ‘being’ is to reconnect with God in an experiential way.

Nature is true beauty, and the underwater world is peaceful and meditative. If there is one place in this universe where I truly feel at home, it’s the sea. I can feel God’s presence by simply admiring the artwork of the beautiful underwater world.

9

TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

COMMENT

The Great Debate Debate Drives Society

The Analytical versus Continental Debate

Analytic Rory Philips News Editor

The analytic philosopher, Frege scholar, and expert on Tarot cards Michael Dummett once said that analytic and continental philosophy are like two great rivers – the Rhine and the Danube – that recently run alongside each other but then diverge into wildly different seas. I find this rather agreeable as a metaphor explaining the historical basis of the two ‘schools’ of philosophy. At the turn of the 19th Century, the originators of analytic and continental philosophy, respectively Frege and Husserl (though this is controversial – some would claim the distinction has its roots much earlier) were both concerned with the same issues – the foundation of mathematics and logic. Though Husserl went on to publish mainly on phenomenology (himself being the originator of that distinctive method of philosophy), in his beginnings he was probably what we would now refer to as an analytic philosopher.

With this in mind, what is it that separates the analytic and the continental schools? Analytic philosophy used to concern itself solely with the issues in philosophy of science and logic, abandoning all else as not the domain of philosophy, but of science, or literally meaningless. This is the (now infamous) logical positivism, or as it is sometimes known, logical empiricism.

The most interesting thing about the distinction is the respective names of the positions. Continental philosophy is called so because it is mainly associated with the work of such people as the aforementioned Husserl, but also with Sartre, Heidegger, Foucoult and Derrida (if we are to get a bit more contemporary). These philosophers are all either French or German. But why should this be the differentiating feature? The logical empiricists were almost all Austrian or German – of course they were the group that met and informally referred to themselves as the Vienna Circle. Wittgenstein and Frege, two of the giants of analytic philosophy, are themselves German.

The problem is that the labels, as it were, talk past one another. One describes a type of method, and the other a geographical location.

As most of the Vienna Circle fled to either the UK or the US at some

point, and then a new generation of American analytic philosophers (for example: Quine, Davidson, Rorty) grew up being taught by them, that explains the now dominant trend in philosophy for philosophers themselves to be American (have a look at the PhilPapers. org survey – ‘What do Philosophers believe?’ for interesting geographical data). So at one point it may have been appropriate to claim that ‘analytic philosophy’ was the same as ‘Anglo-American philosophy’. This is a much more appropriate label – attaching a label of ‘analytic’ implies that everything not in that category is ‘non-analytic’. This implication is borne out in the attitudes of many analytic philosophers towards continental philosophy, especially controversial figures such as Derrida or Zizek.

Essentially, I think that the distinction is meaningless. What does an ‘Analytic philosopher’ do nowadays? The programme of logical empiricism is discredited, their theory of meaning (empirical verification) is declared by many to be self-contradictory, and even in more concrete terms, the average job opportunity for a philosopher at a university nowadays requires more areas of philosophy that the candidate much be competent in (enough to be able to teach at undergraduate level) than merely philosophy of science, logic and mathematics. The latter point would hold true of a strict ‘Continental philosopher’ – they would need to be well-read in more than merely phenomenology and existentialism, on average.

To sum – the distinction is poorly phrased in loaded terminology, and may have had meaning once, but now, due to various factors, both philosophical and non-philosophical, has no meaning. We should move beyond this distinction, and recognise that one may have affinities with one side of the movement, just as one may have affinities with the British Empiricists or the Rationalists, but people do not defend these philosophies as such – they defend modified versions of them. Scholars are usually well-acquainted enough with the classical texts of either position, but defend nuanced versions of their positions. Deciding whether or not one is an analytic or a continental philosopher is not a constructive exercise at all.

Continental Richard Elliott MRes First Year

“Analytic philosophy used to concern itself solely with the issues in philosophy ... else as not the domain of philosophy, but of science, or literally meaningless”

“I’m not one of those anti-analytic philosophy types.

There’s nothing I like more than reading a bit of Freddie Ayer or Carnap. Sadly, most philosophers who hold a proanalytic viewpoint also hold an anticontinental stance as its corollary.”

So it falls to me to act as defender of continental philosophy, eh?

Well, a necessary disclaimer here must be included; being a big fan on continental thought, I’m not one of those anti-analytic philosophy types. There’s nothing I like more than reading a bit of Freddie Ayer or Carnap. Sadly, most philosophers who hold a pro-analytic viewpoint also hold an anti-continental stance as its corollary. Even the term “continental” is meant to be somewhat derogatory, implying a methodology less rigid than purely ‘analytical’ work; though, it is obvious that the term ‘continental’ has had its definition changed by means of a shifted frame of reference (Fregeians eat your heart out) to now describe a legitimate method of approaching philosophy.

While the subject (philosophy) is the same for both analytic and continental, their respective modes of approaching that subject are vastly different. The best way to explain this is by example; an analyticbased philosopher of psychology would be to utilize a cognitive approach to perception, whereas a continental approach would utilize a phenomenological investigation into the workings of perception.

As well as the difference in approach, however, there is often a difference in scope between analytic and continental philosophy in regards to the sort of questions each can answer. Questions of language, epistemology and the philosophy of science, to name but a few, are commonly noted as falling within the remit of analytic philosophy, whereas questions of meaning, value and aesthetics sit in the domain of continental philosophy. Even so, this loose division of philosophical themes is not a universal, often being breached by the many overlaps between the two; compare Nietzsche and Wittgenstein on language, for instance.

The lines between analytic and continental philosophy are often blurred, much to the disdain of the detractors of continental thought.

I mentioned Wittgenstein; when Wittgenstein finally met the purely analytic logical positivists of the Vienna Circle, he, out of boredom one can suspect, turned his chair away from the discussion to read metaphysical poetry. This was

because Wittgenstein knew that the logical positivists couldn’t sufficiently speak about some of the most important questions of philosophy. While I am in some respects putting my own words in Wittgenstein’s mouth here, as he himself thought that since no language could convey such subjects we should “pass over them in silence”, it is the central premise of continental philosophy to reject this Wittgenstinian premise; that such issues can be discussed and speculated about, and even that such speculation can prove fruitful.

Why is the study of continental philosophy more important than ever? Namely, because of the resurgence of what was thought to be a long-dead notion; that scientism is the best position to hold when one wishes to answer the ‘big questions’. See the immense popularity of people like Richard Dawkins and Peter Atkins, who, in their respective ways, see all philosophy as a useless endeavour, when we could instead be all wearing lab coats and pursuing the inductive sciences for ‘real’ answers. Modern scientism is the ghost of the discredited logical positivism; it is a duty of philosophers to expose the intellectually bankrupt arguments for holding such a view (it ain’t that hard, trust me). This is not an exclusive reason to study the continental philosophers such as Nietzsche, Husserl and Merleau-Ponty, however, but rather a reason to embrace all philosophy, including the disciplines of the analytic vein.

A number of things must occur for there to be not only a rejection of scientism, but also for there to be fruitful dialogue between analytic and continental philosophy. First, the dogmatism of Anglo-American philosophers who rule out the value of continental philosophy must be exposed as a prejudice and abandoned. I couldn’t say (and couldn’t if I wanted to) that analytic philosophy is useless and provides no philosophical function, and the corollary from purely analytic philosophers, who often see continental philosophers as a bunch of gloomy gits who sit around wearing all black in cafes, drinking bitter coffee and smoking strong roll-up cigarettes, should hold.

Analytics and continentals need to stop slagging each other off and recognize the immense value of both disciplines, as well as the huge amount of overlap between the two, to fight a common (misguided, but very popular) enemy.

WANT TO GO HEAD-TO-HEAD WITH SOMEONE IN A GREAT DEBATE? CONTACT: comment@theheythroplion.co.uk

10

TUESDAY 11TH DECEMBER | THE LION

Culture Academic: Spook and Speculation have heard of their work, which Andrej Zeman First Year Undergraguate could be summarized as (yes, DanielDa

If Scooby Doo rings a bell with you, if you are sceptical about all the ghosts shown in the Ghost Busters or Paranormal Activity series, or if you just want to lower the ghost illiteracy rate in the UK, then this might be the event just for you. On 26 October there is a “Halloween Special: Ghosts, Zombies and Vampires!” night, chaired and organized by Stephen Law of Heythrop College. Let me try to inspire you why you should come. It’s not just that there’s a fancy dress competition, and you might win a signed copy of Stephen’s book. It’s much better.

Once you look at the programme, you might notice the event is co-organized by the Centre for Inquiry UK and “The Skeptic” magazine. As a student at Heythrop, you might

you guessed it) debunking stuff.

Whether you believe, or don’t believe in the existence of the supernatural, you will probably be more than willing to agree that there’s a lot of bunk out there. As sceptics, you’ll probably find them, well… sceptical about ghosts, vampires, and perhaps even Buffy, the vampire slayer. Critical-thinking students will concur with Apostle Paul to “test everything and hold fast what is good” (1 Thes 5:21). Or true, or more probably true and ghost stories are no exception. Still, if you are an ardent believer in the abovementioned entities, or at least, have a strong inkling there is often no other good explanation for many of these phenomena, I’m sure you believe you should always listen to the both sides of the argument. And that’s why you should come.

I’ve been following sceptical groups for several years now, and you can take my word for it that it is always worth listening to why people, who have often devoted their lives to investigation of paranormal phenomena, have their doubts. One of the most prominent paranormal investigators, Chris French, is actually going to attend and spook out… sorry, speak out, with his presentation on ghosts. If you are not impressed and want more credentials, you should know that he is the Head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London. Preceding his talk, Deborah Hyde (editor of “The Skeptic”), focusing her research on these topics, will tell you what she thinks of zombies (as of today, she hasn’t confirmed their existence). Frank Swain, of Westminster Sceptics, will say something about zombies (also the author of

“How to Make a Zombie”) and Scott Wood, of South East London Folklore Society, (whose monthly meetings provide a forum to discuss folklore, magic, and mysteries in London)will discuss some fancy London ghosts. Maybe they will be the explanation for the stuff missing from the fridges in Heythrop’s Alban Hall, but we’ll have to wait until the lecture.

This could be the only occasion for you to hear/meet all these people in person. I’ve been the European Sceptics Conference myself, and it was a pleasure to listen to and shake hands with these interesting folks. If you are interested in hearing about these things, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. So this Halloween, be a Scooby Doo. Yes, he was at first running away from the ghosts, but, in end, he always investigated them and unmasked them. I’m also coming because I hope I’ll get a

Scoobie snack. And if you don’t come, your conscience will really haunt you.

Entrance is £10 (£5 students) Free to friends of CFI UK. Tickets can be booked online or bought on the door. Event is held at Conway Hall (Main Hall), 25 Red Lion Square, Holborn, London, WC1R 4RL. 10.30 Registration 11.00 Deborah Hyde on vampires 12.00 Chris French on ghosts 1.30 Frank Swain on zombies 2.30 Scott Wood on London ghosts 3.30 END

For more about the event and the speakers, go to: http://stephenlaw.blogspot. co.uk/2013/09/book-now-forhalloween-special-event.html

Video Games: Grand Theft Auto V Johnny Costa all relevant as each serves a difFirst Year Undergraduate ferent purpose in the story. The DanielDa

Simply put, Grand Theft Auto V is one of the best games to have ever been released. It would be very easy to dismiss the latest edition to the franchise as being just another “ultra-violent killing simulator” where players can live out their twisted criminal fantasies. Obviously, being a Grand Theft Auto game, it does still provide the usual carnage that players of the series have come to love. However, there is so much more on offer, largely because of how complete and detailed the huge world of Los Santos is. The game would still be enjoyable if the map was half the size and half as detailed, but it’s the attention to detail that turns Grand Theft Auto V from being a good game into an all-time great.

The story follows three characters called Franklin, Michael and Trevor. Franklin is a young man trying to escape the “hood” and “make some paper”, Michael is a retired bank robber with a nightmare of a family and Trevor is a bonkers criminal who lives out in the middle of nowhere. Each character brings something unique to the table as they each possess different abilities and are proficient in different skills, which makes them

missions that contribute to the “Story Mode” are entertaining and engaging, rarely follow the tired formula of ‘steal car, drive here, kill person, drive away’.

The type of mission is more varied, thanks in no small part to the addition of submarines, aeroplanes and the new feature of planning and undertaking ‘Heists’. Perhaps the most inspired aspect of Grand Theft Auto V is choosing the crew and method of performing the heist, not to mention actually undertaking the heist. The planning process behind these types of missions give the player an active role in how the story unfolds as picking cheaper hired crew members for the heist may increase your cut of the loot, but risks the success of the job, thanks to ‘cheaper’ crew members being sloppier and altogether worse than more skilled criminals for hire. There are only a few small criticisms that I can think of regarding the story mode. They are the distinct lack of money you receive for completing the smaller, less significant story missions and also the inclusion of the controversial torture mission. The only time I felt truly uncomfortable whilst playing through the campaign mode

was when I had to torture an innocent man on behalf of the FIB (the in game version of the real life FBI). Although the torture mission was intended to be controversial and is used as a means of criticising the US government’s post 9/11 attitudes to torture, I felt it still crossed the line of taste and decency.

Los Santos outside of story mode is one of the most complete game-worlds ever to be created, not only because of its huge scale but because of the fact that it feels very alive. In older Grand Theft Auto games, the world seemed to be sparse and empty, with few cars and not much activity in the city.

Los Santos is vibrant and populated, with events happening seemingly at all times. As you drive around you will often encounter civilians who need your help, usually either because they are the victim of some crime or they need your help to get them somewhere. The human population of Los Santos are varied and responsive to the actions of the player. If you drive past civilians in a flashy, heavily modified car they will take out their phones and start taking pictures of it. Street performers will get angry if you take pictures of them without tipping them. Little details such

as this make NPCs (non-player characters) an important part of the game’s world. The character design of the main characters is exceptional because of the incredible attention to detail; if you exercise for too long your character will start to sweat, or even more incredible is that flip flops actually flip and flop as opposed to being glued to the characters feet! The introduction of the three character system in the game also adds a new lease of life to the game.

Switching between characters is an almost instantaneous affair and provides some hilarious scenes. When switching between characters you get the feeling that the character continues their life as normal even without the players input because the character is usually in the middle of a task such as driving somewhere or watching television. Switching to Trevor usually provides the most eventful experience because he is usually doing something rather strange, for example waking up drunk on the top of Mount Chilliad dressed as a girl.

The tongue in cheek humour that has become synonymous with the Grand Theft Auto series is once again present and provides a satirical view of modern American life. Most specifi-

cally, it parodies the life in Los Angeles and the surrounding countryside. ‘New Age’ radio gurus and washed up celebrities litter the in game radio station and provide for hilarious listening whilst on the go driving around the map. The satirical humour continues when looking at the name of the game worlds companies whilst buying and selling on the in-game stock market, with “Lifeinvader” being an obvious parody of Facebook and “Pisswwasser” providing a comical critique of cheap American beer.The game’s radio is not just a source of comedy but boasts an amazing soundtrackwith an extremely impressive roster of musical acts ranging from Johnny Cash to A$AP Rocky. No matter what your musical taste is, GTA V has got it covered.

There are barely any faults to be found with this game, apart from the few mentioned, and that’s why it makes for such a pleasurable experience. The six year wait has been well worth it. Rockstar have incorporated the best features from their games over the past years and used them to create their masterpiece. The game looks great, sounds great and plays great. This game cannot come recommended highly enough.

11

TUESDAY 8TH OCTOBER | THE LION

Culture Television: Breaking Bad Kensy Joseph Third Year Undergraduate (SPOILER ALERT: The rest of the review contains spoilers for the finale and Season 5.2/6.

Readers are advised to proceed at their own discretion.)

“It’s over, and I needed a proper goodbye.” (Walter White) If you’ve been living on Mars the past six years, Breaking Bad (telecast in the US on AMC) is the epic and award-winning tale of mild-mannered highschool chemistry teacher Walter White. Faced with terminal cancer, he takes to synthesizing crystal methamphetamines to provide for his family after he is gone, becoming drug lord ‘Heisenberg’ in the process.

In a sense, we saw the true finale of the Heisenberg saga two episodes ago, in ‘Ozymandias’ (the most riveting hour of television I have ever seen.) Then, like the eponymous king of Shelley’s sonnet, Walter White (Bryan Cranston, in the role of a lifetime) aka Heisenberg found his empire in ruins, his money taken away from him, his family irretrievably lost to him and he himself forced to flee in disgraceful anonymity. Out of money, out of excuses, out of lies, out of luck.

That would’ve been a fitting end to Walter’s hubris and destructive run. But Breaking Bad is a character study, not a morality play. Series-creator Vince Gilligan, and the show’s fans, wanted a proper goodbye. They get

exactly that in the finale.

“This is where you get to make it right.” (Walter White) ‘Felina’ (anagram of ‘finale’) is about a changed Walter; and Gilligan (who also directed the episode) takes his time to reveal that. When we see Walter pay his one-time business partners Elliot and Gretchen a nighttime visit at their luxurious home, we fear the worst for the couple. Imagine their surprise, and ours, when Walter reveals the purpose of his visit as wanting to make some kind of financial provision for his family after he is gone. A dark but funny encounter, Walter plays the Heisenberg myth to full effect in this scene, threatening the couple with the specter of assassination from beyond the grave if they should double-cross him.

But Walter is no longer Heisenberg, and his “top hitmen” are Badger and Skinny Pete (a fitting epilogue for the pair) with pocket lasers. He was essentially bluffing; he has no power any more.

“All the things that I did … I did it for me.” (Walter White) Gilligan repeatedly defies audience expectation in this episode, most notably in Walter’s (final) meeting with his long-suffering wife Skylar (Anna Gunn).

Where Skylar, and the audience, expect him to rehash the “I did it all for the family” line, Walter surprises us with honesty. He is not looking for forgiveness, though he realizes that his actions call for apology. He sim-

ply contents himself with saying his goodbyes and tying up loose ends (like the location of Hank’s body) as best as he can. For the first and last time in the series, we witness a genuinely humble Walter. When Walter gently caresses daughter Holly for the last time, we experience a swell of affection as Skylar watches.

Both Emmy-winning actors do a superb job of conveying the depth of regret and pain in their history with just a few glances.

“The arrogant a—hole thinks he’s a criminal mastermind, but he’s not.” (Marie Schrader) Yet, ironically, this is the most dangerous Walter has ever been at any point in the entire journey. Walter was always meticulous, ingenious and manipulative. The difference now is that he’s truly aware of himself. At the start of the episode, Walter mutters a prayer to a higher power, “Just get me home” – an unprecedented (for Walter) acknowledgment that it was not just his sheer genius that propelled him, briefly, to the top of the drug trade. Whereas he sought recognition and praise before, he is willing to hide in the background shadows (quite literally) and bide his time.

Whereas he believed the power of his argument and force of personality convinced associates to go along with his plans in the past, now he recognizes just how transparent he has always been. What makes him dangerous now is that he can play precisely those expectations

against them. And play them he does.

Ricin, the Chekhov’s gun of the show, is finally employed to poison Lydia Rodarte-Quayle (Laura Fraser). The use of poisoned sweetener for the soya milklaced chamomile tea-drinker (who does that?) gave many fans reason to cheer. Even greater cheers must’ve emerged when Walter set up his neo-Nazi antagonists for a slaughter in their own clubhouse with a MacGyvered machine gun set to shoot automatically from the boot of a parked car. (At the start of the series, Gilligan called this the tale of how “Mr. Chips becomes Scarface”; scenes from Scarface have also been referenced before in the series. Now, Heisenberg gets to introduce his own “little friend”.)

The greatest cheer of all was undoubtedly reserved for the double liberation of Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul). First, from the clutches of his captivity to the neo-Nazis via Walter’s contraption and his throttling of nemesis Todd (Jesse Plemons – there can’t be a fan who didn’t do a fist-pump then!) Secondly, being freed from his psychological bondage to Walter himself.

Despite everything Walter has done to him, Jesse eschews revenge and drives away to freedom instead. The final shared moment between Walter and Jesse, like the earlier one with Skylar, says much with no words. The look of sheer joy, relief and freedom on Jesse’s face

as he drove away was the most heartwarming scene of the entirely dark series.

And, yes, Walter finally dies. It’s not the cancer that kills him, or the bullet of a rival dealer.

Wounded by one of his own bullets (as he’d no doubt hoped), Walter dies in a blue crystal meth “superlab” with the police closing in in the distance. Like Tolkien’s Gollum, he finally has his “precious” again. With Badfinger’s ‘Baby Blue’ (“I got what I deserved”) playing the background and the camera rising away from Walter’s face, this groundbreaking series finally comes to a close.

Unlike much of the series, ‘Felina’ is mostly shot indoors or at night; the dim lighting reflecting where Walter/Heisenberg stands now in his journey.

Like a skilled magician, Gilligan repeatedly misdirects the audience in key scenes, often with the visual motif of Walter White hiding in plain sight as the viewer focuses on secondary characters and conversations.

Nevertheless, this is not a tense episode, as one might normally expect from Breaking Bad. While the show’s brilliant writing staff opted, quite correctly, not to give Walter redemption; they do nevertheless give him a degree of repentance. Gilligan and crew leave us with the memory of this lovingly-crafted, gentle landing to what has been a very wild ride.

Breaking Bad and ‘Felina’ are available in the UK on Netflix.

12

TUESDAY 11TH DECEMBER | THE LION

Culture Television: Sherlock and Elementary Robert Leftwich Culture Editor DanielDaR

Sherlock Holmes is one of the most enduring characters in Literature. In recent years, many notable attempts have been made to adapt the sleuth for a modern TV audience. Recently, I watched two such TV shows in (at time of writing) their entirety are the BBC’s “Sherlock” and CBS’s “Elementary”, all of which are based on the stories of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Sherlock The BBC’s “Sherlock” is by far the shorter of the series, having only 6 episodes at time of writing, but this is hardly much of a point against the show, its shortness means it doesn’t overstay itself, and more care and attention has been put into what is present. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman (as well as writers Stephen Moffat and Mark Gatiss) do a sterling job of bringing the parts of Holmes and Watson into the 21st century. Cumberbatch’s performance brings out most prominently the sociopathic, anti-heroic elements of Holmes’s character: his lack of empathy, his detachment from emotion and his manipulation of those around him (particularly Molly Hooper played by Louise Brealey). However, he can also bring out the more human elements of Holmes excellently when necessary, which he does particularly in season two where the show becomes arguably more about the characters and slightly less about the mystery. Martin Freeman is less convincing, being the same sort of slightly awkward but loveable character that he is in almost all of his roles, such as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and John in Love Actually. But that said, his performance does fit the role, Watson always having been something of a relatable if occasionally bumbling everyman in his original conception.

“Sherlock” is definitely the most faithful adaptation of Doyle’s original stories, it being conceptually little more than a modern day adaptation of them (hence the Study in Pink from the Study in Scarlet) with nearly all of the mysteries and deductions being taken almost verbatim from the books, and containing far more references to the books than Elementary, so Sherlock does lose some points for a lack of originality.

I would criticise it further by saying that when the series does deviate majorly from the books, it doesn’t do it very well. This is exemplified best in “A Scandal in Belgravia” which brings Irene Adler (played by Lara Palver) to the series. Her translation, (although acted well by Palver and Cumberbatch) betrays Stephen Moffat’s fatal lack of ability at writing convincingly strong female characters. In the original short story Irene Adler outsmarted Holmes fair and square before leaving never to be seen again, earning her the title of “The Woman” in Holmes’ mind.

However in the modern adaptation she is a sexualised manipulator who ultimately, is not only beaten by Holmes (betrayed by her inevitable attraction to Holmes that is not even hinted at in the original story), she must ultimately be saved by him. Why would Holmes ascribe the title of “The Woman” to a woman whom he has defeated and had to save? The message seems to be that the epitome of the female gender is a sexy damsel who is not quite as clever as you.

Her appearance in the episode shows at best a lack of understanding of the original material, or at worst a boyish and sexist inability to have one’s main character beaten by a woman.

Aside from this flaw though “Sherlock” is an engaging, funny, well acted and for the most part, excellently written and faithful adaptation of Conan Doyle’s Master Detective brought interestingly to a 21st century setting. Jim Moriarty (played by Andrew Scott) is a truly chilling villain, keeping the audience guessing every time he appears, and the rest of the supporting cast, without exception, perform their roles engagingly and convincingly. The cinematography and lighting (or often strategic lack of lighting) used for everything from the explanation of a particular deduction, to a confrontation in a darkened swimming pool is used expertly to bring the Gothic feel of the books to life in the more modern setting. This along with well done costume and an instantly memorable soundtrack draw the audience effortlessly into Holmes’ London. Overall, the show is both an excellent introduction to Holmes for the uninitiated and an enjoyable re-creation for existing Bakers’ Street irregulars of all ages.

Elementary “Elementary” is, whilst certainly the lesser of the two, I think also

under-appreciated and shows a lot of promise. It is set in New York and stars Jonny Lee Miller as a convincingly damaged Holmes and Lucy Liu as a very different and interesting imagining of Dr (Joan) Watson alongside a reasonable if unremarkable supporting cast. Miller’s Holmes is far more of an eccentric than Cumberbatch’s, and reminds me strongly of the eighth and ninth incarnations of Doctor Who, played by Paul McGann and Christopher Eccleston respectively. When we first meet Holmes he is fresh out of rehab, being a recovering drug addict and his pursuit of criminal investigation is conducted with a manic, sometimes childlike energy and enthusiasm which masks a deep sadness and inner turmoil which is displayed more privately, being revealed (along with the various events leading to this mental state for Holmes) piecemeal throughout the first, and at time of writing only, season. His drug problem is what leads him to Dr Joan Watson. She has been assigned to be Holmes’ “sober companion”, a sort of guardian angel type role whose job it is to ensure that Holmes stays clean. Without spoiling the season finale, the first season is an interesting collection of cases, none of which are based on Conan Doyle’s original stories (although they do reference them) and the series manages to blend mystery with character development in a way that is entertaining and engaging.

The series is far more innovative than “Sherlock”, trying a lot of new ideas with various plot elements and characters as well as the relation between Sherlock and Watson. Whilst in “Sherlock” as well as the original stories, Watson is a friend and assistant, in “Elementary” she becomes more of an apprentice of sorts as well as providing companionship and medical expertise to Holmes. Whilst not all of the risks and changes pay off, none of them are a deal breaker and all of them keep the spirit of the stories intact. The show has a lot of potential on display and whilst the first season is enjoyable if a bit slow at times, I think there’s promise of a really great show emerging out of the promised second season. Miller is an excellent show-runner and he and Lucy Lui make a believable duo, both of them providing fantastic performances and bringing the various elements of their characters, as well as the relationship between them

to a head in a way which is both intriguing and well acted. The most frequent supporting characters Captain Thomas Gregson (Aidan Quinn) and Detective Marcus Bell (Jon Michael Hill) are fairly forgettable, more due to a lack of interesting character development rather than poor performances, but there’s definitely room to see their characters become more fully formed in future seasons.

The cinematography is used to reasonable effect, and is I would say functional, it always sets the appropriate tone, whether dark and dingy for a crime in progress, Gothic firelight for Holmes’ flat, or the modern fluorescence of the NYPD headquarters. However it never does anything particularly risky or innovative, in contrast with the rest of the show. The rest of

the production is mostly excellent, costume is well chosen, the soundtrack pleasant and unobtrusive and the camera is always focused on the most important elements of any given scene. My only major production criticism would be research, Holmes is English in this production as are two prominent villains, yet the script makes errors relating to English language and culture, most consistently and obviously referring repeatedly to Arsenal Football Club as “The Arsenal” instead of just “Arsenal”.

However, the show is overall an entertaining and ambitious re-boot of classic Sherlock Holmes that avid amateur consulting detectives will enjoy and I would say it is definitely worth watching a few episodes even if you can’t summon the enthusiasm to watch the whole series.

13

TUESDAY 11TH DECEMBER | THE LION

The Creative Commons A Creativily Compiled Collection It is a sad day for our kind When we abandon manners When we boast boast about belongings And neglect to mention “mind”

Before we crossed the desert And arrived at the river, The red sunset left our beaten ablaze with brazen cries, For Moses had not descended.

brows

It is a sad day when we prove to others That what we ought to prove ourselves Frustration folded our foreheads, When spit flies and red eyes blaze with Sun damaged furrows reminded us of hatred intricate irrigation networks we’d deNo shame where shame has place to be signed in better times, No respect to others, and yet we scream before hell froze over and the rising heat You must, you Must respect ME seared our soles.

When the arrogant are deaf And the ignorant are blind It is a sad and shameful day When “culture” has been left behind!

Kirill Burenkov First Year Undergraduate

We dare not look on heaven, Lest we remember our ascended master, For we cursed the very memory of God. We had hit our limit.

On

the parched parchment on which we stood were scrawlings of stories our lips would not speak, For fear they’d split.

Instead we had inky feet: Step by step our journey stretched behind a staggered saga, slurred speech Smeared each rejected sacrifice, summarizing segments until we’d stand stanzas later than expected at Sinai’s foot, with our prophet on the summit.

Gabriel Akamo Second Year Undergraduate

From Heythrop College

Not hollow prayers make us clean But compassion from the heart Not money makes us truly rich But sincere and touching art Not lying with one shows true love But truth and sacrifice Not how we dress shows who we are But what's behind our eyes

horizon and our eyes followed an upward curve, Until, above the arid earth.

They arched in the firmament until they neared the sun and our lids were forced shut.

If you have some poetry to share, send it to culture@theheythroplion.co.uk

Poetry and creativity

Not beauty makes us wonderful But the suffering we face Not spite and gossip colours us But kindness and our grace Not anger makes us powerful But wisdom in our eyes Not vulgarity makes us humorous But speed and wit of mind

Our souls sank beneath our feet, For although our fathers promised pristine pools, Peerless pasture, we saw Nothing but nothing: An endless expanse until our sight hit the

14

Societies

Edited by Nazia Begum

Sports and

societies@theheythroplion.co.uk

The Philosophy Society Peter O’ Neil Philosophy Society President The Heythrop Philosophy Society is delighted to confirm that we will be continuing to provide for the extra-curricular philosophy needs of Heythrop Students. We offer a wide range of philosophy events, ranging from socials all the way through to hosting National conferences. Last year, in addition to a number of speakers we were delighted to host the three day National Kant Society Conference here at Heythrop, where a range of speakers from as far afield as Harvard, Cairo and Berlin gave a series of lectures. This conference has been such a success that a number of the papers look set to be compiled into a book, including our very own Mr. Phillips’ paper on the Duty to be Holy.

That is not to say that we are all Kantians (far from it), our members have been published on topics ranging from Scholasticism to Nietzche, and have lectured at various conferences on a wide range of topics. We are very welcoming to all traditions within philosophy and are keen to assist not only the cultivation of philosophical enquiry – but to promote the various avenues available for students to get involved in lecturing and writing for journals.

This year we shall be running a combined metaphysics and ethics reading group, which will explore content that whilst relevant to all levels of study at Heythrop, would normally be regarded as supplemental to the courses provided.

These shall cover thinkers such as F.H. Bradley, and some of the more complex areas of Kant.

We welcome suggestions for guest lecturers, as well as for reading materials. We are also happy to provide debates with individuals both in house and outside of Heythrop. We shall be hosting a major debate around reading week of the Michaelmas Term – and suggestions will be being discussed in the coming weeks. We would be especially delighted if any first years are interested in putting themselves forwards. Wine will, of course, be provided.

By the time this reaches you in print, our first social will have already happened – but you all remain very welcome to join us at one of our Wednesday events – the details of which are all published online via our Facebook page, or by emailing philosophy@heythrop. su.

We were pleased to win the award for best Heythrop Society last year, and with your involvement we hope to win it again this year!

See you at our events!

Heythrop Feminist Collective Kate Tingle President of the Heythrop Feminist Collective Heythrop Feminist Collective is very much the product of the nascent enthusiasm for liberation movements which really took an increasing hold of certain members of the college community in the last term of the presidency of the previous HSU president, the lovely Ashley Doolan. Our motivations for beginning the society were varied: I joked about establishing a

society so that I would have people to attend the ‘Reclaim the Night’ march with me but with a hint of sincerity. Primarily the society was formed so that individuals in the college who saw and experienced examples of misogyny and genderbased discrimination on an almost daily basis could unite as a community, to achieve more than any individual ever could.

To say that I am excited for the start of the new term would be an understatement. Having spent my summer alone in the ‘Land-ThatTime-Forgot’ reading books on embroidery and the formation of oppressive gender constructs, the

prospect of talking to real life humans about gender issues is absolutely thrilling (if any of you freshers are from Devon by the way, come and find me and we can chat about the inbreeding and how our friends all live in Bristol now). In this month alone, we are holding a lunchtime discussion group on the subject of intersectionality and female experience (October 8th), taking a trip to the London Feminist Library for the StudentFems London FreshersFayre (October 13th), helping put on the Vagina Monologues with LitSoc, HeADS and the Welfare Team, and attending the Reclaim the Night march

(26th October).

We have big plans for philanthropic work this year; we plan on working with the HSU to support their RAG charity as well as raising money for Eaves, a local London charity which supports victims of domestic abuse (a sector which has been severely affected by governmental cuts to public services).

We hope to be hosting speakers for all areas of feminist activism, with a particular focus on those working in student-led movements. Additionally, we have a lot of inter-society events planned with the likes of Heythrop Pride and the Literature Society so keep your eyes peeled

for them in the near future!

Anyone can join the Feminist Collective; we welcome students of all genders and none. You are not obliged to adhere to any particular feminist ideology, though we are a trans* friendly group and our meetings operate a safe space policy (don’t know what that is? Come along and ask!).

We are looking forward to an exciting year of feminist activism around college, in London and in solidarity with both national and transnational campaigns. Myself, Kate Tingle and Heather Doon (my wonderful Vice President) hope to see you at many of our events!

ATTENTION SOCIETY MEMBERS! WE WANT YOUR ARTICLES, REPORTS, AND ANYTHING ELSE - SEND THEM TO: societies@theheythroplion.co.uk

15

TUESDAY 11TH DECEMBER | THE LION

SPORTS & SOCIETIES

Heythrop Literature Society Nazia Begum Sports and Societies Editor and President of Lit. Soc. Hello and welcome to the Heythrop Literature Society!

We were set up to encourage thoughtful discussion for those who enjoy reading for pleasure, whether it be fiction, poems or any other aspect of literary culture. We hold a regular book club, attend plays, poetry readings and slams and generally enjoy all the fantastic cultural opportunities London offers in this regard. Even though we were set up fairly recently, Litsoc has already managed to host a variety of successful events, including a fantastic ‘End of Term Poetry Party.’

This year we plan to step it up a notch and although we will still have our regular book club meetings and awesome poetry slams, we will also hold various other events and theatre trips. Some of the events in-house will include a ‘crazy Christmas character’ Party, and a Victorian themed end of year Tea Party where we shall discuss amazing literature and eat and drink lots! We hope you become involved at one of Heythrop’s most exciting societies, where any suggestions are always welcome for events or what book you would like us collectivly to read.

President: Nazia Begum Vice-President: Kate Tingle Society Secretary: Nishat Faruque Email: HeythropLitSoc@gmail. com

Welfare at Heythrop College Chris Page-Tickell Male Welfare Officer Hi there! My name is Christopher Page-Tickell and I’m your Male Welfare officer (alongside Nori MacIntyre, Female Welfare Officer). I’m here to tell you about what welfare at Heythrop entails as well as plugging some awesome events that you don’t want to miss! Welfare is about supporting you during your time at college so that you feel safe and secure, warm and happy, as well as having a great time and learning stuff. This means that if over the coming year you are faced with a problem or concern of any kind, myself and Nori are your first port of call; you can come and talk to us during office hours, email us at welfare@heythrop.su, or call us on the welfare mobile. During fresher’s week and events this will be carried by an exec member with first aid training, so you know who to call in an emergency. We are also tasked with providing a bank of useful information relating to: general health, what kinds of support the college and the HSU offers and information for international students as well as finance/housing advice. This can be found on our website: http://heythrop.su/ welfare/ On to the events I men-

tioned. It comes within our remit as union officers to put on four separate awareness weeks throughout the year, these are: SHAG (Sexual Health Awareness Guidance) week, Mental Health Awareness Week, Diversity week and one more which we haven’t decided on yet. The first up, running from 21st-28th October, is SHAG week.

SHAG week will open with the ever fun and popular sex quiz and end with the no less fun and popular open mic night, with performers invited to present songs, poems or whatever they like around the theme of love and sex (although off-topic pieces will be welcome).

Alongside the revelry we’ll have plenty of serious stuff for you including: pieces from LGBT and the various faith societies, a TED talks themed event consisting of numerous brief talks and discussions, a debate on the contentious subject of sexual ethics held by the Philosophy Society, the vagina monologues and a consent workshop run by the Feminist Society and a sexual health clinic will be coming in. Be sure to get involved in SHAG week and keep your eyes open for some of our other events and again if you have any concerns or queries over the coming year please don’t hesitate to contact either myself or Nori.

The next issue of the Lion will be out during SHAG week!

WEEK

Flickr.com/ layalk

sex condoms abstinence modesty sex quiz sexual health consent bdsm contraception choices lgbt stories workshops abortion PREGNANCY PREFERENCES ASEXUALITY MARRIAGE RELATIONSHIP GUIDANCE VAGINA MONOLOGUES SUPPORT CLINIC SEXUALITY HOLLABACK STI 21ST - 27TH OCTOBER 2013

EASY

Aries

Taurus

MEDIUM

ROARFUL

Gemini

Cancer Jun 21 - Jul 22

Leo

Virgo

Mar 21 - Apr 19

Apr 20 - May 20

May 21 - Jun 20

Hairy: As we all know, Jupiter is currently in Saturn’s house. Saturn’s girlfriend isn’t happy. He keeps eating all the cheese, there are piss stains all over the toilet and mysterious fingerprints in the margarine. She’s asked Saturn to ask Jupiter to move out at least six times already but Saturn and Jupiter have been friends since college and his mum knows Saturn’s mum from the laundrette and then there was that night in the hot tub at Betelgeuse’s graduation par...I’m not asking him to move out. As a result things will probably be tense for a while.

Raging Bull: You know that weird feeling, you get it in your stomach, or bowels, or whatever. You get it when you go over a dip in the road you didn’t see or you get it when you go down a drop on a rollercoaster, that weird feeling. You know, that feeling you get in your bowels or whatever, when you sit back into a chair and it’s a bit lower than you’d anticipated, that sort of ‘wher’ feeling, sort of like ‘whey’, that kind of feeling. You know that sort of ‘wher’ feeling when you climb a step that isn’t there, sort of a bit ‘wuh’, kind of feeling. You’ll probably feel that.

Two guys hugging: Be the seal. Clap at life’s amusements, balance the ball of hardship atop your box of responsibilities.

Swallow whole the fish of self doubt as you pretend to play your toy saxophone of folly. Dive headfirst into the pool of... er...waiting for the bus and conquer it with you breaststroke of…tetris on your phone. Just be a seal.

Libra

Scorpio

Sagittarius

Capricorn

Jan 20 - Feb 18

Feb 19 - 20 Mar

Aquaman: What counts, counts.

What doesn’t, doesn’t. Whatever seems difficult, is. Whatever doesn’t, isn’t. Whatever direction your life takes this month is the one you’ve taken. The direction it hasn’t taken, isn’t.

Glad to help.

Humping Fish – There are twelve?

Crabs: Expect Ebola.

Sep 23 - Oct 22

Oct 23 - Nov 21

Nov 22 - Dec 21

Dec 22 - 19 Jan

Libya: You’ve taken a few hefty gambles, recently, which have not paid off. It was ok at first, you lost £100 here or there on the dice, the horses drained the rest. But you didn’t stop there. You didn’t stop either when you flashed out that car and Tboned it for the insurance money to pay back Vinnie for that loan you blew investing in those ‘Bio-degradable bungee ropes’. Nor did you stop when after having been knee-capped by Vinnie and his friend Posh Dave you crawled home to tell your son he was going to space camp and waved him off as he disappeared down the road in the back of Posh Dave’s van. This time it will pay off though, I swear. Take the gamble. What’s the worst that can happen?

The pincer-ey on: November – With the passing of Pluto into the 7th house a certain melancholy can set in. Don’t fight it. The alarm goes off for work, why not hit snooze? Just ten more minutes…Heck, just turn the alarm off, there’s a bug going round. Call in sick.

Sit on the sofa staring at the glass of the TV screen whilst ‘Twins’, featuring Arnold Schwartzenegger and Danny DeVito, plays to an empty room. Allow yourself to sit comatose for hours as flies swoop in and out of your field of vision. I think they humped. The phone’s ringing, if it’s important they’ll ring back. This will eventually bring your Chupacabras in line with your Chi, or Karma or whatever. You’ll know when this has happened when you feel that all hope is lost, as if you are completely alone in this universe, as if you hadn’t a friend in the world. Then you must immediately call our premium rate hotline where you’ll be put straight through to happy Sue who’ll endeavour to make you happy too. Happiness not guaranteed.

Saggyhairyarse - Turns out, you’re Dutch.

Popricorn: In times of hardship and strife it is prudent to face it stoically and with a positive attitude. It is also prudent to know when one should simply give up. By the looks of your messed up charts this month you’re in for one whole heap of hectic.

I mean with Mercury shifting into the benign quarter he’s made way for Uranus to impose himself upon the garish nebula. We all know what this means. Start selling all of your stuff now, close all your accounts and tie up all your affairs. I’ll not bother with this star sign next month.

Jul 23 - Aug 22 Leo Sayer: As you go through life you’ll notice that certain things will go right, maybe you’ll have pizza. Sometimes things go wrong, kebab.

But overall there seems to be a fair balance between good times and bad times.

It might seem that this just happens naturally but you’re wrong. Astrology does it. For you specifically, a lion did it.

Pretty cool.

Aquarius

Aug 23 - Sep 22 Virgin: No sex for you.

Pisces