TRINITY NEWS
17th September 2013
www.trinitynews.ie
NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR 2013
Photo: Atalanta Copeman-Papas
Alleged systematic exploitation of unpaid interns by German Department SIPTU condemns use of unpaid interns as “gross exploitation” 10-year-long scheme sees German students work up to “12 hours every day” Prof. Moray McGowan, Head of Department, responds
T Catherine Healy News Editor
he Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) has condemned as “gross exploitation” the use of unpaid interns by third-level institutions in Ireland. The comment follows revelations surrounding the responsibilities of unpaid German interns at the Department of Germanic Studies at Trinity College, Dublin. Speaking to Trinity News, Louise O’Reilly, SIPTU Education Sector organiser, said, “We’re not against internships. They’re often a valuable learning experience, but when you’re doing work that would ordinarily be paid, and replacing paid work, that’s unacceptable.” She made the statement in relation to information acquired by this paper about the working conditions of German students who are recruited each year to teach at the Department. Having interviewed a number of former interns, none of whom wish to be named, Trinity News has learned that unpaid German students teach a significant number of the compulsory language classes taken weekly by Junior and Senior Freshman students in the Department. These classes are all largely taught independently by unpaid interns, and have sometimes involved them correcting students’ homework.
Interns also take weekly tutorial groups for a module in cultural studies, and have covered for absent lecturers on a number of occasions in the past. The internship programme in question has been in operation for ten years, and is advertised online by the Department. However, the Department’s webpage specifies that the conversation lessons taught by interns are done so “unter Anleitung” (under guidance). In a statement to Trinity News, Professor Moray McGowan, head of the Department of Germanic Studies, said, “Interns teach conversation classes in spoken German which are a supplement to the structured instruction in German language provided by more senior and qualified staff. They are supervised in this by the staff who teach the language classes.” However, the first former intern who spoke to this reporter about her experience at the Department, while stressing that the group had supervisors who “always found the time to discuss our teaching experience and also sat in on some of our classes”, said they “relied on us to prepare and perform the teaching independently”. Professor McGowan’s claim is also at odds with comments provided by current
students at the Department of Germanic Studies. Speaking to this reporter, a Senior Sophister European Studies student recounted his experience of German language classes in first and second year in less than complimentary terms. He said, “Our classes were taken every week by people who were essentially teaching their peers. I didn’t learn a lot from them. They were chaotic and not very challenging. I don’t think they really knew what they were supposed to be doing.” When asked to describe the profile of language teachers he encountered teaching these language classes, he claimed that, “Most of them would’ve been about twentytwo or twenty-three.” Another final year student, who took oral German as part of his TSM degree with the Department in Junior and Senior Freshman years, told Trinity News, “From what I remember of them, they were very, very informal. To be honest, I stopped going during second year, as I didn’t really feel they were worth the time… The impression I got was that [the tutors] were young, native speakers, possibly doing a postgrad in Trinity, and doing this on the side to earn some money. They just ran through some very basic exercises with us in class that were more akin to material you’d cover when
“The crux of the matter is that someone who cheated in an exam can’t represent 12,000 undergrads” - Tom Emma Heyn and Ryan Connolly Lenihen tackle the “Marriage Equality Debate”
InDepth -p.11
Comment -p.12
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We’re not against internships. They’re often a valuable learning experience, but when you’re doing work that would ordinarily be paid, and replacing paid work, that’s unacceptable. SIPTU Education Sector Organiser Louise O’Reilly
learning a language in secondary school.” The interns taken on every year, according to Professor McGowan, are either students of German or of English studying for a Master’s degree, or teachers of German as a foreign language. They are not interviewed by the Department, and are instead selected on the merits of a CV to work for periods of one term up to an entire academic year in college. In addition to language classes, interns at the Department of Germanic Studies are regularly tasked with organising extracurricular activities, such as film screenings, and “Stammtisch” nights, the informal pub gatherings which are a tradition of the Department. During the Christmas period, interns often bake with students. One of the most significant responsibilities entrusted to unpaid interns took place in 2011, when they ran the theatre group, which is a key component of first year and involves weekly practice sessions, largely without any assistance from the Department. The lecturer whose role it was to lead the class, according to an intern who worked in Trinity College for one term that year, was on sick leave for over a month, which resulted in interns taking over as directors.
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TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
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What They Said
“ “ “ “ “ My card has been blocked because I’ve been to five countries in the last month.
For the benefit of us dumb Americans, what’s a naggin?
Cormac Shine, Co-Editor, Piranha
Zane Shirley
Really disappointed with how registration and pre-orientation have gone so far in TCD. Very bad first impression for new students.
24486 Naggins... 10269 Condoms... 1857 Pizza Slices...
Trinity JCR prepare for Fresher’s Weekend
Education Officer, Jack Leahy
Fresher’s Week
@tcdphil this yours? “@SouthDublinGirl: My sister just got her welcome pack for #TCDFreshers: Skins box set, house CD and a bag of yokes.” @TcdLawSoc
Revelations of unpaid interns within German Department Continued from page one. Catherine Healy
In his statement, Professor McGowan went on to clarify that the Department’s interns are required to attend a two hour seminar on teaching and an hour-long team meeting, alongside three to five hours of teaching, with one to two hours of preparation per contact hour. This would suggest that interns work a maximum of eighteen hours per week. Continued on page two. However, one intern, who spent two academic terms working at the Department, told Trinity News, “It was not unusual to be more than 12 hours at work every day.” Another former intern supported this claim, writing in a communication to this reporter that, “On average, I worked about eight to 10 hours a day between Monday and Friday.” She added, “We were not able to do much besides our internship. We had little time for all those the things you think about when going abroad – like party, travelling, etc. – due to our long working hours and exhaustion.” For the entire time during which they worked, unpaid interns received no assistance from the Department with either accommodation or transport costs.
Instead, they are expected to apply for funding or an Erasmus grant from their home university or the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). One former intern who received financial assistance through the Erasmus exchange programme said it “barely covered [his] rent”. Though some interns felt they gained a valuable experience working at Trinity College, others were less impressed with the treatment of interns. According to another former intern, “It was clear that we were not really considered part of the department. We were not invited to any departmental events. I remember one incident, when one of the PhD students was celebrating her degree, or a publication or something, and everybody was drinking wine right outside our office. We didn’t dare go outside and join the staff, because nobody told us about it or asked if we wanted to join… I was surprised at this behaviour because we took over such a large amount of the classes and some interns had been there for nearly a full academic year, which in my opinion would have been long enough for other members of staff to at least know their names.” The HR Department did not respond to a request for a statement on the issue of
unpaid internship at Trinity College, Dublin. However, the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT), the union which represents the college’s lecturers, echoed SIPTU’s remarks. While reluctant to speak about the specific working conditions of interns at the Department of Germanic Studies, IFUT president, Mike Jennings, stated, “Internships have to be a genuine training opportunity. We would look unfavourably on any situation in which interns are asked to do on an unpaid basis what other people are usually paid to do.” Mr. Jennings added that it was the first instance he had heard of unpaid interns being used at a third-level language department.
who rose to fame with his portrayal as Ted Buckland in the ABC sitcom Scrubs. The Phil has bagged the Emmyaward winning impressionist and actor Will Ferrell, and will also be joined by the comedienne Catherine Tate, who briefly starred alongside David Tennant in Doctor Who. From the literary world, Man Booker Prize winner Hilary Mantel CBE and prominent Marxist literary theorist Terry Eagleton will be dropping their quills to chat to the Hist. No postnominal letters denoting the status of a pseudo knight of the British realm for him. Award-winning crime writer Michael Connelly and world-famous travel writer Bill Bryson – who once mused upon my hometown’s “dogged commitment to ug-
liness” – have both accepted invitations to address the Phil, as has Julian Fellowes, a Conservative peer and author of none other than Downton Abbey. International rugby star John Eales has also indicated a willingness to chat to the Phil, and former Head of NATO James Stavridis will be doing the same for the Hist. From the world of political activism, sex columnist and gay rights campaigner Dan Savage will be addressing the Phil, and so too will feminist and LGBT activist and author Julie Bindel who will be speaking first to the Hist, before locking horns with “celebrity pimp” Dennis Hof in a Phil debate on pornography. From the world of science, the Hist will be bringing
you Mario Capecchi, whose genetics research co-won him the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2007. Physics professor at the University of Manchester and BBC TV presenter Brian Cox will be talking to the Phil about his work with both organisations, and perhaps also his time as a rock musician in the 1980’s. Chimpanzee expert and conservationist Jane Goodall, and Steven Pinker, the noted Canadian linguist and psychologist, are also planning on dropping in. All of these events or debates are free to Hist and Phil members, so make sure to swing by their stalls on Front Square, if you’re interested. The stars will need your validation.
Catherine Healy
perienced unwanted sexual contact in their current educational institutions. In over 60 per cent of cases, victims estimated that the perpetrator was under the influence of alcohol, and the largest proportion of victims identified the perpetrators as being “acquaintances”. Of the 15 per cent of students who had been subject to physical mistreatment, 75 per cent of respondents described the person involved as not being known to them. The study also highlighted that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students were more likely to be victims of unwanted sexual contact. 1 in 4 LGBT respondents reported experiencing such behaviour, in comparison to 16 per cent of non-LGBT students. A further 22 per cent of Irish LGBT students have experienced non-sexual violence. Speaking at the launch, Ellen O’Malley-Dunlop, CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC), said that the report’s findings “validates and vindicates the experiences we hear about in therapy rooms across the country.” She drew comparisons between the study and her organisation’s SAVI report, published in 2002, which found that 1 in 5 Irish women experienced sexual assault in their adult lives, stating that, “It has taken
us a long time to accept the prevalence of sexual violence in Ireland.” Senator Ivana Bacik, who served as President of Trinity College Students’ Union (TCDSU) in the late 1980s, said that the survey’s findings were “depressing, but predicable”. Commenting on the rise of online sexual harassment, she added, “In my day, this abuse was carried out in the Piranha, but the substance was still the same.” The report, she said, was “timely”, given the launch this week by Women’s Aid of the “Don’t Be Afraid” campaign, which encourages women to speak up about their experiences of domestic violence.USI Vice President for Equality and Citizenship, Laura Harmon, called for further research into students’ experiences of harassment and sexual assault, and stated that the union will conduct training for college and SU staff to ensure they are equipped to help students in difficulty. Dublin Rape Crisis Centre 1800 777 788
News Editor
Big Guests lined up by Phil and Hist Politicians to movie stars to grace GMB James Wilson Staff Writer It’s not easy being famous. Fortunately, Trinity College’s two debating societies, the University Philosophical Society (Phil) and the College Historical Society (Hist), have found a way to ease the burden, by inviting politicians, academics and celebrities alike to give up their free time to address the societies’ members. Guests can speak at a
weekly debate or be made an Honorary Patron of the Society - whereby they give a speech detailing the highs and lows of their careers, followed by questions from the audience. The Phil will be firing the starting gun this year with a visit from the renowned Bray-born and bred folk musician Fionn Regan, who’ll be giving a live lunchtime performance this Tuesday in the Graduates’ Memorial Building (GMB). Other musicians who’ll be gracing the Phil with their
presence this year include Kele Okereke, the lead singer of the best-selling indie band Bloc Party, and Matt Bellamy who rose to fame as a guitarist and songwriter for Muse. Nile Rodgers of the American R&B Band Chic has also signalled his intention to visit. The Hist’s Correspondence Team have pulled something of a coup with two Heads of State planning on visiting the society; Ireland’s own President Michael D Higgins is due to visit this autumn, as is former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil. Mr da Silva served two terms in office and retired in 2011
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The Phil has bagged the Emmy-award winning impressionist and actor Will Ferrell, and will also be joined by the comedienne Catherine Tate.
with an astounding approval rating of 80%. Perhaps hoping some of the magic will rub off, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny is also scheduled to address the society. Not to be outdone, the Phil will be hosting former Belgian Prime Minister Herman Von Rompuy, who was appointed the first full-time President of the European Council in 2009 after the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. Harper Reed, who served as Chief Technology Officer for Obama’s reelection campaign, will also be paying the society a visit. A few big acting names are also scheduled to make an appearance. Former Bond villain, Game of Thrones star and Lord of the Rings actor Sean Bean has confirmed his attendance with the Hist, as has Sam Lloyd,
25% of female students subjected to unwanted sexual contact according to Say Something report
News Editor Almost one-fifth of female students in Ireland have been subjected to unwanted sexual contact, according to a new study launched today by the USI and the National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (Cosc) in Trinity College’s Long Room Hub. The “Say Something” survey is the first study of third-level students’ experiences of harassment, stalking and sexual assault to take place on a national level in Ireland. It was carried out in the form of an online questionnaire from January 10 to February 15 of this year, and drew responses from 2,752 students. The survey’s findings indicate that the vast majority of students who encountered unwanted sexual experiences – just over 97 per cent of victims - did not report these incidents. Nearly 1 in 3 victims said that they did not report cases of unwanted sexual contact because they felt “ashamed and embarrassed”, while 57 per cent believed the incident was not serious enough to report. The majority of victims, 15 per cent of students, reported that they had ex-
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
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USI prepare for national day of action on October 1st as part of its ‘Fight for your Future Now’ Campaign
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th weeks left until the announcement of Budget 2014, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has announced its intention to steer clear of the localised campaigning favoured by the union under the tenure of John Logue, who was USI President during the last academic year. Instead, USI is preparing for a National Day of Action on 1st October as part of its ‘Fight For Your Future Now’ campaign to protect the interests of students in the Budget. The protest will involve student demonstrations in Cork, Dublin and Sligo, and will not target the offices of individual TDs. The decision represents a departure from the strategy employed in the run-up to the last Budget announcement, when USI devolved campaigning responsibility to member unions as part of their attempt to target
that education cuts could be up to ¤100 million. He has indicated that the Department of Education may have to find an additional ¤20 million in savings after public pressure forced him to abandon plans to impose further cuts on teaching for children with disabilities. Speaking last month at University College Cork (UCC), the minister refused to rule out changes to grant payments or eligibility levels. However, he pointed to increased welfare funding to third-level colleges through the Higher Education Authority (HEA), and said there was “certainty” that the student registration charge will peak at ¤3,000 in two years. He also said that changes had been made to the administration of Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) in response to the delay in the issuance of grants by SUSI last year.
specific government TDs based on their political ties with Minister for Education, Ruairi Quinn, or perceived electoral vulnerability. Speaking to Trinity News, Tom Lenihan, President of Trinity College Students’ Union (TCDSU), said that the union is “fully supportive of the USI in fighting any budget cuts that threaten our most vulnerable students”. He added that it is “essential that we co-ordinate a very large turnout at the National Day of Action”, and that the union’s target is for a turnout of 5,000 students in Dublin. The action is to be accompanied by the establishment of a national database of student voters, called SERD (Student Elector Registration Database), through which the USI intends to match student voters to their constituencies. According to USI President,
Joe O’Connor, “SERD will… directly link students from right across the country to their constituencies and their local public representatives. We intend to have the critical mass on this database by the end of this academic year to be in a position to influence and radically alter the direction of any election or referendum taking place in Ireland.” “The message is clear,” he warned in a statement to this paper. “Politicians that continue to target vulnerable students and families with their decisions will be directly targeted at the ballot box.” Speaking at the launch of the ‘Fight For Your Future Now’ campaign on 15th August, Mr. O’Connor said that, “76,600 students depend on maintenance grants to support them through college. These students and their parents form a voting block
of approximately 214,480 voters across every constituency, enough to have a decisive say in the outcome of any election.” According to USI, over 120,000 students are already registered to vote, and they aim to enrol a further 50,000 this year. Mr. O’Connor, in communication with this reporter, said that while the USI is opposed to further increases in the Student Contribution Charge, these are “very much set in stone”, having been set to increase a further ¤250 in the upcoming Budget, up to a maximum of ¤3000 in Budget 2015. Instead, USI is calling on the government “to commit to the introduction of no deferred payment scheme”. He said that, “Our focus… has been on the protection of student supports such as the maintenance grant and Back to Education Allow-
ance which are likely among the ‘options’ for further cuts this year.” According to Mr. O’Connor, the union has also engaged the Nevin Econonic Research Institute (NERI) in carrying out research into long-term third-level funding this year, though a spokesperson for NERI has since informed Trinity News that no such agreement has been made. He also hinted that the union would support reductions in the income of highearning academics. “In the same way as the Haddington Road agreement sets out a roadmap for the rowback of pay cuts for public servants in line with economic recovery, a similar roadmap should be set out to row back on increases in the SCC [student contribution charge]”, he told Trinity News. Over the summer period, Minister Quinn warned
There is uncertainty as to whether the Minister will impose a blanket cut on student maintenance grants or implement a means test. Controversy surrounds a possible means test with farmers’ associations opposed to the inclusion of assets like farmland or business premises in the test. The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association has called for public sector pensions to be included, a move backed by former Labour Party Chairman Colm Keaveney. According to a recent survey by the Irish League of Credit Unions, the average family in Ireland spends ¤421 per month on a college-going child, while 84% of parents said they are struggling to meet the costs of third-level education.
Public spending on education in Ireland has dropped significantly according to OECD report College Affairs `Editor, Aonghus Ó Cochláin, reports on the release of a new OECD report that illustrates how public expenditure in Ireland has consistently decreased over the last decade and how young people will, on average spend
T Aonghus Ó Cochláin College Affairs Editor
he proportion of public spending on education in Ireland has significantly decreased in the last decade, according to the latest report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The 2013 Education at a Glance report also noted major gaps in employment rates between young people with high and low levels of education, despite increases in educational attainment rates. According to the survey’s findings, a significant proportion of young people in Ireland are at risk of finding themselves neither in employment nor in education or training (NEET). The report estimates that young people in Ireland will spend an average of more than three years either unem-
ployed or out of the labour force altogether, making it significantly harder for them to integrate into the labour force later. Reported NEET rates for people aged 15-29 in Ireland have more than doubled between 2008 and 2011, increasing from 10% to 22%, in contrast to the OECD average of 16% and an average of 15% for the EU countries within the OECD. For those without a Leaving Certificate, unemployment increased by 21.5% among 25-34 year olds between 2008 and 2011. In contrast, unemployment went up 5.2% among young adults with a third-level education. Ireland was found to be one of the few countries, along with Brazil, Chile, Hungary and Slovenia, where the relative earn-
ings of university graduates are more than 100% higher than the earnings of those without third-level qualifications. Despite the importance of investment in education to tackle youth unemployment, the proportion of public spending allocated for education in Ireland fell significantly below the OECD average to 9.7% in 2010, a drop of 4% in the space of a decade. However, Ireland was not the only country to observe such a trend, with many countries suffering from cuts to spending on education. Between 2009 and 2010, “probably as a consequence of fiscal consolidation policies”, the OECD notes, public expenditure on education fell in one-third of its member nations.
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Reported NEET rates for people aged 15-29 in Ireland have more than doubled between 2008 and 2011, increasing from 10% to 22%,
Nonetheless, educational retention rates in Ireland are reported to have increased significantly since 2000, with 89% of young people expected to complete upper secondary education in their lifetime. According to the 2011 statistic, Ireland was above the OECD average of 83%. In higher-level education, the expected rate was 43%, with an OECD average of 39%, placing Ireland 9th out of 26 countries. Within the 25-34 year-old age group, Ireland ranked fourth behind Canada, Japan and Korea for tertiary level completion rates. Despite a decrease in the level of spending on education relative to other public expenditure, spending per student in Ireland rose by 33% in primary, secondary and non-tertiary post-sec-
ondary education, and 28% in tertiary level education, between 2005 and 2010. This reflects an increase in the level of educational attainment, as the report found a growth rate of 9% in the number of students attending third level education within the period. The report also found that gender distribution in third level education in EU countries had improved, although not evenly in all fields. There have been more female graduates with an undergraduate or postgraduate degree than males, and this trend has continued, with females comprising 60% of all graduates in the 21 EU members of the OECD in 2011, compared with 55% in 2000. While there continues to be more males than females in the
fields of mathematics, science, technology and engineering, the gap is closing. The OECD has been a long-time advocate of maintaining reasonable costs for higher education, in order to boost economic stability and employment opportunities, as well as reduce inequality. Its annual education report includes data compiled by Eurostat and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on 34 member countries, 21 of which are EU member states. The report compares and ranks the performance of each country against other OECD members.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
News
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Michael Stone recounts his exciting trek across Nepal. InDepth -p.8
News In Brief
USI calls on government to tackle youth unemployment
Catherine Healy
News Editor The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has called for an end to the “lockout” of young people in Ireland. In a press conference held alongside representatives of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) and the Irish Second Level Students’ Union (ISSU), USI President Joe O’Connor demanded government action to tackle rising youth unemployment and emigration. Mr. O’Connor said that the “time for talking on this issue is very much over”, and pointed to a recent survey commissioned by the Irish League of Credit Unions’ survey which found that 57% of Irish students expect to have to emigrate after graduation. He stated that, “Some 35,000 young people left Ireland in the last year, as a direct result of policies that didn’t offer them genuine opportunities, while a further 65,000 young people remain unemployed here.” Any drop in the live register has been offset by the brain drain of Irish graduates coun-
College Affairs Editor The Political Science Department celebrated its 50th anniversary in College this month with a gathering of political science graduates during the Trinity College Alumni Weekend. Based in the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy, the department was founded in 1960 under Professor Basil Chubb, and produced its first graduates in 1963. The programme of events featured a roundtable session of graduates who reflected on their time at college. Alumni on the panel included Senator Averil Power, Fianna Fáil Seanad Spokesperson on Education and Skills, Kingsley Aikins, founder and CEO of Diaspora Matters,
A shortfall in property avail 1ability in Dublin has caused difficulty for many students seeking accommodation for the new academic year, with rental prices far higher now than in 2012. The property website Daft. ie reported a decrease in the amount of properties available to rent in Dublin from 4,212 in August 2012 to only 2,394 a year later, while figures were once over 8,500 a few years before. Average rental prices rose by 7.5% in the same period, compared to only 0.9% across the rest of the country. According to Aisling Ní Chonaire of TCDSU Accommodation Advisory Service, “Many
terbalanced any drop in the live register, he added. Mr. O’Connor also called for “an ethos of entrepreneurship to be embedded within degrees” alongside the creation of new jobs. He was speaking at the launch of the policy document ‘Locked Out: Investing in a Future for Youth', a collaborative effort between the three unions, which was launched in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) on September 5. The publication draws attention to the need for a legal framework for work placements and calls for the adoption of a new National Jobs Strategy for Young People, as well as investment in the European Youth Guarantee scheme. Also speaking at the launch, Glenn Fitzpatrick, President of DIT Students’ Union, pointed out that many students “work anything between fifteen and twenty hours a week to fund their studies, when in fact that work actually endangers their education.” Lorraine Mulligan of ICTU joined both student representatives in her criticism of schemes such JobBridge for their tendency to exploit young people.
Sara Morris, Head of Public Affairs at National Transport Authority and Ed Mulhall, former Managing Director of News and Current Affairs at RTÉ. Chairing the session, Professor Michael Marsh, Professor of Comparative Political Behaviour, commented: “It was wonderful to have such distinguished graduates participate as panellists in the Alumni Roundtable session. Speakers spoke with great passion about their time at Trinity and the positive impact it had on their lives and their very varied career paths. I particularly enjoyed hearing our former students’ personal stories and their thoughts on what it was like to study political science during a time of great change in the Irish political landscape." Professor Gail McElroy, Professor in Social Science and Head of the Department, further commented: “We were delighted
College Affairs Editor Front Square will see four new societies vying for the attention of Freshers this week, with the Society for International Affairs, Sociology Society and the Global Development Society achieving CSC recognition last year, and a proposed Arabesque Society being approved in early September. Trinity’s long-running Voluntary Tuition Program (VTP) has also been recognised with society status. Created for students with an interest in international relations and diplomacy, the Society for International Affairs is planning a range of events and activities, including guest speakers, to promote the discussion of diplomacy and international affairs, and provide a platform for networking. With students from TSM, BESS, Social Work, and many other subjects studying it in their
first year and beyond, Sociology is one of the largest disciplines in College, and the Sociology Society welcomes students from all subjects who have an interest in society, culture and how social forces shape our everyday lives. The Global Development Society was founded to help students get involved in development issues, and create a forum for students to learn more about societal, political, environmental and economic issues in both ‘developing’ and ‘developed’ countries. It hopes to not only highlight development issues, but also question the notion of ‘development’ and what it really means. With planned events on the politics of food, an interactive workshop with Irish Aid and a campaign training with Oxfam, the society plans to work alongside other societies and universities to host events in the future. Each year, VTP matches over 400 Trinity students, graduates and staff-members as tutors with children and teenagers studying in nearby schools. The programme enables students to
students are in an absolute bind coming to college for the first time or returning to college this year. Student residences have been reaching near capacity since June this year, with many returning students opting to hold their places for the following year. This serious shortfall is leaving so many vulnerable students, many of which are entirely new to Dublin and Ireland, feeling completely stranded.” In a statement, USI President, Joe O’Connor, said, “In a desperate attempt to find a suitable place to live, many students are being forced to pay over the odds for their accommodation, with no choice but to settle at exploitative prices. This adds to the huge financial burden already placed on students attending third-level and their families.” He further stated that the crisis
showed the need to protect the student maintenance grant and student supports in the upcoming budget, and has called for the development of purposebuilt city centre student accommodation to ease this situation in the long-term. Only a limited number of places can be provided by College accommodation, and room prices have increased both on campus and in Halls, as the property tax is factored into rent for the first time this year.
She drew attention to the reality of zero-hour contracts and condemned the precarious employment increasingly faced by young people in Ireland. Workers, she stated, “should have proper terms and conditions of employment, proper contracts.” The policy document comes as the latest OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) reports - Economic Survey of Ireland and ‘Local Job Creation: How Employment and Training Agencies Can Help’ – affirmed the need for further action on youth unemployment in Ireland, and drew a direct link between youth unemployment and suicide.
that the event appealed to such a range of graduates and that people travelled not only from within Ireland but also from the UK and as far afield as Toronto. It was fantastic that graduates from 1963 all the way through to 2011 could attend. It really was a great opportunity for people to re-connect with College and share memories with their fellow graduates, as well as hearing about new developments and plans for Political Science in Trinity.”
CSC recognises four new societies Aonghus Ó Cochláin
Aonghus Ó Cochláin College Affairs Editor
Political Science Dept celebrates 50th anniversary Aonghus Ó Cochláin
Peak in demand for SU Accommodation Advisory Service
give back to the local community, and also runs a number of smaller educational programs and educational clubs. An Arabesque Society, which aims to inform and educate the college community on the history and culture of the Arab Nations, will also be signing up new members over the course of the week. These new societies will add to the already expansive list of current societies, and welcome all interested students to sign up during Freshers’ Week.
College granted permission to open off-license in biomedical building Catherine Healy News Editor Trinity College is to open an off-licence on campus this year, despite strong opposition from members of the surrounding community. The university was granted permission from Dublin City Council to open the off-licence - and grocery shop - in one on the ground floor of the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute on Pearse Street. According to the Irish Independ-
ent, the college will amalgamate two units “to provide a local convenience store with subsidiary alcohol sales” as part of the plan. In a letter of objection to the Council, one local resident said, “The addition of another off-licence in the area will only serve to bolster the anti-social behaviour in the area. Living locally, I have first-hand experience of this behaviour, which I can only assume is fuelled by alcohol.” “There is a full off-licence in the Spar in Hanover Street and this fully services all requirements for alcohol in Pearse Street,” the resident added.
A council ruling in favour of the university was appealed to An Bord Pleanala, which upheld the decision. However, it is not known when exactly the off-licence will open its doors to students.
TCD Monday – 14th Oct
Wednesday – 16th Oct
The Samuel Beckett Theatre 4-6.30pm
The Samuel Beckett Theatre 4-5.30pm
Waste Land The Samuel Beckett Theatre 7-10pm
Fatal Assistance Followed by panel discussion
Tuesday - 15th Oct The Samuel Beckett Theatre 12.45-2pm
Give Us the Money The Samuel Beckett Theatre 4-5.35pm
Which Way Is The Front Line From Here?: The Life and Time of Tim Hetherington The Samuel Beckett Theatre 6.30-9.15pm
Fire in the Blood Followed by Panel Discussion
Rafea: Solar Mama The Samuel Beckett Theatre 6.30-8.20pm
More Than Honey
Thursday – 17th Oct 1-2pm
Film Production workshop with ‘Town of Runners’ producer Dan Demissie The Samuel Beckett Theatre 4-5.40pm
Here Was Cuba: A Cautionary Tale The Samuel Beckett Theatre 6.30-9pm
Town of Runners Followed by Q&A with producer Dan Demissie
Friday – 18th Oct The Samuel Beckett Theatre 12.45-2pm
Living on One Dollar
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
6
InDepth
Dylan Joyce Ahearne relives his summer in Paris
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Trying Commons on for size Grub, gowns and red caps: Gabriel Beecham delves into College’s past to explore the history of Commons and the little-known role of the sizars.
W Gabriel Beecham Staff Writer
hether by attending an open day, speaking to current students or scouring the College website, many rising Junior Freshmen will have come across various awards and scholarships that are open to newcomers at Trinity. Entrance exhibitions come in the form of book tokens for those scoring 560 points or more in the Leaving Certificate or equivalent school-leaving examination; sport scholarships for budding athletes are self-explanatory in the main; and foundation scholarships confer a wide range of benefits for up to five years including free fees, accommodation and a evening meal known as Commons. Closer inspection of the College prospectus reveals another award with a particularly idiosyncratic title: the sizarship. What, exactly, is a sizar, and what do they have to do with Commons? From the foundation of the College in 1592 onward, the students and Fellows ate together on a daily basis in the dining hall, as was the custom at the Cambridge and Oxford colleges on which Trinity was modelled.
A manuscript from the papers of Luke Challoner, one of Trinity’s three founding Fellows, gives us a glimpse of the hearty fare served up in the early 17th century: “A Fellow’s diet shall be 6 ozs of Manchet [the finest kind of wheaten bread] a mele, a pint and a halfe of good bear the pece, 3 quarts in the mess [between four people], and a shoulder of mutton; and at night a good pece of beath [beef] and porage, more than they can ete, enowe for each … The Scholar’s diet is 6 ozs of good cheet bread [wheaten bread of the second quality] for ech, pint of ber [beer] the pece, pottel a mess, a joynt of mutton at supper a mess, and a good pece of befe at dinner at 12 pieces in the quarter …” Those attending Commons wore academic gowns and were seated in order of rank, with the Fellows and the Provost (or his representative) at the high table, and with freshmen, sophisters and bachelors grouped at separate tables of their own. All students living in College were expected to attend regularly.
By the early 20th century, a curious system had developed whereby the junior tables each elected a weekly president, whose duty it was to order the dinners for each table during their periods of office. As Kenneth Bailey describes in his ‘A History of Trinity College, Dublin, 1892-1945’: “If an extravagant dinner was ordered for one evening, the table was in debt and the diners had to be content with modest fare for several days until their finances were restored. Such a system had its merits, for the presidents were given some experience of the difficulties of housekeeping, but the president’s term of office was too short to inculcate a real sense of responsibility, and there was a temptation to plan a ‘show off menu’ so that his contemporaries might remember the marvelous meal served while he was in office.” Needless to say, this quirky system often created difficulties for College’s cooks in coping with more eccentric requests from the competing presidents, such as suckling pigs and calves’
heads. The segregated tables and the election system were eventually done away with in 1919. In earlier centuries, seating was determined not so much by one’s academic standing as by social class. From the late 18th until well into the 20th century, the vast majority of students were termed “commoners” (or “pensioners” if they also lived in rooms in College) and accounted for the majority of those dining on Commons. As well as these, there were also fellow commoners, who paid twice the normal fees and, in return, were allowed to obtain their degrees a year sooner than other students, and who dined with the Fellows at the high table and wore special gowns with velvet collars and sleeves to indicate their status. Noblemen (nobiles and filii nobilium) paid four times the normal fee in return for various privileges, and wore gold and silver tassels on their gowns. At the other end of the spectrum were the sizars. These were male students of limited financial means (women were not admitted
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“Notable sizars at different times. included the mathematician Isaac Newton and the diarist Samuel Pepys at Cambridge, and the poet Oliver Goldsmith in our own university.”
to degrees at Trinity until 1904) who were almost completely exempt from fees and had their Commons free of charge. Constantia Maxwell explains the origin of the role in her A History of Trinity College, Dublin, 1591-1892: “The sizars, originally nominated by the Provost and Senior Fellows (the first competitive examination for sizarships was in June 1710), paid only for ‘sizings’, i.e. additional supplies from the kitchen, which members of the College could obtain at less than market price in the old days when many of the rents of tenants were paid in kind.” The term originated at Cambridge, and is probably related to the similar role of servitor at Oxford. Notable sizars at different times included the mathematician Isaac Newton and the diarist Samuel Pepys at Cambridge, and the poet Oliver Goldsmith in our own university. In return for their meals, sizars carried out menial tasks such as waiting on the Fellows as they ate, sweeping floors and acting as sacristans in the chapel. They
wore coarser gowns than the commoners with red caps to set them apart, and they dined on the leftovers from the high table after the Fellows had finished. According to Maxwell, a young sizar by the name of Richard Murray stumbled on one occasion while carrying a dish to the Fellows’ table: “It is told of him that … he said, when the general laughter had died down: ‘When I’m provost, no sizar shall ever be required to do the business of a menial servant!’” Murray did indeed go on to become a Senior Fellow, professor of Mathematics and eventually Provost from 1795 until 1799, during which time he abolished the practice of sizars acting as waiters. The English writer William Howitt reports: “A spirited fellow at length caused the abolition … by flinging the dish he was carrying on Trinity Sunday at the head of a citizen in the crowd, assembled to witness the scene, who made some jeering remarks on the office he had to perform.” The position of sizars was further improved in 1843, when they were allowed to eat as equals with other students in the dining hall, and by the turn of the 20th century the role had come to be regarded with a much more appropriate degree of respect and esteem. Nevertheless, it was not until College’s statutes were revised in 2010 that the order of precedence was finally altered to remove any remaining suggestion of inferiority between sizars and other students. Nowadays, the separate competitive examinations have been discontinued and means-tested applications for sizarship are accepted from all rising junior freshmen who have qualified for entrance exhibitions. Those interested in following in the footsteps of Goldsmith, Newton and Pepys have until 1st October to make enquiries to the Admissions Office.
Benefits of the Fringe Kind Dublin Fringe is an artistic reflection of the city we live in. Online Editor Matthew Mulligan explores the experiences on offer at this year’s festival.
T Matthew Mulligan Online Editor
his year is a huge one for Dublin Fringe Fest. An explosion of history, contemporary issues and a reflective look at Dublin itself is played out on stages and venues across the capital; while behind the scenes, Fringe director Róise Goan steps down after five years at the helm, handing over to the inbound (from Canada!) Kris Nelson. The Fringe has become an integral part of any Dubliner’s September calendar and it’s easy to see why. It has become embedded in the city, making its home in the spaces around Temple Bar, and drawing in talent from the entire country, including from our own Trinity College. This year’s Fringe has made clear that history lives through art in its dedication to observe the centenary of the 1913 Lockout. ANU Productions, famed for their visceral interactive piece at last year’s Fringe, ‘The Boys of Foley Street’, bring their unique and expertly executed look at Dublin life back in time to examine the Lockout. Under the banner ‘Thirteen’, the company have once again made the streetscapes of Dublin, including some less appreciated corners, their canvas; this time to perform a variety of experiences created to give audience goers an intimate and faithful look at the events of 1913. The memories of Ireland’s answer to the socialist revolutions of the early twentieth century are built upon during the thirteen days of the festival, with events around the city combining in an intricate blend of visual, performance and
installation art. From listening to a specially designed audio track on a specifically chosen stretch of Luas to entering into houses on Henrietta Street to be greeted (and challenged) by ghosts of the past, the ‘Thirteen’ performances are executed with archaeologist-like precision to create something truly unique for the people of Dublin. All events are free to attend and the amount of work that has gone into every one of the individual performances is definitely an endearing legacy that ANU and the Fringe can be proud of. Another look at the past comes in the form of the haunting play ‘The Churching of Happy Cullen’, which is also set in 1913 and, among other things, examines the practice the Catholic Church had of examining a woman’s life after having given birth to her child in order to see whether she was fit to return back to the church. A more personal story of what Dublin was like one hundred years ago, the show forces audiences to examine the struggles of motherhood in the face of poverty, a story as valid today as ever. As well as looking to the turbulence of the past, the Fringe in recent years has seen itself grow exponentially as a hotbed for artists both young and old trying to make sense of the economic and social realities that face us today. Art is always a place people turn to when looking for an explanation for hardship, and in the Fringe it’s no different. Pushed to create a new narrative after the collapse
of the ones they were sold as cubs of the Celtic Tiger, the most talented artists of the twenty-something generation are moving back in with their parents, working part-time jobs and making brilliant art in the face of it. Come As Soon As You Hear’s ‘Welp’ is a quirky, irreverent tale of the quarter life crisis – university degrees forgotten down the back of the sofa, not quite living independently and being an unwitting suspect of the fraud police. So much new work has changed from being about the sudden reality of the recession to the realisation of the permanence of a time when the wistful ‘do what makes you happy’ of childhood has faded away into a harsher world of JobBridge schemes and cheap red wine. A more rousing approach to finding the solution to our woes comes in the form of the Trailblazery’s ‘Rites of Passage’ series; a project which brings together some of the best national and international speakers to speak of Ireland’s past, present and future with the final event taking place in the examination hall in College and exploring the infinite possibilities of the future. The Trailblazery has previously done other events around Dublin: one, focusing on the theme of justice, featured rivetingly passionate speakers from a multitude of backgrounds, exploring the Irish psyche in a collage of soul, reality and optimism. Dublin Fringe Festival has also over recent years become a hotbed of activity for queer art. The amount
of youthful, experimental and provocative queer performers has brought a new life into the festival. A reflection on the city in which the Fringe makes its home, the amount of queer art in the festival is truly one of its strongest features. Though Dublin also boasts the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, queer artists in the Fringe have brought a sense of urgency and awareness to a wider audience that may not consider themselves as goers to the more defined art that the Gay Theatre Festival has to offer. Indeed, one of Fringe 2012’s biggest hits was ‘Briefs’, an all-male glitter and sequin filled affair, halfway between trashy and vaudeville, which wowed audiences and turned Meeting House Square into an anything goes arena of drag and circus. The show has proven to be so successful that the follow up is one of the Fringe’s main draws this year round. So too are smaller quieter affairs of non-heterosexual love, like Dublin-based spoken word collective PETTYCASH’s ‘GRINDR/a love story’. The show presents audiences with a frank look at young gay men, from the strains placed on their emotional and romantic relationships to the instant and supposedly gratifying sex through smart phone enabled hook-up apps. The show is bold and uncompromising, and one of many such shows which have found a home and an audience in the Fringe. Tales of LGBT relationships, loves and losses are no longer considered niche acts, reflective of the youthfulness
of the artists who develop them through their experiences in a city thankfully becoming more tolerant and a generation which refuses to let intolerance stand in their way. College has a huge amount of talent on show in this year’s Fringe, both institutions creating and developing art based around life in the city of which they are both such integral parts. The aforementioned ‘GRINDR/a love story’ features College students directing, co-starring and producing, while being written and helmed by spoken-word performer and company director Oisín McKenna, just the lads, a new company, is also curating work that embeds itself in the realities of the city and the age we live in. ‘The Last Post’ tells the story of postmen Pat, Pat and Pat and focuses on the ways we connect with one another, the art of letterwriting and the personal story of those who try put something more special than junk mail in our letterboxes. The group has had a successful campaign leading up to the Fringe with well received letter reading nights in Twisted Pepper, and involves award-winning members of DU Players. ‘Boys & Girls’ by Dylan Coburn Gray is a spoken word play that initially had a run in Players and is now making its Fringe debut. The gargantuan Collapsing Horse Theatre Company continues its work in the new Irish noir/sci-fi mash up ‘Distance from the Event’. The company features College heavyweights Aaron Heffernan
(who channelled his inner Obama during an SU run in 2011 and is to appear in ‘Love/Hate’), Jack Gleeson (who has appeared in Collapsing Horse’s previous production ‘Monster/Clock’ and HBO’s more monstrous ‘Game of Thrones’) and up and coming playwright Eoghan Quinn. Dublin Fringe Festival has a wide range of acts that should interest College students, from the actual performances involving the students themselves to the social observations played
out on stage that are echoed in the GMB’s debating chamber. This year will be the last before the handover of Fringe directors takes place but whatever the future holds, the Fringe will continue to be an event which captivates the city, shakes it to its core and forces it to look at itself under the harsh lights of the stage. College students have an ample opportunity to experience the arts event of the year right on their doorstep.
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
7
InDepth The Turkish Uprising Revisited
Tommy Gavin reported from Istanbul during the Gezi Park protests in June. With protests having been rekindled at the start of September, a new wave of mass action has begun but with the same underlying motivations.
Photo: Eser Karadağ
F Tommy Gavin Deputy Editor
The sharp sting of tear gas has returned to the cities of Turkey. Widespread popular protests have resumed after the relative lull since the mass popular protests in June. The rallying factor then was the planned demolition of Gezi Park in Istanbul, and civil unrest has been rekindled now with the recent deaths of protesters at remembrance marches along with plans to build a motorway through the Middle East Technical University (METU) and surrounding neighbourhoods in Ankara, and discrimination against the Alevi religion. Ahmet Atakan (23) died at a protest in Ankara on September 10th, held in commemoration of Abdullah Comert (22) and Ali Ihsan Korkmaz (19) both killed by police in June. Early reports indicated that Atakan was struck in the head by a tear gas canister fired by police, though it has now emerged that he also fell from a three story building. This is an incidental technicality for protesters though, for whom Atakan represented the sixth death since protests started, with a total death toll now of at least seven. Comert died after being struck in the head with a tear gas canister, and Korkmaz was beaten to death by a group which later emerged to include police. Most recently, Serdar Kadakal (35) died in Istanbul’s Kadıköy district from a heart attack which is thought to have been caused by intense tear gas use by the police. Police brutality has been the most consistent motivating factor in fuelling the protests. Amnesty International has called for a suspension of tear gas shipments to Turkey as police used 130,000 tear gas canisters in the first 20 days of the protests, depleting the 150,000 budgeted for the year. The Turkish Medical Association has reported that over 8,000 people have been injured by police who have been aiming with tear gas grenades at the heads of protesters. Additionally, there is widespread anger over a project for a joint mosquecemevi (place of worship for Alevis) in Tuzlucayir in Ankara. Alevism is a form of moderate Islam native to
Turkey that fuses Anatolian folk traditions with Shia Islam, and cemevis are more akin to community centres than exclusively religious buildings like mosques and churches. The project was proposed by Fetullah Gülen, a former Imam and Turkish religious leader with strong ties to the ruling Justice and Development (AK) party and is a central player in the Turkish Sunni establishment. Turkey is 99% Muslim, but that statistic encompasses the predominant Sunni majority, along with more marginal Shiite and Alevi populations. Taxes go to funding Sunni clerics and mosques, but not to Alevi or Shiite groups, and cemevis aren’t recognised as places of worship by the Turkish state. Alevis represent 15% to 20% and have suffered a history of persecution. Tuzlucayir is an 80% Alevi area, and the project is seen as an attempt to ‘sunnify’ Alevis. It recalls an old Ottoman tactic of arresting agitators and forcing them to move near the Sultan’s palace in Istanbul so they could be easier monitored and controlled. In June, there was controversy over the new bridge linking the European continent to the Asian, which was named after Yayuz Sultan Selim, who expanded the borders of the Ottoman empire. Also known as Selim the grim, he earned his nickname for his relentless slaughter of 40,000 Alevis. The protest Atakan died at was also held in solidarity with METU students and local residents who are campaigning against the construction of a motorway through university land as well as adjoining neighbourhoods, which would cut the college campus in two and displace resident locals. The university is a centre of leftist politics and student activism, but for the most part the demonstrators are local. The METU road protests and the mosque-cemevi project have provided a new impetus for mobilizing protesters, protests suffered from lack of direction following the removal of demonstrators from Gezi park and Taksim square. The protests trace their genesis to November 2012 when business owners organised the Taksim Plat-
form to protest the demolition of Gezi Park in Istanbul, which is comparable to Stephens Green Park in Dublin; the adjoining Istiklal avenue being uncannily similar in appearance to Grafton Street, both being their cities main shopping streets. Gezi Park sits on Taksim Square, which was to be pedestrianized and the park was to be replaced with a shopping mall designed as a replica of Ottoman-era barracks which used to occupy the site. The park was occupied by a small group of activists from Greenpeace to resist any attempts to demolish the park, and in May, Prime Minister Erdogan reiterated the government’s intention to demolish the park. Hundreds of Istanbulites occupied the park in response, but it wasn’t until the police attempted to clear those protesters from Gezi Park that huge countrywide protests erupted. What began as environmental concerns quickly morphed into remonstrations about the privatisation of public space and discontentment at a government seen as being increasingly authoritarian. When police attempted to clear protesters from the park on May 31st in a brutal crackdown in the middle of the city’s commercial district during the middle of trading hours, public outrage was unanimous. Over 100 canisters of tear gas were fired, choking homes and businesses, and protesters were herded into an underground metro station in Taksim, before filling it with tear gas and locking the doors. It was to be the final straw; catalysing huge public action that would see Gezi park being occupied by protesters for the next three weeks and barricades going up around surrounding roads. One Istanbul resident described the atmosphere of the park as being “like a radical carnival,” and each day it grew more sophisticated and developed. Shelves filled with books grew to become a library of over 6000 books with librarians working in shifts, and by the end there was an infirmary, a free food distribution area funded by donations that flowed in, and even a crèche. Different areas of the park were populated by
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“One recent development has been the use of fireworks against the police. Trinity News has learned that one of the main groups to employ this tactic is the Patriotic Revolutionist Youth Movement (YDG-H)” different groupings. There was a rainbow-flag adorned LGBT/feminist area, a Turkish nationalist area with Turkish flags, a Kurdish area with Kurdish flags, a communist/socialist area, and more between. Even the marginal left is aggressively sectarian in Turkey, but to have Turkish nationalists and Kurds peacefully in the same area represents a huge turning point in and of itself, as hard-line Turkish nationalists tend to be prejudiced against Kurds. Before the protests it was unthinkable for Kurds to be able to fly Kurdish flags in the middle of Istanbul, Kurds have been arrested just for wearing Kurdish colours. To have them flying beside the flags of Turkish nationalists without trouble became a trope for explaining how strong the shared sense of purpose was. Even now, in the forum in Kadiköy in Istanbul; nationalists have been heard chanting Kurdish slogans, marking a tangible perception breakthrough. At the centre of the
protests was the Taksim Platform, the same group founded by local businesses, environmentalists, and leftists. They had daily public forums in the park in which anyone could participate and contribute to the decision making. It was affiliated with Taksim Solidarity, an umbrella group of organisations and unions, and the day to day organisation of the park was managed by volunteers calling themselves the Gezi Park Association. With the new wave of protests though, the Taksim Platform has faded from visibility and have lost their sense of relevance. Speaking to Trinity News, one activist in Istanbul described the demographics of the protests now as being “more marginal and militant than they were in June. It’s not like it was in Gezi, you don’t have mothers and fathers banging pots and pans in the street as much anymore.” One recent development has been the use of fireworks against the police. Trinity News has learned that one of the main groups to employ this tactic is the Patriotic Revolutionist Youth Movement (YDG-H), a disciplined and well organised militant youth wing of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK). The PKK is an armed Kurdish paramilitary group that has engaged in political terrorism, and in March entered a ceasefire with the Turkish government, though talks are now stalling. They have announced that they will not be the first to attack but the YDG-H has been active in the protests since June. They have not been directly visible though, as Kurds generally don’t want the peace talks to break down. The most visible groups during the protests in June were university students and militant soccer fans from Turkey’s notorious football supporters clubs. The government feared that with the resumption of football season and the beginning of the academic year, campuses and stadiums would become major protest venues. In an effort to curb the possibility, the Turkish government has announced that private security on campuses and stadiums is to be replaced with police forces, plainclothes police
will mingle with fans during football games, and scholarships of students who participate in anti-government protests will be withdrawn. The militant football fans, or Ultras, have receded in visibility amid worries that they will be treated legally as gangs, but they are still active individually. During and after the Gezi Park protests, public forums spread out in other parks across Turkey. One local Kurdish councillor we spoke to in Gazi Mahalessi in Istanbul from the Peace and Democratic Party (BDP) in June expressed hope that they would function as a way of spreading and entrenching the protests. Speaking to activists in Istanbul now, we were told that “nobody knew what would happen with the forums. Some forums are stronger than others, but in Gezi it was different. Nobody expected anything big, so there was no hierarchy because of the shock. Now, some political groups are trying to build hierarchy but it doesn’t work. The people who aren’t already political will think ‘its not OUR movement.’ Political people are in danger of marginalising themselves, potentially excluding non-political people. The protests have opened up a crack, not the door, but a little light through this crack to potentially build up a politics.” The mechanics and politics of forums varies. In Gazi Mahalessi, known as a ‘police free zone’ and colloquially in leftist circles as ‘first of May street,’ the paramilitary Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKPC) who control part of the area and have engaged in political terrorism didn’t allow a forum which they couldn’t control. Larger forums tend to be more democratic though, such as in Besiktas and Kadiköy in Istanbul. Carsi, the football support club for Besikta FC are very active in the Besiktas forum. Ultimately, the underlying motives behind the protests haven’t changed. Dissatisfaction with authoritarian state power and issues of privatisation and gentrification, coupled with issues of prejudice and discrimination are what fuelled the Gezi Park protests, and that’s what’s fuelling the
protests now. Even before the protests started, there was widespread outrage at ‘Urban Renewal’ projects that sought and seek to dislodge people already disadvantaged in the interests of elites. Tarlabası, a predominantly migrant area, just north of Taksim is one such example. The contract for the destruction of low income housing to be replaced with high-rises and hotels went to a construction company owned by a holding company whose CEO is the Prime Minister’s son in law. Although Turkish growth was not significantly impeded by the economic crisis, 30% of the Turkish economy depends on construction, and it is hard to believe that is sustainable, and that Turkey is not heading for an economic crisis of its own. Therein lies the reasoning behind the METU road, the reconstruction of Gezi park and the urban renewal of Tarlabası. Local elections in March are looming, and if popular dissentient can be translated into votes against the AKP, there is the potential for political change. The People’s Democratic Party (HDP) is a new party set up by civil society organisations and leftist groups including the BDP and they expect to get 600,000 votes in Istanbul. If the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) selects a candidate that the HDP can live with for the mayor of Istanbul in March, they have the potential to mount a challenge to the AKP. During the early days of the Gezi protests, no one dared make predictions because it seemed incredulous that they were happening in the first place. Uncertainties and dangers aside, not least from Syria collapsing on Turkey’s doorstep, this is a very important moment in Turkish political history and has long term implications for Europe and the middle east.
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
8
InDepth
Road to Somewhere? Why did Michael Stone cross the road? To look at the conflict arising in Nepal over the construction of a road in the untouched Annapurna Conservation Area, compromising one of the world’s greatest treks, the Annapurna Circuit.
T Michael Stone Staff Writer
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“Once the traditional starting point for the trek, the extension of the dirt road has rendered Besisahar a glorified bus depot, a purgatory of sorts.”
he Annapurna Conservation Area spans 7,629km2 of Nepal’s northern frontier, making it the largest protected area in the country. The area consists of five districts which share the immense Annapurna Himal, home to Annapurna I, the tenth highest mountain in the world. With a climate ranging from tropical to alpine and housing a melting pot of Tibetan, Hindu, and indigenous cultures, the area has become a hotspot for Himalayan adventures. The majority of people venture to the Annapurna to embark on the famous Annapurna Circuit trek, heralded as one of the greatest in the world for its breath-taking views of three 8,000m peaks. This summer I joined their ranks. A friend and I were keen to visit the distant Himalaya and I set about finding a suitable trekking destination. Upon researching the area I came across a veritable sea of contention. The source of the controversy is the construction of a road along the same route as the trek, following the Marsyangdi River to the east and the Kali Gandaki to the west. For travellers, the road represents the ruination of a preserved and relatively untouched part of the world but for the 100,000 inhabitants of the conservation area, it represents progress and an increased standard of living. The majority of blogs and travelogues I perused concluded with a plea: “go now, before the road is completed.” I resolved to follow this advice and Aidan was more than
happy to join me. Making this decision ultimately allowed us to determine, first hand, our position on the road (no pun intended). Arriving in Pokhara, Nepal’s second biggest city and gateway to the Annapurna, we heard stories of the road from those returning from the trek and speculation from those setting off with us. The myriad of varying tales meant that the only way to find out how far the road stretched was to suss it out for ourselves. We boarded a bus to Besisahar, at the edge of the conservation area, which marked the end of the paved road, and spent a night there in wait of an early bus the next day. Once the traditional starting point for the trek, the extension of the dirt road has rendered Besisahar a glorified bus depot, a purgatory of sorts. Here we learnt that it was possible to take a minibus as far as Syange, 26km into the traditional trek, for 600 rupees (¤5). We also discovered that jeeps ventured as far as Chame, 56km into the trek, for 2500 rupees (¤21). One hardy driver was willing to face the 22 hour slog to Manang, skipping 90km of the trek for 4000 rupees (¤35). We decided to board the bus to Syange in order to escape the hinterland of Besisahar. From there, we trekked to Manang in four days where we found the dirt road did indeed end, giving way to a trail that took us to the pinnacle of the circuit, the Thorung-La pass at 5,416m, in two and a half days. Descending to
Illustrations: Natalie Duda the other side, we stumbled into the town of Muktinath. As a Hindu pilgrimage site, it was given priority when construction started on the road and it is now possible to travel by bus all the way to Pokhara in one day, with as little as two stopovers. Once this was made known to us at the makeshift bus stop just outside Muktinath, it really struck me just how extensive the road had become. It was now possible to travel 179km of the 210km circuit by road and hike only 31km from Manang to Muktinath. What was once a 21-day trek has been cut to a potential three. In fact, it occurred to me that it would be theoretically possible to get a bus to Muktinath, ascend to Thorung-La in the early morning and descend all in one day.
This poses issues far more severe than the most common argument against the eyesore the road presents. My first concern is for trekkers who attempt the Thorung-La after skipping the trek to Manang or Muktinath. Travelling from Besisahar to Manang presents an altitude gain of 2,780m; Pokhara to Muktinath is 2,940m. Such a gain in as little as a day far exceeds the recommended 300-500m. If people were to press on without acclimatising, they would leave themselves vulnerable to AMS (acute mountain sickness), or worse, HAPE/HACE (highaltitude pulmonary/cerebral edema), whose immediate symptoms are not unlike the headaches of AMS but without a descent of at least 1,000m, they may lead to paralysis and death. The
accessibility to higher altitudes offered by the roads may attract inexperienced and unprepared individuals who would be more susceptible to these illnesses. Also of concern are the residents of towns bypassed by the road. With less traffic stopping along the way, a key source of income is set to dry up. One of our companions went so far as to suggest that in the not so distant future he could see a Four Seasons opening up in Manang, where the wealthy could drive/fly to and do a few side-treks before crossing the Thorung-La into Muktinath and then heading home, all in the space of a week. Manang and Muktinath are set to become tourist hubs and those in villages further down the trail will have to fill the gap left by trekkers by either migrating to the bigger towns or selling their produce to them. There will be further trouble for those who work as guides and porters in the lower regions as jeeps and buses begin to take their place. The inhabitants of these towns overlook this particular point as they welcome the road, seeing it as a symbol of progression. Granted there are some who resent the mark it makes on the valley wall but the majority are in favour. The fruits of the road are plain to see. Snickers and Coke are available in Manang and Chame for little over the price paid in Pokhara and Kathmandu. The owners of teahouses have access to satellite television, and some guest-
houses in Muktinath have free WiFi. These luxuries have only become available of late, some as recently as in the past year. I was pleasantly surprised and indeed a little amused at some of them but for the locals they represent a revolution. This is epitomised in the gang of family and friends who gathered in our guesthouse in Manang to watch Bollywood movies and Indian Idol Junior, and by our host in Syange, who proudly showed us how to access data on his smartphone. On a more fundamental level, the journey to Pokhara for these residents is no longer a week’s undertaking or an unaffordable helicopter ride; it can be achieved within the day. This improves their standard of living in giving them access to the luxuries described above and essentials such as better healthcare and education. On this front there is no doubt that this road is relieving people of a basic life, a potentially stagnant existence, and propelling them into the 21st century. But what of their land, savoured by outsiders for being so wistfully akin to a time long before our own? From my own experience, I would say that the landscape has undoubtedly changed; the explosions that cleaved through the mountainside to make way for the road have left a scar that snakes along the edge of the valley. Though not exactly pleasing to the eye, it’s not quite the eyesore it’s made out to be. I would argue that the Annapurna is so vibrant and breath-taking that it is easy to forget the road is there.
The road also opens up avenues that were once unavailable for the average trekker. Aidan and I made a side trek to the spectacular Tilicho Lake, the highest in the world, and this involved staying in a guesthouse built, quite haphazardly I will admit, on a camping ground. If not for the extension of the road to Manang, it wouldn’t have been worthwhile to bring the required plywood as far as Tilicho. Doors have been opened to wonderful places off the beaten track by virtue of its very existence, and the view is no less magnificent off the traditional circuit. Because both sides of the argument can appear to be justified, the road will continue to be a contentious issue. Inhabitants are for the road as it brings the modern life they seek to their homes and visitors are against the road as it takes away from the traditional, simple culture and the inspiring vistas that house it. Ultimately the road will act as a catalyst for Western culture joining the melting pot that exists in the area. To those who want no hint of a road to interrupt their line of vision, I would say that it is possible to visit the Annapurna area and avoid it. It most certainly is not for us to rob the people of the Annapurna of the advancement coming up the road.
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
Downside of Freshers
9
InDepth
>> p. 16
Park Life
and online mail-orders. At the close of our second week, a few people started to read us. The owners of the Abbey Bookshop and then Shakespeare and Company, both in Paris, agreed to stock the publication. We arts and crafted some display boxes and smashed out some distribution. The sales at both provided a little bit of money to create the next issue, but most importantly gave us some credibility. The publication was being bought, and the writers were being read. A supportive post through Shakespeare’s social media followed the good news, which we celebrated by buying a previously prohibited ice cream. This resulted in both more sales and, more importantly, writing submissions from all over the world. The media attention culminated in the Pages making the short swim across the big blue wobbly thing to England. Foyles in London took us on and we started to spread further, and faster. We were two kids publishing writing from an attic flat and stuff was happening. Stuff is happening. By the end of August (Parisiens all migrate south during this month) we had some pretty cool figures. We’d printed 75 authors from 16 countries and 6 continents (penguins submit nothing) and the Pages are now being sold in 14 stores around the world. We’ve received over 500 submissions. We’re going broke, sleeping in the same sofa bed to share rent (cute/ really gross) while sharing the apartment with a family of reasonably polite mice. After agreeing to take no money out of the business until we can give something back to the authors, we are both feeling a bit peckish. It’s 2:00am. Two days before we have to leave our flat. We receive a phone call telling us that the apartment we were expecting to semi-squat-in has just fallen through. Fucking shit
In a world ever-turning towards the digital and away from the print, The Belleville Park Pages is a new literary journal flying the flag for tangible literature. Will Cox & James Bird, the men behind the Pages, tell their story thus far and where they’re planning on going next. he Belleville Park Pages started as a drunken conversation outside a Spoken Word Poetry night in Paris. Half the conversation was American, the other half British. We enthusiastically disagreed on most things. Pale introductory questions such as “Who’s your favourite author?” and “What did you study at University?” quickly accelerated to “What the fuck is wrong with contemporary writing?”. We both agreed that there Will Cox & James Bird is absolutely nothing wrong with contemporary writing, there is lots of really, really cool stuff being produced. Guest Contributors But where is it? Humans are writing more than ever, from misspelled Facebook statuses to spellchecked blog posts; there are a lot of words leaking out of our fingers but the Internet eats most of them up before anyone is able to put any salt on them. Kidney beans in haystacks and all that. Tangibility is lacking. Most literary magazines come out every 6 months and cost over 10 euros. Accessibility is lacking. The opportunity to hold a piece of writing in your hands and look at it with your eyes isn’t as easy as it should be. Let’s touch some words right up. It was late May and a fresh batch of transient writers were settling in for a summer in Paris. When we weren’t playing a Royal Rumble of soft-core sexual fantasies and drinking until the first Metro, there was actually some good writing being turned out. Writers were performing in innovative styles, writing in experimental forms. It was new. It was
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exciting. More conversations followed the standard “Your poem is good. No your poem is good.”, high-fives all round. Beers followed and feelings were shared. Phrases like “It’d be great to read all this good work we’re hearing”,“Why is no one our age getting published?”, “Why can’t we afford to buy any new books?” , “You have nice hair” were peppering the chat. We wanted to do something. A dirt-cheap publication was settled on. One that was just words. One that was cheaper than drinking. One with names that readers have never heard of. We spent two weeks in attic rooms and basement flats, working 12hour days; collecting pieces, debating designs, finding suppliers. There are a ridiculous number of options if you’re in the market for a medium-weight creamcoloured paper. And when your French is reminiscent of DelBoy conducting an Economics lecture, it’s reasonably difficult to find a fair price on large quantity printing. We stumbled across a name (after a particularly intoxicated night at a local park): the Belleville Park Pages. It sounded nice. We went with it. The Belleville Park Pages drop every two weeks. They cost 2 euros. They fit into your frayed back pocket. Each issue is hand-folded, hand-stamped and handpacked by us and other artists in the community who want to read new shit. We wanted to make a publication that we would want to
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“A dirt-cheap publication was settled on. One that was just words. One that was cheaper than drinking. One with names that readers have never heard of.” be published in and that we would buy with the little money that was left after renting and sinning. On June 14th 2013, we released our first Page. We printed 250 copies. The authors were mainly people we knew living in Paris or back home. They all worked day jobs or were students and they all wrote stimulating words. Words that should be read and ruminated over and respected. We began selling issues at Spoken Word Poetry nights and other literary events around the city. Sales went vite (Mange tout, DelBoy, Mange tout) and we sold most of our stock in the first two weeks, mainly through backpack hustling
merde. 12-hour workdays spent publishing turn to 12hour work days spent trying to find a free bed. So here we sit, 8 days later, smoking away our decreasing appetites. We’re earning our beds by working and living at the truly hospitable Shakespeare and Company. We will soon be leaving Paris for New York and London, not together, while trying to keep our child alive. Ideas are being debated. In the short term, it’s more authors, more countries, more documenting what is being written now. We’re going to publish our first solo-author short-story as a cheeky present in Issue 10. Everyone likes presents. We’re going to do more video-poetry hybrids. A cookbook. An ice cream. We’re hungry. In the long-run, we splash out ideas for turning this project into a real, unique publishing business. Current readers find 700 pages suffocating. 140 characters begin to choke most. Let’s integrate digital media with the printed word. Let’s keep the printed word tangible. Let’s read other people like us from all over the world. Let’s change stuff. But it’s late. There’s a cute German girl in bed with a French dog. We have work to do in the morning. The gluttonous rats working the Seine squeak at skulking kids. How do we find a printer in London that we trust with babysitting? How do we stock the shops in Paris if we’re not here? What’s for breakfast? We decide to work it all out in the morning. The Belleville Park Pages is a bi-monthly publication produced in Paris, printing the work of contemporary writers. Submit your poems, short stories and essays to bellevilleparkpages@gmail.com. Copies can be bought online at www. bellevilleparkpages.com
Stout of the nation In Arthur’s Day, says Michael Lanigan, Guinness have pulled off a coup that changes the advertising game, showing that culture creates cash.
H Michael Lannigan Deputy InDepth Editor
aving moved up to Dublin in 2011, Arthur’s Day was already on its third outing and seldom had I devoted a modicum of attention to its wider significance until, seated around a table, I heard these men from the agency opining on the topic with such vitriol and reverence. They were in awe of Guinness’ coup. Arthur’s Day is the Holy Grail of marketing. Having been pulled off so well initially, its strongest point now is its longevity; hypothetically, it’s going to go on forever. While other brands struggle to overcome the increasing demands of the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland, the bane of every ad man’s existence, the Guinness copywriters played the culture card, and now have a recurring aid to fall back on every year, stretching forward indefinitely. The world of advertising is an ephemeral one to say the least, and within that world the Irish alcoholic accounts appear to be facing their final days due to the aforementioned ASAI, as has been the case with the tobacco industry. Without schemes to ingrain promotion within a deeper setting, the only product with a seemingly perennial guarantee is Guinness. Even with this boost, the stout’s current state in the developed world is uncertain, dropping 10% in net sales over the past four years. Western Europe has seen a particularly unsettling slip for Diageo, but emerging markets such as Nigeria and Indonesia have claimed that 10% in the same timeframe. The downturn is partly due to the bans on sports sponsorship in France and Norway, which are proving detrimental to sales. While Ireland struggles to debate whether to persevere with enforcing similar legislations, Nigeria has been able to use the sponsorship for tie-in promotional football matches, increasing its popularity by 18%. Britain’s choice to reduce promo-
tional activity has caused net sales to drop by 2%, while Ireland and Southern Europe’s situation worsens with an 11% fall. The topic of alcoholic sponsorship and sporting events is a highly debated one in Ireland today. A group of Ministers and health advisors have brought the subject before the Dáil with aims of phasing out such advertising by 2020. The men leading the campaign are Conor Cullen from Alcohol Action, the Minister for Health James Reilly, TD Alex White and Bobby Smyth, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist. Their intention of preventing underage exposure is understandable, however men such as Smyth scaremonger by preaching of a dystopian Ireland: “With 72,000 babies born each year, our country now functions as a conveyor belt producing very heavy drinkers, each of whom generates great profits for the alcohol industry.” To combat this “conveyor belt”, the ASAI continuously tighten the rules governing ads promoting alcohol. The draconian changes can be tracked by anyone with a strong archival memory for Guinness adverts over the past decade, some of which would never pass the Alcoholic Marketing, Communications and Sponsorship Codes of Practice of today. Guinness’ Believe Campaign from 2002 saw Joseph Mawle (or Benjen from Game of Thrones) play a weary hallucinating hurler, preparing to take a vital game-seizing puck from the 65 meter line, dreaming of that postmatch pint, the true ‘hero’s welcome’. ASAI regulations would today forbid any implied success in the context of a pint (Section 7.4 (b)), nor should it appear to improve physical performance (Sec. 7.4). The major concern, however, is a fictitious
hurler, whose honourable character might appeal to children. The mighty censors must strike down such glorification with an infallible fist in accordance to the doctrine of Section 7.6 (c). Current regulations state that any advertisement for such products (drink essentially) must not appear outside the viewing hours of 6PM and 11PM, only surfac-
ing during broadcasts with an adult viewership demographic of no less than 75%. How this depraved commercial once appeared during a ratings peak in the early afternoon and also cropped up on the big screens in Croke Park would baffle any newcomer to the land of ads. If this advert appeared after January 1, 2007, when the act emerged, the notepad it-
self would probably refuse to register the words jotted down, now seemingly so subversive. In 2006, we had No Wonder the Guinness Is Great aka the ‘Do You Know the Way to San Jose?’ ad. A van driver delivers Guinness to small pubs across Ireland’s “back and beyond”. Operating his vehicle with carefree charm, he touches down in an empty bar where a pint sits ambiguously on the counter, within the driver’s grasp. Even without showing our hero consuming the stout, 7.7 (g) would worry as to whether this man was operating machinery under the influence, including briefly a boat (“any activity relating to water”). The only argument that might possibly save the ad would be that at least in 2006, our hero might not have exceeded the legal driving limits. Though it should be noted that referencing a character’s failure to exceed blood-alcohol limitations is still not an acceptable small text disclaimer. No doubt, to an outsider, such minor details seem absurdly over-analytical, but many censors regard this as certain corruption, encouraging unruly antics. Alcohol Action has denounced the Irish media for the manner in which it has “groomed” children, calling upon the latest legislations as insufficient efforts to protect a nation so prone to the vice of the drink. Whether their voice is overly cautious maintaining that sponsors prey on vulnerable spectators, take note that even former GAA President, Dr. Michael Loftus (1985-8), has criticised the unfettered exposure of Diageo in the sporting world. Such corporations, despite the necessary regulatory demands, still have a stunning ubiquity in areas of healthy activity, but an outright ban is naïve, considering that alternative advertisers, who can pay the necessary fees, have to be
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“Guinness’ campaigns leave the confines of media ethics and enter the world of the everyman. Whether we arrange to go out Arthur’s Day with friends, or our local barman engages with us about pouring a pint, Guinness’ campaigns are at work, just latching on to a more comforting medium to swallow.”
found. Outside of the sporting world, in terms of flogging its product in Ireland, Guinness has two current directions used to avoid the ASAI’s ever-sharpening blade, besides our nation’s premier tourist trap, The Guinness Storehouse. The first is the “Surge” campaign, a multi-million campaign to teach drinkers how to pull the perfect pint, otherwise known as “quality credentials”. The second promotion is of course Arthur’s Day. By advertising via educational techniques and a pseudocultural day of celebration, Guinness’ campaigns leave the confines of media ethics and enter the world of the everyman. Whether we arrange to go out Arthur’s Day with friends, or our local barman engages with us about pouring a pint, Guinness’ campaigns are at work, just latching on to a more comfortable medium to swallow. Alcohol Action can do very little to prevent children from hearing simple discussion, or those crass “To Arthur” toasts, even if regulations move into forbidding music events from being tie-in promotions. With the last Thursday in September entering its fifth year, the king of commercial celebratory days seems destined to enter our calendar as an apparent nod towards our heritage. We are to see it as an opportunity to celebrate Irish stout and the man that loved it so, rather than it being a day of Irish culture supporting a British owned company, who ceased activities in their Waterford, Kilkenny and Dundalk breweries to euphemistically “centralize production” in Dublin. Arthur’s day is there to sell Guinness, but no more than St Patrick’s Day or Christmas were created to sell Christianity. Diageo know that while the law can limit the media, tradition (and especially the Irish drinking tradition) cannot be censored as easily.
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
InDepth
10
Dealing with mental health issues
>>
p. 14
A tale of two cities The Expat experience is re-evaluated by D. Joyce-Ahearne as he recounts his Parisian experience and looks at the difficulties of cultural assimilation.
O D. Joyce Ahearne InDepth Editor
riginally, when I was planning this reflection on Paris while still in the city, I was going to call it “Why I hate Paris”. It was going to be an all-out assault on the Parisian way of life; their lazy and feckless attitude to work, their general contempt for foreigners, their mind-blowing bureaucracy, their endless quest to make things as difficult as possible, all the awful things that they had done as a people to me personally over the last three months. But I found, after my two week detox and cooling down period, that much to my dismay, I couldn’t write the piece I had originally intended to. I couldn’t because hindsight is always twenty-twenty, and though at the time, looking through the bleary, bloodshot, tearfilled eyes of the present, I had been ready to spew unthought-out bile, I found that once I had flown home and caught my breath I actually began to think about the summer soberly. On reflection, I realised that my summer had been more than just a three month pissup. It had been an experiment in race relations and assimilation. I know, yeah, I was surprised too. I had ended the summer jaded because I had spent three months fighting French culture tooth and nail. I had lived with all Irish people, worked in a Scottish pub and I had hung out exclusively with expats. I had never assimilated into French culture and yet all I could do was talk, or rather give out, about it. But how could I be so anti-French given that I’d seen nothing of Paris? The simple answer was that I had done what people have done throughout history, since the idea of nationhood first came about: I had ghettoized myself. I had arrived in a foreign place with an alien culture and decided fuck this, I’m out of my comfort zone so I’m going to do my best to pretend like I’m in Ireland and rail against the culture I find myself in. And it was so easy to act like I was at home because there was a group of expats just waiting to do the same.
We were no longer Irish or Mexican or Canadian, we were all just not French. The focal point of the expat community in Paris, or at least the one I rowed in with, is that great institution, the Anglophone pub; where everybody knows your name, or at least can say it properly. We would overcompensate our pub culture by doing things like snorting Cointreau. The French don’t snort Cointreau; they sip it as an aperitif, over ice. In McBride’s Irish Pub of Rue Saint-Denis, the de facto Irish embassy for anyone whose business is not diplomatic, we snort it. I spent many a night at the bar, my nose leaking like a coke-addled junkie laughing at the French in my safe Irish bar. “They drink Cointreau! Hahaha! Wankers.” The Anglophone pubs in Paris follow the rules of engagement of “real” Anglophone pubs in “real” Anglophone countries. That is to say, an Irish pub in Paris is meant to be just like an Irish pub in Ireland. So that means service au bar, which is an alien notion to the French. This is a source of much woe and humour to the expats. I’ve personally had bets with people at the Scottish bar I worked in as to how long we reckoned a French couple who had just come in and sat down would wait before coming to the bar. Because there was no way I was going to bring them a menu. It was a pub, you got served at the bar. Now in hindsight this was ridiculous on my part. Why? Because it wasn’t really a Scottish bar. It was a bar in Paris so that makes it a French bar. We could all speak Scots Gaelic for all the world to hear but ultimately we were a French pub, with a Scottish theme. So logically, as one would expect of a pub in France, French people will come in. And for me to stand around and not give them a menu because I reckoned that they were being culturally ignorant was absurd. In France, French people get served at the table, and they pay afterwards when they’re finished drinking. And if our bar had a different policy then it was
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“We would overcompensate our pub culture by doing things like snorting Cointreau. The French don’t snort Cointreau; they sip it as an aperitif, over ice.”
up to us to make them aware of that. The fact that we were a pub and had a drinks menu showed that we were fully aware of the fact that we weren’t a real Scottish pub. The only place that there are real Scottish pubs is, of course, in Scotland and they don’t have drinks menus because they don’t have French customers. Admittedly then, a large part of the reason that I found myself hating Paris was that I didn’t try and assimilate. To an extent we ostracised ourselves. But having said that, the French don’t exactly have a history of welcoming immigrants with open arms. Whether I actively tried to assimilate or not, should the French be open towards other cultures? Of course. Were they? Not particularly. Our “pub culture”, to them, was something that was seen as a somewhat savage remnant of our Celtic past. So often, we would get Parisians coming into our bar and see our happy Irish/ British pub as a place where the usual Parisian decorum wasn’t required. They saw them as places where they could tap into their Gaulish id and drink heavily and be obnoxious. The idea that we didn’t do table service was to them a barbarous practice. Pay before I drink my drink? Why don’t I just fucking drink it out of my cupped hands? Drinking a full pint and not a demi was a slovenly Gaelic custom that led to depraved island antics. So though we were guilty of railing against French practises, the Parisians were already coming from the point of view that our culture was inferior anyway. However, it couldn’t be said that we were “institutionally discriminated against” because had we, the Expats, abided by French bar norms then there probably wouldn’t have been any problems. Because we were Western and white. The other immigrant group of note that we had the most interaction with was the North African Muslim community. Anyone who has half an idea about French politics knows that immigra-
tion, particularly from Islamic North African countries, is a growing concern for the French, and that views we would consider quite right wing are not looked upon as being too far out for many French people. We could relate to the Maghrebiens because the idea of the Parisians looking upon our pub culture as savage is, unfortunately, a parallel that can be drawn with the views held by many of Muslim North African culture. But our commonality was one of kind, but not degree. It’s generally accepted that the French are more hostile towards North African Muslim immigrants than they are towards Anglophone bartenders. But we had a common link with the North Africans. We were both immigrant communities, whose culture wasn’t valued by the natives. We both were reluctant to assimilate because of this and we both received hostility as a result. As I’ve said, the extent of the “hardship” we faced was that we found the French difficult and contrary and differentiated ourselves from the natives along the lines that we knew how to use a pub and could work more than three hours in a row without a half-hour break.But the situation for North African immigrants is a very hostile one, and it was no surprise to us that we, as “whites” were often on the receiving end of their individual acts of retaliation against systemised oppression. We had some bad experiences with Maghrebiens. One night I had a knife pulled on me and the abuse that came with it was directed at me as a “white boy”. I had never identified as “white” before. Twice in my life, I had been told “You’re not white, you’re Irish”, the message being that white had colonialist implications and that though I was white, I was also from a historically oppressed race and that preceded skin colour. But to this angry Maghrebian I was just white, the same as the French society that institutionally discriminated against his culture. Could we or the French be
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“One night I had a knife pulled on me and the abuse that came with it was directed at me as a “white boy”. I had never identified as “white” before. Twice in my life, I had been told ‘You’re not white, you’re Irish’”
surprised then when we were regularly hassled by groups of young North Africans? Living in a city where they are systemically culturally neglected, are we surprised that they hassle white people? How, and indeed why would they even think to, differentiate a group of white Irish from white French? Both groups found ourselves in a place where because of our culture, we were being looked upon as not as good as the French. Now, for us, a group of assorted pan-First-Worlders (France excluded naturally), this didn’t go very far and wasn’t endemic. We had some Parisian customers who got thick with us when we told them that they had to order at the bar. They would cry that we were in France, we do it the French way and we would have to try and tell them that in this Scottish bar, we do things this way. But that was the extent of it. Now obviously this isn’t the same as introducing a culture of the burqa, but we experienced, to some degree, what it was like to feel somewhat ostracised because we weren’t native and came from another culture. The plight of the Maghrebien immigrants in Paris is a severe one and having spent a summer on the receiving end of French chauvinism (to however limited an extent) I empathise with the difficulty of their situation. While I was in Paris I was too busy giving out about the French to recognise the factors at play that were contributing to my disdain for Paris and my general aura of jadedness. Much of it was self-induced. So instead of “Why I hate Paris” I’m going to call this “A Reflection on the difficulties of assimilating one culture into another and the importance of stepping back from the situation and recognising that maybe I, myself, am partly at fault and that perhaps when cultures collide problems arise that can’t be solved easily and need dialogue.” But that was too long so I went with “A Tale of Two Cities”.
TRINITY NEWS
Wednesday 17th October 2012
11
InDepth
An interview with SU President Tom Lenihen In the aftermath of the Tom Lenihan cheating scandal, D. Joyce Ahearne searches for answers from the man himself.
O D. Joyce Ahearne InDepth Editor
n 28th May, Tom Lenihan released a statement to The University Times website saying that disciplinary action had been taken against him by College in relation to an incident whereby he was caught cheating in a third year exam. In this statement Lenihan said that “At this remove, it is not clear to me what I hoped to achieve by taking the note into the exam but I fully accept that any observer could only conclude that I was cheating.” The punishment resulting from a disciplinary hearing with the Junior Dean was that Lenihan had to resit the exam in which he was caught cheating, with his grade capped at 40%. On 13 August, Trinity News contacted Lenihan to request an interview to clarify the exact nature of his actions and the disciplinary action taken against him. Lenihan responded saying, “I released a statement in late May to address the speculation of the action you are referring to and I believe that has brought clarification to the issue.” Given the interest in the issue among the student body and the brevity of the statement issued, Trinity News again requested that he assent to an interview, through a body independent of the SU. Lenihan responded with an email in which he said he appreciated the concerns
Editorial
A Elaine McCahill Editor
s most of you reading this are aware, there has been much furore over the revelations of our SU president’s cheating in his summer exams. While I’m sure opinion will be divided across College as to what an appropriate sanction or punishment should be or if he should be impeached. Ultimately, the response to the situation has raised an interesting discussion on the relevance of our SU and the rising apathy among students. Many believe that student politics needs to radicalise before any real changes can be made, whether this be in relation to increasing registration fees or the issue of unpaid internships, as featured in both our News and Comment sections. However, over the last few years there haven’t been any spectacualr displays of student disquiet, despite the rising cost of education, cuts to student grants and funding, as well as the
for clarity and agreed to release a statement to Trinity News before the deadline of the first issue (12th September), of which he had been informed. He said he would specifically address the concerns that had been raised and whatever other concerns that there were regarding the issue. Lenihan said, “I don’t want there to be a perception of spin-doctoring on my part so it will be frank and will be sent directly to Trinity News first for your publication.” In response, Trinity News again requested an interview in lieu of a statement, it being “a more open means of discussing the issue and would create an actual dialogue” between Lenihan and the students, as well as being a better way to “avoid perceptions of spin-doctoring”. Lenihan did not respond to this email, nor to a second email, sent 1st September. No correspondence was received by Trinity News until the 10th September, the day after Lenihan appeared on RTE 2fm and the Six One News. Lenihan emailed Trinity News saying, “I have addressed the issues you outlined on 2fm yesterday and the Six One news and I think I have dealt with the matter in way that was independent from the SU.” On RTE, Lenihan spoke extensively about mental health but spent very
little time discussing his being caught cheating in May. Trinity News again emailed Lenihan, repeating that the interview was sought to discuss his position as SU President, and not mental health. It was iterated that though RTE was independent of the SU, it did not speak for the students of College. On 11th September, Lenihan agreed to do a five minute interview on 13th September. Considering that he had done a 25 minute interview with Ryan Tubridy earlier in the week, Trinity News insisted on a full 30 minute interview to which Lenihan then agreed. When asked in the interview why he seemed reluctant to speak with Trinity News and yet willingly spoke to RTE, an organisation with a high profile crossover from the SU (Mark Little, Joe Duffy) he responded ”because it was about mental health.” Lenihan’s interview with RTE had concentrated on mental health and Trinity News had made their position clear from the first email in August that we wanted to discuss the nature of his cheating. Trinity News asked how he thought it acceptable to say that “he had “addressed the issues” that we had raised, given that he had not discussed the subject in any depth on either 2fm or
lack of youth and graduate employment. It seems like a long time since thousands of students filled the streets of Dublin, from Parnell St to Leinster House, chanting for the changes and the causes they believed in. Many out this down to apathy, that students don’t care. However, apathy would suggest the luxury of indifference; of being financially or educationally well off to the point of not having to worry about the costant increase in education costs and the seeminly never-ending stream of our friends climbing onto planes at Dublin airport. I would like to believe that, as opposed to indifference, it is plain exhaustion and being fed up with our governemnt’s decisions and not being taken seriously. Instead, it appears that most young people view their third-level education as a get-out-of-jail card, whether it is desired or not. A card that will allow the ability to travel or ultimately live abroad. Essentially, it’s about putting time into your university education in order to escape from this opportu-
nity-free landscape whereby young people and recent graduates are expected to work for free or for the mesely ¤50 stipend from a Job Bridge ‘internship’; which can vary from being trained to stack shelves at your local Tesco to actually working for the government. When your governemnt makes it clear that Job Bridge is what they believe to be fair working practise, then you know this is not a country to be young and ambitious in. As such, I think students are not so much apathetic as they are biding their time until theu can move onto brigter prospects. While, of course, this may not the right attitude to have and we should campaign and fight for those who come after us; it’s incredibly frustrating attempting to go up against a government that don’t believe in how essential access to education is for the furtherment of our small nation, both economically and socially. We are all well aware that the planes packed with twenty-four year olds are a pressure valve for a govern-
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“With regards the nature of his position he said, “Student politics can be a murky field and it can get quite dirty, but I’m only in it for the year.”
the SIx One News. Lenihan said that he wasn’t “given any clear implication of what kind of questions you wanted to ask me”, though we had specifically said, in the the first email, that we wished to speak with him “ in relation to disciplinary action taken against you by College last May.” Lenihan, in his campaign literature last February, said that he wanted “A more accessible SU - From my very first day in office I want every Trinity student to know that the door to my office is always open and anyone with an issue can call in and work towards a solution with me. As well as that I plan to hold
ment who just can’t seem to find their way out a mess that began to spun when our generation were merely children. Whether we rally for again Mr. Lenihen, we should rally for each other, for our futures and those of our children.
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“Whether we rally for again Mr. Lenihen, we should rally for each other, for our futures and those of our children.”
regular clinics for each faculty in their respective buildings where students who may not always be on campus have a chance to have their voice heard.” A campaign has been launched, run by Eoin Silke, former LGBT Rights Officer and Labour Party member, to impeach Lenihan, who sees it as “unusual way to go about an impeachment.” When asked what he thought of the campaign he responded: “The crux of the matter is that someone who cheated in an exam can’t represent 12,000 undergrads.” When asked if he thought that fair, he responded “I don’t really, because it doesn’t really conflict with my job...It doesn’t affect my day to day work in the union.” Lenihan went on to say that he didn’t think that his position was compromised in the eyes of the student’s, saying “I just haven’t had that exposure, no-one’s ever said it to me.” If he was not concerned how he was perceived by the students who elected him, he was, however, concerned with how College saw him. “In terms of stature with College I was worried about it because if I wasn’t going to be taken seriously on a College level then I shouldn’t be in the job.” When asked about the students not being more important he said “Both were equal concerns
for me.” He went on to say that there were two factors in terms of his resigning, College’s reaction and that of his fellow sabbats. In his initial statement in May, Lenihan had said that at the time it was unclear to him what he had “hoped to achieve by taking the note into the exam.” When asked if now, after over three months, it was clear to him what he had hoped to achieve, he said “No, I have to say. The statement stands.” When asked if his position as SU President had been compromised by the revelations of his cheating, Lenihan said “The Student’s Union never has the full backing of the students. We have a voter turnout of 25%, 30% on a good day.” He went on to say that his position was “constrained by student apathy.” Lenihan believes that despite having been caught cheating, his position hasn’t been compromised on any level. He sees his job to be “a spokesperson plus the student’s service end of it.” With regards the nature of his position he said, “Student politics can be a murky field and it can get quite dirty, but I’m only in it for the year.” Although he has been elected to a public position that is answerable to the student body, Lenihan believes that “It’s very unfortunate
that it’s in the public eye, for any student with academic disciplines [sic] with the Junior Dean.” He says that “the fact that I was Student’s Union President wasn’t brought up by the Junior Dean.” Lenihan revealed that the news was broken due to an email that was sent to the papers, both national and student. When asked if he thought that the email came from within the College or from the student body, he replied “Both.” Although he said that he had considered resigning, the reason he ultimately decided not to was due to support within the SU. “I had a lot of support from my fellow sabbats that told me it would be unfair on them for me to leave...I would have felt guilty about leaving them with a lot of things that needed to be done.” When asked about whether or not he would run again if he was impeached he said that “it would be very unusual” but did not say no; it is still not clear what Lenihan “hoped to achieve by taking the note into the exam” At the time of going to print, the “Impeach Tom Lenihan” campaign page on Facebook has 103 likes, 500 signatures are required to trigger a referendum asking for an impeachment and if passed, presidential elections will be held.
Bridging the gap between Students and the SU Tommy Gavin Deputy Editor The start of a new academic year; the optimism that this year things will be different, the blank slate to make the same mistakes all over again, to hide from a youth unemployment rate of 16.5% for at least another year. With the new academic year also comes new opportunities, not least for our new incoming sabbatical officers in the politburo Students Union. Some of you incoming freshers may have difficulty in telling the difference between interacting with the Student’s Union and College itself, or indeed that they are separate entities. Well, they’re supposed to be in theory. This isn’t a thinly veiled diatribe against the techno-
cratic sluggish tendencies of a union that’s worried about seeming too political lest they offend the grownups they hope will one day employ them though. No, this is a message of positivity, a suggestion for our communications officer Leanna Byrne. She has the opportunity to live up to her election promises and the promises of every communications officer before her, by bridging the notorious/infamous/ despondent gap between students and their union. By taking the code that www. reddit.com uses, which is open source and therefore free to use, and hosting it on SU servers, an area for dialogue and interaction could easily be constructed. Online space and cloud computing are increasingly engendering a sense of shared commons, but this is problem-
atic because of ownership is never directly in the hands of the user. Byrne has the interesting chance to create a space for Trinity students to interact with their union and each other in a very direct and tangible way, where it’s immediately clear if an idea is received positively or negatively because of reddit’s upvote/downvote system. It couldn’t even be said to fail because it would be so cheap to set up, and people might eventually start using it, and nobody would care if they didn’t. Since the SU already has hosting space, and the open source code already works, most of the work is already done. It would be an auspicious start and a genuinely experimental approach.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
Comment
Lisa Gannon remembers Ireland’s favourite laureate, Seamus Heaney p.14
The Marriage Equality Debate
T Emma Heyn Contributor
Pro
he Student’s Union has announced plans to hold a referendum concerning whether or not it should have a long term policy position on same-sex marriage. This referendum will give us a clear indication of which way the student body leans on the issue, and it will be a helpful aid in the creation of new student policies. So should we say yay or nay to same sex marriage? On the 19th of August 2013, the New Zealand parliament passed a bill legalising gay marriage. The news reports of this event were some of the most heartwarming I have seen in a long time. The bill was passed with applause, and all the members of parliament stood up to sing a Maori love song called “Pokarekare Ana”. From what I can see, gay marriage has not yet brought down the Southern Pacific economy, affected the marriages of any straight couples in New Zealand, or caused families to break down due to the disintegration of family values. In fact, I believe that this development has been a glimmer of good news amid a period in our history which has been clouded by economic decline and political unrest. So why are people opposing it? One of the most common arguments used against gay marriage is the claim that it diminishes and devalues traditional matrimony and family life. But here’s the thing: we’ve never had “traditional marriages”, at least, not in the way you would think of them. For instance, the historian Diarmaid MacCulloch has pointed out that in the 14th century a marriage consisted of two people making a verbal agreement to be committed to each other. All that was needed was for both parties to say: “I marry you.” That was it. Every cut and trimming that we currently associate with traditional marriage; white dresses, vows, cakes and witnesses, were all progressive movements in their own right, which developed due to social, political and economic changes. Marriage has evolved dramatically in the past one hundred years, and continues to do so.
Only sixty years ago, interracial marriage was illegal in most parts of the world. Many of the arguments used to justify their illegality,such as reference to the Bible and other religious texts, are currently being employed against gay marriage. Then as now, there existed the idea that these marriages would be a major disruption to traditional values, and would create family units that would ultimately damage the children inside them. But gay marriage is not exactly a new development. Believe it or not, many societies have had forms of gay marriage long before this was a hotly debated issue. James Neill’s book “The Origins and Role of Same-sex Relations in Human Societies” explains that the ancient Greeks, Romans, and many Mesopotamian cultures contain frequently documented cases of same-sex unions. The Native Americans had a form of gay marriage called “two souls” which was a highly esteemed form of coupling. In many tribes, individuals who entered into same-sex relationships were considered holy and treated with utmost respect and acceptance. Pirates even had a system which meant that in the event of the death of a man in a same sex relationship, all of his possessions would be given to his partner along with a basic form of health insurance. Award-winning author and video blogger John Green has said: “The truth is, marriages are intensely personal. They are defined not by courts or by votes but by the people that live inside of them. That’s traditional marriage: people making a daily, lifelong commitment. We can’t make gay marriage illegal because gay marriage is already happening. It has been happening in fact for as long as human beings have been pledging themselves to each other.” Those who oppose same sex marriage also raise the “issue” of adoption by homosexual couples. As I said above, history has shown us plenty of examples where, due to religious, racial, and now gender bias, certain combinations of persons in a marriage were considered substandard and even harmful to the children involved. Many of these family units are now accepted in society without the
bat of an eyelid. No-one can deny that adoption is a long, arduous process, and that every case has to be reviewed by multiple personnel before a child is given a new home. With both straight and gay couples now hoping to adopt, they have to be carefully selected with the child’s best interest in mind. I’ve never heard of a kid saying: “Yes, I would much rather bounce around various foster homes for the rest of my life than have a loving and stable family life.” Is same-sex marriage grounds to deny children entry into loving and caring homes? Should we rally against single parents too? Or families that have been through multiple marriages? There are plenty of examples of unconventional families where children have grown up safe, happy and healthy. Ultimately, gay marriage does not affect the family life or values of others. It only affects the people inside those immediate family units. As my favourite comedian Tina Fey once said: “Gay people don’t actually try to convert people. That’s Jehovah’s Witnesses you’re thinking of.” Either we must advance the cause of tolerance, or we must make an attempt to hold on to arbitrary traditional values, no matter the cost. We must either move forward or backward, and history has never favoured the latter. It is often said that around ten per cent of any given population is gay. Gay people are all around us, proving their inherent right to dignity and equal rights with every breath. We all know people who are gay. Homosexuality is not a cultural choice but a biological fact, and we don’t make the situation any easier for that ten per cent by denying them the rights of the other 90 per cent. I have no doubt that the day will come where gay marriage is legal worldwide. But will we be able to tell our children that we were part of the generation that instigated it, or part of the generation that held us back?
Illustration: Ciar Gifford
Q Ryan Connolly Contributor
uestion: What do that most august of institutions, the Supreme Court of the United States, and hip hop legends Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have in common? Answer: They both think I’m a bigot for opposing same-sex marriage. Earlier this year, when the US Supreme Court struck down the Defence of Marriage Act, which outlawed same-sex marriage (or SSM) at a federal level, Justice Anthony Kennedy made the assumption in his majority opinion that the Act was motivated by ‘bare...desire to harm a politically unpopular group’ and ‘improper animus’. Meanwhile, Macklemore’s latest single, ‘Same Love,’ which champions the cause of SSM, attacks those who ‘preach hate at the service.’ The song never tackles arguments against SSM, it merely asserts hatred on the part of SSM opponents. Opponents of same-sex marriage are often characterised as bigots and homophobes acting in bad faith. Is this a fair assessment? Or can a logical, rational case be made against SSM? First of all, what is marriage and why is it a legal institution? We can find our answer in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, where it states in Article 16: ‘Men and women... have the right to marry and to found a family’ and that ‘the family is the natural and fundamental group unit
Anti
of society.’ Take also Article 41.3 of Ireland’s Constitution: ‘The State pledges itself to guard... the institution of Marriage, upon which the Family is founded.’ In these documents, marriage is fundamentally conceived of as being the basis of the family, as it has been throughout history; this is why in both cases the two concepts are dealt with in the same article. The purpose of marriage is to provide a place within society where children can be raised by their biological mother and father. If marriage were merely a contract recognising the love between two people or their desire to live together, society would have no benefit in subsidising such an arrangement. The very reason we have such an institution is because society sees it as beneficial to support married couples in the rearing of children who are the future of the state. Marriage has always been defined as being between a man and a woman because only a man and a woman together can produce a child. The authors of the above documents did not define marriage because to them this was an obvious fact. This is why the term ‘marriage equality’ is a misnomer; heterosexual couples alone are capable of producing children, even if a minority choose not to or are unable to; homosexual couples cannot. It is not inequality to treat two different situations differently. If marriage as an institution is centred on the raising of children, this leads us to the question of parenting. Research collated by the US organisation Child Trends shows that ‘children do best when they grow up with both biological parents in a low-conflict marriage.’ But what about those children who for one reason or another do not live with both of their biological parents? Do they do as well with homosexual parents as they do with heterosexual ones? It is difficult to draw conclusions from the research available. A study by Professor Mark Regnerus of the University of Texas drew negative conclusions about same-sex parenting, although it has been criticised for its relatively small sample sizes (about 3,000 adults) and his use of a marketing company to select samples. However, although numerous studies disagree with Regnerus’ result, researchers at the US National Institutes of Health admit that many of those surveys have flawed selection processes and all have difficulty finding very broad samples (they sample a mean of 39 children). A further problem is that legalised SSM is a relatively new phenomenon, only beginning in 2001 with the Netherlands and most recently with New Zealand this year, making it difficult to draw long-term conclusions. But even if a conclusion cannot be drawn yet from the available research, an argument can still be made for children to be raised by a man and a woman. Today in our culture we campaign for equal representation of men and women in politics, business and society as a whole. The argument goes that more women are required in positions of influence in order to represent themselves and their own unique interests and concerns. In order to have a balanced, fair society we need to
have the representation of both sexes at the highest levels. But if we need representation of both genders within government and the rest of society, surely the representation of both genders is needed within the context of marriage too, since it is the fundamental unit of society? In more simple terms, children need a father and a mother, somebody who can act as a role model to them of both men and women as they grow up and develop. This is not to say that gay men cannot be good fathers or that lesbians cannot be good mothers; no doubt they can. Rather it is to say that no man can be a mother; no woman can be a father. After all, if men and women do not bring something unique to parenting, family or marriage, then how can we say they each bring something unique into politics, business, science or any other sphere of influence? Other arguments against SSM include those of the Manif pour Tous organisation, which this year held demonstrations of hundreds of thousands of people against the new SSM law in France. The main organisers of this diverse coalition argue that the law demeans fatherhood and motherhood, which many people identify with, by eliminating such terms from the law and replacing them with ‘parent,’ and that children adopted by same-sex couples will be denied access to their biological father or mother. Some of the other groups have different reasons for opposition, such as gay activists Plus Gay Sans Marriage who believe that SSM is a heteronormative institution that would damage gay subculture. Another vocal opponent of SSM is self-avowed Marxist atheist Brendan O’Neill, editor of Spiked magazine, who opposes SSM on the basis that it gives the government too much control over the definition of marriage and societal institutions such as the family. Finally, I wish to return to the accusation of bigotry made against SSM opponents. To be honest, labelling somebody a bigot without engaging with them is a facile, lazy argument, designed to shut down discussion. Is somebody who disagrees with the Catholic Church necessarily sectarian? Is somebody who disagrees with positive discrimination in the workplace necessarily racist? Then why does articulating arguments against SSM make one a bigot? Name-calling only serves to silence genuine debate. I know from personal experience as a practicing Catholic that the accusation of bigotry has often been thrown at my religion without any effort to engage with the arguments presented. Yet the Church’s position on SSM is not about hatred but rather a different conception of sexuality, marriage and family and the belief that all people, gay or straight, can find happiness and peace by living out that view (an argument articulated quite well from by Steve Gershom, a gay Catholic who blogs at ‘Catholic, Gay and Doing Fine’). I can understand somebody disagreeing with that; but to cry bigotry is to evade genuine debate.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
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Comment
Freshers ain’t all free food and complementary condoms Early Starts, soggy stalls and daylight robbery. Ruairí Kell investigates the downsides of Freshers Week.
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Ruairí Kell Contributor
reshers’ week. The ultimate start to any Trinity student’s glorious four years of higher education. A time of joyous new experiences, newfound independence, unabashed abandon, frivolity, and gratuitous condoms. New friendships are formed, free food is consumed, and a fresh understanding of the beauty and harmony of the world obtained. However, it is not all fun and games. There is a darker side to freshers’ week that is rarely discussed, but experienced by many. Anybody who has been through Freshers’ Weeks before will be able to relate to the following. It’s not your Junior Freshman year. Since last year you have become involved with a number of societies and clubs, even joining the committee of one or two of them. “Fantastic!” you think, “Now I can finally give something back to Society life.” Little do ye know what lies ahead... Fresher’s begins with a 6 a.m. on Monday morning, just so that you can get in, get a table before 8 o’ clock and grab a good spot in front square. Soon you will find that your days are spent carrying Freshers’ packs and society equipment up and
down the monstrous stairs in House 6. The hours become a blur and you enter into a kind of fugue state, relying on your imbibed habits and practices to get you through the day. Your gazebo will decide that it wants to take flight and leave the proceedings. And then, of course, the rain will pour. Your sign-up sheet becomes a soggy mess, and there’s no hope of leaving the rain for warmth and food; moist sweets will have to do. Naturally, your club or society has events running during the week, offering you a chance to get into a dry room, out of the cold September weather, so you go to help out at one of those. At least you plan to, until somebody informs you that the room has been triple booked with the Chess Club and the Modern Languages society, so unless you want your members to watch a grandmaster beat a freshman in French, Russian and Chinese, you have to cancel your event. So you head back out into the rain. Undoubtedly, you will be on clear-up at least 3 times during the week. Packing away the table and chairs, tramping up and down in House 6, until your legs are like jelly. and then
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“Your gazebo will decide that it wants to take flight and leave the proceedings. And then, of course, the rain will pour and your sign-up sheet becomes a soggy mess.”
you are too tired to even enjoy any of the evening events. By the end of the week, you are so wrecked that you can’t even bring yourself to go for one quiet pint, and you embrace Saturday like an old friend. Having said all this, you might come to me and argue, “Well, isn’t all that effort worth it for the sake of giving first years the welcome of their lives?” And while the answer is by no means a resounding “No!”, we must remember what those poor innocent 17 and 18 year old freshmen are being put through for the week. At the beginning of the week, these callow “youths” enter through front arch, and see a mass of tables before them, each one with a bearded Sophister peddling the ‘free’ gifts that his society offers. If they ever manage to make it out of front square, they will be ¤50 down, but will at least have a can of Red Bull, a carton of Pot Noodles, twelve stickers, and a sci-fi t-shirt in compensation. Not only has their money and pride been stolen, but they have somehow managed to commit to attending three events on Wednesday evening, and to take part in Maiden’s.
Illustration: Maria Kavanagh Now all this might seem like some sort of trivial rite-ofpassage, but this is not the only damage done. Between each society and club taking valuable minutes trying to secure a meagre ¤2 from each fresher, and orientation events, as well as trying to find out where everything is, these new students have had no time to make any new friends. “But our society will provide for that” you say, “come on our pub crawl!” And so they do. Like rats following the piper, they go in droves. “See?” you remark, “this is good
fun, a real upside to Freshers’ Week.” It could be, perhaps, if anybody could remember it. A few blurry memories, a couple of messy Instagram photos, and four or five jumbled phone numbers have not really helped these kids integrate into college life. By the end of the week, they can barely pay rent, they’re shattered, and they probably don’t feel like they have progressed anywhere. Now it’s not all bad news. Yes, there are many downsides to freshers’ week, and yes, it could maybe be a lot better. But with-
out it, you might not bump into your soon-to-be best friend. Or you might not join a society that could help define the next four years of your life. The last thing I want to do is dampen the spirits of those who are trying to create a welcoming atmosphere for our wonderful university. But at the end of the week, be you freshman or sophister, when you are reflecting on how it all went down, don’t say I didn’t tell you so.
Why the Kim regime should start making better tv Maurice John Casey examines the subversive effects of foreign television on North Korean society.
T Maurice J Casey Staff Editor
he most notable thing about North Korea’s longest running entertainment show It’s So Funny is how inappropriate the show’s title seems. It’s offensively unfunny, even by the standards of a despotic nuclear state. One of the longest running comedy shows in history, It’s So Funny has been broadcasting it’s own brand of state sanctioned comedy since the early 1970s. The target audience, the North Korean military, makes up almost half of the population, and the show’s hosts wear olive green military dress. A typical sketch based on bean production ends on the punchline “If we farm in the way the General tells us, we will become happy.” A resounding round of applause greets this line. The applause, however, is entirely devoid of laughter. The comedic failure of It’s So Funny evidences the state’s paranoia; humour is by its nature subversive, therefore the state’s provision of comedy must lack humour. Slapstick is common, satire is non-existent.
The attempt to disguise the propaganda is even weaker than the jokes, yet for generations few North Koreans dared to try and see through it. The relentless efforts by the regime to blockade the entry of outside media are, however, proving increasingly futile. The advent of CDs and USB keys has made smuggling South Korean programming into the country so much easier. This is beginning to change everything. The reverent Korean Central Broadcasting Service finally has an alternative. In one year KCBS spent thirty five per cent of its on-air time praising Kim Jong Il and a further thirty per cent telling workers to toil harder for the affection of the Dear Leader. Percentages you should recall next time you think ‘ah shite, there’s nothing on the TV.’ Yet foreign media is very much a dangerous alternative that carries with it the risk of imprisonment in the North’s expansive gulag system. Surveys of defectors and sources inside the country prove that
this is a risk people are willing to take. For the first time in the history of North Korea a critical generation is emerging, a generation who view the party’s broadcasts as inherently unreliable. Culture is smuggled past the watchful, but easily bribed, border police and consumed by an underground audience. The youth of North Korea, particularly those living in the border cities along the porous Chinese/Korean frontier, have been accessing South Korean media for the best part of a decade. Media is now easily found on the black market along with Chinese mobile phones, used for calls only a few minutes long to evade tracing. A connection to the outside world is becoming tangible, available to more than just the elites. Finding fellow aficionados of outside influence is easy; a defector now living in the South noted that listening out for South Korean slang in conversation could reveal who else is “listening in.” There is little the police and
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“The reverent Korean Central Broadcasting Service finally has an alternative. In one year KCBS spent thirty five per cent of its on-air time praising Kim Jong Il.”
party officials can do to seal the fissures in the information blockade. The security services once relied on the tactic of cutting power to blocks of flats and entering apartments to inspect DVD players. Without a source of power the discs could not be ejected, the incriminating South Korean DVD was locked inside. Now however, a USB key can simply be pulled out and hidden from the secret police. Nevertheless, the act of turning on a South Korean soap is an elaborate act of dissidence. One defector, speaking to InterMedia, described it as ‘psychological war’; “I have to block the windows and curtains and closely guard the entrance door. Then I lock the door and listen with an earphone… The whole scene of me watching a drama is worthy of its own drama show.” South Korean soaps, which feature blue collar workers living in large apartments with refrigerators and TVs, unthinkable luxuries in the North, are watched eagerly and discreetly by many citizens. North Kore-
ans commit this act of televised treason to be entertained rather than indoctrinated when they turn on their TVs. Yet the prevalence of this crime against the state evidences a burgeoning desire for outside information and a semblance of the truth. When asked whether the efforts of Radio Free Europe had influenced the Solidarity movement in Poland, Lech Walesa replied “Would there be Earth without the Sun?” The potential for outside media to create the first significant crack in the North Korean regime cannot be underestimated. Five stations now broadcast into North Korea from the outside. They provide reports targeted at those seeking factual news and advice on escaping the country. By contrast, the state media has become staid and repetitive with its constant fixation on ideological plotlines and praises sung to the regime. Andrei Lankov, a North Korean analyst, notes that the greatest praise a North Korean can give a film is that it lacked ideology. On the flipside of all of this is
the popular South Korean show Now on My Way to Meet You. Think Take Me Out but with the overly made-up, South Dublin hotties replaced by North Korean refugees. They sing, they dance and they speak bluntly about the oppression they have escaped. Criticised as ‘feminization of refugees,’ the show is nevertheless bringing the refugee issue to the fore, and that can’t be a bad thing. The North has nothing of the calibre of Now on My Way to Meet You in terms of entertainment value, nor in terms of an honest portrayal of Korean life, and this is the critical flaw that is pushing its subjects to seek out an alternative, even at the risk of imprisonment. An image of the relative freedom and prosperity of the outside world, being broadcast across the border between the two Koreas, is facilitating the coming collapse that will make that border defunct.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
Comment
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The discussion on Ireland’s second parliament continues. Seanad Referendum
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p. 16
Honesty is always the best policy Dealing with a mental illness is tough enough, even without the stigma. Alice Kinsella advocates how honesty is always the best policy.
I Alice Kinsella Contributor
t’s seven am on a Monday. Your phone is vibrating furiously, insisting that you wake up. With a groan, you realise what lies ahead. There are papers due, three of them, and another society night at the end. Plus, it’s your mate’s 21st. You are living the exhilarating life of a student. Yet all you can feel is a haunting blackness crawling in your stomach. It’s as if you once swallowed a seed, a seed of doubt and fear, and suddenly it began to grow within you, filling your veins with exhaustion and disillusionment. The only thing that seems feasible is lying in bed, watching the slow relentless roll of clouds flow past the window. You could be dealing with mental illness. You are not alone. I was sixteen when I first sought help for mental illness. I was young, confused, and for a long time unaware of what was wrong with me. Through a chaotic whirlwind of what everyone assumed was teenage hormones, I began a tumultuous journey of acknowledging, and dealing with, mental illness. Unfortunately, my experience in adolescent mental health services gave me a great deal of insight into the stigma and prejudice that we continue to fight today. My psychologist, an elitist who was more concerned with me achieving high Leaving Cert points than being healthy, assured me that no good could come from telling others of my illness. In particular, he emphasised that my university should not know as it could tarnish my academic career and hold me back in my future endeavours. In my eyes, this confirmed what I’d already assumed. I thought it was good of him to warn me. What if I’d been honest and ruined my future? So for three years, I harboured my condition like a dirty secret. I finished secondary school, started college, and moved away from home. Everything appeared to be going swimmingly; it was all I’d ever wanted. From the outside, I was living the dream. At 18, I was exactly where I was supposed to be. But things weren’t going as well as they appeared. I seemed to be losing my zest for life. I became lethargic and lost hope for happiness. My levels of anxiety increased and I was reluctant to participate in the life I had found myself in. I berated myself daily as I failed to see the joy around me. Day by day, my condition deteriorated. I failed to attend lectures and lost enthusiasm in friendships. Encircled by fear and detached from reality, I found the
continuation of ordinary life impossible. The details of the months that followed are unimportant, but by the end of the academic year I had dropped my course and was in the care of College psychiatric services. With their help, I regained the ability to function from day to day. Today, I am well on my way to being healthy again. But the question remains: why did it take me over four years to recuperate fully? While there seems to be a growing awareness about mental illness and suicide prevention in Ireland, why was it still so difficult to recover? It was the shame I felt, and unwillingness to share the truth with those around me, that backed me into a corner. I was trapped by my illness. I felt there was no escape. I did not understand it fully, and assumed no one else would either. This shame was by no means my fault alone. The advice I had been given at sixteen illustrated to me the deep-routed prejudice we face against mental illness - even in areas where you would not expect it. It was only when I realised that there were no other options that I took steps in the right direction. There was something deeply wrong with me and I had to seek help. It was my last option. It was also the best thing I’ve ever done. As I continued to get better, I realised the importance of being honest about my illness. It was lying about it that had led to the extremity of my situation in the first place. How could I expect others to accept mental illness as an unfortunate part of life, if I wasn’t willing to accept it myself? So, I was honest. I was honest with the doctors, with the college, with my parents and my friends. The vast majority of people were unbelievably understanding and helpful. Today, mental illness is still very much a part of my life. To an extent, I believe it always will be - but I am no longer ashamed of it. It is no more my fault than if I had blue eyes or a broken leg. Being honest about illness has been a large part of my recovery. It has helped me eradicate the added pressure of the shame of my condition and learn that I am not alone. Now that I am healthy, I have begun to look around at my peers and wonder how many others suffer today as I did in the past. How many refuse to admit to themselves and others that they are ill and need help? Being a college student and dealing with mental illness is by no means easy. Everyone tells you these are supposed to
be the best four years of your life. We are students of Trinity College, we are supposed to be excelling, not barely keeping our heads above water. It is easy to convince yourself that this is true, but this attitude only plunges you deeper into darkness. It is by admitting to yourself there is nothing to be ashamed of, and asking for help that you can finally begin to recover. From my experience of the health services in College, the attitude is one of extreme care and understanding. My fears of being honest were unfounded. The stigma regarding mental illness is a vicious circle. We are ashamed of our own sickness, and will not be honest because we think we are alone. We think we are alone, because no one else is honest and they themselves are ashamed. The only way to combat stigma once and for all if to each be honest, both with ourselves and with those around us, about how mental illness affects us. I wanted to write this article for many reasons. One reason was so as not to think myself a hypocrite. It is easy to tell others to be open about mental illness and be guarded yourself. A lot of attention has been given to suicide awareness and mental illness in the past. This is wonderful, but the only way to truly tackle it is by being open and educating ourselves, as well as others, about it. Today, I find no shame in my relationship with mental illness. I do not hide it and tell people freely when the occasion arises. More often than not I am treated with curiosity and understanding, although still the occasional blush. It is not for the greater good alone that I like to be honest about my illness. I find that coping with mental illness becomes much easier once you accept it, and tell others about it. It is nothing to be ashamed of. Rather, it is something that proves your strength every day as you keep going. I call on anyone else who reads this, and feels a sense of familiarity, empathy, or perhaps shame, to do the same. Be honest. Be open. We are lucky today to be a part of the generation that wants to see this kind of change. Across the country, people are battling stigma. See Change, the movement brought to us by the National Stigma Reduction Partnership, encourages people to tell their stories in an effort to combat stigma. They work in many ways to battle negative attitudes towards mental health problems. Please visit http:// www.seechange.ie if you wish to get involved.
Illustration: Maria Kavanagh
Seamus Heaney – ‘A Sunlit Absence’ Lisa Gannon celebrates the work and transcendent power of Ireland’s best know poet and Nobel Laureate, Seamus Heaney.
“I Lisa Gannon Contributor
always believed that whatever had to be written would somehow get itself written’. Heaney’s poetry pivots around this proclamation. A renowned poet and playwright, Heaney’s work is known for its simplicity, original themes, endless depth, peacefulness and hopefulness. Heaney always associated the moment of writing with ‘a moment of life, of joy, of unexpected reward’. Of the many things I have learned from reading the works of Seamus Heaney, the most important is that writing is a joyful gift, a movement that flows and recedes like ‘tree shadows into the polished windscreen’. Heaney’s words know no end; he soared to unimaginable depths. Each poem peels to proportion. Each layer reveals something new, leaving the reader with fruitful insights into his life, his loves, his longings and his lassitude at life’s troubles. Heaney looked ‘inwards and downwards’ in his poems. He searched for ‘images and symbols adequate to our predicament’. His words inspired and transpired, his legacy will live on in their yield. This article had to be written. If it is on the stem of memory that imagination blossoms, the poetry of Seamus Heaney is in full bloom. His poetry documents the ‘everyday’-past and present, his themes are simple
and original, his voice narrative, yet hopeful. He aimed to make ‘hope and history rhyme’. He wrote ‘what if’ poems in a ‘someday’ tone. In the poem ‘A Constable Calls’ Heaney recalls a visit from a police officer. He delicately highlights the political unrest which governed Northern Ireland in the days of his youth. He explains how life just ‘ticked, ticked, ticked’ by at that time. His just voice sounds again in ‘The Tollund Man’ as Heaney ‘risks blasphemy’ in pondering one of life’s greatest ironies; religion- war’s most flammable ignition. Heaney also captures many fond memories of his childhood in his poetry. The poem ‘Sunlight’ is an account of his love for his aunt and ‘A Call’ is a reflection of the relationship between himself and his father. The poem ‘The Forge’ tells the tale of the 1969 blacksmith as he ‘recalls a clatter of hoofs where traffic is flashing in rows’. The blacksmith acknowledges the changes which have unfolded but maintains hope, ‘a new shoe toughens in water’. ‘Bogland’ is a poem of both pride and hope. Heaney conveys pride in his country, ‘we have no prairies’ but ‘the wet centre is bottomless’. He is hopeful that our boglands will preserve our culture like the ‘butter sunk under more than a
hundred years…recovered salty and white’. While each of Heaney’s poems spoke to me, ‘Death of a Naturalist’ spoke the loudest; it had the most to say. In this poem, Heaney mirrored a frog’s development with human growth. As the ‘fattening dots burst into nimble-swimming tadpoles’ then ‘gross bellied frogs’ so too does a baby become a boy and then a man. Heaney thought of life as a ‘series of ripples widening out from an original core’. His poetry rippled from his originality. Ezra Pound once said ‘good poetry is the news that stays news’. Seamus Heaney was predominantly a twentieth century poet but his work will never become outdated. Heaney once proclaimed that ‘the end of art is peace’. Peace pacifies much of Heaney’s poetry- in history and in hope. That said, not everyone has found this peace- neither in history nor in hope. This is not the end of Seamus Heaney’s art. His poems will live on in the truth they rouse; they will morph our changing times and deliver counsel in their candour. Peace will precede the end. Heaney’s poetry gives readers a new found respect for the importance of the ‘here and now’; an appreciation for the natural beauty of our country and gratitude for language; for
the power of its simplicity, the joy of its rhyme and the irony of its marriage. Heaney believed that while a poem should preserve an experience it should also ‘open the experience up and move it along’. Heaney once described poetry as having a ‘self-delighting inventiveness’. The reader can reinvent any of Heaney’s poems and make it their own. He also professed ‘I can’t think of a case where poems changed the world but what they do is they change people’s understanding of what’s going on in it’. His poetry changed my understanding of what is going on in the world. It may have been born in and borne of the past but it will live on in its guidance, hopefulness and splendour. To quote William Shakespeare: ‘the past is prologue’. Seamus Heaney was a proud, passionate poet with a hopeful voice and a transcendent message - the power of peace. His last words to his wife- ‘Noli timere’ (don’t be afraid) - still ring in the ears of the country. Heaney’s death is a litotes to his life- an ironical understatement, effective in being so. His death has left a ‘sunlit absence’. In the reeling of his passing, hope and history finally rhyme. This article had to be written, and it got itself written.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
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Comment
Hypocrisy in high places: western interventionism and Syria Willaim Foley strips back the highfalutin moralism of western rhetoric on interventionism to lay bare the self-interest underpinning it.
T William Foley Comment Editor
hese days, it seems that spotting the hypocrisies of the powerful is easier than stealing socks from a baby. However, hypocrisy amongst the ruling elite is surely the world’s oldest vice, as a quick flick through the history books will prove. This holds especially true for those history books which take the Middle East as their subject. No political group which has ever enforced its will in the Middle East through force of arms has ever acted disinterestedly; though it has almost always claimed otherwise. Aggressive expansion and the subjugation of rival ethnicities have been regarded by Israelis as a holy mission since before 1000 BC. The Romans, arriving some centuries later, saw themselves as bringing civilisation to the barbarous descendants of Abraham. A millennium later, the crusaders came to save the souls of the Islamic heretics. And in the last century, victorious European powers carved up the fallen Ottoman Empire so as to ensure peace and stability in the region. Let there be no doubt: there is more to Western posturing over the Syrian crisis than disinterested humanitarianism. So far, the debate and the discussion which has taken place in the media and other forums, has been informed by a certain narrative peddled by Western leaders. This narrative revolves around the inherent and urgent necessity to intervene in the Syrian civil war. This is the “official discourse” and it dominates every debate on this issue. But through careful exami-
nation of the official discourse, one can discern the hidden contours of self-interest which reveal the true motives which drive Obama and his allies. One way to reveal these latent interests is to identify changes and inconsistencies in the official discourse. Observe the exact inversion of the terms of the debate which took place between the invasion of Mali by the French earlier in the year and the mounting calls for “progressive intervention” in Syria. In the case of Mali, the political situation was depicted as the struggle between a democratic government upholding secular, humanitarian values on one side; and on the other side, an intolerant alliance of Islamist terrorists with connections to al-Qaida, determined to inflict Sharia law on the Malian population and, even worse, destroy priceless archaeological artefacts. In reality, the democratic government of Mali is tightly controlled by the military which carried out two separate coups last year. Likewise, returning troops to its old colony to safeguard it from the Islamic threat coincided fortuitously for the French with securing uranium supplies in neighbouring Niger for their nuclear-reliant energy system. Indeed, the French army wasted no time in sending special forces over the border to “protect” Nigerian uranium mines. By contrast, the terms of the debate on Syrian intervention are almost entirely reversed. This time it is the Free Syrian army, an ad hoc alliance increasingly
dominated by Islamist groups (many of whom have alleged connections to al-Qaida) who are the “good guys”; and it is the secularist, military-backed, ruling Ba’athist party who are the villains in this piece. What we have been presented with here is something approaching a controlled experiment. In virtually identical conditions, the terms of the debate have been precisely inverted. What has caused this inversion? Can its cause be located in the official discourse? Or do its roots lie in underlying structural interests? Firstly, we should dismiss the current focal point of the calls for Western intervention: that chemical weapons are the “red line” whose transgression justifies intervention. What should be instantly rendered problematic is the notion that the use of chemical weapons a priori necessitates immediate military intervention. Chemical weapons are undoubtedly a horrific method of inflicting pain and death. But Assad has already killed masses of Syrian citizens in ways which were hardly much less horrific. Why single out chemical weapons? What makes them so much more insidious than, say, indiscriminate drone strikes? As Michael Cohen puts it in his Guardian article: “Why are the horrors of children killed by chemical weapons qualitatively different from the horrors of children killed by artillery or machine guns?” Furthermore, why is it that chemical weapons are only a “red line” for Syria? Israel used
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“No political group which has ever enforced its will in the Middle East through force of arms has ever acted disinterestedly; though it has almost always claimed otherwise.”
white phosphorous repeatedly during their 2009 assault on the Gaza Strip. Why is the US not threatening to invade Israel? Why did The Economist magazine not urge Obama to “punish” Israel, as it urged him to punish Assad in a recent leader article? Even more tellingly, why has Obama not targeted those responsible for what is probably the most heinous use of chemical weapons ever? A 1970 Senate report detailed that, “The US has dumped on Vietnam a quantity of toxic chemical (dioxin) amounting to six pounds per head of population.” According to John Pilger, Vietnamese doctors blame this bombing for a “cycle of foetal catastrophe” in which generations of children are born with horrific deformities. Pilger also reports that depleted uranium and white phosphorous were used by US forces in Iraq, less than a decade ago. Secondly, where is Obama’s moral outrage when American allies exterminate their own citizens? The Yemeni and Saudi Arabian regime both brutally repressed protests during the Arab Spring without comment from the White House. The continued atrocities and repressions carried out by Obama’s “Israeli allies” are well known The inconsistency of Western leaders on this issue betrays a simple fact: chemical weapons are to Syria what WMDs were to Iraq; a canard conjured up to justify the imperialist policy of the day, an arbitrarily drawn “red line” which serves as a foil
for Western moralising. The results of this controlled experiment are clear: the terms and coordinates of the official discourse are determined by the interests of the powerful. In Mali, Islamist rebels are bad and secular, military-backed dictators are good. In Syria, secular, military-backed dictators are bad and Islamist rebels are good. In Gaza, it’s OK to use chemical weapons if you’re Israeli. In Syria, it’s not OK to use chemical weapons if you’re part of the Assad regime. And so on. So what exactly are the Western interests which determine the official doscourse? The very same interests which drive every Western intervention in the Middle East: oil and geopolitical dominance. In particular, the latter entails weakening Iran’s influence in the region. Don’t take my word for it; listen to what the pro-interventionists are saying. Writing in The Phoenix, Ben Schreiner, an anti-interventionist, quotes Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies: “If Bashar al-Assad wins… it will give Iran far more influence in the Gulf”. Schreiner also quotes Efraim Halvey, the former director of Mossad, who gloatingly noted that the Syrian crisis “[has] created an opportunity to castrate the Iranian threat”. But weakening Iran isn’t the only prospect spurring on Obama’s sabre-rattling. Again, Cordesman offers us a refreshingly frank summation: “The Middle East has over 48% [of the world’s proven oil reserves]… The control of these
reserves and the secure flow of oil exports impacts directly on our strategic position, on every aspect of our economy and on every job in America”. Crude oil and regional hegemony; it’s Iraq all over again. Syria is now a crucial piece in the Great Game. It is a vital ally of Iran with whom it represents the regions strongest barrier to US dominance. Any US intervention will be as catastrophic for Syria as it has been for every other country. The point of this article is not to defend the Assad regime or advocate total inaction. The point of this article is to highlight the inconsistencies and the hypocrisies of the official discourse and to expose the hidden interests driving Western war-mongering. Of course, Assad is a bloodyhanded tyrant and his regime is rotten and corrupt. But we should avoid the temptation of seeing Western military intervention on the side of the rebels as the lesser of two evils. As Slavoj Zizek points out in an article for the Guardian, the Syrian civil war is really a “pseudostruggle”; what is missing is the kind of “strong radical-emancipatory opposition whose elements were clearly perceptible in Egypt”. This absent force cannot be substituted for by the United States’ army; an army which wreaks death and destruction wherever it goes. Let’s not jump on the imperialist bandwagon. Let’s not cheerlead more Western atrocities. Let’s not forget Iraq
Intern-al Affairs
Conor McGlynn recounts his experience of working as an intern and weighs up the pros and cons of working for free.
I Conor McGlynn Deputy Comment Editor
am currently sitting in an office in Dublin city centre. I came in this morning at nine o’clock, and will leave this evening around six. I am writing this article during the one hour I get off for lunch. I’m working five days a week for the eight weeks that I’m here. My duties, which involve varying degrees of engagement, range from general office tasks to creating and writing documents for public release. Were it not so commonplace, it might be considered odd that I am not getting paid for any of this. Internships have become an almost universal step in the career paths of modern young professionals. The practice was controversially thrown into the media spotlight this summer when an intern in a London bank died after working a 72 hour shift. These internships usually involve full-time working hours for little or no
pay. For graduates, they may or may not lead to permanent paid employment. The ethics of internships have been the subject of much debate in the media. Some consider it exploitative and unfair; a way in which companies can get around minimum wage laws and legally avail of free labour. Others think that internships are a valuable way for students and graduates to gain experience of an industry, pick up some skills and get a taste of what full-time employment entails. My own internship, in the area of government affairs and public relations, has been on the whole a positive experience. A well-organised internship can be immensely beneficial, and will more than compensate for the lack of paycheck. Giving up part of your summer or vacation time in college to get practice in an industry in which you are interested in is an ex-
tremely valuable investment of your time. Doing an internship while still in college is worthwhile for three main reasons. First and foremost, it gives you a taste of what working in the industry full time would be like. If you enjoy the experience then it gives you a definite goal to work towards, a specific skillset that you can hone and improve throughout the rest of your time in university. If, on the other hand, you find the experience uninspiring, you will have learned an invaluable lesson and helped to define your career goals. It allows you to reorient your focus whilst remaining within the structured environment of college. The second advantage of doing an internship while still in college is that it looks extremely good on a CV, especially if you make your mark in the company. Even if you are going for a
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“Internships have become an almost universal step in the career paths of modern young professionals.”
job in a completely different industry you will be able to leverage that experience to your advantage, and use it to showcase your transferable skills, such as teamwork and initiative. If you do something to make yourself standout and get a solid reference this will further enhance your résumé. Finally, if you find the work enjoyable and could see yourself working in the industry after college, an internship then gives you a ready-made network of contacts when you are starting your career. You can thus avoid the arduous process of cold-calling businesses looking for work, a process that is a significant barrier to entry into many industries. At the same time, however, abuses of this system unfortunately do take place. There are countless stories of students interning in a business where they spend their days
making coffee and filling in spreadsheets, without getting any real idea of what working in the industry entails. Such practices are obviously deplorable and shouldn’t be accepted. The only way to stop this is to put in an effective, enforceable legislative framework for unpaid internships. Such a system currently exists in the UK; only last month an intern won a court case against his former employer for unpaid wages, on the basis that the duties he was performing were simply office administration that would have to be carried out anyway. Another ambiguous issue is that of graduate internships without any clear path of progression to full-time work. It is difficult to see just what function these sorts of internships serve, other than as an excuse to hire workers for below minimum wage cost. Some companies have a ‘revolving door’ of
interns, a constant stream of graduates who are offered no sort of security or possibility of advancement, who are only there because they are desperate to get some sort of foothold in their industry. If there is an exploitative aspect of internships, then this is most certainly it. I realise that I was extremely fortunate in getting an internship in a company that takes a genuine interest in its interns, where a real effort is made to make the experience valuable and interesting. Unfortunately this is not the case for many graduate interns, and it is this lack of security and return for their time and work which must be addressed.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
Comment
Patrick Hull investigates the biohacking phenomenon.
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Biohacking
>>
p. 19
Save Ireland’s second parliament
Abolish the undemocratic Seanad
The abolition of the Seanad is a blatant power-grab. James Doyle An elitest, outmoded and undemocraticinstitution whose only funcCathaoirleach of Ógra Fianna Fáil’s Wolfe Tone Cumann la,basts the tion is to provide sinecures for failed politicians and Taoiseach’s pets; government’s democratic counter-revolution. William Quill makes the case for abolishing the Seanad.
I James Doyle Contributor
n its March 2011 programme for government, this coalition promised the electorate a “Democratic Revolution”. Enda Kenny preached from his Merrion St. pulpit that real political reform would take place and that we would have a shiny, brand new, system of political accountability that had never been seen before in Ireland. The coalition promised that there would be a dramatic shift of power from the Executive to the Legislature, something which is badly needed. Their plan is to abolish whole sectors of local government, reduce TD numbers and all hold a referendum in which they seek to abolish Seanad Éireann. This is a blatant power grab that they are selling with a populist message that insults our intelligence. However if there is one benefit to come from this referendum, it’s that the government is finally delivering on a promise. Credit where credit is due, after all. Many say, and to a certain extent I agree, that Seanad Éireann of the past has not served the Irish people very well. However, commentators like Fintan O’Toole are fundamentally wrong when they try to label our state a failure and then they try to put the Seanad in the middle of that so called failure. The state we established in 1922 is not a failure As the former Fine Gael Taoiseach Garret Fitzgerald often stated, we as a nation have done far better for ourselves as an independent state than we would have done as a rural backward province of a post-imperial and post-industrial UK. Our Seanad was envisaged as a voice for minorities in the society of that independent state when it was set up. It has served that purpose very well. It has been a voice for the few, for the ignored and for genuine good. Had we not had Seanad Éireann in the past, which institution would drive forward the advancement of contraceptives, gender equality and gay rights be? Not the Dáil Éireann that saw a Taoiseach vote against his own government’s bill to legalise contraceptives. Where would we have found our first, formidable female President? I doubt that she would have risen from the ranks of the Dáil. The rhetoric from pro-abolitionists fails to point out any of this good. The debate is filled with cynical sound bites coming particularly from Minister Bruton who I’d imagine was handed this referendum as part of his punishment for his spec-
tacularly failed coup attempt against Kenny in 2010. In every interview and interaction with the media, he has failed to give an adequate answer to the check and balances argument. The government are worryingly far too eager to get rid of the only institution that holds it to account. They say that better scrutiny will come from”beefed up committees”. Funnily enough, these are the same committees that are rigorously controlled by ministers, the same committees that are dictated to by the executive and the same committees that have members removed when they disagree with ministers. This is a blatant power grab from an arrogant government. How on earth does this signify
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“Our Seanad was envisaged as a voice for minorities in the society of that independent state when it was set up. It has served that purpose very well. It has been a voice for the few, for the ignored and for genuine good.”
political reform, let alone a “Democratic Revolution”? Fine Gael say ¤20m per year will be saved from the abolition. This is wrong - the Seanad costs ¤8m per year, period. The savings argument is both illegitimate and opportunistic. It’s not as if the few million saved will be diverted towards reversing the cuts to the disabled and poor in our society. Minister Brendan Howlin has said that the money currently spent on the Seanad will be used instead in the Dáil. We are in the middle of a crippling austerity programme and our government decides to hold a referendum which will cost ¤14m just so it can increase its power and reduce democratic accountability. Where can common sense prevail? The savings argument is redundant because of the cost of this referendum (an even if its is passed, no savings will be made until after the next General Election). If the government really cared about savings in the Oireachtas then they could have made this through expenses caps, reduction in Senators’ pay and many more ways rather than tearing pages out of Bunreacht na hÉireann. Reform is the real solution for our Upper House. We in Ógra Fianna Fáil propose a vote for all the electorate, to grant Irish citizens real ownership of the house. Furthermore we want to see the Irish Diaspora and Northern Irish citizens given a voice in Seanad Nua. The Northern vote is one that is particularly needed given the lack of interest this current administration takes in our fellow countrymen and women up North. We want the Upper House to have the power to review EU legislation, something the Dáil fails to do. Finally as an act of real political reform, we want the Seanad to have the power to approve government appointments to state bodies so that the right people are in those jobs, not just donors & friends of politicians. Ultimately, a No vote is the real vote for reform. It will leave this government with little choice but to change the way the Seanad operates. It’s a choice between concentrating power in the hands of the few or a choice of real reform, proper accountability and the true “Democratic Revolution” we were all promised. The choice is yours.
T William Quill Contributor
he Seanad should be abolished because democracy matters. The principle of parliamentary democracy is that all of us as citizens have an equal share in determining who our public representatives are. Our vote, and the values we attribute to that vote, should be treated equally. The laws we are governed by should be passed by representatives of the people, elected in a uniform way, without prejudice to class, education or interest groups. The ordinary electorate decide who governs, and that is something to celebrate. The Seanad infringes on this principle. The Seanad is not democratic and was never meant to be. The Constitution of 1937 determined that the composition of the Seanad would be 60 members: 11 nominated by the Taoiseach, 3 elected by the National University of Ireland, 3 elected by the University of Dublin, and 43 elected across each of five panels of Culture and Education, Agriculture, Labour, Industry and Commerce, and Public Administration. This was amended in 1979, to allow the six university seats to redistributed among other institutions of higher education. This never happened, despite the establishment of Dublin City University, the University of Limerick, and numerous Institutes of Technology. As for the 43 elected from the panels; most of these are politicians who were not elected in the general election, but have enough friends in their own party for them to get a leg up and are destined to fade into obscurity. Our Constitution has stood up well over the past 76 years. But it has also been amended on a number of occasions in light of changing attitudes. For example, we removed the special position of the Roman Catholic Church in 1972, the prohibition on divorce in 1995, and the territorial claim to the whole island of Ireland in 1999. There are a number of other further changes I would also support. We should see the abolition of Seanad Éireann in this light. Its composition was designed as a concession to Roman Catholic social teaching which was suspicious of pure forms of parliamentary democracy. In his 1931 papal encyclical, Quadragesimo Anno, Pope Pius XI proposed a system of governance based on bringing the social divisions in society together to aim for social harmony. This is the root of the vocational panels. An ideo-
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“Its composition was designed as a concession to Roman Catholic social teaching which was suspicious of pure forms of parliamentary democracy.” logical relic of 1930s Europe is not something that should remain in our constitution. The division of society into these five panels, based on sectors of employment, is arbitrary. We cannot easily be defined by these divisions, nor would most of us want to be. We make decisions from general election to general election about the balance of interests, policy and expertise we would like to see in the Dáil. We should not prejudge the wishes of the electorate with a constitutional requirement that particular sectors are represented at all times in the Oireachtas. This is what the vocational panels do. This is why I oppose any reform that would entrench their standing. We hear a lot about reform. The reality is that if we vote to retain the Seanad, no one knows whether it would be reformed or how it would be reformed. Fianna Fáil are now calling for reform. They were so interested in reform that they placed a former minister, Mary O’Rourke, in the chair of a committee on Seanad reform in 2004. But then Fianna Fáil did nothing with its recommendations before leaving office in 2011. Fianna Fáil’s current proposals differ from that O’Rourke report. They also differ from the Zappone/Quinn Bill. All of these bills differ from John Crown’s Bill. We do not know what reform actually means. Those who want to retain the Seanad want to give it new pow-
ers. Some say it should examine EU legislation, or that it should have greater scrutiny over government appointments. All these are great ideas, but these powers should be invested in the Dáil, as the democratically elected representative house of the people. TDs need to do than more than attend to local concerns, but giving appropriate powers of accountability to a different house of the Oireachtas doesn’t improve that. The Seanad is praised for its Independent members. But there is no shortage of such TDs in the Dáil. Long-term senator Shane Ross topped the poll in Dublin South at the last election. He is now one of thirty TDs sitting on the Independent and Technical Group benches. We do not need a Seanad for voices outside the main political parties. The scholars and graduates of this college have elected many great senators to the three University of Dublin seats. But that is not a justification for continuing to distinguish a vote in the Oireachtas by education. We should also remember that many of the great achievements of these these Senators were won through both the Irish and European court system. Mary Robinson helped secure the right of women to be considered equally for jury duty as a counsel in de Búrca v. AG in 1976; and she represented David Norris in the European Court of Human Rights in Norris v. Ireland in 1988, which led to overturning the criminalisation of homosexuality. Neither Robinson nor Norris needed the Seand to thrive or to make their great contributions to Irish society. The power to make laws is a great one, and should be subject to eternal vigilance. We hold those who hold such powers to account, not just at election time, but through our constant contact with our TDs throughout the lifetime of the Dáil. The most public government reversals happened in 2010 on medical cards and last year on special needs assistants; these did not happen because of a vote in the Seanad, but after an expression of public demonstration. We need to have confidence in the principles of democracy, civil engagement and the protection of rights under our constitutional and international law. We need to abandon the idea of a keeping the Dáil in check through means that stand in anathema to the great principles of parliamentary democracy.
Tuesday 18th of September 2012
TRINITY NEWS
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
Science
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Science in Brief Gavin Kenny
Are we all Martian? Life on Earth may have started on Mars before finding its way here on the back of a rock, according to new research. Earth’s globe-covering oceans and lack of oxygen in the atmosphere three to four billion years ago appear less favourable for instigating life than the dry land and oxygen available on Mars at the time.
Prof Steve Benner believes that the abundance of the elements boron and molybdenum - thought essential to forming RNA, DNA’s cousin - on the surface of Mars is “yet another piece of evidence which makes it more likely life came to Earth on a Martian meteorite, rather than starting on this planet.”
Trinity’s Dead Zoo Housing more than 25,000 specimens, Trinity’s Zoological Museum leaves much to be discovered. Sive Finlay recounts the mueum’s unique collection.
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Sive Finlay Contributor
f you manage to break away from the society gauntlet that is Front Square during Fresher’s week you will encounter the science domain of campus. Well-buffered from our Arts brethren by two sports pitches, the East end of college is a wonderful world of eccentric physicists, computer whizzes and perpetually labbound biochemists. Tucked away in this enclave is one of Trinity’s hidden gems which, this summer, became college’s newest visitor’s attraction: the Zoology Museum. Founded in 1777 to house Polynesian artefacts collected by Captain Cook on his expeditions to the South Sea Islands, the museum started life in Regent House above Front Arch. Fuelled by 19th century collecting zeal, the museum soon expanded beyond anthropological interests to include natural specimens as well. The collection was subdivided according to scientific disciplines and the zoological specimens were moved to their own museum in 1876. Today’s Zoology Museum is confined to the second floor of the Zoology Department, next to the lecture theatre and following its refurbishment in 2005, the museum was awarded accreditation to the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland in 2013. With over 25,000 specimens there are plenty of treasures to discover. For example, the beautiful, delicate glass models of marine invertebrates are recognised
as some of the finest works of renowned 19th century father and son team, Rudolph and Leopold Blaschka. The duo created exquisite, biologically accurate models of marine creatures which were sold as teaching aids for students. In fact, the Blaschkas’ glass models of flowers and plants are one of the main attractions at Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology. Only a few other institutions have surviving examples of their work so we are very lucky to have such precious creations still intact in our own museum. The museum’s collection is primarily used for teaching purposes. There are specimens representing all the major animal taxonomic groups which are trundled out annually to teach taxonomy to the new batch of zoology students. Sadly, part of this education in biodiversity includes reminders of some of the many species which are now extinct thanks largely to the actions of humans. The specimen of Ireland’s last Great Auk is one such tragic reminder of our destructive nature. Large, flightless birds which resembled (but were not related to) penguins, Great Auks were once widespread across the North Atlantic. They were excellent aquatic predators but their puny wings and slow waddle on land made them easy targets, especially for hungry sailors and explorers. Archaeological remains show that
the birds were hunted from at least the 8th century and by the mid-16th century many of their breeding colonies in Europe had all but disappeared. Sadly, as their numbers dwindled, many of the last birds were killed for museum collections; people seemed more interested in stuffing rather than conserving the remaining birds. Our museum’s specimen was the last bird to be killed in Ireland in 1834, just 10 years before the species went completely extinct. It is a sad reminder of the fate of many species which fall victim to human over-exploitation. The museum’s specimens are an eclectic mix of animals which were collected, donated or, for some reason or another, happened to find their way to Dublin. Prince Tom is one such creature who, after a very colourful life, now calls the Zoology museum home. Tom was an Indian elephant caught from the wild and presented as a gift from the ruler of Nepal to Queen Victoria’s second son, the Duke of Edinburgh. Along with a tortoise companion, Tom accompanied the Duke on his visit to New Zealand in 1870. As one of the first elephantine visitors to the land of kiwis, Tom sparked quite a publicity stir in New Zealand. He was particularly notorious for his decidedly non-teetotaller ways as he made himself at home at various local taverns. Upon his return from the colonies, Tom was eventually
relocated to Dublin Zoo in June 1872 where he quickly became a star attraction. Tom’s most famous trick was to buy his own snacks from the food stands after he learned to collect coins in his trunk and hand them over in exchange for his favourite treats. A few close encounters when Tom broke loose and “endangered himself and others” put an end to his zoo wanderings and he spent his last few years confined to his house and small yard. He died in 1882 aged roughly 15; evidently his years of heavy drinking and fondness for pastries were not conducive to prolonging his longevity. His body was transported by barge from the zoo to Trinity where he was dissected “with the aid of shears, ropes and pulleys;” how I would have loved to attend that anatomy lecture! Tom’s colourful life is just one example of the intriguing stories which lie behind all of the museum’s unique specimens. The museum will be open to the public on both Culture night (20th September) and Researcher’s Night (27th September). Come along to meet Tom, guess the identities of some fierce-looking creatures, encounter the unicorn of the sea and discover Trinity’s hidden treasures for yourself.
US and UK crack online encryption code Working together, the US and British governments have reportedly cracked online encryption codes protecting information such as bank details and emails. Documents obtained by the Guardian following their release by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden appear to reveal how the NSA and its UK equivalent, the GCHQ, worked covertly
with tech companies to insert vulnerabilities into encryption software. The German news magazine Der Speigel has also reported on the NSA’s ability to hack into iPhones, android devices and even the BlackBerry device, previous considered particularly secure.
Geologists discover the biggest volcano on Earth A vast plateau located 1,600 km east of Japan and over 2 km beneath the Pacific Ocean appears to be a single gargantuan volcano – the largest on Earth. The unusually broad shield volcano (so named because their large size and low profile resemble a warrior’s shield) is about the same size as the British Isles at 310,000 km2, making it compara-
ble in size to the largest volcano in the Solar System: Olympus Mons on Mars. Erupted over a relatively short period of, at most, a few million years about 145 million years ago, the volcano is now considered extinct.
The Geek Manifesto – Why Science Matters – book review
M Conor O’Donovan Deputy Science Editor
ark Henderson takes full advantage of years working at the interface between science and society to bring his book “The Geek Manifesto – Why Science Matters” to the public floor. It is a must-read for skeptics and science-lovers of any affiliation. Henderson – a former Science Editor for The Times in London, and currently Head of Communications for the Wellcome Trust – here hails the emergence of the geek movement: a category of persons, diverse in background and of various degrees of age and education, unified in their appreciation of rational decision-making and reliance on stringent and appropriate use of evidence. Just as the LGBT community has won back the term “queer,” the geeks are proudly turning to their own devices a word once roared from the back of the classroom against bookish school kids. The book is a rallying call to geeks everywhere, to draw them into the mainstream, so that their voices may be heard by the general public and its representatives. Grassroots geek movements, such as Skeptics in the Pub and independent science-savvy bloggers, as well as more prominent figures, such as Brian Cox and Ben Goldacre, have been garnering points for changing public discourse in support of evidencebased policy. The geeks can be encouraged by recent events in the UK, where mass support was mustered behind Simon Singh (who was unsuccessful sued for publicly challenging the evidence for some chiropractic claims) and David Nutt (who lost his position as chair of the UK’s Advisory
Council on the Misuse of Drugs when he dared question longheld beliefs by suggesting that alcohol and tobacco could be more harmful than illegal substances). These men honourably stood by the evidence, even when this meant great personal sacrifice and causing embarrassment and inconvenience to some. In Ireland, the Festival of Curiosity and Science Week are just two examples of efforts to popularise science, to make it accessible to the wider public. However, the point which may be missed in these well-intended, well-funded ventures is that what defines science is not a particular body of knowledge, mastery of which is requisite for its appreciation and practice. This, unfortunately, is often the assumption of the layperson, and even of the student. Rather it is its methods which raise science as a profession: observation, hypothesis-making, experimental design, controls, checks, objective reporting of results (both positive and negative), careful interpretation, peer-review, repetition, criticism, revision, and the throwing out of old ideas when the data no longer supports them. While the models and theories that underpin our understanding of the natural world will continuously change, these gold-standard principles of the scientific discipline will not.Henderson compellingly unmasks the severe paucity of scientific training and expertise among our legislators and policymakers. The major issue is not a lack of discourse on scientific issues, or disregard for the specific interests of the scien-
tific community. Indeed science and technology are often (and rightly) looked to, when governments wish to invest in (and be seen to prioritise) areas of potential growth. The problem, instead, is the much more widespread indifference among political circles to scientific reasoning: making proper use of the tools, methods and checks inherent to the scientific mode of thought and investigation, when deciding upon policy issues that affect diverse aspects of society. Similarly, there is reluctance to openly admit when there is uncertainty, and to commission well planned and unbiased research to address these questions. Evidence, of varying degrees of integrity and authenticity, is abused frighteningly often by public figures – as well as by elements of the media, judicial system, educational establishment, healthcare, and environmentalist lobbies. Henderson treats each of these in a rightfully unforgiving way. While not obvious in every instance, evidence abuse is widespread, and often – though perhaps not surprisingly – comes out in support of policy decisions, after they have been made, not before. Most conspicuously, particular evidence is listened to, while ignoring the rest; “evidence” is declared before it has been published, or even made up out of thin air; specific advisors are chosen to provide biased evidence in support of planned policy; gross extrapolation and generalisation from limited evidence is also a regular occurrence. We must call foul on misleading claims that ir-
responsibly use these tactics, and demand a better approach to policy-making. Henderson argues for a socalled “third (political) axis” – one independent of the ideological poles of right and left – in both financial and social senses. In order to enshrine evidence-based policy and rational decision-making as core principles in how society is governed, we must put forward and support those candidates who demonstrate these values most exceptionally. Our politicians and policymakers should be assessed and rewarded for their sound use of evidence to determine policy. Rather than indiscriminately punishing those who make mistakes during the exercise of their public duties, we should reward those who examine the reasons for their mistakes, and who go to great pains to learn from them. In this regard, the best reward is simply our vote.
Blind bicycling Utilising ultrasonic sensors to detect obstacles, thus allowing its blind rider to change direction, the ‘UltraBike’ has stolen the show at this year’s Technology For Life conference in Glasgow. The bicycle, produced by Sound Foresight Technology based in the UK, aims to allow partially sighted people to cycle safely on off-road cycle lanes by
vibrating buttons located on either side on the handlebar when an obstruction is detected. The conference organised by the charity RNIB Scotland has showcased a number of technological advances aimed at better integrating those with sight difficulties into society.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
Science
19
Hacking Healthcare Joan Somers Donnelly explores the recent innovations coming from the ‘hacker’ and ‘maker’ movements in the field of medicine.
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Joan Somers Donnelly Staff Writer
IY medicine might not sound like best practice, but in reality the recent innovations coming from the hacker and “Maker” movements in the field of medicine have the potential to revolutionise healthcare, particularly in developing countries. Medical aid given by rich countries to poorer ones is a nice news story. What we read about less often, however, is the fact that this top of the range equipment frequently fails or is impossible to maintain. Rather than donating cheaper models of the same equipment, Jose Gomez-Marquez of MIT argues that there is a need to look towards cheaper materials, and design hardy devices with the same functionality but for a different environment and at a more affordable cost. His Little Devices Lab at MIT hack simple objects, making nebulisers for medication from bicycle pumps for example, and assemble DIY medicine kits. The work of such groups, which exist at several U.S. universities, is not only making a difference to health workers in developing countries but is also challenging the medical devices industry, which mainly markets devices that are expensive and designed to prevent hacking.George Whitesides and his team at Harvard have been working with an extremely ordinary material: paper. They have created microfluidics devices, which test body fluids to diagnose for a particular disease or detect for a particular hormone, such as in a pregnancy test. Paper naturally draws in liquids through tiny capillaries, eliminating the need for a mechanical pump. The team embeds polymers that shun water on a piece of paper the size of a postage stamp to create channels than a drop of blood or urine can travel through to meet small pools of chemical reagents. Paper is not only cheap, it is also easy to produce and store in high volumes, and can be
burned after use, which is a great advantage in areas where medical waste disposal is a problem. The lab’s first test is for liver disease, a frequent side effect of AIDS medications. Where no medical personnel are at hand, a photo of the result taken on a camera can be sent to a lab, and a diagnosis will be sent back in a text message. Another ingenious paper tool is Manu Prakash’s foldscope, developed at Stanford. Essentially an origami microscope, it fulfills the need for a light, portable microscope for diagnoses and testing water. The pattern is printed in several die-cut pieces on a sheet of stiff, water-resistant paper. The sections are colour coded, making the microscope fast and easy to put together without the need for written instructions. Once folded, it stacks two polymer lenses over one another, magnifying the image on a slide up to 3000 times. The Little Devices team make five types of MEDIKits, including the Drug Delivery Kit. It contains core devices: syringes, nebulizers, inhalers, transdermal patches, pills. Then there are modifier elements: colour coding, shape coding, springs, plungers, compressors, tilt sensors, buzzers, timers, bicycle pumps, and template cutters. These allow users to change the functionality of the devices. Also included are general supplies like Velcro, tape, paper, tubing and needles. Soon after field testing the kits in Nicaragua, Gomez-Marquez and his team realised that users were hacking the kits themselves, cutting parts like tubing, and taking parts from one kit and using them in other ones. They concluded that for the kit to be successful, they would have to design for hacking. Instead of trying to change the global supply chain for medical devices, the Little Devices team has embraced the huge and far-reaching toy supply chain
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Another ingenious paper tool is Manu Prakash’s foldscope, developed at Stanford. Essentially an origami microscope, it fulfills the need for a light, portable microscope for diagnoses and testing water. of cheap plastic and electronic mechanisms. Gomez-Marquez describes what they dubbed the Glucometer/Gameboy paradox: both devices have equally complex electronics and comparable retail prices, but while gameboys are available worldwide, 16 clinics in Nicaragua have to share a single glucometer (a device used to test the level of glucose in a patient’s blood). Getting these frugal technologies out of the lab and into the hands of those that need them is still a challenge. Getting entrepreneurs to invest in these kinds of projects, whereby de-
vices constructed for 50 dollars can perform the same function as one that costs 100,000 dollars, is another huge challenge. DIY medicine subverts the capitalist system that is entrenched in healthcare as much as any other industry. These technologies have applications not only in developing countries but also wherever there is unequal access to healthcare, hospitals striving to save money on routine procedures, or patients wanting to adapt their own healthcare to their specific needs. Medical tools still need to be safe and rigorously tested, but neces-
sity is the mother of invention. With many healthcare professionals working in challenging conditions already taking DIY action, it’s time for more research groups to weigh in and help put health hacking into the hands of the people who have the most to gain from its affordable innovations.
(adding a sixth sense, enhancing hearing etc.) but transhumanists have much grander visions for humanity’s future including boosting IQ to previously unobtainable levels and the attainment of eternal life. On the latter issue, mind-uploading is often mooted as a potential solution. LiveScience recently reported on the Global Future 2045 International Congress, where the claim was made that “by 2045, humans will achieve digital immortality by uploading their minds to computers.” Martine Rothblatt, the CEO of biotech company ‘United Therapeutics Corp.,’ made the argument that this process is not as far-fetched as it may appear. People are laying the foundations for so called ‘mindfiles’ through social media websites like Facebook. Nick Bostrom, director of Oxford’s Future of Humanity Institute and noted transhumanist, also outlined in a TED talk given in May 2008 how transhumanist philosophy aims at changing
not only the physical, but also the emotional. Highlighting a study performed on prairie voles, where genetic modification transformed their mating habits from polygamous to monogamous, he suggested human life could be enhanced “if you could actually choose to preserve your romantic attachments to one person over time, so that love would never have to fade if you didn’t want it to. That’s probably not all that difficult, it might just be a simple hormone that could do this.” With more and more people directly involving themselves in this kind of research, often independently and with the will to experiment radically on their own bodies, and the rapid growth of increasingly smarter technologies, it only seems like a matter of time before some of these issues graduate from being mere thought exercises to obtainable realities. Here we will be brought to the point of confrontation with previously unimagined issues. Would a human mind stored on
a computer chip have access to the same protections and human rights as a mind encased in its natural biology? Is it ethical to allow people to modify their own DNA or genetic material if it became possible to develop high levels of intelligence or super strength? And if humans could live forever, what are the implications for population and the world’s resources and how would we address the danger of a stagnating planet, culturally and intellectually? These are issues that need to be faced with an oft-neglected trait of humanity: the ability to negotiate and reach consensus. A coherent plan for the future of bioengineering, including the DIY branch, is badly needed in this age of unfettered development. In the words of Bostrom, “we need, slowly and carefully, with ethical wisdom and constraint, to develop the means that enable us to go out in this larger space and explore it and find the great values that might hide there.”
Biohacking: a tough grind Patrick Hull reports on the phenomenon of biohackking and its new place in our world.
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Patrick Hull Staff Writer
hat does it mean to be human? It is a question that is very difficult to give an all-encompassing answer to. From a strictly scientific point of view, human beings are classified as being part of the Hominidae family and the only surviving members of the Homo genus - a line that broke from its closest living relation the chimpanzee around five million years ago. One of the key distinctions that made the Homo genus unique was an increase in brain size. It was this gain in cranial capacity that led to many of the characteristics which make humans human - higher reasoning power, language, culture, problem solving abilities - and these characteristics in turn which led to the outward visible signs of humanity: clothing, cooking with fire and the creation of advanced technology and art. Today, however, a growing community of innovate individuals is attempting to fundamentally alter both human biology and the essence of human nature itself. These people are known as “grinders.” It can be quite difficult to locate the origins of the “Grinder” movement. Sometimes, tongue-in-cheek, Mary Shelley’s Dr. Frankenstein is credited as being the founding father. What is for certain is that grinders are everywhere now. Perhaps the best summary of the movement’s aim can be found in the FAQ section of the site discuss.biohack. me: “We grinders are specifically interested in applying our knowledge to the practical, and in most cases immediate, modification of our own bodies.” An example of one of the more popular modifications is the implanting of a rare-earth magnet under the skin of one or more fingers. A neodymium magnet is often used; made from an alloy of neodymium, iron and boron, it is a lot stronger than a typical ferrous magnet like one you would find on a fridge. The implant vibrates when it comes into contact with an electromagnetic field, stimulating nerves in the fingertips, allowing the recipient to sense live wires and spinning hard-drives, or to pick up small magnetic objects with their fingers. Some people who have had the procedure done describe how they can build up pictures of different electromagnetic fields from the nature and intensity of the vibrations, like a sixth sense.
Some other suggestions for implants listed on the forum are “a watch that glows through the skin”, “a Geiger counter” and “something to turn hearing on and off at will”. While some of these sound fanciful or even dangerous, the grinder community is all about pushing boundaries and taking risks with your body. Registered medical practitioners will not carry out finger implantation procedures and so a network of body-modification artists has sprung up, willing to do the job. However as they are not licensed to practise medicine, anaesthetic cannot be used; the standard pain relief offered is to numb the finger in ice before an incision is made. There are risks involved with the procedure; the most common finger operated on is the ring finger of the left hand because, in the words of body-modification pioneer Jesse Jarrell, “if you had to lose or seriously damage one of your fingers, which would it be?” Grinders exist as a subset of the wider community of the biohacker. The ‘hacking’ in this case does not refer to the popular image of a computer hacker, exploiting security weaknesses and stealing protected information, but rather to the hacker ethic, a term coined by journalist Steven Levy, which prizes above all access, freedom of information and an improvement in quality of life. Biohackers exist in a world where once expensive laboratory equipment has now become cheaply available, allowing almost anyone with a few thousand euro to set up their own garage-lab. An article in the scientific journal Nature published in October 2010 outlined some of the ways of outfitting such a lab, including creating a $10 microscope by reversing the lens on a simple web-cam and using eBay to source the cheapest second-hand lab equipment. The consequence of this is that people with little or no formal scientific training can begin unsupervised experimentation straight away. It also leads to the introduction of non-traditional ways of thinking into the scientific community. Biohacking is closely associated with the cultural and intellectual movement of transhumanism which believes in the augmentation of the human condition through the introduction of advanced technologies. This is evident in the activities of grinders
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Biohackers exist in a world where once expensive laboratory equipment has now become cheaply available, allowing almost anyone with a few thousand euro to set up their own garage-lab.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
Sport
Pre-Season Review: David Fanagan gives a preview of DUFC’s prospects for the upcoming season.
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DUAFC on top form for upcoming season
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Stephen Carton DUAFC Captain
T Rory Macanna DUUFC PRO
U American Football Club may not one of the oldest clubs in Trinity, but it is fast becoming one of it’s most competitive. Having been founded in 2007, we do everything we can to ensure that we improve on what has been accomplished before by the club. Having originally started off as an 8-a-side team, the club has come a long way to be playing in European competition in only our sixth year. Playing in the top tier of American Football in Ireland, the Shamrock Bowl Conference, Trinity’s team entered last season on the back of it’s first ever trip to the playoffs and continued in a similar fashion in a year of several firsts for us.
These included the first year of new schemes both offensively and defensively, first ever division title and our first taste of international competition. Knowing that our biggest advantage against most teams was our speed, new schemes were brought in on both sides of the ball to try and utilise the players we had in the best way possible. With us running a (American) college style offense, it didn’t take long for the team to start receiving praise for it’s scheme. However, more importantly than this, was the results. In our first game of the season we travelled to the UL Vikings and came out on top 20 - 0. The Vikings hadn’t lost a
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Combining our fast paced offense with an opportunistic defense, the team fought hard all season.
home game in almost three years and only two years ago had been considered a top twenty team in Europe. Combining our fast paced offense with an opportunistic defense, the team fought hard all season and were rewarded with a division title and record of 6-2. This granted the team a bye week during the first round of the playoffs and allowed the team to focus on getting ready for the Atlantic cup. Combining Irish, Belgian and Dutch teams, a two day tournament was played in Tallaght Stadium over one weekend. Despite only having twenty players for the tournament, we came out on top against the heavily favoured
Brussels Tigers with a late fourth quarter comeback. Bringing an end to their two year unbeaten streak and securing a place in the final the next day against the Belfast Trojans, they were all that stood between Trinity and the Atlantic Cup. However, Belfast has it’s own two year unbeaten streak and for good reason. Trailing by two scores at halftime, our offense was unable to get anything going and the team conceded another two scores before eventually falling to 26-0 loss. The following week, with even less players, we faced the Dublin Rebels in the Shamrock Bowl semi final; the same team we had lost to a season ago in the play-
offs. After a disastrous first half, we had left ourselves with too much to do and were unable to mount a meaningful comeback against the most successful team in Irish American Football. Despite these tough losses the future of the club looks bright as the majority of players are returning and with games before Christmas planned, the team is looking to take another step forward this year. The reintroduction of the College Championships this year, accompanied with a trip to Dublin by the Oxford American Football team means we will be playing more football than ever before and are looking to recruit new players all the time.
More than a casual toss
Lets talk about sports
Rory Macanna, PRO of DUUFC illustrates both the fun and competitive nature of Trinity’s Ultimate Frisbee Club.
Niall Brehon denounces the intellectual elitism and encourages students to talk about college sports.
he Ultimate Frisbee club in your college is more than just a bunch of people who get together occasionally and throw discs at each other. It is a real sport with national and international tournaments taking place throughout the year. It has grown rapidly since it began in the USA in the late 1960’s and just a few months ago, in May 2013 it was recognized by the international Olympic Committee as a sport. Hopefully it will soon be part of the Olympic Programme. But how do you play this recently recognized Sport? It is more straightforward than it might seem at first. It is a fast paced game that is played both outdoors and indoors in Ireland. There are 7 players on the field for outdoor and 5 players for indoor. The disc is passed up the pitch between players on the team and points are scored by catching the disc while in the end zone, the area past the goal line at the end of the pitch, which is similar to the scoring system in American football. It is a non-contact game and the player with the disc in their hands cannot run, but may pivot in a similar manner to basketball. Because it has similarities to many other team sports, a lot of skills you have from other sports are transferable and useful in ultimate frisbee. However, when it comes to throwing the disc, it is something that almost everyone is a novice at. Everyone is on level playing field in this respect, so
Niall Brehon
even if you haven’t played much sport before, you will not be out of your depth. Everyone has more or less the same ability at the beginning. One aspect that makes ultimate frisbee unique from all other sports is a thing called the spirit of the game. This means that there are no referees and it is up to players to make sure the rules are upheld, to keep the score and to make sure the game is well spirited. Recognizing fouls and disputing them encourages the players to accept responsibility for their actions and to develop a sense of fair play. This self officiating has resulted in the organization called Ultimate Peace. Ultimate Peace began in the Middle East, which brought children from different ethnic backgrounds (Arab, Jewish and Palestinian) together to play ultimate. This programme was such a success that the organizers were able to expand it to Columbia. So why not try something new this year. Join Trinity’s ultimate frisbee club. Ultimate is growing in rapidly in Ireland. There is a club in nearly every university and there are new clubs constantly forming all across the country. Ultimate frisbee is a great way to stay fit, experience something different and have fun. There are numerous tournaments in Ireland and abroad, most notably party tournaments such as Edinburgh beginner’s tournament in October (which Trinity won
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Recognizing fouls and disputing them encourages the players to accept responsibility for their actions. last year) and Siege of Limerick in February. Both these tournaments are renowned for having great social nights as well as great matches and attract teams from all over Ireland and Europe. College also host one of the annual beginner’s tournaments which is called Tea Party at the beginning of the college year. Ultimate frisbee could also provide you with an opportunity to represent your country at an international event in the future. Many past and current College players have represented Ireland in international tournaments in the last few years in places such as Canada, Germany and Spain.
Contributor As a lover of sports studying in Trinity College, a modified Fight Club reference is an apt-enough illustration of how I sometimes feel. As if I belong to a secret society with a secret code, a secret set of cultural indicators and references. I look like you, and I act just like you. You may think our lifestyles are comparable. But I simply am not there. I’m just thinking about football. American Psycho doesn’t really cut it either I guess. There’s nothing shameful about liking sports. Yet when I talk to another sports-lover in this wonderful college of ours, like a furtive child whispering forgotten truths into the ear of another, the sense of secrecy comes dropping slow. The telltale bruises and sly nods passed, the screaming, half-haunted look in the eyes that lets the initiated know that they too have found what David Foster Wallace hailed “a prime venue for the expression of human beauty”; it is a knowing look, the look of a man who has found exactly his place in the world and is quite happy to share the things those eyes have seen with anyone who, too, has come to realise what all people who enjoy watching, talking about or partaking in sports have come to realise. Yet it is a look edged with
Illustration: Ciar Boyle Gifford
childish wonder, often pulling up the sides of the mouth with it as conversation coughs into gear and splutters down fanciful highways. Those same faces, you can picture thundering about in titanic duels up and down the astro pitch in Botany Bay,
clearer than the face of your own mother. Botany Bay, itself, scene of a thousand bloody scrapes, and bloody war, and elation, and brief disappointment fading in the post-match endorphin rush, lies hidden behind the brutish shouting-halls of the GMB, in wait like a less-Basilisk-filled Chamber of Secrets for those select few with Parseltongue (or a token from the gym) to open its black wire maw. The rugby pitch, blatantly hidden in the open and tracked around the edges by minimal but effective fencing, studded with bootmarks of a thousand thousand steps that you have not seen – but they happened, and left their mark in the earth and now lie as clues to glories and failures, forever hinted at but dancing, sidestepping, ever-elusive. The gym, in the corner of campus like a see-through afterthought, a moat tacked onto stony buttresses, cupolas and towers, teeming with heat and chlorine, haunted with effort and perspiration. A wise old sports writer once remarked that he only read the sports section of his daily paper. When asked why, he responded simply that the front pages chronicle mankind’s failures, and the back pages – the sports – chronicle mankind’s achievements.
Blurring the lines, in a good way.
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Louis Strange Contributor
amuel Beckett was some man. One of Trinity’s most celebrated alumni, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1969 “for his writing which [ ] in the destitution of man acquires its elevation”. Yet the destitution of man was not the only thing to acquire elevation by Beckett’s hand, as so too did many a cricket ball, flying off his bat across College Park. Beckett was an accomplished cricketer, showcasing his sporting prowess during his time at Trinity, where he was granted an even greater honour than that attained in 1969: being recorded in the Wisden Cricketer’s Almanack, a reference book generally regarded as the ‘cricketing bible’. (Beckett is, incidentally, the only
Nobel Prize winner to have an entry in Wisden. Or the only man mentioned in Wisden to have won a Nobel Prize.) This may be a slightly tangential ramble, but Beckett’s dual legacy does raise questions about how, almost a century later, the Trinity students of today approach sport. As a college of intellectuals – supposedly, anyway – what is our relationship with sport? How do we reconcile these two aspects of College life, typically thought of as mutually exclusive? According to this conventional wisdom, comparison with NUIG, UL or UCD would paint us as a college of geeky bookworms, them as athletic jocks. Not only is
this disrespectful to the intellectual credibility of other colleges, but also ignores the fact that there are quite a few people in Trinity who are actually quite good at sport. We have it drummed into us – via that cringe-inducing phrase – that “Trinners [is] for winners”. Yet winning at what exactly? Academia, presumably, because that is ‘our thing’. Sporting ability is seen as at odds with intellectual ability. This overly simplistic paradigm deserves to be challenged. Sport and thought are not poles apart, and sport can lend itself to intellectualisation: Albert Camus, one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century and (in his younger days) a talented
goalkeeper, once claimed that “[a] ll that I know about morality and the obligations of men I owe to football.” Referring to Camus in the sports section is not the done thing, but – the obvious pretentiousness of referring to Camus in any situation aside – why not? Why such a phobia of intellectualism in sport? It is an unfortunate truth that social norms dictate that ‘men be men’: physicality and sporting prowess are the ideal, intellect is often viewed as an effeminate characteristic, and therefore an undesirable one. This culture is nowhere more evident than in sport, be it in a professional context or in College. The onus must fall on sports
writers, first and foremost, to make thinking acceptable within this arena. The English Premier League, mostly thanks to the sheer volume of journalism dedicated to it, has seen progress here: Stuart Hall, the now disgraced former sports reporter, was one of the first to bring life to dreary Bolton-Blackburn derbies with his lexical acrobatics, whilst the Guardian’s Barney Ronay is not afraid to adopt a florid style. Even blogs such as The Swiss Ramble, which provides in-depth economic analysis of the game, raise the bar. In his writing Beckett was famed for ambiguity, blurring the lines. Taking this principle and applying it to sport and academia,
we can not only add another dimension to the way we look at sport, but, more importantly, disprove the myth that a sportsman is not an intellectual; blurring the lines, in a good way.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
Sport
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Former Rifle Club captain wows at World University Games
Photo: NPHO/Cathal Noonan
After experiencing incredible success at intervarsities and at Universada in Moscow, Trinity Ph. D student Aisling Miller fills Elaine McCahill in on her successes and expands on .why DU Rifle Club is one of College’s most popular clubs.
A
Elaine McCahill Editor
isling Miller has just returned from competing in the 10m Air Rifle event at the World University Games in Russia, where she was the only student in the Irish delegation to represent Trinity College Dublin. In the coming weeks Aisling will be entering the fourth and final year of her PhD in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. This intriguing mix of interests is one that has served her very well, leading her to great academic and sporting successes. Having always set her sights on attending Trinity, Aisling went on to study general science and then specialised in microbiology and has been involved in the Dublin University Rifle Club (DURC) since the third year of her undergraduate degree. She has gone on to represent Trinity and Ireland in countries such as the Netherlands, Finland,Germany, Wales and most recently, Russia. She also had the opportunity to shoot on the Olympic range in London during the London World Cup Olympic test event last year. Dublin University Rifle Club has gone from strength to strength from its origins in 1840, to celebrating the Golden Jubilee of its current incarnation in 2012. The club currently boasts over five hundred members, making
it one of the largest sports clubs on campus. TCD and UCD are the only universities in Ireland who compete in rifle and pistol shooting sports and only Trinity trains in small-bore as well as air Olympic disciplines. Having access to the shooting range on campus, behind the civil engineering building, is something that Aisling attributes much of her success to: “The range has three lanes for ten metre air disciplines, which can also be changed into two 25-yard lanes for smallbore rifle. It is open five days a week from 6-10pm throughout the academic year and it’s open a couple of nights a week during the summer to allow people to train which is fantastic. When someone qualifies as a Range Officer they can open the range and train whenever they want so in reality it’s probably open five days a week during the summer as well.” Aisling’s career in shooting began when she joined the Rifle Club during her Junior Sophister year of Microbiology. Although preferring small-bore, she trained in air rifle during her first year of being involved because it was required to compete at Intervarsities in order to become a trainee Range Officer and Intervarsi-
ties are currently air rifle only. She then went on to specialise in small-bore shooting for a couple of years but when she became Captain of the Rifle Club during the first year of her PhD, she had to take up air rifle again to compete for the club in Intervarsities. She hasn’t stopped since. Aisling confesses that it has been hard to manage such a hectic and demanding sporting and academic schedule and that ultimately one ends up suffering for the other. She is also extremely determined academically and this is why she has decided to pull back on her international shooting commitments and training in order to focus on her studies. She has decided to focus primarily on her PhD for the next year and her career options for the future. As such she has provisionally decided against committing to training to qualify for the next Olympics to be held in Rio in 2016. Despite this, Aisling is committed to competing for DURC at Intervarsities next Spring. She has decided to compete only at club level in competitions in Ireland and the UK as travelling abroad representing Ireland takes up much valuable time and expense. Her training and trips abroad are funded mainly through her work
DU Sub Aqua Soc appeal to students to take the dive With DU Sub Aqua society is celebrating its 45th year, Stephen Collis describes the society’s unique appeal.
T Stephen Collis Contributor
rinity’s Sub Aqua Club (Dusac) is one of Ireland’s most active and longest established scuba diving clubs in Ireland. The club is affiliated with the British Sub Aqua Club, which provides us with internationally recognised diving qualifications and training standards. The club was founded in 1968 and celebrates its 45th anniversary this year. We dive everywhere around Ireland from scenic sites to the countless wrecks around the country. It may be surprising to some but the Irish Sea has an abundance of life from starfish, octopus and basking sharks to aquatic mammals such as seals, whales and dolphins. Every year the club takes in thirty-two new trainee members who have never dived before. In addition, the club takes sixteen members who have already experienced the wonders of diving and cross-over from other diving agencies. The club can train everyone from the very beginning up to their instructor grade and beyond. All our instructors are members themselves and give their time voluntarily to train new members. During the winter months the club trains members in the pool in College’s Sports Centre and after a few weeks new members get their first chance to dive in the open water in Sandycove in Dun Laoghaire. Those with previous diving experience
have the opportunity to go on the club’s annual October bank holiday trip. After Christmas all new members have the chance to come on the club’s largest training trip where over thirty experienced divers come together to make sure all our newest trainees get their first diving grade. The club has also occasionally ventured out of Irish waters. In 2011 we took a trip to dive in the Orkney Islands in Scotland where many World War II battleships were purposefully sunk. This summer we ventured slightly further a field and went diving around the Shetland Islands. We have also organised trips to warmer countries over the years such as Gozo, Spain and the Red Sea. The club also runs various courses for its members throughout the year, including boathandling, first aid, Automatic Defibrillator training, underwater photography, twinset diving, enriched air diving and search and recovery skills. The British Sub Aqua Club also runs various inter-club courses which develop members’ instructing skills and advanced diving skills. The club has two boats that are moored in Dun Laoghaire throughout the summer months. Every member has the opportunity to organise dives in Dublin Bay or organise a weekend trip
away to somewhere outside of Dublin. Club members also have the benefit of using all club equipment, which includes full sets of scuba gear, wetsuits and weight belts. The club also own its own compressors that allow the club to fill its own diving cylinders while in Dublin and away on trips. Apart from club diving trips and dives in Dublin Bay, the club takes part in many other events. Each year the club participates in intervarsities with other university diving clubs where we get the opportunity to dive with people from other clubs. This year’s intervarisities will take place in Dingle. Last year the club also organised diving with UCD on a few occasions and we hope to continue this in the future. Throughout the year the club has many non-diving events which cater for everyone including tables quizzes, trips to various marine attractions around Dublin and of course social nights out. This year we will be having our 45th Anniversary party planned on board the MV Cill Airne on the River Liffey. Each year is better than the last and we are very happy to welcome new members to train and dive with us. If you wish to get more information about the club please don’t hesitate to contact us at membership@dusac.org.
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Dublin University Rifle Club has gone from strength to strength from its origins in 1840, to celebrating the Golden Jubilee of its current incarnation in 2012.
as a demonstrator in the undergraduate biology laboratories but she is also on a Trinity College Sports Scholarship and receives some funding and support from her National Governing Body. The funding and support of DUCAC and Trinity Sports is something that Aisling is incredibly appreciative of as she believes “it is the support of those involved such as Cathy Gallagher, Drinda Jones, Cyril Smyth and Michelle Tanner that have got me to where I am today.” One of the highlights of the past year for her has been competing at the World University Games or Universiada in Kazan, Russia. “It was a great experience. It was second in size only to the Olympics with around 16,000 athletes staying in the athlete village. Cathy Gallagher, the Trinity Sports Development Manager was the head of delegation which was great as I was the only student from Trinity selected to compete. My coach, Matt Fox, also travelled with me. I wasn’t quite happy with my competition result but I was satisfied as I equalled my International Personal Best and the Irish Record.Towards the end of the week, it was a lot of fun, there were a lot of people out on the pavilion swapping gear from dif-
ferent countries and I got a Canadian top which was great.” With regard to the future of the Rifle Club, the involvement of alumni is central to their success as Aisling explains: “the experience of our alumni is incredibly important, it is a constant struggle for the club to retain shooters, administrators and Range Officers.” Alumni often offer their support in many different ways, be it helping out as Range Officers, coaching, offering accommodation for competitions abroad or by donating some equipment, all of which Aisling emphasises is as important as financial donations. Aisling’s personal top sporting achievements include winning the National Championships, equalling the Irish International Record and receiving University Pinks. The Trinity Pink, designed to correspond to the Light Blue of Cambridge and the Dark Blue of Oxford, is awarded on individual merit which is generally assessed in terms of outstanding club performance, representative selection or external achievement. With regard to her goals for the next year or so, Aisling hopes to go on to win intervarsities next spring, win at the Welsh Open for the club and get back into smallbore shooting but ultimately will focus on the final year of her PhD.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
23
w Jack Hogan Contributor
Sport
Twenty teams, One cup.
Karate kids.
Jack Hogan gives us the run-down on the teams and players to watch in this season’s Premier League.
Kate Gavin, of DU Karate tells us why we should learn high kicks and low blows.
ith the imminent exit of the Republic of Ireland from World Cup qualification, football fans must now look elsewhere for entertainment. They won’t need to look too far, however, as the Premier League returns to business as usual following a summer whirlwind of transfer speculation, managerial changes and record-breaking spending. A climactic transfer deadline day overshadowed the fact that a football league is going on. However, with Premier League clubs spending in excess of £630 million during the summer, we could be forgiven for ignoring how the table is shaping up thus far. At the top, Liverpool have earned some close but well-deserved victories to give them their best start to a League campaign in 19 years. Much credit must go to manager Brendan Rodgers’ summer transfer policy. He has overseen the departure of the utterly hapless Messrs. Downing, Carroll, Shelvey and Spearing while solid defensive cover has been provided through the capture of Mamadou Sakho, Kolo Touré and Tiago Ilori. Up front, the likes of Coutinho, Aspas and Sturridge appear to be linking up well but the return of Luis Suarez in a few weeks’ time should add significantly to their goal tally. However, Suarez will face renewed interest from other clubs in the January transfer window, as the striker made no secret of his desire to leave Anfield during the summer. Hanging on to his star goal-scorer could be Brendan Rodgers’ next major challenge. Manchester City and Chelsea, both under new managers, have also impressed in the early exchanges of the season. Manuel Pellegrini appears to have eased into the English game and, while he faces defensive difficulties through injuries to Vincent Kompany and Martin Dimichelis, the goal-scoring potential of this City team continues to impress. Meanwhile at Stamford Bridge, José Mourinho has put his recent European Super Cup failure behind him, has conducted some tidy transfer business by capturing Willian, Samuel Eto’o and Christin Atsu and can now look forward to a relatively straightforward run of games before they meet City in October. If the Blues
rinity Karate Club is both the oldest and most competitive martial arts club in the college. Karate is excellent for developing fitness, strength and suppleness together with the self-confidence and awareness that practising any martial art brings. There is a saying that anyone with the strength of a seven year old child can become an expert at Karate! The club caters for all abilities and always has students of different levels training at all times. From our many black belts (male and female) to our many beginners, all agree that the training is second to none! The 2012-2013 year proved to be a very successful one for the club. We took home a total
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Tottenham and Arsenal experienced polar opposite transfer deadline days. Spurs saw the departure of Gareth Bale for a record-breaking £85 million to Real Madrid while the Gunners welcomed a star midfielder of their own in the form of Mesut Ozil. can be clinical against the likes of Fulham, Norwich and Cardiff, they can set down an early marker as potential title challengers. Elsewhere in London, Tottenham and Arsenal experienced polar opposite transfer deadline days. Spurs saw the departure of Gareth Bale for a record-breaking £85 million to Real Madrid while the Gunners welcomed a star midfielder of their own in the form of Mesut Ozil. The German playmaker will contribute significantly to Arsenal’s attacking prowess, however one feels that they must invest in a forward in January, as they depend too heavily on Olivier Giroud as their sole striker. Don’t be surprised to see Tottenham also spending big in the mid-season window as they look to cash in on that £85 million paycheck. Both sides can also
look forward to exciting European fixtures in the near future too as the Europa and Champion’s League group stages kick-off at the end of September. And then there’s United. Despite an encouraging opening day win away to Swansea, David Moyes’ men seemed flat against Chelsea and were unlucky not to equalize at Liverpool. Other than Marounae Felaini, United failed to secure a major summer signing while other clubs recruited considerably more. As a result, Moyes may face the scrutiny of supporters, who would have expected bigger things from the Scot. The Manchester Derby on the 22nd September should give this United team their first real test. A disappointing performance in this fixture will mount further pressure onto Moyes. Further down the table, Newcastle and Aston Villa have continued last season’s poor form. In addition, the Magpies’ manager Alan Pardew has had to publicly explain the club’s lack of summer transfer activity, while Villa boss Paul Lambert has been fined £8,000 for criticizing refereeing decisions. Two frustrated managers, two teams that are not achieving their potential. In contrast, Stoke have punched above their weight so far in the League under Mark Hughes. While they were unlucky not to clinch at least a point away at Liverpool on opening day, they have since produced some fine performances. If they continue this form, a top seven place is not out of the question. Elsewhere, Sunderland have still failed to flourish under Paolo Di Canio while Swansea have not yet produced the form that earned Michael Laudrup such high praise last season. Other than Cardiff’s outstanding victory over Manchester City, the Premier League new boys have failed to surprise us thus far. However, both Hull and Crystal Palace invested heavily in player recruitment towards the end of the transfer window. This could help them secure a second season in English football’s top flight. As we return to a life of timetables, lectures and essays, there is much footballing excitement to look forward to in the coming weeks.
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Ruth Gavin
DU Karate Club
of eleven medals from the Intervarsity in Limerick and placed third overall. A further five medals were won at the intercollegiate competition hosted by UCD last May. For more information on our club and to hear about our Freshers’ trip and training sessions on the beach, pop by our stand in the front square during Freshers’ Week or drop us a line on the Trinity Karate Facebook Page.
TRINITY NEWS
Tuesday 17th September 2013
Into the Deep: Stephen Collis of the DU Sub Aqua society outlines the perks of Trinity’s only diving club ahead of its 45th anniversary
Sport
p.23
Exciting season ahead for DUFC
Photo: Peter Wolfe
M David Fanagan Contributor
any people, both inside and outside the Irish rugby community, are unaware of the level of history in which Dublin University Football Club is steeped. Established in 1854, DUFC is in fact the oldest ongoing rugby club in the world. Significantly, in more recent times, Trinity are continuing to make waves in Irish rugby as a University side. In the past two years Trinity have had two very successful AIL campaigns; firstly being promoted from Division 2A to 1B in the All-Ireland League in the 2011/12 season and last year falling just shy of promotion to the highest division (1A) with a third place league finish behind UCD and Ballynahinch who were subsequently promoted. On top of this, DUFC have won back to back AllIreland Rugby Sevens Cup Competitions in those two seasons, and the plate competition in the August tournament just gone. This season will prove to be a formidable challenge for newlyappointed captain Jack Kelly and DUFC’s distinctively young Senior Squad, but it is a challenge that is being relished nonetheless. The notable loss of senior players from the club includes Mick McLoughlin and Ciaran Wade
(to Wanderers), David Joyce and Ian Hirst (to Clontarf ), Warren Larkin (to Landsdowne), James O’Donoghue (to Terenure), Cathal Marsh (to St. Marys) and Neil Hanratty (to the gym). Although this may seem like a significant number, it is nothing out of the ordinary for a University side, the basis for which is characterized by continually rotating squads every year, with the chance for new and younger players to break into the senior team. This year will be no different. The squad sees the return of several senior players from last season in the form of Jack Kelly, and alongside him the returning forwards Will Scott, Jack Dilger, Brian du Toit and Pierce Dargan, providing a strong backbone for this season’s forward pack. The back-line similarly has held onto some of its key players in the form of last years player of the season, the bruising centre Paddy Lavelle, flyers Niyi Adeolokun and Ariel Robles and the utility back in David Fanagan. Significantly, with the departure of the old players comes the eagerly anticipated arrival of the new young guns. With the likes of backs Jack Fitzpatrick, Conor Kearns, Caleb Morrison and Jack Costigan, and forwards Adam
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In the past two years Trinity have had two very successful AIL campaigns; firstly being promoted from Division 2A to 1B in the AllIreland League in the 2011/12 season and last year falling just shy of promotion to the highest division (1A)
Brady, Conor O’Riordan and Andy Keating entering the senior setup, off the back of a very successful Under 21’s campaign last year (in which they narrowly lost the All-Ireland final to Landsdowne,) there will be no shortage of talent in this squad. The season at a glance sees DUFC play 9 other teams in home and away fixtures in the next 8 months, with the top two at the end of the year gaining that illustrious promotion to Division 1A. However, looking at the standard of the opposition with teams such as Buccaneers, Belfast Harlequins and Terenure, it is painstakingly clear that there will be no easy fixtures for this young Trinity side. Although the task ahead may seem tough, any pundit should write off DUFC at their own peril. What the side lacks in experience, they will more than compensate for with skill, speed and good pattern play. Additionally, the vast experience of the coaching setup in DUFC with Tony Smeeth and Hugh McGuire at the helm will mean that this squad will be set in the right direction from the off. An exciting year of rugby in Trinity College awaits its loyal supporters and this young squad could well surprise the nay-sayers.
All-Ireland Final Season
A Carl Kinsella Contributor
fter Cork’s clash with Clare in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final ended with a bang without a winner the streets surrounding Croke Park will again be awash with anticipation and apprehension. Fans of Mayo and Dublin will take to the stands braced for the bombardment of heartbreak and joy to come. The significance of the final, which kicks off at 3.30 p.m on Sunday the 22nd, is not quite the same to both counties. Rather, it is one chapter that will be shared between two very different histories. Mayo come into this year’s final with their pride dented worse than a car door that’s just withstood a Stephen Cluxton penalty kick from five yards. Having overcome the Dubs in their 2012 semi-final, Jim McGuinness’ Donegal made sure the men from Mayo went back to the heather county empty handed. It’s a fate that Mayo have struggled to shake for a long time. Since they last won the AllIreland Senior Football Championship in 1951, Mayo have spent the best part of the last twentyfive years showing sparkle but not steel. The westerners have impressively reached six senior finals since 1989, but have been bested at the last on each occa-
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Cork’s clash with Clare in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final ended with a bang without a winner the streets surrounding Croke Park will again be awash with anticipation and apprehension.
sion. Even in Connacht, Mayo are deprived of any bragging rights. Having played only three finals in that space of time, neighbouring Galway have taken the Sam Maguire home twice. Dublin, on the other hand, are Ireland’s second most successful footballing team behind Kerry, with 23 titles to their name. However, one shouldn’t take this to mean the Jackeen’s hunger for the trophy will be diminished any. Dublin have only won three titles in the last thirty years and need to build on their 2011 success to prove their resurgence is the real deal. Mayo will take hope from the fact that Dublin’s manager Jim Gavin is something of a rookie when it comes to senior football management and may lack the sporting acumen that comes with years of experience traipsing about the technical area. Mayo fans, reassuring themselves, may also talk of certain Dublin players having been exposed in Dublin’s semi-final against Kerry. Kerry tore Dublin asunder with three first-half goals, but Dublin clung tight to the game and made sure it never quite slipped out of reach. A late goal from Eoghan O’ Gara, and yet another decisive goal from substitute Kevin McManamon turned the game on
its head and ensured that Dublin would be taking another trip to their home ground before the season came to a close. Nevertheless, Dublin are a relatively young side, and some of their fledglings were troubled by Kerry’s might. By contrast, Mayo convincingly overcame Tyrone to claim their big day in Croker. Mayo also have a vested interest in Sunday’s curtain raiser where their minor side will face off against a tough Tyrone team for the Tom Markham cup. A victory for Mayo’s younger players would surely be sweet, but what really matters is that they shrug off the shackles of their past and finally seize their chance to stand in the spotlight with Sam Maguire.
Sport in brief Trinity Student breaks national record Trinity student Eoin Healy took first place in the men’s all-Ireland team sprint at the National Omnium cycling championships last month. Mr Healy, who is deputy chief investment officer with the Trinity Student Management Fund, also broke a national record.
Victories for College at the Irish Rowing Championships Dublin University Boat Club (DUBC) and Dublin University Ladies Boat Club (DULBC) had a successful outing at the Irish Rowing Championships in Cork. DUBC took victory in the Men’s Novice 8+ while DULBC won first place in the Inter 8+, Inter 2-and Inter 1x categories.
Ireland represented by Trinity students at World Orienteering Championships Three Dublin University Orienteers (Duo) members represented Ireland at the World Orienteering Championships last June. Conor Short and Kevin O’Boyle made their WOC debuts in the middle and long distance events, and in the sprint distance event respectively. Rosalind Hussey marked her return to the championships in the long and sprint distance events.
DUCAC to hold sports night on Wednesday Dublin University Central Athletics Committee (Ducac) are holding a sports night on Wednesday the 18th from six to eight pm in the sports centre. Freshers and returning students will have an opportunity to sign up to any of College’s 51 sports clubs. Participants will be able to take part in various activities and win prizes for their efforts. Those who don’t win anything may console themselves with the free goodie bags which will be given out on the night. Attendees may avail of a tour of the sports centre and will also have the opportunity to hobnob with assorted sports personalities and have their picture taken with the women’s rugby Six Nations’ cup. A dodgeball tournament will also be held on the night and participants can sign up their teams by emailing mullend2@tcd.ie.