Trinity News, Vol 60, Issue 3

TRINITY NEWS

19th November 2013

www.trinitynews.ie

DIRECTOR DAVID LOWPENGUIN’S SPEInside ERY, CIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH MORRISSEY, NORWEGIAN ARTIST MAGNHILD OPDØL AND MORE...

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NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR 2013

Photo: Atalanta Copeman-Papas

The nation’s agony uncle and former Tcdsu President, Joe Duffy speaks to the National Media Conference 2013.

Provost’s privatisation agenda rejected by students

A Catherine Healy

News Editor

81% of TCD students would not support privatisation IFUT expresses opposition to “unconscionable” agenda – TCDSU describes Prendergast’s comments as “very concerning” Societies approached about holding debate on issue n overwhelming majority of students would oppose the privatisation of Trinity College, Dublin, according to a new survey conducted last week by Trinity News. Just under 81% of the 500 TCD students that were polled by this paper indicated that they would not support the privatisation agenda that has been pushed this academic year by Provost Patrick Prendergast.

Only 12.2% of respondents, 61 out of 500 students, said that they would support possible privatisation, with just over 6% of respondents stating that they had no opinion on the matter.

The findings come in the wake of remarks made by the provost at the Trinity Global Graduate Forum on 8th November. In a speech to alumni on the future of Trinity College, Prendergast indicated that he would consider privatisation as an option for the university. Its current public nature, he said, meant College is “subject to the same restrictions and controls as other public bodies.”

In particular, Prendergast expressed concern that “different pieces of legislation” may “tie our hand and limit our independence” in relation to “decisions on hiring, promotion, remuneration, research funding, and tuition

Michael Stone takes to the streets and talks to Dublin’s homeless about the City Council’s latest initiative to curb begging.

InDepth -p.7

fees.” He said, “We can’t, for instance, decide to woo a top academic to Trinity with a competitive salary, because, for this, we need to get Ministerial permission.”

The provost also suggested that he would view the ability to enforce compulsory redundancy on staff as a benefit of future privatisation.

College “staff are now public servants, and redundancy can only be voluntary,” he said.

The Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT) has responded to these remarks with a strong condemnation of Prendergast’s privatisation agenda. In a statement to Trinity News, IFUT General Secretary, Mike Jennings, said that the union is “totally opposed” to any privatisation push as it “would mean a possible quadrupling of students fees.” He stated that privatisation would be a “betrayal of the generations of former students and staff of Trinity College, Dublin, who over its extremely long and illustrious history have built the college to be the nationally prized institution it is today.” Turning the university into “some sort of profit-generating machine”, he said, would be an “unconscionable” measure. IFUT also noted that the provost “seems to be very agitated

by his inability to make staff redundant.” The union’s position, Jennings responded, is “that we have conceded substantial reductions in pay in return for job security and insist on both sides of that bargain been kept.”

IFUT last clashed with College in November of the previous academic year, when it threatened to withdraw its co-operation with the terms of the Croke Park Agreement over College’s refusal to reinstate three workers who were made compulsorily redundant. The move came two months after the Department of Education ordered that College immediately implement the Labour Court ruling that three staff members, one library worker and two lecturers, be reinstated. Tom Lenihan, President of Trinity College Students’ Union (TCDSU), has joined IFUT in expressing his concern over Prendergast’s comments. Privatisation, he told Trinity News on Saturday night, “would require huge private donations, the likes of which we are not attaining at the moment. If this move is inspired by a presumed need to climb higher in subjective rankings then we need a radical shift of thinking as to what a university should be.” Prender-

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“The provost also suggested that he would view the ability to enforce compulsory redundancy on staff as a benefit of future privatisation.”

gast also raised the issue of privatisation at a debate held by the University Historical Society (Phil) and College Historical Society (Hist) on 7th November. Trinity News understands that the two debating societies were approached by organisers of the Global Graduate Forum who were keen to oversee a discussion on the issue.

Prendergast, who chaired the debate, told the audience gathered that night that the question of privatisation is a “key issue” for the future of third-level education. He drew attention to the mixture of private and public universities in the U.S. and pointed out that conglomerates such as Samsung even own and operate universities in South Korea.

The provost was joined by student speakers from the Hist who proposed the debate’s motion in favour of privatisation. A number of speakers argued that the world’s best universities are the one that are funded through privatisation. One speaker claimed that the greater autonomy and funding provided by privatisation would allow College to increase third-level access for less well-off students, by broadening schemes such as the Trinity Access Pro-

grammes. Students speaking on behalf of the Phil opposed the motion and contended that a profit-seeking company would have little interest in advancing social justice.

A number of speakers also drew attention to the level of student debt in areas with private universities and argued that debt would restrict the ability of students to fully partake in college and society life.

The motion was defeated as a majority of audience members voted against it.

A student in the audience told Trinity News that she later questioned the provost on the issue of student fees and was told that high fees would not necessarily be a consequence of privatisation. However, Prendergast has strongly suggested in the past that he would support the reintroduction of thirdlevel fees. During an appearance on the RTÉ show, “Aoibhinn & Company”, in July, the provost stated that the issue needed to be examined.

He also said that the reintroduction of full fees could be facilitated by a student loan scheme. Joe O’Connor, USI President, responded at the time by describing Prendergast’s remarks as “most unwelcome at a time where many families are struggling

to meet the already burdensome cost of college.” The reintroduction of student fees, he said, “would represent a shift towards an elitist system of delivering higher education.” Tom Lenihan joined USI figures in condemning Prendergast’s remarks as “inappropriate”. The survey carried out by Trinity News last week also asked students about their opinion on the issue of student fees. The poll indicated that just over 76% of students, 380 out of the 500 students polled, would oppose any increase in thirdlevel fees. However, according to the provost, “the interests of all stakeholders” may not be well served by current legal frameworks. “It’s time to think about change,” he told alumni at the Global Graduate Forum. “Many universities around the world serve the public good as private institutions; others are public-private combinations, or receive public funds as a subsidy, while being essentially private. There are many different models, and the status of a university can change, as Trinity’s has done.”

Additional reporting by Johnny Byrne

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TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November .2013

News

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What They Said

“ “ “ “ “ John Waters is a troll.

Tom Murphy, Founder, boards.ie

Note to UT Staff: Please try to get on with @Trinity_News today.

@universitytimes

And Damien Carr lives his dream by giving details of a networking event to a room of suits.

Jack Leahy, Education Officer

I remember when there was still room to sit down in the Workmans.

Matt Taylor, NMC Director

Tip for journalists: carry cigarettes to offer to people. Great conversation starter.

Tommy Gavin, Deputy Editor

The Directos of the National Media Conference 2013 pictured (l-r): Rebecca, O’Keefe, PJ Moloney, Colm O’Donnell, Damien Carr, Jennifer McCahill, David Cullinan, Matthew Taylor, Hannah Boles, and Gaelan Britton

Irish Times editor warns against “muck-raking” student journalism Class, diversity and funding discussed at National Media Conference Heated scenes as John Waters is described as a “troll”

James Prendergast Staff Writer The Irish Times editor, Kevin O’Sullivan, has warned student journalists not to engage in “muck-raking.” Student writers have a tendency, O’Sullivan claimed, to be “delightfully oblivious” to defamation rules. Their actions could put student media at risk and result in “ma and da” having to pay substantial legal costs, he cautioned. Addressing the student-run National Media

Conference held this Saturday on campus, O’Sullivan also stressed the importance of the analysis and context provided by print media in the era of a new “digital tsunami.”

However, at a later roundtable on the rise of new media, Fran McNulty, RTE journalist, said that print journalists could no longer be the “gatekeepers” of news and comment, as they have been in the past. Boards.ie founder, Tom Murphy, praised digital media for broadening the source of news and criticised traditional media for “kow-towing” to elites during the Celtic Tiger.

A disagreement arose when Mur-

phy claimed that readers no longer want to pay for “self-opinionated” columnists and dismissed Irish Times columnist John Waters as a “troll”. Irish Times features editor, Conor Goodman, defended the columnist and criticised online commentators for not “improving the discussion” or providing new facts. Increasingly, Storyful journalist, Felim McMahon, stressed, the role of journalists is to verify stories from “citizen journalists” on the ground.

He predicted that future newsrooms will be like the “Joe Duffy show on steroids.” Tommy Gavin, Deputy Editor of Trinity News, joined the discussion in sharing

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“A disagreement arose when Murphy claimed that readers no longer want to pay for “self-opinionated” columnists and dismissed Irish Times columnist John Waters as a “troll.”

Student ejected from YFG husting session Allegations of financial impropriety rock YFG gathering Candidate on former disgraced Naas major: “Nobody is perfect” Conor Kenny Deputy News Editor A UCD student was ordered to leave the Young Fine Gael hustings during a heated scene in the Swift Lecture Theatre last Wednesday night. Tom O’Sullivan, the treasurer of YFG Dublin Regional Council, was ejected following an extraordinary attack on David Higgins, the Dublin region organiser and public relations officer for Trinity YFG, during a question and answer session on the night. His removal was ordered by Alan Farrell TD, who chaired the event.

Among the accusations levelled against Higgins was the claim that he was responsible for the profit losses of the Blue Ball event, the implication being he had pocketed the proceeds himself.

O’Sullivan alleged that the Dublin organiser had given the ball proceeds to his political associates and was joined in this line of questioning by another member of

the audience. However, Higgins refuted the accusation by turning the responsibility for any financial inconsistencies back on the treasurer. It was at this point that Farrell, who had initially warned O’Sullivan that his remarks were potentially libellous, proceeded to order the UCD student out of the hall. The rest of the event consisted of candidates for various YFG positions speaking for a few minutes on how they would go about using their prospective roles. Most speeches consisted of generally similar messages, with all candidates outlining how they would go about engaging with the senior wing of the party, and use their positions to better connect young supporters with those in government. Ciara McMahon, a candidate for the YFG panel, noted in her speech that politics should be introduced as a Leaving Certificate subject. Another panel candidate, David McManus, also outlined the importance of “getting young people interested in politics.” One candidate went on to attempt to defend Darren Scully, the councillor and former Naas

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“Tom O’Sullivan, the treasurer of YFG Dublin Regional Council, was ejected following an extraordinary attack on David Higgins, the Dublin region organiser and public relations officer for Trinity YFG.”

mayor who was expelled from the party for saying that he would not represent “black Africans” in the town. Fine Gael’s recent decision to re-admit Scully into the party was condemned by the Irish Integration Centre as sending a “clear message that racist remarks by elected representatives are okay with them.” However, the YFG candidate in question remarked in his speech that, “Nobody is perfect.”

YFG was also the subject of public attention in July following the passing of a number of unusual motions at its annual Garrett Fitzgerald Summer School, where motions and resolutions submitted by branches are debating by young party members.

Among the motions passed by branch delegates was that, “YFG calls on the Government to reinstate Garda detectives with sub-machine guns, as ordinary handguns are insufficient to combat modern day crime.” The event also saw what the organisation’s Twitter account described as “heated debate” on a motion that called on the government to engage in accession talks to join NATO. The motion, which had been proposed by UCD YFG, was subsequently passed.

Additional reporting by Catherine Healy.

his own experience of reporting from the Gezi Park protests in Turkey during the summer period. He stressed the difficulties faced by many freelance journalists, particularly female journalists, in the region as they struggle to find an outlet for their work.

Gavin advised aspiring journalists to carry cigarettes, as they are a great conversation-starter.

The conference’s first media roundtable, on the issue of diversity in Irish media, also featured an address by Bob Collins, the chairman of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI), which recently withdrew funding from the now defunct Dublin Community Television (DCTV). Collins, who increased funding for the RTE television show, “Damo and Ivor”, at the same time as DCTV funding was slashed this year, said that there is a middle class bias in the Irish media, and a need for broadcasting to expand to include community programming. The Oscarwinning producer, Lord David Puttnam, agreed. In Britain, he conceded over Skype, many jour-

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“Tommy Gavin, Deputy Editor of Trinity News, joined the discussion in sharing his own experience of reporting from the Gezi Park protests in Turkey during the summer.”

nalists are second or third generation journalists as the industry’s low starting salaries mean that only the children of the rich can apply. Catherine Reilly, a former editor of Metro Eireann, shared these concerns in drawing attention the underrepresentation of ethnic minorities on RTE.

Liveline presenter and former president of TCDSU, Joe Duffy, also criticised the lack of social diversity in Irish media. In a panel discussion on the state of Irish radio, he said that both women and the workingclass were at a disadvantage in the industry and pointed out that the only working-class voices to be featured on RTE feature are on the television drama, “Love/ Hate”. Sports editor for Newstalk, and former sports editor of Trinity News, Ger Gilroy, said that the world is “set up for boys”. However, Clare Duignan, former managing director of RTE, pointed to the fact that women are predominant in production, though underrepresented on air and screen.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November2013

News

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Movement against university commercialisation gathers speed Public lecture slams neoliberal approach to third-level education New campaign launched in opposition to growing corporatisation

A Aonghus Ó Cochláin Student Affairs

n increasing neoliberal approach to third-level education has put universities at “the very centre of the production of social inequality,” the co-founder of the Campaign for the Public University in the UK, John Holmwood, warned staff and students last Thursday in Trinity College, Dublin. Dr Holmwood, a sociologist based at the University of Nottingham, made the remark during a public lecture organised by the Department of Sociology, in conjunction with UCD and the TCD Policy Institute.

In what he described as “absolute hypocrisy,” Holmwood commented that those who are leading the charge for higher fees most strongly are graduates who came through a system of public funding themselves and are now “pulling the ladder up behind them.” He also drew attention to the decline in part-time education and adult education in recent times – a phenomenon he described as “the collapse of second chances.” The movement against the growing corporatisation of third-level education in Ireland is set to gather speed as a result of

the recent launch of a new campaign spearheaded by Dublin City University academics. The organisers behind “Defend the Irish University” argue that “a narrow, self-limiting strategy prevails in the Irish university, focused on the marketisation of knowledge, teaching and research and the reduction of those who work in the universities to mere service providers.”

The group unveiled a 10-point charter this Monday in an attempt to promote the importance of universities as a public good. In particular, the campaign’s charter stresses the “importance of academic freedom over a fear-driven consensus, creativity over blind compliance and collegiality over managerialism.” It also states the need for teaching and research to be conducted independent of business interests, arguing that the aim of education should be to advance knowledge and foster creativity rather than achieving profit. While information and communications technologies such as online-learning can have many benefits for teaching and research, they should not be

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“Holmwood commented that those who are leading the charge for higher fees most strongly are graduates who came through a system of public funding themselves.and are now “pulling the ladder up behind them.”

used to “impoverish the quality of education or reduce staff-student contact time,” according to the campaign’s organisers.

The campaign is supported by the Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) and the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT), and has gathered over 600 supporters in an online petition. In one of the comments on the petition, Professor Ronaldo Munck of DCU, warned that: “We are at a point in Irish universities where we either accept the steady decline of funding and morale or stand up for an alternative vision or visions of what a university can be.

It is time we have a proper debate on what the purpose of a university is before current moves to dumb it down succeed.”

Speaking recently to a group of alumni, Provost Patrick Prendergast suggested that he would not be a reluctant supporter of privatisation. However, in a survey since conducted by this paper, 81% of students expressed their opposition to any proposed privatisation of College.

EDITORIAL STAFF

Editor

Elaine McCahill

Deputy Editor

Tommy Gavin

Art Director

Charli Douglas

Online Editor

Matthew Mulligan

Copy Editor

Elizabeth Mohen

News Editor

Catherine Healy

Deputy News

Conor Kenny

Student Affairs

Aonghus Ó Cochláin

InDepth Editor

D. Joyce-.Ahearne

Deputy InDepth

Michael Lanigan

Comment Editor

William Foley

Deputy Comment

Conor McGlynn

Science Editor

Gavin Kenny

Deputy Science

Conor O’Donovan

Sports Editor

Cal Gray

Deputy Sports

Jennifer McCahill

Photography Editor

Atalanta Papas

School Co-ordinator

Niamh Teeling

Printed at The Irish Times print facility, City West Business Campus, 4000 Kingswood Rd, Dublin 24.

Trinity News is partially funded by a grant from DUPublications Committee. This publication claims no special rights or privileges. Serious complaints should be addressed to: The Editor, Trinity News, 6 Trinity College, Dublin 2. Appeals may be directed to the Press Council of Ireland.

Trinity News is a member of the Press Council of Ireland and supports the Office of the Press Ombudsman. This scheme, in addition to defending the freedom of the press, offers readers a quick, fair andw free method of dealing with complaints that they may have in relation to articles that appear on our pages. To contact the Office of the Press Ombudsman go to www.pressombudsman.ie

Speaking at the 2nd National Patient Safety Conference in February, Health Minister James Reilly said “Anytime you do a job unsafely or in a sloppy fashion, invariably you have to re-do it. An efficient safe system is much better for patients but also much better for the system in terms of its cost base”

HSE tells woman with incurable neurological condition that losing her medical card is her decision

I Tommy Gavin Deputy Editor

In a document obtained by Trinity News of a correspondence made to the HSE by a woman with motor neurone disease, the patient, who is extremely impaired by her ailment, is told that failure to gather and submit documents already in the possession of the HSE is her choice, and will result in the expiration of her medical card.

The patient initially contacted to inquire about her medical card application. She was granted a temporary card in May after her GP contacted the HSE making the case that she urgently needed access to services and equipment.

After a month without correspondence from the HSE, the patient contacted them and was told that they required additional financial information in order to be able to process the application.

The patient responded that her application was made on discretionary grounds based on her motor neurone disease diagnosis supported by her GP and occupational therapist. She was told that all applications have to be assessed on financial grounds before they can be considered on medical grounds.

By July the patient had submitted the relevant financial documentation, and received no further correspondence until August, when she received a letter requesting the submission of the same financial information, and the same form filled out again.

In November, the patient con-

tacted the HSE and was told “they only gave you a card for a short period of time because they felt that that was just applicable.

So they must have felt that your circumstances were going to change.”

The resubmission is not due to the forms and information being incomplete or improper, the HSE representative tells the patient that the resubmission is part of a review process, but cannot tell the patient the result of the initial application. The representative instead consistently maintains the right of the HSE to conduct reviews and says “unfortunately if you don’t fill it out again, your card will be suspended, so that is your own decision.” The patient replies that she is not in a position to resubmit the documents, and outlines the difficulty she had in collecting the documents in the first place, due to the severity of her impairment and the fact that she does not have the use of her hands. The patient asks to confirm that they need “the information you already have on my file,” and the HSE representative replies “it is being requested again, yes.”

They continue; “unfortunately anybody’s medical circumstances are being reviewed, so that’s blind people, its deaf people, its old people, we’re reviewing people that are a hundred years of age.

Absolutely everybody, and a lot of people aren’t able to do things for themselves anymore. And that’s

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“After a month without correspondence from the HSE, the patient contacted them and was told that they required additional financial information in order to be able to process the application.”

very misfortunate and I do sympathise sincerely with you. But unfortunately it is going to be the case now that everybody regardless of any medical condition will be reviewed and they will be expected to get the information into ourselves.”

Speaking to Trinity News, one Irish medical expert said that there was no one event signalling policy change regarding medical cards, but they started noticing the application of means testing to discretionary medical cards over the summer. They had been given out on a discretionary basis in the case of terminal illness, but now cards are being withdrawn or under review if the card holder is still alive after six months. This is problematic for people holding these cards, because they will most likely be in a worse state of health than they were when they were given the card in the first place, and they are being asked to gather and submit financial documents to prove that they are still terminally ill.

The HSE does not disclose the formula by which it calculates the application of means testing for those over the statutory limit for medical cards. The implication of a more rigid approach to means testing is that the HSE believes that there are people who hold medical cards who do not deserve them; however cuts to medical cards are not based on publicly available research into the medical card-holding population.

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“The resubmission is not due to the forms and information being incomplete or improper, the HSE representative tells the patient that the resubmission is part of a review process, but cannot tell the patient the result of the initial application.”

Speaking before the Oireachtas Health Committee, Minister for Health James Reilly said that “people who are entitled to their medical card have nothing to fear.” He asserted that eligibility for a medical card “never operated on the basis of a medical condition or an illness. It operates on the basis of undue financial hardship” and he said that eligibility is based on a person’s finances.

Under the 1970 Health Act though, income is not the only factor to be considered when deciding medical card eligibility, as Dr. Muiris Houston pointed out in an Irish times opinion article on the 30th of October. According to the act, a person is entitled to a medical card if they are “unable, without undue hardship, to arrange general practitioner medical and surgical services for themselves and their dependents.” Dr. Houston has argued that “undue hardship” in the act can therefore be interpreted in terms of severity of illness, rather than on income.

One reason for this approach is that medical cards don’t just grant access to GPs and medication, but also access to services that are not well provided for in the private sector. Community based clinical professional services like occupational and speech therapy are not well provided in the private sector. There are very few private occupational therapists and almost no private community nursing.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

News

4

Eva Short explores maligned Romani culture and looks at their experience in Ireland.

InDepth -p.6

News In Brief

Department of Drama trashed during break-in Catherine Healy News Editor

Trinity News has learned that the Department of Drama was violently broken into on the night of 12th November. It is understood that significant damage was done to a number of departmental offices during the break-in.The Samuel Beckett Theatre, which is the Department’s campus theatre, was also robbed on the night in question.

Several hundred euros is said to have been taken from the premises. Particular damage is understood to have been done to the offices used by departmental staff, with one wall separating two work spaces having been knocked in during the course of the pillage. The thieves departed with an iPhone as well as several laptops. Even more disturbingly, a knife was found the next morn-

ing stuck into a professor’s desk.

Trinity News understands that an unbound thesis manuscript was also knocked to the ground during the incident.

Dr Brian Singleton, who holds the Samuel Beckett Chair of Drama and Theatre, was unavailable for comment this weekend. The Chief Steward also declined an opportunity to speak to Trinity News about the break-in.

Former professor approaches Taoiseach over “national scandal” James Wilson Staff Writer A former professor at the School of English, Dr Gerald Morgan, has denounced the automatic removal of borrowing rights from the College’s retired academics as a “national scandal”. In an e-mail sent to Dr Sarah Alyn Stacey, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of French, that was seen by Trinity News, Morgan said that the removal of such rights from staff members upon their retirement would render research “impossible”. He also denounced what he described as a “public contempt for academic

freedom” held by College authorities.

Morgan went on to bemoan College’s descent in international league tables and added that the current leadership of College “seem not to know (or even to care) why our graduates sacrificed their lives for the College and Ireland in 1939 to 1945.”

Among the figures that Morgan’s e-mail was sent to were the Taoiseach, several cabinet ministers, party leaders, and members of the Oireachtas, as well numerous journalists and several notable academics.

Sociology professor, Barbara Bradby, who also received the email, supported Morgan’s stance

and said that she would welcome a reversal of College’s current position, as it would greatly assist retired professors in continuing their research. Thanking her for her intervention, Dr Morgan opined that he would not give in, and stated that “we must consign the irish [sic] tradition of gallant losers to the past.”

Alyn Stacey, an Associate Professor at the Department of French, who was the recipient of the initial e-mail, has since stated that the status of College’s retired academics is currently under review and that “removal of borrowing rights is perhaps the most significant area that needs to be addressed.”

Digitisation of Phil records Wrecking ball removed from offers glimpse into society’s past grounds of US university Lia Flattery

Staff Writer A sculpture of a wrecking ball was recently removed from the grounds of an American university amid controversy. The ball was taken down when it came to

James Wilson

the attention of college authorities that students were using the monument to reenact scenes from Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” video, in which Cyrus swings on a concrete ball in the nude. According to the Huffington Post, Grand Valley State University (GVSU) authorities claimed that the action was taken in the interest of health and

safety. The sculpture had hung outside the science building for eighteen years and images of it went viral soon after the release of Cyrus’ music video. Now in storage, the college authorities have said that they are reviewing the location of the sculpture.

Aggrieved students have since organised a memorial service for the ball.

Staff Writer The recent digitisation of records belonging to the University Philosophical Society (Phil) has revealed a surprising streak of socialist thinking among elements of the society’s membership. In a paper read on 13th November 1919, former Phil president J.C. Davis argued that “the worker must be free to enjoy the benefits of profit-sharing.”

Equally, however, “management must not be placed in the

position of servant to labour,” he warned. The digitisation of Davis’ address is among several records and minute books to have been recently uploaded to the Phil’s Facebook account.

Though Davis cautioned against nationalisation as a general rule of thumb in his speech, he remarked that it was “probable that that an increase of state control may in individual cases be increasingly necessary.” He also insisted that “there is [no] lasting remedy for labour unrest,” but argued that society’s best hope was through educating its workforce. On a personal level, he

added that he looked “forward to the days when universities are filled with workmen.”

Davis also acknowledged the contributions of society members to the recent war effort and paid tribute to the eight former officers of the society who died in the First World War. “We can only say that while the University Philosophical Society stands they shall not be forgotten, since such men by their deaths, have conferred on their society and all connected with it, an honour that does not fade,” he said.

TCD-based LGBT group launch fundraising campaign Lia Flattery Staff Writer An organisation run by students and graduates of Trinity College, Dublin has launched a new fundraising campaign to help them bring their anti-homophobic message to Irish schools. Following the success of a number of pilot workshops last year, “ShoutOut” organisers are now hoping to expand the pro-

gramme countrywide. Its aims are to raise awareness of LGBT issues among secondary school students, draw attention to the devastating effects of homophobia and transphobia, and to inform other students, or “allies”, of what they can do to support their LGBT classmates.

The workshops are aimed at students under 17 years old because 17 is recognised as the age at which an LGBT individual is most likely to come out and also the most common age to first attempt suicide. A 2012 survey

conducted by ShoutOut revealed that 49% of LGBT students in Irish secondary schools have experienced homophobic bullying. ShoutOut intends to change this, it says on its website, by reducing the stigma surrounding LGBT issues and by encouraging dialogue around sexuality in schools. The current fundraising aim is to raise the funds it will need to keep its workshops free for secondary schools.

Visit shoutout.ie for further information.

Cambridge come out on top in first Student Economic Review debate Conor McGlynn

Deputy Comment Editor The first of this year’s two Student Economic Review debates, held jointly with the College Philosophical Society, was won by a strong Cambridge team last Thursday night. The motion for the debate was ‘This House would welcome a United States of Europe’, with the College team proposing. After a hardfought contest, which was both entertaining and enlightening, Cambridge lifted the Vinay Nair Cup at the end of the evening.

Trinity lined out with an able debating team made up of Jonathan McKeon (JS PPES), Rónán O’Connor (SF Economics and Sociology), and Gavin Tucker (JS Medicine). College chose to focus not on the details of what a federalised Europe would look

like, but instead concentrated on the good of the overall European project, and the benefits that greater integration has brought Europe over the past 60 years.

Cambridge, an experienced team of Naomi Hart, Michael Dunn Goejkian and Clara Spera, proved the stronger on the day.

They focused in their speeches on the problems posed to greater European unity by national loyalties and the difficulties for democracy in a more integrated Europe. They pointed to the forthcoming referendum on Europe in Britain as proof that the European project has already gone too far in the minds of many voters. After a forceful and spirited performance, Ms. Spera won the Gold Medal for Best Speaker. Speaking from the floor were William Dunne, Brendan O’Nolan, Owen Murphy and James Wilson. They treated the chamber to some additional de-

bating as Gaeilge, leaving the visitors somewhat nonplussed.

Judges on the night were Ainé Lawlor, presenter for RTÉ; Paddy Smyth, Foreign Policy Editor for the Irish Times; John Webster from the British Embassy; and Clodagh McDonnell of the Department of the Environment. The judges weren’t afraid to speak their minds, offering strong criticisms of both teams on the night, but they were unanimous in their decision to give the contest to Cambridge.

Dean of Undergraduate Studies Dr. Patrick Geoghegan acted as Chair for the evening. He also gave out his own set of prizes, including ‘First person on the Trinity team to bring up the Irish Famine’, which was won by Rónán O’Connor.

The second Student Economic Review debate, against Harvard, will take place in Week Four of Hilary Term.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

InDepth

D. Joyce-Ahearne looks at the importance of the theatre as a medium that energises.

p10

A certain romance Eva Short dispels the myths around the Romani in Ireland and looks at their experience here thus far.

S Eva Short Staff Writer

ociety tends to lapse into fairytale terminology when confronted with otherness, the manifestation of xenophobia turning those at the edges of society into bogeymen, hobgoblins, foreign shadowy creatures that are to be feared and ostracised. It is this exact attitude that is behind the insidious "child snatching gypsy" myth - an image borne of society's lack of knowledge.

The phrase elicits images of a hunched over, dark-skinned woman, head swathed in colourful scarves, coaxing unassuming and incautious children into her monstrous clutches. It is this image that was probably swirling around the heads of those that bought into the moral panic that overtook people last month and led to two young Roma children being temporarily taken into state care. It was done on the basis that they didn't "look like" their parents after a tip off was sent in to the Facebook page of TV3's ‘Paul Connelly Investigates’.

It seems incredible that something like this could happen in Ireland, of all places, considering the country's history. We were subjected to similar treatment once upon a time - portrayed as savages by the English, uncivilised denizens of the dark and unruly world "beyond the Pale" akin to a Jabberwocky in the woods.

Lack of knowledge tends to inspire paranoia. People don't like mystery and, above all, they fear what they don’t know. The problem is that we as a country know very little about Roma people despite their presence here. What happened in late October was the product of confusion; it seems a majority of individuals in our society are operating under very basic misconceptions, misconceptions that must be clarified.

Up until this point, the Romani people have been unfairly treated and unfairly portrayed.

Gina Iordan is a Ph.D candidate at University College Cork. After completing a Masters in Contemporary Migration and Diaspora, she decided to pursue a Ph.D focusing on the Roma community. "When I started my Ph.D, I was thinking of doing something on Romania. But it was clear to me that Roma people are one of

the most marginalised groups [in Europe] and very little research is done in this particular area in terms of the situation in Ireland."Iordan, who is Romanian herself, went to a school with Roma children. Following her arrival to Ireland, she began working with the Romani people here, first in Killarney and then in Cork where she is now based.

She echoed my sentiments that a lot of basic facts needed to be clarified. Throughout the course of my conversation with her, I couldn't help but be shocked by how little I'd known, and how wrong much of the information I thought I had really was. For one, I was under the very false impression that Roma and Romani indicated a link to Romania.

"No, that's absolutely wrong.

I presume it's only because of the similarity between Romani and Romania that this mistake is made." While it does seem a logical connection to make, it couldn't be further from the truth. "Roma or Romani in Romani language means 'man' or 'husband'." Academics such as Ian Hancock have determined by linguistically analysing Romani that the community originated from Northern India over 1000 years ago, though there is debate over the reason why they decided to leave India. Furthermore, Romani people would have only arrived in the Middle East and Europe in the 14th Century, on which occasion many of them were sold into slavery across various countries, Romania included.

The assertion in Ireland was that the two Roma children couldn't possibly have belonged to the families in question due to their skin and hair colour. When the accusations were made, the Roma community was, more than anything, baffled.

"We have to realise that these people have been living in Europe for a very long time, and in most of these countries - especially Eastern European countries they have intermingled with the central population." The breadth of the Roma Diaspora makes it both reductive and nigh impossible to box them into one sole racial profile.

While the Roma people are

“

"The Roma felt initially welcomed when they arrived here as asylum seekers residing in camps.

However, when they emerged from these camps, at an inherent disadvantage due to language barriers and their difficulty accessing education, they were soon deemed the scourge of our society.”

primarily concentrated in Europe, they can be found in America, Australia and Africa, and in numbers that have recently been revealed to be larger than researchers first assumed. After generations of mixing with different races, a child born to a Roma family could conceivably be of any type of colouring imaginable.

"We have fair skinned children down here [in Cork], with blonde hair and green eyes, or red hair and blue eyes, and it's seen as normal."

While the case in Ireland seemed to come down to the skin and hair colour of the biological children, one must remember that this wasn’t the only reason for suspicion. What is often singled out is the fact that Roma people will often facilitate unofficial adoptions. Such as was the case with the "blonde angel" Maria in Greece, children can be taken in when their biological parents feel unable to care for them.

Is this willingness to foster the unwanted and disenfranchised charity? Yes, but it can also be explained by the attitude towards children in the Roma community.

Gina explains, "Children are idolised by Roma people. For them, children are a blessing and the more children you have, the more blessings you have....the children carry on the culture and the traditions." Amid allegations that Roma families will take on and have a lot of children in order to reap government child benefits, it seems all the Roma people want to do in having large families is ensure there will be generations after them to carry on time-honoured traditions.

I was also surprised to learn that the aforementioned scholar Ian Hancock, a professor at the University of Texas, was Romani.

With a name like Hancock I didn't expect such origins. Ian's mother hales from the Czech Republic.

Though not born to a Roma family, she was accepted by Roma parents in an act of kindness to a mother that was unable to feed her. She grew up surrounded by the Roma culture and eventually went on to marry a Romani man, before they relocated to England where Ian was born in 1942.

He then went on to become a linguist - and I suspect this is also what led to my surprise. For like it or not, I found it a little surprising that a member of the Romani community had such a profession.

"We have a lot of Romani academ-

ics, lawyers and consultants." A far cry from the profession that many seem to assume for Roma people – that of a beggar or thief.

While the Roma children cases may be the result of these misconceptions, the crux of the issue is the general attitude we have towards the Roma community.

Roma people are frequently accused of forming crime rings and going abroad just so they can crouch at the entrances to supermarkets and chemists holding out a withered coffee cup and shaking it to the sound of a faint hollow clang of some meagre bits of change. An impression has been formed, and it's easier to just continue thinking that way. Humanity has an incredible leaning towards hierarchal structures.

The Roma community is, unfortunately, no stranger to playing the part of the oppressed. Though it seems to be the statistic that history forgot, it is estimated that as many as two million Roma people were killed during the Holocaust.

One of the most abhorrent cases in recent times was Naples in 2008. Following claims of a kidnapping, a group of Italians set fire to a Roma camp on the outskirts of Naples, proudly boasting that they were partaking in 'ethnic cleansing'. The local Democratic Party decked the town with "No more Roma people in Ponticelli!"posters, promising to rid the area of them upon election. When I asked Gina why Romani people come to Ireland, she explained that they wanted "a better life, for them and for their children." I tentatively asked her how the Roma find Ireland as a host. "Many Roma people have experienced racism." It seems a Roma person - particularly a Roma woman, more conspicuous due to her traditional dress - cannot make it down the street without being accosted. "People hit them, curse them, yell 'Fuck off gypsy' or 'Go back to your own country.'"

In spite of this, the Roma felt initially welcomed when they arrived here as asylum seekers residing in camps. However, when they emerged from these camps, at an inherent disadvantage due to language barriers and their difficulty in accessing education, they were soon deemed the scourge of our society.

Gina says that the Roma are painfully aware of the percentage of them that are beggars. "They feel ashamed but feel they have

no choice." With few options, mouths to feed, and sick elderly members of the community to care for, as a last resort many of them will end up begging. She hastens to add, however, that there is hope. "Their children have gone to school, learned the language, and they feel like the next generation won't have to beg." The hope she conveyed to me, the optimism with which the Roma people are regarding their situation, was what pained me above all else. "They believe that everything bad that happens can bring some good." In Blackpool, Co Cork, an area where the Roma people she works with have settled, they are doing as much as they can to prove themselves.

When a local shopkeeper's premises was flooded after heavy rain, the Roma people got together to help to clear out all the mess and debris.

They salvaged tree trunks and chopped them up, hoping to distribute these logs during the winter to the elderly who may struggle with heating. Both Roma men and women are taking literacy classes in the hope of tackling the language barrier that they feel alienates them further from the Irish people. "They want to say 'We are here to stay, and we want to contribute to the community.'"This is one of the last things Gina says to me before our conversation ends. She encourages me to come back to her at a later date if I want to follow up the story, and asks that I email her a copy of the article I write. "I want to pass it on to the Roma people that can read. Seeing something like this will boost their morale." The Irish, more than most, have long played the role of the wanderer or citizen of the world. As a people who have, throughout history, been forced to leave home to work and live, we’ve still always had the luxury of a homeland to return to. Yet the Irish have not displayed a willingness to share this luxury.

While the past cannot be altered, the future is ours to mould. The events in October have drawn our attention to this marginalised group and the Irish people should respond accordingly. We are renowned for our generosity, both tangible and of spirit, and once we realise the error of our ways up until this point, perhaps we can extend this generosity to the Romani.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Michael Lanigan looks to the

past and the future as he investigates Trinity's history of activism.

Is iomaí lá sa chill orainn

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Caitheann Frances Mulraney súil ar 'thionscal' an bháis in Éirinn agus ar na hathruithe atá tar éis teacht air le blianta beaga anuas.

D Frances Mulraney Contributor

e réir fhigiúirí Chomhlachas Tomhaltóirí Éireann, d’ardaigh costais adhlactha na tíre seo le níos mó ná 300 faoin gcéad le deich mbliana anuas. Le linn na 1990idí ní chosnaíodh an tsochraid níos mó ná ¤1,870. I láthair na huaire áfach, tá seans mór ann go mbeadh costas ¤3,000 ar shochraid faoin tuath agus praghas níos airde uirthi i mBaile Átha Cliath, áit gur féidir leis an gclann a bheith ag íoc suas le ¤6,500 lena ghaol a chur i dtalamh.

Nuair a chuirtear san áireamh go seasann ráta báis reatha na tíre ag 6.3 as gach 1,000 duine, is léir gur gnó ollmhór é an tsochraid i gcultúr na hÉireann - agus anois agus deireadh tar éis a bheith curtha leis an nDeontas Baintreachais nó Páirtnéara Shibhialta Mharthanaigh, beidh an costas ar fad le híoc ag an gclann.

Cé hiad na daoine seo a dhéanann gairm bheatha agus brabús as bás mhuintir na hÉireann?

Cén saghas duine a dhéanann an cinneadh a shaol gairmiúil a chaitheamh ag déileáil le cónraí agus le clanna trombhuartha?

Cé hiad na daoine seo a bheadh níos saibhre ach an ráta báis a bheith níos airde? Ghlac Colin McAteer an fhreagracht leis an gcéad reilig nádúrtha sa tír a thosú nuair a bhunaigh sé ceann i gCill Anna, Co. Loch Garman i mí Dheireadh Fómhair 2010. Trí bliana níos déanaí tá sé féin agus a chomhlacht The Green Graveyard Company Ltd. ag breathnú le tuilleadh reiligí nádúrtha a bhunú in áiteanna éagsúla sa tír agus iad ag iarraidh cead pleanála i gCo. Chorcaí agus i gCo. na Gaillimhe.

Bíonn na reiligí seo ag cloí leis an múnla “nádúrtha” i gcónaí agus ní féidir ach táirgí éiceabhácha a úsáid iontu. Níl cead cónraí lán le tocsain a chur sa talamh agus ní ghlactar le clocha cinn. In ionad na gcleachtas seo, baintear úsáid as éicea-chónraí is comharthaí uaighe simplí agus cuirtear crann dúchasach Éireannach ar an gceapach thalún. Níl na reiligí seo lonnaithe ar thalamh coisricthe, mar sin de bíonn siad ar fáil do dhaoine a bhaineann le reiligiúin ar bith nó d’aindiachaithe. Is féidir peata an duine a chur in aice leis, fiú. Creideann Colin go gcabhraíonn an reilig nádúrtha céiliúradh a dhéanamh ar shaol an duine i gceart gan cosc a bheith ar an gclann nó iachall a bheith orthu rialacha a leanúint. Nuair a cheistigh mé é faoin a gceadaítear i rith na searmóine, is é an freagra a fuair mé ná rud ar bith: damhsa, ceol, cibé rud a thaitneodh leis an gclann. Tá réimse leathan ceiliúrtha feicthe aige sa reilig seo le trí bliana anuas, ó ómós álainn na clainne ag sochraid dhuine óig go

“

"Cé hiad na daoine seo a dhéanann gairm bheatha agus brabús as bás mhuintir na hÉireann? Cé hiad na daoine seo a bheadh níos saibhre ach an ráta báis a bheith níos airde?"

Paul Brady ag canadh ag sochraid duine muinteartha leis a bhí níos sine.

Is adhlacóir den cheathrú glúin é Colin a thosaigh ag déanamh éicea-chónraí sa bhliain 2009 tar éis bhás a chomhghleacaí. Dúirt sí leis gurbh aoibhinn léi a bheith curtha sa talamh i gcónra de dhéantús ábhar in-athchúrsáilte. Ar an drochuair ní raibh sé in ann é seo a dhéanamh di ag an am ach tar éis dó taighde a dhéanamh ar an éileamh a bhí ar na cónraí seo, ba léir dó go raibh an fhadhb chéanna ag adhlacóirí eile agus bheartaigh sé Green Coffins Ireland Ltd. a bhunú.

Is cinnte nach n-aontódh gach aon duine leis an smaoineamh seo, mar cheapfaidís gurb uafásach an smaoineamh é go mbeadh do chorpán in úsáid mar leasachán do na crainn atá curtha sa talamh leat. Dúirt Colin go raibh a uncail féin, atá ina shagart, in amhras faoi, ach go gceapann sé féin nach dtuigeann siad go fóill an rud atá i gceist leis.

Is é an argóint atá aige ina leith ná go mbeidh féidearthachtaí ann na reiligí nádúrtha seo a úsáid arís sa todhchaí, murab ionann agus gnáthreilig. Tá praghas ard ar láithreacha adhlactha sa chathair mar ní féidir an talamh seo a úsáid an athuair agus tá easpa spáis ag baint leo. Ach leis na glasreiligí seo beidh coillearnach fheidhmeach againn sa todhchaí a bheidh ar fáil don phobal.

Is úinéirí fheirm orgánaigh i gCairbre, Co. Chill Dara iad Deirdre O’Sullivan agus Norman Kenny agus is mian leo reilig nádúrtha a thosú ar a bhfeirm sa todhchaí chomh maith. Cé gur ghlac siad leis ag aois óg go gcloífeadh siad leis an “saol glas”, tá fáth eile acu le reilig den chineál seo a lonnú ar an bhfeirm. Ceapann siad gur bealach iontach é le hairgead a dhéanamh ar an bhfeirm nuair nach mbeidh sé de chumas acu an talamh a shaothrú.

Is é an ghlasreilig an chéad chéim eile dóibh anois agus feirm agus siopa orgánach bunaithe acu ina bhfuil tuirbín gaoithe, córas séarachais giolcarnaí, linn snámha nádúrtha agus córas sábhála uisce báistí. Deir Deirdre nár thaitin ceimicí léi riamh agus gur fearr léi cloí leis an rogha órgánach i ngach aon ghné dá saol.

Ba chinneadh éasca acu é tar éis dóibh a saol ar fad a chaitheamh ag dul don stíl mhaireachtála seo, mar a deir siad féin, níos mó a thabhairt ar ais don talamh a thug bia agus beatha dóibh agus glasreilig a bhunú. Deir Deirdre go bhfuil níos mó ná tocsain ó na cónraí i gceist leis an ngnáthshochraid mar go n-úsáidtear dhá phionta dhéag de shreabhán balsamaithe leis na corpáin a chaomhnú. Dar

léi, do dhaoine a bhfuil a saol ar fad caite acu ag seachaint na dtocsain agus na gceimiceán seo níl aon rud is measa ná a bheith ag dul i gcoinne an chleachtaidh sin ag am a mbáis.

Ní chuirfeadh na tocsain seo isteach ar David Fanagan, cé go gcuireann a chlann cónraí in-bhithmhillte ar fáil dá cuid custaiméirí. Bunaíodh Adhlacóirí Fanagan sa bhliain 1819 agus is í an seachtú glúin den chlann ag rith na seirbhíse faoi láthair. Tá siad lonnaithe i naoi n-áit éagsúla i mBaile Átha Cliath, is iad ag obair le trian de na sochraidí a tharlaíonn sa chathair.

Baineann David é féin leis an séú glúin den chlann agus creideann sé go láidir i gcóras tacaíochta na clainne atá mar chuid mhór d’eitic an chomhlachta. Deir sé go gcabhraíonn an caidreamh láidir atá acu mar chlann agus iad ag déileáil leis an mbrón uafásach a mhothaítear tar éis báis. Dar leis, tá ceangal an-tábhachtach idir an traidisiún agus an sochraid agus tá páirt lárnach ag an gclann sa traidisiún sin.

Aontaíonn sé gurb é is cúis leis an ardú i bpraghas na sochraide ná an t-ardú ar phraghas talaimh.

Tá na praghasanna a bhaineann le hobair na n-adhlacóirí mar an gcéanna agus a bhí riamh ach caithfidh daoine i bhfad níos mó a chaitheamh leis an talamh féin a cheannach. Breathnaíonn adhlacóirí orthu féin mar bhainisteoirí imeachtaí. Dúirt sé liom agus é ag gáire go bhfuil sé cosúil leis an scannán The Wedding Planner ach go bhfuil trí lá acu in ionad sé mhí le fógra an bháis, an cheapach adhlactha, na bláthanna, na hiomainn, na carranna, na cónraí agus gach rud eile a shocrú. In ainneoin an bhrú a chuireann sé seo ar a lá oibre, is léir go mbíonn David sásta a bheith ag tabhairt cabhrach do na clanna a thagann chuige ag an am deacair seo.

Deir sé liom go mbíonn sásamh le baint as a phost ag cabhrú le daoine ar na trí lá is deacra dá saol trí shocraid dea-eagraithe a chur ar fáil le go mbeidís ábalta slán ceart a fhágail leis an duine atá básaithe. Is gnó fós é, áfach.

Caithfidh na socruithe airgid ar fad a bheith i gceart agus deirtear leis an adhlacóir gan caidreamh ró-láidir a bheith aige leis na custaiméirí, mar, ag deireadh na dála, is custaiméirí iad. Bíonn David ann le clanna a threorú agus na cinntí deacra á ndéanamh acu, bíonn sé cúramach gan botún a dhéanamh agus déanann sé a dhícheall cloí le toil na clainne, a fhad is nach bhfuil sé in aghaidh an dlí, ach, ag an am céanna, ní carthanacht é, a luann sé. Ar an gcaoi chéanna agus a mbíonn gach sochraid sa ghlasreilig éag-

Illustration: Reed Patrick Van Hook súil ó chéile, tá réimse leathan sochraidí as an ngnách feicthe ag David. Tá scéal aige faoi fhear tinn a bhí ar tí bás a fháil agus ba í an achainí dheireanach a bhí aige ná go cuirfí é níos cóngaraí dá chéad bhean chéile in ionad a dhara mná mar gur léi a bhí a chroí i ndáiríre.

Tá achainí eile cloiste aige nach bhfuil chomh greannmhar céanna. D’iarr cailín óg air fón póca a chuir i gcónra a hathar ionas go mb’fhéidir léi glaoch a chur air anois is arís. Cheadaigh sé é ach gur mhúch siad an fón ar eagla go dtosódh sé ag bualadh i rith na sochraide nó, níos measa ná sin, go bhfreagrófaí é, a deir sé liom mar mhagadh!

Bhunaigh Kate Hamilton a gnó féin tar éis comhrá a bheith aici lena máthair agus a beirt deirfiúracha. Tairgeann Mourning Cross crosa beaga (nó ciorcail d’aindiachaithe) a chaitheann an chlann i rith na sochraide le tabhairt le fios do dhaoine eile gur baill den neasteaghlach iad.

Bhí siad ag insint scéalta náireacha faoi a bheith ag freastal ar shochraid agus a bheith ag labhairt le duine muinteartha i ngan fhios dóibh féin. Mar go n-athraíonn daoine thar na mblianta, d’fhéadfadh sé tarlú go héasca. Ag

Where the streets have no names

sochraid athair Kate bhí daoine ag siúl thar a deirfiúr sa tslí chéanna. Leis na scéalta ar fad a bhí acu, bheartaigh siad rud éigin a dhéanamh faoi.

Na blianta ó shin bhíodh banda dubh á chaitheamh ag an gclann le taispeáint gur daoine muinteartha iad agus ba é sin a thug smaoineamh na croise i gceann Kate.

Tá aiseolas dochreidte maith faighte aici go dtí seo, a deir sí, go háirithe ó dhaoine a bhfuil clann mhór acu. Dar léi, cabhraíonn siad le caidreamh níos fearr a chruthú arís nuair a bhíonn siad ar a suaimhneas agus iad cinnte go bhfuil siad ag labhairt leis na daoine cearta.

Dhá bhliain ó shin, labhair an Taoiseach Enda Kenny ag an bhfóram bliantiúil faoi dheireadh saoil a eagraíonn Fóras Ospíse na hÉireann le comhrá a spreagadh faoi cheist an bháis. Ag fóram na bliana sin, tosaíodh an scéim ThinkAhead, a dhéanann iarracht daoine a spreagadh le tosú ar phleananna don uair a bhfaigfidh siad féin bás agus airgead a chur ar leataobh. Cinnte, is gnó mór é an bás, is cuma cén creideamh atá agat. Ach le daoine cosúil le Colin, Norman, Deirdre, David agus Kate againn ag an deireadh, measaim féin go mbeidh muid slán.

Michael Stone speaks with Dublin’s homeless about the City Council’s new measure that aims to take Dublin’s most aggressive beggars off the streets.

I Michael Stone Staff Writer

n October of this year, An Garda Síochána and Dublin City Council launched a joint initiative to rid Dublin of its most persistent and aggressive beggars. Having worked with the homeless through a Soup Run for three years in secondary school, this announcement represented nothing more to me than the sound of a broken record.

Not a year goes past without an initiative unveiled to deal with the homeless problem. When working on the Soup Run, I had an ear to the ground and would have been acutely aware of how this new measure impacted those living on the street. However, since starting in Trinity I haven’t been so active and have lost this awareness as a result. Despite a history of working with the destitute, I have become as desensitised as the average pedestrian to their plight, to their existence. It’s striking how easy it is to become used to the sight of homeless people along Nassau Street and Grafton Street.

Some of them have become as recognisable as our lecturers and classmates – if I were to mention “the man who sits with a cardboard sign outside Spar on Nassau Street” or “the man who reads and writes, huddled in a doorway on Lincoln Place” the majority of people would know who I’m talking about. Very few would know their names or anything else about them. In advance of partaking in the first Daytime Soup Run with Trinity VDP on Thursday 21stst November, and in order to make a reconnection of sorts, I decided to do a little reconnaissance. I prepared a small flask of tea, took an unapologetic fistful of sugar sachets from the Arts Block Café, and set off into the cool morning air of south Dublin city centre to chat with the people we have come to recognise (and ignore) so easily. It had rained the night before so many of my early encounters were particularly grumpy and aching. However, the sight of a hot drink warmed them up and with my chosen ice-breaker of

“

“If I were to mention “the man who sits with a cardboard sign outside Spar on Nassau Street” or “the man who reads and writes, huddled in a doorway on Lincoln Place” the majority of people would know who I’m talking about.”

Ireland’s new management team, we were soon absorbed in conversation, oblivious to passers-by.

My first stop was on Molesworth Street where I spoke to a cheerful character, Derek*. Before long we were talking about more than just football. I broached the subject of the new scheme. He said he hadn’t felt its impact all that much. He told me the story of a Garda who had persistently hassled him in the past but who had since been relocated. Since then, Derek’s encounters with the law have been, though perhaps not amicable, fair. He noted that the new laws were directed at those who “get right in your face with a cup”. He used the example of the more persistent female beggars to be found along O’Connell Street. While I was speaking to Derek, two pedestrians clearly dressed for work, stopped to offer a brief greeting to him. This I

found encouraging; perhaps I was too quick to paint everyone with the same brush. Derek seemed willing to go on talking but after some time I bade him farewell and good luck before moving on.

The next two people I came across were Roma – a man and a woman, both along South Leinster Street. I prepared a cup of tea for them but found their English was quite limited. Both were very nice, smiling and clasping their hands together in thanks. I attempted to express my question on the new initiative with gestures but was met with a shrug.

This was a shame as they make up a large proportion of Dublin beggars and I was eager to hear if they were treated any differently.

I then spoke to Mark* on Nassua Street. He told me that if the “Gardaí came around looking for trouble [he’d] give it to them”.

This brought our conversation about the Council’s new strategy to a premature end, as he seemed unwilling to talk more on the matter.

However, we did discuss how it was to be homeless in Dublin.

He told me it was getting more and more difficult with the scaling down of hostels and services for the homeless. He finds increasingly that he must resort to sleeping on the streets, which he doesn’t enjoy although he can “handle it”. I spoke to Mark for a while and in that space of time he displayed a swinging mood; one moment he was bright and engaging, the next detached and brooding. Though I didn’t inquire beyond “how are you?”, I questioned myself as to whether he had some mental health difficulties. Whether he did or did not, his changes in affect would warrant at least some exploration by a professional. He dodged the subject of dealing with social services so I delved no further. Despite his initial show of chutzpah, he came across as an endearing, tender character. He seemed to be experiencing an internal, as well as an external, struggle on the cold, hard streets. His unwillingness to discuss the law or social

services suggested he may have become disillusioned by them or had bad experiences with them in the past. I could only speculate as I moved on to squeeze in one more chat before my one o’clock lecture.

The last man I spoke to, Aaron*, was more gruff than the others and commented on the tea going a little cold. On the subject of dealing with the Council and Gardaí, he spoke of getting warnings in the past that led to an arrest and a court appearance, resulting in a fine he couldn’t pay. “How could they expect me to?” He seemed to think the powers-that-be were out of touch with the real issues at hand: “I’m clean now a few months but a lot of these people have drink and drug problems and nothing is done about that”.

He wanted to get back to his paper so I decided to leave him be.

As I departed for my lecture, it

was Aaron’s comments that struck me most of all. He had hit the nail on the head. The mistake made, year after year, in dealing with the problem of homelessness in the city, is to treat it as a criminal issue. Being arrested and fined for begging and sleeping on the streets is a waste of time and resources. There are clearly greater issues at hand that need to be dealt with – mental health, alcohol and drug abuse to name but a few. The strategy announced by the Council and the Gardaí shows hope of veering out of this cycle.

Lord Mayor Oisín Quinn has indicated that Gardaí will use the power of arrest, not to advance to the court system, but to refer people to the appropriate services and agencies. My fieldwork didn’t show that this has trickled down to the ground yet, but the impact of a strategy such as this takes time to be felt. The plan

represents a change in attitude among the authorities towards the homeless. If implemented successfully and with a real focus on rectifying the core issues at the heart of the homeless problem, as opposed to a “cleaning up our streets” approach, the initiative has the potential to change the lives of many homeless people struggling in the city.

Hopefully, those spearheading it can see beyond the narrow constraints of budgets and balance sheets and deliver real change for the destitute.

Trinity VDP’s first Day Soup Run is on every Thursday, running from 11:30-14:00 (daysouprun@trinityvdp.com). The existing, popular Soup Run runs from 20:00 Tuesday and Friday evenings (souprun@trinityvdp. com). *For privacy reasons, the actual names of those interviewed are not used

Illustration: Reed Patrick Van Hook

Tuesday 19th November2013

TRINITY NEWS

8

InDepth

A brief history of protest and student radicalism in Trinity Deputy InDepth Editor, Michael Lanigan, delves into Trinity’s history of activism and finds we stack up quite favourably to our predecessors.

R Michael Lanigan Deputy InDepth Editor

eeling in the Years has tainted Irish perspectives on modern life.

Montages of U2 hits blaring over Belfast bombings, Italia 90 and Mary McAleese with a full head of hair are far more attractive sights than the Six One News. When pitted against electrifying archival cocktails, real-time seems tedious.

This spawns clichéd denouncements of contemporary activism as apathetic, especially in the case of student protests. Our marches will never match the excitement of Paris in ‘68 spliced to Beatles tracks. In comparison, modern students will always seem lazy.

However, contrary to popular opinion, the last five years have seen startling increases in Irish student activism, particularly from Trinity College. Granted our protests are sporadic. Even worse, memorable instances show us as the subjects of the anguish of others. However, as of late, we have ceased to be the antagonists and finally seized the initiative to demand change. Our recent rise now ranks second only to the TCD student of the 80s, arguably the most potent of period for academics putting words into practice.

Rejoice! Stand proud briefly.

Though we still fail to match the scale, fixed ideologies and audacity of the 80s, mobilisation and sufficient education can right that wrong if we prove ourselves willing to commit. Why have we seen such apathy among students for so long? Maybe our purported indifference is part of the widespread disillusionment felt towards political change that fails to manifest itself as instantly visible, or in a manner that can significantly affect society. Ireland seldom passes radical legislations. Rather, we create gradual stepping-stones, decelerating before reaching an ideal outcome.

Since the 1980s co-operative national development programs have subdued dissenting organisations from making extreme demands through the threat of withdrawing state funding. This strategy chokes radical pressure and produces miniscule alterations and public indifference.

Compromise becomes synonymous with change and the act of

protest becomes a lost cause. But we can point fingers ad infinitum, or actually take action with greater conviction and less fear. The budget cuts are hell-bent on hitting students hard up the wazoo.

The time is right to up the ante of expressing grievances and show that the Trinity student is not as complacent as popular opinion often proclaims. Not all hope is lost. We’re Not Leaving is gaining significant recognition and this can only increase. We can prove the naysayers wrong, and better still, determine our own future.

Trinity’s history of student protest has certainly come round in our favour since 1945. In March 1731, a series of young Trinity academics came under fire from a Dublin Catholic mob due to College’s proud self-labelling as Anglophiles. This symbolic attack on King George II and his loyal subjects was a brutal expression of anger at the threat of executing a new set of Penal Laws.

The ‘Papists’ fell upon several students and the Provost, Richard Baldwin, as they exited the campus. Chased from College Green through the streets to St. Patrick’s Church, it culminated with a number of young gentlemen and Baldwin escaping with heavy wounds inflicted. Though the Penal Code restricting Catholics from studying in College was repealed in 1793, this was not the end of the protesting student’s involvement in the Anglo-Irish question. However, it did mark a shift in terms of Trinity’s position.

When Lord Lieutenant Archibald Montgomerie, the 13th Earl of Eglinton, entered Dublin on 12th March 1858 his presence provoked an assembly of students on College Green, gathered to air their disgust. The protesters encountered Montgomerie’s entourage of honourable lords and high-ranking British military men parading about outside and the sight led to the students flinging oranges in the direction of police, there to keep the event as diplomatic as possible.

One wayward missile struck the bellicose Colonel Thomas Browne. Infuriated by this infraction of his person, he bellowed ‘God Save the Queen’ and ac-

“

“After news broke of the German’s surrender, fifty students jubilantly climbed atop Regent House, brandishing Allied flags.

The Irish tricolour flew noticeably lower than the Union Jack, Stars and Stripes and le tricolour of France.”

companied by seven constables, reigned down hard upon the unarmed students. Major riots ensued, peaking on the 13th with 3,000 locals causing chaos on the Green. Browne and the other assailants were ostracised and tried for assault but won the case on 12th April. The most infamous conflict, and one of our less proud moments, was V-E Day, 7th May 1945. After news broke of the German’s surrender, fifty students jubilantly climbed atop Regent House, brandishing Allied flags.

The Irish tricolour flew noticeably lower than the Union Jack, Stars and Stripes and le tricolour of France. Given Ireland’s ambiguity in the war, the order made sense, but such facts could not dissuade locals from bellowing furiously at this unnationalistic troupe.

When a group of UCD students learned of this display, they rushed down Grafton Street and arrived to the spectacle of one “tired and emotional” Trinity student seizing the Irish flag to set it aflame. This gesture caused tumultuous uproar. Two UCD students, Charles Haughey and Seamus Sorahan obtained a Union Jack and burned it in retaliation.

To exasperate matters further, swastika flags began cropping up on the street. Ardent nationalists became restless and the celebration escalated into a fully-fledged riot. With men rushing headlong into the campus, the good-humoured act of bravado ended in shameful disaster. Catholic and nationalist gangs swarmed the city, throwing bricks through the windows of the American and British embassies. Thankfully, the catastrophe signified an end to protests against Trinity, but was not the final time swastikas appeared on campus. Nor would this be the last of the Haughey-Trinity saga.

Thereafter, Trinity activism took a three-decade sabbatical.

The international student protests of 1968 skipped southern Ireland, with the only comparable incidents coming from Northern Ireland’s Civil Rights Movement.

Rebirth however came in the form of the notorious Marxists, Revolutionary Struggle. Led by

Michael Youlton, R.S. surfaced in Trinity circa 1975, under the influence of the Italian Red Brigade and proceeded to gain a terroristic reputation. Their in-depth Marxist analysis of the Troubles became a key publication known as The Ripening of Time between 1976 and 1980. At the same time, outside polemics, they also emerged as some of the leading radical activists of Dublin. In 1977, they earned their extreme leftist reputation after disrupting an early meeting for the now defunct Wargamers Association of Trinity College, whose guest speaker for the evening was US military attaché, Colonel Beeres.

Later, in 1979, they subverted the anti-nuclear and environmental movements as devices to hit out at the State. 1980 witnessed the group’s constructive participation in setting up the Dublin Resource Centre at 6 Crow Street. In 1981, their members entered the McDonald’s on O’Connell Street to trash the interior during an anti-tax demonstration. Eventually, Revolutionary Struggle came under pressure following their reputed participation in the shooting of the Confederation of British Industry’s director Geoffrey Armstrong thrice in his legs during a lecture at the Dublin Chamber of Commerce. This act of solidarity with the H-Block internees signalled the beginning of their decline which eventually came in 1985, following internal disagreements regarding the armed struggle between Sinn Fein and the IRA. The parting saw members enter both the Provisional IRA and policy-making. Despite this climax, R.S. set the stage for the late 1980’s new-leftist movements.

The protests during the latter half of the decade saw disciplined and tactical approaches in direct action. Attempts to storm the Dáil and occupying the Department of Education during the threat of rising student fees became commonplace. On College grounds, the potential increase of fees inspired a three-week occupation of the East Chapel in 1989. This would culminate in victory as the scheme was frozen and later abandoned in 1996.

Also during 1989, in the Arts Block, the Socialist Society sparked the first major proabortion debates. These students courted controversy by disclosing details on seeking the procedure abroad in the Student Guidebooks. This led to a court case with the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children prosecuting sixteen students, giving the abortion debate national exposure. Off-campus, students opportunistically used any official event involving Haughey as a platform for anti-austerity protests. When the Taoiseach was in UCD opening new accommodation blocks, 150 TCD students disrupted the occasion, resulting in his swift departure. Later, as he attended the opening for a new wing in the National Gallery, 200 students occupied the lobby, causing major delays to his arrival.

In 1989, the Phil invited notorious military historian and Holocaust denier David Irving to deliver a speech. Students blockaded several entrances and Irving was smuggled onto the grounds, where he remained trapped until dawn. Later, a small group of students reacted to this by celebrating Hitler’s birthday on campus, which a group of young socialists quickly stymied. As a result, Irving received an unofficial ban, later reinforced when the Hist tried inviting him again in 2002. The furore resulted in his cancellation and the second wave of our major student activism effectively commenced. This has gained momentum since 2008, when 50 students picketed Batt O’Keefe’s launch of a college PhD programme and later when 40,000 Dublin students marched on Merrion Square against a rise in tuition fees.

Afterwards, in November 2011, 20,000 students flooded Dublin to raise awareness on youth emigration, receiving international exposure and paving the way for our latest set of fierce young activists. This new wave signifies that the Trinity student protest is no longer isolated, as was the case in the past. At last, we have achieved national solidarity. The next step is to utilize this as the invaluable political tool that it is.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

9

InDepth

Freedom of information isn’t Free Tommy Gavin analyses the culture of secrecy in Irish government, and investigates one possible solution.

T Tommy Gavin Deputy Editor

aoiseach Enda Kenny defended plans to increase fees for Freedom of Information requests on November 13th, calling the fee “relatively small.” He went on to dismiss widespread outrage over the Freedom of Information Bill 2013 from academics, journalists, civil rights groups and legal bodies by saying “experts don’t always get it right themselves, either.”

Similarly, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, that week described the increased fee as a “token charge” that is “appropriate in the current climate,” though it could be debated over on which climate he is referring to; the economic climate, or the political climate. Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte joined in, saying on Morning Ireland that “it’s very sad to have to listen to academics on this and every other programme talk about killing of the Freedom of Information Act.” He continued by reminding listeners that it is still free for citizens to request information relating to them personally, and said “for journalists who want relevant information in the public interest, you know the position.” The bill was published on the 25th July, and it represents the biggest development in Freedom of Information law in over a decade, but not for the better.

Introduced in 1997, the original Freedom of Information Act granted access of official documents to the public and the media, at a time when only twenty or so countries had national FOI laws. It was intended to be a measure to increase transparency and discourage corruption, but central to the concept of a FOI regime is that it is in the public interest. Even where there are exemptions, such as in protection of privacy or maintaining confidentiality in national security, the motivation for exclusion from FOI access was public interest.

The sponsoring Minister, Eithne Fitzgerald said of the act that it “will turn the culture of the Official Secrets Act on its head” and that the decision whether or not to release a document would be determined by “whether the balance of the public interest lies in disclosure or in withholding the information concerned.” Ultimately though, she presented FOI in Ireland as being about per-

manently shifting “the balance of power between the citizen and the state.”

One of the earliest supporters of FOI legislation in Ireland was the union for key grades of civil servants, the Association of Higher Civil Servants (AHCS). At their annual conference in 1983, the AHCS chairman supported the idea of a Freedom of Information Act, reportedly arguing that it “might dispel the mystery and secrecy which often surrounded the working of the civil service and would bring a new openness into government.” He also suggested that it might protect civil servants against improper pressure exerted by ministers.

This optimism was not well founded, six years after the act was introduced, the Fianna Fail government made severe changes to the Act with the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Act of 2003. Under the new act, there would be an upfront fee for Freedom of Information requests, causing the number of requests made by journalists between 2003 and 2004 to drop by 83%.

Fine Gael and Labour both publicly condemned the amendment, and in their Programme for Government in 2011, they promised to “legislate to restore the Freedom of Information Act to what it was before it was undermined by the outgoing government.” In reality, the 2013 Bill is a huge step in the same direction. Not only does it retain upfront fees, but also had a clause in Amendment 33 that where requests are made up of two or more “parts,” seeking information from different areas within a department, the person making the request would have to pay a fee for each part.

This amendment has since been withdrawn following public pressure, but only so that it may be reworded. According to an article in the Irish Independent by Independent TD Stephen Donnelly, Minister Howlin acknowledged that the reason for charging fees was to “manage demand.” Ireland is one of just three countries that charge upfront fees for FOI requests.

According to the still present Section 27, a fee may be required there “the estimated cost of the search for and retrieval of the record concerned,” which “shall be calculated at the rate of such amount per hour … in respect of

“

"Introduced in 1997, the original Freedom of Information Act granted access of official documents to the public and the media, at a time when only twenty or so countries had national FOI laws. It was intended to be a measure to increase transparency and discourage corruption, but central to the concept of a FOI regime is that it is in the public interest."

the time that was spent.”

Perhaps most bizarre though, is the provision in Section 17 that “the FOI body shall take reasonable steps to search for and extract the … having due regard to the steps that would be considered reasonable if the records were held in paper format.” Reasonable action then is defined against how inconvenient it might be to grant a request for information if computers were not invented, or at least if it involved printing out an entire database and going through the information by hand.

The bill is therefore indicative of a culture of secrecy and mistrust of the public, and signals an unwillingness by the government to engage in politics and governance in an open manner.

In that context, there is a greater need for watchdog organisations, and one potential example might be Dailwatch.ie. Founded by former Trinity student Sarah O’Neill, Dailwatch.ie is a one year old website that is intended to be a bridge over the gap between the public and politicians. TDs have profiles on the site, and users can see their attendance and voting records and directly pose them questions. TDs can then respond directly to those questions in a style of potential civic engagement that could only be facilitated by the internet.

The site has two moderators who oversee that questions conform to the code of conduct, Sarah, and an intern who updates the blog and voting records. Dailwatch.ie also has an advisory board consisting of Stephen Collins; Political Editor of the Irish Times, Prof. David Farrell; who holds a chair of politics at UCD, Dr. Colum Kenny; Professor of Communications at DCU, and Dr. Jane Suiter; a political analyst and researcher at DCU. They are consulted on issues relating to the code of conduct, and are regularly updated with how the site is running, but they are not involved in its day to day running.

Speaking to Trinity News, Dailwatch.ie CEO Sarah O’Neill says that it was set up as a transparency website, “that might sound a bit lofty, but that’s exactly what it is. It’s about openness.” The idea was to get away from the perception of spin, coming either from the media or political institutions themselves. “There seems

to have been a massive breakdown in communication. We’ve had a massive national crisis, and I suppose this was meant to be a clear direct channel where they could ask direct questions and get direct answers.” The site has already had over 160,000 hits to the site, and has engaged over 30% of TDs. Sarah admits that “getting TDs engaged in the platform and getting citizens to ask questions has been more challenging than I initially anticipated. Obviously even if the model makes sense, it doesn’t mean it will just take off. But it is a critical mass kind of thing, once you get a certain number of people and asking questions of a certain number of TDs championing it, a few others will follow hopefully.” It can also be difficult that certain TDs who would be engaged, aren’t being asked questions of, but for those that are, “its been pretty consistent across party and age bracket.”

Dailwatch.ie emerged out of the now prevalent trend of social entrepreneurship, which attempts to solve perceived social problems with business models.

The profit motive is replaced with clearly set out desired outcomes. This is one of social entrepreneurships biggest problems, that it attempts to quantify what are usually extremely complex social problems that don’t necessarily have easily quantifiable solutions. Oftentimes, the desire to affect observable change comes before articulating why there is such a problem in the first place, and why it should be addressed.

This is not as much of a problem for Dailwatch.ie though, because it is clear from the outset that the implicit value is that openness in government is in the public interest, and it’s easy to quantify political engagement along their model: use of and participation in the website. It is currently reliant on grants provided by the Rowntree Trust, Change Nation and Wave Change, but the goal is to become sustainable through money from party campaigning funds. “The revenue model is that eventually TDs will upgrade their profile and contribute financially to the site to use as a campaigning tool.”

Dailwatch.ie is based on the German site Parliamentwatch. org.org, who identified Ireland as a country that might benefit from a similar model. Sarah came into

contact with Parliamentwatch. org at a social entrepreneurship convention run by Ashoka, an international social entrepreneurship organisation. Parliamentwatch.org received a grant from the Rowntree Foundation to set up an Irish version of their model, and Sarah was asked to spearhead the project. “I spent a summer in Germany training with them, and then I came back over here and launched it. Now it’s up and running and independent. We’re developing a new tool independent to Ireland and the German team has very little if any involvement with us.”

When asked whether what Dailwatch does is a role for social enterprise or is something that the Dail should be doing anyway; Sarah said “It would affect the neutrality of it for one thing. But I’d be delighted if the government provided some service like this.

I’ve no objections to that.” I put it to her that it might be very cynical to say that the government can’t be trusted to be truthful about itself, but she responded that she would hopefully be below the average in terms of cynicism. “With something like this I think you have to be, but at the same time, it’s important that no matter how good a government is, even if you have the best government in the world, there still needs to be some oversight, and there still needs to be some independence.”

Dailwatch.ie is hardly a radical approach, and it’s been endorsed

by Enda Kenny, Eamon Gilmore and Michael Martin. Sarah is still aware though, of the situation Dailwatch.ie has entered.

“What’s happening with the FOI bill now is outrageous.

There’s absolutely no economic argument for regressing the current openness that we have. We’re the only EU country to charge fees for initial inquiries and now they’re talking about increasing them exponentially. Obviously I think it reinforces the importance of different projects outside government like this.” When the government has made explicit overtures that it is unwilling to engage with an engaged public, organisations like Dailwatch. ie are a welcome addition to the Irish political landscape.

Tuesday 19th November2013

TRINITY NEWS

10

InDepth

Beggars can be choosers What is the role of the theatre today? D. Joyce-Ahearne looks at Bertolt Brecht’s Threepenny Opera and speaks with Michael Colgan, The Gate Theatre’s Artistic Director.

"S

D. Joyce -Ahearne InDepth Editor

omething new is needed.” So Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum addresses the audience at the beginning of Bertolt Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera, which has just finished its run at The Gate Theatre. “My business is too hard, for my business is arousing human sympathy. There are a few things that stir men’s souls, just a few, but the trouble is that after repeated use they lose their effect.”

What, then, stirs men’s souls and to what end can, or should, they be stirred? For Brecht, the theatre, his style of theatre, could move people to want to improve the world around them. Brecht preached an “Epic theatre”, a style typified by The Threepenny Opera, wherein he aims to provoke his audience to recognise injustice and hopes to move them to leave the theatre and affect change. Brecht’s Epic theatre is a departure from traditional Aristotelian drama. Instead of having the spectator invest him or herself fully in the “world” of the play until it has ended, it seeks to make the spectator be constantly aware that the play is just a representation of reality. It’s a theatre of “montages” rather than one seamless plot, so that the viewer is kept alert and critical. Brecht saw the climactic catharsis of emotion that we get in traditional modes of theatre as a comforting illusion. It left an audience complacent.

By making the audience aware that the play is a play, Brecht aims to show us that our own reality is also just a construct; we can affect change as long as we are aware enough of the circumstances we find ourselves in and know that they are changeable.

The Threepenny Opera then, in keeping with Brecht’s ideas of what a play should be, is incredibly self-aware, something that requires great acting to be carried off. The cast are performing to the end that the audience is aware of them “acting” (usually a theatrical flaw) but at the same time they must keep the audience engaged. If Brecht wanted an audience to leave the theatre feeling imbued to affect change then both he and The Gate succeed with The Threepenny Opera.

The script is great, the acting is spot on and the adoption of Dublin accents and localisms makes the play come alive in a way that makes it seem more applicable to ourselves, something Brecht would no doubt have approved of.

The Threepenny Opera at The Gate is a powerful performance of Epic theatre, and particularly apt for Ireland today. It follows

beggars, prostitutes, criminals and crooked cops as they try and endure an existence wherein “the world is poor, and man’s a shit and that is all there is to it.” The play asks what’s the robbing of a bank compared to the founding of one? What’s the murder of a man compared to the employing of one? Brecht deliberately doesn’t offer any neat solutions. And why should he? He shifts the responsibility onto the audience as to what the “message” of the play will be. Ultimately, the final scene is how we act when we’ve left the theatre. It raises interesting questions as to what responsibilities lie with the playwright, the audience and, of course, the producer.

Michael Colgan has been Artistic Director of The Gate Theatre for thirty years. He tells a story of the playwright Harold Pinter having dinner with Alan Ayckbourn, who was to play Stanley in Pinter’s The Birthday Party.

Ayckbourn, with his performance in mind, asked Pinter if he could tell him what the play was about.

Pinter replied “That’s none of your fucking business.”

Pinter’s view would appear to be very different from Brecht’s idea of a playwright’s duty. What is the playwright’s responsibility,

or does he have one? I ask Colgan what he feels his own responsibility is in his position at The Gate in terms of the theatre he puts into the public sphere. “I don’t feel that I have to get to the bottom of the banking crisis. I don’t think that’s my responsibility. The social responsibility [of the theatre] is to educate and I feel that we here at The Gate are educating society.”

Though Brecht had an overt socialist agenda to incite what he saw as change for the better, Colgan has a more measured view of what his role is in bringing theatre to the public. What they would both agree on, however, is why the theatre is so important as a medium. “People go to the theatre because, live, it’s much more potent. It’s also the need for people to rub shoulders, to commune, to do, to actively participate. It’s a need to act as one; to me, to be part of a community.”

Though perhaps, in some cases, theatre is no longer the best medium. Colgan gives the example of how theatre’s role as a provider of “laughs” may now have been surpassed. “I don’t think it was the best decision of mine to do Bedroom Farce by Alan Ayckbourn. That was a decision that

was saying, what with people now in the recession, maybe we should just go for a good old fashioned laugh. This was instead of trying to deal with the recession like with An Enemy of the People or giving a side of things to people which would jolt them into a way of thinking about where we are. I think the quality of comedy on television now may have surpassed Alan Ayckbourn’s plays.”

The handing over of the role of provider of “just laughs” to television would be approved of

by Brecht. A play that just makes you laugh and nothing else is a waste of a play. Though laughter is important, and there is a huge amount of great comedy in The Threepenny Opera, there should be so much more to any piece of art than laughs. The Threepenny Opera offers plenty of laughs, just not the old fashioned kind. It’s not a comedy in the traditional sense of the word, neither in terms of theatrical form or content. People are more educated now says Colgan and are recognising humour in the likes of Beckett that wasn’t seen before. Laughter makes a play accessible. It doesn’t mean it’s offering people a means of escape, which is not what Brecht wants, rather it gives us a new

“

"Brecht’s Epic theatre is a departure from traditional Aristotelian drama.

Instead of having the spectator invest him or herself fully in the “world” of the play until it has ended, it seeks to make the spectator be constantly aware that the play is just a representation of reality.”

perspective on important issues that we might be too used to engaging with in a way that oppresses us.

“We want to educate. When somebody is reading constantly about, for example, austerity, sometimes they want to get away from that. I don’t mean they want to just get away and have a laugh.

I don’t think that The Gate should be doing panto.” The beauty of the theatre, what TV or film can never give us, is its tangibility.

Colgan says sometimes you have to let a play wash over you, not to ask what it’s about. Colgan sees The Gate as “offering more of a holistic education, rather than educating on specific issues.” It’s up to us to take what we will from what we see.

What Brecht offers in The Threepenny Opera is an event where you sit and watch but are always aware that you’re observing. That awareness means you learn, you participate; you become mobilised, though it might sound too strong a word, to take that exact same attitude and apply it to life. It’s the sense of being there. Here then, perhaps, is the something new, something that might “stir men’s souls”. Though The Threepenny Opera is 85 years old, compared to the Aristolean tradition of theatre, Brecht’s Epic theatre is still in its infancy.

What it seeks to do is inform by entertaining. Colgan is right, we’re not to ask what the play is about. Rather, we have to ask what life is about.

The issues in The Threepenny Opera seem to be perennial. “Let’s practise goodness who would disagree? But sadly on this planet while we’re waiting, the means are meagre and the morals low.”

“The search for happiness boils down to this: One must live well to know what living is.” “Mankind can keep alive thanks to its brilliance in keeping humanity repressed.”

These are all ideas we deal with every day, but as Peachum said, the problem is that after repeated use they lose their effect. What the theatre can do is reawaken us to what we already know but have become numbed to though habit.

It’s not Brecht’s job to write a play, or Colgan’s job to produce a play, or my job to plug a play. The responsibility is, as always, on the individual to go and do.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

11

Conor McGlynn ponders the IFA's rejection of the Taoiseach's propsal for an All-Ireland soccer team.

InDepth

p13

Oil be damned Rachel Lavin speaks with Eddie Hobbs about Ireland’s potential oil reserves and how, if managed correctly, it could be our economic deus ex machina.

I

Rachel Lavin Contributor

n the early 1960s, Norway was a poor agrarian society. Corporations offered to buy exclusive rights to any potential oil find in a tempting but terrible deal for the country. But the politicians refused and asserted sovereign rights over natural resources in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea, with high taxes and energy prices in line with world markets.

In the early morning of 30th August 1969, Norway struck oil.

The Ocean Viking rig had found the enormous, and much speculated upon, Ekofisk field. The government moved quickly to establish a national energy policy and ensured Norwegian’s sovereignty over its rich offshore resources. The Storting (parliament) adopted the 10 oil commandments, a set of principles for oil policy, which specified that all operations on the Norwegian continental shelf should be conducted under national control. The government established Statoil in 1972 and it was decided that all revenue generated by the oil would go into the sovereign wealth fund. Over 40 years of operations later the industry has generated profits in excess of a trillion euro in current terms. Today, Norway enjoys one of the highest living standards in the world and has a state pension fund worth over $650 billion.

Oil has completely transformed Norway and according to Eddie Hobbs, financial advisor and cofounder of Own Our Oil, a group advocating for a radical overhaul of Ireland’s oil and gas tax regulation, it has the potential to do the same for us. “When we look at the map of Ireland, we see it as a particular shape, which is not the actual Irish territory. The actual Irish territory is 67 times bigger than the landmass. There’s a big shoulder of ancient rock that runs from Norway across the North Atlantic over to Newfoundland, it is an enormous oil and gas area. As the Norwegians are now approaching peak oil in 2014 its quite clear that that we are one of the frontier locations of the future of European hydrocarbon.” This is not empty conjecture.The Irish Offshore Operators estimate Ireland to have 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe)."Earlier this year, Reuters reported that analysts at Oriel Securities said ‘We believe that offshore Ireland is emerging as an exploration hotspot for oil and gas companies.’"

According to Own Our Oil, Ireland has the prospect for oil in a space nine times the size of the country itself, an area which could possibly hold ten billion barrels of oil. Today's Brent crude

Editorial T Elaine McCahill Editor

his week, Lily Allen released her first song since 2009 and as is the current fashion in pop music, it was accompanied by a suitably controversial video. The video, as I'm sure the majority of you have seen by now, begins with Allen lying on a plastic surgeon's table, having liposuction while the men standing around her criticise her for ‘letting herself go’, while she mildly protests by reminding them that she's 'had two babies,' which of course they blithely ignore. She then jumps up from the table and proceeds to tell us that it's 'hard out here for a bitch,' while twerking in front of her black and Asian backing dancers.

Initially, the internet and feminist platforms delighted in Allen's stick-it-to-the-inherent-sexismin-the-music-industry vibe but upon closer inspection, it became evident that all was not squeaky clean and equal in this muchlauded pop tune.

Allen was criticised for claiming that there were no issues of race in her video, even though throughout the video she remained separated from her dancers and was decidedly more dressed than them. Many attempted to correct her portrayed ignorance by claiming that satire is not a usable cover for racism and asked when will the black female body stop being anonymous and sexualised, as it is constantly portrayed in the music industry.

However, many also questioned why this one song and its accompanying video were being questioned, broken-down and torn to shreds. Why is it that when one song appears that seems to embrace a feminist stance, it is either lauded or lambasted and on some level, is expected to speak for all feminists, for an entire sex and for all those who aspire to equality in the world? Why all the pressure? We all know that any one article or song or photography exhibition cannot be expected to speak to or for all feminists. To be

oil price hovers around $108 per barrel. In 2008 it was $133 but in 1998 it was below $10. If oil was discovered, drilling would take years, but as energy resources grow scarcer prices are only getting higher. If a viable Irish oil field was discovered it would be worth up to, if not over, one trillion euros. If Ireland hit oil we could solve our economic debt and see unparalleled prosperity for generations to come. This is the type of economic discovery that a nation state could only dream about and yet according to the experts, it is potentially within the grasp of the Irish people.

However, this is where Own Our Oil sees the problem. According to Hobbs, “although these oil and gas deposits are owned by the citizens of the Republic of Ireland, essentially we are giving them away for nothing.” While the average world tax on oil and gas is 70 to 80% (Norway is 87%), Ireland allows for a 25% tax rate on the profits energy giants make on offshore oil and gas discoveries in Ireland. Though this is one of the lowest rates in the world, Ireland also writes off the cost of exploration incurred by the companies. When it comes to generous tax breaks for oil and gas companies, Ireland is second only to Cameroon, which is ranked as 144th in the world for corruption according to the Corruption Perceptions Index 2012

by Transparency International.

Own Our Oil pinpoints the cause of these shockingly low tax rates to 1987, when Fianna Fáil elected Ray Burke to the position of Minister for Energy.“What happens is he goes to a number of meetings unaccompanied by senior civil servants and he comes out of those meetings and the citizens of Ireland no longer own any production rights on their own oil and gas.

That taxation then was cut in 1992 when Bertie Ahern was Minister for Finance to 25%. Its quite clear from any neutral reading of what occurred that the actual taxation policy was written by industry over the shoulders of the Department.” While Bertie Ahern has fallen from grace since the Mahon Tribunal and Ray Burke was jailed for tax evasion, no efforts have been made to put oil and tax rates back in line with the world’s average rate, even in light of recent estimates over Ireland’s oil and gas potential.

Hobbs argues that “the industry and the Department are singing off the same hymn sheet which is deeply worrying. The Department is so captive it set up a joint venture company with industry participants, so you have the regulator actually in business with

“

"Why, instead of addressing the greater issues do we lambast a pop singer for not having the 'perfect' feminist video?"

a feminist is to desire equality for all but why does it need to be such a loaded term? Why is it still seen as a sort of dirty term or label?

Why is it that people still shrink from dealing with issues of sexism, equality, women's issues, the issues of minorities, the issues of gay people? Why, instead of addressing the greater issues do we lambast a pop singer for not having the 'perfect' feminist video?

I do agree that a recognition of the intersectionality of feminism and how the denigration of black female bodies is inherent to the objectification of women in pop culture. Sexism and inequality is still an issue in our everday lives despite what many would like to

“

"By the time the oil is extracted it’ll be too late, we’ll have lost control of it. The Irish government is assuming that they can somehow be cute hoors and if the oil comes out then they can then change the pricing. Then we can do a radical overhaul. But we won’t be able to, it’ll be too late.”

believe. Let us look at everyday examples within our college community. Very few women run for sabbatical positions on the SU and no woman has ever been elected as President outright.

Another example is the National Media Conference held in College this weekend; of 23 speakers, only five were women. In a year, where both editors of our college newspapers are women, neither were asked to speak or be involved. Another example is the Web Summit which was held in late October where only 10% of the speakers were women. Inequality within the tech industry is something that has been lamented for years but many within that industry decry these articles and claim that instead of writing about the issue, they should be presenting a solution instead. Of course, this misses the point entirely and almost goes so far as to lay the blame at the feet of women instead of looking at the culture surrounding tech and startups instead. The same can be said for the media sector. There are as many qualified and experienced journalists in the country and yet only five were available to speak at a conference that presented itself as addressing the nation. For those that claim that feminism and inequality are no longer issues, just look at how much attention a video or an article that attempts to speak out against or even poke fun at it gets. Lily Allen's video is not seen as being her opinion or views, it has to be seen as speaking for all women, as being a feminist anthem of sorts. When Robin Thicke unleashed the abhorrent and offensive phenomenon that was 'Blurred Lines,' he was not seen as speaking for all men when he proclaimed 'I know you want it.' The point is that equality is still a goal, both because of the reaction to Lily Allen’s ‘Hard out Here’ and because of the way in which women are presented within it.

the regulated. Outside of being flawed, it's wrong because these oil and gas deposits are owned by the citizens of the Republic of Ireland and essentially are being given away for nothing.” Hobbs explains, “There is a figure of the Department’s own estimate that the potential oil and gas reserves are between ¤750 billion and a trillion euro. The point we’re making is we’re better off going after it ourselves in a unilateral agreement with Norway or leaving it in the ground for future generations, rather than doing what we’re doing at the moment, which is giving it away.”

Own Our Oil have made efforts to appeal to the government to change their tax rates. They prepared a report looking into how Ireland could profit from its resources, put together by experts from Ireland and other oilproducing countries. They also made a pre-Budget submission to the Minister of Finance, however they received neither an acknowledgement nor a response.

Separately, there is a review of the oil and gas rates by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources.

But Eddie isn’t getting his hopes up. “What they’re going to do is pick the consultants that will

give them the answer they want.”

Hobbs warns of their apathy to the cause. “By the time the oil is extracted it’ll be too late, we’ll have lost control of it. The Irish government is assuming that they can somehow be cute hoors and if the oil comes out then they can change the pricing.

Then we can do a radical overhaul. But we won’t be able to, it’ll be too late. The license regimes in place are protective of the constitutional rights to property.

We’d have no control over the pipe lines to bring in the oil which are the only way you could control it anyway. We’d have no national oil company. We’d have no strategy. We’d have nothing other than a bunch of gobshites in the Dáil thinking that low taxation and nothing else is the way you develop the industry. It’s not.” Disillusioned by any feasible change coming from government, Own Our Oil is turning to the public with the slogan “If not me, then who?” As part of a conscious-raising strategy, they will be releasing a 300 page book in January 2014 which will also be available free online as an e-book. It details a national oil strategy, including Ireland’s relationship with the EU and the rest of the world. The book will also cover planning is-

T

his month saw the organisation of the Young People’s Assembly, an initiative of the We’re Not Leaving campaign bring young people together and discuss common grievances, such as the effect and prospect of forced emigration, and possible solutions.

The central event of the assembly was the creation of a Youth Charter, collectively put together by assembly attendees around the issues of precarious work & internship culture, youth unemployment & forced emigration, mental health, lack of affordable housing, and fee hikes & grant cuts. Naturally, the charter isn’t perfect, nor was the event. There was an ad hoc feel on the day, and the charter is not entirely selfconsistent. These are issues of involvement, while it had the potential to be the primer for a new youth based social movement in Ireland, it wasn’t. There were not enough people there. Attendance failed to fill the auditorium at Liberty Hall where it was held, which has a maximum capacity of less than four hundred. So what does that say? Are Irish young people so alienated that they don’t care that the government basically told them that they’re not grown up until they’re twenty six? Are they so disaffected that they aren’t willing to be in town at 11am on a Saturday? Are they shy?

Or rather, is it that there is a fearful reluctance towards the commitment of participation?

That they are aware of the scale of what it would mean to be politically consciousness today, and are frozen in terror at the implications? Maybe all of those things, or none.

What is clear is that nobody had the right to be surprised that the Young People’s Assembly did not have the broad base of support that it perhaps would have had in other European countries.

It is indicative of the state of Irish society today, and the sentiment that things are already too far

Tommy Gavin Deputy Editor

sues, taxation, the political history of what has occurred, as well as a section dealing with the cultural and historical relationship we’ve had with our natural resources since the time of Parnell.

As Hobbs explains, “We’re waiting until we are ready with our voice and then we’ll come out in the spring of 2014.

When we do, we will be looking towards students in university. If it strikes a chord with them we’ll be giving them the material and the help and we’ll be asking them to take it on as an issue that students can rally round.” Own Our Oil is operating out of principle, founded on a pragmatic optimism about the potential of Ireland’s oil and gas reserves. While not offering the oil as an answer to all of Ireland’s current problems, Hobbs does point out the fact that Norway’s sovereign wealth fund is three times the size of the Irish national debt. He concludes, “It’s quite clear that if the oil and gas is there, and we get this right, that Ireland could go from one of poorest countries in Europe, in terms of its finances, to the wealthiest.”

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"Are Irish young people so alienated that they don’t care that the government basically told them that they’re not grown up until they’re twenty six?"

gone to do anything about it now.

The Youth Assembly was not a new dawn, but it was a spark.

Where political engagement has traditionally meant being embroiled in civil war politics, protest activism, or Labour, it was a very real turning point. The question today is not of whether you want to affect social change, social change is here. The question is of whether we as Irish youth intend on staying in this country, and if so, what kind of society we want to live in.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Comment

William Foley wonders what the Lenihan debate says about Trinity

p.14

Mo’ money, mo’ gender problems?

Aine O’Connell criticises charity fund-raising campaigns which implicitly promote sexist attitudes and the objectification of women

F Aine O’Connell Contributor

or those of you without an internet connection, No Shave November (or Movember, as it’s usually known as) is a charity based movement that involves growing a beard/moustache to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer. It began in Ireland in 2008 allowing men who participate to look like hipsters/ Ron Swanson for a whole month while funding cancer research.

It’s easy, silly, recognisable and a bit of craic. But I hate what Movember inspires in people, both online and in real life. I hate it not for what it is, but for people’s responses when women try to get involved. I hate the sexism that comes with Movember, even if it’s not intended by the moustachioed amongst us.

The interesting thing about “No Shave November” is that it’s not inherently exclusionary. Women can, and do, get involved. In the freezing cold month of November, women can put their razors down, and be free to cosy their legs up in aid of charity. There are even women participating on the “mo” side of things – a woman from Belfast who suffers from Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is forgoing her usual hair removal routine in order to raise awareness. However, a cursory glance at Twitter shows a differ-

ent kind of coldness spreading through this wintry month: sexist tweets aimed at both men and women. A typical tweet on the #NoShaveNovember tag reads something like this: “For girls participating in No Shave November: Hope you’re looking forward to no D December!” “No Shave November only applies to guys.

Sexist? I know but it’s disgusting when a girl participates”. Or even the more authoritarian “Just to clarify…No Shave November is for men only. Ladies, keep it together”. I know that the people we’re dealing with here are those closer to the Neanderthal side of the human evolutionary development spectrum, but it’s this attitude that puts women off wanting to get involved.

It’s put me off getting involved – just like in August when I signed up for Armpits for August, a similar initiative. Everyone I mentioned it to recoiled, despite the fact that I was doing it for PCOS, which is a pretty shitty syndrome to have. Similarly, if I were to quit waxing my dark-brown leg/ lip/armpit hair, I’m sure I’d get more than a few funny looks.

Yet I’ve found myself admiring moustaches across the library as I write this article. Is this as far as the policing of bodies has gone, particularly women’s ones?

“

“Nonetheless, haven’t we evolved beyond the crippling gender norms of cancer fundraising? Can’t we step beyond “Pink! Cute! Boobs!” mentality for Breast Cancer, and the “Manly!

Rugged!” one for No Shave November?”

While I don’t agree with the arguments for pubic hair removal, I can at least see their point. It is a personal choice, after all, and I’m not going to tell anyone how to treat their bodies. Why are those women who want to contribute to a world-wide movement for an excellent cause vilified and held up as disgusting and unattractive?

I want a world where I can raise money for a cancer I’ll never get, because I’d hate to see anyone I love get cancer. The exclusionary attitude so many people have towards No Shave November hurts the initiative, as cheerful tweets documenting progress are slowly choked by calls for women to cover it up, keep it tidy and generally do what decades of oppression, pornography and…well, sexism have told them to do.

Thinking about a mens’ cancer charity got me thinking about the female equivalent – the hugely successful Breast Cancer Awareness movement. While their “Think Pink” campaigns are aimed mostly at women, the breast cancer fund-raising is in no way exclusionary. Quite the opposite, in fact. Last year a campaign was launched that targeted men – the “Save The Boobies” campaign in the States. The charity sold wristbands and made videos pleading with the public to do-

nate – to save women’s breasts.

Now, it’s difficult to discuss this one without sounding like a manhating feminist, but: seriously?

Campaigns like this – as well as the “post the colour of your bra” craze that swept Facebook last year – see the trees, but not the wood. It’s true that sex sells, but in the words of a breast cancer survivor and campaigner: “When death is truly knocking at your door -- and I’m not talking about early, uncertain cases -- most aren’t thinking about how much they love their breasts, they’re thinking about how much they love not being dead. They’re thinking: Chop those things off, now”. That’s the kicker. Breast cancer charities aren’t trying to save the breasts – they’re trying to save the women. What if the main thrust of a prostate cancer campaign was “We Love Balls”?

Again, even in the case of charity work, sex sells – but only a certain kind. Neither “save the awesome women who happen to have breasts” nor “save the testes” would have quite the traction we get on sex-orientated campaigns or on Movember. Both fund-raising approaches ultimately lead to the objectification of women and men. Movember is a great way to raise awareness and I’ll be supporting anyone I know rocking

a mo’ over the next few weeks.

Nonetheless, haven’t we evolved beyond the crippling gender norms of cancer fundraising?

Can’t we step beyond “Pink! Cute!

Boobs!” mentality for Breast Cancer, and the “Manly! Rugged!” one for No Shave November? How we stop excluding genders and works together to save the women (not the boobs) by whatever means possible, including a woman having hairy legs for thirty days?

Some might say that I’m missing the point with this article – after all, these charities are about fundraising and awareness, not gender equality. However, that point of view neatly underscores my argument – people are taking something great and using it as a vehicle for body-shaming, imposing oppressive beauty standards and hating on both men and women.

At the end of the day, this is not a feminist issue but it a sexism one. Calling people out on their sexism is every bit as important as No Shave November. Everyone has the right to raise awareness without feeling objectified, vilified or stupid.

Don’t worry, be happy Niall McGlynn extols the virtues of staying positive at every step on your career journey.

F

Niall McGlynn Staff Writer

It has been said before, and it will be said again, that staying positive when you enter the working world after college is probably the hardest and the most important challenge you can face as a graduate. We’ve all heard the stories of course; the friend with two masters and a first class degree working as a temp part time, or the gold medal winning cousin with “Sch.” affixed to their name stuck on an endless loop of temporary contracts. Yet all of us, whether graduates or students, know the truth deep down: no one cares. No one cares about how many societies we helped run, how good our grades where, how many events we planned, or how many sleepless nights and endless hours of hard work we endured. Potential employers only care how about how cost effective we will be on the job, and they’re absolutely right. We aren’t paid based on what we did in college, we’re paid based on what we can and will do on the job. But this is not a counsel of despair it’s actually a ray of hope.

For many people, the end of college can seem like the end of growing, the end of changing, the end of learning. You do your degree, you hopefully get a job and that’s it; you never again have to learn anything new or exciting. You just do your job and perform your assigned tasks. No more life changing experiences, no more epic struggles with new and unimagined challenges that help you grow as a person - just an endless series of SSDD moments. That is the beauty of people not caring about any of these

“

“Given the current state of the job market, more than a few of us have or will end up working in jobs we did not plan on doing. Some of us may be in fields where there are no positions available bar the horrendous exploitation of unpaid internships.”

epic changes in our lives that we’ve just lived through - since we can’t simply fall back on all our achievements in college, we are forced to continue growing and changing and adapting. The working world is a whole new arena, with its own struggles and opportunities for self-improvement. Far from being the end of life changing challenges, leaving college and starting a “real” job is actually the start of a whole new set of different but equally important challenges and changes.

Of all these challenges, keeping positive in the face of adversity is the most important by far. Given the current state of the job market, more than a few of us have or will end up working in jobs we did not plan on doing. Some of us may be in fields where there are no positions available bar the horrendous exploitation of unpaid internships. Some of us may be in fields where there aren’t even any internships to be had. Through various contingencies we may end up in jobs we don’t want, or like, or see a future in. Remaining optimistic when we wander off course, or when our career path goes off-road, is the key to surviving this transition.

A career path off track is still a career path. Any job is better than no job, especially for those of us under 26, as after the last budget, unemployment benefits have essentially been reduced to pocket money. Though it may not be ideal, you will still be acquiring skills and experience. The most important of these is simply learning to manage the stress of having a job as the main non-leisure part

of your life. Keeping a job of any description, and making sure you do your best is a stressful experience, especially if you’re on short term, precarious contracts and must deal with the looming threat of whether or not said contract will be renewed the next time it expires.

Learning to manage this stress while maintaining your performance on the job is the most important lesson to learn, and it is learned and re-learned on any job. No matter what job you’re in, focus on what you’re gaining from it; experience, knowledge, material reward and hopefully learning effective methods for dealing with the stress of working life.

The next important challenge is making and keeping to a plan. If you are in a job you do not want to stay in, having a plan to move your career on is crucial both for the career itself and for yourself.

Having something to keep you going, a proverbial light at the end of the long dark career tunnel, is incredibly important to keep yourself motivated. Whether it’s saving to go back to college and get another qualification, or saving up to emigrate or just having something to pay the bills while you apply for your dream job, have some idea of what direction you’re headed. Failing that, try to figure it all out. This is a chance to experience the working world and enjoy the novel experience of having some disposable income.

If you don’t know what you want long term, then at least determine what you like short-term.

The experience of your first hefty(ish) paycheck cashing in is

“

“The experience of your first hefty(ish) paycheck cashing in is a heady one.

You may like it so much you’ll start thinking about sticking with the current job and working on getting promoted, or finding something with a higher pay grade.”

a heady one. You may like it so much you’ll start thinking about sticking with the current job and working on getting promoted, or finding something with a higher pay grade. Your plans will change like that - this is exactly what the college/job transition is all about.

If you don’t know what you want to do, but know that you like having an income, then there’s your plan - increasing your income.

Having a plan, something you’re working towards is essential, because it means you are no longer just working for your employer; you are working for yourself. It means coming home exhausted but content knowing that you have moved a step closer to your goal. Every job, no matter how far from your chosen path in life, is a step on the way. Each day that you slog away at a job you never imagined you’d end up in is part of a bigger journey.

So don’t despair. No matter how far away your life goals seem, a plan and awareness of the benefits you can extract from where you are now in your life are the first steps towards them. No job or employment is totally useless to you; there are always experiences and mental skills to be gained. So, to finish on a suitably corny note, keep your chin up and your eyes on the prize. Student life may end after college, but young adulthood is only getting started.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Comment

Devil’s Advocate: Legalise drugs Stephen Stack makes the case for freeing the weed and all the other drugs.

L Stephen Stack Contributor

ast Tuesday night, Minister for State Alex White told the Dail that cannabis-based medical products are to be made available to the public. However, he added that “The Government has no plans to alter or repeal the current strict legal controls on cannabis and cannabis products in Ireland”.

What’s of most interest here is his reference to ‘strict legal controls’.

Let’s face it, finding some variety of ‘illicit substances’ simply is not a problem anymore for almost everyone reading this. Strict legal controls just aren’t really a thing when it comes to drugs. If it isn’t some ‘mate’ of yours who can deliver the goods, then you can just pop online to one of the many, many sites that have quickly risen to replace the Silkroad. The ‘war on drugs’ initiated by many states has simply failed to control consumption or supply of drugs. But now, rather than asking ‘how can we gain control of the drugs market?’, we should be asking whether we should even want to control it at all.

Why can’t our culture let people make their own rational decisions on whether or not they should take drugs? While I’m not trying to make the claim there aren’t people seriously harmed by drug abuse, I am going to say that lots of peoples’ lives have also been made a lot better by taking them.

People seem to have a pretty great time taking them. Being realistic most of those people won’t end up as a junkie living under a bridge.

While cannabis and cocaine, amphetamines and LSD probably do pose some sort of health risk (this is even quite debatable), whether physical or mental, so do loads of other things! Through consuming diets filled with red meat and junk food we’re probably all eating ourselves into early graves; there’s no doubt that the decisions we make in our love lives often cause massive amounts of damage to our mental health, and, sure, dodgy investment decisions tear many a life apart. But the common feature in all these things is risk. While we may live to regret all those decisions someday, maybe we won’t. When each

of you ask yourselves whether or not prohibition on drugs is ok, you have to ask yourself how much risk an individual should be allowed to take with their lives and livelihoods. Any reasonable answer to this question will be: a lot. We let people gamble, we let them enter the boxing ring, we let them jump out of planes and ride motorcycles, we even permit people to join the army and get shot at for money.

If you say that taking drugs is simply too risky a decision for someone to make, then you have to have a problem with a huge amount range of daily human activities. Fundamentally, we own our own bodies and if we’re not harming anyone else then we can do with them what we please. If someone decides that a happy life is going to be one with heroin in it, then that’s his or her decision.

But in most instances taking drugs isn’t even that risky at all!

We constantly are fed the same myths, bordering on propaganda, about drugs. I’m sure plenty of you have heard a tale about LSD forming crystals at the top of your spinal column and staying there for the rest of your life. But this is simply not true; LSD water soluble so won’t remain in your body.

Long-term cannabis use is less harmful than not getting enough exercise. Ecstasy is statistically less dangerous than horse riding. Yet still we’re told ‘drugs are too dangerous, they’re too risky’, and no one is willing to listen to anyone saying otherwise. This deliberate unwillingness to consider scientific evidence is illustrated by the firing of David Nutt from his role as British Drug advisor when he demonstrated that LSD and ecstasy aren’t dangerous.

Yet people still die taking these drugs that should be safe: seven youths died in Scotland taking pills last July, three men died from drug overdoses in Kinsale a year ago. But these people aren’t the victims of drugs, they’re the victims of prohibition. When we criminalise drugs we push them into the hands of unregulated producers who aren’t concerned with safety or quality. The unregulated

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“Drug prohibition is a relic of a religious and cultural landscape of Ireland that is no longer relevant to us. We’re paying money to do a shitty job of control and to ensure everyone gets unregulated and risky products.”

Illustration: Natalie Duda chemicals in what the seven Scottish youths thought was ecstasy is what killed them; the three men in Kinsale died from fake synthetic equivalents of MDMA and PMMA. These people were exercising a right that was theirs, and the government’s failure to substantiate that right is part of the reason why they are dead.

But it’s not just when people die from poor quality substances that the government has blood on its hands. Another crime is public education about drugs in Ireland which is, frankly, a joke. In the attempt to realise an ideal, drug free society we insulate the people who do decide to take drugs from any information that could help them treat substances responsibly. People are still puzzled about where exactly problems with drug abuse come from when they need look no further than our schools’ drug education which does little more than sit students down and tell them ‘drugs are dangerous kids so don’t take them ok!’. The equivalent of this policy can be found in the US where abstinence is taught as the only form of birth

control yet many act as if they are shocked and surprised at the rates of teenage pregnancy.

When we prohibit drugs and refuse to talk about them, we have to bear some of the responsibility when people abuse them: we’ve neglected to tell people ‘if you’re going to do drugs, don’t be stupid and here’s how you do it’. While ‘Drink-aware’ seems to be the buzzword for solving our alcohol problem, our society insists that telling people about safe drug use is dangerous. We can’t seriously educate people about the dangers of heroin if we refuse to talk about it. Over twenty seven per cent of Irish people have, at least once in their lives, tried an illegal substance, yet we haven’t provided a single one of them with any sort of drug use education. Prohibition is what leads us down the road to unhealthy abuse.

But even if you don’t buy any of this, then just consider the human cost that we inflict on others through prohibition. The battle raging over the control of the US drug supply has turned Mexico into a warzone and left

60,000 people dead since 2006.

Having survived two previous assassination attempts, Mayor of Tiquicheo, Maria Santos Gorrostieta, was executed for standing up to organised crime. The drug trade fuels FARC in Colombia and countless other terrorist organisations. Are we really willing to let so many people die and empower the organisations that are killing them for the sake of stopping others making decisions about their own lives?

Drug prohibition is a relic of a religious and cultural landscape of Ireland that is no longer relevant to us. We’re paying money to do a shitty job of control and to ensure everyone gets unregulated and risky products. We’re lining the pockets of the worst people around in order to restrict a basic right. Drug prohibition is stupid, it’s backwards, and it’s holding society back from taking a responsible attitude to something which inevitably will exist.

A Night in November – why the IFA is a barrier to peace and reconciliation Conor McGlynn ponders the IFA’s shooting down of the Taoiseac’s proposal and what it means for the divided communities of the North.

O Conor McGlynn Deputy Comment Editor

n 17th November 1993, almost exactly 20 years ago, Ireland played Northern Ireland in a World Cup qualifying match in Windsor Park in Belfast. The result was a 1:1 draw. The North failed to qualify from the group, while Jackie’s Army, the Republic of Ireland team led by Jack Charlton, went on to the World Cup finals in the USA. They made it as far as the Last 16, where they were finally knocked-out by the Netherlands.

Inspired by the encounter between North and South in Belfast, Marie Jones wrote the one-man stage play A Night in November, which opened the following year in West Belfast. The play follows Kenneth McCallister, a Protestant dole clerk in Belfast who has, in his own words, “cleanly discriminated” against Catholics his entire life. He takes pleasure in being accepted into the local golf club ahead of his Catholic boss, and in making Catholic claimants wait for long periods of time in his job.

The pivotal scene in the play takes place on the night in November of the Republic vs. Northern Ireland World Cup qualifier. At the match, which he attends with his father-in-law, Kenneth truly recognises for the first time the hatred and vitriol of the people there, the people in his community, towards the Republic’s team and the Catholic supporters; the sectarian chants of “dirty Fenian scum” and “Papish bastards”. This causes him to question his own identity as a Protestant in Northern Ireland. The play ends with Kenneth coming to terms with his dual identity, as a Protestant and an Irishman, and travelling to New York to support the Republic of Ireland at the 1994 World Cup. A Night in November was written in the midst of the Troubles, and it reflects the fraught, sectarian attitudes of the time. Much has changed in last 20 years. Fuelled by the peace process and the successes of power-sharing, progress has been made in bringing the communities in Northern Ireland together. The future promises to be brighter than anything that could have been hoped for in 1993. In sport, however, sectarian prejudices continue to make themselves felt. A recent semifinal between Linfield and Cliftonville for the County Antrim Shield, held in Windsor Park, the same venue as the World Cup qualifier 20 years before, was marred by sectarian chanting from both sets of fans. The chant-

ing was of such a character that Referee Hugh Carvill even had to request over the PA that the chanting stop.

In the wake of this incident, Sports Minister Carál Ní Chuilín called on the Irish Football Association (IFA) to take action to end sectarianism in the sport.

Chief Executive of the IFA Patrick Nelson, however, refused to even comment on the incident.

He did not make any indication of action that the IFA might take on such sectarian chanting either; he seems instead content to leave things as they are.

Sectarianism in Northern Ireland runs deep, and obviously no action taken by the IFA could take care of this issue once and for all.

However, as a sporting organisa-

tion which represents all sections of the community in Northern Ireland the IFA has a duty to take constructive steps to promote inclusion and equality, and to help put an end to sectarianism in its sport.

Another recent incident, however, suggests that the IFA is hostile to anything that might disrupt the status quo. Last week, Taoiseach Enda Kenny proposed the creation of an all-Ireland football team to play charity games against England on a bi-annual basis in Wembley and Croke Park.

Speaking at a sports reconciliation conference in Armagh, the Taoiseach suggested that the proceeds of the games could go to children’s hospitals both north and south of the border. Northern

Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness both reacted favourably to the proposal, recognising its merits in bringing the communities closer together through sport.

Compare this reaction to the attitudes of the football supporters in A Night in November, at a time when the two teams could barely even play against each other, never mind together. The favourable, albeit cautious, reaction to the Taoiseach’s proposal is a reflection of how much has been achieved over the past 20 years, and how a previously unthinkable proposition can now be openly considered by our political leaders. Having a team made up of players from both national

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Sectarianism in Northern Ireland runs deep, and obviously no action taken by the IFA could take care of this issue once and for all.

However, as a sporting organisation which represents all sections of the community in Northern Ireland the IFA has a duty to take constructive steps to promote inclusion and equality, and to help put an end to sectarianism in its sport.

teams could do immense good, and would be a real, positive step towards ending the sectarianism seen in Windsor Park last month.

Unfortunately, such an arrangement seems unlikely to materialise – not if Patrick Nelson of the IFA has his way. “That’s not going to be something that is on our radar. It has not been in the past and it won’t be in the future.”

This was his abrupt answer when questioned by journalists about the possibility of the all-Ireland match. Instead, he decided to focus on the issue of Northern Irish players declaring for the Republic, and expressed a wish to end this practice. He chose to reinforce barriers, rather than try to overcome them.

The attitude of Nelson towards the possibility of linking up with the Republic of Ireland team is reminiscent of the attitude of Kenneth McCallister’s father-inlaw towards the team in A Night in November. “Well let me tell you now, they may look like mere innocent football players but as far as I am concerned they are representing the IRA.” This fear, the fear of an unknown other that is easier to hate than to try and understand, is one of the greatest barriers to integration between different communities. Through inter-community events such as the Taoiseach’s charity match, such fears may, gradually, be overcome.

The Taoiseach’s proposal is not completely without precedent.

40 years ago, a team made up of players from North and South came together as the Shamrock Rovers XI to play a game against Brazil. On that team was Martin O’Neill, the new Northern Irish manager of the Republic. Small steps such as these can lead to lasting change in attitudes.

We must not underestimate the value of cross-border initiatives in sport. Football can be a source of common ground between the different communities, rather than a source of grievance and hatred. We cannot let people such as Patrick Nelson who react with hostility to the prospect of change stop these kinds of events going ahead. Northern Ireland must continue on the path to reconciliation. Only by embracing opportunities such as the Taoiseach’s charity match can progress be made towards ending the sectarian chanting that has been heard all too often at Windsor Park.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Comment

Callum Jenkins questions whether Gerrry Adams has been telling the truth

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What the Tom Lenihan debate says about Trinity William Foley questions the cosy consensus that stifles critical engagement with Trinity life..

O William Foley Comment Editor

n the Tuesday before reading week I was invited to speak in favour of Tom Lenihan’s impeachment at a debate in the Hist. I declined the offer. There were a number of reasons why I felt uncomfortable about speaking publicly in favour of his impeachment: my unease with the prospect of removing a man who struggled with depression from a position he’d taken a year out of college to take up, and my reservations about speaking in a public debate in the GMB when my only previous experiences had been a Maidens run that quickly fizzled out.

But there was one overwhelming factor which prevented me from donning my naff suit and putting on my best cultured accent for the Histies: cowardice.

I was, like many others, afraid to poke my head up above the parapet.

While I had not been following the impeachment campaign closely, I was well aware that the majority of the student body who were anyway interested in the referendum intended to “#StandByTom”. I had seen the unpleasant response of some to Alice Kinsella’s pro-impeachment article online where a commenter advised her to “take your crusading lily white witch hunt somewhere else”. So unwilling were people to draw upon themselves the collective ire of #TeamTom, that no-one had even stepped forward to manage the Yes campaign.

The No campaign, on the other hand, seemed determined to personalise the issue – the referendum would be about Tom and anyone who favoured his impeachment was a callous ogre, camping at the summit of High Moral Mount, lobbing gobs of spit down on mental health sufferers below.The Hist debate confirmed me in my suspicions. Tellingly, the pro-impeachment side could only muster three speakers, below the required amount for a parliamentary style debate, with audience members having to make impromptu speeches to prevent the debate from finishing early.

Throughout, there was an atmosphere of hostility towards those who favoured impeachment and

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“This is reflective of a certain sickness in Trinity society, a society which is already somewhat inoculated from the dull rigours of the “real world”. In its worst moments Trinity society can become a narcissistic echo chamber where pride becomes vanity, where altruism becomes selfgratification, and where the politics are personal and the personal is petty.”

the Yes side had to constantly fob off points of information from the floor. The No side spoke virtually unmolested.

Despite the attempts of the three pro-impeachment speakers – Eoin Silke, William Dunne and Brady Manning – to centre the debate on a matter of principle, rather than a matter of personality, the No siders, one of whom was an avowed lifelong friend of Lenihan, relentlessly personalised the debate. It was demanded of the Yes side, again and again, how they could seek to deliver such a humiliating blow to a man whose poor mental health had already become a matter of national media attention. In the end, the chair called for a vote. “All those in favour?” - a scattering of hands were raised tentatively in favour of impeachment. “All those against?” - a forest of arms shot up. The Hist voted to Stand

By Tom, as did the rest of college – the referendum was defeated by a margin of 20 percentage points.

It is not my intention to re-open the debate. A significant majority of students voted to keep Tom Lenihan in office, and that is where he should stay. This article, rather, is about the culture of student politics and student life in Trinity, a culture which stifles debate and dissuades dissent.

Out of the twelve thousand undergrads attending College, 2,730 voted in the referendum. It’s likely that even less than that actively took part in the general debate and discussion.

In reality, those active in “Trinity society” constitute a minority within in the student body. Most people are content to attend college, hang out with their friends, get their degrees and get out. We are a college divided where a passive majority views society life in general - and student politics in particular - with either apathy or antipathy.

The remainder – the Phisties who fill out the GMB’s auditorium every Wednesday and Thursday, the hacks who pen articles for the student publications, the thespians hamming it up in Players’ Theatre, the contemplative types who ponder the big problems at the

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“I count myself among the ranks of the guilty party.

I have focused far too much attention on addressing issues entirely abstracted from the experience of an average Trinity student … For example: someone recently told me that they were almost forced into becoming an escort so that they could remain in college. Why have I not written about that? Why has nobody written about that?”

Metafizz meetings, the treasurers and chairs and secretaries of the two hundred odd societies and clubs – these all constitute Trinity society. They comprise a small community where everyone is, at most, one degree removed from everyone else. Everyone is the friend of a friend – and if you’re SU president, then you have a lot of friends. So when a number of students began to question Tom’s credibility as president, the community closed ranks. As was natural, friends instinctively defended friends and the agenda was already set – either you stood

by Tom, or you were personally attacking him.

This is reflective of a certain sickness in Trinity society, a society which is already somewhat inoculated from the dull rigours of the “real world”. In its worst moments Trinity society can become a narcissistic echo chamber where pride becomes vanity, where altruism becomes self-gratification, and where the politics are personal and the personal is petty. We too often swap the tragicomedy of life for the farce of accidental satire. The monstrous hubris attached to certain Trinity events encourages many to view their own actions disproportionally. The saddest part is that many will see their delusions of grandeur realised when they graduate into the higher echelons of Irish and international society.

I count myself among the ranks of the guilty party. I have focused far too much attention on addressing issues entirely abstracted from the experience of an average Trinity student – I feel more at ease critiquing Western foreign policy towards Syria and constructing an abstract analysis of charity than I do dealing with issues that directly affect the average Trinity student. For example: someone recently told me that they were almost forced into becoming an escort so that they could remain in college. Why have I not written about that? Why has nobody written about that?

Don’t get me wrong; I stand by every article published in the Comment section of this, and every other issue for which

I have served as Comment editor.

In these pages, you will find engaging and original analyses on a panoply of difficult issues. This is testament to the rich seam of talent that veins the College community like a particularly sharp Stilton. It is vital that Trinity students engage with the wider world. But it’s also high time that we cast a colder eye on College life.

The Lenihan debate underlined the suffocating atmosphere that sometimes puffs its way up from the depths of College life like a noxious gas released from a split in the seabed. The Lenihan debate illustrated that we live in a somewhat unhealthy community.

This is not to exaggerate the damage done by this sickness. In the Grand Chain of Suffering, the problems with Trinity society lie fairly low down, well below hospital waiting queues, dole cuts and lobotomised pop music. There is much to take heart from – I have met, and continue to meet, fantastically talented and creative people who locate themselves both on the margins and in the core of the College community. Our institutions and societies have allowed countless students to excel. But many more are held back.

The fundamental problem is that Trinity society is too small and its conditions of membership are too restrictive; we are all pressed together cheek by jowl, with little or no space for a friendly dig, let alone room to swing a criticism. The very air we breathe has become stale; it passes too often through too few bodies. Our pool has stagnated. We need to direct new streams of people into College life.

Growth is a result of movement.

Movement is a result of conflict, of equal and opposite reactions.

It’s time to enlarge our social space and become more critically aware of it, while remaining grounded in the real terrain of human activity. Our slogan must be: neither navel nor star gazing.

I hope that, in future, you will see more critical engagement with College life in these pages and among the student body in general.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

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Comment

Is facebook a false reality?

W Alice Kinsella Staff Writer

Is facebook just another node in the VR matrix? Alice Kinsella ponders whether we prefer the comforts of illusion to the chill winds of the desert of the real. hen we go on Facebook, pick a “profiler” and put up a status, do we put up how we really feel, really look? Or do we put forward what we want others to see?

We use Facebook as a chance to convince ourselves and others that our lives are everything we want them to be. If what we portray is a fabricated life, then what part of what we do online is real? We have friends that we talk to online, but to what extent are those friendships real? If the majority of a friendship takes place online we are not seeing the real person and they are not seeing the real us. We are seeingonly the photos people want you to see. Only the fun aspects of their lives, only the person they want you to see.

Of course, it’s mainly people we know in real life that we speak to on Facebook, but using Facebook as the main means of interaction becomes an easy way to avoid face to face contact, doing away with the need to form real intimacies with our friends.

After all, how much can you truly bond with someone when you can’t exchange expressions, tones, and eye contact?

The lives we see people living on Facebook are not showing the whole picture. Is this what we try to compare ourselves too? Facebook generates FOMO

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“I went off Facebook for two months this summer. I discovered what I had been suspecting for a while. Facebook is addictive, and no, I could not quit any time I wanted to. “

(fear of missing out, yes, it’s a thing now). No matter how much you’ve been out that week, guaranteed you’ll go home for a night off with jammies and a mug of tea and you’ll see everyone is ‘attending’ some major event. It always looks like everyone’s lives are better. When you look at your page it doesn’t look so bad either really, but that’s different! Your page isn’t showing the fight you’re having with your girlfriend, or what you looked like when you got out of bed this morning, it’s not showing that 2.2 you got that you really thought deserved a first.

So why don’t we think everyone else is hiding similar things? We just don’t. It’s too easy to assume everyone else has it sorted, that their lives really are that care free. That it’s us that are falling behind. I look at my own Facebook page while I write this, my profiler is taken at a flattering angle, surrounded by friends, my cover photo has enough ‘likes’ to sooth my need for social validation, and I’ve popped up the odd link to a socially approved musician with witty selfdeprecating commentary.

Does this sum up my life? The profiler was taken on a night out when I spent far too much money and spent the night curled up feeling weepy at a friend’s flat.

But did I choose to put that part

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“Links, photos, likes. These things say little about the quality or happiness in a person’s life.

Yet we spend hours every day casually scrolling, liking stuff of people we deem likable enough, and judging ourselves for not being suitably validated.”

on the internet? Of course not!

Links, photos, likes. These things say little about the quality or happiness in a person’s life. Yet we spend hours every day casually scrolling, liking stuff of people we deem likable enough, and judging ourselves for not being suitably validated. Facebook takes up a large amount of my day, I am willing to admit. I like talking to people, I like having photos of myself and friends displayed so I can feel like I’m doing something with my life. Is this what’s best for me? Probably not.

I went off Facebook for two months this summer. I discovered what I had been suspecting for a while. Facebook is addictive, and no, I could not quit any time I wanted to. It was with much agitation and a finger twitching on empty space where my mouse used to be that I stayed off for that long. My brain at first felt light, distracted, like I was desperately missing something. But the longer I stayed off the better I felt. It was liberating, my self-esteem began to improve, I stopped worrying about whether or not I was talking to people enough or going out enough. I found more value in the face to face contact I was having with friends. I read more, spent more time with family, slept better. So why did I go back? Maybe Facebook is bad for me, but as

long as everyone I know is having this virtual life without me I’ll be damned if I’m going to be left outside in the cold! It’s so easy to just log back in, to be greeted by those inviting red icons reminding me that people know I exist.

Is there really anything wrong with that? Chatting online and creating an idealised avatar isn’t doing anyone any harm really.

Apart from ourselves that is. The hours drip away as we scroll down endlessly. We become addicted to the feeling we get from Facebook.

The exhilaration of the notification ‘bing’ that tells you someone likes something you have to say.

The facility to see how everyone else is doing in their lives; seeing if they’re doing better than you are; getting to look at our entire life on one little page and trying to see if we’re doing it right.

But Facebook isn’t our life. Not really. Every minute we’re online, trying to figure out what we’re doing with our lives, our actual, non-virtual lives go unnoticed.

As if how we look online is more important than how we look and feel to ourselves. The ultimate question we must ask ourselves every time we log on is this: are we really wasting our lives on Facebook?

Social Entrepreneurship is not the answer Keith Anthony O’Neill argues that social entrepreneurship comes from a good place but is not the answer to society’s problems

I Keith Anthony O’Neill Contributor

n Ireland, social entrepreneurship has skyrocketed in the past decade as more and more innovators and investors find that being labelled a social entrepreneur is a rather rewarding and fashionable badge of honour to wear. Many will defend social entrepreneurship, which indeed they have a right to do, but the sad reality is that social entrepreneurship will never uproot society’s ills. On the contrary in fact it only serves to consolidate them.

We’ve all seen the smug photograph: man in a blazer and shirt (no tie), top button open, grinning and holding a sign reading something on the lines of ‘I want to make a difference’. Frankly, I find it nauseating.

The seemingly obvious problem is that most people who identify as social entrepreneurs believe in the power of enterprise to order social affairs. However, the very ills of society that social entrepreneurs claim to be railing against are created in the first place by the very system that they propagate - it’s a zero sum game.

What is axiomatic and non-contentious is that liberal capitalism creates inequality. It is painfully clear to many that its very foundations rest upon the cruel ‘reality’ of scarcity. In order to create demand, one must have supply and we know that the two are fundamental to each other, and that its function stimulates com-

petition thus affecting price. Let’s face up to the economic reality that surrounds us then: within the market system, where social entrepreneurs do their good deeds, inequality will constantly, tirelessly, relentlessly, rear its head no matter how many silly innovation funds are thrown out at lavish receptions in listed buildings.

The problem here is inherently political. We live in a world where philanthropy and charity is promoted and celebrated, while other more structural and potentially beneficial changes in our society are lauded as ‘unrealistic’ or ‘idealistic’ or ‘nice in theory’. Meanwhile, the political elite in our society will commend the innovation and dedication and sheer brilliance of the social entrepreneur for his or her passion and drive for social change, not really changing very much. Is it just me who finds this deeply unsettling?

The tragedy of the whole situation is that social entrepreneurship, with all its potential pulling power and influence, serves to merely consolidate the discrepancies of the market that governs it. Look no further than Social Entrepreneurs Ireland (SEI) who are committed to supporting “innovative thinking and new solutions”, and do so by “providing these innovators with funding and support that they need to grow and flourish”, and as a result of this support “it has seen Ireland

change in fundamental ways.”

Where is this change, I wonder, that has been so fundamental?

I still see massive fundamental stagnations all around me, every day. I still see young people of all persuasions with no prospects of employment and self-fulfilment either forced into social welfare left with no option but to emigrate and to try and build a better future ‘over there’. I still see the wealth gap increasing with those in the top 1%, economically owning 28% (and growing) of the combined wealth in this country.

I still see government intent on implementing policies of austerity against its citizens, not contemplating increased tax rates for the highest earners in our society, crippling many households and forcing them to choose between buying new clothes for their children and paying an overdue heating bill. These are not choices that some of us in this university have to face, but they are choices that are very real, and very fundamental to our society as a whole. Meanwhile, the inequalities caused by the market are manufactured in new and more diverse ways, and the old ones are maintained and propagated in highly sophisticated structural mechanisms, through which they become institutionalised and normalised. To be fair to social enterprise, it is not the fault of social entrepreneurs. Social entre-

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“The seemingly obvious problem is that most people who identify as social entrepreneurs believe in the power of enterprise to order social affairs.”

preneurship is just a facet of the system that created it. Arguably, as a relatively young agency it has achieved considerable amounts, all things considered. There are some projects that have had genuine impacts on communities and lives that must be applauded.

However, one of the primary failures of Social Entrepreneurship, just as with mental health agencies, has been its lack of ability to span class boundaries by remaining, for the large part, a predominantly middle-class concept.

We don’t have to look further to the SEI awards that were held last week in Christ Church Cathedral to witness this exclusivity. It was a formal affair, with a keynote speech by President Michael D. Higgins. It is fair to assume that there were not too many attendees at the awards who were longterm residents of the Liberties, a working-class stronghold for the previous four hundred years located just meters up the road.

The point here is this: social entrepreneurship in itself is an elitist endeavour, but that’s precisely what keeps its wheels in motion.

The brilliant minds that operate within its arena are those who are already in and of the system that leads them, and they are often therefore unwilling to contemplate altering that system. The tragedy lies between their potential and their ability. Make no mistake about it; the men and women

who are passionate for change are some of the smartest and most capable minds that we have. But their ability to implement change that one may label as fundamental is outside the realms of possibility once the forces which are driving this change are being watched over by a system which places corporate interests at the top of its priority list. All one has to do is look at the list of corporate sponsors who support SEI and it becomes apparent – J.P Morgan Chase, Ulster Bank, KPMG, Diageo, A&L Goodbody, Vodafone; all loyal sponsors of this supposed force for fundamental change.

One must ask: where do their interests lie?

Until there is genuine, non-corporate, structural change at the heart of social entrepreneurship, and until there is change that we can say with conviction is truly fundamental, I will remain highly cynical.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Sive Finlay reviews the current exhibition at the Science Gallery, ‘Grow Your Own.’

Comment

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Gerrymandered Is Gerry Adams telling the whole truth about his involvement with the McConville murder and his connections to the IRA? Callum Jenkins plumbs the murky depths of the Troubles.

I Callum Jenkins Staff Writer

t is a difficult time for Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams. His brother Liam has been found guilty of rape against his own daughter, and questions have been asked about how much Gerry Adams knew about his brother’s actions and, if he did know, why he didn’t do anything about it.

While this has been damaging to Sinn Fein’s leader, it is something from further in Adams past that is causing real controversy. Ever since the recent BBC documentary on the ‘disappeared’ Adams has been on the defensive over his past. While the documentary came out with no new evidence, it does raise the question of why Adams will not come clean about his past.

If there is a hierarchy of victims of the Troubles, then right at the top are the 16 people abducted, murdered and secretly buried by Republicans (15 by the PIRA and 1 by the INLA). Even amongst these 16 victims there is one that stands out above the rest. That is the case of Jean McConville.

Jean McConville was abducted and murdered in 1972, leaving behind ten children. Her body wasn’t found until a walker discovered it on Shelling Hill beach in 2003. At first the IRA denied any involvement in the killing, before later claiming she was acting as an informant for the British. The Police Ombudsman in Northern Ireland, Nuala O’Loan, found in 2006 that there was no evidence to suggest she had any involvement with any intelligence gathering organisations.

Jean McConville’s family tell a very different story. They say she was murdered because she had tended to a wounded soldier outside her home. Regardless, it is clear that McConville as an outsider in a tightknit community surely . While she was married to a catholic (who was dead at the time of her murder), she was herself a protestant living in the heart of Republican West Belfast, in the Divis Flats.

Where does Gerry Adams fit into this story? He has always maintained he was never a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA). But many believe that the available evidence all belies this claim. The BBC documentary featured a recorded interview of former senior IRA commander (and one time close ally of Adams) Brendan Hughes, who was very clear there was only one man who could have ordered the murder. Hughes is now dead and his interview is part of the Boston College oral history project, with a number of figures from different paramilitary groups taping interviews to be released upon their death. Hughes not only says that Adams ordered the murder of Jean McConville, but he is also very clear that Adams was the IRA’s commander in Belfast at the time.

Hughes is not alone. The documentary also featured an interview with Billy McKee, one of the founding members of the PIRA and a former commander of the terrorist organisation in Belfast.

He challenged Adams to look

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“Could any political party potentially enter a coalition government with Sinn Fein while Adams is still their leader? This is a question that the party has to answer before the next election, where they may well hold the balance of power.”

him in the eye and tell him that he was never involved in the IRA, leaving the clear impression that he believed that Adams had been involved in the 1970s.

Dolours Price, another senior IRA figure, also had a story to tell before her death earlier this year.

Price, along with others including senior Sinn Fein member (and close ally of Adams) Gerry Kelly, were convicted of the bombing of the Old Bailey in 1973. It has been alleged that she was part of a special hit squad who took orders directly from Adams, and which may have been involved in the murder of Jean McConville.

Price alleges that Adams was not only a senior member of the IRA, but that he was also the man who gave the order to kill Jean McConville.

Adams has always repeatedly asserted that he had “no act or part” in the abduction and murder and that and that his accusers have been “telling lies”. When Jean McConville’s case was generating pressure from Sinn Fein’s American backers during the 1990s he told the family how glad he was to have been interned at the time of the murder so therefore not linked to it. Adams was not interned until March, while the murder occurred in December. I suspect that he knows when he was interned, but only he knows whether or not he was consciously lying.

It has never been made clear what motive former IRA militants had in making such accusations against Adams, nor has it

been established in a court of law that Adams had anything to do with the McConville killing.

The controversy around this particular aspect of Adams’ past has caused him considerable political damage. Taoiseach Enda Kenny has previously challenged him to come clean over his involvement in the murder. Kenny has also accused Adams of having not only been a member of the IRA but a member of its leadership group, the Army Council. Could this be the reason that Martin McGuinness stood in the last Irish Presidential election instead of Adams?

While McGuinness is a former senior IRA member himself, he has admitted involvement as part of the Saville Inquiry into Bloody Sunday. Could any political party potentially enter a coalition government with Sinn Fein while Adams is still their leader? This is a question that the party has to answer before the next election, where they may well hold the balance of power.

Jean McConville’s murder is indicative of a greater problem for Adams. Very few people genuinely believe that he had no involvement with the IRA during the Troubles. The British government certainly believed he was, interning him as a member in 1972 and then releasing him to negotiate as a senior IRA member, which continued on and off until the Good Friday Agreement.

Adams has always called the allegations against him lies and libel, but he has never tried to prove this in court. I think we can take

an educated guess as to why he is wary of publicly testing his innocence.

What the former MP for West Belfast did in the past is very important, especially due to his party’s demand for a truth and reconciliation commission to deal with the Troubles. If Sinn Féin’s leader isn’t perceived as being fully honest about his activities during the troubles, how can they expect anyone else to be?

The past is always controversial, no more so than in Northern Ireland. It is said that history is written by the winners, but no one ‘won’ the Troubles. There is no accepted narrative about what really happened; every side and subsection has their own version – as do I. There is no way that Northern Ireland can break away from the sectarianism that still mars it to this day, without dealing with the past in some way.

The problems with doing this are perfectly illustrated by the McConville case and Adams’ reluctance to discuss his past.

It is the time for the truth about the Troubles to be established.

Adams claims to be a leader of Northern Ireland; it is time for him to lead by example. There is only one way to do this, and that is to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth about his own past and about the events surrounding the Jean McConville’s murder.

250 years of Wolfe Tone Cassandra Murtagh, secretary of the Wolfe Tone Cumann, examines the historical significance of one of College’s most rebellious alumni.

T Cassandra Murtagh Contributor

his year marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Theobald Wolfe Tone. It seems fitting at this historical juncture to reflect on the transcendent appeal of one of Ireland’s first republicans.

Wolfe Tone was born on June 20th 1763 into a Church of Ireland household and was raised near Sallins Co. Kildare. He went onto study law in Trinity and exhibited a talent for oration becoming auditor of the Hist in 1785. Wolfe Tone left Trinity and found himself in a similar position to many modern students: jobless and uncertain about the future. Showing no interest in law, Wolfe Tone decided to immigrate to London and soon became a member of the fashionable set; drinking, gambling and engaging in all the debauchery a twenty-something in Georgian London could hope for. In London he distinguished himself as a social commentator and political analyst writing articles and essays for various newspapers. After publishing a pamphlet entitled An Argument on Behalf of Catholics in 1791 he came to the attention of the Catholic Committee in Dublin who of-

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“Wolfe Tone left Trinity and found himself in a similar position to many modern students: jobless and uncertain about the future.

Showing no interest in law, Wolfe Tone decided to immigrate to London.”

fered him the position of assistant secretary for the princely wage of £200 a year.

He returned to Ireland and the transformation of Wolfe Tone into the heroic republican he is known as today began. It is entirely likely at the time of his publication of An Argument on Behalf of Catholics he was not intimately acquainted with any Catholics and perhaps not fully aware of the plight of his Catholic co-patriots. However his involvement with the Catholic Committee rapidly altered that. In October of 1791, Wolfe Tone came together with William Drennan and other notable individuals with the goal of establishing of a group for the propagation of the in-vogue enlightenment ideals: the United Irishmen. This was a rather tumultuous period in European history in which many continental monarch were dethroned, dispossessed and decapitated. As such, the creation of an organisation with liberal constitutional aims was not something the establishment in Westminster was in favour of.

As the 1790s wore on, with Tone

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“Theobald Wolfe Tone’s connection to Trinity and republicanism is remembered in Trinity today where the Fianna Fáil campus cumann is his proud namesake.”

at the helm of this movement, the United Irishmen became more radicalised as it became apparent that their desire for universal suffrage would not be achieved by parliamentary means. Tone was sent to France to rally an army which would rid Ireland of its colonial oppressor. But a violent storm scuppered the first invasion attempt in 1796. Nevertheless, by early 1797 the membership of the United Irishmen was over 300,000 and the atmosphere in the country was ripe for rebellion.

The following year the uprising finally took place and Wolfe Tone travelled yet again from France to Ireland, landing at Lough Swilly. However, before the 3,000 Frenchmen Tone had sailed with had a chance to properly engage the English army, the uprising was quashed and Tone, spurning a chance to escape, was taken prisoner. At his court martial Tone openly revealed his hostility towards England and remained steadfast in his determination to secure separation between the two countries. When his death sentence was handed down, Tone

did not break down and cry for mercy but instead demanded to be treated with the respect his status as an adjunct general in the French army afforded him and to be executed by firing squad. This request was denied and Tone took matters into his own hands. He failed, however, in his attempt to swiftly end his own life and suffered on for a number of days before succumbing to his injuries on 19 November 1798.

His death and that of his fellow United Irishmen were not in vain; spurring on generation after generation of republicans.

Finally, in 1949, Wolfe Tone’s desire “to unite Protestant, Catholic and Dissenter under the common name of Irishmen in order break the connection with England” was achieved. Theobald Wolfe Tone’s connection to Trinity and republicanism is remembered in Trinity to this day where the Fianna Fáil campus cumann is his proud namesake.

Tuesday 19th November 2013

TRINITY NEWS

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Science

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Science in Brief Gavin Kenny

Is post-publication peer-reviewing the way forward for science?

Traditionally, scientific research undergoes the straightforward process of peer-review prior to publication. Here, scientists submit their work to a journal’s editor who passes the material on to a number of the researchers’ peers. These people then decide whether the science is valid and thus, whether the work should be published or not. Recently, however, this peer-review process has been coming under pressure as its failings garner more and more publicity. Specifically, a growing number of people are pushing for a systematic means for post-publication commenting. While blogs and rising social media platforms

like twitter offer a space for critical review of scientific publications, they are far from ideal and comments and reviews are not easily available to the next person to come across the published paper. With this in mind, PubMed – a widely used database of medicine-related publications – launched one of the first centralised forums where researchers can write comments on scientific papers as well as read what others have to say. The cover article of the 19th October 2013 issue of the Economist provides a relevant reflection: “Scientific research has changed the world. Now it needs to change itself.”

First ever piece of a comet found on Earth

Grow your own wonder and scepticism at the Science Gallery

Sive Finlay guides us through the ups and downs of the Science Gallery’s latest installation: “Grow Your Own…”

T Sive Finlay Staff Writer

he Science Gallery’s new exhibition, “Grow Your Own…” invites us into the world of synthetic biology, an emerging field of research that challenges our perceptions of how we can design and manipulate living organisms.

The exhibition informs and inspires visitors about a research field that, although still in its infancy, has the potential to truly change the way we live. It is also an intentionally provocative work that challenges visitors to consider the potential issues and implications that may arise from a world replete with designed, living machines.

Some of the displays are particularly striking. It’s hard to ignore a technicolour arrangement of faeces models so “E. chromi” certainly grabs your attention.

The piece imagines a use for E coli bacteria that have been genetically engineered to produce coloured pigments when they detect spoiled food, toxins or even markers of disease. Imagine eating yoghurt infused with these engineered bacteria that would then keep watch for toxins or chemical markers of disease, announcing their findings by modifying the colour of your faeces.

So, with such technologies, health check screens could be replaced by an increased interest in the colour and composition of your poo…

“Stranger visions” is certainly one of the most arresting exhibits.

Using discarded cigarette butts,

DNA samples were extracted, amplified and characterised to find a genetic profile of the mystery smoker. Genetic markers of ethnicity, gender, hair, eye and skin colour were used to produce 3D models of faces that fit those profiles. The resulting masks aren’t intended to be accurate representations of the real individuals but they are intriguing examples of future applications of forensic science. Perhaps every CSI police sketcher will be replaced by a DNA sequencer and a 3D printer.

It is also a bit unsettling to think of how much information could be extracted from every coffee cup, hair or used fork that we leave behind…

The installations are the products of collaborative works between biologists, artists, engineers and designers and therefore often reflect speculative projections of the future rather than realistic prototype ideas for new technologies. While I recognise this integrative approach, I think the distinction between scientifically probable ideas and purely fictional artistic statements could be made clearer.

“All that I am” is one such speculative piece with an eye on pop-cultural appeal. Using DNA samples extracted from Elvis’s hair, mice were genetically modified to include DNA sequences linked to behavioural traits such as sociability, addiction and obesity. The piece proposes that these mice could be subjected to

tests to determine whether their Elvis DNA makes them behave like the King. One testing environment has a distorted mirror to give the mouse a “false sense of self-importance”, simulating the effects of fame while another has a sloped treadmill on which the mouse runs until it falls off, representing Elvis’s fast-paced life before his death. The display makes its speculative nature clear (rest-assured that no mice are currently staring into mirrors) and poses some interesting questions about the interplay between nature and nurture in determining behaviour and whether we have the right to use someone’s DNA. However, while certainly attention grabbing, I think the piece is dangerous in its suggested simplicity. There are no genetic formulae for behaving like Elvis or any other individual and no amount of distorted mirrors could possibly emulate the vagaries and behavioural pressures of fame.

“I wanna deliver a dolphin…” upsets me to the very core of my zoologist’s being. Depicting a model of a woman pregnant with a dolphin, the installation imagines a world where humans could donate their reproductive capabilities to saving endangered species or even give birth to their own animal food sources. Aside from the certain impossibility of a human ever carrying an aquatic mammalian foetus, I think the piece gives dangerous ammuni-

tion to those who see genetic manipulation as examples of mad scientists wanting to create their own Frankensteins. Rather than inspiring or promoting a sense of wonder for the possibilities of synthetic biology, I think the work does the exhibition a disservice by veering towards the realms of the ridiculous and detracting from the legitimate scientific proposals behind some of the other ideas.

I was also disappointed by the scant interpretative information accompanying many of the pieces. Some of the displays only make sense with further explanation from one of the friendly members of staff – all of whom are very approachable and knowledgeable but I would still prefer if this extra interaction were a choice rather than a necessity.

The intriguing, exciting and sometimes upsetting ideas which “Grow Your Own…” raises are certainly worth the visit and serve their purpose of parachuting synthetic biology into the public consciousness. I would, however, advise visitors to bring along a healthy amount of scepticism and to view many of the pieces as speculative, provocative artistic statements under-pinned by varying degrees of scientific probability rather than realistic prototypes for a futuristic, synthetic world.

“Grow Your Own…” runs at the Science Gallery until 19th January 2014. Admission is free.

A team of researchers claim to have discovered the very first piece of a comet ever found on the Earth’s surface. Unlike meteorites, which are chunks of rock that flew through Space before striking the Earth, comets are composed mostly of ice, frozen compounds such as carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, as well as some rock and dust material – basically, imagine a dirty snowball. Also unlike meteorites – which, although rare, are periodically discovered on the Earth’s surface – never before has a confirmed piece of comet been found. The lead author of the paper published this month in Earth and Planetary Science Let-

ters, Jan Kramers of the University of Johannesburg, described the moment they eliminated all other options, and came to the realisation of what the unusual small black stone named “Hypatia” must be, as “scientific euphoria”. The team propose that a comet, from which this piece of debris is derived, exploded above southwest Egypt 28.5 million years ago and produced the enigmatic “Libyan Desert Glass” – a huge field of peculiar glass stones even admired by the Ancient Egyptians and incorporated into the treasures of Tutankhamun (see image of pectoral featuring yellow scarab carved from Libyan Desert Glass).

Hallucinogens: cause or cure of mental illness?

Dylan Lynch explores the novel but potential powerfully use of hallucinogenic drugs in treating mental illnesses such as depression.

Dylan Lynch Staff Writer

H

allucinogenic drugs, such as ‘magic mushrooms’, have often been associated with the onset of various mental illnesses. However, recent studies have shown that hallucinogens may not cause mental health disorders at all, but can be used to effectively treat chronic sufferers of diseases such as depression and anxiety. Unfortunately, due to strict substance control laws, it is near impossible for any considerable research to be carried out on these compounds.

One compound in particular, which is a Schedule 1 or ‘Class A’ drug and highly illegal to possess, is lysergic acid diethylamide or LSD-25. This compound has been wrongly tied to depression for many years, but is a promising candidate for treating alcoholism.

Last August, Norwegian scientists Pål-Ørjan Johansen and Teri Krebs carried out six randomized trials to test the theory that LSD could be used to treat alcoholism. In a group of 536 adults who were given a single dose of LSD, 59% either greatly cut back their drinking, or quit entirely over the following months. Only eight cases of adverse side effects were recorded. Many of the patients reported that the reason they beat their addiction was because the ‘trip’ from the LSD helped them connect with their inner self and explore the problems that may have led to their alcoholism in the first place.

Another infamous hallucinogen with surprising medical uses is the ‘magic mushroom’; name-

ly, the Psilocybe group. These ‘shrooms’ have been used to treat all manner of mental illnesses from chronic depression to severe anxiety in terminal cancer patients. In 2011, 12 late-stage terminal cancer patients were given either a pure dose of psilocybin (the psychoactive part of magic mushrooms), or a placebo where they were given a vitamin. These patients had long suffered with depression due to their disease, and all other medications (antidepressants, etc) had failed.

Remarkably, those patients who had been dosed with psilocybin reported lower levels of anxiety over the next three months, and reduced levels of depression for up to six months after the dose. This is mostly due to how the psilocybin molecule is broken down in the body. Psilocybin, through a complex pathway in the body, is metabolised to serotonin, the ‘mood molecule’, which controls appetite, sleep and mood elevation. Psilocybin mushrooms have also proven effective at treating tobacco and alcohol addictions, however these studies are just beginning.

As hallucinogens are classed as illegal drugs in almost every first world country, it has proven quite difficult for this particular science to advance. Theoretical and experimental research is currently being carried out all over the globe into separating the psychoactive compounds into their useful therapeutic parts, so that the dangerous hallucination-inducing compounds can be

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“Patients dosed with psilocybin reported lower levels of anxiety over the next three months, and reduced levels of depression for up to six months.” removed and discarded. Most research teams will not be licensed to experiment unless all psychoactive properties are completely destroyed, which proves to be extremely costly and time consuming. We have to ask ourselves, should we relax our laws to further scientific endeavour, or is the risk of drug abuse too dangerous?

David Nutt, president of the British Neuroscience Association, said earlier this year: “we live in a world of insanity in terms of regulating drugs”. He also stated at a conference in London last April: “though researchers have received funding and approval from an ethics board, legal requirements of pharmaceutical

companies have stalled the project”. At the conference, Nutt also described regulatory authorities in Britain and Europe as having a “primitive, old-fashioned attitude that Schedule 1 drugs could never have therapeutic potential”. While governments are still investigating methods of using psychedelics as a form of weaponry, widespread pharmaceutical licenses seem to be as elusive as ever.

Some countries are beginning to encourage clinical trials involving psychedelic drugs as a therapeutic approach to addiction and chronic mental illness. The substance control laws in New Zealand, for example, have recently been tweaked so that doctors can begin using a naturally occurring hallucinogen native to Africa called ‘ibogaine’ to treat methamphetamine addiction. Other countries, such as Brazil are beginning to follow suit, with ethics boards finally giving the go ahead for human testing.

So we must ask ourselves a question: are the research and therapeutic possibilities of these mind-altering drugs worth a change in substance control laws, or is the risk of abuse and theft too great? Without any doubt, in the wrong hands these psychedelic drugs can ruin lives and destroy relationships. But in the right hands, those of researchers, pharmacists and qualified doctors, should we really overlook the possibilities of effective chronic mental illness therapies and possible cures?

India’s martian explorer facing problems India has become the latest nation to launch an unmanned space exploration mission to Mars but is quickly learning why over half of the forty or so attempted missions to the Red Planet have ended in failure. The Mars Orbiter Mission, known informally as Mangalyaan (Mars-craft), was successfully launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on the subcontinent’s east coast earlier this month. However, Mangalyaan was less than a week into its 10-month journey before hit-

ting its first snag as it attempted to raise its orbit around Earth. If the Indian Space Research Organisation can successfully guide its craft to Mars and join the US, Russia and Europe as the few to reach the current vogue planet it will surely propel the nation’s space program beyond region rival China. One of the principal aims of the mission is to study methane in the Martian atmosphere and whether this could have a biological source.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Science

19

Irish hurricanes, landslides and tsunamis: A frightening forecast As the sun sets on a summer to remember, Ailis O’Carroll considers the extremes of the Irish climate.

A Ailis O’Carroll Contributor

sked to picture Irish weather, a dull and depressing image of the rainclouds that have so recently began to fill our skies, signaling the end of our glorious summer, would most probably fill the majority of Irish minds. Some of the more optimistic among you may picture the unbelievable days we had this summer on Irish, yes Irish, beaches; the white sands, magnificent clear blue skies and the amazing shades of pink and red Irish bodies. However, I would be sure that next to none of you would picture a tsunami or hurricane. Our little island is thankfully protected, far removed from the closest tectonic boundary in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and most climatic extremes. But are reports of ‘freak weather’ being recorded more and more frequently? Headlines such as “Sea tornado in Bray”, “Twister in Donegal” and, just last month, “Cyclone in Galway” cover front pages. These words all sound very foreign and the more we hear them mixed with headlines such as “freak weather” and other apocalyptic talk, the more we believe that this is another new weapon that increased global warming has unleashed on us. Looking back across the centuries, however, reveals a different story.

Storms and hurricane force wind gusts of over 50 knots (1 knot = 1.85 km/h) have been felt by the west of Ireland and all across the country throughout the past century with Hurricane Katia two years ago and more famously, Hurricane Charley which hit Ireland on 25th August 1986 with devastating effects. Winds of 105 km/h and rainfall peaking at 280 mm in Kippure resulted in the breaking of daily rainfall records and dangerous flooding, inundating over 450 buildings.

In Bray, the River Dargle overflowed, flooding some areas with almost two metres of water, leading to the evacuation of 1,000 people. During this storm at least five people were killed and IR£ 6,449,000 (¤8,250,000) was allocated to repairs.

Those who remember back to 1969 will argue that Hurricane Debbie was even more devastating. These storms are usually the tail end of larger storms that have hit the United States or further afield but what we should really

be worried about are European windstorms. These are the strongest extratropical cyclones which arise in Europe in association with areas of low atmospheric pressure coming across the North Atlantic Ocean and into western Europe invading countries such as Ireland, the UK, Norway and Iceland, resulting in ¤1.9 billion worth of damage per year. Such a storm our grandparents could not even tell us about but there is evidence that their own parents would have a story or two to tell of ‘The Night of the Big Wind’ or ‘Oídhche na Gaoithe Móire’. Tales of a category three hurricane that swept over Ireland on the night of 6th January 1839, causing the deaths of over 300 people in Ireland with thousands left homeless. A deep Atlantic low-pressure system began colliding with a warm front as it was moving across the country. Many of the deaths were caused by infernos as thatched roofs were ripped off by the winds and caught fire in the hearths below.

As if the thought of devastating hurricanes and the resulting infernos were not terrifying enough, our island is not immune to other natural disasters. We are used to seeing the horrifying images of Indian and Asian landslides but we rarely worry about the devastating landslides that occur in all areas of our country, especially those covered in peat, and subject to periodic heavy rainfall. The most lethal landslide on record killed 21 people at Castleguard, Co Limerick in 1708. Records from the time state: “The bog moved along a valley and buried three houses, which at the time contained about 21 people. The landslide was a mile long, a quarter mile broad and 20 feet in depth in some parts”.

These dangerous landslides are not restricted to our island’s past as evidenced by the destruction caused at Pollatomish, Co Mayo in September 2003. The apocalyptic list grows; along with hurricanes, storms and landslides, earthquakes are added. Images of the Spire in Dublin shaking and buildings collapsing along O’Connell street due to Irish tectonic plate movement will never be seen due to our position away from active plate activity but that does not mean we are immune.

On the 25th August 2013 two

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“Those who remember back to 1969 will argue that Hurricane Debbie was even more devastating.

These storms are usually the tail end of larger storms that have hit the United States or further afield but what we should really be worried about are European windstorms.”

Illustration: Natalie Duda earthquakes were recorded in the Irish Sea off the English coast.

The tremors from this magnitude 3.3 shake were felt along the Irish coast and a magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck on the morning of 29th May 2013 with even greater power. However, the magnitude of these tremors is not enough to cause significant land damage or a tsunami. Yet, the past has taught us never to feel completely safe. In 1755, four hours after the Lisbon earthquake, a three metre high tsunami hit Cornwall in England. The 19th century French writer, Arnold Boscowitz, claimed that “great loss of life and property occurred upon the coasts of Cornwall”. This tsunami did not leave us Irish alone, reaching Galway, at a height of two metres, causing devastating damage to the “Spanish Arch” section of the city wall.

Reconstructing past climatic conditions and weather extremes can be a taxing occupation but with the help of one of the oldest bodies of written literature of

any European country, climatologists’ jobs were made a great deal easier. The major local, national and international meteorological events were recorded by the educated elite in Ireland in the Irish annals.

The extreme weather events of 535–536 were the most severe and extensive examples of cooling in the Northern Hemisphere in the last 2,000 years, resulting in widespread unseasonal weather, crop failures, and famine. The Annals of Ulster tell of “A failure of bread in the year 536 AD” with the Annals of Inisfallen mirroring this. There has been much debate over the cause of these events but all agree that it was due to ash/ dust filling the sky and blocking the sun; whether after the impact of a meteorite or a volcanic eruption is still debated. Dendrochronologist Prof Mike Baillie of Queen’s University Belfast has studied the poor growth in Irish oak in 536 and again in 542, and cores of ice from Greenland have been studied due to their abnor-

mally high sulfate deposits in the same period of time, all of which give scientific support the Annals’ claims. “It’s clear that the scribes of the Irish Annals were diligent reports of severe cold weather, most probably because of the negative impacts this had on society and the biosphere,” said Dr Francis Ludlow of Harvard University, a former lecturer in Trinity. The injection of sulphur dioxide gas into the stratosphere after a volcano erupts or after a meteorite strikes effects the world as a whole, Ireland included.

It is clear that these events are not “freak” occurrences but completely “natural” disasters and here in Ireland we are not immune to them. Meteorites do shower, earthquakes do shake, hurricanes do sweep, landslides do flow, floods do inundate and tsunamis do hit. One of these days we will feel the full force of nature. Until then, perhaps, we shouldn’t moan about the odd spot of rain...

Loner planets and a one-way ticket to Mars Patrick Hull brings us on a rollercoaster tour of Space, stopping off at rogue planet with no sun and touching down on the surface of Mars – with no prospect of return.

“A Patrick Hull Contributor

lone! I’m alone! I’m a lonely insignificant speck on a has-been planet orbited by a cold, indifferent sun!” – Homer Simpson.

Looking up into the sky at night, it can sometimes be difficult to comprehend how lonely and empty space really is. On a clear night the darkness will be punctured by millions of tiny pinpricks of light, signifying planets and stars that seem just a stone’s throw from each other, and the universe seems relatively lacking in this eponymous ‘space’. The reality is somewhat different. As Bill Bryson puts it in ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything’, if you were to draw a scale diagram with ‘the Earth reduced to the diameter of a pea, Jupiter would be over 300 metres away and Pluto would be two and a half kilometres distant.’ The separation between Earth and our next closest star to the Sun, Proxima Centauri, is 40 trillion kilometres. Space is uncompromisingly vast and almost unimaginably void.

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“Imagining ‘the Earth reduced to the diameter of a pea, Jupiter would be over 300 metres away and Pluto would be two and a half kilometres distant’ – Bill Bryson ”

Earlier this year, astronomers at the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii made a discovery to further reinforce this point. They uncovered a planet, with the rather functional name of PSO J318.522, located a ‘mere’ 80 light years from Earth (a light year being the distance that a beam of light would travel through space in a year – just under 9.5 trillion kilometres). The discovery of a planet outside the solar system, otherwise known as an exoplanet, is not in itself remarkable as almost a thousand of these have previously been discovered. What makes PSO J318.5-22 special is that despite its unromantic name, it has a much more mysterious nature.

The planet is the first rogue planet ever to be directly imaged.

Most planets orbit a central star in a fixed celestial dance, the steps of which were mapped out by Johannes Kepler and Isaac Newton in the 17th century. Rogue planets have no such constraints; they

are the outcasts of the universe and are free to wander, orbiting the galaxy directly. A list of names by which they are also known conveys the poetic, loner nature of this kind of stellar body – nomad planet, free-floating planet, orphan planet – and an artist’s impression of the planet shows an eerie purple ball suspended against a myriad of distant stars.

The word science comes from the Latin scientia, meaning ‘knowledge’ and space exploration is perhaps one of the best examples of pure science that exists. Studying a planet that is light years away is very unlikely to bring any practical benefits to lives here on our own planet, but is instead the pursuit of knowledge for the sake of knowledge.

Examining the universe is also a way of trying to give humanity a place in the wider scheme of things; a role whose significance has diminished as the centuries have passed, falling from being the centre of everything under

Illustration: Natalie Duda

the Ptolemaic geocentric model, to being just one of many planets under the Copernican heliocentric model, to being just one planet in one solar system in one of the billions of galaxies that makes up the universe by today’s thinking.

Along with the philosophical and existential questions thrown up, space exploration, like many other kinds of exploration, seems to bring out people’s most enterprising and daring nature. The dangers were apparent from very early on – Galileo died under house arrest for advocating the Copernican model of the universe. Later space pioneers such as Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space; Alexey Leonov, the first man to perform a space walk; and Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, the first humans on the Moon, risked their lives to push the frontiers of human experience and literally open up new worlds to research and discovery. Often it involves overcoming normal sensibilities about the realities of travelling beyond one’s own planet. In the words of astronaut John Young, “anyone who sits on top of the largest hydrogen-oxygen fuelled system in the world, knowing they’re going to light the bottom, and doesn’t get a little worried, does not fully understand the situation.”

This is the kind of spirit that the Mars One Foundation hopes to channel. The project kicked up a media storm when in April of this year it began looking for applicants to become the first human settlers on Mars. When the first application window closed on 9th September, over 200,000 people from 140 countries had applied. According to the mission statement posted on its website, “the Mars One Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that will establish a permanent human settlement on Mars in 2023.” Given that this is another chance for humans to cross previously unimagined boundaries, the number of applicants does not seem extraordinarily high. However, the Mars One Foundation has made it clear from the start that this will be a one-way trip, meaning that 200,000 people are prepared to turn their back on their families, countries and entire way of life to be a part of this project.

The Guardian published a se-

lection of interviews with applicants who laid out their reasons for applying. Erica Meszaros reiterated the pioneering drive behind her own application, saying “I want to see the sun rise over a completely new horizon, in a completely new sky. I think that’s worth any price. To me, the desire to explore a new world, a planet completely different from the one that every person who has ever lived has ever known, is intrinsic and essential to the human spirit.” Josh Richards highlighted the overall potential benefits, saying “I see it as the opportunity it is – an amazing chance to serve all of humanity by taking part in a project that will inspire generations to come. This isn’t about what we might leave behind: it’s about the potential for breathtaking scientific discoveries and to recognise our species’ incredible potential if we simply work together.”

Understandably, high levels of scepticism surround the Mars One mission, despite the Foundation’s claims that “the science and technology required to place humans on Mars exists today”. The ability of technology to hold up under the harsh Martian conditions, the existence of adequate levels of funding and, most importantly, the ability of humans to deal with the isolation and fundamentally different lifestyle have all been called into question.

It is a project unrivalled in terms of ambition, unmatched even by the original Apollo missions.

Whether or not humans make it to Mars by 2023, it is certain that we will continue to make new discoveries. Despite an interest in the heavens that stretches back to the dawn of humanity, it seems that the cosmos still has ways to surprise us. When describing PSO J318.5-22, Michael Liu from the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawai’i stated that “we have never before seen an object free-floating in space that looks like this. It has all the characteristics of young planets found around other stars, but it is drifting out there all alone”. And although on lonely nights it can sometimes feel as if we are doing the same, it is well worth remembering that we are an essential part of a fascinating, beautiful and mostly unexplored universe.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Sport

Rory Macanna of DUUFC recounts their tense weekend at the Open Indoor Intervarsities held in UL Sports Arena.

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Playing away: the growth of GAA abroad Sarah Burns looks at how the GAA has developed abroad in order to cater for Irish emmigrants.

L Sarah Burns Staff Writer

ast July nearly 4,000 Londoners travelled to Elvery’s McHale Park in Castlebar to witness London in their first ever Connacht Senior Football Championship final.

Despite being thrashed by Mayo 5-11 to 0-10, it was one of London’s most successful seasons to date with victories over Sligo and Leitrim en route to the final. That day, five of London’s starting lineup came from Tir Chonaill Gaels, based in Greenford, west of the city.

Founded in 1962 by a group of Donegal men, the club boasts 14 Senior Football Championships, more than any other club in London, who are the league title holders. Speaking to Chairman of the club, Tom Mohan, he explains that most of the 200 members are second generation Irish. Mohan himself holds a Senior Championship medal from 1982 while his children now play for the club.

He believes that it is “because of the great need to keep Irish culture alive” and the fact that the games are amateur which ensures the G.A.A.’s continued success abroad. Within London alone, there are now 32 registered clubs that could easily be mistaken for some of our own with names such as Parnells, Robert Emmets and Round Towers.

Established in 1896, London G.A.A. also known as “the exiles,” featured in three hurling and five football finals in the early 20th century with victory over Cork in the All-Ireland hurling final in 1901. Even G.A.A. legends Liam McCarthy and Sam Maguire have links to the British capital.

McCarthy became President of London’s County Committee in 1898 while Maguire featured alongside him as Vice-President from 1902. This development of Gaelic Games hasn’t been lim-

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“Boston, a traditional hotspot for Irish emigrants, has the largest G.A.A. presence abroad with their 2002 figures offering 45 teams and 1,826 registered players in the city.”

ited to London or Britain either.

Over the past 50 years especially, G.A.A. clubs everywhere from San Francisco, Melbourne and even Abu Dhabi have sprung up in order to cater for the ever-expanding Irish diaspora. Following talks about holding the 2014 National League final in New York last November, G.A.A. President Liam O’Neill spoke of wanting “to promote our games in New York and if it’s possible to bring a game where a trophy is presented to New York, I think that would be of huge benefit for the competition here but also of huge benefit for the game on the North American continent. We’d love to get that on TV there and we’d love to start in our next round of international negotiations to focus on ways that we can get our games to the wider world.” O’Neill has made it clear that his hope for the association is to have more people playing

Gaelic games outside of Ireland than at home. On that same visit to New York he stated that; “it’s no longer about the emigrant going abroad and growing up in the G.A.A. It’s about the emigrant who has gone abroad whose child is now playing games. That’s where the growth is going to be.”

Boston, a traditional hotspot for Irish emigrants, has the largest G.A.A. presence abroad with their 2002 figures offering 45 teams and 1,826 registered players in the city. To this day the U.K. and America hold the largest G.A.A. existence outside of Ireland.

Of course this overseas growth has come at the expense of small rural clubs at home. Last year Leitrim lost a total of 99 players, with the county squad losing 14.

Louth suffered a similar fate with eleven senior players bidding farewell to the wee county.

Of London’s starting 15 from

the Connacht final last July, an astounding eleven were Irish emigrants, many of whom were recent graduates. Amongst the squad itself were two Dundalk men Graham Carr and Martin Carroll. Speaking to The Irish Times earlier this year Carroll admitted that he emigrated back in September 2011 as he was unable to find enough work at home as a plumber. He explained “when I go home I see people who were suppliers, or lads who had worked for decades losing their jobs and they are not there any more.”

Counties such as Leitrim (1994) and Louth (2010) got to provincial finals during and just after the boom. For now however, they have to watch their players reach those finals in different colours.

DU Harriers run away with both men’s and women’s competitions at Colours road relays Column O’Leary profiles the success of DU Harriers success against UCD at the recent road relays event.

S Column O’Leary DUHAC PRO

aturday the 9th of November saw the beginning of the competitive running season for DUHAC, with the Harriers taking part in the annual Colours Road Relays against close rivals, UCD, which took place around Trinity campus.

Each team consisted of four legs: runners on the first and last legs ran 1.1 mile (2 laps of the course) while runners on the second and third legs ran 2.2 miles (4 laps of the course). The course began at the Pav and traced the outskirts of the rugby field, before turning left at DU Players. After turning right after the Museum Building, there’s a final 300m stretch around the cricket pitch to complete the lap.

It was a cold but convincing afternoon for Dublin University Harriers. Great attitude and commitment from every athlete (in both the race and training) saw both men and women teams from Trinity taking the spoils. At 12:30, the women’s race saw two DUHAC teams battle it out against a single but strong UCD team.

Two very convincing runs from Aisling Ahern and Laura Brennan saw their team get the better of UCD to take a well-deserved victory. There were also great performances from Caroline Law-

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“The strength in

both numbers and performances of runners at Colours Road Relays has made the upcoming competitive year very promising for Duhac.”

less and Blaithín Sheil, who both made their competitive debut for DUHAC on Saturday.

The Men’s race began at 13:15. It turned out to be a highly competitive affair, with five strong teams (three from Trinity and two from UCD) competing for first place.

After much toing and froing between all five teams, two Trinity teams broke away on the third leg, due to two impressive performances from John Moroney and Eoin McCullough. The final leg saw Cathal O’ Donovan and Harry Molloy neck and neck for 1200m.

However, there could only be one winning team, and Molloy made one last push to lead his team to victory. There were a number of top-drawer runs from Trinity athletes such as Aaron Reen, Thomas Martin and Guglielmo Ziani.

The strength in both numbers and performances of runners at Colours Road Relays has made the upcoming competitive year very promising for DUHAC. The next competition is National Intervarsity Road Relays which take place on Saturday, 23rd November in NUI Maynooth Campus.

The club hopes it will continue its success from last year, when DUHAC’s first team placed third in both the men’s and ladies competitions.

Women’s Results (names in order of leg):

Men’s Results (names in order of leg):

1st (41:08) – TCD 1: Caroline Lawless, Aisling Ahern, Laura Brennan, Eileen Hogan

1st (32:31) - Trinity: Ciarán Porter, Thomas Martin, Eoin McCullough, Harry Molloy

2nd (42:07) - UCD 1 3rd (44:25) - Trinity: Caroline Mckeon, Kelly Kenney, Blaithin Sheil, Caroline McKeon (yes… she ran twice!)

2nd (32:41) - Trinity: Gerard Claffey, Guglielmo Ziani, John Moroney, Cathal O’Donovan 3rd (33:00) - UCD 1 4th (36:02) - Trinity: Ciarán Elster, Colum O’Leary, Cathal Kavanagh, Aaron Reen 5th (36:13) - UCD 2

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Sport

22

Painting the town red Louis Strange dicusses the brand that is Barcelona F.C. and the recent scandals that have mired its reputation.

T Louis Strange Staff Writer

hey love a good strike in Barcelona. You might have thought that football was the Catalan national sport, but it comes second to industrial action. Barcelona is still regarded as the spiritual home of anarcho-syndicalism, indicative of a more general association with the political left going back to the Civil War, when this association led to the nickname ‘Red Barcelona’. Politics not only spill out onto the streets of this great city, but play out on the pitch as well.

As everyone knows, F.C. Barcelona is més que un club – more than a club. They never stop going on about it, and there’s a reason. Barcelona’s media strategy is specifically designed to position the club as both a worldwide brand and the embodiment of Catalan nationalism, an apparent paradox they have managed to overcome with remarkable success. From its inception, the club

has had a fundamental role in shaping Catalan national identity: Camp Nou is where culers could safely go to speak Catalan and voice their opposition to the dictatorships of Primo de Rivera and Franco, intent on forcing their vision of a united Spain upon Catalonia. It is even rumoured that under Franco there was a secret government fund set aside for Real Madrid. In this light, the Barcelona-Madrid rivalry takes on new meaning: El Clásico is not just a football match, it is Catalonia against Spain, left against right. Not content with their stand against fascism, in the 21st century Barcelona have taken it upon themselves to sort out the Middle-East peace process. The ‘Peace Tour’ of the region this summer was an attempt to promote more than just peace; it was “conflict resolution, sponsored

by F.C. Barcelona”. The club are perhaps the most self-conscious

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“Even more damaging to Barcelona’s leftist credentials was the revelation last week that Qatar, have effectively been forcing migrant workers into modern-day slavery.”

Challenging weekend for DU Hockey Club at Intervarsities DU Hockey Club Captain, Matthew Lewis recounts their hosting of the Zoti Sports Irish Hockey Intervarsities.

T Matthew Lewis DUHC Captain

he revamped Zoti Sports Irish Hockey Intervarsities took place over the October bank holiday weekend in Three Rock Rovers Hockey Club. This year, intervarsities were jointly hosted by College and the RCSI and a new format was introduced. The previous format allowed any of the twelve teams to win either the Cup or the Plate, but a two-tier system was introduced for the first time this year. After finishing in the top six last year, we qualified for the Cup competition for the top six teams. This pitted us in a group with the reigning champions UCC who won the competition on home soil last year, along with DIT who boasted an array of international talent. With a much younger side this year after an outflow of graduates during the summer, it has been a tough start to the season in Division Two for the 1st XI. Win-less after our opening few games, we headed into Intervarsities with the aim of getting a much needed morale boosting victory and avoiding sixth place, which would result in relegation to the Plate for next year. We opened the tournament on the first day against UCC, a sibling rivalry with Adam Colton (Trinity) playing against his twin brother Andrew Colton (UCC).

Determined to succeed as UCC did last year on home soil, we started brightly. Steven Roberts got a deft touch to a crash ball to send it past the keeper and put us 1-0 up. A textbook counter attack was eventually turned in by Neal Megarity, who now in his final year notched his first ever goal for the club. A 2-0 lead was taken into halftime. UCC came out strong after the half and hit back instantly with a short corner of their own. Will O’Connell

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“After finishing in the top six last year, we qualified for the Cup competition for the top six teams. This pitted us in a group with the reigning champions UCC who won the competition on home soil last year.”

maintained the two goal cushion once more after getting in at the back post to make it 3-1. Another UCC goal made for a tight finish as they had all the pressure.

The game finished with a string of short corners for UCC which Man of the Match Stephen Ludgate and keeper Toby Sherwood denied repeatedly to give us our first win of the season and initiate wild celebrations. Our second group game was against DIT who boasted several full and underage internationals. The first 20 minutes were all DIT as we appeared to be shell-shocked by some of the talent on display. DIT however are a team made of first division players who only come together for Intervarsities and the Trinity team spirit showed through in the second half as we fought back for a 4-2 loss, the goals coming from Alex Simonin and Steven Roberts.

This gave us a draw against favourites UCD for the semi-final.

A tough game against the perennial rivals ended in an 8-0 loss as their international standard short corner routine came to the fore. On the final day, a 3rd/4th place playoff against UU ended in a thrilling 4-4 draw. Matthew Lewis (2), Toby Sherwood and Matthew Cockerill netted their first Intervarsities goals in end to end hockey. It was decided to settle for the draw and the winner to be decided at the Intervarsities dinner later that night. A successful tournament saw four of our players selected for Irish Universities trials. Captain Stephen Ludgate, Geoff Garrett, Connor Montgomery and Aran Rooney all impressed over the few days to get the call. Once again, Intervarsities has seemingly proven to ignite our season as we push to move up the league.

sporting entity on the planet, constantly looking in the mirror to check that they are still the ‘good guys’. Eschewing the typical footballing model – dictated by the powers of capitalism, which would seem to jar with the political atmosphere of ‘Red Barcelona’ – they had no sponsor until 2006, and even then it was the charity Unicef to first appear on the blaugrana shirts. And Barcelona paid them for the privilege.

Butter wouldn’t melt.

Yet in recent weeks, the mask has threatened to slip. First came the Messi tax avoidance scandal: one of the world’s highest-paid stars brought to court by the Spanish authorities for “forgetting” to pay ¤4.1m in tax on revenue from image rights. His excuse? “My dad takes care of the cash.” Messi’s appearance at court felt more like a film premiere as he smiled to crowds of cheering fans, echoing the quasi-religious

veneration he enjoys in the Camp Nou. God-like figures are ideologically problematic, and in a club with such close ties to a political ideology based on equality, Messi is apparently more equal than others. Although such a scandal makes headlines, in the context of a club with the highest average wage per player of any sports team in the world, it is merely a drop in the ocean.

Even more damaging to Barcelona’s leftist credentials was the revelation last week that Qatar, who have been Barcelona’s main sponsor since 2011, have effectively been forcing migrant workers into modern-day slavery in order to prepare for the joke that is the 2022 World Cup. Essentially, a club historically representing an industrial, working community is now being funded by the very same breed of overlord so despised by the unions, and against whom many Catalans

would have fought in the Civil War. From which we can draw two conclusions. Firstly, that the Catalan giants are not quite the ‘Red Barcelona’ of old. Secondly, that their PR department have performed miracles in convincing us that a global brand such as Barcelona still represents the people.

As George Orwell found during his experiences during the Civil War, politics in Barcelona often lead to disenchantment. But, as football clubs and politics go, you could be worse off. After all, you could support Real.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

23

Sport

A new age for Irish rugby?

Cal Gray looks at the Irish rugby team under the new leadership of Joe Schmidt and sees a bright future ahead for the Irish side.

O Cal Gray Sports Editor

nly one match in, but the tell-tale signs are all there. A new captain has been appointed to take charge at the helm of a ship that has recently sailed on rough waters, and on occasion hit jagged rocks. Jagged rocks found in Edinburgh and Rome for example.But that was then and this is now and this is a run-on sentence.

On the 29th of April 2013, Joe Schmidt was handed the keys to Ireland’s national rugby team, but his first match in charge did not come until the 9th of November.

That’s a long time in between. A long time to implement change.

Change that was long overdue.

But why did we need change? The answer is obvious: Ireland had grown stale. Under the previous head coach, Declan Kidney, we had become predictable, repetitive, monotonous. Teams knew our back moves, our line-out calls, and worst of all, they knew we had lost the impetus to go out and get results. So there we were, and whilst the provincial side of Leinster was tasting the sweet

dizzying highs of success, the international setup ate stale haggis and cheap pizza that tasted of old Kidney. It made little sense.

It should also be noted that with Leinster’s ascension to the throne of European rugby, Munster simultaneously hit the decline, and they hit it hard. This is the team Kidney had left to take over the national job. Could it now be said he’s bad for teams? Does he leave them in a worse state than when he found them? Who knows. Sure the man brought us the Grand Slam in 2009, a feat which Ireland had not achieved in 61 years, but that’s really where the highlights ended. We must forever thank him for 2009, but we must forever judge a manager or head coach on continued success, and Deccie didn’t bring that so he was ousted.

His successor will of course have massive expectation shoveled onto his shoulders. We know that in Ireland the name “Schmidt” is synonymous with “Trophy”, especially in the east, but can we allow ourselves to

expect trophies from the Kiwi?

Which trophies? A Grand Slam?

Who knows.

And if we are to make such radical expectations (like making a team jump from 5th in the Six Nations to 1st in one year) how do we expect him to get there? To me anyway his changes already seem obvious. In the first match against Samoa I saw a team that wanted to run some ball and enjoy their rugby, and it wasn’t the one from the South Pacific Ocean.

For example, Paddy Jackson was a boy transformed. On top of his sparkling place kicking display he constantly threatened the gainline and put the ball through the hands like a young Sexton, rather than following Kidney’s plans and becoming the second O’Gara. The kid from Ulster played flowing Leinster rugby that evening. Pure Leinstertainment.

Jack McGrath was the man of the match on his debut, playing like the offspring of a chance encounter between a bull and a bulldozer, and Dave Kearney

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“It should also be noted that with Leinster’s ascension to the throne of European rugby, Munster simultaneously hit the decline, and they hit it hard.”

bagged two tries also on his debut. Schmidt knows where the talent is and what’s more he knows how to nurture it. An incredible change to be seen was in the warm-up for the Samoa game when Schmidt was actually out on the pitch taking part in the drills, throwing the ball around and being part of the action, whereas Kidney was seen thirty meters away preaching not practicing.

This is a coach, not a manager, and players will love and benefit hugely from that.

In the past the national team has always consisted of a strong majority of players from the province currently enjoying the most success, and this era looks to be no different. One match into his reign and Ireland sent out 9 Leinster players in the starting 15, with 6 of the 8 substitutes also being from the blue East. Is this bias from Schmidt, being the previous Leinster coach? No. It’s logic. Ireland have players with a flair for running rugby, and this is the rugby being grown and honed

and perfected in Leinster then used to slay big opposition, so it’s only logical to export it to the national stage.

Of course we can’t expect this huge blue representation to continue for bigger matches and to be the eternal Marianne of our revolution. Against stronger opposition I believe Toner will leave the team and O’Connell will take his place, but on the other hand I also expect Ulster’s duo of Henry and Jackson to exit, making way for Leinster’s O’Brien and previous Leinster man Jonny Sexton.

But it’s not the players I’m excited to see, it’s Schmidt rugby.

The genius back plays, the clever lineouts, the split backline behind the scrum, and the intelligent numbers committed to rucks, all these things will be applied to the national team just as they were applied to the Leinster team that won 2 Heineken Cups, a Pro 12 trophy and an Amin Cup in 3 years. It’s a bright future. I’m excited, and you should be too.

Impressive performance by DUFC against Terenure Angus Lloyd recounts a confidence-boosting performance by DUFC against Terenure with the game ending 26-17.

T Angus Lloyd Staff Writer

erenure came to the students’ home ground in Monkstown on Saturday last for what they must have thought was going to be a relatively easy encounter with this under achieving DU Football Club (DUFC) side.

The away side remains unbeaten so far this season in all competitions including wins against some of the best teams in the AIL, an impressive feat that duly sees them top the league at this early stage of the season. DUFC, on the other hand, have struggled so far this term with only a losing bonus point to their name. This put the students in last place coming into this tough fixture with a Terenure side brimming with confidence.

DUFC hit the ground running and fronted up to the opposition’s large pack allowing them to dominate the early exchanges.

The students came to play an expansive style of rugby, which led to the Terenure defence becoming stretched out wide, handing the home side the opening chance of the match. DUFC moved the ball through the wide channels to outside centre Conor Kearns who crossed the line only to be denied by the referee. This excursion deep into opposition territory gave DUFC the confidence that they could take the match to Terenure. A couple of minutes later DUFC were rewarded a penalty 40m out but unfortunately this was put wide again letting Terenure off the hook. The opposition finally got their purple patch and tried to bully their way over the line with some strong runs from their abrasive forwards and a few attempts at rolling mauls. But the students defended heroically, chopping everyone at the knees resulting in the clearance of their lines on this occasion. The first score of the game came from an unfortunate mistake; a pass from the base of the DUFC scrum rebounded off a Terenure player and somehow landed in the Terenure scrumhalf’s hands giving him an unopposed run to the line.

The try was converted to give Terenure a 7-0 lead. The students fought back before the break to reduce the deficit to one point after two well struck penalties from the boot of Conor Kearns meaning the home side trailed 7-6 at the break.

With the second half underway DUFC began with the same intent they had showed early in the first half. An expansive style

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“Terenure took full advantage of the home side being controversially reduced to ten men shortly afterward and came back at the students, launching several attacks at the DUFC line. ”

of rugby eventually broke down the opposition, forcing them to give away a penalty which was converted, giving DUFC a well deserved 9-7 lead.

Terenure took full advantage of the home side being controversially reduced to ten men shortly afterward and came back at the students, launching several attacks at the DUFC line.

After many phases the students’ exemplary defense was broken down. Terenure were awarded a scrum deep in DUFC territory from which they made a break down the blindside which led to a well taken try. Following this Terenure again found themselves deep in the student’s 22 and had numerous lineouts which they tried to maul over the line. But DUFC again held firm until finally, after many phases, the ball was spread wide to the out-half who glided through a gap in the students’ defense for another try.

The game was beginning to slip of out of DUFC’s reach when Terenure crossed the line again for another try from a scrum. But the students refused to give in and mounted a comeback. Again by changing the point of attack the home side found space in the outside channels and the ball was moved to the speedster Niyi Adeolokun who exploited the space to score a well deserved try.

DUFC were back within reach of a deserved bonus point. The home side pushed hard in the closing minutes. searching for that losing bonus point. From a lineout they mauled the ball 15 metres and when the Terenure second row surely entered the maul from the side the students were denied a penalty by the referee. Terenure held on to win 2617 denying DUFC that much deserved bonus point. This was the home side’s best performance so far this season by a long way and will give them confidence going into their last four fixtures before Christmas. The set piece was as strong as it has been in several years with the students winning 90 percent of both their lineouts and scrums. They fronted up against a very physical Terenure side but the most impressive aspect of the game was DUFC’s reluctance to play a conservative game. The students played an expansive style of rugby throughout and this is something that will stand to them in the future.

TRINITY NEWS

Tuesday 19th November 2013

Sport

Column O’Leary details the eamazing succeses of the Du Harriers at the Colours rod relays against UCD. p.21

Photo: Conor DeBarra

Tense times for Trinity frisbee at Intervarsities Rory Macanna deatils DUFC’s wins and losses at this year’s nail-biting Ultimate Frisbee Open Indoor Intervarsities held at the U: Sports Arena.

I Rory Macanna Staff Writer

n the first weekend of November, Dublin University Frisbee Club (DUFC) travelled down to Limerick to take part in one of the most competitive Open Indoor Intervarsities to date with numerous different teams attempting to wrestle the trophy from our grasp. Three College teams travelled to the UL Sports Arena for what was to be an exciting weekend of ultimate.

Although College was able to send a large squad to the tournament, they only had six players on the first team. This made their monumental task of defending their title as Open Indoor Intervarsities champions a little bit trickier.

DUFC’s first team battled to retain their crown began with a great victory over a very strong second team from UCC. A slow start for DUFC in their second game meant that they lost against UCD’s first team. They went down by six points early on in the game and although they fought back to decrease the margin it

was too late to stop UCD taking a 12-9 victory. They did not fare much better in their next game against the UL first team. UL had entered a very strong first team this year and they went on to win the final against Maynooth on Sunday. DUFC’s first team got off to a great start against the UL first team with two quick points thrown long from Brian Boyle to Daniel Purdy. However, UL were then able to shut this option down quite effectively and take the lead from DUFC. Although DUFC managed to finish the game with nine points on the board it was not enough to beat Limerick whose strong offence got them 18 points. DUFC first’s were able to avenge the third team by beating UCC’s third team in their final game of the day. Once out of the group stages the games became much more competitive, some of which went our way and others didn’t. DUFC’s first team lost a well contested game to UCC’s firsts before ham-

mering ITB 18-5. In their final game a lack of subs meant they were not able to retain their lead over UCC’s second team and they lost by two points in a very close game.

DUFC thirds got off to a flying start and began the day by overwhelming Maynooth’s third team in a 20-4 victory and Galway3 21-7. This run did not last however and DUFC’s theird team lost their third game against UCC thirds. DUFC thirds went on to finish the Saturday with an easy victory over DCU’s second team.

They also unfortunately lost their first game on the Sunday to UCC thirds again. Despite the fact that the UCC thirds had gained an extra player, our third team were able to improve on the previous result and lost by a margin of five this time as opposed to the eight point deficit that was between the teams the day before. DUFC then fought to beat Galway’s seond team’s zone defence 10-9. They trailed by two points up until the

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“DUFC’s first team battle to retain their crown began with a great victory over a very strong second team from UCC.”

last few minutes when they were able to able to draw level and scrape a one point lead. DUFC thirds lost by a margin of three to Maynooth’s second team in a tough, tiring game.

Just like their team-mates, the second team began Saturday with a victory, beating DIT’s third team, 14-6. The victories continued for the team against DIT seconds; however they then lost their next game to ITB followed by a tough final game that day against Queens which they lost 13-2. Being out of the group stages also meant closer more competitive games for our second team on Sunday and that morning they were the only DUFC team to begin the day with a victory beating the Pick-up team 12-11.

The next round of games went well for them as well with a 12-9 victory over UL thirds to get into the third bracket final. Our second team lost their final in a harrowing one point defeat to a much improved third team from

Maynooth. In the final stages of the game they came back from three points down unfortunately they finished one point short of Maynooth in a final scoreline of 10-9.

This year’s Intervarsities was one of the most competitive in the tournament’s history with two teams (UL and Maynooth) reaching the final who had never made it to the final of any competition before. For DUFC it was a weekend with some great wins and painful defeats. Our first team reluctantly relinquished their hold on the trophy to a very strong UL team while our second and third teams performed very well all weekend. DUFC’s second team played the entire weekend with only one experienced player on the team and while the thirds had two experienced players they played a lot of their points against DCU’s second team and Maynooth’s third team, with their experienced players watching from the sideline.

Mixed week for DU Ladies Gaelic Football Amy Codd reports on the last week of matches for the DU Ladies Gaelic Football Club.

L Amy Codd Contributor

ast week was a busy one forDU Ladies Gaelic Football Club (DULGFC) as their first team competed against Carlow IT (CIT) and the second team lined out against Athlone IT (AIT).

DULGFC exited the Division Two League competition at the semi-final stage at the hands of IT Carlow (ITC) on Wednesday last. Despite a promising showing in the first half which granted DULGFC a three point lead at half time, ITC were consistently strong throughout the game and pulled away in the second half to finish with a comprehensive win.

DULGC were put under pressure early in the first half w as the ITC wing forwards attacked with pace to get their team off the mark.

However DULGC quickly came back on level terms thanks to an early goal from Lucy Mulhall, after a great piece of defending from Amie Giles when she initiated the attack from the wing back line. ITC responded in kind, taking advantage of a penalty to keep the pressure on. DULGFC attacked with fluid passing play culminating in points for Aife Kavanagh and Jacinta Brady.

ITC doggedly pushed forward and scored a further goal to keep the scoreboard even. DULGFC kept their composure and fired over points before half time to reach the break in the lead. ITC brought all their experience in this competitive division to bear in the second half as the centre forward quickly bringing them level with a powerful goal. With

more experience and greater fitness on their side ITC began to pull away, taking their points with slicing attacks through the centre. Ciara Donoghue palmed a ball over the bar to deny another goal for ITC and Mairi Ni Mhuineachain added a long range point for DULGFC. ITC executed confident passing through the midfield and this time converted in front of goal. Despite not losing heart, DULGFC were denied by the coordinated ITC defence from getting back into the game.

ITC quickly added a further goal to confirm their victory. Despite their disappointment, DULGFC will take from this game the incentive to extend their dominant first half play over the entire course of future games as they now turn their aspirations to the Giles championship competition.

DULGFC’s second team dismantled AIT in a convincing fashion on Thursday last to further their Division Four league campaign.

Playing 13-a-side owing to the opposition’s difficulty in fielding a full team, the DULGFC team had plenty of work in moving the ball through the space afforded by the unconventional lineout. DULGCF showed their superior skill in playing the ball economically and placing their passes with great accuracy, particularly into the wing and full forward lines.

The game got off to a brisk start as DULGFC won the throw in and converted their first attack, Meabh Downey powered the ball past the AIT goalkeeper. This set

the tone for things to come as DULGFC steadily built up their lead, with Claire Turner and Kate Heffernan adding to the tally. Siofra Mulkerrin and Aife Kavanagh dominated the midfield; contesting the AIT kickouts and tracking back to ensure the AIT half forward line were kept in check.

AIT’s corner forward showed her pace receiving a long ball to keep AIT afloat with a goal into the bottom corner of the Triniy net and the wing forward added two further points but DULGFC’s coherent and relentless attacking afforded them a comfortable lead at half time. The second half began much as the first as Derbhail Ni Oistin took her shot into goal with delivery from Leonie Buckley. Evelyn Kimmage was tireless in urging the ball forward all the way from defence where she supported the efforts of Aoife Mulhearne in blocking out AIT’s strong centre forward. AIT added another goal from a quickly taken close range free but couldn’t curtail the DULGFC’s attack as points were shot over from all angles from the forwards. DULGFC continued to slice through the AIT defence and added further goals. Towards the end of the game DULGFC repelled a late AIT attack and kept possession as they worked the ball out of their defence. DULGFC continue their league campaign with two wins and one draw from three supporting their advancement to the higher stages of the competition.

TCD1 vs. ITC Date : 13/11/13 Final Score : ITC 5-11 : 2.09 TCD

TCD2 vs. AIT2 Date : 14/11/13 Final Score : TCD2 8-15 : 2-04 AIT2

Squad :

Squad : (Game was played 13-a-side)

Ciara Donoghue Roisin Boyce Amie Giles Rachel Coleman Horgan Petra McCafferty Sarah Cotter Michelle Peel Emma Jones Jacinta Brady Mairi Ni Mhuineachain Aife Kavanagh Sarah Caffrey Aisling Reynolds Lucy Mulhall Caithriona Smith

Sinead Crowley Amy Codd Keelin Timony Muireann Kavanagh Aoife Mulhearne Kate Heffernan Derbhail Ni Oistin Aife Kavanagh Siofra Mulkerrin Evelyn Kimmage Jessica Comerford Meabh Downey Claire Turner Leonie Buckley Aoife McGovern Roisin Boyce