Vol XXII - Issue 3 - Broadsheet

uo The University Observer SOCCER A REVIEW OF ucd’s game against FINN HARPS David kent p20

the role of the soldier A head to head debate on the military and local culture

BUDGET

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WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF THE BUDGET ON STUDENTS?

Daragh cushen and amy o’brien perform in dramsoc’s educating rita

GAVIN TRACEY & OWEN STEINBERGER P4

BILLY VAUGHAN P8

photo jAMES HEALY

Maths lecturer threatens grade cuts for use of electronic devices A FORMER HEAD of the School of Mathematics and Statistics emailed students last week threatening that they would fail a significant component of the module if they had used electronic devices in his class. Sent by Dr. Patrick Murphy, the email claimed that he had warned students repeatedly not to use such devices during his lectures for the module STAT10010.

During a lecture last Wednesday, 21 October 2015, the email claimed that there had been “observers” in the class noting which students were using electronic devices. They determined that there were 73 students who were “ignoring my repeated urgings”, according to the email.

Allegedly photos were taken of the students in class which were then used in conjunction with a UCard list to identify students. Dr. Murphy sent out

an email of apology the following day to all students, claiming that there had been no observers in the class and that the comment had been “borne out of frustration and a regrettable attempt to get students to put away their phones.” The initial email claimed that observers would be in attendance until the end of the semester and would continue to identify students who use mobile phones during class.

From speaking to students in the class, UCD Students’ Union Education Officer Dannii Curtis stated that there were accounts of observers being present and taking photos of the offending students. “From what I’m aware from students’ accounts… photos were being taken of students who were using their electronic devices within classes,” she says.

The initial email explained that

students would face a zero grade for the continuous assessment part of the module unless they present a sealed letter of apology to Dr. Murphy for “using mobile phones today to check Facebook or look at sharks or whatever else.” They would then have had to rely on 65 per cent for an end of semester exam. Dr. Murphy claimed that he would offer these students “one last opportunity to avoid losing 35 per cent.” If the 73 students were to present a letter of apology in person to the lecturer then they could still receive the marks for continuous assessment.

Since the original message was sent to students, UCD Students’ Union and Registry were made aware of it and have intervened. The issue is now being dealt with at a school level.

Dr. Murphy, Registry and Curtis have confirmed that there will be no

UCD SHAG reduced to one day event Roisin Guyett-Nicholson UCD’s Sexual Health Awareness and Guidance day (SHAG) was held last Wednesday, 21 October 2015. The event makes a change from last year’s Sex Out Loud week, which was focused on consent. It also marks a difference from recent years which saw a week devoted to sexual health.

Welfare Officer Clare O’Connor explains that “one of the reasons UCD SHAG was condensed into a single day was to maximise engagement. A themed week can actually see less people engaging than a single day.” When asked if the reduction in time could be a disadvantage to students O’Connor declined to respond.

She further notes that “running a themed week filled with events means that we’re not behind our desks and that a lot less is going on behind the scenes.” O’Connor claims that this allows the sabbatical officers to focus on other campaigns such as youth suicide prevention, documenting sexual violence on campus and freezing price hikes for on-campus accommodation.

Recently UCDSU confirmed that they had reduced the rent increases on campus from a proposed 14 per cent to 7 per cent. The hike looks set to remain until next year at least.

UCD SHAG was also moved from week five, when it was originally supposed to be held, to week seven. Though at the start of the semester SHAG week was confirmed to be held earlier, O’Connor says this change was due to the fact that “week five was

reduction in student grades. In his letter of apology, Dr. Murphy stated: “No student will lose any marks for lack of participation or for using mobile phones in class.” He went on to say “I apologise unreservedly for the email which I sent…and for any and all distress caused.”

In the first email sent, which contained the logo of the school of Mathematics and Statistics, it stated that the students in the class “are all supposed to be adults and should not need to have any of this said even once. But for some reason this class has repeatedly displayed a lack of manners and common decency.” Dr. Murphy has since apologised for this comment and confirmed that the email was not endorsed by the School.

Curtis has condemned the action saying that the “thing that struck me

Strike action “100% an option” for underpaid student nurses GRÁINNE lOUGHRAN

Photo: AIR YOUR DIRTY LAUNDRY, VIA ucdsu

centred around the launch of our #NotAskingForIt campaign.

It was a conscious decision not to launch SHAG that week.”

O’Connor explains that “the focus of SHAG Day and Night is on frank and open conversations about consensual sex.” She notes that the event aims to highlight STI testing.

O’Connor claims that a recent article in the Irish Independent revealed that 60 per cent of Irish people have not been tested despite being sexually active for a long period of time.

She explains that there is a difference between the #NotAskingForIt campaign and UCD SHAG. “#NotAskingForIt isn’t a campaign which takes consensual sex as a point of departure and its focus is not on changing culture so that people are more willing to go for screenings and be less embarrassed about consensual sex. #NotAskingForIT is

about starting a movement and starting a different conversation with a different tone,” O’Connor says.

Bringing back SHAG week was a key point of O’Connor’s election campaign last March. At the time when asked about the difference between the consent based Sex Out Loud and SHAG week, O’Connor noted they are “largely the same thing except with a different name,” and that it is largely “a branding point of view.”

Activities held as part of UCD SHAG included a morning after breakfast, air your dirty laundry exhibition and a coming out workshop in conjunction with UCD LGBTQ+. O’Connor says that “the event [went] great.

We’ve had a huge turnout,” and that there was “huge engagement with the breakfast and the exhibition.”

AN ONLINE campaign to implement minimum wage for fourth year nursing and midwifery interns has gained support from students’ unions around the country, including UCD SU. “Equality for Nursing & Midwifery Interns” aims to implement minimum wage for nursing and midwifery interns, who are currently being paid an “exploitative” €6.49 per hour.

Coordinator of the movement, NUIG student Aoife Kiernan, says that “To pay any working professional below minimum wage for their work is exploitation.

National Minimum Standards of Wage are set for the reason that at this rate of pay in the given economy a person can sustain an average standard of living.”

Kiernan continued, “As intern nurses we complete the same job as Registered Staff Nurses with the exception of drug administration and intra venous products which are not included in our scope of practice. As interns we are assigned patients just as staff nurses and provide their entire nursing care excluding the tasks above throughout our shift. We take full responsibility for all of the care we provide to them and are fully responsible.”

The movement has gained backing from Fine Gael counsellor Paddy Meade, the Workers’ party, and student unions from UCD, NUIG, Athlone IT and St Angela’s, as well as almost 6,000 supporters on Facebook.

OCTOBER 28th 2015 Volume XXIi issue 3 universityobserver.ie

Roisin GuyettNicholson

News Editor

most about the module itself is that it’s a first year module, so you have first year students who, it would be disgraceful across the board whether it was a first year or a third year module, but these are students that are only in the UCD system for seven weeks so far and it’s quite a horrible thing to have to deal with seven weeks in.”

Curtis also noted that there was a potential data protection breach. If there were observers there, it is unclear whether they would have access to the class list of students. While all lecturers will have access to this, depending on who the alleged observers were, they may not have been permitted.

Curtis states she is going to look into the potential data protection breach further, though she reiterates that there will be no impact on students’ grades.

The HSE are currently undertaking an internal review of the payment of student nurses following a request from the Irish Nurses’ and Midwives Association (INMO) on the recommendation of the Labour Court.

The HSE response was initially due on the 16th of October, but were granted an extension by the INMO until the first week of November, saying that they required “further time” to complete it.

The INMO will meet with class reps in early November to discuss protest action if progress hasn’t been made, including a potential national protest in December and industrial action in February.

Kiernan has not ruled out strike action, saying, “While strike is 100 per cent an option, it will only be used as a last resort. The Intern nurses have no intention of causing any further additional stress to hospitals nationwide by initiating strike proceedings.”

A fourth year UCD student, who chose to remain anonymous, says: “We aren’t paid for our initial three years of study, which is fair, we’re very inexperienced, and lack the knowledge and ability to independently make a valuable contribution to someone’s care.

However, this changes in our fourth year. We transition to an internship where we are counted as staff, we’re seen as valuable members of the team who are capable of performing tasks with minimal supervision.”

The student continued, “€6.49 an hour for what we do is not just unfair, it belittles what we do, and how hard we work. It’s penalising those who have already accepted that their profession is more important than the money earned.”

This UCD student intends on showing solidarity to her colleagues and will take part in any strike action that occurs. “Although my current plan is not to stay in the fields of Midwifery or Nursing, I do intend to stay in healthcare, and so will take part in any strike action that results. I will not cross the picket of my colleagues who I have shared so many experiences with.”

Poetry and Fiction Submissions of poetry and fiction from UCD students

otwo p14 & p15

IRELAND’S NEW ARTISTS INTERVIEWS WITH NEW TALENTS IN THE ART INDUSTRY

EVA GRIFFIN Otwo P17

TREAT OR TERROR?

STILL THINKING OF A HALLOWEEN COSTUME? LUCY COFFEY Otwo P24

BEST COAST

THE AMERICAN DUO TALK TO ADAM LAWLER BEFORE THEIR DEBUT IRISH GIG Otwo P22

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

News national news in brief

Labour Youth Launch Repeal the Eighth Amendment Campus Campaign

Anthony O’Riordan

Alanna O’Shea

Student Accommodation Announced for the Point Village

ON OCTOBER 20th, the Repeal the Eighth Amendment College Campus Campaign visited UCD. The campaign, launched this month by Labour Women and Labour Youth, aims to engage students in the movement to reverse Ireland’s constitutional ban on abortion. The campus roadshow will visit six university campuses around the country.

The campaign set up an information stand in the old Student Centre where students could sign a petition to repeal the amendment. Students were encouraged to learn about the issue before signing the petition and were also able to register to vote at the stand. Students were able to take photos with a Repeal the Eighth frame to support the movement on social media. The stand was visited by Labour politicians Councillor Peter O’Brien and Senator Aideen Hayden.

Speaking to the University Observer, Sinead Ahern, Chair of Labour Women, said one of the main goals of the campaign was to register the maximum number of students to vote. “One of the things we’ve seen over the last few decades is that the voices of students tend to be ignored. This will send a message to anyone seeking election to the Dáil that students need to be listened to.”

According to Laura Harmon, who was formerly President of USI and is now working with the Labour party, the campaign collected several hundred signatures while at UCD. By

A PLANNING application for what would be Dublin’s largest ever off-campus student accommodation has been lodged with Dublin City Council by PwC’s Declan McDonald.

Situated beside the 3Arena in the Dublin’s Point Village, the proposed development will cater for 970 third level students in two blocks of between six and eight storeys in height. These blocks will contain “student clusters” of between five and eight bed spaces, as well as twin and single study units.

The proposal, if accepted, will help in easing the pressure on the supply of student accommodation in Dublin, being within walking distance of Trinity College, the National College of Ireland, Dublin Institute of Technology and a number of other private colleges. Its positioning beside the Luas terminus also allows for links further afield.

NAMA has a 75 per cent interest in the 22 hectares of available land in the Dublin Docklands Strategic Development Zone included in which is the proposed site for student accommodation. It is working with all parties involved to bring forward plans to add to the vibrancy of the Dockland area, as well as benefit both the economy of Dublin and the country.

University of Limerick to clear their Counselling Waiting List THE UNIVERSITY of Limerick (UL) have taken steps to ease the strain on the university student counselling services, by allocating extra funds to the service in an effort to clear the waiting list. This increase in resources allow the service to employ another full-time counsellor, which means an extra 20 counselling sessions a week will be available to students.

This investment comes as a result of a joint campaign by the UL Student Counselling Service and the Students’ Union, at a time when the demand for counselling among students is at new heights. Within the first four weeks of term, the UL counselling service had developed a waiting list of more than 40 students and the Irish Examiner revealed recently that the in the last eight years, the number of students attending counselling nationwide increased 300 per cent in the last eight years.

The UCD Student Counselling Service, located on the first floor of the Old Student Centre, are also feeling the strain on resources. Their 2015 Counselling Information Sheet says “at times during the year students may have to wait a number of weeks before receiving an initial counselling appointment”.

the end of the six university tour she expects they will have collected a thousand signatures.

In a college-wide referendum in 2013, the majority of students voted to make pro-choice the official position of the UCD Students’ Union. This allowed UCDSU to take part in the prochoice March For Change that took place in Dublin in September.

However, students have to play an active role in the campaign to get their voices heard according to Jack Eustance, Chair of Labour Youth. “So many students support repealing the eighth amendment, but unless they get involved politically and push for it as a vital issue, it could be many years before a vote is called.”

This campaign is one of several indications that Labour have given that they will be making the repeal of the eighth amendment part of their social policy. Tánaiste Joan Burton has already suggested that repealing the amendment could be part of Labour’s manifesto in the next general election. Labour is hoping to capitalise on the momentum created after the massive student engagement in the marriage referendum earlier this year. Ahern points out that the last time there was a referendum on abortion rights was in 1983, before most undergraduates were even born.

“For any of us who haven’t had the opportunity to vote on the eighth amendment, it can seem like a real slap in the face that something so important as the right to life, to health, to dignity can be completely overruled,” Ahern says.

UCD launches Strategy for Research, Innovation and Impact MICHAEL O’SULLIVAN ON WEDNESDAY, 21 October, UCD announced the launch of its strategy for research, innovation and impact until 2020. The strategy will see the University organise around its major research themes of agri-food, culture, economy and society, energy, environment, Information and Communications Technology and health, as outlined in its 28 page “Strategy for Research, Innovation and Impact 2015 – 2020”.

The document outlines UCD’s plan to grow its presence both nationally and internationally and to develop further its external strategic engagements in each of these themes over the period covered by the strategy.

Currently, UCD research publications have a citation impact 67 per cent above world average.

This is particularly apparent in agri-food research publications in which the University ranks number one for global citations.

Launching the UCD Strategy for Research, Innovation and Impact 2015-2010, Professor Orla Feely, UCD Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact said: “UCD is ranked as the number one Irish university for research, and excellent research and innovation

USI Launch Campaign to get students registered to vote THE UNION of Students in Ireland (USI) launched their ‘Education Is’ campaign on 6th October, as part of their voter registration drive with a general election approaching in the coming months. 10,628 new student voters were registered by the Union across 24 college campuses between the 6th and 8th October with the official hashtag, #RockTheRegister shooting up the Irish trending list on Twitter. More students are expected to continue registering to vote at their local Students’ Unions.

The campaign is centrally focused on which politicians will increase student support like student assistance funds, grants and accommodation.

This focus is born from new statistics stated by USI president, Kevin Donoghue, showing that “one in six people living below the poverty line are students”, and “73 per cent of students are suffering from stress or anxiety because of the cost of education”.

This ‘Education Is’ voter registration drive is one part of their overarching campaign calling on the government to increase funding and accommodation for students and to reduce the registration fee of €3,000.

“We are overwhelmed by the response we had to the ‘Education Is’ campaign”, said USI Deputy President, Annie Hoey, as the Union looks to force the government to reverse the €1.6bn worth of cuts to 3rd level education between 2005 and 2014.

2 OCTOBER 28th 2015

Photo: JOANNA O’MALLEY

are central to all that we do in the university. At UCD we draw on the range and depth of our disciplines, the commitment of our community and the strength of our partnerships to deliver impact in areas of importance and opportunity.”

She added, “Our vision is that by 2020, following the implementation of the strategy launched today, UCD will be known internationally for the excellence of our research and innovation and for the effective manner in which we harness all of our resources and partnerships to deliver impact at scale in areas of global opportunity.”

The strategy aims to enhance existing research capabilities within the University through growing funding pools, further introducing facets of innovation and design into the curriculum and through increasing the volume of inter disciplinary research performed in the University.

Feely further noted, “we will be a central hub in leading international research networks in a number of strategic areas. Internationally-leading researchers will find in UCD an institution that matches their

ambition and in which they want to build their careers.”

The plan aims to increase the levels of support available to faculty members and to take further steps to address the gender imbalance therein, particularly in STEM areas.

Professor Feely concluded, “The success of the implementation of this strategy will be evident in the impact delivered by UCD to a dynamic economy and to an informed and reflective society.”

The strategy document UCD Strategy for Research, Innovation and Impact 20152020 is available to download via http://www.ucd.ie/innovation.

IMAGE: SCREENSHOT OF STRATEGY REPORT COVER

SU Presidents Criticise Budget 2016 Roisin Guyett-Nicholson FOLLOWING the announcement of the Budget 2016, a number of Students’ Union Presidents have spoken out against the attention paid to students.

Leading up to this budget, student accommodation and national homelessness have had increased attention. The government have included a provision for 20,000 houses nationwide but 90 per cent of these will be in Dublin.

Other changes include a rise in the minimum wage but the adjacency rate grant is to remain the same. There is to be no change to student fees, which reached €3000 this year. This does not include the Student Centre levy paid by UCD students.

UCDSU President Marcus O’Halloran says

that there was not enough consideration for students.

He drew attention to the amount of money put aside for commemorating the decade of centenaries. “What’s not promising is the fact that there was €50 million put aside for the commemoration of the 1916 rising and €25 million would finish off UCD Residence,” he said.

O’Halloran noted the benefit of the housing provision that was announced, saying: “It was promising to see that there is 20,000 new houses.” However he did note the fact that 90 per cent of these will be in Dublin.

While O’Halloran claims that this level of housing is needed in Dublin he mentions that it “may be too much, I would have agreed that 70

per cent probably would have been right, and the rest of the housing I think should have been in the main cities as well, there is a massive shortfall up here; it’s really obvious, Dublin needs 10,000 houses immediately.” O’Halloran claims that 2,000 housing units in south Dublin this year may have been filled by students.

University College Cork SU President Aidan Coffey also noted that there was not enough done for students. He says: “I think third level students were largely ignored in the budget.

The government repeatedly references the need for jobs to fuel the economy, but failed to act on this statement in sufficiently investing in third level education.” He did note that the Cassell’s report, which is due to come out in the

following months, will draw attention to this. The report originated in 2014 and is examining funding options for third level institutions.

Coffey drew attention to the increase in minimum wage, which may affect students working part-time. “The minimum wage benefit is likely to benefit large numbers of students working part-time. I just hope that retailers don’t take advantage of the 5.7 per cent wage increase with price inflation in excess of this, as that will result in decreasing purchasing power for students.”

The Budget was announced ahead of the general election which is expected to be held next spring.

UCDSU PRESIDENT MARCUS O’ HALLORAN Photo: JOANNA O’MALLEY

News international News in Brief

News Analysis: Rankings

Eithne Dodd

OECD launch a new ranking system

As the OECD announce a new rankings system, Roisin Guyett-Nicholson questions the implications IN RECENT YEARS global rankings apply? If the University reaches have become a greater issue for this goal in one, then it can rightly universities. To get more students say that it has achieved the aim. and investment, they seek to reach a However, if other awards do not higher positioning on the list. UCD consider it as having been at the same announced earlier this year as part level, it throws doubt on whether the of its strategic plan for 2015-2020, strategic plan should claim success. that it aims to be listed among the The OECD has also recently top 100 of the world by 2020. announced a new system of its The University also stated that own. If this is added to the mix it wanted to be in the top ten of the it becomes less obvious which world for global engagement. It hopes universities are truly successful. to achieve this through international The aim of this latest effort is to exchanges and research output. look more closely at learning outcomes However, the value of rankings rather than institution’s well-known system is sometimes unclear. Recently reputations. The idea is that the UCD dropped in the QS world rankings results of students will speak for but rose in the Times Higher Education themselves. However this makes it version. Both systems use a different more difficult for students to decide set of characteristics to determine their on the best college for them. While results. These can include research the rankings system may list a college is that it becomes increasingly output, exchange programmes, citations that consistently turns out high grades difficult for students, domestic and and the ratio of students to tutors. in general, that is no guarantee that international to see which college While Trinity College fell in both, it will suit every individual student. will give them the best experience. the murky result for UCD The new OECD can undermine the impact system to note results “Systems that base of these lists. University rather than reputation their lists on citations College Cork has also is a commendable one, recently won university of though perhaps will by other institutions the year, an award given by weaken the initiative. can also undermine The Sunday Times. This Though not every accolade considers student to an extent the college would like to experience among its admit it, the origin of a pure teaching value indicators for the winner. degree can be nearly as Despite UCC’s success in important as the degree of each institution.” this area, they fell down in itself. This is evident the recent THE rankings. in the Times Higher With both the results for UCD Equally, systems that base Education rankings as universities and UCC, the true value of rankings their lists on citations by other such as Cambridge and Oxford remain systems is unclear. Though UCD institutions can also undermine to in the top ten. Both QS and THE have claims it wants to be in the top 100 an extent the pure teaching value of also compiled lists of universities by 2020, for which system does that each institution. What this means under 50, highlighting that there

is a perceived difference between older and younger universities. In Ireland, UCD has the largest student population and it is also one of the older colleges in the country.

Should the age of an institution and its perceived international standing be prominent factors for students choosing where to study?

A younger university may provide a better experience for individual students than any other, yet if that student believes a degree from an older institution is worth more they may attend a college that is not the best fit for them.

Another issue with these rankings is that they generally only examine the institution itself. While this does not have a significant effect when dealing with investment, if students are considering where to apply it

becomes a very important issue. With accommodation in Dublin becoming such a prevalent issue, students may instead choose a college that is closer to them. As a result there is a higher rate of drop-outs as more students cannot afford the cost of college. Therefore, there is possibly a reduction in student numbers, making a university look less appealing.

While UCD’s aim to rise in the rankings is a considerable endeavour, if there are significantly less numbers of students attending the University, then there is little point in the effort. A university could be number one in the rankings but if it becomes almost impossible for the majority of students to realistically attend, then it loses validity.

News Analysis: The downscaling of UCD SHAG

With the changes to UCD SHAG this year, Roisin Guyett-Nicholson looks at the general attitude towards discussing sex on campus

Photo: COURTESY OF UCDSU

LAST WEEK saw the return of an event to UCD which is common on most campuses across the country.

Sexual Health Awareness and Guidance (SHAG) day and night was reinstated by UCD Students’ Union (UCDSU) Welfare Officer Clare O’Connor. It is a return to the style of previous sexual health weeks that UCD has had. Last year it was replaced by Sex Out Loud week which focused on consent.

During her election campaign last year, one of O’Connor’s main points was to bring back SHAG week, stating that there was little difference between each event.

With the recent launch of the campaign #NotAskingForIt, the SU has made sexual assault and safety one of its key campaigns for the year. While the focus of this campaign and SHAG is different, they have the same basic premise to encourage conversation around safe sexual experiences. If the Union is to truly work for this aim, then they must put the same amount of effort into each campaign.

However with SHAG only held for one day, students are losing a vital opportunity to talk about sex in a frank and honest way. It’s impossible for the Union to organise the same amount of events that would fit

in a full week to a single day. in school mainly focuses on having this conversation.

Therefore students are seeing less preventing pregnancy and Even though the posters opportunities and resources to sexually transmitted infections. to promote SHAG could discuss sexual health in general. By The focus is generally on have made some students only having one day for this issue, heterosexual sex with little uncomfortable, there is always the discussion around it will be attention paid to homosexuality the chance that they did not significantly lowered. In the long or other methods of see them. The posters were run, it is students who will suffer contraception. In some schools, only posted around campus a the most from this, as less weight there are accounts of antifew days before the event and is put behind the conversation. abortion classes or advocates of previously, the advertising While SHAG is generally celibacy addressing students. had largely been a number of seen as an opportunity to bring These classes are unrealistic handwritten signs simply saying that discussion to campus, and can force reducing its time span to find out “With SHAG only held students to a single day begs the information from for one day, students other, possibly question, how much value do the SU really put on less reputable are losing a vital breaking down that barrier? sources. A report The decrease in the amount opportunity to talk commissioned by of time allocated for UCD the Department of about sex in a frank SHAG follows a pattern Education found and honest way.” so far this year with the that students are mental health event Mind, becoming sexually Body & Soul held for two active at a younger days, down from three last year. age and they are often receiving “UCD SHAG, 21 October.”

One of the key points of UCD information about sexual health The lack of attention paid SHAG was a coming out workshop from informal and unsupervised to organising SHAG day with the LGBTQ+ society. Trans sources. The report continued corresponds with the general rights are a big concern for the that what students in secondary lack of concern in Ireland for society, yet the posters advertising schools hear may be inadequate sexual education. Many students SHAG featured drawings of people to give them full knowledge went to religious schools where with their genitalia prominent. of sexual experiences. open sexual education can For people who are transitioning However, despite this report, be against school policy. or are unsure about how to the official curriculum in Some students do not learn broach this subject on campus, secondary schools is relatively about contraception until fifth the advertising for UCD SHAG incomplete. At Junior cycle year of secondary school and may not make them comfortable (between the ages of 12 and 15) the sex education they receive

students learn about puberty and fertility. They do not learn anything about contraception until senior cycles, by which time most students are 17 years old.

This corresponds with the legal age of consent in Ireland which is one of the highest in Europe.

The education that most young people receive throughout their school life is sometimes not sufficient to keep up with real world practices. It makes discussion about sex a secret and illicit conversation. By the time most teenagers come to college, this idea could be deeply ingrained. Being in third level is the perfect opportunity to undo some of these underlying attitudes. However, the reduction in importance of SHAG this year suggests that this is not something that is central to current Students’ Union policy. While they have a perfect opportunity to bring an honest discussion about sex to campus, UCD SHAG this year has undermined both the #NotAskingForIt campaign and other previous efforts.

THE OECD will launch a new ranking system for the performance of higher education systems after the Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO) project failed to receive the support of key OECD member states.

AHELO was intended to measure teaching quality rather than institutions’ past reputation. However certain institutions objected to AHELO which evaluates the performance of different institutions through standardised outcomes.

The OECD’s Education Policy Committee has said it plans to launch a new system which will “better monitor and analyse the changes taking place in the higher education sector, and to strengthen our evidence base, so that we can offer courtiers more robust policy advice in the future”, said OECD Deputy Secretary-General Stefan Kapferer at the higher education futures conference.

“This project will enable us to better assess how higher education systems are performing across a range of different performance dimensions, and to identify strengths and weaknesses within national higher education systems,” he said.

Kapferer said that popular universities “have a very good name. They often have very good learning outcomes. But we do not really know enough about the learning outcomes and I think this is the most relevant topic for the future and we have to establish a system.”

EU Announce New Horizon 2020 Funding Plan THE EUROPEAN Commission has announced it will invest almost €16 billion in research and innovation under its Horizon 2020 programme in 2016 and 2017. The decision follows the adoption of a new ‘Work Programme’.

The European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, Carlos Moedas said: “Research and innovation are the engines of Europe’s progress and vital to addressing today’s new pressing challenges like immigration, climate change, clean energy and healthy societies.”

Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU research innovation programme and invests €77 billion in research and innovation projects. The programme is focused on improving areas such as health, transport, and the environment.

It aims to support growth and highskilled job creation with research partnerships in the pharmaceutical, aerospace and electronics industries.

“We need open innovation to capitalise on the results of European research and innovation,” said Commissioner Moedas. “This means creating the right ecosystems, increasing investment, and bringing more companies and regions into the knowledge economy.”

The Work Programme is designed to open up European research and innovation to more actors – from researchers, to entrepreneurs, to users, to governments and civil society – for instance, by attracting more smallmedium enterprises; ensuring better use of research results and strengthening research cooperation with other countries.

However there has been some criticism of the programme. Some fear that Modeas has placed too much of an emphasis on large industries’ research and innovation at the expense of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Around €2 billion of the total funding in the programme will go to SMEs.

President Higgins to visit Berkeley next week PRESIDENT Michael D. Higgins will begin an official visit to the University of California this week. The President will begin his visit at the University of Washington in Seattle where he will deliver a keynote address. He will also meet with the Irish-American Mayor of Seattle.

President Higgins and his wife Sabina will then travel to Berkeley, California where there will be a meeting with the first responders to the Berkeley tragedy that occurred this summer as well as volunteers and others who helped the students involved in the tragedy. The President will attend a reception in which he will address this group.

The President, with Mayor of Berkeley Tom Bates, will plant a tree in the Martin Luther King Civic Centre to commemorate the six Irish students who lost their lives while on J1 visas, when the balcony they were standing on collapsed. He will also deliver an address at the University of California at Berkeley and meet the Governor, Jerry Brown.

The President will also visit San Francisco and Sacramento over the course of his eight day trip.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

comment

Head to Head: The Role of the Soldier After a recent scandal between the US forces and the local Afghan militia, Owen Steinberger argues against armies challenging local culture practices. Gavin Tracey takes the opposing view

pro

CON

Owen Steinberger

Gavin Tracey

NATO operations in Afghanistan are drawing to a close and United States troops are withdrawing, leaving behind a nation in tatters, struggling to rebuild.

Any pretense of a War on Terror has been set aside – it has been determined, after great pains, that assault on an abstract concept is doomed to fall short of expectations. But the war has indeed been fought to an end, and democratic institutions have been set in place throughout Afghanistan with hopes that they will foster restructuring and growth.

These systems will not remain without support and enforcement; previous efforts in Iraq have shown that democracy will not simply supplant a previous political institution. Regimes retain a powerful hold over people even after their collapse, and radical militant groups threaten to cut out a budding democracy at its roots.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban remains a constant threat, and once NATO forces are gone there will be nothing left to hold them back. To secure the success of operations in Afghanistan, a stopgap must be put in place that will maintain Western interests.

Enter the Afghan Local Police. In preparation for their exit, NATO forces have recruited members of the A.L.P. to serve as arbiters after the fact, to maintain and enforce operations and to drive back the Taliban. They are the critical bridge between US occupation and Afghani self-rule: without them, fledgling democratic institutions will wither and die. Power must be handed over. War demands compromise. It seems that, this time, there are also dark consequences.

The New York Times recently ran an exposé on the rampant child abuse found in A.L.P. camps throughout Afghanistan.

Tea boys, locally haliq, are kept by high-ranking officials and used both as servants and as sex-slaves. Possessing haliq is an important status symbol among elite soldiers: the more the better. This issue has been covered by The Times since 2002, and has been documented by other publications, such as VICE and the Wall Street Journal, as well. The abuse has been well-documented in the Western world, and many Afghani have been made brutally aware of the practice, their children stolen away by powerful, untouchable men of arms. The Times has referred to it as an “open secret.”

Recruitment of young boys as sex partners is a deeply entrenched behavior among soldiers in Afghanistan. It is a cultural regularity, an expectation.

Unsurprisingly, when US soldiers have made efforts to intervene, they have been met with evasion, dismissal, and anger.

The A.L.P. value their highest-ranking men and do not take lightly to the interjection of foreign morals into their established hierarchy. War demands compromise.

Those US soldiers who have acted against their Afghani partners have been swiftly reassigned, or have resigned of their own volition. At this critical juncture, NATO cannot lose the trust of local police.

The Taliban had an active role in curbing the use of haliq before the war began, albeit through oppressive violence.

No society is wholly good or evil, and no culture is without its hidden skeletons.

To stand as a pillar of absolute morality, NATO forces could not reasonably make any allies, much less strategic allies

“Those U. S. soldiers who have acted against their Afghani partners have been swiftly reassigned, or have resigned of their own volition. At this critical juncture, NATO cannot lose the trust of local police” in the East; in fact, it could not even exist as it is now, an alliance of Western nations with conflicting, contradictory ideologies.

Imposing Western morality on the A.L.P. is itself of questionable justification.

Whether or not to intervene in cases of child abuse in Afghanistan is not simply a question of morality, it is a question of viability.

Recruiting new allies while simultaneously attempting to alter their cultural beliefs creates a conflict which threatens to tear apart any hope of a successful partnership. It fosters antagonism by assuming that the West’s morality is ‘better’ than the Afghani soldiers’, a fatal ingredient in any partnership. NATO does not have the leverage necessary to dictate every decision that the A.L.P. makes, leverage that would make up for the feelings of distrust and animosity that would arise. Confronting every moral injustice is simply not practical.

Unfortunately, it is not NATO’s place, or the place of disaffected US soldiers, to rescue these boys. This is a lamentable fact: political interests supersede morality when the solidity of an entire nation is at stake. The military is slow, lumbering, and ineffectual when it comes to localised injustices. If every similar issue were confronted, they would find themselves stretched far too thin, constantly casting off potential allies and losing strategic locations. The original purpose, to do well for the benefit of Afghanistan, would be lost.

The opportunity to make changes for the better lies with the members of the A.L.P. themselves. It is important to remember that these organisations are made up of people, with their own moralities, many of whom find the haliq practice to be appalling. Steps can be taken by high-ranking members of the Afghani police to influence their subordinates and curb abusive behavior. NATO forces can encourage this movement forwards, but in order to achieve their political interests, changes must come from within the A.L.P. itself.

The horrors of war are manifold. Every act of war leads to casualties: the bodies pile up, the wounded, both physically and mentally, stumble home, never the same. There is a simple contract. Common pleasantries are cast off, victory is the only objective. Great sacrifices are made.

War demands compromise. It is naïve to assume that Western morals can be upheld, unwaveringly, in times of bloody conflict.

THERE IS A disturbing practice that of it. It is said that it is in order to takes place in Afghanistan known as keep the relationship between the two bacha bazi. In English this literally armies amiable – and to not alienate translates to “boy play”. It is the the local population – and so as not to organised and systematic sexual abuse enforce so called “Western culture” of young, adolescent boys by wealthy on them. Some soldiers believe it to and powerful men. These men have the be none of their business, with one money and the power to either buy or Marine saying, “The bigger picture abduct young boys of their choosing and was fighting the Taliban. It wasn’t keep them as their personal sex slave. to stop molestation.” There is an Under the Taliban, a concerted effort was exception to the non-interventionist made to put a stop rule: when rape is to this practice, used as an act of “Not only does but recently it war. But apparently the American has been making rape for the pleasure a recrudescence, of paedophiles military have most notably within is fair game in a policy of nonthe ranks of the the eyes of the Afghan military. interventionism, American military.

It even takes place On the argument but soldiers in the camps of keeping good who have stood shared with the relations, are we American military. really to believe that up and reacted One would think working with the to it have faced that this horrific Afghan army would practice would be be impossible after discipline for completely halted by some members were the Americans when doing so.” told that they were, they learned of what in fact, no longer was going on. After allowed to keep and all, what use is it in fighting the Taliban rape young boys? As for not alienating if their replacement is just as bad? the local population, nothing could Nonetheless, the American military’s be further from the truth. Afghans policy of young boys being raped and for the most part despise the held captive on their military bases is to practice, and resent the American simply look the other way. In some cases, presence there for openly arming and militia leaders who were well known for working with known paedophiles. engaging in the practice were armed, The argument of so-called some even being put in charge of villages, “cultural imperialism” is used. where they were given even more power Forcing Afghans, who have a wildly to continue carrying out these horrific different culture and history to that acts. The father of US Marine Gregory of Americans to conform to American Buckley said his son had told him: “At societal norms would be a form of night we can hear them screaming, but imperialism. While this argument is we’re not allowed to do anything about a valid one in the face of legitimate it.” He told The New York Times: “My cultural differences, it does not hold son said that his officers told him to look true when the issue at hand is child the other way because it’s their culture.” abuse. It is relativistic hogwash to Not only does the American military claim that the keeping of teenage have a policy of non-interventionism, but boys for the purposes of sex is purely soldiers who have stood up and reacted a cultural difference. These offenders to it have faced discipline for doing so. must be told in no uncertain terms Dan Quinn, a former Special Forces that, no, you may not continue to captain was removed from his post do this. If this message was echoed in Afghanistan after he beat up local through every layer of the military, authority figure, Abdul Rahman, who from private to general, the message was openly engaging in the practice. He would very quickly be understood. had kidnapped a local boy and had kept Of course, this is not as easy to him chained to his bed. The boy’s mother solve as simply handing out stern came to Quinn and told him what had lectures. The issue mirrors the happened. Quinn confronted Rahman, tensions between the American telling him that this was unacceptable, military and the local population. and he would not allow it to continue.

America want the Taliban gone, Quinn told him, “you are held to a and replaced with a more stable higher standard if you are working with and democratic government, which US forces.” On hearing this, Rahman is commendable, but at what cost? began to laugh, which was when Quinn Where should the line be drawn attacked him. What kind of backwards between culture and crime by a morality is in place when it was Quinn foreign power? These questions who was reprimanded, and not Rahman? are not easily answerable, but the America’s non-interventionism policy question at hand is. Stamp out is hard to understand, and there seems this practice before it once again to be no legitimate arguments in favour becomes an accepted social norm.

“It is relativistic hogwash to claim that the keeping of teenage boys for the purposes of sex is purely a cultural difference.”

NATO TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN PHOTO: COURTESY OF VOA NEWS

4 OCTOBER 28th 2015

Comment New Parties on the Campaign Trail 2015 has seen the arrival of several new political parties in Ireland. Gavin Tracey weighs up the potential electoral success of the three newcomers THE PAST few years have been very busy for Irish politics. No longer are the new generation buying into the old trichotomy of Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Labour, and are seeking alternatives. Large scale resistance to the water charges has led to a support for more left-wing alternatives; look for example at Paul Murphy, Ruth Coppinger or Clare Daly. Sinn Féin have largely taken away the working class vote that would have traditionally gone to Labour and currently hold 14 seats, and they can expect to gain more in the next election.

Independents too have seen a huge increase in support, but this is not without its issues; without a party, they will not have any chance of having a place in any government.

It is this that has led to the creation of new political parties.

Three of these – the Social Democrats, Anti-Austerity Alliance – People Before Profit (AAA-PBP), and Renua will be examined here.

One of Ireland’s newest political parties, Renua was established in March 2015 by Lucinda Creighton after she was expelled from Fine Gael for voting against the whip.

They claim to be “a political party designed for a new age.

A modern, open, collaborative party, engaging the nation in a new conversation”, but what sets them apart? Perhaps the only distinction that can be made about Renua is that it is decidedly more capitalist and right-wing than any of the other parties in the Dáil.

Renua recently announced a new proposal which they would implement if elected.

They proposed a flat income tax rate of 23 per cent, a measure which would be undoubtedly problematic for thousands of employees across Ireland. Their

“one size fits all” approach is elitist in nature, and this proposal is bound to alienate voters. Is an economically right wing and socially conservative political party what Ireland needs right now? It is very unlikely that they will get to implement their plans on a national level, as they have no chance of getting elected, with recent polls suggesting that they have about two per cent support. It is likely that they will go the way of the Progressive Democrats and fade into obscurity.

Moving from the right to the left, AAA-PBP has also made some waves on the political scene.

This is not a new party as such, but rather an amalgamation of two radical left parties. Their support stems largely from the anti-water charges movement.

They are the embodiment of the frustration and anger at the current government. The merger

is a peculiar political agreement, TDs Stephen Donnelly, Catherine vote to Sinn Féin. One of their with both parties remaining free Murphy, and Róisín Shortall. advantages is that they appeal to hold different opinions on a They are unlike the previous to a middle ground that Labour topic. The merger comes from parties in that they have released would previously have held before practical reasons; under Dáil detailed policies, from tackling their time in government. They rules, parties with more than the homeless crisis to childcare. are also saved from the problem seven TDs have full speaking They are in favour of abolishing that Sinn Féin faces, which is rights. They stand a better chance water charges, they call for a 12 their history holding them back. of winning seats than Renua, with month paid parental leave, and This could lead to them winning grassroots support a good amount of in communities seats in the next “Large scale resistance that have been election. Ten to the water charges have general worst affected election candidates by austerity. led to a support for more have been announced However whether already since their left-wing alternatives.” or not this anger launch. They provide can sustain itself a balance between and become a the radical left of real political force has yet to be they support the repeal of the the AAA-PBP and the neoseen. This kind of alliance of the controversial Eighth Amendment, conservative Renua, a sort of left was seen in 2011 with the which was introduced by the capitalism with a human face.

United Left Alliance, which won current government as a response In the liberal age that we five seats before falling apart. to Ireland’s restrictive abortion currently occupy, the Social The Social Democrats holds the laws. These views will entice many Democrats are the party that is most electoral promise out of the disillusioned, middle-class Labour most likely to succeed amongst three. It was founded this year by voters, who don’t want to lend their middle-class voters. Irish

voters as a whole are pragmatic in nature. They do not tend to be overly idealistic. There is an awareness amongst voters that politics is problematic; promises will be broken, commitments reneged upon. There is a suspicion surrounding the more radical parties, meaning that parties such as Renua and the AAA-PPP are destined to fade into obscurity. Of all of the new political parties formed in recent years in response to the crisis, the Social Democrats are most likely to succeed, as they occupy the right ground to appeal to the most people.

The new Social democrats PHOTO: the GREYSTONES GUIDE

The Irish Strike: an Endangered Species?

With public strikes returning to Irish news in recent weeks, Billy Vaughan questions whether Ireland is as apathetic as people think

PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE BBC

IN THE LAST month, the Irish public has been hit by both a strike and a looming strike threat concerning essential services. A few weeks ago, all postal services were halted by strike action by a contractor. Not long after the end of this dispute, there was the announcement by the National Bus & Rail Union and SIPTU that their train drivers were planning strike action on the 23rd October and 6th November. All strike action causes disruption to a certain extent, but these occurrences really hit home for Irish people.

Like any wide-reaching event like this, it sparked some introspection and debate on strike culture in Ireland, and the place of strikes in

our constantly evolving society.

The popular notion is that in Ireland, people are not very partial to a strike – that it’s not the done thing. Even when the “Winter of Discontent” occurred in Britain in the late seventies, Ireland kept steady.

This is because Ireland often tends to tie strikes in with general civil disobedience in a country. Countries that have a culture of protest tend to have more strikes; and countries like Ireland, which protested very little, were naturally more subservient.

You would be reasonable in that assumption, but it is incorrect. While the two would seem to have a close link, this is not borne out by evidence.

In terms of number of strikes and number of days lost, Ireland routinely

ranks in the top ten, both globally and in Europe. In 2014, days lost to strikes skyrocketed from 14,965 to 44,105. But both of these pale in comparison to Ireland’s worst year for strikes, 1979, where an astonishing 1.46 million days were lost. Ireland may have shunned most socialist policies throughout its Catholic era, but strikes were certainly not one of them. While Irish people at this time were socially conservative, they had no qualms about sticking up for their rights as workers. A close look at any year from the 1970s will inevitably bring up some kind of major industrial action that took place. The 1974 Dublin Bus strike, the 1979 PAYE strikes, or the 1976 bank strike are just some among many. The truth

The struggle went on for nearly three years, and Nelson Mandela said the stand these workers took helped him to keep his spirits up during his time in prison. Some of them even went to his funeral in 2013.

Another common misconception is that France leads the way in terms of strikes. It is often characterised as a counterpoint to the obedience of countries like the UK and Ireland.

But only nine per cent of French people are even members of a union, and it is generally middle of the table when it comes to strikes. What is far more surprising are the leaders of the tables when it comes to industrial action. Among them are Canada and Denmark, not exactly known for their firebrand industrial politics. Both of them feature in the top five. In 2005, for example, Canada lost 303 days for every 1,000 workers compared with 151 in France, and a mere 0.1 in Germany. You can’t simply stick the stereotypes to the country when it comes to industrial relations. Each nation has its own complex rules and cultural norms that make for wildly varying (and unexpected) statistics.

In Canada’s case, it is inter-industry competition is that Ireland as each “In terms of has kept largely sector fights in line with for better number of the European wages and strikes and trend of a strike conditions “peak” in the number of days coming from 70s and 80s the mining lost, Ireland which has been boom in the declining since. routinely country.

Our strikes What is ranks in the have also the reason top ten, both taken place behind for a variety of the global globally and reasons, and decline of in Europe.” certainly not strikes? It’s just for worker gain. Many Irish certainly not a decrease in underlying people remember the Dunnes Stores disputes. Differences between unions strike of 1985, when union members and employers are as frequent and refused to handle goods imported fierce as they have ever been. The from apartheid-era South Africa. likely cause is a global shift in

priorities from hostility and damage limitation towards solving the dispute before it becomes a major problem. In Ireland we have seen this in the shape of the Labour Relations Commission, which was set up in 1991. It has been a huge force in moving the country away from the prolonged strikes of old. All sides, including government, employers and unions saw this as a common sense measure, and from this consensus we got the famous “Social Partnership” policy of Bertie Ahern’s government. Employers, unions and government got together to create triennial agreements that included moderate pay increases, and there was a marked fall in disputes during this time.

The 2008 financial crash brought a collapse of this consensus, and the nation has seen a slow rise of discontent since. Will we see an eventual return to the days of the ‘70s strikes? Possibly, but certainly not to the same extent. There is now an infrastructure in place to largely prevent any issue that gets out of hand. Disputes now go to the Labour Relations Commission, and even if parties still cannot agree, the Labour Court usually comes up with a viable solution for both parties.

So the strike as we know it could be on its way out in the long-term, but is its replacement system a positive development? In the sense that the economy suffers less stagnation, then yes, it is. But cartels such as the one built up by Social Partnership can often result in an elite that loses touch with its employees, members or voters. Overall though, everyone at the table benefits, and this is sure to make it a winning formula. In the meantime, let us enjoy the poetic drama of the Great Irish Strike.

It is becoming a rare breed, and could very well soon be extinct.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

comment The Cult of Trump Donald Trump’s campaign for presidential office has resulted in a long list of controversial remarks and actions. Martin Healy looks to examine how Trump’s popularity continues in spite of this ‘‘WE ARE GOING to make our country rich again, we are going to make our country great again.” US president hopeful Donald Trump was quick to stick to his campaign slogan during the introductions in the Republican Primary debate last month. He quickly followed this up by mentioning his ‘billions’, the military, and then his plan to remove ‘Obamacare’.

Trump makes for an intriguing figurehead during this presidential primary. The key comes from that “Make America Great Again” mantra – Trump is attempting to cash in on the political disillusionment that has sunk into American life since the Watergate scandal. A decade of financial ruin, wars, mass shootings and whistle-blowers has allowed Trump to craft the idea of a country that America can be once again.

Just like Nigel Farage and UKIP, he is idealising a nation from the past that has never actually existed.

It is not difficult to see why Trump has generated a lot of headlines.

His rhetoric is blunt, but effective.

What comes across as racism and empty statements to some can also be exciting and refreshing to others.

The oft-stereotyped “Average Joe” can look to Trump’s campaign and see a man taking risks and looking to create change – he is a rich man that brings echoes of the “American Dream”, the everyday man taking a shot at Washington.

What has allowed Trump to sustain his popularity? For one, it is certainly difficult to go long without hearing his name in the headlines. Trump is a conveyer belt of sound bites and quotable statements. From his Twitter feed alone, blogs can find a constant stream of material. The media circus surrounding his campaign makes him unavoidable, perpetuating his image week after week.

It does not even matter if the media

are mocking him. Instead, it serves as a constant reminder of his opinions and actions. His controversial and ridiculous statements surrounding Latin American immigrants earn him mockery from blogs and social media, and from people outside of the US, but it keeps his “telling it how it is” persona alive. No other candidate is able to declare such strong, often-bigoted opinions like Trump and not only continue to run,

‘‘Make America Great Again’ is vague rhetoric, but that makes it universally easy amongst his supporters in Middle America.” but continually top opinion polls.

Returning to the similarities to Farage, Trump is side-stepping the clean and airbrushed world of modern politics, which is earning him supporters from those who want ‘personality’ in their presidential hopefuls. In many Irish circles, his name produces ridicule, but everyone has an opinion on the man, which creates a potential avenue into elected office.

As the Republican Party’s policies and candidates have generated a growing tide of critics in recent years, Trump is distancing himself away from the party. Despite being the Republican frontrunner, he has talked before about running

independently if his party nomination falls through. Trump also does not mince words with other Republican candidates, recently and consistently mocking fellow candidate Jeb Bush and his brother George W. Bush, stating that the former President was at fault for the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

The Republican Party, which was a presidential force during the middle and late periods of the twentieth century, has suffered trying to return to the White House since the end of the Bush regime. Trump’s self-interest and independence aids him, as he can distance himself from a party suffering from an identity crisis. He can safely criticise the Bush presidency of the 2000s due to the nasty legacy it left in its wake.

Running as an independent, however, would effectively win the election for the Democrats as the conservative vote would be split. As such, the party has to stick with Trump through his myriad controversies.

As long as his popularity sustains, he holds a powerful bargaining chip within the party.

That popularity, despite slipping from its high in the late summer, looks set to continue. Trump’s polling numbers remain relatively steady in spite of himself. Recently he picked a fight with the centre outlet of conservative, right-wing America: Fox News. Trump declared that the station has treated him “very unfairly”, though he has reneged on his ‘boycott’ of Fox’s programming.

Few can doubt his ability to draw crowds. The first Republican debate was watched by over twenty million people. With the most popular shows on American television consisting of reality TV, Trump’s reality persona provides drama and entertainment that no other candidate can. Presidential elections are often criticised as being glorified popularity contests,

but in Trump’s case, his attitude allows him to thrive as a reality star that entertains the American public whether they like his policies or not.

Considering his “Make America Great Again” slogan, there are parallels to how former President Ronald Reagan got in and sustained himself in the White House for two terms. In a recent essay for BuzzFeed, Anne Helen Petersen wrote about the legacy and endearing love America still has for former Hollywood icon John Wayne. Wayne is beloved for his fictional persona, which has been incorrectly transplanted onto Wayne’s real life and personality.

Like Reagan, Petersen states, both men “hitched their images to an ambiguous idea of a return to simple American values, to when a man could be a man.” The same people who idealised men like Wayne in his birth place of Winterset, Iowa are the same who have given such support to the Trump campaign.

“Make America Great Again” is vague rhetoric, but that makes it universally easy amongst his supporters in Middle America.

The modern world is often vilified as a scary place in the media, and as America battles with its own self-image in the age of surveillance,

drone warfare, and Islamophobia, Trump stands as a platform for the unattainable. It is hard to deny the cult of personality that has risen up around himself and his followers, but at the same time, it is easy to dismiss any potential he has of electoral success. His potential presidential term may be guaranteed to fail, but that doesn’t mean that he won’t be elected to serve a term to begin with, as long as he continues to cynically move to the demands of a huge and conservative sector of the United States.

TRUMP EARLY ON IN THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN PHOTO: SEASHOREMARY, VIA WORDPRESS

Online advertising: what’s in a name?

Big brands are increasingly realising the power of social media and are looking to cash in. Ciara Fitzgerald examines the use of online celebrity endorsements as a means of spreading the word in an instant NO MATTER where you are today, whether it be on a busy shopping street or sitting at a bus stop, you are more than likely going to come across an annoyingly perfect version of a celebrity’s smiling face attempting to sell you something.

For decades companies have used celebrities to promote their products to the public in the hopes of effectively reaching their target demographic and increasing their profits. While research into the subject is divided on whether or not these celebrity endorsements actually work, big brands have continued to see them as a lucrative business strategy worth the millions required to secure the use of a well-known face. Examples include Justin Timberlake signing a deal with McDonalds in 2003 for $6 million, while more recently in 2012 Beyoncé agreed to a 10-year partnership with Pepsi that will secure her $50 million in total.

These expensive enterprises

however seem to be becoming a thing of the past as more and more consumers shy away from overt, flashy advertisements.

This presents a problem for brands as to how they can continue to use celebrity status to promote their products, but in a more subtle way. The answer seems to have been found online through social media. Today’s top stars have a huge online fan base and can easily rack up millions of followers from all over the world across various platforms.

In order to reap the benefits of this golden opportunity, brands make use of a form of native advertising. This is a concept whereby the consumer is not presented with an obvious ad, but rather one disguised to fit in with the platform’s usual content. In layman’s terms what this means is that today’s ads blend in with all numerous other posts we rapidly scroll through every day, while today’s celebrity endorsement deals consist of sponsored tweets and Instagram posts from their

personal accounts raving about a particular something they can’t live without. This seemingly continues to be beneficial for both parties, with the company receiving worldwide exposure at half the cost, while the celebrity is still able to collect a sizable pay cheque.

Anyone who follows a major celebrity online has come across one of these ads, which are usually quite easy to pick out if you know to look for them. They are particularly prolific on Instagram, where the most commonly endorsed products lately have been teeth whiteners and detox teas. CocoWhite, describe as “a 100 per cent all natural alternative to the chemical fuelled teeth whitening craze,” has been prominently featured in smiling selfies uploaded by Lindsay Lohan, Kylie Jenner and Katie Price.

Meanwhile Bootea, described as “the boost you need to get back on track with your healthy eating and active lifestyle”, has also made an appearance in another photo on each of these women’s pages, along with those belonging to Vanessa

“The ugly truth about these stories is that if Ahmed and Hisham were white, they would not have experienced the trouble they went through.”

Kim kardashian’s instagram PHOTO: SCREENSHOT FROM INSTAGRAM

6 OCTOBER 28th 2015

Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and many others. Although we are now accustomed to seeing these kinds of posts, many are still not aware that these celebrities are paid for the publicity, which can lead to a whole host of problems given the health and imageorientated nature of what is being advertised, as well as their young target audience.

Like all other forms of advertisement then, this relatively new approach does have to be regulated.

Both the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and the USA’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have their own standards to which both celebrities and brands are supposed to adhere.

These are no different from other rudimentary everyday advertising regulations designed to protect the consumer. The generally accepted practise is to include “#ad” or “#spon” in every sponsored post so that followers are aware of what exactly they are looking at.

Their rules also state that these type of ads are not allowed to be misleading or provide false information.

Unfortunately though these are neither widely implemented nor enforced.

In fact the majority of these posts (including those listed above) do not include any mention of them being part of an endorsement deal and sometimes provide information on benefits that cannot be independently verified.

Yet in the last few years there have only been two high profile cases surrounding false advertising on social media. In 2012, Wayne Rooney and Nike were initially criticised by the ASA for his tweet promoting their ‘Make It Count’ campaign because it was not “identifiable as marketing communications,” and the

tweet in question was taken down. On further investigation however, both Rooney and Nike were subsequently cleared of any wrongdoing because of the difference in language between Rooney’s regular tweets and the Nike-sponsored one.

The other case occurred last August after Kim Kardashian posted a photo to her Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts of herself holding a bottle of the morning sickness drug Diclegis, along with a lengthy caption filled with glowing praise. This came to the attention of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which issued a warning letter to the company and the reality star stating they had broken federal laws as “the social media post is misleading because it presents various efficacy claims for Diclegis, but fails to communicate any risk information.” As a result, the post was subsequently removed (but not before it received over 450,000 likes), and Kardashian later re-posted it along with a new caption which included all the necessary health risk information, thereby abiding by the FDA’s demands.

Both of these incidents indicate a lack of strict penalties when these celebrity endorsements ignore regulations. The situation will only get worse if the authorities do not take steps to protect consumers and discourage brands from flaunting the rules.

Similarly consumers need to be informed and thereby able to recognise these ads for what they are: a paid sponsorship deal which often has nothing to do with the person’s own preferences.

In order for there to be greater enforcement both the public and the celebrities themselves have to want to take control of how we are subjected to advertisements online. Celebrity voices have a definite power on social media, but they need to be careful about how they use them and for what.

Gaeilge

An Radharc Ón dTúr Uisce Tá tinneas mistéireach ag dul thart an campas. Tabhair aire daoibh féin go léir!

Le Síofra Ní Shluaghadháin UAIREANTA, bíonn droch-oíche againn anois is arís. Tá a fhios agat, an saghas oíche a críochnaíonn suas ar bharr dín in arás na mic léinn i nGleann na Míne… An bhfuil mé liom féin? Ó bhuel, ní sin an scéal.

Ach, tá baint aige leis, cinnte.

D’fhill triúr mhic léinn (a bhfánfaidh in-ainmnithe) ar ranganna an tseachtain seo tar eis droch eispéireas (agus trí seachtáin teiripe, de réir scéala) tar eis dóibh oíche a chaitheamh agus iad faoi ghlas in Ollscoil na Trionóide, i lár na cathrach. Cuireadh fios ar oifigí éagsúla nuair nach raibh freagra ó ghútháin ar bith den triúir. Nuair a tháinig said ar ais,

thart ar a hocht a clog an maidin dár chinn, d’aimsigh mic léinn eile a bhí ina conaí le duine acu go raibh athrú uafasach tar éis teacht orthu. Labhair muid le hUrsuala; “Chuala mé D--- ag dul isteach sa chistín,” dúirt sí, “Agus, laithreach bun, bhí a fhios agam nach raibh sé i gceart. Bhí rud éigin a rá aige faoin “DORT”, agus go raibh cluiche cricéid aige le himirt níos déanaí an lá sin.”

Cuireadh chuig an dochtúir campas laithreach an triúr, a bhí ag léiriú na comharthaí céanna; athrú blásteanga, srón tiontaithe agus ramhaille (ina measc, caint faoi rugbaí, cricéid agus deochanna in i mbéar an Pav). Is

é an diagnóis atá tugtha nó siondróm oíche iad. Oibríonn sin de gnáth. na Trionóide. Cúisíonn an malacht Tá mé cinnte, áfach nach raibh seo na comharthaí tugtha thuas, oíche chomh tubáisteach ag éinne atá chomh maith le ego boilscithe. Ní ag léamh an nuachtáin seo (nó ar aon féidir biseach a cur air ach trí teiripe nós tá súil agam nach raibh!) is a bhí crua, chun gúth, meon agus fiú cuma ag an triúr mhic léinn seo. Tháinig an fisiceach an mhic léinn a áthrú ar ais. scéal seo chugainn mar cúlchainte, Na bígí buartha, ní tógalach atá ach, de réir scéala, is fíor uilig é! an siondróm seo. Deir dochtúirí nach féidir í a fháil ach trí barríocht ama a chaitheamh san Seomra Fhada, nó in áiteanna eile in Ollscoil na Trionóide.

Má tá fios agat ar éinne a léiríonn na comharthaí seo, tóg laithreach iad chug béar an Clubhouse agus caith trí phionta beora ró-dhaor orthu gan mhoill. Muna oibríonn sin, fág san Áras Talmhaíochta thar

Traidisiún Samhna na hÉireann Amharcann Oisín Ó Cléirigh ar traidisiún Samhna na hÉireann TÁ traidisiún aosta againn leis an Samhain. Téann an ceangail seo siar go fada, ar ais go dtí am na Ceiltigh, nuair a bhí an Éireannaigh go léir go foill ina Págánachtaí. Go traidisiúnta, céiliríodh an Samhain ar an 31 Deireadh Fomhair go dtí 1 Samhain.

Céiliríodh é mar pháirt de deireadh an tSamhraidh agus tosacht an chuid doracha den bhliain. Tá ceangal an-láidir aige leis an mhiotaseolaíocht Ceilteach, agus féictar é seo sa dóigh a rinneadh céiliríodh air. Shíl na hÉireannaigh go raibh an nasc idir an domhain agus an domhain thíos ag an pointe is ísle. Shíl siad ag an am seo go raibh na táibhsí go léir ón domhain thíos abálta teacht ar ais arís. Ghleas siad suas chun iad féin a folaigh ó na taibhsí seo, na Aos Sí. Is as seo a thagann an seán-nós a bhfuil againn gleasú suas chun féíle na Samhna a céilireadh. Níl me ró-chinnte, áfách, ar ghleas na seán-Éireannaigh suas mar coiníní nó mar chait chun folaigh ó na Aos Sí.

Mar is gnách le aon rud a bhfuil ann, déanann na Méiricéanaigh é níos mó arís. Chuaigh sé anáil go Mhéiricéa trí na hÉireannaigh agus na hAlbanaigh. Tagann an Samhain nua-aoiseach a bhfuil againn anois ó na Méiricéanaigh den chuid is mó.

“Mar is gnách le aon rud a bhfuil ann, déanann na Méiricéanaigh é níos mó arís.’’

Tháinig siadsan suas leis an nós chun gleasadh suas agus dul thart ag baileadh mílseán. Mar aon rud eile “Méiricéanach”, “spreagadh” é thart ar an domhain. Is é sin an dóigh a fhaigheann muid an Samhain a bhfuil againn inniu. Thar na blianta d’athraigh sé ó bheith ina ceiliúradh spioródach, go dóigh chun níos mó mílseán a fháil, nó níos ólta nó bá gnáth mas Éireannach thú. I miotaseoláiocht na Ceiltigh is é 1 Samhain an tosacht an bhliain úr dóibh agus bhí sé mar pháirt do glantach na spiorad agus an chroí.

Lás siad tiní móra, rud a dhéanann

muidine go fóill, agus chuir siad a ainmhithe ag rith fríd na tiní chun iad a glanadh, rud nár chóir dúinn a dheánamh chóiche arís.

griangraf: JAMES HEALY

Léirmheas – Spiorad na Samhna (2015)

Tugann Déonna McLaughlin léirmheas ar gearrscanánn dátheangach a tugann súil ar Oíche Shamhna, mar atá agus mar a bhí GEARRSCANÁNN an-suimiúil atá in Spiorad na Samhna. Leanann sé Carnabhal Samhna Doire, cheann de na mórshuil is mora den chineál seo ar domhain. Léirigh an scánann gairid seo na tradisiún atá bainnte le Oíche na Samhna, cad a dhéantar anois agus cad a bhí déanta fado.

Bhí an scannan seo suimiuil agus ba choir at gach duine é a fheicint.

Cheapaim go chuir sé déa spion ar Oíche na Samhna. Chuir sé gliondar orm.

Léirítear an fáth gur thosaigh ceiliúradh mar seo i gcathair Dhoire; i rith na dTrioblóidí ó Thuaidh, thainig ísliú ar an líon daoine a bhí ag freastail ar na béar sa chathair. Bhí úinéirí agus freastalaithe na hostlanna seo ag iarraidh tús a cur le hoíche soisealta, ach oíche gan pholáitíocht (mar nach raibh le fáil in a leithid de Lá le Pádraig, nó an 5ú Mí na Samhna, mar shampla). Chomh maith, thaitinn saoirseacht Féile na Samhna leo, leis an traidisiún de gléasú suas.

Cuireadh an scanánn seo isteach i gComórtas Scannáin Chorcaigh.

Bhuaigh sí an duais don Ghearr Scánnan Faisnéise is fearr. Bhí anchuid iontráil sa gcomórtas: 122 i 15 catagóir ó 35 tíortha éagsúla.

Cheap mé gur scánnan bríomhar a bhí ann, agus é lan le fírící faoi Féile na

Samhna. Cheap mé gur chur sé an spiorad atá bainte leis an fhéile sin in iúl go héifeachtach. Dá bharr an scannán seo, bhéadhfáinn lán-sásta m’Oíche Shamhna a chaitheamh i nDoire. Tá sé soileir gur ait lan de chultuir é Doire agus ta an cultur seo ré-shoilear i rith an scánnan.

Ghlac Dr. Jenny Butler (as Coláiste na hOllscoile, Corcaigh) mór pháirt i leiriú an scéal seo agus bhí sé sin de dhíth. Ise a bhí ag déanamh cur síos ar na traidisiún atá agus a bhí bainte le Féile na Samhna.

D’ár liomsa ba choir do gach duine an gearrscannán seo a fheicéail. Glacann sé ocht nóiméid agus is suimiúil é an topaic. Is deas gur scannan dha-theangach í, mar sin is feidir le cách í a fhéiceáil.

Má ta suim agat amharc ar an scannan seo is féidir é a fhail ag vimeo.com

Faoi Riail ag Teanga Dúchais Iasachta Tar éis do roinnt cóir tráchta a bheith cáite amach ar bhun na Gaeilge de, amharcann Dónal Ó Catháin ar an gaol teannta atá idir ár chéad teanga oifigiúl agus an Stát AN bhliain seo chugainn béimíd ag agat), ach níl an locht ar an teanga ceiliúradh an chéad ó Éirí Amach na ná an Bunreacht as ucht sin. Tá an Cásca 1916, nuair a sheas fir agus lucht ansin ar ár ndlíthe agus ar an mná cróga lasmuigh d’Ard-Oifig an tslí a gcuirtear i bhfeidhm iad.

Phoist, agus d’fhógair go misniúil Féicimíd ar feadh nóiméid ar thír Forógra na Saoirse, go mba Shaorstát atá cosúil linn sa tslí a bhfuil níos í Éire, saor ar deireadh ó smacht mó ná teanga oifigiúil amháin aici, phlútach na Breataine. Déarfainn sí sin an Eilvéis. Timpeallaithe ag an tráth sin nach raibh sé i gceist ag an nGearmáin, an bhFrainc, acu go ndéanfaí neamhaird ar an an Iodáil agus tír nó dhó eile, teanga Ghaelach, a bhí ar cheann de labhraítear níos mó ná teanga bhunchlocha bhunú na Poblachta, amháin sa tír. Labhraíonn 64.9% laistigh den chéad chéanna.

Gearmáinis, 22.6% Fraincis, Glacann an leagan Gaelach 8.3% Iodáilis agus 0.5% Rómáinis den Bhunreacht tús áite ar a mar phríomhtheanga inti. Ach is mhacasamhail Béarla i reáchtáil na teangacha oifigiúla iad sin ar fad. tíre seo. Bhí cúis ag bunaitheoirí ár Agus ní mór don Rialtas cáipéisí dtíre go mba mar seo a bheadh cúrsaí, oifigiúla a chur ar fáil i nGearminis, i ndréachtú an chéad leagain in 1922 i bhFraincis agus in Iodáilis. agus arís nuair a leasaíodh é i 1937. “Fíric spéisiúil, Seo thíos caitheann an Rialtas Airteagal 8, níos mó airgid ar an t-alt cuí ón mBunreacht: 1 sheirbhísí aistriúcháin Ós í an Ghaeilge i gcomhair theangacha an teanga náisiúnta is í an iasachta ná mar a phríomhtheanga chaitheann siad ag oifigiúil í. 2 aistriú doiciméad Glactar leis an Sacs-Bhéarla go Gaeilge.’’ mar theanga oifigiúil eile.

An difear atá idir an tír seo agus an Tuigtear ar ndó, sa lá atá inniu Eilvéis áfach, ná nach bhfuil teanga ann, go ndéantar mórchuid de ársa álainn náisiúnta “Eilvéisis” chumarsáid sa tír seo as Béarla. Níl acu. Is teangacha na dtíortha aon agó faoi sin. Ach má thosaítear timpeall orthu atá ann. Ní bhaineann ag do ligean stádas na Gaeilge cultúr agus oidhreacht ar leith leis dul in éig, cá háit a stopfaidh sé? na teangacha comhaimseartha Murar ghá don Ghaeilge bheith ar Eorpacha seo. Cinnte tá cultúr fáil i ndoiciméid oifigiúla an Stáit dá gcuid féin ag an Eilvéis, idir (is dócha gur féidir ticéad tráchta a sheacláid, uaireadóirí, ghunnaí rangú faoin gcur síos seo), cad í an agus eile, ach níl bunú an stáit ná chéad chéim eile di, í a bhaint ón an stair a ghabhann léi bainteach mBunreacht agus ó shaol oifigiúil chomh smior le teanga náisiúnta na tíre go hiomlán? Ar ndóigh tá sé ar bith, fé mar atá inár dtírse. seafóideach go mba bhealach éalaithe Fíric spéisiúil, caitheann an ó choir thráchta í an Ghaeilge (go Rialtas níos mó airgid ar sheirbhísí hairithe muna bhfuil focal Gaeilge aistriúcháin i gcomhair theangacha

iasachta ná mar a chaitheann siad ag aistriú doiciméad go Gaeilge.

San iomlán, caitheann Rialtas na hÉireann thart ar €55 billiún gach bliain ar an uile-rud. Níor éirigh liom teacht ar shuim chruinn i gcomhair an méid a chaitear ar aistriúcháin Ghaeilge ach dhealródh sé gurb idir €3m agus €5m sa bhliain atá ann.

Níl ansin ach 0.007% de chaiteachas iomlán an Rialtais. Nach fiú an céatadán beag bídeach sin ar mhaithe le teangá ár sinsear a choinneáil ar chomhchéim leis sin ar bhrúigh ár riarthóirí éigeantacha orainn.

Iad siúd a deir nach n-éilítear cóip den Acht um Thalamhaíochta agus Feirmeoireachta 1973 as Gaeilge riamh, cad í an uair dheireanach ar thug siad aghaidh ar a macasamhail Béarla! Más cur amú airgid atá ann, cur as dóibh, tá áiteanna ar féidir i bhfad níos mó sábhála a chur ar bun. Measaim gurb é an méid a bhíonn ann go ró-rialta ná fuath don Ghaeilge á chur in iúl i bhfeisteas cúram eacnamaíochta.

Ní mór dúinn dearcadh níos dearfaí a chothú i dtreo an teanga, feasacht a ardú ar na nithe iontacha comhaimseartha a bhíonn ar bun inti, Na Gaeil Óga, foireann CLG lán-Ghaeilge, Gaelgaírí, Stand-Up as Gaeilge, Ravelóid, Féile Gaelach a bheidh ar siúl den chéad uair i samhradh 2016. Is í ár dteanga í, is linne í, ba chóir go n-úsáidfimis í chuile huair gur féidir linn, bíodh sé sin in aistriúcháin doiciméad oifigiúil stáit, le Gaeilgeoirí eile, agus sinn ag cleachtadh ióga, fiú agus sinn ag bualadh craicinn.

Ceiliúradh an chéad an bhliain seo chugainn, go maire an Ghaeilge céad eile.

griangraf: PEIG.IE

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

features Budget 2016: Betrayal or Benevolence?

In the aftermath of Budget 2016, Billy Vaughan examines what its impact on students will be

HISTORICALLY, the Irish student If there is any change in the system I has had a tough time when it comes hope it doesn’t put up more barriers to political attention. They have never to students,” said Simon Harris, Fine been a great voting force, and so the Gael TD and Minister of State. He laws of reason dictate that where accepted that exchequer funding for they ignore the political process, it third level was not adequate, and will duly ignore them. However, in other solutions would have to be recent months, with young people looked at, such as student loans. across Ireland being the driving force A big win in the budget for many behind many national campaigns working students was the 50 cent such as the marriage equality increase in the minimum wage. It referendum and water charge protests, will go from the current €8.65 to Budget 2015 might have reflected the €9.15. For many, this will be a great growing interest in the government. cumulative gain, but many also It is a great question understatement whether “Fine Gael to say there the rise are several is enough, hasn’t taken the considering groups who were vying for the rising opportunity to attention in this cost of budget. This living in the last budget has fully invest in capital city. been the first “I think one since 2008 young people. it’s more where civil rhetoric, Education is an organisations to try and didn’t feel the make a investment, not need to try gesture and pass cuts more than an expense.” around like anything a hot potato. else,” said Instead, civil Oisín organisations McCann, were fighting for the excess PRO of Sinn Féin UCD. “I have to generated by improved economic work two jobs at the moment to afford times. This, however, still meant the €500 increase in fees. I have that there were winners and losers friends who work zero hour contracts of Budget 2016; students especially, in bars. This is where YFG need to won some and lost others. say ‘this isn’t good enough’”. However, The budget had a few giveaways Ian Fahey, secretary of UCD Young to help students directly. The first Fine Gael, feels that it is a “good first of these was an advancement of step”, and mentions that since Fine €3 million towards the Student Gael took over, the minimum wage Assistance Fund. This fund is has increased by €1.50, and more allocated to third level students than made up for Fianna Fáil’s cuts. from the most disadvantaged Many students renting private backgrounds. The much hated annual accommodation will feel the pinch increase in college fees has also of the water charges this year, with been stopped and this year is the €260 being the standard rate for a last year scheduled for an increase multi-person home. The non-payment in the €250 a year staggered hike in rate continues to be a very high, at 37 fees, which was introduced in 2012 per cent. A €100 water conservation as a revenue generating measure. grant is being made available, but But some have said that more could it may still be too much for students. have been more done for fee-paying McCann maintains that it’s “an students this year. “I accept that unnecessary tax”, and we must “bear there’s a significant barrier for in mind that they’ve lowered the rate families just above the grant level, and introduced the grant over time. especially families who have multiple They’re constantly compromising children in college at the same time. because of the opposition,” and while

Photo: JAMES HEALY

Fahey agrees that the implementation little in the budget aimed at of the strategy has been “a shambles”, tackling the housing crisis he maintains that in Dublin.

“80% of “they’re progressive Many students taxes. They aren’t are having students targeted at anyone. to pay high Most people are rents or get actually protesting used to a long would not about Irish Water, daily commute. not the tax itself.”

“That’s vote for a There is also something a lot good news for users government of our members of college “digs” have personally accommodation, brought to us. party as the tax relief We feel that for homeowners students have because of who give rooms to been totally students is being airbrushed,” the budget.” McCann raised from €10,000 says. to €12,000, which Fahey cites a may lead to a new student reduction in prices for students. But housing complex to be built in apart from this, it seems there was the docklands as evidence that

the government is moving in the right direction. “It could house the guts of three to four thousand students.” He also points out that the housing crisis is more complicated than some make it out to be. “There is no quick fix solution. It’s not a case of simply throwing in a rent cap of a certain amount on a certain property.”

The President of the USI, Kevin Donoghue said that while there were some positive developments, there was also much room for improvement. “Fine Gael hasn’t taken the opportunity to fully invest in young people.

Education is an investment, not an expense.” Donoghue has also stated that “not reintroducing the postgraduate

grants is disappointing.”

Campaigns such as Repeal The Eighth and the marriage equality campaign have shown that Irish students are becoming increasingly engaged with the electoral and political system. In the lead up to the same-sex marriage referendum, crowds of young people registered to vote so that they could take part in the ballot. Whether or not this is a budget that betrays or benefits students is a matter of opinion, but with an increasing number of young people on the ballot, the next election might more accurately reflect students’ thoughts on the budget. Especially since 91 per cent of students feel the government has not appropriately addressed student supports in the Budget.

“As far as U26’s go, I think that they will react negatively to this budget, unless something is done in the next month to tackle the shortfall in student accommodation as well as the soaring cost of living,” said Marcus O’ Halloran, UCD Students’ Union President. But Mr. Harris said that he “will be pitching that fact that at my age, young people had to leave the country, but now we see the HSE actively recruiting Irish nurses back from abroad.”

Budget 2015 was predicted to be a giveaway budget, but according to a post-budget survey done by the USI, it would seem most students don’t agree.

93 per cent think that the government doesn’t prioritise education, and 80 per cent of students would not vote for a government party because of the budget.

The Obama Legacy – one of failure With only a few months left in office, Mark O’Brien O’Reilly examines the legacy Barack Obama is leaving

OBAMA came into office when the US was at war, facing the biggest economic crisis since the 1930s and with a republican majority in the House of Representatives. Much of the change he promised was made impossible by the Republican Party who blocked almost all the legislation he tried to bring in. In spite of him being the first black president, race relations have not improved. How he dealt with Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria has led to the growth of terrorism, dictatorships and mass migration.

He did manage to bring in a health care system to the US and has restored growth and a healthy GDP to the US economy.

With just over one year till the election of the 45th President of the United States, and in these, the last months of a much commented upon presidency, thoughts now must inevitably turn to what will the legacy of President Obama be.

Robert Dallek writing in the Politico Magazine has said that “with the Iran pact and Obamacare under his belt, he’s likely to be a President who is long remembered.”

Obama has not been idle. He has introduced Obamacare, has directed a national conversation on the gun attacks in America, managed to restore some sort of economic success, albeit at a painfully slow rate, although according to economist Jason Furman, “History is going to say he saved us from a second Great Depression.”

It is widely believed that Obamacare

will be his greatest achievement. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has said: “For all the misinformation campaigns, all the doomsday predictions, all the talk of death panels and job destruction, for all the repeal attempts – this law is now helping tens of millions of Americans.” James Mann, author of “The Obamians” believes that Obamacare will be Obama’s greatest achievement.

As he points out “where previous Democratic presidents, from Truman to Clinton have all failed.”

Obama has proved particularly disappointing in terms of race relations. Last December a Bloomberg Poll showed that 53 per cent of Americans believe race relations have gotten worse under the first black President. Just nine per cent think they have gotten better. If the election of Obama was the supposed realisation of Luther King’s dream, the vindication of all the years of oppression, an end to racial tensions, then it has let us down greatly. It will not be his legacy. Controversial incidents like Ferguson have marked the public conscious and put heed to that.

The world has become increasingly more dangerous and conflict stricken, especially in the Middle East under Obama. Despite promising to end war during his time in the White House, this month he announced the halt of the withdrawal of US Troops from Afghanistan, and has committed to keeping thousands of troops in

“History is going to say he saved us from a second Great Depression.”

8 OCTOBER 28th 2015

the country through the end of the Obama years, thereby prolonging the war that has bogged down America since it first entered the country fourteen years ago. Afghanistan may not have been for Obama what Vietnam was for Johnson, but it shows yet another example of Obama failing to achieve what he promised.

While outside factors may have intervened, such as the growth of Islamic State, it is clear his legacy will not be one of peace. In a period in which thoughts of incumbents of that great office must surely turn to attempting to build a legacy, free from the worry of an election, surely Obama would have wished to have been the one to bring home American troops from that conflict.

This is rather ironic when one considers that Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, in a widely criticised move at the time.

Many argued at the time that to award the Nobel Prize to a man who had just been elected to the Oval Office was perhaps a mistake; it was too soon for him to have made his mark, and especially when one of the reasons he was awarded the prize was for a supposed commitment to reducing US troop numbers stationed abroad.

Mann offers a more positive view of Obama’s foreign policy. “His withdrawal of forces from Iraq and Afghanistan, and his less-recognised

IN Photo: US PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

reliance on German chancellor Angela Merkel to take the leading role in dealing with Vladimir Putin, were all part of a larger effort to create a more modest, sustainable role for the United States.”

Perhaps the most dangerous legacy Obama will gift to the world is the rise of Islamic State. Mann said Obama “became swept up in the early idealism of the Arab Spring, deciding that the old dictators and monarchs of the Middle East were relics of the past and should give way to democratic governments. But the Arab Spring

“Fifty three per cent of Americans believe race relations have gotten worse under the first black President”

turned out rotten for Obama and his idealism.” Many believe it is Obama and his administration who must take the blame for the growth of ISIS, having caused or worsened most of the problems in the Middle East. In that respect they must shoulder the blame for both the migrant crisis and the ever increasing threat of terrorism that hangs over their European counterparts.

Jason O’Mahoney, an Irish political commentator on US Politics told the University Observer that he believes that “Obama’s greatest legacy, aside from being the first black President and the ACA will be that he was a voice for calm rationality in a political system skewing towards hysterical extremes. When you consider the surreal analysis of some on gun control or climate change, or even his place of birth, you realise that calm rationality is

no longer the default norm but a political choice that has to be made.”

Mann believes that “The Obama administration will eventually be seen as having brought to an end the American efforts to hold to the outdated policy toward China that dated back to the Nixon-Kissinger era.”

‘Change we can believe in’, was the slogan of the Obama campaign ahead of the 2008 presidential election. The election saw Obama enter the Oval Office with very heavy expectations from his electorate. In the initial stage of his presidency, January 2009, 69 per cent of Americans approved of the job Obama was doing.

The most recent poll tells us just 45 per cent do. However Obama’s presidency is not yet over; he may be able to improve his legacy before he leaves office in early 2017.

features

Gender matters: the quota question

The 2016 general election will be the first to see the effects of the gender quota. Sinead Conroy examines the changing role of women in Irish politics

LOUISE KEOGH AND CLARE O’CONNOR BATTLE IT OUT IN THIS YEAR’S SU HUSTINGS Photo: JOANNA O’MALLEY

THE UPCOMING general election will see the Electoral Amendment Act come into effect for the first time. The act seeks to ensure that 30 per cent of candidates standing for election for each political party are female. If any party fails to reach that target their state funding will be reduced by half.

There are currently 26 female TDs (16 per cent) and 19 female senators (32 per cent) in Ireland.

In the history of Irish politics the percentage of women in the Dáil has never been higher than 16.

Ireland is currently ranked 25th out of the 28 EU countries in terms of female political representation.

These statistics bring to light three key questions: Why are there so few women in our political system? What can or should be done to actively increase the numbers? Is a mandatory quota system the answer?

Independent TD Catherine Murphy sees a number of factors responsible for the imbalance. “The

biggest barrier is cash, while the dysfunctional political system is

being alien as is “the combative nature of the Dáil in particular.”

It would seem that much of the problem lies with the system itself and the way politics does business. This is confirmed

by Senator Darragh O’Brien who believes the system is off-putting to anyone with a life outside the political arena, regardless of gender.

“There are currently 26 female TDs (16%) and 19 female senators (32%) in Ireland.

In the history of Irish politics the percentage of women in the Dáil has never been higher than 16.” also hugely off putting.” She also cites indirect decision making as

“Basically the hours that both houses sit are a massive disincentive to anyone with a young family and particularly mothers. Why is it that the Oireachtas starts at 2.30 pm on a Tuesday and can sit till midnight or later on a Wednesday?

Oireachtas sittings in my view should be more in line with “normal” working days. Why not sit nine to five, Monday to Friday,” he said.

O’Brien is of the opinion that many of the issues, including the participation of women, could be addressed primarily “by changing the way in which politics and in particular, the Dáil and Seanad organise and do their jobs.” A system deemed somewhat dysfunctional by those within it would seem in need of considerable change and could be part of the reason why women are put off from entering politics.

Deputy Murphy is not convinced that there are many viable options in order to increase the ratio of women to men in the political system. The solution may be harder to find. “The problem has been identified for years but there has been no progress.

Suddenly there are quotas and suddenly women appear,” she said.

Senator O’Brien cites the current rate of 16 per cent of our TDs being female as one of the lowest in the OECD and says: “increasing female participation in politics does need to be actively pursued and increased.”

The introduction of gender quotas in the upcoming general election has received a very mixed reaction. Many would suggest that by enforcing a quota we are dictating the make up of each political party rather than allowing it to be formed with those best suited, most driven and most qualified but there is also a counter view. “For years there has been lip service paid to including women, the only thing that is making an obvious difference is the financial penalties of not having sufficient women contest,” said Deputy Murphy.

“The quota system is having the desired effect, which is what I had expected and I support quotas because nothing else seems to make an impact,” she added. It can of course be argued that by its nature a gender quota seeks to exclude or minimise the over-represented

gender which undoubtedly leads to the passing over of qualified candidates. This sentiment is echoed

by O’Brien who believes that we now have a situation that is driven by the fear of losing much needed funding. “Gender quotas as this government have implemented can lead to the charge being made against female candidates that they are now only token candidates and simply filling the ticket for parties to reach their legal obligations under the new law,” said O’Brien.

“We have had situations in my own party whereby very capable prospective male candidates have been barred from contesting selection conventions because a “female only” directive was issued,” he added. This issue has seen the introduction of the term “gendermandering”. O’Brien is of the opinion that gender quotas as they stand are discriminatory.

As it stands quotas will not determine who will be elected. “It will be up to the electorate to decide who they believe will be elected, but they should have that choice. That is all the quotas are doing for now,” added Deputy Murphy. Senator O’Brien said: “I have never, thankfully, come across discrimination against a female candidate,” he insisted. “I think… there is a perception that needs to be actively addressed that politics in Ireland is an ‘old boys club’. Whilst this may have been true in the past I don’t think it to be the case now.”

According to O’Brien, “Increasing female participation in politics does indeed need to be actively pursued and increased but I don’t believe that gender quotas are the way to do this.”

Senator O’Brien believes that the gender quota system is a “blunt and crude instrument,” while others believe it can make a real difference to women and the political system.

There is no shortage of wellrespected women held in high regard in the public eye with women currently occupying the most senior of roles including Tánaiste, Minister for Justice, Garda Commissioner, Attorney General and Chief Justice.

Ireland needs to design a fair and more effective system to give more women the opportunity to succeed.

Abuses in the service industry Due to increased costs of college, an increasing number of students are faced with having to work part-time. Roisin Guyett-Nicholson examines the treatment they face AS A RESULT of the rising college costs over the last number of years, many students have to work parttime in a variety of jobs. An article published by Campus.ie in 2013 revealed that half of all students work part-time. One of the most common positions that students work in is the service industry, particularly waiting tables in restaurants.

This work often comes with the necessity of dealing with a variety of people who may not always respect those who wait on them. The service industry has become synonymous with the phrase “the customer is always right”, yet common sense dictates that this cannot be possible.

“Critical Service Encounters: the Employees Viewpoint,” an article published in 1994 in the Journal of Marketing, looked into the issues that this attitude can cause. It argues that although problem customers can be rare, an environment of artifice in encounters between staff and customers can cause more stress. “Although no one really believes customers are always right, firms have policies that pretend this is so... such avoidance leads to stresses and strains for managers and frontline personnel alike.”

Those who work in the service industry often have to accept rude behaviour from customers that they would not always accept in other situations. The economic necessity of keeping a job puts a burden on staff to simply accept the attitudes of customers regardless of whether they are positive or negative.

Keelin O’Sullivan, a third year Arts student who has worked parttime as a waitress for the past two years believes that customers do not see her as an equal. “I feel like people see me as lesser than they are because they feel I have no skills outside of carrying them plates and taking their order. People act

genuinely shocked sometimes when they find out I’m actually in college.

They don’t understand that I’m doing this just to get through college.”

While the amount of customers that are rude to servers and other service industry workers may be relatively low, the fact still remains that there is an underlying attitude towards waiters and waitresses that can manifest as disrespect. Dr. Kieran Allen of the UCD School of Sociology explains: “people assume that, for example, a waiter or waitress is there to serve them and there’s often an ideology that the customer is literally the ‘king’ and therefore the customer can make no mistake.”

“There’s that sort of discourse… that can lead to some, not all, but I would think a minority of cases where people are very rude to waiters or waitresses.”

While they may want to be more honest with customers, those working in the service industry have to remain aware of the fact that they are essentially providing a product. This often means the server must acknowledge that they are representing their employer and as such anything they say should be something that their employer would be happy to hear.

Dr. Allen notes that this process is called “scripting.” This leads to an outcome where “there are preordained responses which their management sometimes, we’re not talking about all cases but sometimes demand that they respond in a certain way. So the most used one is ‘enjoy your meal’ obviously but you also see scripted

if you like, emotional labour where people are essentially pushed into assuming an identity as pleasing the customer always.”

This creates a trend in society whereby certain attitudes and understanding of the role of a waiter or waitress become widespread.

This concept is further enhanced by the actions of servers themselves. By acting according to their employers wishes that they treat the customer as “king”, waiters and waitresses perpetuate this idea.

However economic necessity often comes into play, particularly for students.

O’Sullivan states that she needs her job to support her through college. As a result she claims that she may be more willing to accept rude behaviour from a customer than she would if she met the same person in any other situation. “If I was [for example] in a nightclub and someone spoke to me rudely, I’d confront them… but if I was at work and someone spoke rudely to me, I don’t feel I have the authority to give out to someone when I’m there to be nice to them in that way, that’s my role.”

One of the key motivations especially for student workers is keeping their job in what can be a precarious

photo: STUCKSERVING.COM

societal norms. Allen explains that service industry work is “often not particularly well paid, increasingly people do not get premiums for nightshifts or working weekends.”

Allen says that students “don’t want to lose their job because rents are very high, so people are put in a situation of economic insecurity. So on top of the culture there is if you like some economic pressures to behave in certain ways.”

“although problem customers can be rare, an environment of artifice in encounters between staff and customers can cause more stress.” responses, say [if] the customer has a complaint. So these are often not responses that come naturally from the individual but they’re part of this,

industry. Fulfilling their role as the employer sees fit is therefore essential and can combine with the pre-existing

A further issue facing particularly female servers is sexism. Working in a position where they are already seen as somewhat inferior to the customer may foster an environment that sees customers treat their waitress in a more derogatory way than they would a male waiter.

“I have regularly experienced sexism,” O’Sullivan says. “There are other men who work with us and they don’t experience [that]. Women don’t treat them like objects, men don’t, no one treats them like that, no one calls them ‘baby’ or asks them to come dance in their room or asks

them personal questions like ‘do you have a boyfriend or girlfriend.’”

With the current prediction that the financial pressure on students is only set to rise, larger numbers of students will turn to part-time work in the service industry. It is clear that more and more will be faced with these attitudes that form an underlying trend in society.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

features

Homeless Week With the number of homeless people having grown every month this year, Eithne Dodd examines what UCD students are doing about the homelessness crisis HOMELESSNESS is a problem in raise awareness around homelessness Ireland that is increasing in severand its issues. They run numerous ity. The Peter McVerry Trust say that activities during the week including the minimum number of homeless busking, a leg-wax day, selling tea people in Ireland as of the 30th of and coffee, a clothes drive as well as September 2015 is 5,100. The number talks and debates about homelessness. of people experiencing homelessness The biggest thing the SVP do in Dublin has been increasing month during this week is sleep out on the on month. On the week commencing concourse for four days. Some claim the 21st of September, 4,999 people that sleep-outs are social events accessed emergency homeless accompartaken in by the wealthy without modation and the number of rough any real understanding gained of sleepers in Dublin is estimated to be what it is like to be homeless. “We get approximately 150 people each night. people coming up to us all the time Youth homelessness is especially on about that ‘this isn’t real homelessthe rise. UCD’s St Vincent De Paul ness’,” Kelly says. “Obviously it’s not society actively try to alleviate this real homelessness. I don’t know if I problem by going on soup runs every get a full understanding of what it’s week of the semester and running their like but… you do get a sense of what annuit’s like to al homeless be sleeping week out, rough, initiative. really cold.”

“It’s an Kelly awareness also points week at its out that the core,” says sleep-out Auditor of is not the UCD SVP, only activity Ciaran that is run Kelly. “We want UCD students or during Homeless Week to raise faculty or whoever it is that walks awareness. “Especially from the through UCD to see us sleeping out.” equality talks and the debate SVP’s first Homeless Week was held and our launches, that’s where in 2008 with the main aim of raising you get the understanding of the awareness of homelessness in Ireland technical side of homelessness.” and raising funds for the charity work Homeless Week is very important SVP do which includes running youth for the society. “It’s our biggest clubs, homework clubs and soup runs. week,” says Kelly. “You can’t ignore On last year’s Homeless Week it… we are in the very middle of Kelly says, “we thought it would be campus, as central as you can be.” small, like it was just going to be the Not only does it raise awareness, it committee sleeping out on the first gets people interested in homelessnight, that’s what you’d expect… people ness issues. “Some of the committee started hearing about before we slept this year are people who walked out and I remember at the launch just along the concourse, saw us, asked like 15 probably… just walked up to if they could join us,” said Kelly. myself and Kate (last year’s auditor) Of equal importance is the money and said ‘can we sleep out with you SVP raise from the week long event. tonight?’” There was about 20 people “It’s a huge fundraiser… you’ll see sleeping out on the Monday night buckets everywhere,” says Kelly. and by the Thursday Kelly estimates “The money goes towards our there was about 60 people. “It was charity end… the activities that we like from the library door all the run so that would be the soup runs, way along the concourse,” he says. the youth clubs, the homework clubs.”

SVP use Homeless Week as a way to While the SVP do try to raise

“the number of rough sleepers in Dublin is estimated to be approximately 150 people each night.”

Tradsoc playing at UCD SVP’S HOMELESS WEEK photo: UCD SOCIETIES

awareness of serious issues that face too many people in Ireland, with Homeless Week, there is room for fun at the event and they do try to get other students from other societies involved in discussing and thinking about the issues surrounding homelessness.

“During the evenings you’ve got your information talks, your launch.

There’s an equality talk with Economics Society… There’s a debate… with the L&H on the Wednesday and then on Thursday there’s the battle of the buskers which is kind of the big celebration and a thank you,” says Kelly.

UCD students can also engage with and increase their knowledge of homelessness through volunteering to go on a soup run with SVP. “The street homelessness, you get a good gauge of what it’s like but obviously… it’s the rented accommodation or the emergency accommodation which is the bigger homelessness issue at the moment, it may not be as severe but there’s more of it, more people,” Kelly says.

Kelly argues that he sees a lot of interest among students about homelessness. SVP organise soup runs Monday to Thursday every week

“That’s our biggest struggle, is trying to keep people motivated while we get through the rigmarole of training them”

of term. “They fill every week.

Four days a week, 24 people per run,” says Kelly. He also notes that there is more interest than they can accommodate for. “It’s an unideal system in so far as that you can only have a certain amount of people at each training.”

“I remember sticking up a sign up sheet for trainings on a Sunday night and I woke up on the Monday morning and they were three times over full. And I only had one and I wasn’t going to be allocated another one for weeks.”

“They’re so enthusiastic and we can’t accommodate for them and then the problem is that wanes so by week nine, week ten. If you can’t go on a soup run by week nine or week ten you’re going to be like ‘what’s the point in this?’ …That’s our biggest

struggle, is trying to keep people motivated while we get through the rigmarole of training them.”

On youth homelessness Kelly says, “Just from personal experience, it’s something I’ve seen hugely increase. I’ve done it for three years now… and it’s something that you see massively increasing… The vast majority I would see are under 30.”

While homelessness is currently on the rise in Ireland, so too are student engagement levels with homelessness in UCD. The numbers at Homeless Week have grown every year since it began in 2008 and this year, UCD SVP society has gained over 1400 member, over 500 more than it had last year.

While the problem is not going away, it certainly appears as though students are empathetic towards the cause, and there is a real desire to help those in need on campus.

Diary of a Taoishmuck Fiachra Johnston at me in Spanish. I wonder how much these long distance calls from Argentina are costing her.

Still, brings me back to my glory days in Galway University, out on the rugby pitch. “Kenny the Killer” they called me, no one would go near me. Once, I tried to get a game going in Leinster house after Seán Barrett had left (he’s a rubbish referee anyway), but no one was interested. Oh sure, if Higgins wants to go BMX-ing in town everyone stops what they’re doing to go have a look, but I try to get one little game of rugby going and everyone calls me “unprofessional”. At least I got to have a kick about with Paschal Donohoe in the car park after I agreed to hear his idea about putting giant googly eyes on the Cliffs of Moher to appeal to kids.

15/10 Haven’t written one of these for a while. There hasn’t been much reason to in the past while. But I heard today that Colin Farrell was once proved innocent in a murder case because his friend wrote down that they were doing ecstasy on the other side of town that day, so better safe than sorry. You never know when one of Aodhán Ó Ríordáin’s parties may come in handy.

Elections are coming up soon enough, and I’ve been looking for ways to spice up my campaign. I tried to take a page out of that one fella in America’s book by dyeing my hair blond and hosting The Apprentice, but Fionnuala just laughed at me and thought my idea of “getting the Protestants to build a wall along the coast and then kicking them out” was ridiculous. I tried auld Hilary’s style as well, but until someone notices the hundreds of secret emails I’ve been sending, that won’t work either (they’re not even that scandalous, just some pictures of Brian Cowen at last year’s Christmas party I found on my computer).

10 OCTOBER 28th 2015

On the plus side, found out about this lovely fella from London, Jeremy Corbyn. He refuses to sing “God Save the Queen” and he’s going to yell a bit at the Chinese delegation when they come over to the UK, but he won the Labour vote by a landslide. I was thinking of just inviting him over to ask him how he does it.

16/10 Irish Water has been in full swing for a while now. I know on paper it makes us look rather bad, but really we’re doing them a favour. All that wasted water could’ve gone to a much better cause, like filling some poor TD’s heated swimming pool in Tenerife. In all honesty, they should be thanking us. Who knows when we might need that spare water for a sudden drought?

They’ll appreciate it when Croagh Patrick is melting and the Liffey is nothing but yesterday’s trash.

Which reminds me, I really need to see if I can’t borrow one of those Viking Tour boats-cars

I keep seeing around the place.

Would be awfully handy to have to pop down to the shops with after a day out on the lake.

17/10 So this book came out recently by one of those Tories across the pond, Lord Something-Or-Other, Mycroft I think it was. Anyways, he must have had some falling out with his Prime Minister, because he wrote this book about Dear-old-David from when he was just a wee university student in Oxford. Apparently, he was a part of this secret boys club that all this mad banter at parties and the like, and once, after getting stoned out of their minds, they got David to stick his you-know-what in a pig’s head! Imagine! Not a fear of swine flu or anything about him.

It’s fantastic really though, when you think about it. While everyone is yelling about Cameron sticking his pork sausage in some pork sausage, no one’s been paying attention to the fact he might’ve taken

drugs, or even what he’s been doing in parliament since. It’s got me thinking maybe I could get rid of the government-paid tuition fees or something ridiculous and then go visit Mr. Coveney, see if he has any livestock floating around. Last I heard we made him Defence Minister as well as Agriculture though, so he better not send me a missile, or one of them new-fangled drones, otherwise we’ll really be thrown into the meat grinder.

18/10 I can’t believe Ireland are out of the rugby! After all that effort I spent calling President Hollande to taunt him over the thrashing we gave France, Johnny Sexton sprains his groin (of all the places ‘Sexton’ could sprain… the jokes just write themselves) and then we lose to Argentina? They couldn’t even hold the Faulklands, never mind a rugby ball. Christina has been blowing up my phone jeering

19/10 Halloween is this week! I’ve decided to give up on my annual tradition of going as a character from Sesame Street after Mary Lou McDonald stitched me up in my costume and I had to give a tax reform speech in the Dáil dressed as Elmo.

Gerry did think I had gone as Prince Harry though which was a bit awkward to explain.

Poor Gerry “1916 Was An Inside Job” Adams has a tough couple of months. Tempers have been pretty hot up north (they don’t call it “Storm”ont for nothing). Everybody’s up in arms because some poor lad was shot and everybody’s worried THEY are still around.

Tried to cheer him up a little by throwing one of Fionnuala’s bottles (they’re more like vases) of perfume with a rag in it near him, but he didn’t seem very pleased.

We can’t even take him to see our yearly showing of Star Wars in because whenever that bit where Han gets in a shootout with that alien fella and someone asks “Who shot first?” he goes on this big long rant about ‘provocation’ and ‘nationalist pride’. Completely ruins the mood. Besides, everyone knows Han shot first.

science

Noting the Nobel Michael O’ Sullivan discusses the recipients of the recently awarded Nobel Prizes for science IT’S THAT TIME of year again when the winners of the various Nobel Prizes are announced. For most people, this news is treated as something of a minor event and then forgotten about. This truly is a shame, as the work of Nobel laureates is often groundbreaking and reflects the huge leaps and bounds humanity has made in recent times.

Most people tend to focus on the Nobel Peace Prize as it has the most public interest and is the most easily explained, with the Science prizes going largely unnoticed. The problem is perhaps that the prize winners’ research is not often well explained by the media, leading to many people not really getting what all the fuss is about. This year’s prize winners however, have contributed hugely to science as a whole. Their research covers everything from particle physics to human healthcare and they deserve to be celebrated for their achievements.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded this year to three scientists for their work in DNA repair: Aziz Sancar, Paul Modrich and Thomas Lindahl. Through their combined efforts, they have managed to figure out one of the most complex biological pathways that exists: pathways involved in repairing damaged DNA. DNA is the basis of all life. It codes for everything, from the colour of your hair to the speed at which your toenails grow. If it somehow gets damaged, be it through mismatching pairs or simply being broken by the power of the sun, it can have drastic consequences.

Lindahl was the first scientist to isolate DNA ligases (the proteins which seal new strands of DNA together) and also discovered Methyltransferases, which are important as they can activate

or silence genes in our DNA. Modrich discovered the process through which DNA mismatches are repaired (DNA is formed of two strands which are exact mirrors of one another. Mismatches can cause DNA to do all sorts of bizarre and unusual things, none of which are usually good).

Sancar discovered a process caused by UV damage that causes lesions to build up on the DNA, and the way in which the body tries to correct this. A lesion anywhere is never good, but is especially bad when it occurs on your DNA. Discovering the methods through which DNA repairs itself is important because it allows us to begin investigating means of repairing DNA ourselves, potentially allowing for the development of early treatments for cancers and other diseases caused

by DNA damage. The importance of their work therefore, can never be underestimated and it deserves the recognition it has received.

The Prize for Physics was awarded to two scientists: Arthur B. McDonald and Takaaki Kajita. Their work is a little harder to explain, as it involves some of the very smallest particles we know of, called neutrinos. Their work proved that neutrinos have mass.

This may seem a bit strange since all particles are supposed to have mass, but neutrinos are so small and so completely unreactive that it is near impossible to detect any mass they may or may not have. The work of these two scientists has solved a problem that is fundamental to our understanding of the universe. Upon its discovery, this revelation had massive implications in the world of particle physics. It is only right then that they should receive the award.

The final science related prize was for Physiology and Medicine and was

again split between three scientists, though in this case not evenly.

Half of the award was given to two scientists, named Satoshi Ōmura and William C. Campbell. Their area of research involves the antibiotic called Ivermectin. Ivermectin is particularly active against parasites, a fact that wasn’t lost on the two researchers.

Their work led them to investigate the effects of the antibiotic on two parasites in particular, ones that cause the diseases known as river blindness and elephantitis. Both of these diseases disproportionately affected developing countries, and the scientists’ discovery that Ivermectin was active against both these parasites led to the drug being one of the major reasons why the diseases were eventually eradicated, a task worth the award if ever there was one.

The other half of the award went to the Chinese scientist Tu Youyou, for her discovery of the compound Artemisinin. An incredible discovery, this drug allowed for newer treatments to be developed for malaria since the parasite had become resistant to old ones. The compound works by forcing the generation of particles called free radicals within malaria infected cells, essentially causing the parasite to damage itself past the point of no return. The drug has a very short duration of action however, and needs to be administered in combination with other anti-malarial drugs in order to have a full effect. Its discovery had a massive impact in areas affected by malaria, particularly in South East Asia, making Tus’ work some of the most impactful on human health in recent memory.

All of these scientists have had illustrious and varied careers.

Their areas of research all span

IN photo: THE NOBEL MEDAL, VIA WIKIMEDIA

even further than that which they won the awards for and most, if not all, will use the money they received to further their research into their chosen fields.

The Nobel Prize is sometimes perceived as something of a great bloated corpse of a thing that serves only to boost the egos of its laureates. That argument is often made by people who have no real understanding of what

the awards represent and what they can do. The very possibility of their research being good enough to win a Nobel Prize drives scientists to be better so that they may gain international recognition for their work and the prize itself is often reinvested into research areas so that our understanding may be increased further.

The Nobel Prize is something we should all be paying attention

to, as its winners are often those whose work changes the course of human history. Just looking at this year’s Laureates should be enough to convince most people of its merit and its importance. So the next time the awards are being announced, pay some attention to the winners; they could be the ones that solve the problems humanity has battled with for centuries.

Water on Mars and the possibility of life With the recent discovery of liquid water on Mars, Frances Allen explores just what implications this discovery has for the possibility of life on the red planet

MANKIND’S fascination for space has never ceased to inspire researchers, and our nearest galactic neighbour, Mars, has been the focus of multiple space missions over the past decades. The recent discovery of liquid water on the surface of Mars has provided clues about past and current geographical, atmospheric, and biological conditions of the red planet.

Presently Mars contains very little liquid water in comparison with Earth. The planet has a smaller mass and thinner atmosphere than Earth, and so it is no surprise that Martian water is not abundant on the surface of the planet. This lack of water has also been attributed to the planet’s volatile atmospheric conditions and harsh chemical composition, but new evidence shows that Mars may once have had many rivers and oceans. That water may once have been abundant raises questions concerning the causes of decreased water on Mars and the timeline over which it decreased.

Research over the past four decades has provided much information about the basic geological conditions of Mars. In 1971, Mariner 9 orbited Mars, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit another planet.

Mariner 9 returned pictures of dry and arid surfaces, filled with parched river beds and canyons that negated the possibility of advanced biological activity similar to that of Earth; however, these images were indicative of past water activity.

It was during the 90s that a series of Mars missions provided a large body of information regarding geologic formations and hinting at possible water activity. The increased capability of surface mapping allowed Martian geography to be analysed in more detail. Eventually, mineral deposits were discovered

which suggested that long-ago hot springs could be found on the planet, suggesting that Mars may have had different regions of water and perhaps even its own habitable biomes.

Additional images from Viking orbiter missions gave scientists reason to suspect the presence of microbial life on the planet, as reported in 2012. Although the evidence was ultimately inconclusive, imagery was convincing enough to spike an interest in continued Mars research through remote viewing and orbiters.

Recent research shows that the water existing on Mars today is incredibly salty, resembling brine more than water. Though the briny water on Mars may not support life, it does have implications for future manned missions, which would need to create life-sustaining resources such as water and oxygen on the planet. It also aids scientists searching for the presence of microbial life on the red planet, as it provides more information about the conditions in which microbes would be surviving.

Scientists have observed that liquid flows from slopes on the surface of Mars forming features that are referred to as the recurring slope lineae (RSL). Vincent Chevier, an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas Centre for Space and Planetary Sciences, and Edgard G. RiveraValentin, a former Doctoral Academy Fellow at the centre who is now a scientist at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, analysed Martian weather data collected over a period of two years. They found that under very distinct conditions liquid brine can be allowed to form, which may be responsible for the “dark streaks” which are periodically seen on Mars.

Detection of hydrated salts on RSLs suggests that water is key to the formation of the martian dark streaks.

In addition to these salts, ice caps have been found on Mars. These ice caps are regularly affected by the

“Despite the many reasons that it is unlikely for Mars to be habitable today, the possibility of Mars having been a habitable planet billions of years ago poses questions”

IN photo: THE RED PLANET, VIA NASA

planet’s changing temperatures. The too harsh for even plant material.

The extremely cold and dry average thickness of the ice caps is roughly two miles, or 3.2 kilometres. climate of Mars can only support the conditions to create liquid brine, During the summer, the ice caps and low atmospheric pressures decrease in size, the water going suggest that the planet’s future may directly from its solid state of ice see only further disappearance of to its gaseous form, while Martian winter temperatures restore their mass. water. The researchers involved with Scientists estimate that the melting of the discovery report that any pure these ice caps would cover the entire water present on the planet would freeze or boil away in minutes, but surface of Mars in 18 feet of water. that it is possible that life could have While this may suggest conditions existed there nearly 4 billion years suitable for life, the researchers are ago. It seems we still have a way to decidedly pessimistic about life on go before a Martian climate can suit Mars overall. Even with extensive basic human needs, unless collection research, the planet has been found

of more physical samples from the planet can prove otherwise.

Remote viewing will also continue to be invaluable to this effort.

Despite the many reasons that it is unlikely for Mars to be habitable today, the possibility of Mars having been a habitable planet billions of years ago poses questions about how the planet made the transition from possessing oceans and rivers, such as those found on Earth today, to its current state. It is smaller than Earth, with thinner atmosphere and less gravity, and these

factors combined point to a possible cause of water loss. Scientists have theorised that the liquid may have evaporated into space, preventing it from falling back to the Martian surface, and therefore, preventing a viable water cycle. This is in contrast to Earth where water that enters soil from rain evaporates into the atmosphere. Ultimately, the ability to model the water history of Mars may provide clues about geological and atmospheric phenomena that is occurring here on Earth, as well as on other planets.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

science

Brains go digital

Aoife Hardesty

A team of scientists have created a digital simulation of a section of rat brain. Aoife Hardesty investigates Brains are usually considered to be rather complex structures.

Made up of millions of nerve cells (neurons) and tens of billions of connections between these neurons, its complexity makes it perplexing to scientists who are trying to unravel the mysteries of how exactly the brain works. The Blue Brain Project is part of a project aiming to create a computerised map of the human brain in an attempt to figure out the answer to such a problem.

Creating a digital map of the brain means studying slices of brain tissue and figuring out how the neurons connect to each other within each slice, as well as uncovering what other cell types are present in the different sections of the brain. After unravelling these connections, scientists can then programme the connections into the digital map they are creating.

The project has been focusing first on generating a model of rat brains which are a great deal simpler in structure than those of larger mammals such as humans. The area of the brain chosen to model first, the neocortex, is one of the most thoroughly studied areas of the rat brain, and the neocortical columns, the smallest functional units, contain approximately 10,000 nerve cells, compared to the 60,000 contained in the human equivalent.

While programming each individual neuron and connection would be a Herculean task, the researchers involved have developed a method for reducing this workload.

According to Henry Markram, director of the Blue Brain Project, by studying the inherently organised microscopic structure of the brain, the researchers can develop rules to allow computers to generate the neurons by itself. Following

this, connections are created wherever two or more of the generated neurons interact resulting in approximately 600 million connections, and by applying further rules based on experiments performed on real brains, this number is reduced to approximately 37 million.

Many scientists do not believe it is possible to generate a computer model of the human brain. They do not think that it is possible to map out every single connection found within a brain to generate a model that can activate neurons in the same way as a real life brain. Past results from the project have been focused on the generation of maps of the physical structure, the physical connection between neurons within slices of brain tissue, but on October 8th, a provisional representation of a slice of brain tissue was published in the journal Cell.

The published paper details a simulation of rat neocortex which can be electrically activated in the same manner as a physical brain section.

The reconstructed neocortex is made up of more than 31,000 neurons, 55 cell layers and 207 different neuronal subtypes. However, one of the limitations of the model, according to the researchers, is that the model is only made up of neuronal cell types, and does not take into account other tissue types that can be found in the brain such as arteries and veins, as well as other support cells.

Powerful supercomputers were

Is there a researcher in the house?

Science Editor used to simulate actual brain activity. Physical neurons grown in laboratories’ conditions are observed to send out electrical impulses in a triplet pattern where three neurons send out an electrical signal in a sequence with specific time intervals between these impulses. The digital neurons were shown to act in the same triplet sequence as the physical neurons.

Although they may not be immediately apparent, if successful, the applications of a computer model of the human brain are numerous. Understanding the connections of neurons within the brain in a more detailed manner furthers scientific understanding of the brain, but also can be applied to the developing treatments for diseases, and developing digital models of a disease.

Diseases like addiction are highly dependent on the activation of certain neuronal pathways within the brain. Understanding these pathways better can aid the development of drug treatments for addiction. Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease result in loss of neurons from certain brain regions. If digital models could be developed of these diseases, scientists could gain a deeper understanding of the disease progression and potential therapeutic targets.

Additionally, scientists still do not fully understand how memories are stored within the brain. Although they are aware of how a memory forms, how the brain stores this new information is still a mystery. Computer models would enable scientists to simulate the process of memory formation and possibly help uncover just how the brain stores memory and information.

Although the Blue Brain Project has only managed to simulate a small fragment of a small rat brain, the future is full of possibilities for this research.

Laoise Fitzpatrick talks to Chris Anderson, a PhD student with the Star Formation Research Group in UCD School of Physics What is your research about?

My basic goal is to investigate the processes involved in the formation of stars. As a cloud of gas and dust in space collapses to form a star, it begins to rotate quite rapidly. If you do the maths the star should spin so fast during formation that it would rip itself apart. Obviously stars don’t rip themselves apart (if you look up in the sky during either day or night you will see the evidence) and so part of my research will be investigating the mechanisms that prevent the stars from being ripped apart.

How did you become interested in your area of research?

I am one of those clichéd kids that wanted to be a scientist from a very young age. I have pictures that I drew when I was young of me as a scientist, got chemistry sets for Christmas, that sort of thing. As I went through school this interest in science never waned and so when it came to deciding which field to specialise in I went with what I always loved, which was astronomy.

What is your favorite thing about research?

My favorite part of research is the problem solving aspect. I enjoy getting knee deep into a problem and coming out the other side with a sense of achievement. Another part of research I like is knowing that the work I am doing hasn’t been done before. I love to think for a brief moment I might be the only person in the world that knows some fact about an extremely distant object that we may never visit.

Why are you doing a PhD? In astronomy a PhD is a natural progression for someone who is interested in research. I’m driven to finally get out into the world and use the skills I learned during my undergraduate degree to do something useful and meaningful.

What’s the hardest thing about undertaking a PhD? So far, the hardest part is getting everything set up!

(For any astronomers out there, IRAF is the worst!)

THE ORION NEBULA IMAGE: COURTESY OF NASA

How do you undertake your research?

As a mostly observational astronomer I would do the bulk of my work on a computer. My main tasks would be reducing and analysing images and so it is all done on my desktop in my office. As it is still early days in my PhD it might be possible I could do some simulations at some point in the future, but that would all still be on the computer.

What do you use for your research in terms of materials and equipment?

Images are what I will mostly use to undertake my research, images of distant star forming regions and the individual stars within. I am lucky that my supervisor already has images for me to work with but hopefully before the end of my PhD I can request time on one of the larger telescopes and take my own images.

What real life applications does your research have?

In terms of real life applications being developed, astronomy is one of the less obvious fields for it. Astronomy tends to drive the development of technologies that might one day have a use in everyday life. For example, the development of digital cameras was largely motivated by astronomers as they

utilised the technology early on.

Do you enjoy teaching undergraduates?

Teaching undergrads was one of the main things I worried about when starting my PhD, but now it has become one of my favorite parts.

It’s a funny experience being on the other side of the looking glass and seeing others going through the same things I would have gone through during my undergrad. Now I have the knowledge to overcome those problems, so it is rewarding to pass on what I have learned.

How can people find out more about research such as yours?

Several of my colleagues from the physics department and I host a radio show and podcast called Spacetime on Belfield FM at 8pm on Mondays where we discuss interesting news and ideas in physics and astronomy.

What are your plans for when you are finished?

It is perhaps a bit early for me to be thinking that far ahead but right now I would like to continue in research. A career in teaching was never something I had thought about but since starting to teach it is something I would now consider.

Octopuses – all this body, and brains too

Aisling Brennan delves deep into the mysteries of the octopus THERE ARE OVER 300 species of octopuses (and no, it’s not octopi, though octopodes works in a pinch) making up over a third of all cephalopod species. Despite their range and abundance, we’ve barely scratched the surface in our understanding of what these creatures are truly capable of.

The oldest known fossil of an octopus is an astonishing 296 million years old, a specimen of the Pohlsepia species which at first glance looks like nothing more than a ‘globular splat’. However, upon closer examination, it possesses eight arms and two eyes, and even what might possibly be an ink sac. On display in the Field Museum in Chicago, the significance of this small fossil is far greater than its size. It shows that before mammals, before dinosaurs, in fact before terrestrial life had progressed beyond diminutive reptiles, octopuses had established their morphological shape, and even more incredibly they’ve never had to drastically evolve since.

And what a morphology it is too: a morphology made up of evolutionary advantages to aid predation alongside various and sundry tricks to avoid being eaten itself. Even with no internal or external skeleton the octopus is far from defenceless. Its beak, the one hard structure it possesses, is very strong, and venomous saliva is used to subdue all manner of prey. In fact all species are venomous, though only the infamous blue-ring octopus is known to be deadly to humans.

In an emergency octopuses can lose whole limbs only to later regrow fully functional replacements. If being pursued by a predator, they can release an opaque cloud of ink to obscure the enemy’s vision. The black cloud not only causes blinding irritation when sprayed into any searching eyes (due to the chemical tyrosinase), but also contains compounds that dull any predators’ sense of smell and taste. In fact the cloud is so dangerous that octopuses unable to escape their own ink have been known to perish themselves.

Most of the time, octopuses 12 OCTOBER 28th 2015

some cases, scare off potential predators. Other species have found different ways to hide out of sight, like the southern sand octopus, which creates its own patch of quicksand allowing it to vanish into the seafloor where it creates a burrow in which to hide.

Several species of octopus sweep a layer of sand over their bodies to hide, but they lie close to the surface, needing direct access to the water in order to breathe.

The southern sand octopus goes deeper, injecting water into the sand and creating a mucus-lined burrow with a long vertical chimney to access oxygen. Here it can hide from predators, keep out of sight, and emerge at night to hunt for small crustaceans.

Their morphology is almost alien, even compared to other deep sea creatures.

However arguably the most intriguing aspect of octopuses is neither ILLUSTRATION: JOANNA O’MALLEY their tentacles nor their heart, but their incredible intelligence. of octopuses is arguably its most Common octopuses have been famous: camouflage. Using a network known to collect small objects like of pigment cells (chromatophores) and crustacean shells and construct specialised muscles in its skin, the little ‘gardens’ around their lairs common octopus can rapidly blend or dens. Even more astonishingly, in with its surroundings, matching they’re the first invertebrates to be colours, patterns and even textures, seen using tools. Carrying around and we still don’t know exactly how coconut shells to hide inside when they do it. Camouflage allows the predators pass by, or using rocks, and animals to hide extremely effeceven their own jets of water in ways tively from a wide range of predators, that could be classified as tool-use. including sharks and dolphins.

Scientists are barely scratching the When cornered, the octopus may surface of octopus intelligence. While try to appear large and threatening, being able to squeeze their entire changing its colour to a very noticebody (and brain) through any hole able white. Mimic octopuses even the size of its beak, they can solve morph their shape and colour to look problems like unscrewing a container, like other animals, for example eels. or removing a blockage to get at In this way they can avoid and in food. Studies have shown that they

not only learn easily, but they can learn ideas and skills quickly from merely observing another octopus.

This remarkable level of intelligence may cause us to wonder about an octopus’s brain, but actually, the majority of an octopus’ nervous system can be found in their four pairs of arms, not their heads. Consequently the arms can solve problems even when their owners are busy doing something else like exploring a new cave, or searching for prey. The arms can also react to stimuli like touch and pain after they’ve been severed completely from the octopus’ main body.

Regardless of where they do most of their thinking, many scientists have suggested individual octopuses having their own personalities, some even going so far as to postulate the possibility of them being sentient. When studying captive individuals it was found that poor physical health could result from boredom alone.

Octopuses are among the strangest creatures on our planet, and the more we study them the more unique and weird things we discover about them, morphologically, behaviourally and mentally. They are also extremely sensitive animals, vulnerable to human-driven processes like fishing, climate change and ocean pollution.

If we’re not careful, we will lose their brains, beauty, and diversity before we even have time to appreciate them.

“When studying captive individuals it was found that poor physical health could result from boredom alone.”

prefer to crawl along the sea-floor rather than swim everywhere.

When necessary, they can swim very fast, jet propelling themselves through the water by expelling water from their mantles at great pressure. This mode of movement is mostly used to escape predators as it is exhausting for the octopus.

The creature has a remarkable total of three hearts, one for each set of gills either side of its mantle, and one that pumps blood to the rest of the body and organs. When swimming, this third organ-bloodsupplying heart stops beating altogether, which is believed to be part of why the movement is so tiring.

One of the extraordinary talents

“Common octopuses have been known to collect small objects like crustacean shells and construct little ‘gardens’ around their lairs or dens.”

Business & careers SMASHING THE GLASS CEILING: WOMEN IN BUSINESS Sinead Conroy looks at the various roles of women in business in Ireland and whether or not the journey to end inequality is going in the right direction ACCORDING to The Sunday Independent women make up just 10 per cent of directors of companies listed on the Irish Stock Exchange and 36 per cent of those on public boards, despite a 40 per cent quota requirement. In Ireland the gender pay gap is around four per cent for the bottom ten per cent of earners, but this figure jumps to 24.6 per

say? Former chairperson of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority and Associate Dean of Research at UCD School of Business Professor Niamh Brennan, believes that main challenge faced by women in business is the same as that faced by men: to be the best.

Professor Brennan also challenges that notion that women are treated as inferior by their male counterparts. “In my early career, I was the beneficiary of positive discrimination, for example being appointed to boards of directors because they wanted to have some female representation on the board. In that sense, I haven’t been treated equally, rather I have been favoured by male colleagues.”

Sarah O’Shea rose to one of the most senior positions in the country in the business of sport. As Deputy CEO and Legal Director of the Football Association of Ireland she would also insist she has been treated equally while working in the business world. “In my own experience I have always been treated equally by my male peers but it’s important to accept we are different and think differently.

It’s important not to try and be like a man but to use your female differences to excel at areas where perhaps those skills are lacking.” O’Shea is also of the opinion that women and men face similar challenges when it comes to trying to balance success and life.

However, in her view confidence is key. “There is an underlying perception

‘‘There is an underlying perception that women do not want top jobs and that they are less ambitious than men.” cent when it comes to the top 10 per cent of earners according to the European Commission statistics published in 2014. Furthermore, men are 40 per cent more likely than women to secure a business bank loan according to the Oireactas committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. Reading these statistics would dishearten the most driven and enthusiastic female graduate; so what is the incentive to try?

The facts and figures speak for themselves - but what do the people

that women do not want top jobs and that they are less ambitious than men in that regard. I believe this often arises due to women not putting themselves forward as much as men do and not promoting themselves in the workplace as much as men do... I think confidence is a key attribute a lot of women lack and certainly something young girls should be encouraged to work on more”.

However, a widespread view is that child bearing and rearing constitute real obstacles faced by women on the road to success in business. While other issues such as fear of failure and lack of support from their peers are also cited, the absenteeism that comes as a result of maternity leave has long been seen as a contentious issue. Is it possible to break the glass ceiling while juggling such issues? Professor Brennan would insist it is. “When my three sons came along, I discovered that they were not an “obstacle” to my career. Rather, parenthood had the effect of making me more focused, more productive. I stopped faffing around my office wasting time!”

Brennan also makes reference to the progress that is being made when it comes to sharing the juggling. “Nowadays parenting is shared much more than it used to be”. This opinion seems to be echoed in statistics released by the CSO that show nearly 11,000 men in Ireland class themselves as stay at home fathers. Recent budget announcements included the statutory right of every father to two weeks paternity leave.

It would seem that we are moving in the right direction, albeit slowly.

So what is the future for women at the top end of the corporate pyramid? According to the Oireachtas committee for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation there is no shortage of CEO level women in our multinational tech companies - Facebook, Microsoft, PayPal, LinkedIn and Vodafone are all women led businesses in Ireland.

It would seem the key to closing the gap lies in determination, self belief, confidence and a touch of entrepreneurship. The latter facilitates innovation, difference and self set boundaries. It needs and encourages

versatility in every aspect, including gender.

It’s harder to find female entrepreneurs whose businesses have grown globally Anne Heraty (CPL) and Susan Spence are some of the few notable exceptions. Maybe as Sarah O’Shea suggests, there is a need for more support and advice. “Certainly there is a major role here to have successful women mentor younger women and to promote other women.” In order to have an availability of mentors one must first, whether starting out or struggling through, it’s necessary to “be ambitious and be yourself”, according to Professor Brennan.

Budget 2016: A step forward or a step back?

Anne Marie Stacey analyses this year’s Budget and asks the question of whether it is indeed just an “election budget” FINANCE MINISTER, Michael Noonan, and Public Expenditure and Reform Minister, Brendan Howlin said the 2016 budget, which they announced on Tuesday 13th October, aims to keep recent economic recovery going. Noonan said the budget was designed to sustain the economic recovery and bring stability to families across the country. The opposition parties are claiming this is nothing more than a sham attempt to influence voters before the next election and that the targets set out by the budget are not sustainable.

This is reflected in key areas such as child benefit, education and the minimum wage increase which are issues that prospective voters follow closely. Child benefit will increase by €5 to €140 per month for every child. There will be an introduction of statutory paternity leave of two weeks, to take effect in September 2016. In education there will be 2,260 new teaching posts, including 600 new resource teachers, along with 610

new special needs assistants. However some TDs have claimed that this is sacrificing education and healthcare in a push to maximise votes which could be detrimental to our future.

So is this budget really two steps back instead of the push forward we had hoped? A very valid concern is that they are throwing far too much money at voters when the economy has just started to grow again, and that this repeats the dire mistakes of the boom era. The Fiscal Advisory Council and the Central Bank have warned that an expansionary stance on top of 6 per cent growth is a recipe for overheating the economy, but they have stopped short of criticising the government’s plans. Fianna Fáil’s Sean Fleming has said: “This is all about the general election”, and Sinn Féin’s Mary Lou McDonald has expressed her opinion that “today’s Budget is not so much about righting the wrongs of the past, it’s about winning the election”. Trade union SIPTU had a very different opinion and said the budget contained positive measures that will see workers make the first real financial gains from

a budget in almost eight years. “The fact remains that the more you earn, the more you will gain,” the Union’s researcher Ger Gibbons has said.

While this budget on the surface seems to have something for everyone, appealing to the family and voters, when closely examined it can be called the epitome of boom-bust politics. It is providing fast solutions to a complex problem and while providing some initial relief to a certain portion of the working class, it does nothing to address the inequality in Irish society and leaves crucial issues such as the housing crisis and the proposed rent cap untouched.

Further supporting this belief that this budget employs its own political preelection agenda are the cuts to the much criticised Universal Social Charge (USC) and the subsequent election promises made in an interview by Noonan, who said that the Government parties would work “progressively” to eliminate the USC if re-elected. Another election pledge was to complete tax equalisation for the self-employed and other measures to support job creators. This is in an attempt to appeal to what the electorate

wants to hear rather than addressing crucial areas that did not receive funding in this budget and have been neglected. The Unite trade union has said Budget 2016 will “entrench inequality” because they say it has failed “to address the structural deficits left behind by austerity.”

With the risk of considerable uncertainty in the European and international economy, the Government should have substantially increased investment in our infrastructure, productivity and education. Instead, it is recklessly cutting taxes. While on the surface this is set to appeal to the voter, in reality we must examine the facts deeper and they are that half of all workers earn less than €29,000 and these people will see few benefits from the USC cut. Jimmy Kelly, the Unite Ireland Secretary, perfectly summarises this budget, in saying: “this is not only an Election Budget – it is clearly a Fine Gael Election Budget from which any Labour fingerprints have been carefully wiped”.

Is a Master’s really worth it?

Jane Purdom asks the question of whether or not a master’s is really worth the cost and time

UCD SMURFIT GRADUATE BUSINESS SCHOOL photo: COURTESY OF UCD

IN RECENT YEARS, the amount of Irish people obtaining a third level qualification has increased rapidly with 51.1 per cent of the 30-34 year old workforce now having one, compared to an EU average of 35.8 per cent. This has led many people to believe that obtaining a master’s qualification will give them a competitive edge over the rest of the workforce, increasing their employability. However, a sizeable amount of contrasting data on the subject means that a student considering a masters degree must question - is it really worth it?

Perhaps the biggest factor to take into account is the cost. Master’s in Ireland

range anything from €6,000 to €15,000 depending on the subject choice. For students who must pay these fees themselves, the risk of running into debt is high as loans of this nature must be paid back by a given date, regardless as to whether a job has been found or not. In that sense, one has to question if a masters degree is worth the financial risk that it carries.

Of course, the greatest factor that will influence this decision is: will a masters increase your chances of a job? In some disciplines, such as engineering, where a masters is required to become chartered - the answer is obvious. The

same applies for certain technical and scientific fields such as nursing, where one can only reach certain levels of seniority after obtaining a level 9 qualification. In this regard, there is little reason to hold back from pursuing a master’s degree.

A further factor that may sway someone to obtaining a master’s degree may be that of sponsorship from a firm. In certain professions, such as accountancy and some pharmaceutical roles, a company may pay for a valued employee to complete a master’s programme in order to advance in their career. However, the master’s is often far from free as a condition of the sponsorship is a long

term contract with the firm. This may example, the academic challenges of a potentially trap a young graduate from master’s degree are very real. Taught opportunities in other firms and could masters programmes require largely hinder one’s travelling options also. independent learning, and challenge What if you’re thinking of a more broad students to develop skills such as masters? For example, a masters in arts lateral thinking which may present a or a MBA. Evidence suggests that those challenge to them. There is no doubt with a level 9 qualification initially earn that a master’s degree is much more the same or similar salaries as those with challenging and time consuming than a level 8 - and a level 8, so it is “However, mirror their important that you employability sponsored master’s only pursue one in levels also. something that you are often far from However, within are truly interested 3-5 years it and invested in. free as a condition appears that the The jury is still out of the sponsorship masters student on master’s degrees. wins out and Although it appears is a long term their salaries that a master’s may contract with and career be more beneficial the firm” development to some professions seem to than others, it is overtake level 8 holders. In this sense, like an undergraduate degree in that it may be easier to climb a career it largely comes down to a personal ladder because of a master’s degree. choice. If someone has a concrete It is evident that there are certain idea with what they want to obtain benefits of a master’s degree. A potential from doing a master’s then it is most increase in employability, in some likely a wise choice. However, as the fields greater promotion opportunities, incoming workforce are the first that and the lure of greater pay as your career will have a significant percentage of progresses are largely enough factors level nine degree holders, perhaps only to convince many people. However, time will tell if the academic, financial there are other downsides to a master’s and other commitments are worth it. besides the obvious financial burden. For september 15th 2015

student voices

All About That Ace

Asexuality Awareness Week took place last week. In this LGBTQ+ column, some members of the community offer their perspectives on being asexual LAST WEEK was asexuality awareness week. This annual, international occasion aims to increase awareness and understanding of asexuality.

There is an awareness week because many people still do not know what asexuality is, or have an understanding of it. It is an LGBTQ+ orientation used to describe people who don’t experience sexual attraction.

Beyond that one unifying fact, there is huge variation in how every asexual person (or ‘ace’ for short) experiences asexuality. Some asexual people want romantic relationships, some don’t.

Some asexual people are very tactile, some aren’t. To emphasise the diversity, we have a piece co-authored by four UCD students, sharing their experiences of asexuality, coming out, and what makes asexual awareness so important.

JAY CAMPBELL Coming out as asexual is just like coming out as any aspect of the LGBTQ+ spectrum: totally nerve-wracking. Which is why I made the decision to tell a close friend of mine while we were both absolutely hammered one night in the summer.

Standing outside the pub in my home town at 1AM, my friend (who I once had a crush on) introduced me to another friend of hers who’d apparently also had feelings for her, and told us we could bond over how we both once wanted to have sex with her. Of course, I decided this was a great time to tell her that I was, in fact, asexual, and

had actually never wanted to have sex with her. Or, well, with anyone.

Naturally, this left me in the situation of trying to explain asexuality to my friend, and to the group of very drunk boys she was standing with. This proved challenging.

One of the biggest difficulties for asexual people trying to explain their experiences is the question: “what’s it like to not feel sexual attraction?” To me, that’s the same as being asked, “What’s it like to have never been shot?” because, well, I haven’t experienced that either. Explaining what it’s like not to feel a feeling is hard, because there’s no point of reference.

I have been asexual all my life, and so I can’t really explain to someone who is not ace what it would be like if they woke up tomorrow and suddenly didn’t feel sexual attraction anymore. It’s a little like a blind person trying to describe the absence

us in UCD – and over 64,000 on the island of Ireland. I don’t know how many of these know that there’s a word for what they’re experiencing, but I can’t imagine it’s many at all.

I can remember the precise moment I realised I was asexual. It was about 2:45AM and I was reading. Of course.

It’s ridiculous in hindsight, but I knew about asexuality as a sexual orientation for three years before I realised it applied to me. The penny only dropped when I read a piece by an asexual person whose experience matched mine almost exactly.

Really, the statement, “asexual people don’t experience sexual attraction,” isn’t that helpful for someone who doesn’t experience sexual attraction. It’s hard to notice something that isn’t there. My brain just skimmed over the whole “I don’t actually feel the drive to have sex with anyone” thing, and thought

I have an enduring memory of having to, at age 18, explain to some of my straight female friends that women can experience sexual arousal (we were watching Magic Mike at the time). Me, the asexual friend. Ireland’s taboo around sexuality has a lot to answer for.

SAM BLANCKENSEE I was 19 before I realised that I am grey asexual (by which I mean that I very rarely feel sexual attraction). I had always been attracted to people but very rarely in a way that made me want to have sex, other than to feel close to them. I was sexually attracted to someone for about 2 hours once, and that is the longest I have experienced sexual attraction for.

When I meet someone I am interested in for the first time, it feels like electricity. The first conversation can have energy that feels unlike anything else. It’s a similar energy to what I feel at the start of a great friendship and I usually don’t know the difference at first.

That romantic feeling that makes me want to spend all of my time with someone, to kiss them and to cuddle with them. This feeling is so strong – I don’t miss having sexual attraction. I have a strong desire for companionship that isn’t necessarily without sex but the romantic feelings are what drive me. I’ve been in love and I will be again and the fact that I’m grey asexual doesn’t affect that.

“I have been asexual all my life, and so I can’t really explain to someone who is not ace what it would be like if they woke up tomorrow and suddenly didn’t feel sexual attraction anymore.” of the colour red; it’s confusing and difficult and no one really gets it.

AÍFE MCHUGH About 1 per cent of all people are asexual. It doesn’t sound like many, but statistically that’s 320 of

that when everyone talked about sexuality, they meant romantic intimacy. No one educates teenagers about sexual desires. In my school, anyway, the sex education barely surpassed “Don’t have sex! Look at all the icky diseases you’ll catch!”

AISLING BRENNAN My favourite thing that I’ve learned in the last year is that there’s no ‘correct’ way to be asexual. I found out I was asexual by, and I’m quoting a friend here, “procrastinating my sexuality.” I love that phrase so much, mostly because it sounds ridiculous and yet is completely and utterly accurate.

For nineteen whole years, any time the concept of sexual orientation came up I found other, more interesting things to think about.

I never really understood this ‘attraction’ business. I remember various instances of thinking “hey, people have this thing, an attraction to certain people. It’s an important part of their lives… maybe I should figure this out?”

My response was always “…nah, other stuff’s more fun. I’ll find out when I like someone.” This ill-planned strategy worked out absolutely beautifully until last year when the inconceivable happened: I was the one being liked.

Quite honestly this eventuality had never occurred to me, never in nineteen years. To the extent that I simply didn’t notice, and made a complete fool of myself for 3 months (despite multiple people repeatedly telling me to wake up and smell my own obliviousness).

This anecdote of self-inflicted stupidity doesn’t really have much to do my being ace as much as it is an example of there being no right way to be ace in the first place. I approached being asexual

in the same way that I approach every part of my life: tripping and falling into it with all the smooth grace and subtlety of a large brick.

Postcards From Abroad: PARIS Marie Whelan talks about her experiences so far in Paris and the difficulty associated with adapting to the bureaucracy and the speedy language

THE EVENING before the semester don’t translate very smoothly to the began, sitting in my new home and reality of communicating abroad. contemplating my decision to study Things such as being engrossed at La Sorbonne, I was interrupted by in conversation and anticipating a phone call from my parents. With perfectly enunciated and grammatithe constant hype and well-wishes of cally correct sentences. For example, every person that I encountered for you expect to hear: “Tu n’as pas months prior to my departure, that fait…” which years of education has was the first time I had felt slightly given you the ability to decipher and nervous (especially when I realised instead you just barely catch: “T’as that the only pre-departure preparapas fait...” These don’t appear to tion I had done was watching obscure be so different, but if you think we French films). When I remarked to speak quickly in Ireland, the French my parents that I couldn’t wait until language is almost constructed to I could go home to visit, it was the permit as many words per minute as most genuine thing I uttered that day. possible in the most lyrical way. Yes, Long before I arrived in France, I had that sentence is long on purpose to been warned by people who lamented emphasise the point. Basically, when “la bureaucratie Française”, and whom it takes you five minutes to realise I naively believed to be overdramatic. I you’ve accidentally stumbled into think the fact that you need to register the wrong history lecture (Napoléon for a library card in addition to your instead of Le Concert Européen is student card alone is just one notable quite the mistake), you realise that example of French administration doing whilst you may have the vocabulary, else to fault the city on so they resort nothing by halves. A student travel card you’ll need to adapt to the speed. to saying the inhabitants are rude!” is obtained with relative ease in Dublin I have yet to encounter the However, my constant efforts to speak with a flash of your student their language may be the ID. Here, you face a lengthy reason for the friendliness “You can barely turn around I have encountered. In application form and several accompanying documents to without beholding magnifithe process of opening my be attached and then posted to cent architecture or being bank account, the man their headquarters. I arrived swathed in layers of historieven remarked: “Tu parles with a folder of official docutrès bien Français” while ments and their replicas, which cal significance.”

I thought to myself: “That after a month of university might be because I recited my work, is still the heaviest folder I posarchetype of the rude Parisian, en opening monologue to myself while I sess. I assure you that isn’t just a fait, I often struggle to measure up was in the queue”. As I soon came to reflection of my deteriorating work ethic. to their standards of politeness. As learn, when you begin a conversation Language-wise, there are certain a friend of mine who also lives here with complex French, you inevitably things the classroom teaches you which theorised: “They can’t find anything give the people you are speaking to

photoS: MARIE WHELAN

high expectations, which places a lot of pressure on the quality of your improvisation. However, these situations are sink or swim and I feel like I am keeping my head above water.

It would be impossible to discuss Paris and neglect to mention the immense cultural wealth of the city (I mean wealth literally; they seem to have unlimited funds for artistic events). You can barely turn around without beholding magnificent architecture or being swathed in layers of historical significance.

Walking daily through the maze that is La Sorbonne, the 13th century building never becomes any less

awe-inspiring, which compensates for my having double the amount of contact hours here as I have in UCD. This as well as the fact that most museums, historical sites and art galleries are free for anyone of 25 years or under means there is no excuse to return to Ireland being anything but completely unbearable to listen to.

In living here for a month now I’ve come to view it as the absolute dream that it is. Not only have I made friends from France but also from all around the globe. There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t stop to appreciate my surroundings or check another must-see famous feature

off of my list. I’m now a far cry (and there were a few tears at the debut) from where I was when I arrived. Now I’m certain that I can survive, and hopefully thrive here, and that is the most genuine thing I’ve said today.

SOCIETY NEWS

By Gráinne Loughran

Law Soc/L&H The Law Soc team of Ross Merriman and Laura Hogan got to the final of the Novice competition at the KCL IV on Sunday. UCD continue to dominate the circuit with the UCD L&H team of Aisling Tully and Conor White winning the Novice competition.

PaedsSoc PaedsSoc’s Bake Sale on Thursday 8th October raised just over €200 for Light it up Gold Child Cancer Awareness. On November 24th UCD Paediatric Society will also be holding their ‘Careers Talk’. This talk will feature various paediatricians from specialities: neurosurgery, oncology, neonatology, general paediatric medicine and surgery.

Medical Society MedSoc’s annual MedDay took place on October 16th. Over 500 students took part in the event, which was held 14 OCTOBER 28th 2015

to raise money for The Berkeley Injured Victims Fund, Debra Ireland, Helium Arts, Laura Lynn, The Mater Foundation, and St Vincent’s Foundation. MedDay raised a total of €27,396.60 for the charities.

Arts Soc Arts Soc held their annual Arts Day on October 22nd in aid of Barretstown. The day’s events included collaborations with Draw Soc, Juggling Soc, Eng Soc and Harry Potter Soc, with a Strong Man competition, a Quidditch match and a balloon launch taking place.

Small Society Halloween Ball Philosophy Society will present in association with Archaeology Society, Classics Society and Game Society the “Small Society Halloween Ball”. The party will take place today, Wednesday 28th October, at

7pm in Bolands Pub, Stillorgan.

Performing Arts Masquerade Ball UCD Musical Society and UCD Symphony Orchestra have teamed up to host the Performing Arts Masquerade Ball. The masquerade ball will take place this evening, Wednesday 28th October, at 7.30pm in the Radisson Blu Hotel.

PhysioSoc PhysioSoc will host their Murderous Halloween Mystery Tour this evening, Wednesday 28th October.

The evening will begin in the Clubhouse Bar, before leaving campus at 9.00pm. Fancy dress is mandatory and prizes will be awarded for best dressed.

QUIDDITCH ON THE QUAD photo: COURTESY OF UCD HARRY POTTER SOCIETY

OPINION

Remembering Brian Friel James Holohan remembers his unenjoyable first encounter with the late Brian Friel’s work

BRIAN FRIEL photo: SCREENSHOT FROM RTE

as one of the greats to have THE RECENT death of Brian Friel is it another shot. Friel, with a graced us by picking up a pen. a huge loss to the world of literature, father as a teacher and having a Thematically, Brian has although it must be said that at a ripe career as a teacher himself, no covered an extremely wide age of 86, he had achieved success doubt aims to educate through variety of issues, mostly related enough to rival many writers and his work, but also to entertain to Irish history. Ranging from playwrights of the 21st century. I now (something which I unfortunately the troubles in the North, to understand what a blow it is to Irish missed on first reading). I can’t emigration, to colonisation, you literature, having devoured a vast promise readers it will provide name it and Friel has more than number of his plays (and there are a lot many gun-fights, car chases or of them) in the last year alone. However, likely touched on the matter over-dramatised sex scenes, but I in his works. In these works of on first encounter of Friel’s phenomcan promise that if you were to go fiction he has dealt with extremely enal Dancing at Lughnasa, the word home, turn off Netflix and grab a ‘masterpiece’ is the last word that sprang important historical and political copy of a Friel play from wherever aspects of Irish society, and to mind. Back in glory full secondary possible, you may just come to dealt with them in an educated school days, it was forced upon me and realise what all the fuss is about, and well-balanced manner.

I must confess, I was more than happy and understand that the ramComing from the country, one to see the back cover, having struggled blings of that secondary school cannot help but to connect with through the seventy odd pages as if it teacher may not have been in vain.

Friel’s fictional town of Ballybeg, were the bible in Polish. Not a patch I regret that it is only now that I on the Goblet of Fire. have grown to appreciate Little did I appreciate at for what it is, but “For anyone else who has ex- ithisiswork the time what a legend the not going away in a man already was to the rest perienced Friel at a younger hurry. Most of his plays of the globe, not to mention age and failed to pick up on are short and relalittle old Ireland. As a the significance of his work, I tively easy to read, but the teenager, rural Ireland was concepts and themes of something I was trying so would strongly recommend the plays are what really desperately hard to escape giving it another shot” grasps the reader. Friel (still absolutely sick of weloften provides a bridge lingtons) that reading a play from modern society to a small town in Donegal, in which revolving around that setting did little a time and culture which well a vast number of his plays are to entice my simple, cabbage-filled predates his own, allowing the set. There is nothing exceptional head. How very naïve I was, and the readers to join him. Whether it be about the place, much the same extent of my stupidity was not fully repre-famine times or post civil war alised until years later, on my first view- as any old town in the country, days, Friel captures the setting besides perhaps the climate ing of the recent production of Dancing beautifully. He writes of times (it just never seems to rain in at Lughnasa in the Gaiety theatre on and places which are slowly but the 8th October, only six surely being devoured days after Friel’s passing. by modernity, becoming “Friel will no doubt be reEven from my twenty-five mere whispers of the past. membered as one of the euro back row seat the The question remains, performance was outstand- greats to have graced us by with the death of his good ing, with such humour friend Seamus Heaney in picking up a pen” that had every native (and September of 2013 and non-native) in the audience now Brian’s death on the in stitches. The credibility of 2nd of October, whether his well-rounded characters of rural Ire- Ballybeg in many of the plays, the a new generation of writers will land was truly brought to life during the only unrealistic aspect to them). be capable of stepping up to performance. A close eye to prop detail Most of us country dwellers will the mark set ever so high by live in or near a ‘Bally’ something was also clearly evident. Even from my these dead (but never forgotten) or other, which is one of Friel’s limited experience of theatre, (having legends of Irish literature. key ways in connecting with only ever read the play prior to this), I absolutely felt it was worth every penny. the reader. You cannot help but imagine some of these scenes With twenty-four original plays (not occurring just down the bohreen to mention his short stories), including or down past the crossroads, Dancing At Lughnasa, Translations another reason why he will and Faith Healer to name but a few, undoubtedly go down in history as he has become an iconic figure in the an iconic writer of modern Ireland. world of drama, and his literature has For anyone else who has done Ireland proud over the last half experienced Friel at a younger a century. As a small nation, the Irish age and failed to pick up on the people have become renowned for their significance of his work, I would artistic flair and talent in writing, and strongly recommend giving Friel will no doubt be remembered

Cannabis: cash cow or health hazard?

As arguments continue to abound about the legalisation of cannabis, Jonathon Squire looks at the different schools of thought involved

ENTERING into a post-legalisation phase that favoured the use of marijuana for recreational purposes in the states of Colorado and Washington, there is but one question among the wider American population: “when will the law finally allow us to share love and positive vibes?”

There have been countless campaigns throughout the decades aiming for the legalisation of marijuana for recreational use. Historically these movements stem from a more nostalgic “summer of love” background of Ashbury’s 1967 slightly ambiguous agenda, a “wear flowers in your hair” era if you will.

However in recent years the issue of legalising cannabis has become a more cosmopolitan topic than we might think.

It isn’t uncommon on this side of the pond to see similar signs of pro-drug campaigning on our very own little island. But who are these people calling for an end to the war on drugs? They’re not the smartest looking bunch. They are the ones who take something as solemn as Dublin’s garden of remembrance and use it as a place for a protest. They are the ones who put up legalise cannabis stickers on your local bus stops. And yes, they are the ones who attend music festivals wearing paisley harem trousers and are equipped with body paint and a hula hoop for extra vibe.

However the general consensus of those advocating its legalisation are of the belief that it delivers happiness and sustained wellbeing for one’s lifestyle with minimal health risks. But it turns out that there’s also an economic case for legalising it. According to Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron, legalising cannabis would reduce prosecutorial, judicial, correctional and police resource spending by between $7.7 billion and $13.7 billion annually. As

well as this, it is argued that revenues from tax could be well in excess of $8.7 billion.

While these figures seem appealing from a financial perspective it does not take into account the socio-economic shortcomings of a business case such as the long-term expenses relating to loss of productivity in the workplace; employee absenteeism; increased health care costs including mental health; reduced learning capacity of students; increased drugged driving and increased crime due to wider consumption.

As far as the pro-legalisation campaign endeavours, it seems its limitations are rooted in its failure to give a voice to the true nature of cannabis. Other than providing an aid for pain relief, the only ‘medicinal’ uses cited are ‘elevated feelings of happiness’. In order to build an adequate case for the legalisation of cannabis, or otherwise a case for keeping it illegal, we would have to acquire a comprehensive knowledge of the drug itself through extensive research. A transparent approach takes not only the positives of users into account, but the destructive impact it has on users and the wider society. And from various studies and health journals available we can conclude that some of the negative effects on health caused by cannabis are immune system damage, birth defects, infertility, cardiovascular disease, testicular cancer, mood disorders and anxiety.

Most advocates for cannabis legalisation will agree that the above conditions are known side effects of abusing the drug, and for this reason members on both sides of the argument will agree that an increase in consumption is a bad thing. However while calling for legalisation of the drug, proponents are adamant that consumption levels will not rise. In some cases there have been attempts to claim that consumption will decrease following legalisation, and this is where a contradiction stands

out. One of the more well-known proposed arguments surrounding the debate is that legalisation will regulate the criminal black market industry ultimately making it safer for the consumer. This regulation argument has often been proposed to lend strength to the legalisation campaign, but it contradicts the aforementioned claim that consumption will not go up.

Essentially what is being argued in the case for regulation is that a drug that was once life threatening to obtain is

now cheaper, safer and easier to access, but people will now consume less of it.

Among other dubious claims about the nature of cannabis, advocates fondly link the drug to similar ones such as alcohol and cigarettes. Will they campaign for a regulation of these drugs with the intention to inhibit its consumption? No. Instead we see a steady call for the legalisation of anything that has equally detrimental effects on society. Contrary to a misinformed status quo, it is undeniable that cannabis

is a gateway drug. The term ‘gateway’ doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone who tries it will progress to harder drugs, but those who do take harder drugs tend to have started out on cannabis.

So do the economic benefits outweigh the social costs? It’s doubtful. If there was ever a case to oppose the legalisation of cannabis, just think of that person who went interailing and never fails to mention it. That we could do without.

september 15th 2015

OPINION

Quinn’s Bizzness Jessica Quinn directs her judgmental eye to the Budget, the refugee crisis and SHAG week HALF WAY through the term and you’re still on that study break you took during week one, but you deserve it. The swans in the main lake have been trained to attack couples engaging in PDA. I for one am a fan of this incentive. Although you can’t tell people to get a room anymore because if you’re a student in Dublin, it’s very likely that you’re living on a couch somewhere. Well you know what they say, when life gives you dilemmas, make dillemmenade or something.

So far into this semester I’ve learned that you’ve a better chance of getting into North Korea than you have getting into the library with a cup of coffee. There is no ‘I’ in team, but in college there is one hidden somewhere in the term ‘group project’. There is no way to walk down the steps outside Newman without looking like a twat. Finally, even if it is County Colour’s Night, don’t wear a Leitrim jersey.

The latest budget has increased the price of cigarettes and alcohol. This is the biggest blow to students since the Centra chicken fillet roll 20c hike.

Then again, imagine an Ireland where the government was as efficient as the deli in Centra.

This is also troubling for Arts students who are rumoured to

be fined €50 if they’re caught not smoking outside Newman.

First years in college have probably learned loads since arriving in UCD. Important life skills like how to open a bottle of Bulmers with a spoon, how to get ready in five minutes and how to wake up at 4pm for a 9am lecture. By now you should also have realised that you’re paying thousands in fees to essentially have someone read power point slides to you.

Nothing encapsulates sadness like spending €20 on a night out where you didn’t get the shift, and nothing sums up disappointment like opening your wallet to find 3c and that condom you’ve had since Fresher’s Week, two years ago. I don’t know which is emptier, my bank account or my love life.

Of course the social life in college is still as wild as ever.

I can’t handle all these emails from the Registry Office telling me to pay my fees. The fact I have more Blackboard notifications than Tinder matches can only have me considered to be quite the UCD stud. My latest romantic blunder was a result of eating garlic bread before I went on a date. Just goes to show you can’t trust packaging, especially when it says “best before date” on it, when it was possibly the worst thing I could have

eaten, that or a burrito from Readers.

The refugee crisis has highlighted how racist and xenophobic some of my Facebook friends are. The most commonly used phrase being “I’m not racist, but…” For example, my girlfriend claims that she has nothing against Eastern Europeans, however I found Polish remover in her room. Now, I don’t know what to believe. Then again my girlfriend is like the square root of -100: a solid 10, but also imaginary.

UCDSU had their SHAG day, an incentive to promote safe sex and awareness of STDs. However, they forgot to highlight that the most common source of STDs are the couches in An Cuas. There should also be some kind of spur to get people to remove their Electric Picnic wristbands. You were there we get it. The bacterial colonies growing on your wrists probably have more life in them than the student body of DIT. If you’re worried about catching an STD, just join the Harry Potter society and you’re guaranteed to never get laid.

Seriously, they think clitoris is a spell.

You have to admire their confidence though. Playing Quidditch on the quad is one way to show the world that you are too cool for the non-fictional educational experience. Do you ever wonder if Microsoft Word’s spell check function is completely different in Hogwarts? “On a scale of 1-10 how obsessed with Harry Potter are you?” “Ehh, only about 9 and 3/4.”

THE INVISIBLE SIGN OUTSIDE OF THE NEWMAn building photo: JAMES HEALY

The first year diary: speaking the unspoken Kevin Byrne writes about his first steps into the intimidating established society of UCD

IMAGE: SCREENSHOT FROM YOUTUBE

HERE IT IS. Yes, the generic article of the lost first year, the overwhelmed little boy who didn’t plug in his ear phones on his first venture into the library. No doubt the throngs of studious so-and-so’s were perplexed

by Jean Valjean’s soliloquy bursting from my new and coveted laptop as I internally wailed and lamented my fatal mistake. The whole Les Mis thing is just a phase. Honestly.

I won’t bore you with boring tales of boredom, of lectures missed while stumbling through the Health Science building in search of a lecture far off in a very different building, in a galactically insignificant lecture hall, nor any other such tales of blissful unawareness. I wish to tackle a different aspect of being the little guy, feeling like the metaphorical chewing gum peeling from the metaphorical shoe of the University’s established society.

The first thing to strike me upon my arrival in the Big Smoke was how nothing in UCD is static. Everything seems to move and shift and contort.

Stay still here and you get left behind; Mrs Whoever isn’t here to help you along. There is a soft breath of chaos amidst your UCD existence. College life is incomparably more unhinged than anything a first year has experienced before.

But these are all good things, great things in fact. The excitement is palpable. On my first day as I walked back from college I remember distinctly standing on the fly-over

on the Stillorgan road feeling the rush of cars beneath me, seeing the dimming city of Dublin before me and the excitement hit me. You know when you feel that weird constricting feeling just below your throat? As you lift your hands up life tickles you behind your naval and you laugh and smile, and you know why you worked so hard during the Leaving Cert. For this feeling.

There is a huge realisation of your own existence when on campus. On most days, your existence is paramount. Look at me talking to young ones, cooking dinner for myself, missing lectures. Class.

But some days, it’s different. As a first year, life changes incredibly in such a short period of time. Hurtling in so many directions simultaneously, sometimes it’s difficult to ascertain if you’re really in charge of everything. Sometimes it’s like you are not the architect of your own destiny: study all you like in sixth year, you’ll become a pawn in a greater game three months later.

Think about it: there’s thirty thousand others here, and it’s hard to matter when dealing with such enveloping numbers. It’s incalculable in comparison to our sheltered former existences.

We just have to relax and breathe and look around and know that everyone started from a lowly position. We have to look at the soles of our shoes and scrape off the gum that’s stuck there and know that, metaphorically or otherwise, there is only one established society in UCD, that of the students, that of the insignificant, of the high and mighty, that of you and me.

Is college the new conservative?

Daniel Clifford looks at censorship across UK and US campuses and the fundamental issues with the lack of free speech on campus THERE IS, without any doubt, an effort from students across the UK and US to censor, ban, and remove any ideas or speakers that may cause offence. One might say, hasn’t this been talked about before by people like Brendan O’Neill in Spiked, aren’t there loads of articles written by academics and journalists challenging this student driven censorship? There are, and there is some really good material out there, but it’s rare to see the student perspective on this. Unfortunately in the minority it seems, but nevertheless, I’m one of the students who believes in free speech, without any “but” at the end.

Humour can be a great tool in getting across a serious message.

Sometimes though the joke will be written for you. One can’t help but laugh at the recent shambles on the part of the Students’ Union in Manchester University last month.

On an upcoming event organised by students, a guest speaker journalist Milo Yiannopoulos was banned from speaking to students by the SU. For those of us who keep an eye on this trend, this really isn’t anything new.

It happens all the time. The unique thing about this event though, which is tragic in its own right, is the fact Yiannopoulos was going to speak in a debate on… guess what? “From liberation to censorship: does feminism have a free-speech problem?”

There’s a lot of irony to be found in a debate on censorship where a speaker was censored, in fact two speakers were censored: Yiannopoulos and feminist author Julie Bindel.

God forbid that Yiannopoulos or Bindel might change the mind of any student while speaking on campus. I fully believe students and SUs across the UK and US have given up on the fundamental belief in free expression and free inquiry and have instead opted for a form

16 september 15th 2015

of higher level babysitting. It used to be the case that students were prevented by colleges from expressing radical, revolutionary or offensive views, but now it’s the opposite: students are banning other students’ and speakers’ right to an opinion.

Manchester University SU has a safe space policy, which, they said in their address to students, would have been violated by Yiannopoulos and Bindel due to their dissenting ideas. The safe space extends to the whole campus, and basically nowhere on Manchester University’s campus can one express views that may be viewed as politically incorrect less they be subject to penalties. From Yiannopoulos’ view on feminism to Bindel’s views on trans people, both have been banned for some trumped up charge which in essence boils down to, “we don’t like the fact you disagree with us, so you won’t be visiting anytime soon”. This whole issue stems from the contemporary belief that one’s right to be comfortable is more important than one’s right to express their opinion.

Yiannopoulos and Bindel have opinions that disagree with the SU, and students of Manchester will never get to hear their views, however right or wrong they may be.

Both speakers were deemed as being able to “incite violence”. The term “incitement to violence” is thrown on any speaker or student who may disagree with the party line, and has no bearing on their actual opinions. There is absolutely no basis for this position by the SU, and worryingly there is no limit to this blanket ban on all disagreeable ideas. I use the term blanket because that is exactly what campuses are doing: wrapping students up in intellectual blankets and protecting them from ideas they may dislike.

Freedom of inquiry really is central to our education. As a philosophy student, I can’t imagine being told, “well, Arthur Schopenhauer would have a great response to your question, but unfortunately someone decided for you that he was too offensive to their views, so you’re unable to hear it, sorry”. Stifling your own education and learning is a shame,

but stifling mine and that of hundreds of others’ because you feel slightly put off by someone’s view is absolutely outrageous.

Laughably, Oxford University’s SU banned a magazine called “No Offensive” promoting free speech from distribution as it was deemed “offensive”. Is this not a problem for students who value free inquiry? Yet, one article in the Trinity newspaper, Trinity News has argued that this isn’t a problem, saying “Contrary to popular belief, nobody is trying to turn the entire world, or even the entire college campus into the safe space”. Well, Manchester SU has, Warwick University banned Maryam Namazie from a speaking event for fear she might offend Muslim students and the Oxford SU banned two men from speaking in an abortion debate, coming under pressure from students who felt “unsafe” hearing two men discuss the topic.

This is a problem, and these are just a handful of examples. One merely has to Google Spiked’s Free Speech Campaign or FIRE (Freedom of Individual Rights to Education) to see the numerous cases of censorship that have occurred on college campuses. This is a problem that lies within the student body: it is the new generation of hyper-sensitive students who have taken it upon themselves to rid the campuses of ideas they dislike. They have chosen on my behalf and yours to turn campuses into anti-intellectual bubbles into which no ideas can enter. To me, and to many students, as well as lecturers and staff, freedom to speak, to exercise one’s right to say over another’s offence without fear of censorship is of utmost importance on campus.

Free speech is one of those values I would maintain is core to a progressive college.

Ideas must be allowed to be heard, critiqued and assessed, and every individual has a right to this. It is not acceptable that an SU or student may decide for us what we can and cannot hear. Ironically, those deemed socially progressive, advancing causes in the way of “safe spaces” and “preventing offence” are more conservative than the conservative views themselves that they try so hard to keep out of campuses.

PHOTO: Genius.com

“Students and SUs across the UK and US have given up on the fundamental belief in free expression and free inquiry and have instead opted for a form of higher level babysitting.”

editorial

editorial BUDGET 2016 has been described as a giveaway budget by practically everyone except students and university representatives. Yet again there has been no reduction in university fees, or a reintroduction of postgraduate grants. Students have rarely been seen as a secure voting base for the various political parties in Ireland, and it’s evident in this government’s continuous silence on student issues. According to a recent article in The Irish Times by John Boland, Dean and Vice President for research of TCD, “the funding per university student in Ireland has now dropped below that at second level. Higher education has not been a priority at Government level.” In a similar vein, SU President Marcus O’Halloran put it succinctly when he said “What’s not promising is the fact that there was €50 million put aside for the commemoration of the 1916 rising, and €25 million would finish off UCD Residence.”

Why do governments refuse to acknowledge young people as a potential source of valuable votes?

Historically there has been an attitude that university students just aren’t that interested in politics.

Time and time again consistently low voter turnout from 18-25 year olds in Ireland has been cited as an example of the lack of engagement from young people with our political process.

The Marriage Equality referendum was the first time in recent history that the value of young people to our political process really came to light, with young people returning home in their floods to secure the historic Yes vote. This was an issue that was extremely important to young people and they spent money to travel, taking time off work and college to make it to their polling station. Roughly 30,000 students were registered to vote by their Students’ Unions in the run-up to the referendum.

However, the voting system in Ireland as a whole is not conducive to student voting. The fact that polling takes place during the week, when many students are in colleges or jobs far away from their polling stations, actively prevents students from taking part in the politics of their country.

Postal votes are an option, but require registration as a postal voter and further forms and bureaucracy to attend to. Students just don’t have the money or frequently, the time, to travel to their home polling station to vote in elections or referendums where they may feel their vote has less of an impact. According to a Red C poll in 2014 by the National Youth Council of Ireland, 54% of young people aged between 18 and 25 who were registered to vote in the local and European elections, voted. 52% of the young people

who were registered but didn’t vote “indicated that circumstances on the day prevented them from voting”.

This 52% do not get another chance to vote. The NYCI’s report states that it was these young peoples’ circumstances (such as not being at home, work commitments etc) that prevented them from voting; really, it was a failure of our political system that prevented this by not taking simple circumstances into account.

Young people have proven that when an issue is important to them they will make a massive effort to make it to the polling stations.

However, it may be forgotten that by simply casting a vote, any vote, it may cause political parties to sit up and take notice of the needs of young people and students. Sadly it may only be by proving that they are a huge body of voters that political parties will finally begin to listen to students, but nonetheless it’s something that’s worth considering by Students’ Unions around the country.

The Marriage Equality Referendum prompted student unions to register voters, but this voting drive should be a continuous effort in the run up to the next general election in order to affect further political change, specifically for students and young people, in a country which currently doesn’t seem to listen to them.

Talleyrand TALLEY HO, SPACEWASTERS! AH, midterm you say? Already? Ah yes, I did forget such a notion existed in my perpetual state of timelessness, particularly when reading week exists only to account for the laziness of Arts students. Make sure you don’t forget that the misery of your fellow students continues as you joyfully trot to your homestead for a week of doing anything except reading and general self-improvement.

The Autumn wind has already begun to whistle through Cian Burnout’s hair and the lines are beginning to expand on our sabbatical team’s weary faces as they reach the end of the first quarter of the almighty academic year of 2015/2016, but the fun has only just begun. Or at least, it appears to, with a website that currently hosts a photo for Freshers’ Ball 2013 on its homepage. There also appears not to have been any Exec or Council meetings with minutes so far this year according to the website or in fact any SU social media. I wonder what they mean by that? Talley forbid any student to actually know when

the SU decide things publicly – we wouldn’t want an open and democratic Union on our hands, now would we?

The reaction to a certain Maths and Stats lecturer who threatened to cut his students’ grades was, in my own extremely important and respected opinion, overdramatic. What indeed are our noble lecturers for, if not to threaten students with dropping 35% of their grade for checking Facebook? Perhaps the only problem with this from a University standpoint was that it forced a lecturer to actually interact with students and do something other than read slides from a PowerPoint presentation. This distinguished upright institution is nothing if not thorough; allegedly bringing in “observers” to keep a close eye on students during class is exemplary of our police state campus.

Occasionally it is rather nice to feel like one is living in a novel or a fictional place; however, one mightn’t have expected it to be Orwell’s 1984.

One would have thought that Charles Maurice de Talleyrand Périgord was the only one keeping an eye on things around this abysmal campus, but it

appears that he is not alone in his wanderings; there are also probably PhD students at the back of your pitiful lectures snapping photographs.

Society antics are an endless source of my own amusement, as committees continue to blunder their way through burning their €2 joining fees from freshers on Dominoes pizza. The L&H display their talents on an almost weekly basis, winning the King’s College IV last week.

However they have unfortunately also become so incompetent as to build what appears to be a fort made of boxes of leftovers from Freshers’ week in the middle of the societies’ corridor, incurring the wrath of the higher-ups and the joy of anyone passing by brave enough to steal a few packets of Starburst. One can only hope they are stripped of their office space and instead are forced to hold office in their cardboard fort as practice for their later lives.

I quite enjoyed the five-minute long SHAG event that ran this year, mostly because an SU which is putting such a huge focus on consent doesn’t seem to feel it quite important enough

letter to the editor Dear Editor: In regard to the Observer article ‘Delayed Student Advice Centre…’ (6 Oct 2015 v. XX11 Issue 2) I think your article unfortunately equates UCD’s Student Advisers and UCD’s Student Health Service/Counselling service as if they are an interchangeable service. The Observer quotes Dr. Tighe, UCD’s Director of Student Health, as she notes the not ideal situation of increasing high demand on the counselling service (our student population is 30,000), current limited in-house resources and therefore resultant waiting lists. The Observer then use quotes from both the SU President and SU Welfare Officer to suggest that an additional Student Adviser, based in a proposed Student Advice Centre, can begin to plug the resource gap being experienced by UCD’s counselling service.

For my own part I can only say that UCD Student Advisers are not counsellors and so cannot act as an overflow for the counselling service. The Student Adviser role is to confidentially advise UCD students in regard to academic, personal, social or practical issues and to refer students to UCD resources as appropriate. I think it is important that your readers don’t confuse the two distinct UCD support services.

Regards Ronan Murphy UCD Mature Students’Adviser

letterS to the editor Letters, corrections and clarifications pertaining to articles published in this newspaper and online are welcome and encouraged.

to dedicate a whole week to it, as I believe was originally planned. I myself have taken more than a few mistresses over the years, and believe that a SHAG week is of the utmost importance now and then. Similarly a most interesting Culture Day was held, and partially run by the very postgrad sabbatical officer, Hazel Beattie, who seems more concerned with fulfilling the roles of education and welfare than actually dealing with postgrad students. It’s refreshing to see her so concerned with culture, after last year’s hustings where it emerged that she attempted to include her competitor’s ‘native’ language on her manifesto – but failed to get the correct language. Culture Day was co-hosted by our very own Education officer who, according to various photos on Facebook, spent much of the event handing out croissants. If nothing else, our sabbat officers are highly inclusive of French pastries.

TALLEY OUT

the university observer Editor Gráinne Loughran Deputy Editor Patrick Kelleher VISUAL CONTENt & Design Editor James Healy Chief of pHOTOGRAPHY Joanna O’Malley News Editor Roisin Guyett-Nicholson Comment Editor Martin Healy Features Editor Eithne Dodd Science, Health & Technology Editor Aoife Hardesty BUSINESS & CAREERS Editor Megan Fanning Eagarthóir Gaeilge Síofra Ní Shluaghadháin Sports Editor David Kent Otwo Editors Eva Griffin & Karl Quigley Food Editor Niamh O’Regan Games Editor Adam Donnelly Film & TV Editor David Monaghan Music Editor Aisling Kraus Fashion Editor Lucy Coffey Creative writing Editor Roisin Murray Arts & Literature Editor Maebh Butler ONLINE EDITOR Keira Gilleechi

Photography & Illustration Joanna O’Malley Louise Flanagan Amanda Cheng David Winn Aisling McGuire Julia Kerr-Peterson Gareth Phelan Marie Whelan Caoimhe Higgins Words Anthony O’Riordan Alanna O’Shea Michael O’Sullivan Owen Steinberger Gavin Tracey Billy Vaughan Ciara Fitzgerald Mark O’Brien O’Reilly Sinead Conroy Fiachra Johnston Déonna McLaughlin Oisin Ó Cléirigh Donal Ó Catháin Frances Allen Aisling Brennan Laoise Fitzpatrick Sinead Conroy Anne Marie Stacey Jane Purdom Jessica Quinn Kevin Byrne Daniel Clifford James Holohan Talleyrand Jonathon Squire Marie Whelan Aífe McHugh Conall Cahill David Deignan The Badger Rebekah Rennick Roisin O’Mara Caoimhe Higgins Rachel Gaffney Aurora Andrus Daniel Ryan Aaron Poole Aaron Murphy Adam Lawler Owen Steinberger Marissa Dinar Amanda Cheng Daniel Ryan Corey Fischer Ezra Maloney Helen Carroll Katie Devlin Ciara Leacy

Letters should be addressed to The Editor, University Observer, UCD Student Centre, Belfield, Dublin 4.

Correspondence may also be sent to editor@universityobserver.ie.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

sport

Supsicions in the Arena: Paul Kimmage Amid all the hype and good will surrounding Irish sport in the last two months, the issues of drug-testing and concussion still linger, an idea which worries Paul Kimmage. The man who helped bring down Lance Armstrong speaks to Conall Cahill about his concerns Paul Kimmage wants to love rugby. He does love rugby. The raw commitment, the bravery, the intensity. But as much as he wants to believe in it all, he can’t. For Kimmage, like with cycling in the past, the silence from those within the sport when difficult questions are asked raises more suspicion than a thousand words.

Kimmage thinks that rugby, and sport in general, has a sickness that needs curing before it is too late: doping.

And then there is concussion.

Like with any public figure, there is a caricature of Kimmage: the angry anti-doping guy, ready to criticise and accuse at every turn. A former cyclist who rode at the Tour de France, Kimmage spent years being denounced by former team-mates, cyclists and fellow journalists for his book Rough Ride, an autobiographical account of the prevalent doping culture in cycling, and for his passionate campaigning against that culture.

The silence that existed amongst cyclists about what went on in the professional peloton meant that Kimmage was viewed as a traitor. One former friend and team-mate went up to him one year at ‘Le Tour’ and spat in his face.

Vindicated somewhat by the fall of Lance Armstrong, Kimmage still believes that cycling has a doping problem. His suspicions aroused by what he calls Team Sky’s failures to “deliver on transparency”, and whisperings from young amateurs in Belgium of widespread doping practices have him convinced that there remains a dark side to the sport. The continuing public worship of Stephen Roche and Sean Kelly bemuses him. Kelly tested positive twice in his career, and Roche was accused of taking EPO by an Italian judge in a 2004 report. Their stance as figures of public worship, when compared with the disregard for Michelle de Bruin, who was accused of doping after winning three Olympic gold medals for Ireland, is baffling for Kimmage. “It’s complete bullshit...you cannot present her, view her down and hold up Kelly and Roche as heroes.”

Kimmage’s concerns about doping in sport are not limited to cycling.

In soccer, he says, “it’s rife”. The presence of Dr Hans-Wilhelm MüllerWohlfahrt, a slightly mysterious ‘healer’ who has treated Usain Bolt and Paula Radcliffe as well as Stephen Roche recently did nothing to convince him otherwise. “Whenever I see Wilhelm, I have questions in my head.” He also highlights a detail from the book he co-penned with former Marseille and Ireland striker Tony Cascarino. Cascarino, Kimmage recalls, described players at Marseille getting “orders to go to a hotel for the

injection every week. They hadn’t a fucking clue what they were getting.”

The connection of Dr Eufemiano Fuentes, the ‘doping doctor’ with football teams such as Real Sociedad, and the fact that at the last World Cup “elderly players” were “running around like the Duracell Bunny” are two other factors making Kimmage shift in his seat when he is watching the game. As for athletics, Kimmage has “severe reservations” about Usain Bolt, admitting he could just be “a complete freak” but suggesting that it might take more than that for Bolt to be beating times “that have been set by what we are absolutely are totally sure of is doped runners.”

Thoughts turn to rugby, the sport that previously operated on the fringes of soccer and GAA but now holds a central focal point in the national sporting consciousness.

as he once did when probing into cycling’s problems?

“Absolutely. They need to understand that the questions aren’t unreasonable. The sport does quite clearly have a ‘pill’ culture, a substance culture. And any sport with a substance culture, when you’re talking about giving 16 year olds creatine – that is not a good starting place. And they shouldn’t be so defensive when it’s brought up, because it’s clearly a problem they need to address.”

Kimmage has come under fire in Irish rugby circles for strongly voicing his suspicions about the sport. Ireland vice-captain Jamie Heaslip last year criticised Kimmage for making “very open” accusations, and said of drug testing in rugby: “the processes that are in place work.” Irish prop Cian Healy also weighed into the debate earlier this year in response to Kimmage’s appearance on The Saturday Night Show on RTÉ, where he commented on “the doping problem in rugby”. Healy stated on Twitter that “testing is regular and worldwide” and suggested he should “call in and cancel weights on Monday”, ridiculing Kimmage’s assertions. When the duo’s criticisms are mentioned to Kimmage, he starts shaking with laughter, saying that Heaslip has ‘blocked’ him on Twitter: “Now why the fuck would Jamie Heaslip want to block me? That is such an unintelligent thing to do!”

“My suspicions are – and you only have to look at the statistics, the UK Anti-Doping statistics – that more rugby players are testing positive than any other sport. So, there’s your answer, Jamie Heaslip. There’s your answer, Cian Healy. This is a matter of fact…You can’t ignore the relationship between the size of the players now, the substances they are using, and the fact that it is... another fact that they have been using trainers and coaches and doctors that have been up to their necks in these [suspicious activities].”

But has Kimmage been watching the rugby as he still watches the Tour de France – with the constant nagging suspicion that what he is observing is too good to be true? “Look, you engage with it, you try and engage with it as much as you can. It doesn’t negate the reservations and suspicions you have over it. And it’s slightly different in that it’s a team sport, as against an individual sport where there are people who you absolutely know are not clean. And in a team sport you know there are guys who are clean. So it’s not quite the same.”

But when the Irish team line up to belt out ‘Ireland’s Call’, do

“They are selling us fairy tales and they want us to believe in them. And it’s getting harder and harder to believe in them”

18 OCTOBER 28th 2015

European rugby was rocked shortly before the World Cup by allegations that Toulon, the European Champions, had been supplied with substances including anabolic steroids by a local pharmacy. The club have vigorously denied all of the accusations – but questions still remain over the credibility of rugby, a sport in which the UK Anti-Doping Agency says there is a “very high” risk of doping. Most evidence of doping appears to be among the lower levels of the game, however, with examples of elite players failing tests few and far between. South African prop Chiliboy Ralepelle is perhaps the most high profile; his ban for doping runs out in 2016.

For Kimmage, there remain questions about the highest level of the game. He wrote last year about the case of Laurent Benezech, a one-time French international who was sued by the French rugby players’ union and suffered personally for comments he made about drug use in the sport (he won the case).

When asked if the response to Benezech reminded him of the treatment of Emma O’Reilly, an Irishwoman and former masseuse who gave evidence against Lance Armstrong, Kimmage says it shows an issue “in the way that we regard whistleblowers...across society. You look at the Garda case with (Maurice) McCabe...that is exactly the same as the cycling response to me, to Emma O’Reilly. And that’s the way we treat whistleblowers. And it’s totally, totally fucking wrong.”

But does Kimmage get the same vibe from those in rugby, when he asks difficult questions,

PHOTO: David Conachey

“Someone’s going to die on the rugby field. And if that’s what it takes for it to change then it would be a sad state of affairs, wouldn’t it?”

his suspicions about doping detract from the game?

“Generally, yes. But again it’s not the same as an individual sport. Because I’m not sure. I’m not actually sure. While I have suspicions about two or three or four, I’m actually not sure. I’ve tried to investigate it, and had thought I was getting somewhere, and the trail went cold. I had a whistleblower who wouldn’t deliver for me and that was kind of disappointing. So I don’t know. I’m still in the ‘I don’t know’ phase.”

Fear is often put forward as a method of control Lance Armstrong used to prevent investigations or awkward questions about doping in his sport and his career. Riders who wished to speak out were silenced.

Witnesses who spoke out were threatened and their names and reputations tarnished. But what about the fear of spoiling a perfect image, the fear of soiling the perfect story: a cancer survivor who won seven Tour de France titles – could this have held people back from asking questions?

Does Kimmage think that a fear of spoiling the image of our clean-cut, brave sporting heroes has led to a lack of questions aimed at the Irish rugby team?

“When Michelle de Bruin won her three gold medals, there was a board meeting in RTÉ and a decision was made, and the decision was sent down to the troops, the reporters: ‘We will not upset the national mood.

Everybody is delighted about this.

We are not going to upset people by asking people to stand back a little bit and consider this.’”

“Every time you raise the issue of doping, or cheating, or dishonesty in sport, that’s not what people want to hear. They want to be told, ‘See that? You can believe absolutely in that.

Engage with it, believe in it, it’s all true.’ They are selling us fairy tales and they want us to believe in them. And it’s getting harder and harder to believe in them.”

The topic of concussion in rugby is one that has been discussed with great fervour in this country in recent weeks, following an RTÉ documentary on the subject.

Kimmage feels that the drugs question and the concussion issue are “not unrelated”, and thinks that things will not be improved if officials taking a strong position on concussion are treated like Brian O’Driscoll’s second cousin Barry O’Driscoll was.

“Barry had a very good position in World Rugby and because of the stance he took on concussion

he was totally ostracised and lost all of his perks. People look at that and they say, ‘Well, it’s not going to happen to me.’” Kimmage thinks that the lack of concern most fans have for what players are putting into their bodies extends to the concussion problem, in that as long as spectators see some action they aren’t too concerned about what happens to the participants.

“People sit down to the rugby game on Sunday and they are entertained. They want to be entertained. They don’t want to think, drugs are playing any part in this. Neil Francis alluded to it on Sunday in his column – it is almost like the Roman Empire, the gladiators being brought in and fucking carried out on stretchers.

‘Bring the next fella on’. They are getting butchered. This game has a serious, serious problem.”

Kimmage admits that he would “actively discourage” any of his children who wanted to play rugby. “I mean, Jesus! It’s fucking brutal,” he says. But if, as he seems to believe, rugby is asleep to its problems, will those involved in the sport wake up soon? “They better,” says Kimmage, “because someone’s going to die on the rugby field.

And if that’s what it takes for it to change then it would be a sad state of affairs, wouldn’t it?”

Despite all of his concerns, Kimmage admits to having huge admiration for rugby’s warriors – “the commitment is just phenomenal” – and responds, “how can you not?” when asked if he has enjoyed the World Cup. Fuelled by “passion” for sport, not anger, as is often perceived, Kimmage remains deeply in love with sport, despite the fierce war he has waged against elements of it for the last 25 years.

Shortly after the Germany game Brendan Lowry, father of Shane, joined him for a drink and they shook their heads together in wonder. “Isn’t sport absolutely incredible?” said Lowry. “What would our life be without sport?”

“I was reminded of it when we came out of Lansdowne Road,” says Kimmage. “Everybody was on such a buzz. And you just think, ‘Well, it’s true.’ I mean, you know, for all its faults, sport does still give us a lot.”

sport

Irish dare to dream of France 2016

Ireland are looking to put the pain of Poland behind them as they take aim at a dangerous Bosnian side. David Deignan previews a crucial two weeks for Martin O’Neill THE REPUBLIC of Ireland international team have a frustrating yet endearing habit of making things difficult for themselves, a fact that bore fruit in the closing stages of the team’s UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying group stage. After a dramatic Scottish slip up in Georgia, Martin O’Neill’s team managed to claw their way back into contention with back to back wins over Gibraltar and Georgia. A famous victory at home to Germany left the team in a great position to grasp an unlikely automatic qualification spot but a disappointing defeat in Poland meant the group concluded with Ireland taking third place and guaranteeing a two-legged playoff match against a similarly placed opposition.

While this lifeline would have satisfied most supporters mere months ago, the strength of the victory over Germany meant the subsequent failure to dislodge a stubborn Polish side left a bitter aftertaste. Besides, the play-off stage is by no means an easy entry into the tournament proper. Having been drawn to face a deceptively difficult team, this Irish side will certainly have their work cut out if they want to be taking to the pitch in France next June and July.

But would we have it any other way?

The Irish team will face the Bosnians, an underrated side who have the potential to give the Irish team more than a few headaches over the two legs. Having finished top of their group to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup – their first appearance in the tournament – the Bosnians performed admirably in the group stages.

They won over neutrals but narrowly failed to edge out eventual finalists Argentina and a strong Nigerian side.

Picking up a mere point from their opening four games in the European Qualifiers prompted a change of command, installing Mehmed Badzarevic as manager in November

2014. Under the new man they have been in fiery form, winning five of their remaining six games to clinch third spot and set up a tantalising play-off fixture against the Irish.

While our opponents have yet to qualify for a European Championship, their footballing history is relatively short. The team in its current incarnation only became a member of FIFA in 1996 with their first attempt at qualification for an international tournament being the 1998 World Cup. Worryingly for the Republic of Ireland the nation is currently experiencing a so-called ‘golden generation’ with its current squad possessing players with the quality to help them compete on a world stage. The most recognisable names on the team sheet for fans of English football will be formidable former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko and the reliable Asmir Begovic, currently José Mourinho’s first-choice at Chelsea in lieu of Thibaut Courtois.

Dzeko is also the captain and top scorer with a haul of 44 goals in 74 caps and is the biggest threat to Ireland’s goal over the two legs. Dzeko was the fourth top scorer across the qualifying stages and O’Neill will have to find a way to deal with this threat better than the one Robert Lewandowski posed in Poland.

The rest of the Bosnian squad is littered with names that will be unfamiliar to many who aren’t heavily invested in the European leagues but there are a couple of

IN PHOTO: THE FIRST GAME BETWEEN IRELAND AND BOSNIA

been in incredible form so far this season, and is linked to the two major Spanish clubs. It may be necessary for O’Neill to assign a tireless midfielder such as James McCarthy or Glenn Whelan to man-mark the dangerous Bosnian for the two ties.

If he is allowed the ability to roam

be available for the double-headed decider. Ireland’s hero against Germany picked up an ankle injury during the defeat in Warsaw and faces a race against time to prove his fitness before the first leg, which falls on Friday the 13th. If Long is unavailable it could mean a place in the starting line-up for Robbie Keane. There are no question marks surrounding the availabilities of John O’Shea and Jonathon Walters, both of whom will miss the first leg through suspension. Shay Given may also miss out after the injury he sustained against the Germans, meaning Darren Randolph will retain his spot in the starting XI. Elsewhere Martin O’Neill will have

“O’Neill will have to find a way to deal with this threat better than the one Robert Lewandowski posed in Poland.” other players of note. 35 year old Hamburg defender Emir Spahic is the most capped player in the side’s history and will be expected to marshall the back four while deep lying playmaker Miroslav Pjanic has been lighting up Series A for Roma.

Pjanic, a set-piece specialist, has

free it could prove Ireland’s undoing.

There has only been one previous fixture between the two sides, a friendly in the Aviva Stadium back in 2012. Shane Long scored the decider for Giovanni Trappatoni’s team that afternoon, but there are question marks over whether the striker will

some important decisions to make around the pitch. Having made a host of enforced changes to his side following the victory over Germany it will be interesting to see whether the manager decides to persevere with the side who ran Poland close or choose a team similar to the one who toppled the world champions. Selecting Stephen Ward or Marc Wilson at left back would allow Robbie Brady to return to the midfield role in which he shone against the Germans.

Richard Keogh should keep his place in defence but the question of who will partner him will likely be discussed right up until kick off. A return to fitness for Wilson could result in his return to the team in the middle. It would be a big surprise if O’Neill dropped his trusted lieutenant Whelan, an

ever present in the side when fit.

However following McCarthy’s best performance in an Irish shirt against Germany in Whelan’s absence there are very legitimate questions over what exactly the Stoke midfielder brings to the team. Wes Hoolahan should start after being sorely missed against Poland, instilling the Irish with confidence and meaning viewers of RTÉ will be saved another Eamon Dunphy panic attack.

If Ireland are looking for any lucky omens ahead of the tie, they should remember that the Bosnians have never been victorious over a two legged play-off. Long may that record continue.

The badger There was something pathetic about Ireland’s losses to Poland and Argentina, but it’s not what you think. The Badger explains THE BADGER was all comfortably settled down with Mrs Badger and the two kids to watch the Ireland and France rugby game on TV3 on Sunday, and was treated to a thrilling first half. But half time was what riled The Badger. Ad after ad after ad. In total, of the half time break, 14 minutes and four seconds were advertisements, with a measly 62 dedicated to the panel analysis.

Now the Badger knows that ads are necessary, but 14 minutes of them?

Maybe the public are lucky perhaps, that there is so long an ad break.

When the analysis is on, as it was for the Australia and Scotland battle, we get ex-Ireland player Shane Byrne talking about wanting to go for a pint on national television. Luckily enough he was saved by Fiona Steed, which was the only positive from a dire piece of coverage. TV3 did break a barrier by having a female pundit for views. But the overall product reeks in comparison to the professionals at ITV, with top class punditry from the likes of Brian O’Driscoll and Lawrence Dallaglio.

Everyone had that sickening burrowing up at various Irish grounds feeling in their stomachs. Robert over the last 16 years, and has never Lewandowski’s goals had done noticed you at any game that they enough to deny Ireland an automatic have been at. Isn’t that coincidental, place in the 2016 Euro’s. What we that’s it’s actually you that’s talking needed was a pick-me up immediately nonsense. But then again, the after it, a note of hope. What we Badger supposes that’s what you got? Three decrepit old fools to get paid for these days, to say compound the doom and gloom. something extraordinarily ridiculous, What exactly gives Eamon Dunphy and to pick up a paycheque. the right to tell anyone anything Giles and Brady the Badger about football? In thirteen years has a level of respect for, having of playing, the biggest club he got actually done something in their to was Milwall, winning a total of footballing careers. But it’s time to zero medals along the way. When take the Old Yeller of the RTE panel the Conroy Report was recently out to the back of the woodshed. published about the state of the Irish Allow fresh faces, such as Kenny league, Dunphy immediately called it Cunningham, Richie Sadlier, Dietmar cow excrement. The Badger reckons Hamann, you know, people who that Mr Dunphy was just upset that have actually played the game in he and the two pundits by his side the last decade, and understand the on the RTÉ Panel weren’t asked modern day concepts of football. about it. Dunphy also claimed that Not bumbling fools, living in the he had been watching the League of past, who are just desperate to Ireland for “60 years”. No you haven’t get their name in a headline.

Eamon. You were playing abroad for a good twenty, so unless you travelled back and forth every week, that’s a lie. The Badger has themselves been

Sports Digest David kent Mountaineering

The UCD Mountaineering club hosted their ‘Night Hike’ last Saturday. Members were trekking through the Wicklow Mountains with the overall goal of reaching the Dublin border.

UCD Surf

The annual colours event against Trinity College takes place from the 13th to the 15th of November at Lahinch, County Clare. For more info see the UCD Surfing Facebook page.

Fencing

UCD hosted the national intermediates on the 3rd and 4th of October. Altogether there were six categories, Men’s Épée, Men’s Foil, Men’s Sabre, Women’s Épée,

Women’s Foil and Women’s Sabre.

UCD performed very well with 14 entrants from the college, and placed in 5 of the 6 categories.

Matthew Tracey placed 2nd in Men’s Épée, Blaise Carpene placed 3rd in Men’s Foil, Alisha Mullen placed 3rd in Women’s Épée, Laura Mirakoff placed 3rd in Women’s Foil and Gerda Ziemele placed 3rd in Women’s Sabre.

assured when UCD’s second team of Martin Meagher, Emmet Landy, Brendan Murphy and James Tobin defeated DCU 69-59 in the B final.

Sailing

UCD Team Ireland have achieved third place in the Student Yachting World Cup, which is a tremendous achievement for UCD Sailing Club.

GAA Handball Basketball

At the All Ireland 60x30 Intervarsities in Kilkenny it was the team events that UCD dominated, claiming both the Open and B titles. Open singles finalists Martin Mulkerrins and Brian Mahon teamed up with Galen Riordan and Terry McElvaney to defeat 2014 champions University of Limerick on a 60-25 score line to claim the Open title.

The clean sweep of team titles was

UCD Marian were defeated by UCC Demons last week at the National Basketball Arena on a scoreline of 92-76. Captain Conor Meany spoke to the Irish Independent ahead of the game against Swords Thunder: “We lost to a very good Demons side but were disappointed with some aspects of our play that we need to put right to defeat Swords Thunder.”

GAA

UCD’s senior men’s side had a heavy win at home to rivals at Trinity last week, as Sigerson season begins to appear on the horizon. The Men’s Freshers drew their Division Two league game against DCU with a scoreline of 1-9 to 0-12, but the C team unfortunately lost by 3-22 to 1-9.

Rugby

The Collidge were unable to back up their impressive victory over Young Munster and draw away to Cork Con last Friday. They were defeated by Terenure College on a scoreline of 20-18. The positive for the UCD side is they did pick up a losing bonus point, and now sit fourth in the table ahead of a Halloween trip to the West to take on the Galwegians.

OCTOBER 28TH 2015

sport David Kent Sports Editor

Match Report: UCD shell shocked by Harps Collie O’Neill’s men have it all to do in the second leg in Finn Park, as an early Ciaran Coll goal separated the sides in Belfield on Friday

UCD face an uphill battle to gain promotion to the Premier Division, after they fell to a 1-0 home defeat to Finn Harps in the Belfield Bowl on Friday night. Coming into the match the bookmakers had Harps as slight favourites, a deserved title with the Northerners having trumped champions Wexford Youths 4-1 two weeks earlier. This was the side’s fifth meeting of the season, with results being split in the previous four, a win each and two entertaining draws.

Collie O’Neill will have told his players to get in early. Harps have been quick starters in a lot of their games in the regular season.

But within a minute, UCD was behind to one of the quickest goals in League of Ireland history, as Ciaran Coll gave the northern side a 1-0 lead after just 24 seconds.

Wilfried Tagbo did well to burst past Mark Langtry, his out swinging cross was met at the back post by an unmarked Coll, who bulleted a header past Conor O’Donnell to give Ollie Horgan’s men the perfect start, and send the travelling numbers into raptures. It was Coll’s first goal for nearly three years.

The Students were stunned, and it took them 15 minutes for them to even muster an attack, but Ciaran Gallagher was alert to shut down Conor Cannon. Harps had the best defence in the league during the regular season, and it could be seen in the way they played on Friday, with Damian McNulty managing to snuff out any long balls over the top.

They should have doubled their score on 29 minutes. Gareth Harkin managed to weave his way past Mark Langtry, took on Tomas Boyle, but with support from Tagbo, decided to take it on himself, and he skewed the ball left and wide of Conor O’Donnell’s left hand post.

As the half wore on however, UCD started to put together some passing moves, getting forward into the Harp’s half more. Conor Cannon chased every ball, however Ryan Swan, who has been UCD’s standout player of the year, was not able to connect with his strike partner enough. The closest the home side came to scoring was when Langtry released Jamie Doyle down the left wing, taking it inside McNulty, but he blasted his shot high

and wide of Ciaran Gallagher’s goal.

The second half began similar to the first, with the away side on the attack. Tony McNamee’s left footed cross on 48 minutes was somehow nodded over by Keith Cowan, who was unmarked outside the six-yard box. There was a noticeable pace to the UCD attack in the second 45, and they created their first chance five minutes later. Jack Watson came out onto the wing, breaking clear of Packie Mailey, but opting to shoot instead of cross, he only found the Belfield trees.

The Harps responded within ten minutes. League veteran Kevin McHugh, looking to add to his seven goals so far this year, played a one-two with Raymond Foy, but his effort flew inches over the post, with O’Donnell rooted to the ground.

O’Neill then emptied his bench, throwing longtime UCD servant Robbie Benson on to try and break through a stubborn defence. He had an immediate impact, with 20 minutes to play, a huge penalty shout for the college. The ball bounced up from a Gary O’Neill corner. The shot by Boyle appeared to be blocked by the arm of a man in white, but referee Ben Connolly adjudged it to have hit a chest, much to the frustrations of Boyle.

It lit a fire underneath the home side. They began to push to try and force the equaliser. It very nearly worked when Gary O’Neill and Jamie Doyle linked up outside the Harp’s box, but the former couldn’t direct his attempt on target. Harps were content to sit back and try to catch UCD on the counter attack, and they had the ball in the net in bizarre fashion with just over 10 minutes remaining. A long throw in from McNulty bounced in the box, past BJ Banda, went up and over O’Donnell and into the net.

Connolly correctly disallowed the goal. Harps manager Horgan, furious with the fourth official, screaming that Banda had got a touch on it.

He was even angrier two minutes later, when McNamee wasted a glorious opportunity to seal the tie and possibly the playoff. O’Donnell rushed out of his goal to close down Matt Crossan, heading the ball out for a throw, which was quickly taken by Crossan. With the keeper scrambling

to get back onto his line, McNamee angled a volley, but his accuracy was way off, when he should’ve scored.

Into injury time, and UCD threw everyone forward to try and level the tie ahead of the second leg. Jack Watson should’ve done so. A slip

by Mailey allowed the midfielder in one on one with Gallagher. Watson tried to place it low in to the bottom left corner, but Gallagher stuck a right foot out to deny him. Boyle then headed over from a corner, but with the last attack of the game, Mick Leahy wasted UCD’s best chance.

Coming to his feet at the penalty spot, Leahy controlled the ball well, but somehow managed to scuff it far wide of the target, much to the relief of Horgan. The onrushing Gallagher may have put him off, but the defender should’ve scored.

UCD now must go up to Finn Park this Friday with a deficit and score, but the task will be difficult.

Harps have gone the last quarter of the season unbeaten, churning in 16 clean sheets in the process, and they will look to secure the tie. The winners will lie in wait for either Drogheda United or Limerick, when 180 minutes of football will complete next year’s Premier Division line up.

UCD: Conor O’Donnell, Mick Leahy, Maxi Kouogun (Tobin 34), Tomás Boyle, Mark Langtry, Jamie Doyle, Dylan Watts (Robbie Benson 57), Gary O’Neill, Jack Watson: Conor Cannon (Daire O’Connor 68), Ryan Swan.

Finn Harps : Ciaran Gallagher: Damien McNulty, Keith Cowan, Packie Mailey, Ciaran Coll (Matt Crossan 27): Josh Mailey, Gareth Harkin, Raymond Foy, Tony McNamee: Wilfried Tagbo (BJ Banda 61), Kevin McHugh (Michael Funston 78)

photography: Gareth Phelan

Club Focus – Trampoline

One of the fastest rising and most popular clubs in UCD, sports editor David Kent takes a look at the Trampoline Club AT SOME stage in your life, you’ve probably had a bounce around on a trampoline, whether it was in your back garden, at your mate’s house, trying to see which person could go higher or do the most flips. There’s a serious side to these activities as well, in the form of Trampolining.

Some of the most nimble and agile athletes on the planet compete in it, with World Championships being held for the last 50 years, as well as it being recognised as an Olympic sport.

While Ireland hasn’t exactly done well at these events historically, the grass roots level is building up all across the college level, including in UCD with the Trampolining club.

It all started back in the 1980s, when one man had a mission, as club PRO Emily Farrell explains: “When the club was first set up, there was a trampoline here from a gymnastics club that was set up ages ago, that’s why it was here. We didn’t have these kind of trampolines, so Andrew Cahill, the guy who set it up, he had done trampolining in the UK, but when he set it up, he wasn’t actually a student! He came in, saw the trampoline, had experience… so it kind of all just snowballed from there really.”

It’s a funny story, but if you have the notions that Trampolining is just going up, down, and then back up again, think again. It takes serious dedication to be a Trampoliner, as Farrell notes. “For most of our members that have been involved for more than a year or so, Monday morning at 7 o’clock, you come in for squad training from 7-9, then on Tuesdays we train from 8-10 [in the evenings],

Wednesdays we’re in again from 7-9am for another squad session, which are a mix of drills on a trampoline and conditioning on the floor as well… and then Thursdays we train from 5-7pm, we also encourage all our squad members to do conditioning and go to the gym, we have a programme for training outside of practice.”

That’s not trying to scare you off joining however, because

a team gold at the SSTO’s in 2013, alongside winning the ISTO Shield in the same year, the only club from the Republic of Ireland to win the prestigious European tournament, which has been dominated by English trampoline clubs in the past.

Medals at the Intervarsities are also a regularity for UCDTC. That ISTO Shield is the crown jewel for a college trampoline

“For the amount of time required between all the training and squad sessions, Trampolining in UCD is one of the best clubs for value for money”

20 OCTOBER 28th 2015

Trampolining, albeit with a very intensive training routine every week, is a brilliantly easy sport for newcomers. With more than 20 coaches willing to offer one to one training, Farrell encourages anyone who’s thinking about it to have a go. “If they have any sort of interest, they should definitely join the club. So many people see it at Orientation Week, they’re too nervous to get up…The coaching is flexible, you can do whatever you want, whether you don’t want to somersault or if that’s all you wanna do, we can accommodate to that. You can reach quite a high level in quite a short amount of time which is why I think our club is so successful.”

This is proven by UCD’s medal haul in recent years, picking up

club, and this year’s event takes place over St. Patrick’s day bank holiday weekend 2016, in Belfast.

Now in her third year in UCD and the club, Farrell is busier than ever, coupling a Physiotherapy course with the work as PRO. It hasn’t fazed her though: “As PRO, I feel like I was born to do this job!

I run all our social media, trying to do sponsorship as well and I’m also organising the club kit and stuff like that, which I enjoy.”

For the amount of time required between all the training and squad sessions, Trampolining in UCD is one of the best clubs for value for money. For the committee it gets a little messy, but for members of the club, it’s a great deal as Farrell explains: “Members pay €15 at the start of the year that

covers all their coaching for the entire year, it only starts to get expensive if you’re up at the higher levels because you have to compete in a leotard and a pair of whites.”

Internationally, the Irish haven’t the best record at major competitions, not having a representative at either of the last two World Championships.

The sport has been completely dominated by the Chinese in recent years, with athletes representing the country coming out on top for six years straight, including three victories for Dong Dong. Two of the last three Olympic golds have gone the way of China as well. The 2015 event is scheduled for the end of November, and it will count as the first qualification tournament for the Rio Olympics next summer for the athletes. A good showing there could see an Irish representation at the Games for the first time ever.

Back on campus, the club will celebrate its 25th birthday after Christmas, with Farrell adamant there will be events planned to mark the anniversary. “We’re a very social club, we had our first trip away this weekend (to Cavan), and we’ve plenty of trips away planned (during the year), it’s a very social, friendly club.”

The club has come a long way in those 25 years since Andrew Cahill wandered into the college, and with the way membership numbers are rising each year, the only way is up for the Trampoline club.

Those looking to get involved with the Trampoline Club should contact them on any of their social media outlets. They are on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and even YouTube. Alternatively come down to any of the training sessions and ask one of the coaches for information.