York Vision 216

WWW.YORKVISION.CO.UK

Tuesday June 7, 2011 Issue 216 vision@yusu.org

a love-hate relationship p 17

South Sudan on the brink of independence p 14-15

- sCENE -

MARMITE

- features -

- lifestyle -

NOMINATED FOR FOUR GUARDIAN STUDENT MEDIA AWARDS, INCLUDING BEST PUBLICATION

Frank Turner SPOTLIGHT

YORK STUDENTS IN

DEBT HELL NT

DE U T S K R O Y E N O Y B > £54K OWED

K 0 5 6 £ N A H T E R O M E W O P TWENTY YORK DEBTORS

> TO

BY ADAM COE A STUDENT at the University owes an astronomical £54,000 to the Student Loans Company, making them the 12th highest debtor in the country, Vision has learnt.

The revelation comes to the fore in Vision's last edition before the University's fees announcement due on the 24th June. YUSU President Tim Ngwena confirmed last weekend that discussions in Heslington Hall about the final top-band

figure to be set had essentially come to their conclusion.

The £54,000 debtor is the only student based at an institution outside London in the top 20 debtors list for the entire country.

In the last few days, Labour MP for York Central, Hugh Bayley, and NUS President Aaron Porter both reacted to the findings in reference to York's future students who can only expect to be overwhelmed by even higher levels of debt in the future.

- FULL STORY PAGE 5 -

PLUS: VISION SPEAKS EXCLUSIVELY TO ALCUIN COLLEGE 'MADAM' - PAGE 7

2 NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

SOMETHING FOR THE WEEKEND

Photo: Oliver Todd

BY OLIVER TODD SATURDAY SAW both Goodfest and York Carnival draw huge crowds in a successful day for both events.

The success of Goodfest, now in its second year, was particularly impressive, following licensing issues that saw this year's event go without a bar.

However, this in turn saw last year's problem of small licensed areas eradicated, and Goodricke chair Nacho Hernando told Vision that he believed the change had been beneficial, as "people are more free to move around

where they want."

Throughout the day the event saw performances from SambaSoc and the York Hornets, while students had the opportunity to sponge the likes of Dan Walker, and enjoy the festival vibe that Goodfest sought to produce, with face-painting and a barbecue also available.

The evening saw a RAG bachelor auction, as well as live performances from bands including Chuck Jager and Sugarking. The evening ended, after a silent disco, at 1am.

Early estimates put the overall attendance during the day at

WEEK

250 students, with around 350 enjoying the evening events.

Hernando felt that, on the whole, the event had been a roaring success, although he admitted: "we've been let down a bit by the weather. Otherwise, it's good to see the Goodrickers are here enjoying themselves. It's good to see the college spirit come out."

One Janet Baker resident, Craig Etherington, was surprised at the success of the event, explaining that "it was a lot better than I was expecting."

Another first-year Goodricke student, Chris Smith, agreed with Hernando, saying: "the

?

weather wasn't great, but all in all, it's been a good day."

York Carnival, making its seventh appearance on the events calendar, was - as ever popular with both the local community and students, despite funding cuts caused by slashed local-government budgets.

Originally started to bring down the "social barriers" between students and local residents, this year was no different, with the Outer Space theme welldisplayed by the hundreds who participated. Sophia Steiger, a member of Tell Tale Theatre, who had a stall at the Carnival,

WHICH MAY NO SWEDISH SU PERSTA T BE PE R BIG D 2RFORMING A T 011

Good Week Nightline - landing a national award

Guardian Student Newspaper of the Year 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2007

Bad Week Students forced into 51 week lets

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Photo of the Week YUSU Presidentelect Tim Ellis enjoys Goodfest

6%

The increase in crime in York since the start of the year

The amount raised by the alumni fund in the first week of their telethon

Photo: Oliver Todd

4

said: "It was great to let people from outside the university know who we are and what we do." The occasion was equally enjoyed by the revellers who weren't participating. One commented, "It's always a beautiful display every year. It seems to be really inclusive of the city community as a whole. I'm already looking forward to next year's Carnival!"

Both events passed without incident and were a shining example of the successes of student-led events both on- and off-campus, despite both facing some adversity.

15k

The number of tweets sent by @YUSUperinjunction before it disappeared

Got an opinion? Get involved at www.yorkvision.co.uk Or contact us at vision@yusu.org

Editors: Maddy Potts Katy Roberts

Comment Editors: Matthew Pendlington Luke Sandford

Deputy Sports: Roger Baxter Freddie Nathan

Deputy Editors: Megan Graham Paul Virides

Deputy Comment: Alex Finnis Max Sugarman

Chief Sub-Editor: Will Haydon

Scene Editors: Teja Pisk Rachel Pronger

Features Editors: Helena Kealey Isaac Simon

______________

Lifestyle Editors: Helen O'Brien Sarah Woods

News Editors: Adam Coe Will Thorman Deputy News: Ruth Gibson Oliver Todd

Deputy Lifestyle: ZoĂŤ Pinder Scott Simmons

Photo Editors: Ruth Gibson Oliver Todd Webmaster: Magnus Tripp Web Editors: Daniel Goddard Milana Knezevic Scene editorial team listed in pullout

Sports Editors: Helena Kaznowska Sam Russell

Opinions expressed in York Vision are not necessarily those of the editors, senior editorial team, membership or advertisers. Every effort is made to ensure all articles are as factually correct as possible at the time of going to press, given the information available.

Copyright Vision Newspapers, 2011.

Printed by Yorkshire Web Cover Photo by Oliver Todd

NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

"VITAL IMPORTANCE" OF INADEQUATE HES EAST PORTER SITUATION: YUSU AND JCRC UP IN ARMS

POOR-TER POSITIONING

BY JUDITH MARZO THE SUDDEN SWITCH of porters from Goodricke's nucleus to the Ron Cooke hub has become a mounting concern for YUSU and the college's JCRC recently, with a formal decision by the University due later this month.

There is particular concern for disabled residents, for whom the move has been severely problematic.

The resultant inaccessibility of the porters' lodge could lead to a "life-threatening incident," according to Arthur Jiggins, Goodricke JCRC's Disability Rep. Nacho Hernando, Goodricke JCRC Chair told Vision that he felt the switch from the college Nucleus to the campus Ron Cooke Hub is issuing a preference to the University's commercial interests as it, "puts the student's interests second to the University's business interests."

Hernando has had meetings with both the Chancellor and the Vice-Chancellor of the University to lobby a return to the previous system.

He told Vision he believes he

is on the verge of convincing the administrators to move the porters back to the nucleus saying, "at least during the night they have more or less agreed that the porters should be based in the college Nucleus."

Goodricke's provost, Jane Clarbour explained to Vision that the reason the porters aren't currently located in the college

comes down to cost. "[The reason] we don't have porters there at present is that it costs around £250,000 to cover a porters lodge on a 24 hour basis," she said.

She also stated that even if the porters returned to their original position within the college their availability would still be limited as "one of their most time consuming duties is to set Photo: Oliver Todd

up rooms in preparation for teaching the following day."

However Jiggins believes a crucial aspect of their job is being denied to students. "Even if a student with limited mobility was to simply lock themselves out, the porters being so far away from the college severely limits their independence," he said. Jiggins feels the issue is of "vital importance", believing that a "lifethreatening incident" is much more likely to occur if a there aren't porters nearer and available to assist.

This sentiment is echoed by Liam Smith, the YUSU Disabilities Officer, who told Vision "this cannot continue."

A potential compromise on the situation could be worked out by Jane Grenville, Pro-ViceChancellor for students, who is due to make a decision at the end of this month.

David Garner, the University Press Officer, stated, "from the outset, the University planned to base the 24 hour porters in the Hub. Goodricke was the first building to be completed on Hes East and the porters were located there as a temporary measure."

3

HISTORICAL ISSUE

BY MEGAN GRAHAM

HISTORY STUDENTS were left confused and anxious after a departmental error made exam regulations unclear.

Those taking the first year Thinking Through History module received a series of emails containing referencing advice which directly conflicted with the exam information posted on the VLE. The first, sent Monday 30th May, stated that, due to "confusion" about the rules governing exam rules for the TTH module, "students are not required to produce references or bibliography for their essays in this exam."

However, this advice directly contrasts with exam regulations posted on the VLE, and common History open exam practice which usually recommends footnoting and full referencing. The resulting confusion prompted another email from the department, which stated that, "while students may, if they wish, reference their work with footnotes in the normal way, in view of the previous communication those students who choose not to do so will not be penalised." A third email was also required to further clarify the situation. History students have been reassured that markers will take these communication difficulties into account when marking.

YORK CLUBS ENGAGED IN UNILEAKS WARN VCs: WE'RE WATCHING CHEAP BOOZE PRICE WAR

BY WILL THORMAN

YORK NIGHTCLUBS have been engaged in a ‘price war’, making efforts to undercut one another with cheap alcohol in an attempt to take control of the student market.

YUSU Democracy and Services Officer, Dan Walker described the recent competition between some of York’s biggest student nightclubs: "Salvation and Tokyo started doing ‘75p drinks’ some time ago, but when Mansion (formerly Ziggy's) moved to ‘69p drinks’, some of the other clubs like Salvation, Tokyo and Gallery, replied by introducing £5 entry but 50p drink nights."

He remarked, "this kind of situation has been brewing for some time now."

Official YUSU club nights have been facing reasonable competition from incredibly cheap alternative club nights such as ‘75p drinks at Salvation on Thursdays’, ‘69p drinks at Mansion on Fun House Thursdays’, and ‘99p drinks at Tokyo on Tuesdays’.

Walker expressed concern over the current situation, stating, "We have to consider how the current price war affects our students. Although we always want to get the best deal for our members, we have to ask whether 50p

is a responsible price point for an alcoholic drink, and whether such a culture could place students in danger."

Alcohol Concern have spoken out against these kinds of situations in recent years, calling for a "minimum price of 50p a unit" in a bid to eliminate some of

the most "irresponsible" promotions and urging pubs and clubs to compete "on the basis of their facilities, entertainment and atmosphere, rather than who can offer the cheapest booze."

Second year student and member of Vanbrugh JCRC, Damian Allinson, shared his views with Vision, “Vanbrugh college went to a cheap city centre night on a bar crawl, as we were let in for less and got some good drinks deals. It's a useful way for clubs and societies to get good deals, if they can promise promoters they'll bring a number of people along to an unofficial night, however it does mean you have a less ‘studenty’ feel, and it undercuts YUSU." According to Walker, YUSU are currently in the process of drawing up plans on how to approach the club deals next year, and will be meeting the clubs over the next week. On speculating as to which official YUSU club nights to expect next year, Walker commented, "It's pretty clear that while three of the club nights have been very successful, one has suffered. Perhaps we don't have the student numbers for four nights!" Official student club night at Fibbers on Monday has been less than successful this year, and few anticipate its return next year.

BY MADDY POTTS

UNILEAKS, WHICH takes inspiration from the infamous Wikileaks, has expanded its reach to the UK and published an open letter to Vice-Chancellors of British universities.

The news organisation, which collates and publishes information on the political, ethical and diplomatic business of university administrations, claims on its website to, "expose matters of public interest from the global higher education sector."

UniLeaks originated in Australia, and has published stories including the theft by an Adelaide Flinders University cashier of more than $27 million from the institution. It moved to the UK after being "inspired in large part by... the actions students [in the UK] have undertaken in response to the government’s austerity measures." Demonstrations in opposition to fee rises have taken place, UniLeaks says, "against a background of general demoralisation within the higher education sector," and it goes on to add that there has been an "absence of any real or effective opposition" from students' unions.

Since its expansion to the UK, it has only published documents from two British universities; a ‘Sustainable Excellence Plan’ from Bristol University, and pla-

giarism papers from Strathclyde University. Such documents are published in institution specific forums on unileaks.org. At the time of going to press, there was no University of York forum, although there was one for Hull York Medical School (HYMS).

UniLeaks told Vision that they were working to have every British institution included on their website, and would be creating a University of York page in the immediate future.

In February, UniLeaks published an open letter to British Vice-Chancellors, warning them that "we are already in contact with individuals from the institutions over which you preside."

The letter ominously concludes that, "what cannot be published in the corporate or state media will be published elsewhere, just as anger and resentment at social injustice can only be bottled up for so long before it explodes..."

The University's Vice-Chancellor’s office was unavailable for comment, however University Press Officer, David Garner, stated that, "The University is committed to openness and publishes information widely about its activities... Provided that commercial confidentiality and the individual's data protection rights are observed, we have no difficulty with transparency in higher education."

4 NEWS

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

NOW YOU'RE GONE... TO JAIL?

Vision's Will Thorman casts his eye over what's going in other university media...

student press

BY DANIEL GODDARD

U

niversities across the country have apparently become sex-obsessed this summer term.

Following a fully comprehensive sex survey by studentbeans. co.uk of 61 universities across the country, and consequently the damning news that York is ranked just 59th, members of Alcuin college Q block have spoken out about their sexual exploits, urging us to believe that sexually active members of The University of York do exist.

Allegedly, Swedish superstar Basshunter was disgusted at York's dismal ranking ahead of his visit to York for his Big D

BASSHUNTER IS to stand trial for sexual assault only two weeks before he is scheduled to headline Big D in Week 10. The Swedish electro DJ, real name Jonas Erik Altberg, is due to return to the Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court next Tuesday, where his case will continue.

The 26-year-old music star is accused of sexually assaulting two teenagers in Kitty's nightclub in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, last December. One of the girls, 19, explained how Altberg made a

Stories of pirate porn and outrageous orgies have left Basshunter raring to go

"

showcase. However, stories of pirate porn and outrageous orgies have left Basshunter raring to go.

Someone ought to cage the beast...

Further south, and students at the University of Oxford were equally disappointed to be informed that they were "officially average at sex", ranked just 32nd... 'average' being a dirty word and all. Even more damaging to their aspirations for superior promiscuity; students at Worcester College, Oxford, have been spanked for spicing up their revision once a week with a "Half-Naked HalfHour" in the library.

In an email from the librarians, the tradition, established in 2009 by a College society known as the Breakfast Club, was declared "unacceptable" and "a distraction to other readers", after "a number of complaints" were received.

Oxford students may have been shocked to hear that a library full of half-naked men and women could prove a little distracting, but Chase Thomas, a student of Brigham Young University in the US, claims he nearly lost his place at the university for wearing short shorts on his audition for the US TV show, So You Think You Can Dance.

Mr Thomas was told his skimpy, and no doubt provocative, dance shorts broke the university's "modesty policy", despite his assurance that: "In no way was my solo supposed to be sexual or lewd or anything like that."

Brigham spokesperson Carrie Jenkins said Mr Thomas was never asked to leave the university, instead he was simply called in for 'counselling.' Counselling? I wonder how many sessions on the therapists couch Brigham Young University reckon members of Alcuin Q Block are going to need...

ALL I EVER WANTED WASE TO SLAP YOUR BACKSID

crude sexual remark at her cousin, before grabbing both their heads and moving them towards his crotch.

Vision has brought this to the Women's Officers attention, however they have refrained from giving a comment until after they have discussed it at their committee meeting this week.

At the court the girl added: "We went to leave the VIP area but [the cousin] was pulled back.

She was held round the waist and bent over, and her dress was lifted.

"Her dress normally sat just above the knee, and it was lifted to around waist level. She was wearing a thong underneath."

The second girl, 18, described another incident where Basshunter is said to have forcibly slapped her backside: "He grabbed me by the hips and lifted up my dress in line with my belly button. He then proceeded to grab the back of my underwear.

He pulled them up and exposed both of my bum cheeks.

"He then slapped my buttocks. It was a forceful hit, a good hard slap. It was painful and there was a very loud slapping noise. Regardless of what you're wearing or who you are as a person, no one asks to be assaulted."

Some doubts however have been cast on the girls' testimony

as one of them did in fact approach a Scottish national newspaper before eventually going to the police.

Vision contacted the Big D organisers on several occasions before going to print, however they have refused to provide a comment.

Vanbrugh fresher, Belinda Simpson, who will be going to Big D told Vision: "it's inappropriate for him to be playing at a university, and York really shouldn't be supporting his career."

However, third year Politics student Chris Young argues: "Basshunter is a quality act with continental-wide fame. With all the problems York's had in getting such acts to perform on our tiny campus, I think it would be madness to turn him away for something that he hasn't even been proved guilty of."

Alex Miles, a second year student from Derwent agrees, stating that, "obviously the incident is embarrassing for Basshunter and the girls involved, but he has a generally good reputation and I can see him being an act that everyone will enjoy."

YUSU Welfare Officer Laura Borisovaite, said: "YUSU welfare does not carry the function of approving acts that perform on campus and I do believe that

choices for performing artists are made on the basis of entertainment and value for money they provide... [We do carry out] Risk Assessments prior to the event. It is unfortunate that an artist booked by this charity event is under investigation and I do believe that due to the court decision his availability to perform will be decided out of our hands."

If found guilty, Altberg, whose lyrics include, "everyday you're in my head, I want to have in my bed," could face a fine or a prison sentence, with the possibility of him missing Big D on June 30.

Basshunter's management told Vision simply, "This show is happening..."

NIGHTLINE WINS AWARD FUNDRAISING SUCCESS

BY HELENA KEALEY

THE UNIVERSITY of York's Nightline service has won a national award for 'Best New Initiative.'

Nightline is a national corporation operating at over 40 UK universities.

York's service was shortlisted for seven Nightline awards, going on to win 'Best New Initiative.' The award was presented at the 'National Nightline Annual Awards' for those university services which have "done something exceptional within the past year."

York Nightline was also shortlisted for the 'Nightline of the Year' award.

The award for 'Best New InitiPhoto: Ruth Gibson

ative' was won for Nightline's expansion into the Heslington East Campus and their new Monday drop-in service in the Goodricke Nucleus.

Nightline believes that with the student's focus edging further towards the new campus, it was important for them to have their "foot in the door". York Nightline hope to eventually have two support flats there (like the one pictured below in Wentworth).

The Nightline coordinator commented that, "all of us are incredibly proud of what we've achieved on Hes East Campus and equally proud of winning the award nationally. With help from the University, we intend to improve the service for students on the new campus."

BY GARETH TURNER 27 STUDENTS are currently busy collecting money for the York Annual Fund.

The first week of the campaign raised almost £15,000 for the University with funds that will be vital for students and societies alike.

The students are working evening shifts at the Ron Cooke Hub, calling York graduates as part of a five week campaign.

Hilary Blake, Annual Fund Officer, explained that "the student callers have great conversations with hundreds of fascinating graduates, finding out their career paths and the difference that York made to their lives. We ask graduates to make a regular gift to the York Annual Fund, and many respond very positively."

Blake continued, "We've recently helped the Boat Club with £10,000 towards a new racing eight, Kids' Camp with £8,000 towards running costs and URY with £3,000 towards a new broadcast desk."

According to Lara Wainwright, student caller and member of the boat club, the funds raised are vital for York: "Without the Annual Fund, the University of York Boat Club would be pacing in the shadows of wealthier boat clubs from older institutions.

"With the ongoing financial support from our Alumni, the Women's Squad have achieved top 10 status in the academic VIII's at Women's Henley, and the Men's Squad qualified for the world renowned Henley Royal Regatta in a boat donated by the Annual Fund only a year before.

Each year this support has propelled UYBC to a level in national competition that simply would not have been viable had we gone without."

Since the Annual Fund was formed in 1998, York Alumni have donated almost £1.5 million towards university life. As well as supporting York's societies and community projects, the fund has been a direct source of financial assistance to students.

Blake commented, "the Fund provides bursaries to help students who are struggling financially, and Masters Scholarships to enable the brightest students to stay on at York. This financial support will only become more important as government financial support for higher education decreases."

YUSU President Tim Ngwena told Vision the fund "remains York Sports' biggest sponsor in the academic year and continues to donate thousands to societies for a range of projects ranging from small spend to large capital outlay for strategic projects."

NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

5

WITH NEWS OF TUTION FEE HIKE SET TO BE ANNOUNCED AT THE END OF THE MONTH, VISION LEARNS DEBT IS ALREADY CRIPPLING SOME YORK STUDENTS

£54,000 AND RISING...

BY ADAM COE The series of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests submitted also showed that the collective student debt owed by the top 20 debtors attached to York totals over £650,000.

In response to the findings, Bayley, a former post-graduate student and research fellow at York, told Vision, "universities like York need more money if they want to stay at the top of the UK league table and among the best in the world. The problem with the Government's policy is that they are putting all the cost on students and greatly reducing the contribution from general taxation."

He continued, "I was a postgraduate student at York in the 1970s and an academic in the 1980s and early 1990s... York has made large strides forward since then and I don't want those gains to be lost, and I don't want students from poorer backgrounds

to be priced out of higher education by the cost."

Aaron Porter, NUS President, told Vision, "whilst it must be said that these levels of student debt are at the moment largely atypical, it seems clear that with fees in future set at close to £9000 a year such astronomically high levels of debt will without question become increasingly common-place.

"I fundamentally fail to see how this can be a good approach to funding higher education graduating with anything close to these levels of debt will be of great concern for many people; I continue to worry that some applicants may be put off entirely, or feel forced to choose an institution or course which is cheaper, rather than the one that is best for them."

The Student Loans Company's response to Vision's FOI identified the students plagued by such high levels of debt: "The top 20 debtors have re-

ceived student support for an average of 8 years. 90% of the above students have gone on to study Medicine after completing their first undergraduate degree."

Second Year Politics student Rebecca Kelly is one of many in the precarious position of wanting to do a completely different degree, but stuck studying and paying for a decision she now, in hindsight, feels she was not ready for at seventeen.

She told Vision, "I want to do an NHS-funded public service degree. With the levels of debt I would have if I was one of the next generation of students, I would be in major trouble considering these ambitions."

She is intent on reapplying next year and completing Politics due to having already sorted out housing arrangements for next year. "I am willing to take the bullet of Arts degree debt and eventually fulfill my ambitions in public service," she explained.

Julian Sturdy, Conservative

MP for York Outer and the University's representative in Parliament did not wish to comment on the issue.

Sturdy reneged on a promise made to students at a New Generation Society debate to sign an NUS Pledge Against the Fee Raise, last year before the general election. He went on to vote in favour of the £9000 cap, when elected.

YUSU President Tim Ngwena revealed that although he was aware that discussions had at one stage considered setting fees at £8,500, the University would probably set the maximum figure.

The University of York looks set to have its current teaching grant of £28.8 million slashed by a staggering £18 million, fuelling the desire for the University to charge high rates.

Vision asked Jane Grenville, Pro-Vice Chancellor for students, for her take on the story. She responded, "While we would not

wish to coment on individual financial decisions made by postgraduate students, as a University we are concerned to maximise the financial support we provide through scholarships (both university and externally-funded), bursaries and hardship funds.

We also encourage all students to plan their personal finances carefully before enrolling, and to take account of all the costs of studying for a degree. In this regard, we are working to improve significantly the information we provide via the web to prospective students."

CONFUSION OVER 51 WEEK LET REBATES

BY RUTH GIBSON SEVERAL FIRST YEAR students were left feeling cheated and abandoned as they were informed last week that they will not be qualifying for refunds on their unwanted 51 week lets.

The start of this academic year saw a number of first year students being put in the uncomfortable position of agreeing to pay for 12 weeks worth of undesired rental of University accommodation. Due to the nature of the University's batch online application process, which staggers applications for accomodation randomly among students, some students were not given the opportunity to apply for accommodation until after all 33 week and 39 week rentals had been filled, leaving them only with the

unattractive alternative of finding their own accommodation off campus. This forced many students into agreeing to lets that went beyond their intended stays and financial means.

For those students occupying rooms in the highest rent band, this meant paying an additional £1,300 on a room unlikely to be used during non-term time.

One student in this position remarked to Vision "this seems to me to be a gross exploitation of first year students who, individually, are in no position to do anything about it."

In recognition of the situation, Dr. David Duncan, Registrar and Secretary of the University of York issued a statement in a letter to students in September 2010, explaining; "the University's financial model for student accommodation

requires a balance of 39 and 51 week lets in order to fund refurbishment and replacement works". Duncan then went on to state "we may be able to offer a partial rebate to those first year students who accepted a 51 week let length at a time when there was no longer the option to select a let length shorter than this." Students were subsequently informed they would be contacted later in the year once the situation was clarified.

The issue was not addressed again until earlier this year when occupants of 51 week let rooms were contacted via email, informing them that they may be entitled for a partial refund if they fulfilled the given criteria.

These criteria excluded those who had been given the opportunity of moving into a short-let shared bedroom, but chose to

remain in a long-let room. This provided further frustration for those who were, once again, overlooked by a flawed system.

On Friday 3rd June, the University made further "halfhearted" attempts to tackle the problem. One first year resident of Oliver Sheldon Court, Goodricke, informed Vision of an email sent to students in her predicament. "Among the other information it contained the advice for people in my position to put an advert in small ads to transfer our lets. I have been doing this at least twice a term since I got here, and the fact of the matter is that nobody wants an expensive room on the campus extension over the summer holidays. I think this shows that the University is aware of the situation but not willing to help us."

She then went on to add "the Photo: Ruth Gibson

Photo: Oliver Todd

University is exploiting first year students who have no real option other than to accept the accommodation available to them - having contacted a number of members of YUSU (including the welfare officer) I havn't received any support, or even a reply!"

Another first year resident remarked "the University is aware of the injustice of this problem, and have come up with a solution for next year's freshers by giving returning and international students 51 week lets." She described the decision as unfair, as first year students, "have had no other choice, and are not being heard by either the University and YUSU." The random sending out of accommodation offers is something that has been a target of criticism in the past. This student suggested that it "should be changed to make it fairer to students who can't all afford to pay £106/week on a room they won't be staying in for a quarter of the year."

YUSU Welfare Officer Laura Borisovaite added: "We have worked very hard together with the University to establish rebates for students who were unable to secure shorter let accommodation."

Indeed, she went on, "all students who applied before the guarantee deadline and were unable to have a choice were offered a rebate." She also urged any students who are unhappy with their 51 week let to contact her directly.

6 NEWS

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7th, 2011

YORK CRIME UP 6%

BY AMELIA PICKARD

STATISTICS RELEASED last week by North Yorkshire Police have revealed a six per cent rise in recorded crimes in York so far this year, much of which has seen students as prime targets.

According to the North Yorkshire Police crime mapping website, York city centre is in the top two per cent of areas with the highest crime rate in England and Wales, with a staggering 3,925 crimes reported within the city walls in the first four months of 2011.

Many of the incidents that form the statistics occur in or around York’s nightclubs. Young women were identified as being especially at risk to a type of opportunist theft known as "handbag dipping". The police said: "women can tend to leave their bags or mobile phones while they visit the lavatory or bar and are easy pickings for thieves." A recent spate of these thefts has become such an issue that police patrolled York pubs and clubs last weekend to hand out crime prevention information.

Violence is a recurring issue for students on nights out, but alcohol-fuelled brawls have gotten

more out of hand of late.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, a man in his twenties was put in hospital after having his head "stamped on" in a serious assault outside Mansion. The two suspects ran away before police arrived and so far nobody has been arrested, a North Yorkshire Police spokesman told Vision.

An investigation remains ongoing for an assault in February outside Gallery when a 20-year old man received a broken jaw in a, “vicious and unprovoked attack." The police released CCTV shots last week in an attempt to catch the assailant. The Luminar Group, which owns Gallery, was unavailable for comment about the assault.

Mark Botham, Chair of the North Yorkshire Police Federation, has been quick to pin the blame on funding cuts, with the force being made to save £8.9 million this year. He described the cuts as "ill-planned and drastic," and warned that they, "will undoubtedly lead to increased levels of crime and a poorer service for the public in North Yorkshire."

Nevertheless, most students are still relatively confident of the safety of their York surroundings. One first year Law student commented that, although the recent data was alarming, "I don’t feel particularly vulnerable… the only times I do is on Saturday nights, so I avoid going into York then."

NOT SO SWEET ON SECRET TWEETS?

BY WILL THORMAN

A TWITTER account entitled YUSUperinjunction, offering to "report the stories student media can't" was deleted by Twitter just a day after its inception on Wednesday. It shared just two secrets in this time.

The issue of media disclosure has its roots in the welfare and legal responsibilities of YUSU, as upheld in the York University Media Charter and YUSU Constitution. They prevent the Union publishing potentially harmful or sensitive information through YUM societies.

The creator of YUSUperinjunction is unknown to both Vision and YUSU, although YUSU President, Tim Ngwena, noted that he has his suspicions: "it's definitely a member of the alumni," he said, "and I think they might be ex-Vision."

The account was deleted by Twitter following a complaint from Ngwena based on "brand impersonation and trademark abuse". Ngwena told Vision: "My complaint was simply based on the use of 'YUSU' as prefix to the account name and my concern that it would confuse those not directly involved with the topics

the account was discussing that the information was coming from YUSU." He continued: "We have seven other Twitter accounts with the YUSU prefix that are actively used and this was a move by me to protect the usage of those accounts and ensure that there would be no confusion."

Ngwena explained that his intention was never to have the account removed, however, remarking, "Twitter clearly agreed with my complaint and have consequently chosen to remove the account."

YUSUperinjunction's first tweet reported a "stabbing" outside Reflex, "involving a York University student." The second tweet read that an "unnamed college purchased equip[ment] for £1 [a] few years ago in [a] backhand deal."

York Sport President Sam Asfahani was quick to mock the tweeter, replying "yeh this was me, wasnt bankhanded [sic], or illegal, and we then shared all equipment with other colleges. i [sic] take that as a win." Ngwena then commented "love @samasfahani response to @YUSUperinjunct lol ... such old news... so far all scandal from a week to a year ago... #noonecares".

"HELL MADE WORSE" – UNI FAILS FAIRFAX

BY OLIVER TODD STUDENTS IN off-campus Vanbrugh accommodation Fairfax House feared their exam preparations would be thrown into disarray in the past few weeks, following a year of poor maintenance at the Heslington Road accommodation block.

Vanbrugh's College Administration staff proposed that work on replacing carpets in study bedrooms would commence on Monday of Week 5, continuing throughout the exam period. For this to happen, students were told they would have to remove all of their belongings from their rooms.

Within 48 hours of the announcement, 70 students of the 90-capacity ex-nurses home had emailed Head of Administration Georgina Heath with complaints, requesting the times of their carpet fittings be changed. Heath said that the announcement "in no way meant to cause the upset and [the] furore that followed".

David Garner, University Press Officer told Vision, "Students did not tell Campus Services that their exams would be complete by the 14 June. Had we been informed of this, we would have scheduled carpet replacement then."

Garner insisted it was the University's foresight which

ended the works and that "it was not stopped as a result of student complaints."

One Fairfax resident went as far to describe this term's issues as "a year in hell, made worse."

On Thursday of Week 6, students were left without any inter-

Photo: Oliver Todd

net connection, and after being told that the problem would be fixed an hour later, were ultimately informed that the contractors could not be brought in to fix the problem. This resulted in many residents being unable to access essential exam information and revision material in the

vital lead up to exams.

In addition, students have also been disrupted by contractors entering study bedrooms to fit long overdue window alarms.

For a short period last week, residents were even left without running water.

One Fairfax resident, Sarah Rudeforth vented her anger to Vision, "It's a disgrace, with the work being conducted so close to exams, it just causes unnecessary disruption to, and distraction from, my work. How the college staff were deluded enough not to predict that the work would be horrendously loud is ridiculous."

YUSU President Tim Ngwena reacted to the events stating, "It's clear that a little more joined up thinking in this situation would have gone a long way. The repair and maintenance teams need to implement closer checks with the exams office and the accommodation office to ensure the work they do wont have a negative impact on learning space which is at a premium on campus."

However, these issues are not a new occurrence for the residents of Fairfax,with some even labelling it as, "The Forgotten Block", often being overlooked when salient issues are reported.

Residents have complained to no avail regarding issues such as cooking, washing and drying, toilet and security facilities.

These problems even caused two

students to move out of their accommodation permanently after they had to vacate the room due to water leaks following the Winter break.

Perhaps most alarmingly, one student was left locked in his room during a fire drill, unable

Photo: Oliver Todd

Kitchen shared between 18 students to leave the building after reports of a faulty door lock at the beginning of the Summer term were ignored.

In March a student saw his room broken into after thieves entered through an inadequately secured window, without a lock.

This led to residents campaign-

ing for CCTV to be installed onsite, due to Fairfax's off-campus location on notorious burglary hotspot Heslington Road. Their efforts were in vain, however, and their requests went ungranted On a tour of the accommodation block two weeks ago, his first time visiting the house, Vanbrugh Dean David Hickman said he "noticed some equipment failures", though he added, "I doubt my opinion adds up to much".

One resident and member of the Fairfax Committee, Kate Ratcliffe further commented that: "Fairfax is a fantastic place to live when it comes to the friendships you build, however the negative is that the condition of the building is outright horrendous in comparison to the weekly price we pay.". Nicholas Dunn-McAfee, another resident simply stated that "this standard simply isn't up to scratch. The University overlook our issues time and again. As far back as fresher's week, our kitchen went 2 weeks without a working oven, something that we haven't been compensated, or apologised to for."

With current weekly rent on a 39 week let being £96, rising to £101 for the 2011-2012 academic year, students have questioned how the University can justify its position with the 2B accommodation band.

YORK VISION

NEWS

Tuesday June 7, 2011

CONFESSIONS OF A "SEXSOC" MADAME...

SQREW BLOCK ALCUIN

BY ADAM COE

A 'SEXSOC' based in Alcuin has had two lively terms of orgies, and played audacious sex games across York's nightspots, Vision can reveal, following an exclusive interview with the group's self-professed "untouchable Madame".

'Madame' would not reveal how many students were actually involved in the various group sex sessions and games, but would confirm that "other colleges were [involved]... as well as couples."

However, the group are disgruntled with the gossip that has begun to surround their shenanigans. Madame told Vision that they, "keep on hearing rumours every week but we want to set the record straight, there weren't any 'kitchen orgies'... it wasn’t as debauched as some are saying."

Nevertheless, Vision can confirm the existence of a game where the trigger-word 'lectures' meant couples had to find a place to have sex whenever they heard it. "It happened quite a lot in Evil Eye," she revealed. She went on to joke that, "a lot of people would moan about ‘lectures tomorrow.’” A male group member added that "the bar's toilets were the only way out of breaking the rules."

Madame conceded, though, that the antics of the majority

may not have been to everyone's taste. "This block is full of Christians…" she noted, "There’s a lovely girl who lives opposite me – she’s Christian – and I always feel guilty.”

She went on to add frankly that “it’s so easy to convince 18year olds that they want group sex.”

It all started with the group viewing of one of the highestbudget porn films ever made, 'Pirates', on a 48-inch TV, with sound blasted out by high wattage speakers. The beginnings of what has now been churned through the rumour mill were, according to the group, quite humble. "One night we put it on and it just… turned into an orgy and was a bit bizarre,” the Madame revealed.

A closed Facebook group called "Alcuin porn soc", which was "originally a joke" had its security settings set to full after it was innundated with requests to join. However, Madame told Vision that things have died down this term, with students "wanting to get into second year," and concentrate on exams. She claims the frolicking is, "not what it used to be."

Another member of the Alcuin block where the ‘SexSoc’ is based confirmed that from their experience of the Freshers’ Week, "the whole block was, or is,

having sex with one another."

According to Madame, the group was instigated by girls trying to outdo each other in the early part of this academic year. “Don't ignore the stereotype about all-girl boarding schools; they are randy bastards,” she emphasised.

Asked for her favourite anecdote from the SexSoc, Madame said it occurred at the climactic moment when the rumours of their good-times first leaked at end of the first term, as the group went on a mid-orgy 'recruitment drive'.

After a lengthy boozing session, the scantily-clad revellers spilled out of the room onto an Alcuin quad for cigarette breaks

to punctuate the action. At the time, North Yorkshire was experiencing its heaviest snowfall for 30 years.

"Four or five breaks in," the enthusiastic shaggers found two Australian gap-year students who were visiting campus. One decided to go back with the group, and Madame says that when he was presented with the mass fornication in front of him, she'd, "never seen anyone go so pale in my life.

"He got stage-fright," she explained, "most men would love the fact that there were three girls on them but he was just terrified.

I don’t think he really wanted to be there but didn’t want to turn down the opportunity!”

YORK BEAUTY QUEEN and reigning Miss Derwent Camilla Dutton is hoping for success as she prepares for the finale of the Miss Wales competition later this month.

If she wins, the first year Law student from Bangor will represent the nation at the Miss World tournament in London this winter. She said the opportunity would be a "lifetime achievement" for her.

Dutton won her place at the finals after soaring through the heats of Miss Wrexham in January. She cites her mother's experience at pageants as her main inspiration and explained some of her other motivations for competing when she caught up with Vision last weekend.

"I wanted to be involved firstly because I am very patriotic... [also] I have a passion for beauty and clothes which many girls do,

and this competition has given me the opportunity to show this passion," she said.

But Camilla doesn't fulfil the stereotypes of your typical pageant competitor. Dutton has ambitions to be a corporate lawyer and is investing herself in her degree, currently studying for her first year exams.

She is also competing for charitable causes, raising money for The Joshua Foundation with the help of sponsors the Plassey Retail Centre and Coffee Shop, and a fundraising 5,000 metre swim this June.

Nevertheless, this year's competition will undoubtedly be overshadowed by tabloids searching for the new Imogen Thomas. The former Miss Wales has recently been embroiled in the recent Giggsgate scandal and super-injunctions drama.

When asked her view Dutton blasted "the unfair, bad press and exposure," that Thomas had

What's The Quack?

Which high-profile member of YUSU has very recently auditioned for Channel 4's Shipwrecked?

Vision wonders if he'll be taking his iPad as one of his luxury items...

Which Derwent footballer dated the (potential) next Miss Wales?

e only ones with The pirates weren't th

a wooden leg. Oo-ar.

MISS DERWENT, MISS WALES, MISS WORLD?

BY HARRY PICK

7

received whilst Giggs' name was protected.

But even with all the heightened drama around the events, Camilla hopes to make no mistakes and secure a win, optimistically saying that, "after hours of standing in heels everyone

learns quick."

You can show Camilla your support through votes by texting CAMILLA DUTTON to 81118 or dialling 0901 293 7937 and pressing 11, and view all the candidates at misswales.co.uk/finalists2011.

Which JCRC Chair found himself on the receiving end of a citizen's arrest after throwing money at a local on a night out?

Which high-profile couple appeared to take tea at the VC's house last week? Want to keep a low profile? Turn off your FourSquare.

Which fiery Spanish college chair was sold for just £30 at the Goodfest bachelor auction? Bargain!

8 NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Upgrade to the Summer Ball & Graduation Dinner Ticket which also includes a champagne reception, 3 course meal, wine on your table & early access to the fairground.

COMMENT

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

>Comment

SEXUPERINJUNCTIONS

MADDY POTTS

NOT JUST SHAME AND SHAGGING

I

t took the delightful Ryan Giggs dipping his toes in waters he shouldn't for the issue of superinjunctions to come to wide attention. This is a doubleedged sword; on the one hand it's an issue that did, without a doubt, lack the proper discussion it deserved. On the other hand it's now forever tarnished with the brush of naughty footballers and sordid extramarital affairs. In reality, the situation is so much more serious than this.

In early 2010 a superinjunction was granted by the courts to prevent the press reporting on claims that oil giant Trafigura were dumping toxic waste in waters along the Ivory Coast. And it wasn't just the media that were gagged; Parliament was prevented from speaking about the case, in direct breach of the 1689 Bill of Rights.

The order was swiftly overturned, but it began an unstoppable wave of courts interpreting and implementing privacy law in whichever way they pleased.

According to the Guardian, around thirty superinjunctions exist in the UK (though, of course, it's exceptionally difficult to place a figure on it), with at least one more relating to an incident of water pollution, and one referring to a right-todie case.

Footballers' shadowy shagging is only the grubby tip of a very large, and very dangerous, iceberg. John Hemming, the

ANGUS HILL

T

9

Liberal Democrat MP responsible for naming Ryan Giggs in Parliament, has stated that his main concern when doing so was for those who had already named him on Twitter, since those who tweeted or retweeted Giggs's name could be subject to the terrifying process of secret prosecution. These individuals could be arrested, charged and even imprisoned, without their names ever being released. The press would be banned from attending their trials, and the individuals themselves prevented from speaking out about their expe-

The press would be banned from attending their trials, and the individuals themselves prevented from speaking out about their experience rience.

This is the crux of the superinjunction problem. Remember being taught not to lie when you were younger, taught that one lie leads to another? The same is true of secrets.

The most frustrating part of a superinjunction is that in their current manifestation they are totally and utterly pointless.

Journalists on the nationals are told the

facts of the case they're prohibited from reporting on, and they discuss it with each other. They go home and tell their family, who tell their friends, and eventually one of them will mention it on Twitter. The Twitterverse spreads the story to the rest of the world, and soon enough the news is out there. Only - this way, the proper method of news dissemination, the press, has been gagged, and the rumour mill abounds in a way that could have been prevented had the media reported the story responsibly in the first place.

It's a frustratingly familiar process for a campus hack. Last week saw the brief existence of Twitter account 'YUSUperinjunctions', which claimed to report on the stories that campus media are prevented from touching. In reality, it didn't live up to expectations, and after a branding issue the account was removed

by Twitter. Besides, I wouldn't wish to draw some overblown, sweeping comparison between superinjunctions and the censorship (for want of a better word) of the Students' Union.

In an admission quite controversial for a campus hack - I get it. I get why YUSU stops us from reporting on certain stories.

I sure as hell don't like it, but I get it. The reasons are complex and numerous, ranging from welfare considerations to binding legalities, but I'm pretty sure a malicious

desire to rob our campus of freedom of the press is not one of them. Let me make one thing clear, however: these aren't lascivious tales of the sabbs' sex lives (that's what the gossip column is for), they're weighty and significant stories, and had @YUSUperinjunctions been able to break them, all the better.

But the point is, when we return to the office disheartened because our strong front-page story has been pulled by the Powers That Be, we console each other with reassurances that, one day, we'll be working the nationals, and no one will be censoring what we write.

These days, however, that idyllic future is looking less certain. When John Hemming stood up and uttered Ryan Giggs's name the shocked reaction was so fierce you'd be forgiven for assuming Giggs was some sort of cross between Voldemort and Beetle Juice. He opened the floodgates for the tabloid press to splash stories of He Who Must Not Be Named across their pages. It led to Lord Neuberger, the Master of the Rolls, undertaking an inquiry into privacy law, the results of which will soon be published.

But he also did something much more fundamentally important - he questioned what he was told not to question under any circumstances. And that's something this wannabe journalist can only ever endorse.

MERKEL IN MELTDOWN

COUNTRIES NEED NUCLEAR POWER

he persistence of the human race is one of the most persuasive reasons for why our society has become succesful as it arguably is. Throughout the history of human development we have naturally faced challenges and difficulties. However it is a trait of human beings that we look to find a way around these challenges and discover ways to overcome them. This is epitomised by our commitment to technology and innovation. When we fall down in life, it is a natural human instinct to pick yourself up and get back on with the task in hand, with an added incentive to find new ways to succeed.

It therefore seems to beggar belief that this week Germany decided to scrap all of its nuclear power plants by 2022. The move comes in light of the Fukushima crisis and follows months of demonstrations

by German anti-nuclear campaigners trying to highlight the potential dangers of nuclear plants.

This measure, which could possibly see other states review their nuclear programmes, can only be seen as a significant step back for human development, energy

security and independence. It seems to defy human progress that when something goes wrong - in this case the Fukushima crisis - there are people prepared to react in fear rather than thinking rationally about how the situation, and how to sensibly resolve it. The Fukushima crisis was a disaster, but it was a disaster because of

The reality is that nuclear energy is one of the safest, and most environmentally friendly, energy sources available. a whole host of very specific issues. It was not a symptom of a nuclear energy industry that was problematic in itself. It was the consequence of unwise decisions that saw a nuclear power station being built along fault lines in an area that has had a long history of earthquakes and tsunamis.

This type of disaster is statistically only supposed to happen in Japan once

every 300 years. Incidents like this can be prevented fairly easily: by simply not building a nuclear power plant on a fault line. But the reality is that Germany does not have a history of tectonic activity.

Even if it did, we should see this disaster as an excuse to innovate and experiment how we can create stronger defences. It was the tsunami, not the earthquake, that caused the damage; surely we should now be looking into how we can create technologies to prevent this happening again, and not resorting to the easy option of just quitting.

The truth is, nuclear energy is one of the safest and most environmentally friendly energy sources available. The Breakthrough Institute, a think-tank, has published research claiming that renewable energy sources would need to provide 42.5% of all German energy outputs in order to replace the energy previously provided by nuclear plants. To put that in perspective: in 2009, Germany managed to achieve just 16.1% of its required energy through renewable sources. It seems frankly impossible for that to be nearly

tripled within a decade. The German environmentalists and Green Party who put so much pressure on the government for this rejection of nuclear power are unlikely to be pleased by the fact that, in reality, it will be fossil fuels that replace nuclear power, at least in the medium term. In addition, Germany may be forced to import to fulfil its nuclear energy needs. It seems absurd for a country as strong as Germany to sacrifice its energy security to satisfy panicking environmentalists.

With the German Green Party being able to exploit the Fukushima crisis successfully and gaining increasing public support for their popular rhetoric, it is obviously in Merkel's political interests to take the anti-nuclear card away from the Greens and claim it as her own. However, it is certainly not in Germany's economic and environmental interests. Quite simply, public policy should not be a result of scaremongering. It should be a carefully thought-out process reflecting the needs of the society and the risks that exist. At the end of the day, Germany needs nuclear energy and the risks are minimal.

JOIN THE DEBATE AT WWW.YORKVISION.CO.UK/COMMENT

10 COMMENT

THE VOICE OF

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

A SHALLOW TALENT POOL CATHERINE GOBERT-JONES

Vision Says...

H

earing that a student at the University of York has racked up £54,000 of debt is terrifying. When students are set to be paying £27,000 for a three-year undergraduate degree from 2012, the idea that even under the current system somebody has managed to rack up twice that is horrific.

This isn't the fault of the student, either, and he or she isn't the only one in high levels of debt. What's tough for this student is that they will probably never repay their £54,000. In fact, it'll probably be written off before they can get it all paid back. But the £10,000 we're all paying for our York degrees, alongside any other debts (maintenance loans, overdrafts, credit cards) is hard to swallow, and taking a second degree only increases the burden. In a climate where letters after your name are vital to land the dream job, extortionate charges for this necessity is damaging to our future salaries.

Earlier this year, students at York overwhelmingly voted, and campaigned, against the increase in tuition fees. This change in the system will make seemingly extreme cases, like the one above, far more common. How long will it be before all students are finding themselves in insurmountable debt?

Thumbs up to...

S

ummer term student activities! With the freedom of the summer upon us, it's time to let our hair down and have a good time.

Whether it was Goodfest last Saturday or the upcoming college events (James Quad Dash & Bash, anybody?), the York Carnival or York Apprentice. There's a plethora of activities to get on with and exams, as painful as they may be, give us the opportunity to get out and celebrate once they're done.

Big D is set to be fantastic (if Basshunter makes it), and the Summer Ball also promises a good time. Whether the rest of your summer term is going to be full of partying or writing a dissertation, take a chance to get out and enjoy yourself because the summer won't last forever.

This is a great time for students to raise plenty of money for RAG, get volunteering and enjoy the chance to throw a sponge at a sabb before they leave the concrete paradise forever.

T

Thumbs down to...

he University's heavy-handed attitude towards accommodation renovations.

Vanbrugh students in Fairfax House feel like the "forgotten block" and it's little wonder; they've suffered flooding, burglary, failing internet connections and have even gone without running water for a week. While the off-campus ex-nursing home may be fantastic for forming close-knit friendships with your neighbours, it also sounds like a bit of a hole, by all accounts.

The suggested increase in rent doesn't seem to fit in with students' experiences of the building, but even more concerning is the University's cavalier attitude towards the block's welfare.

Now maintenence work has been scheduled in the middle of first-year exams, and only belatedly rearranged. Vision reckons it must be difficult enough for Fairfax students to be isolated from campus, but to have their grievances go unacknowledged and uncompensated by the University adds insult to injury.

O

ver the last few years, entertainment programmes such as Pop Idol, Britain's Got Talent and X-Factor have been under greater scrutiny. "Why?" you may ask. The idea of Britain's Got Talent is to give the "ordinary person a chance to become great"; to become the next icon. However, is this really the case? Britain's Got Talent is renowned for being one of the most popular entertainment programmes on television, in which we laugh at, not with the foolish contestants. Does it encourage public cruelty? Could it be that Britain's Got Talent and similar shows are not entertainment programmes, as they claim to be, but have incorporated into entertainment the idea of cruelty, and have become a modern-day version of a Victorian Freak Show?

Most viewers see Britain's Got Talent as a popular entertainment show which has launched the careers of such stars as George Sampson, Diversity and Susan Boyle. It provides laughs, tears and a great way to take our minds off the lack of summer sun. However, there is a danger that this programme, like many others, has gone too far. The auditions have increasingly started to take centre stage, and comical contestants' entries are often seen as some of the funniest moments of the programme.

Of course, there are also those that have realised a way to be noticed is to make a fool out of themselves, and go on the programme to grab the desired

SHOULD TALENT SHOWS EXPLOIT THE INDIVIDUAL TO ENTERTAIN THE MASSES?

15 minutes of fame. However, there are those used by the entertainment industry as a comedic tool. They believe the show is gateway to their dreams, and are left humiliated and even more vulner-

Have programmes like Britain's Got Talent become a modern-day version of the Victorian Freak Show? able than before; a prime example being Susan Boyle, whose numerous breakdowns and nicknames (SuBo) have been splashed throughout the tabloids.

In the music industry there has already been a backlash against this kind of shows, with Temple-Morris, an Xfm DJ speaking out about The X-Factor because he believes it humiliates contestants who do not make the grade.

The show, he continued, was guilty of "putting them on that stage and basically laughing at them like the village idiot in Medieval times." Other music acts such as Madness star Suggs and Pendulum agree, and took part in a Christmas single to counter The X-Factor.

However, it is not just the music industry that is turning against shows of this type; it is also members of the public. Already ratings for Britain's Got Talent have dropped in comparison to

the series before, and the campaign that made Rage Against the Machine the Christmas number one instead of X Factor's Joe McElderry became a national story. This shows people are becoming more aware that it is less about the talent and more about the ratings for these shows.

Of course we must give these 'talent' shows some credit; they have launched some successful careers. Usually in these cases, the acts are now no longer associated with them, and have developed their own identity; one example is Girls Aloud, whose associations with Pop Stars: The Rivals are now long forgotten. But we must consider how many contestants and how many winners over how many years these talent shows have had. The statistics are pretty poor; a handful of acts out of hundreds have made it, and we have to wonder whether they've improved as many lives as they hinted they would.

Entertainment has been taken to the extreme; extreme celebrities, extreme people, extreme laughs. But is this really what we want? Personally I would hope that eventually these shows would go back to their beginnings, where it was more about promoting the talent than promoting the ratings and the laughs.

Hopefully they evolve, but until then I will still choose to watch Later with Jools Holland, where I know it's more about encouraging the talent then entertaining the masses.

BREAKING THE MOULD

PAUL VIRIDES

I

t's an unusual thing to welcome fewer club nights in a university, but I couldn't hope for better news when the next club 'package' is announced.

Of course, this hasn't been finalised yet. We're waiting to hear exactly what Dan Walker & Co. have decided for us next year, but we know that there's a strong chance that Fibbers is going to be dropped from the timetable. Nobody goes there, nobody has ever gone, and nobody has any desire to go. Case in point: my dubstep-loving, rave-going housemate went in there recently. Within thirty seconds she was out the door again, with the phrase I thought I'd never hear on her lips: "let's go to the Willow."

Now let's be honest, there are few things to truly celebrate about York's nightlife, but the Willow is definitely one of them. Populated by creepy middleaged men, students in fancy dress and hen nights galore, what more could you desire from an evening whose musical choices are primarily influenced by the macarena and Lady Gaga?

Or not, as the case may be, but there's something charming about the Willow that grabs so many students. And the same is true of some of the massive variety of bars (and smaller selection of

DO OFFICIAL YUSU CLUB NIGHTS HARM YORK'S NIGHT LIFE? clubs) that York is home to. Students go to Yates's and have a dance, but there's no YUSU affiliation there - and they also head to 1331 or Dusk for 2-4-1s.

It's so easy to get dragged into YUSU's club cycle, going to Revs on a Sunday, Salvation on a Tuesday, Tokyo on a Thursday... And we all have our preferences. The thing is, student nights

Now let's be honest, there are few things to celebrate about York's nightlife, but the Willow is definitely one. are just so much cheaper, and the tendency to follow the trend like drunken sheep can be difficult to avoid.

News that there's a price war raging through York as students question YUSU's authority is fantastic. That students are able to make a choice and not have to spend a fortune to do it is perfect. Whether it's 50p drinks on a Friday at Salvo or 75p drinks at Mansion Thursdays, students can actually make a choice to not do what YUSU tells them to, and party their own way.

Now that doesn't always work out amazingly. 50p drinks is a worrying prospect - you could be in hospital after drinking six or seven quid, and not really realise how much alcohol you've consumed. That said, it means you will never, ever, break the bank on a night out. And students need to be able to go out cheaply if they're going to party four or five times a week. Which of course raises the problem of Revs.

Vodka Revolution is probably the fanciest of YUSU's official nights, though its attempt at a dancefloor is questionable at best. But drinks at Revs will destroy the bank account of any York student. I had particular enjoyment when my friend, in a frenzy of needing more money to spend on cocktails, managed to wedge her card into the receipt slot of the cash machine. See - expensive club nights cause damage. And Revs is all well and good but students don't look for the priciest night, they look for what's fun and what's affordable.

Not doing what YUSU tells us to, going wherever we like and embracing the price war - rather than choking other businesses - can only be for the best.

After all, what would we do without the Willow? (Answer: our degrees.)

YORK VISION

COMMENT

Tuesday June 7, 2011

11

TREAT THEM MEAN, KEEP THEM GREEN MATTHEW PENDLINGTON

T

Alcuin students cracking the whip over the housework

WILL UNILEAKS IMPROVE THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE? MAX SUGARMAN

I

n 2006 the world was given an unprecedented opportunity to see the secret embarrassments, mistakes and blunders of the most powerful governments with the creation of Wikileaks. In 2011 a less well known website was set up, promising to do the exact same for the higher education sector.

Unileaks might still be in its early days, but already it is showing great potential to do some serious damage to the idyllic image that universities try to portray.

For example, the website has uncovered that the Chancellor of Strathclyde University plagiarised in his thesis and it exposed racist emails between professors in Ottawa University. With a letter addressed to all UK ViceChancellors, Unileaks has sent a clear warning: much more is on its way. So what are we to think?

Of course Unileaks will be an unwanted nuisance. It will lead to mistakes by university staff being blown out of proportion and internal mistakes being thrown into the public eye when a more delicate solution could be found. It will lead to reputations being tarnished by small incidents that have no impact on the quality of the institution as a whole. Yes, it will undeniably have its setbacks, but it will also un-

YES NO

cover invaluable facts that could change how the system is run, and the system most definitely needs changing.

When our own university is embroiled in an arms trade scandal, can anyone really say we know enough about what is going on in Heslington Hall?

The student-university relationship is an incredibly important one that must be based on mutual trust to have any worth at all. Whether it's funding or plagiarism, Unileaks will give us the fantastic ability to really see what is going on. YUSU and the NUS can only go so far in making the University accountable and can by no means compete with the tactics of using anonymous sources that websites like Unileaks have at their disposal.

Unileaks may be new and relatively obscure, but I hope at least a few Vice Chancellors in the UK have thought seriously about the effect it could have. Universities should heed its warning.

If successful, Unileaks will shed light on all the little cracks and scars these instituions have tried to hide (and there are probably more than we imagine). Unileaks will undoubtedly have problems, but it may just lead to our universities becoming more efficient, accountable and transparent.

F

irst, let’s just establish exactly what Unileaks is.

In short, we don’t really know. Under “who are we?” on its website, the answer is simply “UniLeaks is a news organisation.” Not exactly illuminating for an organisation espousing openness.

The organisation takes some of its inspiration from Wikileaks, using a similar anonymous ‘drop box’ tool for submissions, allowing for anonymity of contributors. A lot of the discussion I have already heard around Unileaks draws close parallels between the two organisations; the similar name is part of this, but some people seem to think Unileaks is an affiliated or subsidiary organisation. This is not the case. Whereas Wikileaks aims to “bring important news and information to the public,” Unileaks grows from a slightly different standpoint.

In an open letter to UK University Vice-Chancellors it claims to draw inspiration from “action students have taken in response to Government austerity measures.” Okay, well, that’s fine right? Activism can be inspiring, nothing wrong with that. However the letter goes further, claiming “a new generation is refusing to assume responsibility for the apparent failure of neoliberalism.” I’m always wary when an anonymous organisation talks on behalf of an entire

REBECCA KELLY generation, but even more so when it’s clear many students do not see failings in the higher education sector as the “failure of neoliberalism.”

Unileaks is not an organisation which is dedicated to opening up the workings of the higher education sector; it has a very political axe to grind. From the off it is using the rhetoric of the left to solicit contributions. It is also using an association with the Wikileaks brand to give itself legitimacy.

Beyond this major concern, I don’t agree that randomly leaking snippets of information will help anyway.

Will leaked emails really tell us more about the university decision making process?

Probably not. If the practice becomes more widespread, it will just drive key decision making out of the formal channels in an attempt to avoid ever being caught out. This will make student representation even harder than it already is, as Student Unions lose their positions on university committees and have increasingly less of a say in the direction of the university. This means the legitimate representatives being superseded by a wholly illegitimate organisation which cannot be held to account, and does not act primarily for the benefit of students or the improvement of their university experience.

here are some crimes which can be forgiven. Robbery now just merits a tap on the wrist. Speeding can be blamed on someone else. Social disorder can be classified as banter.

Notwithstanding, there is a crime so common to everyday life that some would have you thrown into the wheelie bin, burnt and crisped, until you were floating around in the atmosphere like a carbon-killing cat: failing to do the recycling.

Recycling, one of the most mundane household chores, has the potential to divide even the most tightly-knitted of student houses. Myriad methods have been tried in order to overcome this mammoth obstacle: many adopt a household rota or cleaning up as you go along, to get along. But like a German eating a cucumber, you know they are doomed.

One member of the household usually puts themselves into the democratically unelected position of dictator, hell-bent on making sure that the rest follow their goody-two-shoes attitude of recycling everything possible, using carrier bags that used to be rubber dinghies to go shopping.

The others, in a desperate attempt to maintain all harmony, stick to the status-quo and follow orders willy-nilly, too afraid to usurp the powers that be in fear of looking like a carbon-dated twit.

Sure, the environmentalists would say, but someone needs to take charge in order to tackle global warming. However, the culture of recycling is still very much an issue of class and wealth; an amicable deed by the middle classes.

So when York council announced its plans to move back to weekly bin collections, I was delighted that my life would be made easier because of less effort. But therein lies the problem with recycling, it is too much effort. After separating your rubbish into eighteen different piles, washing each tin out (to make the rubbish clean before you bin it) and then throwing away the stuff that cannot be recycled anyway, the whole process is a farce. And the reward for recycling? A clear conscience and toilet paper which is one hundred percent recycled (a lovely thought).

The trouble is that people do not know what is good for them. Most people don't like doing revision because it can be slow and tedious, and left to their own devices many would give up. The same applies to recycling; if we cannot make it easy and collective then not even Jedi Jim could stop it failing. What's more, we have come to university to seek our independence, not to be told by some divine philistine how to live our lives.

Why should we accept what others are telling us what to do, when we have enough to think about ourselves?

The challenge for the University, assuming they are still keen to go green, is to make recycling more convenient everywhere across campus.

They could do worse than looking to Germany which has a system of recycling whereby four recycling bins are used for every one waste bin; allowing people to easily separate their rubbish.

If recycling was that easy then we'd all do it.

But rather than accept our fate and be told by the council, by our housemates and by the University whether we should or shouldn't recycle, we should take the initiative. Recycling may be a task which is associated with the dominating middle-classes, who are desperate to be seen and not heard; but we should tackle the problem from the ground up. By putting pressure on the university, together we can lead York into the future.

Only by treating them mean, can we make York go green.

THINK YOU CAN DO BETTER? EMAIL COMMENT@YORKVISION.CO.UK

12 SATIRE

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

THE SKETCH

CAMPUS CLASSIFIE D SUPERINJUNCTIONS YUM (York Uni versity Media

):

York Universit together to issuy Media came tive superinjun e a collecwas revealed thction after it media societie at all campus s have been pr concocted at th inting baseless stories, Nouse have re e whim of the editor. similar accusasolved to prevent further already printe tions by only running stor decided to broad in York Press. YSTV haveies issue can be re dcast a test card until the radio silence, solved. URY are maintaini bitter over thewhile The Lemon Press werng e Vision is lookinwhole affair. g fo rw ar d to honest and ac curate news fr printing only om now on.

NUS (Natio

nal Union of

S

tudents): Took out an protect theminjunction to legations th selves from alegates are fiat all NUS delwith Labou guratively in bed Then took or politicians. tion to proteut a superinjuncfrom allega ti o n s that all NU ct themselves literally in b ed with Labou S delegates are Their exten r si v e superinjun politicians. vents Vision fr om mention ction also predown after in th is year's NUS g what went Newcastle.

B u t allegedly a Conference in went down ll to T up Tup Pala the delegates hard with th ce an e named sourc cast of Geordie Shod partied re. An une to ld Visio on it like a car bonnet." n, "those guys were

UYRUFC Rugby y of York ld the it s r e iv n ho The U st tball Club Union Fooecord for the g reate s r n o s u ti junc camp f superin r number o by a single club o t e u o w , n son take r this rea e society. Foyou about that timwas it ll t te h g can't ll, he thou t girl...we a th h it w Jaffa in Tokyo entioning a girl... o forbidden from me will say this: We're als any context. But wt in a Jaffa Cake.

Cakes in ly one g ram of fa , they weren't there's onately for UYRUFC s.

Unfortun em in their mouth tion the incrimiputting thefinitely can't men on videos. So we And we d omo-erotic initiati natingly h won't.

asy Society: Sci-Fi and Fant asy Society Sci-Fi and Fanttake out a suwere forced to after a memperinjunction d of thrusting ber was accusesome unholy his sword into re in The Willooking creatuuncer called urdy Willow bo low. After a st offending student told the , the police, the r he "forgot it was real life arresting officeof Warcraft." and not Worldrter on the scene asked the A Vision repo also explained why he apstudent if this come dressed as a troll, t? peared to have only the response: "I...wha ed it which mer No."

Letters

To those who call themselves Vision,

Dear Sir/Madam,

Dear Vision,

For the tenth time, when will you please feature me in 'Student Stunners'? I have worn fashionable clothes every day for the past month and not once have any of your contributors commented on my hair, make-up or my totally fabulous summer dress sense. What more can I possibly do to get your attention? My father says he'll sue if I don't get in, he'll do it you know 'cos he's rich and powerful, always saying how gorgeous I am. Anyway I'm sure you knew that already.

I write with regards to recent articles in your publication surrounding the hi-jinks of myself, and fellow Disc Jockeys, at Tokyo night club.

I wish to assure your newspaper that any mischievous merrymaking is undertaken only at students' behest. Furthermore, were a student to express displeasure at any time during the evening's antics, all would be ceased post-haste.

It is hard, sometimes, for we seasoned Disc Jockeys to remember we are no longer in Napa.

Yours truthfully,

Cheerio,

Little Miss Princess

Tokyo DJ

I am complaining to Vision for insinuating that I had behaved in any way inappropriate or sexual towards that girl in Willow. It was just a tickle, nothing more than that, and she just got a little bit too excited about the whole affair.

What can I say, tickling is what I do, I'm very good at it. I am NOT a "sex pest".

Regards, Mr Tickle

FEATURES

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

>Features

13

TWITTILATING

PAUL VIRIDES has a flitter around the spoof accounts on Twitter...

S

ocial media and celebrity have become an inseparable pair of concepts. It all started with Myspace, when we, as crazed teens, began befriending our favourite bands or comedians. Then they commented on our profiles, or told us about secret gigs. We freaked out.

Nowadays, social media has grown up. We have Twitter. The latest in the growing revolution of social media, Twitter is a rising phenomenon, though not as widely used or even recognised as Facebook. It provides us with unprecedented access to the biggest names in the world, allowing a glimpse into the life of the rich and famous, and not-so-rich and not-so-famous. Whether it's the @LangwithGhost feed or Twitter queen @LadyGaga (who has the most followers, at well over ten-and-a-half million), the site is growing in popularity. Unlike Myspace, Twitter doesn't require you to accept a friend request, unless their tweets (status updates) are set to private, you just follow someone and they appear on your feed. You can follow people that don't follow you, and you're not required to follow back your own followers.

If all this talk of following and tweeting is too much to bear, then rest assured every Twitter virgin has the same problem. There are also hashtags (the ability to make particular phrases searchable, for example "#VisionIsTheBest") that help you track particular tweets, and direct messages (DMs), as well as Trending Topics (the most popular hashtags or tweets, in a clickable list). You can mention people by typing "@" and then their username (so you might say "In the library with @pv91"). What does this have to do with anything though?

To the disgust of many 'tweeps', Justin Bieber (@JustinBieber) is one of the most popular phenomena in the Twitterverse, trending on an almost daily basis, and having a horde of diehard followers who take any opportunity to retweet (or RT; when you repost something someone else has tweeted) or mention him in their tweets. @LadyGaga is another, who occasionally will just announce that her followers should make something trend. Minutes later, your TT (trending topics) list is full of #BornThisGMA or #PawsUp. Magic.

With every craze comes satire, and Twitter is home to thousands of spoof, parody and joke accounts, mimicking and mocking almost every sphere of life.

Whether it's comedic takes on celebrity 'characters', or practical jokes, Twitter runs amok with spoofs, meaning they're also

Twitter - on our laptops, in our heads and on our bookshelves. tightly regulated by the site itself.

None are quite as popular as Gaga or Bieber, but the biggest and best is probably the infamous @ShitMyDadSays, run by a 29-year old who posts quotes from his 74-year old father.

"@JustinBeiber is one of the most popular phenomena in the Twitterverse" Seems boring, but @ShitMyDadSays is home to such gems as, "See, you think I give a shit.

Wrong. In fact, while you talk, I'm thinking; How can I give less of a shit? That's why I look interested." And, "Nah, we don't celebrate it. Don't know who St. Valentine was, don't give a shit, and doubt he wants people screwing in his memory." With over 2 million followers and only 140 tweets (remarkably low), @ShitMyDadSays has since authored a book, runs a blog, and has commissioned a hit American TV show.

More direct satire comes when someone decides they want to parody a celebrity or other notable figure. So after the Egypt protests in Tahrir Square, a litany of Hosni Mubarak spoofs were created, though none stuck.

Closer to home, @CherylKerl is one of the bigger spoof accounts, boasting over 52 thousand followers. 'Cheryl' tweets phonetically in colloquial Geordie, including "Cheekee gets! Mei accent's canny *Hoo noo broon coo - The reein in Speein steys mainlee in the pleein* #xfactorusa," or, "A fren inveetd uz tur a Bucks Fizz reception bur Ah telt hor naa thanks.

Ah divint leik Eurovision choons me man #BBCwedding".

I contacted Cheryl through Twitter (an @ mention and a DM, you follow?) and a back-and-forth email exchange yielded some responses, in character, of course.

She tells me all about the response to being on Twitter. "Aww, itz bin lovalee Paul man pet.

Peepil love reading aall aboot whar Ah ger up to in mei Supahstah leif. It keinda gives them a lift oota thor ern dull an boring leives." It didn't help her stay on the American X Factor however, though Cheryl tells me that that was a relief.

"Ah didden reelee leik America coz the aall talk funnee oot thor an tha." Their food wasn't up

to scratch either.

Cheryl joined Twitter about 18 months ago on a whim - all the other celebrities were doing it, after all. Since then she's had a book deal (Woath it? Coase Ah am, pet), mentions in the national press and constant publicity. She tells me that she wants to write another book, "a new classic, mebbes a bit leik Dickens, Shakespeare aw Kerry Katerna."

"Security Services have worked out that @AlQaeda is a joke: If they haven't we're paying them too much."

The future looks bright for Cheryl. She might do the UK X Factor (though I'm told to keep that "unda yerz hat faw noo man") and wants to record the rock opera that she's written. "Itz called 'Bonny' and itz aall aboot this gorl who's a bit keinda odd and she just gans doon the awcades an

pleyz Space Invadaz aall dee."

The future is bright for Cheryl, but for other tweeps, their existence is a little more controversial. @AlQaeda rose to fame after one little message, the fifth most retweeted of 2010: "Just noticed Twitter keeps prompting me to 'Add a location to your tweets'.

Not falling for that one."

'Al Q' wouldn't tell me his real name, a result of other Twitter users not quite getting the joke.

"Some of them (cluless Americans or humorless jihadis) might try to express their disapproval directly," he tells me. He joined after reading a Time magazine article about Al-Qaeda's use of social networking, and decided they should have a Twitter account. It was the beginning of a rocky road.

The initial response was fairly limited, but nowadays most tweets get "a decent number of retweets." Al Q has around 40,000 followers, and he says that "responses range from "OMG this is so funny!" to "DIE TOWELHEADED SCUM!'" Al nearly wrapped up the account after Osama bin Laden's death. "It would have been an appropriate time to end it, but I couldn't resist the urge to have him comment on his own death.

For anyone who's interested, by the way, bin Laden is neither in Heaven or Hell: he's in Celebrity Limbo." Indeed, bin Laden shares a room with Elvis, "which has been something of a shock for both of them."

Though recognising that terrorism is a sensitive issue, Al Q thinks that it's "important to laugh at tyrants and monsters like bin Laden and his followers."

Has he gone too far then? "I accept that some people won't find it amusing, but I like to think that it's more than cheap laughs."

Nonetheless, he's inundated with messages that either think he's real ("Jesus loves you and I forgive you for Jihad. Please stop Jihad and please have love for all the people of this world. God bless," from @kuss86) or find him inappropriate ("Bad taste!" says @Julybird).

Anonymity is key, then, and Al Q tells me he's not really concerned about that falling away. "I assume that the security services have already worked out who I am," he notes, "and have - correctly - concluded that @AlQaeda is just a joke: If they haven't, we're paying them too much."

Between @ShitMyDadSays, @AlQaeda and @CherylKerl there are a whole list of parodies, whether that's @Queen_UK, @ Jesus_M_Christ, or Vision's very own little parody of ex-editor Daniel Goddard: @ShitOurDanSays.

14

YORK VISION Y

FEATURES

Tuesday June 7, 2011

"EDUCATION IS THE RIGHT ME

MEGAN GRAHAM investigates the challenges facin

J

uba University is a community that is rebuilding itself.

It has witnessed over fifty years of intermittent civil war; the university buildings were used as army barracks through much of the 1980s and '90s and its scholars were forced to move their studies to Sudan's capital city, Khartoum. Now, on the eve of independence, the students and academics of soon-to-be South Sudan are returning to Juba, and bringing with them new life to its library and lecture theatres.

They truly are starting from scratch. Lecturers face lower wages and poorer housing conditions than in Khartoum, and the buildings they have to work in are still showing the effects of years of war and neglect. Many are not fully trained as teachers, as their own education was disrupted by the ongoing conflict between north and south. Most of the material they have to work with is written in a language their newly-independent country

"South Sudan is to become the newest country in the world since Kosovo declared independance from Serbia in 2008"

will reject. What we need is not money, they say, it is books.

On July 9th 2011, South Sudan is due to officially separate from the north of the country, and in doing so is to become the newest country in the world since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. For South Sudan, independence has been a long time in the making. Sudan was involved in one of the most violent civil wars in modern history for around twenty years before

independence was seriously suggested; this conflict, between the Sudanese Government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), left over 2 million people dead and more than twice that number displaced. The upcoming July split is the result of a referendum taken in Southern Sudan in January this year, as a condition of the peace agreement between North and South dating back to 2005.

The recent history of Sudan is complicated, made more so by the various border disputes that have accompanied almost constant internal unrest since Sudan became independent of BritishEgyptian rule in 1956. Civil war broke out in southern Sudan in 1962, and again in 1983, a result of rising tensions between the largely Islamic north and the various Christian and tribal faiths that dominate in the south.

The imposition of Sharia Islamic law on the whole of the country in 1983 only exacerbated the situation, although issues of race, government, decolonisation and the south's oil resources have all played their part.

By the time the Second Sudanese Civil War was brought to a close by the Naivasha agreement in 2005 over 2 million people had been killed, either as a direct result of the war or by famine and disease caused by it. Around 4 million had been displaced, often repeatedly, in attempts to avoid the conflict. It is estimated that as many as 200,000 Southern Sudanese and Nuba children and women were taken into slavery from southern towns and villages. Both sides of the conflict have recruited child soldiers and continued to do so after the peace agreement.

When South Sudan becomes a country in July, the challenges it faces will be immense. The cracks in its relationship with the north are already beginning to show; the oil-rich Abyei area is still contested, with the north (where the majority of oil refineries are situated) proclaiming that it will not recognise the southern state unless it concedes

the region. After days of artillery fire and fierce fighting last month, fears were escalating that southern independence would only transform civil war into war between two neighbouring states.

Abyei has since been declared a Common Border Zone, to be demilitarized and jointly monitored by both north and south, and the south's president Salva Kiir said last week there would be no war over the northern occupation. At the same time, however, the Abyei disruptions have caused around 20,000 to leave the region, and an agreement regarding oil revenue has yet to be reached. It is against this politically turbulent back-

"When the Sudanese Civil War was brought to a close, over 2 million people had been killed either as a result of the war or by famine and disease" drop that South Sudan as a nation will be created.

Now more than ever, education is key to rebuilding the infrastructure of the region, which has been damaged or ignored during the civil war. Although the south has been semi-autonomous since 2005, education for many has been sporadic and fractured; a lot of the students at Juba are adult learners whose studies have been intercut with civil war.

Now South Sudan needs more teachers, politicians and journalists; a larger educated elite who can encourage the south to develop and grow as a country.

The responsibility for such an education lies firmly at the door

Civil war begins in the south, led by the Anya Nya movement.

Sudan becomes independent form British-Egyptian rule.

1956

1962

Lack of classroom facilities is a major issue in south Sudan. of Juba University.

"It demands a lot of hard work and sacrifice to build a nation," says Adam Aham, an English Literature lecturer at the university. "Juba University aspires to develop itself in order to play a national role in developing South Sudan. The process is definitely an immense task and an immense responsibility, but education is the right medicine to cure poverty and ignorance.

We are at the moment engaged in training primary teachers of the ten states of South Sudan." That primary and secondary schooling is in a particularly poor state in South Sudan is no secret. According to the Minister of General Education, Milly Hussein, only 27 teachers are available in Warrap for the 4,000 pupils coming from the north of Sudan. A Ministry of Education report from the Government of South Sudan revealed what the new country sees as its largest challenges in education. These include high drop-out rates, shortage of classroom and sanitation facilities, a persistent

gender gap in student and teacher enrolment and a high percentage of volunteer teachers. The report showed that around 37% of teachers are volunteers, while 32% are classed as untrained, that is, having no formal teaching qualification.

While half of all South Sudanese secondary schools don't have access to drinking water, one quarter don't have access to a toilet. The backgrounds and circumstances of the pupils themselves also show the strain of prolonged warfare; just under 12% of primary school pupils are orphans. 84% are overage, and trying to catch up with the education they missed when they were younger. Two per cent are demobilised child soldiers who have themselves fought in the conflict.

Nadusfilms, a charitable organisation operating in the south claims that only 2% of boys and 0.5% of girls in South Sudan actually finish their primary school education. A young girl has a better chance of dying in childbirth than she does of completing pri-

Under the Addis Ababa peace agreement between the government and the Anya Nya, the south becomes a self-governing region.

Civil war breaks out again in the south involving government forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement. Islamic law is imposed.

1972

1983

Government a sign a peace mous govern the south.

200

FEATURES

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

15

EDICINE TO CURE POVERTY"

g South Sudan on the eve of independence. the education sector, as in most other sectors in Southern Sudan, are vast. The limited resources available have to be used strategically to make sure that they are applied where they can make the most impact."

University of York student Anthea Gordon visited South Sudan and Juba University earlier this year. "The main impression I got from talking to everybody at Juba was that they were really Photo: Anthea Gordon

Photo: Anthea Gordon

mary school.

One of the most difficult challenges facing the South Sudanese education system is the re-integration of "internally displaced persons": those who migrated to the north as a result of the civil war and now wish to return to South Sudan as it becomes an independent country. According to the Overseas Development Institute, around two million have already returned, accompanied by up to 200,000 more refugees leaving the north for the first time. As well as creating conflict over land and placing strains on basic services like health centres and water, an influx of people on this scale is also putting huge pressure on educational services. While the official language of South Sudan will be English, many of the learning resources currently available are still written in Arabic. Most people returning to Juba only speak either one or the other.

For Juba University this issue is further complicated by the return of thousands of university students originally from the

south, who moved to Khartoum to complete their studies. Following the preliminary announcements of the referendum results in favour of independence, 4,000 students have abandoned classes in Khartoum and moved south to complete their education. Since the preliminary results of the referendum were announced, the Sudanese parliament says that they are being perceived as foreigners in North Sudan. One student told a southern news agency how students from the south were being encouraged to move, despite the fact that the south's three main universities would struggle to accommodate them. He also added how suspicions against southerners had escalated since the results of the referendum. "They always ask, "what are you waiting for?"

They tell us "you have voted for separation and now you have independent country in the South, then what are you waiting for?"

Southerners have also become nervous and scared in the North."

As the Minister of General Education points out, "the needs in

"A young girl has a better chance of dying in childbirth than she does of completing primary school" starting from the beginning. The Juba University and the English Department are also particularly important as they often teach people that will go on to be teachers themselves in primary and secondary schools - so if the University improves then education across the country can improve too." Anthea is currently in the process of collecting old and unwanted books to send to Juba, and plans to compile an anthology of creative writing from students at York and at Juba.

"During some of my time in Sudan I taught adult teachers in a place called Yambio, and ended up reading them children's books one day. Afterwards two women came up to me very excitedly and said 'we need more stories' and so from then I gave them more things to read and also got them all to write their own stories, which is partly where I got my idea for the anthology." The anthology, which will be centred around the theme of "change", aims to forge

People of the South vote in favour of full independence from the north.

and southern rebels e deal and autononment is formed in

005 Jan 2011

At least 10 people are killed in clashes in the oil-producing region of Abyei.

Feb 2011

Memories of the civil war are everties between the two universities and highlight the importance of education, particularly in nationbuilding. Anthea also hopes that funds raised from selling the work will go towards improving Juba University's resources, and encouraging more people to donate books to the university.

"It's quite a big effort for them to start to re-establish the university in Juba. The English Depart-

"The tomorrow that we thought would never come came finally as we join the club of free nations" ment also said to me that they needed books, not money, and another problem was that many lecturers hadn't been fully trained because their own learning had been disrupted. Overall I felt like everybody was very keen to move on and improve the teaching there. They have an interesting syllabus and told me they teach classics, but they lack the materials and teachers to really

South Sudan says it is suspending talks with the north, accusing President Bashir of plotting to overthrow the southern government.

March 2011

make much progress right now."

At the moment, despite the ongoing tensions between north and south, the mood in Juba is hopeful. "The tomorrow that we thought would never come came finally as we join the club of free nations" says Adam. "Our students, their parents and the people of South Sudan as Africa's 54th nation would like to have special ties with the world and hopefully this can happen once the results of the referendum are officially announced."

Anthea is considering inviting students from Khartoum, in north Sudan, to contribute to the anthology. She asked Adam what he thought of this idea, conscious that the current political situation does not perhaps lend itself to collaborative creative writing anthologies. Adam was slow to respond, as Juba University still suffers from frequent power cuts and persistent problems with connecting to the internet. "This project is not about politics," he told her, "this project is about people writing."

For more information on the YorkJuba anthology, search "York Juba English Department" on Facebook. Submit all entries to york. juba@gmail.com.

North and South Sudan have agreed to withdraw unauthorised troops from the still-disputed region of Abyei.

May 2011

16 FEATURES

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

WHY DID THE ARAB-ITALIAN-AMERICAN

COMEDIAN CROSS THE ROAD?

JACK KNIGHT interviews Dean Obeidallah about his new-found comedy genre

E

very year the Guinness World Records produces its encyclopedia of the weird and wonderful: pages dedicated to the World's Largest Pancake; reams on that woman with the longest fingernails on the planet; chapters dedicated to Eastern European strongmen lifting cars with their tongues. Well, the editors of the Guinness World Records better make some room for the Arab-American stand-up comedian Dean Obeidallah: meet the first man to perform standup comedy in the Middle East to a Middle Eastern audience.

Such is the life and career of Obeidallah, whose experiences avoid stereotyping or predictability. Born in Lodi, in the sprawling suburbia of New Jersey, he was raised by a Palestinian father and Italian mother in an area of the US where, in his own words, "nearly everyone was Italian."

He reminisces: "during my childhood, I identified more strongly with my Italian side. It was just easier." He adds, however, with a sense of times passed, that "there were no problems at that time with being Arab in America." Obeidallah originally followed a decidedly conventional career: "I had been a lawyer, which I didn't enjoy at all.

The lawyers at the firm recommended I take part in the Funniest Lawyer's Show sponsored by

the local Bar Association. Apparently, I was funny at the office. I did the show and was bitten by the stand-up comedy bug."

The legal profession's loss was comedy's gain. Obeidallah began performing regularly in the New York/New Jersey area.

"My big break was with Comedy Central's Axis of Evil...which I did with three other comedians of Middle Eastern heritage." From this point, the media spotlight began to shine more brightly on Obeidallah. "I basically knew I could make it when I didn't have to have a day job anymore."

"The audiences in the Middle East are alot more appreciative than a US audience" So how did Obeidallah's comedy and career change with being an Arab-American comic in New York after 9/11? "It made my comedy more relevant and newsworthy. The general public and media were interested in hear-

Indulging in stereotypes in order to defeat them.

ing an Arab-American comedic point of view since 9/11."

Obeidallah admits that it wasn't all plain sailing, and some jokes were more problematic: "obviously people were shocked to start with, but in time people became more accepting in hearing the story of being Arab in America."

He demonstrates a remarkably self-conscious understanding of how the comedy circuit regarded his early comedy. "I am almost always billed as an ArabAmerican comedian. It makes it easier for the media to put comics in categories."

However, Obeidallah does worry about being "solely an ethnic comic". But he ruminates "when you get on stage and mention you are Arab, it is a political statement, not ethnic. Especially when you discuss issues like Islamaphobia and the challenges of being Arab in America."

Comparisons with AfricanAmerican comedians of an earlier generation, who used comedy in an attempt to break through social barriers, are gladly taken

by Obeidallah but with a wry pinch of salt. "I think there is a comparison to be made. We are following their lead, following the model of Chris Rock and Richard Pryor. It is the same thing Jewish comedians used in the 1930s. It is just our time now to use comedy to build bridges to the rest of America."

Obeidallah views his comic role with a refreshing mix of idealism and realism. "I hope I have tried to use the greater interest in my comedy as a means to dispel stereotypes about Arabs and foster understanding." But he pragmatically adds that "if it's funny and people are laughing, then it is fine. Our comedy is not for everybody, but there are enough people for all the different types of comedy."

With a growing audience following, Obeidallah took his skills in a new direction when he created the New York Arab-American Comedy Festival. "Every year it is a challenge. It is an attempt to show Arabs as funny in a positive light; just basically to show a funnier side... This fall will be our eighth annual festival," and he proudly declares: "It nearly always sells out and it works out great."

From this base of popularity in the US comedy circuit, Obeidallah took the unprecedented step of taking his stand-up shows to a Middle East audience three years ago. He proudly acknowledges: "that is really the history of stand up comedy in the region."

This threw up its own set of problems for Obeidallah. As he

Obeidallah performing in New York. acknowledges, when he began Amman, Jordan in 2008 and the doing comedy sets in the region King of Jordan sat in the front the audience's reaction was "very row. After the show, the King tentative." He continues, "they asked me if I was interested in just didn't know what to expect. helping the City of Amman orBut that also makes it a lot more ganise a comedy festival. I, of exciting. The audiences in the course, said yes. We just held our Middle East are a lot more ap- third annual festival this past Depreciative than a US audience." cember."

In between his regular standAdded to this Obeidallah had to up gigs, his role in the New York conform to stricter freedom of speech laws. While the audience Arab-American Comedy Festival "got just about every joke" there and his position within the Amwas the added challenge that man Comedy Festival Obeidallah "you couldn't talk about sex, re- has established himself as a proligion or local politics. But now lific columnist, recently criticisyou can to a much greater ex- ing Peter King's Congressional investigations of the Muslim tent."

American community. Obeidallah simply says of the investigations, "it was more of an attempt for Peter King to get media coverage... The US realises the difference between US Muslims and Al Qaeda."

However, Obeidallah is in no sense kidding himself that there are no problems for the Muslim American community. "There are a lot of misconceptions. We saw this in the New York Mosque debate last year. There is a deObeidallah's unparalleled gree of Islamaphobia that needs comic position within the Mid- to be thought about and a better dle East then led the Arab-Amer- image needs to be cultivated of ican into establishing comedy American Muslims."

So what does the future hold festivals. He was instrumental in helping to create the Amman for Obeidallah? He focuses on his Comedy Festival in Jordan, the main career of stand-up: "I am first event of its type in the re- looking forward to going back gion. Obeidallah recounts the to Egypt now that Mubarak has story of his involvement in the gone and I can talk about any festival: "I was performing in topic."

"I hope I have tried to dispel the stereotypes about Arabs."

LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

>Lifestyle

In this issue:

17

P17 - Chic summer looks P18 - Formal wear to die for P19 - Seasonal food on your doorstep P20 - Get fit while having fun P21 - Overseas festivals

MIGHTY MARMITE

Love it or hate it? Zoe Pinder discusses why Marmite is such a national treasure...

L

ove it or hate it, Marmite is a product which divides national opinion. For some, that little black pot is a kitchen cupboard staple; the perfect accompaniment to anything and everything. For others, a mere whiff of the distinctive yeasty odour leaves them gagging. During my first term in halls, when the inevitable discussion arrived over who liked and who did not like Marmite, passions were aroused that united and divided people who had known each other only a matter of weeks. Those who loved it would sit around munching on cheese and Marmite toasties, while others looked on in horror. Despite the fact that so many people dislike it, I genuinely can't think of a food which is as recognisable as the Marmite Pot. The "love it or hate it" debate went international last week when it was announced that Denmark was to outlaw the infamous condiment. Clearly the Danish government are firmly settled in the "hate" camp, but their decision leaves them accountable for depriving hundreds of Marmite enthusiasts of their favourite yeast extract. Even those who aren't Marmite fans seem to have taken the banning of this unique foodstuff personally. How could a small pot of spread have caused such controversy over in Denmark? According to media reports, the fact that Marmite has been fortified with vitamins during the manufacturing process means it does not comply with Danish legislation passed in 2004, hence the recent ban.

But those little pots of controversy are actually overflowing with health benefits! In fact,there are many reasons why we should all be turning to Marmite. It contains B vitamins which are

!

SHOP

essential for regulating your kidneys and help to keep any pesky or persistent skin troubles at bay. The B2 vitamins help keep your locks looking super shiny, topping up your iron levels too. Aside from the notably high levels of salt, a daily spoonful of Marmite is clearly the way forward when it comes to a healthy lifestyle. And, despite its deceptively meaty taste, no animals were harmed during the making of Marmite, meaning it's suitable for vegetarians, pescatarians and vegans alike!

To cynics, it's a hard task to make the viscous black goo sound appetising.

The spread's primary ingredient is created as a by-product of the beer-brewing process, the thought of which doesn't exactly make one's mouth water. Yet over recent years, the Marmite brand has marketed itself so successfully that one doesn't have to be a connoisseur of all things yeasty to appreciate its iconic status as a British brand. The merchandise available on the Marmite website is quite unbelievable, ranging from the practical to the truly bizarre; the company are cleverly capitalising on the notorious love/hate debate. I do think, though, that whoever expresses their distaste for Marmite by investing £24.99 in a "HATE Marmite" T-shirt warrants a certain degree of negative judgement.

We've all got carried away online shopping before, but such ridiculous purchases are inexcusable.

The brand has expanded way beyond the boundaries of kitchenware and Tshirts and has taken the natural step forward by attempting to form a monopoly on cycle wear. Lycra has always been a tricky look to pull off, but with a Marmite logo emblazoned on one's chest,

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Lycra becomes très chic. The standard Andy Warhol inspired pop art memorabilia also appears in abundance, with Marmite crockery galore! By the end of my browsing, I was left with two polarised opinions, the first being along the lines of "Who actually buys any of this tat?" with the second following nicely up with "ZOMG! A Marmite computer mouse that's compatible with my laptop?! Would look too cute in the J.B. Morrell!" Thankfully, I went with the first.

On a more positive note, the website is still valiantly shipping merchandise to Denmark, so despite pots of Marmite being stripped from the shelves of Danish supermarkets, fans can express their support for the cause by literally filling every corner of your home with Marmite bric-a-brac. Even if you aren't a fan of actually eating the brown stuff, you can definitely embrace the brand through all the alternative products the company sells. Just stay away from the Marmite flavour chocolate: it tastes like the Nestle factory smells.

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Marmite Cycle Top - £99.96

This was an April Fool but what an amazing idea!Priceless

Marmite Lunchbox £4.99

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18 LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

P18 What's Going On

DRESS TO IMPRESS Sarah Woods explores the style options for this Summer's university balls...

Elegant & Effortless: The Sophisticated Ball Gown

P19 Food and Drink

For those who graduate this summer and want to savour their last university event, or for those who just prefer a more classic look, the best outfit for you is a elegant ball gown. Think Coast and Monsoon for a classy yet stylish look. It may mean spending some extra cash, but going for a classic style that will never go out of fashion will get you your money's worth.

Cool and Chic: The Relaxed Maxi

P20 Health and Fitness

The perfect dress for anyone who prefers a more relaxed and casual look. Channel your inner boho chick with a floral maxi dress.

The floor-length cut with mean that the dress is still dressy enough to pass as a ball gown, but the pretty print will give you a more understated look. You can even hide flat ballet pumps or sandals underneath, so you can be the one dancing all night without the agony of high heels pinching your feet.

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Cute & Quirky: The Prom Dress If you don't fancy a floorlength dress then a kneelength prom dress could be more your style. A '60s style prom dress, with polka-dot print, can be great to wear for a formal event. You can dress the outfit up with a fancy up-do and some classic peep-toe heels. The fit-and-flare style of the dress gives it a fun feel rather than a more serious and sophisticated look.

Clockwise from left: Bandeau Maxi Dress, Miss Selfridge, £52; One shoulder Maxi Dress, Coast, £160; Black Polka Dot Dress, Topshop, £50

P21 Travel and Leisure P22 Fashion and Style Photos: Ruth Gibson

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LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Anna Mckay tells us her food shopping secrets!

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And finally we come to Newgate Market. Open every day of the week from about 8am to 5pm, the market has some cute booths housing yet more butchers', as well as a fishmonger's. But it's the fruit and veg stalls that really take the biscuit. Literally bursting with colour, the food here is always perfectly ripe and within budget. Come after three in the afternoon and you'll hear stall owners vying with each other over prices. Juicy cherries for a pound a bag, mushrooms 50p a bag... In-season food takes centre stage here, locally-grown asparagus and Jersey Royal potatoes are dirt cheap and more importantly, amazing to eat.

This is a close community of old-school traders, the likes of which I'd assumed had died out long ago. But look closely and you'll see it's still active, and vibrantly so.

These people care about the food they're selling, far more so than those benevolent chaps in the Morrison's adverts sporting cheeky boaters. So if you fancy a change from the usual pre-packaged, lifeless grub the supermarket has to offer, nip into town and feel closer to your food.

Photo; Oliver Todd

Recipe of the week Review of the week Recipe by Anna Mckay Perfect served with salty tortilla chips on a lazy afternoon in the sun, this salsa also tastes amazing with barbecue food - folded up with smoky chicken, soured cream and flatbreads or alongside some spicy skewered king prawns.

Ingredients: 2 cloves of garlic, ¼ onion, 2 red peppers, 5-6 large and ripe tomatoes, 2-3 chillies - deseeded and chopped finely, 1 can sweetcorn, 1 bunch of coriander, 1 lime.

1) Finely chop the garlic and onion then combine in a large bowl.

2) Roughly chop the red peppers and 3-4 of the tomatoes, then mix in with the garlic and onion.

3) Depending on how spicy you like things, start off by adding about 1-2 of the chopped chillies to the salsa.

4) Then stir in a couple of tablespoons of the sweetcorn.

5) Roughly chop the bunch of coriander and add to the salsa.

6) Season generously with salt and pepper, then squeeze in about half of the lime's juice.

This salsa is open to how you like it. If it's not hot enough for you, add more chilli. Too hot? Add some more chopped tomatoes or sweetcorn.

Just make sure you get enough tang from the lime in there, it'll get your taste buds tingling.

P

lunkets is a small restaurant located on High Petergate, just by the Minster. My friend and I decided to give it a try after a recommendation from a trustworthy source.

Late Sunday afternoon, we turned up, without reservations (the restaurant doesn't take them for tables smaller than six). Luckily, perhaps due to us arriving between normal busy service times, we were seated straight away, and even given a choice of which table we would prefer.

At busier times, such as weekend

evenings, there is a bar located upstairs, at which customers can sip a drink and wait for a table to become available. The interior was traditional, decorated with framed photographs of legendary film stars and musicians, and there was candlelight on every table. The staff were very friendly and attentive, yet they don't wear uniforms, something which I feel gives the place a less professional feel, though some may prefer this more relaxed atmosphere.

The menu is not particularly cheap, with main meals averaging around £14. However the restaurant does offer specials, with cheaper dishes that include a drink. There is a wide variety of food, with steaks, seafood, burgers and Mexican-style dishes.

We decided to share a starter crispy wantons with red-pepper jam.

They were delicious, though we found the portion size rather large, so it was a good decision to share! For mains, we both opted for burgers and weren't disappointed. The food arrived promptly and was well presented.

With the dishes, including a drink, costing around £8 each, the portions sizes weren't huge. However, for the price, this was still value for money.

After thoroughly enjoying our meals, we would definitely go again. And perhaps that's the best review one can give!

P22 Fashion and Style

Method: Get your best knife out because this recipe involves a lot of chopping.

Sarah Woods tells us about her visit to Plunkets!

P21 Travel and Leisure

Summer Salsa!

P20 Health and Fitness

elusive Shambles bakery Via Vecchia is open. Situated close to the top of the street, in true boulangerie fashion it's rarely open after noon. Often, if you walk down the Shambles at night, the lights will be on, signifying that some top-secret dough preparation is taking place.

If you're lucky and it's open, you'll find a rather pleasing selection of herb- or tomato-studded focaccias, cheesy rolls and various freshly baked loaves. And the sign on the door hints that Friday is cake day.

The little sales room is dusty, stacked high with baking trays and sacks of flour. The bread itself is cheap, at about £1.50 a loaf and has a lot of flavour to it. Heavy and buttery, it's just gagging to be toasted and piled high with some garlicky mushrooms or fried tomatoes for an amazing brunch. One thing to be aware of, though, is the rather alarming collection of "artistic" nude photographs behind the counter. Now, I'm all for freedom of expression but the combination of mildly sexy photos in conjunction with bare-handed pudgy doughkneading is a rather off-putting image. I just hope they wash their hands thoroughly...

P19 Food and Drink

ucked just behind Parliament Street, the area surrounding Newgate Market is the perfect destination for anyone in search of an alternative way to shop. We're talking food here, and there's lots of it.

To begin with, look past the cutesy tea shops and fudge emporiums on the Shambles and you'll find some reasonably priced but, more importantly, award-winning butcher's shops. Home-made sausages and pork pies are worth investing in for an amazing picnic or just plain gluttony, while valuable cooking advice from people in white aprons stained with blood always satisfies a weird lust I have for feeling more connected to the food I'm eating.

The Shambles has always been the butcher's street in York. Apparently, one of the main reasons it survived demolition in the Victorian times was because it was so filthy no one wanted to set foot there. Vaguely ironic considering it's now one of York's most popular tourist attractions.

If you're bumbling about in town after an early-morning lecture, you'd do well to check if the

P18 What's Going On

FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD!

19

P22 Fashion and Style

P21 Travel and Leisure

P20 Health and Fitness

P98 Food and Drink

P18 What's Going On

20 LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Getting Fit - The Fun Way!

Katy Roberts discusses the success of the inventive aerobic-athon and explores the popularity of Zumba...

I

f you're female, and you've never been to an aerobics class then I have no idea where you've been. Everyone knows what aerobics is; Eric Prydz's 'Call On Me' video was a prime example of the traditional aerobics style moves being taken to the extreme. Of course, on campus the aerobics classes don't focus on raunchy grinding, they focus on fitness and fun.

According to The Sunday Times, research suggests that 20 minutes of aerobic exercise per day is the absolute best way to increase fitness levels and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Aerobics classes are a specialised form of exercise that strengthens the body's cardiovascular system without overly stressing any particular part of the body. It is seen by many to be a very attractive form of exercise; burning calories whilst working out to music and not leading to grotesque musculature, which most women wish to avoid.

Aerobics classes run by the Aerobics Society this term are Monday 6.45-8pm, Thursdays 5.306.30 both in L/N/028 and Thursday 6.45-7.45pm at Derwent Squash Courts, then finally Saturdays 6-7pm in James Hall. Aerobics classes at Uni, like any other aerobics classes, involve some easy and some complicated choreography. I say complicated but most would probably find them very easy to get into the swing of; those that lack co-ordination may find getting legs and arms to work at the same time rather tricky... or not.

On Wednesday 1st June, the University of York's aerobics society undertook an aerobicathon and managed to raise over £400 for RAG throughout the afternoon. Four aerobics classes took place over various parts of campus and the girls (and boys) 'grapevined' between class venues. As a girl who has trouble keeping up with just one aerobics class a week, I would argue that those who took part in all four of the classes are fitness goddesses and possibly deserve some sort of aerobics medal.

Katie Lee, president of the society and aerobics instructor, said that everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day, that it was definitely worth the aching legs and that they are absolutely thrilled about how much they managed to raise for RAG. She added that they wanted to do something new and exciting that had never been done before and that led them to creating the aerobic-athon.

The participants on the day were able to make a great impression on campus in their brightly coloured outfits; they attracted a lot of attention and so raised lots of money.

Aerobics is one of the best opportunities available to students on campus who wish to keep fit and healthy in a fun and relaxed atmosphere. If playing sport is really not for you, but you want to increase your daily dose of exercise, aerobics is an attractive prospect - and it isn't limited to females. Several males attend aerobics classes on campus, as it is a genuinely fantastic way to keep fit and get your heart rate pumping!

Moving away from campus aerobics; there are plenty of other avenues for fitness, similar in style to aerobics but avoiding sport. Zumba is one of the fitness regimes that is taking the limelight at the moment. The waiting list to sign

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up for the weekly classes at my gym where my parents live is ridiculously long. So what is the fuss all about?

Zumba describe their program as "partying yourself into shape" on their website (I'm sure we can all do that at Ziggy's but I assume this kind of fitness is the non-alcoholic kind). It's described on their website as "exhilarating, effective and easy to follow, moving millions of people towards joy and health." Their description makes me giggle - but in all seriousness, people are literally queueing to join Zumba classes.

Since its conception in 2001, the Zumba program has grown to become the world's largest and most successful dance-fitness program with more than 12 million people of all shapes, sizes and ages taking part in weekly classes in more than 125 countries.

Coincidentally, it originated from an aerobics class. Alberto 'Beto' Perez, the fitness instructor who created the Zumba experience turned up to one of his regular aerobics classes (at some point in the mid 1990s) having forgotten his traditional aerobics music. He then improvised using his own mix of music from tapes he had in his backpack (salsa and native Colombian music that he had grown up with).

Spontaneously, Perez created a new kind of dance-fitness, one that focused on letting the music move you. Apparently the class loved it and so Perez continued this new style of fitness. He took his idea to Miami, and following meetings with entrepreneurs who also hailed from Colombia.

Zumba fitness was created with the aim of bringing this new dynamic fitness class to the masses. Fast forward to 2010, when Zumba became the first branded fitness programme to launch a video game on all three major gaming platforms: Wii, Xbox and PS3.

The Zumba fitness programme is available at numerous places in York. Miller's Yard, situated on Gillygate in the centre of York hold classes every Thursday from 8.15-9.15pm; York Dance Works on Mondays from 7.308.30pm; York St John Sports Hall on Mondays from 5-5.55pm and at Fitness First Health Club, Clifton Moor on Tuesdays 8.15-9.15pm. See zumbayork.wordpress.com for more details.

look the part...

Adidas by Stella McCartney Organic Hoody £80 and Shorts £50 available at sweatybetty.com

Photo: Katie Lee

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Photo: Katie Le

Photo:

Katie Lee

Nike Pacer Women's Running Shorts £20 and Tank Top in 'Spice' £33 noballs.co.uk

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LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION Tuesday June 7, 2011

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s summer inches steadily closer, many of us are looking forward to the obligatory student weekend away - festivals. There are now more choices than ever when it comes to picking your perfect festival, from the guaranteed big names of Glastonbury to the outdoor clubbing experience that is Creamfields, with everything else in between. With the UK holding host to a huge number of festivals, it's easy to forget that there are hundreds more all over Europe. Fortunately, Vision is here to show you all the wonders that festivaling abroad has to offer...

I

arrived in Budapest at midnight (flights were £80, or you can fly to Belgrade) with two friends. A day before it began I got a bus straight to Exit festival and arrived at six in the morning. On arriving, we set up our tent at the nearest available spot and left it there. This was the biggest mistake of our trip. The best piece of advice I can give is to pitch your tent under as much shade as possible, since summer temperatures in Serbia regularly reach 40 degrees. I can guarantee that it is not good for a hangover when your tent feels like

peak times, require a ten minute wait at most; it really is five star compared to Reading/Leeds.

But what Exit festival is really about is the music arena. All of the stages are housed within a 17th century fortress situated on a hill 40 meters above the river Danube. It is an unbeatable location for a festival. Once the music gets going at around 7pm, the atmosphere more than matches the location, as about 80,000 people - around half of them Serbian - flood the fortress, turning it into an enormous maze-like club. No festival or concert experience I have ever had has beaten watching David Guetta play as the sun came up with 40,000 people going crazy in a valley created by the fortress's moat, with a back-drop of imposing 30 metre walls.

With 24 stages there is a wide enough variety of music to match any taste, with everything from chilled reggae to trance. However, if your only interest is music, Exit festival is probably not for you, as there are bigger and better line-ups in the UK. While there are great acts, like

DJ Shadow, LCD Soundsystem and Pendulum, these are mixed in with less standard festival acts such as Mika and Missy Elliot, as well as a lot of smaller European bands that British festival-goers are unlikely to be familiar with. However if you are looking for a more exciting festival experience this summer, Exit has to be on your list, as its atmosphere is unbeatable. With cheaper tickets (£125 including camping) and lower living costs it does not work out as much more expensive than going to a UK festival.

ANGUS WILSON

I

Kingdom. While hardcore fans revel in having to use a boat to get to the main stage at Glastonbury because it has rained so much over the past few days, most of us prefer to watch our favourite artists without wearing lifejackets due to fear of drowning. Boats will be used at Outlook but they are fortunately reserved for offshore boat parties, headed by various musical legends, rather than transportation from your sodden tent, via sodden grass, to an even more sodden and muddy stage.

Some of the appeal of this festival is in the distance one has to travel to get there. At the start of your journey, in a cloudy area of England, Outlook can be a visceral and abstract dream; a place of soft light and sultry sound, pulling you towards it with some unknown gravitational force. If you're less sentimental about these things,

it can be the hard-earned reward after traveling more than a thousand miles.

It certainly feels more impressive than a two-hour Megabus journey to Reading festival.

The travel in itself can be enjoyable, if not expensive. Pre-emptive discussions of road trips across Europe - seeing the Swiss Alps; eating and drinking our way through cheese and wine in France and rolling up in style - are probably just romantic pipedreams. Yet the excitement this far in advance is something of a novelty and is pulling my group of friends through York's exam season.

The real beauty of Outlook is that it combines holiday and festival in one beautiful conglomerate of subbass and sand. Selling out already only goes to show the strength and the appeal of such a young festival.

For such an expensive purchase, and

the far journey it encompasses; looking forward to Outlook has become my number one hobby.

DANIEL CAVE

P22 Fashion and Style

magine this: a clear blue sea dancing and teasing the shore of a far-flung foreign land; abandoned forts, complete with crumbling stone and dank dungeons and bikini-clad women gyrating on the sandy coast to the distant sounds of music. Quite perfect really. Yet while this sounds very lovely, it appears rather intangible; somewhere between the frustrated visualizations of a teenage boy and the plot line of another Tomb Raider sequel. Yet this is the reality promised to travelers when they reach Outlook Festival in Pula, an area of outstanding beauty, on the north-west Croatian coast. A reality that I, in September, like many others, will be embracing.

As well as the line-up, which reads like the family tree of dubstep, dub, reggae and grime, Outlook offers festival-goers a chance to escape the pitfalls of festival-going in the United

P21 Travel and Leisure

Outlook Festival, Croatia

P20 Health and Fitness

a sauna and all your water tastes like somebody has urinated in it. The actual campsite is just a big field about 15-20 minutes downhill (about 30-40 minutes back) walk from the actual festival arena.

On the first day we explored Novi Sad. It's a very ugly city - about as attractive as Ann Widdecombe on a bad day - it's almost a shame they rebuilt the bits NATO blew up in the '90s. It's only really worth a visit so you can claim that you've seen a little of Serbia. Don't bother with the local food, it tastes like baby sick.

The crowd in the campsite was mainly British with a lot of Dutch and Germans and there was generally a cool and very friendly atmosphere. There are also a few small stages with DJs scattered about that are good for a bit of day-time entertainment. The food on the campsite was limited but satisfactory, and infinitely cheaper than the £8 burgers on offer in the UK. It is also the most luxurious festival campsite I've ever visited, with portacabins that are cleaned out every day and showers that, even at

P19 Food and Drink

Exit Festival, Serbia

P18 What's Going On

Far-oFF Festivals

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P19 Health and Fitness P20 Travel and Leisure P21 Fashion and Style

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Summer Styles

Scott Simmons studies the seasonal options available for men...

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P18 Food and Drink

P17 What's Going On

22 LIFESTYLE

Espadrilles - £14.99, Office

t's the time of year when you look outside at the sun shining and begin to realise that your raincoats are redundant and your scarves are superfluous. But when you're invited to a summer barbecue or a day-trip to the beach, or even if you're lucky enough to book a holiday abroad, which summer fashions should you look out for?

For dips in the pool or trips to the beach, there is a huge selection of summer swimwear available. If you're looking for quirky, patterned shorts, Topman's 'The Swim Project' captures their typically alternative designs, offering a range of styles from floral patterns to real photo images. If outlandish styles aren't for you, then Topman - amongst other high-street shops - offer simplistic, stylish alternatives that are available at reasonable prices.

If you're looking to smarten up the beach-short look then tailored, chino shorts are an ideal choice. They're available in an array of colours, styles and brands etc., so filtering tools on websites such as ASOS should be used to meet your summer specifications.

From high-end brands to styles that

suit the student budget, ASOS has something for everybody, and if you're worried about ordering online, they offer a hassle-free returns policy , in case you decide you've made a fashion faux pas or overestimate the size of your limbs.

Espadrilles are an excellent alternative to the flip-flop. Two pairs can be purchased for just £20 at Office, allowing you to mix and match with their collection of patterns and bright colours, that complement any summer outfit. If you're looking for a slightly different style, then go for a higher price - Toms are renowned for their comfort. Furthermore, Toms promise to give a pair of shoes to a child in need with every purchase and, as of September 2010, had given away over one million pairs to countries ranging from Argentina to China. If you've got an eye for a bargain then Office is ideal, but if you're feeling ethical and want guaranteed comfort then Toms is for you!

There are so many options to look out for, summer good, summer bad, so it's important to shop around to find the best deals available!

Jonathan Saunders swim shorts - £40, Topman

Gary Card swim shorts £40, Topman

Unisexcellent!

Wax Works

Helen O'Brien takes a look at some genderdefying styles.

Anna Field waxes lyrical about Katie's Health and Beauty...

O

n a visit home, I was accused by my brother of stealing his shirt. After several minutes, and one small argument, we came to the conclusion that, embarrassingly, we both own the same shirt. It's just one of a long list of clothes that seem to breach the gender gap - brogues, chinos and a Breton tee make a perfectly stylish outfit for a guy or a girl.

Could it be that gender is becoming less and less important in fashion?

Androgyny in the fashion world is by no means a new thing; the likes of David Bowie, Prince and Annie Lennox were all doing it before most of us were even born. However, now more than ever you can see the crossover in men's and women's fashions not just on celebrities and the catwalk, but on the high street too.

This April, high-street gods H&M introduced their latest Fashion against AIDS collection. The entire range was completely gender neutral and the campaign had stars such as Akon and Selma Blair modelling the collection of sporty vests and tees.

The concept behind the collection was to show no discrimination by gender to draw attention to the fact that AIDS can affect both men and women. One store who have always been big on cross-gender clothing is American Apparel. A quick search for "unisex" on their website brings up 1132 matching items, a mix of simple tees, sporty shorts and even a colourful array of Y-fronts! While some items are admittedly more suited to one gender than the other (I don't know many males who could pull of the bright green jersey hotpants), the majority of their unisex items look equally good on their male and female

models.

Just last September, another line of unisex clothes was released upon the fashion world. Boyfriend/girlfriend is a range created by designer Rachel Pally and her boyfriend Kevin Circosta. The pair model their own range of vintage-look tees and shirts in a mildly nauseating collection of loved-up photos. Regardless of the overly romantic modelling, the pair show how workable their clothes really are for either gender. However, Pally warns women not to overdo the androgynous look if the want to avoid a 'sloppy silhouette'.

So don't be put off those shoes because your girlfriend has something similar, and don't be afraid to wear your housemate's comfy jumper in public. It seems androgyny is a look we can't avoid, so it's time to embrace it.

T

o be honest, the prospect of ripping out my leg hairs by having someone pour hot wax over my skin is not something that particularly appealed. But, as summer drew closer, I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try.

The wax-experienced among my housemates made a few recommendations regarding beauty therapists, but when I saw their price lists I was tempted to call it off and resurrect the razor. The only person they knew of who didn't charge a fortune was a girl who apparently "did a really good job, but took about three hours." I'm definitely no expert, but three hours seems a little excessive.

However, moments before the razor returned from exile, a bit of internet research led to the discovery of 3D Hair and Beauty. Tucked away above the chocolate shops and photography studios of the Shambles, the hair salon is also home to Katie's

Health and Beauty.

Contrary to expectations, my waxing experience was not horrific, but instead very quick and painless. I have to admit to being a tiny bit nervous but Katie, the therapist, was really sweet and chatty and put me at my ease. The whole thing took no more than fifteen minutes. And it is this that allows Katie to charge so little instead of dedicating an hour to each treatment, she is able to fit in several customers in a small space of time, and thus keep her prices down. The leg and bikini wax set me back only £23, and for transactions over £25 students are offered a 15% discount.

Waxing was a bit of an experiment and I expected to dismiss the experience as an expensive and painful one-off. But I was wrong. If you're looking to have a wax I would definitely recommend visiting 3D Hair and Beauty. I think I might leave the razor to gather dust.

YORK VISION

SPORT

Tuesday June 7, 20119

>Sport

23

VANBRUGH VANQUISHED AS JUBILANT JAMES ENJOY LACROSSE CUP VICTORY

BY HELENA KAZNOWSKA & ALEX FINNIS

Photo: Ruth Gibson

first game of the tournament 2-1.

The second game was a complete walkover as James enjoyed a storming 6-0 victory over a shaky Halifax side, with two goals each from Rolph, Russell and Robertson. While Alcuin kept the pressure on Goodricke in the third game of the day, they just couldn’t get the ball into the back of the net and it finished 1-0 after Balan scored another winner.

It soon became apparent that Halifax and Vanbrugh were well-matched and the score finished 1-1. Although Halifax had a last-minute chance to sneak ahead, solid goal-keeping from Megan Phillips kept the ball out.

Next, Vanbrugh met James and lost 2-0, with Russell and Rolph scoring the goals.

After, a single goal from Chris Menon was enough to give Alcuin victory over Derwent in the penultimate group stage game, leaving the latter to take on Halifax in the 5th place play-off.

Derwent took the lead in a somewhat comical fashion in the final match of the group rounds against Halifax. Harry Pampiglione’s long-range effort required Ewan Chipping to poke the ball home. Halifax’s Sally Dolton made a desperate attempt to prevent the ball from trickling across the line, but only succeeded in taking out herself and the entire goal in the process. Luke Shilling levelled for Halifax but Pampiglione then sealed both a 2-1 win and 5th place for Derwent.

The competition began to hot up at

the start of the semi-finals. Vanbrugh and Goodricke were first up, and Vanbrugh achieved a controversial 1-0 win courtesy of a Jay Kim goal. The Goodricke players were unhappy after the final whistle, feeling that Angela Musoke’s goal was wrongly disallowed after the ball was judged to have hit her body.

The second semi-final was undoubtedly the most thrilling game of the tournament.

It took extra time to separate James and Alcuin, with James eventually prevailing as 4-3 victors thanks to a hat-trick from Rolph, having heroically come back from 3-0 down.

Alcuin were therefore left to contest the 3rd-place playoff with Goodricke, and it was no surprise that Krishna Balan made the crucial difference, scoring the only goal of the game in a well deserved 1-0 victory for Goodricke.

Then came the final, the game we had all been waiting for, between James and Vanbrugh. James took the lead through

TOP SCORERS AARON ROLPH (JAMES)...................... 6 MUNRO ROBERTSON (JAMES)..............4 KRISHNA BALAN (GOODRICKE).............4 TESSA RUSSELL (JAMES).......................3 CHRIS MENON (ALCUIN)......................3

STAR OF CAMPUS: ANNA YEOMANS

YORK'S ENGLAND-U21 FORWARD TALKS LACROSSE, PRESIDENCY AND TRIBAL DANCING

BY SAM RUSSELL AND HELENA KAZNOWSKA Hi Anna! When did you first get involved with lacrosse?

I played at my prep school and really enjoyed it. My senior school didn’t play at all and I really wanted to pursue lacrosse so I joined a club.

Why do you think lacrosse is not wellknown as other sports, or played as often?

People have the impression that it’s quite difficult and unusual. It looks quite technical because there’s a lot of hand-eye coordination but you can pick it up quite easily. Most of our second team are freshers and started at uni, and they’re brilliant.

Put in the time, the effort and just literally pick up a stick and ball then just throw it around; you can learn really, really quickly. Especially if you like to run. The more you do it, the easier it gets, the more you enjoy it.

Lacrosse is renowned for its violence...

It looks uncontrolled but at the same time it’s very specific about whether you can tackle towards or away from the head. The men’s has a more violent edge. They can literally hit each other with sticks because they’ve got helmets and padding on.

Have you had any nasty injuries?

None so far, touch wood! [Taps the ground then laughs] I’ve been concussed once but it wasn’t a massive deal. Everyone went for the ball but this one girl just swung her stick into my face, but nothing major.

Do you know where lacrosse started?

I think, originally, it was the Indians and some sort of tribal dance and stuff, but it’s quite traditionally English as well.

Does UYLC have a tribal dance?

What, like the haka? No, I’m afraid not [laughs] we might create one next year.

You should come and watch our matches we might entertain you in more ways than

" I cannot imagine my uni experience without being a member of the lacrosse club" one!

Could you become a professional lacrosse player and not have to work in a second job?

Sadly not. They [the international players] are amazing ladies, working 9 to 5 to then travel to wherever we’re playing. Leeds, Manchester, all over.

Could you see yourself doing that in the future?

I don’t know. I’d like to pursue my academic [career], but if I could balance the two then it would be cool to play lacrosse at a higher standard as well.

So you’ve played at under-21s level for England. Who against?

It was home internationals, so in March

I played against Scotland and Wales. We beat Scotland 25-2 and Wales 17-4; it was just an amazing atmosphere.

What is UYLC like?

I cannot imagine my uni experience without being a member of the lacrosse club.

It’s really made uni for me. As a club we’re really welcoming. It’s tight knit; everyone knows everyone. We just get on really well and it’s really good fun.

We heard that the club sometimes takes an alternative approach to training sessions... [laughs] Yes, [once] we sent out an email the night before saying ‘girls, you need to arrive with your iPod, £10 and a bottle of water. Meet at 8.30am, outside Central Hall’ and the amount of rumours and gossip that went round - it was crazy. Some of the girls thought that we were going to drop them off in Leeds and make them run back and if they didn’t make it, they had to hand over their £10! But everyone turned up, it was amazing. We took them for a 45 minute run and ended up in town at 1331 and had breakfast outside.

What’s your position in the club next year?

We had hustings and I’m President.

Congratulations! Any big plans?

I’d like to see lacrosse as a more serious sport on campus. Yes, I’d like to see more boys joining; lacrosse can be a girls’ sport but it’s also a boys’ sport. I’d like to get a

Photo: Ruth Gibson

captain Izzi Mattick before Vanbrugh’s Anna Yeomans grabbed her side an equaliser. James had been prolific scorers throughout the day and not even this Vanbrugh side were able to stop them. Holly Biggins put James 2-1 ahead and then Munro Robertson rounded off the competition’s scoring, netting almost straight from the restart to make it 3-1 and hand James victory in this year’s competition.

"This was three years in the making, since we’ve finished as runners up in the last two tournaments," said Robertson after the game. "There was good organisation from our captain and it was definitely deserved." Hotshot Aaron Rolph added that, "The bitterness has now been replaced by glory," as James discarded their tag as the ‘nearly men’ and celebrated in the sun.

ANNA YEOMANS

THE INTER-COLLEGE tournament was an entertaining display of light-hearted mixed lacrosse for all abilities. Although Wentworth did not participate and Langwith were given automatic disqualification after arriving with only three players, the games commenced with Goodricke vs Derwent. With the help of Krishna Balan, who scored both goals for his team, Goodricke won the

professional coach in to take training and it’d be nice to have more people watching on Wednesdays because BUCS is a big deal.

Your 40-0 Roses victory was quite spectacular. Were you disappointed that the match wasn't worth any points, when the men's lacrosse was worth four?

Roses was amazing! We came away with this amazing score, but we didn’t even get rewarded for it, which is a massive shame.

I think the opposition got to decide whether the game would be worth points, because it was on our home territory. I think Lancaster were quite scared!

Anna Yeomans, thank you very much.

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

SPORT SPOTLIGHT

SPORT

25

ALEX FINNIS SHOWS MEGAN GRAHAM THE ROPES AS VISION GOES BOXING

MEGAN GRAHAM: I will be honest with you, Sport readers; I am not a sporty-type person. When I volunteered for Spotlight, I did so with the naive and foolish hope that I'd be assigned something fun, easy and involving minimal effort. Instead, I was ordered to hop into the ring and go boxing.

When I first arrived at the self-proclaimed "friendliest sports club on campus" I was made to feel very welcome, although it was more than a little intimidating to see that I'd be going up against people who are obviously incredibly dedicated to what they do. There were wifebeaters and 'those cloth things they wrap around their hands' galore.

ALEX FINNIS: By contrast, I have been a part of the boxing club since joining York in October. The idea of the glamour of flashy ring entrances and heroic last-round knockouts drew me into the sport, but it is the way the club caters so

Photo: Ruth Gibson

well for people of all abilities and its tight (although increasingly incestuous) family unit kept me coming back week after week. Despite our photographer Ruth's digs at my attire, I was not intending on beating up any women, but instead wanted to help teach Megan the basics of boxing.

MG: First was the warm-up. This went quite well I felt, until the moment that push-ups were mentioned. While the rest of the room threw themselves on the ground and eagerly began, I managed to lift myself up twice, then had to resort to crouching awkwardly on the floor in an attempt to disguise my shameful lack of upper-body strength. It was then, lying on a cold gymnasium floor, singled out as the under-exercised arts student I am, that I began to grow concerned.

AF: After the warm up we split the group into beginners, intermediate and advanced, meaning Megan and I were forced to briefly part ways as she went off with the beginners to learn technique whilst I joined the advanced group for one of Jamie Lyons' 'Nazi fitness sessions' which we don't allow him to subject on our fledgling boxers for fear that they never return. After about 20 minutes of squatting, press-upping, sprinting and the like, I looked far more like I had been for a quick swim than been at a boxing session and a shower was certainly required before my planned night out later that evening.

MG: At the technique session, I began to feel more confident as I was paired with another boxing virgin to practice throwing punches. After learning some basic stances and the different ways to block an opponent I started to feel a little bit more like the star of a Hollywood training montage; I had high hopes that by the end of the class I'd be a new Rocky in the making.

AF: After fitness, I swapped groups in order to join Miss Balboa for some pad work, in order that she could practice her newfound skills by thumping my padded hands. At this point, Ruth got jealous due to her lack of action and decided to land a few cheap shots right in my not-so-padded face. Charming.

MG: Any dreams of stardom were rejected faster than a sweaty boxing glove when I had to fight with somebody who

Photo: Ruth Gibson

actually knew what they were doing. I flailed helplessly as Alex instructed me to shift my weight and use my shoulders more; at one point I very nearly overbalanced, although I don't think anybody noticed. Up against an actual boxer it became painfully obvious that my fighting style resembled a sleepy baby more than anything else.

AF: It wasn't long, however, before I was already beginning to notice improvements in Megan's boxing. She managed to get some good power into her left hook and I threw a few light jabs at her which she blocked with the swagger of a female Floyd Mayweather. I began to have real hopes of the club finding a new member.

Well, I did until she plodded off somewhat hesitantly to the final part of the beginners training: the fitness session.

MG: I did have a lot of fun learning to throw different types of punches, and how to block any that people might be throwing at me. After an hour however came the moment I'd been dreading; the fitness class. I had hoped that a beginner class would go easy on me, and in hindsight I suppose it is a little hard to go easy on somebody whose idea of exercise is a night in Ziggy's. Whatever that thing where

YOU ONLY SWIM WHEN YOU'RE WINNING

THE UNIVERSITY SWIMMING CLUB HAVE ENJOYED UNPRECEDENTED SUCCESS THIS YEAR

BY CESCA BAGULEY ALTHOUGH THIS competition occurred in March, Vision feels that the swimming club's success hasn't received the media attention it deserves; here's Cesca Baguley, a swimming squad member, with her report on the events of the BUCS national team shield final.

York swimmers won a bronze medal in the competition, which was held in Loughborough. On the team’s first appearance in these finals for several years, the medals were the first piece of silverware that the University of York Swimming and Water Polo Club (UYSWC) has ever seen.

The team had qualified for the final after the regional gala back in November, when the team finished second.

The men’s 4x50 medley relay set the day off to a good start gaining third place finish behind Cardiff and Glasgow. After

this, in the individual events, Alice Cary achieved a second place finish the 100m freestyle with a time of 1.01.0. Later, in the 100m butterfly she gained a first place finish swimming an impressive 1.08.0, and another first place in the 50m butterfly in 29.37 seconds. Michael Tansini placed third in the men's butterfly with his time of 1.03.0 while Jon Beardsley gained third place in the 50m butterfly with his time of 28.44. In the backstroke events UYSWC were especially strong. Kim Briscoe accomplished more valuable points with a second place finish in the 100m backstroke with a time of 1.15.0, and Elliot Thurland placing third with a time of 1.05.21. Kim Briscoe also gained another third place for the team in the 50m backstroke.

Before the last 2 events, the 4x50 freestyle relays, York was lying in third place just 8 points in front of Leeds 2nds. But, the teams managed to pull off two amazing swims and hold onto the bronze medal po-

sition; the girls came in fourth with a time of 2.01.8, a new club record, and the boys finished with a time of 1:43.31. UYSWC finished with an impressive 138 points in third place medal position behind Cardiff and Glasgow respectively. Chris Unsworth, UYSWC President, commented on the incredible performance of the team; “I’m so happy with the team today.

If someone had told me this time last year that the club would have done anywhere near this well, I wouldn’t have listened to a word they were saying.”

The team has now been promoted up into the second division for the regional qualifier next year where it will face tough competition from the likes of Lancaster, Northumbria and Durham 2nds.

Unsworth said, “The competition next year will be exceedingly difficult to race against, but if we continue to improve as we have, and if we’re lucky with freshers next year, who knows.”

you're supposed to touch your toes and then jump into a push-up is though, it was seriously terrifying to have sprung upon me without at least a few months notice.

Two faceplants later, to the great amusement of our photographer, I scraped my bruised and battered dignity up off the floor, and decided to keep a low profile for the rest of the session.

AF: Whilst Megan's face was turning an increasingly bright shade of red over at fitness, I rejoined the advanced group to finish with some sparring. This is when I get to put all the year's hard work into practice, and however unappealing being repeatedly punched in the face sounds, I genuinely love getting the chance to spar.

Since I was fighting a taller opponent I had to slip inside his punches and get close to him to counter his longer reach with my speed. The great thing about the boxing club is that, at the end of a round of sparring, we will always be best of friends again straight afterwards, and I really do believe we are the 'friendliest club on campus.' So, if you fancy learning to box, getting fit or simply joining a club full of love and quality socials, come along to a boxing session and see what it's all about.

We will welcome you with open arms.

WHAT A RACQUET FOLLOWING A RECENT vote, University of York Badminton Club have announced that they will enter a Women's 2nds team in next year's BUCS. The news came alongside the announcement that the Men's 3rds team will be withdrawn from the local York & District league, but will, however, remain in the BUCS League 4B. After the introduction of the Women's 2nds team, the badminton club will have 5 teams competing in BUCS; one more than rugby, and as many as football and hockey, who have the most (with the exception of rowing).

Communications officer Emma S'ari explains "we've just starting training a few college players up, but we did have a squad of 8/9 last year for Ladies A - we had an unusually high number of decent freshers last year," adding, "I've found out that [the Women's 2nds] team will be playing against [York St. John Women's 1sts], so it could be interesting!"

26 SPORT

YORK VISION

Tuesday June 7, 2011

COLLEGE CUP HOTTING UP AS GIANTS PREPARE TO CLASH

BY OLIVER TODD AND SAM RUSSELL

SO FAR, this year's College Cup has seen some heroic performances, heated moments, controversy, a ton of goals and above all else, some wonderful football. As we move into the knock-out stages with eight sides battling for the cup, and eight sides in the plate competition, Vision looks forward to the remainder of both of the tournament's tiers.

The path has been paved for a clash of titans in the final; early favourites Halifax 1sts need to beat Wentworth 1sts in the quarter-final. The winning team will then play Vanbrugh 1sts, who overcame Goodricke 1sts and secured a 1-0 victory in the first quarter-final.

Vanbrugh topped group 1, scoring 21 goals and will look to the firepower of Phil Taylor and Ali Price to supplement their powerful pressing style.

The college league champions Derwent 1sts are also expected to get to the final. They have been placed in arguably the easier half of the draw with James 3rds, Halifax 2nds and Alcuin 1sts.

However, going by the upsets seen so far in the tournament, nothing can be taken for granted in the College Cup. The greatest exponents of this are

James 3rds, who weren't even expected to qualify for the plate. Benefiting from a Goodricke 1sts points deduction, and the dominant performances of goalscoring centre-back Nathan McCusker, James won all but one of their games to finish top of the group. A highlight from their outstanding campaign was a moment of magic from forward Tim Green, who scored a Gascoigne-esque goal against Vanbrugh 3rds to seal their group stage triumph.

It hasn't been all so rosy for James though; their first team have been confined to the plate. They will face the other deposed 1st team, Langwith, in the plate's first quarter-final on Monday, and following their 1-0 victory, look favourites for that trophy.

Among the other plate favourites are Vanbrugh 2nds; a college whose strength in depth is evidenced by the fact that they are the only college to have entered a 4th team in the tournament. Defender Dan Radford has kept things tight at the back for the 2nds whilst getting two goals to his name.

Derwent 2nds cannot be discounted, and nor can Derwent 3rds. If those two do meet in the semi-final, the game could come down to which team instinctive striker Jon Garness lines up for. Garness

has scored over half of Derwent 3rds' goals, and all but one of the 2nds'. Even the likes of Dan Atherton and David Kirk must be looking over their shoulders as Garness stakes his claim for a first team place.

The other contenders for the plate are Goodricke 2nds, Wentworth 2nds and Halifax 3rds. The two teams from Group 3 will hope to pose a threat to the favourites of the competition but in reality they may find it difficult. Having only beaten sides who finished below them in their group, they still have to prove that they are more than flat-track bullies. Wentworth 2nds face Derwent 2nds in the quarter-finals and you would expect to see them soon exit the competition.

Returning the focus to the premier knock-out competition, the presence of Halifax's 2nds side sees them as the only college with two teams remaining in the cup. Hamish Denham has been outstanding; scoring goals and providing an additional threat with his long throw-ins.

The reigning champions Alcuin 1sts did not enjoy the best of starts, but they redeemed themselves of their early poor performances with 7-0 and 5-0 victories over Derwent 3rds and Wentworth 3rds respectively. However, having lost so many players in the close-season, it would

take a lot for them to amount a challenge to regain their title.

Looking back over the tournament so far, there have been some obvious highlights. For many, the most surprising one has been James 1sts 5-2 defeat of Vanbrugh 4ths. With James searching for a big win to qualify for the cup, the debutant 4th side more than held their own, and their second goal, scored by Will Cooper saw a wild pitch invasion, as frustrations boiled over for James.

Some spectacular goals from college football stalwarts such as Conor Brennan and Phil Taylor have lit up the competition, as well as some equally sublime goals from lesser known players such as Jon Gow and Luke Charles. Moments of magic and madness have also been frequent, the pick of which has been Sam Clitheroe's goal against Halifax 2nds; bouncing in bizarrely having been hoofed from James college's half.

Ultimately, the focus will fall on the two favourites, Halifax 1sts and Derwent 1sts. All eyes will be on the likes of Atherton, Hallam, Brennan and Ragan to come up with something special and inspire their sides to victory.

Come week nine, regardless of the finalists, we should have two fantastic games to look forward to.

FINAL GROUP STAGE TABLES GROUP 1

W

D

L

GF

GA

GD

Pts

Vanbrugh 1sts

4

0

1

21

5

+16

12

Halifax 2nds

4

0

1

17

5

+12

12

James 1sts

4

0

1

18

7

+11

12

Wentworth 2nds

2

0

3

9

14

-5

6

Goodricke 3rds

1

0

4

8

17

-9

3

Vanbrugh 4ths

0

0

5

3

28

-25

0

GROUP 2

W

D

L

GF

GA

GD

Pts

James 3rds

4

0

1

7

4

+3

12

Goodricke 1sts

4

1

0

11

3

+8

11*

Derwent 2nds

2

2

1

7

3

+4

8

Langwith 1sts

1

2

2

2

4

-2

5

Vanbrugh 3rds

1

0

4

5

12

-7

3

Alcuin 2nds

0 1 4 1 7 -6 1 * Goodricke 1sts docked two points for fielding an ineligible player

GROUP 3

W

D

L

GF

GA

GD

Pts

Derwent 1sts

5

0

0

16

1

+15

15

Wentworth 1sts

3

1

1

13

1

+12

10

Halifax 3rds

2

2

1

8

4

+4

8

Goodricke 2nds

2

1

2

6

8

-2

7

Langwith 2nds

1

0

4

5

16

-11

3

Alcuin 3rds

0

0

5

2

20

-18

0

GROUP 4

W

D

L

GF

GA

GD

Pts

Halifax 1sts

5

0

0

16

1

+15

15

Alcuin 1sts

3

1

1

16

4

+12

10

Vanbrugh 2nds

3

1

1

11

7

+4

10

Derwent 3rds

2

0

3

9

16

-7

6

James 2nds

1

0

4

7

11

-4

3

Wentworth 3rds

0

0

5

2

22

-20

0

Photo: Ruth Gibson

YORK VISION

SPORT

Tuesday June 7, 2011

THE LAST SIXTEEN

27

SO FAR AND PREVIEW THE KNOCK-OUT STAGES

Vanbrugh 1sts 1 Goodricke 1sts 0

COLLEGE CUP Vanbrugh 1sts

Halifax 1sts

James 1sts

SEMI-FINAL

FINAL

1

Langwith 1sts 0 Vanbrugh 2nds Goodricke 2nds

Halifax 2nds

FINAL

Derwent 1sts

SEMI-FINAL

SEMI-FINAL

Wentworth 1sts

James 3rds

Alcuin 1sts

COLLEGE PLATE James 1sts FINAL

Derwent 2nds

SEMI-FINAL

Wentworth 2nds

FINAL

Derwent 3rds

SEMI-FINAL

SEMI-FINAL

Photo: Oliver Todd

CUP QUARTER FINAL: VANBRUGH 1STS 1-0 GOODRICKE 1STS

PLATE QUARTER FINAL: JAMES 1STS 1-0 LANGWITH 1STS

BY HELENA KAZNOWSKA

BY SALLY DOLTON

ON MONDAY, GOODRICKE and Vanbrugh went head-to-head in the first quarter finals match on the JLD. With everything to play for, both teams took to the field determined to win.

Within seconds, Vanbrugh were issued a free kick that was taken by Jamie Clarke, but these efforts to achieve an early goal were unsuccessful. Soon after, a mistimed clearance gave Goodricke a free kick that was dangerously close to goal. Captain Sam Lewis stepped up to take, but the shot went low and hit Vanbrugh's defensive wall.

Both teams performed well and were evenly matched, with feisty play and countless shots on goal. Sam Lewis took his chances once again, but the awkward turn and bounce caused the ball to fly wide of the target.

After another perfect throw-in from Gill fell at the feet of Kerian O'Dwyer, but he powered the ball straight into the hands of the Goodricke goal keeper.

The Vanbrugh side boasted strength in all positions; Jon Gill and Ziggy Heath's dream-team pairing at the back was at its best, as well as benefiting from Ben Stanier's imaginative play.

Minutes before half time, Vanbrugh's creative and accurate football was rewarded.

A corner kick found an unmarked Jon Gill at the post, who headed the ball into the back of the net making it 1-0 to Vanbrugh with the simple but effective finish.

The second half was goalless but there were moments of excitement, noticeably when Vanbrugh's Jonny Grout was booked for a sliding challenge.

DESPITE LANGWITH COMING into the match, by their own admission, as underdogs this was an evenly matched game. The final score of 1-0 reflects just how close the game was but does not convey the many attempts each side had on goal.

James benefited from a very confident defence which seemed almost impenetrable throughout the first half. Matt Brainbridge seemed almost impossible to beat, smashing the ball away from any James attack.

Langwith's first attempt at goal came from a great run from captain Luke Gardener up the left wing culminating with a misplaced shot to keeper Paul Charlock's gloves. Football seemed to turn to tennis with the ball rapidly moving from one end to the other throughout the first half.

Langwith got their closest attempt at goal mid-way through the half which raised the crowd off their seats as a prolonged goal line scramble was unlucky not to provide the dwindling Langwith supporters with something to cheer about.

James broke the nil-nil stalemate after a shot from Sam Meller bounced wide to a waiting Josh Brownlow on the opposite post. His somewhat hasty shot on goal was saved in style on the line by Liam Condran, keeping his cool under considerable pressure. Relief was not to last long after Tom Clarke intercepted the clearance and did not waste this opportunity by firing the ball into the right corner for make the score 1-0.

Langwith struggled to maintain their

Photo: Oliver Todd

Goodricke earned several breaks but shots from Dheir and Lewis did not make it into the back of the net and the whistle blew for full-time.

Vanbrugh captain Phil Taylor commented on a, "very professional performance.

They didn't really have many chances. We were solid at the back. We took our one chance and it all went well.

"There was absolutely nothing between the two teams, so to lose was really, really unfortunate," said Goodricke captain Sam Lewis. "It was such a tight game... I'm happy with how we fought. We've got a great spirit and I'm really proud of our performance throughout this year- it's a sad way to go out when I don't think we deserved to."

Vanbrugh proved they are strong contenders in this year's College Cup and are now only two wins away from lifting the trophy.

Vision's MOTM: Jon Gill- his reliable performance at the back and winning goal for Vanbrugh made him vital for their win.

Halifax 3rds Photo: Oliver Todd

composure after this unlucky occurrence and despite a substitution Langwith's previously buoyant spirits seemed to fade and they struggled to pull back.

James dominated the rest of the second half with repeated pressure on keeper Tom Lambert who kept his head and pulled off some beautiful saves.

James captain Simon Mole looked to the future after the match, outlining their aims for the rest of the Plate to "try to win every game and win the Plate," which is not misplaced confidence after his side's positive performance. Langwith captain Luke Gardener stated that he was "very proud of his team's performance."

Vision's MOTM: Tom Lambert- the Langwith goalkeeper's impressive save of Brownlow's header low to his right was the crowning moment. He even tried his hand in the attack during the final minutes of the game.

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Issue 216

STAR OF CAMPUS

SPORT ST. JOHN STUMPED P26

YOUR #1 SOURCE FOR ALL UNI SPORT WORLD SPORT: BLATTER SPLATTER

P24 SPORT SPOTLIGHT: BOXING

P25 COLLEGE CUP: FINALS PREVIEW

> CRAWFORD CENTURY AS YORK 1STS SMASH LOCAL RIVALS > STAGE SET FOR SEMI-FINAL SHOWDOWN WITH BRADFORD Photo: Oliver Todd

BY HELENA KAZNOWSKA AND SAM RUSSELL THE MEN'S CRICKET team won a place in the semi-finals of the BUCS Trophy with a storming victory over their local rivals last Wednesday.

In the first round on May 25th, Andy Kirkwood captained his 1sts team to a 287:210 against their own 2nds team This set up the quarter-final clash against city rivals York St. John.

On 22 acres, Fraser Crawford and Alex

P26/7

McDonald got the home side off to a great start; storming to a century partnership within two overs.

Kash Memon was unlucky to be ruled out by the umpire having faced only two balls, but the score was already enough to give York St. John a serious challenge.

The St. John opening pair were taken out with only two runs on the board and mission: improbable became mission: impossible for

the visitors.

A cup win for the University of York 1sts would complete a perfect season. They won all five of their BUCS league games last season to win promotion to 2B; a league in which York St. John have recently finished runnersup.

The cup final will be held on June 8th.

Full Report On Page 24

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