Vision Issue 233

THE UK’S MOST AWARDED STUDENT NEWSPAPER

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

Issue 233

vision@yusu.org

EXCLUSIVE: FIRST BIG D HEADLINER ANNOUNCED -PAGE 8-

WWW.YORKVISION.CO.UK

ALT-J Music Interview

Spotlight on GHOSTPOET

20 Questions with ANNE FINE

STUDENTS VOICE DISCONTENT OVER DISABILITY SUPPORT

“MISTAKES ARE STOPPING ME DOING MY DEGREE”

BY AGNES CHAMBRE DISABLED STUDENTS have voiced serious concerns about their welfare at the University of York this week. Vision can reveal that some of these students are struggling to do their degrees because of their treatment.

Students have claimed that the reasons for problems have stemmed from the “lack of communication” with the University’s outsourced company; ‘Neuro Partners.’

Students spoke to Vision about their different concerns, ranging from one calling their situation “catastrophic” and another labelling their experience a “crisis.”

Bob Hughes, YUSU welfare officer, explained to Vision that he “feels uneasy about the outsourcing of vital services like this.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

NEWS

VANBRUGH GO BELOW THE LINE PAGE 6

COMMENT

WE’RE ALL FASCISTS AT HEART PAGE 14

FEATURES

HARRIET SERGEANT INTERVIEW CENTRE PAGES

LIFESTYLE

DIY FASHION: TASSELLED TEE PAGE 20

BOOKS

LES MIS VS. THE PRINCESS DIARIES and YOKO ONO SCENE PULLOUT

2 NEWS

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

A FINE TIME

BY OSCAR PEARSON FIGURES ACQUIRED by Vision have revealed that the University library is owed nearly £60,000 in fines. That total refers to lost, non-returned and late returned books.

Furthermore the amount of money gained by the library through fines has risen by approximately £30,000 in the past three years.

The news comes after increased frustration amongst York students at the existing long-loan system, which is yet to be amended by University management. The current system ensures that students away from York

YOURWEEK

?

Good Week for... Derwent rugby, for thrashing ERSITY Alcuin 95-nil on Sunday.

V I N U ORK WILL Y F ACADEMIC H C U Bad Week for... History students after it was HOW M ON WAGES O reported they had the least contact hours in the ?

F F SPEND A ST country.

47/50 23%

The amount of students who said they don’t care about Café Barista closing in our survey.

Percentage of students who voted “I don’t really know. He looks like Stu from the Hangover” in our website poll asking for opinion on the new ViceChancellor, Koen Lamberts.

Photo of the Week: Campus horse gives birth to a foal!

Photo: Milo Boyd

Keep updated with the latest campus news: www.yorkvision.co.uk

for the holidays must post back their borrowed books that have been requested by others, otherwise facing a £2 per item per day fine.

The library did, however, introduce modifications to its loan system at the beginning of the academic year, following unsatisfactory levels in a student experience survey.

Rose Basista, a second year History of Art student, told Vision: “That is a ludicrous amount of money, especially as you aren’t allowed to graduate unless you have paid off your library fines. This must mean that these fines are all current students!”

The Library chose not to comment.

Photo: Oona Venermo

YORKVISION

The UK’s most awarded student publication Editors: Sarah Cattle Georgina Strapp

Deputy Editors: Jo Barrow Dave Washington

Online Editors: Jack Bradshaw Alex Finnis

Managing Director: Oliver Todd

Scene Editors: Niamh Connolly Zena Jarjis

Photo Editors: Oona Venermo Jack Western

News Editors: Agnes Chambre Oscar Pearson

Features Editors: Zoe Biles Philip Watson

Sports Editors: James Scott Michael Thurloway

Deputy News: Tom Armston-Clarke Tom Davies

Deputy Features: Joe Cooper George Hesselgren

Deputy Sports: Caitlin Graham Al Riddell

Comment Editors: Milo Boyd Patrick Greenfield

Lifestyle Editors: Poppy Danby Francesca Martin

Chief Sub-Editors: Rebecca Cowper Mike Dunnett-Stone

Deputy Comment: Olivia Head Olympia Shipley

Deputy Lifestyle: Abigail Dickinson Dom Mckinnon-Green

Advertising Editors: Francesca Martin James Scott

Front cover photo: Oona Venermo

Scene Editorial list in pullout

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, 2013.

Printed by Mortons of Horncastle.

YORK VISION

NEWS

3

MERELY MANAGING A 2:2 DELAYED

Tuesday April 30, 2013

KEY Green - First Blue - 2:1 Red - 2:2 or less

CHEMISTRY COMPUTER ECONOMICS EDUCATION ELECTRONICS SCIENCE

68%

43% 38%

47% ENGLISH

ENVIRONMENT

HEALTH

6%

HISTORY

11%

21%

18%

32%

40%

13%

33%

27%

36% 39%

25%

42% 33%

25%

25%

33% 42%

13% BIOLOGY

MATHS

POLITICS

PEP

HISTORY OF ART

71% 28%

12%

14% SOCIAL POLICY

SOCIOLOGY

29%

60%

PSYCHOLOGY

38%

48%

57% 36% 7%

14%

11%

21%

PHYSICS

27%

37%

59%

68%

PHILOSOPHY

21%

42% MUSIC

19%

0%

12%

16%

34% 22%

MANAGEMENT LINGUISTICS

28% 38%

55% 23%

49% 41% 10%

19%

LAW

69%

75% 6%

77%

74%

BIOCHEMISTRY

5%

0% TFTV

Graphic: Jack Bradshaw

SARAH CATTLE IT IS drilled into our heads, as soon as we set our eyes on university, that a 2:1 degree is not just a welcome addition to a future job application: it’s a necessary qualification. So what to make of these statistics?

At first glance, it’s pretty shocking that at a Russell Group university like York the percentages of 2:2s in degree classifications are so high across the academic spectrum, let alone just in Management. It would appear

that there is a need for improvement somewhere, but whether in the academic rigour of students or in teaching provisions is hard to call.

A YUSU survey last year revealed 47% of students who took part felt their degree was not worth the money paid, suggesting a lack of inspiration. This was certainly true when I spoke to a third year Management student about his studies. He said he had learnt much more at university outside of his degree, and that he found his course teaching uninspiring.

A recent Daily Mail article highlighted the low amount of contact hours at York for History and Physics. But whilst 6%

of History students gained 2:2s, a huge 37% of Physics gained the same. To add to this, Oxford were also in the bottom five for teaching hours in Physics, and as arguably the best university in the country, I don’t think the reason is teaching hours.

It’s also important to factor in that high degree classifications are not always a reflection of teaching standards, but marking strictness. Besides, if everyone received high marks, the cream of the academic crop would never stand out. Few would work. It would simply be paying for a degree, with no academic push.

Pseudo-analysis aside, as Andy Young points out, degree

BY AGNES CHAMBRE

IT HAS been announced that the date for the decision on semesterisation has been delayed to January 2014.

This comes after Vision reported the controversy the decision had caused.

Kallum Taylor, YUSU President, was pleased with the decision: “Following the severe amounts of scepticism and scrutiny placed on the University’s proposals, I’m content with the decision.”

He continued: “Aside from all of our doubts which we highlighted in our report, through various meetings with students and the University, I don’t think it would be wholly appropriate to take this decision just before the new VC gets here.

It’s worth them knowing though, that our concerns and questions will still remain.”

John Robinson, the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Teaching, Learning and Information explained the change of plan: “The consultation with students and staff on the structure and schedule of the academic year yielded a wide range of opinion.

The departmental responses, which came from Boards of Studies where students and staff were both represented, were evenly divided between those favouring and those against semesters.

A response from YUSU included the results of many sources of opinion and put forward an alternative model for consideration.”

UTC have decided to undertake further work over the next six months to draw together views for a final proposal.

FUN RUN

84%

ARCHAEOLOGY

28%

12%

12%

17%

25%

27%

45%

63%

71%

UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE CLASSIFICATIONS 2011/12

21%

“We want to achieve a higher proportion of First and 2:1 results by identifying the areas where we can give students more support in developing skills and working effectively - and we are very happy to hear from students about ways in which we can give them that help.”

Meanwhile, Psychology stu-

71%

“TEACHING IS POOR”

23%

THE YORK Management School has the highest proportion of students graduating with a 2:2 or less at the University of York, according to new data.

Out of 195 Management students who graduated in 2012, 80 (41% of the total) failed to achieve at least a 2:1 grade, seen as the necessary benchmark for today’s graduate employers.

The department also have the second lowest proportion of students graduating with a First at 10%, a decline from 12% the previous year.

One second year Management student told Vision: “I think a lot of the teaching is poor. One example of this that sticks in my mind was in the January exams for Advanced Quantitative Methods.

“Our lecturer once emailed us out some last minute notes around 4pm the day before the exam. It was material that we had never seen before. In the exam, it became clear that this was stuff that he had forgotten to teach us, but there were two whole questions on it in the

dents are the most likely out of Teaching and Learning in any department to achieve First Psychology, played down the class honours. achievement: “The proportions Out of 140 students, 36% of first class degrees can vary gained a First and only 7% grad- from year to year. We need to uated with a 2:2. wait to see whether there is any The other highest-achieving underlying trend.” departments were Maths and Meanwhile, a staggering Chemistry, where 34% and 33% 84% of Music students acquired of students respectively earned a 2:1 last year, and not one of the the top grade, almost identical 60 students graduated figures compared to last year. with a 2:2. This was However, the improvement also the case for for Psychology is signifithe Department cant since the defor Theatre, Film partment was and Television.

Which SABB spent Friday night not even History, English counting seats at Huntington in the top and Law students can Stadium? five in terms of also rest assured over First class graduatheir 2:1 prospects, with aptions. proximately three quarters of Third year Psycholeach department making the ogy student, Frances Jones, grade. However, a mere 6% of said: “The lectures are all really Law students graduated with a great, they always seem so well First. thought out and the department Conor McGowan, a third generously always provides year Law student, commented: print-outs of the hand-outs.

“I knew that a very low percent“And the lecturers are mostly age got a first but didn’t realise all very enthusiastic people who it was only 6%. If I was being are up for a discussion, even in honest I think it could be down a lecture setting, so that really to very strict marking, also helps spark interest in all topics, sometimes you can’t help but making us keen to do well!” feel the feedback you receive is Andy Young, Director of very basic and generic.”

19%

exam.”

Student outrage followed on the Facebook group before the exam had taken place. One student commented: “How can he be giving us more content less than 24 hours before the exam that he hasn’t taught us!! sounds like he’s covering his back at the last minute”. Similar concerns were also raised over the teaching of the Marketing module.

Deputy Head of the Management School, Josephine Maltby, defended the figures, saying the department are “developing their teaching methods” to include a greater number of tutorial sessions and are planning to improve feedback methods.

BY JACK BRADSHAW

classificatons do vary from year to year. The high percentages must be put down, to at least an extent, to the group of students themselves, rather than reflecting immediately upon the university’s teaching quality.

Therefore students should take little notice of these statistics. You can search for specific reasons until you’re blue in the face, but realistically, these statistics will always vary year to year. They should be used purely to spur departments on to improvement, rather than to dishearten current students. Don’t feel you’re fated to a degree classification: aim to buck the trend and improve the statistics for next year.

BY GEORGINA STRAPP ROSES FUN run kick starts fundraising campaign for the Snowball Project adding to the excitement this Roses weekend.

Charlotte Winter told Vision: “I’m so pleased we’ve included a fun run in this year’s Roses to help fundraise for the Snowball Project. The York Sport Union hasn’t necessarily been the most proactive in the past with fundraising and so hopefully this will signal the turning point!”

The official campaign will kick off in Week 4, and YUSU hopes to reach the £63,000 fundraising goal along with University Staff and the Scout Association.

This money will go towards refurbishing the 17 acre Snowball Plantation that provides a safe place for children, to play and learn outdoors away from home.

Snowball was chosen due to the strong relationship that YUSU has had with its volunteering project, Kids Camp, a triannual camp giving 14 children a muchneeded break from stresses at home, with the support of student volunteers.

Chris West praised the students and the project: “The Kid’s Camps we run every year make a lasting difference to the lives of both the children who attend and the student volunteers... it’d be great to be able to give something back.” Kallum Taylor called it “a fantastic initiative.”

Tickets can now be bought from the YUSU website for either the 5km run or the 10km Fun Run. For more information about the Snowball Project and how to get involved visit: www.yorkspace.net/york50

4 NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2013

STUDENTS UNCONCERNED ABOUT PROPOSALS TO SHUT CAFÉ BARISTA

“WHA T IS C

BY ALISTAIR BOCHEL YUSU’S ATTEMPT to save Café Barista seems set to fail after University Registrar David Duncan confirmed his intention to shut the café.

Duncan explained that “the money we save [from Café Barista’s closure] would be invested in B Henry’s, which clearly needs to be upgraded.

“We are also looking at ways of increasing the seating capacity in and around the Library Café,” he added.

Duncan also confirmed that staff based at Café Barista will not lose their jobs and will instead be redeployed to other sites on campus.

Vision asked a sample group of 53 people on campus about the matter. 20 people either did not know where the cafe is or had never been, and 46 out of the 53 polled did not care about its potential closure.

When Sam Thorpe-Spinks, a second year History and Politics student and one of our sample, was asked his opinion on the matter, he commented: “What’s Café

Barista?”

There were huge altercations between YUSU and University management over whether or not to keep it open.

Since the successful opening of the Library Café, Barista, which can only serve coffee and cold food at limited hours, has seen a drop in trade and is set to make a loss this year.

Duncan agreed to keep it open for a fortnight at the beginning of term, telling Vision: “The main problem with the café is that it’s set up in a common room. It has a cold water supply only, no waste facilities and no mechanical extraction. Consequently, we can’t broaden the offering and give customers a decent choice.”

The University plans to replace Barista with a Costa Coffee vending machine and allow staff and students to use the area as a common room.

YUSU President Kallum Taylor has criticised the plans, saying: “It wouldn’t exactly take the business consultancy of Steve Jobs, Deborah Meaden or Sir Alan Sugar to establish that Café Barista really isn’t being made the

most of.”

YUSU launched a petition to save the cafe, which has so far collected over 1,000 signatures.

The petition states “very little effort has been put into maintaining Barista as an attractive alternative competitor to the other Campus North ventures such as the Library Café and B-Henry’s.”

Taylor notes that Health Sciences students are significantly more affected than most and that the lack of pre-warning or discussion “implies that the University don’t care or understand them.”

A second year Politics and Philosophy student commented: “It appears as if a small number of people are concerned about its proposed closure but to be honest it’s too small a number.”

Vision also spoke to Mi Yang Jun, a Social Policy student. She explained that she had signed the petition and stated: “I feel my choice is limited because the cafe is closing and wish they would improve rather than closing.”

The decision on whether or not to close the Alcuin café, based in the Seebohm Rowntree building, will be made next week.

AFE B

ARIST A?”

Photos: Oona Venermo

OSCAR PEARSON WELL, IT is evident from our student responses that this whole thing just isn’t worth getting stressed about.

With David Duncan confirming Barista’s imminent closure, and promising that its staff will not lose their jobs, we should just move on and campaign about things that matter.

YUSU have even said that the interior decor of the room is “dull and bland” and that there is a “major lack of choice” on offer.

Why then save it?

We should praise Duncan’s decision to close the loss-making cafe as he looks to re-invest in other, more pressing areas of catering across the University campus.

The sheer cost of retaining the existing service - with the refrigerator and coffee machine in need of replacement - would reach nearly £30,000.

And Duncan has already said he would rather invest that mon-

ey elsewhere on the North Campus.

He has also said the University is looking at ways to increase the seating capacity in and around the Library Café, to tackle the queues and waiting times students often face.

So, what would you rather?

An empty, limited and loss-making Barista? Or less queues and better service in a thriving Library Café?

The common room which Barista occupies will still be available and students and staff would be free to bring in their own food and drink.

The University management will meet with YUSU later this week in an attempt “to persuade them that the statuesque is not the best option.”

That sounds like their mind is already made up and no matter what YUSU have up their sleeve, Barista is on its way out.

It sums it up when we went for a coffee to discuss our sample findings on Saturday afternoon, but sadly Barista was closed.

If only there was a self-service coffee machine there for students to enjoy. Not long to wait now.

YORK VISION

NEWS

Tuesday April 30, 2013

5

STUDENTS CLAIM DISABILITY SUPPORT IS “INCREDIBLY UNHELPFUL”

BY AGNES CHAMBRE

DISABILITY DISTRESS

continued from front FOUR STUDENTS have chosen to speak to Vision about their experiences with disability support. One student, who is visually impaired and has chosen to remain anonymous, told Vision: “People are just not getting the support they need.

“CHAOTIC” “This year I have experienced huge delays and miscommunications.”

The student continued: “I have to deal with at least three different organisations to receive the same service, but with delays of up to eight weeks.”

“This year I have been forced to apply for mitigating circumstances to sit my exams because I am so behind through no fault of my own. These mistakes are stopping me doing my degree.”

Another student who suffers from autism explained how the company had not been suited to

their needs: “I was told that I had to meet my helper on the bridge.

All I was given was a name. This was not enough detail for someone who was already anxious.”

They went on to illustrate that they had stopped using any help from the University, telling Vision: “Last year it was so incredibly unhelpful that I stopped using Neuro Partners.

“They didn’t help me and I was taking time to do this. It is the only help I have known at York, but it wasn’t helpful.”

A third student described their issues: “I have a hearing impairment and so I lip read. However, I find it really hard to follow because I get prone to tiredness.

She explained that there had been a long drawn out process before she was finally assigned the note-taker she was entitled to.

“After I got a note taker I was told that I wasn’t allowed to have direct contact with them which I thought was a bit iffy. The whole thing seemed a bit chaotic.”

She claimed that even the notetakers were unimpressed by the process, they: “say that they have

had a lot of problems with Neuro Partners. They have said its not really on.”

The third student explained that there was also a huge difficulty in obtaning notes as she was not allowed to have direct contact with her note-taker, and could only get the notes when her supervisor was availible.

She continued “my first term here was really difficult for me.

“I fell seriously behind with work, sometimes I got notes after I had to do an essay, and then I

cophony of errors in which she was, amongst other things, sent to the wrong room, not initially given an answer booklet, told her time was up early, and was given less than a weeks’ notice for her eventual resit.

She says an invigilator also loudly announced in front of a silent exam room; “We have a student here who thinks she should have extra time,” which Young considered tactless. In her email, she speaks of exam invigilators who “clearly didn’t have enough training or information about the exams they were running.”

Young also felt many of the issues she faced were easily avoidable, stating: “Resitting the exam turned out to consist of going to a room in my department and filling in the same question paper.

There is no real reason I couldn’t have done that at any other point if I was left to arrange it myself with my lecturer. The bureaucracy and hassle the University put me through to resit was completely unnecessary.”

The exams office later apologised and claimed it was a one-off error, but Ron sees Bissell and Young’s stories as endemic of a wider problem, and has promised action.

Ron is currently working with the Exams Office and YUSU Academic Officer Graeme Osborn to find out the true extent of the problem, but feels some solutions have already been found.

Speaking to Vision, Ron said

that he plans to “provide an anonymous survey for students with special arrangements in order to discover potential problems with exam provision and help us address any problems.

“INCREDIBLY UNHELPFUL” missed out on the most important info in my essay which was a bit dodgy.”

The final student that Vision spoke to explained his problems of being dyspraxic and having organisational difficulties, claiming: “the continuity has been pretty awful.”

They added: “I get the impression that some of the mentors were very inexperienced. The ad-

OSCAR PEARSON

vice was flaky and obvious. The quality is unacceptable. It is a bit all over the place. They don’t have a clue what your needs are.”

Emma Hersey, who held the position of Disabilites Officer, spoke of the problems that she saw last year: “The main problems are communication.

“When things are going wrong, people don’t know who to complain to. There is no complaints system available.”

Bob Hughes commented that he had “heard of several students’ dissatisfaction with Neuro Partners, and we have been chasing these up with the University’s Student Support Services.

“It is disappointing to hear of issues like this that can seriously hamper a student’s ability to study properly. I would encourage anyone who has issues with this service to get in touch with YUSU and Student Support Services as soon as possible to ensure that your studies aren’t affected by any issues you may experience.”

At the time of publication, Neuro Partner were unavailable to comment on the matter.

TRON: EXAM CHANGES NOW

BY TOM DAVIES

YUSU DISABLED Students officer Thomas Ron has pledged a “comprehensive review” of the University’s exams policy for disabled students in the wake of last term’s controversy regarding third year Physics student Sophie Bissell.

Bissell, who suffers from Nystagmus, a visual impairment which makes it difficult to read small text, believed she was unfairly penalised after reporting that there was a question missing from her specially enlarged exam paper.

Although Bissell was denied a grade rescaling, she was later issued with an apology from the Department of Physics and offered the option to retake the exam “at first attempt.”

LARGE EMAIL BACKLOG DETAILING COMPLAINTS However, Thomas Ron believes that Bissell’s problem is far from an isolated incident, stating that both he and his two predecessors have a large backlog of emails detailing various complaints from disabled students about the exams procedure at the University.

The newly elected officer has used as an example another testimony from masters student Michelie Young during January of last year, who speaks of a ca-

PLANS TO HELP NONDISABLED STUDENTS “The Exams Office has also agreed to ensure that signs stating there is an exam in progress in PC rooms also state the times

of the exam and issue a ‘No Entry’ sign to minimise the chances of any disruption.”

He also spoke of potential changes to other general exams procedures to aid non-disabled students such as the earlier opening of catering establishments during the exam period so students with a catering card “don’t have to go to their exam on an empty stomach”.

Ron hopes these moves will have a positive impact for students in the upcoming summer exam season.

Photo: Jack Western

THESE ARE students’ lives being dramatically affected by incompetent University policy.

It is not good enough.

In theory, students meet weekly with their Neuro Partners mentor and discuss how their university life is going, if their work is on track, and look at potential techniques for tackling any particular issues. The chats are less academic than those with supervisors; these mentors are unaware of what degrees their students are reading and tend not to offer advice on how to improve academic work.

If, for example, a student was struggling with their organisation - perhaps missing seminars and becoming stressed with various commitments - these mentors should be on hand to lend both experience and advice.

However, with communication breakdowns, lack of support and mentors continually coming and going, students are being denied their basic right of support.

In one undergraduate’s case, he had three different mentors in a single calendar year. Everything they knew about him was lost after each change in personnel, and to alter the developing staff-student relationships midyear is to start on a blank slate.

With these new inexperienced mentors channelled in - who are uninformed and do not know their students as individuals it seems like students are put through the whole ‘get-to-knowyou’ process again, wasting valuable time that should be spent tackling issues.

It is absolutely vital to find continuity and build a rapport with mentors over a period of time – at least a year in my view – but these career-orientated mentors bouncing from one role to another toys with students’ lives in an unforgivable manner.

The “neither useful nor enlightening” system – as described by one student – needs a major rethink. And with no official way to complain, students are being left in the dark. The University needs to make sure the support students are given is appropriate and relevant to their individual needs.

It is something for Thomas Ron to consider in his new position as Disabled Students Officer.

In terms of examinations, Ron (left) has issued a bold but necessary rallying cry just weeks into his new role. To make this issue an urgency - different from his original pledges and priorities when he campaigned – is an interesting move. But surely students will accept that looking at and tackling these exam problems, particularly after his election helped him become aware of this giant backlog of emails detailing complaints, is a good use of his time.

6 NEWS

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2013

LIVING BELOW THE LINE

BY JO BARROW COMMERCIAL SERVICES have put their money where their mouth is when it comes to supporting Vanbrugh students’ philanthropy.

Vanbrugh are taking part in the Below the Line challenge, an event which requires all participants to live on just £5 for 5 days.

It aims to improve awareness of the 1.4 billion people who live below the poverty line around the world. Olivia Beecham, a second year student who has completed the Below the Line challenge for two years, enthused: “I think Live below the Line is a great way to put your student life into perspective and take a step back from the student bubble. Even though Live below the Line is only 5 days, it challenges you to reconsider your views on poverty and all the material goods that we take for granted. It’s also a brilliant way to test your mind

REFEREN-DUMB

BY CHARLES WAIN & TOM ARMSTON CLARKE THE SUMMER term hosts a number of referenda with voting opening at 9am on 2nd May and closing 12:00 on Thursday 9th May. Two of the referenda that are to be voted upon are a motion to ban The Sun on Campus and plans to activate ‘No Platform’ for controversial speakers. Others that are to be voted upon are a living wage reform for YUSU staff, whether or not YUSU should lobby to leave the EU and whether or not the University should implement semesterisation.

The campaign to ban The Sun from being sold in YourShop began on the 18th February 2013.

This was started by the Women’s Committee, with Helena Horton taking the lead. Their group on Facebook promoting the referendum gathered a lot of attention from both sides, with students strongly voicing their opinions.

Their campaigns argued that a shop run by YUSU should not be selling and profiting from The Sun newspaper. Their Facebook group stated that it was “sexist,

xenophobic and downright discriminatory about a number of groups that are represented with the university’s student body.”

Helena Horton, founder of the campaign, spoke to Vision, “Remember, the campaign is not about ‘banning’ the Sun, and it is not an anti- free speech campaign.

It is about what sort of values that we want our Union to support.”

Nicholas Dunn-Mcafee, a sec-

“MOST RIDICULOUS THING EVER” ond year English student opposes the motion, saying: “If you do not like The Sun, you should not buy The Sun from YourShop; if its mere existence on those hallowed shelves causes you anxiety - well, it’s you who have a problem.”

Jacob Campbell, a third year Politics student, initiated the second referendum. The idea of ‘No Platform’ is to prevent certain types of speakers from talking at the University, mainly those who have fascist, communist or racist views.

The NUS, of which the University of York is a member, holds the policy. The NUS defines this

as no “individuals or members of Another of the referendums organizations or groups identified that has been put forward is by the Democratic Procedures whether YUSU should lobby the Committee as holding racist or British Government to leave the fascist views” may stand for elec- EU. This will come before the nation to any NUS position, or at- tional referendum which has been tend or speak at any NUS function set by David Cameron for 2017. or conference.

This certain motion has been reSpeaking to Vision, Campbell acted to with mixed emotions. stated: “I’m a great believer in tolA second year erance, but it will destroy itself if English student, we continue to tolerate the who preferred to intolerant. People like stay anonymous, Hamza Tzortzis, explained to Vision: Which SABB spent Friday Muhammad al“I think that it is the counting seats at Huntington Kawthari and most ridiculous thing I Stadium?

Yusuf Chambers have ever heard. I don’t – who call for hothink the government mosexuals and adulterous care what YUSU want and women to be killed – speak on I assume that they already our campus. have pretty firm opinions “What the ‘No Platform’ mowhen it comes to the European tion proposes is that whilst these Union.” people may have the right to spew Whether or not to adopt setheir hatred, they should jolly mesterisation is something else well do it elsewhere.” that will crop up in next week’s Charlotte McBride, second year History Student stated: “The University’s Student Union does not have a right to censor certain opinions. And furthermore it has no right to dictate to its students debates. This has been a controwhat opinions are and are not ac- versial issue within the student ceptable, it is arrant elitism of the body and staff, and as Vision has highest order.” reported in this issue, the date for

“ARRANT ELITISM OF THE HIGHEST ORDER”

power and resist all the nibbles that you take for granted!”

To show their support of Vanbrugh, Commercial Services are donating £20 per student who takes part. Vanbrugh Chair Joshua Treacy expressed his gratitude to Commercial Services: “I’m really pleased that commercial services are working together with us for this campaign.

The money that they will offset shall make a massive difference to our chosen college charity, Giving Africa.

“Also, by making this donation, commercial services are ensuring student’s efforts to only spend £5 over 5 days are not undermined by the ten meals that would otherwise be bought in the name, only to be thrown away.”

Students in Vanbrugh will be joined in their challenge by celebrities such as Josh Groban, Ben Affleck and Sophia Bush, as well as thousands of participants across the globe.

the final decision has now been delayed until January 2014. Bex Lui, a second year English student told Vision: “I think this vote will be really interesting because it should show the university how many people are really against it.

It seems they are already listening due to their decision to move back the date.”

The final referendum is to decide whether YUSU should adopt the voluntary pay scheme of living wage. It is an advised rate of hourly pay set by the independent Centre for Research in Social Policy, currently set at £7.45. However this figure is reviewed and changed accordingly every year, which the university itself is yet to do. It would positively affect the student staff working for YUSU by giving a pay increase. However to fund the pay rises could mean cuts or increased prices across YUSU, including its commercial services venues. Katie Barrett, a second year student told Vision: “I think it would be really good for people to be paid the ‘living wage’ but I hope this wouldn’t affect the price of things across campus, such as The Courtyard’s burgers.”

The referendum debate and YUSU AGM take place this Wednesday.

YORK VISION

NEWS

Tuesday April 30, 2013

BRIAN CANTOR TO BECOME BRADFORD VICE-CHANCELLOR IN SEPTEMBER

“GOOD RIDDANCE!”

BY OSCAR PEARSON BRIAN CANTOR will join Bradford University as Vice-Chancellor in September after 11 years at York.

Cantor first took the role in 2002 and has presided over the expansion of the Heslington East campus. However, he has been heavily criticised for his expenses, as revealed by Vision in 2010, and for the University’s falling league table positions.

He was named 33rd most influential man in the North of England by Big Issue in the North in 2011, beating Labour Party leader Ed Miliband by one place.

Cantor was at the forefront of a Vision exclusive in 2010, after it was revealed he claimed nearly £135,000 in expenses over the previous three financial years - a figure dwarfing the claims by his counterparts at other top universities and even the Director General of the BBC. That includes, for example, a chauffeured service from the Heslington West campus to Heslington East costing £141, and over £50,000 in flights.

Cantor has been made a CBE in the 2013 New Year’s Honours list, for his services to Higher Education.

There was a mixed reaction from students, with one second year Philosophy student “pleased” Cantor is leaving earlier than anticipated, saying: “He doesn’t seem to have done any good for this University.

Good riddance I say!”

Tweets of the Week 13 Apr

Morenike Adebayo @applepiechart Make volleyball more interesting. The court is quicksand, the ball is a hedgehog, players are on fire. #ExtremeSports Third year English student

What Graeme Wears @WhatGraemeWears

20 Apr

Sunshine at last! Hunters are having a rest today, If only they could branch out into sunglasses... #cravatornottocravat?

The unofficial Academic Officer

Tom Scott @tomscott

21 Apr

The new Street View of my folks’ house shows a toilet sat by the front door, due to an ill-timed bathroom refit. My mum’ll be mortified.

Ex YUSU President

BIG BEN @big_ben_clock

24 Apr

BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG BONG Time keeper

Kallum Taylor @yusuprez

25 Apr

Good morning! @UniOfYork and @YorkUniSU Have you signed to #SaveBarista yet? We have until end of Week 2!

YUSU President

York City FC @yorkcityfc

27 Apr

We did it. Thanks for your fantastic support. See you in League 2 next season - come on City!

Official football club Twitter

SECOND ATTEMPT

BY OLYMPIA SHIPLEY

THIS WEEK marks the opening of nominations for the two empty YUSU roles.

The part-time positions, both of which were not filled in the main round of elections last term, are for Racial Equality Officer and Mature Students Officer.

In last term’s elections, there were no candidates standing for either role by the time voting opened, but it is hoped that this term will see a change. Both are part of YUSU’s drive towards equality and representation.

The successful Racial Equality Officer will be responsible for both black and minority ethnic students, while the Mature Students Officer (who should be over the age of 21) will be responsible for representing the interests of mature students.

The current Mature Students Officer, Minal Supri, described how “being a mature student” is sometimes a “daunting experience”, and as a result there are “older students on campus who may need the support that comes from fellow mature students.”

Supri also added her encour-

agement to anyone thinking of going for the position, saying that it was, “a great role and you make lots of friends.”

Nominations for both positions open on Thursday 2nd May, and close on the 8th May. This will then be followed by a period of campaigning for the candidates before students are finally allowed to vote for each Officer between the 16th and 21st May. At the same time these nominations open, students will also be asked to vote in the final round of referenda for this academic year.

There are four motions for students to vote on, including whether YUSU should stop selling The Sun newspaper, and whether YUSU should enforce the proposed no-platform policy.

Like the nomination period, voting on these referendums ends on the 8th May and the results should be announced soon after.

If you are thinking of nominating yourself for either role and would like to know more, students are advised to visit the Union website for more information, or alternatively, you can email Peter Warner-Medley directly at p.warner-medley@yusu.org.

7

Vision's Milo Boyd rounds up the highlights of national student news, from elitism and JLS to sailing and slimming pills.

student press LONDON’S FINEST have found themselves embroiled in scandal over the past weeks. UCL’s Spotted has played host to a “fruity” video depicting a couple of students caught up in the moment. Both the exact location and identities of those involved have yet to be disclosed.

At the slightly more serious end of the spectrum, LSE’s entanglement with the North Korean government concerning student involvement in a Panorama special continues. In a letter to LSE Director Peter Sutherland, six of the ten students involved expressed their fear of repercussions following the story’s release.

Continuing along this dark avenue, a medical student from Leeds University, Sarah Houston, 23, has had the circumstances of her untimely death clarified in a coroner’s report. She was found to have died following the use of banned slimming pills, sparking David Cameron to promise investigation into their illegal sale.

In a much needed lighter moment for the University, summer ball headliners Little Mix have been replaced by men-of-the-moment JLS, with Leeds Vice-Chancellor Michael Arnold promising a complimentary DJ set. The exciting amendment to the lineup has caused some students to describe the X-Factor runners up as “the black Beatles.”

Oxford University has once again found itself entangled in accusations of elitism. Promising students “one night of decadence, debauchery and indulgence”, an event has come under fire for promising the display of a live nurse shark. The black tie ball takes inspiration from Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet and is selling its cheapest tickets for £110. Cambridge University has managed to stay clear of such controversy, instead enjoying the company of the Dalai Lama.

His Holiness said he was “very very happy to be” visiting after accepting an invitation from the Global Scholars Symposium. Taking the visit as opportunity to share his views about non-violence, the Dalai Lama remarked on the “famous” nature of the institution.

BUCS, in conjunction with the British Universities Sailing Associations, held the University Yachting Championships at Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth last week. Over 200 sailors from 17 different universities graced the waves, tackling vicious winds from both port and starboard. The day ended cheerfully, with everybody agreeing that it didn’t really matter that they’d “just gone round in a big circle.”

8 NEWS

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

THEY WANT THE BIG D

BY SARAH CATTLE VISION CAN exclusively reveal the first headliner of the biggest on-campus event of the summer term, Big D. London-based Dusky will be playing a set at Carnival’D on June 27th.

The house duo have received airtime from Radio 1 DJs Pete Tong, Zane Lowe and Toddla T to name a few.

They are the first of three

BY ALEX FINNIS

headliners to be announced, with the final act revealed at the Big D launch night in Week 3.

Derwent Vice Chair Ents, Joel Brocklehurst, told Vision: “Dusky are a massive name in the house scene. We’re so excited that we’ve managed to bring them to York and we know they’re going to play a blinding set.”

Brocklehurst added: “Big D is the highlight of the summer term and it’s really starting to take shape now.”

The organisers have expanded Big D this year, planning a food court and a shisha tent, as well as four stages of music, including an outdoor silent disco.

Carnival’D will also hold a competition for student bands to enter later in the term to compete for a slot on one of the main stages, alongside the headline acts.

Last year’s headline acts included Roll Deep and Scott Mills.

Tickets for the event will go on sale in Week 3, at a cost of £25.

CAMPUS THEFTS LOOK SET TO FALL this academic year. Out of this number, 10 occurred in Derwent College, which is the only college to see a rise in reported incidents on last year following its takeover of the old Langwith buildings prior to October last year.

This compares to the larger figure of 90 reported thefts in 2010-11 and 77 in 2011-12.

Heslington East appears to be safer from thefts than the old Hes-

THE NUMBER of thefts recorded on campus looks set to fall further this academic year – less than half as many incidents have been reported so far in 2012/13 compared to 2010/11, and just over half as many as last year, 2011-12.

As few as 40 thefts have been reported to the University so far

lington West campus, with just only one incident having been reported in each of Goodricke and Langwith colleges so far this academic year, whilst Halifax has seen the biggest fall of any area on campus, from 15 incidents in 2011/12 to just 4 in 2012/13.

Figures show Wentworth to be totally theft free for the 201213 academic year, whilst just one theft has been recorded in Alcuin,

and four in each of James and Vanbrugh.

Outside of the colleges, three thefts have been reported in each of the Biology and Economics departments, whilst the two main campus shops, Costcutter and Your Shop, are both totally free from thefts.

YUSU Welfare Officer Bob Hughes spoke to Vision: “YUSU have been working with the on-

campus security service and the wider police teams to address issues of crime and help students get the best information possible about being safe and reporting crime- something we hope to continue.”

“I would like to applaud the hard work of the local and citywide security services on tackling these issues, and making a safe York even safer.”

THE NUMBER OF THEFTS IN EACH CAMPUS LOCATION OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS 15

2010-2011

12

2012-2013

9

9

9

9 7

10

2011-2012

7

7 6

6 5

6

4

4

4

5

5 4

3

4

3

3 2

1

2

2 1

1

1

1

1

1

ALCUIN DERWENT GOODRICKE HALIFAX JAMES LANGWITH VANBRUGH WENTWORTH BIOLOGY ECONOMICS COSTCUTTER YOURSHOP PHYSICS RON COOKE HUB Graphic: Dave Washington

YORK VISION

NEWS

Tuesday April 30, 2013

YORK VISION EXCLUSIVE

BY OLIVER TODD

YUSU: THE FINANCES

VISION CAN exclusively reveal a sneak preview of YUSUs Financial Statements for 2012 ahead of this term’s AGM. In a year where the Students’ Union contributed £500,000 towards the redevelopment of the Student Centre from YUSUs reserves – an amount paid to the University, who also provided YUSU with much of their income for their year through the block grant of £899,160.

YUSU also saw an increase in students employed as staff, the number of ratified societies and sports clubs. Freshers events drew much of YUSUs outgoing costs this year, although ultimately resulted in £12,267 profit which marked a huge increase on the 2011 figures.

The Summer Ball, headlined

by Feeder, drew a record crowd of 2,202 – but continued to make a small loss to the union. YUSU state that they aim to break even on the Summer showcase event, but have now made losses in the last two years, having posted a loss of £10,029 when The Subways headlined in 2011.

YUSU President Kallum Taylor told Vision: “Freshers events and activity as a whole in 2012 ran at a profit after all freshers marketing sponsorship and the full range of freshers events are taken into account. Freshers weeks attract a range of sponsorship and marketing income, which allow us to offset some of the costs of

events we put on for our members and keep prices down.

“Summer Ball 2012, before my time in office, did operate at a loss.

The event was planned on an assumption that all VAT was recoverable since the event was being operated by YUSU charity. Unfortunately this is not the case and there are aspects of unrecoverable VAT that meant the event operated at a loss. This year we are working on a full cost recovery basis and we are confident the event will break even despite keeping ticket prices at the same cost.”

YourShop saw an increase in takings compared to the previous year and the overall commercial profit was boosted by the improved performance of YUSUs campus bars – a figure that was boosted by last year’s introduction of The Lounge at James College. The drinking habits of students here and at The Courtyard brought in a profit of £15,555. Overall, the commercial aspects of YUSU, including YourShop, the bars, printing and catering produced a profit of £95,975, helping to increase YUSU’s net incoming resources to £3,684,908 from £3,659,849 last year.

Including the five Sabbatical Officers, YUSU pays a total of £714,166 in staff salaries, national insurance and pension costs, which is an increase of £13,862 on last year. This figure is split between an equivalent of 30.14 fulltime staff.

The full Financial Statements will be announced at Wednesday’s AGM.

DAVE WASHINGTON YUSU may be making an increased loss on freshers’ week and major events at the University; however, as a student I would prefer to see the student union spending their money on instances such as these which actually benefit our student experience.

Of course a loss may be made, but by investing in such areas, YUSU are properly perpetrating their role in representing the student body and making a contribution to student life.

In truth when we leave university it is unlikely to be minor things such as whether YUSU lobby to introduce new vending machines or spend their money on improving commercial services that we remember; instead many of our fondest memories will be of events such as freshers’ week and the Summer Ball.

By investing their money to improve such highlights of the year and bringing in reputable headline acts, YUSU are making improvements which actually do impact the majority of the student body, rather than changing something simply since it is what a few people desire.

It is also impressive that despite a half-a-million investment on the redevelopment of the student centre, that the University

have still managed to keep their expenditure in check and have been capable of revealing highly respectable figures. Indeed the significant outlay seems to be justified, as the new student centre is a major improvement on the previous structure, and provides an excellently functioning hub for the student body, which hopefully will be exploited further in the future.

Furthermore the fact that revenue from services such as Your Shop, The Lounge, and Courtyard have increased once more provides an overwhelmingly positive message. The notion that people are spending more of their money and time at these venues suggests that they are improving as services for students, and indeed both the aforementioned bars are favourites with students across campus.

Over the years accusations could have been labelled against YUSU as being a body whose role has been marginalised, and whose impact upon student life was minimal. However, in its current incarnation YUSU appears to be playing a more substantial role and being pro-active in student life. Its reputation as a Union is improving, and even though people may not agree with some of their policies and expenditure, they are turning into an institution which impacts all echelons of student life; a move that can only be labelled as progressive and beneficial to us as students.

YUSU’s main expenditure and profit in the academic year 2011-2012.

9

SOARING WAGES

BY DAVE WASHINGTON

THE UNIVERSITY of York will spend over £43 million in 2013 on the wages of academic staff, according to data received by Vision.

The University currently employs 799 academic staff, with the average wage paid being £57,776, and the total expenditure amounting to £43,001,255. The rate in which the national wage has increased has stagnated over recent years, however the expenditure on wages by the University has continued to increase.

In 2008 the University spent £31,621,491 on wages, with the average wage being £48,577. Therefore there has been a 19% increase in the average wage paid to academic staff at the University between 2008 and 2013.

Academics in the department of health sciences are the most highly paid staff, earning an average of £72,279 a year, whilst the lowest paid department is education with the average employee earning £50,048 per year. Since 2008 the average wage of Health Science academics have increased by 34%, contrasting with the national wage which has increased by a lowly figure.

As the University has expanded over recent years, the number of staff has also increased, with the University currently employing 118 more academic staff than they did in 2008. The department which requires the largest expenditure is biology, on which the University will spend £2,884,178 in 2008.

Second year English student Ben Bason explained his thoughts to Vision. “I’m sure there’s probably a legitimate reason why the wages have gone up so much over the past years.”

Wages vary departmentally, and since 2009 the wage of history staff has risen by a meagre £193, and the earnings of an academic at the HullYork Medical School has declined by over £8000.

The overall wage increases of academic staff come at a time when there are still some employees of the University, who are not being paid the living wage. On the matter first year Mathematics student Andrew Lister stated: “It’s normal for wages to be rising to keep up with inflation, but the fact that a University can’t pay some of their employees more than the living wage is ridiculous.”

Academic Officer Graeme Osborn told Vision: “The University needs to ensure that it strikes the correct balance between attracting and retaining the best academics, paying all staff fairly and getting the best value for what is at the end of the day students’ money.”

One of the main things that Graphic: Jo Barrow YUSU are currently focusing on is to ensure that all staff are paid the living wage, and a referendum is to be held on this issue next week.

YORK VISION

THE UK’S MOST AWARDED STUDENT NEWSPAPER IS HOLDING

ELECTIONS TONIGHT

COME AND JOIN OUR TEAM! 6.45PM P/X/001 Check our Facebook page for all the details Every position is up for grabs!

YORK VISION

COMMENT

Tuesday April 30, 2013

COMMENT KALLUM TAYLOR YUSU PRESIDENT

11

www.yorkvision.co.uk/comment comment@yorkvision.co.uk

THE BIG OPINIONS

York isn’t doing badly, but we’ve clear room for improvement in two key areas. Making the York ‘student experience’ stand out from the crowd matters. It’s not enough to feel good about just comparing with very similar institutions on the outskirts of the top ten. We need to be different, and to follow L’Oreal’s mantra, worth it. Treating students as partners in the design, development and delivery of their education, and wider provision, will be key here. And with more doubt over the value of a £9k degree, York must be brutish in making ties with industry and overseas institutions. It should be ‘the norm’ for York students to spend at least a term abroad or working in industry, in the ‘real world’, as part of their course. These will give both York the edge it needs, and our students the edge which they need to compete. The new VC has to hit the ground running and addressing these is essential. If York stays still we’ll fall behind an ever more sharp elbowed crowd.

MATT STEPHENSON FORMER VANBRUGH CHAIR

I’m really pleased that the university have managed to find someone with the experience and drive that Professor Lamberts has to offer, and I hope that, with his student-orientated background, he will be receptive to the needs of York students. Because make no mistake, that is the biggest change that needs to come form Brian Cantor’s departure. York has some pretty massive decisions to make over the next few years, and listening to what the students themselves want from their university is going to be key. There has been a lot kept form us here at York over the past few years, and if the students don’t know what direction the university is heading in then how on earth can we let our voices be heard about what we think about it? How can we make things better? I have every faith that Professor Lamberts will be a force for good at York University, and if he gets his approach with the students right then we’ll be on to a winner.

WHAT CHANGES SHOULD THE NEW VICE-CHANCELLOR IMPLEMENT? LAURA HUGHES NOUSE EDITOR

The University should be run with the efficiency of a business, but remember we are souls and not stocks. Lamberts should share sovereignty with his students. Spend the £2.7m projected net gain from raising tuition fees, on investing time and money in student job prospects.

Put the University’s failure to miss its long term carbon emissions target back on the agenda. He should ensure that our Postgrads are not the donkeys of the department when resource-based constraints force them to ‘cut corners’ whilst the University attempts to cope with existing student numbers. Let’s also push for talks about offering home fees for students in the UK seeking refugee protection. This University is not a business. Rising VC salaries and corporate confidentiality have not gone unnoticed. If our new VC wants to gain an empathetic perspective, I can only suggest he reaches out an arm earnestly across the abyss. Professor Lamberts, if you want to make sense of our concrete jungle, the intellectual dynamics in departments, be proactive rather than reactive.

DEAN HICKEY GOODRICKE CHAIR

The first thing the new Vice-Chancellor, Koen Lamberts, needs to do is to redefine his own role. Students need and deserve a proactive ViceChancellor who is willing to engage with us and take our ideas onboard.

We need a Vice-Chancellor who recognises that the University exists for students. Whilst I acknowledge the good that Brian Cantor achieved, one thing he was never known for was listening. With fees at £9,000 for First years and those beginning in September, the student voice has some serious financial clout behind it for the first time. One approach the new Vice-Chancellor could take would be by starting a formal dialogue with YUSU and the College JCRCs. He should strive to sit down and talk to all the JCRCs within his first term. These sessions would be the ideal forum for bringing together opinions from all over campus in a cohesive way and present them to the Vice-Chancellor.

This would help ensure that thew new Vice-Chancellor takes a student-centric approach in future decision making.

CONSUMERS OF TERROR THE BEST AND WORST OF THE MEDIA WAS ON DISPLAY IN THEIR COVERAGE OF THE BOSTON BOMBINGS OLIVER TODD

T

he Boston bombers manhunt saw social media take another step towards the forefront of breaking news – but at what cost? The tragic events at the Boston Marathon earlier this month moved quickly from a mystery on Monday to the death and capture of the two main suspects

by Friday evening: all of which was covered in depth on Twitter, Reddit and elsewhere.

Such a fast-paced news story saw journalism finding itself in the hands of the consumers, utilizing phones and tablets to whip up a Twitter storm of speculation. Whereas once families would be glued to Sky News and CNN throughout the night, the same information could be obtained within seconds from journalists on the scene, and anyone else who cared to share their thoughts, in 140 characters.

Timelines were filled with images direct from the centre of the action: from graphic shots of dismembered victims at the roadside of the Marathon, to the US Army camped out around Watertown in the final hours before the capture of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Social media undoubtedly has now become, for many users, the first port of call

when it comes to keeping up to date; it’s quick, to the point and free of the financial and political slants that beleaguers most British news outlets. Regardless, it is by no means an immaculate forum. A prime example of the problems with crowdsourcing reared its head just three days after the bombings. Sunil Tripathi, a student who had vanished weeks before, was incorrectly identified on Twitter as the main

Modern news organizations, if they are to survive, need to avoid being so naïve as to feel that users aren’t seeing all suspect in the inquest into the bombings.

Imagine yourself as a member of the Tripathi family, huddled around a Rhode Island computer, dealing both with the enormity of a missing son, brother or cousin, only to have their misery compounded by extreme speculation of his character.

Reddit users even went as far as to set up their own crowd-sourced manhunt to track down the crowd-accused. Hours later it was revealed that Tripathi in fact had no link to the bombings despite the claims, which had been retweeted and re-

ported by professional journalists – and the heartache of a Rhode Island family were quickly forgotten in a fast-paced fight to report the news ahead of others.

Of course, CNN and the Associated Press had both already run a story that a suspect had been arrested on Wednesday – pressured into being first to the goldmine of breaking a story that the non-stop, unqualified and unaccountable social media piles on. By Friday, more than 250,000 people were tuned into Boston Police radio scanners online – live tweeting the progress of the manhunt for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, effectively from the police frontline. Despite repeated requests from Boston’s force over the radio itself to curtail the constant updating, their every move was posted online for anyone and everyone who cared to read. The police scanners tended to be where the news was broken first, quickly followed by the traditional channels who were also listening in.

The images of the armed forces camped around Watertown were also requested to be removed by the police as it gave away their positions, but again social media ruled – proudly showing the world images of street patrols and various inspections, which were again retweeted and reported elsewhere with little regard for the danger it put those on the frontline in.

Modern news organizations, if they are to survive, need to avoid being so naïve as to

feel that users aren’t seeing all, whilst at the same time avoiding rushing to the conclusions inherent amongst the keyboard happy social networkers. Instead, the outlets should be seeking to provide context. The likes of Twitter have transformed news reporting so that those on the ground can not only report, but spread false rumours and stories. In turn, it has changed the role of breaking news channels and major newspapers, which need to be trustworthy sources of information more than ever before. Many papers have embraced social media, but it is undoubted that many could manage it better – as displayed this week.

Perhaps surprisingly, the perfect example came from the local press in Boston.

The Boston Globe acted admirably, clarifying Twitter reports repeatedly as unconfirmed, whilst providing near-perfect coverage as it happened, in print, on their website, and crucially, across social media.

Crowdsourcing and open journalism hold endless opportunities, but unfortunately the balance of caution and desperation to be the quickest to report the story is yet to be found. Major news incidents show social media at its best and worst. Twitter is now far from, as some seem to think, posting about what you had for lunch, it has become the home of breaking news and that poses its own challenges: one of responsibility that a number of major news outlets got badly wrong this time round.

12 COMMENT

THE VOICE OF

YORK VISION Vision says...

W

elcome back to another term at the University of York. With Roses fast approaching there is a buzz around campus, ahead of what can only be described as the highlight of the sporting calendar. Three days of intense sporting competition lie ahead as York aim to reclaim the Carter James Trophy.

It isn’t just Roses fever that is currently gripping campus, as an important set of referenda are to be held in the near future, and the future of Cafe Barista hangs in the balance. It is a hectic time of year, with a number of important issues to be resolved in the coming weeks.

To add to all of that, Vanbrugh students are participating in a Below the Line Challenge and the first headline act for Big D has been announced in the shape of Dusky.

None of this, of course, should distract us from the inescapable truth of exams. The revision period looms (for the more organised it’s probably already begun!) and we’re wishing you luck, not only in exams, but also in the increasingly impossible battle for library seats!

Thumbs up to...

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2012

DOES SAMANTHA BRICK HAVE A POINT? MILO BOYD

S

amantha Brick has done more than any other women, with the possible exception of Ayn Rand, to encourage the people to hate her. If her 2012 article, There are downsides to looking this pretty: Why women hate me for being beautiful didn’t send enough negativity her way, Brick, ever the glutton for punishment, has once again spoken out. This time she has directed her silver tongue towards the issue of dieting.

For Brick, dieting is an essential part of any woman’s life. In her own words, “I am 42 years old and have been on a permanent diet for the past 30 years. The logic is simple and irrefutable: any self-respecting woman wants to be thin, and to be thin you need to spend your life on a diet. “ It would be a feat far beyond my journalistic expertise to defend the character of such a woman. If her crawling, self -congratulatory and promotional tone does not render her beyond saving, anecdotes of refusing chocolate gifts seals the deal. It is far too easy however, to disregard Brick part and parcel. Yes, she’s awful, but she has a point.

British society is currently stuck in a swamp of hypocrisy in terms of health. On one end of the spectrum we have Gok Wan, a bastion of inner beauty.

On the other, we have govern-

Thumbs down to...

T

he Management department for the apparent concerns over the standard of teaching that has led to the department returning the highest proportion of 2:2s or below.

Students at a top university such as York should be receiving a high quality education, especially when you consider that first years are now paying £9,000 a year in tuition fees.

The level of student outrage suggests that there are some flaws for the department to eradicate, and it is time for the management department to evaluate their future path.

ment health initiatives and 10 Years Younger, enforcing the notion of an obesity epidemic.

Such contrasting ideals force people into a contradictory limbo of self-acceptance and selfloathing. Being pulled from two directions does nothing to promote self confidence and makes it near impossible to settle on a size and feel happy within it.

Samantha Brick offers an alternative. A strong, forthright statement, Brick’s ideology is blunt and, whilst we may not want to accept it, healthy. Britain is, to borrow a hyperbolic phrase, in the midst of an obesity epidemic.

Yes, Brick’s comments are anti-feminist in the way they target only women and yes, they come from a bad place (dieting for the husband’s satisfaction being a terrible reason), But if we ignore these setbacks, a strong argument arises.

Being slim is healthy and one of the sure fire ways to achieve such a state is to diet.

Dieting can of course go to far and become, as it clearly is for Brick, an unhealthy obsession.

Conversely, it can be a focus for people, can encourage discipline over one’s body and lengthen a life. Naturally, eating disorders are prone to occur following too much of a bodily focus, but a healthy line must be drawn.

A

ny self-respecting woman wants to be thin’- yet another reassuring comment from the infamous Samantha Brick. It’s bad enough that we still live in a patriarchal society where women feel immense pressures to meet the ‘perfect’ standard set by supermodels and celebrities, but it’s even more depressing when women themselves reinforce this mentality.

Women do many things to make themselves more attractive to men, but claiming that being fat is the ultimate failure and that ‘overweight is never attractive’ is a step too far. Not only are comments like hers judgmental and narrow-minded, but also detrimental for our gender as a whole. If you ask me, any selfrespecting woman isn’t happy merely bowing down to what men want, instead being content finding a healthy weight, whatever that may be. She boldly states that her husband would leave her if she got fat, showing that not only is her marriage built on aesthetics, but highlighting that it is the women’s role to stay attractive and please the superior man. In a world where women are seeking equality, it’s sad that a woman feels it’s the acceptable norm for personal relationships with men to be so imbalanced.

Her comments also derive from a supposed concern for

NO health, not just looks. Granted, this country may have an increasing issue with obesity, but the answer is not to encourage women to opt for the opposite extreme and be on a diet their entire lives (Brick’s has apparently been on a diet since she was 12). Brick’s comments are not merely an insight into her own troubled past, but add strength to a growing trend of younger and younger girls concerning themselves with their looks and weight. If Honey Boo-Boo was the absurd extreme, Brick represents the increasing normalisation of this idea.

Obesity is caused by a deeply unhealthy attitude towards food and naivety about nutrition, and Samantha Bricks’ attitude is just as damaging and misinformed.

It’s deeply sad that her everyday life seems to revolve around what she can and cannot eat, claiming she ruined an ‘expensive box of hand-made French chocolates’ to stop herself from eating them. Not only does this imply that she does not have the self-control to deter her from binge-eating, but that she cannot enjoy an occasional treat because of a constant, shallow obsession with the way she looks.

Samantha Brick does not have a point, her outrageous comments are attention seeking and frankly, very sad.

THE GOD DELUSION EXTREMIST ATHEISM HAS RAISED ITS UGLY HEAD AND IT’S TIME TO SPEAK OUT

Y

ork Sport for organising the Fun Run this weekend. What better way to add to Roses weekend than a sponsored run through campus, and incorporating a sense of charity and fundraising into the tournament.

This is a fantastic way of allowing everyone to embrace the Roses spirit and increase campus participation in the tournament, whilst benefitting an excellent project.

Snowball Project will serve to help children from disadvantaged backgrounds, and is sure to make a lasting impression on all of those involved.

We encourage everyone to get involved in this incredible project, and take the opportunity to both get involved in the marvellous atmosphere that will be Roses, and complete a much appreciated charitable act. It will be a decision you won’t regret.

YES

LILITH KING-TAYLOR

PATRICK GREENFIELD

D

iscussing the existence of God is currently a favoured topic for those interested in circular, tedious arguments.

Typically, an enlightened student of Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Ricky Gervais crudely regurgitates arguments against the existence of God to an opponent either obsessed with scriptural inerrancy or reluctant to engage their ‘progressive’ opponent.

University campuses across Britain are teeming with forthright students eager to highlight why Mother Theresa is guilty of perpetuating poverty in India or how the continuation of Sub-Saharan poverty is entirely attributable to the reproductive policies of the Roman Catholic Church.

Indeed, in the same breath, these crusaders of freedom assert that religion must be crushed due to its reliance on sensationalism, ignorance and bigotry. Must we continue to ignore the hypocrisy?

Last week, Richard Dawkins intelligently tweeted: “Mehdi Hasan admits to believing Muhammad flew to heaven on a winged horse. And New Statesman sees fit to print him as a serious journalist.” The reaction to Dawkins’ Islamophobic bigotry has quite

rightly been scathing. Mehdi Hasan writes many fantastic articles on an array of interesting subjects - being a Muslim has nothing to do with it. Moreover, by applying his carefully crafted brand of sensationalist reductionism to the Sura on Muhammad’s rise to heaven, Dawkins has managed to provide yet another reason for why his is a professor of Evolutionary Biology and not Philosophy. I used to consider myself an atheist but, as Owen Jones stated earlier this week, “if atheism means being bigoted about Muslims or wanting to drive people of faith from public life, then I am not an atheist.” I believe it has meant this for some time.

Like many others, I love science for its contribution to the progression of humanity and despise those who perform acts of terror in the name of religion. Nonetheless, my affection for science does not automatically make me an abortion-loving liberal who gleefully wields the trusty sword of logic in the presence of religion. Dawkins is especially guilty of these pernicious, arbitrary displays of apparent intelligence. Certainly, in the heat of debate, these impressive exhibitions of ‘rationality’ can prove decisive but Dawkins et al are simply missing the point.

How many Christians assert that the foundation of their faith is the belief that every parable, poem and command in the Bible actually happened? It would be a ridiculous generalisation. Reducing religion to a ludicrous, hateful caricature is not the monumental academic feat it claims to be.

The atheistic denunciation of those who believe without evidence has become shameless in its ignorant rhetoric. Large swathes of humanity continue to fret over a question to which nobody knows the answer- even Dawkins admits this. I repeat, we cannot comment on the existence of God using a logical framework. Therefore, whilst it may be true that scientific discoveries continue to further understanding of our reality, not believing in God also remains a leap of faith.

“Well okay, that’s fair enough. Do you follow the same rules with Santa? Which God don’t you know exists?” I hear the Gervaisian scholars retort.

Again, merely appealing to simplistic, sensationalist misrepresentations of the debate is the academic equivalent of shouting “Look over there!” and running away. Stop ignoring logic when ceases to be useful.

Logical incoherence aside, a wider point must be made about atheism and the atheistic movement. Simply, they are guilty of extremism and culpable of behaving like the religious organisations they claim to stand against. Dawkins’ latest exultation is simply racist bullying and his status as a respected academic should not let him get away with his ignorant drivel. Thousands of people have subsequently sent abusive messages to Hasan in support of Dawkins. Apart from being a Muslim, what else has Hasan done?

In the words of your great leader atheists: “dogmatic belief... is pernicious and it drives people to do terrible things.”

YORK VISION

COMMENT

Tuesday April 30, 2013

13

A TURNING POINT FOR THE NUS? OSCAR PEARSON

“S Patrick Greenfield

Being disturbed in the Library? Text us on 07919293133 and we’ll help...

HARRY UN-FAIRHURST THE LIBRARY’S AUTHORITARIAN PRESENCE SIGNALS ACADEMIC WAR TOM DAVIES

T

he University library during exam time is right up there with the 38th parallel in the league table of volatile flashpoints teetering on the edge of all out violent conflict. People react in different ways to the stress and pressure.

At various points during last term’s essay deadline period I witnessed people lying face down on the floor, doing Tai Chi in the middle of Harry Fairhurst and in one particularly memorable incident heard what appeared to be someone typing on a laptop in a JB Morrell toilet cubicle. During these peak times of the year you have a situation where thousands of

A new cadre of staff armed with stopwatches now patrols the library’s corridors students are cramped together in one, not exactly enormous space. Tempers get frayed, people behave irrationally.

So you can cry rejoice and scream praises to the Library staff for helpfully wading in with its new policies, coming into action during its sinisterly named “Behaviour Awareness Week”.

These policies are a new “Snitch Hotline” in which you can text in and cheerfully rat out irksome fellow students to the Library black shirts, who will presumably then take them to an alley out back and rough them up for you, and a new cadre of staff with stopwatches who will rove the library confiscating unattended items after

thirty minutes to free up valuable space.

I can’t imagine what could possibly go wrong with any of that. Many thanks.

Like all inherently Fascist organizations the University library no doubt views this as being for our own good, and after all they are introducing it in lieu of feedback from students.

But really, it doesn’t take a tremendous amount of imagination to see this scheme’s potential for descending into farce, and not in a good way.

You can almost picture it can’t you, a third year student working on a dissertation, stuck and stressed out, vents his frustration by having a first year ejected for eating his crisps too loudly. Another student goes for a cigarette break and returns to find their laptop and bag have been removed by the library police because some tense, overtired, raggedy denizen of the bookshelves without a seat protested that they had been “gone for absolutely ages” to the patrolling grey polo-shirted sentinels.

It would not take long before this Library Inquisition truly lived up to their Spanish inspiration, with almost everyone informing on almost everyone else all the time, creating an atmosphere of paranoid hysteria.

The Library’s decision to weigh in on what is ultimately an extremely unstable situation of coexistence between a large group of anxious, sleep-deprived individuals is frankly absurd. For one thing, by what measure do the library care to define disruptive behaviour?

Ultimately, the staff will be relying on the testimony and judgment of people who are most likely verging on mentally unstable. Are they really placing that much trust in someone off their face on Pro Plus who has barely slept in a week? Similarly by what method is it going to be worked out exactly how long a bag has been left at a desk for with any real accuracy, and that’s not even get-

ting started on the potential abuse of the system, which even if we’re talking about a tiny minority of cases, has got to outweigh the positives of the scheme.

It all rather reminds me of the story of the man who tried to get rid of his rodent infestation by releasing snakes into his house. It’s haphazard attempt to try and solve what is, let’s face it, a relatively minor problem bears the risk of causing a larger one. Is this really what we need, to feel watched and on trial at the Library? People are surely already under enough pressure without having to constantly look over their shoulders and ensure they are adhering to the letter of Debrett’s New Guide to Etiquette and Modern Mannersat all times. Do we get to the stage where a sharp, collective intake of breath is drawn every

Ultimately, staff are relying on the testimony and judgment of people who are most likely verging on mental breakdowns time somebody takes their phone out?

Being disrupted in the Library, is annoying, sure. Someone talking loudly when you’re trying to work or using up valuable space, yeah, I can see why it would stick in your craw. But is this kneejerk authoritarianism a la The Lives of Others really the solution? Come on, seriously? Call me a paranoid, swivel-eyed, card carrying member of the tin foil hat brigade if you like, but the new “Library Police” is surely a step in the totalitarian wrong direction. This step seems to me to be an ill-advised and poorly thought out interjection on behalf of the library with potentially chaotic results.

he’s in charge of something she never attended and doesn’t have a clue about. She will surely become a Labour politician one day,” said Bobbo from London, a commentator on the Daily Mail’s website after Toni Pearce was elected NUS President earlier this month.

Yes, it’s the Mail and yes, it’s a silly dig at lefty politics, but hasn’t Bobbo got a point?

Pearce is the first NUS President who has not been to university. She doesn’t even believe in it. “Neither of my parents went to university and they are two of the most inspirational people I have ever met,” she has said. “The idea of taking three years out of your life, full-time, when you can’t earn much money, just to get yourself into debt? It’s just not attractive to me.”

Well, what a statement that is. The overwhelming majority of students “represented” by the NUS (not particularly the preferred choice of terminol-

It is a step back by the NUS at a time when students are beginning to realise how undemocratic and unrepresentative it truly is. ogy) are in Further Education and more than 95 percent of all HE and FE unions are members. And in her NUS role as vice-president for further education she claimed Britain is “run by Oxbridge.”

Isn’t it just a bit ridiculous that someone who has never experienced life as a university student takes on the task of representing hundreds of thousands of them nationwide? It is a step back by the NUS at a time when students are beginning to realise how undemocratic and unrepresentative it truly is.

Pearce may well bring a breath of fresh air to student politics, but I just can’t seem to grasp what she actually intends to do in her new role. “Between now and 2015 we need to hold a full and frank debate about what education means to society and to properly articulate the public value of education in communities up and down the country,” she announced after being elected President. So what does she actually mean?

It is one thing to make speeches but it takes more to make substantial changes. We must see a major shift in style by the NUS this year; whether it is making a considerable effort to become more representative of its students, or cutting back on their utterly pointless and expensive demonstrations (it was even admitted last week that as a result of #demo2012 the NUS “appeared less credible as an effective campaigning organisation”).

And that news comes after Cardiff University held a referendum on their NUS membership earlier this month. Other institutions, perhaps even York, may well follow suit.

The NUS should be at the forefront of practical, truthful and rational debate about how it can approach student concerns. Instead, over the past year it has prevented any meaningful input into decisionmaking from the student community and has applauded news of a former Prime Minister’s death.

I just hope Bobbo, myself and every other student who has lost confidence in the NUS as a representative body are proved wrong over the next twelve months. Good luck Toni, you’re going to need it.

14 COMMENT

NOT HAVING IT ALL OLYMPIA SHIPLEY

O

ver Easter I have heard much about Sheryl Sandberg, the Facebook CEO who has just published Lean In, a memoir with advice to women about succeeding in business and the boardroom. It has certainly caused some debate about why there are so few women in business, but it is by no means the only recent offering of advice to women on how to achieve certain goals.

“Have-it-all” is a phrase I despise, and when I heard Sheryl Sandberg say that she hated it too, I instantly liked her. My dislike of the phrase, like Sandberg’s, comes from the fact that it is only ever applied to women and not men. It creates a stigma not only around women who choose to have a career as well as children, but also families who choose for the male partner to take on most of the childcare and, finally, women who decide not to have children at all. The latter become defined as the women who sacrificed “happiness” for their careers.

Their success has to be tainted somehow.

There is a long tradition of handing out advice to young women on when to get promoted, on when to get married and on when to get pregnant, completely ignoring the fact that not everyone wants all of those things.

Now I have not read Sheryl Sandberg’s book, but I do not think that she is trying to tell me how to live my life.

Rather, she’s reflecting upon the discriminations she’s faced as a woman in the workplace, and offering me advice on how to get over them. Whether I agree with it or not is my own decision.

What annoys me in the endless advice offered to young women is the assumption that I have no other option but to follow. There is a constant promotion of this one happy ideal of “have-it-all”. It is not Sandberg who makes me angry, but people like Susan Patton, one of the first female Princeton graduates. She advised female students at her old university to find a man whilst they were there and marry him. The justification was “we have almost priced ourselves out of the market”.

Perhaps the most insulting comment she made, however, that while a man may marry a woman less intelligent than himself, particularly if she is “exceptionally pretty”, a woman should “can’t” marry a man below her “intellectual equal”. It is sad to think that she places so much emphasis both on how the body image of a woman matters more than her mind, and that relationships are based entirely on how learned the man is. It is insulting to suggest a man without a certain education is not capable of love and support.

I have always believed that feminism is “the right to choice”, not just for women, but for men. And I have the choice to find a partner beyond the confines of my university. I would be surprised if anyone reading this, male or female, didn’t feel the same. The idea of women having to limit themselves in order to “have-it-all” is not an intelligent one.

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

MORE GOVIAN RUBBISH

LENGTHENING THE SCHOOL DAY IS ANOTHER TERRIBLE IDEA FROM MICHAEL GOVE

MICHAEL COOPER

M

ichael Gove this week has taken his mission to become this coalition’s most hated figure to new extremes after announcing his plan to lengthen school days and shorten holidays.

His cited reason for the educational overhaul is to keep up with the Chinese and not get left behind in the so-called ‘global race’. The manner of Gove’s policy making is currently in the style of a honed buffet veteran, picking and choosing select scholarly portions from a variety of countries with the aim of curating the perfect, streamlined educational dish.

As anyone unfortunate enough to have tried fusion food will know, the outcome is rarely as grand – in picking and choosing pieces from other countries’ schools, all Gove is doing is creating a mismatched system of ideas that will not necessarily work cohesively.

My main qualm with this policy comes from a lack of understanding of what issues he is trying to solve. Gove says that families find holidays hard to deal with and I understand that; for families in which both parents work and for single parents, holidays will be difficult and the idea of breaking up the summer holidays is not a new one. But getting rid of them all together seems absurd. Surely the purpose of schools should be the nurturing of children’s minds,

teaching life skills and encouraging the right attitude. These are feats achievable both at school and at home. The Conservative’s education secretary does not seem to be interested in individualism however.

His curriculum is heavily centred on teaching children a set of preordained facts rather than nurturing a set of malleable skill directed at problem-solving and initiative.

The whole idea stinks of another overly optimistic directive by an educational dictator, something that Gove seems to be becoming. As much as I can sympathise with parents over the issue of holidays, I am unable to believe a widespread desire for school days to be lengthened exists. The average hours of work have been steadily increasing leaving quality family time to be pushed to the peripheries of the day.

There is also a practical side to the issue. British children, much as British adults, are acclimatised to an 8 hour day.

Whilst other countries have education systems that offer more hours, these thrive as part of a national attitude that only generations of regularity can instil. British children, at least initially, will be too tired to teach. I’m not however, completely against the premise. I would love to see investment in after-school activities for example. If Gove were to make provision for children from disadvantaged backgrounds to do more sport or music after school, I would welcome in the reform as a means of teaching valuable skill sets, offering a bit of tranquillity and relieving the strain for over-worked parents. But the only reason he wants children in schools longer is to plague them for another few hours a day

with a sterile curriculum that is almost completely void of any creativity. Furthermore, despite what the en vogue negativity felt towards the current system would suggest, a line of thought only encouraged

by Gove’s party, Britain’s schools score exceedingly highly on an international scale. If there are schools that can deliver excellent education on the current hours, then perhaps length of day is not the issue.

It is obvious that teachers will be frothing at the mouths with these proposals. As it is only too clear Gove will not expect them to be paid more for their extra work; an expectation in line with the teacher-bashing rhetoric of highly divisive education secretary. With the notions of performance-related pay and sacking those who under-perform being currently entertained, Gove’s plans less resemble education reforms than banking regulation. It really concerns me how far running schools in the mode of profit making institutions will get us; probably to the educational equivalent of the financial crisis. His ideological position is destructive to our education system, offering policy after policy based on ideas, not evidence, and appearing more concerned with returning to romanticised ideal of the past rather than forging the education system of the future. But all is not lost. Among academics and educationalists there is much talk of the second ‘great debate’ on education. The first took place during Callaghan’s government in 1976 and as more and more people get behind the idea, Gove may be forced to listen. Let’s hope together we can win this debate, and bury this educational tyrant and his ideas forever.

WE ARE ALL FASCISTS AT HEART EVERY SPORTS TEAM IS FASCIST BY DEFINITION, LEAVE DI CANIO ALONE

BEN SMITH

T

he recent publicity that controversial figure Paolo Di Canio received after his appointment as the manager of Sunderland has not exactly been positive to say the least. Nonetheless, the way in which the media has portrayed Di Canio’s political leanings appears to me to be nothing more than a calculated personal attack. The storm cloud erupted immediately following the appointment, heightened by David Miliband’s resignation from Sunderland’s board on ‘political’ grounds. Is this not the same man who had, just days before, announced his resignation from Parliament in order to earn obscene amounts of money at a charity in New York? Probably just a coincidence.

Di Canio has previously voiced his admiration for Italian leader Benito Mussolini and has expressed a personal sympathy towards certain fascist principles. Indeed, as far as ideologies go, Fascism does not have the best reputation. Much of the negative reaction comes from its perceived marriage to racism and bigotry. However, fascist ideologies say little about race. Fascism, in essence, promotes strong leadership, and a kind of group solidarity that ostracises those who do not conform. In the past, this has led to certain racially fuelled violence, but the two are not inextricably bound together. It is perfectly legitimate

therefore for one to claim, as Di Canio did when he said “I’m a fascist, but not a racist”.

A healthy respect for authority is a value that is instilled in us all, both at home and at school, during our formative years, and is the cornerstone of functional and successful societies. Moreover, the notion that no individual is superior to the whole is essential to working as part of a team.

Equally, strong leadership is a quality that has been valued in societies for thou-

A healthy respect for authority is a value that is instilled in us all, both at home and at school, during our formative years, and is the cornerstone of functional and successful societies. sands of years, and is no less true today.

Given that Di Canio is not a politician, and as he has admitted previously he does not even vote, the practical application of the ideology must therefore be assessed in terms of its sporting function. Football is a team game, and the kind of togetherness that fascism teaches is essential in sporting success. Many of the most revered team successes in history have come about through the kind of fascist mentality that

we are so quick to label abhorrent and evil.

Even more striking is the extent to which strong sporting leaders are deified in our society, to such a degree that society even encourages the very fascist characteristics we are repeatedly forced to detest. It is therefore not incorrect or even outlandish to say that all team sportsmen are ideologically fascist, and maybe Di Canio is the only individual willing to admit it.

Paolo Di Canio’s eclectic mixture of influences includes, amongst other things, a respect and admiration for samurai culture. The samurai code promotes the kind of respect and honour to an extreme level, where participants in their culture are expected to disembowel themselves at the drop of a hat. Now, I’ve seen The Last Samurai, and we are definitely on Tom Cruise’s side throughout the film.

So why is Di Canio’s affection for this extremist version of a fascist warrior class acceptable, but its more ideological and mellow cousin the cause for national outcry? The only reason for this comes from the way in which popular culture has shaped the way we are supposed to think.

The hypocrisy with which the media have acted in relation to Di Canio’s views is clearly lost on their reporters. In a nation that claims to support freedom of speech, the way in which Di Canio has been ostracised due to the fact that he believes something different to the norm seems itself quite fascist. On the pitch, Di Canio’s blend of passion, leadership and togetherness has been a resounding success. Even if he is the model fascist, Sunderland fans don’t care one bit.

15

FEATURES

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

FEATURES

www.yorkvision.co.uk/features features@yorkvision.co.uk

RO-MANIA!

GEORGE HESSELGREN investigates what the opening of our borders to Romanian immigrants will mean for the UK

A

UKIP candidate has made headlines this week after suggesting people “adopt the Japanese practice of wearing a face mask” to avoid tuberculosis after barriers to Bulgarian and Romanian immigrants are lifted next year. This incident, among others, has caused a stir, particularly amidst an enveloping political climate that has become increasingly hostile towards immigrants.

The 1st January 2014 will mark the end of the transitional controls on the movement of people between Bulgaria and Romania to the United Kingdom. Effectively the UK, in just over seven months, will be open to everyone and anyone from Romania and Bulgaria.

The issue has become steadily more obsessed about in the press and by political leaders as we approach 2014. Nigel Farage, back in December, in an attempt to rally support against the European Union, claimed that “If I was Bulgarian I’d be packing my bags now, getting ready to come to the UK on an unrestricted basis, in the secure knowledge that if I can’t get work, I’d get benefits and housing.”

Eric Pickles, meanwhile, has declared that he has no confidence in figures published on his department’s website predicting that only 13,000 will arrive. Migration Watch UK has put the predicted figure at 50,000 that will arrive.

The reality is that any figure thrown out is mere speculation.

It is important, though, to rise above the numbers game and agenda driven reports and pick apart what the opening of our boarders to Eastern Europe will actually mean.

Many have looked to play down the actual numbers that will

‘flood’ the UK. As Romanian PM Victor Ponta put it, “those who wanted to migrate to the UK have already done it.” In fact, the climate, culture and language similarities have made moves to Spain and Italy more appealing to many ambitious Romanians. The risk that UK services will become over stretched by weight of sheer numbers certainly looks dubious.

Another stick used to hit out against the idea of the opening up of our boarders has been to conflate Eastern Europeans with an apparent welfare and benefits crisis that seems flavour of the month with the centre-right media. Ian Duncan Smith had previously slammed Europeans who “use the free movement rules just to travel around, looking for the best benefits they can get.” Yet, statistics have shown that it is typically inaccurate to brand migrants from Eastern Europe as mere ‘social/ welfare tourists.’ The majority of current Eastern European migrants don’t claim benefits at all, far less than the British population anyway.

Migration has also hugely benefitted the British economy, despite being at an increasingly unsustainable level since Labour’s open door policy. The economic migrants have, on the whole, paid tax, diversified the economy and worked hard, proven by official reports in school performance thus raising the standard of education.

The Forum of Romanian Student Societies in the UK, which the York Romanian Society currently holds presidency of, have gone as far as issuing a press release on the topic that dismisses the ‘radical views’ held in the British press. It is dismissive of reports

National Pride: An advertisement ran by a Romanian newspaper

A group of Roma travellers setting up camp on Park Lane, London that Romanians will decrease the minimum wage, take advantage of welfare provisions or that substantial amounts will even come to the UK, as Romanians who wanted to come are already here.

So why, then, has there been such a furore over the further opening of our boarders next year? The problem is that, so far, we have only really encountered mass immigration in the context of educated and aspiring Eastern Europeans.

The likelihood is, though, that it will be the influx of Eastern Europe’s large Roma population which will cause the most and biggest problems. Romania is currently home to over 600,000 Roma, while Bulgaria is Europe’s poorest nation with more than half of the population living below the breadline. The EU regulations that meant Eastern Europeans had to have worked for twelve months before being allowed to claim for unemployment or housing benefits have been scrapped.

It resonates with what Nigel Farage has been shrieking about when he weighs in on his favourite topic of conversation: that a poor Roma family can’t be blamed for claiming what they would have a right to if they resided in the UK, and how officials in Bucharest had told him that the ‘Roma problem’ was now Britain’s.

Standing outside a London nightclub over Easter I was approached by a middle aged woman clutching a few red roses. Through very broken English I learned that

she was in fact a Roma traveller originally from Eastern Europe.

She was at pains to convey how much better her life was living in Britain. When I eventually bought one of her roses, the resulting sense I got from her was one of relief and gratitude.

However, UKIP do seem to have a point. I spoke to Maddy Cretu, a Romanian student studying in Lyon, about the Roma. “What really disturbs me is their behaviour,”

in complaints about noise and anti-social behaviour. Meanwhile, workers at the Louvre in Paris recently went on strike, closing down the gallery due to the issue of staff and visitor safety. A dramatic rise in pickpocketing and intimidation from mostly poor Eastern Europeans had finally caused frustrations to boil over.

The major problem for Britain in this respect is that any attempts to finance an inclusion of

It is important to see beyond the numbers game and pick apart what the opening of our boarders to Eastern Europe will actually mean for the UK she said. “I know this may sound a bit shallow, but the majority of Roma people who come from Romania are quite well known for their inappropriate behaviour.”

She noted “begging” and “dealing drugs” as some of the “inappropriate” activities of the Roma.

What Maddy found most disturbing, though, was the association made by French people between her, a normal Romanian, and the Roma. Again, it all suggests that it isn’t hard working economic migrants from Eastern Europe we should be concerned about, but the potential problems a wave of Roma might bring that have been showcased in France.

France has suffered badly at the hands of the estimated 400,000 Roma living there. Hollande’s Socialist government recently ‘declared war’ on the immigrant communities after a huge rise

Roma would be difficult due to the lack of intelligence on their actual numbers. This is despite the European Union setting aside billions of Euros for social inclusion projects.

Overall, we must note that it is important to not entertain the perception that the Roma people are the same as many other Eastern Europeans we will inevitably encounter. The likelihood is that we won’t see too many Romanians and Bulgarians arrive in Britain in the next few years anyway. The initial wave we have let ourselves in for looks set to be a steep increase in the number of Roma settling in the country. Who knows what will happen here, and what social problems this might entail, but the major winners from all of this will surely be Nigel Farage and UKIP in the run up to the 2015 General Election.

16 FEATURES

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

AN INTERVIEW WITH

TOM ARMSTON-CLARKE chats to journalist Harriet Sergeant about her rec

“T

hanks to Gordon Brown, single working men are the poorest of the poor”.

Harriet Sergeant, journalist, author and research fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies, has had an inspiring and expansive career for over three decades. Not only an avid presence on our TV screens or in the Sunday paper, Sergeant has also released three thought provoking books, commenting on varying social and political events: her most recent release Among the Hoods: My Years With a Teenage Gang won over critics with her hands on investigation into the gang culture that fuelled the 2011 London riots.

I was lucky enough to meet the author to discuss benefits, gangs and the London Riots. I immediately ask how long Sergeant has wanted to be a writer, to which she answers that writing actually found her soon after she graduated from Oxford University. “I was trying to escape getting married to a person who I didn’t want to get married to.” Taking the leap, she moved to South Africa, where her mother was from and many family members lived. She stayed for an entire year during which she wrote endlessly, and produced her first book focusing on the events and effects of the apartheid. Soon after that tumultuous year Sergeant moved to

Shanghai, where she began to write her hugely successful second book, centred on the rich and fascinating history of the city throughout the 1920s and 1930s.

Many critics argue however, myself included, that her most recent work Among the Hoods: My Years With a Teenage Gang is her best work to date. Her journalistic

poses,” so I asked Harriet what her thoughts were on this. “The thing is that people love stories and love characters, and he is a grotesque character and it is an extraordinary story, so it is no surprise why suddenly everyone is interested is talking about it.” Harriet goes on further to say that the welfare state did not create Philpott but a lot of

The thing is that people love stories and love characters, and he is a grotesque character and it is an extraordinary story skill shines through this book, essentially about a middle-aged, middle class white woman who spent years getting to know an infamous London gang. To give an idea of the bizarre and intriguing story, their meeting took place outside a chicken takeaway on Knight’s Hill, South London, and led to an extensive friendship.

On the subject of this fascinating tale, I am eager to question Sergeant about her opinion on the recent incident about the Philpott family, having garnered much media attention recently. Alex Massie said in The Spectator: “The Philpott case is horrific: so is the attempt to hijack it for any political pur-

Among the Hoods is arguably Seargent’s most gripping work

his behaviour was influenced by what he could get out of the welfare state.

Many argue this whole political row began after George Osborne questioned whether the state should be “subsidising” lifestyles like his, and Sergeant tells me how she agrees that the government should not be subsidising a way of life similar to his, however this is a very extreme case. There are millions, almost 30 million people who receive one form of benefit or another and we should be careful to not think so naïvely that simple reform can stop atrocities such as this one from occurring.

As Harriet points out it’s not the benefits but the tax credits that are the main problem, “A man and a woman who earn the same amount have very different finances at the end of the month.” Furthermore, according to The Times a working mother benefits far more from the working tax credits than a man and can live very comfortably whereas a man will struggle to make ends meet. The figures used to illustrate this case involved a mother who is entitled to working tax credit, child tax credit, council tax, housing and child benefit, compared to a single man.

We move on to talk about benefits, and her experience with the people most affected by this issue during her time with the London gangs. She talks of one former gang member who she is still in contact with who cannot afford to live on his wage of £14,000 a year, even with the help from the state. “It is tragic how I know so many people in similar circumstances, who work full time jobs but do other things on the side just to make ends meet and pay the bills, not out of want but out of necessity.”

More and more men in particular have been forced into this situation. A very interesting point that Harriet informs me of is that there is a prominent race divide, in that black men are much less likely to go ‘onto the dole’ than white men: “From the people I talked to, it is clear to see how these boys think it’s totally immoral to go onto benefits, as well it being a sign of a losing”. This ideology is an inter-

It is widely said gang culture fu esting one, and shows the vicious nature of gang culture; struggling for money elsewhere often results in these individuals finding financial security by virtue of illegal routes. Sergeant argues something needs to be done to ensure that these youths can get a job in which they can earn enough money to support themselves without resorting to crime.

There has been a detrimental collapse in the relationship between poor black youths and the government. “They think that there is a conspiracy against them by the government,” added Sergeant. “Increasingly young black men feel they do not have the chance to earn enough money to support their family, so the women don’t want them and therefore in a sense the government is taking their role as a husband and also as employer.” This is obviously an extreme view point but one can see where they are coming from. When an anger and frustration with the government starts so early on in these people’s eyes, it will just progress to get worse and worse, forming a cyclical form of disappointment and disillusion.

We discussed the household benefits cap of £26,000 which many, especially on the left of the political spectrum, have complained about.

There are claims that it will send more and more into poverty. “There are roughly 30 million tax payers in

England and we are being told that benefits will be capped at £26,000 but around 17 million tax payers are living on less than that as it is,” added Sergeant. With the cost of benefits rising every year surely a cap on their maximum makes perfect sense. Benefits are also rising twice as quickly as wages, and have increased by 20% over the course of the past five years compared to a mere 12% rise in wages.

We move on to a topic for which Sergeant is most well-known for, and one that she is passionate

The riots were th members of Londo ‘area’. All feuds b were paused i about, the presence and spread of gang culture in London. After writing reports on the working class at the Centre for Social Studies she became more and more interested in gangs, and what they represent and reflect about our society. Strikingly, the way she talks of the members she met over her years in that environment is of such warmth that it is almost shocking, considering the way the same people are pictured in the media. After taking three of

YORK VISION

FEATURES

Tuesday April 30, 2013

17

H HARRIET SERGEANT

cent book exploring gang culture, and her views about all things political...

uelled the London Riots in 2011 them to lunch because they mentioned how they were always hungry, they opened up to her and were very kind and genuine. In a slightly odd way they offered to repay her for lunch by stealing her a present, a laptop and a disabled parking permit were both offered, obviously she declined.

I ask whether the London riots were a way of the working class youths showing their anger at the government for their failings. She explains how there wasn’t a political message but an opportunity,

he first time when on gangs left their between the gangs if only briefly and makes an interesting point that very few have considered. “The riots were the first time when members of London gangs left their ‘area’. All feuds between the gangs were paused if only briefly. It wasn’t anything political. In fact they said it was just the best day out”.

One of the former gang members who Harriet was working with recently described the riots as “like playing Grand Theft Auto but in real life.” The police and courts

were determined to punish any of those who took part in the riots, and spared nobody it appears. This in itself caused controversy across the country, as some believed that they weren’t punished harsh enough whilst others believed that they were punished too severely.

Seargent revealed her thoughts on the matter: “I think they were right to punish the culprits harshly because it was an extremely dangerous situation”. On the subject of criminal justice I ask Sergeant about life after prison, about those who go to jail and suffer the difficulties of not being able to adapt to the ‘real world’ after being released.

Britain currently has a reoffending rate of 26.9%, with approximately 70% of 18-25 year olds reoffending in their first year.

With the job market as it is currently, and with so many people applying for the same job, it allows the employer to be fastidious in hiring for jobs. In England you have to declare any prison sentence over two and a half years to any potential employer. I ask Harriet what she thinks about this, specifically how it affects criminals, gangs and former gang members, to which she replied: “It is a horrible sight to see the heartbreak it causes when young, good, hardworking people are unable to get jobs.”

Who is to blame? Is it society or government or both? Harriet

explains how most young people on the streets do not have father figures, so consequently these teenagers look up to their elders. According to Sergeant: “Tuggy Tug, (one gang member), had a plastic bag filled with letters from his social workers saying how they had arrived in his life and were willing to help. A few months later, however, they would depart due to some wonderful new initiative, leaving him totally alone in the same place where he started. Not one social worker came with him to the job centre, and that’s scary when the people who are supposed to have your back don’t. Where do you turn then?”

I asked how the recent £9,000 fee cap will affect these young people from applying to university., to which Harriet replied with some depressing news. “There were a few years ago, approximately 75,000 boys on free school meals and only 75 came away with 3 As at A level”.

The rise in fees was less than supported by the majority of the country, with many of the Left angered, saying that it will discourage the poor from going to university. But with a fact like that, maybe it’s time to ask, was university ever an option for these young people? In the same year Eton sent over 150 pupils to university with three As. The boys feel let down by education in general, and a lot of inner city state schools in London are struggling. There is a widespread opinion that boys and girls learn differently, and that young boys need lots of activity and exercise which these schools simply can not offer. Due to this a significant number of youngsters look outside school for activity and often result in turning to gangs.

We discussed a Channel 4 documentary Second Chance in which a boy, from one of the country’s roughest council estates, is sent to an expensive public school. Before the move, his bad behaviour had forced the headmaster of his comprehensive in Putney to write to his mother, as many as three times a week, once describing him as “rude and unmanageable.” The show was designed to prove that someone’s environment could influence their development. Throughout the course of the show the young man became an academic high-flyer, excelling in Latin, as well as becoming a talented rugby player. However, in the end the boy was expelled as he found the transition from school term time, to being back home with his old friends, too difficult to manage. Sergeant believes that boys require competition and discipline, and where they find this differs according to their social background, but “a gang is no more hierarchical or disciplined or competitive than a rugby team.”

Recently Education Secretary Michael Gove urged for longer

school days and shorter school holidays in an attempt to improve the education standard in England.

The headteacher’s union ASCL said: “Quality of learning was more important than hours spent in the classroom.” When asked about what her thoughts were on this and how it would affect gangs in particular, she said: “The first sunny day, when most people would wish to be spending it outside, they (the gang members) immediately talk about being frightened, as it would mean more gang presence on the streets.

I spoke to grown men who spent all

absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to go, and so consequently these young boys and girls turn to crime.” There are numerous courses for kids throughout the majority of London, but these types of activities are just not seen as accessible for the people in the gangs. Specifically this is due to movement, and the way in which gangs feel limited to a particular ‘area’, as Sergeant says: “They can’t move off their little block.”

Harriet Sergeant is a fearless reporter and a fascinating woman, whose experience and courage is

We are just leaving these kids with absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to go of summer indoors out of pure fear for their safety”.

Whilst the majority of school children count down the days until the summer holidays, it becomes a dangerous time for many people in London. Sergeant strongly believes that there is a severe lacking in opportunities and activities for people to get involved in over the summer months. “At the moment we are just leaving these kids with

an inspiration to any young journalist or writer out there. She has not only tapped the surface of gang culture, and she has written with integrity on the complex and controversial political and social issues circulating today. This captivating conversation has reaffirmed how important it is to work harder at getting these young, hardworking and extremely undervalued youths off the streets of London.

Harriet Sergeant is a journalist, writer and TV and radio personality

18 FEATURES

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

YOU’VE BEEN FRAPED

ZOE BILES discusses the dangers of society’s increasingly casual attitude to rape...

S

croll through any Facebook homepage nowadays, and it seems one is inundated with various crude, inappropriate, albeit sometimes hilarious, hacked statuses and uploads. Think about Twitter, and the constant claim of someone hacking so and so, releasing a stream of inaccurate and insulting personal messages for the world to see. Except ‘hacking’ is, today, an inaccurate phrase itself.

‘Frape’ or ‘Twape’ would be more appropriate. There is more reference to rape as a tool for humour or embarrassment than there is to its actual horrifying reality. Out of nowhere there has been a radical change in the way we use sexuality, in film, in media, in our general mindsets. However, maybe it is time to stop and consider our progressive sense of humour as a step too far, when in truth our misuse of the word shows how we still remain so igno-

and abrasive way?

Moreover, humour has seemingly become the excuse that warrants this change in attitude. It is quite terrifying to ask, but at what point did rape become funny?

Something many people do not talk about when being hacked on Facebook, is the fact that one in five women will be raped in their lifetime. Something that is not mentioned often, is how in the ten minutes it takes to do the washing up, approximately two women have been raped in the US alone.

Five year old Lama Al Ghamdi being raped, tortured and murdered by her father Fayhan Al Ghamdi in Saudi Arabia, or eighteen year old Oksana Makar from Ukraine who was raped and then set on fire by her attackers are not common subjects in casual, friendly conversations- but the word which identifies what they went through is. Facts and figures around may not detract from the severity of

How did we get from not talking about rape, to talking about it in such a casual and abrasive way? rant about the terror of rape and sexual abuse.

Indeed, the word ‘rape’ has been so trivialised by our generation that it is now intertwined within our general conversation.

A student at the University of York, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: “It’s not that I don’t find the common use of the word disrespectful, it’s just that I don’t really think about anymore. The other day my housemate said if I didn’t come and do the washing up she would send another friend in to rape me. OK, so that sounds weird out of context, but at the time I just laughed.”

What is startling is how standard the use of this word has become. Whether it is used to insult, vividly describe or humiliate, it has seeped into normality with no pause to consider its far from normal presence within society today.

How did we get there? How did we get from not talking about rape, to talking about it in such a casual

the crimes, but it definitely proves that something is very wrong about our sense of humour.

Parallel to our generalisation of rape, it has evidently become a prominent fixture and fear of our day to day lives, without us even realising it. An example of this is the way people often associate particular areas or streets with the name “Rape Alley”, to convey a fear of being alone there at a certain time for risk of being attacked. It is an overwhelming and horrible thought: that being sexually assaulted is so common and accepted, that parts of the town that are believed to be unsafe are being physically identified by that crime.

As part of the ongoing ‘One Billion Rising’ campaign, promoting the challenges and atrocities facing women globally, Bob Hughes, YUSU Welfare Officer, posted a picture of himself on Facebook holding a sign saying: “I am rising because when someone

‘Fraping’ is now a common occurrence on the social networking site

mentions ‘Rape Alley’ here, people ask: which one?” This caused a controversial debate online, as people believed using the phrase “Rape Alley” simply perpetuated the fear itself. Hughes commented exclusively for Vision, saying: “I think rape and rape culture are far too often trivialised - from it being treated as a punchline in a joke, or a way of marketing products, rape and sexual violence are serious and emotionally sensitive subjects that should not be dismissed as merely ‘banter’. The fact that we can even refer to at least two walkways in and around our campus as ‘Rape Alley’ I think sets a worrying tone, regardless of the actual threat posed. York, compared to many other cities, is very safe, but I still find the naming problematic.”

What was once limited to a banter-filled ‘frape’ is now a reflection of this country’s increasing ‘LAD culture’. Whether it is through seeing images of men pretending to rape women on nights out, or seeing celebrities such as Rihanna sing openly about bondage and S&M, our response to sexual violence has become undeniably more relaxed. This new wave attitude to the way we talk about rape and sex generally may seem harmless or amusing, but the effects of this can be huge and long lasting on generations to come. This year, the UK government released statistics showing that there had been a seven percent increase in sexual violence between the years 2009 and 2012, proving that such an open approach to this issue has not helped the thousands of people who are suffering daily.

However, today also marks a new wave in campaigns which are actively trying to stop this view of rape being generalised and seen as a casual remark. Last term the University of York was swept away by the ‘One Billion Rising’ campaign that spread through campus with events such as ‘VDay’ and a sell-out performance of The Vagina Monologues put on by Dramasoc. Men and women across the University raised wide awareness of the mistreatment of women across the world, as well as the UK, specifically targeting the ‘rape myth’ and forcing people to consider the wider, disturbing effects it can have. Furthermore, welfare officers in universities all over the UK are keen to change young people’s attitudes with operations such as ‘Catcalling is Not a Compliment’, urging students to understand that what can be considered as a bit of fun, is actually intrusive and destructive.

It is becoming increasingly more difficult to disassociate comedy with the idea of rape, as many celebrities and comedians have taken to making regular ‘joking’ remarks publicly. Recently, famous comedian Daniel Tosh made the following joke at one of his stand up performances: “Wouldn’t

The Guardian released these statistics earlier this year it be funny if that girl got raped by like, five guys right now? Like right now? What if a bunch of guys just raped her...” Tosh consequently apologises for his remark on Twitter. Seeing celebrities take such a casual attitude to rape has undoubtedly led to an increased use of the word generally. In response to Tosh’s remark, Independent journalist Nicky Clark stated: “His whole joke was based on the premise of probably the most damaging myth about rape there is. ‘She said no but she meant yes.’ If you’re a rapist looking for celebrity endorsement, you might imagine that’s the place.”

It seems perhaps that this is the biggest danger; that with more mentions of rape within a comedic or exaggerative environment, our understanding of the act has become equally as comedic and distorted. Myths and loopholes have come into existence, often providing excuses for people looking to justify rape, as stated

by Clark.

It may be seen as uncool, but there is a need for change, for a shift in how people view rape and its seriousness. There is a need for people to stop and say, “rape is NOT a laughing matter.” For the amount of jokes or casual remarks that are made about rape or sexual remarks, women and men across the world are continuing to suffer constantly.

As times change, our view of sexuality has also changed, in many ways for the better. However, our misuse and casual response to such a detrimental act is likely to lead in a huge step backwards for not only feminism and human rights, but outlooks on the gravity of rape universally.

Words are powerful, and are often the limiting factor in how we deal with social issues in this country.

Just because we are getting used to seeing rape in films or through the media should not allow us to adopt such a general and sweeping attitude, as it still haunts and affects so many people.

YORK VISION

LIFESTYLE

Tuesday April 30, 2013

19

Page 20 - Diy Fashion: Tasselled Tee Page 21 - Food For Thought Page 22 - Kealey’s Campus Confessions Page 23 - Fundawear Page 24 - Peng Shui

LIFESTYLE Sports Luxe

Get a head start at the Roses Tournament with sporty silhouettes. This season, there is more than one way to work monochrome. Take inspiration from Alexander Wang, Lacoste and Sportmax, with clean lines and dynamic shapes. Set the pace with a flash of colour in orange or lime and accessories with perspex sandals and metallic finishes.

Top, £25.99, Zara

Dress, £52, Topshop

The Detail: ANKLE STRAPS

White, £125, Aldo

Sweatshirt, £55, Whistles

Purse, £8, Topshop

Skirt, £25.99, Zara

Black, £29.99, Zara

Neon, £65, River Island

Alexander Wang

Victoria Beckham

Cotton jacket, £42 by ASOS

20 LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2013

DIY FASHION: Tasselled Tee

Becca-Jane Schofield shares her DIY Fashion tips...

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ith blogs like makemylemonade.com, and programmes like The Great British Sewing Bee, it’s never been more chic to make your own accessories. Who wants to walk into their lecture and find someone wearing the same t-shirt? No. You want to be the person at the club with the cutest original bag, everyone will turn their heads when they see the patch pockets on your skirt. But in this day and age who has the know how to make something from scratch? Here we tell you how to make a super stylish, fringe-y fabulous t-shirt without any special skills needed.

2. Iron out your t-shirt (we know, no one likes ironing but the fabric will pucker otherwise), then mark out where your fringing will go.

Run the fringe like a scarf from the joint of the fabric around the area of your hips, up around the neck line and back down to your other hip, creating an uber-feminine and flattering shape.

1.

3.

What you’ll need: 1 x White T-Shirt: £6 - asos.com, £4.99 - New Look 2m x 170mm Fringe: £7.20 - abakhan.com, £7.18 - ribbonmoon.co.uk Pins: c. £3 Duttons for Buttons Cotton Thread: c. £2.50 Duttons for Buttons Sewing Needle: c. £2 for 5 Duttons for Buttons

3. Pin your fringing in place and try it on. Really check you like the way it lies on your body, once it’s sewn on there’s no going back. Make sure you’ve kept the fringe edge flat against the fabric, that the fringing falls nicely, and that you don’t have any bumps or pieces of fringing stuck underneath the edging. Precision here is vital.

4.

2.

1. Gather your materials. A white tshirt works best, but if you’re feeling funky why not try some complimentary colours? Lisa off MakeMyLemonade used a silk wool upholstery fringe that you can buy at any fur4. Sew it on! Two niture store or haberdashery, but rows of simple runyou could equally use some ning stitch of approxileather beaded fringe from mately 5mm per stitch RibbonMoon for a sumshould secure your fringing mer festival vibe. on strongly, don’t be afraid to repeat the row of stitching if you feel the fringing isn’t secure. If you match the colour of your thread to the fringing, the neatness of your stitch is much less important as it will be less visible.

5.

5. Wear your gorgeous creation! And when your friends inevitably ask you where you got it from, feel free to flick your hair and proclaim with nonchalance, “Oh this? It’s a little something I knocked together the other day.” Now you know what to do, go get creative and create this beautiful tasselled look at a fraction of the cost of designer.

LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2013

21

If you go down to the gym today...

Jess Nelson weighs up the typical characters you should expect to see on a trip to the gym...

Forget Willow on a Saturday night, the wildest characters can be found at the gym.

Here are my top seven ‘gym creatures’ to spot during your next visit...

The Princess

The 'New Resolution' Generally sighted in January, the ‘New Resolution’ is on a mission to get fit.

Unfortunately, after they’ve kitted themselves head to toe in Nike, taken their induction and stepped onto the treadmill, they remember that they hate gyms. Often travelling in packs, they will appear for a handful of times after their initial bout of enthusiasm, before any visits diminish altogether.

That girl with the perfect body, full face of makeup and perfectly coiffed hair.

You will instantly hate her when you spot her across the room as you stumble, sweaty and red faced, off the treadmill.

They will either sit on the exercise bikes for half an hour texting or will meticulously demolish every piece of equipment without breaking a sweat. Either way, you will leave feeling inferior.

This guy is heard before he’s seen.

Otherwise known as ‘the Grunter,’ he puts everything into lifting those free weights. Checking his audience in the mirrors regularly he will make sure that everybody in the gym is aware of how much he just lifted. It’s just a shame that his legs resemble a stick insect.

At some point, most people have had a gym buddy – you’ll make each other go and get much more done, right? Wrong.

These ‘buddies’ spend their entire session gossiping as they barely break a sweat. You finish your workout knowing all about their latest heartbreak or one night stand the night before. As they exit the door, they are planning a big night out or dinner because turning up to the gym means they’ve ‘earned’ it.

The Poser

The Know-it-All

The Meathead

The Gym Buddies

Always there to ‘lend a hand’ if you so much as pause at a machine, the ‘Know It All’ is always keen to share their extensive knowledge on the latest gym technique, exercise or diet. Occasionally helpful, but in reality tends to be full of hot air. Whatever you do, don’t let them spot for you.

It’s not what you do at the gym, it’s what you wear right? This guy likes to think that he works hard and parties hard – and wears the same kit for both. Generally spotted in chinos or skinny jeans, working his biceps whilst taking a selfie for Instagram in the mirrors. Pout and meaningful stare optional.

Cardio Bunnies Normally spotted on the treadmill in an 80s style headband, the Cardio Bunny was born with an intense fear that even touching a weight will cause bulkiness.

Spurred on by the worry that lifting will make them into a bodybuilder, they will spend hours on the treadmill to tone their arms instead.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT Jess Harris revises your daily menu with the best student-friendly brain food for exam season...

Breakfast Scrambled eggs on wholegrain toast. Egg yolks contain choline, which aids memory development.

A cup of tea or coffee. Caffeine is actually quite useful in small doses, giving you that essential wake-up boost. Just don’t use it as a substitute for a good night’s sleep!

Lunch

Dinner

Jacket potato (don’t overload on the cheese) with a three bean or tuna salad. Beans are a great source of protein and fibre and will keep you going throughout the afternoon. Oily fish such as tuna contains omega-3 fatty acids that are essential for brain growth and function.

Wholegrain pasta in a tomato and basil sauce, with chopped vegetables. Wholegrain foods release energy slowly and tomatoes contain lycopene that protects against damage to brain cells.

You can also try a homemade vegetable curry with brown rice.

Snacks & Drinks * Nuts, especially almonds and walnuts, are great for boosting memory. Peanuts contain a high amount of folic acid, which has been shown to improve cognitive functioning – just stick to unsalted.* * Seeds – pumpkin seeds are especially good for boosting memory skills as they contain a lot of zinc * Berries contain antioxidants and vitamin C that improve cellular communication and function.

The seeds are also a great source of omega-3 fats.

It is important to keep hydrated during long revision days and water is the easiest and cheapest way to do this. The occasional fresh fruit smoothie can also give the brain a short-term boost and also taste great! Of course, endless cups of tea are a failsafe method for any student too!

Treats Flapjacks are a great revision treat, as they contain oats which release energy slowly. They’re also easy and quick to make: 250g porridge oats 125g butter or margarine 125g light brown sugar 3 tablespoons golden syrup ½ teaspoon cinnamon 40g sultanas or raisins Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius/gas mark four. Melt the butter, sugar and syrup together in a saucepan. Stir in oats and cinnamon, then pour into a baking tin lined with greaseproof paper. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Leave to cool for at least 10 minutes, then remove from the tin and cut into squares.

22 LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

Good things at university don’t come in threes.

Kealey's...

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s n o i s nfes

Co

hen you’re at university, luck comes in ones and twos, and two-ones, but never, ever threes. A ‘third degree classification’ is a life sentence you’ll spend with your parents, on job seekers’ allowance, sobbing into your pot noodle. The ‘third term’ at university might be acquainted with the Third Reich – one and two not being all that bad really, in comparison. We don’t do threes well at university. And for those of us in our third term of our third year, life as we know it is about to end. The threes have found us, like Daleks of the number world; the joy-sucking Dementors. It’s some hideous Dalek-Dementor hybrid.

That’s some really grim coitus I’m imagining right now. And so it is that the war with this number must be fought by most people, in the library cafe, and mate, we could really do with you as an ally.

There are some great things about the library. It’s pretty damn fine at the moment. Spanking.

Beautiful. If I were Central Hall I would totally tap that shit. I have spent almost my entire student loan on “jacket potato with cheese and beans please”, and I literally do not have enough love for the people who work there – my new bezzie, Sam, who works at the Costa is the only reason I’ve been able to finish my past two essays without suffering a nervous breakdown. I speak to him more than my housemates. Or parents. Or boyfriend.

However, there is one massive problem: Costa is a private company that wants the one thing we don’t have. Money. They want to make money out of us. Costa has made it impossible for us to get around their profit making. “We’re not service” we hear them squawk. As a result, Costa’s cup of tea is £1.40, which is obviously INSANE as we sometimes go for a few days without buying toothpaste or shampoo because our loan hasn’t come in.

If we ask for some hot water something which costs you NOTHING to basically find out of the ground, you charge us 40p for the cup. And we can’t recycle the cup. We have to buy a new one each time. And there is nowhere to heat food. So we can’t bring in anything other than endless sandwiches EVERY DAY OF OUR LIVES. Help me.

I guess my point is this: it is our library. Where we have to battle against the threes in the slow agony of paper cuts and key texts fines.

This place isn’t about you. It’s about us. Give us some hot water and a microwave so that we can bring our own food. You’ll still make a profit from the desperate and/or forgetful.

If I crack one more time and buy another jacket potato and a cup of tea I will have no money. I will not be able to afford my printing costs.

I will fail my degree. The threes will have won and it will be all your fault.

BLIND DATE Johnny Grout, Third year Bio-Chemistry student from Vanbrugh

Tuesday April 30, 2013

Rachel Seymour, Second year History of Art student from Vanbrugh

Hopes and fears before the blind date?

Didn’t really have any, nothing to lose, hoped it wouldn’t be awkward.

Hoped there wouldn’t be any awkward silences; feared they would be someone I hated.

What did you chat about?

Strange experiences we’d had, mice, jobs.

All sorts, mainly about each other..

If they were a Pokemon character who would they be and why??

Eevee, definitely.

Psyduck – there was more than a passing similarity between them.

Tell us something interesting that you found out about your blind date?

Her parents own forty sheep and she once worked in B&Q.

He once killed a mouse with his bare hands.

How would you describe them in three words?

Interesting, slightly shy.

Friendly, likeable, short.

On a scale of one to scrummy, how scrummy was the food?

No complaints, nice chips.

Delicious, I ate everything!

Do you think they wear dirty underwear or go commando if they run out of clean ones?

Commando.

Almost certainly dirty.

Will you be seeing them again?

I would think probably not, but you never know.

We’ve met before (somewhere!) so I’m sure we’ll meet again.

Brave enough to let Vision’s Cupid find your soul mate? Email: lifestyle@yorkvision. co.uk

Blind Date is kindly sponsored by

The Rose & Crown Pub and Restaurant

on Lawrence Street.

YORK VISION

LIFESTYLE

Tuesday April 30, 2013

23

Kiehl’s to the Rescue

Jordan Lloyd heads to Stonegate to experiment with Kiehl’s famous skin care.....

S

tepping into Kiehl’s on Stonegate is like entering an explosive fusion of Pop Art luxury. This is a contrast to their humble beginnings in New York’s East Village. They are raising money for charities like Great Ormond Street as well as collaborating with local industries like York’s own Filmore and Union.

Despite a slight fear of judgement at the state of my skin which displayed shaving hives and essay induced eye bags that Taylor Momsen would be proud of, I placed myself in the hands of the experts with the fear of a post-parade Katniss Everdeen, albeit with a glass of champagne. My reservations were gladly squashed by the assertion that Kiehl’s natural products and

clearly labelled bottles would provide my skin the tender loving care that it so sorely deserved.

Well aware of my shortcomings in the personal grooming department I expected a barrage of products to be pushed my way, but was pleasantly surprised by the resulting skin test and consultation, which suggested only a few welcome additions to my sadly lacking morning ablutions. Even better, these products neither damaged my air of machismo or my Barclays balance.

of one Lauren Conrad, who counts the brand as a personal favourite. At the very least I hoped they would remove the oily post sheen of last night’s Subway from my visage. On being informed their Crème de Corps moisturizer (£16) was being utilized by explorers in the Arctic my macho reservations calmed; as did my dark circles after regular applications of Midnight Recovery Concentrate £36, working in combination with the blessed holiday lie in and the scent of lavender aiding my sorely damaged sleep pattern.

Over two weeks I took up the mantle of product testing in the hope that a few applications of lotions and potions would leave me with the dewy, sun kissed glow

That being said application and use have been slotted into the demands of term time with a quick slap of Ultra Facial Cleanser (£15) 10 minutes before the seminar. It is

the suitability of Kiehls to withstand the demands of my, never mind other York students’, lifestyle that have made their products a daily element of my quest to tone and beautify myself before the upcoming Summer Ball and beyond.

Lauren Conrad better watch out. I may not have had my own reality series, critically acclaimed book series or clothing line, but Kiehl’s has given me a cleaner, shinier brow to furrow whilst staring at the computer in endless anguish. It is this that makes me reach for the them daily, whilst wondering whether the foaming wash would work to remove the Willow stamp that currently adorns my head with an almost comforting regularity.

Fundawear Tom Davies and Rachel Jackson take a look at Durex’s latest sexperiment...

L

ong distance relationships are never the easiest thing to keep alive, but thanks to technology, keeping in touch is a lot easier than ever before. Texts, Skype, calls and other instant messaging are all there to help along the way. However, Durex didn’t think this was enough! Durex Fundawear is the new long distance relationship helper, providing the ability to physically contact your loved one through the use of a smart phone.

The new vibrating his and hers underwear can be controlled by your partner, as they touch a spot on the app’s diagram, creating and I quote now, “a panoply of orgasmic sensations for your partner to enjoy.”

Skype has never seemed so ancient!

Although it’s quite a controversial invention, it’s hard to criticise the development in technology. Using the same receptors that are in smart phones, small vibrators are inserted in the underwear and receive signals from the smart phone, creating the world’s first well developed vibrating underwear. Sensing pressure, speed and overall intensity, the new Durex invention could become one of the most impressive romance inventions to date, helping long

distance partners all over the world.

Durex is one of those brands you never really think about all that much, but their quiet monopoly on all things carnal has been going for nigh on a hundred years now, and they seem keen on continuingly expanding their repertoire. The products section on the Durex website currently advertises a vast array of products, coming in all manner of inventive styles and flavors and some rather intricate little gadgets which are perhaps best left untouched upon in this newspaper.

But does anybody else feel like they’ve stumbled into an episode of Black Mirror here? I mean come on, you don’t have to be Mary Whitehouse or Peter Hitchens to feel a little bit unsettled by this sordid and slightly dark concept. The whole thing sounds like the sort of creation Howard Wolowitz would dream up on The Big Bang Theory. Does this one invention encapsulate the view of our society as over-sexualized, overly technology reliant and in a state of irretrievable moral decline, sliding ever more towards a sort of space age Gomorrah? Perhaps not, but it can’t just be me whose initial gut reaction is to feel a tad

uncomfortable about Fundawear. Maybe it’s a British thing.

So far all we’ve really got to go on with Fundawear is a frankly bizarre online promo video in which an Australian couple Skype each other wearing their respective sets, and repeatedly say “I wanna touch you” in a slightly surreal exchange, before the smartphones come out and much oooh errr carry-on-esque antics and facial expressions ensue. As far as I can ascertain, Fundawear is primarily designed as a tool for maintaining long distance relationships. Maintaining in the, ahem, biblical sense so to speak. You know, like a sort of advanced version of phone sex. Now, I’m led to believe that being in a long distance relationship is, broadly, a bit of a shitter, and I dare say that Fundawear is on the scale of enjoyable activities, better than a kick in the teeth. So by all means, if this strikes you as something you might like to try, knock yourself out. Far be it from us to tell you otherwise.

Durex are already calling their new product “the future of foreplay” although it seems that the product is not planned for widespread commercial release anytime

soon. However I’m reliably informed that Durex are planning on giving away sets via their Facebook page. So perhaps give that a try if you simply cannot wait for Fundawear to hit the high street (assuming of course there’s one left by the time Durex get around to mass production).

For my mind the most lucrative aspect of Fundawear is its potential for untold levels of slightly twisted practical jokery. Picture the scene. You know your other half is wearing their set in a lecture or seminar, or perhaps a job interview or on the bus. Yes, do you follow where I’m going with this?

Right well then I’ll l e t your imagination fill in the blanks on that one.

24 LIFESTYLE

YORK VISION

g eP n i u h S

Tuesday April 30, 2013

Dani Farsiani transforms your tedious revision regime with Feng Shui...

T

he start of the summer term is not the best of times at uni. However, by opening up to new ideas on how to make the revision period as pain free as possible, it will flow swiftly and before you know it.

After doing a little research into how others stay motivated during the revision period, I soon discovered people had thought of many innovative ideas, such as sticking a photo of a homeless person on their wall to remind themselves of their possible future prospects or ripping out each day of the calendar as the days pass to physically see their progression towards freedom. However, after doing some more perhaps useful research, it became apparent that many swear by Feng Shui to help them.

Feng Shui is defined as a system of spiritual laws considered to govern spatial ar-

rangement and orientation in relation to the flow of energy in Chinese thought. It is an ancient art and science developed over 3,000 years ago in China and is a complex body of knowledge that reveals how to balance the energies of any given space to assure health and good fortune for people inhabiting it. So it may prove to be helpful in relieving some stress and invigorate the mundane setting of work. Feng Shui is used by millions of people around the world, and is believed to bring good spirits to all aspects of people’s lives, including studying.

The main room in which you study in could be enhanced by adopting a few Feng Shui tips.

According

to Feng Shui beliefs, the physical positioning of objects becomes vital in gaining the most out of them. The removal of mirrors on the studying desk is also a must, as a physical reflection is supposed to double the burden on the subject and literally reinstates the arduous task of working, right in front of your eyes.

Remove all clutter and unnecessary objects from the desk as this is supposed to represent emptying the mind of unnecessary muddle and an unblemished desk is a more attractive place to work. Store notes and books in the north east of the desk and always ensure to clear the area after working. Feng Shui also strongly states to not put up any paintings of water or hue plants as this is supposed to hamper sleeping patterns, as well as concentration, both of which are vital in the revision period.

If you really can’t wait to escape, then maps can be placed in the north west of the room, symbolising eventual freedom and

future opportunities. On top of this, if one does wants to travel, it is advised to have only a crystal globe in the north west of the room which must be twirled thrice daily.

These exact details may appear overly meticulous, yet the practice of Feng Shui is based on the specific positing of objects in relation to geometry and the Earth’s movement around the Sun. Some of these ideas seem rather out-there and many of you may place them within the bracket of wishful thinking, but every little helps and you will never know what you might be missing unless you try it out!

These small changes during revision will make the end of term even more rewarding. Three months off in the summer gives ample opportunity for people to pursue whatever you wish, and when the hard work pays off, you won’t to have to think about how you arrange your lampshades or various potted plants ever again! Or - at least until next exam season!

Au pairently important issues Bradley Copper looks at an overseas alternative to summer internships...

A

s I write this article, I am waiting for confirmation of where in Italy I will be flying to over the summer. I am not going on holiday — at least, not in the strictest sense, but instead hoping to be an au pair of sorts. My real task, though, is not to attend to an Italian home, but to teach “conversational English” to the children I am placed with. And I can’t wait to leave.

Just a quick online glimpse of the countless organisations offering such opportunities reveals the fascinating world of summers abroad, whether you want to spend a month in France or the entirety of your time off in some distant corner of Asia. In fact, before settling on Italy, I deliberated over an English journalism internship in Thailand, and even considered a variety of educational courses in the USA. Not all placements involve sitting around in summer schools; for those who want to indulge in a bit more culture, it isn’t as intimidating to dive in as it may seem.

Indeed the most fantastic thing about my application — and in my experience of researching and applying, — was the simplicity of the process itself. After registering my interest, it took only a few hours to be deep in a Skype call with an American

woman advising me as to which of her company’s programs would work best for me. Was she just trying to make her own profit? Most likely — but she did nothing but make it easy for me to become comfortably engrossed in the world of volunteering abroad.

Needless to say, stuff like this looks good on your rusting CV; or at least that’s what you’ve been told. Your supervisor’s chorus of “You’ll just learn so much about another culture — and yourself !” also sounds vaguely enticing. But dig a little deeper, ask some questions, talk to some people, and you’ll soon find yourself considering a very different, and very exciting, experience.

However I’m not here to sell the idea, and as a result of my research I have a few cautionary tales to pass on. Firstly: the price; it would be amazing if everybody could go abroad cost-free, but frankly this is just not how the process works. Admittedly there are university- or charity-organ-

ised programs that can get you sponsored, but not everybody is so lucky. In other words, be prepared to spend a bit of cash.

If you are really serious about minimising your outgoings, though, find out whether your intended program includes things like your health insurance (most do), flights (most don’t), and 24/7 food costs (this one can get a bit tricky) in its price. Don’t forget that if you’re working with children you might have to fork out for your own DBS check, as well. A lot of companies out there are also picky about you having a doctor’s note symbolising your apparent medical excellence — this can cost you some extra money, too.

Try not to be too crazed with your choice of destination, either; be ambitious, but realistic. I’ve seen many a friend pursue their humanitarian dream of teaching in villages on the outskirts of another con-

tinent, only to come back despondent at their lack of inspiration drawn from the experience. It is an admirable cause, to be sure, but make sure you’re up to the task.

After all, four months of building schools across Africa may not be the best idea, especially if you’re just starting out. There are, of course, always other ways to help people.

To leave you with some parting advice, though, all I can emphasise is just how easy it was to get involved. Even if you don’t end up committing, it isn’t as daunting as it may seem just to have a few conversations and get yourself some basic information.

I can empathise with these feelings myself, as I was often put off by the faceless companies and the unreasonably depressing cheques I’d be forced to send them. Although finance nevertheless remains an issue, I can assure you that there are some surprisingly magnanimous people out there who actually care about getting you a decent placement for the cheapest price, if only you make the first move. I encourage you to do just that. But if my words lead you down the path to an appalling summer placement, then sleep easy in your uncomfortable foreign bed knowing that I am probably equally as disconcerted with my Italian placement. Probably.

SPORT

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

sport

www.yorkvision.co.uk/sport sport@yorkvision.co.uk

THE FINAL SAY

BY JAMES SCOTT

WE WAS ROBBED

SOMETHING STRANGE is afoot in the University sporting world. Week in week out we see total commitment from thousands of students, many of whom take hours out of their degree time, travelling long distances across the country to compete, training late at night in often atrocious conditions, and for no other reason than passion for their sport. Yet time after time an arbitrary and illogical promotions system often fails to recognise their exertions.

Take both our men’s and women’s University lacrosse teams. Both were in line for promotion this year; the men’s team went unbeaten playing some truly excellent lacrosse, whilst the women have shone too.

However they have not yet been promoted. Due to logic that no doubt makes sense to BUCS management, the men will go into a playoff with unbeaten Liverpool in the parallel 2A league. This will result in one of two unbeaten teams this year missing out.

However both teams would have gone up, if Leeds Met had won their promotion match. This left the York side in limbo, waiting weeks to know whether they would be promoted automatically, sent to a playoff, or not promoted at all, hardly an ideal state of affairs.

The women’s team should feel even more hard done by. After finishing level on points with Northumbria and Durham, they failed to be promoted despite having a goal difference roughly double that of either of their rivals. A rather complicated mini table was devised, and Durham were placed first despite the fact that York had bested them in their earlier encounter.

Nonetheless, Durham were still not promoted as Liverpool, in the parallel league, had a better goal difference than Durham, despite the fact it was an inferior goal difference to York’s.

Only in a parallel universe populated

IS DRINKING really a sport?

Drunken disgrace. That’s probably most of you on tour this year. No? The annual university sport tours that take place every year often quickly degenerate into just another drunken jolly. It is seemingly becoming more and more about who can drink the fastest, chunder the highest and recover the strongest than about the sport.

With many of York’s own sports teams taking their own tours this past Easter, we can only beg the question; how much sport was really played? Saloufest is the place of choice this year, its billed as the ‘biggest student sports festival’, however most par-

GET YOUR WALLETS OUT

BY TOM ARMSTON-CLARKE

Photo: Jack Western

by a world of Sepp Blatter clones could this unwieldy and counter-intuitive system be seen to be effective. We’re left in the ridiculous position where teams who deserve to be promoted aren’t, due to events occurring in leagues perhaps many tiers above them. Meanwhile, teams who think they’ve been promoted get a nasty shock when they check the small print on the BUCS website, and realise they haven’t gone up at all.

Indeed with all the caveats and bizarre permutations of the BUCS systems,which differs radically from league to league and sport to sport, you probably need a doctorate in mathematics to actually understand what’s going on.

What would be wrong with a simple one up, one down promotion system that is used in pretty much every league sport you can imagine? Even if there is a need for a playoff, at least simplify it so teams are actually aware of what they need to do to be promoted. It must be incredibly disheartening to know that however well you play, your fate is effectively out of your hands.

The whole point of BUCS was to try to garner a more uniform, professional and

coordinated approach to university sport.

Sadly the current league structures are failing to deliver this and if anything act as a hindrance to the development of university sport, preventing the cream rising to the top and in some cases acting as a disincentive to progress. Teams know their chances of promotion are infinitesimally small and at the mercy of arbitrary calculations.

Sadly, such bizarre formulations are not limited to BUCS. The much discussed points system at Varsity was nothing short of a joke. Even Roses, which has a vastly superior and more flexible system, is not immune from such madness. Climbing, a sport Lancaster is known to excel in and which York does not, is worth a massive 18 points due to failure to agree on a replacement system.

Myopic administration and systems are a constant theme in university sport, and perhaps sport in general. If university sport wants to develop further and do justice to the blood, sweat and tears its participants put in week in week out, a consolidated and rationalised points and league structure is vital .

ticipants seem intent on several days of boozing rather than playing.

But despite there being inter-university tournaments on during the day it frequently seems to become a competition to see who can drink the most the fastest, with students necking back shot after shot.

Even those who make it to the field of play are trying to piece together the night before while dealing with the hangover from hell. Others meanwhile are setting up the next drinking game for as soon as sport is finished for the day.

Not dismissing the fact that sports tours are great for the camaraderie of a team and strengthening the bonds within the group, frequently this camaraderie

goes way too far, and in fact may exclude those who don’t feel comfortable in such an environment.

There needs to be a change in the mindset of how we approach sports tours. Many expect round-the-clock drinking, parties and if they’re lucky, a cheeky pull. A traditional sports tour focuses on the sport. I’m not saying that going out and having a few drinks isn’t fine, but does it really need to be taken to an excessive level?

In a modern society where binge drinking and unruly behaviour is so common the ’what goes on tour, stays on tour’ attitude will no doubt live on. However in a modern, competitive sporting environment, does this cut it anymore?

A DRUNKEN DISGRACE

BY CAITLIN GRAHAM

25

EVERY YEAR the University of York competes with Lancaster in the most prestigious sporting event of the calendar year. With hundreds of athletes competing in nearly 40 sports, it is one of the highlights of everyone’s year.

Lancaster have spent double what York have on new facilities in recent years, and they are still developing new ones. This gives them an edge, and enables their students to partake in a multitude of sports to a much higher standard.

Climbing at Roses is what clay pigeon shooting was at Varsity. It is a sport with 18 points on offer, and it is no surprise that Lancaster are huge favourites to take all the points: they have a climbing wall whereas York do not. This is merely one of many sports in which Lancaster towers over York in facilities and sporting opportunity.

York currently sits 42nd in the BUCS standings. The likes of Exeter, Loughborough, Birmingham and Bath clutter up the top five year in year out. It all comes down to money: as the old saying goes “you have to speculate to accumulate.” If York truly wants to compete with the big guns in BUCS then we have to open our wallets.

Growing up in Bath, I have seen the effects of investing millions into facilities, and the rewards are now rolling in. The British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) now rates it as the second best sporting university after Loughborough.

If the University invests money in facilities, students who take their sport seriously would be more likely to apply to York. We would rise in the tables, and more students with sporting ability would apply. It would not happen overnight, but it would slowly create a snowball effect.

This is a top-down theory, but I believe that the athletes themselves can do much to awaken the University to the problem of funding. If the teams took themselves more seriously, and applied a more professional approach week in week out, results would follow. With these results, the University would find it hard to ignore the calls for better facilities or coaching or both.

Either way it is not an overnight solution. It will take years and years, and until then we can only train hard and prepare ourselves as best we can for Roses. With the home advantage I do not have any doubts that we can beat Lancaster despite the size of their wallets. Who said size matters?

26 SPORT YES/NO: COLLEGE CUP ON THE JLD

VISION DEBATES WHETHER THE COLLEGE CUP SHOULD MOVE TO THE 3G PITCH FROM THE JLD ASTOTURF

MICHAEL THURLOWAY

YES

AH THE JLD, bane of a goalkeeper’s life. I find that the week between games in the college cup is just about long enough for the scars on your knees and elbows to heal before you open them up anew.

Astroturf is not the ideal surface on which to play football. It’s rough and bouncy, and sliding is prohibited. It also lacks actual football markings. Organisers have made the best of a bad job in years gone by.

But with the huge investment made to York Sport Village, it’s time to move the cup to the 3G. It’s as near to real grass as you can get. The college 3rds league has been playing there all season, and in 12 matches for Alcuin 3rds, I’ve had nowhere near as many scrapes from the surface as in last year’s cup.

Of course a big part of College Cup is the crowds. While some would begrudge the trip to Hes East, there is a free bus which goes straight to the Sport Village.

I’m sure the crowds would still flock.

The College Cup is the pinnacle of college sport at York, with no exceptions.

It is the most sought after accolade. It should be played on the best possible surface. There can be no doubt that the best surface is the 3G.

DAVE WASHINGTON

NO

TO PUT it frankly the JLD is the home of the College Cup, the Wembley of college football. Over the years a close association has developed between the two. Moving the beloved competition to the soulless 3G would only rip the heart out of the competition.

Of course the 3G surface would be more conducive to good football, and the players might prefer to play on a surface which doesn’t cause horrible grazes every time you fall over, but the tournament simply wouldn’t be the same.

The 3G is in the far realms of Heslington East, meaning that supporters or interested onlookers would be reluctant to make the long trip to watch their college.

Apart from Roses, there is no sporting event that grips campus like the College Cup, and a large part of that is down to the accessible nature of the JLD which for many people is only a short walk away. The 3G requires a bus ride or a long walk, before you are greeted by a ferocious wind and the road noise of the A64.

If the College Cup moved over to the 3G then crowds would decrease, the atmosphere would be hampered and the whole tournament would be impacted in a negative way.

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

BIG INTERVIEW: LINVOY PRIMUS OSCAR PEARSON SPEAKS TO THE FOOTBALLING CULT HERO AND PORTSMOUTH FC LEGEND

“YOU ARE admired by a number of people, but who’s your hero?”

“Jesus.”

Linvoy Primus is one of the most loved and respected professional footballers of his generation, only recently deciding to hang up his boots in order to focus on his charity work with ‘Faith and Football’. Primus took the opportunity to chat to Vision about his memories, aspirations and faith.

“My first memory was when I was four or five years old,” Primus began, speaking of his childhood. “I was being pushed on a swing by my cousin.”

Born and brought up in London, Primus was regularly taken to church and became familiar with the Bible stories. “But for me as a child, church was a cold and unwelcoming place, where you were told what you could and couldn’t do, accompanied by an overwhelming sense of fear of punishment from God.” With his father, Primus would recite the Lord’s Prayer every night, and for many years afterwards he maintained that habit.

“My prayers would be for my family’s health and security. Later those prayers would often include a plea to enable me to play football well, but that was pretty selfish.”

Church took a back seat as Primus entered his teens, he joined a Sunday football club, and very quickly the sport “took over my life” and “was all I wanted to do.”

I asked whether it was at this time, when he was playing alongside future stars such as Sol Campbell, that he had already decided that was where his future lay.

“No, football was just for fun then,” came the reply, but soon after, while playing for Barnet, Primus began to realise that football was an avenue he wanted to pursue.

“I grew from a boy to a man at Barnet. I was a young Dad and needed to take care of my son and girlfriend. I had to learn very quickly to look after myself on and off the football pitch. I knew this wasn’t a practice run. This was the real thing.”

Primus, a philosopher, reflected on his transition as a footballer, and as a man: “I was still a typical footballer, with their builtin selfishness, and I didn’t have too much concern for other people. Football was the be-all and end-all. I always felt that there was something missing in my life. I would try to find it through drinking, and for a few hours I would be happy, but the next day I would find that nothing had changed.

“But now, I would ideally spend the first part of any day with family at the beach, and the second part with people who don’t know about Jesus.

BY JAMES SCOTT

“Faith and religion play a very important role in my life as I wouldn’t be where I am today without my faith. I’d still be wondering around, asking ‘what’s this life about?’”

Primus’ work for society and communities all over the country was recognised when Portsmouth renamed part of their stadium after the defender.

“I was overwhelmed when I heard that the away stand at Fratton Park had changed its name to the ‘Linvoy Primus Community Stand’. It was for the work done in the community, and not my services on the pitch. I love being in the community, as that’s where we can make an impact.”

Speaking of the club’s recent change of ownership, Primus maintained that whilst players and staff at a football club change and move on with time, the supporters don’t.

The fans, he said, should have more of a say in how their club is run.

“Now I tend to follow Pompey, Havant and Waterlooville, Newport County and any other teams where my former team mates are managing or playing.”

Still balancing his commitments with the beautiful game, Primus’ charity efforts have turned into a serious mission: “I have become involved with the Faith and Football charity as a trustee, and I support local coaching and playing schemes in the deprived areas of our communities.

“But I am still on a journey towards God. He has taken away the fear of the future for me and I know that He has something incredible waiting for me.

“I can see now that He has plans in place for me when I finish playing football. He set the wheels in motion in my heart long ago.”

“If someone were to summarise your typical day, what would they say?” I asked, intrigued as to how faith and God has changed Primus’ life forever.

“Always doing something and continually trying to change the world’s thinking.

I’m always inspired by new things.”

Finally I asked how he would sum up his career in one sentence, to which the honest and dignified man replied: “I gave 100% of what I thought I had.”

thing, about our attitudes to age and sport? It should be obvious that age is just a number.

We should never judge an athlete based on their age; one is never too old to perform at the highest level, just as one is never too young. Too often athletes are written off and put on the scrapheap when they still have plenty left to give.

It should be recognised that many athletes take different careeer trajectories.

Some, like Boris Becker, reach the peak young but are never able to recapture the heights later in their career. Others, my favourite example being Swiss Skiier Didier Cuche, only reach the heights at the end of their career.

Athletes are not numbers, they’re individuals with their own life stories and differing physical and mental development trajectories. We are missing out on so much

potential and expertise both on and off the field of play if we dump them when they hit an unfortunately high number.

It’s a ridicolous state of affairs when trophyless clubs such as Arsenal and Newcastle refuse to buy a player over 24, yet are willing to fork our huge money for unproven youngsters who often flop. Ferguson, on the other hand, likes to blend youth and experience in his squad. This year he hoovered up Arsenal’s best player, 29-year old Robin Van Persie, at the very peak of his game, for less money than Liverpool payed for unproven Andy Carroll.

In a world which likes to label people not for who they are, but for what they are, or more accurately what they are percieved to be, we should take a leaf out of Ferguson’s book and judge everybody on their merits, rather than an arbitrary label.

GOLDEN OLDIES

IN THE same week we have seen both sides of the sporting age coin.

In football 39-year old Ryan Giggs won a record 13th Premier League title. Described by his manager as a “freak” who will continue to play for at least another two years, Giggs is redefining the very boundaries of age and longevity in sportsmen.

Yet at the same time 20 year old Spaniard Marc Marquez won his first Moto GP race in only the second race of his career, an absoloutely staggering achievment. This illustrates a trend of sportsmen being able to compete at the highest level for longer, but also an increasing ability to reach the summit at an ever decreasing age, due to improved training and preparation techniques.

What do these examples tell us, if any-

SPORT

YORK VISION Tuesday April 30, 2013

SPOTLIGHT: CROQUET

DAVE WASHINGTON CATCHES UP WITH YUSU PRESIDENT KALLUM TAYLOR AS HE PRACTISES FOR ROSES CROQUET THIS WEEK sees Roses 2013 get underway, as the University becomes engulfed in the unique atmosphere that is Roses.

An array of mainstream sports like football and rugby and a host of more unusual sports will be contested, but arguably the most exciting part of all is croquet. Kallum Taylor and Brian Cantor will be responsible for leading York to sporting glory and upholding the reputation of our treasured University.

With that in mind myself and Kallum ventured out to the Heslington Hall lawn to hone our croquet skills and discover more of what the game is really all about. The first problem we encountered was the significant issue of working out how the game actually works. After consulting the instructions we realised that it really is as simple as hitting a ball through horseshoe shaped hoops with a few extra rules.

On a surface that was more akin to an uncut field than a neatly trimmed croquet pitch, we had a ready made excuse for all of our failures. Yet against all odds Kallum punted his first shot straight through the middle of the first target from distance, showing the grace and prowess of a seasoned expert rather than the inability of the frankly clueless novices that we were.

It quickly became apparent that it was beginners’ luck however. We both struggled to navigate the second hoop and our deficiencies became apparent for the audience that thankfully consisted of only one, in the form of our photographer Jack Western, and the occasional curious passers-by. Gradually we improved however, and by the time we arrived at the fifth target we were showing signs of brilliance, or at least a modicum of respectability.

Our styles may not have been the classic croquet ones, as we often adopted a golf like stance, but this started to prove effective as we raced towards the crucial stage of the contest. The less said about the end the better from my point of view, as Kallum cruelly smashed my ball to the other side of the green, and claimed victory. A loss maybe, but it certainly was an enjoyable one, as my first experiences of playing croquet were both amusing and thoroughly pleasant.

The rematch saw me exact revenge, as I employed the ruthless tactics of hampering the progress of both Kallum and Jack, who had joined in with our marvellous spectacle. As I surged to victory the highlight was seeing Jack scurry in pursuit of his ball to prevent it from falling into the nearby pond, after I had deviously smashed it towards the water hazard. The bad news is that Kallum finished last, which doesn’t bode well for Sunday.

Playing under the window of the leg-

Photo: Jack Western

THE TIPSTER

27

NEW, IMPROVED, AND READY TO WIN YOU LOTS OF MONEY

RIGHT. THERE’S a new Tipster on the block, me, Miles Kravitz. The old Tipster’s disappeared, defragmented, vanished into thin air; a bit like Tottenham’s Champions League hopes.

Anyway, we turn our attention to this weekend’s Premier League. I reckon Manchester City will do a job on Swansea at the Liberty at 4/5. We’ll also take the mighty Arsenal to get one over on QPR, whose season is all but over, at 1/2. Finally we back West Ham at 7/5 at home to do the business over Newcastle who boast the WORST away record in the league.

The last day of the Championship can throw up queer results, with many games being complete non-events, so tread carefully. Bolton need a result against Blackpool to be certain of a play-off place, so we’ll chuck them in our accumulator to lengthen the odds. Crystal Palace can still finish the season strongly, despite a postChristmas wobble, against Peterborough who are, to put things nicely, a bit useless.

Over in debt-ridden Spain we fancy Athletico Madrid to win away at Deportivo, which in the reverse fixture earlier in the season saw Falcao and his mates win 6-0. Athletico have won this encounter on every occasion since late 2009.

Photo: Jack Western

end that is Brian Cantor we felt the unerring pressure of his masterful gaze upon us, whilst Jane Grenville couldn’t help but laugh at our efforts as she passed by. All we needed was for Brian to join us and the training session would have been complete, as we would have been given the opportunity to meet the elusive master of croquet and absorb his expertise and knowledge. I fancy he would not have appreciated our unorthodox techniques, and would have given us a lesson on how to truly play croquet.

Nonetheless it would be fair to say that we didn’t embarrass ourselves, much, and

the fact that it was still light by the time we finished suggests we couldn’t have been that bad. Kallum displayed moments of brilliance, and some less inspiring ones, but nevertheless I have faith in him to defeat his Lancaster rivals in what is certainly the most important clash of Roses 2013. If he does, I’ll claim credit for my expert tutorage; if not then my croquet coaching career will reach an abrupt and undignified end.

My new theory is that, during the campaign for the position of YUSU President, all candidates should have to partake in a croquet competition, with the winner handed a head start in the election race. We all know that prevailing in Roses is the most important task of the YUSU President’s stint in office. No pressure then, Kallum.

After blaming the surface, our equipment, and anything else for our failures, we called it a day. As we strolled off to return to the reality of University life, Kallum told me: “I can’t wait to play croquet with Brian Cantor. We’re going to have a very interesting combination between Brian’s very meticulous approach and my game which is full of flair and creativity, so hopefully we’ll have the best of both worlds.”

On a serious note croquet actually is an incredibly enjoyable game to play, especially on a lovely spring evening. It may be perceived as an old person’s game, and a ‘sport’ played only by the retired or super-rich, but in reality it is an activity that can be participated in and enjoyed by everyone, and is definitely worth having a try, even if it is only for the comedic value.

Home wins: Fulham, Tottenham, West Ham, Bolton, Crystal Palace, Charlton.

Away wins: Arsenal, Man City, Athletico Madrid, Rayo Vallecano, Morton.

Draws: West Brom vs. Wigan, Liverpool vs.

Everton, Hull vs. Cardiff, Sheffield Wed vs.

Middlesbrough.

Both teams to score: Liverpool vs. Everton, Man Utd vs. Chelsea, Burnley vs.

Ipswich (this weekend); Real Madrid vs.

Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich, Chelsea vs. Basel, (Europe).

DIAMOND OF THE DAY Man City -1 handicap vs.

Wigan in the FA Cup Final. Get on it now. Buying money.

ODDS:

10/11

DUCK OF THE DAY Man Utd to win the league 2013/14. Heads gone. Way too short. Still a lot of work to do. City will spend big.

Chelsea with Mourinho and Falcao look an outfit, top quality teams.

ODDS:

6/4

TIPSTER TREBLE Fulham, Man City and Arsenal all to win this weekend. Get on.

ODDS:

7/2

SHOUT-OUT OF THE WEEK Shaun Maloney of Wigan. Appreciated his leveller in injury time against QPR the other week.

Follow Miles on twitter @YorkTipster for more betting tips and info.

Visit www.yorkvision.co.uk/sport for Miles’ weekly column.

All odds correct at time of writing.

Gamble responsibly: visit gambleaware.co.uk or phone 0808 8020 133

28 SPORT

YORK VISION

GIRLS ALLOWED

BY BETHAN FORREST

FIRSTLY, I’D like to point out I don’t ‘do’ sportswear, or have a tendency to swill pints. My laptop’s favourites are clogged with Made in Chelsea/Great British Bakeoff, I sew and I rarely leave the house without make-up. Whilst my particular predilections aren’t generally shared by the rest of the fairer sex, there is nothing manly about my personality or habits.

Yet on match days, I’d rather be in a stadium than shopping and whilst my housemates debated the beauty of the church behind our next year’s home, I was surreptitiously checking out the local pub for a Sky Sports subscription.

My liking for sports isn’t fanatical or all-encompassing. I won’t be gripped by the World Curling Championships and I have no discernible opinion on badminton at all.

But put on a football or rugby game…. And that’s a different matter.

All sports are at heart soap operas; and deeply Shakespearean dramas at that.

There are heroes and villains, goodie twoshoes and anti-heroes, people you love to hate and people you can’t help but back through trial and triumph. There are characters you couldn’t invent with all the monkeys with all the typewriters in the world.

Take football’s current Mr Nasty, Luis Suarez, previously accused of racist taunts, now banned for ten games by the FA for biting another player. There’s my personal favourite, buffoonish Sky Sports reporter Chris Kamara, who has turned lovable ineptitude and just-about-facing-the-rightway into must-see television. Or Mario Balotelli whose on-and-off the pitch shenanigans (include wining £25,000 at a casino and giving £1000 to a tramp, his “Why Always Me?” shirt and having an hilarious Youtube video of him failing to put on a bib) are hilarious and verging on undiagnosed mental illness.

The reason we watch soaps such as TOWIE and Made in Chelsea is that we become engaged with the characters’ lives and are compelled to catch the next bitesize chunk, both the ones we love and the ones we hate. For nine months of the year, there is the opportunity to catch up with something outside of my own life.

The excitement that surrounds sport is both infectious and brightens up our otherwise mundane lives.

My seven hour train journey home at the end of last term flew by because it was just prior to the afternoon’s Six Nations Wales v England match (I specifically selected early train in order to get home and into my shirt, glass of wine in hand to watch).

Rather than just about managing awkward family conversation that evening, I spent it in frank delirium because 15 Welsh boys gutted 15 English ones on home turf. It was a phoenix from the ashes story as, despite a glorious Six Nations campaign last year, the summer tests and autumn internationals had spelled only heartbreak for me with eight frankly

pathetic defeats and over 15 international players injured. A slow start against Ireland promised the year to be another wet, heartless affair and yet we rallied, with the highs of that game and snatches of commentary permanently etched into my memory.

The bonding that surrounds sport allows a link, particularly for people who struggle with general small talk. “Oh hello, I see your face and knees are still where I left them. Hungry?” Can be turned into “Did you watch Liverpool v Chelsea? How ‘bout that Suarez?” Which is far more socially acceptable and let’s face it, knowledge is power.

On that train home were other supporters, some going to the match, some not, but all making a similar pilgrimage with decent banter flying through the carriage between complete strangers. Please do not let this sell Arriva Train journeys to you in any fashion: they are the preferred carrier of misery.

My Facebook photos of me and family bundled up at Wembley and the Liberty Stadium (football stadiums have a kind of freezing cold all of their own) both bring back great memories, and never fail to spark conversation with people who didn’t know about my newfound sporting love or sighs from fellow fans, who want to pick apart the game afterwards. It allows me to spend quality time with my dad and grandfather and is my connection to a far-flung home.

Sports promote a positive body image to women who are challenged every day with images that are photoshopped, coloured and tweaked based on unattainable goals.

Survey after survey done by women’s magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Glamour found that after the London 2012 Olympics, women preferred to look healthy and strong like the role models competing such as Victoria Pendleton and Jessica Ennis.

Women like those don’t aspire to the fragile doll figures presented in the media but use exercise and good nutrition to allow their bodies to reach their maximum natural capabilities. They don’t starve themselves or push the body beyond its limits, but nurture and challenge themselves into peak physical condition, a far more admirable example to set. Moreover these goals are far more attainable for most women to achieve than your average stickthin model Sport is the last meritocracy, the only place where South American favela children, African refugees and deprived working class children can rise to the top of their profession together, purely based on talent.

No one ever got to the top of Premiership football because of who they knew or where they went to school, and I love that.

I’m glad I discovered sports at the age of 20; it livens my day and never fails to surprise. “I don’t know the rules!” You shout.

Neither did I, but by just sitting and watching, (and a fair few sportsmen are incredibly easy on the eye) I picked them up. It ain’t rocket science, after all, the boys do it, don’t they?!

Tuesday April 30, 2013

SURVIVAL CITY

BY OSCAR PEARSON

YORK CITY completed their great escape with a 1-0 win at Dagenhem & Redbridge, which sealed their League Two safety and sent Barnet down.

The Minstermen ended their season in emphatic fashion with four victories in five April games. Nigel Worthington’s side took 13 points from a possible 15 to pull clear of the drop zone, winning on the last day of the season to climb to 17th in the final table.

They were second in the League Two form table after Saturday’s encounter.

To Worthington’s right in the Victoria Road stadium the away supporters erupted.

Those with radios pressed against their ears, aware Northampton were cruising against Barnet, bounced beneath the sweltering sky to mark their club’s recovery, something that had appeared almost impossible a month ago.

“I’m pleased, relieved and delighted for the football club and supporters,” said Worthington. “There’s been a lot of work gone in over the course of the 10 games that I’ve been here by everybody at the football club and they’ve got their just rewards.”

It was an incredible season that ebbed and flowed like t h e Atlantic on a particularly stormy day. A 4-1 win over Bristol Rovers just before Christmas saw York only four points off the playoffs and a mighty 12 above the relegation zone, with just over half the season to go.

But a sixteen-game winless run after New Years’ Day left the Minstermen staring at relegation back to the Blue Square Bet Premier, when they slipped into the bottom two late last month.

Gary Mills was sacked in an attempt to steady the heavilyrocking ship, but former Northern-Ireland manager Nigel Worthington got off to a terrible start with two points in his first five games. It looked to be a torrid 2013 for York who, going into their last five matches, needed a miracle.

Yet they got it. A win over fellow strugglers Plymouth and victory at promotion hopefuls Northampton sandwiched a draw with Accrington, before York dismantled both Southend and Dagenham, gaining maximum points. It proved to be an outstanding April for the Minstermen who fin-

ished five places above the bottom two and just a couple of wins away from the top half.

It means City will be competing in English football’s fourth tier once again, after finding themselves stuck in non-league from 2004 up until last May. Before they secured promotion at Wembley a year ago, supporters were clinging on to the memories of a 3-0 League Cup win over Manchester United at Old Trafford in 1996, after which United went on to complete the Premier League and FA Cup double that season. It was a rare highlight in York’s rather low-key past, with the Minstermen spending the overwhelming majority of their history in the lower divisions.

But an FA Trophy win and promotion within the space of a week was the perfect platform for York to embark on a brand new League Two adventure.

It began with a 3-0 triumph over a Sunderland XI in a pre-season friendly and ended with safety and an internationally respected manager at the helm. Times look good for City and if they can pick up where they left off next season, North Yorkshire might well be in for an absolute treat.

Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, pictured below, joined the action on Saturday, tweeting: “Well done to York City! 1-0 win!

We are Football League! Fantastic achievement after a long hard season of football.”

And fans can celebrate a truly remarkable two years with City’s dramatic survival battle culminating in an afternoon of pure elation at the weekend.

YORK VISION

Tuesday April 30, 2013

BY JAMES SCOTT

DEMOLITION DERBY

DERWENT GAVE Alcuin a lesson in rugby that won’t be forgotten for a while, marauding to a 95-0 victory, scoring 15 tries, and claiming the college league to confirm their status as one of the most dominant teams in York’s history. Indeed the only disappointment was they didn’t make it to the one hundred mark.

Pre-match talk of a closer encounter was quickly discarded, as Derwent came out of the blocks at a rate of knots, clearly up for the occasion. Phil “The Situation” Hammick burst through, brushing off the Alcuin tackles with ease for the opening try, which was unconverted.

Alcuin immediately went on the attack, with captain Muzzy Foley executing an incisive pass to put them in a strong attacking position. However, they failed to capitalise on the opportunity as the attack quickly fizzled out and the Derwent defence was able to regroup, blunting Alcuin’s follow-up attacks.

This would prove to be by far Alcuin’s best play of the game, as they were unable to seriously challenge the Derwent try line.

Derwent regained their composure and immediately returned to the offensive. Richard Whittaker went on the rampage scoring two tries in quick succession, the second of which was a great individual run, while Hammick succeeded with both conversions to push Derwent into a commanding 19-0 lead after only 20 minutes.

Although the match was virtually over as a competitive fixture even at this early stage, Derwent were in no mood to take their foot off the gas and mounted an attack once again. A great pass from Alex Cochrane-Dyet saw the Alcuin line under threat once again, and although that particular attack was nullified, Josh Clewes struck like a viper from the resulting lineout to extend Derwent’s lead to 26-0.

The match entered something of a equilibrium as the half neared its conclusion, but Derwent were still comfortably in control. Unsurprisingly Derwent were on a different level, but even by their standards this was an exceptionally well drilled performance. They were able to come out on top of virtually every contested ball and marginal

BY AMY BALLARD THE INAUGRAL White Rose Regatta took place on the Ouse on Saturday, and was an immediate success for UYBC. They challenged local clubs from the University of Leeds, St Peter’s School and York City Rowing Club to find out who was the fastest boat on the Ouse.

UYBC took the initiative to host the competition after Lancaster pulled out of the rowing event at Roses. The races began at 2:15, as members of the public and York alumni alike lined the river to cheer on their respective clubs.

The course was roughly 800 metres, starting at St Peter’s Boathouse and following the river to York City Boathouse.

The senior men’s were the first boat to take to the water as they faced Leeds. The team won their heat by a length and then proceeded to take on St Peter’s in the final.

The men looked even stronger in the final, prevailing by three clear lengths.

The men’s coxed four also competed, but narrowly lost to St Peter’s in their heat.

The senior women’s coxed four also competed in the first division. The team are hoping to have a successful regatta

SPORT

29

Photo: Philip Mourjdis

situation, and were man for man vastly the physically superior team.

Alcuin, who were missing a few key players, were decidedly off form, making numerous handling errors and giving the ball away too easily. Some of their clearances could only be described as diabolical, failing to achieve any air and putting them on the back foot in terms of positioning.

The final minutes of the first half saw the Derwent onslaught resume, with Ed Kemp scoring seemingly out of nowhere after a brilliant individual run. Further brilliance followed with a quality offload from Josh Salter setting up Clewes’ second try.

Derwent were able to penetrate the Alcuin defence like a hot knife through butter, and this was perfectly demonstrated by a brilliant long run down the length of the pitch by Kemp for his second. This was followed by another long run from Chris Judge who offloaded to Luca Illing to create a crushing 45-0 scoreline at half time.

The second half began in much the same vein with Kemp, almost immediately

after the whistle, going over for his third try. Hammick, who had been on excellent form all day, was able to make a difficult conversion in blustery conditions.

With the score quickly resembling that of the cricket match on the adjoining pitch, Bryden Ridgeway struck to make it 59-0 and pile on the agony for Alcuin.

Alcuin hadn’t given up on the dream of scoring and made some promising attacks, but the brutal enforcement of the Derwent defence quickly put a stop to any outlandish hopes they may have had of crossing the try line. Kemp then turned the screw further with his fourth try to make the score 64-0.

Substitute Rob Wilson made an immediate impact, crossing the line twice in quick succession. Ridgeway scrambled over for his second to make it 78-0, before Clewes added his third with a surging run.

The end couldn’t come soon enough for Alcuin, who were completely limp and lacklustre in all departments, lacking in any inspiration. Derwent pushed on in the hope they may have been able to reach the cen-

tury mark.

Fairness was the order of the day for the final try when a Hammick run set up a great chance for Wilson, but he in a nice gesture opted to pass to Dan Perry who raised the score to a thumping 95-0.

Derwent Captain Chris Judge was understandably delighted with his team’s display, telling Vision: “We put in a lot of training this week, a lot of effort. We’ve been looking forward to this game for four or five weeks now. Just really proud of this team.”

Alcuin Captain Muzzy Foley took the defeat in good humour, remarking: “Has there been a match today? Because I don’t remember one! It was a close match….. The Chelsea one that was! Well done to Derwent, all credit due they played really well. Maybe next year...”

For Alcuin it was a thoroughly disappointing end to the league season. As for Derwent, this demonstrates their deserved place in the annals of York sporting history as one of the most dominant sides to ever take to the field of play.

season, building on their success over the last two terms, which saw them secure a BUCS medal. After beating St Peter’s in the first heat by three lengths, the women then stormed to success in the final, easily defeating opponents York City.

Only two boats competed in the senior women’s eight; UYBC and York City.

The latter entered the Scarbrough railway bridge first, but York applied the pressure and caught their opponents, eventually winning by half a length. The strong performances demonstrated by the senior

women’s squad demonstrated that their training camps over Easter at Henley had been put to good use.

The novice women’s coxed eight stormed to success in their first heat, easily overcoming Leeds, in what was a surprise victory as Leeds had been the stronger over the last two terms. In the final they unfortunately lost to York City by a length. The novice men’s coxed eight meanwhile faced stiff competition from York City, and were edged out by three quarters of a length.

Ed Scobie, Club President, was over-

whelmingly pleased with the day. “I would like to thank the race co-ordinators Amy Finch and Alice Farley for putting on this successful event. It was a shame Lancaster couldn’t come to Roses but the race has been the perfect build up to BUCS. “The senior squads have demonstrated they are the fastest boat, and the novices have put in some strong performances.

“I am proud of the club and wish everyone the best for the regatta season, where both the women and men will be entering boats at Henley Royal Regatta”

OUSE-ING CLASS

Photo: Philip Mourjdis

30 SPORT

FOCUSED ‘FAX AIM FOR CUP GLORY

BY AL RIDDELL

HALIFAX 1STS are hungry for revenge after 2012’s agonising final defeat on penalties to Vanbrugh 1sts. However, if they are to muster a worthy challenge they must first sidestep the tricky teams completing Group 1: Derwent 3rds, James 3rds, Alcuin 2nds, Wentworth 2nds and Langwith 1sts.

To call these teams ‘banana skins’ or mere ‘obstacles’ is perhaps disrespectful; as seen in previous years, anyone can beat anyone, form and reputation go out of the metaphorical window. Group 1 especially, seems to be the most open of the lot.

Yet at first glance Halifax 1sts are the clear favourites to progress from the group, despite a disappointing mid-table finish in the spring term league. The likes of Matt Mawdesley and Tom Day, University firstteam players and stars of last year’s tournament, will strengthen the side. The pressure will be firmly on the shoulders of the 2013 ‘Fax squad to qualify for a shot at the cup.

Langwith, as the other 1sts team in the group, will be aiming for authoritative displays against the so-called lesser sides. Nonetheless, after the men in yellow finished bottom of both autumn and spring leagues without recording a point, the 2nds and 3rds squads will fancy their chances of causing an upset.

Wentworth 2nds are on a mission to defend their College Plate title and have looked strong in the Spring league, missing out on the championship by just a point. More than capable of qualifying from the group, their tournament may hinge on the goals of Dave Clinton and the fitness of playmaker Chris McGuire.

After last year’s heroic run in the Plate, Wentworth manager Dan Howdon is relaxed about another solid showing: “Talent-wise, we’ve got the best 2nds squad I’ve seen in my four years at Wentworth, and we play to a system in which everyone knows their own role and sticks to it.” But as Howdon points out, “Can we do it on a warm June day on the JLD?” Alcuin 2nds have made a habit of letting promising starts slip by the wayside in league play this year, so they may be helped by the truncated matches on the JLD. Captain Chris Houlgate reckons any team in the group has the potential to reach the top two, but has confidence in his team’s ability: “It’s a versatile and flexible squad, so all of the players are capable of fulfilling different roles with ease. Goals have come from all over the team.”

Two of the stronger 3rds teams complete the group. James 3rds, champions of the autumn league, will be a big test for the more established sides in the competition, as will Derwent 3rds, runners up in both terms, ensuring that the old cliché ‘there are no easy games’ is certainly true for Group 1.

Notable fixtures include Langwith 1sts vs Alcuin 2nds on the opening day; Alcuin could make a real statement of intent by claiming a 1sts scalp. The battle of the thirds teams will take place on Tuesday of week 4 and could be crucial in deciding which will challenge the teams at the top. While Monday of week 7 sees the second teams play each other in another potentially decisive fixture.

With Halifax desperate to put painful memories of last year’s final behind them, Wentworth determined to cling onto their College Plate title and a strong couple of 3rds teams looking to slay some giants, it is set to be a competitive and exhilarating group.

YORK VISION

GROUP 1 HALIFAX 1STS LANGWITH 1STS

Tuesday April 30, 2013

COLLEGE C

ALCUIN 2NDS WENTWORTH 2NDS DERWENT 3RDS JAMES 3RDS

GROUP 2 JAMES 1STS WENTWORTH 1STS DERWENT 2NDS VANBRUGH 2NDS ALCUIN 3RDS GOODRICKE 3RDS

CHAMPS GO HEAD-TO-HEAD

BY JACK BRADSHAW

SOME OF these teams would be forgiven for thinking that history is repeating itself.

In the 2012 College Cup, James 1sts, Vanbrugh 2nds and Goodricke 3rds were all drawn in Group 2. One year later, they find themselves in similar circumstances. Derwent 2nds and Alcuin 3rds will also wage war again after the two teams faced each other in Group 3 last time around.

James 1sts were many people’s favourites in 2012 as they demolished everyone before losing 2-1 to Halifax 1sts in the semi-finals.

This year they once again have realistic ambitions to win the tournament.

However, their form this season has been patchy. Champions of the autumn term league, thanks to a 5-1 demolition of Derwent 1sts on the final day, they were thrashed 6-1 by Wentworth 1sts en route to finishing fourth in the spring term league.

With the attacking talent at their disposal, though, they can never be underestimated. James Davies and Freddie Ferrao have matured into strong university players and in Tom Clarke, James have a player who can score goals from anywhere; his overhead kick and subsequent hat-trick against Halifax 4ths last year was memorable indeed.

Wentworth will be favourites to claim the runners-up position, having won the spring

Photo: Jack Western

term league title. With a wealth of experience, epitomised by Dom Green who has probably lost count of the number of College Cups he has played in, Wentworth know how to navigate the challenges of the JLD. Their opening match will be against James 1sts, which will be an early indicator of their progress.

Vanbrugh 2nds qualified for the Plate last year, and although they will be targeting a top two finish, don’t be surprised if they just miss out again. They did manage a 0-0 draw against James 1sts and also beat Goodricke 3rds 2-0, so have a decent record against their group opponents. Tom Parish, with the witty shirt name “Church”, is their key player who also has experience playing for Vanbrugh 1sts.

Derwent 2nds will be keen to avoid a repeat of last season’s unmitigated disaster, after they suffered an early points deduction for not supplying a referee and crashed out of the competition altogether. Their only highlight that time was a 5-0 win against Alcuin 3rds, a result they will be hoping to emulate.

As for Alcuin and Goodricke, they won’t be under any pressure and can go out and enjoy themselves. What’s more, the two teams will be keen to better each other, having struck up a fierce rivalry in their league and the final, potentially crucial, fixture of this group is between these two.

Goodricke are known to be a good passing team for a thirds outfit, but are also strong in the tackle and difficult to play against. Alcuin have developed a similar style over the last year, despite being traditionally associated with the long ball game. Securing a position in the Plate is not out of the question for either side, and stranger things have happened in the cup.

YORK VISION

SPORT

Tuesday April 30, 2013

CUP 2013

GROUP 3 ALCUIN 1STS GOODRICKE 1STS HALIFAX 2NDS LANGWITH 2NDS VANBRUGH 3RDS WENTWORTH 3RDS

GROUP 4 DERWENT 1STS VANBRUGH 1STS GOODRICKE 2NDS JAMES 2NDS HALIFAX 3RDS Photo: TK Rohit

LANGWITH 3RDS

A GROUP OF TWO HALVES

BY MICHAEL THURLOWAY

BOTH GOODRICKE and Alcuin enter this year’s College Cup with big hopes of progressing into the latter stages, but are likely to face stiff opposition from a Halifax 2nds squad strengthened by the inclusion of University players.

Goodricke will be confident of their chances. They beat Alcuin convincingly on both occasions when the sides met during the first two terms of the year, and therefore enter the group as favourites to progress, whilst they will be delighted to have missed the big guns due to the lack of seeding in the draw.

“We have a lot of versatility in the squad so we have strength in depth all over the park,” Goodricke captain Joe Mann told Vision. The team will be strengthened by the return of a handful of university players, none more so than Dalton Harris, a regular in the University 1sts who has also been capped at youth level by Wales.

Alcuin also have their own University player to call upon in the shape of Graham Kimber, but on the whole the squad takes much the same form as that which has won only two games this year. Consistency in selection may turn out to benefit Alcuin, but only time will tell. The most important thing for the side is to start scoring goals, something which is likelier to be more straight-forward against the lower ranked teams in the group, and with the smooth astroturf surface of the JLD. All the Halifax sides this year have been hindered by their absence in the autumn league. To quote 2nds captain Jonny McGuinness, they’ve had “some great results and a few disasters.” Yet to look at their squad would be to witness a team worthy of a 1sts

Photo: Jack Western

side, clearly strengthened by University players of whom Halifax possess in abundance.

Both Goodricke and Alcuin will need to be on top form to dispatch Halifax. Meanwhile ‘Fax would certainly see missing out on a top two finish as a disappointing campaign.

It would be harsh to discount Langwith 2nds from causing problems to the three more obvious powerhouses in the group. They are unlikely to prove walkovers, with captain Sam Morley saying: “If we can carry on our form from spring term through we’ll do well.”

While the top three teams in the group will regard dropping into the Plate a disappointment, for Langwith it would be seen as an achievement; for this reason alone they might be in a better mindset to challenge should they reach that stage of the competition.

Yet that is no guarantee. Vanbrugh 3rds

qualified for the Plate last year and got to the final before losing to Wentworth 2nds.

Their form has been on an upward trajectory during the last two terms of league play.

While few from that giant-killing squad remain in 2013 (YUSU President Kallum Taylor being one remnant), captain Robert Konstandelos summed up his team’s chances concisely: “We go in with nothing to lose.”

Wentworth 3rds come into the group as clear outsiders, but a team not to be taken lightly. Like all Wentworth teams, they are weakened by unforgiving postgraduate commitments, while the length of most courses means there is little continuity year-to-year.

But they are almost certainly the most improved footballing college over the last year or two. If one thing is for certain, it is that nothing is certain in the College Cup.

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THE GROUP OF DEATH

BY DAVE WASHINGTON

ON PAPER Group 4 seems like the most challenging of all the College Cup groups, as last year’s winners Vanbrugh 1sts are drawn alongside the powerhouses of Derwent 1sts, who will be strongly reinforced by a clutch of University players.

Both teams were renowned for their solidity last year, as their defences were barely breached throughout the tournament, and their group clash promises to be an absorbing rematch of last year’s semi-final, which saw Vanbrugh progress through to the final on penalties after a last gasp Phil Taylor equaliser.

However it would be wrong to rule out the other teams in this group. James 2nds in particular are a side who are capable of challenging the top teams in the tournament. The beauty of the College Cup is that 2nds and 3rds teams can beat 1sts teams, and it would be no major surprise if James caused an upset along the way.

Add into the mix a strong Halifax 3rds team and a resurgent Goodricke 2nds and you have an intriguing group in store, where there will be very few easy matches for anyone. If the term ‘Group of Death’ could be applied to any then it would be this one, and if either of the highly fancied Derwent or Vanbrugh underestimate their opposition, they may well live to regret it.

Langwith 3rds are the final team in the group, and after not participating last year, it appears that it could be a challenging campaign for arguably the least fancied team in the tournament. If they could scrape through to the plate competition then that would be construed as an excellent achievement, but even that looks like a tough ask.

Despite the challenges posed by other teams in this group, I still fancy Derwent and Vanbrugh to progress through to the quarter finals of the cup, with Derwent topping the group after exacting revenge on Vanbrugh. My tip would be for James 2nds to manage to hold one of the top teams to a draw, but still only finish third in the table, advancing to the plate competition along with Halifax 3rds, whilst Goodricke and Langwith fall by the wayside.

You never know though, I may well be wrong, and in the College Cup anyone can beat anyone. With the depth of talent that is present in this group, it is a challenge to make any predictions as to who will progress.

But in a bold move I’m going to stick my neck on the line before a ball has been kicked and tip Derwent 1sts to lift this year’s College Cup.

SPOTLIGHT: CROQUET

COLLEGE CUP PREVIEW

SPORT

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BIG INTERVIEW: LINVOY PRIMUS

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DESTROYE-D

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BY JAMES SCOTT DERWENT DELIVERED a thrashing of biblical proportions upon a sorry Alcuin side to retain their college champions crown.

Despite high hopes that the match would prove to be more of a contest than previous encounters, this did not prove the case as Derwent ran out 95-0 winners.

It became obvious almost immediately that it would be a challenging day for Alcuin when Phil Hammick went over to score the opening try, and from then on the floodgates opened as Derwent seemed able to score almost with impunity, especially during the second half.

Alcuin appeared listless and uninspired throughout, rarely threatening the Derwent defence and making numerous careless errors. In contrast, Derwent seem to have hit the sweet spot at just the right time.

Fly half Hammick was in excellent form, making some difficult conversions to pile on the agony for Alcuin and Ed Kemp went over for four individual tries, underlying Derwent’s dominance.

Full report on page 29

> 15-TRY DERWENT DECIMATE ALCUIN 95-0 TO SECURE SPRING TERM LEAGUE TITLE > ED KEMP SCORES FOUR TRIES AND PHIL HAMMICK ACCUMULATES 25 POINTS

PICK UP YOUR YORK VISION ROSES 2013 MAGAZINE ON CAMPUS THIS FRIDAY: Issue 233

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Tuesday April 30, 2013

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