WHAT’S THE UNI DOING WITH £400 MILLION?
THE UK’S MOST AWARDED STUDENT NEWSPAPER
YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
Issue 236
vision@yusu.org
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“UKIP is a party that will change the future of this country.” REVEALED! THE SECRET LIFE OF A STUDENT CAMGIRL. lIFESTYLE PAGE 20
Nigel Farage on gay marriage, drugs and enjoying politics
(News page 3)
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS?
YORK’S “ HUMAN “ ZOO Feature - page 16 & 17
DISABLED STUDENTS have compared a new scheme, championed by Disabled Students’ Officer Thomas Ron, to being in a zoo. The voluntary student led scheme, named ‘Living Library’, invites disabled students to discuss their conditions with non-disabled students.
FEATURE: The A-Z of being a student at York (pg.15)
SCENE: The New Issue
Comment page 12
Students with mental disabilities will discuss their lives and their condition on a one-to-one basis. Ron has asked students with both mental health problems and mental disabilities to take part in the event. However, it has been met with widespread criticism from disabled students, who are concerned the event will define them by their disabilities and make them feel like zoo exhibits. [continued on page 5]
SPORT: Interview with Cass Brown (back page)
2 NEWS
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1, 2013
SLAG AND DRAG RENAMED YORKVISION
The UK’s most awarded student publication Editors: Joanna Barrow Dave Washington
Deputy Editors: Oscar Pearson James Scott
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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.
DERWENT COLLEGE has renamed the provocative fresher’s event Slag ‘N’ Drag. The popular event, officially labelled ‘Derwent’s favourite debauched, scantily clad, and legendary event of the year’ attracted national controversy in 2012. This year’s inaugural Club D will now be called Cabaret D. There is speculation whether the new event represents a substantial change in format, or is nothing more than a change in name, with the theme seemingly remaining largely unchanged. Anmoli Sodha, Derwent Chair, told Vision: “The name was changed because it was recognised that it was outside of what is acceptable. “The decision was made over a year ago by a collective of the JCRC, College Dean and the Pro Vice-Chancellor for the Student
Experience (Jane Grenville).” A third year English and politics student added: “It seems to me that other than the name the overall concept will still be the same. Other than the name, its still going to be Slag ‘N’ Drag.” Similarly themed events at other Universities have received severe criticism, with commentators arguing that they objectified women and promoted ‘lad culture’. This year, Universities and students have clamped down on such events with a number of institutions either banning such events or forcing them to be renamed. YUSU Welfare officer George Offer welcomed the move: “Although it was a strong tradition within Derwent, we also know that many students did find it sexist. “Therefore we’re really glad that the JCRC made the positive step of moving away from the brand to something that’s still really fun but also properly inclusive.”
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YORK VISION
NEWS
Tuesday October 1, 2013
3
WHAT COULD YORK VISION BUY WITH £400,000,000? 25,000,000 Bottles of vodka
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HES BEST!
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University set to spend £400,000,000 on Heslington West development plan THE UNIVERSITY of York is set to invest £400 million in facilities on Heslington West over the next ten years, to help improve accommodation, teaching blocks, sporting provisions and study spaces on the main campus. The development comes after a sustained period where the emphasis has been placed on Heslington East, with the recent construction of Langwith College and the Sports Village, as well as the current work on Constantine College. Numerous complaints have been lodged in recent years about the lack of investment in facilities on Heslington West, with the University being criticised for failing to update and replace old and decrepid features of the campus. University of York Secretary and Registrar David Duncan said:
“Last term the Campus Development Steering Group looked for the first time at comprehensive plans for the phased redevelopment of Heslington West. “These plans have been developed further over the summer and now go forward for consideration by the senior management group and Council. “Our aim is to make the Heslington campus as a whole one of the best in the country for both student experience and research. We estimate the total cost of the proposed works to be just under £400m, with an additional £40m for IT infrastructure and research equipment. “The plans will include major new developments for the sciences, high quality residential accommodation for all students living on campus, a new teaching facility and a further significant expansion of the library. “Early priorities include new accommodation for the Natural
Sciences and Biomedical Sciences courses, a new building for the Environment Department, and continued work on the Chemistry complex. “Maths, Physics and Electronics are next on the priority list together with improved accommodation for a number of Arts and Social Sciences disciplines.” A number of projects have already been completed over the summer, with development work taking place in Alcuin North to improve teaching and research facilities. Campus outlet B-Henry’s has also been fully refurbished, with the £60,000 project set to be completed within the first week of the new academic year. Student accommodation in James College has also been handed an overhaul, with £700,000 spent on redecorating blocks A, B and C, as well as installing new kitchens, lighting and flooring. Similar work has been completed in the iconic Fairfax House, which
is set to house York students again this year, with six new kitchens replacing the dated incumbents. Other completed projects which form part of the University’s long term plan to redevelop Heslington West include improving ventilation of the Jack Lyons Concert Hall, and converting the Vanbrugh Provost’s House into offices, welfare and social space.
“Some of the buildings on Hes West should have been replaced 25 years ago” On the developments, YUSU President Kallum Taylor told Vision: “Some of the buildings on Hes West should’ve been replaced 25 years ago, and not to say you can’t have a good time in the older blocks, they’re a bit of an embarrassing quirk about the campus. “We completely back the plans
to restructure Hes West before Heslington East leaves it behind and will look to play a role in these plans. It’ll make for several loud years and lots of building work, but will be worth it in the end.” Third Year Maths and Finance student Dylan Chambers added: “I think it is great for the University to expand and I feel like Hes West needs investment as it is falling behind other universities in terms of quality. “If they are trying to eventually transfer the whole of York University to Hes East than that is sad news, as I feel the spirit of York University remains on Hes West.” Work is currently being carried out on Constantine College, which is set to be completed in time for students arriving in September 2014. Plans for a hotel, supermarket, 10 smaller retail outlets and other student facilities still remain, but a completion date is yet to be confirmed.
4 NEWS
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1, 2013
ACCOMMODATION CHAOS FOR LANGWITH AND VANBRUGH
ABANDONED
THE UNIVERSITY of York has been heavily criticised by distressed first year Langwith students who have been forced to live off campus. First year student Alex Byron was left fuming by what he described as “a huge cock up” in the accommodation system, which has resulted in him living in a shared house on Fifth Avenue. The outraged student told Vision: “What made me angry was not being off campus, but being told that I would be guaranteed on-campus, and then not getting it. Trying to ensure I get the best possible accommodation was put in my hands, as I had to barter with accommodation staff to get what I wanted. “Now I’ve been shunned into a house away from campus. Whilst I look forward to living with my new housemates, it is still a great shame the University hasn’t lived up to its expectations. Either this was a huge admin mess, or they put money ahead of my safety.” A number of other students endured similar experiences, as the University’s over-recruitment resulted in roughly 150 first-years being forced to live off campus at the Boulevard, at Walmgate or in University leased houses in York. A student based on Melbourne Street, said: “I feel let down by the University due to the lack of helpful guidance received whenever I contacted them. The drawn out wait for any offer of accommodation made me feel like I didn’t want to go to university any more. “I deliberately chose a campus university because I wanted to live on campus and I had been told that I would be able to do so. I believe that, as a fresher, being on campus is very important.” The Criminology student, who gained a place through clearing, was initially promised that she would be provided accommodation by 6th September, but only received the offer of a house on the 17th September. She added: “I feel like the students are having to pay for the University’s mistakes and that the University needs to take more responsibility for their actions and put a new system in place to prevent this from happening again. “I would like to add, though, how appreciative I am of Kallum Taylor and the SU’s commendable efforts to reassure students and get systems put in place to try to make the transition into university life as smooth as possible.” Fellow student Thom Wilkin-
son, who will also be living in a University-owned house on Melbourne Street, said: “I am disappointed that I was unable to stay in one of the colleges across campus but as I came through to the university through clearing I was less annoyed than if it had been my first choice. “I think I have been notified well by the university but it seems all very last minute, I applied for accommodation immediately in August and it was only a few days ago I found out where I actually would be living.
“I didn’t want to go to university any more...” “Also, I am unable to move into my actual house on Melbourne Street until the 1st October which is annoying as I will be transporting all of my possessions on the 28th and will have to move again after three days.” Another student, who asked to remain anonymous, but revealed that they will be living in a shared house with another eight people, added: “I am devastated to be so far away from campus. I only applied to York because it was a campus university and I feel as if I have been severely screwed over. I don’t know how I am going to enjoy student life, I feel like I am going to be utterly ostracised.” Computer Science student Vladimir Daglis was yet another student who was unable to gain accommodation on campus, and will now be living on Ambleside Avenue, 3km away from his department. Nevertheless he remains positive about his situation, and told Vision: “As the main argument for me to live off campus was economical, I can’t really complain about the University Accommodation System as such. Of course, living on campus must be great, as this makes finding and communicating with friends much easier.” The University has offered free bus passes to all first years who have not been granted campus accommodation, whilst YUSU and Langwith College have been working on measures to help these students. In response to the criticism that has been levelled at the University, Secretary and Registrar David Duncan said: “Most College members do live off campus (about two thirds of the total student population). This year, a number of first-year undergraduate mem-
bers of Langwith College will be living in University-managed accommodation in the private rental sector. “The College staff, the JCRC and YUSU are working very hard to ensure that those students are fully integrated into College life. I am confident that they will receive a very warm welcome and will have an excellent start to their University careers.” YUSU President Kallum Taylor reiterated such sentiments, adding: “We really feel for any students who feel like they’ve been messed about over the last month on this accommodation issue. “We can now only do our best to make sure that these extra offcampus freshers firstly feel ‘part’ of everything that’s going down on campus, and also that any undue financial burdens are not placed onto them for being placed in offcampus accommodation when they didn’t want it.” All off-campus first years have been assigned as members of Langwith College, and will partake in that freshers week. Langwith JCRC Chair Sam Maguire told Vision: “We are so excited for these students to come and they are going to have major roles within the college over the next year.”
Students Speak Out
A NUMBER of off campus students have expressed their dismay at the “shocking state” of their new homes. As students moved in to the University leased houses, they discovered that there was no working WIFI and that they were up to 40 minutes away from Langwith College leaving them feeling “removed and isolated.” Vision can exclusively reveal
One of the student houses on Melbourne Street
that at least one of these houses was rented last year by current third years. However after huge volumes of problems with the house, they moved to a different house for their final year. One student, who has just moved in, told Vision: “The internet doesn’t work, the garden is totally overgrown and the bath has mould growing in it. The house is already freezing and it’s only the beginning of October, I dread to think what it will be like in December.” A previous resident of the ‘disgusting’ house added: “Living in that house was absolute and complete living hell. “If we weren’t sitting in the absolutely freezing and uninsulated conservatory-cum-living room without heating for days, we were probably stressing about the sewage which had spilled out all over the garden or trying to stop the kitchen ceiling from collapsing above us.” Concerned students are encouraged to contact Accommodation Services or YUSU to raise any issues
Eric-Disaster
Students forced to move out of halls in accommodation chaos ALMOST 100 first-year Vanbrugh students living in Eric Milner D Block will be forced out of their rooms by Easter. The block, which currently houses 96 students, will be turned into part of the Environmental Sciences y department later this year, forcing those students to
Photo: Jack Western
leave their current rooms. The University have claimed that they will allocate all students new accommodation on campus, and will aim for them to be grouped together where possible. This news comes after it was reported that there is not enough space on campus to allow for all the current freshers, with over 150 Langwith students living off campus. Students who will be affected by this change referred to it as “less than ideal.” One first year student currently living in Eric Milner D, who asked to remain anonymous, told Vision: “I only found out about this because there was a post on the website that didn’t even look important but I happened to click on it, one guy didn’t even find out till he got here. “I am not happy to be uprooted and although we have only been here for a day, I feel close to people already and don’t like the idea of being separated from
them.” Another first year Geography student spoke about his fears that his room wouldn’t be as big somewhere else. “I have a double room but my roommate hasn’t turned up so I have a huge room which I love, I definitely don’t want to move.” In response to the situation, the University Accommodation Services said: “All full year residents will have been offered an alternative room on campus by the end of Term 2.” George Offer, YUSU Welfare Officer, has promised to try and make the transition as easy as possible. He told Vision: “We will work with the University to find ways to minimise impacts on students in nearby blocks. “Although this issue is far from ideal, knowing this far in advance has given us plenty of time to work towards an easy transition for students affected when it comes to moving rooms later in the year.”
YORK VISION
NEWS
STUDENT OUTRAGE AT “INSENSITIVE” SCHEME
Tuesday October 1, 2013
5
‘Living library’ slammed for ostracising students with mental health issues
A number of students express serious concerns over the event Tron defends event claiming that it will raise awareness and get issues talked about [continued from front page] ONE SUCH disabled student is Kirsty, who told Vision: “I think that it is ridiculous to pander to bullies by treating students with mental illness like monkeys in a zoo. I thought that Victorian freak shows were outlawed but apparently not.” Another student, Jane, criticised the scheme, which was previously successively run three years ago at the University She said: “The last thing I would want is to discuss my life with people I’ve never met. “Most people don’t want to be defined by their disabilities and certainly don’t want to be unnecessarily reminded of them by the people who are supposed to be supporting them.” Ron explained his reasons behind the event to Vision, saying that he was anxious to remove any stigma that students face on a daily basis. He added that bullying was unacceptable and that he wanted to “inform students that they should not accept these statements or ostracism from other students. “It’s also seen as acceptable to isolate or exclude students who are ‘weird’, ostracising them and keeping them out of social circles,
which makes university seem like an unwelcoming place.” Luke, a second year student, was sceptical however, and told Vision: “As a student with mental health issues, I can’t say I’d be comfortable reliving upsetting experiences in front of people, and on a personal level it wouldn’t be worth the relapse afterwards. “I also worry about the other aspects of the project, which would make me feel like an exhibit for people to come and study.” Kemi, another student, added: “I don’t think that people with mental health issues should have the responsibility of educating bullies. The project is a positive one, sure, but I just don’t think that the onus is on us to stop them from bullying.”
“I THOUGHT FREAK SHOWS WERE OUTLAWED” Ron responded to these criticisms, by stating: “The Living Library was an event suggested by multiple students, as well as the NUS, as a great way to talk about mental health. This issue suffers from a conspiracy of silence, and
often a great way to raise awareness is to have people talk about their spoken experiences. “This is done in a one-on-one fashion so it is personal and is only with volunteers. Disability in general is an issue where there is a lot of disagreement on how to fight the stigma attached and there will almost never be an agreement.” YUSU Welfare Officer George Offer said: “The event allows volunteers with mental health problems to share their personal experiences with other students and open up dialogue with them about what it’s really like. “The aim is to break down stigma, stereotypes and preconceptions by revealing the identity behind the label and the life and experience behind the condition. “Similar events run recently at other universities and a few years ago here at York proved very successful and with the NUS involved in, and hopefully coming down to the Mental Health Week it should be a success once more.” Ron urges any students who have questions or concerns about the event to get in touch at access@yusu.org. (Students’ names in the article have been changed at their request)
Tron’s Living Library is preaching to the choir jo Barrow third-year english
T
he issue of how to approach the stigma around disabilities is obviously a polarising one. I have absolutely no doubt that Thomas Ron, YUSU Disabilities Officer was well intentioned with his plans for the Living Library, but student reaction clearly shows that his plan was ill-thought out. There is a fine line between sensitively dealing with an issue and inadvertently causing more stigma by drawing attention to the difference between two groups of people. Unfortunately for Tron, his plan to place disabled students in a room to attract the curiosity of passing students is just on the wrong side of it. There are two glaring rea-
sons as to why. Firstly, as the students in the articles mentioned themselves, many people with disabilities choose not to define themselves by their differences. This is even reinforced by their decision to remain anonymous when giving the quotes! Even more saliently, perhaps, is that any student attracted to the premise is invariably someone who doesn’t need the lessons that the disabled students could teach them. Think about it, when was the last time you thought to yourself, ‘I have some preconceptions that need challenging, let me take time out of my life to question my comfortable, if potentially mistaken, beliefs?’ The case is made even stronger by the knowledge that students are a particularly apathetic breed. So, although I admire Tron’s passion and commitment to his cause, the Living Library it seems will be ultimately be preaching to the choir with, sadly, very little impact at all.
6 NEWS TWEETS OF THE WEEK Jade Richardson @JadeLouise945 Day one. 3 hours sleep. 6 no show STYCS. 4 paralytic freshers. 1 ambulance and an evacuation later. It’s finally bed time. #FreshProblems Second year Social Policy Student
Joanna Barrow @JoBarrow Today I tried to buy books for uni and Natwest blocked my card for suspected fraudulent spending. Even my bank knows I don’t do the reading York Vision Editor
Jonny Sim @JonnySim1 1/4 of a tonne of Galaxy cookie crumble to be put in YUSU welcome bags... Suddenly I’m rather popular! #UoYFreshers YUSU Marketing Coordinator
Charity. A new token system implemented in YourShop means customers can chose a charity to donate too, after purchasing a ‘meal deal’. You will be able to deposit your token in a transparent container, so everyone can see how each charity is doing in terms of votes. The charity with the most votes wins the money for that term. Also, RAG’s great success in fundraising over this summer.
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1, 2013
International Freshers separated from UK students due to clash of events
FRESHER SEGREGATION STUDENTS HAVE criticised the decision to run this year’s International Freshers’ week at the same time as college Freshers’ events. A number of international students have expressed concerns that some International Student Association events (ISA) will clash with respective college events. Shubhanker Choubey, a second year Engineering International Student said: “The choice to merge the two Freshers’ week, instead of keeping the International Freshers’ separate, isn’t a better option. “It’s just going to segregate international students and make it harder for them to make friends with their flatmates.” Indeed there have been questions raised as to whether there should be a separate Freshers’ week at all. Elvira Rey Redondo, a second year Biology International Student told Vision: “Everyone is supposed to integrate into one York community, and separate events just seems silly to me. “I think internationals can integrate themselves and choose who
CAM-PAIN Officer position to be abolished Morris: I’ll only support if unaminous
YUSU PRESIDENT Kallum Taylor has revealed plans to abolish the position of Campaigns Officer. YUSU officers will vote on the proposition prior to it being put to referendum. Taylor told Vision: “Campaigning for and representing students should be like breathing for all elected Officers - not just the Campaigns Officer. Willow. It’s just a strange fit Saturday which is open to huge night saw conflicts of interest. the roof “We’ll be asking stuof the dents if they still see the infamous role as being relevant under a new club colYUSU in this term’s big votes on lapse over the big matters. party-goers “If students agree with their as they were dancing to their directly elected officers, then we’ll favourite cheesy tunes. Luckily, look to phase the position out beonly roof tiles were affected leav- fore the next elections.” ing the infrastructure intact and The plans to remove the posino one harmed. No statement has tion provoked a stinging response been made by Willow and the club from current Campaigns Officer will remain open as usual. Leon Morris, who argued that the
GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK
they want to be friends with, they don’t need to be with other internationals to figure that out.” However, YUSU International Students Officer Mike Anstey has reassured students of the value of the event. He said: “The International Students Association has joined with the GSA to put on loads of events which are open to both home students and internationals. “In terms of helping internationals adapt to a new country and environment, we have a variety of events, talks, welfare groups and clinics, aimed at keeping an eye on the welfare of international students. “In addition to that, we have teamed with Nightline to launch our new campaign ‘Home Away From Home’, to take care of international student mental health.” The International Freshers’ week consists of a range of events aimed at familiarising international students with life in Britain, including introductions to the education system and meetings with bank representatives. The week offers alternative events to freshers, including a number of non-alcoholic ones, and is open for all students to attend.
move is part of a continual agenda of abolishing positions “to make it look like there are changes happening.” Morris added: “The position of campaigns officer should be a major role. When I was the LGBTQ Officer, there just wasn’t the support to run a campaign and, whilst that situation is improving, I feel that students don’t have the knowledge or the time to run their own campaigns. “This is another example of blindly supporting high-level decisions. I understand that the Sabbs wants to leave their stamp whilst their in power. “I will only support this decision if there is a unanimous agreement within the Union that this should go to a referendum.” The Campaigns Officer’s role is designed to support students who’d be interested in running any sort of University campaign. The job description details how the officer should be on hand to offer “training, publicity or support” to those who need it.
Photo: Oscar Pearson
Photo: Aggie Chambre
TFTV BAFTA TRIP Showcase for York film students Panel includes Oscar winner STUDENT FILM-MAKERS at the University have the chance to showcase their work to members of the British Film Industry at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). The event will take place on October 3rd in London, and will present the opportunity for BSc Film and Television Production students to compete for the showcase’s STUDIOCANAL Grand Jury Prize. The event will be hosted by Greg Dyke, the University of York’s Chancellor and Chairman of the British Film Institute. The esteemed judging panel will include ten-time Academy Award nominee Roger Deakins, who was the cinematographer for films such as Skyfall and True Grit. In addition, BAFTA award winning producer and co-head of Working Title Films Tim Bevan (Les Miserables, Frost/Nixon) will assist on the judging of the submissions. Professor Andrew Higson, Head
of the Department of Theatre, Film and Television at York, said: “The quality of work produced by our talented student film-makers is testament to their hard work and creativity. “The students have benefited from the guidance of our excellent team of staff and the outstanding facilities at York which provide some of the best professional production facilities of any university in the country.” The University’s Film and Television Production degree is led by John Mateer. He told Vision: “We designed the BSc Film and Television Production course to enable our students to become world-class filmmakers and television programme creators. The BAFTA showcase will provide them with an opportunity to demonstrate to leading figures in the film industry just how talented they really are.” The first students graduated from the recently-introduced course in July this year, which, according to the University’s website, teaches students “professional and technical skills that relate specifically to the film and TV industries.”
YORK VISION
NEWS
Tuesday October 1, 2013
YUSU supports housing initiative
YUSU ESTATE OF AFFAIRS
New long term housing plan to go to referendum YUSU would run independent letting agency in aim to bring down house prices YUSU IS backing the plan for a student Union run letting agency, which will revolutionise student housing in York. An online referendum will be held in week 4, to decide whether to pass the motion put forward by the York Student Socialist Society. The new letting agency would be accountable to the student body, as opposed to the current system of using independent companies that hold students as their target market. Although the size and cost of the scheme is yet unknown, general response has been positive, with the prospect of the cost of off-campus housing declining. This motion is part of a wide ranging housing campaign by the York Student Socialist Society. Megan Ollerhead, the leader of the project, explained how the drive includes ideas such as “a mandatory landlord accreditation
scheme, and further campaigning regarding the sky-rocketing oncampus rents.” Ollerhead said: “We’ve been petitioning around campus since about spring term last year, and we’ve had nothing but positive responses to the idea.” One third year Management student strongly supports the idea for a YUSU run letting agency, and told Vision how he felt “ripped off ” after being charged at the end of the year for “mould already present in the house when we moved in.” Third year Environmental Science student Fraser Kirkley echoed these sentiments by explaining how his landlord’s “inexperience” caused huge problems. Ollerhead added: “We’ve been listening to a lot of students and other residents concerns and horror stories about the exorbitant prices being paid for what was often really low-quality housing. “The letting agency would be
ILL FEELING
Travel costs too high for placements New survey reveals student upset Health Science students have criticised the University in a new survey about travel costs to and from work placements. A total of 149 students completed the survey, which has shown that a dramatic majority of participants struggle to pay the travel costs required for their work placements. 56% of students had to pay for their travel costs using their personal overdraft, whilst a further 44% did not know whether they had made use of their department’s own travel advance scheme. For those using such schemes, 34% of students received reimbursement for their travel costs between seven and eight weeks after submitting their claim forms to the department. The high costs of travel to work placements and the time taken by the NHS Bursary Unit to reimburse the costs, has angered students. One student commented: “Travel expense costs and the problems they cause are a serious issue for health-care students and a better system needs to be in place to help with these costs.”
Another added: “Seven to eight weeks is too long for travel expenses to come back to students. Myself and other students have had weeks where something has to give ‘food or travel’. It’s not right that we should have to make that choice!” The survey revealed that many students feel financially unable to continue with their course due to the hefty costs of travelling Another student told Vision: “My monthly income is lower than my travel expenses, and thus I am having to quit my course despite being academically and vocationally capable. “It’s crushing to be told this, as it’s impossible to find part-time work when my placement hours do not allow this. “To be sent to a placement which is pretty much inaccessible by public transport takes away five hours of my time each weekday.” Indeed, a number of other students have expressed their frustration at the current system, with another student telling Vision their costs mean “paying my rent and living costs are a struggle.” Students seeking financial advice can visit the Support Office in Market Square, or contact them on 01904 324043.
a not-for-profit organization, we believe it could drive the prices of off-campus rents down, and accordingly the ones on campus too.”
Not only has the campaign had the support of students, but has also garnered attention from YUSU. Ollerhead told Vision: “YUSU have been really receptive to the proposal and we’re happy that they’ve taken what we and the student body have had to say on board to propose this as a referendum this term.”
YUSU President Kallum Taylor added his support to the motion, saying: “In recent years there’s been a massive squeeze on students’ finances. Away from the cost of living shooting up, a stand out reason has been with the cost of housing – both in rent and simply the fees involved with securing a tenancy in the first place. “I’m not surprised that students are demanding a solution to this which is student led and city wide. “Whatever your view, do make sure you vote come the time as you’ll be essentially setting YUSU a pretty big task should it go through!” Third year History student Freya Sydney-Smith told Vision: “I am really glad such a seemingly-viable and exciting idea has been put forward to sort out ongoing problems that have affected thousands of students. “I will definitely be voting in the referendum.”
TOKY-GO
Club up for sale for £1.2 million Tokyo has still suffered financially TOKYO NIGHTCLUB is up for sale for a figure believed to be around £1.2 million; that’s £750,000 more than its current owners paid for the club in 2010. Aaron Mellor, Managing Director and CEO at Tokyo Industries, opened his 24th UK venue this year; with his business already operating the award-winning Digital nightclubs and the Tokyo Mansion party venues. However, Tokyo York became immersed in a pricing turf war with live music venue Fibbers – a
club owned by Mellor’s Tokyo Industries – and Luminar Group’s Salvation and Kuda. The club has continued to struggle despite offering 80p drinks and 1p entry fees and have ultimately been placed on the market. Mellor’s Tokyo Group saw turnover fall 5.2% to £6.6m in 2011 but the company has since said it is “pleased” with recent financial results attributed to their rise in pre-tax profit. Despite national success, York’s Tokyo has suffered financially and could soon change hands. At the time of print Tokyo were unavailable to comment.
What's The
Quack?
air Which college ch t in lle wa s hi w re th e in the lake on mov weekend?
Which student jour nalist aske d for luck for seducing the “poor turnout” of good looking fresher s?
OC Which YUSU BN ’s new SU YU to ed rr fe re e as culinary ventur ‘hipster’?
Which nightclu b oversold more th an 200 tickets on Su nday night?
air Which college ch eir th e et pl m co t did no e? tim on s EMF form
Photo: Jack Western
7
8 NEWS
MEND-OCRACY
Zoe Biles looks at how student media around the country is covering everything from Freshers’ Week to former Archbishops.
IDE
O N PO
it ‘easy’ for a student to have their say. “We rolled out a huge consultation with members, keeping the questions simple and to the point, and from the feedback we’ve put together a new alternative.
Complete overhaul of how democracy works at the University of York “This kind of thing is always hard to get ‘right’ but the model we’re proposing is like no other in the UK. It’s a massive kick up the backside for YUSU and I’d urge all students to vote yes to having a more accessible, approachable and collegiate Students’ Union.” The proposed democratic reform is an attempt to tackle these issues, with a complex restructuring of how policies come to be decided upon. Policies will be initiated by sabbatical officers instead of the Democracy Committee, and will be filtered for discussion by core consultative bodies of students. One of these bodies will be the colleges, which are going to be renamed YUSU College Associations
LICY TO B ED I
as a result of a new by-law which outlines their remit as no longer being constituted under College Councils. It will have no effect on their funding and they will each maintain their independence through a document called their Terms of Reference. All college members will have the right to suggest or vote on amendments and it will be reviewed annually. One side effect of this is that it is likely that College Chairs will be referred to as Presidents if the referendum passes. The other bodies will be the networks led by part-time officers, such as the LGBTQ Network, and constituencies under the full-time officers and their relevant bodies. The Welfare Officer will discuss policies with off-campus and College Welfare Representatives. Only consultative bodies that are deemed relevant to the discussion by the member responsible for them will be included. The feedback from these consultations will be fed back to a body created for the purpose of reviewing the process and finding consensus. This will be recruited by students who are part of Networks, chosen by the relevant officers. The policy review team will ultimately consist of around five
senate reps
SSED
SABBATICAL OFFICERS
academic
volunteering
INTEREST GROUPS volunteers
YUSU COLLEGE ASSOCATIONS
racial
welfare
pART TIME OFFICERS
E&E college welfare
rag
LGBTQ Women
eACH CONSULTATIVE BODY WILL DISCUSS POLICIES AND FILTER INFORMATION BACK TO A TEAM WHO WILL REVIEW THE WHOLE PROCESS AND DECIDE WHETHER THE PROPOSAL BECOMES A POLICY OR GOES TO REFERENDUM
to referendum. Katrina Northern, a third year English student who does not usually participate in assemblies, said: “It’s wise to broaden the access points for contributions to decision making, as there are students who feel disconnected because they find the concept a bit alien.” Rosie Litterick, a third year student, added and told Vision: “It seems like they’re doing the right thing by trying to engage more students but it’s going to be difficult Most students feel like YUSU’s irrelevant to them. We’ll just have to wait and see if these changes will actually make a difference”
The meetings are long, boring and complicated.
rag
clubs
sport int’l
Only college members will have the right to suggest or vote on amendments
societies
activities
disabled
students and the position formerly known as Union Chair. They will then discuss the feedback, and if a consensus is found among the participating members who have been consulted, then the idea will become policy. If the issue polarises debate then it will go
What YOU said about the current system
course reps
SC U
"
Indeed, controversy is heavy in the air of student press as The Cambridge Student reports on the comment made by former Archbishop of Canterbury and Master of Magdalene College Rowan Williams, saying that Christians claiming persecution in the West should just “grow up”. However, all has allegedly calmed down as he has now admitted to be simply commenting on the “sensationalised accounts” of persecuted Christians. Phew. It’s not only the former Archbishop of Canterbury who is in deep water. The London Student revealed that Sir Malcolm Green, the provost at UCL, had a leaving party costing nearly £18,000. An ABBA tribute band played while the guests munched on 200 moustache shaped cookies, wearing tshirts with the Provost’s face on them. Meanwhile York Vision discovered earlier in the summer that we, as a university, are being left out of surveys; most notably, “The North is The Best Nightlife in the World”, or something to that effect. However, on closer inspection York hadn’t featured in this poll at all. Incidentally, this did not stop us winning University Challenge, and being dubbed ‘The Best Univesity in the North,’ or rising to 11th in the league tables. Oh well, You win some, you lose some.
DEC
YUSU HAVE announced a complete overhaul of how democracy works at the University of York just two years after the last reforms were implemented. Following constant feedback from attendees that Assemblies aren’t working, YUSU will be bringing their plans for widening participation in democracy to referendum in week 4. The proposed changes will see Assemblies abolished in favour of an apparently more decentralised approach. One criticism of the current system was that it is biased towards full-time officers and their friends, and as a result students were too scared to confront officers personally. Other criticisms include that Assemblies are boring and often irrelevant to many students, that people weren’t informed about important votes or issues, and that students were unlikely to make the effort to come to extra meetings. Kallum Taylor, YUSU President stated: “After two years of completely fair criticism despite a good effort to make it work - it was clear that YUSU were not making
S A B BS
"
UCL spent £18,000 on their Provost’s leaving party
Tuesday October 1, 2013
New democratic system being put to vote at referendum Taylor: “The model we are proposing is like no other in the UK”
Student Press YUSU’s EXCITEMENT over landing stars such as Katy B and The Pigeon Detectives to play at this year’s ‘Live and Loud’ event has taken over all media airwaves in York this summer. Other universities are matching York’s excitement over Freshers’ Week, with the aptly named Exeposé of Exeter University releasing that Zane Lowe will be the headline act for their Freshers’ Ball. Taking the frontline, however, is the controversial debate surrounding the song Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke: Exeter students will be voting through the Democracy Committee whether to ban this song on Students’ Guild premises and in student media. This also seems to be an ongoing issue around the country, as the Leeds University Student Union have gone as far as to ban the song from being played at all of its bars and clubs. York is seemingly alienated from this debate as YUSU have not yet received any complaints about this song being played on campus.
YORK VISION
college sport
committee
I’m scared of tackling an officer head on in a room full of their friends. I don’t know anything about the current officers!
off campus
mature
It’s obsessed with getting everyone to the YUSU building. PROCESS REVIEW TEAM N
SUS
SE CON
Um. What is the current system?
POL
AR
ISIN
POLICY
This graphic was intended to make democratic reform clearer for you. It cannot, however, make it any more interesting.
G
REFERENDUM
Democracy? At student level? I just couldn’t care less.
YORK VISION
NEWS
Tuesday October 1, 2013
A RAGING SUCCESS
RAG breaks records and raises over £200,000 for various charities Summer expeditions to China and Kilimanjaro huge successes VISION CAN exclusively reveal that RAG has raised over £200,000 for a number of charities through their summer exploits. RAG organised trips to China and Kilimanjaro, which were attended by almost 100 people. 65 members of the University of York took part in the attempt to climb Kilimanjaro, which raised valuable funds for Hope for Children. A further 30 students completed a similar challenge in China, in aid of Breast Cancer Campaign and Make-AWish Foundation. RAG Officers Kate Elliot and Beth Greenwood said: “This summer has been a fantastic one for RAG; trips like China and Kili are a brilliant chance for students to do something different, have the experience of a life time and also to raise money which can make a difference!
“We’re looking for Adventure Leaders and participants for our trips to the Incas and Kili this summer, so if you’re interested drop us an email at rag@yusu. org. “We want to carry on with this kind of work, as well as explore lots of other fundraising avenues, so keep an eye out for all things RAG this year!” RAG are hoping that next year’s ventures will see over 150 students represent the University in their fundraising efforts, with money raised from climbing Kilimanjaro going to Meningitis Research Foundation and Practical Action, whilst the efforts of another group of students completing the Inca Trail will benefit the Breast Cancer Campaign and Epilepsy Society. Second year History student Izi Hutchinson, who was amongst the students who climbed Kilimanjaro, told Vision: “The experience was emotional with highs and some serious lows. We
VIVA L’AVIVA
£28.5m loan for Constantine College AVIVA COMMERCIAL Finance Ltd have provided a £28.5 million loan to fund the construction of Constantine College on Heslington East. The loan has been handed to Student Accommodation Provision Three LLP, a venture between Evans Property Group and the University of York, which will see 600 rooms provided to students at the University. Graham Gilbert, the University of York’s Finance Director, said: “This transaction secures a balanced underpinning for our portfolio of residential JV investments and will secure an important addition to the stock of high quality residential accommodation already available to our students.” James Pitt, Development Director at Evans Property Group, added to this, stating: “Having
completed the award winning Langwith College in September last year we are delighted to be working again in partnership with the University on the third student college at Heslington East. “This latest transaction demonstrates our continued approach to providing innovative funding solutions for the delivery of student accommodation.” Kevin Sale, Commercial Finance Director at Aviva, said: “The funding of this project is another strong addition to our student accommodation lending portfolio. It represents a good long term investment for Aviva and for our annuity customers, and it will benefit the community and local economy of York, with which Aviva has close links.” Work on Constantine College is in progress, with the project set to be completed in time for students to move into the new accommodation in September 2014.
Photo: Jack Western
Photo: Maria McLintok
all knew it would be a challenge both physically and mentally but to what extent we could not have prepared for. However, the group I was travelling in were amazing and out of the 22 of us in our group who travelled to Tanzania, 21 of us made it to the summit
which was amazing. “Although summit night was the toughest and most exhausting climb I will ever do the feeling of reaching the top was indescribable! I recommend that anyone who fancies a challenges signs up for next year’s event.”
CRAPPLICATIONS York not first choice for 1/5 students
A NUMBER of students have admitted to choosing York as their last resort, after failing to meet their first-choice offers or entering the University through clearing. 2013 has seen far more students accepted through clearing or upgraded through adjustment, with 10-20% of the intake now entering through those means. The overall number of applicants to the University of York has increased by 6-8% since last year. This is particularly significant following last year’s tuition fee rise, which saw recruitment numbers severely decline. One student, who acquired a place at the University through clearing, told Vision: “I was absolutely desperate to go to Bristol, but after I didn’t make my offer I was left with little choice. Fortunately for me, I phoned up York on results day, and they offered me a place. “I spoke to other universities as well, with lower grade boundaries than Bristol, however York is the only university that helped me. I am pleased to have a place at any university, and will see how York pans out.” University staff are convinced this is a positive development, as this year has seen more students accepted via the condi-
tional insurance route. A significant number of students who applied to top institutions, such as Oxford and Cambridge, failed to meet their grades and as a result have joined York. David Duncan, University Registrar, said: “There appears to be a general trend towards students making their final choice of university after they receive their results. Most top universities now participate in clearing and adjustment, like York, and will have attracted some excellent candidates at this stage of the recruitment process.” This news follows revelations that the University could suffer up to a £500,000 fine, since they have currently over-recruited by 67 students. As a result, more than 150 freshers have been forced to live off campus due to an accommodation shortage, some over 40 minutes’ walk from their colleges. These figures suggest that although more students are attending York, less students chose the University as their first choice. This coincides with national statistics showing 0.3% fewer students receiving A’s in their A Levels, and 7.9% less students receiving A*’s compared to last year. With less people attaining the top grades, Russell Group universities such as York acquired more students through clearing.
YUSU Insider Our new columnist dishes the dirt on the scandalous secrets of YUSU
9
?
HELLO AND welcome, I am the YUSU Insider. I promise you, my dear readers, I promise you a continued and unadulterated stream of gossip from the very core of YUSU. That’s right my friends, I am in YUSU, and am prepared to spills the beans. So, let’s begin shall we, on our quest to open up this organisation and let a few people know the real YUSU? In our continuing quest to get the most out of colleges and take over the uni all on our own, YUSU currently debates an idea to improve the college chair roles so they are a paid full-time position – similar to a sabbatical officer role. Yes, I know. This has been in the gutter for a while now (to those of you in the know – what, 50 of you?), but this is looking to become a reality now. Goodness knows where the money’s coming from (your society I imagine), but there has been an outbreak of college chairs announcing their interest in re-running. Anmoli, the “ice queen” of Derwent, commands her friends to “make sure she doesn’t run for president”, in the words of an anonymous tip-off. Joshua Lee and Sam Maguire of Alcuin and Langwith respectively look set to grab the presidency too, but wouldn’t dare upset their clique princess and would most probably settle for something lesser. It seems too, that Dexter Clarke of James College appears to be eyeing up his role as an option for December, despite some major apprehensions from within his committee. This is also the summer of love it seems. Which YUSU member has been spotted sharing more than one passionate same-sex snog at Willow? And does that mean he’s finally ready to come out. And on that point, it seems like almost entirely gay men populate the YUSU building. The international gay mafia seems to have invaded York... A few other bits and bobs for this week then. It seems “change” is the buzz word of the term. Why? I have absolutely no idea. Despite being an absolute nightmare of a term, it seems KT (our beloved leader) is insistent on the idea that it’s happening. He pretends so much is changing, and yet, they’ve abolished some committees that no-one even knew about (do you know what the academic committee actually does/ did?). Cass Brown seems to be having a bit of a kick about with no agenda and of course, our welfare credentials seem to be dropping each year. We’ve somehow managed to elect a Welfare Officer who looks to be a carbon copy of Bob Hughes, we’ll have to wait and see if he continues on in the same apparently inoffensive vein as his predecessor. A quick note on the amount of pornography watched on the YUSU computers? No? Okay then... And finally, let me give you an update on buses. Despite all the big noise around this, it’s actually quite boring. The university upset First buses and now the 44 is near bankruptcy, we’re begging First to come back to us. Simple!
10
YORK VISION
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YORK VISION
COMMENT
Tuesday October 1, 2013
COMMENT
11
www.yorkvision.co.uk/comment comment@yorkvision.co.uk
BLURRED LINES
THERE’S A DARKER SIDE TO CLUB ROMANCE THAT WE MUST ALL BE WARY OF
LOUISA HANN
@YorkVision
T
hink about the humble nightclub for too long and it starts to seem stranger and stranger. Hundreds of people wolfing down litres of liquid intoxicant while dancing repetitively for hours. What purpose does it serve? There are those of us who claim to merely enjoy being out with our friends, the sensation of drunken euphoria nightclubs induce, and the comforting thought of post-night-out cheesy chips that clubbing brings. For many people, however, whether they admit it to themselves or not, one of the main motives is to pull. To get that bit of action to make the hangover, unwanted Jagerbombs and heart-breaking amounts of money spent all worth it. In many ways, the random club-night pull can be good for the soul, offering a break from incessant dancing and in some ways, a little ego boost; it provides assurance that it is in fact possible you do not look like the back end of a bus. However, lurking behind the seemingly harmless clubbing culture are those people who are perhaps a little too intent on getting a bed partner for the night. We all know
these people exist, and are often joked about by so-called ‘mates’ and acquaintances, but the problems brought on by the creepy, over-zealous serial puller are often masked by clubs themselves, and this is made worse by the fact that the people who fall prey to these issues often blame it on themselves. The influence of alcohol is often blamed, as inhibitions dissipate and the ability to make rational judgements about potential bed-mates gets a whole lot worse.
Once the serial puller has reeled in their prey, there is the immediate question of what happens next But how can the responsibility be placed solely on the individual when clubs offer drinks so cheap they might as well be free, and reel off a playlist that would even make Robin Thicke blush? The serial puller knows the ways of the club, whether he is conscious of it or not. I use the word ‘he’ here with caution: there are many girls who could conceivably fit into the category of the serial puller, but the creepy culture of clubs is disproportionate-
ly and obviously stacked against girls. In an environment where all the senses are muted or obscured by loud music, flashing lights and, of course, alcohol, the creepy guy is hard to say no to, and this is worsened by the fact that random hook-ups are very much the expected result of a night out. They seem harmless, and if all else fails, might bring some amusement to the friends you brought along with you to the club. There are, however, deeper issues than this. Once the serial puller has reeled in their prey, there is the immediate question of what happens next. As your lips are locked to the stranger in front of you, questions naturally pass through your head what’s this person’s name? What subject do they do? How old are they? - and you might not even have the chance to exchange one word with them. The assumption that your partner in pulling will automatically desire to come to bed is held by many people, and the pressures put on girls by student and clubbing culture is quite immense. It often seems easier to go along with it than object and back away. It is often an issue swept under the carpet, but some men are pushy, and once the night is over and morning comes, they reassure themselves that, technically, she didn’t say no, that her dress was too provocative for her not to want it, and that, indeed, it
was not just her that the alcohol affected. In this way, it is easy to blame clubs for the sort of creepy culture students harbour, as they are the perfect venues for the puller to strike - numbing, dark and alluring. However, the clubs are unlikely to change and are not the intrinsic problem here.
The pressures put on girls by student and clubbing culture is immense The emergence of a new culture in which all questionable deeds and morals can be excused merely as ‘banter’, in which girls are expected to wear little more than small pieces of material in order to be deemed attractive, and in which groups of males value each other based on the number of notches on the bed post each has racked up, means that something needs to change within student culture and beyond. It is easy to brush off student promiscuity as harmless frivolity, and for the most part, this is exactly what it is. But there are deeper and darker elements at work here, and they can be just as damaging for the much-maligned ‘creepy guy’ as for the girls that he goes out to pull.
MAKING POVERTY HISTORY
YORK CITY COUNCIL ARE MAKING PROGRESS IN THEIR CAMPAIGN TO END POVERTY IN THE CITY
JOSIAH MORTIMER @josiahmortimer
Y
ou probably came to uni thinking York was ‘the South of the North’ a quaint, middle-class city with few problems (other than being rather cold.) But beneath York’s bourgeois exterior, there’s a vast underbelly of poverty and deprivation, something York’s community groups are trying to do something about. In a time of cuts and crises, it’s easier said than done. However, the City of York Council, with The York Press and other local organisations, are attempting to remedy this with their ‘Stamp Out Poverty’ campaign. Despite its picturesque reputation, York has a surprising level of poverty; 13% of children in the city live in poverty, compared to the national average of a fifth. That’s still over 4,500 kids in deprivation. Similarly, in life expectancy, York does quite well on the surface. Despite this, the difference in life expectancy between the richest and poorest areas in York is seven years for women – and ten years for men. That’s a decade of thousands of people’s lives lost
to inequality. It’s a stark exemplifier of the tale of two cities that is a new home for many of you. Even if you do live to a ripe old age in this walled ‘utopia’, money can be tight. Over 6,000 pensioners claim Pension Credit; a common indicator of old age poverty. For thousands of them, it’s their only income, especially worrying if you’re in the 79% of OAPs who have no partner. This has not only financial ramifications, but is creating a psychological and social crisis of loneliness and community breakdown in the city.
You probably came to uni thinking York was ‘the South of the North’ - a quaint, middle-class city with few problems The situation is not improving. The introduction of the government’s ‘bedroom tax’ – a large weekly cut to housing benefit for council tenants with one or more spare rooms – has made life a lot harder for the 1,300 people hit by having to fork out at least an extra £14 a week. In addition, the slash-
ing of council tax benefit after the government hit the council with a 10% reduction in their funding, has meant a bill several hundred pounds higher for many. So who’s to blame for this cost of living crisis? One answer could be, well, us – students. York Council recently wrote: “High numbers of students and an increasing younger population…drive [up] the rental market” and “Students could be taking cheaper housing, forcing others to be pushed out of the market or forced into higher priced accommodation.” Accommodation provision currently meets just 8% of need here. The other source of blame could be the economic crisis. Wages in the region aren’t stagnating – they’re falling; by £1700 since the General Election in 2010. Yorkshire has been the hardest hit out of any region by plummeting pay-packets. Energy bills have risen by 9% this year, and water by 3.5% in Yorkshire. Finally, something is being done about this. In July, the City of York Council, The Press, the York-based Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Church representatives, the NHS and other local bodies teamed up to form the York Poverty Action Group, which aims to eradicate poverty in the city. No mean feat, but with the situation as it cur-
rently is, a very worthy cause. The initiative builds on York’s Fairness Commission, the first such commission in the country; launched in July 2011 as an ‘independent advisory body to City of York Council on ways to increase fairness and reduce inequality in York’. There are now several across the country, pushing the Living Wage and other
Who’s to blame for this cost of living crisis? One answer could be, well, us - students.
measures to improve quality of life. The Press is running its own ‘Stamp Out Poverty’ campaign on top of all this, with the backing of groups like the TUC. It’s a powerful coalition. There’s a lot of work to be done, but with York’s history of social justice activism and philanthropy, there’s no reason to say why York can’t finally smash poverty once and for all.
12 COMMENT
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1, 2013
INTERNATIONAL LOVE
THE VOICE OF
YORK VISION
HELLO, GOOD EVENING AND WELCOME
W
ell, it’s that marvellous time of year yet again when Freshers arrive en masse and embark on their University adventures. It’s a whole new chapter with opportunity after opportunity followed by drink after drink. And York is a wonderful place: the Shambles, river, dungeons and nightlife are just a selection of the vibrant and welcoming atmosphere the city has to offer. So settle in, meet new people, gear up for the brutally cold weather, and enjoy what will be a truly unforgettable period in your life - in a positive way, we hope. For returning students, this is where it all counts: whether in second or third year, we know we’ve got to put in a decent shift this time round. It will be absolutely no use putting work off until next term let’s start now. There are no shortcuts to any place worth going, so carpe diem. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been a topnotch welcome to York for everyone: Langwith students, who last weekend moved into their university accommodation, were “shocked” by the state of their new homes. Some students are forced to live up to 40 minutes’ walk from their college as there isn’t enough space on campus, while others had no WIFI on arrival. The University has got to hold its hands up here and admit it messed up the maths. Various miscalculations this summer resulted in an excessive intake of students, and the potential of a future fine. And, therefore, with accommodation space running out quicker than Brian Cantor scooted off to Bradford (why Bradford of all places?!) perhaps it’s time for students to seriously consider the potential advantages of a YUSU letting agency. In week 4 we will be given the chance to vote in a referendum on whether YUSU should introduce its own letting organisation, accountable to students. It would, if approved, rival the independent companies currently operating in York. While it has been claimed the scheme will fail due to inexperienced staff taking the reigns, others predict an upsurge in student satisfaction if the agency is founded. And that’s not all on the student radar this week, with Disabled Officer Thomas Ron releasing plans to hold a new scheme - met by deep concerns from students. The event, ‘Living Library’, which will sit disabled students down with non-disabled students to discuss experiences and bullying, has been compared to freak shows and zoos. However, there are two sides to every story and the event will only involve those who volunteer: Ron’s plans are not mandatory.. Indeed, after the event Vision hopes to speak to those who took part and find out if their experiences were positive, or if they proved to be “uncomfortable”, “ridiculous” or “upsetting” as predicted by disabled students in Vision’s story. Have a terrific start to your year at York and remember, when someone annoys you, just imagine them naked. It’s a right laugh.
WHEN EAST MEETS WEST
GOH ZI AN GALVYN @YorkVision
A
t the start of every academic year, a seismic fissure appears in the University of York student body. The crack is so massive that it shapes the destinies of many students for the rest of their academic lives. Yet this chasm is largely invisible, and rarely discussed. The rift that I am referring to is the gap created between local British and International students during Freshers’ Week, a series of daily clubbing events that usually comprise of pub crawls and end with a night of partying in a pre-selected nightclub.
Internationals perceive British students as disorderly and undisciplined While many British students tend to throw themselves enthusiastically into the revelry, International students (usually from East Asia or South-East Asia) tend to shun clubbing and stay in their rooms. This creates significant inter-group tension. British students often feel offended that their attempts to welcome Internationals for a night of fun are rebuffed, and they then perceive Internationals as being anti-social, nerdy and unwilling to integrate. On the flipside, Internationals perceive British students as disorderly and undisciplined. This is magnified by the fact that in many International students’ home countries, clubbing is viewed negatively as an activity that only rebellious or problematic teenagers partake in. Clubbing can also be
viewed as a promiscuous way to get hookedup, which is shunned by some Asian societies who view pre-marital sex negatively. The adverse perception of each other and the sizeable interstice that emerges becomes regrettably entrenched for the remaining academic years. However, I (a Singaporean Chinese who does not club in his home country and who loves to spend Friday night reading The Economist) would like to point out that both misconceptions are largely a false narrative. The truth is, British locals and Internationals simply have different cultural expressions of solidarity, and synthesis of these different ways of life is possible and beneficial for all. British clubbing, far from being disorderly, is actually a positive form of community formation. From personal experience, whenever I go clubbing with British friends, they are always very welcoming and happy that an ‘International’ joined them. The clubbing group expresses care and concern for each other by making sure everyone stays together throughout the night and returns home safely. Very often, clubbers can be seen offering to help an inebriated stranger call a cab. It’s simply a different expression of welfare and friendship that is not often seen in Asia. Internationals tend to express solidarity in a different manner, usually through gathering for a potluck or steamboat dinner. They gather together for fellowship via the medium of tasty food. This is especially important given the blandness of British food. Potlucks and steamboats are also an acknowledgement of the fact that many Internationals are on PM scholarships (Papa Mama scholarship.) Their parents have worked hard to save up money to fund their childrens’ education, which is often double the amount locals have to pay. A PM scholarship means Internationals are obliged to spend their time in England wisely. They are expected to score well and
do their parents proud. This is compounded by the fact that for many Internationals, English is not their first language and they have to spend extra time mastering it. To many Internationals, clubbing and getting inebriated is viewed as either being unfaithful to their parents or a frivolous waste of time. It is also likely that both sides have been guilty of ethnocentricism; neither are empathetic to each other’s cultures. Therefore, when Internationals and British locals interact, intergroup behaviour is triggered rather than interpersonal relations. In other words, the Asian flatmate is viewed by the locals “as a foreigner who is unwilling to integrate” rather than a potential friend. And the British flatmate is viewed as an “ill-disciplined and party-crazy white” rather than a friend who simply wants to have a good time.
A British flatmate is viewed as an “ill-disciplined and party-crazy white” I think that a synthesis between the two seemingly disparate groups is possible. British locals need to understand the context from which Internationals come from, and how they generally do not like getting drunk. Internationals need to understand that British clubbing is simply a different way of life, and rather than being a disorderly activity, it is actually one of the most sincere expressions of friendship. So why not have a potluck coupled with pre-drinking, followed by a night of light clubbing? It may just make everyone’s three academic years so much more fun and meaningful!
“Just come out for a quiet one!” Patrick Greenfield
YORK VISION
COMMENT
Tuesday October 1, 2013
IS IT WISE TO SLEEP WITH YOUR STYC?* *OBVIOUSLY AFTER THE FIRST WEEK (SORRY WELFARE)
ZOE BILES
YES
@zoebiles
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uthority is sexy. This is an obvious but true fact that has riddled the relationship game since Biblical times, ever since Mary Magdalene fell head over heels for Jesus. So when you arrive at university, a nervous yet anxiously excited, totally unaware fresher, it is surely only common sexual etiquette to develop a crush on your experienced and subtly commanding STYC. Freshers’ Week should, in theory, be all about throwing yourself in the deep end. Giving yourself the entire university experience in the concentrated time period of a week. What screams university experience more than the exciting rush of drunken nights at Willow followed by steamy sex with a person who, let’s face it, you probably shouldn’t have had sex with? And I prescribe, to all of the people who believe sex with STYCs to be a violation of some distinct moral code that should be enforced categorically, to sit down with a Sex and the City box set to cure them of their frank and obvious sexual boredom. We are talking about two parties, both over-age, both within the
age gap of (shocking, I know) three years maximum. This is not a scandal. This is a description of any student’s Friday night. Sleeping with your STYC could possibly be the healthiest way to overcome those insecure moments of Fresher anxiety. Indeed, what an exciting way to integrate yourself with the students of other years, allowing you to step out of the fresher bubble and enjoy what the rest of the university has to offer in terms of sexual partners. The most integral part of this argument lies with the fact that an estimated 90% of freshers have little or no contact with their STYCs after Freshers’ Week, whereas fellow flatmates live with each other for a year. Point being, whereas shacking up with a STYC can easily be forgotten and moved on from, the common decision to have sex with someone you live with or live near can result in endless awkward kitchen meetings throughout what should be the easiest and most enjoyable year of university life. If any moral code should exist, it should be this one: do not sleep with your housemate.
HELENA SCHOFIELD
NO
@NelpasNelpas
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ut of the thousands of students at University, you pick the first one you meet. If that doesn’t reek of desperation, I don’t know what does. Even if you do get into a proper relationship with them, you’re alienating yourself from your fellow freshers and flatmates because not everyone will fall in love with their STYC, so your flatmates won’t be able to relate to your situation. They’re your STYC, not your pre-ordained bed buddy. If you sleep with your STYC, you’re totally forgetting the whole point of having a STYC, which is to have someone to guide you through your first few weeks at university, and to look after you – not as a surrogate parent, but as an ‘older sibling’ figure of experience and support. If the first thing they do is sleep with you, they’re not doing their job; they’re taking advantage of their position of semi-authority, which is pathetic on their part. I’m all for being free to do as you please with your own body, as university is all about new experiences. I also understand that some people might be lucky enough to be assigned a STYC
who they get on incredibly well with and can form a romantic relationship with. If so, congratulations, you’re quite lucky, but there’s a difference between being the fun police and knowing what boundaries are. It’s highly likely that you will be drunk at some point during Freshers’ Week, and therefore more likely to make a decision you might regret. Moreover, we cannot simply pretend that Freshers being taken advantage of is impossible. If you’re homesick, surrounded by strangers, in a big and intimidating university, the last thing you want is pressure for sex from your STYC, or any shame or regret you may feel. It’s just another problem on top of the pile of worries for brand new and potentially vulnerable students. We should drop any remaining ‘F*** me, I’m a Fresher’ mentality. You have three or even four years to sleep with whoever you want, as much as you want. Or not at all: it is your decision. But I really don’t see the point of going gung-ho in your first few weeks (or even days!) and jumping into the sack with your STYC.
THE RAWLS OF ENGAGEMENT DON’T MAKE FRIENDS BASED ON POLITICAL BELIEFS
TOM DAVIES
@tomdavies111
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olitics. Ah, Politics. My first love, and my greatest bane. The very word itself sounds like the gnashing of a Velociraptor’s teeth. It’s angry, aggressive. The long favoured pastime of the backstreet brawlers of the intellectual class. You will find, if you weren’t already aware, that this university, like almost all universities, is positively infested with Politics. The place is quite literally riven with the stuff; it drips from the walls like cornstarch blood in The Amityville Horror franchise. It’s everywhere. From the deepest recesses of the Computer Science Department to the York Sport changing rooms. For most of us, arriving here from a world where being interested in politics made you a sort of mild curiosity, being asked inane questions at parties about how many members of the cabinet you can name, you’ll find that there is real truth to the expression “It never rains but it pours”. And if you’re not too careful, it’s all too easy to find yourself well out of your depth. My own career as a political soldier has, I’ll admit, been rather short and uninspiring. When all’s said and done, I just lacked the necessary resolve for the front line. My own idea of a good political discussion is
philosophically chatting over a pint in The Courtyard, generally spurning all the soap box rhetoric and general unpleasantness that comes with going toe to toe with the opposition, staring into the whites of their wide, hate filled eyes, as they throw spittle flecked indignation at you. Similarly, I’ve always been more of a fan of grandiose, slightly wacky visions of how to reinvent the world than the location of the decimal point in an OBR study, the sort of wonkery which is key for doing battle in the activist trenches. It’s not for me. I leave it to the professionals.
Let’s try and keep the skirmishes more civilized this year But as we, like festival stewards, having seemingly only just cleared away the fallout from last year’s proceedings, brace ourselves for the influx of a new first year class and its usual share of would be ideological agitators, I will take a moment to say this. If, you are a fresh arrival or one of our seasoned gladiators, you decide this year to strap on your sword and buckler and dive into the fighting pit crying hell for leather; then I salute you, may the witty put downs be ever in your favour. But, please, I implore you, do me this small courtesy. Try and remember that the opposition you’re dealing
with when it comes to any political schism almost certainly believes in what they do because they, in their heart of hearts, feel that it is right and good. They may be wrong, but they’re probably not stupid (they go to the same university as you remember) and they’re definitely not, as it seems a worrying number of this university’s political diehards believe, cut from the same mould as moustache twirling, turn of the century, silent movie villains. I can tell you, having met a fair few, that people of a Right Wing bent do not, generally, take glee from the misfortune of the poor and the elderly; and similarly that the University Feminist cohort are not, all told, leaning towards a world where the male race are domesticated slaves, battery farmed for reproductive purposes like so many chickens. Ultimately, don’t let your politics rule your life at York, particularly if you’re a fresher. Don’t let it limit your friends and separate the university population for you into geometrically opposed factions like an American High School movie. In the end, I guess my message is this. Let’s try and keep the skirmishes more civilised this year, politer, classier and more dignified. Let’s behave like the academics that we supposedly are, having spirited, intellectual debates on the big issues of our day and how we should govern ourselves. Not brawling and name calling in the mud like a bunch of pugnacious, cut-throat thugs, or Members of the House of Commons, but once more I repeat myself.
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YOU ONLY YORK ONCE PATRICK GREENFIELD @Greenfpa
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ndifference is a trait students are becoming increasingly renowned for. At the extreme end of the spectrum, some spend the day murdering prostitutes on Grand Theft Auto, begging C list celebrities for retweets and perfecting the symmetry of their pubic hair with beard trimmers that don’t belong to them. At the other end of the spectrum, there are those who choose not to get involved in university life because quite simply, "it's a little bit gay." Seeing as this is the first issue of a brand spanking new academic year, I am going to spend the next few hundred words explaining why it is absolutely vital you don't let yourself melt into the oblivion of your concrete citadel. Freshers’ week is a lot like Gareth Bale's first few days at Real Madrid. You rock up after a long summer of not doing a lot, enthusiastically attempt some badge kissing (shouting "Uni" as loud as you can in Willow at 5am), thereby crushing the hearts of friends you've outgrown, but remain uncompromisingly convinced that this is the right thing to do. You receive a heartwarming welcome from Kallum Taylor (York's Florentino Perez), meet your new colleagues (Ronaldo, Ramos, Alonso etc.) and are told to get on with whatever it is you are meant to be doing. But what are we meant to be doing? Academically, first year matters a lot less than other years. So take the oppurtunity to do what you are meant to do, do more if you want but most importantly, make sure you dive head first into everything that could possibly make you happy at the University of York. Try everything, speak to everyone (even to posh kids comparing how many African children they've managed to fit into their Facebook profile picture) and get into York as much as you can. Negative Nora’s aren't going to have a good time. Of course, your degree is always important, but the bit about trying everything, remember that part. York is a special city and it is important to make sure your first year memories are not just lines of Jaegerbombs interspersed with gormless marvelling at Clifford’s Tower and the historic city walls on the drunken walk home. Unfortunately, York is designed around the seasonal demands of geese; a simple fact that drove one twisted Conservative councillor to propose a “humane cull” this summer. Winter is a deceivingly calm period; they huddle together at night, pathetically squarking in the cold. By spring, you’ll realise why second and third year students laughed when geese fell through the ice on cold January mornings. Geese can and will humble the most cocksure of you out there. It is perfectly acceptable to run away. On a side note, it is not true that a Chinese student got expelled for killing and eating a goose on campus last year- the person who told you that is either a liar, a racist or a York Tory. What I am trying to say, in a very long winded way, is that You Only York Once. Make the most of it and these could just end up being some of the best years of your life.
14 COMMENT
BURNING BRIDGES dAVE WASHINGTON @DaveWashington9
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city steeped in history and culture; York is renowned for its stunning architecture, from the grand York Minster and the iconic city walls, to the picturesque Yorkshire Museum, set in the stunning Museum Gardens. Sadly, the University of York is not held in such high architectural esteem, with a combination of monstrous 1960s accommodation blocks, ghastly sheds which resemble something you’d find at an abandoned caravan site, and a concrete jungle on the edge of the A64. Yet none of that even comes close to comparing to the mystifying, utterly bewildering and nonsensical construction of the new Vanbrugh Bridge. For a start, it’s ugly, so very ugly, a bridge with no character, and very few endearing features. A new set of paltry metal railings hardly justifies the time and expense spent closing the bridge - during exam time - to remove the old, ever-present scaffolding. Rather than making the construction more appealing and attractive, it has become even worse than before, not adding to the allure of the University, but detracting from it. And don’t you dare get me started on the logistics! I would love to have explained the concept behind the idea to put the railings in the middle of what was already a relatively narrow and busy bridge. Thousands of people cross the bridge every day, yet it’s now only half the width; meaning that long queues and congestion are likely when people rush from one lecture to another. It just doesn’t make sense at all. It’s not as if people would lean over the railings if they were on the edge of the bridge and fall into the lake, and if they really are stupid enough to want to plunge into that infested and unhygienic pool of disgusting water, then they can easily hop over the new railings and book themselves a trip to A&E to have their stomach pumped. People now have to cram into a narrow space like a huddle of penguins, whilst the useful bike lane has been removed meaning that cyclists have to dismount, adding to the chaos. My theory is that the University wanted to create a duck lane for the many creatures with webbed feet which live on our campus. If all the ducks, geese and other wildfowl forget how to swim, or decide that the water is so polluted that even they can’t cope with it, then at least they can easily wander across Vanbrugh bridge without any risk of being squashed by speeding cyclists, angry members of YUSU or journalists who are late to report on the latest sports matches. In truth I’m not sure which is weirder, my crazy theory or the utterly bewildering construction of the bridge; but at least we have something else to moan about now. For a decade we complained about the scaffolding that seemed to have been part of the campus for longer than any of us can remember, but now it has gone we just wish someone would bring it back, rather than the logistically pointless and frankly ridiculous new improvement: at least the ducks are happy.
YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
MASSIVE ONLINE MADNESS MOOCS DEVALUE THE UNIVERSITY EXPERIENCE
mICHAEL COOPER
@MichaelCooper09
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he way in which degrees are taught is ever-changing. A recent such innovation in teaching has been the introduction of MOOCs or Massive Open Online Courses. A number of universities in the UK have begun to offer these short online courses that do not provide any formal qualification, but have been said to encourage those who take them to move back into more structured education. The University of York is not involved in this initiative. Many say this is a refusal to move with the times and to realise that in the internet age education must move into the online world. So what exactly is a MOOC? A MOOC is a short online course that introduces a subject or topic in an accessible way – there are no educational requirements to take a MOOC. The appeal of a MOOC is a strange one, because why would an internet literate person take a MOOC when all this information is available on the internet anyway? As MOOCs do not offer any formal qualification, how is the value of the course any greater than that of just someone flicking through Wikipedia? I would argue the value of the course comes from the course’s structure. The internet age, and with it the freedom of information, has revolutionised the nature of learning. An argument now being made against formal education is
that you waste three years of your life and £27,000 studying a degree, while the taught information is on the internet for free. This may seem a compelling argument but anyone who goes to university should be aware of why this is a very unsound one. The appeal of a university degree and now a MOOC is that a course at a university is structured and taught by a group of academics of a high level of education. This is the difference between a MOOC and a Wikipedia article – how many of us have looked for information on the internet and become frustrated because the relevant information was not there or it was laid out in an inaccessible way?
As MOOCs do not offer any formal qualification, how is the value of the course any greater than that of just someone flicking through Wikipedia? We need to remember that the value of education comes from the educator, not the information. Without structure information is just words. This is why MOOCs are valued more than a cursory look through Wikipedia, and also why they are not a good thing. When an academic gives a lecture, they have put a lot of time and effort into preparing and structuring that information, and this is also true of the person who made the MOOC. The key difference lies in that the lecturer is paid for the lecture,
whereas every time someone accesses the MOOC, they will not be. This is the problem we now face – the internet has changed our expectations; we increasingly wish to live in a world of free information, but if we carry on pursuing this ideological goal we run the risk of putting all those who actually give information value out of a job. The University system works because of the hierarchy; we accept that professors are more knowledgeable than postgraduates and even more so than undergraduates. Free information undermines this because it does not distinguish between a Wikipedia article and an academic paper – it only sees information, not structure. The reason we come to University is not because we do not think that we could have got all the information from books or the internet; it is because the academics add so much more than just the information. Their time and effort illuminates so much more, and discussions in seminars bring topics to life in the way the internet simply cannot. Personally, I am glad that York has refused to be involved with the MOOCs. We need to realise why a University education has more value than just going online, because as more and more of us expect free information, the value of education will deteriorate. MOOCs seem to represent an increasing fundamentalist attitude now academics are expected to add value to information for free. We need to remember that academics are professionals, and we need to value them as such and remember the importance that they have when it comes to education.
#FRESHERSWEEKSEXISM
THE UNION HAS TO DO BETTER IN ITS BATTLE TO ADDRESS SEXISM ON CAMPUS
helena horton
@HelenasHead
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he Union has just made some very impressive, if vague, promises to combat the ‘Lad Culture’ that comment writers in The Guardian and The Telegraph alike have been making money out of, by standing on their soapboxes and condemning lairy rugby players. However, what good are words from Kallum Taylor and WomCom, saying that binge drinking and ‘Lad Culture’ are unacceptable, on blogs that only student media hacks and YUSU obsessives with nothing else to do will read, when Freshers’ week is possibly the worst environment – bar sports initiations – for sexist behaviour and vomming in Willow? It seems like YUSU are once again doing what they do best; listing out some vague aims that they can never hope to accomplish, in order to pacify the campus activists and sooth Freshers – when in reality nothing will change. We come to University and are shoved into a flat with a bunch of new people who we want to impress; mentored by a pair of particularly keen second or third years willing us to play Ring of Fire and partake in banter. We are then shoved into clubs together, in varying degrees of frivolity and undress, completely off our faces with people we’ve known for less than a week and
desperately either want to shag or impress. Encouraging students to tweet about their experiences is an unrealistic cop-out; sure, the Everyday Sexism Project is a fantastic way of highlighting and documenting the sexism in our culture, but it is just showing us what we need to change – and that there is in fact a problem, rather than being a solution in itself. In reality, many students will be too intimidated to come forward and publicly state that their peers have done something sexist or wrong at a time when they are desperate to impress and make new friends. In addition, getting STYCs to sign a piece of paper saying that they’re going to tackle sexism is again a piece of bureaucracy that’s not going to be at all helpful – they also sign one saying that they’re not going to sleep with the freshers or encourage binge drinking and we all know how well that goes. If YUSU wanted to actually change the sexism and lad culture which happens not just in Freshers’ week but throughout our time at university, they’d do more than just jumping on a Twitter bandwagon and writing a blog. They’d make constructive changes instead of merely writing 300 words to save face. They’d work with the University and nightclubs to put standards and sanctions in place – think of the difference between WomCom putting up a poster about drink spiking, and going into clubs and putting pegs on drinks which have been left unattended. The poster raises awareness – for those who actually read it, but the pegs on
drinks could potentially save someone from being spiked. It's the same issue here. Perhaps instead of encouraging freshers to tweet YUSU; giving YUSU a pat on the back and a public way to save face, YUSU could point on their blog towards the, admittedly lacking, University services which students can confidentially report sexual harassment to. Alternatively they could encourage freshers to speak to their STYCs or welfare teams when they feel uncomfortable with the way in which they’re acting, or want to report something. STYCs, after all, aren’t just there to be drinking buddies. They’re primarily there for support – perhaps that’s something that YUSU and our Colleges can ‘raise awareness’ about. YUSU aren’t just there to be a presence on Twitter – they are there, supposedly, to support students, especially our new freshers. They’re there to promote services such as Open Door, Nightline and the Harassment services rather than just promoting themselves and giving themselves something to retweet. So, Twitter campaigning is all very well. Writing blogs about sexism is so much better than doing nothing. However, the Union does have a massive amount of power and influence that it isn’t currently using, and that’s upsetting. Maybe I’m being cynical, but the way in which they’re making the reporting process for sexism massively public and jumping on the Twitter bandwagon seems like they are saving face rather than protecting freshers from sexual harassment.
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FEATURES
YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
FEATURES
www.yorkvision.co.uk/features features@yorkvision.co.uk
A VISION A TO Z OF YORK FIONA WOOLLETT and JOE COOPER use the alphabet to tell you what’s what in town and on campus... rguments. It won’t take long to realise that your flatmates in first year might not be the people who you are destined to be besties forever with. It is likely arguments will happen so be prepared for that and know it doesn’t make you an awful person. Maybe these people will go on to be the Godparents of your children, but throw yourself into university life and you’ll meet people more like-minded with whom your only similarity isn’t your joint misery in the worst accommodation on campus. (James N block anyone?).
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ite bar, so the legend goes. Worth elbowing your way through the crowd of posers for their extensive cocktail menu. If you can, snuggle up with a date on the beds upstairs.
N ood. Oki’s, Vikings, Efe’s. The names of these fast food establishments are synonymous with the end of a successful night out in York. More stressful is the seething mass of humanity to be found in McDonalds around the time the clubs shut up shop. reg Dkye. Chancellor of the University. Possibly the most prominent York alumnus around at the moment. He is now chairman of the Football Association, and for some reason he thinks England can win the World Cup in 2022. Hmm... ipsters. York seems to have recently been hit with a plague of Toffs-turned-hipsters. Spot them in their natural habitat of Fibbers where they pretend to love electro whilst secretly hoping for the next fad to come along. Yah darling. llness. It’s everywhere at Uni. Freshers’ Flu is just the beginning. If it doesn’t get you in first year in your beautifully heated halls, Winter will come for you in second year. Damp and mould do not do nice things to your lungs. B Morrell. The library is actually pretty great, as they go. People seem to love it so much that it is almost permanently rammed. Horribly keen first years have plagued study areas since the rise in fees last year, so it pays to get their early. Also, beware the Library Police, ready to swoop in and remove your possessions should you take just a minute more than half an hour over lunch. now-it-alls. Every seminar group has one. There will be an individual who will monopolise the conversation, whether they have done any work or not (see R). It’s annoying because you can’t get a word in or direct proceedings towards something that is actually interesting.
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ed. You will want to spend a lot of time between the sheets, whether alone or with company. You will end up sleeping at times you didn’t even know were possible. old. York is COLD. Most people here are from down south, and won’t be prepared for the scything wind that whips the ground incessantly here. Invest in a thick coat or you will be ill. And a lamp for those delightful 18-hour nights.
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D rinking. “A pub for every day of the year” is York’s unique (and possibly exaggerated) boast. But the wateringholes of the city are great. Spending your winter holed up with a pint is advised. If you don’t love real ale, pull yourself together. vil eye. Great drinks. Johnny Depp’s favour-
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The know-it-all can be a blessing in disguise, though, in those 9AM seminars after a heavy night out. If you can’t work out who it is, it must be you. ake. The largest plasticbottomed lake in Europe is perhaps York’s greatest claim to fame. Once beautiful and serene, it is now as dirty as it looks. Long gone are the days when colleges had boats for students to cruise around the waterways in. The fountain is little more than a trickle due to the algae in the water, which is supposedly never cleaned because the fine is a fraction of what it would cost to drain the lake. inster. The Minster is brilliant. It dominates the skyline of York to the point that it is the skyline of York. It is currently being renovated, so what was the largest medieval stained glass window in the world has been temporarily replaced by the largest poster of a medieval stained glass window in the world.
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best beer in the world, Delirium Tremens. The small attic room has walls adorned with stuffed animals and a shop below selling hundreds of beers. Promotes a more continental drinking style, so not the place to get crunk. nemployment. Bask in your three year degree for no good can come from gradua-
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xbridge rejects. At least you’ll have some common ground with your new flatmates. Don’t worry, you’ll soon get over it. rotection. The Student Centre in James College has a sort of pick ‘n’ mix of condoms with a variety Willy Wonka would envy. Sex and money saving, can’t say more student than that.
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ando’s. It seems that everyone at the University has been to the York branch of this poultry-proffering chain. It’s a safe bet, and who wouldn’t want a whole chicken with two sides all to themselves? Just be prepared for the meat sweats. And don’t be afraid to explore other options, York has a wide array of great restaurants.
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ueueing, Queue-jumps. The Willow queue exists in a world outside of normal British etiquette. Don’t be that person. eading. The endless reading is a particular grind for humanities students. Maybe you’ll gamble and head to Willow hoping the Know-it-all will talk enough for everyone. That’s a risky game and we salute you for your efforts. cience vs Humanities. The science/humanities complex might not be one you even knew existed as a fresher. Students of both harbour feelings (delusions?) of superiority. Really both are difficult but everyone likes to think what they are doing is the best. rembling madness. The home of any York beer lover, named after arguably the
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ision. Standard bearer for York’s fine student media community. ‘Nuff said. illow. Love it or hate it? That’s what the t-shirts they sell at Willow say. I wore said t-shirt at a music festival and several people recognised it, all of them fans of this unfathomable pit of hope and despair. Don’t knock this legendary cult venue without trying it first. -rays. Stupid things are done by drunk people trying to impress new friends. As with any university town, the city’s A&E doctors must have quite a collection of stories and x-rays. It doesn’t exactly help that York is all hard stone and sharp edges. It’s generally a very peaceful place though, so any serious injuries are probably more likely to be a result of some drunken stupidity than anything sinister or violent. orkshire folk. Unless you go out on Friday or Saturday, you won’t see many locals at night. York’s population is 10% students, so it makes sense that your contact with these folk is somewhat limited. Remember it’s their city and their home, respect that and they’ll be nothing but kind and helpful. iggy’s. A sweaty pit of debauchery, Ziggy’s (now Mansion, the use of archaic names for bars and clubs being common in York) is unique. Expect perspiration dripping down the walls, terrible dance moves, and the most creative (and quite frankly obscene) fancy dress York has to offer. Crazy, I know, but so
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16 FEATURES
YORK VISION
man of th
“H
OSCAR PEARSON talks Sunday lunch, same-sex marriage an
ow would you describe your perfect Sunday?” I could hardly believe it; sitting opposite a man heavily influential in modern politics; who bases his life around topics he feels passionately about; and whose views are gaining more public acknowledgement, appreciation and support by the minute. And there I was, asking Nigel Farage about his perfect Sunday. It was the final question in what The Huffington Post would later describe as “a sensational interview” while Pink News and The Christian Institute both went on to highlight Farage’s contentious remarks regarding gay marriage. But discussing his perfect Sunday proved a whimsical end to what was an extensive, controversial and enthralling encounter. “Well, the perfect Sunday has to involve lunchtime drinking at a proper English pub – although with the smoking ban no pub is proper really,” Farage chortled assuredly. “Hopefully one would get out fishing in the afternoon for a couple of hours; I enjoy that enormously. Not just the catching of them; I like the cooking of them, and the preparing of them. Somewhere inside this suit there is a man, the Huntergatherer, desperate to break out.” It was a charming reply to the question devised and proposed by my cousin, Phil. He and I have worked closely together since day one of Chat Politics; with his role behind the scenes, recording and piecing together the interviews, while I organise and present them. And Farage, the latest adventure in our fulfilling journey to date, welcomed us to the European Commission headquarters in Smith Square; perhaps ironic that
he would propose we meet at an institution which he despises. More than £5 million has been spent revamping this building where, under Tory ownership, the late Baroness Thatcher engineered her greatest electoral triumphs. Bombproof windows, a landscaped roof terrace and luxury offices: finally I was able to see exactly where the taxpayers’ money ends up. We decided to set up camp on the roof, identifying a rather apt opportunity to have the Union Flag of Westminster swishing in the gentle wind directly behind Farage’s nationalistic head. It immediately became evident that he was on a very tight schedule – with a press conference on the Syrian conflict in just 30 minutes. After all, with his party hitting 26 percent in the local elections this summer, and with one in four UK voters supportive of his views – according to one recent poll – he’s bound to be swamped by the media wherever he goes.
ing to leave the EU is the beginning of the opportunity to revive Britain: I think that’s when things really kick off. Over the past couple of years UKIP has evolved from being a party that talks not just about who governs Britain, but how Britain should be governed,” he said, crossing his legs, leaning back and becoming ever more relaxed – we were debating very familiar territory, of course. “Much of what we talk about are things that can only be done outside the EU. I really do believe UKIP is here to stay.” “But if the country votes to remain in the European Union–” I couldn’t even finish my question. “Absolutely no chance of that!” he laughed it off. “–would you continue to campaign against the will of the majority of the public?” I pressed him for an answer. But Farage was having none of it: “Even if, in some weird circumstance, the referendum was lost, no free people ever willingly give up the right to
Somewhere inside this suit there is a man, the hunter-gatherer, desperate to break out But even so, his party is still widely regarded as a one-issue pressure group, with the European Union taking the title role in the overwhelming majority of UKIP related discussions. And it was on this topic I began the interview, questioning Farage’s comments earlier in the year that UKIP is “here to stay.” “If the country votes to leave the EU, what purpose will UKIP have?” I asked. “Ah now that’s day one of a new beginning,” he asserted. “Vot-
govern themselves. The idea that a referendum could stop us wanting to be democratic is just ridiculous.” Farage told me he sees no advantages whatsoever of being part of an intergovernmental amalgamation, and quoted Norman Lamont who failed to see a single benefit the UK could not have achieved through “normal bilateral negotiations.” Indeed Farage, who described the first President of the European Council, Herman van Rompuy, as having the “cha-
The interview took place at the European Commission offices in London
The UKIP leader plays off his image as a ‘nic risma of a damp rag” and Belgium as “pretty much a non-country” loathes nothing more than the EU itself. It would be fair to suggest he is generally considered right-wing, but Farage indicated he doesn’t see a left-to-right political spectrum in “any traditional sense,” or indeed at all: “I think you would probably call us classical liberal,” he chuckled. But Edinburgh protesters labelled Farage a “racist scumbag” earlier this year, and UKIP’s original founder recently suggested the party has become “extraordinarily right-wing, not intellectually serious, and morally dodgy.” I put those comments to him and proposed he should consider toning down his policies. Farage, though, slammed the UKIP founder and former leader, branding him a “fully up paid member of the bitter and twisted club.” “Will anybody watching this video have ever heard of his name? When he was leading the party none cared who he was,” Farage bellowed. “I haven’t spoken to him in 17 years. Who is he? I don’t respond to anything he says.” Clearly, Farage intends to distance himself from the party’s history and make UKIP all about the present. But with the ongoing risk of allowing all publicity and attention to surround himself – and
therefore no room for other influential UKIP names – surely the pressure will begin to mount. “Isn’t UKIP all about you?” I queried bluntly, to which his reply was serious: “We’re not a football team; we can’t pay to import foreign players. Anyone who follows politics closely will be aware that Stuart Wheeler is an extremely well-known figure. Diane James has appeared for us on many things…” Ah yes, the lady who lost a byelection and in return was given boundless media coverage. The BBC in particular went barmy, throwing her on two Question Time episodes just weeks after failing to become a backbench MP. I asked whether more media coverage is positive for the party. “Well, when someone says we’re a one man party, it’s better than being a no-man party. At least people know who I am and what I stand for.” He conceded the public want to see a team of people who are capable of being in power – “perhaps a coalition government after 2015,” he hinted. “Political parties have to evolve and we’re heading in the right direction.” Controversy, however, frequently attends those associated with UKIP. The now-independent Yorkshire MEP Godfrey Bloom resigned from UKIP after calling women at the latest party conference “sluts.”
YORK VISION
FEATURES
Tuesday October 1, 2013
he moment
17
nd plane crashes with controversial UKIP leader Nigel Farage regret is a passing thought. It’s not something that you should allow to become an opening sore. You make decisions, you have to live with the consequences.” “So that’s the past,” I said. “What about the future? What are your realistic ambitions for 2015?” “Well I think that’s the wrong question,” he declared. “You’re asking the same question that all the media pack are asking. You’re all forgetting something quite fundamental: that in less than thirty weeks’ time we have the European elections. If you come and ask me that question this time next year, I’ll give you an answer, but I think how we do in 2015 depends heavily on how we do in 2014.”
Drugs are now openly available, not just in the streets of London but in hamlets on the North Cornish coast. They call it petty crime but it’s not so petty if it’s your grandmother who’s been bashed over the head and had her handbag taken.” Grandmothers seem to be quite a prominent topic of conversation in Chat Politics interviews. In July, for instance, Mail on Sunday journalist Peter Hitchens told me most people “would rather tandoori their grandmothers and eat them than vote Conservative.” Something Farage would no doubt love to be true. “Did your aeroplane incident in 2010 put politics into perspective for you?” We had five minutes left
We can’t have people bounding off on things that are deeply offensive
ce bloke’ and is often pictured enjoying a pint And that came just two months after Bloom was recorded saying: “How we can possibly be giving £1 billion a month, when we’re in this sort of debt, to Bongo Bongo Land is completely beyond me.” Indeed, we had organised a Chat Politics interview with Bloom for October while he was still a UKIP MEP, but since leaving the party we have not heard back from him. Surely, though, this kind of behaviour creates problems for Farage. “We can’t have people bounding off on things that are deeply offensive,” the UKIP leader confessed. “I still want us to be a party that has free speech. I have to keep it in the bounds of sanity and credibility.” I wanted to know Farage’s position on remarks made by previous UKIP Chief Executive Will Gilpin, who quit after just eight months in the job, criticising Farage for obstinately refusing to relax his influence and power. UKIP’s failure to adopt a more professional management system means it will remain “a bunch of enthusiastic amateurs having a good time,” Gilpin had warned. “Well I think he got it entirely wrong,” Farage said, branding the criticism “unjust and invalid.” “Perhaps the mistake I’ve made is to devolve too much power over the course of the last few years,
to many people who have proved they’ve not been up to scratch.” Rather innocent, then. “Am I happy that the treasurer of the party Stuart Wheeler takes a different view to me on the Human Rights Act? I’m quite relaxed. Quite relaxed!” beamed Farage. “And if the media say isn’t that a party split,” he continued, “I say no, we’re grown ups! We have different judgements on some things.” Farage, who previously claimed he would not expel UKIP members who call gay people “disgusting,” went on to tell me he feels same-sex marriages are “profoundly illiberal” because religious groups may be forced to perform same-sex weddings. He criticised the legalisation of same-sex marriage, which received royal assent in July, saying that there is “a very real legal risk that you could finish up with faith communities being forced to conduct such ceremonies,” which would be wrong because “it would stop people pursuing some of their own beliefs.” I then asked the animated and self-assured character what he would change if he could go back a few years. “There’s no point regretting things. You’re too young to have regrets, wait till you’re my age and you’ll have loads of them,” said the 49 year-old. “Privately, we all have regrets in our lives, but a
“And you’ve said that you can win those elections.” He clearly wanted to avoid debating the next general election, so I continued on the European front. “Well I believe we have the potential to win those elections, yes, I really do.” Farage then labelled Cameron’s referendum promise “pathetic” and said Labour and the Liberal Democrats were “all at sea” on that issue. Perhaps most striking that afternoon was learning about the relationship between leader and party: Farage admitted that he and UKIP disagree fundamentally on a number of issues. “UKIP says we haven’t enforced the law on drugs properly and we have to get tougher,” said the party leader. “My own view is different. I think the war on drugs was lost many years ago.
and I wanted to find out about the man himself, not just what he stood for. “Well I’ve had several disasters in life.” – a car crash and his battle with testicular cancer are two other major hardships – “I’ve been through a few scrapes, you could say! I think the plane crash was the most frightening of the three really bad experiences. It does give you a sense of perspective; I mean I do work incredibly hard, and I do take it very seriously. “But you’ve got to take a little bit of time smelling the flowers along the way. And if that means having the odd pint and the odd good lunch, and a bit of a laugh while you do it, I try and do that. Having got out of the wreckage of that wretched thing; I was hurt,
but long-term relatively unscathed, I think it probably helps me in a way.” It was this I came to admire about the man who has been on the end of interminable criticism, lavish media mistreatment and unwarranted life calamities: that his genuine passion for his country and its people has kept him going. “I feel our influence on the European debate, the immigration, law, education, and now Syrian debates. We’ve been a remarkable catalyst for change in the whole nature of British politics,” he held, more than satisfied with his achievements to date. “And I’m very proud to have been at the front, charging, but now what I really want to do is make sure UKIP is a party that changes the future of this country. And I mean that.” It was an attractive answer. But with UKIP home to a “bunch of fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists;” with the vast majority of members in favour of the death penalty; with the party officially sceptical of global warming; and with intentions to increase defence spending by some 40 per cent, there will certainly be room for concern if UKIP actually do manage to change the future of this country. And I mean that. This interview, plus more with Chancellor George Osborne, poet Benjamin Zephaniah, journalist Peter Hitchens and Green Party leader Natalie Bennett, is available at youtube.com/ChatPolitics. Coming up over the next month we’ll be chatting to the outspoken Tory Edwina Currie; Labour’s Neil Kinnock, Chuka Umunna, Alan Johnson and Ben Bradshaw; the comedian Jo Brand; and The Sunday Times’s Isabel Oakeshott.
Farage survived a plane crash while campaigning in 2010
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YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
YORK VISION
LIFESTYLE
Tuesday October 1, 2013
Page 19- “Whatcha Doing Saturday Girl” & Hot to Not Page 20 - The Camgirl & The Virgin Page 21 - Agony Family Page 22- Blind Date Sabb Special & Tom Davies’ Diary
WHATCHA DOING, SATURDAY GIRL? The Saturdays are undoubtedly the most gorgeously dressed group in pop. They never sport the monstrosities Little Mix are seen in all the time, have never had dye-sasters like Stooshe and unlike Girls Aloud, none of them feel the need to get hideous, enormous flowers, tattooed onto their arse. Their outfits are simply to die for, and it is a rare week indeed when you can’t find one of the five-piece splashed across best-dressed pages. Of the five though, there’s one Saturday who streaks ahead of the others in the fashion stakes- and that is, of course, Mollie King. King’s style is undoubtedly preppy, but she always looks phenomenal. She also has a noted affection for the High Street, and always picks ensembles that are bang on trend. She nails monochrome, white knitwear and tribal pants all at once in this look, and to channel your inner Mollie, we’ve put together the pieces necessary to make your own gorgeously fashionable jigsaw of an outfit.
Topshop $48 River Island £20
ASOS £20 Dorothy Perkins £31.50
19
HOT!
Resident Hollywood Power Couple Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively dazzle in the colour of the season, cobalt blue. Is it any wonder everyone’s talking about them?
WHAT?!
What on earth was Marc Jacobs thinking with those bobs at LFW?
NOT!
Quelle surprise, Rihanna’s River Island range is rubbish. As all celebrity lines are.
20 LIFESTYLE
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1 2013
...our anonymous student’s first foray into the world of internet porn...
REVEALED: The secret diary of a
student cam girl M
Obviously my foray into internet soft porn was less high-budget than
this...
any female - and some male - students have been trying out sex work to fund their studies. One of my friends was enjoying her job as a lowbudget Internet porn star and she wouldn’t be able to fund her post-grad if she wasn’t, and being very low on cash myself (and hearing that she made £300 in one night!), I thought I’d give it a try. If I liked it, I could carry on and be able to live comfortably at University, and if I didn’t, I could always try to find a job in town. So, clad in a push-up bra and wearing enough makeup to make a drag queen cry, I went to my friend’s house for ‘moral support’, and she said that if I did some very mild stuff on camera, I could have a cut of her earnings. It seemed to be a relatively innocent, easy way to foray into the dark underbelly of the internet. I was advertised as a ‘young virgin’ because I look much younger than I actually am, so men old enough to be my dad were wanking over the fact that they thought that I was an inexperienced teenager. It already felt awful, thinking that old, sweaty men (and perhaps some people I knew) were leering at their computer monitors and imagining me naked, with their hands groping for their hard-ons. I started to feel scared, a terribly uneasy feeling at the pit of
my stomach. What had started as something lighthearted was suddenly giving me second thoughtswhat if they recorded it? What if someone I knew saw me like this? I certainly don’t want anyone to think of me in this way in real life. I needed the money though, so I didn’t chicken out; I downed a bottle of wine and then felt better about it- sensible, I know. Forcing my conscience and sense of dignity to the back of my mind, I switched the webcam on. We started off cheap, to ease them in. Me and my friend kissed for a tenner. We make out all the time anyway so it was just like living life but for money. With 1,000 people wanking over us. Oh. The punters pay with credits. They buy a certain amount of emoney online and ‘tip’ the camgirls if they like what they see. I was getting pretty drunk and was starting to hardcore get with this girl. It all gets a bit hazy after this point. The punters were pleased with this; writing in; “Haha, wine turns virgins into sluts...” which obviously made me feel great about myself. But they were tipping a lot. We’d already made over £200. They said that they liked the fact that we seemed “real”, not like the plastic porn you get on RedTube. The credits were rolling in and we were making quite a bit of cash. I lost all inhibitions somewhere along my second vodka
cherryade and ended up getting my tits out. Quite a lot. I also let my friend spank me. The explicitly degrading act, now I think about it sober, really brings home what I have done to myself. I don’t really think about myself in the same way anymore. Having 3,000 people wanking over you is definitely very different to sending a Snapchat of your tits to your significant other. Oh, I also got asked to eat a banana. Who knew that eating a piece of fruit would be so lucrative? I hope it doesn’t end up preserved on the internet forever or my future boss’s desk or it will have defeated the point of funding my studies. It’s a bit fucking scary that someone could have print screened me with Thelma and Louise hanging out and be sending it to all of my friends and future bosses and colleagues. Would I do it again? I made a lot of easy money. I’ve lost a lot of my self-worth and dignity as it’s not something that I would choose to do, organically. I doubt people who knew about my secret life would date me. I’d really like to think that I wouldn’t do it again - but it’s not something that I thought I ever would have done in the first place. I say that now, but if money becomes tight again, who knows how far I’ll go?
THE F a c t s 20% of girls in strip clubs are estimated to be students by the NUS 6% of students in a study by Leeds and Kingston were found to be sex workers 16% thought they’d turn to the work if money became tight
A Fresher’s Virgin Confessions
C
oming to University is an intimidating experience – moving away from home, leaving your friends and family behind, and ultimately taking the first step to being an independent adult. Any added pressure is not really desirable, but there will be those among you that share the similar situation that I found myself in: coming to university a virgin. First of all, it is nothing to be ashamed of. Unfortunately, in this society we seem to have given young males the feeling that being a virgin is to wear a badge of dishonour for all to see; until that moment when it is suddenly ripped from your chest and you can watch the ‘I just had sex’ video on repeat and really understand how it feels. The other thing to realise is that your new-found friends may not have had as much experience as they say they have, my honest advice is – to be honest! Because when the moment does come, you are going to want to tell people – I know I did! So I would say just relax and enjoy Freshers
– do not worry about it. Girls are less likely to go home with guys (not strictly true) in the first week as they (unfairly) get labelled as ‘easy’. But trust me the moment will come and you will enjoy it, unless you prematurely ejaculate within in seconds of losing it and then awkwardly get asked to leave... and no, that is not what happened to me. I did come to university almost completely inexperienced, and that changes very quickly (first Saturday of Freshers’ in my case). So try and put yourself out there, but do not feel too much pressure. Most of the ‘lads’ probably have not screwed as many ‘bitches’ as they have been saying and I expect these ‘bitches’ were probably not writhing around in ‘ecstasy’ as they may have also been boasting. Maybe you want to lose it in a long term relationship. That’s fine and
University is a good place to find a suitable match. But I would certainly suggest just enjoying the freedom for a while - you will be going out a lot more than you have experienced before (most likely, unless you had a wild Skins-esque college experience) and if you get tied down straight away you may feel as if you are missing out. So just have fun! And when you do lose it I’m sure you will realise it is not really the big deal that you thought it was. Unless you lose it dressed as Wally, after you went back with someone from a Where’s Wally themed club night… and yes, since you asked, that is exactly what happened to me in Freshers’ week.
According to one recent study, 12% of undergraduates are virgins York is 59th in the Student Beans sex table, with students averageing 3.4 partners
YORK VISION
LIFESTYLE
Tuesday October 1 2013
21
MEET OUR AGONY FAMILY
Moody Teen
Wise Owl
Madame X
Not your average blonde
honey
Most newspapers have a single, solitary Aunt dealing with the woes and worries of their readership, but here at Vision we’ve gone four better and gathered together some of the sharpest minds on campus to create a thoroughly modern, if a bit dysfunctional agony family just for you.
I’M IN LOVE WITH AN OLDER, TAKEN WOMAN! TERRIFIED THAT UNI IS TOO MUCH WORK TO HANDLE! I have recent ly got a new job and have fallen head over heels in love with a woman who also works there - she is two years older though. We get on really well but I fear she has a boyfriend, I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to ask her because the potential cold hear t tearing truth would destroy what litt le faith I have in love..
Lovelorn Second Year
Madame X: Honey, you need to kick yourself out of this limbo and take action. Get with her or get over her. Moody Teen Emo: She has a boyfriend, so I doubt that she will go for you, I’m afraid. If you try, and succeed, she will be cheating on her boyfriend. If she leaves him for you, you’ll probably get beaten up by her boyfriend and you’ll be forever wondering if and when she is going to leave you for the next charming young bloke that comes along. Honey Badger: All you can do is confirm your fear. And if it’s as you feared then move on. Turn up the music, whack on Hannah Montana and sob profusely. Then dust yourself off and go out and find someone else. In the immortal words of HM, Life’s What You Make It. Wise Owl: You don’t have to ask her if she has a boyfriend, just keep it casual and ask her if she fancies going for a coffee or something. If she says yes, it doesn’t mean she’s single because really that isn’t a date, but at least if she says yes it’s a good opportunity to ask and get to know each other better. Or, you could do the less brave thing and ask around at work - someone’s bound to know! Not Your Average Blonde: This is a simple situation. You like her. But she has a boyfriend and by the looks of it she won’t be dumping him anytime soon for you, so move on. There’s no reason you can’t stay friends with the girl. After all you may be the one she runs to when they finally break up.
I’m really scared because I am worried that the work at univer-
sity will be much more difficult than A Levels and that I will fail and have to drop out. Please help, Agony Family!
Terrified Fresher
Honey Badger: It honestly depends on the subject that you’re doing. Generally, there isn’t a colossal leap in work, but essays become trickier as you have to reference. Get your head around whichever referencing style your department uses early as you don’t want to lose easy marks! Not Your Average Blonde: I was once told that A-levels were the hardest thing I would ever do. Boyyyy were they wrong. Doing a degree is a huge leap but don’t be worried, be prepared. Just keep on top of your work. It sounds simple but don’t leave the reading until an hour before your seminar because you will sit there looking like you know nothing. Also don’t be scared to ask your seminar teachers to talk over your essays with you to help you improve. First year is all about getting to grips with this new way of studying. And remember you only need 40% in first year. Wise Owl: You’re a fresher and you’re already panicking before uni has started?! It’ll be a long 3 years of constant stress if this is how you’re starting it. Take a deep breath, you’re a fresher- just relax and enjoy yourself for a bit. Moody Teen Emo: First year doesn’t count. You’ll hear those four words oh so frequently this year. Don’t worry about it- it is next to impossible to fail and if it is really stressing you out, you can talk to your supervisor. If you really want to do well and impress in first term, do the prelim reading. No one does the prelim reading so if you do it you’ll be a step above the rest. You’ll be fine though. Madame X: In your life, people will say that GCSEs/A-Levels/a degree/getting a house/childbirth are the most difficult thing you’ll have to do. Do not listen to them. Listen to me - take each day as it comes and you’ll find your stride.
I WANT MY FLATMATE ALREADY - BUT WE’VE ONLY MET ON FACEBOOK! I’ve been assigned my house at university and on adding my future flatmates on Facebook I’ve realised I’m going to be flatmates with a total hottie. We have exchanged messages and he seems like such a great guy. I’m worried that I already have a crush on him. I need advice- Do you think house relationships can work?
Facebook Fanatic
Honey Badger: Really it depends upon the flat dynamic. Stunners are hard to come by in York, and if he’s a fittie I’d be severely tempted to say go for it...but I’d wait until you’re out of Freshers’ week. If you can last that long, in the accelerated incubation period of Freshers, you’ll actually be friends before you do anything major, instead of just Freshers f*** buddies. Hopefully if you can move past it though, all will be well, the flat won’t be monumentally awkward if things don’t work out and you can go on enjoying Freshers. Moody Teen Emo: Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched. Clichéd, I know, but there are thousands of hotties at University and you don’t have to eat breakfast with them! It is not a good idea to sleep with a flatmate, especially not in Freshers. Wait til you get to York before you fall in love, please! Madame X: Don’t restrict yourself to one diamond, when a myriad of gems are yours for the polishing when you’re finally here. Get to know him first, people often paint themselves with a glossy finish online. Wise Owl: Been there, done that! They can work, but you should be really careful. Firstly, the difference with house relationships is that it does not necessarily pay to be bold. You have to play a waiting game, make absolutely sure that he likes you before you make any moves, otherwise it can just make an awkward environment in the house. You shouldn’t talk to your other housemates about it either; the first few weeks should be just about getting to know each other, so save the drama for after that. Not Your Average Blonde: Oh girl, you can’t fall for a guy you haven’t even met yet. There are loads of other great guys to meet at university so don’t scapegoat yourself to this particular one. But don’t ignore him; simply set yourself a rule that you won’t get with him until the second week; after all, his kitchen and bathroom habits may repulse you.
22 LIFESTYLE @TomDavies111
Davies’ Diaries So it’s a new year then. Once more into the breach, crying God for KalTay, Yorkshire, Saint Tommy Fong and all that. Do forgive me the contrived Henry V references, Freshers - you’re a university student now; pretentious drivel of this nature is our cup of tea, meat and two veg, and most importantly, up our proverbial street. Of course this doesn’t apply if you’re here to study a BSC, although I never really have understood you Bunsen burner jockeys all that much. When I came to this University over a year ago my head was pumped full of dreams. Dreams mostly induced from having watched all four seasons of Greek and Animal House over five times. If you’ve come here believing that your experience will echo a traditional American college movie, the good news is you’ll only be half disappointed, slightly less so if you join the Rugby team. But despite this initial disappointment, it still felt as if I was in a movie, if not the one I’d hoped for. I was in Stand By Me with slightly more smoking, and that’s really what I want to talk to you about today, the spirit of new beginnings. The crowning moment of my first term was sat on Vanbrugh Paradise at Freshers’ Fair, overlooking Central Hall, hundreds of miles away from where I had spent all my life, with the girl who would later go on to become my girlfriend for the majority of that year as the URY outdoor radio set up blasted out some hopeful pop tune across the lake. This, GCSE Media Studies Bgrade senses told me, would be the end of the first episode, were this an American college sitcom. The episode would end with a pan out of the steps as the music played and I said, ‘It’s going to be a good year’, and a good year it was. I suppose this little story is all well and good if you’re a first year, but for the more seasoned veterans like me, and the third years, who in fairness probably aren’t reading this, as most of them are currently vomiting in waste paper baskets at the prospect of the endless academic toil that awaits them, I say, there’s no reason to feel jaded. After all, university is by nature transient. Every year we lose a third of our faces, and a fresh third arrive, positions change hands, new societies emerge and others fade away. Even if you’ve been here before, at the start of an academic year at this university, it’s still a new beginning of sorts, and that feeling of a new beginning is possibly the most euphoric sensation on God’s green earth. So it’s with this that I invoke the spirit of the late, great Mr. Bill Hicks when I tell you to buy the ticket, take the ride, and end my very own freshman column as I began: with the words of another great leader, Professor Albus Dumbledore, saying “To our newcomers, welcome! And to our old hands, welcome back!”
Blind Date
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1 2013
This week we yanked the YUSU welfare officer out of the office, tore him away from his desk and thrust him into the arms of Caitlin for a night of passion. With Vision’s impeccable record of making people a match, finding people a find and catching people a catch, we were confident we were on to a winner...
George on Caitlin
Caitlin on George
What were you hoping for?
What were you hoping for? I was just hoping for a lovely meal and good company!
I don’t have a great history with dates, so really anything short of setting the table and/or myself on fire would have counted as a success.
First impressions? Very impressive, combining good taste and rustic charm. Caitlin looked great too.
First impressions? Good at avoiding awkward silences. Tall, dark and handsome.
What did you talk about? To be honest, we really struggled; with Nouse being out of print over the Summer, neither of us had a clue what to think about major world events. We just ended up talking about the weather and Miley Cyrus.
What What did did you you talk talk about? about? It was hard going because we weren’t sure whAat to believe without the Yorker offering up independently-verified news.
Any awkward moments? Not that I can remember, hopefully Caitlin says something similar otherwise this kinda is…
Any Any awkward awkward moments? moments? When Miley Cyrus came up in conversation, he did offer to twerk.
What did you eat? Following a recommendation, I had a fantastic steak, followed by Gin & Tonic and Strawberry Sorbets, but was quite envious of the chocolate cheesecake.
What did you eat? I ordered the steak - absolutely to die for. I felt quite spoiled with so much meat on the menu!
Best thing?
Best thing? The cheesecake was heaven.
The steak really was brilliant.
What did she wear? I know almost as little about fashion as Kallum (YUSU president), I’m afraid. But I do know she looked great.
What did he wear? A nice casual outfit of jeans, shirt and jumper. Simple but slick.
Most interesting thing you learned
Most interesting thing you learned
She has an enormous catalogue of Ziggy’s stories to her name, most of which shouldn’t be repeated in polite company.
For a man of authority, he’s bent the rules a lot.
Did you go on anywhere?
Did you go on anywhere?
Went round the corner for Cocktails at Dusk & Blue Fly after which was great.
We had cocktails at Blue Fly and Dusk.
Did you kiss?
Did you kiss?
Not that I can remember; it all gets a bit hazy after 11pm.
Maybe.
If you could change one thing about the evening, If you could change one thing about the evening, what would it be? what would it be? I’d have had the chocolate cheesecake.
Do you think they’d make a good lover? There is no polite way to answer that question. Move on. (George blushes).
Marks out of 10? 10. She was flawless.
Not a thing. it was perfect.
Do you think they’d make a good lover? Errrr...maybe? Haa. (Caitlin cackles mischevously, licks her lip and raises an eyebrow).
Marks out of 10? 8/10. Swoon.
For more of York Vision’s match-making misadventures visit: www.yorkvision.co.uk/lifestyle
Blind Date is sponsored by The Whippet Inn. George and Caitlin highly recommend the steak and the chocolate cheesecake.
YORK VISION
LIFESTYLE
Tuesday October 1 2013
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Helena Horton interviews Stephen Harper about what student life is like teetotal
A different Lifestyle... S t r a i g h t E d g e In a new series for Lifestyle, we talk to students with alternative lifestyle choices. Stephen Harper tells us what student life is like without the social lubricant that is alcohol, and discusses why we booze so heavily at university. He asks whether we are, in fact, the alcoholic deviants that we are portrayed as by the media.
W
ith so many students damaging their livers and their wallets so catastrophically due to alcohol, it’s surprising that fewer people are straight-edge, a lfiestyle that defines itself partly by abstinence, but primary through sobriety. Students currently have a bad reputation owing to all of the boozing - and the throwing up in the streets - that we do (or that the media says we do), so people like Stephen are, we guess, aiding us in our quest to be seen as serious intellectuals. Gone are the days when students were seen as sensible strivers, buried in books and the bosoms of their mentors, and now we merely appear to be a lost generation, lost to the charms of each other’s armsand dingy student bedrooms, the bottom of nightclub stairs and bottles of Aldi vodka bad enough to make you go blind. Articles appear year after year, saying the same slander about us and our supposed debauchery, from chiding tales in the times of students being banned from city centres and ironic videoblogs from the likes of Vice, foraying into the notso-secret world of rugby lads and laughing at them all the while. With little to no job prospects or contact hours, cheap booze being sold at every corner of every university town and the depressing weight of thousands upon thousands of future debt upon our shoulders, is it any wonder that we students are drowning our sorrows and letting our hair down a few nights per week? It seems like we’ve regressed into a kind of childish state - throwing inhibitions out of the window, throwing on ridiculous fancy dress costumes night after night, and suffering hangovers and embarrassment the next morning, but we don’t seem to have learned our lesson yet. I interviewed Stephen Harper, who is straight-edge, about what makes him tick and what makes him stay awake in club nights, to see whether his unstereotypical lifestyle is something that could prove to
be popular with other students. I also wanted to know whether there was a viable option which doesn’t involve expensive ‘grub crawls’ or pyjama parties for Freshers who want to experience an alternative, sober, first week away from home. Read on to see if this is the case, and whether his ‘different lifestyle’ is something you could one day try... “I’m not teetotal- I hadn’t heard of the term until I was about 18. I’m straightedge! When I was about 15 I’d sampled several alcoholic drinks and the taste of them hadn’t really struck a chord with me, and the idea of being drunk hasn’t ever appealed to me. I brought this up amongst my close family and friends who were all older than me and they all said that it was a good idea and that they wish they’d done the same. I was heavily into metal at the time so I researched sober metalheads (as there is quite a drinking culture in metal I wanted to know if there were any role models) and I found out about Hatebreed’s lead singer who was ‘straight-edge’. I was searching to label myself and it really sung to me. I read into it and really liked what I saw so I picked up a few hardcore records and haven’t looked back since!
Fresher’s week was strange as a sober person. It was harder to get through with no alcohol involvedand to find the nonalcoholic events. If you
thought silent discos were bad, try being the only sober one there! I left early and met up with one of my friends from Liverpool and we had a delightful walk around York. For the other nights, I don’t think I went to another alcohol based one and thankfully one of my housemates is mostly sober too and could keep me company! And most of the rest don’t drink too much so I had great company with whom I could talk with! The non-alcoholic events were great. The poker night
gave me an excuse to put on a suit. The Science Fiction & Fantasy night was ridiculously fun and the ComedySoc night introduced me into the best society in York!
I don’t always stay awake on club nights
-I have fallen asleep in many great venues in York. Cranberry juice and good conversation keep me stimulated, I don’t drink Red Bull - my current poison is Cockta.
I have been to Willow sober and it was an experience. I can
see where its cult status came from. A lot of its joy may have been lost on me. Thankfully, I’d gone in a large group for someone’s farewell night so there were always some who wanted to stay away from the sweatbox of a dancefloor. I have very photosensitive eyes so York’s other clubs aren’t a very Stephen friendly environment- Willow’s dimness was a welcome relief and sitting area was a great place to escape the throng!
I sometimes feel left out on club nights. If
I’ve gone out with people who just want to get pissed and dance and stuff (the main purpose of a club night) then I do feel left out. I don’t go on too many because of this! A good tactic is to be with the group at pre-drinks and to the pubs and bars they go to before a club, and then leave. I must point out, even when sober, you can still dance around and have a laugh with your friends, so it certainly doesn’t stop you from enjoying a night.
Right now as I sit in my room missing the crap out of York, what I
really want to do is go to Open Improv for two hours, then retire to Deebs with ComedySoc and chat about something weird with my friend James.
I spend the extra cash from not boozing on: Cranberry juice, Vikings pizza, inordinate amounts of pool, tabletop wargaming, and of course jeans that make my butt look nice.”
24 LIFESTYLE
YORK VISION
Tuesday October 1, 2013
YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
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26 SPORT
YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
sport
Web: www.yorkvision.co.uk/sport Email: sport@yorkvision.co.uk Twitter: @YorkVisionSport
THE REAL COLLEGE PRIDE
DON’T GET me wrong. University sport is great. If you head down to 22 acres, the Sports Centre or York Sport Village on a Wednesday afternoon, you will be surprised by the standard of some of York’s sports teams. The likes of men’s rugby 1sts, men’s futsal 1sts and women’s fencing 1sts are amongst the top university sports teams in the North of England, and possibly even the UK as a whole. But one of the things which makes York special is its collegiate system. York isn’t Oxbridge - your college doesn’t affect your teaching. In reality, you only picked your college for the accomodation it offered. Or, if you’re in Halifax, it was probably thrust upon you. On the face of it, then, the colleges are trumped up halls of residence. Yet somehow, when you are finally here and settled in, you grow an affinity to your college. This sense of belonging is something that people at other universities can only envy. The greatest manifestation of this is college sport. Bar none. People may wear the college colours on a night out, chant
Photo: Jack Western
the usual chants about Derwent having asbestos and attend the regurgitated college events like Club D. These are little more than obligation. Representing your college on the field of play is where that irrational sense of belonging to your college The great thing about college sport is that everybody wants to win for their college, but it is invariably played in great spirit. I had the pleasure of being at both the College Cup finals in football and hockey last year. Halifax 1sts defeated Derwent 1sts in the former, in what all agreed was an exhillarating match between two quality teams who wanted to win, but played the game in the right spirit. Derwent’s disappointment from that match was mitigated by the college’s victory over Alcuin in both hockey and rugby, the latter a 95-0 thumping in the league decider. People will tell you that the University of York is a small and enclosed community. Everybody knows everybody. Just about, anyway. This gives college sport another key benefit. You can play alongside friends and coursemates, but you can also play against them. You can build up rivalries between teams or you can stoke those which already exist. College sport really is something special, and it is that rare gem of something that the University of York does really well. I’ve played in it, I’ve watched it, and it is second-to-none in the York sporting universe. So whether you’re Vanbrugh or James, Halifax or Derwent, Alcuin or Wentworth, Goodricke or Langwith, get involved. You’ll be surprised at how good it is. By playing sport, that manufactured “college spirit” which we’re told we need to have will finally become real. And if you’re in Constantine, well, you’ve arrived about 12 months too early.
Photo: Philip Mourjdis
Photo: Philip Mourjdis
SHOULD UNI SPORTS CLUBS BE ALL ABOUT WINNING? James scott
YES
OF COURSE, there will always be a social (and drinking) element to university sport. There’s nothing wrong with that at all. But if York ever actually wants to climb the BUCS tables or actually win something, clubs need to adopt a professional attitude. Unfortunately, the stereotype still holds with many clubs that the captain’s drinking buddies tend to get picked first. That needs to stop. Many students, particularly first years settling into university life, may not feel particularly comfortable with the drinking
culture. They may not think much of the idea of drinking lake water or some other unspeakable substance in order to get noticed. Thus teams are missing out on a huge potential array of talent. What’s really important in sports is the maximisation of your performance to be the best you can, and to aim for constant improvement. There are a huge amount of opportunities at college, recreational and lower university levels for students to have a great time. But surely one of the attractions of playing sports at a high level is to challenge yourself at a physical and mental level as well? If clubs don’t set themselves clear targets and create attainable plans on how to achieve them (other than just to beat Lancaster once a year), then York will never be able to make any meaningful progress. Students who play sport not just for social side, but for the challenge, will miss out.
oscar pearson
NO
IF WE demand that students become so obsessed with competition and victory, then considerations of morality, fair play and honour will be entirely discarded. When success is judged only on results, it can create an environment in which people do almost anything to succeed. Sport at York should be about the university experience as a whole: meeting new people, forming positive relationships, advancing our skills and working as a team. A sportsperson should be forever learning, and an education-based environment,
rather than a “victory-is-everything” approach, is the ideal structure on which a sports club can help its players realise their potential. Today’s athletes are often brainwashed by their coaches, teammates and the media to gauge their self-worth solely by whether they win or lose. The devastating consequence is that athletes can only uphold their confidence and self-respect by making others feel inadequate. Athletes must see success in terms of achieving their own goals rather than surpassing the performances of others. Winning is of course important, but it must come second to achieving individual goals and improving personal abilities. If we look at the bigger picture; what’s really important is the inclusion, enjoyment and development of students. Besides, when athletes achieve both their individual and team goals, winning usually takes care of itself.
YORK VISION
SPORT
Tuesday October 1, 2013
THE OTHER SEBASTIEN DAVE WASHINGTON SPEAKS TO FORMER TORO ROSSO DRIVER SEBASTIEN BUEMI THE DREAM for all sportsmen is to reach the pinnacle of their sport, whether it be playing in World Cups, The Ashes or Wimbledon. In the case of motorsport, there is ultimately one category of racing which stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of prestige: Formula 1. Sebastien Buemi may be only 24, but he has already experienced the highs of reaching the pinnacle of his sport, and the lows of being ejected from a team into the F1 wilderness. Hired to race for Toro Rosso aged only 20 in 2009, Buemi appeared to have a long and prosperous career ahead of him, but three years later he found himself without a seat, after being ousted from Red Bull’s sister team. Despite the setback, Buemi’s F1 career is far from over, and by holding down a test and reserve driver role at Red Bull he has maintained a foothold in the prestigious sport. “My objective has always been Formula 1 and being the test and reserve driver at the best team on the grid is a great advantage,” said Buemi. “In the meantime I get to race with Toyota Motorsport, a top team in the FIA World Endurance Championship, and this is a good compromise as I can still race with a foot in Formula 1.” It is evident that the Swiss driver, now aged 24, harbours ambitions of regaining a race seat in F1 in the future. But with a number of promising young drivers searching for the breakthrough into the sport, the task will by no means be an easy one. This is exacerbated by the importance of money and financial backing which impacts upon the decisions of a number of teams. F1 drivers now appear to be getting younger, with his former teammate Jaime Alguersuari entering the sport aged only 19, and Russian driver Sergey Sirotkin set to race for Sauber next year aged only 18. I asked Sebastien whether he believed that he entered the sport at too young an age, to which he replied: “I was totally ready and scored points in my first race with Toro Rosso, making me the fourth youngest ever scorer in Formula One. “My team mate, Sebastien Bourdais, had a lot of experience in single seaters through his career in IndyCar so it worked well with the two of us in the team.” In 55 races for the team, Buemi scored
Photo: Jack Bradshaw
29 points. His best results were two seventh placed finishes in his debut season: at the opening race in Melbourne and the penultimate Grand Prix at Interlagos. After the 2011 season, he and his teammate Jaime Alguersuari were dropped by Toro Rosso, and replaced by Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne and Australian Daniel Ricciardo, who is set to take the Red Bull seat vacated by Mark Webber next year. I asked Buemi his thoughts on losing his seat, and whether he thought he was ever in line for a Red Bull drive. He answered: “Red Bull Racing always confirmed drivers quite late so I knew that anything could happen. “When I was advised by the Red Bull management that the seat at Toro Rosso was no longer available, they immediately offered me the test and reserve driver role at Red Bull Racing. “It may appear to be harsh as I had achieved good results, but it was the management’s decision and I had to respect it.” Toro Rosso has been criticised for appearing as a subsidiary team to Red Bull, with little prospect of breaking through to be a major force in F1. Buemi told me: “We knew from the very beginning that Scuderia Toro Rosso was the junior team to Red Bull Racing. Drivers know that the objective is clear and this will always be the case.” A similar pattern has continued in 2013, with Toro Rosso languishing in the lower half of the standings, whilst Red Bull once more assert their dominance over the rest of the field. With Sebastian Vettel storming towards his fourth consecutive World Drivers Championship, the answer I’d receive as to who is favourite to win this year’s title was rather inevitable. Buemi remarked: “Vettel will most likely win the Drivers’ Championship. In terms of talented racing drivers on the grid today, it would be Vettel, Alonso, Hamilton and Raikonnen.” For now Sebastien Buemi’s career is at a crossroads, his current chances in F1 appear to be limited, but there’s always the chance that an opportunity could present itself over the coming years. If it does then the Swiss driver would grab the opportunity with welcoming hands. F1 is the pinnacle, and being part of it is, as ever, Buemi’s ultimate goal, and one he has not given up on.
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THE TIPSTER
STUDENT LOANS ARE FINALLY IN, IT’S TIME TO HIT THE BOOKIES
“SOME THINGS never change.” How true this is returning to Uni and for life in general. Lecturers still get paid a fortune to read off a PowerPoint, there’s still duck shit everywhere on campus, the Christian Union are still annoying everyone and Tottenham, despite spending £100 million, still struggle to beat Arsenal. With summer over and with stand-in sports tennis, golf, cricket and women’s football leaving our TV screens, the main attraction, the Premier League, has returned as our primary focus I fancy Chelsea for the title. I think they’ve got depth in the squad, and the balance of experience, to do really well. Manchester United have lost it. Their squad is mediocre at best and the performance against City shows Moyes, against top opposition, hasn’t got a clue. Arsenal will perhaps be left a little bit short attacking wise, already there are gaps appearing in the squad. They desperately need another striker. Tottenham will do what they always do. Look good up until November with Harry Redknapp and Co. going on TV and proclaiming *this* will be the year they get 4th and finish above Arsenal; then as usual they’ll self-destruct around March time and end on Channel 5 on a Thursday night yet again. HOME WINS: Man City, Fulham, Liverpool, Tottenham, QPR. AWAY WINS: Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal, Leicester, Blackpool. DRAWS: Fulham vs Stoke, Hull vs Villa, Southampton vs Swansea, Derby vs Leeds. BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE: Look at the Dutch league, it’s always good for it and was the highest scoring league in Europe last season (3.26 goals a game).
DIAMOND OF THE DAY PSG to beat Benfica tonight. Buying money surely.
ODDS:
4/5
DUCK OF THE DAY Tottenham to finish above Arsenal. 18 years says they won’t do it.
ODDS:
6/4
TIPSTER TREBLE Chelsea, Man Utd and Arsenal all to win. Lump.
ODDS:
3/1
SHOUT-OUT OF THE WEEK I would like to give thanks to Helen and the team down at York Racecourse. They were very hospitable towards me last year and I encourage all my fellow students to book a day out at York races ASAP.
Be sure to follow Miles on twitter and Instagram @Milesk99 for more betting tips, bet slip pics and sports info. All odds correct at time of writing. Gamble responsibly: visit gambleaware.co.uk or phone 0808 8020 133
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YORK VISION
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YORK VISION Tuesday October 1, 2013
Photo: Michael Thurloway
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RUNNING IT CLOSE
2 YORK CITY won for the first time since the opening day of the season on Saturday, as they outplayed Portsmouth from start to finish to run out 4-2 winners. Portsmouth, the 2008 FA Cup winners, and 2010 runners-up, fell behind after keeper John Sullivan could only parry a curling free kick into the path of Wes Fletcher, who bundled home after four minutes. York kept up the pressure without creating a great deal of clear-cut chances in the first half. Home goalkeeper Michael Ingham had little to do.
Photo: Michael Thurloway
THE UNIVERSITY of York is gearing up for the first Plusnet Yorkshire Marathon, which will start and finish on campus on Sunday 20th October, creating a festival feel at the University. The inaugural race, which will see around 6,500 competitors run around the streets of York and the surrounding countryside, has proven to be highly popular, with all places snapped up within just three days. Keith Morris, Head of Sport at the University of York, said: “We continue to work with our partners such as Sport England, York City Council and national governing bodies, and in a few weeks look forward to
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FOUR-MIDABLE
However, the home side were unable to convert their dominant share of the play into a second goal. And they were made to pay in the second period when Jed Wallace netted a spectacular solo goal. Wallace picked up the ball inside the Portsmouth half, embarking on a mazy run through the York defences and then expertly placed the ball into the corner of the goal, past the helpless Ingham. York’s defence, rarely called upon in the first 45 minutes, suddenly withered in the face of Wallace’s attacking brilliance. However, they could have questioned why the midfield failed to deal with Wallace at the start of his run. Pompey, average in the opening period, suddenly had a lifeline and the game was in the balance. Yet five minutes later, York scored the pivotal goal, the first of three in eight minutes which put the result of the contest beyond doubt. City might have been expected to fold after relinquishing their lead, just as they did two weeks ago against Mansfield Town. Instead they retook the lead, thanks to a perfectly timed stroke of luck. It came after 58 minutes. A poor corner looked to be dropping into Sullivan’s hands, with calls of “what a waste” from the crowd. But the butter-fingered keeper let the ball slip from his grasp, and Lewis Montrose was first on the scene to tap home from less than a yard. Manager Nigel Worthington was visibly delighted at his side’s resilience, al-
beit thanks to an error from the big-name visitors. Yet he must have been delirious at what came next. After 64 minutes top-scorer Ryan Jarvis created the crucial two-goal buffer, as he found space to rifle a crisp low shot past Sullivan from eight yards. The relief amongst players, staff and fans alike was palpable: a first win in eight League Two games finally appeared plausible. And so it was, as Fletcher bagged his second with a pinpoint header, Jarvis this time turning provider as York opened up a 4-1 advantage. Second-bottom at the start of play, York didn’t take any unnecessary risks, content with holding on during the final 20 minutes. Fletcher was denied a tilt at his hat-trick as Worthington chose to replace him with Ryan Bowman with 10 minutes remaining in the game. On 88 minutes, Pompey were able to pull one back as John Marquis blasted a shot into the net. Ingham managed to get a big hand to the ball, but he couldn’t keep it out. The most fervent Blues supporters knew it was mere consolation. York held out for a win which propels them out of the L e a g u e Two relegation zone. Hope is the scourge of any football fan, but Saturday’s performance, and result, suggests York City have the potential to rise up the table.
welcoming an expected 18,000 runners and spectators onto campus in support of The Yorkshire Marathon which starts and finishes at the University.” A number of elite athletes will also be gracing the flat and fast course, competing for the £12,000 prize money that is on offer. Kenyan John Mutai, who won this year’s Lake Annecy Marathon in France and Edwin Kiprop Korir, and finished second in this year’s Zurich Marathon, will be taking part in the men’s race. The women’s title is likely to be contested between 29-year-old Helen Cherono Koskei, a Commonwealth Games silver medallist, and Ethiopian starlet Tigist Sheni. An athletes’ village is to be set up at the University, which will play a significant role in hosting the event.
Highlights of the race, which is already planned to be held again in 2014, will be broadcast on Channel 4 at 7am on Saturday 3rd November.. York Sport President Cassandra Brown told Vision: “It’s great to have such a significant event held here in York, bringing communities together and showcasing our city.” The Yorkshire Marathon will form part of the legacy of late fundraiser and campaigner Jane Tomlinson who, despite being diagnosed with incurable cancer, raised over two million pounds for charity by completing a series of epic challenges, including cycling 4,000 miles across America.
CRICKET IS to Yorkshire what tea is to, well, Yorkshire. God’s own county – their words, not mine – have won the County Championship a record 30 times, plus an additional shared title. Yet after 1968 Yorkshire went 33 years without a Championship success. When they broke that duck in 2001 a new era did not dawn, suffering relegation the following year. Yorkshire haven’t come close to another triumph since. 2013 could have been different. They raced out to a lead in Division One which they held for much of the summer. But they tripped up on the home straight. Durham were the beneficiaries, overcoming much adversity – including the nearly fatal heart-attack of their coach midseason – to win a third title in six years. The turning point came in August at Scarborough. Durham were the visitors, below Yorkshire in the table, but in an enthralling contest the White Rose came up short. Durham’s win was the second of five on the bounce as they cantered to the Championship with a week to spare. Yorkshire’s 33-point lead was erased and overthrown. In many ways Yorkshire were a victim of their own success. A match-winning 182 not out by Joe Root, anchoring a chase of 362 at the notoriously tricky Chester-le-Street in April, alerted the England selectors. Having made his debut over the winter, Root was backed for the summer. Sheffieldborn Root hit two Test Match centuries including 180 against Australia at Lord’s. Jonny Bairstow and Tim Bresnan also answered the England call, leaving Yorkshire short of three top players for most of the campaign. In contrast, Durham’s squad was unmolested by the selectors. For the winter Ashes tour, England have returned to Headingley’s well of talent. Gary Ballance, enemy of autocorrect and a Zimbabwean by birth, makes the trip after 1,363 runs in 2013 at an average of 64.90. Adil Rashid was the surprise batting star, averaging over fifty with the bat. Yet averaging nearly as many with the ball has undermined any claim to be a genuine all-rounder. Recognised primarily as a bowler, an England recall remains distant and elusive. It was former England stalwart Ryan Sidebottom who led the attack in his second spell at the county, averaging 19.09. Yorkshire supporters are known for their fierce loyalty, and this season’s encouraging if ultimately disappointing performance is only likely to intensify that. They look to have found a set-up which can return the county to its pre1968 heyday. Coach Jason Gillespie, former Australian fast bowler and notorious target of Barmy Army banter, is leading that revolution. Over the next few years, Yorkshire’s one title in 45 years could be consigned to distant memory.
30 SPORT
Hockey women’s 1sts win Yorkshire League opener THE UNIVERSITY of York women’s 1sts hockey team began their Yorkshire League campaign with a 1-0 win over Driffield 2nds. A single goal from Fiona Mackenzie was enough to hand Izi Hutchinson’s side victory at Driffield Sports Centre, whilst York were also indebted to a superb debut performance by fresher Liz Furber in goal, who made a string of excellent saves. York will continue their Yorkshire League campaign next week at home to Dewsbury 1sts, as they look to extend their promising start to the season.
College sport website launched A BRAND new college sport website was launched on Friday, providing a wealth of information for students. The new website contains fixtures, results and tables for each college sport. There are also separate pages for each sport and each college. College Sport Officer Dave Washington said: “We’re delighted that our new website is up and running, and believe that it will greatly raise awareness of college sport. “This is a massive improvement on what we had before, and we hope that it will become established as the main and best source of information for college sport.” The new website can be found at collegesport.yusu.org.
YORK VISION
WEIGHTY PROGRESS THE UNIVERSITY of York has continued its development of sporting provisions over the summer, with improvements to the gym on Heslington West being the primary project. The new gym will have a focus on strength and conditioning, with seven full weight racks and a further two half racks, and is due to re-open on Sunday 7th October. A two lane running track and a top floor fitness area based around cardio-vascular equipment will also be incorporated into the new design. Over £80,000 has been invested in new equipment. As a result of the improvements, membership prices for the gym will increase by £3 per month. The University has also received a strong indication that its plans for the construction of a velodrome on Heslington
East, as reported in Vision at the end of last year, will be approved, and that they will receive the necessary funding to complete the project. Keith Morris, Head of Sport at the University of York, told Vision: “With the Sport Village and cycle track now open and athletics , hockey, tennis dome and velodrome facilities to follow; we hope that sport will continue to make a significant contribution to the experiences of everyone who comes to York.” The future of the sports tent is also set to be evaluated. It may be replaced by a permanent building featuring a premier show court to be used for a number of sports. It was also recently revealed that the University is set to construct a county standard athletics track on the current site of the JLD astroturf. A new and improved astroturf pitch will also be constructed, of at least sand-dressed standard.
Photo: Jack Western
Adambayor signs for Goodricke? THE FUTURE of Vanbrugh College striker Adam Lewis has been cast into doubt after he was reported to have enrolled in Goodricke College. Lewis, popularly known as ‘Adambayor’, the name on his shirt, has been a regular for Vanbrugh’s 1sts and 2nds. However a source revealed to Vision that he has made the switch to the Heslington East college. It is expected that this would make him ineligible to continue represeting Vanbrugh in college football.
Jon Roberts leads pre-season talks AN EXCELLENT and informative speech by Jon Roberts, Performance and Coaching Director for the Rugby Football League proved one of the highlight’s of pre-season week. Roberts’ talk entitled ‘Preparing to Win’ however was marred by a poor turnout at the event in the Ron Cooke Hub on Monday. Matt Darroch, co-founder of company, University Nutrition, also provided an interesting presentation on the importance of nutrition for sportsmen. A series of fitness testing sessions were run by Strength and Conditioning Coach Peter Ashcroft, whilst York Sport Union put on several spin and yoga classes.
LAST WEEK sports clubs from the University of York took part in pre-season. The hockey club had mixed results in their friendlies. The women’s 1sts beat York St John 1-0, but the men’s team were defeated 3-0 by their cross-city rivals. Newly promoted to the BUCS Northern Premier B, the men’s rugby 1sts came up against Loughborough 2nds. Despite taking an early lead, York couldn’t hold on and fell to a 40-14 defeat. The cycling club also held a number of events on the new track on Heslington East. Photos by JACK WESTERN
Tuesday October 1, 2013
DISABILITY SPORT
MEASURES ARE being implemented by YUSU and York Sport Union to raise the profile of disability sport at the University, and provide greater sporting opportunities for disabled students. The University has recently created a new position of Disability Sports Activator, who will help to coordinate and drive disability sport forward over the next year. Disability Officer Thomas Ron said: “We have taken the Student Think Tank’s recommendations into account and have appointed Katie Carnell as the Disability Sport Activator. “She has provided excellent ideas on how not only to promote disability sport but also on how to get more disabled students into sport.” Wheelchair basketball will once more be offered as a Sportivate session open for all students, whilst college sport is set to introduce its first ever disability one-day tournament in the form of wheelchair basketball in week 7. York Sport President Cassandra Brown told Vision: “Disability sport is expanding at a fast and exciting pace. And with the help of our new disability sport activator, who has a tonne of fantastic ideas, I’m sure disability sport will thrive in the next year.”
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Tuesday October 1, 2013
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YORK SPORT PRESIDENT CASSANDRA BROWN SPEAKS TO VISION ABOUT HER PLANS FOR THE YEAR [continued from back page] PRE-SEASON EVENTS haven’t been limited to on-the-field activities though. York Sport has hosted talks which intend to provide help to the clubs. Next up are the season’s first BUCS fixtures. Last year’s York Sport President, Charlotte Winter, spearheaded the Top 40 campaign, which came up just short as York finished 43rd in the BUCS rankings. “I’m not going to stop the top forty campaign at all, but what I want to do this year is make it more than a hashtag. There wasn’t really any strategy in place [to achieve it]. “I’m going to sit down with Keith Morris [the University’s Head of Sport] and the clubs that are verging on 40th in the BUCS leagues and see how we can help them.” Brown has been working on her manifesto pledges, the most controversial of these being her plan for an in-house physio. “A lot of people twisted what I meant sometimes and took what I said to mean I am going to get an in-house physio in my first week as President. “Obviously that’s stupid – what I meant was, in terms of the strategy that the University and Union have together, I want physiotherapy to be written into it. Keith Morris is behind it and we just need to look at funding opportunities, because they are out there.” At first, her plan is to get a local physio to come in on a weekly basis, charging clubs very low rates. “It’s about putting the small steps in now for the future. I couldn’t
come into this job this year without thinking about it growing, which you have to. “When there’s such a need for it, which there is right know, then you have to push for it, and that’s what I’m going to do.” It’s easy to forget that Brown is only a couple of months into her term. Pledges can’t be put in place overnight. Yet a number, are well on their way to being completed, such as training for club committee members on welfare and inclusivity. “What we’re doing at the minute is called a Key Contacts Scheme. These will be the main point of contact within the club for things like discrimination against LGBT students and disabled students.” So plans are in place on all fronts, and Brown has high hopes for the year. She wants to win Roses, but she has many other aims, both personal and professional. “I want to be never nervous when speaking in public again! That would be really great. “I’m hoping that clubs will be more diverse and more accessible. I’d like us to have more money and more funding opportunities, and I want clubs to be happy and finish the year thinking I did a good job and did the best I could for them.” For the full interview with Cass, visit www.yorkvision.co.uk/sport.
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SETTING THE PRESIDENT
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SPORTS CLUB PRESIDENTS SPEAK TO VISION ABOUT THEIR EXPECTATIONS FOR THE SEASON AHEAD SPORTS CLUBS across campus are gearing up for the start of their new BUCS seasons. Most matches are played on Wednesdays with most fixtures starting in week two. Vision spoke to some incoming Presidents about their clubs’ prospects for the year ahead. One of last year’s University sport success stories was the men’s rugby 1sts, who stormed to promotion into the BUCS Premiership - the country’s top tier. Heading into the new season President
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and fly-half Tomasz Chadwick is in confident mood. He said: “Due to an extensive and extremely vigorous pre-season, all teams in our club will be looking to start the season with a higher intensity than ever before. “With the first team now competing in Prem B, there can be no recovery from a slow start. We have a tough fixture to begin with, away at Durham, but although our aim is to remain in the league this year, we still want to be competitive in every fixture.” Chadwick also expects the 2nd team to benefit from the 1sts’ successes. He said:
“We’re looking for a more promising season from them, which should increase competition higher up in the club.” The club is also expecting to benefit from a good crop of freshers arriving this year. “We’re hoping for a significant intake this year due to the recent developments in sport at the university. With the introduction of a new club website we’re now in a stronger position than ever to reach out to prospective students.” The men’s 1sts football team narrowly missed out on promotion in 2012/13, and will be looking to go one better than that second place in Northern 3B. President and goalkeeper Luke Bradley has ambitions of achieving promotion, and he told Vision: “This season has the potential to be extremely successful for UYAFC as a club. Our preseason has been very sharp and the boys have worked extremely hard to give us the best possible chance. “Having missed out on promotion due to a head to head ruling last season, the 1sts are extremely focused on winning promotion this year and with the attitude shown so far this is a very real possibility.” In a strange quirk of the BUCS system, the football 2nds and 3rds will compete in the same division this season. But while the 2nds will be aiming to challenge at the top, the newly promoted 3rds are likely to be content with survival in Northern 5B. Bradley added: “The club is always looking for new players and trials are Monday to Friday of Freshers’ Week, 1pm on 22acres costing £1 a day or £3 for the week.” The hockey club is one of the biggest on campus. Their pre-season preparations are well underway, and President Nina Rawlings was glowing in praise.
Photo: Philip Mourjdis
“Pre-season has seen a strong effort from members of the club with the addition of some keen and accomplished freshers alongside a new coach, who we are completely lucky to have! We’ve started as we mean to go on with two wins for the ladies and a solid performance from the men.” Rawlings also praised the spirit within UYHC and the openness of the club. She added: “We definitely feel like we’re a club to watch this year and are excited to develop the link between college and university. We are also hoping for a large fresher intake. Watch this space.”
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KEEP IT CASSY
Photo: Jack Western
by. I think we do have the edge, and I have a feeling about this year.” It may be months away, but Roses re“I WANT to be able to win an away mains the stand-out event for any York Sport President. Her plans may assist Roses.” Cassandra Brown can’t be accused that Roses objective, but they are also of lacking ambition. Away Roses are no- likely to help teams throughout this toriously difficult to win, and with the year, and in years to come. That started last week with precycle falling on Lancaster to host in 2014, York will have its work cut out to retain season. “We’ve had fitness sessions and sports-specific training, we’ve had some the Carter-James Trophy. “In the last few years, when we win professional coaches in and there have we win by a bigger margin than we lose been a couple of friendly matches.” Continued on page 31
Issue 236
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> INCOMING YORK SPORT PRESIDENT SPEAKS EXCLUSIVELY TO VISION > BROWN DECLARES HER DESIRE TO SECURE AWAY ROSES VICTORY
Tuesday October 1, 2013
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