Woroni Edition Six 2016 by Woroni

Woroni Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

Page 6

Page 37

Beazley and Berry talk the US Election

Invisible Illness

NISHANTH PATHY

Page 10

Issue 6, Vol. 70

HOLLY JONES

Page 34

The Great Myth of Fee Deregulation

WINTER IS COMING: THE FEMALE QUOTA FOR IB AND THE GAME OF THRONES

FLINT Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;NEIL

JIAYING GOH

Contents

Issue 6, Vol. 70

News

FEATURES

ANUSA SRC 3 REPORT

Save me from myself

KATHY WU

ANONYMOUS

Unveiled Discussion MADELEINE BIRDSEY

WHAT DO YOU MEAN

Ebony Hoiberg

Invisible Illness HOLLY JONES

Community Consultation for Strategic Vision begins

Beazley and Berry talk the US Election Nishanth Pathy

#THEPLEDGE Pamela Hutchinson, News Correspondent

Gillian Triggs Speaks at Llewelyn Hall: Refugees and ‘Extraordinary’ Australia Mark Han, News Correspondent

ANU Union holds AGM and Releases Annual Report ANTON SYMONS

Australian Aid: why do it?

If You’re a Resident of The Following Colleges You May Want to Go Home ANONYMOUS

The Double Standards Facing NGOs Cameron Allan

Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That CAMERON ALLAN

The Great Myth of Fee Deregulation FLINT O’NEIL

How to Put Lipstick on a Pig (feat. Scott Morrison)

Shae Maree Nicholson

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail TOM KESINA

IN defense of “THE PLEDGE” ANONYMOUS

ANU Snowsports (ANUS): What’s on in 2016? Neal Chang

SATIRE

DARYL WESLEY

Minister for High-Quality and Definitely Voluntary Cinema

FOUR NEW PERSPECTIVES 24

DEAR ANU ALL ANONYMOUS

ARTS & REVIEWS 26

‘THOROUGHLY MODERN’ AT CCAS: AN EXPLORATION OF POST-WAR AUSTRALIAN THEMES SHERIDAN BURNETT

Pettie BAGE

Local Family Postpone Funeral of Beloved Grandmother Due to Clash with Game of Thrones JULIA BRIEGER

Amazonian Tribe Found in Glebe Park Jeevan Haikerwal

Student drops surprise visual album on Tidal in response to disappointing essay mark Alanis Smithette

BIG NIGHT OUT 30

YOU ARE HERE: (AN ATTEMPT TO PERFORM) KILL CLIMATE DENIERS ELIZA MCCONVILLE

GROOVI: A REVIEW ;)

RORY CADDIS

An INTERVIEW WITH Natasha Rudra, Entertainment Editor for the canberra times Rebecca Bayliss

Hugh Evans

ANU SPORT

INTERNATIONAL 32

FACT FILE: IRAN Kamron Seyedi and Alan Haji Babaei

Woroni is published on the land of the Ngunnawal people. ‘Woroni’ translates to ‘mouthpiece’ in the Ngunnawal language.

Contact

Advertising inquiries and submissions can made at: advertising@woroni.com.au Phone: (02) 6125 9574 Shop 15, Lena Karmel Building 26 Barry Drive, Acton 2601 Woroni is printed by Capital Fine Print.

“NOT-SO-SOFTBALL”

A dog with a yellow vest helps keep the blues away

Employability, Industrial Relations and the Federal Election

THE ANU OWLS DEFEAT UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

RORY CADDIS

ME AND BPD

NUTS PRESENTS SPEAKING IN TONGUES: A REVIEW

JESSY WU

JIAYING GOH

MATTHEW WICKHAM

Nishanth Pathy

Higher Education and the Federal Election

WINTER IS COMING: THE FEMALE QUOTA FOR IB AND THE GAME OF THRONES

Emily Han & Xinyu Shi

COMMENT

ANONYMOUS

SportS

Miguel Galsim, News Editor

A FOREIGN UTENSIL

Batyr and the Fight Against Mental Health Stigma

ISADORA BOGLE

Acknowledgement of Country

WORONI RADIO

Board of Editors

Editor In Chief - Waheed Jayhoon Deputy EIC - Mitchell Scott Managing Editor - Liam Osawa News - Miguel Galsim Content - Ria Pflaum Radio - Caitlin Magee Creative - Joanne Leong Communications - Daniel McKay

Staff

Admin Assistant - Gowrie Varma Proofreader - Siobhonn Shannon Financial Controller - Brendan Greenwood

Sub-Editors

Managing Assistant - Derek Wu Marketing - Rhys Dobson News - Mark Han News - Pamela Hutchinson News - Miguel Galsim Design - Eva Krepsova Art - Shan Crosbie Comment - Nishanth Pathy Features - Bronte McHenry Arts & Reviews - Gabriele Naktinyte International - Paroksh Prasad Life & Style - Phyllida Behm Science - Allissa Li Sport - Madhuri Kibria Satire - Zoe Saunders Professional Development Charlie Austin Radio Technical Officer - Jamie Palamountain Presenter Liaison - Finn Pëdersén Music/DJ - Brendan Keller-Tuberg Events and Sports - Brittany Wallis Social - Hannah Wright Photography - Pubudu Dissanayake Photography - Bremer Sharp Social Media - Annabelle Nshuti Social Media - Michael Turvey Instagram - Tony Gu Have an opinion about how Woroni should be run? ANUSM is consulting students on upcoming constitutional and electoral reform of the organisation. Email your suggestions to contact@woroni.com.au

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

NEWS

ANUSA SRC 3 Report Kathy Wu The third ANUSA Student Representative Council (SRC) meeting, held on Tuesday 19th April, had centred on reports by Council members and motions proposing reforms to the Grants and Affiliations Committee (GAC), which oversees the registration of clubs and societies and the provision of their funding. ANUSA President Ben Gill gave updates on current projects, especially noting that the OrgSync contract will expire in January 2017 and the university is working to find a replacement to the system. Additionally, a in-principal redevelopment plan of Union Court was approved at Council, and the final decision about the redesign and costing is expected in July. In her report, ANUSA Vice President Clodagh O’Doherty highlighted the launch of a series of “life skills” hosted by the Brian Kenyon Student

Space (BKSS). These are part of the UMatter campaign, kicking off officially in Week 9 with cooking lessons. Planning for Sex & Consent Week will soon commence, and this time will involve more ANU departments in the recruitment and preparation process than previous years. The Electoral Reform Working Group released its report (available on the ANUSA website and Facebook page) on the proposed amendments to Electoral Regulations, and the new changes aim to make ANU elections more transparent, safe and straightforward. These new amendments will be voted upon in at the next ANUSA Ordinary General Meeting (OGM), and requires a two thirds majority to pass. Another important announcement was the theme of Spoon Week, aimed at understanding disabilities, which takes place in Week 10, May 2-6. This year’s theme is ‘Taking Action’,

and Disabilities Department Officer Tom Kesina highly encourages the participation of all ANU students. Reforms to GAC were also forwarded at the meeting. Pushed by GAC member Michael Turvey and fellow student Raqeeb Bhuyan, the motions seek to change the current poor administration and communication of the committee by producing documents outlining policy , meetings procedures and notices. “The big thing is that GAC is really bad, it’s an embarrassment to the association, and I think it’s an example how student organisations have a very low bar or standard to meet…” commented Bhuyan. They strongly believed that the accountability and legitimacy of GAC must improve. Amid confusion and lack of knowledge about GAC, the decision was ultimately made by those present to adjourn the motions until the next

meeting, after an hour of discussion surrounding the motions. A separate motion that a GAC Reform Working Group be established was also met with the same results. After the matter of motions here settled, attention was turned to elections of positions of Probity Officers and Disputes Committee members. Overall, the six nominees for Probity officer were all elected, and three new Disputes Committee members were welcomed. ANUSA will hold an OGM on Tuesday 3rd of May (Week 10), at 4p.m. in the Haydon Allen Lecture Theatre (The Tank). The next SRC meeting is scheduled to occur on Tuesday 10th of May (Week 11) at 6 p.m. in the ANUSA boardroom. All ANU undergraduate students are welcome to attend the meeting.

Unveiled Discussion Madeleine Birdsey The ANU International Relations Society and the ANU Circle for Gender Equality hosted a panel on the evening of the 27th of April to ‘lift the veil’ on women under religious extremism. Panellists included Dr Raihan Ismail, a lecturer at the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Amne Alrifai, writer of the popular blog ‘Unveiled Thought’ and Dr Vanessa Newby, a Research Fellow & Teaching Coordinator at the College of Asia and the Pacific. Dr Newby contextualised the discussion about religious devotion and expectations with a presentation on the ‘veil’ itself, focusing on the three main reasons why women wear the hijab: religious duty, religious choice, and feminism. Some women wear a veil because they believe it is what god intended for them, some as a “reminder of [their] devotion”, and others to be “fashionable within a Muslim cultural context”.

She emphasised how covering is not a complete representation of religious belief, nor does it have anything to do with extremism, but instead can be an empowering choice for women to represent their faith and identity. Dr Ismail centred her discussion on the question ‘Why do women join jihadi groups?’ She discussed the “struggle with identity” that many young Muslims face, causing them to search for meaning and belonging. Ismail described the tactics used by ISIS recruiters to “simplify Islam as black and white” in order to attract young people who wish to “feel important, as they are part of a larger movement”. She identified the internet as the main source of radicalisation material, as the extremists “do not attend mosque”. She also highlighted the false dichotomy of women as either victims or perpetrators of extremist violence, detailing many instances

of women leading the fight against extremism, who are both “veiled and unveiled”. Amne Alrifai continued the theme of identity, discussing female participation in extremist violence in any religion as “not purely the result of religious conviction”. She described her own experiences with disenfranchisement and distrust between Muslims and other elements of the Australian community, and how ISIS propaganda takes advantage of that divide. Alrifai emphasised the need to “expand awareness of religious tolerance” in the community as a whole, in order to address underlying economic and social issues, and echoed Dr Ismail’s comments regarding the effective role that women are already undertaking to combat extremism. “Women know what they have to do,” she said. “We just have to let them”.

Following the presentations, there was a Q&A session, during which all three panellists emphasised the need for unity among Australians, including more balance in media coverage and depictions of Muslims, by politicians and government officials as well. After the Q&A, Dr Ismail discussed with Woroni the need to shift education programmes from profiling young Muslims as potential terrorists to changing limited perceptions of Islam in order to open the community to disenfranchised young Muslims who feel they are ‘outcasts’ from the community, and restore trust.

NEWS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Batyr and the Fight Against Mental Health Stigma Miguel Galsim, News Editor

On the 26th of April Batyr hosted a small anniversary celebration and outlined its 2016 plan to combat the stigma surrounding mental health issues. In attendance were members of Batyr’s ANU chapter and a Batyr representative from Sydney. Batyr is an organisation that aims to eradicate the stigma around mental health and seeking treatment through educating and empowering the youth. Last year it entered into an official partnership with ANU and runs the popular Civic2Surf event where individuals run from Canberra to Sydney to raise awareness for Batyr’s cause. In the coming month, Batyr plans to hold an event named “Spoke Up”, which involves college students cycling to Mt Stromlo and participating in athletic and outdoor activities. Spoke Up also aims to provide a wel-

coming, festival atmosphere for its attendees. For the first half of Semester 2, Batyr hopes to launch the “Pledge to #smashthestigma” campaign, which is modelled after the Pledge Week activities run by the Women’s Department. That term the organisation also plans on combating mental health issues in the male population, particularly given the high rate of suicide in men and the socio-cultural barriers to help-seeking that typically stand in their way. After the event, Bower spoke to Woroni about the small turnout: “[One of the biggest challenges] is getting people to events... and it’s a bit more difficult when dealing with a sensitive topic.” “There’s also a vast amount of initiatives and groups working around

the mental health space in ANU,” he said. “And liaising with all of those groups, and trying to ensure a consistent message and positive relationships going forward is another big engagement challenge.” However, he hoped that Batyr would grow over the years and become an institutional element of ANU. Speaking on the common stigma of labelling individuals with mental health issues as weak, Bower stated that in reality, they are “enormously strong people.” He used the story of Sebastian Robertson, Batyr’s founder and John’s XXIII alumni, as an example. Robertson was an Economics and Commerce student who graduated in 2009. While Bower said that he was someone who appeared “successful, seemingly extroverted, a kind of ‘big

name on campus’ who did all those superficial things that people deemed to be success at university. [He] was suffering.” Bower recognised that sharing first-hand, relatable accounts is central to changing people’s perceptions of mental health issues. He also said that mental health issues were not a “permanent stain forever prohibiting you from what you want to do – it’s just like other illnesses. It’s about finding the right mix of treatment and seeking help.” Concluding, he told Woroni that “being a speaker [for Batyr] was incredibly cathartic on a personal level. But seeing the impact our presentations had on other people, seeing the catharsis of other speakers I’ve gotten to know... [it shows] that there is something incredibly powerful behind what Batyr does.”

Community Consultation for Strategic Vision begins Isadora Bogle On the 19th April Brian Schmidt, ANU Vice Chancellor, led the first community forum to discuss the draft Strategic Vision for the University at the ANU Arts Centre. Schmidt began by emphasising that the meeting was the first in a series of community consultations which were part of a broader “collaborative process”. He set a “town hall” forum style by asking attendees to use a smart device to answer a series of questions in a live poll, and responded to informal audience questions throughout the event. The presentation and audience discussion explored the three pillars of the Strategic Review, made available to attendees and the wider communi-

ty, on the Strategic Priorities website. During discussion of the first pillar – “research as the foundation of all the ANU does” – the majority of attendees agreed that the University should benchmark against the best universities in the world. This was contrasted to benchmarking against the Group of 8 or the University of Melbourne in particular, and supported the current approach in the draft. In the context of the draft stating that ANU “will provide support to early career researchers to undertake high-risk, high-gain research”, the majority of live-poll respondents supported an increase in investment high risk research. However, they were divided on the question of what to do

in regards to investment for areas that don’t perform well in research. Live poll questions stemming from the second pillar – “Education of a kind unique within Australia” – concerned investment in teaching, student numbers and internships. In response to an audience question, Schmidt acknowledged the inherent tension between the two pillars of research and education, but argued that the best universities do well at both and that should be the benchmark for ANU. The final pillar – “transforming of our society and our world” – was explored in discussions about intellectual property, working with business,

and whether ANU should value its influence beyond traditional measures in assessing the research impact of staff. He stated that while the university would not pivot from its original aims, he wanted to encourage interaction between staff and students, and industry partners. This contrasts with purported instances in the past where this was actively blocked by the university. For more information on the draft Strategic Vision, and to register for one of the forums held in May, go to the ANU Strategic Priorities website.

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News

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Beazley and Berry talk the US Election Madeleine Birdsey On the evening of April 20th, former Australian ambassador to the US, the Hon Kim Beazley AC, and His Excellency John Berry, the current US Ambassador to Australia, met to discuss the US presidential election and its implications for the Australia-US relationship. The event, which was organised by ANU, filled Llewellyn Hall with students, academics, diplomats and members of the public. Mr Beazley began the evening detailing his observations regarding the current round of primaries, his predictions for the US general election, and the impact that the results could have on Australian-US relations. But, he said, regardless of the outcome Australia and the US would “remain close”. Beazley discussed his impressions of the state of US politics, particularly

the “powerful dual protests” in both campaigns. He said this reflected a wider trend in US politics of hardline factions within both parties, such as the Republican ‘Freedom Caucus’, a group of far-right conservative ‘Tea Party’ Republicans who hold a deciding vote in Congress, and have held many bills ‘hostage’ to force their issues. Beazley attributed the sudden rise of Republican contender Donald Trump to his connection with the American white working class who see Trump as a “reflection of their concerns”, particularly regarding the loss of manufacturing jobs to overseas. He predicted that the nomination for both parties was “settled” in favour of Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, as “no other candidate can win a majority”.

He described Clinton as a “centrist candidate with a left understanding”, who had been “dragged left” by rival Senator Bernie Sanders. In the case of a Clinton-Trump contest, Beazley said “I think she’ll win”, which would be “relaxing for Australia”. Discussing the impact of the election on foreign policy, Beazley was highly critical of the rhetoric of the main Republican candidates who complicated the current negotiations in the Middle East and forced US Secretary of State John Kerry to “explain away” their actions. Trump in particular, he said, had “no regard for alliances at all”. Beazley also predicted that a Trump presidency would “almost certainly” lead to issues with China. Following the address was a Q&A session with Beazley and Ambassador Berry moderated by Michael Bris-

senden of ABC radio’s AM program. Democrat Berry, who was appointed to the ambassadorship in 2013 by President Obama, was more moderate than Beazley in his remarks regarding the candidates. Berry said the majority of the population “doesn’t engage [in politics] until after Labour Day [5th of September]”. He urged the audience not to “extrapolate too much from 10-20% of the party voting” in the primaries, and that of those who have voted, two-thirds have voted “not Trump” (for other candidates). Both Beazley and Berry also reiterated the power of Congress to “check” any president, with Berry optimistically concluding that because of this, the “worst case is never an issue”.

#ThePledge Pamela Hutchinson, News Correspondent It is an inevitable question that most students will hear during their time at university: Do you feel safe on campus? In an effort to ensure that most answers to this question are “yes”, ANU has promoted the significance of The Pledge. Directed by the ANU Women’s Department, The Pledge is an annual campaign to ensure all students feel safe on campus. The campaign aims to foster collective responsibility in the ANU community on the issue of interpersonal violence, to shift understandings of violence away from a victim blaming culture, and to work towards a campus that is safe for all students. The Pledge is designed for all ANU community members, irrespective of gender. The Pledge recognizes that as ANU community members, everyone shares a responsibility to keep the campus, and each other, safe.

Last week marked the launch of The Pledge Campaign for 2016. The ANU Women’s Department hosted a number of events in promotion of this all-important cause. Let’s break the week down. MONDAY The Launch event for The Pledge. At this event, open to all, representatives from the ANU Women’s Department framed the themes for the upcoming week and discussed the various methods of action students can undertake. A highlight was Alisa Draskovic’s speech, Deputy Women’s Officer in 2013. Alisa reflected on how the campaign has evolved over the past few years. She had seen The Pledge grow and also been heavily involved

with the developments in the women’s sector. Having extensive experience in the field, Alisa has worked with the ACT Domestic Violence Crisis Service, YWCA and is a Young Fellow of Women Deliver. TUESDAY The main event on Tuesday was an exclusive panel discussion with VC Professor Brian Schmidt in Union Court, where he talked about ways to structurally address interpersonal violence on campus. WednesDAY On Wednesday, there was a focus about Queer* perspectives of The Pledge. The Pledge Launch Week presented a non-autonomous discussion group about issues concerning the Queer* community, and violence

faced from external and internal sources. This involved a discussion regarding micro-aggressions, Queer* objectification, domestic violence in the Queer* community and any other issues pertinent to violence (physical and non-physical) the Queer* community faces. ThursDAY As we reached the end of the week, it was time for some reflection. On Thursday the first Challenging Chats session was inducted where there was a discussion about the limitations and concerns to do with broad advocacy campaign in general. ANU has taken The Pledge. Will you?

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

News

Gillian Triggs Speaks at Llewelyn Hall: Refugees and ‘Extraordinary’ Australia Mark Han, News Correspondent

Gillian Triggs has slammed Australia’s ‘extraordinary’ position on human rights and the lack of a Bill of Rights in an emotionally charged speech at Llewellyn Hall on the 27th of April. Merely a day after the Supreme Court of the PNG’s landmark decision on the illegality of Australia’s offshore refugee detention facility on Manus Island, the timing of Gillian Triggs’ visit to ANU was, in her own words, ‘impeccable’. Triggs, the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, was greeted by a rousing standing ovation by the capacity crowd at Llewellyn Hall, with dozens more turned away at door, watching her speak through screens outside the hall. Proceedings began with ANU’s Dr John Minns, a director at ANCLAS, passionately calling for refugees on Manus Island to be relocated to Australia immediately. Yvette Barry

MLA, the ACT Minister for Multicultural Affairs, followed Prof Minns’ speech and criticised ‘the message of fear’ from the government and the media regarding refugees. She also announced, to warm reception, that the ACT government was finalising a federal request to open pathways for refugees to become permanent residents of Australia. Triggs focused the first part of her speech on the international implications of Australia’s refugee policy and noted the ‘divergence in approach to human rights’ between Australia and the rest of the world. International pressure on Australia’s refugee policy has been a talking point for the Australian public since November last year. 110 countries, including those with appalling human rights records such as North Korea, put forward over 300 recommendations for Australia to improve its human rights record.

“The highly exceptional position Australia has taken (on refugee detention) is seriously out of step with the international community,” Triggs said. Triggs also drew upon Australia’s lack of a bill of rights and constitutional clauses which has supported Australia’s constitutional legality of detention of refugees. She also noted PNG, a poorer, developing country, had a stronger constitution protecting personal liberties compared to Australia’s. She also raised that the two states and territories in Australia which have a Bill of Rights, the ACT and Victoria, have the strongest opposition against the federal stance on refugee detention. “Australia is the only common law country in the world without a charter of rights and without provisions in the constitution,” she said.

to conclude her speech. She recounted the story of a teenage Somalian girl who fled her country and was under detention for a year – and despite the atrocities she witnessed at home, the girl was most aggrieved by the lack of education available while she was detained. After the speech, Triggs fielded questions from the audience and expressed her disappointment at how the suicides at the detention facilities have not moved concerns. She also described political leadership as the big change vehicle, and called for a stop to the ‘conflation’ of the two parties regarding refugees and hoped that the Federal election this year could present opportunities for both major parties to change their stances on refugees.

Triggs then shared personal anecdotes regarding some of the refugees

ANU Union holds AGM and Releases Annual Report Anton Symons The ANU Union held its annual general meeting (AGM) on Thursday 28th of April at the ANU Bar. The purpose of the Union AGM is to report to union members the actions of the organisation for the previous year and to also present the 2015 Audited Statements of Accounts. A quorum was quickly present, with all union members attending the meeting being offered a free drink. Union Board of Directors Chair Josh Bolitho delivered the annual report which encompasses the activities of the three committees within the union structure. In the Finance Committee Activities section, the report noted that Union’s Capital Grants Scheme (CGS) was significantly more successful in 2015 compared to the previous year. It stated that there were over 20 applications for the CGS, which offers a total of $10,000 in funding to clubs and societies each year. The report

said that the finance committee “will review the level of funding for the scheme with the potential to increase it” due to the schemes popularity. The Social Committee Activities section discussed the role of Student Media Officer that it created in order to become more transparent and accountable through a larger presence on social media and the Union’s own website. It is worth noting, however, that advertising of the AGM was limited to just posters around the ANU Bar/Union building and a post on the Union’s Facebook page. The board’s Strategic Planning Committee faces many concerns in the next three years. With the possible redevelopment of Union Court, the Union board met twice with ANU’s Executive Director for Administration and Planning, Chris Grange. In the first meeting, it was made clear that the role of the Union was “not a

high consideration to the University” according to the annual report. However, in the second meeting, held in November 2015, the board was informed that it could still exist in a non-physical capacity, perhaps through an events management board. The report notes that this would require a bid for said role in an open market. The 2015 Audited Statements were also available at the AGM. The Union’s revenue was down to $4,019,060 in 2015 compared to $4,380,217 in 2014. This resulted in a deficit of $331,453 which despite seeming large is lower than the 2014 deficit of $437,934. When asked about the lower revenue at the AGM, the Union confirmed that this was due to lower sales. After the AGM, Chair Josh Bolitho told Woroni that the Union’s finances are a “stark improvement” and that

he wishes to be more consultative with the student body in the coming months and years as the plans for Union Court redevelopment progress. Later that day the board met for a brief meeting. Aside from General Managers Reports, Josh Bolitho was elected Chair, and Tom Lindenmayer elected Deputy Chair. In addition, Josh Bolitho, Tom Lingafelter, and Jillian Molloy were elected the head of the Strategic Planning, Financial, and Social Committee respectively. It was also confirmed that seven places had been booked for training at the Australian Institute of Company Directors. The annual report states that the training is paid by PARSA. Anton Symons is a member of the Liberal Party

News & COMMENT

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Australian Aid: why do it? Emily Han & Xinyu Shi On Tuesday 26th April VGen ACT, in partnership with AIESEC, hosted a discussion forum on Australian Aid. The panel comprised of political and NGO leaders with first-hand experiences in aid-related work. In particular, Gai Brodtmann (MP of Canberra), Jeeven Nadanakumar (representative from World Vision), Cameron Allan (Community Organiser at Oaktree) and Caitlin Figueiredo (director of VGen ACT) were invited to share their perspectives on the past and future of Australian Aid. Brodtmann delivered the keynote speech, which began by addressing the common counterargument against foreign aid: that the government should look after their own poor people first. She quoted Lowy Institute’s survey, which revealed that, 53% of Australians are in favour of the budget cut

to aid. She urged NGOs to respond more meaningfully, saying “accusing people who are against Australian Aid as selfish or cold-hearted is counter-productive. Any spending of taxpayer’s money should not be beyond justification.”

explained the benefit of aid for Australia. “Australian Aid is not just goodwill, it makes very good economic sense”, as explained by Nadanakumar, a law/economics student at ANU who has studied aid and development extensively.

This justification, as explained by Brodtmann, lies in two questions, “can aid do the work, and why should we give aid?”

For instance, South Korea underwent tremendous economic development under a 0.3 billion dollars per annum program provided by the international community. It is has now become a generous aid donor and a close trade partner with Australia, having contributed 30 billion dollars in Australian annual foreign trade revenue.

Several panelists answered the first question with their own experiences. Figueiredo and Brodtmann recalled their experiences in Cambodia, witnessing children and families lifted out of poverty cycle with the support of Australian Aid. “Simplest gestures such as a water tank can produce significant changes in a local family”, commented Brodtmann. Brodtmann and Nadanakumar also

The communities receiving aid right now are undergoing intense transformations into booming economies, which might benefit Australian economy in the long term. Moreover, the trading partnership will “have a knock-on effect on peace”, stated Brodtmann.

The outlook for Australian Aid and aid-related work is not all positive. As Brodtmann warned, the looming cuts to foreign aid will have significant impact on development of communities in extreme poverties. Furthermore, Cameron Allan highlighted the problematic perceptions towards NGOs. For example, NGOs are perpetually discouraged from spending on remuneration, marketing and long-term projects, which heavily limits the efficiency of NGOs in promoting a more constructive conversation about aid. The panelists encouraged the audience to continue having meaningful conversations about aid outside this forum. VGen will be hosting more events like this in the coming months to spread awareness for aid and development within the student body.

The Double Standards Facing NGOs Cameron Allan Recently, I have been forced to reflect on my experiences as a development NGO (non-governmental organisation) volunteer. I have been a volunteer at Oaktree for four years now. With the organisation, I have had some of my most wholesome and passionate moments. To organisations such as Oaktree, I am very grateful. The NGO-volunteer work ethic is an acquired taste; long-hours, low-budget but transfixed on colossal dreams. It’s a job that demands resilience, put to trial by wigged governments who slam down their gavels on cold stone. At this time of year, my colleagues and I are confronted with a familiar quiet anxiety in our collective moral stomachs: foreign aid will be cut, and Australians don’t care. In light of the new Sustainable Development Goals, and their call for greater partnerships between governments, the private sector and civil society, we need to start looking at the psychology of charity. NGOs

such as Oaktree and World Vision always seem to be the ones rallying against the big issue of poverty, but they stand so small against them, in long and dark shadows. It’s a David and Goliath battle, but Goliath has eight arms and David is without his sling and staff. If extreme poverty is to be tackled, we need to be less harsh on NGOs, and allow them to work through their growing pains. Currently, we don’t afford NGOs the same standards as other institutions. For profit-based businesses, and not-for-profits, there are two very different rulebooks. What am I talking about? Let’s think about investment within businesses. If I wanted to run an event for an NGO I am involved in, or sponsor an advertisement on Facebook to improve outreach, or purchase a new data system, I would be very heavily scrutinised for this spending. I would be asked to justify every dollar, fol-

lowed with the very familiar battle cry ‘Why isn’t my donation going to those in need overseas?’ While I appreciate the sentiment of this reaction – one which has at its inception a concern for the cause – the psychology behind it fundamentally slows the greater movement trying to end extreme poverty. Why? Because if NGOs are not able to invest in their own size and infrastructure, how are we expected to be prolific enough to tackle the big issues? A small NGO which uses 80% of its revenue for projects directly related to its cause will still have less money to use for eradicating global poverty than a large NGO which uses 50%. The percentage of a donation which goes directly to a project is far less relevant than the efficacy of the organisation as a whole. What I don’t understand is if a large,

for-profit business is to invest hundreds into marketing, into products that are harmful to people and communities, we don’t bat an eyelid. It’s conceived as normal. It doesn’t warrant criticism. We have a visceral reaction to non-profits investing in themselves, which doesn’t extend to for-profit enterprises. If we are to live in a world free of fear and want, we need the vision and work of NGOs. But for NGOs to be a viable force, we need to start challenging how we conceptualise their function. In a world where foreign aid continues to be reduced, NGOs need to be able to build themselves up. An ambitious, expanding, and successful NGO which is allowed to invest in itself and grow will always be better than a hobbled, perennially small but fiscally pure one. It’s time that our donations and views reflected that. This is an adaption of a speech given to VGen. Cameron Allan is an Oaktree Community Ambassador.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

COMMENT

Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That Cameron Allan It’s important to note from the onset that this happens to a very wide variety of people who have vastly different life experiences and identities. I am not speaking for anyone else, this just happens to be my personal experience.

That’s the bizarre paradox of masculinity: I wholly believe that I don’t need to act in a way that is typically masculine, but I still can’t help but want to. It affects me in strange ways, too. For example, I’ve wanted to cry countless times since I hit puberty, but I’m nearly always physically unable to. And that means that I struggle to express and let out my sadness, it means that it’s harder for me to deal with it, and it pushes me towards either just wallowing in the fact that I feel shitty, or taking it out on other people. I feel trapped by masculinity, because although I’m fully aware of the fact that I should be able to cry, there’s still a part of me that won’t allow it. When the message that you send is that for me to be straight I have to be masculine, you force me to try and identify with those masculine attributes. You push me towards trying to be someone that I’m not, and trying to engage with a form of identity that I’ve been trying my hardest to escape from.

I identify as male. I am exclusively attracted to women. For the past several years, a large percentage of the people I know have assumed that I’m gay. I’ve been told a lot of the reasons why people assume that I must want to have sex with men. I’ve been told that it’s because at cocktail events, I’ll often wear a bow tie instead of a normal tie, or colourful socks instead of dark ones. I’ve been told that it’s because I’m skinny and not particularly sporty. I’ve even been told that it’s just inherent in the way I hold myself and the way I talk to people. These, and many more reasons I’ve been given, make it pretty clear to me that people are assuming that I’m attracted to men because I don’t have a lot of typically masculine attributes. Assuming someone’s sexuality because of the way they act, or the way they dress, or whether they took drama in high school, is always going to be futile because there genuinely is no connection between those things. Additionally though, those kinds of assumptions and the gossip that surrounds them is incredibly damaging. It creates a cloud of self-doubt behind every action that you take and it makes you second-guess the clothes you put on in the morning or the drinks you order at a bar because you become worried about what other people will associate your actions with. Someone’s sexuality should never be a matter of concern for anyone but themselves. There are also a few problems that stem from implying a connection between masculinity and heterosexuality. The first, and most obvious, is that it sends the message that if I show traditionally masculine traits, I must be straight, and if I don’t, I must be gay. I’m not allowed to be straight and effeminate, and likewise, people aren’t allowed to be gay and masculine. Obviously, this is bullshit. Things like sexuality and gender do exist on a spectrum, and it’s important for people to realise that it’s impossible to determine the way that someone identifies based on some external attribute about them. Furthermore, as someone who has

this happen to them all the time, these assumptions only make me question my identity more, feel more uncomfortable about who I am and feel like I’m doing something wrong or not behaving in the way that I should. I’m surprised that it has gotten to a point where I actually feel uncomfortable about the fact that I’m straight. The cumulative effect of these assumptions and the consistent insistence that I must be gay is that even though I know that I am not attracted to men, I feel like I’m somehow doing something wrong or not behaving correctly. This makes me feel incredibly uncomfortable with who I am. For example, I’m really, really uncomfortable with dancing. Only a few weeks ago, I was told by someone that that must be because

I’m repressing something (how very subtle). But it’s not because I’m repressing the fact that I’m secretly gay. It’s because I’m not comfortable with who I am in a way that has nothing to do with my sexuality, and having people say things like that only makes me more uncomfortable in my own skin, and more questioning of my actions and the way people perceive them. The second problem is that it makes me feel even more insecure about the fact that I’m not particularly masculine. The nature of social norms around masculinity is that men feel pressured into acting as masculine as possible. I am well aware of the fact that notions of masculinity are baseless and stupid - yet I still can’t help but wish that I was more masculine.

Even further to that, people’s continuous insistence that I must be gay makes me want to change my behaviour to stop them. Even after I explain that I’m just not attracted to men, or that I have a girlfriend, the same people tend to immediately brush what I say aside, in a, “You say that, but we both know it’s not true,” kind of way. One of the worst effects of this is that I do feel a pressure to change the way I act to somehow prove the fact that I’m attracted to women. When people tell me that I must be gay because in some of my Facebook profile pictures I’m posing with another guy, it means that I’m less comfortable forming close friendships with men. I’m less comfortable hugging men. I can guarantee right now that my next profile picture will be a picture of me, alone. But it really shouldn’t have to be. The reason this article has been published anonymously is not because I don’t want to be associated with it or are uncomfortable with what I’ve divulged. It’s because hopefully, in not knowing who wrote this, maybe you’ll think about whether you’ve made similar assumptions about people and how it might be affecting them. Assigning any value or identity to an attribute, or making assumptions about anyone’s identity in general, isn’t just stupid. It hurts people.

Artwork by Maddison Holdsworth

COMMENT

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Have you been amused by the antics of ScoMo and Malcolm? Does the thought of a Shorten zinger get you up in the morning? Are you eternally confused by who said what on tax policy and what any of it means? In the lead-up to the 2016 Federal Election, Woroni will be running a series of articles on contentious policy issues. Stay tuned, get enrolled (http://www.aec.gov.au/enrol/), and get excited for the long campaign!

The Great Myth of Fee Deregulation Flint O’Neil

If you were to listen to the arguments of most students at the ANU, fee deregulation of higher education sounds like an evil conspiracy by right-wing free marketeers. The Socialist Alliance go so far as to portray it as something destined to screw over the little guy in the name of ‘corporate’ interests. In this vein, the argument goes that deregulation of fees in an Australian context is something that is incontrovertibly inequitable. A fee hike, according to such arguments, puts poorer students in a vulnerable position where they cannot afford their education, whilst leaving the rich untarnished. It is also asserted that student debts would also become increasingly problematic, à la USA, and Australia’s university system would become further stratified, with poorer students funnelled into cheaper institutions, and wealthier ones getting to go to prestigious Go8 universities. As intuitive and ‘progressive’ as these arguments seem, however, they are in no way accurate portrayals of the actual consequences of fee deregulation. In fact, they conceal an ugly truth about free education. The first reason why fee deregulation may be a good idea in an Australian context as opposed to elsewhere, like the US, has to do with the fact that we have HECS/HELP. Under the HECS system, an individual is able to accumulate their student debt through the tax system, rather than through private finance. Once that individual then graduates they are not immediately required to repay their debts, but rather required to start repayments only once they reach a threshold of income. That in-

come is defined as median income, so approximately $50 000. At this level fee repayments are capped at 2% of annual income per year, with the cap of repayment increasing up to 8% as incomes eventually rise above $100 000. The crucial point is that students who graduate and are not employable, and/or remain in the lower socio-economic brackets of society get a free pass, whilst those who used society’s resources to climb the ladder are required to pay back a bit of their government funded gift. Furthermore, the interest rate on the HECS debt is between 2-3%, whilst annual nominal wage growth is 5%, meaning that the real value of this debt actually erodes over time, rather than compounds. Given this, increased university fees under a HECS loan system is equivalent to simply raising marginal tax rates on the top half of income earners in Australia. The important thing to note here is that the baseline comparison of an Australian education system becoming more and more like the USA’s broken arrangement is a false counterfactual. The American system does not have HECS. As such, it is costly for students to defer their debt repayments (unlike in Australia) and either working families have to foot the bill, or students are forced into a lifetime of compounding debt. Moreover, a system of HECS repayments is actively more equitable than the alternative of free education. This is not just ‘intuitive’ economics, but rather empirical fact that explains why the Whitlam government abandoned its free education platform. The reason why free education is an actively regressive policy is because

it involves a transfer of income from those who do NOT go to university to those who do. Implicitly, we have TAFE students and blue collar workers funding the education of university students who either go on to be upper class, or already come from the upper echelons of society. Bearing in mind that most students at university come from high SES backgrounds, and that government fully funding universities means government not funding other programs, such as welfare or universal healthcare, free education very rapidly appears inequitable. Another reason why fee deregulation may be necessary in the near future has to do with the trending political climate regarding university funding. When fees are capped at a low level, universities are forced to rely on government to get the majority of their revenue. In recent times, government’s willingness to fund university research has been in considerable decline, and universities need an alternate funding source if they wish to maintain high research standards whilst running a large range of courses. In this respect, deregulation of fees (or at least a higher fee cap) is probably the only thing that can stop Australian universities from declining into mediocrity. There is a reason that the best universities in the world come from the largely deregulated markets of the USA and UK, whilst European education consistently underperforms in global rankings. (For example Australia has 5 universities in the QS top 100, whilst Germanya country of 4 times the populationhas only 3). Thus when seen under the light of

these considerations, fee deregulation is hardly the evil that it is portrayed to be by the average university student. When faced between the alternatives of a more inequitable system with worse universities, and a more equitable system with better universities, fee deregulation seems to be one of those rare instances of a free lunch. All things considered though, there are considerable disadvantages to the Liberal Party’s plan to deregulate universities. Originally, the Abbott government wanted to increase the HECS rate from 3% to approximately 6% (which would make the debt compound substantially), whilst plans were made to retract funding even as fees became uncapped, thus resulting in a far smaller increase in resources for the university sector. Furthermore, there are strong arguments to suggest that the fee cap should merely be doubled, or tripled instead of active deregulation due to certain market failures (the UK model). Deregulation in any form isn’t necessarily an inherent good – the Liberal model proves that – but a well-executed deregulation plan would provide a better resourced, more sustainable, and more equitable model than either the status quo or a free university system.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

COMMENT

How to Put Lipstick on a Pig (feat. Scott Morrison) Nishanth Pathy

Negative gearing is a lot like climate change. Amongst academics, economists, and public servants, there is a widespread consensus about the effects of negative gearing – it pushes up house prices, drives truly bizarre housing investment behaviour and doesn’t particularly increase rental stock. And yet, just like climate change, in the public domain, there is a “debate”. This article exists to dispel that debate. First: some definitions. Let’s say you borrow money to buy an investment property, which you then rent out. The money you receive in rent is your income, and your costs will be a combination of interest payments on the loan and maintenance/other works on the house. In the event that you are making a loss (i.e. your costs (maintenance and interest payments) are greater than your income (rent received as a landlord), you are said to be “negatively gearing” the investment property (neutral gearing is where costs are equal to income, and positive gearing is where costs are less than income). That’s just definitions. The policy in contention is that currently, the loss from a negatively geared property can be deducted from taxable income (that is, income from both investments and from salaries/wages). That policy currently costs the Commonwealth government about $11 billion per year. Now, at this point you could plausibly ask what could warrant a price tag of $11 billion per year. Negative gearing purportedly has three goals: increasing rental supply, supporting mum and dad investors, and correcting an inefficiency in the tax system (I’ll explain what that means below). Firstly, on increasing rental supply. The argument goes like this: if losses from negatively geared properties are able to be offset from taxable income, then more people will be willing to invest in rental properties because the losses will be smaller and the risk over going into loss is less severe. That argument is intuitively plausible, but it is not supported by evidence. The issue with this argument is a fairly basic supply and demand analysis. As more people choose to invest, demand for housing goes up, and as a result, price for housing goes up. That will price some people out of the market. Those people then opt for renting, which

pushes up the demand for rental properties (which therefore pushes up the price of rental properties). There are definitely more rental properties (higher supply), but this increase is almost directly proportional to the increase in renters (higher demand). Of course, this wouldn’t necessarily be true if there was a substantial construction of rental properties – then, even if there were more renters, it’s possible that there could be a net increase in rental supply. But there isn’t an overall increase in housing stock – 93% of property lending goes to purchases of existing residences. Rents don’t necessarily go down, nor is there any less of a rental shortage. No real benefit to be seen here. Secondly, on supporting “mum and dad investors” (note: “mum and dad investors” is a loosely defined political term generally used to refer to middle-class parent investors without a strong investment history). The argument here goes that a huge portion of those who negatively gear investment properties are not the super wealthy, but in fact regular Australians who are just looking to improve their lot in life. While this argument has rhetorical value, appealing to the Aussie battler, there are incredibly strong counterarguments to this. The first is that many negative gearers only negatively gear because they cannot afford to buy. The loose intuition goes as follows: house prices have risen (in part due to negative gearing), and as a result, it is cheaper to negatively gear a house and use the rental income from that to rent a house of one’s own. Why is that true? Well, think about it this way. If you buy a house, you have to pay the mortgage on that house. You can eventually sell that house, and you will receive money from that sale (because house prices increase faster than inflation, selling a house means that you generally make a profit – this profit is known as “capital gains”). That capital gain is the only source of income if you are an owner-occupier from the get-go. By contrast, if you negatively gear and also rent your own property, you can effectively offset the rent you pay for your own home with the rent you receive from your investment home, and you still get the capital gains from eventually selling that investment home, but now your losses (the mortgage payments on your investment home) are par-

tially subsidised by the government. This way, eventually, you can sell your investment home and buy your own in the future, as opposed to having lower wealth and simply buying it now. Hence why John Daley, CEO of the Grattan Institute (one of Australia’s most reputable think tanks) claims that negative gearing leads to “distorted” and “anti-social” housing outcomes: it means that people who would have preferred to own their own home cannot, and therefore purchase an investment property (further increasing house prices) so that they can rent out a home in order to pay rent for their own home. Undoubtedly, some of these “mum and dad investors” would actively want to invest with or without the policy, but I’d hazard a guess that most “mums and dads” would opt for owning their own home over some bizarre wealth-transfer scheme that still leads to them owning their own home, but much further down the track. There’s a second counterargument on “mum and dad investors” – most of the money isn’t going to average Joe and Jane mum and dads. Around 50% of the $11 billion goes to the top 10% of income earners. Moreover, the relative proportion of negative gearers per occupation correlates to income – 30% of anaesthetists negatively gear as opposed to just under 5% of cleaners. When Scott Morrison says that 38,390 nurses negatively geared last year as some means of proving that regular Aussies are beneficiaries of this policy, remember that there are well over 300,000 nurses in the country. The proportions do not, as a general rule, support the hypothesis that people on lower incomes negatively gear. To the above, Malcolm Turnbull would say that it is “beside the point” how many rich Australians use negative gearing – it is still benefiting at least some middle-income earners. That is true until you remember the price tag. That $11 billion per year is money that can’t be spent on other government programs – government programs which could very actively support all middle-income earners, as opposed to the minority who negatively gear. If we care about increasing the incomes of middle-income earners without giving unnecessary tax reductions to the rich, we could simply increase tax brackets such

that middle-income earners pay less. Or we could use that money to plug the budget deficit without using savings like a GP co-payment, or to pay for all of Gonski such that fewer parents felt the need to spend money on a private education. Or, to counter the point on rental supply, we could explicitly construct a huge amount of public or low-rent housing for far less than $11 billion. This isn’t to say that those policies are good or bad – that’s for a different article – but insofar as Malcolm Turnbull wants to make the “point” of negative gearing giving a little extra dosh to “mum and dad Australians”, there are far more direct and less pricey ways of achieving exactly that. That gives us one final benefit, which is fixing the inefficiency in the tax system. The ANU’s very own Martin Richardson correctly points out that without the tax deductibility of negative gearing, the housing market arbitrarily benefits those who finance their investment properties through equity (loosely meaning money that they already had rather than money that they borrowed) as opposed to debt. This is true, and ideally, a tax system would treat all investment equally. This benefit is not irrelevant, but it does carry with it a question – how much do we value a perfect tax system? Do we value it at $11 billion per year? As outlined above, that is $11 billion we cannot spend elsewhere, and it must be balanced against the costs of low home-ownership, low long-term rental property rates, and an increasingly volatile housing market. A cursory analysis would not come off in its favour. Negative gearing is popular with governments because it buys important votes – electors in marginal seats like the capacity to negatively gear their second or third investment properties. But for the average Australian, negative gearing is a basket of trouble – it does not meaningfully increase rental stock, it doesn’t help “mums and dads” and it doesn’t have a sufficient efficiency impact to warrant its costs. Scott Morrison may dress negative gearing up in all the rhetoric he can muster, but it remains nothing but an expensive vote-buying policy that costs everyday Australians a lot more than it gives.

COMMENT

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Policy Analysis Working Group Piece #2

Higher Education and the Federal Election Jessy Wu

Education policy makers must balance two things: providing a world class education that equips young Australians with skills which benefit the economy; and ensuring everyone has equal access to this education. What is more, they must do so without placing an undue burden on Australian taxpayers, both present and future.

represents. In the period since 2009, the cost to the taxpayer of funding higher education increased by 59%. In the same period, the economy only grew by 29%. Liberal commentators describe this discrepancy as unsustainable and unfair. To redress this situation, the Liberal party will likely propose to reduce funding to higher education by 20%.

The major parties have always disagreed on how best to strike this balance. Nowhere was this disagreement more pronounced than in 2014, when the Liberal party unveiled a plan which allowed for the complete deregulation of university fees, alongside a 20% cut to funding for higher education.

Predictably, there is disagreement over whether the amount of taxpayer money currently invested in higher education is appropriate. The Labor party are proud of their move to increase funding to higher education from $8 million in 2007 to $14 million in 2013. They argue this investment in education will pay off for Australia - as we undergo a period of economic transformation, we require highly educated graduates to drive innovation, productivity, and creativity.

Following backlash from students and other concerned parties, the Liberal party ‘deferred’ this plan for 12 months. However, the Minister for Education Simon Birmingham has recently announced he intends to ‘refine and improve’ the plan for the 2016 upcoming election. The Labor party have opposed this plan from the beginning. They argue fee deregulation would usher in an era of $100,000 degrees, and therefore compromise equity of access to education. Labor have promised that if they are elected, they would not deregulate fees, and reverse any cuts to funding for higher education. The Greens also oppose deregulation, and also stress the importance of protecting international students from being exploited by exorbitant fees. In this report, I will outline the education policies that have been proposed by the major parties, and discuss the impact these policies will have on our future. However, in order to understand these policies, we must understand the context in which they have been proposed. The Liberal party has stated that their policies are an appropriate response to the unsustainable tax burden that the current funding model

In light of this, the Labor party have committed to ensuring Australian universities remain internationally competitive, not by deregulating fees, but by paying more money per student. If elected, the Labor party have promised to increase funding per undergraduate student per year to $11,800 in 2018. This represents 27% (or $2,500) more than the plan proposed by the Liberals. Labor’s proposed increases to federal funding would reduce the costs borne to students - reducing the cost of a five year medicine degree from $125,000 to $52,000, and the cost of a four year law degree from $86,000 to $42,000. Moreover, Labor have committed to legislating a Student Funding Guarantee, and to indexing the funding to ensure the value of the contribution is not eroded over time. This move is estimated to cost $2.5 billion in the first four years of implementation. Having outlined the proposed funding models, I will analyse the impact of each policy. The Liberal party’s proposal to cut

federal funding to higher education by 20% begets an important question: how will universities make up for the shortfall in income? Universities Australia Chief Executive Belinda Robinson has suggested that fees would likely increase by 30% to offset the reduction in funding, and maintain the quality of education expected by students and employers. If this funding cut is coupled with the deregulation of tuition fees, there would be no way to prevent universities from charging exorbitant fees. Not only would this increase in tuition fees deter students from accessing higher education for fear of accruing this debt, this policy would also contribute to the national student loan debt problem. The structure of Australia’s current HECS system (where domestic students do not have to pay any fees upfront) means there is no ‘cap’ on how much universities can charge for tuition, as they are not constrained by how much students are currently able to pay. This is part of the reason fees are currently regulated, to prevent universities from saddling unsuspecting students (who have no choice but to attend university in Australia) with a crippling amount of debt. If fees are deregulated, Labor suggests students may graduate with more than $100,000 in student loan debt. Not only is this a substantial burden on the individual, student loan debt is also a burden on the taxpayer - the very burden that the Liberal policy was intended to alleviate. Of the projected $11 billion cost of unpaid higher education loans over the next 10 years, deregulated fees would account for more than $1.2 billion. This analysis suggests that deregulating fees only pushes the problem into the future. If the Liberal party policies go ahead, we should also anticipate substantial changes to the HECS loan scheme, as the government attempts to redress the debt problem they inadvertently create. This may include

following recommendations from the Grattan institute to lower the point at which graduates must start repaying their debts, from $54,000 per annum to $42,000 per annum. The same report also recommended adjusting repayment thresholds so high income earners pay back their loans sooner. This observation brings us to the question at the heart of the debate about education policy (sometimes referred to as darkness) - who pays, and when. Should we use taxpayer dollars to invest in a more prosperous future for all, or should we ask the primary beneficiary of education (i.e. the student) to foot the bill for their own education? There are no easy answers to these questions - but hopefully this report has helped you to understand those proffered by the major parties in the 2016 election.

COMMENT

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

Policy Analysis Working Group Piece #3

Employability, Industrial Relations and the Federal Election Hugh Evans

The July 2nd double dissolution election was triggered due to the government’s inability to pass integral elements of their industrial relations policy. Consequently, industrial relations will sit at the forefront of policy debate this election. Whilst discourse regarding industrial relations too often succumbs to tired union bashing, behind the rhetoric there is an important policy debate that needs to occur. The policy outcomes in both industrial relations and employability will have substantial implications for students and new-graduates. The Coalition government have sought to implement the Australian Building and Construction Commission Bill and the Registered Organisations Bill, which reconfigures accountability mechanisms in the building and construction sector and unions more broadly. These measures are a response to the damning, yet highly politicised, Haydon Trade Union Royal Commission. Notably, the Coalition would reestablish the Howard-era independent watchdog, The Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) and triple the cost of fines issued for unlawful industrial actions against workers and corporate entities. The Coalition, with the support of the Productivity Commission and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, argue that the bills will reduce corruption within the union movement and improve the productivity of the building and construction sector. Labor, along with the Green and a majority of the senate crossbench, have fiercely opposed the legislation. Labor, argue that the Royal Commission’s purpose was purely partisan and that subsequent legislation will curb the rights of workers. Instead, Labor have developed their industrial relations policy to redress to the

unrest within the public service from the Abbott’s government workplace bargaining policy.

flagged competition policy as a key component of his government’s focus on innovation and growth.

Last month, as part of a strategy to comparatively highlight the Turnbull government’s supposed policy vacuum, Labor revealed its plans to scrap the entirety of the Coalition’s workplace bargaining policy if it wins government in July. The Shadow Employment Minister claimed these changes would grant “just” outcomes to public servants by restoring an array of entitlements that were eliminated under the Coalition government.

Highly competitive markets ensure producers keep their prices low in order to attract sufficient demand from consumers. An economy with minimal market abuse and competitively low prices for necessary goods and services is particularly important for students who have a tight budget to manage.

A considerable portion of ANU students and graduates have, or will seek, employment with the public service. Furthermore, reports, which surfaced in past years, have highlighted systematic exploitation of international students in the workplace. Consequently, an approach to workplace relations, which limits entitlements and restricts the activity of unions, is precarious for ANU students. Interestingly, the major party’s positions on the specific issue of penalty rates would seem far less disparate. Despite the Coalition instigating calls for reducing penalty rates, Labor leader, Bill Shorten, has claimed Labor would support a recommendation from the Fair Work Commission to reduce retail and hospitality sector Sunday penalty rates equivalent to the current Saturday rates. Proponents of a reduction claim wage costs are burdensome particularly on small businesses, yet for many students who work in the hospitality and retail sector, a cut to penalty rates would shrink already stretched budgets. Accordingly, Labor’s stances may taint their ability to champion industrial relations this election. More broadly, outcomes on employability and the job market encompass important policy questions regarding government regulation of the business sector, principally in the field of competition policy. Upon his ascendency to the Prime Ministership, Turnbull

More broadly, strong competition encourages businesses to innovate in order to gain an advantage over their competitors. Innovation subsequently promotes economic growth, job creation and more Australian exports on the global market. The Coalition has indicated an intention to adopt 44 of the 56 recommendations from the Harper Review into competition reform. Notable recommendations include loosening restrictions on the ownership of pharmacies, retail opening hours, taxi licensing and parallel imports. Similarly, Labor’s Shadow Minister for Competition, Andrew Leigh, has indicated broad support for the recommendations; claiming they align with Labor’s view of “sharing the economy”. Nevertheless, the major parties diverge on the proposal of introducing an ‘effects test’, perhaps the most contentious issue in this policy area. An ‘effects test’ would see amendments to section 46 of the Competition and Consumer Act. Section 46 is supposed to function as a check on market abuse and predatory pricing from big businesses. Nonetheless, the current wording sets a considerably high threshold of what considered anti-competitive behaviour. The Coalition would alter section 46 to prevent businesses from engaging in behaviour which would have the ‘effect’ of considerably reducing competition in a market, even if that was

not their intention. Nevertheless, the adoption of the effects test appears to have caused disgruntlement within the Liberal party. Many claim the policy contravenes the notion of free-market economics, a core principle of the Liberal party, and is a ploy merely to appease The Nationals who seek to champion the cause for small and regional businesses. Labor’s Shadow Treasurer has claimed the ‘effects test’ wrongly seeks to “protect competitors for competitor’s sake”, instead of bolstering the “competitive process”. Instead, Labor have proposed the establishment of a ‘Small Business Ombudsman’, who would assess the likely outcome of legal challenges against bigger businesses who engage in anti-competitive behaviour. Labor purports their policy will lessen the cost and legal rigmarole of redressing market abuse. Whilst this approach lessens how comparatively under resourced small businesses are against big business, it fails to address the high standard of anti-competitive behaviour stipulated under section 46. The Greens, whose voter base comprises a large portion of small business entrepreneurs, have expressed their desire to work collaboratively with the Coalition to implement an effects test. The Australian economy is experiencing a period of stagnant growth, with record low wage growth restricting tax revenues. Accordingly, a Keynesian approach of merely spending more will not suffice; our economy needs incremental reforms in areas such as industrial relations, competition and employment. However, when students cast their vote they should consider not only which party’s policy will most effectively achieve growth and job creation, but also the policy’s implications for workers and consumers.

COMMENT

Issue 6, Vol. 70

IN defense of “THE PLEDGE” Anonymous

As a movement, “The Pledge” seeks to mobilise the wider community in order to make interpersonal violence both more recognisable and socially unacceptable. Its commitment to personal safety, respect, and placing the onus on the perpetrator lies at the heart of today’s wider campaign to end all forms of gendered and sexual violence. In light of recent criticisms following the campaign, it is worth acknowledging critiques and addressing their value-based judgements, such that the central message of the campaign can continue to resound.

Sexual and gendered violence carries a certain stigma – the stigma that the victim somehow could have prevented it if they had acted differently, or if they had been more assertive at the time, or even after the fact, if they had told someone about it and sought jus-

against them, and to use their stories as a warning and call for those who may in the future. Furthermore, to paint a picture of the feminist cause as one that works to pressure people into submitting themselves to some skewed image of social justice to

The first critique: that those who would be inclined to commit violent acts are those to whom the campaign fails to reach out. In this instance, the extent to which violence against women has entrenched and camouflaged itself in social norms is astoundingly under recognised. Some men are largely unaware of what is violent, and on the instance that the campaign does reach someone, it affects (to at least some extent) their awareness the way violence is understood. That’s not to say that it’s an acceptable excuse for those who use aggression to say that they are unaware of what they are doing, and therefore are awarded mitigated blame – but it is to say that the understanding people have of what constitutes violence is grossly misunderstood and far too narrow, which is exactly what ‘The Pledge’ aims to fix. The second critique: that the campaign forces women who have experienced violence, in particular sexual violence, to share their experiences in an act of solidarity, and this could actually work against their recovery. Such a viewpoint implicitly shames the wider feminist movement for inadvertently pressuring the vulnerable to act in a self-damaging way in order to “prove their commitment to the cause”. To some extent, this is plausible, but from those who have been willing to share their stories, it more often than not works as a form of liberation.

tice. It makes someone feel as though they are to blame - that it’s a dirty secret that no one can and should ever know about, because it would damage whatever perceptions others had of them. In the experience of those who came forward, those who were willing to speak up about their own traumas have received nothing but support and respect for having both the courage to damn the violations

achieve a certain agenda is just blatant bigotry and ignorance that fails to recognise just how endemic and serious this issue is. It not only downplays the extent to which this threatens the lives of women every minute of the day, but it also continues to normalise the status quo which, at best, fails to adequately recognise the plight of women.

The third critique: that it creates a sense of false achievement to the extent that people feel less compelled to continue actively participating in the movement for which “The Pledge” stands. To some extent, it creates a false sense of achievement, seeing as many who took “The Pledge” would not necessarily treat is as something they would act upon. But the whole purpose of campaigns like ‘The Pledge’ is to bring matters once thought to exist in the private sphere further into public discourse. Violence is most harmful when it is exclusively private, where victims feel isolated and alone and perpetrators feel secure. Even if the perpetrators don’t take the pledge, people around them certainly will, and thereby continues to de-normalise what was once considered the acceptable status quo. That in and of itself works extremely effectively towards achieving a safer environment in which women can exist and not feel at risk of becoming victims. Finally, it is important to discuss the opinions of those who believe that an inclusive rather that more aggressive assertion of anti-violence campaigns is just yet another case of ‘pandering’ to the male ego – that to make men feel less vilified and to continue to express ‘but not all men’ before or after making a point about gendered violence is really taking away from the incredibly valuable and important change that educates men out of these harmful norms. And to an extent, this is true. It is important to be bold and steadfast in the face of normalised violence. However, the exclusion of men through aggressive social campaigns that sees them feel helpless and attacked seems counter-productive to achieving a wider social understanding and acceptance. In this way, a balance between accountability for men and cooperation is essential for the success of this cause. “The Pledge” works very hard to achieve this balance.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

Features

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Save me from myself ANONYMOUS

Sometimes I think that my biggest issue is that I don’t have a disability. Sometimes I think that if I did, then I could hate just the world, or blame the man in the sky, and that would be that. Instead, I have a disorder. In my case this means that I bring a life-threatening condition upon myself. I am the sole cause of my own misery, my own addiction, my own poor health and my own mental instability. I have anorexia nervosa. I deprive myself of the calories that my body needs to function, largely, because it provides me with the feeling of being in control. Life is laden with curve balls. External variables influence almost every aspect of our lives. People are unreliable, unpredictable creatures, and time is always passing. It is normal to feel like your life is out of control. You just never seem to win the raffle, cash prize or family holiday, exam questions never quite seem to relate to the course, people never say what they mean, injuries and sickness

hit you when you least expect them, and employers frequently fail to see how perfect of a candidate you are. What I find I can constantly control, however, is what I put in my mouth (at least until you find a tube shoved down your throat). I get satisfaction from eating an exact amount of calories and knowing that I am a step closer to being that bit skinner. This control, the complete power I have over this aspect of my life, it is my life raft when anything else is unnervingly unpredictable or inconstant. You might think I am crazy – I am a little crazy – but everyone has a life raft of some sort. Some people clean away their worries, others make extensive lists and plans, some people find it helpful to cut themselves off from all contact with the outside world, and others binge on Netflix. While it may seem paradoxical, there is also the approach of escaping from reality as opposed to grappling with it. Drinking, taking drugs, sleeping all day and partying all night – it is something many resort to. For me, however, a fixation on food seems to be the addiction that has stuck.

You may or may not know this, but when you deprive your body of nutrients, certain parts of your brain cease to function. One consequence in my case is that when I look in the mirror, I don’t see myself as others do. I do have moments of clarity though; sometimes when I glance at a photograph quickly or walk past a window, I process what I see before I realise I am looking at myself – I see bones, tired eyes and a strained physique. So, when the time finally comes where you decide you have had enough, when all the little moments of clarity have added up and established a sound argument for your fucked-up-ness - then you begin to fight a battle against yourself. In corner 1, we have the side that will not let go of the happiness and satisfaction it gains from deprivation. In corner 2, we have the little voice that begs for all the thoughts to stop, for you to find a healthier outlet, and for you to become as carefree as everyone else seems to be. The problem with having two parts of yourself partaking in a vicious tug of war is that you are always losing.

One step forwards for Player A is a step backwards for Player B. Victories never quite feel good. You never feel like you are winning either way. You will always hate yourself for one reason or another. For the past 5 years I have been told that it is only the smartest of people who have problems like mine. My disorder is supposedly a testament to my will power, my determination, my passion, and my ability to unrelentingly pursue what I want. I am assured that I will be able to channel this addictive nature to produce productive ends. Ultimately, I know 2 things to be true; you are your own worst enemy, and, nobody can save you but yourself. So here I am, winning and losing simultaneously. Waiting for one side to land a fatal blow that will put the other side down for good.

ARTWORK BY Eva Krepsova

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

Features

What do you mean? Ebony Hoiberg

My whole life I thought I was dumb, then, two months before my 21st birthday, I was diagnosed with dyslexia. Happy birthday to me! It was probably one of the most confusing times of my life, not only because spelling dyslexia in itself was a massive challenge, but because of how long it took to come to terms with it.

class because the struggle was real. I got into ANU feeling like an absolute fraud and somehow got through to second year university without anyone even questioning it.

I had never been a good speller, and almost failed Grade 4 because I didn’t know my timetables. I never got my pen licence, and to this day I still spell ‘because’ by saying “big ele-

Sure, I had teachers tell me that my spelling was wrong, but that was normally followed by, “If you stopped talking in class I’m sure you would be fine.” I would spend days proof reading assignments, only to get them back with red writing all over them and a comment along the line

phants amble under small elephants”. I guess which ‘their’, ‘there’ or ‘they’re’ to use every time, and have no idea when you are actually meant to use commas. I have lost marks on every assignment I have ever done for spelling and grammar, and have a massive fear of libraries because the Dewey Decimal System scares me. I have to Google most hard words - for example, I didn’t know how to refer to the Dewey Decimal System, so I searched “the book order in libraries duodecimal” on Google, and found the term from there. I went on exchange to an American international school in India in Year 11 and was almost put in the English as a second language

of, “this would have been great if you had proof read.” When I started Uni I would spend hours doing a single reading and not really getting it, but thought that was normal. I managed by avoiding doing any classes that had exams, and made sure to drop any classes that had lots of dates and names involved. Everyone I knew was aware I was a bad speller so it wasn’t really a big deal, at least until I started to venture into the big wide world of Canberra and it become more and more of an issue, and I become more and more self conscious. I always joked about being dumb, but the thought of people actually knowing I was dumb was daunting.

I don’t even really remember why now, but one night I Googled ‘dyslexia’ and it was like reading about my life, except for the fact that most people get diagnosed when they are kids. Months later, I mentioned it to my Dad, who kind of laughed about it and mentioned that he might have been diagnosed with dyslexia as a kid but he couldn’t really remember. DENNIS, DYSLEXIA IS HEREDITARY YOU DUMB DUMB. Anyway, it turns out I was dyslexic too. To begin with I thought it was hilar-

ious. I struggled to find an adult dyslexic specialist that could officially diagnose me, so I had to go to kids psychologist, which come on, is pretty funny. I also got given a book called “dyslexia; a gift” – firstly, who gives a book to dyslexic person, and secondly, dyslexia has got to be the worst gift ever. So you can see how it was kind of funny to begin with. Then I got really mad. What sort of school doesn’t pick up on a kid having a learning difficulty? I had people that didn’t really believe me because I had gotten so far with my education. Mostly I was angry that nobody could help me. I did

not want to have a disability. Then I got really sad. I had spent all that time trying to hide that I was dumb just for it to be proven in an IQ test. I was so tired of trying and really just felt like giving up. I didn’t want it to be a big deal, but it was. I now know that I am actually dyslexic, and now have to figure out what it really means. I’ve learnt that my brain has to work a lot harder than a normal person’s just to be able to read words from a sheet of paper. I found

out my love of the colour yellow has to do with how my brain works. Supposedly I am meant to be good at problem solving and big picture thinking. Most importantly, I’ve learnt that people don’t think I’m dumb just because I’m dyslexic. My friends have been amazingly supportive, classmates have helped me, and teachers have gone out of their way to give me assistance.

ARTWORK BY Eva Krepsova

Features

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Invisible Illness Holly Jones

So there I was, in a French Chateau on a blissful summers day, feeling thoroughly content having just had a taster of some fortified French wine, when suddenly, my head stopped. I stumbled outside and fell against a wall, an ambulance was called, and from that moment on, my life was very suddenly and unpredictably turned upside down.

It’s been almost 2 years since that day. I’m now living with an unimaginable range of issues that I could have neither predicted or prepared for. The most intrusive of these are my physical symptoms; in an instant I was reduced from a strong, young Atlas mountain trekker, to someone that could barely lift their dragging feet from the ground, for step after exhausting step, to make it 30m before falling in a tangle of exhausted ‘ragdoll’ limbs. Together with this com-

plete and utter exhaustion came a myriad of other symptoms - shaking, an inability to think, stumbling over words, an unrelenting pressure in my head, an uncontrollable eye flicker. The unexpected outcome was my healthy appearance, aptly described by my neurologist who said, “You look a million dollars”. Excellent! Isn’t it a shame I feel like an extra from the walking dead.

‘rag doll’ effects. For me, one of the most extreme examples of this was when one of my friends legitimately FORGOT that I was ill and thought it would be a great idea to pick me up and spin me round. This was (unsurprisingly) too much for my delicate balance centre to handle and resulted in a complete collapse, a couple of days recovery, and a very, very apologetic friend.

When you couple this ‘million dollar look’ with intensely disabling symptoms it leads to some challenging situations. For example, invalid cap parking spot + the look, just doesn’t add up for the concerned passer by who believes they are defending a disabled car parking spot from abuse by a seemingly healthy soul.

The problem with an invisible disability is its credibility in the eyes of others because of an apparent ‘wellness’ factor, or, when an illness and its circumstances aren’t taken seriously due to judgements being based on outward appearances. This is a phenomenon that is commonly experienced by members of the chronically ill community that don’t have symptoms that are outwardly apparent, or those of us who suffer with ‘invisible illness’ - my experience has alerted me to the plight of many of the invisibly chronically ill, whose friends and family are not so understanding. It seems sadly common for friends to feel like they’re being ignored or let down when their sick friend cancels plans. Alternatively, they may be unwilling to adjust plans to more suitable, accessible activities (Netflix in bed is a favourite of mine), which may continue to the extent of even downright doubting the illness of their loved one, which is confronting and damaging to the sufferer.

Yet, there is a population of invisibly disabled individuals who are entitled to, and rely on the use of these very amenities, who need consideration. For those that suffer from invisible illnesses, there comes the added burden of anxiety when using disability services, with the prospect of dirty looks from passers by, or worse still, having to defend their use of those services to well meaning, but judgemental and ill-informed guardians of disability facilities. I am not saying that the fact that I look ‘well’ is inherently bad, in fact, it can be really useful when I feel like playing make-belief, and briefly escape to a life in which I’m your average Uni student, where the reason I feel like death is because I partied too hard at downstairs Moose, am now attempting to finish that essay that’s due in 2 hours and mostly survive on a diet of mi-goreng, coffee and latenight chicken gourmet. I myself am lucky enough to have a brilliant support network of friends and family, who are extremely understanding, and go out of their way to accommodate me and my condition. Without them, I would be immeasurably worse off. However, even with them, the subtleties that come with living with an invisible illness are noticeable. Since it’s not immediately obvious when my energy is waning whilst socialising, I may have to ask friends to leave early even when I’m having a great time. Conversely, if I attempt to push through and over socialise, I pay the consequences with acute amplification of my symptoms and extreme

Despite all these social complications, the most severe and harmful impact of not being taken seriously would have to be when that judgement and scepticism comes from the medical community. During my diagnostic period of around 3 months, I was faced with a number of doctors who decided upon their initial examination that my symptoms were psychosomatic. It was only my outward symptoms, examined lightly, that provided the basis for my initial diagnosis, which is significant given that many of my most debilitating symptoms aren’t the visible ones: brain fog and extreme fatigue. I have a severe form of Dysautonomia, and although many people who have a less extreme or different form of Dysautonomia or POTS do experience extreme fatigue and brain fog, my absence of these visible symptoms meant doctors didn’t take my symptoms seriously. Bias against those without visible

symptoms is extremely problematic. I can’t imagine having to live with these symptoms without medical back up and treatment. However, these occurrences are unfortunately and also prolific. A recent UK survey of POTS sufferers discovered that patients “… waited a mean of almost four years from presentation to obtain their diagnosis”, and that in the interim “psychiatric mislabelling was common”. These findings resonated strongly with my experience and I find it terrifying that invisible symptoms not being taken seriously is so widely occurring, given the effects of incorrect diagnosis are so considerable. Incorrect diagnosis leads to patients being unable to access the treatment and management education that they need, which undoubtedly has profoundly negative effects on a patient’s management and recovery. This has been specific to my illness and my experience, but the principle can apply to a huge range of chronic illnesses; Crohn’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Chronic Fatigue/ME just to name a few. There are a huge range of illnesses out there that affect people in different ways, through various levels of disability, different symptoms and differing levels of visibility. All chronic illnesses have their own particularly nasty negatives, and this shouldn’t lead to a competition of “who is the sickest”. For those of us who are already struggling with our health, being disregarded or judged because we aren’t displaying physical signs of disability is a burden we do not deserve to bear. Ultimately, more thought needs to be given to invisible disabilities by the passer by, the medics, and the general population. Perhaps a little education about the severity and scope of chronic illnesses, combined with a willingness to listen to, and accept with empathy, the experiences of the chronically ill, will lead to a sense of awareness that will support those with invisible illnesses in our daily lives, and perhaps for a moment, make us feel like a million dollars.

Features

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

If You’re a Resident of The Following Colleges You May Want to Go Home Toad Hall Fenner Hall Burton & Garran Hall Ursula Hall (including Laurus Wing) Bruce Hall (including Packard Wing) 2016 Residential Handbook Psychological distress If you experience psychological distress, or if you feel another resident is showing signs of psychological distress, we ask that you let a member of staff know. A designated staff member will attempt to ensure that appropriate support is made available. This may include consultation with and/or referral to health or counselling services including ACT Mental Health, University Counselling Centre, ANU Health Service or another health service provider. A ‘Safety Plan’ may also be developed in collaboration with the resident affected. Long-term or serious illness/disability If you develop a long-term or serious illness or disability while in residence which imposes a significant burden upon the Hall, and it is unreasonable for the Hall to continue to make further adjustments for this illness or disability, the Hall reserves the right to terminate your Occupancy Agreement. How many of you Woroni readers can tell the difference between someone having a psychotic episode and someone being in a dissociative state? Reading this you may ask yourself why you should have to know. Sadly, it is because while in 2015, the former could get you terminated from an ANU hall and the latter had limited repercussions, the ANU administration’s new 2016 policy allows them to effectively wash their hands of any student with prolonged mental health conditions. It is a policy vaguer and thus more terrifying for those of you who still reside in college. If you reside in Toad, Fenner, Burton & Garran, Ursula or Bruce Halls your place as a student is precarious. I believe that in response to the lack of accommodation on campus that administration has purposefully endorsed views and a policy that makes it okay to discriminate against mentally ill university students, with procedures that can ultimately hurt those who could be considered vulnerable. What has triggered my investigation into this policy is instead from the recent death of one of my friends. I feel deeply and terribly for this student’s family and other friends. While the situation is genuinely horrendous it has led me to consider how policy can largely affect how one copes with

mental illness, and how policies such as the new ones, I have discovered at the residential colleges, that have been put in place will only contribute to the psychological distress of others. Students tell the administration about their friends out of concern, but how can an administrative judge this to be a fair representation? One problem, for example, derives from the fact that I suspect the majority of people cannot tell the difference between psychosis and disassociation – and this is before noting that aspects such as suicidal ideation are common amongst those who aren’t considered mentally ill. Ultimately, this policy ensures that students will keep quiet about their problems and issues, and misinformation can be easily disseminated by those who care about the student in distress the most, their friends. A lot of these policies take agency away from the student in question. Whilst ANU Counselling seems like a good idea, the service is not equipped for serious matters such as these. Counsellors can be assigned to you, so you may get one that only works on Fridays for example; I have found that if you have a crises any other day the service actively limits your ability to see someone. Rather they prefer you to be attended by one counsellor, this makes sense on the basis that one person should be

In deciding whether to terminate your Occupancy Agreement, the Head of Residence will: • Advise you of the impact of your illness on the operation of the Hall and on other residents; and • Hold discussions with other relevant areas of the University, including but not limited to the Registrar (Student Life), Registrar (Student Administration), the Dean of Students, the Access and Inclusion Office, University Counselling Centre, University Health Service, and/or staff in your academic area to examine alternative methods and reasonable adjustments that will enable the Hall to assist in the management of your illness/disability. Only if the above discussions/resultant actions do not produce a reasonable and appropriate management plan will the Head of Residence exercise their discretion to terminate your Occupancy Agreement. in charge of your care. Being sent to the Counselling Service often lends this idea that mentally ill people cannot be in charge of their own care. I think in conjunction with this service colleges should be provided with lists of mental health specialists who bulk-bill, and other groups in the ACT people can attend beyond using emergency services such as the Crisis Assessment and Treatment Team. Finally through some vague measurement that is yet to be revealed in this handbook if your disability possesses a ‘significant burden’ – of which the parameters have yet to be explained – on the hall they have the right to terminate your occupancy agreement. If your psychological distress exists for an extended period of time, you may be subjected to this termination. The first step of the termination is to alert how your illness impacts the other residents and the operation of the hall. This seems to be a little too late to alert someone about the impact of their illness on others, and honestly, it will end terribly, with students becoming resentful of one another, and being unable to communicate. If another student informs the administration that your illness is impacting them out of concern for them and yourself, the administration does not have to relay this information to you until it is too late. Secondly, the Hall discussing your situation with others

makes me wonder if you would be allowed to participate in any of these discussions. A whole group of people, some of which you have never met, will get to decide whether the Hall can accommodate you. I can see many problematic things occurring. How much weight would a medical expert you are seeing hold over the Dean of Students for example? What evidence should you need to submit? Why is agency taken away from the student? Another thing I could see being a problem would be if you had a highly stigmatising condition, a condition that when mentioned makes everyone think of Glenn Close’s character in Fatal Attraction (for those who do not know, the female stalker who murders a rabbit, kidnaps a child and almost kills Michael Douglas’ character) because it is the only example of your condition the media provides. Revealing such information to that many people, in a situation beyond your control, would be extremely terrifying. Ultimately, if the ANU colleges do not review these policies I seriously question the safety of hundreds of residents on campus this year.

Anonymous

Features

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Me and BPD Shae Maree Nicholson I have Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD); it’s not my only diagnosis, but I’ve come to associate with it the most. My diagnosis with BPD came half way through my first semester at ANU. I’d been suffering with my symptoms and didn’t know what to do - some days I’d be consumed by my paranoia, or my anger. I was often not in a good state. When I was diagnosed I wasn’t told by my Psychiatrist what it even meant, and when I brought my diagnosis to my Psychologist I was told that I didn’t seem like someone with Borderline not that I had been given a reference point. I had to do my own research, and research was hard to find. Any articles I could find were about how to avoid girls like me, some people even labelled those with BPD as ‘demon spawn’. I came to terms with my diagnosis after eventually reading about what it’s actually like to live with BPD. What I learnt from the doctors I spoke to was that BPD was a dirty diagnosis, and no doctor wanted to ‘label’ their patient with it. I don’t see it as that, though I can’t say I never think of it that way. My diagnosis makes things very hard for me. I struggle with day to day things, from doing my own washing to feeding myself. I’m not always this bad, but I can be. Sometimes I don’t sleep because I’m so consumed with stress and depression over things that may not even happen. When I become stressed I often begin to hear

things; this scared me a lot the first time, and when it gets really bad I’m terrified. My hallucinations cause migraines and my migraines prevent me from studying…which stresses me out and so on and so forth. I try to keep my stress levels low, but BPD doesn’t necessarily allow me to do that. Making friends is really hard for me as I often tell too many personal details too fast. Sometimes I worry that I look like I’m attention seeking I’m not, I just get so stressed in social interactions that I can’t stop myself from bringing up whatever upsetting thing that I think of. I come away from those interactions feeling awful and guilty, then comes the inevitable two page apology note that I send the person, and if I haven’t scared them off by then, I’m lucky. I have been lucky in that some people look past my first impression, but I know that I have scared people off too. I constantly feel dependent and useless, which means I over analyse everything and often come to the assumption that someone hates me just because they ‘saw’ my message on Facebook and haven’t responded. I went through my first year of ANU not really having any friends; there were people I knew, half-started friendships, and people I was friendly towards, but not many friends. ANU became a means to an end for me and I was okay with that, but it would be better if BPD didn’t interrupt me so often though. Week 10 of ANU this year is Spoon Week, which it centres around

the concept of Spoon Theory, essentially a way to explain that those with a disability have a reduced amount of energy or spoons to spend in their day. I am so grateful that Spoon Theory exists; it’s such a simple way to explain to others that I sometimes don’t have enough energy to get through my day, and that I have to plan out ways to get things done. I’m not great at the planning side of things, but sometimes it’s easier to describe it this way. Of course it means I have to explain that I have a disability, which I wish I could say is easy. It’s not. Sometimes people just understand and move on, other times there are the questions that I’m not okay answering because, sometimes I don’t want to explain why I have a mental illness. Then there is the stigma. I considered myself lucky for a long time that I scarcely encountered stigma, but the truth is that I do. I went to the doctor the other day because of a stomach bug, that’s it. Upon viewing my medical history my doctor asked, “What is Borderline Personality Disorder, I’ve never heard of that one before?” What is it? It’s not what most people think of, it’s not the ‘crazy’ ex-girlfriend of your brothers misogynistic best friend, it’s not a joke you can drop when someone is behaving in a way you don’t expect, it’s not split personality disorder - it is a disability and it affects around 2% of the population at any given time.

Me included. School is hard for me: I am often very low on spoons and struggle through the week to reach the weekend that I tell myself will be easier. Sometimes I’m so low on spoons that I don’t shower for days, I don’t eat properly, and I don’t finish my assignments on time. I’m often ashamed of how I feel because BPD makes me feel things that I don’t know how to cope with. BPD sometimes feels like a death sentence but I’m comforted by the fact that I can do things every day to get through it. I save spoons by going to bed early some days so that I can spend them the next day. I take medication, I seek help when I need it, I hug my cat, and I try to stay healthy. But I also have to make sure I don’t allow myself to think that I’m ‘normal’ in the sense that I can take on whatever I want. For me, my ambition is only enhanced by the anxiety that I’m not trying hard enough. So I’ve reasoned to keep myself in check. To work on building my support network backup, to get grades that I’m proud of even if they’re not perfect. I have to allow myself to be low on spoons so I’m not in debt. I have to embrace my disability and the wonderful community that comes with that. And most importantly I have to be okay with not being okay sometimes.

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail Tom Kesina Spoon Week is about promoting understanding of the experiences of people with disabilities, and starting conversations with the wider community about how society perceives and responds to disability. During this Spoon Week, we’re being asked to listen, learn, and take action. Take action on what? This may not be obvious to the average student, but there are a number of obstacles for students with disabilities at the ANU. Even when fantastic services such as Access & Inclusion, the Counselling Centre, or Batyr do their jobs to the best of their ability, they may be hampered by a lack of coherent policy or poor resourcing from the university. There are a number of unique problems that are specific to these issues, but what is common is a lack of planning on the part of the university.

It’s a refrain that your lecturer or tutor has probably said before: ‘If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.’ I can’t claim to be a particularly excellent planner, nor would most students, but I think even the most procrastinatory of us would recognise that planning is a good thing to do. It might shock you then that for the last four years, the ANU has failed to create a Disability Action Plan (DAP). A Disability Action Plan is a document written up by an institution (like ANU) that outlines how it plans to eliminate discrimination against people with disability. It’s a physical commitment to equality, and a practical measure that outlines what improvements can be made, timelines for those improvements, as well as who’s responsible. Make no mistake: when students are

put through the wringer to get reasonable adjustments, or they’re unable to see a counsellor in a timely manner, it has a real effect on their education that’s discriminatory. Whilst parts of the university are trying their best to make the university experience more accessible, it doesn’t make up for the fact that there’s very little in the way of long term planning and coordination across the university. Out of all the Group of Eight universities - that is, Australia’s top research universities - ANU is the only one that does not have a DAP. This is not because other universities are better than we are, or because they possess resources we do not have. Prior to the last DAP’s expiry, ANU wrote and actioned four consecutive DAPs. We are just as capable of writing one,

what is lacking is the will to do so. Students with disability deserve a university that takes action on discrimination, not one that just talks about equity and accessibility. On Monday, May 2 we’re launching our petition to ask to the university to take action, and create a Disability Action Plan. If you believe that university should be an accessible experience for everyone, please sign it and help us spread the world. Tom Kesina is the ANUSA Disabilities Officer, and helps run the ANU Disabilities Student Association. For more information, visit anudsa.com/spoon-week

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

Features

A dog with a yellow vest helps keep the blues away Daryl Wesley

It’s still a challenge to tell friends, family, and others that you may have a mental health issue, despite all the prominent and positive campaigns to raise awareness. I’ve personally found that having a dog with you every day that has a bright yellow jacket with the words “Service Dog” in bold print tends to telegraph this to the whole world. Am I bothered about this? No I am not.

the thought insurmountable. I was unable to walk properly and suffered from the loss of the full use of my left shoulder while being in high levels of distressing chronic pain. This all combined to create a perfect storm of debilitating depression, struggles with financial difficulties, thoughts of how I could possibly finish my degree, and the question of if I could ever be an archaeologist again.

This story starts in July 2012 when, while undertaking archaeological fieldwork for my PhD in Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, I fell about 8-10 metres down a sandstone cliff. After that I endured long periods of time in hospital, numerous surgeries, and was confined to an electric wheelchair for 6 months. I spent the majority of that year isolated, at home, with the support of some good friends and my wife, but with infrequent contact with the outside world.

At that time I attended some workshops on how to deal with chronic pain and one of the methods discussed was distraction, and it was here that I learnt that psychiatric assistance service dogs fulfil this role, amongst others, for their handlers. This was the moment that the penny dropped and I thought I should train Elvi to be a service dog. The Division of Student Life Access and Inclusion and my School helped with the requirements to allow Elvi onto campus, and she once she was registered with MindDog, her training and work began. It was to become an extremely important partnership that helped with my recovery and to maintain my ability to weather the chronic pain during long days at university.

Then there was the arrival of a Swedish Vallhund puppy named Elvi in the weeks after my accident. Elvi spent her first year as my close companion during those long months of recovery. When it was time to try to return to complete my PhD, I found

I’ve found that there is growing literature demonstrating the positive impacts of psychiatric service dogs; from war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, to others that live with a myriad of mental health disorders. Elvi is a key part of my strategy to maintain the wellbeing of my mental and physical health, along with the many other medical and allied health support mechanisms that I’ve needed to develop over the past 3 years. Taking on a psychiatric service dog requires commitment and perseverance and it can be challenging. They love you unconditionally, and that needs to be returned with the same passion, a lot of training, and care. I for one can say that the benefit is enormous. She graduated with me in 2015, stole the show on stage, and has become a regular and a favourite at the Coombs Building where she still comes to work with me, in the office, the lab, and even when I tutored and lectured as my former students will know.

For further information about MindDog please visit: http://minddog.org.au/ Daryl Wesley is a lecturer at the ANU.

Photo Credit: Furry Beast

Features

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Four New Perspectives SOPHIE KOOROS 8 weeks ago I fractured my pelvis. I was in hospital for 3 weeks. I was desperate to get back to my normal uni life on campus, which I was loving, as quickly as I could once after being discharged. I soon discovered, when I got back after this period off, it was not as easy as I had hoped and the simplest of tasks were exhausting. By the time I got to lectures I would be far too tired to concentrate. I also needed to ask for lifts to class from friends which was difficult for me as someone who does not like to ask for anything. The staff at college have also helped me get about. I am also about to get a mobility scooter which will be really helpful. Living in a catered college on campus means that for every meal I need a friend to help to carry my plate and food, this makes me feel like a burden. I must add that as sad as I am sounding now, I cannot fathom what a permanent disability is like at uni, this by no means compares, but does give me some insight into the challenges of having a disability. I am on crutches, so if I come across some stairs that seem too long to navigate around, I will just take them. For someone in a wheelchair, this would be impossible, and I can imagine a huge challenge. Whilst ANU does aim to cater for people with disabilities, challenges still exist, and ANU is a huge campus. Often lifts are not located close to my classes, I cannot even get some lifts to move, and the extra time needed to get to class is immense. Socialising is much more difficult now and the experience has been isolating at times as I feel as though I am missing out on key events at uand in college. Although I talk to people everyday at meals, it is not always in the sense of catching up with friends, more just asking for help. This semester has been a completely different experience for me and not as enjoyable socially. My friends are being fantastic and so helpful but it is hard not being able to join in the fun. The longer I find myself out of action, the more I find I am hiding out in my room. Essentially, I now comprehend and regard physical disabilities completely differently. Before this experience I never really acknowledged the challenges faced by those living with a disability because I wasn’t exposed to them that often. Looking at an-

other 11 weeks on crutches is daunting enough in my eyes, and thinking about a lifetime with a disability is unimaginable. The adjustments to ‘normal life’ are huge. I have taken so much for granted and I am grateful that I will be able to resume my normal daily life soon. My temporary disability has had a huge impact on my life and I will most certainly be more mindful of those with permanent disabilities in the future.

CASLEY ROWAN When I heard about the concept of “Spoons” and read up on the reasoning behind it, it hit me hard. Every morning when I wake up, I have an almost infinite amount of spoons, of possibilities, of energy and potential – the day could take me anywhere. To feel in control of that is liberating and exciting, but I know the frustration, exhaustion and disempowerment one can feel when that control is taken away – when the spoons start to run low. My knees started dislocating when I was 11 years old, and we aren’t talking about a little slip or a pop but a full dislocation that leaves my kneecap literally hanging out of my leg, and which requires serious force to get it “back in”. It is the most excruciating pain I have ever experienced in my life, and I dread it everyday. The thing about my injury is that it can happen at any time, anywhere, after however long that it has been since the last one– from the top of the monkey bars, to opening a door, to doing a cartwheel, to Burgmann’s very own Toga Party. After over 25 dislocations, 14 ambulances and countless “slip outs”, my injury has become a part of my life that I have learnt to deal with, but only because it doesn’t happen everyday, and when it does, it now takes me a week, maximum, to recover. So, while I don’t have a disability, I have felt, on a temporary yet ongoing basis, what it is like to count a finite amount of spoons. It’s the little things; the fact that after a dislocation my toes go frustratingly numb, or that my leg brace draws attention and begs the question “what happened to you?” to which I have to reply, “oh my knee dislocated – its all good”, when in fact I am struggling to stand up. My friends, with their beautiful and often unlimited spoons struggle to understand the pain I feel - not only the physical ache that runs from my lower back to my toe after a dislocation, but the pain of not being able to join that game of tiggy, or tennis, or netball, of dancing and run-

ning and moving without the image of myself buckling in my mind each time that my foot hits the ground. After a dislocation, it irritates me that my friends have to walk slower as I battle to walk with one leg straight, or that I have to ask them to carry my bags or books – and of course I know they are so happy to help, as I would be, and I am so grateful for that, but the feeling of disempowerment itches away and by the end of the day I lay down exhausted at trying to keep up. I am lucky that ANU has been able to deal with my temperamental injury in an extremely helpful way – from getting me a room that has more space so I that I don’t need to be anxious about hitting my head if I go down, to putting in place a special arrangement strategy, as my knee could go literally while walking into an exam. And, I am also lucky to have some control left over the way I live my life and deal with this problem – I haven’t called the ambulance in years because I learnt to reduce it myself, and I can work on my muscle control everyday and try to crack a new time record for gaps between dislocations – my current best is 8 months. My Mum always used to tell me that I should count my lucky stars to realise how fortunate I am – but I think, from now on, I’ll count my lucky spoons.

BENJAMIN GEORGE ROBERTS Early last year I managed to fracture my collarbone twice in the space of 3 months, and had the joy of losing the use of my dominant arm for a similar period as well. While I’m probably a Darwin Award nominee for how not to recover from an injury, my impatience and frustration with what, in the scheme of things, was a fairly limited injury was quite surprising. The pitch for this piece was to reflect on what it was like to essentially have a temporary disability, and while being stuck with your arm in a sling for a few months is by no means a fair comparison, it did start me reflecting on the issues I encountered, and what it might be like to live with this and more on a daily basis. For what was just a temporary loss of the use of my arm, the effect on my day-to-day movements was pronounced. Getting in and out of bed, taking a shower and, god forbid, trying to put clothes on were actions that had become difficult and a bit painful, but overwhelmingly I found them significantly more exhausting

than what I’d become accustom to. The privilege of being able to do little things, like roll on my side in bed when I was uncomfortable, was lost on me, and instead a slow frustration began to accumulate while I counted down the days until I recovered. The biggest impact for me was being unable to drive or ride, and feeling as if I was somehow less independent being unable to travel freely. Five minutes to the coffee shop become thirty, fifteen minutes to university became forty, and moving between classes on campus without aggravating my injury was an added concern. Something I hadn’t appreciated previously was just how spread out our courses can be across the campus, and how this might impact someone with even minor mobility issues. Ultimately, it was my frustration in this respect that caused me to declare myself “recovered” enough to go and injure myself the second time, and I’d only had to deal with this for weeks, not months and years! Fortunately, the injury did not particularly impact me academically. I found my college supportive of rescheduling a written exam and fortunately, being a computer science student, the remainder of my coursework could be completed with slow, left-handed typing. From my experience, and especially in comparison to some other universities, our courses seem heavily reliant on regular physical attendance of lectures and tutorials. While we do have systems like Echo360 and Wattle, and thankfully I was still able to attend my classes, I suspect students with challenges to regularly attending the campus would receive the same standard of teaching as those of us without such challenges. If my limited experiences of exhaustion, impatience and loss of independence are even slightly representative of the challenges faced daily by those with disabilities on our campus, then I genuinely sympathise with them and applaud their resilience. While I think our university is generally supportive of these circumstances there are definitely areas for improvement, and there is always more we can be doing to remove barriers to learning and to provide a provide an equal opportunity to all students regardless of their personal circumstances. KAIWIN ZHOU On the 17th of March, I dislocated my right thumb playing touch football. The reason why I dislocated it is because am very right hand dominant. I was diving to my left in an attempt to touch someone but reach-

Features

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ing out with my right hand, meaning my thumb was facing down towards the ground. When I landed, my finger bent backwards and popped out of place. Straight away I knew that it had come out of place. You get so used seeing “normal-looking” hands everyday, that when you dislocate your finger, there is a weird feeling that the hand is not actually yours. In the end, it took 7 long hours, 4 attempts at local anesthetic, and 4 attempts with 2 doctors yanking on my arm and thumb, before my thumb was finally put back into place. I left the hospital with a cast that covered my hand and forearm, still yet to learn that I had partially torn my ligament. It became apparent very quickly that everything would be harder, and require more thought. Even mundane stuff like opening doors, brushing teeth, putting on seat belts, packing bags, rearranging my room and putting on a backpack just felt more tiresome. The most obvious hindrance for me though, was eating. Eating with only the left hand is surprisingly difficult, with handheld items such as burgers being the worst. Perhaps I’m just naturally uncoordinated, but when I tried to eat a burger left handed, it was impossible to stop it from falling apart. Sporks, though, are an absolute godsend. Cooking food was

anusa.com.au

very difficult as well. Using a knife to cut things up was asking for trouble. Stirring things with my left was very inefficient. Even opening two-minute noodle packets and canned food required assistance - for some reason, however, opening twist-top beers was surprisingly easy. In the first three weeks after injury, my cast was changed three times. It was not waterproof or removable, so with the aid of a plastic bag, my time in the shower increased dramatically, and decreased greatly in effectiveness. I do a double degree of Law and Visual Art, so the visual art component of my degree became quite difficult. I did a four-hour life drawing class with my left hand – the concentration required wore me out completely. I was also unable to do the mid-semester FAL exam. I had intended to get a medical note as supporting documentation two days before the exam, as I had a check up appointment at Canberra Hospital, but due to them running 2 hours late and me having a commitment to get to, I forgot to ask. I now not only face 10 more days in a cast, but an inability to submit an application to defer my exam within the three-day deadline. With ANU health being closed on weekends, and the pharmacy refusing to back date

despite me supplying all of my previous documents, I am still trying to sort this out. Then there is the problem with work. I needed money - not least to cover the costs of going back and forth from Canberra Hospital – and with my hand in a cast it was unlikely anyone would want to hire me. Four weeks after injury though, I got a removable cast, so I didn’t wear it to the interview and managed to get through three trial shifts as a food runner. Holding heavy dishes, bowls and cups was particularly hard, and placing things on the table softly was rather difficult - by the end of every shift my thumb would be incredibly sore.

has been rather costly getting to and from appointments. But mostly, it’s all the extra effort you have to put in to get through your day and having to concentrate hard to get the simplest things done. And after all that, no, I didn’t get the guy when I dived, and no, we didn’t win the game..

On the positive side, my cast was a good conversation starter. People at the shops asked me quite often what had happened. Most were surprised that I had to wear such a large cast for a dislocated thumb. There was a moment when a waiter at a Chinese restaurant gave me a spoon and fork instead of chopsticks before I had to ask that was a particularly nice gesture. Overall, that dive at touch definitely wasn’t worth it. The amount of time I’ve spent waiting to be seen at hospital has been obscene and it

Paws up

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You can enrol at aec.gov.au or pick up an enrolment form from the ANUSA Ofﬁce or Brian Kenyon Student Space in Union Court.

Get Enrolled, Get Informed, Get voting!

Features

Issue 6, Vol. 70

All Anonymous Trigger Warnings: Suicide, Sexual Assualt

Dear ANU, If I wasn’t kicked out of one of your residential colleges onto the streets in the middle of the year for being psychiatrically unwell after being sexually assaulted on campus, I would’ve felt a bit loved and perhaps slightly cared for. I went to the psychiatric ward after my suicide attempt, confused and terrified. Nobody called, texted, or emailed me while I was practically locked away against my will. I attempted suicide again a few weeks later, because I felt lonely in a world where nobody seemed to care. When I came back from the hospital this time, my room was locked, and my access card was deactivated. Upon further investigation, it turned out my contract had been terminated because I was causing “unnecessary stress to other residents” – this was in despite of the fact that I barely left my room in the few weeks prior. I had to live in my car for a while after this, and I haven’t heard from anyone from the college I used to live in since then. There was no “How have you been?” or “Where are you living?”. There was no communication. It was as if I was some sort of infectious disease that would spread upon contact. The rumours soon started to circulate around the residence, and by now, almost every single person knows that I tried to take my life and has thus decided not to talk to me any more. But thanks ANU, you know, genuinely. I have now got a beautiful puppy, who will become a psychiatric service dog one day. I went through some aggressive operations to alleviate some of my life threatening symptoms. None of this probably would’ve occurred if I wasn’t kicked out, but then perhaps none of it would be much of an issue if I wasn’t either. An unloved resident.

Dear ANU,

***

A few weeks ago I told my lecturer that I had tonsillitis and had been living in my car for a number of weeks, and that these were two substantial barriers preventing me from getting my essay in on time. The lecturer that you have employed responded by looking awkward, asking for a medical certificate, and walking away as quickly as possible. So, my dearest university, perhaps you could train your staff to refer students to the appropriate support services, and teach them how to respond to students who disclose necessary, but potentially uncomfortable information. Sure, I may have made the lecturer feel awkward in that moment, but it pales in comparison to living in one’s car. Yours sincerely, The arts student who hoped for more.

Dear ANU,

with mental health problems.

How do you expect your students to get timely documentation of mental health problems for extensions and special consideration, when your wait times between appointments are six weeks during term time? Most counsellors have a specific day that they do drop in appointments, so if you need documentation on any other day and you see someone else, not only does this mean you forfeit your next appointment (if it’s in the next two weeks) but you therefore cannot get documentation specific to your issues, just a letter of attendance. So much for you supporting students. And this is without even mentioning how hard it is to receive adequate treatment for an ongoing issue with six week breaks in between sessions. But you “take disability and mental health really seriously.”

Disappointed Science Student.

Sincerely, Someone who is sick of being unsupported when actively seeking help.

***

Dear Stalkerspace,

Dear ANU,

Stop using the term ‘triggered’ as a joke.

I want to thank you for giving me an Education Access Plan. For the most part it has helped immensely and allowed me to engage with my coursework while living with crippling anxiety and depression. What wasn’t so great was when I was asked to walk to the front of the lecture hall, in front of my cohort of 200 students, in order to be taken to a separate room for an examination under modified conditions. As it turns out, getting stared down and whispered about before an exam isn’t conducive with good anxiety management. Please teach your staff a little more tact and understanding when it comes to dealing

I am survivor of multiple incidents of trauma. Consequently I have PTSD. I battle every day to come to university. Being triggered is not a joke. It happens to me daily, most commonly by being surprised. Your throw away lines are hurtful and deny the power of my experiences. Please, stop. Sincerely, fed up Law student.

***

*** Dear ANU, Living with a mental illness and studying is hard enough - is it super necessary to make it harder? Nothing makes me more anxious than a lecturer insisting that everything in the lectures is assessable and then not finishing their lecture before the Echo recording cuts them off. This isn’t an issue for students who are able to make it to the lecture, but I can’t. I panic every time this happens because what if the content of the last two minutes you failed to record is on the exam? The solution from the lecturers: attend the lectures. Yeah, because that helps me. Why can’t the lecture recording be pre-programmed to go for 5 minutes after the lecture is supposed to end, so the lecturer can aim to finish on time and I get to go a week without a panic attack? Sincerely, Eternally anxious listener.

*** Dear ANU, Your policy of overselling parking spaces means I often have to make a choice between risking a parking fine, and walking so far as to use all the energy I have for the day. No love, Me.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ARTS & REVIEWS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

‘THOROUGHLY MODERN’ AT CCAS: AN EXPLORATION OF POST-WAR AUSTRALIAN THEMES Sheridan Burnett

The status of the aspirational dreams sold to middle-class Australians after the Second World War are the subject of a new exhibition, Thoroughly Modern, at CCAS’s Gorman Arts Centre. The promise that if one worked hard in a good job they could live the ‘great Australian dream’ of owning a house on a quarter acre block is a proposition that continues to permeate our consciousness. This remains so even as we move into latestage capitalism where homeownership is becoming increasingly out of reach for many Australians. Artists have been exploring the demise of this dream since at least the 1970s, most notably Howard Arkley (1951-1999) who scrutinised suburban iconography with equal measures of criticism and romanticism. Thoroughly Modern brings together a new generation of artists, practicing after Arkley, who revisit the Australia’s post-war aspirations about work, family and home in the context of the built environment. The artists in the exhibition specifically utilise a modernist aesthetic, being one that was most fervent during the post-war period. The works of Melbourne based artist Mathew de Moiser appear at first to be a literal presentation of recognisable modernists architecture. On closer consideration there is an irony in his presentation, which can be seen in his use of long stitch embroidery used to meticulously represent an iconic home design by Harry Seidler. The use of a popular form of craft making, in particular one that was popular during the post-war period, provides a re-imagining of modernist design and the dreams and aspirations that accompanied it.

Many of the works in Thoroughly Modern hint at the loneliness and isolation that came with modern working life, in particular in urban env i ron ment s. During the p o st-

war period middle class workers increasingly spent their days in corporate offices and modernist design sought to make these spaces functional. However, the work of Stephanie Wilson shows that these places, whilst utilitarian, are at the same time somewhat lonely. Her depiction of office interiors, such as ‘Cubicle’, are spare and practical, with the only living presence being pot plants. ANU School of Art graduate and Canberra based artist, Alex Lewis’ work ‘Cross’ provides an intimate exploration of the built environment,

with a familiar motif which has been isolated from its actual context.

or whether they continue to have some grip, however small.

Thoroughly Modern features an array of works and media f o -

‘Thoroughly Modern’ is on at CCAS Gorman Arts Centre from 1 April - 7 May 2016, free entry, curated by David Broker, featuring the work of ANU SoA graduate artists Janet Angus, Alex Lewis and Danny Wild, and artists Grant Hill, Matthew de Moiser and Stephanie Wilson.

rums, i ncludi ng video. An interesting accompaniment is the inclusion of the visual essay ‘Living the Dream’, where archival footage reveals itself as propaganda for the ideal of the nuclear suburban family and also grounds the other works through historical context. Thoroughly Modern provides an opportunity to reflect on the influence of post-war aspirational dreams of family, work, home and the built environment. It also asks the question about whether and how far we have moved past these aspirations

This Page: Matthew de Moiser Rose Seidler House (2010) long stitch embroidery, 47 x 47 cm www.matdemoiser.com Next Page Top: Alex Lewis Cross (2015) digital print, 24 x 42 cm www.alexlewis.com.au Next Page Bottom:

Stephanie Wilson Cubicle (2013) Oil on linen, 107 x 122 cm www.stephaniewilson. com.au

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ARTS & REVIEWS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

BIG NIGHT OUT Photography by Tim Allen, Em Roberts, Naomi Brown & Anastasia Stuart

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ARTS & REVIEWS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

YOU ARE HERE: (AN ATTEMPT TO PERFORM) KILL CLIMATE DENIERS Eliza McConville As I walked out of (An Attempt to Perform) Kill Climate Deniers, I pondered how on earth I would describe the amalgamation of dance music and story which I had just experienced. My first attempt came out faulty: ‘It was like… a story mixed with music, a dramatic telling of the play, and it ended with everyone dancing to Unbelievable. Needless to say, my audience was left more bewildered than if I hadn’t spoken in the first place.

So here is my second attempt. (An Attempt to Perform) Kill Climate Deniers was a behind-the-scenes performance of the play Kill Climate Deniers (written by David Finnigan) and the identically-titled album by Reuben Ingall. The piece was a mash-up of background information to the creation and inspiration of the play, mixed with a dramatic retelling of the script, and a liberal amount of dance music. The purpose of the performance was to launch the e-book of

the script, and the first single of the album, however it also examined the initial motivation behind the creation of the play, and the later controversies which surrounded its production. Finnigan cleverly blended the mediums of his performance to provide an interesting taste of the play to come. Whilst the single-man performance could have very easily maintained the same tone throughout, the switches between music, play, video, speech,

and at one point a projector, kept the pace going and gave the audience a broad understanding of what the production was seeking to achieve. The scientific background given by Finnigan blended with the script, and gave insight into the motivation behind the themes of the play. Overall, the effect was entertaining, dramatic and thought-provoking, and left me with a desire to see the completed product.

GROOVI: A REVIEW ;) Rory Caddis So on Sunday this reporter hit the hills of UC (gross) and grooved my booty off. My day proceeded like many other ANU students:

enough to catch a listen of Gordi, who legit sounded so 10/10. Happy to say no flower crowns were spotted this year - proud of you Canberra.

9am – 11 am: finding an outfit which could conceal a good two liters of Vody and still look hot af. After; multiple drinks were consumed and our gang staggered into civic with only one stop outside the bio lecture theatre for a sneaky tack vom. The bus to belco saw a couple of voms which weren’t so tactical much to the disgust of our fellow commuters #thoughtleaders. Our tipsy little troupe made it too the hallowed hills just soon

12pm - 4pm: Obviously our local babe SAFIA brought the goods and gave Canberra some much needed home-town loving. But we’re all really tired at this point and in need of vitamins and minerals. This came in the form of 12 dollar wraps which were chosen purely on the tiny size of the line (they were really bad thinking back on it now). 5pm- 7pm – After many hazy wan-

derings which included a lost jumper, stolen sunnies and losing everyone and finding them again in an hour: we found ourselves in front of the Rubens. The crowned highlight was Rubens, seeing the front man Sam Margin riding over our heads like Christ ascending into heaven; then proceeding to finish the act with a sneaky champagne spray, this reporter can confirm however, it tasted cheap af so no champers wastage was made. One of the not so heavenly acts of the day, however was Alison Wonderland, who did not provide any decent banter and assumed her audiences would be enthralled by

the deep meanings behind her rando songs (ily her tho). To wrap up: this was my 3rd Groovin’ and what I really love about it is that the twelvie culture is still going strong. And for me being a country kid, literally every second person I saw I knew (it’s like Coachella for them, it’s so sad). Hopefully this beautiful Canberra tradition will continue and many hazy happy memories will continue to be made. Ily so much Groovin’.

NUTS PRESENTS SPEAKING IN TONGUES: A REVIEW Rory Caddis Andrew Bovell’s Speaking in Tongues has been artfully rendered by director Matt Barton and producer; Carys Atkinson. This play explores human nature, relationships, the ability to love and be loved, as well as the sanctity of marriage and the consequences of its breach. In this story, Bovell paints an emotional landscape using four actors and nine characters. He explores the rights and wrongs of emotional conduct through various interconnected stories which create a polyphony of voices which only ask to be loved.

The first act provided the first of many heart stopping moments as Bovell explores deeper and deeper into the human condition. As an audience, one is pulled into a series of complex relationships which are illuminated masterfully by the cast whose dedication to the parts can be seen in the faithful rendition of Bovell’s characters. While I don’t want to give any of the plot away, the characters are all face the problem of love; they all need love and act in ways which lead to devastating consequences.

The true magnificence of this play was the stagecraft. Lighting in this production has allowed one to see into the worlds of reality and fantasy, into dreams, bedrooms and deathbeds. The structure of the play is difficult and the story seemingly choppy, however the direction of Matt Barton has led to a performance of perfect clarity and purpose. The use of space within the theatre is imaginative and makes the most of a space which may not be around for too much longer (#savethearts); again Barton’s direction has led to divisive use of space in

order to create an inner world where we are privy to see for only a short while. This play is one not too be missed, Bovell’s plays are enticing, exciting and forces one to obverse the ugly world around them more clearly. Everyone has their own worlds and Bovell continues to show that to us. Staring these babes: Georgia-Cate Westcott, Patrick Hassall, Holly Johnson, and Ben McCarthy.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ARTS & REVIEWS

An INTERVIEW WITH Natasha Rudra, Entertainment Editor for the canberra times Rebecca Bayliss

Natasha Rudra is the Lifestyle and Entertainment editor for The Canberra Times. Natasha chatted with ANU student Rebecca Bayliss about whether the capital can (finally) claim to have a bustling café and nightlife culture of its own.

RB: Canberra hasn’t always had the reputation of a lively café and bar culture, what changes have you noticed over the past few years? NR: Well, I came to Canberra about seven years ago and I remember when you could not get a meal after 8:30pm on a Friday or Saturday night, so things have definitely changed. I

think it’s for a couple of reasons. One, there’s been a bit of a renaissance in Canberra pride – people are proud to be from Canberra. Two, there’s been a lot of growth and stability in the public service, so you have still got a lot of people who have good salaries and good jobs, but are single and they’re looking for fun, and have a disposable income. The third thing that has had an impact is that you’ve really had a change in culture. I used to joke that Canberra people only wanted to go out between 6pm and 7pm on Friday and Saturday nights. And I feel like that’s changing. Now, there’s more of a culture of, ‘you know what, I’m going to go out on a Tuesday night, or I’m going to get a drink on a Wednesday night. Or I’m going to go out with my friends, or go to the movies on a Monday. So it’s definitely a combination of these things that have contributed to a more lively food culture in Canberra.

RB: What about the latest surge in expensive restaurant and cafes in Canberra. How can students enjoy that funky, eating-out scene on a student budget?

RB: Students are well aware of cafes near the city, particularly Braddon and New Acton. But there’s also a thriving restaurant culture in the Canberra suburbs as well, right?

RB: Students are well versed in that technique!

NR: Canberra suburbs are really interesting. For one, there are a lot of them! Often these suburbs throw up little gems of their own. Down where I live in Woden you’ve got a hub of cafes in Curtin, and in Lyons you have that cool little place Stand by Me. In Farrer you’ve got Fox and Bow. There’s even an Ethiopian restaurant in Pearce! So people have to go off the beaten path, and cross the lake every now and then! RB: I think a few ANU students who live on campus need to hear that… NR: I definitely urge students to cross the lake, you might find something a little different in the ‘burbs. Which is one of the joys of living in Canberra.

NR: I must say, I do sympathise with Canberra students, because this is a pubic service town. It is a town with a very large middle class. Even a graduate salary is three or four times what you would earn as a student. So, it is a challenge because a lot of the market is geared towards that public service crowd. I mean, you just need to go to Highball Express and get a cocktail, or other cafes where brunch may cost you $30 or $40. It’s definitely a little hard when you’re a student, but again, I would suggest either you do what I do – how do I phrase this politely? Have a drink or two before you go out…

NR: I guess things like the Hamlet (Lonsdale Street, Braddon), or the Mandalay bus (Braddon) are student staples. The Westside shipping container in Acton is great as well. There is something to be said in having a riotous time on $5 house wine, and three plates of dumplings at the CBD dumpling house before you head to Mooseheads. RB: It’s interesting to consider what audiences these cafes, restaurants and bars serve. As students, it doesn’t feel like the majority of them are targeted towards us, but we want to be part of it still. NR: Take heart from the fact that basically all the public servants who these cafes and bars are geared to, they are trying to recapture what you have currently. That loose, fancy, don’t-care attitude of being a student, young and beautiful, always having

a great time. So they are actually aspiring towards your kind of lifestyle, although sadly they do have much more money than you. I do apologise for that. RB: I suppose that’s something we are just going to have to accept. NR: We may not be there yet, but a lot of culture is often changed by students who make their own culture. RB: Do you think Canberra’s reputation is starting to change for the better? NR: I think it is starting to change. We still need to push back against the notion where people say ‘Canberra’ but mean ‘the government’. That change needs to come from Canberrans being proud of their city, and pushing back against this negative image, and sometimes not giving a shit about what people say about Canberra. If we continue to be ourselves, and be proud of what Canberra has to offer, that will change the city’s image. It’s definitely changed, but there’s a lot more to go, and it must come from within

INTERNATIONAL

Issue 6, Vol. 70

FACT FILE: IRAN Kamron Seyedi and Alan Haji Babaei

in, you know, feeding the people. But like many countries you have to take the good with the bad, I guess.

Growing up as an Iranian in Australia is a pretty unique experience. You eat rice all the time, get lectured on the many benefits of vitamin C, and even though you are a grown-ass man, you are still are referred to by your mum as the cringeworthy “mummy-joon”. I’ve visited Iran every two years, and still to this day whenever either of us tell our friends we’re about to go visit the homeland, we get asked, “But is it safe?” Well, it’s not only safe, in fact, it’s actually pretty damn beautiful. And with the travel warning for Iran recently being lowered, now is an opportune time to expound some of the many reasons why you should pay this country a visit. Ready? Here we go. The Islamic architecture is one of

the best in the world, with the walls and ceilings littered with mirrors and lights, making the interior looking like solid gold. I remember the inside having clashing scents, with an overwhelming aroma of rosewater mixed with the less pleasant smell of pungent feet. You can see droves of people all struggling to get as close to the burial site of Imam Reza as possible, believing that if they touch it, his blessings will pass onto them. It’s an amazing sight. I’m not very religious myself yet still feel moved spiritually whenever I visit. The bitter downside to this spectacle is that the Iranian government spends millions on this shrine, erecting dome after dome, minaret after minaret, when the money could be put to much better use by investing

The ruins of Persepolis, near Shiraz, are like nothing else. My favorite part is the tomb of Cyrus, one of Persia’s greatest kings. This tomb survived two conquests, with Alexander the Great leaving it untouched out of admiration for the man, and the Arab invaders being fooled by the locals into thinking it was in actual fact the tomb of King Solomon, thus leaving it alone. We, Persians, were thinkers, to say the least. To this day it resonates with me as a sign of Persia’s resilience over the centuries. Vibrant bazaars (markets) can be found everywhere from cities to small towns, flowing with Persian fruit and spice. Spices like saffron are so cheap! So you know I’m always packing these bad boys through customs, what with them being crazy expensive in Australia. In fact, not only do the bazaars dot the streets above; underground Bazaar of Tehran, a series of underground tunnels and caves. A place where your wallet may be lost or that special magic carpet can be found. The capital city Tehran has a strong clash between the traditional and contemporary, with large modern shopping malls and traditional bazaars. There are many cool museums there too, you can even visit and go inside the Niavaran Palace, one of

the palaces where the last Shah of Iran lived. If you get sick of all the hustle and bustle of the city, there are more serene sights to experience such as the mountain walk up ‘Darband’. You can enjoy the open nature of Iran and stop for tea and coffee at the countless Iranian cafes on the hike up with Iranian hipsters (yes, they exist). I guess it’s because Tehran has the more artsy-type people, and Darband feels remote enough from the government’s prying eyes to allow for a greater sense of freedom and self-expression. There are all types of tourism to experience in Iran, and I highly recommend everyone to experience the unique beauty that is modern day Persia. These are only some of the cities I have had the pleasure of visiting, some of them I had seen up to eight years ago. Yet, the memories and emotions I received from these places are still strong in my heart. One of the amazing things about Iran is that each part is so different and unique. So the fact that I have seen some parts of Iran has in no way prepared me for the rest to come. That’s why even though I only visited about a year ago, I’m already pumped for my next trip there. Who knows, maybe you can come with? But is it safe? Pfft.

INTERNATIONAL

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

A foreign utensil ANONYMOUS

Disability can be a positive thing. Or so we are taught in this country. We are taught to treat our disabled peers with the same respect and dignity as we would any of our other mates. We’re told that there is no difference between the mind of a physically disabled person and the average Joe.

A person I know has quite observably had learning difficulties since he was a child. He struggled at school and could never quite “understand” social norms and etiquettes. Rather than

clinically so. In the culture of these people, identifying disability is a representation on the parents and their inability to

Yet, we cannot deny that our disabled brothers and sisters face a certain stigma. The fight against this injustice is well and truly underway and the leaders of the movement have made significant ground. People like Stella Young and Nick Vujicic have paved the pathway for their community to break free from the bondages of society and live as freely as they so desire. The opportunities for the disabled part of our community are vast and growing constantly. With countless service providers on the scene and the rollout of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, there is no shortage of assistance available for our brothers and sisters to realise their potential and set and exceed their ambitions. While, the previous generation did not have this kind of support and arguably suffered greatly for it, we are equipping the current and future generations to grasp life by the fullest and to live a life as a liberated soul.

This same person, now in his mid-twenties, is suffering from diagnosed depression. Why? Because he has very little purpose in life. He was compared to his fully able peers in childhood and was therefore classified as having below-average intelligence. He cannot succeed in job applications because employers are to consider him as a fully functioning adult, although he is not necessarily so. It is not that he is incompetent, it is just that he needs guidance where necessary. It is absurd to think that all this has and is happening due to a refusal on his parents’ part to ignore his disability because of “what society would say”. It’s truly a shame that these parents denied their son help. It’s truly a shame that people still advocate cultures where humans are not treated equally. It’s truly a shame that every person does not necessarily have the same opportunity. At the end of the day, it’s all about education. If all these people could be shown the prosperity of a functioning disabled person’s life, they would be made to realise that it can all be worth it. If they are told that there are people out there who see their vocation as being the empowerment of disabled people, they may change their way of thinking. We can all change our way of thinking, because in the end, it is just that: a way of thinking.

But, unfortunately, for many disabled individuals elsewhere in the world, this is far from the case. A lot of communities who perpetuate older ways of thinking do not consider disability in the same equitable light as many of us do. As a bystander, this can be incredibly hurtful. So many people are being denied quality of life because of archaic social constructions that do not need to be practised in this modern age of equal opportunity.

other strengths. An omission to get the necessary help early on in the piece can lead to many issues later on.

seeking the necessary help to educate and assist their son, his parents chose to sweep their son’s condition under the carpet. His difficulties were by no means a novel concept for them. His uncle was autistic, although never

produce a “wholesome” child. What a load of absolute bogus?! A child’s disability, albeit dependent on genetics in some cases, can be guided by practitioners to become a simple weakness in the presence of many

Artwork by Eva Krepsova

SPORTS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

WINTER IS COMING: THE FEMALE QUOTA FOR IB AND THE GAME OF THRONES Jiaying Goh

“Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armour, and it can never be used to hurt you.” – Tyrion Lannister

Inward Bound is an ANU tradition where students are systematically blindfolded, shuttled on a bus, and at dark, dropped in undisclosed parts of the greater Canberra region. It is a sport which is ripe for epic fantasy adventure metaphoric pickings: four friends, in the woods, and a quest for the Sports Shield. The trial is to discern your location and navigate your way to a certain UTM coordinate, where fair maidens and college lads wait anxiously, preparing hot chocolates and barbeques for your arrival. I have heard many a spectator express the desire to one day participate – but I can assure you that there is nothing glamorous about holding your shit in for 35–120 kilometres. Why are there so few female IB runners? It was only in 1967 that Kathrine

Switzer became the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, hiding the fact that she was a woman by pinning her race bib to a baggy grey sweater. Midway, she was harassed and chased by race officials. They insisted that she cease running because she was a woman, and women were not allowed to formally compete, because they were too fragile for long distance running. We’ve come a long way since then, even in the microcosm of ANU. In 2015, six out of eight colleges (Griffin, Burgmann, Johns, B&G, Ursies and UniLodge) had women running in divisions 1–3 (distances between 70–120km). Division 1 was even won by B&G with Alexandra Grant! Less than a week ago, a motion was passed by the Interhall Sports Organisation to set a minimum quota for female participants: 5 out of 28 runners from each college in 2016 must be

female. Some colleges opposed this when it was first proposed in October last year, arguing that there wasn’t enough skill and interest from their female residents. If the quota were imposed last year, Burgmann and Johns would have failed to meet it, or would have had to change their team composition in order to comply. (NB: UniLodge would have met the quota proportionally, because they only entered 6 of 7 divisions.) I don’t blame them. I’m not surprised that women are reluctant to run IB. I still remember being a first year, and being the slowest in a male dominated pack, taking three little hops for their every stride, and thinking: “I must keep up even if it kills me, or I’ll never make the team.” Even now, my best friend and fellow IB coach can runs laps around me with relative

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ease (despite the fact that his primary form of training is standing at his homemade sit-stand desk). It’s hard not to feel like a dead weight, especially when somehow, years later, they’ve made you head coach of the squad, but you still managed to be outrun by your overenthusiastic first year recruits. I’ve learned to not take it too hard – a 153-centimetre-tall human can only go so fast. The strange thing is, I’ve begun to take pleasure in being beaten by the testosterone fuelled speed of my male counterparts. After two IBs, dozens of mock drops, hundreds of training runs, I’ve begun to understand my worth: come 6am, when everyone else’s spirits are drained, it’ll just be me, chirping away about my favourite jelly bean flavours, insisting that my teammates try the white one (it’s coconut!). “Valar morghulis.” – Missandei “Yes. All men must die, but we are not men.” – Daenerys Targaryen ‘Winter is coming’ Inward Bound in 2016 has been moved from late March to 14–15 October. As it approaches winter, snowfall in common training areas such as Namagi National Park and Corin Forest becomes more likely. Colleges that will be training at night, in the middle of winter should be extra vigilant, and ensure runners are equipped with adequate cold weather gear and space blankets. I’m not worried though. This is our home turf, and like House Stark of Winterfell, my largely townie squad has braved a lifetime of the freezing Canberra cold. What are the other coaches saying? Siobhan Tobin, coach at Bruce in 2015 “I am all for the quota, wish it was higher! I was surprised to hear some opposition initially to the quota from Johns and Burgmann. Now that there is, I think they will make a concerted effort to source some great women capable of long distance running and navigation, and train them thoroughly. Both of these colleges do brilliantly at female sports such as netball, they have a large base of fit women! Every residence has a gender

SPortS

balance, and each year we take male AND female runners from zero to IB hero at Bruce. It takes just as much effort from coaches to support males as it does females (and let’s face it, everyone in between). In the future perhaps more ex-ressie places if they are girls is an ok idea. This is positive reinforcement and also serves to provide heaps of role-models for girls thinking about the event for the future.” Sarah Lefevre, head coach at Unilodge in 2015 “I think the girl quota is a great idea and will encourage more girls to get involved. Unilodge always has more difficulty with numbers (regardless of gender) but girl participation is one of our key focuses this year. I’ll be coaching again as an ex ressie.” Thomas Body, head coach of Griffin in 2015 I was super stoked to see the quota pass - I think it’s a great way to encourage all members of each college’s community to get involved and train for IB. Many of the female runners who have trained with the squad have have shown tremendous stamina, steadfastness and dedication. Particularly as trainings get longer and repeat-training weariness sets in, it is spirit rather than speed that sees runners persevere to the end. The quota will mean squads proactively encourage and train runners who might be overlooked in earlier short runs, and I believe that this will result in squads which are tougher, adaptive, and fairer. Alexandra Grant, coach at B&G in 2015 “I am definitely in favour of the girl quota. I think there should be a big effort from all the colleges to encourage and support female participation. I hope that colleges view the quota as a minimum benchmark but aim to exceed the number and get as many girls involved as possible. I know that B&G will have no problem filling five spaces. I will be one of the female coaches for B&G this year alongside Hannah Johnson who also ran last year.”

SPORTS

Issue 6, Vol. 70

THE ANU OWLS DEFEAT UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE ANU Sport The ANU Owls travelled to Melbourne on April 6 to take on the University of Melbourne in their second Intervarsity AFL fixture for 2016. The team was coming off of a hard fought battle with the University of Adelaide and was looking to avenge last year’s loss to Melbourne while recording their first IV AFL Win. Rain was forecast for the entire day and only moments before the bounce the heavens opened up. It was clear it was going to be a pretty tough day out for both teams. The teams ran out in front of a strong crowd, both in their traditional blue strips, proving difficult to distinguish the two sides. Melbourne gained possession from the bounce and had a quick inside 50 opportunity. The Owls were able to slow the play down but only momentarily as Melbourne scored their first goal. Neither side were able to build any continuity as the match descended into a scrappy affair. But again it was Melbourne who were able to capitalise on the few opportunities that

did present for their team, stretching the lead to 14-0 halfway through the first quarter. In such wet conditions 14 points was not an insignificant lead. Returning to the centre square for the bounce the Owls took it upon themselves to switch their jerseys inside out (#Thoughtleaders), now in white and distinct from the Melbourne University blue. This seemed to be the turning point in the match as the Owls cleared from the bounce directly into the Melbourne Uni 50 for their first score, a behind. ANU applied pressure and Melbourne were unable to exit their own half. ANU suddenly gained ascendancy, winning every contested possession but were unable to convert ending the first quarter trailing 2.2.14 – 0.5.5. The Owls carried their momentum from the end of the 1st straight into the second quarter and it wasn’t long before ANU scored their first goal off the boot of Ryan Bradley. The team

converted on a few high tens into hugs on the way back to the centre square. It was clear ANU were up to the challenge. The match descended into a very scrappy affair in the wet yet the Owls continued to win contested possessions, being hard over the ball, spoiling everything and out working their opponents. The Owls were relishing the wet weather. Two more goals, one to Matt Grocott and another to Ryan Bradley had the owls leading 3.7.25 – 3.2.20 at the half. Coach Anthony Bourke was incredibly pleased with what he saw in the first half. Two very different sides entered the 3rd quarter, an ANU Owls team riding high and a frustrated Melbourne University outfit. Melbourne University continued to attempt an expansive game and when they got the ball into space they were very dangerous. Key defenders Tom Short and David Hutchinson thwarted the Melbourne uni attack on almost every occasion. ANU turned every possession into a

contest and through sheer determination ensured it was a contest they would win. In the 3rd the Owls extended their lead to 5.10.40 – 4.3.27. ANU opened the 4th quarter with a sequence that would have any coach losing their hair, scoring 6 consecutive behinds in less than 5 minutes. Eventually a goal would come to Matt Grocott who had been outstanding all day, taking the lead to 6.16.52 – 4.3.27. While it may not have been the easiest route, the Owls had finally put some significant distance between themselves and their hosts. Though the Owls would not relent scoring another 2 goals, one to Jason Li and another to James Hancock to seal the victory 8.18.66 – 5.5.35. The victory marked the first win for the ANU Owls in the Intervarsity AFL program. Intervarsity AFL will be back in 2017!

“NOT-SO-SOFTBALL” Matthew Wickham

Having played softball since I was 9 years old, I have long known the comments that are received when answering questions like “what are your hobbies/sports you play?”, and the first comment is usually “but I thought softball was for women?”. In some respects this is true, given that softball was the female counterpart to baseball at the Olympics from 19962008; however with a ratio of around 70/30, softball is still very popular among males. And let me tell you, there is nothing quite like standing next to a plate 17 inches across waiting for some 6’5” behemoth to hurl a bright yellow ball in excess of 130kph at a distance of less than 15 meters, giving you around 0.35 seconds to react and swing a bat weighing less than a kilogram to

hit the thing. To put it in perspective, the average baseball player has around 0.4 seconds to react, while in cricket it is around the 0.45 seconds region. Also, despite the name, the ball is anything but soft. At junior levels in Australia, NSW have dominated both men and women’s U17 and U19 championships in the last few years. In the open Women’s, it is more even, with recent past winners being NSW, Queensland and WA. The open Men are a different story, with the ACT having won the past five National Championships, being led by some of the best pitching in the world. On the International stage, Australia has previously been dominant at the U19 men’s level, at one point hav-

ing won 4 consecutive Junior World Championships from 1997-2008. The Open Men are also a force to be reckoned with on the international level, having won a world championship in 2008, but New Zealand are considered the best team in the world at the moment. For the junior women, Australia has previously placed 3rd, with countries like Japan and the USA being dominant. It is the same story for the Open Women, who achieved three bronze and one silver medal in the four Olympics that softball was a part of, and placed 3rd in the two most recent world Championships. Despite these successes on an international scale, the popularity of softball in the community has decreased greatly, down from an estimated 200,000 participants in 1995,

to around 127,000 in 2015. This decrease can mainly be accredited to the removal of softball from the Olympic picture, but with partnerships with Fox Sports in recent years to broadcast replays of the Open Men’s and Women’s National Championships, the sport may regain the popularity, and successes that it once had. If you would like to play softball, you can find your nearest club by going to the Softball Australia website, as well as join the ANU Softball Club which started in 2015 and attracted a massive intake this year.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

ANU Snowsports (ANUS): What’s on in 2016? Neal Chang

ANU Snowsports is the premier club on campus for snow bunnies and steezy snowboarders to enjoy the wonderful Australian snowy mountains. Our snowy mountains include beautiful locations such as Thredbo, Mt Buller and of course their respective clubs, Heller Keller and Mooseheads (That’s right, interstate Mooseheads baby). The snow is not what makes our club the best; it’s the people. ANU Snowsports is filled with some of the craziest, loosest, sexiest and friendliest people at ANU. For many the ANUS members, the colder temperatures are a herald for the highly anticipated upcoming University Week at Thredbo (17th July – 23rd July) and Snow University Games at Mt. Buller (30th August – 3rd September). In addition to these major events we run an annual coast trip at the beginning of the year, joint events with ANU Touch (TOUCHing ANUS), annual Snowball and many others. All of these events are excellent ways to get involved and make a bunch of new mates. I have personally been a member of ANU Snowsports since 2014 but did not take advantage full of this membership until 2015 where I participated in Snow University games at Thredbo and Snowball at the end of the year. Snow University Games

week was a marathon of drinking, skiing, ridiculous games and just general indecency. At the end of this marathon I was exhausted but it was one of the best weeks of my university career. Uni games is not just about drinking though, for those who are keen competitors there are plenty of opportunities to compete against some of the best skiers and boarders in Australia across all disciplines. Although I got absolutely smoked last year, I had the opportunity to compete against Australian Skier-X Olympians. Last year the combined ANU/UC Snowsports team achieved multiple placings in both snowboarding and skiing. For those looking to get involved immediately rather than waiting for the start of the snow season our combined event with touch, TOUCHing ANUS, is on the Thursday of week 10 (5th of May). This amazing race pub-crawl is one of the must events for the year. If you are interested in joining or want any extra info about ANU Snowsports or any of our events drop us an email at anusnowsports.info@ gmail.com or at our Facebook, ANU Snowsports. Stay Sexy ANU!

SPortS

SATIRE

Issue 6, Vol. 70

Minister for High-Quality and Definitely Voluntary Cinema Pettie Bage

ReJoyce: New Hero of Australian Cinema is here. From the comedy and drama of Parliament emerges the glorious debut film from the Department of Agriculture, starring Johnny Depp, Amber Heard and two adorable bundles of unregulated disease and pestilence named Pistol & Boo. A short but incredibly gripping film, clocking in at a mere 42 seconds, the couple’s apology has been released to global acclaim and is being hailed as the performance of both Depp and Heard’s careers. The film has already been predicted to dominate this year’s awards season, tipped to win big at The AACTA Awards, The Oscars, and The (Clive) Palmer d’Or, in honour of famous patron of the arts and Titanic II. Shared on his Facebook page, the

short video marks Barnaby Joyce’s directorial debut. However the Minister for Agriculture has been reluctant to reveal the extent of his involvement with the project, perhaps concerned that global stardom would interfere with his day job. His colleagues have been less hesitant, with Bill Shorten allegedly offering to write a sequel script consisting entirely of his signature ‘zingers’. In a desperate attempt to remain relevant, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has apparently offered to make a short video on avian quarantine due to his extensive knowledge on smuggling budgies. The film has also revitalised the careers of both Depp and Heard. For Depp, the role provided a brief reprise from his signature role of ‘man with eyeliner’ and proved his versatility in

delivering dialogue without using any facial muscles. Heard has also reportedly been approached to narrate several wildlife documentaries following her flawless delivery of such stirring dialogue as ‘Australia is free of many pests and diseases that are commonplace around the world.’ Indeed some have hailed her as ‘the next David Attenborough’ and were stunned by the couple’s genuine and not-at-all contrived passion for quarantine.

A Crime’ campaign. ‘Pistol & Boo: You wouldn’t steal a car, you wouldn’t steal a handbag, you wouldn’t bring your undeclared domestic animals into Australia’ is likely to be released in March 2018.

Various government agencies are already negotiating for use of the film. It is believed that Tourism Australia is likely to adopt ‘Australians: Warm, Firm and Direct’ as the slogan for their 2017 ad campaign. There has also been discussion of a feature-length sequel, produced by studio behind the iconic ‘Piracy: It’s

Local Family Postpone Funeral of Beloved Grandmother Due to Clash with Game of Thrones Julia Brieger The funeral of the late Elise Taylor has been postponed to the afternoon of April 26, due to a request of the family. The original date of the funeral, set for April 25, was ruled out as a result of a clash with the premiere of the new Game of Thrones episode. When asked why, Mr. Taylor’s son explained, “we were going to have the funeral at 10, but the premiere was at 11.” After some consideration, the family decided that they would be at

risk of the funeral running over time, exposing the family to potential spoilers. As Jen Taylor elaborated, “Look, I loved Nan, don’t get me wrong, but we’ve only been waiting for her to die for like 6 months. I’ve wanted to know whether Jon Snow really dies for over a year. Plus a funeral there’s like no big surprises right? It’s not like she’s gonna jump

back out of the casket. But Game of Thrones?? How am I meant to avoid spoilers when I’m on Facebook on the toilet at the wake?” “We thought about pushing it to 5pm on the 25th,” explained Mr Taylor, “But then we thought that if there was a problem with the stream, we might not have watched it in time, and people at the funeral might have. They might let something slip. We

thought it would be safer to give it at least 24 hours.” The family wanted to thank friends for their support during this difficult time.

Week 10, Semester 1, 2016

SATIRE

Amazonian Tribe Found in Glebe Park Jeevan Haikerwal As reports of homelessness rise in the Canberra City district, a remarkable discovery of an Amazonian warrior tribe has raised questions in the Territory Government about the housing affordability crisis afflicting the capital. The tribe, whose effective camouflaging techniques and arsenal of spears have kept would-be intruders at bay for what experts say has been 40,000 years, live in the treetops of Glebe Park. As their ancestral homeland, the long strip of parkland that extends through the suburbs of Braddon, O’Connor and Turner, was initially thought to have been a windbreak for the city. This discovery has baffled officials.

“We receive questions about the design and order of the park frequently. A lot of people complain about the gridlike formation of trees, but we’ve always taken it for granted, that it would stop the wind-tunnel effect from Black Mountain and Mount Ainslie from reaching the city”, a spokesperson for the ACT Government has fronted to media. “We had no idea there was an entire Amazonian tribe in there”. The as of yet un-named tribe reportedly speaks a dialect of Spanish “not uncommon to the central regions of South America”, baffling anthropologists worldwide. Prof. Thomas Huntingbridge, an

ANU academic specialising on the spread of entirely navally deficient warrior tribes throughout the globe, has been contacted by WORONI for comment. We received this email from his offices:

ernment has a responsibility to all of the citizens within its borders, and they are failing the most vulnerable Thanks for finding this story, first time I’ve ever been contacted by a real newspaper.

“Woroni,

T.”

The spread of Amazonian culture, and the invisibility it has existed with, is remarkable. When even the forest provides, we truly do live in the most liveable city in the world. But what academics such as me can really draw from this is that the options available for housing in the Canberra region are simply not affordable – especially for the hunter-gatherer, currenciless tribes that populate our shores. Gov-

The tribe of 43 has been asked for comment on the difficulty of finding housing in the Canberran region, however WORONI has yet to receive a response. A redevelopment plan of Glebe Park is expected to be released in the coming days to dislocate this ancient and innocent tribal culture.

Student drops surprise visual album on Tidal in response to disappointing essay mark Alanis Smithette ANU student Allison Lyson-Britchetts has released a surprise visual album this week on Tidal, titled Caffeinate. Many have speculated that some of the irate lyrics on the album are in response to an underwhelming essay mark for SUBJ2016. This suggestion mainly arose due to Lyson-Britchetts tendency to make less than subtle Facebook posts about the essay and course convenor, coupled with angry demands that friends “like.” The work consists of twelve tracks and an accompanying film. “I offered to let HBO screen it,” writes Lyson-Britchetts, “but they weren’t interested #ungrateful.” Several lyrics hint to Lyson-Britchetts’s academic grievances. At one

point, the student asserts that: “You know I give you funding / If you try this shit again / You gon’ lose your SELT reviews”. In another scene, Lyson-Britchetts states that, the next time her convenor wants a class representative, “She better call Becky with the GPA.” But Caffeinate is about so much more than one disappointing mark. Within the work, Lyson-Britchetts endeavours to explore the suffering by the most maligned of all groups: white, upper middle-class students. In one scene, Burgmann residents hold up photos hold up photos of their parents’ law firms, to protest being tragically passed up for internships in favour of those who were chosen

on merit. Lyson-Britchetts claims to have interspersed the film with “quotes from the great leaders and thinkers of our time”. In one scene, we hear British columnist Charles Moore’s eye opening revelation, “You often hear of people being ‘trapped in poverty’, but it is also possible to be trapped in wealth.” Lyson-Britchetts reflects on her heritage as a private school student from the North Shore of Sydney and the teachings of her father, singing: “My daddy warned me about people like you / He said baby girl they’re playing you / Cause when trouble comes in town / Oh, my daddy said sue”. Lyson-Britchetts’s course convenor, Dr. Georgette Sharma, was contact-

ed for comment. “I don’t understand this at all,” responded Dr. Sharma. “In one scene, Allison asks repeatedly, ‘What did I do wrong?’ If she downloaded the Turnitin revisions I made, she’d see that I left her pages of comments and feedback. For starters, her referencing was a complete mess. If she liked it, she should’ve put a citation on it.”

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