44COMMENTWeek 2 - Summer Termscan.lusu.co.uk/comment
NEWS1-12CAROLYNNE17-39COMMENT40-49SPORT50-5645Ronnie RowlandsPostscriptHow <strong>to</strong> save the barsApparently your author’sviews are held dogmatically,expressed unbudginglyand listened <strong>to</strong>rarely. The University announcedthat it would be closing down theMusic degree, and I said “keep i<strong>to</strong>pen.” The Senate EffectivenessWorking Group decided it didn’twant College syndicate members onthe body anymore, and I said “keepthem on there.” Commercial Servicesmade moves <strong>to</strong> take the barsfurther out of College control, and Isaid absolutely not.There’s a thing called ‘compromise’,apparently. I must recognisethat the University is dogmatic andunbudging in its irrational, immovableinsularity of outlook, and s<strong>to</strong>pbeing so damned dogmatic and unbudgingin my battles... right. So,let’s assess the college bars. I wanttheir management responsibilities<strong>return</strong>ed <strong>to</strong> the colleges, but I mustrespect that the University deteststhe college system so much that itwould rather stay with its currentunworkable system. A restructurewhich has proved so successfulthat <strong>Pendle</strong> <strong>Bar</strong> is now legitimatelyon the verge of permanent closure,save <strong>for</strong> College events. A restructurewhich was trialled on <strong>Pendle</strong>and Lonsdale <strong>Bar</strong>s a couple of yearsago and led <strong>to</strong> the financial detrimen<strong>to</strong>f both was viewed as thebest option <strong>for</strong> all establishments.I must respect that, if the rumoursI’ve heard are true, CommercialServices have expressed an unwillingness<strong>to</strong> pay a professional entertainmentsfacilita<strong>to</strong>r who offered<strong>to</strong> organise events in the bars, whowas asked <strong>to</strong> do it <strong>for</strong> free instead.I must come up with an ‘everyonewins’ solution that allows the bars<strong>to</strong> thrive, Commercial Services <strong>to</strong>save money and the University <strong>to</strong>do nothing <strong>for</strong> the colleges.This isn’t <strong>to</strong> say that the new handlingof our College bars has been acomplete disaster. As I’ve said numeroustimes; Bowland and Fyldehave ingrained themselves ratherwell and made a success of it. Headof Retail Services Lou Davies hasproved herself <strong>to</strong> be an approachablefigure <strong>for</strong> ideas from JCRs, andsome of the bars are being put <strong>to</strong>better use. But it cannot be deniedthat a huge chunk of soul was <strong>to</strong>rnout of the bars when we lost thelikes of Jeremy Bethell from County.Sure, we still have some of theold faces around, but lumping themwith numerous establishments <strong>to</strong>oversee has reduced their presence<strong>to</strong> fleeting, stressed ‘swinging by’- there’s none of the security providedby regularity anymore.So, why not hand over the bars<strong>to</strong> independent landlords? Experienced,knowledgeable licenseeswho have the failure of the establishmentshanging over their ownheads are more likely <strong>to</strong> have theknowledge and the sense of personalresponsibility <strong>to</strong> move the barsback in<strong>to</strong> a commercially viableposition. Having sole responsibilityover the making or breaking ofthe bars will <strong>for</strong>ce them <strong>to</strong> take theobvious initiatives, which include;strong college involvement, discretionover lock-ins and <strong>open</strong>inghours, hiring students from withinthe College, making an ef<strong>for</strong>t <strong>to</strong>liase with providers of entertainment,academic staff and Collegeexecutives and actually deployingtheir personality <strong>to</strong> keep peoplewanting <strong>to</strong> visit - all of this,without having <strong>to</strong> take substantialorders from university house, or <strong>to</strong>make ‘use’ of the ‘expertise’ offeredby university catering. In fact, theUniversity would even make moneyfrom the rents they’d impose onlicense holders, and have a hugeweight, self imposed though it maybe, lifted from their shoulders.Hey, it’s just a thought; necessaryalbeit unpleasant. It’s not asgood as having the Colleges run thebars, but by God is it better thanthe current mismatched mess wecurrently find ourselves in, or evenworse, the prospect of LUSU evercoming in<strong>to</strong> contact with them.It is now the last chance <strong>to</strong> save the Music degreeIt would appear that LUSU andthe wider student body are undergoinga comedown from thefrankly dizzying high induced bythe scandal surrounding the closureof the Music degree last term.We had our quorate EmergencyGeneral Meeting, we protested outsidethe Senate and roundly bollockeda whole load of University<strong>to</strong>p tablers. It seems that, despiteour best ef<strong>for</strong>ts, the battle is lost.Or so it seems.At the end of last term, the UniversityCouncil were scheduled<strong>to</strong> meet, and members were <strong>to</strong> beasked <strong>to</strong> nod through the decision<strong>to</strong> make most of the Music staff redundant.However, the snow meantthat the meeting didn’t take place.As far as I’m concerned, there<strong>for</strong>e,these staff members are still employedby the university, and ifthe University is following its ownrules (which it isn’t), the Music degreestill exists in its current <strong>for</strong>mat Lancaster. At the last meeting ofthe University Court, <strong>for</strong>mer Pro-Vice Chancellor and President ofLancaster University and CollegeUnion Alan Whitaker had a motionurging the Council and theSenate <strong>to</strong> reconsider their decisionpassed by the membership. It’s <strong>only</strong>a small vic<strong>to</strong>ry, but it is most certainlycontributes <strong>to</strong> the ill feeling<strong>to</strong>wards the decision <strong>to</strong> shut downthe Music degree.So, the Council has yet <strong>to</strong> reconveneand finalise the closure of thedegree scheme, and it isn’t QUITEover yet. Are LUSU and the studentbody going <strong>to</strong> take this <strong>to</strong> the bitterend, and reject the goalpostshifting,cloth-eared reaction <strong>to</strong>near unanimous protest? I’m game,even if no-one else is. People cantear themselves away from the biteeventually, but there is definite importancein at least wounding theUniversity at the end of this. Forfuture reference, if you like.AND ANOTHER THING..- THEY’RE CLOSING PENDLEBAR. It’s funny, because last termI wrote a piece on Lonsdale JCRpretending that their bar was facingimminent closure in order<strong>to</strong> attract attendees at their CollegeGeneral Meeting. In order <strong>to</strong>prove that the rumours were false,I asked a CERTAIN SOMEONE inCommercial Services if there wereany plans <strong>to</strong> close any of the College<strong>Bar</strong>s. The answer was ‘no’.That was just under a month ago.‘On the hoof’ doesn’t even begin<strong>to</strong> describe it, does it?- LUSU officers who contribute<strong>to</strong> the Academic Side Of Thingsare undertaking a mini awarenesscampaign complete with allthe usual refinements - an AlexSquare stall, a survey, fliers andofficers who nod sympatheticallywhen you tell them yourproblems. There are posters scatteredacross the spine which in<strong>for</strong>msus of our academic rights.Amongst other things, we are <strong>to</strong>ldthat all examinations should bemarked with student anonymity.This may seem well adhered <strong>to</strong>,since our names are covered upon exam papers when they reachmarkers. But, alas, there is nosuch beast as student anonymity;where there’s a will, there’s a way,and the way is <strong>to</strong> trace a student’sexam table number back <strong>to</strong> his /her name, or even peeling backthe label obscuring a student’sidentity - it’s hardly Fort Knox,you know. Furthermore - the lettergrading system. I haven’t meta single academic who thinks it’sa good idea. I’m not sure studentsare s’keen either. Just a bit offriendly advice...- Yours faithfully would like <strong>to</strong>offer his best wishes <strong>to</strong> the departingReuben Edwards. Havingserved over twenty years at Lancasterin many capacities, includingas a student, academic, UniversityDean and Furness CollegePrincipal, Dr. Edwards is leaving<strong>for</strong> an institution more befittingof an award winning innova<strong>to</strong>r inthe field of computer science andmobile technology. On behalf ofSCAN and the rest of the university,Reuben; thank you <strong>for</strong> yourdedication. And on behalf of myself,thank you <strong>for</strong> ensuring thatthe refurbishment of Furness <strong>Bar</strong>didn’t turn out <strong>to</strong> be the monstrosityI feared it would become.- The Easter holidays were murderouslydull, as is <strong>to</strong> be expectedof any period of time spent in aWelsh seaside resort whose <strong>only</strong>claim <strong>to</strong> notability is a vague affiliationwith the author of Alicein Wonderland. So <strong>to</strong> pass thetime, I wrote an article on ladculture which went on <strong>to</strong> becomethe most widely read and circulatedarticle in SCAN’s his<strong>to</strong>ry,clocking up over twenty threethousand hits, as well as beingretweeted by my personal friendStephen Fry. Did I mention thatI know Stephen Fry? Ta, Steviedarling - I know you’re reading.