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student comment and news3NEWSThousandsraised insuccessfulRAG Week• Three charitieschosen fordonations• Charity showcaseinvolves variety ofsocieties• Discounts madeavailable with RAGbands.Hannah PriceLaNCaSTER UNIvERSITy Saw thereturn of Raising and Giving (RAG)during week Six.This year, RAG Week was ‘biggerand better than ever before’ with studentsraising money for three chosencharities: St John’s Hospice, SteppingStones and MENCAP. Events took placecampus wide as well as on an individuallevel and a high level of support was receivedfrom Lancaster students.Leah Smith, President of the RAGSociety, said: “This year’s RAG Weekhas been hugely successful. By the endof the first day we had managed to raisejust short of £1000 which is a massiveachievement and hopefully we will beable to beat the amount raised last year.We would like to thank each and everyperson who has donated; without yourgenerosity none of this would have beenpossible.”RAG Week was launched with avalentine’s themed bucket collectionin Preston on 13 February which raiseda grand total of £494.81, and was followedby a bucket collection in theSugarhouse that evening. Sunday sawa free Valentine’s disco in LonsdaleBar and bucket collections were held inboth Elements and Revolution on Mondaynight.On Tuesday the Pancake Man arrivedin Alexandra Square, accompaniedby members of the RAG Society,who were in fancy dress and sellingraffle tickets. There was a pirates andsailors themed bag packing event atSainsbury’s on Wednesday of Week Sixas well as a Neon Night at the Carletonthat evening.Thursday evening saw a societyshowcase in Cartmel’s Barker HouseFarm with acts including LancasterUniversity Dance Society, the GospelChoir and the I Hate Rachel GreenClub. During Friday of Week Six therewas a cake sale in Alexandra Square aswell as a bucket collection in Cuba. Apub golf event was organised for Saturday,starting in County Bar and ending£3,500Approximate totalraised by the RAG teamat the time of going toprint.Queuing to give: Just one of many events that took place over RAG Week was The Pancake Man in Alex Squarein the Sugarhouse and the week wasbrought to a close with bag packing inSainsbury’s on Sunday, followed by theweekly quiz in each of the college bars.In addition RAG Bands were on salethroughout the week. Costing £4, theyentitled students to a range of discountsand offers in businesses on campus andin Lancaster. Free entry to Cuba andthe Carleton, queue jump at Elements,discounts on food at a variety of outletsin town as well as drinks offers at Hustle,Revolution and Lounge were justsome of the perks that students withRAG Bands were entitled to.Second year student Daniel Darraghof County College said: “RAG Week isan excellent idea that should be encouraged;not only is your money going toa good cause but the deals offered arereally good as well.”Individual efforts included AnnaFenton who was sponsored to weara chicken suit all day on Thursday ofWeek Six and kelsey Arif and RachelBasnett who are being sponsored tohave Fylde’s windmill tattooed ontothemselves during third term.“We would like tothank each and everyperson who has donated;without your generositynone of this wouldhave been possible.”-Leah Smith, RAGPresidentAnother idea was pursued by DavidTitone, who spent the whole of RAGWeek in a manual wheelchair to gainperspective of the impact this has onthe lives of disabled people. Titone toldSCAN he was inspired to complete thistask after a conversation with his flatmateand has learned a lot from his experience.“One thing I have observed is howpeople treat you differently when out onthe street,” he said. “People will generallyact in one of two ways - either theymay try to turn a blind eye in a childish‘if I can’t see it, it’s not happening’style, or they become so overwhelmedwith sympathy it is nearly impossiblefor them to avert their gaze; neitheroption helps empower yourself as anindividual. After this week I can safelysay that I have a newfound respect forpeople who are in wheelchairs.”The charities this year have beenchosen to represent causes on a varietyof levels. St John’s Hospice providespalliative care for cancer patientsacross north Lancashire, south Cumbriaand parts of Yorkshire, whilstMENCAP is the Uk’s leading learningdisability charity. Stepping Stones is acharity based in Nigeria and supportsthe rights of vulnerable and exploitedchildren.The total amount raised from all ofthe events will be announced duringweek Seven.Fylde and Furness collaborate tocelebrate Chinese New Year in styleCollette McColganNews EditorMONDAY WEEk SIx saw an eventin Fylde bar to celebrate Chinese NewYear, hosted by Fylde and Furness JCRExecs.The event included the provisionof free food, from Wong’s kitchen oncampus, which had been bought by thepooled budgets of Fylde and FurnessJCR Execs. As well as this, there wasmusic and face painting, to celebrate thenew year of the Tiger.Ariel Lambert, Furness JCR’s InternationalStudents Representativehelped organise the event. Speakingshortly after the event, Lambert said,“I’m really pleased with it… a lot of peoplecame, and they’re still standing inthe bar, which I think is amazing.”“Fylde got the food together, and wegot the decorations… it was a really goodeffort from everyone really,” she added.The evening went largely withoutFood’s up: Wong’s Kitchen provided the superb food (Photo: olly Trumble)any problems, though unexpected popularityof the food meant that the eventran out of paper plates part way throughthe evening.A Furness student, kate Utton said:“The JCR Execs worked really well togetherand it was pretty well organized- apart from running out of plates!”A student from Fylde was pleasedwith the night. “It was really good to seethe two colleges coming together to organisethis event – you can sometimesfeel that individual colleges forget aboutinternational students, but the nightwas really impressive.”Lambert spoke about future plansfor the two JCRs to work together, mentioningan Oktoberfest event, hosted inFurness bar, where she hoped the collegescould come together again.Housing to avoidcarbon monoxide chaosCharlotte UrbanLUSU HOUSING HAVE begun a newinitiative to install carbon monoxidedetectors in all properties let out byLUSU.LUSU currently leases more than170 properties, and whilst 40 houseshave already been fitted, it is anticipatedthat there will be carbon monoxidedetectors in all properties by thebeginning of the next academic year atthe latest.Although this proposal was principallyagreed before Christmas, newsof its initiation follows a recent documentput out by Lancaster City Councilwhich emphasizes the risk of carbonmonoxide.The initiative began last Septemberwhen students began to moveinto properties. Currently wheneverrepairs are needed to a LUSU-ownedhouse a detector is automatically installedas part of the process.Carbon monoxide is a colourless,odourless, and tasteless gas which ishighly toxic to humans and animals.It forms when there is not enoughoxygen available to produce carbondioxide, such as above a gas stove inan enclosed space.Safe house:All LUSUHousingproperties willbe fitted withthe detectorsCarbon monoxide effectively suffocatesthe body of oxygen. Less than2% of carbon monoxide in the air cankill. Symptoms of carbon monoxidepoisoning include headache, nausea,vomiting and dizziness.Statistics from the Carbon Monoxide& Gas Safety Society show thatcarbon monoxide poisoning kills over40 people a year, and injures 300.

4 scan.lusu.co.ukNEWSGoodbyeGordon, helloHadfieldannah SmithHIS WEEk SEES Deputy Pro-ChanellorGordon Johnson hand in his resgnation.Johnson has been a commitedmember of Lancaster University’sourt since 2001, and was elected asne of two Deputy Pro-Chancellors in002. During his time at the Univerity,Johnson has aided both the Courtnd the Council in becoming more efcientand effective organisations.University Secretary Fiona aikenold SCaN “during his time at the Uniersity,Gordon has taken the time toisten to stakeholder views and to formis own judgements.” She added thatthe University has benefitted considrablyfrom his wise counsel”.LUSU President Michael Payne statd“the role of Deputy Pro-Chancellors an important check and balance onenior management of the University.lthough we have not always agreed,ordon has demonstrated unparaleledprofessionalism in his role, hisords of wisdom will be missed.”Mr Johnson is also the current Contableof Lancaster Castle, a positionhich he was entrusted with in June009, and which portrays his respectedole in Lancaster’s community.Johnson is being succeeded as DeptyProc-Chancellor by John Hadfield.ayne commented that “the Students’nion looks forward to a positive reationshipwith […] John Hadfield,omeone who has been equally as voalon behalf of students as the Unionhemselves.”olice makeACT withtudentsONTHLY MEETINGS BETWEENtudents and local police are hoped toe a step towards reducing crimes onampus.Though these PACT (Police andommunities Together) meetings haveeen taking place for some time now,here has been a reduction in on-camuscrime in the last month, from theame month last year.Wynner: PCGary Wynne isstationed at theUniversity, and iskeen to engagewith studentsThe meetings take place in theUSU Meeting Room, and any students able to attend, either to raise an issuer to observe. The next meeting is onednesday 17th March, at 4pm, andtudents are encouraged to go along.PC Gary Wynne and PCSO Andrewright are based at the University, andre currently appealing to students toontact them with any information theyay have about the drug Bubble, afterhe arrests made at the Sugarhouse ineek Three of this term.Forty-five year old Alexandra S• Project to becompleted in timefor next academicyear• Underpass to berejuvenated• Student opinionpositive onproposalsCharlotte UrbanFOLLOWING A POSTPONEMENT inWeek Four of this term, the proposalfor the re-design of Alexandra Squarewas unveiled on Wednesday of WeekFive.Work on the new plans is set tocommence in April 2010, starting withthe closure of bus stops in the underpassand the clearance of the squarepaving in alexandra Square. The reopenof the underpass is estimated tobe mid-September, in preparation forthe return of students to campus at thebeginning of October.There are two potential options forthe plans with the final design yet to bedecided upon.Option One involves a new rampnear the steps heading up towardsBowland, allowing easier wheelchairaccess as well as double height steps infront of the Learning Zone for seating.There will be seating planters aroundexisting trees as well as entirely newgranite paving with a creative designacross the span of the whole square,and the covered pathway by Waterstoneswill be more opened out.In addition, this option envisagesblue LED strips of light along the edgeof each of the granite paving slabs, eachstrip representing a college. The aim ofthis proposal was to amalgamate thecolleges in a place that is central andintegral to the university.Option Two is similar to the first;PITS campaign raising lymphatic cancer awarenessYasmin SpracklenON NOVEMBER 2ND 2009 theLymphoma association launchedthe ‘PITS’ campaign, designed to increaseawareness of lymphatic canceramongst students.The campaign highlights the commonsigns and symptoms of the disease.‘PITS’ is an acronym of PersistentLumps, Itching, Tiredness andSweating, the main indicators of theillness. It is a three year project designedto make students aware of thekey symptoms of lymphatic cancer,the most common form of cancer in15-30 year olds, and see their GP ifthey experience any.The first stage of the ‘PITS’ campaignwas launched on 2 Novemberlast year and is due to end in March,with the second stage launching laterthis year. Sarah Harvey, Press Officerfor the Lymphoma Association, said:The old and the new: Alexandra Square will be transformed from how it looks currently. The current designs will improhowever the granite paving will be laidout in a different design, and the blueLED lighting will not be installed.Both options involve a lift in aglazed tower that will descend to theunderpass enabling better access forwheelchair users. The underpass itselfwill be entirely rejuvenated, the entrancesto each of the stairwells beingtransformed into much lighter spacescompared to the current entryways.The new entrance will also include featurewalls displaying a bus timetable,“The association has always workedat raising awareness of lymphoma inyoung people. However, this is thefirst time that we have received fundingfrom the Department of Healthallowing us to launch a targeted campaign.”The campaign currently takes theform of a website, www.pitfart.com,which enables students and youngpeople to access important informationabout lymphatic cancer as well asread the stories of students who havebeen affected by the disease. The websiteis running a competition encouragingyoung people to upload a clip ofthemselves performing a ‘pit fart,’ anoise made by cupping your hand underyour armpit. The clips can then beaccessed by others on the website andthe person with the highest numberof views by 2 March will win a trip fortwo to Paris.Currently, the number of youngpeople being diagnosed with lymphaticcancer every year appears tonotice boards and a payphone.The construction of the lift pit andshaft is proposed to begin in May alongwith the construction of the new stepsand ramp in front of the Learning Zoneand the refurbishment of the stairwells.The waterproofing of the underpassand construction of the feature wallswill occur in June. The final componentsof the re-design will be the newpaving in alexandra Square in July andthe installation of the lift and refurbishmentof arcade canopies in August.Option One is believed to be themost popular at the moment, with studentsfeeling it to be the “classier” and“cooler” option. One student said: “I’vealways thought Alexandra Square andthe Underpass have needed an overhauland these plans are even betterthan what I had in mind.”another student commented thatthough the designs were good, the Underpasswould benefit from seating,possibly in the form of a wooden benchthat ran the length of the wall betweenbe staying constant. The latest availablestatistics show that in 2006, 831people under 30 were diagnosed withlymphoma, 479 of whom were maleand 352 female.Lymphatic cancer is a disease thatbegins in the lymphatic system, whichforms part of the immune system.Cancer occurs when normal cells undergoa transformation whereby theygrow and multiply uncontrollably andlymphoma is a malignant transformationof white blood cells called lymphocytes.The exact cause of lymphomaremains unclear although it couldbe due to circumstances such as age,infection, or genetics. However, likemost cancers, lymphoma is treatableif caught early enough.The Lymphoma association is theonly specialist Uk charity that activelysupports people with lymphatic cancer,providing medical informationand emotional support to patients,their families and friends as well asaiming to raise awareness of the disease.According to Harvey, servicesoffered include “a freephone helpline,comprehensive free literature, a buddyscheme with telephone links to otherswith similar experiences, local supportgroups, regional patient conferencesand a fully interactive website featuringa message board and chat room.”The Lymphoma association alsoworks closely with parliamentariansto lobby for better support, care andtreatment for lymphatic cancer patientseverywhere. They representthe patient perspective by providingevidence for National Institute forClinical Excellence (NICE) appraisals,working as an active member of boththe Cancer Campaigning Group andthe Rarer Cancers Forum and by beinga founder member of the LymphomaCoalition – an international group oflymphoma patient support organisations.More information can be found at:www.lymphomas.org.uk or www.pitfart.com

student comment and newsquare to get a facelift5NEWSReferendum scheduled toapprove LUSU constitutionJack SmithA REFERENDUM ON changes to theLUSU constitution will be voted on inWeek Eight. Voting will take place on4 March, the same date as the electionsfor LUSU full time executive officers .The referendum will be to approvechanges made to the Students’ Unionconstitution in order to comply withrequirements set for LUSU to registerwith the Charities Commission, whichMichael Payne, LUSU President, describedas “vitally important.”This involves ensuring the TrusteeBoard is the supreme governingbody of the Students’ Union, which isa requirement of joining the CharitiesCommission. The board, formed a yearago, is made up of three student officerpositions, six full time officers, and fourexternal trustees, with the President ofLUSU as the board’s chair.It presides above Union Council, theUnion’s policy forming body, but Paynesought to abate the suggestion that theboard could interfere with policy, pledgingthat it “will not veto Union Councilpolicy or political matters.”While the modifications to the constitutionare not of immediate relevanceConstitutional reform:Adjustments made by the Presidentto students, with very few noticeable orpolitical changes, it is seen as necessaryfor the referendum to be successful inorder for LUSU to retain its charity statusand the associated benefits, enablingthe union to continue to receive charitabledonations, for example. The constitutionis believed to already be virtuallycompliant with the Charities Commission’srequirements, with this revisiononly including some minor changes.Payne sought to stress the importanceof the constitution changes beingpassed when he addressed Union Councilin Week Six, where he talked of “goingforward” and “taking a leading role”when mentioning the changes.Although the referendum takes placealongside the main elections, LUSU willrun a separate campaign to promote it.ve the underpass and access to it, as well as replacing paving and rejuvenating the Square’s general look (Photo: Ben Robins)the two stairwells, calling this “A simpleconstruction, [that] would providemuch needed seating space without theneed for any major construction, [that]would make waiting for the bus muchless of a pain.”“I do think that the new proposeddesign can only be an improvement asthe Underpass is a little dark and I amreluctant to go there at night unless Ihave to,” added another student.One student also pointed out thatthe ramp for wheelchair access shouldbe fitted with a fenced edge, in order tomake it totally safe.It is hoped that these criticisms andpraises of the new designs will be takenon by Facilities when work begins onthe rejuvenation of the Square and itssurrounding area.Mark Swindlehurst, the university’sDirector of Facilities has spoken aboutthe new design of the Square. “The newdesign for Alexandra Square has addressedmany of the issues that wereraised during the consultation periodin 2009.”He added: “The most significantelement of the [Option One] design iswhere it brings the colleges of LancasterUniversity into the heart of its mostimportant space by introducing thelines showing the names of the collegesbetween their location and the areawhich they are named after, symbolisingvery strongly the importance of thecollegiate system and demonstratingfurther the University’s commitmentto its colleges.”Game on: Election period begins

6 scan.lusu.co.ukNEWS‘Shopping withrespect’ theaim behindthe FairtradecampaignRachel McCarthyFAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT IS takinglace this term in weeks Seven andEight, with various societies on campusaiming to promote ‘The Big Swap’ toFairtrade products.‘The Big Swap’ was launched byFairtrade Foundation, which inspiresdifferent community groups across thecountry to raise awareness of ethicalconsumerism. as a Fairtrade University,Lancaster has seen many differentFairtrade Fortnight events taking placein the recent past. This year, SPEAk(the Lancaster Christian Justice andPeace Campaigning group), People andPlanet and GreenLancaster will be runningdifferent campaigns and eventsthroughout the fortnight, to encourageLancaster students to choose Fairtradealternatives to their usual goods. TheLUSU store will have various offers onFairtrade items during the fortnight.Lancaster University Fairtrade Fortnightbegins on Monday 22 February at7:30pm in the Chaplaincy Centre witha film screening of ‘Black Gold’ combinedwith a Fairtrade wine and cheeseevening. ‘Black Gold’ explores the impactof the traditional coffee trade inEthiopia, and it conveys the incentivefor buying coffee at a fair price.According to Fairtrade Foundation,two billion people in the world surviveon less than $2 a day. Fairtrade Fortnightaims to show that this can changethrough the choices of the individualconsumer. Hannah Henderson, Presidentof SPEAk, said: “Everything thatwe buy has an effect on someone elsesomewhere in the world. It’s importantthat we shop consciously, ensuring thatwhere we can that effect is a positive onenot a negative one.”SPEAk and People and Planet willbe promoting swapping from Coca-Cola to Ubuntu Fairtrade Cola, whichis available in the LUSU store, throughoutthe fortnight. There will be a stall inAlexandra Square offering free samplesof Ubuntu Cola during Week Eight. It isthe first cola in the Uk to bear the FairtradeMark.GreenLancaster will be reenactingan interactive ‘big trade game’ in AlexandraSquare on Thursday 4 March, inorder to engage students in the issue ofinternational trade.Mr. Ohemeng, Managing Directorof the cooperative behind Divine Fairtradechocolate, echoed the motivatingfactor of ‘The Big Swap’: “We all have togo shopping and Fairtrade is just goingshopping with a bit of respect.”Library extend opening hoursin time for exam period

student comment and news11FULL TiME ExECUTiVE oFFiCER ELECTioNS 2010Vice-President (Sport)Erika VannCollegePendleDegree subjectHistory and PoliticsProposerFfion Davies (Lonsdale)SeconderTristan Hirst (Fylde)Marc HandleyCollegeLonsdaleDegree subjectSociology and English LiteratureProposerAzmi Sbaiti (Lonsdale)SeconderRichard Howarth (Lonsdale)ERIkA VANN’S PLANS involvemedia coverage of certainevents and increasing awarenessto off-campus studentsthrough certain advertising.The current Chair of SportsExec says she feels she is “basicallylearning the VP role. I’velearnt so much already duringthe six weeks and have beenworking with Sue [Wynes, currentVP Sport] […] with the organizationfor Roses and CarterShield.”Her main focus is that ofincreasing participation in theCarter Shield: “I want to continuethe Facebook groups andput up posters in alexandraSquare about upcoming tournaments.Also, I want to get aSCaN section that tells peopleabout taster days.”“I also plan on talking toLUTube.Tv and Bailrigg FM todo coverage of matches, so thatbars might be able to have highlightseach week,” she added.Vann continued: “I want tomake it more of a society thanan event [with] socials so thatpeople can feel more committedfor off-campus studentsas well as on. I want a morecentral focus for sports so thateven people who don’t get involvedwith the sport [can] godown and watch.”Speaking of her input toRoses, she said: “I like theRoses Rally and I want to continuethe Boot Camp. I want tofocus on Roses throughout theyear.”when asked about therecent problems with pitchdestruction, Vann said: “It’salways going to happen withterrible weather. I will try andmake sure that teams are talkingto each other.”Another topic she feltstrongly about was refereeing:“I will continue checking thereferees so that they don’t getdouble-booked.” She suggestedorganising a training day sothat there may be more refereesavailable.Speaking about her confidenceand passion for the role,Vann said: “I’ve only recentlystarted getting involved andtaking it seriously, but I feellike I know exactly what I’mtaking on.”AS INTER-COLLEGE SPORTSCoordinator and Sports Representativefor Lonsdale JCRExec, Marc Handley is notshort of experience.“I want to spread my influence,not behind the desk, butgetting out there and interactingwith teams and supporters,”Handley said, of how hewill go about his role.However, he believes thatthe first priority is to be surethat the new sports centregets constructed on schedule.When the new building is finished,Handley believes it will“rejuvenate the sports teamsand show that the Universitycares about support.”when broached on thesubject of the old facilities,Handley described the misuseas “disgusting” in the case ofthe tennis courts being usedas a car park. He further said:“[It will be] something I willfight for. There should beother options.”He pledges to continuethe Roses Rally event and “toincrease and build on publicityfor the college teams. TheRoses event is where we needthe University there, as muchas the team.”Handley’s solution is a “setup of sports committees withindifferent colleges, whereeverything is shared betweenall the college captains, pushingthe concept of sport withinthe colleges. It is through thiswider spread committee thatI will try to increase supportfor each other sport, ratherthan just your own. It willbridge a gap between Universityand college levels.”as to the stress that thejob can cause and the intensetime devotion, Handley said:“It’s easily a seven day week.But I have firsthand experienceof some of the workload.I look at the deadlinesas targets and they need to bedone.”Handley said: “I want tosell the product of sport sothat people want people toplay for us. It won’t happenovernight, but by increasingUniversity respect and pride,it is a step in the right direction.”

student comment and news13FULL TiME ExECUTiVE oFFiCER ELECTioNS 2010Vice President (Finance, Events, Democracy & Societies)Myles HarrisonCollegeFyldeDegree subjectEnglish Language and the MediaProposerJen Webster (Fylde)SeconderLee Harris (Fylde)Matt WindsorCollegeLonsdaleDegree subjectHistoryProposerAlex Carlin (Lonsdale)SeconderAndrew Platts (Lonsdale)Alex LeonardCollegeCountyDegree subjectChemistry & BiologyProposerLiam Turnbull (County)SeconderMaria McLenaghan (County)wITH TwO yEaRS of JCR experienceand a current employeeof the Sugarhouse, Myles Harrisonbelieves that he has an‘excellent understanding’ of theUnion and is able to see LUSU asa commercial venture as well asan organisation for supportingthe students where their ideasare considered.“I’ve got two years of experienceon Fylde JCR, so I’vegot experience of how the unionworks. [I’ve sat] on UnionCouncil, Social and Events andother committees such as EWD.I’ve embraced a lot of changeover the last few years and I feelthat this, coupled with workingat Sugarhouse, [means that] Ican see the Union as a commercialentity.”When asked why he wasrunning for this role Harrisonsaid “I feel like I have a lot tooffer the role in terms of organisation,especially events suchas Grad Ball and the Extravs.The students are here to have agood time as well as study andwe should be providing thatwith their input not just makingdecisions for them.”Harrison wants more studentsto get involved withLUSU and share their ideas. Headmits that at the moment itcan be difficult to engage withstudents because they are putoff by the LUSU bunker.“[This role] is all about engagingwith students, not overa desk or in the office [but] at acollege bar, at a quiz, internationalevents. [It’s] just gettingout there and seeing what thestudents want, being approachable.”After side stepping a questionon deadlines, Harrisonwent on to say “Although thereare very distinct parts of the jobit is very finely balanced. It’sgoing to call for very precisetime management and I believeI can do that. We had a few peopledropping out [of our JCR]and I had to take up the roles.There were many different jobsand it’s all about choosing theright time to do the right thingand delegating.”Harrison went on to discusshis skills in organisation andhow he believes they will benefithim in the events aspect ofthis role.“Having organised an Extraventirely by myself, I understandthe processes that go intothat. [The] Extrav I ran was themost successful Fylde Extrav inyears and one of the most successfulof last year.”Harrison further discussedthe ‘appalling conditions’ ofsociety allocated space, believingthat collaboration betweenLUSU and the University isneeded to improve facilities.“It’s discussions that needto be held between societieswith LUSU and the universityas a whole. The universitythemselves advertise societieson their open days and in leaflets.They’re advertising thesesocieties, drawing people to theUniversity, taking their moneyand not delivering on what theysaid they would.”When the question of LUSUfinances was raised, Harrisonfelt that it was important to beable to budget carefully to preparefor future financial uncertainties.“Everyone has seen that£135m is coming out of highereducation next year and that isgoing to be a big cut. The universityis obviously going to reviewhow much money they putinto LUSU, but I believe in thelast few years LUSU has recognisedthis and have built upenough in storage. It is aboutusing that to its full potentialand not wasting money hereand there.”Harrison wants to provide aUnion ‘for students, run by thestudents’. To do this he believesthat more people need to getinvolved and have their viewsheard.“It’s not just the five or sixpeople that sit in LUSU thatshould make the decisions.15,000 students at this universityshould be making thesedecisions and when it comes upto elections they should havean input into what they want.”Harrison believes that studentsneed to get involved so thatthey are heard in order to targetthe issues most importantto them.Finally, Harrison hopesthat if he wins this election thathe will be able “to fulfil this roleto its full potential and providestudents with a service theydeserve, but most importantly,that they feel a part of.”HAVING BEEN INVOLVEDin LUSU politics since his firstterm at university, Matt Windsorbelieves that he has the experienceand skills required tobe the ‘pivotal cog’ handling theday to day running of the Unionon a personal and approachablelevel.“VP FEDS probably workswith the most people, [so] Ihave to be approachable, I haveto be able to deal with peopleand I think I am very good at[this]. If someone has a problem[you’re] no use if they don’tfeel they can come and talk toyou about it.”Windsor feels that his experienceas a webmaster andLonsdale College Presidenthave given him an insight intohow the Union works as wellas experience in publicity, organisationof events, managingbudgets and understanding theinner workings of the democraticprocesses.whilst windsor believesthat he has “the perfect amountof experience” for this job, headmits that societies “are myweak point. I have never beeninvolved in one because I’vebeen too busy with JCR for twoyears, but I am doing my researchat the moment.”When asked what he thoughtwas the most important area ofthe role, Windsor felt that societiesdemand the most time.“Over 50% of people in theentire University are involvedin a club or society. There issomething to cater for everyoneand if you start to lose thatthen people wouldn’t have [an]outlet from the stresses of theirdegrees.”Nonetheless, he feels thatthere is a major problem withsociety space at present andwants to put action in place totarget this issue.“at the moment there arePortakabins up by County thatactually have rats in them thatare gnawing away at societyequipment which is ridiculous.The university are the first tosay ‘look at how many clubs andsocieties we have’ [but they]should show a bit of respect becausewe’re giving these peoplevital skills that will help themin the job market.”He went on to say that “interms of society space there area couple of options on campus,possibly the sports hall or FyldeCoffee Shop. We need somewhereopen so the cheerleaderscan throw their flies up into theair without hitting their headon the roof. We need meetingrooms with computers, projectors,screens, all that kind ofthings. we need a dedicatedsocieties’ space.”windsor believes that moremoney should be spent to engagemore with the students,particularly with regards tothe JCRs. “Lonsdale’s magazineeditor can afford to [issue]one black and white magazinea term. If people want to showmore respect for the JCR’s and[decide] if they’re doing a goodjob, how are they supposedto [prove they’re succeeding]without having the money todo so?”as the current Social andEvents Chair Windsor feels hehas “got the events down to atee.”Learning from past experiencehe understands “if wetry to impose too many eventsfrom the top and say ‘we’re doingthis, support us’, then we’renot supported. It has to comefrom the students.”He went on to say “I nowrespect that you can’t do thesethings by yourself, you haveto ask other people what theywould like. I think especiallywith FEDS having democracyin the title you can’t go ‘I’m goingto decide’, you have to getan opinion from other peopleso that’s what I will be doing.”One of Windsor’s eventideas is introducing themedelections. With the turnout ofvoters for election being poorWindsor hopes this idea willencourage more people to getinvolved.“To increase people voting Ithink we need more people runningfor these positions. A lotof people will look at the JCRsand [think] ‘why would I wantto go through so many hours ofmeetings a week?’ In my opinionit needs to be promoted ahell of a lot more what you canget out of becoming an officerof the union. [My experience]is going to stand me much betterthan another candidate ina future job and I don’t thinkenough people know that.”aS a SELF confessed workaholicalexander Leonard thinksthat he has the ability to balancehis time effectively to enablehim to juggle this highlydemanding and varied role.He feels that his intricate involvementwith societies willgive him the knowledge andexperience needed to supportstudents and give them whatthey need.“[As current] head of TheatreGroup and LUTube TV, [anda member of] Societies UnionExecutive Committee [I] knowa fair bit about the inner workingsof societies and what theywant [since] I have been representingthem for some timeI’ve been involved in quitea large amount of Universityevents, such as Winterfest[and] Campus Festival [andhave] been involved in organisingthem. I already know whoto go to in the University to getthings done. knowing thosethings already is a good advantageto have [in this] role.”Leonard hopes to draw onthese previous experiences if hewins the election.“[This is] a step up fromwhat I am doing now, and Ienjoy what I do now. Once Iget stuck in I give it my all. Thisrole allows me to do that andhelp the most people.”with events playing a centralrole in FEDS, Leonardwants to include more studentsin their organisation.“I want to get more studentsinvolved in the event makingprocess as a whole, to say ‘thisis an event I’d like to run’, and Iwant to work with them to helpthem run it as they want. I wantthem to have their event idea inmind, to push that forward andget more of them involved fromthe start.”Leonard feels this is probablythe most important aspectof this job since “there alwaysneeds to be something on forstudents to do and it alwaysneeds to be good.”He admits that “I don’t haveone key issue. The remit is solarge and diverse that focusingon one thing would leadto missing the smaller things.I want to be more focused onbringing everything closer together,getting the systemsrunning more effectively andaiming for many smaller goals,such as getting societies space,getting students more involvedin events [and] fully digitalisingelections.”Leonard went on to discusshis ideas for gaining vitallyneeded society space.“Currently there’s a bid goingforward for some of thespace in the old sports hall.Once that’s gone through Iwant to follow it through asbest I can and get that space forthem. I will get something forthem even if it’s just another setof Portakabins, even if it’s justanother cupboard. It is abouttime they stopped getting thebad end of the stick of everything.”Gaining new facilities requiresmoney and when askedabout the possibility of havingto handle a tighter LUSUbudget Leonard said “It’s notgoing to get much tighter in myopinion. you can still providea good service with a couple ofcuts here and there.”with this in mind Leonardexplained his ideas on how hewould improve the democraticprocess and increase votersthrough the introduction of awider use of technology ratherthan spending finances onposters.“I think most of the postersthat are up are a little bit of awaste of time because mostpeople don’t look at posters anymore.I want to push more theelectronic side of it, stuff likeresnet [and] campus screenswhere an audio visual componentcan be chucked in. If it’smaking a lot of noise you’remore temped to look towardsit.”This more interactive approachwas followed through inLeonard’s plans to help makethe Full Time Executive Officersmore visible to the greaterstudent population.“I want to do a questiontime session with officers, gettingstudents to give them a bitof a grilling as to what they’redoing, opening it up to the floora bit more.”For Leonard this role willshow him “a new side to LUSU.”He commented “[I want] to seehow far I can push my personalskills and develop better skillsin events management, multitaskingand enjoy Lancaster foranother year.”

14 scan.lusu.co.ukFULL TiME ExECUTiVE oFFiCER ELECTioNS 2010Vice-President (Equality, Welfare & Diversity)Neil SmithCollegeCartmelDegree subjectFrench & italianProposerMark Lord (Cartmel)SeconderSamantha Aldridge (Furness)Chaz GinnCollegeGrizedaleDegree subjectBiology, Chemistry & ReligionProposerMatt Saint (County)SeconderMatthew Power (Lonsdale)Pete MacmillanCollegeCountyDegree subjectPolitics & Peace StudiesProposerJessica Horsfield (Cartmel)SeconderChloe Themistocleous (County)NEIL SMITH FEELS that hisxperiences of representing stuents,beginning when he sat onis sixth form council, give himn edge as he has run in elecionsfrom an early stage. Curentlyin his second term asartmel College JCR’s equalityfficer, Smith also sits as EWDouncil chair.Smith also feels that taking aear out and working in full timemployment means he brings aifferent perspective to studentife which he would use as Viceresident (Equality, Welfarend Diversity).Having been an internationaltudent in a year abroad studyngin Italy, Smith feels that heas gained a unique insight intoeing a minority national stuentin a foreign country. Thiss something he wishes to bringo the role, stating that he “unerstandsaspects of the lives ofnternational students that mostfficers will not see.”Speaking on the nature ofhe EWD role and its three disinguishableparts, Smith exressedthe view that there arethree quite separate issues butthey are] also quite relevant toach other at the same time.”is way of getting around thearied role would be “openingialogue and gaining the opinonsof the students I’ll be tryingo represent”, recognising thatommunication “is a key factorn thinking out strategies forealing with the issues that theyxperience.”Smith stated that the welfarerovision, a contentious issuehis year after large budget cuts,s “one thing I have discussednd I’m going to propose quite aadical thing.” He would like toee specific funds set up for araswithin the EWD, and statedin my opinion [funds] shoulde going to the relevant counils.”He was keen to reassuretudents that in the creation ofhese separate budgets thereould still be a central fund ableo be accessed by all requests.The topic of funding is aarge concern for Smith. AsWD council chair he recentlyaw “two sports requests madey two colleges that, in my opinon,should come out of a sportsudget for sports exec council orhe AU”.In Smith’s opinion, despiteext year’s budget still beingplanned by the current sabbatical,there is a “determination tokeep the welfare budget at leastas it is, I seriously doubt thatany support will be given to afurther reduction.”Discussing the non-sabbaticalofficer review from earlierthis year, Smith reasoned that“despite initial worries I thinkthat it has worked as it was intendedto”. He stated that representingstudents at their levelwith the part-time officers wassuccessful. Smith passed overthe topic of JCRs and their variousEWD officers despite thatbeing asked about them with regardsto reaching students.Asked about policy writingand reviewing, Smith immediatelyappeared hesitant, statingthat the topic was “quite an interestingone.” This year a reviewis being written by the currentVP Torri Crapper to refineequality policy into a single document,a principal that Smithstates he fully supports.Smith’s hesitance on the topicis involved with the processof the review. Explaining that“unfortunately I’m not on theequality committee,” Smith hasbeen watching the proceedingscarefully. There is “somethingthat is possibly going throughthat I quite disagree with” hesaid, but wouldn’t state specificsas it is deemed “controversial inthe EWD circle.”With this in mind, Smithfeels that “in future more peopleshould be included in theprocess and more consultationshould be made during the writing”of the document. Smithfeels that implementing this approach,rather than drafts beingsubmitted by the few people onthe team for the rest of the EWDto approve, would lead to moreproductive year.Asked whether his acknowledgednature as an outspokencandidate could damage hiscampaign, Smith gave a balancedanswer. He stated thathe acknowledged the risks butargued that “if a candidate isn’twilling to stand up and representthe groups that they havebeen elected to represent thenthey are failing at their job.” Hereasoned that while listening tothe students “I am prepared topush as hard as I can to makesure that the students get whatthey deserve.”HAVING BEEN INVOLVEDwith both charity and youthwork, standing as a campaignsofficer on the LGBTQ exec andas Grizedale JCR president,Chaz Ginn feels she brings alot of experience with her innominating herself for the roleof Vice President for Equality,Welfare and Diversity (EWD).She stated that “as much as youcan do, I’ve done” in both JCRand non-sabbatical positions.asked about the budgets cutsthat the EWD remit has beensubjected to this year, Ginngave a realistic outlook shouldshe win the election. “Findingmore money is not always possible,I think it’s about gettingthe best quality for the moneywe have available” she stated.In Ginn’s opinion, the Unionunderstands the need to fundEWD across the campus. Shestated that while she couldn’tpromise an infinite budget, “Iwould guarantee that I’d fightto get it in the right places.”Ginn appears to have a wellplanned series of ideas for herproposed term as a full timeexecutive officer. ‘There are alot of great charities locally thatwe could perhaps make betterconnections with,’ she said,highlighting that the campus isoften isolated from the widerworld.An attention to detail wasevident in her examples. ‘I findit surprising we have a counsellingservice that does group sessionsand doesn’t do anythingfor self harm considering thenumber of students on campusthat have issues with self harm,’Ginn commented. She statedthat in a similar vein, eatingdisorders and other areas couldbenefit. “People don’t necessarilywant to be told what to dobut would get support from beingaround other people.”On the EWD representationat a student level, Ginn drewon her own JCR experienceand stated that she’d “love tosee an international officer inevery college,” but recognisedthat it has to be called for. ‘Ifthe international officer existspurely because Union Councilor whoever has mandated it, itwill never be successful becausethere won’t be the support behindit’.Ginn noted that one of heraims is to achieve better communicationacross the university.She feels that there is a lotof scope for better multi-faithand inter-faith representation,not necessarily an officer positionbut a point of contact to airissues and views.Issues with the ChaplaincyCentre would be one suchgrounding for a unified voice.Admitting that although nowany redevelopment is two yearsaway Ginn did state that it isunfair to have poor facilities forfaith practice. It’s “not a societyor activity in that sense […] butthis is a part of them, intrinsicallythem and their belief system.”Despite the delay, shesaid “that wouldn’t stop me tryingto fight for it.”Ginn not only wants to worklocally but is looking abroadtoo. She wants to work with theVP for Media and Communicationsto reach the satellite campusesthe university now has,even though a she appeared alittle vague on their locations.‘It’s important that they knowwhat’s going on over here’, sheargued, proposing simple ideaslike video linked hustings as astarting point.Ginn wants to work withthe VP for Academic Affairs ininvestigating different facultyintakes and asking questionsabout minority representation,citing her own experiences asthe sole woman in a chemistrycourse. Ginn said that shewould like to empower people,encourage them to study whatthey want, and run for whatthey want. An extension ofthis, she says, would be workingwith the VP for Finance, Events,Democracy and Societies in encouragingcertain groups to getinvolved.Ginn said her role would be‘trying to empower everyone,in all elections but especiallyin FTEO elections, to empowereveryone to be involved, getacross the point that they shouldbe involved and they can.’A key element that Ginn iskeen to express is that her backgroundin working with , andpersonal experience of, minoritiesand liberation will not bedetrimental to the other focusesof the remit. She stated that sheis a “facilitator, not a dictator”,and promised that “I will coverabsolutely anything and everythingas it’s required.”wITH a FIRM backgroundin student welfare roles, PeteMacmillan cited works inprogress as well as past experienceas elements he couldbring to the vice presidency.He defined the role as “a veryfine balancing act” between thethree areas, and acknowledgedthat to do well he couldn’t justrely on welfare experience. “Youneed to be clued up across theboard,” he said.Asked about ensuring welfarewas secure and available,Macmillan vehemently definedthe role as “looking after students,and if we can’t budget forthat then what should we budgetfor? That is the argument Iwould use time and again.”The welfare provision wascut severely in this year’s overallbudget. Since the budgetproposal at the end of the lastacademic year Macmillan hasstated several times that cuttingthe EWD budget is not agood idea. He commented thatstudents “need to be realisticand to appreciate cuts are beingmade across the board but ifthere’s going to be budget cutsI think it should be from otherareas.”asked about his proposedapproach to the equality side ofthe role, Macmillan homed inimmediately on women’s rights.He began by summarising that“for the past two years I’ve beento see the Vagina Monologues,and that seems to be the mainfocus of the equality side of it.”He continued to briefly citethe upcoming review of equalitypolicy, the single equality draftprogressing at the moment, asimportant and “a really goodwork in progress”.Addressing the idea of equalitystill, Macmillan asserted thatas someone who doesn’t identifyas LGBTQ he would still focusas intently on their proposals asother areas, stating all requestsneed to be ‘respected’ and facilitatedby the EWD remit.asked about the opennessof the role in comparison to thepast incarnation of Women’sOfficer, Macmillan stated thatif it was limited to only femalecandidacy it would “fly in theface of what the remit actuallyis. The title says equality and ifyou marginalise half the populationand say ‘no, you can’trun for that’ then it flies in theface of what the position standsfor.”He later settled on the argumentthat “I feel it has beenstrengthened, that it’s openedup to everyone, and that it isonly for the benefit of the students”.This year’s non-sabbaticalreview saw drastic changes tothe EWD part time officer count.Macmillan stated that, havingseen the resulting few monthsof work, he “would rather havefewer positions, but each one ofthose positions filled, than haveevery position under the sunpossible and only have a handfulof students run.”As VP EWD Macmillanwould favour broader roles,stating that too specific a set ofremits creates a lack of interestif officers have to fill the gaps induties they didn’t run for.The competition generatedfrom having fewer officersbrings out the best policies, inMacmillan’s opinion. He arguedthat “you learn from runningagainst each other,” alludingthat other candidates’ ideasmay come into play even if he isvoted into office.Representing faith groups,Macmillan hopes to address theincreasing demand for spaceto practice faith. Admittingthat with the Chaplaincy Centre‘there’s never going to bean overnight solution,’ he didargue that he’d want to reach alevel of solution within his termin office.Macmillan also brings largeinitiatives to the role rather thanmerely maintaining the statusquo. “Things like the internationalevent, I don’t see whythat couldn’t become a campuswide event in the same vein asFriday Fury or the chocolatefactory social.”Macmillan displays a keennessto work closely with otherVice Presidents for the benefitof the students, not onlywith regards to campus-wideevents. He claims there is a veryfine crossover with the VicePresident (Academic Affairs),particularly with tuition feesbeing a pressing issue for manystudents.Macmillan wants to leave therole having made a difference,claiming he’d be happy even ifhe could just think “I’ve madelife better in this one area.”

student comment and newsROBIN HUGHES FEELS thathe can be the voice of both undergraduatesand postgraduates.He thinks that this canbe done through co-curricularactivities, project grants for undergraduatesand highlightinga collaborative approach on thefees campaign.“Lancaster degrees are seenas important and a very goodachievement to have made, but[employers] are always lookingfor that extra something.I think there is a slight gapin more clearly academic opportunitiesfor people to go outand improve not only their personalstudent experience but alsohow employers perceive them assomeone who would be a creditto their organisation.”One of Hughes’ examples ofsuch academic opportunities wasto secure more project grants forundergraduates.“It’s a slight misunderstandingthat [project grants are] justfor postgraduates. The NationalScience Foundation, [for example],give about 300 grantsout a year for projects submittedto them by undergraduates.[These] are not students havingto take hours and hours out oftheir week to do another projectwhich might damage their degree,they’re things like workingwith current researchers, tutorsand postgraduates to give themresearch experience. Firstly, Ithink awareness is a big thing,not many people are aware thatthese opportunities are outthere. Secondly, I think supportis needed. For example if peoplecome in and say ‘I’m interestedin doing this’, how can I supportthem in putting together a decentproposition for an idea?”Hughes also believes a keyissue is the level of academiccontrol students have over theirdegrees.“At University Court it wasone of the topics noted upon byMichael [Payne] that studentsare becoming the navigator oftheir own degree. I’m not sayingthat they don’t have enoughbut I’m saying that the more andmore that they get can only be apositive thing. It’s a progressiontowards total student autonomyover their degree, we don’t wantto take it all the way though becauseit’s not something whichneeds to be at either extreme.”The ongoing ‘fees and funding’campaign has also seenHughes discussing students’ academicrights.“I think the fantastic thingabout the campaign so far hasbeen the amount of people wantingto get involved. I have beeninvolved from grassroots stufflike stuffing envelopes to activelygoing around lobbying academicsfor their support.”when pressed on the currentexperiment of fast-track, or twoyeardegrees, Hughes discussedlearning outside of the lecturetheatre.“I think it’s very important torecognise that learning doesn’tjust take place in the lecturetheatre. Most people who havebeen through a three year degreewill have learnt so much life experiencefrom the university lifestyle,cutting down a year on thatwould potentially damage theoverall learning.”Hughes is currently Presidentof the GSA and spent a stint onthe Furness JCR in his undergraduatedays, and some of hiswork can be seen today.“I rewrote the Furness constitutionand I was involvedwith writing the LUSU electionsby-laws. Part of this paved theway for electronic voting, goodfor Graduate College with manypeople living off campus. In addition,it changed hustings to bein the middle of the campaigningperiod rather than at the start ofit, which means that now in hustingspeople can ask questionsfrom, if I’m right, these responsesin SCAN, and from the campaigningslogans on my posters.”When it was noted that Hugheswould be only the second postgraduateto become a sabbatical/full time officer if elected, hementioned other facets of hiscampaign.“I went through all of the oldSCAN interviews and I cast mymind back to all the old hustingsthat I’ve been to and every candidatefor almost every positionsays how important postgraduateissues are and I think that I’min a fantastically lucky positionto be able to say: ‘yeah, they are’,and I’ve got a lot of experience inthat and I really want to be ableto use it. At the same time, I dowant to stress that I was an undergraduateso I’m trying to saythat I can represent everyone,not that I’m really good at representingone group.”DAVID PRESCOTT WANTS tobuild on the work already beingdone by Full Time Officers inLUSU, believing that he can doso by being more personal withstudents and improving communicationwith departments.“As a full time employee ofthe Students’ Union who is paidto be there representing people, Ilike to feel that I could contributesome time at least to e-mailingpeople to reassure them of [LU-SU’s] support [with] any problemsthey might be having.”Prescott applauded the ongoingwork training course repsand making people aware of theiracademic rights, and suggestedhe would like to improve thoseefforts.“I think [we need to] do whatwe can to encourage people toparticipate in [the course rep]system. you see that system andthink ‘that’s great, I’ve got academicrights’ and see the coursereps but we’re not quite puttingtwo and two together. The nextnatural step is to work on a seriesof posters, of flyering, of e-mails,feedback and events to try andencourage people to engage withthat as much as possible.”when pressed on his involvementin the ‘fees and funding’campaign, Prescott referencedhis time in the Furness JCR.“As Furness JCR President Iwas very involved, Michael Payneoversaw the strategic directionbut I certainly advocated it to mycollege and put in a lot of timeand energy getting people out tothe protests, making banners andthings myself. That’s somethingwhich I think has been, thus far,an excellent campaign.”Prescott commented on theongoing development on campus.“There are areas of campus,for example the Learning Zone,which could be said to be in someways just ‘bling’. Don’t get mewrong, it’s a very useful servicethat they’re providing there. I’mnot criticising necessarily theway the University spends money;they spend a lot of money onattracting overseas students tothe Management School which isobviously a very lucrative marketfor them.”When pressed further on thefinancial direction of the University,Prescott suggested thatall students should be treatedequally.15FULL TiME ExECUTiVE oFFiCER ELECTioNS 2010“If there’s going to be morerestructuring to the University’sfinances, which is inevitablegiven the cuts across the highereducation sector, it’s importantthat we make sure that the provisionof services to students is fairand equal across the board andthat certain departments andcertain students in departmentsaren’t getting more because theuniversity sees their departmentas more profitable.”Prescott also mentioned thathe had had his “fair share of academicproblems”, especially inhis first year, and suggested someadvice he would give to his firstyear self.“I would want to make my oldself aware that there was someonethere who could support mebecause, as a first year student,I felt very isolated. Like manystudents I was away from homefor the first time and didn’t reallyhave a grip on how to organisethings like my own study.”In addition, Prescott proposedthat he would like betterlinks with specific departments.“Obviously there are structuresin place for students dealingwith problems with the departmentsbut as the VP (AcademicAffairs) I would see it as my positionto encourage departmentsto co-operate with students andto try and support students whoare having trouble with departments.I would definitely take apersonal interest in that.”when questioned aboutPolicy Exchange’s recent reviewwhich suggested higher tuitionfees and the scrapping of interestfree government loans, Prescottrecommended a mature viewpointon the subject.“I think the important thingthat we can do as student representativesis to engage in thedebates fully rather than writeoff any ideas before they’ve hadan opportunity to be discussed. Ifwe can’t take a mature stance onthings then our position’s nevergoing to be credible anyway.”Prescott concluded that studentsat Lancaster required moreof a helping hand when it came tograduate employment.“I think we need to tell peopleas they arrive at university that ifthey don’t start looking to makegraduate plans then their investmentat university isn’t going tobring as much fruit as it wouldotherwise.”PAUL LYNCH WANTS morefrom CEEC, simpler applicationsfor funding and cooperativetalks with the ViceChancellor.“First and foremost we are avery good University and that’swhy a lot of high calibre peoplecome here. I do think that onearea that we are let down in isCEEC; we don’t have as goodan employability record [as]we should have.”Lynch believes that achievinga channel of communicationwith the Vice Chancelloris key to solving the big issuesaround campus.“I think you’ve actually gotto go up to him and say ‘Paul,we are working together onthis. We want to make theuniversity the best it can be,but we need to work togetherrather than fighting over a lotof issues.’ I’m still saying weshould be strong on some issues,for example tuition fees,but I think we should try andwork together closer on areasthat we agree on. LUSU and theUniversity both want higherfunding for postgraduates andresearch students so we shouldtalk to them about it.”Lynch also believes thatmaintaining visibility aroundcampus is something that FullTime Officers should be lookingto do throughout their tenure.“The Sabbs have to keep upappearances at social eventslike comedy nights etc, tryingnot to look like ‘campus celebrities’and instead like peoplewho are students taking timeoff to do a job. I don’t thinkthere are that many averagestudents who are fully awareof everything that LUSU does,I think we need to be morepersonal to get them to understandit.”When questioned on howhe believes the Union functions,Lynch said he would liketo see a group of people helpingaround the Full Time Officerteam, much like in JCRs.“you don’t have to simplyhold a title to help out in theunion. you can help on campaigns,as people have donemassively in the ‘fees and funding’campaign. I think whatneeds to be done over the nextfew years is to get people to understandwho these [officers]are and what they can do andget people more involved.”When pressed further onthe ‘fees and funding’ campaign,Lynch described his involvementthus far.“I’ve been helping out withthe postering around campus,I’ve been helping out preparingbefore protests getting signsready, getting people actuallyinvolved, trying to talk peopledown. I’ve tried to explain inreal terms how this is important.Sometimes, people don’tgrasp what our campaigns areabout, but you make it real tothem. For example, you say‘raising tuition fees won’t affectyou directly, but it raises theamount of interest you’ll payon your student loans whichwill massively affect you.’”Lynch also described himselfas the ideal candidate tosimplify ‘bureaucratic nightmares’such as the access toLearning Fund (ALF).“I understand why there’sso many safeguards around theaLF because obviously it’s a lotof money that they can offerand it shouldn’t be abused, itshould be kept for the people.Saying that, I know quite a fewpeople who have had to use theALF, who have been stuck forweeks without hearing anything,who have filled in everypersonal detail on the ninepageform and handed it in,only to find out that it can’t beprocessed because of one otherpiece of information it isn’tclear that you need. I think theinstructions on the aLF need tobe cleared up and more peopleneed to be made aware of it andhow it can help them.”When pressed on how heplanned to improve graduateemployment and salariesfor students from Lancaster,Lynch stated that undergraduatesneeded more opportunitiesto meet future employers.“we need to get more andmore companies coming in,and get more people on thingslike the Lancaster award, whichis backed by a whole host of toplevel companies to make peoplemore employable. Basicallywhat I’m saying is that we needto raise profile and we need toget more top-level companiescoming here and actually takingus seriously as a University.”Vice-President (Academic Affairs)Robin HughesCollegeGraduateDegree subjectinternational Relations & LawProposerSarah Taylor (Graduate)SeconderClaire dixon (Furness)David PrescottCollegeFurnessDegree subjectEnglish LiteratureProposerPhilip Greaves (Furness)SeconderBen Wells (Furness)Paul LynchCollegeGrizedaleDegree subjectHistory and international RelationsProposerJessica Horsfield (Cartmel)SeconderChloe Themistocleous (County)

SEG Presents:Thursday 25 th FebruaryComedy Clubin CartmelLuke McQueen,Joe Bor &Christian ReillyBarker House Farm£3 with Purple Card / £5 withoutBar Snacks Available

student comment and news17CoMMENTForeign language posters enhance thestudent experience for all culturesLiam KayComment EditorMichael PayneLUSU PresidentThe university’sreputation continuesto grow despiteinternational andpostgraduateapplications failingto reach strategictargetsThose who claim they are alienating and offensive arenarrow minded in their view of community cohesionJ’écris ce message pour ceuxqui croient que l’universitéest un endroit où la liberté dela parole et la tolération sontliées à notre capacité de l’interactionavec des autres cultures et des nationalités.A l’université, les languesétrangères montrent la vie autonome,alors on doit les utiliser plus souventafin d’enseigner tout le monde des vieset des fois différentes.Did you understand that? If youdid, hopefully you will agree with thesentiments involved and agree withthe principle that the right to freedomof expression is one that we, as a community,must hold dear. As a universitywe are entitled to communicate as wedesire and can therefore choose whicheverlanguage we feel is necessary topublicise our views outside of the constraintsof the lecture theatre.I am, of course, commenting on aparticular issue that has cropped upin recent weeks; that is the existenceof foreign language advertisementson campus. It has been argued that,amongst the many claims put forwardby detractors, that they raise racialtensions, damage community cohesionand are alienating and offensive.However, these issues fail to take intoaccount many counter-examples andcounter-arguments that oppose theirhackneyed and tired conclusions.Firstly, the idea that a simple postercan be both alienating and offensiveis ridiculous. Do these people watchforeign films and feel that they cannotenjoy the experience? Advertisementsin another language can be comfortingfor students who may be thousands ofmiles away from their homeland, comparableto the British signs that littersouthern Spain to cater for the BritishA glimpse into the future: LancasterUniversity a year from nowWho would have thoughtthat the academic year2010-2011 would beone of the most challengingyet most fruitful for LancasterUniversity and its respective Students’Union in decades. It started, after all,with a mostly ordinary freshers’ week,apart from serious delays to the AlexandraSquare rejuvenation scheme. InOctober everything pointed to anotheryear of battles over college autonomyand steady progress by the Students’Union in re-inventing itself and buildingits relevancy to its members.The recent General Election beganto spell difficulty for the Labour partywho were re-elected with a narrow marginand now faced a political nightmareof needing to further invest in HigherEducation, in order to satisfy their campaignslogan ‘a future fair for all’, whilstat the same time facing national backlashfrom students and political opponents,all unwilling to support calls forhigher fees being levied on students.Buoyed by the national recognitionof their Vice-Chancellor and leading researchLancaster continued to climb thecommunity and tourist industry there.There is no harm in aiming a poster atforeign students, to try and make themfeel accepted and to allow them to expressthemselves as they wish to withoutthe fear of repercussions. Campusallows for this safe haven; it allowsthem to feel secure about who theyare and where they come from. This ishardly the “alienating” and “offensive”tracts that some have claimed and tomake these arguments is a testament toboth ignorance and a lack of empathyfor the wellbeing of others.The idea that the existence of foreignlanguages can damage social cohesionis a fallacy. Surely forcing a subsectionof society on campus to communicatein English, even in issues that havenothing to do whatsoever with the university,is in itself damaging to socialcohesion on campus? Students havethe right to be able to communicate inany way that they want with other individuals;outside of lectures the ideathat someone should be forced to speaka certain language, poster in a certainlanguage and have meetings in a certainlanguage undermines the universityexperience. If we cannot tolerateother ways of life here where can we besure that they will be tolerated?We should look to embrace the differentculture, languages and peoplethat exist at this university and shouldfeel proud that we produce such awarm friendly atmosphere for incominginternational students. It is a testamentto campus that so many lifestylesare not only tolerated but actively encouraged.In this case, it seems that asmall minority wish to challenge thelegitimacy of these views and the socialcohesion on campus; ironically underminingthe very concepts that theyleague tables and build on its nationalreputation as a leading university in theUk. But all the gloss and publicity wasnot enough to hide the dissatisfaction ofinternational students and postgraduatesas they continued to be recognisedonly as a buoyancy aid in the financialcrisis rather than as valued members ofthe community. Further investment inacademic representation and diversityin LUSU meant unrelenting pressurebuilt on the university to deliver a trulyinternational experience but yet againaspiration failed to be met by action.After a marginal victory in Roses atLancaster a couple of months earlier inMay 2010, the Students’ Union againtussled to provide real political power,influence and leadership to the evergrowing area of LUSU Activities – theSabbatical Review of 2008 was returnedto and the ground was prepared for a debatefocussing solely on the issue of VPSports vs. or VP Student Opportunitiesas a new role. After numerous SCAN articleswere published, several Facebookcampaign groups were established anda general meeting was called to discussthe matter - a coalition of JCR Exec officersand LUSU society members, unusuallysupported and led by a maverickbut principled current Vice PresidentSports won the argument.Elsewhere in LUSU the Sugarhousebenefited from a successful first termafter undivided support from all JCRs,including the PGSA, who had finallyfound its place as a leading proponentfor the recognition of postgraduates inevery aspect of the student experience.a resurgent Cuba managed to poachsmall amounts of custom but struggledfinancially, meanwhile the Sugarhouseresponded with an unprecedented programmeof events – totally devised byLUSU’s Socials & Events Group.With the true impact of cuts to HigherEducation beginning to be felt by Lancasterand talks of cuts to twenty-fourhour portering services across campusand further reorganisation of the managementof college bars (including a cutto the number of licensees) taking frontpage in SCAN, senior officers of theuniversity were now tussling with discontentedstudents and staff. Talk andcredibly sourced rumours of the currentlong serving vice-Chancellor and seniorclaim to support. Is it really an issuethat damages race relations, either oncampus or in wider society? It is not.The idea that we should dismantle ourideas on freedom of communication inorder to attend to the paranoid ramblingsof a select few is both lunacy anda gross misrepresentation of the issuesat hand.This is a message for all you who feelthat your university is a place wherefreedom of expression and tolerationare intrinsically connected with ourability to interact with other culturesand nationalities. Foreign languages oncampus are an example of autonomousliving and should be not only allowedbut encouraged as a way of educatingpeople of different ways of life and differentbelief systems. It would be a sadday if these ideas were removed dueto ill-informed fear and suspicion bya small sub-section of those who comehere for an education. Surely, allowingthe promotion of foreign languages oncampus is at least remaining true to ourpurpose here at university; to learn, experienceand participate in differentlifestyles. I for one see this as a positive.It is a shame some do not.members leaving for pastures new beganto spread quickly around campus.Late in lent term the Library plannedto move towards 24 hour opening afterthe phenomenal success of its trial periodof longer opening hours in Summerterm 2010. The University librarian wasrevered by the students as a return to the‘old school’; reminiscent of the foundersof the university, truly recognising thebenefits of building consensus and coalition,with respect to tradition.as the year came to a close Lancasterbeat York for a second consecutive yearat Roses. Postgraduate and oversees admissionsfailed to meet strategic targetsand spelt a turbulent short-term futurefor Lancaster. And as the nominationsboard opened for the election of LUSUFull Time Officers – shockwaves reverberatedacross campus as four candidatesstood for LUSU President; twoof which were former JCR Presidents,one of which was a current Full TimeOfficer. All of this taking place as the institutionreeled from the announcementthat their current Vice Chancellor wasmoving onto a new and more nationallyrecognised role.

18 scan.lusu.co.ukCoMMENTHousing horror stories difficultto sweep under the carpetwe mustremember the costof the drug tradeMichael IndianTom Leachhe traditionalarties areeturning toong forgottenonstituencies toombat the rise ofxtremismLandlords would do well to recognise the concerns ofstudents during a period when it is getting harder andharder to secure a place to live in Lancasterccommodation represents afundamental concern at theforefront of every student’smind. From the first roomn halls to the tentative steps of houseunting, vast amounts of time, energynd concern are given over to the issuef living arrangements. If an Englishan’shome is his castle, then a stuent’sroom should be a palace.At Lancaster we can, in many ways,e proud of the living arrangementsvailable to the student body. Recentears have seen massive investments inodernising campus accommodation.n addition, having a city voted the safstfor university students in the counryprovides a suitable attraction for thendependence of off campus living.However, the distinct needs of bothreas must be addressed. In my secondear, LUSU Housing offered a chance toample a different side of Lancaster livng,whilst still maintaining a strong linknd presence to campus. who better torotect my interests, than housing proidedby a university affiliated body?Yet one finds that ‘horror stories’bound. A house left uncleaned, reekingf stale cigarette smoke and covered inust. Another tale is of gasman breakinga stand on an oven and causingcarbon monoxide poisoning. Problemswith internet connections are a frequentcomplaint, and also those of a generalindifference of staff. With accounts likethese, is LUSU Housing even worthbothering with?Let me answer that with a steadfastyes. My own experience with LUSUThe BNP are shaking up our electoralsystem for the betterThe BNP are good for Britain.Fear not, I am no racist orfascist sympathiser, in factI’m rather liberal. But I see asilver lining to their presence in Britishpolitics. I would go as far as to say theirpresence is actually a good thing.First let us consider how much of athreat the BNP really are. State of theNation poll in 2004 found that 76%of the electorate claimed they ‘couldnever vote BNP’, not even as a protest.The BNP’s support is concentrated instrongly working class constituencieswhich are almost always safe Labourseats. Even if somehow the BNP wona seat in Parliament their influencewould still be nonexistent as their MPwould be just one person out of 646other members, and they would beheavily marginalised for being extremist.The BNP has been sexed up by themedia to a degree that would makeRussell Brand proud.So relax; the Uk isn’t on the brink ofadopting fascism. We can continue toenjoy the thrills of capitalism, like Starbucksand constant unemployment, foryears to come. So this is why the BNP isgood for British politics:Our electoral system (often calledFirst-Past-the-Post), where each constituencyelects an MP and the partywith the most MPs wins, means thatelections are fought in just a handful ofHousing was mostly smooth, contributingto a positive and different aspect ofmy second year at this university. This isnot to say that there were not issues, butmost of these problems were minor andcan be attributed to the landlord, whohad recently renovated our property.Every time a concern was raised withLUSU Housing it was promptly andsatisfactorily handled. In addition, theinclusive bills option in the rent savedcomplexity arising from a “pay as yougo” approach.This is not to serve as a sermon to allthose who voice concerns about the stateof off-campus lodgings. All examplesoutlined above are real and relevant,justifiably warranting cause for concern.It is must be remembered though,that this must not be turned into a witchhunt. I believe, as I think most who wereinterviewed for this piece do as well, thatthe staff, at times, have to perform a difficultjob under difficult circumstances,often in the face of rather prickly people.Let us therefore return to the core of thematter and identify some of the commonconcerns that have arisen.Firstly, the cleanliness of a house.The condition of the property at the timeof the previous tenants vacating shouldseats. One of the major flaws of First-Past-the-Post is that the major partiesonly focus their attention on a tinyamount of seats (and thus minusculenumber of people) during an election.This is because there are only a fewseats that can actually be won (or lost)by a party, and what’s more is that theseseats tend to be middle class areas, likeLancaster for instance. The places thathave the worst problems in Britain, likeDagenham or Barking, simply don’t geta look in at elections. This is becauseLabour are completely safe in theseseats and so can afford to write themoff as a guaranteed win, and focus theircampaign somewhere else. Dagenhamfor instance has had only LabourMP’s since World War II, in fact oneMP held the seat for a record 48 years.Since their creation Labour have had anear monopoly over the working classvote. Yet since the early 1980’s it hasbecome undeniable that a party cannotrely on the working class alone to winelections; under kinnock, then Smith ,then Blair, the Labour party shifted itspolicies to match ‘middle England’ andthe winnable seats, consequently leftwing promises were shown the door.But is there potential for this nowchanging? For the first time sinceWorld War II, Labour are being challenged(at local and European level atleast) in their traditional heartlands.be of an acceptable standard for the incomingones. Should this fail to be so,then LUSU Housing must be aware ofthis by undertaking a thorough inspectionbefore the beginning of the lease,extracting any cost from the offendingpredecessors.Secondly, internet connectivityemerges as a common complaint. Awayfrom the buzz of campus life, this representsone of the fundamental aspectsof a student house, and a considerableconsideration in the choice of the propertyrented. Should the internet be unavailablefor any reason upon the arrivalsof new tenants, then they should bemade aware. Instead they are often leftto discover it for themselves.The most important point comeswith the occurrence of events like the‘horror stories’ described above. Theseshould not serve as cautionary talesor be described as isolated events, butrather signs of larger significance. Withthe housing shortage for 2010/11, LUSUHousing must realise its job is not done.Lacking their own supply, they mustdirect students to alternative landlordsand advise those who wish to have the“off-campus” experience in what will bea difficult year to do so.The BNP are focusing their attentionon, and winning the support of, thetowns that the other parties were forcedto forget. There is some evidence thatLabour may be once again returningits focus to the towns which need it themost; prominent Labour MP’s HarrietHarman and Jon Cruddas have bothcalled for a need to start combating theBNP in elections. In the Glasgow NorthEast by-election of November last year,all the parties made a notable effort intheir campaigns to directly address theBNP issue. The looming General Electiontoo will surely see added focus onplaces like Dagenham, Burnley andHumberside, if not by the parties thencertainly by the media, places whichwould never have received a secondthought from the parties before the riseof the BNP.I know that it is hard to acceptthat those awful people in the BNPare achieving something positive forthe country, but it’s a bit like supportingEngland in this upcoming worldCup; we know they’re all promiscuousdouche bags with more money than thewhole of Iceland, but nonetheless comesummer they’ll be our national heroes.I’m not saying let’s make the BNP ournational heroes, but next time you seeon the news that the BNP have madeanother gain, maybe think that it’s notthe worst thing in the world.as students seek legalhighs, a war is being foughtacross the globe costingmany people their liveswrites Emily RobertsonDrug abuse made the headlineslast week after Lancastrianswere arrestedat The Sugarhouse, andnews of it seemed to shock campus.But it did not shock me; governmentstatistics state that a quarter of all 16-29 year olds have taken drugs at somepoint in their life and those are justthe illegal ones. ‘Legal highs’ such asMephedrone, which the clubbers werebelieved to have been caught with, isthe new ‘it’ drug, slowly becomingmore popular in youth culture due toit being relatively cheap price tag andcurrently legal status. However legaldoes not mean safe and it is time tolook into the long term effects whenusing this drug. Not only are you riskingyour health but also your reputationand your chances at success.Three hard years of working for yourdegree are futile if you have a criminalrecord; you only need to get caughtonce and it has all gone to waste.However we are all adults here,we have been lectured time and againabout the dangers of drug abuse andthe papers are crammed with campaignsto make legal highs illegalhighs; whether to take drugs or not isyour decision, your body, your health,your career, you’re not harming anybodyelse. wrong. a recent BBC documentarydelved into the secret worldof drug culture, not that of trendyyoung people in swanky clubs andstudents wanting live it up whilst atuniversity. They looked at those whowant nothing to do with drugs; theydon’t want to experiment, they don’twant escapism, they want a peacefullife free from drugs and violence.The programme was based inMexican towns along the border tothe USA, a prime spot for importingdrugs to people not too dissimilarto us, and revealed the truly shockingtruth of the lives for the innocentpeople who lived there. Drug usageby people just like us is causing hundredsto go missing every year, kidnappedand held to random but thosewho control the trade. Drug use inthis country is causing people to bebrutality murdered. The most shockingeffects of drug abuse was seenin the case of a local the show aptlycalled the ‘stew-maker’ for his horrificmethod of disposing the bodiesof those butchered in vats of acid soas they could be simply washed away;or the case of a seven young old boycallously shot in the chest and face topay for his fathers involvement in thetrade. and all this so students can geta quick thrill; these are not the sideeffects we think of in relation to drugtaking.So next time you’re tempted bydrugs, it may not affect your healthand you may not be caught, but youare causing these people to live inmisery, living a life where death is aneveryday occurrence, where children’sonly choice is to become involved inthe drug trade or die.

student comment and news19CoMMENTPrinting costshitting hardDavid GuyLicense fee criticswould do wellto realise thatour nationalbroadcaster is theenvy of the worldThe BBC is something thiscountry should be proud ofThe licence fee debate is ragingonce more after it wasrevealed that the compulsorytax is being used to fundmassive salaries for just a few individuals.In a recent admission, the BBChas said that 6.4% of the annual feeis being spent on its highest earningstaff and stars. As one of the corporation’sbiggest faces, Newsnight’s JeremyPaxman reportedly earns £1m ayear; Top Gear star Jeremy Clarksonearns £2m per year, while JonathanRoss’s salary, at £6m, takes upnearly 3 percent of the entire ‘talentbudget’. In 2006, it was revealed thathe earned £10,000 for every show hepresented for Radio 2.These astronomical figures haveraised further questions about thelegitimacy of the fee. Rob Godfrey, ofthe Campaign to abolish the Licencefee, considers it unfair for a numberof reasons. For one, it is not meanstested so the fewer members a householdhas, the more the individual hasto pay. He also points towards the factthat even if you don’t watch the BBC,you are still forced to pay the licencefee. Those against the fee propose eitherits complete scrappage or a bigreduction in its cost.But many other European countrieshave licence fees at a similarcost, but do not have anything likeour BBC. The BBC may not offer lifesaving treatment or defend us againstterrorism, but it does provide us witha solid source of entertainment, informationand education. And, as a nationalinstitution, we seem to regardit with fondness and respect. Theyare, instinctively, the first broadcasterwe turn to when a major event happens.The BBC always receives anoverwhelming share of viewing figuresduring events such as 9/11 andthe funeral of Princess Diana. On July7th 2005, over 1 billion hits were receivedon their news website. They arealso the official broadcasters of otherBritish institutions, such as RemembranceSunday, the Grand Nationaland the National Lottery.They are, by far, the biggest andmost respected broadcaster in theworld. Without the massive size of theBeeb, their news gathering capabilitieswould be undermined and qualitywould suffer. As the word’s leadingbroadcaster, they have correspondentsin every corner of the globe andcan be on the scene, anywhere in theworld, within hours. The BBC continuesto produce the highest qualityprogrammes and radio, without thepursuit of profit. No other broadcasteris able to match them for things suchas wildlife documentaries.The huge budgets mean that theyare able to take the time to gather thevery best shots, using the very bestequipment. Importantly, the licencefee enables minority and specialistprogramming to be made and broadcast.If the BBC had to rely solelyon advertising, then they would beunable to make a high quality programme,knowing that only a handfulof people would watch it.Radio 1 also serves to promote noncommercial, upcoming and minoritymusic, with authoritative figures presenting,like Westwood, Mary AnneHobbs and Annie Mac. If a list ofthe best British comedies was drawnup, then it would be overwhelminglymade up of those made by the BBC.Blackadder, Only Fools and Horses,Alan Partridge and Gavin and Staceywould not exist if the licence fee didnot. Nor would Doctor Who, Top Gearor Eastenders. As the oldest, largestand most respected broadcaster inthe world, the BBC is worthy of its licencefee. Without a publicly fundedbroadcaster, there would be greaterfinancial pressure on the Beeb to appealto advertisers and consequentlywater down their programming. Itmay seem to the layman to be legalisedrobbery, but without the licensefee, the past 70 years of British entertainmentwould surely have been farworse.Why do tuition feesnot pay for demands ofprinting coursework, writesTolulope OpeniyiThere are many printers spreadall over campus in the libraryand the computer laboratories.Students are charged 5pper page to print an A4 sheet of paper,while a coloured A4 page costs 14p.Most of the printing needs for studentsare coursework related.There are a few issues that have tobe raised about the printing policiesat this university. Why do we have topay to print our university courseworkwhen we have paid a lot of money forour tuition fees? This isn’t fair whenyou consider how our degree dependspartly on the coursework submitted. Isour printing policy green? Why are wegiven so little initial printing credit atthe beginning of our degree and why isit just for first years? Surely this cannotbe considered sufficient by the universityand its staff and it most certainlyisn’t.There has been a lot of talk abouttuition fees recently. One of the issuespointed out is if we are really gettingvalue for the money that we are paying.an average student pays in the regionof £3000 in tuition fees each year. Thetuition fees for international studentsare astronomical and next year internationalstudents studying band 3courses would pay as much as £13,060in tuition fees. If we are paying thismuch money, why should we pay forprinting?The coursework given to students ispart and parcel of their education andit is immoral to ask students to pay toprint their coursework. There are manyoccasions when students have a lot oflengthy essays to write and spend a lotof money printing them. Students whohave dissertations to do have a lot ofpages to print and may even have toprint it multiple times. Postgraduatestudents especially have a lot of printingto do. It is not rare to find studentsoften rounding up their courseworkjust in time and unable to hand it inpromptly just because they have insufficientprinting credit.If we are really practicing a genuinegreen policy in Lancaster, we needto reduce the amount of printing wedo. Lecturers are the worst offendersand print excessively. why shouldthey be allowed to do this when theycan always make PowerPoint slidesor verbal presentations? Even if a lecturerneeds to write out notes, he cando that on his PowerPoint slide. It isnot compulsory that students shouldprint their coursework. It is possiblethat coursework can be submitted byemail or on LUvLE.When students start their degree,they are given £2.16 free credit to startoff on their academic journey. This isnot enough to cater for the printingneeds of students. The initial printingcredit should also be given to studentsat the beginning of their second andthird year. It is also possible that foreach piece of coursework that studentsreceive, money is added to theirprinting credit. If students are to geta fair return for the money they pay,printing costs must be reduced accordingly.

20 scan.lusu.co.ukLETTERSLetters to theEditorSend your letters to scan@lancaster.ac.uk together with your name and college (even if you would like your letter printedanonymously). SCAN reserves the right to edit your letters for publication.ManagementSchool has moremoney than senseDear Sir,I’m writing in agreement with Liamay’s article in the last edition of SCAN.t is true that the Management School isver funded. Why do they need so manyat screen televisions in their lobby iseyond me. as a history student it isarticularly painful as we merely havefloor in Furness and as a result myectures and seminars are strewn acrossampus (with the exception of the MangementSchool which seems not topen its doors to other disciplines). Iould well understand if managementas a science and required expensivequipment but it does not. Hopefully,n the future funds will be more equallyispersed so the library can have enoughooks, otherwise I am tempted to sugestthat those televisions could be usedo fill the gaps in the ceiling in the hisorycorridor.Craig BarkerGrizedale CollegeDear Sir,I am writing to highlight a particuarlysensitive issue that has caught myttention of late. Whilst working outn the campus gym, I have noticed amall number of girls who appear to beignificantly underweight. By this I doot mean naturally very slender, buto painfully thin that they look scarilyaunt and don’t seem to fit their framenymore. I was compelled to write toCAN upon seeing a girl weighing herelf,the individual vertebrae in herpine were visible to me from the otheride of the gym.It concerns me hugely to think thatMephedrone storymisleading withthe factsDear SirI was glad to see that the news storyabout Mephedrone made the frontpage, once I began to read the articlehowever I was less than impressed. Thestory was littered with errors whichcould have been prevented had evena small amount of research been doneon the subject. To clarify, to date therehave been no recorded deaths in whichMephedrone has been establishedas the primary cause. Gabrielle Pricedied of natural causes, a point whichDr Measham and Dr Moore elaborateon in their paper on mephedrone, butwhich was left out of the article. Sadlythe whole article was a disappointment.I am currently doing my PhD onMephedrone and would like to talk toany of your readers who have experiencewith this substance. Confidentialityassured of course.Christopher Kayc.kay@lancaster.ac.ukthese girls’ excessive exercise habitsand weight loss are being facilitated byour gym. Gyms ought to be advocatinghealthy lifestyle and body image, notturning a blind eye to cases like those Ihave witnessed. Gym staff aren’t doctorsor counsellors but surely the rightthing to do would be to have a quietword with the people in question andpoint them in the direction of someonewho is equipped to offer help and support.On the other hand it could be arguedthat gyms, like other businesses,aren’t required to monitor the resultingoutcomes of their customers’health. Intervening could offend orLUSU should betackling rent risesnot just tuition feesDear SirHas LUSU forgotten recently that itis there to fight for its current studentsas well as those that come to Lancasterin the future? In all the rows and protestsover tuition fees, LUSU seems tohave forgotten about the issues of thestudents here now. For example, Cartmel’sresidence officer promised anincrease of 1.9% in housing costs nextyear, when it came to it though, we arefacing a 3.3% increase. Another crosscampusissue is the outrageous bills weare charged for repairs. Over Christmasmy flat was charged £7.50 to put somegaffa tape over a crack in our fire extinguisherbase! If LUSU wants studentsupport on their fight against risingtuition fees, they need to prove they dosomething to support issues that matterto us. Especially as these universitycosts are contributing to our debtsNatalie HookCartmel CollegeGym girls need guidance over weight issuesembarrass the gym-user and may notactually result in help being sought.Also, refusing the custom of severelyunderweight people won’t stop themexercising if they are determined to doso.Although I can offer no answersor solutions, this complex issue needsaddressing. Hopefully this letter willbring the issue to the attention of oursports centre and raise the question;should a gym be obligated to intervenewhen the well-being of its members isat risk?AnonymousLonsdale CollegeForeign languageposter issuerumbles onDear Sir,You couldn’t make it up, once againa storm of abuse from the looney-left.I eagerly open up this week’s copyof SCAN to be greeted by a mass ofnamby-pamby goings-on from the ‘PCbrigade’.Examples such as Fffion Mckeown’stirade of Celtic gobble-degook,its subsequent translation ineffect useless, as it only sought to confirmthe letter’s rambling nature.How strange that (she?) useswales and welsh language as an example.Many Welsh universities,such as Aberystwyth, amongst others,possess ‘Welsh language only’ halls ofresidence... can you imagine the outcryif such halls were set up purely forEnglish Speakers?I will still stand by the old saying‘When in Rome, do as the Romans’.Finally, how ironic that one of theletters should also use the premiseDear Sir,alex Harris’ article on alternativemedicine draws a black and white linebetween it and ‘real medicine’. Homeopathyis an easy target to go after.Acupuncture is very different, or soempirical evidence would imply. ThewHO has suggested that acupunctureis an effective treatment for at least 28conditions, and that there is evidencesuggesting efficacy in many more.Many herbal medicines, particularlyof free speech for an argument. Theyare hardly being tolerant towards theviews of others.AnonymousPendle CollegeDear Sir,I agree with Anonymous from Pendle,I also find that posters in Arabicare excluding me simply because i’mnot Arabic. I found the negative replies,using terms such as “bigotedidiot”, offensive. I think that freedomof speech should apply to everyone sothey can freely speak their opinionswithout receiving this sort of abuse.AnonymousFurness CollegeNo absolutes in world ofalternative medicineanti-depressants, have been proven tohave an effect beyond what could beexpected of mere placebo. These arecontentious claims requiring furtherresearch, as the WHO emphasises, butI do wonder which is more stupid: theidea that an ‘alternative therapy’ mightwork, or the idea that it absolutely cannotwork because it is not currently acceptedby all scientists.Mark GouldenFylde College20% OFF ALL MAIN COURSESTUESDAYS AND THURSDAY EVENINGSMain Rd, Galgate, Just off Jct 33 M6 Tel: 01524 751337 www.the-plough.co.uk

card.lusu.co.ukALL OFFERS OPEN TO PURPLECARDHOLDERS ONLY • T&Cs applyofferof theweekoffersweek 7VERDES GET ANY PIZZA OR PASTAPLUS A GLASS OF RED OR WHITEWINE FOR ONLY £4.95!thebigcompWIN SUNDAY LUNCH FOR UPTO 4 PEOPLE AT THE PLOUGH!TO ENTER SIMPLY EMAIL COMPETITIONS@LUSUMARKETING.COMAND ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTION:‘WHAT SPECIAL PURPLE CARD DISCOUNT DOTHE PLOUGH OFFER EVERY TUESDAY ANDTHURSDAY EVENING? 10%, 15% OR 20%’somethinga bitrandomMAKE SURE YOU INCLUDE YOUR FULL NAME, COLLEGE AND A CONTACTTELEPHONE NUMBER. THE COMPETITION CLOSES ON THURSDAY 25TH FEB 2010.SUNSEEKERSSUNBEDSGET A SPRAY TANFOR ONLY £10SUNDAY - WEDNESDAYTEL: 01524 383513MAMA MIA10% OFFEVERY WEEKDAYUNTIL 00.30AMTEL: 01524 542689DRIVEFOR LIFE25% OFFYOUR FIRST 4 HOURS TUITIONWWW.DR4LIFE.CO.UK

22 scan.lusu.co.ukFEATURESn Focus: One World WeekEducate, agitate and organiseavey GarlandNE WORLD WEEk, or Oww as itas now become known, arrives aroundeek 9 every year on university camusesacross the country, and is a wayor a diverse range of various causesnd issues to be raised on campus. Thedea is to provide a forum for people tongage with many of the social issuesffecting society today. This may be theure political, to the purely lifestyle, buthatever your inclination their will andhould be room for you to find a nicheomewhere where you can get involvedor just turn up, sit at the back and listen.As this week is organized by a crosssection of students and groups on campus,then as you can see from the timetablebelow, each day is quite full withspeakers, film shows, square installation,stalls and of course partying in thebars in the evening, all reflecting themany interests of those involved andthose represented at the university. Thisyear especially seems to want to embracediversity and inclusion with variousinternational and cultural eventsbeing organized towards the end of thatweek. Week 9 also seems to correspondwith a number of festivals for that weekA brief history of CNDJohn BassetTHE CND SIGN recently celebrated its0th birthday and still remains one ofhe most iconic symbols of social reistanceof our time. It has been usedy diverse movements including theivil Rights movement, the counterultureof the 1960s and 70s, the antiietnamprotests, the environmentalovement, women’s and gay rightsovements.The image was designed to stands a symbol of peaceful unilateral disrmamentin a time of grave fear ofuclear destruction, and its simplicitynd mass appeal soon helped to spreadhe message of CND. Shortly after itsormation in 1958, CND gained wideanging support, at a time when manyere turning away from traditional polticsto pursue a more radical agenda.he movement was made up of a broadange of different groups including scintists,religious leaders, academics,usicians, artists, Trade Unionists andmembers of the Labour/Liberal Parties,and remains as diverse today.Peace, as a concept, can be somewhatambiguous, meaning very differentthings to different people. To somepeace relates to security, to others nonviolentforms of conflict resolution.nternational Daythe Graduate Music festival on theThursday and Friday, and the Societiesfestival on the Saturday. The week actuallydoes kick off on Saturday of Week9 with speakers on Palestine and a bigparty in one of the bars.As there is still stuff to confirm, thenthe timetable is still opened to changeand can be found the OWW website,and large posters which will be in thecolleges. There will also be leaflets nearerthe events. Basically keep your eyesopen, but if you do have any one youwould like to speak at the university, orhave contacts with then do contact theOWW committee, which meets on everyWednesday at 4pm in the Chaplincy.Although some advocate nuclear weaponsas a deterrent to warfare, CNDbelieve a safe world without the use ofnuclear weapons as a deterrent is possible.Although most of us would neverexpect nuclear weapons to be used inour lifetime, CND believe that the veryexistence of such weapons poses anever present threat to humankind.In recent years CND has branchedout to include wider ranging issues intheir campaigning remit. They wereinstrumental in the protests againstthe Iraq war and currently oppose nuclearenergy through involvement inthe Don’t nuke the climate! campaign.They have also questioned and opposedthe use of Depleted Uranium weapons,that have been instrumental in causingGulf war syndrome and rising cancerrates in Iraq and the Balkans to neverbefore seen levels. However CND remaincommitted to the same peacefulcore values on which the movement isfounded and at such a turbulent time inhistory it is more important than everto wage peace not war - in the globalcommunity.The Railway ChildrenRachel McCarthyPeople and PlanetTHE INTERNATIONAL NGO RailwayChildren was founded in 1996, andruns grassroots partnering projectsworking with vulnerable children wholive on the streets in the Uk, East Africaand India. The charity emphasizesthe importance of early intervention,and aims to support runaway andhomeless children “before the streetsget to them”. Railway Children listensto the voice of oppressed and exploitedchildren, who are often discarded bysociety, highlighting and challengingthe root causes of poverty.The organisation has a three stepchange agenda; it aims to provide fortheir immediate needs, change localprejudices, and lobby Governments toprotect the rights of the bare-footedchildren.It is estimated that there are around11 million street children in India. Childrensleeping on the streets and are oftenabused, raped and tricked into takingintoxicating drugs by older youngpeople on the streets. Railway Childrenpartners projects which try to interveneearly on and prevent children becomingingrained in street life, throughproviding outreach workers and temporaryshelter accommodation.In the Uk, 100 000 children runaway,with 20 000 sleeping rough eachyear. Railway Children funds fiverefuge beds and nine projects whichwork directly with these runaways.Children run away because of violence,family breakdown, abuse and neglect.Whilst on the street, they face hunger,violence, drug use, sexual exploitationand serious harm. Railway Childrenrecognises a lack of front line servicesfor children who run away, and seeksto improve the lives and safeguard thevulnerable children.On Thursday night of One WorldWeek, we will be holding a fundraisinggig for this inspiring charity. Pleasecome to enjoy an evening of good musicand support a movement of committedindividuals, dedicated to building amore hopeful future for street childrenacross the world. (www.railwaychildren.org.uk).The issue of waterhafaq Khanounty JCR Exec OfficerRIDAY IN ONE world week celbratesthe recognition, acceptancend representation of diversity andhe many cultures that reside withinhe University. Internationalizationnd integration is a wide known issue,ot just amongst students, but alsoround the world. Miscommunicaion,language and cultural barriersnd general misunderstanding hasridged many a gap between our comunities,and one world week, alongith the students Union, intend onringing people from any and everyart of the world together under aingle forum to celebrate, rather thanhy or back away from difference andariety.The idea is for people to come forthand represent whatever aspect oftheir culture sets them apart, whetherit be their natural dress, their cuisine,dance, music or any trademark oftheir country or culture they may wishto portray for everyone to see and enjoy.There are so many societies forforeign students, so many socials andcampaign taking place, however, everythingseems to happen in its ownindividual, close knit group, and eventhough that may seem like the wholepoint of having a society, one worldweek and the Unions wishes everyoneto come forth and integrate, get toknow each other, share their culture,tradition and experiences, and standunited as a student body, rather thanmany groups in separate boxes, we allhave so much to offer, why not cometogether and share the national traitswe so proudly hold dear and showthem off for everyone to see!So, for diversity day, we hope tosee a variety of nationalities as wellas the local cultures and colours cometogether and colour the festivitieswith their uniqueness and specialitiesand to mingle and integrate and get toknow each other and have a good timedoing so.ONE IN EIGHT of the world’s populationdoes not have access to clean water,and over 2.5 billion people in theworld with no clean access to toilets,things we take for granted.The lack of water and sanitationin the world leads to around 2 milliondeaths a year and effects peopleslivelihoods, quality of life and health.Every day over 5000 children die fromdiarrhoeal diseases due to lack of cleanwater and sanitation, that’s five timesmore than HIv/aids related deaths.Health is not the only problem thatarises from lack of water, educationsuffers as well with children too ill togo to school, and girls not able to go toschool either because there are no toiletsor because they spend hours walkingeach day to collect water for theirfamily.Despite goals put in place by worldleaders in 2000 to ensure third worldcountries have cleaner water and toilets,there is a severe lack of politicalwill leaving predictions that the goalsare unlikely to be met before the 22ndcentury.It is a common misconception thatbottled water is safer than tap water, inBritain we are lucky enough to have aconstant supply of clean and safe waterwherever we go, and yet we spend,on average, £2 billion a year on bottledwater. Bottled water not only costs usa huge amount of money, but costs10,000 times more to produce than toget tap water.The plastic from water bottles cantake over 1000 years to biodegrade andto produce on bottle uses as much as7 bottles worth of water. Why not trygiving up buying bottled water and insteaddrink tap water.

student comment and news23FEATURESThe truth about Freaky FebruaryClare HazelaS wE SETTLE in for yet anothermonth of dreary winter, February, theshortest month in the year, seems tofly by. Unlike the other months whichstay at 30 and 31 days every year, Februaryseems small in comparison eventhough it receives an extra day onceevery four years. But why does Februaryhave 28 days? Why not January orMarch? And most importantly, what isthe significance behind February beingthe shortest month?The difficulties with creating an accuratecalendar spans back to Romantimes; the Romans discovered thatthe moon revolved around a 29 ¼ daycycle and the Sun a 365 ¼ day cycle.Both of these had to fall in sync withthe calendar in order for it to work effectively.The first attempt to resolvethis issue was devised by Romulus,founder of Rome; he devised a calendarwhich consisted of 10 months,which added up to a 304 day year,it is believed that there were no definedmonths between December andMarch, and this is likely to be due tothe winter months being unimportantto their harvests. as Romulus’ calendarwas 61 ¼ days of the sun’s yearlycycle, it was clear that his inventionrequired more work.Mysterious month: February has an interesting history in terms of its importance to the calendarIn an attempt to reach a greatersense of co-ordination between theNatural cycle of the sun and moon,and a calendar which the peoplewere to live by, the legend states thataround 700BC king Numa Pompiliusadded January and February, creatinga year consisting of 355 days. To makeup for the remainder of the days, Pompiliusdeveloped an extra ‘Intercalary’month known as Mercedonius, whichwould be added to the end of Februaryevery other year. January and Februarywere added to the end of the calendar,making them the last two monthsin the year, this continued until 450BCand the time of the Decemviri, and theappointment of ten men to work as acommission to write up Roman codesof law, implementing the Roman Republiccalendar which moved Januaryand February to the first and secondmonths.It was Julius Caesar, in 46BC whochose to ignore the lunar cycle and focusupon the 365 ¼ days of the sun.Caesar chose to remove the month ofMercedonius and instead arrange the12 months so that they added up to365 days, as February was the monthwhich Mercedonius was attached to, itwas chosen to have 28 days with theaddition of a 29th day every 4 years tomake up for the missing ¼ days, thiswas to become known as a leap year.So as another 28 days of Februarydraws to a close, we can look upon itsstriking difference from other months,and remember like other inventionssuch as Central heating, known as ahypocaust and aqueducts, the Juliancalendar, which we have added justa few minor alterations too, and stillremains a strong reminder of the Romanlegacy.Log My HouseOften when students move into private, off campusaccommodation they will be asked to pay a deposit.Protect yourself. ‘Log my house’ gives you the opportunity tostore photos of the condition of your property, your lease and acopy of your inventory. Send copies to us at:lusu.advice@lancaster.ac.ukIf and when you need them, we’ll be able to produce theinformation and support you in any dispute you may have with alandlord.For more information regarding accommodation please checkout our website, and if you have any further queries, please donot hesitate to contact us.

24 scan.lusu.co.ukFEATURESCareer Ladderae DibleyN THE FIRST of a series of careerrofiles to give students a windownto the sometimes very dauntingooking world of work, SCAN spokeo kevin Wignall- Lancaster alumnusnd author of novels including, Forhe Dogs and Who Is Conrad Hirst?-bout becoming a writer. The role of ariter can vary enormously and oftenequires links outside the immediateublishing sphere. kevin for exampleays he has a lot of involvement withhe film industry. Be aware that almostll authors are self-employed, there iso average salary, and often you willepend on a secondary income, at leastntil you have established a good repuationfor your writing.o Kevin, what subject did youtudy at Lancaster?studied Politics and International Relaions.ow would you say your timet Lancaster helped you in yourrofession?was a terrible student. The good newss, it’s simply being at university thatives you the right kind of background forecoming a writer, meeting new people,ouncing ideas off them, opening yourind, expanding your cultural horizons.h, I also set my second book, Among theDead, in Lancaster.What is the typical career pathfor an author?There isn’t one. You can work in publishingand that will help you make contacts,you can do an MA in Creative Writing andthat will help you find your voice. But inthe end, you have to sit down and writea novel that someone will want to buy.That’s what I did – I realized I’d beentalking about writing a book for too long,decided it was time and I finally did it.What advice would you giveto students at Lancaster whothink they might like to becomean author?Most people reading this are likely to bealmost too young to become a publishednovelists, and you’d still be considered ayoung novelist if you’ve been publishedby your mid-30s. So don’t rush in. Onthe other hand, time will eat itself onceyou graduate and before you know ityou’ll be in your retirement home, saying,“I always wanted to write a book”. Sotake the time to live a little, find yourvoice and a story worth telling, then geton and write it.Are there any resources yourecommend for would-bewriters?The web is awash with good advice nowand to some extent it’s a question ofsearching around for your specific areaof interest. www.thebookseller.com isa good place to learn about the industry.http://everyonewhosanyone.com/ is anodd site, created by a despairing writer,which gives you the websites and emailaddresses of many agents and publishers- use it to learn about the differentagencies but never email an agent directlyif you don’t know them. You could alsodo worse than to look at the “Writers andArtists Yearbook” (www.writersandartists.co.uk) as until 10 years ago it was prettymuch the only way of finding informationon agents and publishers and it’s still agreat resource [a copy of this is availablefor reference in CEEC].Next Time: SCAN speak to NevilleThurlbeck, editor of The News of TheWorld, on what it takes to be a journalist.Neville will also be holding a talk onJournalism this Friday (26th) in FaradayLecture Theatre at 11am.he cheap and easy way to detoxThe ‘Man Bag’Lauren AinscoughNo doubt many people, mostly guys, willread this title and immediately identify thestigma. The ‘man bag’. The ultimate dubiousaccessory that, in some people’s opinion,sits on the fringe of being either stylishfor men...or something that your girlfriendshould have on her arm, not yours. However,according to high-street manufacturerTopman, ‘man bags’ have apparently takenpride of place in mainstream male fashion,accredited for being both functional andfashionable. So, could it be said that malevanity in general is on the rise? Are men especiallynow more conscious of what theywear and their appearance, even perhaps tothe extent of wanting to look younger forlonger to the same degree as women?The Leading pharmacy chain Boots havelong been a haven of health and beautysupplies for women, but recently theirskin products have been given a masculinemakeover. ‘Protect and perfect anti-ageingserum’...for men. The packaging may havechanged, but the purpose remains the same.This is just one of many examples that suggestmen may be more easily succumbingto the image conscious consumer culture,something that has long been the drain ofthe woman’s purse. Besides, it’s not justfemale flavour of the month Cheryl Colegracing the pages of magazines any more.Male celebrities are also jumping on theendorsement bandwagon for promotingeverything from skin cream to hair colour.With the likes of Patrick Dempsey andMatthew Fox as the faces for L’Oreal’santi-ageing products for men, high expectationsto achieve the perfect ‘air-brushed’look now apply to both genders. So, is malevanity a hidden secret that most men won’tadmit to? Over-hyped media? To be honestguys, daily showers and a reasonable dresssense are enough to satisfy most women.Don’t bother with the make-up.aura Van Tatenhove is on a mission to revitalise the student lifestyle with healthy tips to get us through the winter bluesDON’T kNOW about you but I canotwait for spring! My body is wellnd truly ready for a bit of warmth (notrom sitting with my back against theadiator!), more light, less lying about,ewer layers and stodge free meals. Inact, if someone could just transporte to Sydney right now, where it isveraging about 26 degrees I would bene happy camper. Alas, no such joy.hat I do have however, are three veryimple and cheap ways in which I tryo give myself a bit of a late winter deoxand improve my energy levels. It’sll about giving my kidneys a bit of aoliday, helping them to function moreffectively which, in turn, lessens theoad on the excretory and lymphaticystems.The Kidneys: Masterhemist of the BodySitting quietly nestled under the ribage; the kidneys do the job of cleaninghe junk that we insist on piling intour systems. If we examine the side ofpacket of food and read that it has anyumber of messed up ingredients, thent is the kidney that will have to dealith most of the fall out. Caffeine, alcool,salt and sugar also have to be dealtith by the kidney on a regular basis,for some more than others!) includingonitoring salt and mineral levels, theegulation of body temperature and areart of the systems that address bloodpressure.Enough of the physiology….lets getdown to business. As I already statedour detox consists of three elements.They are water, beetroot and cranberry.Let’s start with the most important,water.WaterThere are some schools of thoughtthat suggest that the body doesn’t needto take in additional water other thanwhat our food contains. This might bethe case if we consumed foods as oursystem originally intended. Instead theaverage diet consists of high levels ofingredients likely to put stress on therenal system and the kidneys need allthe help they can get. water improvesthe functioning of the lymphatic andnervous system and helps rehydratethe body as it rids itself of toxins via thekidneys. The average recommendationis that everyone should drink at leasttwo litres of water a day. If this seemsinsurmountable start with 500 ml perday, taken in small quantities to avoidexcessive increase in urination.And in case any of you are thinkingthat other fluids might count as water,unfortunately they don’t. Tea and coffeeactually leach more water from thesystem as they act as a diuretic, andherbal teas, juice and squash are allidentified by the body as food and arethus metabolised differently.BeetrootThe use of beetroot as a cleanser forthe liver and kidneys is widespread andhas a very long history. It also providesa good source of anthocyanadins, a naturalantioxidant that contributes to itsdeep, red colour and it is particularlyrich in Vitamin C, calcium, phosphorusand iron. It has been used traditionallyas a blood building food for thousandsof years.Beetroots are rich in the nutrientbetaine. Betaine supplements, manufacturedas a by-product of sugar beetprocessing, are prescribed to lower potentiallytoxic levels of homocysteine,which can be harmful to blood vessels,thereby contributing to the developmentof heart disease, stroke and peripheralvascular disease.Beetroot is best taken raw wherepossible, grated or juiced and consumedin small quantities. Betacyaninin beetroot may cause red urine andfaeces in some people who are unableto break it down. This is called beeturiaand readers should be warned of thispossibility. It can otherwise be quite ashock to look into the toilet bowl!CranberriesCranberries are a source of polyphenolantioxidants, compounds that arecurrently under active research forpossible benefits to the cardiovascularsystem, immune system and as anticanceragents.Cranberry juice has been shownto help against formation of kidneystones. The tannins in cranberries haveanti-clotting properties and may reduceurinary tract infections. There are severalways of taking cranberry includingjuice, but several brands do contain eithersugar or aspartame as a sweetenerand these should be avoided. Concentratein tablet form is readily availableand easy to take.Just starting with these small additionsto your daily diet will give you abit of ‘spring’ in your step…just in timefor the daffodils!This month, the first to answer thefollowing question will receive a complimentaryreflexology session at TheNatural Health Care Centre.What gland sits just above the kidneys?Is it-:a) the adrenal glandb) the submandibular glandc) the salivary glandEmail your answers to scan.features@lusu.co.uk!Laura van Tatenhove is the BowenTherapist at the Natural Health CareCentre in the Chaplaincy Building onCampus. For more information visitthe Natural Health Care Centre link onthe Chaplaincy website.Please note that any informationgiven must not replace the advice fromyour doctor. If you are in any doubtabout your symptoms you must contactyour GP.

student comment and news25FEATURESMardi Gras mayhem for party revellersKristina BeanlandFLOUR, EGGS, MAPLE syrup and numerousamounts of pancake stuck toyour kitchen ceiling. This is how manyof us would have spent last Tuesday,otherwise known as Pancake Day.To be honest, a day where it is traditionto gorge yourself on a variety ofsickly sweet pancakes, each one moredrenched in lemon and sugar than thenext, is fine by me. But in this countrywe seem to be missing out on somethingeven more fun than stuffing ourgreedy faces. While we were busy eatingpancakes last week, elsewhere inthe world this pre-Lent festivity wascelebrated by one of the biggest partiesin the world – Mardi Gras. Andwhat an awesome party it really is.What started off years ago as a bit offun and merriment before the seriousbusiness of fasting for forty days andforty nights, has now turned into afully-fledged carnival. So if you let lastTuesday go by in a haze of batter andflour, here is your whistle stop tour ofinternational Mardi Gras celebrationsto see what you really missed out on.By far the most famous place forMardi Gras (or Fat Tuesday as it sobeautifully translates) is Rio in Brazil,the carnival capital of the world. Theidea of a Rio carnival conjures up imagesof sequins, feathers, ruffles, colourand whole lot of fun – and that’sbasically what Rio carnival is. Riotransforms itself into a rainbow of fun;from gorgeous costumes (or lack of)being shown off in colourful paradesand street parties, to the legendarySamba Parade where people danceand sing their way around the streetsof Rio. This is a party in the streets ofa sexy, fun and vibrant city, no wonderit’s seen as one of the best.If you didn’t think of Rio when youread the words Mardi Gras, then youwould have most definitely thoughtof New Orleans. The party here hasa three month build up that starts onTwelfth Night, and people patientlywait until early on Shrove Tuesdaywhen they take to the streets of NewOrleans’ French Quarter and partylike it’s… well, Mardi Gras. The NewOrleans’ celebrations are particularlyfamous for their parades, especiallythe Rex Parade. Rex is Latin for king,so the parade celebrates the king ofCarnival. This parade is responsiblefor creating the carnival’s theme tune,and its official colours – gold, purpleand green in case you were wondering.It also has a theme every year, drawnfrom the worlds of mythology and literature;this year the floats, bands, andRex’s loyal subjects were adorned inthe theme of ‘Fables of Fire and Flame’.New Orleans’ Mardi Gras also has thetraditions of The Throws. This is wherethe parades throw trinkets into thecrowds in answer to the traditional cryof ‘Throw me something, mister!’ MardiGras in New Orleans is scandalous,drunken and second to none.Europe also has its fair share of MardiGras celebrations – rightly so sincethe idea of Mardi Gras was originallyimported to the americas by Europeansettlers. Venice has one of the oldestand most luxurious festivals, each yearwith a more elaborate theme than thelast - this year’s was ‘Six Senses for SixDistricts’. The backdrop of such a romanticand beautiful city is also perfectfor the variety of balls and magnificentparties. However, if you’re planning ondoing a Mardi Gras in Venice next year,don’t even think about going anywherewithout a costume – you might as wellnot even bother going at all.From Venice, we go to France, thenation that gave us the gift of MardiGras in the first place. Nice is mostfamous for Mardi Gras there, whenthe city comes alive with light – Niceseems to become obsessed with fireworkdisplays and parades filled withcolourful lights.I have to be honest, after finding outabout all this fun and frivolity, I feelpretty let down that all I did on ShroveTuesday was eat a load of pancakes.Where exactly were our carnivals andparades? Next year I’m finding somesequins and popping on a plane, althoughI might treat myself to a fewpancakes on the way!

26STUdENT LiFESTYLETOPFIVEMp3 Player“And they shallhave musicwherever theygo” used to bethe old nurseryrhyme, who’d ofthought we’d takeit literally.Digital CameraThey say a picturepaints a thousandwords, and there’snothing quite likethat photo whichsums up a classicnight out or a flatbasedprank.GADGETS NOSTUDENTSHOULD LIVEWITHOUTWith the release of thenew iPad from Apple,we take a look at whatgadgets have becomenothing short of essentialin our livesMobile PhoneWhether its for the(occasional) call to yourparents, texting duringlectures or followingsocial networking, itseems that nobodycould live without theirmobile phone.USB Memory PenA whole new worldof storage that fitson your key ring, it’sabsolute genius.WHEN ASkED TO participate in atrial for catered accommodation earlierthis month, I did wonder whetherit was anything to do with views I hadexpressed in SCaN last term.Despite my protestations, theuniversity is ploughing ahead with ascheme to introduce blocks in fourcolleges (Cartmel, Lonsdale, Bowlandand County), which are reserved forthose who have bought into a cateringscheme. Personally, I think thismoney spinner is directedat the worried parentsof freshers joiningthe institutionin the autumn.adding anextra £1500onto rent forthose tied tothe scheme,it is incrediblypricey, especiallyconsideringthat manyfamilies have hadtheir pockets hithard by the recession.The meal times for theweek long trial were 8am-10amfor breakfast and 5pm-7pm fordinner. The timings will surely have tobe altered for September’s intake as nofirst year will be rising that early in themorning, particularly on a Thursdayafter a heavy night at the Carleton. Theevening times may have to be adjustedas well as many will be in lectures until6pm, leaving only an hour for them toschedule their meal time.The service itself was excellent. Thecatering staff were very attentive andhelpful each day. More staff will be requiredto man what will become verybusy periods. There were occasionswhen despite being half-empty, BarkerHouse Farm had tables with emptyplates left strewn about. Theuniversity will haveto fork out to ensurethat staffinglevels for thisinitiative aremaintained.In termsof food, thequality wasfar betterthan I havecome toexperiencefrom universitycateringoutlets. at dinner,three courseswere served with roastdinners, curries, and othertraditional foods on themenu. Pudding was always a treat withstaple favourites like bread and butterpudding on offer. My only complaintsabout the food are that there didn’tseem to be much in the way of healthyCampus iconsA glimpse into the life of Lancaster’s famous facesNAME: Ady GrayPROFESSION: LUSU Shop Senior RetailAssitant & Phd StudentSTARSIGN: Geminiscan.lusu.co.ukThe lowdown on cateredaccommodationSCAN Editor Liam Richardson got a taste of what isin store next year at a trial in Barker House FarmPhoto: Ben Robinsalternatives, or much thought given tomaking them as appealing as the fattyalternatives. Also, the food served willnot appeal to international studentswho may not be overly keen on traditionalBritish grub.Pricing is also an issue. £6.50 a dayis a lot for a meal despite the fact thatwhat was being provided was worth thecost. Not many students (takeawaysexcluded) would spend that much perday on food. This cost is made evenmore prohibitive when lunch is notprovided and no account is taken ofstudents who miss the scheduled mealtimes.Another factor to consider is rent.By using less energy cooking or storingfood in kitchens, utility bills will surelybe less, so will there be a reduction inrent for those who are opted into thescheme? Surely in the long term, newaccommodation blocks linked to cateringwill have smaller kitchens to correlatewith the decreasing need for spaceand facilities in this area.I think that the university is wise totrial such as scheme. Lancaster is rarein that most other institutions run suchan initiative. Unfortunately, less thannoble concerns are what have driventhis plan to be wheeled out in time forthe next academic year. This is yet anotherway for the university to hit thepockets of cash-strapped students andbring in much needed income for theuniversity’s depleted coffers.Game ConsoleBe it old school N64or top of the linePS3, nothing screams“stress relief” likeshooting up somebad guys or winning avirtual race against afl atmateWhat is your bestmemory of your time inLancaster?After nearly six years i haveso many but if i had to pickone it would be going out formy Masters graduation lastdecember with 10 people. iwalked onto the bus we hadorganised to take us to theCarleton to find 40 moreclapping and cheering me as asurprise. it left me speechless, andthat takes some doing.What item do you neverleave home without?My iPod, i must have musicwith me! At the moment, i’mlistening to Frank Turner, a lot,or Pearl Jam’s ‘Backspacer’ and,as those who know me couldtestify, i am a massive fan ofThe Jam with my guilty pleasurebeing ABBA.What is the worst thingabout working in theLUSU shop and Central?Rude and miserable customers. ifi’m going to be cheerful, and offergood customer service, it’d benice to get it reciprocated.What would be your “bestbuy” from the LUSU shop?one water and Ubuntu cola, asone member of staff said theyare ethical...and fit. i’m big onpromoting ethical choices inconsumerism. if we must havethis economic system then atleast we should play fair.Who would be your nextCampus Icon and why?Easy, davey Garland, ResidentTutor for Grizedale College andall-round nice guy. He’s been herelonger than me, fi nger in so manypies and all for the benefit ofstudents!!

student comment and news 27STUdENT LiFESTYLEThe iPhone: Worth the Price?Mae Dibley exploresthe technologicaltakeoverof the iPhone andBlackberrysI STILL REMEMBER a time when toget in touch with a friend you had tocall their landline and ask their parentspolitely, or simply go and knockon their door. Until recently, the abilityto send a quick text or call at anytime,anywhere, satisfied our need forinstant communication. Now however,in keeping with our society’s rapidtechnological development, communicationhas been taken to a new level;and it’s not just for the high flyingexecutives. Take a look around campusand everywhere people seem to beholding the latest iPhone, Blackberry,or other smartphone. I don’t have thefigures but from my own observationsI’d say at least a third of students havemoved beyond the need for simple calland text phones. So what is so specialabout these new gadgets that warrantthe admittedly higher price demandedby smartphones?I have owned an iPhone for sevenmonths now and I am still discoveringways that it can make my life easier.Despite the hefty price tag, it actuallyhas some fantastic features thatare beneficial to students. Obviouslythere’s the instant and constant accessto the internet, allowing you to see andrespond to tutors’ and societies’ emailsimmediately, and be able to Googleanything in seconds. Emails and Facebookalerts come through in the sameway as a text so you are constantly ‘inthe know.’ The voice recording featureis fabulous for recording lectures, oreven recording yourself and then listeningto it through your headphoneson the bus for revision. On the downside,there are those who find the touchThere is also no denyingthe increasing lure ofthe apple logo. The appleMac has always earned itstrendy image for those whocan afford it. But since Apple’scommercial bulls-eyewith the iPod, the brand hasattracted wider popularitywhilst still maintaining itsimpeccably stylish designs.In an age where image iseverything, people are ignoringthe price differencein favour of a piece of fruitthat is recognised by the entireworld.screen keyboard of the iPhone too fiddly.For those people, the Blackberryproves itself the more attractive optionof the two with its built in keyboard,though you do then sacrifice somescreen space.I think ultimately it comes downto what students find essential. Theinternet and computers are so insatiablyintegral to any young adult’slife, that if we are going to splurge onanything it is going to be a little devicewhich encompasses all that is importantto our generation. The iPhone,in particular, trumps the rest. Withits hard drive size and added applicationsin comparison to the iPod classic,although this has already provenits worth and popularity (plus is onlygoing to set you back £193) it isn’t toomuch of a push to spend £35 a monthfor effectively unlimited calls, texts andinternet along with all the other functionsof the iPhone. Especially whenyou could easily spend that amount ina single night out at the Sugarhouse!Weighing up the consequencesSCAN Editor Liam Richardson continues his journey into the realm of healthy livingRecipes for disasterPoppy Goodbrand puts our culinary skills tothe testAfter the failures I alluded toin my last column, it was time toget back on track and make upfor the disappointments of thelast week. I reckon Laura, mypersonal trainer, scented bloodand wanted to really push me thistime around and take me to anotherlevel of physical exertion.What followed was basically tantamountto abuse!I myself was conscious that I neededto leave my comfort zone and pushmy body harder than I had been doingpreviously. The fitness programme wetrialled this time in the life fitness roomwas based around competition. Targetswere set on the various machines thathad to be reached.Aiming for 2000km on the rowingmachine required a marathon effort.Twenty minutes interval training onthe treadmill was also extremely challenging.I certainly felt more tired than Ihad ever done once my session hadended. The life fitness room itself wasquite busy due to it being early in theevening and it is very easy to becomeself-conscious at all the ultra fit peoplebarely breaking sweat whilst I myselfwas sprawled out in my sodden greyT-shirt- certainly not a wise choice ofattire.The sessions had certainly steppedup in terms of difficulty, but althoughincredibly challenging, it was satisfyingto be able to meet the requirementsLaura had imposed upon me. The intervaltraining was a measure of endurance,whilst reaching a certain amountof ground covered was a test of staminaand desire.The next step for me is to stick tothe schedules Laura has drawn up andget to the gym myself an extra threetimes a week. I am well aware that withindependence comes the opportunityto not push myself as hard as when mytrainer is there. That is another hurdleI will have to jump at a later date.I also need to monitor my food intakeagain and make sure that I am takingin enough energy for everything Iam burning at the gym. I have successfullycut out a lot of the bad food I hadbeen reliant on, and cooking healthynutritious meals for myself is a veryworthwhile enterprise, though findingthe time is difficult.These are the next steps in my questto improve my fitness. I also still wantto start playing squash again, thoughmy quest for a regular playing partnerhas so far been fruitless. Sticking to aroutine is very hard when other commitmentstake centre stage. aspirationand willpower are essential qualitiesfor anyone wanting to change theirlifestyle for the better.Finally, next time out, I will be purchasingsome new gym wear. This challengeis already hard enough withoutlooking unfashionable as well...Vegetable Kebabs withMango sauce and TropicalRiceThis easy yet exotic dish willdefinitely whet your appetite asit is packed with flavour and isa great vegetarian dish. ideal insummer or winter!Serves 4368 calories per servingIngredients• 1 small onion, finely chopped• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped• 3 tablespoons mango chutney• 3 tablespoons tomato purée• Grated rind and juice of 1 lime• 150 ml (5 fl oz) natural yoghurt• 8 shallots or baby onions,skinned• 2 courgettes, chopped into 1inch pieces• 225 g (8oz) button mushrooms,wiped• 175 (6oz) baby sweetcorn• 225 g (8 oz) basmati or longgrainrice• 40 g (1 1/2 oz) creamedcoconut, dicedMethod1. Heat the oil in a non-sticksaucepan, add the onion andgarlic and cook for about 5minutes until softened. Removefrom the heat and stir in themango chutney, tomato purée,half the lime juice and the yogurt.2. Put the shallots in a saucepanof boiling water, return tothe boil, and then drain well.Thread the shallots, courgettes,mushrooms and sweetcornalternately on to eight skewers.3. Arrange the skewers ontoa piece of foil lining on a grillpan, Brush the kebabs with theprepared mango sauce and cookunder a hot grill for 10- 11minutes, turning frequently, untilgolden brown.4. Meanwhile, cook the rice,drain and blend with the limerind, remaining lime juice andcoconut.5. Gently heat the remainingsauce, pour into a serving bowland serve with the vegetablekebabs and tropical rice.Bon appétit!

28STUdENT LiFESTYLELecture breakTHE QUIZ - Make the connections1.2.3.4.5.Earl Grey and Stanley BaldwinJon Pertwee and Christopher EccelstonAnthony Hutton and Nadia AlmadaArctic Monkeys and Phil CollinsBobby Robson and Peter TaylorAnswers belowThe WheelUsing the given letter no more thanonce, make as many words as possibleof four or more letters, always includingthe central letter. Capitalised words,plurals, conjugated verbs, adverbs endingin LY, comparatives and superlatives aredisallowed.scan.lusu.co.ukU TO SCR MP EHow to doSu Doku.Fill the gridof that everycolumn, everyrow and every3x3 boxcontains thedigits 1 to 9.Answers: 1) British Prime Ministers 2) Bothplayed Doctor Who 3) Big Brother winners4) Won 5 Brit Awards as British Artists 5)Both England Football managersold’scoolOLD’S COOL PEPSI ADVERTS WITH MICHAEL JFOX: GUNS N ROSES VIDEOS WITH DOLPHINS:COMBAT PANTS WITH BUFFALO TRAINERS:POPTARTS AND MICROCHIPS: PG TIPSADVERTS WITH CHIMPS: LEVI 501 ADVERTSWITH STILTSKIN: SAVED BY THE BELL , THEORIGINAL GLADIATORS AND WHEN BAYWATCHWAS A SHOW AND NOT JUST A SONG: MATCHOF THE DAY WITH DES: WHEN FRIENDSEPISODES WERE BRAND NEW AND NOTREPEATS: WHEN HARRY POTTER FIRST JOINEDHOGWARTS: WHEN SIMON COWELL DIDN’TCONTROL THE WORLD: WHEN MAN CITYWERE BROKE AND IN THE OLD 2ND DIVISION:YOU MIGHT NOT REMEMBER IT ALL BUTOLD’S COOL BRINGS IT BACK TO THEFUTURE WITH THE RETRO REVOLUTION.LIKE THE 501 HUNK ON A HARLEY, OLD’SCOOL STRADDLESTHE PAST, PRESENTAND FUTURE WITHLOUD AND SIMBABRINGING YOUBRING A MASHUP OF THOSENOSTALGICMUSICALM O M E N T S ,THE TRACKS YOU’DFORGOTTEN YOU LOVED,AND THE LATESTUNDERGROUND SOUNDSYOU’LL BE LOVING FROM NOW ONALL WRAPPED UP IN A DOUBLEDENIM NOD TO TIMES GONE BUY.Way better than anything Ant or Dec have to offer, Saturdays in Shagga are THE night to come out and Play. Front Room: Cawky brings youthe very finest RnB, Urban and Hip Hop, from the biggest names to new found talent! Main Room: Melo and D.O.D share the wealth andmash up the best music out there, giving you and your ears unique sets each and every week. Entry: £3 B4 12. Doors: 10.30.

Saturday week 9 from 1 til 11pmLancaster Square CountyThere’s loads of stuff tohave a go at:TrampetsRock BandFashion RunwayTurbo TrainerTasty food from around the worldCultural Celebration Area...Main Stage with:TheatreMusicLive BandsAmazing Dance ActsPlus loads more!FREEThere’s so much going on we couldn’t fit it all on, so go online to find out more!activities.lusu.co.uk

30CULTURELiving in aCaveBy CalKingBack to basicsLauren Randall takes a look at the cinemacraze of ‘reboots’scan.lusu.co.ukThere are classic quotes thateveryone knows: “Here’sJohnny”, “I’ll never let go,Jack”, “Bring on the wall”...but a lot of the time, I find myself quotingthings without having actually seenthe source material. The Godfather(1972) is one of the most quoted filmsin history, with classic lines like “Myfather made him an offer he couldn’trefuse” and even though for years I’dbeen telling everyone that it was oneof my favourite films, I’d never actuallygot around to watching it.People would ask me, “Do you likethe bit when Marlon Brando does thatthing?” and “Oh, that’s definitely oneof the best bits,” I’d reply, “in fact it’sjust a really good film in general.” ThenI’d go quiet and hope there weren’t goingto be any follow-up questions thatmight catch me out.So, last week, after only thirtyeightyears since it was released, I satdown to watch the film for the firsttime. There were a couple of technicalhitches that might have affectedmy viewing pleasure; I’d fiddled withthe subtitles (I do that a lot, I find thata lot of actors mumble far too much).It turns out that these parts in Italianare pretty crucial, so I watched baffledas seemingly key plot points flew past,and I began to think that Francis FordCoppola might have gone a bit pottywhile he was filming. It was only lateron that I discovered it wasn’t somekind of avant-garde filmmaking technique,and it was actually just thanksto me not being able to work my ownDVD player. Without subtitles or atleast a basic grasp of Italian, the filmis particularly disappointing; but withsubtitles, it’s really rather good.Marlon Brando gives a cult-classicperformance as the ageing head of theCorleone crime family, his chin juttingout majestically from the rest ofhis body, giving his voice the raspy,locked -jaw effect of someone with asore throat, trapped in a neck-brace. Ican’t help thinking that if the Corleonefamily were as close as they made out,they’d at least offer their old Pa somewarm Ribena or something. But thenagain, they’re not particularly close,and the film shows the struggles facedwhen running a Mafia crime family; theups, the downs, the relationships andthe attempted murders. what makesit so much fun is seeing a young AlPacino turn from an innocent passivemember of the family, into a killer, andultimately, head of the Corleones.The fact that The Godfather isnearly four decades old doesn’t makeit any less fun; the setting is authentic,the violence bloody and the cast are surprisinglyrecognisable, and even thoughI spent the first two hours telling myselfthat it definitely wasn’t Al Pacino,it turns out it was, and he’s joined byBrando, Robert Duvall and Diane keaton.And at least I’ve seen it now, so Ican quote with confidence. (Except theItalian bits; babada-boopie?)IT waS NO surprise when a new Spidermanfilm was announced. Despitelukewarm reviews and fanboy despair,Spiderman 3 took so much money thatit’s the fifteenth highest-grossing filmof all time. However, news of a rebootrather than a sequel was unexpected.Retracing origin stories and revisitingvery old friends seem to be the newvogue at the minute. The question is,are they a good thing?There’s been a shed-load of rebootedfranchises recently. Arguably the mostinfamous is the Batman saga. It beganback in 1966 with Adam West in thecamptastic Batman: The Movie, a spinoff from the TV show. This was givena make-over in ’89 by gothic supremeTim Burton. Starring Michael keatonand Jack Nicholson the film was amassive success paving the way for sequels.The sequel Batman Returns wasconsidered by some to be too dark forkiddies. Danny DeVito as the Penguinchomping on someone’s nose, an unhingedMichelle Pfeiffer and ChristopherWalken earned a 12 rating.Joel Schumacher took over the nexttwo sequels and injected it with someof the TV show’s campness to make itmore light-hearted. Cue lurid sets, stilton-esquedialogue (“Ice to see you”)and batsuit nipples: cue audiencesleaving in disgust. The series was leftalone on the big screen for a decade.Studios considered numerous scriptsbefore plumping for Christopher Nolanand David S. Goyer’s screenplay withthe former directing, fresh off the backof his indie film success. The franchiseonce regarded with trepidation was rebuiltinto a neo-noir world of realistic,psychotic villains and a multi-layeredhero. Yeah, it’s still scary for kids butthe sheer quality is unmatched in anyother superhero film.Another franchise riding high onthe back of a successful reboot is theStar Trek series. J.J.abrams obviouslytook note of the success of Batmanand went back to the beginning. It wasdeemed so good that a sequel was commissionedbefore the film’s release, eagerlyawaited for by Trekkies and non-Trekkies the world over.The horror genre – that well-knownremake lover – is also salivating overthe prospect of reboots. One of themost successful horror series, Scream,has had a ‘new’ trilogy commissioned.waiting a decade seems to have donethe trick as original screenwriter kevinwilliamson and the trilogy’s three mainstars are returning whilst director WesCraven is a possibility. whilst it’s hardto see why they’ve re-commissioned aseries that was almost laughed to deathby Scary Movie it shows that the rebootis very much back in business.However, reboots aren’t always onthe button. The much-hyped SupermanReturns, from x-Men directorBryan Singer, promised so much fromits trailers. Nevertheless, the film falteredwith fans who queried the plot’snarrative and the young casting. Unsurprisingly,a reboot of the reboot isbeing considered, ‘mentored’ by Batman’sNolan.There’s also the critical mauling ofThe Godfather III released in 1990,sixteen years after The Godfather II.Indiana Jones IV, despite its popularityat the box-office, received criticalindifference. Maybe it’s expectationsthat make or break a re-boot. No-oneexpected anything from Daniel Craigin the Bond revamp; surely even he’slaughing now.What are we to expect from thenew reboots? Will putting Spidey backin high school and starting again helpthe franchise or bring it to its knees?Does it even matter? Despite the oddReclaiming the vaginaThe vagina Monolgues by Eve EnslerCatherine HoldsworthNatasha FarnworthTHE ‘VAGINA MONOLOGUES’, writtenby Eva Ensler is a series of monologuesperformed by a variety of femalecharacters. Each monologue relatesto the vagina through different experiences.Delivering a strong feministmessage, the play focuses on the vaginaas a tool for female empowerment.The play is the inspiration behind theV-Day movement, a global movementseeking to end violence against womenand girls. V-Day is a non-profit charity,which raises money for the causeby staging benefit events annually. The‘Vagina Monologues’ is always the cornerstoneevent and this year LancasterUniversity is staging three showings ofthe performance in aid of V-Day. Thisyear’s showing of the ‘Vagina Monologues’at Lancaster also supports thewomen of the Democratic of the Congowhere rape and abuse are used as tacticalweapons of war.Enduring work: EveEnsler has enjoyed phenomenalsuccess with the playRebooted: The Batman saga was successfully reestablishedthanks to the 2008 film, The Dark KnightThe cast of over twenty female studentsworked together to perform thepiece. The play aimed to take people outof their comfort zones and make themview the issues from a new perspective.The play is not a feminist boy-bashingexperience, more an expression of peaceand unity, aiming to empower women.The play was genuinely funny at timesbut always poignant and honest aboutthe message it was delivering. The entirecast were mature and disciplinedand handled the piece with the sensitivityand humour it so richly deserves.Highlights included; ‘My Angry Vagina’by Lowri Jones and ‘The Womanwho Loved to Make vaginas Happy’ bykathy McGuirk, however there was astark contrast in the mood from the firsthalf to second half. The most emotionalpart of the piece was at its denouementwhere the three directors, Tori Crapper,Hannah Sauer and Chaz Ginn retoldthe story of the rape and imprisonmentof a fifteen year old girl. The whole playculminated in an acoustic rendition of‘I Wish I knew How it Would Feel to bedisappointing review reboots generallymake big bucks. So, whilst the jury’sout on whether reboots are any goodthey’re still guaranteed bums on seats.Move over remake; reboot’s scoopingtop dollar now.Free.’Many of the cast had their own personalreasons for partaking as well as anoverall desire to contribute to the movementthat helps women worldwide. Assistantdirector Chaz Ginn describedthe experience as an ‘emotional rollercoaster’yet made it clear she would ‘doit again a million times over.’Money was also raised on the nightby selling tongue-in-cheek goods suchas naughty cakes and ‘dirty word’ biscuitsas well as other home-made ‘vaginapurses’ and cards. The atmosphereon the evening was light hearted andfriendly without forgetting the real reasonwe were all there.The play was deeply moving for theboth audience and cast members andwe were certainly left with a lot to thinkabout, particularly the more distressingissues connected with the play. However,the positive work carried outby the charities and the V-Day movementgives hope that women areable to fight back and reclaim theirliberty.

student comment and news 31CULTUREThe ReviewsThe Gig by Hannah FearonThe TV Show by Miles PilkingtonSkinsFrom the people I’ve asked, it seems like Skins is a verypolarizing TV show. Everyone I’ve asked about it seems toeither love it or hate it. However, this new series might be able to win backsome nay-sayers and claim a few more viewers, through more ways than one.The series started in true Skins fashion –an unknown girl finishes her bagof drugs to go and kill herself by leaping from a club balcony. The drugs areblamed, and the police search for who gave her aforementioned drugs. Thisis the main plot for the first two episodes, a kind of mini-whodunnit to findthe dealer who killed her, and, surprisingly, it is quite engaging, with somegreat amateur detective work . Episode three then centres on crowd-favouriteCook, and his attempt to stay out of jail after a drunken brawl.This new series feels quite different from older series of Skins. There arefewer “OMG COOk’S GOT A TATTOO ON HIS PENIS” shock tactics, and thefocus is more on the actual drama, of which there is plenty. With sex, fights,infidelity, lesbians, drugs, and police, this sounds like par for the course witha show like Skins, but this new series seems to be trying to make the storya bit more serious, and, god forbid, a bit more realistic. Basically, it’s moreSkins. Fans of older Skins series will love it, but it is also a good place for newpeople to jump on the wagon, since the whole thing is a bit more accessiblethis time round. If you’re looking for a quirky drama to hold your attention,Skins will definitely satisfy.The Book by Lauren RandallThe Lovely BonesRammsteinTour: Liebe Ist FürAlle DaVenue: ManchesterMENDate: Tueday 2ndFebruaryLASERS, ExPLODING DOLLS, fireworks,pyrotechnics, a foam cannon anda rubber dinghy. A band always burieddeep in controversy, Rammstein, cameto the MEN arena earlier this monthto perform their first Uk gig in 5 years.For those not familiar with the band;Rammstein are a German industrialgroup, responsible for creating NeueDeutsche Härte, a term translating as“new German hardness”. The style isinfluenced by German rock and Heavymetal, and the band’s music is often labelledas “Dance Metal”.Over the years there has been muchcontroversy surrounding Rammstein,often caused by the content of theirlyrics, music videos and live shows.Their latest album Liebe ist für alleda is banned from being on displayin shops on Germany, thus removingit from sale over there. Rammsteinargue that the content is not to betaken seriously, and that they are tryingto make a statement. However, thegraphic sexual content in the musicvideo for ‘Pussy’ certainly doesn’t helptheir case.Despite this controversy, or perhapsspurred on by it, Rammstein area highly respected band in the metalscene across the world and have anenormous fan base. So when they performedat the MEN arena at the beginningof February, I was lucky enoughto be at one of only three gigs in theUk.Rammstein are renowned for theirover-the-top theatrical live performancesand use of pyrotechnics. On theLiebe ist für alle da tour, the band areback; bigger, and bolder. The sold outshow opened with guitarists RichardZ. kruspe and Paul H. Landers smashingtheir way through glass as frontmanTill Lindemann burnt his waythrough with a blowtorch. The audienceresponse to Lindemann’s solemnappearance, dressed in a butcher’sapron, was phenomenal. With a quicksignal of his arms, the crowd becamesilent instantly. The band opened withBand Members:Till Lindemann (leadvocals),Richard Z. Kruspe (leadguitar and backing vocals),Paul H. Landers (rhythmguitar, backing vocals),Oliver Riedel (bass guitar),Christoph “Doom” Schneider(drums and electronicpercussion)Christian “Flake” Lorenz(keyboards).the first track on Liebe ist für alle da,‘Rammlied’ which seemed to be recordedfor the sole purpose of openinga show. With the repeated cheersof ‘Rammstein’ throughout the song, itwas a great show starter. The stage setup was incredible. With the immenseamount of lighting, industrial fans,suspended engines and a treadmill,the set is difficult to describe, but itis similar to the one used in the musicvideo for ‘Ich tu dir weh’ which isworth checking out purely to see thestunning stage.Rammstein’s use of pyrotechnicsin their shows is part of the bandsappeal, and they certainly didn’t disappoint.Almost every song was accompaniedby pyrotechnics, such assetting the stage on fire for one ofthe lesser known new tracks and usingthe trademark Lycopodium Masksduring ‘Feuer Frei’. During the band’sperformance of ‘Benzin’ a man was seton fire by Lindemann, and I’m stillnot sure if this was a stunt or not. Theheat of the pyrotechnics was unbelievable,and members of the stage teamhad to keep running up and down thefront barrier squirting water at thecrowd. I was lucky enough to be rightat the front of the crowd in the standingarea, and one of my highlights ofthe night was Rammstein’s fantasticperformance of ‘Pussy’ in which Lindemannrode a metallic canon acrossthe stage, covering the front of theaudience in foam, and then confetti.Another highlight was the final song ofthe night, ‘Engel’ in which Lindemannemerged wearing huge metallic angelwings, which shot fire out of eitherside. Standing so close to the stagemade for a very intense and sensoryexperience overall.whilst Rammstein sang popularclassics such as ‘Du Hast’ and ‘IchWill’, the show was dominated bytheir new album, of which they playednine out of the eleven songs. Theband played for almost two hours,even without stopping to humour theaudience with any conversation orintroductions. At forty-seven, Lindemanncertainly still has it. Sadly, hehas announced that he plans to retireat the age of fifty, which means thatthis could be the last time Rammsteintour the Uk. For any fans that haven’thad the pleasure of seeing the bandlive, Rammstein will headline Sonispherefestival which takes place onthe 30th July - 1st August this yearwith all tickets on sale now.The Lovely Bones, much like its heroine, is a fighter.Published back in 2002, it was written by author AliceSebold who only had one other publishednovel to her name. with the author being soyoung and the material so unconventional,a few thousand sold would have beenconsidered a success; however the bookshipped a million copies worldwide andbecame. It’s easy to see what provoked sucha global response; the story is ambitiousand wonderfully fascinating. Told fromthe perspective of fourteen year-old SusieSalmon in heaven after her brutal rape andmurder, it’s certainly captivating.The narrative is particularly characterdrivenso what is lacking in action is madeup for by the well-rounded characters,although there are some tense and ratherbrutal moments. Mr Harvey, the sleazyneighbour who kills her, is such anuncomfortable character who preys onyour mind even when he doesn’t appear in the text. The Lovely Bones is asurprisingly honest and uplifting novel considering the subject matter. Despitesome critics dismissing it as being overly-sentimental, The Lovely Bones is asubtly fierce piece of fiction that lingers in the mind long afterwards.The Single by Kate McKeownEllie Goulding Starry EyedRising singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding’s single StarryEyed is definitely a refreshing addition to the electrosound mixes for 2010. She gives us three minutes of sparkling excitementthrough a mix of electro and acoustic sounds blended together, making itquite a versatile track to listen to.The exhilarating beat is addictive even if a little repetitive at first, but thisonly makes it a perfect choice for a futuristic electro single. It is a heavilyinstrumental track with electro drum patterns creating the baseline,particularly noticeable in the second verse where a mechanical soundingdrum beat features in the background. Lyrically, the themes are a littlescattered, making references to carousels, playground games the stars andlightning but the relevance of the words is not particularly important for atrack like this as the rhythm and music style speak for itself.Ellie’s voice has a child-like nature and is not particularly strong but definitelystriking. The authenticity of her voice and the track itself has similar sultrytones of Imogen Heap, a soprano pitch of La Roux and inventive keyboardelectronics of Little Boots. She has a warm and inviting texture to her voicemarking her as a distinctive and unique artist for 2010. This was confirmedby winning the Critics’ Choice Award at the Brit Awards 2010 following in thefootsteps of acts such as Florence and the Machine and Adele.The single will be released February 22nd so keep your starry eyes on thelook out for Ellie Goulding, she’ll have you hooked. Her highly anticipateddebut album titled Lights, is out in shops now and ready to download fromiTunes.

whatever youracademic problem.......let us fixyour issueAnotherEnterprisein HeelsEventSpeednetworking withthe finest femaleentrepreneursWednesday week 8, Management SchoolHub Café, 6.00pm - 8.00pmPlaces are limited, book now on our websitestar.lusu.co.uk/fixmyissuecreate.lusu.co.ukThis year we are hosting the event in Lancaster and we are looking forRoses Stewards to ensure the event is the best it has ever been.This is a voluntary role that offers a ridiculous amount of fun and helpsyou gain some valuable skills and experience.Roses is on the weekend of 30th April - 2nd May.Across the weekend we , ll be needing people to work in loads of differentareas from promoting the matches across campus to stewarding the linesat the games themselves to making sure the scores are handed in fromevery single competition.If you would like to get involved then email lusu.feds@lancaster.ac.uk assoon as possible or pop down to LUSU and ask for AJ.

student comment and news33SPoRTSFylde and Grizedale slugging it out forsupremacy as Carter Shield finals day loomsNick O’MalleyGRIZEDALE AND FYLDE lead the wayin the Carter Shield after the events ofthe first term, both tied on 53 points.Then there is a fairly significant gap tojoint third place which sees Lonsdaleand Bowland battling for braggingrights over their rival college, on 38points a-piece. The points are awardedas follows: fifteen points for an eventwin, twelve for the runners-up, ninefor the losing semi-finalists, and six forthird in the group stages. Finally threeTaking a pop: Pop Lacrosseis one of the final day activitiespoints allocated for the team that finishesbottom of their group. On top ofthis there is a reward for colleges thatparticipate in every event in a term inthe form of five bonus points. This isa new incentive for this year in an attemptto gain maximum participationat all Carter shield events.The first event of finals day last termsaw Grizedale triumph over Bowland inthe final of Dodgeball, edging their opponentsout 3-2. The women’s indoorfootball was the next event in the finalsday and saw Fylde defeat Grizedale,meaning they picked up the maximumpoints for that event, with Grizedaleclosing the gap for their courtesy offinishing runners-up. Volleyball sawLonsdale, who were unbeaten fromstart to finish in the tournament, winthe last game comprehensively againstGrizedale. The concluding event of finalsday was korfball, which saw Fylderemain unbeaten throughout the wholetournament for the second year in arow, and defeat County comfortably inthe final.In this term’s Carter Shield the fourevents to come under the inter-collegespotlight are Pop Lacrosse, Men’s Basketball,Aeroball and kwik-Cricket.The taster sessions at the start of theLent term saw a massive increase inparticipants in comparison with thesessions of last term. This is thanksto the individual college sports representatives,as well as a new incentivecreated by the Inter-college sportsco-ordinators; Lauren Forrester andMarc Handley, and it sees the collegewith the highest turnout to the fourtasters in terms two and three winninga cash prize.At the moment, there has only beenone competition day this term andthat came in the form of Pop Lacrosse,which is an indoor variation of fieldLacrosse. The event involves plasticsticks and uses a much softer ball thanfield Lacrosse. Each college is representedby a team of six players, witha minimum of two female players oneach team. The event is played in thesports hall and the game is played toevery wall, meaning the game is nonstopfor each of the five minute halvesand therefore is very tiring to play.Group 1 pitted Lonsdale, Cartmel,Grizedale and Furness together, withBowland, County, Fylde and PendleNew kit: Carter Shield sponsors iBM provided new bibs and kit for the college teams who participateeach weekend. The VP Sport and their intercollege Sports Co-ordinators are at the front of the picture.comprising group two. Group one sawLonsdale and Grizedale qualify, withLonsdale scraping through in secondthanks to a scrappy 1-1 draw with Furness.The result gave them five pointsand Grizedale seven. The latter collegewent through top winning two games,and drawing the other 0-0 with Lonsdale,in what was a battle of the twodefences. In group two Fylde qualifiedin first place winning every game, andBowland went through in second inwhat was a closely contested battle theposition between Bowland, County andPendle.This sees the first fixtures of finalsday confirmed already, with the firstsemi-final between Group one winnersGrizedale and Group two runners-upBowland. The other fixture in placeis between Group two winners Fyldeand Group one runners-up Lonsdale.Finals day for all four sports will takeplace early next month, and with somany points still to play for, it will definitelybe worth a trip up to the sportscentre to watch.Lancaster edge out Manchester in top ofthe table clashLANCASTER 2MAN MET 1Chris BillLaNCaSTER UNIvERSITy MEN’Sseconds went into Wednesday’smatch against Manchester MetropolitanUniversity, anticipating anintriguing 1st meets 2nd in the tableclash, with Lancaster needing nothingless than a win to ensure their titlechallenge remained intact.On the bright February afternoon,Captain Adam Williams went withhis preferred 4-4-2 Mike Bassett formation,with his usual starting 11 exceptfor James Mofunanya coming infor Dan ‘twit’ Whittingham at centreback and Ian ‘like I care what foot it’son’ Dawson coming in to partner Jack‘bleeeuugghhh’ Griffiths upfront.Dawson incidentally, still holds therecord for the most goals scored in auniversity season.After negotiating the quick tempostart that Manchester made to thegame, Lancaster started to attacktheir rivals with Dawson and Williamscombining well on the righthand side and Leon vaughan gallopingon like Seabiscuit at fullback toput in some decent crosses resultingin numerous Lancaster corners,which were never fully capitalisedupon with the ensuing set pieces. Atthe same time, Jamie Smith and AndrewCastle provided similar widthon the left hand side. The midfieldpairing of Rob Cregeen and Chris Billwas mopping everything up in midfield,without too much football beingplayed.Around half an hour in, with thegame very tight, tackles started tofly in and one Manchester playercaught Williams with a Hiroshimaafter he had got to the ball first, withthe Manchester player going overthe ball and connecting with theskipper’s ankle. The referee, FrankButcher, to the Lancaster player’sdisgust opted to keep his cards inhis pocket and as a result of this, wasdefinitely not having one of his finestdays. Subsequently, William’s had tobe substituted and was replaced bythe talented forward ‘Davvers’. Soonafter, and completely against the runof the play, Manchester scored with abreak-away goal down the left, withthe crossed ball glancing off the helplessBill’s leg and falling to his runnerwhich left a simple tap in. GoalkeeperAshley Hannay’s first job was to pickthe ball out of the net.After a rocket at half time givenby Lancaster coach James Huck,Lancaster went out in the secondhalf determined to change the gamearound. And around ten minutes in,a ball played over the top was latchedonto by ‘Davvers’, who took the ballaround the keeper and coolly finishedat a tight angle with his leftfoot. All the momentum was in Lancaster’sfavour now, with Bill andCregeen (captain now) dominatingthe midfield and the defence havinglittle to do. Soon the pressure toldand Griffiths, used Bill’s decoy run totake the ball down, hold off a coupleof Manchester defenders and finishbrilliantly in the bottom left cornerfrom 20 yards.With Half an hour to go and somuch at stake, Lancaster naturallystarted to drop deep inviting pressureonto them, particularly in the form ofthe long throw down the left. Fortunatelyduring this period, Tom Rudnickand Mofunanya were defendinglike lions, displaying their true potentialwith absolutely exceptionaldefensive performances. The aerialability of Andrew Castle was alsogreatly appreciated who rose higherthan anybody on several occasions toclear the ball away from the Lancasterpenalty area. with 10 minutes togo however, the pressure still mountedand the only communication fromthe Lancaster team at this stage wasfrom full-back Smith telling everyoneto ‘chill out’. Admittedly, timewas wasted In the form of Ash Hannaytaking an eternity to pick the ballup and long term injury lay-off GerryAdam’s whose numerous drag backsin the Manchester half have certainlyput Sinn Fein back on the map oneway or another.Yet Lancaster held firm and refereeButcher finally blew his whistleto end a very tightly fought gameresulting in a deserved victory, withjubilant scenes on the pitch as Williams,Harris and Huck came runningon to celebrate a magnificentteam performance. Lancaster remainvery much in the title hunt.

34 scan.lusu.co.uk4SPoRTSEat Sport,Sleep Sport,Read WynesKarate society bring the medals homeafter triple tournament successBecky ClarkGareth DunkerleyIrecently had a meeting witha Sports Sabbatical officerfrom another institution. Wediscussed various aspectsof sport, the way it is run, how itworks, the funding and facilitiesavailable and what works well. Itmade me realise how in certain aspectswe are extremely lucky, but inother aspects we are far behind andhave a lot of work to do to improvethe sporting experience of studentshere at Lancaster.One of the things we do so wellhere at Lancaster is intercollegesport. In the 4 years that I’ve beenhere I have seen intercollege sportgrow and grow with the participationlevels at an all time high. Theintercollege football and netballleagues are incredibly successful,so successful that this year we haveintroduced a B league in netball toprovide for the high demand. Ourbar sports leagues have been runningsuccessfully for a number ofyears with every college fieldingteam for darts, pool and dominoeson a weekly basis. Even our CarterShield competition, which althoughhas had its problems in the past,still gets many new people involvedand provides a great opportunityfor students to get active. When wecompare our intercollege sport withother Universities it is clear we areahead of the game and we should beproud of that.However, perhaps one thing wedon’t do so well is support all thosestudents who wish to represent theUniversity in competitions. we doprovide a lot of opportunities forstudents to compete; all AU clubsare funded to compete weekly inBUCS competitions and are able tocompete in cup competitions andtournaments. However, those studentswho are not in an AU clubor aren’t able to compete in certainsports may miss out on the opportunityto represent their Universityat their chosen discipline simply becauseof lack of funding. I’m not suggestingthat having more money assuch would solve the issue, becauseof course there is always a limit tothe amount of funds available. But Ithink perhaps the University shouldrecognise someone who is reachinghigh levels within their sportand should give them opportunityto represent the University whilstdoing it. For example sports scholarships,which other Universitieshave successfully implemented, isa great way to recognise those highachievers and allow them to continuepushing themselves to the top. Iwish we had unlimited amounts ofmoney to ensure we allow everyoneto compete when they want to andI know that’s wishful thinking, buthopefully access routes for thesepeople will be improved upon.Karate kids: The newly formed Karate Society enjoyed massive success in tournamentsstaged in both Loughborough and Teeside this yearIN THE MICHaELMaS term the newlyformed Lancaster University karateSociety travelled to two competitionsto allow members an opportunity tocompete, and for some to gain experiencein competition karate.They also attended an event at theend of Week Four of Lent Term withthe aim to get some more competitionpractice before BUCS in March whichall members will be aiming to peak forto build on the success the squad hadthere last year.The first competition was an invitationalevent in Welbeck, Loughborough.The society took five competitors;Gareth Dunkerley (Captain),Craig Noble, Chau Nguyen, PaulMeadowcroft and Becky Clark (President).In one of the first events of the day,Becky just lost out on a bronze medalin kata, making it to the quarter finalsand then narrowly missing out in repecharge.Paul made it to the semifinalsin kata but unfortunately lost inthis round.In the individual fighting categoriesCraig, Chau, and Paul all performedvery well, but were unfortunate not tomake it to a medal position with Craighaving to withdraw due to injury andChau losing in the quarter finals. However,Gareth managed to win all ofthe preliminary rounds and also wonthe final fight to secure a gold medal.Becky also made it to the final of thefighting where she gained silver.The second competition was heldat Teeside University and the societywas represented by four competitors,Gareth Dunkerley, Alisia Evans, Sarahwilliams and Becky Clark.In kata, Becky performed well andgained a bronze medal. In the individualfighting, both Becky and Garethnarrowly lost in their respective finalsresulting in both taking silver medals,whilst Alisia and Sarah were awardedbronze medals. This was a particularlyimpressive result for Sarah as thiswas her first competition, having onlydone karate for 10 weeks and for Alisiaas she has not competed in severalyears.Gareth was then invited to joinanother men’s team with competitorsfrom Leeds and Middlesbrough.The men’s team event was filmed andshowcased as it was trialling a differentrules system where instead of 3 fightershaving a 2 minute fight each, theyfought for 24 minutes between them.Despite the new and unexpected rules,Gareth and his team members foughtwell to come out with the gold medal.The last event of the day was thewomen’s team event, where Becky,Alisia and Sarah defeated TeesideUniversity, having secured their placein the final, to take a gold medal awayfrom the event.The third competition was againLast ditch penalty sees Lancaster dumpminnows out of BUCS cup< 36goalkeeper looked uncertainevery time he was putunder pressure.However, Lancaster rallied at halftime, and their second half performancestarted much more convincingly.Confidence restored, they started totake control of the game. Despite theirdominance, when the equaliser did arrivein the sixtieth minute, it came witha slice of good fortune. A Hickford longthrow went straight towards the farpost and the keeper flapped at it, guidingthe ball into his own net.The goal lifted Lancaster, and theycontinued to press, however they werestill struggling to get the better of theChester defence. The away side werecertainly digging their heels in, andwere getting noisy support from thetouchline. Lancaster did have a goldenopportunity when a corner fell to theedge of the box, but the resulting shotwas struck high over the bar.They were nearly forced to pay forthis wastefulness when minutes latera Chester long ball narrowly beat theoffside trap and their substitute wingerwent through on goal. It looked a certaingoal, and Lancaster were preparingto appeal offside to the referee, buthe managed to miss the target with thegoal gaping. It was a big let-off for thehome team. Moments later they threatenedagain, a good block was requiredfrom the Lancaster keeper and the ballwas desperately cleared away.As the game entered its final stagesit began to look more and more likelythat extra time and possibly penaltieswould be required to separate the twoteams. With this prospect beckoning,Lancaster made a late surge forwards.In the dying minutes of the game theLancaster left winger made a threateningrun into the box. The Chesterdefender slid in, completely mistiminghis tackle, missing the ball andsending the attacker to the floor. Thereferee was well sighted to award thepenalty. Chris Brown stepped up andheld at Welbeck, specifically arrangedfor BUCS preparation. In the kataevent, Becky and Alisia were unfortunateto be eliminated in the bronzemedal rounds. In the individual fighting,Gareth stormed through the preliminaryrounds winning 9-1, then10-0 and took Gold in the final with ascore of 4-0. Similarly, Becky reachedthe final winning 10-0. Alisia alsowon her preliminary round (7-1) andgained a silver medal in the final fight.Sarah performed well in her individualrounds, but unfortunately lost out ona bronze medal after some questionabledecisions by the officials.The women’s team consisted ofBecky, Alisia and Sarah who won theevent, beating Lincoln University andthe Welbeck women’s team. The victorywas clear with scores of 8-0, 6-2and 4-1 to Lancaster. Gareth joinedanother male team on the day andhelped them to also secure a goldmedal by defeating the Welbeck teamand Loughborough University on theway to a final against Lincoln Universitywhere the team Gareth was partof came out convincing winners. Thisevent proved to be great preparationfor the BUCS Championships.Having only been training sinceMichaelmas term, and as a brand newsociety for this year, to take 8 individualand 4 team medals away from 3competitions is a great achievement.Anyone who is interested in joiningthe society, please email lancasterkarate@hotmail.co.uk– we accept newmembers at any time in the year.calmly sent the keeper the wrong way,sending Lancaster into the semi finals.Wild celebrations followed, while theChester players surrounded the referee.One player, already yellow cardedearlier was sent off for his continuingprotests. The final whistle went soonafter. It was a good win, but Chesterhad battled hard, and Lancaster knowthat they will have to play better in thenext round, where they will face MNUChester, the team immediately belowthem in the league.After the game, stand in captainSimon Thompson declared himselfdelighted with the result and said ‘wewant to dedicate this victory to Lewis.’

student comment and news35SPoRTSRobert PaylingCan Balotelli become a football role model?MaRIO BaLOTELLI IS by no meansan ordinary Italian teenager. At 19-years-old he is already known acrossthe world as a football superstar withthe potential to become one of the mostgifted players of his generation.His superb talent has led to him becomeaffectionately nick-named “SuperMario” by those who adore him. However,there is another side to the teenageprodigy, a petulant side to his characterwhich has drawn strong criticism fromopposition, supporters, and on numerousoccasions, his own coach.The biggest factor in Balotelli’s storythough, the thing that separates himfrom becoming an Italian legend, is thecolour of his skin. For sure, he is Italy’sfirst high profile black footballer, and hehas suffered because of it.Balotelli was born in Palermo to Ghanaianparents who abandoned him whenhe was young. He was raised in Brescia byadopted Italian parents and has a strongBrescian accent because of it.His career began in the Italian thirddivision when he made his debut as a15-year-old for Lumezzane. Soon afterwardshe was signed on loan by Internazionalein 2006 with the option to buyhim permanently. He impressed theclub so much that he made his first teamdebut the following year.Ever since his first game for the clubit has been impossible to take your eyesoff the talented youngster. He spectacularlycame on as a substitute in the 2008Supercoppa final against Roma to scorein the 83rd minute and take the matchinto extra time. Inter went on to lift thetrophy after winning 6–5 on penalties.However, his success is often overshadowedby his clear gamesmanship.The most memorable example of thiswas during a match against Juventuswhen the Brazilian midfielder FelipeMelo elbowed Balotelli in the chest. TheItalian chose to collapse to the groundclutching his face instead though. Thereferee gave Melo a red card, and almostimmediately afterwards Balotellijumped to his feet, seemingly unscathed.It is the fans of the same opponentsIF YOU NEED SOME ADVICE...from Turin that Balotelli has receivedthe brunt of his criticism from. He hasreceived the general abuse one wouldexpect from opposition fans. However,he has also received repugnant chantsof a racist nature such as “a black Italiandoes not exist” and “Balotelli, blackpiece of s***.”Juventus have been deservedly punishedfor their failure to control theirfans’ behaviour. Fines have been handedto the club and they were also forcedto play behind closed doors withoutsupporters for a game.Internazionale’s coach, Jose Mourinho,has also criticised the teenager forhis lack of effort in training and duringmatches. He rues the possibility thatBalotelli could be wasting his potentialby picking petty fights and argumentswhen he could be showcasing his talentinstead.Mourinho substituted him in thelatter stages of their recent 1-0 victoryin the first-leg of the Coppa Italia semifinalmatch against Fiorentina after hechose not to help defend an opposingattack. Rather than accept Mourinho’sdecision and sit on the bench, Balotellithrew the gloves he was wearing to theground and stormed down the tunnel.It is no secret that racism is a hugeproblem in Italian football, but Balotelli’scase has been brought to attentionagain after racist chants at a lowerleague match led to a team leaving thepitch in protest.The team made the decision afterone of their players of Nigerian originand his brother were racially abusedfor the fourth time this season. Notonly were fans and opposing playersinvolved in the chanting, but even moreworryingly, the match referee was too.The team stood up for their values andforfeited the game in order to make astand against racism.Serie A may be a far cry from thelower divisions in Italy, but one has tothink that if Balotelli put his petulantteenage angst to one side and focusedon fulfilling his talent, perhaps he couldbecome the role model to create a newfootballing culture across the country....SEE IF WE CAN HELPadvice.lusu.co.uk

Read more at scan.lusu.co.uk Week 7, Lent Term, Wednesday 24th February, 2010Last ditch penalty sees Lancasterdump minnows out of BUCS cupLANCASTER 2CHESTER 1Kim MegsonLANCASTER SECURED A last gaspwinner to knock Chester (Warrington)out of the quarter finals of the BUCScup.On paper Lancaster, who beatWelsh side Glyndwr 2-1 in the lastround, were the firm favourites cominginto this fixture. They lie two leaguesabove Chester, and came into the gameon the back of an unbeaten run thatstretched to nine games. Chester werein no mood to let their opponents runaway with it though, and for long spellsthey looked as though they would beable to spring a surprise and keep Lancasterat bay.The match kicked off in the sun, butit was not long into the match when itbegan to snow, and the temperaturedropped noticeably. It was an ominoussign.Lancaster were passing it aroundnicely, but could find no way past Chester’stowering centre backs, especiallyon the cut-up playing surface. Theaway side had a clear height advantagerunning through the spine of the team,and constantly looked dangerous fromset pieces. Sure enough, twenty minutesin a free kick was conceded nearthe corner flag. The resultant ball flewinto the heart of the box, and Chester’scentre back lost his marker to head infor 1-0. Lancaster looked startled.Lancaster were playing most of thefootball, but, a few half chances aside,were struggling to create much ofnote. They looked to be missing captainLewis Rowland, who had suffereda broken leg in the previous fixture,something that seemed to be weighingon the minds of the players. Their mainchances came from cornersand the long throws of Craig 34 >Hickford, as the ChesterCopyright Guardian News & Media Ltd 2008