1. PLEASE RECYCLE
B R U N E L U N I V E R S I T Y ’ S S T U D E N T N E W S P A P E R
NEWS
UNION PAYS TRIBUTE TO NELSON
MANDELA
04
COST-SPLUTTER!
It hardly feels as though
Brunel’s Costcutter cuts costs -
and now we know why after an
investigation by Le Nurb found
that the university charges up to
55% more for basic groceries when
compared with an independent
store just minutes from campus.
The university was also found to be
charging customers up to 200%
more for items advertised as being
on offer or promotion elsewhere in
the Costcutter network of stores.
George Bowden
FEATURES
GENDER EQUALITY SPECIAL:
DOES IT REALLY EXSIST?
22
CULTURE
THE FILMS TO WATCH IN
2014
26
SPORT
JESS ANDREWS: GAINING
MOMENTUM
38
Among the everyday purchases found
to be more expensive at Brunel, semi-
skimmed milk was found to be 55%
dearer at Costcutter than the local
store on High Street, Cowley. Brunel
Costcutter charged £1.55 for the 1.27
litre, four-pint bottle, while the local
store charged just £1.
Eggs had a mark-up of almost 27%
when compared with the nearby store
- despite being the exact same size
and brand. 6 medium sized, Heritage
brand eggs cost £1.89 at Brunel and
£1.49 at the local store.
Among the other price differences
were Pepsi 2 litre bottles - priced
almost 24% dearer at Brunel, a
Continued on page 3...
Ristorante frozen pizza - with a 14%
mark-up, and a 1.5l bottle of Volvic
mineral water - 11% dearer at Brunel.
Out of the 10 everyday items
surveyed, eight were cheaper at the
local independent store and one
was the same price at both Brunel
Costcutter and the local store.
It’s good news for sandwich fans
though as the one item found to be
cheaper at Brunel was a 100g pack of
sliced ham.
All of the products surveyed were
directly comparable and only items
with the same pack size were included
in the research.
The local store is of a similar size to
Brunel’s Costcutter and is already
well known to Brunel students for its
highly competitive alcohol prices.
Differences in price were not limited
to basic groceries, however, with
many special offers advertised
nationally by Costcutter not passed
onto customers at Brunel. An offer
on Maryland chocolate-chip cookies,
which saw customers of other
Costcutter stores benefit from a ‘buy
one, get two free deal’, was not made
available by the university.
3. PLEASE RECYCLE
03NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
This meant that, over the promotion
period, every purchase of the cookies
at Brunel saw a 200% difference
in price when compared with other
Costcutters and advertisements on
TV and online.
Customers encountered a 109%
mark-up on the price of 2 litre
bottles of Pepsi after a £1 deal wasn’t
replicated at Brunel, and the absence
of an advertised two for £3 deal on 1
litre bottles of Tropicana orange juice
meant customers at Brunel paid 72%
more.
Responding to Le Nurb’s findings,
the university says it would like to
“reassure” students that it “works hard
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1...
to provide better value for money
and improve the overall student
experience.”
Howeveritsaidthatthe“challenges”of
being a small retailer mean that it can’t
replicate the pricing of other stores,
including those in the Costcutter
network. The university said its
Costcutter store runs promotions
“aimed at improving student welfare”
such as a £3.49 meal deal, a range of
halal foods and cleaning products.
It pointed out offers available at its
store, which was not advertised by
Costcutter, included a two for £3 deal
on branded bags of rice, a promotion
on tea bags and a bottle of bleach for
£1.
Costcutter Supermarkets declined
to comment and referred Le Nurb to
the university’s response. In a written
response to Le Nurb, Tracy Strachan,
Brunel’s Director of Commercial
Services wrote:
“We do value and act on the feedback
of our customers and have recently
launched an online customer survey…
we will be addressing the concerns
raised by customers through the
survey and directly to us.
“As a University Store, any profits
we do make are reinvested into the
University which works towards
improving the wider services we are
able to offer to our students.”
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF LE NURB?
Editor 2013/14
Kirsty Capes
Editor’sLetter
Welcome back, Brunelians, to the
second half of the academic year!
I hope your Christmas break found
you well and provided you with a long
overdue distraction from coursework,
dissertation and student living. After
the massive success of the December
re-launch issue, we were all keen
to keep up the good work and high
standards in this January issue. And
(not to blow my own trumpet) I think
we’ve done it. Overwhelming support
and quality contributions from Brunel
students have allowed us to produce
yet another 40-page issue, eight
pages longer than our usual offering.
The editorial team have been working
super-hard to get the stories relevant
to you in the paper and heard by
the university’s decision makers.
Our front-page story, which details
the pricing issues in the campus
Costcutter, is being addressed by UBS
President Martin Zaranyika. We’ll keep
you up to date with any changes in the
story.
Elsewhere, this month’s issue features
some special opinion pieces on
gender equality. We found that a lot
of submissions for this issue focused
on the recent Blurred Lines vote at
Student Assembly, and as a result, a
number of feminist issues that arose
from it. Students have provided some
evocative and informed opinions
detailing their stances on the various
facets of gender equality. Last month
Brunel also saw the first-ever winter
graduationceremonyforpostgraduate
students, as well as the re-launch of a
fellow media outlet, Radio Brunel, and
an inaugural guest appearance and
special Christmas message from the
Mayor and Mayoress of Hillingdon.
This term we have so much to look
forward to – elections, One World
Week, Varsity – and Le Nurb can
promise to continue to keep the
student body well-informed for the
rest of the academic year. If you’d like
to get involved you can tweet us @
le_nurbonline, search us on Facebook;
or email us at our new email address
for submissions and enquiries: lenurb.
brunel@gmail.com.
To get the most out of your Le Nurb,
make sure you’re keeping up to date
with us on Facebook and Twitter – and
be sure to look out for our website
coming soon to an internet near you.
Meanwhile, Le Nurb will strive to
keep you informed and up-to-date
on everything you need and want to
know about Brunel life. We’ll keep you
posted!
Last month Le Nurb re-launched with
a vengeance, and was well received
throughout Brunel. Copies flew out
of the bins across campus and the
online version of the December
issue received over 2000 hits. Here’s
what some readers said about the
December issue across social media:
Kieran Persaud @Kizaman Dec 6
@le_nurbonline what an awesome
read!
Cam Mckirdy @UBSVPSA 9 Dec
Having a read of this months LeNurb,
and throughly enjoying it!
Pesty Magician @MuyTwo 7 Dec
le nurb is brunel backward, yo.
Martha _@MSalhotra 5 Dec
Grab your copy of @Le_Nurb while
you can! The latest issue is definitely
worth reading! #TeamBrunel
January Baby @temiloluwaxo 5 Dec
I need to get my Le Nurb newspaper!
Mike Read @MihillRead 5 Dec
Just had a look through the latest issue
of @le_nurbonline. It’s looking spot on.
Let’s keep ‘em coming guys! #Brunel
The re-launch also saw a lot of
support for our special Mental
Health Awareness spread, collated
by Victoria Wallace and the Mental
Health Working Group:
Erica @erica_lyndsay 6 Dec
@robynfitz your le nurb article
touched on my personal experiences
as well. good to know I’m not alone in
my frustration, thank you! (:
Victoria Wallis @victoriawallis 5 Dec
So chuffed with this in @le_
nurbonline. Makes the hard work for
awareness so worth it, and it’s just the
beginning.
Thanks to everyone for tweeting
us your thoughts and opinions on
the December issue. We want your
opinion! Let us know what you think
of us by tweeting @le_nurbonline and
liking our Facebook page. The best
tweets will make it into the February
issue!
4. PLEASE RECYCLE
NEWS
PHOTO CREDIT: THE GARDEN LOBBY
POOREST STUDENTS SUFFER IN
£200M THREAT TO FUNDS
George Bowden
A planned £200m reduction in a fund
for the poorest students will ‘defeat’
the Government’s social mobility
agenda, the Million+ Education Think-
Tank has warned.
The Student Opportunity Allocation
could be reduced by as much as 60%
in the next budgetary year as the
Department for Business, Innovation
and Skills (BIS) trims its expenditure.
Senior coalition figures met earlier
this month to discuss the BIS budget,
with the Treasury thought to be keen
to impose the deepest cuts at the
department.
The BIS budget has come under
pressure as an
increase in private
education providers
has led to an
exponential rise in
the amount of fees
paid by the department.
While higher education has been
opened up to new providers, most of
which did not exist eighteen months
ago,thecentralgovernmentallocation
of funds for tuition fees has remained
the same. This has contributed to a
departmental shortfall at BIS. The
Universities minister David Willets is
said to be a supporter of the fund and
has thus far resisted pressures from
the Treasury, and the Cabinet Office,
to use the Student Opportunity
Allocation to plug the gap.
MeanwhileTheGuardianreportedthat
the fund is under threat in its entirety
with the figure being discussed closer
to £327m – the total amount of the
fund.
The fund is used to encourage those
fromthepoorestbackgroundstoapply
for, and attend,
university. This
aims to increase
social mobility
by empowering
those who would
otherwise be put off higher education
by giving them additional financial
support.
Next year’s spending
recommendations will be set out in
a letter that confirms the funding
available to the Higher Education
Funding Council for England (HEFCE)
for the academic year 2015-16.
Any cut in funding would follow
an earlier reduction in the National
Scholarship programme, a similar
scheme that aims to increase
participation.
Pam Tatlow, Chief Executive of the
University Think-Tank Million+ said:
“To lose this funding would be a real
disaster, especially following the
recently announced withdrawal of
£100m from the National Scholarship
Programme a year early.”
“To lose this funding would be a real disaster especially
following the recently annouced withdrawal of the £100m
from the National Scholarship Program”
5. PLEASE RECYCLE
05NEWS
UNION’S SWIFT
REACTION TO
GOVERNMENT
CUT
George Bowden
BRUNEL MIDDLE
OF THE ROAD FOR
LGBT STUDENTS
LGBT Charity Stonewall
has assessed Brunel University on
their detailed web guide to University
lifestyle for LGB students in the
UK. However, with a checklist of 10
things needed to support the LGB
community, they list 5 missing criteria
at Brunel.
Stonewall, the representative charity
estimate 5-7% of the population in
the UK are lesbians, gay men and
bisexuals. They also say in a recent
report that one in six people within
these categories are known to have
experiences some type of hate crime
or incident within the last three years
with one in ten victims experiencing
some kind of physical assault or
attack.
This is what Stonewall say Brunel are
missing:
• Anti-homophobic bullying policy
and mandatory training
• Student sexual orientation
monitoring
• Explicit welfare support and info
for LGB students
• Specific career advice for LGB
students
• Stonewall Diversity Champion
The absence of an anti-homophobic
bullyingpolicyandmandatorytraining
is at the top of Stonewall’s list. NUS
LGBT Officer Finn McGoldrick said in
The Guardian “While homophobia
and transphobia remain endemic on
all campuses,
u n i ve r s i t i e s
still do not
recognise LGBT
students as a
target group in
terms of access
and retention.
There’s this
wrong opinion
that you go to
university and
suddenly you are free to be whoever
you want to be and that it’s really
welcoming and accepting.”
She added “With LGBT students,
they only see it as a social issue.” The
Guardian also goes on to say “Finn
complains LGBT students are not
treated as a group which needs special
measures while at university, but she
insists bullying and hate crime are a
huge problem.”
Eleanor Margolis writes a regular
lesbian infused column called ‘Lez-
Miserable’ in the New Statesman. A
recent university graduate, she visited
Brunel this week to discuss her writing.
She said: “In my first year, I joined
an LGBT group so I could socialise
with some other gays, but I found it
Brunel students’ union has
negotiated new terms for a student
scholarship programme after the
Government announced a surprise
cut in funding.
The national scholarship programme
is a scheme aimed at empowering
a bit earnest and only went to one
meeting and it turned out that I didn’t
need to be a member of any groups
to make gay friends, anyway. There
were gay people everywhere. As for
making friends I’d suggest students
put themselves out there as much as
possible and do scary things like going
to gay bars alone (if needs be)”.
The University has over 15,000
students. From Undergraduate
degrees to MA’s and PHD’s, it consists
of a diverse community of cultures
and ages from over 100 countries. Yet
the Brunel LGBT society recorded just
81 registers of interest at the Fresher’s
Fayre this year.
Nathan Parsons, President of the
Brunel LGBT society said “There is
a large LGBT presence within the
mental health working group and as
a society we have a monthly drop in
morning at the Chaplaincy on the 1st
Thursday of every month.”
Stonewall do however give Brunel the
thumbs up on the other 5 requisites:
• Society for LGB students
• Events for LGB students
• Consultation with LGB students
• LGB Staff Network
• Engagement with the wider
community
The Stonewall University guide
2014 gives a brief outline of Brunel
University: “The LGBT society hosts
weekly meetings at the pub quiz on
Sundays in Loco’s. They also often
arrange clubbing nights out in London,
a n d
arranged a
coach trip
to Student
Pride in
B r i g h t o n
last year.
U x b r i d g e
i t s e l f
d o e s n ’ t
boast much
of a gay
scene, but it is on a tube line and Soho
is only an hour away.”
However, Brunel is by no means at
the bottom of the London List; other
London Universities fare much poorer
on the 10 point listing and some only
score 2. To see Stonewall’s ratings on
all UK universities you can visit www.
gaybydegree.org.uk.
Plans are afoot to develop and
enhance the services on offer at
the Uxbridge campus with Parsons
adding: “Robyn Fitzharris, the Equality
and Diversity Chair along with the
LGBT Working Group are combining
to develop plans to improve facilities
and support for LGBT.”
Angela Shine
students from disadvantaged
backgrounds to attend university.
However, the Government cut around
£100m from this fund at the end of
November prompting union officers
to seek assurances from the university.
In an unattributed statement on the
student union’s website, the union
says that officers “negotiated with
the University to get a better deal for
Brunel students”.
FIRST TASTE OF
SUNDAY DINNER FOR
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS
International students
were treated to their first
traditional roast dinner before the
Christmas break. Rev. Sally Hitchiner
made it possible for 50 international
students to have a roast dinner with
host families across the borough of
Hillingdon.
Brunel Chaplaincy organised the
“Brunel’s Big Sunday lunch” event with
support from Brunel International.
The idea of the event was to allow
students to practice their spoken
English and to enjoy an experience
of a real traditional roast dinner with
a family.
The event was very popular, as many
students where interested. The spaces
filled up fast and some sadly missed
out.
Students went to the homes of local
families in pairs and got to spend
a while getting to know each other
over a roast dinner. The host families
took into consideration the cultures of
the students before they arrived and
displayed a lot of generosity. Some
of the families had children whom
the students bonded with and the
students spoke to them about their
experiences from other parts of the
world.
The occasion also gave an opportunity
for the students to integrate into the
Ikran Dahir
“While homophobia and transphobia
remain endemic on all campuses,
universities still do not recongise
LGBT students as a target group in
terms of access and retention. With
LGBT students they only see it as a
social issue”
community and show the families
of Hillingdon what the International
students of Brunel are like.
Rev. Hitchiner said, “The host families
were extremely generous and often
researched the cultures of their guests
before meeting them.”
She added, “When the families
returned the students to the university
campus they all had big smiles on their
faces and were often carrying pictures
that had been drawn for them by the
children.”
If you missed out and would have
liked to taken part don’t worry as
Rev. Hitchiner has said, “It was a big
success and we are planning to do it
again next year.”
PHOTO CREDIT: BRUNEL INTERNATIONAL
The students’ union wrote, “The
main difference was to provide the
scholarships in cash; whereas before
students were mainly offered a fee
waiver.
This means that students will be
given meaningful choices, which will
increase the money going directly into
students’ pockets.”
6. PLEASE RECYCLE
Disaster struck the West
End’s famous Shaftesbury Avenue
in December when part of the
ceiling collapsed mid-way through a
performance.
On the 19th of December 2013, part
of the ceiling collapsed, breaking off
parts of the balcony beneath, 40
minutes into a performance of ‘The
Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night Time’.
After the collapse of the roof, in a
room of more than 700 people, the
emergency services acted quickly,
arriving at the scene and quickly taking
people to safety. A treatment centre
was set up at the Gielgud Theatre and
the London Ambulance Service has
said that it treated 79 people but only
nine had serious injuries.
During the play, some actors upon the
stage appeared to notice the cracks
in the ceiling and pointed to it before
running of stage. Some members
of the audience have commented
that they believed this to be part of
the play. Despite the collapse of the
ceiling and the panic that ensued
most people managed to remain
calm.
Reports have shown that there was an
orderly evacuation of the theatre, led
by the wardens, out onto Shaftsbury
Avenue.
Saqlain Suleman
The Society of London Theatre, the
body representing all producers and
theatre owners has said that, “The
exact cause of the incident is still being
investigated and the theatre owners…
are working closely with the relevant
authorities to establish exactly what
happened.”
However, it is thought that storms and
lightning strikes in London the day
before weakened the ceiling as water
was seen dripping down before the
collapse.
Progress has been made with the
reconstruction of the theatre, with
Westminster council saying they
would only allow the Apollo theatre
to reopen when completely safe. A
report into the structural safety of the
building is expected later in January.
While the theatre was planned to
reopen on Saturday 4th January
2014, the owners of Nimax have said
that the theatre will remain closed
until Saturday 11th January meaning
performances of Mark Haddon’s novel
will not recommence until Monday
13th January 2014.
The owners have paid credit to the
extraordinary work of the emergency
services at this time and have ensured
that they’re thoughts are still with the
families of the injured.
The 113-year-old building, which
was first commissioned by Henry
Lowenfeld and opened on 21 February
1901, was the first Edwardian theatre
to be opened in London.
06 NEWS
UNI MARKETING ‘MISLEADING’
George Bowden
Marketing for UK
universities is often misleading with
institutions engaging in increasingly
bizarre tactics to produce impressive
statistics, a report into the validity of
claims in prospectuses has found.
In one instance, a university redrew
the map of Great Britain in order to
validate its claim to be “one of the top
five Northern universities for student
satisfaction”.
Universities in Greater Manchester,
Liverpool, Cumbria and Lancashire
weren’t included despite all being in
the north of England, a freedom of
information submitted by the report’s
authors revealed.
Not content with geographic
alterations and semantic trickery,
however, some universities surveyed
used wholly inaccurate facts in order
to produce the most impactful
messages for perspective students.
One university claimed to be situated
in one of the most affordable cities in
the UK according to a Natwest survey,
yet it instead ranked well below the
majority of those surveyed by the
bank.
Another claimed to have been
crowned the friendliest university in
the UK by “independent surveys”. The
report’s authors found this survey was
in fact an online poll on the Friends
Reunited website.
In some instances, the phrase “ranks
in the top ten” was used to convey
a universities position in a category
where less than a dozen universities
can be compared. Being in the top ten,
therefore, could equally mean being
in the “third quartile” or “bottom half”.
The report, Integrity in Higher
Education Marketing, was published in
the International Journal of Education
Integrity.
It concludes that “data-based
marketing” can often be misleading
and makes it difficult for readers to
draw accurate comparisons when
viewing different universities. Higher
education marketing should reflect
the expense and importance of the
“product” being advertised, the report
suggests.
Hillingdon Labour Party
have selected Brunel student Kerri
Prince as one of their candidates
for the Uxbridge South ward in
the upcoming local
elections in May. Kerri
is a final year Politics
student and was last
year’s Union of Brunel
Students’ Campaigns
Chair.
The ward, which includes the
Isambard and MFG complexes, is
a key target seat for Labour in the
upcoming elections as they seek to
regain control of the Council from the
Conservative Party.
Brunel students make up a large
proportion of the ward’s population
and Kerri has said that she will be
campaigning hard to convince them
to vote in May.
Speaking after her selection, Kerri said,
“I am delighted to have been selected
to contest the Uxbridge South ward
for the Labour Party in the upcoming
elections. Thousands of students are
residents in the ward and I want to
ensure that their voices are heard by
the local council.”
She added, “Often in elections, Brunel
students don’t take the time to vote
but as such a large group of voters
we have a chance to make a real
difference. Over the next few months
I will be talking to as many students
and local residents as possible as I
Alex Mitchell
LABOUR PARTY SELECTS BRUNEL
STUDENTS TO CAMPAIGN IN
LOCAL ELECTIONS
THE CURIOUS IN-
CIDENT OF THE
COLLAPSE OF
THE THEATRE
want to hear their views about how
we can make Brunel and Hillingdon
an even better place to live.”
Anyone wanting to get involved with
Kerri’s campaign can contact her by
email on 1108593@my.brunel.ac.uk.
The Labour Party
has also selected
students Arran
Griffiths and Rob
Pennington as two
of their candidates for the South
Ruislip ward, which covers the area
surrounding RAF Northolt north of
the A40.
The elections will be held on Thursday
22nd May. You must be on the
electoral register in order to vote. You
can visit https://www.aboutmyvote.
co.uk/ to register or pick up an
application form from the Union’s
reception.
PHOTO CREDIT: THE GUARDIAN
“Often in elections Brunel students don’t take the time
to vote but as such a large group of voters we have a
chance to make a real difference”
7. PLEASE RECYCLE
07
PHOTO CREDIT: CHADLEY RICHARDS
MEET THE UNION’S MEDIA TEAM
My name is Chadley Richards and,
as well as being the UBS Media
Chair, I am also in charge of one
of its subsidiaries, Video Brunel.
Video Brunel was founded almost
3 years ago by former Radio Brunel
committee member Josh Robinson.
Video Brunel was created out of
students’ desire to capture and
document some of the amazing
events that happen in a student’s
time here at Brunel. Video Brunel was
formally integrated into the Union of
Brunel Students in 2012 by myself
and has been supported and funded
by the students’ union.
Video Brunel has given hundreds of
students the opportunity to interview
our guest acts at Academy, cover
elections, and even just creatively
express themselves. This year we
have taken on two major projects: one
being the Union of Brunel Students’
50th Anniversary Project; and the
second being the 2014 Varsity
promotional video. We are looking
for creative, driven and enthusiastic
students to get involved in all areas of
the production.
Helloall.Forthosewhodon’tknowmy
name is George Coates, it probably
says that somewhere above this inane
ramble, hopefully accompanied by
some dashing picture of me, half a
page big. Kirsty? Half a page please?
Oh right, yes, radio; I love radio,
and Brunel is alright, I guess, so the
opportunity to be station manager
of Radio Brunel was an attractive
prospect. We’re currently looking to
improve wherever we can, but right
now we just want the word to get
out that Radio Brunel is back on the
interwebs (www.radio-brunel.com),
and get a more regular audience
(that’s you!).
Radio Brunel has the potential to
be such a huge part of the Brunel
experience, but we need your help
to make it awesome. If a radio
broadcasts and no one listens, does it
make a sound? Probably not, I dunno,
I’m not a philosophiserer, figure it out
yourself! And while you do that, tune
in to Radio Brunel, cos we’re cooler
than Le Nurb and Video Brunel. Obvs.
My name is Kirsty and I have the
privilege and honour of editing the
newspaper that you are currently
holding in your hands. All student
media is important to the growth and
development of the UBS, but for me
Le Nurb is a little bit extra special.
Here at Le Nurb the fantastic section
editors and their teams work tirelessly
to collate and edit content submitted
by the student body. For us, it’s
essential that Le Nurb is consistently
representing the student voice; and
we therefore make sure that we ‘re
always printing articles that are both
written by and relevant to the Brunel
population.
We’re always looking for student
opinions and ideas; so if you’ve got
something that you want everyone to
hear, submit your article to Le Nurb!
It’s not just all about writing though:
we’re always looking for volunteers to
help us with photography, design and
illustration too. So, if you think you
can help us out with making Le Nurb
awesome, get in touch!
INTRODUCING UBS MEDIA
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
10-14TH FEBRUARY
GREEN WEEK
Go Green for
BRUNELSTUDENTS.COM
VIDEO BRUNEL
Chadley Richards
LE NURB
Kirsty Capes
RADIO BRUNEL
George Coates
8. PLEASE RECYCLE
It came as a shock when one of my
idols passed away last month. I was
sitting in the library typing away
when a well-known news site posted
the status ‘Mandela dies aged 95’ on
Thursday the 5th of December 2013.
I didn’t believe it. You never imagine
your heroes and inspirations to die.
You expect them to live forever.
That evening consisted of Whatsapp
messages and exchanging emails as
the Union of Brunel Students had to
do something, especially for a man so
close to our generation.
We decided to hold a small candlelit
vigil on the quad the next day for all
students to attend, light a candle and
say a few words; everybody pulled
together to make the vigil a success
and it truly demonstrated the strength
and tight-knit community we as a
university hold.
UNION HOLDS CANDLE-LIT VIGIL
FOR NELSON MANDELA
Jemima Khalli
It was a minimal set up: a speaker, a
microphone, tea light candles and
a board to write messages on but
personally, I don’t think it could have
gone any better.
Several students, and both UBS
officers and chairs, took to the stage
(or should I say steps of the quad) to
read poems, readings and extracts
from Mandela’s A Long Walk to
Freedom on that cold Friday evening.
The extremely talented singer
Vivienne Isebor, a final year at Brunel,
performed the heart warming song
‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ to a crowd
that was silent and alone in their own
thoughts.
Nelson Mandela touched the hearts
of millions of people. He taught me to
be the change and stand up for what
you believe in. We really are the future
and I truly think we can make a big
difference if we believe we can. After
all, this inspirational man went from
prisoner to President…
UNION NEWS
PHOTO CREDIT: CHADLEY LARNELLE
PHOTO CREDIT: CHADLEY LARNELLE
9. PLEASE RECYCLE
09UNION NEWS
December 2013 saw the
first ever Brunel Dance Christmas
Benefit, with over £300 raised for
Childreach International.
The night included performances
from all disciplines with extra
Christmas twists and a special festive
Santa strip from the Rugby League
Club. Members of the RAG committee
were also on hand during the night
selling raffle tickets and cakes.
The show was organised by Millie
Fortune, Vicki Ridgeway and Malaik
Ovortey who all took part in the
projects to raise money for Childreach
International. Millie will be going out
Brunel’s Equestrian Club
had a treat for Brunelians last month
when they brought two adorable
ponies to campus to help raise money
for their club and charity.
The two ponies - a Shetland and a
mule foal - set up shop next to HSBC
on the concourse for a day of petting
and fundraising.
Students were invited to give the
ponies a stroke or feed them a carrot
or two. The ponies sported reindeer
antlers and red bows around their
necks, helping spread Christmas cheer
in the gloomy December weather.
The event raised £150, which was
split between Equestrian Club and
Hussain stood for: love,
honour and sacrifice
Hussain stood against: oppression,
injustice and tyranny
On the 10th day of the Islamic New
Year, numerous Shia Muslims around
the world weep and mourn the tragic
death of the grandson of the Holy
Prophet of Islam: Imam Hussain.
A man of excellence and bravery,
Hussainshowsushowtomakeastand
against injustice and oppression.
The Brunel Ahlulbayt Society
launched its Ashura Awareness
week on Tuesday 19th November
2013, whereby members of the
society distributed water bottles and
cards to convey the message of this
revolutionary man. Essentially, the
aim was to enlighten people about
what happened 1,300 years ago and
BRUNEL
HOSTS DANCE
BENIFIT
BRUNEL’S NEW
MASCOTS?
EQUESTRIAN’S
PONY FUNDRAISER
MELTS HEARTS
Malaika Oyortey
Kirsty Capes
to Nepal to take part in a project to
build a school whilst Malaik and Vicki
will be joining a record number of
Brunel students climbing Kilimanjaro
in August this year.
Childreach International is an
international development charity
with projects in six different countries
worldwide. They focus on improving
children’s access to healthcare,
education and rights.
The Dance Benefit organisers would
like to say a huge thank you to
everyone who gave up their time to
help make the show such a success.
If you missed it, have no fear as Brunel
Dance will once again be taking over
the Howell building for their annual
show, taking place on the 13th, 14th
and 15th March.
their chosen charity, Blue Acre Horse
Rescue in Windsor.
UBS President Martin Zaranyika,
VPCW James Ward and even
the Mayor of Hillingdon Cllr Alan
Kauffman all popped by to say hello
to the special visitors.
Club chair Clara Limpus called the
event a “great success”, saying “Some
of security even came over to stroke
them, and the staff of HSBC very
kindly did a collection for us. It was
very nearly not possible due to
permissions and paperwork, but
myself, Blue Acre and the rest of the
club are very thankful that it went
ahead!”
You can find out more about Brunel
Equestrian Club by BrunelRiding; and
Blue Acre Horse Rescue by visiting
blueacrerescue.org
WHO IS HUSSAIN ?how this universal message relates
to modern life. The mission involved
reaching people from all walks of life
to circulate this holy message.
By the sheer number of people that
walked away with a water bottle and a
card containing a very noble message,
I can safely say that this campaign has
been a very huge success. Although
a few shied away, many wanted to
know more and did their own research
in order to implement the message
into their own lives.
With academic pressure and cold
weather meaning many of us would
rather be sipping hot chocolate in
the campus Costa, members of the
Ahlulbayt Society gathered to help
out at this yearly event. It was a good
chance to meet fellow Ahlulbayt
Society members as well as working
in a team to propagate the distinct
and special message.
Here is what Gandhi has to say about
Hussain: “My admiration for the
noble sacrifice of Imam Hussain as a
martyr abounds, because he accepted
death and the torture of thrust for
himself, for his sons, and for his whole
family, but did not submit to unjust
authorities.”
AND
“I learnt from Hussain how to achieve
victory while being oppressed.”
Hussain also inspired the English
novelist Charles Dickens. Here is
what Dickens has to say about this
exceptional and distinguished man:
“If Hussain had fought to quench
his worldly desires…then I do not
understand why his sister, wife, and
children accompanied him. It stands
to reason therefore, that he sacrificed
purely for Islam.”
Regardless of your beliefs, culture
and background there is a universal
message that can be learnt by
humanity.1.5 Billion People around
the world know about Hussain and
the stand that he made. Do you?
Ensure that you don’t miss out by
visiting: www.whoishussain.org
Brunel University’s Vice
President of Community
Welfare has slammed recent
Government proposals for young
drivers. James Ward, 22, made his
comments in the wake of The Novice
Drivers Report, commissioned by
The Department of Transport. The
Government has commissioned
research which suggests that the UK
should ‘slow down’ the driver training
process, recommending following
a step by step graduated driver
licensing system, similar to the 4-year
process currently used in Australia.
The Community Welfare VP said:
“I think it’s ridiculous, it’s utterly
shambolic.” He added “Young people
already have the burden of high
insurance prices, so spreading the
cost of driving over 4 years is just so
expensive, young people will not be
able to benefit.”
The report, by the Transport Research
Laboratory, also suggests the age of
license applications (a provisional
license) to rise to age 18, effectively
making it impossible for a full license
to be granted under the age of 22. So,
if you had been toying with the idea
of taking your test, it’s about to get a
lot more expensive and will take you
far longer, making it an especially
PROPOSALS SLAMMED
ON RAISING THE
MINIMUM DRIVING
AGE TO 22
difficult financial burden on students.
Emma Telford, 20, shows off her hard
earned driving license, obtained at
age 17. Emma, a third year Brunel BA
Theatre student said “I had my first
lesson a week after my 17th birthday
and I passed two weeks before my
18th birthday. At that age, you really
want independence and you have to
rely on other people. It’s a safety thing
as well, as it’s more dangerous to work
late and use public transport at night.
I now drive into University and work
part-time as a Sales Assistant.”
The DFT said ‘The report is expected
to form part of a green paper
currently being written and goes on to
say that ‘Based on the evidence, it is
recommended that licensing in Great
Britain be based on a full Graduated
Driver Licensing system.’
Mr. Ward himself has a particular
passion for transport at Brunel
University; he has recently petitioned
for more scheduled services plus
double decker buses in order to tackle
the overcrowded U3 route serving
Cleveland Road at the University. He
is also in the process of championing
Brunel’s own cycle hire system after
The London Mayor’s office rejected
his request to extend the London
bike scheme to include the University
areas.
Interestingly, applications to learn to
drive are dropping. 5.2% fewer 17-20
year olds have applied this year than in
2009, according to the 2013 National
Travel Survey. In fact, The Mail Online
reported in 2012 that ‘Academics
have found that the amount of driving
licenses handed out to people in their
teens, 20s and 30s has decreased
significantly over the past three
decades in nations where internet
usage is high.’ Why then, review the
learning process, stretching it over 4
years until a novice driver is given the
metaphoric green light?
Punam Varsani, 20, a Biomedical
Sciences student at Bristol’s University
of the West of England said of the
scheme: “I would be really against
that! Even though I don’t have a driving
license yet it would make life so much
more difficult. Coming from London, I
have good transport links but people
outside of London don’t have this. I
feel I am mature enough now and to
have to wait until 22 would put more
restrictions and make younger people
feel like they are not responsible or
mature enough. But at the age of 22,
they are responsible enough to live on
their own, cook for themselves, pay
their own bills and study for a degree.”
With young people already put off
by the increasing cost of learning, car
costs, fuel charges and prohibitive
insurance costs, our new drivers
Angela. Shine
On the final Mega Global of last term,
Brunel students had to be escorted
out of the Academy nightclub and
the Student Union building on two
separate occasions due to fire alarms.
Thenightclubsecurityaskedeveryone
to leave the premises and wait until it
had been thoroughly checked for any
fire hazard before they let them back
GLOBAL WARMING
in. A while later the same problem
arose once again and for the second
time of the night the club had to be
evacuated.
On both occasions it took around 15
minutes to re-escort clubbers back
into the venue.
Campus security is currently looking
into what caused the fire alarms.
R. Hussein
10. PLEASE RECYCLE
10 UNION NEWS
Last month the Politics
Society invited journalist Peter
Hitchens and Brunel’s Professor of
Contemporary Thought Will Self to
a debate hosted in Academy. The
motion argued was whether “In
contemporary Britain all religious
faiths should be accorded equal
respect and civil recognition.” The crux
ofSelf’sargumentwasthatthepolitical
power held by the Anglican Church is
“anachronistic”, its disestablishment
critical as, ultimately, it is a “large and
slightly rotten bough in the English
tree”. To frame his counter argument
H i t c h e n s
continued the
m e t a p h o r ,
retorting that
we are still
sat upon the
branch of
Christianity,
as “inheritors
of a unique
tradition… it is very easy to throw
things away without understanding”.
He suggested that the Anglican
Church is an integral part of our
society, and disestablishment would
lead to the breakdown of our moral
and legal structures.
Having established a
premise, the debate was opened
to the floor. The first audience
contribution questioned whether we
could still keep these moral and social
benefits Hitchens
believes exist
without religion.
Hitchens was quick
to step in with a
somber and stern
tone, focusing
upon the collapse
in lifelong marriage
rates correlating
with the reduction in religious
stability. Self quickly rebutted,
suggesting that Hitchens notion
was of “wild syllogistic reasoning”
– suggesting that during the height
of puritanism less than fifty percent
of Londoners attended church. He
presented other lifestyle changes as
its cause, rather than the increasing
despondency with Christianity, saying
that Hitchens was one of a minority
who “wants to see faith privileged in
our culture”. Hitchens said that in fact
religion has no effect upon the wider
view of the country, pointing out that
his personal view of Anglicanism
has “no bearing” on his wider view.
Self then pointed out that there are
members of the House of Lords
which are bishops, causing religious
POLITICS SOCIETY
HOST WILL SELF
AND PETER
HITCHENS FOR
CONTROVERSIAL
RELIGION DEBATE
O. Ronaldson
R. Frewin
issues to be inseparable from politics.
Hitchens suggested that the Christian
attachment allows everyone to reside
on a “basic moral playing field”,
perpetuated through the Church of
England’s education system to all
individuals equally.
The truly engaging aspects of the
debate came from the juxtaposition of
two entirely opposite debating styles.
While Will Self flourished, drawing
the audience to him with displays
of humour and triviality, Hitchens
reiterated his beliefs and main points
in a serious arguing style, which Self
undermined by playing to the crowd.
After a question on the biased intake
of faith schools
from Jules
Roadknight, Self
exclaimed: “we
will have none of
that faith school
bollocks”, to the
amusement of
the onlookers
but the
dissatisfaction of Hitchens. Hitchens
seemed unable to counter Will Self’s
flippancy, which left his arguments
appearing slightly lackluster when
compared to the energy and bravado
Self brought to the debating floor.
Although, after a brief descent into
squabbling, Hitchens clarified his
argument, claiming that if Christianity
did not have such prominence then
another religion such as Islam, the
“rival to Christianity” would take its
place. Self
q u i c k l y
brushed this
point off like
the loose
tobacco from
his cigarette,
which he
c a r e f u l l y
r o l l e d
through the entire second half of
the debate. His final point was that
Hitchens was merely fear mongering,
and that there were in fact plenty
of happy secularist states. By the
end of the debate it felt as though
they were arguing slightly different
points – that Will Self was opposed
to religion having any effect on
government at all, while Hitchens
believed that if a Christian-biased
government wasn’t in power, then an
Islamic one would be. Overall, it was
Self that held the audience, creating
an engaging debating atmosphere
where contributions from the crowd
were responded to and discussed,
while Hitchens gave the impression of
ignoring those questions to which he
didn’t have a prepared answer.
“To lose this funding would
be a real disaster especially
following the recently annouced
withdrawal of the £100m
from the National Scholarship
Program”
“To lose this funding would
be a real disaster especially
following the recently annouced
withdrawal of the £100m
from the National Scholarship
Program”
We kick February off with
Quids In, playing nothing
but cheesy pop and classics! Only £1
entry and drinks from £1.50!
Then we have SuperBowl Sunday.
With an American Football themed
pub quiz to get you in the mood with
American food being served all night,
come down to watch the Seattle
Seahawks battle it out against the
Denver Broncos.
Monday 3rd sees us bringing in the
Chinese New Year celebrations with
WTF. Tickets £3 in advanced; help us
support your sports teams! Playing
80s, 90s, 00s and more! Kick off
the night with the Drinks Exchange
in Locos from 8pm and with cheap
drinks all night!
Tuesdays see our (really!) popular
Karaoke night hit Locos! Come
down and sing along to some classic
songs. Whether you sound like Frank
Sinatra or Jedward there is a song for
everyone. Make sure to check out our
£2 Tuesdays drinks offers!
Wednesday nights play host to our
brand new night GAMMA providing
you the perfect way to kick off any
night out. Come down from 7pm for
ping-pong tables and some of the
best drinks deals we have yet! Get
your song requests in to our DJs and
kick start your night out.
After its highly successful launch
back in January, Thursday 6th sees
WHAT’S ON AT THE
ACADEMY IN FEBRUARY?
Adam Philpot the second instalment of our new
House night Motus & Oratous. Expect
nothing but House all night. Tickets £3
in advanced.
Friday 7th kicks off the weekend
with Global. Expect 2 rooms of
music bringing you the best in pop,
commercial, house, dance, hip-hop,
r&b, bashment and so much more.
Keep an eye out for our 6pm and
birthday guest lists along with some
great drinks offers!
Keeping the weekend alive, head
down to Quids In every Saturday. £1
Entry. Then on Sunday make sure
to check out the pub quiz and open
mic showcasing some of the best-
undiscovered talent on campus.
The basketball team host a Valentine’s
Day Special at WTF on Monday 10th.
Come down and support your teams.
£3 in advanced. Drinks Exchange in
Locos from 8pm.
Thursday 13th hosts our second Post
Grad night of the term! Throwback
Thursdays! Our DJ will be playing the
best in old school soul, funk, disco and
more from 10pm.
Friday 14th is our Global Valentine’s
party with Club MTV. World famous
MTV will be hosting its club brand
here for Global. With DJ R3Wire and
Varski this night is not to be missed
and you never know, you may find
love out on the dance floor.
Get those Firemen and Police outfits
out as Brunel Rugby host WTF 999 on
Monday 17th. Tickets £3 in advanced.
MASH entertainment is bringing the
Party Next Door to The Academy on
Tuesday 18th. Expect the best in hip-
hop, R&B, Urban, commercial and
more! Don’t miss Karaoke in Locos
from 9pm.
Thursday 20th, an alternative night
for alternative tastes. Head to The
Academy for our brand new Indie
night, Locked In. Tickets £3 advance.
Expect the best in punk, indie, rock
and all things guitar.
Friday 21st is none other than Global
in The Academy. Make sure to check
out our Global Warming pre party in
Locos from 8pm.
Dance Club host WTF School Disco
on Monday 24th. Come down and
support your sports teams.
For those who like their music a
little heavier, head to Rock Night on
Thursday 27th from 10pm. DJs will be
playing nothing but punk, metal and
classic rock. Get those band T-shirts
out and get pumped up for some
serious headbanging.
We round February off with none
other than Global. Make sure you
get your tickets in Advanced and get
down earlier avoiding the queues.
Watch out for the 6pm and birthday
guest lists.
Keep up to date with our events by
heading to www.brunelstudents.
com/whatson and join in on
Facebook/ubsnightlife.
PHOTO CREDIT: UBS NIGHTLIFE
11. PLEASE RECYCLE
One World Week is a week
long programme of events
that aim to celebrate the cultural
diversity of Brunel University, and this
year it will be running from the 24th-
28th February. We want it to be bigger
and better than ever before, which is
where all of you come in…
One World Week encourages staff,
students and our local community
members to come together and get
involved in an extensive programme
of activities. It encompasses over
100 different events over a five day
period. The week aims to increase
engagement and cohesion within
Brunel’s community and to create
a fun, inclusive and engaging
environment to improve the student,
staff and local community experience.
OneWorldWeekisagreatopportunity
to try something new, so get involved!
The week will be filled with events
ONE WORLD WEEK 2014
Mariana Rocha
organised by the Union, University
and Clubs and Societies. These events
include a World Parade, Give it a Go
sessions and taster sessions, outreach
community projects, International
Food Fayre, World Fayre and World
Evening, volunteering projects, and
others.
The International Food Fayre
Be a part of something special, be a
part of the International Food Fayre!
This is your chance to represent your
country at one of the best events
of the year. Whether you are an
international, EU or Home student,
or whether you are part of a club or
society, make sure you are a part of
this amazing event. How can you
get involved? We would like you to
represent your country and culture
through preparing food, drinks and
decoration.
You can either cook, bake or buy
the food, offer a traditional drink
or sweets, have decoration on your
table, or country flag, a quiz well…
you get the idea! One dish or many, it
doesn’t matter as long as you join us.
If you would like to take part you
will need to reserve a table by 4th
February. You can do this by emailing
filiz.mcnamara@brunel.ac.uk
The World Fayre
We are hosting the World Fayre on the
28th February between 3-7pm , the
final day of OWW 2014.The World
Fayre will be a huge event full of stalls
promoting clubs, societies, etc. It gives
you an opportunity to have a stall at
this event which you can use to tell
students about your club/society, do
interactive activities to show people
what you do. Performances are also
welcome at the World Fayre. We want
people to perform as the World Fayre
turns into an evening event.
Don’t miss the opportunity to
be involved in one of the best
weeks at Brunel University. More
information about the week at http://
brunelstudents.com/oneworldweek/
Brunel University students
voted a resounding ‘No’
to banning a controversial song
on campus in an historic first ever
‘banning’ vote at the autumn student
assembly. The vote to ban the song
Blurred Lines by artist Robin Thicke
caused controversy and mixed
feelings on campus with even the
question of whether the vote should
be allowed in its original form being
voted on. The motion fell with 6 for
and 35 against the motion, with 4
abstaining.
Martin Zaranyika, Student Union
president presented the motion and
Welfare officer James Ward presented
a strong case for banning its allegedly
offensive lyrics to be played at any
venue on campus avoiding the
celebrating of forced sex and possibly
even rape. He said “The union notes
that many students across the country
as well as on this campus have found
the contemporary popular music
song ‘Blurred Lines’ offensive. There
is a national campaign dedicated
to banning this song in the student
movement and many unions are
taking similar actions.” The lyrics
include lines like ‘But you’re an animal,
baby it’s in your nature’ and ‘That’s why
I’m gonna take ya’ plus ‘Good girl, I
know you want it…’ He went on to say
“The lyrics suggest a lack of consent to
sex from women and suggests that it
is okay for women to be harassed.”
The motion was immediately
questioned by Cam McKirdy VP of
Student Activities who said “Yes, it’s
a catchy song, it is promoting rape
culture, but there are a lot of songs
that people disagree with. Can we
have a stance to look at this song
negatively rather than ban it, would
you amend the motion? I don’t think
we should ban it or we will open up a
can of worms”.
Student Jack Rosies added “Sexism
is bad but Lil Jon has been playing in
Academyandthat’sreallymisogynistic
– why don’t songs about mugging get
banned?” Student Andy Baker agreed
“How many other songs could be
offensive. We would have only one
song playing. Why have we not looked
at other avenues? Why have we taken
the moral high ground?”
Fellow student Liam asked “Does
the song encourage rape culture?”
Members of the University
and College Union (UCU),
including lecturers and university
staff at Brunel, will stage a series of
two-hour strikes in their continuing
battle for greater parity in pay and
conditions.
UCU members are reeling after recent
revelations around the “inappropriate
and unfair” pay of university vice-
chancellors.
They say pay deals struck by senior
university managers contrasts sharply
with a 1% increase in salary offered to
UNION NEWS 11
BRUNEL
STUDENTS
VOTE NO TO
BANNING
SONG ON
CAMPUS
Angela Shine Brunel’s Societies Guild Chair Zion
Zakari replied with conviction
“Yesterday I spoke to a student
who was raped. I stand against this
being played. If it offends ANYONE,
it should be banned.” The VP of
Academic Representation Zein Owfar
said “The Union is saying: not in any
of our venues. What are we going to
do about others which are not our
venues on campus, what can we do
about that?
Olive Barton – President of
the Feminist Society made an
impassioned plea surprisingly against
the ban “This song is disgusting, it
goes against everything I believe in.
80% of female students experience
sexual harassment. We need to use
a zero tolerance for harassment but
I don’t think banning ‘Blurred Lines’
does anything for the students of
Brunel.” She continued “I need more
for them than banning this song, I
need security and real change. It’s
taken my best friend three years to
get up off the sofa after being raped.”
Zara Shaen Albright looked at it
differently “Why can’t we use the
song to educate people about sexual
assault and rape instead of banning it”
The assembly applauded her.
Student Sausan Hamawandy argued
“There are people that are offended
by everything. Play it after 11pm. Most
people are out of their heads in Locos
anyway.” But student Liam Walpole
reasoned “Perceptions are different
for different people. Some people
may be offended, some may not.”
The resounding no vote was decided
after much angst over whether to
‘ban’ the song or merely ‘agree it
wasn’t suitable’ with many students
feeling that the latter would equate
to just a discussion with nothing being
done. With the motion falling, music
and freedom of expression plus music
choices that may cross sensitive
boundaries stand unaffected across
Brunel’s campus.
STRIKES AFFECT LECTURES
WILL EXAMS BE NEXT?
George Bowden academics and staff.
The trade union also points out a
recent Government announcement
that budgetary surpluses across the
higher education sector are projected
to grow in the coming year.
The UCU has alluded to future action
which may involve strikes targeted
around university exams.
The UCU general secretary, Sally
Hunt, said: “Despite another round
of embarrassing revelations about
the very handsome pay rises those at
the very top have enjoyed recently,
universities are still refusing to
improve a miserly 1% pay offer and
are still oblivious to the hypocrisy of
their actions.”
“Any kind of disruption is always a
last resort but, after five years of pay
suppression and members 13% worse
off in real terms, we have little option
but to escalate our action.”
However, some students on campus
won’t be supporting staff during the
strikes after members of Brunel’s
students’ union voted not to support
striking university workers at last year’s
annual union meeting.
The strikes are scheduled to take place
on Thursday 23rd January between
1100 and 1300, Tuesday 28th January
between 1400 and 1600 and on
Monday 10 February between 0900
and 1100.
12. PLEASE RECYCLE
12 CREATIVE WRITING SPECIAL
THE FAMILY
DILL THE SUPERHERO
Aldo Scott
Lena Mistry
England, late 1315
They came when they were asleep. That
particular night the sky was too dark,
too cold, the family too alone. It was
a silent ordeal. In and out. One, two,
three, gone. The animals in the shed
were as good as dead, nobody wanted
them. The children, on the other hand,
were fresh game. Soft, and young, and
most delicious. The children were in
the stables sleeping on the hay where
horses once lay down. The horses had
perished there. The family threw them in
the river. Bad move. They were hungry
for months. The children did not awake,
they did not know, they could not
fight. Little Thomas, little Anne, little
Catherine. One, two, three, and they
were gone.
It was Miles who woke up early the
next morning. The world around him
was silent. He could not hear the
rustle of trees as they quivered in
the wind, he did not hear their swine
grunt in long, everlasting agony, and
he did not hear the sound of the little
stream trickling past their hut. He did
not hear because no one and nothing
had the energy to make a noise. Miles
forced his skinny body off the hard
ground and walked out into the fresh,
morning air. Sunlight splashed over
his pale skin. He stood squinting up
at the sun. He could not remember
the last time the sun had greeted
him with such tenderness. It felt like a
lifetime ago. For months on end the
rain crashed down on them, flooding
their lives with misery. One after the
other families had left the village and
all signs of humanity escaped their
grasp. They had the farm, and the
animals, but the endless rainfall soon
killed everything that they had. No
one could believe they were still alive.
Miles had left his wife sleeping in the
hut, her limbs tangled into a thin sheet
of fabric, hardly breathing. These days
it felt like they were dead men walking.
In fact, it was as if they had all died
and gone to hell. The Devil was their
saviour now. Miles made his way over
to the barn where the animals were.
The door was slightly ajar. It didn’t
matter, the animals had no notion
to move, no fight in their bodies live
anymore. Rays of sunlight filtered
in through gaps in the walls and the
animals blinked in surprise. Miles took
delight in watching the golden dust
float around in the barn. Perhaps the
angels had come down to save them.
The soft warm breeze licked his skin
in hungry anticipation, as if the famine
had killed the air too. The song of
summer filled his ears as a bird began
to squawk weakly in the trees.
Beautiful, he whispered, the word
so unfamiliar now he almost forgot
how to speak. Beautiful, he said again
because he never wanted to let go
of the moment. And then his eyes
focused again on reality. There was
only one cattle, and the old swine
which had slumped on the floor in
the corner. There was also the rotting
carcass of a fox at the rear of the barn.
Miles had no choice but to pick up
the dead fox and bring it outside. He
dumped it on a rock, and then stood
looking at the spotless blue sky while
stretching his back. His arms felt worn
out from carrying the fox.
Miles started to skin the animal. He
used his nails and a dagger made out
of stone. It was hard work, and by the
end of it his eyes swam with metallic
spots. Bits of the fox remained, its
meat scattered with dark, hollow
bruises scavenged by stray animals.
As he got up, his knees buckled. The
fox’s head lay on the ground, its eyes
burning into him. An ant crawled
through its fur. Eventually, Miles
dragged himself off the ground with
the skinless animal in his hands. He
moved away and didn’t look back.
Mary! He limped into the hut, hands
and fingers sore. His wife was sitting
on the floor with her head cradled
in her arms. She looked up as Miles’
silhouette filled the doorway and
heard him shout her name. Her eyes
were tinted with spots of red, almost
hauntingly. She blinked slowly, the
sun shooting into her pupils. Miles
threw the fox at her feet.
Dinner.
Mary grabbed the hairless meat with
her dirt-caked hands, and looked up at
Miles with large, breathless eyes.
Find the children, she whispered and
looked back down at the source of
food she was clutching. Miles heard
her stomach grumble, almost as loud
as thunder. A dark, crimson liquid
rolled off his fingers and landed on
the ground.
It did not occur to Miles to see to the
children.
Miles took great time in walking to
the old wooden building which had
once been the village stables. It was
shrouded by shadows from the ring
of nearby trees. There were no sounds
coming from the inside, as if the black
shade had swallowed up everything
inside. Not a sound at all and he
delightfully drank in the peace and
quiet. If only his children could sleep
forever and never wake up.
Time was stalling. He stepped into
the stables, his eyes taking a long,
heavy minute to adjust to the piercing
darkness. It became immediately
cold. His fingers froze. Moving slowly,
he looked left, right, here, there, under
piles of ancient, broken hay, in dark,
endless corners, in the ceiling and
behind the doors. He glanced once
everywhere and scratched his head,
his body moving with exaggerated
slowness.
Miles laughed. And then stopped.
With one last look he stepped
backwards, out into the open air. An
emptiness filled his eyes as he stood
outside, looking into the black abyss
of the stables. The place did not
exist anymore. It would have to be
forgotten, just like everybody else.
Miles went back to his wife. She had
set some plates out on the floor,
becoming restless at waiting for the
meat to cook. When Miles went in she
looked up excitedly.
The children? Her eyes asked and Miles
stared at her, hard. All they could hear
was the bubbling of the fox.
Gone, he croaked, so quietly as if
nobody should have heard him speak.
His wife blinked. She was still for a
moment, and then got up to kiss him
on the cheek.
And then turning back to the circle of
plates on the floor, she removed three
and left two by their feet.
We shall dine comfortably now. Now
and forever. Her voice was louder. Less
afraid. Brave, and wise. And suddenly
very strong. Miles could not do much
but smile and shrug. It had taken a
while for the plan to work, but now it
had, he could not feel anything inside.
Perhaps it was just the hunger in him.
But he sat down all the same and held
his wife’s hand.
It is for the best, she said and squeezed
his hand. He smiled back, and soon
the mighty feast began.
The sunlight barely came through
the hazed windows. A faint noise
of pencils scribbling and the almost
antique clock ticking on the wall could
be heard as the children were quietly
working on the exercises the teacher
had set them. Every now and then
she would have to interrupt the class
to stop Billy from picking his nose and
to tell Sam that the glitter was not, in
fact, edible.
At the back of the room, Dill was
sitting at his desk. He had just finished
the last exercise on the sheet of paper
and was now kicking his feet against
the legs of his chair and staring out
the dirty windows. His hair was
neatly combed back and his browline
glasses rested on his small nose. The
magnifying effect of the lenses made
his eyes look jiggly, not unlike the
Cookie Monster. The faint sunlight
highlighted his pale skin and red,
chapped lips.
Dill was in the process of imagining
a battle of the most epic proportions
in his busy little mind. Buildings
were exploding, spells were being
cast, dragons were being slain, and
damsels in distress were being saved
by the most noble of heroes who
were driving around the land in their
impressive sports cars, guns ablaze.
The clockwork of Dill’s brain was
jammed by a ball of paper that
had been chucked across the room
squarely into his right eye. This act
of malice was accompanied by the
ringing of a bell. School was over and
it was time for the children to run
along to their mothers and fathers.
Dill promptly packed up his lunch
box into his backpack, slung it on his
back and sprinted home through the
crowds.
Dill greeted the postman right as he
reached their letterbox and took the
mail directly from him. He ran up
to the front door and kicked it open
and soon after apologised to his
mother for doing so. In the kitchen,
Dill dumped the mail in a heap on
the table and reached for a bottle of
milk from the top shelf of the half-
empty refrigerator by climbing on
a small stool. He opened the bottle
and poured some into a small dish
for Colby, their Jack Russell terrier.
For himself, Dill cracked open a
bottle of chocolate milk and poured
an extra-large serving. He tried his
very best to drink it in one go, before
his mother came in. Luckily no one
heard the sound of choking or saw the
splattering of milk on his shirt and on
the floor. After finishing that glassful,
he poured himself another one, put
away the milk bottles and ran upstairs.
The bathroom was a quiet haven
whereDillcouldgotowheneverhefelt
like he needed some time for himself.
He lifted the lid on the toilet, removed
his trousers and sat backwards. This
way the cistern could serve as a handy
table for his glass of milk. Completely
oblivious to the health risks posed by
spending too much time sitting on
the loo, he contemplated his journey
to becoming a superhero. As far as his
innocent and naive mind understood,
as long as he drank plenty of milk
and helped his mum by lifting heavy
shopping bags, he would eventually
grow up to become the hero this
world needs.
Any suspicious noises would make
him snap out of his thoughts and
check the door for anyone attempting
to come in. Dill’s parents wouldn’t take
kindly to the fact that he was helping
himself to an abundance of regular
milk, let alone chocolate milk. But
how else was he going to develop
strong bones and muscle mass?
Superman didn’t get to where he is
now by resting on his laurels.
Dill hopped off the toilet and made
his way toward the mirror. He pulled
the string to switch on the light
and positioned himself so that his
reflection was in the centre. He
carefully studied and evaluated
himself. To become the saviour of
the ladies, he would have to become
significantly bigger. His shrimpy body
was no good for acts of valour. His ribs
were clearly visible and his shoulders
were as sharp as knives; not bulky and
muscular in the slightest. A look of
despair almost crept onto his face, but
he gave himself a good slap to regain
his spirit. He accidentally knocked
down his tall, and now empty glass of
milk.
The resulting sound of jagged shards
whizzing through the air and scraping
across the stained floor alerted the
parental units in the next room. Dill’s
father, who was sporting a white tank
top and whose balding head could
be described as a hair cul-de-sac,
entered the bathroom in a fit of anger
and cast the boy into the corridor.
“Oh, for crying out loud! What did I
tell you about breaking the crockery,
boy? Now get out of here!” Dill ran to
his room which was at the end of the
corridoor, right next to the staircase.
He jumped wildly onto his bed,
which was covered by a duvet with
teddybears on it.
There he lay, eyes toward the ceiling.
As well as sounds of the bathroom
floor being swept, the hubbub of
lasers zapping and swords clashing
could be heard in Dill’s daydreams.
14. PLEASE RECYCLE
FEATURES
IN POLITICS, DEATH IS A TIME
FOR REFLECTION: NOT GLOSS
Peter Richards
The global PR machine has
found itself in full swing
in 2013. All manner of respected
public institutions have watched their
reputations wither away, struggling to
tackle growing public disenchantment
with the powers that be. Problems
ranged from widespread sexual
deviancy to a scandalous abuse
of trust with our most personal
and intimate information. Mistrust
became the buzzword of the year.
In the midst of these organisations’
turmoil, Britain has at least managed
to find comfort in reflecting upon
the lives of admired individuals; the
excuse of one ‘only following orders’
or being ‘completely oblivious’ has
become enough to dismiss even
the most heinous offences, as long
as someone else can be made
a scapegoat. The public needs a
face putting to a name: the BBC’s
succession of director generals are
a particularly poignant example of
new blood finding themselves in the
gallows at the concession of their
inexcusably negligent predecessors,
much like our politicians – however
one can admit the less said about the
efforts of the incumbents’ efforts, the
better. At least with the BBC, there
was an active and positive effort to
improve. A progressive agenda.
Of all figures who have featured in
2013’s news, who better embodies
the idea of a progressive agenda,
a revolution even, than Nelson
Mandela? The South African
champion of anti-apartheid passed
away at the end of last year, and his
passing was met with almost universal
mourning. South Africa remembered
Madiba, who freed their people -
Britain said goodbye to a man whose
influence and message was distorted
for so many years before we finally
embraced his victory, and America
said goodbye to someone who until
2006 was still considered a terrorist
threat. But who could blame them?
Without any doubt, Nelson Mandela
was a terrorist; he organised bomb
threats, and for years preceding his
imprisonment (and many during his
incarceration), he was the head of
the ANC’s terrorist wing, the political
party classed by the United States’
Homeland Security as a terrorist
group.
But where was the coverage of
this, beyond the vitriolic opinion
driven columns of the Daily Mail?
No one picked up on his bomb
plots orchestrated from a prison
cell, or his willingness to sacrifice
human life to drive his righteous
revolution. You would be forgiven
for thinking Mandela was a squeaky
clean perfectionist, who overthrew a
tyrannical government with no harm
done. The truth is far from the papers’
version of events.
This isn’t a piece critical of Mandela.
He was a revolutionary – a freedom
fighter. But a fighter nonetheless. The
media’s problem is that they were
as willing to mention his terrorist
programme as they were his Ground
Force appearance. Mandela has a
story, not just an end result. To say
South Africa changed overnight would
be a great injustice to the two decades
he spent in prison, for doing the right
thing the wrong way. But politicians
and newspapers have been very keen
to make it seem that Mandela just
dropped his hat and things changed:
Senator John McCain, the Republican
candidate for the 2008 US Election,
paid tribute to a courageous and
inspiring individual (his words), a full
28 years after he voted to support the
continued incarceration of the future
President.
What McCain, and indeed any
politician will find hard to do is
explicitly proclaim that Mandela was a
terrorist; albeit he did so for what were
right reasons. There were no deaths
from Mandela’s bombs, but a number
of murders are connected to the ANC.
Can this ignorance and manipulation
of the facts be forgiven? If you believe
that politicians and newspapers have
a right to save face as much as they are
obliged to stand by their professional
decisions, then yes. If not, then the
mainstream media really isn’t for you.
I feel the need to point out with
certainty to anyone who believes
that there is liberal, Zionist, or fascist
agenda in the media that there is no
such thing. The fact of the matter
is that no individual, collective,
or otherwise is perfect, and using
someone’s passing to not only gloss
over their shortfalls for the sake of
abiding by the consensus of the
mourning, but also to cover up one’s
own mistakes is a scandalous and
cheap offence. At the same time, it
has to be considered that standing by
your ground too strongly can cause
substantial embarrassment. Margaret
Thatcher’s death resulted in much
more divisive and at time vitriolic
coverage; the Guardian happily
published Steve Bell’s illustrated
thoughts on the subject, and that was
reprinted by the Daily Mail under the
headline ‘Lefties spewing bile’.
Despite this joshing, across the
board Thatcher was projected as an
influential juggernaut of politics. Her
uniqueness as a female Prime Minister
and unmistakeably firm personality
meant that it was perfectly fair to
bask in her former glory for a few
days, but for some reason the dozens
of protests north of Wolverhampton
were swept under the carpet. Was
it because they chanted about her
murder of 323 Argentinians on the
General Belgrano, her careful and
structured plan to economically
destroy the city of Liverpool, and her
scandalous ignorance surrounding
the Hillsborough disaster and its
subsequent police investigations?
Elsewhere this year, the Mail did
little to cover their own backs with
the pernicious ‘The Man Who Hated
Britain’ piece on Ralph Miliband, which
made a mockery of their own alleged
journalistic standards. Rather than
inviting debate and contemplation,
the Mail had gleefully published an
outright hate piece, much like the
ones Peter Hitchens writes for them
on a weekly basis (including his piece
on the ‘cult of Mandela’).
It’s true that critical voices were still
heard during Thatcher’s time on this
earth, but upon her demise they
went from well respected, legitimate
political arguments to being viewed
as alternative, radical dissent. Likewise
with Mandela, those who genuinely
questioned the legitimacy of his
methods to overthrow apartheid were
suddenly in fear of being cast down
as racists. Of course, if one gazes
too far down the Mandela criticism
spectrum, real racism and bigotry is to
be found (even on the hands of David
Cameron, whose name was printed
on ‘Hang Mandela’ leaflets).
However, the death of a figure should
demand sensible reflection and
debate: with any person, deified or
not, it is not the media’s responsibility
to think for the population, and lavish
praise over their numerous spreads in
a shameless pandering to populism.
Politics is a game of mistakes, driven
by personalities who whilst justifying
a certain degree of respect, still
exist to be criticised and discussed
in a manner devoid of personal
sentiment. Is that really too much to
ask, considering that newspapers are
there to be purchased by anyone?
Unilateral praise is never justified
nor pleasant; it only vindicates
the vacuous culture of celebrity
consumption that we as a country
have spiralled in to, completely of our
own accord, and dangerously blurs
the line between such a mentality
and that of the intricate world of
politics. What seems to happen in the
event of a death is newspapers pick
their side, and wilfully ignore facts in
order to drive home an agenda, good
intentions or otherwise.
Thatcher, despite her revolting
attitude and policies (look up Section
28 or spend the day in Liverpool),
deserves respect. Mandela, despite
his clandestine methods, will always
be a hero of the world, and absolutely
demands respect. The magnitude of
these figureheads on the pages of our
history books is both staggering and
reassuring; even in this fast paced,
interconnected world, we have time to
admire those who made a difference.
What we, as an educated and
pragmatic population need to do, is
use this vast realm of connectivity
and information to face the facts,
and understand that mourning is no
excuse for a whitewash.
PHOTO CREDIT: BIOGRAPHY.COM
15. PLEASE RECYCLE
15FEATURES
The student lifestyle is
easy to acclimatise yourself to and
forget about the real, outside world.
The concept that you don’t need
to worry about a full-time job or
career path for the next 3-4 years
and enjoy life in a Fresher state-of-
mind (establishing new friendships,
a game or 20 of pool in Loco’s,
going to flat parties before they
are shutdown by security, playing
Beer Pong and waking up the next
morning in someone else’s kitchen
in a completely different set of halls
to your own) can become routine
for those not taking residence in the
library posting their stalking habits at
11 o’clock at night on ‘Spotted: Brunel’.
However, with the loan cost of
£9,000 per year to study, it pays
to be proactive and consider why
you are actually at university and
deliberating what will happen to you
in the future... during sober moments.
Let’s be honest, ‘Veni, vidi, vici’ is a
far more inspirational motto and
reflection of your undergraduate
degree... instead of ‘Veni, vidi, vino’.
With this in mind, please allow me to
introduce you to Daniel Hughes.
Following his graduation from Brunel
last year in Games Design and Music,
Danny has already accomplished an
impressive amount within a mere
6 months of bidding farewell to
campus and establishing himself in
the industry he became intrinsically
passionate about. “When I started
university I thought that being a
games designer would be cool, but
the time I realised that without a
doubt I wanted to pursue a career
in the games industry was at the
start of third year”. After positive
feedback regarding the pitch idea for
his dissertation (Danny’s favourite
studying moment) and previous work
to date, this boosted his self-esteem
and helped in affirming his desired
vocation.
Upon completing his further
education at college, Danny decided
to take 3 years out of education
to work and dedicate his creative
concentration on his band. However,
the joint honours course at Brunel
eventually attracted him to enroll and
embark on combining his academic
and practical experience with his
music and his recreational past-time
of video game appreciation. In light
of the stigma that is synonymously
attached to School of the Arts
students (jokingly mocked for taking
a ‘Mickey Mouse’ course) Danny
states he has only received praise and
encouragement in his personal life:
“My family have always been a great
support to me; encouraging me to
pursue what I want to do and letting
me decide on my own. My friends are
great too, always showing an interest
in what I’m doing”.
Now comes the success part. In
DANIEL HUGHES: A BRUNEL GRAD
SUCCESS STORY
Antony Smith
June 2013 ‘Octopus 8 Studios’ was
launched, having evolved from an
idea during a Skype chat while online
gaming between the company
founders, including two of Brunel’s
very own lecturers in Games Design:
Justin Parsler (‘Octopus 8 Studios’
Chief Creative Officer) and Chris Cox
(Chief Operating Officer). Part of the
virtual company’s credo and service
outlines “We’re here because we
believe there is a strong need for a
studio to support those wishing to
join an industry which can be tough
to break into”, acknowledging the
difficulties and challenges Games
Design students face to attain their
dream job. Justin personally drew
attention to the adversity games
designers encounter: “If we can help
some good graduates get out there as
its difficult to get the credit [for their
work].”
Due to Danny’s proven excellence
PHOTO CREDIT: BRUNEL UNIVERSITY FLICKR
and forte in the understanding and
creation of game worlds, he was
promptly offered a position. Justin
also shared his respect and adulation
for Danny, defining him as: “easy to
work with, good eye, good work ethic,
focuses the mind to get it done.”
Danny has since been subsequently
involved in the production of the
recently released iPhone game
app from Octopus 8 Studios on 13
December 2013 (and soon to be
available on Android devices) in the
varied areas of Design, Programming,
Music and Sound. Nevertheless, he
remains humble with his recently
acquired accolade: “I count myself
fortunate to have worked with the
guys at Octopus 8 because without
them our game wouldn’t have gotten
as far as it has”.
The app is called ‘Oddlight’, described
by ‘148apps’’ as “a quirky arcade
adventure game”, focusing on its
USP: “It’s different from the other
games that flood the App Store,
which gives it an edge that helps the
game stand out”. Reviews on the App
Store include: “Fantastically addictive,
stupendously charming, inevitably a
best seller”, “Very creative game”, and
“catchy soundtrack = win”, awarding
the app five stars.
Therefore, fellow Brunelians, show
your support for one of your brethren
and play the ‘Oddlight’ app on your
SmartPhone. Tell your friends and
everyone you know about the funky,
cutting-edge new game on the
market. Good stuff.
So, with the incredible beginnings
of a career as a professional nerd
(affectionately christened... but, come
on, we all know the reputation Games
Design students have... and they
know it too) how does the Brunel
Wunderkind intend to follow-up his
debut act? “In the future I intend to
continue to improve my experience
in game development because I still
have a lot to learn and I believe I still
have a lot to offer. I wouldn’t be here
without Brunel University and its staff
and I cannot recommend the Games
Design course highly enough. It was
a wonderful experience that I miss
greatly!”
Well done, dude. Keep doing Brunel
proud and all the best for being an
illustrious alumnus.
Visit Danny’s personal website on:
http://hugehandsgames.com.
Plus ‘Octopus 8 Studios’ website on:
http://octopus8studios.com.
16. PLEASE RECYCLE
16 FEATURES
HOW MUCH
DO YOU ACTUALLY OWE?
Eddie Leggatt
Way back in the depths
of time, in the first few
months of – generally – your A2 year,
you ticked a series of boxes. Endless
hours of UCAS and Student Finance
forms terminated in frustration, tears,
frantically clicking F5 and, hopefully,
eventual success. You completed
everything! Now just to pass those
exams…
But what did you actually agree to?
Here is the worst case scenario, where
our ‘Student A’ takes a maximum
£9000 Tuition Fee Loan (which pays
for his lectures) and a maximum
£9000 Maintenance Loan (to pay
for his food, and finance the all-
important Pub). These two loans make
up what is usually called the “Student
Loan”. To examine how much debt
he’s going to have, I’m going to set
up a hypothetical situation, apply the
current interest rates and repayment
rates, and walk through each step
until our subject is two years out of
Uni. This will give a ball park figure
that will be applicable to many of us.
The figures will be slightly rounded
down, to provide nicer numbers and
a conservative estimate.
Year One of university, into the
student debt pool goes £9000 of
tuition fee and £6400 of repayable
Maintenance Loan, that’s £15,400.
And our
student is
loving life,
doing a degree
that isn’t
philosophy as
I want him to
be employed aged 23. He survives
Fresher’s week – one incident in
Academy, and an embarrassing
bikini picture with the Brunel statue.
He also, later on in the year, gets
thrown out of the library for spinny-
chair jousting and sets foot twice
in the gym, despite his £235 gold
membership.
Year Two of university. Introduce
Mr Taxman, here to apply interest
to the first year’s loan. He’s not too
bad, casually adding £1016 onto the
loan you’ve not had an opportunity
to pay back yet. (For the Economics
students, that’s RPI+3%, 6.6% for
2012/13). £16,416 pounds in, let’s
begin our second year. Refreshers
week! After a year of diligent training,
your body is ready. Despite a minor
insurgency in the liver region, you
power your way through and, again,
survive. Either the damage is minimal,
or you can’t remember it – does it
matter? Suddenly, a wild work load
appears! The summer job you’ve
held on to wants you doing 35 hour
weeks for Christmas, your five pieces
of coursework for this term are
clamouring for attention, and every
now and then you’re supposed to be
“social”, whatever that is. Oh, by the
way, that’s another £15,400 for the
privilege. Worth every penny!
Year Three of university. £31,816 of
repayable debt, that’s not too bad.
BOOM! Taxman again! Add on our
6.6% interest, that’s £33,915 worth of
debt. This year, you meet the library
in its true, Cthulhu-esque form. Those
airy days of falling into the pond
dressed as a Vietnamese mountain
lemur are
long gone,
and it’s all
hard graft.
But you make
it through,
taking you up
to £49,315 quid worth of debt. You
wear the funky hat, Ron Weasley’s
dress robes, and shake many a hand.
Happy 21st by the way! Best wishes
from Mr. Taxman, who waves his
magic stick in your debt-ditch and up
it shoots to £52,569. Gulp.
Year One of life. You work a
placement, it’s the field you want to
be in, but as it’s a starting job you get
£18,000 a year. It’s fun, and you’ve
introduced spinny-chair jousting to
the workplace! Health and Safety are
after you, but we all know the first rule
of Joust club. Just as a passing note,
you don’t have to pay anything back.
Interest rate of 3% applied, £54,146.
YES! Success! You’ve earned a proper
salary! £30,000 - paid straight into
your bank hole. Now then, it’s time to
shatter the Holy Grail, and pay back
some Student Loan. Now, the interest
rate thing has been pretty repetitive,
so it’s time to spice it up with payment
terms! You pay back 9% of what you
earn over £21,000 a year. So, if you
earn £21,100, you pay back £9 of your
loan over the year. Subject A, who is
currently on crutches after a nasty
bout at the All-London Indoor Office
Jousting Championships, pays back
9% of £9000, or £810 for the year.
Awesome! It’s heading downwards,
finally!
Except Mr Taxman pops back
up, applies 4.5% interest. So you
actually…. oh… £55,699 after
payment. That sure looks like more
than before.
PHOTO CREDIT: HUFFINGTON POST
“Now then it’s time to shatter the Holy Grail and pay back your
student loan. Now the interest rate thing has been pretty repetitive
so it’s time to spice it up with payment terms! You pay back 9% of
what you earn over £21,000 a year”
17. PLEASE RECYCLE
So, it’s all over for another
year. Time to stop humming
Christmas songs and eating more
food than you thought possible.
It’s 2014, everyone is heading back
to work or university, looking quite
depressed. Here are some tips to get
you over the post-Christmas blues
and get you feeling motivated for the
year ahead.
1. Delete the Christmas songs
The last thing you need is Miley Cyrus’
version of Santa Claus is Coming to
Town suddenly blasting through your
headphones because you forgot to
remove it from your iPod.
2. Take down the decorations
Nothing is more depressing than
sitting on the sofa in January, staring
at the wilting Christmas tree and
the vast empty space underneath it
where presents once lay.
3. Buy new stationery or work
supplies
Get down to your local supermarket
and pick up new pens/folders/
highlighters/pads in the sales. There’s
nothing quite like colourful pens to
get your work head back on!
4. Get a 2014 calendar
Take down your calendar or wall
planner from 2013. The last thing you
need is to see days marked with saying
‘Winter Wonderland!’ or ‘Christmas
Party!’ .. on a rainy Monday morning.
Instead, put up a fresh one and fill it
10 WAYS
TO BEAT
THE POST-
CHRISTMAS
BLUES
L.J. Gonzalez
with important dates for the new year.
5. Eat or dispose of the leftovers
If you’re still tucking into turkey
sandwiches and mince pies, it might
be time to stop. Start a new healthy
diet or, if that’s not your thing, just go
back to normal food!
6. New Years Resolutions
These don’t need to be things like
old favourite ‘New Year, New Me’.
Make them realistic. What didn’t you
manage to do last year? They could
be to do with anything from spending
more time with your family, to being
less reliant on your iPhone.
7. Plan a ‘Summer Holiday’
Give yourself something to look
forward to that is the complete
opposite to cold Christmas. This
also gives you a great excuse to start
holiday shopping.
8. Put away your presents
That new perfume? Use it. Those
new shoes? Wear them! Books?
Read them! Don’t let them lie around
gathering dust.
9. Realise its still okay to have fun
Just because it’s January now, it doesn’t
mean you can’t go out for a drink or
relax watching a film. Just don’t watch
a Christmas one.
10. Realise it will be around again
before you know it!
Apparently, the years go by faster the
older you get. So don’t dwell on the
Christmas that’s just passed. Why not
start preparing for the next one!
Few people would dispute the fact
that the book we refer to as The Holy
Bible is one of the most important
books ever written. It can be divided
into two parts the Old and the
New Testaments. It is somewhat
strange that the Old Testament can
be backed up by facts from Jewish
history. Sadly, this is not the case for
the New Testament, as there is only
one person in the four gospels, which
are the most important and widely
read part of the New Testament, that
we can prove existed. That man is
Pontius Pilate.
Excavation in Israel revealed to
archaeologists an engraving with the
name Pontius Pilate and the objects
found nearby showed that he lived
two thousand years ago. As a Roman
and a governor of the area we now
call Israel he had tremendous power
and his decisions were a matter of
life and death to the people. He was
appointed by his political superiors
in Rome, and was expected to keep
order in a distant province populated
by a sometimes violent and rebellious
people. The standard way to punish
any miscreant was to crucify him by
nailing him to a cross. This was the
most painful way to kill someone,
as the victim took on average three
hours to die and in that time would be
screaming in agony. This is just what
AFTER SOME 2000 YEARS
HAS CHRISTIANITY PASSED
ITS SELL-BY DATE?
ArthurToomer
the Romans wanted as it would deter
anyone else from stepping out of line.
Like many politicians over the
centuries Pontius Pilate made an error
of judgement. As a fair minded man he
did not believe that the man brought
before him, named in the Bible as
Jesus Christ, was guilty. He could let
him off. Pilate said to Jesus, “I have
the power to crucify thee or release
thee”. Pilate sought to release him but
the Jews cried out saying “If thou art
Caesars’ friend whosoever maketh
himself a king speaketh against
Caesar”. But they (the Jews) apparently
cried out “away with him”, crucify him,
we have no King by Caesar. Pilate as a
politician wishing to keep favour with
the people he was governing gave way
to their demands and Jesus Christ was
crucified. According to the Holy Bible
the people shouting “crucify him” were
the Jews. They mocked Jesus Christ
and are consistently portrayed in the
New Testament as a bad lot. Before
the meeting with Pilate, it was a man,
Judas Iscariot who betrayed him to
the Roman authorities. This has had
terrible consequences for Jews for the
last two thousand years, during which
Christians taking revenge on Jews
who were usually a minority group.
The giants of literature from before
and since Shakespeare’s day have
portrayed Jews as evil moneylenders
like Shylock in The Merchant of
Venice. There must surely have been
Christians who lent money but we
don’t hear much about them.
Another example of the power of the
Holy Bible is the names we choose for
our children. All over the world there
are thousands of children named
Matthew Mark Luke and John after the
four apostles. Another name from the
Bible, Paul, is also very popular, but to
be called Judas would be considered
insulting.
It would seem that we only use the
Holy Bible and Christianity when it
suits us. For the last two thousand
years, there has been one war after
another, each one worse than the
preceding one, yet we are told in
the Holy Bible “Thou shalt not kill”.
Unfortunately this beggars the
question, how many people can
the world support and maintain?
Christianity seems to be divided on
this issue. Every minute, of every day,
a child dies somewhere in the world
from starvation or malnutrition. It can
hardlybethechild’sfault;itmustsurely
be the fault of the politicians, the rich
and the wealthy who for generations
donated money to build churches and
ornate cathedrals believing this would
ensure them a place in what they
considered to be heaven.
It would seem to me that it is not
Christianity that has passed it sell-by
date, but rather it is mankind. In two
thousand years we have become
more and more destructive and unless
we change our ways will eventually
destroy what could and should be a
very beautiful world.
17FEATURES
PHOTO CREDIT: THE GUARDIAN
