The lU'.avar is printed on 100% rocyclod papfr. T%.faso rfoyclc your copy. The newspaper of the London School of Economics Students' Union since 1949 • 8 January 2008 • Issue 676 www.thebeaveronline.co.uk MAPPy N W YEAE BABKir PartB LSE not £$€ SUTHERLAND OUT Peter Sutherland was met by protestors when he arrived at LSE in February 2007 to deliver a speech at the Lawyers' Alumni Dinner Sutherland arrives to take over as Chair » Students threaten protests due to allegations of environmental and human rights transgressions during Sutherland's tenure as BP Chairman CHUN HAN WONG & MICHAEL PEAS Peter Sutherland has assumed his new role as the Chairman of the LSE Court of Governors and Council. His appointment, which has sparked student opposition since its announcement, took effect on 1 January. He was scheduled to chair his first meeting of the LSE Council, the School's governing body, later this afternoon, but it has been cancelled. The next meeting is scheduled on 5 February and is expected to draw protests. Students have questioned whether his alleged responsibility for humanitarian and environmental transgressions since his appointment as BP Chairman in 1997 can be reconciled with the Fabian principles upon which the School was founded. These concerns have been raised since the School's Court of Governors approved the Sutherland's appointment under controversial circumstances in March 2006. Aled Fisher, LSE Students' Union Environment and Ethics Officer, de- scribed Sutherland's appointment as "an affront to everything that LSE stands for, and all the principles of peace and justice that I expect most LSE students and staff hold." He also raised concern over Sutherland's record at BP, calling it "one of human rights violations, environmental abuses and an avoidance of responsibility, even for what many people have called the biggest environmental crime in history in the recent Canadian tar sands scandal." Activists point to several human rights and environmental transgressions committed by BP during Sutherland's chairmanship. These include the hiring of Defence Systems Columbia, a private security firm accused of human rights violations, for installation protection, the 2005 Texas City Refinery explosion, 2006 Prudhoe Bay oil spill, and last month's decision to invest in the environmentally-damaging Canadian tar sands projects. Sutherland has also been criticised for his role in outlawing abortion in Ireland, during his second term as Attorney General. Students refer to his involvement in the deliberations over the phrasing of the controversial Eighth Amendment to the Irish constitution, which introduced a ban on abortion when it was passed into law in 1983. Women's groups have argued that the ban has led to a rise in numbers of unwanted children and back-street abortions. However, Sutherland's supporters have pointed out that Ireland's abortion legislation was passed by a referendum and hence has the backing of a popular mandate. Furthermore, some students contend that his position as Chairman of Goldman Sachs and his role in the establishment of the World Trade Organisation, of which he was Director-General from 1993 to 1995, make him an ideal candidate to chair the LSE Council. The narrow defeat of a motion calling for a student referendum on Sutherland's appointment at the Union General Meeting last January indicated significant support for the BP Chairman amongst students. Nevertheless, student protests against Sutherland's appointment have taken place on a number of occasions. In November 2006, a sit-in demonstration was held prior to a public lecture delivered by Sutherland. An accompanying online petition against his ap- pointment was signed by 500 students. A demonstration was also held outside a dinner reception hosted by Sutherland early last year. Students also expressed concern over Sutherland's failure to step down from his position of BP Chairman. Fisher accused Sutherland of duplicity, saying that he"has already lied to students by not stepping down from BP as agreed with the School, as revealed in minutes from Council." He believed that Sutherland will use his new position "to advance his career, not the interests of LSE students." Nevertheless, Sutherland has stated that he would step down as BP Chairman in "April or so" of 2009. Last month, he told FT.com that Tony Hay-ward, BP chief executive, and other non-executive directors had urged him to stay on until the 2009 annual general meeting to provide an overlapping period with Hayward's appointment, which began in May last year. The need to look for a successor, which Sutherland described as "a process which takes some time", was another reason for extending his stay. CONTINUED ON P 3 EDITORIAL COMMENT P7 » Comment & i^ialysis 5 A Change is Gonina Come: Barack Obama » PartB B4 Ltjng live the Korine; All interview with Harmony » Sports 20 Boxing Clever: LSE in Oxford »Features 12 » Back to dictatorship? Russia's prospects in the coming year 02 leaver j 8 January 2008 NEWS In Other news Higher Education News Education&iardim co.uk Helicopter Parents Are Landing Universities around the UK have registered the rise of the helicopter parent. The trend, already well rooted into US academic life, is also spreading to graduate recruitment. Helicopter parents "hover over their children". Graduate recruiters in the US now have specific policies to deal with them. Paul Redmond, head of careers at Liverpool University, says his department is going to have to "be more open and say it doesn't look particularly impressive to have your parents with you at a fair". QEIB NEW! "Universities Warn of Higher Fees" University fees will rise following a redirection of higher education funds next September. Funding will now prioritise undergraduate degrees. 20,000 places for first degrees should be created. Bill Rammell, Higher Education Minister, said that "For the tax payer, funding people for a first degree has to be a higher priority than supporting those studying for a second degree." The University and College Union forecasts fees starting at £7,000 even for home and EU students. Dr Geoffrey Thomas, from Oxford University, fears the higher fees will "drive away students who can't afford them". The government does not expect any university to lose cash in the process. Oxford Union Re-Poll to Go Ahead Unchanged Are-poll for the position of Oxford Union's President will take place next week. The previous result was overturned when newly elected Krishna Omkar was convicted of electoral malpractice. Omkar was accused of "disturbing" arrogance towards the Union's constitution as well as "intimidating" his opponent Charlotte Fischer. Omkar appealed the decision on the basis of "factual inaccuracies" and reliance on rumour. The Appellate Board rejected his appeal. He will not be able to run again. Picture of the week- Photttgrapli: Chloc Kvans i' Ilia't ¦ Please send your submissions for 'Picture of the Week' to photos@thebeaveronline.co.uk to be featured here "B. The l?»it and rhe BN': 4 This week in Hal security only fools dummies fMA'SaiK, ¦WWl, CTft'rv f WKfVUKt vni. Xf> Wf j> wwnjnw 2007 Hall security only fools dummies Lax and ineffectual entrance security and shocking negligence on the p^art of hall staff were exposed at two LSE halls, in a special investigation by The Beaver. Reporters were able to enter the School's Grosvenor House and High Holborn halls last week without being asked for any form of identification at either nail. Entrance was gained into Holborn following residents into the hall, with entrance security not bothering to stop or question "tailgating" reporters. Reporters then proceded to check the hall for flat doors left open by students. IN THIS ISSUE NEWS 1 Sutherland arrives to take over as chair Lord Grabiner Makes Way The Beaver Goes Nationwide Former LSE Director Knighted LSE Students Launch Events Business C&A 5 Hope Springs Eternal The Empire Struck Back Purchasing Peace of Mind Show Yourself the Money Letters to the Editor FEATUKES 8 Red isn't dead: Capitalism in 2008: Crunched Blue is true: Democracy in 2008: The Only Resolution that Matters John McCain's Moment Beyond Annapolis The Old Man's Back Again Fighting for France LISTINGS Office Hours At the LSE this week... The Beaver Collective Meeting Thursday 10th of January Timeless, the LSE SU Cultural Show SPORTS 14 the New Year Cruisin' for a Bruisin' in Oxford PARTE B1 Daniel B Yates: The Last Editorial "J"' ,.y Shy and ^ retiring? f Not Sir Alex. Some Tips for Heroin Chick PartB Interviews Harmony Korine 2008 at LSE Back 2 the Future One Hundred Films in One Hundred Lines Overland Overlord Let'is Go Techno Can't Stop the Drop Hot Picko ^ ^ for 2008 C»BSI Love You, w Chick Flick . Shit NEWSINBRIEF Virus hits the UK and LSE LSE staff members and students received an email from the School warning them about a winter vomiting disease. The Norovirus bug is currently affecting many people across the UK. Norovirus is the most common cause of infectious gastroenteritis in England and Wales. The bug can be spread by contact with an infected person, through contaminated food or water, or by contact with contaminated surfaces or objects. Symptoms include severe vomiting, diarrhoea and fever symptoms, which last about 48 hours. Norovirus is not dangerous in normally healthy people. The Royal College of GPs is advising that anyone affected by the bug remain at home until 48 hours after they last suffered symptoms. MP for Europe to speak at LSE Jim Murphy, Minister of Parliament for Europe, will deliver a public lecture at the LSE this Wednesday, 9 January. The public lecture is entitled "The EU at 27 - taking on a global role" and will take place in the Hong Kong Theatre. The Minister for Europe will consider how an enlarged EU can address global challenges and how the Reform Treaty will help the EU to perform more effectively both in Europe and internationally. The event is a part of FT Business - LSE European Institute The Future of Europe lecture series and is free and open to all with tickets, available on the LSE website. LSE SU to host largest cultural show in its history The LSE Students' Union (LSESU) is set to produce the largest celebration of dance, drama and music in its history at Her Majesty's Theatre. The show will be held on Sunday 20 January. Timeless will comprise of 160 performers, featuring acts from various communities. The show has been jointly organised by various LSESU societies and aims to raise funds for The Prince's Trust and The Care Education Trust. Mikesh Vora, Timeless co-producer, said: "Language may form barriers in our world but music, dance and drama are a means of expression that transcend all barriers. We have worked together towards dismantling the stereotype that we only care about our classroom grades, curriculum vitae and job opportunities. We hope this show provides you with a taste of the true essence of our culture and philosophy. With a spectacular array of contemporary, modern and classical dances, a variety of music and a glamorous fashion show. Timeless promises to be a unique production, that will be remembered for years to come." Tickets are available at the Houghton Street "Timeless" Stand on the School campus everyday from 11am-3pm. NEWS leaver I 8 January 2008 Controversy looms over Sutherland arrival CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE At the time of the appointment, Director Howard Davies regarded Sutherland's reputation as a potential asset to the School. He described himself as "delighted" with the appointment, stating that Sutherland's "background in public policy and his business and international interests match the LSE's profile remarkably well." Arthur Krebbers, an honorary student and former student governor, also welcomed the appointment. He described Sutherland as "an excellent candidate for chairman, given his impressive resume and breadth of managerial experience." He referred glowingly to Sutherland's reputation, stating it would prove "essential" for attfacting top academics and donations to the School. "A great majority of students consider him an excellent ambassador for the LSE," he said. Other students are less impressed by Sutherland's track record. Joe Butler-Biggs, ; Peter Sutherland has already attended Council as a guest, and has dominated headlines since his appointment was j announced in March 2006 second-year Philosophy student, believes Sutherland's chairmanship of the LSE implicates the School in his actions as it implies that "his actions and ethics are being actively endorsed by us all whether we like it or not," Lord Grabiner makes way Michael Deas News Editor As Peter Sutherland takes his place as LSE Chairman, Lord Grabiner makes way after almost nine years at the head of the Council. Grabiner was appointed Chair of Council, the LSE's governing body, and Chair of Court of Governors in 2008. The Beaver understands that Lord Grabiner will continue, unelected, to Chair a fundrais-ing sub-committee within the School. During an interview for the LSE Magazine last year, Grabiner said he was proud of his achievements, especially the governance reforms that saw Council become the highest decision making body in the School. However critics have argued that this restructuring has led the School to become increasingly run like a business, ignoring the views of students and academics. "Another thing I am proud of is the development of the LSE estate during my time...The pedestrianisation project with Westminster (Council) went a long way to creating more of a campus. During my time as a student, cars passed through Houghton Street. That will never happen again," he added. Grabiner stressed that "We must continue to attract the best staff to attract the best students and we must have matching facilities. I am especially delighted about the academic building on the comer of Lincoln's Fields. It opens up LSE to a particularly attractive part of London and will dramatically improve experience for staff and students alike." Perhaps interestingly, in light of the controversy surrounding his successor, Grabiner also called on LSE to remember its roots during this interview: "I think the School needs to stick closely, even today, to what the founders had in mind." Whilst not as controversial as the appointment of Peter Sutherland as his replacement, Grabiner's conduct has been called into question by students on several occasions. During contract renewal negotiations with Director Howard Davies that took place last year, Grabiner authorised a paid sabbatical leave of absence as a condition of Davies' reappointment without the prior consent of Council. Students and academics remained unaware of this arrangement until after the appointment had been finalised. According to student governors present at the meeting that authorised the reappointment, Grabiner pushed the sabbatical through Council without full and proper debate. It is the first sabbatical the LSE has ever awarded to a non-academic. James Caspell, former Student Governor and Member of Council, stated: "These shady deals without any democratic input or scrutiny are typical of how the School has been run under Davies and Grabiner. It is crucial that in the future students do not rely on these bankrupt representative institutions and organise mass campaigns of direct action when campaigning against tuition fees." More recently, Grabiner has been accused of aggressive behaviour towards members of the Palestine Right to ACADEMIC FREEDOM FOR ALl '^1 ^ Lord Grabiner presides over a Council meeting as student protestors stand behind him Education campaign. Campaigners entered a Council meeting to demand a meeting with Davies over his alledged "implicit support of Israel" and failure to speak out against the plight of students in Palestine, Grabiner was markedly more confrontational than Davies and other council members and even threatened to have the demonstrators forcibly removed by security staff. Davies agreed to hold a meeting with students, and told the campaigners they could decide which representatives from the School should attend. Despite this agreement, and being specifically told that students would rather he did not attend, Grabiner eventually took part in the meeting, and members of the campaign claim he was aggressive and disruptive. Seph Brown, LSE Students' Union (LSESU) Palestine Society spokesperson, said that Grabiner acted in the best interests of Davies, not the best interests of the School: "As a high court judge and chairman of the Arcadia group, Grabiner's uncompromising character has likely been key to his success. However, in the academic environment of the LSE this quickly translated into belligerence as he fell into the role of Davies' chief henchman. We at Palestine Society witnessed this in full force with his intrusion on and steam- ottU** > films r&Ch^22; isto ouTimm Union Jack rolling of our discussions with the School regarding Howard Davies' attack on debate about the boycott of Israeli academic institutions. His bullying tactics will not be missed by students and I imagine some on the Council will not be upset to see the back of him either" Anthony Stephen Grabiner graduated from the LSE with Bachelor of Laws (first class honours) in 1966 and with a Master of Laws with distinction one year later. Grabiner was made a member of the Queen's Council (QC) in 1981 and has been a Deputy High Court Judge since 1994. He was made a life peer, with the title of Baron Grabiner of Aldwych, in 1999. The floor was wet and slippery. The nauseating stench of expelled toxins mercilessly assailed any unfortunately exposed nostrils. Like the most revolting yet potent of smelling salts, the foul tang of Jack's bodily excrements roused him to consciousness. Lifting himself off the cold, hard floor of an unfamiliar room, his hands found paydirt. Unsure if the unsightly clumps clinging onto his hands were a new release from Play Dough, Jack unwisely brought them to his face. The putrid intensity of that ghastly moment would never leave him; food was never meant to be recycled. Having survived an instant return to unconsciousness. Jack's alcohol-impaired senses began easing their way back into commission. His watch told him it was thirteen hours, eleven minutes and twenty-two seconds into the New Year. His white shirt, now adorned with stains and smudges of the colours of the rainbow (and brown), told him he was in a world of shit. Seemingly distant and banished memories flooded back. Jack's fragile psyche was seared in an instant - his moment of clarity triggered a terrifying revisit into the deep, dark recesses of his mind. Flashes of a moribund UGM struck him hard. Amnesty Rugstad and Angler Fisher...their collected and composed demeanour... the flaccid but effective defence of their plot to besmirch the good name of the School with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights...a document boasting untold riches at face value but finding no currency in some states. Oh heavens, who is it now? The insufferable manbeast who presided over the verbal crossfire calls the crowd to a tune. The piercing intonations ripped through any pathetic vestige of aural defences that I Jack may have had. The stran-jgled chords sliced deep into j Jack's maimed consciousness. jBe gone! That foul and woefully bungled rendition of Jingle Bells! Jack flailed his arms to shield himself from the self-induced yet mercilessly relentless psychological assault. Jack struggled to his piss-soaked feet, wrinkled from prolonged exposure. His unhearing ears, overwhelmed with fetid song, fail to tell Jack that the horrors of the last UGM haunt him not. His unseeing eyes, clouded with fear, could not reveal to Jack the unpleasant, excre-ment-filled, sanctuary his room now offered him from the terrors of the Union Reichstag. He fell. The last puddles of Stella Artois that remained on Jack's tiles claimed him. As the floor rose to meet Jack's face, now adorned with the inglorious remnants of yesterday's dinner, he swore he saw the advent of his salvation - his goddess of mercy, his angel, his bad-idea bear. Her gentle touch reminded him of past glories and forthcoming adulation, reigniting his passion for the Union and its hallowed UGM. Her soothing voice reassured him, "Happy New Year, Jack..." Then his head hit the floor. NEWS 8 January 2008 The Beaver goes nationwide Michael Deas News Editor Beavers could be reintroduced into the wild in the UK after an absence of nearly 500 years. Beaver colonies have been successfully established in several nature reserves and private estates in recent years and now a proposal by wildlife groups aims to release them into a natural habitat in the Knapdale Forest in Mid-Argyll. The Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland have applied to the Scottish Government for a license to conduct a trial reintroduction in 2009 and hope a decision will be made during spring this year. Allan Bantick, trustee of The Scottish Wildlife Trust, told the BBC: "We are delighted that this license application has now been submitted and we look forward to conducting a full scientific trial of the first formal reintroduction of a native mammal into the wild in the UK." Beavers, whose pelts were used in medicine and clothes, were hunted to extinction in the UK during the sixteenth century but still flourish across North America and in some parts of Europe. Reintroductions have been hugely successful in Holland and Germany, with new colonies spreading far from their original release site. Around 15 beavers from Norway will be released into a trial site in Argyll if the license application is granted. If successful, information gathered during the trial would form part of a strategy to reintroduce beavers across Scotland and the UK. The Scottish Government released a wildlife strategy that included the reintroduction of beavers in 2005. The dam-building rodents are thought to play an important role in the success of aquatic and wetland eco-sys-tems and improving biodiversity. The Scottish Beaver Trial Partnership also argues that a successful reintroduction could boost tourism, An LSE spokesperson said: "There was a lovely piece on the possible reintroduction of beavers in Autumn Watch on BBC2 a couple of months ago. Very sweet creatures, but apparently quite destructive!" Previous attempts to reintroduce beavers have been met with opposition from local residents who fear the beaver's dam building could disrupt local ecosystems. The beaver was chosen as the mascot of the LSE because it represents "an industrious animal with social habits". Beavers - At a glance ¦ There are two separate species of Beavers -The Europe^ij Beaver (Castor fiber) and the American Beaver (Castor Canadensis) ¦ 4 third speciesi^he Giant Beaver JCaMoroMes ohi^ensis) grew upto 2.5m^ong ||^t w?as ieradic^d djuring the Holocene^inass iextlnction event - ¦ Beavers dam rivers using sticks and leaves iand imafce thij^r^^ in tl^ jresiiljing pond. Irhe largest toioWn'Beaver dam ^s diseav-, . ieredih, Mijntatt^ USA and w^s 620m £^^^4m high and 7rn thicli^at the base !¦ When endahgfej^^jtne beWer^beats.ifl^^^rge ^ail and webbed teei against the sur|a<^e of the Iwaitei to alert other beavers -w ¦l^skiino modicine used dried bea^et tjesticles" IS painkillers ip When beflvers became extinct tailors and^* teatteirs used Merciirdus Nitrsitfe to n^ke easily la^ailable furs appear like that of a Mercurons nitrate causes hallucinations^^nd psjjtosis. Hence the expression (used Ji^6re,gS _,ewjs wrote iUice in Wotiderlan)^'*^^ Jtter" ........ LSE students launch events business Former LSE Director knighted Ruciiile list in next week's paper. The Beaver is available In alternative formats. The views and opinkjns expressed in The Beaver are those of the contributors and not necessorily those of the editors or the LSE Students' Unton. COMMENT&ANALYSIS COMMENT ¦© OL IBeaverl 8 January 2008 07 ANALYSIS c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk Established 1949 - Issue 676 Fear of the Other... ...obscures the real issues The Border and Immigration Agency is currently being criticised in much of the press because of a leaked memo stating that their staff should not deport students who have overstayed their visa, unless they have committed a crime. Director of Enforcement Jonathan Lindley stated that the change in the law at the beginning of September has increased the number of students being refused applications to stay in the UK after their studies. The tabloid press have jumped on this leaked memo as evidence'of yet more illegal immigrants being allowed to invade our shores. In an interview with this paper, migration expert Stephen Castles stated that he thought the vilification of immigrants by tabloid newspapers and many of their readers, comes not from an inherent racism or xenophobia, but from a fear of change. He argued that while people are unsettled by the rapid social changes that they are living through, they cannot easily point to evidence of it - except in the case of immigrants. The changing ethnic makeup of society is a visible indicator of social change, it is something that people can focus their fears upon. In many ways, Peter Sutherland has become a similar symbol for the discontented elements in the LSE community. Those concerned with environmental change, with Human Rights issues or with the commoditisation of their educations have all found a rallying point around the figure of the new LSE chairman. However, while this consensus is forming. The Beaver suggests that perhaps personal attacks are not the best way of making progress on the issues that concern us all. There are a lot of things wrong with the world, and a lot of ways in which student action can have a positive influence on them, but few of these goals would actually be achieved by forcing Sutherland out of his position at LSE. Indeed, acts of indignation may serve only to be divisive and to strengthen the resolve of those we attack. Rather, by focusing on concrete issues on which we can make real progress we can achieve actual change for the better. End of an Error... ...the wonderful world of Daniel B. Yates The Beaver wishes to express its deepest love and most heartfelt thanks and gratitude to departing PartB editor Daniel B. Yates. Daniel has been editor of the arts pullout for 33 issues; a quite staggering feat considering the time and dedication he has put into each issue. Somehow he also found the time to put together a superb podcast. If you haven't heard it point your com-pupod at www.thebeaveronline.co.uk/loculture now and pour honey in your ears. During his tenure at PartB, he has transformed what was an arts review section into a piece of art in itself, while retaining an acerbic reviewing style. He has given everything that has been asked of him, and on more than one occasion, things that most certainly have not been asked of him. On occasion his work has been vulgar and crude. He has been consistently iconoclastic and esoteric and his opinions have often divided opinion, but his fans have been as vocal as his detractors. He has always been funny and clever and disturbingly often he has been Right. It has been a genuine honour to work with him, to listen to his encyclopaedic knowledge of music, films and literature, and the passion with which he speaks and writes about them. His eloquence with the written word is a joy to read, so treasure this week's PartB, as it will be the last that he will helm - although hopefully it won't be the last. Letters to the Editor The Beaver offers all readers the right to reply to anything that appears in the paper. Letters should be sent to thebeaver.editor@lse.ac.uk and should be no longer than 250 words. All letters must be received by 3pm on the Sunday prior to publication. The Beaver reserves the right to edit letters prior to publication. "library calls" Dear Sir, At the commencement of Lent Term, I would like to express my concern for the intolerable amount of noise that permeates the library during school hours. Serious users would be no stranger to the periodic throngs of casual users who use the library to pass time between lessons or other later engagements. Whilst the majority observe the silence that the library calls for, their good name is tainted by an irresponsible minority who make small talk in groups in front of computer terminals or study desks, oblivious to their surroundings. I urge the latter to be more sensitive to the needs of more bona fide library users, whilst appealing to library security and administration to take more proactive steps to ensure a conducive study environment for the majority of library users. On a number of occasions, irate library users, including myself, have had to stand up for our rights and tick the miscreants oft. If, as I suspect, relying on the goodwill of students remains ineffectual in the new term, the library administration must take full responsibility and grasp the bull by its horns. Michael Lui 2nd year Geography "head compared" Dear Sir, I am writing in response to the article of 11 December 2007 entitled "Students throw the book at the Library". The allocation of funds to extend 24-hour opening beyond the Easter holidays and Summer term is a matter for the School rather than the Library, so I will not comment on that. However, the article also claims that students are dissatisfied with other Library services, including the provision of multiple copies of course books. Clearly no library can provide every book that every student wants whenever they need it - an academic library provides resources for students to share. But the Library puts a great deal of resources into providing students with course readings. These include a reading list system which links to the registration system to calculate the number of copies based on student numbers and provides students with a single look-up point. Our Course Collection comprises of over 100,000 volumes and we also provide a course packs service, ¦ ¦.It) ., ¦ . , J iVlSlTfli^ PC CHUMHAM which allows academic staff to order print course packs and also electronic readings via Moodle/WebCT. The Library also stocks over 23,000 electronic journals, an increasing range of electronic books and currently over 500 titles on LSE reading lists. Last year, Library users borrowed over two million books - LSE students regularly borrow five times the number of books per head compared with the UK national average. We believe this shows, not only the hard-working nature of LSE students, but also the fact that a large number of the required books are available for them to borrow. In our annual survey conducted last February, nearly 1,600 students responded and 94% of them said they were satisfied with the Library service. According to the annual Book Availability exercise conducted in March last year, (a snapshot of whether students found the required books in the Course Collection) 80% of students found the books they needed on that day. With the additional student numbers this year, the School has provided additional funds for course books and Library staff are continuing to stock the Course Collection with extra copies of essential texts. If students identify any missing titles or insufficient copies, we would encourage them to let staff on the Help Desk know. The article also mentioned complaints of insufficient study spaces and computers. Library and IT Services monitor usage of study spaces and PCs and neither of them have been fully occupied during the Michaelmas term - spaces can always be found within the building. . As students will be aware, additional study spaces were added in the Library during the summer building works, in anticipation of the School's growth. In recognition of the extra students this year, the School has provided additional funds to IT Services and a further 45 PCs are being installed in DOlO, Kings Chambers and Lincoln Chambers. Library staff work hard to provide students with a good service and, in particular, to supply course readings in line with the requirements of academic departments. It is unfortunate that, as part of the campaign for extended 24-hour opening. The Beaver has seen fit to present such a negative and one-sided picture of Library services for students. Maureen Wade Head of Library Services "a skinny" Dear Sir, I am writing this with hope that it is fair to assume that readers will at least be peripherally aware of the results of the Iowa caucus on 4 January. The first of many in a long and arduous primary season has marked a historic and hopeful moment in the history of not Just American politics, but America itself, and I would like to take this opportunity to encourage everyone, whether you are American or not, to sit up and watch a singular moment that is taking place on the world stage just as much as it is in the US. The US affects change, for good or bad and whether you like it or not, across the globe -every single person at the LSE and beyond has had their lives changed by the actions of the US government. It is in your interest to keep track of any American election, whoever is running: It's a big show, so everyone should be watching at least some of it! However, it is to this primaries show in particular that I urge you to pay attention, because after eight long years of embarrassment and disappointment, the people of America have a wide field of candidates, and many of those people are choosing to show themselves, and the world, that they are able to transcend a history of social division and ingrained stereotypes both at home and aimed their way from abroad. They have shown the world that America does not just reject the actions of their government for the last eight, or even 16 years, but that it is starting to reject a world view that judges them for prejudices that they, as a nation, no longer want to have. The voters in Iowa rolled the dice on a skinny kid with a funny name, who promises change; this is done with the hope that instead of a government that forces change on the world without a mandate from its people but in their name, they will get a government that will reflect America and Americans the way they really are, and give them a world reputation that they deserve and can be proud of. The country is starting to be hopeful - fingers crossed that we can all be hopeful tool Molly Tlicker Red isn't Dead Blue is True thebeaver.features@ise,ac,uk Capitalism in 2008: Crunched Vladimir Unkovski-K May I start this term's column by offering everyone my best wishes for 2008. We will all need a bit of luck and hope because, unfortunately, this year is not promising to be a very prosperous one. Some months after it exploded, the international credit crisis is still ruffling feathers in the bourgeois capitalist press. That begs one question: will this be the big one? The last twenty years have seen a succession of economic 'bubbles' inflating and bursting. None, though, has hit the core of the system. While it is still very early for commentators to be making predictions (some radical left economists, I will have you know, are credited with having predicted ten of the last six crises), it is more likely than not that 2008 will mark just the beginning of a 'perfect storm' in the structure of capitalism. Of course many would not agree. As Larry Elliot, the Guardian's economics editor, argues, "the global economy goes into its current bout of rough weather after its longest period of strong, sustained growth in four decades...so even if the US is in for a tough couple of years, the big developing countries may compensate...there is little sign that the acute problems of the financial markets have spilled over into the rest of the western economies. There has been no jump in unemployment, and consumer spending has remained strong." This is not to say there won't technically be a recession (two consecutive quarters of negative growth) but it does assume there is no impending crash, As far as Elliot is concerned, markets will work themselves through the storm. Even some radical leftists agree that there is no threat of meltdown. Perry Anderson, an editor of the New Left Review, points to "some spectacular demonstrations of popular will" in recent years -such as Venezuela in 2002, Bolivia in 2004, and France in 2005. However, he believes "the overall drift of the period has been a further shift to the right... the imperatives of financial markets have rhore and more come to be taken for granted as conditions of social existence." Never mind neoliberal-ism's failure to return profit rates to levels experienced in the three decades after World War Two. For leftists like Anderson, it is not that neoliberalism is stable but that it has created both a mode of experiencing the social world and a constellation of forces across the globe that decisively block out the possibility of a more generalised resistance - even in the event of a global economic crisis. It would indeed be foolish to proclaim the certainty of radical change as a simple result of economic turbulence. But it would be even more foolish to accept that the world economy is stable, or that the forces mobilised against us are just too great for any impact to be made. So where is the evidence for this? In fact, there is plenty. Financial markets and financial institutions play a very specific and hugely important role under capitalism: coordinating the system as a whole, and moving capital to wherever it can make the greatest profit. The system was thus able to counteract falling rates of profit by creating the conditions whereby provision of cheap loans and easy credit could simultaneously pay workers less and still sell the goods and services provided by capitalists. So in Britain, whereas real wages have grown slowly over the last decade, consumer spending has risen by forty per cent since 1998. But the underlying rate of profit, though higher since the mid-1990s than for two decades, has remained too low to cover the gap in spending. The system cannot run on debt forever. Even global financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund are starting to get jittery. To quote Larry Elliot again: "there is the fact that the headwinds facing the global economy - a credit crunch, a housing market crash, spiralling oil prices - spell trouble even when taken separately. Together, they are a potentially explosive cocktail." And while it is true that 'spectacular demonstrations of popular will' against capitalism remain few and far between, deeper networks of solidarity have sprung up across the world that resist imperialist war, challenge global climate change and protest worsening living standards. These networks, when put under pressure, may prove to be the foundations for a world that places people above profit. Democracy in 2008: the only New Year's Resolution that matters Annette Paceyl A New Year is a time for fresh starts, and many of us will return to LSE full of determina-tion to improve ourselves in various ways, whether it is to stop smoking or avoid handing in essays late. If the world was to set itself a New Year's resolution for 2008, what would it be? Peace seems like too much to ask given the continuing carnage in Iraq and Darfur; but perhaps we could hope that 2008 sees an increase in democracy around the world. 2007 was hardly a great year for democracy. In September, we were gripped by television images of pro-democracy protesters in Burma, a brief moment of hope soon crushed by the ruling junta. Sadly, military crackdown was not confined to Burma. In Pakistan, President Pervez Musharraf declared martial law in November, apparently concerned that an imminent judgment from the Supreme Court on the legality of his rule would not be in his favour. Press restrictions and mass arrests of political opponents followed. Hopes were briefly raised for a reasonably fair elections in January with two serious, if flawed, former Prime Ministers in the running - only to be dashed by the tragic but depressingly predictable murder of Benazir Bhutto on 27 December. Rigged elections were also a marked feature of 2007. In December the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe said the Russian parliamentary vote was "not fair and failed to meet standards for democratic elections", Vladimir Putin and his United Russia party rigged the election for reasons unclear, as by most accounts they would have won by a significant margin anyway, A correspondent for The Economist described witnessing bus loads of workers being driven around Moscow to vote repeatedly at different polling stations. Kenya also disappointed those who had hoped it would set an example for the region with a fair election. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki, despite being routed in the par-liamentary vote, drew ahead of the opposition Presidential candidate Raila Odinga suspiciously late in the counting. International observers condemned the presidential result as unfair, amid reports of results announced in the provinces being simply crossed out and changed before being re-announced in Nairobi. Given this bleak picture, is there any reason to hope that the world can stick to a New Year's resolution for greater democracy in 2008? The outlook is decidedly mixed. In Pakistan elections will take place on 18 February, although only the most ardent optimist would expect them to be entirely free and fair. In any case it will take more than one election to establish anything approaching political stability in what some commentators have described as possibly the most dangerous place on earth. The Russian presidential elections due in March are likely to set new standards of political cynicism. President Putin, prevented from running for a third term by the constitution, has hand-picked his successor, Dmitri Medvedev, and will become Prime Minister instead. The change of title is unlikely to deprive him of much of his influence. Although Putin has wide popular support, this is not democracy. The fallout from Kenya's unfair election also continues. Although Kibaki and Odinga may eventually cut a deal, the violence has plunged Kenyans into a humanitarian disaster. Still, there is one weighty cause for optimism in an otherwise thoroughly depressing picture. The long-awaited US election will take place in 2008 and will be the most wide open race for many years. It is refreshing to see the candidates desperately wearing out their voices as they and their policies are exposed to the full force of public scrutiny. Of course, the extremely complicated US system has its flaws, and we all remember 2000, but it does seem likely that the self-proclaimed home of democracy will set a reasonably good example this time around. Sadly though, a look at the bigger picture seems to show that if the world's New Year's resolution is to increase democracy, it looks as likely to stick to it as the rest of us are to stick to drinking less and exercising more. Notes on Nothing Peter Sutherland The new Chair should be given time to prove his competence This Features section, for one, welcomes its new lord and master. Peter Sutherland's new position as chair of the LSE council will not, in fact, have that much power and influence. Though the chair is a prominent role, it is a non-executive one, and Sutherland's significance in the School's constitutional machinery is out of all proportion to the ferocity of the students who have arrayed themselves against him. For all that, we should welcome Mr Sutherland first and foremost because he is more than up to the job. Although that job is not the overlordship of the LSE that you would expect from listening to the protesters, the School needs better management at its top levels. The LSE's expansion from a small social sciences institution to a larger university has not been handled well of late, with too many students being drafted in for the facilities available. This has called the Director's own competence into question, and Mr Sutherland should make it his priority to retain confidence in the School's academic reputation while completing the necessary expansion work. When pressed, those who oppose Mr Sutherland as chair are unable to make a coherent case for the dismissal of a patently competent man. Vague imprecations about his ideologically inconvenient business background are not good enough. Other, more serious allegations are either misplaced -Mr Sutherland's chairmanship of BP, while demanding scrutiny, does not extend to daily command responsibility for that firm's well-known environmental and human rights shortcomings - or damningly inaccurate. Many argue, for example, that Mr Sutherland's period as Irish attorney general, during which the constitution was amended to outlaw abortion, proves he is against abortion. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr Sutherland watered down the amendment, foisted on his government by a vocal minority, as far as he could. Given their propensity to make mistakes of this magnitude, it somewhat sticks in the craw that the anti-Sutherland protesters have taken it upon themselves to speak on behalf of the student body as a whole. They have no right to do so. The Student Union could easily have made the concerns now expressed clear at several selection committees and meetings of the Council and the Court of Governors, on all of which it was represented and its views taken into account. Peter Sutherland was voted into his office unanimously, and nothing has changed in the interim for us to take the radical step of setting the School's procedures aside to oppose him now. The last redoubt in the anti-Sutherland argument, that the appointment of a Chair of Goldman Sachs International goes against the LSE's Fabian traditions, is also a moral chimera. If that vague test of ideological correctness was applied across the School and student body, not many would escape outside the protesters' hermetic and self-important world. This is a shame, as the same individuals who have opposed Sutherland have ably and successfully defended the School's social ethos in areas such as the Living Wage campaign. Peter Sutherland is not a corporate monster. He too has shown a commitment to such progressive causes as the United Nations and European integration, but he must - as with any other member of the School community - be allowed to beg to differ on other areas. Mr Sutherland's competence is the issue now. Give him time to prove it. Joseph Cotterill Features Editor 8 January 2008 ^Beaver 9 FEATURES Mom Matthew Partridge profiles the Repubhcan who could reunite American politics - and steal the Democrats' thunder Barring a sudden change in Ihe polls, John McCain will win the New Hampshire primary today and will therefore be on course to win the Republican nomination. Much has been written about the seventy-one year old Arizona senator, from both supporters and detractors. His supporters have stressed his heroism as a Viet Cong prisoner of war, while his detractors have raised questions about his age and his 'maverick' tendencies. At the same time, his decision to reject John Kerry's offer of a place on the 2004 Democratic vice-presidency and to campaign instead for George W. Bush in that election led to him being accused of hypocrisy and ambition. Indeed, as late as October 2007 one writer claimed that, "John McCain's candidacy may not be dead, but then again, neither is Ariel Sharon." However, even an non-American like myself can see that McCain is not only the best candidate, but also the only candidate who can address the forgotten centre. Over the past four years the political discourse in the United States has become ever more polarised and both the major parties have drifted ever further from the centre. Although the rampant social inequality and domestic problems in America would usually call for a President with progressive values, the Democrats have shown that they are incapable of delivering this change if any of the three remaining candidates are elected. Indeed, since November 2006 they almost immediately forgot that they were given Congress with a mandate to make the US a bit fairer, and instead concentrated all their efforts on trying to force Bush to surrender Iraq to the terrorists. Indeed, a Hillary Clinton victory would lead to inconsistent and cautious foreign policy, while Barack Obama simply has -i- hardly any foreign policy experience at all. For his own part, Bush has refused to come out of his bunker in the White House, either to work with the Democrats on domestic issues, or to push the few vaguely progressive parts of his programme, such as immigration reform. The only candidate who seems to realise that the United States needs both a muscular foreign policy and to address some deep seated domestic concerns is John McCain. His support for action on global warming, pension reform and an interventionist foreign policy make him an ideological brother to Tony Blair. In addition, his attempts to work with Democrat senators on attempts to reform immigration, healthcare and campaign finance show his dedication to the important issues that affect ordinary Americans. Indeed, the respected magazine National Journal puts him smack the centre of the Senate based on his voting record last year. At the same time, McCain has shown himself willing to sacrifice personal animosity in favour of getting things done, whether it is working with John Kerry to repair US-Vietnam relations, working with Bush to keep American troops in Iraq or to teaming up with Edward Kennedy in an attempt to bring America's immigration laws into the twenty-first century. For all that, however, McCain is still no Tony Blair. After all, he may have opposed Bush's tax cuts and proposed a commission on healthcare, but he doesn't intend to reverse them and he hasn't put forward specific proposals of his own (though he hinted at support for universal healthcare in his 2000 campaign). However close McCain came to leaving the Republicans in 2001 or joining Kerry's ticket in 2004, he has remained a Republican. Despite the WHAT HE SAYS: , fact that he has been a senator since 1984, McCain began his bipartisan cooperation only in the mid Nineties. He might have populist leanings, but by British standards he is extremely conservative on many issues. At the same time the Republicans need to accept that, however brave Bush may have been on keeping troops in Iraq, he has lowered the tone of American politics. The salience - and success -so far in the Republican nomination race of truly maverick candidates such as Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee shows that it would be political poison for the eventual Republican nominee to run his campaign as the Bush administration's third term. To fully show that a McCain administration will not mean the continuation of Bush's politics, he will need to take a leaf from the playbook of the first Republican President, Abraham Lincoln. In 1864 Lincoln shocked America by nominating Andrew Johnson, a Democrat who supported the Civil War, as his running mate. Similarly, if he is nominated McCain needs to select Joseph Lieberman as his running mate. Joe Lieberman is an unapologetic centrist progressive who combines a belief in greater help for the middle classes with a dedication to public service and the belief that America (and Europe as well) needs to face up to its responsibilities in the world. Lieberman's comeback victory in Connecticut, against the weight of the Democratic machine, has already shown that this sort of politics can work. A McCain/Lieberman ticket, rather than Clinton's venality or Obama's 'Audacity of Hype', is the type of leadership that could transform America, as the ten years of Tony Blair transformed Britain. John McCain's military decorations nil Silver Star Legion of Merit A Lincolnesque candidacy? Bronze Star Purple Heart I [l I Distinguislied Flying Cross Or just more of the same? "As President, John McCain will bring America together again. He will inspire a new American unity and a new American patriotism... John had the courage and the common sense to Stand against the tide of public opinion and support the surge in Iraq, where we are at last winning." Joe Lieberman, 27 December 2007 i^eaver FEATURES 10 SJanua mf ' ^^p|i9Jeft;:sl3naet.i|6»-ti>^'. ^ ji iU visits Israei at a key juncture in the Deace process You have probably never heard of the Britain Israel Communications Research Centre (BICOM). I hadn't, until they contacted me in November with the offer of a place on a student journalist delegation to Israel. BICOM, it seems, had heard of me. Set up at the beginning of the 2000 A1 Aqsa Intifada to combat what it sees as disinformation and inaccuracy in the media, BICOM represents a moderate pro-Israeli message in British politics. BICOM has a smooth Parliamentary option (its CEO is Loma Fitzsimmons, a former chair of Labour Friends of Israel) and good contacts in Israel and the Palestinian Authority. It regularly sends out delegations of politicians, academics and journalists to Israel, in order (as its spokesmen put it) to see the conflict for themselves. Since the Is-rael-Palestinian conflict remains an important talking point in student unions across the country, and since the delegation was taking place in the context of the peace negotiations at Annapolis that had just concluded, I decided - along with reporters with student newspapers in Oxford, Leeds, and Birmingham - that this was too good a story to miss. On arrival with Israel, we were taken by BICOM's people around the places you would expect to go to get a general orientation in Israeli culture and history. So, in addition to visiting the three Abrahamic holy sites in Jerusalem - the Western Wall, walking around the two Mosques on the Temple Mount, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre -we also went to Yad Vashem, a vast Holocaust memorial complex on the top of a mountain, and to the tomb of the founder of Zionism, Theodor Herzl himself. To its credit, BICOM refrained from deploying these places as an emotional sledgehammer or to sell an ideological line to us. Instead, its guides used them to suggest to us how Israel's imagined community as a Jewish refugee state/Middle Eastern democracy has changed with the passage of time. Still, even this exercise seemed artificial. Even if such a thing as a national psyche exists, (and I doubt it, even in Israel's extreme case) we were not going to find out much about it in the three days we were there. So, as interesting as they were, the trip wasn't just about the mood music of Jerusalem and Yad Vashem. It also granted access to geographical areas of the conflict that would otherwise have remained far out of bounds. These included the tense Israel- Lebanon border and Sderot, a town literally on the frontline of the Hamas-controlled Gaza flashpoint. Before we saw these, we would also get personal perspectives from both sides. The "Iranian threat" In this regard, our first real political contact was Ephraim Sneh, a former IDF commander, deputy defence minister and now chair of the Labour Party. Considered a tough dove in Israeli politics, Sneh is a fairly typical product of the Israeli establishment and its close civil-military relations. We met him for an interview in the Knesset, Israel's parliament: a cross between a squat fortress and a military academy, sulking on central Jerusalem's outskirts. Since the United States' National Intelligence Estimate had poured cold water on the progress of Iran's nuclear weapons programme just days previously, Sneh was eager to talk about the Iranian threat, and he was angiy that the world would not see Teheran the way Israel did. He insisted that "even Syria," Israel's former bugbear in the region and supposedly Teheran's closest Arab ally, was "scared to death" of Iran and its "imperial ambitions."If it is, Damascus has a strange way of showing it. Lebanon remains in political deadlock, and Syria remains quiescent in the campaign of Hizbullah (which is Iran's baby as much as Syria's) to determine the Lebanese presidency. Nor on the face of its recent actions is Israel that interested in smoothing the Syrian brow. Sneh - predictably - said he could not comment when I asked him about the rationale for Israel's surprise air strike into Syria in September 2007. Israeli officials refuse to discuss this slight speed bump in diplomatic rapprochement with Damascus, but it is rumoured to have had something to do with either nuclear or chemical weapons. Still, Sneh's candour in all of this is a sign that Israel's elite remains realistic and flexible in its diplomatic options, despite its reputation for reliance on American support. On the other hand, Sneh was vague on what constitutes Israel's current goal towards Iran. In talking of a "Persian empire" and of negotiations being "practically out of the question" so long as President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad remains in power, Sneh strongly suggested that the Israeli government is eyeing regime change in Teheran as its endgame. If it is, then Sneh is going to have to show more for the prospects for this than asserting, as he did to us, that student demonstrations in Teheran are at their strongest since 1999. Iran will likely get its hands on nuclear weapons - even on the NIE timetable - well before there is momentum for a genuine revolution. Israel may have to decide whether it will have to bear the Iranian bomb in order to to get at the regime behind it. Moreover, Sneh was so focused on Iran that he seemed to gloss over newer threats to Israel's security. Take Iraq. Sneh painted a dire picture of the region in the event of a precipitate United States withdrawal: "the bad guys will walk taller" in this "new reality," and Jordan, Israel's neighbour, would be the next "domino" to fall. If it troubled Sneh that Israel - despite having Saddam Hussein toppled on its behalf - faces this prospect on the whim of a superpower, he did not show it. Sneh - allowing for his dovish politics - was also breezily confident about the post-Annapolis direction of the peace process. The future Israeli-Palestinian border will be "like Belarus and Poland" and the West Bank's economy will be "hooked" to Israel's. Echoing Sneh, a Foreign Ministry spokesman even went so far as to argue that "we are more interested in a Palestinian state than the Palestinians." Palestine, Post-Annapolis These sentiments were not quite matched by our sole Palestinian contact during the delegation: Rami Nasrallah, a former adviser to President Mahmoud Abbas and now an academic drawing up plans for the peaceful partition of Jerusalem. We met him at the American Colony Hotel in East Jerusalem, our sole venture into Palestinian territory - in this case, barely stepping over the 1967 ceasefire line that demarcates the two zones of control. As far as Nasrallah is concerned, Annapolis is a "non-starter" for Israeli security. Hamas has every incentive to spoil the settlement with a campaign of violence in 2008. Nasrallah even alleged that Israeli hardliners had welcomed Annapolis for precisely this reason, as the agreement provided a elaborate pretext to come down hard on the Palestinians once they broke its flimsy structure. Nasr this tellir BICC tinia freel; i that the 1 rael'i stop] tell a for a is pe the s after the c time tumi will arou raeli be le also Ham stror of F coup tain leadi comi wing stani tions obta state calle tinia BABEH! B. tuo the eighth of j anuary, tuo thousand and eight top 15 honchos general secretary ericlundquist visual art honcho fionamackay identity honcho hollieastman rant honcho joshheller travel honcho willjoce top flowchart granting & tech honchos simonwang & hasibbaber 1. The Beaver Office, under the PartB speeial sexnest-maehine. 2. Inside photoeopiers where its warm and smells of fresh endeavour. 3. The Quad in the evenings, when you think you're a whirling sex-pageant, dancing the fancied hordes to tears, assistant editors ravimistry &thomas blake warren sex & gender honcho alicepfeiffer literature honcho erinorozco acfamfofm & rahimrahemtulla but you're really face-down in the corner, covered in Don't Panics, burbling sour nothings spaec whilst departmental sexpests aggressively court your rear. 4.1'he library cona)urse. Spread yourself over the meagre displays whilst a)lumns of sexually frustrated young geeks slaver, stumble and try to avoid your eyes. 5. The Sky Tunnels. In these architectural facsimiles of coitus you can play all the wrong games. 6. Facebook. Frig yourself into orbit over the nipple slips and butt(x:k sculptures of friends and enemies alike. 7. Your mind. Generally speaking the sickest place of all. HAMHERnMEl 1 COUABORfliTE [ 1 LISTEN theatre honcho tomwhittaker film honcho bernardkeenan top 10 places not to be seen on a Friday night 1. On the floor at C^irush vomiting like a carrot fountain. 2. At Crush. 3. Anywhere near Crush. 4. In the library taking numbers and kicking staff. 5. Relaxing with a glass of sherry in your own purpose-built PartB library. 6. In Hackney Wick 7. Down the docks. 8. Languishing in the LSE cells. 9. Flaunting your B.Bhutto fancy-dress costume in central Islamabad. ID. Touching your tutor in the speeial grade-places. top ten lists 1. Top Ten bylaws of the parish of Milton Keynes 2. Top ten Shibboleths 3. Top Ten Top Ten Jimmy Carr vehicles 4. Billy Braggs Top Ten nations of the world. 5.1 op 10 Hammerhead sharks, ranked in order of general attractiveness (of dorsal fin). 6. Gunter Von Hagen's Top 10 shemale strippers 7. Hiawatha's Top 10 P2P streaming sites. 8. Top ID methods of meaningless quantification. 9. England's Top 9 innumcrates. 10. Top 10 fcleh-acts of 97. top 20 PartB-endorsed sexual positions. 1. Tlic Reverse Coionoseopy 2. La Pump 3. Skcdd Says Relax 4. The Spatial Bassoon 5. Father's Seeret Treasure Pit 6. The monstrous Albany feteher 7.40 Ways to skin a eat 8. It Fell Off That Tramp, Don't Touch it 9. l"'a.ssbinders Parapet 10. The Farting lee-mummy From 4000 Years Ago 11. Kayt Berry's Smoke-off 12. The Reetal Trumpeteer 13. Joshua's Gates 14. Penal Servitude 15. The Donkey Handshake 16. The Mcxlem Living is Hell 17. The Rejection Ixtter 18. The Ginger Slammer 19. Petchey's Assault 20. Wrong Turn top 7ish editorial sentiments 1. Thankyou to everyone who has supported me throughout these very difficult... 1.1 Thankyou, to everyone who has supported... 1.12 ... 1.2 Apologies to everyone who has showed the human decency to try and come near me with perhaps a hitherto unstated view to supporting me through these difficult times. 1.3 Apology 1 to Marjorie, I never meant to throw the bullet into the crowded sex-show and cause little Toto's idiotic head to cave in like a Devonshire pothole heaving with 'adrenaline junky cocks' in flooding season. And Jimbob, if the surgery's happened and by. some amazing act of Beezlebubhimself you've come through it alive, i'd really like my paper knife and powerplay tm meathooks back. 3. Lake Woebegone Days. Never read it. Told everyone I had. 4. I am stepping down to spend some more time with my family, of hardened sex criminals that I had to adopt at Christmas as part of a wrong-headed attempt at a progressive secret santa instigated by my contacts at the DoJ, (Two cleaners, a vending machine and loose-limbed phantom of a Brigadeer created by me inside my lonely mind). 5. There is a party inside my pants. Noone has yet RSVP'd. 6. As some of you may have noticed I haven't cared for as long as I can remember. 7.1 give up. 'daniel b. yates' tuesday the eighth of january, tuo thousand and eight three .fl heroin chick anikamathur whines while winehouse wastes what we want whether we want it or what Evening falls over the streets of London and the LondonPaper and Lite guys set up camp and start bombarding you with a free newspaper to entertain you on your journey home. Why wouldn't you be enticed by the trashy looking photos of celebrities and their antics from the previous night?! Among which is the recently recurring face of the infamous Amy Winehouse. A woman who consistently makes the headlines as a result of her early morning escapades around London town. Contrary to popular opinion this didn't used to be the be all and end all of Amy's life! Amy's second record is what brought her to stardom. 'Back to Black' came out in October 2006 with her catchy anthem"Rehab". It had critics claiming this debut album was amazing. They clearly failed to do their research and realise that it was not her debut album. Amy's first record "Frank" which has a completely different feel to it, (soul and jazz as opposed to jazz and r&b) came out in 2003. However one cannot blame the people who failed to realise that the woman on the cover of Frank and Back to Black is indeed the same person! 3 years ago the Amy that we all know was busty, tatooless, lacking eyeliner and roughly a size 14, boasting a curvy figure. (Look at the cover of Frank if you don't believe me!) Today she seems unrecognisable to the Amy that was able to advocate lyrics such as "I can't help you, if you won't help yourself". Hence the question, is she a victim of celebrity culture? Amy is claimed to have lost weight not for herself but after the first time Blake left her, because she is quoted to have said she had nothing left to live for. So celebrity culture cannot be entirely blamed for turning her into what she is today. But it can fully be blamed for advocating everything she has become and ensuring that she has no reason to change. Amy became famous not only for her new album, but because of her image. She fell into the centre of the size zero debate with her skeletal frame and jutting out ribs. While at the same time creating a trademark out of her beehive and her lashes of eyeliner (which people don't want to stop imitating). The media has turned the beehive and eyeliner into fashion statements and their continued fascination by her tattoos, drinking, drugs and general way of life has turned her life into a reality show that is documented by newspaper's and magazines. Celebrity culture and people's fascination with these larger than life characters is what continue to accelerate these eccentric entities of life into symbols that people look up to and admire. Is Amy her own worst enemy? Absolutely. She has played up to the hype and media attention around her like a little girl. The stunts are endless. She's like a puppy doing tricks constantly to get attention. The unfortunate thing is that underneath the messed up demeanour she is actually hugely talented. Amy's talent is spectacular because it is raw arid natural. She's never had to work at it, she was born with it and her incredibly soulful voice has simply always been there. This is probably because she doesn't regard her talent highly enough to nurture it, because she can take it for granted. Her rawness, musically, is what sets her apart in this day and age. Her voice is real and not manufactured which is exactly what fans of music are craving for right now. Amy's rawness reflects in all aspects of her life. Her wreckless approach to love, drugs, and alcohol have manifested themselves into lyrics which have made her album achieve triple platinum success. Her music is confessional and emerges as a rare combination of humour and soul. It has resulted in two of the realest female anthems there ever were. "F me pumps", which boasts lines such as 'you don't like players, that's what you say-a, but you really wouldn't mind a millionaire'. While the other 'You know I'm no good', is pretty much an epiphany to state that girls can screw over men just as much as men screw women over. It is Amy's lyrical excellence and music that cause me to remain a fan of hers. Her way of life would not be chosen path, but the woman is 24 so each to their own. As for all you Amy haters I hope you at least give her music a chance before judging her music on her antics and appearances in the media. And for all you Amy fans out their I invite you to unite in the hope that she can keep it together long enough to knock out at least one more record. fk A w reviews p0m Ah my clearest readers how good I feel to be g reunited with you at long last! I hope that your break has been as' lascivious and ill "sjjent as mine, I finally managed to finish foade's 121) of Sod'oin and 'tjpon turning the last leaf or this fine tome .found myself in the cjrips of a terrible enxiui. Had rny squalid lifeljeon spent in vain? My wrinistrations were clearly negligible in the' lace of so great a degenerate, and thiis I resolved to thaw mvsel.f bfick into my work with the abandon ol the daniried, I .slid Filth Party 13 into my sliiriy new DVD player and began to watch the corn'ucop- ' ic di.spJay of filth that emanated from my IID I'V. I soon found myself tired and ill at ease, The vacant, glazed eyes of the porn starlets ^ reminded me only of my days on the game and ¦ a wave of revulsion swept over me like an all consuming tide. What had gone so wrong in my life? I had been the pretty girl at stnooi b and had set out to make ray name .in ' l.{ollywood. B\it before I knew it fhad taken a few wooden nickels and found myself stuck on the wrong side of the tracks. My only option l| was to dance wi th the gorilla on my liack and r for that I needed money. I soon found myself D working the .street andlt was not long before I was wretchedly thnist nai«;d in front of the camera to earn niy keep. Looking at these porn starlets reminded me of the sale of my own innocence and a .single tear slid down my cheek and onto my C'on.ran designed sofa. 1 cursed my ill-spent life and the little it had gained me. Thousands of dollars by day and sijjping Cristal l)y night had seemed sf3 easy that long ago but it had left my soul jaundiced and niy body aching. But what else was an option for me?' At that point the doorbell rang and I rose, steeling my soul and forcing my "cold smile to greet "mv client as I moved Ijciick into the only world 1 knew. 'e- i ir®(? aidsPl I i Happy New Year my Cholo's! Hope those ^ I hangovers have dissipated by now, and you are soon enriched by the munificence of I The Student Loan Co. Good Old Mr. ^ ^ wleft isn't doing so well himself on the ^ ¦finance front. After buying XBox 360's * and PS3's for the kid's, even the one I ¦ - think might not be mine, I'm damn m Iwell skint like that Tony Wilson Clart" A after the Happy Mondays spent all « his money on crack. In my day all I I got was a mouldy tangerine and solid Cheating which was, and still is I main- I tain, good for the constitution. My old tman spent 23 hours a day in the fac- | tory to pay for that an' all. You young-- ster's don't know just how good you | 1 got it. My old Mrs. Lefty's oack to turning tricks to pay for Crimbo, so | \ let that be a lesson to you kids to \ enjoy yo' loans and don't blow ^ V it all at once. ^ LSE In Emsll MaliBSvarjiBrtliVlsajaauuh Oe have a love so pure that no other can tear it apart. That's why i'm not angry that you are sleeping with my mum. met last tuesday when I went dogging with my boyfriend.I have your crabs, can we meet up so I can give them back to you? C?e 9 ^ o gotta head for the border baby. Your ex was asking for a knife in the gut and I gave it to him, see? are so damn wrong. I am not stalking i'm simply obsessing. There is a key sematic distinction which I will explain to you if you lift the restraining order. am looking for anybody, just anybody, I am so lonely. I haven't been laid since August 1937. love the feel of your tongue on my flesh and staring into your puppydog eyes. I even buy your pedigree chum. Why don't you love me? Met you at the LSE swingers club and I want you to put some ointment on the welts on my back. want you to attach electrodes to my nipples and treat me like the naughty boy I am. Do you take creditt cards? ^ four tuesday the eighth of january, tuo thousand and eight CC H ¦ow old are you?" A dishevelled looking Harmony Korine asks as I walk -in to the interview room. "Twenty." I reply,"! know, I look younger."! confess, recalling the countless times of late where I've been !D'd trying to get into 15-rated films. "My new wife is twenty." Harmony tells me, "She plays Little Red Riding Hood in my latest film." Not the typical start to an interview, but what else am ! to expect from the man who, at the age of 19, gave the world, "Kids". While most teens are spending their student loans on cigarettes, booze and drugs. Harmony, most likely with the same accessories, was not at college (he dropped out of Art school after one term) but at the heart of the independent film world, providing the inspiration behind one of the most talked about movies of 1995, the whirlwind day-in-the-life adventure of New York City's rich teens who indulge in the X-rated hedonism of underage (and unprotected) sex, drinking and drugs. Sound like the scene you want to be in? Well wait for the kicker - the main character, and the most promiscuous, is HIV positive and unaware. While the film drew mixed reviews, with some critics finding the storyline implausible and exploitative and others raving about it, Korine returned to the medium he loves with 1997's "Gummo", which he co-produced and directed, garnering the praise of Werner Herzog and Gus Van Sant, as well as the top prize at the Venice Film festival. His fascination with the obscure and (arguably) grotesque comes to the forefront in this film based on small town America. The opening scene is of a cat being drowned; later in the film we see a genuinely drunk-off-his-face Korine play the part of a young man who has never felt truly loved, pouring his heart out to a black male midget prostitute, and begging for physical intimacy with him. Bizarre it may be, yet it is also refreshing. As Hollywood continues to spurn out crap which is so predictable you feel as though you've seen the whole film just by watching the trailer, cinemagoers who yearn to be shocked and surprised should look no further than the work of Harmony Korine. This year we will be graced with his latest creation, Mister Lonely, starring Samantha Morton and "Y Tu Mama Tambien's Diego Luna. The plot outline is as follows: a young American working as a Michael Jackson impersonator in Paris, befriends Marilyn Monroe, who invites him to her commune, where she lives with her husband Charlie Chaplin and their daughter, Shirley Temple. What fascinates me about Korine is the trigger of inspiration for the films he makes. He has said in the past that in his mind it is the image which comes first in his plans for a film, not the narrative. ! ask him to elaborate on this unusual creative process. "Usually it starts off like a photograph. I'll see, like, the guy on the street corner, with a pair of big ears and some headphones, eating a watermelon, with his shoes off, and talking to himself. He's got, like, a pipe hanging out of his pocket, and ! think - Man. That guy is amazing. And I'll just start to daydream. Like, say, ! wonder what his house looks like, ! wonder how it's decorated. ! wonder if he has a wife and kids, and what they do. How does the guy make a living? Where does he work? And then ! just start to come up with stories based on that. Based on snapshots, images, characters. That's usually always how it works." Perhaps this is why he prefers to cast inexperienced actors to play the character he creates, in an attempt to stay as true to his perception of reality, or rather, his imagination's interpretation of it? "Yeah, ! mean, it depends you know. ! love working with non-actors because it's a completely different thing. A lot of the time you work with non-actors because there's some part of their life that you really want to explore that you haven't seen before in a film. And a lot of the times they are able to give you what a real actor can't give you. They're able to give you their life, or an approximation of their life, and so ! love working with non-actors." Having such a clear image of what one wants to portray in every frame, I wonder if it's harder to work with people not used to taking direction? "!t's just different. In some ways it's harder, in some ways its easier It's really about what kind of story you want to tell. So, the world knows how much time, energy and creativity Korine has devoted to Mister Lonely, why should he have to justify it? A-jaATjz. OL Jlra.JlrA^ ya/nA ^icr/mjzycr/nje. /^yCrM./i iCMjL-ijl Z 'i i • ., " » '•¦¦.• 7",¦*«* ' *' v''"r% pfiSK; ^ V •*. I \ i> - syJKJi® -ssSP W - S'ft" .-t (X S&t out n&tAj ye.at z'o v5/?o^^ P&t&r- S^^he-t-Ia/id This should well prove to be one of the hot potatoes of the year ahead. The big man of British Petroleum is winging his way to the LSE and has divided the student body. Is he really the big bad oil baron with a poor record or is he going to bring the goods to the table? We don't rightly know and to be honest many of us don't give a shit either way. ? As we all get into the second term the fear hits us all as we get ready for essays and exams. It feels like a swift kick in the balls it does when you realise that the coveted 2:1 is slipping through your fingers and that you have wasted and money and your dignity, so you lay off the hooch, stub your last joint and get to the library. After the exams are over it's back to normal, and you can continue your life of staggering about and vomiting on your 'yjO/idcxte. on, i a iwn nee are. Nasrallah did not substantiate this doubtful claim, but it was telling to hear Nasrallah, whom BICOM had sold to us as a Palestinian moderate, repeating it so freely. The same is true of his belief that the West Bank barrier is "in the long term a burden" to Israel's security. 187 bombings stopped since its construction tell a different story. In any case, for all his pessimism, Nasrallah is personally already looking to the shape of Palestinian politics after independence is granted at the conclusion of the Annapolis timetable in 2008. After this turning point is reached, the PA will still have to pick its way around about five hundred Israeli checkpoints that will still be left in the West Bank. It will also need to somehow ward off Hamas and contain it in its Gaza stronghold, which was taken out of Fatah's hands in a violent coup in 2007. (Nasrallah was certain that the imprisoned political leadership in the West Bank is communicating with the military wing in Gaza: again, I can't substantiate this) Finally, negotiations will have to continue on obtaining further trappings of statehood. These include the so-called"right of return"for Palestinians displaced by the 1948 war and now scattered across the Arab world to reclaim their homes. Since many of these are now deep in Israeli territory, the meaning of the right is going to have to be reinterpreted in some way. For his part, Nasrallah plans compensation in kind, and a viable democratic state in Palestine as the logical locus of return. It would appear that although Nasrallah is compromise-minded, he does not trust the Israelis to think in similar terms, nor their American allies. He also insisted, for instance, that George Bush prevented Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert from negotiating with Hamas after the coup, as it would reflect badly on his administration's refusal to talk to Iraq's Sunni insurgents. Finally, Nasrallah gloomily predicted an Israeli invasion of Gaza early in 2008. Several other speakers on our trip forecast this as well, almost to the point of making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. Indeed, there had been times when our Israeli sources had also suddenly turned prickly on trusting the Palestinians. In defending stringent West Bank border controls, for example, the Foreign Ministry spokesman was quick to point out horror stories of Palestinians hiding bombs in ambulances or attaching them to pregnant women. Furthermore, we were due to visit two areas that could easily derail the Annapolis Conference's already low expectations: Israel's unresolved wars in Lebanon and Gaza, The Lebanese border We were taken to the Lebanese border by helicopter, in the company of Israeli Defence Force spokesmen. The journey -from Tel Aviv - took half an hour, during which we were well able to see the security barrier with the West Bank, stretching along the length of Israel before skirting off towards the east. Landing in the mountains close to Lebanon, we walked up in a descending mist to an Israeli patrol overlooking the border itself - a white zigzag two km distant, locked down with watchtowers and the lights of military vehicles. It was cold, dark, threatening and wet, though the border's atmosphere of military tension was soon surreally punctuated by a barbecue party started by the soldiers among the patrol's military vehicles. Its wafting smoke rendered the potted history our spokesmen gave us on Israel's relationship with Lebanon somewhat absurd. This was just as well, because the history lesson was itself blinkered to an uncomfortable extent, Lebanon had become a base for the PLO in the Seventies, from which it could easily launch cross-border attacks. Our military sources were right that its retreat to IVmisia - a major blow for its then leader, the late Yasser Arafat - was assured by the IDF's 1982 Operation "Peace for the Galilee" across the border. However, the spokesmen neglected to mention an earlier, unsuccessful attempt to eradicate the PLO's presence in Lebanon, Operation "Litani" in 1978, This created UNIFIL, the "interim" United Nations peacekeeping force still in Lebanon, Moreover, Operation "Peace for the Galilee" was no repeat of the 1978 campaign, It began with Israel destroying the Syrian air force and engaging Syrian forces on the ground, a gamble that could easily have launched an international war. The PLO in fact left Lebanon under the auspices of a Multinational Force sent to contain the instability Israel had unleashed, This force was in its turn attacked and made to withdraw from the main political actor to benefit from the PLO's disintegration, Hizbullah, For the first time, this Shia group was able to take up what had been the primarily Sunni cause of Palestine for itself. The rest, as they say, is history. The IDF spokesmen ended by pointing out just below the horizon the ravine in which a patrol had been ambushed within Israel by Hizbullah in 2006, taking the two soldiers who survived as hostages. This was the immediate spark for that summer's conflict, although the truth behind the war's escalation is more complex than that. According to the military source briefing us, Hizbullah rockets started hitting civilian targets on the same day of the kidnap: some were ready-aimed at hospitals in northern Israeli cities. Others could reach Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, but were destroyed on their launchpads by Israeli Air Force warplanes on that first night of the war. For its part, Israel had already decided to "change the rules of the game" after a spate of earlier kidnap attempts, Naturally, it does not seem Hizbullah played by the new rules either, and it is not obvious Israel won the game this time. The other student reporters with me wanted to know more about the issues that had drawn intense international disapprobation of Israel's campaign at ht time, including the lAF's bombing of a UN observer position during the war and its use of cluster bombs in civilian areas. Of course these are all questions that have to be asked; on the other hand, the IDF spokesmen were well-prepared for them, and we weren't going to get anything new out of our sources. After their potted history of the conflict, I was more interested in whether Israel had actually won the 2006 war. They did not give a straight answer. After waffling about how UNIFIL had been strengthened as a result of the war - hardly a top-drawer strategic goal in Israel's decision to go on the offensive - the spokesmen did make the valid point that, having previously had the "capabilities of a real army," the old Hizbullah was indeed blown away in the summer of 2006, Its activities on the border continue, but more clandestinely and in less force than before, Hassan Nasrallah did not win his war - though he might not have lost it, either. On the other hand, in telling us that 200 to 300 missiles continued to fall on Israel at the war's end, and that to this day the Israeli-Lebanese border has the highest density of rockets in the world, our military sources iniplicitly admitted that Israel had failed to achieve the majority of its war aims, and that the myth of Israeli military invincibility had been sorely tested, Sderot In that context, the small town of Sderot on the Gaza border is an interesting counterpoint, Constant rocket attacks from Palestinian militants are a part of daily life for Sderot's residents, Around seven thousand metre-long "Qassam" rockets have struck the town in seven years. Since Sderot lies only 850 metres from the nearest town in Gaza, Beit Hanoun, its residents have about fifteen seconds to run for cover once the alarm sounds. The system spots rocket launches from Beit Hanoun's water towers and apartment buildings through a combination of heat-tracking lasers and airborne surveillance drones stationed around the border. It sometimes malfunctions during winter or on foggy mornings: the latest mortality in Sderot resulted from a rocket attack that came without warning. The morning of our visit was a particularly bad one, with three rockets landing during our time there and twelve that morning overall. The day before had seen nineteen rockets , Provision of proper bomb shelters is few and far between. Bus stops are fortified. Most residents run indoors, but Qassams are more than capable of punching through houses, many of which in Sderot were built before the Knesset introduced legislation for every new building to have a reinforced "safe room,"A third of Sderot's children display symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder; many citizens are on anti-depressants as they daily face what one woman called "Russian roulette," Most people have stayed on in the town either through a vestigial Zionism, or because they can no longer sell their homes, Sderot, in short, is a weird kind of warzone. It is even weirder because the Israeli government has markedly refrained from entering Gaza with enough military force to remove the threat to Sderot, This is despite the rockets fired from Gaza having become stronger and stronger over the years. The latest range of Qassams have a range of up to 10 kilometres, A month before our visit, the first Katyushas appeared, the same missiles used by Hizbullah to strike deep into northern Israel during last summer's war. Last Friday, Katyushas from Gaza landed in fields near Ashkelon, a city well into Israeli territory, Hamas has been the organisation directing most of this rocket fire from Gaza, since its June 2007 coup removed Fatah from the area and gave Hamas control of the vast munitions stocks it left behind. The spend Qassam rockets collected at Sderot's police station are even colour coded according to the militant group that manufactured them - green or red for Hamas, black for Islamic Jihad, Although it is questionable whether the Hamas leadership really has enough central control to staunch or release the flow of rocket attacks as its sees fit, Hamas' media management skills are such that it often times rocket launches with the 8 o'clock evening news in Israel, Hamas' sole comment on the matter to us was the messsage painted onto the Qassam tailfins: al-Quds, 'the city' - Jerusalem, Sneh had crowed that Hamas "swallowed something they can't digest" by taking over Gaza, which territory is "totally dependent" on Israel, "In order to be in the game" Hamas will now have to recognise Israel, Sneh did not enlarge on what the "game" is, or why Hamas should care about playing it. Looking over the Gaza border from a kibbutz vantage point, its security fence and Beit Hanoun in the distance, it did not seem to me that Hamas particularly cares about creating a viable fiefdom in Gaza, so long FEATURES as Israeli pressure is kept at boiling point, I could also see Gush Katif on the horizon, an Israeli settlement evacuated by the IDF in a controversial operation in 2005, At this point, the Gaza coup seemed like not so much as a temporary hitch in the peace process as a slow motion shooting war waiting to speed up again. In that case, can we expect Annapolis to unravel in 2008, given the likelihood Israeli invasion of Gaza? Perhaps, BICOM were relentlessly insistent that 85 to 90 per cent of Palestinians want a two-state solution. That is the problem though, surely: in the politics of war termination, losing 15 per cent of your population - particularly if they are the ones with access to weapons-is not good news, as together they are more than enough to spoil any putative settlement. Still, though I left Israel disabused of the notion that Sha-habs (Iranian long-range missiles) mattered more now than Qassams to Israeli security, I still found grounds for optimism, Take Jerusalem, the capital desired by both sides. Despite its appearance on the Qassam tailfins, Jerusalem is probably not going to be a major sticking point in the peace settlement, Ephraim Sneh - in so far as he, a self-styled pragmatic dove, can speak for Israel - mostly emits bromides about having an "inter-religious authority" regulate the Old City, apart from a glint of steel in the "one red line" of ultimate Israeli sovereignty over the holy sites themselves. That should be enough for the Rami Nasrallahs of the PA to work * with. Both sides are in a fortu-itois mood to compromise, Olmert's government may not be here by this time next year, as the Winograd report into the Lebanese military debacle may give his Labour partners the momentum they need to call an early election. In order to ward this off, Olmert has an incentive to carry on with the peace plan this year. Abbas, assailed by Hamas, needs the Israelis onside. For all that, they will almost certainly have to weather a Gaza storm. During my last day in Is- ^ rael, the Knesset voted against another military incursion into Gaza, to the frustration of the IDF's Chief of Staff, The first meeting of the Israel government and the Palestinian Authority ¦; under the Annapolis schedule ended in mutual recriminations, although both sides agreed to meet again. In the evening, Eli Moyal, Sderot's mayor, resigned in protest at the government's failure to halt the Qassam attacks on his town. The Defence Minister later persuaded him to remain in his post. And so the beat goes on. From Hamas, with love FEATURES 12 I Beaver 8 January 2008 + I ^ '' \ ¦ i;: ¦ Old Man's Back Again But for how much longer? Tj e^boym stfts through the Kremlin's succession politics Krcmlinology is back in fashion, but sound political commentary on the Kremlin has been in the doldrums for a long time. In Russia, the interested public treats most serious commentators as it treats magical healers and palm-readers. Vladimir Putin has probably enjoyed proving the oracles wrong with every announcement and appointment. The crystal balls of political prophets have been clouded for so long that they could not believe that their own prophecy has come true. After the unfair Duma elections in December, Putin backed Dmitri Medvedev as his candidate for the presidential election in March. Medvedev hurriedly announced that, should the stars align and the gods favour him, Putin would be his Prime Minister. Two Deputy Prime Ministers Admittedly, everyone and no one were surprised. To most observers, Medvedev, first Deputy Prime Minister for national projects since 2005 and the chairman of Gazprom, the Russian gas and oil giant, is not the worst choice, especially after what the real pessimists predicted following the farce of the Duma elections. The Guardian describes him as a "liberal" (also in inverted commas), but this is only to contrast him to the siloviki, the clan of intei'nal security forces (FSB) under the Igor Sechin, chairmain of Rosneft (another oil giant). The presidential contest between Medvedev and the other silovik First Deputy Prime Minister (in charge of a myriad of projects including nan-otechnology), Sergey Ivanov, has been going on for a year The government TV channels have been scared to show one and not the other in a single news report. Both ministers stayed after the shake-up of the cabinet in early autumn - then several serious political commentators, who I spoke to in Russia, tipped unknown bureaucrat Viktor Zubkov, who had just been appointed Prime Minister, for president. I was quite surprised and advised them to have their crystal balls checked. From the style of Zubkov's meetings, it was obvious Putin had been in need of an executioner or a loyal rottweiler, to bark at the ministers shortly before the Duma election. Still, Zubkov has not received the recognition due him for the most rigged election in modern Russia. The opposition had practically no access to television, which finds a daily excuse to show Putin and his many premiers. Putin's United Russia party refused to participate in any electoral debates. Negative campaigning (read: criticism of the government) was banned. The main state TV channel somehow knew before the results were announced to which four party headquarters they had to send their correspondents. Every popular tabloid was tightly censored. A giant poster of United Russia, just outside Red Square in Moscow, was left untouched during a supposed three-day campaigning prohibition. Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia had turnouts of around 100% and some consulates reported every foreign resident voting for the same party. United Russia's core supporters are apparently in prisons, the army and psychiatric institutions. United Russia received a "constitutional majority" (it does what it says), which is compatible with the new notion of "sovereign democracy" (it does not do what it says). So what? Past speculation that the constitution will be changed to allow Putin to run again or that Belarus will be ailnexed to Russia, making Pi^tin the first President of the union, has now largely been scaled back. For the first time in at least four years, we should probably expect the government-spon-sored crystal ball to tell us the truth; Medvedev will become President and Putin, Prime Minister. Destabilisation Fund Now that the Kremlin's succession battle has reached a ceasefire for the time being, the more pressing concern is what is going to happen to Russia's international position when traders in New York jokingly buy oil for a $100/barrel. When oil is above $27 per barrel (although this is not the triple figure Brent, but Urals traded at around $72 per barrel) the government shovels the additional budget receipts into a designated Stabilisation Fund, which has been used to repay the national debt and fix pension fund deficits. However, Andrey Illarionov, Putin's ex-economic advisor has said that "the Stabilisation Fund, in the form in which it was created in which monies were accumulated, has ceased to exist. It has died. This is now a fund for increasing the personal wealth of specific individuals." (Russia has 53 dollar billionaires and an average monthly salary of under £300). But what is the quick and famous way to become a billionaire in Russia? It can't be to buy government-owned assets at rigged auctions and very low prices, because that is what happened in the Nineties. Putin, in his recent speeches, has taken a lot of credit for "cleansing the powerful oligarchy, whose power was based on corruption, violence and informational blackmail". Shortly before Medvedev's announcement as the backed candidate for the presidential election, a little-known financier Oleg Shvartsman gave a controversial interview to Gazprom-controlled Kommersant newspaper, accusing the siloviki of repeating the economic tragedy of the Nineties with "velvet re-privatisation." Could this have been what put Putin off the Ivanov-Sechin siloviki clan? Putin himself may be no saint. Shortly before Christmas, the media picked up controversial allegations that Putin's fortune is estimated at $40bn. An excellent Russian journalist, Stanislav Belkovsky made the comments to Die Welt, a respectable German newspaper in November, having written a book about Putin early last year. Ti-ue or not, Putin has still not dealt with the allegations in his usual manner. Putin has always put the economy before democracy. But despite GDP growth, inflation has hit double figures, forcing pre-election price freezes. Spending on roads, hospitals and schools has been barely noticed outside major cities, although funds seem to be constantly allocated for something. Stabilisation Fund spending is supposed to commence soon. Transparency International has ranked Russia 143rd on its corruption perception index. Putin has got neither the economy nor the democracy right. Medvedev is not the liberal law professor that the Western media makes him out be. He is a ruthless technocrat who will need to make some tough choices for Russia, like Putin did in 2000. If Medvedev wants Russia to prosper, he will need to give freedom to the media to give it an opportunity to check the government's steps. The Nineties seem like such a terrible time to Russians because they today don't have a chance to hear about the government's crimes today. Medvedev would also need to diversify industry and gradually devalue the propped-up rouble to encourage businesses to face international competition. Finally, he would need to tackle corruption. This would mean waging war on Ivanov, Sechin, the rest of the siloviki and finally on the Time Magazine Person of the Year himself. I doubt he will do anything. Medvedev Is not the liberal law professor that the Western media makes him out to be. He is a ruthless technocrat who will need to make some tough choices for Russia (i-r); Dmitri Medvedev; Joseph Statin; Vladimir Putin 8 January 2008 ^Beaver 13 FEATURES "Long live the French-American friendship!" As the French President Nicolas Sarkozy pronounced these words before the United States Congress, on November 7th, 2007, he symbolically brought to an end the confusion and distrust that had enveloped Franco-American relations for the past four years - since the 2003 Iraq Crisis which divided President Jacques Chirac and the Bush Administration. The thundering applause and standing ovations that punctuated the speech appeared as the ultimate approbation to the return of French fries in menus on Capitol Hill. In a France known for its rising anti-Americanism in the past decade, Nicolas Sarkozy had already made a gamble in the presidential election by accepting the epithet "Sarko I'Americain." He had already criticised French arrogance in a 2006 visit to Washington, causing much turmoil as his opponents laid into his apparent adulation of the transatlantic neighbour. After the election, the French President continued to look and point west, nominating the pro-American and Socialist maverick Bernard Kouchner as Foreign Minister. Mr Sarkozy even chose Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, for his first presidential summer holiday. Logically, his election as President of France could only have had a positive impact on relations between both powers. In his speech before Congress, Sarkozy did what few in France would have dared to do: he acknowledged the positive role of the United States in recent French history. By praising Elvis Presley and the Marshall Plan, the French President gave to Caesar what is Caesar's, burying the arrogance that had shocked Americans years before. However, the spirit of Asterix the irreducible Gaul is never too far away. After all, former French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine describes autonomy of decision as the recurreAt theme in French foreign policy. From General De Gaulle's 1966 withdrawal of French troops from the NATO high command to President Chirac's oppo- sition to the war in Iraq, France has always tried to retain its own independent foreign policy. Little tangible suggests that Mr Sarkozy's policy will be any different. In a joint press conference in September with Secretary of State Condolezza Rice, Mr Kouchner declared that "having good relations doesn't mean that we're in complete agreement everyday, everywhere, but we have excellent relations." The Sarkozy administration appears somewhat cautious in establishing this renewed friendship with the United States, perhaps keeping in mind the ultimate failure of former Prime Minister Tony Blair to win significant concessions for Britain from its so-called Special Relationship. The Ghost of De Gaulle However, this caution goes beyond the need simply to please French public opinion. The French President continues to voice his disagreement with the policies in Iraq, and in the speech before Congress, he urged the Bush administration to change its monetary policy and take action against global warming. Sarkozy also called for the United States to trust Europe: he has been a strong supporter of the European Defence Initiative as a mean to increasingly replace NATO, Hence, while he has tried to improve the form of Franco-American relations, his policies have actually continued the work of previous presidencies in strengthening France and Europe's roles on the international arena. Nevertheless, President Sarkozy's skills in diplomatic crisis management have been highly appreciated by a US administration that is once again beginning to rely on multilateral decision-making. In a recent article in Le Monde, the US ambassador to France, Craig Stapleton, stressed the need for the United States to use France's diplomatic skills and contacts around the globe, regarding Iran and perhaps even Iraq. The 2006 summer crisis in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah had already seen a renewal of Franco-American cooperation. While both states' respective initial reactions to the conflict were different, the United States began to value the importance of France's established diplomatic connections within this region, which ultimately enabled the passing of a United Nations Security Council resolution and subsequent ceasefire to end the conflict. Sarkozy appears somewKat cautious in establishing this renewed friendship with the US/ perhaps Iceeping in mind the ultimate failure of Since his election. President Sarkozy and his administration have pursued a highly activist foreign policy, committing to numerous issues around the globe - including Iran, Darfur, the release of the Bulgarian nurses and the establishment of civil nuclear energy contracts in Libya, and most recently financial aid to the Palestinian Authority. All of these have met with the certain approval of the Bush administration, and tie in with its broader strategy for the Middle East. An Iranian Problem Still, Iran could be a big test to this renewed friendship. President Sarkozy has shared his concerns with the possibility of Iran developing nuclear weapons, and in September, Bernard Kouchner shocked the world by stating that states should prepare for the possibility of war. Furthermore, France has been a strong advocate for unilateral European sanctions on Iran, to the delight of the United States. On the other hand, since the recent publication of a United States National Intelligence Estimate that Iran stopped its nuclear weapons programme in 2003, this trend could be halted. If it is confirmed in the months to come that Iran has indeed put an end to its proliferation activities without resurrecting them, then the Iranian threat would vanish as political leverage and Sarkozy would shoot himself in the foot both at home and abroad if he remains aligned with the current aggressive line adopted by the United States. Kouchner's warning of the possibility of war proved how unpopular the idea was in France, and the French President has found it increasingly difficult to sell the idea of sanctions to his Europeans counterparts. After the victories of Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama in the Iowa caucuses, change could appear to be a new leading trend in American politics, making it in Sarkozy's interest to distance himself further on the Iranian matter from a fading Bush administration. It is all the same clear for now that the United States needs allies, so France's newfound position can only carry on. This is not just limited to foreign policy. A recent analysis in the Herald Tribune remarks that both countries are beginning a similar process in wanting to reform their own domestic systems, perhaps choosing the other as a possible model. France seems to be increasingly popular with an American left which wishes to redefine freedom and equality, and Mr Sarkozy's plan to increase productivity, liberalisation and wealth will continue to bring comparisons with the transatlantic neighbour. However, what is important is that the renewal of Franco-American friendship marks a slow but positive return to multilateral decision making and diplomacy, and if it can be a beacon for cooperation involving an increasing number of states, we can only join in and toast to its longevity. A Franco-American turning point? French UN peacekeeping troops in Lebanon, October 2006 .\AAAM/JseSUCQm. Tuesday, 8th of January 12.00 Knitting. Knitting Society Quad. Thursday, 10th of January 13.00 UGM: Union General Meeting LSE SU Old Theatre S 18.30 Russia's Policy Towards Europe; ' Aggressive Retrenchment? Speaker: Marie Mendras Hong Kong Theatre Wednesday, 9th of January 13.15 Mass i Chaplaincy f - i: 18.30 Globalisation and Europe: Getting the Message Right European Society : D202 19.00 Swing Dance (Beginners) Swing Dance Parish Hall s 18.30 Oil, War and Geopolitics: the struggle over what remains Speaker: Professor Michael Klare Old Theatre Thursday, 10th of January 10.00 REFRESHERS FAIR! 17.30 Credit Suisse M&A Game Investment Society 19^00 Life Drawing Visual Arts Society G108 TBC 19.30 LARA Re-tox Pub crawl i • | LARA I The Market Porter '? 19.30 Hip Hop (Beginner) Dance Society '20.30 Hip Hop (Advanced) Dance Society Parish Hall i Parish Hall Friday, 11th of January 19.00 Pub Golf 16.00 Another chance to join the Media Group, SU societies and an opportunity to see which societies are newly created! The Quad RAG Week Tuns 21.00 Crush! \ LSESU I Tuns/Quad/Underground | 3DrD(ECUTIVE OFFICE HOURS GLOBALISATION AND EUROPE - GETTING THE MESSAGE RIGHT Wotnea's Officer, ¦ Daisy Mitchelj^Forster mrsdays 12'^ " Educ^ muhsi u^6r ¦ -y, ^y^.SOfPM, Qua^ bnicati^^ Officer Irry !feys2.;^^ auad an a. Mi \..... lays,2.30Pl^^ad ayil2PM. Qu..^ WC'ftuas? What? Lecture Who? The LSE SU European Society When? Wednesday, 9tn of January Where? Room D202, Clement House .GBTbffid ' Dominic ^ednesdajj^-1 ic Officer, .'ary^ Morgan " 'hu%&^S ^M, Quad ^ w V1*' t-i How to explain a Commission Communication on "Managing Change" to local enterprises and local policymakers alike? How to be seen to be 'tackling globalization' when so many people are losing jobs? The European Commission's Legislative Work Programme is probably something that many citizens do not see as a priority for reading over their bowl o£ cornflakes, but it is a document that fundamentally shapes the European political agenda for the next year. It has highlighted tricky and also populist areas for Commission action, not least continuing to place the Lisbon Strategy centre-stage, driving the need for a better knowledge-based economy. It bases itself heavily around wider EU institutional questions concerning globalisation, notably: "The 2008 Spring European Council will give the EU the opportunity to reflect on whether the Lisbon strategy Stephen Alambritis - Head of Public Affairs - Federation of Small Businesses, UK. Katinka Barysch - Deputy Direaor, Centre for European Reform. Christian Kfappitz - Political Officer, UK Representation Office for the European Commission. Katerina Rudiger - Researcher ^ The Work Foundation - this foundation has just produced a report on knowledge work in Europe. needs refinement to address Society would like to decon- the challenges of globalisation most effectively." Commission President Barroso has also proposed to the European Parliament, regarding the outcome of the recent IGC that: "...it was decided to work on a "Declaration on Globalization" for the December 2007 European Council, to show that tackling globalization is a common thread in much of European Union's work today." The 1,SE SU European struct these proposals during the debate, including what the Commission's aims .should mean for the everyday population in terms of investing in people. How should the European Commission Representation office in the UK best deal with communicating its message from its work in a practical way in 2008? Come along, discuss with others interested in this topic, and ask your questions to the speakers! T.\p,-:rit"nn: rm age of < suamr The LS^ S'V CufturafShow 2007-08 - i ny/ y i ^1A in ir'um ymr ^ J 4^ m 'PWS^l'Q, V .. j V • . '^ In diii o Prince's Trust S^-nsivTil hv juBimr Prices: £1 8, £15, £1 2 Sold on Houghton Street, LSE, everyday from 11 am tickets@lsetimeless.co.uk ITL€ 07760362061 07980012274 ¦ wSmMm Sunday 20th January 2008, 1 0pm - 3am Cafe de (Paris More info and table bookings: 07513659374 afterparty@lsetimeless.co.uk (DJ ^igz and(P2 S. Speciaf guests £6 WITH SHOW TICKET - £8 WITHOUT SHOW TICKET iBeaver GET IN BEHA/EEN THE SHEETS WUH US. Collective Meeting Open toal USE Student^oniyColectivemembersinay vote Stall at Refreshers Fair Iliac:: Journalism Information Session News Editor The news Editor is responsible for managing a team of news writer, gathering stories, ia^ng out the news section with two co-editors. Features EcUtor OneoftwoedHors heading the Featuresseclion. Respxisiblefor soureingffea-tures content managing team ofwriler^ editing articles and laying out section. Comment and Analysis Editor Stoke the raoingfireatthe LSE EdittheC&A section and beatthe heart of poitksySUnew^iicKurrentafficHrs. ateamofhondKXyla responsijie for the cirection'taken by the Beaver Web Editor The Web Ecitxir manages the website. ThegraphKsedHi They worn doseiy^ and al sections n insuring the visuaiquaityofthepaper,usira standard industiysoftwai^siKh as Qu^ and Photoshop. PlayavitairoieintiieSlfsoommunicationwithi valuable experience in giapiiicsdesi9i and layout using Sub-Editor •i' I ! t* software. Responsible for the Beaver photo^Bphy. IVlanage Photography Sub-EdHor IVIanaqe a team of photographers. -3- Gmmissiontrig Sub-EdHor Sourceinterviewsfioralseclions.lVleetliamouspeopleifider1heguseaf working for the paper. G)loctiveQiahr TheGilectiveQiairdiairsthecoleciivemeetingsandisainkbelweenthe Edftors and the Colective. They must be re-eiectedeadi term. Any member of the LSESU can ecitor w9 beelecled by 18 leaver | 8 January 2008 SPORTS Insane Ramhiing... Shy cind Retiring? Not Sir Alex Kevin Perry Back at the beginning of the 2001-2002 Premiership season, Alex Ferguson announced his plans to retire at the end of the season. As we all know, he went back on his word and has continued to enjoy success since. However, another thing we all know is that American physicist Hugh Everett III postulated that our universe can be explained by the many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics. This means that in an alternate universe, Ferguson did retire, and it isn't hard to work out what would have happened. First of all, dificult as it may be to believe now, at the time it was widely considered that Steve McClaren was being groomed as Ferguson's natural successor Ho had been Ferguson's assistant during the Treble winning season and had enjoyed a fairly successful first season as a Manager, taking Middlesborough to the^ FA Cup Semi-Final. So what/ would McClaren I have done given! the resourcesl available at Oldj Trafford? Well, as^ we all now know he would havei first dropped! David Beckham,! in order to stamp^ h i s, Furthermore, with United .now failing to jscore anywhere .other ,.t h a n ka t Itheir a u t h o r -1 ity on the team. Sol Becks would still have^ ended up in Madrid." McClaren would have almost certainly gone after Stewart Downing, so Ryan Giggs would also have been on his way out. Probably to Man City, like Denis Law. Obviously, United would then have been utter shit. Rather than bouncing back from a trophyless 2002 to win the title as they did in our universe, they would have been drawn into a relegation dogfight with West Ham and Bolton, My sources tell me that on the final day of the season, Ryan Giggs scored against his former club to send them down. Like Denis Law. jC h r i s t m a s rparties, Wayne 'Rooney never makes the move to Old Trafford, Despite constant overtures from Chelsea, Rooney refuses a move to London, claiming that "its full of southern poofs", and decides to stay at Everton, David Moyes, realising the need to team him with a glamourous, tricky winger, plays him alongside Kevin Kilbane, Everton win everything for the next decade. So what have we learnt from this debacle? Not a lot, other than I should not be allowed to drink absinth and watch Match of the Day on my own, I'm not even an Everton fan,Good night. Mi. THIS YEAR. i ^ JPMorgan O SJARTS ON at JANUARY 13 Internship application deadline: January 13,2008 That's ofRcial. It may be cold and wet, but January 13 is the hottest date of 2008. That's when applications are due for our summer internship programme. So hurry. And as the majority of our summer interns receive full-time offers, the outlool<*s bright, even if the weather isn't. I This is where you need to be. pmorgan.com/care-er c M K • JPMorgan Is a marketing name of jPMorgan Chase & Co. and its subsidiaries worldwide. ©2007 JPMorgan Chase &. Co. AH rights reserved. JPMorgan Is an equal opportunities employer. SPORTS IBeaver | 8 January 2008 19 The Punter Some tips for the New Year Matthew JCG Partridge The New Year is a time for taking stock, something I generally avoid doing. On the negative side my predictions that Gold was going to collapse was only matched by the sharpness of its rise in real life. Similarly, the good voters of Iowa apparently didn't realise that I had suggested that Barack Obama definitely wouldn't win Iowa. On the other hand Mitt Romney didn't win in Iowa and its pretty obvious to even the most dedicated supporters of Ron Paul that he will not be the Republican nominee. McCain is still leading in the polls in New Hampshire and if Obama manages to ride anti-Clinton feeling to the Democratic nomination, Senator James Webb could very well be his running mate. In terms of the football predictions I made, the bad news is that of the 23 tips I made only 7 came to pass. The good news is that, thanks mainly to my tip on Croatia, if you had put £10 on each tip you would have won £315.40, for a profit of £84.00 (a return of 37%). However, I have to warn you know that I can't guarantee such returns all the time! m In any case I'm going to stick with my belief that sometime soon people will realise that Barack Obama is not a credible candidate for the Presidency, so I'm suggesting that you bet against him (58.6-60.1). On the Republican side I would suggest that you keep your money on McCain, although at (32.3-34.8) there probably isn't much value still left in his price, as I guess the probability of him winning the nomination is 40%. Indeed, although I believe that. although McCain should win in the Granite State, you should take cash in any bets you have on him winning New Hampshire. Indeed, if you have bet on McCain winning the nomination, now might be the time to bet on Mitt Romney winning in New Hampshire (13.2-18.4) as a form of cheap insurance. In terms of finance I am going to stick with my prediction that the'price of gold is going to fall, possibly to under $800 by the end of the month. The world is obviously a more unstable and uncertain place. However, that does not justify gold prices being over 30% higher since last August and nearly doubling over the last thirty-six months. Like all bubbles the gold bubble must come to an end, so I would short gold (or if you were unlucky enough to take my earlier advice) stick with your position. In any case I wish you all the best of luck for the 2008, let the gambling commence! With the prospect of continued volatility in world financial markets, eleven months of a presidential election to go and Euro 2008 to handicap there are going to be many opportunities for making some money. Use any advice given here at your own risk and don't gamble what you cannot afford to lose. Columnist(s) may have positions in wagers mentioned. Prices quoted are correct at time of going to press. NEEDS DO YOU WANT TO WRITE ABOUT AUGgS^I ' ANDM EMAIL US QUESTIONS, PHOTOS, ARTICLES AND IDEAS TO: thebeaver.sports@lse.ac.uk '.fr I Eirsk had i^wed? ir-ST U^T Ki iM t 4c V' -T WAP y^ARf evin rfeisa/ s aTOve.,. + Cruisin' for a brusin' in Oxford Chris Baugh On the 6th of December, the LSE boxing crew, travelled up to Sheffield to compete in the national university championships. The team for the three day competition consisted of only 2 fighters, Danielle Tapitake and Chris Baugh, and coach Karim Redwood, but their diminutive number was not to dampen their ferocity. The team went up on the Thursday evening coach to rest up before the first fights on Friday. Everybody had a nervous night. Neither boxer had ever had , a competitive bout, added to • which the hotel's lively bar pounded out wall-vibrating music until 3am - not the most calming night then. Chris was the only one fighting on Friday, a medicine student from Cambridge. Despite having had to wait nervously almost all day to come on, the fight didn't prove very testing. Chris went through to the semi's on a convincing points win. Saturday was Danielle's day. Although originally having entered the competition at Featherweight, come weigh in Danielle was only a few pounds over Bantamweight. A few minutes skipping with a lot of layers and Danielle weighed in at Bantam, where there was only one other opponent. Coach Karim's 'mind games' on Danielle's Oxford adversary were of crucial significance. Having con- vinced the Oxford coach Danielle was a Featherweight and therefore no threat, Karim caught the Oxford girl off guard come the fight, when she realised she had spent the previous day chatting happily to her future opponent's coach. Danielle's fight was a close match. Although her opponent had a considerable height and reach advantage, Danielle visibly shook her in the first round when she came forward with big shots, switching between head and body. In the second and thii'd rounds the pace of the fight started to take it's toll and although she was still very wary of Danielle's right hand, the fitter Oxford fighter seemed to be scoring more points. The third round bell was a relief for both fighters; although Danielle lost on points, Karim aptly observed that 'That Oxford girl didn't enjoy that, not one bit'. Sunday dawned and Chris fought his semi against a Southhampton boxer. This second fight was much more challenging than the first with the Southhampton fighter much fitter and agile than the previous opponent. However Chris seemed to be landing more power shots and when he came forward he was largely left unanswered. The last round saw both fighters on their last legs, but Chris went through to the final on a points win. The final was only a couple of hours later and trying to rest while still being so nervous was difficult. The other finalist was a much more experienced boxer from Coventry. The first round was fairly even, as it was clear that Chris' power and aggressive style were being met with equal measure by the other corner. However in the last two rounds, the previous fight started to take it's toll on Chris- despite landing good punches of his own, he took some big shots and was forced to take two standing counts even though he was far from beaten. The last round was all about heart; an exhausted Chris came out swinging but the Coventry man was fitter- he showed much fewer signs of tiredness and ultimately threw enough punches to secure a points victory. Three days, two national finalist medals and a happy coach- overall not bad given we train in a badminton court and our only punch bag broke a long time ago. With another load of fights in February, the LSE boxers plan to keep training hard, and next time, we'll beat 'em all. Ill K + LSE boxers plan to keep training harSTa^STnext time, we'll feeat 'em all*'