The Bmvur ia printed on 100% recycUul paper. Pi^asejajcycle your cop>-. The newspaper of the London School of Economics Students'Union since 1949 • 29 January 2008 • Issue 679 www.thebeaveronline.co.uk Mil im ilT t .*;> J- 22 Februaiy 1983 Students Unite! THE news that the Governemnt has yet to decide upon the alteration of the London weighting allowance has given a boost of cor3idence to the LSE vigil. As it becomes clear on several key issues the Government has not yet made any decisions the interest created through the media by the LSE vigil and similar demonstartions will be seen to have strengthned the NUS bargaining position with the Government. When asked whether it was a Government proposal to change the London weighting allowance, an education spokesman for the Conservative Party Central office commented: "We won't confirm that we're thinking about getting rid of the London weighting allowance". When pressed, he added, "However, we cannot deny that we are not. Everything is constantly under review." Commenting on this the NUS grants officer said " It seems that far from being a Government proposal this could be a possible manifesto proposal." Total raised so far: £10,842 Including £711.17 For Meningitis UK And £711.17 For Mimgo's Q|>cnfnig doon Lorndcmi; Launching this week is the RAG Bungee Jump (May 4th 2008) There are a couple of spaces left on the End of Term Hitch Hike to Paris. RAG is looking for volunteers and societies to participate in RAG Week. It's the perfect opportunity to promote your society as well as raise loads for charity! Please get in contact at Su.Rag@lse.ac.uk Find out more at: www.lsesurag.com Speaker's Comer Register to vote in the London Mayoral Elections. THERE will be a motion proposed at this week's Union General Meeting mandating the Students' Union (SU) to hold a voter registration campaign for the London Mayoral elections on 1 May. The motion also calls for advertising the campaign in the Union press and on the Union website. Given the broad powers of the Mayor and the London Assembly, which extend over transport, culture, the environment, housing, economic development and other areas of policy, it is imperative the SU supports this motion. To live in a democracy is meaningless if people don't vote, and students regrettably have a poor turnout record. To vote in favour of this motion is to indicate that the status ' quo of apathy is unacceptable, and that the LSE Students' Union should do all it can to encourage democratic participation in its city This is especially important given the number of policy decisions a Mayor could make that would significantly impact student lives. Transport for London discounts, for one, could offer students a tangible decrease in the cost of living in London. Furthermore, due to the number of universities in London, students represent a potentially pivotal constituency in the race and can thus massively influence its political dialogue. Above all, to encourage students to start voting is to encourage an entire generation of future voters to take part in politics. If the precedent of expected democratic participation is set, the positive knock-on effect throughout society is boundless. www.Iondonelects.org Got a caxise or campaign for Speaker's Comer? Email thebeaver.editor®lse.ac.uk events ocaust EVENTS will be held all week to honour the memory of the victims of the Holocaust. Chris Shaw, chief executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust hopes it will educate the population about the Shoah, especially those between 18 and 40 who did not leam about it at school. Livingstone to be SuedlfyWhrstle-blowmgAide KEN Livingstone, London Mayor, is to be sued for 'bullying' by the whistle-blower who exposed a key part of the City Hall scandal. After Livingstone claimed on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme that Brenda stem, a former manager of the London Development Agency (LDA), was sacked for bullying her staff. However, the LDA denied the Mayor's claims, saying that the allegations against Stem were unfounded. Stem responded by saying that "One of the Mayor's most unattractive characteristics is the way he responds to any legitimate question with personal abuse. What he said about me to six million listeners was completely untrue, and I have that in writing from his own LDA chief executive." "Coundl won't poo-poo this problem" HAMMERSMITH and Fulham Council has employed a hawk specifically dedicated to chase away pigeons. Perham Road is a pioneer site after more than 75 residents complained about the accumulation of pigeon poo on the street. The scheme will continue until the number of pigeons reaches a "more acceptable level" according to a council spokesman. Switched On London 2008 brings sustainable energy to the streets During London's only festival of light, now in its second year, will light up landmarks and buildings across the city using lighting schemes that spokesman Paul James hopes will "educate the public in the capital about the value of energy efficient lighting in the urban environment." With fifteen projects in total, such attractions as the Tower of London, HMS Belfast, London Bridge, and Southwark Cathedral, as well as more esoteric and urban buildings like Southwark Post Office and Bermondsey St Car Park will all be illuminated. All the schemes will be audited to see if they can provide better lighting with less usage of energy. Stringfellow backs Johni&n for Mayor PETER Stringfellow, owner of the Stringfellows' nightclubs, is Boris Johnson's latest backer. Johnson, the Conservative Party candidate for London Mayor, appealed to Stringfellow because, he said, "unlike that old pretender Ken, he's a proper red-blooded male. He speaks to me, but he looks at my wife." Ken Livingstone is yet to unveil any celebrity supporters, other than Padhil and Ruhana. leaver I 29 January 2008 How the debate unfolded Emiliano Huet-Vaughn (First speaker for the motion): "The evidence of apartheid is abundant and clear. There are Jewish-only settlements and roads, and the freedom of movement, and the right to healthcare and education for Palestinians is curtailed. It is high time for apartheid to end." Dan Dolan (First speaker against the motion): "Most people would acknowledge that we all need to express solidarity with the Palestinian cause. We do not help that cause by proposing unreasonable motions like this that exclude moderate students from the debate, by calling them racist. It aids the extremists." CONTINUED FROM FRONT When South African apartheid prevailed, we at LSE took a stand ... People like Nelson Mandela and Desmond TUtu are now stepping forward to say what is going on in the West Bank and Gaza is the same as, if not worse, than what happened in apartheid South Africa." The final speaker against the motion denounced the use of the word 'Apartheid' and said it was "insulting to the black population of apartheid South Africa ... I'm being backed into a corner, and so is everyone else who wants to take the middle ground ... I either agree that Israel is an apartheid state or I am a racist." Summing up, Dolan said "Let's recognise the problem, but we can't say those who agree with us are on our side and those who don't are racist." Huet-Vaughn used his final speech to defend the use of the word apartheid, saying "The UN special representative for human rights in the Occupied Territories last year issued a -- . report calling it apartheid, calling it occupation. Mandela and Tutu have called it apartheid worse than what happened in South Africa." During questioning, the motion was further criticised for failing to include the terms 'peace', 'co-existence' and 'nonviolence'. However, Olga Gora, a postgraduate student, told The Beaver that she felt that "the opponents of the motion didn't engage with the issues it raised." Speaking to LooSE TV after the debate, Huet-Vaughn said, "You see the term apartheid being used by leaders of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, and by Nobel Prize winner Jimmy Carter. It's fairly moderate if you look at the evidence, the UN is not a radical force, Jimmy Carter is not a radical, these are respected people who have looked at the situation on the ground." Both supporters and detractors of the motion spent several days before the UGM mobilising support. The supporters of the motion handed out leaflets on Houghton Street while wearing t-shirts embla- , -i. Over 600 students crammed into the Old Theatre for the debate zoned with 'Make Apartheid History' and quotes from figures such as Desmond Tutu, who has referred to the situation in Palestine as "so much like what happened to us black people in South Africa." Those opposed to the motion also campaigned on Houghton street, handing out flyers and putting up posters denouncing the motion. The Beaver understands that the day before the debate took place, opponents of the motion sent a series of e-mails claiming that it was "Muslim hysteria". Complaint #1: Not all of those present could vote - entry was limited idue to the size of the Old Theatre and there was no Ivideo-link to another room. Complain #2; 'ere there non-LSE SU members present - several students reported the presence of SOAS students. Complaint #3: One person, four votes - students complained that the ballots were too easily available; The Beaver received four ballots from UGM officials without question. Complaint #4: iPhotocopiable ballots - ballot papers were left lying iaround outside before the UGM, and at least one stu- ; dent photocopied a spoilt ballot during the UGM.- Both groups used Facebook to mobilise support, sending messages asking people to attend and bring their friends. One was entitled "24 Hours to Mobilize" and told students that "you cannot make a difference if you are not physically at the UGM to vote." Union Jack The gates of the Convention swelled and threatened to burst; their frail construction brought tantalisingly close to its limits by sheer weight of numbers. A horde of rabid devotees had descended upon the Union, perhaps from the heavens but probably from the depths of hell. Their boisterous demeanour suggested a raucous affair was in the offing. Alas, from his lowly perch outside. Jack couldn't even hope to get a whiff of the maelstrom that awaited deep within the bowels of the Old Theatre. But quick wits are aplenty in Jack. He flanked wide right pass the immobile crowd, and two hefty shoves and a dozen apologies later, found himself in the Convention. The calm and tranquillity from before now seemed a distant memory. The sea of beckoning blue was now packed with eager pilgrims and agitated zealots. The dull drones and uninspired backchat that plagued the Convention had been vanquished - not least for this week. Jack shuddered; the aura so overwhelming, it harkens back to I'magnifique days of 1789...in the glory of the storming of the Bastille Jack basked once more. Oh how they roared. Their cries of approval reverberated. Bellows of dismay shuddered. Outbursts of enthusiasm overflowed. Bawls of indignation thundered. The mounting pressure within the stifling holds of the Convention told Commissar Midway the time had come. With an impassive voice, he beckoned the duelling factions onto the arena. The floodgates were unleashed. Half a millennia, half a millennia, half a millennia onward. All in the ring of fire, rode the six hundred. 'Forward the Zionist crusade! Denounce their evils!' he said: into the ring of fire, rode the six hundred. 'Forward the heretic campaign!' Was there a man enraged? Not though the zealots knew, some one had slandered: Theirs all to make reply, theirs all to reason why, theirs all to deny and let die: into the ring of fire, rode the six hundred. Zionists to left of them, heretics to right of them, fracas in front of them, bellowed and hollered; assailed with slur and smear, boldly they accused and jeered. Into the gates of shame, into the depths of fear, rode the six hundred. Flashed all their semantics bare, flashed as they twist facts in air. Insinuating their opponents there, vilifying a rival while, all the world wondered. Plunged in obfuscating smoke, right through the excuses they broke; Zionist and heretic, reeled from the slander stroke, incensed and angered. Then they battled back, and fought, fought the six hundred. When can their ignominy fade? O the wild accusations they made! All the Union wondered. Decry the allegations they made! Decry the vile game they play. Ignoble six hundred! 04 IBeaver i 29 January 2008 Honoraiy LSE Mow reinvents the vsiieel MALVIKA SARAOGI An honorary LSE fellow has launched a 'People's Car' that will go on the market for just £1200. Ratan Tata's car four-seater is just 3 metres long, weighs 500 kg and the he claims it is capable of 20km per litre. The low cost of the car, being marketed as the TATA Nano, has been made possible by replacing some of the frame's steel with plastic and sheet-metla nd making use of low production costs it Tata's native India. Speaking during the launch, Tata said, "I hope this changes the way people travel in rural India. We are a country of a billion and most are denied connectivity." Tata received an honorary fellowship from the LSE in July last year. The TATA conglomerate itself has been associated with the school since 1912 when the founders Beatrice and Sidney Webb received grants from the Tata family and the tradition continues with the Sir Ratan Tata Trust sponsoring five Indian post-graduate students. The company has received worldwide media attention because of its bids for Jaguar and Land Rover and recent acquisition of UK's Corns Steel. The basic model comes equipped with the vital features but has only one windscreen wiper and no passenger-side mirror. The deluxe version has air conditioning and other features such as an airbag and radio can be added at extra cost. TATA hopes that this car will revolutionize the way Indians travel. Many believe that it will be worth opting for a car by coughing-up a bit more money instead of buying a two-wheeler rickshaws cost about. But with Indian roads already unable to cope with the heavy traffic, the Nano will only worsen the situation. To give you an idea, a staggering 900 vehicles are added to Bengaluru's (formerly Bangalore) roads everyday. KEY FACTS Top speed 65mph Engine rear-mounted 623cc, 33bhp multipoint fuel injection engine Xransmission continuous variable transmission Fuel consumption 50mpg Body sheet metal with crumple zones Extras air conditioning and airbag optional. No radio, no power steering, one windscreen wiper WHAT MAKES THE TATA NANO SO CHEAP? No ar cjHKittxmg Wimkms wind down by hand on jtandard mode) Height 1.6fn (Bft5 T Manua! steering, 624cciwo.cy!intfef e^ine in boot giving max speed at TOfottili i'43mph) Piasttc and wlhestve replaces weWing Bodywofis trade Of sheet-metal and plastic -ler.<3th 3,1m ilOlt! ? 4—y«1dth 1,5m (6ff)- The TATO Nano (above) hopes to replace the traditional but dangerous modes of transport (below) Womm'swed taddes prostitution DAVID WOODBRIDGE Women's Week has drawn a strong response from LSE students, with many events attracting considerable interest. A lecture on the subject of gender equality in PVance in relation to the French government's 2004 ban on Islamic headscarves, given by Professor Joan Scott, Harold Flinder Professor of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Politics and History at Princeton on Thursday, packed the New Theatre. Scott argued that the move was not simply a move against Islam as many commentators have pointed out, but was also a move against women's freedom of expression. Quoting widely from a range of philosophers and historians, she suggested that the French government's preoccupation with unveiling Muslim women stemmed from an unease that Muslim attitudes towards curbing sexual desire created artificial societal divisions and threatened French national identity. Scott argued that this is, however, simply an objectifi-cation of women which undermines the Republic's traditional belief in equality. Scott recognised the anti-Islamic element of the ban, accusing the French government of suffering from "political hysteria" in the aftermath of 9/11 and banning head-scarves as "a sign of imagined danger", rather than tackling more serious social issues, such as increasing poverty, which contributed to 2005's serious civil unrest. Other events included discussions about abortion rights and the objectification of women in the Western media. Friday's talk with the Safety First Coalition, whose mission statement is "to decriminalise sex work and prioritise all women's and children's safety", and Catherine Healey, the founding member and national co-coordinator of the New Zealand Prostitute's Collective, focussed attention on the public outpouring of compassion for prostitutes following the notorious 2006 Ipswich murders. Despite this, the government's response was to crack down on clients, driving sex workers underground, making them even more vulnerable. This was contrasted with the attitude of the New Zealand government, which has decriminalized prostitution resulting in a situation whereby sex workers now feel more entitled to safety at work, something considered by most as a basic human right. The discussion was particularly relevant as there are fears that increasing numbers of students are themselves turning to prostitution; a 2001 study by Westminster University concluded that debt and lack of financial support were the root causes of this trend. Daisy Mitchell-Forster, the LSESU Women's Officer told The Beaver that Women's Week "was extremely useful [in discussing] important contemporary feminist issues, from the legal position of prostitution and the plight of women in prisons to the effects of 'raunch culture' in order to stress the wide-ranging impact of continuing gender inequality." C&S "summit of stupidity" Constitution and Steei-ing committee criticised for handling of'Make Apartheid Histoiy' motion PATRICK CULLEN NEWS EDirOE The LSE Students' Union (LSE SU) Constitution and Steering Committee (C&S), in charge of ensuring that the Union adheres to its own constitution, has again come under fierce criticism for its questionable decisions and the way in which meetings have been held. The Beaver has seen a series of e-mails in which James Bacon, the LSE SU Returning Officer, criticises the committee for displaying "complete ineptitude" during a discussion about the Livingstone letter. C&S, Bacon argues, is "incompetent", as well as showing "an unadulterated abuse of power." Criticising the committee for an "entirely ludicrous" decision to rule that Fadhil Bakeer-Markar, LSE SU General Secretairy and Ruhana Ali, LSE SU Education and Welfare Officer, were in breach of the law. Bacon notes that the ruling was taken without "expert legal advice" and in just "five minutes" C&S found Ali and Bakeer-Markar "guilty" of "a breach of the 1994 Education Act." In reply, Abz Hussein, a member of C&S, told Bacon v.y- A Abz Hussein, second from right, didn't take kindly to criticism of the C&S committee by the LSESU returning officer that he was constantly "haranguing" C&S, as well as declaring that he did not care "what you think", before telling Bacon that he should "now go s**k c'**k." Andy Hallett, Chair of C&S, then declared that these were "my sentiments exactly." Bacon has told The Beaver that the behaviour of C&S is "flagrant disregard for the Constitution", and that the comment by Hussein was "points-scoring for a future General Secretary candidate". These allegations of incompetence follow on from the no-confidencing of C&S in Michaelmas Term for systematic incompetence, an inability to perform the duties it is mandated to do under the LSE SU Constitution, and a bout of infighting which distracted members from their roles and saw two Chairs removed from their posts. Hussein described his comment to Bacon as a "lightheart- ed joke", adding "I told him not to take it personally." He continued "James Bacon is trying to be the de facto Gen Sec, he's got a finger in every pie." In addition to Bacon's allegations, a student has told The Beaver that the motion to 'Make Apartheid History' should not have been allowed through without amendment. "The Union Notes section should have been fully checked," he said, saying that "it is debateable as to whether point 11 is factual, and at least one citation should have been re-worded as 'according to'." The student also said that C&S was "stupid" to let the motion pass without serious discussion or rigorous investigation. C&S has also been criticised for the "shambolic" manner in which meetings have been held. Bacon said that "the Chair displayed an incapacity to carry out his duties as Chair of C&S, ridiculing the system on which C&S is based." Hallett, in response, told The Beaver that it is difficult to schedule meetings, and that in any case he was unwilling to let meetings go past 8pm on Tuesday nights. This, Hallett maintains, often places strain on C&S as the committee seeks to fulfil its constitutional duty in the time alloted to it. India weekhad al the ingredients ofagood Indianwedding ANIKA MATHUR Monday morning on Houghton street marked the beginning of the highly anticipated India week. The performers and organisers from the 'Timeless' cultural show managed to make it in time to hang up a banner and Indian flags which hung high and proud. The week itself consisted of all the ingredients that make a good Indian wedding, "good food and good music", whilst integrating an insight into a vast country and ancient culture. The week was inaugurated in 2005 and in the words of Lubna Manasawla, one of the organisers of the week, the main aim of the week is to "give every student at LSE a taste of the magnificent country called India." The week was also designed as an opportunity to encourage peace and a desire for co-oper-ation within the region. The taskforce accomplished this by organising a week filled with a diverse range of events. Alongside entertaining cultural programs a number of educational talks and trips were also organised such as the interfaith talk and the Neasden Mandir trip. The 'Indian Idol' final and 'Antakshri' evening was representative of an age old Indian tradition. Antakshiri which is a game played by Indians worldwide consists of a series of teams which, upon their turn, have to think of a song beginning with the last syllable of the last word sung by the previous team and then sing it. The popular game has even been turned into an international TV show, modernising old traditions. One student commentd, "The Taskforce have been successful at organising an array of events which represents the modernity of India without letting go of the country's strong standing traditions." The week has also provided an opportunity for international students and British students, Indians and non Indians, to corne together and unite in experiencing diversity. It is reaffirming to have witnessed that students have hung onto the traditions which make the country the unique force to be reckoned with that it is today. leaver I 29 January 2008 05 LSE SU General Secretaiy. apologises for breaking the law PATRICK CULLEN NEWS EDITOR Fadhil Bakeer-Markar, the SU General Secretary and Ruhana Ali, the LSE Students' Union (LSESU) Education and Welfare Officer, gave a "sincere apology" for signing a letter of support for Ken Livingstone which was published in The Gxiardian on January 5. Investigations by The Beaver have since revealed that the actions of the Sabbatical Officers, who were elected to their paid positions in Lent Term of the last academic year, broke the Charity Act 2006 by signing the letter as officers of the Union. Both Ali and Bakeer-Markar argue that "some accusations" were "inaccurate, malicious and unconstructive", but, according to the Charity Commission, it is "never acceptable" for officers of a registered charity such as the LSESU to support politicians in their campaigns for re-election. Charities and their officers can support political campaigns which are relevant to the charity. In the case of the SU, this refers to campaigns that seek to support students in Britain and across the world. In the published letterit appeared that Ali and Bakeer-Markar were pledging the sup- port of the Student's Union to Ken Livingstone's campaign. This, the Charity Commission told The Beaver, would "certainly" break the law as it stands, with the Commission being empowered to investigate and advise or punish the charity or individuals concerned if any complaints were brought. Ali and Bakeer-Markar said the implication of the let- " Contrary to what was implied, we are not too proud to admit that we have made a mistake and hope that students accept our sincere apology." Fkdhil Bakeer-Markar LSESU General Secretary Ruhana Ali LSESU Education and Welfare Officer ter is that the LSESU was backing Ken Livingstone came about as a result of "a naive view". Both signed the letter with their official positions followed by "(Pers Caps) [sic]" which, they thought, would be understood by The Guardian as signatures in their own personal capacities. However, The Guardian failed to publish this clarification. Furthermore, despite efforts made by The Beaver, there is still little known about the person who had originally written the • letter and approached Bakeer-Marker and Ali to sign. Diane Abbot MP's Press Office was unaware of the existence of the letter, and Abbot herself couldn't remember who had asked her to sign. The Mayor's Office refused to comment, while neither the London Labour Party or Labour Head Office answered repeated queries from The Beaver. Bakeer-Markar and Ali have stated that they "were not approached by any organisation nor ... received orders to co-sign", although they have still not revealed who did approach them with the letter. It is unlikely that any official complaints will be brought following the General Secretary's public apology, a fuller version of which can be found on page 10. The Charity Commission's legal advice has important implications for the Union General Meeting mandate which asks Bakeer-Markar, in his position as General Secretary, to write, and sign, a letter of support to The Guardian for Boris Johnson. The letter in full We welcome the initiative taken by the Muslim community to support the re-election of Ken Livingstone because the issues they raise are relevant to every community in Britain. London is one of the most diverse cities in the world and its economic success is directly related to its ability to relate to every other part of the world without racism or prejudice. Ken Livingstone has championed a policy of tolerance, understanding and mutual respect of communities based on the simple principle that everybody is free to be themselves as long as they do not interfere with the right of others to do the same. The effectiveness of this approach was brought home to all of us by London's calm and united response to the terrorist atrocities on July 7 2005. It is also shown by the remarkable fact that racist attacks have fallen by 55% since Ken became mayor - despite increasing nationally. No wonder 69% of Londoners think a multicultural society makes London a better place to live. Boris Johnson, by contrast, has insulted many of London's communities. His approach would undermine the community cohesion on which London's prosperity and social justice depend. That is why we join the call for Ken Livingstone to be re-elected mayor of London on May 1. Diane Abbott MP Claude Moraes MEP Pav Akhtar Race equality officer, Unison Mohammed Taj Executive member, Unite Ruhana Ali, Eadhil Bakeer-Markar LSE students union Abu Shohid London Metropolitan University students union University of East London students union Nizam Uddin SOAS students union (published in The Guardian, Saturday 5 Januraiy) "All of the questions in the Middle East crisis have already been answered" says Finkelstien MICHAEL DEAS The solutions to the Israel-Palestine conflict are simple and uncontrover-sial if only we pay attention to the rulings made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the documentary record. That was the view put forward by celebrated Middle East specialist Professor Norman Finkelstein at a public lecture at the LSE last week. Professor Finkelstein used the lecture, part of a London-wide Palestine Awareness Week, to lay out what he sees as the injustices perpetrated by Israel. He refuted the claim that Israel is not the aggressor as the Israeli Defence Force does not intend to kill civilians: "In the first month of the Second Intifada 20 Palestinian died from a direct bullet shot to the head. That is not an accident. According to international law, indiscriminate killings do not differ from intentional killings." Referring to the fact that Israel routinely indiscriminately fires artillery shells on Palestinian villages, he said, "Someone who throws burning matches into the woods cannot claim they didn't mean to burn it down. There is no genuine difference to targeting of civilians, which is what Hamas is accused of, to indiscriminate and reckless use of force, which is what Israel is accused of." Finkelstein said that the controversy over the conflict was "contrived" and designed by pro-Israelis to stifle debate. One such example of this, he claims, is the demand that Hamas recognise the right of Israel to exist and denounce its "commitment" to the destruction of Israel: "Israel has never once recognised the right of Palestine to exist as a state." "Hamas is said to be verbally committed to the destruction of Israel, but Israel is not verbally but in action committed to the dismantling and destroying the state of Palestinian," he continued. Finkelstein also referred to the July 2004 ICJ advisory ruling that the Israeli separation wall was illegal and should be torn down. This ruling, argued Finkelstein, was dependant upon the Court's view of several so-called 'final status' issues such as Israel's legal borders, the status of East Jeruselum and the legal position of Israeli settlements. Finkelstien argued that as the usually indecisive ICJ had 'v.- " ¦ Norman Finkelstien is a celebrated expert on the Middle East conflict ¦ ¦¦ ot .-,1. ."iiiii'rti*, iu "'"J voted fourteen to one that the wall was illegal, its views that Israel had no right to land on the West Bank or Gaza and that all Israeli settlements outside of its 1948 borders were illegal, carried great credence. The underlying sentiment of Finkelstein's comments was that Palestinian's have international law, the consensus of all human rights organisations and the International Court of Justice on their side in condemning the actions of Israel and supporting the immediate cessation of the Israeli occupation. Speaking about what he calls the 'Holocaust Industry' and the continual use of accusations of anti-Semitism by the Israel lobby, Finkelstein cited President Jimmy Carter's book. "Palestine Peace, not Apartheid". He said that no one was able to challenge the content of the book, which called for an end to Israeli human rights abuses, so he was instead accused of being anti-Semitic and on the payroll of rich Muslims. Finkelstein said he believed Zionism was dying and no longer immune to criticism. He spoke of his admiration for the activists in the audience and spoke of his hope for the successful creation of a two-state solution. Norman Finkelstein is a leading expert of Middle East affairs. His parents were Holocaust survivors. A graduate of SUNY Binghamton, he received his Ph.D in Political Science from Princeton University. Last year, some of Finkelstein's students went on hunger strike after he was denied tenure at DePaul University in Chicago. The Political Science department at the university had already voted to grant the tenure, but said that "unprofessional personal attacks divert the conversation away from consideration of ideas, and polarize and simplify conversations that deserve layered and subtle consideration." Ziyaad Lunat, organiser of the event, said, ""Finkelstein symbolizes the lengths the supporters of the occupation take to stifle debate on the crucial issue of Israeli Apartheid. Son of Holocaust survivors, Finkelstein discussed the exploration of Jewish suffering to justify the continuous oppression of the Palestinian people." 06 leaver | 29 January 2008 Who to blame for Northern Rock? DEOTIMA MUKHERJEE I ^ -A. t ^he music stopped, they found out there were no empty chairs to sit on. So they started it again, hoping people would forget that there was nowhere to sit". That's how Chris Harman described the Government's decision to lend money to Northern Rock and other banks hit by mortgage crisis. Speaking at the LSESU Socialist Worker Student Society talk on lUesday titled "Between a Northern Rock and a hard place", Harman explained the basics of the current financial crisis to the audience and went on to espouse the values of a Marxist economy. Harman explained how sub-prime lending had caused not only primary lenders to go into losses, but also the banks and firms which had bought financial packages from them. He laid the blame at the door of neo-classical economists, claiming that they had failed to predict every single crisis in the history of the capitalist economy. Harman argued that countries such as China who had been reinvesting their profits into further production rather than sharing it with their workers were a huge part of the problem. According to his estimates, 5% of the wealth generated in China was lent to mortgage-seeking Americans, thus further compounding the problem. Most other South-Asian countries do the same. The solution to this crisis People queing in front of a Northern Rock branch and all such crises, Harman argued, lay in the principles of a Marxist economy. Therefore in that spirit, the Northern Rock should be nationalized rather than privatized. This sentiment was echoed by audience member Luke Cooper who said that Marx had correctly stated that the nature of capitalism is such that it breeds its own problems and looking to Marx for inspiration could only be a good thing. This would lead to less investment in profit-chasing and more in things that matter to the public. Estelle Hooch, Chair of the society said that,"Compared to the money that the government is investing in Northern Rock, only 1/50^ of that is being spent on the 'Make Poverty History' campaign. We think it's time people are made aware The Sub-Prime Crisis: A Bluffer's Guide US banks lent money to people who couldn't afford the loans in order to buy expensive houses. This drove up house prices even more. The banks then repackaged the loans with other financial deals, passing them onto yet more banks and financial firms in other countries as well as the US. When the people who bought the loans inevitably defaulted, the losses hit not only the banks that sold the loans in the first place, but: also the other banks and businesses that had bought the repackaged 'sub-prime' loans. The effect of the crisis runs from the rate which banks loan to each other being reduced to the Fed recently slashing the interest rate by; 0.75% to 3.5% - the largestcut for almost 25 years. The sub prime mortgage crisis has as a result led to fears of the US economy going into recession. Global market volatility is set to persist in the coming weeks or months despite the American government recently declaring an immediate plan of action to stimulate the American economy. Matters were not helped by last week's; fraud at Societe Generale. Professor Rose presents her new book PHILIP PACANOWSKI Professor Jacqueline Rose was at LSE on Tuesday to discuss her new book. The Last Resistance. The new title intends to explain the main themes of Zionist nationalism and nationalism in general. A professor in English at Queen Mary's University, Rosa was joined in the discussion by Professor Henrietta Moore, Professor of Social Anthropology at LSE, and Professor Stephen Frosh from the Psychology department at Birkbeck College,. Rose's book examines the concepts of Zionism and hatred. She told the audience that she hoped to foster "understanding," of evil and cruel acts by using both fiction and psychoanalysis. Fiction gives the reader and writer the ability to produce "troubling identifications" and to engage with "undiscovered paths" whilst the book's psychoanalysis is "an epistemological device for thinking differently". She said that the devices allow her "to be critical of Zionism while simultaneously gain an understanding of the Zionist project." Professor Frosh noted the book's use of 'intervals of reflection', in which the political, ethical and personal concerns of the self allow the reader "to enter into the pain of the other" Rose responded by saying that this was critical, because the reader then understands "what is being done to the Palestinians." The Last Resistance Jtciqueiiac Ro*e m, ' f i . When asked how the Palestine-Israel conflict can be resolved. Rose said that international pressure is the only way to get positive change. She also said she agrees with Israeli revisionist historian Avi Shlaim that it is acceptable to be critical of Israel. Rose has firmly rebuked the idea of being a 'self-hating' Jew because of her occasional criticism of Israel. Rose told the audience that she had worked on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to examine why people can become suicide bombers, capable of utter "de-humanisation." She was relieved to find no abiding reason for this transformation. The talk was organised as part of the Psychoanalysis@LSE Series: discussions organised by the Institute of Social Psychology at the LSE. The series has been running for two years, and examines the crucial issues of past ages and the relationships between individuals and others, such as the family and society Kuanhou Tian wins Traders cup of what's happening." After the speech the floor was opened for questions from the audience, but most remained unconvinced about the virtues of a Marxist economy. ZHENG YANGQI Kuanhou Tian, who won the 2008 LSE Traders Cup last week, has advised potential traders to be confident and exhaust all possible avenues for news and research. Tian's trading Portfolio grew by a whopping 216.4% during the two month trading game. He walks away with a £250 cash prize. Tian's best trade was procuring the stocks of BHP Billiton, the world's biggest resource company who attempted to takeover its smaller rival, Australian miner Rio Tinto. The trading game was organised by the LSE Finance and Investment Societies, supported by virtual trading website BullBearings sponsored by HSBC. The aim of both societies in creating the game, according to Ben Allmond, President of the Investment Society, was to "create a competition of substance allowing those with or without an expertise in investment to compete against each other." Sanjiv Nanwani, Co-Head of the Finance Society's External Partnerships division, commended the competitors for their resolute determination to succeed and their unique strategies. "We have enjoyed organising what has been a terrific competition with our partners, and certainly look forward to embarking on more of such projects in the near future," he said. Many students signed up to dabble in the London Stock Exchange, trading stocks of any companies quoted in the FTSE 350 Index. Once registered, £100,000 in virtual cash was credited into each competitor's trading account. The competition ran through the winter holidays, with large-volume trades being relentlessly executed throughout. There will be a prize presentation on 31st January 2008, from 7 to 9:30 pm at E171. The event will also feature Michael Zapties of HSBC's Rates Trading desk, who will be sharing practical tips and insights into the industry. A networking drinks session with top HSBC and BullBearings executives will follow the presentations. New conflict in Kosovo ahead CHUN HAN WONG Kosovo could emerge as a source of conflict and instability in the near future, a former British army General has warned. "Choppy waters"lay ahead in the troubled province, according to General Sir Mike Jackson, given a possible unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo within the next few months. The former Chief of General Staff stated during a talk at the LSE last week that such a move would generate diplomatic tension, since such a development that would be an affront to both Serbia and Russia, while Western governments generally see Kosovo's independence as inevitable. "The declaration is likely to occur after the conclusion of the ongoing Serbian presidential elections, he said. Sir Mike raised his con- \ General Sir Mike Jackson talks about an impeding crisis in Kosovo Name: Michael David "Mike" Jackson Nickname: Darth Vader; Prince of Darkness Tours of Duty: Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Iraq Time in command: 43 years cems while speaking on strategic developments of the past two decades and current international security issues in the Old Theatre last Wednesday. Access to energy resources may emerge as security concern, he said. The inability of renewable energy sources to cope with the rapidly-increasing energy demands, especially from the fast-growing economies of India and China, would make energy access a source of conflict. On strategic issues, Sir Mike highlighted the growing need for Western militaries to devote attention to asymmetric warfare and non-conventional operations. Nuclear proliferation, he also warned, may prove "impossible to prevent". Regarding British military interventions overseas, Sir Mike raised concern over the lack of proper balance being struck by the British government, between what it demands of its military servicemen and how it treats them. This imbalance should be an issue with the civilian and militaiy leadership given the increasing importance of the individual soldier towards achieving success in "whatever we set out to do", said Sir Mike. Sir Mike, whose military career spanned over 40 years, was head of the British army during the 2003 Iraq War and also served as commander of the Nato Kosovo Force in 1999. He retired from active service in 2006. COMMENT&ANALYSIS iBeaverl 29 January 2008 |o7 COMMENT^I^ Shielded apartheid c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk NALYSIS Ziyaad . Emiliano Lunat & Vaughn Last week we saw one of the best turn outs at a UGM in years for discussion of our proposal to divest LSE funds from Israel and companies that enable its apartheid policies. Some have questioned the appropriateness of the term "apartheid" in characterising the situation under which Palestinians live in the occupied territories. Indeed, apartheid is a strong word considering its wretched history in South Africa, and one is well advised to make use of it only after careful consideration of its meaning and applicability. First defined in South Africa, the term apartheid refers to a system of legalised racial discrimination with policies of separation that enforce the domination of one ethnic group over another. In South Africa, apartheid took shape in a series of racist laws, among them the Group Areas Act, which forced blacks and whites to live in separate townships and expelled blacks from land arbitrarily designated for the white population; the Pass Laws, which required black residents to have special Last week's motion defeat at the UGM does not change the facts on the ground; Israel's conduct at state level is comparable to apartheid race-specific identification on them at all times or otherwise face arrest; and several laws which denied blacks voting rights, prevented black-white marriage, and significantly curtailed black South Africans' movement. It is understandable that a casual observer of the developments in the Middle East would question whether analogous conditions exist in Israel, a country frequently described by its supporters as a beacon of democracy. However, if one spends time consulting the sizeable and well-supported human rights record from the United Nations, the International Court of Justice, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and numerous Israeli human rights groups, one finds that the parallels between South African apartheid and Israel's policies are striking and imdeniable. As was the case with whites and blacks in apartheid South Africa, in the West Bank under Israeli military rule, Jews and Palestinian Arabs live in mandated segregation. Roughly 200 Jewish-only set- tlements exist, with more than 40% of the already tiny West Bank now off limits to Palestinians (not to mention the rest of Israel, though Jewish settlers may freely travel back and forth between in the West Bank under Israeli military rule, Jews and Palestinians live in mandated segregation Israel proper and the West Bank). These settlements have been built on Palestinian land recognised as stolen under international law. Israel has demolished some 18,000 Palestinian homes, making good on the colonialist aims expressed by David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, who bluntly stated the Zionist objectives: "we must expel Arabs and take their place." Even inside Israel's pre-1967 borders, where it is claimed Palestinian citizens of Israel enjoy equal rights, huge tracts of land are reserved by law for Jews only, something the Israeli Knesset reaffirmed this last year in an alarming 64-16 vote. The Jewish-only land and housing policies are coupled with Jewish-only roads spread throughout the West Bank. As with the Pass system in South Africa, Palestinians must carry coloured ID cards at all times or be arrested. In recent years, Israel has passed a law denying its citizens the right to live with their spouse when the spouse is a Palestinian from the occupied territories. Though it is true that the one million Palestinian citizens of Israel living in the pre-1967 borders can vote in Israeli elections, Israel denies millions more in the occupied territories voting rights or the ability to participate in any way in the government that has ruled over them for 40 years. To suggest a nation is a democracy when millions of the people it governs have had no political rights for two generations is an abuse of the word democracy. None of this constitutes a new revelation on our part. Year after year the United Nations has condemned Israel's occupation of Palestine as illegal under international law. John Dugard, the UN special rapporteur for Human Rights in Palestine, and himself a South African, last year noted that "many aspects of Israel's occupation surpass those of the apartheid regime [in South Africa]. Israel's large-scale destruction of Palestinian homes, levelling of agricultural lands, military incursions and targeted assassinations of Palestinians far exceed any similar practices in apartheid South Africa." Nelson Mandela and Demond Tutu, the main leaders of the South African anti-apartheid struggle, have condemned Israeli policies as "apartheid" and called for its immediate end. Nobel peace prize winner Jimmy Carter said that the violations of Palestinian freedom of movement constitute "even worse instances of apartness, or apartheid, than we witnessed even in South Africa." Israeli human rights group BT'selem says that the policies of Israel have "clear similarities to the racist apartheid regime that existed in South Africa". The same comparison is made by former Israeli Minister of Education Shulamit Aloni, former Attorney General Michael Ben-Yair, and in the pages of Haaretz, Israel's leading newspaper, where in September 2006 it read, "the apartheid regime in the territories remains intact; millions of Palestinians are living without rights, freedom of movement or a livelihood, tmder the yoke of ongoing Israeli occupation." And the list goes on. When judging when to make an analogy to apartheid, we encourage our fellow students to do what good students do and refer to the experts on the topic - the Mandelas the Tutus the Dugards, who know better than us, better than anyone, what apartheid really looked like and may look like elsewhere. For these people, the salient feature of the Israel-Palestine conflict is not the alleged complexity of it, but rather the unambiguous way in which it can be seen through the lens of apartheid and the domination of a militarily unequalled Israel over an impoverished Palestinian population. Indeed, in 2007 alone, 29 Palestinians were killed for every Israeli killed, a ratio hardly reflective of a balanced conflict. Last year we imanimously passed in the UGM a similar motion to divest from Sudan over its massacre of civilians. There were no objections that such a motion discriminated against Sudanese students or that taking moral stands about university investments polarised campus. Our question is, why should we not apply the same standards of human rights elsewhere, including in Israel, where the existing record of apartheid is quite clear and deplorable? Is it really another apartheid ? The apartheid motion rejected at last week's UGM is telling of the student body that rejects radicalism and aims to build lasting dialogue Alex Teytelboym Forty years ago the students of our Union held the Old Theatre in siege because they were united in thinking that the LSE must retain its aims of bettering society. Last Thursday almost 600 students held the Old Theatre in siege again. They narrowly defeated a motion, which could have potentially stopped the discussion of the Middle East peace process at the School. But why was our Union more divided than ever before? The real facts The real fact is that our Union is not a political organisation, but a charity. A simple majority vote at the UGM, the sovereign body of the Union, does not grant legitimacy to the popular mandate. For example, it would be illegal for Fadhil Bakeer-Markar and Ruhana Ali to send a letter of support for Ken Livingstone's re-election on the behalf of the Union, even if we vote them to do so. A political organisation, on the other hand, has every right to support a candidate. The reason for this (and our tax-exempt status) is that our Union pursues charitable goals of bettering society. The other real fact is that this Union, like any charity and unlike a political government, represents a shared interest of all its members. Likewise everyone who is a member of Crisis believes that we must fight homelessness. We may not all hold the same political views, but we, as members of LSE SU all agree that in deciding on an international conflict, we must seek peace. The flaw Every time, as I pointed out to Emiliano Huet-Vaughn and Ziyaad Lunat from the floor, when this Union voted on a major conflict, our foremost aim was peace. It was the case when we voted to divest from Sudan, support Burmese protesters and oppose the invasion of Iraq. But Huet-Vaughn and Lunat chose to exclude the words 'peace', 'tolerance', 'understanding' and 'dialogue' from the motion. They preferred to seek political gain and use emotional blackmail by using phrases, such as 'ethnic cleansing'. The supporters of the motion quoted Desmond TUtu and Nelson Mandela to us, but they forgot that these men won the Nobel Prize for Peace, not for politics, because they supported a peaceful struggle against injustice. The damage If this motion was passed, the damage to this Union would have outweighed all the political points for its supporters. The political left has long dominated the UGM, and perhaps justly so for student welfare, but we have always been careful to avoid marginalisa-tion of minorities and polarisation of the Union. The voice of moderation has always silenced radicalism. The motion threatened to divide the Union between those moderates, who support the idea of Israel's existence, sympathise with the suffering Palestinian population and seek a peaceful solution to the humanitarian crisis - known as 'racists'- and those, who supported a solution through revenge - known as 'us'. This extreme 'with-us-or-against-us' approach left no room for moderation and dialogue. The supporters of the motion believe that by repeating and intensifying a radical message, they can somehow make it acceptable. If the motion was passed, its supporters could apply the no-platform policy to any moderate supporter of Israel. Those, who didn't attend the UGM, could have been denied access to any more intelligent debate on the This extreme 'with-us-or-against-us' approach left no room for moderation Middle East. The Union voted to give them this access. The facts again The Palestine Society later accused the speakers of not challenging 'facts', which it claimed to be checked by an 'Israeli academic' Uri Davis; who calls himself an 'anti-Zionist Palestinian Jew'. The opposition, which only had four minutes on stage, did not carry the advantage of listing all those 'facts' in the order paper. Instead it tackled this motion on principle and won. I am confident, however, that they would be able to disprove any of the 'facts' just by using different sources. I am not sure, for example, which source the proposition used in claiming that 'apartheid is racism' - I used a dictionary and didn't find any supporting evidence. Whither union? How can we repair the damage caused by this motion? The hostile atmosphere at the UGM suggested that even when their motion fell, the Union remained divided. This is unacceptable. We must naturally take the mandate, which the most representative UGM in recent history has given to us, and continue to debate and discuss how to achieve peace in the Middle East. An academic consensus on the Israel-Palestine conflict, which both sides claim does exist, has not yet been reached. Even the most renowned intellectuals, Noam Chomsky and Alan Dershowitz, could not agree on the most basic facts of the peace process during their famous debate at Harvard. Perhaps we should simply accept that both sides have failed in their promises, forgive them and move on to find a peaceful solution to one of the world's the world's longest crises. Perhaps we should, just this time, stop trying to understand the causes of things, because the solution is not in the past but in the future. COMMENT&ANALYSIS 08 leaver 2Q January 2008 COMMEN ANALYSIS Shared goals and dreams c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk m Adam Davis A key to peace and stability in the Middle East lies in the expansion, not contraction, of trade, which will deliver a normal life for everyone From my experience in Israel and the Palestinian territories during the winter vacation, I came to realise how obviously both nations are cut from the same piece of Semitic cloth. Both nations share a love of shawarma, appalling driving skills and the hunger for peace. There is no black and white, simply grey, the grey representing the 20% of Arab Israelis living within Israel. Generally they affiliate their nationality to a Palestinian state, but accept there Israeli citizenship. This grey area is why I am surprised that any person, who is concerned about the Palestinian cause, would vote in favour of a motion that would boycott the same people that are part of the same cause. This seems illogical and borderline absurd. Any one who campaigns for peace in this conflict cannot be criticised; the majority of the people involved in this The problem is that re\'olutionan^ ideas ^vill get you attention, but for all tlie wrong reasons .4 Shawarma; a common bond between Jews and Arabs conflict want peace. Those who bring forward arguments which are as absurd as boycotting Israeli products on account of alleged-apartheid, are quite simply hurting the Palestinian cause and discrediting all the energy which is being put into creating peace. As opposed to campaigning for ideas which would force more rifts within the fabric of this nation, surely a university which is so internationally renowned, more constructive ideas could be created. If there is going to be a solution to such a complex problem, it seems likely that this is the place where it is going to come from. The problem is that revolutionary ideas will get attention, but for all the wrong reasons. If one looks at the motion and basically reverses it, a motion about increased trade with the Palestinian regions is conjured up. In my limited experience within the Palestinian borders, what I noticed is that this group of Semites do not want to wage a war of their Semitic cousins; they want jobs and want to live a normal life. By providing the Palestinian peo- ple with jobs and stability, their lives wiU improve dramatically and I am certain that peace will eventually follow as it will create the climate which is more susceptible for peace to last. Promoting trade will not make you a hero of the people; it simply does not attach glamorous or romantic ideas of solving the problem with a revolutionary idea. It is like throwing bricks at a wall; your bricks may be big, but they will break up. Ideas like trade are more like a hammer which will break across the separations and divisions of society given time. We all need to be realistic, stop wasting every- one's time and causing divisions within our ovra micro society; most people want the Palestinians condition to improve, so why aren't both sides right here working together to promote trade? This will have a direct positive impact, and if you really do care about the Palestinian people, then for everyday you could be helping them by buying their products and services, by not doing so, you are as responsible for their pain and suffering and putting off peace for another day. We should stop shouting and accept we are powerless over what we can't change and talk about something that we can change. Economic development can provide jobs and stablity for all Business of foreign policy Julia Nayfeld With all the "domestic" problems facing students at LSE, why is it that "international" affairs seem to be so much of the focus of our UGMs Why does the LSE SU meddle in international conflicts? Should the primary purpose of the SU not be to address internal university problems that concern students? For instance, the survey that illustrated that LSE students are dissatisfied with their professors represents an issue for the SU to address; the campaign for a 24-hour library is another example of a relevant issue. But, to issue statements of reproach against governments is not only futile, but it falls outside the scope of the SU's necessary functions. The fact that LSE's student body is comprised of two thirds international students presents a unique opportunity for diversity of thought and interaction. Unfortunately, the SU, by issuing divisive motions, exploits this opportunity. Rather than encouraging cooperation, the SU incites anger and forcefully catalyses the formation of oppositional camps. UN General assembly It is incumbent upon the SU to promote inclusiveness. As an organisation that represents the interests of all students, it is grossly inappropriate of the SU to display biased attitudes that alienate a large portion of the student body. Given that international students comprise the majority of LSE, the SU must conduct its affairs with a heightened awareness of sensitivities. A plethora of student societies exist that address international issues. These societies provide an appropriate platform for debate. Furthermore, these societies serve as an outlet for students to voice their personal beliefs. However, it is inappropriate for the SU to prioritise the interests of any one student society by allowing their agenda to dominate a UGM. Ultimately, few would argue that it is in the best interest of all LSE students that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be resolved. The SU must recognise the rift that it has caused by proposing a one-sided discrimina-toiy motion. If the SU finds it necessary to dabble in foreign policy, it should do so in a constructive manner. I thus challenge the SU to bridge the divide by issuing a motion that promotes peace and encourages cooperation. Although k The SU must address its identit}^ crisis; the SU General Secretary is not the UN General Secretary, and the student body is not the UIT General our generation has inherited the Middle East conflict, we need not propagate the status quo. The SU must address its identity crisis; the SU General Secretary is not the UN General Secretary, and the student body is not the UN General Assembly. The anti-Israel UGM motion is a procrastination tactic employed by the SU elected officials to divert attention from real issues facing the LSE student body. Thus, the onus is upon the student body to reject discriminatory motions that fall outside the SU's scope of relevance and fail to represent a shared interest in peace. LSE Students' Union UGM EXECUTIVE EDITOR Kevin Perry MANAGING EDITOR Timothy Root SECRETARY Liiy Yang NEWS EDITORS Patricic Cullen Michael Deas Henry Lodge C&A EDITOR James Pugh FEATURES EDITOR Joseph Cotterfli PART B EDITORS Josh Heller Thomas Warren PART C EDITOR Chloe Pieters SPORTS EDITORS Matthew Partridge Josh Tendeter ACTING LISTINGS SUB-EDITOR Lucie Marie Gouiet NEWS LAYOUT ASSISTANT Petra Sarapatkova THE COLLECTIVE: Chair: Lucie Marie Gouiet i.m.goulet@lse.ac,uk Raidev Akoi; Hasib Baber; Fadhil Bakeer-Markar; Vishal Banerjee; Wil Barber; Refer Barton; Ramsey Ben-Achour; Clem Broumley-Young; James Bull; Rochelle Burgess; Sam Burke; Jess Caflwright; Victor Figueroo-Clark; Owen Coughlan; Patrick Cullen; Peter Cum'e; Holli Eastman; Ossie Rkret; Aled Dilwyn Fisher; Lizzie Rson; Estee Fresco; Erica Gomail; Andrew Hallett; Aula Hariri; Kevin Heutschi; Tahiya Islam; Felipe Jacome; Lois Jecay; William Joce; Adam John; Naeem Kapadia; Bernard Keenan; Pooja Kesavan; James Ketteringham; Sadta Kidwai; Arthur Krebbers; Laura Kyrke-Smith; Eric Undquist; Bea Long; Ziyaad Lunat; Rona Mackay; Nada Mansy; Jamie Mason; Al Mansoun Nitya Menon; Man Merali; Utiby Meyer; Anrra Mikeda; Ravi Mistry; Daisy AMchell-Forirter; AU Moussavi; Adin Nangia; Rachaei O'Rourke; David Osborn; Aba Osunsade; Douglas Oliver; Erin Orozco; Phil Pacanowski; Laura Parfitt; Anup Patel; Rajan Patel; Will Perry; Alice Pfeiffer; Danielle Priestley; Joe Quaye; Rahim Rahemtulla; Dominic Rampat; Anjalt Raval; Gc^etti Rees; Ricky Ren; Sacha Robehmed; Louise Robinson; Charile Samuda; Thienthai Sangkhaphanthanon; Amrita Saraogi; Saurabh Shorma; Daniel Sheldon; Rebecca Stephenson; Andre Tartar; Sam tempest-Keeping; Alex Teytelboym; Keiry Thompson: Meryem Torun; Angus Tse; Molly Tucker; Ruchlka Tulshyan; Vladimir Unkovski-Korica; Subash Viroomal; Simon Wang; Greg White; Tom Whittaker; Christine Wh^e; Chris Wilkins; Amy Williams, Chun Han Wong; David Woodbridge PRINTED BY HARMSWORTH PRINTING LTD If you hove written three or more orlicles for The Beaver and your name does not appear in the Collective, please email; fhebeaver.edrlof@lse.acMk and you will be added to ttie list in next week's paper. The Beaver is available in alternative formats. The views and opinions expressed in The Beaver are ttiose of the contributors and not necessarily those erf the editors or the LSE Students' Ur^n. 29 January 2008 leaver COMMENT&ANALYSIS COMMENT & ANALYSIS c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk i^eaver Established 1949 - Issue 679 UGM resuscitated.. ...but can it keep the momentum going? After week's of low turnout at the Union General Meeting, it finally received a much needed shot in the arm this week with the debating of a well-publicised, not to mention controversial, motion. While it is undoubtedly a good thing to see student politics reinvigorated and engaged, The Beaver cannot help but wonder why we have set out to solve arguably the world's most complex political problem before dealing with our ovm relatively minor ones. At least the LSESU cannot be accused of not aiming high. This motion will certainly not be the last we hear of the Israel-Palestine question. It will almost certainly be remembered as our generation's defining political issue, and we cannot ignore the impact it is already having on campus. This is positive in many ways, as students we have every imperative to share our love of free debate and human rights, but there is also a negative aspect. Ever since the An-Najah twinning letter which was sent to Fresher's at the beginning of term, the LSESU has been in real danger of alienating Jewish and Israeli students, and this motion was another example. As for our ovra problems, most students on Houghton Street seem to be more concerned about the high price of halls, poor teaching quality and the fact that you can never find enough core texts. Yet why is the UGM turnout generally so low, compared to the over spilling masses that attend when Israel-Palestine is on the agenda? It doesn't seem to add up, so perhaps this is a time for reassessing where we throw our energy. Issues like the living wage campaign demonstrate that when we set ourselves achievable goals, we can have a life-changing effect on the world around us. All politics is local. The revolution starts at home. You've got a vote... ...make sure you use it One thing that will be on the agenda at this week's UGM is a campaign to encourage voter registration for the upcoming London Mayoral elections amongst LSE students. This is an issue well worth supporting, as many people who are eligible to vote may not realise that registration is necessary, or even that they are eligible. It is worth repeating that it is not only UK citizens who can vote, but also anyone from the EU or the Commonwealth. The London Mayor as an individual has a huge influence over your life, whether it be with regards to transport, culture, the environment or housing. The Mayor we elect also sends out an important message about the position that we see London as occupying in Britain and the world at large, especially in regard to the environment. We have shown this week that we are a politically engaged campus. Voting should be considered a duty for everyone who has the ability, even if the elections are "only" local. Once again, all politics is local, as the author and journalist Hunter S. Thompson memorably argued. "That is one of the key things I learned in these years, and I learned it the hard way. Anybody who thinks that "it doesn't matter who's President" has never been Drafted and sent off to fight and die in a vicious, stupid War on the other side of the World — or been beaten and gassed by Police for trespassing on public property — or been hounded by the IRS for purely political reasons — or locked up in the Cook County Jail with a broken nose and no phone access and twelve perverts wanting to stomp your ass in the shower: that is when it matters who is President or Governor or Police Chief. That is when you will wish you had voted." 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.edltot@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. "must represent" Dear Sir, At last week's UGM we were forced into a debate on a one-sided, unconstructive motion, which attempted to stifle debate on the Middle East by labelling Israel an 'apartheid state'. We responded to it by calling for peace and dialogue and the result was a rejection of the proposed motion by a narrow majority at one of the best attended UGM in recent times. The scenes we have seen at the LSE this year, culminating in the hostile atmosphere at the UGM last Thursday, are deeply worrying many students at the LSE. Our student body is divided and many students, particularly certain minority groups, are feeling alienated and often discriminated against. We must reverse this trend. Our Students' Union must represent the interests of all students and pay careful attention to their welfare. To heal the damage caused by the motion at last week's UGM, we would like to invite the Islamic Society and Palestine Society to join us in organising a series of debates, dialogue opportunities and events to inform the student body about the reality of the Middle Eastern peace process. These events will offer many, possibly conflicting, perspectives of the situation. Through this partnership we hope to strengthen moderate positions on both sides. We firmly believe that through sensible, open and informed debate, we can bring out ideas and actions, which will contribute to peace between the Palestinian and Israeli people. We, as members of this union, are all bound by our commitment to peace in the Middle East. We look forward to hearing from you by email on this matter as soon as possible. LSE SU Jewish Society LSE SU Israel Society- "condemn abuses" Dear Sir, Students who attended last week's UGM should be congratulated for the civil debate on the Israel divestment motion. However, some were determined to misrepresent the motion and its supporters, who represent a large proportion of students (as the motion fell by only 7 votes). It seemed that many people organising against the motion - including numerous non-LSE students who came to LSE on Thursday - simply had not read the motion. The motion sought, to divest from companies profiting from illegally occupied land or aiding the military occupation, and also resolved to support groups like Jews for Justice for Palestinians in seeking peace. It quoted eminent sources, from Desmond Tutu to the UN, who have made comparisons between the situation in Palestine and apartheid South Africa. It is therefore demonstrably false to call the motion "extreme". Just as previous motions to divest from Sudan and Burma do not affect Sudanese or Burmese students at the LSE, this motion labelled Israeli government policies, not Israelis, as promoting apartheid. It would therefore have no negative impact on Israeli students on campus, and could never prevent students airing pro-Israeli views. Arguments against the motion echoed those used to block international pressure on apartheid South Africa. The UK government took too long to condemn the situation there and refuses to condemn abuses against Palestinians now. We cannot delay any longer. We must do everything we can to find justice and peace. Aled Dilwyn Fisher LSESU Environment and Ethics Officer (personal capacity) "delusional exclusion" Dear Sir, We wish to heartily congratulate and thank the student body for taking the only logical action possible in last Thursday's UGM, by democratically rejecting the Israel Apartheid motion, clearly proposed by enemies of democratic discussion and moderation. The motion has been deemed unacceptable by the thinking majority of students because of its delusional exclusion of any realistic context, indeed those facts which help explain a complex Middle Eastern conflict that the wrriters of the motion couldn't ever hope to understand nor solve given their emotionally-driven rhetoric and uncompromising extremism. Ironically, such alienating language and hate can only prove counter-productive to a situation in desperate need of dialogue and reconciliation. Had it been passed, it would have embarrassed the name of this venerable institution in the national press, and tarnished its reputation for inclusive, rational study of political issues. Congratulations again. Benjamin Epstein Natan Leigh Joseph Faith Kimberley Ilsen "prevent fraud" Dear Sir, A few weeks ago I wrote about election monitoring in Georgia. It is my view that had there been an election observation mission at the UGM last Thursday the report would have expressed some concerns. There were several important and fairly basic procedures that just were not followed. For example it is pretty basic that ballots should not be cast into the ballot box in a crowded, public area. This is in order to make voting easier and also to prevent fraud. It's easy to roll one's eyes and dismiss this, admittedly, rather dry stuff -but how can we comment on other people's elections if we cannot even properly run our own? A more serious issue was capacity. From the topic of the UGM this week it really should have been clear that there would be big crowds, or if that had not, the canvassing on Houghton Street this week reinforced how strongly many people felt about the issue. So if there was ever a time when it was important that every students' voice is heard - this was it. And yet some of our students who came to listen to the debate, were turned away because the Old Theatre was full. I was told, that the chairs were made aware and there was a suggestion that the debate was postponed and the debate held later in a larger venue but this did not happen. Perhaps a postponement would not have been appropriate given the heightened tensions surrounding the debate and the problems of booking rooms in the LSE. But it is a great shame that everyone who wanted to listen to the debate before voting, could not. It seems the ballot was on a first come first serve basis: Ooops, I'm afraid we're full up for the debate on Israel, how about next week on AU paper throwing instead. I encourage the relevant committees to take up this issue and investigate how voting procedures could be improved so everyone who wants to listen to the debate and vote, can. Antonia Strachey "worst case" Dear Sir, Life at LSE's Bankside Residence is fantastic! The great location, budget-con-strained restaurant, in-house bar, friendly receptionists, and weekly maid service all contribute to a convenient and pleasant living environment. As a sidenote, however, there is but one issue I wish to raise: the copious number of vomit-related incidents in the elevators, hallways, bathrooms, and just about any other shared public space for the 600 plus student tenants. Let me just start by saying those responsible should be ashamed of themselves for not coming forward to pay their own debts to the Bankside community. As a recent email from staff to the residents notes, "At the end of last Term, one of our cleaners had to clean the worst case of sick that any of us have ever seen. Needless to say, this is totally unacceptable." Not only is it unacceptable, it is disgusting, disrespectful, and disheartening to leam that the culprits -many of which are probably repeat offenders - trot around with impunity while imposing unnecessary charges to the majority of ruly residents. The postgraduate population at Bankside, myself included, doesn't have time nor the inclination to drink ourselves into a coma; often resulting in the very incidents at the heart of this discussion. While some may think I'm unfairly criticising undergraduates, let's just be honest for a minute and stop deflecting the blame or justification for these acts that have disrupted the otherwise great living space at Bankside. I think we take for granted, here at the LSE, that everyone accepted is, by virtue of acceptance, a model citizen; do not be fooled. Lastly, with several-thousand pounds of charges, though likely over-inflated and a reflection of unfair accounting, do not diminish the very real responsibility students possess in a communal setting like Bankside. Perhaps another method to deterrence - given the shared responsibility approach has miserably failed - is to install video cameras in all public places in order to catch those responsible. With 500,000 cameras in the city of London alone, what's a few more? Rahim B. Kanani "witch hunt" Dear Sir, I vmte to express concerns over recent reactions to what appears to be another 'scandal' in the LSE SU. I have been led to believe that the letter sent by two sabbatical officers to The Guardian was unconstitutional. On this matter, I raise no contention. Indeed, if they were supporting a particular political entity, they should be reprimanded. What worries me however, are the two articles printed in the Comment & Analysis section of this paper. One implies the existence of a murky nexus between "fundamentalist Muslim organisations" and our SU, with Alex Te5'telboym proposing this conspiracy theory. For me, the evidence is very flimsy. These suggestions are tenuous at best and unmistakably inflammatory at worst. In response to Mr Pugh, the reality of the Muslim community is that it is a minority that, justifiably or not, feels under threat. In such circumstances, they congregate towards the candidate or political party that they feel will best represent their interests, whether it be Respect, Ken Livingston or David Cameron. This is similar to how ethnic minorities in the United States tend to vote for the Democratic Party. It is very easy to be provocative. I could absurdly raise the accusation that because over 50% of signatories of "core duties" letter were Jewish, this is a continuing witch hunt over the SU Palestine incident earlier in the year. I suggest that we wait for facts to emerge before we jump the gun. Mahir Quraishi COMMENT&ANALYSIS 10Reaver! 29 January 2008 COMMENT & ANALYSIS c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk A lesson leamt Ruhana n Fadhil & Bakeer-Marker The famous quote "with power comes great responsibility" is something which particularly resonated this week. It was very disheartening to read in The Beaver that some students felt that as Sabbatical Officers of the Students' Union we had abused our positions and broken their trust by signing a letter supporting Ken Livingstone that was published in The Guardian. Whilst we feel that some accusations were inaccurate, malicious and unconstructive, we ultimately recognise that given our positions we are responsible and accountable for our actions. Contrary to what was implied, we are not too proud to admit that we have made a mistake and hope that students accept our sincere apology. We owe it to our students to explain what happened and shed some light on the issue. Early last month we co-signed a letter along with an MP and MEP and several officers from various unions across London. This letter was sent a week after individuals, the majority of whom were Making a mistake is not a crime; it is not learning from that mistake that is the crime, and a basic level of respect is required in this regard from the Muslim community from 63 organisations, had written a letter to support the incumbent Mayor Ken Livingstone. From the veiy beginning our intention was to sign in our personal capacity, there was no personal gain or motive behind signing this letter. However in the same style that other officers had signed, we did write down our Student Union positions; this was in order to be recognised and was not meant to mean that the LSE Students' Union endorsed our view. We thought by writing 'personal capacity' next to these positions, we could clarify this point. At the time this was a genuine attempt on our part to make it clear that we were signing in our personal capacity. But we fully accept in hindsight that regardless of the intention we should not have mentioned the Students' Union. For this, we are genuinely very sorry; this was a naive view, and we should have given greater con-siderion to the repercussions of such an act. However, we can assure you that it was an honest intention and hope that students can forgive us for our mistake. Over the years, differentiating Union officers from their official capacity and their personal capacity has been a diffi- Over the years, differentiating Union officers from tiieir official capacity and their personal capacity has been a difficult task cult task. After contacting the National Union of Students' Media Unit, we realised that they put 'PC in brackets when NUS officers write in their personal capacity. In the positions we are in, we can only leam from experience and this error has taught us a valuable lesson. We are confident that the majority of our students appreciate the hard work and commitment that all four of sabbatical officers make to run the union and are thankful to those students who continue to hold us accountable for our actions. It is fully justifiable to criticise our action; baseless claims and malicious personal attacks on our character and integrity are not so justified. To suggest we 'received ardent support' from various organisations and individuals and have been' 'following orders' to co-sign this letter is ridiculous. We were not approached by any organisations nor did we receive orders to co-sign the letter. We signed the letter with our own consciousness, believing that we were acting with a clear and honest intention. We dismiss the accusation that Fadhil Bakeer-Markar 'refused to answer questions from The Beaver regarding who approached to sign'. The Beaver did not approach either of us regarding this question, rather a student asked this question at the UGM and and Mr Bakeer-Markar answered, explaining that an officer from the NUS asked us whether we were willing to sign and we both agreed to do so in our ovra personal capacity. To suggest that we were acting in a 'conspiratorial manner' and have some 'embarrassing political affilia- tions' is also inaccurate given the fact we have no political affiliations nor belong to any particular party. Whilst we respect student opinion and criticism, we would hope that this was a two way process. Articles such as the one written by Alex Teytelboym last week, seem to lack a basic level of respect. Regardless of this, for all students at LSE we would like to reiterate our sincere apology regarding signing of the letter and hope that we can rebuild the trust. We would also like to reassure you that we have done the best we can in every possible way to serve this Union and god willing we shall continue to do so, with clear intentions and with pure hearts. ¥ Manipulated or natural grief ? Katy Galbraith The death of Heath Ledger was shocking and saddening; a young and talented actor in the prime of his career apparently yet another victim to the trappings of fame, another name added to the long list of famous lives cut cruelly short. It is a popular myth that it is only the good who die The mourning of the death of actor Heath Ledger shows that we still retain an element of empathy to loss of life; but often to people we never met young; this idea still seems to resonate with us. Those who meet an untimely death are often accorded iconic status; James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Kurt Cobain. They are forever frozen in time, remembered as being young, glamourous and tragic without the spectre of old age to diminish their memory. Whether Heath Ledger will be remembered in the same way remains to be seen, but it is clear that his death has shocked many people. But this begs the question; is mourning those we have never met strange and unnatural? Public outpourings of grief have been ever more prevalent since the death of Diana; the British stiff upper • ¦ . lip seems to have gone for good, replaced by what some say is a kind of collective hysteria. There are those who feel almost a sense of repulsion at this kind of reaction, arguing that they are a product of celebrity culture, that feelings of grief should be reserved for one's family and friends. However, this is clearly not a new phenomenon; people have always reacted with shock at news of this kind. In the 1920s the death of the film star Rudolph Valentino saw an unprecedented reaction, particularly amongst women; some were reported to have committed suicide in response. In 1963 America went into collective shock at the death of President Kennedy. We look to public figures like actors in a bid to transcend everyday life; they seem almost beyond the world of mere mortals. Their death is often not just about them as individuals; in the case of Kennedy his death seemed to signal the end of the hope and optimism he had promised to America. The question is; are these reactions normal human responses. Nowadays we know so much about the lives of celebrities it can often seem like we know them. This inevitably intensifies the grief we feel at their death. I would argue that treating them with such adoration is what is unnatural; indeed putting them on a pedestal leads to incredible pressure and is often what leads them to drugs in the first place. Heath Ledger was reported to have been suffering from depression and had been taking sleeping pills; he had always had an uneasy relationship with fame and the paparazzi. the British stiff upper lip seems to have gone for good, replaced by what some say is a kind of collective hvsteria It remains a sad fact that many claim to be devastated at the death of a celebrity yet find it easy to ignore countless injustices and preventable deaths of young people. Perhaps it is because it is impossible to comprehend or come to terms with the scale of suffering out there; it is easier and more manageable to focus on the famous. To those who say we have no right to mourn them, that we are manipulated by the media into having this reaction, I would say that they have a valid argument. Grief should be private; it is only those who knew Heath Ledger who have any reason to truly mourn him. However, I think it is a natural human reaction to feel sadness even for those who we've never met; the unexpected death at such a young age of a fellow human being is fundamentally shocking to us; this is intensified when it is accompanied by a loss of talent and potential. It seems like a waste of a life. The element of mourning such as this which does cause much uneasiness is the undeniable fact that often those who most mourned are the young and the beautiful. Would the reaction to Heath Ledger's death have been the same if he had been forty years older and less attractive? The answer is of course a resounding no. Despite this, the fact that such feelings are shown is less a result of media manipulation and hysteria and more a visceral heartfelt reaction to a tragic loss of life, showing that in spite of everything we have managed to retain our empathy and humanity in what can seem a cruel and heartless world. COMMENT&ANALYSIS 29 January 2008 COMMENT ANALYSIS c&a@thebeaveronline.co.uk An "impressive CV" Aled Fisher The reference to Peter Sutherland's "impressive CV" shields the fact that his connection to BP may bring a somewhat unsavoury image to LSE Last week, Michael O'Keeffe wrote a hagiography of Peter Sutherland that surpasses even the BP press office's glorification of someone we should apparently be "honoured" to have as Chair of LSE. O'Keeffe also described opposition to Sutherland as "partisan". But this is far from being the case - opponents to his appointment are environmentalists, socialists, liberals, centrists, and students who simply believe that an academic institution should headed by academics. While last week's article quickly descended into Sutherland's CV, O'Keeffe failed to actually counter the volume of criticisms of his appointment. These problems were raised by students from the minute his appointment became public in 2006, and they are as valid today as they were then. O'Keefe quoted an editorial that noted BP's"well known environmental and human rights shortcomings" and made no attempt to deny these wide- ly held truths. This suggests that he is well aware that BP has systemic environmental and himian rights problems. If this is the case, Sutherland, as Chairman, must accept some responsibility, particularly if he is willing to promote himself with his title at BP. Indeed, it is absolutely necessary that at every opportunity, we hold him to account, highlight the misery that has come from so many BP operations and try with whatever influence we have to make BP change its ways. The harm that BP has delivered all over the world needs to be constantly restated. Perhaps the most infamous case surrounds the Baku-Tbilisi-Cehy^n (BTC) Pipeline, running through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. Around 20,000 families in Turkey alone have lost their land to the pipeline and only those closest to the pipeline will be compensated. The same happened in Colombia with BP's OCENSA pipeline and the Baku-Supsa pipeline, where research has revealed undervalued compen- sation and the fact that settlements are imposed, not negotiated. The pipeline runs through an area of acute energy pover- k the complaints from students ha\'e been necessar}' to balance some of Sutherland's strongest defenders - the LSE itself ty - but all of its contents will go to Western markets. An Environmental and Social Impact Assessment for Turkey admits that only 20-30% of the pipeline workforce are local people living near the pipeline route, with the rest coming from abroad or elsewhere in Turkey, as many locals promised jobs received nothing. Extensive corruption has been uncovered in the employment registration process, and higher up in payments made to the Aliyev family (who have dominated Azerbaijani politics). BP has signed individual Host Government Agreements with each of the governments involved, which exempt BP from any laws in the three countries which conflict with the pipeline, and promise to compensate BP if any environmental or human rights laws affect the pipeline's profits. The agreements have rightly been labelled "colonialist". bp's 'Beyond Petroleum' spin has already been utterly dispelled by scandal after scandal, such as the Texas City Refinery disaster in which 15 people died and BP were forced to accept responsibility. It goes without saying that BP spend more on the advertising than the renewables. The scale of BP's crimes warrants a whole newspaper of its own. From Papua New Guinea to Colombia, the same themes emerge - close cooperation with abusive governments and militaries, destruction of land and livelihoods, and unimaginable levels of environmental damage. Rather than being "honoured", we should be ashamed that the school could not find a better Chair from all the LSE alumni and others who have worked for justice across the world. The LSE was set up "for the betterment of society". It is clear that Peter Sutherland exists for the betterment of himself. Societies that have come into contact with BP's wantonly destructive behaviour have been ripped apart and irreversibly blighted. But I'm sure arrested and tortured human rights activists, like Ferhat Kaya (who campaigned for proper compensation from the BTC project), would be happy to receive a copy of Sutherland's CV from O'Keeffe. O'Keeffe claims that the coverage of Sutherland has been one sided. In fact, the complaints from students have been necessary to balance some of Sutherland's strongest defenders - the LSE itself. It is the school that has consistently stood by Sutherland and the process that appointed him with no meaningful student involvement. Calls for a referendum on his appointment have been summarily rejected. Sutherland's promise to step down from BP before taking the position has also been quietly forgotten. In a supposedly free intellectual environment such as ours, it would be criminal not to raise these issues and demand more from the school. Students deserve to have a say in how our fees are spent in running the school - ultimately, we should have the power to nominate and then vote on Chairs and Directors. Until then, students should protest Sutherland's appointment and make our voices heard. The reality of Irish abortion law Hugh Governey While many have commented on the history of Ireland's abortion laws, unfortuantly,few have demonstrated a comprehensive understanding There have been quite a few references in the past year to the 1983 Abortion referendum in Ireland, particularly regarding Peter Sutherland's role as Attorney General. I feel the debate has suffered due the natural deficit in knowledge on the subject amongst the student population (most aren't Irish, and the vast majority were yet to be bom). So in the interest of debate in this college, I am going to stick my pen where any right-minded politician or journalist knows not to even dangle their quill. Abortion is never a black and white issue, and the politics of abortion is no different. On the back of Women's Week, it is important to remind ourselves not to hide in the shadows of partisan politics and identity, and to challenge ourselves on this very perplexing moral conundrum. Too often we fail to look beyond the security of our own identity and challenge our learned beliefs on abortion. In the USA, abortion has become a synonym for the left-right debate, a deciding position or tipping point in identifying with either conservatives or liberals. Should we be engaging in such presumptuous behaviour on such an important issue? In Ireland our geographical misfortune has facilitated the positioning of the policy debate on abortion in an ideologically driven, theoretical arena. A free travel area with the UK has allowed the people of Ireland to time-and-again vote for a complete ban on abortion, while every year thousands of Irish women fly to the UK to abort. Some students in an effort to gain votes or popularity have suggested that Peter Sutherland was complicit in this arrangement. He emphatically was not. In fact, as we shall see, he put his job, career and reputation on the line in an effort to make a stand for his moral beliefs. Having witnessed the power of an activist Supreme Court in Roe vs. Wade, a number of Irish anti-abortion groups came together and decided that 'attack was the best form of defence'. A campaign was initiated to reinforce the status quo, a law dated 1861, by changing the Constitution to include an explicit ban on abortion. I needn't go into much detail, apart from mentioning that the Catholic Church heavily influenced the beginnings of the Irish State, and the Church was still a significant moral leader for the Irish people. Thus, it was very easy for the campaign to get every leader of the major political parties to pledge that, if elected, their party would call for a referendum on a Constitutional Amendment on abortion. This was before the election in Jime 1981, and there was to be three governments between June 1981 and the referendum in 1983. You see, Ireland was not always the prosperous and sta- ble land it now is. It was a bit of an Italy in those days, in the political sense. In fact before Fine Gael, the winners of the June 1981 election, could write the wording of the promised referendum, their government was dissolved. Enter the Fianna Fail government of March 1982. They did write the wording of the referendum; and note no sign of Peter Sutherland yet! Two days before the Fianna Pail govern- he put his job, career and reputation on the line in an effort to make a stand for his moral beliefs uled was enormous. It was the major political issue, with the Finna Fail wording gaining the support of the clergy, combined with the fragile nature of the government's majority. It is in this intensely pressurised context that Peter Sutherland, as the youngest Attorney General ever, made a stand against the referendum. Confidential cabinet documents prepared by Peter Sutherland were leaked to the media in 1983. They showed that Sutherland set forth his argument against the wording of the referendum on three grounds. One of his objections was that the Supreme Court might interpret the amendment in such an absolute sense as to prohibit operations on pregnant women suffering from cancer of the womb. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister had already promised to maintain the wording, and politically there was no other way. Despite Sutherland's mammoth effort, the referendum took place in 1983, and the people voted yes. It is important that we recognise those who make a stand for what they believe to be right. Peter Sutherland made such a stand, and has described it as the most difficult decision of his career. So often we hide behind our political, religious and ideological brands and fail to think for ourselves. Abortion is a difficult issue and it's important not to simplify it. Politicians do not excel when dealing with abortion, and it would be terrible if we missed out on an opportunity to learn from this example of political daring that has been brought to our attention. Peter Sutherland, as Conor Gearty said in this paper last year, is not anti-woman. iJOVOTAUUT ment fell in November 1982, their leader Charles Haughey announced the wording of the referendum, and most importantly the leader of the opposition, Garret FitzGerald (Sutherland's boss), promised that he would not change the wording if voted into government. The political pressure to hold the referendum as sched- FEATURES 12 29 Janua Beaver ^ In . m-,- '•' ¦ 'i '- > ' ¦^" ' -l : '•••^^ From Russia, With Love? Michael Zinshteyn visits a very political art exhibition Saved from cancellation at the last minute for art patrons wishing to gorge on the inexplicable and marvellous, The Royal Academy of Arts brings to London the much anticipated exhibit, 'From Russia'. The dichotomous structvire of the gallery, featuring French masters influencing Russian masters in one corner and Russian masters ascending the mantle as the most influential and mimicked of the avant-garde in the other, sits as the distilled mirror reflecting the historical and contemporary oppositional tension that marked East-West relations. With the 1917 October Revolution and the nationalisation of all property and assets, the Soviet Union did much to obstruct the strengthening rapprochement between Russia and her wealthier Western friends. The strains of that peculiar leap towards modernity are still being felt today, as the heirs to the estate of the two textile magnates who collected many of this exhibition's pieces are trying to claim reparations from the Russian Federation today. Andre-Marc Delocque-Fourcaud, grandson of Sergei Shchukin, and Pierre Konowaloff, great-grandson of Ivan Morozov, nearly forced the Russian government to cancel the exhibition over fears of their pursuing litigation in an acquiescent English legal climate. Worries were finally abated when a representative from the Russian Ministry of Culture flew to London to oversee the writing of an act that protects international art from seizure while on British soil. With the law in place, De-locque-Fourcaud and Konowaloff have no chance of appropriating the several dozen Matisses, Van Goghs, Picassos, Monets and Gauguins which lie at the heart of the exhibition, and which are worth an estimated 3.2 billion pounds. Interviewed by the Guardian, the two descendants protest that "the great art exhibitions are not any more purely cultural enterprises for the edification and education of the people. They are huge economic machines, crucial for the budgets of the lending museums, who are supported by super sponsors." But surely, if the art world behaved like an institution dedicated to "the edification and education of the people," Shchukin and Morozov's descendants would have distanced themselves from any posses-sional claims in the first place. What the Soviet Union attempted to eradicate languishes like an interminable white elephant. As much as an industrial product is hardly owned by the magnate that mediated the great swindle that saw workers' efforts reduced to mere wages, our fair minded petty aristocrats must appreciate the folly of their excoriations in denying a population the joy of art merely under the aegis of "ownership." Re- warding Delocque-Fourcaud and Konowaloff will create a precedent in which displaced aristocratic families the world over can press claims for losses incurred under nationalisation after years of worker expropriation—a circumstance that Russia most certainly would not be able to afford. The womb-like enclosure of the Royal Academy of Arts thankfully keeps incendiary politics from uprooting what belongs to the people, and on display is a fashionably organized collection of art in which a superior Russian scene playfully mocks its influences. Whereas the French School had little to say about its national conditions, the Russian modernists synthesized the dialectic between progress and rural life. With works by Marc Chagall the Jewish hinterland thrusts forward with a three-dimensional certainty, the artistic equivalent of Run DMC defying the exclusive white racial composition of the music industry with an aural assault on Aerosmith's "Walk This Way". If Marx put Hegel on his head, Sergei Diaghilev committed a feat no less impressive in scope with his "World of Art", a revolutionary reformulation of theatrical and musical compositions. The various artists that document Diaghilev's invention take inspiration from the Impressionists, casting their paintings in gaudy stage hues as if the curators of exhibit themselves had flashed green and red light on the canvases. While in Picasso's "Violin Guitar" the cubist sensibilities approximate the movement and reverberation of musical instruments, Alexandra Exter's "Still Life" works as a found-art collage unravelling the stifled geometry of the former piece. Olga Rozanova's "Metronome" heralds a new meter for understanding the Avant-Garde, with the rustic ebullience of the Motherland imparting the mechanical efforts of the Western Cubists. Nadezhda Udaltsova's startling "Restaurant" appears as a looking-glass featuring the indelible cubist treatments of Braque and Picasso, shattered implacably by a heaved brick which undergirds the emergence of a new order. Liubov Popova visualizes the constructivist project that sought to comment on the rapid industrialization of Russia and later the Soviet Union—a taunting gesture to a West fearful of radical eastern development. Notice too the ending vowels of many of the painters' names -women triumphing in a man's domain. After 1915 in particular, Russian women painters skilfully upbraided the gender imbalance and - to the delight of many feminists - cracked the whip in repudiating the slick womanising of Picasso and his ilk. Russian male visionaries are present as well, with the great Tatlin from til tary wa reliefs t port ui floating metric £ facts of forwarc ningly i of the la capitali process progres; 'Fro the neai of the with itE are enci war an( cal cor East-W never reach, know fury of: and bri: ewaiBwiy Subject: pjurtS Tu»»cfjtiy 28 Jm% j HoupMori Ext>*rtma«M>t Ottntra 10^^:40 am 4yj-S Oi NIHi€Mwat/V 6m T1/*t/2/2 G«i»= 12dB .!or« in pTMrestj USfe Of fi^CUCkk Sik •iWiifAv. Sh«W'P«s|te$ J fc-L:- B. Ituo •tuesday the tyen'ty ninth of january, "tuo thousand and eight from thiz honehos hizriz; rant honcho.............................-....... anikamathur This week marks Anika's first week in tine partB team and we are migl-ity glad to have her aboard. She kicks off her tenure with a page of high quality rant. -> page 3 pages 4 and 5 <- editorial assistant ravimistry ..............................film honcho bernardkeenan We have a mega-pregger treat for you lucky blighters in film this week with a big fat interview with the star and writer of Juno. -> pages 6 and 7 Don Mistry takes a stab at political types. He takes pleasure in eliciting tears from them. page 8<- visual art honcho' fionamackay Two fine articles this week, one on Solid Light, one on design in China. Miss it and we will hunt you down and hurt you. -> page 10 ¦........................music honchos odamjohn & rahimrahemtulla The boys in music have been working hard to bring you the best reviews. They go watch bands and get drunk every night for your edification. page 11<- telly honcho................................. ericlundquist Eric is another new addition to the squad. Keep you eye on TV, its a new section and it will be good. -> page 11 identity honcho hollieastman Identity is an enigma this week. A mystery writer waxes lyrical on domestic bliss and the joys of Nigella. page 12<- -gender honcho alicepfieffer Gender this week is reconciling Islam and feminism. Read it. You will be educated. Incommunicado. danielbyates food and drinit honcho willjoce travel honcho gregorulm interview honcho utsamukherjee phography honcho ISO! dal^-VJiiPir' TOP lEI (9 es o, I am a lonely prof (52). wltm 18 year old student, passionate about Norfolk cottage markets 1752-1758. Romantic evenings in archives abound, my sweet. f Right there my cholo's got a right good httle recipel I for you scoundrels this week. This one's a ^ t * Inice little earner, but be warned, if you get it * • wrong you'll be facing a ten stretch in the ^ I Scrubs! Get a beirmana, wrap it in a paper ' bag and run into your local Post are the Bonny and Clyde of our generation. I am a feisty lady thief and you are an mpotent hick with a tommy gun. \ Office. Point said bunga at the old \ biddy behind the counter and say / lin a clear voice "give me the fuck-|"*l am a lonely analyst at Goldman. I work aU day to ^itch or I will end you, buy you the best thmgs m life , i ..i. ^ ' 1 like an ant . Take the Gyro ¦ 1 money and head fo Spain. and you repay me by sleeping with the gardener. If I had a soul I would probably cry. Fucking right doggy. | torn warren This week has been a good one for nne. When not sleeping in gutters and feeding from the nnost rancid bins in London I have been watching the partB stable form itself into a fearsome journalistic beast. I feel like a proud father, albeit an alcoholic one who will never tell his children how proud he is of them until it is too late. But this is my cross to bear, and bear it I shall. Instead I shall regale '/ou with some of the stranger things I have seen this week, for instance a man so rampantly intoxicated with psychedelic horse tranquilisers that he tried to put himself inside a table, or a one legged pigeon falling off of the curb and under the wheels of the no. 89 bus. London is a strange place and we, the denizens of this metropolis, scant pay^ attention to the things^ that go on. I advise thai you do, for it is the. weird that forms the. spice of life. Take deep breath, get^ ready andl engage with th€ strange. You wilP be rewarded. josh heller there's a lot of talk around my town about this Diablo Cody woman. I'm told she's a really good writer. I hope that's true because I'm looking forward to the feminist version of Knocked Up. Katherine Heigl had the audacity to say that film is "a bit sexist" and she got utterly slated for being ungrateful! Hah! If only more of those famous fellas had the bravery to criticise even their own work. It would make the dreadfully gushing and empty praise of interviewers much easier to stomach. Speaking of gushing I wrote about Laura Marling because she's amazing and I heard one of the women out of ABBA married her stalker. No. She is wonderful though. So the partBevolution is coming on admirably. We've appointed all of the positions that there are. because there aren't anymore positions anymore. Tell'^ could shape up proper nicej because eric's american and that's goodj because the only tv tv that's american. li worry about partE though because we mis-spelled telivision;.^ this week... twice. ^ tuesday the tuenty ninth of January, tuo thousand and eight three .fl television rest in peace withering writers strike worsens winter blues, anikamathur shares her woes Tired of waiting for a new episode of 'Ugly Betty'? Perhaps you're missing a dose of 'Heroes' in your life. Or maybe you're being denied your leisurely dose of comedy provided by 'Two and a Half Men'? And for the Jack Bauer fans out there I'm sure you're desperately wondering when the 7th day of uncontrollable drama will begin. Whether you watch American TV online, or wait for it to air officially, there is no doubt we (as students) have all been affected by the writers strike. TV is the perfect solution to daytime procrastination and is a way of life especially for students (even if you are at LSE). Considering the writers strike has affected almost all American shows we will soon be reduced to biding time with reality shows or British TV...although I'm not too sure there will be the same gripping, on the edge of your seat tension on the air. The 5th of November was doomsday for the Alliance Motion Pictures and Television Producers (AMPTP). This is when the strike held by the east and west Writers Guild of America (WGA) commenced. Every 3 years the Writers Guild negotiates a new contract with the AMPTP by which its members are employed. This contract is called the Minimum Basic Agreement and it is over this that the WGA voted, giving its board authorisation to call a strike. In the beginning many of us thought negotiations would ensue and things would blow over swiftly. 12 weeks later, however and no negotiations let alone resolve has been initiated. This certainly doesn't bode well for producers suggesting the strike may last as long as, or even outdo its predecessor which lasted just under 22 weeks in 1988. Considering the strike has already resulted in a deficit greater than the last strike (the billion dollar mark has been passed) one would think the negotiator of the AMPTP would alter his previous standing of not resuming any negotiations while strike action continues. At the heart of the strike are 3 significant issues amongst several that arose during the negotiations for the renewed contract. The main issues of contention consist of DVD residuals (royalties) , union jurisdiction over animation and reality programme writers and compensation for 'new media'. Basically the Writers Guild is trying to ensure that they get a fair amount from the sale of DVDs, are given the authority to recruit animation and reality programme writers into the union and are given compensation for the their written content being distributed through digital technology such as the internet. The strike is in direct relation with the 1988 strike which was a result of the then emerging technology of VHS. Despite that strike the union got screwed over by VHS as people did not anticipate the widespread distribution of videos to turn them into a staple household product. Taking into account the already widespread distribution of television programmes over the intent and players such as 4onDemand, it is only fair for the union to want to ensiare that 20 years down the line they don't get screwed over again. The AMPTP mastermind the marketing and distribution of the programmes and rake in the revenues for what is in effect merely product enhancement. To deny the writers, the masterminds behind the product, their fair share of what they produce is no different to exploitation. In contrast it is refreshing to see actors showing their solidarity and support for their writers. The majority of actors have stayed far away from any picket lines set up by the WGA and claim to continue their support throughout the award season. This is only the beginning of this coveted time of year which impacts not only celebrities and fans but also the fashion and magazine industries. The time of celebration and sparkle in the film industry where gorgeous gowns and designs are flaunted is hanging in jeopardy. The strike which has already reduced the prestigious 'Golden Globe' ceremony to a 30 minute low key news conference, is now threatening the 'Oscars'. The organisers of the ceremony are adamant that it will go ahead as scheduled, however only time will tell if the actors are willing to risk the picket lines or if the industry will give in rather than lose the forecasted hundreds of millions that the cancelled event alone could cost them... The documented damage does nothing to account for the writers strike adding to the winter blues and messing with the cycle of the year The scheduling of new seasons is planned to get humans through the hibernation that coincides with the dark, wet and cold winter months. The return of programmes in the spring is no good to us. We need to know what happens (in your chosen series, and there has to be at least one in your life) before revision panic kicks in and exam season starts. Perhaps this year students nationwide can hold the writers strike liable for lack of revision because we were up all night catching up with scheduled programming?! the joif of text lizcheesbrough warns us of the penury of telephone dating... Romance alert! Valentines Day is approaching in only three weeks. Love is going to be all around us, in our fingers and in our toes and there's no stopping the barrage of heart-shaped window displays, pink centred chocolates and love compilations. But what if you've got nobody special this year? Then why not dial this ludicrously expensive number to hook up with thousands of young sexy people in your area! The constant supply of late night adverts offering love, romance or just 'chat' offer us a multitude of options when it comes to finding the special somebody. Maybe I just wasn't watching obscure freeview channels at 2am when I was younger, but it seems that the rise of dating chat lines has rocketed in recent years. The possibility of meeting people via text may well be a fantastic way of getting together, but it seems to ignore a few basic rules of attraction. For a start, you're paying to date. This may not seem that ridiculous (after all, love never comes for free) but when you factor in that you can't even see the person your planning to hook up with, it adds an element of risk. What if Stacey, your 21 year old text partner is in fact a middle aged IT consultant trying to make some money on the side? What if 'sexy-boots21' is really a call operator, or even worse, just a computer? While there is nothing wrong with giving love a chance, for £7 a minute why waste time sending suggestive messages to a computer programme that you are very unlikely to get a date with. This leads on to my next issue with day time/late night television programming - having spent £300 exchanging texts with your ever elusive phone line partner, how will you fund your habit? Why not turn to one of the multitude of loans available. Apparently, all it takes in one simple call to an operator (who will completely sympathise and treat you like an old' 'friend) and with-' in the hour you can" 'have up to £50,000 in your' account. Even for £7 a text,' that's 7,142 kinky text messages, coming your way. What day time advertising fails to point out, except for in the miniscule scribbling at the bottom of the screen, is that if you don't pay back over twice that amount in the next 60 years your going to have hell to pay. The risk of having your home repossessed, clothes stripped off your back and then running the gauntlet of being captured, shipped out to a deserted industrial plant and made to work off your loan are only thrown in to the mix 'when the time is right', i.e. once the crowbar has opened your front door. After that, who knows? While working 18 hour days for £2 an hour to pay off your debts, you'll probably loose the will to live, let alone text date and will look back on your foolish decisions with contempt. And just to make things that little bit harder, you're working for the very chat line that caused your downfall. That's right, you're now called 'sexyflyboy' and have to simultaneously entertain 13 different 'sextexters' ^with suggestive innuendos at all hours of the day. ^ In between your frantic messaging, you live off a diet of own brand baked beans WHICH DO ,NOT TASTE LIKE REAL BEANS on old ^burger buns, and cry at even the thought of Ilove. Oh, and the double thumb repetitive strain disorder is slowly crippling you physically as well as symbolising all that was wrong with your imprudent youth. Many 'years later as your dying a slow painful 'death, with only the sound of the crazy frog (for "a supplementary £5 a week) ricocheting around brain as a comfort, you'll maybe think back to that foolish day that you thought 'yes! I'll do it! I'll take a chance on love and dial right now to chat to a young sexy female in my area! Maybe we'll fall in love! Move to Islington in middle age, and raise our children in comfort! The future is love!'When really the future was only a soiled mattress, a broken heart/mind/soul and a half finished plate of fake beans on toast. d. four tuesday the tuenty ninth of january, tuo thousand and eight H . - .SS;--'! Who is this Juno MacGuff? This has been the question on the mind of quizzical moviegoers and critics ahke over the last five months. Since its world prer miere at the Telluride Film Festival in early September, Juno's recognition and popularity have snowballed without rival—the film now rides atop torrents of indie and multiplex buzz towards February's BAFTAs and strike-tainted Academy Awards. These facts felt strangely distant as I took a seat across a large oak table from Juno star Ellen Page—the woman behind arguably the year's most original and interesting character. Standing only 5'1" and slender, Page sat quietly engulfed in one of the Soho hotel's massive pattem-knit easy chairs. Despite her astronomical ascent in the world of the silver screen over the past few years. Page remained modest and unpretentious, talking about her recent success with a soft but assertive voice. "It v/as lovely having her on set; this nnovie's all her fault "It's extremely exciting and ridiculously humbling to hear your name with people you respect and admire so much. Especially as a young actor, it's huge. It's hard to hear names like that when I feel like I have a lot to learn and a lot I want to do, it's ridiculously humbling. You never expect this. We made an independent film, we definitely all believed in it and thought it was something special, but had no idea this would happen. We all •• -J.-;;; eric lundquist says heno page, joso.n reitnnan^and cody, jointiy responsib coolest comedv this si thought it was huge when it got into the Toronto Film Festival. It's hard to wrap my head around; I don't know if I really have yet." Page may be young, turning twenty-one this February, but she's no newcomer to the world of acting. The Halifax native has been in front of a camera since the age of ten. Debuting in the made-for-TV movie Pit Pony, she claimed two Gemini awards for her work in Canadian television by the age of eighteen. However, it was her critically acclaimed starring role in David Blade's psychological thriller Hard Candy that catapulted her into the international spotlight, catching the eye of Juno director Jason Reitman who would later contact Page about the leading role. After reading the script, Page jumped at the opportunity. "First and foremost I was so excited that a teenage girl had been written this way—a young female lead that we've never seen before. I wanted to be Juno so badly, I was in awe of her. I adored the language, just how organic and fluid it felt. It's a film devoid of stereotj^jes. It's an ensemble piece where no characters were tools—all had their own unique evolution." "Any character you play who is honest, whole and well written, you're going to be able to relate to because we're all made up of the same stuff. It's just about finding that, and then figuring out how you want to portray that person. But of course I relate in a sense that I'm much more like Juno than what we're used to seeing in conventional popular media, about who young women are." "When a film comes out like this that I think is refreshing and allows for new ideas, it hopefully will open more doors. When movies like Sideways, Napoleon Dynamite, Little Miss Sunshine and this one do well, people have more faith in supporting movies that decide to do something different." Before and during the month-long shoot in Vancouver, Page played a dynamic role in Juno's development beyond just acting the title role. Whether it was helping find sounds for the film's best-selling soundtrack (currently #2 on Billboard and #1 on itunes) or discussing key directorial points with Reitman, Page became a important member of the production team. "The traditional notion ot family has been blown out of the v\/ater." "Jason Reitman asked me who I thought Juno would listen to and I said The Moldy Peaches, because they have a similar feel to the way the film balanced itself out. I played him The Moldy Peaches and the next thing I knew he wanted to put the song "Anyone Else But You" at the end of the film and contacted Kimya Dawson, who's pretty much the soundtrack. I adore music, so that happening is such a really incredible thing." Screenwriter Diablo Cody added, "I think Ellen Page, as a person, informed a lot about the movie and the music. She's just an interesting personality and such an amazing person, that she couldn't help but put her stamp on things." Page spent a lot of time interacting with Cody while filming and on later promotional tours. Cody herself had an unusually large role in production for a writer, actively fine tuning the film's development on set and ironing out tuesday -the -tuenty ninth of january, two thousand and eight fiye Bl. •the minor details. Page said of her screenwriter, "It was lovely having her on set; this movie's all her fault really. She deserved to be there. She's similar to Juno, very funny. She definitely has a distinct sarcastic wit and she's extremely honest. She doesn't care about what other people think and I have a lot of respect for her." Juno is Chicagoan Diablo Cody's first screenplay, and she has certainly taken the road less traveled by en route to the writer's chair. After various secretarial jobs, she decided on whim to try her hand, along with the rest of her, at stripping. Starting with an amateur night competition, in a year's time Cody was master of the peep show, lap dance, and telephone role-play, to name only a few. She concurrently wrote the internet blogs like Pussy Ranch, which chronicled her experiences and the commentary they evoked. Producer Mason Novick stumbled upon the aforementioned blog while surfing the internet (I can only wonder what his search history looked like), and contacted Cody about writing a screenplay. Seeing an opening for an intelligent and assertive teenage girl, she began writing. "Sometimes I wrote at my kitchen table, sometimes I wrote at the local Target, sometimes I'd sneak a few blocks of dialogue during my precious 15-minute breaks at work. Juno became my secret passion, and I anticipated our time together like a homy schoolgirl. I don't know if anyone believed that I could actually write a movie, and neither did I. Unlike the moist-browed screenwriters pimping their wares in cruel Burbank, I wrote in a comfortable vacuum. Writing it was incredibly natural. It was like breathing. I saw Juno as an extension of myself." Considering her misgivings about Hollywood, Cody made an ironic partner in director Jason Beitman when helping Juno onto the silver screen. The son of famed Hollywood director Ivan Beitman, {Ghostbusters II, Stripes) Jason spent his childhood on and off movie sets. His own directorial debut came at the age of 19 when he elicited calendar ads at USC to finance the short film Operation, featured at 1998's Sundance Film Festival. Jason Beitman directed his first feature film, the intelligent and hilarious Thank You for Smoking, in 2006. Reading the script for Juno through a friend's advice, he was sold instantly, "At the end of the day, Juno is not a movie about teenage pregnancy as much as it is about the delicate balance of these relationships. Somehow, Diablo's script is able to approach each and all of the characters with sophisticated realism and respect." Reitman continued, "The traditional notion of family has been blown out of the water. The film addressed every version of fam-ily—it promoted open-minded ideas. The movie is about when people decide to grow / up, there are tough deci- /' sions made by every char- -' acter." An addition to these three budding stars in their respective fields, Juno features an ensemble of acclaimed supporting actors including Michael Cera, [pictured right] {Arrested Development) J.K Simmons (Thank You For Smoking), Alisson Janney (The West Wing) and Jason Bateman {Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Arrested Development). The film has been nominated for the Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay Oscars. Page and Cody have also received BAFTA nominations in the last two categories. Juno will be wide released in UK February 8th WIm m BUto Juno is Diablo Cody's first screenplay. It has been nominated for four oscars, including best writer and best director. Where has this woman come from? Born Brook Busey-Hunt in Chicago, she is one of the stars of the first wave blogging movement. She decided to compete in an amateur stripping competition "on a whim," and after doing it more and more often she quit her job and began stripping full time. However after a year or so she became quite^ tired of the profession and^ the way women werCi treated in the industry. ^ This resulted in a stinti on a phone sex line.] She was blogging about her experiences 'Jj when a reader 'J emailed her to ask if she had thought^ about writing aJ __...JM book. Six months later came Candy Girl; A Year In The Life of an * Unlikely Stripper and soon after that came Juno. She has a two picture deal with Warner Brothers , is working on a pilot for Showtime and has already sold another script to Universal Studios. She shares a column for Entertainment Weekly with Stephen King among others. Juno has been called the female answer to Knocked Up, with Diablo Cody the feminist counterpart to Judd Apatow. Juno is the darling of the american critics and as awareness grows it is sweeping all competition away. Whether the Oscars are attended ior not it is increasingly likely |Juno will win big. Diablo ICody doesn't just have a niuge future as a ^^^creenwriter, she ^^^kis the future of^ ^^^Bscreenwriting. LSESU" Ehsurmg world peace since 1899... „ We are still reeling from surprise at seeing the UGM full this week. Union politics opened its doors this week W to show the regular students at LSE the orgy of toddleresque finger-pointing that members of the House of Commons would be proud of. Not content with their failure to reinstate kitchens in Bankside or ignoring poor quality teaching until they were made aware of it by the press, the LSESU have far loftier plans for their future-resolution in the Holy Land. And a mighty fine job they did too. The student body is now completely divided and it doesn't look like we'll be friends again for some time. Why can't we just all get along? Here's a real good piece of advice - next time let's just support a peace initiative. . v ... "ipiU ^ V ......... ^ w: , ' . i --------- , .. , Av 'v" * t' Israel Israel c4.-. ^''t mM !• r '3*^^ Palestine "it Israel r- u Palestine W \ ^ ^ t-J:- Price of h Teach ir Library Peace' Reconcilla Israel „ Palestine Palestine w vl ,^'J- -•' -- ''''K wmmM With interviews resources w.b- : AI{™>;2 ^Beaver 29 January 2008 news ¦ Graduates claim government is cheating over inflation rates ' Graduates have reacted with outrage to the government charging interest rates of almost 5% on repayment of student loans. They argue that the government is using different interest rates to calculate student loan repayments than to raise visages for civil service workers. Charity finds that students and graduates suffer most from job stress The Samaritans has found that young people aged between 18 to 24 are most vulnerable to stress. Students and graduates feel unable to talk to their superiors or colleagues, with 48% more likely to be bullied by clients and customers. Human resources salaries set to take flight in 2008 Human Resource graduates should expect a welcome boost to their pay packages this year. However, not all will gain as some graduates will not be skilled enough to get the well-paid positions. Graduates are likely to lack practical experience while being academically over-qualified. New initiative launched to attract business graduates to government sector Office of Government Commerce seeks to draw business graduates into government procurement jobs via a new graduate scheme. Procurement skills will be offered throughout the industry. Graduates expecting a 2.1 class degree or equivalent are eligible to apply. Lack of diveristy in Law A recent survey has shown that ethnic minorities are still unable to get work at the top law firms, despite the efforts by some firms to tackle diversity issues.The survey also shows that the fewer students wish to take on jobs in investment banking, whereas the number of students seeking a career in law is on the rise. London Economics reports need to restructure student loan system Lower-income students may be deterred from applying for student loans unless the system is restructured. The current system is so complicated as to be discoui-aging prospective students, claims the Wes-sex Scene.Plans to raise the fee limit above £3070 will lead to more students opting not to go to university. One-third of interviewees act in order to blend in with company culture Business psychology experts OFF have revealed that one third of interviewees act in order to fit in with the company culture and find work. Deliberately adopting a 'work personality' is much more common in Europe, with 58% in Germany, 38% in Belgium and 36% in the Netherlands admitting to doing so, compared to 33% in Britain. About half the recruiters surveyed admitted to preferring applicants whose personality already fit in with the prevailing company culture. Saving for a house more important than taking a gap year for students Students now prioritise saving to buy a house rather than taking a gap year, according to Money News. Students find it more difficult to afford travelling during a year off. 10% of graduates who took a gap year admit they would have made a different decision if they had been faced vwth today's property prices. Entrepreneurship: a rocky road John Zhu examines the challenges budding entrepreneurs face turning their ideas into reality Announcing that one intends to be an entrepreneur would probably not gather so much awe and envy as questions over one's grasp on reality. Most people are simply not going to be successful entrepreneurs, and in many cases, it was probably blindingly obvious in the first place. So is it pointless for students to think about "entrepreneur" as a potential career option? founded the company we now know as General Electric. Moreover, does one need to be an serial innovator to be considered a successful entrepreneur? Few product or service markets remain static. There are usually ways for competitors to improve either the entrepreneur's original invention itself, or to better its marketing and distribution. Witness the current, very expensive, next-generation DVD format not , _ contest between UltimdtGiy .Sony and Toshiba, ^ which has done any entrepre ¦¦little good for ei- It is -iither company, or even verytlGUT Will consumers. But it ineed skill:"®'' easy to define what an entre-l preneur rpallv---- is. First of all,more the entrepre-J neur must have" some new or UfipleaS"^^^ Betamax/VHS _ ^underlines how on ©serious the busi-of staying ahead is. Sony ahilifv foprobably remem-gint; Ctmiliy tw^ers when it lost novative idea, one which peo-3||t faCtS. pie are wilhng to pay for But I think the crucial test has to be that the entrepreneur must have made money from creating some product or service. Just simple inventiveness is not enough. Nicola Tesla had a mind arguably even more brilliant than that of Thomas Edison's, but Tesla was the far more inferior entrepreneur. Although his alternating current was better for distributing electric power than Edison's direct current, Tesla eventually died alone and penniless, while Edison format war, an- other example of how just creating a superior product does not automati-c a 1 1 y equals entrepreneurial success. We require an entrepreneur to be a creative inventor and a good businessman as well as consistently keeping ahead of rivals in both of those areas. The minimum set of skills required to be a successful entrepreneur would be a good business idea, capital to start selling the idea, and once the money is flowing in, a certain determination to keep it that way. None of these on their own are sufficient, nor can they be ranked in order of importance, since deficiency in any one ultimately results in the failure to make money one way or another, which has to be the ultimate criteria for judging an entrepreneur. But talent is not enough, unfortunately. Money begets money, and not all entrepreneurs are created equal. This is one area where I do sympathise with budding entrepreneurs. There exists a certain degree of market failure that inevitably denies some viable business ideas the chance to come to market. Capitalism systematically, by definition, benefits those with higher initial endowments. It may not be optimal individually or socially, but even with its inefficiencies, Capitalism still rewards the individual above all others. It is that which makes it the political economy most suitable for entrepreneurship. It levels the playing field somewhat, and history suggests that there is probably no better time to be an entrepreneur than at present. Ultimately, any entrepreneur will need one more skill: the ability to face unpleasant facts. This will tell him when not to be an entrepreneur; and just as importantly, when to quit. It is far too easy to amalgamate the entrepreneur and his business. It therefore very important sometimes to realise that some business failures cannot be prevented, and a good entrepreneur should be just as apt at spotting opportunities as unavoidable threats. Finally, I am thoroughly sick of the cliches surrounding entrepreneurs. The archetypal entrepreneur is as thus: leaving formal education at an early age, never went to university, started out with the one shop, and finally amassing a fortune through nothing but hard work. This is hopelessly unrealistic and misleading. Most entrepreneurs fail, and there is a huge survivorship bias in reporting by the media. But the press cannot be blamed entirely for inflating expectations, as one cannot deny that success stories are invariably more uplifting to read. Only the truly spectacular failures are reported. This distorts incentives and creates a permanent excess of supply of entrepreneurs. However, from a social point of view, this is perhaps no bad thing: one can always rely on someone else to be creative. Put simply, entrepreneurs are like a technology that creates more output with less input, and incidentally, this is exactly what mankind needs to survive as a species. The invisible hand strikes again. There is help available, such as prize money from student entrepreneurial competitions. This development is to be welcomed. The potential upside - cash, and the even greater wealth that such capital can give birth to; the satisfaction of achieving success When it comes to setting up your own business, bright ideas are not enough; you need to have a good head for business, too through one's hard work; even just the competitive thrill of beating other people (nobody said it was a forgiving sport). I am not an entrepreneur, and I cannot promise not to laugh if you should come out and declare your ambition to be an entrepreneur. But those who want to succeed bad enough will not need my blessing, nor will they have needed to read this essay to have already signed up to every advantageous opportunity available. A little bit on the side Entrepreneur Arthur Krebbers reveals his top ten tips for setting up a side business to call your own One. First of all, ask yourself 'is there demand for my idea?'. The main mistake many newbie entrepreneurs make is that they try to think up a completely original idea. They think like scientists: they try to invent a wholly new product. Don't make this mistake. Something may look cool to you, but if there's no demand out there, it is bound to fail. Think like an economist. Look at your new business from a demand-side perspective. Who do you want to target? What are there needs? Can you cater for some of these needs in a better way than existing companies do? Richard Branson set up Virgin stores because he realised the existing record stores were far too dull for many young people. Larry Page and Sergey Brin set up Google as a far more efficient search engine than the incumbents. In the words of EasyGroup founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou : "People are grateful when you make a difference in their lives. That is the essence of any successful business." Two Pursue something you're passionate about -Entrepreneurship is an endurance sport. It's a long hurdle race. You will face many difficulties along the road, and will struggle to keep yourself - not to mention your business -afloat. It is therefore essential that you're absolutely passionate about your business. You don't just consider it a worthwhile enterprise from a sober, rational viewpoint. Your heart and soul are also invested in this. You love what you are doing. Richard Branson once said he never entered a business he was not interested in. Three. Surround yourself with the right people -Almost half of all young people in Britain say they want to set up their own just go for it. Two, be willing to listen to people with more experience than you. Don't let your arrogance or your ego take the better of you. Be willing to play devil's advocate once in a while, and get second opinions. Get yourself a business mentor, an experienced entrepreneur who can help you set up your business. Speak to other people in ¦« ¦ .^your industry, and If you're set see what they have ¦ » to say. If nothing business on becoming aneise, it win They love a strengthen you in the idea ofC n t T 6 p T e n G u r jyour preferred being their - -Strategy. own boss.ClO yOUrSeil a Five. Be man yTaVOUT* OOn I 11S^your vision - Set-cases, there^ M is some-ten lO ting up a business meis a long-term thing stop- __________________ project. It there- doom-mongers. Le ping them.' More often than not, it's their surroundings. Friends or colleagues who dissuade them from going solo. "Will that really work?" or "Do you really want to risk all that time and energy?" Such discouragements can serve as excuses for the faint-hearted. If you're set on becoming an entrepreneur, do yourself a favour: don't listen to the doom-mongers. Surround yourself with like-minded people. Go to networking sessions of business forums. Approach start-up entrepreneurs you admire. Four. Don't be afraid to ask for advice - publishing mogul Felix Dennis once said that there are two keys to success as an entrepreneur. One, requires long-term vision. Be bold about this. What is it your business hopes to achieve? Yes, it's a profit-seeking endeavour and you'd love it to reap you your first million pounds, but what are its goals beyond the pure financial? These may be idealistic - "Provide free access to all the world's information" (Google) -or strategic - gain an X % market share, or be the largestY enterprise in the world. You can also add to this your company's values. These form your business' constitution: the foundations that define it, regardless of external conditions. Six.Think through all the details - once you have the big picture, it's good to focus on all the important specifics.Visualise your product or service, and imagine all the minute details: colour of packaging, design of website etcetera. As a wise Dutch saying has it: "He who doesn't honour the small, doesn't deserve the big". Remember: the devil is in the details. It may not be fun planning on a micro-level, but it will greatly speed up the ultimate execution and implementation of your grand ideas. Seven.Time-manage-ment is crucial . Can you combine studies and setting up a start-up business? Sure you can. It's been done before, and successful unipreneurs will continue to do it. However, it does require effective time management. You have to be willing to be more productive with your available time slots. That means striking a fine balance between academic excellence (your number one priority - if only for your parent's sake) and business success. I recommend browsing the internet for some useful time management tools. I personally use Stephen Covey's method, which is outlined in the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Eight. Don't underestimate your talents - you can do it if you put your mind to it. Many people think up a great idea, only to dump it out of lack of self-belief. "I could never do it"or"That could work, if only I was a little more ..."It's an easy excuse, and it may serve to- wards peace of mind. But it will stop you from ever making any long-term commitments, such as starting up your own business. If you don't believe in your own abilities, why would anyone else? Therefore, cultivate a positive mindset. Think about the talents or abilities one would need to make a certain business project happen. Consider developing them yourself, or outsourcing them - to a contractor or business partner. Nine. Sort out the technicalities - it's important that you sort out all the administrative issues. What is the legal status of your company going to be? What is it's forecasted revenue and costs? Does it have its own bank account? These, generally financial and legal, issues form the necessary infrastructure that defines your company. Ten. Just do it - remember this renowned Nike slogan. Ultimately, all entrepreneurs have a 'can do' attitude, and just get on with the work of making their dream a reality. It's what psychologist Paul McKenna calls the 'action habit'. Begin as soon as possible - if possible today. Start doing market research, develop a vision, and consider the details of your business. Commit yourself to small steps everyday, and the accumulated result will be incredible. It will blow your mind. Beaver 29 January 2008 v AHKKIisB Making it happen jobs Chloe Pieters interviews entrepreneur Jan Sramek and finds out how to make that business dream a reality Would you mind giving an outline of your business and its founders? There are four ventures at various stages I am currently working on. IBTalk {http://www.ibtalk.com) is chronologically the first one -we acquired the business with two partners in what you could probably call a 'micro leveraged buyout' in July 2007, after a few months of negotiations with previous owners. We felt that the site had a great potential, but Kulveer and Harj, two entrepreneurs who run the site at the time, were too busy with their other stait-up, Auc-tomatic.com, to really work on IBTalk. We bought it, re-designed and re-developed the site, and launched in August, which was just after my first year. IBTalk is a community of finance professionals and students who share their views on the market, advice with regards to careers, information, bankers' banter and anything else they want on our discussion boards and social network, as well as blogs. As with any Internet start-up, the question is where does money come from - currently, most of it comes from banks who advertise On the site, as our members are the ideal target group for their graduate/intern recruitment campaigns. The second business I am involved with is Alpha-Parties (http://www.Alpha-Parties.com), a company promoting nights in London's top clubs - Movida, Pangaea, Cafe de Paris, Umbaba and the likes. I got on board there to help the team with their web wants, preferences and problems, understanding of the market, your competitors and most importantly finding the right niche for your business. What did this mean for us? We realized that in order to remain competitive and provide our clients with something different to everyone else, we needed to change both the site and the business model. We are very proud of what we have achieved, and have been work- non-discio-Start tomorroWovi^'ZYast ¦ - - 6 weeks on MdlGibringing the new version strategy and also expanding into the student market. So watch out - LSE is definitely one of the places where we want to expand our presence, so drop us a line at jan@alphaparties.com.. Regarding the other two ideas I am working on, the amount of detail I can share is limited due to sure agreements awam with investors,©! ©V©fl but let's just say- » -that one will belOniC|ni a highly innovative online dating site (and great, great fun; I promise). The other is looking at matching the right people to the right opportunities - I cannot say anything more, but watch out and we should be at the LSE by the end of the year. How did you develop the ideas for your businesses? Difficult question. Overall, I would argue that the underlying vision has always been there from the very start. Successive rounds of brainstorming, overcoming problems, market research and re-thinking of the concept then shaped the idea, which was then developed further after the re-launch when we got another key input, the feedback from our users. To use IBTalk as an example, we are currently working on its successor, a network called Nicube. Running the business for a few months is invaluable in terms of the feedback you get, understanding of your clients, their needs and to life. are planning to introduce Nicube W e (http://www.nicube.com) later in February, and are extremely excited to see how it gets on. What kind of gap in the relationship between investment banks and students do you see IBTalk as filling? Currently, I would say the 'bridge' is threefold. Firstly, we provide a fantastic platform for networking - we know of several members who got offered jobs/internships through IBTalk and the contacts they made there. Secondly, our members answer most of the questions you would not ask even when the MD walks up on the stage with "Now you can ask anything you ever wanted to know." Last but not least, we bring information to universities and schools which are not as heavily geared towards banking as the LSE, for exam- ple some top European or Asian universities. What challenges have you overcome during the running of your business? Frankly, the usual suspects -capital and time. What resources did you utilise in order to set up your business? The beauty of running an Internet start-up is that the most important inputs are your talent, intelligence, passion and commitment. This will be particularly easy to spot once IBTalk's successor, Nicube (http://www.nicube.com), discussed above, is up and running. Nicube is an extreme proof of what can be achieved with very little capital, but enormous passion to make things happen. What advice do you have for potential entrepreneurs? Start tomorrow or even better tonight. Do not buy into the 'I want to work for McKinsey / BCG / Morgan Stanley / Goldman Sachs first for two years, then do an MBA and then become an entrepreneur' thing. Most of these guys never do, and for those who do, I often argue that they would have done better if they started straight away. Your opportunity cost is certainly not going south in the future. A friend of mine has been talking about becoming an entrepreneur ever since I met her. She is afraid of failure, and 'being left with nothing' to the extent of most likely taking a banking offer instead. This is missing the point completely, at least on two fronts.Firstly, en-trepreneurship is about failing and trying. If you are afraid of not knowing where is your next pay check coming from, of living with uncertainty, then it is probably not for you. Secondly, go to any bank's recruitment website and look for the skills they want. 10 times out of 10, 'entrepreneurial' will be one of them. If you have an idea and passion to make it happen, graduate and go for it straight away. You have the luxury of a free call option for a year -if it works out, fantastic. If it does not, apply for graduate programmes again - most likely, you will get at least as many offers as the first time round. Banks, consultancies, law firms - they are all looking for entrepreneurial people. PS: Make use of LSE careers service. I have worked with/been in touch with dozens of careers services all around the world and honestly, this may well be the best one in Europe Jan Sramek is a financier and entrepreneur. Originally Czech,he has been studying in the UK since 2004. Started BA Mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge, transferred to the LSE after his 1st year to leverage his interest in finance and entrepreneurship, now 2nd year reading BSc Mathematics and Economics.UBS Academic Scholar, interned at Goldman Sachs and Barclays Capital. Started his first business aged 14. Now works part-time in a $2.5bn hedge fund, runs 4 companies, a non-for-profit venture. Investment Club in Cambridge and publishes a monthly investment newsletter on global macro trade ideas.Jan is a keen handball player and a passionate foodie. Helpful resources: guidance on setting up your business lutp://www.nesprogramme.oi^/ (a great website providing financial support to budding entrepreneurs specifically living in disadvantaged areas of England and Wales. O" • O - na la sS — 0 CbC.COij* LM5> http://news.bbc.co.Uk/l/hi/programmes/working_lunch/1952938.stm one-stop guide as to where to go to find funding for your business idea J » * II A » Ftmding a fMW boMRKSs Wttm tmiiii OMs'MIfWwia*IP ttp://www.thesite.org/workandstudy/gettingajob/whatjob/beanentrepreneur http://www.entrepreneur.com http://www.innovateur.co.uk/events.html http://www.howtobooks.co.uk/business/small-business/govemment-grants.asp http://www.360financialliteracy.org/Lif e+Stages/Entrepreneurs/Articles/Starting+a+business/Funding+a+business.htm http://www.science-enterprise.ox.ac.uk/html/activities_oxf_entrepreneurs.asp Exceptional Entrepreneurial Women: Strategies for Success by Russell R Taylor iussel Taylor captures the entrepreneurial essence and risk-taking instincts that set apart the fifteen vomen he has picked to profile in this highly enjoyable book. Executives of both sexes will find |unique explanations of the success achieved by these dynamic ladies. Read it. You'll like it. And you'll leam from it." Roy Rowan, Author of The Intuitive Manager STRfflEGES R» success ^ How to Get the Financ- N, ing for Your New Small Business: Innovative Solutions from the Experts Who Do It Every Day by Sharon Fullen A resource for entrepreneurs who are serious about starting a new business. One of the biggest stum bling blocks is obtaining financing to begin the process. This book not only talks about traditional fi nancing through a bank, but also offers several more creative methods of raising money to start your small business. The author stresses the importance of having a well written, complete business plan. She gives helpful tips on how to make your business plan stand out and give you the oest financing possible. The author also offers hints on how to dress and how to act when presenting jfour business plan to financiers. The book also includes a chapter that features resources offering ousiness plan templates, grants and addresses for specific finan cier groups in each state. This book would be a great asset for anyone considering starting a small business. The tips and hints cattered throughout the book will give the reader an advantage over ather applicants, maximising fi nancing possibilities. Chatteris Native-speaking English Tutor (CNET) Nine-month contract starting in September to teach English in China or Hong Kong. Online application at www.chatteris.org.hk. For further details, email hr@chatteris.org.hk. Deadline 31 August 2008 Web Research Assistant Research datas, and complete administrative tasks. Full-time, 15-20k a year. Deadline: 28th February 2008. Email your CV and Cover Letter to Neil Stephen at neil-stephen@reevoo.com Policy and Campaigns Officer Full-Time, £20-25K per year. Help develop clear policy and proactive advocacy and influencing activities including campaigns and communications. Details and an application form are available at katie.aston@clinks.org 020 7608 2503. Deeadline: 04-Feb-2008 Graduate Development Opportunities The role will involve the development of business-to-business telesales skills in promoting membership of their websites Full-Time, £25-30k per year Deadline: 07-Feb-2008 Email CV and covering letter to: carwyng@lemosandcrane.co.uk Graduate Trainee, MTR Corporation Limited Full-Time. Develop your general management flair and specialist training. Deadline: 13 February, 2008 Online application Gerson Lehrman seeks Healthcare research Associate Full-time position offering between £30 - 35 thousand a year. Analyse research requests and build appropriate solutions. Manage products such as Market and Custom Surveys. Requirements: Bachelor's degree. 0-2 years of experience in investment banking, consulting and the healthcare industry is not required but is advantageous. Deadline: 2nd March 2008 Email your CV only to Deb Barker at glgrecruiting@glgroup.com BBC seeks Trainee Technologist Full-time position offering between £20 -25 thousand a year. Position begins in September 2008. Students studying mathematics will have a considerable advantage. Deadline: 4th February 2008 Fill in the online application form at http://www.bbc.co.uk/jobs/tech trainees Xchanging Pic graduate Programme open for applicants Gain experience in the business processing outsource industry. Four six-month stages, beginning in September 2008. Fulltime position offering £25 - 30 thousand a year. Opportunity to spend one stage overseas in countries such as Germany and India. Deadline: 18th August 2008 Email Cv and covering letter to Emma Cooke at emma.cooke@xchanging.com Brookleigh seeks German-speaker for headhunting in financial markets Leam head-hunting skiUs such as identifying target lists, carrying out initial screening via telephone and administrating all information on a database. Applicants need between 1-3 years experience in market research, financial markets, HR or high-street recmiting. Deadline: 31st March 2008 Email your CV only to Diane Anis Sani at dianeanissani@brookleigh.com iBeaver 29 January 2008 v A^K1^I^^4 An over-riding vision Chloe Pieters interviews entrepreneur Arthur Krebbers, who reveals that the key to running a successful business is keeping your eye on the future Would you mind giving a brief outline of your business and you and your co-founder? G2G alms to become the world's principal forum for interaction between today's and tomorrows leading figures in business, politics and culture. We want to realize this both online - through a popular, interactive website - and offline - through high profile speaker, training and networking events. We believe these two approaches are complementary. Our initial product ¦ are speaker and networking events for young professionals. These consist of two or three inspirational talks, followed by t. a Q&A and a networking reception. The launch event -on Monday 4th February - will feature Tim Cullen, former , spokesman for the World Bank, ¦Managing Director of Tim Cullen Associates and lecturer at Said Business School, Oxford; Baroness Sally Hamwee Chair of the London Assembly; Charlie Osmond, CEO, Freshminds and Esquire's Young Entrepreneur of the Year and David Willetts MP Shadow Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills . Arthur Krebbers is currently undertaking a postgraduate degree in Management, based at the LSE and the Chicago Graduate School of Business. Before that he read Philosophy and Economics at the LSE. During his undergraduate years, Arthur was an avid student politician and freelance journalist. Elected Societies Officer for the LSE Students' Union, he supported the 200+ SU societies at the LSE, and helped coordinate and promote their events. As a reporter, Arthur has managed to interview leading figures from business and politics, including Jose Manuel Barroso (president European Commission), Cherie Booth (human rights lawyer) and Jack Welch (former CEO, General Electric). Arthur's main responsibilities are marketing, communications and events. Alex George is currently studying for a law conversion course at the College of Law. While an undergraduate student at the LSE, Alex was President of the LSE Question Time Society, a debate and speakers forum run in a similar fashion to the BBC programme. The society organised events featuring personalities such as Jon Snow (presenter, Channel 4 News), Charles Moore (former editor Daily Telegraph) and Glenda Jackson MP (Oscar-winning actress and former Labour minister). He was awarded the LSE Student Union's Gold Award in March 2007 for his work with Question Time. Alex's main responsibilities are sponsorship, speakers and finance. This shared ambition led us to establish the 'Generation 2 Generation' (G2G) in the fall of 2007. We hope that G2G can cater for this important niche. G2G aims to become the world's principal forum for interaction between today's and tomorrows leading figures in business, politics and culture. We want to realize this both online - through a popular, interactive website - and offline - through high profile speaker, training and networking events. We believe these two approaches are complementary. How did you get the idea for your business? Alex and I met through our involvements with the LSE Students' Union. Both of us greatly enjoyed our imiversity experience, especially the opportunities it provides for meeting leading figures and peers from a wide variety of backgrounds. We sought to make the most of these through attending public lectures, working for student societies and becoming involved with the Students' Union. I contacted him last Summer about setting up an organisation that would continue to provide these opportunities for people after they graduate. And, funnily enough, Alex had been playing around with exactly the same idea! We strongly agreed that these opportunities are pivotal for ones personal and professional development. We believe that the best way for young people to fulfil their Setting up a business is in many ways a lot easier as a student.-.You have plenty of time to find and develop business ideas potential as tomorrow's leaders is to ' be inspired and challenged through contact with high-profile personalities and peers. Hence we felt it was important that they should continue upon entering the workplace. We realised, from friends and personal experience, that ones first steps on the career ladder are often accompanied by a narrowing down of one's personal network. Many graduates and young professionals find themselves interacting only with a small group of people, generally from their own firm or industry. What experiences at the LSE and beyond gave you the skills necessary to start your business? LSE helped me. in various ways. It's provided me with the financial and analytical skills necessary to manage a business. It's also helped me develop my communications and relationship-building skills, which are essential when it comes to establishing business relationships. Moreover, it's nurtured a 'can do attitude', and helped me develop bold ambitions. What inspired you to set it up as a student rather than waiting a few years to get started? Setting up a business is in many ways a lot easier as a student. You have no fixed financial commitments - such as mortgages, or a family to maintain - and therefore need not worry about earning a certain steady income. Also, you have plenty of time at your hand to find and develop business ideas. And, while at university, you can scout around for potential partners and clients -especially at such a global university as the LSE. Is it catered specifically to LSE students or is it more broadly-based? Our events are catered for young professionals across London - young people who have just graduated from university. We aim to offer them the incredible experiences we had while at university, in terms of being inspired by leading figures and meeting a wide variety of peers. What are some of the resources you utilised to set up your business? Initially, we aimed to develop a degree of credibility. For this, we enlisted a number of high profile supporters - leading figures who gave us a reference. From this, we moved on to enlisting speakers, graduates and sponsors and arranging venues. We are cultivating a virtuous circle: the more influential speakers we attract, the more graduates we'll attract, the more sponsorship funding we'll receive etc. What are some of the challenges you've faced and overcome? Setting up a business is an endurance sport. There are inevitably lots of hurdles along the way. To name but a few; we've had to become very clear about our long term vision. We both had a background in hosting regular society events -which require a short- to medi-um-term vision. Setting out long-term expansion plans and a company vision requires a greater degree of clarity of purpose. Getting others to believe in our idea was also a challenge. We did market research, and fine-tuned our message to different target audiences - be they young professionals, potential speakers or sponsors. Another challenge is creating a synergy between me and Alex, the co-founder, and our other members of staff. This required investing adequately in our personal relationship, as a basis for our business relationship. Taking the chances you're dealt Michelle Ameer interviews entrepreneur Syed Mustafa Hasnain and learns about the importance of taking the chances you have Syed Mustafa Hasnain received his MSc in Media and Communications from the LSE in 2007. He is founder and CEO of his own media consultatancy. Did the Degree Help? The degree was very beneficial as it allowed me to approach media from a user centric perspective, my previous education and experience focused on the technical side of things and thus one can easily loose site of whats important to the end user. The audience in media and communications was specially insightful in this regard as it allowed me to explore user perception and throw my ideas around and discuss with my peers. Also I found the guest lecturers especially [Wikipedia founder] Jimmy Wales very inspiring and they significantly impacted my decision to start my own business. The fact that LSE allows you to choose your own courses allowed me to tail-er the degree to my requirment thus I took on courses like Global Marketing. My Business sort of evolved... In December 2006,1 along with a few friends was going over the success of Youtube. During that time, I had the idea of Visedia, a viral video site which ^ would create media lists (or channels) for you based on your viewing habits and more importantly your moods. This would have theoretically been accomplished by using a multidimensional rating system (quite different and more intu- itive than the simple 1-5 rating system) and a mood matrix. I did not have any funding for this project and I was extremely eager to get going on it. I returned home during the winter, after a contribution from my parents and selling of my car, I got the initial capital to get that project going and I was able to identify a small company led by a friend of mine to develop the software. I was promised that the software would be built to my specifications within 2 months (in retrospect a very lofty claim). I then returned to the UK to talk to potential investors. A few of my friends who worked at several technology and design companies in Oxford recommended that I meet with their directors, I arranged a meeting with the CEO of 360 Partnerships, a Whitney-based Tech company. We arranged a meeting in Pall Mall at the lOD (institute of Directors). He expressed interest in the idea, however they wanted to see more progress made on the prototype. At this time all I had was a flash animation showing how the thing would work. During the meeting the CEO mentioned that he was looking for someone to design an interactive tutorial software for a product they had developed for Savills. Sensing an opportunity, I jumped on it and convinced him to let me do it. He was intrigued but wanted to see a demo first. I worked for two days in my room and when me and my colleague Alexandra went to present the demo. It completely blew David away and he instantly signed me on to do not just the Savills demo but also his tutorials for another software. Using the down payment, I hired an additional flash developer icfentify that need, jump to it (a student in ; fact who worked from his dorm room), I alrfecly iiSS the demo so we simply developed in further and in a month we had one finished software, during that time I had chased further leads and had presented to quite a few businesses, I was able to develop trust by doing small free projects for these companies and then offering the best value for money while also consistently building goodwill with these companies. I now have a full team of five talented designers and developers and Maaz my friend for almost 7 years and an extremely competent manager. We are working on projects ranging from web design and E Marketing to E learning and interactive software. Unfortunately I had to abandon Visedia as the company I had hired to develop it was unable to meet deadlines since the software was very low on their priority list. Our mission statement...We stick by a simple code of providing exceptional quality and value to our clients in the field of new media technologies. Challenges Every day brings with it a fresh set of challenges. Each of our clients has very unique requirements and a specific culture that we need to very quickly adapt too. Since in the service industry, the clients will is all, we as consultants have to tread a very fine line of providing a solution that is both of a high quality and fulfills the sometimes vague requirements set out by clients. However I find the challenge of interacting with people with such varied experiences quite stimulating and it is a great sensation to see people use the technology we have toiled over. Advice I believe the art of convincing and selling something is basically positioning your service or product so that it fulfills the clients requirements, usually when you go out for the first time to convince someone of something, there are a billion thoughts running through your head at a 100 miles per hour. Stop, listen and pick up subtle cues and when you see that opening and identify that need, jump to it and offer your solution, then work your way in by comparing the proposed solu- tion while comparing to something similar, you are then at a unique advantage, you are there and automatically your service or product has less opportunity cost than the alternative. Once in, go out of your way to build trust, always have a friendly and approachable dispostions and do as many small favors as you can, this builds a lot of good faith and trust in your clients, despite popular belief your clients are only human and the more people know you and like you, the better your chance of them becoming repeat customers. My second advice would be that if you sense an opportunity, however small your chance, put your self in a position to take it. Opportunities are all around us all the time and you just need to be aware of yourself and your abilities. As Sun Tsu wrote, "If you know your opponent and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles...If you do not know your opponent nor your self you will be imperiled in every single battle". Finally listen to any and all advice that comes your way through any source, to follow on that advice is your prerogative but taking in a wide berth of different experience always helps in allowing you to analyse a situation from many different angles. In every thing I have done, I have sought to include the opinions of as many people as I could. A typical day A typical day starts with a cup of tea as usual. I check up on the progress of our pending projects, send emails/calls out to clients. My team usually fills me in on things and if something needs my immediate attention then we focus on that. I tiy to schedule meetings with clients after 12 so I have ample time to give to my colleagues. Being a small company, I have a very hands on approach to things and so you find me sometimes working away myself on a latest piece of design work. I am extremely particular about how things look and feel and very critical about the little details and subtle effects since I believe it is those things that determine the quality of the product. Funding It's very interesting but this entire company emerged from virtually very little funding, I was able to borrow £4000 from my father and the remaining was invested through down payments of various projects. In fact I had to move extremely nimbly to ensure that this would not have a detrimental effect on the projects that we had started. As we started to do more work, I expanded further, being a student I had lesser expenses than what I would normally have so that helped as well. All in all I was really facilitated by my colleagues and my friends, who always offered sound advice. A 1 *i^ mi'-" 3 of halls? jaching? ibrary? 'eace? )nciliation? Israel Palestine S'^ Israel Palestine ottttwiKawi 5 < me Israel Palestine i Palestine A ¦ Israel ^ W:\ eight tuesday the twenty ninth of January, tuo thousand and eight kerrythompson and aditinangia experience airtraffic at koko I'It's fucking Koko for fuck's sake!' lead singer, Chris Wall, exclaimed. Finally, Air Traffic have played a venue that does them genuine justice. In the first of a five-stop tour around Britain, the band rocked Koko in a return to the London turf that first launched them to fame in March 2007 when they headlined the Camden Crawl. They blew us both away—Kerry, a veteran of their music who hails from 'the temple of effortless cool that is Sheffield', and Aditi, who was introduced to indie just last week. It's always a risk that a piano-led quartet vwll sound an awful lot like Coldplay; Air Traffic, admittedly, do not completely escape this cliche. Having seen them live however, it is obvious that they bring a unique energy and enthusiasm to their performance that is difficult to convey through a record. Their new material in particular was showcased on this tour, and smarts of Radiohead, Klaxons and The Strokes: it reflected their new, more mature sound, and their on-going transition away from 'Chris Martin' and towards 'Chris Wall'. Last tuesday, the band showed up on stage in the indie-meets-country-bumpkin gear tj^pical of their image. Sudden revelation: Indie boys are fit. The unanswered question of the night was why bassist Jim Maddock deemed it necessary to don a black trench-coat the entire night. Chris deviated from the traditional indie norm of skinny jeans and brogues, but was charming and endearing to the crowd nonetheless. In true Air Traffic tradition, Chris was precariously perched on a music case whilst playing the piano, allowing him freedom to move with the music and releasing him from the static trap that pianists are often bound by. As if this wasn't enough, Chris alternated between the piano, guitar and tambourine; almost making him the equivalent of a one man band. This diversity of talent was one of the most striking features of Air Traffic's live performance: for 'No More Running Away' drummer David Ryan Jordan jumped on the keyboard while Jim and guitarist Tom Pritchard abandoned their usual posts to take up two floor tom drums. It was undeniable that the rendition of this song stood out from the others in the sixty-minute set. 'No More Running Away' was dramatic and spoke directly of the bands originality. This was a 13-song set followed by a two-song encore—one of which was an inspired solo rendition of 'Empty Space' by Chris on the piano. The gig ended with an outstanding performance of their best-knowm single, 'Shooting Star' which, with Tom's guitar solo as a particular highlight, was certainly the best way to end the evening. Other memorable songs from the set were 'Never Even Told Me Her Name' and 'Charlotte', the lead single from their debut album. Fractured Life. Perhaps the only criticism of the band as a whole and certainly of this concert is that their songs have a tendency to soimd rather similar—at times it was difficult to distinguish when one song had ended and another had begun. The audience however, did not seem to mind. Though perhaps largely catering to the indie-loving stereotype, the crowd seemed more than satisfied. Having sold out the 1,500 capacity theatre. Air Traffic themselves could not have asked for a better turnout. Koko's juxtaposition of classic Victorian decor arid its iconic larger-than-life disco-ball makes it the most prestigious venue of Camden's indie scene; Air Traffic undeniably rose to the occasion. This time last year, Air Traffic were tipped as the next big thing—they were talent-spotted by Jools Holland and Kerry first heard them on LSE's own Pulse radio making big waves. Admittedly however, they are not as well-known as Keane or Snow Patrol and one year on they have not fulfilled the high expectations made of them. With a debut album and a sold-out tour under their belts, the only fear is, are we witnessing the beginning of Air Traffic's denouement? Their evident humility and gratitude to the audience demonstrated their fears, as well as ours, that they may never play such a legendary venue again. nu-genre of the week: Pronunciation: \lard-k6r\ Bands unable to fit into skinny jeans. A revolution in the indie scene, lardcore is a reaction to the oppressively thin indie body image. Bands enter the lardcore movement for many reasons; Inability to commit to the recommended indie diet of cocaine, bro-colli, and four Haribo candies a day; admiration for the rubenesque renaissance shape; American citizenship. While the trademark bands exhibit a wide diversity of sound, guitars tend to be meaty. Trademark Bands: The Muffintops, Christmas in Canada, A Fridge Too Far, White Light Dark Meat, Korn Underworld - Beautiful Burnout greqorulm It takes a lot of confidence to release a single with a runtime exceeding eight minutes, as Underworld did with "Beautiful Burnout". After all, one could listen to roughly 2.5 other songs in the same amount of time. Taking such an approach when appreciating music, however, is rather futile. Whereas the thought of having to endure an eight minute Robbie Williams or Girls Aloud piece only makes me shudder, the skillfully crafted sound-scapes of Underworld's latest track fill me with gleeful joy. I can't say that the sparse lyrics make any sense, but thankfully they don't have to. They are overshadowed by captivating beats anyway. In the end, you might be surprised fast eight minutes can pass. Flabric 38 - Mixed by M.A.NX).y. . , by aaairoohns • ¦ It's pointless to review this mix because everyone who likes minimal will already know about it and everybody who doesn't will totally gloss over when they see this reveiw. The question is: Is somebody who isn't into "deep, ethereal techno, glitchy staccato and bass-heavy machine funk" able to enjoy this? The answer: probably. Laura Meirling - Ghosts by joshheller This woman is my new obsession. I cannot stop listening to this song. It is beautifully subtle and hauntingly sad. I defy you to listen without stopping whatever you're doing, overwhelmed by the power and delicacy of it. Various people have clearly poured hours upon hours of craft into it. It is worthy of every fucking superlative you can throw at it. From the first simple but up tempo guitar plucking to the sparse yet effective percussion, every bar of Ghosts asks nothing but total attention from you. The choral hook, "lover please, do not, fall to your knees, it's not, like I believe in everlasting love" is devastatingly evocative. Her voice will not leave you. All this and Laura Marling is only bloody eighteen years old. Her voice doesn't just belie her years, it sings them into a grave of total irrelevance. Not all of her material can match the elegance of this particular track, (although her first single "My Manic and I" came extremely close). Yet on the strength of this piece of music, with precocity and her quite prodigious talent, an impossibly young girl from Reading demands that we stand up and listen to her. Laura Marling is the most exciting pop-orientated folky artist I've heard in years and Ghosts is, by quite some distance, the best single of this year. IP® 5-1) ® 1 'I ® 3 ® f ¦ MI rahimrahemtulla moseys on up to the buffalo bar Islington's Buffalo Bar played host to some interesting new acts last week. The night, hosted by rockfeedback.com, was one of contrasts. First up on stage were A Classic Education. An Italian band who speak with American accents, they offered some fairly regular, largely unexciting guitar fare. Their lead singer announced that Timeout had described them as 'Italian pop,' which he thought was unfair Truly, they are not pop, but they are not as rock as they'd like to think. Sunny, thin guitar riffs and well-defined choruses saw to that. Still, they performed with plenty of gusto and it wasn't just the diehard few at the front of the crowd who responded to the band's enthusiasm. Their set began in an unusual fashion, with some instrument-free atonal-type singing. This unconventional touch promised much. however the songs which followed ended up being fairly conservative. The drumming occasionally elevated itself into something beyond average and there was the odd driving bassline here and there which really picked things up. In the main however it was all rather unoriginal and uninspiring. They were, however, dressed quite nicely. Well-worn leather shoes and slim suit jackets comprised their scruffy-but-smart look indie look, and on this superficial level is where the night's contrasts began. The next band up, Agaskodo Teliverek, (which means 'rearing stallions' when translated from the Hungarian), immediately distinguish themselves from A Classic Education-and a lot of other bands for that matter-when they come on dressed in matching, skin-tight shorts and t-shirts. It is unclear why they do this, but the vibrant mix of red and yellow is immediately striking on the eye nonetheless. Their music continues this alternative trend by doing the opposite of what A Classic Education did; it defies conventional timings, scales and progressions. It is fast and intricate, loud, raw and unrelenting, and yet at times extremely delicate. Something like a mixture of the Mars Volta and Forward Russia. Moments of sublime guitar harmony (they have no bassist) and drum machine/laptop sample musicality are interspersed with periods of awkward timing, screaming and a general crashing of drums and sounds. Their singer and key-tarist, HiroeTakei, wails into the microphone a set of words which are indistinct, but that it is not the point; all that matters is the euphony of her voice. The highs and lows of tone as well as the volume and intensity of the sounds are the essential features. Agaskodo Teliverek deserve our plaudits for defying the norm and creating a distinctive sound-not easy in today's saturated indie-guitar scene-but occasionally it comes across as a little too much of a disorganised assault on the eardrums. It was unfortunate when something went wrong with the drum kit just before their last track, and so they were forced to resort to using a pre-recorded drum track from the laptop which was sitting on the left of the stage. This setback did not however lead to a massive reduction in the 'live' quality of their act, and though they finished it with all the power and speed characteristic of their style, there was a certain note of anticlimax in the air which suggested that Agaskodo still have work to do. 1 i i I tuesday the tuenty ninth of january tuo thousand and eight nine .fl Mooem Interpret ho " ™'"P<'««on with a „„ ^ pret how V07J ^ one worr? . TXt:** __ -¦--P«t howyou Wiiu^d subject-DFT TDTTt^ tke beaver office, room e1 ®ny format [The top three Will be exhibited i Will be find! PartB in week someone with at nine. ROMSON! Ronson logo and a mf actual face colour . h uality man-made frisbee with a Ma* Kon— eSSmebeaver.partb@lse.ac.uk! NARK RONSON • V^-%-' aiQainagn] To Win these two tickets the ' "C HA VI^OOO in London is vonr fa to write a j ^e're givin, away thr ^"ol^et. It, the experience art charge you to 3i-__^—-- Twveisfow wimw/otiokets „..,^c2;S ,... ».»•»« •srS." -S"'.S<»« -"'" S^>-- 5ts=t^.s:;"s.- B. ten tuesday the tuenty ninth of january tuo thousand and eight SLOILGIHD T This is the last week that you will be able to experience Anthony McCall's mystical 'soUd Ught' installations at the Serpentine Gallery. Occupying the shadowy in-between space, where film meets sculpture, these ephemeral light installations fill whole darkened rooms and envelop the viewer in an unapolo-getically magical experience. As McCall's first major exhibition in London this is something of a retrospective, and includes early performance works as well as the now-legendaiy Line Describing a Cone (1973). A key figure in the avante-garde London film-makers co-operative in the 70s, McCall stopped making art for over twenty years but has recently returned to his 'solid light' series — only this time using digital projectors rather than 16mm film — so that what was previously only possible to see pictured in a photograph is now a visceral and beguiling experience, demanding to be seen. befirtoird ond fiiortomocfeay' foSSowed the callinig and wolked towards the light... If nothing in our lives happened by accident, then our lives could perhaps be traced as a line, described by a single rule, a simple fimction. What, then, would be the rule that describes your life so far? What would be mine? And what is the relation between these two separate lines that have intersected today in an art gallery in Kensington? We move slowly and conscientiously in galleries, breath measured, footsteps soft, hands by our sides. We must not touch the art or influence the experience of the other visitors around us. The works are contained and time seems not to pass within these discrete spaces dedicated to beauty and reflection. What, then, would become of the biography of cinema? We see it living up on the screen, the answer seems simple. We might say, "The life of cinema exists somewhere behind the canvas it is painted on. It is two dimensional, but is infinitely deep. Beautiful people, stars, populate it - there are attack ships on fire, murders, love, redemption, car chases, angels, devils, and it always has a cool soundtrack." It seems irreverent then to reach out towards the light, to see my fingers slice through the illuminated swirls of smoke, appearing solid as a pane of glass as they hit the projection of light. I feel nothing as my fingers cut through to the darkness on the other side of the opaque mist - it is a sensation beyond the physical to see your flesh passing through a seemingly solid line. As if you are the illusion and the line real. Anthony McCall's Light Describing a Cone might answer differently. We know that 1/371 j:2.h is the rule that describes the life of a cone. But standing in the dark of Serpentine Gallery, watching as the cold white light slowly traces a circle on the opposite wall, did we not begin to think that the cone perhaps has a more poetic existence than we presumed? Here is the Real life of cinema laid out simply, the biography of an image: A projector, a wall, and the short space in between. In the entrance to the gallery diagrams, mathematical studies and photographs attempt to explain how this magic takes place. But it seems unbelievable that these complex equations can explain the elusive mysticism of the unsettling experience of walking through solid light, of the invisible made visible. The mind rebels, is even incensed, at the experience of such sensory illusion and the inability to alter what is there, even as you reach out to grasp it. It is like lifting the veil of a bride, only to find another veil underneath, and another under that one. An infinity of veils. If cinema has traditionally hidden this simple Ousion, McCaU lays it out for us. Naked, it is even more beautiful. A haze machine fills the room, it rattles on the floor for us to see. You turned to me and said it was a strange soimd. The path of the light cuts the haze, because cinema has a third dimension. You walk into it and become part of it. As I blow on the beam and watch the invisible life of my breath ripple in the air, I am suddenly reminded that even light leads a secret double existence: always and undecidedly both wave and particle. Other shadowy figures move about the room. Intersecting the light momentarily as they pass through it, they cut into the perception of three-dimensionality, exposing it for the illusion it is. I meet you half-way inside this cone of light, our bodies spliced at the neck. In this room of constantly shifting perception it is difficult to know anything is real. You stand in front of the light and your silhouette, in 2-D simplicity, breathes through the smoke, disturbing it. So you are real after all. With the slow pace of an eclipse, the circle on the wall closes and starts over, because cinema has a foiirth dimension, time, which it has always played with. In the second piece, Between You And I, McCall teUs a more developed story. Two symmetrical shapes rotate slowly, they come together in an eUiptical whole, then slowly fracture, distort, and separate. A simple biography of a life led together, or two lines intersecting on a waU. Anthony McCall has taken the structure of cinema/sculpture apart, and set the pieces at play. Go have some fun. As the sun goes down ginaho traces the desigr revolution in China History breeds culture. After a century of great turbulence, the Chinese have found a new way to express themselves. Art needs money for survival and the economic emancipation of the 80s has created a swelling tide for artistic talents to ride on. In all spheres of design, from architecture to mobile phones, the realization that 'looking good sells', coupled with unprecedented economic growth has created immense momentum and demand for artistic talents. After 4 years of research, The V&A museum is hosting the exhibition' China Design Now". "This exhibition captures an extraordinary moment in Chinese design and the rise of China's consumer society. There is truly a sense of design frenzy in China right now" comments the exhibition's curator, Lauren Parker. The show is divided into three sections. Frontier City, starting in Shenzhen, will show the development of graphic design and visual culture, Shanghai's Dream City will feature fashion and lifestyle and Future City will explore architecture and the city of Beijing and beyond. Aesthetics have not always taken priority in China. Beauty met its doom after the collapse of the Ching, with Westerners, Japanese, Jiangkaishek and Mao ZeDong (The Red Sun) all dominating the nation. People were preoccupied with filling their bellies and daily survival and the vanity of appearance took a back seat. After peace came, in 1966, the Red Sun imploded and culture took the heat: temples were destroyed, books were burnt and poets drowned themselves. The masses, however, carried on in their Mao suits. And then cheap garment production came to the rescue. Western designer labels also went on a crusade to the East offering the nou- veau riche sartorial salvation in a well-cut suit, and the possibility of looking like Bruce Willis or Demi Moore. From this repressive past, China has come a long way in rediscovering her own aesthetics. In Shenzhen, (the largest manufacturing centre in the world after to Hong Kong), the average age is 27. There is a pioneering generation of Chinese artists and designers who have jumped onto the commercial bandwagon and founded independent design practices for the first time. Wing Shya (pictured), a Hong Kong photographer and stylist, emerged from this new wave of creative entrepreneurs to become one of the top commercial stylists in the Asia Pacific. His name can now be seen in i-D, the New York Times and also in the China Design Now exhibition. At this exhibition you can see how commodifiction and consumerism have won the war: the spheres of thinking, culture, practices and habits, that took precedence during Mao's Cultural Revolution have been replaced with four things: the house, car, computer and mobile phone. It is this ideological change within China, to a society of production and consumption, that China Design Now is trying to capture. Director of the acclaimed 2046, Wong Kar Wai's revival of 1930s Shanghai glamour is a highlight of the exhibition. Together with designer and editor Cheung Suk Ping, they popularize the conservative oriental beauty of a bygone era in the commercial arena. Both of these visual mavericks are self-taught and have had to fight their way up to the top, indeed Suk Ping began his career in mass production, designing patterns in a garment factory after finishing school. The zero-to-cul-tural-hero story applies to most of the success stories in China. And it is this fight against the dominant ideology in Chinese society that saw the role of the artist as pointless, and beauty superfluous, that makes the work of artists such as Kar Wai and Suk Ping so inspiring. There is so much more to see than just a glamorous image: under the glossy surface a history of repression lurks The exhibition aims to show the effects of commercial development on design in China, however it is the hard-fought struggle for creative self-expression that really stands out. The works in the exhibition raise awareness of the battle for Art in China, and intimate just how much more beauty is to come. China Design Now is on at the V&A from the 15th March - 13th July 2008 tuesday the tuenty ninth of january tyo thousand and eight eleven I identity delves into the confessions of a closet housewife... W e have always been told that we can have it all, the beautiful bonnie baby, the ideal doting h u s - band, the lovely idyllic house, the high paid high powered job with a successful career but what happens if I don't want it? We are the have it all generation, but nobody has ever questioned what happens when the have it all generation don't want it. When I say to my friends all I want in life is to have some babies and bake cakes I am met with looks of utter disdain. I have an idyllic vision of a future where I am surrounded by babies and cakes, draped in Catherine Kidson prints and bathed in sunshine. Is this wrong? At the moment babies appear to have replaced the Chanel clutch bag as the must have item to have squeezed under your aim. Nicole Ritchie has just popped out little Harlow and Christina Aguilera on the same day brought her own bundle of joy into the world. Both women have appeared to set aside their previous partying antics and are ready to embrace a more motherly approach to living, replacing the whisky bottles for those of formula. Surely such a positive behavior change should be celebrated, yet the media has given mixed .J* responses to the Celebs new lifestyles. Is « giving up stardom for the domestic sphere a credible choice? Nigella is heralded as the domestic goddess - so why is it so wrong for me to desire the same thing. Everyone applauds and swoons as she caresses turkey carcasses and talks gushingly about being dominant in the kitchen. A woman can be successful and be a domestic goddess at the same time, they are not mutually exclusive lifestyles. Yet it appears that it is more credible for some to pursue one rather than the other. In my home town you were presented with two life paths after you were kicked out of secondary school when you had finished your GCSE's all those years ago. Either, go on to sixth for\m, continuing with all that education lark or go and get a boyfriend by lurking around the local bus station and then by consorting with the birds and the bees get yourself a baby and then some form of council funded accommodation. I picked the former, obviously, I am not exactly a fan of bus stations. Did I come to university just to find a husband? Perhaps. Would I be considered just a tad insane if I admit that finding Mr Right, the key to my baby and cake dream did indeed factor in my higher education calculations. One in six of us will, after all, meet our perspective life partner whilst dawdling along Houghton street if the statistics are correct. I am not saying that I don't want to be here. I love university life and I would not change anything for the world. But there is a part of me which feels as if society has pressured me into coming to university. The typical marriage life path was frowned upon from an early age -1 was encouraged to make something of myself- to go out and get a degree - some knowledge-some life experience. Homemaker was not a viable career choice. There is a big difference between domestic domination and domestic bliss. I am not an anti feminist or a weak women who is seeking a ideal man to come and dominate her - a nineteen fifties housewife sort equipped with apron and hair net ready and waiting for her husband to come home with dinner waiting on the table. Am I being disrespectful to my gender by desiring the lifestyle that so many have fought and protested to break free of? Should I suppress my domestic dreams in order to avoid becoming just another woman under the thumb of man, fading into the background of the patriarchical society? As long as I autonomously elect to live this way any decision I chose must be fine - I had the right to choose, and I picked this one. I do not believe on any grounds that the place of a woman is in the home- just that perhaps it is the correct place for this one. thomaswarren is all in favour of the oddities of late night TV. I am an ardent proponent of late night television. Left drained and paranoid by the rigours of insomnia I often turn to television to fortify myself and am never surprised to find solace in the harsh glow of cathode rays in the early hours of silent, empty mornings. It is the genuine eclecticism and eccentricity of late night television that I find so engaging. Whilst prime time TV appears as artifice, carefully ordered in order to garner huge ratings for the vast egos of stars and producers alike, late night television has the appearance of being the production of a mind that is at once wanton and feeble. A random conglomeration of B-movies, chat shows and strange documentaries ensure that late night TV can offer the viewer a break from the more prosaic nature of daytime television. There are, of course, the incessant repeats in the wee hours, and viewers have every chance to review past episodes of Jeremy Kyle or Trisha if they so wish, or to seek comfort in the Sign Zone's repeats of Top Gear that have bemused stoned slackers since their inception. The originality of late night TV is also striking. Programme announcers are replaced with animated shorts, and the most bizarre examples of independent cinema are granted exposure. I imagine that the programme controllers of late night television are a strange bunch, perhaps the remnants of an acid fuelled generation with few places left to hide. They shall never be the Greg Dykes of this world, but instead must be content to revel in the weird, superseded by modernity and consumerism I picture them staying up all night abusing horse tranquiliser and sourcing oddities that would not be fit for public consumption at any reasonable of the day. The format of late night TV is also quite unique. Whilst programmes aired during the day are uniformly broken eveiy fifteen minutes for five minutes of dreary marketing in the form of advertising, late night TV defies conformity once more. Advert breaks may only consist of a single thirty second advert, and they appear at unusual intervals. I often ponder the possibility of an advertising conspiracy with regards to daytime TV in which the adverts appear on all channels simultaneously, perhaps in an attempt to ensure that we all must watch them and have less incentive to turn the channel. Even worse, listen qui- m etly at the start of the adverts and you will notice that they seem almost imperceptibly louder than the preceding programme a fact which my cracked mind, the sullen product of an artificial age, fears is the attempt of some terrible marketing psychologist to stimulate my attention and force me to leave the house and buy bottles of Cillit Bang, or ennervate me with an insatiable lust for shiny Citroens or Ikea Furniture. The content of adverts too is in keeping with the overall ambience of late night television. Budget adverts for insane products, the likes of which could only be backed by some schizophrenic investor with money and time to bum appear for their time in the limelight. Thirty second budget adverts, poorly lit and with the graphics of an infomercial, attest to the value of a multipurpose broom and ironing board that doubles as a portable shelf or dining table wash right of the back of the viewer as he or she fidgets, eyes transfixed on the tube, whilst unbeknownst to them a strange advert controller has prepared for their next ouvre a thirty second government advert about the dangers of salmonella, as the people who watch television at this hour are doubtless in need of some form of benign paternalistic governance. That is the crux of late night advertising: it is aimed at either the damnably stupid or the downright incapable. The viewer however knows this, and thus gleefully ignores the ministrations of the advertising men. When wrought of tiredness the viewer succumbs to the mirasmus of dreams and nightmares, and awakens refreshed to glory in the delightful piquancy of late night television later that very same day. It is a preserve of the liminal, a haven for programme controllers who need to escape the dreary confines of taking responsibility for pressing the button and unleashing Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway on sixty million fine innocent minds, for film makers too insane or too proud to acquiesce defeat and work on the latest ITV drama and for advertisers who, perhaps in revolt, seem to have forgotten their sense of purpose. Finally, it is a rich preserve of and for the viewer, the insomniac, the unemployable, the pot-head or the drunk. Oft knocked is the pleasure of late night TV, but I beseech you to forgo conventional wisdom and relish in the nocturnal viewing of TV. You will enjoy it. -HI S C=a •4k - tuesday the tuenty ninth of January, tuo thousand and eight tuelye OELb mil sacharobehmed unveils a fresh perspective on Islamic dress.. The audience applauded, whilst completely horrified and dumbstruck, I remained still and silent. Whilst not representing the views of all within the movement, at a feminist event held at the University of London a speaker made a comment along the lines of "liberating our Muslim sisters". Not only did I object to the patronizing tone, and generalisation implicit in such a statement, I was also appalled at the singling out of one religious community, as a 'target' for feminist action when there are so many spheres of life within which the feminist movement has a part to play I was also indignant to the fact that the assumption had been made that Muslim women are not able to liberate themselves. Being a feminist and being Muslim are not mutually exclusive. Just as being Catholic and a feminist might at first seem oppositional, in fact many women manage to marry the two (myself included). Religion is compatible with other ideologies, ways of thinking and looking at the world, just as I believe feminism is. Moreover, why do so many feminists see the movement for equality as being a strictly Western issue? Are British feminists really that ignorant of movements in regions where a veiled woman is the norm? Western feminists should instead be reaching out to Islamic feminist groups, and Arab women's groups. Rather than having culturally contrived notions of patriarchy and liberation, something is definitely to be learnt from veiled women. Notions of freedom may be different to our own perceptions of freedom, and equality may instead involve gaining this in separate gender spheres and roles, rather than one singular sphere Islamic feminism brings a lot to the table, raising intriguing questions: should we be striv-ing for all the same things as men, when it is recognized that women biologically, and in many ways physically and psychologicallyi different to men? Should we instead seek to carve out our own, gendered female space within society, ij one which is comple-"" mentary in nature to the male sphere that exists? There are numerous interesting concepts one can engage in constructive debate with. Our current notion of 'saving' and 'liberating' is highly unconstructive as has strong colonial/-undertones, rever-berating unpleasant peri-1 ods in history ' are Such a mindset is simply a metaphor for a new type of missionary endeavor - however rather than converting people to our faith, we are trying to convert them to our values, and belief systems other than their own. Besides, what are we 'liberating' Muslim women from, and to? I suggest that all that is being sought is to 'liberate' Muslim women from a non-Western form of patriarchy, one which we are poorly informed of, instead replacing it with our own struggle against patriarchy. The media-perpetuated image of whole countries is dominated by images of women - silent, covered up. For instance, throughout the Afghanistan invasion in 2001, the ubiquitous symbol of a whole nation, and a whole regime (the Taliban) was the cornflower blue burqa. Just because they transform the space they inhabit in a very visual way, the impact of seeing many women covered in such a way is very powerful. The uniformity is alien to our eyes, the lack of differentiation frequently associated with authoritarian control. Media outlets generally further serve to perpetuate this foreign 'other' and the stereotypes inextricably linked to covering. What is it that we find so threatening about the Islamic coverings? Is it a continuation of our irrational fear of an 'other' which looms larger than ever in this age of globalization? Much probably has to do with v, our lack of i.understand-,ing, and [^general [ confusion -(is the covering of the ; head proscribed by [the Quran, or is it not? U have heard •arguments to ¦ both sides. From my , very limited iu n d e r -standing, f which makes ' no claims 'whatsoever to 'expertise, only "modesty' is specified by the ' Quran. More 'specific details ' about the covering of women are 'instead revealed in the 'Hadith', early I Muslim practices transmitted orally and fonly committed to paper centuries after ft-'the Prophet Muhammad's ' death. As with all religious ^texts, wildly different inter-pretations can be drawn ;^;sl'from the written word, and the debate amongst scholars is a fierce one. Deliberations over what specific words mean has led some to believe that the most religiously correct and modest way of dress is the niqab, whilst others see this asf unnecessary, and that only the; hi jab, is required by Islam. Others still may see modesty as a requirement but express it through behavior rather than dress. First though, we must clarify the various terms. Throughout, I may tend to refer to 'covering', in the sense of Muslim women shrouding their bodies. Within this though there is much variety, which speaks of both religious interpretation and reli-giousity, as well as local/national traditions. . 'Coverings' range from the hijab,„ Arabic noun for 'cover, which is a headscarf, to the jil-bab, a full-length, long sleeved outer garment, to . the niqab, which shrouds ^ the face as well, often only leaving a slit for the eyes. Regional examples are the abaya, worn in the Gulf, in comparison to the Iranian chador. There is no doubt that cov- , ering the female body is, in; some instances, symbolic of| repression, however, like manyl i objects it has many different] | meanings. To interpret cover- ' J ing up solely as a ^^ symbol of male^ domination is to be very ignorant. A woman wearing a hijab may do so as a token of her morality, and her pious belief in God. She may wear a hijab as it is the cultural norm and to not do so would be an alien experience to her. She may wear a sequined, patterned hijab as a fashion statement. Covering in a certain way can also be an indicator of class. She may wear a niqba as a form of political protest, for instance in Palestine where woman have put on white niqbas in protest of Israeli action. I take issue with the fact that vast sweeping generalizations are made. Simply because women are in several instances forced by the state, or pressured by their family into wearing the hijab, does not mean all women wearing hijabs are oppressed. The mentality of "veil = repression" is an irksome one in its orientalist suppositions. Whilst I vehemently disagree with forced veiling, such as in Saudi Arabia and Iran, forced "unveiling" in the arena of the state (like schools, public institutions) in countries such as Tunisia and Turkey, are equally aggravating. Having recently studied Iran, I found one women's account of her grandmother's account of forced "unveiling" in 1936 as harrowing as the author's own forced "re-veiling" post-revolution, in 1980. Feminism to me entails not only equality of the sexes, but that freedom to choose. In sup-jporting women's rights, we are supporting women's ability to think for themselves and take decisions over their bodies. A woman should be able to express hersdf in anyway she sees fit, for instance if she wants to display her religiosity through covering up, she should have no problem doing so. I propose that the hijab can, in certain situations where the legal and political does not regulate the veil, whether imposing its wearing (e.g. Saudi Arabia, Iran) or its forced removal (e.g. French school), the veil is in fact a symbol of personal liberty and free-¦ dom of expression, an example of women exer-Jcising their own reli-gious and/or cultural values. Arguably, nowhere is this more true than the West. Whilst in the Middle East, covering up is the norm and women have a sense ; of anonymity through J their dress, in the UK, a j woman even a woman f wearing a hijab stands out ] J enormously, f I Growing up in the Gulf, , I do feel that my cons' sciousness of female cov-j ering is different. Veiled women, more often wearing a full black abaya, was the norm for the Emirati population. Covered, with only feet, hands and face showing, groups of women would meet in Starbucks, go shopping in Zara, thus Western symbols of capitalism and Arab-Muslim cultural-reli-gious modes of veiling have long been associated in my mind - they are not two completely separate spheres. However, even I find that the female passenger on the London bus wearing a niqba grabs my attention far more than any other passenger. And I have great admiration for her, given that covering up in the West is such a visible statement, and frequently the target of prejudice and abuse. What is interesting however is that more than six years on since their exalted 'liberation' from Taliban rule and the laws associated with it, it is typical that some form of covering is still opted for. Whilst some coverings such as the burqa are seen as an image of repression, whilst many Afghani women took off their iconic burqas, this was instead to don a hijab. leaver 29 Janua Get V * A r i./'~ ¦ 't, •' M:li- B ^ 1 jT ¦ i I Clockwise, from left: Ilya Repm s 17 October 1905'; Pyotr Mlturich's 'Portrait of Arthur Lourie'; Kazimir Malevich's 'Black Square'; 'Woman in Blue' by Paul Cezanne Opposite: 'Danse' by Henri Matisse liv ¥ he me-Vestern Itsova's )ears as the in-nts of attered i brick jrgence Popova activist iinment ition of Soviet re to a eastern vowels lames -man's ¦ticular, s skil-Jer im-ight of :ed the e slick ind his ries are e great Tatlin liberating wall pieces from their conventional sedentary wall pose, instead creating reliefs between comers that support unconventional sculpture floating in a newly created geometric shell. Employing the artifacts of Russia's industrial leap forward, the craftsman cunningly reappropriates the efforts of the labourer, expropriating the capitalist middle-man from the process of creation and national progress. 'From Russia' encompasses the near immaculate conception of the Russian art scene, and with its inclusion of pieces that are encumbered with the facts of war and revolution, the historical context within which the East-West opposition existed is never beyond our conscious reach. For anyone curious to know how art emboldens the fury of its time, see this exhibit -and bring a paper and pen.M Russians do it better? Top: Valentin Serov, 'Rape of Europa' Right: Paul Gauguin 'Vairaumati tei oa' Red isn't Dead Blue is True Palestine's prison is bursting at the seams Vladimir Unkovsld-Koric^ The Palestinian national movement is in a paradoxical situation. Across the world, the Palestinian cause evokes an ever growing sympathy and has more support than ever. When two million marched under the banner of the Stop the War Coalition in London on 15 February 2003, their official slogan was 'No war on Iraq - freedom for Palestine.' But the movement inside Palestine is facing arguably its most difficult period for decades: six months ago, in June 2007, a US/Israel-engi-neered coup split the Palestinian national movement between rival factions in the West Bank and Gaza. The West and Israel are working hard to create a Palestinian 'state' in these territories - for, in the words of Israeli Prime Minister Ehmud Olmert in Haaretz in November 2007, 'If the day comes when the two-state solution collapses, and we face a South African-style struggle for equal voting rights (also for the Palestinians in the territories), then, as soon as that happens, the state of Israel is finished.' Olmert has come as close as one could be to explaining the ultimate logic of an ideology based on 'apartness' (the Afrikaans for that is 'apartheid', which should be more familiar). One state for us, one state for them. But these are not to be equal states - they never were meant to be. Ilan Pappe has written of the foundation of the state of Israel that 'the Jews were only one third of the population by 1947 and most of them had arrived in Palestine only a few years earlier...From March 1948 until the end of that year the [Zionist] • plan was implemented despite the attempt by some Arab states to oppose it, which failed. Some 750,000 Palestinians were expelled, 531 villages were destroyed and 11 urban neighbourhoods demolished. Half of Palestine's population was uprooted and half of its villages destroyed. The state of Israel was established in over 80 percent of Palestine, turning Palestinian villages into Jewish settlements and recreation parks, but allowing a small number of Palestinian to remain citizens in it.' Ever since, as a Haaretz commentary explained on 30 September 1951, 'Israel has been given a role not unlike that of a watchdog... Should the West prefer for one reason or another to close its eyes it can rely on Israel punishing severely those of the neighbouring states whose lack of manners towards the West has exceeded the proper limits.' Indeed, the Zionist colonial settler state receives a third of all US overseas aid. According to Stephen Zunes, of the University of San Francisco: 'Total U.S. aid to Israel is approximately one-third of the American foreign-aid budget, even though Israel comprises just .001 percent of the world's population and already has one of the world's higher per capita incomes. Indeed, Israel's GNP is higher than the combined GNP of Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.' The other, much smaller state - the Palestinian one - is now been split in two. The struggle between Fatah and Hamas has divided the West Bank and Gaza. Ever since Hamas won a democratic election in January 2006, the West and Israel have conspired to overthrow Hamas. In April 2007, Israel announced a shipment of a million rounds of ammunition to the Palestinian Authority forces, while 500 elite Egyptian-trained and Israel-armed Fatah fighters crossed from Egypt into Gaza. After Hamas prevented an imperialist-sponsored coup in Gaza in June the same year, Israel has subjected the people of the territory to virtually total blockade. But, as the Guardian's leader put it on 24 January: 'If you bottle up 1.5 million people in a territory 25 miles long and six miles wide, and turn off the lights, as Israel has done in Gaza, the bottle will burst.' And that is what happened. The wall did fall. Explosions in the early hours of 23 January destroyed up to two-thirds of the twelve kilometre wall that segregate Gaza from Egypt. Hundreds of thousands fled Gaza to Egypt to get basic commodities for their families. "There are no signs that F^tah will return to its gloiy days of the 1960s. But the heroic people of Gaza have suggested that the claustrophobic limits imposed by imperialism on the Middle East are bursting at the seams. The resistance in Palestine needs and deserves all our all support and solidarity - now. Mayor Livingstone, I presume? Ken shouldn't count on it Annette Pacey After two triumphant terms as Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone until recently seemed practically guaranteed a third victory in the coming London Mayoral election. His campaign will point to his achievements during his eight years in the job, which even his critics have to concede are pretty impressive. Most of the improvements are transport-relat-ed. LSE students from abroad may have been shocked at London's expensive, overcrowded, inefficient and generally shabby public transport system. Indeed it is woefully inadequate for a supposedly world class city, but as a Londoner of some 13 years I can tell you it used to be much, much worse. Before the introduction of the Oyster card in 2003, London buses would be held up at stops for ages as passengers queued up to pay cash fares. Soviet-length queues in tube stations to buy travel cards were similarly routine. Ken has poured funding into public transport, especially buses; raising money in part from the congestion charge which he claims has reduced traffic congestion in central London by 20 per cent. The congestion charge remains controversial; but less ambiguous improvements like the redesign of the formerly traffic-choked Trafalgar Square and the infinitely useful 'Journey Planner' on the TFL website, not to mention the crowning glory of the winning Olympic bid, have made Ken an opponent hard to beat. His seemingly unassailable position has meant that the main parties have had a tough time finding candidates to run against him. Even his own party, Labour, was forced to take him back after throwing him out for running as an independent in 2000. This time the Tories have put forward bumbling upper class twit Boris Johnson, who as an Eton-educated chum of David Cameron seems to have little in common with the average Londoner. Until now, few thought that Boris had a hope of becoming Mayor; but criticisms over corrupt practices and lack of accountability in the heart of the Livingstone administration are now making Ken's election victory in May look far from a sure thing. The allegations of corruption centre around the London Development Agency, a functional body of the Greater London Authority, which funds community groups in London. Some of these community groups have been unable to account for all the money they have been given, and some have shut down without filing proper accounts, leaving questions over what happened to the money. Worse still, one of the Mayor's closest advisors, Lee Jasper, has been accused of having links with some of the suspect community groups. Mr Jasper was cleared in an internal investigation, but a group of MPs are calling for a full inquiry. Then just last week, Mr Jasper's deputy Rosemary Emodi was caught out in a lie and forced to resign for taking a freebie holiday to a luxury resort in Nigeria, which paid for the trip appar-ently in the hope of future business ties. The Greater London Authority at first defended her before being forced to admit she had lied when BBC London presented evidence of the junket from the airline. The most concerning aspect of these dodgy dealings is the Mayor's casual and unapologetic response to the concerns they have raised. On the BBC's Today programme, he sounded arrogant and out of touch. He insisted that he had total faith in his advisors and refused to consider that practices at the Mayor's office were anything less than squeaky clean. Dismissing questions about his own accountability, he claimed that position of Mayor had been specifically designed to be "presidential" so that changes could be implemented faster than the "glacial" pace of national politics. He even had the nerve to say that if Londoners didn't like it, they could get another Mayor. This is not good enough. Ken needs to demonstrate to Londoners that he takes corruption allegations seriously. It is not acceptable for him to shrug off serious breaches such as those made by Ms Emodi as one-offs, particularly when a cloud of suspicion still hangs over another of his senior advisors. Despite the lack of a decent alternative for Mayor, if Ken continues to run the Mayor's office as his own personal fiefdom, then he risks being taught a lesson about accountability at the ballot box by Londoners in the May election. yiebeaverjfeatm|es@^ Notes on Nothing Lucky Number Seven LSE student union politics came close to the brink on Thursday. We don't need to take it there again Student unions exist to make grand political gestures. Some of these are the right gestures at the right time; many aren't. The one we heard last Thursday, to make Israeli "Apartheid" history, counted as one of the latter. Cheap, devaluing use of the rhetoric of the former Afrikaner regime certainly made this motion the wrong gesture to make. Adopting this supremely tendentious language would have set a baleful precedent on two counts. Further debate on the Middle Eastern conflict would have been shut down for good, as the motion's proponents must have well known. Secondly, a green light would have been given for ever more extremist; rhetoric to poison the LSE Students' Union's political discourse, making the campus a nastier and more brutish place to live. This motion also came at the wrong time - it was far beyond its own time, in fact. The arguments of the motion's proponents seemed to hark back to 2004 or 2002, when Israeli settlers were still in Gaza and the West Bank was stuck in a minor shooting war. Their portrayal of Israeli heavy-handedness might have had some bite then, but no longer. The A1 Aqsa Intifada is effectively over. A Palestinian state is being built in the West Bank - far too slowly, but too strongly for Israeli extremists to turn back the clock. Gaza has been lost; but to Hamas, not to Israeli aggression.The future needs economic opportunity and security cooperation, not boycotts and divestment. The motion's proponents might be tempted to see a silver lining in the slim margin of their defeat. They shouldn't bother. In ramping up the Apartheid rhetoric and stuffing the order paper with their full political programme, they went for broke. It does not get much more serious than threatening divestment "until Israel stops its regime of apartheid and the oppression and colonisation of Palestinians." The Students' Union has now voted to reject that programme in its entirety. It cannot therefore now be resurrected with any good faith. The motion's proponents will not be able to wriggle out of their predicament by reintroducing parts of it piecemeal in future meetings, either. The rejection was total. Palestinianist ideology in the Students' Union is history, hoist on its own petard. That can only be good news for Palestinians. CORRECTION: Nadir El-Edroos authored 'Pakistan's Black Hole' in issue 678. Apologies for the omission. Joseph Cotterill Features Editor 29 January 2008 ^Beaver 15 FEATURES US2008 \ Greg White (below) thinks the Democrats and the media - should stop the Identity politics; here Tim Root lays the blame on Hillary Clinton The Democrats want change, that much is certain, and in Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama they have two firsts to choose from, a first female president and a first black president. This choice has been implicit in the campaign, almost subliminal, and in fact often irrelevant. Both would, in theory, carry the same message, that is one of change, even if to differing degrees. However, the blatant competition between gender and race didn't really begin between the candidates until last week, and perhaps, with half-black South Carolina looming at the end of it, this was always inevitable. Bill Clinton, while campaigning for his wife in Charleston, even pointed out that voting for a president along racial and gender lines "is understandable because people are proud when someone who they identify with emerges for the first time." This certainly is understandable. It is even acceptable for the candidates to pander to it (this is politics we are talking about, after all); however, that is not to say that the way in which this pandering is conducted cannot be unacceptable. Unfortunately, the Clinton campaign has descended the gender-card slippery slope before, and in the now escalating gender/race debate she must be careful not to undermine her genuine appeal and make the black man sat next to her a beacon not just of greater change but also greater tact. Back in November last year, Geraldine Ferraro, the Democrats' vice presidential candidate in 1984 and a Clinton supporter, spoke out on the front page of the New York Times in reaction to a debate the week before. She felt Obama and John Edwards had teamed up and unfairly attacked Clinton, and that this amounted to sexism. This reflects a crafty ploy to solidify Clinton's female base, to supposedly highlight the belligerence of the male gender and even to imply that sexism is a more potent issue in American culture than racism. Regrettably, this inclination on Clinton's part dates back further than just three months ago. She has played the victim card on the basis of gender before. When she was running for Senate in 2000, her opponent, Rick Lazio, wagged his finger at her in a debate and demanded she sign a campaign pledge not to use soft money. He appeared brutish, and the spin was barely necessary. If he was so callous as to attack a woman, how could he represent them in the Senate? Lazio's campaign quickly crumbled as women rose up en masse in Clinton's defense. For Clinton to win the Democratic presidential nomination in this way would be a horrendous shame. Equally, if she were to try and ultimately see it backfire, this would undermine the significance of the change a Democratic candidate could bring to America. Crying in New Hampshire, and watching it pay dividends, was a worrying step backwards. We can't avoid people voting according to gender and race, as Obama's winning 80 per cent of the black vote this weekend in South Carolina proves, but we can avoid abusing this reality. Bill Clinton offered a refreshing reminder last week that it hasn't yet quite come to this: "As far as I can tell, neither Senator Obama nor Hillary have lost votes because of their race or gender. They are getting votes, to be sure, because of their race or gender." ¦ Race, and the Clinton Coronation m ¦ P *. sii ' -J' i k f % Recent events in the Democratic race have suddenly mired the American presidential nomination season in a swamp of prejudice. What should be a process that moves towards acceptance and convergence upon one candidate has turned into a sharply differentiated contest. The Democratic primary, with its fron-trunner candidates being female and African American, is turning into a contest to see who can profess the most loyalty to either gender or race. Senators Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton have been subjected to insinuations from each other's campaign and, primarily, from obtuse media coverage that has overemphasised a small amount of provocative statements. The Clinton camp, including former President Bill Clinton, has steered close to using phraseology of a distinctly anti-African American slant. Comments from the campaign have included mentions of Obama's past drug use, the possibility of him being a drug dealer, and the phrase "shuck and jive," an embarrassing near-slur. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, the Clinton supporter who made the remark, said of the Iowa and New Hampshire results that "it's not a TV crazed race. Frankly you can't buy your way into it, you can't shuck and jive at a press conference. All those moves you can make with the press don't work when you're in someone's living room." Senator Obama's rhetorical eloquence has been favourably covered by the press. However, Mr Cuomo was quick to clarify that his words were not aimed at any one candidate, being a statement on the primary process overall. This non-scandal nevertheless shows how sensitised the media have become to the nomination race's racial connotations. This is not just Clinton machine politics. The Obama camp exaggerated Hillary Clinton's famous New Hampshire cry moment and underestimated its legitimacy. Yet the media have sought, unabashedly, to be as contentious as possible to attract viewership. The Obama and Clinton campaigns spent several days debating Hillary Clinton's statement on the importance of former President Lyndon B. Johnson in the fruition of the Civil Rights Movement, as compared to Dr. Martin Luther King's. It is all a bit ridiculous. But it continued to be spurred on by a press culture that is ready to nip at any mistake or slip on the part of the candidates. More and more media outlets have been uncharacteristically biased about the whole primary process. One media personality, Chris Matthews of NBC's Hardball, had to issue a public apology for comments on Hillary Clinton which were seen as both offensive and highly biased towards Mr Obama. The fact that this could even happen during an election cycle, on a station other than FOX News, certainly helps to explain just how polarising and childish the debate has become on the Left in America. Seeing his opportunity to strike a pose of moderation, John Edwards stood up and said at one televised debate that he represented the adult wing of the Democrat party. Now it seems the choice for voters is between race and gender. Loyalty to one's womanhood or ancestry is more important than personality, or "Miii Yet again the Democrats could lose an Immense political opportunity by being too negative about each other forbid, policy. Elections in America have always been discouragingly base, but 2008 has already gone beyond previous outings. What this says about America is rather disheartening. With the chance to elect a candidate different from the old white men of tradition at a time when America most needs change, the country is, instead, revelling in burning candidates at the stake. More viewers are tuning in to the debates and primary coverage than ever before. While that can be attributed to its importance, it can also be attributed to an unhealthy degree of celebritisation. It is as if America has acquired its presidential versions of Amy Winehouse and Britney Spears, as the press maddeningly combs every element of candidates' speeches and personal foibles for fault or failure. The deteriorating, mud-spattered images of their candidates do no favours to a Democratic Party with a real chance of reclaiming the White House. Instead of rallying around what the candidates share - a set of policy goals remarkably similar in content, and a shared hatred for the past eight years of George W. Bush's reigfi - they are instead choosing to tear each other down for past errors. As usual. Democrats are playing into the Republicans' hands, failing to define the election on their terms early enough in the cycle. Unfortunately, this all seems eerily similar to the Democrats' failure in the last election. While that campaign was not nearly as heated as 2008 is shaping up to be, the Democrats' primary season produced in John Kerry a diluted, consensus result that was ¦ hardly a candidacy at all. Instead Senator Kerry was a shambles of a character, broken by many years of partisanship in the senate, and easily outflanked by a Republican smear campaign as a fake war hero, liberal tax-raiser, and flip-flopper. Instead of keeping their powder dry for the Republican versus Democrat bout that will shake American politics in the autumn, the Obama and Clinton campaigns are already doing the Republicans' work for them. By the end of this campaign, no matter if it is Mr Obama or Mrs Clinton who wins, the Democrat Party will struggle to place itself on positive footing, regardless of who they are campaigning against. A John McCain-led Republican Party, with his defiant anti-Washington record and positive stance on the war in Iraq, may seem a Reagan-like choice for the electorate at that stage. Yet again the Democrats could lose an immense political opportunity gifted them by the failure of their adversaries by being too negative about each other. The effect on the party would be incalculable, but the effect on America's future would certainly be catastrophic. ¦ 16 iBeaver 29 January 2008 FEATURES M V By the time you read this, Jews and many others around the world will have completed their annual observation ofYom HaShoah -Holocaust remembrance day. The horror of the memory - one of guilt, disbelief, revulsion, pity - is confronted in different ways by Jews living in different parts of the world. This article will explore the dynamics of three places where I have experienced this memorial - Israel, the United States, and Eastern Europe. Americans remember the Holocaust through the filter of the media - as fewer and fewer survivors remain, movies and books take their place. Observations are usually orderly and solemn, and public memorials attempt to give the visitor a very up-close feel for the tragedy and humanity of the victims. Personal stories (such as the diary of Anne Frank) feature prominently. Museums use ploys such as routing the visitor through one of the infamous rail cars that transported Jews to the camps. The emphasis is on the experience of grief, and on interaction with the exhibits. In Israel, the Shoah, or Holocaust, is an integral part of the national psyche. The state was bom of the ashes of Europe's Jewry, and in many ways it has taken on a symbolism to exemplify the persecution of Jews throughout history. Jews from many parts of the world have taken it on as part of their own history of suffering - Yemenite, Indian, Ethiopian and American Israelis all speak of the holocaust as part of their own tragedy, emphasising it far above the discrimination and even persecution their own ancestors may have faced. Holocaust has in many ways become part of the Israeli narrative, overshadowing the individual family histories of many Israelis. There are two memorial days on the Israeli calendar -Yom Hazikaron, to remember fallen soldiers, and Yom HaShoah, Holocaust remembrance day. The public observations are similar - at a set time in the day a siren sounds throughout the country, oji every radio and from every public building. The country grinds to a halt as cars pull over and the drivers get out to stand in silence, employees stand up at their desks and schoolchildren pause in their classes. The eerie wail of the siren is the only sound for a few moments, and then it ends, and people go back to their activities, often with tears in their eyes. The main Holocaust memorial and museum in Israel isYadVashem, a large complex just west of Jerusalem. Its presentation of the genocide is notable for its aloofness, and the memorials are brooding and imposing. There is less emphasis on interacting with specific stories, and more allusions to the very scale of the massacre - the memorial to children murdered in the camps is a hallway with a single candle multiplied hundreds of times by using mirrors, while elsewhere a single flame burns in the center of a cavernous warehouse-like building with the names of the death camps written in dark letters on the floor. Few attempts are made to involve the viewer in the suffering; instead, Yad Vashem presents the Holocaust to the visitor like a cathedral presents faith to the parishioner - with a level of awe and a feeling of smallness in the face of something inconceivably vast. Perhaps the most personal note is the small garden with saplings representing the "righteous among the nations" - Gentiles who risked their own safety by sheltering those fleeing the Nazis. The entrance to Yad Vashem is dominated by an imposing statue, copied almost chisel for chisel from the original monument in Warsaw. The dramatic image commemorates the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto, where imprisoned Jews rose against the German occupiers in a poorly armed and ultimately forlorn act of rebellion Yad Vashem presents the Holocaust to the visitor like a cathedral presents faith to the parishioner - with a level of awe and a fteeling of smallness in the face of something inconceivably vast against deportation to the death camps. Much like the venerated story of Masada, where in 72 CE an extreme faction of Zealots committed suicide rather than surrender to their Roman occupiers, the story of the Ghetto uprising is especially appealing to Israelis. It offers a respite from the notion that the genocide happened to a meek people who allowed themselves to be targeted without resistance, and in many ways plays to a nationalist need for Jewish self-defence in times of danger. Memorials in Eastern Europe are even farther removed from the personal stories of the victims, and the strongest presence is the absence of a living community. Many cities offer "Jewish Tours" - Prague, Warsaw and Krakow all advertise their history as hubs of Jewish learning and art. But here the magnificent synagogues are empty, the numberless graves unmarked, and the survivors all but gone. Poland's death camp ruins, which pay host to thousands of visitors each year, walk a thin line between tourist attraction and memorial. The hallways of the bunkers where Jews, homosexuals, gypsies, the disabled and others selected for slaughter by the Nazis spent their last days are lined with the expressionless photographs of detainees. The walls of the museum at Auschwitz are glass windows into halls filled with mountains of shoes, suitcases, toys, reading glasses and even the human hair of people who were slaughtered at the camp. Here, again, the focus is on the staggering scale. The next generation will know a world in which all the survivors of the camps and their stories will be gone, removed by at least a decade. This generation will not see numbers on their grandparents arms, they will not hear the stories of miraculous survival in destitute conditions, they will not be descendants of the one child who survived when her entire family did not. The number which has gained a significance all of its own - six million - may vanish into their history lessons with the casualty numbers of other wars and genocides. There is an irony in thinking that such a horrible episode in history could have a moral, some form of redeeming lesson. But if anything is to be remembered as we mark its memorial, it is that the forces of civilization must be guarded from becoming a vehicle for the forces of destruction and genocide, and that modernity has not brought respite from barbarity. B 29 January 2008 -1 .4 Frankly, Time magazine made the wrong man their 2007 Person of the Year. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who received December's award, should surely have been postponed this particular glory until the end of this year, in recognition of the contortions he will have to execute in order to maintain his grip on power after the constitution forces him to step down. Instead, the award should have gone after all to the reported second favourite, General David Petraeus of the United States Army, who has headed the Multinational Force in Iraq for a year. As the executor of the Bush administration's tactical "surge" of extra troops into Baghdad and its surrounding provinces from the middle of last year. General Petraeus is widely credited with having turned the Iraqi military situation around. Since he is also the architect of a much wider strategic shift towards fighting a long-temi, low-profile counterin-surgency in Iraq, Petraeus' influence is going to be felt for some time to come. In any case, he may not actually be around to pick up the 2008 award. The "surge" will be long over by then. In one of its last big political acts in Washington, the Bush administration will in all likelihood promote General Petraeus to a position above even command in Iraq. This means an assignment on either the Joint Chiefs of Staff - where his dextrous military expertise would probably be wasted, the overall US military command in the Middle East, or as Supreme Allied Commander Europe, the top NATO job for a soldier. (The New York Times recently reported that SACEUR is the likeliest bet). However, this may all be a case of General Petraeus' charisma getting too far ahead of itself. In truth, Petraeus's military impact on the War on Terror will not be as great as has been made out. In the first place, take the structure of the US Army. The demands of General Petraeus' style of warfare runs in diametric opposition to the military's shop-soiled state, which, even though it is the most adaptive and powerful military in the world, is starting to feel overstretch. The Army began falling short of the numbers it needs to recruit each year in 2005. Drop out rates have been on the march since then, especially among recruits the Pentagon considers "high quality" and wants to retain. Most amazing of all, 44 per cent of the 2001 class of West Point graduates left the Army at the earliest available opportunity, in 2006. These are after all the men and women who grew up in 9/11's shadow. Human capital lost from America's premier military academy is moreover supremely hard to replace. In general, also, falling short in one year means that the Army must recruit even more the next in order to fill up the empty spaces car- ried over. As a consequence, recruitment is having to plough social furrows the Army would rather have left untouched. In 2006, the recruitment age was raised to 40 and then to 42 just months later. Army leaders are also among the first to point out the strains risked by leaving low- to middle-income families to bear the brunt of America's military commitments abroad. The education gap emerging in the ranks is surely much more ominous for the future, however, and it throws a major spanner in the works of General Petraeus' plan to turn the United States' strategy for Iraq into an intelligent counterinsurgent campaign. 2007 marked the third year running that the Army has missed the benchmark it has set itself for recruits' level of educational attainment. In 2003, as the Iraq war began, 94 per cent of new recruits had at least a regular high school diploma. This had dropped to 83.5 per cent by 2005, and to '70.7 per cent in 2007. The benchmark the Army is supposed to achieve remains at 90 per cent. The Army's own aptitude tests tell a similar story. In 2004, 0.6 per cent of recruits scored between 10 and 30 per cent in these tests, placing them in the lowest 'IV' category, and the Army at that time was not allowed to recruit more than 2 per cent of its annual influx from this bottom of the barrel. Nevertheless, more than 4 per cent of 2007's new soldiers came from here. These changes make a palpable dif- rules require both a "clear, nuanced and empathetic appreciation of the essential nature of the conflict" and an "understanding of the motivation, strengths and weaknesses of the insurgent." In that case, the United States Army is failing to create the "strategic corporals" who will carry out the hard slog of counterinsur-gency, from negotiating with local political leaders and doling out humanitarian relief to fighting a war. The emerging post-surge military environment in Iraq also looks less than kindly on the drive to turn the US Army into a supple fighting force. Take campaigns like this month's 'Iron Harvest' operation to flush A1 Qaeda out of Diyala province. The tactics used, such as deploying heavy airpower to pound terrorist positions The demands of General Petraeus' style of warfare runs in diametric opposition to the military's shop-soiled state ference in combat. Replacing a Category IV tank gunner with a less dull Category Ilia trooper, for example, raises accuracy by 34 per cent on average, according to a study conducted by the RAND corporation, a defence think tank close to the United States government. This all raises some issues for the Petraeus style of fighting the United States' many minor land wars in Asia - both those still in progress, and those which are surely still to come. If the US Army's new intakes can't even shoot straight, then they are hardly going to be able to follow the strictures of the Counterinsurgency Field Manual which General Petraeus co-authored last year. After all, the new which had set up close to civilian areas, stretch the definition of a light, nimble counterinsurgency to breaking point. The celebrated surge statistics do show an undeniable drop in the sectarian violence that almost tipped Iraq over the edge as 2007 dawned. However, the means used to do this -massive troop deployments in urban centres - go well against the overall aim of taking the burden off an exhausted Army. The surge's opportunity cost to the War on Terror would have been worth it had political progress been made within the Iraqi government - the true test of a counterinsurgency. Here again, General Petraeus has allowed means to conflict with ends. American forces have for example got into the bad habit of using Sunni tribes - their former enemies in the early, pro-Saddam insurgency - to take the fight to A1 Qaeda, using their unparalleled contacts and local knowledge. Unfortunately, few of these so-called "Awakening Councils" trust the Shia-dominated central government in Baghdad, and they themselves are not to be trusted in turn. Not only have some Awakening troops refused to raise the Iraqi national flag, but American forces have already engaged tribe militias who have turned on them. Empathy for (former) opponents, as the Counterinsurgency Field Manuel reommends, would surely reveal that the tribes are playing a much bigger • political game with American support, in the knowledge that the US Army is increasingly keen to rely on them. Structurally and operationally, the United States Army remains less than ideally calibrated for the "Long War." The onrush of events in Iraq show at any rate that General Petraeus' vision for fighting the War on Terror is running out of time. He may, however, soon be following the political clock more closely still. Petraeus is obviously very skilled at working the media, and he still has the gleam of the early surge behind him. Assignment to SACEUR by George Bush may take some of Iraq's shine away from him, but it will also prevent mud sticking if Iraq eventually fails. 2008's likely Democrat in the White House will be very wary of tarnishing those all-important national security credentials by demoting one of Iraq's few heroes, especially one whose political allegiance remains unknown. Generals do not generally transition well to presidents, as Douglas MacArthur showed in the Cold War and Wesley Clark more recently. Having - almost - appeared to save Iraq from itself, a 2012 run would, after all, be comparatively short work for David Petraeus. I LISTINGS 18 ^Beaver 29 January 2008 ISdD www.lsesu.com TUESDAY, 29th JANUARY n 1 *00 RAG, Sign-up on Houghton" Street* 12:00 Knitting Knitting, Quad^ 18:00 Sailing Course: Q&A sessior Sailing, Dill 18:30 Lecture: Female FTSE Series Secrets to success, Women in Business, Hong King, Theatre, WEDNESDAY, 30rd JANUARY 13:15 Mass Chaplaincy, 14:00 Lecture: How to convert a summer internship into a full time job CSSA, E304' LSESU China Development Society Lectures \ V-,' ^ 18:30 Lecture:The emergence of | Art in Alternative Investment Strategy Business for Arts, E304 ) I 19:00 Swing Dance (Beginners) j Swing dance. Parish Hall | THURSDAY, 31th JANUARY 13:00 Union General Meeting LSESU, Old Theatre f 16:00 Accenture Business Case Study Skills Session CSSA,S421 ^ 19:00 Global Dinner People & Planet, ^ Underground \ } Hip Hop (Beginner) ^ Dance Society, Parish Hail | 20:30 Hip Hop (Advanced) { Dance Society, Parish Hall t ! FRIDAY; 1st FEBRUARY | .21:00 Crush! I LSE SU, Underground Bar; | Quad,Tuns } SU EXECUTIVE OFFICE HOURS General Secretary, Eladhil Bakeer Markar Thursdays 2.30PM, Quad Treasurer, Libby Meyer Thursdays 2.30PM, Quad Communications Officer^ Kayt Berry Thursdays 2.30PM, Quad Education and Welfare, Ruhana Ali Thursdays 2.30PM, Quad Women's Officer, Daisy Mitchell-Forster Thursdays 12PM, Quad Environment and Ethics, Aled Dilwyn Fisher Thursdays 12PM, Quad LGBT Officer, Dominic Rampat Wednesdays 10AM,N3 Societies Officer, ^ Caiys Morgan Thursdays 2PM, Quad - I I What If We're All Wrong? -Mounting Risks For China's Economy When: Wednesday 30 January 2008,2pm Where: D602 Who: Yoel Sano Although China's economy continues to roar ahead, these numbers disguise several mounting risks. If left unad-dressed, they could result in a sharper than expected slowdown with potentially serious ramifications. The talk will identify the sources of these risks and describe how they could jeopardise China's economic performance. The speaker win also discuss the difficulties that the authorities are facing in tackling these problems. Yoel Sano is Head of Asia Country Risk at Business Monitor International (BMI). Investment Strategy and Business Results: One Multi-national's Experience in China When: Friday 1 February 2008, 2pm Where: U8 Who: Mr. John Dorsey John Dorsey, former Vice President and General Counsel for Honeywell International Inc. for Asia Pacific from 1994- 2005, was present at the creation and implementation of 21 investments in China during 1994 to 2005. Honeywell started investing in China in 1994 with one employee in Beijing and one in Hong Kong, and ended 2004 with nearly 14,000 employees in China and over $300 million in sales. Mr. Dorsey will speak about the corporate and individual investment strategies they used, what worked and what did not work, and what they learned from the process. This week's CRUSH! IS HUGE! MASSIVE OKTOBER-FEST in the Underground with German beers, benchs, rather biixom barmaids and pretzels, all surrounded by anthemic beer hall tunes! In the Quad,RNB+HIP HOP goes one on one with PURE Student cheese hits as Legacy and Josey Kray of STX3 take on DJ Jonny Rock Box! Superbowl Crush PLUS: ITS SUPERBOWL WEEKEND!!!!! ALL US of A ID. holders AND GEN COURSE students get in for £1 all night long!!!!! There will be loads of ameri-cana giveaways and partying too! PLUS: AU card holders are in for £3 all nite long! PLUS: As usual, if its your birthday in the week, email us by friday and you will get in FREEE! All your mates will Q JUMP and get in for £3 too! "The Emergence of Art in Alternative Investment Strategy" When: Wednesday, 30 January, 6:30 pm Where: E304 Who: Randall Wlllette, Founder and Managing Director of Fine Art Wealth Management Find out about: The impact of Global Wealth Creation on the Art Market Art and Wealth Management Strategy Art as an Alternative Asset Class Emergence of Art Investment Funds I I Randall Wlllette is the founder and Managing Director of Fine Art Wealth Management, the first wealth management consultancy dedicated to art as an alternative asset class. He is a specialist in the wealth structuring of art assets and his firm is one of the leading providers of intelligence on art investment funds to qualified investors and industry professionals, In 2003, Randall was Executive Director and Head of Art Banking for UBS Wealth Management in London. He was responsible for building its global art banking franchise in Europe and America. He developed and implemented a global marketing strategy for UBS Art Banking integrating art assets into the Bank's overall wealth management strategy for private clients. His credentials include over 20 years combined experience in investment banking, structured finance, and private wealth management. Randall has lectured and written extensively on various aspects of art and wealth management. SICK OF BEING THROWN OUT AT Z^D'CO'CO JOIN THE LSESU'S 24 HOUR LIBRARY CAMPAIGN I I c H SIGN THE PETITION ATWWW.LSESU.COM/LiBRARY24CAMPAIGN 29 January 8 ^Beaver 19 LISTINGS GETIMBEIWEENTHE SHEETS WITH US. COLLECTIVE MEETING FRIDAY, 1 FEBRUARY 2008 6pm, H216 ELHCTIONS : FEATURES EDITOR Commissions content, edits and lays out pages, maintains a team of writers. Interviews politicians. PARTC EDITOR Edits the career pull out. Sources content, lays out pages. Meets big City names. WEB EDITOR Manages the website. Works across sections to ensure the web exposure of the Beaver SPORTS EDITOR Commissions content, edits and lays out pages, reports on AU gossip and matches. - i s-fc Feb BU Tuesday 29-th Jan Monday 2l3t.h Jan Week-Long Even-ts Global &ratn 0pm Underground S>ar Holocaust; Memorial 5.30pm Shaw Library Global 3runc\n &owl A World in Still Photo^rphy Exhibition Library Foyer 'S-trategies for reducing poverty in Latin America 0.3Opm New Theatre Global Drain 0pm Underground Bar Friday 1 st- Feb Thursday 5 "I gt Jan Wednesday ^Q-Vn Jan Global Show 0pm Old Theatre Belly Dancing Workshop 2pm Parish Hall Global Dinner 0.3Opm Underground Bar Oktoberfest 7pm Underground &ar Superbowl Crush &pm The Quad & Tuns Global Show 7.30pm Old Theatre Before the Ram 10.3Opm U3 LSE We've created a new kind of student tang experience that offers everything from studio rooms to fiats for you and up to five friends in a great range of city iocations So you can iive how you want, where you want and with who you want. Simple. www.unite-students.com promotional code LSE/0108 The heart of student living I M i l-; What*s the difference between BEAVER and HUMMUS? HUMMUS TASTES BETTER! Get a free Double Chocolate Brownie OR MalabI at hummus bros with this ad* *Wlth the purchase of any hummus dish. Expires 8FEB08. Subject to availability. hummus bros hbro8.co.uilanet Financ^l^^. 1 Time; ^O'pm Rooife 17 Thursday 7th TALK; The role of the private sector in development -Oxfam case study Speaker; Nicole Day Time: 5.00 pm Room: E 304 DEBATE; THBT Fair Trade is Good Time; 7.00 pm Room: various, Clement House Friday 8th SEMINAR: MOVIE SCREEN- Photojournalism as ING: The a medium for inter- Corporation national develop- Time; 6 pm ment awareness, onwards Case study on mod- Room: D 2( ern-day slavery in Brazil. Guest: Photographer Eduardo Martino Time: 5.00pm loom: S Qu cue laami^ i/ioilecl la a mdal eoenin^ ^3X2>d cuic/ en/e/clammenl, mim a ^/a^a/ /ttmao^ ^Mcmclau SM ^^42/11142/^ 7pm PEOPLE & PLftNET CflMPftlGNS ON AIDS, GLOBAL POVERTY & THE ENVIRONMENT. TO SIGN UP OR TO BUY TICKETS, VISIT US ON HOUGHTON ST, OR EMAIL SU.SOC.PEOPLEflNDPLflNETeLSE.flC.UK o 22 leaver | 29 January 2008 Kenya Sport and the Post-Election Violence ¦ Tom Patterson The unrest that has consumed parts of Kenya since the disputed reelection of President Mwai Kibaki on December 27 continues to have deep implications for two of the nation's most famous enterprises: that of tourism and sport. In the case of the former, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, amongst others, is advising against all but essential travel to parts of the country. For the latter, the chaos that has ensued has been nothing short of disastrous. On January 21st Wesly Ngetich, one of Kenya's marathon champions, became the second athlete to lose his life in the post-election violence. Ngetich was killed after being hit by a poisoned arrow in his home town of Trans Mara. He left a wife and three children behind. Earlier, on January 6th, Athletics Kenya called for an end to the hostilities to enable athletes to pre- pare for major championships, yet during the same week the East African Standard reported numerous incidents of athletes being caught up in the violence. The mobility of athletes is restricted on the one side by the threat of mob violence and on the other by the police's imposition of roadblocks. Added to this, training camps have been forced to close. This all comes at a time when Kenyan sport is trying to prepare for several major championships. In athletics, the nation hopes to be successful in the forthcoming Edinburgh World Cross Country, the Africa Senior Championships, the World Youth Championships and the Beijing Olympics. The International Olympic Committee has already expressed its concern over recent events. On January 22nd Reuters reported that Kenyan football champions TVisker had delayed preparations for the first round of the African Champions League and there were further concerns for the Kenyan Open Golf Tournament due to be held in Nairobi in March. Mass killings have been reported in parts of the country. The BBC reports that some 250,000 people have been driven from their homes by the fighting. Upon visiting Kenya himself, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said that he had seen evidence of "gross and systematic abuses of human rights". Athletics Kenya Secretary General David Okeyo pleaded for restramt: "Our athletes have brought us international fame hence we appeal for peace since nothing can be achieved without it" (East African Standard). In a nation famed for its middle and long distance runners, it is the runners who find themselves increasingly caught up in the violence. Football Seconds Overcome the Odds Alex Lerner I think the low point of my LSE career was walking off the pitch after playing and losing to University of the Tarts for a second time this season. Defeat was something I had leamt to take in my stride, but abuse from Sir Guesty that I simply could not (in footballing terms at least) counter was too much to handle. We were robbed at the death, AGAIN, but who cared? All anyone noticed was that LSE 2's had picked up this term where we had left off last term. But as any of our numerous and avid fans will tell you, the emergent sign of a success drenched horizon shone its first beam on us that day Approaching match 13 the objective record of having gone 12 matches without even seducing a point, our objective record on the pitch was poorer than that of Rogers' off the The Punter Matthew JCG Partridge The political betting markets have reached the peak of their activity. Since Giuliani is fading into the Florida sunset, and his supporters will inevitably pitch - played 12, scored 5, conceded 43. Number 13, lucky for some, was lucky for us. St Barts, desperate for an easy victory to secure the BUS A championship felt confident enough to make this match in to a double header and well, to be honest, we didn't really have much to lose and everything to gain. Although the match had a late kick off St Barts wasted no time in getting off the mark early by capitalising on some sloppy back play to open the scoring. At this point even I thought that the 2's might be in for another dreary afternoon, but to the teams credit however we kept battling hard and went on to create some clear cut opportunities that should have seen us ahead at the break. As it was however we went in to half-time 1-0 down. Running out for the second half the team radiated a determination that had thus far proved somewhat alien to our previous endeavours. Something was about to change. Within minutes, a sim- flock to John McCain (while Huckabee's supporters will stick with the preacher), I will predict that even if John McCain doesn't win the Florida primary, he will eventually emerge as the nominee (55.1-55.8). Similarly, even though both the Clintons did Hillary's campaign no favours with the tone of the campaign in South Carolina, I believe pie passage of wing play had allowed German maestro Rafael and joint top scorer (on one prior to this moment) to burst past the Barts defence and humiliate the keeper with a sublime finish to put the game back on level terms -the magic was back! As the 2's began to translate hard work and determination in to possession and attempts on goal Bart's seemed at a loss to provide an effective response. Their limp, ugly and repetitive long ball attempts were furiously repulsed by defence debutant (potentially even footballing debutant) the 'Kraxx Mans' (Trent) and an on-form and a domineering Johnny Kersse. Twenty minutes in to the second half yet another smart passage of play from front men Austin and Rafael led to a move that the Barts defence simply couldn't contain. A tackle from behind sent Rafael crashing to the floor in the box, clearly a penalty. Enter Mike, another debutant, to take the spot kick. Despite a furious strike the bar did its that betting on Hillary Clinton at (62.7-64) is still good value. After all, to give a shortened version of what has been said elsewhere, Barack Obama is simply too inexperienced for high office. Indeed, it might be safer to bet against Barack Obama becoming president (18.4-21.3), since even if he wins the nominaton he won't get elected. job and the ball went flying back from the goal mouth. A turning point perhaps? Just five minutes later the same man who had extravagantly fluttered away the spot kick wriggled free from the Barts midfielders to unleash an audacious 40 yard screamer. The ball flew at the top right corner of the goal. Clipping the bottom of the bar the ball ricocheted off the back of the lost-looking keeper into the net. 2-1 and twenty minutes to play, did we dare to dream? Unfortunately we started to dream a little too much and Barts began to force their way back in to the game. Despite several great saves from Wassdinho (including one with the family jewels) Barts pulled back an ecjualiser. 2-2 with ten minutes to go, but heads stayed up. The game was still ours for the taking. As Barts began to count their blessings, more good combination work between Austin and Raf forced an opening and Raf ghosted across the box to apply the There is a lot of football action on Betfair this week. My top international tips to bet on Japan beating Bosnia (1.44). In terms of the premiership I am going to advise the following bets Bolton to beat Fulham (1.97), Man City to beat Derby (1.74) and Everton to beat Tottenham (2.5). If you are willing to take a little more risk I would suggest that you finish in to an open net. 3-2, final whistle, first win of the season - cue overwhelming scenes of emotion and massive incomprehensible roars. Despite failing to win a BUSA or a ULU game prior to this, in one afternoon we had managed to do both simultaneously- Grit determination, willpower and sheer deprivation had at last persevered. A true team performance carried the day. None of this would have been possible without, the experience a certain Mr Morrow brought to the squad or the combination of hard-work and quality of Toby Irving. Stef, Soony and resident Kazakhstani warrior Ruslan also impressed. Well done lads, you've made me damn proud. Who's next? bet on Birmingham to beat Sunderland (3.3), West Ham to beat Liverpool (4.2) and Wigan to beat Middlesborough (4.3). Finally, I am going to recommend the following long-shots Newcastle to beat Arsenal (13.5), Portsmouth to beat Manchester United (16) and Reading to beat Chelsea (18). 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. SPORTS IBeaver | 29 January 2008 I 23 :: .:r'" t ..... Football Luke Be My Lady Tonight STK Cup 1st round LSE 5ths RUMS 7 0 What a week for the underdog. Be it Jo-Wilfred Tsonga's fairytale trip to the Australian Open Final, the New York Giant's unlikely capture of a Superbowl berth or the well documented exploits of Havant and Waterlooville in our very own FA Cup, this week's events have given conventional wisdom a boot out of the window harder than that received by dear old Peter Hain. With this in our minds the Fifth team headed to Berrylands knowing that breaking our perennial hoodoo of first round cup exits was far from a sure thing despite facing a team with as much confidence as the Italian Senate. Coming into the game the RUMS had conceded a whopping 44 goals in just 13 matches where as myself and the rest had leaked just 14 in as many matches. The stage was set for an entertaining clash between two teams who could put their Rugby respective league predicaments in the closet and simply enjoy the spectacle. Alas as Jimmy 'I don't start fights, I end them' Conran aptly observed, on this day the only loser was the game of football itself. Now I know what you must be thinking "but they managed to score seven goals, surely things can't have been that terrible" (or for the more critical among us "who is this idiot trying to intellectualise football") but as with the Hain4Labour case the ostensible can hide many a dark secret buried deep beneath. The opening exchange looked like the ghosts of fifth teams gone by had returned to possess the current charges, for Thompson read Bennett, for Ryan read Burton etc etc. The opponents had chances to take the lead but proved to be as useless in attack as a side managed by Rafa Benitez. Despite the football in the first half being more at home on the fields of the Somme or Ypres the valiant fifth team still managed to hold a two goal advantage going into the second period. Knuckles exhibiting a rare piece of class among the smorgasbord of dross and Daataay punishing a mistake from my opposite number. Memories of Wednesday's last gasp victory against the Benthamites from UCL were fading from our minds faster than utilitarian doctrine itself. Early in the second half an event even more surprising than those already mentioned was to materialise before our very eyes. Playing in an unaccustomed role on the left wing, Luke Thompson's first half could only be described as disastrous, even more so than Birrell's failure to realise that his new coiffeur had managed to land him with unfortunate title of Doppelganger for our very own Gordon Brown. But much like myself in every facet of life, Thompson rose in the face of adversity to smash home after the keeper had only parried Knuckles' expert diving header much to the delight of all. Before the game I had agreed to dye my hair in the style of a certain second team player should the diminutive Thompson manage to secure a brace but thanks to divine intervention the goal scorer was removed soon after unable to atone for his first half sins or punish my own insubordination. While finding the net proved to be more elusive than Burton-On-Trent in the first hour the fifths finally foimd a groove in the final thirty. Knuckles was having his way with the centre backs in a way that his little acorn heart would suggest to be impossible, scoring a second half hatrick to add his outstanding first goal. However it could have been so much more had he shown the kind of accuracy we are used to seeing when targeting lone women on the street or in walkabout. The final strike was a peach from Nick See, who unlike Thompson thrived in a more advanced position and his finish topped off an excellent performance in the context. So on we march triumphant in the face of history, onto the next stage of the competition, a stage where surely more than our patented holocaust football will be required to continue the journey. St Barts stand in the way of progress, third in the league above, this time the shoe will be on the other foot. At least the exploits of those who have found themselves where they ought not to be will be fresh in our minds. Hopefully that day lady luck will give us a little loving. If not then Knuckles can knock her the fuck out. Six Nations - The Murderous Preview Phil Burkimsher The start of the Six Nations tournament is eagerly awaited every year by rugby fans in the Northern Hemisphere, and this year will be no different. The tournament will be important in its own right and will not simply be serving as a warm up for the World Cup. All the nations will be looking to revamp their teams and there will be some exciting new faces on show. The biggest surprise in England's squad was the inclusion of Gloucester's giant winger Lesley Vainikolo. I am sure all England fans are relishing the though of the Volcano facing up against the diminutive Shane Williams at Twickenham. With the retirements of Martin Corry and Lawrence Dallaglio, England will look to introduce the talent and pace of James Haskell and Tom Croft in the back row. This should hopefully lead to a more expansive game plan and less reliance on the boot of Jonny Wilkinson, presuming he stays fit and keeps his place ahead of exciting Wasps youngster Danny Cipriani. Great things are expected of England following the unexpectedly successful World Cup although the trip to Paris will prove very tough. Wales have a new coaching team which sees the old Wasps partnership of Warren Gatland and Shaun Edwards reunited. They will look to add some steel to the Wales team and this will be helped by the return from injury of new captain Ryan Jones. He will aim to lead by example and reproduce some of his 2005 form which some direction to the attack. An interesting squad has been named by new France coach Marc Lievremont. Ibanez, Pelous and Betsen have all retired, Michalak is playing new faces include Clermont wing Julien Malzieu and the return of number eight Elvis Vermuelen from injury. If France get off to a good start against Scotland then a suc- majority of their World Cup squad and will be looking to continue with their improvement over the past few years. Every country will be envious of the strength in depth at saw him being the player of the Lions tour. Openside Martyn Williams' decision to come out of retirement will be a massive boost to the squad and the return of the Henson-Shanklin midfield partnership will add for the Sharks in the Super 14 and Chabal, Thion, Marty and Poitrenaud have all been dropped. New captain Lionel Nallet will have a tough task on his shoulders in leading a much changed squad. Exciting cessful campaign could be on the cards and the fans will be hoping for a return to more traditional attacking French flair now that 'crazy' Bernard Laporte has been replaced. Scotland have retained the scrumhalf and in the back row and coach Frank Hadden will have some tough choices picking his best team. Rory Lawson and Johnnie Beattie will be pushing hard for inclusion. With 'Mr 100%' Chris Paterson keeping the scoreboard ticking over and the exciting Rory Lamont looking to add to his try scoring record, Scotland will pose a tough challenge for every team. After a hugely disappointing World Cup Ireland and coach Eddie O'Sullivan have a chance to redeem themselves and aim for that elusive Grand Slam. Paul O'Connell will be a big loss to the pack although the rest of the forwards appear to be returning to form wit- ; nessed by the Munster eights domination of Wasps at Thomond Park in the Heineken Cup. Eoin Reddan and Peter Stringer will continue their battle to be the man supplying O'Gara, Darcy and O'Driscoll with ball and Ulsterman Tommy Bowe, impressive against Gloucester last week, will be hoping for an extended chance on the wing following the retirement of Denis Hickie. Italy have every reason for optimism with the appointment of new coach, Nick Mallet and captain Sergio Parisse. Italy disappointed again in the World Cup and it is difficult to believe that they will not continue to struggle in the Six Nations if they do not find backs capable of using the ball won by their quality tight forwards led by Castrogiovanni and Bortolami. Six Nations XV Lamont, Clerc, O'Driscoll, Traille, Vainikolo, O'Gara, Ellisalde, Sheridan, Szarzewski, Castrogiovanni, O'Callaghan, Hines, Dusautoir, Williams, Parisse. 5^/ yo m Kf* 29.01.08 thebeaver.sports@lse.ac.uk I Oi! ren»l!!cs, Following the postponement of the last two fixtures, the fourth team returned to action last week with two pivotal matches. The first, a league clash against struggling Gimperial Medics on Wednesday. Followed by Saturday's 1st round cup • ¦ match against Queen Mary 3rds who sit comfortably in the league above. As Wednesday's match kicked-off it was clear that the Medics were an improved side and it would take a performance far better than the sloppy 1st half display against LSE 5ths to put them to bed and maintain the title challenge. Imperial were the better of the two sides in the opening minutes and they should have taken the lead early on as a scrappy exchange of play resulted in the away side hitting the post. The rebound was hacked away by Club Captain Christopher Naylor and the fourths began to settle. It was not long before LSE's unquestionable superiority became apparent and they took the lead midway through the half through top-scorer Vik Nayar after a perfectly weighted through-ball from Josh Tendeter. At this point, what was a fairly even match became a purely onesided affair and the lead was doubled soon after as Nayar pressed the Medic Goalkeeper. This nurse obviously could not handle such pressure and his attempted -clearance rebounded into his ovsm net after hitting Nayar's posterior. Despite further pressure, it was 2-0 at half-time. After a text-book A1 O'Brien team-talk the fourths returned to the pitch in search of a thrashing. Holloway had overtaken them at the top of the table on goal difference and so the "goals for" column was in need of a timely boost. Nayar's pace up-front and the switch of George "henchest man in the FC" De-Ste-Croix from the left wing to the right meant that chances were inevitable. The opportunity to increase the lead came soon after the re-start as Nayar's winding run terrorised the ageing defence. The defender committed the foul and the penalty was rightly awarded. Captain Alex "penalty specialist" O'Brien momentarily relinquished his penalty-taking duties in order for Nayar to seal his hat-trick. This however did not happen as Nayar's penalty was turned around the post for a corner. Jon "less went on yet another impressive run and wotild have sealed his hat-trick had he not been denied by the post. Tendeter arrived at the rebound before their left back (a vastly overweight chap whose passions include kicking the ball out for a throw everytime he gains possession) and smashed the ball home for his 10th of the season. With the scoring all done at 5-0 the only other notewor- no referees will adjudicate their matches. Therefore the contest would be officiated by players from each side. Not ideal. On the bright-side however they did bring a solid fan-base of three unbelievably unattractive ladies who set their deckchairs out pitch-side. One of these was on par with Sir Guest's first night Calella conquest in terms of weight, shape and general ugliness. She was ex,tremely found Nayar's left-side run and he made no mistake in scoring his 16th of the season. The first 30 minutes really was all LSE, with the home side camped inside their own half. The Fourths could have taken the lead on numerous occasions, first through Tendeter as his curling effort from a Crow drag-back just missed the target. Then, Nayar burst through twice-more and shot wide from distance. G Crow also hench than George Crow" Bown whipped the ball in and the unmarked Tendeter thundered a header into the top right comer for 3-0. The fourth goal was debat-ably the best of the match. Nayar found himself down the light and flicked a pass to De-Ste-Croix whose well timed lay-off was hit first time by defensive midfielder Ash Mehta.The ball soared into the top comer for Mehta's first ever goal for the FC. Mehta's midfield partner Rich King was also looking for his first goal and the crowd thought he'd got it when Nayar's silkily disguised through-ball found him open in the box. His strike was tumed over remarkably by the very unremarkable Medic goalkeeper and King was left scratching his head. Nayar thy incidents were a terribly scuffed shot from De-Ste-Croix, a ludicrous 50 yard attempt from the confident Mehta and the debut of Alex "Owly" Pickard. Three vital points for the Fourths meaning the title challenge remains in their own hands. Saturday brought about the long-awaited 1st round of the cup. Barring the Fourth's games against the School of Arts 1st team, they have been the favourites throughout the season. Therefore, it was a different feeling when drawn against Division One's Queen Mary 3rds. The underdog status however seems to be something on which the Fourth Team thrive. The ghetto boys of Queen Mary kindly informed us upon arrival that due to "an incident earlier in the season" disappointed to leam the news that Rupert had hung up his harpoon for good. The match kicked off and it was immediately clear that the game would be played at a very high tempo. The first couple of minutes saw early pressure from the Fourths but it was Queen Mary who took the lead within the first five minutes. Broomy obviously thought it was still Wednesday Night and went Walkabout, leaving an open net for the chav up-front. Despite this set-back, the away side were confident of coming back and continued to pressure, particularly down the right-hand side with King, De-Ste-Croix and Tendeter linking up well. The equaliser came from the other side however, Mehta's superb ball through had a chance but mistimed the volley. After this period of pressure, a fight-back was inevitable. Jamie Broom making a great save from a back-post volley and turning away two further chances. Andy Rogers, A1 O'Brien and Jon Bown were also all on hand to head away dangerous crosses. Tied at 1-1 at half time the Fourths were in confident mood that they could dig in and get the result. However, like in the first half they conceded early. This time a break down the left side resulted in some space for the Queen Mary striker to take an early shot, thundering the ball into the left comer. It seemed that the home side felt they had already won the match, they were in the lead against a side who were looking tired. The Fourths however never give up and despite the superior fitness levels of the opposition they bravely battled on. Chances were few and far between and O'Brien through on the fresh legs of Cieran Deeney and Anders Jensen to give the side some fresh impetus. The chance to equalise finally arrived after the ball struck the defenders arm in the area and referee Pete Shacalis gave a penalty. This resulted in heated arguments, the home side feeling it was a biased decision and complaining with comments such as "that's fucked up bruv" and "what are you doing you bum-blaclat" The Fourths only needed two methods of response; the wise words of Andy Rogers "bore off" and Captain O'Brien stepping up to smash the penalty in for 2-2. Half an hour of extra time was to follow and the exchanges became even more heated as Nayar latched onto a Tendeter through-ball and fired the Fourths into an unlikely lead, only for their referee to disallow the goal for offside after 5 minutes of angry discussion. Queen Mary did nothing to diffuse the situation by attempting to bring on a substitute who had wandered over from the next pitch after the 1st team match had finished. This clear breach of the rules was picked up upon quickly by King who squared up to the substitute in question and stated "you are not playing, you're a fucking cheat" They reversed their decision and he wandered away again. The game ended and it was down to a penalty shoot-out. O'Brien - Scored, Ghetto Superstar Knob-head 1 -Scored, Bown - Scored, Ghetto Superstar Knob-head 2 -Scored, King - Scored, Ghetto Superstar Knob-head 3 -Saved!, Tendeter - Scored (In off the bar - sheer class) Ghetoo Superstar Knob-head 4 - Scored, Nayar- Scored.The Fourths went wild and attempted to bundle the hero Jamie Broom before realising that getting him onto the ground was a bigger effort than they had first thought. Especially as by this stage fatigue and cramp were setting in. It was done, the double still very much on and in the Fourths' own hands. The only question left was that age-old question - Where's Trent? "G Crow had another chance, but mistimed the volley®"