INVASION! Guess who's hiding beTiind the door! OCCUPATION RUBBISH WHEN The Occupation fizzled out last week, seven days' accumulated debris from jam sandwiches, cups of coffee, and king-size filter tips was left behind. As the improvised barricades (smashed door, etc) were still intact the New Board Room really did look like a landlocked Marie Celeste. You've got to assume that the ex-occupants" reckoned that the School porters would soon clear it up. Anyway, the porters quite rightly refused and contacted the Students' Union asking them to clear up the mess they themselves had made. So a small band of people (who shall remain nameless) did just that. Notably, the clean-up was going on while most of the candidates for the sabbatical elections of the following day were amusing themselves (nobody else turned up) at hustings. The fact that the occupation area was left in such a state is disheartening for two reasons. A lot of hot air is expended about worker-student solidarity. It seems that when some action is required, most of the hot airists are elsewhere. The second point is the harm done to the principle that the occupation was supposed to be about. LSE Students' Union opposes discrimination against overseas students. This means that we are demanding that everyone be treated equally with thought and consideration;' everyone but the School porters? GRAHAM WILDRIDGE eleven loyal IT was with profound excitement that a sturdy band of revolutionaries surfaced from the Kings Cross to assault the offices of that incompetent and moribund organisation that claims to serve student interests, the NUS. This initiative stemmed from a motion put to the Union in those heady days of yesteryear when the LSE was once more catapulted into the thriving, vital, dynamic, and indeed passionate atmosphere that only an occupation imparts. Detailed planning followed the decision to carry out the operation; though all the while the need for the upmost secrecy was stressed in case the puerile hirelings of NUS should thwart our aims. And so it came to pass that on 3rd March, with the first glows of the summer sun gleaming over Houghton Street, a gathering of well dressed comrades gathered for their briefing. Whilst there was an outward show of calm and good spirits, with many promising their comrades that they could have their eggs for breakfast should they not return, secretly everyone knew that they were embarking on a considerable undertaking. The motive for the occupation was clear, an attempt to wake the NUS up to the fact that whilst they grow older sitting in ivory towers the Government is proposing to implement policies which are not in the ¦ best interests of students. The specific issue chosen was quotas because LSE was at that time in occupation primarily because of opposition to them. Quotas are discriminatory and are merely a part of the Government's attempt to reduce the number of people in tertiary education so as to make massive cuts in expenditure more palatable to the public.- At NUS the advance party of . Daud Khan had successfully made entrance to the rather unsalubrious LSE students carry out their Union mandate offices on the pretext of handing in amendments to NUS motions. Regrettably the front door had a guard in the person of the Deputy President, Ashby. I was able to persuade him to open the door by telling him that I wanted to see someone from the Publications Department (they kept telephoning me all week to find out if LSE was going to occupy and of course I assured them that their fears were unfounded). Then Mart Peacock (no relation) came to the entrance and Ashby slowly began to realise that all was not well. Suddenly he yelled out a few expletives and indicated that he would not be unhappy if we left. Given the fact that we had all got dressed up in our suits, it did seem a bit of a pity to go. With spontaneous revolutionary fervour we all surged forward, spurred on by the battle cry of one of our greatest contemporary revolutionaries, Mr Roger Galloway who was regret-ably absent, "fuckin' scandalous". I was able to rush upstairs to greet our great, glorious and correct General Secretary in the reception. Ashby, later to be joined by Cooper, blocked the stairs. Nervously Daud and I waited for the arrival of the others who we could hear questioning Ashby. From his replies, one might conclude that his nanny must have been ill-bred. Shortly the spirits of the Gang of Two were raised by the noise of scuffling from the stairs and then to our delight Abhay Desai appeared with a smile carrying Bruno, Carol Saunders' teddy. Ashby and Cooper were disappointed by this success and became much less well disposed to the comrades who waited below. Will Richardson, continued the verbal onslaught, aided by Ed Walker, Guy Elliott, Jane Hawkins and others. After several hours, during which the conduct of Ashby was not at all appreciated, indeed extremely unpleasant and abusive was the little chap, it- was decided that we should return to LSE Union meeting. We were heartened to note that Cooper is reported to have said that she is responsible to the membership and trust that this means that she is in agreement with the aims of the occupation. As for Ashby, well really, the fellow is somewhat beyond the pale; particularly after he observed that his concern with the welfare of overseas students was not as great as I know we would all hope for. However, it is perhaps a little unfair to assume that someone under twenty-five is really expressing his true thoughts when in rather &¦ tiff. X think that the occupation achieved something; one naticroai paper mentioned it, all others were informed and maybe NUS will try to think about doing a little more for its membership. After all, he who pays the piper calls the tune. BRUCE FELL STOP PRESS Results of the recent elections: General Secretary: Will Richardson (Libertarian Socialist) Senior Treasurer: Julian Ingram (Liberal) Social Secretary: Steve Bradbury (Independent) The Executive: Abhay Desai (Non-aligned Independent) Christos SclavotinEs (Left Independent) Liz Baltesz (SWPf Deborah Cohen (Labour Ctwb) Steve Robinson (LilteraE) Dave Barton (Labour Club) Guy Elliot (Independent) Naf F a r e y (Independent Looney) Chris Faulkner (Tory! Andrew Smith (Labour Club) The day we were extremely abusive and unpleasant »»## vmlI <§) Mo&fitJg «£X6£TION A\PS 2% ISA sSiS^' /%.... 0»*ious swing..... nwtiiNffVi' tore.,, »VFL£..... float,tiq vore..., WAfFLt m m? & H£ Poesti'r KMv/. Now we'v? got "Do the Standing Still" from the Table. It is all right I suppose, but not anything to write home about. The last track on side one is not worth writing anything about at all. It is called "Strange Gurl in Clothes" (what ?) by Avant Gardener (who ?) and could be described as a speeded-up dirge. On to • Side Two, which is kicked into action by a previously unreleased XT'C track, "Traffic Light Rock," which is well up to their usual high standards though not quite as memorable as some. Next comes Roky Erikson's contribution, "Bermuda," which is fine if you're not' really listening- to it, and after the first few lines, I wasn't. After this is, wait for it, a REGGAE track, "All Wi Doin' is Defendin'," by Poet and the Roots.- This should be a pleasant change. Wrong again. It's so awful it makes Bob Marley sound-superb.- Luckily, the last track, X-Ray iSpex classic 'Oh Bondage Hp 'Yours" leaves you thinking |that the album wasn't so bad after all. It's only £2.99 any-"way." Well, with only three good tracks (Penetration, XTC, X-Ray Spex), three mediocre and "two awful, it's not really good value, other than for the supposed novelty of a 10-inch album. Personally, I think your £2.99 would be better invested in a copy of 'Stiffs Live Stiffs." At least you get twelve inches. Naf. TOURISTS Wed., 15th March, 1 p.m., Old Theatre. A FREE lunchtime concert to-round off the term. (All members note the time). With a major record deal in the pipeline the TOURISTS have chosen to rehearse intensively and make literally one or two selected live appearances. They are a versatile five-piece band who recall to my ears some classic American influences—Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, Big Star, Velvet Underground, etc.—and in addition they perform with sufficient vitality and energy, to warrant the new wave label. ;Ents cannot reveal the exact-'line-up for 'contractual' reasons, but when the relevant lawyers have eventually got together' the Tourists will be in a better position to add a little quality to -the Radio One playlists. Cornwell's Column •"EASTER" from the PATTI SMITH GROUP and the solo debut-album from RICK DANKO have 'proved to be a reminder of the" : depth of American talent signed-t»" the ARISTA label. • Released to tie in with her con-'certs at the Rainbow Theatre .(April lst-4th), Easter sees the • Patti Smith Band in full flight thanks to the kind of beefed-ut* production not found on the first two albums. This should widen 'her appeal considerably and hopefully the track which is co-written-with Bruce Springsteen . should lal'so gain her the all-too important, radio airplay. Ms. Smith has re-itumed1 after a year's absence with yet' more classic pumping rock 'tr' roll.. In a more mellow vein, Rick' Danko's solo album simply oozes • the kind of quality you would expect from a musician with his pedigree. Guesting with the former Band bass player are Clapton, Wood,- Doug Sahm and a host- o? other West Coast luminaries. Ths subtleties of this album are still revealing themselves after countless plays hence it is well worth the ¦ current price demanded by .record shops. With luck you might! pick up either of these albums it»< the review racks of OASIS RECORDS, 18 Newport Court WC2," gnear Soho Market. Early April is the scheduled • re-' lease date for the long awaited* BAND triple album on WEA. The"' same label has released a double -dive at the Hope and Anchor compilation as a reminder of the recent : fortnight of gigs held at London's premier pub rock venue. ANDY GORNWELL PAGE 3 1 , ¦ | .. fg ' . ¦¦ : \ J ¦<. ¦ * 1 ..........mm......... "Now, remember, son, as soon as you get in there, shout Quorum !" Hands off Beaver LSE NAFF MEMBER DEFENDS OUR ORGAN THE following letter was submitted by Mr Hampson to "The Free Nation" paper of the National Association for Freedom who did not see fit to publish it on their letters page. AN article in the London School of Economics Student Union newspaper, BEAVER, claimed that NAFF was a racist organisation. As a consequence of this, NAFF proposes to sue the BEAVER for libel, which would make my position, as an LSE NAFF member, untenable. BEAVER is a commendable student paper, although it is run by students of political bias. One can expect personal views to be printed, emanating from the full range of the political spectrum. It was one ruch personal view which declared NAFF racist; an opinion generally held among socialists. On the ultra-left, many regard those accepting the "establishment" as "fascist" and with this other derogatory terms, such as "racist," "imperialist," "bourgeois," "sexist," etc., inevitably follow. The Tories are regularly confronted with this and I expect it as a matter of course. One must accept that publications will exist equating NAFF with racism, if freedom of speech is to be the rule and not the exception. Furthermore, BEAVER did publish a reply "In defence of NAFF." NAFF should not be seen as Goliath menacing David; court action will make LSE SU the martyr for freedom not NAFF. ROBERT E. HAMPSON Undergraduate, LSE. POINT OF INFORMATION The Editors would like to point out that the working members of the Beaver Collective include the following: 3 Anarchists 1 Libertarian—Socialist. 2 Labour—voters. 3 Conservatives. 1 independent. We might be politically biased (who isn't ?) but in no way is our approach as a team anything other than a balance of opinions within LSE. Christian Union Populist takeover in obscure mystical sect THE Christian Union at LSE is not perhaps the most well known of all the groups here — or wasn't, at least until the last few weeks. In an intensive campaign we have tried to bring ourselves and, more importantly, the message we have for LSE out into the open. To do this we have concentrated on one issue, the meaning and relevance of Easter and within that on the historical fact of the resurrection of Jesus. We have made "The Evidence for the Resurrection" widely available. This booklet presents Sir Norman Andelson's (an eminent lawyer) view of the evidence and is surely a challenge to your faith that this unique historical event never occurred. The assumption which most people make is that such an event could not happen, an assumption based on personal experience and one which ignores the proof offered by history. Can you honestly reject this evidence and if so on what grounds, particularly if you refuse even to examine it? Is your conclusion merely the result of irrational prejudice or reasoned argument? These are the questions which we are trying to pose and we believe the answer is important. Bertrand Russell also thought his own answer important enough to write a book. Could you write a paper giving your reasons for not accepting the evidence and expect it to stand up to a vigorous examination? We want you to consider the consequences of being wrong. If you do think about the possibilities there are many opportunities for you to ask members of the Christian Union and find out exactly what we believe. We meet every week (we have been described as the most active group in LSE though this was based on the number of rooms booked through the Union. Perhaps in future we can justify the title by meeting more people) and have a bookstall on Thursdays. In the Christian Union our aim is truly to communicate our belief and to hear the response because the nature of that belief is that it can withstand man's attacks. Our dogma is not the upholding of a set of ethics or a moral code or an economic analysis but a reliance on an historical event. We do not wish to present Christianity as an alternative to politics but as parallel and an avenue dismissing it as a mere sociological phenomenon. It is Easter and most people will celebrate something soon. What that something may be is likely to vary between individuals but it is one occasion which unites Christians in remembrance of the most important occurrence since the world started. Spare a moment to consider the possibilities. Will Underhill Quotas: A reply I have been asked by the the inaccurate impression given in your issue number 169, 28 The Inter-Halls Committee, whose membership includes students from all three halls of residence of the LSE and its two blocks of flats, receives a detailed breakdown of students in these units each year and tries to consider these figures quite carefully. This session the relevant paper was presented at the meeting on 25 November, 1977, and it showed that the proportion of overseas students and the proportion of female students in LSE accommodation closely reflect the proportions in the School Inter-Halls Committee to correct by the article signed by Jim Gee February, 1978. as a whole, i.e. 37.4 per cent overseas and 32.8 per cent female students. These proportions, which are more or less the same as those in the previous two sessions, would not seem to indicate any real racist or sexist bias, and if any such bias does creep into future allocations of places, the Committee is likely to discover this fairly quickly. Yours faithfully, Edward A. Kuska Chairman Inter-Halls Committee Union sketch Suppose you held an occupation and nobody came WHY did the occupation fail ? The Union meeting of March 3, held in the inauspicious surroundings of the Board Room, provided at least part of the answer to this question. For practically nobody—including the chief occupiers themselves—appeared to know what the occupation was trying to achieve. The tactic used by those trying to justify the occupation, and to explain away its failure, was the tims-honoured one of those in a fix : blame someone else. In this instance, the scapegoat was Daud Khan. Daud, we were told, hadn't helped with the occupation at all; all the work had been done by a handful of revolutionary and not-so-revolutionary comrades. This, of course, diverted the subject away from a potentially awkward point: that the occupation was a purely opportunist tactic by certain middle-class "revolutionaries" who wanted to do well in the following week's elections, and that maybe Daud had better things to do with his time than assist these people in their aims. There were angry scenes when Daud told the occupiers that 'you got yourselves into the shit and you can get out of it." He argued that there was no logic in ending the occupation the following Monday. Roger Galloway (SWP) was loudly applauded by the Tories when he asked "what's the point of staying here?" (the Boardroom). Of course, many people had wondered what was the point of the occupation all week, but let that pass. Anyway, this naturally led to the suggestion, on the part of the more lunatic - inclined members of the meeting, that we should invade Connaught House "NOW" (i.e. 4.05 p.m.), with Daud leading ! This suggestion was justified on the grounds that we would "only" have to break down three doors in daylight, instead of five by night. However, Richard Shackleton (Tory) rather put the dampers on this fine plot by pointing out that a certain well-known student "went home last night for his breaking-in tools — has anyone seen him since ? !" After a few. more abusive exchanges, the meeting narrowly Voted against an amendment proposing that the situation be 'reviewed' the following Monday, rather than automatically call off the occupation. So the occupation was killed. Incidentally, although the meeting had earlier decided to debate the emergency occupation motion first, it subsequently passed a motion proposed by the Beaver editors calling for a Sabbatical Communications Officer, which would be accompanied by a weekly Beaver. Just imagine if these Union Sketches weren't almost two weeks out of date by the time they were read ! in.....nun.................................................. 1 EDITORIAL QUOTE OF 1 | THE WEEK | PEACOCK with worried! i expression, as he searches, | | knee-deep in the photo-1 |graphic file — "You can | §never find a pteradactyli | when you want one . . i I RIPPLE—Leicester University. SURPRISED to learn that David Wilks, chairperson of FCS, is encouraging FCS branches to work towards abolishing UGMs in favour of Student Representative Councils (how many of our readers saw that hilarious poster just outside the main library ?) a correspondent has written to RIPPLE to remind Leicester students that when Wilks was President of their students' union he spent "most of his time" encouraging higher attendance at UGMs whilst "berating" the Council for its inefficiency and lack of effectiveness. He was once quoted as saying that the Council was comprised solely of hacks. Why the reversal we wonder ? Another reversal on Wilk's part was shown up when he spoke at Sheffield University recently. Apparently he told students there that "FCS supports Margaret Thatcher's attitude to Immigration"—not at all what he told The Sunday Times a month ago. Far be it from me to condemn Wilks as an opportunist . . . REDBRICK—Birmingham University A report in Redbrick states that at Pennsylvania University they are financing a Take-a-Professor-to-lunch scheme to improve staff-student relationships. The University is prepared to foot the bill to the tune of up to £3 per person. Might be the answer to poverty-stricken students here. How about it, Ralph ? NEPAM—North East London Poly It is believed that ten students have been expelled from North East London Poly for non-payment of tuition fees. NALGO and NATFHE have offered to loan the students money to prevent them from having to leave the Poly, but the money would have to be found by the Students' Union which is already in deficit. Two spontaneous occupations on the subject last week were dismissed by the President of the Students' Union as "unconstitutional" and "irresponsible" but two of the occupiers, who were censured for their part in the action said that they were "proud to be censured for doing something by an exec who have achieved nothing." LE NURD—Brunei University BRUNEL University have just awarded the Herman Krass Award for Unsolicited Stupidity to physicist, Professor D. R. Feltham. Those with a desire to study the theory of escalation in a crisis (C. J. Hill please note) will be doubtless interested in this tale. Apparently two Brunei students decided to try out a new skateboard near Fel-tham's laboratory when they were accosted by the said gent and had their skateboard confiscated (Shame). The students went to the Student Councillor and requested that a meaningful dialogue be opened. This failed, as did the Union attempt, so the Vice-Chancellor was called in, after the head of physics proved inactive. Weeks passed and so eventually the Union confronted Feltham, who refused to talk ! Blows were struck as the confrontation reached all-out war and in good old MacNamara style massive retaliation won with the police being called to investigate the theft of a skateboard ! ! Look out for shock horror drama mystery probe no doubt. PAGE 4 Bleak times LEARNING that Beaver had "unlimited" space for this issue. *ia' 111• ii:• n111i.i¦ 111 iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiit'iiiiiiiiimiimiiiiiiiuiimiiiiuiii mi iiiiiiiiiii'iiiiinuM • Uti ItllHllilllli'l II « Staff and related costs WELFARE PAY - - - £6,750 WELFARE TRAINING COURSE £70 ADMIN. PAY - - - £17,000 FIN. PAY - - - £12,900 STAFF CONFERENCE - - £100 SABBATICAL PAY (x4) - - £15,900 OFFICERS' EXPENSES - - £40 GRATUITIES - £60 STAFF AIDS & EXPENSES/RESERVE - £200 £53,020 STAFF and sabbatical pay dominate this section and the whole section takes up over a third of the Union budget. The reason this section is so large, and is such a large increase on last year's budget is for the following three reasons: Firstly the contracts under which the staff are employed are of the gilt-edged luxury form being index linked and incremental. This has meant that the cost of employing the staff has risen faster than the rise in per capita income. Secondly we are applying for another member of staff, a secretary, as the Union has decided that it wants weekly Union meetings with published agendas which we have not got the resources to produce with the present staffing levels, in addition the pressure of work on the Finance Office has reached intolerable levels and much of the administrative work is being done by Tom Bruin, which is not his Publications job and stops him from doing his actual job of forecasting and analysing efficiency for example. Thus, without this new member of staff the trading enterprises are suffering as we cannot monitor their performance accurately or quickly. Thirdly we are asking for another two sabbaticals in the fields of entertainments and publications. This is an example of the new Union policy of trying to contact the students and provide them with what they want and not what the Union elite think the average student wants. It is vitally important that these sabbaticals are given the backing of the Union as the first few years will determine much of the job definition and style of the job. Thus the Union is trying to meet the demands of the Union hacks in providing the resources for their petty bureaucracy and at the same time trying to provide a direct service to students that will actually have a tangible benefit for 3,500 students. BEAVER - £8,000 HANDBOOK - - - £500 CLARE MARKET REVIEW / RESERVE £500 ALTERNATIVE PROSPECTUS £1,000 POLICY HANDBOOK £200 BEAVER DAILY NEWS £50 NATIONAL STUDENT £205 STUDENT PAPER DISTRIBUTION SCHEME £50 NUS STUDENT PRESS CONFERENCE - £50 PRESS OBSERVER ... £90 IT is the Publications' Section of the Union budget which affects the maximum number of students. On the other hand its benefits are dispersed so that there is no specific group which will leap to the defence of this section of the budget. Consequently it has suffered in recent years. This budget sees the reassertion of publications as a necessary service to LSE: students. With the Sabbatical Communications Officer and the expansion of our budget we can see a service which is much better. The Beaver sub-section (£8,000) will practically mean a weekly Beaver (20 issues) with more pages and improved layout. The Editor will have to be a sabbatical to enable him or her to carry out the work. The handbook £10,645 and Daily News will also be his/her responsibility, and there is room for great improvement this year. The Student Paper Distribution Service is a form of news service which not only serves us but also provides a service for other (less well-off) colleges. It is a service which NUS says "it can't afford to Provide." Clare Market Review, Alternative Prospectus and Policy handbook -are all items on which we have declared policy, but which we have been unable to implement in the past due to lack of money and time, the latter factor largely due to the absence of a sabbatical communications officer. Finally the NUS press conference is a sort of training weekend and the press observer is for NUS major conferences. THE BUDGE This is what the Union is trying to get for next year - Court of Central administration AUDIT ADMIN. EXPENSE/RESERVE INSURANCE TELEPHONES POSTAGE EQUIPMENT REPAIR AND RENEWALS STATIONERY ELECTIONS Well £550 GENE £115 ACCOA/ £420 HARDS £2,000 N I T E I £100 S.C.A. L £2,650 C.E.S. h £350 P L A Y< £1,100 UNION £250 LEGAL NUS C< £7,535 PREGN; CENTRAL administration is the inescapable commitment that any organisation enters into when it attempts to function in a proper and orderly manner. Audit fees are a legal requirement and compared to the costs of other Union auditors surprisingly cheap. Also insurance is another legal commitment so as to ensure that the Union is covered against any claims made against us. The three areas that stick out in this section are stationery, telephones, and equipment. To take the largest first (whicli seems logical) equipment is so large this year due to the fact that the Union's equipment has finally decided to give up the ghost and fall apart. This can be illustrated by the fact that the Union has no photo copying facilities, and the Union's only adding machine was built just after decimalisation and its handle keeps falling off! We will also need new equipment for the new secretary and the sabbaticals. Telephones are the monopoly of one company in this country and the charges are one of the most expensive. Also we have problems of security which mean that people keep on telephoning New York, Chile and India at some late time at night which we have to pick the bill up from. At this point in time I must make it quite clear that anyone being found 'phoning abroad will have David Southwall let loose on him/her, which is surely a fate worse than death. Stationery is occupied mainly by producing minutes minutes minutes agendas agendas agendas and minutes, all for the few people that bother to attend Union meetings. So this bears little relevance to the 3,000 students who never attend the spectacle on Friday afternoons. Ents and hospitality TV R E N T A L PORTERS SUNDRY RECEPTIONS NEW STUDENTS ENTS COMMITTEE DiSCO (CAPITAL) THIS section is basically all about the Entertainments Committee and its financial policy. In the past the entertainments team have combined a large amount of professionalism with unpaid hard work to make this college a prestige venue. This has changed now for two reasons: Firstly band prices are rising fast after being in a stationary position over the last two years. This means that the budget margin that Ents works on has become smaller and the old risk capital element of £500 that used to see Ents through has no longer the fail safe effect it used to have. Also this means that the capital that has to be put behind a gig is much larger meaning that the risk element is higher and the financial strains on the Ents budget are such that one mistake in the beginning of the year might in future preclude any further events through the year. Secondly, competition is getting fiercer and we are tending to lose our competitiveness with other venues due to our lousy lighting system for example. This means that we have to £160 £100 £100 £500 £3,300 £250 £4,410 hire equipment for bands or accept a higher band cost if they bring the gear with them. This again eats into the margins. However, the above factors apply mainly to Saturday night concerts, and the Ents Committee have other plans up their sleeve. These include an improved disco with more lighting embellishments, a revue (if you know what this is, please tell me), and the traditional lunch-time free concerts and the bar socials. Other parts of the Ents and Receptions budget include the rental for the TV (when it's not being nicked) in the room next to the T.T.C. and the Porters' Party for all our hard working and much abused porters. The New Students' Conference is the only other area of major expenditure and covers the Union costs of organising the Overseas Students' reception, the Postgraduates' Freshers' Week and the Freshers' Ball to name but a few. This is a section of the budget that actually affects you and tries to bring you some light in your dismal existence in the L.S.E. DESPITE the majority of s' Union is n ground for pc percentage of to Welfare, i after the ind dents at LSE. This year w creases in t purely inflatic by hoping to ; welfare withe area of the bi the past. The Welfai areas : (1) Advisor welfare officei out her advise means produi as well as a ] Other advisor The COMMI SOCIETI CLEANI PROVISI JELLY B ATHLET RESERV! STAFF I CENTRA WELFj EXTER PUBLIC RECEPT NOW the F stunned you v can see that i £142,000, whi money. The way th levying a per the School on giving body. T imately £42 fo at L.S.E. and student. This is, of ( from this year time students the services t given the polit this Union has PAGE 7 >GET SUBMISSION lext year - Court of Governors permitting Welfare GENERAL ACCOMMODATION BUREAU HARDSHIP FUND NITELINE -S.C.A. L.S.E. C.E.S. NURSERY PLAYGROUP UNION FEE REBATE -LEGAL SERVICES NUS CONFERENCE PREGNANCY FUND/RESERVE £200 £350 £5,170 £75 £100 £6,831 £225 £840 £100 £100 £300 £14,291 DESPITE the fact that probably the majority of students believe that the Union is nothing but a training ground for political careerists, a large percentage of the budget is allocated to Welfare, concerned with looking after the individual welfare of students at LSE. This year we have tried to limit increases in the Welfare budget to purely inflationary adjustments, thereby hoping to maintain our standard of welfare without squeezing any other area of the budget as has happened in the past. The Welfare budget covers three areas : (1) Advisory — the S.U. employs a welfare officer. To enable her to carry out her advisory and counselling roles means producing welfare pamphlets, as well as a large stationery element. Other advisory services provided by the S.U. are Niteline (a phone-in Samaritan-type service) and free legal advice. (2) Financial—this is where most of the money goes. The Hardship fund exists to help self-financing students that the School system misses. The S.U. also pays a subsidy to the C.E.S. to enable student parents to continue their courses. Each parent still has to pay £8 per week per child. There is also a S.U. fee rebate fund for self-financing students, and a pregnancy fund which can be used to finance a termination or provide a maternity award. (3) Miscellaneous This includes the new heading "student community action" designed to increase LSE's links with outside community groups. It also pays for a playleader for half-term holidays and minor N.U.S. welfare conferences. The grand total COMMITTEES £1,000 SOCIETIES £10,000 CLEANING £3,187 PROVISIONS £3,650 JELLY BABIES - !6p per Jib. ATHLETIC UNION £19,105 RESERVES £4,955 STAFF & RELATED £53,020 CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION £7,535 WELFARE £14,291 EXTERNAL £10,222 PUBLICATIONS £10,645 RECEPTIONS AND HOSPITALITY £4,410 £142,020 NOW the Finance Committee has stunned you with all these figures you can see that it ail adds up to around £142,000, which is rather a lot of money. The way the Union gets this is by levying a.per capita fee approved by the School on students or the grant-giving body. This works out at approximately £42 for every full-time student at L.S.E. and £14 for every part-time student. This is, of course, a large increase from this year's £27 per head for full-time students but if we are to provide the services that students want and given the political and legal restraints this Union has we must have this sort of per capita fee. We realise that many students who do not have a grant will be forced to pay this money and for those in hardship we have a special fund in the Welfare Section to rebate all or part of the Union fee. This Union is one of the most underdeveloped in the country, having a per capita fee which rates in the bottom 10 per cent when compared to the 50-odd universities in this country. The average in England alone THIS year is over £36, and next year will be somewhere in the region of (yes. you have guessed it) £42. So really all we are trying to do is provide the services that students want at L.S.E. and get at the other universities in the country. External affairs LONDON STUDENTS' ORGANISATION AFFILIATIONS/RESERVE NUS NUS CONFERENCE (MAJOR) NUS CONFERENCE (MINOR) NUS PUBLICATIONS MISC. CONF. SPEAKERS This section is dominated by the affiliation and other related costs of NUS and the regional sidekick L.S.D. (London Student Organisation). N.U.S. is our national Union and whilst many people are critical of its political stance it does provide us with a great deal of benefit that this Union could not provide if it was left in isolation. Over the past years N.U.S. affiliation has risen drastically due to the vagaries of N.U.S. affiliation systems, which they are at present trying to iron out. We do pay over the odds, but it's an all-or-nothing situation and our money is used to good effect by subsidising the affiliation rates of smaller colleges who are not in the same luxury (!!!) premises. The regional variant of N.U.S. is the L.S.E.. not to be confused with the lunatic Maoist group. L.S.M. L.S.O. is the co-ordinating body for colleges in the London region and if we re-affiliate they will be able to employ a full-time secretary which will enable people to be able to contact L.S.O. at any time in the day, which will be a significant improvement on the present situation, again we are in a situation £611 £150 £7,921 £1,100 £300 £50 £60 £30 £10,222 where our affiliation fee subsidises the small local colleges. The Affiliations Section covers our affiliations to bodies like N.U.S.S. (National Union of School Students), N.A.C. (National Abortion Campaign), A.L.R.A. (Abortion Law Reform Association), N.C.C.O.S. (National Coordinating Committee of Overseas Students). NC.C.L. (National Campaign for Civil Liberties), C.A.C.T.L. (Campaign Against the Criminal Trespass Law). All these bodies provide us with an imput to supplement the N.U.S. information over specialist topics. Unfortunately the rest of the section is basically a hack's paradise, paying them money to go galivanting around the country on junkets which are known as conferences. In addition, however, they do form a valuable part of our representation within the wider student movement and within N.U.S. particularly. This is our avenue of representation and the old adage of reform from within (or infiltration) is the policy that seems to have most success (ask the Tories, they tried and succeeded). The budget submission We now come to the time of year when mere mortals think of exams but your boring hacks on the Finance Committee have to think of exciting things like next year's budget and how much money they can get for their pet projects. This year it's all different, folks, for you are actually reading our proposals—that's democracy if you didn't know. This document will be submitted to the School and their views on this document combined with specific amendments by the Union will be collated to form the substantive submission document which will be given to the Standing Committee for its consideration in early May. Well, that's the timetable, and now to the boring financial facts : this Union is in a state, it has too few resources, which are all allotted to the Union meeting system and not to ordinary students. Well, is this going to change overnight ? The answer is, of course, qualified (good politician's trick) but if the School grants us the size of increase we need then the answer will be yes. If this submission is accented we will be in a totally new field, bsing able to involve students, not alienate them, contact them not ignore them, and help them, not harm them . . . that will be a change that no union hack (even Will Richardson) will ever have seen before. This Union is in a watershed position, for if the submission is not granted we will not be able to afford to move our offices let alone represent our students and provide them with the services that they need and should demand if they had a chance. If we win it will be a landmark, and the end of the slogans of irrelevancy for we will have the chance to prove ourselves rather than defend ourselves. Julian Ingram—our Senior Treasurer. PAGE 8 SPAIN: Syndicalists rebuild The Antii ®NE aspect of the "liberalisa-Siefr" of Spanish society which Dtafr received very little coverage in the British press (installing, or rather especiaHy, the "left-wing" press) has been Hie resurgence of the CNT. Until the end of the Civil War, the CNT (National Confederation of Labour) was the largest union organisation in Spain, with about one-and-a-fctlf million members. Nevertheless, its present membership of 200,000 is quite staggering considering the disadvantages it has had to face. After years of exile and inactivity the remnants of the organisation had lost its libertarian and anti-bureaucratic character. This was especially apparent in the CNTs condemnation of the armed anti-fascist campaign of Anarchists such as Sabate and Facerias. Therefore, the CNT has faced problems in rebuilding as a revolutionary syndicate. Meanwhile the massive foreign financial aid that has been made available to the UGT (especially from West Germany) and the Workers' Commissions, have given the reformist trade unions an enormous head start. The CNT is organised essentially to lead the struggle against capitalism on the indus- tjon from the streets-and keep them locked safely away for ever without the right of appeal, at the same time taking over the running of any property that they might hold, .whilst the Court, of Protection have discretion in appointing receivers for any long-term mentally-ill person. MIND suggests that even under Sunny Jim's government, receivers do not act in the best interests of the person concerned. We assume that mental health tribunals are there to monitor all mental patients, in fact they monitor only a small fraction of those committed. It supposedly takes two doctors, a social worker, etc. to get a ¦ patient. committed. In fact, many hospitals allow the senior nurse to carry signed committal forms that allow them to commit a patient without, reference to a doctor. trial front, and is organised in such a way that (come the revolution) workers would have ready-made councils to run industry without any need for a centralised "workers' state" (we all know where that leads). However, Anarchists regard this as only one side of the struggle—the state's organs of repression can only be defeated by force of arms—hence the rebuilding of the FAI (Anarchist Federation) and the JL (Libertarian Youth) is also essential. Furthermore, the libertarian movement as a whole must build on community activities to gain a broad base of support outside the industrial sphere. The bourgeois press worships the sycophantic politicians of the left such as Carrillo and Gonzales, portraying the Spanish proletariat as totally conciliatory towards liberal capitalism. The left-wing press hunts around for small vanguard parties composed mainly of students to 'lead" the Spanish workers. However, the CNT, the only union not to have entered the Spanish social contract, now appears to be Europe's brightest hope for the formation of a mass working class social-revo-lutionary union. We are not in the least afraid of ruins! ED WALKER LSE ANARCHIST GROUP Our beloved constable, expert on psychiatric conditions, is allowed to do what no GP can do, commit anyone to a place of safety for seventy-two hours (place of safety being defined as: a police station, a mental institute, or any other approved place or clinic) for observation. If you happen to be female and live in London watch out because 80 per cent (nearly 2,000 a year) of such commitals occur in London, and 60 per cent of which are on women. If we are to right these wrongs, if we are for once to turn back the tide of repression we must force Sunny Jim to abide by the many international agreements on human rights that various British Governments have signed; and we should join organisations such as NCCL, AMNESTY, MIND and PROP. TERRY HOPKIN-WHYTE Anti-Nazi "THE Anti-Nazi League is the most important organisation fighting fascism". This is possibly true, however the events at Hford prove that the ANL has joined the ranks of the "responsible" right. When the ANL first started at this college I considered it a reasonably good thing. It was mobilising opinion and its leaflets were quite well produced. I did not join because I did not eonsider that you need a membership card and badge to fight racism. Paying a pound for your beliefs seems a curious way to emphasise-your common humanity. But • look what happened at, Ilford. Before nit started we *eN told that' we -were* being put under the control of ANL stewards. These were appointed from the ranks of the SWP (incidentally next time it colonises an organisation it could pick a different-.printer). When an SWP (and non-ANL) member told the stewards to jump they all cleared off, except for one that is, who wasn't in the SWP. Next anti-Nazi demonstration I'm taking a roll . of yellow tape so everyone can be their, own steward. We can see the way the SWP stands at the fore, ©i the revolution in the way they lined up in front of the police to- protect them from "irresponsible", anarchist and maoist attacks. Then there was the way our leader (you can always tell a leader by the .megaphone) "instructed" us to move aside Jor the police. We were . vastly out-numbered but I.fail to see why Ave should do the police's job. We were there to protest- against fascism not to "move along." Towards the end our humble leader told us that "it had been decided" to .-disperse on police orders. "Who decided?/" the crowd screamed back — it certainly wasn't us. Join the Anti-Nazi League and you get stewards who direct you, leaders who tell you what to do, and an organisation which seems more inclined to gain a "responsible" reputation than to fight fascism. Is this adequate compensation for those pretty yellow badges? What is requires is not any "disciplined" .organisation, but individuals who are opposed to fascism and will fight it where-ever and whenever it appears. This is what happened at Lewi-sham. The "organisation" which the Anti-Nazi League provides is nothing but a sham. PEACOCK As an anarcho-syndicalist »»k>n. it differed from reformist trade unions in its horizontal organisation, i.e. it was not controlled from the top down, but fc-y-all its members, by means of workers' councils and loeal '©ranches. Most trade unions are controlled from the top, and therefore carr "easily be integrated into any authoritarian system. Hence the Trotskyists' and Maoists' emphasis on capturing the leadership of reformist trade unions, and on authoritarian.. principles such as the imposition of closed shops. When a genuinely revolutionary union appears, based on rank-and-file control, they are shown up in their true colours. What is the present strength of the CNT, and what role can it play in the class struggle ? The CNT is now only a minority union. It is considerably smaller than the Communist-control led Workers' Commissions and the Socialist UGT. Civil Liberties: fact or farce? CM this so-called free country »f ours, personal freedom is being eroded away at a horrifying irate. We all assume that we have freedom of assembty, freedom of expression and free-dlwn of movement. We assume rights for ourselves (which do mot exist) in our dealings with (the police, the courts, and that we have privacy and a free press. The truth is that we do mot have any freedoms. Each of »ur 'basic rights' has a catch 22 to stop us exercising it. Anyone who has had any dealings with NiCCL, PROP, MIND, Amnesty international, etc., finds themselves presented with a catalogue of state repression of the individual. Freedom of assembly seems to be the easiest right to remove from us. When violence is threatened then it is reasonable to stop such meetings, but it seems that the policy at the moment is to perform a blanket ban on all demonstrations when in fact only one has threatened violence. This seems a clever tactic to stop politically embarrassing demonstrations from taking place, regardless of how peaceful by associating them with crude threatening fascist marches. Equally we notice that the jtoHee are very keen to protect the National Front's right to assemble in halls all over the country, and prevent peaceful picketing of such meetings. But our police seem unwilling to protect Gay groups from National Front attacks. Left-wing groups have had their headquarters attacked, meetings disrupted, bookshops befouled, they seem unwilling to prosecute anyone from the right except- in the most blatant and uncompromising of situations. Freedom of expression? — D notices sort that out. Film censorship prevents not only the exposure of human bodies but government ones as well. The libel and slander laws protect our rich from exposure and at times keep, our papers from exposing important social issues (e.g. Distillers and the Thalidomide scandal). We see that access to the media is restricted, many groups are not only prevented access to the press, but, are prevented from having outlets for their own papers. Freedom of movement, this seems to be a farce, when large numbers of Britons cannot even get into this country, or in certain areas of London black people cannot walk the streets in safety . because of fascist thugs. The freedom of entry and exit that was once a right of all has been more and more restricted. Anti-black laws have been passed in Xenophobic fits of madness. If we are to remain a free country then freedom must extend to all. These are important issues, but we have a real horror story. The Mental Health Act 1959. This legislation allows any government to remove its opposi- TERRY'S ANSWER to the Labour Parly open letter: "It seems to me like the kettle call-ingjhe pot tolaefc." COMPETITION ? ? it Design an Hum Sign lor the Beavers' Retreat Bar and win £55 \ ? ? ? Competition details from : John Kelly, Assistant Bursar, Room H.506. Closing date 15th May 1978. QUOTE OF THE WEEK "Steve Robins®w» the Lemon and Barley watt,it kid of the Liberal Parly, wears a fiat cap to disguise a fflat head." WILL RICHARDSON. Public demos: fast becoming a thing of the past ? / & Covent Garden Proms 1DOMENEO IDOMENEO did have teething problems. One of the singers could sing well but was a dreadful actor, who also happened to be 65. The other tenor could act better than he could sing, and the singer of Idamante was very young and had never been on the stage before, having "no intelligence for music or anything else" according to the Mozartian commentator, Dent. Mozart didn't get on well with the librettist, Varesco, and, as often was the case, the music was not finished until the opera was actually in rehearsal. Despite all this, the first performances were a great success. Idomeneo is dramatically continuous. Arias are not isolated events but fit into the music structure to create a "wholeness" greater than the sum of the parts, an identity which does not allow the audience to split up the continuous line of play with unruly applause. In many ways this puts Idomeneo well ahead df its time. Although, for example, the characters in Cosi fan Tutte are shown with far greater psychological exploration and sublety, later operas lack the passionate fervour of Idomeneo. A neglected work, it deserves greater recognition, which I hope the new production will help it to get. We need have less fears about the abilities of the cast than Mozart, for at Covent Garden, Stuart Burrows is to sing Idomeneo and Janet Baker Idamante. The producer will be Gotz Friedrich who produced the spectacular Freis-chutz currently in the repertory, the conductor, Colin Davis. There will be a promenade performance on March 28 when prom places will be sold one hour before the performance starts for only £1.00. The Royal Opera will also be performing 11 Trovatore and Death in Venice at the Proms. Best value of the year at the Royal Opera House. See you there ! JONATHAN RICHMOND Elana's view: the nursery THERE is no doubt that nursery provision for under two-year-old children is a growing concern. The present situation is that there are eight places at the CES Nursery subsidised by the students' union. In November last year those eight places were full while the waiting-list showed nine more needed. At the present moment, the eight places now filled consist of five parents who will want to continue next year (78-79) at CES and ALREADY there are four parents awaiting places for '78-79. The Students' Union has policy calling for the expansion of the LSE Nursery to cater for this age-group. The School has been aware of the demand and need for expansion—accommodation has been requested following the move to Strand House ('78-80 ?) and the first floor of Parish Hall could utilise plumbing facilities already existing in order to expand for babies and the nursery matron is costing such expansion already. The Nursery Sub-committee has constantly been reminded of the need for expansion and seems quite positive towards this idea. If action is needed now, then it has to come forward from both the School and the Union. If the Union could raise some money for the LSE Hardship Fund for the nursery (May 2nd possible collection date) and the School also move concretely in this direction, then we may see implementation of such ideas as expansion.' A review of other nurseries from an NUS document shows that in two out of three cases where the nurseries take children from under the age of two that the students unions concerned do make contributions. These are: Goldsmiths where the SU raises anything above the college subsidy of £7.50 per week; University College where the SU pays £1,500 and the college pays gas, electricity etc. At Imperial College, the student union does not contribute, but the college pays £4,500. It seems to me that higher staff ratios for under two-year-olds means by definition that such nurseries cost more money to run than nurseries for older children. It is also obvious that the university age range demands places for smaller babies due to the age of the population involved. The stark facts then are that money and action are really necessary—fund-raising or painting furniture or just real practical concern are a part of implementing the obvious requirements that people with smaller children should not be denied the right to an education, to a career and to real facilities which are necessary,. however expensive or time-consuming. PAGE 9 Lawyers all RUMOUR has it that some «f you pfebs that hang around St Clements and the Three Tt*ns don't know what the Law Sec-iety is, don't know any lawyers* and don't want to either because you think we're a boring load of old farts. Well, that might have beea true last year, and it was this* year before that, but definitely not this year, since I have som« news for you: by a stranger system of transferring power which, (for want of a better word) we will call an election, the Law Society is now under new management, which means action. Now, last year's ¦ committee were great, but only.: we lawyers knew what. was going on. This year, however, . we are acquiring the comrasB touch : not only are we favouring you with this article ("thin-load of bull", I hear you cry ?^;; but we are also on the lookout for new members, and even better, we are extending a general invitation to our en4 -of-term party on Thursday lfith. Not only is the party going' have loads of wine, pints of beer and tables groaning unde-c the weight of all the food, but there is also going to be a superlative disco — and I doa't mean a King's College typ»* disco, pirouetting to Tchaikovsky. Details of this glorious bachanalia are to be found --»« posters all over the place. If, of course, you don't want to come (as is your privilege), yea can sod off . . . Covent Garden Proms "<£1: pay at the door, take your friends and sit on the floor." Four performances by The Royal Opera. Monday 27th March at 7.30 pm II trovatore (Verdi) Tuesday 28th March at 7.30 pm Idomeneo (Mozart) Thursday 30th March at 7.30 pm II trovatore (Verdi) Friday 31st March at 7.30 pm Death in Venice (Britten) Two performances by The Royal Ballet: Wednesday 29th March at 7.30 pm The Sleeping Beauty (Tchaikovsky/Petipa) Saturday 1st April at 7.30 pm Manon (Massenet/MacMillan) 700 Stalls Promenade places available on the day of performance one hour before curtain up. £1 each, including VAT. Seats: £1 to £11. Further details: 01-2401911 (24-hour information service). Bargain offer for promenaders Stalls seats for Amphi prices! Proms ticket stub will entitle you to drastic reductions on seats for a number of performances by The Royal Opera and The Royal Ballet Full details supplied with tickets, Royal Opera House in association with Midland Bank The Royal Opera House Covent Garden Limited receives financial assistance from The Arts Council of Great Britain. Midland Bank Limited PAGE 10 RUGBY UNION QMC 1st XV 13 — LSE 1st XV 23 AFTER a horrendous trip out to the dark depths of Ditchleys the L.S.E. 1st XV put up a performance full of guts. In a match of two halves, the L.S.E. finally triumphed over a Q.M.C. side who were lacking in the finer arts. The first half was spoiled by inconsistent re-fereeing and a tendency of both packs to forget about good possession whilst they laid in to the opposition. This culminated in the removal from the field of L.S.E. star hooker Paul Dav-ies when the obvious Q.M.C. culprit managed to con the referee into yet another bad decision. Things looked bleak now with L.S.E. trailing to an undeserved 13-0 deficit. By sheer determination, the pack launched a series of massive onslaughts on the home defence despite being reduced to seven men. The first try went to Bani Brandolini, whose long stride carried him through after concerted forward pressure. Moon had kicked a penalty and Q.M.C. began to look distinctly rattled as L.S.E. pulled back into the game. The next try summed up the determination of the pack when they scored a push-over try with top scorer Derbyshire getting the touch down. Moon's conversion brought the scores level. With ten minutes remaining L.S.E. strung together a move involving all 15 . . . whoops, 14 . . . players culminating in John "Junky"' Darnell crashing over in the corner. This sounded the death-knell for Q.M.C., who never again threatened to score. And so, the final score 23-13 was a suitable reflection on the following team: Thompson; Little, Darnell, Johnston, Bani; Page, Moon ; Gavins, Davies, Evans ; Joshua, Confrey; Hyde, Derbyshire, Maxey. P S.—The Seconds returned a good 8-4 victory against Q.M.C. 2nds that same day. PATRICK MOON. Convincing win LSE 2nd XV 40 — ST GEORGE'S HOSPITAL 2nd XV 7 LSE took an early lead with a fast crossfield move involving Thomas, Costelloe, Darnell and Newton before Ian Brown touched down in the corner. The Don popped up twice more in the next ten minutes to score two tries. Darnell added a further try and successfully converted this one before George's struck back just before half-time with a surprise try. However, the 18 points to 4 lead flattered the LSE forwards, who had really not had the better of the first half despite giant lock forward Howard James throwing up in the tight. The second half turned out to be a different story though with the LSE forwards settling down to their task to the extent where they even managed to set Bob (Vatican Roulette) Joshua up for his very first try for two years. Further tries came from skipper Thomas, Mart Costello and two from Karl Williams. In the end the LSE dominated this game and deserved the convincing margin of their win. p.S. : Congratulations to Ray Oakey on getting his Ph.D. LSE 2nd XV: Scott; Williams, Anton, Darnell, Brown; Costelloe, Thomas; Oakey. Kirby, Abercrombie; Mooney, Joshua, James, Cutts; Newton. LSE left flank overwhelms UCL ONLY half-hour from Skateboard-city (District of Waterloo) lies the fair suburb of Berrylands/New Maiden which on Saturday, 25th February gave its usual muted welcome to an embryonic LSE Rugby team. Pre-match foreplay (one must humour the eager Beavers) . . . took its usual relaxed, inadequate form. The game began (well it does help) with a competent society referee (ie mixes with GBS, Oscar W., look-alikes) and UCL scoring a try and converting. Despite this set-back LSE's three-quarters started running the ball strongly and forcing occasional breaks in the Oppo's defence. 2nd Half: with the wind behind (where else) the gallant company and the motivation provided by a half-time reading of 5th London Workers Bulletin, UCL's lead was challenged. Further encouragement from loyal rugby supporter Roger "Linctus" who pointed out that UCL were not a rugby side but a potential force for reactionary, neo-pseudo - quasi - fascioeurocommun -ism in sheep's clothing (or pure new wool rugby shirts) spurred the team's collective effort. Realising the match to be an ideal forum for expressing their new found socialist beliefs LSE ran in 6 tries to win 26-6. After the match various team members compared their discovery of the "true path" while playing to Mao's long march experiences while comrades in the co-operative . . . er . . . team actively participated in an SWP book of anti-racist, anti-sexist, anti-political anti-humorous jokes. In a spontaneous meeting the team with a spirit of egalitarianism (?) unanimously decided to change its name to LSE socialist revolutionary rugby commune. POPCORN O'MAHONEY (SOLECISMS LTD) Never mind the muppets.... HERE COMES THE McSKI CLUB KEN RIVKIN left Passfield at 3.00 pm on Friday, 24th February. Having missed the reception committee on arrival at Hendon Central 3i hours later, he boarded the coach to desperate cries of "Have you seen Toby or Steve": "Who the fuck are Steve and Toby" — the Ski-Club are Scotland bound. After countless excursions to the 3 Tuns we felt ready to tackle the Cairngorms. With Norman and Doris well installed in their bindings, longing for a Derek, and the rest of the party hunting Haggis, we arrived in Newtonmore 13 hours, 125 bottles, 51 piss-stops (Mick) and no sleep later. We were directed to our respective room with assembly kits and having rearranged our equipment, Spike came into his own. Spike, our resident punk "philosophe" nibbed the Mac Waitress' sporan up the wrong way Nomise. After our waitress. McRatty, gave us our porridge oats, we were whisked off on two wheels along windy roads through undulating pine forests to the glimmering ski slopes of our fondest dreams. " 'Ain't much like St Moritz" exclaimed our flabberghasted Swiss ¦ contingent. Razivan, once told which end to point downhill, was never seen again. Martini the flying Dutchman,, was well equipped to lead the LSE ski aces down Voive Na Ciste, despite the treacherous conditions. The snow, although plentiful, was wet and heavy; visibility was down but beginners and expert alike survived without injury. The only minor incident was Hew Byron who, despite the disability of a broken stick, still did his bit for international relations. Toby, still not quite into the Scottish atmosphere, gave our Davis an aborigine/cowboy fling in front of the strobe, which set the standard for the evening. Our sensational new act the Muppetational chairman was doing well until he bust a wire and lost all control, much to Doris' dismay — and so, our one night in Scotland flew by altogether too quickly. On Sunday morning the lift queues were longer; the snow, wetter; and the visibility shorter but skied all the same. Fortunately it cleared up in the afternoon and the sun even shone making the last few hours a fitting conclusion to a great weekend. We hope to make the trip again next year, Scotland permitting. Next term heralds, the start of the grass skiing season so keep an eye on the notices board all you enthusiastic skibums. STEVE AND TOBY WHAT BRIAN MOORE WON'T BE TELLING YOU THE chances are that even if you are not a football fan you won't be able to avoid the enormous coverage in this year's World Cup Finals. The Finals are in Argentina this year and Brian Moore, Jimmy Hill and all the rest will be there telling you about the football skills and the beautiful pitches. What they won't be telling you is what's going on outside the stadia. Two years ago there was a military coup in Argentina. Monetarist economic policies were forced through. They involved the now familiar "Friedmanish" slashing of public expenditure, outlawing strikes and holding down wages in a bid to encourage investment from overseas (ie USA, Japan and Europe). From these forms of economic repression inevitably follow the violation of political and human rights. Information in the hands of the United Nations says that there are 10,000 political prisoners (of whom only 15% have been charged), 15,000 "disappearances" and 10,000 assassinations. ' Nobody knows how much the World Cup is costing the country. But we do know that workers' houses have been bulldozed to make room for the stadia. And we know that selected prisons are being "cleaned up" to show to any inquisitive foreign journalists who will be "looked after" by an Army man to make sure they see the right things. You can be sure that none of this will be on the BBC or ITV. However, having read this article you will know a bit of what is going on. GRAHAM WILDRIDGE Al Newton on an off day CEEGST SAYS I would like to thank all those who voted for me in the recent elections for the sabbatical post of Senior Treasurer for their support and would like to convey my congratulations to Julian on a good win and wish him a successful second term. I would like to thank all those who lobbeyed for me informally, and especially those on the Committee to Elect the Ex-Governor Senior Treasurer (CEEGST), notably Abhay Desai (Campaign Manager), Ed Walker, James Gaussen, Richard Butler, Guy Elliott, and of course my "unofficial" running mate, Will Richardson, who I congratulate on winning his race for General Secretary. It was a good campaign, thoroughly enjoyable even though I did not eat a decent meal from the time nominations closed to the time the ballot closed, was mentally and physically exhausted at the end of the day, and could not face another election for at least a week. v I thought that I could contribute something desirable to the- Union and so resolved to ask the electorate to grant me their confidence and invest me with the responsibility necessary. Yet I became increasingly disillusioned with the politics of party and was grateful to Abhay Desai for the moral support he offered during the .last few months. As I did not wish to be lumbered with one of the "whelk stall brigade in the other office I was happy that Will was running. Indeed, I think we both recognised the possibility as long ago as last October at a Governors/OSAC joint meeting where we each saw similarities in approach, if not in substance, to politics. Nevertheless, without the skilful negotiations conducted by Mr. Desai the link may not have been established. I am of course sad that I shall not be able to play a part in the revitalisation of the Union that I am confident will take place in the future, but am happy that the few real politicians that we have at LSE will now be able to play a £ulIer pa" BRUCE FELL. Printed by RiDley Printers Ltd., Ripley, Derby. Published by London School of Economics and Political Science, Students' Union, St. Clement's Buildings, Claremarket, London, WC2A 2AE.