LOT`S WIFE - Monash Student Association

LOT’S WIFE
don’t look back
EDITION LI
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2011
FREE
Bradley Manning for President?
“The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant
in a free and open society; and we are
as a people inherently and historically
opposed to secret societies, to secret
oaths and to secret proceedings.”
Kennedy’s words are true today.
In a historic address to the American
Newspapers Publishers Association
ANPA in 1961, President Kennedy
outlined the contradictory nature
of the need for secrecy in matters of
national security and the need for greater
public access to the machinations of
government. The ideals of free speech
and a free press are enshrined in the
American
national
consciousness.
The concern expressed by President
Kennedy in his 1961 speech is just as valid
and relevant today as it was fifty years ago.
Two recent chains of events have brought
this issue to the forefront of the media
spotlight; the actions of Anat Kam and
the alleged actions of Bradley Manning.
The current furore over the Wikileaks
scandal bears many similarities to the
Anat Kam affair. Kam, the young Israeli
journalist, was accused of stealing
over 2,000 military documents and
leaking them to Uri Blau – a reporter
for Israel’s oldest daily newspaper,
Haaretz.
Her aim was to expose
war crimes committed by the Israel
Defense Forces (IFD) in the West Bank.
Manning, a young US soldier, was
charged in 2010 with the unauthorised
disclosure of classified information; he
is currently being detained in solitary
confinement at the Marine Corps brig.
He is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing in
May 2011, according to The Guardian.
His aim was to expose war crimes
he encountered during his military
service. Manning has been accused of
leaking the highly controversial Iraq
War video which showed the killing
of several Iraqis and two journalists
via three air-to-ground strikes carried
out by two US Army AH-64 Apache
helicopters in Al-Amin al-Thaniyah, in
the New Baghdad district in Baghdad.
A major issue of contention raised
in both cases is the lax security that
allowed junior military personal
to access highly classified, and
sensitive,
military
information.
Manning was stationed with the 2nd
Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain
Division at Contingency Operating
Station Hammer, Iraq. This posting
gave him access to SIPRNet – the Secret
Internet Protocol Router Network:
used by the US Department of Defense
to transmit classified information.
Kam has been accused of stealing
the documents during her two-year
compulsory military service, between
2005 and 2007, during which she was
working in the office of the commander
of the Central Command, which
is responsible for the West Bank.
Justice Zeev Hammer, who presided
over Anat Kam’s court hearings, described
the security failures at the GOC Central
Command chief ’s office as “astounding”
adding that he was “shocked to learn
of these incomprehensible failures
and negligent data protection”.
There are many that see the actions
of Kam and Manning as treasonous.
Lot’s Wife was fortunate enough to
speak with Greer Cashman, an Israeli
journalist from the Jerusalem Post,
and a board member of the Jerusalem
Journalists Association (JJA), who stated:
“I’m the only person with a dissenting
opinion on the board – whom all
support Anat Kam’s actions – and here’s
why; at the time she copied the classified
information, she was a soldier and not
a civilian; therefore her duty was to the
military, and to the security of Israel.
What she did was tantamount to treason.”
Former US ambassador to the United
Nations under the Bush administration,
John Bolton, said that if Manning
did leak the intelligence he should be
charged with treason. “Treason is still
punishable by death and if he were
found guilty, I would do it”, Bolton said.
Counter to this view there are many
who see Bradley Manning and Anat Kam
as heroes; as defenders of democracy.
CBS journalist Chase Madar states:
“U.S. Army Private First Class Bradley
Manning has done his duty. He has
witnessed serious violations of the
American military’s Uniform Code of
Military Justice, violations of the rules
in U.S. Army Field Manual 27-10, and
violations of international law. He has
brought these wrongdoings to light
out of a profound sense of duty to his
country, as a citizen and a soldier, and
his patriotism has cost him dearly.”
As elucidated by President Kennedy,
the need for secrecy in matters of national
security needs to be balanced against
the need for press freedom. President
Kennedy’s address at the ANPA also
stated: “No official of my Administration,
whether his rank is high or low, civilian or
military, should interpret my words here
tonight as an excuse to censor the news,
to stifle dissent, to cover up our mistakes
or to withhold from the press and the
public the facts they deserve to know.”
Are Kennedy’s words not still consistent
with the current US ethos? If they are,
then it is a serious problem whenever
the government and the military cover
up information in the public interest.
The US military and government, as
well as many mainstream media outlets
reported that those killed in the Iraq
War air-strike video were insurgents.
The video released in 2007 by Wikileaks,
proved unequivocally that the people
killed were Iraqi civilians and journalists.
Continued PAGE 8
Rainbow Serpent 2011
Only a month past and I can
already feel the excitement building
for Rainbow 2012. And so it is every
year. As the months turn and January
draws ever closer, whispers of Rainbow
Serpent turn to roars of jubilation as
bigger and better acts are announced.
Yet this year the collective excitement
about Rainbow was almost stifled at its
very peak when, only a week prior, the
Victorian countryside was inundated by
flash flooding. The Facebook hive buzzed
furiously with frenzied communication
as friends and festival fellows shared
Cooking with
Chapelle part II
ominous news reports about the Beaufort
River breaking its banks and flooding
the entire area. It was eventually revealed
that the access road was underwater, and
Rainbow 2011 hung precariously on
whether the site would dry out in time.
But hope and luck prevailed. Not only was
the flooding succeeded by a solid week of
sun, but the festival organisers reportedly
injected funds into the local council to
ensure the integrity of the access road.
Rainbow was happening after all!
Continued PAGE 17
Feature comic
P. 8
P. 26
Consent
and
sexuality
Film Review
P. 9
P. 20
02 NEWS
Staff List
Contents
Editors
03 Campus Life
Timothy Lawson
Joshua Kenner
06 Nation News
Finance Director
Fatima Hakim
Photography
Richard Plumridge
Campus Life
07 World News
08 Editorials/Letters
09 Opinion
Erica Lawson
Nation News
Christine Todd
Declan Murphy
World News
Kimberly Doyle
Martin Shlansky
Creative Writing/Books
Anastasia Pochesneva
12 Columns
14 Creative Writing
17 Music
20 Film
21 Books/Games
Music
Michael Stanisic
Vivian-Amy Tran
Film/TV
22 Visual Art
23 Science
Jessica Marshall
Science
Aimee Parker
Luke Nickholds
24 Essays
26 Extras
Sport
Andrew Mayes
Kiran Iyer
Thank You
Harry Sabolcki, for your tireless assistance in almost every facet of production; Glen Heywood, for creating and running Switch, writing,
proofreading and editing, and for your endless wise and optismistic advice; Fatima Hakim, for the many late-night hours you spent helping us
and for being so on the ball with all our financial shit; Omar Hassan for running Left Action, and for being against the machine like rage; to all
our writers and sub-editors – this publication would not have been possible without your efforts.
Disclaimer
While the Lot’s Wife editors aim to provide content which will be informative and entertaining for Monash students; and believe that all
students should have the opportunity to express themselves. Equally, we recongnise the right of all students to read the publication without
feeling threatened or offended by racist, sexist, militaristic, or homophobic material; therefore we refuse to publish anything of this nature.
The views presented in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or the Monash Student Association. Articles that are
submitted are proof read and may be altered, chemically or otherwise.
Contact Details
Submissions: Please email content to: lotswife.msa@monash.edu
First Floor
Campus Centre
Monash University
Wellington Road
Clayton, 3800
Ph: (03) 9905 8174
Fax: (03) 9905 4185
Facebook: lotswife@groups.facebook.com
Lot’s Wife is your 100% student-produced newspaper It’s a great avenue to get your
work in print, especially if you’re interested in photography, writing, typesetting,
design or investigative journalism. Anyone can submit articles, funky graphics,
reviews or whatever else that will print. If you’re happy just to read it, you’ll find a
new copy around campus monthly during semester.
Twitter: @lotswife2011
Writer’s meetings: Monday 12pm Lot’s Wife Lounge, First Floor, Campus Centre.
http://www.msa.monash.edu.au/campus-life/lots-wife/
Lot’s Wife acknowledges the Kulian Nations as the original and ongoing
owners of the land upon which the paper is produced.
CAMPUS LIFE 3
MSA
independence
under threat from
budget cuts
In the current MSA funding
agreement
negotiations,
Monash
University is proposing budget cuts
and further conditions that attack
the independence of the Monash
Student Association, in moves that
can only be described as anti-student.
The MSA relies on this funding to run
important services like student rights and
welfare, and to continue enhancing the
student experience on campus through
departments like Clubs & Societies,
Activities, Wholefoods, and Sir Johns’ Bar.
This move has coincided with
other changes recently made by the
University – including staff cuts, unit
cuts, the introduction of a $1 fee per
trip for the inter-campus shuttle, and
increased parking permit prices –
which are forcing students to pay for
gaps in the University budget. These
moves are placing detrimental strain on
students, who already struggle to cover
the excessive costs of tertiary education.
Unfortunately, the University is
proposing unreasonable changes in the
current funding agreement proposal
which is untenable for many different
reasons. It means they can continue to
cut our funding for vital student services
every single year. We have no opportunity
for responsible forward planning of the
organisation, and will result in fewer
clubs, fewer events, no new services
(such as the renovation of Sir John’s), and
will seriously hinder student advocacy
on campus. The Monash Student
Association calls on the University to
recognise the important role student
associations play in supporting students
at Monash, and call on the University to:
1) Recognise that the MSA, and
all Monash student organisations,
need funding security in order to
$1 extortion
This year, Monash is introducing
a $1 fee each way on the inter-campus
shuttle bus. They have argued this decision is due to financial necessity. Yet,
with this fee certain to have an array of
negative effects on students, should we
really be the ones to foot the bill?
Monash is structured in a way that
ensures many students have to travel between campuses to attend their various
classes, most of which would be compulsory. In this way Monash is almost
forcing students to pay yet another fee
to ensure the completion of a degree.
While one dollar may not sound like
much, the current rate of Youth Allowance is 48% below the Henderson poverty line, and recent data indicates that
the more a student works, the less likely
they are to finish their degree. Many
students rely on the shuttle bus regularly, and this fee, on top of the regular
rent, food, transport and uni-related
costs, might just be the straw to break
the collective camel’s back. This further
financial strain will also be felt with by
those who do not qualify for concession
cards, such as international students.
Put simply, students should not have to
pay for Monash services we are forced to
use in the normal course of study.
Students who cannot afford this fee
will be left with no choice but to miss
essential classes. This is further exacerbated by the fact that Monash still
hasn’t implemented mandatory recording of lectures; some classes missed can’t
be caught up on. Further, many units
have specific tutorial attendance requirements, and if a student cannot achieve
these they risk the possibility of failure,
or lost marks. Thus, the fee ensures
that students, who pay up to $1,135 in
HECS fees for one class alone, are not
only inhibited access to their education,
but also risk failing units.
While it can be argued that students
can use public transport instead of the
shuttle (assuming they already have a
metcard or myki), this is not a viable
Photo by Richard Plumridge
plan for the future, and commit
to a 3 year funding agreement.
2) Recognise the independence of
the MSA as the democratically
elected representatives of all Monash
Clayton students;
3) Recognise that the current level
of funding is vital for the continued
running of services, and commit to no
decreases in funding.
4) Recognise the increasing size
and standing of the University, and
acknowledge that any cuts in funding
option for everyone. There are limited,
if any, direct routes available to the
Berwick and Peninsula Monash campuses, and while there is a bus between
Clayton and Caulfield it is not a direct
route, stopping leisurely through Chadstone on the way. This means that if students cannot afford the shuttle service,
their ability to get to and from classes
on time is drastically restricted. Many
would be forced to arrive late and leave
early, thus further restricting students’
ability to access their education.
The introduction of a $1 shuttle fee
will also have an impact on the safety
of Monash students. The shuttle bus,
when free, provided students undertaking night classes with a frequent, well lit
service. Following the past year’s spate
of attacks on international students,
this type of service has become increasingly important. Now with the fee,
some students will have no choice but
to use public transport, which becomes
infrequent into the night. Students
who travel between Clayton, Berwick
and/or the Peninsula campus will be
in significantly more danger having to
catch multiple train and bus connections rather than the shuttle.
The environment will also suffer.
Approximately 100,000 people use the
shuttle service each year, saving some
920 tonnes of carbon emissions. The
introduction of a fee means many
people will choose to drive between
campuses, often without car pooling,
drastically decreasing the positive impact the shuttle has previously had on
the environment. For a university that
pretends to pride itself on green initiatives, they once again talk the talk, but
don’t walk the walk.
Free travel on the campus shuttle is
crucial to students. It ensures they can
access the education they pay thousands
of dollars for, safely and efficiently. Students must demand change- not spend
it!
By Esther Hood
are inappropriate, irresponsible, and
unjustified.
5) Recognise that the MSA, and all
Monash student organisations, need to
plan for major projects, and commit
to allowing surpluses to carry over to
future years to facilitate this.
6) Ensure that if the Federal
Government allows for the creation of
a student amenities fee, the University
commits to ensuring that all of these
funds go to the MSA, and other
Monash student organisations, in order
to represent students.
To show your support for the
MSA and to call on the University to
adequately invest in students, visit the
MSA website www.msa.monash.edu.
au, join the ‘I Heart My MSA’ facebook
group, grab an MSA Card, and
contact Peter Marshall, Vice President
(Administration), at Peter.Marshall@
monash.edu.
By Imogen Sturni
MSA President
Monash University: Privatising public
education.
Monash University is a publicly
owned statutory body with a huge,
powerful and expensive management.
Public money was used to buy land
for the university, to build buildings
for the university and to train staff for
the university. As public funding for
universities over the years has decreased,
reliance upon external funding for
universities has increased. Monash
as a consequence has become less of
a public institution and more of a
privately sponsored institution. This
raises serious question about whether
the University is serving public needs
and whether the rights of students and
staff to pursue their academic interests
is being protected. While the reduction
in money from commonwealth
grants to universities is real, the way
the University has responded to this
reduction has been a choice not a
necessity.
Over the past few decades Monash
University priorities have been set
by Monash University Council and
Monash management rather than
Monash University academics. This
was not always the case. About thirty
years ago Monash University Council
was in effect a Professorial Board. This
Professorial Board, which was closer
to students and staff than the present
Council, established priorities and
appointed management including the
Vice-Chancellor. Shortly after this time
Monash Council became independent
of the Professorial Board and acquired
sufficient power to instruct academics
to concentrate on teaching, research
and publications while they would
determine policies and appoint the
Vice-Chancellor. While Monash
Council is now composed of and has
always been composed of some student,
staff and ministerial representatives,
the majority of members of Monash
University Council are now directly
or indirectly appointed by Monash
University Council. This of course raises
potential conflict of interest issues and
explains the huge increase in the size
and salaries of management over the
years, and the alleged contempt Monash
University Council and management
has for students and staff who disagree
with its local and global management
plans. The Vice-Chancellor, the most
powerful member of Council, can now
assume that the majority of members of
Council will agree with what he wants
for they have been appointed directly
or indirectly by the Council he heads.
Monash University as a consequence is
being run more and more for Monash
University management and to cater
to the research needs of business rather
than for the academic interests of
students and staff.
To maintain the size of the University,
and if possible to expand it, management
is increasingly trying to access domestic
and international external funding
over and above that provided in
Commonwealth Government grants.
More and more academic interests and
research priorities that cannot attract
external commercial funding are being
replaced by research projects that can.
This orientation determines the allocation
of space and the appointment of staff. As
the Arts faculty and the pure sciences
cannot attract external funding they
are progressively being reduced in size.
Courses that can’t attract full fee paying
overseas students have progressively
been replaced with courses that can.
By Marlow Von Trier
4 CAMPUS LIFE
OB REPORTS
President
Imogen Sturni
The MSA has been working hard
over summer to bring you the MSA Orientation Carnival, which runs from the
21st-24th of February on the Lemon
Scented Lawns. O-Week is the perfect
time to get your MSA Card, join as many
clubs and societies as humanly possible,
grab a Music on Menzies ticket – to see
Bag Raiders and Miami Horror, and win
your chance to skydive into Monash!
While we’re working hard to bring
you another amazing year, the University is still threatening to cut MSA funding by up to 10% each year. This means
we are faced with a situation where we
may not be able to provide you with the
same great services, representation and
events. Make sure you head to the website to pledge your support for the MSA.
For more information about the
MSA, the MSA Card, and any upcoming campaigns or events, head to the
MSA website www.msa.monash.edu.au
Secretary
Sheldon Oski
Hey new students and older returnees!
I’m Sheldon, the MSA Secretary for
this year. My job is to ensure an accurate record is kept of important documents for the MSA, such as minutes and
timesheets. Most of my work recently
has been geared towards organising Orientation Week. O-Week is a wonderful time of the year and if it’s not over
when you’re reading this, make sure to
go out and enjoy it while you still can!
Make sure to join as many clubs as
you can, see the O-Show and check
out the MSA tent where you can chat
to MSA representatives like me! OWeek is a great chance to meet people
and make new friends – don’t pass up
on the opportunity! Last but not least,
make sure to buy the MSA Card so you
support the MSA in running fantastic
O-Weeks like this in the future.
Treasurer
Jenna Amos
Welcome first year students and
welcome back all returning students!
As this year’s Treasurer I have spent
the start of 2011 being briefed on
the MSA’s finances, budgeting procedures and signing off on requisitions.
Unfortunately, Monash University has threatened a 10% cut in MSA
funding. Such a drastic reduction is
threatening to hurt student services
across the board. So if you enjoy student theatre performances, Activities’
events, reading Lot’s Wife, Host Scheme,
Clubs and Societies and so on, get behind the ‘I [heart] MSA’ campaign.
Activities
James Gordon and
Jenna Conroy
2011 is going to be a massive year
with Jenna and James bringing you all
the awesome events around campus. We
have been working on O-Week, where
we will host a Trivia Night and a Movie
Night, both held on campus and both set
to be great nights. Once the excitement
that is O-Week has finished, we will be
bringing you Horror Booze Cruise. This
cruise will be on the Victoria Star and
will depart from Docklands, Melbourne.
Apart from organising these events,
we have been visiting the first year students on Host Scheme camps and encouraging them to get involved with
Activities throughout the year. Our
amazing committee has been helping us with this and we’re all looking forward to seeing you this year.
Education (Academic Affairs)
John Monroe
Welcome to the new academic
year and – for some of you – the new
experience that is university life. Part
of our job is to ensure that the university understands and addresses student needs and concerns, so we’d love
to hear from you about anything you
think that Monash should be looking
into, particularly regarding any trouble
you may be having with course progression/unit availability/finishing majors.
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been
busy organising student representatives
to sit on Academic Progress Committees,
which decide what should happen to students who’ve had ‘unsatisfactory progress’
in their degree – and we’d like to remind
you that there are heaps of resources
available to you if you’re struggling in any
way, like the Health and Wellbeing Hub,
study skills workshops in the libraries or
the Disability Liaison Unit. Check out
the Monash website or email us: (hannah.aroni@monash.edu or john.monroe@monash.edu) for more information.
Education (Public
Affairs)
Esther Hood
The Education (Public Affairs) department has spent most of the summer
producing its major publication for the
year – The Counter-Faculty Handbook.
The handbook is designed to inform you
what to really expect from classes, using
reviews from students who have already
taken the unit. Swing by and pick one
up from MSA reception! Amongst other
campaigns, we will be opposing the shuttle bus fee and parking permit increases,
and continue the fight for a fair funding
agreement for the MSA. Monash is still
forcing a 10% cut on a one year basis
(with the potential for cuts every year). If
you enjoy plays from Monash University
Student Theatre, Sir John’s Bar, Wholefoods, events like Music on Menzies, after exam parties, student rights services,
and everything else in between, make
sure the MSA can continue to fund
them by signing the petition at http://
gopetition.com/petition/38979.html.
Environment and
Social Justice
Bianca Jewell and
Cassie Speakman
Firstly, we’d like to say welcome to
2011 and hope you have a fantastic year!
Since starting in January, we’ve been busy
thinking up campaigns, planning projects and preparing awesome events for
the year. We’ve also been doing a lot of
work on the new Monash Community
Farm – from designing and budgeting,
to writing up grant proposals and figuring out how the project will be managed.
The Monash Permaculture Garden,
located west of the campus centre, is
flourishing with an abundance of mints
and climbing beans towering above our
heads, while our young banana tree has
benefitted from all the rainfall this season!
If you would like to get involved with
the Environment & Social Justice Collective (ESJC) this year, feel free to come
and visit us (turn right at MSA reception, next to the Activist Space) or send
us an email at enviro.msa@monash.edu.
Hope
to
see
you
soon!
Queer (Female)
Katie Heading
I’ve spent a lot of my time looking
at creating a Queer Ally Network, which
will hopefully see staff ‘Allies’ introduced
at Clayton who have training in dealing
with issues that influence the queer community. The visibility planned for this
project is something I think will help
make Monash increasingly queer friendly.
By the time this goes to print there
will have been two Queer Affairs Committee meetings; together we’re looking
at creating an ‘Anti-Homophobia in
Schools Campaign’ and a queer-specific
mental health awareness campaign, so
I’ve been busily researching and compiling information for both campaigns.
For those who are new (or old) this
year, there’s usually at least one Queer Officer in during the day, so if you have any
issues you think we could help with, drop
by the office – and make sure that if you’re
a queer student you pop into the Lounge!
Queer (Male)
Lance Charisma
It’s been a crazy couple of months,
with Office Bearer training beginning
back in December, and I’ve spent the
time settling in to the role of Queer Officer and getting a head start on my projects for the year. We have a lot planned
for this year, for both queer students and
for ‘Allies’, so there are plenty of opportunities to get involved. During O-Week
write a message of support for thisoz.com,
join in our scavenger hunt, or just come
by our stall and see what we’re about.
For queer students new to Monash, hop
on by the queer lounge any time, or if
you need a little encouragements visit on
Wednesday afternoons for free fancy tea
and baked goods. In the future, look out
f Pride Week, coming up in week five.
Women’s
Vittoria Careri and
Jasmine Crooks
Welcome to another exciting year
in The Monash Women’s Department!
We’re gearing up for some awesome
events, including but not limited to:
free women’s self-defence workshops,
feminist reading groups, and workshops
set to develop corporate and leadership skills for women. We’ll be keeping everybody updated via the Monash
Women’s Department’s Facebook page
and our e-Bulletin, which you can sign
up to anytime. Our forum (http://msawomensdepartment.proboards.com)
is an excellent place to share and lurkers are completely welcome. We also
provide a safe and autonomous space
for women, which is a great place to socialise, read from our bookshelves, have
a cuppa or take a nap between classes.
If you want to get involved, or just
check it out, head up to the first floor of
the Campus Centre and turn down the
corridor on the right of the reception desk.
Welfare
Matthew Polmear
and Tom Cheah
After a much needed spring clean
and reorganisation of the office, the welfare office put together its collective creative mind grapes to action. We perused the
former 2006 ‘Survival Guide’ and 2002
‘Cheap living guide’ published by former
welfare officers. Groundwork was completed on Free Food Mondays, including budgeting, recipe plans, and logistical stuff. Financial motions for the cost
of Free Food Mondays were passed also.
We’re in the midst of introducing
more free stuff for students. Stuff that
matters – like sunscreen and condoms!
Survival week will be in week four.
We’ve planned to address things like
tenancy rights and mental health. We’ve
planned to make sure that this year’s derelicte ball will be totally off the hook!
You’ll hear more from us during O
week and when the semester begins. Be
sure to see us every Monday night in the
Airport lounge at 7:30pm for free and
tasty, tasty food from week on onwards.
CAMPUS LIFE 5
First year
reflection
Photo by Miki Mclay
2010 started with a kiss on a doorstep in the pouring rain and ended outside a warehouse party sweaty, slightly
dizzy and high on life. Those, and every
single moment in between - heartbreaking and perfect - made this year one of
the best ones I’ve ever lived through.
The longest, warmest, most incredible summer I’ve lived through. One
perfect night with Luke and James and
the rest of those kids (and we all went
mental and danced). Standing on the
bridge that went across Bell Street,
stumbling home slightly drunk at two
in the morning, filming traffic on my
phone for five minutes and whispering
along to Group Four on my own. A first
heartbreak. Memories of you from underneath the streets of the city. Drains,
words scribbled over concrete, then over
each other. Cigarette smoke blown out
your window. Death and rebirth.
The wrong side of the river. World
of Boxes with Didz and cheeky drinks
after work, trolling Twitter using company internet. Bonus points at trivia
for me and James’ impromptu performance of a certain song we both like.
Weekly Mama Dukes/stalker dates with
Coral, planning gymnastics routines.
Randomly starting a conversation
about dance music and production with
some cutie in glasses with a tongue piercing, blasting fierce beats with his friends
on the Menzies Lawn on my first week of
uni, ending with me giving him my number and forgetting his name about ten
seconds later (oops). Having absolutely
no idea, at that point, how significant to
me that boy was to eventually become.
The Radio Monash crew. Impromptu
broadcasts at 7PM when I should have
been studying, all the durries I smoked
on the balcony with Tim and Fatima.
Barbara Lounge DJ nights. Stefan’s
fairy-floss chicken, all of the amazing
crap on YouTube Bill and James managed to find. Hardcore Frape. Snowtrip. Skype sessions with the dirty kids.
The satisfaction and pride I took in
running my own show on dirtyRadio.
Razor-wire,
bridges,
trains.
“Adrenaline is my drug of choice,
the kick drum is my dealer.” Front-row
for Massive Attack: blinding lights, news
feeds, ‘Karmacoma’, ‘Jamaica an’ Roma’.
‘Atlas Air’, a bassline so fierce I honestly
thought the world was about to end. Autechre at the Hi-Fi. Dancing alone in the
front row like a madwoman while my
friend sat in front of the speakers soaking up the atmosphere. Enduring three
hours of terrible music (and worse people) for Underworld at Winter Sound
System. Eye contact with Karl Hyde for a
full five seconds after jumping up on the
rails during ‘Bird 1’. Rez/Cowgirl, James’
hand in mine. The exact moment they
dropped the bassline for ‘Scribble’ and
thinking, yeah - everything’s pretty fuck-
ing okay. Born Slippy. NUXX: no words
necessary. (“Melbourne! I feel you!”)
Living on forty dollars of groceries
a week. Strategically stealing toilet paper from uni. Instant noodles and coffee. Essays to write, bills to pay, comfort
in routine. The moment I walked out
of my final exam (PLT1050), feeling
the sunshine on my shoulders, free for
three long months. Partying in Doormoe with my favourite northside crew.
Drum and bass and Maddy and Jules.
Red Head Redemption. Famous on Twitter. Acid and pancakes and so much
love. ‘Robot Rock’, the joy of having so
many good friends chilling out in my
house and sharing good conversations.
So many goodbyes to so many good
people. (Didz, Nick, Chris.) Comforted
by the knowledge that they’ll be back
again, soon enough. All of the people who
found their way into my life this year,
for whom I’m so, so fucking thankful.
Thank you, 2010: you were something beautiful. To everybody I
was lucky enough to share it with:
thank you. 2011 - bring it, baby.
By Miki Mclay
6 NATION NEWS
Tight Squeeze
It’s 7:55am and you’re squashed
on board an express train to Flinders
Street. On one side of you there’s a
bicycle and its owner. The handlebars
are jutting into your kidneys with increasing enthusiasm. On the other side,
an impenetrable tangle of half-awake
bodies, lurching toward you with every
sudden surge of the train. Your nose is
a mere two inches from the deodorised
armpit of a towering teenage boy. Someone grasps for something to keep them
steady and grabs your chest instead. It’s
the beginning of a very intimate train
ride with over a thousand complete
strangers.
Welcome to the Sydenham service.
With a morning peak average of 1100
passengers over the past eight years, it
is Melbourne’s most overcrowded train
line. The maximum capacity for one
of Metro’s most modern trains, the
X’Trapolis, is 798 passengers. Overcrowding problems are not just limited
to the Sydenham line. Load surveys
released under Freedom of Information
highlight an alarming trend. Excluding
the grossly under-used Alamein line, all
Melbourne train lines have experienced
passenger numbers exceeding or within
5% of maximum capacity over the past
eight years.
An unexpected increase in train patronage over the past fifteen years could
in part explain passenger overcrowding
on Melbourne’s metropolitan rail network. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures reveal that patronage jumped 35%
in the period between 1996 to 2006,
an increase that former operator Connex and the State government seemingly failed to predict and prepare for.
An assessment of the privatised rail
network by the Institute of Public Affairs
in 2007 claimed that increased patronage and overcrowding are the signs of
a successful metropolitan train system,
rather than a failing one. Commuters, however, aren’t as optimistic about
the situation. Henry, a 73-year old re-
tiree from Bentleigh, reflects on a more
friendly experience in years gone by.
“The old rattlers weren’t pretty, but
they got us there in one piece. An old
codger like me was guaranteed some
breathing space. Now, well it’s all about
numbers isn’t it. Numbers and profit.”
The most dramatic examples of passenger overcrowding have been evident on the Sydenham, Werribee, Epping, and Pakenham lines. All have
experienced commuter numbers exceeding 1200 passengers during both
morning and evening peak periods.
The troubled Sydenham line is expected to endure further congestion with
an electrification and extension of the
line to Sunbury expected in 2012. Under
the government’s $38 billion transport
plan, the electrification will introduce
thousands of new passengers to the metropolitan rail network, passengers that
had previously relied on Vline services.
Public Transport Users Association
president, Daniel Bowen, says that the
opening up of the Sydenham to Sunbury rail corridor will undoubtedly
lead to an increase in patronage. He
added, however, that he supported the
project so long as frequent and reliable
services were added to the timetable.
“Provision of high-frequency electric
train services to Sunbury is the best way to
encourage high rates of public transport
use in Melbourne’s north-west,” he said.
Of concern is that most troubled
train lines are within growth corridors
earmarked for substantial population
booms within the next decade. Such
expansion, as outlined by the Victorian
government’s “Melbourne 2030” plan,
might unfortunately come at a cost for
rail commuters. To add insult to injury, Metro Trains Melbourne expects
to double commuter patronage by the
conclusion of its eight-year contract.
A consistently below average service
punctuality from Metro Trains Melbourne and its predecessor, Connex, has
also added strain to the bloated network.
Quarterly performance bulletins released
by the Department for Transport reveal
that Metro is yet to achieve a month on or
above average punctuality targets. With
cancelled or late trains becoming something of a regularity, passengers are left to
hope that there will be space on the train
for them. When it does eventually arrive.
Elise, a receptionist from Sunshine,
makes the half-hour trip into the CBD
each day for work. She is one of the
many disgruntled passengers that experience cramped, almost suffocating conditions on metropolitan trains.
“There’s essentially a guarantee each
morning that I’ll be crammed in, jolted
around and churned back out again.
We’re pretty full by the time we get
to Footscray but there’s always a foolish few who squeeze on and make the
experience all the more suffocating.”
Examples of such passenger desperation are rife across the network, with little to prevent commuters from crushing
into the carriage. Andre Hernandez, a
customer service representative for Metro
Trains Melbourne’s, said that no passenger maximum existed on Metro trains.
“As such we expect our customers
to use their judgement as to whether or not they should board a particular service or carriage. We deem
a service safe to depart once the
doors are able to completely close.”
Action has been taken by the state
government since 2006 to ease commuter overcrowding across the network, primarily through the purchase and gradual
introduction of 38 new X’Trapolis trains.
The impact on Melbourne’s choked train
lines is likely to be minimal, however,
with the trains only able to run on six
of Melbourne’s eighteen train lines.
In speaking to a political enquiry on
train services earlier this year, Andrew
Lezala, CEO of Metro Trains Melbourne,
strengthened this commitment to construct a healthy and durable system.
“We have a line interest with our customers and we want to use the timetable
changes to...allow us to make the railway
system more reliable and more recoverable when it is experiencing difficulty.”
Meanwhile, public frustration with
cramped peak hour services continues to escalate. A passenger survey of
820 Melbourne commuters revealed
that an overwhelming 80 per cent of
train users are unsatisfied with the level
of overcrowding on Melbourne’s metropolitan train network. Another 68
per cent pinpointed that they felt safety was an issue on peak hour trains.
Gus Taylor, a primary school
teacher from Oakleigh, says he’s had
his concerns about passenger welfare on overcrowded peak hour trains.
“When the train surges, so do we.
We’re so tightly compacted that if one
person topples, so do the next few.
God forbid someone gets seriously
sick or something goes wrong, because there’s no physical way of moving them out unless we all move too.
And we can’t until the doors open.”
The passenger survey also revealed that
commuters feel more frequent services
would be the best method of combating
hazardous overcrowding. An approach
that the Public Transport Users Association strongly supports with it’s “Every
Ten Minutes To Everywhere” campaign.
“Running trains every ten minutes is
possible right now on most of the system...what’s needed is for the government
to invest in more services right across
the day, seven-days-a-week, to cut waiting times, to get people out of their cars,
and to get Melbourne moving,” Daniel Bowen states on the PTUA website.
With Metro Trains Melbourne introducing new timetables allowing
for greater service frequency from this
June, relief may be within reach for
the every day commuter. But will this
timetable adjustment be too little, too
late for tired, frustrated passengers?
David
Purchase,
Victorian
Automatic Chamber of Commerce
Executive Director, called for Vicroads
to offer a six-month registration
payment option in April this year.
“An up-front, lump sum puts pressure
on the household budget. For example,
the total fee payable for renewing
a light motor vehicle registration
in Victoria is typically $516.60,
$567.20 or $612.30, depending on
the postcode. They are big hits to have
to pay in one go,” Mr Purchase said.
Purchase recommended that the
Government consider an alternative and
user-friendly method of payment. He
proposed a six-month payment option
for vehicle owners, which he believes,
will help spread the financial burden.
“Australians already have various
options to pay for other essential goods
and services. Mortgages, rates, utilities,
motor finance and insurance are all
available at monthly, quarterly or halfyearly instalments,” Mr Purchase said.
Despite Mr Purchase’s attempts
at
persuading
the
Victorian
Government to include this issue
in the 2010-2011 State Budget,
his arguments proved unsuccessful.
Mr Mohammed Ali, ex-enquiries
agent for VicRoads, said that registration
options have been an ongoing issue.
“It wasn’t a problem, until
other states had allowed it. Being
the only state that is left out, it does
make it unfair, because we can now
compare between states,” Mr Ali said.
Rachael Bentley, a VIC resident
originally from QLD, said, “I still
have the car registered in Queensland
because their payment options are
much easier to deal with. If Victoria
implemented the same kind of system I
would definitely change the registration
over to reflect where I now live.”
“It would be easier if a six-month
option were available,” Sarah said. “$300
is a lot more manageable than $600”.
Mr Ali advised that VicRoads had no
plans on extending the 6month registration
to
non-concession
cardholders.
“At the time of working, nothing
had been legislated, nor was
anything implemented”, Mr Ali said.
While most households expect
annual
registration
payments,
many would struggle to fit it
into
their
yearly
expenditure.
A 2003 Australia Bureau of Statistics
study revealed the normal Victorian
household earns on average $986 per
week, with $898.40 of this being spent
on typical household expenditures.
“It just isn’t possible to budget
that sort of money,” Sarah said.
“Once the groceries, petrol, electricity,
gas and insurance is paid, there just isn’t
enough to cover it all. It is more than
my weekly pay after tax,” Sarah said.
The penalty for driving an unregistered
car is an on the spot fine of over $500.
“Not paying for registration,
it isn’t an option. I can’t afford
to
get
caught,”
Sarah
said.
Registration costs are often made all
the more painful by insurance payments.
These are often issued at the same time.
Mr Michael Jaballah, a RMIT
university student on a low-income
health care card agrees that the six-month
option helps him deal with the payments.
“The payments with the six-month
option are hard enough, I don’t know
what I would do if I had to pay for the
12-months upfront,” Mr Jaballah said.
“At the same time my registration is
up, my insurance is up. Sure it costs
more to pay the registration bi-annually
and the insurance monthly, but, it is a
lot more manageable and the reduce in
stress is worth the extra,” Mr Jaballah
said. “We should be given the choice.
Obviously the system is in place or they
wouldn’t be able to offer it to people with
concession cards. I just think it is unfair
and not very Australian,” Sarah said.
By Christine Todd
NEWS HIT
Vicroads, come on
Sarah sits slumped at the kitchen
table with her unopened mail and
overdue bills spilled across the surface;
it’s going to be another sleepless night.
“I can’t even imagine what is in
the unopened mail, the company
names on the envelope are enough
to put me off at the moment, I know
my registration is due soon and I
can’t afford it,” said Sarah. $624.10.
“How can I afford that? I can’t. I
don’t have that sort of savings, I don’t
have credit cards and there are no
payment options. I can’t afford it.”
Sarah is a prime example of the Aussie
battler. A single mother working hard to
pay her mortgage and make ends meet. All
she wants is a break, and having to make
such a large payment will be difficult.
VicRoads doesn’t share her perspective.
Victoria is the only Australian state
to offer the twelve-month registration
payment as their only option. All
other states offer six-month options,
with South Australia and ACT also
offering three-month and nine-month.
Owners of cars, 4WD’s, vans,
trucks, motorcycles, prime movers
and buses in Victoria are all subject
to the twelve-month registration
lump payment. While low-income
concession and pensioners receive
payment subsidies and payment options,
the average citizen must pay upfront.
By Samantha Jones
NEWS HIT
WORLD NEWS 7
Mubarak – Saudi
Arabia is waiting
for you
THE pieces on the board are moving in the Middle East. Two US-backed
dictators toppled and shaken in as many
weeks and Tahir Square - the largest city
square in the Arab world – belongs to
the people of Egypt, and it is defended.
January 25 was no doubt inspired
by the Tunisia revolution with slogans
such as “Get out Mubarak! Saudi Arabia is waiting for you”, referring to dictator Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali’s flight to
Saudi Arabia after he was forced out of
office and the country on January 14.
Ben Ali has been in power since
1987 and Hosni Mubarak since 1981,
over half a century between them.
Tunisia was seen as a haven of stability for foreign investors. A popular
tourist destination ruled with an iron
fist; an ideal destination for investment and a cheap source of labour.
The protests took everyone by surprise, sparked on December 17 by the
desperate act of a young unemployed
man who set fire to himself after officials prevented him from selling vegetables in the streets of Sidi Bouzid.
His desperation tapped into a deeper
frustration with the excesses of the ruling
elite, inciting long-held anger over police
brutality, rising food prices and the lack
of basic rights and freedom of the press.
Despite this, in April 2008 French
President Nicolas Sarkozy declared
on an official visit to the country that
“some people are way too harsh with
Tunisia, which is developing openness and tolerance in many respects.”
Since the late 1990s the World Bank,
International Monetary Fund, United States, and many European countries have praised Tunisia as a model
of economic reform in North Africa.
If Tunisia is a model for praise, Egypt
is a goldmine. According to the Congressional Research Service, the US has given
Egypt an average of $2 billion annually
since 1979, much of it military aid,. This
makes Egypt the second largest recipient of US aid after Israel. Egypt is also
a favoured destination for US practiced
rendition. The US rendition of Australian citizen Mamdouh Habib and his
torture at the hands of the Egyptian authorities is a terrifying example of what
Egyptians face daily under Mubarak – all
backed by US money and acquiescence.
Joe Biden appeared on PBS on the
January 27. When asked if he would
call Mubarak a dictator Biden said,
“Mubarak has been an ally of ours in a
number of things. And he’s been very
responsible on, relative to geopolitical
interest in the region, the Middle East
peace efforts; the actions Egypt has taken relative to normalising relationship
with - with Israel ... I would not refer
to him as a dictator.” Tony Blair went as
far as to describe Mubarak as “immensely courageous and a force for good.”
The real player behind the scenes is
the US, but with mounting protests it
is clear the US can no longer pursue its
‘friendly dictator’ policy in the region,
making moves towards a new stratagem.
Obama is leading the charge for rapid implementation of stable broad based government, echoed by British Prime Minister David Cameron, French President
Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor
Angela Merkel. According to The New
York Times the US is reportedly devising
a blueprint with Egyptian officials, and
the backing of the Egyptian military, for
a new transitional government consisting of the usual suspects and headed by
the current Vice-President Omar Suleiman. Meanwhile, Omar Suleiman has
been accused of inciting the lynching
of foreign journalists and other Westerners, claiming foreigners amidst the
demonstrations were stirring up trouble.
The regime is showing further
signs of collapse. Egyptian state television announced the executive committee of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) had resigned en
masse, including Mubarak’s son Gamal, once viewed as his heir apparent.
Current defence minister, and
close ally of Omar Suleiman, Hossam Badrawi will reportedly take over
as NDP secretary general and political bureau chief. The US administration has welcomed the reshuffle.
America’s anxiety for stability in Egypt
and the comprehensive media coverage
of the events reflects Egypt’s strategic
importance. The Suez Canal is a key
passageway for oil deliveries between the
East and the West, bypassing the long
journey around Southern Africa’s Cape
of Good Hope and cutting routes by almost 10,000 kilometres. More than two
million barrels of oil transit Suez each
day through the Canal and a pipeline
that runs alongside it, accounting for at
least two per cent of global oil output.
Clearly, there is a lot at stake in
Egypt. Mubarak’s reactionary and brutal attack on peaceful protesters on
February 2 epitomises the desperation
of the incumbents. Protesters were assaulted by paid thugs and police in civilian clothes, attacking them with rocks,
sticks and firebombs in an attempt to
crush the pro-democracy movement.
They were unable to intimidate the
protestors and government ministers
were forced to apologise for the brutality.
However, Mubarak instead placed blame
for the violence on the Muslim Brotherhood. Yet the Brotherhood, Egypt’s official opposition, has been slow to jump
on the bandwagon, at first condemning
the protests of January 25 then begrudgingly joining them on the January 28.
When the Brotherhood’s leader, and former UN weapons inspector Mohamed
ElBaradei, finally visited Tahrir Square
he fainted while giving his speech. Yet
the protestors have defended their
square for days from vicious onslaught.
During the first days of unrest the
Mubarak regime deployed riot police, rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons against the protestors.
When this did not succeed the regime
ordered regular police off the streets
and opened the jails in a bid to ter-
rorise the population with gangs of
criminals looting and attacking people.
Brutality only inspires further courage. February 4, the ‘Day of Departure’, saw Tahrir Square swell again.
“We are the heart of the Egyptian
people, the ones who make this country
work,” said Samar Atallah, 29. “We’re
here for peace. We are not hundreds,
we are not thousands, we are millions.”
The protestors have set up committees and militia to defend houses and
clean the streets; there has been an incredible increase in volunteerism. Water deluge left over from military water
cannons aimed at protestors is used to
clean the streets of the country many
Egyptians see as theirs for the first time.
As Nabil Habib, a 26-year-old software engineer described to The Guardian, “before we lived in fear of the police and never had the chance to take
responsibility for our own communities, but now we are in control. You see
the same sentiment among all the volunteers who are going around picking
up trash and debris from the streets.”
Obama believes Mubarak made a
“psychological break” with his hold on
office by announcing he will not contest further elections and was silent on
whether the dictator should stand down
immediately. A “psychological break”
was not enough for the people of Egypt.
People power has not just toppled two dictators, but inspired democratic movements across the Arab
world in Algeria, Jordon and Yemen.
The rules of the Middle East imperialist system are being rewritten from below.
As one sign in Tahrir Square
read, “Game over, next player.”
billions of gallons of toxic sludge
dumped into the waterways of the
rainforest. The Indigenous Ecuadorian
plaintiffs claim that Chevron’s drilling
practices have caused cancer rates to
skyrocket. Chevron has denied any
responsibility for the ongoing disaster
and stated that the court’s decision
is “illegitimate and unenforceable”,
and that the “perpetrators of this
fraud [must be] brought to justice”.
Increase in Afghan child deaths
The United Nations has estimated
that during 2010, there was a 155%
increase in the deaths of Afghani
children as a direct result of the decadelong war, compared to the same period
in 2009. This increase is due to the
increase in improvised explosive devices,
suicide attacks and airstrikes. While the
estimation of civilian deaths is notoriously
difficult due to the nature of US drone
strikes in the mountainous border region,
the total civilian death toll stands at
somewhere between 15,000 and 35,000.
British students still revolting over
fees
British students have decided to
continue their protests over the tripling
of University tuition fees, following a
heavy-handed response from Police in
the aftermath of last December’s mass
protests. Police were accused of attacks
on freedom of speech when they allegedly
harassed student leaders and closed down
websites that provided advice to students
who were in fear of reprisals and arrest
in relation to their protest participation.
The Palestine Papers
The Palestinian chief negotiator
and cabinet have resigned in the wake
of the “Palestine Papers” published by
Al Jazeera. The satellite news network
obtained more than 1,500 internal
documents detailing more than 10-years
of negotiations between the Palestinian
Authority and Israel. The documents
reveal the extent to which the Palestinian
Authority have been complicit in
allowing illegal Israeli settlements, and
had forewarning of the War in Gaza.
Pressure on Indian PM to step
down
Opposition leader Rajnath
Singh has increased pressure on Indian
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
to resign on “moral grounds” in the
wake of the 2G spectrum scandal.
Government officials have been accused
of undercharging mobile phone
companies for licenses due to corporate
lobbying. However, some have blamed
the opposition BJP for an “opportunist
attack” on the government citing that
politicians and officials involved have
already resigned and been charged.
Obama aims to cut deficit
Still reeling from the Global
Financial Crisis and two very expensive
wars, the Obama administration has
promised to cut the US deficit by $1.1
trillion over 10 years through massive
spending cuts. Though Obama’s
“austerity budget” will cut into crucial
public services, the cuts may not be steep
enough for a Congress controlled by smallgovernment, lower-tax Republicans.
Egyptian Revolution
Sparked by the public police
beating and death of blogger Khaled
Said, millions of Egyptians held 18 days
of mass protest based around Tahrir
Square in Cairo, which ended with the
resignation of authoritarian dictator
Hosni Mubarak. The Supreme Council
of the Armed Forces is now in charge,
promising to re-write the constitution
and hold elections. However, Egypt’s
military rulers have not ended the
3-decade-long state of emergency
and have called for all strikes and
protests to be ended, leading to many
protesters to claim that the army
have usurped the people’s revolution.
Global Summary
Tunisian Revolution
More
protesters
demanding
the removal from office of all those
connected to the old regime have been
killed by police in the town of Kef.
Initially sparked by the self-immolation
of Mohamed Bouazizi following the
confiscation of his illegal street stall,
the ouster of authoritarian dictator
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was achieved
by weeks of mass protests. The new
government of Mohamed Ghannouchi
has been purged of most members of
the former ruling party, bar himself.
Berlusconi to stand trial
Italian Prime Minister Silvio
Berlusconi has been ordered by a judge
to stand trial for paying for sex with an
underage woman and using his position
to cover it up. While the media-mogul
and multi-billionaire PM has passed 17
different laws to legally protect himself
over the years, this time, his ‘gifts’ of a
car, a diamond necklace and thousands
of Euros to his alleged underage
lover may put an end to Berlusconi’s
honeymoon as ‘the Teflon man’.
Chevron won’t pay - Ecuador
An
Ecuadorian
judge
has
ordered US oil company Chevron to
compensate victims of 40 years-worth
of environmental damage caused by
By Kimberly Doyle
World News Editor
By Glen Haywood
8 EDITORIALS/LETTERS
YOUR student union, or the
“Monash Student Association”, is the
representative body for all students at
Monash. It is thanks to the student
union that Lot’s Wife can be printed and
student run initiatives like Wholefoods
and the Co-operative Bookshop are
facilitated. The student union represents
the collective interest of students.
Membership in your student union
was compulsory until the middle of
2006, and as well as serving to unite
students it was a major source of
funding for student union activity.
After the Liberal party introduced
‘Voluntary Student Unionism’, or
‘VSU’, which made it optional to join
the student union, a large amount
of the funding that student unions
received was stripped away and the
union was weakened. The Labor party is
currently considering reversing VSU.
What is a union? Why do unions
matter? A student union is different
to a trade union, but similar ideas
apply, about uniting and organising
collectively in the interest of all.
But what real collective participation
is there in the Monash student union
by students? Do you or anyone else who
isn’t in a position of power have any say
in the activities of the student union?
The ‘ruling party’, the president, the
treasurer, and other office bearers are the
ones that dispense with the funds and
decide what is in your interest for you.
Shouldn’t a union that claims to act
in the collective interest, that is, in the
interest of students, organise, act and
make decisions collectively?
The student union is in this way
a microcosm of a government, or the
State. The Monash student union is a
bureaucracy, with a few ‘representatives’
at the top with all the power, making all
the decisions.
Cooking with Chappelle,
part 2
In January 2008, a full-page
article titled “Cooking with Schapelle”
was published in the orientation edition
of Lot’s Wife. The article detailed various
ways to prepare marijuana for eating,
and sparked outrage amongst antidrug groups as well as some students.
We believe that marijuana should - at
the very least - be decriminalised
in Australia. We are publishing this
article in the hope to further open
the debate on the legalisation and
decriminalisation of cannabis. As with
“Cooking with Schapelle Part I”, in
this article we present to you a range of
fantastic marijuana recipes. However,
like all good things marijuana should be
enjoyed in moderation. After all, even
too much chocolate can be terribly bad
for you.
Special Butter (version 1)
Ingredients:
-500ml cooking oil (not canola or
vegetable oil, but oil with a high
burning/carcinogen point like
Mustard Seed Oil or Rice Bran Oil)
-Quarter of an ounce of special herb
(broken up with fingers)
-As much leaf/kiff that you can get
your hands on (also broken up)
-One cooking thermometer
Method:
-Plan to be home for the whole day.
-Start the process as soon as you get
up in the morning (when you are not
stoned).
-Turn exhaust fans to maximum and
open kitchen window.
-Put all ingredients into a stainless
steel pot and place on a gas stove.
-Set gas stove at lowest possible heat.
-Place stainless steel pot half on, half
off heat.
-Flick the tiniest amount of water
into the pot with your fingers (note:
ensure that it is the tiniest speck of
water, otherwise you might burn
down your kitchen and the hot oil
will splash everywhere).
-Measure the temperature regularly
and ensure that the temperature does
not exceed 90 degrees Celsius.
-Stir the pot regularly and ensure
that the herb does not burn, and
does not accumulate on the bottom
of the pot.
-Allow to cook on low heat, stirring
every 10 minutes or so for roughly
6-8 hours (hence why you should
start cooking in the morning).
-When finished, allow oil to cool,
then strain the herb out (unless you
want some extra flavour in your dish.
If the herb is burnt, throw the herb
out).
-Use the oil as a butter replacement
for your cookie or cake recipe.
Test the strength before giving to
friends, as the strength of your butter
depends on the strength of the herb,
The ‘Go’ party holds the vast
majority of positions in the union. On
an unrelated note many members of
‘Go’ are also members of the Labor
party. For the last 6 years in succession
the president of the student union has
been a member of ‘Go’ and the vast
majority of office bearers have also been
members of ‘Go’.
Instead of organising students to
protest things like VSU, or giving more
funding to those student facilities that
need it most and yet lack it, the student
union is a self-sustaining bureaucracy
that holds 10 barbecues a week and
deems it a job well done.
So go forth, ask questions, glare at
people angrily, demand to know how
the student union spends its funds,
organise, bang your fist on the table.
Smash things (e.g. fascists).
Special Butter (version 2)
-Start with as much leaf or bud as
you can, get rid of all the stems then
put it in a stainless steel or cast iron
pot with 750g of butter and cover
with cold water.
-Bring the mix to the boil then lower
the heat so it is just simmering.
-After the leaves have fully wilted
blend the mix with a stick blender
(if you don’t have a stick blender you
can use a food processor or a normal
blender).
-Keep cooking the mix for another
45 mins. then with a potato masher
push the plant matter down, skim
the liquid off the top with a cup and
strain into a deep but not wide bowl.
-Once it is too hard to get the liquid
out strain the pot into the same deep
bowl then pour a little boiling water
over the plant matter while still
draining to get any leftover butter off
the leaf.
-Double up a plastic bag and empty
the matter into it, poke a few holes
at the bottom and hang it over the
bowl to keep dripping, after about
an hour you can use your hands to
get the rest out.
-If there are any scrappy little leaves
From PAGE 1
Bradley Manning’s confinement has
been shown to be inhumane. A 2006
bi-partisan National Commission on
America’s Prisons was established and
called for the elimination of prolonged
solitary confinement. The report
states:“Prisoners end up locked in
their cells 23 hours a day, everyday...
[the treatment] is so severe that people
end up completely isolated, living in
what can only be described as torturous
conditions.” Bradley Manning has given
up his life for something he believes in.
Bradley Manning for president?
By Timothy Lawson
Letters to the editor
Dear Lot’s Wife,
Dear Lot’s,
Bradley Manning and Julian Assange
are among others trying to expose
the crimes of war in which thousands
upon thousands of people, including
thousands upon thousands of women
and girls, have been killed, harmed and
dislocated. Unlike us they have done
this at considerable personal cost and
risk to themselves. I am not suggesting
for one moment that Assange’s good
political work should be used to excuse
abusive sexual behavior. Both rape and
mass murder are crimes. But we must
also acknowledge how our collective
ineffective action against the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan were and are the
political foundation for them.
RE: “TOKEN RIGHT-WINGER
HAVING A SPIEL” (EDITION 14,
2010).
Marlow Von Trier, PhD student.
and the length of time that your butter
is mulling for.
Note: when testing the strength
of your herb butter, ensure that you
remain patient and don’t start smoking
your herbs. That would be unwise and
will blur the effects of the cookie, so
that you are unclear on the strength of
the cookie.
Warning: Do not drive, operate
heavy machinery, or speak to any figures
of authority. Also, make sure that you
have cleared your schedule and have a
range of DVDs to watch on your couch.
Don’t worry about getting comedy,
everything will be funny. Just steer clear
of horror.
Bradley Manning
for President?
I must take issue with the letter of the
edition published in the final issue of
Lot’s Wife last year. Its author, Andrew
Murphy claimed that “at Monash
University I am one of the most
oppressed, endangered ... variety of
species, that is, white, straight, male,
Catholic Christian man”. Mr. Murphy
clearly needs a dose of reality, and a
reminder that he has in fact categorised
himself as the most privileged “species”
in this country and on this planet. So
please stop complaining about those
who are not male, Christian, white
and straight daring to have a voice
and challenge your privilege, on this
campus and in this newspaper. There
was nothing “token” about your rant. It
is the most “mainstream” and “popular”
opinion to have.
An Independent thinker firmly
grounded in reality. (Arts 3)
still in the liquid strain it until it is
clean trust me it will taste better.
-Leave the bowl in the fridge for at
least 16 hours then pull the butter
off the top with a knife and scrape all
the dirt off the underside.
-Wrap it up and you can keep it in
the freezer for 6 months.
You can repeat the process using the
same butter up to 3 times but after that
the butter can’t handle anymore THC.
Also if your butter is strong enough
you don’t need a killer recipe, just a
recipe with butter in it for example
when you fry something like onion on
a pan you will use oil or butter, even if
it is 2 tea spoons strong butter will do it
for you. If you don’t like the flavour add
some spices or herbs to the butter and
let it sit over night.
Easy garlic and herbed mull butter
Ingredients:
-500g butter
-half head of garlic
-good handfull of parsley
-like wise spring onions
-like wise rosemary
-1 chilli
-half tsp black pepper
Method:
-Add garlic chilli onions and
rosemary to a pot with a little bit of
butter.
-Cook untill everything is smelling
killer about 4 mins.
-Add the butter and rest of the
ingredients to the hot mix in a bowl
and mash it all up until it is well
combined.
-Wrap it up in glad wrap and store in
the freezer and it will be good for at
least 6 months.
With this butter you are able to
make savory dishes like chicken kiev,
garlic bread, mash potato, risotto, even
a chunk on a hot steak. Pretty much all
French recipes have butter in them so
you have a lot to choose from.
Devil’s Hash Cake
Ingredients:
1 package Devil’s Food cake mix
1 cup Canna-butter (cold)
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts
1 package choclate chips
1 package toffee chips
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed
milk
Method:
You chop the cold cannabutter into
the cake mix until it’s finely chopped.
Then spread it into the bottom of a
glass baking dish, lightly sprayed with
cooking oil. After it’s evenly pressed into
the bottom of the pan, spread out the
chopped nuts, the chocolate chips and
the toffee pieces evenly onto the top.
Open the sweetened condensed milk,
and pour over the top of the nuts and
chips. Pop the whole thing into a pre
heated oven 325 degrees F. Bake until
the sweetened milk bubbles to a light
golden colour. Take the pan out and let
it cool completely, or wait until it quits
bubbling, then serve with vanilla ice
cream.
OP-ED 9
Consent and sexuality – the murky waters of the Assange rape allegations
Trigger warning: this article contains
references to sexual assault that may cause
distress to survivors.
WHEN I heard reports that Julian
Assange, co-founder of whistleblower
organisation Wikileaks, had been
accused of sexually assaulting two
women I was shocked and reluctant
to believe them. The possibility that
someone so seemingly committed
to holding governments to account
for their human rights crimes could
themselves be a perpetrator of such
a fundamental assault on a person’s
autonomy is a hard one to stomach. As
a community blogger from Feministing.
com commented, “most people have a
resistance to believing that people ‘like
us’ - people who do things we like and
admire - could be guilty of acts we don’t
like or admire.”
I was no exception.
And I was not the only one shocked
or in denial about the allegations.
Michael Moore urged us “not to be
naive about how the government works
when it decides to go after its prey”
and to “never, ever believe the ‘official
story’.” Journalist John Pilger called the
sexual assault allegations a “political
stunt,” while Assange’s UK lawyer Mark
Stephens stated “the honeytrap has been
sprung.” Assange himself claimed to be
a victim of “revolutionary feminism.” It
was at this point that something seemed
to have gone wrong. Two women had
alleged that they had been sexually
assaulted, one raped, and prominent
members of the so-called progressive
left were encouraging the public to
instinctively dismiss their claims. How
could this have happened?
Some of their distrust was
understandable. Wikileaks and Assange
were in the process of challenging the
right of the most powerful country
in the world to control information,
including evidence of war crimes.
Assange had faced death threats
while Sarah Palin encouraged the US
government to pursue him with “the
same urgency we pursue al-Qaeda and
Taliban leaders.”
Still, the women claimed that
Assange had been responsible for “one
count of unlawful coercion, two counts
of sexual molestation and one count of
rape,” according to a statement from
Scotland Yard. Early reports of the
allegations were quickly misconstrued
to mean that the crime centred on the
accidental breaking of a condom, while
rumours that unprotected (consensual)
sex was illegal in Sweden flew through
cyberspace. The first incident, described
in the actual allegations, is alleged to
have occurred when one of the women,
referred to as Miss A, returned to the
flat she was allowing Assange to stay in
while in Stockholm. Miss A claimed
that Assange repeatedly prevented her
from reaching for a condom by holding
her arms and pinning her legs. After
Assange agreed to use a condom, he is
alleged to have “done something” to
it in order to break it. Five days later,
Assange is alleged to have initiated
unconsensual sexual contact in the
form of rubbing his genitalia against
Miss A. The other woman, Miss W,
alleges that after having consensual sex
with a condom at least once, Assange
proceeded to have unprotected sex
with her while she was asleep and
therefore unable to consent. Surely
these allegations deserve serious
contemplation.
Whether these allegations of sexual
assault are true, no-one can yet know.
However, it seems logical to admit the
possibility that they may be. For public
figures like Michael Moore and John
Pilger to brush them off as a political
conspiracy seems rather too close to the
denialism seen too often in rape cases.
So-called feminist Naomi Wolf took
the discourse to another level when
she claimed that the communication
surrounding the alleged sexual assaults
of both women constituted “model
cases of sexual negotiation.”
While Naomi Wolf may consider
it to be a desirable situation for an
individual to initiate unprotected sex
while one’s partner is asleep, in Sweden,
the UK and Australia such an act would
be considered rape, unless agreed to at
a prior time. However, notable human
rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson
seemed to entertain similar sentiments
when he said, while representing
Assange at his extradition hearing this
month, that because the alleged assault
of Miss W occurred within the context
of consensual sex, “[i]t’s not natural to
call this rape.”
These statements from notable
members of the political community
betray a disturbing misunderstanding
of what meaningful consent entails in
the context of sex and seem to trivialise
the experiences of many survivors of
sexual violence. For years, anti-sexual
assault campaigners have sought to
emphasise that consent cannot be
assumed. Consenting to one sexual act
does not mean one is consenting to all
sexual acts. Consenting to taking off
one’s clothes does not mean one has
consented to intercourse. Consenting
to sex once does not mean consent can
be assumed for all subsequent sexual
acts. The idea that a person cannot be
raped by someone they have previously
consented to sex with is a relic from
times in which womens’ sexuality was
viewed to be the property of their male
husbands. This was seen most obviously
in the fact that rape within marriage was
not criminalised in Australia until 1981,
prior to which a wife was deemed to
have consented to unlimited sex in her
wedding vows.
Consent, in Victorian law, is defined
as a ‘free agreement’ that cannot exist in
a situation of fear or coercion. Thus, it
seems to make perfect sense that even
within the context of consensual sex an
individual must be free to withdraw that
consent at any time and have that desire
taken seriously.
Sadly, it is likely we will never
know the truth of the Assange rape
allegations. Two major potential biases
exist – the bias usually faced by sexual
assault claimants within the legal system
and the bias against Assange created
by the intense media coverage. But
regardless of whether this particular
case is valid or not, the issue of sexual
assault and consent in society seems to
be misunderstood, still. And the worry
is that for every public commentator
who minimises the crime alleged against
Assange or who attacks the character
of the claimants, more sexual assault
survivors will stay quiet and deny their
own experiences.
and malicious activities, along with
other actors, like Shell. And this is why
authorities are coming down so hard on
Julian Assange. Governments figure that
the more they can keep their citizens
from knowing, the easier they are to
keep pacified. WikiLeaks, personified in
its figurehead Assange, aims to challenge
this and for that reason is a threat.
Assange has been accused of rape in
Sweden, but it is quite clear this is not
what he is being pursued for. Regardless
of what he did or did not do in Sweden,
people do not get put at the top of
Interpol’s Most Wanted list for rape.
Tragically, Sweden is a country with
an incredibly low rate of investigations
and prosecutions for rape, like most
Western countries. It is easy to say that
these countries should be doing more
to punish perpetrators of rape, but for
the time being, they simply refuse. If
the subject of their investigation was
not Julian Assange, they would not be
bothering.
The real goal is to extradite Assange
from Sweden to the US, where legal
types are frantically pouring through
lawbooks to find something with which
they can possibly charge Assange. Of
course, the US state’s commitment
(or lack thereof ) to flawless legality is
well-demonstrated by the continued
existence of their prison camp at
Guantanamo Bay... which is another
way of saying, Assange has every reason
to be afraid.
After all, let’s look at the treatment
doled out to alleged whistle-blower,
Bradley Manning. Authorities have
been in a frenzy trying to establish
some link between him and Assange,
but have found none. Nonetheless,
Manning has been accused of leaking
secret documents detailing atrocities
committed by Coalition forces in the
Afghanistan War, and has been clamped
down upon accordingly. He is currently
being held in solitary confinement in a
military base in Virginia, locked in his
cell for 23 hours a day – a cell in which
he is not even allowed to exercise, is
under constant surveillance, and is not
allowed a pillow or sheets for his bed.
He has been held in these conditions
for nine months so far and appears no
closer to being charged with anything
nor going through any kind of judicial
process.
Manning’s crime, like Assange’s, was
exposing some of the dark truths hidden
from us by our governments. The US
Government does not want people to
know the reality of the occupations
in Afghanistan and Iraq. They do not
want people to know about soldiers
who shoot dead civilians for the sheer
thrill of it, or the scale of torture in
Afghan jails, or about how nasty the
US-backed regime in Kabul is. The last
thing they want is for Afghanistan to
become another Vietnam – which it is
in the sense that their military campaign
is hopeless, but which it is not in the
sense that there is no mass anti-war
movement, yet. However, if the horrors
of these wars become more firmly
ingrained in the public consciousness,
making the news again and again,
thanks to Wikileaks... who knows.
And again, the response of the US
Government boils down to one thing –
it is intensely anti-democratic. It does
not want people to know about its
wrongdoing because then they might
object and try to stop it, yet is this not
the point of democracy? People have the
right to know what their governments
are up to, even if it is horrifying, and the
right to force it to stop if they dislike it.
The US Government is certainly not
going to espouse the view that people
should have any control over their
government, or even knowledge of its
activities beyond what the government
allows. This is a totally alien concept to
the US administration. For this reason,
WikiLeaks should be wholeheartedly
supported for trying to bring democracy
that little bit closer, and our rulers’
responses should be seen for what they
are – an attempt to stop that attempt
succeeding.
By Rebecca Harrison
Wikileaks: the US war on democracy
OVER the past couple of months,
it has been impossible to miss the
furore raging around WikiLeaks and,
in particular, Julian Assange. Ever since
the whistle-blowing website began to
leak the US embassy cables now known
as “Cablegate”, world leaders have been
falling over themselves to denounce
it, and him. Sarah Palin, predictably,
labelled Assange “an anti-American
operative with blood on his hands”, and
called on the US Government to hunt
him down like they would a leader of
al-Qaeda or the Taliban. As for that
US Government, Obama condemned
the leaks as “deplorable” and Clinton
claimed that they “put people’s lives
in danger”. In Australia, Gillard
commented on the “illegality” of the
leaks before realising that she could not
cite any laws they might have broken.
What these world leaders’
fierce denunciations of WikiLeaks
demonstrates is that, far from being the
defenders of democracy in a world of
anti-democratic foes, our rulers are in
fact staunchly opposed to democratic
rule themselves. Given that the main
principle of democracy is, as the quote
goes, “government of the people, for
the people, by the people,” surely it is
common sense that the people might
have an idea of how they are governed.
Likewise, it is common sense that
people should know exactly what their
governments are up to, and have the
right to dictate to them what they
should be up to.
Unfortunately, it is also common
sense that this is not how the world
works, and the way its rulers have
come down so hard on accused whistleblowers like Assange demonstrates this
perfectly. The world’s rulers do not want
the inconvenience of ordinary people
participating in government. Logically,
then, they do not want ordinary people
knowing about all of the things they
do in government. If they knew, they
might be motivated to do something
about it, and that is not desirable from
our rulers’ perspective.
The reason that world leaders, and
especially US politicians, have been so
frenzied in their attacks on WikiLeaks
is that the documents leaked contain a
lot of information they absolutely do
not want out there. For instance, the
fact that the US State Department had
foreign diplomats spied upon at a UN
conference, or that Mark Arbib was
essentially a spy for the US within the
Australian government. While these
things are diplomatically embarrassing,
they are clearly not going to destroy the
US State’s ability to conduct foreign
policy the way Clinton suggested
it would. For a start, the Australian
government rallied around Arbib and
claimed that what he did was nothing
unusual. Clearly, no threat to the USAustralian alliance there.
Nonetheless, WikiLeaks has revealed
a lot of things. WikiLeaks revealed the
extent to which Shell Corporation has
infiltrated the Nigerian government,
the answer: massively. WikiLeaks has
released a lot of information about
the USA’s ongoing military action in
Yemen. And of course, WikiLeaks has
detailed a lot of the brutality in the
occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan,
including the infamous video in which
US soldiers seemingly sought to get
a cheap thrill out of shooting dead
civilians from a helicopter.
US politicians have responded to
these kinds of leaks by claiming that
they “put people’s lives in danger”.
Presumably, by revealing to Iraqis and
Afghans the oh-so-hard-to-see reality
that life under military occupation
sucks. But when WikiLeaks reveals the
brutal ways in which many Afghan
and Iraqi civilians have been killed by
occupying forces, who has done the
real wrong – WikiLeaks, for revealing
the extent and details of the killings to
the general public, or the occupying
forces, or conducting the killings in the
first place? Personally, I’m going to say
the blame rests squarely with the ones
orchestrating the killing: the US state.
But really, this is what a lot of the
leaks boil down to: that the US state has
been engaged in many, many devious
By Jessica Smith
10 OPINION
The hypocrisy of Israeli “democracy” laid bare
FOR most people, the defeat of
a dictator that has brutally ruled
over his people for 23 years, and the
possibility that another is teetering, is
news to celebrate. Particularly, when
these dictators have been challenged
and defeated by popular revolutions
involving hundreds of thousands of
workers, students and the poor. This
kind of democratic collective power has
not seen success in the Middle East for
decades.
Born out of a rejection of poverty
and political repression, the demands
of the movements in Egypt and Tunisia
are similar: jobs for the unemployed,
affordable food, and new governments
untarnished by participation in the
corrupt, old regimes.
It is no surprise that these incredible
events have inspired people everywhere.
Messages of support for the revolution
have flooded the Internet. There have
been tens of thousands marching in
Yemen, mass strikes in Algeria, and even
the normally quiet Jordan has seen large
sit-ins, resulting in the King dismissing
his cabinet just two months after
appointing it!
It’s hard not to rejoice in the feeling
that we are at the beginning of new
era of Arab revolutions. Even The
Economist acknowledges that “the idea
that Arabs are passive or docile has been
thoroughly discredited.”
But not everyone is happy to see
democracy in action.
As one Egyptian observer tweeted
prophetically, “every Arab leader is
watching Tunisia in fear. Every Arab
citizen is watching Tunisia in hope and
solidarity.”
This fear was on display at the
emergency summit of the Arab League
convened after Ben Ali was toppled,
but before the protests in Egypt
began. Speaker after speaker warned
that “the Tunisian revolution is not far
from us’’ and, ‘’the Arab citizen [is in]
an unprecedented state of anger and
frustration.”
You would think that Israel, being
the “only genuine democracy in the
Middle East”, would be an exception
to this club and would instead come
forward to welcome the events
unfolding.
Yet far from expressing its solidarity
with the latest democratic kid on
the block, Israel has been one of its
most vocal opponents. Deputy PM
Silvan Shalom claimed that if regimes
neighbouring the Israeli state were
replaced by democratic systems, Israeli
national security might significantly
be threatened. Benjamin Netanyahu
is worried that the proliferation of
dictators similar to Ben Ali makes
the Middle East “an unstable region”
- not because of the repression they
deal out, but because they might be
democratically overthrown.
This contempt for democracy is
nothing new. Despite what it may
claim, Israel is no more a champion for
democracy than George Bush was.
Internally, Israeli leaders have
consistently and deliberately
undermined elected Palestinian leaders
who challenge their rule. When they
disliked the outcome of the democratic
elections in 2006 that brought Hamas
to office, they lost interest in democracy.
They continue to deny equal rights to
Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
And while Israel’s oppression of the
Palestinian population is made possible
largely because of US financial and
military aid, Israel also works closely
with many ruling regimes in the Middle
East – including those that claim to
be its enemy – to repress popular
movements abroad. As Shalom rightly
pointed out, “new systems” in Arab
countries – free and fair elections “would defend or adopt agendas that are
inherently opposed to Israeli national
security.”
Israel, a state that is built on the
repression of the Palestinian majority
within its de-facto borders, surrounded
by Arab masses who are hostile to its
very existence, has always been reliant
on diplomatic games with two-faced
Arab dictators.
So for Israel, democracy movements
that challenge these duplicitous regimes
represent a fundamental existential
threat. It has always been petrified that
further pro-democracy revolutions in
the Middle East might challenge its
dirty deals with the various regimes.
This is why they supported fascist
Phalange against the PLO and the left
during the Lebanese Civil War, why
they have always backed the widely
despised Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, and
why they tremble at the thought of prodemocracy revolutions in Tunisia and
elsewhere today.
The struggles against Zionism,
imperialism and reactionary Arab
leaders have always been connected in
the Middle East. The Israelis know that
the populations of the Arab countries
are much more hostile to them than
are their collaborationist leaders. So it
would be better for Israel if their voices
continued to be suppressed.
Zionists rightly recognize that it will
not be the Palestinians alone that pose
a threat to the state of Israel, but a mass
movement of workers and oppressed
from across the region. The revolution
in Tunisia gives us a glimpse of how this
movement could be built.
the ‘announcement’ that child refugees
were to be released (a policy which had
been part of the ALP’s platform since
the 2007 election anyhow) to conceal
what was actually an expansion of the
mandatory detention system. This gave
a progressive cover to the construction
of more prison camps. Next came the
tragedy of Christmas Island in late
2010, where more than 30 refugees
died when their boat dashed against the
rocks on the border. Predictably, the
government mouthed the platitudes
of sorrow. However, at the same time
that they wept their crocodile tears,
they locked up all of the survivors.
Clearly, their sympathy and sadness
only extended so far. All of this was
complemented by the disgraceful
election campaign, which was as racist
as it was banal. In an undoubtedly
race-fuelled election, each of the major
parties sought to conceal what was an
embarrassingly similar list of right-wing
policies by once again turning asylum
policy into a political football. The
human rights of the refugees, evidently,
come a distant second to the electoral
interests of the ALP.
All of this highlights the vital
necessity of building an organised
opposition to the shocking system of
mandatory detention. In Australia,
we need to rebuild the refugee rights
movement. We need to build a
campaign that is uncompromising in its
demand for the freedom of the refugees,
and that is capable of countering the
racism of our parliamentary leaders.
The major parties have a monopoly
over the terrain of the refugee debate.
A campaign that coheres thousands
of people, including students, could
provide a clear challenge to that
monopoly. It could reject as racist the
Liberal Party’s mantra that we need to
“stop the boats”, and it could provide
an alternative to the jaded capitulations
of the ALP. It could dispel the myths
underpinning the public’s antipathy
towards refugees. It could turn back
the tide of public opinion, and force
the parliament to react to popular
sentiment.
At Monash University in 2011,
the best way to get involved in that
campaign is through the Monash
Refugee Action Collective (MRAC).
MRAC is a newly formed student
activist organisation that seeks to
mobilise the student body to take
progressive action in opposition to
mandatory detention. It links up
students at Monash with the central
refugee rights campaign. MRAC is
proud to join the fight for social justice
and human rights, and should act as the
perfect vehicle for anyone who wants a
just policy towards refugees in Australia.
The launch meeting for the collective
will take place in Week One on
Thursday 3 March. Look up the MRAC
facebook page for more upcoming
events.
Certainly, the refugees have not
acquiesced under this inhumane
system. They have refused to become
submissive, and have staged protests,
rebellions and riots within the camps
right across 2010. These demonstrations
are a testament to the courage and
humanity of those inside the camps,
and they ought to be an inspiration for
all of us on the other side of the fences.
The refugees are right to resist their
imprisonment, and we should match
their attempts by building a campaign
that will help win them their human
rights.
For ongoing coverage of the
revolutions sweeping the Middle East
check www.sa.org.au
-MARXISM 2011 - Ideas to
Challenge the System - (April 21-24 @
Melbourne Uni)
An entire weekend dedicated to leftwing discussion and debates. Featured
speakers will include journalist John
Pilger, Afghanistan correspondent
Anand Gopal, author of Lenin
Rediscovered: What is to be Done? In
context Lars Lih and Lebanese socialist
activist Farah Kabaissy. Including
socialist activists from Greece, the
Philippines and the USA.
By Omar Hassan
Asylum seekers revisited
When the ALP swept into power
after a vibrant campaign in the 2007
election, many of us held our breath
in anticipation that perhaps the end
of the Howard era was to herald a
new policy towards refugees, based
on compassion and humanity. Three
years later, that hopeful anticipation
has been unceremoniously dashed.
The Labor government has proven
itself willing time and again to rival
the Liberal government that preceded
it in its brutality towards the refugees
arriving on Australian shores. It has
continued the denial of even the most
basic human rights through its system
of mandatory detention. This system is
currently seeing roughly 6000 refugees
imprisoned around Australia for the
‘crime’ of fleeing persecution, war,
occupation and genocide. 2010 was
a year of horror for these innocent
people, and if the year just passed is any
predictor of the year to come then 2011
can only bring with it the promise of
more indefinite detention, more racist
scapegoating, and more inhumanity.
The statistics alone substantiate
such a claim. Reports on self-harm
within the detention centres are not
frequently released by the Australian
Government, but we know that
between July and September there
were 79 incidents of self-mutilation
amongst the refugees. Additionally,
there was a quadrupling of self-harm
rates inside the camps within the first
half of 2010. We also know that at least
5 refugees committed suicide over the
course of the year, a tragic indictment
of the Labor Government’s policy of
mandatory detention. If we consider
the self-harm rates alongside the suicide
numbers, and if we add to these the
increase in hunger strikes right across
the country, and the re-introduction
of lip sowing as a method of protest,
the picture that is cumulatively painted
is one of desperation, frustration and
powerlessness. This is the reality of
life inside the euphemistically titled
‘detention centres’.
Apparently, however, the simple
fact that they are imprisoning over six
thousand innocent people inside what
Australian of the Year for 2010 Patrick
McGorry called “factories for producing
mental illness” does not satisfy the
Labor Government. In fact, Labor has
actually intensified its attacks on those
already locked up in the detention
centres. We saw this quite recently,
with the deal between the Australian
and Afghanistan governments to
forcefully deport potentially thousands
of the Afghan asylum seekers who
are currently detained. This deal is
a disgrace. A report in 2004 called
“Deported to Danger” confirmed that
sending refugees back to the country
from which they fled was in many cases
tantamount to murder. Even more
outrageously, these Afghani refugees are
being sent back to a country occupied
by Australian troops! As Wikileaks
revealed, the war in Afghanistan “scares
the hell” out of Kevin Rudd, just
apparently not enough to refrain from
sending thousands of people, mostly of
the persecuted Hazara minority, back
to the oppression from which they fled.
Such is the nature of the government’s
hypocrisy.
There were multiple other attacks
throughout the year as well. These
included the decision on April 9 to
freeze all visa applications of Tamil
and Afghani refugees, a move which
left thousands of them confined in a
sort of immigration limbo, with no
recourse to challenge the decision and
with no end in sight for their indefinite
detention. Then, a little later in the
year the Government sought to use
By Declan Murphy
OPINION 11
A soldier’s
perspective
Racket’ by two time Medal of Honour
winner and former US Marine Smedley
Butler:
“How many of these war millionaires
shouldered a rifle? How many of them
dug a trench? How many of them
knew what it meant to go hungry in
a rat infested dug-out? How many
of them spent sleepless, frightened
nights, ducking shells and shrapnel and
machine gun bullets?”
“War is racket. It always has been.
It is possibly the oldest, easily the most
profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the
only one international in scope. It is the
only one in which the profits are reckoned
in dollars and the losses in lives.”Smedley Butler
Australia’s long-standing
engagement in international wars
continues, with the government
continuing to be part of the occupation
of Afghanistan as it heads into its ninth
year, as well on-going involvement
in areas such as East Timor. In this
context, I spoke to former Australian
Army Major and now political activist
Chip Henriss (who was one of the
founders of the Australian anti-war
group Stand-Fast), about his personal
and often complex relationship with the
military machine and his journey from
soldier to activist.
Emma Palackic: Hello Chip, thank
you for giving up your time up to talk
to me. Could you tell us about what it
was that made you question the military
and decide to do something about it?
Chip Henriss: To answer this I
think it’s valuable to have a bit of my
background story. I served as a US
Marine from 1985 to 1987. I found the
Marines to be a lot like what I imagined
prison to be like. In 1987 I jumped
ship in Hobart and was AWOL for nine
months. During that time I got married
to my first wife who was Australian.
I then went back to the US and was
discharged. I returned to Australia a
month later and continued my life here.
In 1991 I was at University and
became an Australian citizen. For many
reasons I felt bad about the way I left
the Marines. An opportunity came up
to join the Australian Army Reserve
and become an officer while studying.
I joined up and I have to admit I loved
the Australian Army. I enjoyed the
people and the training and the real
team work approach...
I was approached by the Regular
Army and joined full-time in 1995 as
a Public Relations (Media Officer).
PR teams go everywhere and are often
among the first people to go... I served
in Papua New Guinea; as a peace
monitor on Bougainville, and I was
with the first wave of Australian soldiers
to land in East Timor on 20 September
1999.
My politics began to shift to the left
after university… [and] [w]hat made me
a revolutionary was constantly looking
at issues from poverty to war and seeing
that the cause of the problems always
fell back to the same people and their
system. When I left the Army in 2001,
I remained in the inactive Army reserve.
When we invaded Iraq I resigned
completely.
EP: How great a scope did you
have within the military to discuss the
politics behind occupation? How strong
is the disciplinary apparatus within the
military?
CH: I left the Army in October
2001. During my time, I never felt
that I couldn’t discuss politics but
as an officer many of my colleagues
were conservative thinkers. Many, but
certainly not all, were from the upper
middle class and were products of their
upbringing...
What the Army will not tolerate
is a refusal to take part. Sabotaging
operations or refusing orders is where a
soldier could find themselves in trouble
with Army discipline system. It’s a little
like working for a supermarket, you
go there and do your job and get your
pay cheque. You don’t necessarily think
about the slave labour involved in the
goods you sell, or the insecticides used
on the produce or the cruel conditions
imposed on the animals raised for meat.
EP: In the words of Smedley Butler,
“Out of war a few people make huge
fortunes.” These words were spoken
in the 1930s, but are surely applicable
today. Do you see imperialism as a
class question, were class dynamics
reproduced within the military itself?
CH: Yes, imperialism is a class
question and class dynamics are
institutionalised within the military.
The entire officer and soldier system
is class-based. What has changed,
however, is that one can change class
within the [military] system. One might
be from a working class background like
myself but through education and so on
join the officer class...
EP: I’m interested to hear your
thoughts on economic conscription,
where people are compelled to join the
army because of their poor economic
circumstances. This is particularly
pertinent in the United States because
of the Global Financial Crisis and high
unemployment. What do you make of
this?
CH: This is nothing new. The ruling
class makes the military very seductive,
for young men in particular. Movies
and veteran parades all add to the social
status given to soldiers...
One example of the linkage between
imperialism and economic conscription
is the denial of free tertiary education.
In the US it is difficult for a lot of
working class families to afford higher
education and the US Military offers
incentives to help soldiers pay for
university when they leave the service.
The denial of free education and the
corporatisation of universities is a crime
of oppression.
EP: You mentioned earlier you
served in East Timor. What do you
think the Australian government’s role
in sending troops there has been?
CH: Overall I enjoyed my daily life
as a PR officer in the Australian Army...
In PR Corps we got to see a lot of the
“action” without the discomfort that
the ordinary infantry soldiers have to
endure.
In saying that I did see terrible
things, especially while [I was] serving
in East Timor. I had people come up
to me distraught and in tears because
the Indonesians had taken their family
members away. One man was just
carrying a pair of runners that belonged
to his son. He was crying and begging
me to help him. There was nothing
we could do except hug him while he
cried... We saw bodies being pulled out
of wells, scenes of mass killings, like the
church in Suai, and remains of people
who were murdered...
I think the primary motivation for
the Howard Government was that it
had no choice. There was going to be
independence and in order to secure the
oil and gas resources in the Timor Sea...
we needed to go in... But we had to
do this while keeping friendly with the
Indonesians.
That’s why we actually had joint
check points with them and pretended
that it was East Timor militias that
caused the destruction, when we really
knew all along it was the militias under
the control of the TNI [Indonesian
Military] as well as Indonesian military
units...
My favorite quote is from ‘War is a
EP: What do you make of Kevin
Rudd’s statement to Hillary Clinton in
2008 that “the US must be prepared to
use force [against China] if everything
goes wrong”? At this point in human
history where the capability exists to
obliterate the earth, what is our way out
of this mess?
CH: The way out of this mess is by
the workers taking control and working
to build a new system dedicated to our
interests. It is the only way out. What
have the ruling class ever given that
workers didn’t have to fight for? I hope
this conference [Marxism 2011] helps
spread those ideas.
I am a revolutionary because I believe
there are enough resources and know
how to share throughout the world. We
can do this sustainably we just need to
shift our priorities. I would like to add
that our revolution must be executed
with compassion and joy. It is serious
business but we don’t have to take
ourselves so serious that we forget how
to have fun. Life should be fun.
By Emma Palackic
12 COLUMNS
around the uni for more info, there are
going to be some great bands playing.
If you think you’d like to have a
show or get involved in any way then
drop by the station, you can find us
upstairs in the Campus Centre, off
the Airport Lounge. Or contact info@
radiomonash.net to find out more.
We hope to see you soon,
LOTS OF NEWS HIT COMING
RIGHT UP!
News Hit is an online
publication. It’s like a magazine, only
we’re inadequately resourced to pay for
printing. So we’re a website.
Happily, News Hit is approximately
92.75 times more awesome as a result.
We have infinite space for articles,
reviews, feature stories, satire, rambling
diatribes, multimedia and whatnot.
You can also submit comments on said
awesomeness 24/7, as seems to be the
custom with all things on the Internet.
Brothers Craig and Danie¬l Butt
developed News Hit early in 2009 when
they were penniless university students
to help fellow impoverished university
students hone their writing skills, get
experience with online publishing and
build up a portfolio of published work
online.
News Hit quickly expanded to
incorporate many other curious,
resourceful and impecunious students
who jumped at an opportunity for
much the same reasons.
As the name of the site suggests,
News Hit has something of a split
personality. Though much of the
content it attracts is jovial in nature,
to pigeonhole it as a class clown is
rash. We feature a range of content on
everything from politics to travel.
We’re sharing content with Lot’s
Wife this year. Selected Lot’s Wife
articles will be appearing on News
Hit and Monash Clayton’s premier
student publication will also have its
own space on News Hit. Likewise, the
best of News Hit will be published in
Lot’s Wife and we’ll be providing this
monthly column that you are currently
reading right now at this present
moment in time.
So why is this new relationship
worth checking out?
For one thing, you can
instantaneously respond to the Lots
articles featured on News Hit by
harnessing the magic of the Internet.
You can also check out what we’re
doing at News Hit. John Potter is on
a roll with his satirical submissions at
the moment, we’ve got some regular
podcasts going up on the site and we’re
renowned for our reviewing prowess.
As the holidays roll to an end and the
urge to write increases from inkling to
irresistible, expect to see more feature
articles.
So check us out. NewsHit.com.au
is the address. That’s NewsHit.com.
au. And while you’re there, be sure to
befriend us on Facebook, follow us on
Twitter and subscribe to our RSS feeds.
But not necessarily in that order.
NewsHit.com.au
If you’re a music lover, budding
journalist, DJ, complete novice, crate
digger, mad producer, musical prodigy
or you just like our water cooler, Radio
Monash might be the place you find
your calling. Jaffys and postgrads alike,
all are welcome at our office.
There are some huge gigs on the
horizon for Radio Monash this year as
well as our usual program of student
radio and great training programs. We
are starting the year big with our launch
party at the Tote Hotel on Thursday
the 24th of March. Keep your eyes out
Campbell McNolty
Radio Monash President
The Antlers @ Corner Hotel 9/2/11
The Antlers are a Brooklynbased band who have been gaining
momentum since their 2009 release
Hospice. This album tells the story of
an abusive relationship through the
analogy of a hospice worker and their
terminally ill patient. The Antlers have
been enlisted to play at St Jerome’s
Laneway Festival and I was lucky
enough to catch them at their sideshow
at The Corner Hotel.
The band took to the stage with a
sense of anticipation growing in the
audience. From the first few notes the
band had the audience’s undivided
attention. Throughout the set there was
little movement apart from a subtle
swaying to the rhythm of the songs.
The band played their 2009 masterpiece
in its entirety only breaking to play a
new song off their upcoming release.
The band sounding much fuller than
on the recordings, the trio could
easily be mistaken for a much larger
band. The band perfectly captured the
intense emotional rollercoaster of the
protagonists in the story being told.
Vocalist Peter Silberman’s delivery of
the lyrics were dripping with emotion,
helping to bring the song to life, the
occasional faltering in his voice only
adding to the sincerity of the lyrics.
Darby Cicci created both haunting
soundscapes on his keyboard as well
as a solid bass rhythm which provided
grounding for the songs. Despite a solid
performance, songs ‘Kettering’ and
‘Two’ stood in a world of their own.
The Antlers delivered a flawless and
intense performance until a slight lyrical
blunder at the start of their closing
song, ‘Wake’. It sought to lighten the
morose mood of the audience. Had
it not been for this slip to distract
from the atmosphere they’d created,
it would not be uncanny to see some
audience members shed a tear. The
band returned for an encore to close not
just a reproduction of their album but
a reinvention making it feel fresh as if
it were for the first time and conclude
what was both a moving and amazing
performance.
Matthew Corcoran, Music Director
Wu-Tang vs The Beatles: Enter The
Magical Mystery Chamber
Mashup albums are interesting
things. One of the best reviewed
mashup collaborative efforts in recent
times, that of Jay-Z and Linkin Park,
on the Collision Course EP, was still met
with elements of intense dissatisfaction,
with certain critics panning elements
that other reviewers praised. Genre, in
general is a rule unto itself, so when
you find artists being matched up
digitally with artists they’d likely never
collaborate with in the real world,
it’s sometimes embarrassing, at times
brilliant, but always interesting.
Enter the Magical Mystery Chambers
is a Beatles vs Wu-Tang Clan mash by
one Tom Caruana. This isn’t the first
time the Beatles have found themselves
mashed with hip hop. Danger Mouse’s
The Grey Album, took accapellas from
Jay-Z’s The Black Album and tunes from
The Beatles’ White Album, and sadly,
the most imaginative aspect of that
effort was the title. So I was prepared to
watch the Killa Bees and the four world
famous Liverpool boys blend each
other into garbage. I didn’t want that to
happen, but I was prepped.
Anticipation on getting my hands on
this limited edition EP was high, and
pressing play, I wasn’t disappointed. The
sampled Beatles tracks are recognizable,
while also being smartly mixed in with
those unmistakeable grimy Wu-Tang
vocals. A defining achievement of this
effort was how individual tracks were
given a completely different aesthetic
by Caruana’s mixing. Method Man’s
‘Uh Huh’, a hard body banger from the
Def Jam Vendetta soundtrack is given an
almost ballad like makeover. The pitch
matching throughout the entire album
is also very impressive. I’d go so far as to
say ‘Ol’ Dirty Bastard’ sounds tuneful
thanks to Caruana’s mixing.
The scattered interviews with the
Beatles and their fans are well matched
with those of the Wu, and give a
refreshing take on what could have
been a boring effort of beat matching.
Caruana manages to give this mix
personality. The two hugely different
groups are put together so well, they
sound like they were made for each
other.
As far as mashup albums go, this
is definitely one of the best I’ve heard.
I’d recommend it to anyone who isn’t
a close minded musical wanker type
aficionado, but I’d even chuck it their
way, just to hear them whinge about
how nobody respects anything anymore.
Anyway, in my opinion, there is a
huge amount good with this album,
and practically nothing bad, let alone
boring. Grab this one if you can, but
grab fast. By “limited edition”, they
really do mean limited.
Dan Gale, Production Manager
How to navigate
a career in IT
There is so much more to a
career in IT than answering technical
support phone calls and asking the
customer: “Have you tried turning it
off and on.”’The purpose of this article
is to help provide career advice for
students studying the following degrees:
Bachelor of Business Information
Systems; Bachelor of Computer Science;
Bachelor of Computer Science; and
Bachelor of Software Engineering.
The skills and attributes these
qualifications aim to develop include:
• Understanding the methods, tools
and techniques used in the planning,
development, implementation and
management of information products
and systems
• Understanding the legal, ethical
and philosophical issues relating to
information technology
• Developing skills to apply the
methods, tools, research skills and
techniques used to develop correct, well
structured and documented information
products and systems
• Understanding organisational and
social issues arising from the use of I.T.
in organisations, including privacy and
civil liberties issues
• Ability to effectively use computer
hardware and software technologies
• Understanding basic computer
structure and operation, and
demonstrate use of the associated
vocabulary
• Demonstrating understanding of the
basics of operating systems and system
software
• Ability to identify factors that affect
computer performance
• Understanding the relationship
between a problem description and
program design
• Understanding the management of
problems using recognised frameworks
• Applying problem solving techniques
at different levels of abstraction and
understanding the effect this may have
on a system specification
For further examples see:
www.monash.edu.au/pubs/handbooks/
courses/index-ug-byfaculty-it.html
Previous students with these
qualifications first jobs have been:
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3D Modeller
Analyst Programmer
Animator
Application Security Analyst
Application Security Designer
Artificial Intelligence Programmer
Audio Programmer
Business Analyst
Computer Service Technician
Corporate Webmaster
Database Administrator
Data Modeller
Game Developer
Graphic Designer
Hardware Engineer
Information Consultant
Information Service Manager
Interactive Programmer
Internet Developer
IT Consultant
IT Project Manager
Knowledge Manager
Multimedia Developer
Multimedia Specialist Producer
Network Administrator
Network Analyst
Online Manager
Production Manager
Programming Specialist
Project Administrator
Project Manager
Quality Specialist
Software Architect
Software Consultant
Software Developer
Software Engineer
Software Programmer
Systems Administrator
Systems Analyst
Software Architect
Systems Engineer
Technical Development Manager
Technical Engineer
Technical Writer
Telecommunication Engineer
Tester
Trainer
Web Developer
You should consider joining one
of these professional associations, as
relevant to your interests; many of
which you can join for free or at a
much-reduced student rate.
• Association for Computing
Machinery (ACM) www.acm.org
• Association of Commonwealth
Archivists & Record Managers
(ACARM) www.acarm.org
• Australasian Chapter of the
Association for Information Systems
www.aaisnet.org
• Australian Computer Society
(ACS) www.acs.org.au
• Australian Council of Libraries and
Information Services (ACLIS) www.nla.
gov.au/aclis
• Australian Information Industry
Association www.aiia.com.au
• Australian Interactive Multimedia
Industry www.aimia.com.au
• Australian Library and Information
Association (ALIA) www.alia.org.au
• Australian Society of Archivists
(ASA) www.asa.org.au
• Australian Society of Indexers
(AuSSI) www.archivenet.gov.au
• Internet Industry Association www.
iia.net.au
• International Council on Archives
(ICA) www.ica.org
• Multimedia Victoria www.mmv.vic.
gov.au
Enhance your employment outcomes
- become involved with clubs and
societies at Monash University such as:
• Faculty of Information Technology
Society (FITS) Email: fits@
monashclubs.org
• Monash Postgraduate Association (All)
www.mpa.monash.edu.au/index.html
• Monash Student Association (Cl)
www.msa.monash.edu.au
As detailed above, a career in
information technology is extremely
versatile; in this rapidly globalising
world, education in information
technology is a field that looks certain to
continue to expand.
Anonymous data presented here
on employment outcomes for Monash
University graduates has been gathered
from the national Australian Graduate
Survey that is conducted twice a year by
Monash University in association with
Graduate Careers Australia. When it is
your turn please remember to complete the
form!
14 CREATIVE WRITING
Harry Sabolcki
PISSMAGEDDON
******
ABSTRACT
Here I sit, at the pub again;
Twelve P.M.
‘Banjo’ says ‘I see the vision splendid,
of the sunlit plains extended,
and at night the wondrous glory of the everlasting stars’
While I see ‘just livers distended,
and chairs and tables upended,
and Clancy riding the porcelain bus.’
******
A PROPHESY
The fifth horseman,
He stares at me,
From the foam of my schooner,
He stares at me.
And the angels blow their trumpets,
and the strumpets blow the angels.
Booze is the Devil. I should know.
******
A JESTER
The day at the pub is as usual,
I’m not going to rhyme.
Just pint after pint.
A fellow dropped a pepper shaker,
I yelled ‘Assault!’
But the joke was lost on most of them.
******
THE FIFTH HORSEMAN
I experience, through my drunkenness,
A kaleidoscopic effect,
As kaleidoscopic as a kaleidoscope.
Simile Fail!
Simile Fail
Fail
Fail
Fail
Failure
Failure IS all that happens in a drunkard’s life.
‘Tis Pissmageddon, and booze the fifth horseman.
******
LESSON
But, at last it’s open:
Here I sit, at the pub again;
Twelve P.M.
CREATIVE WRITING 15
Gavrilo Grabovac
‘spute’
I conspute them conspute them hyper-fecunded rutes
cunfend them his rebus fructibus
how your rods of fixation unfixed them
‘Recycling service attack’
Recycling service attack
put the please your virgin oh oh
Oh! frim loptkergh without
seeming however that
a mincing point is a reflection in the glass
with lines running down
but a tree is a reflection
a ball is a reflection
no reflection isn’t a reflection
with a fringe of pure yellow tufts
and many little dark eyes.
(no title)
Quel orage
bricolage
quel nuage
de cendres
descendre
descends
des sons dès
sans son
sans sens
seulement
Più po po più
pu eu più peu plus
‘Фуњара’
SCUM
‘Bureau’
Vagabundus was directed to a wooden bench where it became apparent one might sit down whilst one waited to be
called not desiring to appear as if he were refusing the hospitality which they had so graciously accommodated him
with in the form of this wooden bench he sat down it was then that he apprehended the heralding shadow of a form of
the most pure tedium about to overtake him should he continue to endure to sit on this wooden bench for very much
longer thus springing up he commenced a vigorous pacing up and down the corridor of the most fanciful sort first he
put one leg forward then the other it was really most peculiar.
Ani Pochesneva
‘Closing eyes reading lullabyes’
horse watches, the flames flicker in and out. bright yellow paintbrush shapes point towards meaningful directions.
horse listens, ready to gallop.
I am reluctant.
I believe these flames are deceptive, liars. the pointed ends of these two flames can only be described as frantic and
desperate.
ah, no. they’ve heard me. and now I see what the horse sees. two eyes. eyelashes;
a suffocating wave washes over me, it is their honesty.
they quickly turn away.
and spell is slightly broken. I wonder how long the horse has been standing there. this horse is naturally brave... it
appears to be in control now, the tail gives this away.
unfamiliar objects and moving things gather around the flames. some spit icy dread into the onlookers nose and
hearts, others relax and murmur. all appear in front of their expressive dancing shadows.
my favourite is the tower of ‘strawberry suede’ lipstick, which mimics the stance of the vase. it is the more nervous of
the two. more insecurities, I’d like to talk to it sometime. maybe it might feel better if I let its painted whispers swim
into my mouth.
there is something so peculiar about the man waving.
the night is closing but I am still only interested in the horse. this rainbow of light, in which the horse is a part
of, illuminates the unseen fractals. next time I look, the horse is gone. echoing murmurs of the mantel top reveal
nothing.
but I know where it went.
16 CREATIVE WRITING
Estelle Pham
You’ve made a mistake. As a voyeur, you are free from attachment and perspective.
[You are a voyeur]
The second door has been gendered as a window.
The panels of the second door open their arms to welcome in afternoon drones and skins of darkness. They too, morph into
spectators of those ‘insiders’.
The Do-It-Yourself peach and azul sheets drape from above. They will eventually learn how to become masters of Tango. Tango is
sophistication and becomes auspicious over dormant dimensions. They will be surreptitious from the outer gaze. Yet every thread
will continue to Tango in the sol tarde.
This is Rake’s bed room.
This is the real room.
The real room is this.
Is this the real room? For it imitates.
It mimics not our skins but our estranged selves, our dubiety, our crisp corners that have aged with one and two rancour.
The unspoken is finally granted breath outside our bodily confinements. These parts become their own entity, free to Tango in the
real room, freely.
You, the voyuer watch intently as the skins of darkness flesh minimalism; where shapes of rage and vexation flutter aimlessly in the
real room.
On the cross side, physique is like an egg shell and the self is denoted to yolk-ness. No doubt, the egg yolk is a fragile and volatile
thing. Delicately woven together for one purpose; to clasp our wild emotions together. Eggs may go vertically, horizontally and
diagonally but they cannot veil their crackly skin. Nor can they cling onto their perfect yolk.
On that side, Rake and Broom lie on the bed; half sleeping, full dreaming. Experience transcends awkwardness and silence drapes
over them just like bedsheets.
Silence.
Silence flourishes, but weeps at the same time. Flourishing because it always has companionship. Yet weeping because it will never
be alone. Never will it be its own embodiment, but simply an extension of Rake and Broom.
Silence then withdraws, Broom reaches out her hand towards Rake’s body, but Rake’s attention is fixated on the tiny mosquito that
is fat from drinking her blood. Broom’s vision is entrenched by Rake’s henna hair. What a mess! She pulls her close so that their
bodies materialize into pressed flowers.
Then weep. Weep like the willow that is fatigued from wrinkling. Weep for the undulating silence. Follow the weeping, trails a
cascade of Broom’s tears. She unfolds her paper crane and in that moment, no thing dares to observe. Not the Do-It-Yourself
sheets, not the fat mosquito and not even the real room, dares to mime.
The Wind sect.A
Somedays you are lucky enough to find a person, another mind who can transport you there. In that space you know your
existence too well. You know that you are more than your skin that makes you both visible and invisible.
Suddenly you are empowered to take off that skin and realise why your heart thump thump thumps away!
I know then what you were inspiring and encouraging me to be.
MUSIC 17
Rainbow Serpent 2011
From PAGE 1
Access to the site was restricted
to punters until Friday, meaning we
couldn’t travel up and get settled in
a day early like usual. But the floods
meant that much of the heavy setup
equipment (such as the stages) could
not actually be brought safely on site
until Thursday, giving the organisers
precious little time to get the festival
up and running. Friday was beset with
disorganisation. Cars became bogged
right at the gate, causing the line to
stretch kilometres down the road even
in the wee hours of the morning. When
entry was finally achieved and campsites
set up, many were forced to pack back
down again and move to a different area
less water-contaminated.
Yet the Rainbow crew did an
amazing job of getting the festival
up and running at all, and totally
successfully at that. The Red Bus, or
Sunset Stage, had by far the best setup
of the stages. Well-shaded and bedecked
with colourful artwork, the atmosphere
was wonderful, not to mention the
awesome labyrinthine tree/branch
structure at its rear. Not all the stages,
however, were quite so successful.
The Chill Stage was a joke. No more
than a few couches and a couple sails
overhead, it was no place to chill, while
the Main Stage was afflicted by a most
unpleasant odour. It smelled like poo!
No joke, the stage host to the biggest
international acts had the strong aroma
of defecation, only on the immediate
dancefloor though, curiously. The
hill surrounding was free of offensive
odour, where one could stand more
comfortably to perhaps appreciate the
MIND-BLOWING lasers on display.
Of powerful wattage and various
colours, from my campsite they made
the trees look like they were exploding.
The Market Stage – constant beating
heart of Rainbow – was solid as usual.
Art installations of all sorts
speckled the landscape. Many more,
it seemed, than previous years. Far too
numerous, however, were the market
stalls. Reportedly over 150, they
totally dominated the festival proper,
making the distance between stages and
campsites quite far and time-consuming
to traverse.
One cannot adequately describe
the setup of Rainbow Serpent without
homage to the best festival toilets
ever. Plentiful, well-serviced and
almost always clean, the Rainbow
compost toilets are almost heavenly
in comparison to the facilities at some
other festivals.
The Lifestyle Village hosted massage,
video arts, and many other activities.
However it was this year dominated
by the presence of Alex Grey, famed
psychedelic artist from the US. Many
of his paintings were on display, and
on Saturday afternoon he and his wife
Allison gave a much-lauded speech.
Unfortunately though, the general
reception of Alex Grey seemed one of
disappointment and disenchantment,
perhaps because, in my opinion, the
easiest way for artists to ruin their work
is to talk about it.
Enough preliminaries, the music!
Amazing artists galore, the music is of
course what Rainbow’s all about. Far
too many enjoyable acts to mention,
but there were definite standouts. It’s
hard to deny Opiuo rocked the house
on Saturday at the Market Stage with
his silly, slinky analogue bass, while the
night before, Circuit Bent danced me
around in circles with their crazy scales
and glitchy beats. Barons of Tang was,
as usual, foremost for me among the
bands, spiced up even further this year
by the appearance of two agile sirens
performing aerial acrobatics suspended
only by purple silk ribbons.
I was surprised to very much enjoy
Mathew Johnson, when I usually retreat
from techno, but when I walked in on a
bass sound I can only describe as junglethrum I felt compelled to stay for a
while. Spoonbill was typically enjoyable,
but the timing of his first Main Stage
performance gave him a very hard act
to follow. After all, the real highlight
of Rainbow 2011, the single source of
much of the excitement (and certainly
some extra ticket sales) was Shpongle
Live. Shpongle is a seamless synthesis of
very many musical styles, incorporating
a huge array of instruments and
brain-twisting electronic sounds, all
combining into one of the best and
most respected electronic music acts
in the world. Deeply psychedelic,
experimental and complex. The brilliant
minds behind Shpongle are Simon
Posford and Raja Ram, and this year
to Rainbow they came with a host of
live musicians and performers. And
it was quite a spectacle. Not only the
performance but the veritable sea
of people in attendance was in itself
something to behold. Simon Posford
also played a set under his classic, genredefining psy-trance alias Hallucinogen,
and brilliantly incorporated the live
drummer from Shpongle. It was
awesome.
Yet despite Shpongle and everything
else, I nominate Hypnagog as the
very best set of Rainbow 2011. Felix
Greenlees has been jamming out on
piano since early childhood, and along
the way has played more than a little
bassoon. Naturally, he evolved to
writing incredibly funky psy-trance
under the alias Terrafractyl, which
mentally spins you around with so
many twisting notes it sometimes feels
like dancing to a psychedelic orchestra.
In the last couple of years, Felix has
been writing more glitchy/breaks style
music under the name Hypnagog. This
year at Rainbow, he played under both
guises, but Hypnagog was particularly
special. Sliding easily between styles,
and always eminently melodious and
interesting, the music blended perfectly
with the waning orange light of a
beautiful Saturday afternoon.
In general, Rainbow was great fun
as always. Fantastic weather held the
entire long weekend; the new site (since
last year) was once again green and
lush. Wonderful people, music, food,
wares, fire-twirlers, performers, art...
the atmosphere at Rainbow Serpent
is one of my favourite things in this
world. Though I didn’t have quite as
much fun this year. The Rainbow crew
did do an amazing job of getting the
festival up and running so well under
the circumstances, but the flooding did
impede the full setup, and it showed.
And finally, though I’m very glad I
did see Shpongle Live, I imagine the
entire band, plus Alex Grey, would have
taken a large portion of the budget for
this year’s festival. That would explain
the seeming lack of other top notch
international artists. But oh well, that
just makes me think about who’ll be
playing next year...!!
Headliners Klaxons took to Centre
Field in similarly quirky attire. They
made their presence known with
favourite “Atlantis to Interzone”. They
dazzled with their unique harmonies,
delivering all of the old favourites –
“Magick”, “Gravity’s Rainbow” and
“Golden Skans”. The crowd was less
impressed with some of the new tunes,
however “Echoes” proved the band still
had its knack with harmonies. The show
rounded out aptly with “It’s Not Over
Yet”, a blessing from the band to party
on into the night.
After some high-calibre festival pizza
and free cocktails courtesy of Field Day’s
commendable recycling initiative, we
settled in front of Centre Stage as close
to the front as we could push (not very
close). Art vs. Science started off the
night’s entertainment. As usual, they
fuelled the festival energy with their
hypnotic beats. “Magic fountain” was a
fun addition to the set list. Even those
who hated the Art vs. Science style with
a passion could not resist the contagious
build-up of the song. Such was the
recipe for their success. Time will tell
whether the new tune they sampled
– with a name that tells all, “Bumble
Bee” – will reap the same success. With
only two memorable words to the
song, it would perhaps be better suited
to a children’s compilation. I’m sure,
however, the many thousands of denim
hot-pant-clad festival babes enjoyed
the excuse to surrender to the hypnotic
incantation.
All in all, the festival provided
something for everyone. The facilities
ranked far above average for a festival.
Although grossly overpriced, the midstrength drinks on offer were affordable
thanks to the recycling initiative which
had been enforced. The diversity of the
line-up rounded out an awesome day to
start the New Year.
By Joshua Kenner
Field Day in the Domain
NEW Years Day in Sydney: the
morning after a brilliant firework
display off Sydney Harbour Bridge and
its surrounds. It took a champagne
breakfast to assist me out of bed on the
1/1/11. That, and the anticipation of
the entertainment that was to unfold at
Field Day in the Domain. A leisurely
walk up King Street in the warm sun
soon brought me to the first class
venue for the event – Sydney’s Botanic
Gardens.
The first act of the day, Chromeo,
set an exceptionally high standard for
those to come. Dave-1 in all his dark
handsomeness, and P-Thugg with his
beer gut loping proudly over the synth,
engaged the crowd in front of Centre
Field with their latest tunes. Patty and
Selma, the keyboards resting on the
legs of female mannequins, added some
extra personality to the show, while
Tenderoni and Bonafied Lovin’ were
highlights. The afternoon provided
a feast of DJ remixes and funky rock
courtesy of The Rapture, Errol Alken
and Duck Sauce. Despite the repetitive
and all too familiar beats emitted by
Duck Sauce, the whole festival gathered
around in anticipation of those two
little words: Barbara Streisand. If
there had been a roof, it would have
been raised when the humming chorus
kicked in, as everyone seemed to jump
about in unison.
While the likes of Tame Impala and
Marina and the Diamonds entertained
festival goers on the Island stage, Left
Field was the scene for Indie rock fans.
Jamaica charmed the crowd with their
French accents and genuine energy.
Antoine Hilaire’s voice was reminiscent
of many a lead rock singer from much
heavier bands, hinting at the diversity
and potential of the hitherto-unknown
but nonetheless-mature band. Just as
it had been for Jamaica, the crowd
was small when Mystery Jets appeared
on stage in their completely weatherinappropriate, elaborate attire.
By Laura Aston
18 MUSIC
Guineafowl Interview
GUINEAFOWL are Sydney-ites
but we won’t hold that against them,
as they make some amazing music.
Although conceived merely a year ago,
Guineafowl have formed a large fanbase
through their Oxford Art Factory
residency earlier this year. Live favourite
‘Botantist’ also turned a few heads with
its wall-falling clip landing them a spot
in Rage’s inaugural top fifty countdown
– rage’s FIFTY. We’re releasing their
debut EP, Hello Anxiety, on February
11th.
You can check them out here:
http://www.myspace.com/guineafowl
or download a free track from here:
http://www.universalmusic.net.au/
freedownloads/guineafowl
Feature Album Review: Nas - Illmatic
Putting on your headphones
and pressing play on the 1994 debut
album of American hip hop artist Nas
is like stepping into a moving portrait
of the New York Queensbridge housing
projects in the mid 90s. Illmatic is a mix
of vivid imagery conjured through street
narratives and an exploration of the
artist’s own mentalities and mind-states.
From an early age Nas devoted his
time and energy to rapping, his first
arrival on the New York hip hop scene
was with a verse on the track ‘Live at
the Barbecue’ with the hip hop group
Main Source, the track was part of the
groups highly successful 1991 album
Breaking Atoms and bought attention
to the aspiring artist. In 1992 Nas
released the single ‘Halftime’ which
was featured on the soundtrack to
the film Zebrahead, gaining him even
more exposure. Illmatic was Nas’ debut
album, the culmination of years of hard
work perfecting his vocal and lyrical
signature. The album showcased the
talents of Large Professor, DJ Premier,
Pete Rock, Q-Tip and L.E.S, an
unprecedented collaboration from some
of the city’s finest producers.
Illmatic has been hailed as one of
the best hip hop albums of all time
and it is undoubtedly one of the most
influential and prolific albums of the
90s. It was listed as one of thirty-three
hip hop/R&B albums in Rolling Stone’s
“Essential Recordings of the 90s” and
ranked 400 in the 2003 Rolling Stone
publication of the 500 greatest albums
of all time, a list which only included
seven other hip hop/rap albums.
Just what is it that makes Illmatic
such an influential and defining hip
hop album? This is actually a difficult
question to answer. Many people I have
talked to about the album cite it as one
of the best albums ever produced or say
that it is one of their favourite albums,
yet seem at a loss to adequately explain
exactly what it is about the album that
makes it so respected. In this article I
will attempt to piece together some of
the elements that make Illmatic such a
compelling listen.
The production on the album
is flawless. A defining element of
the album’s production is that it
is collaboration from many highly
respected producers, a very unusual
occurrence as most albums at the time
featured the work of only one producer.
Although multiple producers worked on
Illmatic, they were still able to achieve
a unified sound and feel to the album,
whilst strengthening it with their own
unique production methods and styles.
The content of Illmatic is perhaps
one of its strongest features; the
album is an exploration of life in the
Queensbridge housing projects as Nas
experienced it. Perhaps the best track
to describe to bring about an overall
flavour of the album would be the
intro track; ‘The Genesis’ is an audio
montage that begins with the sound
of an elevated train and a recording of
Nas’ debut verse on the track ‘Live at
the Barbecue’, this is played underneath
excerpts from the equally classic hip
hop film Wild Style, in which two
characters Hector and Zoro converse;
this sample has Hector saying ‘And
your sitting at home doing this shit? I
should be earning a medal for this. Stop
fucking around and be a man, there
ain’t nothing out here for you.’ to which
Zoro replies ‘Yes there is, this!’
This sample may allude to Nas’
mentality that even though he is from a
very poor neighbourhood, where there
is a lot of depression and little prospects
for the residents, there is something
out there for him, hip hop! Following
this sample, Grand Wizard Theodore’s
‘Subway theme’ kicks in with Nas,
his brother Jungle and fellow rapper
AZ talking about the ‘bullshit on the
radio’, counting money and smoking
cannabis in order to set the stage for
the album. Music writer Mickey Hess
has stated that ‘Nas tells us everything
he wants us to known about him. The
train is shorthand for New York; the
barely discernable rap is, in fact, his
“Live at the Barbeque” verse; and the
dialogue comes from Wild Style, one
of the earliest movies to focus on hip
hop culture. Each of these is a point of
genesis. New York for Nas as a person,
“Live at the Barbeque” for Nas the
rapper, and Wild Style, symbolically at
least, for hip hop itself. These are my
roots, Nas was saying, and he proceeded
to demonstrate exactly what those roots
had yielded.’
The content of the album may
cover topics that are quite common
throughout hip hop such as gang
violence, drug use and the general
malaise of poverty stricken urban
communities but Illmatic has a unique
approach that blends intricate lyricism
and complex metaphors to create a
much deeper presentation of these
themes. This verse from the track
‘New York State of Mind’ presents
some very vivid images in just a few
lines. The ‘black rats trapped’ is a very
powerful metaphor that describes the
overcrowding, violence and desperation
of ghetto communities.
“In the P.J.’s, my blend tape plays,
bullets are strays
Young bitches is grazed each block is like
a maze
full of black rats trapped, plus the Island
is packed
From what I hear in all the stories when
my peoples come back”
Another of the reasons for Illmatic’s
success and perhaps its admiration
among hip hop fans is the high standard
of lyrical proficiency displayed. As
Marc Lamont Hill, a writer for the
international webzine Popmatters,
writes “Nas’ complex rhyme patterns,
clever word play, and impressive
vocab took the art to previously
unprecedented heights. Building on the
pioneering work of Kool G Rap, Big
Daddy Kane, and Rakim, tracks like
‘Halftime’ and the laid back ‘One Time
4 Your Mind’ demonstrated a high level
of technical precision and rhetorical
dexterity”. This verse from the song ‘It
ain’t hard to tell’ is a perfect example of
this.
“It ain’t hard to tell, I excel, then
prevail
The mic is contacted, I attract clientele
My mic check is life or death, breathin a
sniper’s breath
I exhale the yellow smoke of buddha
through righteous steps
Deep like The Shinin’, sparkle like a
diamond
Sneak a uzi on the island in my army
jacket linin
Hit the Earth like a comet, invasion
Nas is like the Afrocentric Asian, halfman, half-amazin
Cause in my physical, I can express throuh
song
Delete stress like Motrin, then extend
strong
I drank Moet with Medusa, give her
shotguns in hell
From the spliff that I lift and inhale, it
ain’t hard to tell”
The line ‘I drank Moet with Medusa,
give her shotguns in hell. From the
spliff that I lift and inhale,’ May seem
confusing and abstract but it has a
deeper meaning if looked at carefully. In
this line Nas is saying that he’s hanging
out with Medusa and instead of being
turned to stone by her (one is supposed
to turn to stone at the sight of her) that
he’s the one that is getting her stoned
by giving her shotguns (the term for
inhaling cannabis and then exhaling in
another person’s mouth) from his spliff.
Basically, she will be stoned instead
of him. This is a great example of the
intricacy of Nas’ lyrics.
A must listen for all fans of hip
hop, an album that would interest
most writers, poets and lyricists and
an amazing contribution to music,
Illmatic is one of the greatest musical
achievements of the 90s. As Nas himself
states verbally he is “iller than an aids
patient”.
By Timothy Lawson
How did the name Guineafowl come
about?
When I was at school, I used to have
really long hair. It was so long that it
covered my eyes; the teacher gave me
the nickname ‘Guinea pig’. From then
on, the name stuck with me. It got to
be such a dominating nickname that
my real name was partially forgotten.
The nickname eventually evolved to
‘Guineafowl’. For me, the name is a
pseudonym, because I wanted the name
to have some meaning and even though
it evokes more negative memories than
positive ones, the profoundness and
sentimental significance of the name is
more important to me.
What are some of your major music
influences?
It is slightly tough to put them all
out on a plate. The music that inspires
me is very broad. The bands that I am
really getting into have gone pretty big
over the past few years, such as ‘Talking
Heads’, ‘Cure’ and ‘Arcade Fire’ – pretty
inspiring in terms of the noise that they
make as well as their lyrics.
Which show that you have played has
been your favourite so far?
There have been a lot of really good
shows. We played 59 shows last year,
which is quite a lot for a band on its first
year I guess. I would probably say the
third show we played; it was in a really
small room at a club in Sydney called
‘Wall Bar’. We were jumping and it got
so crazy that the venue staff thought the
ceiling would come down.
What can you tell us about the new
EP?
We are just about to release our fivetrack EP called Halloween Party. It is
based on my demo, which I recorded
about a year ago. I started recording this
EP in my living room in my apartment,
I only had to use my laptop and an
acoustic guitar and that started the first
two songs, and those are also singles.
Do you do your own mixing?
No, I did for the demos but for
proper mixing we did it in Surry Hills in
Sydney, at a place called BJB studios.
Tell us about the creative process behind
writing your lyrics?
The good ones usually come together
– like the music is born and a couple of
minutes later the lyrics are born. There
are some stories that I have got in my
head and lists of experiences, things
that I have heard or whatever. They
are always there; it is just the matter of
when the piece of music comes on that
suits that story and that story will merge
with my brain and fall into the music.
Sometimes that doesn’t happen and the
music is just left hanging out there with
no dance partner. The good songs that
I release, the ones that I like or think of
as worthy to be heard by other people,
usually come together very quickly.
If you could play any show with any
artist in the world, dead or alive, who
would that be?
Brett Whitely. Yeah, if I cold play
some music and he could paint it; and
we do a heap of heroin, that would be
awesome.
By Timothy Lawson
MUSIC 19
Reviews
Cobra Skulls - Bringing
the War Home
Label: Fat Wreck Chords
Me First and the Gimme
Gimmes - Go Down
Under
The Aquabats! - Hi-Five
Soup!
The German Measles
– Color Vibration 7’’
/ MCDONALDS – Is
Forever
Having recently performed a
number of shows around Australia as
part of the inaugural No Sleep Till
Festival, Californian punk-rock karaoke
kings Me First And The Gimme
Gimmes are set to release a brand new
EP this February. For those uninitiated
with the group, here’s the deal: Me First
And The Gimme Gimmes are a five
piece band made up of scene veterans
who only play punk rock covers of
old school pop hits. The group also
occasionally throw in riffs and musical
extracts from classic punk tunes into
their interpretations, just to keep
things interesting. Finally, each release
by the Gimme Gimmes features a
running theme which connects its songs
together; from its title alone, it should
be fairly obvious that Go Down Under’s
title refers to the fact that this latest
EP is comprised entirely of Australian
classics.
The record opens with the group’s
blistering cover of INXS’s ‘Never Tear
Us Apart’, a sensational introduction
which sees the track (including
its distinctive opening guitar riff)
transformed into a Ramones¬-esque
romp. Frontman Spike Slawson’s
smooth and melodious vocals are
definitely the highlight of the song, with
the spotlight only momentarily shifting
towards its conclusion by a ripping
guitar solo courtesy of Chris Shiflett
(yes, believe it, the guy from The Foo
Fighters is a Gimme Gimme). Next
up in proceedings is ‘All Out of Love’
(originally by Air Supply), another
classic that is only further amplified by
the incorporation of a segment of Black
Flag’s ‘Rise Above’ into proceedings.
The crowning jewel of Go Down
Under however is definitely the group’s
rendition of ‘Friday on My Mind’.
Many commentators have lamented the
exclusion of any AC/DC or Midnight
Oil material from this collection, but
the truth is that The Easybeats are far
more essentially Australian than either
of those acts could ever be. Overall,
this really is an example of Me First
And The Gimme Gimmes at their best;
they have taken a song that is both
remembered and is meaningful to adults
from the baby-boomer generation and
converted it into a pop punk party
anthem that any self-respecting member
of Generation X or Y can call their own.
Perhaps the only way in which Go
Down Under disappoints is its length;
with five tracks that span a mere twelve
minutes, the record is pretty short even
by punk rock standards. Whether it
was due to the hectic recording and
touring schedules of its respective band
members or there just weren’t enough
good Australian songs to actually cover,
it is unfortunate that Me First And
The Gimme Gimmes didn’t decide to
stretch out the collection to a full length
album. Regardless, Go Down Under is
another success from a band that aren’t
afraid to have a bit of fun and not take
themselves too seriously.
During the late 90’s, ska was a
pretty big thing in mainstream music.
Groups like Reel Big Fish and The
Mighty Mighty Bosstones ruled the
airwaves, and everyone knew that
“skanking” was a type of dance rather
than slang for the act of prostitution.
This golden era was destined to be short
lived however, as the turn of the century
and the subsequent popularisation of
groups like KoRn and Limp Bizkit soon
ushered in the dark age of nu-metal.
Of those brave souls who continued on
despite this horrific turn of events, The
Aquabats! stood out for a number of
reasons. First and foremost of these was
the obvious fact that the group always
performed in matching lycra outfits
and battled supervillians onstage. Their
songs were usually characterised by
upbeat tempos, blaring horns and lyrics
that furthered the band’s own bizarre
superhero back story. Those days,
however, appear long gone.
The release of the group’s fourth
album Charge!! saw The Aquabats!
taking an entirely new direction with
their music. The departure of the
majority of the band’s horn players
over the years had resulted in a greater
reliance upon synthesizer melodies to fill
out their sound live, and realising that
it would probably be easier to hold onto
a single keyboard player than an entire
brass section in the post-ska world, The
Aquabats! successfully evolved into a
far more new-wave influenced outfit.
While this move alienated some long
term fans, the strength of Charge!!’s
song writing ensured an overall smooth
transition for the group.
Which brings us to Hi-Five Soup!.
Featuring more synths and an even
more juvenile approach to music
than the band has displayed in the
past, I must admit that I think that
The Aquabats! may be finally past
their prime. Whereas previously the
group produced music for adults
wishing to recapture the youth of their
childhood, this latest album really
just sounds like it was written for
children. Hi-Five Soup! unfortunately
just seems to lack the wit and irony of
their earlier records, with tracks like
‘B.F.F.!’ and ‘Hey Homies!’ proving to
be particularly grating. The album’s
significantly cleaner production doesn’t
help greatly either, with much of the
band’s sonic punch lost beneath layers
of studio sheen.
For most listeners, there is little
relief on offer to help numb the pain
that is Hi-Five Soup!. While ‘Shark
Fighter!’ and ‘The Legend Is True!’
manage to recapture some of the genius
that has previously been displayed
by The Aquabats!, it seems the many
years in the musical underground have
finally taken their toll on the group.
Considering the already niche market
that the band plays to, it is hard to tell
what the reaction from long terms fans
will be to Hi-Five Soup!; as far as I am
concerned however, it is an unfortunate
entry into the discography of a bizarre
yet unique band. Let’s just hope they
can produce something a little more
worthy of their mighty name next time.
The German Measles and
MCDONALDS! Two great bands
from the USA that members of the late
(and great) Cause Co-Motion! (famous
lo-fi+punk+ETCETERA band) are
working on.
The German Measles is a proper
example of rock and roll, or punk, or
ETCETERA. It’s rock for the sake of
rock. Living in the present, enjoying in
the present. Messy rock, hard to hear on
clicking and skipping vinyl rock, with
a bit of sugar on top. Side A – ‘Color
Vibration’ – grating, jarring, hard to
digest, with some strawberry jam on the
side via guitar riffs. Side B – ‘I Don’t
Like Your Friends’ – extremely catchy
and hummable rock, completely silly
subject, which is the point. Rock is
accepting the human lot for what it
is, and making the most of it while we
haven’t yet been shot or neutered or
lobotomised. This is the subject of the
song ‘Eternity’ on their Wild EP (“the
oldest generation will be you and me /
thanks to nano technology / we’ll live to
see the land swallowed by sea / … and
we’re gonna live forever!... Eternity”).
There are two meanings, it’s ironic; we
don’t live forever, we’re mortal, we’re
born, we die, we don’t know any better,
we’re human... we’re all irredeemable
and ignorant, so make the most of what
little good there is to be found in this
mortal coil.
MCDONALDS is more rock for its
own sake, ETCETERA. The singer has
a languorous, tired sort of tone, but his
heart’s in it... as far as anyone’s heart can
be in anything. The opener ‘Chicken
Noodle Stew’ gets stuck in your head,
the second ‘Never Give Your Heart
Away’ makes you dolorous. A couple of
the songs tend to repeat themselves and
drag a little, but the thing as a whole
carries through on its tired energy. It’s
rock, not ‘I signed my soul to Sonycore’, or any other number of things
that masquerade as rock. Good times,
bad times, rock times, “all you got is
wasted and it’s wasted time”... that’s
really it isn’t it, we’re all just wasting
time. And a gentleman never tells.
Label: Fearless Records
Label: Fat Wreck Chords
Ever since the release of their 2006
debut Draw Muhummad, Nevada
natives Cobra Skulls have been making
waves with their own unique brand
of punk rock. Combining country
and rockabilly with politically charged
melodic punk, the band has been
steadily building their fanbase over the
last couple of years through constant
touring with such distinguished scene
veterans as NOFX and The Bouncing
Souls. Having recently signed to the
bastion of independent music that is Fat
Wreck Chords, Cobra Skulls latest EP
Bringing the War Home is yet another
quality entry into the group’s steadily
growing discography.
Featuring four new originals and a
rollicking Bad Religion cover just for
good measure, the overall sound of
this latest EP is a logical extension of
the direction the band displayed on
their last full length album, American
Rubicon. What this means is that,
generally speaking, Bringing the War
Home has a far greater emphasis placed
upon melody and well constructed
lyrics than upon the more hardcoretinged sound of their early days. As is
standard for any Fat Wreck release of
late, the production on this record is top
notch without ever sacrificing a scrap
of immediacy, something which cannot
always be said about several older items
in Cobra Skulls back catalogue.
The furious ‘Doomsday Parade’ gets
Bringing the War Home underway in a
blistering fashion, both due to its quick
pace and scathing lyrics concerning
American migration policy. Equally
appealing is the follow-up, ‘Ice in
the Night’, whose catchy chorus is
surely the centrepiece of the track.
However, it is the group’s rockabilly
tinged cover of ‘Give You Nothing’
late in the piece which truly seals the
deal for the record; it may not be their
own material, but what Cobra Skulls
do with the song is simply fantastic,
retaining all of the energy of the original
while simultaneously morphing it into
something instantly recognisable as
their own.
Bringing the War Home may not be
a very lengthy release (it clocks in at just
over 12 minutes), but there is certainly
enough meat to this small collection of
songs to keep fans and casual listeners
alike very happy indeed. With a unique
sonic take on punk rock and a strong
socio-political message, Cobra Skulls are
definitely a band to keep an eye out for
in the near future.
By Matthew Woodward
By Matthew Woodward
By Matthew Woodward
By Gavrilo Grabovac
20 FILM
Reviews
Black Swan
Coming across as a sort of pseudo
companion piece to his 2008 hit The
Wrestler, Darren Aronofsky manages
to craft an intriguing and confronting
film that manages to start 2011’s movie
going experience off with a bang.
The plot seems rather simple,
Nina (played by the brilliant Natalie
Portman), who is a second string dancer
at the New York Ballet Company,
is givin the opportunity to dance as
the lead in the companies newest
production of Swan Lake. Throughout
the arduous rehearsals for the role with
company director Thomas (Vincent
Cassel), it becomes clear that Nina is
quite capable of playing the fragile and
elegant White Swan but lacks the power
and passion to capture the intensity
of the Black Swan. Enter Lily, a new
dancer at the company who seems to be
vying to steal the role away from Nina,
and with her devil may care attitude
she just might manage to do it. Nina,
consumed by her roles and hell bent
on making her leading debut, begins a
slow decent into madness and paranoia
as she tries in vein to grapple with the
duelling personalities of the two swan
queens.
Although this sounds like a
reasonably standard plot what manages
to keep it from becoming simply a
standard film is the way in which the
subject matter is treated. The subtlety
and the intensity that is used to show
Nina slip from reality, causing the
audience to second guess themselves
as to whether or not what they have
just seen was real or not. The trick
editing, the use of mirrors to disorient
the viewer and the way in which Nina’s
hallucinations are presented keep the
audience there alongside the characters
the whole time, never recoiling from a
close-up or confronting camera angle
to allow some distance from what is
happening on screen.
Aronofsky has gone against
convention here, instead of shooting
the ballet sequences as big, bawdy
spectacles, he has opted to continue
the almost documentary style of
filming he perfected while making
The Wrestler. This helps to keep the
audience emotionally connected to the
characters, as Nina is twirling on stage
we are right there with her in a close-up
and not somewhere in the fourth row
watching the show.
What truly makes Black Swan
True Grit
a remarkable film though, is its
performances. Natalie Portman is
amazing in her portrayal of the fragile
Nina. The way in which she seems to
be as scared, if not more so, than the
audience at her spiral from sanity, her
constant needing of approval from
the ballet director over he dancing
as well as her cautious approach
towards Lily, unsure to see her as
friend or foe. The breakthrough part
of her performance though is the very
unnerving relationship she has with her
overbearing mother (played by Barbara
Hershey). The scenes between these two
characters have a sense that Nina has
been emotional stunted by her mother
and has never really developed past the
age of about twelve, letting her mother
control every aspect of her life from her
dancing even to clipping her toenails.
It’s here that Portman truly shines as she
manages to slowly grasp the ideas of the
Black Swan, she too manages to grasp
the idea that she should control her own
life.
Portman is not the only standout in
the cast, Mila Kunis turns in a brilliant
performance as the vindictive Lily. She
manages to switch up emotions so easily
in this role jumping from friendly and
supportive dance partner to sinister and
conniving that you start to think she
too might all be part of Nina’s paranoia.
Barbara Hershey and Winona Ryder (as
the former lead dancer in the company)
both turn in sterling performances
that help to not just elevate the
performances of the lead actors but the
film itself.
With Black Swan, Aronofsky has
created another brilliant film that deals
with big ideas, on a small scale. By
taking a simple story and injecting it
with so much passion and suspense,
he has secured himself as one of the
best American filmmakers working
today and Natalie Portman’s brilliant
performance will finally earn her the
Oscar she so greatly deserves.
High Distinction
By Chris Swan
News Hit
Since their debut film Blood
Simple was released in 1984 the Coen
brothers have made a film every two to
three years on average and have always
been masters of subverting genre and
telling great story’s. And while Joel and
Ethan’s adaptation of the 1968 novel
by Charles Portis might seem on the
surface to be a fairly straightforward
genre exercise and maybe Steven
Spielberg’s executive producer credit
may have you wondering what your
actually in for as well as speculating over
the ending after the credits roll. On
closer look True Grit is subversive in
something that has always been a staple
for the Coen’s, Their vision of America
and the characters that inhabit it.
allowing the audience to build up our
own vision of what this character might
be like based on hearsay from other
characters in the film, which leads to an
effective reveal of his character.
Even with a star studded cast the
film’s real standout is young urban
achiever, Hailee Steinfeld, who was
13-years old at the time of shooting.
Even if most of True Grit’s attention
seems focussed on Bridges, Steinfeld
truly is the star of the show and it is
quite clear, not long after the opening
of the film, that she is the one with the
‘true grit‘. With her fearless resilience
in the harsh world and her seamless
delivery of some amazing dialogue,
Stienfeld provides a rock for the Coen‘s
Following the murder of her father
by hired hand Tom Chaney (Josh
Brolin), 14-year-old farm girl Mattie
Ross sets out with one thing on her
mind- capture the killer. To aid her,
she hires the toughest U.S. marshal
she can find, a man whom apparently
has ‘true grit,’ Reuben J. “Rooster”
Cogburn (Jeff Bridges). Mattie insists
on accompanying Cogburn, whose
heavy drinking and degenerate character
do not strengthen her faith in him.
Against his wishes, she joins him in his
trek into the Indian Nations in search
of Chaney. They are joined along the
way by pompous Texas Ranger Labour
(Matt Damon), who’s after Chaney for
his own purposes. The three form the
most unlikely of posses and setting out
into ‘Indian country’ where the land is
as unforgiving as the winter is bleak.
Bridges aka El Doodarino, slides
seamlessly into character as Cogburn,
who slurs and growls through the
great dialogue and for all intents and
purposes looks like a drunk bum on
a horse whilst all the while giving an
outstanding performance. Rooster
could almost be a distant relative of
Bridges character Bad Blake from Crazy
Heart for which he won an Oscar only
last year. Love him or hate him, Matt
Damon is hilarious as the smarmy
LaBoeuf (pronounced LaBeef ), offering
a dry wit in altered speech patterns that
continually play with convention, and
Barry Pepper is a stand-out gem and
very surprising, adding to what amounts
to be a wealth of supporting riches, as
gang leader Lucky Ned Pepper. Josh
Brolin’s Tom Chaney is mentioned
many times throughout the film but
doesn’t appear until near the end,
thematic exploration.
Sure, the film ain’t perfect, it doesn’t
really push the boundaries of the
western genre and some will rightly
argue the film seems to hasten to its
conclusion very suddenly, leaving much
unanswered about its characters and its
intentions. Some will take great pleasure
in such mechanics of storytelling,
feasting on what is left unspoken or
unseen. The scripts use of language is
intelligent, layered, hillariou and at
times incomprehensible. This is a film
that will surely reward repeat viewings.
The brothers Coen have made it
clear that this is not a remake of the
John Wayne Oscar winning version
(That I sadly haven’t seen as yet). In
a recent interview, they said they had
seen the original film in theatres when
they were kids but haven’t revisited it
since then, and now only have a vague
recollection of it. Both films were
adaptations of the novel, however, True
Grit is also a continuation of the Coen’s
preoccupations with greed, mortality,
religion, redemption, mythology, crime
and punishment and humour all in a
world inhabited by strange characters
who look and talk funny. No character
is quite what they seem and defiantly
not what we expect, and play their part
in turning a basic plot about retribution
into something more timeless. True
Grit is essential viewing, an a significant
instalment in the Coen brothers’
exploration of what it means to be an
American.
HIGH DISTINCTION
ByTom Campbell
News Hit
BOOKS/GAMES 21
Book Review:
The Fry Chronicles
Stephen Fry is surely the
personification of absolute perfection.
A curious remark to make you might
say, given that a completely antithetical
assessment forms the focus of his latest
autobiographical installment. Granted,
no one is really perfect. But there is
something quite remarkable and highly
admirable about Fry’s self-portrait.
Most intriguingly and surprisingly, the
autobiography is constructed heavily
on his perceived character weaknesses –
enduring celebrity, chronic insecurity,
a quiet sensation of personal failure –
and the list goes on.
Those who are familiar with Fry’s
extraordinary talents as a writer, actor,
broadcaster and comedian (this list,
too, goes on) will be interested to
know that he is isn’t really preoccupied
with discussing them. Instead, these
incarnations form the basis of a
narrative framework for frank, revealing
and Hamlet-esque discussions about
the darker recesses of his character. The
result – I can confidently say – is that
this work is the most genuine, poetic
and absolutely perfect piece of literary
self-analysis I have ever read.
The Fry Chronicles picks off where his
previous memoir Moab Is My Washpot
ends. It charters his deviously eventful
exit from high school, through to his
inspired, re-oriented entrance into
Cambridge University as reader in
English Literature, and finally chronicles
his immediate post-uni endeavours
in comedy and writing. A further
memoir, we are told, will deal with
the heavier stuff to come in his thirties
and thereafter. Given that the story
ends with Fry somewhat innocently
taking his first line of cocaine signals
an interesting trend in his self-portrait;
the marrying of instances of success and
happiness with chronic feelings of inner
dissatisfaction and difficulty.
There’s no doubt that Fry has lived
a remarkable life. This book is an
incredibly enthralling story that even a
writer of lesser talent could reasonably
pull off with some measure of
entertainment. The basic elements of a
comedic epic are all there; love, comedy,
drama, sex, celibacy, tobacco, prison,
money, champagne, Aston Martins,
Apple computers, Hugh Laurie, Emma
Thompson, Rowan Atkinson... But
what really makes The Fry Chronicles so
captivating is the intensity and Fryian
wit. Fry’s anecdotes about college
life and celebrities of all varieties are
heightened in value by his rhythmic,
charming prose and deepening process
of self-examination. Like a true poet,
Fry permeates his experiences with
personal reflections and considerations
about the world. Wilde would
be proud of him no doubt. It’s as
if the entire book is actually an
enlightening, intellectual conversation,
which just happens to be funny and
autobiographical at the same time.
But, you might say, if Fry finds it
so necessary to persistently profess his
flaws and vulnerabilities, reminding us
of his inferiority to other dramatic and
comedic greats, then why is it so easy to
admire him? The Fry Chronicles is – or
at least seems to be – genuinely honest.
The concentration of self-criticism over
self-promotion makes one get the sense
that Fry isn’t opening himself up for the
reader, but is self-examining.
The business of autobiography, he
tells us, has to do with self-revelation
and discovery. What a fresh take on a
politically adulterated genre of literature
this is! Autobiographies these days
are all about legacy – fundamental
principles that the author (usually
a politician) wants to champion or
claim for his own, some admirable,
some a bit tiring. Nelson Mandela and
freedom from oppression, Tony Blair
and the politics of modernization, John
Howard and…um… Costello? But with
Stephen Fry, autobiography dabbles
in the wondrous, abstract intricacies
of the human condition. Without
explicitly mentioning it, Fry strongly
advocates that stunning intelligence is
unbreakably connected to the pursuit of
truth.
It is really Fry’s excellence as
a humble and interested human
being that makes this memoir so
remarkable, rather than his natural
comedic exuberance or his eloquent
turn of phrase. Fry’s simple honesty
and insatiable curiosity – qualities that
people never fail to undervalue – are
the lifeblood of the book. We would all
do well to take a similarly introspective
look at ourselves and discover our own
compelling features of human frailty.
Then, and only then, might we be able
to come up with an assessment that’s
maybe half as definitive and entertaining
as this. Fry’s ability to define and
embrace his own flaws is one of the
most perfect things that any human can
do. The reader’s wonderful privilege is
that this acceptance is conveyed with a
marvelous humour and literary spark.
Great people don’t need to remind
others of their greatness. So it seems
with Mr Fry. Self-criticism is the new
arrogance. Period. Why can’t politicians
get that?
By Duncan Wallace
Video Game Review: Donkey
Kong Country Returns
Donkey Kong Country is back.
This revitalised two-dimensional side
scrolling game sets the standard for
the genre, just like the original Donkey
Kong Country game did back in 1994.
The developers, Retro Studios, should
be commended for their work on the
series. It has successfully re-interpreted a
classic, keeping nostalgia in check while
still making a very fun game. If you
think of this title as a strict remake, you
will be bitterly disappointed - consider
it a re-invention that takes the franchise
forward, but still maintains the soul of
the original series.
The crux of the Donkey Kong Country
series was its level design, and that has
carried over to Returns. The stages are
clever and inventive, and an effort has
been made to make each and every
level different. Some highlights are the
mine cart and rocket levels, which are
well separated in the game and greatly
contribute to the pacing of the entire
production.
The levels exude a great sense of
nostalgia, with the areas of the game
being based on areas from the original.
This is enhanced with excellent sound
design, with remixes of some of the
original Donkey Kong Country’s music.
But be warned: Retro have made
this game more difficult, although they
have also accommodated for this by
giving Donkey Kong a lifebar. Two hits
and you’re dead, instead of the usual
one-hit death in the original game.
Finding Diddy Kong expands your
health by two as well. A co-op mode
has also been added to further spice up
the game; I had a good time with it but
keep in mind that double the players
drains double the amount of lives you
have. If you die too many times, you get
the option to have the computer play
through the level for you, so younger,
lazy or pathetic players can progress
without too much difficulty.
The graphics are good for a Wii
game. Compared to a third-party title
this game shines, but when contrasted
with other titles such as Super Mario
Galaxy 2, Donkey Kong Returns looks a
little shabby. The designers have gone
for a cartoony feel, contrasting the
realistic look of the original series but it
works nonetheless and distinguishes this
game as a re-interpretation, rather than
a remake.
Like other Wii games, Donkey Kong
Country Returns seems to be stuck on
the idea that you need to have some
sort of motion aspect to the game, but
that aspect doesn’t work in this game.
You need to shake the remote to roll,
blow and slam in this game and it can
become a tedious exercise, particularly
because all three of those moves need
to be used frequently. I’d prefer to
play Donkey Kong without having an
arm spasm afterwards. The rest of the
controls work well and are simple, but
it would have been great to have an
option to play on the classic controller
or Gamecube controller. The current
format doesn’t hinder the game, but it
could be improved.
I have two other small complaints.
I would have loved to have played as
Diddy Kong in the single player mode.
He has “NINTENDO” on his cap, so
he is practically a mascot, and yet he
is not playable in single player. Oddly
enough, I believe he is more popular
than Donkey Kong and he should
not have been reduced to a power-up
for Donkey Kong. Again, this doesn’t
hinder the game, but I feel that it would
have been an improvement if Diddy was
playable.
It also would have been nice to
have a limit on the enemy designs.
Ultimately, enemies add further
character to a game and some designs
are great. I loved the Pirate Crabs, and
not just for the connotations that that
may infer. But there are other enemies
that are just forgettable. In Donkey Kong
Country 2 and 3, Rare (the developers
of the Donkey Kong Country series)
had all of the enemies listed in the
Instruction Booklet and went for quality
not quantity. It was about designing the
levels for the enemies, not the enemies
for the levels. It gave the older games
character, and is part of the reason why
series like Mario are successful. How
often do the enemies change in Mario?
That said, I cannot remember a
game in between the prior Donkey Kong
Country games that I have loved as
much as this one. Retro Studios are fast
becoming my favourite developers. As
a reviewer, I always try to find points of
improvement for a title, but my issues
with this title are so minor and easily
fixed in a potential sequel that you
would be doing yourself a disservice in
not playing this game.
One thing is certain: Donkey Kong
is back, and I certainly hope it’s here to
stay!
By Harry Polites
News Hit
22 VISUAL ART
Photo by Richard Plumridge
Don’t be shy about submitting visual artwork to Lot’s Wife. More is always
welcome. Get your art out there!
SCIENCE 23
Stop crying Nina!
Like a toy in the hands of
squabbling Spanish children, Australia’s
climate passes between periods of wet,
cool weather, and warm, dry weather.
At the moment, La Nina has us in her
grips and she’s dumping water all over
the place.
up the Southern Oscillation, a see-saw
of surface air pressures which are high
on one side of the tropical Pacific and
low on the other. Every 2-7 years the
effect will reverse, keeping the Eastern
and Western Pacific in an irregular cycle
of wet and dry weather periods.
What are La Nina and El Nino?
The Southern Oscillation occurs
as a result of interactions between the
surface of the ocean and the atmosphere
above it. It takes place in the Pacific
Ocean as it is such a large body of
water that it takes a long time for winds
and currents to pass across it. Changes
to the surface temperature affect the
atmospheric winds (higher temperature,
less wind), which in turn impacts on
the surface temperature of the ocean.
These weather fluctuations have been
occurring for centuries at irregular
intervals and with varying severity. La
Nina events will often follow El Nino,
but this is not always the case.
La Nina (Spanish for ‘Little girl’)
is an ocean-atmosphere phenomenon
in which cooling of the sea surface
temperature in the Pacific Ocean
leads to wetter weather across tropical
Australia, Papua New Guinea and
Indonesia. This weather pattern
typically lasts 9-12 months and has
global effects.
El Nino is a warming of the ocean
surface temperature which usually
occurs around Christmas time (South
American fisherman named it El Nino
for the ‘Christ Child’ or ‘Little Boy’
in Spanish). It usually lasts 1-2 years
and causes drier weather conditions in
Australia.
The Southern Oscillation
Together, La Nina and El Nino make
Drought and Flood in Australia
The severe drought experienced
in Australia over the last decade has
broken...with a flood. 2010 was the
third wettest year in Australia’s records,
reversing the dry conditions across
Queensland, New South Wales, and
parts of Victoria and South Australia.
At the beginning of 2010, 70% of
New South Wales was in drought; now,
the whole state is officially droughtfree. The Murray-Darling Basin has
had below average rainfall since 2001,
but 2010 brought the wettest year on
record, boosting the water storage levels
in dams across Victoria.
models, which are used to project long
term changes to climate and the effect
of increasing greenhouse gases, are
unable to reliably predict the interaction
between global warming and El Nino.
A warmer atmosphere may increase the
strength and frequency of El Nino, or
it may actually weaken it. Or, as some
models predict, it may not affect it at all.
Despite the recent rainfall, southwest Western Australia has experienced
its driest year on record, and some parts
of the state remain in drought.
Whether or not global warming
influences the Southern Oscillation is
uncertain, but it is known that El Nino
and La Nina weather events have been
occurring for hundreds of years and will
continue to occur. Severe events have
a devastating effect on infrastructure,
the economy and people’s lives, so
better understanding of the factors
involved is important for planning and
management of these events.
Is global warming responsible for
the severe changes in climate?
It’s not known exactly how the
greenhouse effect contributes to
these natural weather patterns. Severe
droughts and floods have occurred
throughout history, but there is
suggestion that the warmer climate
produced by the greenhouse effect
causes stronger weather patterns in both
La Nina and El Nino episodes.
The frequency and intensity of the
Southern Oscillation has increased
since the 1970’s, but what is driving
this is unknown. Computer climate
By Aimee Parker
Science Editor
Q&A
Why do mosquitoes bite some
people more than others?
What’s the best way to prevent being
bitten?
Mosquitoes are attracted to your skin
by movement, heat and carbon dioxide,
the chemical compound emitted when
you exhale. Yet some people seem to
be mosquito magnets, getting bitten
far more than the people around them.
This is due to the combination of 300400 chemical odours which are emitted
from the human body, some which
act as mosquito attractants, and others
as repellents. Studies have shown that
blood type may play a role, with Type
O presenting the tastiest meal, while
chemicals produced by those who are
stressed may actually repel mosquitoes.
Pregnancy and alcohol seem to increase
mosquito appeal as pregnant women
exhale more carbon dioxide, and
alcohol increases body temperature
as well as changing the chemicals on
the skin to something more appealing
to mosquitoes. High concentrations
of cholesterol or steroids on the skin,
influenced by the metabolism of the
individual, are also attractive, as is
lactic acid which is produced when we
exercise.
With the recent proliferation of
these irritating insects, the best way to
repel them has been a topic of great
interest. Repellants which contain
DEET are thought to be the most
effective. DEET is a chemical which
masks the chemical odours on your skin
so that mosquitoes are not attracted to
you. Other suggestions include burning
citronella oil or candles, applying Vicks
Vaporub, or consuming large amounts
of garlic or Vitamin B. The efficacies of
these measures are unconfirmed, but
see what works for you. Failing that,
find someone who is more susceptible
to mosquito bites than you are, and use
them as a decoy.
Why do mosquito bites itch?
When a mosquito inserts its
proboscis (feeding tube) into your skin
it injects a small amount of saliva. The
saliva contains an anticoagulant to keep
your blood flowing until the mosquito
has finished its meal. It also causes a
small immune reaction within our
body, resulting in redness, swelling and
itching. This response is useful as it lets
us know that we’ve been bitten so we
can avoid further bites. However, some
people have little or no reaction to the
saliva, while others have quite a strong
response. Children are usually more
reactive to mosquito bites, while adults
seem to develop some tolerance over
time, decreasing the response.
Can mosquitoes transfer diseases
such as HIV?
Mosquitoes act as carriers of certain
disease, transferring them between
humans. Mosquitoes may carry Ross
River, Dengue or Barmah Forest
viruses in Australia, and Malaria or
Yellow Fever in other parts of the
world. Mosquitoes are able to transfer
these diseases as the virus or parasite
spends part of its life cycle within the
mosquito.
There hasn’t been any evidence to
suggest that mosquitoes can transfer
HIV, even in areas with large numbers
of mosquito and many cases of HIV.
There are several reasons why HIV is
not transferred. Firstly, a mosquito
would have to bite an infected person
at a stage of the disease in which HIV
particles are present, and would have
to ingest some of these particles. These
particles would then have to survive
in the mosquito, which is not part of
the life cycle, and end up in the saliva.
To then infect another person, a HIV
particle would have to be present in the
small amount of saliva transferred when
the mosquito feeds. This very unlikely
scenario has not occurred up until this
point, and should not be cause for
concern.
Is there anything good about
mosquitoes?
Mosquitoes are actually an important
part of the ecosystem, and eradicating
them entirely would disrupt that system.
Mosquito larvae are the main source of
food for the young of some fish species,
and mosquitoes make up a large part of
the diet of some bats and frogs. Also, the
male mosquitos do not suck blood, but
instead drink plant nectar. When they
do this they collect a bit of pollen and
transfer it to the next plant, as bees and
other insects do. This is very important
for pollinating crops which provide a
food source to larger organisms.
By Aimee Parker
Science Editor
How to....make your own Lava Lamp!
What you need:
•A clean 1 litre juice or soft drink
bottle
•3/4 cup water
•Vegetable oil
•Fizzing tablets (such as Alka Seltzer)
•Food colouring
What to do:
-Pour the water into the bottle
-Pour in the vegetable oil until the
bottle is almost full. Wait a few minutes
until the water and oil separate
-Add a few drops of food colouring
and allow it to sink down into the water
-Break a fizzing tablet in half and
drop it into the bottle. Watch the
mesmerising bubbles begin!
-To recharge you lava lamp, add
another fizzing tablet. To improve the
effect, shine a torch up through the
bottom of the bottle.
The Science:
The oil and water do not mix
because the chemical composition of
each is different. The oil and water
molecules are attracted to themselves
but not to each other, so the oil forms
droplets within the water. The oil floats
on top of the water as it is less dense, or
relatively lighter, than the water.
The fizzing tablet is able to dissolve
in water, so when it sinks to the bottom
and begins to dissolve, bubbles of gas
are released. As the gas rises toward
the surface, it takes blobs of coloured
water with it. When the gas reaches the
surface it escapes and the blob of water
sinks back down.
To enhance the funkiness of
your lava lamp, try a little scientific
experimentation:
1. Does the temperature of the water
affect the reaction? 2. Does the size of
the bottle affect how many blobs are
produced? 3. Does the effect still work
if the cap is put on the bottle? 4. Does
the size of the tablet pieces affect the
number of blobs created?
From ScienceBob experiments, www.
sciencebob.com
Lame science joke
of the edition
Q: What did the male magnet say to
the female magnet?
A: From your backside, I thought you
were repulsive. However, after seeing
you from the front, I find you rather
attractive.
24 ESSAYS
A LOOK AT THE BUDDHIST NO-SELF DOCTRINE
The purpose of this essay is to
examine the Buddhist no-self doctrine
and the difficulties that arise when it
is combined with the rebirth doctrine.
I will begin by describing the noself doctrine and how it fits into the
Buddhist philosophical framework. I
will then look at a difficulty that arises
when the Buddhist no-self doctrine is
combined with the Buddhist rebirth
doctrine: When there is no self, then
who or what is it that is reborn? I will
propose an answer to this question
which I believe is consistent with the
teachings of the Buddha.
Buddhist philosophy holds that we
experience suffering (dukkha) because
we are caught in the continual cycle
of death and rebirth (samsara). The
ultimate goal of Buddhism is to achieve
liberation from this continuous cyclic
existence; the final attainment of this
goal is known as nirvana. Sidertis
(2007, p. 32) explains that the Buddha
holds that the reason we experience the
suffering of samsara is because we are
ignorant of the three characteristics:
impermanence, suffering and nonself. In defining the Buddhist no-self
doctrine, it is important, firstly, to
define what is meant by the term ‘self ’.
The definition offered by Sidertis
(2007, p. 32) states that, ‘By ‘the self ’
what Buddhists mean is the essence of
a person’. The concept of ‘the self ’, for
the purpose of this essay, refers to what
is known as atta – the eternal soul: the
permanent essence within everybody
that survives death and is reborn in
various different forms from one life to
the next.
The Buddha’s no-self doctrine
rejected the notion of a permanent
essence or ‘soul’ that persists through
countless lifetimes; this notion is known
as anatta – literally meaning ‘no soul’.
The Buddha’s rejection of atta is based
on the notion of impermanence: the
idea that nothing remains the same for
more than an instant, that everything is
transitory, that all phenomena is in the
process of constant change. According
to Hick, ‘To be born is already to have
begun to die. Everything that comes
to be passes away. Even the most
apparently solid and enduring realities
are secretly in process of dissolution...
as a philosopher the Buddha saw this
universal transiency as arising from the
fact that everything, all distinguishable
entities and processes (sankharas), are
composite’ (Hick 1976, p. 332).
This ever-changing, impermanent
nature of reality is, as I mentioned
earlier, one of the key concepts in
Buddhism and the doctrine of noself arises from it. The esteemed
Buddhist monk, Buddhagosa in the
Visuddhimagga (Path of Purification)
wrote, ‘For there is suffering, but none
who suffers; Doing Exists although
there is no doer; Extinction is but no
extinguished person; Although there is
a path, there is no goer’ (Buddhagosa,
p.587). This may seem to imply that
Buddhists do not recognise ‘the self ’ at
all; however, there is a Buddhist need
for describing ‘the self ’ in order to
function in society, even in monastic
life. This ‘self ’ is a fictional self, a self
as a concept that can be used for its
convenience, ‘the empirical self – the
conscious personality that plans for
the future, and remembers past and
present experiences (including, may
it be, experiences in former lives) as
moments through which he has lived
– is treated by Buddhist thought as
being real. Acknowledging all this,
Buddhist writers explain that although
in ordinary life we have to speak of the
self, the concept is only a convenient
fiction’, according to Hick (1976, p.
335).
There is also a framework
within Buddhism for describing
and analysing human nature. This
framework breaks what a person is
down into five aggregates; these are
known as the skandhas: the physical
body (rupa); feelings or sensations
(vedana); cognition, recognition, and
interpretation (sanna); action states,
which mould character, including will
or volition (sankhara); the stream of
consciousness (vinnana).
It should be noted that Buddhists
use the skandhas to refer to human
nature only as a tool to help analyse
and describe what it is that makes up a
person: Since the Buddhist view holds
that there is no self, none of these
elements, alone or in conjunction, make
up a person or ‘the self ’. The Buddhist
view holds that you are constantly
being reborn, that because everything
is in constant change there’s nothing
permanent that you can identify and
use to identify what it is that makes
up the self. Buddhists use the term
‘empty or’ ‘emptiness’ to explain
that everything lacks an unchanging
substance, everything lacks an inherent
existence; so there is nothing that exists
independently.
The notion of emptiness is therefore
dependent on the doctrine of dependent
origination. The doctrine of dependent
origination is the idea that everything
happens as a result of prior causes and
conditions; that nothing originates
independently, that all events or
happenings – whether internally (in the
mind) or externally (in the world) are
causally conditioned by other events or
happenings. Thus nothing comes to be
without being caused or conditioned
by something else; nothing exists
autonomously or independently.
The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso
(2003, p. 29) explains ‘a key
principle [in Buddhism] is dependent
origination. This fundamental principle
of Buddhism states that everything
arises and ceases in dependence upon
causes and conditions. The fourthcentury Indian Buddhist thinker
Asanga identified three key conditions
governing this principle of dependent
origination. First is ‘the absence of
designer condition’, which pertains to
the issue of whether or not there is a
transcendent intelligence behind the
origin of the universe. Second is ‘the
condition of impermanence’ which
relates to the notion that the very
causes and conditions that give rise to
the world of dependent origination are
themselves impermanent and subject
to change. Third is ‘the condition
of potentiality’. This very important
principle in Buddhist thought refers
to the fact that something cannot be
produced from just anything. Rather,
for a particular set of causes and
conditions to give rise to a particular set
of effects or consequences, there must
be some kind of natural relationship
between them’. So the theory of
dependent origination, not only
supports, but is crucial to the no-self
doctrine.
Many authors have pointed out the
inconsistencies and difficulties that
arise in Buddhist philosophy when the
doctrine of no-self is combined with the
doctrine of rebirth: the question asked
is: if there is no independent, persisting
self then who or what is reborn? (Hick:
1976; Reichenbach: 1990; Gowans:
2003). Reichenback (1990, p. 126) is
particularly sceptical, stating ‘this view
of the self (with or without the doctrine
of momentariness, which simply
exacerbates the problem) has serious
implications for such basic Buddhist
doctrines as the law of Karma, rebirth
and liberation. For example, if there is
no self, then espousal of rebirth seems
nonsense, for it makes no sense to say
that the same person would be reborn.
That is, there can be no difference
between birth and rebirth; we merely
choose to call a newborn the reborn.
Rebirth, like the doctrine of the self, is a
fiction’.
Hick (1976, p. 335) notes that ‘the
Buddhist conception of rebirth entails
the possibility, and in some cases the
actuality, of memory of former lives.
[Also that] the Buddha himself, at the
time of his enlightenment, recalled
thousands of his previous lives and
there are numerous cases in modern
times, made use of in Buddhist
apologetics, of ordinary people who
have apparently remembered fragments
of an immediately preceding life’. This
begs the question, that if there is no self,
then who or what is it that is reborn?
To begin to answer this question it
is necessary to define what rebirth is
in the Buddhist sense. The Buddhist
doctrine of rebirth differs from that of
the notion of reincarnation as expressed
in Hinduism. The Hindu notion of
rebirth is linked to the concept of an
eternal soul that persists through death,
thus in Hinduism the soul of a person
moves from one life to the next: it is a
fixed entity. Hick (1976, p.348) states
that ‘the reports of individuals who
are said to remember fragments of a
past life, often discussed in support of
the Buddhist doctrine of rebirth, have
helped to fix the meaning of the word as
signifying rebirth within the evolution
of life on this earth. But the idea that
rebecoming [or rebirth] must take the
form of rebirth from the womb is not a
Buddhist belief.
The traditional Buddhist view is
rather that it may take this form or
other forms in the numerous purgatorial
and heavenly ‘worlds’. For the Buddha
himself taught that only a small
minority of rebecomings are as human
beings’. Furthermore, the Buddhist
notion of rebirth, as opposed to the
notion of reincarnation, is inherently
based in the Buddhist doctrine of
impermanence. Therefore rebirth is
a process in which there is no eternal
essence or ‘soul’ that is passed on,
rather, what is passed on is the system
of character dispositions, the karmic
deposit of former lives, animated and
propelled onwards by the power of
craving. A simile that can be used to
help understand this concept is taken
from the Milindapanha by Hick. Hick
(1976, p.351) describes the story in
the Milindapanha in which a King is
in discourse with a Revered Buddhist
named Nagasena who explains that if
some men were to light a lamp from
a different lamp, that the flame would
pass over but there would still remain
two separate lamps. The second lamp
receives the qualities of the first lamp,
but remains distinct.
Hick (1976, p. 343) explains that
‘at death the nama-rupa (embodied
existence) disintegrates. Its elements
come apart and the psycho-physical
individual ceases to exist. He does not
survive death, and he is not reborn to
live again. That particular conjunction
of elements which had held together
for, say, seventy years is no more. But
nevertheless an aspect of him does
continue – not indeed eternally, but
until it has finally expended itself, or
become blown out (nibbanna) at the
end of many lives. That which thus
continues through aeons of time,
playing a central role in the formation
of individual after individual, consists of
a system of character dispositions, the
karmic deposit of former lives, animated
and propelled onwards by the power of
craving.’ In other words, in Buddhist
thought, there is a part of the individual
that does persist through death. Hick
(1976, p. 345), in an attempt to explain
this contradictory occurrence, states that
that which carries over or ‘rebecomes’
is called vinnana, but not the vinnana
that is consciousness and one of the five
skandhas but ‘something more like the
unconscious dispositional state which
constitutes the karmic deposit of the
past’.
This still leaves us with the question,
if there is no-self, what is it that is
reborn? Hick (1976, p. 346) says that
‘the first thought of the new life stream,
which is the immediate successor to the
last thought of the dying individual,
is thus sometimes called the ‘relinking
consciousness’. This first ‘thought’ is
however not necessarily a conscious
thought, and indeed in the case of an
embryo clearly it cannot be. It is rather a
complex dispositional impulse, carrying
a set of basic character traits and a store
of unconscious memories, all powered
by the craving for existence. It might
thus be better to speak, not of a first
thought, but of the first moment in
the mental life of the new individual.
That this first moment must be the
immediate successor to the last moment
of the mental life of the expiring person,
without hiatus, follows from the anatta
doctrine, with its denial of any empirical
self other than the continuous stream
of (conscious) and (unconscious)
mental life’. I find this description of
the process of rebirth to be a plausible
answer to the question, if there is no self
then who or what is it that is reborn?
The main reason I find this to be a
plausible answer is because it describes
the Buddhist notion of the rebirth
process in a way that is compatible with
the Buddha’s no-self doctrine.
By Timothy Lawson
References:
Gowans, C 2003, Philosophy of the
Buddha, Routledge, London.
Gyatso, T 2003, Lighting the Path,
Thorsons, Harper Collins Publishers,
London.
Hick, J 1976, Death and Eternal Life,
Collins, Glascow.
Reichenbach, B 1990, The Law of
Karma: A Philosophical study, Unversity
of Hawaii, Honolulu.
Sidertis, M 2007, Buddhism as
Philosophy: An introduction, Ashgate,
Aldershot.
ESSAYS 25
Originally published in the Memphis Commercial Appeal, 1917
Anarchy!
Upon reading the word, certain
ideas were probably drawn up in your
mind. You thought of violent riots,
unruly youths with liberty spikes
smashing windows with bricks and
lifting the TVs behind them. Maybe
burning cars rained from the skies.
Now, that’s all very well and good,
but the word has lost, in the popular
lexicon, its original meaning. You
shouldn’t suppose Anarchy means
unruliness, disorder, general tumult,
and doomy gloom. No, it gets better!
The word “anarchy” carries a certain
historical weight; we can draw the roots
of the word back to the Ancient Greek
language. It is made up of the Greek
prefix ‘an-’, which is to say ‘not’, ‘a lack
of ’, and the word ‘archos’, meaning
ruler, someone who governs, or an
authority. The meaning of the word,
then, is ‘a lack of ruler, ruling body, a
lack of (an) authority.’ Anarchy then,
is the political theory and practice in
pursuit of the state in which we find
ourselves without government, or
authority presiding over us, where we
all stand not above or below the other.
To achieve anarchy is to achieve the
abolition of hierarchies. Now there are
many flavours of Anarchy, as it is not a
dogma, but all correct interpretations of
Anarchy will share these latter things in
common.
How did the word acquire the
pejorative sense that most associate
with it today, however? Well, it is a
commonly accepted notion within
all major modern societies that to be
without government is undesirable, that
government is necessary to the healthy
functioning of a society (more correctly,
(a) STATE, that body into which we are
(in)voluntarily segregated), and so to be
without government, is to be in a state
of ‘chaos’, of disorder, upheaval - it’s
unthinkable.
Hang on, there! Government isn’t a
bad thing, you might say. Aren’t we all
generally more or less free these days?
Don’t they know what’s best for us?
Didn’t we get rid of all the Enemies
of Freedom in all those Great Wars
we waged? I thought we had made it
mandatory to be free back in 19XX? A
good question. Why is government an
obstacle to liberty? Ask, why is authority
an obstacle to liberty? Well, not all
authority is bad. The ‘authority’ you
and a person with whom you were in
conversation with and exercising over
one another an authority influencing
each other’s views is beneficial to you
both. In conversation or argument
you refine each other’s ideas. Likewise
with books, and other sources of
information. It is hierarchical authority
that concerns the Anarchist most,
which underpins all (major) modern
societies, whether that of the Capitalist
society, or that of the ‘Communist’
society (which remains a STATE). The
amalgamation and concentration of
power in a few individuals or groups
or organisations, who preside over the
rest of us. The supreme manifestation
of the hierarchical authority that exists
is the STATE. The STATE is, in short,
the collection of all the bodies which
govern; judiciary, legislative, military,
economic, and political bodies, as
summarised by Malatesta in ‘Anarchy’,
that take it upon themselves (oh, very
graciously, don’t doubt it! It’s terribly,
dreadfully kind of them, really) to
micro-manage the functioning of
society, to ensure their mandates are
strictly observed (generally with the
use of force where dissent occurs), that
govern even the most prosaic aspects of
daily life one would perhaps have been
inclined to think should be private to
each of us, and that, most importantly,
direct and dispense with the power of
labour (physical or intellectual) of the
people as they see fit, always preserving
the interest of the state above all others.
The state remains apart from the
society which it governs and develops
its interests independently, apart from,
and over the people which it governs.
It becomes something alien, something
separated from the people that elected
it (in some cases) to represent their
interests. It is made up of the governing
class, then, and we are the governed
class.
Anarchism aims towards the creation
of a free society, in which power is not
concentrated at the top in a few entities
which exert and enforce it over others.
A free society is hard to define exactly.
A free society is NOT, however, (all
of which enjoy a hierarchical power
dynamic) a ‘representative democracy’,
‘very nearly almost democracy’, ‘free
society which has a very sparse selection
of freedoms, but, well, you’re free to
choose between them’, and so on, in
which power is quite clearly balanced
violently to one side. A free society
involves direct organisation of it, by
individuals who have freely decided to
associate for their common benefit, and
who do not seek to exploit other persons
involved, who seek to establish a society
wherein the interest of each individual
is equally preserved. More pressingly, a
free society must be inhabited by free
individuals, who think freely, and act
freely.
But surely you’re dreaming, you say!
Where do such societies exist?
Well, we must create one. How?
There are many considerations to
make at this point. Could you in good
conscience utilise violence as a means
of liberation from hierarchies and
states, for instance? Granted, there is
a difference in violence employed as
a means of defence, the violence of
the repressed, and the violence of the
oppressors, but (and I paraphrase very
loosely) “a liberty won with the blood of
others is not a liberty at all...”
Bakunin believed that violence
should be aimed at the destruction of
the institutions that support hierarchy,
and not at people. Kropotkin believed
we were justified in the use of violence
as a (defensive?) liberating tool. No
good anarchist would claim to know the
answer to such a question though, for
there are many.
I do not claim that anarchy is the
‘ultimate solution’, or that it has all
the answers, and it doesn’t; it isn’t
something fixed, or a dogma, or an
ideology. Anarchism is something that
reflects the most base human instincts;
towards freedom, towards common
kindness, towards the encouragement
of free thought, and towards the free
expression of the individual, love
for your fellow humans, for your
environment, and the life that grows in,
and from it (which includes us), and so,
consequently, abolition of hierarchical
institutions (including states), and all
political theories or conceptions that
would support and nourish them, which
repress and enchain us.
Smash a fascist today!
By Gavrilo Grabovac
26 EXTRAS
Samurai Sudoko
Next month in
Lot’s Wife:
The history of Lot’s Wife
Drugs and society, volume
1
The Afghan War diaries
Harry’s meditation on
abortion
This image appeared on the back cover of Lot’s Wife May 6, 1970. The
newspaper served as an important force in amassing students to protest the
Vietnam War