FREES No. 330 ENTS TO MERGE
Transcript of FREES No. 330 ENTS TO MERGE
27th FEBRUARY, 1973
NEWSPAPER OF IMPERIAL COLLEGE UNION
F R E E S No. 330
ENTS TO MERGE . . .with Dramsoc, Filmsoc, Opsoc, Folk
Club and Jazz Club Ents is to be merged with Dramsoc, Filmsoc., Folk
Song Club, Jazz Club and the Operatic Society in a new "Social, Cultural and Amusements Board" (or S C A B for short) if a proposal to the effect was accepted by Union Council last night.
Included i n the proposals is the new post of Soc ia l Secretary to co-ordinate the various committees. Imperial College is one of the few colleges or universities in the country not to have one of these already; in many polytechnics and at least one university he is sabbat ica l .
The Objects of the B o a r d , given in its draft constitut ion, are " the provis ion of Enterta inment for members of the
Un i on (and) fullest co-ord inat ion and co-operation of a l l the organisations represented on the Board for the benefit of the members of the Imper ia l C o l lege U n i o n and other members of the Imper ia l Col lege of Science and Technology. "
Essential ly the board w i l l provide an opportunity for joint operation of the entertainments act iv i ties of the Un i on , and it
w i l l also be responsible for the financing of its constituent committees and societies. A block appl icat ion for funds w i l l be made to the U n i o n F i n ance Committee.
Un i on C o u n c i l w i l l retain the final veto over the activities of the Board however. Except for the w i l l carry out the same joint financing, the Board functions for entertainments as the Publ icat ions Boa rd does for Fel ix , Phoenix-, U S K Handbook
and S T O I C . Criticisms
One of the major reasons for the setting up of S C A B has been the dissatisfaction of many union members over Ents pol i cy this year. It has been frequently argued that Ents caters for the genera l publ ic and students outside IC , and tends to neglect the I C U membership. S C A B is the result of negotiations between Pau l Wadsworth , Ents C h a i r m a n , and the U n i o n Exec.
ntjj^jffipsSJHi
• GRANTS DEMO
HUSTINGS Thursday
1300 Great Hall
'$ BIT on
Elections The following candidates were proposed and fully-
seconded:
President: S. R . G . A l l n u t t proposed by M . T . Phi l l ips . J . Her r i ck , proposed by W. J . S. Col lett .
Honorary Secretary: R . A . Armi tage , proposed by M . F. Doherty, F . R. Matthews proposed by K. L ipscombe.
Editor of "Felix": A . R . D . Campbe l l , proposed by P. W. Jowitt .
Please note: The Candidates names have been pr in ted in alphabet ical order.
A n y errors in init ials or spell ing should be notified to me by 10 a.m. on Thursday, 1st M a r c h , 1973.
AND NOW FOR SOMETHING TOTALLY BORING
O N T H U R S D A Y T H E R E IS A U N I O N
M E E T I N G U n i o n meetings are held
in the Great H a l l , they start at 1 p.m. (1300 M C B ) . Y o u are a member of I C union so you can come a long too. O n Thursday you w i l l hear the proposed candidates tell ing you why they deserve your vote, you can ask them questions, take the piss or cheer them.
T h e fo l lowing week there is voting. Y o u can vote as we l l ! The votes are counted and if more than 25 per cent of the members have recorded
a preference or an abstention, the person wi th the most votes wins, (ab
stentions are counted as one person). So you see you can have a real influence in U n i o n affairs. Wha t Fe l ix is saying is. come to the hustings, l i s ten to the arguments, and record a vote—take part! !
T w o of the four candidates sent in a joint mani festo and it is printed on page 3 so that you can think of questions before Thursday, (The U n i o n Meet ing you ' l l remember is on Thursday) .
It is very important to vote in the elections and a student who takes no part in them really has no right to criticise the decisions and policies of the successful candidate.
. . . report page three
Victory for the People's Republic!
A lasdha i r Campbe l l is t o be next year's editor o f " F E L I X . " H e was unopposed when nominat ion papers were taken down on F r iday afternoon.
A second year Physicist, A l a sdha i r joined the staff of " F E L I X " earlier this term and has been a regular contr ibutor to our pol i t ical co lumns and has understudied E . J . T h r i b b (17) on more than one occasion.
H e first sprang to fame last year as co-editor o f "Someth ing , " a sat ir ical broadsheet which or ig inal ly appeared i n K ing ' s College, w i th D a v i d Beeson. now President-elect of K ing ' s . O n l y one issue has appeared this year; it concentrated on Fe l ix , wh ich it renamed "Fee l s i ck , " and perhaps d id more than anything to make the Ed i t o r of Fe l i x actual ly read the articles he printed before they went to press, and. indeed, t o commission some readable ones.
Or ig ina ly coming f rom the West Country , A l a sdha i r now hails f rom the People's Free Repub l i c of Leyton-stone H i g h R o a d . Ma j o r points in his manifesto (which we don't now have to print) were the continuance of" polit ics in " F e l i x " and live act ion pictures of IC sportsmen thrashing their opponents together with live actioiiL interviews w i th sports heroes. Wonder Boy . here we come . . . .
I n the meantime, there are another eight issues to appear under the current regime.
Page 2 F E L I X February 27th, 1973
Letters GET WELL
SOON Dear Sir,
It has been drawn to my attention that one of the messengers of this college has been in hospital now for nearly three weeks, after being the victim of a vicious attack at his home. He is Mr. George Butler, the messenger from Aero. I am writing this letter not only to let more people know why he has not been at work recently, but more importantly "> express the wishes of so many students that he will >*v}£e a full and quick re-fivery.
It is as a result of a despicable act of violence that Mr. Butler is in hospital. Someone threw a brick into his face damaging his sight.
Many of the messengers with whom he works have been to see him and so have some of the students who have got to know him. I think it is important now to let as many people as possible know that students do care about the people who help the departments so •*nch.
Yours,
ADRIAN E. SMITH.
P.S.: This college runs a large personnel department to deal with their employees. Since they did not even know about this incident, I am forced to wonder whether they spend their time dealing with all the individuals they employ or simply trying to force through productivity deals.
FREE PLUG
Sit,
Last week David Humphreys, Chairman of the Methodist Society, strongly disputed Mr. Campbell's sug
gestion that "God is a crutch
for people who can't come
to terms with objective rea
lity".
But it is true that many people cannot come to terms with objective reality. God is a crutch for these people, just as surely if it is religion as if is is sex, money or alcohol. And an escape from reality comes as surely to the religious type who expects all to be well in the end as to the drug taker who finds a reality only when he is high or the Communist who expects a golden age to follow revolution.
Let us make no mistake, however, by failing to recognise that these gods are not the God of the bible, who revealed himself in objective reality in the person of Jesus Christ who went about doing good. And we find that this God did something about the reality of our universal tendency to do what we know is wrong.
When one looks at some of these realities one has to agree with Mr. Humphreys. In Jesus Christ is the only true answer to living a life of reality.
For those interested relevant literature (some free) is available from the Chris-tion Union bookstall, Thursday lunchtimes in the JCR.
Yours sincerely,
R O B E R T . J . H I G G I N S O N . E l e c . E n g . 3.
POVERTY STRICKEN
Sit.
I would be very interested in learning for whom Mr. Fenner was working at a £4,750 rate, and whether this was a monthly or annual salaty, as I need a bit of cash myself?
Surely it couldn't have been for reviewing plays?
Youts faithfully and poverty-stricken,
D A V I D G U R N E Y .
NO WAGE INCREASES
Sir,
When I first came to work in IC, I was informed that the College had an excellent reputation in the world of Science and Technology. Since the entrance requirements were also rather high, I assumed that all the students were of a reasonable level of intelligence.
Last week's "Felix" had one glowing example to the contrary, J. H. Fenner's letter. Never have I seen such ridiculous words in print! His advocacy of the typical Tory laissez-faire ideology was not even cleverly put forward in the way of most bright-eyed Tories.
It would be quite easy to present notional figures on the frequency of wage increases (salaries to you, Mr. Fenner), including figures for that small minority of degree holders. But as Felix concerns itself with IC it is to this area that I will restrict myself.
Imperial College messengers, male cleaners, refectory staff, female cleaners and laboratory staff have not received any wage increase since December 1st 1971. IC barmen and security guards have waited a similar length of time, and if one were to look at the clerical staff situation it might be even worse. Of course, as Mr. Fenner has such faith in the idea of meritocracy, he might as well claim that the above group of workers do not merit any increase. Well, besides simple things such as the thousands of pounds saved as a result of staff reductions and increased productivity there is another slight matter to be considered, i.e., the rise in the cost of living since 1971. Or doesn't that count, Mr. Fenner?
May I suggest, Mr. Fenner, that you report immediately to your parents and primary school so as to undergo the complete socialisation and education process again, as something obviously went wrong last time.
Yours sincerely,
A. J. O'BRIEN,
Messenger and
NUPE shop steward.
E d i t o r ' s n o t e : C o r r e s p o n d e n c e o n t h e s u b j e c t o f IC e m p l o y e e s ' s a l a r i e s a n d c o n d i t i o n s a n d t h a t o f w o r k e r s in g e n e r a l i s n o w c l o s e d .
INTERESTING LETTER
Sir,
I found David Humphteys
letter in FELIX last week in
teresting, as it exhibits many
of the elements of confused
bourgeois religious ideology
prevalent in students today.
Unfortunately he has ne
gated the first half of his
letter by ignoring the adjec
tive "objective" in the
phrase "objective reality" in
my poem of the week be
fore. I am not in the habit
of adding superfluous modi
fiers to my lines for the sake
of scansion alone. In that
one word lay the crux of my
philosophical argument: in
order not to fall into the so
phist and solipsist contradic
tions inherent in all idealist
philosophies, which include
the theistic religions, one
must assume the existence of
objective reality. In other
words, that there exists mat
ter outside of mind, this im
plies that mind is but the
highest stage of matter and
has no spiritual existence.
(For further substantiation I
refer Mr. Humphreys to
"Materialism and Empirio-
Criticism" by V. I. Lenin).
Those who turn to alco
hol and drugs are living proof
of how consciousness is very
much secondary to reality.
These people, finding the
reality of life in present-day
society unbearable, have no
recourse but to resort to es
capism—they are not search
ing for reality, Mr. Hum
phreys, but retreating from
its contradictions.
To try and differentiate be
tween changing social struc
ture and changing people is
impossible, for any change in
one is a change in the other-
it is clear that a social struc
ture cannot be imposed by
anyone outside society. Jesus
Christ was a revolutionary of
his time, though in his time
he had almost no effect —
his death is recorded in the
annals of the era as that of
just another troublemaker.
It was not until the 4th cen
tury A.D. that Constantine,
Emperor of Rome, needing a
unifying structure to hold to
gether his crumbling empire,
adopted Christianity. Its
elements of rigid hierarchy
and autocratic rule from
above made it the perfect
philosophy of life, tailor-
made as it indeed was, to
keep the ruling class and
him in particular in power,
and that oppressed class of
the time in its place.
This also accounts for re
ligions of a similar structure
being associated with all
class-based societies and the
continuing popularity of
Christianity in Britain today.
This is further borne out by
the fact that whenever a
state has arisen out of
class conflict by the fact
that whenever a state has
arisen out of class conflict,
as it must to ensure the con
tinuing power of the ruling
class, one sees the decay of
pantheistic and other poly
theistic religions and the
adoption of a monotheistic
religion promoted by the rul
ing class of the time.
ALASDHAIR RD
CAMPBELL.
F E L I X No. 330: Tuesday, 27th Feb rua ry 1973.
E d i t e d by Ol iver Dowson , with the words, insp i rat ion and t ime of ( in a lphabetical order ) M a r t i n C . B lack , A lasdhai r Campbe l l , Bob Car ter, Dave Gr ibb le , Dave H o b -man, J o h n Hors fa l l , G r a h a m K i n g , J o h n Lane , A l f Per ry , Go rdon Reece, M ichae l Si lver-leaf, M ichae l Southon, Steven Swailes and Jock Vea l l .
F E L I X is p r inted by F . Ba i ley and Son L td . , Durs ley , GIos. GL11 4BL .
Adver t i s ing is by Un ive rs i ty Press Representat ion, G r a n d Bui ld ings , Tra fa lgar Square, W.C.2.
F E L I X inhabits a r o o m o n the top f loor of the U n i o n Bu i ld ing , address: Imper ia l Col lege U n i o n , L o n d o n SW7 2BB , te lephone 01-589 5111 ext. 2229 (PO) , 2881 (Int.). The Ed i to r ' s boudoir is R o o m 14, Weeks Ha l l , te lephone: 01-589-9808 (PO) , 4236 (Int.). Contr ibut ions and help for F E L I X are always welcome. Pub l i shed by the E d i t o r for and on behalf of the Imper ia l Col lege U n i o n Publ ica tions Board .
A l l r ights reserved. (£) 1973. F E L I X is a founder member of the L o n d o n Student Press Associat ion.
I S R A E L ^ Be there for the 25th Anniversary
celebrations
TOURS TICKETS TRAVEL KIBBUTZ
Complete programme of ISTC flights, trains, ships from
HOSTS STUDENT TRAVEL SERVICE LTD. 161 GREAT PORTLAND ST, W1N 6NN
Telephone 01-580 7733
The JLandsiiapper Sneeze
February 27th, 1973 F E L I X
65,000 STUDENTS ON THE STREET Staff R e p o r t e r
Last Wednesday accord ing to the N U S 65,000 students marched, i n 7 regional centres around the country, i n protest demanding a l iv ing grant. I n L o n d o n 15,000 students f rom the southern region led by the I C contingent marched f rom M a l e t St. to the D E S across Water loo bridge. The wet and miserable weather wh i ch continued for most of the afternoon dampened them but not their enthusiasm i n the fight for higher grants.
I n Ma l e t St. the pol ice split the demo into two sections and the first half led by I C set off for the D E S wi th the second hal f 200 yards behind. B y the A l d w y c h the two halves had joined up and cont inued to the D E S , chanting slogans and handing out leaflets to passers-by. A t the D E S the demo went to an area on the south bank to listen to speakers f rom the N U S and various trade unions.
A R R E S T The first half of the
demo had hardly gone 200 yards f rom Ma le t St. when a pol ice inspector threatened to arrest the whole demo unless they walked five abreast. N o t having a megaphone he went unnoticed and the students continued to f i l l their lane as before.
R o u n d the corner out of sight of Ma l e t St. I saw six pol icemen disguised as short-haired pseudo trendy students step out of a police van and jo in the march , they were easily recognisable however as they were the only people on the march holding large b lack regulation police umbrellas.
N O N - A R R I V A L A m o n g the speakers
who were going to address the students was R o y Hat -tersley (Labour M P ) . H e was being dr iven to the south bank to make his speech when he saw some students leaving the area, informed sources to ld me, assuming the ra l ly to be over he turned round and left for St. Pancras to catch a t ra in out of L o n don. N o representative f rom the Labour Party turned up.
I N A U D I B L E Unfortunately the Pub
lic Address system obtained by the N U S had had its speakers spread round the perimeter, which was fine for the people spread round the perimeter, but those near
est the speaker's p lat form could not hear any of the speeches. The students nearest the p lat form frustrated at not hearing anything started to heckle, demanding a march o n Par l iament and death to fascist N U S bureaucrats. Judy Cotter (President U L I E S A ) said that they couldn' t do that as it was not on the agenda.
S C U F F L E S A cameraman f rom
A B C news got up on the speakers' p lat form and f i lmed a cameraman f r om the Beeb who was standing near the p lat form f i lming the A B C news cameraman f i lming h im . Th is accounts for the scarcity of f i lm of the demo on the television news that night — 10 seconds was devoted to it by the B B C . Some demonstrators near the p lat form tried to pu l l out a wire powering the camera but were restrained by others. Soon, owing to lack of inspirat ion f rom the inaudib le speeches, students started to dri ft away and the demo dispersed remarkably quick ly .
S U M S W R O N G A l though the N U S
cla imed a turn-out of 15,000, the police estimate was 7,000 and this was echoed by the television news, and a l l nat ional dail ies the morn ing after, except the G u a r d i a n which printed both figures. Fe l i x abacus operators counted 12,000, of which 500 were f rom IC .
It is the police that choose the route the demo wi l l fo l low and the f ina l place of the ral ly. They assured us that the area on the south bank where the ra l ly took place could hold 20,000 and it was packed, a l l bar a smal l area behind the speaker's plat form.
The turn-out f rom Sussex university was disappoint ing — only 20 people, but the contingents f rom polys and non-university colleges represented a far bigger percentage than f rom IC . Las t year (in fine weather) 800 people f rom TC took part in that anti-Thatcher/ G i lber t Longden registrat ion of student unions demo and that b i l l was postponed. Don't forget the N U S Nat iona l Day of A c t i o n for the Grants Campa ign on M a r c h 14th — be sure to give it your support or students may not escape this time.
C O M M E N T S
Editorial 10 per cent of students showed their sol idarity at Wednes
day ' s demonstrat ion. A s a show of sol idarity it was pathetic and unconv inc ing . A s a vehic le for canvass ing publ ic support it fai led miserably, at least partly through the lack of people along the chosen route. It wou ld be pure pipe-dreaming to imagine that it had any effect on the Government ' s attitude.
Yet the a ims of the Grants Campa ign are good and justifiable. No student can deny that, any more than a properly-informed publ ic c ou l d .
T h e main need now is for publ ic sympathy. T h e publ ic have been led to believe that students are (and you 've heard it all before) a bunch of long-haired, shodd i ly -dressed layabouts, who spend their t ime dr inking , smok ing pot and engaging in orgies. However m u c h you may believe that picture to be true, the publ ic needs to be to ld of the other s ide of a student 's life —• studying (yes, studying) and surviv ing. N o demonstrat ion will do that. For not only are the publ ic bored with demonstrat ions, but so are students (witness the 10 per cent turnout) .
Yet demonstrat ions are just about the only publ ic relat ions exercise (other than strikes) that the N U S and the rest of the student leadership can conce ive of. H i gh IQ's don 't seem to breed originality. A l l students fall in the top 5 per cent of the populat ion, intel l igence-wise.
W e need to show our intel l igence by having an intelligent and original campa ign — not by resorting to the pointless methods of the trades unions.
So let's raise a cheer for the Scott ish region of the N U S — Britain 's only functioning N U S area — who dec ided that d emos were no good weeks ago. Instead of having a march and rally last Wednesday , like all the other areas, they e m barked on a mass publ ic educat ion campaign .
T h e y ca l led for 4 0 0 articulate students f rom all over Scot land to c o m e to Edinburgh on W e d n e s d a y to be fully briefed on the Grants Campa ign , then to be turned loose on Pr ince ' s Street (Edinburgh 's equivalent of Ox fo rd Street) to go up and talk to passers -by about it. In the event, 1,200 students turned up, vast numbers of the publ ic eventual ly expressed their support, and they got the best Press of any of the 11 regional " c en t r e s of ac t iv i ty " .
Surely this is the sort of action that students shou ld be taking. Responsib le and intelligent act ion. A n d it's the sort of thing we should be do ing on the Day of Ac t i on wh ich take 's place a fortnight tomorrow.
Now that Oxford Street is nearly a pedestr ian precinct, it's idealy suited to the purpose. It's one hell o f a s ight better idea than going on strike, wh ich is the N U S line . . . all that' l l get us is a bad Press and a worse publ ic reaction.
We ' r e students because we 've got brains — let's use them!
John Lam Last week 's grant demonstrat ions were a very substantial
success . Over 10 per cent of the N U S membership were involved in them. Th i s represents by far the biggest national action ever taken by students — in some regional centres the turnout was three t imes that of last year over the " au to n o m y " issue. In organising the London demo, we had hoped for 10 ,000. Wi th the rain and co ld weather, prospects d id not look too good on the day. In fact, well over 15 ,000 marched — the co l leges of educat ion and F E col leges being particularly strong. The mass med ia made themselves rather r id iculous by saying 7 ,000 ( B B C & ITN News) right up to the late night news on B B C 2 which (after a recount?) sudden ly dec ided on 15,0001 But we can thank the media for the excellent coverage of the IC contingent!
G O V E R N M E N T R E A C T I O N
The question remains. What wil l the Tor ies do about all those tens of thousands of unruly students shouting nasty things at their w indows , withhold ing their rents or having catering boycotts? After the meeting between N U S and the Government on M a r c h 1st we should be a bit clearer. Thei r most likely reaction wil l be to concede someth ing but do it in such a way as to d iv ide the student movement .
For instance, they cou ld introduce subs id ies for halls and refectories. The idea wou ld be that students in hall would stop the rent strike campa ign , leaving the rest in the lurch facing increasing rents in private accommodat i on on the present grant. Or they cou ld give everybody a smal l increase but do nothing about the basic injusticies involved in the discret ionary award system with the hope of buying off the majority of students with smal l carrots. If students are in a frame of mind which al lows them to be d iv ided from each other there are an unl imited variety of tact ics which the Government cou ld use.
T H E M A R C H 14th D A Y O F A C T I O N
If the Tor ies reject our c l a im out of hand , or attempt to d iv ide the N U S , there must be sol id united reaction from every co l lege in the country.
T h e Grants Campa ign co-ordinat ing committee are therefore ca l l ing for a National Strike on M a r c h 14th with the aim of c los ing down totally the higher educat ion system for one day.
T h i s is the first E V E R national strike ca l led by N U S and if we are ser ious about defending the l iving standards of both ourselves and future generations of students it must be a success . It should not be seen as s imi lar to an industrial strike — the effect on the economy is insignif icant. It is, however, probably the most effective form" of demonstrat ing our unity and determination.
Organis ing the strike wil l require a large number of act i vists and widespread support f rom the ordinary union m e m bers. If it is a success , the government wil l know that, g iven an issue on which students feel strongly enough, we 're capable of organising the same again. in other words, by striking on M a r c h 14th we are saying to the Gc w n m e n t that unless they maintain our l iving standards and g ive all students the full grant they cannot expect anything but continual trouble in higher educat ion.
HOW MUCH SHOULD YOU EARN ?
L a s t w e e k I b o u g h t n o t h i n g out of the o r d i n a r y , I w e n t o n n o e n o r m o u s s p e n d i n g s p r e e and I d idn ' t travel anywhere a g r e a t d i s t a n c e f r o m here. Nevertheless, I managed to o v e r s p e n d o n m y grant by n e a r l y 2 0 per cent. I 'll a g r e e that I w a s n ' t being particularly careful, but I wasn 't b e i n g i n the least extravagant and it was quite a s h o c k to d i s c o v e r just how much I had spent.
A t least this year I'm relatively l u c k y ; I 'm l i v i n g i n h a l l . When I go out into the big w ide world o f privately owned accommodat i on I 'll have to pay at least £6 a w e e k merely to have a roof over my head. I'll also have to pay t h i s for 3 9 weeks a year so that the room will be held over the Easter and Chr istmas vacations. If you add in the cost of feeding mysel f during term it's quite obvious that the notional e lement of £ 2 7 5 for board and lodgings in the grant is hopeless ly inadequate.
We l l , why don ' t I get a job? Yes , I suppose that's quite feasible and probably a good idea for the first year. But what about the s econd and third years? Only the geniuses will f ind that they don't need to study for a cons iderab le period of the vacat ion. Anyway , I'm already doing a job. I'm studying to become a more useful member of soc iety so why should I have to take a second job in order to surv ive? I think I deserve a better deal than I'm getting at the moment .
I don ' t suppose, however, that James Fenner wou ld agree with me. He thinks that when you deserve a pay rise you get it without having to ask. O n that basis , I don ' t deserve a higher grant because it hasn ' t been offered undemanded . Maybe if he had to live on what I do at the moment he might admit he cou ld be wrong.
Mr . Fenner stated in his letter last week that he " w o u l d like to debunk the attitude of the lunatic left that students are workers " . I wou ld very much like to know what he c o n siders students to be if they are not workers. It seems to me that, like all other workers, they are sel l ing their ability to execute particular tasks. That they are being trained does not alter this in the least. Apprent ices are cons idered by their employers to be employed . They do not receive the full rate for the job because they are not fully trained, but then it cou ld not be said that students receive anything like the full rate for the sort of jobs they will do when they f inish their studies . Undoubtedly , it wi l l be argued that the courses run here are not necessari ly vocational and thus this argument cannot be appl ied to us. W h y then is it that employers in many fields trample all over each other to persuade IC graduates to work for them. ( ? — E d . ) . They , at least, must believe that the studies undertaken h e r e offer something that cannot be obtained elsewhere.
M r . Fenner seems to b e even further out of t o u c h with t h e s o r t o f a v e r a g e s a l a r y y o u n g graduates receive. I d o n ' t t h i n k t h a t it c a n p o s s i b l y b e c o n s i d e r e d normal t o t r i p l e o n e ' s salary in a period of five years. O n that basis Mr . Fenner 's annual salary when he retires should be in the region of £ 1 , 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 , and there a r e n ' t v e r y many people w h o earn that m u c h . I think also t h a t M r . Fenner may h a v e b e e n l e s s than h o n e s t a b o u t t h e origin of the money he earned. H e d o e s n o t s t a t e in h i s letter that he is in fact A m e r i c a n , a n d t h a t he w a s no t working in this country w h e n he was e a r n i n g t h e s e e n o r m o u s salaries. I have been t o l d that, i n t h e c o u n t r y w h e r e h e was working, the average p a y f o r t h e j o b he w a s d o i n g i s much greater than i t is h e r e .
B y t h e w a y , I g u e s s y o u a l l think I'm a member o f t h e s o -c a l l e d " l u n a t i c le ft " . W e l l , I 'm not; and, if y o u d o n ' t b e l i e v e me, y o u c a n a s k a n y b o d y w h o m Mr . Fenner c o n s i d e r s bel o n g s t o t h a t f a c t i o n .
M I C H A E L S I L V E R L E A F
A C T I O N OR I N A C T I O N Probably the most important thing about M a r c h 14th is that
we shou ld not all stay in our beds. There wil l be a national lobby of Parl iament by delegates f rom all co l leges on that day. A teach- in , alternative c lasses , d i scuss ion on wider education issues, on the White Paper on Educat ion , publ ic leaf letting, publ ic ity stunts — g iven numbers and imagination we can make a big publ ic impact , stimulate students to think more deeply about educat ion and in general make it a real day of action and not just a " S l e e p - I n " .
Page 4 F E L I X Page 5
The Inte l l i gent I C S tudents ' Gu ide to E x t r a m u r a l Ente r ta inment and E d i f i c a t i o n
T H E BIG W A L L S OF B A F F I N I S L A N D -Mountaineering in the Canadian Arctic
In the early months of 1971, a nucleus of climbers from the Nottingham Climbers' Club decided to launch an expedition to a small isolated island off the Cumberland Peninsula in the Canadian Arctic. Amongst these few was Doug Scott, a Nottingham schoolteacher, who, with climbing experience, in the Alps and the Hindu Kush, was to assume the role of leader.
Baffin Island is remote and consequently there was a great deal of opportunity to conquer the unclimbed
peaks—sheer rock pinnacles rising 6,000 feet from the sea. The rock climbing there is of high technical difficulty and it was a serious undertaking to attempt an original route up a rock face, from which retreat was sometimes impossible. The weather in this part of the world is savage and not in the least conclusive toward outdoor activity in any form. Fierce snow storms may arise within hours of a spell of fine weather. Unlike the Alps, one does not have the comforting thought that one may be extri
cated fram an unpleasant situation by helicopter rescue. Here the mountaineer is on his own with only his wits and skill as his tools for survival.
Because of its isolation, the expedition required a fair amount of organisation and capital. It was originally decided that the size of the expedition would be limited to a group of close friends, amongst whom, competitive climbing and ego-tripping would cut no ice. The intentions were noble but they soon ran into practical difficulties — mainly lack of funds. This problem could only be resolved by increasing the size of the expedition to include big names of the mountaineering world such as photographer, Mick Burke. A film would be made for the John Players'
cigarette firm, in return for financial aid.
Scott returned from Baffin Island and almost immediately set off for the Himalayas on the abortive International Everest Expedition. He returned to Baffin Island in the summer of 1972 and many more peaks were ascended.
Imperial College Mountaineering Club presents Doug Scott on Tuesday, the 27th February. Extracts from the Players' film and slides will be shown illustrating some of the exhilarating climbs achieved by the party on both trips.
Doug Scott, Lecture Theatre A , College Block, Imperial College, Prince Consort Road, Tuesday, February 27, 7.45 p.m. 25p at door.
C. Brown, I.C.M.C.
G O D T H E M A N PAN SCIENCE FICTION Joseph Green, 30p
For science fiction fans this novel is a real gem.
Mankind is threatened with extermination by a race of 300-foot high aliens from another star system, but no one can understand why these creatures have developed such an overwhelming desire to destroy us. Fortunately, one of these super giants is captured alive but. his brain is severely damaged by oxygen starvation.
Earth at this stage in her development has created two super humans, humans with enlarged and improved brains, one of them is Russian, the other American. Petrovna, the older and more experienced of the pair decides to remove the tiring giant's now useless brain and install himself inside the head and from there with the help of control mechanisms return the giant to his home planet and discover the meaning behind the fanatical attacks on earth. Gold becomes involved in the plot when Petrorna discovers that he is not phy
sically well developed to be able to operate the keyboard of the computer in the brain fast enough the simulate the realistic giant movement.
The story becomes even more incredible when eventually the giant returns home and through his eyes views their gigantic planet.
T O W A R D S INFINITY PAN SCIENCE FICTION Edited by Damon Knight, 35p
The usual collection of S.F. stories some very good like "March Hare Mission", some bad like "The Man Who Lost the Sea" . This really is not the sort of book that I enjoy, the stories only just seem to be beginning when suddenly they stop — abruptly and leave you gasping, waiting for more. This is all very well once — but nine times . . .!
This collection contains some well known names in the field of S.F.: Ray Bradbury, Isaac Ascmor, A. E. Van Vogt, but why does it need Damon Knight to bring these people together to publish, why can't they manage themselves?
Felix Diary
CHEAP POSTERS From tin's week. P A C E Posters \ , i l l be on sale, cheap, in the Room At The Top. on the Cheap Records Stal l . The catalog re, in the form of miniatures of the originals, is displayed in the R.A.T.T. Orders, giving title and catalogue number, to Colin McCal l , R.A.T.T., with cash preferably.
PRICES: Large size 70p reduced to 55p. (riant size 95 preduced to 70p.
p.S.—Record Covers also available, besides records, at 19 f/ f off.
Tuesday, 27th February
12.35 I.C. Catholic Society: Mass. Mech. Eng. 703.
13.00 STOIC Television service: Music alive with Roy Harper. J .C.R. and Southside.
13.15 City and Guilds Union Meeting: Hustings. Mech Eng 220.
13.30 Monsieur Henri Orteu (Tutor in French at Imperial College and formerly Senior Tutor, Institut Francais) Francais, anglais, franglais (M. Orteu will speak slowly in French). Elec Eng 408.
Miss Sarah Thomas: listening to contemporary music 7. Music now. Mech Eng 342.
14.30 Admission Policy Committee. College. Block 328.
18.00 I.C. Transcendental Meditation Society: Introductory talk. Elec Eng 606.
Holland Club Art Society. 15 Prince's Gardens.
Holland Club Bridge Club. 15 Prince's Gardens.
18.30 Mr. Adrian Neville—a lecture demonstration on the classical guitar. Haldane library
I.C. Photographic Society: Slide criticism (please bring slides for comment). RSM 2.28.
19.30 Hall Dinner. Union.
RCS Mathematical Film: "The Ipcress non-members 15p).
and Physical Society Fi le" (members 10p; Mech Eng 220.
19.45 I.C. Mountaineering Club: Mr. Doug Scott. The big walls of Baffin Island (an illustrated account of the Anglo-American Expedition, led by Doug Scott in 1971, and of his return to the Island in 1972). Admission 25p at the door. College Block Theatre A.
20.00 I.C. Catholic Society: Shared prayer. 53 Cromwell Road.
Wednesday, 28th February
13.30 Advanced class in Hebrew. Elec Eng 1009.
14.30 I.C. Africa Society Film show: "End of dialogue" (depicting the stark brutality of the political system of southern Africa). Elec Eng 407.
Beginners class in Hebrew. Elec Eng 1009.
18.00 Holland Club Photographic: Mr. Bill Cutler. Lenses and their uses. Elec Eng 209.
18.30 I.C. Islamic Society: Meeting and discussion. College Block 002.
19.00-I.C. Art Club (behind Huxley Building). 21.00 Royal College of Art.
Thursday, 1st March
09.30-Paintings toy Stephen Chaplin (until 23rd 17.30 March). Consort Gallery.
13.00 I.C. Union General Meeting: Hustings. Great Hall.
I.C. Catholic Society: Bible study group. Falmouth 118.
13.15 I.C. Stamp Club (students and staff welcome). Civ Eng 412.
13.30 Mr. Dominic de Grunne: Mediaeval aesthetics—the arts in a feudal and mercantile society. Physics Theatre 1.
Rev. Ivor Smith-Cameron (Canon of South-wark Cathedral) Christianity and other faiths. Mech Eng 542.
Lunch-hour Concert: Elizabeth Wilson, cello; Kathron Sturrock, piano. Kodaly, Sonata op. 4; Mendelssohn, Sonata in D major. Library, 53 Prince's Gate.
16.00 Refectory Committee. College Block 328.
19.00- I.C. Art Club (behind Huxley Buildings) 21.00 Royal College of Art.
19.00 I.C.S.S.R.S. Slide show: "The Electronic Battlefield". College Block Lecture Theatre B.
19.30 I.C. Wives Club Fork Supper Party. (Academic visitors and new members of the college are particularly invited to attend); charge £ 1 . 5 0 per head; further information is available from the Hon. Secretary, Mrs. R. C. Schroter, 47 Lillian Road, S.W.13. Tel. 748 8754. College Block SCR.
H. G. Wells Society Film show: the Pacific." Mech Eng 220.
'Hell in
Friday, 2nd March
12.45 I.C. Islamic Society Congregational Prayers—Juma. College Block 002.
13.00 STOIC Television Service: " T o p i c " magazine programme. JCR and Southside.
18.00 STOIC Television Service. Repeat of 13.00 transmission. Southside only.
18.30 I.C. Christian Union: Mr. Bill Caldwell. Radio Worldwide Missionary Evening. Library, 53 Prince's Gate.
19.30 Public Meeting on "India Today." Speaker just returned from India. Organised by Communist Party of Britain (M.L.). 155 Fortess Road, NW5 (Tufnell Park Tube).
Saturday, 3rd March
Antique Fair and Auction by ICCAG. Proceeds to Task Force and Westminster Play Association. View from 10 a.m. Auction from 2 p.m. Christie's Auctioneer. Union Concert Hall.
Touchstone Weekend: Human rights. Dr. David Raphael (Academic Director of Associated Studies) and Professor Sergio Cotta (University of Rome). Silwood Park.
Sunday, 4th March
10.00 Holy Communion. Block.
Ante Room, College
11.00 I.C. Catholic Society: Mass. 53 Cromwell Road.
18.00 I.C. Catholic Society: Folk Mass. 53 Cromwell Road.
19.30 I.C. Catholic Society: Miss Geraldine Hall. The relevance of religious life. 53 Cromwell Road.
'LAST OF THE RED-HOT LOVERS' (X) Paramount, Piccadilly Circus
When you go to the People's disco on a Friday night in the Union, do you have trouble making out with the chicks? Yes? Do you want to know what you'll be like in 20 years? If you do, go and see 'Last of the Red-Hot Lovers'. Alan Arkin is Barney, a nice 45-year-old person, who has a nice fish restaurant in a nice district, nice friends, a nice wife and a nice house. He has also nice morals and nice habits—in fact the whole of his life is nauseatingly nice. So Barney decides to explore an extramarital affair just for the experience. He reckons that just one liaison will give his life that missing ingredient, so that on his deathbed he can look back on that brief engagement and think— 'well, I did it, once.' Unfortunately Barney is not fortunate at all in his relationships. Apart from being handicapped by having to use his mother's sterile apartment, and by being restricted to only a couple of hours in which to make out, his choice in women-friends is unfortunate, to say the least. The first is a married woman who comes to his fish restaurant four times in one week, and is only, interested in the animal lust bit. That upsets Barney. Strike one. The second one is an attractive young failed singer, who besides having a persecution complex, is thoroughly degenerate and paranoid. That also upsets Barney. Strike two. The third is one of his married friends who makes a pass at him at a party, because she is upset at the gossip that her husband is having an affair. She is frigid, neurotic and has a habit of discussing their affair at the top of her voice in restaurants. Poor old Barney—strike three and out.
"JEREMIAH J O H N S O N " Superficially "Jeremiah Johnson"
bears a strong resemblance to one of those Walt Disney 'Nature' films. There is the same central 'mountain-trapper' type figure, and there are the same superb, sweeping shots of the massively beautiful Rocky Mountains scenery. The film fits in strongly with a certain eternal American mood — the desire to be somewhere else and to 'up and away' from the city.
But this Disney 'image' disappears, for Johnson (heavily-bearded Robert Redford) is a very real character. At the beginning of the film he is utterly inexperienced, and often seems near perishing in the winter snows. But he learns, and in this is the fascinating part of the film, for all the time we feel that the Crow Indians are watching, and that his existence continues
Alan Arkin (of 'Cath-22') is here recreating the type of role Jack Lem-mon made famous a few years a g o — the slightly neurotic, but very ordinary American, who finds himself way out of his depth in circumstances he cannot cope with. It is a scaled-down character role, if you like. I am not sure if he is as adaptable as Jack Lemmon, but he is just as convincing. Sally Keilerman (of 'Mash') and Paula Prentiss (of various bad movies) as two of his girlfriends are given a wide scope of moods and do very well indeed. The dialogue is typical scaled-up T.V. Situation Comedy stuff, predictable at times, but occasianally priceless. The film as a whole starts off very well, but tails off by the third liaison, mainly because everything's been said, and the ending is rather predictable as well. I reckon it's the kind of film vou either like or hate, depending on whether you like Americans in general or their humour in particular. However, don't expect any wild action to match the X-Certificate, because there isn't any—it seems to me to be standard A A material. Perhaps the morals are dubious, but how it can be classified in the same category as 'Last Tango in Paris' (no I haven't seen it yet), I don't know. Still, for 100 mins of mental titilla-tion, it does quite well.
'Sergei'
Footnote— For those people who didn't see
Kenneth Williams on 'Parkinson' a couple of weeks ago, I must repeat his definition of critics (no love lost betwen them and Ken)—He reckons they are like eunuchs in a harem. They are there every night, see it done every night, but can't do it themselves.
only by their consent. The last part of the film, however,
is very different, for Johnson's revenge against the Indians (wholly justified), and their subsequent hunting of him is violently primeval, leaving Jacobean Revenge Tragedies far behind. This is Johnson's testing ground, and, at the end of the film he emerges triumphant as the Crow Chief accepts him in a final gesture of peace, caught in a poignant frozen-frame.
Try as I can, I can find no fault in this film. Redford's performance is superb, especially in the early 'Jack London' style of sequences, the music, which consists of Western ballads, fits exactly, and I can remember no film that I have enjoyed so much for a long time.
David Gurney.
Page 6 F E L I X February 27th, 1973
Nemesis We've been talking a good deal lately about
monev—where to get it, what to spend it on, what not to spend it on, and—wel l , it's been mainly about acquiring the stuff.
But just supposing you've been wise enough to follow all the advice handed out in these columns, and have got some cash and spent it wisely.
The next problem is to prevent the Income Tax man from taking a large part of it back.
You want to know how best to avoid this painful process. The answer—as it so often i s — i s to find good professional advice. And that means an accountant.
So what is an accountant? Do you think imme
diately of Bob Cratchitt, high-legged stools and quill
pens?
Well , this week, our expert Derek E. Cummings,
takes a look at an important section o f the f inanc ia l
community.
There are two cer ta int ies about be ing born into th i s w o r l d these days . One is that, s ome t ime , y ou are go ing to d ie . The other is that, s ome t ime , you are go ing to have to pay taxes .
Bo th are fa i r l y m o r b i d thoughts and at first g l ance there is not a great dea l y ou can do about t h em . Cer ta in l y not the first, anyway . But the s e c o n d , w e l l , perhaps there is s o m e t h i n g to be done about that.
In the first p lace , you have to cons ide r how to pay as l i tt le tax as poss ib l e , w h i l e r e m a i n i n g — o f c o u r s e — s t r i c t l y w i t h i n the iaw. There is a fine difference be tween tax avo i dance and tax evas i on . T h e major d i f f e rence is that you can go to ja i l for evad ing tax, but a v o i d i n g the pa in of pay ing more than you have to is per fect ly l eg i t imate .
A n d th i s , unfor tunate ly , is where the average taxpayer gets into a k i n d of A l i c e in W o n d e r l a n d s i tua t i on . U n l e s s you k n o w the way a round , it 's a pretty imposs ib l e puzz le to try to untang le .
There are so many laws , so many ru les , so many excep t i ons , so many legal l oopho les that even the br ightest taxpayer w i l l eas i l y become con fused , d e p r e s s e d — a n d probably over - taxed .
M o s t tax experts w i l l cheer fu l l y a d m i t that a large percentage of Br i t i sh taxpayers are pay ing more tax than they s h o u l d .
T h i s usua l l y ar i ses because the i nd i v i dua l is unaware of cer ta in i t ems for w h i c h he might c l a i m tax e x empt i on . A n d it 's not su rp r i s i ng , w h e n you cons i d e r the way the taxat ion laws are arranged in th is country , under w h i c h the onus is a l w a y s — a l w a y s — o n the taxpayer to prove his status to the In land Revenue .
Y O U fill in your tax returns. Y O U state whatever c l a i m s for tax rel ie f you think you are ent i t l ed to. Y O U mus t prove the c l a i m to the tax man . Y O U have to f ind out what it is you are ent i t l ed to.
The Inland Revenue w i l l never a d v i s e y ou , un l ess you are prepared to make an issue of it and go to
your l oca l Inspector of Taxes and pore through the law w i t h h i m l ine by l ine . A n d mos t peop l e have nei ther the t ime nor the inc l i na t i on to do that.
W h a t many peop le do is to pay an accoun tan t to m a k e the ir tax returns. T h e i r ra t iona le is that a l though it cos t s a l i tt le money to put their f inances and tax affairs into the hands of an accountant , the l i k e l i hood is that he w i l l save them money in the long run , by r e d u c i n g the i r tax b i l l .
The l og i c of it is that if the accountan t saves you just one pound more than the b i l l he charges , y ou are ahead of the game .
For anyone w h o objects to pay ing more tax than is n e c e s s a r y — a n d that su r e l y i n c l u d e s e v e r y o n e — i t ' s an idea wor th th ink ing about .
Wha t , then, is an accoun tan t ?
In the first p lace the t i t le is s ome th ing of a m i s nomer . These days , an accountant does a great dea l more than make up accoun t s . He has to have a good know l edge of the theory and prac t i ce of b u s i ness : he has to be f ami l i a r w i t h the w o r k i n g s of the s tock exchange : he mus t k n o w c o m p a n y law and the legal invo l vements of s u c h th ings : a n d he has to k n o w a l l there is to k n o w about taxa t ion .
In short , a good accountan t is a k ind of ma themat i ca l lawyer . A gu ide and interpreter for the l ayman .
C l ea r l y , s u c h a man can be of i m m e n s e va lue whenever you are invo l ved in any k i n d of f inanc ia l s i t u a t i o n — a s , i nde ed , w e a l l are f r om the momen t we start earn ing money and pay ing taxes on it.
Of course , if and w h e n the t ime comes , you w i l l need to choose a g ood accountan t . The most re l iab le gu ide to this is to look for a char te red accountant , and the pos t -nomina l in i t ia l s ' A . C . A . ' . T h i s ind i ca tes that the name on the plate be longs to a m a n w h o has p a s s e d the s ea r ch ing e xam ina t ions set by the Institute of Char t e r ed A c c o u n t a n t s . Na tura l l y , these qua l i f i ca t ions w i l l not necessar i l y e x c lude foo ls and knaves , but it is a w o r t h w h i l e ind i ca to r . A f t e r a l l , anyone at a l l c an ca l l h imse l f an accountant and set up in bus iness w i th no qua l i f i ca t ions whatever .
A n d how does an accountant h imse l f def ine h is w o r k ? I t a lked to a char te red accountan t about it. L ike doc to rs , accountan ts are f o rb idden by their c ode of c onduc t to adver t i se , so his remarks must remain a n o n y m o u s .
"I suppose the best de f in i t ion of an accoun tan t ' s w o r k , " s a i d he w h o sha l l be name l ess , " i s to say that w e offer a t rans la t ion se rv i ce . So m u c h of the law re lat ing to bus iness and taxat ion is qui te i n comprehens i b l e to the layman that w i thout expert interpretat ion he has no chance of unde r s tand ing it.
"I w o u l d agree that vast numbers of peop le do pay more i n come tax, for example , than they real ly need to. In most cases , it amounts to sh i l l i n g s and it w o u l d therefore not be wo r th pay ing pounds to c o m e to one of us to correc t the assessment .
" B u t the th ing is that un less you are fami l i a r w i t h the law re lat ing to taxa t i on , you can never be sure wha t it is you are ent i t l ed to c l a i m for. There
CONGRATULATIONS I 'd l ike to offer my congratulations to those wonder
ful crusaders who removed a l l those unsightly publ ic i ty notices around college advertising the nat ional grants demonstration. It was an utter disgrace that students should display notices advertising a demonstration on such an unworthy cause as student grants. It was good to survey the thoroughness w i th wh i ch every single poster was disposed of f rom their places of erection, inc luding student noticeboards.
T h e most clever part of it was the way in which
the authorities disclaimed a l l knowledge of having re
moved them and their method of confusing students
as to where they were al lowed-to put up notices and
who was pul l ing them down.
A t least some people have got the strength of mind
to stand up to student propaganda; who knows, one
day students might even get organised and begin to
think . . . or even start discussing P O L I T I C S (ghastly
word). Obv ious ly we can't tolerate such things: after
a l l , th ink of the effect that si l ly student pranks l ike
demonstrations could have on the cutback i n educa
t ion expenditure. W e musn' t have them disturbing the
peace just because they don't th ink their grant is h igh
enough, let alone rationalisations or refectory price i n
creases (such topics are, after a l l , way above their
heads).
Prof. F o r d (whoops, let it slip), M r . Seaford and
(signed) A n admirer of the mighty crusaders.
Company . React ionary Jacks ( M R A )
P.S. I hope M r . Seaford w i l l give the male cleaners a bonus for the extra work involved ( including danger money for going up ladders to a height of 20 feet or more) for taking down the posters rather than getting in contact wi th the indiv iduals involved who (horrible blokes) actual ly gave an undertaking to remove the posters on Wednesday after the demonstration. A few more students might have read those b i l l s ; that would have been a bit sil ly.
P.P.S. W h y not censor the student notice boards a l l
of the t ime, not just some of it?
(Name and address of contributor supplied)
is no p rov i s i on for the Inland Revenue to po int out th ings l ike that to the taxpayer . It is the taxpayer ' s o w n r e spons ib i l i t y to f ind out. A n d that takes a good dea l more d e d i c a t i o n than mos t people are prepared for. On the other hand , accountants are tra ined to look for s u c h i t ems .
" A n d there is one other th ing w h i c h is we l l wor th po in t ing out to anyone con temp la t ing the idea of c o n s u l t i n g an accountan t , a n d that is not to leave it too late. If, for examp le , you think you are be ing over - taxed , take pro f ess iona l adv i c e as soon as y ou c a n , o the rw i s e it c an be a long and c o m p l i c a t e d bus ine s s . Remember , the tax man does not have to prove he is right, y ou have to prove he is w r o n g .
" O f course , persona l taxes are far f rom being the mos t important e l ement in our pro fess iona l l i ves . L ike legal men , w e have to know a good deal about most th ings in l i fe. A f t e r a l l , w h e n a man c o m e s ' t o y ou to lay h is f inanc ia l affairs before your eyes , he 's s h o w i n g you a lot of h imse l f , w h i c h means that an accountant is deep ly and persona l l y i n vo l v ed in a w i d e range of men ' s do ings .
" O d d l y enough , a lot of the story-book image of a c c o u n t a n c y s t i l l c l i n g s . M a n y people s t i l l see us s i t t ing on high s too l s , a d d i n g c o l u m n s of f igures and enter ing them in ledgers w i th qu i l l pens . But , l ike many such images , it is a gro tesque ly inaccur ate one.
" W e have to be au fait w i t h the mos t mode rn bus iness me thods such as compute r s , cost-ef fect iveness p rog rammes , c ompany o rgan isa t i on and the w h o l e m a s s of l aw re la t ing to mone tary matters . But it a l l bo i l s d o w n to one th ing , rea l ly . M a k i n g money wo rk to the best poss ib l e advantage of the c l i en t w h i l e s tay ing w i t h i n the l a w . "
February 27th, 1973 F E L I X Page 7
Joint Election Manifesto
FELIX announced its intention of printing candidates' manifestos several weeks ago. At the deadline time, 1700 hrs on Friday, we had received a joint manifesto from Messrs. Rob Armitage and Simon Allnutt, and this is reproduced below. The other candidates did not send in manifestos.
M y name is S imon A l l nutt. I a m a th i rd year physicist. H a v i n g entered the college as an engineer anu changed to physics means that I have been here an extra year. R o b Arm i t age and myself are standing wi th same mani festo, given below.
It is our belief that both sabbat ical officers wishing to attain the same forward look ing objectives, results i n a more active union.
One person, in general, w i l l have less chance of seeing the problems the union w i l l face in the first place, w i l l not produce as many ideas on how to tackle them, and finally, of carry ing them through to a successful conclusion.
T H E C O L L E G E C O M M U N I T Y
A s many people as possible should be involved in the union's activities at a l l levels, producing the ideas to improve the union for its members. Contact between sabbat ical officers and the students for exchange of ideas would be most direct at departmenta l level. A s wel l as this departments should have more contact between a l l students, both post-graduate and under-graduate, and staff of a l l denominations for a better education and satisfactory community.
The college community consists of more than just the academic staff and students. I n these times when the students are suffering economical ly we are under a mora l obl igat ion to protect the jobs of workers i n the college who have dependants to support.
A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E
Why Life Assurance? C O U R S E S T R U C T U R E
In the present situation of graduate unemployment the f lexibi l i ty of our education is of paramount importance.
One of the great benefits of the course unit system said to operate in this Col lege should be the choice of courses offered to students, enabling them to qual i fy i n a broader field, whilst a l lowing spec ia l isat ion should the student wish it.
W i t h the present job situation, it is a great advantage to have a broader field of interest, even i f this is used temporari ly unti l the " r ight j o b " arises.
Does this apply at , present? No t satisfactorily.
The recent appointment of the Academic Director by the college indicates that now is the t ime for we students to suggest new course contents where necessary, to make courses more flexible, more useful. M a k e no mistake, more f lexibil ity is an improvement in your chances when y ou graduate and start look ing for a good job.
E D U C A T I O N Educa t i on should bene
fit everyone — part icular ly those being educated. One of the major points of the " L i m i t s to G r o w t h " report of the group f rom M I T was that to achieve a stable economy is to use a much larger percentage of the gross nat ional product for education. In this context it is our responsibi l i ty to press for more expansion in a l l areas of education, to press for equality of opportunity and transfer methods between courses to cater for changes of interest as the course progresses. The cutbacks in the Whi te Paper entitled " E d u c a t i o n : a Framework for E x p a n s i o n " (the exact opposite of its contents), are thoroughly deplorable.
N .U .S . W e should be able to
further our aims through N U S . A s a nat ional union, its negotiating power, and
The days when an Insurance Manager wept as a student entered his office are fast disappearing. True, the odd one or two still want to insure themselves to drive a hearse backwards to Basutoland, but the rapid growth of student interest in life assurance is the main reason for the new benign attitude now pervading insurance circles.
A n d the s tudent interest in l i fe a ssurance rea l ly has g r o w n . A t a conserva t i v e es t imate T W E N T Y M I L L I O N P O U N D S of l i fe a s su rance is bought by undergraduates each year .
I believe it is not near ly enough . I know that near l y 9 0 per cent of ma le under
graduates w i l l take out a l i fe a s su rance po l i c y before they are 27 or so .
I am sure that if they a l l rea l l y k n e w the g ood hard e c o n o m i c r easons w h y they s h o u l d do it n o w — m o s t of them w o u l d .
Let m e spe l l these out. The younger you start a p o l i c y the cheaper it is
the provis ion of services l ike Trave l and Insurance, are far greater than any college union can muster of its own accord. It is an advantage to be associated w i th N U S : if we disagree w i th its policies, then we can campaign to change and improve them. The N U S has very cumbersome machinery, but I.C. has in the past been among the leading exponents of improved procedures, a trend we would l ike to continue. T o bury our heads in the sand leads nowhere.
C O M M U N I T Y A C T I O N Commun i t y act ion is an
area in which this union is tak ing the lead in i m proving the communi ty as a whole. A s such, and together wi th Eco-act ion it should have the greater financial support f rom the union.
O V E R S E A S S T U D E N T S Twenty per cent of our
students are f rom overseas and at present have no representative o n counc i l . Th is must be rectified if we are to help them effectively to fight any further increases in their fees, at present too high anyway.
U N I O N F E E A t present the U n i o n
receives £8.50 for each ful l-t ime student. W i t h rising costs (don't say you haven't noticed!) the U n i o n might soon be as
impoverished as its ind i v idua l members. The per-capi ta fee should be in creased to a level so that expanded programmes can take place. It is not sufficient merely to i n crease the U n i o n income to cover r is ing costs.
V O T E If you support our aims
outlined here we ask you to reflect i t by voting. A l l n u t t for President and Armi tage for secretary. Please feel free to approach us on any point you wish to discuss.
Vo t e for the other candidate i f you prefer his views, but vote. Th is makes a democrat ic union.
R O B A R M I T A G E S I M O N A L L N U T T
and the cheaper it s tays . O n c e your rate for the p o l i c y has been agreed it cannot be i n c r eased , irrespec t i ve of inf lat ion or any de ter io ra ton in your hea l th . A s tudent of 19 w o u l d pay w i t h one l ead ing c o m p a n y £30.00 per a n n u m for a £4,000 l i fe p o l i c y (the s tudent average ) . A graduate of 27 w o u l d pay £40.50 per a n n u m for the s a m e th ing (if the rate r ema ined the same in these in f lat ionary t imes ) . Over 2 0 / 3 0 years , the sav ing runs into h u n d r e d s of p o u n d s .
The nex t reason w h y c o u l d invo lve a sav ing of thousands of pounds.
The brokers operat ing in the s tudent f ie ld t end to r e c o m m e n d very g o o d cont rac t s , if on ly on the g rounds that a s tudent c l i ent today is a (r ich) g r adu ate c l i en t t omor r ow and by then he w i l l be more aware and s h o w h is apprec i a t i on or o the rw i se by p l a c i n g h is bus iness w i t h the broker he k n o w s a n d trusts . M y o w n c o m p a n y wr i t e many m i l l i o n s of pounds wor th o f bus iness each year f r om our thousands of graduate c l i en t s .
The cho i c e of p o l i c y is mos t important . In 1 9 7 2 the pay out di f ference on two p o l i c i e s — f o r i den t i ca l o u t l a y s — w a s £2,949. That is 2 ,949 reasons for tak ing the a d v i c e of a g ood broker . O n c e r e m o v e d f rom un ivers i t y you w i l l be up aga ins t many ha rd s e l l i ng insurance conce rns w h i c h migh t mean less good adv i c e .
A g ood broker w i l l a l so be able to he lp you to buy that h o u s e you w i l l wan t s oon after g r adua t i on . T a k i n g a l i fe p o l i c y n o w is on ly the first s tep. It car r i es no guarantee , but my o w n c o m p a n y is da i l y a r rang ing mor tgages for our graduate c l i en t s . I have every reason to be l i e v e that severa l other insurance brokers in the s tudent f i e ld -are a l so prov i d i n g th is se rv i ce .
W o r t h w h i l e po l i c i e s for s tudents can beg in f r om 2 0 p per week and if you c o u l d forego the o d d pint or packe t of c igare t tes it is in your o w n interest to s e r i ous l y c ons i d e r e m b a r k i n g upon your future f inanc ia l p l ann ing now . C o n s u l t a t i o n w i t h a broker , pre fe rab ly one w h o is e i ther a member of the A s s o c i a t i o n or Co rpo ra t i on of Brokers w o u l d be a use fu l s tar t ing po int , as p ro f ess i ona l s t and ing carr ies w i t h it p ro f e ss i ona l r e spons ib i l i t y .
A . J . B r o a d , M a n a g i n g D i r ec to r , E. H a r r i s o n ( Insurance Brokers ) L td .
1 —
H E L P ! Help yourself to a good
Life Assurance investment plan
2 — Help yourself to our
House Purchase plan
3 — Help yourself to our advice (it's free)
4 — Help yourself to our coupon
Then we ' l l he lp you , just as we 've he lped t h o u s a n d s of
s tudents s i n c e 1951.
E. Har r i son : A s s o c i a t e d Insurance B r o k e r s
To: Harrison's, R o u n d Church Street, Cambridge.
1 N A M E
I
1 I I
I T E R M A D D R E S S
"Heading quote successful elimination of factors tending to exacerbate abnormal behaviour among undergraduate students unquote."
* Please send m e your comprehensive leaflet on Life Assurance. '
Page 8 F E L I X February 27th, 1973
hockey Centrepoint Last Sunday out at Har l ing ton and in the surround
ing pubs, the annual piss-up w i th the Poachers took place. The game that preceded this was won by the Poachers 2—1 after they were a goal down at half-time.
The game was extremely scrappy and after a hard night I missed most of what happened — especially their two goals — so I ' l l end this report by thanking W .B . , R o n (he is the pissed one), R i c h and Dave for keeping the I.C. f lag f ly ing in the surrounding pubs.
O n the previous day the 1st X I played their penult imate league match against Smiths and lost 3—0. The only comment about this match that reached me was that it wasn't wor th reporting. O n the same day, the never reported 2nd X I entertained G . W . R . l i s and won 1—0.
Saturday's br i l l iant sunshine brought out the best in the 3rd X I players, who proceeded to record their third w in of the season. In order to give G . W . R . I l l s a chance, I .C. turned up w i th only nine men.
The first ha l f was fa ir ly even w i th both sides creating chances, but neither getting o n top. G . W . R . took the lead mid-way through this half w i th a simple goal fo l lowing a bad defensive mistake. The second half was completely different. Despite G . W . R ' s . two m a n advantage, I .C. completely dominated the game. U s i n g their superior fitness (thanks to J.J.? ) I .C. forced the pace and eventually scored a very scrambled goal f rom a goa lmouth melee. Russ Eason was the scorer. The same player scored the winner a few minutes later when he beat three players before putt ing the ba l l into the empty net. A t this stage G . W . R . were unable to raise their game and I.C. eventually emerged the comfortable winners.
Team:- R. Ba teman; D . M u r c h , C . Scott; J . Heffer, Ju l i e , R . Cr i tch ley ; W. B igg in , J . Preston, R. Eason .
A s mentioned earlier M r . Eason scored twice dur ing the match, his hat-tr ick being completed later that same evening.
W i l l a l l members please note that the annua l d inner w i l l take place on Monday , M a r c h 19th. The price for this nosh-up wh ich w i l l be fol lowed by a grand dr inking session in 414, is at the moment, set at £2.40. F o r a l l o f those who are br inging guests of the opposite sex, and who isn't, a double ticket is settling d o w n at £4.50.
r o w i n g Saturday the 10th February saw the I.C. 1st V I I I
in act ion for the first t ime this year. The occasion was the London R o w i n g C l u b Colleges Regatta. A l though , as its name suggests, this is essentially a colleges event, L o n d o n R o w i n g C l u b decided to enter two crews. One of wh i ch was their domestic 1st V I I I , only lack ing the heavyweights of their continental regatta G r a n d V I I I .
The first heat saw I.C. caught i n a hai lstorm whi le wai t ing on the start, as a result of which their new blue boat c lub sweat shirts spent the rest of the day in the dry ing room and I.C. had to revert to their practice tops for the rest of the regatta. Q . M . C . , the cause of the delay, only had 7 men and had had to pick up a spare man f rom L o n d o n R o w i n g C l u b . I n fact, they needn't have bothered, as they, along w i th L o n d o n R . C . II were left standing by I.C's. very powerful start. I.C. were in fact clear of both crews in the first twenty strokes. A l t hough I.C. d id not row part icular ly well for the rest of the race they beat L o n d o n by about 4 lengths and Q . M . C . by 7 lengths.
In the Semi -F ina l I.C. met C h u r c h i l l College, C a m bridge. In rough water I.C. went clear in the first minute and f inal ly won by 4 lengths.
A l t hough I.C. had won a l l their heats easily they never rowed part icular ly wel l together and it was wi th some doubts that they went into the f ina l against London R . C .
I.C's. powerful start gave them . f length in the first minute but they d i d not settle together i n the middle of the race and could not go clear. The i r lack of cohesion in the rough water coupled wi th the fact that they had had one more race than L o n d o n , began to tell even on this very fit crew. I n the closing stages London rowed through f .C . to w i n by 1 length.
The result is very promis ing indeed for the boat c lub. A l l the other college crews were wel l beaten, and the very next day the same L o n d o n crew were easily held over 7. mins. Even more promis ing have been some of the other practice outings, i n wh i ch I.C. have beaten most of the other tideway clubs. The highlights of the practice rows were I.C's. defeat of Isis (the Ox fo rd university 2nd V I I I , thought by many to be very good this year) by 1/3 length over 2 mins., and the defeat of T y r i an , the U . L . 2nd V I I I b y 2 lengths over a 3 min . row.
The indicat ions are that this could be one of the boat clubs best seasons for many years.
C E N T R E P O I N T began as an exper iment on Dec ember 16 th , 1 9 6 9 , in the d i s u s e d basement of S t . A n n e ' s House , S o h o , w h o s e front door is in D e a n Street , next to the bomb s i te w h i c h was once S t . A n n e ' s C h u r c h . The ent rance to Cent re -po int is in Sha f t esbury A v e n u e , th rough s o m e r omant i c i ron gates, and the d e c a y i n g c h u r c h y a r d , p a s s e d u n n o t i c e d by thousands of peop le every day . It began here, r ight in the heart of the W e s t E n d (the centre po int ) because th is w a s where a numbe r of g roups were w o r k i n g , esp e c i a l l y w i t h d r u g abus ers. A m o n g them w a s Father Kenne th Leach at S t . A n n e s ' , t r y ing to he lp peop le w h o are very sev-3relly d i s tu rbed , many irreparab ly so . He w a t c h ed y o u n g peop le d r a w n to the W e s t E n d l ike moths to a c and l e , a l mos t inev i tab ly to be burnt , a n d he l onged to f ind s o m e way of s a v ing s o m e of them f rom the f a m i l i a r s y n d r o m e : no money , nowhere to s l eep , " v a g r a n c y " , petty c r i m e , d rugs a n d the pros t i tu t i on of both boys a n d g i r l s .
The e x p e r i m e n t — i n i t i a l l y for three m o n t h s — a i m e d to p rov ide newcomers w i t h first a i d : a p l ace to s l eep , someth ing to eat, s omeone to talk to, and a d v i c e esp e c i a l l y about how to f ind wo rk and a c c o m m o d a t i o n . It hoped to g i ve a f ew of them a c h a n c e to sett le in London w i t h out b e ing d a m a g e d by it, or to go home aga in , or to do whatever it w a s t h a t — b y the t ime they
r eached C e n t r e p o i n t — they rea l ly w a n t e d to do .
Cent repo in t is un ique in L o n d o n in p r o v i d i n g emergency a c c o m m o d a t ion c omp l e t e l y free, every n ight of the year . F i f teen to twenty young peop l e have c o m e in every n ight and there have been s o m e fi fteen thousand a d m i s s i o n s s i n c e the centre opened . It n o w has a fu l l t ime p ro f ess i ona l s o c i a l wo rk er as a d i r e c t o r — D a v i d N a i r n — b u t , other than that, it is ent i re ly staffed by vo luntee rs . Imper ia l C o l l e g e C a t h o l i c S o c i e t y s end two vo lunteers every n i g h t — t h e y w o r k on a f o r tn ight l y r o t a — t o wo rk there, and o rgani sed a long s p o n s o r e d w a l k through the S u s s e x W e a l d o n Sa tu rday . T h e a i m w a s to ra ise money for Cent repo in t House , a short t e rm hoste l the organ i sa t i on is to set up at B a r o n ' s Cour t . It w i l l house fourteen res idents a n d offer those w h o use it a suppor t i ve add r e s s w h i l s t they wo rk a n d f ind other a c c o m m o d a t i o n d u r i n g the ir n o n - w o r k i n g hours . The average expec t ed length of stay w i l l be a for tn ight . U n for tunate ly no space w a s ava i l ab l e for th is a r t i c l e in our last i ssue , so w e c o u l d not urge y o u to sponso r a wa lke r . Nev-the l ess , Cen t r epo in t s t i l l needs d o n a t i o n s — i n a l l , they need £10,000. If you c a n , s e n d a f ew pence . M o r e de ta i l s c an be ob ta ined f r om J o s e p h C u l l e n , M e c h Eng P G , w h o is o r gan i s ing the C a t h s o c cont ingent to Cent repo in t .
rapid rambles Hyde Park Road Relay
If you were by the A l bert M e m o r i a l on Sa tur day a f t e rnoon , y ou may have w o n d e r e d at the emergence of s o m e 5 0 0 be t racksu i t ed p e o p l e f r o m the U n i o n . T h e o c c a s i o n for a l l th is ac t i v ity w a s the 2 5 t h H y d e Park Road Re lay o rgani s e d in t ime -honoured (and some t imes cursed ) t rad i t i on by Imperial C o l lege in its man i f es ta t i on as the C r o s s Coun t r y C l u b in genera l , and Steve W e b b , Pete J o h n s o n , N e i l B o a g a n d R o b Parker in par t i cu la r .
M a n y thanks to a l l those w h o b raved the wea ther (the o d d s n o w -flake or two) to he lp on the day : the t imekeepers a n d judges , the markers ( in par t i cu la r , w e ' v e been a s k e d to men t i on the " l o v e l y l i t t le lady f r o m L o u g h b o r o u g h " . . . say no more M a r s h a l P a d ? ) , the r esu l t s runner, Ian, w h o w a s on a b ike . Dave J o n e s ' resu l t s t eam (at one stage on ly three) w h o sought to prove that a r i thmet i c is not yet, in s ome sense , a lost art, s o m e D r a m s o c peop le for their t i m e a n d ampl i f i e r , a n d the lad ies of M o o n e y w h o d i s h e d out the teas and w i thou t w h o m . . .
A t 3 o ' c l o c k by the t r ad i t i ona l l amp - post , w h o s e number I've forgot ten . Lo rd Penney , a r m e d w i t h the A C C W e b l e y ( w h i c h w o r k e d ) , u n l e a s h e d a s t r a in ing pack of s o m e 8 0 runners d o w n Rot ten R o w a n d a round the 3 m i l e (almost ) course . F i r s t back w a s J . Reade of Por tsm o u t h Po ly , but that g l o ry d i d n ' t last l ong , s l i p p i n g to s e c o n d on the next lap a n d later to 2 6 t h .
Bo r ough R o a d C o l l e g e managed to w i n both the cups th i s year, ins tead of just the ir usua l one (we on ly hope w e ' l l see the Lady R o d e r i c k H i l l cup aga in ! ) , in a t ime of 8 5 m i n 3 0 sec . B i r m i n g ham Un ive rs i t y , w i n n e r s for the past two years , were t h i r d , m o v i n g up s l o w l y f r om 2 4 t h after the f irst lap . The fastest lap w a s run by A n d y M c -Kean of E d i n b u r g h U n i vers i ty in 13 m i n , 3 0 sec , 3 s e c o n d s short of the lap r e co rd (his left l eg w a s not m u c h s l ower ) .
Of c ourse the resu l t you ' r e a l l w a i t i n g for is that of I C . W e were 3 9 t h . Rob A l l i n s o n s tar ted us off w e l l at 5 3 r d in 15 m i n 2 9 sec , a n d th is pos i t i on was conso l i da t ed by Stuart L i t t l ewood (15 :56 ) a n d Dave Payne ( 1 6 : 3 2 ) . T h e effect, however w a s s omewha t spo i l ed by J o e Kea t ing , who p i c k e d up 14 p laces in a t ime of 14 m i n 37 sec , re turn ing so qu i ck l y that he was the cause of a hurr i ed d i s robement by our next runner Pau l C l a r k e , w h o d i d 15 m i n 4 9 sec . Our last runner was Rob Parker , and least s a i d , soones t m e n d ed . The overa l l t ime was 9 4 m i n 59 sec .
A f ter the race Lady Penney w a s k i n d enough to present the meda l s to the w i n n i n g teams a n d i n d i v i d u a l s , a n d Steve W e b b made a speech a n d got it r ight .
A n d so, as the U n i o n sank once more , for an other year, into its peace fu l s lumber , a group of B e l g i a n runners led by Fore i gn Teams organ iser Pete J o h n s o n (none other) j o i n ed the IC T e a m and hal f the other U K co l l e ges in a cer ta in house of re f reshment in Sou th K e n s i n g ton. H n n n ! ( that 's F r e n c h but I guess those B e l g i ans u n d e r s t a n d F r e n c h ) .