BULL Edition 4, 2014

Issue 04, 2014 / FREE
WORLD CUP WOES / DEB BALL REVIVAL / INSIDE VILLAWOOD / CHICKEN OR THE EGG? / UNDERSTANDING GRIEF

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Issue 04
CONTENTS
3
Editors
Eden Caceda
Katie Davern
Sophie Gallagher
Rob North
Sean O’Grady
REPORTERS
Harnsle Joo
Georgia Hitch
Jonathan Mimo
Mary Ward
Rachel McGinty
Tang Li
Kirsty Timsans
Tom Joyner
Hannah Edensor
Peter Walsh
Vicki Choh
Erin Rooney
Contributors
Katie Stow, Emily Shen,
Rebecca Karpin, Alison Xiao,
Lisa Xia, Stephanie Paglia,
Samantha Jonscher, Julia Robins,
Virat Nehru, Craig Law,
Whitney Duan
Publications Manager
Louisa Stylian
Design manager
Robyn Matthews
Design
Simon Macias
Peta Harris
CONTACT
editors@bullmag.com.au
facebook.com/bullmag
@usubullmag
usu.edu.au/bullmag
The views expressed in this publication
are not necessarily the views of the USU.
The information contained within this
edition of Bull was correct at the time
of printing.
This publication is brought to you by
the University of Sydney Union.
Issue 04, 2014
Write for us!
Whether you’re a budding
student journalist or have
a random idea that could be
a great story, email us and
you could get published here.
editors@bullmag.com.au
CONTENTS
FEATURES
WORLD CUP WORRIES OF OLYMPIC PROPORTIONS 10
The modern debutante 13
VILLAWOOD: SURVIVING DETENTION 18
Foetal Rights? 27
TIME HEALS ALL WOUNDS 32
REGULARS
What’s On 04
Editorial & Board 06
Letters 07
Opinion 09
Interview 17
Taste 22
Go 23
Move 24
Learn 25
The Time I Tried 31
Campus Fashion 35
Vox & Classic Countdown 36
Cow & Horns 37
Arts 39
Reviews 40
Experience 41
Club Confidential 42
Shutter Up 44
Comics 45
Ask Isabella 46
/bullmag /USUbullmag

bull usu.edu.au
WHAT'S ON
4
For the FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS – head to USU.EDU.AU AND CLICK THE CALENDAR.
Clubs & Socs – remember to submit your events on the website!
WHAT'S ON
PRESENTS
MON TUE WED THU FRI
wk12(MAY)
26 27 28
FUNCH
Eastern Avenue, 12–2pm
29
THEATRESPORTS - OLD SCHOOL
VS. NEW SCHOOL
MANNING Bar, 7pm
30
TGIF (TELL GRADS IT’S FRIDAY)
DRINKS
Hermann’s Bar, 5pm
wk13(JUNE)
02 03 04
WEDNESDAY MARKETS
Eastern Avenue, 9pm
05
Winter Wonderland
End of Semester Party
HERMANN'S Bar, 3pm
06
STUVAC(JUNE)
09 10 11 12 13
EXAMS(JUNE)
16 17 18 19 20
EXAMS(JUNE/JULY)
23 24 25 26 27

Issue 04
what's on
5
MUST SEE
THEATRESPORTS -
OLD SCHOOL VS. NEW SCHOOL
Thursday 29 May 2014, 7pm
Manning Bar // 18+
Hosted by Bridie Connell
Free
Pitting the best Manning improvisers against the
stars of yesteryear, we’re gearing up for a battle of
wit and one liners of slapstick and silliness. Our New
School cast certainly has a fight on their hands as they
face-off against a cast of national and world champion
improvisers, so make sure you’re there ready to cheer
them on. Entry is FREE, there are great prizes on
offer, and most importantly, the bar is open till late.
Come along and get ready for a night to remember!
COMING UP
29
MAY
7
JUN
1
JUN
19
JUN
30
MAY
8
JUN
6
JUN
21
JUN
Theatresports®
–
Old School Vs New School
RAW Awards
Fintroll
Hard-Ons 30th Anniversary
Coroner
Rock n Roll &
Alternative Market Earth
PROPAGANDHI
manningbar.com /Manningbarsydney #manningbar@Manningbar
MONDAY
SOLO SESSIONS
1-2pm, Manning Bar
$3.50 HAPPY HOUR
4-6pm, Manning Bar
and Hermann’s Bar
Bingo
5-6pm, Manning Bar
TUESDAY
Tuesday TV
12-5pm, Manning Bar
AUSTRALIAN
DISCUSSION GROUP
3-4pm, Level 4
Wentworth Building
$3.50 HAPPY HOUR
4-6pm, Manning Bar
and Hermann’s Bar
POKER COMPETITION
5.30-10pm, Manning Bar
WEDNESDAY
Get Up! Stand Up!
1-2pm, Manning Bar
Debating Regionals
5.15pm,Woolley N395
TRIVIA
5-6pm, Manning Bar
$3.50 HAPPY HOUR
4-6pm, Manning Bar
and Hermann’s Bar
2 for 1 schnitty
6-8pm, Manning Bar
THURSDAY
THEATRESPORTS®
1-2pm, Manning BarBar
POOL COMPETITION
4-6pm, International
Student Lounge
$3.50 HAPPY HOUR
4-6pm, Manning Bar
and Hermann’s Bar
Beat The System – Local
Bands and DJs
5pm, Hermann’s Bar
FRIDAY
DJs
4-7pm, Hermann’s Bar
$3.50 HAPPY HOUR
4-6pm, Manning Bar
and Hermann’s Bar
every weekmonday – friday

It is with
heavy hearts
that we present
the final issue
of BULL for
the semester.
We’ve been
utterly
impressed
by the work
of our talented reporters and contributors,
and the features in this issue have made us
particularly proud.
substantially to the fears of many would-be
journalists. But, Melanie's departure and
success has given us hope in an increasingly
uncertain job market.
If and when you get the inevitable blues
during the break, no doubt due to the lack of
BULL content, simply remember that we’ll
be back next semester, let out of our cages
once more, ready and raring to go.
BULL x
BULL wants to hear from you
Email editors@bullmag.com.au
FROM THE EDITORS
EDEN, KATIE, SOPHIE, ROB, SEAN
bull usu.edu.au
EDITORIAL
6
Q&A: HANNAH MORRIS
Outgoing USU President
B: The 2014 USU Student Board elections have
officially wrapped up – you will remain on the
Board as the Immediate Past President for a
further year.What exactly does this role entail,
and how does it differ from that of the newly
elected and returning Student Board Directors?
HM: The USU Constitution provides that the
Immediate Past President sits on the Board
for a year as a non-voting Director.This
means that the IPP is still bound by the same
Constitution, Regulations and Directors
Duties as the other Directors, however does
not exercise voting rights.The IPP’s role
has historically been in an advisory capacity,
providing institutional knowledge to the
Board and assisting the new President in
transitioning into their role.
B:What do you feel has been the greatest
achievement of 2013-2014 USU Student Board?
HM: I have been proud to say that the 2013-
2014 Board has been one of the most active
Boards in recent times, and I owe this all
to the drive of the individual Directors on
this year’s Board and their desire to improve
the student experience. Over the last year
this Board has undertaken a comprehensive
Queer review, Programs review and
Transparency review, and has commenced
a review of BULL magazine, Student
Leadership Positions, internal Working
Party governance structures and the C&S
Program.We have developed an In Camera
policy to regulate our use of in camera
proceedings, are in the process of creating
a Volunteers policy, and are transitioning
towards an ethical investment policy for our
financial portfolio.We have created a new
Sustainability Co-ordinator position and
implemented two new student programs
for 2014, Health & Wellbeing Week and Sex
& Consent Day.We have also overseen an
incredibly successful O-Week which has
seen us sell 150 per cent more ACCESS
cards than in 2013, secured the USU its
largest SSAF allocation in the annual SSAF
funding agreement for 2014, and supervised
extensive capital developments in the Holme
and Wentworth buildings.
B: Over the past few decades a number of
student unions have gradually shifted away
from providing a platform for student activism,
and towards the provision of events and student
services. Is it important for student unions to
support and maintain student activism?
HM: The University of Sydney Union is driven
by our Constitutional aims and purpose to
provide the best co-curricular experience
possible for students at this University,
including promoting the intellectual, cultural
and social development of our members as
well as the best interests and welfare of
the Union and the University community.
Although the way our Constitutional obligations
have been interpreted in recent years means
the USU as it exists today is not primarily
a political organisation, each new Board
is entitled to interpret these obligations
differently when it is their turn to guide the
strategic direction of the Union.
It is important to remember however
that the USU is a large organisation which is
a services and amenities provider, programs
and events facilitator and a provider of
commercial operations, with several hundred
staff in our employment and 14,000 members.
USU Board Directors have a duty to act
in the best interests of all aspects of our
organisation when they make decisions, so
any strategic direction future Boards move
in, whether activist or commercial, needs to
ensure all elements of our organisation are
being taken into account.
B: In BULL Issue 3 you gave some advice for
Union Board candidates and other students
planning to run in the future.What advice can
you give for the next Board President?
HM: You are about to enter a role that you
can never be fully prepared for and that will
completely transform your life for the next
year. It will test you and challenge you in
every way possible, however at the same time
you will have one of the most rewarding and
inspiring experiences you could ever have at
University.You have been given an incredible
privilege to lead an organisation that has had
a positive impact on the lives of so many
students before you and will continue to do
so for many years after you, so make the
most of every day of it.
Finally, stay strong and be brave, have the
confidence to back your decisions, know that
it's okay to make mistakes as long as you learn
from them, and never be afraid to ask for help.
This issue is a tear jerker. Hannah Edensor
give us a deeply personal description of what
it’s like to lose a parent, BULL Editor Eden
Caceda journeys into Villawood Detention
Centre and Kirsty Timsans explores Fetal
Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.
This was also our first edition without
Editor Melanie Kembrey, who has left the
herd to commence a cadetship at Fairfax
Media.We wish her all the best! The perilous
economic situation of commercial media
organisations and the ever-present threat of
cuts to the public broadcasters contribute

N*SYNC
You’re probably wondering why we've
chosen to focus on the long disbanded
five-piece vocal group N*Sync. in this
monthly Pick OfThe Month.
To be honest, the reason is pretty
simple – we just miss them so damn
much. Last year the boys teased us when
they briefly reunited at the MTVVideo
Music Awards, but they said ‘Bye Bye
Bye’ much too soon, with all but Justin
Timberlake fading back into obscurity.
It was a simpler time when Chris,
Joey, Justin, JC and Lance ruled the
airwaves together, providing us with
excellent and perfectly non-offensive
music. Girls wanted to date them and
boys wanted to be them. It was a time
when we could sport double denim. It was
a time when we could wear so much hair
spray or gel that you could smell us a mile
away, and the boys amongst us begged
our parents for frosted tips.
But perhaps surprisingly, what we
miss most is that their name made sense.
The group comprised of five young men
singing in harmony; or, in sync.
Nowadays things just aren’t so
straightforward or clever.We might be
putting ourselves at risk of a full scale
Twitter war with their tween fans here,
but the utterly nonsensical naming of the
Australian pseudo boy band (supposedly
they can actually play instruments, and
therefore aren’t technically a boy band) 5
Seconds of Summer has been driving us
up the wall.What the fuck is it supposed
to mean? Is their music intended to
remind us of the beach season – but
merely five seconds of it?That’s not
even enough time to finish a Paddle Pop.
Their so called hit single ‘She Looks So
Perfect’ runs for nearly three minutes and
forty seconds, leaving a pretty terrible
dividend for listeners seeking the sounds
of summer.
Come back to us N*Sync, and show
these suckers what’s what.
Issue 04
LETTERS & PICK OF THE MONTH
7
RE: WAITING
Dear ‘Name witheld’,
Thank you for writing a letter to BULL
[Issue 3] which queried the status of
various campaign promises which had
been put forward by the USU’s student
board directors elected last year. People
like you are one mechanism which help
the USU operate in an environment of
openness, accountability and efficiency.
That being said, it is also people like
you who, knowingly or unknowingly,
engage in casual racism. I take a joke as
well as the next person, and I understand
that my name, as long and phonetically
challenging as it is, lends itself to jokes of
all kinds.You’re not the first to do it.
This time though, I did not appreciate
my name being deliberately misspelt. I found
it incredibly interesting that my name was
the only one singled out for humorous
purposes, though being among five other
names – Bebe D’Souza, Eve Radunz,Tim
Matthews, Robby Magyar and Kade Denton.
Were the other names not material fodder
enough? Were they not ethnic enough to
fulfill your inner comedian?
Ironically for you, BULL editor Katie
Davern has written a wonderful article about
Australia’s racist tendencies in this edition
[Issue 3]. It raises some very interesting
thoughts and quotes, and here’s a pull-out
for you: “In everyday conversations, it is
too easy for racism to be trivialised, and
disguised as humour… I think the biggest
effect on me was obviously being pointed
out as different from everybody else,”
[Adam] Goodes explained.’
In ridiculing my name, and not those
of other directors, you pointed me out as
different from everybody else.You trivialised
my capacity as a board director against
those of fellow board directors.You made it
a joke to have a non-white-sounding name.
Let me tell you something – I am not
a joke. Not unless everyone around me
is as well. I am proud of having a name
which speaks to my parents’ Sri Lankan
heritage. I am proud of having a name that
you struggle to pronounce.
I hope you take this as an opportunity
to learn more about racism and yourself.
I’m not angry at you, I’m angry at what you
did, so if you would like to apologise to me
(and every other person out there who has
a name which isn’t ‘the norm’ and has over
5 vowels), I would really appreciate it and I
won’t bite.Whether that’s here on Facebook,
over a private message, a text or in person.
Racism, casual or formal, written or
spoken, small or large, is not okay. Next
time I hope you think about becoming part
of the solution rather than the problem
when you put pen to paper.
Cheers,
~ Tara Waniganayaka
Eds:This fantastic response was published
with Tara’s permission.
PUT DOWN THE iphone
Dear Whitney Duan,
I must say that I wholeheartedly agree with
your views and opinions on the smartphone
photography revolution [Photographed
and Disengaged – Issue 3]. They are
simultaneously a blessing and the bane of
my existence!
In my teenage years hundreds if not
thousands of Kodak moments were
undoubtedly missed. Without permanent
access to high quality and expensive
photography equipment so many of the
good times went un-photographed and
swiftly forgotten.
Granted, several of my friends were able
to afford good cameras befitting of a semi-
professional, and I was fortunate enough to
get some great snaps of my graduation. I’ve
also got some regrettable schoolies photos
– I appreciate that they are confined to my
hard-drive for now, but maybe in the future
I’ll share them on social media for a good old
fashioned LOL.
When the early iPhone models replaced
the humble Nokia and Motorola phones I
was ecstatic. The majority of my University
experience has been immortalised. Everyone
had access to a semi-decent camera, and it
was with them around the clock!
Unfortunately this has proven to be
a problem – people aren’t just taking an
unnecessary amount of photos of their
favourite singers, bands and pastries. They
are also whipping their phones out and
taking selfies at the gym, leaving the flash
on while snapping their own pictures at
weddings (and thus ruining the professional
photos), and even during university lectures!
Yep, you heard right. Last week during
a lecture of mine, a student decided it would
be easier to take a quick photo of each and
every slide rather than take notes. It was
obnoxious, unnecessary, and uncool.
I’m with you on this one Whitney –
there’s a time and a place for the iPhone
camera, but the carefully composed shots
selective taken by an old expensive camera
will always be preferred.
~ Mikaela Griffith, Arts (MECO) IV
Eds:Thanks Mikaela – we’re glad to hear you
agreed with the opinion.That snap-happy
student is taking laziness to a whole new level.
We’re not sure whether to be impressed or mad.
LETTERS

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9
Comically
Incorrect
Harnsle Joo
I’m an Asian, devout
Christian, and more
right than left-
leaning. Long story short, I’m the potential
butt of the joke for almost every comedian
out there.
I love comedy and I rarely take anything
too personally, though I do have strong
feelings about the clear imbalances in what
society seems to deem fair game for ridicule
and politically incorrect.
I’m not denying that many of the jokes
we hear on stage about Asians, Christians
Real communities
face the axe –
just...
Georgia Hitch
When the federal
government’s National
Commission of Audit (CoA) released its
recommendations, my social media feeds and
email inbox were quickly flooded with angry
and impassioned responses.The five volume
report suggested restricting the allocation of
government funds to a number of services,
including (perhaps not surprisingly)
Medicare, the aged pension, and the National
Disability Insurance Scheme.
While these recommendations generated
plenty of attention, another area of the
report was almost entirely overlooked: the
suggestion to cut all funding to Australian
community radio. Fortunately the Abbott
Government opted not to swing the axe –
the total abolishment of the Department of
Communications’ Community Broadcasting
program did not occur and as a result
thousands of community radio stations
nationwide will remain in operation.
and conservatives can be considered funny
– but when the jokes, stereotypes, and
sometimes unfair caricatures are repeatedly
aimed at some groups, more regularly than
others, I think that there is a slight problem.
Remember blackface? Back in the day it
was one of most popular sources of comedic
entertainment.These days when it appears
it is duly met with criticism and labelled as
racist.Yet we still have comedians imitating
Chinese accents or squinting their eyes, and
we say that it’s just “in good humour”.
One of my favourite comedians, Joel
Creasy, got away with characterising
Christians as “maniacally fisting…to
Antiques Roadshow” but you rarely hear
comedians take a similar crack at many other
If community radio is safe for now,
why should I care? Well, the
answer is simple.The threat
of a funding cut regularly
rears its ugly head, and
the CoA indicates key
misunderstandings
which are influencing
the decisions of policy
makers at the highest
levels.These must be
addressed and rectified.
The CoA suggestion
was based on the tenuous
justification that the government
already spends $1billion a year on the
public broadcasters – ABC and SBS.This
decision to lump in community broadcasters
with their government owned and run
counterparts demonstrates a complete
lack of understanding of the purpose of
community radio – something you would
hope they would understand before even
considering to shut the entire sector down.
In addition to being a wonderful
platform for people of all ages to become
involved with broadcasting, the beauty of
community stations is that they stand as a
point of difference from both public and
commercial broadcasters.
These stations give
listeners a unique alternative
to the mainstream outlets
and speak for otherwise
neglected or overlooked
communities around
the country: from JOY
FM in Melbourne giving
voice to gay and lesbian
communities, Radio for
the Print and Handicapped
(RPH) providing those
with reading difficulties and
the blind access to newspaper and
magazine reading services, or the many
Sydney stations such as Eastside FM, 2SER
and FBi Radio.
The kicker to this whole situation is that
community stations are run off the smell
of an oily rag.With most surviving on the
donation of time, money and baked goods
of dedicated volunteers, if there was ever a
sector that both truly needed and deserved
its small amount of allocated government
funding it’s the troopers in community radio.
Georgia Hitch is the host of ‘Up For It’ on
Sydney community radio station FBi 94.5FM
religions, and when they do, they’re usually
criticised heavily.
We laugh at jokes about Kyle Sandilands’
weight and appearance but it will probably
never be ok to do the same to Jackie O. Jokes
about anyone right-of-centre being elitist,
racist and a sexist seem to be the norm, but
we hardly hear the same sort of jokes about
those who are left-of-centre. Either all of
these jokes should be labelled offensive, or
none at all.
Some of my favourite comedians are
the biggest perpetrators, like Wil Anderson
and Joel Creasy. I absolutely love them, but
I can’t help but ponder if their jokes and
shows have come to reflect an inherent
imbalance in social standards.
OPINION
Issue 04
OPINION
The kicker
to this whole
situation is that
community stations
are run off the
smell of an
oily rag

With June rapidly approaching, millions of
football fans across the globe are preparing to
watch what they believe is the world’s greatest
game, hosted in its spiritual home: the 2014
FIFA World Cup Brazil.
When the country was first confirmed as
host of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in October
2007, television news cameras captured scenes
of jubilation. Many Brazilians were adamant that
the country had been rewarded for its strong
development and others were simply overjoyed
to have the tournament return to their country
for the first time since 1950.
But just six years later, the celebrations
were a distant memory when the 2013 FIFA
Confederations Cup (essentially a dress rehearsal
for the tournament) was marred by violent
protests on the streets of Brazil.
These protests were sparked by a rise
in public transport prices, the last straw in
a series of grievances, many of which sound
all too familiar in the aftermath of the Sochi
2014 Winter Olympics: government corruption;
the forced removal of favela (slum) dwellers;
the failure to address a substandard education
and health care system; and, ultimately, the
decision to spend $US22.8 billion in public
funds on stadiums in a nation that lacks basic
infrastructure in some of its largest cities.
In light of the protests and these concerns,
and with the FIFA World Cup looming and the
2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro
on the horizon, a troublesome question remains:
What kind of legacy will these sporting events
leave for Brazil?
“I think that any country hosting a mega
event is taking a huge risk,” says Robert Baade,
a sports economics expert at Lakeforest College
in Chicago. “In the case of Brazil, the problems
have been exacerbated by social unrest when
people begin to realise the sacrifices required to
host these events.”
“There is not only a sacrifice in terms of tax
dollars but sacrifices in terms of educational
opportunities, higher costs, and in general
diminished social services,” says Baade, “so I
think there is a real disenchantment in Brazil
with the World Cup.”
But organisers and officials remain positive.
Aldo Rebelo, Brazil’s Sports Minister, has argued
that despite these concerns there was a strong
reason for awarding Brazil the World Cup and
Olympics two years apart, as reported by Time.
11Issue 04
FEATURE
Jonathan Mimo investigates the potential legacy for the world’s biggest sporting event in Brazil.
“I think [the world] was basically saying that a
country that today has the sixth largest economy in
the world, democracy and international policies, has
what it takes to host aWorld Cup and Olympics,”
said Rebelo, adding, “not only when it comes to
material matters but also spiritual ones.”
FIFA officials have also pointed to the fact
that Brazilian fans have applied for tickets in
“huge numbers” and claim, “most Brazilians are
in favour of the country hosting the tournament.”
According to the Brazilian Ministry of
Sports, the overall economic impact was to
exceed US$100 billion with 332,000 permanent
jobs created and 381,000 temporary jobs being
available in 2014. Based on these figures and the
promise of a $US400 billion plan to overhaul
the nation’s airports, roads, subways and urban
bus systems, the bids for the World Cup and
Olympics received strong public support.Yet
most of these promises have been delayed,
cancelled or reduced in scope.
“I think that of course the government and
other boosters are arguing that this will be an
incredible boost for the Brazilian economy and
for all the cities that are going to accommodate
the game,” says Baade. “But I think the citizens
of Brazil are becoming increasingly unconvinced
and neither are people in the academic community
who are looking at it dispassionately and from an
objective point of view.”
One such academic,Victor Matheson,
an economics professor at the College of the
Holy Cross in Massachusetts, believes mega-
sporting events overall have a negative net
impact on host cities.
“Brazil has roughly spent $28 billion combined
that could have been, and should have been, put
to much better uses,” says Matheson.
“The $600 million they spent on a white-
elephant stadium in Brasilia could have purchased
lots of lower cost bus tickets with this being the
event that sparked the first protests in Brazil
last spring.”
Matheson argues that mega-sporting events
like the FIFA World Cup or the Olympics are
underpinned by mega-public subsidies, which
drive unsustainable overconsumption based
on the short-term imperative of private capital
accumulation at the expense of society as a whole.
“Brazil has focused its efforts on preparing
its cities for a small, short-lived influx of foreign
tourists instead of promoting living standards for
the typical resident,” says Matheson.“These events
will leave a legacy of debt with little to show for
it in the medium and long-run.”
However, Dr John Mikler from the
Department of Government and International
Relations at the University of Sydney is more
optimistic. “Culturally, it is wonderful in terms
of bringing the nation together. But if you break
down what Brazil’s problems are, what Brazil
needs, it won’t be provided by these one-off events.”
Dr Mikler cites the Sydney Olympics as
an example of a mega-sporting event that had
a positive legacy. He says it put “Sydney on
the map.” However, he also warns that the
Brazilian World Cup and Olympics could go
down the path of the Athens Olympics with their
preparation, highlighting endemic issues within
Greek governance.
“The key thing you are presuming is a
functioning government, which Brazil has, but
the question is will this transform to a greater
capacity of governance and the capacity of the
state to perform a more guiding role in the
development and wellbeing of Brazil.”
It is possible then, that these events will be
remembered not in terms of their economic
impact but rather the unrest in the community it
has created.
But Brazilian national David Sanchez would
rather remember it for the football, which he
believes could unite the country and its people.
“People are very enthusiastic or very angry
about Brazil hosting the World Cup but when
that first ball is kicked off, the nation will unite
behind the Seleção,” says Sanchez. “You cannot
hide our love of football.”
However, Baade warns about the consequences
if the Brazilian national team does not do well in
the tournament.
“I really fear that if the Brazilian team does
not do well then things are going to really turn
south… we really need to hope that they do well,”
says Baade.
“If the national team does well, then a lot of
sins will be forgiven. However if they do not do
well then I’m concerned it is going to magnify what
they have experienced already in terms of problems.”
“There is a lot riding in terms of the outcome
and an inordinate amount of pressure on the
Brazilian national team.”
Time will only tell what legacy these mega-
sporting events will have for Brazil. More than
likely, these events will show the country still has
a long way to go.

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Issue 04
FEATURE
13
The
modern
Debutante
Mary Ward explores what place this
traditional coming of age ritual
has in modern society.

14 bull usu.edu.au
FEATURE
Alyssa has just paid a successful visit
to Brides of Beecroft in Sydney’s
northern suburbs.
The gown is a sweetheart neckline
number. A traditional white, it’s tight with
a bodice covered with a sheer, floor-length
chiffon skirt, which falls from a simple
beaded belt around the waist.
“I was never a fan of the big ‘prom
style’ dresses,” she says. “And I knew
I liked strapless.”
In between dress shopping, drawing
up her final guest list and waltzing lessons
(which the part-time dance teacher is
proud to report she is acing) it’s a wonder
that the HSC student has any time to
study, let alone fulfil her duties as school
vice-captain.
But Alyssa isn’t planning to walk down
the aisle any time soon. In fact, she isn’t even
in a relationship. Alyssa is one of twenty-odd
girls at her school who are currently busily
preparing to be formally introduced to
society. Alyssa is a modern debutante.
Since the mid-20th Century, debutante
balls have been on the out. Replaced by
nightclubs and Arts degrees, the former
marriage market of the upper class has
increasingly faced obsolescence.
Even the English Court decided to get rid
of their debs, with Queen Elizabeth II
abolishing the ceremony in 1958.
And yet, if you squint and tilt your
head slightly to the right, you will find the
institution of the debutante being celebrated
by schools, cultural clubs and other
community groups across both regional and
metropolitan Australia.
Alyssa’s co-educational school in
Sydney’s Hills District has been offering the
debutante ball toYear 12 female students for
as long as she can remember. “My mum and
I have been looking forward to my turn to be
a debutante for years,” she says.
While traditional debutante balls can
still be found in some parts of the world –
Dubai’s London Season Ball made headlines
when it was established by a group of UAE
expatriates last year – the modern debutante
is a slightly more progressive affair.
The white dresses remain except, rather
than being presented as a pure marriage
prospect to a ballroom of potential suitors,
the debutantes invite partners to the event.
As the vice-captain of her school, Alyssa
thought it would be appropriate to ask her
fellow-vice captain to the ball. “He loved
the idea of going to the debutante ball –
he actually asked me if I would let him
be my partner!”
A Matron of Honour (or Guest of
Honour) is present, but they are more likely
to be an esteemed member of the community
than a professional matchmaker.
Many modern debutante balls also raise
money for a particular charity.This is the
case at the Sutherland Shire’s Mayoral Ball,
the only remaining council-run debutante
ball in Australia.
The Mayoral Ball can be traced back to
Sutherland Shire’s Presidential Cabaret Ball,
a ball organised in 1940 to raise funds for
the war effort. In more recent years, the
event has raised more than $400,000 for
charities such as the Save the Children Fund,
Boys Town, Sutherland Shire Rural Bush Fire
Services, and last year’s charity Sutherland
Shire Family Services.
This year’s ball will support the St
George and Sutherland Medical Research
Foundation.
While the tradition of the debutante is
still followed, Sutherland Shire Mayor Steve
Simpson says the focus is on seeking out
“I hope to gain
greater skills in
presenting myself
in public and how
I should act as
a young woman.”

Issue 04
FEATURE
15
sponsorship from local businesses
and community groups to support the
Ball’s chosen charity.
“They work really hard to get
ready for the Ball, and are rightly proud
of themselves for their fundraising
achievements and the ability to be in the
spotlight on the night in front of family
and friends and their school community,”
he says.
“It provides a great social event for the
community each year and a way for the
students to give back to their community.”
Caitlin made her debut three years ago
at a ball for senior students organised by her
co-educational independent high school.
It was a long-standing tradition at
the school, and an event that the speech
pathology student had wanted to participate
in since she was a young girl.
However, not all of her peers were
supportive of her choice.
“A particular person said that it
was a misogynistic practice and that we
were basically selling out our gender by
participating,” she says.
Though, Caitlin thinks that those who
criticise the institution of the debutante
are reading too far into the event.
“It was all about the girls,” she stresses.
“Even though we needed to take a partner,
it was clear that we were being promoted
as independent women. I don’t think getting
dressed up and having a nice evening meant
that we were being patronised or reducing
our standards.”
While Alyssa hasn’t experienced
any principled objections to her debutante
preparations, some people have commented
on the amount of time and money spent on
just one night.
“A few family friends held the opinion
that the deb ball was not worth the
expenses,” she says. “However, if anyone
was critical it was my older sister – only out
of pure jealousy because she didn’t have the
opportunity at her senior school.”
As her parents’ only daughter, Caitlin
was also the first child in her family to make
her debut.They supported her throughout
the whole process, which Caitlin views
primarily as a community event for the
school’s families.
“It gave them the opportunity to socialise
with other families from school. It was
actually a really nice family occasion.”
And, for all of the pomp and ceremony
that came with the ball, there were times
when it could have been mistaken for the
generic Year 12 formal the school held later
in the year.
After the girls had been introduced to
the Matron of Honour, eaten dinner and
performed their waltz – Caitlin rates the
ability to waltz as one of the most important
skills she gained from making her debut –
the night became like any other big party.
“We had a fun, muck-around dance as
a whole group, then we just danced for the
rest of the night,” she says.
“It was just a fun evening to share with
all the special people in our lives.”
Alyssa will make her debut in June, after
three months of preparation. But, after the
dress has been worn its requisite once, the
waltzes have been danced, the photos taken
and the night ended, what is the modern
debutante left with?
“I hope to gain greater skills in presenting
myself in public and how I should act as a
young woman,” she says. “As well as greater
confidence in myself.”
Images courtesy of trbimg.com
and etiquipedia.blogspot.com.au

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Issue 04
INTERVIEW
17
She’s been described as ‘rude, clever and
hilarious’ by critics, has declared her war
on ‘inspiration porn’, and performed an
accessibility audit on her local strip of shops
at the age of 14. StellaYoung is equal parts
comedian, journalist and disability advocate,
and has been making waves in the last
couple of years with her irreverence and
sheer determination to make a change.
It was only five years ago that Stella
entered Raw Comedy, Melbourne
International Comedy Festival’s amateur
comedy competition. Her friend George
is a wheelchair user and had previously
competed in the contest and encouraged
her to give it a whirl.
“Whenever I’m in public, people
will want to engage with me and ask me
questions and there’s a feeling of having to
be ‘on’ all the time.When I was in my early
20s, I kind of started to get annoyed about
that so I decided that if people were going to
stare at me all the time, I was going to spend
at least some of that time on a stage with
a microphone in my hand.They can stare,
but they also have to listen,” she says.
And thank goodness for George – Stella
reached the state finals that year and has
been lighting up the local comedy scene
ever since. Her debut show, Tales From
The Crip, featured at this year’s Melbourne
International Comedy Festival and has
earned her a Best Newcomer award and
critical acclaim.
As her show’s name suggests, Stella
isn’t interested in tip-toeing around the
issue of disability. Rather, she brings it to
the forefront of every show. As Stella
explains, “Comedy is a good way for me
to vent my frustrations about inequality.
One of my favourite parts of performing is
coming out on stage and telling the able-
bodied people in the audience how brave and
inspirational they are for being out and about.
That’s something us disabled people hear all
the time, but no-one thinks it’s ridiculous
until you turn the tables and patronise non-
disabled people for no reason at all.”
As well as being a provoking comedian,
StellaYoung is also a prominent journalist
and disability advocate. She is the editor
of ABC’s Ramp Up, an online platform
dedicated to the news and discussion of
and about disability.
‘Practising pride in the face of exclusion’
was an article Stella wrote earlier this year
which was published on Ramp Up, and
makes note of the insincere use of the word
‘inclusion’. She reveals just how many times
her well-meaning friends and colleagues
have invited her to parties and only upon
her arrival, has she realised that the party is
inaccessible. In her article, Stella highlights
the failings of institutions when it comes to
disability and how these are rarely raised
in the public discourse. In doing so, her
article attracted a mass reader response
with people engaging with and sharing their
own experience of this artificial ‘inclusion’.
Reading the comments, one realises just how
geared our society is towards providing for
the able-bodied over those who are disabled.
Late last month, Stella was able to
bring these ideas and more to one of
the world’s most esteemed discussion
forums,TEDxSydney. Stella enlightened
the audience of 2,200 people about why
‘inspiration porn’ is so cringe worthy and
why sometimes a positive attitude isn’t
enough, contrary to popular, social media
fuelled belief. She points out how many
times pictures of disabled people carrying
out ordinary tasks are posted and shared
with tacky ‘inspirational’ captions.
She told the TEDx audience, “I want
to live in a world where a 15-year-old girl
watching Buffy theVampire Slayer in her
bedroom until all hours of the night isn’t an
inspiration just because she’s doing it sitting
in a wheelchair.”
“We are taught that disability is a deficit.
This prejudice is so ingrained in our culture
that it feels uncomfortable to question it.”
But questioning it is exactly what Stella
encourages.Through her work withYouth
Disability Advocacy Service, she has helped
to establish the LiveAccess project, which
advocates for better access to live music
venues. As a member of the Victorian
Disability Advisory Council, the Ministerial
Advisory Council for the Department of
Victorian communities and Women With
Disabilities Victoria, Stella is able to keep in
touch with all that is happening in the world
of disability action.
If there is one theme that runs through
all of Stella’s comedic, journalistic and
advocacy work it’s that she wants to change
the way disabled people are viewed in
society. “I want to see disabled people on
television, in magazines, on the radio.There
are voices that need to be heard and stories
that need to be told.We’ve been locked out
for far to long.”
“Disability does not make you
exceptional. But questioning what you think
you know about it does.”
KATIE DAVERN
Interview
STELLA YOUNG

bull usu.edu.au
FEATURE
18
Villa
woodSurviving Detention

Eden Caceda visits our most notorious detention centre to find it IS not as his family remembers it.
Issue 04
FEATURE
19
Forty years ago my grandparents arrived in this country
escaping the economic and political upheaval of 1970s
Argentina.The prospects of a similar military coup, as seen
in Chile on 11 September 1973, were very high and my
grandparents, like many other South Americans of that time,
fled to the promising land of Australia. Arriving in Sydney
on a cloudy morning with three young daughters and three
suitcases, they were settled into one of Sydney’s three migrant
hostels: East Hills, Randwick and Villawood.
Migrants never understood why they ended up
in different hostels. My grandparents were moved
into East Hills while many other members of the
South American community were put into
Villawood. As a young child my mother
remembers visiting family friends at
Villawood and overhearing stories
about torture, kidnappings and
disappearances from the refugees
within the centre.
Four years ago, an Afghani
architect, Omar*, escaped the
country’s civil unrest, fleeing to
Indonesia before paying $10,000 to
be smuggled by boat into Australia.
However, on the fifteenth day of a 21-
day voyage, with no water and little food
left, the Navy intercepted the boat and he
was sent to Christmas Island for four months,
before being transferred to Villawood, where he
remains today.
Opening in 1949,Villawood was the largest migrant hostel
in Australia. A great symbol for multiculturalism and acceptance
after World War II, it contained accommodation, dining halls, a
TV hut, movie hall, recreation hall, sports ground, classrooms,
childcare centre, shop and a post office. But, the arrival of the
first refugees in ‘76 saw a new mentality arise, and refugees
were anything but innocent victims seeking asylum to escape
war, persecution or natural disaster.They were to be treated
with extreme suspicion and imprisoned.This ushered in a new
era of treatment for refugees as the hostel closed and reopened
as Villawood Immigrant Detention Centre (IDC) in ‘84, a place
of unwarranted oppression, a far cry from the former hub of
acceptance that welcomed my grandparents just eight years earlier.
The issue of asylum seekers – by definition: people who are
seeking international protection but whose claim for refugee
status has not yet been determined – has divided the Australian
political landscape.With the United Nations (UN) estimating
there are 42.5 million people displaced by persecution and
conflict worldwide, the relatively affluent Australia is looked
to fulfill not only their obligations as a signatory to the UN’s
Convention to the Status of Refugees (1951), but also a moral
duty to these displaced asylum seekers. In 2011 only 0.7 per
cent of the world’s refugees were resettled and currently
Australia is doing very little to help the cause.
From the time of my mother’s arrival in Australia to now,
the attitudes towards these refugees have changed significantly;
slogans like ‘We’re full’ and ‘Keep the terrorists out’ have been
adopted, consequently rejecting the idea of refugees seeking
safety as a necessary human right.
Globally, Australia is ranked 47th for hosting
refugees according to the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Currently the UN resettles 20,000 people
with a legal refugee status each year in
Australia, and so our country is listed
in the top three nations most likely
to accept a legal refugee. However,
for the asylums seekers who aren’t
able to apply to the UN, those
whose refugee status won’t be
approved by our government,
and those who need to escape
and seek protection immediately –
Australia does not welcome them.
In 2012, Australia accounted for just
over a mere 3 per cent of the global share
of asylum seeker applications.That year,
there were 17,202 arrivals of asylum seekers in
Australia by boat.While this may seem like a large
number of refugees, according to the UNHCR 23,000
people leave their homes each day.
For the past ten years, the influx of people in Villawood
have been refugees arriving by boat, among people who have
overstayed their visa permit or had it cancelled because of
failure to comply with visa conditions.What has brought the
most attention to the centre are the numerous accusations
of human rights violations. In 2008, the Human Rights and
Equal Opportunity Commission said the high security section
of the detention centre was ‘prison like’ and demanded it be
closed immediately.
It was an overcast Sunday afternoon when I visited Villawood
IDC. She strolled in before me on light feet, buried under
plastic boxes of her own homemade food, greeting me cheerfully
with: “you could’ve gone in without me, you know.” Marlene
Carrasco is a refugee activist, running the group Advocates for
Refugees in Sydney, having migrated to Australia during the same
Chilean coup of ‘73 as my grandparents. She visits every Sunday
with her own group, and this weekend, I decided to join her.
the number
of suicides in IDCs
in the last 18 months
suggests that suicide rates
may be at least ten times
in excess of the general
Australian rate

bull usu.edu.au
FEATURE
20
The security guards referred to Carrasco by name, and she
greeted them without the bitterness I expected from one who
is fighting so passionately against the institution. Our phones
and recording devices were confiscated as we were scanned for
anything we might be trying to smuggle in.
Carrasco is dedicated to giving a face and a voice to asylum
seekers. “Australians need to understand that these are people
in this centre too,” Carrasco tells me, as we enter the facility.
Passing through the outside seating area, Carrasco asked a
young man how he was, to which his reply was “alive”. “Building
relationships between these people is what I aim to do,” she said
as I sat down with Omar in the common room.
“Congratulations,” I said; he had just gotten married on the
Wednesday to a woman outside.They had fallen in love during
her many trips to the detention centre as a volunteer, and after
two and a half years, he proposed to her.The ceremony, only
allowed on a weekday, was attended by 80 people including
detainees and the general public. He is only allowed
to see his wife during visiting hours and until
his application for asylum is accepted,
this will be the extent of his marital
relationship with her. His friend,
Hassan*, is also getting married the
next week to another volunteer.
When I spoke to Hassan I
asked him if he had concerns
about marrying someone he
couldn’t spend time with every
day. “I love her. I don’t want
to stop just because she is
outside and I am inside. I can
live too,” he told me, a testament
to his resilient optimism against
the seemingly glum direction our
government has taken towards asylum
seekers like him.
“I just wait day by day, until someone
can tell me I can leave,” said Budi*, an
Indonesian asylum seeker who has been detained
for two years. He was particularly happy when Carrasco
arrived, greeting her warmly. “I’ve been here for four years.
Nothing has really changed. I just wait and I can’t do anything,”
said Omar, as we share some food Carrasco brought in to share
with all his friends.
As I spoke to the detainees, it became apparent that little has
changed in the stories my mother heard from Villawood Migrant
Hostel in 1974, and the stories of asylum seekers in Villawood
IDC today. Even Carrasco herself recalls the stories shared
when coming to Australia with many refugees. “I heard about
the torture and death my family witnessed and I have never been
able to erase it from my memory.”
Carrasco soon highlighted that many of the refugees aren’t
in control of their lives and that’s where many of them struggle
inside the centre – from what they eat to their sleeping schedule
to what their future holds.The statistics seem to reflect this as
an issue of mental health for asylum seekers, which has resulted
in a number of suicides, suicide attempts and self-harm inside
Villawood IDC. According to Suicide Prevention Australia
in a report to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity
Commission, the number of suicides in IDCs in the last 18
months suggests that suicide rates may be at least ten times in
excess of the general Australian rate, and three times that of
young adult men, the age and sex group at highest risk.
After a long few hours hearing the travel stories of these
detainees and how little happens in their current lives, I left
feeling emotionally exhausted. It was sad walking through the
gates back to the promising land my grandparents were given
and leaving behind these men and women who were promised
the same yet treated differently.
In early April over 60 protestors and activists clashed with
police outside Villawood IDC as a number of detainees
were transferred on buses to the Western Australia IDC in
Curtin, with the government citing “construction work” for
moving them. Marlene was among the protestors. So too was
University of Sydney student and activist Clo Schofield, who
says the transfer was a deliberate move to isolate detainees
from their support networks. “Asylum seekers
are being shifted away from metropolitan
centres, where they are intermingled
with citizens and have access to
adequate services, and being
placed in areas rural, remote
and offshore,” said Schofield.
Schofield described
the protest as “immensely
disturbing”, condemning
the excessive use of police
violence towards the activists.
“They twisted the wrists of
arrestees, dragged them along
the ground and unnecessarily
body-slammed non-violent
protestors.” University of Sydney
student Brigitte Garozzo, who
was also there that day, had her wrist
dislocated by police. “We were distressed,
the people being forcibly transferred were
distressed, and the police were using excessive force.
We were sleep deprived, the people on the buses were
holding their cuffed hands above their heads, and victims
of police violence were screaming and crying. It was hard,”
Schofield commented.
A member of Students Thinking Outside Borders,
a politically independent refugee ally group, Schofield
promotes the use of the term ‘Future Australians’ to refer
to asylum seekers, refugees, boat people and detention
survivors. “To us they are not the stamp that the Department
of Immigration and Border Protection places upon them; their
journeys are their own and do not need bureaucratic, officious
validation…Together we’re creating the world we want to live
in, and that’s one where people fleeing persecution can be safe,
flourish and grow old.”
Among some of the asylum seekers transferred were
people who had spouses, partners, close friends, and allies
living in the area. Allegedly one of the asylum seekers to
be transferred was previously a detainee at Curtin, but was
moved to Villawood due to the necessity for access to mental
health facilities. Speaking out about the protests and asylum
“I just wait day by day,
until someone can tell
me I can leave.”

Issue 04
FEATURE
21
seeker rights to media, Schofield was still getting abusive calls
from 2GB listeners about her comments. “I received 14 abusive
phone calls, and there have been a number of nasty comments
directed at [the Students Outside of Borders] blog.There is
a small intense minority still not against the treatment of
asylum seekers.”
The University of Sydney Anti-Racism Collective (ARC)
were also at the blockade against the forced removals from
Villawood IDC. Having been involved in a number of rallies
promoting asylum seeker rights and guaranteed resettlement in
Australia, the ARC is a student organisation standing for a pro-
refugee campus and believe that a just refugee policy can only
begin by welcoming the boats.
Schofield, also a member of the ARC, has too been inside the
walls of Villawood IDC. “Villawood is disturbing both in how
normal it is, and how absurd. People often feel really traumatised
after leaving Villawood. It’s hard to see people who have been
through so much, trapped, restless and uncertain of their futures.
But it’s not a zoo, and they aren’t a spectacle,” Schofield commented.
With the plight of asylum seekers worsening as more conflict
continues elsewhere and reluctance to accept refugees is
growing, further exemplified by new political policies, public
support continues to build from refugee groups to universities to
families. But it must not stop there. “It is the responsibility of all
Australian citizens to listen to the voices from inside detention
centres, reject these brutal laws and to stand up against these
policies. I think that there are many different ways to resist the
ALP and the LNP’s horrific human rights abuses, and many
ways to support people in detention. Not all of these ways are
protest, and not everyone should choose protest as a method of
resistance and compassion,” said Schofield.
A month ago, my family celebrated 40 years since being
welcomed into Sydney. My grandparents, who are 81 and 86,
live happily today with six grandchildren who are proud young
Australians, including me. But while the phrase “For those
who’ve come across the seas, we’ve boundless plains to share”
is still included in the second verse of the Australian national
anthem, until Australia truly opens its doors to refugees and
asylum seekers from around the world, whether by boat or plane,
I will refuse to sing those lines.
* Names have been changed
Image courtesy of naa.gov.au
Image courtesy of IanWaldie/Getty Images
Image courtesy of smh.com.au

bull usu.edu.au
TASTE
22
Science and Ice Cream Meet
Rachel McGinty
Do you even gelato? The concept is simple
enough – liquid nitrogen apparently makes
for good ice cream. According to their
website, N2 Extreme Gelato is ‘a cross breed
of science and art creating a microstructure
of ice crystals, air bubbles, fat droplets and
a vicious solution of sugars, polysaccharides
and milk protein’. But what about the liquid
Nitrogen part, is it safe to eat? It is, even
though it sounds like something your science
teacher kept locked in the back cupboard,
only to be brought out when everyone was
head to toe in a hazmat suit.
So how does this gastronomy work?
Is this just another victim of genetic
modification? No! Using liquid nitrogen,
the gelato plays on the strength of a
phenomenon called nucleation-dominated
ice crystallisation (say that four times
really fast).This forms a large number
of microscopic ice crystals in a matter of
seconds, which results in a smooth creamy
texture to indulge in. Also, because the
nitrogenised ice cream sits at a colder
temperature to normal ice cream, the
coldness accentuates any flavours once it hits
the warm tongue. In other, more exciting
words, a flavour explosion! To add to the
science feel, it even comes with a chocolate-
filled syringe – my kind of drug!
Whilst the science behind N2 might be
enough to get you there, the incredible
taste of their gelato should really be enough.
Served straight from the mixer, the gelato is
made to order so it’s not as fast as your usual
scoop-and-go type of places. But N2’s set-
up should be enough to keep you entertained
while you wait.The staff resembles a group
of mad scientists dressed in white coats and
glasses, busily mixing and creating in their
lab-like workspace with steel benches and
Perspex surroundings.Then there’s the price
tag, which is perfect for the poor university
students we are. At $6 a scoop, there’s truly
enough to leave you satisfied and best of all,
the place shuts at 11pm so you can tackle
your late-night sugar craving head on.
The menu rotates weekly, delivering
innovative and tasty flavours such as butter
popcorn and crème brûlée. For the true
devotees of the Heston Blumenthal craze of
molecular gastronomy, N2 provides flavours
for the highbrow, adventurous types such
as Salt and Pepper Calamari. Made from
milk gelato with Szechuan pepper and sea
salt, topped with dehydrated calamari, it’s
definitely for the brave at heart.
I chose to go with the Ferrero Rocher
flavour, and the only way to explain it is by
adopting my best Matt Preston impression:
as I look down at my gelato, I begin to
salivate like a Pavlov dog, before I ruin this
liquid nitrogen madness in front of me. It
appears that to capture the delicate intricacy
of the humble Ferrero Rocher, there are
four components that N2 create. Inside the
cup sits a deliciously streaky concoction of
Nutella and hazelnut, with crumbled nutty
pieces to give texture against the sheer
smoothness of the gelato. Above the gelato
is what I can only describe as crunchy rice
bubble and chocolate topping to create
the ‘exterior’ of the Ferrero Rocher. My
favourite addition to this wacky gelato is the
chocolate ganache syringe, which allows you
to control how rich you want your gelato to
be, accompanied with a crispy wafer piece.
Eating it is a messy mission but
definitely worth it.Within five minutes, my
boyfriend and I sadly looked down at our
empty bowls and resigned ourselves to the
walk to Town Hall station to burn off this
latest, calorie-crazed indulgence.
TASTE
N2 Extreme Gelato
Top 5 Weirdest N2 Concoctions:
1. Potato and Gravy: Potato gelato with sea
salt chips mixed throughout and served
with a side of warm lamb gravy
2. Spam and Mustard: Spam gelato
topped with wholegrain mustard
3. Tofu: For the vegans amongst us
4. Oh my Guinness: You guessed it,
Guinness beer gelato topped with a gold
coin for St Patrick’s Day
5. Happy Little Vegemite: For the very
patriotic, try gelato with Vegemite and
butter SAO crackers

Tips for Surviving a Cruise
1. Stay at home – or, if you simply
must go…
2. Get an anti-nausea injection
Tablets were woefully insufficient
3. Drink I imagine it is the only thing
capable of making the entertainment
actually entertaining
4. Drink More
5. Commandeer a life raft and get
the hell out of there
Issue 04
GO
23
Booze n’ Snooze Cruise
Sean O’Grady
We’re at the halfway point of dinner.
I stand up and pause for a second and
compose myself. I reach for my suit jacket.
I miss.
The couple at a nearby table looks
at me. I try again, and I’m successful this
time. But the moment required to steady
myself at the conclusion of this arduous
task draws giggles.
“I’m not drunk,” I say as I force out
a congenial laugh and suppress the urge
to vomit. I don’t know why I am bothering
to explain myself to them.
“We wouldn’t care if you were,” they
respond in good nature as we share a few
more awkward chuckles.
When I start to walk away the ground
shifts from under my feet, and I lurch
heavily onto my left foot, nearly losing my
balance completely.The couple’s laughter is
more pronounced now.They definitely don’t
believe I am sober.
In fact, I was more sober than I would
have liked. A member of staff told my dad
that four cubic metres of glass and one cubic
metre of aluminium cans were disposed of
after our three days at sea.This was after
it was crushed and compacted in special
machines aboard the ship.The majority of it
being alcohol, I drew the conclusion that the
only way to have fun on a cruise was to be
well liquored.
GO
Sydney
The destination of our cruise was Sydney.
Our port of origin was also Sydney. I’d
made a paltry joke of this at dinner on the
first night. Perhaps the most sexist and
least funny stand-up comedian I have ever
encountered made the same joke at about
11:30pm. I left ‘the gig’ soon after.
Beyond the bout of insanity that saw
my mother book the trip to celebrate the
conclusion of my father’s sixth decade, I had
absolutely no reason or desire to be out at sea.
The opportunities for diversion on
board were as plentiful as they were
uninspired. Live ice sculpting, golf
competitions and trivia were all compared
by overly enthusiastic and unoriginal
members of staff.
Each night there was a variety of shows
and at each of them actors, musicians and
dancers took their cues before crowded
houses in contrived and asinine spectacles.
Veteran cruisers debated the merits of
an early or late dinner relative to the
entertainment they would be able to take in.
Were we not all trapped on a boat, I wondered,
would people want to watch this at all?
The word ‘posh’ has, as its origin, an
acronym. It once stood for ‘Port Out,
Starboard Home’, the side of the deck which
was most likely to be in shade, where the
wealthy would congregate as they travelled
to and from their colonial postings.
Of course at that point in history, the
trappings of food, booze and entertainment
had a purpose – to keep people entertained
as they journeyed between continents.
In spite of change for the better (read:
less colonialism and the invention of
aeroplanes) cruises and the entertainment
they offer still exist.
In a nod to a more genteel time,
we were asked to wear collared shirts
to dinner. However, a Hawaiian shirt
was sufficient. One group of men, well
into their autumn years, wore the same
Hawaiian shirts the whole weekend,
each with a bespoke pocket marking the
reunion of their “ ‘87 Booze n’ Snooze
Cruise”. Given that they and seemingly
everyone else on board began drinking
at 11am, and continued until they went
to bed, it seemed like an apt description.
Joining them in their drunken stupor
almost seemed like the best option.
But going back to my cabin to vomit
and count the hours until I could set
foot on dry land won out.

bull usu.edu.au
section heading
24 bull usu.edu.au
MOVE
24
Running Up Hills: The Playlist
1 ‘Household Goods’ – Totally Enormous
Extinct Dinosaurs
2 ‘Running to the Sea’ – Röyksopp
3 ‘Carried Away’ – Passion Pit
4 ‘Foreign Formula’ – Indian Summer
5 ‘Do You Feel The Same?’ – Hercules &
Love Affair
6 ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’ – Taylor Swift
(let’s not lie, everyone loves TSwizzle to
some extent)
7 ‘When A Fire Starts to Burn’ – Disclosure
8 ‘Hymn’ – His Majesty Andre
9 ‘Kickstarts’ – Example
10 ‘I Need Your Love’ (feat. Ellie Goulding) –
Calvin Harris
Get your heart rate up
GEORGIA HITCH
Winter (break) is coming. As the weather
begins to cool and the days get even shorter,
making yourself venture into the cold to get
that ‘recommended daily exercise’ can be
tough – especially on Mondays.
Whilst it might not be high on your to-do
list, throwing on your joggers and facing the
outdoors for a healthy dose of fresh air is
actually one of the best ways to clear not just
your lungs, but your brain too.
Hang on a tick, isn’t running supposed
to harm your joints?
For many years it was believed that the
repeated impact on your knees when running
was the lead cause of damage to the joints.
Good news! Despite misconceptions, studies
have proven that running actually increases
bone density. As a weight bearing activity,
running aids in the growth of bone
mineralisation and having healthy bones
means a decreased likelihood of getting
debilitating diseases like osteoarthritis later
in life. Not only will it help you keep up your
fitness now, but it’s looking out for future
you too.
Another advantage of running is its
impact on your mental health.The benefits
of setting aside specific time everyday to
escape your work to pound the pavement
does wonders for the chemicals up in your
noggin. Running has not only been proven
to stimulate hormones that relieve stress,
anxiety and depression, but it also causes
endorphins to flood your brain – it will
literally make you feel happy! Fun fact:
The NewYork Times thought in 2008 that
you could get high from running.
This is all good and well but if you’ve
ever attempted to start running from scratch
you’ve probably experienced a hideous
kind of chest pain and utter exhaustion that
makes you feel like you’re having a heart
attack. So why on earth would you ever want
to put yourself through that again? Although
it can definitely be hard at first, you only
need to get your heart rate up for 15 minutes,
three times a week to start increasing your
endurance. Just think how easy those stairs
up to Wentworth bridge from Redfern station
would be after a week!
If you’re having trouble staying
motivated because, let’s face it, everyone
has days when your bed’s warm and loving
embrace is just too good to give up, here are
a couple of tips and tricks to keep you on the
right track.
John Ryan, Personal Trainer and Fitness
Manager at the Hilton Sydney’s LivingWell
Health Club suggests, “If you really struggle
to break free of that comfy bed, set your
alarm and place it somewhere in your room
that you would have to get up and walk to to
stop that infernal tone and resist the urge to
snooze… and snooze... and snooze. It also
helps to get your running gear ready the
night before and neatly placed next to your
bed or within reaching distance.”
As students, a lot of whom are often
hard pressed for time, it’s also dangerously
easy to start making excuses and let the
dust begin to collect on your flashy Nikes.
It’s important to know, however, that not
every run has to be a two-hour marathon.
MOVE
RUNNING
If you’ve only got a limited amount of
time during the day to dash outside while
your TV show of choice finishes buffering/
streaming/downloading, then be sure to
give interval running training a whirl.
Interval running recommendations from
Ryan are to break down your nearest hill or
closest stretch of slight gradient into three
sections. Ryan suggests that you should jog
in section one, push up to 75 per cent of
your maximum pace in section two and
“the third – flat out!” Going down the hill
will give you time to recover before you
repeat it all again. Ryan’s pro tip #365:
“Ensure you have warmed up and stretched
down before and after all of your runs.”
Most importantly, when it comes to
running, the best thing to do is to experiment
until you find a style that you like. If you
enjoy it, your dedication is much less likely
to wane. So, what are you waiting for?

Issue 07
section heading
25
DEBUNKING THE MYTHS
TANG LI
If I were to ask you what you thought about
pit bulls, I’m fairly certain your answer won’t
contain the words ‘affectionate’, ‘loyal’ or
‘obedient’. Much of the blame for this can be
placed on the media’s misrepresentation of
pit bulls, which has caused the perpetuation
of bully breed myths.
However, according to the American
Temperament Test Society, 82.5 per cent
of pit bulls pass standardised temperament
tests, passing fourth out of the highest 122
breeds.This is compared to an average 77
per cent pass rate, which includes ‘family
dogs’ such as the Border Collie, Beagle and
Golden Retriever.
It’s important to note that the pit bull
is not actually a breed but rather a type of
dog that encompasses a myriad of breeds
with strikingly similar characteristics.These
include the Staffordshire Bull Terrier,
American Pit Bull Terrier, American
Staffordshire Terrier, and approximately 25
other breeds that are commonly categorised
as ‘pit bulls’.
Like any breed, proper socialisation
and training at a young age is imperative
for a dog’s temperament and overall mental
health. A common myth derives from the
history of breeding pit bulls to become dog
fighters and bull baiters, but this is a small
component of the breed’s history.While
some may carry the potential for aggressive
tendencies, the vast majority are far-removed
from the ‘fighting lines’ of their descendants.
Research conducted by the United States
The Pit Bull Rescue Central states that there
is no evidence that pit bulls are a riskier
adoption choice than any other breed. Of the
many abandoned dogs available in shelters,
bully breeds are among those most in need
of adoption.
So, maybe it’s time for the pit bull to be
better understood, not as a vicious animal,
but as a dog that can be as affectionate
as any other. Science confirms that the
pit bull isn’t as dangerous as we are led to
believe, and it seems that many other breeds
inhabit risky traits, frequently caused by
mistreatment and a lack of care from owners.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) revealed that no specific breed of
dog is inherently vicious. Most dog attacks
stem from the fact that their owners have
neglected them and failed to provide proper
socialisation and training, says the Director
of the National Canine Research Council,
Karen Delise.
Daniel Cung, President of the Animal
Welfare Society at the University of Sydney
said, “Like people, all dogs (including pit
bulls) have unique personalities and isolated
‘dog attack’ incidents shouldn't lead to
generalisations about an entire breed. Attacks
are more likely to be the result of how the dog
has been socialised, not because of a genetic
disposition towards aggressive behaviour.”
Recently, Barack Obama’s
administration came out against Breed-
Specific Legislation (BSL) where a number
of jurisdictions have enacted this type of
legislation as a knee-jerk reaction to highly
publicised reports on dog bites. Further
research by CDC shows that BSL is highly
ineffective and recommends alternatives
such as stricter enforcement of existing
dangerous dog laws and nuisance ordinances,
while encouraging animal welfare agencies to
provide responsible dog ownership seminars
and canine safety education.
In a press release, Glen Bui,Vice
President of the American Canine
Foundation said, “To make claim that the
American Pit Bull Terrier can cause more
severe injury than other breeds is ludicrous.
Over 30 breeds of dogs are responsible for
over 500 fatal attacks in the last 30 years,
where every victim was severely injured.”
LEARN
PIT BULLS
25Issue 04
LEARN
The six cutest mixed breed dogs:
1.Chusky: A cross between the Chow
Chow and Husky, this total fluff-ball looks
like a bundle of fun.
2. Cocker-Pei:What do you get when you
mix a Shar-pei and a Cocker Spaniel?
Absolute adorableness, that’s what.
3. Pomsky: Imagine the gorgeous fur of
a Husky on a tiny Pomeranian. If you
cross-breed these two, you won’t have
to imagine.
4. Horgi: Want to add a touch of royalty
to your strongly built Husky? Add a bit
of Corgi!
5. Goberian: Award for one of the most
gorgeous dogs would have to go to the
Goberian, a combination of Siberian Husky
and Golden Retriever, with its blue eyes
and gorgeous fur.
5. Bullpug: Pugs are arguably the cutest
dogs around, and if you combine it with
the roughness of an English Bulldog, it
is scientifically proven that the cuteness
increases tenfold.

bull usu.edu.au
section heading
26
HAVE YOU JOINED
A CLUB OR SOCIETY YET?
Pursue your interests and make new friends by getting involved with one
or more of the 200 clubs and societies on campus.Grab an ACCESS card
and head to usu.edu.au for the full list of clubs and societies.
The clubs and societies program is funded by the USU and the ACCESS program
You must have a valid ACCESS card to join clubs and societies at Sydney University

Issue 04
section heading
27
KIRSTY TIMSANS EXPLORES ALCOHOL
DEPENDENCY AND THE CONTROVERSY
SURROUNDING THE RIGHTS OF AN
UNBORN CHILD.

bull usu.edu.au
FEATURE
28
In the Phillips family there is a “no-blame policy”
following 18-year-old Morgan’s diagnosis with Fetal Alcohol
Spectrum Disorder (FASD) at 11 years of age – the result
of her mother’s heavy drinking during pregnancy.
In an interview with SBS’ Insight, Phillips recalled
her struggle with basic mathematics, reading, spelling and
handwriting that marred her education. “If I don’t understand
something, I have always just zoned out because I know I am
never going to understand it, but I have always just learnt to
nod and sort of pretend I am listening and I know what is
going on,” she said.
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, as the name suggests,
is a spectrum of disorders resulting from exposure to alcohol
in utero.The most severe disorder is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
which is made apparent by the physical abnormalities on the
exposed child’s face including an indistinct philtrum (the
area between the nose and upper lip), a thin upper lip and
narrow eye openings.These are usually caused by exposure
to alcohol during the first trimester when facial and major
organ development is occurring. Children without physical
abnormalities may encounter significant learning and
developmental problems related to vision, hearing, memory
and attention span.
In 2009, the National Health and Medical Research
Council guidelines were altered to state that there is no safe
level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. However,
it is estimated that 3000 babies are born in Australia with
FASD, though the WA Department of Health has advised
that this figure may be an underestimate due to screening
and diagnosis failures.
At present, FASD is not recognised as an official
disability in Australia making access to support difficult
at best. Perhaps this non-recognition stems from the
dominant public discourse that prescribes FASD as unique
to Indigenous communities. On the contrary, and as Sydney
University Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health and
Consultant Paediatrician at Westmead Children’s Hospital,
Elizabeth Elliott, told the Australasian FASD Conference in
November last year, “Indigenous and non-Indigenous women
drink about the same sorts and levels of alcohol in pregnancy.”
According to the results from the Australian Longitudinal
Study onWomen’s Health 2012/13, 82 per cent of Australian
women were still drinking alcohol during pregnancy, although
the majority were consuming at low levels.
Earlier this year, the Northern Territory Attorney-
General John Elferink announced the NT Government was
considering legislation that could result in the prosecution
of women for drinking whilst pregnant as they were infringing
on the rights of their unborn child.
In an interview with ABC’s Lateline, Elferink said,
“Here in the Northern Territory, we are currently exploring –
without pre-empting a cabinet decision – but we are currently
exploring the antenatal rights of the unborn child...either
prosecute or alternatively restrain [pregnant women] from
engaging in conduct which harms their unborn child.”
This is not the first time in Australia that legislation has
been considered to recognise the rights of the unborn child.
On Christmas Day in 2009, Brodie Donegan was out walking
when a driver under the influence of drugs crashed into her
and caused serious injuries – her baby did not survive.
This tragic incident inspired Zoe’s Law, a bill that
recognises the ‘personhood’ of a 20-week-old foetus.The bill
is presently delayed in the NSW Upper House, after it was
passed in the NSW Lower House in November 2013.This
delay is amid fears that such legislation awarding legal status
to the foetus will seriously infringe upon reproductive rights,
most notably, a woman’s right to an abortion.
Similarly, there is concern that this type of legislation will
subordinate maternal rights of bodily integrity and autonomy
in favour of foetal rights. In a series of written submissions
“It is extremely
worrying for me because
these women are victims...
the idea we would lock them
up because they didn’t
stop drinking during
pregnancy is scary.”

Issue 04
FEATURE
29
to the NSW Attorney-General,Women’s Legal Services
NSW declared its opposition stating any legislation that
prescribes rights to a foetus has the obvious potential to
undermine women’s reproductive autonomy. Likewise,
SRC Women’s Collective Officer Phoebe Moloney said,
“As soon as it is recognised the foetus has equal or
overriding rights to the mother...it lays the foundation for
an argument that [abortion] could be considered murder
in the law.”
Academics, too, refrain from support of foetal rights
legislation arguing it disadvantages those most in need of
protection: alcohol-dependent women who are at risk of
giving birth to a child with FASD. Sydney University
Professor in the Discipline of Addiction Medicine Kate
Conigrave said, “Women who are dependent on alcohol
find it very hard to stop in pregnancy. And the individuals
most likely to be dependent drinkers are those with social
problems and mental health problems... you are penalising
someone for their life circumstances and for a behaviour
that is recognised by the World Health Organisation as part
of a medical condition – alcohol dependence.”
Deputy Director of the Musculoskeletal Division at
The George Institute for Global Health and ARC Future
Fellow, Jane Latimer, was at the “coalface” of this issue as
she described it. Latimer participated in the Lililwan Project,
a research collaboration formed between health experts and
the Indigenous community to assess the prevalence of FASD
in Fitzroy Valley. “It is extremely worrying for me because
these women are victims... they’re the most vulnerable, they
live in over-crowded housing, [are victims of] domestic
violence and the idea we would lock them up because they
didn’t stop drinking during pregnancy is scary.”
Other ventures by the NSW Government in the
protection of the unborn include the altering of legislation that
would permit babies to be taken away from drug or alcohol-
dependent mothers, should they refuse treatment for their
addiction during pregnancy.
Under this new legislation, pregnant women suffering
from drug or alcohol abuse will be made to sign a Parental
Responsibility Contract (PRC) ordering them to attend
rehabilitation programs, seek counselling or other forms
of treatment.
Whilst PRCs already exist under the current system,
these contracts only apply once the child is born, thus allowing
dependent mothers to continue feeding their addiction during
pregnancy with dire consequences for their unborn child.
Although NSW Health does not record the number of
babies born with drug addictions, the John Hunter Hospital on
the Central Coast recorded that from 2008-2011, 238 babies
were born with drug addictions.
With heroin-addicted babies born every year numbering
in the hundreds, the Family and Community Services Minister
Pru Goward has said, “Parental Responsibility Contracts...
extending those to before the birth means we have the
opportunity to require a mum to go to a drug or alcohol
abstinence program (to) manage her addiction to ensure that
the baby has a much better chance of being born normal and
she has a much better chance of keeping her baby.”
Not unlike any debate about women’s reproductive rights,
this juggernaut is showing no signs of slowing down in the
near future.The understated prevalence of FASD as a result
of increasing numbers of alcohol-dependent pregnant
women in Australia is a pressing issue and doubtlessly needs
addressing. But if Elferink’s legislation is passed, one must
ask – at what cost? Can we be certain all other avenues
of address (i.e. prevention) have been exhausted? Or is
Australia on the brink of thrusting open the floodgates for
the criminalisation of other actions that may be construed
as ‘harming’ the unborn child?
“Indigenous and
non-Indigenous women
drink about the same sorts
and levels of alcohol
in pregnancy.”

MKT141
$75
MEMBERSHIPS
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Alexandra
Cunninghame
Expiry Dat31 December
2014

Issue 04
THE TIME I TRIED...
31
Tom Joyner will stare awkwardly
into your eyes
On New Year’s Day 1907, then President
of the United States Theodore ‘Teddy’
Roosevelt held a reception at the White
House. Seizing the opportunity, the
exuberant Roosevelt managed to shake
the hands of some 8,153 people before
the evening’s end, whereupon, we can
only imagine, he collapsed in exhaustion.
His record stood for 70 years, until Joseph
Lazarow (a mayor of Atlantic City, New
Jersey) surpassed him by almost 3,000
handshakes one afternoon in 1977.
We can learn two things from this.
First, history favours the bold and the
socially uninhibited. Second, even in the
face of absurdity, politicians will never pass
up an opportunity to press the flesh.
Shaking hands – that fumbled ritual, an
odd mix of intimacy and assertion where
your hand is sweaty, eye contact unfaltering,
and you are overcome with a desire to just
let go – is my greatest fear after sharks.
As far as social rituals go, shaking hands
is marginally better than bumping fists and
small talk, but comes in several places below
keeping your distance and offering a small,
polite wave.
After all, no war was ever started by
a small, polite wave.
This last week I pledged to avoid all
handshakes, though I should mention it has
not gone very well. Having spent much of
my adult life shaking the hands of everyone
I have met, agreed with, or congratulated,
a job interview over lunch one Tuesday
suddenly seemed like an inopportune time
to begin my experiment.
“Tom!” his face beamed as he proffered
his hand.We were standing close enough that
I could smell his sickly cologne and make out
the food stains on his lapel.
My face ashen, I was nervous. I didn’t
move. “A meet to pleasure you too.” (Shit!)
In a moment like this, five seconds can
seem like an eternity. Our eyes locked, one
hand awkwardly extended, my interviewer
slowly turned his gaze to something behind
my head in the middle-distance, and his
hand retreated to his pocket. Five more
seconds passed. My mind flashed back
through my most embarrassing teenage
memories, and I prayed silently for the
feeling to go away.
These things never do though, and
clasping your hands behind your back,
muttering aloud, and shutting your eyes
is not the best thing to do when you’re
interviewing for a job in customer service.
So how do you avoid a handshake?
This age-old question has gripped mankind
for millennia.What are we meant to do when
someone presents their hand? Or worse yet,
when someone swings their cupped hand
backwards in some kind of slow, expectant
arc, their face contorted, and determined
for you to do the same?
a) The Wet Fish. Go on, give them your
hand if that’s what they want. But don’t you
dare return their grip. Let it hang there and
stare into space – best to just ride this one out.
b) The Brick Wall.You don’t know them
and you certainly don’t know why they’re
offering their hand. Just pretend you’ve never
met, brush past them, and delete them from
Facebook when you get home. Crisis averted.
c) The Befuddled Grandparent. Just pull
a coin out of your pocket and place it firmly
into their outstretched palm. Don’t spend it
all at once!
It was precisely that slow, expectant arc
that I was faced with yesterday, at the end of
my week long experiment. Harry Di Giorgio
from high school made a beeline across
Eastern Avenue. His approaching hand
swung forth without remorse. I couldn’t
do it, so I did the worst thing imaginable:
I went for a high-five. Anyone who knows
anything about social interaction knows that
you don’t mix handshakes with high-fives.
Blushing, Harry made some comment about
needing to get to class and made a vague
commitment to message me sometime
before hurrying off in the other direction.
Crisis averted.
THE TIME I TRIED...
Not Shaking Hands

bull usu.edu.au
FEATURE
32
HANNAH EDENSOR CONFRONTS
THE LOSS OF A PARENT.
It was 4:40am when my mum died. I was holding
her hand while she lay still in the hospital bed.
Her breath was ragged, like she was swallowing
knives. She hadn’t opened her eyes in 17 hours.
I woke up my step-dad and sister, and we
took our turns saying goodbye. I wish now that
I had stayed longer, stood with her lifeless body
a few minutes more, just to tell her how much I
loved her. But we’d done that already, in the days
prior, when we could still see feeling in her eyes.
That morning, at 4:40am, would be the last time
I ever saw my mother, and it’s a memory that
will linger, unwelcome, forever.
People say it gets easier with time. I’m not
one of those people, because grief isn’t some
cookie-cutter condition that people experience
equally. It’s as individual as a birthmark.We
long to understand how grief works, and why we
experience it differently. Is it rational to hate the
world one day, feel lifeless the next, and smile
occasionally through teary eyes?
Even when you have three people from
different families, all experiencing the loss of
a parent, there are few similarities. No one will
ever know how you feel, and that can be the
scariest thing of all.
Megan’s dad died in September, four months
before my mum. She was 20 years old. He
suffered from acute myeloid leukaemia.The
day he was diagnosed was the last day where he
didn’t wake in a hospital bed. I watched Megan
and her family suffer for months in the lead up
to his death, not knowing that my family would
soon be experiencing something similar.
“I was there everyday, twice a day, during the
time that he was sick,” Megan explained to me
one day. “It all happened so quickly, I was just
trying to keep my head above water.”
Megan has been my best friend since we
were 15.We have one of those indestructible
bonds that we built, brick after brick, throughout
our parents’ illnesses. From my mother’s
diagnosis in 2010, to each losing a parent, there
hasn’t been a single thing we haven’t shared.
It’s one of the most poignant aspects of our
friendship.To bond over the death of a parent is
the most heartbreaking thing of all.
Jake* lost his mum when he was 10 years old.
She died from ovarian cancer, just like my mum,
but at 10, it meant something entirely different
to him than it does to me at 22. He tried to
read about it, but couldn’t fully understand the
consequences of the illness that took his mother.
It came as a shock to him, but when he thinks
about the difficulty of explaining to a child that
their mother was dying, he doesn’t hold anyone
to blame.
“I only really think about it when I’m asked,
or if I’m wondering how different life would be
if events went otherwise.” Jake and I have never
really talked about our mums before, but when
you hear the sound of sorrow in another person’s
voice that comes from a similar place as yours,
it can be overwhelming.
“I wouldn’t describe it as hard. Describing
it as hard implies there is something you can do
to change or work at to make it better. It seems
better to describe it as an event that you either
choose to grow with or let it destroy you.”
It’s probably the most heartrending and
intelligent thing I’ve ever heard Jake say.We joke
about a lot of things, and in my mind, mothers
were always off limits. I’ve never felt entirely
comfortable talking to people who suffered
before I did.They know where I’m coming from
– they’ve already been here – and I feel like the
last thing they want is to relive it through the
eyes of someone else.
I was overseas when I got a phone call
telling me to come home. I’ve never felt more
sick, sleepless or hopeless in my whole, entire
life. I flew for 32 hours to get back to my mum’s
bedside, where I watched her scream, cry and
fight just to look at our faces for a few more days.
I’ll never forget the day she asked my sister
and me for permission to go. She held our hands
and whispered, “I just can’t do it anymore. I’ve
had enough.”
All I could do was wipe away my tears and,
through blurry vision, take in her beautiful face,
knowing that saying yes was all she needed. She
died three days later.
Megan, her brother Gareth, and her dad Barry Hannah and mum Janien
Time Heals

Issue 04
FEATURE
33
A friend of both Megan and I once told us that
she was in awe of the fact we could still get out
of bed each morning. I still don’t know how to
respond. Some days are hard, and it takes a lot of
stumbling and strength to drag myself out of the
house. Other days, I just forget. I push every sad
thought that lives inside of me to the perimeters
of my mind, and just get on with the day.Then
sometimes, out of nowhere, I’ll smile for no
reason, and walk a little taller than the day before.
Most days are a step forward, and even though
I’ll have days that send me spiralling backwards,
I feel as though each day is getting easier.
“I think about him every second of every
day,” Megan told me. “But the hardest thing is
accepting that this is the way he was taken.”
Grief can only really be explained by analogy.
It is neither precise nor discrete. It is coming
home to a once lively house and finding it empty.
It’s watching flowers wilt on the mantelpiece,
and it’s feeling like you’ve got a heavy sack of
potatoes pressing down on your chest. It is also
many other things.
I remember my mum fondly as someone
who was vibrant, ambitious and adventurous.
She used to dance to every song on the radio,
laugh at the Specsavers ads on TV, and eat
little crumbs of food she found lying around
the house. She would talk about wanting
grandchildren, and encourage me to travel,
then cry and beg me to stay with her instead.
Then cancer wracked her body. It was
indiscriminate. Her cells, her spirit and her
vitality fell victim in equal measure.
“Cancer is a shit way to die and I don’t like
to accept that people die.” I’m asking Jake if he
holds any resentment, but at 22 he’s wise
beyond my years.
“You don’t really have a choice,
so if you accept it or not, it
[death] will still happen.”
Jake tells me it gets
easier with time. He’s more
than a decade ahead of me
in grieving time, but I can’t
help wondering how you
grieve at the age of 10.
He explains that he didn’t
fully comprehend the situation,
and it makes me question if it
takes a few years to sink in, that
maybe the grieving starts later when you
finally understand.
“I’m not sure if I could say it gets easier
with time.” I’m asking Megan the same question.
“Maybe you just become stronger, or maybe you
just get used to the fact that that person is gone.”
I ask myself some of the same questions,
but I feel that at three months, I’m not the right
person to ask. I still feel resentment, I still feel
like there’s a clichéd ache in my bones, and I still
cry when I see anything that mentions Mother’s
Day on TV.
Megan tells me that perhaps the strongest people
are given the biggest battles, and that we suffer
like this because no one else can. Jake tells me
that despite what people may say, the only thing
for grief is time.
For me, time has made things harder
and I still have to stop myself from
dialling Mum’s number because
I’ve forgotten she’s not here.
The world can dish out
some shitty deals, we just
have to find a way to keep
moving forward.
In the end, I think we
all grieve in our own
unique and heart-wrenching
ways and there’s no right or
wrong way to go about it.
We can’t judge because someone
is devastated by a break-up, while
you’re battling through the death of
a parent, despite often thinking it might be
smaller by comparison. Even when it feels like
no one understands, we can’t always pretend that
everything is ok.
Admitting to grief is hard, understanding
it is even harder. But when all you’ve got is
that five-letter word, and a small sliver of hope
poking out from behind the clouds, all you can
do is close your eyes and know that someday it
won’t hurt so badly.
*Name has been changed.
To bond over
the death of a
parent is the most
heartbreaking
thing of all.
Megan and BarryHannah, Janien and sister Claudia
all Wounds

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Issue 04
CAMPUS FASHION
35
Aleksandra Pasternacki // Arts/Law II
Glasses: Ray-Ban
Dress: ASOS
Shoes: Doc Marten
How would you describe your style? Girly with
a rock-glam edge.
Who’s your ultimate style icon? Zooey Deschanel
Why did you pick this outfit for uni today? I was
meeting up with a guy I like and I wanted to look
cute. It worked. He said I looked cute.
What’s your personal pet fashion hate? Jeggings are
fashion suicide.
Bridget Harilaou // International & Global
Studies/LAW II
Jacket: Myer
Vintage shirt: Street stall in Melbourne
Jeans: Vinnies
Boots: A shoe store in Westfield...
How would you describe your style? Comfy
and casual.
Who’s your ultimate style icon? Mindy Kaling.
Why did you pick this outfit for today? It was warm
and comfortable enough to last seven hours of uni.
Style hates: People who appropriate traditional
cultural fashions that aren't their own, like Bindis
and Keffiyehs. It's not hipster, it's not cool –
it’s just awkward!
Rachel Mannion // Arts (Media & Comm's)/Law II
TOP: Asos
Jacket: Topshop
JEANS: Dr Denim
Sunglasses: Glassons
Necklace: Egyptian markets
How would you describe your style? Basic,
minimalist, off duty model look
Who’s your style icon? No.We don’t need
no inspiration.
Why did you pick this outfit today? It was easy,
breezy, beautiful.
Style hates: Jeans and joggers and joggers and
dresses. Scanning down someone’s outfit and
you’re like good, good, good, good, BAD! Unless
you’re running somewhere take them off and put
on some decent shoes people. If you insist on
this sporty style then Converse can do the job.
CAMPUS FASHION
LAW
Our style hate of the week:
Fashion Week Divas
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia was
overflowing with top-notch fashionistas (from
bloggers to magazine editors and designers),
but with every A-lister there is a sneaky D-lister
waiting to spring the diva on anyone that will
listen. And who took the crown this year? None
other than Imogen Anthony. Haven’t heard of her?
Yeah, neither have we. Well, it’s Kyle Sandiland’s
girlfriend. (Leave pause to be impressed… Wait a
little longer… ah we give up). Her sour face lurked
on every second row, demanding to be moved to the
first but her big *cough* fashion week moment was
strutting down the catwalk for the group swim show
wearing only a ‘sand bikini’. Yes you heard correct,
she had sand in places that not even Mr Sandilands
himself has explored. This was perhaps the
biggest cry for attention and the toughest attempt
to jump the gun to A-lister stardom. Did it work?
No. But kudos for the effort love, and good luck
with the post-show scrub.
Your Fashion Team is Katie Stow,
Emily Shen and Rebecca Karpin.

bull usu.edu.au
CLASSIC COUNTDOWN & VOX POPS
36
Brett He // Commerce/Law I
Listening to: Classical
music. Otherwise, Justin
Timberlake and Eminem
Reading: Perfume by
Patrick Süskind
Watching: Suits. And that’s
about it.
Maddy Beauman // Political
Economic & Social Sciences III
Listening to: A whole
bunch of stuff. Modest
Mouse,Tallest Man on
Earth and Purity Ring
Reading: Unfortunately only
Uni readings…
Watching: Game ofThrones
Stephanie Holmes // INGS III
Listening to: Arctic
Monkeys
Reading: Sense and
Sensibility
Watching: The Big Bang
Theory
The Best Dog Movies
Nothing says childhood like watching movies with
dogS performing the most unbelievable stunts ever,
making you become obsessed with the idea of owning
your very own puppy and consequently bugging
your parents into buying you one.
5
Soccer Dog (1999-2004)
Kimble, renamed ‘Lincoln’ by his new
owner, was the Portuguese Podengo who
ran onto the field in his first flick Soccer
Dog:The Movie, and helped a local soccer team
win the championship. In the sequel, he heads
off to the European Cup to play the ultimate
tournament and wins again (naturally).
4
Air Bud (1987-PRESENT)
Playing ‘Comet’ in six seasons of
Full House, real-life Golden Retriever
Buddy soon got his own movie in Air
Bud where he ran away from his abusive
owner Norman, an alcoholic clown, and
flaunted his incredible talent for basketball.
Loved by many, Buddy eventually died from
lung cancer in 1998, but the Air Bud franchise
lives on to this day.
3
Red Dog (2011)
Everybody was shocked to learn about
the story of Tally Ho, the Kelpie/cattle
dog that was known for his travels
through Western Australia. Named ‘Red Dog’,
from the red dirt of the Pilbara Region, he also
travelled to Perth with his second owner.
His death by deliberate strychnine poisoning
made him an Australian legend, got him a
statue and stemmed this award-winning movie.
2
Beethoven (1992-2008)
Written by John Hughes under a
pseudonym, the St Bernard dog named
after the famed composer has long been
a classic. Stolen by two thieves, Stanley Tucci
and Oliver Platt, Beethoven ends up with
Charles Grodin, Bonnie Hunt and her children.
1
Lassie (1859-2008)
Everyone’s favourite female Collie first
appeared in Elizabeth Gaskell’s short
story The Half-brothers, where she rescues
two half-brothers who are lost and dying in
the snow. It was here, where the ‘Lassie saves
the day’ storyline we’ve come to love for over
150 years began.
VOX pops
CLASSIC
COUNTDOWN

BULL Edition 4, 2014

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