December 2012

the Boomerang Are UCU Students Above Stealing Each Other’s Lunch Money?

Sofia Banzhoff

Remember victim 555? The student whose lunch money Roeland van Beek once used by falsifying their Dining Hall debit card, and eating a “free lunch”? If you need to refresh your memory, check out Columni in the October 2012 Boomerang. Maybe you now watch your balance more closely than your Facebook newsfeed, or did you only check your own card, relieved to see it was not number 555? Whatever your reaction, you might be among those who wonder: How did this happen in the first place?

When Sodexo became the UU-wide caterer, it was asked to work with a card system for the students living on campus. During the card distribution phase, second-year Rens Bakker realized that the cards could easily be duplicated. To prove his point, he faked his

own card and used it successfully. He alerted College Hall of the possibility of hacking the system, and UCU’s Managing Director Bettina Nelemans communicated this to Sodexo the same day.

To prevent abuse of the cards, the caterer then started to check the cards daily for unusual activity, e.g. the same account being used twice for one meal. However, Sodexo did not –and does not – have any plans to change the system, Nelemans said. “Whatever you do, there will always be people smart enough to break into the system,” was the response she got from Sodexo.

(Continued on page 06)

it is not easy to notice a €5 “irregularity”

The Other Side of the Story – Working in Dining Hall

Profile: Eva Hovorka

Julie Albers

Every single day you walk through the catering area to Dining Hall. You grab the cheapest food, grumble a bit and go off to enjoy a meal with your friends. But did you ever wonder how Dining Hall staff members experience their job? Boomerang decided to get some insight information: meet Eva Hovorka.

Before I could ask her anything, Eva starts talking enthusiastically about the Boomerang. “I’m a dedicated Boomerang reader. It’s interesting to know what is on your minds.” Enthusiastic – the word to describe Eva. Throughout the entire interview, she keeps smiling and joking.

Eva is half-Dutch, half-Czech. After finishing high school, she started a HBO Management and Logistiek at the Hogeschool Utrecht. A welcome challenge, but she decided to quit during the final year. “Of course my parents tried to convince me to finish, but I couldn’t understand them at the time.” So she worked in a supermarket for nine years, becoming Head of the Cash Register Department. Her mother Ans, who retired last year, was already working for DH. “I think she was seen as the bitch of campus,” Eva says smiling. “She is strict, but honest and sincere.” Three years ago, as the economic crisis was already looming, Eva was offered a temporary job at DH. She decided to stay.

A “dedicated, hardworking employee” is how Eva would describe herself. “I do not

focus on one task. If something needs to be done, I put myself to it immediately.” Although there are no big disadvantages to her job, she is quick in responding what she likes most: “The interaction with students. I sincerely believe that chatting with students is an important part of my job. I try to bring you some ‘gezelligheid.’ A little distraction from your stressful lives, even if it’s only for two minutes.”

Unfortunately, chatting time has shrunk with the new catering system. She also misses breakfast: “I particularly loved breakfast on Wednesday and Friday mornings. Students would still be drunk and smell like alcohol,” she laughs.

Other staff members are sometimes less keen on being friendly towards students. Eva believes this difference derives from her supermarket experience. “Making clients feeling appreciated was my main focus back then. Even so, I have always said that the customer is king, but I am the emperor – I am still a person who doesn’t have to do everything. It’s about mutual respect.”

What about our behaviour towards staff members? “I am convinced that saying ‘hello’ or ‘thank you’ doesn’t hurt,” she says. Whenever a student does not respond, she will act overfriendly, so they will greet her next time. “Students are a pleasant kind of people.”

Only when students steal, she will become unfriendly. “I definitely say something about that. To put it simple: you are stealing my salary.”

Next to working in DH, you can also spot

Columni

Roeland van Beek, Class of 2011

her at the gym. “Staff members aren’t allowed to join any other activities on campus, due to some incidents in the past and the fact that friendships in the bar could lead to nepotism behind the cash desk. Which I think is completely justified.”

Her biggest hobby are her twin boys. In the weekend, together with her husband, they often go cycling, swimming or ice skating. She does have to work on Sunday, but Eva considers this as a day off. “No matter how awful something may be, I always try to look on the bright side.” A statement which suits her very well indeed.

Alcohol and Campus Life – Conjoined Twins?

Sofia Banzhoff

Wine at GA’s and lectures. Free beer during Introweek, even on sports day. People pouring liquor into each other’s mouths at the bar. Alcohol seems to be our best friend –or maybe it’s a love-hate relationship, judging from the pale faces and empty seats that define Friday 11 am classes.

My drinking behavior here has been anything but consistent – from Bartenders’ Weekend to less than two glasses of wine a month, I’ve done it all. So I decided to talk to people who stick to one extreme, those who have an all-or-nothing attitude when it comes to alcohol. Nobody cares about the average, right? Except for maybe those of you taking Methods and Stats. Maybe.

At first, I assumed that it would be hard to find people who do not drink at all and relatively easy to come across those who drink a lot. But it was the other way around: everyone I asked knew someone who didn’t drink, and when I asked those people, all of them were willing to talk. The heavy drinkers, on the other hand, seem to be pretty good at hiding. Maybe they sensed that I am a little biased –after all, I have barely been to the bar all semester. And when finally some names were mentioned, it proved harder to talk to them. Luckily, I managed to convince a few.

As it turns out, drinkers and non-drinkers are not that different. Neither want to judge the other side and both emphasize that drinking is a matter of personal choice.

First-year Vivienne Clement says that she is “100 percent sure” her social life would be different if she drank. “In the first week, I was the girl who didn’t drink. That influences the way people see you.”

Second-year Peter Valach, a self-proclaimed drinker, finds a “positive correlation” between alcohol and social life, mostly due to alcohol causing more open behavior.

Rens Bakker, a non-drinking second-year, emphasizes that abstaining from alcohol does not decrease the quality of social life, but changes its nature. “I probably have less ‘real’ fun, like laughing very hard.”

What about alcohol being everywhere, even at GA’s, where we determine the future of our association? According to third-year Dennis Bednar, it provides an incentive to go. “Maybe that’s a bit sad, but also a smart way of getting people to come. But it takes away from the purpose of the event.” Can our decisions be taken seriously if, after long debates, half of the attendees are, to say the least, slightly tipsy?

“Alcohol is our social lubricant of choice,” says occasionally drinking second-year Mark

Reuchlin. Does it also come with the peer pressure inevitably mentioned in any discussion of booze?

According to Rens, social pressure is the core issue. “If you don’t drink on campus, you need to have very strong arguments, be very stubborn, and convinced of your position.”

Others, like third-year Isabel van Oorschot, have never personally experienced this pressure. “I never feel like people think I’m a

It’s a game. A game of outsmarting all the others. A game of being eloquent, of knowing the rules, of showing power. Most of all, it’s a game of convincing people to do what you want them to do. The prize? I don’t know. Applause? Fame, maybe? Or cheap tequila?

General Assemblies offer what MUNCo, DebateCo and NerdCo can’t: playing with real-world decisions and real money. True, those committees practice dealing with actually important issues, but the few hundred Euros at stake during a GA easily outweigh that.

I have seen GAs led by six different UCSA chairs over the past years. Even so, this November’s GA beat all of them. Not because of the subject – the board convening the members to get themselves cheaper alcohol seems a bit silly, no matter how good the intentions. No, this GA amazed me for its superior chairing.

With only the most pedantic members and a few “disaster tourists” present, even the approval of the agenda became a challenge. Noam wasn’t taken aback, though. Instead of interrupting people, he allowed for a long

boring twat because I don’t drink.”

Despite all clichés connecting student life and alcohol, there is no need for a surgical separation: they’re closely related, but not as closely as conjoined twins. Ultimately, it comes down to a question Mark asked me when I thought I was doing the interrogating: “What kind of life do you want to live?”

and open discussion on every issue. Instead of being the boss, he acted as a genuinely interested host. For the first time, I saw the chair actually browsing through the policy manual during a GA. And even though it took a while to convince the members of it, the motions were unambiguous and voting on them made sense. There were misunderstandings, but those are part of the game.

Nevertheless, the GA didn’t reward the board for their performance. Not even their secret assistants in the audience voted in the board’s favor. BarCo, on the other hand, achieved a glorious victory. Why? Because BarCo is not elected, but built on loyalty. Because the UCSA board has no choice but being campus’ strict and responsible grandparents, while BarCo can hand out as much alcohol as they want.

The game isn’t fair. But that’s okay, because no one really loses. Experience is all there is to win.

Noam wasn’t taken aback

My social life would be different if I drank

The More the Merrier

How UCU students can expand their devotion to campus life

Ivo Dimitrov and Klementina Ristovska

Tired of friends ignoring your birthday because of a few “incredibly important committee meetings”? Fed up with getting endless invites for all sorts of crazy events? Perhaps we have too many leisure committees that eat too much of our money on sketchy activities. Beep – wrong.

UCU’ers are nowhere near as involved as they should be. Especially with TribalCo now losing its committee status, we think campus is in a dire need of new, exciting and, of course, reasonable committees. Just throwing in some ideas.

MassageCo

What happened with the idea? Long days spent sitting on uncomfortable chairs in class, our room, Dining Hall – torture! MassageCo will work day and night to provide free, unlimited massage. Before you know it, Voltaire study area will turn into a wellness area, where you can enjoy a customized spa treatment while doing your Law readings. You will never again come unprepared to class.

GroceriesCo

Hate losing precious time to go shopping off campus? GroceriesCo for the win. Forget about the exhausting five-minute bike ride, or the horror of AH running out of your favorite juice. GroceriesCo will hire a special delivery service to do all the work for you. No need to pay the service – you’re a member. Just send them a text and within minutes a bag of your favorite chocolates and biscuits will be delivered to your door.

DietCo

DH food too expensive? DietCo will lobby

that Sodexo replaces the current credit system with a calories-based system: no more than 100 per day. Board members will walk around DH confiscating deep-fried, fattening food (everything that’s served for dinner?), giving people an approving nod when having a single glass of water instead of a meal. Thin, healthy and with full wallets – what else to wish for?

Hey, we limited our suggestions to reasonable committees, but this MilitiaCo, advertised on posters around campus a few weeks ago, did sound like the ultimate excitement. Why not? Because there is no such thing as too much extracurricular involvement at UCU.

Winter-on-campus To-do List

ӹStaying on campus over winter break and needing some fresh ideas of unordinary stuff to do? For the first week it’s clear: get some proper sleep! But what about later? Don’t waste your precious free time to chick-flicks and drinking. Heed our advice:

ӹ1. A unit on your own: make love to someone in the laundry room (the washing machine vibrates)

ӹ2. Have a party in Voltaire quiet area

ӹ3. Have some wine and romantic stargazing on the roof of W

ӹ4. Bungee-jump from the tower

ӹ5. Read the Book of Mormons

ӹPS. Just kidding.

The Conformist in You

Marina Lazëri and Ivo Dimitrov “

People at UCU claim to be breaking down barriers and reaching out to others, but they really aren’t the people they think they are,” says linguistics professor Rosemary Orr. On this notion, we set off to investigate what campus life really is about. How intellectually alternative are we?

“UCU is definitely more alternative than high-schools and other universities. People are more approachable and, through getting to know them, you accept differences more easily.” says first-year Liana Dobrica.

It seems, the first impression the bubble gives is that of a place that embraces differences. Other first years testify to this. “There is a sense of being different, but you don’t need to express it strongly and individualistically, because everything is accepted,” says Laurence Herfs.

First-year Vincent Gerez finds the structuring of social life at UCU rather prominent. “After a while most of us behave in correspondence to certain norms. But I also think that the environment adapts to the kind of people that come here.”

But how different is difference in UCU’s small and socially structured community?

“After all, we do select students with a similar involved and curious character. We

UCSA/ASC Column

Is the UCSA Board Really Doing a Bad Job? Annerijn Vink

Let’s face it: Unity Day and Marathon Monday weren’t quite successful. With three teams participating in Unity Day and 31 people drinking beer on Marathon Tuesday, this cannot have been the result we were hoping for. Was it the UCSA Board’s fault?

Marathon Monday, based on a Boston tradition where the marathon provides a full day of drinking and fun, provoked quite some discussion. “It was a bit of a joke,” says UCSA Chair Noam Auerbach. “I didn’t think people would take it that far.”

Literally overnight, the Facebook event page was flooded with more than 40 comments from (former) UCSA members that expressed their disapproval of the event. They thought it was irresponsible and disrespectful towards teachers and College Hall, dubbing this “a new low point of the UCSA Board”.

would like to admit people with a more different point of view than usual, but we cannot choose that over academic performance and involvement.” says philosophy professor Floris van der Burg.

An equal mindset, an equally structured life, and a homogeneous community - where did our self-proclaimed individuality go?

Tim Schoot Uiterkamp, class of 2011, disagrees that expressions of individuality disappear in UCU’s homogenous environment. “UCU social life tends towards the extremes. Perhaps people feel a greater need to emphasize difference because of living so closely together, or because of always being in the social context in which this identity makes sense.”

Celebrating difference we maybe are, but how alternative are the UCU students of today?

Roeland van Beck, class of 2011, who has continued living on campus, finds that students have changed. “In my year, there seemed to be more alternative people than there are currently. I’m speaking from a purely visual perspective here; I can’t think of anyone on campus with dreadlocks anymore.”

“I always found subcultures at UCU to be equally mainstream. Alternative is a paradoxical concept nowadays anyway,” says Sofia Afonasina, class of 2011.

This sentiment is shared to an extent by

teachers and tutors. Orr notices the lack of student activism. “UCU doesn’t make you radical. A big part of the student body comes from a relatively wealthy background; or if they don’t, they are able to study here and are satisfied with their lives. They lack the anger that is needed to protest and that’s perfectly okay -students are here to learn and develop, not to fight against the establishment.”

How come though? Aren’t students on the frontlines of the revolution? International Relations professor Gerard van der Ree, ascribes this attitude to a generational difference. “In this day and age, there is a gap with times like the 1970s and ‘80s. Thirty years ago, individuality was a core part of identity and was expressed very strongly visually. Today this sensibility is gone; people have more tolerance for being in groups.”

Alternative or not, UCU students shouldn’t worry. Van der Ree says that at UCU “people develop a joint understanding of the role that they need to fulfill in order to be ready for adulthood, thus they practice for it in the same way.”

Maybe we have created the perfect alternative society - one in which alternativism is the mainstream, but also one that feels like the real world. And even if it’s an illusion - let us live it, it’s only three years anyways.

After this uproar, the Board changed the date to a Tuesday afternoon, so it would not interfere with academics. According to Noam, College Hall didn’t say anything about the event at all and understands that college life involves parties and alcohol. “People exaggerated the influence it would have on our representative role. It had no effect whatsoever.”

Some argue that if BarCo would have organized the event, most students would have been okay with it. Noam stresses that in the end, the responsibility lies with the Board, regardless of whether they organized it themselves or whether a committee organized it. “The only difference is a symbolical one,” he says. He emphasizes that the UCSA has a broad goal in taking care of all non-academic activities that are in students’ interest, varying from lectures and dance lessons to parties.

The most interesting argument, however, is probably that the Board thought that people would be responsible enough in deciding whether to join the event or not. “If you have an exam on Wednesday morning, no one is responsible for your partying on the Tuesday night before. You can’t blame the bartender that gave you the drink for your hangover the next day”. Indeed, those that didn’t have class on Monday afternoon could have joined without any worries. But does that mean that the UCSA Board should suggest, even stimulate, drinking in class?

The question boils down to the role of the UCSA Board: do we want them to fulfil all our different and sometimes very studenty wants, or do we want them to draw a line?

It is logical to blame the Board for the things that went wrong. It is easy to emphasize their mistakes. But let’s not forget that we, as UCSA members, have responsibility as well. We can complain about the “failure” of Unity Day and blame it on the Board, but most of us didn’t put any effort in making it work, either. And we can say Marathon Monday is disrespectful, but doesn’t it depend on ourselves whether it becomes an irresponsible event or not?

04 The Bubble

What superpower would you like to have?

No Words Please with International Relations Professor

Gerard van der Ree

Marina Lazëri and Klementina Ristovska

How do you feel when students ask you for deadline extensions? How do you feel about Christmas?

What do you think about the Boomerang?

Aliens attack! What do you do?

What is the current state of the International Relations field?

How would you wish it was?

Utrecht, 20/11/2012

In that tense month leading up to my exchange, I was told I’d have no problem fitting into the Netherlands. As a mad cyclist (in terms of both enthusiasm and stupidity), a parttime admirer of nice-looking churches and a great lover of drinking small cups of coffee and wafting an artsy-looking book around, everyone assured me I’d settle in just right. Plus, if actually engaging with the culture didn’t work out, I am blessed with the most valuable tradable currency in the world: a cut-glass British accent. Although it should be said that mine is more hopeless, more bumbling Hugh Grant than chiselled Daniel Craig (I’d rather run a bookshop than have to bother with all that spying anyway).

So I hopped on the plane which took about sixteen seconds and was greeted with my first experience of UCU. The first two hours were a crazy whirlwind of activity, excitement and caffeine fuelled enjoyment. Then I left my Schiphol chaperones, the enigmatic Tim and Nicole, to meet the parents. Intro week will go down in history as the busiest week where I’ve ever achieved nothing (and thoroughly enjoyed it) and I was thrown to the dogs into the ‘real’ world of UCU.

The dogs all turned out to be characters but perfectly harmless – although the outrageous workload wasn’t (ed: isn’t) – and once life starts to settle down, one can start to move out of the safety-net of campus and into places like Albert Heijn and Hema. These can be confusing places for those who are not accustomed to so many varieties of tasteless cheese but once you’ve learnt the Dutch for ‘would you like a bag?’ it’s all fine and the British accent can be put back on ice. Utrecht itself is a fine city with plenty little surprises to uncover and once you’re bored of that, Amsterdam, The Hague, Brussels or even Berlin await.

The thing that has struck me most about UCU is that it’s got a lot to be proud of but is immensely down to earth. Ordinary things just work; it has seven-hundred students who could all be chat-show hosts; it has its own, surreal language where electronic text documents are called ‘papers’ and a pub which has none of the necessary conditions of a normal bar (tasteful music, clean surfaces etc.) is still known as the bar; and even some of the tutors are hipper than Russell Brand’s pelvis. Everyone knows everyone, but despite the bubble, UCU is one of the warmest, most welcoming institutions I’ve ever set foot in.

Tom Goodsir

The rain is pouring down, it’s dark before 16.30 and strong gusts of wind keep me from going out today. A very stereotypical image of England, indeed. Fortunately, I am not only experiencing the typical British weather on my exchange; great pub food, beautiful coastal cliffs, cream tea (scones), cider and ale, British accents and cynical humour are among the many things I can tick off my list. And I am planning to do more: Sunday roast, baked beans, Christmas craziness, road trippin’ through the South West, and, oh, writing essays. I am already on three quarters of the 11-week semester. And to be honest: I’m not too happy about that. Firstly, I’m enjoying the British way of life far too much. Secondly, I feel that there is still so much to do here, and thirdly, I don’t want to face the essays and exams. They frighten me. My professors spent nearly an hour talking about essay requirements and standards and it appears as if only the brilliant and mind-blowing essays deserve an A. Interestingly, I’ve seen two very different faces of students here. British students (and exchange students, too) drink, drink and drink. Extreme drinking games and wearing prac-

tically just underwear or see-through clothing seem to be the rule rather than the exception. It’s another of those stereotypes, and again, quite true. I’ve never seen so many people passed out on the streets or drinking bright coloured shots at 7 in the evening. But then again, a lot of students at Exeter University seem to be proper into studying. They bring audio recorders to class, print the lecture slides before class and frantically write on them and after class they present elaborate essay plans to the teachers.

Since I’m here for only 4 months and there is so much to be seen, I decided not to be my nerdy self and spend more time exploring life. It’s a conscious choice you have to make: what are my priorities on exchange? This experience has helped me figure out how I want to live my life. Here, I do all those things I always longed to do when I was daydreaming in Voltaire. It’s great to see how studying in a different country can change you for the better and value the little things more. I can take all these experiences and memories home which will hopefully give me the strength to face my last semester at UCU.

Cheers!

Exeter. 24/11/2012

Are UCU Students Above Stealing Each Other’s Lunch Money? (Continued)

Sofia Banzhoff

Another way to make sure nobody is stealing our lunch money is by checking the receipt we get after every DH purchase, which shows the old and the new balance.

“The students should keep track of their balance anyway, since the €750 have to last un-

fied of the necessity of closely checking their balance, not all of them take their receipts. How can this ‘checks and balances’ system truly work when we are not even aware that we are a part of it?

Safety comes at a price

A system as simple and thus as easy to bypass as the current one was chosen to keep the costs down. “At the end of the day, if you introduce a more complicated system, the students will pay,” Nelemans says.

Nelemans has suggested Sodexo print their logo on the cards, perhaps behind the barcode. But there are no plans for further security measures, such as the UCSA Board’s suggestion to link the accounts to our XS-cards. “We still strongly believe that a more secure system should be implemented,” says UCSA Secretary Valeria Boers.

Security above transparency?

But why didn’t we hear about this before?

“In line with the principle of responsibility, we did not think it was a good idea to inform the students,” says Boers. The UCSA Board thought that this would have only provided

formed about certain issues. “We haven’t been faced with many situations like this.”

Generally, College Hall favors informing students. “We try to be as transparent as we can,” Nelemans says. “We do think that we have a feel for what’s going on on campus.”

til the end of the semester,” Nelemans says. But it is not easy to notice a €5 “irregularity”. Also, since students have never been officially noti-

So we have to ask ourselves whether this is enough or whether we want to pay more for a safer system, and our peace of mind.

incentive to falsify the cards, “with no added benefit for students.”

Both Nelemans and Boers believe that they made the right call in not informing the students. This whole issue seems to be another trade-off between transparency and security.

According to Boers, there is no official policy on when the student body needs to be in-

Small Changes to Make Utrecht a Better Place

Interview with Utrecht’s Mayor, Aleid Wolfsen (PvdA/Labour Party)

Anton Stam

While living inside the bubble it’s easy to forget we are part of the city of Utrecht. Aleid Wolfsen, the mayor of Utrecht, talks about the influence of Utrecht’s city politics on our lives. And about why we should care.

“I actually ended up in politics by coincidence,” Mr. Wolfsen recalls. “I was a judge in Amsterdam. I wasn’t very involved in politics, but some years later I was elected into the Second Chamber. When I then heard the previous mayor of Utrecht had resigned, I went for it. I had always wanted to be a mayor. I was quite proud of my victory.”

Uithof Central Station

“As a city council, we work very hard on supporting student housing and public transportation,” Mr. Wolfsen said.

An example of an improvement is a tram line connecting the station and the Uithof that will start running in 2018. “The plans have been there for a very long time, but they were always very controversial as the route went directly through the inner city. Our current route goes around the city centre. We have now finally made the decision and the tram line is being built.”

Currently, bus 12 is the best way to get to the station from the Uithof. The Mayor finds the current situation “quite desperate”. “Once, we assembled a group of people involved in this project at 8 AM at the central station to take bus 12 to the Uithof. We had to practically be squeezed into that bus to fit everyone in. As a city council, that experience really motivated us to finalise the plans for the tram line.”

Student loans

The Mayor supports the new cabinet’s decision to transform the student grants into student loans. “When you are a student, and you can

look forward to an income that lies above the average, it is fair to demand you pay some of that back later in your life.”

Yet, Mr. Wolfsen thinks that everyone who is able and willing to study should be able to do so. “Your parents’ financial situation should never, ever be a constraint. I believe that firstly because I’m a social democrat and secondly because the future of our country relies upon a well-educated population. Especially for a country like the Netherlands. Therefore, the loans will function in such a way that you will only have to pay them back if your income is higher than a certain level.”

Utrecht as a province

The new cabinet has also resolved to merge the provinces Utrecht, Flevoland and NoordHolland. “They have agreed to work towards five final provinces, which could entail, for example, a merger of Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe, but that is all speculation at this point.”

The Mayor does not know exactly what consequences this would have for Utrecht.

“The provinces have specific tasks, and I don’t think it matters much whether they are executed here in Utrecht, or in another city.”

Success and looking back

“One thing I’ve always remembered from my career is the general parole that was organised for all immigrants who had been stuck in bureaucratic processes for many years, back in 2003. The measure was accepted with a margin of a few votes. At that moment I felt: these are the things that really change a country. It was very moving to be able to be a part of that.

Mr. Wolfsen hasn’t decided if he will run for a second term. “To me, success is a combination of two things. On the one hand, being seen as successful by the outside world, on the other hand, doing something that personally

gives you a feeling of happiness. ... Looking back, I’ve been able to make a small contribu-

“There are knives in Dining Hall and luckily enough, people don’t just grab a knife and stab other students,” says Nelemans. “In a way the card is protected by the trust and goodwill of the students, which defines our community.” Seems like all we are left with is the hope that each and every one of us lives up to these high expectations.

tion to this country and this city. I am really thankful for that.”

we did not think it was a good idea to inform the students

whatever you do, there will always be people smart enough to break into the system ©

Politics as Unusual Robert van Schaik

Just before the last Dutch parliamentary elections, Jan Nagel (73), with a history in politics in parties all over the political spectrum, founded a party that thus far was unique for the Netherlands: 50+.

The 50+ party – the first thing it makes me think of is the ripeness of Gouda cheese at the supermarket – must be the ugliest name ever given to a Dutch political party. According to Nagel, my parents (and most of our Dutch campus’ parents) should vote 50+, because that is in their enlightened self-interest. With a vote for 50+ they can safeguard their much awaited pension and social security benefits. Truly, we have now come across the most oppressive form of politics: a conservative interest group solely focused on the wellbeing of a select portion of The Netherlands’ citizens.

The first program point of the 50+ party argues that the annual contribution to the pension fund should rise by 8%. Not a single introductory remark is made about a desired political course for the Netherlands. Why would one vote? “If you vote 50+, you know that we will continue to represent the interests of the elderly,” said party leader Henk Krol (62).

50+ actually advises its supporters the following: Focus on the overall importance and what is involved. Just think of yourself. Your whole life, you have had a stable job, you’ve taken full advantage of decades of economic growth and you’ve accumulated impressive pension rights. Why compromise?

The 50+ party is the aged version of the stereotypical tart Party Against Everything, a party founded on the basis of the slogan “Together for our own good”.

Some say that for example the Dutch Party for the Animals, which focuses solely on the protection of animals, also has just a few, narrow interests. Sure, but that program is not limited to a narrow, well-defined group of the population. The Party for the Animals considers animal welfare from an ecological perspective, which includes less consumption, sustainability and alternative energy elements. You do not need to share their vision to understand their perspective.

What about the labor movement, which was set up at the end of the nineteenth century, not only in the Netherlands but in almost every other European country? Isn’t this also purely based on self-interest? Of course, but with the big difference that at the time, not even the slightest rights existed for the proletariat. Moreover, the advocates of the labor movement itself understood the wrought system at the time, but nonetheless projected their ideals to save those that, thanks to capitalism, were between a rock and a hard place.

Fortunately, I’m sure my parents won’t vote 50+. If there is one lesson they have taught me, it is to take care of the people who aren’t as fortunate as you are. The selfishness of this party is directly contrary to the elder generation’s guiding principle: solidarity.

“First World Problems” – A Phrase That Doesn’t Solve Anything

Sofia Banzhoff

You’d have to live under a rock without internet connection to not have heard the phrase “First World problems.” And even then, your non-rock friends probably used it to shut you up. Everybody says humans are social beings, but sometimes it seems that all we want is someone to listen to our complaints (and to have sex with, obviously).

But how do we use the phrase? It’s supposed to put things in perspective, to make us realize that we’re actually pretty lucky. It’s supposed to remind us that the Third World may be a long plane ride away, but is nonetheless real. However, that’s not how we use it, neither on nor offline. No, we use it as a joke. Sure, those memes are funny. A laugh may momentarily distract us, but it does not necessarily put things into perspective, and it certainly does not inspire compassion for those who have to deal with what we should call Third World problems.

Compared to those facing absolute poverty we do not have “real” problems. Compared to the extremes, anything we struggle with is irrelevant.

Still, everyone finds problems that “match” their lifestyle – no one lives a carefree life, except children who have yet to be convinced

of Santa’s not being real. We worry about whether we are obese instead of whether we eat at all, about when we will graduate instead of whether we can ever start school, about whether we can pay the mortgage instead of whether we have a place to live. We may have food, water, and shelter, but that does not mean we are not scared, lonely, or worried about the future.

But the things we call first world problems aren’t “true” problems. At best, they’re minor inconveniences: not having campus-wide wifi – not a problem, just go to the next internet cable outlet or academic building. Biking to Plus to get cash to spend at the bar – not a problem, just get over yourself and on your bike. Wasting five minutes turning on UCU computers to print something early in the morning – not a problem, just close your eyes and enjoy the power nap.

So please, start using the phrase in ways that help reduce differences between the two worlds.

And if that’s too much to ask, just stop joking and shut the fuck up.

Top 5 First World Problems at UCU

1.The Panini situation in DH: either tuna, or a five-minute wait – we’re truly caught between a rock and a hard place.

2.Your chipknip running out mid-print – having to take another trip to DH, the horror!

3.No automatic front doors in Newton – but at least the science majors get some exercise.

4.Boomerang people can’t count.

Additional food for thought: Water is Life’s video “First World Problems Anthem.”

The Boomerang Debate

Proposition: The Boomerang is completely and utterly useless

Rupert Murdoch

The Boomerang? More of a 6000€ waste of UCSA money: it’s the committee with the biggest budget, and yet, the most useless one. A few conceited students who fancy themselves journalists produce a joke they call a newspaper. But are they in any way qualified? No. Sure, there’s the Journalism class, but no one ever gets into that, and those who do, never end up writing for the Boomerang.

Those who bother to pick up a copy on their way out of Dining Hall are faced with BS opinions from students who not only lack life experience, but in some cases, also dictionaries. And they can’t even claim they did their best: UCU is demanding, so those “articles” are most likely “composed” five minutes before the deadline. And what about the environment? How many trees have fallen victim to a few students’ delusional journalistic ambitions?

If the Boomerang could at least claim to be independent, fair and balanced, the faults mentioned above may be excused. But it is subject to the censorship of the UCSA Board, which makes fulfilling any kind of watchdog function impossible. Writers must be very careful when reporting on them, which ensures that the skeletons in the UCSA’s closets never emerge. So, if the Boomerang can’t criticize our governing body the way media should, what’s the point?

The people living in Voltaire have an answer: they use it as a doorstop. Which may be as good as it gets, dear Boomerang.

CON

Bob Woodward

Imagine the campus apocalypse to ensue if it wasn’t for Boomerang. College Hall as the ultimate totalitarian power, the UCSA as their secret police, Maarten Diederix as Big Brother – our lives controlled and oppressed. Would you like living in this Orwellian nightmare?

Without journalism, campus democracy would be crushed to pieces. Our writers work day and night to provide you with reads more interesting than those scholarly articles. Their purpose in life is uncovering the truth - in lieu of getting straight A’s or hooking up with that cute exchange guy.

The B oomerang is not afraid to ask the touchy questions, to get you thinking of what you never did before and to expose “public secrets.”

It helps us grow into truly critical and open-minded individuals. Laughter, creativity, and ideas flow freely in the office, when from students, we turn into dreamers, eager to go change the world.

Soon, the reality of getting things done kicks in. Writing, interviewing, editing, re-editing and layout-ing –the making of the Boomerang is like a part-time job.

And even though the fun is enough to motivate the Boom folks, positive side effects abound. Be it a history paper due tomorrow or a unitmate’s essay you were asked to take a look at – you rush through it with ease and passion, realizing that writing and editing have by now become your second nature.

In giving campus a voice, we care too much and work too hard for a few Boom-skeptics to kill the 13-year-old spirit that the Boomerang is.

Is Letting Something Happen the Same as Causing it? Science vs. Religion: Round 2

Eun A Jo

Last month, we had Dawkins and Harris denouncing religion as not only ruinous, but stupid. With an undercurrent of skepticism towards religion, Shermer explored mankind’s belief system: our hard-wired tendencies to seek non-existent truths. Rise of atheism was the common theme, ending with De Botton’s communitarian approach to adopt atheism 2.0.

Now, let’s flip the coin. What do the pious have to say?

Rev. Billy Graham spoke at TED in 1998 (in its earlier stage of development) in a talk titled “Technology and Faith.” Emitting an aura of ages-old stubbornness, Graham speaks of technological advance and its power to change life, humanity, the world. Is technology a panacea? Can it replace the philosopher’s stone? Had we seen the end of technology, will our souls be liberated from evil, suffering, and death?

Graham being one of the most prominent evangelical preachers in contemporary religion, the answers are conceivably predictable. But the contentious idea is still thought-provoking. Reverse the question: Is religion a universal cure? Can it free our souls?

To delve into the problems of society and our apparent lack of solutions, we must ask about the role of each individual. Pastor Rick Warren, in his moving talk “A Life of Purpose” communicates that God’s intention is for each one of us to use our talents to do good. He juxtaposes this with looking good, feeling good, and having the goods, which supposedly drive today’s materialism-infested society.

Now, drifting away from Christianity, the talk “On reading the Qur’an” by Lesley Hazleton marvels at the grace, flexibility, and mystery often overlooked in the holy book of Islam. As a self-identified agnostic tourist, she explores the Qur’an from the perspective of the uninitiated. From linguistic quality to messages that are often misquoted, she debunks our misconceptions of the Qur’an – Don’t dismiss it that easily as a mere source of violence and destruction!

Mustafa Akyol does exactly the same, however from the perspective of an “insider”. In “Faith versus Tradition in Islam” he criticizes that mundane cultural activities such as wearing a headscarf have become directly linked to the faith of Islam. Should the world (the West) see Islam through the lenses of its seemingly absurd traditions rather than its core values? Akyol concludes: “Islam, despite some of the skeptics in the West, has the potential in itself to create its own way to democracy, create its own way to liberalism, create its own way to freedom.”

Find out how this “counter-intuitive” supposition is argued!

For a greater insight to each talk, read the TEDster comments. They can get highly controversial and sometimes even outright offensive, but there are gems in there that make the rough journey worthwhile.

Talks:

Billy Graham “Technology and Faith”

Rick Warren “A Life of Purpose”

Lesley Hazleton “On reading the Koran”

Mustafa Akyol “Faith versus Tradition in Islam”

Tom Honey “God and the Tsunami”

Bob Thurman “We can be Buddhas”

Matthieu Ricard “The Habits of Happiness”

Elena Butti

Since Zwarte Piet caught a flu, Sinterklaas appointed you to help distribute presents on campus. On the magic night of the 5th, as Sinterklaas is riding to UCU on his white horse slightly tipsy from Dutch beer, you realize he is galloping towards a canal. The freezing water is going to swallow all the chocolate letters for UCUers, the horse, and Sinterklaas himself. You still have time to grab the reins and turn the horse away from the canal. In doing so, however, you’ll inevitably run over Santa Claus, who, feeling for Sinterklaas, has decided to distribute his presents on the same night. There are no alternatives: either you let Sinterklaas fall into the canal and the happiness of chocolate-loving UCUers drown with him, or you drive his horse over Santa Claus. The choice is yours. What do you do?

This is the Christmas version of a much more serious ethical dilemma: the moral difference between acts and omissions. Is letting something happen while you could prevent it the same as causing it? This dilemma is often presented through a somewhat cynical thought experiment, which forcefully illustrates the issue. Imagine you witness an uncontrolled train approaching a group of children playing on the rails. Assume you cannot warn the children –the train is inevitably going to kill them. The only thing you can do is change the course of the train, shifting it to another track where an old man, terminally ill, is sitting. This would result in his death. You can stay and look at a group of children dying or actively cause the death of an old man. What do you do?

Some people would choose the latter. This logic is an utilitarian one, advocated, for example, by Bentham and Mill. Its key principle is the attainment of “the highest good for the highest number of people”. The children are many, while the man is only one; the children have their whole life left; while the man will die soon anyways; the children are a potential resource for society, while the old man represents a burden. Other philosophers, like Kant, have instead argued for the sacred and non-negotiable value of human life. They believed that human life is some-

thing to which you simply cannot attach a measurable value and weigh it against others. In the train example, since you can’t decide that one life is worth more than another, nor that many are worth more than one, you simply cannot make a choice.

But what is the consequence of avoiding the choice? If you simply lay back and watch, the train will kill the children. Is letting the children die as blameworthy as killing them? Can an omission amount to an action?

This example is, of course, extreme. Most of us, though maybe not all, would probably agree with Bentham rather than Kant, and change the course of the train. But what about a more blurry situation? What if there are three old men on the first track, and only one child on the second track? Can you weigh their lives against each other? Are three lives worth more than one? Is a young life worth more than three old ones? Or is it simply impossible to attach a value to life?

Suppose you decide three lives are worth more than one, and change the course of the train. Are you actually killing the child? After all, you change the course of the train not to kill the child, but to save the three men. Is the death of the child the result of your action, or is it just an undesired consequence?

If you could foresee the child’s death with absolute certainty, your action seems hard to justify. But what if you believed that the child may have the time to jump off the track, so that his death is likely, but not certain? What if it’s only probable? Or very unlikely, but still possible? Does low probability of an unwanted occurrence make you less responsible for it? And does lack of intention take away responsibility?

You didn’t want to cause the child’s death, which was highly unlikely, and you were certain of saving three men: does this make you innocent?

These questions have triggered endless ethical discussions – a good topic for an intellectual afternoon with tea and chocolate letters. Provided that Sinterklaas doesn’t fall in a canal, of course.

Minh Tue Le Ngoc, Sanne van der Steeg and Fisayo Fadahunsi

‘Gender-bending’: The Latest Fashion Trend?

Sanne van der Steeg

R ecently, Dutch model Saskia de Brauw became one of the latest models to blur gender boundaries in the fashion industry, by fronting the Saint Laurent Men’s spring/summer 2013 collection. Many will find it hard to believe that the boy in the black and white campaign shots with the cropped hair, strong bone structure and make-up free complexion, is actually a 31 year old female supermodel, following the old adage that looks can indeed be very deceiving.

Although female male models are not quite the norm, Saskia de Brauw is not totally unique in her foray into the men’s fashion world. Casey Legler recently became the first woman to be signed to a male model agency, and is the only female model working exclusively as a male model. She was signed to the male division of Ford Models after being cast

as a man in a friend’s shoot, with the resulting photos being seen by a casting agent at Ford. Her 1.87m frame, razorsharp cheekbones, and boyish physique enable the former French Olympic swimmer turned artist to look equally at home in both a men’s suit and elegant evening gown.

Moreover, it is not only females that have enjoyed success by appearing as the opposite sex, and there have also been cases of men modelling as women. In fact, it can be argued that the gender-bending phenomenon first began in 2010, with the arrival of Andrej Pejic on the modelling scene. With his long blonde hair and delicate feminine features, Andrej Pejic is a Bosnian Australian model best-known for his work as a female model, appearing in both the men’s and women’s shows for Jean-Paul Gaultier and being photographed as

UCstreetstyle

a female model in Marc Jacob’s campaign shots. He also caused quite the controversy when he was featured in a campaign advertising push-up bras for our very own Hema; having a male advertise the bra perhaps providing the ultimate evidence of the magical qualities of the push-up bra.

However, it seems that ‘gender-bending’, and having females pose as males and vice-versa is rather more than a moneymaking tactic and the latest fad in a trend infatuated industry. For the designers and the models involved it is a way of breaking artistic boundaries and expressing creativity, as Legler has said she views modelling as a male as an extension of her art. Perhaps Saskia, Casey and Andrej can also teach us that there are no strict rules when it comes to style, and can encourage us to be and wear whatever we feel like; even if it means occasionally dressing up as the other gender.

With Christmas around the corner, we asked fellow students to tell us 1) the one fashion item that is on their wishlist this year and 2)where they bought the outfit worn in the photo.

Tom Goodsir, exchange

1.This blazer from All Saints would be the perfect addition: beautifully cut from British tweed. It may be on my list but at that price it’s wishful thinking...

2.It’s a mishmash of cheap rubbish from H&M, a decent pair of Ted Baker jeans and the mac was last year’s Christmas present from my lovely girlfriend. Originally from Zara but she couldn’t stand the buttons, so stitched on new ones by hand. My shoes are from Sole Trader and, like most of my shoes, have definitely seen better days...The rest of what I wear is just bought randomly.

1.There are two items that are still on my wishlist for this year. Would like to have some high heeled brown ankleboots because they can pretty much be worn with everything. Also, I want to find a nice party dress for New Years, sort of tradition of mine to go dress shopping for NYE.

2.The black ankleboots are from last year, River Island, I could not go without them. I almost always wear heels, because it boosts your posture and important in my case, my height. The skirt is from Monki, love the peplum trend, very feminine. The denim shirt is from H&M and makes every outfit casual in an instant. The golden necklace is my moms’, always feel that it brings me good luck. The pendant is from Topshop, bought in Stockholm. My watch is Michael Kors, bought it after working for Tommy Hilfiger over summer.

Anna van Hoek, 4th year

1.I’ve been looking for sometime now for a good-fitting jeans jacket, one that is rather big but not too big. I also really need new boots because mine are falling apart. And I’ve secretly been wanting those classic black ankle-high leather boots with small heel that everyone wears in England.

2.Last fall break my London friend introduced me to a really nice vintage store where I managed to bargain a discount for these pants. While Primark, London, got me so excited that I lost my heritage group, but found the hat. The earrings are H&M, everyone needs feather earrings in my opinion. The shirt is a hand-me-down from my mom, gotta love her. The bag I still have from when I was 6.

Jet Josephine Akkerman, 1st year

Saskia de Brauw for Saint Laurent Paris

Andrej Pejic for Hema

Casey Legler

Travel Column

Winter in Leiden

Anonymous

Winter is around the corner and Christmas with its kitschy decorations is drawing closer. Let’s warm up our itchy feet by walking around the city of Leiden.

Apparently, Leiden is home to the oldest university in the Netherlands (Descartes and Spinoza both studied here) and birthplace of Rembrandt. Those facts make a local’s chest swell with pride but are useless to a tourist. You can visit the site of Rembrandt’s birthplace but it does not have much historical value. The original building is long gone; the nearby statue of Rembrandt is not that impressive, and even the windmill in the background was erected only thirty years ago.

What’s great about Leiden is that the city centre is compact and the main sights are densely located. Similar to our Oudegracht, the pedestrian area follows a network of canals flanked by archaic Dutch buildings. If you come here on a Saturday, you can be part of a bustling crowd and walk along the colourful booths of the city centre market.

Close to the market and situated on a small hill stands a one thousand-year-old fortification, De Burcht. The inside of the circular structure has nothing to offer but trees. However, you can take the stairs up the rampart and enjoy a scenic view of Leiden from the promenade. Due to its elevated position and the 360° view, you have a splendid overview of most of Leiden – with the Hooglandse Kerk in the south being the most impressive sight. Even in late fall it’s worth a visit, since Leiden looks eerily enchanting in foggy weather.

By now you must be thirsty, and in serious need of some hot chocolate. At the junction of the canal in the very heart of Leiden, Annie’s is a great water-level restaurant. It has its own floating dock on which you can sit – arguably the best spot to have a drink in Leiden. Since it is quite chilly by now, head inside and enjoy the cosy cellar interior with its low ceiling and warm light. Should you go to Leiden when it is really cold, the restaurant might have put tables on the frozen canal. Apparently, this has happened in the past and although I don’t know whether it’s a safe or sane thing to do, it sounds pretty memorable.

At times, Leiden feels like a smaller version of Utrecht. Still, its antique centre, iconic buildings, intricate alleys and network of canals manage to emit their own worthwhile vibe.

Costs: 17€ for a full-fare return ticket

Travel time: ca. 45 min. one way

City centre market

Times: Wednesday & Saturday, 9:00am - 5:00pm

Annie’s - Lunch Diner Drinks

Location: Hoogstraat 1a, Leiden

Opening times: Mon-Sun, at least from 12PM

The Song of Achilles A Review

Januschka Veldstra

of Achilles and Troy, giving it a new perspective: that of Patroclus, Achilles’ faithful lover.

most of his attention outwards.

Madeline Miller’s ‘The song of Achilles’ was ten years in the making – but the hard work has paid off. The winner of the 2012 Orange Prize retells the classic tale

Patroclus is the exiled prince, the loser who disappoints everyone, most of all his father. Achilles is the hero-to-be, the demi-god who exceeds all his peers in strength, beauty, and skill. This unlikely pair becomes friends, and ultimately lovers, when Patroclus ends up at the court of Achilles’ father. At times, it may be hard to understand why, as explanations for their infatuation are somewhat lacking. Achilles, the “greatest of all Greeks”, has little going for him until he can show his prowess at warfare. Even more baffling is Achilles’ interest in Patroclus. The latter remains rather nondescript throughout, maybe because as the narrator, he focuses

Going Creative: A Very Short Story Snapshot

The old man sat in the armchair his son had bought at Ikea to replace the other one, the old and beloved one. The one his grandfather had sat on, when he, a little boy back then, would climb on his knees and ask for candy. Those big comforting knees he’d sat on when that old man, now long dead, had laughed loudly and contagiously.

But neither his grandfather, nor the armchair had survived. The chair had outlived the grandfather by several decades, had seen how the grandson had turned into a grandfather himself, but then it, too, had had to meet its maker.

A pipe and fatigue had been its murderers. Fatigue had adamantly weighed down the old man’s eyelids; the burning pipe, feeling a bit lonely, had decided to incinerate its surroundings – the time-honored armchair. At least the old chair’s last act had been one of vigilantism – the pipe had been a victim of its own crime. Only fatigue was still at large and revisited the crime scene frequently, but the charges had been dismissed all the same.

Sure, the new armchair was aerodynamically shaped, joint- and climate friendly, and vegan, but it had no soul, no memories. It wasn’t an armchair; it was a piece of furniture, purchased at Ikea, of all places.

It was raining. For days, he had only heard this constant, almost pulsating sound, interrupted by sudden gusts of wind and the blubbering TV next door. Still, he insisted upon his window being open.

However, keeping in mind that Miller is no Homer, and this is her first work, much can be forgiven. With a background as Classics teacher, she knows the tales she is rewriting well and manages to brilliantly tweak them to accommodate the love story fully. After all, this still is the epic tale we all know from the Iliad, and has much to offer to anyone with an interest in mythology. There is glory to be won, honour to be fought for, fate to be suffered, and most of all love to die for. We know from the get-go that the story ends in tears, yet the suspense remains.

So take the time to enjoy this story during winter break and see how familiar characters are presented ever so slightly differently, giving an entirely new twist to the myth. It is worth it.

For other modern takes on Greek mythology, check out ‘Ransom’ by David Malouf, and ‘Ilios & Odysseus’ – a children’s novel by Imme Dros, one of the best reasons to learn Dutch.

Only then did he feel close to nature, even though there was always a wall between them now. It smelled like rain and green, and when he leaned forward, a soft breeze caressed his tired face.

The conservatory across the street had its windows open, too. Soft and enquiringly, the sound of a trumpet climbing up and down a single scale rose above the song of the rain and cacophony of the street. Up and down, repeating some transitions, up and down again. The scale turned into an etude of uncertain beauty, like a question, not knowing if there even was such a thing as an answer.

He perked up his ears as if he actually had control over the muscles attaching them to his head. But eventually he had to surrender to technology and turn up his hearing aid. Only now could he really hear the symphony of thousands of raindrops in unison with a single trumpet, conducted by the wind. Was anyone else listening, or was he the only one whose daily life was empty enough to be touched by the careful elegance of this combination of nature and man?

He listened more deeply into the sounds that tried to stay on the right pitch, but still billowed around like November fog. The trumpet got softer, as if the player was slowly tiptoeing away, letting the rain gain the upper hand. It tried to rebel with a last sustained note, but then bowed out gracefully, leaving the stage to the rain who accepted the solo as if it were an inalienable right and not a gift.

Sofia Banzhoff

Fifty Shades of Red

Ivo Dimitrov

After the more or less successful venture into Hipstertown, I decide to put my new found investigative skills to the test once more. Wearing a hastily assembled disguise (read: an oversized UCU sweater), I arrive at my destination – a bookshop called De Rooie Rat, the place-to-be for lefties, socialists, neo-Bolsheviks, and every other shade of political red you can think of.

A few seconds inside and I am already more excited than I was during Introweek. Right next to the door, a poster greets me with the friendly and welcoming slogan: “CRUSH CAPITALISM! SHOW AN UNDEAD SYSTEM HOW TO DIE”. Nothing expresses solidarity and togetherness quite like Uncle Sam being brutally shot in the face by what is undoubtedly the Hand of Justice.

Admittedly, I have never identified myself with any socialist parties or principles, but who knows into what kind of big-government monster I have turned during a semester at UCU. After all, students are known to be equality-loving intellectuals, dreaming of a better society ever since the very first Intro to Sociology lecture.

So this is my chance! I have finally found a way into a secret and thrilling leftist movement and I am determined not to let it go. The room I just entered is reminiscent of the socialist life I was clearly born for –secret underground meetings with mysterious French revolutionaries, illegal movements aimed at overthrowing the tyrannical establishment, a non-stop fear of getting caught by Utrecht’s police. This is it, I realize;

Women, tanks, webcomics

Marina Lazëri

Events

*Holidays Edition*

Loren

Snel

I have found a new me: UCU is a thing of the past.

As I make my way to the over-stacked shelves and start exploring, I am amazed by the diversity of subjects. Seriously, a cookbook section in a political bookstore? Well, they might be helpful for a future coup d’état in Dining Hall. A linguistics book telling me that English is the language of imperialism and repression? I might be joining Equites after all - and while I am at it, change the name to Equaly-tes.

Just as I am about to ask if they have a spare hammer and sickle, something catches my attention. The little price tags attached to the pile of inspiring items in my hands. Twenty euros for a Lenin poster, intended to cheer up our Kromhout living room? Twice as much for a second-hand paperback of Marx’ illustrated Manifesto? And how on Earth am I going to afford VIP tickets for the world-famous London Anarchist Bookfair?

I suddenly realize that the brave fighter for equality behind the counter is just a student, probably saving money for that mainstream bachelor. Did I really think my leftist dream-life wouldn’t come with a hefty price tag?

Eventually I leave, disillusioned, vengeful, and ready to indulge in some fine capitalist money-making. Luckily the Albert Heijn right across the street is looking for cashiers. Boekhandel de Rooie Rat, Oudegracht 65

1 December 2012 – 5 January 2013

100 JAAR HOLLYWOOD: 25 klassiekers die je niet vaak genoeg kunt zien /

100 YEARS OF HOLLYWOOD: 25 classics you can’t get enough of EYE has definitely come up with the ultimate end-of-year event. The new film museum of Amsterdam will be screening 25 of Hollywood’s biggest movie classics of the last century. Craving to see Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Grease, A Space Odyssey, Modern Times, The Sound of Music, Avatar, you-name-it on the big screen? Don’t miss out and check out the programme.

7 December 2012 – 20 January 2013

THE AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL

Visiting the capital this holiday season is definitely a must. The city will light up its centre during nocturnal hours with a wide variety of luminous artefacts and glowing sculptures. Check out the website and go ‘Oooohh!’ Strolling along many of Amsterdam’s prettiest canals will be the romantic walk you always dreamed of.

22 December 2012 – 6 January 2013

Re-reading my last issue’s article on webcomics as postmodern art, I noticed that I refer to the unidentified webcomic writer as a ‘he’. Oh, the horror! I, of all people, missing this kind of gender biased language? I need to rectify my mistake. This time I write about a webcomic concerning women.

The point of postmodern art is not to interpret it, least is this the point of webcomics. What I’d like you to do is try to get in touch with the experience provoked in you by this comic. Does it blur the lines between reality, rationality and representation? Does it confirm your stereotypes of gender? Does it confront your stereotypes of gender? Does it address a possible, underlying conflict of today’s society? Are my questions too farfetched?

Depending on whether you grew up reading Marvel comics or not, or whether you find ‘Lord of the Rings’ one of the most insightful books ever written, you might not see webcomics as addressing major societal issues (at least not successfully). I’m not trying to convince you of the contrary.

However, I do hope that you can experience a sense of disquiet from such works. Put at discomfort by being confronted with an issue you might have thought of: maybe not men attacking women with tanks (even though I wouldn’t put that past our world) but at least exclusion, stereotypes or those damned feminists that think men ain’t worth jack.

Is my obliviousness to proper gender language etiquette a big deal that reflects deep normalization of gender distinction roles within society? Or is it merely a reflection of a language that by now has acquired a purely conventional dimension? Maybe I’ll never know. Maybe I shouldn’t know. Maybe I should be disturbed by my slip but only insofar as it serves as food for thought. Maybe I should be disturbed of what peace entails, who knows.

Or maybe I’m just advertising Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal –maybe I get a cut of the profit from merchandise, money people are willing to pay in order to have disturbing relevations on their walls.

THE WINTER STATION in UTRECHT’S RAILWAY MUSEUM

It’s time to get out those ice skates again! Utrecht’s Railway Museum will transform into Winter Wonderland over the holidays and will install its very own ice rink. Unless the chances of this year’s Frieslandic Eleven-City-Tour taking place are higher than the usual 0 per cent, the Railway Museum’s ice skating track is the one to look forward to. What could be more Christmassy than skating laps around an old-fashioned stream train while hundreds of lights twinkle above you? Exactly.

QUAD QUERIES

What do you feel like doing first after you’re done with exams?

“Going to the Nutcracker Ballet”

“I just wanna sleep all day”

“Take a bath in acid and dissapear from this planet”

“Snowboarding”

“Burn my Biology book and brew some tea on the fire!”

“Go to the party and take the first plane to London afterwards!”

“Jump in the pool”

Editors

Sofia Banzhoff

Laura Boerboom

Elena Butti

Ivo Dimitrov

Willem van Geel

Marina Lazëri

Klementina Ristovska

Januschka Veldstra

“Get stoned and eat oliebollen” “Eat a big bucket of Ben&Jerry’s and make everyone on facebook jealous”

The Boomerang Team 2012|2013:

Editor-in-Chief Klementina Ristovska

Managing Director Elena Butti

Off-Campus Editor & Secretary Marina Lazëri

Campus Editor & Treasurer Willem van Geel

Managing Editor Laura Boerboom

Art and Layout Director Minh Tue Le Ngoc

Layout Designers Emiel Stegeman, Danielle Bovenberg

Cartoonists Carlos Granados Martínez, Laurence Herfs

CAO Martijn Scholtemeijer

Max Kraan, 1st year

Amuktha Dasi, 2nd year

Gentry Tsiatsiou, 1st year

Nina Korsuize, 2nd year

Andrew Ryu, 1st year Judith Romkes, 3rd year

Mikael Eriksson, 3rd year

Ella Bosch, 3rd year

Annie Gray, exchange