Student Deaths

Max001

Eliot Rosewater wrote: »

Indeed it is. Did anyone happen to get one of those flyers advising you on how to have a responsible house party? Among the suggestions were:

• Have a non-alcoholic night. As if people are going to pay attention to this, especially on Rag Week.
• Make one person a non-drinking warden of the party to make sure everyones ok and monitor noise.
• Make someone a warden of the door to watch whos coming in and out.
• Provide food and non-alcoholic drink for under-agers.
• Organize lifts for people, or if not, pay for taxis.

Do people who write these guides live on planet cuckoo land or something? In making it totally unreasonable they basically alienate people who would otherwise pay attention to it.

Ahem....I think point two refers to 'non-drinking'. Now while English is my native language and I could be mistaken, taking a wild shot in the dark (no pun intended) I think, maybe, just maybe, non-drinking might, meaning-wise be in the same ball-park as abstinence. Seems to me, point three, might just be going up the same blind alley in also using the word warden, assuming said door commander warden is also abstaining.....sorry, I mean non-drinking. Points four and five, well suffice to say I could have lotsa fun with those, however, life as they say, is too short.

samf

Right well why didnt you quote those points in your post rather than quoting rebeccas post? It just recommends one person in the whole party abstain for a night, not proposing everyone in the whole party abstain. And not everyone in UCC drinks so suggesting a non drinking friend attend a houseparty is hardly a bad idea just in case anything goes wrong?

Basically I see your point but the whole flyer isnt exactly screaming "dont drink!".

Max001

samf wrote: »

But as Rebecca said the flyer doesnt recommend a houseparty without alcohol, it suggests one with a theme such as a toga party or something rather than a party where the whole point is to get as drunk as possible. It doesnt recommend abstinence?

Have you ever been to a toga party? I mean one not run by the Legion of Mary. The more sober and subdued ones I've been to on various campuses resemble National Lampoon's Animal House or seek to, while the truely memorable ones, or rather the ones where participants run serious risk of alcohol poisoning, blackouts, not to mention obscene photgraphs plastered all over campus and always involve a call out of all of the emergency services, resemble various scenes from Apocalypse Now, The Wizard of Oz & Caligula's orgy all rolled into one.

Max001

samf wrote: »

Right well why didnt you quote those points in your post rather than quoting rebeccas post? It just recommends one person in the whole party abstain for a night, not proposing everyone in the whole party abstain. And not everyone in UCC drinks so suggesting a non drinking friend attend a houseparty is hardly a bad idea just in case anything goes wrong?

Basically I see your point but the whole flyer isnt exactly screaming "dont drink!".

No, it merely screams childish and amateur.

Max001

And another thing.........Raise and Give? What do-gooding, fun-killing, robot thought that up? Next years should be 'Roger and Grope' or 'Raid and Grab'.....anything to make it remotely anti-authoritarian. If there isn't double spread condemnation from all sides in the press, it simply hasn't registered.......with some money raised for good causes to take the edge off of course......alcohol awareness maybe?

samf

So first its bad because its promoting abstinence and then when you agree that its clearly not telling people not to drink, its now "childish and amateurish". :rolleyes:

Anyway, enough about the flyer, its off topic and distasteful to argue about such small issues in this thread. Overall there was no major trouble in the week, the gardai and residents were all delighted with how it went, so whether the flyer worked or not clearly the message got across.

samf

Max001 wrote: »

And another thing.........Raise and Give? What do-gooding, fun-killing, robot thought that up? Next years should be 'Roger and Grope' or 'Raid and Grab'.....anything to make it remotely anti-authoritarian. If there isn't double spread condemnation from all sides in the press, it simply hasn't registered.......with some money raised for good causes to take the edge off of course......alcohol awareness maybe?

Raise and give is what RAG always stood for, it was rebranded this year to bring the focus back to charity and away from binging from the week. And it worked.

Max001

samf wrote: »

So first its bad because its promoting abstinence and then when you agree that its clearly not telling people not to drink, its now "childish and amateurish". :rolleyes:

Anyway, enough about the flyer, its off topic and distasteful to argue about such small issues in this thread. Overall there was no major trouble in the week, the gardai and residents were all delighted with how it went, so whether the flyer worked or not clearly the message got across.

You've completely missed the point. I'm sorry, I can't use words that are any smaller. Plus, you've completely misrepresented what I said. Are you paralytic or something? I'd refer you to the HSE's excellent leaflet on liver damage and other ill effects due to binge drinking........and.....serious question how did you ever get into university in the first place?

samf

Max001 wrote: »

Are you paralytic or something?

Max001 wrote: »

how did you ever get into university in the first place?

Pity to see you resorting to personal attacks.

Could the houseparty tips have been better? Sure, days could have been spent researching the best advice and tips to give. Did they help anyone? Who knows, but I sincerely doubt they did any harm as they were. Really think you're making a big deal about nothing here.

Max001

samf wrote: »

Pity to see you resorting to personal attacks.

Could the houseparty tips have been better? Sure, days could have been spent researching the best advice and tips to give. Did they help anyone? Who knows, but I sincerely doubt they did any harm as they were. Really think you're making a big deal about nothing here.

Not so much a personal attack as disappointment when seeking to have a dialogue with another who doesn't take the time to engage eyes and brain before mouth.

Surely the point of what I assume is a paid post in the SU is that you seek to get a professional return on the amount paid out. An hour or two, if that would be enough to research and produce an effective flyer. So long as effectiveness ain't measured, even by simple metrics, SU officers will never be properly held to account and amateur hour will prevail.

samf

As I said earlier I think you can measure its effectiveness by the success of the week and the relative lack of trouble with out of hand house parties this year compared to previous years.

Which factors we have to thank for this is anyone's guess but its a bit much to be getting so worked up over a flyer not being researched enough for your liking. It was a good gesture, not an attempt to single-handedly change the drinking culture in UCC.

Max001

As John Wayne once said, (I think) 'Well, ex-cuse me all to hell'

Seriously, I don't mean to be bitchy and believe me, I ain't gettin worked up over a piece of paper and I try hard not to criticise someone who's not around to defend themselves so I'll simply say, 'Apologies all round' and leave it at that.

Celtise

I have to agree that there has been a scarily high number of natural disasters as well as student deaths this year.

I have had connections with three of the deaths this college year and two of them were alcohol related accidents. I was also connected to the student that died during RAG week last year and that was a totally unalcohol related accident.

Luck just doesn't seem to have been on our side this year.

rebel girl 15

I think it is a case as well of the deaths being more high profile, reported more in the media.

Nova_era

rebel girl 15 wrote: »

I think it is a case as well of the deaths being more high profile, reported more in the media.

There hasn't been a huge amount over the last 2 years, has there? I can remember 3 or 4, but I wouldn't say it's a pandemic as such. It would probably match average statistics, in a population of 20,000 there's bound to be a few deaths per year.

baberuthless

rebel girl 15 wrote: »

Problem is that suicide and depression are such taboo subjects still, despite the leaps Ireland has made with other taboo subjects. There is not enough being spent on providing parasuicide nurses and other forms of help. The stats say that young men between 16-25 are most at risk of suicide while girls in that age group are most at risk of self harming.

With Adam Buggy, the arts student that died last week, Gardai are looking at some sinister circumstances, including the possibility that he could have been followed or even chased, and that he was assaulted earlier in the evening
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/assault-probe-follows-tragic-crash-2051110.html

3rd year student before last years RAG week, 3rd year student before this years RAG week - when you think about it like that it is freaky

Hey, can i just remind you that before you go off using someone as an example for some "freaky" shocking news that he was a actually a person and a friend and a son.
can you please leave him out of your ****ing legend curse ****e. he's not like some ****ing school crest or grass that you can't walk on.
your stupid post obviously made as an offhand comment months and nearly a year ago but it doesn't make it right.

rebel girl 15

baberuthless wrote: »

Hey, can i just remind you that before you go off using someone as an example for some "freaky" shocking news that he was a actually a person and a friend and a son.
can you please leave him out of your ****ing legend curse ****e. he's not like some ****ing school crest or grass that you can't walk on.
your stupid post obviously made as an offhand comment months and nearly a year ago but it doesn't make it right.

where in my post did I mention curses - I mentioned that it was freaky as in weird that it was third year students. I have absolutely no idea where you got that I implied about these "curses" in my post. I made a comment on a coincidence that occurred - have no idea how someone could attack that post using the type of language you have above, or why the hell you would go to the trouble of resurrecting a year old thread!

baberuthless

rebel girl 15 wrote: »

where in my post did I mention curses - I mentioned that it was freaky as in weird that it was third year students. I have absolutely no idea where you got that I implied about these "curses" in my post. I made a comment on a coincidence that occurred - have no idea how someone could attack that post using the type of language you have above, or why the hell you would go to the trouble of resurrecting a year old thread!

you didn't in any way mention a curse but it seemed implied to be honest. to me he was a friend so i got very pissed off that someone could carelessly use him as an example. that was it really, wasn't planing on using you in an internet fight but what you felt said disgustingly insensitive.
i'm sorry if my use of language was inappropriate for you but yours was disrespectful.
i was looking him up for a memorial piece and thats how i found your post.

KnifeWRENCH

I think it's for the best to lock this thread and leave it be.