The Ballyfermot Post

What’ next? blocking Google?

With Ballyfermot college’s internet censorship expanded once again – even if access to Yahoo was only restricted  for around a week – we find our selves saying again:

The blocks have no place in a modern third level education establishment, and such is even more so the case for a media focused college.

Blocking websites could be appropriated for secondary schools, but treating third level students like this amounts to counterproductive censorship. It is on par with China’s censorship of its people, not because the intent is there, but due to the results. 

The college is at fault creating a weakness in knowledge, and experience for its students. It is putting students of a small college in a disadvantage in an area that it is completely unnecessary.

COMMENT: Students only ones to blame

When you hear the term college spirit, it’s hard not to find it a little cheesy. What does it mean? Everyone on campus hugging it out over a morning coffee with people you don’t even know?

That’s probably a tad strong, but what can’t be denied are the social opportunities available in third level institutions. Looking around the BCFE campus it’s hard not to notice the divide in the student body – which is not helped by the distance between the arts and main building. So, it may take some kind of pre-organised event to bring them together.

The promised and subsequently cancelled rag week would have been the prime platform to achieve this. Forgetting for a moment the week was cancelled the only real promotion for the event came from this paper’s patronisation. How are people supposed to get involved in something that they don’t even know is happening?

There is little to be gained by solely blaming the SU, who promised this rag week. The problem could be with student body in general who seem content with the current status quo. Had a rag week been cancelled in any other third level institution there would have been up roar amongst the students, perhaps the proverbial silence of the college populous is the most telling factor in this whole issue.

COMMENT: Democracy, the real loser with Lisbon

Ireland is the only European Union state to be putting the Lisbon Treaty to its people; but it must be questioned why Europe sees nothing wrong using the back door to push through a watered-down version of the rejected EU Constitution.

The text for the proposed constitution for Europe said citizens would have been “directly represented” in the European Parliament and represented at the European Council a less directly.

“Every citizen shall have the right to participate in the democratic life of the Union,” the text read, and it went on to say the “will of citizens of the Union” should be taken into account. The document not only talks of democracy in lose terms, it adds the workings of the Union should be democracy and every citizen “shall have the right to participate”.

The EU constitution would have enshrined the idea and ideals of a democracy system. Therefore, it should not be a leap of faith to expect its follow up to be introduced in the most democratic way – putting the question to all the “citizens of the Union”.

Why then are the democrats of Europe passing the constitution’s predecessor through the back door?

ALSO SEE:
- Majority in dark over EU treaty

COMMENT: Road safety must be taken seriously

The Irish Examiner reported Monday that there have been 63 lives lost in the 63 days so-far of of 2008, our story on drivers’ behaviour on a road near this college is just another of many indicators that making Irish roads safe is little more then something we would like to do, but it’s just too much effort for most. A statement last year from the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) shows the typical mentally in Ireland.

“The imposition of a tougher licensing regime on younger drivers is designed to address road safety concerns. USI welcomes the fact that the Government is determined to lower the number of accidents caused by inexperienced drivers,” said Peadar Hayes, the USI welfare officer. “But younger drivers are often quite dependent on their cars, and that is often by necessity.” Simply put, the union welcomes ways of stopping deaths, but not at the apparently extreme cost of inconveniencing students.

The union said the emphasis on improving road safety must be matched by “wholesale” public on transport improvements... Is there another way of reading this besides ‘no safety without public transport’?

And it gets worse, the now USI president, Hamid Khodabakhshi, said: “Protecting people’s mobility, safety, and the environment: these three watchwords must inform improvements to licensing and testing, but also improvements to public transport,”

Watchwords, more like buzzwords. What kind of nonsense is this? More people driving is good for the environment?

EDITORIAL: Worse than China

BCFE is held in high regard for courses such media, journalism, radio, and television. However, in an increasingly internet focused world, it is in danger of damaging such a reputation with polices which block websites of high importance in the industries it purports to educate for.

More importantly the college is using public funds to implement polices which are not only interfering with an all-round education. And the blocking leads to an even greater disadvantage for students who have no internet access at home.

These students will have an even smaller chance of getting to know what the internet really is today, it will lead to an instant weakness for such students whether they enter the workplace in their chose sector or continue their education.

The blocks have no place in a modern third level education establishment, and such is even more so the case for a media focused college.

We have outlined a number of sites blocked in our cover story, but these should only be taken as examples. The broad polices could block countless sites which are at the least harmless and at most morally wrongfully blocked useful sites.

For some time last year irishstatutebook.ie was blocked, the site contains Irish law and is run by the Office of the Attorney General. Under the current system, a request must be made by students to lectures, and on to the computer technicians. Surely, this is a waste of time and resource for all involved?

The system also blocks “banned phrases” which can end up locking users out of sites just because of one or two words.

Blocking websites could be appropriated for secondary schools, but treating third level students like this amounts to counterproductive censorship. It is on par with China’s censorship of its people, not because the intent is there, but due to the results. 

The college is at fault creating a weakness in knowledge, and experience for its students. It is putting students of a small college in a disadvantage in an area that it is completely unnecessary.