Professional Documents
Culture Documents
De Minimis
Official Newspaper of the Students of Melbourne Law School, Established 1948, Revived 2012 Volume 3, Issue 9
www.mudeminimis.com
THE MOON, AS SEEN BY TELESCOPE, AND PERHAPS SOMETIME SOON BY YOU, TOO (PHOTO: MUAS)
General Meeting at 6.30 pm on Friday, May 17. Annual membership is $5 for University of Melbourne students.
Read De Minimis online at mudeminimis.com
2 FEATURES
RYAN HSU SPEAKS AT A MARRIAGE EQUALITY RALLY IN MELBOURNE. (CREDIT: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
cessful referendum would be a tremendous statement of public support for marriage equality, but its probably not worth the risk, expense and damage that might be caused especially given there is a cheap and efficient alternative that just required a bit of political courage. If youre interested in this and other issues related to gender, sexuality and the law, come along to Sex Talk: Bodies, Identity, and the Law on Tuesday, May 14 in room 920 for panel discussions and individual presentations by MLS students. Topics include, but are in no means limited to, marriage equity, prostitution and sex trafficking, and the legal recognition of alternative genders. Light refreshments will be provided.
OPINION 3
uated their life choices, they were unaware of the looming danger. Prompted by concerns from students and the LSS Education Officers, the faculty was overruled by higher management, and it was decided that the code should be strictly enforced, and the papers remarked. Chaos ensued. Frantic students, many of whom now found themselves with a failing grade, begged their lecturers to reconsider. The powerless lecturers could only offer sympathy, insisting that there was no right of review for this administrative decision. It was clear that the debacle had divided students and faculty alike. Some took to Facebook to express their frustration and anger at what they saw as an intentional attempt to disadvantage them. Many others blamed the Admin staff who had acted beyond their power to begin with. As the dust settled, everyone seemed to be thinking the same thought, one that they have often pondered in Admin Law; why didnt they just get it right in the first place! In this reporters opinion, the code description should be included with the instructions on all assignments and it should be consistently and strictly enforced (we already take this measure with regard to plagiarism). Now, all we can do is lick our wounds and spare a thought for the Student Centre, they had to recount all the papers four times.
Alternative Advice
Jess Sykes
People fill your ears with all kinds of wisdom when it comes to coping strategies in stressful periods. Advice offered for Uni, for exam periods, for the inevitable personal breakdowns we all have occasionally. If, like me, you greeted week nine by looking up aneurism to check if you just had one, then it might be time to try some alternative methods of stress management. Advice to exercise, eat healthily and not drink alcohol or caffeine is all well and good, but as someone who is currently unsure if theyre shivering from the cold or the DTs, it may not be overly realistic. And anyone who has ever tried to take coffee from a law student has probably not lived to tell the tale. That said, do your best, but maybe supplement with these additions:
At all costs try to avoid conversing with study braggers. I dont want to be overly dramatic, but Im fairly certain they have the potential to destroy entire civilisations with their swiping ego/ word vomit combo. Obviously everyone should be able to discuss their successes and feel proud of their achievements, but when youre using your skin primarily to stop your nerves exploding, you need reassuring friends. Perhaps consider indulging in a nervous habit or two. Im biting my lip as I type this, and have developed a charming eye twitch, which has the surprising result of causing a gentleman in the library to think Im flirting with him. Who knows, maybe I am. Just do one thing at a time. And then look at some pictures of cats. Unless youre someone who prefers to work in big chunks of time, in which case do one
thing at a time, followed by other one things for a concentrated period, then look at some cats, eat some sweet treats and go for a walk. Repeat. Remember all the times you thought youd ruined your life by spending mass amounts of time in your underwear watching TV instead of studying/working, and how it actually was completely fine in the end. Obviously this should show you that you could probably have Doogie Houserd this law business if youd just kept your pants on and stopped procrastinating, but youre fine. And when that seemingly pointless topic is hurting your brainbox, think of David Sedariss wise words that regardless of the subject, the knowledge will come in handy once you hit middle age and start working crossword puzzles in order to stave off the terrible loneliness.
4
Non-law Book Review
QUIZ
1. Which three continents lie on the Tropic of Capricorn? 2. Afrikaans developed from which European language? 3. One and a half litres of champagne (or wine) is known as a what (referring to the size of the bottle)? 4. What does NASA stand for? 5. Last week a billboard advertising Foxtel was removed from Kings Cross, Sydney, only 24 hours after it was erected what was the image of? 6. To arrive in the Kingdom of Narnia, what must you first travel through? 7. Name the cocktail from its ingredients: white rum, coconut cream and pineapple juice. 8. What were the sequels (all three) to Twilight called? 9. German shepherds were renamed in the UK after the WWI in a response to anti-German sentiment: what was their new name? 10. What is the layout in the CBD called? Answers below. This weeks quiz compiled by Anna Nodrum. pm. Room 920. Register at <http:// bit.ly/YwfLBe>. Wednesday, 8 May GLSA Global Thinking Lecture: Reflection on the War and Terror and the Mainstreaming of Executive Killing, lecture by Lt. Col. Dan Mori, who represented David Hicks. 1 pm. Room G08. Light refreshments follow the event. Wednesday, 8 May APCML Law & War Seminar: Military Violence Against Women, lecture by Prof. Yuki Tanaka. 6 pm. Room 920. RSVP law-apcml@ unimelb.edu.au. Tuesday, 14 May Sex Talk: Identity, Bodies and the Law, presentation and panel discussions held by students from the Current Issues in Gender, Sexuality and the Law seminar. Various events from 1 4 pm. Room 920. Lunch and light refreshments served. More information in next weeks issue.
Thomas Ho
human characters; when Rodrigues questions and struggles to make sense of his world, one feels that he does so on behalf of all of us too. Shusaku Endo does not offer us any easy answers or solutions in his beautiful novel, nor does he teach us how to approach silence. This novel is not a prescriptive piece of writing. What Endo does offer is a delicate and touching analysis of silence not as a void, but as an object or message on its own. Read this one feelingly. 9/10
Equity Uncle
Anxious Achiever
Dear Equity Uncle, Were all high achievers, but playing a zero sum game. How do I celebrate with friends when I get the RA position/clerkship/associateship/job/journal editor they wanted? What happens when they get what I wanted? Is it possible to have real friends at law school? Anxious Achiever Dear AA, Like life, law is only a zero sum game if you measure achievement by reference to other people. Equity cherishes other people. Equity adores the Joneses. Equity is a communist. If you get that RA position your friend wanted, it is not yours alone. Equity requires that you hold that position on trust for everyone. Your achievement in life is everyones achievement in Equity. Equity likes neither zero sum games nor game theory itself. Equity has not seen A Beautiful Mind, because Equity does not like Russell Crowe. Competition is neither good nor productive, and it shouldnt come at the expense of friendship. Celebrate your friends achievements because they are also yours. Buy them a drink! And get two straws. Equity Uncle
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, 7 May CCCS Seminar: Judicial Use of Comparative Constitutional Law in Bangladesh: Method, Benefits and Perils, lecture by Associate Prof. Ridwanul Hoque. 1 pm. Room 920. Register at <http://bit.ly/ YwfJt2>. Tuesday, 7 May Forget Sovereignty: The Nomos of the Sea and People in Small Boats, lecture by Dr Stewart Motha, chaired by Prof. Sundhya Pahuja. Organised by MJIL and IILAH. 7
QUIZ ANSWERS. 1. Australia, Africa, South America 2. Dutch 3. Magnum 4. National Aeronautics and Space Administration 5. British Prime Minister having sex with a pig 6. A wardrobe 7. Pina colada 8. New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn 9. Alsatian 10. The Hoddle Grid