three days

in D.C.

social not-working

VYM launch party

ALSO INSIDE // local bands, photo competition, UKYP oxfordshire, the snow day...

vym@live.co.uk // issue 2 // spring 09 // free

2

welcome to issue II

youth cabinet

the VYM team

we want your work!

We are a group of young people

from the Vale of the White Horse

interested in getting the views of

young people heard. The Youth

Forum elected us and we usually

meet twice between forums.

The first generation of cabinet

members have sadly now

reached the end of their term so

a new membership was recently

elected at the Youth Forum. This

team will be working hard this

year to achieve as much as

possible on existing and new

campaigns.

We believe that there’s not

enough good communication

about stuff to do in the Vale and

we want to give young people

more to do in their local area and

make existing activities and

events more accessible.

Disclaimer….VYM was devised by a sub group of the

Youth Cabinet which is part of the Vale Youth Forum

and is supported and run by the Vale of White Horse

District Council. The views in VYM are those of the

young people and not the council. In case you hadn’t

realised already.

VYM is a non-profit zine based on contributions from all young people from the Vale.

This is basically a canvas to get your work out there, so go ahead and send your stuff to

vym@live.co.uk. We will take a look at everything sent in but we’re only 12 pages so

unfortunately not all work can be featured. You can also come join the VYM page on

Facebook for more info and updates.

Editor

Lucy Killoran

Contributors

The Vale Youth Cabinet,

Gemma Quayle, Chris

Tolley and Matt Ayres.

Welcome back to another triumphant issue of

VYM! Its been an insane time here at VYM HQ; what

with the new cabinet elections and getting the newbies

all settled in (they don’t know what they’ve let

themselves in for!). Anyway we’ve finally managed to

churn out another sterling copy of the Vale’s favourite

zine and we hope you have some fun reading it.

In this issue we’ve got a look at social networking

sites, you know, the ones that steal hours of our lives, a

review of the VYM launch party, political tales from

across the pond - a college trip to Washington D.C., stuff

about local bands, stuff about that crazy snow day and

lots more. It’s all gripping stuff so don’t let me keep you

a moment longer.

AND also a big thanks to all the people who

contributed to this issue :) It’s been great getting in

contact with you lot so remember to send in your own

stuff for the next issue!

you stay classy,

Lucy x

This initiative is funded

by the Department for

Education and Skills

through the Youth

Opportunity

Fund/Youth Capital

Fund.

VYM’s top rated community sites with a bit extra:

flickr.com - the ul�mate image sharing tool. check out userwilliam eleven’s photostream [featured on this page]last.fm - awesome music recomenda�on system!deviantart.com - upload, discuss and sell artworkravelry.com - a kni�ng and crochet community... W

ORT

H A

G

OO

GLE

...

facespaceare we in danger of selling our souls to social networking?Ever find yourself sat in front of a computer screen: pa�ently wai�ng for the internet to load, ready to start that all-important homework, when you are overwhelmed with a sudden urge to check your Facebook/Bebo/Myspace? Half an hour later you’ve dropped all mo�va�ons of work and are si�ing steadily through the masses of updates added by some classroom acquaintance, or subconsciously stalking the profile of that guy or gal you’ve got the hots for. Yes, it is definitely clear to me that the consensus among most young people is that social networking sites are wonderful crea�ons.

I do, however, feel that as I cast an envious eye over the jet-set lives of my friends and acquaintances, I cannot help but sink into a feeling of slight inadequacy – why have all my peers sauntered off to a bloody rave while I’m sat all on my lonesome supposedly “doing work”? Surely they’re having more fun than me?

Of course, I would have thought that people only reveal the glossy highlights of their lives (the trip to Thorpe Park, a holiday to New York) leaving all the boring stuff to an absolute minimum. Reels and reels of albums full to the brim of a�empts to look sexy and sophis�cated, and met suppor�vely by the best friend’s “you look lush babes, just like a model”, followed by “aww, thanks mate…but im not really lol”. Well, sorry to be blunt, but if you thought you looked so ugly, then why the hell did you broadcast it on the internet, huh? Ahh, modesty is such a beau�ful trait in a social networker.

But even the biggest of show-offs are somehow debatable. A friend told me not so long ago that she was walking past a group of young girls shopping in Oxford, when she heard them say, deadly serious, that if they didn’t take heaps of snaps of each other having fun and put them on Facebook, then the event might have just as well never existed.

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by

Gemma Quayle

It’s an insane switch of reality to the virtual world and vice-versa. Social-networking does so much more than it says on the �n. For instance, on Facebook you can buy your beloved friends gi�s like teddy bears, and even drinks. Now, I don’t know about you, but when a mate offers me a coke, I’d generally like to be able to...uh...drink it?

And then there’s all those fascina�ng applica�ons, where at a couple of mouse clicks you can discover what Disney song describes your life, what kind of mum you’ll be, what fruit you are (apparently I’m a pomegranate?!). Literally anything you ever wanted to know about your personality is right there at your finger�ps.

But a�er several months of intense addic�on to these sites, it has become nothing more than a chore dele�ng all the invita�ons for pillow fights that have piled up in my inbox. And anyway, aren’t we the ones who should be the biggest experts on ourselves as people? Surely no-one can be that naive as to trust a website to tell them their deepest quali�es…can they?

So, do I think social-networking has gone off on a bizarre and highly addic�ve tangent? Yes. But over the past few months I have learnt to tweak the system to my advantage; by using it to keep in touch with my mates near and far and keeping acutely gorgeous photos of myself to a minimum, there is no harm done in keeping a li�le bit of myself accessible only by URL.

four bands. free crisps. the night history was m

4

by Lucy Killoran photography by Lo

October 3rd 2008 was the day that VYM was brought kicking and screaming into the world at the NET in Abingdon. Kids from all over the Vale came down to celebrate the official release of issue one, and also to bask in the lovely noise created by four local groups. The night went swimmingly, punctuated by regular VYM t-shirt giveaways and of course the cu�ng of the lovingly made VYM cake.

Joe & James opened the night with a set of melodic and memorable tunes inspired by tales from Abingdon life. Lots of fans were there and the set went down nicely with the crowd. They were followed by a frankly awesome set from up and coming Oxford DJ cigare�es&coffee. He played some wicked tracks and expertly mixed his way throughthe set. The crowd were ge�ng involvedand throwing some shapes which broughta really fun vibe to the show. EDWIN stormed the stage next with a blindingset of all their best tracks. They playeda �ght five song selec�on of poppy indie danceyniceness and kept the crowd moving. DJ Berend DB finished off the night with another drum and bass set which inspired some of the most interes�ng dance moves of the night.

The night was documented by local young photographers Louis Taylor and Will Elsom, both of whom I strongly recommend you hunt down on flickr.com!

Overall the event was a success andreally embodied the spirit of VYM; tohave a laugh and to make stuff happenwhile you’re at it. All the bands can befound on myspace, bebo or similar cyberspace loca�ons; give them a search and support your local music scene :)

made.

5

local indie heroes EDWIN

awesome drum and bass from cigare�es&coffee

Joe & James

cu�ng the VYM cake. jokes.

ouis Taylor and Will Elsom (william eleven): check them both out on flickr.com

6

three days in D This February the Government

and Politics class from Abingdon and

Witney College secured funding to take

a trip to America. This was no holiday

though, the destination was Washington D.C.:

the political capital of arguably the most

powerful nation in the world.

We set off at stupid o’ clock on the

morning of February 5th; the day when England

had decided to try and keep us at home by

snowing about half a metre. After epic early

morning efforts - I personally had to push the

car up my road through the snow - we all

arrived at college to board the minibus to the

airport.

The seven hour flight passed without

much hassle due to the phenomenal in-flight

entertainment system and before we knew it

we had arrived in D.C. We finally got to the hotel

in the early evening after brief negotiations

with customs. Yes, one of our team leaders had

forgotten he had a bunch of bananas in his bag

and was pulled away from the group for

questioning. We got some dinner and went to

bed, incredibly jetlagged but excited about the

next few days.

We spent our first day being hardcore

tourists. After figuring out the Metro system we

headed straight for the legislative centre of

America - Congress (pictured). This was an

absolutely immense sight, you can’t imagine

how colossal the building actually is, and if that

wasn’t enough they were also still clearing up

from Obama’s inaugauration! Now that’s

something to tell the grandkids.

We took a tour inside Congress and

after about a million security checks we visited

both the House of Representatives and the

Senate, where we saw John McCain give a

speech (he’s that old bloke who didn’t win the

election, remember?). When he walked into the

chamber we all freaked out a little bit being the

politics geeks that we are.

Next we made our way just across the

street to the Supreme Court which is a huge

Greek-temple style building, another example

of the Founding Father’s love for impressive

architecture. This houses the judicial branch of

government and was equally as insanely cool as

Congress. After checking this out we were all

exhausted so we took a stroll back to the Metro

station via the Washington Memorial, where we

got our first glimpses of the White House and

the Lincoln Memorial.

The Washington Memorial

The Supreme Court

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D.C. After a Thai dinner that night in honour

of one our team’s birthday (gutted, turning 18 in

the country where it’s age 21 to drink. Not that

that stopped Bev, our tutor haha) we headed

back to the hotel to rest, or so we thought. One

of the drunken locals in the hotel bar took a

shine to Chris and his Steeler’s NFL jersey, and

proceeded to shout “IT‘S A GOOD THING, THIS

GUY IS A GOOD GUY MAAAAN” to the rest of

the hotel until we persuaded him that he had

an urgent appointment somewhere else. Check

out Chris’s NFL vs. Soccer article later in this

issue to begin to understand that guy’s passion

Bright and early the next morning we

set off for the final leg of our official sightseeing.

Today we were headed for the White House and

the Lincoln Memorial, and they did not

disappoint. We arrived at the back of the White

House due to bad planning and so strolled our

way round to the front via the visitors’ centre

where we took in a ridiculously epic

introductory video.

Casa Obama looked majestic, set

amongst some lovely trees and stuff, but it

appeared smaller than we were all expecting.

Maybe that‘s thanks to the secutiry fencing that

kept us about a mile off, I’m not sure. Anyway,

no matter how many times we shouted, Barack

wasn’t in, so we headed down the street to the

Lincoln Memorial. Which was awesome.

It was a beautiful clear day and you

could see for miles from the steps of the

memorial. It is another massive architectural

wonder, and like all the others it truly has to be

seen to be believed. Its even better than it looks

in Planet of the Apes.

We headed home through the

walkway of the Vietnam War memorial which

was a really thought provoking visit as we all

flicked through the book of the names of fallen

soldiers to try find our own surnames.

That night we headed to the Hard Rock

Cafe for a big dinner and to share thoughts on

the past two days By then we had seen all the

political hotspots D.C. had to offer us and I think

we were all incredibly impressed, as well as

basking in our collective genius for planning

this trip in the first place.

The next day we had free time to

explore the city so everyone went off in groups

to check out personal interests. People went to

all manner of museums, parks and black history

walks etc. Jess and I went to the aquarium for

some reason which was awesome, and then the

National Gallery which was even better. We then

got lost on the Metro on the way back to the

hotel and ended up in the ghetto which was a

learning experience for sure.

That night, our last night, we

celebrated our trip with an evening at the

basketball with the Washington Wizards.

Apparently they never win, so it must have been

our British spirit pushing them on when they

pummeled the Indiana Pacers in the last

second. A fitting ending to our tour of

Washington, and another triumph for the Youth

Opportunity Fund. We all learnt a lot on this trip

and it really helped immensely with our

American Politics module (seven out of ten of

the class got “A”s - cashback). Make school trips

the law!

by Lucy Killoran

The White House

The Lincoln Memorial

8

Matt Ayres on the oxford sound

Playing music for a living is

something that millions of people

dream about doing. In a musically

active city such as Oxford, this kind

of ambition doesn’t just have to be

wishful thinking. Oxford has

produced a variety of successful

and innovative bands and artists;

legendary local stars such as

Supergrass and Radiohead who

have proved that originality and

dedication can result in seemingly

unreachable goals becoming a

reality.

A thriving and constantly evolving

scene such as Oxford’s means that

more young people than ever are

playing music together, and with

new and exciting opportunities

springing up every day there’s

never been a more exciting time

to be a part of it. Adam Barnes,

also known as Motion in Colour,

has been playing in Oxford for

more than two years. We talked to

him, to understand what this

music thing is really all about…

What inspired you to start

Motion in Colour?

I’ve always wanted to know what it

would feel like to be able to connect

with an audience and change

people’s emotions with just notes

and melodies I come up with. I was

inspired to be a solo performer after

the end of my previous band

because of a gig we played with an

American artist called Chris Ayer. His

performance was one of the most

inspirational things I've seen - it

seemed to flick a switch in me that

just made me want to have the kind

of freedom he had connecting with

the audience in the room and the

music he was playing.

Is it more enjoyable and

rewarding playing music as a

solo artist than in a band?

I find it just as enjoyable and maybe

even more rewarding playing music

as a solo artist. All the pressure of

messing up and playing the wrong

notes sometimes gets to me but

that’s the fun of it I guess! Playing

solo has given me the chance to gig

in a lot of places I wouldn’t have

with a band, and given me the

freedom to write the material that

inspires me the most, but being in a

band does have its perks. You can’t

beat going to gigs with your mates

and just having a laugh playing

music. Nothing can beat that.

Do you think that there are

enough opportunities for bands

and artists in Oxfordshire?

There are plenty of opportunities

and I think that’s why we’re seeing

so many Oxford bands getting more

recognised, like The Young Knives

and Foals. But it is quite a jump from

playing the smaller venues around

Oxfordshire to establishing yourself

in the city, and I’m still struggling

with that. There’s a lot of

competition and I’m only just

breaking into the scene with some

performances at the Oxford Carling

Academy. There are a lot more

bands than solo artists coming from

Oxfordshire, and I hope that what

I’m doing is slightly different and

will inspire more people to become

singer/ songwriters. Sometimes

there’s no better feeling than

playing your last song of the night

and having people singing along, in

the knowledge that you've done all

of this yourself.

myspace.com/motionincolour

FIVE TOP TIPS FOR MUSICAL SUCCESS!

1) Be original. There’s nothing worse than

hearing something that has already been

done countless times before. It’s ok to be

inspired, but anyone can jump on the

bandwagon. It takes real talent and

self-respect to stay innovative.

2) Play gigs. A tight and well rehearsed

band with a full set of catchy songs doesn’t

mean anything if you don’t get your music

out there! Get in touch with promoters in

Oxford or local venues and see if they have

any vacant slots for support acts.

3) Make a MySpace profile. A webpage

with your music on it is an essential tool

that you’ll need if you want to be noticed.

MySpace is probably the best way to do

this: millions of users will have access to

your songs and gig dates.

4) Be persistent. Imagine if The Beatles

had taken one look at their guitars and

given up! Luck is only part of it; the best

bands and artists have worked their socks

off to get to where they are today.

5) Have fun! It sounds cheesy, but nobody

is going to enjoy watching your band if

you’re having a miserable time! Make sure

that you are doing what you love on your

own terms - then when success comes

knocking you’ll be comfortable enough to

deal with what comes next.

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a picture paints a thousand words

COMPETITION TIME:Calling all photographers! Want to get no�ced? Want to have your images splashed over the pages of a very nice looking local zine? Well haven’t we got a treat for you? VYM is offering up a WHOLE PAGE in the next issue to the Vale’s best young photographer. Think you’re up to it? All you need to do is send in three of your favourite photos, your own work of course, along with your name, age and where you’re from to vym@live.co.uk and you could be featured in the next issue. Get snapping!

the day the snow came

On Thursday 5th February, 68,000 pupils in

Oxfordshire woke up to find the streets so

blanketed in snow that they, along with thousands of

people who could not make their way to work, were given

an eagerly awaited day off. The vast majority of schools in

the Vale were closed, bus services were halted and services

such as refuse collection remained affected for the

following week. Despite the fact that so many of us

received a day off or a “snow day” the news was rife with

issues and controversies created by the 10 or so inches of

snow. Even now local newspaper message boards show

the vast number of complaints about the disruption

caused – mainly regarding the salting of the roads,

particularly in the rural villages where icy conditions

left isolated residents vulnerable.

journalism, young people received

the majority of the bad press –

how many of us heard about the

van driver in London who pulled a

knife on a group of teenagers who

accidentally hit his van with a stray

snowball?

In comparison, a simple Google

search brings

up thousands

of hits

denouncing

young people’s

behaviour. A

criminal

solicitor

explained that

throwing a

snowball could

be interpreted

as a form of

“common

assault” and police in Hertfordshire

warned that snowballers would

face criminal charges if injury or

damage was caused.

One article even investigated the

“etiquette of snowball fights”

including advice to adults on

how to cope with the

threatening situation of young

people armed with snow balls.

It suggested that children and

young people can “smell fear”

and that we use snowball fights

to challenge adults’ authority and

announce our discontent with

an adult controlled society.

Is it just me who thinks this is

possibly a step too far? Do excuse

me if I’m wrong, but when I throw

a snowball, it is not

However, it was the focus of criticism

on the humble snowball fight that

shocked me the most. Whilst many

of us enjoyed harmless frolicking in

the snow, a few incidents

(admittedly disgraceful) of

snowballs being thrown at shop

windows or passing vehicles and

even a concealed brick thrown at an

innocent passer-by,

have caused a wave

of articles denouncing

all snowballers as

hooligans. As seems to

be a trend in current

a premeditated

attack against

the community

but merely a

way to enjoy

the snow. After

all, anything

that gives us a

day off school

should be appreciated. What

better way to do this than to

play with the snow with a

group of your mates?

We are constantly being

encouraged to get outside and

be active…and yet when we

do, we are made out to be

criminals based on the

disreputable example of a few

isolated incidents! I for one

hope that we get another snow

day next winter and this time,

let’s hope that we can all enjoy

it together and avoid such

unfounded controversy.

by Miriam Carter-Fraser

Was your snowman more

impressive than these? Send

in your photos to

vym@live.co.uk

10

11

In their home countries they’re

both referred to as football;

however British football and American

football share little else in

common. American

football is hard hitting

and exciting, while

soccer is

lackadaisical and

boring. American

football is fair and

noble, while

soccer is unjust

and evil.

American football epitomises the ideals of

the American dream, where hard work,

perseverance and commitment reap

prosperity. Soccer, on the other hand,

is a game dependent on greed and

oppression, where the only thing that

matters is money.

The Premiership and NFL, the showcase

leagues of their respective sport, have

starkly contrasting values. In the

Premiership money rules, with detriment

to competition, in the NFL fair play and

competition are paramount. Soccer has

become a saturated monopoly where “the

big four” nullify the point of even having a

league. The only way to compete is to

spend hundreds of millions buying

foreign players. In the NFL any team, any

year, has a fair shot at winning the league.

Due to the NFL’s salary cap one team can’t

simply destroy the spirit of fair game like

in the Premiership by hurling

unfathomable amounts of cash at any

player they please. No, in the NFL every

team has the same budget and there are

no bonuses for winning the Superbowl.

Unlike soccer, being crowned

champions and seeing all your blood

sweat and tears pay off is enough. The

results speak for themselves. In the NFL

in the last 15 seasons there have been 11

different champions. In the Premiership

there have been just four. You don’t have

to be a mathematician to work out

which league, and which sport, is more

interesting.

Another feature ensuring a level playing

field is the draft, where at the beginning

of every season the worst teams get to

choose the best young players from

college, making it truly feasible to go

from “worst to first”. The whole league

system is also far superior with an

extensive playoff system culminating in

the grand finale, the Superbowl, the

biggest sports event in the world and an

unofficial national holiday. This is so

much better than in the Premiership

where we know who has won the league

months in advance and the season

deflates to a finish. The NFL explodes in

an orchestral conclusion, a fitting

testament to every excellent season.

The NFL is also a much fairer game on

the pitch; with instant replays and

official reviews making sure that the

referee’s decision was correct. In soccer

injustice and often lunacy prevail. I

simply can’t get my head around

soccer’s refusal to

come into the 21st century and make

use of technology; I can only put it

down to stubbornness, ignorance and

pigheadedness by the people in charge

and the fans. Well, fans argue it would

slow the game down, which I suppose is

fair enough considering the type of

people who usually watch soccer tend

to have a very short attention span.

On the theme of fans, soccer for the

most part is a sport for thugs. Terraces

echo racism, vulgarity and intimidation.

Fans have to be separated like animals

because they can’t control their

primitive urges, and presumably so they

can’t hurl faeces at one another. Again

an Atlantic void separates this culture

from that of American football, which is

characterised by fans enjoying the

game side by side. Each game is turned

into an event and the national

institution of “tailgating” sees fans

enjoying barbeques together in the

stadium car parks.

Many soccer fans resent the “Yanks”

calling their beautiful game soccer and

stealing the name “football” for

themselves. But if “football” is the name

of the “beautiful game”, then it’s the

“Yanks” who deserve the title, because

when comparing American Football and

Soccer, it’s much like the Premiership;

no contest.

by Chris Tolley

Chris is obviously very committed

to his views but VYM is sure there

are some “soccer” fans out there

who think differently. The

challenge is on so please send us

your reasons why you think

British football is superior.

12

UKYP oxfordshire: Team 2009

In a nail bi�ng finale to the elec�ons, the new Member and Deputy Member of the UK Youth Parliament for South Oxfordshire was decided on the toss of a coin as the top two candidates each got a staggering 828 votes. Rachel Howe (14 yrs) won the toss and was elected Member and Helen Walker (14 yrs) was elected Deputy Member. For the next year they will be working on behalf of young people on issues that are important to them and helping to change things for the be�er. Launched at the House of Commons, UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) provides opportuni�es for 11-18-year-olds to get their voices heard and to bring about change.

We spoke to Rachel and Helen about some of the issues they feel strongly about:

What do you think are the most important issues for young people today?Rachel: “The biggest issue is simply feeling like there’s no one to stand up for us and take us seriously when we have opinions. I think that we, as young people, feel very frustrated that adults o�en make decisions on our behalf that we don’t all agree with.”

Helen: “I think travel prices, tui�on fees and a nega�ve image of young people, especially in the media, are the most important issues.”

How do you think we can change this nega�ve image of young people?Rachel: “The press needs to start seeing a more posi�ve side of young people. If we are heralded for our good work rather than just looked down upon for our bad then a far be�er image of young people will emerge.”

Helen: “I think a good way to change this is to start up a program where young people go to old people’s homes for about an hour and just talk or play games or something like that. And maybe to work with the press a bit.”

UKYP elec�ons take place each year, across the UK. Any young person aged 11-18 can stand or vote in UKYP elec�ons. Make sure you have your say!

To contact Rachel or Helen, or for more informa�on about UK Youth Parliament, or the council’s other work with young people please email: karen.tolley@whitehorsedc.gov.ukhelen.walker@oxfordshire.gov.ukrachel.howe@oxfordshire.gov.uk

For informa�on about UKYP in Oxfordshire please contact: Emily.li�le@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Dont forget to contribute! Issue 3 out in a couple of months - get on it. lots of love, the VYM team

12

Helen and Rachel