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    Exclusive Yes Essex Scoop on Page 3

    www.thefoxnewspaper.co.uk

    HORROR! MONDO VALENTINES

    OVERBOOKING SCANDAL

    Dozens of hopeful students have already been contacted thisweek in a rush to correct a mistake in the Mondo booking list,

    after a rogue Mondo staff member, who hasnt been named,cancelled bookings in an effort to make people see whatdisappointment feels like.

    Valentines is always our busiest night. We usually get around200-250 applications for tables, and every year we have to turn

    away countless people. There are many difficulties that pop uparound this time of yearsetting up the restaurant for tables oftwo, making the atmosphere even more romantic than usual,

    ensuring theres nothing on the menu that the SU would see asoffensive or directlyalluding to Christian

    holidays.

    Thank goodness this year Valentines falls on a Tuesday, so wedont need to find a table for Anthony King as well.

    Mondo is well known for its not-in-the-Michelin-guide food andits sophisticated yet welcoming ambience, which is why its

    particularly popular for students and staff alike for a place toshare some quiet time with a loved one. Steven Loader, apsychology student who ate their last year, was particularlydisappointed at being told his table had actually been booked by

    students David Khan andSarah Williams:

    Im outraged! I had been looking forward for ages to taking my

    girlfriend to Mondo. Its really the only time in the year when we

    get to eat somewhere as nice as Mondo is.

    Now well have to go to The Lemon Tree.

    Mondo is expected to provide a commiseration pack to anycouples who have been taken off the exclusive guest list, and will

    be offering cut price Mondo platters to them at a later date.

    [email protected]

    @thefoxnews

    Issue 3Sabb Special!

    Busiest Night

    Anthony King

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    The Fox Published Monthly Page 2

    Statistically, you dont really care about Students Union elections or the Students Union. Just in case youre one of those people

    who does, either for a genuine concern for Students Rights [EdGood one] or just want to make your CV look impressive (inwhich case, people can tell, you know) then heres a little guide for people who have literally no knowledge at all about StudentsUnion politics.

    Students Union:People tell us that students are disenfranchised these days, so lets start from the top; the SU organises nights out on campus. It runs

    Top Bar and the SU bar (were told), the Bakery, the Campus Shop, Level 2 & Subzero, Mondo and the row of shops just past theSU bar. If you want to start a society, sports club or student newspaper the people you need to email are here. Dont hold yo urbreath. Theyre like the government Of Scotland.

    Sabbatical Officers:There are 7 positions (President and VPs for Welfare, Services, Activities, Education, International and Southend and Loughton)which are filled by democratically elected students who work at the SU for a year for about 17,500. Theyre the cheerful -lookingfolk who wear hoodies. Last years Sabbatical Elections ran twice because of a scandal, so expect a lot of attention on a cleanelection this year.

    Sabbatical Elections:If this isnt self-explanatory to you then you might just be the type of person who should stand. Also up for grabs this year are

    Trustee positions, where you get free entry into venues at the risk of going to jail if the SU does something illegal.

    General Elections:This is for first and second years who want to stand for committee positions and part-time officer positions. Great for CV-boosting,great for spring-boarding you into Sabbatical elections.

    Election Scandals of Last Year:In previous years, candidates were allowed to run in slates (parties) of about 5 to 7 people. Last year, the slate Yes Essex wasaccused of cheating and disqualified. They were accused of going into student accommodation and voting on students computers.

    For the re-run election, Yes Essex were disqualified and other candidates had to run as individuals. In the general elections, theslate Revolution Essex were disqualified for the same thing. This year, slates will still be allowed in the general election.

    A GLOSSARY FOR THE PEOPLE

    WHOD LIKE TO KNOW BUT DONT

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    The Fox Published Monthly Page 3

    TYPES OF SABBATICAL CANDIDATES

    (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE)Too popular not to run:

    If you've shaken hands with him, he's your friend. A genuinely nice guy; perhaps hasn't got the most experience in the StudentsUnion, but we are, nominally, a democracy, and when you have that many friends, who would want a meritocracy?

    Student Socialist:It's his moral duty to run: the coalition are attacking the foundations of education; eroding the welfare state. But not anymore. Thefight back starts today. Okay, well maybe the 1st of July; he has exams before. If he doesn't win this, a life of social media

    campaigning against neo-liberalism is in order. High stakes for this election.

    The Second Year:Second year is only 40% of the overall mark; better to run now when they can devote every waking moment for a week to gettingpeople they've shared a class with or been in a society with to vote for them to have a year off in Student Politics.

    Doesn't have a Graduate Job Yet:

    Crumbs! It's January, mid-way through their last year! Their law friends have training contracts, their economics friends have citytrading schemes, most others are going for Masters programmes. The only option is to delay for a year and use your spare time

    outside the SU corridor to really get to grips with the CV you haven't touched since first year.

    The Secret Conservative:You saw him at their socials; he was in a suit, carefree, and openly talked about privatisation in public. Now it's Sabbatical Electionyear. For his back of a napkin career master plan to come true he needs a Sabb position. Time to join societies and be more outgoingthan before; this is ultimately a good thing as he will come out of his shell. Unfortunately nobody who pays attention to student

    politics (20-40 people) will buy it.

    The Incumbent:They've realised their pledges last year were over-ambitious. They'll try again though if it ain't broke don't fix it plus, havingalready spent a year talking to students, they should find it easier than last time. What's more is they get a week off work to

    Campaign; the others still have lectures. Suckers. Unfortunately you can only run for a maximum of two terms, after that it's the realworld for you. Or the NUS.

    FOX GUIDES: HOW TO RUN IF YOURE NOT POPULAR.

    Step One: Campaign with vigour to

    get slates back on the cards.Slates are elected according to their

    highest denominator, not their lowest; ifyou arent popular, you might considerhow running alongside someone who isvery popular will improve your chances.However, with at least one exec bound

    to vote against it, the chances of yousucceeding in this attempt are quite slim.(And lets face it, you dont have much

    sway)

    Step Two: Become Friends with those you

    normally wouldnt.Success in Sabbatical elections is very muchcontingent on how many friends you have to

    vote for you, because the average student isntgoing to. Maximising the number of people

    who want to vote for you, i.e., the number ofpeople who think youre their friend, is a sure

    way to combat the indifference of 20-year-olds to paraphrase Clay Shirky, and lower the

    odds against you.

    Step Three: Radically revise your

    personality and everything about you.Something specific holding you back? How

    about changing every single thing aboutyour currently dislikeable personality. Stopsupporting a political party, stop dressing

    like a twat, stop studying hard, stop stayingin and never going out. Certainly dontlisten to people wholl tell you that you

    shouldnt; its all going to disappear whenyou win anyway.

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    The Fox Published Monthly Page 4

    GUIDE TO OFF-CAMPUS LIVING:

    STUDENT ADVICEChoose an area to look in. (Alex de Boer, 2nd year Criminal Law student from Johannesburg, South Africa)

    Colchester is a great place to live. Theres hardly any crime, the roads are well organised and safe and there is nearly no murder atall. You dont even need to lock your car doors when you drive along. In terms of which area to live, you really cant miss!

    Decide how far from university you can be. (Jack Tomlinson, 3rd year Biology student from Anchorage, Alaska)Colchester is tiny and really easy to travel around. It only takes about a day to walk from one side to the other, and youre prettymuch right next to everything wherever you decide to live. I lived in Wivenhoe last year and I was amazed at how it was only a40-minute walk to university every morning. Plus, youre only an hours train ride from London, so Colchester is really central to

    the UK. Its great!

    How much should you be paying? (Katharine Wilson, 3rd year Politics and Law student from London, UK)Colchester is really cheap to live in. Rent starts at, like, 250pcm, which is so cheap. Sure, the houses might not have views of the

    Thames like where I live, and yah, Colchester isnt a 2-minute walk to Daddys office in Canary Wharf, but I didnt realise housescould be so cheap. I was really surprised by how the student house market is only a little bit more expensive than the regular housemarket. It really is amazing! My flat this year is on Lightship Way, and it only costs my parents like 8,000 a year minus bills.

    Surely thats within anyones budget?

    Find your house. (Bryn Jones, 3rd year Human Rights student, fromLlanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, Wales)There are many people who will tell you that you cant find a nice house in Colchester. Dont believe them; there are many, manybeautiful houses in Colchester. Theyre all cheap to rent, all in convenient locations within walking distance of the univers ity, andare all in safe areas. Some of them even have central heating. Its really nice to come home from Uni and have running waterin your

    house without having to walk the three miles to the water pump.

    Should you consider living on campus? (David Ng, 2nd year Politics student from Beijing, China)Campus living is great; its not crowded, and the possibility that you end up living with someone is pretty small. Even if y ou do,

    you hardly ever see them, because they never come into your room. I mean, unless you spend any time at all in the kitchen, then youwont see your housemates. So basically living on campus is a great option if youre an international student. If you enjoyed it inyour 1st year, youll enjoy it again.

    How much can you expect to spend a year on bills? (Chris Mitchell, 3rd year Economics student, Labrador, Canada)

    Colchester is always warm. Last year the coldest it got was about -10C, which compared to the -50C we get at home is nothing.

    Because of this you wont need to spend anything on heating bills. Since days are so long even in winter you will also never need to

    use lights, so electricity will be pretty low as well.