We're the kids in America!

‘What’s your poison then Madam?’

My family and I are at a brewery in Washington on a beautiful afternoon in July.

Mother orders and the waitress turns to look patronisingly at me – Oh that American smile.

‘And for you Madam?’ I notice it’s turning into more of a grin at the end.

I’m really wanting to scream ‘Cider. GIVE ME CIDER!’ badly, but the word ‘Coke’ comes out and I die just a little.

Now the last thing I want anyone to take from this is that I’m a rampant alcoholic, because I’m not. But when you feel you’re denied something, doesn’t it just make you want it even more?

I’m sure you are aware of the drinking age disparity between this country and our friends from across the pond. This truly is a disparity by name, and a disparity by nature.

Dining under 21 in the US is like attending a Jewish Wedding. If you are to eat with ‘children’ you will be seated at the far end of the restaurant. In doing this you must not forget to bypass the exclusively labelled ‘Adult Area’, in which a number of 40 something couples and careless socialites sit sipping red wine and stare snidely.
You are seated next to a screaming toddler whose large parents are shovelling fries so fast they couldn’t care to notice their own child. You will experience this at some point – it’s practically guaranteed.

And thus these two worlds exist – distinct.

It sometimes feels like alcohol is treated like the devil in this country. Stores do not stock the stuff, unless of course it is wine. (I in fact learnt the other day I wasn’t even allowed to pick a crate up and put it in the trolley as I wasn’t of age.) I mean, what am I honestly going to do in a down town store in the middle of the day? Pick up six bottles of wine, smash them over my head and drink the contents as fast as possible because I’m just that two years too irresponsible? Spirits can only be bought at a special liquor store, in which the said object I discovered was discreetly packaged in paper and stuffed surreptitiously into a grey plastic bag, to be bundled away as quickly as possible.
Perhaps I have only seen the extreme. There must be a reason behind this insistency to divide, hide and chide anyone and everyone who comes into contact with the stuff?

Scenes on the streets back at home: Figures fighting outside clubs, girls holding back each other’s hair as they ever so subtly puke in the nearest alleyway. Kisses that maybe shouldn’t have happened, other things that definitely shouldn’t have happened. Pointless, poisonous behaviour all in the name of fun.

I am not and never will be one to put drinking down. Yes it can be great to have a laugh, Yes it can be great to socialize and Yes it can sometimes even build on relationships.

Though once you’re drinking don’t you find people think you can be pushed?
A recent survey found that frequent drinkers are more likely to behave anti-socially. Tallying this with the fact that 62% of British teenagers believe that alcohol is a tool for socialization, could it be suggested that a worryingly large proportion of our everyday relationships are enforced by drink?

It would obviously be extremely foolish to believe that underage drinking does not go on in the US. With the emergence of popular cult games such as beer pong, anyone would think that the Yanks were as keen to drink as any of us appear to be.

However during my time here I have noticed that to a vast amount of 15-21’s, alcohol can in fact act as a hindrance. For example, if you’re caught drinking by the authorities under 21, college applications can be ruined, funding lost and even criminal records gained- it’s just not worth it for your future.

Besides, people in the US find other ways of having a good time. I’ve seen gaggling girls at the ‘mall’, groups playing sports at the park and even some working on other ways to interact with and impress their peers such as youtube videos and gaming.

I am aware that we behave similarly but when I was asked what British teenagers do for fun my first answer was ‘ Go out and drink?’ As obviously reductive and ignorant this would have sounded, I still maintain that we should take a leaf from the books of those on the other side of the ocean.

Be Yourself. Yes drink and have fun, but build on life sober also – I believe that some Americans might just lead richer lives because of it.

I have to wrap this up now anyway, my second cider is calling...

Beth Baker

The Arrogance

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Riots, Reebok and Rousseau!

Fire. If ever there were a destructive element it would be fire. A symbol of chaos and anarchy or as we have seen in the UK this week, a symbol of opportunism and the lowest of our society flicking two grubby fingers at the law. Part of me wanted to cry for all those undeserved individuals whose businesses, lives and faith in humanity was burnt to the ground this week. But, an even bigger part of me just wanted to strip off and run through the streets of Brixton with a massive, “I’m with stupid” painted on, surrounded by arrows pointing at every single trainer-teefin’ moron. Obviously I would have also been carrying a boom box blearing Prodigy, Firestarter just for the irony and to drown out ignorant voices waging war. But what we have seen over the last seven days was not war simply a statement reading, ”you’ve cut our benefits, you’ve taken away our youth clubs, I think some breh in Tottenham got shot, you pretty much don’t give a shit about us. So, we have no respect or care about your authority… SOZ!” Hedonistic and nonsensically at best, these foolish people stormed through our cities destroying everything in their paths for nothing except a need for existence. And we must not forget there are countries worldwide where men and women are currently taking to the streets to fight for their freedom not just a pair of Reeboks!



However, I’m aware that I am sitting on a massive high horse right now. And next to me is every other person who has been blessed enough to live a life beyond necessity. It is easy for us to look down upon these people for the mindless damage they have caused but not so easy to look past it and see what the real reasons were for this premeditated aggression. Mark Duggan’s unfortunate death provided the perfect catalyst for rebellion… And as we sit in our four bedroom houses, with our caring families secure in the comfort of employment, I feel we can easily overlook the discontent of others. I am not excusing this reckless behavior but the fact is the gap between rich and poor is widening, for some unemployment lasts a lifetime and whether you are brave enough to admit it or not, racial discrimination does exist.



As with anything; if you suppress the volatile for long enough, they are bound to explode. And when the flames raged through Reeves Furniture Store in my native Croydon, it was obvious that a lighter and some aerosol may have started the fire but the fuel behind it was something far more terrifying… Morals replaced by Marlboro’s. British philosopher Thomas Hobbes, told us that humanity’s natural condition is a state of perpetual war, constant fear and a lack of morality, it is only authority that controls this. He believed we are an innately violent and cruel race and as we saw, shop after shop, once this side of humanity is unrestrained – monsters run riot. However this cynicism is - well - soul destroying, so instead I take my good friend Rousseau’s view that man is turned into a self obsessed beast by modern society and materialism. It is interesting… these rioters made no attempt to hide the opportunity the riots provided for them, to unjustifiably steal things they cannot afford. But what would be the need to loot if material worth was not so enticing?

The riots were yet another dark moment in history and reminder that there are many people out there whose morals have been compromised by disillusionment. However, the valiant clean up was a beautiful display of compassion and community in the face of fire. I’m not a Godly person or a fan of the apocalypse but let me leave you with this…
Matthew 24:6, “Before the year of destruction, the human race will do the unthinkable and destroy their own community, along with themselves.” Don’t mean to scare you but… uh ooo!

Kirstie Eden
Follow Kirstie: @Edensepiphany

The Arrogance

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Live. Laugh. Love. Loughborough.

I am currently roasting in my cousins beautiful back ‘yard’ in Seattle, WA. This truly is the holiday of a lifetime – a month of infallible Sun, Sea and Hot-tub parties. I literally shouldn’t even have the time to stop and think, but when I do, I’m thinking forward.

Forward to the screaming in the street. Forward to the 7pm starts and 7am finishes. Forward to the new friends, the crazy dancing and of course, the virtual carnival that is the union sing-off. Forward to the shiny new rooms, forward to hall pride, forward to laughing until you hit the floor.

Forward to the daytime: Raising money in towns and cities across the country, slamming another hall at hockey or even making the elderly smile.

Forward to the night: Sinking suspicious punch, smiling like a maniac at every union camera possible, and giving the local break dancing totty a whirl. (Yes, you will eventual discover him.) Forward to Rain, Revs, EQ and maybe even Echoes.
Forward to the outright best union in the country, forward to countless clubs, societies and things to keep you smiling. Forward to friendliness, forward to memories, forward to Family.

So when you walk (or crawl) into your first lectures in October, look around at the sea of entry stamps, marker pen and other general Loughborough paraphernalia and ask yourself one question: ‘Where else on earth?’ Can’t think of an answer? Good. Welcome to Loughborough ☺.

Beth Baker

The Arrogance

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Dearest Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Dearest Chancellor of the Exchequer… fix your calculator mate!

In 2005, cries for education, education, education echoed throughout Downing Street as Tony Blair highlighted his concerns for a complacent generation hell bent on underage drinking and shagging. His resolution to this was clear, invest some dollar in the youth and we’ll be on the way to recovery; after all, the ASBO wielding kids of today are the men and women of tomorrow. However just six years later, we find ourselves in an era of colossal financial cock-up’s that have left our Government continuously digging their own grave just a tombstone away from Labours current resting place. Unprecedented cuts to the teaching budget for universities were casually defended as a necessary measure to alleviate the deficit. But, with little funding coming from the good old Gov, what social group could possibly foot the bill? Why the completely penniless, unemployed and financially unstable students of course! Ah, light bulb on and the politicians have done it again with their extreme wit and compassion for society. “By raising tuition fees to a max of £9000 not only can we counteract our hideous miscalculations on budget spending, BUT, we can also completely sift out the middle class… you know those ones that just go to Uni to piss about!” And as-if this baffling rationality was not elitist enough, universities countrywide will now be allowed to accept as many students as they wish who have achieved grades A-A-B. With a typically Capitalist flick of the political wand a consumer-driven university system is born, where not only the lower classes will be sieved through this ‘selective’ system, but also those attaining less then AAB can be effortlessly filtered out of the equation. Voila, we’ve got rid of the paupers and the underachievers, fixed our epic-spending hiccup… let’s all go down to Embankment and get pissed!



Universities will be gasping for these highflying students to fill their quotas and fuel their budgets and so they have been reduced to competing against one another. Seems feral to me but the apparent logic behind these highly questionable government ventures, is that universities will now have to advertise themselves to the students they so desperately need by providing incentives. Coincidently, the most attractive of these being tuition fees below the £9000 maximum… leading to reduced quality of teaching and subject areas as lower fees essentially equals lower budget and ultimately, lower standards. It would appear universities will be racing to the bottom and we can wave goodbye to hopes for increased social mobility. However, there might be a light at the end of the tunnel… I just cannot see it yet! I will be following this topic very closely and keep you updated… until then, a word of advice to the Chancellor of Exchequer… buy a bloody calculator that works!


Kirstie Eden
Follow Kirstie: @Edensepiphany

The Arrogance

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Business Plan Awards 2011

It has been a busy few weeks here at The Arrogance and we've almost forgotten to tell you about our recent success in the Loughborough University Business Plan Competition.

The 2011 Student and Graduate Business Plan Competition recognised 13 enterprising students and graduates from the University whose commercial ventures are already creating a buzz in fields as diverse as decorative glass, eco car wash and women’s football. The Arrogance was fortunate enough to be recognised among this talented final 13, receiving a Highly Commended award!

Around 80 guests, from various local and national businesses, gathered at the Henry Ford College at the University for the annual event to reveal the competition’s winners. Ed is pictured below collecting his award from the evenings speaker - Deidre Bounds (http://www.deirdrebounds.com/)

We'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support of The Arrogance, we've got many exciting plans and hopefully things can only get better.




For More information about the Business Plan Competition please visit: http://www.enterpriselufbra.co.uk/

The Arrogance

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Through the snow and towards Graduation.

I still remember my first day as a Loughborough fresher… nudity and banter soon filled the air and with eyes wide open I descended upon three years of being alarmingly irresponsible and so very content about it! Countless prelashes and consequent death marches to Mcdonalds, endless lectures, numerous meaningless kisses and “ooo your sex is on fire’s” later… here I am, standing in a gown. In my hand lies a piece of paper that should theoretically open up the golden doors of employment. But of course, reality is relative and only time will tell whether the existence of my degree success has any bearing on where I will eventually end up! All I know is that my time at Loughborough University has taken me to the very corners of my smile. At eighteen years of age and before Loughborough, I thought I knew everything about everything. Needless to say, three weeks into sharing a bathroom with 3 Rugby Lads even Cilit Bang couldn’t save me! I grew up just outside of London and as a stranger to these Midlands, the thumping baseline of my heart was strong and hungry for change. And change I found! After meeting so many different people both the obnoxious and charismatic alike, I have learnt more about myself than ever before. I have lived in Loughborough for three years now and with each year I’ve seen ignorance transcend to knowledge, regret to wisdom and tequila shots to hangovers!

So as I graduated through the snow and clapping, with a self-indulgent sigh of relief I reflected on lboro, looga barooga, luffland, lobro or most fittingly “the bubble”… and sunk comfortably back into my chair knowing my love affair with this scruffy little town is not over just yet... Hello Masters (goodbye student loan, hi5 extreme poverty!)
tbc…


Kirstie Eden
Follow Kirstie on Twitter: @Edensepiphany

The Arrogance

Say Hello: mail@thearrogance.co.uk
Follow us on Twitter: @The_Arrogance