Following the uproar and public outrage surrounding photos of student Philip Laing urinating on a war memorial during student bar crawl Carnage over the past few weeks, I am admittedly quite surprised that this could possibly lead to a jail sentence, as reported by BBC News today. Whilst I don’t deny that this is a despicable act with a complete lack of respect for the millions who died fighting for our country, as well as an act of public indecency, I can’t help but think that Laing is being used to make an example of.
How many people, especially men, can put their hand on their heart and honestly say that they have never urinated in a public place? Desperate times call for desperate measures especially once alcohol, a diuretic, is consumed, and whilst it perhaps is not a pleasant activity, I have seen men leaning against walls or in doorways urinating on almost every night out that I’ve been on. In saying this I am not defending this student’s case. The literal pissing on someone’s grave is disgusting and shows a complete lack of regard for people who were husbands, fathers, brothers and friends of many people who are still alive today. This brings me to another thought though – morbid though it is, graveyards are (for some completely inexplicable reason) often the place to hang out for youths both of today and in days gone by. It’s not unusual to hear of them being used the backdrop to losses of virginity, drugs deals and vodka sharing activities whilst teens go through their rebellious years. This, however, is rarely documented upon and they never get arrested for disrespecting the dead.
Scanning this week’s news across a number of national websites, my eye was caught by a flashing advert for CARNAGE UNCOVERED ; an ‘undercover’ article written by Nick Francis for the ever-classy Sun – ready as always to jump on the bandwagon of any news story with their own less-relevant twist. As bar crawl I enjoyed a number of times over my three year stint at Southampton University and did some promotional work for, Carnage is a termly night of fun which many students look forward to for a chance of thousands of like-minded piers to have a massive night out with large groups of friends.
Portrayed at a sleazy, irresponsible and grope-tastic money-drainer, the reporter (as ever with The Sun) casts a completely over-dramatic and exaggerated shadow of pervertedness as he presents the event to the readers as something that is, quite frankly, every parents’ nightmare. Given the assumed age and stage of life of Mr Francis, however, it is difficult to see how he might enjoy such an event anyway. Carnage is a student event; a bar crawl enjoyed as a blow-out to relieve mounting assignment and exam pressure and a sure-fire way to bump into the majority of the friends that you have made so far. It is also an opportunity to meet current friends’ house/flat/coursemates and widen your friendship circle. Why on Earth would Nick Francis enjoy a night like this, given that he is not entering the spirit of the event by drinking, does not know anyone else and presumedly isn’t studying for any upcoming exams?
Sure, there are hundreds of people who dress inappropriately. Sure, I’ve been one of them (to a certain degree – nowhere near the extent that is reported), but I regularly see even less clothing being worn on any night out in any town. Women these days have a habit of flashing too much flesh than may be entirely appropriate, which can quite often have the opposite of the desired effect. Regardless of this, the male readers of The Sun very rarely fall into the category of ‘men who value women for their intelligence and would rather more was left to the imagination,’ and by the numerous skimpy photos, it doesn’t look like the reporter was complaining. Given that the ‘uniform’ the partakers willingly pay for (before they sell out like hot-cakes) is a T-shirt, which is more often than not an XL unflattering fit, how it is worn is personal discretion.
Of course there were some women who go over the top and jump at the opportunity to wear little other than some French knickers, a heavily customized top which now bears more resemblance to a bra-strap than its original T-shirt form and a pair of ‘prostitute heels,’ but there will always be women who will make Jodie Marsh look under-stated, whether there is a dresscode involved or not. The number of bars visited is a good way for new students to find their way around their new hometown in the first semester, and the ‘horrifying tasks’ on the back of the shirts are rarely completed. Nick Francis writes in horror of challenges such as "Meet with a bad devil", "Get spanked by a naughty angel" and "Same-sex snog time" as if they are integral to the night out or even that bad, yet most of the T-shirts are so customized that the boxes are rarely visible to even get ticked.
The press have been quick to blame Philip Laing’s misdemeanor on Carnage itself, and even District Judge Andrew Browne stated that "Carnage is the name of the organisation who promote this type of activity and some might say that somebody should be standing alongside you this morning." This comment particularly angered me. Laing claimed to have drunk an entire bottle of whiskey before going out to this event – a feat that would probably have me in hospital having my stomach pumped before I’d got a quarter of the way through. Of course he doesn’t remember the night out – he would have been absolutely annihilated before even attending the event. Whilst Carnage does indeed go round many bars, this doesn’t necessarily promote people getting absolutely inebriated – when I’ve gone, half the time it’s too busy to get a drink in many of the places. There are no pressures to drink certain volumes like there are on crawls such as pub golf, so it makes me irritated that Carnage are being held partially responsible.
In today’s blame culture, very few people are taking responsibility for their own actions. How one dresses, drinks and behaves on Carnage is down to personal choice, just as with any other night out. At this age, we should be old enough to make the right choice and exercise some sort of self-control in terms of our behaviour. At any rate, Carnage employs a large number of stewards to almost police the event, ensure student safety, organize road crossings and be on the look-out for anyone in trouble, and also works in conjunction with the police to ensure extra safety. The same can’t be said for many other nights out at university or in general society. We are old enough to look after ourselves and whilst Philip Laing has made a stupid mistake, very few people are faultless. Part of growing up is experiencing getting too drunk, making mistakes and learning from them. Unfortunately this is a pretty hard and national mistake to learn from, but is it one which truly deserves a prison sentence rather than a fine and some community service?
