Life of Liam

In November 2018, the Scottish Government made the monumental move of making LGBTQ+ inclusive education compulsory in the Scottish education system. This is a move that will likely save many lives and make young LGBTQ+ individuals feel safe and included with their peers. LGBTQ+ inclusive education is an essential in 2019, and it is a fact that school curriculums must come to terms with. We teach young people to be respectful and considerate at school, yet bullying against LGBTQ+ people is still prevalent. Looking back on my own experience of being a young LGBTQ+ individual, I now realise that it was isolating and lonely in some ways. Despite never feeling overtly uncomfortable with being gay, and despite having a good support network of friends and family, I feel that I was quite reserved and, in some ways, felt that I couldn't fully express who I was until I was in my final year of high school. Perhaps if LGBTQ+ inclusive education was part of the curriculum from a young age ...

Note from Liam: an edited version of this post has been included on The Glasgow Guardian's (University of Glasgow student newspaper) website as part of their LGBT History Month 2018 coverage. You can see that post here . 2017 marks 50 years since homosexuality was decriminalised in the United Kingdom (which applied only to England and Wales). Scotland would not legalise homosexuality for another 14 years until 1981. Photo Credit - DrRandomFactor (Wikimedia Commons) 50 years. It really is not a long time at all. 50 years is within my parents' generation, which means that those older than 50 were alive in a time where homosexuals could be legally reprimanded for being themselves. For Scotland, it is only 36 years which is even less time and may include some people of my generation. Although a lot of change and progress has occurred in the past 50 years, I think it would be ludicrous to try and ignore the fact that homophobia still exists in some form in Scotland and need...

I have been thinking a lot about social media recently, whilst looking at those around me, and I just cannot ignore how false it all is. I have written about social media before, and will be writing about this topic for my upcoming university dissertation, because it is impossible to ignore. We are living in a real life “Black Mirror” episode. We have become that dystopian society that is described in fictional stories as a warning to us so we do not become mindless robots consumed by technology. We are living our life for social media, for others to see, for the likes and validation. I am guilty of this myself and it is beginning to take its toll on me. This is a topic I feel very strongly about because I see so many around me suffering from different issues and I believe that social media and constant connection to the internet is playing a massive role in these issues. I want to find answers. I want to find explanations. The way people act online compared to real life is very dish...

A few days ago, the BBC  revealed  who the new Doctor would be in  Doctor Who . It was announced that Jodie Whittaker would be taking  on the role,  from Peter Capaldi ,  which received a mixture of reviews.  Whittaker’s Doctor will be a very important one as she will be the first woman to play the role. This is a tremendous step for gender equality in the media but left many people wondering why there is a need for the Doctor to be played by a woman when the actor has been male for the show’s history. I can respect this point of view, however, the main point of criticism here would be that the Doctor is an alien who regenerates into a completely new person, so why could that person not be a woman? I am not going to preach on about feminism or woman’s rights because, as a male, I do not feel I can comment or ar gue my poi nt on behalf of women as I can never understand what it feels like to be misrepresented due to being a woman .  As a...

SPOILER ALERT! This post discusses my experience of playing “Life is Strange” and contains some spoilers as to what happens in the game. If you don’t want to know what happens in the game then don’t read on!! Last week I (finally) downloaded the game series “Life is Strange”. In a nutshell, the game follows the story of Max, who discovers her ability to turn back time after she witnesses the murder of her childhood best friend, Chloe. In the the game, you have the responsibility of making decisions which can have small or large impacts on what happens throughout the game and in the future. The butterfly effect and chaos theory are very strong themes throughout the game which really makes you think about how such small choices or events throughout your life can lead to a chain reaction that results in something very significant. I would rate the game a solid 8/10 with minor improvements being better graphics and animations, and also smoother gameplay. The story of the game was enthr...

When the iceberg hits, some will not make it, Some will go down with the vessel, Accepting their fate, not fighting, but giving up. Others will escape to the lifeboats and sail away to Serenity, Leaving those less fortunate behind, To either die, or survive. Everyone around you is screaming for help, It is your name they call. “Why me?” you ask. You are struggling as much as anyone else to survive But still you are deemed responsible for ensuring the survival of others. So you take a deep breath. The piercing Water punctures your lungs And your chest begins to collapse As hypothermia begins to take over. But you suppress it. You need to save the others. In the pursuit of helping others, Your body becomes numb To all feeling and emotion. Putting them onto rafts, And ensuring they reach Serenity, Is your priority. As the icy Water penetrates your body, Like a virus clinging onto a host for survival, You notice you can no longer feel anything. Numbness, for ...

Note from Liam:  an edited version of this post has been included on The Glasgow Guardian's (University of Glasgow student newspaper) website as part of their LGBT History Month 2018 coverage. You can see that post  here . The phrase "coming out of the closet" is a metaphor largely associated with someone disclosing their sexuality to someone else. I am not a huge advocate for "coming out" and making a big deal about not being straight. For me, sexuality is another part of your individuality and identity which does not require validation from others. However, because we live in a heteronormative society, which likes to put labels on things and have out-of-the-norm things overtly expressed, then "coming out" has become something which most LGBT people will experience at some point in their life. Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, a German gay rights activist, introduced the idea of coming out in 1869 as a means of emancipation. In a time where the LGBT communit...

This is a topic which has been plaguing my mind for the past few months due to a number of events happening around the world and it is one which I have no clear or satisfactory answer to. I am growing up as part of the millennial generation, who is often the butt of people's jokes and criticism, and something we have become known for is our extreme political correctness and ease of being offended. In our eyes, however, we are just humans who believe in equality for all and will do our best to tackle injustice wherever we see it. The line between free speech and hate speech initially seems quite obvious. As soon as it comes to discriminating against someone then it is hate speech, right? However, the more I think about it, the more arbitrary it becomes and the more I notice that people can often shift the line depending on the argument at hand. Those who are often criticised for their controversial and offensive views use free speech as a way to argue that it is essential in order...

It's okay that you fell off the bike because learning is a long process. Just get back on and try again. It's okay that you felt embarrassed when you tripped up in the playground in front of everyone because accidents happen to everyone, at least you weren't badly hurt. It's okay that you are not enjoying a new pastime because we need to try new things in order to find out what we like and what we don't. You tried it and you tried your best - that's all that matters. It's okay that you sometimes find it hard to socialise and make friends because social skills can take time to develop for some people, I am still learning today. It's okay that you sometimes feel like there is nobody to turn to because dealing with your own mind can be the hardest part of being human, but we must be open to letting others in. Together we are stronger. It's okay that nothing makes any sense right now because it will all fall into place eventually. ...

"Now, are you sitting comfortably? Good. Then we will begin." Remember that episode of Doctor Who (back when the series was still watchable and David Tennant was the Doctor) when The Wire sucked off the faces of the residents through the television and trapped them within the screen leaving their bodies as lifeless and faceless beings? Well, I believe that the episode predicted the future of society but, rather than television, it is our phones that have sucked up every morsel of our lives, personality, and humanity. We have become almost faceless and soulless beings in real life who can only exist or survive through a screen on social media, as if trapped by some external force. The big phenomenon is that the majority of us cannot seem to live our daily lives or do basic tasks without first consulting our phones. It seems to have been ingrained into our generation that Social Media and our phones are more important than real life and spending real moments with re...