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The elections for the 2008/2009 SU council went by without a hitch in March 2008. Campaigning was, like previous years, limited to postering, websites, and new this year, facebook. Voter turn-out has been at a low point for many years, especially after the online voting system was proven flawed in the 2007 by-election.
I have serious concerns about Bethany Vail's leadership, given she views the SU as merely an entertainment service for students. Listen, most students can entertain themselves and there is plenty going on in the city to meet people's needs. Students do not need to pay over 100 dollars each to be "electrified", "entertained", and "engaged." Whatever the fuck it means to "electrify" your fellow students, I don't know. Her platform is seriously out in la-la land and I am seriously not surprised when the provincial government walks all over student needs, year after year, when people like this get elected.
She also states under her "Entertain" plank in her platform (why, only Bethany knows) that the UNB SU fought to keep UNBSJ from closing, that's patently false, the undergraduate union did nothing to oppose UNBSJ's threatened closure. In fact there was a rally to oppose that last fall in which Bradley Mullins (outgoing president) was spotted in a suit and briefcase scowling at a small crowd of concerned students who were opposing the NB government's Commission on Post Secondary Education, photo will be posted soon. He then tramped back to his office to write a nasty little editorial for the Brunswickan to publish the following week which he criticized the Grad Student Association for opposing the Liberal Government's PSE reforms. I guess you've got to be creative when trying to finagle a job in New Brunswick, they're pretty scarce these days, but Bradley's got a good thing going as he clearly has cushy government-job ambitions.
Besides this, what about tuition? What about bursaries and needs-based grants? What about debt relief? What about all the things that matter? What are you going to do when the government attempts to steer the research agenda of the university? Are you going to electrify them?
Students, we need to start paying attention to our student union, it's the only way to improve our lives at this university, and we have to stop careerists and opportunists from getting these positions who are merely padding resumes and using their positions as platforms to jump off onto a cush government job with the Liberal Party. It's our money and we really have to consider if there is a better alternative to subsidizing the careers of young Liberals and young Conservatives through paying SU dues each year.
Don't just take my word for it, look at her website and see for yourself: Electrify, Entertain, Engage
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I take issue with: "She also states under her "Entertain" plank in her platform (why, only Bethany knows) that the UNB SU fought to keep UNBSJ from closing, that's patently false, the undergraduate union did nothing to oppose UNBSJ's threatened closure."
If you are going to make comments about a person's leadership style, you should take a bit more a rational and factual approach to it.
On the website you refer us to, Ms. Vail's campaign states: "The Student Union is a visible advocate for students. This year we even convinced the government not to close UNBSJ. But the SU doesn't do enough to entertain students and make them aware that it's doing that." Clicking on "Read More" brings you to the meat of that plank, namely, more concerts, better clubs & societies funding, and a central events calendar. I think it's clear that the point of referring to the UNBSJ issue was to highlight that the SU can be more than just an avenue for advocacy. It's unfortunate that you twisted the words, because a lot of students at UNB have complained over the past few years that the SU didn't do enough to offer them good concerts or tell them what kinds of events were happening on campus--it's refreshing to see somebody respond to those concerns.
Now, you will likely take issue with the idea that the UNBSU is an effective avenue for advocacy because you also claim that it is patently false that the UNBSU fought to keep UNBSJ from closing. You are right that Brad's rally was a dismal success and that he did chastise students, but that was not all that happened. I would refer you to the meeting of the UNBSU Council on November 29, 2007, you will find a motion adopted unanimously by the UNB Student Union, which reads:
"Whereas the government has yet to confirm the status of the UNB Saint John campus in light of the uncertainty created by the report of the province's Commission on Post Secondary Education;
"Whereas this uncertainty will have untold effects on the viability and sustainability of the enrolment track for both the Saint John and Fredericton campuses of this university and will ultimately have untold effects on the financial position of the University of New Brunswick;
"Whereas the future and sustainability of the university as a whole, including the Fredericton campus, is directly linked to the existence of the Saint John campus of the University of New Brunswick;
"Whereas the government has created a working group to examine the recommendations of the report of the Commission;
"Whereas that working group does not anticipate delivering its recommendations to the government before late January or early February of 2008, after which time the government will need to further consider those recommendations before taking action;
"And whereas the working group is comprised only of the presidents of the universities and the principals of the community colleges in the province and provides no direct input for the students of this province;
"Now therefore, the University of New Brunswick Student Union recognizes that the post secondary education system of this province is in need of reform;
"Further, the University of New Brunswick Student Union condemns the lack of direct student access to the province's working group;
"Further, the University of New Brunswick Student Union refutes the government's claim that the process of examining the post secondary education system in this province is student focused;
"Further, the University of New Brunswick Student Union affirms that the University of New Brunswick's Saint John campus must be preserved as a campus of this university and rejects the notion that it should be converted into a polytechnic or anything less than a campus of this university;
"Further, the University of New Brunswick Student Union urges the government to expedite the process of the working group in order to arrive at a resolution of this matter before the end of January 2008 in order to circumvent the negative effects the government's delay in clarifying the position of the Saint John campus of this university is having and will continue to have on the enrolment of the Saint John campus and the consequential negative effect this delay is having and will continue to have on the financial position of the University of New Brunswick;
"Further, the Council of the University of New Brunswick Student Union directs that this resolution be engrossed, embossed with the seal of the Union, and delivered to the Premier of the Province of New Brunswick."
In fact, I'm pretty sure that Ms. Vail is the person who actually moved this motion at the Council table.
And let's review one key statement there: "Further, the University of New Brunswick Student Union affirms that the University of New Brunswick's Saint John campus must be preserved as a campus of this university and rejects the notion that it should be converted into a polytechnic or anything less than a campus of this university;"
So this is the UNBSU doing "nothing" to oppose the threatened closure of UNBSJ?
And it didn't end with might have been just idle words in SUB 103. If you want to look a little bit further, I would refer you to the Order & Notice Paper from the NB Legislature from December 13, 2007 (http://www.gnb.ca/legis/business/currentsession/56/56-2/order-e/o071213e.pdf), you will notice that this motion actually made it, word for word, onto the floor of the NB Legislature for debate. Unfortunately, the goverment amended the word added by the Opposition MLA moving it on the floor of the House--which read "Therefore be it resolved that this Legislative Assembly concur with the resolution unanimously adopted by the Council of the University of New Brunswick Student Union on November 29, 2007"--so that the motion from the UNBSU would be simply referred to the Commission on Post-Secondary Education for consideration. This is the first time in a LONG time that a whole day of motions debate at the legislature was dedicated to the issue of post-secondary education.
So, not only did the UNBSU NOT do "nothing to oppose UNBSJ's threatened closure", as you claim, not only did they succeed in taking their argument all the way to the FLOOR of the Legislature in a real debate instead of simply a token recognition of some protest outside--which is about as far as most any other group can accomplish these days--this was all an initiative started by Ms. Vail. Maybe you should check your facts before attacking somebody's leadership and accuse their organization of doing "nothing".
Oh, and by the way, now that he has left university, I hear that Mr. Mullins is doing work for an oil rig somewhere in Alberta. Cushy government job back here in NB? I don't think so.
Hey Rory,
I could have been a little more clear when I said "nothing". While it's great to pass motions, and it is pretty easy to get the Council to support a motion like that. Unfortunately if all students and professors did was pass resolutions at their respective councils and unions we would have a brand new polytechnic in SJ and UNB would have been cut in half. As for the Opposition referencing your motion in council that's great but it's not surprising that the Cons would look anywhere to score political points against the Liberals. It's not something to brag about either. That doesn't speak to the organizational power of the UNB SU, the broad support it has in the community and on campus, and the leadership abilities of the executive. In fact, it that's all UNB SU did, it speaks to the opposite of what I just mentioned.
As for how the SU motion got to the floor of the leg. I'd seriously like to know how that happened as well. You guys should be lobbying the government for what students need, not playing partisan politics and making back-room deals with the Conservatives who are a great deal responsible for the predicament many young students are in now. Your opposition should have come through community and university students, not through the Conservative Party. Now I really can't say for sure how that happened, but the consequences of playing partisan politics means that the government of the day will not take the SU seriously if they see it as a Conservative front. I hope that's not how an SU motion got on the floor, word-for-word as you say, of the legislature.
On running on an entertainment platform, which is basically what Bethany did (for the record I am not attacking Bethany personally, just her platform). The fact that she won says volumes about the state of the Union at our campus. It's been like this for years and years. But Bethany's platform was a departure from past platforms that I have seen. It said very little about student issues and spoke very little about progressive changes for students. Look, the students that need help most don't fucking care about more concerts or more speed dating on campus or a damn calendar. That platform represents a regression into the early 20th century when all SUs were merely fronts for the administration and society clubs for students.
"It's unfortunate that you twisted the words, because a lot of students at UNB have complained over the past few years that the SU didn't do enough to offer them good concerts or tell them what kinds of events were happening on campus--it's refreshing to see somebody respond to those concerns."
I have not twisted any words. I stand by what I have said and think the platform was pure ridiculous. If you seriously believe that's what students want from their SU, then you are out of touch with the average student at UNB, and that platform and the fact that se was elected, I think, points to the fact the SU is more of a ruling clique than a true representation of students.
I believe the SU has to change Rory and that's going to take getting students involved in their SU, not alienating them from it.
At the very least, I hope the UNB SU respects the democratic process, at least we still have that.
As for Brad, well that was his choice. It's odd that a bright young man like him would choose roughnecking on an oil rig (one of the most dangerous jobs you can have). I hope it's not because his debt is too high and he was forced into such a shitty predicament. If that is the case I have new respect for him, but you know, he's not the only one. Unfortunately that is the price of a four-year undergrad at UNB. That is, if you're from a working class family and dared to dream.
If our leaders would take a more progressive posture at least, and actually lead students maybe guys like Brad and I wouldn't be forced into dangerous occupations to pay crippling debt.
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