"Student Government" Manifesto

Update: The Student Government has its own blog. Check it out!

Steve S. over at LIB and I have not agreed on some issues, but he has come through with one hell of a piece today in the Herald. Let’s break it apart:

The era of the Associated Students of Madison is over. ASM was a vain, bloated, corrupt and inefficient body that served no one but the resume-padding careerist hacks who profited from the corruption in which they wallowed.

Yes it was. ASM is full of students who have nothing better to do than take money from students and give it to themselves and their friends.

ASM’s bureaucracy was a corpulent mess of groups with no checks and balances in the system whatsoever. ASM holds all power — there is no appeal beyond it. The Student Judiciary can punish ASM members who break the rules, but consequences are minimal at best and can be overturned by ASM.

(snip)

The current student-fee system is also out of control. There is no mechanism to even allow ASM to reject or reduce any budget. Countless money is wasted on organizations that provide no service to students. ASM’s twisted view of viewpoint-neutrality forced representatives into a position in which they could not say “no” to even the worst student organizations.

So true. Not only are they buddy-buddy with the Administration, but they are full of corrupt, power-hungry folks who try to enforce an impossible standard: viewpoint neutrality.

Candidates and groups have attempted reform for decades. Matt Modell fought vehemently for students’ rights against ASM oppression. Numerous candidates were elected last year on a reformist platform. However, these leaders have been blocked in their efforts for reform by the careerist resume-padders.This can no longer stand.

I was their during the Modell days as a Freshman Representitive. When SSFC actually cut some budgets, the corrupt SJ kicked representatives off of SSFC and reinstated the amounts. This is sickening. There is no room to cut in ASM, only add.

We will be writing a constitution that represents you. We will institute a streamlined government that strips away bureaucracy and petty infighting. We will enact major student fee reform, ensuring transparency and integrity in funding. We will guarantee clean, honest government that is competent and honest. And, at all times, we will take your feedback, opinions and input.

Some suggestions: No salaries for ANY interns or student government leaders. No full time or LTE positions paid for by ASM. And find a way to have a REAL appeals process, not one where everyone is friends with everyone else. This is a golden opportunity that must be seized. I want the Student Government to have control over my seg-fees. Talking about seg-fees, the Student Government should keep event grants, but axe travel grants! Also, a seg-fee cap would be a nice addition.

We have only one request. In your deck of cards, there is a joker card. If you are fed up with ASM’s garbage, if you don’t care about what ASM does, if you want a fresh organization that will work for your interests — pin the joker on your bag or your clothes.ASM has forfeited its right to be taken seriously. Atlas has shrugged — Student Government.

First, an Atlas Shrugged reference…that is awesome. Second, I, for one, will be wearing the joker.

This is not a right-left issue, it is a student issue. The 85 percent of students who do not vote in ASM elections have lost all hope in their government (or never found out what it is). That is how ASM has survived for so long. They hid in the shadows and they make backroom deals. They are driven by money…MY MONEY. So begins a revolution. Overall, the article was a good one. Not just because of what it said, but because of what it did not say. There were no promises that could not be kept, like ASM has done since I have been here. They promise to keep tuition down and they raise Seg-Fees. They promise keep Seg-Fees down, and they back a referendum that will increase fees 200 dollars a year! They lie and they lie to get re-elected. And so it begins…

ASM IS DEAD.