it’s sunday and i assumed that i would be sober enough to write an analysis on the council’s decision. but i’m reading it right now and i’ve realized that i’m probably a little tooo drunk to analyize anything so i’ll post it tomorrow. until then, go to beetle, tilted fish or to calstuff to read some analysis.
i have always believed in and respected all forms of government. whether it be federal or "little people" i’ve always stood behind the belief that they are representative of an honorable process, one that can be trusted and believed in. i always believed in the asuc and the judicial council to, despite all of their very human flaws, carry out their duties to the best of their abilities.
i can honestly say that as of this moment, i no longer have faith in the judicial council or in the abilities of the ASUC. the decision that the judicial council has made is both bothersome and flawed and is reflective of a much larger issue at hand. this issue is having people in powerful positions who either won’t or can not stand up to the honor, distinction and pressure of the jobs that they have been charged with.
simply put, this whole situation has gotten way out of hand and until now, there has been no one in a position to truly challenge each branch of the government to perform honestly and efficiently. it is a sad time when that day finally comes and it becomes obvious that these unchallenged branches can’t stand up to the pressure.
here is some advice for future members of the judicial council/senators/ and asuc execs: if you are going to accept the job with which you have been charged, you take an oath for a reason. if you find that from the moment of appointment or election (certified OR not), that you are not strong enough, with enough character, or trustworthy enough to uphold it, then please, do everyone you will be serving a favor and decline to accept the office you have been offered.
to be clear, this is not a rant about everyone screwing up bc sa won. i not pro any specific person or party. i am, however, for branches of the government executing their jobs to the best of their ability and not giving in to weakness or to taking the easy route, and unfortunately, that is what has occurred in this instance.
when i sober up, i’ll post analysis specific to the judicial council’s decision. until then, be disgusted with the way in which your respresentitives in every branch of student government both past, but mostly present, have conducted themselves in the face of pressure and truth.
Waking up hungover to the Daily Cal this morning just makes my head hurt way more than it already does.
Anyways, in a letter to the editor, Mickey Klein claims that SA foes are threatening democracy. I’m all for people having different views and allowing for open debate about them. However, this whole "I have a friend in SA and they’re right and everyone else it just out to get them because they’re jealous, so NAH!" thing is getting really old. I realize you guys are not going to see the reality of the situation because you believe that your friends have been wronged. But for the love of God, you got nuttin other than your whole "SA is right because I say so!" defense. I gotta give it to you guys though, you’re loyalty to friends is commendable.
I think it was a Justice who announces something to the effect of "blah blah blah decorum blah blah no drinking blah blah" Now that’s a way to start off the night. However, since we are brilliant Cal students who as of late are receiving a crash course in how to disobey rules and then make up our own, the Eschelman Lobby Bar was born.
In response to a question about Andy Ratto, who was in Israel, Ben Narodick remarks that he’s currently “dodging bombs”. Only the peanut gallery laughs and in response they receive dirty looks from the Justices and Oren. This is the first appearance of Oren’s pained look. I can’t tell if he’s constipated or thinking, but either way the boy is hurting.
SA tries to recuse Justice Banerjee- she is pissed and SA gets denied.
Then it comes up that Justice Kate Feng should be recused. She gets extremely offended and responds very angrily. This is quite hysterical because she could have saved herself the embarrassment and public knowledge of her “extracurricular” activities with a friend of SA if she had just recused herself on her own in the beginning. So, she really has no reason to be mad she did it to herself. She ends up getting booted for the rest of the hearing.
SA has issues with Squelch having 3 representatives vs. their 2. Whoa they really can count??!! I’m amazed because they still contest that 4 is a small minority of 7- yup they’re geniuses in the making. Anway, this argument forces SA to admit they had legal help with their briefs which is sad because Squelch’s are actually better. Translation: To get the job done, Squelch needs drunkies and SA needs environmental lawyers who figure out how to let their employers legally pollute. Hmmm….
Some talk about how Suken wasn’t the SA spokesperson when he lied. Ummm… Yeah, okay guys good thing no one believes you. This defense isn’t even worth me wasting my time explaining.
It’s becoming obvious that Oren and Vishal can’t mount a defense to save their lives. Case in point: they are told repeatedly by Justices that the defense they are making isn’t double jeopardy. Then after saying this for the last time, one of the Justices actually asks them if they know what double jeopardy is. WOW- holy crap, someone hit the nail on the head with that one… at least the Justice asked what we had all been wondering. Peanut gallery erupts with laughter and more dirty looks ensue.
Apparently, the senate chamber webcam is a spy disguised as a malfunctioning camera. Everyone gets a kick out of it but Justice Banarjee is getting very annoyed, she secretly thinks people are spying (OOO watch out) and then makes a point of letting everyone know she "has issues with it." Obviously…
SA calls a witness who was an ASUC financial officer to help in their voice recorder argument. This guy is a piece of work and embodies part of the ASUC’s current problem- too much ego, no intelligence. The guy can’t remember how much anything costs or the amount of money any group ever requested or received. If he could have, I think he would have used a “magic money” argument to explain himself. He is, however, able to recall how much he pays for his own electronic devices and then remarks after being asked about whether or not a device can sufficiently do what the J-Council would need it to do that "his would." Yup the ASUC has competent people running it already.
I’ve been drinking for at least 6 or 7 hours and even I can realize this is the most stupid pointless attempt at an argument ever. I had to remind myself what this argument had to do with more than once.
It’s now obvious that this hearing is becoming a black hole and my Saturday night is quickly being sucked into it. SA’s attorneys realize this too or maybe seeing SA in action made them realize what they actually got themselves into. Either way, they peace out and leave SA alone with Oren’s note taking while glaring at people parents. Big mistake, Babysitter’s Club 101: you never leave a baby alone.
Something about Squelch using “fake people” court and “real or big people” court and SA throwing another fit. Yeah, I don’t know, it’s time for Bear’s Lair.
Somewhere in here there is a conversation about necrophilia and commando sperm. I begin to wonder if I’m hearing things or if I’ve been spending too much time in the Eschelman Lobby Bar. It takes him a few hours of leaning back in his chair, but Beetle finally manages to fall over in it, he then somehow gracefully rights himself without many noticing- he obviously hasn’t been drinking.
Justice Banerjee brings up the whole 4 isn’t a majority thing and is so pissed. She completely grills SA about this.
SA doesn’t know what the grounds for objections are and so when they object to things they start cross debates… Justice Banerjee is tired like everyone else and let’s Lauren Karasek deal with this for a while.
Squelch told they need to stop objecting to things.
BLAH BLAH BLAH- You’re all annoying me…
Justice’s need to deliberate by 3 am, we get to leave at 3:30 am.
Just typing this makes me need a drink. And I want to find out if there’s actually anything that says you can’t drink in the senate chambers. As long as we all play nice, keep our hands to ourselves, remember to use indoor voices and to share with our schoolmates I don’t see the problem. It makes no more of a mockery of things than the ASUC manages to do on it’s own anyways!
It’s my first post. I think I’ll whine a little.
OK, so, as demonstrated by the "magic chalk" argument and various other mind-bending tactics, Student Action apparently takes the student body to be full of morons who are below their and the human population’s standard of intelligence. With this whole EO thing, the joke is actually now on them since they’ve proven themselves to be nothing more than an over grown toddler who is throwing a temper tantrum in order to get their way. Come on- I want to go to Yale Law, but threatening to sue the admissions advisors (or whatever you call them) isnt going to get me there. It will actually only put me further away from that Ivy League degree and unnecessarily piss-off people- DUH!! So then it’s beyond me as to why they think threatening the judicial council and the ASUC would get them into office. (Not quite the same thing, I know, but you get the point) I think boy wonder Bret "wanna be legal genius" Manley is trying a little too hard on this one.
My idea to solve this tug-of-war is:
Now that SA has proven they are all obviously too immature and therefore unfit to take office, in addition to blatantly not having the interests of the ASUC and students in mind. Why not go down gracefully, just step aside and let the capable politicians who are very ready and willing to do so, clean up the gigantic mess that SA has managed to make of the ASUC and all that it stands for??
WHEW!! Thinking that hard makes my head hurt.
Get free blog up and running in minutes with Blogsome
Theme designed by Viewfinder Design
