UCD AND its Student Political Parties

Chakar

SGKM wrote:

What do college politcal parties do? I joined the youth PDs last year in 1st year ucd and all they seemed to do is email and text me looking for me to go canvassing or putting up posters for them! Looking back on it, I dont know why I bothered joining a political party,I joined the PDs because they have the best policies for the development of the Irish economy and they arent left wing loonies or fianna fail.

They mainly have weekly meetings with a speaker addressing the party usually a figure in the party.They go on trips to the Ard Fheis and the Youth Conference together.Everybody joins a political party because they like that party and its policies.So we do that by canvassing and putting up posters which is what I will be doing next year for FF.

rainbow kirby

KBC makes baby Jesus cry. And I also resent the description of left-wingers as loonies.

Sangre

Left wing loonies =! left wings are loonies.

Samos

If I have one piece of advice to anyone, it's this: Do not get involved in politics. It's messy and personal, full of propaganda and misplaced priorities, repleat with struggles for power and its corrupting influence. Party politics is simply an over-the-top parlour game to score points against the 'opposition' by insults and jeers. Notice how public debacles, like the Mr A case or road deaths, are misused to scorn those in power, while the government themselves decry the opposition parties as opportunistic band-wagon-jumpers. This is not pretty or admirable. It is not the only way.

If you wish to change the world for the better and make progress with this aim, then you should stay staunchly indpendent. Think for yourself. Do not be lead by the masses and do not believe yourself to be capable of leading them correctly either. Choose to live the best life you can. Let others be free to make that decision too.

dajaffa wrote:

Well personally I'm political-party free and proud.

If I HAD to join one, it'd be the greens, purely from the point of view that the dangers our environment are grave and worldwide, political leaders aren't doing enough (apart from the nordic countries)...

Granted UCD Greens disassociated themselves with the "Green Party", + they're just about the environment or something.... seems a bit stoopid to me. If they wanted that surely they'd change their name to make this clear

As far as I know, UCD Greens did attempt to change their name to reflect their independence from the realm of party politics. However, by UCD rules this would require re-regeristing and consequently would lead to losing any surplus funds and the possibility for a grant in its first few years of existence.

Pythia

Extreme left wingers are loonies, as are extreme anyones!

I do not like student politics, I am involved in politics and I'm a student. Big difference there me thinks.

humbert

Samos wrote:

If I have one piece of advice to anyone, it's this: Do not get involved in politics. It's messy and personal, full of propaganda and misplaced priorities, repleat with struggles for power and its corrupting influence. Party politics is simply an over-the-top parlour game to score points against the 'opposition' by insults and jeers. Notice how public debacles, like the Mr A case or road deaths, are misused to scorn those in power, while the government themselves decry the opposition parties as opportunistic band-wagon-jumpers. This is not pretty or admirable. It is not the only way.

If you wish to change the world for the better and make progress with this aim, then you should stay staunchly indpendent. Think for yourself. Do not be lead by the masses and do not believe yourself to be capable of leading them correctly either. Choose to live the best life you can. Let others be free to make that decision too.


As far as I know, UCD Greens did attempt to change their name to reflect their independence from the realm of party politics. However, by UCD rules this would require re-regeristing and consequently would lead to losing any surplus funds and the possibility for a grant in its first few years of existence.

I agree. IMO people who want to get involved in something and have any particular interests or talents join the respective clubs and societies, the others join youth political parties.

Jonny Arson

Samos wrote:

If I have one piece of advice to anyone, it's this: Do not get involved in politics. It's messy and personal, full of propaganda and misplaced priorities, repleat with struggles for power and its corrupting influence. Party politics is simply an over-the-top parlour game to score points against the 'opposition' by insults and jeers. Notice how public debacles, like the Mr A case or road deaths, are misused to scorn those in power, while the government themselves decry the opposition parties as opportunistic band-wagon-jumpers. This is not pretty or admirable. It is not the only way.

True, but what you said I find no different to what I encounter with interacting with many people in everyday life, I think Politics is simply a bigger and more obvious representation of the dog-eat-dog society we live in.

Samos

Zane from MTV2 wrote:

True, but what you said I find no different to what I encounter with interacting with many people in everyday life, I think Politics is simply a bigger and more obvious representation of the dog-eat-dog society we live in.

You're an inspiration to us all!

But seriously, life doesn't have to be all miserable and competitive, and dominated by bitter squabbling. Reach out, connect, rise above, have fun. It's not so bad afterall.

An Bradán Feasa

After a brief spell in Sinn Féin and a year in Labour Youth, I have finally decided that I cannot agree totally with one political party, I'd rather make up my own mind and think for myself, seeing as some of my views may differ with some of my comrades. Though Labour Youth were extremely good this year, some excellent campaigns, great activists, they are the only student political party who made their presence known on campus, and weren't just a sign-up-for-us-so-you-can-canvass-for-us type party. There are too many of those about, you all know who you are.

pigeonbutler

I guess I better declare my colours. KBC secretary as pointed out by Gav. For those of you who are interested (and with all due respect to those who aren't) I'll give an idea of what we're about.

FF and even Ogra and even each individual unit such as the KBC has a wide variety of opinions of what we ought to do. So these are my views.

Next year my hope is that the KBC will continue to interest students of UCD by giving them access to the decision makers at the top of Irish politics i.e. by giving them the ear of Senior cabinet members and others. Letting our members challenge the senior party on what it's doing right and wrong. But as new inititiave it's hoped that we'll have many more meetings that invite discussion of topical issues with a view to formulating effective, radical policies for government to implement. We want to present the senior party with sensible, simple, well-reasoned policy options that will make life better or this country's citizens, particularly it's young people.

But of course it won't all be serious stuff. Social life in the cummann is infamous, in particular our annual trips to Ard Fheisanna and Party Youth conferences and the annual freshers week hot whiskey session.

So in a nutshell, for craic and for fresh ideas we'll be looking to recruit as many active members as possible. You don't have to agree with everything the government does (I know I certainly don't!!!) but just have the willingness to stand up and explain how you think things can be improved upon. Fianna Fail is a broad church so we hope that the best policies come out of the discussions our members have. So to challenge your ministers and tell them how they could do better, to help influence the policy of this Islands largest political party, and to meet a lot of people and have great craic, Join the KBC!!!

Sangre

Stop pimping ffs

boneless

Het-Field wrote:

Yep, there is a communist party in Ireland. Its a very small thing, and most of its members jsut believe in the ideology, and take very little action. One of their recent leaderw was a bona fide Stalinist though

You would be surprised at the level of activity of the CPI Paddy. Which recent leader are you referring to, by the way?

As an older student (I refuse to be labelled mature!!) I like to observe the various antics of the main-stream political parties in UCD. The word purile springs to mind often but there have been some political activists (of all shades) who impressed me. It gives me some hope for the future.

panda100

humbert wrote:

I agree. IMO people who want to get involved in something and have any particular interests or talents join the respective clubs and societies, the others join youth political parties.

I dont think this is necessarily true at all. I know lots of people involved in political parties who have very vibrant lives and are involved with sports,music and lots of other societies. Many people just get involved with political parties in UCD because it can be intresting and they want to meet like minded people with an intrest in goverments and how they work.

For example,I was very involved with world aid soc in 2001 up to 2003 but theres only so much you can do for humanitarian issues being involved with a small society.So I decided to join Labour youth so I could get involved on humanitarian issues on a more national and international stage. I know myself that I am involved in lots of other socities and when I get time, train with the netballers and womens rugby but I also enjoy being involved with politics too. I think we're really lucky in UCD to have such a vibrant political scene.This year I have met ultra conservative right wingers to tree hugging anarchists and hopefully meeting all these different types through politics in UCD will make me a more open minded person for when I leave UCD

hullaballoo

Ugh, it's going to be a tough year I reckon.

I'm putting this out there now so I shouldn't have to come back to it later.

No flaming each other over student politics. This is the first and final warning on this.

The first offence is a week ban and the second offence is indefinite.

I know you've all been good in this thread so far, but we all know where these threads can go, so I'm making sure there's no doubt in anyone's mind what will happen if and/or when it happens.

Ok, that's my bit.

Scraggs

hullaballoo wrote:

Ugh, it's going to be a tough year I reckon.

I'm putting this out there now so I shouldn't have to come back to it later.

No flaming each other over student politics. This is the first and final warning on this.

The first offence is a week ban and the second offence is indefinite.

I know you've all been good in this thread so far, but we all know where these threads can go, so I'm making sure there's no doubt in anyone's mind what will happen if and/or when it happens.

Ok, that's my bit.

Can I suggest you put that in the posting guidelines sticky since we don't have a charter? Just so nobody can say they didn't see it or whatever...

dajaffa

Ya + make it really clear what isn't allowed due to the number of hackish creatures on this forum (*of which I may or may not be one*)

ferdi

without a left wing, a right wing cannot fly

centralists ftw!!!

Sangre

apathy ft

arbeitsscheuer

ferdi wrote:

without a left wing, a right wing cannot fly

centralists ftw!!!

Oooh, quite an interesting position... Almost echoing the religious parallel, whereby Good clearly, inescapably, cannot exist without Evil - for if there was no Evil we would not have to define anything as 'Good', it would merely be the norm.

I must ponder on this.

Scraggs wrote:

Can I suggest you put that in the posting guidelines sticky since we don't have a charter?

Seconded.

singingstranger

Scraggs wrote:

Can I suggest you put that in the posting guidelines sticky since we don't have a charter? Just so nobody can say they didn't see it or whatever...

Thirded.