UCDSU - A def joke

zap

I have e-mailed 3 different officers in the SU about 3 different things and in 2 months no one has replied. wat a joke!

Cecilia

I have emailed the SU Pres once, and never received a reply. Also emailed some other sabbats, and once again got no response. They are supposed to be their for us, we elected them.

MatthewVII

Yeah, i find the students' union a bit hypocritical. they claim to be by the students, for the students and all that mularky yet they seem to be totally out of touch with the common student. All ive ever see them do is go on egotistical rampages about whatever gets their panties in a twist.

On an another unrelated point, do many people here support the ban on Coca-Cola products? I dont drink coke or fanta myself so it doesnt bother me, but most of the students on campus that i know seem to think its horribly unfair that the students union should be able to block it. I know there was a referendum etc, but i hear from ppl that the only people who really turned out in force to vote were the su members and their followers. I cant really see how one small country imposing a ban in a few universities when their products are readily available elsewhere will really damage a huge multinational corporation which can afford to subsidise their products in order to drive others out of business.

uberwolf

MatthewVII wrote:

but i hear from ppl that the only people who really turned out in force to vote were the su members and their followers

such is how democracy works. Apathy has resulted in greater farces TBH.

orangerooster

All the SU ever do is moan about how students dont care about the politics around the university.I couldnt give a rats ass about wheeling a trolly with stereos in it to Hugh Bradeys house just he built a gym-Scully and the rest of his cronies should do something that actually has some kind of positive impact on the place and the students who elected him instead of acting like an immature possé.Better entertainment would be nice and a few more things to do other than pool and pathetic "demonstrations".

The SU are a joke imho.

Intel

MatthewVII wrote:

I cant really see how one small country imposing a ban in a few universities when their products are readily available elsewhere will really damage a huge multinational corporation which can afford to subsidise their products in order to drive others out of business.

If all the black people who boycotted the 26 rows 'reserved' for blacks on the buses in the 'small' town of Montgomery had your attitude the Civil Rights Movement might never have taken place. Everything has to start somewhere.

''The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands
in moments of comfort and convenience, but where
he stands at times of challenge and controversy.''
—Martin Luther King, Jr.

MatthewVII

I know what you mean, but that particular stand was a united effort, a huge movement involving a large percentage of the community who HAD the power to change things and who were so blatantly and more importantly DIRECTLY denied of their rights that it made rallying easy. People in Irish Universities are not being directly influenced by Coca-Cola's bullying of Columbian trade unions and so to put it bluntly, we just don't care enough to make a united effort involving sacrifice. Out of sight out, of mind they say. and irish universities don't contribute enough of a percentage of Coca-Cola sales to have a serious impact. On that note, does anyone know exactly how many colleges in ireland/europe/everywhere have implemented a similar ban? im just curious.

Jivin Turkey

I find the fact that that motion was passed totally laughable. When it comes down to it, the most of UCD students dont give a rats ass about the bureaucracy of student politics and anything that goes with it. Why should a few of the SU nerds, hacks, and fellow dickheads decide who can and cant drink coke?

And when are they going to bring in the ban prohibiting people wearing Nike clothes?

Chinafoot

Jivin Turkey wrote:

Why should a few of the SU nerds, hacks, and fellow dickheads decide who can and cant drink coke?

well the opportunity was there on two ocassions for people to have their say about the Coke thing. personally im not bothered cos i dont like coke unless theres a bit of jack in it.

but i do agree that the SU need to concentrate on the students. the union shouldnt be used as a podium for them to voice their anti-war/colombian coca- cola workers/deportation opinions. theres plenty that needs to be sorted out in the college which is directly affecting the students.
although i dont think making a bit of noise in Brady's front garden will achieve much.

oh also.........where the hell has Cashman been this year??

Jivin Turkey

peachypants wrote:

well the opportunity was there on two ocassions for people to have their say about the Coke thing. personally im not bothered cos i dont like coke unless theres a bit of jack in it.

but i do agree that the SU need to concentrate on the students. the union shouldnt be used as a podium for them to voice their anti-war/colombian coca- cola workers/deportation opinions. theres plenty that needs to be sorted out in the college which is directly affecting the students.

Exactly. Im not fond of coke either but they shouldnt be able to ban it like that. Particularly when so many students dont even vote in the things. Whether they should or not is irrelevant, but they dont care about the poor columbians who are exploited by coke but they shouldnt be punished because they dont give a crap with the pantomime that is student politics.

Alana

Well said intel, if you want to make a change you have to start somewhere, anyone remember when Dunnes all those years ago banned fruit from South Africa because of apartheid (sp)...Ireland=ickle country, whose going to take notice...? And what about Ireland being one of the first states back in 1986 i think, to recognise Palestinian nationalism...?Again Ireland=ickle nation-what can it achieve...?

I'm not saying that these acts lead to current affairs, but they havent harmed them...so let UCD ban fricking Coke, and as Uberwolf said thats democracy for you. If you want to buy coke go to the goddam restaurant and get it there.

As for the SU, (cue understatement of the year) yes they do seem to be dragging their heals a lil. Went into the accmdation officer once and ........., and was completely useless, then i bought a translation of an italian text in the SU book shop (its a hard text...plus my life is busy enough without having to spend 3 days trying to understand&translate a story with mushrooms and metaphors...)and there were vital pages missing.

Who's our president? And other than getting his head shaved this year and havng demonstrations about things that dont have a factual basis *cough*gym*cough* what the bloooming hell has he been up to...?

Its mad but if i'v wanted to find anything out this year it generally happens that by chance il bump into last yrs vice presidnt Aidan (i think that his name anyway) has been very helpful.


edit: try and avoid unproveable allegations of drug use about named people.

orangerooster

Alana wrote:

Who's our president? And other than getting his head shaved this year and havng demonstrations about things that dont have a factual basis *cough*gym*cough* what the bloooming hell has he been up to...?

All Fergal Scully does is complain how we dont care about the same things he does and <gasp> might want to go to college to have a good time and get a degree etc and not get involved in the pathetic politics of the university for the sake of our C.V's.What a twat he is....

ferdi

i linked this thread to the ucdsu forum, follow it here: http://www.ucdsu.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=3504#3504

failsafe

On the whole coca-cola thing, nobody is telling you what to drink, they just decided that the college should not (via su shops) fund the coca-cola corporation. Personally i feel it's a step in the right direction of thought. At least, if nothing else, it puts people in the mindset of making ethical purchases. If you really feel oppressed by big brother just go to centra.

Macaco

MatthewVII wrote:

I know there was a referendum etc, but i hear from ppl that the only people who really turned out in force to vote were the su members and their followers.

This is not true at all. Thousands of people turned out for the referendum, in fact it was one of the biggest referendums in UCD's 150 year history. And by the way, there's no Coke ban. There's a BOYCOTT. It's a big difference. We own those SU shops -you, me, every UCD student does. And we have a democratic right to boycott products if the majority choose to do so.

As for Fergal Scully, he works his ass off every day trying to stand up to the college bureacracy, and pretty much everyone who has had any dealings with him or the union will agree that he's doing a great job.

I think there's some legitimate criticisms about the SU, so I'm not gonna go on about them being perfect, but overall they are doing the very best they can in extremely difficult circumstances. And unlike the union that UCD had when I first started college a few years ago, this one actually gives a **** about issues like fees, cutbacks, privatisation of education etc and is doing a hell of alot about them.

Every single students union since I've been in college has been criticised for not doing enough of something. And I think that as soon as you start sticking your neck out and organising demonstrations and campaigns, there are always those who're gonna criticise. But what many people don't stop to think about is that it YOUR money thats being wasted on Brady's house while you can't get new books in the library, and its YOU thats gonna loose if the government is allowed continue these cutbacks. The SU is made up of students like you who care about the state of our education system and who wanna make a difference, but they can't do it on their own.

orangerooster

Macaco wrote:

The SU is made up of students like you who care about the state of our education system and who wanna make a difference, but they can't do it on their own.

And lambasting students for not getting involved in wheeling trolleys about the place is really going to get us on side yes?

ferdi

good call

ferdi

Macaco wrote:

As for Fergal Scully, he works his ass off every day trying to stand up to the college bureacracy, and pretty much everyone who has had any dealings with him or the union will agree that he's doing a great job

hi fergal!

orangerooster

ferdi wrote:

hi fergal!

- rofl wouldnt surprise me.

Fergalscully

To those people who say that they have sent me e-mails I never replied to are simply not telling the truth. If you send me an e-mail I will answer it and have done for everyone in the past. If you don't get a reply ring me rather than going to a message board to shout unsubstantiated accusations. My mobile or land line numbers are all over ucdsu.net.


My direct e-mail address is supresident@ucd.ie

Macaco

orangerooster wrote:

And lambasting students for not getting involved in wheeling trolleys about the place is really going to get us on side yes?

Well seeing as i never "lambasted" anyone, i can't comment on that

DeVore

Sorry, Macaco, if you have a vested interest in this discussion (ie: you are an SU officer, a candidate, ex-officer etc) can you declare it please? Thanks.


My attention has been drawn to this thread but so far I dont see much out of place (a little common civility would help though!). This is partly what Boards is here for, a neutral 3rd place where people can express views that they might feel, uncomfortable, expressing elsewhere. That isnt carte blanche to denigrate any individual though. Like all discussions here, express your view as you see fit but with respect to others.

DeV.

transperson

it is right to say that the union is a bit political on issues that lets face it dont really affect the average student.but from what ive seen they are decent and have the interests of students at heart.in fairness calling the Fergal Scully a twat and generally giving out is kinda petty.i agree the union should take a more intergrated and fun inclusive standpoint and be more clearly proactive.
however,i think that when, as many of the people put it,most average students couldnt give a "rats ass" about politics and "dickheads" who get involved in these things, it is difficult to be intergrated and inclusive with people who hold these attitudes toward those who are supposed to represent them.

but

is it right that people want
-more cool stuff to do
-a feeling of on the ground representation
-help in what ever queries they have
-to avoid politics as much as posssible

also do students want
-to be free to drink coke
-not to be bothered with foreign matters (columbian workers etc.)
-more books in the libary

do students care about(or are these things just bother)
-post grad fees increasing
-residency fees increasing
-modularisation and semesterisation(all cources being cut into wee modules to be done in seperate semesters with exams for each module-some people already have it)
-having a say in how college is run
-having a transperant government of college so we can see if strange things are done finances and deals with big corporations that may or may not be good

if people say what is important to them the i'd say something could change,but if people dont and just giveout then i dont know if anything will change.
i'm a first year and dont know that much about it and this is only my take on things.think about things and dont judge so easily! mes deux centimos

m4cker

looks like a slow day at the su they really are out in force today

Macaco

DeVore wrote:

Sorry, Macaco, if you have a vested interest in this discussion (ie: you are an SU officer, a candidate, ex-officer etc) can you declare it please? Thanks.

While I am perfectly entitled to say whatever I like without "declaring" anything about myself, I can definitely say that i have absolutely no "vested interest" in this discussion. I am not an SU officer, an ex-officer or a "candidate" (for what, exactly?). I am a UCD student. I find it odd that I have to "declare" this, while the people who are criticising UCDSU do not. Could you explain this double standard, please?

Why is it so surprising to you that some people on these boards actually approve of this SU? After all, the president won the election by a landslide, sweeping all but one of UCD's faculties...

uberwolf

Macaco wrote:

While I am perfectly entitled to say whatever I like without "declaring" anything about myself

of course you are. But if you have a personal reason for defending the Union those you are debating with are entitled to know that as it effects how they may judge your arguments.

Macaco

m4cker wrote:

looks like a slow day at the su they really are out in force today

If you think that the only people who care about these issues are SU officers, then you seriously underestimate the intelligence and commitment of many students in this college.


You know, I'd expect people to be complaining if the SU were camopaigning on issues irrelevant to students, but this Democracy Now campaign cuts right to the heart of the problems facing us as students. And as for "better entertainment" and "cool stuff", well do you think this would be made easier or more difficult with more funding from the college and the government? Example: how much more "entertainment" stuff could heve been purchased with 1.6 million euro?

uberwolf wrote:

of course you are. But if you have a personal reason for defending the Union those you are debating with are entitled to know that as it effects how they may judge your arguments.

Please define "personal reason". My personal reason is that I have been a student in UCD for 4 years, and I believe that the current students union is committed to tackling many of the problems in the college and in third level education in general, while other unions a few years ago were content to simply sit on their arses.

uberwolf

Macaco wrote:

Please define "personal reason". My personal reason is that I have been a student in UCD for 4 years, and I believe that the current students union is committed to tackling many of the problems in the college and in third level education in general, while other unions a few years ago were content to simply sit on their arses.

what I mean is, and I think the original meaning was, is as follows.

Do you have an association with the union, or any individual therein which would cause you to post a defence of that entity which would be at least partially based on your knowledge of that person or association with the union?

You have given your motivation already. I'm not debating it. But you should be able to see that if that association existed then your defence of teh union could not be taken seriously.

Of course you're also right that no one has questioned the identity of anyone who came on here to pillor the sabbats.

Alana

Ok kudos to the SU on certain issues, like the 10k walk which i thought was a shocking disgrace given the size of our student body that more ppl didnt go on it...

just out of curiosity, and risking getting torn apart limb from limb-i im just looking for info here-on the whole Brady and having a gym thing..

..what is the proof...?and isnt it a uni building so cant they spend money on it, just like they do on the library....? When was the last time money was spent on that building and how often do they spend money on the library...?And i thought the story was that his wife brought an excercise bike or something with her, and suddnly rumours spirald....?

What is the story?

transperson

why is it assumed that i am a participant in the union?

because i am not.

can a person not have an opinion and knowledge about something without being branded!

it seems to me that some people are intent on discrediting anyone with a different point of veiw by accusing them of ulterior motives.

mes deus centimos

transperson

the college has every right to spend money on the presidents lodge.
it is one of thousands of listed buildings around ireland,so underlaw it is required to be protected.
there is government funding for the upkeep of listed buildings.
the 1.6 million came out of the renovation fund.it was allocated for the lodge via the finance commitee under the previous president.
the lodge was extensively renovated.a industrial style kitchen was put in[watever that is].
the gym in question i personally do not actually believe in,i think it is a room perhaps a basement in which excercise machines are placed.
as far as i know a running machine of ms brady was refered to by college authorities in relation to this.
i do not know when the last time money was spent on either the libary or the lodge,but i understand that the lodge is complete and the figure quoted by mary clayton- vice president for students was 1,650,000euro.

these are the facts as i understand them

to make things clear,i attended the meeting called by mary clayton after the protest was called and i attended the protest itself.i am not involved in the union.