🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1993Jun8.130607.28103@bcars6a8.bnr.ca> Henry.Troup@BNR.CA writes:
>So, what inspired this crack-down?
>                                                                  
>Henry Troup - H.Troup@BNR.CA (Canada) - BNR owns but does not share my opinions
>			 This is a virus-free signature

I'm not sure that this event is correctly termed a crack-down.  It seems
that, in shifting responsibility for AMS funded publications to a board
composed of Students at Large, UBC Alumni and the AMS exec, the AMS has
distanced themselves from potential controversy.  I have not been able as
yet to find out how the members of the Board will be selected; there was a
reference to a 2/3 majority in an earlier post.  Whether this is 2/3 of
the student body or 2/3 of the AMS Exec, I don't know.

It seems that the Ubyssey hasn't been "shut down", rather it has to
convince the future Publications Board that it should continue to receive
student money, instead of automatically receiving it from the AMS.  The
composition of the board will determine whether this will be an easy or
difficult task.  I attended UBC only part time last year, however I did
learn of several controversies surrounding the Ubyssey.  The paper is
broadly thought of as holding a left-wing bias and I understand that there
was a drive through petition to force a student vote on whether the paper
should continue to receive automatic student funding (I believe the
Ubyssey received about $50,000 last year, correct me if I am wrong.)  I
don't believe that the vote was ever held, however a couple of new, free
distribution papers started solely funded privately.  I understand that the
AMS eventually banned the distribution of any publications in AMS
buildings except those funded by the AMS, most significantly the Ubyssey. 
The Ubyssey generated some controversy, I am told, by publishing an issue
with advice on how to rip off the public transit system, and an issue (I
unfortunately missed) dealing primarily with controversial sex issues.

I'm not certain who this move by the AMS is supposed to please.  Student
Apathy is extreme at UBC-- I made a special trip out there to vote on some
special resolutions last year but the entire ($8,000?) exercise was
declared void because the vote didn't reach quorum (10% of the student
body?).  I am pretty sure no vote was ever held on the Ubyssey, and the
whole controversy over content was never resolved through contributions to
the paper by dissenters.  As was mentioned in an earlier post, the Ubyssey
(and the AMS) seem to function best as a training ground for future
politicians  (Kim Campbell, John Turner, Svend Robinson).  Could the
passing of the heat to a "Publications Board" be a move to further
political ambitions?

In my experience, successive student executives have not been asked to
represent student interests because students are so damn apathetic.  This
is frightening when one realizes that University Students are supposed to
be the best and brightest who will generate continued intellectual and
material prosperity in the world.  How will they accomplish this if they
won't make the effort to vote?
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-- 
Robert Froese
taganov biogeocoenose approach                  "Clearcutting is not a Crime"
taganov@unixg.ubc.ca