Despite a tense atmosphere, the undergraduate student government
made significant decisions ““ ranging from campus to global
issues ““ with an air of agreement at its meeting Tuesday
night as the dust settled from a turbulent past few weeks. While
expressing concerns about President David Dahle’s
controversial memo, the Undergraduate Students Association Council
conducted its business as usual, a week after the document went
public. Dahle made a public apology at the meeting’s onset
for the document he wrote. Among other things, the memo states that
manipulation is a key to political effectiveness on campus and
includes a “friends and enemies” list. Dahle said he
admits he was wrong in writing the document, adding that it was not
his intention to offend anyone. Some councilmembers still said they
had reservations about accepting Dahle’s apology. “What
else is (Dahle) doing besides a public apology?” said
Internal Vice President T.J. Cordero. Still Cordero said council
would be able to work together in the best interest of students for
the remainder of the year.
Armenian Genocide resolution USAC expressed its overwhelming
support for recognition of the Armenian Genocide with a resolution
that commemorated the events that occurred early in the twentieth
century. Many governments worldwide ““ including the United
States and Turkey ““ do not recognize the event as a genocide.
Councilmembers approved the resolution drafted by members of the
Armenian Student Union with little discussion and a 12-0-0 vote. It
was important that council took a stance on the issue as a symbolic
gesture, said Finance Committee Chair Hrug DerManuelian, who is of
Armenian descent. By not recognizing the event, some governments
are denying Armenians of their history, according to DerManuelian.
“If we deny people’s history, we deny their
existence,” he said. Councilmembers shared the same
sentiment. “A lot of people don’t know about it and
it’s important to inform the student body,” said
Academic Affairs Commissioner Chris Diaz.
Resolution to support U.S. troops Council unanimously passed a
resolution to support the U.S. troops in Iraq after it had rejected
a resolution with the same intention last week. Most councilmembers
said they felt the previous resolution had a pro-war slant. But the
new resolution, drafted by Campus Events Commissioner Ryan Wilson,
was substantially shorter and was approved with a 12-0-0 vote. The
resolution recognized that the military has little or no control
over administrative decisions and supported the lives of all
people, regardless of nationality. Wilson said he thought the
resolution, which only included three provisions, should be as
direct and simple as possible to achieve its objective. “It
was a symbolic gesture … those are our peers and its important to
recognize them,” Wilson added. Most councilmembers believed
this resolution expressed their sentiments better than the first
one. Whereas the other resolution seemed to be propaganda for the
war, this resolution recognizes that the lives of the U.S. troops
are no more important than other lives, said External Vice
President Chris Neal.
Bylaw amendments tabled Council passed a motion to postpone
making a decision of amending its bylaws that would make all
student groups eligible for USAC funding ““ including groups
with religious and political orientations. After some discussion,
most councilmembers said they felt they were not thoroughly
informed on the issue and should wait until further research is
done before making a decision. But some councilmembers expressed
disappointment in the delay. “The more information we have
the better … but we need to start moving on it,” said
General Representative Adam Harmetz.
Election applications due Applications for the upcoming USAC
Spring 2003 elections are due tomorrow by 12 p.m. Applications are
to be turned in to the Elections Board office in Kerckhoff 312.