Intellectual Destitution

[aggienaut]

   The Model United Nations club at UC Davis (MUN) recently received $750 from Club Finance Council (CFC) to partially subsidize the upcoming UC Berkeley MUN Conference (UCBMUNC '05). In order to qualify for this money, MUN officers had to convince SPAC that they needed the money.

   During this conference, the MUN officers have planned a "team dinner" whereupon the 37 participants from Davis will eat at a $40 per person restaurant, and it will be subsidized by MUN club money down to $20 a plate (a $740 total subsidation).
   Club officers emphasize that this money is not the CFC money. I stated that the argument that there is no relationship between the two sources of money is the kind of financial knavery I'd expect to only hear only during an ASUCD Senate meeting.

[Poll #438856]

   When it was discussed at the meeting I grilled the officers but they were recalcitrant on the subject. Shortly thereafter we were served up the topic of "sovreignty" to practice debating. After numerous people loudly grumbled that it was a boring topic, I suggested that maybe we practice debating by using the "Team Dinner" as a topic. Secretary General Myung pointedly ignored the suggestion. I found it quite distinctly shady.

   In addition to it being in all likelihood grave misuse of CFC funds (in that we obviously didn't need the CFC money), I object to this because the dinner is STILL way out of my price range.
   I have an appointment with the Club Finance Council Program Director tomorrow morning at 9am, at which point I shall probably file a formal complaint and the SPAC people will contact the MUN officers to establish a hearing.

Comments

Re: MUN

[thiswallflower.livejournal.com]

As someone who has chosen not to attend the AMWest team dinner, I've always found that it was because I couldn't afford it. In 2003, fourteen of us found we couldn't afford it. Secretariat is obviously disproprotionally represented because they choose the location of the "team dinner" and are more concerned with their stomachs than the people they leave standing alone at the door.

As for your third point regarding AMWest, I'd much rather have dinner with a conspiracy theorist and those who cannot afford the meal than a bunch of rich kids who will stab you in the back and ruin your self-image the first chance they get.

Instead of working to fix the issues facing MUN (and there are a myriad of them), you all would rather spend your days attacking Kris on his livejournal because none of you would ever have the courage to talk to him about it personally. As for myself, I have nothing left to do with my time now that members of the club have found that an election is more important than my friendship. I didn't need to win the election, but I did need my friends. I never realized people in MUN had such little personal integrity.

You shouldn't fear SPAC or CFC if you are not doing anything wrong. It's that simple.

Kris, I believe it's your turn.

Re: MUN

[(Anonymous)]

I find it difficult to believe someone who can afford to be a part of MUN cannot afford 20 dollars for dinner. Seriously, bust out the financial statements to prove me wrong.

As for SPAC and CFC, the only way you would think they are a completely benign organization is if you had never wrangled with them directly (as I did for a number of years). Seriously, SPAC, and ASUCD in general, single-handedly convinced me never to follow a career in politics.

I'm not attacking Kris, just his arguments. As a general rule I think Kris goes about things in an incredibly intelligent and insightful manner, just not in this case.

As for not talking about it personally I'm 2500 miles away in law school, which precludes this possibility. But I hope Kris knows I don't have any hostility towards him, I just expect him to handle things in the same capable manner he has done in the past. I wouldn't be as hard on people I didn't expect anything from.

Rabble rousing as always,
Shawn Foust

Re: MUN

[emosnail.livejournal.com]

I love MUN and I make sacrifices to pay for it. Believe me I'm not rich -- I dream of having a fancy suit like everyone else or at least being able to wear shoes to a conference that don't have a hole in them. I live on ramen and bread. I'm on extensive financial aid. Believe me, to spend $20 on a dinner would be terribly irresponsible of me. When I am making barely justifiable expenditures just to go to conferences, its almost insulting to me that rather than use funds to lower the costs of the conference, people are spending it on something I'd have to spend more unnecessary money to take advantage of.

Re: MUN

[(Anonymous)]

Oh Shawn...you make me smile!! Dave told me to read this and I'm glad that I did. I love that WWJD. In fact more people should think that way. hahahaha.

Anyway, you know how much I hate SPAC and CFC from all those years of fighting with them. I mean really, when they told me that MUN wasn't diverse enough and that's why we wouldn't get any money...I almost died...seriously, how can MUN not be diverse. But I digress.

So, WWJD...well, I would prostitute someone on the corner for the extra money to pay for dinner. Then we wouldn't have to bother with stupid CFC and SPAC bureaucracy. So, how about it gorgeous...do you want to be our next funraiser? I can see it now...you on the corner of Anderson and LaRue by the Arco station. So very classy!!

Say hi to Regan!

Love,
Janet