Allowing ACT to destroy Student Unions
Student leaders: Govt support for bill puts tertiary education in jeopardy
The decision of National members of a parliamentary select committee to ignore tertiary institutions, students and the public by supporting an Act bill to impose voluntary student membership on students' associations is disgraceful.
It will put students' services, representation and their education at major risk. Should it be passed, Act's Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill will jeopardise the quality of the education environment and the student experience by removing the very mechanism that exists to provide these services.
It will end accountable and effective representation and destroy the student support, independent advocacy and welfare standards that students have. Every student will bear the brunt of this. Our politicians don't seem to care that there will be a huge reduction in services and a loss of a student voice in universities and polytechnics throughout the country.
Institutions will receive diverse messages from students and without clear signals will look to the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) for funding priorities.
Students, the key stakeholders, will be sidelined because their voice will not be clear and strong. Future tertiary services will be driven by the minority funder, exactly the behaviour the proponents of this bill oppose.
Students don't want this. Tertiary institutions don't want this. The committee received 4837 submissions on the bill, with an overwhelming 98 per cent opposed.
Of the 4837 submissions, 98% opposed what ACT are planing, and yet once again John Key is allowing the ACT tail to wag the dog. National continue to allow this fringe political party of hypocrites to dictate hard right social policy to the country.
The claim that freedom of association is what is at stake are nonsense, any jumped up little libertarian who had a philosophical issue with the Student Union they joined always had the opportunity to argue their case and have the student fee paid to a charity of their choosing rather than to the Student Union. This is not about freedom of association, it's about the freedom of dis-association, by shutting down student unions the right wing amputate one of their largest critics.
If as the bullied Heather Roy claims, Whitireia is a reason to abolish student unions then Taito Phillip Field & Roger McClay are reasons to disband Parliament.
As I said at the select committee...
...this is a brutal political assassination dictated by the fringe right which will rob society of one of its critics and most importantly rob students of any real say at their Universities, Labour and the Greens should promise to reverse this as an election promise.
posted by Bomber @ 8:43 am
18 comments
18 Comments:
Please answer the following. Why do you want to force me to join a student union when I study next year. I do not want to me a member, period.
Bomber only in your wildest dreams do student unions effectively represent students. Are you suggesting that student unions are accurately representing students poliical views with their political views that make North Korea look right wing? Good riddance to student unions, why the NZUSA advocated students supported and vote for the Alliance, but i am sure you support that kind of position as being reflective of all student wishes?
Never let the facts get in the way of a good rant Martyn.
This myth keeps getting repeated. Around 4,700 submissions were just names on a firm letter/petition. They were collected by staff and executive of compulsory associations. There were only around 300 genuine submissions. And polls in the past have shown that the majority of students do want voluntary membership. This will be extremely popular with the majority of students. It is only the privileged minority who are squealing with horror.
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2010/10/why_universities_are_against_vsm.html
@ Anon 9:48
The answer is simple anon:
Because there is no way in hell that these unions would survive for half of 1 symester if they had to be accountable to any one but themselves.
Bomber can dress it up as being all about nurturing NZ art all he wants (which is laughable in itself) but the sad fact is that they need your money because without it they are just a rag tag bunch of shit stirring radical wannabes, priviledged middle class loser Labour party aspirants and other assorted socially malajusted bludgers with no where to go.
Please answer the following. Why do you want to force me to join a student union when I study next year. I do not want to me a member, period.
You don't. Period. You can argue your reasons why you don't have to pay your fee to the Union and it won't go to them. If you are bitching about paying the fee at all, you can make the exact same claim about all tax can't you?
that make North Korea look right wing?
Please I leave ridiculous claims to Kiwiblogh and people who read Kiwi Blog. What policies have Student Unions taken that make North Korea look right wing?
Carl, cut and pasting Kiwiblogh doesn't add much to the credibility of your argument. The day I allow David Farrar tell me what the correct way to measure one's voice in a select committee is the day I give up, shave my head bald and tour Europe endlessly on a booze binge.
Bomber can dress it up as being all about nurturing NZ art all he wants (which is laughable in itself) but the sad fact is that they need your money because without it they are just a rag tag bunch of shit stirring radical wannabes, priviledged middle class loser Labour party aspirants and other assorted socially malajusted bludgers with no where to go.
You forgot the priviledged middle class who go onto ACT, The National Party, the Greens, the Maori Party - in fact most political parties would ALL have had members who cut their teeth in Student Politics. Your attempt to denigrate student politics from a Labour point of view is a lazy argument and you miss out that actually they serve the purpose of all political parties.
Like any publicly funded entity, yes it would fall over if the public funds were pulled - shock horror, this is hardly an argument to end them.
The shallow short term victory parade at the expense of something deemed pinker than communism is all I'm hearing here boys, the first election promise to Students by the Greens and the Labour Party should be to remove this law asap if they win 2011.
OK so what credibility do 'student leaders' actually have.
lets follow the money. If VSM does come in then who stands to lose, whoa its 'student leader' who have access to millions of dollars to spluge on unaccountable 'administration and advocacy' services.
What a surprise.
These people have as much credibility as the CEO's of bankrupt investment banks being asked for reasons why the public should bailout their companies.
Cut and pasting from Wikipedia isnt usualy my style but this about sums up the importance of student unions to the New Zealand economy and social mobility in general.
From Steven Joyces' page:
"While at university he worked as a presenter and programme director on student radio. After leaving university Joyce and a group of friends (including radio presenter Jeremy Corbett) started their own radio station, Energy FM, in New Plymouth. With business partners, he built up RadioWorks over the next seventeen years, both organically and by acquisition, to a network of 22 radio stations and 650 staff."
Add Ian Lees-Galloway and thats two MP's from one student association (Massey) whose professional lives are directly linked to student associations.
Am I right is thinking that Gillard is legislating to reintroduce compulsory student union fees in Australia?
SHE WOS THE PRESIDENT OF OZ STUDENT UNIONS LIKE ME OVA HERE.
bring it
Your little friends are about to have the first little breaths of their political careers in socialist bureaucracies snuffed out.
Feels good man.
So you are happy for me, as a 2011 student, to argue that my union fees go to the act party, because that is where i am ideologically placed. I am free to make that argument am i?
Your little friends are about to have the first little breaths of their political careers in socialist bureaucracies snuffed out.
Feels good man.
Johnson, I note that you have posted on this site in the past your suicide fantasies of me and your torture fantasies of me, what makes you 'feel good' is of zero interest to me, however I think highlighting your hatred and fantasy violence is very important for others to read.
So you are happy for me, as a 2011 student, to argue that my union fees go to the act party, because that is where i am ideologically placed. I am free to make that argument am i?
For someone wanting to ban student unions you don't seem to know that much about them Anon. What you are allowed to do is make your argument that the Student Union doesn't represent your ideology and the student fee can be donated to any charity of your choosing. The ACT Party is not a charity, it is a political party, although in the recent light of its jaw dropping hypocrisy you could make an argument that it is a charity case.
President of the Australian Union of Students.As for Act on Campus, they ran the motions mid week in the quad under David Seymour, Adrian or Simon Wilson, a blonde guy with a long pointy nose and don't forget three times ex pres Graham Watson.Bomber I appreciate your drawing a short and a rather long bow with a couple of comments on your show tonight bomber's blog.First if they got the polls wrong about the supercity, then what about the rest of them.Fair point.What I don't follow you on is the same logic applied to women in afghanistan having the right to choose.The first point I made is from an Australian Womens Weekly with Paul HENRY and his Mum on the cover.N.Z edition.
ANY OTHA OF YA'S WANNA ROLL THEN BRING IT TWO TIMES...
"Johnson, I note that you have posted on this site in the past your suicide fantasies of me and your torture fantasies of me, what makes you 'feel good' is of zero interest to me,"
Enough interest for you to wail about it at every opportunity though, Bradders.
"however I think highlighting your hatred and fantasy violence is very important for others to read."
A very pertinent point, if it weren't for the fact you haven't cleared my last dozen comments.
Speaking of hatred and fantasy violence, any comment on the No Pressure video or are you gonna keep schtum about it like the rest of your media mates?
Johnson your posts are an exploration of madness, I don't bother posting up most of your foul comments after you fantasised about my suicide and torture, what is amazing is that you are back again NOW WANTING to chit chat about No Pressure - I've got to admit I'm amazed. If I had gone to someones blog, posted up fantasies about their suicide and torture AND THEN tried to enter into an actual debate about issues of the day, I would be shocked at myself.
Johnson, you have mental issues, if you think that it's normal to tell someone about your suicide fantasies and torture fantasies AND THEN want to enter into a civil discussion with them, then you need to get some help and this site isn't that place.
Bullshit bomber.
Slurring Johnson because you are losing the argument.
LMAO - Umm, 'Anon', explain this one to me. Johnson HAS posted torture and suicide fantasies he has had about me on Tumeke and that is the reason I ban him as I think we can discuss issues of the day minus the desire for personal violence against each other in NZ, I'm noting how inane Johnson's position is when on one hand he is posting torture and suicide fantasies and then on the other trying to enter into a debate with the very same person he has posted torture and suicide fantasies over.
What in any of that is 'bullshit' or a slur against Johnson? That's the truth, someone who would violently paint out their torture and suicide fantasies and then attempt to enter into a civil discussion with that very same person HAS mental issues.
You really hate losing don't you?
Go on, just take your ball and fuck off.
Well again a couple of things here anon. How is pointing out Johnsons past fantasies about me being tortured or committing suicide losing? How is questioning his level of mental responsibility by attempting to enter into a civil discussion after making such posts losing?
And as for taking my ball and fucking off, this is a blog I posted on Tumeke, if there is anyone who should be taking their ball and fucking off, isn't it in fact you Anon?
I see with thinking as faulty as yours why you post anonymously. At least Johnson has the courage to put his name on his violent opinions.
Bomber I will cite you next year when I argue that I want to give the money to the Sensible Sentencing Trust. I'll say bomber said I could. Sweet?
Bomber, please explain exactly how one can 'impose' voluntary membership? As for 'institutions will receive diverse messages', erm that is supposed to be a criticism is it? And how do you square that with your support of MMP for example?
Post a Comment
<< Home