The AMS, along with former VP Administration Tristan Markle, is complaing about the BC and Canadian governments to the United Nations. They claim:
both levels of government have failed to:
- control tuition fees,
- provide sufficient financial support to students in need, and
- provide adequate funding to the post secondary sector
Councillors we have spoken to thus far all seem shocked, as if this came from nowhere.
Press Release
Complaint
Backgrounder
Tristan Markle Affidavit
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Twitter fervor:
http://search.twitter.com/search?q=@blakefrederick
Blake responding:
http://twitter.com/blakefrederick
Seriously? I heard the AMS had gone insane this year, but I didn’t expect this.
NUTjob.
http://www.vancouversun.com/complaint%20launched%20society%20over%20post%20secondary%20education/2272723/story.html
Also, did this go through exec? On why would the vpfinance and vpacademic say ok to this?
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Thoughts
a) the complaint is 31 pages and has charts and shit. This didn’t happen over night. So if people (ie other exec) members didn’t know about it they were intentionally left in the dark. If that’s the case – why? The complaint claims to be speaking for all of UBC students but everyone I’ve talked to so far has not supported the complaint. Was the exec intentionally left out for this reason?
b) The law firm, Pivot, likes to play the media. From their website (http://www.pivotlegal.org) “Pivot uses the media as a public education tool to promote its mandate and messages around specific issues.”
Are they playing the AMS in order to get some national/international media attention? Did we pay them? How much?
Oy. If I had any more free time I’d start circulating a “shame on you” petition.
I don’t know much about the legalities of bringing the action, but does the President have the authority to bring a legal proceeding in the name of the AMS? I’d be concerned that he doesn’t, since only Council is the “representative” of the Society. The President is only the spokesperson, no?
Has Blake exceeded his authority? Is the act of purporting to bring a legal proceeding in the name of the AMS ultra vires Blake’s authority?
I’m particularly troubled by his penchant for just skipping council and being crazy.
You can’t be crazy unless council says you can be crazy, and I’d be willing to bet they wouldn’t have let him be crazy on this one.
In all seriousness, this is big time, this is a big huge honking deal that council needs to really talk about. I don’t think impeachment proceedings are out of the question by a long run over this.
Blake has made it clear he is willing to drag the UBC AMS through the mud, it is time that the UBC AMS said firmly no, and stopped him from doing it again.
Go Gray Davis on his proletariat hindquarters!
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This is atrocious. I am disgusted by the AMS right now.
http://www.terry.ubc.ca/index.php/2009/11/27/a-conversation-at-the-office-of-the-united-nations-high-commissioner-for-human-rights-as-imagined-by-blake-frederick/
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[...] This blog post is in response to the current UN/AMS debacle. For information see this UBC Insiders post. It is NOT about the embarrassing tactics of the AMS President Blake Frederick, the ridiculous [...]
How much money was given to Pivot? What ties does Pivot have to a political party?