I was going to blog about something else, but this story instantly jumped the queue after I read it because I was so infuriated by it. The story is about the
University of Victoria's Student Society (UVSS) banning the Canadian Forces from recruiting in the Student Union Building (home of the annual career fair). Whether you're for or against Canada's involvement in Afghanistan, please read the "enlightened" reasons why the Canadian Forces are being banned.
The ban voted in on Sept. 10 means that the Canadian Armed Forces will be unable to attend the annual recruiting fair put on by UVic's Career Services in the SUB every January. The Armed Forces attended last year's recruiting fair.
At the Sept. 10 meeting, UVSS director of academics Caitlin Meggs read a statement by Jennifer Margison, manager of Career Services, urging students not to ban the military and to invite a member of the Armed Forces to speak to them before making a decision. Margison was unable to attend the meeting.
'If the policy would be implemented as a ban, I would ask the board to consider that this could be a very slippery slope, and one that I don't believe is in the spirit of a university campus, where alternate and opposing views, debate and discourse, personal choice and decision making should be fostered,' Meggs read on behalf of Margison. 'I would suggest that banning any organization from campus, if they are operating in accordance with Canadian law, and with university policy, is an infringement on the rights of students to make their own decisions about their futures.
Tim Fournier from Students Against War spoke against the Canadian military recruiting on campus. He agreed that any law-abiding group should be allowed on campus, but argued the military committed illegal acts.
'Canada has signed on to the Geneva Convention. It's ratified these. It's a customary law which means that it's part of our legal framework,' Fournier said. 'We're violating those laws, and it doesn't take a legal expert to figure that out.'
Fournier accused the military of being dishonest, saying the Canadian Armed Forces use depleted uranium, which has been linked to cancer. The website of the Department of National Defence said that the Armed Forces haven't carried depleted uranium since 1998.
'They are liars,' Fournier said. 'They do not tell the truth, and they manipulate us.'
Scott Garnett, a student in the gallery, challenged Fournier's assertion that the Canadian military is guilty of war crimes.
'Has anybody in the Canadian military been convicted of war crimes?' Garnett asked.
'They don't tell us,' replied Fournier, who said Afghans under the supervision of the Canadian military were tortured. 'Convicted or not, torturing people is a war crime.'
So groups that have committed illegal acts should be banned from being allowed on campus? You better start banning a lot more groups from recruiting UVic students.
- Raytheon Industries - illegally sold military equipment to sanctioned countries
- Talisman Energy - assisted Sudanese government to carry out crimes against humanity
- Microsoft Corp - illegal business practices used to suppress competition
- Encana Corp - human rights abuses in South America - illegally displacing people
The list goes on, so I suggest you be fair and ban ANY corporation who conducts illegal activities especially the ones with ACTUAL human rights abuses and confirmed war crimes.
Director-at-large Christine Comrie said it was important to ban the military from recruiting because some students are ignorant about the issues.
'A lot of students don't know about the issues and don't know about the facts,' she said. 'We have to make this decision for students.'
I think this was the WORST reason they gave. It is so condescending and it assumes that students are idiots. We're university students for crying out loud. We can do our own research and make our own decisions. Furthermore, what about those students who are fully away of the issues; how dare you override their decision by making it for them. Banning the military from recruiting is no different from censorship.
'I believe [the military] is a necessary part of our lives,' he said. 'I made an application myself at one point because it's a good source of financial aid.'
Director-at-large Edward Pullman spoke against the Afghan war during the debate.
'I consider myself well read on the situation in Afghanistan,' said director-at-large Edward Pullman. 'I believe that the Armed Forces in Afghanistan are operating to the detriment of the Afghani people.'
Again, another horrible argument. "I'm well read on the situation in Afghanistan," does that make your opinion more valid? I'm not sure how we're being detrimental to the Afghani people if we're building schools and roads for them, free of charge. On top of that, we helped restore rights to women. Women weren't even allowed to work for crying out loud under Taliban rule!
Women's Centre board representative Anna Planedin said the purpose of the Afghanistan mission is 'to colonize' and compared military recruiting to selling cigarettes.
'To me, it reminds me how cigarette companies sell products with glamorous-looking models.'
Really? We want to colonize Afghanistan? Why would we want that? There is absolutely no strategic value whatsoever in Afghanistan. If Afghanistan was really such a hot real estate item, you'd think that other NATO allies would be rushing into Afghanistan, putting down even more troops. Afghanistan was literally a country in the middle of nowhere, which the world forgot about. The only thing of value is its heroine drug crop, so are you implying that Canada is trying to corner the world's market in heroine?
But director-at-large Corinne Harbidge said that students should be able to make up their own mind about whether to join the military.
'I think everyone deserves to make their own decisions,' Harbidge said. 'If [Career Services] paid to book the room, I don't think it's our place to tell them who can and can't come.'
Some of her colleagues disagreed. 'I'm all for students having open debate, but the point is that you can't have a debate if you're not fully informed,' said Meggs. 'And the Canadian military misrepresents what is happening.'
This reasoning really made me mad. Meggs is basically saying, you can't argue with me because you're not fully informed; however I am. That's a good way to shut down your opponents from arguing... you're essentially calling them ignorant.
How exactly did you get fully informed? What information do you have about the military that we don't have? Where are you getting this classified information? Please present us with your evidence. Perhaps you got it while fighting in the frontlines in Afghanistan.
No, I'm not done ranting. How dare the UVSS drag the name of the Canadian Forces through the mud. We have young men and women sacrificing the comforts of home, fighting and dying overseas while we have these so called intellectuals accuse them of war crimes. This shall not stand!
It's fine if you oppose the war. Heck, the majority of Canadians probably oppose the Afghan mission right now. But go after the politicians and not the military.
In either case, various media sources have picked up the story, including the
Times Colonist. It highlights that there's a protest against the UVSS' decision to ban the military, and it's being organized
via a Facebook Group. What's funny is that they're collecting signatures to impeach the UVSS, and I say, good for them!
If you're a UVIC student, you have an opportunity to vote against this ban on October 18th. This insanity must be stopped!
I have been highly critical of the UVSS in the past, but this just takes the cake. Don't they have better things to do? I wonder how they even came up with this policy? Do they just sit around pitching crazy ideas?
The thing I fear most is that crazy people like these UVSS members will likely be our future politicians. That's why it's important to vote; to prevent insane people from taking office. The only reason why a lot of these lunatics are in a position of power is because less than 20% of the student population at UVic actually votes. Yes, that makes Bush more legitimate than the UVSS. Muahaha.
Did I mention how glad I am being out of university and no longer paying fees to the UVSS?
/end rant
