On Dit Issue 89.6

89.1.6 Y AR 89 BRU BER

FE PTEM E S

faction manifestos

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stupol in the ring

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towards a green socialism

editorial whats on? src state of the union vox pop econ dit international student voice sex and the small city LEFT RIGHT CENTRE sustanabili-dit club spotlight

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Articles & creative writing review: blithe spirit at the adelaide university theatre guild marshall and morrison rant surrealists at sea survivor: src the diamond of the sea ‘magical cats, australiana, and felching: a chat with aunty donna vice-chancellor will not commit to pay cut amid parliment vote on salary cap Don’t let the political right take the ‘union’ out of auu open letter from the faculty of arts clubs an open letter from an src rep the olympics: economics nirvana or financial hell? towards a green socialism trump’s social media lawsuit writing a poem

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who would win in a fight?

Stupol edition manhattan monsters workers struggle in whitmore square we’ve stopped the mergers before we can do it again connect manifesto grassroots manifesto left action manifesto activate manifesto unite manifesto progress manifesto editors isobel Moore Stasi kapetanos michelle roylance ivan jankovic

30 32 34 design 36 ISOBEL MOORE 38

cover art‘ Isobel Moore quiet vote

40 SUBEDITORS GRACE ATTA 42 LAKEISHA WATKINS TOM WOOD 44 MIRCO DI GIACOMO HABIBAH JAGHOORI 46 NGOC LAN TRAN MAYA TLAUKA 48 RORY SPEIRS LIA DEVETZIDIS 50 FINLAY EDWARDS KIRSTY KITTEL 52 TIAH BULLOCK 54 BECK ROWSE GEORGia PENGLIS DEAN PLESA

56 60 62 64 66 67 68 69 70 71

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e wish to acknowledge and pay our respects to the Kaurna people and their elders past, present and future as the traditional custo-

dians of the land on which the University of the Adelaide resides. Their

cultural and heritage beliefs flow deep and steady through the land and burn bright within the Kaurna community to this day.

LIKe what you see? GET INVOLED!

Interact with our socials, read our digital issues and articles, or send us a pitch at onditmag@gmail.com

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Stand for something or fall for anything.

Everyone's favourite time of the year has finally arrived, and by this, of course, I mean Student Elections!

While a number of student elections take place throughout this time of the year, the most important ones which we all sorta know about because of the colorfully-dressed campaigners everywhere are the elections to the Adelaide University Union (AUU) Board and Student Representative Council (SRC). The SRC represents students in certain university committees and exercises political advocacy, while the AUU Board controls the funding of clubs, student services, and even the SRC itself. While lots of spectacle will seem to be centred around the race for the SRC positions, the AUU Board is actually much more powerful.

If you are like most students, you probably have a very limited knowledge of what these institutions really do. Don’t let this get you down and stop you from getting involved (oftentimes I don’t either). To be fair to us here, lots of the AUU Board’s activity is done in secret to keep us in the dark, but the SRC is actually kind of open about their tomfoolery. Plus, not really knowing what is going on and still voting on it is an important part of being an adult in representative democracies like Australia, one of the few civic virtues left that holds this country together. It's also not a bad time to figure out your values and what you believe in for future elections. Who knows, you may find that you have to stand up for those values one day.

When it comes to exercising your totally voluntary duty to vote or not vote, one should consider who they’re voting for, what they aim to accomplish, and why. Consider your options; there are lots of them, and you would have to be a very eccentric individual to decide not to vote because you like or hate them all equally.

Think about the consequences of electing people like this into offices, both on campus and potentially outside of it one day - are you sure you are making the right decision?

Finally, are you doing this for the right reasons? Voting for something because you think it will end constant debate and conflict; make you feel better than everyone else; or just to own feminists or whatever, is probably not going to help anyone - least of all you!

Stasi

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2nd september

Event: Cultural Night Showcase #2 time: 11am - 4pm host: Adelaide University Rotaract Club where: Hub Central

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Event: British Parliamentary Debating Education Sessions & Debating Tournament time: 5pm - 8:30pm host: Adelaide University Debating Society where: Lower Napier LG 21

whats on?

things to do @ adelaide u

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Event: The Runner Up Cabaret: A Tribute to Secondary Characters time: 7:30pm host: Elder Conservatorium Music Theatre Association where: The University of Adelaide, Rumours Cafe, Level 5 Union House fee: $27 non members, $22 members

3rd september

Event: How can we do the most good for the World’s poorest?: Using evidence and reason to improve poverty time: 7pm host: Effective Altruism Club where: 2060 Barr Smith South ----------------------------------

Event: AHMSA BALL 2021 time: 7:30pm host: AHMSA (Adelaide Health and Medical Sciences Association where: Adelaide Pavilion fee: Members:$75, Non-Members:$85

4th september

Event:AULSS Law Ball 2021 time: 7:30pm host: Adelaide University Law Students’ Society where: William Magarey Room, Adelaide Oval fee: $109.08 - $124.65

Things To Do Adelaide U puts all Adelaide University events in one Facebook group for your convenience. Our creation was inspired by our clubs, who work tirelessly to enrich the UofA student experience for all of us. During this time, we have witnessed how deeply you can be part of the community here, but you can’t engage with what you don’t know about. So when you wonder, “What’s On?”, we hope to be there with all the Things To Do At Adelaide U.

Event: British Parliamentary Debating Educa tion Sessions & Debating Tournament

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Event: PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS’ PUB CRAWL!

Event: Semester 2 Pub crawl: The Clone Wars (pew pew)

Event:Cultural Night 2021

Event:How can we do the most good for animals?: Using evidence and reason to im prove farmed animal welfare

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I hope you had a well-deserved break and welcome to our new students! And at the same time, get to catch up on those lectures you’ve missed!

Right after the lockdown was announced, I participated in Incident Management Task Group meetings which involved deciding actions moving forward. I participated in all communications sent out to staff and students throughout the lockdown and shaped the university’s response. One of the key outcomes that I achieved was ensuring students are entitled to replacement exams if they are impacted by the lockdown announcement. I also ensured the return of face-to-face teaching and front-line services (Maths Learning Centre, Writing Centre, Counselling Services etc) back as soon as the first day post-lockdown, and checked on the welfare of students affected by lockdown (those specifically in quarantine).

This month is a big month for the SRC in anti-SASH (sexual assault, sexual harassment).

Working with the AUU President, I have ensured: • Consent Matters course to be compulsory for all students • Improvement of security signage and more panic buttons on campus. Security staff are trained with first responder training • Student leaders participated in the Motivating Action Through Empowerment (MATE) bystander training program to learn to recognise, speak-up, and offer support to victims • Working with the Department for Infrastructure and Transport on anti-SASH efforts through Diversity and Inclusion Plan - Student and young people action plan • National Student Safety Survey Campaign

I hear your concerns regarding ProctorU and the anxiety caused by the uncertainty of Semester 2 exams. I have raised your concerns to the university and have now ensured a report will be released on all the students’ feedback and issues raised. I also ensured exam arrangements, with plan B, are made fully transparent to students before census date.

Student elections are happening too! The AUU and SRC are funded by a portion of Student and Service Amenities Fees (SSAF, the extra money you paid on top of your course fees)!

The tremendous achievements of the SRC of the past can be found in our meeting papers here: https://bit.ly/3fOoMyF, but two notable changes the SRC achieved in the last few months are the return of f2f teaching and fair grading curve for all courses.

I hope that I’ve got your attention and realised how important your vote is, so to every single student of Adelaide University, come out and vote!

Questions/suggestions about the SRC/university? You are always welcome to email me or send me a message through social media!

OScar zi Shao ong SRC President

oscarzishao.ong@adelaide.edu.au facebook/wechat id oscarong1997

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Hello everyone, Welcome to August with unpredictable weather and some hope for a beautiful spring!

You might have been seeing multiple friends on your social media changing their profile picture and posting pitches about policies – yes, it is everyone’s favourite election season!

For those who don’t know (or can’t be bothered remembering), the AUU’s annual student election is a campus-wide election to elect student representatives to the Student Representative Council (SRC) and the AUU board. The main difference between the two is that SRC’s main role is advocacy for students (read the SRC president’s column to learn more!), and the AUU board manages the AUU, including clubs, budget, and communication to stakeholders. 23 positions are available on the SRC, and 5 representatives will be elected to AUU. The election lasts for one week and students can vote online from last year. This generally means you will be bombarded with messages from friends asking you to vote, and that you don’t have to go into a voting booth on the Math lawn (you can vote in the new AUU front office in Hub though). Nonetheless, there will be campaigners standing in your way to class and asking you to contribute your time.

With all these said, why should you vote? Why can’t you just run away from them, tell them you “have voted”, or confess that you go to UniSA? Well, election is important as the representatives directly communicate for you with the faculties, the university, even the Vice-Chancellor. They contribute to issues ranging from the university’s CoVID response to the wallpaper on Barr Smith level 2 (I helped choose those!), from ProctorU to free flu shots. Their decisions directly impact you as a student.

So, I would highly recommend you engage with the campaigner as much as you can, read people’s manifesto and policies, and most importantly, focus on the actual actions resulting from the group’s work.

Finally, some good news for you – elections for student radio and On Dit will be opened the week after the student election. Get ready for storms of messages!

All the best for the candidates and may the best stupol hack win :)

Angela Qin 2021 AUU President 13

Rebecca Etienne Honours Degree of a Bachelor of Psychological Science 1. I got to start up so many arts and crafts projects over the Uni break! It was a good opportunity to practice self-care by taking the time to work on my hobbies. I’m really into cross-stitching at the moment…. Am I any good at it? The jury is still out on that one.

2. I’m looking forward to engaging with other students face-to-face in classes and applying the skills I have learnt to the broader community!

Oh, and I’m also looking forward to planning some more social events delivered by the UofA Women’s Collective. Keep an eye out on our social media!

3. As a former stupol “hack” (something I still struggle to understand), these student elections represent the opportunity for change. Positive change. It has been very disappointing to see how the SRC and AUU Board have been conducting themselves as of late. We as the students have the power to vote for the people we believe will advocate on behalf of us and stand up for what is right.

When thinking about casting your vote this year, I strongly recommend reading each faction policy carefully and voting for what you truly believe in. We deserve to be represented effectively, and you can have a say who represents you!

4. Setting boundaries. Practicing self-care. Reaching out for help. Supporting women and nonbinary folk. Having difficult conversations. Calling out shitty behaviour in themselves and others. Just the little things!

Will Broderick Laws/Arts 1.

2.

Reading, watching TV, and catching up with mates.

Getting back on campus, going to club events, and hitting up the UniBar. 3.

As a current student rep I’d say it does, student elections are a great opportunity for students to make their voices heard about what they want to see on campus.v 4. Matthew Reilly – action-thriller author and Australian national treasure. His books are just topnotch page-turners which I’d highly recommend getting around.

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1 2 3 4

What are the highlights from your uni break?

What are you looking forward to most about this semester?

Student elections are coming up, does that mean anything to you?

What’s one thing you think more people should get behind?

Emelia Haskey Bachelor of Media, Majoring in Journalism 1. Getting some time off assignments was nice, but I love being back at uni. I much prefer keeping busy and being on campus.

2. Getting out and about on campus and catching up with some of my friends from different classes. That and jugs at the unibar.

3. AAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA 4. Gluten free food at the unibar, I’m sick of getting glutened by their chips. I’m petitioning for them to get a separate fryer and invest in some gluten free pizza bases.

Kirsty Bachelor of Arts (Advanced) and Diploma in Languages (Italian) 1. Improvising when my Gold Coast holiday was #COVIDcancelled (sorry if you cringed)– I took a trip to stunning Deep Creek Conservation Park with my sister, my teammates and I won our last game of the footy season, I skated with pals at the Glenelg Winter Alpine Festival and I saw Black Widow on opening night at Hoyts (with the comfy reclining chairs!)

2. I’m excited to study my last semester with my Italian cohort of two years and really embrace the things I’ll miss about campus life, like leisurely afternoons on the lawns catching up on uni work while sipping on an oat milk coffee from Grind and Press I probably didn’t need to buy...

3. I’ll be keeping an eye out for the team running for On-Dit editors next year, it is such a valuable publication to have that represents the student voice that we shouldn’t take for granted. During such a turbulent time for the University, with staff and course cuts, I think it is more important than ever to participate in the vote for those taking the time to represent and advocate on our behalf.

4. I think reading is still such an underrated hobby! There’s literally a book out there for everyone and way/mode of enjoying reading for everyone, whether it’s fiction, biography, a graphic novel, an audiobook, ebook, pretty hardcover etc.

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econ dit

words By Kar Chong for the Adelaide University Economics

Are you making Rational Decisions?

Have you felt regret after making certain purchases? Do you procrastinate on a regular basis?

Why is that so? The short answer is that we as humans are not always rational, despite our intelligence.

What this means is that we have bounded rationality; in some sense we are rational, but face constraints in computational capacity, memory, information, and time.

simply the decoy to influence you to buy the large one. Imagine if there are only two options: small or large, the result is then expected to be much more equally split.

The field of Behavioural Economics — a combination of psychology and economics — is used to better understand how people make decisions. This article will provide a brief analysis into the four frameworks of how we as humans make decisions, and why we procrastinate.

iii) Anchor & Adjust: retailers show the retail price of a product next to the discounted price. The hope is that the retail price serves as an anchor, and the consumer adjusts down, but insufficiently so that the discounted price looks like a great deal.

1 Decision-making under certainty:

the phrase under certainty simply means that there is no doubt as to which outcome will result from a given act. For example, if you order a latte at your local café, you will get a latte.

Well, how can we be irrational in such situations? The answer — marketing tricks! Listed are 3 examples: i) Decoy Effect: it works by introducing a third, less desirable option — the decoy — to sway consumers to believe that one of the other options is worth more. Consider how a cinema sells popcorn; small at $3, standard at $4.50, and large at $5.

Naturally, most people would go for the larger option as it just cost 50 cents more. The standard option is therefore

ii) Status Quo Bias: where people stick to a routine, organisations take advantage of this by offering a free trial and automatically converting you to a paid subscription.

2 Decision-making under risk:

most decisions are not choices under certainty, they have an inherent risk attached to them. For example, proposing to your partner, or the risk of a blood clot from a vaccine.

Again, individuals seem to act irrationally under such scenarios.

Take Confirmation Bias, which is the tendency of an individual to cherrypick information that conforms to their beliefs. This explains why conspiracy theories can persist, as its supporters place a significant weight on new evidence that supports it and disregard all evidence against it. Availability Bias, which describes the tendency of an individual to make decisions about the likelihood of an event based on how quickly and easily information comes to mind. A widely reported blood clot

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in some sense [humans] are rational, but face constraints in computational capacity, memory, information, and time.”

from vaccination will raise your perceived risk (i.e. overestimate) of getting a blood clot after having the vaccine.

3 Intertemporal decision-making:

the consequences of our decisions occur at different points in time. For example, attending university has immediate costs (expensive school fees) and deferred benefits (better job prospects). A rational individual should display consistent behaviour — if I plan to finish my assignment today, I will do it. Yet, in actuality, most of us violate time consistency, by procrastinating on a regular basis. This seems to stem from the fact that people display present bias. E.g. given the choice to complete an assignment tomorrow or next week, I initially choose tomorrow. But when tomorrow comes, I put a greater relative weight on the effort required on that day (present bias), and so I decide to delay it to next week — procrastination!

4 Strategic interaction: in reality, many

outcomes will also depend on the actions of others. Given that we live in a society and no man is an island, everyone must rely on the company of others in order to thrive, such as a team sport. The theory suggests that individuals should choose an action that is the best response to the other person — the technical term being Nash Equilibrium. Consider the game of rock paper scissors, if I think my opponent will play rock, according to the theory, my best response is to play paper.

Sounds simple, but reality can be more complicated than that. This happens when

we take into consideration the aspect of social preferences. Going back to the rock paper scissors example where I think my opponent will play rock, there may be a situation where I purposefully lose by playing scissors. Maybe I’m playing a young kid and want to display kindness.

Social preferences — altruism, envy, fairness, & reciprocity —demonstrate the drawback of theories that fail to emulate actual human behaviours, and so in this case, what is deemed rational in a certain situation will ultimately depend on a person’s social preferences.

Hopefully by recognising and understanding the theories underlying human decision-making, perhaps you can better make decisions that are truly beneficial to yourself!

If you have read this far and are interested to know more, this article summarises the course ECON 2511 Behavioural Economics II, taught by Professor Ralph Bayer. Moreover, there are plenty of resources online (e.g. thedecisionlab.com has the full list of common biases).

International students must be political!:

The rhetoric of international students as cash cows, main contributors to the financial sustainability of Australian higher education sector, has been regurgitated by many bigwigs in universities’ management teams and politicians. The media also makes a whiff of the sizable sum that international students bring into the country: billions of dollars of tuition fees quadrupling that of domestic students - all paid upfront!

The incessant discussion of the economics of international education is nauseating, as it equates the role of international students as that of neoliberal consumers of international higher education, thus making the role of universities no longer that of educational institutions but as businesses selling services and reputations to their customers.

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What is sorely lacking in the discussion of international education is the social, political, and ethical responsibilities that universities must account for when internationalising their educational service. The ripples of covid-19 have made a sizable dent in the university’s finances, and all of us are witnessing and handling the crux of it. Hundreds of staff members being cut and a structural change aimed at reducing five faculties into three, all due to the plummet of new international student enrolments. All this is enough to make one wonder about and seriously question the role of international students in universities beyond the dehumanising role of economic value.

The proliferation of the neoliberal ‘cash cow’ rhetoric severely

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International Student Voice

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the proliferation of the neoliberal ‘cash cow’ rhetoric severely dehumanises international students.”

International students pay, yes. But what has been becoming increasingly less salient is that international students are also students, and we as a collective voice hold political power and sway that affects not only us as individuals and our communities, but also other students and staff members that also directly make up the education sector in Australia.

International students are political and must be political!

There must be an awakening in each one of us international students to rise to our social and political rights and responsibilities. Especially when universities evade their political responsibilities by seeing us as paying customers. Especially when

businesses in hospitality sectors evade their social responsibilities by paying us under wage and discarding us as disposable labour.

It is no time to passively sit back, label ourselves as apolitical, and shake hands with those evading their political responsibilities to protect our rights as students. Not when our voice is on the line.

Hot tips for international students on how to be positively and constructively political without destroying your life: 1. Vote: Every vote matters during student elections including yours.

2. Educate yourselves: Research how different candidates will uphold and fight for your rights and wellbeing.

3. Get woke: Stop seeing your education as separate from domestic students and educational staff. Your rights empower the rights of all others who have a voice in the education sector, and vice versa.

It’s not about what you get out of university, it’s about how all students get out of university.

Wordsby Ngoc Lan Tran

dehumanises international students.

Our lack of definite status in migration makes it even harder to define us in humanising terms. We’re not quite immigrants because we are only here for education. We are not quite migrants because we are treated as customers of the education sector.

We’re not quite a part of society, because soon we may be kicked out when an arbitrary piece of document called a ‘visa’ expires. This dehumanising process thus makes us invisible in the social and political discourses, and further reduces our roles as social and political actors in our own rights.

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sex and the (small) city

Say Anything or Don't Say Anything At All 32 reasons why dating at 22 is a living nightmare

I’m 22. I’m a university student. I still live at home. I have an unhealthy addiction to rom-coms. I have a pretty normal life. I’m still trying to figure out what my true passions are, maintaining friendships which spark joy and letting others go, establishing boundaries with my overcritical family, and ultimately looking for someone a little special to share that experience with. There are pros and cons to being a rom com addict. A pro is not ‘settling’ for anyone who isn’t going to hold a boombox out the front of my bedroom window. A con is feeling the compulsive need to filter through a wide dating pool to find John Cusack. I am lucky enough to have found myself a Lloyd Dobler who is willing to share these turbulent experiences with me (additional 80’s playlist with In Your Eyes included), but I still hold some very strong opinions about dating. Between my friends and me, I’ve witnessed enough sickening pickup lines, awkward first dates and anxiety inducing situationships to understand dating. Not everything is as simple as it appears in Say Anything. Dating in 2021 is anything but simple. The following reasons are why dating in your 20’s suck:

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"I actually don't even care"” How often have we said this exact phrase to our mates about someone who we really do care about? Or even worse, how often have we said this phrase to someone who has just done something that has hurt our feelings?

The answer is far too often. Why are we in competition to care less about each other? Since when did caring for someone become the definition of having any sort of romantic feelings towards them?

I understand not wanting to confess your burning desire for someone on a first date. That is almost always a turn off, but that doesn’t mean giving them the cold shoulder is the way to go. Although Patrick made being a bad boy with no feelings look cool, as an audience we could all see he absolutely doted on Kat. Being caring whilst dating also includes caring for yourself. Keep an eye out for objectively disrespectful behaviour and think; ‘is drunk calling this loser (who I just saw kiss another girl at The Rhino Room) really caring for myself?’ I’ve suffered through enough hangxiety to tell you, it’s almost always not.

"So like, what are we?" ” If your skin crawled reading that sentence, you’re not alone. It has struck fear into the hearts of many and has the ability to evoke a flight or fight response.

I may not be the best person to give advice in this area-it took me over 14 months to make it abundantly clear that I liked my boombox holding boyfriend.

On the contrary, I have been the one to

say ‘hey, I don’t think what we are doing is working romantically for me’. It’s not easy to muster these words, in fact I remember sitting in a café, heart rate excessively elevated just before saying that sentence. It wasn’t the best feeling, but it beats the feeling of ghosting someone (or being ghosted). The fact that ghosted is a verb is abhorrent. Removing someone from your life so holistically can almost be compared to those fruit-loops in America who delete someone’s existence after they leave a cult. Transparency really is the best policy. Maybe you’re not feeling it, or maybe you’re feeling it a lot and you want to let that special someone know, being transparent about how you really feel does yield the best outcome.

Imagine how much heartbreak Sally Rooney would have saved us if Connell and Marianne had just openly communicated in Italy?!

There really are many pros of being raised by women like Cher Horowitz, Viola Hastings and Elle Woods, the main one being to always chase that feeling of pure euphoria which might come from a makeover, a soccer match, or winning a court case. The goal of dating should be to make you feel that sense of joy, and if it doesn’t, that euphoric feeling is just waiting for you in another romantic comedy.

WORDS BY Sophie Jean Heath

"I feel like I don't even know you" ” 500 Days of Summer. Manic Pixie Dream Girl. Devil Wears Prada. Career Focused Girlboss. Gone Girl. The Cool Girl. From experience, when I went on dates, I felt as though I had to fit into one of these categories. When the guy I was with exclaimed ‘oh you’re just like Jo March’ I thought ‘yes! I’ve done it!’

Unsure of what I achieved but liking the validation that I was similar to something I liked. But what happened when I did something that was a little more Meg than Jo? Who was I really? I no longer fit the model I had created for myself. As I showed more of myself I was no longer the character I initially projected, but my own character. Someone they didn’t meet on the first date. All through my life I have collected little snippets of characters I like and, like pieces of a puzzle, joined them together to create myself. I love The Smiths like Summer. I love Stanley Tucci like Andy. I am strong like Amy. I love reading like Jo. I am not just one of these characters, I am a collage of them all. Instead of letting the plot of my life develop the character, I let my personal development shift the plot.

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LEFT CENTRE

RIGHT

1. What are your thoughts on the vaccine rollout and our lockdown as well as those interstate?

2. How should governments handle the covid-denialism, anti-vaccine sentiment and opposition to lockdowns being broadcast in media and at the 'freedom rallies'?

3. Should the Olympics in Japan really have gone ahead and what are your thoughts on them coming to Brisbane in 2032?

LEFT: Socialist Alternative 1. Australia’s vaccine rollout has been unacceptably slow. It’s extremely concerning that business lobbies are advocating reopening when vaccination rates reach 70%, despite experts insisting we can only do so safely at over 80%. Ordinary people risk catching the virus at work so a wealthy few can continue making profits. Of course, lockdowns need to be provisioned for and we need purpose-built quarantine facilities instead of the shoddy hotel system which has created dozens of leaks.

2. The anti-lockdown protests represent disregard for human life, conspiracy theories and probusiness lunacy. Where do these ideas come from? Look no further than the biggest COVID denialists: the Berejiklian government. They denied the need for lockdowns and letting workers stay home.

Don’t forget Morrison leading the charge to blame China for creating the virus, which only empowers conspiracy theorists.

The anti-lockdown protesters are reprehensible, but state

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repression of protests is nothing to celebrate either.

3. The Olympics as they are currently run shouldn’t continue, let alone during a pandemic.

Japan’s fourth wave caused more deaths in the first four months of 2021 than all of last year, and many frontline workers remain unvaccinated. It’s too early to see the impact of this year’s games, but just think back four years to Rio de Janeiro, marked by huge sums invested in now derelict stadiums, rampant corruption and poverty for ordinary people.

The Olympics aren’t about ‘coming together’: they’re about imperialist rivalries, nationalism and billion-dollar TV deals at the expense of human lives.

CENTRE: Labor Club

RIGHT: Liberal Club

1. The situation is simple: the 1. With Melbourne entering its sixth Morrison government was too lockdown and Sydney prolonging slow in securing vaccines and its lockdown for another four has failed to deliver effective weeks, the message is simple, messaging around the vaccine get vaccinated. Post COVID-19 rollout, leaving the states with no our lives will not be the same. choice but to enforce lockdowns.

However, if we want to return to Australians are now paying the a point of reasonable normalcy, price because of Scott Morrison’s this includes re-introducing failure to competently manage a international travel and avoiding crisis – and it’s not the first time. snap lockdowns, then it is

imperative that every individual, 2. Vaccines are our way out of who is eligible, get vaccinated. lockdowns and time and time

again they’ve been shown to 2. Governments should remain prevent hospitalisations and steadfast in their approach to the deaths with an extremely pandemic. Every government, small risk of side effects at both the State and Federal (especially compared to other level, has engaged the expertise risks we encounter daily). This of health professionals and are needs to be made clear by following the experts’ advice governments through effective when it comes to managing public public information campaigns health. Although the actions of and controlling the spread freedom protesters as well as the of misinformation, which the sentiments of anti-vaxxers and Morrison government has covid-deniers may be difficult obviously failed to do. It would to manage, it is imperative also help if government MPs that governments continue didn’t attend these ‘freedom listening to health advice and rallies’ and if the Prime Minister act accordingly. didn’t defend this.

3. The Tokyo Olympics were 3. There aren’t many better shows entertaining to view, and signalled than the Olympics and although a return to normality for many.

Japan unfortunately couldn’t Although the athletes and event fully realise its benefits as hosts, organisers were faced with many I think most people are grateful challenges it was terrific to see they went ahead. Witnessing and such passionate and talented celebrating our athletes’ success athletes represent our nation. in Tokyo has been much-needed, Brisbane will be an incredible host especially given the struggles city- it will be great to have the with the pandemic at home. games on home soil!

Likewise, the Olympics coming to Brisbane is something to celebrate for its potential to drive jobs, infrastructure projects, and participation in sport. But the Olympics does come with risks, so it’s up to the government then to manage them.

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THE SUSTAINABLE FINANCE PROJECT My name is Ammaar, and I am the current president of the Sustainable Finance Project (SFP). SFP is a University of Adelaide student-led initiative to provide the community insight into how sustainability and finance can connect to achieve positive environmental outcomes. I am also a Financial Analyst Intern at Leaven Capital Partners located in Sydney where I have been fortunate enough to gain practical insight into not only asset management, but also implementing sustainability metrics, which measure how well a company takes into account environmental considerations.

About us The SFP is student-led initiative aiming to broaden the understanding of sustainable finance, whilst also connecting students to a variety of career opportunities in the financial services sector.

We plan to achieve this by providing students with practical and targeted information through periodic workshops and panel discussions with industry professionals. Lastly, we aim to facilitate transparency on how UofA’s funds are invested and distributed through positive investment strategies in the University’s Endowment Fund.

Our Objectives • Provide - empower students by providing them with the necessary tools to engage with sustainable decision-making • Educate - to educate students on sustainable finance instruments through insight into environmental considerations in finance decisions • Transparency - to facilitate financial transparency on how UofA’s funds are invested and distributed.

• Promote - the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Paris Agreement What attracted me to join the Sustainable Finance Project?

As someone who spent some years living in Zimbabwe, I witnessed first-hand how climate change has impacted the economy and financial services sector. For instance, increased tempera-

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E: sustainablefinanceproject@gmail.com F: https://www.facebook.com/sustainablefinanceproject I : https://www.instagram.com/sustainablefinanceproject/

tures have impacted agricultural production and hence the income of 60-70% of the population.

As a Finance student, I was made aware of a newly-established initiative called the SFP which was led by the Adelaide University Sustainable Development Goals Hub. Despite the name, the SFP prides itself with a team of Adelaide University students from a range of disciplines, from Mechanical Engineering to Law, with the shared vision to promote sustainable finance. To achieve this, we have exciting projects planned this year that aim to both improve the overall knowledge and transparency of the University of Adelaide’s finances.

So, what is sustainable finance?

Australia in the 21st century is facing a new set of obstacles. With a rise in global temperatures, Australia is grappling with shifting demographics; economic slowdowns; urban congestion; declining housing affordability; and rising inequality. The financial services sector plays an important role in Australia’s economy by facilitating the efficient and effective use of capital.

Sustainable finance is the process of taking into consideration the environmental and social risks in financial decision-making. Traditionally, investors evaluated their performance based on financial measures alone. However, in the last decade, the sector has been increasingly shifting towards adapting a “sustainable finance” framework and plays an important role in facilitating the private sector’s path to sustainability.

The role that financial institutions play in the economy means that they can arguably do more than any other industry to integrate a long-term Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) framework into global business and investment.

The Paris Agreement, together with the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, has been a driving force in reshaping finance objectives and rethinking our current economic development model.

Words By Ammaar Abdul-Karim

sustainabili-dit The private sector has an increased responsibility to address a range of key issues such as gender diversity, water scarcity and more. But how can we ensure that these responsibilities are met?

report is provided annually to the University’s Council summarising activity undertaken during the preceding 12 months, to continually progress adoption of the ESG Investment Principles.

To achieve these outcomes, the financial sector has rapidly shifted to: (1) integrating ESG standards into investment processes and financial decision-making, (2) impact investing to allocate capital where precise impact can be measured and (3) capitalising on investment opportunities that progress the transition into low-carbon and zero-carbon.

The University expects its fund managers to adhere to local stewardship codes (such as the Australian Council for Super Investments), local corporate governance codes (such as the ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations) and to participate in wider investor initiatives where practicable (such as being signatories to the Principles for Responsible Investment).

What the Vice-Chancellor has to say about environmental considerations in the University's Endowment Fund.

Earlier this year, the SFP contacted Peter Høj to get a better understanding of how the University of Adelaide allocates funds in their endowment fund and to see to what extent environmental factors are considered in their investment process. Read below to see how it went!

Does the university endowment fund have any investments in 'green' financial instruments such as green bonds, social bonds etc.?

The University does not hold direct investments in its endowment; all funds are invested through three external fund managers. While we do not hold direct investments, since 2017 the University has adopted a series of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) Investment Principles that have been applied to all of our externally managed funds. This leads us to your next question.

Does the university have an "ESG" screening process/guideline in their investment procedure? And if so, what are they?

The University’s set of ESG Investment Principles are attached to this email. They are used to guide decisions associated with investment of the endowment. This enables the University to apply a sustainability lens to our managed funds, and we have embedded those sustainability goals into the KPIs of our fund managers, for which they are held accountable. A

I mentioned the KPIs of our fund managers, and it is important to understand that the University takes these seriously. The University has recently made the decision not to continue using a specific fund manager due to their below target performance and their lack of adherence to the ESG Investment Principles.

Are there any discussions in the University of Adelaide to move towards green investments? hjkAs noted above, the University has an ongoing program in place to continually embed its ESG Investment Principles. The University maintains an ongoing assessment of fund managers’ ESG credentials, to ensure they are the right fit for the University and its values and the adoption of ESG Investment Principles is a key criteria for the appointment of any new fund managers.

We believe it is important for the University to refrain from direct investments of any kind, so that the risk of investments can be more prudently managed. However, we remain committed to sustainable, environmental principles within our managed funds.

To view the full response from the Vice-Chancellor, as well as our feedback on the response, be sure to check out our Facebook page.

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MAIL

Theatre Guild Student Society

INSTA

FB

Name + Club Position: Ivan Jankovic, President Club Inauguration Year: 2017

Who is your club targeted toward?

Drama geeks whose parents forced them to study something “practical” or “well-paying”.

Why should people join? What roles can they expect to find?

The Theatre Guild Student Society offers a place for drama lovers of all experience levels to put on fun, exciting plays and meet new people between the humdrum of study.

Whether you prefer being on stage or backstage, there are plenty of ways to join our cosy Guild family.

What sort of productions do you put on?

A mixture of contemporary works and timetried classics. In July, we put on a relatively recent Australian play called The Mathematics of Longing by Suzie Miller. Our next play is Oscar Wilde’s classic dramatic comedy A Woman of No Importance (Nov 11 - 13). Ticket sales open at the end of September, so come along and see what we’re all about!

How many productions are done per year?

We’re putting on two student productions this year, but the plan is to do three next year (fingers-crossed!). If you’re keen to see a particular script staged, we’ll also be accepting

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club spotlight directors’ proposals soon, so make sure to get on our mailing list to keep in the loop.

What advice could you offer people with stage fright?

Stage fright is actually not a bad thing – it means that you genuinely care about giving a good performance. The trick is to not let it overwhelm you, and that’s something you learn in time. Remember that the audience ultimately wants you to succeed. Figure out what they want and learn how to give it to them – again, that’s something that comes with time and experience.

Which actors/performers inspire you?

I’m not the best actor, so I look up to directors more than performers. My high school drama teacher, David Tyler, will always be one of the greatest people I’ve ever known. He gave me two stage directions which have generally been useful life advice: 1) do what you said you were going to do, and 2) the time to improvise is in rehearsal, not performance.

How could someone find out about how to see more productions in Adelaide?

Adelaide Theatre Guide (theatreguide.com. au) is run by a small, passionate team of volunteers that publish listings for upcoming shows in one convenient location. InDaily.

com.au does a great job of covering the local arts scene, especially smaller, niche theatres.

Eventually, after you see enough theatre, you’ll figure out which companies put on shows that resonate with you.

Has anyone who was part of the Theatre Guild become famous?

Few people today know that the Guild premiered three plays by Australia’s only Nobel Prize in Literature winner, Patrick White, in the 1960s. The Ham Funeral was rejected from the Adelaide Festival’s programme for being too “difficult”. Harry Medlin, then Chair of the

Guild, swept it up and premiered it in Union Hall. Having read the play, the Festival Board weren’t wrong – but what is great theatre if not difficult?

Peter Goers was a Chairman of the Guild towards the end of the 80s and put on some of the most spectacular and daring productions in the Guild’s history. He recently returned to the Guild’s Board of Management, so it’s great to have someone with his acumen involved again.

Who knows? We may have some future Oscar-winners among our ranks at this very moment.

A READING LIST FOR YOUR FAVOURITE

NETFLIX SHOWS If you like BoJack Horseman, you'll love The Seagull by Anton Chekhov

On the surface, Chekhov’s classic of Russian theatre about a failed writer caught in a strange love triangle, with it’s grand European manor, may not have much in common with a sliceof-life drama featuring talking animals. But just like BoJack, The Seagull is about the fine line between tragedy and comedy, with pitiful, ordinary people trying to find beauty amid a world that’s lost its soul.

If you like Bo Burnham's Inside, you'll love Endgame by Samuel Beckett

Samuel Beckett is often considered the greatest existentialist playwright of the 20th century. Endgame, like Burnham’s avant-garde comedy special, tackles the alienation and loneliness of modern life with equal parts dread and surrealism.

If you like The Crown, you'll love King Charles III by Mike Bartlett

So coronation day itself is just / The ancient costumes worn, and lines to learn / A slice of theatre, that’s played for fun?

Premiered in 2014, Mike Bartlett’s verse drama (yep, a modern verse drama) imagines an alternate history in which Prince Charles inherits the throne after the Queen’s death and becomes locked in a power struggle with the Prime Minister. Fun for republicans and “God save the Queen” types alike.

If you like Bridgerton, you'll love A Woman of No Importance by Oscar Wilde Did we mention that we’re staging this in November? Come and watch Wilde’s classic and

totally inappropriate comedy about gender relations in Victorian England (toffy English accents included!)

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Reviewclub spotlight

Women in Economics Name: Mahya Panahkhahi Club Name: Adelaide University Economics Club Position Title: Director of Women in Economics Why did you decide to take on this role?

I was really keen to get more involved with the Economics Club this year. I was instantly drawn to the Director of Women in Economics position because it ensures female economics student are represented and it provides an opportunity to diversify economics at the university. This is especially important given economics is a male-dominated degree.

What sort of events and activities do you run?

The AUEC runs a range of social, educational, and career events, some of which are targeted at female economics students. In Semester 1, we held a Women in Economics Coffee Catch-up for students and staff to get to know each other in a casual, social setting. We also plan to run some informative events in Semester 2, bringing in female economists to discuss the opportunities available to students.

Additionally, we assist with the Women in Economics Network (WEN) mentoring program which has been really popular in the past. WEN was set up with the aim to bring together and support female economists. It is filled with talented and successful female

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economists, so we encourage students to get involved and attend their events as well.

Why do you think UofA needs representation for women in your field?

Economics is predominantly male-dominated and this gendered gap widens with a move towards more senior positions. Female representation in this area is really important to ensure female economics students understand their potential and are aware of the opportunities available to them. We really do need more female economists, especially in more managerial positions. This would not only benefit women, but it would also be beneficial for society as a whole, so it is essential to represent women in economics at the university level to pave the way for future female economist

Are there any female figures in your field who inspire you?

For me, economists who use their knowledge and skills to make an impact within society are particularly inspiring. In that respect, Rosa Luxemburg, Elinor Ostrom, and Esther Duflo are a few names that come to mind.

In 1940s Britain, Charles Condomine and his second wife Ruth invite their closest friends to join them for a séance conducted by local medium Madame Arcati. Expecting to see a scam artist at work, Charles hopes to gather material for his next book until the séance decidedly takes a turn for the weird.

Dansie and the production team transform Union House’s cosy Little Theatre into a quaint, intimate 1940s London flat, aided with superbly well thought out lighting and sound design. Dansie’s direction is subtle, but her intentions are unmistakable to those who know what to look for in a Coward play. For this production, less is definitely more.

What makes this production shine is the astoundingly talented, creative, and seasoned ensemble of actors. They banter, bicker, and glare with terrifying wit and precision, oozing a toffy British arrogance that, like Coward intended, makes it difficult to care for them (and in a play like this, that is an amazing achievement).

The cast and crew’s dedication to this play is a story of it’s own, having been pushed back by a year and persevering through COVID lockdowns to bring it to the stage. It clearly proved fruitful. Jean Walker is dazzling as the spacy, eccentric Arcati, who shines with a forceful commitment to her spiritual truth and reality. Brad Martin as Charles Condomine commands the stage with a classic, leading man suave, as his mischiefs turned from playful to plain wicked.

Martin is so engaging that even his brows should have their own stage credit for materialising so much of the absurdity which ensues.

Blithe Spirit at the Adelaide University Theatre Guild

Director Megan Dansie’s production of Blithe Spirit is comical, entirely charming, and whimsically clever, a triumphant, faithful production that brings Noel Coward’s most popular and most beloved play to life.

Coward conceived Blithe Spirit amid the London Blitz, determined to write a light-hearted comedy about the paranormal during a time when death and sorrow were a constant presence. Dansie’s direction does not lose sight of Coward’s vision, but nor does she ignore the script’s bracing treatment of mortality. She stays true to this original intention, mindful of the turbulent and uncertain present.

Compelling and wholly entertaining, Blithe Spirit is one of the Guild’s best productions yet this year, and an unmissable event of the 2021 season.

Words By Ngoc Lan Tran 29

Marshall and Morrison Rant

Words By sebastian andrew As South Australians, there are two elections looming ahead which are of importance to us. Admittedly in these COVID times any election is important. As New South Wales and Western Australia have shown, the decisions made by the government in one state can impact the entire nation. Anyway, as South Aussies, the two upcoming elections of particular importance are the 2022 State election, and the next federal election, where Premier Steven Marshall and PM Scott Morrison will both be fighting to win a second term.

Currently, polls show both men and their parties as heavy favourites for re-election.

Polls in SA currently show a steady lead for the Liberal Party on the Two-Party Preferred (TPP), in addition to enormous favourability and preferred premier ratings for Steven Marshall. Federally, SA polling is not so bright for the Liberals, who either lead narrowly or trail by high single digits. Nationwide though, while Liberals trail in the TPP, Scott Morrison boasts comfortable favourability numbers, and consistently leads Anthony Albanese as preferred prime minister by sizable margins.

It can be strongly argued that much as the case was last year, favourability of party leaders should be weighed equally, or even more so, than the TPP.

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But it’s my belief that given their track records regarding all things COVID, only one of these men deserves the strong frontrunner status that they both boast. *** It’s hard to deny, regardless of political allegiances, that Steven Marshall has done a good job, or at the very least okay, on COVID. While other states (albeit more populous ones) have exploded with cases, the mere potential of a case is enough to prompt strong pre-emptive restrictions, and despite the government’s insistence that they do not want lockdowns, they come in swift, hard, and early. Only in Western Australia has a state been more cautious and resilient, as opposed to playing catch-up with restrictions and lockdowns, ultimately leading to prolonged hardship.

Now, do not mistake this assessment for a glowing praise of Marshall on all issues. I will state my allegiances – I am a Greens/ situational Labour supporter. I disagree strongly with the state government’s policies of privatisation, tone-deaf spending priorities (the decision to spend money on a stadium instead of hospitals during a pandemic still baffles me, as I’m sure it does everyone!) and with most Liberal non-COVID policies in

general.

But I can recognize that Steven Marshall has done a tremendous job, and because of the way in which he has handled COVID, it comes as no surprise to me that he boasts strong and bipartisan favourability numbers, and that his government remains strong favourites to win re-election. In fact, it would not be impossible for the Liberals to even gain seats, and even a lower house majority, as a reward from pleased voters in marginal districts. Such a defeat would be of no fault to Labour Leader Peter Malinauskas. Elections in Tasmania, Western Australia, and Queensland (where after 2019, many, including myself, believed Annastacia Palaszczuk to be in deep trouble) have proven that voters reward governments of the day if they are satisfied. And given that South Australia has been one of the best performers and boasted so few outbreaks or cases, Marshall’s strong numbers and re-election odds make sense. *** Scott Morrison, on the other hand, those numbers baffle me. There are not enough words in this article, or even this entire edition for me to elaborate on why his consistent strong approvals, and party poll numbers in the face of every action, policy and scandal emerging in his government surprise me, so I’ll just stick to COVID. Throughout the pandemic, Morrison has outright waged war with Victoria, criticising lockdowns and refusing desperate pleas for payments, while displaying outright favouritism to New South Wales, despite its horrendous approach towards controlling infections. He’s given a pittance-level amount of federal support to families in need, too little and not for long enough. His government has left families stranded abroad while allowing in right-wing ideologues who openly flout the rules that keep us safe. He’s screwed up the vaccine rollout so badly that as I write this, Australia has vaccinated only 11% of adults. The worst

for fully vaccinated adults in the OECD, and far short of initial expectations, and what should be expected of a nation that displayed one of the world’s best initial responses to COVID. Even the United States, a nation with a significantly larger population, formerly governed by a hostile president and state governors, where a large portion of the population believe COVID to be a tyrannical government conspiracy or demon magic, has managed to vaccinate over half of adults. Although much of the successes have been achieved by the states, Morrison has managed to take credit for all the work he didn’t do, to distract the public from what he actually has done. If not for the so heavily state-based approach to the pandemic, I am certain that we would not be in the same position we are today. Morrison’s outright hostility to lockdowns, praise for the farcical NSW Premier’s approach, and belief that we need to learn to ‘live with the virus’ when so little of the population is vaccinated, tells us all we need to know about how Morrison would have handled this pandemic were he afforded the duties which premiers have exercised.

So how the Australian public can look at what he has done; pitiful vaccine rollout, fights with states, what he hasn’t done; 99% of the brunt work pulled by states and what he would do; a nationwide NSW approach with a smirk to tell us to tough it out and live with it, to save the economy – and still prefer him far above the opposition, surprises me. It also leads me to state that while it would be no fault of Malinauskas were he to be defeated in his bid for premier, it is absolutely the fault of Anthony Albanese if he fails to topple Morrison.

Unlike Marshalls’, Morrison’s high approvals are undeserved and there is so, so much to attack him on. While Marshall (at least when only considering COVID) deserves to retain government, Morrison deserves to be evicted from Kirribilli House.

But whether these numbers are deserved or not, it appears, for the time being at least, that both men are likely to win.

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‘Exploring the mind and death’

Surrealists at Sea Art Gallery SA “There is no finish to the end

A beginning follows the end.”

When you leave the exhibition you come back to the same painting: Equator. You are on the boat again. You can feel the ocean floor unsteady sift through the wood plank. Looking down at your feet you now notice the phrase BREAK THE MIRROR TO SEE WHO I AM under your shoe. You detach the plank from the deck and reveal the inner workings of the boat. They are as much human as they are mechanical.

A woman with a cog in her womb pushes you across the equator toward Australia.

Her name on the tip of your tongue. Liberty? Maybe.

“I am in the grip

Words By beck rowse

of an octopus, it doesn’t want to let go of me, I keep cutting off its tentacles but new ones keep growing back.”

Surrealists at Sea features a wide range of art from the brothers Dušan and Voitre Marek. Throughout the gallery they spread their tentacles; gripping paint brushes, pliers, notepads, and 35mm film cameras. Exploring themes of the subcon-

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scious, freedom, and religion, the work is thought-provocative and self-reflective of Dušan and Voitre. Quotes translated from their personal writings are included around the gallery. This is in addition to excerpts from various newspapers, which serve to chronicle their lives from the eye of the media.

“What is the sea?

The sea is an enormous windmill.

It will crush anyone who loves it.”

The pair came to Adelaide in 1948 on board the SS Charlton Sovereign. Where Perpetuum Mobile/Equator was painted onto the gaming table of the ship. Their refuge to Australia prompted by the communist takeover of Czechoslovakia. Unfortunately, the brothers struggled in the conservative art scene of Adelaide, and after a few controversial exhibitions, they returned to the sea. At one point Dušan worked on a cargo ship in Papua New Guinea, and Voitre at Kangaroo Island in a lighthouse. Around the world they continued to create art and explore the surreal.

As a result, Surrealists at Sea is not just an exhibition, but a travelogue too.

“[Surrealism is] … seeing not only with eye in eyeholes but opening new eyes in knees, in throat, in palms.”

Because of how the exhibition focuses on the story of the artists, the more you progress through it the more you seem to just inherently understand the strange pieces on display. Much of the work goes beyond a verbal interpretation and to a place of instinctual reaction. Beginning on the boat, you watch them from the perspective of an outsider. As they travel around, you travel with them. You experience Kangaroo Island, you experience Papua New Guinea. And before you know it, you are rubbing against their subconsciouses: exploring the mind and death.

Surrealists at Sea provides one with the story and the space to appreciate the work of this historically underappreciated duo. The moment you go to leave the exhibition, when you see Equator again, you are drawn back in through your knees, throat, and palms.

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Survivor : SRC coming to Channel 10

Words By shit dit

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In an effort to address the $22 million shortfall caused by COVID-19, the University of Adelaide has branched out into reality TV, acknowledging the intrinsic entertainment value of student politics.

Survivor: Student Representative Council will air next month on Channel 10, said newly appointed Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Entertainment) Osher Gunsberg. It will be sandwiched between the enormously popular Bachelorette and a new program called I’m A Disgraced MP, Get Me Out of Here!

“Reality TV... has the power... to change people's lives,” Gunsberg told On Dit. “I'm so proud...to be a part of this new chapter...in a very special year for student politics... at the University of Adelaide,” he said, pausing for dramatic effect every two seconds.

Survivor: SRC will follow 25 hacks on an all-expenses paid trip to Manus Island, where they’ll find drama, betrayal, cruel and unusual challenges, and the surprisingly violent effects of intense caffeine withdrawal.

On Dit was granted an advanced screening of the first three episodes

and was moved by the depth of characterisation and raw authenticity of the footage. We cried as contestants suffered FOMO from academic committees and factional meetings. We laughed as the SRC President complained about the lack of a Women’s Collective on the island. “Who am I supposed to marginalise now?!” he raved at the producers. And we watched eagerly as alliances were formed and contestants revealed their true colours.

Further highlights include: a dramatic debate between Labor and Liberal hacks about a missing packet of Scotch Fingers; a snap protest by Socialist Alternative about the unequal distribution of immunity idols; and (SPOILER!) a surprise entrance by no one other than former NUS President and stupol veteran Mark Pace, who told On Dit he was “Ready to make some moves in this tribe.”

On Dit asked Gunsberg how this was expected to have a positive impact on the student experience. At this point, smoke poured out of Osher’s ears and he was wheeled out of the room by two senior advisers to the Vice-Chancellor.

On Dit has (sadly) not been granted exclusive live-Tweeting rights to the program.

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The Diamond of the Season Words By lady adelaide

Dear Reader, It is that special time of year again, when the leaves fall in bursts of orange and brown and trek their way into lecture halls; when your old school chum, whom you haven’t heard from in months starts spamming your inbox; when as much as you try to blend in with your surroundings, you just can’t seem to find a frock to match the hideous red-brick colour of the university buildings. It is that time of year which has this author reaching for a steaming cup of tea and a fan to hide her smirks and sneers.

Yes, dear reader, I am of course referring to Student Elections.

Now, I have never been one to become fully engaged in student politics, so long

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as there is paper in my printing press and tea to fill my pot, this author is, for the most part, content.

During my first two seasons at this uni, I could not understand the fuss. I too hid my face as some of my peers stood drenched in the rain, shoving voting cards under the noses of anyone who strayed close enough. I suppose I was naïve enough to believe that none of it mattered, that it made no difference which party was voted the ‘diamond of the season.’

However, the more this author became involved, the more she realised that each faction was quite distinct from one another and that under the surface there are issues on our dear campus which twist this author’s pantaloons in knots.

While I am not suggesting that you, my dear reader, go and suddenly develop an outlandish interest in student politics, or pick up a banner and start marching around campus- although it would be a sight this author would be glad to report on -I would recommend this: Pick at least one thing, one issue that you care about on campus and find out which faction is willing to address it.

You may find that this party has more in common with you than you thought and decide to bless them with your vote, or you may not. At least you put some effort into improving that institution which you are directing so much of your own funds towards.

Do not, sweet reader, spend this year’s election doing what so many students

do: ignoring it. You may try certainly: pulling on your music makers, rehearsing excuses in your head, skipping the week entirely, only to spend the next year complaining about things happening on campus.

Besides, dear reader, if I’ve learnt anything from all my seasons out, the best way to quiet your campaigning peers is to flash them your “I’ve Voted” sticker. I assure you, it will shut them down faster than a mamma bee-lining for a duke.

Who knows? You may end up enjoying yourself and reaching for your fan as I do, when the drama of STUPOL begins to unravel.

Lady Adelaide, Society Papers

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‘Magical cats, Australiana, and With tickets to their Magical Dead Cat Tour now on sale, On Dit sat down with Aunty Donna’s Mark Bonnano to talk about the important things in life (but mainly comedy) L-R: Zach Ruane, Broden Kelly, and Mark Bonnano.

For Melbourne-based comedy trio Aunty Donna, a good rule of thumb is to always expect the unexpected. There are no depths to which they have not sunk, no heights to which they have not soared, no frontiers they have not braved in the name of a genuinely gut-busting laugh.

Though quickly becoming Australia’s premiere comedy export, Zachary Ruane, Broden Kelly, and Mark Bonnano have not forgotten what endeared them to millions of rabid fans when they began filming YouTube sketches in 2012: the impression that fewer fucks have ever been given by candidates for funniest blokes on the planet.

Hey — 86 million combined views don’t lie.

The three met while studying performing arts at the University of Ballarat, and discovered they all share the same penchant for sight gags, absurdism, and an expertly deployed C-bomb — a dangerous brew, for sure. It’s hard to say where the best place to start is for the uninitiated because their projects are so eclectic and numerous. But if you really want to get all of their signature flavours in one scrumptious dish, you can’t go wrong with ‘Christmas Pud.’ With tickets for their 2021 tour almost sold out, it’s safe to say that they’re no longer niche YouTube sensations — the challenge now, according to Mark, when we sat down for a Zoom chat, is to avoid resting on their laurels.

‘We don’t believe comedy should be written in a bubble. We do a lot of work to test material with audiences that we hope will be unkind. As we get more popular, that becomes a little bit harder…

A lot of times people will laugh because we’ve already won them over.

‘That’s why we did the Edinburgh Fringe so much early in our careers. There are 4000 shows, and if yours isn’t great, people won’t laugh… We cultivated a very harsh audience early on, and I think that made us better performers.’

Everyone remembers their first Aunty Donna

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video like a demented first kiss — mine was in an English course about Australian culture, deconstructing their delightfully cringeworthy music video, ‘Chuffed’, through a critical theory lens. The thought of a bunch of tenacious undergrads furiously scribbling notes throughout this innocuous sketch left Mark both bemused and ‘terrified.’

But to suggest Aunty Donna are quintessentially Australian would not give them credit for the enormous overseas success they’ve cultivated.

They pour their heart and soul into their humour, and a big part of it is coincidentally ‘dripping in Australiana.’ Mark chuckles recalling an online sketch about Hey, Hey, It’s Saturday with the disclaimer, ‘Apologies to our international audience.’

‘When I watched the Netflix show again, I’m surprised how many of the references are just for people who went to Ballarat University between 2009 and 2012. We often put those things in there just for us… we laughed, and no one told us to take it out.’

Their Netflix series, Aunty Donna’s Big Ol’ House of Fun, feels both like a culmination of their previous work and a promise of bigger and weirder things to come. First episode highlights include a talking, googly-eyed dishwasher, Family Feud (Aunty Donna style), and a very, very surprising not-quite guest appearance by a household-name comic.

As for the Australianisms, they’re at their most obscure, which they make no apologies for.

‘In episode one there’s a parody of a footy show that screened only in Victoria… we talk about Aquila shoes, Four’n Twenty Pies, Eagle Boys Pizza… stuff that might even go over Australians’ heads.

‘We used to change our references when we performed overseas — like changing Coles to Tesco or something — but it felt disingenuous and we stopped it. We embrace being Aussie, but the fact we’ve got this Netflix show now I think reflects that there’s a wider audience for our humour.’

Bringing it all back home, I ask Mark what punters can expect from their Magical Dead Cat Tour, touring in Adelaide on 21 October and 11 December at the Thebarton Theatre: an abundance of new material along with their greatest hits. Perhaps heeding the advice of tour managers, they avoided calling it The Best and Worst of Aunty Donna — though even ‘the worst’ in this case is more like a badge of honour.

felching’: A chat with Aunty Donna

Mark says he looks forward to returning to the stage, craving the challenge of working a crowd, and learning what works and what most definitely doesn’t.

‘Everybody bombs and we are no exception to that. At our very first live show at Edinburgh, one of the festival executives told us you cannot do that sketch. It was about…’

Here, Mark, in rare form, is a little flustered, trying to hold back a mischievous smile.

‘Felching. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the term, but, ah… It’s fucked. Not to yuck anyone’s yum, though. I’ll let you look that up in your own time. It was about someone who thought they were told to felch everyone in the office, when they were actually just told to reach their KPIs

by June. And it never really worked — for obvious reasons.’

I ask him if he’s ever surprised which sketches really take off compared to others.

‘You never know. Sometimes you have an inkling, sometimes you get it wrong, and sometimes you’re blissfully surprised.

‘For example, the first video that did really well was a one-shot monologue called ‘Found Out I’m Gay.’ It always did well in the live show, but when we filmed it and watched the edit, I just knew this is a mistake… But we needed to make up time in the series it was part of, so we includ-

ed it, and to this day I’m just shocked by the fact it took off. People really liked it and I have no idea why.’

Mark talks about the Netflix series unlike many other comics would, that is to say, not as if standing on a mountaintop, but as merely another step in a journey with no foreseeable ending. More than anything, it’s a sign of humility and not taking success for granted.

‘We want to make more TV, get into movies, and produce other comedians’ series. We recently produced a webseries called Hug the Sun which did really well. We want to use our platform to help other comedians get their projects off the ground.

‘We’re in a great position where we have so much more freedom than when we started, in terms of choosing when and where we want to perform. So hopefully there’s just more of that too. You’ll see more of our stuff as individuals as well, and the stuff that comes from the group is what we really, really want to do.’

interview byv Ivan Jankovic

But digressions aside — why ‘Magical Dead Cat’?

‘The Magical Dead Cat came from the panic and necessity of needing to name a tour… Magical has this beautiful quality to it and feels quite nice to say… Then you undercut that with dead, because it has such a heavy meaning to it… and cats have just been funny throughout all time.’

Finally, I try to stop myself from asking the most clichéd of interview questions, but just couldn’t resist: what advice would Mark give to a young comic desperately searching for their own Netflix show while avoiding a career of miserable mediocrity in some cushy middle-management job (asking for a friend)?

‘Go and see as much comedy as possible until you believe you’re better than the people that you’re seeing. Immerse yourself in it, and eventually you’ll start to think you can do it, and truly believe your version of that is better.’

Aunty Donna’s Magical Dead Cat Tour visits Adelaide for two nights only on 21 Oct and 11 Dec at the Thebby. Book your tickets at auntydonna.com

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Vice-Chancellor will not commit to pay cut amid parliament vote on salary cap

Rally in front of the Vice-Chancellor’s office in the Mitchell Building, Wednesday 13th of August.

Adelaide University has revealed that some teaching staff are facing redundancies in the long-term, in addition to 130 admin staff being phased out by the end of next year.

Only about $9 million is available in liquid funds. The rest is in yet-unspent Government research funding that cannot be used for anything else.

This is part of a proposed restructure that aims to “spend less money running ourselves” according to Vice-Chancellor Peter Høj, by phasing out 9% of professional staff, and merging the Faculty of Sciences with ECMS and the Faculty of Professions with the Arts.

Shaw said that with 50% of programs accounting for 99.3% of student enrollments, and 16,000 enrolled in a totally unique study pattern, it was time to look at “rationalising” some of that flexibility.

Høj attended a student forum last Monday along with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Jennie Shaw, and Chief Operating Officer, Bruce Lines, to address “organisational sustainability”.

These drastic measures are intended to address a forecasted $22 million shortfall in 2022 and $47 million in 2023. Høj cited declining international student enrolments and decreased government funding as two key drivers.

“While it’s been great to have that choice, we’re in a different, difficult environment now and have to look at reducing it a little bit,” she said.

“We’re always reviewing our courses to see what’s viable and what’s not… is it expensive to run? How many students are enrolled? Is it still relevant to students?”

Shaw said program changes will affect existing students minimally, while new students from 2023 onwards will be offered an adjusted slate of programs.

In response, the university aims to generate an additional $20 million in new revenue and $30 million in savings.

Low-enrolment courses on the chopping block The announcement of cuts to teaching staff is new. Dates and numbers have not yet been set but will save $10 million per annum of the university’s $550 million salary bill. The Advertiser estimates this equates to roughly 70 academic jobs.

Addressing this year’s $47 million surplus, Høj quickly pointed out that this was an “accounting surplus” rather than a “real surplus”.

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Words by Ivan Jankovic

Høj said that discontinuing courses with low enrolments would free up teaching staff’s time to those which cater to the bulk of students.

"Professional staff overworked" Students and staff have been incensed at the proposal, with the campaign No Adelaide University Cuts organising a sit-in at Hub Central on Wednesday. Roughly 100 students filled the Hub amid chants of ‘The only cuts we want to see are from the VC’s salary.’

At the rally, NTEU Adelaide Vice-President Kent Getsinger said the lack of Federal government funding to the university sector saw 17,000 jobs disappear last year.

“There has been no proper justification for these cuts. Staff were subjected to ‘consultations’ on the first day of semester 2, with all sessions crammed into 2 days when academic and professional staff were facing a severely stressful start while we were all in lockdown.

“Casuals face constant anxiety about not having the security of a continuing wage that we all deserve nor a career pathway, not to mention wage theft.

“Professional staff are likewise overworked…

worse.”

Concerns have been raised about the possibility of admin duties being offloaded onto staff and unpaid overtime. Both Høj and Shaw said the University did not underpay its staff, and that “specialist programs” would not be eliminated.

A petition against these proposals has garnered over 500 signatures to date.

A university spokesperson said consultation will continue with students and staff.

“The University’s financial result for 2020, which was announced in detail to staff and the media on 28 May 2021, has no bearing on the forward-looking financial impact of the pandemic.”

With another rally scheduled for August 23, Høj said he supported the right to protest and that “our University should be a beacon of open, respectful and robust debate.”

"Appalling, exorbitant salaries"” Høj said he would “contemplate” another salary sacrifice if the uni doesn’t “manage things properly.” He said he took a $200k salary cut relative to the last Vice-Chancellor’s pay, which was about $1.1 million, when he began this job in February.

Upper-house Greens MP Robert Simms will table legislation calling for the salary of Vice-Chancellors to be capped to the State Premier’s — roughly $400k.

“Australian Vice-Chancellors are some of the highest paid in the world, meanwhile their staff are subject to ongoing casualisation and wage and job cuts,” he said.

Students sit-in at the Hub.

Many skip doctor’s appointments or don’t report their overtime because they fear the amount of work or not being ‘seen’ to be a ‘good worker’. These cuts will make it all

“It’s time to cap Vice Chancellor salaries to ensure they are more in line with community expectations. Surely the days of VC’s being paid like multinational CEOs are over.”

The University Council will vote on these measures on the 23rd of August.

photos by Rafael Aquino

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Don’t let the political right take the‘‘Union'’ out of AUU

“With the Adelaide Universty Union planning to retire ‘union’ from its name, an embattled ex-student representative says it’s time to fight back.

A recent survey by the AUU revealed most students don’t know why the union exists.

Who can blame them? Today, our student union is run by neoliberal aspirationalists, not radical activists. The project of these careerists is to destroy student unions from the inside, or at least politically distort them to the point that they can be used for little more than political and corporate training. The board’s right-wing coalition has used evidence of the AUU’s irrelevance to students as the pretext for removing the word ‘union’ from its name. The Young Liberals and Progress (the supposedly ‘apolitical’ student faction) want the union reduced to nothing more than a service provider — a kind of neoliberal NGO that hobnobs with uni management, and uses its own funding to offer services like campus events the university would otherwise be pressured to organise. Unionism, the radical practice of collective action in defence of the interests of the exploited and oppressed, has nothing to do with their vision for the AUU Board. Get rid of that pesky word, union, and you quit confusing students who might hope the AUU takes the lead on political issues.

Instead of mobilising its vast resources to defend student interests, the AUU directs much of its focus towards increasing the union’s profitability.

I have first-hand experience of this because I sat on the Board this year (until I was kicked off for calling our Young Liberal VP a sexist).

When I tried to push motions arguing the union was irrelevant precisely because it didn’t act like a union and engage in political struggles important to students, I was met with hostile stares and

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”

scoffs. But even when issues directly relevant to campus have come up, like major staff and course cuts, our right-wing student Board has twiddled its thumbs and done absolutely nothing.

Our AUU today Last year, AUU President (now SRC President) Oscar Ong blocked student representatives from opposing the first round of COVID-19 staff cuts, claiming it was not an issue directly affecting students, therefore not up for debate. This year, Ong is taking a similar line. Uni boss Peter Høj recently announced plans for the merger of five faculties into three, and the firing of another 130 staff. Ong’s response is that he is against ‘unnecessary cuts’ — implying that some cuts can be ‘necessary’ and are therefore fine (as if our already encumbered education system can take any more attacks). With this recent history, it’s tempting to give up on student unions as hopelessly right-wing and deformed.But they haven’t always behaved this way — and with some effort, we can set the foundations for rebuilding a rich tradition of radical student unionism.

Our history Before the introduction of anti-union student legislation, student unionism was a normal part of everyday life. All students were automatically members of their union, and their paid membership provided the funding and freedom to run student campaigns and organise politically.At their high point in the 1970s, student unions both intervened in political struggles, and contributed materially by lending bail money to protesters and support funds to striking workers. In 1972, for example, the La Trobe SRC had its funds legally frozen after it paid the bail of student demon-

Words by Ana Obradovic strators, who were arrested for protesting their VC’s links to apartheid South Africa and the war in Vietnam.Legendary Black Power founder Gary Foley described ‘tremendous support’ from the ANU student union as crucial to the survival of the famous Aboriginal Tent Embassy ‘in that freezing Canberra winter of 1972’. Student union buildings also became important organising centres for the struggles of the time, from the anti-war movement to women’s liberation. Some even sheltered draft-dodgers. And even from the mid-60s, before the Vietnam War was widely hated, the national student union was organising protests against the slaughter. By the mid-70s, the Australian Union of Students (precursor to today’s National Union of Students) was known as the leading, militant edge of 70s student radicalism. Crucially, the AUS at this time was headed by elected socialists and other anti-capitalists who integrated a politics of principled, collective struggle against the systems’ injustices into the union.The political lead given by the AUS kept radical culture alive on campuses, even as struggle in wider society died down. Naturally, politicians, CEOs, and the Murdoch press were apoplectic over the potential of these unions, as independent bodies, to lead student struggle on issues important to them. At the time, the AUS and other student unions were championing Palestine, Aboriginal and worker’s rights, the anti-war movement, boycotts of apartheid South Africa, and various anti-colonial movements. Conservatives began plotting ways to curb the ability of student unions to have a voice in society and give a political lead to young people on campuses.

End of an era In 1977, the first death blow struck. The first form of ‘voluntary student unionism’ was introduced in WA to limit the fighting capabilities of these organisations. It put an end to universal student unionism, and prohibited the use of union funding for political activity.Then, Australia entered the Hawke-Labor era, and with it, a neoliberal turn.

From this point on, both Labor and Liberal governments recognised the necessity of crippling student unions in order to ram through the neoliberalisation of higher education.By 1987, the movement was just weak enough that the Hawke government could finally end free education — though not without a massive fight. Campus activism and fee boycotts exploded. Even at sleepy Adelaide Uni, then Education Minister John Dawkins was once barricaded in a building for five hours by furious students. First expanded on a state-by-state basis, by 2005 VSU legislation was finally enacted nationally by the Liberal-Howard government. It

prohibited the collection of any funds for unions by universities. This had the intended effect of further diminishing the confidence and resources available for militancy.

Student unionism today Today, the situation for our student unions is bad, but not hopeless. In 2011, we were led to believe that the Gillard government would reinstate CSU. Instead, the hated SSAF fee was introduced — the one you pay twice a year at the start of each semester. Uni management controls this money and decides how much goes to the union. This cripples the independence of institutions that should, at the very least, act as a defence against uni bosses — not depend on them for funding.

Despite this, there have been brilliant student union struggles in recent history. The mass 2014 anti-fee deregulation campaign, championed by socialists in the NUS, defeated the Abbott government’s attempts to Americanise higher education. And last year, when the right to protest was banned under the cover of COVID-19 in NSW, student unionists successfully organised a staunch, combative ‘Democracy is Essential’ campaign that forced a forfeit from the Berejiklian government.

The unions we need The key problem for student unions today is not their source of funding. It is their politics. We need a revival of the militant, uncompromising activism that swept through campus life in the 60s and 70s.

Student unions, like worker unions today, are not in and of themselves inherently radical, activist bodies. Last year, for example, the National Tertiary Education Union leadership sold pay and staff cuts to workers, instead of kicking off a fightback.

In 2019, the right-dominated AUU disaffiliated from the peak representative National Union of Students.To see a revival of the student union that makes it relevant and visible to students again, we need to reorientate to left-wing, grassroots politics that gives students a voice in the political arena. They should fight power and raise people’s expectations for what’s possible. They need to make progressive arguments around climate change, racism, imperialism, and involve masses of students in grassroots political organising to win those demands.

Our power is collective, and if we fight, we can win.

Don’t let right-wingers distort their potential. Leftwing collective struggle is what our student unions are for. Rebuilding them according to that perspective is what will make them relevant again.

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Dear Professor Høj and members of the University Council, We as clubs representing students in the Faculty of Arts do not agree with any mergers of university faculties.

Furthermore, we wholeheartedly believe that such mergers will negatively impact both students and staff.

We oppose any cuts to courses offered. Education should not be limited to what is most profitable for the university. Any student should be able to pursue their passions through a university education, even if the university does not consider their degree to be economically valuable.

The prospect of limiting course availability to students is concerning for those already enrolled in those courses, students considering studying at our university, and our university community as a whole.

The merging of faculties for the purpose of cost saving would have huge implications for the quality of teaching and support available to students. Redundancies of administrative staff will only place additional stress on the staff that remain. This has the inevitable consequence of adding stress to everyone in the system, including lecturers, tutors, senior faculty and students.

If teaching staff are under more pressure and have less time, the university will depend even more on clubs to provide entirely unpaid informal support to students, including one to one tutoring, peer mentoring, assignment help, and essential academic skills development like essay planning and research.

The University Council must ensure that the needs of students are prioritized at every turn and that no cuts are made that will negatively impact students’ studies or the services available to them.

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Open letter from the Faculty of Arts Clubs to Peter Høj and the University Council signed: Arts Students Association Adelaide University Social Sciences Society Adelaide University Education Students’ Association Elder Conservatorium of Music Theatre Association Classics and Ancient History Society University of Adelaide Politics and International Relations Association University of Adelaide Philosophy Club Adelaide University Media Association Adelaide Criminology Student Association Adelaide University Geography & Development Society Adelaide University French Club Adelaide University German Club Adelaide University Spanish Club

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Stating the Union

An open letter from an SRC rep.

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tactic, the leadership then organised an event at such late notice, childcare was rendered impossible. The ruling SRC have recently passed a motion that means reps need to provide a medical certificate for absence, even if the absence is to nurse a sick child. These tactics are unproductive, and students deserve better from their elected representatives. I hate to use a tired old trope, but the atmosphere of the SRC is beyond toxic (and I have worked for the federal government!). I have written to officers of the Union twice and been told that their hands are tied.

As a person who believes in a ‘fair-go’, social justice and equality, and whilst I am no anarchist, I call myself left-wing and therefore I joined UNITE (the labour right). I genuinely thought being honest about my political standpoint would enable voters to decide for themselves whether they wished me to represent them. I was elected with a large majority, and I remain humbled by the support that I received. However, I made a grave mistake about being open and transparent regarding my political standpoint.

From the moment that I declared my political colours, I have been vilified and intimidated. I have had personal attacks on Messenger, Facebook posts tampered with, motions not tabled, and reports disallowed. I have been in SRC meetings and witnessed appalling conduct from the leadership. Worst, I have, with my colleagues, been prevented from carrying out the role I was elected to perform: the SRC leadership have failed to notify the left-wing parties of the SRC of student functions (only CONNECT/PROGRESS reps had the opportunity to represent the SRC). Upon being called out on this petty

I wish for students to understand whom and what they are voting for. The current leadership is a coalition of the CONNECT party and PROGRESS parties, and as such supports right wing policies unequivocally. That is their right, however, students should realise that in the case of PROGRESS, ‘apolitical’ doesn’t not mean benign; it equals totalitarian. Like all totalitarian regimes, they seek to consolidate and strengthen their power by quashing dissenting voices. By branding themselves as apolitical, PROGRESS fails to understand the realities of human existence. None of us live in a vacuum, we live in a social world, and as such, we are all subject to various influences that colour our perceptions. PROGRESS’s failure to recognise their inherent political positionality demonstrates either a lack of critical thinking or a deliberate attempt to mislead. Either way, they do students and themselves a grave disservice. I resigned from my position last month: I was prevented from being able to perform my role. I hope future mature age officers have the opportunity that I was denied.

Words By Janine Aujard

First, let me introduce myself. My name is Janine Aujard, I’m a mother of four, a registered nurse, a mature age student, and until last month, I was the mature student officer of the Student Representative Council. In addition, I am the President of the Mature Student’s Association (MSA). I stood for SRC because I believed that as a long-standing member of the MSA, and an Arts Peer Mentor, I could represent older students from a position of genuine authority: I know first-hand the difficulties facing students who are juggling family commitments, part-time work, etc.

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The Olympics: economic nirvana or financial hell?

With the Tokyo 2020 Olympics starting only a year behind schedule and the announcement of Brisbane 2032, there has never been a better time to discuss the economic impacts of hosting the Olympics. Despite what politicians and media figures would have you believe, it’s not quite the economic nirvana that it’s made out to be.

economic stimulus will outweigh the cost of infrastructure and the inevitable expansion of just about every public service imaginable, from policing to government administration.

This is not the case. Subsequent post-mortems of the Sydney Olympics have shown that many of the promises of economic windfall just never materialised.

First of all, the Olympics are expensive. The 2000 Sydney Games cost about $6.5 billion.

This may be an eye-watering sum, but it pales in comparison to the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia, which whopped up a staggering $51 billion USD. Of course, comparing these two Games is like comparing apples to oranges, but it goes to show just how much capital is required to get these events off the ground and into a stadium near you.

In a study by James Giesecke and John Madden on the economic impact of the Sydney Games, they found that the Games caused a consumption loss of $2.1 billion. This huge discrepancy from previous modelling was discovered by comparing a no-Sydney Olympics model to a simulation spanning 1997 to 2006, which accounted for sources of overestimation in economic benefits, contained more realistic elasticity of supply assumptions, and actually treated the increase in public services as a cost, which had not been done in previous reports.

Exorbitant price tags aren’t necessarily bad so long as we get a good return on our investment — namely from increased tourism, new infrastructure, and even the sense of pride knowing that the world’s attention is focused on us for a couple of months. In the years leading up to the Olympics, government officials play around with their abacuses and spreadsheets until the numbers line up and we’re making billions from tourists alone. This played out before the Sydney Olympics, when we were told that Australia would experience a 5.6 billion dollar increase in consumption.

So, you’d be stupid not to host the Olympics… right?

Politicians and organisers promise that the

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The Olympics are not the economic shot in the arm which our politicians promise they will be.

They don’t stimulate the labour market, nor do they leave a legacy of increased tourism; once the sports have gone, so do the spectators.

Perhaps the legacy and vision of hosting the Olympics is what we should be focusing on, rather than the nitty gritty dollars and cents.

Although it’s hard to quantify national pride, international recognition, and other abstract notions, surveys conducted throughout the Vancouver and London Games show that the

public generally supports hosting the Games.

In Australia, they are also a rare opportunity for our nation comes together in solidarity for something that isn’t a war, a national crisis, or the footy. And, as the IOC promises, a legacy is created; Cathy Freeman is etched onto our national psyche and is wheeled out for interviews like clockwork whenever another Games appears on the horizon.

obfuscated, but so are the economic rewards.

Scott Morrison has stated that the event would bring in $18 billion in economic activity, a figure even more nebulous than the $5.6 billion increase in consumption promised for the Sydney Games, and not even backed up by publicly-available modelling.

Still, is social unity and national legacy enough of a boon to overcome the economic shortfall?

If you err on the side of caution, then probably not. Australia didn’t reinvent itself like China did during their Olympics, nor did we put ourselves on the map. The best thing to do is to tone down our expectations for Brisbane and look at our successful bid as a national celebration rather than a nation-shaping event, economic or otherwise.

However, it does appear that organisers have learned something: utilising economies of scale. In a study on the economic impact of hosting the Games, Michael Overmyer recommends host countries use existing venues and infrastructure to create economies of scale and achieve a sustainable return on investment. Brisbane will use existing sporting facilities for 2032, though the lack of widespread public transport will wash away any chance for a profit to be made. It’s one step forward, two steps back.

Brisbane 2032 should be a time for our politicians to stop empty promises of economic rejuvenation and come clean about the reality of the situation; costs will blow out and it will not lead to an explosion of tourism. Organisers have already pegged the price tag at $4.5 billion. However, they have failed to mention that this cost does not include the infrastructure required to shuttle spectators up and down the coast.

The Olympics are a costly endeavour that do little to stimulate the economy. But here we are. Tokyo 2020, due in no small part to COVID-19, is likely to be the greatest financial loss in Olympic history. More and more countries are looking at the costs of hosting and just saying no. Brisbane 2032 will be an expensive success and we’ll all have a great time, but that’s because as a developed nation we can weather the losses.

It doesn’t take a PhD to realise after everything has been added up, including the necessary expansion to public services, this $4.5 billion budget is likely to blow up in excess of the Sydney Games. Not only are the costs being

If we want the Olympics to be a celebration for every nation, then its economic sustainability must be addressed, or else it risks becoming an event reserved for the wealthy few.

“Brisbane 2032 should be a time for our politicians to stop empty promises of economic rejuvenation. ”

Words by Cameron Schmidt

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Towards a green socialism I’m sure as hell not the first On Dit editor to come out in favour of socialism over capitalism, and I doubt that I’ll be the last.

This age-old debate is almost two hundred years old, beginning in utopian disenchantment with early capitalism and the consequences of the industrial revolution, namely: growing urban poverty; increasing economic inequality; and disdain towards a self-centred individualism that now defines our society.

It was the now famous thinker, Karl Marx, who definitively tied this early opposition, or at least reluctance, towards capitalism with a theory of class conflict between the workers and their employers/property owners. This is how socialism, a theory of shared ownership over society’s productive resources, was to be divorced from utopian idealism about fantasising for a better world to a path towards real change, through analysis of the material aspects of the social and political aspects of human life. Indeed, instead of being a traditional moral battle over good and evil like the arguments liberals and conservatives, across the pond in particular, like to choke themselves over, the case for socialism from here largely rests on a view of universal rationality in which the capitalist production process was exposed as being unsustainable -- and not just environmentally!

So, what exactly is wrong with capitalism one may ask? The answer is that while it was an important and necessary stage of economic development for a time (after all,

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who on earth misses being tied to land and being levied to fight against your will on behalf of a local lord?) capitalism’s contradictions create a world of economic contradiction. If one wants to run a successful corporation, like our very own corporatised university, one must maximise profit whilst minimising costs, both to make money and make sure you aren’t losing it.

That sounds all well and good if the only thing you need to do is outdo your competitors, but most businesses also run-on wages and salaries. The wages and salaries paid to employees are the lifeblood of the capitalist economy, without them who would buy the overpriced law degrees; who would lose track of the jugs they have bought at the unibar; who would buy textbooks in first year before they realise that many of them can be found for free online?

Whether one expects the student to provide for themselves or mommy and daddy to lend a generous hand the real answer is no one will buy shit if they cannot afford it.

Where do you think wages and even salaries fit into this business dynamic?

Obviously in the world of capitalism they’re a cost, an unnecessary burden on the businessperson which try to cut down as much as possible, successive vice-chancellors have understood this all too well. There you have it folks, an economic system dependent on the buying and selling of labour which also seeks to undermine this phenomenon as much as possible.

Now throw our rapid technological inno-

vation, which can completely replace so many jobs, (yes including university graduate ones, though not at quite the same alarming rates) into the mix as well as so much more. On top of this we have a climate crisis in which our societies must work in tandem to not only prevent imminent disaster, but also fairly distribute risk between employers and employees, rich and poor, haves and have nots.

If you come out of this still thinking we have a sustainable way to stay aboard the train that is capitalism, good for you, it is probably a much more comforting and relaxing experience than it is for passengers like me, who can see that under this train there are either no more tracks or at least that we are bound to run out real soon.

Many a compromiser may suggest not to worry, we can balance things out, we can find a sensible middle between capitalism and socialism. A very tempting idea but I believe this is at its very best a temporary solution. The much-lauded Scandinavian countries are the primary example of this, societies with strong universal welfare states are often described as semi-socialist or social democracies and while I for one would much rather live there than most of the world, the cracks of capitalism are also threatening to swallow these places whole.

The biggest crack is the fact that Scandinavian countries, like their shittier, more anti-equality counterparts such as capitalism’s ambassador the USA, it’s rags to riches miracle Saudi Arabia and its most prominent far-flung outpost, our beloved Australia, they lag behind the rest of the world in the sustainable development index, an economic environmental indicator which suggests there is just not enough environment to go around to fund these types of economies indefinitely. The commonality between them and other capitalist countries suggests that it is not their welfare state, socialist political parties or trade unions which are the fundamental cause of this worldwide problem.

So, if capitalism’s unsustainability is the problem, why is socialism the solution?

My answer here is that because socialism is an economic system in which resources are publicly owned and creates a cooperative environment in which people are all in it together, united collectively. This is something that is necessary to confront problems like climate change, technological disruption and even COVID-19 (see rich countries protecting their corporate allies like Bill Gates, to ensure developing ones cannot produce vaccines for themselves and the ensuing consequences).

Words by Stasi Kapetanos

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Trump’s social media lawsuit: Using legal action to generate money and publicity

Early in July during a press conference, former United States President Donald Trump announced he would take legal action against social media platforms for censoring content.

“We’re asking the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to order an immediate halt to social media companies’ illegal, shameful censorship of the American people,” Trump said.

Whilst everyone is aware of the horrible management social media platforms like Facebook have, Trump’s lawsuit isn’t good news. After all, two wrongs don’t make a right.

A lawsuit for such an issue should NOT be coming from someone who has actively incited violence. Considering that Trump himself was banned from numerous social media platforms, this lawsuit would only help him in regaining a presence on these platforms. Is this legal action really about censorship? Or is Trump just mad that he has been held accountable for his actions?

The lawsuit argues that banning Trump from social media platforms Facebook,

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Twitter, and YouTube was a violation of his rights under the First Amendment.

However, the First Amendment protects United States citizens from censorship by the government. It does not include content regulation from private companies like social media platforms.

The United States Communications Decency Act is also being highlighted in Trump’s lawsuit, with Section 230 being the focus.

Section 230 establishes that: “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.”

The section allows internet companies to moderate their content by removing things that violate their own standards.

In 2020 Trump signed an executive order to limit Section 230 protections.

However, this was evoked by current president Joe Biden earlier this year.

Social media platforms also have their own regulations that users agree

to when making an account. Terms and conditions are specified by a platform that outlines rules on what content is not allowed to be posted. Therefore, to use the platform, users must abide by its rules.

Facebook states that: “We remove content, disable accounts and work with law enforcement when we believe there is a genuine risk of physical harm or direct threats to public safety.”

“For instance, we may warn someone for a first violation, but if they continue to violate our policies, we may restrict their ability to post on Facebook or disable their profile.”

For Twitter, their guidelines highlight that: “We reserve the right to remove content that violates the User Agreement, including, for example, copyright or trademark violations or other intellectual property misappropriation, impersonation, unlawful conduct, or harassment.”

Trump agreed to these rules when creating his accounts and was then removed for violating them. He has called the platforms’ actions “illegal and shameful”. However, Trump himself previously faced a lawsuit for violating the First Amendment by blocking people on his Twitter account. After a lawsuit on the issue in 2018, the federal court determined that Trump’s Twitter account was a public forum. Trump was made to unblock people, though he refused to do so for some accounts.

to help foot the bill, despite apparently being worth $2.4 billion according to Forbes. Text messages were sent out soon after his press conference informing people of the legal action. One message mentioned matching donations up to 5x the dollar amount, a practice that other politicians have stopped using.

Though it may not prevent violence, hate, or prejudice, the use of content regulation can help in reducing the reach of those with harmful views and beliefs. Limiting their platforms helps to protect others from hatred. The U.S. also has no hate speech laws as the U.S. Supreme Court has consistently ruled it to violate guarantees to freedom of speech. This leaves the responsibility on social media platforms to limit occurrences of hate speech.

As freedom of speech refers to protecting citizens from government censorship, Trump’s case should be thrown out. Social media platforms should be allowed to restrict content that is hateful or causes harm.

When left unregulated, people hold the ability to cause great damage. Trump himself played a key role in inciting violence during the January 6th Capitol Riots.

Many of Trump’s previous lawsuits have never made it to court. This could be the case for this one. Yet, whether it makes it or not two things are clear: Trump will see a boost in publicity and generate money from this.

This latest lawsuit from Trump comes with a message. One that encourages them to donate for his cause. He wants supporters

Words by Lakeisha Watkins

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The first words elude me, I stare blankly at the page.

My pen poised above the paper But my brain in a daze.

Perhaps it’s too late in the evening; Perhaps I’ve no imagination; Perhaps a sound night’s sleep Would stem my creative stagnation.

Before I can begin, there are Some questions to traverse: What type of poem am I after, Rhyming or free verse?

How many stanzas? How many lines?

Should I disregard punctuation?

I’m tempted to suspend my attempt And resort to procrastination.

In any case, what new combination Of words could I conceive That would an epiphany In their reader achieve?

Surely every possible sentence Could be expressed with more eloquence By the hands of a rightful writer In possession of genuine intelligence.

Maybe it’s nobler to read – To consume than to generate.

Must we all have an opinion, An autobiography to narrate?

Clearly I’ve nothing to say – Nothing of worth, at any rate.

Perhaps poetry is best left to those With the wisdom to create.

And if I persist, what then, Once my poem is released to the wild?

Vulnerable, helpless and fragile, Free to be ridiculed and reviled.

If other, better writers could not Their critics’ caustic words defy, When the derision is directed at me, I can’t help but wonder – could I?

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So off it is to bed, then Mission failed – aborted midway, The piece of paper, still pristine, Is placed back into the printer tray.

Glancing over the room, now, You’d be hard-pressed to recall That anything out of the ordinary Had happened there at all.

But what – a small voice says – will become Of the thoughts swirling round in your mind?

Will they forever be doomed to silence – Suppressed till the end of time?

Though it seems futile to persist, The alternative seems grimmer – Surely it’s worse to die in silence Than to die a poetry sinner.

And it seems to me that the great writers – The ones whose work we admire, May not have set out with the intent Of creating a work to inspire.

Perhaps they were driven by instinct – Necessity as much as desire, To put into words their unspoken thoughts That would otherwise fade and expire.

WORDS BY Amy Liew

Writing a Poem

That, then, is how I find myself At a late, unspecified time, Reseated at my desk and Penning a hesitant first line.

And though I know the words On the page are not a work of art, I find solace in the knowledge that At least it’s a start.

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Who would win in a fight?

Stupol Edition Disclaimer: This obviously goes without saying, but for any of you fucking morons out there, please do not go and fight each other or encourage any kind of violence. This is purely a comedic (?) piece. Also, I don’t actually know who’s running for positions. This is my best guess.

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And we’re back. After a 2-year hiatus, me, the one and only Tim Bergling is back to give you some more stupid commentary on everyone’s favourite time of year: student elections, or as it’s affectionately known, Stupol. For the uninitiated, this is the time of the year hearts get broken, resumés get padded, and absolutely nothing of value is ever accomplished. As such, I thought I’d share with you my thoughts on that perennial stupol question: who of the potential candidates would win in a fight?

SRC President: Ana 'Maverick' Obradovic vs Oscar 'Uni Simp' Ong. The most hotly contested position, also coincidentally, the position that has no real power (please see the 2020 AUU threatening to cut the SRC’s funding if they didn’t vote out their incumbent President).

If rumours are to be believed, the “left” have United (ha) as a coalition this year to beat back the tide against the fucking mad, rightwing conservative apolitical factions of Progress and Connect (this is probably what they should’ve done last year, but bigger egos prevailed).

Representing Left Action (Socialist Alternative, Climate Action, No Staff Cuts) we have Ana Obradovic, because of course we do. As smart as she is deadly, a fierce competitor to be sure.

SAlt re-education and conditioning has made her a machine, and she packs a steel-toe boot for a dirty gutter stomp.

Ana’s raw ferocity, and unapologetic anger will be key in any brawl. I suspect a veteran of many conflicts, ideologically and physically,

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Ana comes prepared with both enough rhetoric to make a Political Science student tremble, and enough Red Flag newspapers to sell to any spectators.

Did I mention that he fucking loves the university management? There’s no joke here. He fucking loves them. I would say he values their opinion more than the students he “advocates for”.

Verdict: Ana victory in a knockout. Between a united left-coalition, and fighting spirit, I think she’s got this one. Honestly, the other guy’s a bit lame.

In the other corner, we have, the man, the myth, the James Bond Villain Cosplayer, Oscar Ong. A veteran of many electoral campaigns, long-time virgins Stupol hacks have seen this man transition from a bumbling, chubby boy in a red shirt, to a sleek, conditioned operator, with questionably coloured RMs

With an extensive military background, one might assume that Ong has been in a scrap or two. I will leave you to judge the photo below and decide for yourself.

Beyond his warring prowess, he is also a smooth-talker, able to convince any unwitting first-year to run with his supposedly “apolitical” faction, Progress. Beyond this, he possesses MK-ULTRA-level mind-control techniques, able to secure the vote of any individual through mere text alone.

Words by Tim Bergling

(and morals).

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AUU Board: Felix 'Fucks' Eldridge vs Georgia 'Would the real WOCO please stand up?' Honan Ah, the real faceless guys/gals/non-binary pals. This is where genuine power in student politics comes from. With the young Liberals Connect catching on slightly before the dirty lefties, they were able to secure a fat majority with a Progress partnership and have held it for the last two years. Overseeing the unconstitutional removal of several elected officials, the AUU board has been on a trajectory down for some time. A united left will seek to undo some of this damage this year, but will likely fall short, requiring another year to secure a majority, owing to the 2-year terms for directors.

In the (Labor) right corner, we have the man in the blue vest. A university cult figure at this point, or as the relics of a bygone era might say, BNOC (big name on campus for all the people born after Shrek came out), Felix currently holds the position of SRC Education Officer. After an unsuccessful crack at Board back in 2019, I have a feeling the charming devil will roll the dice one more time.

questioned Felix’s ideology, and how he’s gotten so far being so aggressively centrist. Time will tell how his campaign goes this year, but expect him to feature heavily on the campaign trail.

Oh yeah – you want to know how he fights. I’m not actually sure. I only know how he f***s: well.

And in the left corner, we have Georgia Honan. Our current Women’s Officer, up until before taking on her role (ironically), was quite progressive. Since debuting at student elections last year has taken the opportunity to diminish, silence, and obfuscate the voices of women and non-men on campus who have attempted to organise. After a refusal to work with the existing Women’s Collective (but rather offer to work over them), she struck out on her own and formed the Neo-Women’s Collective (unofficial name).

A genuinely likeable candidate, Felix has shown he has the best interests of students at heart. Liked on both sides of the political spectrum, many have

This obviously drew massive backlash.

Most of the criticism of Georgia and her collective was absolutely valid.

However, there was an unacceptable amount of bullying, harassment, and misogyny directed towards her as

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well. I think some genuine introspection is required on her part, because while a minority were unacceptable, the deafening sounds of valid criticism went mostly unanswered. Also, her Neo-WoCo, which supposedly receives SRC funding, has done sweet FA this year. Step up the plate.

Show people it’s not just about power and control.

I don’t know if Georgia is running for AUU this year, but looking at the lines of succession within the young Liberals Connect, she stands as a strong contender. I do think Georgia is genuinely a good person with progressive views, but her mingling with unsavoury characters has tarnished her reputation for many. Here’s hoping for a factional defection, or some genuine progressive politics from her in the future.

bit weird. Well-meaning, but naïve.

Conversely, we have the Progress stooge.

Often an international student, or connected directly with a cultural club, coerced into running with the promise of a winnable position. “You’re number 1 on everyone’s how-to-vote cards, I promise,” they’re told, before spending 40 hours campaigning, only to find they were the only ones handing out HTVs with their name on it. Impressionable, young, and with no concept they are being used and abused.

The two types of individuals that continue to make Stupol tick.

While I’ve just given two examples, I could list one for every faction. I won’t for the sake of brevity.

Verdict: idk? Georgia probably. I suspect she throws a pretty mean right hook.

You hate to see it.

General Councillor - Random Labor Right stooge vs Random Progress stooge You knew this was coming. We see it every year. Progressive lefties sucked up into the ‘Labor Club’, unaware it’s full of SDA Christian Conservatives, convinced to run for something unwinnable, just to feed some more first-year votes into the ticket.

Often a bit socially lacking, and frankly a

Despite this piss-take, please vote in the election. Vote for people you genuinely believe have student interests at heart, and those that will actually stand up for student issues. I won’t name any particular faction (I think they all have their flaws), but if you think about it, even just for a little bit, you’ll notice a few factions that fit the criteria better than others.

Winner: Fucking nobody.

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Manhattan Monsters Words by Raphail Spartalis

As I picked my way up Wall St, scrambling over piles of waste and garbage, I could see Hermes looming motionless in the distance. He stood as he always did, in the crater that used to be West Village. A god (or a devil) watching over his subjects.

‘Screw you,’ I muttered under my breath.

With a jolt, I hitched my supply pack more firmly about my shoulders and, making an immediate right up Broadway, started for the Fulton St subway station.

I passed a few familiar faces along the way; some fellow vendors, a handful of dealers– nothing out of the ordinary. I kept my distance. The last thing I needed was confrontation. Especially coming up to tonight’s Choosing.

At the entrance to the subway station I paused. I stilled my breathing and leaned in close. A tall pile of packed rubble stood before me; stone, glass, metal: the remains of the subway’s original entrance, long-ago reduced to ruins. When I was sure no one else was inside and waiting, I proceeded. Jumpings had become a lot more common in the last couple months, ever since the gang splits. Being careless could cost you more than just your belongings.

Ducking below a sideways pillar, I shimmied past the rubble until I was inside the subway station. And then, holding my breath, dropped down onto the abandoned platform. Years of neglect had turned the air down here sharp and rancid. I winced with every lungful.

I snaked my way down and across to the deserted railway tracks and, with a small huff, began my long trek back.

‘Hey, Eli!’ I heard an old, raspy voice yell out. For his size and stature, my friend had a remarkable way of sneaking up on people.

‘Whaddya want, Tank you old bastard?’ I called in response, careful to keep my voice hushed lest we attract unwanted attention.

‘Nothin’ much, just some company. These tunnels, they gimme the creeps ya know?’

Part of me sighed at the thought of having to listen to Tank yap away for the next forty minutes. But it was a long walk back to the shop and in truth, I was glad for the company. As we moved deeper inside the tunnel, the light from the platform began to fade. I swung my backpack round to face me, still walking, and went rummaging for my flashlight.

‘–screen tonight?’ Tank looked at me expectantly.

‘Sorry, Tank, trailed off for a second there,’ I replied, switching the flashlight on and illuminating a small cone of amber a few feet ahead of us.

‘I said, any clue who’s gonna show up on the screen tonight? For the sacrifice?’

His words dragged me back to reality. ‘No idea,’ I replied. But God rest their soul.

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Workers’ Struggle in Whitmore Square

Readers have probably seen media reports about the efforts of SAPOL, the Adelaide City Council and the Department of Human Services to shut down the street kitchen for the homeless held every Sunday in Whitmore Square. The service is run by the Community Union Defence League (CUDL), which is affiliated to the Australian Communist Party (ACP). Both organisations are committed to the revolutionary transformation of Australia from being a capitalist society to a socialist one where people’s needs are guaranteed.

The street kitchen now provides over 300 hot nutritious meals every week to the city’s homeless. They also provide clothing, hygiene packs, tents, sleeping bags, and other necessities. City planners want to gentrify the city and push the homeless as far away as possible so as to be “out of sight, out of mind”. The Council is trying to banish the street kitchen to a remote location on West Terrace, which is a very long walk from existing services. The homeless, many of whom have mobility issues and use walking frames, gophers and wheelchairs, would have to risk crossing six lanes of traffic to access the street kitchen.

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The City Council is demanding that CUDL obtain a permit to run their street kitchen.

Organisers are opposed to the anti-people idea that a permit is needed to help others in the community and won’t be applying for one. Threats from authorities have rallied supporters to volunteer at the kitchen and to stand in support if authorities try to use force against the kitchen. A rapid response group has been formed and a legal fund established in the likely event the matter ends up in court.

The Department of Human Services’ intervention is particularly offensive. It is suggesting that the street kitchen is fostering dependence among sections of the Aboriginal community who visit Adelaide from remote communities. They are accused of engaging in violent and anti-social behaviour. Organisers of the street kitchen have not witnessed any such behaviour. The atmosphere at Whitmore Square is peaceful and respectful. What would the Department of Human Services have the organisers do? Refuse service to Aboriginal people? The fact is that government authorities have other plans for the city and they don’t include disadvantaged people.

Words by Bob Briton, Organiser at the CUDL and ACP

CUDL and the ACP engage in this type of solidarity work because there is the need in the community. Capitalism generates unemployment and homelessness and these scourges will exist as long as capitalism does. Volunteers at the street kitchen have heard countless stories from the homeless about how quickly their lives plunged into despair after losing their jobs or being overcome by addictions. This could be anybody’s story under capitalism. Many of those currently living in the suburbs are living with “accommodation stress” (a high proportion of their income going towards housing) and are only three pay cheques away from disaster. Capitalism needs this type of terror to ensure its supply of obedient, low paid wage slaves.

The communist movement in Australia and internationally has a long tradition of providing for the needs of the disadvantaged while working towards a fundamental solution. CUDL is proud to carry this tradition forward and is committed to continuing and expanding its work alongside its other activities building towards a socialist society.

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We’ve stopped the mergers before Peter Høj’s plan to fire up to 130 staff and merge the five faculties into three is nothing new. These exact mergers have been threatened before - students and staff organised a campaign that stopped them.

We can do it all again!

For those of us who’ve been on campus for a little too long, the recent announcement was strikingly familiar. In fact, my first education campaign as a bright-eyed first year back in 2016 was against these very attacks.

Just like Høj, ex-VC Warren Bebbington planned to merge Engineering with Sciences and Arts with Professions, and in doing so get rid of professional staff numbers. The plan was a raw deal for all the admin staff, who do more for the everyday functioning of the university each day than Bebbington or Høj (or Rathjen, boo) ever did in their entire careers combined. Further, by making the remaining admin staff manage double the number of degrees, some of that extra work would be pushed onto the teaching staff, meaning that already overworked tutors and lecturers would have to spend less

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time talking to students, planning lessons, researching, and more time on paperwork.

Vice Chancellors are constantly trying to increase the university’s profit margin, and inflate their own massive salaries, bonuses and travel budgets. This comes directly at the expense of students and staff, as the courses that are profitable are not always the courses that are interesting, useful or important. And it’s always cheaper to have fewer overworked staff trying to teach more and more students. That’s why Høj’s plan to dig up the zombie of Bebbington’s horror mergers should come as no surprise.

In 2016 we organised a protest campaign.

We protested repeatedly outside Bonython Hall, as well as on a University open day to make sure new students knew what kind of administration we had. This was exactly what the University did not want - the kind of publicity that targets the potential fee-paying students.

Meanwhile, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) organised a meeting of 150 staff, which passed a motion of no confidence in the VC. The student campaign

Words by Leila Clendon

and we can do it again followed suit, organising a student forum which unanimously declared no confidence in Warren Bebbington. These public denunciations of the plan attracted attention from the mainstream media, further embarrassing the University.

Bebbington was also wary that the NTEU was indicating that it was willing to fight. They wanted to make the cuts but weren't necessarily ready to face industrial action.

Ultimately, it was clear that the new changes were overwhelmingly unpopular with both students and staff, the University had to back down. The University wanted to cut stuff because they care about profits, but bad publicity and threatened staff action risked those profits as well. If we are going to beat these attacks again, we are going to need to build a similar campaign that can put real pressure on the University.

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

Connect is all about you. Given that your money funds the AUU and SRC, we firmly believe that it should be put towards improving your university experience: more events, stronger support and better services.

Crucially, Connect has a proven track record of delivering on its promises. Over the past year we have championed a carbon neutral future, secured record funding for Stress Less Week, actively worked to achieve sexual assault reform, supported the LGBTQIA+ community by taking real action, assisted in developing UofA’s landmark Disability Inclusion Action Plan and backed rural students with strong SRC representation. We see you, we hear you, we are committed to serving you.

We want you to study in an environment that is supportive, sustainable and safe.

The UofA is currently undergoing several transitions and it is critical that your student representatives be proactive and continue to advocate for YOUR interests.

For an exciting, vibrant, and sustainable student union that works for you, vote [1] Connect for AUU – the green team on campus!

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

Grassroots is a brand new Greens-affiliated student politics presence on campus.

We are dedicated to left-wing political action and representation on campus.

Grassroots intends to take a strong stance against any cuts and mergers proposed to the University; education ought to not be run like a business, and it is our role as students to stand against such attempts. This includes demanding the University Executive take significant pay cuts. We also intend to push the University towards strengthening their ties with renewable industries and offering ECMS students increased opportunities within the renewable sector.

We believe that students should not be disadvantaged in their studies for any reason and that it is the University’s responsibility to ensure students are given all the tools they need to thrive in their academic pursuits. That is why we are prioritising students with disabilities, and students who live in regional areas whose studies are impacted due to things out of their control. We believe access plans should be streamlined and made more accessible for all students who are struggling, and that the University’s councillors should be able to sign off on access plans. We also believe regional students should have their own access plan that takes into account the strains of lengthy transit times on one’s work output.

It is Grassroots’ belief that the SRC and AUU should not shy away from being political or from commenting on broader political issues. They should function as bodies of student activists committed to advocating for real positive, progressive change both on and off-campus. We intend to take on this responsibility and provide the University of Adelaide with strong Greens representatives on campus.

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

The SRC is dominated by authoritarian Trump-wannabes who stifle all debate. We need to take it back from them and save our union.

Left Action fights to tackle social injustice and inequality, both on and off campus, all year round. Unlike other teams, we don’t have any candidates from major political parties.

We’re dedicated to fighting racism, sexism, transphobia, homophobia and all the shit that comes with capitalism.

We want freedom for refugees. We fight for full abortion rights and expanded services. We organise in solidarity with Palestine, and against Israeli apartheid — we demand Adelaide Uni cut ties with arms dealers complicit in Israel’s war crimes.

Left Action is also running for the SRC to fight to defend our education. Vice-Chancellor Peter Høj is pushing for faculty mergers and staff cuts. These proposals will further trash education quality, and turn Adelaide Uni into little more than a degree factory.

Our Presidential candidate, Ana Obradovic, wants the SRC to dedicate its resources to building left wing protests and to resist attacks on our education.

Our candidates won’t have polite discussions with the VC behind closed doors.

The SRC should stand up to management and say: enough is enough! Universities should not be run like businesses.

To support the ed campaign, a Left Action SRC will demand: - No course cuts, staff cuts, or faculty mergers.

- Stop wage theft and casualisation – our teachers deserve better.

- Cut the VC’s salary to match the average University worker.

We are in the midst of a climate emergency. Left Action activists want an SRC that will fight for climate justice. And that doesn’t mean going along with the Uni’s lame corporate greenwashing projects. The Uni is part of the problem, welcoming horror partnerships with the fossil fuel companies that are destroying the planet.

We will fight to make the Uni cut its ties with Santos and other polluters.

Vote Left Action for an activist SRC!

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

Activate has elected to offer their views on the more prominent issues and political topics on campus.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

The distribution and necessity of the Student Services Amenities Fee (SSAF).SSAF is supposed to be used to provide support services, to make the university a safe and welcoming environment, to give students a voice on campus and to make them feel heard. SSAF is paid by students currently studying at the uni. It should be spent on bettering the experiences and care of these students with their input on how that looks.

University’s proposed ‘restructure’, including merging faculties and up to 130 job cuts. It has been evident over the last year that online learning is extremely detrimental to student life, the quality of education has dropped and uni social life has disappeared. The University Admin are treating this university as a money making scheme rather than what it actually is first and foremost, an education provider.

Current anti-SASH measures and the advocacy role of the Adelaide University Union (AUU). The university needs to be doing all it can to combat sexual assault and sexual harrasment on campus and efforts to stop it occurring fall also are the responsibility of the AUU. Wherever the AUU has the ability, resources and time it should ensure that students are represented, protected and kept safe on campus.

AUU’s non-affiliation of the Pro-Choice Club and the Women’s Collective. The AUU’s decision not to affiliate the Pro-Choice Club and Women’s Collective is blatantly political. The AUU has affiliated Life Choices, an anti-abortion and anti-euthanasia club, but won’t affiliate the Pro-Choice Club as the logical antithetical club in debates around a woman’s right to chose. In the case of the Women’s Collective it’s even more political. The SRC has affiliated the Women’s Collective (WoCo), and appointed the SRC Women’s Officer as it’s President, directly against the wishes of the WoCo. From the outside it appears the current AUU is placing their thumbs on the scales in these debates by providing one side with AUU benefits and leaving the others out in the cold.

Federal Government’s threat to prevent student unions from using funds in an ‘overtly political manner’The federal government is showing it’s cowardice when it attacks leadership shown by student unions. In a time where we are being ravaged by covid, once again, due to the lack of leadership being shown at the top, for them to attack student unions for running counter to their ideology shows where their heads are at. Student unions are overtly political; fighting for the rights of students, especially in the face of attacks not only from University management but our own federal government necessitates that.

Proposal for the Vice-Chancellor to take a paycut. In a time when the University is claiming it’s so financially jeopardized that it needs to enact sweeping cuts and restructures the fact that the VC is still taking home a huge salary is infuriating, so of course the VC should take a paycut.

Student activism and SRC’s responsibility to comment on broader political issues. The SRC exists to advocate on behalf of students. Whether those issues are occurring on or off campus but still hold relevance to the interests of students they should be able to fight alongside them.

Proctored online exams. There are many legitimate concerns to be had with proctored online exams and pushing ahead with them before these are resolved is incredibly unfair on students burdened by them.

The rebranding of the AUU, which would retire the term ‘Union’ Union busting is disgusting wherever it happens - simple as that.

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

Unite is a progressive force on campus that wants the best outcomes for students; be that great services by funding more clubs, expanding the free breakfast program, or fighting for your education against Vice-Chancellor Hoj’s plan to merge the faculties, cut staff, and gut the amount of courses. Our representatives have been also fighting for your education by standing up against the implementation of ProctorU. Our candidates are students who know how to reinvigorate campus culture. They are members of our Clubs community and are disappointed in the direction of our student union. To bring back campus culture, we will fight for better deals at food outlets and give clubs more money and autonomy to run great events.

At a time when education has not only been devastated by COVID-19 but is actively under attack, it is shameful that Progress would rather focus their attention on fighting the culture wars by removing the word ‘Union’ from the AUU (Adelaide University Union).

Over the past 2 years, we have seen Progress not affiliate the Women’s Collective, ProChoice Club, or the Endometriosis Society to the AUU. Women’s rights are more important than the political games of Progress.

Under the current leadership, the AUU has been rapidly losing transparency. Unite wants to stop this dangerous slip, because in the end, it is your student money funding our union.

We need to reduce the amount of time that Board Meetings are held in closed session and make the decision-making process transparent for all students to observe and have their opinions heard. Progress has barred Club presidents from Clubs Committee meetings, as well as removing democratically-elected Board Members.

Unite will stand up for the quiet students in the face of culture warriors on both sides of politics prosecuting agendas that are not in students’ interests.

Scan the QR code to see our How to Vote card:

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FACTION MANIFESTOS

Progress is a team of apolitical, multicultural and genuine students who strive to bring an end to the damaging influence of political factionalism on the effective representation of students. We bring together honest and hardworking leaders of strong student communities that have been misrepresented and undervalued and empower them to better represent their unique groups.

Just in 2020-21, Progress helped deliver these outcomes for students: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Increased safety of students in public transport; Roll-out of the National Student Safety Survey Campaign & the Consent Matters course; Improvement of security signage and more panic buttons; Made first responder/responding to disclosures compulsory for all student leaders; Large courses will be better supported (more teaching resources); Exam grade curving; Fixing myuni issues; Stopping ProctorU for 2020 Semester 2; Fixing MechEng Dynamics; Transparency for Semester 2 exams; Assessment extension or replacement for students affected by COVID-19; Abolishing the hurdle component of OSCE, Comp Sci exams; Relocating security next to Hub Central; Face-to-face teaching returning; Operational Hub Lockers; Repaired facilities in the prayer room and extended space for Jummah prayers,; More writing centre support; Free student flu vaccinations; PNG (previously NGP) & WNF for 2020; Student Support Packages; 60 days HDR scholarship extensions; Free international students visa extensions; Internships for engineering students; Increased Indigenous HDR scholarships; Refund of accommodation fees for students that went home; Keeping the Roseworthy Union shop open, with increased bus time and lecture room upgrades; Student engagement through Q&As; Better anti-sexual harassment efforts from the University

We will continue advocating for changes that make a real difference to your life.

Progress will fight against ProctorU, work for better education, and strive to support security and stability amid COVID-19. Vote for Progress!

Scan the QR code to see how to vote for Progress:

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