January 31, 2013

OPINION

The california aggie

thursday, january 31, 2013 3

editorials

Community Survey

Take it Do you feel comfortable emailing your professor to ask for an extension on an assignment? Would you be okay telling your boss that there is a pain in your knee? How confident are you stating your culture, religion or sexual orientation on campus?

The systemwide Campus Community Survey is available today and invites you to answer questions such as these, with the aim of increasing inclusiveness and the sense of community on campus by identifying members of the UC community who do not feel adequately represented.

The results will determine the distribution of funds designated to make changes based on the survey’s findings.

Everyone should take the survey. Disregarding it would be forgoing your right as a member of the UC Davis campus and UC community. A survey on the UC logo was made available before the UC’s brief identity cri-

sis. Everyone knows where that led.

Each campus is given the opportunity to insert questions that campus officials feel should be asked. What is perhaps a bit unnerving is the lack of questions pertaining to student comfort in the presence of UC Davis campus police. This is a point that should have been included in the survey, provided tumultuous events of the past two years in the UC and at UC Davis specifically.

Fortunately, there are spaces where participants can state their concerns on any topic.

Along with the opportunity to air grievances, students can also take the survey in the hopes of winning an item from a long register of prizes, including thousands of dollars, electronics and various types of gift cards.

The survey — sitting in your email inbox right now — will be available for the remainder of February.

Dining commons

Tell the truth We here at The Aggie are all about low expectations; it leads to an overall better experience. Imagine a reader’s pleasant surprise when they discover the 15-inch article you’ve been touting is actually 30 inches with two large photos and a gorgeous byline. A thick stream of happiness is sure to ensue.

As such, we hold all facets of UC Davis under the same strict standard of excellence, with a somewhat questionable reputation. The dining commons are no exception.

If a specific dish is slated for a particular meal, it is the responsibility of the dining commons staff to follow through with their promise.

Last-minute menu changes are unacceptable without proper addendums to the website as well. Otherwise, unsuspecting students dole out precious (and expensive) swipes for dishes they never wanted to suffer through in the first place.

Sure, the menus remain accessible to students of all backgrounds for every meal. But if a (hypothetical)

dashing young Muslim editor reads “almond chicken” on the menu only to discover “pulled pork sandwiches,” he’s not likely inclined to happily settle for Blue Onion’s “seitan salad” just because a higher power won’t smite him with a bolt of lightning for it. He’s going to bike to Raja’s Tandoor and grumble about how his only option that night was a dish that both sounds and tastes like it’s made from the devil’s asscrack.

It is the DC’s responsibility to keep the thousands of students who utilize their facilities each day updated and informed. We are depending upon their word in order to make educated decisions about our dining options.

After all, if one plans to waste $14 on shitty food, they should at least be able to savor the shitty food they originally wanted.

Dependability and low expectations. At least McDonald’s holds true to the saying that a bad surprise should never end up in your mouth.

Editorial Board Janelle Bitker Editor in Chief Hannah Strumwasser Managing Editor Rebecca Peterson Opinion Editor

Muna Sadek Campus Editor Claire Tan City Editor Adam Khan Features Editor

Elizabeth Orpina Arts Editor Matthew Yuen Sports Editor

Hudson Lofchie Science Editor Brian Nguyen Photography Editor

Editorials represent the collective opinions of The California Aggie editorial board. The Opinion page appears Tuesdays and Thursdays.

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courtesy Tribune Media Services

Letters to the editor Response to Brian Moen’s Jan. 24 column “A dose of capitalist poison” Just read your story in the opinion [section] of The Aggie. Before you

jump into the socialism bandwagon, try living in a socialist country! It will change your perspective. The reason so many people migrate legally or illegally into this country is because

of the socialism to which they were born in.

— Anthony Bordas, reader

at the top of the institution is that bombarded with information that they are forced to do so. is filtered through these self-inBasically, the administration terested systems ensures that we Brian was afraid. And they should have will see our victories, and how they been. Their ability to run the insti- happened, far less frequently.

Moen tution in their own interests was That is why it is so easy to forThe Anarchist threatened. The people who are at get. When there is an ocean of corthe top of the administration are porate media, it is easy to get lost, there because they uphold that adrift in it. When something gets system. If they did not act in that reported extremely infrequentway, then they would have never ly, we are likely to think of it as been selected for by that system. less significant. This is a myth that Of course, they power groups think of themuse to their adselves, most likely, More protests mean more challenges vantage to an exas noble upholders to these systems, these systems that treme degree. of public educaThe adminoperate in their own self-interests istration tion, and they may did omehow, it’s hard to rebe, to some denot send out an member that UC Davis stugree. It is not plausible to think that email telling us how effective prodents successfully kicked these people are consciously under- test was and how we really put U.S. Bank off of our campus last mining the goals of the California them in a tough spot. They want to March. Somehow, it’s just so hard Master Plan for Higher Education. play that down. They do not want to remember so many things — The evidence that their actions more of that. They want to keep things like victories against pow- are not in the interests of students, operating in their own interests. er. It’s hard to recall what tactics though, is overwhelming enough This is what all power groups do. succeeded in undermining unthat there is no need to list it.

As Gil Scott-Heron put it, the revjust authority.

Clearly, administration memolution will not be televised. The Obviously there is a reason. bers are selected by the system elites own and run the systems of Ideological manipulation is not to uphold the power of the sysinformation dissemination, and subtle. I want to try to illustrate tem and the power of the interthey are certainly not going to juthis lack of subtlety. est groups that have control over bilantly announce the weapon of UC Davis students won. They things that the administration their own destruction. sent a clear message: They don’t need (such as the corporate invesWe have won this way before so want privatization (they sent a few tors in the university, who have many times, and we can only win messages, and I will not pretend power because they can cancel or this way. So many people have fallen to speak for them, but “anti-priva- move their contracts). for the false notion of progress that tization” seemed to be the central The administration was forced is presented in the corporate media: theme). Furthermore, the adminto yield to the students so that Progress happened because some istration had to use completely the students would not take fursmall group of wise men at the top different tactics against the Davis ther action that would threaten the had some good ideas. It was never Dozen than in previous protests –– power of those at the top of the hi- that. It was protest and direct action a much more subtle, yet dissenterarchy. That is the only reason every time. stopping approach. Why did they that they did not forcibly remove This is not going to change do that? They did it because the the Davis Dozen, which would soon. We have to protest and take protesters have power. have been a more attractive option direct action against these self-inProtesters have power. if it were available. But they interested hierarchies in order to The administration did not want stead sneakily tried to nullify them force them to operate in our into stir up more dissent by removwith a lawsuit. terests. As much as we take acing those students. More dissent So, in this case, a hierarchical in- tion against the system, it will play means more protests. More prostitution was forced to act in ways down our effectiveness. tests mean more challenges to contrary to its power interests in UC Davis students kicked out these systems, these systems that order to keep further threats to its U.S. Bank. UC Davis students limoperate in their own self-interests. power at bay. ited fee hikes. This is how we can They operate, insofar as they This should tell us something, win. Don’t forget. can, solely in their self-interests, something that institutions of powand the only reason that any hierer try to suppress. We won, and this is BRIAN MOEN wants to see hella protests all the time, archy ever functions to serve the how we win. like, a lot … seriously. He can be reached at bkmoen@ ucdavis.edu. interests of anyone beside those The fact that we are constantly

Victory against power

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