A University College Student Association Magazine
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Nature or Nurture by NatureHater_101 You think Nature with a capital "N" is important, right? We need to reconnect with it, care for it, care for our earth, right? Then you must also agree with the KH gardening initiative. This is how the situation was presented: A equals B. I care about Nature. Gardening must be inherently good, so I like the various posts, and now I can feel like a better person. But it all VHHPHG D ELW R̆ To be honest, I must (almost shamefully) admit that I do not have the time or energy to take care of a garden. UCU students juggle four intensely academic courses, jobs, committees, and countless other responsibilities. There are times when I feel I can barely keep myself together, let alone patiently nurture the space outside. Does this make me a bad person? Or does this mean that others hold an immense privilege to have the time, abilities, and resources to actually do so? And what happens when these lucky people leave? Let’s put more high expectations on future students’ shoulders, maybe they won’t have enough already.
This idea does not only create expectations for what students should do but also how they should be doing it. Not only are we being asked to make time to garden, but to also garden well. 2WKHUZLVH ZKDW ZRXOG EH WKH GL̆HUHQFH WR RXU current situation? I am in no way an expert in WKLV ¿HOG SXQ LQWHQGHG DQG , DP QRW DERXW WR tear up the soil without a clue of what is good for it. I guess I am expected to give myself a gardening education in the meantime as well. This is not to speak of the professionals who are taught and paid to come and properly take care of our campus greenery. Perhaps I lack faith, but then again, UCU already does have a garden for students (did you even know?), and it’s completely neglected. Students could be working on improving the spaces GHGLFDWHG VSHFL¿FDOO\ WR WKLV LQVWHDG RI FUHDWLQJ more areas that will then be abandoned. I guess that wouldn’t get as many likes on Facebook though. In the end, what annoys me is that you are either on the side of “Nature”, the good side, or
you are M.D.'s little bitch, cynical and unsympathetic. This is a striking logical fallacy, and I was actually quite surprised at the complete absence of any type of critical reaction. Maybe I am cynical, but I am far from being anyone’s bitch. I love that UCU students are idealists, I think it is a valuable strength and I would never say otherwise. However I have begun to notice that at times, the practical necessities and the material consequences of someone’s actions are ignored in the face of a larger, abstract principle. I know this initiative was born from the best of intentions, but the privilege and thoughtlessness in its execution make the whole thing feel hypocritical. I write this outside, facing my own KH garden. It is green and alive, even though I have not touched it. The same seemingly dead sticks that I saw during the winter have now sprouted and bloomed. I am so grateful for our campus, while also knowing there is always room for progress. I just don’t think randomly planting cabbage is the most sustainable way to go.
I Don’t Give a Shit About Your Ghosting Updates by Resident Meddler 2Q 0D\ WK 8&8 &RQIHVVLRQV SRVWHG WKH following:
It’s perplexing to see people who openly and unapologetically perceive the campus (and its Facebook pages) as a canvas to smear and shape “Hooked on my toxic boy, confused as to wheth- WR ¿W WKHLU FUHDWLYH YLVLRQ 0RUH VSHFL¿FDOO\ , er he likes me or not. Going on a walk with him ¿QG LW DVWRQLVKLQJO\ HJRFHQWULF IRU DQ\RQH WR wish me luck. XOXO keeping you updated.” think they’re entitled to others putting up with their ghosting documentary. Don’t make me a 8SGDWH ³&XUUHQWO\ ZDONLQJ WKURXJK FDPSXV witness to your toxicity and failed girlbossing. KH¶V ṘFLDOO\ DQ DVV ´ The page does not exist for the purposes of beLQJ VRPH VWUDQJHU¶V MRXUQDO DQ\RQH ZKR GRHV Update 2: “He’s asking me if I want to go back not wish to become informed about others’ WR KLV SODFH \R JLUO QRW FDYLQJ LQ 'H¿QLWHO\ QRW DZNZDUG D̆DLUV VKRXOG QRW EH VXEMHFWHG WR LW seeing him again! CANCELLED” 'R ZH UHDOO\ QHHG XSGDWHV DERXW D VLWXDWLRQ in which we hold no stakes? Confessions like these one (and the many that followed by the same author) are far from rare. "Is it not immoral to submit confessions about A quick search through UCU Confessions will ; SHUVRQ WR D SDJH IROORZHG E\ PRUH WKDQ produce numerous search results entailing SHRSOH" some form of update - about meeting people on FDPSXV DERXW ¿QGLQJ JURVV LWHPV LQ \RXU WUDVK I recognise that when submitting confessions can, about buying a sex toy, etc., etc. (or a series of them over a period of time) we may be seeking a sense of community we feel Sharing developments of one’s personal life is we lack. Maybe the people around us fail to one of the most customary rituals on our cam- listen to and sympathize with our joys and pus. When we verbally exchange sensitive infor- VRUURZV $OWHUQDWLYHO\ ZH PLJKW QRW ¿QG WKH mation, we reinforce a sense of trustworthiness right channels through which to voice our frusbetween us and those around us. This timeless trations and/or receive validation elsewhere. social practice explains the tradition of submit- Many of you might suggest simply not readting to UCU Confessions. But since my annoy- ing the confessions if they bother me so much, DQFH HFOLSVHG P\ OLPLWHG LQGL̆HUHQFH WR WKH but I can’t overlook their potential for damage. matter, I must extend my uncalled-for opinion While routinely crafting an update about a man about these confessions: I don’t give two shits in your life is not inherently akin to writing gosabout your ghosting updates. sip or falsifying accusations about him, is it not
immoral to submit confessions about X person WR D SDJH IROORZHG E\ PRUH WKDQ SHRSOH" Yes, I am aware that asking for their consent would have undermined the saga’s sense of mystery and that the guy in question seemed relatively unharmed by the confessions about him (judging by the confession he submitted in the end). Neither party experienced long-lastLQJ KDUP« KRZHYHU LI , VXGGHQO\ IRXQG RXW that someone in my close circle had been detailing our encounters, calling me “a bitch”, “an ass” (irrespective of my gender identity) or recounting back-handed compliments they gave me, I would feel betrayed. Would you want to have a series of posts about your interactions displayed on a gossip page? Taking on the perspective of the two people involved in the confessions, things I might share with you in secreF\ DUH QRW IRU WKH RWKHU SHRSOH WR NQRZ Whether or not our interactions were characterized by toxicity, it would not be up to either of us to broadcast it as a spectacle for others. This critique seems like an unnecessarily bitter one, so I admit the shortcomings of my judgment. My point is that not everything that unfolds around you needs to be shared, especially LI LW LQYROYHV VRPHRQH ZKR PLJKW WDNH R̆HQFH at such violations of privacy. In a place where YLUWXDOO\ DOO LQIRUPDWLRQ VSUHDGV OLNH ZLOG¿UH D bit of secrecy and intimacy really don’t hurt.
