By Chris Reynolds
Joke UGM motions are one of the signs of the oncoming apocalypse for this University. Many students are sent cowering in fear from the latest ‘I want a Rolf Harris music centre’ motion, the ‘I think that vending machines should only dispense lettuce’ motion and, of course, the infamous ‘I want the YUSU leadership team to produce a remake of Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ motion.
Students flee in distress at the prospect of these motions passing, but why is this possible? It is because of a long suffering illness, the likes of which has never before plagued this University. This illness is called democracy, and I am very proud to be one of its sufferers.
I completely fail to understand why anyone has an issue with joke motions. By the start of motion 5 at the Big Talk, half the people in the room were friends of mine that had turned up to support me. It wasn’t the case that the only motion proposed was what some people have considered a ‘joke’, there were some really important amendments to the YUSU constitution as well as plans to reform York’s music scene. So why were there so few people willing to exercise their democratic right?
I don’t believe that this is a failure of YUSU. A lot of effort had been put into advertising the event and emphasising the significance of the motions. The main issue was that people didn’t feel the changes applied to them.
Similarly a lot of people have suggested that ‘joke’ motions have made people apathetic towards YUSU politics. But if anything the joke motions increase students’ awareness of the UGM and emphasise how easy it is to exercise their democratic right and propose a motion.
The real people in this world who make us lose interest in politics are those who cut the higher education budget without properly consulting the people directly involved. They are also the hypocrites who dither and fail to provide effective opposition in our parliamentary system.
Finally, they are also the people who lied to their core voters in a bid to achieve some sort of power. If anyone wants to blame someone for what they think is a ‘joke’ motion, blame that last category, because that’s what influenced me.
Chris Reynolds proposed the current UGM motion calling for the New Building Study Centre to be renamed the Brian Blessed Centre for Quiet Study.