More: Keeping Tabs on Student Government

We recently blogged about student blogger Joseph Schuster and his resolve to hold student government accountable by bringing some light to the rather opaque subject.

After a brief spell of blogging for the Marquette Tribune, Schuster is back at his old blog, The MUSG Disconnect.

Why? Because the Tribune refused to publish (on his Tribune blog, not in the paper) a piece saying that Marquette University Student Government is “unnecessary.” That the student body would be better off without it.

What heresy!

A Tribune editor called this “not constructive” and spiked it.

Just what did Schuster say that was so bad? Here are the first few paragraphs.

As I was walking through campus today, I had a most horrible thought, what would Marquette University be like without MUSG?

As I looked around with this thought in my mind, the entire campus began to crumble before me. I saw buildings, never getting built. Sports teams never reaching the levels they are at. Academics not being what they are, and there just are not as many students as we have today.

Actually, it would be the exact same place that it is today. The administration and staff at Marquette take care of everything. MUSG just takes up space and resources. This year, MUSG’s revenue, according to their budget was $447,700. The majority of this money was raised through the student activity fee. Now how much of that $447,700goes back to the students through the student organization allocations? Only $128,500.

Now just think, if we didn’t have MUSG taking their cut of that $447,700 and doing whatever it is that they do (we are still trying very hard to figure that out), then students could put all that money, specifically where they want it. According to the budget $3,000 gets spend on MUSG advertising. I guess they have to convince people to join them.

Schuster also revealed some interesting data about how MUSG allocates its funds.

As most probably know, MUSG (mis)allocates the student activity fee among student organizations. Recently 2 of the organizations that received a fairly generous portion of the activity fee demonstrated against the Marquette ROTC, because apparently, soldiers are being trained for the “unjust war in Iraq.”

The two student groups that were supporters of this event (through encouraging members to attend) were the Muslim Student Association and the group known as J.U.S.T.I.C.E. (An acronym meaning liberal student organization). Information about the specific s of the demonstration can be found on the Marquette Warrior Blog.

But the reason that I feel a need to mention this protest on a blog devoted to MUSG is because in period 2, MUSG gave JUSTICE, $3,084.00, see MUSG’s SOA allocations here the exact amount that they requested. Now just to let you know how hard it is to get the exact amount that you request from MUSG, in the last period, only 17.6% of events received the funding level which they requested. So either the JUSTICE application was quite good, or MUSG has a special heart for the leftist organization.

It’s the latter, obviously. J.U.S.T.I.C.E. is a leftist student organization that represents, with unerring fidelity, the political agenda of the University Ministry.

And MUSG is pretty much under the thumb of bureaucrats in the Office of Student Development. Since the University Ministry and OSD think the same way and work hand-in-hand on projects of leftist indoctrination, it’s not surprising that MUSG funds the organization generously.

Look for more from Schuster.

Blogger Keeping Tabs on Student Government

Blogger Joseph Schuster has taken on the role of being a thorn in the side of Marquette University Student Government.

We can hardly think of a better target.

Actually, the Office of Student Development and the University Ministry might be better targets, but they aren’t really different targets, since MUSG is pretty much in the pocket of those University bureaucrats.

Schuster’s most recent post concerns an MUSG “concert” that turned into a real flop.

When I have discussions with people about the necessity of MUSG, the one point that always comes up about what MUSG does that is great for the student body is that it puts on events. That would mean the only worthwhile MUSG department is the Program Board, headed by Program Vice President Matt Robinson.

I was wrong again. This past weekend, I attended the Reel Big Fish concert, expecting the Varsity Theatre to be full. After all, Reel Big Fish is an enjoyable band and MUSG was basically giving away tickets at $15. I couldn’t believe it though; when I walked in about 20 minutes before the show began, the Varsity Theatre was probably only one-eighth full. I would say though, that in the last 20 minutes it filled, to (at best) one-third capacity.

So why does MUSG sponsor concerts? It’s not like Milwaukee hurts for performance venues.

The reason, quite simply, is that “student government” is in fact a government, able to tax students (it’s called “activity fees”) and stage events with no market test.

A private promoter who mounts too many money-losing concerts will go out of business. But MUSG can just continue to rake in tax money from students.

All in the service of building little bureaucratic empires in Alumni Memorial Union.

Administration Intimidation

Schuster, by the way, had to face what looks very much like an attempt at intimidation as he was starting his blog.

Duane Bruce, Assistant Dean for New Student Programs, approached Schuster and asked him “what’s your goal?” in starting the blog. He then warned Schuster to “be careful” with his blogging, and added that he preferred that people would be “doing something” rather than “talking about” things.

Which, of course, denigrates the entire journalistic profession!

Schuster has been stonewalled by MUSG officials, who refuse to talk to him on the grounds that he is a blogger. We asked Brock Banks, MUSG President, about this policy, and he refused to respond to us too!

Since he is a former student of ours, we were prepared to view him favorably, but he threw that away.

Apparently, MUSG will only talk to the Tribune and The Warrior. Both publications should be deeply offended at that, since it implies they are “in the tank” for MUSG, and either unwilling or unable to provide critical coverage.

MUSG appears to be afflicted by the arrogance typical of all the bureaucrats that infest Alumni Memorial Union.

Deep down, they must sense that real transparency would be a threat to them.

Student Government President Won’t Talk to Bloggers

A somewhat disturbing post on the blog The MUSG Disconnect records the fact that MUSG President Brock Banks refuses to talk to bloggers.

Specifically, he sent blogger Joseph Schuster the following e-mail:

My door is always open to talk with students about particular concerns or ideas that they may have. In fact, you can stop by the MUSG office (AMU 133) to review my hours of availability.

However, I am aware that you have a blog that also serves as a forum to address MUSG issues. It has been and continues to be MUSG policy not to do interviews with or provide press releases to individuals bloggers. These are reserved for media outlets such as the Marquette Tribune, Warrior, and other such news sources. Any “interview” would have to be strictly off the record and not for the purpose of your blog. If you have further questions about our policy, please contact the Communications Vice President Jillian Mertz.

If you have a particular question or concern, please do not hesitate to come to the office. I am more than willing to help out in any way that I can.

Why won’t Banks talk to bloggers? He doesn’t explain, but we imagine it might have something to do with the fact that bloggers are capable of being pretty critical of MUSG.

We wrote Banks, asking whether the Schuster post was accurate. His response (or rather non-response):

Thanks for offering me the opportunity to respond, but I’m going to decline.

In other words, stonewall.

There must be something in the air in the Alumni Memorial Union that turns the people there into timid, risk averse petty bureaucrats. First the University Ministry won’t let the student organization Catholic Outreach talk to The Warrior, and now Banks refuses to talk to The MUSG Disconnect -- or to us, for that matter.

Banks failure to respond simply reinforces Schuster’s view of student government. What we have are students who pretend to be important, and go through the motions of being important in their little playpen, but who in fact are divorced from any real student concerns.

Brandon Henak at GOP3.COM views the organization the same way.

Stubbornly refusing to communicate to anybody who might be critical is not going to help the image of MUSG.