I would like to give my personal endorsement for Students First. Several opinion writers have given the party theirs because Students First candidates are nerds, and that’s what they wanted in the office.
My reasoning is more controversial. I don’t think People Incorporated will receive respect from students.
Rob Beck, the vice presidential candidate, has demonstrated poor public speaking skills during debates. The ASUU vice president is the chairperson of the Assembly and often stands in for the president. I don’t think he would be an influential public figure.
Friends who know him assure me he’s a really responsible guy and has done a lot of great work in LDSSA leadership. I just don’t think he’d be an effective vice president.
Rebecca Despain, PINC candidate for senior class president, told a group of assembled greeks that if elected, she would encourage more participation in the greek system.
She cited a greek fund-raising gala that was poorly attended as an example of what needed to be fixed. She said that she had gone to the gala, but event organizers said she was not there. Only one person from her greek house attended the event, and her house’s absence contributed to the event’s failure-it lost, not raised, thousands of dollars.
In addition, members of the Students First Party witnessed students tearing down yellow posters. Other students in the Arts Building found PINC posters taped up where yellow posters used to be. No such complaints from PINC candidates were reported to The Chronicle.
Although my final point is anecdotal, I believe it is still relevant. I have heard more complaints of PINC campaigners bothering people on cell phones as they walk past the booths than of Students First.
Lack of respect by campaigners, untruths and poor speaking skills cause me to believe PINC candidates would decrease the amount of respect students have for ASUU officials.
Students First candidates and their platform are not perfect, but I believe they would receive more respect. They dominated both of the debates I attended and also have a lot of experience in ASUU.