Here is the email, SG and the Administration has reached a compromise:

Quote :

"Dear SG, Well, you must be tired of receiving nightly fireside emails from me, but hopefully this will be the last in this week's series. Let me begin by affirming that compromise is never fun. In fact, both sides usually lose (and win). One of my favorite negotiation qutoes comes from Jimmy Carter when he said, "Unless both sides win, no agreement can be permanent." This afternoon, the Elections Commission showed tremendous character by voting alongside me to approve a negotion we made with Dr. Tom Stafford concerning the state of our elections. The negotiation comes in three parts: I. All students will vote in student body elections, part-time and full-time alike. II. Part-time students will be removed from the ballot for this elections cycle. III. The referendum will remain on the ballot. Undoubtedly, both sides lost -- but the student body ultimately won. Over the past days, espcecially today, I have been receiving feedback from students across campus about the part-time/full-time debate. It seems the student body wants the elections process to move-on and, by majority, they agree that part-time students should vote but not run for office. Of course, I remain solid in our belief that fee-paying students deserve a voice in university decisions. At any rate, this will be an ongoing conversation on campus. After this election cycle we will have a voice from the student body. All of the student body officer-candidates are passionate about this topic and have pledged to work through their future terms to find some permanent resolution. The administration has also pledged to facilitate a genuine discussion in hopes of solving this dilemma. In the meantime, the Elections Commission will vote tomorrow to remove Scott Stephenson and Tracy Hutcherson from the ballot. The referendum will remain. Please join me in letting this be an end to this discussion until we have new officers and a new Student Senate in place. No, compromise isn't fun, but that's what life is all about. Thanks for coming to the press conference today and the negotiation meetings. All of you have inspired me by your dedication and energy towards this cause -- a cause that's far from over. Candidates -- enjoy your 50 bucks from Stafford. Goodnight all! Forrest "

If this will stand it is left to be seen. I think it is a reasonable compromise (Since Scott will likely not pull enough votes to make a runoff and Tracy Hutcherson agreed that he would drop his name from the ballot so long it is ensured that part-time students are allowed to vote).

Right now, the administration controlls vote.ncsu.edu and although we can hold it elsewhere (we could have had a voting server up and working by 8am today... Student Government doesn't fall apart if parts of the Administration aren't willing to help us), we need this deal to go through if we want to use it. You can contact members of the Elections Commission here: http://students.ncsu.edu/vote/boe.php. They are the ones that will be making the decision on behalf of the Student Body (the Student Senate doesn't decide this), so please contact them and tell them your feelings so they can represent your opinions as they should.

3/27/2006 10:39:53 PM

BOOOO

3/27/2006 10:40:25 PM

BOOOO

3/27/2006 10:47:51 PM

Who gives a shit?

3/27/2006 10:50:47 PM

wait

Stafford already agreed to allow part time students to vote prior to this whole deal

The referrendum was already on the ballot and was not being challenged by the administration

The ineligible canidates were removed from the ballot (their inclusion being the only reason Stafford stopped the election)

how exactly was this a compromise sounds like SG caved into the "capriciousness of Tom Stafford"

note I agree with the administration's stance on this issue. I like how SG is trying to spin this like they somehow "won"

I wholeheartedly disagree with parttime students voting in this election. the constitution is clear and yet SG seems to not understand that an amendment is required to change it.

3/27/2006 10:54:54 PM

MEANWHILE...

Quote :

"Ahoy Mateys! Tommorow Tuesday March 28th at 3PM thar bae a ground break'n ceremony on tha out door basketball courts for tha new Carmichael gym expansion! Thar bae snacks I one bae told, but what bae more is thar bae opportunities ta sign tha official guest book that twill bae framed and hung in tha new gym and ta have pictures taken with ye mateys do'n tha ground break'n thing. So please come out and support tha new gym and if ye'd bae so kind join tha crew for a big ol' group picture! The Pirate Captain Whil Piavis Student Body President"

3/27/2006 10:59:25 PM

i wonder who's email took longer to write

3/27/2006 11:00:05 PM

Quote :

"Who gives a shit?"

3/27/2006 11:02:33 PM

I wonder what the Pirate Captain was doing during this whole debacle.

3/27/2006 11:04:05 PM

Quote :

"Stafford already agreed to allow part time students to vote prior to this whole deal"

It was his last minute concession but only after it was too late to change the ballot since our own Constitution mandates we must follow the Student Body Statutes as well, restricting changes that come within a few of days of the election itself. The only other choice was for the Elections Commission to go against its own rules to make it happen and with those unwilling to drop from the ballot it didn't happen.

Quote :

"The referrendum was already on the ballot and was not being challenged by the administration"

It was challenged in the beginning and in the recent letter permitting part-times to vote but not be on the ballot (it was stated all previous decisions still stand, that was one). Dr. Stafford didn't want it on there and if it was, he promised to "nullify" it.

Quote :

"how exactly was this a compromise sounds like SG caved into the "capriciousness of Tom Stafford""

It was the canididates themselves for next year (or at least two of those running for SBP) who got the compromise to come out of the guy. The Elections Commission and Dr. Stafford were both in a standoff this afternoon. This was a canididate-supported move, not one by the current Student Government (although one may have been proposed later).

Quote :

"I wholeheartedly disagree with parttime students voting in this election. the constitution is clear and yet SG seems to not understand that an amendment is required to change it."

It is not clear and I made this argument in a past post. It states that the Student Senate must have representation for "special students" as well as those enrolled for every college. Who are the "special students" once you take out every established school or college from the mix? This is where lifelong education comes in and they are all part-time students paying fees to SG who are represented in that mix. Part-times being elected to offices are nothing new, and doesn't require a change to make happen. The Administration however feels it does under their new interpretation and get this, will not allow the change proposed to be made (if they had their wishes... however they have promised not to reconize it if it is made).

3/27/2006 11:13:56 PM

Quote :

"I wonder what the Pirate Captain was doing during this whole debacle."

Shaking his head at SG. They woke his ass up at 1 in the morning to go to an emergency meeting because they wanted to give it to the Administration. Now they caved, because they realized they have no power.

3/27/2006 11:17:23 PM

Maybe now that the senate is done crying for student representation by giving part timer payers full time benefits against their own constitution, they can get back to impeaching the president, who has had one of the strongest wins in recent history, at the end of his term.

Heres a discussion of a possible direct democracy option replacement to the student senate:
http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=397139

And heres a group for the removal of student senate:
http://ncst.facebook.com/group_profile.php?gid=9569

[Edited on March 27, 2006 at 11:32 PM. Reason : .]

3/27/2006 11:29:42 PM

Quote :

"MEANWHILE... Quote : "Ahoy Mateys! Tommorow Tuesday March 28th at 3PM thar bae a ground break'n ceremony on tha out door basketball courts for tha new Carmichael gym expansion! Thar bae snacks I one bae told, but what bae more is thar bae opportunities ta sign tha official guest book that twill bae framed and hung in tha new gym and ta have pictures taken with ye mateys do'n tha ground break'n thing. So please come out and support tha new gym and if ye'd bae so kind join tha crew for a big ol' group picture! The Pirate Captain Whil Piavis Student Body President" "

The Student Senate has also been involved in this. The Senate brought in Dawn, an administrator from the Gym to talk about the groundbreaking and answer everyone's questions so we could spread this information to the student organizations we're all members of. I took the info back to the Inter-Residence Council that week along with fliers handed out to each Senator to distribute (although the IRC Executive Board was on top of it and already had the information there and ready for all the IRC Representatives to bring back to their residence halls... they have really improved in that aspect this year.)

Even on this point, the Senate has done more than Whil to encourage involvement... some who I know are even taking groups out there. But you don't see it unless you come to our meetings and take an interest in what we're doing... they're open to everyone and the times are online at students.ncsu.edu. Committee meetings too are a great opportunity to learn about issues which affect our University... and the administrators that are invited can answer any questions you have.

Quote :

"Now they caved, because they realized they have no power."

So choosing to postpone an election when we could have had a server up by 8am is caving? SG has the power to run without support from parts of the administration. Albeit it causes problems when the Administration becomes involved, but it doesn't stop us from conducting business. If the Administration locked us out of Witherspoon the same would apply... we will continue to meet even if off-campus to get through this election and what we have left to do this year (like the SORC Office Renovation which will support student organizations across campus... we're looking at putting $2,500 towards it alongside the UAB and IRC. A joint project started by the leaders of the Student Senate).

Quote :

"Maybe now that the senate is done crying for student representation by giving part timer payers full time benefits against their own constitution, they can get back to impeaching the president, who has had one of the strongest wins in recent history, at the end of his term."

Really? The media really played up Whil's victory but that is not the case on how much of a win he had. Look at Tony Caravano in the Spring 2004 elections, the year right before Whil came into office. He won with over 80% of the vote... and in sheer numbers, there wasn't all this hype about SG being so awful yet Tony still only got 256 votes less than Whil's numbers in the runoff (when the most people voted for him... just over 4000).

If that comes as a surprise to any of you, please take the time to think who led you a year ago and since to believe he had such a mandate in the first place?



Btw, the impeachment to many in SG is no longer worth our time to complete. We've since moved on to other things. Media hype there played a huge role in making it sound like that was the only thing we spent time doing. Note, this is not the reality and I hope I can pull down this facade perpetuated by so many students at NCSU to show you all that.

3/27/2006 11:46:56 PM

vote no on allowing part-timers.

3/27/2006 11:59:09 PM

Quote :

"Right now, the administration controlls vote.ncsu.edu"

Quote :

"The media really played up Whil's victory..."

Quote :

"Even on this point, the Senate has done more than Whil to encourage involvement... "

So the senate is taking on the president, the media, the administration, and often the general student will itself which you seem to be on the defensive against in this thread. It atleast appears as though the senate has backed down somewhat from the administration and from the president and media. But maybe the reason the senate is fighting battles on every front is b/c they have fallen out being a representative body without realizing it, or while being indifferent to it. It seems like you are saying "look at all we do for you, we are willing to fight the administration, the media, the president, and even you all for you."

[Edited on March 28, 2006 at 12:02 AM. Reason : .]

3/28/2006 12:00:56 AM

not gonna read all that, but who gives a shit anyway?

3/28/2006 12:11:44 AM

Just admit it, you crooked fuckers.

Tom Stafford did the right thing in standing his ground, and a majority of students agree with his decision.

SG pretends to represent the views of the students but is nothing more than a social club for resume juicers. If SG was a representative body, none of this would've happened.

3/28/2006 12:23:11 AM

b/c TWW represents the student body goddammit!

3/28/2006 12:26:22 AM

Be interesting if that referendum fails...

Its not like we let part time residents vote in the real elections.

3/28/2006 12:33:36 AM

^^ I never said that TWW represents the student body. I said that SG doesn't.

As many other have said, direct democracy via online voting is an extremely viable option for a group the size of the student body. If we went to such a system, the students would GAIN power by dissolving the senate.

3/28/2006 1:16:16 AM

the students would gain jack shit.

if you want to dissolve Senate, fantastic. have at it. it's something i already proposed myself.

but don't be so fucking stupid to delude yourself into thinking some "direct democracy" alternative would actually do anything. students have no tangible power. they never have, they never will -- "direct democracy" or not.


[Edited on March 28, 2006 at 1:21 AM. Reason :  ]

3/28/2006 1:17:57 AM

Well, to be perfectly honest, I don't give a goddamn about any of it and I never will.

All the squabbling and self-importance is pretty good comedic material, but eventually it's like watching the same scene in a funny flick for the millionth time; the joke that was (and still is) funny just isn't pulling the laughs any more.

P.S. Do you own an oil company?

P.P.S. Sorry, Zach Spinks, but I'm changing all my votes to "Get Well, Erik Cole!"

[Edited on March 28, 2006 at 1:26 AM. Reason : d]

3/28/2006 1:22:52 AM

Quote :

"P.S. Do you own an oil company?"

haha I wish...I wouldn't have had to drop out of NCSU for 5 years if I had that kind of $texas

3/28/2006 1:27:09 AM

Then what's with the T, mang? That shit is straight up Monty Burns.

3/28/2006 1:30:26 AM

was named after my grandfather, but he got Tommy so I had to go with Greg -- but the only problem is this fucking University only recognizes first names and ID numbers in their little database, so teachers kept calling me Tom and I didn't know who the fuck they were talking to so the T's basically just a placeholder...

3/28/2006 1:36:23 AM

i don't feel that people that make such poor facial-hair decisions should be involved in student gov't

3/28/2006 9:18:00 AM

Nobody cares.

3/28/2006 10:49:04 AM

Quote :

"but don't be so fucking stupid to delude yourself into thinking some "direct democracy" alternative would actually do anything. students have no tangible power. they never have, they never will -- "direct democracy" or not"

Strike a nerve? Senate has no power, and a direct democracy has no power in your opinion. Atleast whatever the direct democracy decided in its very limited capacity would still be more representative, and cut out the middle men and thus any chance for resume builders.

3/28/2006 11:11:52 AM

^
did you maybe miss the sentence above that? or do you just have trouble with basic English?

and who gives a shit about being "representative" if it does nothing? why try to bullshit students into believing they have power if they have none?

sounds like you're looking to pad a resume yourself as the new People's Champion...

3/28/2006 12:03:31 PM

Part-time students should have a right to vote, since they are students here, and they should have a choice in who represents them.

Part-time students should also have a right to run for office, because again, they ARE students here, even if they aren't full-time. If you don't want a part-time student to represent you, don't vote for them. It's really that simple.

3/28/2006 12:07:05 PM

Quote :

"Candidates -- enjoy your 50 bucks from Stafford."

someone PM an explanation of this

3/28/2006 12:17:14 PM

Quote :

"Maybe now that the senate is done crying for student representation by giving part timer payers full time benefits against their own constitution, they can get back to impeaching the president, who has had one of the strongest wins in recent history, at the end of his term."

3/28/2006 1:26:43 PM

^^

Quote :

"It is very easy to paint Stafford as this evil overlord pulling the strings of Student Government, but when asked if candidates in this election would receive any additional money for their campaigns Stafford dug deep into his own pocket and gave each candidate in the major elections an extra $50 -- equal to a sum of $550."

3/28/2006 5:07:06 PM

Why is the SG necessary? What purported purpose does it serve? I can't ever remember the SG doing anything that was remotely relevant to my student life. Maybe I'm ignorant, please illuminate me to the actual function of your play government. ( Besides wasting my student fees and internal bickering )

3/29/2006 10:56:21 AM

Quote :

"Student Body Election is ON, April 4 & 5. "

They are actually on the 3rd and 4th...

3/29/2006 11:35:03 AM

^ Right. I've been off a day for some reason.

3/29/2006 4:02:09 PM

because you are a dumb ass

3/29/2006 4:24:11 PM

noone cares

3/29/2006 5:15:15 PM

Vote NONE OF THE ABOVE.

http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=396833

3/29/2006 5:47:01 PM

i'm voting for erik cole to get well soon.

3/29/2006 6:36:36 PM