Legislation or Anarchy? ie —

Office Etiquette Turned into Office Brawl of Words

By Lorenzo Sia

NUGSS_ Directors broke
down into disorderly conduct
as Robert’s Rules of Order
were suspended.

For the last few weeks,
NUGSS has been deluged
with intrigue and controversy.
With the semester winding
down in a few weeks, the
tempers of NUGSS’ Board of
Directors have been
enflamed with problems with-
in the office, which culminat-
ed in incessant bickering and
arguing.

The culprit was an item on
the meeting’s agenda entitled
“XIX: Office Etiquette - pre-
sented by Shane Schepens”.
Shane Schepens, Director of
Finance, presented the item
as a suggestion for directors
help make the office more
professional and to keep the
office as a place to help stu-
dents. Schepens mentioned

that the NUGSS office over
the past few months had
slowly evolved from a place
of “business” into a place for
socializing. Certain directors
agreed with this statement,
but others contested this.

Jose Guterres, Director at
Large, mentioned that the
office was a place not only for
business, but also for stu-
dents and that the focus for
NUGSS is about the stu-
dents. Several directors
began to break the order of
the meeting. For example,
Emil Tarka, Ombudsperson,
mentioned grievances con-
cerning the procedure of
signing honorarium cheques.
The meeting lost order, and
Oliver Ray, Director of
University Affairs and chair of
the meeting, in frustration
said “I'll pull you out of kinder-
garten when you're ready,”
and declared the suspension
of Robert’s Rules of Order for

an indefinite time.

Some of guests were
appalled and amused by the
display. Joe Bowser, EARS
Director, mentioned it was
“hilarious” and that “Oliver did
the right choice in the situa-
tion.” Jamie Onciul of the
Greek Supporter Society said
that the situation was “amus-
ing” Others such as Greg
Dent of the Residence
Council and Paul from the
Political Science Students
Association had no comment;
however, they smiled at the
situation.

Order was restored eventual-
ly, but the infringement of
order was breached several
times before the end of the
meeting. The guests present
were disillusioned with the
anarchic display of immature
bickering for such small
things as office etiquette.

Addressing the Masses

An Interview with the President of the Human Rights Club

By: Lorenzo Sia

As of Valentine’s Day last
February 14, 2001, NUGSS
ratified and acknowledged
the existence of its newest
organization, the Human
Rights Club (HRC) of UNBC.
Coming from Douglas
College, a school that has an
active human rights club, |
wanted to know more about
UNBC’s human rights club,
what is was about, and how it
started.

| learned eventually that the
HRC was headed up by
Mohammed Balushi, a former
student at Douglas College,
and founder, along with
myself, of the Human Rights
Club of Douglas College.
Over the reading break, | had
a chance to interview him
and ask him about the club,
and this is what he had to
say:

Lorenzo Sia: Seeing that the
topic of human rights has

been prevalent in many uni-
versity campuses, why do
you start one up here at
UNBC?

Mohammed Balushi: Well,
there are many clubs at
UNBC, and there isn’t a club
that deals with the issues of
humans rights. This is
designed to let students and
the public know what human
rights are; to inform students
of what goes on in other
states, and to under what we
take for granted is really in
fact a right or a freedom
another would be fighting and
dying for.

Sia: Creating clubs at UNBC,
especially ones that are
focused on certain issues,
are challenging to start up.
Did you find this task daunt-
ing and challenging? Was the
effort well worth it?

Balushi: There are always
challenges when starting up
a club. For example, when |
was establishing the Human

Rights Club, | had trouble get-
ting the idea on paper and
convincing students that we
needed such a club. A stu-
dent mentioned to me that he
would support the club
through NUGSS if | made a
deal with him. Strangely, this
contravened the fundamental
reason for this club,.

Sia: What is the fundamental
reason for this club?
Balushi: The fundamental
reason is not for the self-
interest of others, but rather
for the interest of all.

Sia: Did NUGSS welcome the
idea of having an Human
Rights Club?

Balushi: The majority of
NUGSS welcomed the idea,
but a certain few did not.

Continued on page 15

Sia: What are your short term
goals and objectives for the

The 4th Annual Popsicle building Contest featured the cre-
ative works of structural engineering of all ages. This event
took place on Saturday, March 3rd at UNBC.

to find true love and a few laughs, courtesy of the UNBC
Sorority.

Offering 3-for-1 and 2-for-1
pan pizzas and 1-for-1
square pizzas (deep dish).
Special UNBC Offer: 10% off pick-up
orders or free delivery to the University
(valid ID card required).

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