punditry.ca — uncovering DSU elections

It’s hard to say what comprises the VP Student Life platforms. Though each has a ‘platform’ that was an early post to their website and Facebook groups, they have each been offering additional ideas throughout the campaign period. For the sake of simplicity, I’m sticking to the initial offering from each (Kris | Krista). They are short, so no summaries.

As usual, metrics. Most are self-explanatory. The Flesch-Kincaid metrics use words, syllables, and sentences to estimate the reading difficulty. Grade Level estimates the number of years of education required to comprehend the writing. Ease measures how easy it is to read, on a scale of 1-100 (100 = very easy).

Frankly, neither platform is that great, though I don’t think that in this case the platforms are an accurate reflection of what either candidate brings to the table.

I’ll use the mostly random categories I invented for the president again.

Most concrete innovative ideas: Kris. I have it 4-2; Krista offers a lot of ideas, but not concrete ones.

Most obvious typo: Kris. He won it entirely for this terrifyingly incomprehensible sentence: “left with little guidance accept for here is you class schedule and good look”. “accept” should obviously be “except”, “you” should be “your”… but what is “good look”? “good luck”, I assume? Even without the obvious errors, it’s a terrible sentence. READ YOUR OWN DAMN PLATFORMS.

Best organization: Kris, for the 2-3 word category he gave each item.

Most annoying use of third-person: Krista.

Best Presentation: Krista, for calling it a campaign platform, and for not tacking it onto the end of a questionable list of experience. (Kris’ experience includes, for example, “attending orientation week”. But I digress).

Best use of vague platitudes: Tied.

‘No Shit, Sherlock’ Award: Kris. I invented this award after I read this sentence: “After speaking to many students on all 3 campuses I have gotten the impression that many students feel segregated from those on a different campus, particularly Carlton and Sexton being separated from Studley.” (By the way, PROTIP: spell Carleton correctly, you’re not Chris Ide).

I took a look at the VP Internal platforms. Obviously, my first thought was “Holy Hell, Jones, what were you thinking?” As you may have noticed, her website puts all content in this tiny little box where you can see about 5 lines of 8-10 words each. Then you scroll down to read another 50 words. Then you scroll down some more. Then you scroll down again. Then you cut yourself (remember, down the line, not across the tracks). And that’s only if her green fetish didn’t already make you want to put out your own eyes.

First, of course, some metrics. Most are self-explanatory. The Flesch-Kincaid metrics use words, syllables, and sentences to estimate the reading difficulty. Grade Level estimates the number of years of education required to comprehend the writing. Ease measures how easy it is to read, on a scale of 1-100 (100 = very easy).

I haven’t taken the time to summarize the entire platforms here. You can read their platforms for yourself (Boyle | Jones).

I’ll use the mostly random categories I invented for the president again.

Most concrete innovative ideas: Boyle. I even calculated this per word; he might have the most concrete practical ideas of any candidate in any race.

Most obvious typo: Jones. It’s not a typo so much as it is rampant spelling mistakes: sustantial, it’s instead of its, accessability…

Best organization: Tie.

Best Presentation: Boyle. In particular, I liked how his website didn’t totally suck.

Best use of vague platitudes: Jones. “I hope to expand that greatly” … “also something I will work towards” … “encourage societies to work together to achieve similar goals.” …

Most convincing case for being able to achieve goals: Boyle. Rick Mercer endorsements only get you so far in life.

The campaign wraps up at 8pm Monday, so get your last looks at any campaign materials. Websites, posters, facebook groups… all have to be down by 8pm. This includes the Facebook application.

Remember to make your predictions for the election outcome. You can get details and instructions at the original post.

It was a quiet day – the candidates are pretty tired, and for the most part rested or plotted one last big blitz tomorrow. I, being a lazy pundit, today offer only a wrap-up of the updates on the InterTubez.

• Dan Boyle updated us on the campaign, and announced the winners of his “what the hell is he holding in that poster?” campaign. He still hasn’t told us what he is actually holding, though… Anyway, he’s been a regular updater all week, and I have to say he’s got the right idea – as a VP Internal candidate, it’s probably a good idea to demonstrate that you can communicate, even for the little things like ‘campaigns’.
• John Hillman put up another of his entertaining videos. The Mark Coffin reference was probably my favourite part.
• If you’ve wanted to learn more about Blair Mason, his picture & profile are now up on the official candidate information page.
• 14 comments, all on last night’s wrap-up, including one where an anonymous poster kind of loses it a bit.
• Larkin and Osmond also posted news updates.
• Some of the online debates that have occurred this campaign really remind of this web comic. Hilarious in its accuracy.

Good morning, and welcome to day 7 of the campaign.

As is tradition here at MikeSmit.com, I’m running a ‘betting pool’ where you predict not just who wins, but the margin of victory. It’s lots of good clean fun.

If you want to participate, first pick your winners. We ignore spoiled and blank ballots. Also, sad to say we won’t be predicting the VP Ed / Grad Senate races this year, as feedback last year indicated that yes/no votes for candidates were completely uninteresting.

Then, fill out this form. You can choose your privacy settings. I won’t be publishing everyone’s individual guesses beforehand; rather, I’ll publish my own guess, and some numbers in terms of who the peanut gallery predicts will win. Then I’ll publish the winners once the results are announced.

I have most of my own predictions in mind already, but I still have some thinking to do. I’ll close the form to submissions once voting starts next Tuesday.

I should tell you, I’ve won for two straight years – calling the races to within .2% at times, and on average to within 2% – but there are other very strong contenders, like Jen Bond. Every year is different – this year it could be you.

So little happened today that I’ve gone off on random tangents in this wrap-up to make it seem longer. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

• Quiet day on the campaign front. Some candidates visited residences, others are recovering from the night before, and of course some are still in Antigonish. Quiet day here at MikeSmit.com, too, though I did do some work on the presidential platforms.
• Fine rumours – Debobraegorski was fined $20 for comments made on this site (in particular, the comments about the full time staff having inappropriate relations with dogs). The EC has broad authority to govern campaigning, and that comment was definitely objectionable. Having worked with many current and past full-time staff of the DSU, I can attest to how hard they work and how they are really great people, especially once you get to know them a bit. Running for change is fine, free speech is fine… mounting personal attacks on staff that are apolitical is not something you want to see in a DSU election campaign.
• Speaking of those comments, many of you will have heard that during the question period of the presidential debate, Kris Osmond brought up some of the comments Debo has made on this site. More on that in the debate summary, but since then Debo has thrown his support (and supporters) behind Krista. “You have my vote. We need new blood in DSU.”
• Poll Results are still updating live, now at 30 responses. Looks like Krista supporters have shared their thoughts, and there seems to be some back-and-forth quasi-debates. Add your own thoughts.
• Quiet electronically today, too. Dan Boyle weighed in, and Krista made major design changes to her site. She also posted a news update and some pictures. Of note is her explanation of her slogan, “get a life”. I haven’t been a big fan of the slogan, but her explanation makes sense to me: “… going to DAL is not just about going to school: it’s also about a community of people that seize the opportunity to have amazing times together.” I work with high school students doing recruitment, and without fail my message to them is to get involved with campus activities – university is more than just classes. I learned a lot during my university years, much of it through extra-curricular involvement (including the DSU, which might be why I’m so twisted). I think if her paragraph of explanation were her online profile, she’d have the election locked up. Krista, I love the sentiment. Word of advice for the future, though – slogans should make sense without the backstory.
• In case you’ve ever wondered, I try to consistently use last names when talking about candidates. The exception is Kris Osmond and Krista Ali, and that’s only because I like the Kris and Krista thing.

It would seem I am trying to make up for a lack of posts today by posting one really long one. I’ve been going through the presidential election platforms. Slowly. I’ve written summaries, which are below.

I don’t know what percentage of voters will be checking out these platforms – since the websites will be down on election day, I suspect the number isn’t high. That said, I think it’s important that candidates articulate ideas and a vision. People like me WILL read it, and it’s a useful exercise to do yourselves.

For the record, I looked up the profiles Gault and Larkin ran with last year… neither made well-defined promises, so I can’t really track their performance. I can tell you that although Debogorskhrushchev wasn’t elected last year, his promise was that he would keep running and raising his ideas, and he’s done that.

Then I tried to locate the executive review report, and found the first one in one of the three sets of minutes posted, in January (only late by 5 months, yay Council!). I’d forgotten how toothless exec review reports had been in recent years. How is that recommendations that we made 6 years ago and were universally agreed to STILL haven’t been implemented? I was, however, pleased to see they are still using many of the student survey questions my committee wrote in 2001, and that they are still using the software I set up for them years ago (now maintained by the Dal-ACM). Wow, I’m meandering like an old man.

Don’t get me started on exec review. Anyway, there wasn’t much there, but I noticed one interesting thing – councillors felt that Gault better reflected the will of Council but less so the will of students, whereas Larkin better reflected the will of students but less so the will of Council.

Moving on.

In keeping with my autocratic streak, I’ve invented some categories, and declared winners.

Most concrete innovative ideas: Debogorski. I suspect some are not practical, and I am certain they won’t all achieve the stated objectives, and some are batshit crazy, but he gives a detailed plan. Actually, some of his ideas make good sense. I think he has political Tourette’s – he can sound like an outsider with a vision for a better DSU for a few minutes, and then all of a sudden he’s calling a great bunch of people dog f***ers. John Hillman is the runner-up.

Most obvious typo: Larkin. The very first sentence: “Courtney Larkin is a strong leader that can leader you…” (emphasis added).

Best organization: Gault. Break it down by vision, then by ideal, and then offer some ideas on how to get there. Nice.

Most annoying use of third-person: Larkin. Michael Smit wants you to know that she wins hands-down.

Outstanding Achievement in unattainable goals: Debogorski.

Best Presentation: Hillman, for highlighting the important points of his platform so we don’t have to read every word.

Best use of vague platitudes: Gault. “students must now create a unified voice” … “Engage with community partners” … “These initiatives need to be strengthened” … “This is a clear growth opportunity” … “facilitating connections and collaboration” …

Most convincing case for being able to achieve goals: Larkin. Melding her experience in with her goals works well for me. Gault also did well in this category.

Summaries

These are (mostly) my words, based on my reading of their platforms. For latest versions and more details, see the platforms for Larkin, Gault (3 pages), Hillman, and Debogorski.

(My commentary is offered in italicized parentheses).

Gault
She’s pillaged the “Imagine…” catchphrase, and is imagining a three-quality union based on Approachability, Sustainability, Empowerment.
Approachable:

• Make the DSU more diverse by putting free-for-all society space and gender-neutral washrooms in the SUB (That’s *all* we are missing.)

• Come up with a strategy to improve communication (Vague platitude… we must need a committee!)
• Further existing leadership initiatives, working with Dal and local businesses (To hell with local businesses, we need jobs in ONTARIO)

Sustainable:

• Let the sustainability office do its job (yay thanks!)
• More financial review (sexy stuff!)
• Long-term vision, facility improvements, consulting students on upcoming food services contract.

Empowered:

• Help societies with turnover, encourage open Council dialog (My recollection of Council is that it needed hella less dialog)

• Give students a voice through HSA and municipal election
• Improve Metro Transit, add late-night route
• More campus awareness of post-secondary education issues

Debogorski

• Extensive research to learn about the DSU, its employees, its facilities, its structure. (This, by the way, will be achieved in 3 days.)

• Study the finances of the Union and all societies, hold all unnecessary spending, maintain day-to-day operations over the summer.
• Deliver an address of the union to describe potential cuts, based on relevance, cost, and usage of services. Then, hold a referendum, voting line-by-line on budget cuts. (Please, take a few hours out of your day to vote in the referendum)
• Using the savings, host a 2-day “Unity Day” after finals, including multi-disciplinary events and an unparalleled celebration.
• Fix the DSU website, including publishing minutes, major upcoming decisions and past decisions with voting records, and quartery financial reports.
• Abolish in-camera discussions
• Allow in-store pickup for online bookstore orders.
• Put the Dawgfather inside the SUB(Hello, health department? I have a tip…)
• Consolidate and eliminate committees; implement Union Criers.
• Hire students with different backgrounds to audit and report on the Union.
• Open Union-owned business, subsidized by the government. These businesses will sell skills, replacing the currently ineffective services sector.(Amusingly, the services sector now accounts for over 50% of the US economy)
• Have law students fix the constitution to prevent political cliques.
• Offer online voting on issues before Council.
• Use the Gazette to make students aware of Union issues and events.
• Work with the DFA to get professors to advise and help the Union.

Larkin
Student Experience

• Student engagement by motivating the DSU executive and encouraging teamwork

• Encourage societies as a vehicle for student engagement; help societies reach out to students.(Hey, you know what the DSU needs to do? Muck about with something that’s already working.)
• Work with BoG Student Experience Committee to help guide university in its efforts to understand the student experience.
• Increasing awareness of DSU services, using orientation week, society fairs, residences, etc.
• Work with CASA and ANSSA to improve the student experience, and encourage students to understand and get involved with both.(Not a goal so much as a job description.)

Safety in the Community

• Advocate for student safety throughout the city. (… who are we advocating for ‘safety’? Are we cutting a deal with gangs?)

• Work with the HSA.
• Security on campus – safety walks, more foot patrol officers.

Sustainability

• Support the initiatives of societies, students, and the sustainability office to move the DSU to be more sustainable.

Hillman
Student Involvement

• Dialog with the students, through channels like Gazette and DSU, to reduce the mystique of the office.

• Solving approachability through real action, like visiting student hubs at lunch, passing out cookies, and listening.
• Using his first month of pay to run an event designed to reach out to students and learn their issues, like some type of competition. A ground level, affordable approach instead of throwing money at TVs.
• Work to make societies more inclusive, including Kings students.

External Lobbying

• Continue the leading role Dal plays in CASA and ANSSA

• Full support of the premise of the HSA, especially given its perceived relevance to students relative to ANSSA and CASA

Student Safety

• More late-night bus routes

• Improved campus safety – better lighting, major improvements to Tiger Patrol especially walking services, learn from examples on other campuses.

Sustainability

• Fiscal prudence – stewardship of student fees.

• Using sustainability to save money

• Let me start by saying that if you read last night’s wrap-up and walked away thinking that the candidates were fighting tooth and nail, I understand why. The post could certainly give that impression. While that makes for good television, it’s not an accurate impression. While tension exists, and some individuals have their issues, the candidates are in general good people who are running with noble purpose, and waging a campaign of ideas. Some of their supporters, on the other hand, foam at the mouth . (Speaking personally, while most candidates take my satire in stride, I’ve gotten some pretty abusive comments from their supporters. You know who you are, and I send you my love <3). Kris and Krista, in particular, have both asserted they are getting along.
• The president’s debate was tonight; while I’ve heard some news, I’ll hold back until I can give a more detailed report. Kris Osmond was good enough to record the debate; he plans to send it to our fearless CRO. I will offer (/ shamelessly beg) to publish it online as a public service. Otherwise, I’ll just write fiction: (“John Hillman bought everyone a round, and then gave them all a cookie.”)
• There are 16 responses to the poll, and counting.
• Looks like I got one of my statements about the Sexton forum wrong. Dan Boyle did not make a mistake about the SEC; rather, it was Jones who mixed up the role of VPI on the Student Advisory Committee. Boyle corrected that error. I rely on highly reliable, selfless individuals (most of whom are not anonymous to me) who send me their summaries, thoughts, and comments on the forums. I combine these summaries into a single mostly-coherent summary. In the process, between hastily written notes, memory, collation, and translation, mistakes happens. Thanks to commenters for correcting me, and my apologies. I present the forums as factual information, mostly separate from my tongue-in-cheek commentary, and I try my best to get it right.
• I personally like to keep track of who makes the effort to show up at GeekBeer, the CS social night. Word from the building is only two candidates made it: Snow and Boyle. I appreciate that. (In fairness, with trivia @ T-room and the Commerce Ball going on, there were a lot of places to be).
• Tremblay has posted extensively on a variety of subjects. In particular, he talked about candidate visits to the DAGS AGM. Worth reading. Larkin offered more details on the AGM in a thread on MikeSmit.com.
• Hillman has a new video up. I found it amusing.
• As promised, Debogorskiavelli has updated his platform with more details. New metrics: 2226 words (+1171), 25 paragraphs (+10), grade 9.2 (-0.1), reading ease 59.7 (-2.9), 14% passive sentences (-4).
• Mark Coffin offers his first news post on his website.
• Other website updates include Kris & Krista (as described above), Boyle, Snow
• Coffin and Tremblay are joining Tipping at ANSSA in Antigonish, St. FX territory. (Possibly Gault, though a witness says she was at the Commerce ball tonight). By way of trivia, St. FX held their student executive elections recently and had voter turnout of 45-50%. That’s higher than the recent provincial elections in Alberta. By way of comparison, SMU pulled down 20%, and Acadia 27%. Of course, larger schools – say, UBC – have turnout of 6-7%. But I digress.
• I count 36 comments. Read them all, but otherwise: Pelley would win this year, Wetton is a man webserving for two masters, shots at Chris, Larkin allegedely stiffs Krista on fact-gathering meetings, Kris likes to be comfortable wherever he is, Kris sets the record straight, Hillman doesn’t have mexican children, we should replace Sodexho with The Dawgfather, Hillman tells the story of his Gazette involvement, plenty of blame to go around for SAN problems.
• Not much change on the Facebook application, though it seems Kris is developing a notable lead.
• Quiet day on the MikeSmit.com front… Pi day festivities, reviewing papers for an upcoming conference. 1,000 unique visitors, only 4,500 pages.