Democracy Suspended at ISU

In case nobody has heard yet, the ISU faculty senate, which is the faculty's democratic decision maker on campus, has been suspended. Welcome to facism.

"facism - def.a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often racism."


Mr. Valias has lobbied the Idaho State Board of Education for this power. This is after a more than 75% overwhelming vote from the faculty senate of no confidence in his leadership. This means they don't trust him. So what do you do if you don't like a group that doesn't like you - expel their rights. And that is exactly what happened this afternoon in Moscow, ID.

Fascism - It isn't just for Moscow, Russia anymore.

But this isn't just about those two warring groups. This is about the right to democracy for all Idaho citizens.

"The extent to which a people of a nation can democratically decide what goods and services they are going to produce and consume [in this case education,] under what conditions these goods and services are to be produced and consumed [contracts with teachers], with what entities they will engage with trade and under what conditions this trade will take place [bargaining], how the resulting wealth will be distributed [wages], and what effect all of these actions will have on the nations  natural resources  and environment, is the extent to which it is a nation. Only the organized working class can maintain the existence of America." This is democracy.

But how Mr. Vailas works, when you do organize and work democratically, and he doesn't like the result, he can just suspend your right, like he suggested and lobbied for, AND succeeded doing at the state board of education meeting today in Moscow.

Don't think this action is an independent on the larger context of the right of democracy a free society. The faculty senate is just a type of organization. For their rights to be denied to the people who work day-in and day-out to help a generation of leaders, is a tragedy.

Students need to stand up for the rights of democracy. People died for the right to vote in a democracy. They were beaten for the right. They went to jail for the right.

YOU won't be killed, you won't be harmed, and you won't go to jail. But if you won't stand up, who will?

Stand in solidarity with the ISU Faculty senate. You don't even have to stand. Print some stickers on mailing labels and pass them out in class. Make some fliers to get a group together and go to the student senate meeting next Monday night. Tell your student leaders you want a statement to show that students support democracy at home, not just abroad in places like Bahrain, Tunisa, and Egypt. Get some safety pins and some color of ribbon and start a campaign. Wear hats made out of newspaper and write your message for the faculty members on it. You never have to say a word.

But you do have to take a risk. America is just an experiment, and it has always demanded risks. Now is your time to do something, before you don't have the right to do anything.