Scripta Manent, Verba Volent
Written words stay, spoken words fly away
[ Publications | Apologia Pro Libro Suo | University of Florida Campus Politics | SG Election Results ]
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ORANGE & BLUE NEWSPAPER (Weekly) (Renamed the Gator Times in late Spring 2000) |
| Why Vision Lost (or: "Vision party lacked student support") The truth is that the vast majority of students are happy enough with SG not to care about joining any revolution against it. . . 02FEB00-08FEB00 |
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INDEPENDENT FLORIDA ALLIGATOR (Weekdaily) |
| Causing
more harm than good The current protests occurring on
campuses nationwide against union-free and overseas-made university apparel
will only end up causing more harm than good. 20APR2000
Letters: 26APR2000 |
| Diversity wins with One Florida The recently enacted One Florida plan proposed by the governor's office, despite being viciously attacked by forces defending racial preferences, is actually the only hope for the very "diversity" those groups profess to want. 03MAR2000 |
| If Progress=FBK, then Vision=IRHA? A tradition in every Inter-Residence Hall Association meeting is to pass an empty top-10 list of something and have members write in various sardonic remarks (called an "around the room.") One recent one was titled, "The top 10 things you say to distract a candidate giving a speech." Noticing the pervasive green shirts and buttons, someone then wrote in, "Try yelling out: 'Welcome to IRHA. Here's your free VISION membership card.' " Although the IRHA executive board struck the remark from the record, there is still some truth to it. 23MAR99 |
| Ms.
NOW vs. Miss America The annual Miss UF pageant
has come and gone, and so has the angry Campus National Organization for
Women protest that always follows it. Interestingly, two years ago, some
NOWsies posted fliers around campus that mercilessly denounced the sexist
and gender-biased beauty pageant. A rather mischievous person, however,
defaced the fliers by adding, "You're just jealous 'cause you're fat."
A girl who saw it, though sympathetic to NOW-style feminism, couldn't resist
pointing this out and laughing. 24FEB99
Letters to the EDITOR in response: 26FEB99 |
| No
liberty found in false equality Free men are not
equal, and equal men are not free (so said the philosopher). Though some
may proclaim the sanctity of 'equality,' only in a graveyard, chain gang
or in the killing fields of Cambodia can exact uniformity reign, because
in perfect equality there is no liberty.
In a free land, different fields yield different bounties. These truths, too often forgotten, are nowhere more evident than in the latest 'gender war.' 28JAN99 |
| The
last stand of Brother Jed Repent ye, for the kingdom
of Brother Jed is at hand, with all the "confrontational evangelism" you
could want. Brother Jed has preached to Florida students for 20 years,
sometimes bringing his wife and children along to fight the devil. 19JAN99
Letters to the EDITOR in response:21JAN99 |
| Join FBK: free tap with every tort Well, it appears yet another student is now suing Florida Blue Key for, of all things, defamation. Prompting the suit was a single jesting sentence, buried deep within the Gator Growl guide, implying that a student was morally impure. Whatever postdoctoral genius responsible for this now questionable literary maneuver is probably neither a legal scholar nor very cognizant of the fact that FBK has been mired in civil litigation for the past four years - litigation that now has no end in sight. 08JAN99 |
| We
inform, and we decide for you also You may have,
perchance, once had the feeling that the Alligator doesn't like Student
Government that much. In fact, you may have realized that the Alligator
really hates SG. In fact, it can't stand SG. It despises, loathes and even
detests SG - and it isn't exactly in any danger of having a love affair
with Florida Blue Key either. In fact, it may even hate "Florida's most
prestigious leadership honorary" even more. In response, Blue Key members
often see joining the Alligator's staff as one step short of joining the
communist party. Why the hostility? 07JAN99
[ (REBUTTLE to the above column) Leave Florida Blue Key alone By Mark Thomas - Oooohhhh, poor, poor, honorable Florida Blue Key. After years of being picked on by the big, mean ol' Alligator, Daniel Davis couldn't take it anymore, and he struck back in a way seldom used by FBK lackeys in the past - with words, and lots of 'em, too. 14JAN99 [NOTE: For another brillliant column by Mark Thomas, read "Bob Dole needs to act his age" The community reaction to his column resulted in "Crowd of protesters denouces Dole column in Alligator" in Sep 96] & a number of mostly unfavourable letters to the editor on 10SEP96, 11SEP96, [favourable]12SEP96, 16SEP96, 19SEP96 and 26SEP96.] |
| You promise me this, you promise me that This past Student Government election, the Alligator profiled a candidate who created a "plan" to allow students to receive their Florida Academic Scholarship funds in the Summer; an excellent idea but less so as a campaign promise. The unfunded mandate of Summer classes deserves to be corrected, yet one might assume some candidates were running for the state board of education instead of the Student Senate. 30NOV98 |
| What is the price of Citizenship? One day during campaigning in this past Student Government election, a candidate introduced himself to a student, followed by the student immediately becoming defensive and with his palm extended brusquely, stammered he had "nothing to do with politics." Now, was our apathetic friend correct in his statement? 26OCT98 |
| Truthful
want ads found recently by amazing discovery! What
if the UF had want-ads that were perfectly truthful? They would probably
look just like these. . . Student Senators Wanted: Prospective candidates
to run the legislative branch of Student Government are needed. There are
80 positions to fill. Job duties include an occasional senate meeting.
No qualifications necessary. No work is required on the job, ever. Candidates
must be willing to stuff ballot boxes and to perform dirty tricks once
or twice a year. 12JAN98
Letters to the editor in response to this column (unfavourable): 13JAN98 (favourable): 15JAN98 and 16JAN98 One final letter in support was submitted but unpublished |
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| VISION
Party places politics over principles TO THE
EDITOR: APPARENTLY THE LEADERSHIP of the VISION party is under
the impression that “No independent party has ever taken an off-campus
district”, referring to VISION’s recent taking 5 of the 6 seats in Senate
District C. . . 13OCT98
Letters in Response:
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| Columnist
needs to get whole story TO THE EDITOR:
Richard Hornsby wrote (Tuesday) that the Alligator needs to get over FBK
and we can now all consider ourselves experts on FBK. However, the
Alligator's objective is only to seek justice for the student body; it
was not intended to grant expert status on the machinations of the group
system. 17SEP98
In response to Alligator needs to get over FBK by Richard Horsby 15SEP98 |
| Vote 'No' on Revision 3 Editor: For more than 32 years, chancellors of the Student Honor Court have presided honorably over the Board of Masters - the "Supreme Court" of Student Government. Proposed constitutional Revision 3 now threatens to abolish this direct representation and replace it with a nearly all politically appointed Honor Court. 05APR00 [Revision #3 was defeated 4790 FOR to 2492 votes AGAINST, which is 65 votes less than the required 2/3's Majority.] |
| Vote
'No' on Revision 4 Editor: This Spring, students will
have the opportunity to vote on several constitutional revisions. Unfortunately,
one of these revisions in particular threatens to take away a key right
of the student body. Revision 4, written by former Student Body President
John McGovern, would abolish the 75-year-old constitutional right of students
to directly elect their student body treasurer. (Signed by all five Presidential
Candidates) 04APR00 [Revision #4 was defeated 2667 FOR to 4829 votes AGAINST.]
Immediately following the 1st ballot of the Spring 2000 election, an Alligator Article made reference to the Letter Above |
| Party
switch angers residents SPECIAL
LINK - Written by a Murphree Resident:
TO THE EDITOR: Murphree Area residents learned the hard way that what you see is not always what you get. This Fall, Derek Scot ran for the area's student senate seat as the Vision Party candidate. He campaigned in a Vision T-shirt, declared his support of the Vision Party platform and told student 14JAN99 Letters in Response:
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| AMAZING JOHNNY! "As University of Florida Student Body President, I am responsible for representing you and heading Student Government. I serve as spokesperson for all students, the University of Florida Administration, the Board of Regents, the Florida Legislature and the federal government." I cant believe my eyes, but yes indeed, SG has done it again, presented to the world the most idiotic statement. This is a public letter to Mr. McGovern from former student senator Charles Grapski |
| "Johnny Lucky Landslide's" most notable achievements A Broadsheet against John McGovern As published on this website during the year McGovern was President (1998-1999) |
| The John McGovern Fan Club Photo Album The best of the imfamous fan club's photo archives (Parody) |
| The results of the FBK Review by the Administration This is Vice-President Art Sandeen's MEMORANDUM to Lombardi, containing his results of the FBK "Review" |
| GRAPSKI vs. Kevin Mayeux(naise) (TKE & Student Body President 1995-1996) Sample acridic e-mail throught the country revolves around the ill-fated attempt to zero-fund SG-funded organisations which protest against the 3rd floor. Circa July 1995 |
| Resignation of a campaign official and creator of this website from the VISION '98 Party (Fall '98) |
| Boo Key "Florida Blue Key is best evidenced by its truly democratic and representative nature, in its spirit of unselfish service to the university..." from a Blue Key newsletter. Unfortunately, the best evidence is that Florida Blue Key is neither democratic nor unselfish and is representative only of its members and the elite special interests they represent. . ." Florida Alligator Editorial, 11 March 1976 |
| Cynicism or sincerity? THAT IS the question. What expectations should the student body and the public have when it comes to the Student Government or the University of Florida acting in accordance with law? Should we tolerate and expect no more than a cynical approach -- or should we expect that those who actually teach the youth and future leaders of our state to follow the law sincerely -- and to teach that lesson to its students? . . . An essay to the administration by C. Grapski |
| SG using holiday as an excuse by David Halpern. Editor: As a member of the religion, I find it appalling and reprehensible that, once again, Student Government is using its manipulative tactics by moving SG elections to an earlier date. September, 1998. |
| FBK- A Member's Perspective Here is Florida Blue Key President Ryan Chandler's original unabridged exposition, distributed at the 3rd & final FBK forum, written response to calls for FBK's removal in the aftermath of the Grapski vs. FBK et al. trial. It is the best extant work defending Blue Key from the charges levelled for years by the Alligator's successive editors and Anti-SG activists. It effectively repudiates all of the lies that have been circulated against the chapter. |
| FBK:
Bribes & blackmail WHEN I WAS a first year
student, i used to blame the greeks for everything. . . however, I eventually
realized that that most greeks were simply manipulated by FBK. . .
Written in 1994 by Michael Harwood
Honorary the Key to great leadership THE RESPONSE FROM [then] FBK President Joe Touger to Michael Harwood's "FBK: Bribes & Blackmail" (vide supra) "As president of Florida Blue Key, UF's oldest leadership honorary, it is my responsibility to correct the errors made in the Dec. 5 column, "Blue Key full of bribes, blackmail." The most glaring inaccuracy is the allegation that. . ." |
| Letters to the editor about the casey bill and FSA's questionable interpretation of it. 28 July 98. |
| Professor of Law Joseph W. Little's first open letter to J. Lombardi HEAD ATTORNEY for the plaintiff in Grapski vs. McGovern, FBK, & Vlcek places his legal arguments in a well quoted epistle to the University President. Letter. May, 1998. |
| Professor of Law Joseph W. Little's second open letter to J. Lombardi HEAD ATTORNEY for the plaintiff in Grapski vs. McGovern, FBK, & Vlcek places his legal arguments in a well quoted epistle to the University President. Letter. 27 June, 1998. |
| Electoral Results in Multi-Member Plurality Districts AN EXAMPLE OF inevitable 'splitting of the vote' in the spring of '95 election results from the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences |
| Lombardi's Letter to Spring '98 FBK Pres. Ryan Chandler THIS IS Lombardi's informal announcement of what the University plans to do about FBK. Dated 19 May, 1998. |
| Angus
Laird, FBK member Guest writer Charles Grapski,
world's foremost expert on Florida Blue Key, expounds in an entertaining
brief narrative of the political life of Angus Laird, original member of
Blue Key & UF Hall of fame circa 1925. Historia.
01 Jun '98
[Historical Note: After personally researching innumerable ancient alligators from the entire 1920's foundation of Blue Key, I was unable to verify any of Grapksi's conclusions of fratracide in Blue Key. During the period that Laird was working with the Alligator, no anti-Blue Key articles could be found at all, or even the period after him. It appears to be no more than politics as usual--Blue Key has never strayed far from the political surroundings of the State of Florida. Just as politics in the State of Florida 1920's was, so was the workings of any campus politics in the Florida Campus in the 1920's.] |
| Can't buy brotherhood Pro-greek-letter Organization propaganda, by Mark Zmarzly, University of Nebraska at Lincoln |
| Top Ten Most likely new jobs John McGovern will have after he is recalled and suspended from the student body. Lampoon., with all due respect to our head of state 29 April '98 |
| Apathy toward student government grows A letter to the editor by David Halpern, former Honor Court Justice. |
| Actual write-in ballots A collection of actual write-in ballots used by students in the fall '95 election, declassified and now disclosed to the public. That election was famous for the candidacy of "No One", (who actually received quite a few votes). This collection shows how little things have changed. Document.(Editor's note: This is one of my favourites, very entertaining!) |
| Top 10 List for Spring 1999 SG Elections: By Anonymous |
| Five Short Scenes outside no. 312 (Photography) The Florida Blue Key office is located on the 3rd Floor of the Reitz Union in room number 312. Here are some photographs taken during the height of the Grapski defamation trial hysterics, when the verdict finding the defendants liable was returned. Pictures taken by Sean McClendon, Alumnus |
| Campus Politics. . . No Longer Just a Game "As Vera Brittain once said, 'Politics are usually the executive expression of human immaturity.' " A Satire on the Spring 2000 SG Election by Ken Kerns |
| History of Constitutional Amendments proposed under the 1968 Reform Constitution(Spring 1968-Spring 2000) |
| A brief history of the Students for Fair & Equal Representation |
| Gator life at the University of Florida, 1920 A.D. Facts about life at the early years of the University |
| Gator life at the University of Florida, 1968 A.D. A brief view of a troubled time in transition |
| The Last Independent, or The Betrayal of Colin Murphy This unpublished column of mine discusses the 1996 Election and the hypocrisy of the anti-SG crowd |
| A history of the Spring 2000 Student Government Election An fair and true account of the famous laste spring election of the 20th Century, with all of its "trust funds" and fratricide en masse |
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| Florida Administrative Code on Student Affairs The State regulations which govern all student governments in Florida's State University System |
| The Constitution of the Student Government of the University of Florida (Current as of Spring 2000, before any proposals from the Constitutional Revision Committee of 2000 have taken effect) |
| JUDICIAL NOTICE THE NOW famous Judicial Notice issued in the Grapski vs. FBK, McGovern, Vlcek trial. The Judicial Notice was given after the original trial judge (who was replaced before the trial commenced) was persuaded by Grapski's volumes of Alligator articles and such 'proving' Blue Key was the de facto controller of Student Government. |
| House Bill 4259's Amendment regarding Student Governmental Ethics This is the amendment attached to House Bill 4259, passed by both chambers of the legislature in the Spring of '98 legislative session. This bill, in the absence of the Governor's vote, has hereby become a statutory law of the Sovereign state of Florida, on Tuesday the 16th of June, 1998. |
| Initiative to Recall John McGovern and remove J.W. Reitz Union in-kind aid to FBK THIS INITIATIVE, written by the author of this WWW site, and proposed by the Students for Fair & Equal Representation, has been submitted both to the Administration and the Chancellor of the Student Honor Court to be placed on the Fall Ballot, being decided by the Student Body via plebiscite. Over One thousand and two hundered and fifty signatures were recieved in two day's time. Currently, there are approximately 1300 signatures. Drafted on the Sixteenth of April, 1998. |
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AMICUS CURIÆ BRIEFS "Interested parties may submit written briefs arguing any viewpoint with respect to the issue before the Board of Masters" --Board of Master's Rules of Procedure, Rule VI |
| SALT, VISION PARTY, et. al. v. CARROLL, et al. 23OCT98 |
| SLOSSBERG, VISION '99 et al. v. HELLER, PROGRESS PARTY, et al. 05APR99 |
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| Official Election Results--Spring 1995 Summary of Election Results by Percentage--Spring 1995 |
| Official Election Results--Fall 1995 |
| Official Election Results--Fall 1996 |
| Official Election Results--Spring 1997 |
| Official Election Results--Fall 1997 |
| Official Election Results--Spring 1998 |
| Official Election Results--Fall 1998 |
| Official Elections Results--Spring 1999 [with the corrected re-count of 29MAR99] |
| Official Election Results--Fall 1999 |
| Official Election Results--Spring 2000 |
| Fall Turnout in SG Elections 1995-1998 |
| Vote Totals & percentages of all independents & minor party candidates, in order, when running against two major parties in on-campus housing districts. Fall '96, '97, & '98 |