the best thing since referendum dispensation

There was an interesting discussion that I was a part of recently, about how student societies were different from other types of provincially incorporated societies.

The societies act itself is not a overreaching guideline for the actions of a student association. There are also enumerated responsibilities and rights within acts such as the University Act.

The title of this post refers to a letter of special dispensation to change our bylaws, which is something that I find kind of ridiculous – we shouldn’t have to be a special case for the basic operations of the society, using methods that students societies have in the past. Perhaps the action was deliberate, but, more and more, it is an intolerable frustration.

Student Societies have to function on very quick turnover times, bot in terms of the leadership (which is, I suppose, true of any organism), and in terms of the membership (which is not).

Facing further amendments to the Act, ones which might see the AMS membership restricted to only those above 18, there is an even greater imperative to halt this trend and steer our ship of society away from the rocky waters of Australian-style voluntary student unionism.

An separate act will be a much easier way to function, as some of the stupid things that catch us up with regard to this could be removed, and greater checks can be placed on the student societies in places where such checks would be deemed to be relevant to the operations of a student union.