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I ditorial

The opinions expressed in this column do not neces- sarily reflect those of the staff of this publication, or of the Student Union.

Everybody remembers the old school bully. He was the big mean guy in school who scared everybody into doing exactly what HE wanted. Well that wasa long time ago. This is university and we are all too big for bullies now, right? -WRONG. There is a new bully in our school and he has everybody doing just what he wants, only this time he is not looking for just our lunch money.

When the provincial government found itself witha supposently “‘unexpected’’ $50 million dollar short- age of money, it told everyone who has any financial connections with the provincial treasury to ask their employees to take a voluntary cut in their wages and ‘Salaries of 9% or else the government might just have to force them to. Since the university gets a few million (around 20) from the treasury each year, we fell into this great category.

The university did what every schoolboy does when confronted by a bully, it gave the province exactly what it wanted. Since the staff and faculty unions had contracts with the university, they refused to take the ¢utso the university had to find other ways of getting the money before the big bully came around and started to show his muscles.

| The final solution: In order to protect the university's

| autonomy, the university decided to tell the govern-

mi ntto cut this years funding to the university by

ja t ut $600,000, the amount the government asked for. his amounted to no more then the university giving

he government exactly what it wanted in an effort to

void facing the fact the government has power over

he university. This was viewed as a great saviour to

i¢ university's autonomy yet if we refused to help

and called the bully’s bluff we probably would

fe found out that the bully would have stepped

wn (asall bully’s do) and, except forsome hard

lings, we would have been $600,000 better off,

the university says that the money is coming

a surplus they have had over the past number of (maybe from the 15% increase in tuition last year). This deal that the university made with the government is only transferring the burden of the

problem on to the backs of students. With the govern- ment saying that there will be no increases in grants to the university over the next few years the students are in an even more vulnerable position now then ever.

Instead of the university falling to pressure, it should have stood up to the government and taken the bluff. If the government did forced the pay decreases, then all the university would have lost was face and the cutbacks would have given the university a better financial foothold for the next few years.

The next time the problem arises (and it will) I think that the univers't:’ should stand it ground and tell the provincial government they should instead try for some other ways of finding money, maybe a student loan?

Indebted to you,

Coy Forze

Cory Large Editor

GPradcaind

189 Kent St., Charlottetown 894-4291

(QOCMINAMBURCERG ove FREE AS You ENTER

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November 21, 199]

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