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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 36, Number 9. 1ts May 1973

European Decadence at VUW: An Easter Puke

European Decadence at VUW: An Easter Puke

When one is doing a critique of the university, it is difficult to know whom to attack most, staff or students, but I will take the former, because they are generally at a more advanced stage of idiocy.

Firstly, where is Euro and Yank society going.... most definitely west, to throw in a pun. Brecht, whom those literary morons chronically misinterpret, observed this years ago, and one needs only to analyse the development of Euro literature (at a depth beyond the capability of most staff members admittedly) to see the destructive, decadent effect that "progress" has had ... too many people, too much misdirected energy, materialism. Euro-land and the Big A are sick society and arc threatening to pull us down with them, but what is the university, supposedly at the vanguard of 'cultural progress' doing about this?

(a) Teaching

The quality of the teaching here is abysmal. Why? Because students with some spark of inspiration and endurance (because one needs endurance to last it out here) are told that all the 'great minds' are Yanks or Euros? How, in fuck, can a sick society produce great minds? This is so totally absurd! Not only are Euros appointed to academic posts here, but even NZ'ers who hardly deserve to be called of this nation, so corrupted are they by Euros and Yanks. Yet our teaching standards arc being continually measured against those of sick societies? How insane!

(b) General

Brecht demonstrated how misdirected energy led to materialism and ego-encapsulation. And shit, there are millions of encapsulated egos homing round the staff club. Firstly, six months too late, fervent resolutions were passed at Faculty level about the preservation of trees on campus, "the university should be at the vanguard of cultural consciousness!" was the battle cry. Yet six months ago, and today, fervour was directed towards the preservation of parking spaces. We all know that gleaming cars and glistening asphalt, and billowing exhaust-fumes are things beautiful to watch .... but no, let us not charge staff with insincerity, blindness and hypocrisy!.....that's not British! After all, one cannot say that one has to be a human being to be a good teacher .... there is no correlation whatsoever............What utter shit!

So on this count we see that again the correlation between human being and academic at this univeristy has vanished, and it is small comfort to realise that the situation is worse overseas. This vacuousness also shows itself in the manner in which their sexual life is conducted .... a sordid morass... distinguished by meaninglessness and depravity, and with more concern beyond that, for whether their lovers will help or hinder their careers or not. Shit, there is so much mud to be slung about staff members' feeble behaviour, one's mind blows, and it is ironic that it is their middle-class pseudo-morality that prevents students being generally dragged into such messes.

And the way appointments are made is a wonder to behold! The little ego-circle is nicely preserved by criteria such as publications (which no-one bothers to check up on to see if they are any good .... which most of them aren't) and referees from Euro-land. No more need be said about the irrelevance of that! Also whether he's a nice chap, whether he helps his boss in the garden (obvious sexual imagery) and all that shit. Can he communicate with students? Goody gracious me! That has nothing to do with it!

Well, it's all a sick mess, and the students are doing fuck all about it. Most of the bright students go to Euro-land or the Big A, get corrupted and vested interests, and return as non-human beings to perpetuate the circle. It is a good thing that the UGC Research Committee wants more research done in NZ, and perhaps students might start forgetting about politics that relate to things Euro and Yankee, and start worrying about how things work out in the South Pacific. And above all, let's start doing something for the poor schoolkids who emerge crippled by a school system and come to university for something better, if we can't do anything for ourselves now!

Disgusted Porirua Worker