I would like to address the concerns of one of my readers, who In his letter to the editor published Nov, 4 he stated that "The only way, the board of trustees can be changed is through an act of Congress" and further admonishes students "to lobby our representatives" so that AU "can fix the fundamental flaws that [I] refuse to acknowledge need fixing." Upon reading this I did not know whether to feel immensely saddened at his clear misunderstanding of my point or to collapse in intractable laughter due to his innocent naivety. What he was stating was that Congress needs to fix AU's problems because we our incapable of fixing them ourselves. This is insulting because AU is composed of intelligent individuals who are more than equipped to deal with the issues at hand.
As my readers, will recall, in my last column, I posed the question, "Where does this end?" and stated that the Ladner issue amounted to a pyrrhic victory for the university. Since it appears that term has been clearly misunderstood by some, it's worth demonstrating here. Simply put, a pyrrhic victory is one in which the victory is offset by staggering losses. The sad part is that because many have gotten some of their initiatives accomplished, they've lost the capacity to know when to stop. This was demonstrated when individuals first protested to get rid of Ladner. Now that this is done, an attempt is being made to rid ourselves of the board, too. If that's also accomplished, while we're at it, let's rid ourselves of the entire administration and the governance structure of the university. Afterall, they were around during "Ladnergate" so following that logic they probably suborned this behavior also. The bottom-line is this: Unless someone says something, chances are, individuals will follow the polarized energy to their own destruction. So, I will be that person that says "Stop! Open your eyes and look at what you're doing." In fact, if you are among these individuals, do yourself a favor and print out a banner that says "the problem starts here" and pin it to your ceiling over your bed, and paste one around the mirror in your bathroom so that you may be daily reminded of the fundamental problem with AU- the unrelenting anger and refusal to be satisfied with anything except one's own way. It's like going to the doctor with a runny nose, and demanding the amputation of both arms and legs as the only reasonable solution to cure your ailment.
At best Ladner was a small symptom of a larger problem that does not necessitate the abolishment of the board or governance structure of our university. This is the fundamental truth that many fail to realize. I do not suggest that we continue with the status quo, but I did and still wish to call attention to the fact that many are advocating radical change without regard to the cost. This is neither useful nor wise. Some action was probably necessary. How much is the question that many have neither asked nor answered. Think about it this way: if one does not prepare for all possible outcomes of a situation before one thrusts themselves head first into it, they do so to their own peril and have no right to complain about the outcome-good or bad. So if just for the sake of argument, I acknowledge that getting rid of Ladner might have been a good idea, I must simultaneously acknowledge that I'm equally at fault for not preparing for the possibility that he might receive a "golden parachute".
Further, I must be an adult and understand that I cannot blame others for the problems caused as a result of my ill preparation. Right or wrong, the simple lesson that can be learned from this is that in life no one is going to agree or like 100 percent of the things that occur. However, this does not absolve one of their social responsibility as an individual to conduct themselves in an orderly manner. In general, the individuals who were protesting were far from orderly. Storming the board meeting and demanding to be heard showed little respect for anyone involved in the situation. Namely, the protestors degraded and disrespected themselves by acting in such a manner. Quite frankly, I would be less than who I am if I did not say otherwise.
Lastly, I think AU has many good people still actively involved in assuring the continued success of our university. The ones who were not on the same accord have been discovered and I'm sure will be taken care of in due time. It is time to begin rebuilding and stop destroying. Will you be on board or not?
