Opinion

Why wasn’t there an SSFC meeting?

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Related stories:

• The saga continues (November 10, 2003)
• Last Thursday's Student Council meeting never happened. (October 7, 2002)
• Students' surplus (June 20, 2001)
• Full Disclosure (September 29, 2005)
• Keep SAFE accountable (October 29, 2003)

Also by Badger Herald Editorial Board:

• The Invisible Man Award: Wyndham Manning (May 7, 2009)
• The People's Choice Award: Jacqueline Hitchon et. al (May 7, 2009)
• The Lifetime Achievement Award: ASM (May 7, 2009)
• Honest representation (May 5, 2009)
• Junger for ASM Chair (May 5, 2009)

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On Monday the meeting of the Student Service Finance Committee was needlessly canceled. Apparently SSFC chair Lamont Smith had better things to do with his time than comply with ASM bylaws and post the agenda 24 hours in advance. Smith’s actions - or lack thereof - were both completely avoidable and inconsiderate.

While posting the agenda is the easiest part of Smith’s job, it is also the most important. All of SSFC’s operations hinge on this simple act, which, when not performed, has the power to throw the committee off course for the rest of the school year. Because there was no meeting Monday night, the budget hearings and decisions will need to be rescheduled for a later date. This is a huge inconvenience for the representatives of the student orgs who had booked on presenting their budgets Monday. When Smith made the decision not to do his job, he made the jobs of other people considerably more difficult.

Selfishness and negligence of this scope is indefensible, and ASM should revoke Smith’s stipend for this week. Such a move would not be unheard of. Last year, after ASM secretary Andy Nathan failed to attend meetings and keep the minutes, his stipend was revoked by chair Mike Dean.

If ASM is serious about cleaning up its image, it needs to hold itself accountable. Following last year’s precedent would be an excellent start. Until then, Smith’s stipend for this week is a seg fee abuse.