2008 Woodie Awards
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Clash of the candidates - News analysis
Tuesday's ASUO debate showcased a wide spectrum of candidates, ranging from the comically aloof, to the painfully stiff and the blatantly absurd
by Tyler Graf | Opinion editor
See video from the debate!
The ASUO executive debate featured a rapper, a "douchebag" slayer and a self-described cowboy, among the usual suspects - a collection of ASUO insiders and their friends.
282 Lillis was the venue, and it was not even half full. The people in attendance wore colorful shirts, denoting their allegiance with one of the various slates. Many of the attendees were running for office themselves, either Student Senate or Programs Finance Committee.
There was a palpable sense that the debate was nothing more than a perfunctory exercise in preaching to the choir.
All of the candidates were there: Ty Schwoeffermann and Paul Kammerzelt; Sara Hamilton and Athan Papailiou; Richard Nile; Ted Niedermeyer; Jonathan Rosenberg and Avital Ostfield; Emily McLain and Chii-San SunOwen; and Ari Lesser and Phil Wood.
Although there was a large number of candidates - more than in past years - most of the candidates agreed with each other on every issue, with few exceptions. Niedermeyer was the exception, as his platform consisted primarily of terminating all douchebags. It was refreshingly honest and sent the audience into apoplexies of laughter.
McLain, on the other hand, spoke like an animatronic character at Disneyland, but her points were valid. "We don't want a government dictated by a few, but a government dictated by us," McLain said, implying everyone on campus.
McLain spoke like a true debater, though her rhetoric was dry. She and SunOwen emphasized lobbying in Salem and taking textbook concerns directly to publishers.
It was a populist stance, one shared by every other person on the stage. But the executive debate is rarely about taking controversial stances.
Hamilton and Papailiou looked like junior bank tellers, wearing snappy suits, and emphasized their experience - to the point of redundancy. Nonetheless, the tactic worked well as it gave the pair credibility. In past elections, the candidates with the most experience have inevitably won. Sometimes candidates run as ASUO outsiders, but this tactic generally backfires, with the recent exception of 2005-2006 executive Adam Walsh and Kyla Coy.
The ASUO executive debate featured a rapper, a "douchebag" slayer and a self-described cowboy, among the usual suspects - a collection of ASUO insiders and their friends.
282 Lillis was the venue, and it was not even half full. The people in attendance wore colorful shirts, denoting their allegiance with one of the various slates. Many of the attendees were running for office themselves, either Student Senate or Programs Finance Committee.
There was a palpable sense that the debate was nothing more than a perfunctory exercise in preaching to the choir.
All of the candidates were there: Ty Schwoeffermann and Paul Kammerzelt; Sara Hamilton and Athan Papailiou; Richard Nile; Ted Niedermeyer; Jonathan Rosenberg and Avital Ostfield; Emily McLain and Chii-San SunOwen; and Ari Lesser and Phil Wood.
Although there was a large number of candidates - more than in past years - most of the candidates agreed with each other on every issue, with few exceptions. Niedermeyer was the exception, as his platform consisted primarily of terminating all douchebags. It was refreshingly honest and sent the audience into apoplexies of laughter.
McLain, on the other hand, spoke like an animatronic character at Disneyland, but her points were valid. "We don't want a government dictated by a few, but a government dictated by us," McLain said, implying everyone on campus.
McLain spoke like a true debater, though her rhetoric was dry. She and SunOwen emphasized lobbying in Salem and taking textbook concerns directly to publishers.
It was a populist stance, one shared by every other person on the stage. But the executive debate is rarely about taking controversial stances.
Hamilton and Papailiou looked like junior bank tellers, wearing snappy suits, and emphasized their experience - to the point of redundancy. Nonetheless, the tactic worked well as it gave the pair credibility. In past elections, the candidates with the most experience have inevitably won. Sometimes candidates run as ASUO outsiders, but this tactic generally backfires, with the recent exception of 2005-2006 executive Adam Walsh and Kyla Coy.
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