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The debt ceiling was originally cre-

ated to control congressional spend-ing by limiting the amount o debt the

ederal government could hold. The Treasury Department has recorded

that Congress has voted to raise, ex-tend, or change the denition o the

debt limit 78 times since 1960, so to-day’s situation is by no means a new

one. The institution o the debt ceil-ing has been largely meaningless un-

til recent the debate has stalled whatwas once a thoughtless “yes” vote to

increase spending levels.

The biggest worry about the budgetcrisis is, o course, the ear that the

US government will go into deault onpayments. As ederal debt nears the

limit, there will be real consequencesor the continued operation levels

o the ederal government. Once thedebt limit is reached, the treasury will

be unable to issue new debt to man-age annual decits or short-term cash

ow issues. In other words, unless thedebt ceiling is raised or there are sig-

nicant cuts in spending the govern-ment will not be able to pay its bills.

Many have gone on record saying

that without a rise in the debt ceil-ing to allow the ederal governmentto continue borrowing money, deault

will be unavoidable. But this is notnecessarily the case.

According to Veronique de Rugy, a

senior research ellow at the Merca-tus Center at George Mason Univer-

sity, the Treasury Department has theoption to prioritize payments on debt

and interest thus avoiding deault. Byher calculations, even without raising

the debt ceiling, the ederal govern-ment will still have enough money

coming in to take care o its debt ob-ligations. Rugy breaks down some o

her calculations as ollows, “About

6.1% o all projected ederal expen-

ditures will go to interest on the debt,and the tax revenue is projected to

cover about 60.1% o all governmentexpenditures.” By th ese calculations

the ederal government will haveroughly 10 times more than needed

to honor its debt obligations. Letoverunds would then be used to ulll

other obligations, like payments toentitlement programs such as Social

Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.Assuming there were signicant cuts

in the budget, the ederal governmentcould avoid deault by prioritizing

debt payments, then honor promisesto people on entitlement programs,

and still end up with $300 billionlet over, according to Rugy. She re-

ports that tax revenue is expected tobe $2.2 trillion and interest payments

will be roughly $300 billion, thiswould leave $1.9 trillion in revenues

to pay or entitlement programs with$300 billion let over.

Also, while reusing to raise the debt

ceiling is a rst or Congress, in thepast there has not been such a rush to

raise the limit by a deadline. Reason

Magazine reports that in 1985, Con-gress waited nearly 3 months aterthe debt limit was reached beore it

authorized an increase. In 1995, Con-gress waited 4 months, and in 1985

they waited 3 months again. So whilethe public has been made to believe

that ailure to raise the debt ceilingpromptly will lead to immediate and

catastrophic ailures, based on theprevious examples, that is not the

case.

See US Debt, Pg. 8

Politics is simply a war o words.

There are certain words that triggerreactions, no matter the context, al-

most as i it were the aesthetics o thewords that dened the policy at issue.

It is ne to be in avor o job creation,but just do not say you want to help

people make a prot. Please, don’tcall this policy gun control; reer to it

instead as a ‘common-sense law thatupholds liberty.’ Conservatives and

libertarians are very amiliar with thiskind o Orwellian newspeak.

In the August 13, 2011 issue o The

Economist, the newspaper eaturedon its cover an article on the riots in

Britain. The article was titled Anar-chy in the U.K. As I reread the title,

my brow urrowed. Had the govern-ment o the entire United Kingdom

nally allen? Was Thomas Hobbesrolling in his grave? O course not.

Indeed, it was ormer M.P. AuberonHerbert who was to be rolling in his.

The Economist was reerring to the ri-ots, a temporary maniestation o an-

tisocial chaos, as anarchy. Anarchy, aphrase that means without-ruler in the

original Greek, was used to describe

mobs o people stealing or damagingothers’ property with violent orce,the implication being that more rul-

ers, more arkhoi, are needed to subduethe chaos. But Britain’s government

did not go anywhere. Britain has oneo the largest centralized bureaucra-

cies in the West. Insoar as anarchyis understood to mean an absence o

government, surely Britain did not tthe bill in that week o rioting. What

they saw was govthe government hascompetition in violence and, thus, has

lost its monopoly. But his argumentis awed.

See Not Anarchy, Pg 6

On September 21, 2011, two police

ocers o the Fullerton Police De-partment were charged in the beat-

ing death o Kelly Thomas. Over ahundred eyewitness accounts and

video evidence convinced the districtattorney’s oce o Orange County

to charge these two ocers with sec-ond-degree murder, involuntary man-

slaughter, and excessive orce. Thevictim, Kelly Thomas, was an un-

armed, innocent homeless man witha history o mental illness. It serves

the City o Fullerton right that thesedisgraced lawmen receive punish-

ment or ailing to uphold their dutyto serve and protect the community

and instead murder an innocent man.

On July 5th o this year, Thomas gotinto a conrontation with police o-

cers at a bus depot, which aggressive-ly searched him while investigating

a burglary report. The ocers claimthat Thomas resisted the search when

he was unable to comply with o-cers’ orders and, as a result, caused

six ocers to hold down Thomasor “reusing” to cooperate. One o-

cer then proceeded to raise his sts

to Thomas’ ace, proclaiming to himthat, “These sts were ready to “***you up.” The ocers inicted violent

blows to Kelly Thomas’ head despitehis pleas or help and cries o, “I’m

sorry.”

By the end o it all, Thomas had su-ered extensive, and ultimately atal,

injuries. He had been severely beatenwith kicks and punches to his head

and neck, baton strikes to his ribs,and the weight o at least our ocers

on top o him, crushing his chest. Theocers also shot him at least twice

with a stun gun. Thomas was takento a nearby hospital, where he slipped

into a coma rom which he would

never wake rom. He died ve days

later shortly ater being taken of liesupport.

There can be no doubt that these

Fullerton police ocers committedmurder and should be punished or

the mere act that they did not dothe job that they were hired to do. In

act, they did the opposite o their jobdescription, oppressing those in their

watch instead o protecting them. Thequestion arises then o who “watches

the watchmen” and protects us romthose who are supposed to “protect”

us. The answer lies within each o us.

Every day, more and more violent

encounters between law enorce-ment and civilians are reported and

addressed, because civilians haveone o the most powerul weapons

against aggressive cops, technology.Video tape evidence was used in the

case against the Fullerton ocers,which allowed the district attorney’s

oce to try the ocers in court andconvinced a jury that at least two o

them were guilty o second-degree

murder. In the ace o state-sponsoredviolence, the civilian armed with thevideo camera can wield more power

than the rearm and public opinioncan be used as a great tool o political

inuence on the local level.

Ultimately, it is each individual inthe community that must watch the

watchmen. It is each person in a com-munity that must have the respon-

sibility to protect themselves rompotential threats to their lives, liberty,

and property, and now, rogue cops.

Cody is a sophomore in WarrenCollege majoring in management

science.

October 2011 Volume LXXXV

Ater increasing tuition nine timesover the last ten years, undergradu-

ates in the UC system will now bepaying more than three times what

their contemporaries ten years agohad to pay, much o which has gone

to pay or a bigger UC bureaucracy.Over the last 10 years the 342% in-

crease in tuition has been accompa-

nied by a 200% increase in the s ize o the UC administration.

At the UC Regents meeting on July12-14, 2011 in San Francisco, tuition

was increased or both undergradu-ate and graduate students by an ad-

ditional 9.6 percent, to bring the totalincrease or Fall 2011 to somewhere

between 17.6 and 18.3 percent. Thisis the second increase or UC students

in the last eight months. This decisionraises costs or instate students rom

$11,124 to around $12,192, exclud-ing individual campus ees (For UC

San Diego, these increases add anadditional $1,042, bringing the total

cost to $13,234). However, or UC

students whose amilies earn under$120,000 combined (55% o the total

student body) the UC system will becovering the ull cost o the combined

tuition hike.

In March 2011, the President o theUC Regents, Mark Yudo, told stu-

dents to be prepared or a possiblemid-year tuition increase o 32%

or 2011-2012 i state unds are not

restored. At the current rate o tu-ition increases, it has been estimatedthat instate student tuition could hit

$25,000 by the 2015-2016 academicyear. For a UCSD undergraduate, the

cost o all tuition alone in 2003-2004was $2,035.50 while in 2011 it will

have increased to $4,710.72.

On September 14th, the universityunveiled its long-term budget plan,

which calls or annual tuition in-creases o 8% to 16% or the next

our years. At the highest increase o 16%, it would bring tuition to as high

as $22,068 or the 2015-2016 schoolyear or in-state tuition.

See page 5, UC Regents

Public Education: Sacrificed Uponthe Altar of the Regents Alexander Kreedman

Raise the roof! History of US DebtKara Henderson

London CallingJosh House

“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”Cody Dunn



2 Caliornia Review Date About this Issue

An unapologetic celebration of American

Ideals since 1982.

“Imperium Libertatis”

Editor-In-Chief: Cody DunnManaging Editor : Simeon MorrisContent Editor: Kara Hendersonlayout Editor : Kelsey DoironBusiness Manager : Ankur ChawlaResearch Director : Angad WaliaLiasons: Amy Lock, Gabriella Hofman

StaffTony Baiz Miranda ConwayDustin Gray Alex KreedmanJosh Marxen Jay Patel

Alumni & Guest Contributors

Josh House Derek LeiningerPeter Tariche Alec Weisman

Photography/Artwork/PhotoshopsTony Baiz Kelsey DoironAlex Kreedman James Wu

BenefactorsCaliornia Review Alumni Club

Editors EmeritiAlec Weisman

Patrick Todd Alea RoachJonathan Israel Ryan DarbyChristopher J Fennel Terrence P. Morrissey

Vince Vasquez Gavin T. Gruenberg

Goon Pattanumotana Kerry C. LiuMichael J. Malervy Ben Boychuk

Matthew S. Robinson Brooke CrockerRobert F. Triplett William D. EggersP. Joseph Moons John S. Cleaves

C.G. Alario Barry DemuthC. Brandon Crocker C.G.Alario

E. Clasen Young H.W. Crocker III

Founders and Members of the PantheonH.W. Crocker III ’83 Brigader Editor Emeritus

E. Clasen Young ’84 President EmeritusC. Brandon Crocker ’85 Imperator Emeritus

Terrence Morrissey ’02 Architectus ResurrectionisVincent Vasquez ’02 Vates Resurrectionis

The views expressed in The Caliornia Review are solely those o thewriters and do not necessarily represent the opinions o the staf asa whole. The publication may have been unded in part or in whole

by unds allocated by the ASUCSD. While The Caliornia Review isrecognized as a campus student organization at UC San Diego, thecontent, opinions, statements and views expressed in this or any other

publication published and/or distributed by The Caliornia Review arenot endorsed by and do not represent the views, opinions, policies, orpositions o the ASUCSD, GSAUCSD, UC San Diego, the University

o Caliornia and the Regents or their ocers, employees, or agents,even though they should. Each publication bears the ull legal respon-sibility or its content. ASUCSD is our sponsor. Request a copy o their

agenda, and you might nd out how much they dole out to us. © 2011 The Caliornia Review. All rights reseved.

The Caliornia Review (Restitutor Orbis) was ounded on the sunnyaternoon o the Seventh day o January, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty- Two, by discipuli cum civitas listening to Respighi and engaging in

discourse on preserving the American Way.

Temple o Mars, the Avenger:

Caliornia ReviewP.M. Box # 176,9700 Gilman Dr.

La Jolla, CA 92093-5010

[email protected]://caliorniareview.net

“We ew, we happy ew, or he who picks up this paper today shall bemy brother, be he ne’er so vice, this paper will gentle his condition.”

Table Of Contents

Cover Public Education: Sacrificed Upon the Altar of the RegentsRaise the Roof! History of US DebtLondon Calling“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”

: About this IssueLetter from the Editor

Page 3: Election Watch 2012College students Fight to turn Golden State red in 2012

Are You Saying Society Should Let Him Die?The Downsides to “Facebook Activism”

Page 4-5: A look at the UC’s Financial SituationBudget Woes? Live Off-Campus, Save Money UC Students: Not “Valued Customers”

What is “The Meister Controversy?”Public Education: Sacrificed Upon the Altar of the RegentsThe Fee Hikes Come Marching One By One

Page 6-7: Till the World Ends: Violence and Chaos Acropolis Now: Austerity in AthensLondon Calling

The Downsides to “Facebook Activism”The Internet: Empowering the Individual

Page 8: More Budget IssuesFirst they Came for the Books...Raise the Roof! History of US Debt

Whats in the Dream?

Letter from the editor:Dear Readers,

It is a new academic year or all o us, and in particular or me, as the new Editor-in-Chie o

this esteemed student publication. As I take this role, I realize that I will be taking on the re-

sponsibility o maintaining a tradition which will hold its 30th anniversary this January, and

thus, I seek to produce and publish this journal or news and opinion with the same dignity

and dedication as those who came beore me.

In many respects, this year was much like the last in national and world afairs. We are still

deep in the middle o a recession that is slowly slipping into a ull-blown depression, as

students and their amilies alike are orced to adjust to the rise in tuition and other costs

associated with attending college in the UC system. Internationally, our nation is helping topick up the pieces rom Europe’s massive debt crisis even as we struggle with our own debt

problems. We are still engaged in three wars in the Middle East, with the latest news that

our own government has murdered an American citizen associated with Al-Qaida without

due process o law. With the now-standard use o social media, we are constantly reminded

o the tremulous world in which we live, so much so that it seems to be too overbearing or

most people to care.

That is where we come in. As a journal or news, we try to sit through the overbearing inor-

mation to bring you the most relevant news that you might have missed as a tuition-paying

student in the UC system or a taxpaying citizen o Caliornia. We do not claim to have all the

answers, but perhaps we can ask the right questions to oster intelligent discussion among

our peers. As a journal or opinion, we hope to try to introduce new, controversial ideas in

order to expand our readers’ knowledge. Be prepared to read about anything rom Austrian

Economics and Praxeology to the true view o Anarchy and Polycentric Law. Even i you do

not agree with the standpoint and views o all o our writers, I hope we can enlighten you onsome unconventional views that you may never have been exposed to beore.

As a high school student, I took Latin as my oreign language. One phrase which struck out

at me was “Tolle lege,” which means “Pick up and read.” I hope you, our reader, will pick up

and read this newspaper with an open but critical mind. Even i you do not like everything

we print, I hope to present another perspective on the world that is not readily given at our

university.

Wishing you an insightul and sucessul academic year,

Cody Dunn,

Editor-in-Chie

The views expressed in this publication

are not necessarily endorsed by the A.S.



3 Caliornia Review Date Election Watch 2012

Election Watch 2012

Americans have been becoming increasingly

dismissive o the empty rhetoric and bad poli-cies o President Obama. Three years into his

presidency, Obama has done everything imag-inable to undermine ree-market capitalism,

the United States Constitution, and job growth.Most pointedly, President Obama has ailed

to create jobs in the private sector—an outletthat signals this n ation’s economic success and

overall stability. According to the U.S. CensusBureau’s ndings rom September 13, 2011,

nearly 15.1 percent o Americans—46.2 millionpeople—live in poverty due to increased unem-

ployment, an average o 9 percent nationally.

Even the Democrat stronghold o Caliornia—which boasts 12.1 percent unemployment—has

begun to grow disillusioned with the ObamaAdministration. A recent Field Poll arms this

trend, with President Obama’s approval ratingnow resting at 46 percent. The Field poll added,

“With Caliornians, by a greater than three-to-one margin, saying the country is now seri-

ously of on the wrong track, President Barack Obama’s standing with voters has declined. The

current proportion approving o his perormance(46%) is now only slightly greater than the pro-

portion disapproving (44%), a big change romthree months ago when Caliornians approved

o the job he was doing 54% to 37%. In addi-tion, those who are inclined to reelect Obama

outnumber those not inclined by just ve points(49% to 44%).”

Yet both parties caused these economic ailures

due to their anity or big government policies,which has resulted in th e emergence o the Tea

Party. The movement played a major role in the2010 congressional elections and will likely

play a major inuence in the coming election.

However it is in this election season that stu-

dents are taking the initiative to deeat Obamain 2012. This should not be too surprising con-

sidering that young people will ace the brunto debt repayment in the immediate uture and

will graduate into an uncertain economy. Evenin Caliornia, where the number o registered

Democrats greatly outpaces the number o reg-istered Republicans, young activists are ghting

to turn Caliornia red. This is an uphill battle,as L.A. Times reported that 44 percent o regis-

tered voters in Caliornia are Democrats, while33 percent are registered Republicans and 20

percent are declined-to-state.

Reerendums on Obama’s destructive policies—rom the midterm elections o 2010 to recent

special elections in New York and Nevada—have inspired these college activists trying to

bring real change to Caliornia. These studentsbelieve that they can win Caliornia in 2012.

Here is what some o them said:

Emily K. Schrader, a senior at USC, is chair o Caliornia Students or Perry. She believes that

Caliornia could swing red given momentumrom New York’s special election and “anything

can happen. The people have sent a clear mes-sage to Barack Obama that they are no t happy

with the “change” he implemented. I think itwould be a huge challenge, but a denite possi-

bility that Caliornia could turn red in 2012.”

UCLA sophomore Darren Ramalho, CaliorniaStudents or Perry L.A./O.C. Regional Director,

is condent that Rick Perry will inspire a con-servative resurgence here given his economic

record and Reagan-esque appeal. He said, “Weneed success in our small businesses and suc-

cess in promoting competition or growth inour nation. Rick Perry would be the best can-

didate or the Republican Party, and he would

be the best candidate or Caliornia. RonaldReagan started his political career in Caliornia,

and or anyone to say Caliornia cannot osterconservative values is ignorant o history.”

Mary-Kate Kelledy, a sophomore at Azusa Pa-

cic University, agrees with Ramalho that Rick Perry can win Caliornia in 2012. She said, “I

believe Rick Perry has what it takes to trans-orm Caliornia rom the liberal union disaster

it has been, to a state that is both able to main-tain its current employment and produce new

jobs through small business growth.”

But not all young activists see Perry as theircandidate here in the Golden State.

Spencer Smith, a senior at CSU, San Berna-

dino, is condent that Ron Paul could swayvoters to his campaign. Smith believes that

Paul’s Tea Party values will attract disillusion ed

voters to his campaign. He remarked, “Paul

can win Caliornia because Democrats are dis-

appointed that Obama has been no diferentrom George W. Bush on war and civil liberties,

and because Republicans are sick o the pastdecade’s big government liberalism.”

Like Ron Paul, conservative candidates like

Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain also seek to represent Tea Party values in the ace o Cali-

ornia’s economic s ituation.

For example, Trevor Carlsen, a senior at theUniversity o San Diego, has expressed admi-

ration or businessman and Tea Party avoriteHerman Cain. He said, “Cain is a problem solv-

er. And he’s not araid to admit he doesn’t havean answer to everything. But when he doesn’t

know, he goes, does the research and gets ananswer. I don’t know i he’ll win Caliornia but

I still think he’s the best guy right now.”

Gabriella is a senior in Eleanor Roosevelt Col-

lege majoring in Political Science.

It seems that much is being made o Ron Paul’s

answer to Wol Blitzer’s question at the CNNdebate. Dr. Paul was given a hypothetical sce-

nario in which a 30-year-old man chooses notto buy health insurance, ends up b ecoming ill,

and is in need o care. Paul responds, “that’swhat reedom is all about, taking your own

risks.” Blitzer then asks, “Are you saying soci-ety should let him die?” Paul responds that not

only were people not turned away in his work asa physician, but that churches and other private

entities do help and should be the answer.

I think the real underlying issue is the questiono whether the government should subsidize

risk. I the government were to und treatment,then there would be no risk borne by the treated.

Such a policy would not decrease illness or theneed or medical care, but increase it. I I know

that my treatment is going to be “paid or,” Imight be more careless in the activities I choose

to partake in because, why not? The governmentis going to pay or my treatment. Not only that,

but many who would not otherwise seek treat-ment or small ills would now have incentive to

do so i it were paid or. Again, why not?

Also implied in Blitzer’s question to Dr. Paulwas the notion that subsidizing risk is the moral

high ground. But is it really morally superiorto take money rom the pocket o one stranger

who is healthy, and put it into the pocket o an-other who is sick? I sub mit that the truly moral

person reaches not into the pocket o another,but reaches into his own. There is no compas-

sion or sacrice in the taxation o others.

To urther illustrate this point, what happens i we change the risk that is taken, rom choosing

to opt-out o health insurance to skydiving? Theskydiver risks his lie when he jumps out o the

plane. He could have avoided the risk by not jumping, but he does anyway. He should be ree

to do so, but i his parachute ails and he lives,but breaks every bone in his body, is it really the

responsibility o the government, or rather therest o us, to und his treatment? No, he should

bear the consequences o the risk he took. Theprinciple does not change with the situation.

This is not to say that I, or other generous do-

nors, would not personally help the man, but Ido not think it can be morally argued that so-

ciety actually owes him something or that it isthe responsibility o society as a whole to help

him.

Now, I realize this does not cover those whodo not choose to orego health insurance, but

rather, cannot aford it. From what I under-stand, most o the unins ured are people my age,

in their twenties, who would rather spend $100dollars a month on alcohol than spend a simi-

lar amount on health insurance. For those whocannot aford it, I would argue that getting the

government out o the business would make itsignicantly cheaper and thus more afordable,

but I will save that argument or another day.

Economist Dr. Thomas Sowell wrote in his 2003article “Risky Business” that there exists, “…

the pious statement that ‘i it saves just one lie,it is worth whatever it costs.’ People say things

like that when they want to puf themselves upas caring or when they want to win votes rom

those who don’t bother to think through whatthey are saying. In real lie, nobody acts on that

principle. People don’t give up boating, skiing,or rock climbing, even though they know that

many people lose their lives in these recreation-al activities every year.” Enough said.

Joel is a senior in Marshall College double ma-

joring in history and economics.

College students Fight to turn GoldenState red in 2012Gabriella Hoffman

“Are you saying society should let him die?”Joel Ramos

Many people have that riend who can be best

described as the “Facebook activist.” Thisperson can be dened as someone who posts

articles, politically charged statements, andpolarizing comments on their Facebook more

requently than an automatic machine gun.

These activists have their positive traits. Theytend to be relatively well inormed, passionate,

and emotionally invested in the issues that theycare about. However these traits are oten not

tempered by restraint, leading to illogical and

conused posting that alienates their riends.Some o the negative traits o being a “Face-book activist” include:

1) Facebook Posts (and blog articles) lack edi-

tors (unlike traditional journalism)

• Expertise comes from experience. Poor gram-

mar, bad spelling, logical allacies, and actualinaccuracies harm the cause o the Facebook

activist. Venting can be good to rally supportersto your cause, but i it is poorly phrased then it

is likely to discredit the activist.

2) Constant Posting is as an equivalent to noise

• This occurs when articles are uploaded so rap -

idly that people restrict your access o appear-ing in their wall eed. People tend to tune out

when they are exposed to perpetual stimuli ornews. When this happens, the Facebook activist

loses their ability to expand their movement.

3) Facebook Posts can both prompt and restrictdebate and discussion

• On many occasions, a particularly inamma-tory post may cause the troubling “ame war.”

This subsequently causes a notication explo-sion to both the activist and their riends who

become involved in the discussion. Normallydebate is a good thing, however when people

have no limits on what they can say, they be-come a maelstrom o passion and rage. This

leads to the next problem…

4) Exacerbates Personal Problems

•Many times people do not realize that whatthey post on Facebook is essentially public.

The saying goes, “The only way three people

can keep a secret is i two o them are dead.”

Facebook has the ability to ampliy gossip, bit-ter statements, and misunderstandings. When

the passionate “Facebook activist” posts beoreully thinking what the reaction to their com-

ments may be, they are likely to nd them-selves spewing bitter words toward their riend

or engaging in libel in the heat o the moment. This also prompts the Facebook activist to go

on purges to restrict or remove people who dis-agree with them or who seek to provide them

with constructive criticism. In addition, this can

cause the next problem…

5) Facebook becomes a place to publically at-

tack allies

•If you are an activist you have few enough al-

lies as it is. When “Facebook activists” go onrants attacking organizations and allies that

ght alongside them they hurt their cause. Dis-agreements on an issue are no excuse to smear

or slander allies. By doing so, the “Facebook activist” loses credibility and becomes the sub-

ject o scorn, derision, and laughter. Criticizein private, praise in public, and unless the dis-

agreement is irreconcilable, agree to disagreepeaceully.

6) Facebook becomes an Echo Chamber

•This is the worst thing that can happen for the“Facebook activist.” Once they have purged

anyone who disagrees with them then their ac-tivism becomes trapped. When people are not

being challenged, their ideas become stagnant,and their egos cause them to become sel-righ-

teous. This leads to the next problem…

7) They Appear to be Closed-Minded

• This occurs when “Facebook activists” ndthemselves lacking input rom others and theycompletely discount opposing viewpoints. They

become trapped in the bubble o the “victimmentality,” believing that their opponents are

particularly menacing or evil.

See Facebook, P. 9

The Downsides to “Facebook Activism” Alec Weisman



4 Caliornia Review Date A Look At The UC’s Financial Situation

a look at the UC’sWashington, DC – Students at the University o

Caliornia, San Diego (UCSD) now pay less i they live of-campus, according to data rom the

National Center or Education Statistics.

The estimated cost to live on campus h as risenby more than $1,000 over the last ve years.

This more than thirteen percent increase is stark when compared to the cost o living of-campus.

These lucky commuters will pay a mere $300more than ve years ago, a 3.2 percent increase

that is below even the Consumer Price Index(CPI) ination rate o 3.6 percent. In the 2011-

2012 academic year, UCSD students who liveof-campus are expected to save more than 800

dollars when compared to their on campus peerswhen considering all non-tuition expenses.

The 2010-2011 academic year was the rst time

that it was cheaper or a student to live of-campus ater considering all expenses. For the

2011-2012 academic year room and board onthe UCSD campus is expected to cost $11,571

on average, while commuters are expected topay $9,669 or room and board.

Students at every college in the University o

Caliornia (UC) system will nd it is more ex-pensive to live on campus. Yet as housing on the

UC campuses grows more costly, students wholive on campus in the Caliornia State Univer-

sity system and many Caliornia private univer-sities will pay less. Students living on campus

in the UC system paid on average $2,238 morethan the surrounding community, whereas stu-

dents saved on average $842 to live on campusin the CSU system. Several private universities

saved students living on campus an average o $645 compared to students who commuted.

At the University o Caliornia, San Diego the

price o room and board is determined by Hous-

ing, Dining and Hospitality Services (HDH),

“a sel-supporting department o UC San Di-

ego that operates without any state unding.” The HDH sets the price o on-campus room

and board as it manages all on campus housingunits, meal plans, and housekeeping services.

Yet the inationary and rent-seeking policies o the HDH have contributed to making on cam-

pus housing less afordable.

For the th year in a row, UCSD students wholive in the dorms will ace another increase in

the price o their mandatory minimum mealplan, as it increases to 2,908 dining dollars.

These students will be receiving a meal planthat is 800 dining dollars greater than students

had in 2007. Although students living in oncampus apartments will only have a 100 point

dining dollar increase to 2208 dining dollars,according to HDH these minimum dining plans

are not meant to eed students 3 meals a day, 7days a week.

These meal plans are “designed to be exible

or an array o liestyles and appetites,” andthereore several options, including “buy up”

exist or students who want the option o having3,400 dining dollars. HDH also recommends

that students living in the dorms should spend87 dining dollars per week (~340 per month),

students in campus apartments should spend 65dining dollars per week (~260 per month), and

students with the “buy up” option should spend100 dining dollars per week (~400 per month).

HDH promises that one dining dollar “yieldsone dollar o purchasing power.”

I dining dollars are the equivalent o a nor-

mal dollar then prices on-campus are heavilyinated. According to the US Department o

Agriculture, the average person between theages o 19-50 in the United States spent only

$242 on ood per month in peak months o the

academic year (November, February, May). In

2010-2011, only the largest consumers were ex-

pected to spend close to the equivalent diningdollar value as students in the dorms ($340.33

or men, $300.60 or women), while thrity con-sumers were expected to spend ar less ($172.23

or men, $153.17 or women).

This $800 meal plan increase or students liv-

ing in the dorms is drastically higher than av-erage American ood spending, which has onlyincreased by $10-$20 dollars in the ace o a

world ood price crisis that has been ongoingsince 2007. HDH’s policy enables students to

have both letover dining dollars (which arekept by the school i they are unused) and in-

ated ood prices on-campus due to their mo-nopoly o the dining halls (that justiy increas-

ing the minimum rate or meal plans).

So how has HDH been spending the prot thatthey have made of o the students? Not very

well, according to a 2009 study sponsoredby The Center or Agroecology & Sustainable

Food Systems (CASFS), which is part o the

University o Caliornia Santa Cruz. UCSD stu-dents were asked to rate their dining experi-

ence as well as i they would be willing to paymore or certain oods or oods with a reduced

environmental impact. Only 30% o studentssurveyed said the UCSD dining experience re-

ected their ood values.

Students surveyed responded that the most im-portant eatures or dining hall ood are avor,

saety, and variety, rating avor a 4.62 out 5 onimportance, variety a 4.48 out o 5, and saety

a 4.47 out o 5. Students also heavily support-ed increasing nutritional options and reducing

the price. . In contrast, locally grown ood andvegan-riendly ood scored at the bottom o

students’ priority list, with locally grown oodearning a 2.69 out o 5 and vegan-riendly ood

earning a 2.64 out o 5.

The economy has never been kind on the col-

lege student, who is known in popular culture tosurvive on a diet entirely o Top Ramen and Ca-

pri Sun. Now although that is a bit o an over-statement, college lie is nonetheless straining

on the pocketbook now more than ever.

In these times, households, private businessesand the government are trying to better manage

their own nances in order to get thin gs back inshape. As citizens, we want the government get

things in line as well so that our shoulders are

not burdened with ridiculous amounts o debtlater down the line. We have a double interest,as both citizens and students, to ensure th at our

university, the arm o the government that wedeal with every day, also does not bury us under

debt, either as the receiver o services (student)or as the provider o that services (taxpayer).

Yet it seems as i the University o Caliornia

has no respect or either the students or the pa-trons. Over the course o this last month, the UC

is considering increasing tuition rates by eightto 16 percent per year or the next ew years,

whereas administrative salaries will continue torise, while services (such as libraries) will con-

tinue to be cut.

The LA Times reported that the increase wasproposed in order to deal with a gap between

unding rom the state and unding rom tu-ition. This would mark a monumental shit,

because it would mean that the UC wouldbe receiving, or the rst time, more money

rom its students than rom the state. The UCRegents said the increased was proposed in

order to pressure on the state government tomeet the gap, but there are worries that this

could do the opposite and instead reduce theresponsibility rom the state.

Funding problems or the UC are not new;

there have bee n major protests against therises in tuitions or years, unortunately, with

little avail. But why do these rates continue toincrease so drastically every year? It is because

the UC Regents cannot rein in its spendingand continues to give pay raises to both its

unionized and non-unionized workers.

At UC Davis, the Chie Executive Ocer hadher salary increased by 50% to almost $1 million

per year. The UC Regents argued that this wasnecessary to retain her position against compe-

tition rom other universities. Now it should benoted that her salary do come rom unds or the

UC Hospitals, which are not directly unded bytuition increases. However, this practice is not

an anomaly.

In act, although unding is scarce, the amounto unding paid to the administration has in-

creased by 200%. UCSD closed two librarieslast year, yet the administration retains its sala-

ries and some get increases. As everyone else istrying to remove the at, the UC system seems

to be trying to pack on as much as it can beorea complete system ailure. Yet the victims o the

collapse will be the students.

People have been decrying the pay raises orthe administration or quite some time as well.

But they have lost their ocus. While it seemseasy or people to decry U C President Yudo as

a corrupt at cat, they seem to ignore everyoneelse. Remember that the people that receive

these raises also work among us, on campus,and we see them every day. Do not decry them

as evil or malevolent. However, what is happen-ing is a violation o justice. These people have

an obligation to be honest with us, rom the topo the UC ood chain to the bottom. But it ap-

pears that many who claim to speak one minuteabout caring or the students will waste no time

to pad their wallets in the next.

Angad is a senior in Sixth College majoring inPhilosophy.

In October o 2009, Robert Meister, Proessor

o Political and Social Thought at UC SantaCruz, stirred up controversy with two claims.

First: The increase in student tuition was notbeing used to minimize the impact o state

cuts and instead is being used to pay thedebt on construction projects, much o which

is recent. Second: Tuition will be raised asmuch as necessary to maintain its Aa1/AA+

construction bond rating, not to replace loststate unding (according to S&P and Moody’s,

respectively*).

Meister’s claims have received little media at-tention, with only Santa Cruz’s City on a Hill

Press and Berkeley’s The Daily Caliornian cov-ering the story at all. The issues raised by Meis-

ter’s claims are still pertinent: the UC recentlypredicted that tuition could continue to rise at a

rate o eight to 16 percent per year or the nextour years. At UCSD, this has been met by two

new apartment buildings in Revelle and Muir,ongoing construction in The Village, and new

graduate/proessional student housing, whileCLICS and other libraries have been closed. In

2004, the UC changed how it nanced its con-struction projects by adopting the G eneral Rev-

enue Bond Indenture (GRB). UC pays or con-struction projects by selling construction bonds,

which are paid back to buyers over time. TheGRB allowed the University to pledge its entire

general revenue – o which the largest risingproportion comes rom tuition and educational

ees – as collateral or the bonds. This source o collateral is also much larger than was available

under the 1991 Multiple Purpose Project BondIndenture, which allowed the UC to borrow

more or construction projects.

The UC administration justies its adoptiono the GRB due to the historically low interest

rates in 2004 and by pledging its entire generalrevenue it reduced the interest rate on bonds

even urther, which saves the UC money in thelong run. The controversy starts when consider-

ing how the debt is paid. According to UC Chie Financial Ocer Peter Taylor in a November

6, 2009 Op Ed in The Daily Caliornian, “edu-cational ees are not used to pay debt service

on our bonds... The primary sources o debt

repayment or general revenue bonds are hous-ing, parking and other auxiliaries... indirect cost

recovery (grants and contracts)... registrationees and student-approved ees that are not edu-

cational ees... [and] a diverse mix o unds, in-cluding leasing income and extension ees[, in

order o decreasing proportion*].” The UC ur-ther justies its increased debt by arguing com-

pleted construction projects will generate morerevenue or the UC. But most o these revenue-

generating capital projects, such as housing and

parking buildings, owe their revenue to studentsmore than anything else. And o the 70 newprojects begun in August 2009*, only a raction

generates revenue: most are maintenance proj-ects and research buildings.

However the tuition used to replace lost state

unding has no obligations that state undingrequired. General revenue can be used or any

purpose, including debt repayment, whereasstate unding cannot. Taylor’s claim that UC

doesn’t use General Revenue in this way is alsoinconsistent with the language o the 2004 GRB,

in which general revenue is the only speciedsource o interest and principal payment (Sec-

tion 5*). Although revenue generated by studenthousing and parking is a component o the Gen-

eral Revenue, there is no way o knowing thattuition and education ees is not the source o

debt repayment. Money in the General RevenueFund is indistinguishable by source. Thereore

students are paying the debt any way, throughhousing and parking ees i not through tuition.

So in a way, Meister’s rst claim is true.

Meister’s second claim is more alarming but lesssubstantiated. Yet the denial o his rst claim,

which appears to be true, and their reusal tocomply with demands to publicize some docu-

ments that may veriy the second claim, in dicatethat the UC’s priorities may have shited away

rom education towards its capital projects.

*To read the documents or yoursel, visit:http://www.cuca.org/news/tuition_bonds.php

Josh is a junior in Warren majoring in Environ-

UC Students: Not “Valued Customers” Angad Walia

Budget Woes? Live Off-Campus, Save Money Alec Weisman

What is “The Meister Controversy?”Josh Marxen



5 Caliornia Review Date A Look At The UC’s Financial Situation

The talks have started and the tuition hikes arecoming. The UC President Mark Rudo released

a budget plan last week that set the stage ortuition increases at UC campuses by between

8% and 16% a year, every year, through 2016.Like it has in the past, the UC President’s o-

ce is pointing its nger at the state, claimingtheir proposed budget is a result o the state’s

past and planned uture cuts. The plan didace some dissent, but it was rom UC board

members only hoping to delay it while theylook or more tax dollars to und the school’s

enormous budget.

UCSD students have been active in past pro-tests against UC budget cuts and tuition in-

creases, and we will doubtlessly come out toprotest and petition the state or more money.

But, beore UCSD students dust of their pro-test signs, perhaps we should look closely at

how the school has been spending the moneyit does have.

Seemingly, the UC regents have been putting

a large amount o efort into making it harderto look closely at their spending. In May o this

year the UC Oce o the President wrote a let-ter o opposition against SB 8, a bill designed

to increase transparency in the UC and CSUsystems’ spending. Despite the school’s op-

position, the bill passed in July.

That same month, the results o a 15-monthaudit o the UC’s spending and reporting were

released. The results o the audit were harshlycritical o the UC’s spending practices. They

criticized the UC as being too secretive aboutits spending and called or reorms in what it

identied as a large spending gap betweenspending on some schools.

For months, State Controller John Chiang has

been trying to increase transparency in statespending through a program that details the

salary and benet spending o state agenciesin a single, accessible database. By August,

hundreds o state agencies had signed up orthe controller’s program. In act, every single

state agency had signed up except or one;the UC System. Representatives rom the UC

President’s oce cited the cost as being thereason the school could not participate in the

program.

Despite its being tight-lipped, the schoolsspending still made headlines. In 2009, the UC

Board o Regents was in the news because itincreased salaries and benets or 12 o its top-

paid executives on the same day that it receivedan $813 million cut. They also created dozens

o new administrative positions, several o them with salaries and benets packages near-

ing $500,000 per year. That year the school hadto raise tuition on its students by 9.3% to cover

its costs. It is worth noting the President Mark Rudo recommended a 15% increase that year,

and blamed state budget cuts.

In 2010, the UC responded to a $637 millionbudget cut by raising student tuition by an-

other 8% and increasing UC executive salariesand bonuses by $11.5 million. Again, the UC

pointed to the states’ budget cuts as being the‘bad guy.’ Students protested at UC campuses

around the state to stop the budget cuts, but veryew mentioned excessive pay spent on adminis-

trators by the school itsel.

This year has been no diferent. Despite in-creasing ees on UC students again, UC staf is

getting $140 million in raises. While this comesin response to a reeze on raises that was re-

cently lited, and some o those positions un-doubtedly deserve rai ses, should they come

at the expense o students who now have topay or more tuition increases?

The Caliornia Review recently published agraph created by Caliornia Review alumni

James Wu that uses data gathered rom the UCBudgets ound under the UC Division o Busi-

ness Operation’s website. The graph tracks theUC’s changes in the number o UC aculty and

in the number o senior management as well aschanges in state unding and tuition increases.

Wu’s graph shows that between the 1 997-1998school year and the 2011-2012 school year,

UC senior management positions increased by254%, while aculty positions only increased

127%.While state unding has dropped, studenttuition has increased by 211%, nearly keeping

pace with the increase in senior managementpositions.

The students will protest, that much is a given.

However, the question now is one o whomthe protests should be targeted at. While the

state is undoubtedly blameless in terms o waste and spending priorities, the school sys-

tem needs serious reorm or how it spendsthe unds it is given. The transparency that the

UC has ought so hard against is the rst step.I the UC is going to increase ees then Calior-

nians should get to see what they are raisingthem to pay or. Open review, however, is jus t

the beginning o what the UC system needs.It needs to have its entire system opened or

scrutiny to ensure that it is not closing thedoors on classrooms while it puts in new o-

ces or executive bureaucrats.

Dustin Gray is a senior in Sixth College major-ing in Political Science.

The Fee Hikes Come Marching One By OneDustin Gray

See Budget Cuts, Pg. 1

This would about double the current yearly tu-

ition or the 2011-2012 year and be 400 percentgreater than in 2007-2008. When Mark Yudo

revealed the plan he stated, “We need stability.We need sustainability. We need to be able to

honor our commitments to our students, our

employees and certainly our aculty.” But theUC Regents are hedging their bets that stateunding will continue to be cut and students are

protesting the idea o paying more or less.

Mark Yudo said in 2009 that the tuition in-creases were unortunate but necessary be-

cause “When you have no money, you have nomoney.” But why does the UC s ystem have no

money when the students are paying more, theaculty is shrinking, and the quality o servic-

es on campus is declining? It is the continuedexpansion o the administration in size, salary

and benets that has drained the wallet o theUC system. Since 2000, in addition to the un-

restrained growth o the UC administration, thenumber o UC employees making more than

$200,000 has also grown.

However, this growth comes as no surprise

when considering the power o the Universityo Caliornia’s public employee unions. Many

o the salary increases were the result o “au-tomatic longevity raises mandated by union

contracts.” Yet the growth continues with theUC system having more employees than some

Fortune 500 companies and it has a third o all

Caliornia state employees.

UC President Mark Yudo has also taken per-

sonal toll on the UC budget. He was ranked 76thamong top-paid employees, earning $577,650 in

2009. He has even been ormerly ranked as thehighest paid public administrator serving public

education in the United States when he was thehead o the University o Texas in 2003.

This administrative expansion increases the

stress placed upon undergraduates. At UC SanDiego class sizes continue to grow, required

classes are less requent, and the hirin g reezehas made many UC aculty members ear or

their jobs, but not administrators. In act, it isworth noting that UCSD added the new pos ition

o the Vice Chancellor or Equity, Inclusion, &

Diversity during the 2010-2011 academic year.

In 2009, the UC System Total Budget was

around $19 Billion; more than the GDP o manysmall countries. $5.6 Billion (29.47% o the to-

tal budget) is needed or the mission statemento education; o this $3.2 Billion comes rom the

State o Caliornia. In the last year, $800 millionwas eliminated rom the state’s core unding to

the UC system. Yet with the UC system $17 bil-

lion in debt and issuing bonds, the whole systemis relying on borrowed money. As the State hasbeen orced to tighten its belt, the student body

o the UC System has been let ooting the bill.

With the latest tuition increase, student ees willsurpass state contributions or the rst time in

the history o higher education in Caliornia. The UC system is at a crossroads along with

many public universities in America. The opera-tional shit toward revenue producing activities

makes the education o its students a lesser con-cern. Yet with these escalating costs, how can

the UC system continue to be considered a pub-lic university? The UC Regents, responsible or

the University o Caliornia budget, have ailedmiserably. All university tuition and ees go to

the UC Regents and the O ce o the President

who then redistributes the money. This helpsmore prestigious schools with larger graduateprograms. The UC Regent’s concern with rais-

ing money rather than the equal education o allundergraduates at all UC campuses and their

lack o accountability to the UC students andCaliornia taxpayers needs to change.

Caliornia Students are waking up to th e scal

irresponsibility that is the UC system. Restoringaccountability, transparency and afordability

are essential to ensuring that the University o Caliornia degree is worth the expenses associ-

ated with it. Until then, the quality o a Uni-versity o Caliornia education will continue to

decline.

Alex is a senior in Eleanor Roosevelt College

double majoring in biochemistry and history.

Financial SituationAlthough HDH claims that “making the best

use o natural resources, minimizing negativeimpact on our environment, and satisying our

customers are our main objectives,” HDH doesnot meet their students’ demands. In the last

three years, the emphasis o the Housing, Din-ing and Hospitality Services has been to provide

students with programs they do not particularly

care about, including Meatless Mondays (wherethe dining halls provide only vegan grill op-tions), Farm 2U (where local armers sell their

goods on-campus), and cage-ree eggs. Theonly major student concern that HDH has actu-

ally addressed came rom their dietician, whohas made nutrition a priority.

According to the Director o UCSD’s Housing,

Dining and Hospitality Services, Mark Cun-ningham, “our intent in the design o our hous-

ing and dining program is not to burden studentswith unnecessary costs.” Although HDH does

not keep records on hand about h ow many mealpoints are let over each year, Cunningham said,

“I believe that students do an excellent job man-aging their dining dollars and the vast majority

spend down to $0.00 or very clos e to it because

they understand that this is their money and theymanage those dollars well, albeit there’s no per-ect meal plan so there are always variances.”

However, this does not take into account howmany students are orced to spend th eir letover

meal points on junk ood or superuous itemswho would rather see their unused dining dol-

lars reunded to their student accounts.

There can be no perect meal plan because theminimum plan is mandatory. When students

must use all their dining dollars or to lose them,waste and inecient spending is en couraged.

With their priority on green and sustainable op-tions, the UCSD HDH can continue to ignore

student preerences, at the expense o both on-campus afordability and sustainability.

Alec graduated rom UCSD in 2011 and was a

past Editor-in-Chie o the Caliornia Review.



7 Caliornia Review Date Till The World Ends: Violence and Chaos

Violence and Chaos

The prominence o technology around the

world has yielded a new orm o inuence andauthority; independent o state governments,

the Internet has empowered the individual.

The escalating popularity o the Internet as amedia outlet or average citizens and its sub-stantiated consumption as a product o the

21st century has transormed it into the mostdominant orm o media—especially bearing

in mind its ability to circumvent governmentcontrol. Thus, we are led to ask: how has the

new media, specically the Internet, afectedcultural and political discourse?

The Internet, by means o globalization, has

become the most recent and popular orm o new media, creating a revolutionary sphere

that is characterized by the expansion o Inter-net activity, the prolieration o localized ac-

tivism, and government backlashes throughcensorship. Humans have long interacted

with others in order to improve the conditions

they live in. With the rise o the I nternet, cross-global human-interaction has now becomepart o the phenomenon that is globalization.

Inherently, the Internet has given individualsthe ability to project their voice beyond bor-

ders, oceans and other historical boundaries,making the individual supreme. New orms o

media have now trumped older outlets o me-dia that must succumb to government obedi-

ence or regulation. Under the study o humanaction, all humans have value in something or

someone. Ludwig von Mises wrote in HumanAction, “[a]cting man is eager to substitute a

more satisactory state o afairs or a less sat-isactory. His mind imagines conditions, which

suit him better, and his action aims at b ringingabout this desired state.” The Internet and new

orms o media have become an outlet or in-dividuals to improve their state o afairs and

conditions they now live in.

Individuals address others in order to inormand convince them o the logical structure o

human reasoning. New orms o media have

created this ideal by using the Internet to in-orm and convince others. The Blogosphere,websites like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter,

MySpace and Email have become outposts orsocial-interaction in today’s world. The Blogo-

sphere in the Middle East has empowered theyoung Arab voice, creating a new discourse in

the region. The Blogosphere has allowed indi-viduals in the Middle East to challenge their

governments; allowing individuals to contrastwhat their government ocials have said in

the past, while criticizing institutionalizedorms o media or bias and hypocrisies. The

Blogosphere has allowed individuals to voicetheir opinions; some have aced prosecution

by their governments. Karem Amer, Alaa Ab-del Fatah, and Fouad al-Farhan are just a ew

names o many who have aced punishment

or vocalizing their views online in the MiddleEast.

In 2009, during Iran’s Green Revolution, theInternet had become the ultimate tool or In-

ternet activism. Twitter and Facebook becamecentral to coordinating protests across the

country. Many old media outlets like newspa-pers and television news reports began cover

online protesters as primary sou rces. The Unit-ed Kingdom’s ormer Prime Minister Gordon

Brown was so impressed by the inuence andpower o the Internet to broadcast the voice

o the unheard, he remarked, “[p]eople havenow got the ability to speak to each other

across continents, to join with each other incommunities that are not based simply on ter-

ritory, streets, but networks; and you’ve gotthe possibility o people building alliances

right across the world.” Gordon Brown went

on to admit that due to new media, govern-ments’ power and inuence over oreign poli-

cy would never be the same again.Many outside o Iran who witnessed the dev-

astation and corruption via online interactionbegan to join the Green Revolution through

Internet activism. For example, many Brit-ish citizens attempted mass Denial o Ser-

vice attacks against President Ahmadinejad’swebsite. Other organizations like the online

group “Anonymous” ormed alliances withthe website Pirate Bay to provide supporters

with online tools to circumvent governmentcensorship and take down government web-

sites. The global interaction o web users andactivists revealed the Iranian government as a

corrupt and brutal regime. And central to theGreen Revolution was the new media’s ability

to communicate amongst local activists andgrassroots organizations to create and dem-

onstrate in Iran.

Although the Internet has brought a newmicro-level o interaction amongst cultures,

nations and individuals, new orms o mediahave run into three major issues: threat o

cross-cultural ethnocentrism, the lack o abil-ity to properly orchestrate who is the leader o

a said organization, and the threat o oreignintervention by other countries through tech-

nology. With the expansion o the Internet,some have claimed that there has been an

expansion o cultural inuence and ethnocen-trism over Islam. New media was created and

ormed by the West, and with these outletscame the potential to inuence the views and

perspectives o others; the ethnocentric threatbecame central to anti-western rhetoric.

But instead o the Internet actually produc-

ing ethnocentricity, it does not orm it norhelp to resolve it. Another challenge towards

new media activism has been its ailure orcentral leadership. Although this may be true,

the voice o a group has become anonymousand has empowered its ability to contest gov-

ernment and other organizations. Addition-ally, even though there is no leadership ound

amongst online media groups, they still havethe ability to voice, assemble and to execute

many o their goals.Finally, we are now seeing cases where grass-

roots based organizations have had the abilityto actually provoke major change into govern-

mental bodies, as has been shown in Tunisia,and to a lesser degree, Egypt. Such transor-

mative changes in government has exposedthe power o the Internet. The Internet’s abil-

ity to inorm, misinorm or even produce/create a movement has been seen as a new

weapon amongst states. The ancient threato insurgency rom another country through

a nation’s populace has always existed. Forexample, Iran’s regime during th e Green Revo-

lution accused the United States o meddlingwith its afairs. Although the accusation o the

government may or may not be true, new me-dia has allowed us to hear both sides o the

argument rather then hearing a propagated,one-sided argument.

Despite the view that Internet activism has

not had any substantial political, economic, orsocial gains, these characteristics can more o-

ten be attributed to n ew media. The power o the Internet’s efectiveness is still being test-

ed, and with more time, it will be able to maxi-mize its potential and reach a broad spectrum

o viewers.

While the world is geographically large, newmedia has shown us we are all interconnected

in a smaller community than our eyes wouldhave us believe. And with the growth o mi-

cro-interactions through technology, humanshave been able to share and inorm others o

what they value or how they perceive a partic-ular incident. This new media has questioned

old orms o media, eliminating the middle-man. The uture discourse o technology in

our lives and its inuence around the world isassured to last at least in our lietime.

I was a resident o Fullerton, Caliornia rom2007 through 2009 when I did my under-

graduate studies at Cal State Fullerton. I livedin an apartment complex and worked at a re-

tail store right across the street rom campus.Right rom the very start, I noticed a homeless

man that I would see on a daily basis or thosetwo years. I never knew his name. I never knew

his circumstances. What I did know is that hewas a red headed man with dirty clothes and

a bushy beard. Throughout those years I hadoten crossed him on the streets and oten

in the retail store I worked at. He was alwaysquiet, kept to himsel, and never asked me or

anyone else or anything. Sometimes he wasescorted out o my place o employment be-

cause he made customers eel uncomortable.Even in those situations, he never resisted or

complained. He let when he was told.

Now in 2011, I am back at Cal State Fullertonworking on my graduate studies, but this time

I am living away rom campus about 15 min-utes down the reeway. I’m still in the Ful-

lerton community oten, and had still seen thehomeless man many times; the last time being

in early June when I was attending a show indowntown Fullerton with a riend.

I rst heard the news about the death o a

homeless man in Fullerton by the hands o six

police ocers rom a post on Facebook. I sawthe picture o an unrecognizable person withcertain eatures that grabbed my attention.

I noticed this post right beore I was leavingcampus, and ater seeing the beard I had a

queasy eeling in my stomach. Running on im-pulses, I drove around Fullerton searching the

spots I normally saw the homeless man I hadseen or so many years in the past. My search

produced no results and I headed home to re-search the story. Ater several Google search-

es, I ound that the victim was the man I wasthinking about and I nally learned his name:

Kelly Thomas.

On the evening o the incident, Kelly Thomaswas allegedly burglarizing cars. When Fuller-

ton Police Ocers responded, Thomas wasreportedly beaten and tased several times by

the ocers. From the reports and my knowl-edge o Thomas, he was only 135 pounds. A

small man like this, even i he was resisting,should easily be subdued and taken into cus-

tody by arresting ocers. But this was notthe outcome. The arresting ocers brutalized

Thomas while onlookers watched in horrorand commented in real time about how the

orce was excessive. In the end, his light wasextinguished. There have been plenty o ar-

ticles about how the Fullerton Police Chie, Mi-chael Sellers, mishandled and even attempted

to cover up this incident, so I wont touch onthose. I want to bring up questions about

what us citizens, or better yet, people, are sup -

posed to do in situations like this. When wesee people o “authority” abusing authority,what are the abilities, rights, or obligations o

those witnessing the abuses o authority sup-

posed to do?In 2010, the band Against Me! Released a mu-

sic video or their song “Teenage Anarchist”. The video depicts a young man running rom

an ocer who eventually gets caught and re-ceives a beating. What sets this dramatized

scene o police brutality apart rom othersis that onlookers eventually grow weary o

watching the abuse and nally intervene. They are quickly subdued by more police o-

cers. Many people would write this kind o video of as sensationalistic, but as more cas-

es o authority being abused are constantlyreported, questions need to be answered.

The reality is that i anyone tried to inter-

vene when the six police ocers were beat-ing Thomas, they probably would have been

tased several times and beaten as well. This isan enormous problem when you are dealing

with corrupt authoritarians. Some people willsay that you just have to let the legal process

take its course and justice will eventually pre-vail. To me, this is not an acceptable solution

as it happens ater the act and the victim mayvery well already be killed or maimed. We

must begin to ask questions about what ourresponsibilities are i we are ever unortunate

enough to witness an injustice like this.

Kelly Thomas is gone, but not orgotten. Thiswas demonstrated by hundreds o angry peo-

ple who gathered at the Fullerton Police De-partment yesterday morning. There were rich

people, poor people, homeless people, com-munists, socialists, libertarians, right-wingers,

let-wingers, and o course a couple o anar-chists as well. Nobody was arguing ideol-

ogy or philosophy. Everyone was united in acommon cause. In these times where many

o our liberties are being constantly strippedaway rom us, it is easy to get rustrated and

lose hope. This rally o people, united in theiryearning or justice, renewed my longing or

liberty and lie; it provides me with anotherreason to carry on. The people o Fullerton

and the surrounding communities will not tol-erate police brutality any lon ger.

Derek Leininger is a graduate student at Cali-

ornia State University, Fullerton.

The Internet: Empowering the IndividualPeter Tariche

Police Brutality Hits HomeDerek Leininger

See Facebook, P. 3

This closed-minded attitude has been a prob-

lem or centuries. Sun Tzu wrote “It is said thati you know your enemies and know yoursel,

you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles;i you do not know your enemies but do know

yoursel, you will win one and lose one; i youdo not know your enemies nor yoursel, you

will be imperiled in every sin gle battle.” WhenFacebook activists do not recognize conict-

ing opinions, then they do an injustice tothemselves.

All o these negative actors are not to say

that “Facebook activism” is bad, only that it

is a tool like everything else that we use ona daily basis. True social activism, maniestedin the orm o the Arab Spring, depends upon

social media, including Facebook and twitter.For those who are not seeking to oment the

overthrow o autocratic regimes and are sim-ply striving to win the battle o ideas and poli-

tics, Facebook still has power. The “Facebook activist” can avoid the pitalls o careless usage

i they are alert to their aws and are willing toput in the additional efort to avoid them.

Some tips:

Be both un and proessional.Show that you have a lie beyond politics.

Show loyalty to your riends and support yourallies.

I your allies do something you disagree with,

present a rational critique o their decision in acalm and respectul manner. Do not go on per-sonal attacks or libel.

Keep your promises. I you make a promise todo something, ollow through.

Use humor to your advantage. The more youtroll the outrageous comments that some

people make, the more reasonable and inter-esting you become. At the same time, try not

to burn bridges.Own the narrative. Be well inormed and un der-

stand your opponent ’s perspective. Recognizethat it is not what you say but how you say it

that can convince people and gain you the re-spect o riends, allies, and adversaries alike.

Alec graduated rom UCSD in 2011 and was a

past Editor-in-Chie o the Caliornia Review.

californiareviewfall 2011 issue1

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