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Best of Old Pub: Cubcasts of Yore (part 2)

Did you enjoy a blast to the past (circa 2010), reliving the thrill and excitement healthcare debate all over again? If not, what are you waiting for, it's a click away! Today's Cubcast from yesteryear is on Gay Rights, a topic that is just as pertinent today as it was two years ago.

Best of Old Pub: Is College the Place for Activism?

By Bailey's Original, April 2009

As an undergrad, Paco Del Martin Campo was a prominent member of the student activists group Lucha. He also played a role in the 2007 hunger strike, and worked with a Student Coalition on Expansion and Gentrification. After Paco penned an article in the Spectator on the importance of activism, the Cub Pub approached him for an interview on campus activism. 

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="369"] Oh! Uh! War, what is it good for?[/caption]

Paco rapidly immersed himself in student activism in his freshman year at Columbia. In an interview, he described himself as an “energetic freshman who was providing a lot of passion and energy” to the 2007 hunger strike. This experience served as a primer for his activist career. “I’ve been active since then, collaborating with the Student Coalition on Expansion and Gentrification … and Lucha [the activist Latin students group]”, said Paco. As we spoke, the two groups were preparing for a May 2nd rally intended to pressure Columbia to be “just” as it expands into Manhanttanville. (The rally’s Facebook event page urges “No displacement, no eminent domain”.) It’s clear that Paco has remained involved and committed to student activism.

Best of Old Pub: Cubcasts of Yore (part 1)

The Old Cub Pub occasionally recorded a podcast, believe it or not. What, you don't believe it? When did I ever lie to you? That was years ago, and it's not like you were eating them. Christ, they're only french fries, have some perspective on life.  Look, I can tell you're flustered. Why not calm yourself down by listening to some intriguing discussion on Healthcare Reform from 2010!

Best of Old Pub: Rio de Janeiro 2016 - A Great Opportunity for Investing

By Strawberry Daiquiri, October 2009 

The 2016 Olympic location has just been announced to be in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) beating out Chicago, Madrid, and Tokyo. Adding on to the fervor, in 2014 the World Cup will be held in Brazil.What does this mean for the country? A faster and more effective improvement both politically and economically in the next couple of years for the country.

From an economic standpoint, many improvements in the country will cause Brazil’s market to do well, greatly benefiting those who are strongly invested in the country; the tourism, construction, electric, airline, iron ore miner, cement, etc. are all expected to boost the economy. Politically, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, “Lula,” has been very supportive of the games, effectively planning Brazil’s next steps of the planning process and the role it will take in the global economy.

Best of Old Pub: A Tribute To Howard Zinn

by Black Russian, February 2010

The death of Howard Zinn should give us all a moment to pause and reflect on a remarkable life, one that was spent almost entirely in service of people. What he served for and for whom he served are, of course, the most important questions. The mainstream media, as well as people who do not have the intellectual curiosity to investigate a great hero of working people, have tried to pigeon-hole him as an icon of The Left, but such a reduction is a terrible disservice to his name. Zinn was, in the opinion of this undergraduate, a champion for all decent human beings.

Zinn's first great service in the name of humanity was his enlistment in the Armed Forces, eager to fight the onslaught of fascism in Europe. In the aftermath of the Cold War, it is difficult to remember that during World War II capitalists and communists united (with exceptions in both cases) against the common enemy of Nazism. Herein lay one of the most important misconstructions regarding Howard Zinn. I remember reading the New York Times obituary, which implied that the brutality of World War II engendered his anti-war attitudes, but the truth is Zinn's anti-war activism stemmed from his orders from higher military personnel to bomb soldiers and civilians even after victory was clearly won. Zinn asserted that the decision was not one in the name of victory but of ambitious military officials seeking to rise in the chain of command. Zinn's anti-war organizing stemmed not from hatred of America but rather from distaste of militarism and what it does to people.

Best of Old Pub: What Massachusetts Means for Healthcare, the GOP and America

By Tequila Sunrise, January 2010

In the lore of Old Pub, contributor Tequila Sunrise was a legend among mortal men and women. T.S. wrote from a conservative's perspective on a wide range of issues, including today's feature on the healthcare debate.


A few months ago, Scott Brown was perhaps best known outside of Massachusetts as the senator-wannabe who once posed naked for Cosmo. But after last Tuesday, few politically aware Americans do not recognize the name Scott Brown. He’s the man who allowed insurance companies and many taxpayers to breathe a sigh of relief (for now). He’s the man who could become the GOP’s new poster boy (after all, he does have modeling experience). And he’s the man that plunged the Democrats into a frenzy of fretting, finger pointing and panic (and perhaps increased the number of Nancy Pelosi’s wrinkles).

But before the Republicans pop the champagne and start celebrating the demise of the health care bill and the likely gains in this year’s elections, they must, well, do something productive.

Best of Old Pub: Reaction Posts

It's no secret that the Cub Pub has changed over the years. In fact, this version is a redesigned, remixed, and relaunched version of our old blog, now affectionately referred to as Old Pub. It was a simpler time, a time when the country was lead by a hot shot youngster from Chicago and everyone wasn't really sure if this Twitter thing would catch on. Relive those glory days with the Best of Old Pub.

Today we examine Old Pub's reactions to articles published elsewhere. 

Liberals Worry Over Obama
by Bailey's Original, December 2008 

The New York Times has a report on liberal dissatisfaction with Obama's picks so far. The complaints aired in this article are very similar to the issues raised in a post on the site Open Left: Obama has made picks for his economic and national security teams that tack hard toward the center. Many liberals wonder if and when Obama will have progressives advising him, and are worried that the progressive sea change they originally envisioned will take place. Only time will tell, but many liberal pundits are cautioning a wait and see approach. After all, the only way we can know whether or not Obama will govern as a progressive is to see his policies. What do you guys think? Will Obama be as progressive as we all thought? Is it even advisable for him to govern from the left in this political and financial climate, when the fate of the nation will rest in cooperation on both sides of the isle?

Welcome Back, Columbia!

September is here and the campus is buzzing with excitement, at least it will be once everyone has had their coffee/hair-of-the-dog. You can't deny it for much longer- the semester is upon us. Now's the time to really think about how to have the best semester possible. Start reading those books early, stake out the best study spots (bonus points if you explore outside of Butler), and- of course- get involved with CPU.  We're talking to you First Years*: now's the best time to get started at the Political Union. So come on down to our NSOP table today in Lerner's West Ramp Lounge from 4:30-5:30. We don't bite.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="294"] Start your storage boxes![/caption]

* Sophomore, Juniors, and Seniors. We still luv you and wanna see you today, but it's important to let the First-Years feel welcome. You understand kthxbi

Live Blog: Syrian Revolution Panel

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="244"] Talk about mounting tension![/caption]

If you're reading this right this moment it means that you should be down here in 517 Hamilton Hall! Seriously, we got seats itching for bums and fantastic speakers laying down the truth. Call it a study break, you deserve it, don't you?

Well, if you somehow can't make it (and tsk tsk) the Cub Pub has you covered, as always. It's live-blogging time!

CPU Event: Syria Panel TODAY!!!

We know it's late in the semester and times are tight, but that doesn't stop human rights abuses in Syria. Bashar Al-Assad hasn't let up the violent oppression of his own people since the Arab Spring, where they demanded an end to his political party's nearly fifty year long rule. Al-Assad's military intervention against protestors has resulted in the deaths of thousands of Syrians and the violence is continuing. Just recently Al-Assad's forces shelled and dispersed opposition forces located in the city of Hama, killing fifty people.

The Columbia Political Union will be holding a panel to discuss the future of Syria and the extent of Al-Assad's violence and if you have any interest then you'll be doing yourself a great disservice by not attending. The event will be taking place Tuesday (that's today) in room 517, Hamilton Hall. Panelists will include Mayor Mohamed T. Khairullah and Mr. Sarab Al-Jijakli. Be there, or influential international journalist, Fareed Zakaria, will be disappointed in you!

French Election Primer!

This Wednesday at 7:30 CPU and The French Cultural Society are holding a informal discussion on the French Elections in the IAB. It's a deeply fascinating subject because these elections will shape the balance of power throughout Europe for five years. But if you aren't up to date with France's politics this might be all news to you. Well never fear Pub goers, we've broken it down for you. So sit back, grab your favorite French import to snack on, and join us on a brief tour de French electoral politics.

Nicolas Sarkozy is the incombent president of France. In 2007 he won in his race against Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal for his first five year term as president. But his Union for a Popular Movement (UPM, center-right) wasn't just running against the Socialist Party. Twelve parties ran in France's 2007 presidential election. See, in France voting works differently than in the United States. Instead of one big election there are two rounds, one in April and one in May. If no party received more than 50% of the vote in the first round, then the top two candidates go head to head in round two. That allows for France to have a larger amount of political parties, and ideally a more fluid political system. It also means that parties one might consider fringe groups, such the National Front who's main platform is preventing Muslim immigration, can be very successful in the first round. This happened in 2002 when Jean-Marie Le Pen of the National Front won second place in the first round with only 16.86% of the votes, only to be trounced by Jacques Chirac in the second round.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="128" caption="Nicolas Sarkozy"][/caption]

Sarkozy didn't win his second round in 2007 nearly as easily as Chirac did, partially due to his opponent not being a far-right radical. His presidency was marked by some early successes, especially in environmental policy (Columbia even ranked France as the most environmentally respectful out of all the G20). But Sarkozy's popularity has waned. He's to liberal for the right who supported him and still to conservative for the left to adopt him. He also has a nasty habit of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, with several gaffs during his presidency that have been criticized as either racist, intolerant, elitist, or some combination of the above. Once he even tried to convince people that he was present during the fall of the Berlin Wall by posting a doctored photo on Facebook. All that plus a struggling economy after the global economic turndown doesn't give Sarkozy much momentum going into the race.

CPU Event: An Open Discussion with Former Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="270" caption="Ambassador Eikenberry in action"][/caption]

You've enjoyed Bacchanal and took advantage of the Spring weather, but now there's another type of Spring to turn your attention to: The Arab Spring. Join Karl Eikenberry, the current Frank E. and Arthur W. Payne Distinguished Lecturer at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and former Commander of Combined Forces in and U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan for an open discussion on Afghanistan and related issues.

Not familiar with anyone on the panel? Well, just take the word of CPU GM Emily Tampkin, who says "from the state of U.S. relations to Afghanistan and the Afghan government to the potential for a regional oil pipeline deal that could bring peace and stability to the region, there are few more knowledgeable voices on policy in the area than former Ambassador Eikenberry." That's right, Eikenberry has got the Tamkin Bump, so you know it will be an exciting evening filled with intriguing conversation.

It's all going down this Monday at 5 pm (that's TODAY) in the Wein Hall Lounge. Do it up, Cub Pubbers! 

Click after the jump to see Ambassador Eikenberry discuss private security companies in Afganistan

Cub Pub Scrubdown

Columbia life moves fast, and sometimes we just can't cover all the events that have been going on. That's a darn shame, but thankfully our fellow campus pubs pick up the slack with their dedicated writing staff armies. So, in a segment we hope will stick around and a name we hope won't last, let's go through these articles. Together. As a family. No you can't go out with your friends, we have plans. It'll be just as fun, we promise.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="331" caption="Pictured: "Fun""][/caption]

Generation Iraq: Last Wednesday, a small cabal of journalists who've covered the Iraq war came to the Journalism School to talk about the effect of the war on Americans, Journalists, and Iraqis. It was a really great panel discussion with highlights coming from photographer Ashley Gilbertson, Iraqi journalist Ali Adeeb, and Democracy Now's Amy Goodman (if she would only get off her iPad). For more check out Laura Kirchner's article in Capital, linked above.

Herman Cain does Columbia. Everyone has a take on Cain's presence, and so far it has been pretty good natured. Spec was taken by Cain's recital of a song from the Pokemon movie while Bwog amused itself with Cain's silly question & answer session where he discussed pizza toppings. Both occurrences, we should point out, where already predicted in Cub Pub's own Cain coverage article from last week. All in all it seemed like everyone had fun. See, we promised didn't we?

AAAAND TWEEEEENTY-FOUR DAAAANES

Come down and join CPU at Deutsches Haus today as we host Political Science students from the University of Copenhagen! That's right, 24 Danish students have decided to take time out of their busy schedules to come mingle with us because we're just that fascinating company. Aww, stop it, you're too kind!

Did we mention that coffee and refreshments will be served? The event starts at 5:00 pm at Deutsches Haus, 420 West 116th Street (between Amsterdam & Manhattan). See you there, Cub Pubbers!

CCSC Election Results + Cub Pub Remodel

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="116" caption="Spring, time for a new look for all"][/caption]

You may notice that the Cub Pub looks a bit different. Perhaps a bit swankier? Well that's because the Cub Pub has broken free of its cocoon and emerged a beautiful bloggy butterfly. In plain English that means that this is the blog's finalized design. There's also an all new about page! We're always tweaking and improving things though, and we love your feedback. If you have any suggestions or comments about the website just leave them in a comment below!

In the meantime the Earth still turns and that means that CCSC election results have come in. For sure you already know who won, but Cub Pub has an extensive list after the jump.  However, there is one important detail that you won't get from any other publication. Both of your new University senators, Matthew Chou and Richard Sun, wrote about their platform here on the Cub Pub. They were two of only three who took advantage of the offer we extended to all senate candidates. Sure, they both ran strong campaigns, but it just goes to show the potential this blog has to get the word out. Congrats Matt and Richard! Next year we hope the Cub Pub receives statements from all the candidates!

5 Reason's Why Herman Cain Is Just What This Campus Needs

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="273" caption="CUCR chose you! Herman Cain Go!"][/caption]

You know what they say, no Cain, no gain! That's so far been proven true enough since the race for the Republican presidential nominee hasn't gained any momentum since Cain dropped out. But while Romney and Santorum fail to drum up excitement, Columbia is moderately psyched for Cain's speech next week, 7:00pm Tuesday, April 10^th in Low Rotunda. Ok, Cain's no Obama, but there's a few good reasons Columbians should be more enthusiastic for Cain's Morningside appearance, such as...

#5 A Unique Perspective:

Cain isn't your typical Republican who's been towing the party line for decades. He's a businessman who hasn't really focused on the business world since 2000. He's sort of all over the place from Burger King to Godfather's Pizza to the Kansas City Fed to talk radio and then politics. 2012 isn't the first election he's run in either. He put his name in for the Republican presidential nominee in 2000, and then in 2004 he tried to be a senator. So far Cain's had bad luck getting nominated, but he went pretty far in this race, especially for someone who hasn't held a major office.

But now Cain is out and that means he's free to talk about who's left in. Sure, he's going to pretend to like Romney, Santorum, and Gingrich, but this is Herman cain we're talking about. He's not one to shy away from a question. He'd laugh and make it sound all folksy before laying down some truth on the state of the GOP.

Senate Candidates Speak Out!: Richard Sun

Our coverage of the CCSC elections continues with another statement from a Senate candidate.  Richard Sun may have a sunny disposition, but he's not afraid to talk serious with the Cub Pub. Here's what he has to say.

The Senate was established in the wake of the events of '68 to be a forum for an active and participatory governing body. In this spirit, the Senate should be a place to push forward important and complex initiatives, initiatives that are too great for just one school’s governing body or administration to handle. Things like open course evaluations, the Morningside Student Space Initiative, "Quality of Life" on campus, and the need for greater transparency, accountability, and accessibility of our senior administration—these are the important initiatives that the Senate should be addressing and these are the issues that I have and will continue to fight for in the Senate. I believe that based on my experiences I am uniquely qualified to serve as your University Senator.  I believe that I have the ability to follow through and realize our shared vision.

For the past two years, I have served as Chief of Staff of the Senate’s Student Affairs Committee, a body composed of 24 student senators across all schools. In this role, I act as part chief strategist, part press secretary, and part personnel director to the Chairs of a committee charged with representing graduate and undergraduate interests.

My experience as SAC Chief of Staff has allowed me to learn the different stakeholder interests at play. During last year’s ROTC debates, we saw Senators stifled by the lack of an ability to directly reach out to their constituents; we also heard cries for transparency from the general student body. It was the system, and not individual Senators, that failed the greater Columbia Community. This year, the Senate has passed a resolution that allows senators to directly reach their communities. SAC has been at the forefront of that effort, and I have been a part of every major committee discussion we made regarding this policy. This is a vision we have realized, a result that we can be point to and be proud of.

Senate Candidates Speak Out!: Derrick Fu

Here's another statement sent in from a CCSC Senate Candidate, this time we have Derrick Fu. He's on the Cub Pub to provide a little insight on what needs to be done in student goverement in a segment he calls It's Our Senate, Not Theirs.

What’s the biggest problem with USenate today? Simply put: students have no idea what USenate does. More importantly, students don’t understand what their USenate can do. USenate was founded in response to the 1968 riots to serve as a powerful resource not just for faculty/administrators, but for the student body. The student body should have a say in the policy changes it wants and needs.

But that’s not the USenate situation today, and that’s exactly why I’m running to reinvent the Senate-Student Body relationship.

Now here’s how I’m going to give the Senate back to the student body.

Virtual Town Halls – Town halls have been largely ineffective. Despite the flyering and Spec shout-outs, no one shows up. I want to provide students the opportunity to login to an Issue-Specific, Virtual Town Hall [Ex: Town Hall on Student Wellness, Town Hall of Academic Integrity, etc.] directly from their laptops, cutting out the hassle and mundaneness and enabling students to learn about the Senate’s stance and progress on an issue and put forth their own ideas. Ideas like a Social Justice Center, which I will advocate for unrelentingly, need mass student momentum to move forward. With Virtual Town Halls I’m bringing the Senate floor to you – the students.

Senate Candidates Speak Out!: Matthew Chou

Since CCSC elections take place this week, the Cub Pub has reached out to all the College Senate candidates, asking them to share their platform on the blog. First we have Matthew Chou, enjoy and remember to do your civil service by voting this week!

Talking to students about the University Senate, I always hear “What does the Senate even do?” For others, there is a common statement: “I don’t see how Senate’s work affects my life.”

It can be hard to know how to respond. For even the most involved students at Columbia, the Senate often seems like an enigma, a black box that either spits out boring policies or huge decisions, with little room for student feedback or review.

Correct or not, the fact of the matter is that the existence of such a perception means that there is something very wrong. The Senate is second only to the Board of Trustees. How can our relationship be so uncertain?

After serving on the Senate as one of two current student staffers, I’ve seen how University-level issues directly affect students. From liberating our course evaluations data to communicating to the administration the terrible student space situation on campus, it is crucial that our student Senators fight passionately for what students need and hold the University accountable.

CC Senate Candidates share the love on Cub Pub

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="209" caption="You're all rockstars to us, candidates"][/caption]

You're all such lovely candidates, we'd love to take you home with us! We'd love to take you home!

But while the Cub Pub simply can't be asked to choose between all these bright faces, the student body must. To make that choice easier we've invited the candidates to come share their platform on the blog. Not everyone answered the call, but you can be sure those who did can something to say. Stay tuned, this isn't an April Fool's joke Cub Pubbers!

Update: You too can see all the hot debate action by just following this schedule!

Location: Satow Room:
4:00pm - 4:30pm: Pre-Professional, Student Services and Academic Affairs Reps.
4:45pm - 5:15pm: Class of 2013
5:30pm - 6:15pm: Senate
6:30pm - 7:30pm: Executive Board

Location: Lerner 569:
5:15pm - 5:45pm: Class of 2015
6:00pm - 6:30pm: Class of 2014

Debate Pics: Dems vs Repubs on Unions

They may have been in the thick of (friendly) combat, but that doesn't mean that they can't look good doing it! Thanks to the artistic and talent photography skills of Swara Salih, we have the evidence to prove it.

[caption id="attachment_227" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="From left to right: Jamie Boothe for the Republicans, Austin Heyroth and Sejal Singh for the Democrats, and Emily Tamkin from CPU moderating."][/caption]

For more pics check after the jump.

The Trayvon Martin Case: When Tragedies Become Politicized...

The story of the shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin has evolved into a nation-wide discussion. Most readers are probably familiar with the series of events: on February 26 Trayvon Martin is found dead in Stanford, Florida, killed by a 28 year old neighborhood watch captain named George Zimmerman. The police believed Zimmerman's story, that he had shot the teenager in self defense, without much investigation. Over the following days the parents of Trayvon call for Zimmerman's arrest but the police refuse. The situation escalates and heavy criticism is laid on Sanford Police Chief Billy Lee for mishandling the case, and he is eventually forced to temporally step down. Meanwhile Zimmerman still hasn't been charged (partly  due to Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law), and the campaign for his arrest has grown across the country. Over 900,000 people have signed an online petition for his arrest and events called “Million Hoodie Marches” made thousands take to the streets.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="New York State Senator Eric Adams wears a hoodie to show solidarity for the death of Trayvon Martin"][/caption]

Initially the media ignored Trayvon's murder, but as soon as outrage started to build, coverage started full force and it made the issue even stickier. Since Zimmerman was injured in the conflict, cable news shows debated ad infinitum whether he acted in self defense or not. Was he racist, or did he want to play the hero? Geraldo Rivera even went as far as to blame the teenager's hoodie for putting him in harm's way (inadvertently causing a spike in the hoodie's popularity). But that's not all. Zimmerman has received death threats and has gone in to hiding. As a response the New Black Panthers have put out a $10,000 bounty for Zimmerman’s “capture.” Most recently film director Spike Lee tweeted, incorrectly, Zimmerman’s address, making a neighborhood woman a target for those angry at the police's inaction.

But for the most part this discussion was a social issue, and it only crossed over into the political world when President Obama was questioned about it at an unrelated event. When listening to Obama's response it's clear that he's on tenterhooks, trying to balance an emotional response without diffintively weighing into the issue. But his mere mentioning of Trayvon's's death opened a can of political worms that are doomed to wriggle across the political sphere until some sense of closure is obtained.



Read more after the jump.

CPU Debate: Republicans vs. Dems on Public Sector Unions.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="216" caption="Or maybe we don't?"][/caption]

Come on down to Hamilton 602 to witness the friendly yet fierce title bout between the college repubs and dems on this fresh an exciting topic...  Resolved: Public sector employees should not be allowed to form unions.

If you can't make it, as always, there will be a live blog of the happenings right here on Cub Pub. Stay tuned!

• *8:18 The debate is beginning and there is only one republican, Jamie Booth, repping  for the republicans to match the dems two debaters. So far the goofy CPU designated coin flipper already botched the coin flip. Off to a great start?


• 8:21 The dems start, arguing that public sector jobs should be allow to unionize. Saying it's part of our American right to organize and where employees work doesn't matter. Jamie from the republicans argues that one cannot collectively bargain with the government as a civil servants. They must put the nation above themselves and thus they shouldn't be able to demand more benefit for their own personal gain. Rebuttals are ongoing.


• 8:27 prepared questions are starting. Are tax dollars that ends up going to public sector unions a waste? Dems argue that the question misses the point since peaceful assembly is a constitutional right. Our lone republican argues back saying a peaceful assembly isn't necessarily a union and vice versa. Both seem to have answered CPU's question on tax payer dollars.


• 8:32  Scott Walker, governor from Wisconsin has entered the debate and things get fierce. People either love him or loath him. Well, maybe not love, not dislike?


• 8:34 second question, income equality rising resulting in less union involvement? jamie argues that lower unions participation is more due to people recognizing that they could do better on their own. Soon the debate turns to a debate over whether works should be forced into unions or not, and both sides fight over it while both agreeing on "no."


• 8:37 The dems in the audience are getting really into the debate and things get heavy. The repub debater suggests that unions can only be harmful to the economy which sparks some uproar. Says that unions are "self serving" and endanger the economy.


• 8:41  Jeannine, prez of the dems, asks Jamie "if we can assemble but not collectively bargain or strike then how much freedom do assemblies really have? Does that mean te government is restrict our freedoms?" Jamie argues that freedom of assembly should be truncated if it endagers the safety of the American people and the solvency of its economy. The dem argue that these freedoms shouldn't be violated "except in extrem situations like war time."


• 8:46 Upon prompting from Ms. Tampkin, the dems come out and say that unions should be allowed to protest and collectively bargain. Dems start talking about Scott Walker again, pointing out how he allowed only unions who supported his election to retain collective bargaining rights.


• 8:49 dems point out that some law preventing collective bargaining and public sector unions would probably never pass. Well, yeah. Jamie references the Laffer curve, suggesting descreasing taxes on corporations increases tax revenues, which would be true if 70% of a company's profits went to taxes.


• 8:52  Difference between government and private sector? Repubs say that public sector employees need to put the country first and must accept cuts without complaint.


• 8:56 We've reached that sweet, hazy part of the debate where people start repeating themselves. The government is the people, it comes first! It's a fundamental right given to by the constitution! Repeat ad infinitum.


• 8:59 Jeannine argues that if the government prevents public employees from striking and demanding any more pay then what's to say that goverment employees shouldn't work for free, or be paid the minimum. Jamie argues that some positions are essential for the nation, air traffic controllers, ect, and the government has a right to prevent them from striking. They should amicably discuss the situation with their employers without forming "threatening unions that will threat to strike." Dems are against.


• 9:05 Jamie admits that he believes that collective bargaining, people coming together to talk with employers, is bad. He thinks that people should talk with employers as individuals. The example of firefighters collectively bargaining for better safety equipment become the hot button issue. Is it too sentimental of an issue? Is collective bargaining only good when they try to get workers better working conditions, not higher pensions?


• 9:10  When do unions go bad? When do things get excessive? It's all very unclear. The republican debater soldiers on, saying public sector workers like firefighters can always quit if they dislike the conditions of his job. Dems argue that firefighter skill sets are very specialized, they can't just quit.


• 9:11 West Virginia coal mines! Jamie argues it's an example of unions that work because it's necessary, in private sectors, and not excessive. Dems argue that change wouldn't happen without everyone's right to collective bargaining. And with that we break for closing statements...


• 9:17 Closing statements begin and there are no surprises. Dems argue that despite the effect on the economy or anyone's personal opinions, it is a fundamental constitutional right for workers to organize as unions and collectively bargain. Jamie argues that public workers must put the country first and thus shouldn't "endager society" by collective bargaining. Instead they should come individually to their employers.


• 9:21  And that's a wrap. Good debate everyone, despite some hiccups. Check out the events set up by the dems, repubs, and of course, CPU.

Back From Break Roundup!

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="169" caption="No matter how long you laze in bed, it keeps turning."][/caption]

Welcome back Cub Pubbers, Cubb Pubbetes, &  Cub Pubians a like. Yes, break is over and that means you have to reset you're sleep schedule and somehow break out of the habit of doing nothing everyday. We at the Cub Pub know that it can be hard readjusting to society after a week of nihilistic freedom, so let us help you get up to date. Here's the low down:

• The CUCR Town Hall: The College republicans town hall was scheduled right before break with the goal of tying up any loose ends about the CUCR/Ahmadinejad scandal. The event was attended by mainly reporters and members of either Columbia repubs or dems and all and all was very low key. There were plenty off jokes and riffing between the slightly tipsy republicans and democrats (who boasted that they pregamed the town hall, AhmadinejaSHOTS!) and maybe a few politicalarguments. On a serious note, executive director Nashoba Santhanam admitted that in the past CUCR has been "deliberately controversial," and that the new board wants to focus on poltical discussion on campus. The republicans announced that they will have three more speakers for this semester, although they were not ready to announce who.

• Obamabarnard Continues: It's a story that's been talked about on a national scale, from Spec to the New York Times. People are still talking about it though: Bwog recently released an interesting article breaking down the President's motives for choosing to speak at Barnard. For people who want to look at new issues check out Spec's CCSC Council Election Coverage!

• Conflict In Syria: Turning away from Columbia, the bloodshed in Syria continues to get little media coverage in the US or UK. If You haven't heard, the fighting started last year during the Arab Spring.  Syrians demanded the regination of President Bassar Al-Asad and the end of his party's nearly 50 year long rule. In response Al-Asad turned his army on the protesters, killing thousands, and there has been conflict ever since. The most recent story out of Syria that has gained wide media attention is the hacking of Al-Assad's email account, revealing that he enjoys iTunes, country music, and Harry Potter Movies. But while all this makes for good Jon Stuart bits, the reality of these leaked emails is that they reveal messy details of Al-Assad's opressive regime.

• The Cub Pub has been silent on the whole Kony 2012 phenomenon. Chances are that you've heard it all before: Non profit group "Invisible Children" posted a 30 minute long video on youtube advocating more the arrest of Joseph Kony, an Ugandan warlord and leader of the Lord's Resistance Army who uses child soldiers and a bunch of other nasty things. The video goes viral hitting over 80 million views and earns the group a cavalcade of new supporters and also critics (most of the facts presented in the film are at least 5 years out of date and Kony is no longer active in Uganda). The most recent news to come out of Invisible Children is that co-founder and the video's director Jason Russel had a mental breakdown due to stress and ran around in only his underwear. While the drama at Invisible Children is entertaining, what's going on in Uganda seems to have been overlooked. Recently there was a screening of the Kony 2012 film in Uganda itself and Ugandans were not very happy, even hurling rocks at the screen. They feel like the film trivializes their suffering. For a first hand take check out the video below:

What we talk about when we talk about politics

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="260" caption="Emily Tampkin tags in on the CUCR scandal "][/caption]

Emily Tamkin is our lovely overlord at CPU and by extension the patron of this blog. But, by night she's also an editorial page columnist at the Columbia Spectator. Today she had an article published with Spec about the CUCR scandal that erupted this week, and we think it's worth a read:


Last week, it became clear that two now-former members of the board of the Columbia University College Republicans lied to this paper and their own organization about plans to bring Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to campus. It is hopefully also clear that we, the board of Columbia’s non-partisan undergraduate political group, believe that their actions were unequivocally unacceptable. However, as the two now-former members are indeed now-former, and as the College Republicans are holding a town hall tonight, it is also clear that CUCR, too, found the aforementioned to be condemnable, and that they are looking to move forward with greater transparency. What may not be clear, however, is that all of us, in and out of political student groups, can and should take this moment to reflect on the sort of political conversation that we want to be having on this campus.

We do not want to suggest that we don’t understand why there was the uproar that there was over last week’s sequence of salacious scandals, because we do. But we most certainly do want to suggest that perhaps the conversation that ensued last week is not the one we want to be having. Because, for all of the people who were eager to talk about the fake invitation, none of the comments that we read on any piece in any campus publication pointed out that, to the Iranian population, Ahmadinejad is decidedly not a joke. Because all of the uproar and Internet exchanges were not over an issue of any substance, but over a prank that went awry. Because, while the example that is set for us leading up to the 2012 election may be one of extreme partisanship, we have the opportunity to set our own example for one another, and to contribute to the electoral atmosphere in some small way. And because, while we can understand why writing a comment about another student’s misdeeds is more appealing than writing about the larger political issue, that’s not what we should be striving to write. That’s not who we should be working to be. This isn’t what we should be talking about when we talk about politics at Columbia.

Ours is a campus with a strong history of political engagement, and our contribution to that history can be as sublime or as senseless as we want it to be. What’s more, college has the potential to be a time to establish, challenge, and reaffirm our political convictions, and there are conversations that we can and should be having to enable that. The one that we were all too willing to take part in next week is probably not among them, but if we use it to consciously elevate the register of our discourse, it could be.

We encourage everyone to go to CUCR’s town hall tonight, both to hear what its board has to say and to contribute to the conversation. We encourage everyone to go to political events, to read and write to political publications, to take the issues of the day seriously (even if we take ourselves not quite so seriously in the process). But above all, we encourage the students on this campus to remember that we are what we speak. If we treat politics like a publicity ploy or an opportunity to comment on a news article, if we treat civic engagement like a joke, then that’s all it will be. But if we treat political conversation like an opportunity to express ourselves, to listen to others, to share what we already know, and to learn what we don’t—maybe it can be that instead.

This article first appeared in the March 7th edition of the Columbia Daily Spectator. For more on the scandal check out takes by Spec and Bwog.

Obama heads to Barnard, but is it Snub or Stratagem?

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="269" caption="The future president, unsatisfied with his college experience."][/caption]

Last week there were two bombshells in campus news and they both involved invited speakers. Soon we will be republishing an editorial on the CUCR /Ahmadinejad scandal, but first we discuss Obama's controversial decision to speak a Barnard College's commencement.

“He just really didn’t like Columbia.” That's the conclusion of Sean Udell, CC'11, the man who organized a yearly petition to try to get the president to speak at Columbia's commencement. That's just one of many opinions that the Columbia Spectator gathered for their recent article on the matter. Students seem to have mixed feelings. Barnard students are ecstatic, but Columbia students feel disappointed, and some even feel betrayed. "It seems like a slap in the face” said Emilio Fajardo, CC ’15.

But some, and the us at Cub Pub included, don't see it as a snub. No matter how awful Mr. Obama's time at King's College was he's a careful enough kind of guy that he wouldn't do such things out of spite. Rather, he is using Barnard as a soapbox to talk about women's issues in the election. The news has been inundated with it lately with the combination of debate over contraception availability and Rush Limbaugh's capacity to stick his foot in his mouth. Barnard would be the perfect place for Obama to connect with young, liberal, feminist-minded voters who are interested in these issues.

However Some Columbians don't see it as a good enough excuse: “As a Columbia woman myself, I find it disappointing that he wouldn’t have thought to bring these issues to his alma mater,” said Donia Abdelaziz, CC ’12. It seems just like his experience in Washington, there's just no way for Obama to please everybody.

Update: The New York Times has published an article about the whole Columbia v. Barnard stink. Check it out here.

Event Breakdown: Ruby Bridges and John Lewis Gaddis

[caption id="attachment_115" align="alignright" width="243" caption="An emotional night with Ruby Bridges"][/caption]

Last week The Political Union sponsored two exciting speakers who share their expertise with the Columbia community: civil rights activist Ruby Bridges and Cold War historian John Lewis Gaddis. In case you missed these events here are some highlights.

The most emotional moment of Veritas Forum's interview with Ruby Bridges happened near the end of the evening. Bridges discussed the moment when she realized that she was being treated differently because of her race. As the first black student to attend an all white school, Bridges experienced a great deal of adversity, but she didn't know what had caused it until one moment.  She approached a white boy to play ball but the boy refused, saying "My parents say I can't play with you because you are a n*****." Bridges describes the experience as actually comforting because it meant the children avoided her not because she was mean or unlikable, but because of their parent's prejudices. Kids don't understand racism, Bridges explained, and naturally see all people as equal. When she works with children Bridges often role plays as a racist, saying white dogs are better than black dogs, to which one student replied "but they're all just dogs."

The evening ended with Bridges encouraging everyone in the Diana Center Oval to "save our own world." Tearing up as she spoke, Bridges said "I believe in you so much, I believe you can change your world."

Read about John Lewis Gaddis's talk on his latest book on Geogre F. Kennen, after the jump.

Calling it 2: Premature Electoral Prediction

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="288" caption="Even he's surprised that he's the frontrunner"][/caption]

Last time we did "Calling it" we claimed that Newt was done for and Romney had clinched the nomination. Well it seems while we were covering our local debate between the Republicans and Democrats, Santorum has surged across the States. Jokes about Santorum's name aside, the race for the GOP nomination has been pretty disappointing for everyone involved. The turn outs at these primaries have been considerably lower than previous years, and no candiate has the Republicans really fired up. Santorum himself is no viable candidate for office: while he may appeal to the GOP's Christian base as an alternative to Romney, his social politics is just too restrictive and outdated for him to lead the entire nation.

This Republican pessimism has been dominating the nation's media and liberals in particular have pounced on it. Economist Paul Krugman wrote a scathing New York Times Column about the GOP's dismal prospects. In the column he argues that Republican base demands a level of conservatism from the candidates that the general public is not interested in, saying that "the party suffers from “severe” conservatism in the worst way. And the malady may take many years to cure."

It would seem the Republican party has lost direction. It's unable to find an inspiring candidate or resinate with the American people en large, beyond their core base. But looking forward to November their are other factors in play. The economy is growing again up to 2.3% from 1.6% last year and Obama has held approve rating steady around 50%.

These factors have been analyzed by economists Patrick Hummel and David Rothschild working for Yahoo! Labs. They have developed an algorithm from analyzing the past 10 presidential elections which can predict the outcome of a state election with 88% accuracy. When given the economic and political factors for the upcoming election, Hummel and Rothschild's model predicted that Obama would prevail over a Republic challenger with 303 electoral votes to 235.

That's quite the prediction, but don't place your bets yet. There is plenty of time until November and things could change. But for now it seems like Obama has the upper hand and the Republican candidates don't know how to proceed. Perhaps their own algorithms have told them to save their energy for later.

A Note on the Cub Pub's update frequency

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="148" caption="Back under the Czar we had no blogs to update"][/caption]

Last week we posted an editorial about The Columbia Libertarians Blog where we encouraged political blogs on campus to update more frequently. And then immediately afterwards we didn't update for a week. While we have big dreams, we're not run by an army of writers like Spec or Bwog.  We still have few people working for us and sometimes that means we have long dry spells. Our goal is to create a small team of blog-o-philes to keep the site updated and relevant but that's not going to happen until our formal launch. So stay tuned for updates, because our launch is coming soon!

Long Overdue Coverage: The Columbia Libertarian Blog

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="203" caption="If only political ideologies could be graphed and modeled on a 2D plot "][/caption]

For the past week The Cub Pub has been covering the CPU  debate between the Columbia Democrats and Republicans. However, we've been forgoing one political group on campus: CUL, Columbia Libertarians. Last week they had an event as well:  The Young Americans for Liberty's Civil Liberties College Tour. Several speakers attended such as Bruce Fein, Glenn Greenwald, Jacob Hornberger and Jack Hunter. The event had a huge turn out: around 180 people came to listen to the panel and it's a shame that The Cub Pub did not have reporters to cover it. This absolutely wil be rectified for future political events on campus, CUL sponsored or otherwise. You can read up about the speakers and the event itself on the Columbia Libertarians blog here.

Speaking of the CUL blog, it has to be the most regularly updated and supported political blogs on campus, besides The Cub Pub of course. This is somewhat unexpected because CU Libertarians are a smaller group on campus than the College Dems and Repubs. The Libertarians' have published four articles since the start of the semester. That may not seem like much but in comparison the post recent articles on both the Democrats' and Republicans' sites are still on SOPA/PIPA.

But there is a larger issue. If you read though all these blogs you'll find that there's hardly a single comment on any post. This is a problem. There's no way to incite meaningful political conversation on campus if so few people are writing it and discussing it. Journals, reviews, and publications are nice but they they lack an online presence where real discussion can take shape. That's the domain of blogs and that's why the political blogs on campus are so important. The Cub Pub encourages all political groups to keep their blogs updated, keep the content fresh and timely, keep the conversation going. We have our own work cut out for us when it comes to creating discussion but in this case we are fortunate that it's a tide that raises all ships.

CTV Debate Coverage!

Last Tuesday the Columbia Political Union held a debate on affirmative action between the College Republicans and Democrats. It was an impressive display from both sides, but if you missed out, don't fret! We have minute by minute live blog coverage right here. Also, thanks to our friends at CTV we were able to film the debate for your viewing/reviewing pleasure. Want to get a better feel of what went down. or want to relive some juicy moments? Well, we have the closing statements right here, and embedded below we have CTV's own news piece on the event. Enjoy!

Debate Closing Statements!

We know you Cub Pubbers have been waiting patiently for the footage from last Tuesday's CPU debate between the college democrats and republicans on affirmative action. We'll the videos are coming in! You'll be able to watch the edited news story for CTV later this week, but to tide you over we're sending you the un- edited closing statements! The camera work is a little bit amateurish because someone (read: Cub Pub Editor in Chief Zach Kagan) forgot to bring an extension cord and clear the memory beforehand. But C'est la vie! You can get a pretty good feel for what went down by just watching these closing statements:





Also, The Cub Pub is playing with backgrounds. At time of this posting we have a blue background with white crowns. Do you like it or should be go back to blue and darker blue stripes? Let us know in the comments.

[EDIT] Due to the crowns not formatting well on some browsers we have switched back to the stripes.

CPUbeta no more!

The Cub Pub is now cubpub.wordpress.com, instead of cpubeta.wordpress.com. Hopefully this will reduce confusion. We originally chose the name "CPUbeta" while we playing around with wordpress, but now that the blog is live it's time to get professional. That doesn't mean the blog won't evolve from this point- we have a lot of work to do- but at least the URL makes more sense.

love,

Zach Kagan, Editor of The Cub Pub

Dems/Repubs Debate LIVE BLOG: Affirmative Action

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="246" caption="*the debate will be less complex than pictured, barely..."][/caption]

The debate has begun! It's already heating up and arguments are coming fast and fierce. There have already been some unexpected moves. The Dems came out not fully supporting affirmative action, instead stating that everyone wants to see an end of the policy. The question, however, is when. Stay tuned for live updates to this article as the debate unfolds!

• 8:26 The Republicans are hung up on the prosecution of the Irish Catholics vs African Americans.


• 8:30 first audience question. Are legacy policies more harmful than affirmative action?


• 8:33 Dems are busting out studies, talking about how the exposure to people of race in professional and academic settings leads to less discrimination. Repubs rebuttal by saying that's buying into the logic of racism. Both get snaps from the audience.


• 8:37 Question from the audience: Is affirmative action harming the chances of other minorities professionally and in academia?


• 8:40 More prosecution against the Irish! Perhaps the Repubs would have better luck with this line of argument if we were still in the 1850s.


• 8:43 Question from the audience: What about Native Americans on reservations.


• 8:45 We have quite the diverse panel: the debaters from the Dems come from Brazil and Alaska, and the Repubs have an Irishman.


• 8:48 Republicans argue that "one more program" will not solve racism, we can't let race be a factor. Dems argue that race does affect one's opportunities in life.


• 8:52 Repubs argue that we should strive for a meritocracy, and that affirmative action helps people at the cost of promoting a racist mindset.


• 8:58 Dems argue that there is still measurable racism in this country. The Repubs claim that employers assume that the reason black people with the same resumes as white people are inferior is because "they must have gotten affirmative action". Audience gasps.


• 9:00 Audience member challenges the assumption that affluent African Americans don't face racism. Repubs argue that it doesn't mean that affirmative action will solve this, saying that "affirmative action doesn't stop employers from being racist".


• 9:08 Repubs argue that affirmative action is a way for polticians to say that they have done something to end racism and then they do no more. Dems argue "who says that?"


• 9:10 Question from the audience: does affirmative action creates shame amongst minorities when it comes to their relationship to white peers? Dems argue that there are plenty of boosts for white students and professionals, affirmative action is just an equalizer.


• 9:14 Lots of talk about nigerian ambassadors, someone's ears are burning! Our Irish friend talks about discrimination in England. Meanwhile, Dems accuse republicans of living in a fantasy world where everyone is equal. It's really heating up! "Your solution is do nothing, work harder!"


• 9:19 This is the part of the debate where both sides start to repeat themselves. There are a few gems though. For example, the Repubs just claimed that the dems suggest they are "supporting Jim Crow".


• 9:21 Last question: Brazil has a spectrum between white and black, how does affirmative action deal with mixed race children?


• 9:22 Lots of shouting out the window. What's going on outside the debate hall? Anyways, the debate has turned into an analysis of various metaphors: weights, scales, etc.

Debates over folks. Thanks to all who cam and the Dems and Repubs for participating. Before the end of the week we will have a video up thanks to our partnership with CTV.

Dems/Repubs Debate TONIGHT: Affirmative Action

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Come down to 703, Hamilton Hall and watch the Columbia Republicans and Democrats duke it out over another controversial topic. This time it's on affirmative action- well you can't say they shy away from the tough issues. In all honestly, though, it's gonna be a blast. Both parties bring their best to these these debates and theres always a memorable moment or two. It's a can't miss event but if you somehow manage missing it, The Cub Pub will be there to live blog it for you- because we love you, Columbia.

SOPA/PIPA: A Morningside Retrospective

It certainly felt like the entire population of the internet rose up together to fight SOPA/PIPA, and it looks like we've won, at least for the moment. But the fight to quash these bills resulted in more than the bruising of Congressman Lamar Smith's ego. It compelled both the Columbia Dems and Republicans to be on the same side for once.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="218" caption="United in the love of cheeseburgers"][/caption]

Both the Dems and Republicans took action against the bills, with the Dems creating a petition campaign, and the republicans writing a strongly worded letter to New York congressional members. Their efforts were separate, but towards the same cause, which makes the Cub Pub feel cautiously hopeful about the future of campus political discourse. There was a time not to far from recent memory when the clashes between the two student groups were frequent and counterproductive for everyone. The situation is a lot less aggressive now thanks to a lot of factors- not to mention the efforts of the Columbia Political Union- but it's always nice to see that both the left and right on campus can agree that freedom on the net is worth fighting for.

It's ALIVE!

The Cub Pub is slowly coming to life, being reanimated by the overwhelming bolts of electrical energy that is political discourse. If you've found us at this early stage well congratulations. The Cub Pub is looking for opinionated writers (of any political affiliation) come together in the love of coffee and a good, ol' fashioned scandal.


Speaking of scandals, the Susan G. Komen scandal is blowing up in the media and on the web. For those who have been focusing this week on the 46th Superbowl- a much more pleasant event despite the presence of tackling- Susan G. Komen For The Cure is the breast cancer non-profit group, or at least the best funded one with the pink ribbons. For years Pro-Life groups have been pressuring Komen to stop funding Planned Parenthood, since PP provides breast cancer services. Recently Komen changed its polices so that institutions under state and federal investigations- such as planned parenthood- would have their funding cut. Many interpreted this as the organization giving in to outside pressure and the backlash was almost instantaneous. Komen has since reversed its decision on Planned Parenthood but the damage has been done with both Pro-Life and Pro-Choice supporters losing faith in Komen's ideology.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="391" caption="You're going to need a bigger tractor to bury this mess... and it won't be pink by the end of it."][/caption]

For a politically neutral publication this presents a number of issues. Many have been curious about how the new Cub Pub will handle these situations. The Cub Pub recognizes that despite the best intentions of the author, it's impossible to be completely unbiased. It also makes for uninteresting political discussion; after all the Cub Pub is not a news source, it is a source of political discussion on Columbia's campus. That means we at the Cub Pub need writer with a wide variety of political ideologies to reflect those of the students at the university. Can Komen rebound our is this an unredeemable misstep? The discussion starts now: tell us in the comments about what you think.

-Zach Kagan, Editor of the Cub Pub

Calling it!

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Well, it was a fun ride folks. For a minute there it looked Newt may have spared us from from a boring old election season by virtue of his chutzpa alone. But sadly, it seems like the dreams of Obama/Gingrich debates that we bloggers have fantasied about are gone. Tonight Romney won the Florida primary by 46.4% to Newt's 31.9% and proved he can appeal southern voters. Maybe appeal isn't so much the right word. At the very least Romney proves that southern voters will settle for a Mormon over a moon-man.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="350" caption="Looks like Newt Cameo'd in Men in Black. How did they know?"][/caption]

Anyways it's done, and Romney's the GOP's man in the race (we're sorry Ron Paul fans, you at least win the spirit award). Now that the opening act is over it can only be a week or two before the main event will begin for the republicans: taking the fight to the Obama administration.  Sit back and microwave some popcorn.