UNIVERSITY PEAK, ANT Outrage
over capitalist finance mistakes and the twirling
of the globe into recession has hit the University
Peak Campus.
The first warning told of impending flash
mobs disrupting classes and the pathways leading
from building to building. Now, what began as a protest
over electricity hikes and water spikes has turned
into a melee of outdoor camping and disorganized
demands.
"I would not travel outside
or near these loci of protest," reports Bill
Gullickson, a maintenance worker. When asked to
discuss their views and purposes, the protesters
had this to say: "Can we not all see it? Can
we not all see on
the television and on the Internet? How people are rising
up all over America and the World? We are a part
of the World. We are a part of this World now,"
said Sophomore Krim Falonan.
Protest diverged in form, some students calling
themselves 'Global Renegades' left the campus heating
grid and made the trip to McMurdo to ignite protest
there, while others prepared a budding symbology
for the nascent movement.
As days grow into longer units of time, protesters
have adopted avatars and posted agenda materials
to them highlighting their individual gripes with
the current macrosystems. The Occupy Together meetup
page lists 2,687 Occupy communities worldwide. UANT
students brought the movement to the 7th continent
rather later than it appeared in the Americas and
Afro-Eurasia, but when it arrived, it immediately
took on momentum. The avatars themselves have been
growing in number everyday.
As for the aim of the movement,
initially, journalists such as Shannon Bond for the
US based Financial Times indicated it was not easy
to disentangle a sense of unity from the Occupy
Movement. Later, around December 2013, calls for
it to focus on a single "Robin Hood-tax" style
single-demand
gained steam. Some argue there are still no clear
and cohesive
demands, or sets of demands, and that the overall jist remains
an inchoate anger at the influence of special interest
groups on elected representatives in Western and
other governments- Antarctica not excepted. Conversely,
occupiers
of the University Peak Campus have asked for lighter
workloads, higher wages in campus jobs, more spectator
events, and more public spiritedness. "We want
less influence of bigwig and fatcat alumni on campus
activities than there is today. If you graduated
thirty years ago, move on with your life!",
said Junior Brie O'Brian.
Protesters have
blockaded transport networks in and around campus
by placing avatars in key locations, at times bringing traffic
to a standstill. Other unfortunate incidents include
public property destruction and vandalism of university
signs. In early December, the Occupy Antarctica
Movement released its first statement on multinational
organizations: they demanded new scrutiny by the
Antarctica business and university community to
protect local interests and asked for measures to prevent
the purchase of Antarctic landmarks by wealthy international
cartels.
Two days ago, however,
the
scene again turned ugly when gigantic avatars were
found towering over the automobiles and homes of
university administrators and selected professors. The
absence of night during Austral summer is blamed
for facilitation of all-night construction projects.
Other
avatars simulated urination on the UN Charter and
various WTO documents.
In solidarity with the northern
movements, participatory democracy is pointed
to as the major push of this Movement. While efforts are still underway to reach consensus with the
other occupy groups about the content of the protest
and the key points, students involved, like senior
Kenzo Monzi have agreed that it is, "about
time for the around the world global statement to
be applied."
While Occupy Antarctica
has been pointed to as a peace rally and an example
to follow based on the sordid reports of northern
mayhem, only yesterday a foreboding sign appeared
in the form of avatar violence.
"This is sick, the product
of a sick group of people bent on the destabilization
of our entire way of life", proclaimed Junior
Spartina Binikos, "Take these avatars
and stand outside in the cold yourselves! Then we
will see how much you believe in this pretend cause.
Remember Medieval pilgrims took months and years
to reach their destinations- does this group have
that kind of fortitude? No, they all go home to
their student house or off-campus residence and
into the comfort of central heating. It is pitiful
what I see on this campus, yet also menacing, because
what I see are these snowtesters, and when I
do, I get the feeling that people's fetishes and
fantasies are fulfilled somehow through them. I
don't like it. I don't know. People are sick."
This is not the first time snow
avatars have been seen on UPC. To inaugurate the
first Christmas railway service to and from McMurdo,
an avatar was placed on the road with a ticket to
see if the train would stop for people freezing
in the suburbs of the station, and it did. As well
last summer, when the Million Man Munch eating contest
stimulated people to leave avatars at the scene
of the contest after it was postponed for lack of
chili, the
shipment having been delayed at sea. "When
I saw how many people had left them as indicators
that they would be participating in the contest,"
an organizer said, "I knew right then and there
we would not have enough food. I think they came
for the free food."
If you feel threatened in or around campus,
contact the ESCORT
Service. UANT NewsCentre 1 is an official
service created by voters in 2003.
UANT
Media Contacts:
Bill Capote, NewsCenter 1 Director,
Email
Bill Capote
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