Below is the first
e-mail from Mr. James McGill to our Senate:
anno Domini 2004, in
November 15
“McGill McUniversity”
The McGill community has never been consulted, directly or indirectly, about the pro-corporate policies autocratically implemented inside the university over the last ten years. On top of that we don’t see the best-qualified people realizing these policies. It divides and introduces more controversies into our relatively small community. Shall we continue developing McGill tradition, or do we really want to become one of typical McUnivesities ruled by the Enron-type administration?
McGill’s quiet life as one of the last-standing oases secured by taxpayers disappeared when big corporations saw the economic potential of universities. The concept of public education as a basic right doesn’t serve the corporate elite, keen to maintain a strong grip over the universities. The latter not only represent the kernel of the knowledge-based economy, but also hold an intellectual potential able to liberate our economically enslaved minds. The financial spheres prefer to privatize education by constantly reducing public financing. In our “mercantile democracy”, the corrupt politician only nominally protects the public interest, while ordinary people start to care less about the growing dishonesty in institutions influenced by corporate interest. Let’s remember that Canadian rankings in a “corruption index” presented recently by Transparency International put us twelfth this year, seventh in 2002 and fifth in 1999, down from near the top in previous years. Behind this drop, meaning that corruption is increasing, lie some interesting stories:
In times of big
cuts in education financing, our last two principals were awarded the highest
salaries. With their pay slips even
higher than that of the prime minister, we were supposed to get intellectual
and managerial giants. Well, at least
the previous Principal boasted of his close political ties with both the
governments that guarantee McGill’s survival; the present Principal does not
even bother advertising her special gifts to justify her salary—the highest in
McGill history. Instead, she simply generates new Vice-Principals, like
Faustian homunculi. This is an
extremely expensive way of compensating for her limited qualifications as a
mediator or politician working to secure social peace at McGill and sufficient
support from government bodies. So, she
has hired additional staff members, many from outside, including an extra
personal assistant for herself, transplanted from
Similarly worrying is
a new policy of appointing external deans.
Recently we had a dean and librarian flown over from Australia, whose
expenses we covered and whose immigration procedures we took care of. The arrogant message is that McGill doesn’t
have smart enough people to run it.
Also, during the present campaign to hire seven new deans, there has
been strong pressure from above to consider more candidates from the outside,
though until now nobody has bothered to defend this questionable approach in
Senate.
The corporate culture
likes people to be isolated and vulnerable, so they can be kept under control
more easily. Instead of local
establishment with strong roots, more favoured are even less professional
notables if only coming from the outside.
This demonstrates the corporate disrespect of local authorities and
values, and an Enron-type façade to impress an external audience. The
problem is that people like to imitate their superiors, and questionable
corporate traditions that mimic royal courts are promoted from the top
down. It explains a very controversial monopolizing of food services and
arrogant treatment of more than 7,500
signatures for a petition on cafeterias by Vice Principal (Administration and
Finance) Morty Yalovsky.
Incidentally, at this
fall’s first Senate meeting, the Principal announced that she would be seen at
McGill only half the time because of her unspecified external activities. She thereby releases herself from her local
duties in order to travel abroad and fix higher rankings for McGill University
in the most exotic places. McGill is
recognized in one ranking as among 25 of the most famous universities in the
world—a ranking that does not include the University of Toronto. With these loudly announced PR “successes” it
becomes very important for the Principal to mark out her own territory and
create a legend around herself. This explains her last year effort to
frighten MUNACA members representing the lowest pay members of McGill community
what caused their turbulent resistance.
At the other end, the strongest local academics are forced to learn that
their prestige and achievements do not automatically guarantee promotion, as
there are many candidates around the world who may become deans or
vice-principals at McGill at any cost.
The Principal seems
to regard herself as above the law: Her
car is quite often parked in the no-parking zone in front of the administration
building (check yourself), even in the early morning when there many free
spaces available. At the end of October,
the parking employee was writing down the licence plate numbers of all the cars
around the James administration building, and when someone provocatively asked
him to issue a ticket for the photographed car he replied, “I don’t want to
lose my job”.
I suggest we initiate some healthy competition for the
election of the McGill Principal. There are only about two years left before
the announcement that this position is open for the next appointment. This gives us time to discuss who from our
community can be considered to fill this position, instead of waiting while
candidates are selected behind closed doors. We need to break the
recently-established corporate tradition of “CEOs”
coming from the outside and being chosen by those at the top. It is also important for potential candidates
(who are not in corporate culture) to develop their self-confidence and believe
that they are equally good for the job, and for us to understand that we have a
legitimate right to interfere in these matters.
To start with, let’s
consider the candidacy of three outstanding academics: Mr. Sam N., Anthony P.
and Bernard R. (To avoid incurring their
fury, I won’t disclose their full names now.)
A dedicated university computer specialist is promising to create a
website where everybody can voice their uncensored concerns and let this topic
mark the beginning of a major discussion of McGill’s future. We have been too shy and overwhelmed by
pro-corporate policies to believe in our great potential, and we must shake off
the fake ornaments installed by shallow and expensive policy makers.
Yours truly,
J. McGill – living in the web’s darkest corner (concernedmemb@hotmail.com)
cc. The Principal and
“The McGill Reporter”
P.S. To contact me, please,
use your ghost e-mail with your pen-name only – just be smart at times of the
present invasion by the corporate fifth columns!
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- - - - - - - - - -
Annex with some fragments published recently by our local
press:
"I really ask for some
understanding in this regard, because let me say the university's
operated for 180 years without doing this," she said.
Principal
Heather Munroe-Blum defended the administration's methods of seeking opinions.
- - - ------ ------------------------------------------------
"I would hope that our complex
organization could not be distilled down to those two issues."
-Principal Heather Munroe-Blum at Wednesday's Senate
meeting, in response to Senator Jane Glenn's remark that the two most important
issues at any university are selection of the principal and the quality of food
services.
-
------------------------------------------------------
However, Senator Sue Whitesides, a professor of Computer Science, stressed that
food services should indeed be viewed as a matter of University governance,
much like the selection of a new principal.
“Food and who the principal is are the
two most important issues at McGill,” she said
- - - - -- - - - - - - -- - -
- - - - - - - - -
A number of
Senators expressed disappointment with the approach the administration has
taken on the issue. Professor Nicholas Acheson said, "It's a very disturbing way of setting up this committee — there's
no consultation, no debate."
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This was Mr. J.McGill’s second
letter to our Senate members:
anno Domini
2004, in November 29
Dear Friends from
As a soul “living” in the other world and watching
carefully over my beloved school for more than a century by now, I feel
obligated to speak with you directly through the Internet! In this way, nobody can make fun of you by
saying that you are hearing some internal or external voices.
So far, I have only been able to
influence a few people to express their critical opinions of the recent
administration more openly. Within this
small group however there is one computer specialist who is now promising to
create a website very soon, so that everybody at McGill can voice their
uncensored concerns for this institution’s future. Too many of you have been excessively shy
and/or overwhelmed by pro-corporate policies to have been able to believe in
your own great potential. The silent
majority must shake off the fake ornaments installed by shallow and expensive
policy makers.
They are neither good nor bad
people. What does exist though, is a
social virus that attacks some people in a position of authority. Slowly, but surely, some humans go through a
personality change, as they become more comfortable in their arrogance and
feelings of superiority. Rather than
keeping within the limits of their own ability and natural gifts to lead others
they practice the arts of manipulation and deceit. I described this condition in a letter to the
senators, which I e-mailed to them about two weeks before their meeting (enc. Senate.rft – no virus there!). In fact, the last Senate was quite
“hot.” The extreme arrogance and poor
qualifications of some of my top administrators were very clearly exposed by
the senators. As a result, the brave
students are now preparing to humiliate the administration with their
"food motion" at the Senate assembly this Wednesday. This is not just about food, per se, but more
of a way to illustrate the dictatorial inclinations that had developed within
the top ranks at McGill. However, it now
seems that panic may be getting in, and that the Principal is engaged in a
quick face-saving exercise by organizing one day before the Senate’s meeting,
“a town hall forum.” Such an important
event for the community, NB organized for the first time, was given with only
24 hour e-mail notice for the majority!
The same time was given for our students as only today “The Daily”
provides this information. It may
indicate manipulative strategy to announce her new pro-democratic switch,
instead of being forced to do it the next day after the Senate’s voting. By the way, the Senate meetings are open to
the public. Everybody is invited to
observe this Wednesday’s session at
Let’s wish the Principal all the best
with hopes for her permanent conversion to the “religion of democracy” and
manifestation of her true love toward the ruled subjects. However, be careful at the Town Hall meeting
with the nature of your questions.
Nowadays, post 9/11, special laws suspend many civil rights. Keep your heads below the parapets! Your
promotions, tenure acceptations (recently 25% of the applicants were personally
examined by the Principal) or extended contracts may be at stake. Do not look at me as a hero with a real name
because I do not belong to this world. .
Yours truly,
J. McGill – living in the web’s darkest
corner (concernedmemb@hotmail.com)
cc. The Principal and “The McGill Reporter”
P.S.
To contact me, please, use your ghost e-mail with your pen-name only –
just be smart at times of the present invasion by the corporate fifth columns!