The Decrepit UNM Administration has so much to learn about Public Relations in the Information age!

Karen Wentworth works for the same UNM PR group (headed by Susan McKinsey) that has routinely defended expensive and wrong-headed decisions by Locksley, Schmidley, Krebs, the regents, misbehaving athletes, etc. Pay the PR folks (on Wall Street and at UNM) and they will yammer something, no matter how illogical and mean-spirited, to “defend” UNM. Yup, sending police at midnight is a fine way to help students understand UNM policy. Yup, the police were sent because UNM is short-handed. And why is UNM short-handed, Wentworth? Because UNM administrators and the regents chose to pay a fortune to expensive UNM executives, athletics and PR (Marketing and Communications) departments, rather than educate.

I urge you, Karen Wentworth, to listen to your conscience. Don’t be a mouthpiece for bad decisions.

Just a few weeks ago, when some students suggested there was not enough police presence on campus, a spokesman for the police said they were staffed at exactly the right level to fulfill UNM policy. Now they say, “Nope we’re understaffed.” I guess there are two standards of staffing. When students want to be protected, then the police are staffed at the right level and there can’t be increases. When there are protesters to get rid of, then police are understaffed and they have to show up at midnight to move these ruffians along.

If a group of conservatives had decided to make a long-term, or even a short term protest camp at UNM, you can bet they wouldn’t have been tolerated this long. I guess it depends on the politics of the grass-roots citizen movement that you’re talking about, whether it’s tolerated or not. Tea partiers who protest government policy and a bad economy are automatically stupid racists. Left wingers who do the same are cool.

Tea –
Tea partiers fall under the 99%, this isn’t a partisan effort. We are all suffering under the current corrupt system. The 99% movement is made up of a multitude of voices. This is about discussion, and if you want libertarians to be a part of the discussion, you should come by and talk.

Here’s what I sent to unmpres@unm.edu:

Hello,

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It’s beyond me how becoming a public nuisance on a university campus that is not a corporation or involved in investment banking affects the distortions this moneyed elite are imposing on this country. They seem more interested in flaunting university rules and getting into a pissing match, as they’re now back on university property just east of Yale between Redondo and Central. This is more about them trying to be troublemakers than affecting change. The university isn’t part of the corporate system. As a student here, I’d like them to respect the same rules the rest of UNM does.

Hey Benjamin Abbott… thanks for reminding me to send a letter to the university president SUPPORTING their action. Holding a rally is one thing. Camping out for weeks on end and creating a public health hazard and nuisance in violation of university rules is something else entirely. Wall Street is 2000 miles away, how does hassling the university administration help their cause? They should follow the rules like everyone else.

“…know that my comrades and I will resist your oppressive policies whenever, wherever, and however we can.”

How about resisting the oppressive policies of the university by not being a PhD student at the oppressive university? You give them money every semester. You and your comrades should go elsewhere.

Benjamin, just curious how “American Studies” is going to tangibly solve the world’s problems of increasing the potable water supply, finding an alternative to oil, increasing crop yields to feed the world’s growing population, etc. The military research you decry the university doing has resulted in many, many useful technologies transferred to the civilian population such as GPS, wireless communication and indeed the internet you spew on. Just what TANGIBLE contribution will you make to solving the world’s problems? We serious university students don’t have time to camp out and bang drums with our “comrades”. In case you aren’t aware, communism failed. Crony capitalism as practiced by the banksters sure isn’t the way, but neither is your collectivist nonsense.

Some of the young people were probably there out of curiosity or just for fun. Now they all have had a taste of what the system does to dissenters. Nothing can radicalize people like being awakened at midnight by armed police (with dogs, yet). Way to go, UNM!

Frankly, they should have done this last week. It is an eyesore and a potential hazard. Besides, the 1960’s are over. Life is never going to be fair, get used to it. We all have stories of times when we got passed over for something. Its all part of live. If you don’t like it, run for office and get elected. I won’t be voting for you though.

None of these comments do anything but state opinions. Lets look at the facts.
An occupation is the mass gathering of bodies to a location.
The criminals of Wall St. are the reason your UNM tuition has jumped almost 300% in only a few decades. ( you need to dig a little to see the trail, but it is undeniable once you see it )
The protesters were breaking “policy”..which to some is the same as law and to others is something you can occasionally “bend”
UNM offered ( yes, they offered ) the place on Liberty Park, and the permit that was granted is besides the point.
The protesters were actually cleaning the site up. yes, that’s right, I was there helping to pick up litter that students had left there before the protesters even got there. And no one except maybe a dog used the grass to go to the bathroom. For real people, how blind are you?
And lastly….why midnight? The old saying that corruption and the Devil work under the cover of darkness brings up a valid question.
and don’t you find it kind of interesting how just a few hours after the White House Dems publicly offer their support to the Wall St. protesters that the protests in Rep ruled states suddenly get cracked down on?
People who think this is just in America need to open their eyes and look around the world for a few seconds. People who do not understand what this movement is about need to educate themselves and stop talking out of ignorance.
This will not change the occupation, and if anything, will only increase the support.
So, I personally thank who ever made the decision to send the cops in, because they just shot themselves in the foot. This will raise public outrage, which will in turn raise public awareness, which in turn will raise the population of the protest.
Thank APD and UNMPD for helping us bring more people in. We couldn’t have done it better.

These idiots were protesting capitalism outside a closed bank on a sunday. There’s no coherent philosophy in any of their words or actions. They’re just as spiritually and morally bankrupt as the private corporations they rail against.

If you have an issue with the Occupy Burque protest, then you have not learned some unfortunate realities about our world.

Try taking an American Studies Class or read a variety of news sources. These people are in need, along with many who did not participate in the protest. Either way, they are trying something.

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Sooooooo the UNM police can actually mobilize and apprehend! Not the homeless and not the reckless skate-boarders- but the demonstrators. Well I must say that in a sense I’m glad that they have the ability to act; I wasn’t sure they could.

I am not sympathetic to the demonstrator’s cause but would agree that the state of the USA government and big business is extremely depressing and frustrating. A very large part of this is that the current president remains (and always will) a community organizer. Federal political acumen is not in his bag of tricks. He’s still believes the “Yes we can” campaign dribble. Playing with the big kids is not like he imagined it- too bad for us.

I was mostly worried about where all these people were going booboo at. That had me worried.

Over half the camp was obviously homeless people with no where else to go. The rest looked like the dirty hippie peace and justice crowd. Also when the signs you hang up are mis-spelled its not a good thing. UNM is lucky they rule over a campus of apathetic cowards. There are plenty of reasons to Occupy UNM, but it would have to be by UNM students. This young generation is lost in technology and confusion.

I used to work directly accros from UNM and saw the same people at every protest, no matter what the cause. Truth is, most were there to socialize or create trouble or possibly were paid by unions with an agenda. Very few had a true cause IMHO.

A number of UNM students have been and continue to be part of the Occupy Wall Street and Liberate Albuquerque movement. I know many personally, apart from myself.

You raise an important point about the number of homeless folks – including many indigenous people – present at protest site last night. Yet again we have cops harassing the same groups the United States stole this land from in the first place. Colonialism isn’t dead but sadly remains with us. It’s particularly outrageous on Indigenous People’s Day.

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Part of a university’s learning should be students participating in peaceful protest. The police showing up at Midnight in SWAT gear and with police dogs should give those present a clear understanding of what powers they are protesting….“The establishment” (UNM) using armed force against a legal gathering protected by the US Constitution. This police action should not deter further protests, but ‘grow’ it.

Your Comment

Public protest is a healthy and necessary part of any well functioning democracy. Those unwilling to question power are in serious danger of losing that very right. Remember, we are the sovereign. WE granted the government it’s authority. When it no longer protects the public interest, it’s only natural to ask why. We are a society of majority rule, correct? Why, then, are the 1% controlling the public interest. Seems backward to me. Bravo to those unwilling to accept complacency as the norm. We are the 99%.

What if the 1% (from the 99%) was black? Would you still consider your movement a noble cause? Why do you do it to businessmen?

Total lack of understanding of individual rights, sickening.

About the overnight permit – funny how for the past couple of years UNM has allowed overnight camping for the group raising awareness about homelessness by spending a night on Johnson field. Now when a different group with an issue that personally affects the city, the university and its students ask for a similar permit, the University goes on record saying they do not allow overnight permits to groups. To bad the record proves otherwise. Shame on you Schmidley!