Emerging from the cocoon of my beloved Fisher library yesterday, I took a few moments to get accustomed to the late afternoon sun, whilst attempting to transform into the neglected social butterfly of my former self. This is none to easy a task when carrying twelve books, the physical manifestation of an unhealthy belief that if I can just borrow all the books on my topic I’ll get through my thesis.
Honours has unfortunately made me far closer to the combination of my computer screen and the library than that of beverages and the Manning balcony. Fortunately, I have not yet progressed to the stage where the latter is entirely out of the question, and I was leaving my perch to head to the uni’s other hallowed union bar over in Wentworth. We have, as a side note, found a great new spot for our study sessions in the library, on the desks that overlook the front lawns. Once you ignore the dirt that’s caked to the windows there’s a lovely view of carefree students lazing in the sun on the grass, with the grand sandstone Quad rising as their backdrop. Moments of procrastination can be spent wisely by texting friends you can spot outside about some specific aspect of their clothing or actions, which produces the wonderful and immediate satisfaction of watching them desperately scan the lawns to see where you are hiding. (My, how easily one can be amused when one has a thesis to write!)
But covert texting is hardly the rebellion that this blog’s title warrants, and in my Fisher-related-rapture I digress. What I am actually referring to is campus politics, and the much-publicised APEC summit to be held in Sydney in a few weeks. We were heading to Hermanns to learn what we could from an ECOPSOC run and Union supported forum on the event, its relevance, and the question of protest in today's society. What became clear over the next hour (other than the scary reality of the current international political climate), is that it's not really APEC itself that matters, as this is just one organisation emerging from the “alphabet soup” of international relations. Rather, it is the agenda that world leaders are setting (or not setting) via these means, and the decisions that the leaders themselves are making. Thus, protesting during APEC can be motivated by any number of things that include disagreement with Howard cementing our role in an alliance for the war in Iraq, the presence of his significantly more important partner in crime, Mr Bush, the environmental and indigenous issues that spring from nuclear-related decisions, or the attempts to stop our actual ability, and right, to protest. It is the last issue that struck the strongest chord with the small crowd assembled at Hermanns, as it rests at the heart of concepts like freedom of speech, which, although held to be crucial in democratic societies, have been severely threatened by the wave of “terror” that our governments have become swept up in.
Those of you who have read my previous posts know that I am ever partial to the free public lectures and forums that are constantly on offer as an integral part of university life, as they offer an extended education. I suppose that these kinds of events are always there, but at uni you have both the freedom to attend them and access to knowledge about them. There are campus publications, lecture bashing (where someone gets up before a lecture has started and tells you about an event – not nearly as sinister as it sounds!), posters all around campus and tips from lecturers to keep you informed. In this case in particular there was the added benefit of the knowledge from the ever-accessible Political Economy Department’s staff, and wine and cheese to boot! But fringe benefits aside, there is something quite special about the inquisitive environment that university fosters. In this next week alone you could be attending a Seminar on Climate Economics and Emissions Trading held by the Young Traders' Society, go to a Sydney Ideas lecture on crises given by political scientist and best-selling author Thomas Homer-Dixon, or attend a School of Public Health Seminar on obesity in children in Vietnam.
So what on earth are you doing sitting here reading this blog??