More chats with the Duke

And then I forwarded Mr. Andrews' rebuttal on the accusations (I'll bet all the money in the world that covering your arse any which way is nomatch for coming clean and acknowledging the mess you put yourself in, and doing something about it) and Duke gave me this:

The type of ad hominem, simple-minded name calling you just forwarded [from Mrk Andrews] is evidence enough of the lack or respect our current leadership has for fellow students, no matter what they're major or career track. We'll editorialize the good with the bad deeds our elected officials provide, equally.
[I'm] just waiting to see the type of leadership that creates more of the former. This campus deserves good, active and visible leadership, for a change. Effective leaders don't wait for others' permission or directives from on high to lead; They take initiative and actually lead. The kicker is that many in the campus community and beyond truly read and consume this viable CSULB publication. A lot more transparency than our elected leaders offer.

Think about this budget's implications to 35,000 plus students at our campus, Jo Ryan. Don't you think they deserve to know what their student government is doing to represent them on issues that will have a potential lifelong impact, i.e. need for student loans, long-term debt, etc.? Think how these tuition increases planned through 2011 and longer will effect minorities, low-income, and disabled students and their families, who will not be able to get here.

If I am a "whiner," I whine for a larger population; something our leadership should be doing.

Now this is an example of a nice counter-rebuttal. This is what's so great about this guy. Duke Rescola is a methodical newspaper editor and seasoned journalist. How does the man do it? Nothing special: just research on the issue, and then converting the bits and pieces into an article that has a lot of meat to it, and little fat. It's credible, and there is no fact-twisting.

I could tell that when I talked to him last night, Mark was in a corner, and he knew that, in the back of his mind, they had a point. That's why he wanted to make a wager with me on the legitimacy of the Daily 49er's findings. In the end, it's about leading by example, taking the initiative, going out of your comfort zone, and being transparent when giving your constitutents what they want.

I wonder if Mr. Andrews went through the Leadership Academy before running for President last year. In any case, this has to be a really severe blow to any hopes of him running for reelection.