Archive

Interview: Grant Robertson

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Zane Pocock

Deputy Leader of the Opposition Grant Robertson has recently declared his candidacy for the leadership of the Labour Party. Zane Pocock spoke to the former OUSA President about the leadership contest and his plans for the Party. Why should a university student Labour member vote for you? Read more...

NZUSA in the Toilet

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Sam McChesney

Student presidents around the country are calling for sweeping reforms to the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZUSA), after the Waikato Students’ Union (WSU) notified its withdrawal from the organisation. In a press release circulated on 22 August, the Presidents of OUSA, VUWSA Read more...

Seven Visors Deemed Super

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Bella Macdonald

The OUSA 2013 Supervisor of the Year Awards were held on 26 August, with awards given to seven University of Otago supervisors. The role of the supervisor is to oversee and support postgraduate students in the writing of their theses. Finalists for the awards were selected based on student Read more...

Acklin Calls It Quits After Nine Illustrious Years

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

Recidivist drink driver, Elvis impersonator and Dunedin City Councillor Bill Acklin has announced that he will not seek re-election when the city votes for its council in November. Cr. Acklin, whose business dealings have previously left him owing $190,000 to the Inland Revenue Department, told the Read more...

Mosgiel Chainsaw Canister

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Thomas Raethel

A six-hour standoff took place in Mosgiel between police and a man who had locked himself in his garage with a running chainsaw. Critic is astounded at how long it took for the chainsaw to run out of fuel. After being called to a domestic incident on Murray St at 8pm on 22 August, police were Read more...

Money Thrown at Peace And Conflict Centre

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Josie Cochrane

An anonymous $500,000 donation has been made to the University of Otago’s National Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies. Centre Director Professor Kevin Clements said that the donor, an Auckland businessman, does not want personal recognition. “He believes very strongly in the importance of Read more...

Otago Sciences Less Valuable Than Waikato’s, says MBIE

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Zane Pocock

Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce last Wednesday announced the 51 research projects from around New Zealand that will be funded in this year’s $278 million Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) science investment round. The University of Otago is “disappointed” to Read more...

Rather Nice Automobile Discovered

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Josie Cochrane

A 1922 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost has been discovered inside a container at Port Otago’s Dunedin container yard. The Rolls-Royce, found earlier this month, has never been registered in New Zealand, and it is yet to be confirmed whether the original body remains in place. Even in its current state, the Read more...

Alt Pub Just A Bit Too Breezy Ankles

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Jamie Breen

Last week was difficult for the bar Mou Very. The local watering hole for sweaty hipsters faced a public hearing last Wednesday after failing to meet the liquor licensing requirements. Mou Very was originally granted a temporary licence in February in order to allow the bar to operate while Read more...

Forsyth Barr Stadium May Be Sinking

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Irrelevant Irvine

Critic has been informed by “people in the know” that Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium is sinking on its foundations. Built on reclaimed land, which requires buildings to have floating foundations, it is believed that when steel was added to the monstrous construction it immediately began to Read more...

Late Crate Debate Suffocates After Eight Great Speight’s-Fuelled Dates With Mates

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Claudia Herron

Acknowledging the “harmful drinking culture in New Zealand,” the Otago University Debating Society (OUDS) will “no longer sanction” the infamous Crate Debate. The decision, which has been kept under wraps, first came to Critic’s attention after moderators deleted a comment attacking the decision on Read more...

Shit System to Be Made Less Shit

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Thomas Raethel

The Performance-Based Research Fund is set to undergo changes in an effort to save time and reduce compliance costs for researchers. In a 26 August press release, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, Steven Joyce, confirmed that a review is underway. The Government plans to Read more...

DCC Shafts Students Despite Withdrawing Poll

Posted 3:48pm Sunday 1st September 2013 by Sam McChesney

The Dunedin City Council has scrapped plans to introduce a polling booth on campus during the upcoming local body elections. The returning officer, Pam Jordan, made the decision after concerns were raised that the booth could give the appearance of favouritism toward OUSA President Francisco Read more...

NZUSA to Face Do-Or-Die Reforms

Posted 7:41pm Friday 23rd August 2013 by Sam McChesney

Student presidents around the country are calling for sweeping reforms to the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZUSA), after the Waikato Students’ Union (WSU) notified its withdrawal from the organisation. In a press release circulated on 22 August, the Presidents of OUSA, VUWSA Read more...

Christchurch Rebuild a Safety Shocker, Says Worker

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

A temporary worker in the Christchurch rebuild has alleged shocking health and safety lapses during his time there earlier this year. Ferdinand Schuster, a 20-year-old German student on his gap year, told Critic that he had been put at risk and injured due to unsafe practices on a number of Read more...

New School to Research How to Research

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Josie Cochrane

The University of Otago now has a Graduate Research School, which aims to provide more academic support, more services to graduate research candidates and a focus on leading research on how to research. The School replaces the research services department and now welcomes a Dean, Professor Rachel Read more...

University Council Meeting

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

The University Council unanimously endorsed a strategic document as well as a flatting standards bill, and engaged in light-hearted banter at its meeting last Tuesday. Council Member Michael Sidey clapped when Vice-Chancellor Professor Harlene Hayne told the meeting that her two-year Read more...

SOGOS Go Sci-Fi

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Lindsey Horne

It turns out SoGoS fund more than just keg parties. The International Centre for Society, Governance & Science (SoGoS) funded a roundtable discussion on Genomics in Queenstown earlier this month. The Director of SoGoS (and no doubt the mastermind behind the title) is none other than University of Read more...

Fran Keeping Bus-y

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

OUSA, in partnership with the Dunedin City Council (DCC) and Otago Regional Council (ORC), has announced they are working towards an improved Dunedin bus service for students. This will involve simplifying routes and timetables, and addressing student pricing. The ORC has committed to a Read more...

Shearribly Dull

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Claudia Herron

A contingent of Labour MPs consigned to forever working as the Opposition – including party leader David Shearer – held a public lecture on Monday 12 August at Knox Church Hall to tell us that “we are being ripped off.” Apparently, this problem can be solved by their NZ Power policy, which claims to Read more...

No Confidence Distraught as Tenci Wins By-Election

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

OUSA has a new Finance Officer after Nick Tenci trounced loveable sock puppet No Confidence at the close of voting in last Thursday’s by-election. In the final count, the third-year Finance and Biochemistry student received 470 votes (81.31 per cent). “No confidence in these candidates” received 108 Read more...

“Sit Back Down,” Says Joyce

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Thomas Raethel

In response to the Otago Daily Times’ call to “Stand Up Otago,” Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce provided a rebuttal that was published by the newspaper on 10 August. In the rebuttal, entitled “Government Assisting Otago in Multiple Ways,” Joyce cited a $15 million contribution to Read more...

Xmas Present for EXMSS Pres

Posted 4:47pm Sunday 18th August 2013 by Bella Macdonald

Massey University’s Extramural Student Society’s (EXMSS) President is firing off scandalous allegations after MASSIVE magazine revealed how much she receives for her part-time position. In a MASSIVE article published online on Friday 9 August, it was revealed that EXMSS President Jeanette Read more...

The GCSB Bill

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Bella Macdonald

What is the GCSB?The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) is, amongst other things, New Zealand’s external spy service. The intelligence agency was set up by then-Prime Minister Robert Muldoon in 1977. It was tasked with keeping government communications and computers secure, and spying Read more...

Internet Totally Shithouse

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

Students and staff alike have been frustrated at the University of Otago’s slow Internet service over the past few weeks, coming at a crucial time for most students who are facing mid-semester assignment deadlines. The University’s Information Technology Services (ITS) never responded to Read more...

“Lack of Jobs Gives Students Chance to Study More, Eat Less.” – OUSA

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

Total Student Job Search (SJS) earnings in Otago have dropped by 12 per cent, equating to a loss of income of more than $450,000 over the course of the past year. Total weeks worked was also down 12 per cent, from 8,094 in the corresponding period last year to 7,145 this year. The Read more...

OUSA Tries to Keep Q-Jitsu Secret

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Jamie Breen

Last week was OUSA Diversity Week, devoted to celebrating the diversity of Otago students and raising awareness and understanding of those who are queer or questioning. Different events, each focusing on queer support, were held every day of the week. The OUSA Queer Support group ran the Read more...

Sammy's to Be Someone Else's

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Josie Cochrane

After 35 years of owning Crawford Street venue Sammy’s, the Chin family wants “younger people with new, fresh ideas” to step in. Sam Chin, the owner of Sammy’s, says he wants “new energy” and is “open to any new ideas” in terms of the venue’s Read more...

Provincials Reach For Their Pitchforks

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Thomas Raethel

A former presenter of New Zealand’s Funniest Home Videos has called for the formation of a political party devoted to the South of New Zealand. Dunedin businessman Ian Taylor formulated the idea in conjunction with the Otago Daily Times’ “Stand Up, Otago” front-page editorial of 3 August. The Read more...

Audit Ordered by Orders

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 11th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

A pre-election report from the Dunedin City Council (DCC) has confirmed that council workers have been tasked with calculating a new, higher figure for the construction of the Forsyth Barr stadium, believed to be at least $260 million. The DCC’s CEO Paul Orders included the announcement in his Read more...

Councillor Fran to Pay the Iron Price

Posted 2:21pm Saturday 10th August 2013 by Sam McChesney

After weeks of speculation, OUSA President Francisco Hernandez has declared his candidacy for the upcoming Dunedin City Council elections. Hernandez made the decision to run after deciding the Council needed more student voices. So far, Hernandez and Co-President of Students for Read more...

The Fun Party

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Sam McChesney

Last Monday, Critic was witness to a slightly bizarre spectacle, as the OUSA Governance and Representation Review Working Party held its second meeting. Although several members of the working party were absent, this was of little consequence; most of those present took on the role of slightly Read more...

Uni Tries to Steal Fran’s Thunder

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

In an excited Facebook status posted last Wednesday evening, OUSA President Francisco Hernandez announced the early drafting of a bill that would enable the Dunedin City Council (DCC) to create and enforce a housing warrant of fitness. He aptly called it “GREAT NEWS!!!” “We’ll be engaging key Read more...

Students Are Students Again

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

After hiding for most of the year, the traditional Scarfie again raised its hideous head last Saturday 27 July with nine Castle Street arrests and a group of international students wanting to go home after an early-morning break in. The Castle Street arrests were made after occupants called Read more...

Pope Cums Out in Support of Gays

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

In case you missed it, Pope Francis came out in support of homosexuality last Monday and is fast becoming the Catholic Church’s first popular leader. “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” Francis asked reporters on the Papal Aircraft heading Read more...

Debaters Flare N'Australs

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Zane Pocock

The Otago University Debating Society (OUDS) has put in a bid to host the so-called “Australs” tournament next year. Australs are the second-largest debating tournament in the world and bring together a minimum of 80 three-person teams from Asia-Pacific universities. The last New Zealand university Read more...

Woe Men Week

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Bella Macdonald

OUSA Women’s Week was held from 29 July-2 August to promote gender equality and raise awareness regarding an extensive range issues, including feminism, sexism, abuse, discrimination and the inclusion of abortion in the Crimes Act. The week was organised by OUSA’s Women’s Representative Sam Read more...

Otago’s Hip Hop Diversity on Display

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

Monday 29 July saw the annual International Cultural Night (in aid of the Otago Community Hospice) take place at the Teachers’ College Auditorium. The night, which was organised by OUSA and the International Cultural Council, began with a kapa haka performance by Te Roopu Maori. The audience was Read more...

Waterway Revamp Minimises Leithal Floods

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Thomas Raethel

Otago University has agreed to commit $204,000 towards the development of a beautified Water of Leith, adjacent to the Clocktower. This sum is only a fraction of the $5.4 million that the Otago Regional Council expects to spend on the project over the summer. The funds have been sourced from Read more...

Dunedin Gets Cable in Confused Quest to Catch Up With Rest of World

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Claudia Herron

A $21 million initiative to reintroduce a Cable Car link from the Exchange to Mornington is gaining support internationally and could see it become an “icon” for Dunedin. Over the course of two information sessions held at the Otago Museum, the Dunedin Cable Car Trust revealed that the Read more...

Two Guys One Sock (Puppet)

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Staff Reporter

OUSA is going to the polls yet again, this time to find a new Finance Officer following Lucy Gaudin’s departure to the greener pastures of OUSA’s Accounts department. Critic thanks Lucy sincerely, as we have always loved covering fortnightly elections. Voting will commence on 13 August at Read more...

Protestors Fight The Pows

Posted 3:50pm Sunday 4th August 2013 by Jack Montgomerie

Hundreds of protestors gathered in the Octagon on Saturday 27 July to demonstrate against proposed new legislation that would allow the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) to collect private data from New Zealanders. The demonstration was held in conjunction with other protests Read more...

Dunedin Could Be Larried at Any Moment

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Bella Macdonald

Following the recent earthquakes that rocked Seddon and Wellington, experts have warned that Dunedin, or anywhere else in the South Island, could be next. The most recent major earthquake in Dunedin occurred when the Akatore fault moved in 1974. However, the Akatore, along with two other Read more...

Little Girl Counts Dead Sheep

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Jamie Breen

Although police once thought burning couches was a serious crime, a new form of vandalism has caught their attention. A pet sheep was stolen, bashed, set on fire, and the dead body dumped back at its original Clermiston Ave residence in Dunedin last week. Police were called to the scene when Read more...

Otago Tops Ranking for Most Rankings Topped

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Zane Pocock

The University of Otago has been ranked New Zealand’s top university in all four measures of the Educational Performance Indicators (EPIs) released by the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) last Wednesday. It is the first time any university has been the top in all four measures, although the EPI Read more...

Exec Has Erection Over New By-Election

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Staff Reporter

OUSA is set to have ANOTHER by-election, after Finance Officer Lucy Gaudin announced that she would step down from 1 August. Gaudin resigned in order to take up a new, full time role as OUSA Accounts Administrator. Other members of the Executive were quick to pay tribute to Gaudin. President Read more...

Patriarchal Scooter Explodes in an Effort to Keep Woman at Home

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Claudia Herron

A late night explosion in Mosgiel has left a woman “housebound” after her mobility scooter burst into flames whilst charging at her home on Green Street. The Otago Daily Times reported that Eleanor Moore (68) awoke at 11pm on the evening of Friday 19 July to find her “only means of Read more...

Fucking Hikes for Fucking Hacks

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Sam McChesney

OUSA President Francisco Hernandez has tabled a memorandum proposing changes to the Executive’s honoraria. The memorandum, which was tabled on 19 July, proposes slight reductions in base pay but with the addition of large performance-based bonuses. These would result in potential pay Read more...

OUSA Survey Results Released

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Zane Pocock

OUSA’s 2013 student survey has found positive attitudes towards all services provided by OUSA. The services surveyed were the Student Support Centre, the Recreation Centre, OUSA Events, Student Job Search, Critic, Radio One, and Campaigns Representation by the Executive. 79.85 per cent of Read more...

Invisible Hand to Be Slapped on the Wrist

Posted 4:45pm Sunday 28th July 2013 by Claudia Herron

The need to raise the standard of student housing in Dunedin has seen OUSA, Generation Zero and the DCC team up to get a local bill before Parliament. The deteriorating state of housing in the student precinct has seen many students put up with sub-par rental properties for too long, but the Read more...