Editor:

Since 1994, Students First! has stood for the honesty and integrity of student government officials in addressing the questions of improving UCSD. Thus, it was with great shock that I read in the March 29 Guardian a series of dishonest and hypocritical statements by presidential candidate Jeremy Cogan.

Cogan claims that he created the Unity slate because Students First! would not give “100 percent” in return for any work he would do. In reality, it was Cogan who was unwilling to give 100 percent, refusing to sign a pledge that stated his full commitment to the ideals of Students First! and his dedication to uphold those ideals even if he did not win the slate’s presidential nomination.

If this baldfaced misinterpretation of reality were not bad enough, Cogan has the gall to imply that Students First! represents A.S. bureaucracy when it is his Unity slate that holds the most cabinet positions this year, with little to the benefit of students. Unity’s director of services, up for re-election next week, must be held responsible for losing Triton Taxi service to the U.S.-Mexico border. As the director of enterprises, Cogan hindered student enterprises, refusing to work with the student organization-created CampusBoox.com, and instead opted for creating more A.S. bureaucracy through his self-aggrandizing “Bookswap” program. Cogan claims that student organizations “need to be brought into the loop.” At best, this assertion is condescending. Unfortunately, the facts show the statement to be hypocritical, as it appears Cogan is more ready to hinder the work of student groups to improve our campus than assist in these efforts. Cogan’s words obviously do not align with his actions.

Cogan is a direct beneficiary of the Students First! practice of seeking out young leaders from student organizations who have experience but are blocked from traditional routes to promotion by bureaucracy. To my disappointment, it seems clear that he has now become part of that bureaucracy which he claims to detest only when it serves his political ends. I would advise him and all other candidates to serve the students by providing them with honest pictures of their pasts. Perhaps by showing that they truly stand for something, candidates can reenergize a campus unimpressed by empty promises.

— Kevin Shawn Hsu

Earl Warren College senior