Controversial DDS Changes, Communist Outrage, and More SWCD Deceipt

It should go without saying that the recent DDS changes to Late Night and the Courtyard Café have drawn significant pushback from students. While there may be a variety of valid reasons to critique recent DDS changes, what is rather fascinating is how students have perceived these changes as being representative of the failures of capitalism. On a separate note, the Student Worker Collective at Dartmouth (SWCD) has, too, been quick to capitalize on the outrage, helping to push its deceptive agenda. 

There is no better way to understand the sentiments of Dartmouth students than by heading over to Fizz. What sparked my own outrage over the DDS debacle was coming across a poll that asked students whether “DDS leadership incompetence is a bigger indictment of: Capitalism, Communism, Socialism, or Technocracy.” With a sample size of 154, the results are as follows: Capitalism with 93 votes (61%), Communism or Socialism with 15 votes (9%), and Technocracy with 46 votes (30%). Technocracy is certainly not a wrong answer, but the reality is that a majority of Dartmouth students identify the poor decision-making of a singular organization (DDS) as being capitalist-like. 

For liberal college students, the ability to quickly associate a singular decision-maker with monopolism is too easy. To them, it seems as though one entity, DDS, has cornered a market. Students have no choice but to succumb to the service provided by the monopoly of DDS. However, this perspective is flawed.

Nowhere in the world where capitalism is the economic system has there ever been a monopoly on food. In reality, it is communism in which a singular entity (the government) finds itself in control of the people’s food supply (which ultimately results in rationing and starvation). As it applies to Dartmouth, DDS is, in principle, communist-like. They have not cornered any market by providing a better, more popular service. They have not bought out any other competitors like Rockefeller’s Standard Oil (nor would this ever happen in the food industry). In the context of attending this college, Dartmouth is analogous to our government. DDS is our government-run food service. Instead of the Dartmouth dining system consisting of a variety of privately run (and competing) restaurants, markets, and establishments, under the current system, competition is outlawed. If a business made decisions as unpopular as those of DDS, people in the market could respond by choosing to eat at another establishment. However, when the entity is government-established and overarching (as in the case of DDS), following the demands of the market is not incentivized. Identifying the current dining controversy as a flaw of capitalism is ridiculously misguided.

Furthermore, the SWCD, rather than finish negotiations for its new contract, organized another protest against DDS and Dartmouth College. Their “worker solidarity” rally’s number one priority was protesting “against DDS automation.” While automation has, indeed, been a big part of recent changes, those arguably hurt by it have been the consumers, not the workers. The students are upset with automation due to a lack of human interaction. The SWCD understands this and has taken advantage of the frustrations, calling for “worker solidarity” against “automation.” However, not one worker was fired during the transition. The SWCD is misleading upset students into joining their protest through the deception that DDS is also harming workers.

The SWCD also lists “union busting” as one of their concerns. While this might be a fun trigger phrase to create more conflict (the only thing they seem capable of doing), they fail to explain where this “union busting” is happening. Unlike the misinformation the union spreads in standing “against DDS automation,” standing against “union busting” is based on flat-out disinformation.

They also cite “management harassment.” In their Instagram caption, they explain “In the past, the College threatened our worker with SNS, told UGAs they’ll lose their jobs if they defend their residents from HPD and ICE, delayed responding to our contract proposals, among many management infractions.” The union, in stating this, continues to push the idea that DDS is opening its doors to ICE and HPD. While this is great fear mongering, unfortunately this is also blatantly untrue. It is not the policy of DDS or Dartmouth College to do any more for ICE or HPD than would be legally required. Dartmouth apparently told UGAs that “they’ll lose their jobs if they defend their residents from HPD and ICE.” Of course, this is all they state, but does this not just mean that if ICE or HPD has a warrant to arrest a student, UGAs can’t get in the way? If this isn’t a complete fabrication, the context is not as cynical as the union makes it seem. Also, Dartmouth is not being raided by ICE or HPD. If it were, protesting against Dartmouth for not illegally standing in the way of law enforcement makes no sense. Go to the Capital to do so. But my favorite thing they say is that the school has “delayed responding to our contract proposals.” That’s quite rich coming from a group that can’t even finish a negotiation meeting before throwing a tantrum and walking out. 

Finally, the union seems to be protesting against rising food costs. They mention this to attract students to their rally who are angry with rising costs. However, out of principle, this is not an issue the union should be concerned with nor should want to mention. Ultimately, the union cannot demand that their wages be increased while simultaneously asking for DDS to lower food prices. Being that DDS is not-for-profit and, also, cannot spawn money, if the price of meal plans were lowered, expenditures would also need to go down. This means that either wages would be lowered, workers would be fired, or food quality (or quantity) would be decreased. The union, ultimately, doesn’t even know what they are protesting. The only thing they do know is how to feed off of emotions, walk out of meetings, and deceive. 

The SWCD still has to learn that there is no such thing as a free lunch.