Apathy and Indifference

We would like to inform the student populace that elections did in fact take place on Thursday, April 29th. Further, many candidates actually developed platforms that advertised their campaign objectives. Believe it or not, these candidates voiced their plans for improving student life at a debate that was open to all students. The attendance was not quite standing room only, as hundreds of unoccupied seats were readily available for anyone who actually cared.

Elections found students voting blindly, their decisions swayed by either their sweet tooth or their growling stomach. Could you imagine if "Clinton versus Dole" was reduced to a creeping decision between lollipops and bourekas? What if Rudy Giuliani won office by promising Burger King for everyone? Should students with a propensity for video games be more equipped to choose the most qualified campus leaders?

It evidently takes a great deal of effort to crawl into Morg and take part in our microcosm of democracy by casting a vote. This process is obviously quite strenuous; otherwise it is hard to understand why only a small percentage of the student body made the grueling trek to the elections.

Those who were present might have noticed that a piece of paper (commonly referred to as a ballot) contained unusual looking words that learned people call Roman Numerals. Believe it or not, the administration was issuing this ballot in an attempt to amend the YCSC Constitution. Yes, we do have a constitution. How many students could actually claim that they knew what they were voting for when they hastily checked next to "add amendments"?

It is patently evident that there is a lack of regard for the important process of voting, and on a larger scale, taking initiative to change anything that affects student life. It is disheartening that students are unaware of the issues for which they have the opportunity to vote, and take the entire voting process in jest.

Students should have taken the time to discover for themselves what was known to a select few- that the amendments were grossly unconstitutional, and the manner about which they were presented was both devious and immoral. It is extremely disappointing that students would thoughtlessly vote for such obviously unethical amendments simply because they agreed with one, or trusted that they would have a positive effect on student life without even reading them. It is clear that students must pay more attention to their own actions, and speak out when they feel an injustice is being made.

For many, college is a time when students become more politically active. We realize this may be too much to ask from most of our student body, however, a minimal amount of commitment to decisions that directly affect student life on campus is at least expected.