Show Student Government What's the point Darren Knott Columnist T A THY Y do doV doV V V student government at The only thing that I can think of that could be more useless is isa isa isa a clock dock I have attended attended attended at at- tended four different colleges and universities in the last six years and I have yet to figure figur out one thing that they do for the students It seems like it is an excuse for a bunch of rich kids to play government and get free trips and scholar scholar- ships I would like to see next election just one student student student stu stu- dent politician get past the same stupid rhetoric and tell tellus tellus tellus us why they are really running running running run run- ning to get free trips and scholarships And it looks good on resumes and law school applications A couple of years ago at atthe atthe atthe the U of U the first original movement in student government that I have ever seen happened A group called the Who Cares party was overwhelmingly elected The platform for this party parry was they would give up their salaries give up the perks and politically destroy everything in student government that they could Well to make a along along along long story short they started out in the right direction but ended up succumbing to the temptations of power and became became became be be- came the same as all other student politicians The moral of this story is that the students rallied behind behind behind be be- hind the slogan of the Who Cares party Student government government government govern govern- ment might have had a place back in the days when colleges colleges colleges col col- col- col leges were mainly for the rich richand richand richand and students generally didn't work while attending school Im I'm thinking of Harvard and Yale or Oxford with all their tradition In that setting I could see student government government government govern govern- ment serving some sort of purpose With today's easy access to college the increasing increasing increasing ing enrollment of of older students students students stu stu- stu- stu dents and the evolution of commuter colleges the need for student government has faded The reason I feel that the need has faded is because today's student just wants to togo togo togo go school get his degree and get the hell out of there Students Students Students Stu Stu- dents are concerned about how they are going to get a chance to study while working working working work work- ing full time and in many cases raising a family not what band is going to play at atthe atthe atthe the Friday night dance Besides Besides Besides Be Be- sides we saw how good our student politicians represent us with the the smoking-in-the- cafeteria issue They decided that they didn't want smoking smoking smoking ing in the cafeteria they held helda a farce of an election then rammed their decision dedsion downour down downour downour our throats without a second tho thought ugh t With Wit h r representation representation e p r e- e like that I think that I would like to just keep my student fees and apply them to something a little littlemore littlemore littlemore more important than school government like food |