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Show 4 Monday, July 16, 2007 OPINION www.dailyutahchronide.com Be informed, or be quiet The only way to change reality is through political involvement hat do you know about politics affecting your area and your life? Are you involved? If you are between the ages of 18 and 24, the chances are about 50-50 that you're not. While ANASTASIA many young NlEDRICH people are politically involved, informed and vote, according to the majority of surveys, that is not a common reality. According to a survey of local, state and national party chairpersons conducted by the Center for W THE CHRONICLE'S VIEW Recycling depends on U o, A campus-wide effort." We hear this cliched phrase often, but the issue of campus recycling perfectly illustrates the need for this seemingly Utopian ideal. After what it said took years of planning and fundraising efforts, the U's administration announced that its recycling program—which involved distributing recycling bins to every building on campus— would begin on June 1. That day has come and gone, and the results are a flawed system that has students and faculty alike wondering just where, exactly, they're supposed to be recycling. The blame does not lie with the administration or Plant • Operations—who"areJih charge of implementing the program ,in most campus buildings^-all buildings did receive recycling bins on June 1. The problem is that many have yet to distrib- ute them. If the organizers spent years coordinating this epic mobilization, shouldn't buildings have known what to do immediately when the bins arrived? In any case, it has been six weeks since the confusion began. Those in charge of the program ought to have taken proactive measures to preclude such difficulties, and the U's building managers should have, by now, carried out the remedial task of passing out bins to each room. Although we agree that buildings have had ample time to distribute bins, the U has had even more time to execute a simple campus recycling program. It seems like a desire for early publicity led the administration to misinform the campus and cause the recycling program to start on the wrong foot. Why else would they have launched before the program was ready? There are not a lot of factors in this equation. It takes proper organization and distribution of recycling bins throughout every building, and diligence on the part of everyone to recycle. Usually the last one is the hard part—we haven't even gotten to step two: But, although our recycling program has hit a glitch, it's still due the benefit of the doubt that those bins will be in every classroom of every building on campus, eventually. If the buildings don't get their act together soon, though—or if they're simply misinformed—the U should follow through proactively. They went through all the trouble of getting this program together—don't they want to hasten along an easy success story? Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of The Daily Utah Chronicle Editorial Board. Signed editorials, editorial columns and letters to the editor are strictly the opinions of the author. The forum created on the Opinion Page is one based on vigorous debate, while at the same time'demanding tolerance and respect. Material defamatory to an individual or group because of race, ethnic background, religion, creed, gender, appearancq or sexual orientation will be edited or will not be published. Ail letters to the editor will now be published online at www.dailyutahchronicle. com. Letters that the editor deems best represent those received will be printed in the newspaper. 'ne person at a time, we can influence the political direction of our city, state and nation. Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, "Only 8 percent of the party chairs identified young people as the most important demographic for the 'long-term success of their party,' compared to 21 percent who named senior citizens." I certainly wasn't surprised. I think most older people view the youth of America as politically apathetic, uninformed and uninvolved. According to U.S. Census Bureau data on voting gathered from the2004 elections, totals from all races that year indicated that only 51.5 percent of men and women aged 18 to 24 registered and voted that year, compared with 69.7 percent of men and women 65 years and older. Our age group had, and has had for some time, the lowest percentage voter turnout of any age group. Two things talk in politics: money and votes. As an age group, generally we have less money than older age groups do. We also vote less than older age groups. Year after year, many people our age sit on their duffs through election season, fail to vote and then complain about how things are when they don't c ^ like the results. Registering is almost painless—costing at most one 41-cent postage stamp if you register by mail. You can find out about your elected officials and how to register by going online to www.elections.utah. gov. Look for upcoming political campaign information and action days at the U in the Fall Semester before the primary and general elections. This year, the primary elections for Salt Lake City Council and Mayoral races are on Sept. 11. The general elections will be held Nov. 6. That means you have almost two months from now to register to vote, investigate the issues, get involved in a campaign in your area and vote to make a difference. One person at a time, we can change older people's perceptions of young people as political do-nothings, while influencing the political direction of our city, state and nation. Every vote counts—even if you're a Democrat in Utah. . If we as an age group are going to change things, we need to all get educated. Almost nothing bothers me more than people who are politically ignorant, but then complain about how they don't like politics—especially members of certain demographic groups, such as women, that had to fight for the right to vote in the first place. Don't take the right for granted You won't get the effects you want to see unless you are personally working to influence your government. letters@ chronicle.utah.edu LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Volunteer programs Don't believe all the hype need a little assistance People wanting to help out are being turned away N ot too long ago, I tried to get involved with a volunteer program at the U, and it was a totally fruitless endeavor. I went online to see what volunteer programs existed at the U. I began by logging onto the U's website and searching out the various opportunities that existed. I eventually found a questionnaire that was designed to find what programs best TRISTAN suited my availability and BENNETT my skills. After finishing the survey—checking a ^^^^^^^^^^ number of things that I found interesting and thought that I might be good at—I came to a conclusion: The only programs on this campus that actually need help are those that involve using Spanish as a second language. There was one program that called me back after I filled out the all-important survey. It was a mentor program in which we would go to elementary schools in the area to participate in activities with the children and teach them various skills. After attending several meetings spanning the course of two semesters on what it was we would be doing with these elementary age children, and being told that we would be set up with someone, no one ever called me back and I eventually stopped attending the meetings. This was a total waste of my time. I helped no one. My search for worthwhile voluntary pro- grams did not stop there. I used a contact from a friend to try to get involved with a program that would have me play sports with develop mentally disabled children in order to teach them muscle control and social skills. After working as a staff member in a group home for the {ievelopmentally disabled for more than a year, I figured maybe this program would be one that I would be sufficiently "qualified" for. I left a message and never heard anything back. If there are so many causes that need people to help, why does it seem I need a degree to participate in some, or to have lived in Costa Rica for half of my life for the others? The message "people need to give more and take less" is inconsistent when those who are willing to give are turned away. Voluntary service should be about people willing to help, and service programs accepting that help when offered. Maybe I am "behind the times," or maybe I am not the asset to these programs I seem to have thought myself to be. One thing is for sure, though: When I "apply" for such programs in the future, it will not be on this campus until the U is willing to take a long, hard look at its service programs and incorporate all those willing to lend a helping hand. letters@ chronicle.utah.edu Editor: I'm writing in response to Anastasia Niedrich's column ("Be Proactive, Earth can't take the heat," July 9). Some corrections for her column are as follows: "Some scientists believe that the Earth isflat."False. Flat-Earth theorists are not regarded as scientists because their basis for their argument lies in antiquated 15th century biblical scholarship ideals and not modern physical or life science theory. "Most scientists agree that climate change does exist and that it's an epidemic that must be resolved in the next few years if we are to survive." False. The scientific com- munity is about evenly split on the cause, and on whether or not it's an epidemic or just part of a normal cyclical pattern. It's just that scientists who believe global wanning is most directly attributed to human-related causes are the only ones who get real media attention—therefore the general public thinks the scientific community is in almost full agreement on this issue. "You owe it to yourself to see this movie, and research other opinions and evidence on the subject so that you can hear what various sides of the argument have to say." No one should owe it to themselves to see any blatantly one-sided movie about global wanning made by a man whose electric bill is higher than my annual income. "The film was a sobering confirmation of my conclusions about the global climate change crisis." Two things. First, if you need a film to confirm your own conclusions, you should not be talking about scientific thought. Second, in the '70s the world experienced another global crisis, but it was a global cooling scare. American media brought the hype to the public and people were told to burn fossil fuels more often and longer in order to prevent an ice age. Jonathon Young Sophomore, Asian Studies and History Taking notice of Chartwells, finally Editor: The story ("Students down on Chartwells services?" June 21) is old news. Every year, Chartwells consistently ranks low in student satisfaction. Ignorant or apathetic students continue to pay between $5 and $9 per meal for low-quality food at the Heritage Center, and then willingly pay up to an additional $4 for the privilege to eat more mediocre and predictable food at the Union Food Court. Students grow tired of the same old food day in and day out. They stop using up ah1 of their meals per week, which just hands oyer yet more money to Chartwells in unredeemed meal plans. I know the routine. I did it for two years while living at Officer's Circle, except I actually paid $10 or more for each meal. Chartwells has an excellent business model: Charge ludicrous amounts per meal, implement constraining policies for redemption of those meals, then pretend that it always keeps the students' best interest in mind—all the while pocketing the extra money. Perhaps it should be congratulated for its continued success every year and for its ability to skirt the issues when confronted. It should also congratulate itself for staying under The Chronicle's radar for so long and then getting The Chronicle to run the story during the summer semester when the majority of students impacted by Chartwells1 meal plans won't even see the article. The fact that Chartwells has remained untouched for so long should raise some very real alarms. How about addressing the real issues, Chartwells? Stephen Johnson Graduate Student, Metallurgy |