Our country’s greatest and most precious attribute is dying on our college campus today. Our forefathers fought for its survival on the battlefields around the world, while we forget. Other nations yearn and hope for it, while we stand idly by.
This tradition I speak of is democracy. It is democracy we are unconsciously burying here on our campus. How are we committing this disgrace to ourselves? By simply not partaking in it.
One of the phrases I have heard over and over again since my arrival at the University of Oregon is “campus democracy.” Our school’s democracy is thankfully based on our country’s system of three separate-but-equal entities. The ASUO Senate, Executive, and Constitution Court allow us to express our voices or concerns in a system of checks and balances. We are truly fortunate to have this.
However, from the recent primary election results for senate and executive it seems that we might not understand the importance of this freedom. Low voter turnout and enthusiasm show that a good portion of the majority doesn’t care or have interest in an important right.
How can they not care? From these results, we might conclude that it is a waste of time to have elections. I wish to believe that it’s not true. However, if this current trend of apathy among students continues, it will destroy our campus democracy and mutilate our concept of democracy as a whole.
Voting in our student elections is not only important because we have an equal voice, but also because it is our own money at stake. Forget political ideology and all other barriers for a minute, and think who would be in charge and where your money would be going without your input.
A $500 student incidental fee is included in our tuition, and this generates roughly $8 million per year for the ASUO budget. This staggering sum goes to finance Club Sports, the EMU and other student-run organizations. We should be aware of what our hard-earned money is being used for, and by refusing to vote, we are freely throwing our cash away.
Those who see this election as a high-school-style popularity contest are mistaken. I believe that the candidates for every position have all the best intentions and sincerely want to provide the full representation that we should be asking for. They will work to satisfy any pressing wants or concerns. All they ask in return is that students exercise their right to vote. By voting, we will be benefiting ourselves by providing valuable input on how we want our money spent.
Voting in this upcoming election is so fast and easy that it shouldn’t take more than two minutes from our busy lives. Having two days to use Duck Web to vote from any computer is a luxury we should not take for granted. We shouldn’t expect to have a 90 percent turnout, but 30 percent to 50 percent would show that we still want our campus democracy and appreciate our freedoms.
Go out and participate in campus democracy and vote!