OUR VIEW: Meet those that want to represent you
With the 2012-13 ASUSU elections upon us, now is the time to do some research on our candidates. The success of our college experience lies in the hands of these students.
Everyone has an opinion, and we would all be wise to find which of these candidates has an opinion most similar to our own. If you feel strongly about an issue, talk to your future leaders about it and find out where they stand, as well as what they believe the issues are.
The slogan “Don’t Vote, Don’t Complain” is legitimate. Though it seems to be rooted in a negative approach to the voting issue, that doesn’t make it any less valid. Posting a grumpy Facebook status about elections isn’t going to make much of an impact. We need to invest a bit of our time into researching the system and finding out how politics work at USU.
We’re all glued to electronic technology and social networking, so let go of your Pinterest addiction for a few minutes and look up the ASUSU candidates on this website: www.usu.edu/asusu.
Read their platforms and find out which candidates’ goals are solid and attainable — instead of the typically vague “I’m going to continue doing the awesome job student government has already been doing.”
We believe our student government officials should earn their scholarships and stipends, and currently several candidates are running unopposed, which means free money for them.
The candidates that win the vote will work for us. They are paid with university funding to do their individual jobs and do them right. We also need to be aware of the ways candidates have broken campaign rules in the past. It is invasive and unfair to force someone to vote on a conveniently available laptop without allowing students to thoroughly research the candidates they truly want to vote for.
These candidates are running to become public figures, whether or not they want to face this fact. They have the right and responsibility to be open and fair to the students whose lives are affected by their decisions. We have been disappointed by the lack of publicity for some events — especially the less memorable student events this academic year. What do you think needs to change?
Do your homework on these candidates. Detect who is speaking from concern for the university and who simply wants the money and the resume boost. Tell your officers where you see gaps in their performance. At this point we’re the bosses, and we are hiring these new candidates to provide a service for us.
In the end, whether our leaders comprise a dream team or an unproductive group of title seekers, the outcome is on our shoulders. We need to do our part if we want to improve the way student government shapes our college experiences. This is an election — not a popularity contest.