EDITORIAL: Apathy, again

The low freshman turnoutThe low freshman turnoutfor UndergraduateThe low freshman turnoutfor UndergraduateAssembly elections is justThe low freshman turnoutfor UndergraduateAssembly elections is justone more reason toThe low freshman turnoutfor UndergraduateAssembly elections is justone more reason tooverturn the 'gag rule.'The low freshman turnoutfor UndergraduateAssembly elections is justone more reason tooverturn the 'gag rule.'____________________________ But while we're on the subject, let us reiterate our disgust with the Nominations and Elections Committee's "gag rule," the policy that prohibits UA candidates from being quoted -- unless their remarks occur in a public forum -- in the DP during the campaign period. This ridiculous rule aims to increase the fairness of student government elections by ensuring that no candidate has a name-recognition edge when his or her peers go to the polls to cast their ballots. But all it actually accomplishes is the elimination of productive, issue-oriented discourse among candidates for spots on the UA. Freshmen seeking UA membership submit to the NEC their photos and very short blurbs about why they should be elected and what they will endeavor to do if they win. These blurbs often contain absolutely no substantive information. And filled instead with empty promises or gimmickry designed to get a candidate noticed, they are printed in a DP ad that is most students' only contact with UA candidates. Rather than having such wide latitude when it comes to the annual NEC ad, each student government candidate should be required to state his or her views and ideas for two of the UA's four committees: safety, student life, academics and facilities. If students knew what their prospective representatives thought about the things that matter on this campus, more of them might come out to vote on election day. They might even make more informed voting decisions, and the entire campus community could benefit from that.