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Get off your butts and vote
- By Anthony McConnell
- Trail Editor
- It’s almost that time of year again – the leafs are turning vibrant colors, the first snow storm of the year has come and gone and the 2006 elections are in full swing.
The Northwest College Student Senate recently held its elections and the turnout was nothing but abysmal. The polls couldn’t have been located in a more convenient location. They were at the top of the stairs in the DeWitt Student Center, yet still only a small percentage of students took the time to fill out a ballot. Maybe it is because students don’t realize how much power the Student Senate wields, maybe it is because students didn’t see the hundreds of fliers or the front page story in the Trail or maybe it is students just don’t care who their leaders are.
It’s a good bet most students don’t actually know everything the Student Senate does. Heck, few people ever know the inner workings of any government office or board, but students should know the Senate controls the bulk of club funding at NWC and also helps to organize and pay for many student-oriented activities. To carry out its tasks the Senate wields a budget in excess of $40,000 – bet those who skipped the election will vote next time.
Well, it’s time for all those students who skipped out on their civic responsibility in the Student Senate election to redeem themselves.
On Nov. 7 the state of Wyoming will hold its general election and in that election several leaders of not only the state but the country and NWC will be selected. This is your chance to have a voice in who makes decisions that directly affect your lives. Some of the larger races this year include the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, NWC Board of Trustees and Wyoming governor.
Among the many arguments people use for not voting, the most common and by far the lamest is “I’m just one person. It doesn’t matter if I vote.” While the first half of the statement is quite true, the second is just stupid – especially in a state election which is determined by popular vote.
In a state of just 500,000 people and only 350,000 eligible voters every vote is very important. Just think, what if 50,000 voters decide they’re not going to vote and an election is decided by 40,000 votes, seems like those votes just might have made a difference.
Every day people complain about the government and every November people who are eligible to vote fail to do so. It was a wise man who once said, “If you didn’t vote, shut up.”
As Americans it is not only our civic duty and responsibility, but our privilege to vote. So on Nov. 7 remember what Al Capone had to say about voting. “Vote early and vote often.”
- Trail Editor