View From The Lighthouse
Why SGA elections have
no turnout
Behrend's Student Government
Association has come a long way
since last year's unorganized mess
that the Beacon often times
criticized. Last year, the
organization found a way to make a
mess out of stipends, operate under
unorganized procedures, and silence
students who couldn't speak at
"student" government meetings
about issues of concern to them.
This year, there's no question the
leaders of SGA earned their
stipends. Jen Miles, with a couple
of very dedicated members, found
ways to reach out to concerned
students on topics that needed to be
addressed. SGA has yet to hit the
front page of the Beacon with
controversy.
But...
Yes, there is one problem that
continues to be of note year in and
year out. And that is elections. SGA
continues its struggles in getting
good turnout for elections that
decide which Behrend students will
represent the voice of the student
body.
This is a big thing, whether people
like to admit it or not. We hear
students complaining almost all of
time about what is wrong about
Behrend. Yet when there is a chance
to take advantage of choosing
people to represent the students.
SGA and the students on this
campus take the issue lightly
Last week, a Beacon reporter
contacted SGA in hopes of getting
information on the elections. The
reporter was given two names. One
was Jen Miles, SGA's president who
was going to be out of town from
Thursday to Sunday before the
elections. This is of concern.
First, why is Jen Miles in charge
of elections? As if she doesn't have
enough to take care of. It's obvious
that SGA isn't taking elections
seriously if they don't have more
people planning this event. But
wait. The reporter was given
another name, of which we will not
mention
When Miles was away before the
election, this senator was said to
have been in charge. The Beacon
reporter was told by the "senator in
charge" that the elections were to be
held the second week of April. If
that appeared in the paper, students
would still be waiting to vote on
April 10 and I 1. When the senator
was informed by the reporter that the
elections were on the 3rd and 4th,
there was some confusion to say the
least. Some more inaccurate
information was given, but we will
leave it at that
That story should give you some
THE BEHREND BEACON
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idea as to how unorganized this
process was
Here are some ideas for future SGA
elections
1. Appoint at least three people to
take care of the planning and
publicity of the elections. These
three people should be named and
working at least a month before the
election.
2. Have a detailed press release sent
to the Beacon, with information
about the date, time and place of the
election. It would also be beneficial
to have the Beacon print the
information that students would need
if they are interested in running for a
position on SGA. This might at least
open up SGA to the entire student
body, not just the students that attend
SGA meetings.
3. Work with the Beacon throughout
the process so that as much
information as possible can he
printed in Behrend's only source of
student media.
4. Hold the debate between the
candidates running for president/vice
president a week before the
elections, not the day of the elections
after voting booths have been
opened. The debate could then be
covered in the Beacon the Friday
before the elections. This will give
students a better idea of the
platforms of the candidates.
5. There should be voting booths at
more than one location. Engineering
and science majors rarely make it to
Bruno's for lunch, which is where
the one voting booth was held this
past week. There should be voting
booths in several locations
thorughout campus. If you can't get
the booths, then just do the voting by
paper ballot.
6. When voting is over, hold a press
conference where the results are
announced in front of the candidates
This offers a good front page photo
for the newspaper and makes the
announcement seem important. See
front page
This year's process for SGA
elections was more confusing and
unorganized than Florida's election
laws. Let's just be thankful that
there were no hanging chads to deal
with. That would have been a mess
Jeff
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Editorial
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Looking too hard for diversity?
I, like a lot of students, was surprised to find
out that Shaggy was coming to our campus. I
was even more surprised, while reading the
Beacon, to discover that this is, apparently, not
just a concert, it's Behrend Cultural Diversity
Day. I'm sorry. I guess I missed that
announcement. Apparently the school has been
looking, searching the ends of the Earth, to find a
way to break down the cultural barriers that have
plagued our school and make the world a better
place for all of us. Please. The idea that anyone
would look at this as anymore that just a concert
is ridiculous. Would you like to know why the
campus decided to hire a "black" music artist? It
didn't have anything to do with solving racism.
It was because somehow, our school conned a
successful musician into believing that Erie, the
town that looks like its name, is one of the most
exclusive concert venues in America.
Making lists is the coolest!
Imagine: you are sitting in that wonderful
Tuesday/Thursday class that falls right after
lunch. You are getting very, very sleepy. The
class takes place in one of the rooms in the
Academic Building that have been inexplicably
hot lately. You sit way in the back, and the
professor has never looked at you in two and a
half months, let alone called on you. You have
never read the supplementary text, and you have
absolutely no idea what is going on. You have
even forgotten what class you are in - is it Intro
to Western Civ, Intro to Psychology, or Intro to
Eating Paint Chips? How the hell do you keep
from falling asleep?
Make a list! As several of our editorialists
have demonstrated this semester (and I am in no
way knocking the efforts of my comrades), lists
can be quite useful. And though it may sound
odd, this sleep prevention method has proven
infallible. It also may expand your ego a bit, as
you may find that you know more than you think
you do. Next time you are in danger of nodding
off, try making a list of something. List the
states in alphabetical order, then add in the
capitals. List all the Led Zeppelin songs you can
think of, then arrange them in order that they
were released. List the number of times your
professor stutters or the kid in front of you sniffs
really loudly and grossly. And to get you started,
following is a fun list my friends and I made last
week.
Fun things you can do with beer list (please
Do you have an op i n i on> about something going on around campus? Or do
You have an opinion about everything? Think you have what it takes to
write editona . Is? The Beacon is currently looking for new editorial
columnists for this falLSend an original sample editorial of at least 500
words tatylvoiriagaol.Colti. Deadline is Apnll3 at 5:00 p.m.
p' wogs
T(me.
note that this is a list of
d the Chea things you can do with the
P beer bottles, cases, and so forth.
ed Lights I decided not to make a list of
things you can do while drinking beer,
Hayes because are there really any limits to that
• list? It would never be finished!) And
not only is this a great list to make, but I
seriously encourage all to attempt the fun things
here proposed! So here goes:
1. The Fridge 0' Beer : Just imagine it - a
refrigerator filled with nothing but beer. The
shelves, the lunchmeat drawer, the crispers, the
butter compartment, the egg holes, even the
freezer (this beer will need to be consumed first) -
all filled to capacity with bottles of beer. And to
make it even more picturesque, use all the same
brand of beer and make sure all the bottles are
facing the same way. It would almost be a shame
to drink any. Almost .
r "".'
I A R MY cti"
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Undoubtedly my favorite comment came from
Kamilah Gordon. She felt that the school,
"Should have found a better African American."
Who exactly were you looking for, the second
coming of Martin Luther King Junior? Shaggy is
only one of a few African American music artists
that the music industry and media do not attempt
to portray as profane, illiterate or a bad influence
on children. You're right. Behrend should have
found someone better.
Next, I wasted five minutes of my life reading
Jason Snyder's column. It was about his mission
to determine who was excited that Shaggy was
coming to Behrend, who listens to Shaggy, and
who listens to Fuel and Our Lady Peace. I'll save
you some time. Almost any listener of Star 104 or
music of/similar to Shaggy is probably excited.
Those same people, along with anyone sick and
tired of concerts by Pittsburgh's saddest excuse
2. The Beermobile: Get a station wagon or
hatchback. Get several cases of beer. Put as
many cases of the beer in the car as possible. And
voila - beermobile. Note: probably any car could
be used, but the boxier shape of these cars, plus
the extra windows, will make it all the more fun.
Also, trying this with a pickup truck might be
rather enjoyable as well. Disclaimer: I am in NO
way encouraging drinking and driving; that would
be stupid. Use closed or empty cases only, please.
3. The Beeramid: You know how there is that
one detested RA that always seems to be on duty
during your late-night activities? Or that one
neighbor that always calls the cops to your
parties? Well, it's payback time! At the next party,
get beer cans instead of bottles (you technically
could use bottles, but there is a high potential for
breakage here). Save the empties all night. After
the party (preferably once everyone sobers up), go
to the hated person's door and stack up the cans in
the doorway. Be careful - one slip and you're
busted! That way they will get a fun surprise in
the morning! No need to set the alarm clock to
catch this one - you'll hear it!
4. The Beer Can Raft: You always wanted to
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for rock bands (the Clarks and Buzz Poets), may
possibly attend. Who listens to Fuel and Our
Lady Peace? Well, that would be you and Mike
Mitchell.
Look, everyone just has to realize a few things
here. In this country there are still poor excuses
for life that believe that blacks are inferior to
whites. In the same respect, there is a racist
television network (Black Entertainment
Television) and scholarships given specifically to
the most intelligent African American student of
a graduating class. Besides renaming BET,
getting rid of these special scholarships and
sending all the rednecks that think they are so
superior to live in Wyoming by themselves, all
anyone can do is try to practice some humility.
Matthew Sudak
Senior, PLET
go sailing on the lake, but you don't have a boat
and can't afford to rent one. And you always
wondered if it would be quicker to just sail to
Canada, rather than drive there. The solution?
The Beer Raft! Beer cans sorta float, right? So
tie a whole hunch of them suckers together and
make a raft! You might want to stop up the
spouts, though, or you might be crawling along
the bottom of the lake with the hypodermic
needles long before you make it to Canada.
Duct tape some flattened beer cases together to
make a sail. And Canada, we're on our way,
5. The Fish Bottle: Think of all the empties
you've thrown away recently. Isn't there
something more worthwhile that could be done
with those bottles? Maybe some of you more
environmentally-conscious lushes have recycled
your bottles in the convenient bins in the
hallways, but how do you know they are actually
being reused? Maybe they are being tossed into
the lake to join the needles and the unsuccessful
rafts? Instead of tossing them, why not use them
as fish tanks? Get a fish for every bottle. But
you might want to get small fish so that they
don't get stuck when you clean them. And don't
stop at fish - you can fill bottles with sea
monkeys, shrimp, crabs (not those kind of
crabs!), snails, etc. Now you can assure yourself
that your bottles are going to good use by using
them as habitats.
And that's just to get you started. Have some
more fun ideas to get your $l6 worth outta that
case? Send them in - we can always use letters
to the editor that aren't criticizing the
columnists, the paper, or the school. What better
way could we use this space than to dedicate it to
the full enjoyment of twelve-ounce nutrition?
So, next time you are in class trying to oh-so
subtly hide the fact that you are really sleeping
and not resting your forehead on the palm of
your hand, think of me and add to the beer list.
Or make your own. You never know what you
know until you make a list of it!
Hayes' column appears every three weeks.