It was late. My homework wasn't done, but I wasn't about to pick up any books. Instead, I picked up the remote, zapped on over to channel 12, and... nothing. What's going on? Braveheart was supposed to start 15 minutes ago! AAAAAHHHHHH!! I pick up the phone, I dial x5509 - The SocComm Office. The films chair picks up, "Hello?" he says. "Hi, I'm trying to watch the movie channel, but there isn't anything but a black screen," I explain. "Oh, that's because the movie channel is gone. We've got $20,000 worth of video cassettes you can borrow, though!" "No thanks, I don't have a VCR," I said. "Funny, neither do we."
At last week's SGA meeting, there was a motion on the floor to fund SocComm $3500 (down from $7000) for 4 new VCRs and controllers to replace the dying ones that currently run the movie channel. You see, the reason why movies start late (or sometimes not at all) is because the VCRs we are currently using were donated used and have been repaired beyond repair! SocComm needs new ones, and soon.
Unfortunately, those two lovely senators whose last names just happen to start with the same letter kept clouding the real issue at hand. They kept bringing up an old mishap with SocComm that was settled over a year ago. GET OVER IT ALREADY! The fact that off campus students don't benefit from the movie channel is NOT an excuse not to fund it. I'm sorry, but I don't wear cheerleading uniforms, yet you gave the cheerleaders money for new ones. Ya know what else? I didn't go on that Music Union / Men's Glee Club trip to England, Ireland, and Wales last year... yet you gave them $5000 for it. That only benefited 40 students. What about the rest? I don"t play a club sport, yet they get money for things... why? SocComm, like every other organization, has a budget. Money is allocated for certain things. We have contracts with bands, movie distributors, etc. that are set or waiting to go through. We can't just take $3500 (equal to 5 Sunday night movies, or a pub show, or a coffeehouse) out of our budget somewhere...
It is not up to you to decide what and how SocComm programs. It is up to you to represent (can you say, rep-re-sent? Didn't think so.) the student body in whatever decisions need to be made. By the student representation at the last SGA meeting (the largest non-senatorial attendance I've seen in the 1.5 years I've been attending meetings), I would say this is something the campus really cares about. Yet most of the senators complained about not having enough information. And ya know what? I'm not surprised one bit. Before last week, not one person from SGA ever contacted a SocComm exec for an explanation of anything. Why not? If you didn"t know something, why did you not ask Soccomm?
One more thing... you were elected to represent the student body. Keep your personal opinions at home, and let's hear the opinions of the people you are representing! So you"re still hung up on the Red Sox thing. Can we say: Grow up? Stop whining like a baby just because a certain departed administrator wouldn"t let you take over SGA. So, Snow and Sprague, why aren't you two running again?
The students know what they like, let us hear them speak out... keep the political BS out of our issues. If the students want SocComm to keep the movie channel going, then you, the Undergraduate Student Government Association, should do everything in its power to see that SocComm gets the funds to do so.
Get off the power trip and check your ego at the door. Represent the views and opinions of the students at this school, or get the hell out of my student government.
Craig Hansen
SocComm Films Chair
[Editor's note: the views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the WPI Social Committee]