COLUMN: Recent activism sparked by elections

---

by George Hatoun

---

A SURGE of Student Association resolutions. A sheaf of letters to the editor. Political activism rampant at Rice.

These events have abounded in the last two weeks.

When I first noticed this pattern of increased interest, I thought to myself, "Boy, Rice students must be the most involved and interested folks around -- those rumors of apathy must be wrong."

But after a glance at my calendar, I realized what force must be at work.

It was not Christmas. Or St. Valentine's Day. Nor is the increased participation in student government at Rice attributable to a trickle-down effect from the upcoming presidential primaries.

There is a much simpler explanation for all of these recent efforts: It's election time at Rice.

During the last two weeks, we've seen the SA take on with reckless speed a number of issues -- from Sammy the Owl to Internet elections to the pass/fail designation deadline to a new blanket tax.

The rush to get something done is understandable. The current Senate realizes that it faces the prospect of ending its session having accomplished little.

The possibility of the 1995-96 Senate being remembered for the crowning achievements of levying a shuttle tax on all undergraduates and unsuccessfully tackling the two-ply toilet paper problem seems to bother some of its mem-bers. That would explain unprecedented haste.

Haste, in fact, so great that some members of the Senate are pressing for more deliberate proceedings.

Hanszen senator Kathy Noack wrote to the SA listserv after last Monday's meeting: "Making it a standard procedure to discuss all resolutions at college cabinets before voting will not only improve our credibility in the eyes of the student body, it will also make us more effective."

But the flurry of activity does not stop when the gavel goes down at the end of SA meetings. Even the Opinion section of this paper has not been immune to what I would call the "election spirit."

The Honor Council, noticeably silent and inactive for most of the first semester of this year -- only a couple of cases actually went to trial -- has submitted now three consecutive columns about the honor system.

The council, in an impressive attempt to convince us of their propriety and accountability, has recruited senior representative Jay Fundling to explain that the current council is different from its predecessors.

Among other things, Fundling wrote the remarkable statement, "We don't think all athletes are cheaters."

Of course, all of these activities have a purpose.

These activities, in addition to their intended purposes, will help to build a portfolio of accomplishments for the Senate and its members.

For the Honor Council, it might be to make the student body more amiable to the constistutional changes increasing the size of the council that were defeated last year.

Having said all of this, it would be unfair if I didn't conclude by saying that there is, strickly speaking, nothing wrong with this pattern of events.

Your elected representatives, like their counterparts in legislatures everywhere, want to see their agendas succeed.

My point is simply that we should realize that these activities are carefully timed and neither spontaneous nor coincidental.

George Hatoun is a news editor and a Sid Richardson College junior.

This item appeared in the Opinion section of the February 9, 1996 issue.

Copyright © 1996 The Rice Thresher. All Rights Reserved.
This document may be distributed electronically, provided that it is distributed in its entirety and includes this notice. However, it cannot be reprinted without the express written permission of:
The Rice Thresher, Rice University, 6100 Main, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.