Is the Gainesville chapter of Students for a Democratic Society really concerned about tuition hikes, or is it just trying to find something to protest?
Last week, SDS organized a protest, marched into Tigert Hall and demanded an end to annual tuition hikes.
No one likes to see tuition rates increase, but in tough economic times, the belts of everyone have to tighten.
With annual tuition hikes, surely UF has the one of the highest tuition rates in the country, right?
Actually, UF is ranked 11th in Forbes' Top 20 Best Value Colleges in the nation. If the college raises tuition at the rate of 15 percent per year, it will not reach the national average until 2019.
Everyone is on a tight budget, and no one likes paying more, but eventually wishes and hopes must succumb to reality.
You do not have a right to be here. You voluntarily chose to come to UF, and to demand that administrators give up their salaries to support your desire to pay less is a little childish.
We ask that you do not waste your upcoming opportunity to present a strong defense of your position when you meet with the university administration.
This is not to say that no one in SDS is really concerned about paying more, but storming into Tigert Hall and screaming demands to speak with President Bernie Machen makes it seem like the members are pining for a return to the 1960s.
It is a lot easier to convince someone on your side of the argument through calm, rational debate rather than screaming and holding picket signs. You have the right to protest or assemble, but there are better strategies.
Also, in the very hall where you were protesting, graduate students were trying to conduct important presentations but were disturbed by your yelling.
Is that really in the best interest of the students?
So for the activists in SDS, this is a call to action. Defend your "right" to pay less for your education. Why are tuition hikes for a school with below-average tuition rates the end of the world?
Should UF not be allowed to determine its own standards for entry and payment?
Students seem to be getting a pretty good deal. It is not like there are not opportunities out there that might ease your financial burden.
The editorial board of the Alligator asks that members of the SDS and other groups on campus who feel angered by the tuition hikes to send letters to the editor defending their position.
As you may notice from the letter by a graduate student a few weeks ago, there is not a collective distaste for these tuition hikes.
The Alligator has endorsed the painful but necessary tuition hikes before - but the editorial board has limits, too. When Machen wanted a one-time 30 percent increase, the Alligator objected and suggested locking in rates from freshman year through graduation.
We would greatly appreciate a response to this issue.
