greg's virtual dwelling | CGA made the right move by not supporting the cutting of funds

CGA made the right move by not supporting the cutting of funds

This is a good time to count your blessings.

Besides the recent passing of Thanksgiving, you should be thankful that you don't go to California University of Pennsylvania (CUP), a south western Pennsylvania school that's part of the State System of Higher Education (SSHE), along with Bloomsburg and 12 other schools.

As The Voice reported last week, The Cal Times, the student-run newspaper at CUP, has had no end of problems with their student government in obtaining Homecoming election results. The Student Government Association (SGA) protested from the very beginning and has still not handed over the results. They've even brought in lawyers to stop the results from being released. This whole controversy stems from the university not wanting to embarrass anyone with the results of the election.

The sad part is that the lowest vote total for any candidate was about 80 votes. I'm not sure if every Homecoming candidate at CUP is hyper sensitive, or if CUP's SGA is just trying to hide their stupidity and lack of integrity by pushing a lawyer onto the newspaper. Either way, I'm very thankful that I'm not a CUP student.

While this may not seem like a big deal to everyone, it's just the tip of the iceberg. It's what journalists and lawmakers call the "slippery slope." If a student government at a public school is allowed to block these results, what's to stop them from blocking other election results and what's to stop them from interfering with the integrity of the electoral process? But the issue goes much deeper than just election results. It creates a press that is not free in an environment where ideas should freely be discussed.

Besides all that, CUP's SGA is violating state sunshine laws - laws that are in place to protect the freedom of the press in community newspapers as well as public college newspapers. The lawyer for the university has taken the stand that Pennsylvania's Right-to-Know Act does not apply to Homecoming results, even though the Homecoming committee is a subcommittee of the student government.

If you ask me, the university is making a huge to do about absolutely nothing. Publish the Homecoming results. Publish the student government election results. Besides the laws on the books, publish them because your students have the right to know what is happening in their government and at their school. Publish the results because there's no reason not to.

I'm thankful that Bloomsburg University's Community Government Association (CGA) and administration have not taken any high-handed steps to curb the free flow of information on this university. Thankfully, they recognize the importance of public knowledge and of the integrity of the process. I'm glad that the CGA is informed enough to know that the press - student or otherwise - has a right to the information and that that right cannot be infringed upon.

In recent weeks, I've heard talk - unofficially, of course - from various CGA members saying that The Voice's funding should be cut because of the controversial stories that have been printed in recent weeks. Specifically, these CGA members have referred to my column that has, at times, been rather controversial and somewhat scathing of the Greeks, CGA, and university administration alike.

I'm very glad though that nothing has officially come out of these words. The CGA is evidently much more intelligent and informed than I had given them credit for. They've dismissed the words of the less intelligent and uninformed that have suggested cutting The Voice's funding as a way to silence the paper. The CGA, as a whole, can obviously see the larger picture, whereas the simpler of the bunch attempt to resort to name calling and the CGA equivalent of taking their ball and going home.

In the future, I know that the CGA will continue to recognize the newspaper as a voice for the students and university that cannot be quieted simply because they don't like what's said in the paper. They realize that it would not only be political suicide, but it would also be an extreme act of cowardice to cut the newspaper's funding because there's been negative editorial content on the Greeks, administration or the CGA itself. I just hope they realize how ludicrous the allegations and suggestions of the few are and that they set these simpletons straight for not only the freedom of speech and the press, but for the good of the university.

The holiday season is a good time to think about what you can be thankful for. While you're thinking of family or a strong academic career, don't forget the freedom of the press or the fact that you don't go to CUP.