ASUA primaries a waste

That's the amount of money the Associated Students government will be spending on an entirely pointless primary election Tuesday and Wednesday. This election will eliminate a whopping two candidates, allowing the voters to concentrate all of their attention on the 23 candidates who will remain. Thanks, ASUA for narrowing down the field so decisively; we'd have a hell of a time keeping the platforms and promises of 25 fledgling politicians straight. With only 23 to think about, we'll be able to use those unoccupied brain cells to devise that plan for world peace that we've been stewing over.

"We have to follow the rules stated in the Elections Code" Associated Students Elections Commissioner Marcos Hernandez told the Arizona Daily Wildcat. Never mind that these are the people who wrote those rules.

But, like all good politicians, they're trying to put a good spin on a stupid idea. "It's necessary for candidates to see where they stand and the campaigning that goes on for the primaries lets students know about the issues at stake early," explained Senate candidate Jonathan Fine, general business junior. As if issues, not name recognition, pretty fliers and the Greek system, are really at the heart of student government. We'll see how much Jonathan likes the primaries if he happens not to win his.

So, the $1,600 must be spent, come hell or high-water.

We at the Wildcat would like to recommend some alternate uses for that money. We may not be as qualified at spending other people's money as the ASUA, but we're willing to give it a shot.

We could buy Reese's Peanut Butter Cups for all 3,000 students who actually vote in the ASUA elections. The gift would demonstrate just how important the student voters are to the government.

On a more serious note, we could take the $1,600 and help provide day care assistance for students with children. We could put the money towards an emergency fund for students affected by the financial crisis in Asia. We could send a student to school for a semester.

We're sure Wildcat readers can come up with even more and better ideas for what the $1,600 currently slated for the ASUA primaries could alternately be spent on. We invite you to e-mail us at WCEditor@ccit.arizona.edu and tell us what you would spend the money on. Your responses will be forwarded to the rule-makers at ASUA.