The Student Union renovation sounds a lot more like a shotgun wedding than a referendum. We are being told that either we volunteer to pay $40 a semester to build it, or they will raise our tuition anyways. Last time I was presented with a deal like that I was at least offered a kiss first.

I got the opportunity to hear their pitch while attending a meeting of a club. At the meeting I was informed that if we don't volunteer to pay the higher rent the university has requested they might cut event funding(particularly for clubs), even though they will raise tuition anyways. Can we say blackmail. Please keep in mind, their object is to meet a target figure of $70m, even though they don't even know what the new Union will look like! There is no doubt that we have needed a new Union for a long time, but can't we at least see the bride before we buy the ring? We won't even have a new Union for 7 years after we start to pay for the thing! Clearly this boneheaded idea must have come from the same dimwitted think-tank that thought up the AIU fiasco.

Norm White
PolySci sophomore