Opinion

Singles are always whining about how much they hate Valentine’s Day, but think about how bad those with the old ball and chain have it. Retailers surely get a throbbing hard-on for the 14th of Feb.; I mean, seriously, look at all the crap there is to be bought. Money can buy a lot of nookie, but it just can’t buy love.

ASUCD elections are known for having low turnouts.Last year,there wasn’t concern that students did not want to fund Unitrans with a fee increase – just that under20percent (the minimum to enact a fee increase) of the student body would vote.

A few years ago as a freshman experiencing my firstwinterquarter at Davis,I found myself writing this little piece about how thequartersystem drives people insane.

e first time I heardKirollos “Cookie” Gendi speak was at last year’s Relay for Life,but his story is one you have to hear more than once.A few days ago,I sat across from him,listening in amazement as he cheerfully related his life-threatening struggle with cancer.

There is no greater thrill than the rush of snow skiing; rifling down a freshly powdered mountain, the wind in your face and adrenaline pumping. But no pleasant experience comes without its price. Here are some things you should expect to face the next time you hit the slopes.

Considering that this Saturday is St.Despicable’s Day,it’s fitting that I finish going over proper Breakup Protocol.Now before anybody gets huffy,I’m legally obligated by the state of California to acknowledge that everyone is different and stereotyping is a no-no (especially when the frowny-pants guys over at the ACLU give me a call).

Student government is usually pretty harmless.Aside from the occasional overly ambitious candidate soliciting signatures for the Association’s quarterly popularity contest,often loosely referred to as an election,its direct impact on student life is rather minimal.In fact,whenthey’renot spending countless hours mesmerized by the sounds of their own voice,I’d reckon that ASUCD officials are relatively normal and competent people.

UC Davis reports the highest level of sexual assaults and violence on campus of any school in the UC system. Due to recent budget cuts,these high offense rates could be on the rise. The UC Davis Gender Education program will be cut following the2008-2009school year if it is not added to the budget of the Women’s Resources and Research Center.

If you’re lucky enough to have a professor who uses it and knows it well,Smartsite can be an extremely useful class resource.But for many students,the “cutting edge” courseware technology is full of problems. Smartsite,the online course collaboration tool,was introduced on campus in2006and fully implemented in2007.Since then,the tool has received mixed reviews from the students and faculty who use it.

Today’s approval of the proposal proves to us that the UC Board of Regents will stop at nothing to achieve their desired diversity quota, even if it comes at the cost of the entire California education system. When you guarantee admittance to a higher proportion of the lowest performing high schools, and lower the proportion of the top students in the state, it is absurd to think that the quality of students will do anything but go down.

I’ve always been jealous of those who rant.It may seem a strange thing to envy,but people who get passionate about a topic and then get annoyed,angry,and just lay into someoneseem so emotionally free.Granted,they may also be criminally unbalanced,but that’s a topic for another day.There’ve been times in my life I wish I had yelled or screamed; sometimes I wish I could be a royal bitch who just calls it like I see it.Alas,that’s not me.But as I began to work on this week’s column,I was determined that I too could be an effective ranter.

Low voter turnout for ASUCD elections has been a conversation topic among student government types for a long time.It gets talked about each election season and is the reason nearly every senatorial candidate feels obligated to spend an inordinate amount of time talking about outreach.