Editor, Daily Nexus,

I have seen a lot of bad ideas bounce around to deal with the parking situation.

The idea of charging different prices for different service is inherently flawed, and it is quite evident on a walk through the mesa lot. Cruise through the S/A lot and you will observe a sea of junky beaters, speckled with the occasional new BMW or SUV – always with an “A” sticker. Now mosey over to the C lot. Nice sports cars, trucks and convertibles will surround you. I don’t begrudge the student body having nice cars (well, a little bit), but I am trying to point to a trend. Stratifying parking costs will lead to hundreds or thousands of undergraduates taking what were formerly faculty and poor TAs’ parking, and faculty and TAs being relegated to parking in Timbuktu.

While I’m sure many undergrads think this is a wonderful idea, it ignores a very important point. If a student can’t park and is late for or misses a class, big deal, it happens all the time. If an instructor misses a class, however, there are perhaps HUNDREDS of individuals whose time could be wasted, and whose schedules get screwed up. Ten weeks in a quarter does not leave a whole lot of buffer. TAs are poor and are more important than students. That’s right, I said it, you know it’s true.

Flame away, I’m graduating.

BRIAN NORTON