Editor, Daily Nexus,

For the past four years I have seen Associated Students do a lot with our money. The lofty idealism of those with enough spare time and money to legislate has been consistently ridiculous. Recently spent dollars on Oaxaca, Mexico and the UCSB chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws – whose bulletin board near the Arbor still advertises events in 2005 – only furthers the idea that A.S. is far removed from the needs of the average student and is instead buried in special interest political causes. These causes are not only worthless to the student community, but ineffective as well.

Now A.S. is throwing around its political girth in an attempt to limit the Daily Nexus’ funds in two ways: By restricting who it can advertise and by taking away the money that you and I have voted to give them. Make no mistake. This is simply another ineffectual tantrum. It is another attempt to take what we have already voted on and make it mesh with their naive idealism. This time they have gone too far.

By withholding the funds that we have all voted on, A.S. is asserting itself as our moral compass. They make the assumption that we, as their constituents, are not responsible enough to choose how our money is spent and are not moral enough to make our own decision about whether to lease from Conquest Student Housing. If Conquest wants to give money to the Nexus, that is its business. If the moral outrage that A.S. asserts really exists, then Coronado and Breakpointe Apartments will fail anyway.

No matter how much A.S. may pound their fists to the floor and whine about the injustice of the world, at some point, we should all hope that they wake up. Someday they might decide to do something constructive with all the energy they waste making pointless resolutions and boycotts and do something constructive with that time and effort. Until then, they should mind their own business and mind their own wallets.