Editor, Daily Nexus,

No reason to beat around the bush. I don’t admire A.S. nor do I find reading the Nexus an enlightening activity. I do have an opinion though, but like the majority of the student body, I am never impassioned enough to write in and contribute my voice and my reasoning to a discussion that should – but rarely, if ever does – involve us all. This time though, the controversy between A.S. rep Jeronimo Saldana and the Nexus has pissed me off. In as far as I can tell, I don’t have much of an opinion about our student government, mainly due to their lack of outreach to the average student – read: casual substance abuser, enjoys music, totally oblivious to university politics.

I have never met any of the people who claim to represent my interests. This is an affliction that I am sure affects a great number of people. The seeming fact of the matter is that Saldana, as well as many of the others who serve on the Leg Council, are pushing their own agendas while remaining curiously aloof of their constituency – a condition that distances and disillusions the student body from their elected representatives. Doling out money so people can roll joints in a park? Passing resolutions condemning injustices in Oaxaca?] And now, attempting to curtail free speech because one council member feels the need to “fight the good fight?” What the hell is going on?! This is exactly what happens when an apathetic student body elects people who care. I’m all for high-minded social ideals and change for the better, etc., but let’s push for our elected representatives to come back down from space and apply some pragmatism to UCSB itself. Rather then bitching at each other, let’s solve our problems by voting and engaging in constructive discussion.