Letters to the Editor

USG already seeks student opinions online

I'm writing in response to the suggestion made by Joe Dague '01 in the Feb. 28 'Prince' that the Undergraduate Student Government move towards the model of an Online Student Government. Interestingly, the timing of the suggestion nicely coincides with the launch of Visions of Princeton (http://www.princeton.edu/usg), a USG project that incorporates the accessibility of online democracy with the benefits of representative democracy. Visions of Princeton asks students four questions: What's right with Princeton? What's wrong with Princeton? Where should Princeton be in 10 years? How do we get there?

The USG will present our Visions of Princeton to the University Board of Trustees, the administration, the faculty and the students, along with our comments on the Wythes report. We've already received more than 200 responses. We look forward to receiving many more before the project ends March 9. The combined force of our Visions of Princeton and the USG's comments on the Wythes report will provide a powerful context of current student opinion for the Trustees and the administration as they consider Princeton's future course.

I'd also like to clarify some of the less informed points made in Monday's column. Dague complains about the USG's "rule by arbitrary oligarchy"and our "legislative inefficiency." The USG does not rule or legislate. We advocate and represent the interests of the students who elect us. Everyone on campus knows that students want more financial aid, better physical facilities, higher quality education, etc. The administration knew for decades that students wanted a student center and a new fitness center. These are no-brainers. What's important is how the administration chooses to listen to us. As much as I'd like to believe it, I find it doubtful that an administrator will take the time to read the proceedings of a newsgroup discussion or be moved to action.

A case in point is the renovation of the Stephens Fitness Center. It's doubtful that this project could've been completed in its one-year time frame in the context of a pure online democracy. Instead, persistent members of the USG successfully made the case that Princeton needed a new fitness center, transforming the widespread desire of students into a bricks-and-mortar reality.

A referendum system also already exists for students to vocalize issues of campus-wide importance. Recently, for example, a successful referendum supporting the philosophy of need-blind admissions for international students led to positive changes in the University's admission and financial aid policies.

I'd like to thank Dague for what I hope were well-intended suggestions. If he believes that the USG is not doing its job, I invite him to articulate this in his Visions of Princeton response or to call me at x8418. I also invite him to run in the USG spring elections on the platform of a pure online democracy. This would be more constructive than taking simple joy in bringing "politicians-in-training down a notch." PJ Kim '01 USG President