9
CENTRAL MICHIGAN LIFE | CM-LIFE.COM | SEPT. 8, 2016
Letter to the
EDITOR
Vote Mielke for State Rep. to control, combat rising university tuition TO THE EDITOR: I am writing in support of Bryan Mielke for Michigan State Representative for the 99th district. As students return to Central Michigan University this fall, they find higher tuition bills and fewer ways to pay them. No issue is more important to me than education, which is why I’ve dedicated my life to studying college students and higher education. The benefits of college are clear: those who graduate from college have a better quality of life, earn more money and contribute positively to society in many ways.
What is also clear is that funding higher education is not a priority for our Michigan legislators. In fact, funding education has been steadily gutted for years. As the first person in my family to attend college, I know the importance of education. Since I attended college, I have watched the cost soar. I started my undergraduate degree 17 years ago. Since then, tuition has increased 386 percent here at Central Michigan University, which is in our 99th district—the district Bryan Mielke is running to represent. It is no coincidence that
tuition has increased as a result of a continued cuts from Bryan Mielke Lansing. While state appropriations made up 60 percent of CMU’s operating budget when I began college, today it only accounts for 17 percent. This has, in turn, saddled our students with tremendous student debt. Bryan understands what’s happening in education and will fight for increased fund-
ing. He shares my vision for funding public education, helping students access higher education, and making sure when they leave college, they are not burdened with debt. Bryan is also a two-time CMU graduate and a fierce advocate for our university. I ask that you join me in voting for Bryan Mielke on Tuesday, Nov. 8. MATT JOHNSON Associate Professor Program Director, MA in Higher Education Department of Educational Leadership - EHS341 Central Michigan University
Letter to the
EDITOR
Unfortunately, CM Life’s Presidential election coverage is already biased TO THE EDITOR: I appreciate your pledge in a series of three editorials to give a major focus to the coming election and to “not favor a set of candidates over another.” Unfortunately, you’ve already failed miserably. Your editorials mentioned the Democratic and Republican candidates several times—heck, you even mentioned Bernie Sanders for some reason. But you neglected the candidate that a recent Investor’s Business Daily scientific poll says is actually winning the 18 to 24-year-old vote — Gov. Gary Johnson.
Johnson has 35 percent to the Democratic nominee’s 3 percent with the Republican Gary Johnson and Green Party candidates both below 15 percent. Most insultingly, you wrote condescendingly, “Now you’re voting for Clinton or Trump, or exercising your right to vote elsewhere by supporting a third party.” This biased language effectively presses the duopoly line that a vote for
anyone but “Clintrump” is a “wasted” protest vote. This year, when 65 percent of voters have an unfavorable opinion of both the Democratic and Republican candidates, the election is there for the taking for Johnson—the only candidate with executive experience who is on the ballot in all 50 states. The main thing holding him back is your bias toward the status quo parties. If he gets into the debates, Johnson has real chance of winning the presidency, either outright or by taking a few states and denying
either of the duopoly party candidates 270 electoral votes and having members of the House turn to him as a compromise candidate not beholden to either party. You are writing for a young audience. So why not at least mention the name of the candidate who is winning that demographic? Or better yet, give this candidate equal time. Go ahead and mention his name. Gary Johnson. It won’t kill you. Try it. JASON TAYLOR Professor of Economics Central Michigan University
OPINIONS
Bernie’s campaign was just the beginning When I co-founded Students for Bernie Sanders in October 2015, I could not have imagined the success we would have. My goal for the group was simply to distribute flyers and put up posters informing students about Sanders’ platform and encouraging them to vote. Through the hard work of my fellow students and community members, we were able to accomplish so much more. We hosted debate viewing parties that had at least 30 and at most 80 people in attendance. Coordinating closely with Mid-Michigan for Bernie Sanders, we established a canvassing operation in Mount Pleasant in just four weeks. In the week leading up to the primary, our volunteer force of mostly students knocked on nearly 2,200 doors. Sanders won Michigan, and in Isabella County, he beat Hillary Clinton by 22.5 percent, the highest margin in the state. I’m very proud to have been a part of that victory. The end result of the Democratic primary was not what we hoped for. But, though Bernie lost the nomination contest, he succeeded in many other ways. Sanders changed the political conversation in America, placing issues such as income inequality and the student debt crisis in the mainstream. Sanders also brought many young people into the political process. Many of the students I have worked with in the past year felt disillusioned by politics, but Bernie inspired them to get involved. These victories, both in
Evan Wittenbach Guest Columnist
Mount Pleasant and nationally, are significant. They show that the ideas presented by the Sanders campaign resonate with the American people, particularly among people under 30 years old, a group that voted for Sanders more than any other candidate. With this in mind, key members of the Sanders campaign have launched Our Revolution, an organization dedicated to getting progressives elected to offices including local school board and the U.S. Senate. To continue the work started by the Sanders campaign. A few weeks ago, myself and other Sanders activists met to establish a new grassroots group to further the goals of Our Revolution. Like Bernie said time and time again: “Change never comes from the top-down; it comes from the bottom-up.” In the next few months, look for us registering students to vote and volunteering for the campaigns of local progressives like Bryan Mielke. After the general election in November, we will focus on issues, campaigns and getting students involved in the political process. This past year has been lifechanging, and I’m astounded by what can be accomplished when ordinary people stand together and fight for what they believe in. I hope you’ll join us, too.