My favorite part of most media Web sites is the comment section.
There are inevitably unanswered questions or lame phrases in the article, and I like reading comments left by others that echo the things I’m thinking.
Reading comments on thebakerorange.com spurred the writing of this column.
I’ve always disagreed when professors, peers and editorials urge Baker students to register to vote in Baldwin City as opposed to their hometowns, and a comment on the Baker Orange Web site finally gave me hope that I’m not the only one who thinks that.
Students who choose not to switch their registration are both self-serving and responsible. I can’t pass up an opportunity where I actually do the right thing and get something out of it.
Students should analyze whether or not voting in Baldwin City would be that beneficial to them, and I argue that for most students, it’s not. Even more, it’s shortsighted.
Sure, we’re here for four years, and we should care what happens here.
Things like pothole repairs and dog walking ordinances are important.
However, Baldwin City is not the only city with these issues.
Towns across Kansas, in Missouri and Colorado, even in Arizona and California, have similar problems.
Most of us will be returning home to visit our families in these non-Baldwin City places for the next 20 years, long after the memories of Baldwin City begin to blur. That’s way more important.
Think of it like this: after four years, you’ll never have to slow down for that dip in the road guaranteed to bottom out your car again. It won’t be your problem anymore.
That one in front of your parents’ house will always be your problem.
Every time you go home for Mother’s Day, every time you take the grandkids by, every time you pick dad up for a doctor’s appointment.
All of this is assuming your goals don’t include moving back to your hometown.
If you are planning on returning, it’s even more important to leave your voter registration in your hometown. Some students come to Baker with the intention of returning to suburbia as soon as they make the walk across the stage.
Why lose four years of decision-making power in the city you’ll spend the rest of your life in?
Then, of course, there are the financial considerations.
Someday, we’re all going to be adult orphans. That means we’ll have to do scary grown-up things like dealing with our deceased parents’ property. We could vote in Baldwin City, someplace that won’t mean anything to us in 20 years, or we could vote another four years in our parents’ precincts, helping them protect their property value and avoid getting stiffed by misguided local officials.
Those are the self-serving factors.
Then there’s doing the right thing.
Would it really be fair for all Baker students to register to vote here then sway an election when we won’t be here to face all the consequences?
We haven’t spent our lives here, and our futures aren’t invested in this town.
Enough people live in this town who can make decisions for themselves, without our help.