Students and Faculty Gather for Anti-Fee Protest, Nothing Significant Happens

Around 200 students and faculty gathered in the library quad of Sacramento State on Wednesday to protest the recent student fee increases and employee furloughs, and while the voices were loud, the action was silent.

The protesters made it obvious what their issue was: paying more and receiving less from our state-run university. The solutions to this problem, though, were not very good.

Members of the Peace and Freedom party were holding a banner in the back that read "Free Education For All, Tax The Rich." In addition, the speakers themselves frequently mentioned Assembly Bill 656, an oil severance tax that would tax oil companies pulling oil from the shores of California.

And...

that was about it. Yes, that's right. According to those who spoke at the protest, the best options are to 1) tax the rich, and 2) tax the (rich) oil companies. "They're not going to be hurting" was one reason given to tax those groups.

From the looks of the Sac State campus, it doesn't look like many students will be hurting either. As previously stated, there were about 200 people at this rally. 200! Sac State has around 28,000 students, with hundreds of faculty and staff. This means that less than one percent of the total campus population showed up for this event. Sure, a lot of students and faculty had classes to attend, but either way, the total number that showed up for this rally is so minuscule, their presence is rendered nearly irrelevant. If these cuts really affected students, shouldn't at least 10 percent of the student population show up? Five percent? Even two percent?

To really solve the problem of the campus budget cuts, though, there needs to be a more creative solution than simply taxing the rich. Simply raising taxes is a short-term fix only. AB 656, the oft-mentioned bill that taxes oil companies to give higher education some extra funding, would have only provided enough funds for this year. What happens when student fees increase next year? Are we going to tax oil again?

A real solution is not to ask for more money, but to see where money is currently being spent and redistribute existing funds in a more efficient manner. President Gonzales makes almost $400,000 a year? Really? Can't someone else do that job for cheaper? Is every tax dollar the school already receives wisely spent?

The frustration of the student population is valid. No one likes to realize that their fees were just increased again. But the students need to suck it up. If college is supposed to prepare you for the real world, well, students, welcome to the real world. In the real world, when a business is going through a hard time, they cut programs. They fire people. They lower their costs because they know that no one is going to bail them out (well, usually). And oftentimes good people get screwed. That is what we students are experiencing right now. It's not fun, but life in the work field generally isn't either.

Besides, the state is already funding the majority of the student's education. Do students really think that $2000 is going to fund an entire semester? Reality check: it doesn't. The State of California picks up the rest of the tab. Let's not get too flustered when the State is asking for a little help when they're $20 billion in the hole. The whole state is suffering, and the students who are already freeloading off the system should look at the whole picture and realize that they are a tiny part of it.

This doesn't mean that nothing needs to change. The CSU system is full of fraud and needs to be changed for the better. But in the meantime, the student population needs to suck it up instead of calling Chancellor Reed and complaining. Complaining only repeats the problem, and it doesn't solve any problems.

Suck it up. Pay the bills. We'll find a way to deal with the issue. Until then, when they say cut back, you say "good idea!" It's actually quite a catchy jingle when you get used to it.