Looks like the fun run has begun. I speak of course of the campaigns for the various Student Government Association positions.

Signs and posters litter the campus. I have even seen flyers on classroom bulletin boards, which I think is the best place for them. “Hey. Pay attention to the professor, but don’t forget – Vote for me!”

I will say this, though. I am glad that candidates are required to remove signs after the election.

Few things anger me more than seeing New Orleans city workers disposing of thousands of campaign signs weeks after the election.

It’s not very responsible on the parts of the candidates, but hey, the election is over, so why would a candidate want to be responsible? That will have to wait until the next election nears.

Ah, yes. It really has begun. “But what is it that has begun, exactly?” you ask. “Why are these people campaigning so hard? Why should I even vote?”

Well, my friends, these offices are of the utmost importance. To say that SGA offices are not would be like saying that this column is not worthy of a Pulitzer Prize.

What these candidates are campaigning for is the right to create useless legislation, overextend their powers, and of course, attend the SGA Cocktail.

Oh, right. I almost forgot. They also want to raise the student fees so that they can give more money to their friends’ organizations, as well as to assure that the 2004 Cocktail is the best ever.

You just might have a little bit of money in your pocket, and believe me, SGA knows how to spend it much better than you ever will.

And in the case of the president and vice president, well, they get free tuition. But, hey, it’s necessary.

All that schmoozing is hard, and not only do they not have time to get a job, but they also need to be compensated for their hard work and dedication.

I think it’s important to tell people that they have been given an enormous amount of power and responsibility when, in fact, they have not. It builds self-esteem, and it teaches them to crave power.

SGA also teaches them how to grant favors slyly to friends – an important skill if they hope to one day be involved in public life.

So I say “yay” for the elections and “yay” for SGA in general. It’s wonderful to see that, every now and then, a completely useless organization glorifies itself in order to justify its existence.