1) UF SG Senate meeting ends abruptly after “quorum bust”
This story describes how the minority party in the UF Student Government organized a "quorum bust," wherein several senators dropped out of a Zoom meeting at once in order to make the number of representatives below quorum, or below the minimum attendance to continue the meeting. This was in opposition to a bill that would do away with the 2/3 majority vote required to elect executive cabinet officers, replacing it with a simple majority.
The problem presented in the story, aside from one of the most childish methods of legislation I've ever heard of, is this: why should I, as a UF student, care?
I've been at UF for three years now, I have yet to find a reason to care about what goes on in Student Government, and I have gotten along just fine without a reason. This article didn't help one bit by the way, instead I now think they're just a bunch of bickering children.
I'm certain I'm not the only student that is focusing too much on my academics to know what is going on with the SG, and I'm sure it is a problem. The article mentions that the SG was able to swing around $500,000, with an extra $4 million in reserve. I'm certain this money is capable of making a difference, but I don't know what they do with it. I've talked with several other students, and they don't know either.
There may be something like this out there already, but I propose an app that updates students on the goings-on of the Student Government.
2) Why Gainesville faces some of the highest utility rates in the state
This article describes some of the reasons GRU has high utility rates. Mainly, these rates are so high because of the purchase of a renewable generation station, but also because of the company's general fund transfer (the money they pay to the city).
The people that suffer are all GRU users as rates increase. I pay my GRU bill, and I can personally tell you that they're nothing to laugh at. On top of high rates, I've often run into a lack of communication with GRU. In one instance, there was an issue with my account that I didn't hear about until there was a $30 upcharge for the payment being late.
I think the main issue here is a difference in values of GRU's users. Of course, everyone will want renewable energy sources, but everyone also wants cheaper rates. This is the problem with monopolies, natural or otherwise. It's a terrible situation, but there will always be compromises that leave everyone disappointed. Government involvement doesn't make it any easier, as the general fund transfer will show. That cost is put on the backs of people that use the monopoly's service. (By the way, this is not an argument for communism, which, put simply, is the epitome of big government and monopoly. That may ruffle some feathers).
3) UF, SEC announce plans to return athletes to campus
This article is about UF allowing student athletes to return to campus workouts on a voluntary basis, starting May 26th.
The problem I find in this, as a sports fan, is that I still have no idea what the football schedule will be, or whether it will even happen or not. I am 100% certain that all other sports fans are a little worried about what will happen with college football due to COVID-19.
I offer a solution very similar to what NASCAR has been doing, should the season not be opened up. Get the coaches of all college teams Madden 20, allow them to make a team with only players that attended their school, and start them on the normal schedule that they would have played. You can have players and other coaches on conference calls offering advice, but only the coaches are allowed to play
4) Inside Gainesville gyms’ first week after reopening
This article is on how some gyms are taking precautions while reopening from the COVID quarantine. They are sanitizing regularly and enforcing social distancing by keeping machines and weights six feet apart.
The problem here is, I and many others still don't trust this. The gym is a nasty place to begin with, but we brave it for fitness and (should) shower off quickly afterwards, not just for the smell. Now however, people with half a brain that once enjoyed going to the gym (myself included, except maybe on the half a brain) don't trust that the person 6 feet away from me slinging sweat all over the gym won't have the virus. Most gyms aren't even requiring masks. Flattening body curves may be what... unflattens?... fattens the infection curve.
5) The social distance between us
This article describes how some UF and Santa Fe students are handling the social distancing and quarantine. One story in particular stood out to me, however. A girl had to drive home to south Florida because her sorority house closed down. The student's mother asked her to pick up toilet paper on the way, because the mother had been searching for four days and couldn't find any. This made me think, a lot of people have this issue in larger cities probably, and this solution of asking someone from farther away to pick some up may not be crazy.
I'm willing to bet, in these times of boredom, some people in jobs like Instacart would be willing to take a couple hours to drive some toilet paper out. Apps like this could have a voluntary "expanded range" section, where people that enjoy the drive could take essentials from towns to larger cities, at least while this pandemic still goes on.
Hey Kyle,
ReplyDeleteI like how you choose opportunities that can be found in our college town of Gainesville. Your opportunities are relevant to us as college students, especially during a time with quarantine. Each of these have personal connection to myself. For example, I was completely ecstatic when the gyms reopened in Gainesville. Also, my family lives in South Florida and when I visited a couple of weeks ago, they, too, asked if I could bring home toilet paper and paper towels. My hometown of Stuart is completely out of these necessities and I guess a bigger city has more supplies during a time like this than smaller cities as Stuart.
Hey Kyle, you make some great points. I think you are right, GRU is turning into a monopoly and they are getting out of control. I am happy that we purchased a renewable energy generator, but I also do not think we should be the ones paying for it. Do you have any solutions? Also, can you please start labeling your posts like 5A, 6A etc. It makes it harder for everyone else to find the posts we are looking for. Thank you
ReplyDeleteHello Kyle,
ReplyDeleteI liked reading blog post very much as I thought you picked very interesting articles. The articles were especially relevant to us, (students in Gainesville) so the read was entertaining as it was informative. I especially enjoyed the article analysis for when the gyms reopened in Gainesville since I was very much a part of that moment. Kepp the good work up!