“Gladly Paying for Use”
I couldn’t help but to smirk when I read your piece on the new printing fees.
I do not own a printer, and I happily pay a printing fee every time I use a school computer to print. I do not own a car, and quite unhappily, pay a parking fee every time I sign up for a class. This is a curious bit of bureaucratic logic from our esteemed University… ‘pay for use’ on the one hand, and ‘pay regardless’ on the other. To this odd pair of policies, I say “horray!” to the technology department, for I will gladly pay a fee to support a university service I use, and “you wankers!” to the parking department, who insists that I help subsidize parking facilities that I can say without equivocation I will never, ever use.
To students who have difficulties parking in cramped spaces I propose the following: Hop on the bus (gasp!). Walk (blasphemy!). Ride a bike (egads!). I ride a bike, and there is never a wait to lock it.
In the meantime, have fun driving around the parking lot I paid for… but please don’t use our activity fee dollars to complain.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Pepin.