Hey, do you remember freshman orientation? If you’re like me and had it here at UB (and you actually were dumb enough to attend all of the lectures), you might remember sitting in Knox 20 or a similar mammoth lecture hall, watching a bunch of crazy blue polo shirt-clad zealots getting all excited about this thing called “SA.”

Some of the activities they were peddling sounded great; there were these clubs, some kind of free movie series, concerts with “big name” artists. I left that meeting, a mere three years and change ago, pretty stoked about this mysterious association of students.

Then I got here and saw the headlines: lying, cheating, wasteful spending. I saw the tired, stale lineups for Fall and Spring Fests. I saw them raise the mandatory student fee to $80 per semester, bringing SA’s yearly take up to $2.6 million. Every time I looked at anything bearing the SA logo it seemed like they were wasting my money. I started to hate SA and everything it stood for. What did SA ever do for me, anyways?

There’s a vote coming up in which many of you with those sentiments might take an interest. Next week, Tuesday through Thursday, you’ll all have the chance to vote on whether the mandatory student fee stays obligatory for all undergrads, or if it becomes an opt-in payment.

This is a rotten choice. As any SA official or Visions feature will tell you, the lack of a mandatory fee would be the death knell for SA as we know it. But the problem isn’t the fee itself; I have no gripes against shelling out money to fund school activities. I would, however, care for some say on how it is distributed.

Students should all have access, by Internet at least, to the proposed budget for the coming year and then be given a choice to either pass or reject it. A pipe dream, I know, but at least we would have a vote to patch the leak instead of scuttling the ship. The Ballroom Dancing Club is cool with me, but the $5,000 of our cash SA has earmarked this year for “Random Acts of Kindness?” Not so much. The new SA administration has promised you can “Have it Your Way.” This would be a nice start.

If you’re pissed off about your Fall Fest lineup, or the fact that you have to pay for a bunch of movie screenings you could just download off of DC++, then you’re not alone. I haven’t directly gained anything from the $450 I’ve given SA thus far, outside of 45 minutes of Robert Randolph and a hot dog. But you know what? It’s our fault.

There was a simpler time, not so long ago, when SA went out of their way to save student money rather than continually demanding it. Way back in 1990, the students of UB were about to pay a cacophony of new fees, intended to offset a $9 million cut in state funding, on everything from “commencement fees” to a $1-per-ride ticket to take the campus bus.

The “Bluebird fee” for busing hit a raw nerve for many students, and the SA responded by organizing a rally. On September 10, the day the bus fares went into effect, 1,000 students marched from South to North Campus under the SA banner. SA even released a list of demands to the administration, which boldly concluded with “DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE and FIGHT THE FEES!!!! STUDENT ASSOCIATION AND SASU, FIGHTING FOR YOUR RIGHTS!!!!” I honestly can’t imagine seeing anything of the sort on SA letterhead in the near future.

Unfortunately, the bus protest never really panned out. A serious appraisal of the fiscal situation, as well as the fact that many students had no option but to take the bus, spurned SA to support a flat transportation fee, the precursor to the comprehensive fee we all know and love.

Now SA is more of a clearinghouse for your money rather than your representative. Since you’ve elected your representatives every year, however, the shortfalls of the organization can’t be blamed on anyone else but yourselves. For the majority who didn’t vote, that applies doubly.

But it’s easy to enact change. If you and some like-minded friends want to form up a club, it’s a pretty simple procedure to roll up to the SA office, fill out some forms, and get a chunk of money for your naked, protesting marching band, or whatever. Better yet, fill out a petition to join the student assembly and make your voice heard directly. There’s one printed in Visions now, and you can find a stack in the nearest trash can.

It’s taken me three years to acknowledge it, but we really can’t get by without SA. Hell, they even are indirectly kicking me my hilariously miniscule stipend. I finally took SA’s advice and “Got Involved!” even though I had no idea I was doing so at the time. But I did, and while I still have my complaints (and how!), I’ve also realized the only way to turn things around is to get your hands dirty, not to yell at ivory towers from afar.

Crush that cigarette and put down the beer bong. It’s time to make your voice heard. F’real this time.

The offices of SA are located at 350 Student Union. You can contact them with comments or concerns at ubsa@buffalo.edu or 645-2950. Petitions for Student Assembly membership are due by Monday, September 25, at the SA office, and all you need is 40 UB student signatures. It’s less complicated than deciphering a bus schedule, so let’s do this thing.