Broward Community College - Silver Sands Yearbook (Fort Lauderdale, FL)

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Where Were the Students? It is true that SCA has a lot of problems. Our biggest problem is reaching more students, finding out what stu- 'VNS1' dents reallv want or, possibly, in the final analysis, if thev A 7,-W . . . . ' really care. . 4 tidy-f.x I don't think it was possible for a student to pass -S ' L A through. the halls of ICBC during campaign weeks with- Q 19' V out noticing that there was an election the next week. t ,, - But yet many of them did not exercise their great Amer- ff t Lg , ican privilege, the right to vote. Vlfhat ever happened to school spirit? Did it die over the summer during the transition between twelfth grade and freshman year in college, or is it just sleeping in our student body? In the boundaries of state and national government. if at person has a complaint or a criticism, he writes a letter to his congressman. So far this year, SCA has received only one letter of constructive criticism in its suggestion 3 box. M However, SCA does not believe that just because only one person has corne forth to air his views that there are not other students that have complaints or construc- tive ideas. Therefore, SCA is planning student preiodical grievance days. This will be a meeting between interested students and the student senate to find out some of the problems that students are Concerned with. This meet- ing will not be to solve problems, but to first find out what the problems are. JAMES MANCHESTER SGA President james Manchester, SCA President IP' :Xter- I I Board the H.MS.s Goocl lztmrnmeni if Ti 'll f X0 0 X i M M IHU unululnlrmm qi! Tx ., t H E S -x Mf:i2'eQ'L' - -I - 1 canmiggw W mil STNATE - au! if N H t -e K: to Fics 'u Pl ' jtffatfg- V G' , I Wa' ' 3 i ' ' 5 x x Q' .,, rt Q ' .. 'S s l' wtttv + publlca Us 1 7-x J.. .A 3 Owning if 13

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l'You Get What You Pay For by JERRY MCMANUS Wherefore, security being the true design and end of government, it unanswerably follows that whatever form thereof appears most likely to insure it to us, with the least expense and greatest benefit, is preferable to all others. Thomas Paine 12 Fact: A Student Covemment Association exists on the campus of the Iunior College of Broward County. Theory: This SCA is the voice of the student. Fact: There were sixteen vacancies in the senate Cthirteen freshmen - four sophomoresl Theory: Twenty-two interested students ran for these positions. Fact: Out of twenty-seven hundred possible voters a stun- ning total of three hundred and seventy-six made it to the polls. Theory A: These three hundred and seventy-six were concerned about the welfare of their college. Theory B: Two thousand seven hundred were not. The above facts are true. They can be checked. But do not bother, it is not worth it. As for the theories - Well, they are theories and you can judge for yourself their accuracy. When you have a theory, the scientists say your first step should be to disprove it. We have three theories already Cfour, stretching a pointj. Let us proceed. Theory 1: The SCA is the voice of the student. Well - they try but without trying to sound trite, it is like trying to be the voice of a deaf mute. How can any group be the voice of a student body that could care less whether they have a voice or not. Perhaps it would be correct to concede that the SCA is a voice, but as for the student body - let's not go that far. Theory 2: Twenty-two interested students ran for these positions. Well, twenty-two students ran all right but as for being interested, that's hard to say. To stretch a point one could say that the candidates were interested. Whether they were interested in doing something for their school or interested in furthering themselves is another question and one only the candidates could answer. From observation Cflashy poster-no attempt to meet the votersl one could assume the latter but in all honesty Theory 2 rates a definite could be. Theory 3A: These three hundred and seventy-six were concerned about the welfare of their college. This is possible. Not necessarily so - but possible. No one really knows what would prompt three hundred and seventy-six souls to go forth and make their opinion known, but without being too cynical, the reasons were probably more social than political. The polls were there. Chances are fifty percent did not even know who they voted for. So what else is new. Theory SB: The other two thousand four hundred and twenty-four were not. This is also possible. Not prob- able however. Most likely the ones who voted were no more interested than the ones who did not. just more ambitious. HOO-hah. This is not a lecture. You have been lectured too much already. There comes a time when a person becomes saturated with I told you so so this time I will not even bother. For better or for worse-you get what you pay for.

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The average American has been described as one who drives a mort- gaged car down a bond-financed highway, using a credit card. He lives in a mortgaged home with furniture, appliances and household items paid for on the installment plan. Most junior college students have probably not been introduced to the world of high finance. Their only time pur- chase so far may be an automobile or Hotdogs Hamburgers and HIGH FINANCE NVWK 1 T663 I I rfb QQ ' vw O C, 2032 1- J? 3 to 6,3 U1 gp 5.23 Q Nei vi 7' oi 5 -Ultllgb TI p TIE 6, W F YI 3: W 1 7-2 IN I 14 by JOANNE SIFRIT ig is SIMM Q59 'DQ QEBIEJ some type of charge account. Soon many will be marrying and starting a home. If not careful, the unwary stu- dent may be bankrupt in ten years. A government survey reports that the average bankrupt man is 30 years old, makes a little over 855,000 a year, has a wife and three children, and owes creditors 371500, not counting the mortgage on his house. He is making monthly payments on a house, a car, furniture, refrigerator, washing machine, TV set, and several personal loans, which takes most of his pay- check. In addition he has other ex- penses such as utilities, medical bills, clothing, transportation and food. Credit is a way of life in many a family budget. It is estimated that one tenth of the 60 million American families have at least 407- of their yearly income allocated to debt pay- ments. In a study last year by U. S. News and XVorld Reports magazine, it was noted that down payments are get- ting smaller and time allowed for re- payment increasingly longer. Mer- chants have devised all kinds of charge it techniques available even without good credit. Pay checks are becoming more fully committed to installment payments. Many Amer- icans consider being in debt a way of lift- and show little interest in how much it costs to buy on the install- ment plan. The International Consumer Credit Association of St. Louis says, There is no such thing as an easy payment . . . those most susceptible to the 'easy credit' pitch are the poor and the young. They get talked into easy credit deals and end up paying more than they would at a reputable store. There are some advantages to time buying, and it is difficult not to use credit with the constant stream of credit advertising tempting you. By installment buying, a person in a low income bracket can live better earlier in life. He can have the nicer things of life that upper income people take for granted. And if informed, he can obtain credit at a minimum cost and avoid the unscrupulous merchant that sells more debt than a person can af- ford, and at exhorbitant prices. The University of Michigan Re- search Center has found that few people know what interest rate they are paying on installment purchases and loans. They are not interested in what the finance charges are. Their only concern is the amount of monthly payment. Many people are like the young man who after checking with three auto dealers said he had found the best deal . . . his old car and 382.00 a month. When asked for how many months he would have to make payment, he replied, Who caresl All I need to know is that I can swing the 882.00 a month. When a person decides to buy on credit, he is faced with one of several financing techniques. He may be told the amount of down payment and the amount of monthly payments for one. two or three years. Interest rates are not mentioned. He may be told 'that the interest rate is 675 or 36.00 per 3100.00 bor- rowed. Actually, this type of interest charge amounts to approximately 11.58Z, because the borrower is steadily paying off the 3100.00 His average amount of debt is about 85000. yet he is being charged a full 36.00 interest on 85100.00 A third technique is the buyer is told that his loan will be discounted at GZ interest. This actually means that 36.00 is deducted from 310000.