[Winona Online Democracy]
Dear Kelly and all,
Great letter, I am glad you spoke up.
And don't forget, Kelly, you pay taxes! That is very important to the
people who are peeved at students exercising their constitutional rights.
Simply remind them that everytime you buy a pizza, go shopping, fill
your car with gas or rent a video, you contribute to the local tax base.
You are a Winona taxpayer. (A lot of student money is helping Winona dredge
our lake - would the naysayers suggest that students be exempt from the 1/2%
local tax since those young people will not be in town long enough to
benefit from a healthy lake?)
Most people who object to the student vote argue that because you are
not a property owner, you do not have to deal with the consequence of a
property tax increase. Not true, I notice that you said you rent. Most
landlords will pass along the $2 per week tax increase to their tenants.
However, divided by the number of roommates you have, the increase should
not be much. (FYI: I only mention $2/wk because it is the maximum increase
between last year's tax and next year's tax. Everyone else will pay less.)
The basic truth here is that you do not need a laundry list of good
reasons to justify your vote. You do not need to be property-owning gentry
as in the colonial days. You do not need to be white and male as in the
early 20th Century. You only need to be an 18 year old citizen to have a
voice in decision-making.
Sharon
----- Original Message -----
From: "sternhagen kelly" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 5:04 PM
Subject: [Winona] A College Student's Perspective
>
> [Winona Online Democracy]
>
> I am writing in regards to recent comments that have been made about
> college students voting for the referendum and about them being rude and
> disrespectful. I realize that these issues haven't been mentioned for a
> couple of days and that they already have been addressed somewhat, but I
> feel it is necessary to give my perspective as a college student.
> I have lived in Winona for four years. I feel more a part of this
> community than the one I grew up in. I work, I volunteer, I spend money, I
> pay rent, and I go to school here in Winona. If that doesn't make me part
of
> the community than what does? I tried to educate myself on all issues
before
> voting yes or no for the referendum and I know a lot of other students who
> tried to do the same.
> College students are a huge part of Winona. A large number of them work,
> volunteer, and student teach for the education system here and are
affected
> by decisions that are made. They should have the right to vote, because
they
> are affected by the outcome.
> Now concerning comments that college students are rude and
disrespectful.
> I agree that there are some that are extremely disrespectful and rude but
> there are a lot more that are valuable assets. Students who volunteer
their
> already busy lives to make their community a better place to live.
>
> Part of this community too,
>
> Kelly Sternhagen
>
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