Editor:

Recently, I attended the Associated Students of the University of Utah’s Rock the Vote political fair held here at the university before the free Everclear concert.

I noticed many candidates at tables with attractive signs who were trying to get my vote. The notable exceptions were second congressional district candidates Jim Matheson, from the Democratic Party and John Swallow, from the Republican Party.

However, both the Green Party candidates Patrick Diehl and Craig Axford were on hand to talk to constituents. Unfortunately, I learned that someone had forgotten to let Diehl and Axford on the television debates on the university’s television station, KUED. The excuse that KUED had given Patrick Diehl was that he was polling too low to have any chance of winning.

As a university student, I feel like the channel that broadcasts on my campus should broaden its standards from simply looking at public opinion polls to decide who it lets discuss ideas in a controlled setting.

Third parties need to be allowed to debate in front of large audiences to get their messages out, especially when those groups are simply stating that corporate power is locking them out of the general debates since their message is somehow too damaging for the main parties.

After all, there can be no silence of debate in a free society.

Enrique Arce-Larreta

Senior, Political Science