Ticketing troubles

New ticket system had relatively few hitches, still needs to correct issues

The football home opener has come and past, and many fears of the new ticketing system have been alleviated.

In the first year of having tickets on student’s UGA card, many students feared being unable to enter the stadium because of a faulty card.

But for the most part, fans were able to enter the stadium with relative ease considering it was the new system’s maiden voyage.

Some students reported it taking a couple of swipes for their ID to scan, but the event staff was understanding of the situation and gave their cards a fair opportunity to work.

However, the issues of general seating and the ticket donation program still remain in question. Students, especially seniors, feel they should have more weight on game days considering season ticket dispersion is based on UGA credit hours.

And many students still feel they should be reimbursed for their ticket if they don’t attend the game, and the editorial board doesn’t blame them.

Why should a student essentially pay for someone they don’t know to use their ticket to attend a game?

We think the system will work out in the long run, but it still has some initial kinks that need to be ironed out.

- Michael Fitzpatrick for the editorial board

It was just a text

Georgia state legislature should pass a bill to forbid texting while driving

We are all guilty of stumbling through campus, side-swiping trees, walking into benches and tripping over curbs – maybe even mauling a pedestrian or two – just to finish a text.

If we can’t walk while texting, what makes us think we can drive while plugged in to our cheeky cyber conversations?

Why can’t we just part our thumbs from the keypad when we get behind the wheel?

It’s like keeping a cooler of beer in the trunk and grabbing a cold one every time we start the engine.

And we imagine most drunk drivers at least try to keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road – no such luck with texting drivers.

This concerns us, living in a town of more than 20,000 undergraduates who, studies indicate, are the most active age group of texters.

The Red & Black editorial board urges Georgia state legislators to join the 18 other states across the nation that have banned texting while driving. And we think that legislation should treat texting while driving like drinking under the influence.

As we reported today on page three, it only takes one text to total a car.

- Hayley Peterson for the editorial board