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This Tuesday I, along with many other UCLA students, had the privilege of meeting Senator John Edwards, a man who strongly desires to be the next president of the United States. Despite an incredibly busy schedule, he managed to spend a little over an hour at UCLA’s Earth Day Festival, shaking as many hands and talking to as many people as he could.

“Thanks for doing this; we need more people like you,” he told many of the festival’s workers in a slight southern drawl that grew as he became more and more comfortable with the crowd. Many students, myself included, were reduced to grinning idiots whenever the senator turned his attention on them – it was kind of cool to have one of the nation’s most powerful men kissing up to you.

But something happened that afternoon that I’ve been thinking about ever since. A passerby asked me who the man was, and when I replied that it was Senator John Edwards, he looked at me with a rather blank stare. “He’s running for president,” I told him, hoping to spark his interest. “Oh,” he said, obviously unimpressed, and kept on walking. This was a scene that happened over and over again.

For every student that paused to hear Senator John Edwards speak at Ackerman Plaza, at least 10 more walked by, oblivious or apathetic to this unique opportunity to meet a man who could very well be president someday.

This apathy isn’t confined to just the UCLA campus. Many Americans – ordinary, hardworking people, who honestly couldn’t care less about politics – share this apathetic attitude. And this attitude can be very dangerous.

After the events of the past few years, no one should think that they have the luxury of being politically apathetic. During the 2000 presidential election, people seemed to take a very relaxed view of the race. Times were good, stocks were up and the world was relatively peaceful. Registered voter turnout was at 50 percent – one of the lowest rates in history, partially because people felt that it didn’t really matter who won. How times have changed.

For everyone who still thinks that presidential elections don’t matter, take a look at President Bush’s record. Love him or hate him, you’ve got to admit that the direction our country has taken over the last two years is largely because Bush has been behind the wheel. Could you imagine Al Gore, or even John McCain, pushing for a war in Iraq, faith-based initiatives and large tax cuts? These are all programs Bush successfully managed to push through, seemingly by sheer force of will.

The election in 2004 is going to be just as important.

The next president is going to play a vital role in rebuilding our sluggish economy, in leading the international war against terror, and in many other issues that are new to the 21st century. He will also play an important part in determining the fate of Social Security and Medicare, two programs our generation will not benefit from if the next president doesn’t have the wisdom to handle the complex problems associated with them.

The decision we are going to be asked to make next year is very important, and we should start doing our research now. It would only take a few minutes to learn a little bit about each of the presidential candidates.

It’s easy to learn what Bush thinks about the important issues; his words are on the news and in the papers every day. But what about his Democratic opponents? Do you know what Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry thinks about abortion rights? Or what Vermont Governor Howard Dean believes about environmental protection? Or what Lieberman, Gephart, Graham, Kucinich or Moseley-Braun think about anything?

Perhaps it will take more than a visit by a leading presidential candidate to get UCLA students passionate about politics. Maybe a firm handshake and a smooth speech don’t impress you, and that’s all right. But the next time someone who wants that job stops by, you might think to stop and listen to what they have to say.

Remember, the next president is going to have an enormous control over your health, your bank account, your education, your environment and maybe even your life. You might want to learn what they plan to do with them.

Doug Ludlow is a second-year political science student. You can e-mail him your comments at dludlow@media.ucla.edu.