Monday’s issue of the Northern Star ran a front-page story about a recent Student Association vote which I think deserves a little more credit. The vote was over the issue of online voting, and the chocolate-y center of the online voting issue is the simple matter of this: the paper trail.

Featured in the front-page story was SA President Adam Novotney, whose quotation “Wow, this is a really bad idea,” seemed to sum up the issue in the simplest of terms. At least he was being up-front and forthright about his opinion. I couldn’t say the same for three members of the SA board who decided to abstain from the vote.

Odder still was the defense from SA technology director Brent West when he claimed no one would want to rig an SA election. With the SA in control of a budget worth over one million dollars, I am not so quick to encourage a voting system which hinges on “OK, America, it’s time now to vote for your next American Idol.”

I understand the argument of voter turnout and I can see the point of Internet voting. Presumably it would increase voters at the poll because Internet voting makes voting easier.

Still, in fear of sounding too old for my age, I warn against the rush toward a digital age of ease and comfort.

With the computer vote, you lose one important aspect of voting – the receipt. There is no paper trail with the electronic vote and because of that I will never support digital voting until it provides me with a hard copy.

In the last Congressional elections, the voting booths in my town offered digital voting over the pencil-and-bubble method. I said thanks but no thanks and gladly picked up my No. 2. When it comes to voting, I don’t appreciate the abstract – I like something tangible in my hands.

Election commissioner Erick Brenes elaborated on a new OneCard system which is currently in the works. Students would electronically register with their OneCards to vote. This would eliminate the possibility of double voting or allowing students who have graduated from voting. Also, there are plans to place a voting station inside the Campus Recreation Center. These ideas seem more applicable to solving the problem of low voter turnout than the introduction of technology. Too much change at one time can be harmful.

I applaud the vote cast by Novotney. Although I may not agree with other decisions the SA has made in the recent past, I believe this is a good one. However, let’s not forget the real issue behind this all.

The proposition of online voting was made to increase student participation in the SA elections. It is true that turnout is low, but voters and candidates who won’t campaign are to blame. The archaic voting booth may one day be replaced by the modern computer screen, but attitudes of voters and politicians seem to never change.