One of the greatest and most irritating ironies of collegiate life is that students are simultaneously lauded as the bright hope for the future by teachers, politicians and relatives while being treated as the lowest common denominator by a majority of the world's marketers and sloganeers.
If the ends can justify the means, however, the ""Vote Naked"" campaign's unfortunate side-effects (a slew of lame soundbites and articles straining for a good electoral come-on joke) will be offset by the organizers' attempts to bolster the student vote in the April 3 elections.
The problem the Vote Naked campaign aims to circumvent is the overlap between the elections and this year's unusually late Spring Break, meaning few students will be in town to cast a ballot in person. After the record-setting turnout in the November elections, low student participation this April would be particularly disappointing, especially as the mayoral and alder races have a strong bearing on campus life.
The solution—voting by absentee ballot, which can be done before election day, using only a few minutes of your time. If you are already registered to vote at your current address, visit www.votenaked.org, fill out the online form and wait for your ballot to arrive in the mail. When it does, follow the enclosed instructions and mail the ballot as soon as possible, no postage required. As the entire process can be handled by mail, there is the option of doing it naked.
Requests for absentee ballots must be made by 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 29. However, if you are heading out of town for Spring Break, make your request as soon as possible to ensure that your ballot arrives in time. If you are not registered to vote at your current address, visit www.wisconsinvote.org for instructions on how to register and request an absentee ballot.
With the convenience of the absentee voting process, you can request a ballot in just a few minutes, leaving you plenty of time to decide whether you would rather vote naked or while wearing a habit. Whatever floats your boat, man.
