Whitman students live in a world of deliberate complacency, but this does not mean we are unaware of the world around us. The economy has the same effect on our lives, and especially our parents’ lives, as it does on everyone else. Thus, when Whitman tries to hide their economic struggles behind phony guises it can be insulting.

So Whitman’s endowment is down, so alumni aren’t giving as much, so it is harder to get grants, so what? We aren’t afraid that the economy is hurting Whitman. In fact, if the economy wasn’t hurting Whitman, then we might start worrying.

We do care about Whitman going around behind our backs.

President Obama’s new administration is promising more transparency in government actions, which has gotten Whitties very excited for the change. With the current economy, maybe we should be looking more closely at home for transparency as well. Right now the Whitman Administration is failing to be transparent: to tell us why they are really cutting back.

Instead, they are hiding. They are pretending to care about things that they have never shown a care for before in order to cut their costs.  

There is a new printing quota system which has everybody riled up arguing on both sides. But they’re not arguing about whether it is fair. They are arguing about why it is even there in the first place. Whether the printing quota is good or not, it should not have been played off as some environmental movement. Let there be no misunderstanding: the printing quota is good for the environment and we appreciate that side effect. But it is just that: a side effect of an economic maneuver.

We know as well as the administration that it costs a lot of money to support the amount of printing students do. So tell us that. If the printing quota was established as a program to help cut the costs of printing for the school, we would not be having this same debate. People would have grumbled about it, then swallowed it and gotten back to their work.  

But instead, the printing quota is supposed to save the world one flimsy piece of paper at a time. We don’t believe it. The printing quota is supposed to save Whitman’s budget one flimsy piece of paper at a time.

So the printing quota is a lie. We’ll get over it. But will it stop there: has it stopped there? What other cutbacks have been or will be played off as political, or environmental, or as some other concern?

Bon Appetit has been taking on all these new “environmental causes” lately too. No more tropical fruit except at breakfast because of the carbon emissions for shipping it. And the signs about food waste because of the landfills. What about food waste because of the cost?  

We aren’t fooled. We want the truth.

It   shouldn’t be a surprise to find out that we are okay with economic cutbacks. Really, we are. Of course it is not what we really want to hear. But it is better to hear the truth. At least then the college isn’t trying to pass off economic cutbacks as deep-seated environmental concerns that are just now coming out when the economy goes sour.

To be fair, President George Bridges is now coming out and saying he wants to be honest about the economic problems that the college is facing. It just seems a little late.  

So here is what we say to the administration: tell us the truth about your failings. We will respect you more for it in the long run, and quite frankly we know already, so there is no point in hiding it any longer.