It is important, on occasion, to remember how lucky we are.
We’re lucky to be alive, we’re lucky to be Americans and we’re lucky, very specifically, to be Sam Houston students, if only for our commendable University Police Department.
That jurisdiction does a lot for the student population, and even writing that feels like a vulgar understatement.
One of the current examples of how the UPD looks after us as students is their treatment of the current problems with the on-campus parking garage.
While issues with the entry and exit gates are being dealt with by Computer Services, they are not only keeping the garage open for use, but are also allowing the 250 open spots in that lot to be used by any student with a parking permit until the problems are fixed.
With the way on-campus parking is, especially within the busiest hours, 250 extra spots are a big help, even if their free availability is only temporary.
That’s like 250 of those spots behind awkwardly-placed trees that no one expects to find, but are at the same time completely elated to discover, especially in the beginning of the semester when any small stress-reliever is vastly important.
The UPD could have devised an evil scheme to somehow still charge people to park in those 250 spots while the gate problems persist, but they didn’t.
Could this be proof that, contrary to popular belief, the UPD really isn’t out to get us?
Could it even mean the department deliberately took advantage of a chance to help us out when they saw an opportunity?
While on the subject, it’s also important to note the UPD’s practice of ticketing those who park in areas their parking stickers (or lack thereof) restrict them from.
Sure, it’s a pain to pay $30 if you honestly parked out-of-zone by mistake, but as for the vast majority of the other tickets written, the UPD really is doing permit-holding students a favor.
Without the UPD’s relentless search for unauthorized vehicles, parking would be even more difficult for students, especially those who live off-campus or commute to the university.
Those who think “I can get away with parking here for one class” get in the way of those who pay for the same privilege, and the UPD is the only group standing in the way of such actions continuing unpunished.
Also, bear in mind that these issues pertain just to parking. One editorial could not do justice to the amount of work the department does for students, the risks they take for our safety or the considerations they make on our behalf.
We should be grateful for them.