Yes, we live in America. We have many freedoms. We have the freedom of the press. We have freedom of religion. We have the freedom to assemble. We have the freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances. We have freedom of speech. And, all too often it seems we apparently have the freedom to be ignorant.

We are appalled by the recent survey findings that so few students at UTM were able to name their U.S. senators. After all, Tennessee is the home of the most powerful man in the Senate. If you do not know your SGA senators, oh well. It’s probably not too tragic to miss out on another beauty pageant or a fireworks show. Not being able to name your U.S. senators, however is both tragic and irresponsible.

Sure, people have opinions in this country and at this university.

People wave the American flag around and denounce words like terrorism and evil. People gladly take off work and school on days like President’s Day and sit back and drink a cold one. Yet they seem to be missing the fundamental point of being a responsible citizen.

When the populace does not participate or inform themselves about the basics of American politics, they become terrorists themselves.

Yes, we said they become terrorists. They certainly aren’t killing anyone. But they are killing the idea of a democracy that is supposed to be for the people. What we have instead is a government that is run by the powerful elitists. The uninformed citizens become sheep in a herd that is blindly and naively led by the chords of their own ignorance.

This week the U.S. House of Representatives will likely pass a measure that will cut the amount of aid that students will receive. If students can’t name their senators then we doubt they would be able to name their U.S. representatives. Thus, the cuts will probably pass and most students will not know about it until it comes time for them to pull more money out of their own pockets.

Some in society will always remain ignorant, but shouldn’t those of us in college know what is going on around us?