By Hunter Hotaling Boys State has officially begun and delegates have been assigned and voted into very different but equally important roles. However, what truly disturbs this stater is the overwhelming lack of professionalism in the early un-balloted decision making. Based on evidence obtained by the Stater’s Union, the majority of delegates decided who would run their county based off of their jokes over their qualifications. After hearing rumors from those heading to their first operation, I decided to further investigate. A stater from Eisenhower County said that one of their senators or representatives got voted in on the basis of wild promises over another candidate who had actual experience and qualifications in that field. Another city congressman from Bradley County commented on the fact that “good jokes” and “funny behavior” were more likely to earn you spots on your desired committee rather than an educated approach towards solving issues in the community. A stater from Kennedy County even stated “A lot of people did not know what they were doing or applying for; people just wanted a job.” My prediction based on my own voting experience and what was heard from other delegates from Marshall and Pershing County was that well-spoken arguments started to bore the balloters. This lead to a few staters in each county coming to the conclusion that the only way to stand out was to be outrageous with their claims. Soon, this spread into a wildfire of egregious statements and shocking accusations all in the sake of comedy (a.k.a. votes). Not only does this damage the integrity of Boys State, but it also puts dedicated delegates on the sideline while comedians get the spotlight in councils. Hopefully, this was only a phase we will see at the beginning of the simulation and nothing more.]]>
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