Oiling the Machine

Last week, UA's student newspaper The Crimson White published an article, wherein the SGA president acknowledged "The Machine" at work on UA's campus. This acknowledgment alone was news, as SGA administrations and most UA Greeks have adamantly denied the existence of any Machine in the past. So, when I saw the headline I was intrigued.

I have to say, however, that I was disappointed when I read further. The SGA president said the organization was just "people working for their friends." Really? Then why is it so secretive?

Oh, and she further elaborated, saying the organization's "humbleness" had been mistaken for secrecy. This is laughable.

I did not attend UA for undergrad (I didn't want to be written out of any wills, after all). But I have several firsthand accounts of the control of the Greek network when it comes to anything on campus. Here is my meager understanding of the Machine's workings: the Machine (made up of delegates from most traditionally white sororities and fraternities) secretly decides who will run in any given election (Homecoming, SGA, etc.), they put that person up as the Greek candidate, and every sorority and fraternity member must then vote for that person. So, basically, a Greek gets elected every time. And the Greeks that want to run but are not "chosen" by the Machine as the candidate? Oh, well.

As I said, I don't know the inner workings of all this. I do know that an organization just "working for their friends" doesn't normally have the power to require hundreds of people to vote for their candidate. Further, I highly doubt that such a benign organization would operate in extreme secrecy.