Tonight should have been an important night. The City Council was scheduled to debate drink specials, cab service, loitering and more. All these have an effect on students; for that reason we have taken interest in each (well, not cabs, but that is going to change). Alas, the City Council does not have time for student issues this week.

The state Legislature is no different; both this and last week should have been important weeks. A conference committee has been meeting to hash out differences in the budget revisions passed by the Assembly and Senate. Very much in play are the millions of dollars in funding received by the UW System, and by extension, the quality of education students receive. Alas, the conference committee shows no sign of reaching a resolution — partisan politics is of greater importance.

In both cases, essential student issues are being delayed, even though this is the last week most students will be in town. This is unacceptable.

Part of the blame must be borne by ASM. City lobbying has been an afterthought at best, and state lobbying has been disjointed and misguided. Small wonder neither body seems to care about students. The new ASM should make effective and reasonable lobbying a top priority.

But regardless of whether ASM takes our advice, we still care, so we are building our own time capsules to be opened whenever these issues are finally debated.

Time capsule #1 — Drink specials — To be opened May 21: By now our position should be clear: Banning drink specials will only move drinkers from bars to unsupervised, unregulated house parties. It would be both more effective and safer to change habits via social-norms campaigns and increasing alternative entertainment venues that serve alcohol while admitting all ages (via a wristband system, for example). The City Council should reject the ALRC report.

Time capsule #2 — Cab service — To be opened May 21 (maybe): Currently the city’s cab service consists of a de facto government-granted oligopoly that has served to keep prices the second-highest in the Midwest and cabs fairly inaccessible. While we are withholding judgment on the qualifications of the entrepreneur currently challenging the city’s oppressive regulations, we agree that starting a cab company should be a less complicated and more financially viable proposition.

Time capsule #3 — Loitering –To be opened June 4: Again, our position is clear. We believe the now-off-the-books loitering law was ambiguous and overly broad. Mayor Bauman was right to veto its extension, and the Council should not override it.

Time capsule #4 — State budget — To be opened any day now: The quality of education should be the overriding concern when state legislators debate UW funding. This means cuts in funding should be weighed against the economic benefit of having a world-class university; regents should also be free to raise in-state tuition if quality is at stake. Out-of-state tuition is too high already and should not be touched. Quality over political expedience is tough for any politician, but the value of our degrees rests on the Legislature making the right choice.

Students may leave this summer, but our stake in these decisions will not.