Students aren’t known for being patient. We’re actually quite impatient. We’re procrastinators. We’re perpetually busy. Despite these traits, students are independent and responsible ”” two attributes that are often associated with an adult. Yet, students are often treated like children.

The difference between most students and most children is that most students have the power to vote for California’s next governor.

Something, I believe, was overlooked when Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman agreed to their third, and possibly last, showdown until elections on Nov. 2, 2010.

The two candidates will debate at the Satellite Student Union (SSU) on the Fresno State campus on Saturday Oct. 2, 2010. But don’t get your hopes up, this political party is just for grown ups. Children can’t attend the debate, or even cover it as a student journalist, unless they hold a golden ticket.

And that is only possible if, and only if, you are affiliated with one of the five sponsors of the event ”” Univision, Fresno State, The Fresno Bee, The Fresno Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (FAHCC) and the city of Fresno.

Both campaigns were given an equal number of tickets to the debate.

This would be the sentence disclosing the amount of tickets each campaign distributed to each sponsor. However, The Collegian was rebuffed multiple times. It seems that the amount of sponsors versus the amount of students attending the debate is some kind of threat to public safety. Or should I say, the amount of adults versus the amount of children.

A representative from the SSU said the capacity audience for a debate is 800 seats and that it was only set up for 533 seats.

Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) said that there are as many as 300 to 500 tickets for the debate, that things are changing hourly and to call the University Student Union (USU) for logistics.

A faculty member from the USU said it’s not answering any questions and to call Fresno State’s­University Communications.

A representative from University Communications said it’s more like 300 tickets and to call the Univision corporate office in New York.

An employee from the Univision corporate office said it doesn’t answer media questions and to call Univision in Fresno.

A local Univision employee said it was surprised about what the corporate office suggested and needed to talk with corporate before talking with The Collegian.

ASI was the only organization that was of any assistance.

ASI President Pedro Ramirez first asked Univision if the debate held on campus could be open to the public. Univision refused. Ramirez then requested that Univision broadcast the debate live for student viewers. Univision refused.

It’s awful. Not as awful as Detroit, Ms. eBay, but awful. To add insult to injury, the UC Davis University Communications office said it held a lottery for its students and the general public for last night’s debate between Brown and Whitman. Names were drawn, tickets were gifted and sides were taken.

There will be no such lottery at Fresno State. Students must watch the debate when it’s broadcasted nationally at 4 p.m., in Spanish on Univision.

Unfortunately, I don’t speak Spanish. I speak English, which means I have to stream an edited version of the debate from my laptop.

So when I received a mass email from the FAHCC inviting me to submit a question to the candidates, I felt like a child. It was almost as if I was back in the fifth grade, and Ms. Polacheck was assuring me that no question is a stupid question, and to ask away.

Well, I’m asking ”” why is the debate not open to the students?