Editor:

I went to see Bill Gates on May 27, but I, like over 500 others, was turned away as even the overflow room reached capacity. This was similar to what happened when Michael Dell spoke last week. I was particularly bothered by the Gates event because: one, there were no reservations; two, the university over publicized the event when they knew they had limited seating; and three, they filled over half the 1,000 seats with 6-12 graders, most of whom could give a damn about seeing Gates.

The university should take a lesson from the club Venture Forth, which had a Business Plan Competition on May 31 at 10 a.m. The keynote speaker was Michael Robertson, founder of MP3.com, R.E.E.F. and Lindows. This event was student-friendly since: one, students could RSVP online and be guaranteed a seat at http://www.ventureforth.org; two, there was free food; and three, there was free wine!

UCSD is finally starting to bring cool speakers to our school, such as the business leaders mentioned above and real presidential candidates (read: not Nader or Buchanan). Many people want to see these qualified, important speakers. There is just more demand for them than there is for the tired, old, dirty hippies from Berkeley that colleges usually have as guest speakers. The university must allow seating for all the people.

— Bryan Barton

John Muir College junior