The Power of a Petition

Shit's going down here at the U of O.

Y'see, drama started right before Thanksgiving break when the current president of the school received word that his contract was not reinstated for the upcoming year. This has caused an uproar from many of the faculty and students at the school because many of them think that he is doing a good job. Apparently, the problem comes from his ideas about changing the school from being funded by the state to funding itself after taking out a big loan. His ideas might also change the school to be similar to a private school in a way. The whole thing is that the state (or the people in charge) don't like this idea, so they think it's time he left. Overall, I don't really know a lot about it. What I've learned about the situation is what I've talked to others about or have been told about. All I know is that people are not happy, and they're letting the world hear them.

For instance, quite a few people have donned the picture of "the hat" as their profile picture. "The hat" is apparently a symbol of the president because he wears a certain hat all of the time. Other ways that people are participating are by making petitions.

Here's the thing. I love the effort that people make for something they really care about. I'm all for it. However, I don't think that petitions work. No matter how much love is put behind something, when the top dogs have made a decision, they've made a decision.

There's an alternative reason that I've brought this up, and it has to do with one of my favorite television shows: Community.
If you're a fan of Community, you've heard about the fact that it's not on the mid-season list of shows. Meaning it's probably going to be cancelled. Now, Community fans are a bit eccentric, but they love their show. One of the things that sucks about the whole thing is that a lot of Community's fanbase resides online. I can't watch Community when it's on air, I can only watch it on Hulu. I think this is how it is for a lot of the fans.
Due to the fact that the Internet includes a huge Community fan base, there are a ton of protests/petitions/etc for Community online. ...Can you see where I'm going with this?

I love Community, but I'm not so sure on how well the petitions are actually going to work. Not like I don't have hope (I'm very very very hopeful), but for every "Betty White to Host SNL!" petitions, there are a hundred other petitions with arguments from hopeful fans.

Still, I did sign the online Save Community petition. Because I still hope that it's not done for good.

#Sixseasonsandamovie.

Do you believe in the power of a petition? Or do you think it's unrealistic?