i'm more than happy to pay the union portion of the fees, and in theory i'm happy to pay for the SRC portion too (although i really dont see why the war in iraq has anything to do with the students of the university, its a national issue not a university/student one)
but i really object to paying $250 a year for sports, when you still have to pay to use the gym/ swimming pool anyway, and its cheaper for me to go to my local public pool, and pretty much the same price for the gym.
I think the argument that there will be no more sports with VSU is crap. How do you think local footy/soccer/netball clubs pay for themsleves? the people who play pay, and its not a big deal. Why should i foot the bill for the rugby team to have a nice green field to play on? The majority of students arent even allowed to walk on these ovals, let alone play on them.
The union itself is much wider reaching, and benefits many more students than does the sports union. things like cheaper food, student bursaries, free entertainment are of much more value to students who unlike others on this forum, have to fund their own lives and dont have money to splash around. And i am much happier paying $250 a year than $500, because thats another textbook for me!