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Medieval fair to start Saturday

By ERICA JOHNSON | Jan. 28, 2010

Eight stages of entertainment and 160 artisans will take Gainesville back in time starting this weekend at the 24th annual Hoggetowne Medieval Faire, organized by the City of Gainesville Division of Cultural Affairs.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

SG president does not appear to care about graduate students

By ANURADHA PANDEY | Jan. 28, 2010

On Wednesday, I went to Student Body President Jordan Johnson’s town hall forum concerning the new fee for the Reitz Union  expansion and repairs. The forum made clear that Johnson is all about appearances and does not care about substance. Despite the repeated explanations I and others gave him that graduate students are already financially stretched thin and do not use the Reitz Union enough to justify paying the fee, he continued to evade the issue and use George W. Bush-like circular logic. Such an approach was not only insulting, but it betrayed the fact that, at the end of the day, Student Government is for and by the undergraduate population, and among them, the Greeks.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Reader criticizes Tebow, Dove Center

By Dave Gallo | Jan. 28, 2010

This letter is in response to a number of articles, editorials and letters to the editors over the last month or so. Although I intend to address issues from the Dove World Outreach Center to the upcoming Tim Tebow Super Bowl advertisement, my message is somewhat cohesive: Stop apologizing for bigotry.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Person who wrote 'Cuban' on brick felt victimized by person who perverted meaning

By DEBORAH SWERDLOW | Jan. 28, 2010

I’m upset that Ana Laura Martinez was offended by the Writing on the Wall Project, but I’m even more upset that Martinez completely missed the point of the activity. The presence of the word “Cuban” on one of those bricks does not mean that the word itself is inherently offensive and derogatory. Instead, it means that the person who wrote “Cuban” on his/her brick felt offended when they heard someone say that word. This distinction is hardly about semantics. The difference is that the person who wrote “Cuban” on his or her brick felt victimized by the speaker, who perverted the meaning of a perfectly reasonable ethnic description.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

SG should find another way to raise fees for Reitz renovation

By MATT MINGUS | Jan. 28, 2010

If there’s any thinking going on behind the closed doors of the Unite Party, it’s clearly not very creative. Rather than offer fresh and innovative ideas about how to raise funds for a renovation of the Reitz Union, Student Body President Jordan Johnson’s Wednesday column in the Alligator recycled the same, tired rallying cry for a raise in student fees. He justified his position by using other Florida institutions as examples of “successful” fee-hiking campaigns. Instead of focusing his energy and Student Government position to encourage the Board of Trustees and the administration to search for financial solutions that would not further burden his constituency, Johnson has embraced the idea that the only way the Reitz can be renovated, his proclaimed “Heart of the Gator Nation,” is by adopting the usual go-to strategy of exploiting the labor of graduate employees. Johnson might claim to be grasping at “history,” but he is really reaching for the wallets of already underpaid and overworked graduate assistants who have rent to pay, classes to teach and families to feed. SG needs to stop showcasing its lack of originality and begin to serve as an example to other Florida universities in how it approaches these renovations, rather than justify a new fee simply because they can’t think of anything better.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Protesters of the Writing on the Wall project missed the point

By ANDRE NOBLE | Jan. 28, 2010

What happens when a world becomes so PC (politically correct) that even symbols created to break down barriers come under fire? Well, we have 65 members of the PC police saying they’re offended that their nationality is represented on the Writing on the Wall. Besides the wall having the word Cuban, it also features “Jap,” “Nigger” and other racial epithets. What annoys me about these people is that they totally ignore the fact that the wall represents offensive phrases and words used against someone.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Politicians support parties, not voters

By PAUL MURTY | Jan. 28, 2010

As long as I can remember, we have had terrible political divisions in our country. The only time Democrats and Republicans seem able to work together are in times of crisis, like after the attacks of Sept. 11 or Pearl Harbor. The politics of our country, specifically of Congress, are inherently wrong and against what Americans want.

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Darts and Laurels

By Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 28, 2010

The Editorial Board has never been so happy to say TGIF. And we are in dire need of the weekend to rest and recuperate because it’s almost that time again, kids. It’s the most dreaded time of the semester. Yep, you guessed it — Student Government elections.

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