OPINION  |  COLUMNS

How to sprint through a marathon

By Heather Bushman | Dec. 5

GOODBYE COLUMN: When you're crouched at the starting line and the signal to run sounds off, I imagine you only have two options — freeze or fly.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Don’t forget the best parts

By Nora O'Neill | Dec. 5

GOODBYE COLUMN: I've spent five semesters at The Alligator, three of those as a desk editor. And recently, I've noticed a shift. Managing editors who used to seem terrifying are now my friends. Freshman reporters I used to see hurry home after meetings are now sticking around to chat. The best part of The Alligator — besides its phenomenal coverage — is the community it creates. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

A journalist is born — from her bedroom

By Lucille Lannigan | Dec. 5

GOODBYE COLUMN: I learned how to be a journalist in my sophomore year bedroom. I typed up breaking news briefs, missing gecko mysteries and protest recaps under my collaged poster wall. It was almost a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, and The Alligator staff was forced to work from behind computer screens and double masks.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Opinion sections matter

By Stuart Floyd | Nov. 28

OPINION: Many community news outlets are eliminating their opinion sections. Think this is happening in some far-off, sparsely populated town? Surprise! It’s occurring near you in Gainesville. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Rethinking student involvement at UF

By Halima Attah | Nov. 24

OPINION: The only way we can repair the culture of student involvement at UF is to change the way we look at it. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Time to retire the GPD K-9 Unit

By Bobby Mermer and Sheila Payne | Nov. 15

OPINION: Other cities and states have indefinitely suspended the use of K-9 programs after similar incidents of police dogs biting suspects who are on the ground. We demand that the City Commission eliminate the canine unit at GPD.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

In Defense of Ben Sasse

By Michael Lynch | Nov. 15

OPINION: Dr. Sasse will be a wonderful and thoughtful president not just for me, but for every person on campus, regardless of ethnicity, sexuality, religion or party affiliation.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Embracing my first-generation identity

By Miguel Pascual | Nov. 10

OPINION: I will continue to luchar por mis estudios because I’m a bright individual who earned his place here at UF. I will not allow anyone or anything to tell me otherwise.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Where’s the outrage?

By Stuart Floyd | Nov. 5

OPINION: The rights and benefits most important to your generation are just a vote away. If you don’t vote, don’t complain about the outcome. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

A concerned alumna's open letter to the UF Board of Trustees

By Tiffany Hinton | Oct. 27

OPINION: The apparently imminent appointment of Ben Sasse will leave me no choice but to renounce my alma mater and forsake Gator Nation.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

An alternative perspective to the Ben Sasse situation

By Robert Thomas Lattus | Oct. 18

OPINION: My foremost impression of this ordeal has nothing to do with Sasse himself. It concerns freedom of belief and academic liberty here at UF.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

A Day of Gratitude

By Kent Fuchs | Oct. 10

We are declaring Wednesday, October 12, to be a Day of Gratitude. On that day, we are acknowledging and thanking every UF student, faculty and staff member for their work in overcoming the challenges of the pandemic.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Why you should combat UF Student Government voter apathy

By Halima Attah | Oct. 3

The less students vote, the less accurate image SG members have of student opinion on campus, and the less students will be satisfied with election results. It’s a lose-lose situation. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

UF Top 5 Ranking – What's Next?

By Kent Fuchs | Oct. 3

No university has ever broken into that top-five ranking and stayed there for two consecutive years, until last month, when UF was ranked among the top five for the second year in a row.  Berkeley and UCLA are tied for first, Michigan and Virginia tied for third, and UF and UNC are tied for fifth.