Opinion | Columns - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | COLUMNS

Obama faces tougher crowd than Bush

By PAUL MURTY | Jan. 7, 2010

I can’t help but wonder why President Obama has received so much more heat from certain members of the media and from certain factions of the country than any public figure I can remember. The recent attempted bombing by a Nigerian terrorist has prompted those members of the media to come out from the woodwork to –- yet again –- criticize Obama. This time it is because he took 72 hours to publicly respond to the situation, after consulting with security teams from Christmas until Dec. 28.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Capital punishment inhumane, unethical

By Ryan Spencer | Jan. 7, 2010

John Walsh Needs to Keep His Mouth Shut. It’s not that his crime-fighting endeavor “America’s Most Wanted” hasn’t proven to be successful — it has, most recently with the capture of Jupiter massacre suspect Paul Mehinge — but rather that he, in his position of influence as a popular television host, should stop trying to be judge, jury and executioner, as he did recently when he called for capital punishment for the above suspect.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Last decade produced culture of fear

Jan. 5, 2010

Last decade was not a fun decade in which to grow up.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Congress should reinstate estate tax

By BRIAN MILLER | Jan. 5, 2010

On New Year’s Day, the estate tax, an essential part of the U.S. tax system for almost 100 years, disappeared because Congress failed to act in December.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Help wanted: Desperately seeking... you

By EMILY FUGGETTA | Jan. 4, 2010

It’s that time again.

OPINION | COLUMNS

UF experiences help to prepare for future

Dec. 8, 2009

Sunday morning, I woke up and started crying.

OPINION | COLUMNS

First year doesn’t set tone for future

Dec. 7, 2009

A question for first-years here at UF: How was your semester?

OPINION | COLUMNS

Govt. should put rights first

By Christina Garcia de los Rios | Dec. 7, 2009

The following is an excerpt from a letter sent to New York State Sen. Tom Libous.

OPINION | COLUMNS

2009: Year of distractions, scandals

Dec. 6, 2009

2009 hasn’t left us yet, but it’s not too soon to look back on the last of what Time Magazine recently dubbed “The Decade from Hell.”

OPINION | COLUMNS

Obama is right to weigh options in war

By Nick Miner | Dec. 3, 2009

In a recent interview, Dick Cheney attacked the president for “agonizing” over the Afghanistan strategy, saying: “Every time [Obama] delays, defers, debates, changes his position, it begins to raise questions: Is the commander in chief really behind what [the military has] been asked to do?”

OPINION | COLUMNS

Tiger’s choice of mistress was subpar

Dec. 2, 2009

True to his reputation as the hardest-hitting driver on the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods spent the majority of his Thanksgiving holiday entering a world of pain. The grimy details that are now oozing out of the celebrity guerrilla media sleaze machine only amplify the deliciousness of this sordid Tiger tale.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Church sets bad example

By Robert Hewitt | Dec. 1, 2009

Being accosted by crazies of all types, usually benign, is normal in a college town like Gainesville. However, when it’s virulent hatred that evokes remembrance of Nazis persecuting Jews and other minorities, silence is not always the best response.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Lessons come from experience, not advice

Dec. 1, 2009

Over Thanksgiving, I got to spend a week with my 19-year-old sister, who’s a sophomore at a state school in the Midwest.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Say what you would regret leaving unsaid

Nov. 30, 2009

I like this question, even if it’s a little morbid: If you knew you were going to die this evening, and you couldn’t talk to anyone between now and then, what would you most regret not telling someone?

OPINION | COLUMNS

Republican Party needs to realize all politics are local

By Nick Miner | Nov. 30, 2009

The Republican Party has recently drafted a Purity Resolution. If passed, any candidate seeking support from the Republican National Committee would be required to support at least eight of the 10 resolutions named by the committee.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Old Florida needs to let go of old ways

Nov. 29, 2009

The Gulf of Mexico may look calm from the porch I’ve perched myself on for the Thanksgiving holiday, but a contentious political storm is slowly brewing over efforts afoot in the Florida Legislature to repeal a ban on offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

OPINION | COLUMNS

UF needs textbook rental program

By Kristin Klein | Nov. 29, 2009

The typical undergraduate student at UF spends nearly $1,000 every two semesters on textbooks. This is not earth-shattering news if you are a student. It is no surprise that textbooks are expensive, and these prices continue to soar. In fact, the Government Accountability Office estimates that over the past two decades, college textbook prices have grown at twice the rate of inflation. With recent legislation to raise tuition and narrow the scope of Bright Futures in Florida, university students and families have an even greater burden to bear. It’s evident that the last thing students need is exorbitantly priced textbooks. To help lower the cost of textbook prices, I suggest we implement a textbook rental program.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Kids should not be billboards

By Kevin Olivier | Nov. 24, 2009

I find it hard to believe that anyone can fight for the continuation of this fearmongering by the religious extremists going on in this city. They claim it’s “freedom of speech,” but I call it mental terrorism.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Give sincere thanks for Thanksgiving

Nov. 24, 2009

Look, I know that it’s traditionally that time of year when I should spout off about the things I’m grateful for in my life. I get annoyed when people act like you have to be thankful for every mundane thing just because it’s the fourth Thursday in November.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Holidays create ‘Garden State moments’

Nov. 23, 2009

For many first years, the Thanksgiving holiday is the first real opportunity in the semester to go back home. And thus, it’s often the first real opportunity to have what I call a “Garden State moment.”