OPINION
|
COLUMNS
SG needs to stand up for its students
Mar. 14, 2019Things got a little spicy in Senate last Tuesday, and there’s plenty of tea to share.
Opinion | Columns
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Jury duty? More like civic duty
By Chasity Maynard | Mar. 12, 2019The dreaded day comes for all of us, usually sooner than expected. We spend our whole lives trying to escape it, but, alas, each of us must meet our match at some point. When people open up the mailbox and the white envelope with the big red letters is there, it makes most people roll their eyes in defeat. Your government has summoned you for jury duty.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Orgasm inequality: Why the gender gap is about more than just a paycheck
Mar. 12, 2019Think gender gaps exist only in the workplace? Turn on the symbolic bedroom lights. You’ll see it exists in sex as well. In recent years, feminists have called for the end of the wage gap. Naturally, the next step: lessen the orgasm gap.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Spring Break is a way to get back on track and to stay on track
Mar. 12, 2019This semester has been hectic and stressful, so going home for Break was a good decision for me. I needed a change from the constant responsibilities I have at school. It allowed me to get back on track for the rest of the semester and spend time with family. Here are some ways to maximize relaxation and recharge even after Spring Break is over.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Stadiums are cool, but small concert venues are better
Mar. 10, 2019Concerts fall into two categories, generally. You have big concerts, like those of Kanye West, Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift or just musical acts that everybody goes to. Then you have your smaller concerts: the SoundCloud rappers, the indie rock groups from Bandcamp or the up-and-coming DJ you found through Spotify’s Discover Weekly playlist. These are the more intimate concerts and are certainly more obscure. I went to one of these concerts about a week ago (shoutout to Car Seat Headrest for a great concert), and trust me when I say the experience was life-changing. All concerts have an intangible quality of connection to the world. Something about live music mixes with our own lives in a way that, if the performance is even half decent, it guarantees goosebumps. Small concerts, however, have a heightened effect on concert-goers.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Return to school ready for work, not burnout
Mar. 10, 2019Welcome back to UF, Gators! Hopefully, you had a week to unwind, relax and take your mind off school for a bit, but now it’s back to the routine of assignments, quizzes, exams, essays and schoolwork of all kinds. We have to do it for about eight more weeks until the end of the semester. Some of you might be thinking, “Eight weeks? I’m so close to summer now!” To those people, I admire your optimism. For me and many others, we are thinking, “Eight weeks? How am I going to last that long?” Well, never fear. This column is for you!
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Anti-vaxxers are spreading fake news. It’s time you heard the truth.
Mar. 10, 2019In the early 20th century, parents refused to allow their children to enter swimming pools or partake in typical summer activities. Childhoods were robbed and parents lived in fear of a crippling disease: polio. Little did they know, this disease was preventable. Luckily, Jonas Salk, a researcher and inventor, or better yet, a hero, developed a vaccine in 1955 that prevented the contraction of polio. Millions of children worldwide were spared from a crippling life, thanks to him. Once this vaccine was licensed for use, people worldwide demanded to be vaccinated – a small or nonexistent price to pay for the reward of a long, healthy life.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
I don’t want ASMR on my feed
By Chasity Maynard | Feb. 28, 2019I can get on board with a lot of weird stuff. I appreciate a good soap cutting video. I adore beauty gurus. Don’t get me started on my Taylor Swift fandom. I’m pretty trendy and hip with the things “the youngins" like. But, seriously, I cannot get behind ASMR.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Bad boys, bad boys. What will you do when they come for you?
Feb. 28, 2019We’ve all heard of them. We’ve all encountered them. Is it the way they smile, or is it their overall presence? Some people love the passion they bring to the relationship, while others enjoy the thrill of a real-life DIY project. Either way, everyone knows or has met a bad boy. It’s all in the name. Bad boys are known for doing bad things. So why is our society obsessed with them?
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
The latest Kardashian drama is proof we treat men and women differently
Feb. 28, 2019Last week, Jordyn Woods, aka Kylie Jenner’s best friend, was allegedly caught making out with Khloe Kardashian’s boyfriend and baby daddy, Tristan Thompson. The scandal has many people calling Woods out for being a bad friend to both Jenner and Kardashian. If the scandal rings true, she might be up for the "worst best friend award", but it seems to me that in these types of situations, the mistress always gets more bad publicity. A boys-will-be-boys mentality normalizes cheating for men in committed relationships. This puts a lot of the blame on the female “homewrecker,” a derogatory term used to describe a woman as being the cause for breaking up a family. Also, the stereotype of women as caring, family-oriented individuals creates this idea they are worse than their cheating counterpart because they are supposed to be keeping families together. Both parties are to blame, but it seems that the woman gets more misgivings than the one who let the woman in.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
You can take naps and be productive
Feb. 26, 2019Last week, I did something rare. I took a nap on a weekday. It was a spontaneous choice: unplanned, but needed. A half-hour or so opened itself up in my schedule that day, and I was tired. Naturally, I leaped on the opportunity. I don’t nap often for various reasons — either I have no time for it or I get too excited about being able to rest and, thus, restlessly lie awake for an hour.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Is it possible to separate art from the artist?
Feb. 26, 2019Lately, I have been thinking about whether or not it is possible to separate the art from the artist. Of course, this has been on my mind due to the recent arrest of the R&B singer R. Kelly, but I have wondered about this for years now. The obsession over Kodak Black within the Gainesville community is disturbing to me. Sure, he’s a Gator fan, but he also went to prison for sexual assault.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Using plastic isn’t cool anymore
Feb. 26, 2019If you live in Florida, and you are not constantly acting in the best interest of the environment: Wake up. We are the first ones going under when it all goes bad. The least we can do is be semi-conscious of the small things we can change to better the environment.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Feel the Bern? Try lightly toasted.
Feb. 26, 2019Like every other young — borderline socialist — liberal college student in the United States, I was thrilled when I saw that Bernie Sanders had entered the 2020 presidential race. The optimist in me is rooting for Sanders to take control of the Oval Office. Unfortunately, the political science student in me understands that this probably won’t happen.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Listen up, freshmen. Here's Kyle’s declassified school survival guide.
Feb. 24, 2019We’ve all been there. The good life is not so good, a math class for your major isn’t adding up or the Man’s Food class you’re taking to fill the biological sciences requirement is making you sick to your stomach. In the pursuit of an illustrious degree you’ll (hopefully) obtain after your undergraduate years, there will be many classes you’ll have to take that you’d just rather not. These classes can sometimes be essential, sometimes they’re more or less useless, but all of them are tedious because you don’t want to be there. The problem is common, yet solutions are not as easy to come by.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
The overblown UCF funding scandal is a sign of deeper issues
Feb. 24, 2019As a proud Florida Gator, I’d like to say a few words in defense of our University of Central Florida rivals.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Make no mistake. Libraries are for reading.
Feb. 24, 2019You can ask this question to any student and suddenly you get an idea of what kind of person he or she is. It’s an aspect of the campus culture that divides us all: What’s your study spot? Is it Library West, with its multiple floors of increasing silence and its proximity to Krishna lunch, is it Marston Science Library, with its open floor plans and cool technology such as virtual reality headsets, or is it Newell Hall with the cool eggshell chairs and whiteboard cubicles? Each one has pros and cons, but I feel these libraries are underutilized. Their vast book collections often go unread.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
I’m emotional, but that doesn’t make me any less powerful
By Chasity Maynard | Feb. 21, 2019I’m an emotional woman. I’ll answer the question now: No, I’m not PMS-ing or hormonal. My emotions usually stem from my experiences, my normal and healthily shifting moods and my daily life. Not all women are as emotional as I am, and I think it would be fair to say I am more emotional than most of my female friends. Even so, every woman and every person on this planet has feelings. My slight surplus of feelings doesn’t influence or negate my potential, my intelligence, my professionalism or any aspect of my worth.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Are apps like Venmo putting a price tag on our friendships?
Feb. 21, 2019Clubs and going out every weekend aren’t my thing. But I do love hanging out with my friends or going house parties because they’re situations where I can enjoy the company of the people around me. Requesting music at a house party is also easier because you know who has the aux. And as a plus, the music won’t blow out your eardrums like the huge stereos in a club will. Overall, the conversations are genuinely interesting, too. But when the night is over, all of the drinks have been drunk and the conversations have been had, it’s time for the college ritual: Everyone takes out their phone and suddenly a flurry of notifications light up the host’s phone. This is the tamest and probably the most appropriate way to make the night easy for everyone. The host gets reimbursed and everyone enjoys their time at the party.
OPINION
|
COLUMNS
Documenting our everyday lives is the norm, and here’s why
Feb. 19, 2019People are expressing themselves in forms of media that used to be reserved for professional companies and social media influencers: vlogs and podcasts.
