While the world wasn’t looking, the U.S. Senate passed what CNN called “the most overlooked mega-bill of the past 12 months”: a $1 trillion spending measure that sets five years of eating and farming policy in the United States. It’s been commonly labelled a “farm bill,” but CNN claimed it will be much, much more.
Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death at age 46 shocked the U.S. on Sunday, and as the investigation reveals more details about his death — strong evidence points to a heroin overdose, as he was found in his Manhattan apartment with a needle stuck in his arm — many voices have contributed to the discussion of his legacy as a fine actor and his struggle with drug abuse.
When Woody Allen won the Golden Globe lifetime achievement award a few weeks ago, an old debate reignited: Is it right to celebrate artists who have committed — or been accused of committing — heinous crimes?
On Monday, the Florida Supreme Court approved a medicinal marijuana bill that will be included on the November 2014 general election ballot. Overall, the Orlando Sentinel reported, the marijuana issue is “broadly popular with Florida voters.” The news is a cause for celebration with groups in the state who have been tirelessly petitioning to add medical marijuana to the ballot — including the ever-present pack of petitioners outside the Alachua County Library.
In 2013, female-driven films killed in the box office. TIME magazine reported that movies released last year passing the Bechdel test made $1.55 billion more than movies that didn’t. The Bechdel test, for those of you who aren’t fans of the “Dykes to Watch Out For” comic strip, is a standard that works of fiction are held to in order to determine gender bias. Films, books, TV shows and other forms of entertainment pass the Bechdel test if they contain two or more named female characters, the female characters speak to one another, and their conversations are about something other than men or relationships.
As all the Preview skits would have you believe, freshman year of college is a stressful time. While the course load is the easiest during those first few months of college, the amount of mental and emotional turmoil can be taxing on 18- and 19-year-olds who are adjusting to adult life — or, at least, a practice run for adult life. The newfound freedom and access to alcohol, drugs and casual sex contributes chaos to the freshman experience, especially for the many first-year students who choose to live in residence halls.
You use apps to order pizza, check bus routes and view singles in your area — now, you can use one to read the Alligator on the go.
Another arctic week in Gainesville has come and gone, and our resolves are being tested. The initial thrill of finally getting the chance to break out those dusty boots and moth-eaten gloves has worn off, and now we’d give anything to return to frat tanks and flip-flops. Our tropical temperaments simply aren’t suited for 30-degree nights. And remember: It’s not too late to get a flu shot from the Student Health Care Center. Seriously! It takes, like, five minutes, and the nurses are very nice.
Whether you’re conservative or liberal, you have to agree the country is warming up to the idea of marriage equality. In its latest poll, the Pew Research Center reported that 51 percent of Americans support marriage equality, and with the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, pressure is being shifted back to states to legalize marriage equality.
Call it a millennial thing: Online dating is now, more or less, an acceptable way to meet someone. For college students, it makes sense. Among going to classes, working part-time jobs, balancing extracurriculars and browsing the slim pickings of the Gainesville-nightlife scene, it’s hard to find a mate. Online dating provides an intuitive solution, complete with matrices that calculate who your best matches are based on personality. Plus there’s the added convenience of being able to browse dating options in the comfort of your own home — preferably in a pair of sweatpants.
The state of Florida granted UF students and staff a day off from work and classes to honor the memory of Martin Luther King Jr., a pioneer of civil rights for black Americans. You already know this, of course. Every elementary-school curriculum includes the study of King and his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
It’s 2014, and social media has such a pervasive influence on modern life that the Modern Language Association created guidelines for citing tweets within academic papers. Home-improvement franchise Lowe’s uses Vine to produce six-second home-repair tutorials. And any individual — from unknown PR executives to UF football recruits — can be raked over the coals for posting offensive jokes online.
Sadly, this week’s headlines were dominated by two tragic shootings. On Tuesday morning, a 12-year-old boy opened fire at a middle school in New Mexico, wounding two students. According to Reuters, it was the second shooting to take place in a U.S. middle school in three months.
In 2011, the creator of the MTV reality shows “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom” wrote an article for CNN defending the show’s value in response to media critics claiming the two shows glamorize teen pregnancy.
As consumers of media, we often encounter public intellectuals: well-known, intelligent, learned persons whose written works and other social and cultural contributions are recognized not only by academic audiences and readers, but also by many members of society in general. Vaclav Havel, Noam Chomsky and Gloria Steinem are all prominent public intellectuals who contribute to discourse across a wide span of topics that affect our lives, from politics to economics to feminism.
“Workaholics” fans remember the episode in which Adam, Ders and Blake become entangled with the Juggalos, or devotees of the rap and hip-hop duo Insane Clown Posse. Members of the Juggalos are, stereotypically, drug-addled low-income followers of the band famous for their yearly gathering — or as the New York Daily News called it, “weeklong bacchanal” — called the Gathering of the Juggalos. The Gathering is notorious for Juggalos engaging in “blatant drug use and general bad behavior.”
Like taxes, gynecological exams and salad, drop/add week is a necessary evil — a time of the semester where classes are treated like sample stations at Costco, only instead of hairnet-wearing old ladies, professors and TAs are doling out the tastes of what the semester will bring.
Last night, the new year saw a new crop of screaming, swooning female hopefuls on “The Bachelor,” which began its 18th season on ABC. The premise of “The Bachelor” and its sister show, “The Bachelorette,” represents something both modern and weirdly primal: Cameras, boom mics and Chris Harrison follow a group of 20-somethings as they compete fiercely for the affection of a mate — presumably so the winner and said mate may become engaged and begin a life together.
Welcome back, Gators! Breaking news: It is about to be COLD in Gainesville. Like, seriously. Pull those hats and mittens out of retirement, and for those of you who rely on scooters as your main method of transportation — we are so sorry.
A lucky batch of seniors will graduate next week and depart into the real world of graduate schools, jobs and paid internships, international travel or mom and dad’s basement. They’ll have college degrees under their belts — essentially, really expensive pieces of paper to hang in their offices to remind them of the four (or three or five) years they spent at UF.
Solutions by The State News
