Opinions - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | COLUMNS

Syria, Afghanistan and double-back in U.S. strategy

Nov. 9, 2015

This past October, we witnessed a stark readjustment of the U.S. military agenda in the Middle East. On Oct. 30, President Obama announced the U.S. military would, in fact, be putting "boots on the ground" in Syria. Earlier on Oct. 15, the Obama administration announced an extension of the timeline for U.S. military presence in Afghanistan. Through most of next year, 9,800 troops will continue operations, and by Jan. 2017, a residual force of 5,500 troops will remain indefinitely.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Letter to the Editor: 11/10/2015

Nov. 9, 2015

Support a living wage today

OPINION | COLUMNS

Mississippi needs to change its state flag

Nov. 9, 2015

"Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall."

OPINION | COLUMNS

The Odyssey needs to rethink its approach to online journalism

Nov. 9, 2015

It’s an experience we know all too well: innocently scrolling through Facebook, attempting to stay up to date on your friends’ activities and unwillingly being drowned in a sea of useless click-bait articles. You know the type of article I’m talking about: the ones with titles like, "20 Things I Want to Tell My Little," "10 Struggles That Only Girls With Long Hair Will Understand" and "8 Thoughts Every Girl Has When Picking Out a Halloween Costume."

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Editorial: Outrage culture works both ways

Nov. 8, 2015

In recent years, outrage culture has been largely perceived as a strictly liberal pastime. There was the time #CancelColbert was a trending hashtag due to an "offensive" out-of-context tweet from "The Colbert Report," or racist accusations were levied at Lorde regarding opulence — thereby criticizing the entire genre of hip-hop, #duh — in her song, "Royals."

OPINION | COLUMNS

Don’t twist the meaning of sexual liberation

Nov. 8, 2015

To adapt Maxim Biller: Nothing is as boring as sexual liberation, at least for women.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Ben Carson, partisan politics, scrutiny

Nov. 8, 2015

Most politicians go to great lengths to cultivate a carefully constructed image. Donald Trump has made himself the candidate who says what others are thinking but are afraid to say. Jeb Bush has made it a point to distance himself from his brother’s policies.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Relax, Jeb Bush is still going to be president

Nov. 8, 2015

Back in the early days of the 2014 football season, the Green Bay Packers were 1-2. Fans were upset. Head management started updating their resumes. Things were not looking good. After receiving a loss at the hands of the Detroit Lions — yes, you can understand the Pack’s frustration — quarterback Aaron Rodgers told the cheesehead faithful to "R-E-L-A-X." Rodgers calmly told the media and Green Bay nation everything will be all right. And he was right. The team finished 12-4, captured first place in the NFC North and went to the NFC Championship.

OPINION | DARTS LAURELS

Darts and Laurels: Homecoming 2015 Edition

Nov. 5, 2015

Homecoming is many things for many people. It’s a time for reflection and nostalgia; a time for celebration; and, if you’re going to Gator Growl, a time for mediocre "indie" acts, former CW stars and rappers who released their best work 10 years ago. OH! *cue Andrew Dice Clay hand motion* Just kidding, T.I., we loved last year’s "About the Money," and we still love you.

OPINION | COLUMNS

From your Student Body President: Create long-lasting memories this Homecoming

Nov. 5, 2015

Hello Gators! I’m back for another issue of my new monthly column. I hope everyone survived midterms and is getting ready for a well-deserved Thanksgiving Break!

OPINION | COLUMNS

Butts, butts, butts: Anal is in, can I get a #ButtStuff2k15

Nov. 5, 2015

The 21st century has brought me a lot of things that I’m thankful for, among them being iPhones, the next Star Wars trilogy and butt stuff.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Tuesday’s elections were not a death knell for liberalism

Nov. 4, 2015

On Tuesday, news outlets were littered with headlines like "Liberals Are Losing the Culture Wars," "America may be in a reinforcing feedback loop of growing inequality and Republican rule" and "Houston decided it has a problem: Its LGBT nondiscrimination law." The weak attempt at humor in the last headline aside, all three of these articles were written in response to the Nov. 3 election, which was mostly concerned with local affairs and citizen initiatives. As the doom and gloom of these headlines illustrate, it was not a good day for progressive causes, which means it was an even worse day for Democratic politicians.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Far from peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Nov. 4, 2015

"We must think differently, look at things in a different way. Peace requires a world of new concepts, new definitions." — Yitzhak Rabin

OPINION | COLUMNS

Ann Coulter should not speak at UF

Nov. 4, 2015

On Monday, a fellow opinion columnist wrote about how he felt Ann Coulter should be a guest speaker on campus. While I would concede there is a need for more conservative speakers, I could not disagree more. Coulter is the last conservative speaker we need.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Democratic debate ignores the disenfranchisement in mass incarceration

Nov. 4, 2015

Earlier last month, the first of the Democratic Party debates for the 2016 U.S. presidential election commenced in Las Vegas, Nevada, broadcast on CNN with Anderson Cooper as the moderator.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Maybe neither religion nor atheism is all that bad

Nov. 3, 2015

According to a report released by the Pew Research Center on Tuesday, Americans are becoming less religious. An NPR report summarizing the findings included tidbits like "The share of Americans who say they are ‘absolutely certain’ that God exists has dropped 8 percentage points, from 71 percent to 63 percent, since 2007," and "The percentage of adults who describe themselves as ‘religiously affiliated’ has shrunk 6 points since 2007, from 83 percent to 77 percent." We could go on, but you get the idea.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Smathers Library mural shows UF history

Nov. 3, 2015

History and art combine in a recent campaign by the Smathers Libraries to restore one of UF’s largest wall murals.

OPINION | COLUMNS

American policy of procrastination

Nov. 3, 2015

We’ve all done it. There was some major paper to write or exam to study for that was left until the last minute. With all the time beforehand to do so, we procrastinate out of laziness, fear or even a mixture of the two. Now, a rushed essay or some crammed studying may not be such a big deal in the grand scheme of things. However, if we continue to add to a society of lazy individuals waiting to make the world a better place on a day that will never come, we will create — and have already created — very serious issues for society as a whole.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Grammar ain’t what it seems — don't cling to rules

Nov. 3, 2015

"HOSTESS: …she speaks English perfectly!

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Strongly held opinions are fine, but chill with reactionary ones

Nov. 2, 2015

From the first time the written word was translated to celluloid and up to the present, the phrase, "The book(s) was/is/are better" has long been a rallying cry for disgruntled literary fans. While there are many instances where an adaptation did justice to the source material — or in the cases of films such as "Blade Runner," "Fight Club" or "Jaws," surpassed it — there are just as many that not only failed to render the material in a compelling manner but managed to actively disrespect the original text. Films with this distinction include "Watchmen," the most recent adaptation of "The Great Gatsby" and "The Scarlet Letter."