Opinion

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Only Human: Abortion debate leaves dignity behind

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 19, 2011

As the day draws closer to the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion, a lot of words will be thrown around. Some, such as “crazy,” “insensitive” and “irrational,” will cast broad strokes on vast groups of people. Others, such as “religious fanatic,” “Nazi,” and “baby-killer” will raise both eyebrows and ugly sentiment.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Republicans can tone down rhethoric

By Chad Mohammed | Jan. 19, 2011

Over the past couple of years, hot button issues such as immigration and health care reform coupled with a harsh economic climate led to a caustic political environment unseen since the Vietnam War. This dialogue finally received scrutiny due to the tragedy in Tucson, even though the incident seems to be an isolated event rather than a result of deep political rhetoric. It is still worth asking: Will anything change or will it be business as usual for this Congress?

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Tutoring service customers don’t deserve academic stigma

By Matt Hintze | Jan. 18, 2011

“There is no cheat sheet for life…”. 

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OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Political link to teen pregnancy unfounded

By Suzanne Santos | Jan. 18, 2011

In “Teenage pregnancy not so glamorous,” Anita Babbitt argues that abstinence-only sex education is to blame for higher teen pregnancy rates.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Pretentious Tensions

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 18, 2011

Everyone has someone they’d love to bring down a notch. There’s always that guy in class who’s a little too smug in his answers, that coworker with her holier-than-thou attitude. 

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Students may need self-esteem boost

By Wesley Campbell | Jan. 18, 2011

Ever notice how you have all the right opinions? Why don’t more people think like you? Think back to when you were young, and imagine a situation where you and your fellow classmates were all “competing” to be the best at something. How about the most interesting show-and-tell piece? We’ll go with that.

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OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

TAs available to help struggling students for free

By Nathan Hagen | Jan. 18, 2011

Laura Ellermeyer, author of Tuesday’s tutoring column, could have gone to TA sessions for free to prepare for the exam. ECO 2013 has TAs available seven periods a day, five days a week. I’m not sure if practice tests were made available last semester. They usually are and are by far the best way to prepare for an exam.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Media Blackout: In this case, no news is good news

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 17, 2011

Last week, the Alligator learned of an event being planned by the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville. We will not dignify the event by discussing it in this publication.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Seize the Day

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 17, 2011

His dream still rings true, but, oddly enough, the day we take to celebrate it appears to undermine Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision.

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Tutoring services an unwelcome crutch

By Laura Ellermeyer | Jan. 17, 2011

TutoringZone is God, right?

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

A solution to fix broken Bright Futures

By JOHNATHAN LOTT | Jan. 13, 2011

As drop/add came to an end and we all settled into our spring classes, we got to enjoy the time-honored tradition of seeing our tuition bill show its sinister face.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Darts and Laurels

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 13, 2011

During a week littered with stories of tragedy, we’ve had to admit the hassle of drop/add period doesn’t warrant all our usual complaining.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

A Decade of Searching

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 12, 2011

Wikipedia is celebrating its 10th birthday Saturday, and, fellow students, what would we ever do without it?

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Happiness relative for college students

By Sean Quinn | Jan. 12, 2011

In 1996, Sheryl Crow opined on the human condition: “If it makes you happy, it can’t be that bad. If it makes you happy, then why the hell are you so sad?”

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Eye to the Sky: North Korean nuke issue deserves U.S. attention

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 12, 2011

In the fall of 1962, when the United States and the USSR stood inches away from the brink of an international blood-letting, word reached the Kennedy administration that the hard-line Soviet government did not desire to lead the world hand-in-hand into the furnace. In a flex of diplomatic bravado, Secretary of State Dean Rusk boasted: “We’re eyeball to eyeball, and the other fellow just blinked.”

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OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Academia’s future not printed on paper

By Laura Ellermeyer | Jan. 11, 2011

I just dropped the book-bill bomb on my parents.  Needless to say, warnings of “you better actually read these” followed.  Of course I will, Mom and Dad … maybe.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Slow Going: Haiti recovery takes more than cash

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 11, 2011

A year later, some progress has been made. There’s still a long way to go, however, in rebuilding the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Blam! Pow!

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 11, 2011

Maybe there are superheroes among us.

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OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Full of Fili-Bluster

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Jan. 10, 2011

Picture this scene. It’s an ungodly hot September day and our Florida Gators football team take the field to deliver their traditional, early-season Charles Sumner-style canning of a non-conference powerhouse St. Cecilia’s School of the Blind and Anorexic.

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OPINION  |  LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Alligator should have offered coverage of Arizona shooting

By Cain Norris | Jan. 10, 2011

The Alligator seems to have lost its way as a news source.