Welcome to UF. You are now a student at the flagship academic institution of the state of Florida. With a University of Florida degree, you have endless career opportunities and a promising shot at some of the nation’s top graduate programs.
UF is a big place, and as your unofficial welcoming committee, we’re going to pass along a few tips to help you incoming freshman get accommodated a little quicker than we did.
To: The UF Freshmen and Transfer Students
Welcome to the University of Florida and The Gator Nation!
Freedom is an addictive thing, isn’t it? Each time we get a little bit more freedom to do anything, regardless of the positive or negative impacts, we cling to it like a mother clinging to her newly born baby. It is our baby. It is our everything. But why is this so? Why do we find it so difficult to let go of any kind of freedom? I would put my hard-earned Monopoly money on the reason being a human tendency, to grasp onto anything that enables us to express ourselves. Since expression can be quasi-defined as life, the opportunity to live to one’s fullest potential, which I believe is infinite, can be equated as freedom.
This long, hot and boring summer is finally coming to a close, and after all the dreadfully boring news that came out in the past few months, we think it should have come a lot sooner.
In Tuesday’s Alligator, the Editorial Board took a strong stance in favor of adding more Gainesville utility providers, finally bringing the free market to our power and water and working to stop the city-controlled socialists at GRU. Frankly, I couldn’t agree more.
We have about 80 years to live, and about one-third of that we spend unconscious. And I don’t mean because of an accumulation of hard nights at Midtown. Throw in work, education, eating, daily household and personal hygiene chores, and the roughly five years everyone spends in a line of some sort just waiting for something like a red light to turn green.
Gainesville Mayor Craig Lowe hasn’t wasted any time coming out in protest of Dove World Outreach Center’s plans for a Quran burning on Sept. 11.
As a Christian, I follow a basic commandment: Love one another as you love yourself. This does not mean love your Christian neighbors, and bully all others. It definitely does not mean that it is acceptable, in the name of Christ, to persecute those of another faith. On Sept. 11, The Dove World Outreach Center is planning an “International Burn a Quran Day.” They describe Islam as “a religion of the devil” and have been mobilizing using Facebook and YouTube to persuade others to their cause.
Jersey Shore: Two words that ignite controversy, YouTube impersonations and fist pumps.
When the Florida Department of Law Enforcement report cleared the five officers involved in the Kofi Adu-Brempong shooting we were upset but believed an internal investigation might bring about some disciplinary action. Now it seems UPD has reinstated all but one of the officers involved in the shooting with no actions taken against them. Maybe there was a slap on the wrist for mishandling the situation, but we don’t know.
Simply being an American citizen comes with a grab bag of freedoms and benefits. Social Security, education, welfare and President Obama’s soon-to-be-implemented comprehensive health care system are only some of the fruits of our nation’s wealth - a wealth built on the social and ethnic diversity that defines America. While this diversity is our nation’s greatest strength, we cannot allow unrestrained access to America’s limited bounty. I am writing in regards to SB1070, the Arizona law causing so much uproar – the one that allows police officers to detain suspected illegal immigrants unless they are carrying immigration documents. I’ve heard the words “un-American,” “fascist,” “xenophobic” and “racist” all used to describe this legislation and its supporters, and I have never been more worried for the future of America.
Couches line the sidewalks, particle boards disintegrate on the curb and Dumpsters full of rain-soaked mattresses wait to be emptied. It’s that time of year again — moving from one place to the next. The worst part about it: the unrelenting fees Gainesville Regional Utilities imposes on customers.
It happened: Bernie Machen won, and Georgia beat us. The Bulldogs are now ranked as the No. 1 party school in the nation, while UF has slipped to seventh place after taking the top spot two years ago.
I respectfully disagree with Jon Roosenraad's column, "UF journalism students deserve teachers with experience in field." Finding a candidate for the position of Executive Producer/Managing Editor 21st Century News Lab, in the College of Journalism and Communications, who has an advanced degree and professional experience is both possible and necessary. There are several professors in our college, and other ‘professional leaning' colleges that have both. Although neither requirement is a guarantee of finding the professor with the perfect fit, having both provides the students and the communications community with the potential for maintaining industry standards while perpetuating growth. Too often industry applicants, with and without advanced degrees, think that all they have to do is go to class and tell war stories. I know, I was one of those hires with both 10 years of industry experience and advanced degrees. I learned quickly that students need more than learning the industry's approach to a problem or situation. When forward thinking is required, as is certainly the case in the journalism communications industry today, then the best candidate is the holder of both professional experience and advanced degrees. Although I am not on the selection committee, hiring someone with the best credentials in both areas is essential. I trust the committee and the dean will make the correct decision.
About two weeks ago, I took a trip to Cedar Key with my Counseling in Community Settings class and our professor, Dr. West-Olatunji. Cedar Key is a small town located on the Gulf Coast, about 50 miles southwest of Gainesville. Known for its aqua-farming, it is a big name in the clamming industry. The purpose of our trip was to talk to members of the Cedar Key community in order to gain a better understanding of how the oil spill has impacted their lives. As future counselors, we also wanted to learn how our profession could better serve the needs of communities impacted by the oil spill.
Even though he's left UF and the Gators far behind, Tim Tebow is still making us proud in Colorado.
Summer is coming to a close, and it's time for us to dole out an award for the most out-of-context quote of the semester: Prince's now-famous uttering of "the Internet is over."
America heralds the banner of innovation because of the country's aptitude for creativity. Individual creativity is an essential part of the American spirit and is embodied in our country's founding documents. A government produces the most from its citizens when it allows each of them to define and pursue their own success. Using a system of limited regulation, a government should be one that allows for society to enhance its prospects by working up freely from below, instead of being determined from the top.
Solutions by The State News
