Tuesday's letter from Kaitlyn Hastings regarding Carly Hallam's Friday column was unnerving. How could someone imply that higher education is solely for those that will pursue their careers?
"Taxes are the price we pay for civilization." That's what my macroeconomics professor would always say. As profound as it is obvious, this maxim relates a timeless, commonsense principle. But I must admit, it's a principle that I hadn't really thought about in great detail until hearing it in class.
I suspect Mr. Machen does not possess a very strong respect for the intellect of the UF student body or faculty.
While it may not have been as glamorous or as influential as Oprah Winfrey's endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama - and certainly didn't receive as much media attention - UF President Bernie Machen's unusual public announcement that he would endorse Sen. John McCain for president this week did raise more than a few questions across campus.
I was disappointed in Ms. Hastings' response to Carly Hallam's Friday column, as it is evident that she attacked Ms. Hallam as a result of her own misunderstanding.
Tuesday's editorial cited President Bush as the cause of many ills, when in fact, it is Congress that passed those bills. The president, after all, has little authority. Mostly, he can start and stop wars. In the end, it's the legislature that introduces and passes bills, and they can override the president's veto.
On behalf of Bread of the Mighty Food Bank and the people of our community, I thank you for supporting the food bank by publicizing the need for emergency food supplies during the holiday season.
I'm writing in regard to Carly Hallam's Friday column. Her ambition to become a mom and loving wife is picturesque and endearing. But I have to ask, is UF merely a holding station until she finds a suitable husband destined for suburbia?
I am writing to say I was disappointed with Bryan Jones' column about how the UF-University of Kentucky men's basketball rivalry was now "just another SEC game."
In response to Friday's letter by Marshall Printy, the author seems to feel that the intent of the educational system is to "teach students to find the correct answer" on a standardized test. Reality and the world around us do not consist of a single set of questions that every person must answer. Some sixth and eighth graders who performed poorly in their last standardized test are now, by state law, only taught reading, math and science each day.
I couldn't believe what I read in the Friday issue of the Alligator. A panhandler making $40 to $50 a day? That's amazing!
Sunday marked an important landmark in the long reign of George W. Bush - he officially has one year left.
Having a rough day? Well, look on the bright side: At least you didn't find out that your new wife or husband is your twin, thus making your romance about as incestuous as is incestuously possible. Say that three times fast. I know that's ridiculous, but it also happens to be horrifyingly based on fact.
Do you ever reach a point in life you when you just know things have changed? Like one day, all of a sudden, you realize you're an adult? It's not like you start misplacing your keys or using phrases like "cool beans." It's this creepy onset of maturity that just smacks you in the soul. Age has overcome me. But I should be ready by now. I've been given almost 21 years to prepare.
The editorial in Thursday's paper that criticized Jeb Bush's policies to improve public education relied on some severely unconventional wisdom. It asserted, "anyone can teach a fourth-grader how to mechanically bubble in the right answers." Well, that might be true if all the right answers were listed in front of the student, but to imply that anyone can achieve what many teachers are failing to do - teach students to find the correct answer in the first place - underestimates the obstacles our teachers face in the classroom.
Now that the semester is in full swing, getting to class proved to be a bit harder than usual this week.
I am appalled at the lack of outrage that I have seen about the recent exclusion of Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich from a nationally televised debate.
In his attempt to liken current relationships with Iran to the Vietnam War in his Wednesday column, Joshua Frederickson has completely misunderstood the facts. To say that it is America that is gunning for a fight is simply wrong - Iran is the primary provocateur here. Perhaps Joshua has forgotten that in March 2007, a number of Iranian gunboats kidnapped 15 British sailors performing a United Nations mandate in Iraqi waters?
It was very distressing to see UF's response to the threat of free speech at the Dr. Kevorkian event was to corral protesters into "free speech zones."
Water, water everywhere, and not a drop to drink.
Solutions by The State News
