It’s no secret that the University of Florida has a top-notch athletics department, and the Gator Nation is one of collegiate sports’ most extensive fan bases.
Last week, I did something rare. I took a nap on a weekday. It was a spontaneous choice: unplanned, but needed. A half-hour or so opened itself up in my schedule that day, and I was tired. Naturally, I leaped on the opportunity. I don’t nap often for various reasons — either I have no time for it or I get too excited about being able to rest and, thus, restlessly lie awake for an hour.
Lately, I have been thinking about whether or not it is possible to separate the art from the artist. Of course, this has been on my mind due to the recent arrest of the R&B singer R. Kelly, but I have wondered about this for years now. The obsession over Kodak Black within the Gainesville community is disturbing to me. Sure, he’s a Gator fan, but he also went to prison for sexual assault.
If you live in Florida, and you are not constantly acting in the best interest of the environment: Wake up. We are the first ones going under when it all goes bad. The least we can do is be semi-conscious of the small things we can change to better the environment.
Like every other young — borderline socialist — liberal college student in the United States, I was thrilled when I saw that Bernie Sanders had entered the 2020 presidential race. The optimist in me is rooting for Sanders to take control of the Oval Office. Unfortunately, the political science student in me understands that this probably won’t happen.
What would you do if someone handed you about $150,000? You could buy yourself a house, maybe even a Tesla, and still have some money to spare. You could choose to pay off all of your student loans. These scenarios are things people spend decades saving money for, but at the Oscars, all 25 nominees for acting and directing will receive a gift “bag” valued at nearly that amount of money, around $148,000.
We’ve all been there. The good life is not so good, a math class for your major isn’t adding up or the Man’s Food class you’re taking to fill the biological sciences requirement is making you sick to your stomach. In the pursuit of an illustrious degree you’ll (hopefully) obtain after your undergraduate years, there will be many classes you’ll have to take that you’d just rather not. These classes can sometimes be essential, sometimes they’re more or less useless, but all of them are tedious because you don’t want to be there. The problem is common, yet solutions are not as easy to come by.
As a proud Florida Gator, I’d like to say a few words in defense of our University of Central Florida rivals.
You can ask this question to any student and suddenly you get an idea of what kind of person he or she is. It’s an aspect of the campus culture that divides us all: What’s your study spot? Is it Library West, with its multiple floors of increasing silence and its proximity to Krishna lunch, is it Marston Science Library, with its open floor plans and cool technology such as virtual reality headsets, or is it Newell Hall with the cool eggshell chairs and whiteboard cubicles? Each one has pros and cons, but I feel these libraries are underutilized. Their vast book collections often go unread.
Author’s Note: If you or anyone you know has been affected by acts of sexual misconduct, please contact the University Title IX coordinator at 352-273-1094 or inform@titleix.ufl.edu or the Gainesville Police Department. Additional resources are included below.
You wake up on Tuesday having to mentally prepare yourself for the next two days. Walking through Turlington is already a hassle, but this week is unlike any other — it is Student Government election week, which means you have to perfect your “I’m definitely on the phone right now and not just pretending so you won’t talk to me” face. You’ve been planning to vote anyway, so being stopped in Turlington is not on the agenda for the day.
In the past week, organizations, parties and groups have released statements in response to homophobic comments made in the past by the newly elected executive ticket. This letter to the editor comes from the LGBTQ+ members of Inspire Party who came together to form a response that somehow expresses the pain, fear and disappointment we and many others have experienced.
I’m an emotional woman. I’ll answer the question now: No, I’m not PMS-ing or hormonal. My emotions usually stem from my experiences, my normal and healthily shifting moods and my daily life. Not all women are as emotional as I am, and I think it would be fair to say I am more emotional than most of my female friends. Even so, every woman and every person on this planet has feelings. My slight surplus of feelings doesn’t influence or negate my potential, my intelligence, my professionalism or any aspect of my worth.
Clubs and going out every weekend aren’t my thing. But I do love hanging out with my friends or going house parties because they’re situations where I can enjoy the company of the people around me. Requesting music at a house party is also easier because you know who has the aux. And as a plus, the music won’t blow out your eardrums like the huge stereos in a club will. Overall, the conversations are genuinely interesting, too. But when the night is over, all of the drinks have been drunk and the conversations have been had, it’s time for the college ritual: Everyone takes out their phone and suddenly a flurry of notifications light up the host’s phone. This is the tamest and probably the most appropriate way to make the night easy for everyone. The host gets reimbursed and everyone enjoys their time at the party.
I’ve always prided myself in my ability to play Pop-A-Shot. The fast-flowing motion of transferring a ball from one hand to the other. A simple flick of the wrist to propel the ball towards the rim and in. It’s such a silly and simple game at its core.
From the rumors of Impact Party corruption to allegations of Inspire Party ineptitude, students will hear it in the presidential debate, Senate livestreams and each time campaign season comes around. When there are two parties, scandal and controversy ensue.
People are expressing themselves in forms of media that used to be reserved for professional companies and social media influencers: vlogs and podcasts.
Everyone has eavesdropped. If you say you haven’t, you’re lying. Some people describe eavesdropping as something only nosy or invasive people do. I don’t agree. I often find myself in places surrounded by people: a bus, a classroom, a restaurant, a library. You name it. In these places, people talk a lot, and there are times when I can’t help but listen.
According to the Foundation for Alcohol Responsibility, deaths caused by drunk driving crashes have decreased by 48 percent since 1982. This is a hopeful statistic, but the nation has a way to go before the problem of drunk driving is completely eliminated. The Global Status Report on Road Safety from 2015 shows that the U.S. is the nation with the third-highest number of road accident deaths involving alcohol, behind only South Africa and Canada.
Editor’s Note: The Alligator’s editorial board met with representatives from the Impact and Inspire parties on Friday night and Sunday afternoon. We discussed their party platforms and each candidate’s goals if they were to be elected. Our endorsement resulted from these meetings.
Solutions by The State News
