Opinion
Sports
Column: In defense of participation trophies
By Ethan Bauer | Apr. 11, 2017Before you start commenting that I’m an entitled millennial sh-t for defending participation trophies, please know I recognize your concern. It’s definitely a cliché thing for a 20-year-old to do. But with the number of slam pieces written about the privileged “snowflake” generation and its sense of entitlement, I think there’s something to be said about how participation trophies can actually be a good thing.
Opinion
Sean Spicer needs a history lesson
Apr. 11, 2017On the second day of Passover, the most practiced Jewish holiday in the U.S., White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer compared the Syrian government’s use of a chemical weapon to attack its own people to the Holocaust, arguing that Adolf Hitler “didn’t even sink to using chemical weapons” on his people.
Opinion
Popular notions of romance may be encouraging non-consensual sex
Apr. 11, 2017There’s an ailment afflicting young people today. It’s not a disease or a behavioral epidemic, but an idea. It is an idea that affects our entire approach to intimacy. It stems from our phobia of discomfort, of appearing foolish or being declined. It is the idea that there exists such a thing as a “right moment.” Allow me to elaborate.
Opinion
We get by with help from our friends: It’s important to be selfless sometimes
Apr. 11, 2017The human race is intrinsically a selfish bunch. When we’re born, we are strictly self-serving. We exist only to keep ourselves alive and to advance ourselves to the point where we can do this without help. We communicate our needs by crying, screaming or doing whatever it takes to get our parents’ attention, and once this is complete, we just head on back to whatever we were doing before we decided we needed something.
Opinion
You can’t heal your broken ego from the inside
Apr. 11, 2017I ended last week’s column with an image of a man limping through life with a broken leg. I made the comment that this image captures the problem with our cultural dictum: “Believe in yourself.” The meaning behind my comment is twofold. First, people generally suffer from self-doubt, a certain awareness that all is not well within one’s self, or from an inability to feel affirmed, confident and whole. Second, the solution to this problem cannot be believing in one’s self because the problem lies primarily within the self. Thus, the image of a man who thinks he can mend his leg by walking on it.
Sports
Column: Don’t rush to judgement based on an inconsequential Spring scrimmage
By IAN COHEN | Apr. 10, 2017We don’t know anything.
Opinion
Don’t regret the things you didn’t do in college
Apr. 10, 2017As the school year rounds off, it can become easy to fall into the slump of “could have beens” and “didn’t do’s.” This, perhaps, hits graduating students the hardest, but no one is immune from the curse. It is the end of things that causes us to look back, after all,
Opinion
Letter to the Editor: Rebuttal of golf industry column
Apr. 10, 2017I am the son of a PGA professional and would like to offer a rebuttal to the Monday Matters article regarding the golf industry. The article is unsurprisingly lacking statistical evidence of waning golf interest, probably because there isn’t any. First, the article claims, “Nobody really wants to watch golf.” In fact, the PGA Tour reported a 22-percent increase in viewership in 2016. Second, the article claims that golf has a difficult “learning curve.” The PGA has instituted many new initiatives to make the game easier for beginners, including the Tee It Up program. While we’re at it, let’s talk about this difficult games popularity. The article poses golf as the sport for “out of shape old guys”. Interestingly, the PGA says 2.2 million people tried golf for the first time last year and 73% of them played again and again and again. Now, the money. Yes, golf is a big business with a worth of $70 billion, but it also has an annual charitable giving of $4 billion. And the average price of a round of golf is $36. This article was an attempt at a hot take, one that was so ill-researched, those who don’t golf could even read it as click-bait.
Opinion
I spent the past year writing a sixty-page thesis
Apr. 10, 2017In all honesty, I’m still not entirely sure why I decided to write a thesis. Maybe I decided to do it because I like making my own life difficult. Maybe I like having something to complain about at all hours of the day. Maybe I just wanted to be able to say, “I have to work on my thesis” out loud, leaving friends and strangers alike dazzled by my dedication to long-form academic inquiry.
Opinion
Letter to the Editor: The flaws in Ben Shapiro’s criticism of rape culture
Apr. 10, 2017During Ben Shapiro’s speech on April 3, he criticized the term ‘rape culture’ as a slur against men. I was one of the “idiot protestors” at his event and specifically made my sign, which read “Stop Rape Culture,” for the talk. A sharp commentator who enlivens audiences with audacious statements on controversial issues, Shapiro tried to undermine the very real problem of sexual assault for college students, while blaming rape victims who do not report the crimes for helping to keep rapists out of jails. I address the problems with Shapiro’s claims, not only because they are potentially dangerous, but also to illustrate the often tenuous foundations of his fast “facts.”
Sports
Golf: The world’s most costly conspiracy
By Matt Brannon | Apr. 9, 2017The Masters, golf’s first major tournament of the year, ended on Sunday. And while Sergio Garcia won, all of us lost.
Opinion
Mistakes, misunderstandings and nature of jazz
Apr. 9, 2017As with most cliches and motivational quotes, I’ve forgotten where I first heard the following one regarding jazz music. It goes something like this: “When you play the wrong note once, it’s a mistake. When you play it again, it’s jazz.” On first pass, it seems like a subtle jab at jazz music as a genre, as if every jazz musician out there just hits wrong keys all the time, muttering something to the effect of, “Yeah, man, it’s interpretive art. You wouldn’t understand.”
Opinion
It’s pointless to boycott Pepsi
Apr. 9, 2017Quick recap: Last week, Pepsi came out with a really out-of-touch commercial starring Kendall Jenner, who leaves a photoshoot and brings peace to a vague protest by handing an officer a can of Pepsi. People were, understandably, upset. The commercial was in
Opinion
Letter to the Editor: Plans ‘paused’ for IBC
Apr. 9, 2017Work on the project to rebuild the Institute of Black Culture and the Institute of Hispanic-Latino Cultures began last summer, with student input at different points throughout the process. In the last week, I’ve heard concerns from students surrounding the design and lack of involvement. As a UF alumnus who found a home at the IBC, I recognize and respect the history, significance and fight for these spaces. I want to hear more from our students and alumni, ensuring that I am attending to the experiences of past, present and future Gators. So, we are pushing pause and going back to the drawing board. We will still rebuild the institutes. The current condition of the facilities has not changed. But we will reexamine plans, bring back architects and work to get more ideas, opinions and voices. I greatly appreciate the feedback from students regarding increased communication. We will be implementing many of those ideas moving forward. I will be forming student advisory and alumni advisory committees for each of the institutes. These committees will play an integral role in the design and construction process moving forward. More information will be sent out regarding the committees early next week. I hope many students and alumni show interest in serving on the committees. Additionally, I want students to know that UF Student Affairs has been advocating for increased resources for this project. This past week, the UF Capital Improvement Trust Fund committee met, and their recommendation for more support is moving to the next step for approval. I share your passion for these spaces, and I look forward to more conversations.
Sports
Column: DeRozan, Raptors need to shut up about Lance Stephenson
By Ray Boone | Apr. 6, 2017In the final moments of Tuesday night’s game between the Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors, Pacers guard Lance Stephenson scored an uncontested layup with 3.3 seconds left in the game. The blue-and-gold-clad crowd in Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis erupted with excited applause.
Opinion
Darts & Laurels - April 6, 2017
Apr. 6, 2017There’s supposed to be a witty introduction here. It’s supposed to be a short paragraph and elicit a bit of a smile or chuckle from you, dear readers, depending on how expressive you’re feeling today. But it’s that last stretch of the semester, so chances are the best we’re going to get out of you is a slight nod, maybe a twitch of the mouth in the upward direction. We’re just going to leave it at this and invite you to read the week’s…
Opinion
Gorsuch confirmation: A Senate turned sandbox
Apr. 6, 2017By now, the U.S. Senate may already have dispensed with tradition and confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch by simple majority. They would have done this by invoking what is dramatically termed the “nuclear option” — a process by which Senate rules are changed to allow a confirmation vote of Supreme Court nominees with 51 (instead of 60) votes.
Opinion
Letter to the Editor: Rebuttal to Nicole Dan
Apr. 6, 2017One of the preeminent intellectuals of the last century, Noam Chomsky’s quote is aimed directly at our generation: “If we don’t believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don’t believe in it at all.” Nicole Dan’s recent publication posits that paying for Ben Shapiro’s appearance at UF by Accent represents not only their ignorance, but (at worst) sanctioned approval of his message. This is not only incorrect, but close-minded. Higher education is tasked with challenging assumptions, facilitating experiences and, god forbid, making us uncomfortable. To stick our head in the sand and ignore the perspectives of opposition parties not only insulates us from diverse perspectives and facilitates groupthink, but “other-izes” the very individuals we need to engage with the most. She argues that “there’s no room for dialogue when someone believes that a group doesn’t have the right to exist.” These moments necessitate discussion the most. As exemplified by the riots at University of California, Berkeley at the appearance of Milo Yiannopoulos, our fear of hearing things that disturb us not only closes paths to dialogue, but alienates others. With Shapiro’s appearance having passed, consider these words: Apathy is the greatest insult. Protest, post on social media, but above all, don’t close your eyes. To do so is nothing less than intellectual dystrophy and further entrenches that which you purport to hate in our mainstream culture.
