Opinion: Breaks from college should be allowed
(02/04/18 7:28pm)
When we take our first steps into our kindergarten classroom, an invisible clock starts ticking.
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When we take our first steps into our kindergarten classroom, an invisible clock starts ticking.
When it comes to guns per capita, gun homicides, gun suicides and mass shootings, America outdoes every high-income country in the world multiple times over. We own the most guns and shoot the most people. And, as anyone who reads the news can attest, we fight about gun control often and at length. We’re familiar with Republicans and Democrats duking it out on the issue, despite having adopted their relative positions without any real mooring in their party ideology. With that in mind, the opinion section has decided to host a productive discussion on gun control that attempts to come to a reasonable, achievable conclusion rather than merely partisan bickering. Linden Atelsek, who feels negatively about the presence of guns in our society, and Dan Nelson, who feels positively about it, critically examined their own views and then discussed them together to create a resolution they could both agree to.
The political podcast — it’s a format you know well. It most commonly features a business-casual man at a desk in front of a green screen loudly monologuing into a large condenser microphone. Often the monologue will retread ideologically familiar territory like the degradation of traditional family values or the federal government’s perversion of the Constitution. Without even mentioning names, this description has probably brought someone to mind.
We’ve all been there: During our first semester on campus, the pressure to find a cool internship or research program overwhelms us, but we don't know where on earth to begin. Or maybe your first semester struggle was adjusting to not living with family anymore, not knowing any good restaurants or feeling lost trying to keep up with schoolwork.
Vegans have a bad reputation, earned or not, of being a bit abrasive. They get grouped together with racist uncles and door-to-door Mormon missionaries — people you just don’t want to let get started.
You know, I am actually not surprised that the need to explain to college students the importance of abstaining from eating Tide laundry detergent pods has arisen. I guess some people think it is funny to eat Tide Pods. The recent spike in cases reported by the American Association of Poison Control Center certainly suggests as much.
In the Obama years, Republicans were dead set on blocking every piece of Democratic legislation. While they controlled only a minority in Congress, they made generous use of the filibuster. Most infamously, Ted Cruz attempted to block the Affordable Care Act with a 21-hour speech that included a reading of "Green Eggs and Ham."
“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” These words fall on deaf ears in China. The People’s Republic of China officially banned hip-hop and actors with tattoos from all media outlets, stating that it only provides its people with content that lacks “morality.” In reality, the authoritarian government simply disagrees with the messages from hip-hop and is trying to limit speech even more in the country. This most recent violation of the human right to freedom of speech only goes to show the pressing matter that is China’s control over its people.
The government has reopened for now, so until Feb. 8 Americans can breathe a sigh of relief. Not to rain on the parade, but the fact still remains that Congress has not created a long-term budget and that the major issues that caused this shutdown were not truly addressed. The bill to end the shutdown first passed the Senate when Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to hold talks on immigration.
A beloved college tradition and complete waste of time, syllabus week is an unnecessary relic of a bygone era. For those of you who are unacquainted with the phenomenon, syllabus week is the week of class sessions at the beginning of the semester usually devoted to handing out and reviewing course syllabi. These sessions normally feature explanations of the university’s policies on attendance, grading, plagiarism, academic integrity, disability services, etc., as well as a brief explanation of the course objectives and schedule. What’s been obvious since the advent of email in 1993 is that this week-long process could be cut down to 15 minutes if anybody wanted to make the change.
Last week, the Big Ten announced a two year partnership with Riot Games, the creators of the video game “League of Legends.” This deal will create a conference for each of the 14 Big Ten universities to compete in. While there is already an official college league for "League of Legends," this deal will take college esports to the next level and help develop esport programs at the associated universities. Additionally, Riot Games is providing $35,000 in scholarships to each of the universities to be given among their team rosters, which is a huge step for recognizing the legitimacy of esports. All of this brings up the question: Why does the SEC not pursue a similar deal?
I wanted to wait until the 2017 Carolina-Clemson blood drive was over before discussing this because giving blood is justifiable. However, the American Red Cross is a very shady organization that the university needs to stop supporting.
Congress is facing down a deadline this week: they must pass a budget resolution to prevent a government shutdown. The can has been kicked down the road several times now with stopgap measures, and they are preparing to perhaps do the same again. However, Congress will eventually have to pass a budget that they agree on.
There is a common reaction among Southerners when it comes to snow or any inclement weather. The steps usually include a premature rush to cancel school, a hustle to stock up at the grocery store and a panic about any form of driving.
At most other times in our nation’s history, during most other presidencies, a visit from the president at “Conversations with the Women of America” would bring favorable light to the commander in chief. He attended this event, so he must not be a misogynist, right?
The Trump administration, together with Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, have been steadily moving forward on plans to expand coal and oil extraction in areas relatively untouched by the energy sector. Trump and Zinke, operating under the pretense of creating “wealth and jobs,” are attempting to roll back restrictions and regulations that were put in place to protect the environment and the people that depend on it.
In the first days of 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Justice Department would no longer be holding back from prosecuting marijuana users and sellers in states where it had been legalized. Although it’s possible that this is just part of the current administration’s gleeful insistence on tearing down everything that ever happened under President Obama, it’s probably more likely that it’s just an extension of his weird personal vendetta against marijuana and the people who smoke it. (Remember how he thought the Ku Klux Klan was “OK, until he learned that they smoked marijuana?" We confirmed that guy.)
In between catchy songs and talking animals, children are drawn to rags-to-riches stories like Aladdin and Cinderella. From professional athletes to CEOs to The Little Engine That Could, we learn that the “American Dream” is possible for anyone who works diligently enough. However, the real likelihood of upward mobility is overestimated in America.
Crowds are roaring next to you, adrenaline is pumping and your throat is aching from how much you have screamed. You cannot imagine being at a more heart-pumping event.
One of the most unsustainable materials in the world has also become the most used material in the world: plastic. Over 300 million tons of plastic is produced each year, with a scary amount of it being single-use.