As one of the most important battles in the war on terror rages in the Taliban stronghold of Marja, Afghanistan, another battle is being fought on American soil over the fate of suspected terrorists.
The topic for today is voting. Or, more precisely, not voting.
For the job I’m going to have next year, I had to take a computer skills test this week. There were ten questions, each one testing a random aspect of using computers.
Today and tomorrow, we’re going to have an opportunity to vote on a ballot question to register the Student Body’s opinion on whether UF should affiliate with the Worker Rights Consortium, a labor rights advocacy group that works against sweatshops through factory monitoring and investigations. If UF affiliates with the WRC, it will help ensure that UF apparel isn’t made with sweatshop labor.
An issue that plagued me considerably last year has recently resurfaced with the addition of wide receiver Donté Stallworth to the roster of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. Stallworth, who nabbed passes for the Cleveland Browns during the 2008 season, was arrested in March of 2009 and charged with DUI manslaughter after hitting 59-year-old Mario Reyes. This event garnered a modest amount of media coverage and paled in comparison to the circus surrounding the Michael Vick case. It’s this disparity in coverage and, more specifically, public outrage that’s at the root of my dismay.
It’s that time of year again. The smell of freshly cut grass is in the air, and the faint crack of a wooden bat can be heard in the distance, or at least in your heart. That’s right — it’s baseball season. The happiest time of year for me. Not only is the Gators baseball team getting ready to open its season — one that offers the hope of another trip to Omaha, Neb., and the College World Series — but major league teams are reporting for their first workouts.
I thought nothing had the ability to drag me kicking and screaming away from a television when high-stakes international curling was on, but the substantial debate surrounding the Student Government elections at UF this year managed to do the trick.
“It’s time.” That simple phrase means more than just a great video produced by the Student Alliance party. It represents a fundamental change from politics as usual in Student Government. When 80 percent of students do not vote in SG elections, it’s not hard to wonder why they feel SG is out of touch at best and disingenuous at worst when it comes to hearing student voices.
The United States is a country that, while undoubtedly a strong and immensely powerful leader in many areas of global society, faces several serious issues as it pushes forward into the future. Beyond issues such as ongoing wars, steady unemployment and reality TV shows giving birth to other, far worse reality TV shows, one specific issue rises above the rest in its level of importance and the amount of immediate action we must take to combat its potential effects. This issue is a growing ignorance by a majority of our population toward confronting and solving the major problems and questions facing our nation today. This ignorance is being supported by an overall lack of resolve and patience, partisan bickering and a tendency for the national consciousness to be distracted and concerned with issues of far lesser importance.
Genocide is the systematic and deliberate slaughter of a specific race, nationality or culture. This term applies to what happened in the concentration camps in Hitler's Germany, as well as to the slaughter of non-Arabic people of Darfur, Sudan, by the militant government. It does not apply, however, to abortion. No matter how you feel about the issue of abortion, everyone should be able to agree that it is not, at least, a genocide.
Unconditional love is a strange thing to think about.
Access to a safe, legal, accessible abortion is a right that is protected in the United States today. Women in this country have the liberty to make the best personal decision for themselves and their families in the event of an unintended pregnancy.
In Friday’s Alligator, the Unite Party attacked the Student Alliance party for something they did not do. Let me be perfectly clear: The Student Alliance party did not participate in last week’s fliering with anti-Unite Party messages, and we don’t condone such activities.
As I sat in on the annual Student Government debate Thursday, I was all smiles as I took the opportunity to shake hands with old friends on both sides of the aisle and even some former colleagues from Freshman Leadership Council who were hosting the event. Like most UF students, I’ve been happy to avoid the politics and take the best of what SG has to offer: great memories, a chance to serve my community and a great love for my university and my fellow students.
There was a considerable amount of finger pointing last week after Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died during a practice run for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. I saw the video of the crash in which Kumaritashvili flew from his luge after exiting a turn over the 4-foot edge of the track, bounced off a rail and finally smashed head first into a support column – from a speed over 80 mph. He died before arriving at the hospital.
In November, about 75 graduate students showed up to a Student Senate meeting to voice their concerns about a resolution that would tax students for funds to renovate the Reitz Union.
In response to Bruce Friedrich’s column printed Wednesday, I must take a moment to point out the grave inaccuracies in both his perceptions and argument against the College Republicans’ People Eating Tasty Animals event. First, Bruce pointed out that I was not at his forum/speech held at UF in October. While this is true, it does not negate the fact that he did not show up at my event, either. Bruce was quick to make harsh and thoroughly misguided judgments as to the intent of the event and my beliefs on the issue of animal rights.
The announcement by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei of an Iranian surprise that will “punch” the rest of the world and leave them “stunned” was met with an exaggerated yawn this week from a Western media enervated by vague threats from heavily bearded men.
During my time as Student Body President, I have constantly tried to work with any student that has an opinion about how Student Government can improve the lives of students at UF.
As vice president of policy and governmental affairs for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), I have debated animal protection issues around the world.
Solutions by The State News
