Opinion | Columns - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | COLUMNS

Republican Party should return to its conservative roots

By JONATHAN LOTT | Nov. 6, 2008

I think everyone in this country can agree to just be happy the election is over. Granted, some of us, namely those who supported Sen. John McCain, are bound to be disappointed. An objective analysis of the situation shows us that, despite our best efforts, the election was ours to lose. The future of our party is clear and hopeful.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Obama win brings hope to Americans

Nov. 5, 2008

Sitting on the floor against the wall in the Reitz Union Grand Ballroom, I had separated myself from the masses and slowly began to grasp what President-elect Barack Obama's victory meant to the black students at UF.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Rental bicycles won’t lower car use

Nov. 4, 2008

When I first saw a front-page story about a UF program encouraging bicycle use, I was more than excited. I am a huge cycling advocate.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Spreading wealth helps middle class

Nov. 3, 2008

In the last three decades, conservative leaders in this nation have done something remarkable. They have convinced Americans that equality is bad, specifically economic equality. Anything remotely resembling a progressive tax system is labeled as socialist and radical.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Next president will face uphill battle

Nov. 2, 2008

With early voters turning out in droves and national anticipation at an all-time high, the most consequential election in at least 30 years (or possibly ever) is a day away.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Paradoxical reasoning spoils politic

Oct. 30, 2008

In the last 200,000 years, man has evolved from a common hominid to that of a god among all animals. We have accomplished what the dinosaurs could not in more than 165 million years. We have conquered all other animals, save those at the most isolated depths of the ocean. We have been to space, to our moon and are planning a trip to Mars, yet people live in fear of truth.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Day off would entice students to vote

Oct. 29, 2008

The next time you see my beautiful mug gracing the Alligator, we will have a new president. No recount. No Supreme Court. Only our 44th president.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Substantive discussion of women’s issues lacking in election

By Bethany Koch | Oct. 28, 2008

"How much emotion is too much?"

OPINION | COLUMNS

Election defeat would revitalize McCain

Oct. 28, 2008

When I first registered to vote in 1999, I registered as a Republican. I did so to vote in the 2000 Republican Presidential primary for Sen. John McCain, when he ran against then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Last–minute events can shift election

Oct. 27, 2008

Every four years as presidential candidates approach the finish line, the election hiccups. It could be a dramatic global event; it could be the final rabbit in a candidate's hat (or the final skeleton in his closet). Whatever form it takes, a presidential campaign must always anticipate that last-minute X-factor, the dreaded "October Surprise." For the candidate in the lead, it represents one last perilous curve ball. For the candidate running behind, it represents opportunity.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Use caution when fielding Facebook requests from family

By Morgan Nederhood | Oct. 27, 2008

Facebook is a double-edged sword when it comes to friend-requesting family members. You can keep in touch with parts of your family you've long forgotten, or you can friend them to remember why you stopped talking to them in the first place.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Early voting could mean Obama win

Oct. 26, 2008

In what pundits are calling a year with "strong Democratic tailwinds" (think economic woes, unpopular president, etc.), Sen. John McCain has managed to hold the presidential contest between him and Sen. Barack Obama very close. According to Real Clear Politics, an organization that averages a week's worth of poll results from multiple sources, McCain was in a dead heat with Obama in national and battleground state polls.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Reaganomics can’t save the U.S. now

Oct. 23, 2008

It seems almost quaint, in retrospect.

OPINION | COLUMNS

McCain needs to reinvent his image

Oct. 22, 2008

The growing chants of "start the buses" resonate every time you pick up The New York Times, tune in to MSNBC or check out the latest poll numbers. Much like Clemson's football season, the McCain-Palin campaign is for all intents and purposes a lost cause.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Future relies on innovation

By ANTHONY PAGLINO | Oct. 21, 2008

I am taking the final economics course for my major. I learned curves, graphs, labor and capital, and I have come to a truth about economics. It is incapable of quantifying human factors, such as fear, trust, greed and hope.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Christianity not exclusive to one party

Oct. 21, 2008

I am a Christian. I am also what some might call a liberal, firmly committed to the Democratic Party.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Issues of the Congo should mobilize students

By Carolyn Witte | Oct. 20, 2008

College students pride themselves on being the most optimistic, innovative and take-action demographic in this country. Our generation in particular is said to be more committed to solving social injustices than any generation before us, but it seems as if college students have lost their giddy enthusiasm and unrelenting optimism.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Ayers’ actions undeserving of defense

By Bryan Griffin | Oct. 20, 2008

In a Monday Alligator article, four UF professors and associate professors were mentioned as signing a statement backing Bill Ayers and opposing his "demonization." These four members of UF faculty should be ashamed of themselves, as well as the rest of the people nationwide who signed this disgusting document.

OPINION | COLUMNS

College degrees don’t mean anything

Oct. 20, 2008

The college degree you're working so hard to get doesn't mean jack. Last week, I mentioned a professor at New Mexico University, Marcus Ross, a paleontologist who believes dinosaurs walked the earth more than 65 million years ago but is also a Young Earth creationist. Yeah, doctorates don't mean a damn thing anymore.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Halloween encourages poor decisions

By Danny Wenger | Oct. 20, 2008

In the 2004 comedy "Mean Girls," main character Cady put into words what everyone had been thinking for years: "Halloween is the one night a year when girls can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it."