The ringing in of the new year brings with it several cherished traditions: the outbreak of mirth, merry, renewed commitments to being a better human being, the joyful return of children and young adults to school… the takeover of a federal wildlife refuge by an armed militia in Oregon? Gadzooks!
"New year, new me,” the aphorism goes. Does this mean, “new semester, new Alligator” holds equally true?
The winter blues, or as they call it in the medicinal biz, "seasonal affective disorder," is a phenomenon that does not distinguish between age, creed or color. Whether you’re killing the proverbial game as an academically exceptional, sexually active frat star or you’re more of the type to quietly mill about one of Gainesville’s many coffee shops and debate whether latter-day Morrissey matches the height of his lyrical prowess during his time with The Smiths (hint: it doesn’t), the slight fluctuation in temperature and ever-subtle changing of leaf color leaves many curled up in bed.
This past weekend saw the culmination of Art Basel, the weeklong centerpiece to Miami Art Week. All over the city, from Wynwood to South Beach, Miami residents and out-of-towners milled about, hoping to experience as much "culture" (depending on one’s definition of culture) as they could fit into a week.
Following Wednesday’s shooting in San Bernardino, California, The Washington Post published a piece aggregating data collected in recent years regarding America’s ongoing gun crisis. Collected for your perusal, here is some of the data we found the most interesting, presented without comment.
Ricky Bobby: I did just like you told me: "If you ain’t first, you’re last!"
This editorial isn’t going to be about the need for greater gun control, seeing as it is redundant, worn and torn territory. You, the readers, already know the details: a white, male gunman on the fringes of society. A specifically chosen location. Innocent lives lost and wounded. A mass shooting in Colorado.
If you had the good fortune (or misfortune, take your pick) of tuning into CNN this past weekend, there are strong odds you were treated to its advert for the upcoming Republican debate on Dec. 15.
Late Sunday evening, the Facebook feeds of many UF students became inundated with cries of outrage and disbelief over the purported existence of an exciting, new student organization: the University of Florida White Students Union! With a profile picture proudly showing off Century Tower and a cover photo showing the Founding Fathers signing the Declaration of Independence, the page for this totally real and not at all fictitious group claims on its "About" page that it represents "a place to celebrate the very beautiful European culture," and wants to "encourage you to preserve your heritage by sharing it and discussing its future."
For the duration of this semester, we in editorial have intentionally sidestepped any discussion of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. We’d say it’s the journalistic equivalent of ignoring the elephant in the room, but it’s been more akin to trying to cover your eyes and ears while the girl from "The Exorcist" vomits all over you and your surroundings, punctuating her invasive illness with proud recitals of racist rhetoric, stomach-churning stupidity and blatant pandering.
One would be very hard-pressed to find a UF student or Gainesville resident who doesn’t love Chick-fil-A. The juicy, delicious chicken always complemented by a duo of dill pickle chips, the diverse and flavorful sauces, the consistently crunchy and impeccably salted fries, the sweetness and perfect consistency of the strawberry milkshakes… there’s just so much to love. In a perfect world, we could spend this entire editorial extolling Chick-fil-A’s bountiful virtues.
In 2004, "South Park" aired the episode "Douche and Turd." The episode concerned an election to adopt a new mascot for South Park Elementary, with the two sole choices being the titular Giant Douche and Turd Sandwich. The show, which aired a week before the nation had to choose between George W. Bush and John Kerry for the presidency, not only satirized the often-mediocre choices we face come election season but also the sheer frenzy Americans are prone to work themselves into when they take a stance on public figures.
Following Friday’s attacks in Paris, the American jingoist machine has begun whirring to life. Monday’s headlines were dominated by the rhetoric of American governors declaring their state would not play host to displaced Syrians. As of press time, governors or state officials of more than 20 states, including Florida and more traditionally liberal states, such as New Hampshire, have released statements saying as much.
There should be no doubt as to whether Friday’s horrific attacks in Paris were political: They were. Any attack on civilians by an "other" always has an agenda to push. The Islamic State groups’ subsequent claims of responsibility ought to remove any traces of skepticism from those who would seek to speak about the attacks in de-politicized terms.
Our front page story today concerns the investigation of a sexual assault on campus. Our decision to publish this story was not made lightly, nor was it made from malice or a desire to set off a witch hunt. It is no secret that sexual assaults on college campuses are an alarming epidemic. Sexual assault in any form represents a grave threat to the safety — both mental and physical — of college students. Even though it is easy, and perhaps preferable, to act as though such acts of viciousness could never happen here, that is simply not the case.
A wise man who’s either Baba Oje or Gurdijeff once said, "When it rains, it pours." If the rain in this idiom was news regarding police brutality, then this week was a monsoon.
The countercultural revolution of the ‘60s coincided with remarkable advancements in recording and broadcast technology. With the two occurring in tandem, it became easier than ever for fanbases to develop around adored figures in pop culture. This proved to be a boon for stand-up comedians who, given the transgressive era they operated in, gained notoriety among young people for putting truth to power — in other words, giving voice to and reflecting the fears, concerns and sensibilities of young people. In short, they called it as they saw it.
In recent years, outrage culture has been largely perceived as a strictly liberal pastime. There was the time #CancelColbert was a trending hashtag due to an "offensive" out-of-context tweet from "The Colbert Report," or racist accusations were levied at Lorde regarding opulence — thereby criticizing the entire genre of hip-hop, #duh — in her song, "Royals."
On Tuesday, news outlets were littered with headlines like "Liberals Are Losing the Culture Wars," "America may be in a reinforcing feedback loop of growing inequality and Republican rule" and "Houston decided it has a problem: Its LGBT nondiscrimination law." The weak attempt at humor in the last headline aside, all three of these articles were written in response to the Nov. 3 election, which was mostly concerned with local affairs and citizen initiatives. As the doom and gloom of these headlines illustrate, it was not a good day for progressive causes, which means it was an even worse day for Democratic politicians.
According to a report released by the Pew Research Center on Tuesday, Americans are becoming less religious. An NPR report summarizing the findings included tidbits like "The share of Americans who say they are ‘absolutely certain’ that God exists has dropped 8 percentage points, from 71 percent to 63 percent, since 2007," and "The percentage of adults who describe themselves as ‘religiously affiliated’ has shrunk 6 points since 2007, from 83 percent to 77 percent." We could go on, but you get the idea.
Solutions by The State News
