Opinion | Editorials - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | EDITORIALS

One Year Later

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 18, 2011

Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Although a year has passed, BP PLC still has some serious damage control to do. Of course, the oil giant focused on keeping its company’s name and reputation in tact during the crisis, which left many of us staring, mouths agape at video of oil spewing out of the Earth. Scientists and economists are giving us varied feedback on the outcome of the disaster.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Revenue Review

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 17, 2011

With Tax Day here, we’ve come across news saying taxes collected on our nation’s top 400 incomes amount to 10 percentage points less than those collected in 1992. Sounds crazy compared to the average drop of 0.6 percentage points, doesn’t it? Well, keep in mind that 45 percent of American households pay no income taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Darts and Laurels

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 14, 2011

It’s that time again.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Lesson in Slavery

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 13, 2011

Teachers get put into some tough positions, and we’re not even talking about questions about unions or budget cuts.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Warping Time; China’s stance on TV time travel ridiculous

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 13, 2011

Picture our television shows and movies swept clean of any element that “disrespects history.” According the Chinese government, which apparently is trying to make historical scholars out of its populace, shows and movies shouldn’t include elements of time travel lest they change the look of history.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Important Anniversaries

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 12, 2011

Tuesday was a landmark day as both the 50th anniversary of the first manned space flight and the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Twittering Twits: Scott’s social media war pits him against press

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 11, 2011

In the same way our everyday conversations and arguments have fundamentally changed with the rise of social media, it is transforming the government’s relationship to the press.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Darts and Laurels

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 7, 2011

Is that “The Final Countdown” we hear playing?

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Grinding Halt: Shutdown consequences can teach a lesson

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 6, 2011

The cogs on the machine that is the federal government are about to grind to a halt. The shutdown is nearly at hand, and we have seen nothing to convince us that the two parties are willing to compromise on their views of the budget. So what is going to be put on hold?

OPINION | EDITORIALS

OutFoxed

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 6, 2011

Somewhere, Jon Stewart is mourning the death of an impression.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Vouching For It; Budget proposal won’t solve Medicare problems

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 5, 2011

Threatening the sacred cow carries dire consequences for politicians.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Sounding the Alarm

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 5, 2011

We realized years ago that constant noise affects our mental health. It was only recently, however, that the World Health Organization published a report on the physical fallout of living in a loud atmosphere. This goes beyond hearing implications; WHO even went as far as to point to heart problems that may derive from coping with noises our bodies weren’t meant to handle.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Equalizing via E-books

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 4, 2011

Two bills working their way through our state legislature are aimed at bringing public schools into the digital age. They would either require 50 percent of materials spending to go toward digital books and e-readers, as in the Florida House’s version of the bill, or test the waters with certain schools investing in said technology.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Time Out: Students shouldn’t complain about price

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 4, 2011

As many of you have discovered, the price for student season tickets to Gators football games has increased for the 2011 season. The price has jumped from $70 to $105, an increase of 50 percent that has some students reeling. But before you complain about the change, keep a few things in mind.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Gag Order: Consequences of pastor’s actions warrant comment

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Apr. 3, 2011

Let us apologize for going back on our word.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Darts and Laurels

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Mar. 31, 2011

Be on your toes today, Gators. You’ve got to stay sharp, lest you fall victim to another lame April Fool’s joke.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Young Gun; Rubio returns to spotlight, demands reforms

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Mar. 30, 2011

Remember Marco Rubio?

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Supersize Lawsuit

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Mar. 30, 2011

In case you haven’t heard, our favorite obnoxiously large supermarket chain is pleading its case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court as it tries to avoid the largest job bias class action lawsuit ever. We don’t know yet if Walmart actually will go to trial over claims of sexism on the job, but we do know the court is split along gender and there are an incredible number of variables to keep in mind when considering a lawsuit with some 1.6 million people involved.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Damage Control: Virginia Tech looks to dodge shooting blame

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Mar. 29, 2011

Every one of us hopes that, in a crisis, our university’s security measures will come through and help mitigate the threat posed to students, faculty and staff. That hope was snuffed out for many Virginia Tech students following the infamous 2007 shooting, and the Department of Education is trying to send campus officials a message with a $55,000 fine in return.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Sexting Reform

By The Alligator Editorial Board | Mar. 29, 2011

As is the case with many of our constantly evolving technological developments, our legal system hasn’t quite caught up to the capabilities of current cellphones and the phenomena they spawn.