Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Sunday, July 13, 2025

Opinion

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Editorial: Aziz Ansari for comedian of the decade

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.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Syria, Afghanistan and double-back in U.S. strategy

This past October, we witnessed a stark readjustment of the U.S. military agenda in the Middle East. On Oct. 30, President Obama announced the U.S. military would, in fact, be putting "boots on the ground" in Syria. Earlier on Oct. 15, the Obama administration announced an extension of the timeline for U.S. military presence in Afghanistan. Through most of next year, 9,800 troops will continue operations, and by Jan. 2017, a residual force of 5,500 troops will remain indefinitely.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

The Odyssey needs to rethink its approach to online journalism

It’s an experience we know all too well: innocently scrolling through Facebook, attempting to stay up to date on your friends’ activities and unwillingly being drowned in a sea of useless click-bait articles. You know the type of article I’m talking about: the ones with titles like, "20 Things I Want to Tell My Little," "10 Struggles That Only Girls With Long Hair Will Understand" and "8 Thoughts Every Girl Has When Picking Out a Halloween Costume."


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Editorial: Outrage culture works both ways

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."


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Ben Carson, partisan politics, scrutiny

Most politicians go to great lengths to cultivate a carefully constructed image. Donald Trump has made himself the candidate who says what others are thinking but are afraid to say. Jeb Bush has made it a point to distance himself from his brother’s policies.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Relax, Jeb Bush is still going to be president

Back in the early days of the 2014 football season, the Green Bay Packers were 1-2. Fans were upset. Head management started updating their resumes. Things were not looking good. After receiving a loss at the hands of the Detroit Lions — yes, you can understand the Pack’s frustration — quarterback Aaron Rodgers told the cheesehead faithful to "R-E-L-A-X." Rodgers calmly told the media and Green Bay nation everything will be all right. And he was right. The team finished 12-4, captured first place in the NFC North and went to the NFC Championship.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  DARTS LAURELS

Darts and Laurels: Homecoming 2015 Edition

Homecoming is many things for many people. It’s a time for reflection and nostalgia; a time for celebration; and, if you’re going to Gator Growl, a time for mediocre "indie" acts, former CW stars and rappers who released their best work 10 years ago. OH! *cue Andrew Dice Clay hand motion* Just kidding, T.I., we loved last year’s "About the Money," and we still love you.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Tuesday’s elections were not a death knell for liberalism

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.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Ann Coulter should not speak at UF

On Monday, a fellow opinion columnist wrote about how he felt Ann Coulter should be a guest speaker on campus. While I would concede there is a need for more conservative speakers, I could not disagree more. Coulter is the last conservative speaker we need.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Maybe neither religion nor atheism is all that bad

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.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

American policy of procrastination

We’ve all done it. There was some major paper to write or exam to study for that was left until the last minute. With all the time beforehand to do so, we procrastinate out of laziness, fear or even a mixture of the two. Now, a rushed essay or some crammed studying may not be such a big deal in the grand scheme of things. However, if we continue to add to a society of lazy individuals waiting to make the world a better place on a day that will never come, we will create — and have already created — very serious issues for society as a whole.


Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2025 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.