Opinions - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | COLUMNS

Please, for sake of teens, bring condoms back to Alachua County high schools

Apr. 21, 2015

In 2013, 47 percent of high school students reported having sexual intercourse. Furthermore, nearly one in two 12th grade students reported having had intercourse in the last three months. You and I both know that high school students have sex. Why, then, did the superintendent of Alachua County Public Schools, Dr. Owen Roberts, take a major step back for the sexual health of local youth and ban the distribution of condoms on campuses of public high schools?

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Pets aren’t as easy to abandon as old furniture

Apr. 20, 2015

The last days of school are here. Classes end Wednesday, which is the Alligator’s last day in print for the semester. It’s the cusp of Spring and Summer; only finals stand in our way.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Think twice before watching: Worldstar Hip Hop and similar media exploit race and poverty

Apr. 20, 2015

Last year, I came home from class to find my roommate and a few of my friends glued to a laptop. “This fight comp is crazy; come see this,” my roommate said. I sat down and watched a series of brutal videos of people fighting. Some were alcohol-fueled altercations outside bars, others were neighborhood events with dozens of local spectators.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

IA series missing the positives

Apr. 20, 2015

IA series missing the positives

OPINION | COLUMNS

Final senior thoughts: Be kind and speak your mind

Apr. 20, 2015

Well, this is it.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Anti-immigration attitude in Europe costing lives

Apr. 19, 2015

A boat laden with up to 950 people capsized in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday. Its passengers were migrants bound for Europe escaping the limited opportunities, war and chaos of their home countries. The ship left from Libya, a failed state which has descended into civil war, where ISIS executes people on the beach. Who can blame them for wanting to leave?

OPINION | COLUMNS

Federal intervention in education is failing our kids

Apr. 19, 2015

Denisha Merriweather recently wrote about her schooling experience in The Wall Street Journal. She was in fourth grade, and she hated school. She was held back twice, disliked going to school and thought she would end up as a high school dropout. She grew up with her biological mother but moved around a lot, which took a heavy toll on her grades and enthusiasm for learning. In her own words, “learning had become a nightmare — a punishment for being a child.” Denisha’s story is not a unique one. Unfortunately, there are kids in all 50 states who resent education. Some of these negative frameworks are out of the government’s control, but I would argue most of it is due to an educational system stuck in the 20th century and bogged down by bureaucracy. We all know education reform is desperately needed, but no one, especially our elected officials, is ever willing to confront the problem.

Empty bottles and other miscellaneous particles of garbage surround a six-foot Florida alligator as it suns itself besides the look out dock off of 441 on the Payne's Prairie Preserve State Park, Saturday April 18, 2015.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Please keep Paynes Prairie clean

Apr. 19, 2015

I went to the Paynes Prairie lookout off of 441 on Saturday to show my aunt, who is visiting from Vermont, the beautiful wildlife of Florida. We got to encounter a 6-foot alligator sunning itself right by the dock. Unfortunately, the awe was cut short upon seeing a ton of empty bottles floating beside the alligator.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Let’s end pseudoscience hysteria

Apr. 19, 2015

When even Elmo supports vaccination, it’s hard to believe there are people out there who are so vehemently against it. Since “Sesame Street” is a show that strives to remain inclusive and neutral, something would have to have a pretty strong scientific consensus in order for Elmo to outright endorse it.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Happy graduation: your college sex bucket list

Apr. 16, 2015

It’s finally here — the last real Friday of the semester. Your last Friday to skip classes before you head off to a beach somewhere, to more classrooms for Summer C, or even worse — to the real world.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Alligator Innovation Academy Story: I beg to differ

Apr. 16, 2015

To Whom It May Concern:

OPINION | COLUMNS

Israel does care

Apr. 14, 2015

The effects of war are undoubtedly tragic. Loss of life, regardless of any affiliating identity, is always devastating. Mothers weep for their sons; sons weep for their mothers. Fathers fear for their daughters; daughters fear for their fathers. We all cry the same tears. We all bleed the same blood. My flesh is his flesh, and his mine. I feel profound empathy for the pain people feel, for the grief the Israeli-Palestinian conflict causes on a daily basis, to both Israelis and Palestinians.

OPINION | COLUMNS

New emojis finally acknowledge life’s diversity

Apr. 14, 2015

Apple released its newest operating system, iOS 8.3, last Wednesday. Among plenty of updates, Siri is now capable of calling someone on speakerphone, and Braille Screen Input users can fill out forms on Web pages. The most obvious update, however, is Apple’s introduction of more than 300 inclusive emojis.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Rubio the strongest candidate the GOP has in the race

Apr. 13, 2015

Good god — another day, another campaign announcement. This is starting to get out of hand. There’s what, 18, 19 months until the election?

OPINION | COLUMNS

Time to stop justifying discrimination with religion

Apr. 13, 2015

Last Thursday, The New York Times published an article about Orthodox Jewish men refusing to sit next to women they are not related to when boarding planes. This raises the question: At what point does one person’s religious freedom end and another’s basic rights begin?

OPINION | COLUMNS

Water belongs to people, not companies

Apr. 13, 2015

As California scrambles to conserve water during a historic drought, one multinational company is continuing to take huge gulps of the state’s water for profit. Nestle Waters North America, a subsidiary of food and beverage company Nestle, has been tapping California’s groundwater to sell in plastic bottles for its Arrowhead and Pure Life brands.

OPINION | COLUMNS

America needs tax reform, and we need it now

Apr. 12, 2015

Tax Day is upon us, providing us another example of how overbearing and complicated our government truly is. April 15 is the deadline every year when every citizen must hesitantly file his or her taxes or face the wrath of the uncontrollable Internal Revenue Service. The tax code has become quite a monstrosity over the past few decades. It is riddled with all kinds of loopholes and deductions for corporations and wealthy people to take advantage of, leaving the middle class stuck with the bill.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Women are too easily influenced by societal norms in their quest for perfection despite improvements

Apr. 12, 2015

Society has transformed minimally when it comes to women’s rights.

OPINION | DARTS LAURELS

Hummus, conversion therapy and cell phone footage in this week's Darts & Laurels

Apr. 9, 2015

We don’t know about you, but we just realized how close it is to the end of the semester and freaked out so hard we temporarily lost consciousness. Seriously. Well, whatever — soon, we’ll all be off somewhere far away, doing what we do best and miss dearly: sleeping.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Gov. Scott’s Medicaid reversal puts politics ahead of Florida

Apr. 9, 2015

In a decision that should shock no one, Gov. Rick Scott reversed his decision to support expanding Medicaid to nearly 1 million Floridians this week. Scott supported expansion for two years but suddenly reversed course, leaving those who cannot afford insurance or do not qualify for the Affordable Care Act’s tax credits in a serious bind.