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Saturday, July 12, 2025

Opinion

Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

In Defense of the Ice Bucket Challenge

Just a couple of weeks ago, I logged into my Facebook and saw that I was tagged in a friend’s status. It was a video of someone pouring a bucket of ice water all over herself and nominated me, along with a few others, to participate in something called the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. 


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Locals: Pay attention to Plum Creek

If you’ve seen the eastern half of Gainesville, there’s no question that we are home to seriously impoverished areas. A lack of quality jobs and economic development keeps the area depressed and few — if any — local leaders currently hold the key to solving the never-ending crisis. Some Gainesville residents are pinning their hopes to a company who owns more land than anyone else in Alachua County.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

See your opinions in print: Become a Fall 2014 columnist

There’s never been a better time to become an Alligator columnist — OK, maybe that’s a hyperbole. Regardless, as we prepare for Fall 2014, we have a lot of unanswered questions: Who will win the Florida gubernatorial election? Will Amendment 2 (that one about medical marijuana) pass? Will voters overturn the Florida gay marriage ban? Will Pitbull do us a favor and just run for governor already?


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Redistricting leads to gridlock in Capitol

Throughout the school year, students are rewarded for their hard work with occasional breaks from the rigors of academia. Following the grueling ends of each semester, we are released from the clutches of term papers, exams and presentations to spend a few precious weeks relaxing and recharging our batteries. 


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Hamas hasn’t and won’t respond to Israel’s plea for peace

You walk into a restaurant at 6:55 p.m. in anticipation of your 7 p.m. date. When 7:10 p.m. approaches, there is no sign of your date. And when you cautiously pick up the phone to call, there is no answer. You wait a little longer and call again. Someone picks up the phone, and within a mere second, the call is ended.


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Negative ads undermine FL gubernatorial race

Unless you’re a TV-less hipster (getting all your shows on Hulu/Netflix/HBO Go — yeah, we’re on to you), you’ve been bombarded with the predictable mud-flinging political ads as November elections draw closer and closer. As they’d have you believe, Rick Scott is a reptilian warlord in a human skin suit, and Charlie Crist is a slick turncoat pushing for education cuts. 


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

World events don’t need US’ blessing

America must come to grips with an uncomfortable reality: Our world influence is beginning to wane. The two main crises that have dominated the airwaves for the past few weeks, the Malaysian Airline downed by Russian-backed Ukrainian separatist forces and the latest chapter in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, have made this development perfectly clear. We have overstretched, overreached and overplayed our influence for too long.  


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Step out of the way, government haters

As late July turns to August, a few events are certain: Fall semester starts in just four short weeks, Gator football kicks off and the home stretch 2014 election begins. With the election looming, along with the glut of negative advertising, constant phone calls, campaign emails and fundraising requests, it’s time we broach a serious topic. 


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  EDITORIALS

Monroe gay marriage denial shows importance of the vote

For a brief moment at the end of last week, it seemed that Florida would claim a victory in the fight for gay rights. On Thursday, Monroe County Circuit Court Judge Luis Garcia overturned Florida’s 2008 ban on gay marriage and ordered that the two men who appealed for a marriage license, along with all other gay couples, be allowed to wed. 


Florida Alligator
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Is it possible to categorize the right?

Because the political right is full of an interesting bunch of characters, many in the media struggle to properly identify and categorize its different ideological camps. The right is said to be made up of mainstream, business-friendly, Tea Party, libertarian, neoconservative, religious-minded or simply extremist groups. 


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