opinion - The Independent Florida Alligator

Opinion

Kanye West, veterans and cub scouts in this week's Darts & Laurels

Feb. 12, 2015

So, it’s the middle of midterms, and like you, we’re looking desperately for the light at the end of this dark, dark tunnel. Coffee has completely wrecked our digestive systems, and it feels like we gave up on eating real food weeks ago. But there’s hope on the horizon — we’re right at peak testing insanity, and there’s only about a week left. Until then, enjoy this holding-out-for-next-weekend edition of…

Opinion

“Fifty Shades” shouldn’t be on your Valentine’s to-do list

Feb. 12, 2015

Put away your candy hearts and flowers and pull out your floggers and whips — “Fifty Shades of Grey” is here.

Opinion

Idiots threaten the United States’ safety and future

Feb. 12, 2015

For a country that urges young people to get educated in order to get ahead, we’re quickly becoming a nation of idiots. Perhaps the Mike Judge film “Idiocracy” accurately predicted a future America in which everyone is a dunce, where any idiot who time travels to the future is automatically the smartest man in the country. Whatever the cause, our collective idiocy could undo all that our country has accomplished, and that should terrify everyone out of their pants. Sure, we can pride ourselves on American exceptionalism or believe that a 230-year-old constitution will save the day, but something is amiss in the U.S., and we need an urgent course correction.

Opinion

Straight outta Bahston: Mark Wahlberg, the Oscars and American greatness

Feb. 12, 2015

As a culture, Americans have long been fixated on the idea of being “the best.” As any cultural anthropologist could tell you, this phenomenon is the natural by-product of being “the best” country the world has ever seen. Naturally, our esteemed privilege has often led us to debate who or what is “the best” in their respective fields. “The best” president. “The best” college football team. “The best” Kardashian. “The best” flavor of Doritos to go with your Mountain Dew. “The best” instance of Rob Schneider yelling “You can do it!” in an Adam Sandler film. It is these debates, rational and nuanced as they are, that have helped to keep American civil discourse the respected, revered institution that it is.

Opinion

Obama’s ‘strategic patience’ is misleading and ineffective

Feb. 11, 2015

The world is coming undone. Chaos, violence and disorder are spreading quickly.

Opinion

Alabama limbo good sign for national marriage equality

Feb. 10, 2015

Alabama began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples Monday. Well, parts of Alabama, anyway.

Opinion

Improvement in UF SG: a how-to guide

Feb. 10, 2015

For those who missed out, last week I wrote a column detailing our Student Government representatives’ lack of visibility. In an attempt to highlight the disparities in SG presence during election time as compared to that of the rest of the year, I mentioned that Swamp Party has a recurring pattern of abandoning their social media platforms after elections. Thankfully, Blake Murphy, SG director of external affairs, wrote a letter to the editor informing me of an election code that prohibits political parties from making posts outside of election cycles. Murphy also brought attention to another YouTube account, one of three unverified ones, that releases “SG TV” episodes. He went on to mention that SG hosts dozens of events because visibility and transparency are their priorities.

Opinion

Bush can’t escape embarrassment from staff member's tweets

Feb. 9, 2015

The Republican with seemingly the best chance of sitting in the Oval Office used to occupy a parallel room in the Florida Governor’s Mansion.

Opinion

GOP: There’s nothing ‘beautiful’ about rape

Feb. 9, 2015

A Republican state lawmaker insulted women and sexual assault survivors nationwide Thursday when he spoke about rape exemptions in a bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. During West Virginia’s House Health Committee meeting, delegate Brian Kurcaba argued that rape and incest victims shouldn’t be exempt from the ban because even pregnancy from rape has a silver lining.

Opinion

The Need for Moderation

Feb. 9, 2015

If there’s one thing this world has no shortage of, it’s opinions on the State of Israel. There are vocal proponents and vocal oppositions. The spectrum of opinions on Israel’s existence ranges from “shouldn’t exist at all” to “unconditionally” and yet, as with most political things, the middle of the spectrum is largely ignored. Although it may be the least-recognized group of advocates, that’s not to say it doesn’t exist. This is why the need for J Street U on UF’s campus is so pressing. The Middle East is, and always has been, a hotspot for political and religious tension. Ignoring this tension in favor of one group or another is illogical and unproductive. J Street U aims to change this.

Opinion

President Obama’s speech calls for religious tolerance

Feb. 9, 2015

Each U.S. president since Dwight D. Eisenhower has attended the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual event started in 1953. President Barack Obama is no different in this instance, and he gave a speech at the breakfast last week. This speech marked Obama’s seventh attendance at the breakfast, and while the speech was uplifting in its hopeful message, it also raised a few eyebrows and has resulted in a lot of backlash from conservative politicians and organizations.

Opinion

What ever happened to Michael Sam?

Feb. 8, 2015

I was watching the NFL Draft in May when history was made.

Opinion

New single-sex restroom bill in Florida House is discriminatory

Feb. 8, 2015

In the Florida House last week, a bill was manufactured by Republican Frank Artiles that gives a whole new meaning to discrimination. HB 583, entitled “Single-Sex Public Facilities,” would make it so a person must use a public facility that aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth.

Opinion

How much difference will advances in science make?

Feb. 8, 2015

Life is full of unexpected happenings, and many people have been quoted at the end of their lives about the things they regret not doing. Wouldn’t you love to know how much life we have left? It’s amazing — or terrifying, depending on where you stand — that science is actually getting close to being able to determine how long each of us will live.

Opinion

Airplane crashes and terrorist propaganda in this week's Darts & Laurels

Feb. 5, 2015

Guess what? We aren’t going to complain about the weather this week. But how in the world did it get to be midterm time? Our minds are blown. And we have a week left to scrape together Valentine’s Day plans, so here’s your we’re- all-kinds-of-stressed edition of...

Opinion

Don’t kick out those semi-welcome guests

Feb. 5, 2015

On “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” comedian J.B. Smoove plays Leon Black, the brother of Loretta Black, a woman who ends up moving in with Larry David in Los Angeles after being displaced from New Orleans by a hurricane. Despite already having a home in L.A. — not to mention not even being formally invited into Larry’s house — Leon moves in, and quickly becomes a key player in Larry’s antics. When Loretta finally moves out, Larry gestures to Leon, “I guess this means you’ll be…” obviously meaning to ask him to leave as well. When Leon quickly replies that he’ll be “Going upstairs to eat this f****** Chinese food,” pausing to take a sip of soda, “in my f****** room,” Larry can’t even muster the energy to debate the point.

Opinion

Bruce Jenner’s gender isn't our business

Feb. 5, 2015

I was at the grocery store on Tuesday waiting to pay for my buy-one-get-one Cheez-Its when some magazine headlines caught my eye. The cash register line was a little long, so I had some time to look around at the multiple magazines covering the same subject: Bruce Jenner.

Opinion

Letter to the Editor: Response to “SG has room for improvement”

Feb. 5, 2015

Earlier this week in the column titled “SG has room for improvement,” writer Christopher Wilde attempted to make the case that Student Government and Swamp Party are not visible to students because the Swamp Party Facebook page went 114 days without posting an update.

Opinion

Letter to the Editor: Swamp Party pleased with Senate slate

Feb. 5, 2015

My name is Ricky Salabarria, and I currently serve as the Swamp Party spokesman. I am very excited to announce that our party’s slate for the Spring 2015 Student Government Elections has been released. After three days of qualifying, slating and interviewing, Swamp Party is confident that we have selected the 50 most qualified and capable students to serve in the Student Senate and bring our university the experience it deserves.

Opinion

The growing problem of male body image

Feb. 5, 2015

Last year, I overheard a conversation between two men at the gym. “Yeah, if I didn’t have class I’d lift for two hours in the morning, do cardio at lunch and then do two hours of core at night.” I turned around, curious to see what kind of person would ever want to do that. What I saw didn’t seem to be a person at all, so much as a rippling ball of hypervascularized muscle. His arms were so huge that they hung limply like a T. rex’s, and his legs seemed to buckle under his frame. If I didn’t have my glasses on, I probably would have mistaken him for The Thing.