Perhaps one of the most famous (and offensive) myths perpetuated by financial conservatives is that all of those who receive government assistance in the form of welfare checks or food stamps are either lazy, addicted to drugs and alcohol or both. Today, we are going to evaluate how absurd and ignorant this view is.
Fidel Castro is dead. Finally. For years, there were rumors regarding the Cuban leader’s declining health. His public appearances had become scarce since he transferred power to his brother Raúl in 2006. But late last Friday, news broke that the 90-year-old had passed away.
I came home for Thanksgiving very eager to shut myself inside the house and relax; my sister came home very eager to get out of the house and see all the friends she had left behind. It’s not that I don’t have friends in my hometown. It’s just that one of them doesn’t come home for that short break, and the others I see in Gainesville anyway. I didn’t really keep in contact with all the people I was friendly with in high school. Maybe in the beginning I did, but in the end, only the really strong relationships lasted.
First off: My name is Mia, and I’ll be joining the opinions section next semester as a regular columnist. I love music, politics, great food, good books, comedy and being outdoors. That’s all you need to know about me — on with the column!
Tuesday morning (at 6:55 a.m. to be exact), early riser and esteemed tweeter President-elect Donald Trump turned his attention toward those who seek to make political statements via flag burning. “Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag – if they do, there must be consequences – perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!” the tweet read. Before we go any further on the implications of this tweet, know these things: In 1989, the US Supreme Court ruled that flag burning is a protected practice under the First Amendment. Additionally, we here at the Alligator in no way condone flag burning. We will continue to point out the many things this country has to improve on, and we will always do our best to point out injustices where we see fit. However, that flag symbolizes more to us than a collection of our shortcomings, and we cannot condone such a behavior.
The first time I dressed in drag, I was in the seventh grade. I was at my neighbor Elena’s house for a Halloween party, and I didn’t have a costume. Elena took me into her room and painted my nails black. Then she applied eyeliner, mascara and lipstick to my face. Finally, she put me in this tight-fitting dark-blue dress and, voila, I was in costume. I washed most of the makeup off and put on my regular clothes before coming home from the party, but I left the nail polish on. I liked the way it looked.
This year’s election has been the spotlight of many conversations, and we want to make sure the new leaders are aware of the issues facing their people.
Thanksgiving always manages to shift your perspective, creating a different effect with each visit. It can make you nostalgic, anxious or maybe just send you straight into that existential tailspin the Alligator detailed in last week’s editorial. It’s a brief reprieve from a tedious collegiate schedule and a reality check on life in the Gainesville bubble. It’s a week of compromise: with your parents promising not to pry too much about post-graduation plans and you tolerating the pageantry of the Christmas-card photo shoot in return. Despite this being my last Thanksgiving Break as an undergraduate, I experienced a variety of firsts, proving that while I grow and change, so does my home.
On Thanksgiving, it is custom to sit at the table with those you feel most connected to in your life and be grateful for the simple things. When we sit down at that dinner table, surrounded by good food and better company, we remind ourselves to be thankful for the little things: a good meal, our health and togetherness. As soon as the meal is complete, another great American tradition begins: Black Friday shopping.
Sorry, copy desk. I wanted to get kind of political today. Not political enough to provide facts for you to check, but political enough to make you groan at another one of these columns. If it makes you feel any better, I regret this column, too.
Years ago, Wolfgang Kohler conducted a psychological study in which several monkeys were placed in a cage together with a single piece of food at the top of the cage. The monkeys were fed regularly, but if one of those monkeys attempted to climb up stairs and touch the food, the researchers would spray all the monkeys with ice water. The monkeys were eventually conditioned to never go up that high to retrieve the piece of food.
You’ve probably heard of fracking before. For those of you who have not heard of it, let me provide a brief overview. Fracking is another name for hydraulic fracturing, which is a drilling technique used to extract oil or natural gas from deep underground. Right now, fracking is a hotly debated topic both environmentally and politically. Some people say it’s fine, safe and economically sustainable. Others disagree, claiming it leads to contaminated drinking water, air pollution and heightened conditions for global warming.
Protestors against the Dakota Access pipeline have been told to leave their camp by Dec. 5 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Although they said it’s to protect the protestors from confrontations and illness due to the harsh winter conditions, taking away their right to protest will actually do more to harm them. The people who are most affected by this are the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe; they will have a lot more problems in the future if the pipeline is built without interference. The protestors must be allowed to voice their concerns until they are heard.
“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” — Heraclitus
So two weeks have passed now, and many are still upset, surprised or ecstatic that Donald Trump has been elected the future president of the U.S. Regardless of your position, some facts need to be addressed that are eluding the discourse in this post-election environment. This is not a liberal attack on all conservatives — Trump’s campaign included — nor is this a conservative bulwark. This column is an attempt to provide depth to a disillusioned, party-conflicted, currently anger-driven discourse.
Welcome to Gainesville, the city of brick built around a beautiful university with historic architecture and a new skyscraper next door. This development is inevitable in a growing city like Gainesville, but right next to the university was not the best place to start the conversion. Some continuity would be nice. On the south side of University Avenue, you have the UF main campus, with its collegiate buildings and carefully planned open areas. On the north side of University Avenue, you have a 10-story modern-style mixed-use apartment building. On the other hand, the UF campus is a major center of activity for a great deal of the Gainesville population. It makes perfect sense to increase development next to the university: Students want to live close, and people who are in the area for work want to be able to pick up some things. While I dislike the idea of changing the skyline around the university, I must admit that if the city is going to continue to grow, then this type of development must occur. However, this should have started a block or two away from campus, and then, over the years, be allowed to creep closer to campus. That way, people get a chance to acclimate to the different skyline. I think this project had good intentions but poor timing for the location.
Perhaps one of our favorite American traditions is the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation. At this ceremony, the president of the U.S. is presented a live Broad Breasted White turkey. Here, the POTUS pardons the turkey from his death sentence, otherwise to be served scrumptiously next to some mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.
Just because the election is over doesn’t mean we should just sit back and allow the next four years to pass us by. Republicans won not only the presidency, but the House and Senate as well, meaning they could wield a massive influence — including the appointment of Supreme Court justices and presidential appointments. Despite the number of Republicans who seemed to oppose Donald Trump, like Paul Ryan, it looks like opposition to Trump from within the Republican Party has just melted away.
A week ago, I spectated the anti-Donald Trump rally that was hosted by the Radical Student Association (RSA), and what I witnessed was disturbing. I heard the foolish spewing from both sides: the RSA’s representative speaker declaring, “I hate America,” and the Trump supporter in a U.S. hat shouting, “Leave our country.” However, what I saw was even more horrifying. I saw the convulsions of my fellow students’ faces, spit flying from their mouths as they attempted to scream all they could, and the little twitches in each of them when you could tell they’ve had enough – it was the tangible manifestation of how we have all felt during this grueling election year. It was fear, anger and confusion.
It’s almost time for a break! This is exciting. Time to eat your body weight in stuffing, watch some football and then fall asleep on the floor at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving is also a time for family, which excites most people I talk to. However, this year more than any other, I’ve heard people sigh with dread when I bring up Thanksgiving. I ask why they feel this way, and it has been the same answer every time.
Solutions by The State News
