Opinions - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | COLUMNS

Column: The Republican Party can learn adaptability from David Cameron

Sep. 15, 2016

On Monday, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron announced his resignation as a member of Parliament for the Conservative Party, three months after the Brexit referendum. While he may be remembered for years to come as “the man who accidentally caused Britain to leave the European Union,” Cameron also leaves a powerful legacy behind — perhaps one that American Republicans can learn from.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Column: The confusion of finding a cultural identity

Sep. 15, 2016

It’s really weird to be confused about your cultural identity. I will always say I am Puerto Rican before I am Mexican and before I am American. My family is huge and loud and very Hispanic. We’re great fun at parties. At the same time, however, I’ve often felt like I’m “too white” to be Hispanic and “too Hispanic” to be American, and it’s frustrating to explain to my friends and family when I feel like I can’t fully fit in with them.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Stand up against environmental degradation

Sep. 14, 2016

With Gainesville residents protesting oil pipelines Tuesday, we here at the Alligator thought we’d offer some insight into what’s going on in our beautiful state.

OPINION | COLUMNS

The danger of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl and wrongly stereotyping women

Sep. 14, 2016

If you’re not familiar with the term Manic Pixie Dream Girl, let me give you a refresher. The term, coined by film critic Nathan Rabin, is used to describe spirited, quirky female characters (usually written by men) that inspire the brooding male hero to find joy in life. It is an overdone trope that devalues female characters, reducing them to plot tools for the more complexly written male characters.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

No days off for Santa Clara Police Department

Sep. 13, 2016

Where does responsibility come from? At what point can someone abandon his or her sworn obligations? While the discussion surrounding San Francisco 49ers football player Colin Kaepernick’s decision to lead a national protest is growing stale and tiresome, the reaction by the Santa Clara Police Department is so irresponsible, so reckless and so downright childish that a continuation of this discussion is sadly necessary.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Falling in love with your roommate

Sep. 13, 2016

(This is part two of a two-part column. Last Wednesday, we ran part one. To read the full story, visit alligator.org.)

OPINION | COLUMNS

Technology is the wrong form of escape

Sep. 13, 2016

The famous French and Christian philosopher Blaise Pascal once said, “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” Pascal seems to be flirting with deep philosophical truths in this insight, but I want to tamper with Pascal’s statement: A good number of our problems today stem from our unwillingness to sit quietly without a phone in a room alone. Why do I — and Pascal — believe this behavior is a problem?

OPINION | COLUMNS

The chemistry of betrayal

Sep. 13, 2016

As individuals in a complex society, we feel comfort by putting labels or stereotypes on people. It gives us a sense of safety. As members of the mammalian species, we don't like to relate to situations or things we are not able to recognize. Therefore, we will always fear the unknown and avoid the feeling of uncertainty. Sadly, this comes at a price. When we learn and gain knowledge about something, we will do anything in our reach so we don’t lose control over it. Therefore, when eventualities get presented in our life, we are unable to manage them in the best way possible. Who hasn’t met someone, enjoyed his or her company and then unexpectedly gotten disappointed after a while? For example, I meet an incredible guy who I had a crush on for years. After many years of friendship, we began a relationship filled with shenanigans, jokes and a lot fun. A few months later, my heart got broken when I realized his priorities didn’t include me. He was making decisions that jeopardized the trust I invested in him. I never thought he would be capable of executing such betrayal, but he was.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Coping with the changes on University Avenue

Sep. 12, 2016

University Avenue, what happened?

OPINION | COLUMNS

SpongeBob Squarepants examiner: part three

Sep. 12, 2016

In my past two columns, I discussed both the visual and audio design of "SpongeBob Squarepants" and how they influence its comedy. The show's gone south since season four, and the changes to its animation and sound are pretty clear and indicate a pretty solid drop in quality. So, for this final column, let's talk about two things: the characters and the jokes.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Tracing the Origins of Political Correctness

Sep. 12, 2016

What is it about the term “politically correct” that manages to put everyone on high alert? Some blame the term for infringement on their First-Amendment rights, others use it as a justification to inflame Facebook comment threads, but mostly we avoid uttering it altogether to avoid the accompanying controversy. These two simple words have expanded to become intrinsically linked to an abundance of other concepts such as safe spaces and trigger warnings, but even beyond that it has taken on a connotation of triviality and ridicule.

OPINION | COLUMNS

On the use of the word ‘retard’

Sep. 12, 2016

Words are heavy. Every letter of every phrase carries a weight that we as speakers tend to overlook. Diction is an influential tool, made powerful not by the mouths that voice it but rather by the ears that receive it. No matter what, somebody is always listening.

OPINIONS

Alligator Archives: In Memory of 9/11

Sep. 11, 2016

The following editorial was originally published September 12, 2001.

OPINION | EDITORIALS

Clinton’s nail in the coughin’: candidate health transparency

Sep. 11, 2016

Last week in Darts and Laurels, we here at the Alligator gave a dart to the human respiratory system for causing Hillary Clinton to cough. This is problematic because it set off a series of nothing more than bulls--- arguments that — ignoring actual problems in this country — focused on personally attacking Clinton for her health. Typically, those who simply have nothing to bring to the table perpetuate these types of arguments. Ad-hominem attacks are nothing more than a distraction from a total ignorance of political know-how.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Please stay in your lane and respect pedestrians

Sep. 11, 2016

On your left!

OPINION | COLUMNS

Gender is more than just a pronoun

Sep. 11, 2016

What outfit do you want to be buried in when you die? Go on; really think about it. You’ll probably want something nice and flattering. Above all, though, you’ll want something representative of the person you were when you were alive. This might seem easy for some of you. But for someone whose gender identity is nonconforming, this is a heavy question.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Dear returners: own your experiences, and own this year

Sep. 11, 2016

Hi, friends! You may not recognize my name. That’s because I am brand spanking new to the opinions section! Let me introduce myself. I’m Taylor Cavaliere, and I am so excited to be writing to you all as a columnist this semester! I’d also like to thank you from the bottom of my heart: If you’re reading, then my worst fear (that literally not one person will read my column) has not come to fruition.

OPINION | DARTS LAURELS

Darts & Laurels: September 9, 2016

Sep. 8, 2016

Life is strange. The future is unpredictable. You find that scary. You seek answers everywhere, but the more you discover, the less you know. The confusion slowly dissipates, and fear starts to take its place. All hope seems lost. In the darkness, you see a flicker of light. With curiosity ablaze you chase after the glimmer, and as you grow nearer and nearer you stumble upon the Friday edition of the Independent Florida Alligator. In it, you find something that makes everything okay. That something is…

OPINION | COLUMNS

Kaepernick and radical social justice

Sep. 8, 2016

When San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick protested the national anthem before an NFL preseason game Aug. 26, I felt the ensuing outrage was overblown. I agreed with President Obama’s response — it is Kaepernick’s constitutional right to protest what he sees as a problem of racism and police brutality in America. By the same token, it is also the right of those who disagree with him to criticize him for his method of protest. As far as I was concerned, the discussion ended there.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Slow down and love life around you

Sep. 8, 2016

I didn’t have many friends growing up. The few friends I did have were only made because we were stuck together for X number of hours every day from elementary school until high-school graduation. Most of them didn’t stick around too long after the classrooms no longer held us together. I realized shortly after graduation I would be going into college entirely alone in a completely new city, and I was terrified. But now Gainesville feels more like home than my hometown ever did. I feel like I belong here, and I’ve found my niche. I’m able to surround myself with people whom I genuinely care about and who genuinely care about me. What scares me, though, is that this is a town where a solid chunk of its population is constantly in transit, so it’s almost impossible to tell how long these people will be in my life.