Category: Opinion

During a contentious election year like this one, many throw around the term “American Dream” flippantly. The American Dream has morphed over time and evolved into something those a century ago would marvel over. Some in my generation, however, have subscribed to entitlement, or the notion that this dream should be handed to them.  We are a passionate people with […]

Our institutions of higher learning pack hundreds or thousands of young adults into the same space, condensing a diverse cross-section of humanity into one spot. Everyone comes from different backgrounds, different skill sets and different styles of child-rearing. As a result, college students exemplify some of the oddest combinations of traits and habits known to humankind. In few other settings […]

If the Mike Bloomberg presidential campaign feels like America has traveled back four years in an electoral time machine, it should. Because in many ways, Bloomberg is running on the playbook written by the man he hopes to beat in November: President Donald Trump. The similarities between Bloomberg’s and Trump’s campaigns are as eerie as they are numerous. From the […]

Editor’s Note: This piece reflects the writer’s personal opinions and experiences.  This year the new strand of coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China, has made international headlines. The death toll increases daily but so does the increasing xenophobia towards Chinese people.  As a college student, far away from both home and my parent’s protection, I quickly panicked when I first […]

Anti-Semitism grew more in 2019 than it has in nearly 30 years. In the New York City area alone this past December, law enforcement recorded at least 23 anti-Semitic hate crimes, including the killing of three Jewish people in a Jersey City kosher market and a machete-wielding man attacking a Jewish community.  Both New York and California – the two […]

As I watched Shakira and Jennifer Lopez perform during the halftime show at the Super Bowl, my heart swelled with pride and joy at the rich display of Latin American and Afro-Latino culture represented on stage. Similarly, most of the members of the Latino community referred to the show as powerful, significant and culturally enriching. After all, it is not […]

News is such a commodity to us that we sometimes mock it. Our phones light up with dozens of news alerts daily, and we far too often take this privilege for granted when there are millions living without access to true information. To live in a free society and not take advantage of the availability of this information is to […]

Only one hour following the devastating helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and eight others, TMZ broke the news.  Eight little words splashed across the popular gossip magazine read “KOBE BRYANT DIES  IN HELICOPTER CRASH IN CALABASAS…” These words impacted the lives of millions, but more importantly, they changed the lives of those who never should have had to read […]

Travelers with emotional support animals (ESA) might be in for a hard time with a new rule implemented for airlines this past Wednesday. On Jan. 22, 2020, the Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that from now on airline passengers will only be allowed to take dogs as emotional support animals. The DOT made this decision due to passengers complaining about […]

A glance at the electoral college map from the 2016 election reveals a varied sea of red and blue states.  We view the U.S. in 2020 as one of the most divided periods of its existence, but history begs to differ. Like a diamond under pressure or gold in the furnace, America has been through fire in its less than […]

When Tyler the Creator won Best Rap Album for “Igor” at the Grammys, he mixed his gratitude with a good dose of social commentary.  By all accounts “Igor” was not a typical rap album. In fact, according to an article for the Badger Herald, the album boasted fewer rap songs than songs blending hip hop, soul, R&B and pop. Tyler […]

Once upon a time, a secret kingdom hid just inside the woods at my home in Pennsylvania.  An outside observer would have just seen a cluster of oddly-shaped trees, but my siblings and I glimpsed something much grander. One tree, which split into three trunks barely inches from the ground, formed an excellent and inexplicably magical place for a child […]