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The Setonian
Columns

Ben Zuckert | Straight Out of the Bible

As we know, laws are a key part of a functioning democracy that provide - what am I saying? This week, we're dealing with three historic bodies of work: Deuteronomy, Leviticus and the 2013-14 Tufts University Student Handbook. I think it's safe to say I'm the first Tufts student to ever read (skim) the entire handbook.


The Setonian
Columns

Ben Zuckert | Straight Out of the Bible

As we know, laws are a key part of a functioning democracy that provide - what am I saying? This week, we're dealing with three historic bodies of work: Deuteronomy, Leviticus and the 2013-14 Tufts University Student Handbook. I think it's safe to say I'm the first Tufts student to ever read (skim) the entire handbook.



The Setonian
Columns

Bhushan Deshpande | Words of Wisdom

Yesterday, the new editor of The Primary Source ran an op-ed in The Daily explaining why he felt it was important for Tufts to have a conservative publication on campus.


The Setonian
Columns

Nimarta Narang | Hello U.S.A.

As I raised my hand to answer a question in class last week, I felt comfortable, just as I had back home in my high school classes in Thailand. The only major difference was that most people here have American accents - but everyone was still eager to learn, and the professor was still eager to teach. To my dismay, when I said the wrong answer, the professor took a seat next to me to solve the problem in my notebook. She then proceeded to continue the class discussion from the desk beside me.


The Setonian
Columns

Ben Zuckert | Straight Out of the Bible

Last week, I mentioned that I would be discussing congressional gridlock in my next column, but then I realized it's irrelevant. Put it this way: Who's been more influential, John Boehner or Moses?



The Setonian
Columns

Bhushan Deshpande | Words of Wisdom

As you may have heard, the Tufts administration instituted a major change to the alcohol policy this summer. Tufts now has both a Good Samaritan and Amnesty policy - if you or a friend call for medical attention for alcohol, neither one of you will get in trouble if you were drinking underage. Additionally, if anyone, including an RA or the police, calls for medical attention, the person who Tufts Emergency Medical Services (TEMS) examines or hospitalizes does not get in trouble.


The Setonian
Columns

Lex Erath | Sugar and Spice

This summer - wow, that feels like decades ago already - I took a class at Tufts, and since I live about an hour away, this meant I had the distinct pleasure of commuting to campus four days a week.


The Setonian
Columns

Ben Zuckert | Straight Out of the Bible

This week is my third column, and as Schoolhouse Rock! famously put it: "Three is a magic number." For example, you've got the Holy Trinity, Three Little Pigs, Three 6 Mafia - that's the rule of three. It's an incredible number.


The Setonian
Columns

Ryan Buell | This Week in Hip-Hop

The rise of the Internet and social media has brought drastic changes to the music industry. Album sales are being displaced by free downloads, both legal and illegal, as the means for music distribution. Radio plays have given way to YouTube views as the measurement of an artist's popularity. Even the once indomitable record companies are losing their power due to the rise of independent artists and labels. All of these trends are making it easier than ever for an underground musician to "blow up" and reach an ever-expanding audience. And yet there are still exceptions. Sometimes all the talent in the world isn't enough to propel an artist to music's forefront. Case in point: Mississippi rapper Big K.R.I.T.


The Setonian
Columns

Lex Erath | Sugar and Spice

This summer - wow, that feels like decades ago already - I took a class at Tufts, and since I live about an hour away, this meant I had the distinct pleasure of commuting to campus four days a week.


The Setonian
Columns

Walt Laws-MacDonald | Show Me The Money!

The Federal Reserve controls the stock market. This may sound like a bold statement - and it would have been an even bolder one just a few years ago - but it has rung true since the beginning of the Great Recession in 2007.


The Setonian
Columns

Jordan Bean | Sacked

As happens several times a year, a benches-clearing brawl occurred in a baseball game this past week. Often the instigator in the fight has broken an unwritten rule. Wait, you may ask, how can you start a fight over something if it's not actually a rule?


The Setonian
Columns

Bhushan Deshpande | Words of Wisdom

Today is the final day in a two-week vote for part-time lecturers at Tufts to decide whether or not to unionize. I hadn't been paying much attention until some friends who have been involved with the unionization effort pointed me toward some interesting notes.


The Setonian
Columns

Tyler Maher | Beantown Beat

Twenty-four hours after securing a postseason berth, the Boston Red Sox clinched their division last Friday night with their 94th win of the season, a 6-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays. For the first time since 2007, the Olde Towne Team is tops in the American League East. Ah, it's good to be back.


The Setonian
Columns

Nimarta Narang | Hello U.S.A.

It's wicked awesome," says the driver. And with that, he drives the bus into the water. I have a mini panic attack, and then it finally hits me: He is driving a boat in the water and a bus on land. Throughout the duck tour, I felt incredibly tourist-like as I turned to my phone to take a couple of snapshots (hello, Instagram), completely in awe of the beauty of Boston. I saw people running, slurping ice cream, jaywalking while speaking on phones and swearing if a vehicle was driving too fast or even too slow. I saw people dressed in business attire, munching on their granola bars while simultaneously pressing away at their iPhones and schoolchildren racing along on bicycles as the last one fell behind. All of these people were set against the backdrop of the beautiful fall color of Boston. It seemed as if I was transported back to Bangkok in the middle of the day, and yet everything and everyone was somehow different. Then I realized that I am beginning to feel at home, and most importantly, that I have to leave the Tufts campus more often.


The Setonian
Columns

Ryan Buell | This Week in Hip-Hop

With the rap world losing its collective mind over the leak of Drake's highly anticipated "Nothing Was the Same," I figured I would dial it back a bit this week and focus on a lesser known project. Originally released as a free mixtape back on Aug. 20, Rapsody's critically acclaimed "She Got Game" recently got a facelift with a deluxe, for-purchase version. The deluxe version is DJ-free (meaning none of those obnoxious DJ Drama promotions) and swaps out a couple guest verses in favor of new verses from the aspiring emcee. The deluxe version also comes with two new bonus tracks and two instrumentals from the original mixtape.


The Setonian
Columns

Lex Erath | Sugar and Spice

As our new freshmen are probably realizing (welcome, class of 2017!), no matter what your area of interest, there's pretty much no way you can avoid taking at least one or two giant lecture classes if you want to major in anything. (BIO 13, anyone? EC 5?) While some students might prefer cozy seminars or animated debates, there are some definite advantages to taking a huge class. To name a few: