Columns - The Tufts Daily

Columns

Anna Christian | The College Survival Guide

September 22

The college fraternity party is an event unlike most others. At Tufts, we don't boast about our Greek life since, relatively speaking, there isn't much to boast about. My friends at Cornell or Syracuse scoff at our "Frat Row" (to us, Pro Row) and are confused that we don't have "DG" and "Kappa" as power players on our sorority girl social scene. But Tufts Greek life is indeed its own breed and has its own rules and etiquette. Don't worry; after only a few blissful evenings under the romantic black lights and the sticky, Natural Ice landscape, everything will be made apparent.

Columns

Mitchell Geller | Makes It Rain

September 19

While the Internet is busy changing the face of television and print media is busy dying, commercial hip−hop is becoming something fascinating, bizarre and captivating: A former corrections officer−cum−thespian weaves yarns about drug dealing alongside a college dropout who would be king, a happily married Muslim makes himself sound like a robot while confessing his love for strippers and the most famous rapper in the world nears his mid−life crisis.

Columns

Stephen Miller | Counterpoint

September 19

As a growing focus on post−grad life and the transition into adulthood sweeps across the nation (see the Daily's own Sept. 13 article "Twenty−somethings show increasing uncertainty about post−college life"), I am bewildered that one main issue is implied in every article or argument but never addressed head−on. Perhaps it is due to the highly motivated, success−oriented environment that defines the upper echelon academic institutions, but here everyone is asking, "What should I do after Tufts?" No one, it seems, is asking the question, "Why do I need to do something?"

Columns

Zach Drucker and Chris Poldoian | Bad Samaritans

April 27

Why does America love Hollywood? Why do People magazines fly off the shelves faster than "Harry Potter" books, and why does Perez Hilton's website get more hits than Robot Unicorn Attack? Well, it all boils down to one simple reason — no, not Miley Cyrus. People love Hollywood because Hollywood is sexy. And we're not talking about your average eighth-grade-health-teacher sexy. We're talking about the Megan Fox (oh, she's nasty!), Demi and Ashton (Twitter, lolz) and Johnny Depp (what a rebel!) sexy.

Columns

Mitchell Geller | Slings and Arrows

April 25

Four years at Tufts University or six minutes in outer space?

Columns

Ben Kochman | Between the Slices

April 7

Two of my favorite places to grab a sandwich near campus are Tasty Gourmet on Boston Avenue and Deli−icious in Davis Square. Both restaurants remind me of delis back home in Brooklyn, N.Y. — the deli capital of the world — partly because they import fresh Boar's Head cold cuts from New York, but also because they embrace the idea of a sandwich as a meal: They offer a pickle and a side with each order and feature creativity in sandwich invention and attention to detail in sandwich construction.

Columns

Ethan Landy | Call Me Junior

April 6

It takes a lot of guts to get rid of your starting quarterback. It takes even more to do it when he was in the Pro Bowl last season. What, you thought I was going to talk about Marc Bulger?

Columns

Romy Oltuski | Word Up

March 29

For some, Passover means reuniting with family; for others, it means eating dry matzah and macaroons in Dewick; for others still it means nothing more than an ordinary week of school, after tanning on the shores of Mexico, Miami, Jamaica or, for the more altruistic Tuftonians, something more like a service trip to New Orleans.

Columns

Caryn Horowitz | The Cultural Culinarian

March 29

After what feels like a lifetime of buildup and anticipation, "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" finally premiered on March 26 at 8 p.m. on ABC. The basic premise of the show is that Oliver, a British celebrity chef best known by his moniker "The Naked Chef," spent time in Huntington, W.Va., last fall to try to get people to eat healthier. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost half of the adult population of the city is obese, and Huntington has been dubbed "the fattest city in America" as a result of these statistics.

Columns

Ethan Landy | Call Me Junior

March 16

Florida coach Billy Donovan likes the idea. Wisconsin's Bo Ryan said it would be "a crime" if it doesn't happen. Even two of the most recognizable coaches in the NCAA, Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, think changes need to be made.

Columns

Zach Drucker and Chris Poldoian | Bad Samaritans

March 16

This past weekend, "The Green Zone" was released in theaters. Pitched as an intense and gritty action film, "Zone" marked the reunion of actor Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass, the dynamic duo behind "The Bourne Supremacy" (2004) and "The Bourne Ultimatum" (2007). The film seemed destined for success, but its opening weekend gross came in at a paltry $14.3 million. The box office receipts may have come as a surprise, but there is one obvious reason the movie failed: It was about the Iraq War.

Columns

Ben Kochman | Between the Slices

March 10

There comes a time in every sandwich eater's life when — like Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama before him — he must strap on his tasting helmet and venture into uncharted territory.

Columns

David Heck | The Sauce

March 3

I am a New York Knicks fan. I am a LeBron James fan. Naturally, there's basically nothing more I'd like to see in the world than LeBron sporting a Knicks jersey next year.

Columns

Elisha Sum | Our Genderation

March 3

Tori Amos once sang, "Things are getting dear desperate when all the boys can't be men."

Columns

Romy Oltuski | Word Up

February 15

A s we wave goodbye to this century's early childhood and think back on the last 10 years, it is clear that the past decade was the one of the mashup. Danger Mouse released his historic Grey Album in 2004; Girltalk brought his laptops to Dewick in 2007; and, thanks to a recent Miley Cyrus hit, Biggie's "Party and Bulls−−t" made a comeback in the form of the ever−popular 2009 mashup, "Party and Bulls−−t in the USA."

Columns

Caryn Horowitz | The Cultural Culinarian

February 15

February is the time of year for one of our nation's greatest traditions. No, I am not talking about Punxsutawney Phil and his psychic abilities, nor am I referencing the sap−fest that is Valentine's Day. I am referring to the time of year when hordes of little girls put on their brown, green or blue uniforms and set up shop everywhere from grocery stores to subway stations to sell boxes of baked goods.

Columns

Alex Prewitt | Live from Mudville

February 15

Sorry, Tufts University, I've dropped out of school. Goodbye to Fall Ball, Spring Fling and Winter Bash. No longer will I have to walk up that devastating hill to class. So long, Jumbo. Sayonara, NQR. Peace out, Bacow, I'm going all Beelzebubs on this school. Pax et lux, bros, because I'm gone.

Columns

David Heck | The Sauce

February 10

Originally, I wasn't planning on writing about the Super Bowl. I just didn't think there was anything unique or insightful that I could add to the conversation. Yes, it was a fantastic day for the city of New Orleans. Yes, Drew Brees and Sean Payton are very good at what they do. No, Reggie Bush is not.

Columns

Alex Prewitt | Live from Mudville

February 8

I'll be the first to admit that out of my pastimes — reading travel novels, drinking Kool−Aid Jammers and watching "Recess" (1997−2001), to name a few — making fun of Chad Ochocinco has to be near the top of the list.

Columns

Caryn Horowitz | The Cultural Culinarian

February 8

I can sum up my winter break with six words my mother pronounced to me at approximately 12:07 a.m. on New Year's Day: "We will never be happy again." This emotionally charged declaration was followed by both of us storming into our bedrooms and pacing around in a futile attempt to calm down.