Columns - The Tufts Daily

Columns

The Fast Break: The Eastern Conference in 5 years

By Aiden Herrod | March 19

A couple of weeks ago, I looked at what the NBA’s Western Conference could look like five years down the road. This week, I plan to do the same for the East, an admittedly far more difficult task. The talent distribution is more lopsided, and far more teams are in the uncertain phases of long-winded rebuilds. However, there are still plenty of franchises with bright, sustainable futures on the horizon. Let’s take a look at them now.

Columns

Democracy in The Daily: Fascist? Populist? Neither.

By Brendan Hartnett | March 18

Fascism is characterized by uber-nationalism, anti-democratic ideals, the use of violence as both a means and an end and skepticism toward capitalism. Trump checks the first two boxes and dabbles in the third. But to assert that he is suspicious of capitalism would be a grotesque fallacy.

Columns

3-Point Play: All-Star Weekend recap

By Matt Chen | March 18

The second half of the 2020–21 NBA season is underway after an eventful All-Star Weekend. This year’s All-Star festivities were condensed into one night in Atlanta, Ga. The NBA pulled off playing without fans in a traditionally fan-focused event, though not without some obstacles. From an action-filled All-Star Game to some memorable performances in the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Slam Dunk Contest, let’s run through some of the highlights from this year’s All-Star break.

Columns

Long Shot: Roger Mason

By Samuel Charlton | March 18

This week’s column is about Roger Mason, an 11-year NBA veteran and the current co-founder and CEO of Vaunt Media. Mason played for 7 NBA franchises, with the majority of his time spent on the Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards.

Column

Beyond the Underneath: A world in the bomb shelter

By Ramona Meng Xi | March 18

The place is also much bigger than I imagined. It's not just a single room but almost a maze. The hallway connects several rooms together. From roaming in and out of rooms, looking at the style of the arches and the bricks on the wall, I was drawn to its structure. It's like a part of a bigger picture.

Columns

Tales from the T: Take the 'El'

By Kevin Zhang | March 18

Last week, we discussed the inconvenient transfers between North Station and South Station. But it hasn’t always been this way — at one point there were two railroads connecting them. What happened to them? Why do Boston’s streets allegedly smell like molasses in the summer? Why do I always push away the people I love most? We’ll answer two of these questions this week, with our story starting back in 1872.

Columns

Coffee Talk: Bagelsaurus

By Casey Cummings | March 17

A bagel from Bagelsaurus is never just a bagel; it is an experience. Their bagels are light and fluffy; their eggs are just a little bit runny; and their cheese is melted perfectly. Every bagel I’ve had from Bagelsaurus (which has been many) has been accompanied by the most photogenic cheese-pull, and I have the pictures to back it up.

Columns

The Strike Zone: 'The Social Dilemma' and fascism

By Eli Striker | March 17

"Dialectic of Enlightenment" was published after the Nazi propaganda machine fully infiltrated German society and offers a unique perspective on the roles of mass media and fascism. Similarly, Netflix’s recent documentary "The Social Dilemma" (2020) analyzes how social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter promote the spread of misleading, hyperpartisan information.

Columns

Comfort Cartoons: Roller coaster ride 'Lilo & Stitch'

By Christopher Panella | March 17

“Lilo & Stitch” has always been focused on family, whether it be broken or whole, and how we can find connections and purposes that matter. The franchise’s earnestness has made it both famous and a generational touchstone. For people who grew up with the film (and its subsequent show), Stitch is just about the cutest plush animal you can get at The Walt Disney World Resort.

Columns

Building Blocks: Modern fault lines

By Elizabeth Buehl | March 16

It has been almost 70 years since the Supreme Court made its precedent-setting decision to desegregate schools in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case. While our nation has made immense progress from our former legal structures that openly endorsed blatantly segregated schools, we still have a long way to go. Approximately 6% of students currently in the American public education system are enrolled in gifted programs. The aforementioned group of students is overwhelmingly composed of white and Asian students, while many incredibly intelligent Black and Hispanic students are left without the same chances for academic advancement. For example, in New York City, almost three-fourths of students in gifted programs are white or Asian, despite the fact that Black and Hispanic students make up 65% of the school system.

Columns

Transferable Skills: You don't need to swim in self-pity

By Marco Sheng | March 16

I was pretty angry for many of these last few days. Anger is an easy but supremely unhelpful emotion. I was angry that I failed my editors by not meeting my deadline (I didn’t publish a column last week). And I am angry because each day I’ve been failing at the values I outlined at the beginning of the column. I haven’t been curious, but judgmental. Instead of being vulnerable, I’ve put armor around me. I’ve been far from optimistic. I’m consistently vague in my thinking and task lists. Most importantly I haven’t put in any kind of effort towards compassion, kindness and generosity.

Columns

Olympic Torch: The Scoop on race walking

By Arnav Sacheti | March 16

“Who wants to work this hard to look this funny?”

Columns

A Fantastic Voyage: 'Solve Everything' Part 2

By Drew Weisberg | March 16

Welcome back to the column, friends! Last week we had what may be a Tufts Daily first, a story recap and review so massive it requires two parts to do it justice. In light of this, make sure you catch up with last week’s installment so you won't get lost.

Column

Hot Take: ‘Saturday Night Live’ isn’t funny anymore

By Derin Savasan | March 15

I’m not going to talk more about the golden age of SNL. I wasn’t born until 2002, so it’s not my area of knowledge. What I can do is talk about SNL's "silver age," led by people like Bill Hader, Fred Armisen, Rachel Dratch, Kristen Wiig, Jason Sudeikis and Andy Samberg in the late 2000s and early 2010s.

Columns

Power to the Players: The NBA bubble and the questions it raised

By Isaac Karp | March 15

With basketball gone, many NBA players spent their time campaigning for racial equality during the summer's Black Lives Matter protests. Meanwhile, NBA executives were devising a way to finish the season in the hopes of saving some of the lost revenue.

Columns

The Honeymoon Period: President Joe Manchin

By Matt Rice | March 15

It has become increasingly clear in the first 50 days of his presidency that Joe Biden may not even be the most important “Joe” in Washington. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who has consistently inhabited the vanishing political center, has had and will continue to have the final say over what President Biden can get through Congress.

Column

Soundtrack to the end of the world: In case of emergency

By Jessica Blough and Myshko Chumak | March 12

I like nervous music, music that’s unsettled and unsettling, even when it’s in a major key, and this seems somewhere between pablum and dread. Over the last 12 months, I’ve found myself falling into repetitive music and listening loops. Maybe read this as my way of rocking back and forth, my sonic self-care at best or anesthetic at worst.

Columns

Wonder Women: Deja Young

By Nicole Setow | March 12

How does one cope when the very thing that brings them joy becomes a source of stress? Paralympic track star Deja Young’s story is one incredible example of overcoming adversity, prioritizing mental health and rediscovering joy in competition.

Columns

Democracy in The Daily: Democratize elections

By Brendan Hartnett | March 11

Two pieces of legislation needed to maintain U.S. democracy face grim fates in the Senate: the For the People Act (H.R.1) and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

Column

Beyond the Underneath: 'White Cube' gallery and its 'Color Cube' cafe

By Ramona Meng Xi | March 11

I can't remember the exact time I got to know about the term"white cube," a style of contemporary gallery with a rectangular space, unadorned white walls and neutral lighting. “White cube” would automatically jump in my mind whenever I walked into a white cube gallery. There were plenty.