Oct. 11, 2040: You wake up to the sound of the television in the background; CNN is covering the 20th anniversary of the Israeli−Palestinian ceasefire. After breakfast, you walk out of the house to find your newly wedded neighbors, Mike and David, mowing their lawn. You step into your hydrogen−powered car and drive to the office, a wind−turbine company centered in Detroit.
For most students in the United States, our first introduction to genocide probably came to us during elementary school in the looming form of lessons about the Holocaust. We learned the facts of the Nazi atrocities from the outside looking in, shocked that a government could sponsor the slaughter of millions of its own people. Genocide was a foreign concept. We were relieved that the United States was not responsible for such state−organized killing.
The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate's newest plan for the allocation of surplus funds, most of which are leftover from the Student Activities Fee, proves to be another lacking, albeit honorable, attempt at fairly distributing this money.
With a beautiful quad on which to relax, varsity sports games to attend and residential dorms in which to socialize, one would expect the campus to be bustling with students every moment classes are not in session. But some students claim that week after week, as soon as Friday classes come to an end, the quads start to empty — and stay that way until Monday morning, leaving those who emerge from their rooms on Saturday afternoons asking: Where have all the students gone?
The tragic suicides of gay students on college campuses in recent weeks are the latest striking reminders of the devastating consequences of harassment and of cyber bullying. College and university communities have seen electronic victimization on the basis of race, gender, sexual identity and religious and ethnic background in growing numbers. No university can claim to be welcoming and free from discrimination until all of its students, staff and faculty feel safe.
The disgusting protests of a small Kansas church over the past few years have provoked and angered attendees of the funerals of American service members who are understandably shaken and distressed to encounter hateful picketing during such a private moment of grieving. But as deplorable as this obnoxious behavior is, the right of the members of the Westboro Baptist Church to exercise their right to free speech must be upheld.
Did you know that today is the ninth anniversary of the start of the war in Afghanistan? Probably not. Earlier this year, the war in Afghanistan surpassed the Vietnam War as the longest war in American history, yet we had no idea.
College, at its most basic level, is about learning through the exchange of different ideas and beliefs. While every student has the right to express his or her opinion in a classroom setting, however, the question of whether a professor should be allowed the same degree of expressive freedom begets no simple answer.
Tori Amos once sang, "Can somebody tell me now who is this terrorist?"
Full disclosure: I am a lover of good parties. I am not anti−party, just anti−bad party. I understand that there are certain qualities that can make or break a party. The presence of positive vibes, exciting music, good company — these are all essential ingredients for brewin' up a kick−ass evening. Unfortunately, I feel that the Tufts party scene is often lacking in these departments. Perhaps I just don't know where to look, or maybe I'm not looking hard enough. Regardless, I have a few suggestions for injecting more awesome into parties 'round these parts.
The recent, tragic death by suicide of Rutgers student Tyler Clementi, one of five deaths by suicide among gay youths around the country reported in the last few weeks, has stirred up conversations about the importance of tolerance on college campuses. Homophobic bullying has played a prominent role in some of the deaths, which have left some scratching their heads, wondering how homophobia and bullying are still rampant when so much energy has been dedicated to eliminating them.
"Support our troops" is an American mantra. It is a phrase plastered on our SUVs and stamped on our front yards. To a politician, these three words are hallowed ground. The U.S. military defends our freedoms, protects our borders and makes sacrifices for our country: These phrases form the current U.S. military narrative.
Students at universities like Tufts have a full plate of goals and ambitions when they arrive on campus. We all know those goals well: good grades, impressive extracurricular accomplishments and the attainment of lifelong friends, to name a few.
The Obama administration yesterday desperately tried to salvage the Israeli−Palestinian peace process, calling for a 60−day extension of the Israeli settlement construction freeze that expired on Sunday. While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may rebuff the administration's plea, President Barack Obama must stand strong and continue to oppose the expansion of Israeli settlements. Failure to do so will likely mark the death knell of current Middle East peace negotiations — a threat to American national security and our nation's strategic interests in the region.
Have you ever talked about the Tufts hook-up culture with your friends? Have you sat around discussing how politically correct Tufts is? Have you talked about what interracial dating looks like at Tufts and in the real world?
After an extensive, yearlong review, the collaborative efforts of Students Active in Ending Rape (SAFER), the Tufts Community Union Senate and the administration have resulted in the crafting of Tufts' new sexual assault policy and adjudication process.
Tori Amos once sang, "You say, ‘he got be strong if he wanna be a man.'"
I used to say that Rick Ross was the worst rapper of all time. I never said that I didn't like Rick Ross, nor that he didn't deserve to be famous. All I said was that he was a terrible rapper. I said he suffered from the same problem as someone like Dr. Dre — one of my favorite rappers — who just sounds like he's trying too hard.
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