Opinion

Viewpoint

Democracy is sacred, don't forget it

By Justin Hong | January 19

“Is democracy still America’s sacred cause?” That’s the question President Joe Biden posed to the nation in a speech on Jan. 5 which commemorated the third anniversary of the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But how much should the events of that Jan. 6 attack be the focal point of a presidential election? Should ordinary Americans care about an event from three years ago?

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Viewpoint

John Fetterman flips the script

By Kevin Golub | January 19

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., is not as progressive as many would assume. Recently, he has been outspoken about his unwavering support for Israel, the need for a border wall and tougher immigration laws. Many have attacked Fetterman, calling his behavior out of character for someone who is supposed to be a Democrat. However, I believe that Fetterman has finally realized that his fellow Democrats are lost at sea.

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Viewpoint

Americana music deserves its dues

By Justin Solis | January 17

Morgan Wallen was caught on video saying a racial slur. Oliver Anthony’s song “Rich Men North of Richmond” (2023) became a conservative anthem for right-wing politicians. Jason Aldean’s music video for “Try That in a Small Town” (2023) drew clear references to lynchings. For a genre called “country music,” it certainly does not live up to its name. Rather than being representative of our country, country music seems to be a stronghold of racists, misogynists and right-wing ideals.

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Guest

Letter from the Editor in Chief: The semester in preview

By Rachel Liu | January 17

Welcome back to the Hill! My name is Rachel Liu, and I am the new editor in chief of The Tufts Daily. As the Daily resumes operations, I owe a major thank you to the numerous writers, editors and designers who invested time over their winter breaks to craft the first issue of 2024. This semester, we will publish online every weekday and in print on Thursdays, though for the first two weeks we will be operating on a reduced schedule. Sign up for our newsletter to never miss an issue.

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Viewpoint

Rampant antisemitism at Tufts reveals a dearth of leadership

By Kevin Golub | January 17

If the past several months have shown anything, it is the shocking extent to which antisemitism has revealed itself on college campuses throughout the country. Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been the most visible, opting to accommodate — and thus tacitly endorse — antisemitic behaviors. Despite receiving less attention regarding antisemitism, Tufts is sadly no better.

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Viewpoint

The College Board has become indistinguishable from a hedge fund

By Dylan Tanouye | January 17

Every spring, millions of high school students hunker down in classrooms as they prepare to take Advanced Placement exams. With the ability to award college credit at many universities with a score of three or above, AP exams — which are the culmination of an entire year of college-level coursework — have high stakes and often serve as a major source of stress for students who are preparing to apply for college.

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Viewpoint

Red versus blue or red, white and blue?

By Reya Kumar | December 11

On Nov. 30, California Governor Gavin Newsom and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis faced off in what Fox News billed as the “Great Red vs. Blue State Debate.” Moderated by conservative Fox News host Sean Hannity, the debate drew 4.75 million viewers. But only one of the men in the debate is running for president, so what was the point?

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Viewpoint

Students are being crushed by tuition debt

By Liam Chalfonte | December 11

A couple of weeks ago, I opened my phone to a message from one of my best friends that made my stomach drop. “The debt collectors called,” she said. Last year, she went through family-related financial difficulty and was unable to pay for her spring semester tuition in full.

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Column

The Budget Line: Thinking of buying the MBTA semester pass? Don’t bother

By Justin Hong | December 11

The last day of class is upon us and only finals remain between us and the sweet escape of winter break. We did it, Joe! Whether it was your first semester or if you’ve only got one more left, it’s an exciting but hectic time of year. It’s also time to plan out next semester. I know, it seems early, but, let’s face it, you’re probably not going to get to all those things you want to do over the break.

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Guest

Op-ed: On protesting the crisis in the Mideast

By Soha Hassoun, Kamran Rastegar, Suhad Zendah, Neda Moridpour and Amahl Bishara | December 11

 We write in a moment of urgency for the university and the world. Since the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7 that took approximately 1200 Israeli lives, an Israeli military campaign and unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe has been unfolding for Palestinians in Gaza.   

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Editorial

Editorial: A realistic guide to finding off-campus housing

By The Editorial Board | December 7

There’s a lot we would ask for this holiday season, and at the top of the list is something big: guaranteed housing for everyone at Tufts. Of course, we know this wish is just that — a wish. Realistically, the vast majority of upperclassmen will have to find and rent off-campus apartments, and while we applaud Tufts’ efforts to build a new dorm and invest in Community Housing units, off-campus living will remain a part of students’ lives for a long time.

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Guest

Letter from the Managing Board: With love to the Dailmunity

By The Managing Board | December 7

As our tenure as managing board comes to a close, we wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on the semester.

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Viewpoint

Tufts needs to kick carbon to the curb before swiping right on sustainability

By Kaashvi Ahuja | December 7

Tufts Climate Action has been urging Tufts to completely divest from fossil fuels, including all indirect investments. Their plea has been criticized within this publication; some believe a complete divestment is impractical and will burden Tufts’ endowment. On the contrary, it is in the interest of both our planet and our university if Tufts wholly divests from this detrimental industry.

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Viewpoint

Meme them, don't meme us: Political satire in America

By Gretta Goorno | December 6

Though the digital age has certainly changed the style in which American politicians, or their communication directors, relate to younger voters, the practice of satirizing the opponent while bolstering oneself via imagery has always been a fundamental part of American politics.

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Viewpoint

Electric vehicle and green energy policies have serious financial ramifications

By Kevin Golub | December 5

U.S. automakers have faced significant challenges in recent months. Meanwhile, consumers still feel squeezed even though inflation and gas prices have gone down in recent months. These factors have disrupted the electric vehicle market where sales have slowed despite price cuts. Recently, 3,900 U.S. car dealers wrote a letter to President Biden informing him that electric vehicles are “stacking up on [their] lots.” Evidently, Biden’s executive order that 50% of all car sales by 2030 be electric or hybrid cars and the Environmental Protection Agency’s new rule that all cars should have a fuel efficiency of 52 mpg by 2026 are not resonating with consumers, something that reflects general opinion on Biden’s environmental legislation. Polling has shown that much of Biden’s agenda has not gone over well with the American people, as highlighted by his 37.9% approval rating. This letter proves that consumer upset is trickling up to producers, whose bottom lines are suffering.

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Column

Ukraine at War: The unavoidable intersection of art and politics

By Mariia Kudina | December 5

There is a common assumption that culture exists independently from any “mundane” influences of life. According to this framework, art is the result of a magical creative spark that appears in a vacuum. Looking deeper, however, it becomes evident that culture is tightly interwoven with politics. ...

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Column

The Policy Perspective: Improving air travel

By Keshav Srikant | December 4

As many of us look forward to flying home for Christmas, there’s one part of the journey that we dread: hearing the announcement that our flight has been delayed or canceled. Flight delays and cancellations have become an increasingly common part of the air travel experience; in the summer of 2023, 61% of travelers had experienced a flight delay or cancellation and most of those travelers lost money due to those cancellations or delays. Flight cancellations also increased in 2022, and there have been several massive flight cancellation events, such as Southwest’s infamous meltdown during the last holiday season.

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Viewpoint

Why there will not be an imminent invasion of Taiwan

By Yilan Batista | December 4

The question of Taiwanese independence has long been one of the most contentious matters in U.S.-China relations. A Chinese invasion of Taiwan would have the highest likelihood of embroiling China and the U.S. in war, which would have disastrous effects on theAsia-Pacific region and the international legitimacy of either China or the U.S.On Nov. 14, Xi Jinping arrived in San Francisco to discuss bilateral relations with Joe Biden.

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Viewpoint

Voting rights are under attack — they must be protected and strengthened

By Reya Kumar | December 1

On Monday, a federal appeals court dealt a grievous blow to the Voting Rights Act, which has protected the voting rights of minorities since it was passed in 1965. The VRA has faced many challenges through the years and was considerably weakened in 2013. The Shelby County v. Holder decision ended the preclearance provision in Section 5 of the VRA — which required states to receive approval for new voting laws from the Department of Justice if they had a history of discriminatory voting practices. Preclearance was first upheld by the Supreme Court in 1966 and has been called the “heart” of the VRA.

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Viewpoint

Dear DoorDash, stop letting your customers pay for your employees’ wages

By Linda Huang | November 30

Earlier this month, DoorDash announced upsetting news to all of us avid delivery app users: if you don’t tip your dasher, expect a longer wait. While DoorDash has provided the rationale that this new tipping mechanism allows for a triple-win situation, promising faster deliveries for consumers, higher rewards for delivery workers and increased repeat orders for restaurants, the consequences of such policies become apparent in consumer dissatisfaction.

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