Opinion | Viewpoint

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Why politics and policy are important

By Keshav Srikant | April 25

For many Americans, politics aren’t that interesting. A 2021 poll found that only 36% of Americans aged 18–29 consider themselves politically engaged, while only around 45% of eligible voters voted in the 2022 midterm elections. It’s understandable that this is the case: With politics as divided as they are today, many might see politics as an unproductive screaming match. Others might be disillusioned at the amount of lying that occurs in politics. In many cases, politics are simply sidelined in comparison to other responsibilities. All of these are sensible reasons, so much so that even I myself didn’t follow politics until a few years ago. Now, however, I would like to make the case that unfashionable as it may be, we should care about politics, at least a little bit.

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US college rankings: Do they measure what matters?

By Talia Wilcox | April 20

If you’ve been through a college application cycle, then you’ve surely heard of the U.S. News Best Colleges Rankings report, which prides itself on having “expert advice, rankings and data to help you navigate your education journey and find the best college for you.” But how accurate is this ranking? How heavily should we rely on its advice? The U.S. News ranking uses 17 “measures of academic quality” such as class size, faculty salary and graduation rate, which are then weighted on a 100-point scale. These factors do impact a student’s college experience. However, the report's focus misses critical aspects of what makes a school a good fit for its students, such as successful job placement in a field relevant to a student’s major, student happiness and a feeling of belonging on campus.

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When politics override science: Another attack on abortion access

By Esma Erdem | April 18

On April 7, another step was taken to restrict abortion access. Matthew Kacsmaryk, a federal judge in Texas, put the Food and Drug Administration’s 20-year approval of a commonly used abortion pill, mifepristone, on hold. 

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How to make the most of campus life at Tufts

By Riley Hemsi-Walters | April 13

For most Tufts students, the Medford/Somerville campus is a central part of life. I have compiled a list of some great places, buildings and businesses around campus which you may not know about, and which hopefully can help you get the most out of your time on campus. 

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The sinister side of Spring Fling

By Justin Solis | April 13

“Low” (2007), “Right Round” (2009), “Good Feeling” (2011). Most people can recognize the melody or lyrics of these songs even if they may not attribute them to Flo Rida. At first glance, Flo Rida being selected for Spring Fling seems like an ideal choice: easily recognizable songs that match the energy and spectacle that Tufts tries to achieve at Spring Fling — a day filled with live music and energetic Tufts students celebrating in order to forget the looming threat of finals season. However, underneath the seemingly harmless surface of Flo Rida lies a more ominous truth.

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Ron DeSantis is no better than Donald Trump

By Maxwell Shoustal and Keshav Srikant | April 12

As Ron DeSantis has risen to fame as the governor of Florida, many moderates and centrists have urged “Never Trumpers” and Democrats to support him in his bid to win the Republican nomination. Some Never Trumpers are indeed backing Ron DeSantis, including prominent ones like David French. Conor Friedersdorf, another moderate conservative, summed up the reasoning behind this well in an Atlanticarticle:he believes Ron DeSantis is not immoral or authoritarian, unlike Trump. The reasoning goes that while DeSantis might do objectionable things or he might support bad policies, he isn’t a bad person or anti-democracy like Donald Trump is. However, the Lincoln Project, a prominent group of anti-Trumpers, doesn’t support DeSantis. They’re right to do so and other Never Trumpers should follow their lead. While DeSantis has a more respectable veneer, a close examination of his record shows he is just as authoritarian and immoral as Donald Trump is.

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Why hosting the G-20 is so important to India

By Rohan Vora | April 11

There has been plenty of buzz surrounding the G-20 ceremony in India this year. With huge billboards on the sides of roads in New Delhi and Mumbai, Indian President Narendra Modi’s government has increased domestic awareness of foreign policy. For India, the summit has turned into a public relations blitz where it can put forth the image of itself as a country that is ready to take on a larger power position on the world stage and one that is equipped to tackle the political and economical challenges that plague the 21st century. 

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Asian American studies deserves better

By Justin Hong | April 6

The Tufts Asian Student Coalition called on the university to hire more faculty specializing in Asian American studies to fill an urgent gap in the race, colonialism and diaspora department. With Professor Courtney Sato going on leave, there will be no courses or full-time faculty in the Asian American studies concentration next fall, according to the coalition’s March 30 letter to the administration. I find this regrettable. I am not privy to the university’s finances, and expanding the department may not be financially tenable, but Tufts ought to reconsider this decision and try to meet student activists’ demands.

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AI’s real threat to democracy comes from within

By Toby Winick | April 6

At this point, you’re probably tired of hearing about artificial intelligence. It has become increasingly clear that AI is going to change the way that many things are done. Its ability to write code, make art and learn from humans to hold conversations holds great potential in reimagining many aspects of society. However, such significant changes face pushback. There has been concern that the computer’s pace of development will be disastrous, as the human brain’s processing power won’t keep up with AI’s capability of limitless content generation. In short, AI could flood people with false information faster than we could remove it. This would bring catastrophic consequences for online discussion and political engagement. Access to the technology for malicious capabilities would be just as easy as access for education or artmaking.

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Biden shouldn’t hesitate to increase immigration

By Keshav Srikant | April 6

As President Joe Biden campaigned to defeat former President Donald Trump, he was unequivocal in his support for immigrants and immigration. Biden called America a “nation of immigrants” and promised to reform the temporary visa system to make it easier for highly skilled immigrants to stay in the United States. Over two years into his term, this has not happened. Despite attempts in his proposed budget, Biden has not yet increased funding for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency that processes green cards and visas for immigrants, leading to a mounting backlog and longer wait times. He also hasn’t prioritized legislation to raise the national green card caps that restrict skilled immigration, nor has he pressured Congress to increase the H-1B visa cap for high-tech workers or reformed the program as he promised in his campaign.

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Trump’s indictment is not his end 

By Maxwell Shoustal | April 4

It has certainly been a liberal fantasy to see Donald Trump arrested ever since the 2016 election cycle. This possibility now looms imminent after Trump posted on Truth Social claiming he would be arrested on March 21, and the Manhattan District attorney’s office confirmed on Thursday that Trump was formally indicted by a New York grand jury with charges concerning his infamous Stormy Daniels hush money payments. The charges are quite complex, and they are very likely related to a $130,000 payment made by Trump’s then personal attorney, Michael Cohen, to keep porn actor Stormy Daniels from discussing an alleged affair she had with Trump. However, the more than 30 counts that Trump is expected to be charged with are currently sealed from the public. 

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Florida’s recent legislation and American hypocrisy

By Yilan Batista | April 3

In the past month, the Florida state government has released various bills that encroach upon the rights of people of color, gay and trans individuals. On March 14, it was revealed that Florida House Bill 999, Postsecondary Educational Institutions, has prohibited universities from financing any activities “that espouse diversity, equity, or inclusion or Critical Race Theory rhetoric.” Another bill addressing racial matters was issued this year, and the Florida Department of Education banned AP African American studies in all public high schools. 

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Walk away from Walgreens

By Talia Wilcox | March 16

I’m currently reading a book called “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus. The story follows chemist Elizabeth Zott through the trials and tribulations of being a female chemist in the 1950s. It’s full of romance, funny stories about parenthood and stories of misogyny and sexism. Although this novel is set in the 1950s, it seems more relevant than ever as we face the loss of women’s rights. Women’s rights and autonomy took a serious hit with the overturning ofRoe v. Wade last summer, and last week, Walgreens put women on notice regarding their ability to access medical care as they will not sell the abortion pill Mifepristone in 21 states. This decision, prompted by Republican attorneys general, is an extreme show of cowardice by Walgreens. Not only are Republicans interfering with personal healthcare decisions, but this choice has once again made access to abortion much more limited for women who don’t live in urban areas. 

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Willow Project exposes urgent need for permitting reform

By Maxwell Shoustal, Keshav Srikant and Esma Erdem | March 14

In January 2017, ConocoPhillips, the largest crude oil company in Alaska, proposed the Willow Project — an oil drilling project in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska that will take decades to complete and could produce up to 600 million barrels of oil. Since the proposition, the project has been seeking government consent, and President Joe Biden’s administration recently approved the project on a smaller scale than what was proposed. While Alaska’s Congressional delegation argues that the project will create jobs, boost domestic energy production and reduce the country’s reliance on foreign oil, environmentalist politicians such as Al Gore described the project as “recklessly irresponsible.”

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The Democrats’ 2024 primary paradox

By Toby Winick | March 13

As the Democratic Party seeks to build upon its historic midterm success from last year, the 2024 presidential election is a particularly important topic. President Joe Biden will likely seek re-election, giving him an incumbency advantage. Yet, with less than a year until the South Carolina primary, the most significant news development has been Marianne Williamson’s decision to run again in 2024. 

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Christian nationalism is democracy’s greatest threat 

By Maxwell Shoustal | March 7

The Founding Fathers of the United States knew firsthand the dangers of religious belief dominating governmental doctrine. American colonists fled Europe to escape religious persecution, and religious freedom was enshrined as a constitutionally protected right. Of course, religious minorities, especially Muslims and atheists, have still faced discrimination in the United States. However, the goal of true religious freedom set forth by our founders is certainly worth pursuing, as freedom of thought is an integral principle of a democracy. 

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The case for government-owned media

By Keshav Srikant | March 6

For years, Fox News, reported by Forbes as the most-watched cable news network in the United States, has attracted criticism. This stretches as far back as 2009 when the Obama administration controversially refused to refer to Fox News as a “legitimate news organization.” We now know they were right to do so. A few weeks ago, Dominion Voting Systems, as part of their defamation lawsuit against Fox News, released a trove of texts showing Fox News stars had expressed very different sentiments in private than the ones they displayed on air. For example, Sean Hannity, who called on his radio show for a special prosecutor to investigate claims of election fraud, said off air that Rudy Giuliani, who spread claims of election fraud, was “acting like an insane person.” Rupert Murdoch, the owner of Fox News, wrote that after the 2020 election, Hannity was “privately disgusted by Trump for weeks, but was scared to lose viewers.” Perhaps the most revealing text from the Dominion lawsuit though was from Tucker Carlson, who — after a Fox reporter fact-checked a false claim about election fraud — wrote, “Please get her fired. … The stock price is down. Not a joke.” These are just a few examples of many, but they showcase how Fox knowingly spread false information about the 2020 election to maintain viewership and increase profits.

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The U-turn of corporate politics

By Toby Winick | March 2

Americans are now living in a country where corporate patronization and political affiliation become more intertwined each day. In our capitalist democracy, these two aspects are huge parts of cultural character. According to Siege Media, “Fox News” and “CNN” are up with “Starbucks” and “McDonalds” in 2022’s most Googled terms. It is no question how prominent companies and politics are in our daily lives, but there’s been a growing trend of mixing them together. 

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Book bans: Unfortunately not a closed book

By Talia Wilcox | March 2

“The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald is my favorite book. Other favorites of mine include “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, “The Lord of the Flies” by William Golding and “Animal Farm” by George Orwell. All of these books, in addition to at least hundreds of others, have been challenged, banned or removed from libraries all over the United States. A book ban occurs when a person or a group objects to the content of a book, and through successful challenge, that book is removed from libraries and school curricula.

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Jumbos, it’s time to get out of the bubble

By Justin Hong | March 1

I came to Tufts excited to be in a city with real public transportation. Coming from a Los Angeles suburb, just about anything — even the failing MBTA — was a step up from what I was used to back home. Now, I use the T all the time to get to work or just to explore, and it shocks me to see how little some of my friends use it. My exploration of the Greater Boston area introduced me to a great variety of people, ideas and places that I never would have encountered at home without a car.

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