29 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(03/21/18 4:56am)
There is little doubt that Aramark leaves much room for improvement concerning its partnership with U.Va. Dining. Most recently, dining facilities at the University were found to have incurred 86 health code violations over 2017, including 43 “priority” violations. These health violations are indicative of Aramark’s general disregard for food safety in the past — from serving prisoners reheated trash to failing to meet state health standards. Notwithstanding all of the ethical complaints that Aramark has faced in the past, there is at least one field in which Aramark can improve in serving the University community — correcting the inaccurate or nonexistent information provided to students regarding nutritional information.
(02/12/18 5:18am)
In recent months, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple have received national media coverage due to reaching all-time highs in December 2017 before suffering historic crashes over the past few days. Stemming in part from a suspicion of stock markets, these currencies have proven attractive (especially to younger generations) because of their ability to bypass modern financial institutions and their “trustless” nature. Their practical use, however, remains limited — and despite claims from cryptocurrency enthusiasts of their world-changing possibility, there is little reason to believe that cryptocurrencies will one day replace the modern-day financial system.
(01/25/18 6:54am)
In recent weeks, the viral “Tide Pod Challenge”— in which participants ingest single-load detergent packets — has been the subject of national news coverage. While it goes without saying that ingesting Tide Pods is unbelievably dangerous, it is important to note that — despite the global coverage that the “Tide Pod Challenge” has received — 2018 thus far has seen just slightly less than 100 intentional ingestions of Tide Pods in the United States. Rather than focus on the limited impacts the “Tide Pod Challenge” has had on the American populace thus far, mainstream media sources should be focused on covering the actual threats posed by such packets. Namely, their attractiveness to young children and those suffering from dementia.
(11/28/17 5:01am)
Under the purview of Ajit Pai, the Federal Communications Commission recently announced it would be voting in December to scrap net neutrality protections enshrined during the Obama administration. The removal of such provisions would allow internet service providers to slow down — or entirely block access to — websites which fail to pay additional fees to internet service providers or contain controversial content. Needless to say, removing such protections would threaten American entrepreneurship, stifle political discourse and further empower the corporations which already enjoy monopolies over American markets.
(11/08/17 6:13am)
The extent of Russian involvement in the 2016 U.S. Presidential election through mass disinformation and dissemination of false news has proven to be a growing issue for tech companies such as Google, Facebook and Twitter. These companies have found themselves under scrutiny for allowing such activity on their platforms. In response to this criticism — and perhaps to avoid federal regulations — tech companies have claimed they have taken steps to prevent such issues from arising again. If the tech industry is truly seeking to self-regulate, it should look to the gaming industry, and specifically the Electronic Software Rating Board, or ESRB — one of the nation’s most effective self-regulatory organizations.
(11/02/17 6:07am)
On Oct. 29, fellow Opinion columnist Milan Bharadwaj argued that the Second Amendment is essential in stopping campus violence — specifically, sexual assault. There is no doubt that sexual assault is a serious issue plaguing American college campuses, due to a lack of general preparedness in investigating sexual violence, providing relief to survivors and training law enforcement to deal with such scenarios. Bharadwaj, however, makes numerous mistakes in arguing that the Second Amendment would prove vital to stopping campus violence — implementing a so-called “Second Amendment solution” would only endanger the safety of the student body.
(10/26/17 4:21am)
The Republican Party emerged as the undisputed victor of the 2016 elections, gaining control of the executive branch and maintaining its grip over Congress. The party’s performance in governing since then has been less than impressive. The party has failed at least 50 times in its attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, has yet to sign any major legislation and faces increasing dissent from its most valuable donors as a result of its legislative failures. The incompetence displayed by the Republican Party signals its lack of conviction towards any actual policy. Indeed, the party’s sole goal is to win election by any means necessary or, in the event of defeat, actively sabotage its opponents.
(10/12/17 5:31am)
The Environmental Protection Agency was established by President Richard Nixon in 1970 in order to “protect human health and the environment.” In his infinite wisdom, President Donald Trump nominated former Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to be the next Administrator of the EPA. This choice ruined any chances of federal action to combat the effects of climate change, while ensuring that the United States would cede innovation and development of renewable energy sources to other nations such as China or India. The recent announcement that the EPA is taking steps to dismantle the Obama-era Clean Power Plan only highlights the need for private industry to take over the mission of a federal agency now controlled by individuals hostile to its very existence.
(09/28/17 5:20am)
North Korea has reemerged onto the national spotlight by conducting numerous missile tests in addition to engaging in an unnecessary insult war with President Donald Trump. There is no doubt that North Korea’s missile tests are concerning. Recent launches have indicated that North Korea has the potential to strike cities as far as Boston or New York, and North Korea’s nuclear capability has continued to grow unchecked despite sanctions. These unsettling events, however, should not force the United States to take a more aggressive role in checking North Korean nuclear power. Historically, North Korea’s actions are no different from its previous behavior, and has taken far more drastic actions in the past.
(09/22/17 3:34am)
Vaccinations have served as a cornerstone of public health and safety thanks to their exceptional effectiveness in preventing the spread of infectious disease. The announcement of a safe and effective polio vaccine by Dr. Jonas Salk’s team in 1955 has proven directly responsible for eradicating the polio virus in the United States — a disease which previously crippled some 35,000 Americans each year. Despite the multiple societal benefits achieved through vaccination, however, nearly 10 percent of Americans — including the President of the United States — have expressed doubt over the safety of vaccines. In doing so, these selfish individuals threaten the public health of society at large, causing preventable outbreaks of diseases once previously under control.
(09/12/17 3:28am)
The United States has been hit by Hurricane Irma just mere days after Hurricane Harvey devastated Texas. Combined, both disasters have already killed upwards of 100 people, and recovery costs may reach two times that of Katrina’s $160 billion in economic losses. Though Congress has taken short-term action to respond to these disasters, legislators must initiate reforms to better mitigate the impact of future disasters, rather than continue its haphazard pattern of providing funding only after such disasters occur.
(09/05/17 3:45am)
On Aug. 31, the Trump administration announced it will be slashing federal funding for advertisement to encourage enrollment in the Affordable Care Act. The 90 percent decrease comes just a few months before the opening of the 2018 enrollment season, with officials claiming to be “moving forward by matching funding to performance.” While the ACA is undeniably flawed in numerous ways, the administration’s decision to cut advertisement funding for the law possesses few benefits, if any. Rather, the decision to cut its funding serves the sole purpose of intentionally letting the ACA fail.
(08/31/17 4:29am)
The recent “Unite the Right” rally resulted in the death of Heather Heyer and the injury of over 30 others. Unsurprisingly, numerous congressional members were swift in criticizing the actions of white supremacists and neo-Nazis. However, despite such statements from congressional leaders and members, Congress has taken little to no concrete action in addressing the Charlottesville violence, abandoning an opportunity to respond with conviction and provide closure. Given the executive branch’s utter incompetence in handling the Charlottesville events — and general apathy in combating far-right terrorism, which has been responsible for 73 percent of violent extremist attacks in the United States since September 2001 — it is disappointing at best and insulting at worst to see Congress take the same path of lethargy in response to the events of Charlottesville.
(05/04/17 3:01am)
The University’s Student Information System is no stranger to criticism. During the 2016-17 academic year, my fellow Opinion columnists have written numerous articles talking about the need to improve SIS, whether this be through rebuilding it or by promoting third-party platforms. It is no secret SIS is a much-maligned system to operate. Numerous tools such as Lou’s List, theCourseForum and UVASchedule exist to simplify administrative tasks as simple as viewing details for classes or preparing a class schedule. The need for students to rely on third-party programs due to SIS’s confusing and unintuitive layout is a sign that SIS requires a significant redesign.
(04/27/17 5:02am)
For decades, countless literary works and popular films such as “Back to the Future” and “Star Wars” have fantasized about the feasibility of the flying car. Although significant focus has been placed on the advent of self-driving cars — along with their associated risks and benefits — the development of flying cars is not one to be ignored, with companies such as Uber and Kitty Hawk announcing their intention to develop and test the first iterations of flying cars as early as 2020. While it is fascinating to see another sci-fi fantasy become reality, the practical applications of such technology leave much to be desired.
(04/21/17 4:27am)
In recent weeks, North Korea has stolen the national spotlight due to its conduction of multiple missile tests into the Sea of Japan. Recently, Vice President Mike Pence declared the policy of “strategic patience” a “failed policy,” signaling a fundamental shift in how the United States deals with North Korea. Unsurprisingly, this radical change in dealing with North Korea has sparked significant interest among the American public, and the possible outbreak of war has been brought up by multiple media sources. While worrisome, North Korea’s actions are no different from decades of pre-established behavior — if anything, the Trump administration has only exacerbated such war hysteria through its ineptitude and infighting.
(04/17/17 5:43am)
The pursuit of diversity of opinion is a decades-old process, consistently praised for positively influencing scientific research and workplace habits. Publications such as The New York Times or AllSides attempt to pierce so-called “filter bubbles” by presenting arguments from political liberals, moderates and conservatives. The Cavalier Daily’s public editor, Jacquelyn Katuin, noted that “it is important to continue this dialogue and encourage healthy, substantive debate about political issues and other content.” No doubt, a diversity of opinion is essential in formulating well-rounded, convincing arguments; however, in promoting articles from those across the political spectrum, journalists and reporters must abstain from providing a false balance — described by Oxford researcher Robert Grimes as “when journalists present opposing viewpoints as being more equal than the evidence allows” — when dealing with scientific and political issues.
(03/24/17 4:09am)
The United States, by all accounts, suffers from unprecedented levels of gun violence and deaths in comparison to other first-world nations. An article from the BBC reported “the number of gun murders per capita in the [United States] in 2012 … was nearly 30 times that in the UK, at 2.9 per 100,000 compared with just 0.1.” A report by the Center for Disease Control noted 33,599 people were killed by firearms in 2014, “accounting for 16.8 percent of all injury deaths in that year.” The National Rifle Association defines a smart gun as one “that incorporates technology that would prevent the gun from being used by an unauthorized person.” Although intriguing, mandating "smart" guns for users would nonetheless have a negligible effect in solving America’s issues with gun violence, while also introducing new security holes into already-dangerous tools.
(03/16/17 4:04am)
The Affordable Care Act has been the subject of intense controversy since its passing in 2010. Following the passage, the American uninsured rate dropped to 11 percent by the first quarter of 2016 — the lowest in an eight-year trend. However, health plan costs have continued to rise at unsustainable levels, with premiums expected to rise by an average of 25 percent during 2017. Given that Republicans control both Congress and the presidency, the ACA was inevitably in dire straits. However, the American Health Care Act, proposed by House Republicans on March 6, does little to amend the failures of the ACA, and may in fact worsen the coverage crisis in America.
(02/20/17 5:00am)
It is no secret a significant portion of the American public lacks fundamental knowledge about how the federal government works. A study conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania found that only 26 percent of Americans could correctly name all three branches of government while only 54 percent of those surveyed correctly knew that only Congress has the power to declare war. At the same time, voter turnout in the U.S. lags behind that of other developed nations; the Pew Research Center reported that the U.S. ranks 31st out of 35 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In an ever-increasingly partisan and acrimonious political environment, promoting civics education in the U.S. would perform multiple vital services to the American public in educating citizens about the functions of government while promoting civil engagement.