Opinion

Opinion

It’s all Greek to me

By Sam Novack | April 9, 2013

The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life’s FAQ page addresses questions about alcohol and hazing by saying that such organizations are “expected to comply with the policies and regulations concerning alcohol that are outlined by the University,” and that the University “does not condone hazing in any form.” Show those answers to a fraternity brother, and I bet the most common reaction would be a chuckle.

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Opinion

Wall of separation

By Alex Yahanda | April 9, 2013

A group of North Carolina Republicans recently introduced a resolution that would give the state the right to establish an official religion. That religion — most likely Christianity — would be introduced via clauses in the bill that deny the power of the First Amendment at the state level.

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Opinion

Alphabet soup

By Managing Board | April 9, 2013

Monday’s frenzy escalated to comic proportions for two primary reasons. First, and most critically, an interconnected student body linked by social media and other forms of instant communication caused false reports to run rampant. Second, a climate of fear surrounding alcohol use, sparked by ABC’s crackdown and last week’s request from Dean of Students Allen Groves for fraternities to end new-member initiation for the sake of student safety, led students to believe that police officers could or would enter their rooms without permission — and against what the Constitution allows — at a school that, on a sunny afternoon, lies in Monticello’s shadow.

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Opinion

The creativity conundrum

By Walter Keady | April 8, 2013

Students often view requirement courses as obstacles to overcome rather than opportunities for introspection. A course on creativity, or a course that is explicitly designed to teach students how to be creative in their work, should fall into the latter category. But how can universities mandate teaching creativity without sacrificing the voluntary, liberating attitude that should accompany creativity-oriented courses?

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Opinion

The harm in standing by

By George Knaysi | April 8, 2013

The message consoles but also offers a challenge: how can we band together to decrease gender violence and re-strengthen our community of trust? I believe the answer lies in educating and engaging students to refuse to idly stand by when possible wrongdoing occurs.

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Opinion

A dissembling deluge of numbers

By Ashley Stevenson | April 8, 2013

Numbers are great weapons, made to dissemble.

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Opinion

The ducks in the Dell

By Priya Vithani | April 8, 2013

As I walk, a thousand things flash into my mind: future meetings, dance team practices, upcoming programs and classes. Despite my constant need for haste, however, I somehow manage to latch on to the little details in my surroundings: I notice the lady who waits at the Chemistry bus stop every morning, the color of certain buildings and the way in which the employees at the dining halls interact with one another. I notice many minute details like these, and it was by chance the other day that I stumbled upon three little ducks that, in a way, have taught me so much about my own University experience.

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Opinion

Pledge allegiance

By Managing Board | April 7, 2013

The spring tumult of fraternity pledge-ship came to a halt 6 p.m. Sunday — the deadline the University set, with little warning, for Inter-Fraternity Council organizations to end pledging activities and initiate new members. The University requested Thursday that fraternities make new members full brothers by 6 p.m. Saturday. The school later granted a one-day extension. But many fraternity men, if past initiation trends hold, would have liked an extension of 24 days, not 24 hours.

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Opinion

Spreading the sunshine

By Ashley Spinks | April 7, 2013

This week, I’ve witnessed everything from encouraging Post-it notes around my dorm to loving posters hung on lampposts and columns. I’ve seen a podium set up outside of Clark Hall encouraging passers-by to “Say Something Nice,” and the entire Amphitheatre transformed into a petting zoo.

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Opinion

Thin envelopes

By Meredith Berger | April 7, 2013

Many colleges, including the University, recently sent their acceptance letters, which means many prospective students who did not get into the University were left devastated with the words “We are sorry to inform you” pounding in their heads.

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Opinion

Come on, Cuccinelli

By Managing Board | April 3, 2013

Cuccinelli has been a thorn in the University’s side as attorney general; as governor, he could do a lot more damage. His action against the sodomy ruling suggests, first, a grave misunderstanding of the proper scope of government in relation to individual freedom — why should the state tell consenting adults what they may or may not do in the bedroom? — and second, a sinister impulse toward homophobia, as sodomy statutes have historically been strategically enforced to persecute gay men.

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Opinion

We don’t have much time

By Forrest Brown | April 3, 2013

To curb the effects of partisanship on our representatives, term limits — similar to the two-term limit imposed on the presidency — need to be instituted for all positions in Congress.

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Opinion

Pull the plug on plug-pulling

By Andrew Kouri | April 3, 2013

Every time I fly, I am reminded of society’s willingness to comply with the status quo when I am forced to pause my music until reaching the magical altitude of 10,000 feet, below which my Kindle would supposedly send aircraft, satellites and the International Space Station spiraling into Armageddon-style oblivion.

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Opinion

More than the bare minimum

By Claire Wyatt | April 3, 2013

In the last decade, MIT, Georgetown, UC-Berkeley, all eight Ivy League schools and many other institutions have committed to paying their employees a living wage. At U.Va., paying employees a living wage would require a reallocation of a fraction of one percent of the annual operating budget. Why has U.Va. refused to join its peers?

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Opinion

Making the best MOOCs

By Lou Bloomfield | April 3, 2013

The University may be proud of the “How Things Work” Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) I’m teaching, but my workload in producing that MOOC is my own doing.

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Opinion

The pursuit of happiness

By Virginia Moore | April 2, 2013

For these little things — these little joys — the bottom why comes down to someone giving back.

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Opinion

The Facebook delusion

By Fariha Kabir | April 2, 2013

Scrolling Facebook, looking at the many marriage-equality images, I question how many people posted the picture because they were aware of the Supreme Court cases and how many posted it because of peer influence.

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Opinion

Searching for reasons

By Alex Yahanda | April 2, 2013

Even if you do not use Google, you are probably aware of the search engine’s practice of stylizing its homepage logo into quirky doodles. The doodles normally reference a particular person or event, usually one that coincides with the date on which the doodle appears. Many users consider the doodles one of the site’s endearing characteristics. This past Easter, though, Google’s doodle incited controversy in a ridiculous instance of religious outrage.

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Opinion

The need to succeed

By George Knaysi | April 1, 2013

Groves makes a point that should be self-evident but is not. For students looking to distinguish themselves and make a lasting contribution to the University, a better approach may be to work with the raw materials of a lesser-known CIO than to occupy a well-established leadership role, however coveted.

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Opinion

The laugh of the beholder

By Walter Keady | April 1, 2013

Vulgarity in humor is nothing new. One might even call it cliché. Whether in Shakespearean plays, on Vaudeville stages or on Comedy Central, offensive humor is everywhere. While it is nearly impossible to define exactly what makes people laugh, blatant and/or intentional offensiveness is often so different from normal behavior that it comes off as funny. Creating laughter seems harmless enough, but disrespectful jokes, though intended to be humorous, are often vilified when their content involves especially taboo subjects.