Articles by: skline

 

• Mass Media Presents a Pretty Lie

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:33 pm Comments are Disabled

  Sometimes, I wish I was a hooker. If I could be an intellectual, charming hooker — and there aren’t many out there — then maybe I could win the affection of a man like Richard Gere, a crisp Wall Street sweetheart. Perhaps, I’d be doing my nightly rounds and he’d show up in a fancy convertible, and we’d ride into the misty night with our fingers interlaced. He would have the liberty to erase my shameful midnight exercises and he’d simply enjoy both the philosophical and mundane conversations we’d engage in. The fact that I’m even willing to fancy this implausible delusion demonstrates the disappointing effect that the media has on our thoughts. For those of you who don’t know, the movie “Pretty Woman” is a beautiful cinematic accomplishment proving that the strength of true love removes all obstacles. Realistically, this happens every day whether we choose to notice it or not. But what we seem to ignore is that on the writer’s part, this is a creative endeavor to employ a fantasy that wins the hearts of the masses which then transforms them into money-making machines. Living in reality, we attend school, make it to work with a minute […]

   

• Integration of Opinions Could Serve Government Well

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:31 pm Comments are Disabled

  Recently I was talking to a friend when he downright avoided delving into his political viewpoint. As I pressed further, he explained that it’s a free country and everyone is entitled to his own opinion. However, upon presenting their stance on any matter—religion, politics, what have you, they then become liable for their utterances. As American citizens we are exposed to arguments presented by Republicans and Democrats, atheists and Christians, and hopefully, we are able to settle said disputes in a mature and well-thought-out manner. To quote the New York Times, “Envisioning a charitable but rigorous approach,” is the key to any successful debate. I do not mean successful in that you will get your way every time, but rather that you are able to present your cards to the table without making an utter fool of yourself. All too often politics and religion bring out the very worst in people. They lead to sneers and jeers of opponents, alongside raised voices, rolled eyes, and consummate disproval. In an era where change must begin to happen now, our country will not get anywhere if our most serious debates are handled with little care and are highly symbolic of an elementary-school […]

   

• Television Continues to Plummet in 2012

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:29 pm Comments are Disabled

  There is something very important that needs to be discussed: television. Okay, so it’s not very important, but I’d say it’s at least moderately important. I mean, who doesn’t watch at least some TV? What we need to talk about is the fact that the quality of television in recent days has plummeted. For proof, let’s think about the most recent TV shows to make their debut. On CBS: first and foremost, “Rob,” featuring Rob Schneider. I am at a loss for words right now. Any show starring Rob Schneider is bound to be an utter disaster, much less one named after him and built entirely for him. Why was it necessary to create such a miserable excuse for a television show? As if “Rob” isn’t enough, another terrible show has recently been released: the “Napoleon Dynamite” animated series. Aired on Fox (shocker), the show is based on the 2004 movie. Now, the thing about this show is that it is written by Mike Scully – you know, that guy who wrote “The Simpsons” and “Everybody Loves Raymond.” So it actually has the potential to be good. Just kidding! Let’s get real; it is 100 percent repetitive, filled with bad […]

   

• Respect the Military Despite Differing Views

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:27 pm Comments are Disabled

  When someone in the military does something irresponsible, it’s not a military problem; it’s a people problem. At the beginning of the month, there was a story reported in The New York Times about a video of four U.S. Marines urinating on the bloodied bodies of Taliban soldiers; literally everyone in the United States government, excluding Rick Perry, detests that action, and it’s something I think should be condemned not just on the account of human dignity, but for the sake of our country’s reputation. So there’s my opinion on that — the actual action committed by four isolated guys who in no way represent the entirety of the branches of the U.S. military, which leads into my second and more elaborate opinion: The second you bash the military or pretend that every American soldier would take pictures with or piss on dead bodies of the people they just killed, you become an idiot in my book. Walk into a class at West Point — every single one of those people will be willing to give their life to protect our country, yet you’ve got the nerve to label them all as hyper-nationalist jerks; yeah, that’s an opinion you should […]

   

• Comparing Obama to “Radical” Leader Will Not Work for Republicans in 2012

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:24 pm Comments are Disabled

  Elections are revving into high gear as January comes to a close. The 2012 presidential election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 6, leaving candidates 281 days to step up to the plate and present a platform that will leave no room for discussion and immediately gain one of them the title of Commander in Chief. In our day and age, negative advertisements are common aspects of campaigning. However, recently Newt Gingrich has begun to take a new approach to this method. Saul David Alinsky was a far-left community organizer from Chicago. Despite his philosophical similarity to leaders such as Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin, he was well liked by much of the United States, right and left. Therefore, I’m bewildered that Gingrich would attempt to create a negative tie between President Obama and Alinsky. It would be false to say that Obama’s views don’t resemble those of Alinsky. However, it would also be false to say that the resemblances they share constitute a bad thing. Alinsky’s main effort was to strengthen equality by organizing the poor and powerless in an attempt to articulate their grievances. He didn’t respect private property rights and he believed that everybody should be guaranteed […]

   

• President Obama Signs Away Our Civil Liberties

  Editorials January 30, 2012 at 9:19 pm Comments are Disabled

  Do you hear that? That is the sound of the president and Congress tearing apart the Constitution. While many of us were out celebrating the new year, President Obama was privately signing our civil liberties away. The National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 was masqueraded as a defense appropriations bill, but deep within its pages lay a short passage: Sections 1021 and 1022, which allowed for the indefinite detention of American citizens. Citizens can be detained out of suspicion of terrorist activities without charges being brought against them and certainly without due process, as stated clearly in the Constitution. President Barack Obama released an executive statement after signing the bill that read, “the fact that I support this bill as a whole does not mean I agree with everything in it.” In other words, I want the power to detain American citizens, but I will probably never use it. The president may or may not use this provision. However, what is to stop future presidents from abusing it? Given the president’s three-year civil liberties track record, I simply have no faith that he will keep his word. In a matter of three years, Obama has managed to extend the Patriot […]

   

• Construction Begins on University Common

  News1 January 30, 2012 at 9:15 pm Comments are Disabled

  The new Commons renovations will offer residents amenities such as better community space, new furniture and updated laundry facilities. “The dorms are slated to re-open fall 2012,” said Associate Director of Housing Services, Brian Davis. “These newly renovated spaces will provide our incoming freshmen students an excellent introduction to life at Mason,” said Davis. This coincides with an effort by the Office of Housing and Residence Life to make the housing selection process friendlier to underclassmen. The renovations in the Commons will make the facilities more efficient and safe. This includes better temperature control, a fire alarm/suppression system and electrical systems, according to the Mason Facilities website. “The students can expect some great things happening in the newly renovated Hanover building,” Davis said. Hanover is a community building in the Commons that features student lounges, a vending area and a common kitchen. The spaces themselves will feature more modern furniture, renovated common rooms and new carpet. Residents will also have more laundry facilities. According to Facilities, the project was authorized in July 2010 and construction was slated to being in February of this year. However, construction has already started. “The total cost of the construction to Commons is expected to […]

   
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  Board of Visitors Selects President

  News1 January 30, 2012 at 8:58 pm Comments are Disabled

  Following the announcement of the retirement of current president Alan Merten, the Board of Visitors created a task force to fill the vacancy, which has resulted in Ángel Cabrera, 44, becoming the sixth president of George Mason University. Cabrera will officially take office following Merten’s retirement effective June 30. The process of finding a new president was not easy, said Board of Visitors and Presidential Task Force member Lovey Hammel. According to Hammel, Mason utilized the national search company Greenwood/ Asher & Associates to aid in the search for a new president. The task force decided what they wanted in a new candidate — such as innovation and a drive to improve the university — and then gave their specifications to the company. The task force then had to search through hundreds of potential candidates, and presented the best picks to the Board of Visitors. It should be noted that the task force does not select the president. “The Board of Visitors decides,” Hammel said. “The task force goes through the candidates and presents the Board of Visitors with options.” An oddity in this selection process is that the candidates were anonymous through the entire process, and even the Faculty […]

   
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  Homecourt Advantage

  Sports January 30, 2012 at 8:49 pm Comments are Disabled

  There is still time, Mason Nation. With the Patriots sitting atop the CAA with a 10-1 conference record and students returning to school to fill the Patriot Center for Saturday night’s matchup with James Madison, the Patriot Platoon is up for the Naismith Student Section of the Year award. As part of the award, the Platoon has been nominated as one of the top 80 selections representing 21 conferences, including the Big East and Big Ten Conferences. It will be presented to the loudest, most passionate group of fans in the nation and will be decided by the fans. Fewer things create the type of buzz around the city of Fairfax like a men’s basketball game. Students, professor, families and fans pack the arena for home games. They pour into Brion’s Grill and Hard Times Café for watch parties and postgame meals, awarding Coach Paul Hewitt a standing ovation each time he enters the restaurant. As they did on several occasions on Saturday night, noise meters in the Patriot Center hover far beyond 100 dosimeters, tipping the scales and assisting the Patriots, who owned one of the longest home winning streaks in the nation entering this season. Doc Nix and […]