The fight to combat global warming and energy dependence was a key domestic issue ingrained in the American psyche roughly a year ago as President Barack Obama and John McCain journeyed on the campaign trail, preaching the importance of sustainability and decreasing America's dependence on foreign oil. Just as the environmental political platform began to pick up popularity, the financial crisis and global economic woes blew the steam out of environmental issues, making them mere afterthoughts in comparison to the economy.
I was intrigued by the proposal to make public students' evaluations of their UC Irvine instructors in the "Motion to Release Teacher Evaluations" article on Feb. 9. It would be a nice way to end the misguided dependence some have on RateMyProfessors.com (RMP), where anyone, student or not, can post an evaluation, and there is no control over sample sizes or bias of participants. A number of assertions made by interviewees in the New University article, however, need context and consideration before they serve as a basis for a new policy.
SUBURBAN OUTFITTER: If you're anything like me — a shopaholic with a lack of funding — fashion can be fun, but sometimes overwhelming. If you sometimes find yourself debating whether or not to trade a week's worth of dinner for a pair of heels you can't stop thinking about, this week's column is dedicated to you. I love to shop, but my meager college student budget determines what I can actually spend money on versus what I should buy for less. Here are my thoughts on what to splurge on, what to save on, and where to get it.
Your take on labor justice is likely all about where you started from. My perspective starts with the old slogan, "An injury to one is an injury to all." There is probably no need to explain that expression of solidarity, but the question of unity and sharing is about with whom you practice it and how generous you want to be.
President Barack Obama gave his first interview since he's taken office to Al-Arabiya, a Saudi news network on Jan. 26. There is no doubt that the move was both impressive and constructive. The old face of imperialism, which characterized the Bush administration, has left some hope for change in our relations with the Arab world. President Obama has kept some notable promises since he has taken oath, namely closing down the infamous Guantanamo Bay and meeting with the war cabinet to discuss the withdrawal of troops in Iraq by May 2010. He has made it clear that he'll hold the age-old mantra of "Peace in the Middle East" to his name.
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences recently released a sobering new study that found climate change and human damage to the global environment to be essentially irreversible.
Oh, it has been an interesting seven years at the top, hasn't it? However, seven years is not a direct reference to the Bush administration's two terms in power, but to Fox News' reign as the number one cable news channel — a title that has absolutely everything to do with the outgoing president and the coverage he received by the so-called "fair and balanced" network. It seems as if Sept. 11 was the push that Fox News needed to get its slimy head completely out of the womb and into the ass of Bush Jr. Ever since, the two entities have enjoyed an effortless, co-dependent and totally platonic romance that went something like this...
If all goes according to plan, Elizabeth Watkins will graduate at the end of spring quarter with a degree in studio art. It will have been her fourth year as a transfer student at UC Irvine and her seventh as an undergraduate. Along with her degree, Watkins will also walk off stage with a $6,000 student loan. In many ways, at first glance, she is lucky...
THE SWAGGER: Many of you are probably wondering how we got that awesome shot of the men's volleyball players on the back page. Not to toot my own horn, but you only see this kind of stuff in Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine. And that was my inspiration.
