Opinion

Friends with (emotional and health) benefits

Everyone has to create their own work-social life balance and must, then, make their own decisions about how social integration and interaction plays a role in their life. But they must also remember that friendship, if fostered and nurtured, will help keep them emotionally and physically healthy for years to come.

Putting federal sentencing on trial

To achieve a universally comprehensive criminal justice reform, the federal judicial system should assume its role in the effort to differentiate the treatment for violent and non-violent offenders.

#MeToo, but what about everybody else?

My problem with the idea is not with the posts themselves - I support going public as a way for women to remove the stigma from being a victim of sexual harassment and assault, and I think owning that experience through public statements can be empowering. Women should not have to expose themselves to the voyeurism of social media and perform the emotional labor of publicly owning and explaining their past trauma in order to show men the “magnitude of the problem.” The magnitude should be clear by now. It has been happening for LITERALLY ever. This is a problem. Most women who have had any experience as women are not shocked by the Weinstein accusations, because they have seen and/or lived this all multiple times before.

Letter to the Editor: AJP commends CJL’s postponement of Hotovely talk

Chabad at Princeton picked up sponsorship for an address by Tzipi Hotovely, a member of Israel’s Knesset, and Hotovely spoke to a full lecture hall of students — including many members of the Alliance of Jewish Progressives — as planned, but without CJL sponsorship. 

Letter From the Editor: DACA

A piece of documentation should not stand in the way of a person’s dreams. It’s on all of us to make undocumented people’s dreams a reality. 

Rethinking the academy: Opposing the conflation of the Academy with Western Academy

Then the realization hit: there is an unstated, but unquestioned, notion across humanities and social science that the Academy refers only to Western Academy (used broadly to refer to European and North American academia), and if something hasn’t been said in the Western Academy, it is as though it has never been said.

Letter from the Editor: Reflection on campus discourse

Today, so many of us mourn the lives lost in a mass shooting at a church in San Antonio – a gross violation of the sanctity of a place of worship and its community. Today, I hang my head in shame at our collective inaction and complacency. As a journalist, I hang my head in shame at the proliferation of fake news and a double standard in the reporting on recent attacks. As a student, I hang my head in shame at our silence. Prayers and condolences are not enough, so I ask each of us to critically consider our capacity and responsibility to act in the service of humanity. Our campus community seems confined to politically polarized echo chambers, and it can be rare to find a platform for discussion across ideological differences, as opposed to vitriolic debate defined by identity politics. I invite you to engage directly with someone who does not share your race, faith, or political stance, because we are all part of one community and the onus is on each and every one of us to act in its service.

Letter to the Editor: Statement opposing Tzipi Hotovely’s visit to the Center for Jewish Life

By inviting MK Hotovely to speak, the Center for Jewish Life violates its own official policy on Israel-related events, which states that “The CJL will not, however, sponsor groups or speakers that, as a matter of policy or practice, foster an atmosphere of incivility, intend to harm Israel, or promote racism or hatred of any kind.” In clear violation of this policy, Hotovely has repeatedly made racist statements. 

Birth control is healthcare

The author of a recent Prince column would presumably take issue with Merriam-Webster. According to Thomas Clark, birth control should not be considered healthcare because it “suppresses the natural function of the reproductive system” or “counteract(s) normal bodily operation” — to be contrasted with other therapies “that treat illnesses or disorders and seek to return the body to health.” 

Existing elitism: The pass/list system

While it makes sense that the members should have a say in who gets to enter their club, the pass/list system is a prime example of the prevailing elitism on campus. 

Letter to the Editor: Don't boo, vote

If you want to help create a bulwark of states against the Trump Administration and prevent a further power imbalance in state and national politics, follow President Barack Obama’s advice: “Don’t Boo. Vote!”

All Tricks, No Treats

Letter to the Editor: Response to Jon Ort

I want to affirm that some, hopefully many, Princeton University librarians are keenly aware of and concerned about privacy issues, especially in an online environment.

Princeton, possibility, and living in the moment

When we stay in the library until 2 a.m. to finish that problem set or to read that scholarly text, we are not doing so simply because we cannot get enough of differential equations or the wisdom of Nietzsche. The future employers and others that we must impress to achieve professional happiness appreciate a strong academic record. In other words, there is a profound thirst for future possibility among Princetonians.

Letter to the Editor: Live criticism — critique as care, idealism as necessity

Ultimately, my critics and I agree: Let’s make use of the fabulous space we now have, dynamically and with heart. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t also question it.

Before proceeding, ponder privacy

If I really wanted to keep my identity secret, I would not maintain an online presence. Despite my recent adoption of Duck Duck Go, I have already forfeited a good deal of personal information by searching on the Internet, establishing online accounts, and making digital purchases. 

Birth control and health care

Hormonal birth control — assuming it is prescribed to avoid pregnancy and not to treat another gynecological problem — suppresses the natural function of the reproductive system. This sets it apart from other drugs that treat illnesses or disorders and seek to return the body to health, as defined by the proper functioning of all bodily systems. Certainly, contraception may improve the subjective well-being of the person, yet the ability to become pregnant is far from a disorder; it is an indicator of health. 

The art of storytelling

On Monday, Oct. 9, Emmy-award winning actor, rapper, and activist Riz Ahmed came to Princeton to speak about his own South Asian and Muslim identities in the spheres of society and art. Ahmed broke ground for his performance in HBO’s “The Night Of” as not only the first South Asian man to win any Emmy at all for acting but also the first Muslim or Asian to win the award in this category.  

The ballot: Game-changer or sideline player?

Although voter turnout rates are especially low in gubernatorial elections, this upcoming New Jersey election could prove different. With two new candidates representing the major parties, the fate of New Jersey is in your hands. You’ve got to play the game of politics to win it. 

Letter to the Editor: Replies to an unjust criticism of the new Lewis Center

This past week, Kyle Berlin ’18 sent a letter to the editor in which he criticized the new Lewis Center for the Arts complex. From decrying the center’s allegedly garish architectural style, to its supposed complicity in the Neoliberal Cooptation of the Arts, Berlin spared no aspect of the University’s newest project in his piece. As it turns out, not only are his accusations vague and unimportant, but they are wrong, threatening to obscure the great good that the existence of this new center will do for the University.