Opinion

The wrong debate on the humanities

I will leave the debate over whether Goldman Sachs caused our recent recession to someone with more economics credentials than a B in ECO 101: Introduction to Macroeconomics. But from a social perspective, it is clear that investment banks have a huge impact on our lives by their ability to manipulate staggering amounts of wealth and to decide the fate of millions of people’s financial futures. Yet finance is not the only way to make an impact. We in the humanities (I came out as a philosophy major to my family over Thanksgiving) are constantly trying to convince ourselves and others of the utility of our study.

Everything in moderation

Students who feel embarrassed sharing their problems with their friends or don’t wear their hearts on their sleeves can find an audience with other Princetonians on PrincetonFML, maybe the same friends whom they can’t approach personally. There’s a certain catharsis that you can experience when you get to express your woes, and a vindication that you feel when others sympathize or empathize with you.

Letters to the Editor: Dec. 9, 2010

Laiyin Li and Justine Chiu comment on the Ivy League Asian American Conference, Benjamin Kalinsky defends "grade-grubbers," and Samuel Galson objects to TFI's rhetoric.

Austerity

My fellow columnist Adam Bradlow is correct that we shouldn’t implement austerity measures just because we habitually balance our own budgets. At the same time, we actually need them within the next few years at risk of economic catastrophe.

Yes we can (write)

I’m sick of people complaining about the poor quality of opinion columns in The Daily Princetonian. They’re right, but nevertheless it irritates me.

Cartoon: Hunkering down

Editorial: Participate in the discussion on Firestone's future

The editorial board encourages the University community — and especially undergraduate students, who are unlikely to witness these changes during their time at Princeton — to attend these important sessions and provide feedback

Spotted: Feminists at Princeton

You might believe that students at Princeton divide feminists into two major camps: those who calmly pursue a traditional Second Wave feminist agenda (fighting against civic and legal inequalities), and those who just complain. You might believe this, but thankfully, you’d be wrong.

Letters to the Editor: Dec. 7, 2010

Cason Crosby Cheely applauds professors' accepting different views and Rachna Vyas asks governments to invest more in education.

Cartoon: "I'm going to jump!"

A modest referendum

It has recently come to light that there is an active, constructive debate over whether the University has been forcing students into misuse of water resources on campus. Aggressively pushed both in the press and on Facebook by the Princeton Conservation Pact (PCP) and hotly contested by the Tigers For Innovation (TFI), the debate has caught the eye of many across the country as tempers flare.

French without tears

Universities around the country have found it necessary to eliminate foreign language programs. The State University of New York at Albany found itself in the headlines not long ago when its administration decided to eliminate majors in French, Italian, Russian, Greek and Latin — a decision that seemed particularly unfortunate for a university that promises students “The World Within Reach.” Louisiana State University; the University of Maine; the University of Nevada, Las Vegas; and Winona State University have announced similar decisions.

Cartoon: How to ask a girl out to formals

Editorial: Publicize honor proceedings

To allow for more transparency, accused students should be given the option of having the Honor Committee publicly release all evidence from their trial, including both material evidence and a transcript of the witnesses’ testimonies. Such a system would provide a clearer understanding of how trials work and would allow accused students who disagree with the outcome of their trials to make public the evidence against them.

The vocal feminist minority

Do radical feminists alienate men and in so doing set back their cause? In a recent column, David Mendelsohn shared an anecdote in which he offered a female friend help moving a table and was rebuffed when the friend responded, “My biggest pet peeve is when people ask if I need help with something. I’ve done more labor-intensive work than anyone here, but people insist that I need help just because I have boobs!” This, he claimed, suggests that feminists are in two camps: the reasonable ones who “focus on very real modern issues,” and the “highly vocal minority of the feminist movement” who “are hypersensitive to criticism, actively look for evidence of sexism and find it everywhere.”While I don’t intend to attack Mendelsohn’s column, I’d like to give historical context to his comments, as I understand them.

Cartoon: The hummus

Why Princeton should do it early

Princeton should reap the benefits of early admission, as all its peers already do.

An active tolerance

All I ask of anyone else from every person who presents themselves as accepting of all beliefs, is a companion acceptance of my and others’ faiths’ stranger requirements.

Editorial: Smart decisions on STI testing

AIDS prevention and awareness are among the most important health causes among students our age, and making HIV tests more widely available is one of the most effective means of accomplishing these goals.

Illustration: Hello, December.