The opinions presented below are solely the views of the author and do not represent the views of The News-Letter. If you are a member of the Hopkins community looking to submit a piece or a letter to the editor, please email opinions@jhunewsletter.com.
Facebook has become one of the largest sites on the web, and by far the largest online community. It has been praised for it’s usefulness, it’s networking capabilities, it’s relevance to the new age of technology. But to what extent is Facebook actually useful now? Does it really help us connect with our friends? Does it really help our productivity? Is it even fun to be on just to waste time anymore?
Fall tuition for 2013 was $22,735, up from the $21,965 from last fall. Together those numbers represent a 3.5 percent increase in the total cost of tuition, compared with an inflation rate of around 1.2 percent from 2012-2013. While Hopkins students have become used to accepting this yearly increase — as have students at other universities around the country — another additional fee was tacked on to the cost of education this year. The University recently added a $250 Intersession fee for Academic Exploration courses. While some classes do not charge this fee, the overwhelming majority do.
With the election of Hassan Rouhani as Iran’s new president, the foreign relations between Iran and the United States have thawed slightly. The new government under Rouhani has undertaken multiple diplomatic measures, including the release of several political prisoners, conciliatory statements from Iranian leaders, and even an exchange of letters and a phone call between President Obama and President Rouhani. Rouhani is a political moderate, which is a stark contrast from his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. After Rouhani’s election, there is now hope that Iran can take a different path, not only by entering negotiations over its nuclear program but also by seizing what appears to be a genuine opportunity for change.
President John F. Kennedy, in Profiles in Courage, wrote the following:
The residents of Adams House in AMR II have introduced a revolutionary method of studying and doing their homework. Be it Biology, Chemistry, Calculus I, II, or III, Adams residents have decided to write it on the hallway walls. Visitors to the first floor hallway of Adams House have become accustomed to finding equations, explanations, diagrams, or step-by-step work done by and for roommates and friends, either left over from some earlier session or presently in use by a study group.
At the 2014 FIFA World Cup next summer, soccer fans around the globe will rejoice in their love for the sport. But while the world celebrates the gathering of the most talented soccer players in the world, there is no doubt that the United States will show a striking lack of enthusiasm. It has always surprised me that the most influential nation on Earth is unable to share the rest of the world’s love for soccer. Of course there are plenty of soccer fans in the United States, but unlike other nations we have prevented the sport from becoming a part of our cultural identity. In fact, we don’t even care to refer to it by its proper name. For some reason, Americans insist on calling the sport “soccer,” even though the internationally common “football” is the most straightforward name for the game.
Hosting the Olympics is a matter of national pride. Every two years the nations of the world descend upon the International Olympic Committee to vie for the honor . Often, hosting the Olympics becomes an opportunity for a country to redefine itself, to make a dramatic statement to the world as it attempts to come to the forefront of international politics. The 2008 Beijing games represented China’s grand entrance onto the world stage as a global power, after decades of extraordinary economic growth. In the eyes of Russia’s elite, Sochi bears the same potential as Beijing. It comes as no surprise, then, that since winning the bid to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, Russia has invested a tremendous amount of resources into creating what it believes will be, according to the official website, “the world’s greatest sporting event”. As well as heralding the return of Russian prestige, Putin doubtlessly hopes to use the 2014 Winter Olympics at Sochi as a crowning symbol for his fourteen year rule as Russia’s undisputed strongman.
Public opinion on internet anonymity has been fickle and inconsistent in recent months. Ever since Edward Snowden leaked classified NSA proceedings via Wikileaks, nervous blogs and news sites have been campaigning for a return to internet privacy. But in this day and age, true and total privacy is an undesirable ideal. Undeniably, society has developed an unhealthy dependence for social networking as a means of facilitating daily life. Before the smart device era, people were able to walk the streets without reaching for their phones every few steps. Nowadays, we’ve become so obsessed that the slight muscle twitches in our legs begin to register as vibrating phone notifications (don’t deny it, its happened to all of us.)
Last Saturday’s President’s Day of Service (PDOS) was, for the fifth consecutive year, a great step in the right direction. However, it was still just a step.
For the past two days, Hopkins’ controversial pro-life advocacy group Voice for Life (VFL) has staged a “Cemetery of the Innocents” demonstration near the freshman quad. The group placed rows of white cross grave markers in a makeshift cemetery, symbolizing the deaths of fetuses resulting from abortions, and posted group members at a booth to engage with interested passersby. VFL has drawn significant controversy in the past, particularly last spring during the debate over its recognition as an official student group on campus. It was no surprise, therefore, that this week’s display garnered significant attention, debate and consternation.
In your issue of Oct. 17, an essay by Alli Greco about Stephen Crane’s novella Maggie helps readers understand this painful story in the context of American urban development in the late nineteenth century. News-Letter readers might be interested to know that we have a world-class collection of rare Stephen Crane material right here at JHU — letters, magazines and first editions, including a first edition of Maggie from 1893. The story that Greco glosses was considered too scandalous for public consumption, and Crane could not get it published. So he paid an unknown printer about $700 (a huge sum at the time) for several hundred copies, which he attempted (unsuccessfully) to distribute himself. After Crane became famous for his second novel, The Red Badge of Courage, Maggie was republished by a traditional publisher — but with significant changes to make it more palatable to the average American reader. The 1893 copies which he could not give away are now extremely rare.
Last Friday night, while most Hopkins students were undoubtedly busy studying or preparing for a sound night’s sleep, they were momentarily interrupted by hundreds of raucous voices yelling “Bike Party!” from the streets outside. This was due to the Baltimore Halloween Brew-Ha-Ha Bike Party, an event in which approximately 1500 bikers braved the cold to bike around Baltimore and yell things while wearing exotic costumes. After the bike ride, the participants gathered to celebrate the occasion with a DJ’d dance party and Halloween catwalk competition, along with an abundance of discounted beer on tap from the Union Craft Brewery. The event was the latest in a series of themed bike parties periodically organized over the past 18 months, growing from a mere 70 participants in April of 2012 to a peak of 1700 this past June. Celebrity participants have included Miss Maryland and the Mayor of Baltimore, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.
Professor Stuart W. Leslie has been commissioned to write the first scholarly history of Hopkins by the University itself. The Editorial Board would like to commend not only the University for sponsoring the book but also Professor Leslie for undertaking the effort to uncover and compile the long history of the institution. The News-Letter has been devoted to recording the history of Hopkins as it has happened for more than 115 years, but an in-depth retrospective look at events can reveal a wealth of information and interpretation that is not accessible in the fleeting world of journalism. It is also a brave choice by Hopkins to hand over the reins of an official history and face the possibility of unsavory details coming to light.
Reading last week’s editorial, “Nothing wrong with Hopkins’ hook-up culture,” I found it curious that, while the author would surely denounce the culture of rape and sexual violence, she praises a view of casual sex, which can foster that very mindset. The fact is that the culture of use endemic in the hookup culture underlies the culture of abuse. If sex becomes all about “getting some” it is not difficult to see how this mindset could be exploited for abusive ends. Going back to my own freshman year, I’ve seen too many tears shed and too many hearts torn apart by the so-called “hookup” culture. Hopkins students must recover the joy of true romance and reject its cheap mockeries. The fact is that sex does have powerful consequences, and, like fire, has the power to either warm and to illuminate our lives or to burn them to the ground.
At Hopkins, students are often pressed for time, busy with schoolwork, activities, clubs and trips. Many students struggle to find free time to relax and release the stress associated with hard classes, difficult material and pressing tests or essays. When they do have free time, many choose to spend it at evening social events and weekend gatherings, perhaps enjoying alternative beverages with friends. I propose reading as a superior stress relief solution.
In the wake of the government shut down and debt-ceiling political brinksmanship, the Tea Party has never been less popular. Pundits from across the political spectrum are calling on the Republican party to reject the “radicals,” “extremists” and “reactionaries” in their midst and turn the party over to the moderates and centrists.
Several weeks ago, my political science professor asked the class, “What is the biggest problem the U.S. government has with Indonesia?” One student replied, “The Muslim majority.”
"Next year in Jerusalem."
Ecologically sound. Socially just. Economically viable. These are the key characteristics of a food system that’s sustainable on all levels—locally, regionally, and globally. In such a system, our agricultural practices would mitigate, instead of contribute to, the effects of global climate change. Our diets would contain foods that prevent the diseases we currently spend billions to cure. The welfare of workers and animals would be protected, while a creative re-distribution of resources and avoidance of food waste would limit hunger and food shortages. And the people participating in this system could afford the very food they grow, prepare, serve, and consume.
After a long week of midterms and papers, Friday night finally rolls around. The last of the problem sets are turned in, Brody slowly empties out, and power naps are acquired in anticipation for the weekend ahead. As the street lights flicker on and the sun sets behind Gilman Hall, the mood on campus begins to change.
