OPINION: You are not TikTok’s Mother Theresa

We find our generation inundated by an Abrahamic flood of media and accessibility. This may seem like a moment of cultural flux, of boundless upward growth, but hubris has gotten to us.

Xavier Callan PO ’28 argues that since anyone can relentlessly make their opinion on any subject known, and every opinion is automatically deified as a piece of media by fact of existing on the internet, these stupid opinions are becoming a part of daily discourse. Callan warns us to be careful when we step onto our digital pulpits, posting honorably without falling victim to cycles of regurgitation, self-reference and remembering that we are not all career cultural critics.

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OPINION: Democrats need to let their voters choose

In the wake of a Trump victory, the Democratic Party is once again lashing out, trying to find an enemy to blame the result on. Adam Akins, PZ ’27 argues that repeated Democratic defeat at national and state levels are due to a fractured party identify that has continually drifted away from their base.

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OPINION: The Case for Vaping

We all smell the fruity vapors emanating from the bathrooms, tasted a strangers vape juice circulating through the tight confines of public transportation and looked with disgust. Parker DeVore PZ ’27, admits that vaping is culturally lame, a pariah and cigarettes under-developed little brother, but argues this doesn’t have to be the case. Vaping, it can be regulated and gain back some of it’s cultural cachet could serve as a safer alternative to the mass harm that cigarettes inflicts

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OPINION: LinkedIn is not our end-all be-all

Reader, I’d like to connect. As students at institutions that put heavy weight and pressure on being pre-professional, many of our inboxes are flooded with such emails, declarations of new internships, publications and achievements. Kabir Raina CM ’28 believes that we can afford to take our foot of the gas when it comes to building the perfect LinkedIn.

“We make fun of people obsessed with social media, so why do we not do the same for those obsessed with LinkedIn? We’ve made it one and the same. College LinkedIn is where students ‘do it for the ‘gram’ ‘ and internships are the new ‘functions.’ “

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OPINION: Stop using ChatGPT

Chat-GPT is ubiquitous in the academic scene, creeping into essay writing, brainstorming, and problem sets. As much as 86% of students admit to using the program, but Alex Benach PO ’28 argues that the staggering environmental costs of generative AI are not worth the ease that AI provides.

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OPINION: More than a body: Challenging the dehumanization of Black women in sports

In the era of hyperfixation on gender in sports, black women are bearing the brunt of analysis and scorn. Naomi Locala PO ’25 analyzes the continued project of dehumanization of black female athletes through Imane Khelif, a boxer with Differences in Sexual Development (SDS) whose genetic information was leaked and resulted in attacks from voices that work to devalue Black female athletes’ success.

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OPINION: We stand in solidarity with our students

The Intercollegiate Department of Ethnic Studies at the Claremont Colleges stand in solidarity with students in the wake of President Starr’s action to circumvent the established adjudicative process through executive action. These professors unite in calling for Pomona’s administration to embrace the values and ethical commitments to restorative justice, reconciliation and deliberative mediation as core educational principles rather than enforcing retributive, punitive and suppressive tactics by circumventing judicial processes

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OPINION: Western fashion deserves cultural appreciation

Can I try on your cowboy hat? “Hell no,” is probably the response you would hear to that if you asked someone in your local honky-tonk. Writer Lisa Gorelik CM ’25 warns readers of Western fashion faux pas like this. From the style’s roots in Mexican Vaqueros and Native American peoples, Gorelik shows that Western fashion is complex, diverse and unique. Gorelik urges those interested in Western fashion to do their research and learn more about what they are wearing and the traditions associated with each aspect of the style.

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OPINION: Why Kamala Harris lost

As the dust settles on the results of the 2024 election, much of America is looking for someone to blame. As the Democratic Party gears up to do its usual finger pointing, attributing Kamala Harris’ loss to the American public’s sexism and racism, Eric Lu PO ’28 argues the blame lays with the party itself.

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OPINION: What my messy breakup with social media taught me

Years of climbing and challenging to be a king of the cultural milieu has taught Parker DeVore PZ ’27 one thing, the view from the top isn’t as sweet as it seems. Our rapid culture of consumption is stranding us without cultural landmarks, and we can afford to sit and process the media we find, and not get caught up in the everlasting trek for superlatives

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