Political scandal is no longer left to trash publications and gossip mags — the most credible news sources in the world are now in the trenches of delivering this same sub-par and, frankly, trashy coverage.

To fix a national gap in geopgraphic knowledge, perhaps we should be turning to the omniscient oracle on 21st century knowledge: Google. Utilizing Google Maps as an educational tool introduces a novel solution to the national geographic disconnect.

Finding justice represented the difference between feeling safe in this country, and having it painfully highlighted how marginalized, even sacrificed, some people are in the legal system that superficially is meant to provide equal protection.

As any student or prospective student would, these people have asked me for some guidance. Once I exhaust the generic advice — whose class not to take, what dining halls are best, where to go during NSO — the best wisdom I can really give to these young hopefuls is to do your freshman year Leslie Knope style.

A part-time internship at the PSPCA (Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) and conducting research for my Latin American and Latino Studies thesis aren’t exactly wastes of time. But I want my summers to be more than just another line of ink on high-gloss resume paper.

If the entire Penn community — students, faculty, staff, and hospital employees — chose to redirect their business away from chains and towards independent coffee shops, local entrepreneurs and the community as a whole would benefit enormously.

Come fall, students will be expected to learn in anemic schools with no arts classes, sports programs or music groups. What I find absolutely abhorrent about this situation is the lack of responsibility on the part of local businesses, city and state legislators alike concerning this issue.

By separating the government from the term “marriage,” perhaps we can discard some of the stigma against same-sex marriage — separating the church and the state in such a way could decrease the fear some religions have of same-sex marriages.

The United States and China are in a time of ever increasing political tension, leading both Americans and Chinese to regard the other as a threat to their own way of life. Such fears are expressed not only through the characterization of fictional supervillains, but — more insidiously — through unconscious stereotyping.

Mobile supermarket produce sections break the American norm, but if we can reconcile with the concept, they might be able to break the national parallel between poverty, poor nutrition and obesity as well.

As I looked down at my pins, I started thinking about my need to physically display my personality. Why was it so important to me that people could recognize the pride colors on my wrist, the Guatemalan flag on my books, the soy product brand on my bookbag? Thinking back to PrideDay, I realize that this need might not be unique to me.

A rising surveillance state and an already stark decline in privacy points to a future where hardly anything one says or does can be private for long from the extensive gaze of the United States government. Unless we do something about it

As we go to work and take on an ever greater list of responsibilities, from drafting emails to creating presentations to writing memos, it becomes increasingly important to remember that taking professional responsibility is a commitment that we all must honor.

The issue is that we have become so consumed by our own name that we don’t really know who we are. I can’t help but detect a frisson of desperation when the University slathers the Ivy League label on every possible surface. What exactly is under all that Ivy?

As students who spend the majority of our year in this community, it is our responsibility to do something about a pervasive, threatening issue — hunger.

All of us encounter a myriad of decisions every day, whether big or small. From choosing our major or what classes to take to whether or not we should watch just one more episode of Gilmore Girls before going to bed, we all have to make decisions. It would seem that, with so much practice, decision-making should be a skill we have all mastered by now.