Opinion-Columns

All things in transit

The biggest lesson of my college career has thus been learning when to let go — and when “good” for someone else becomes bad for me.

Going places

I always used to say that it didn’t matter that I was better suited to a go-kart than a real car because I’d live in a city.

The first and the last

There isn’t an end to the firsts yet. We’re all so young and have so much time ahead of us to do all these other new things and meet all new people.

The best and the worst

To be able to truly open yourself up to another person is a privilege, and whether we graduate with a high-paying banking job or with a ton of student debt, we should consider ourselves lucky.

The Wharton 4Y

During the fall of my sophomore year I attended 17 OCR info sessions. Despite the fact that these workshops were geared towards seniors, and that most of these firms didn’t even have sophomore programs, and my suit jacket and pants were mismatched, I still dutifully showed up at each one (sometimes 2 or 3 a day) over the first 2 weeks of class.

A story to tell

But the most memorable stories, for me, were the ones that brought me a bit closer to the heart of Penn — the ones that introduced me to some of the lesser-heralded people who make our university the special place that it is.

Jonathan Iwry | On drinking hemlock

Naysayers spend their lives in fear of idols; we’re the ones who smash them. Everyone uses their intellect like a hammer, smashing away at their hobbies and trades to craft something meaningful. We’re in the business of building better hammers.

Collin Boots | The superiority of secular morality

Religion has claimed a monopoly on morality for so long that we infidels are forced to explain ad nauseam why we think murder is morally reprehensible. I am tired of conceding the moral high ground to religion by default. Today, I want to reverse that situation and show why secular moral systems are superior to their non-secular counterparts.

Sara Schonfeld | Embracing awkward

Embracing awkward is my way to being unapologetic about the person I am. I don’t allow other people to make me feel bad about myself on principle, so why would I give myself that power?

Diane Bayeux | Rethinking Sexual Orientation

Coming out seems to have taken on a much more important stake than it’s supposed to. It’s not supposed to be that way. There is no one type of person that can bring you everything you need and want.

The Devil's Advocate | Speaking of salaries

I find it particularly perplexing that even millennials who grew up surrounded by social media still adhere to this classic prohibition. We willingly abandon our privacy when it comes to relationships, hardships, hookup and every inane inner thought we think should grace our Facebook and Twitter feeds, yet we still show a reluctance to discuss salaries. Why have we collectively determined that this one element of our lives deserves unique protection from prying eyes?

Arielle Pardes | Sex as a community service

Every week, hundreds Penn students file into dusty classrooms in West Philadelphia’s middle and high schools where they tutor students in math and English and science.

Roderick Cook | It's story time

Some stories are hard to tell, but chances are those are the ones that desperately need to be heard.We far too often have an aversion to using individual stories as a way to understand societal problems and enact change.

Collin Boots | Immune to reason

“Big-pharma” and “conventional medicine” became bogeymen that use their overwhelming political power to suppress the “natural healing” wonders of Supplementary, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (SCAMs).

Alexandra Friedman | Teaching a lesser-known history

Israel has certainly played a role in prolonging the Palestinian condition. To say that Israel and its policies are the root cause of the problem, however, is historically inaccurate.

Sara Schonfeld | In defense of the friend break-up

You wouldn’t go on a second date with someone that makes you crazy — why spend your Friday night getting drinks with a “friend” who is toxic?

Roderick Cook | Not-so-happy hour

From the first moment that I was offered a beer at a party to this very day whenever people around me are drinking, I have felt at least a little bit uncomfortable and have had a sense of dread. I can’t quite explain it, but it’s very real.

Diane Bayeux | Advocating AIDS awareness

As many of you know, Philadelphia has a lot of thrift stores, whether in our bubble of West Philly, in Center City or on South Street.

Sara Schonfeld | Post-fling reflections

This Fling, I bought fried Oreos and wore ridiculous amounts of neon. I wore sunglasses at night and forgot my sweater at home and stopped for fried chicken. I even got yelled at by the cops.

Collin Boots | Are atheists persecuted in America?

A 2011 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology showed that subjects were more likely to distrust an atheist than they were to trust a rapist.