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Latest administrative decisions, unpopular but necessary
April 3, 2015

Over break, my mother came home rather concerned from a lunch with one of her friends. She told me that she felt disturbed by the frequency of alcohol abuse on college campuses; if administrators would stop forcing drinking underground by trying to crack down on alcohol abuse, she posited, students would not be as prone to such excessive drinking. This defense that binge drinking is a result of administrative oppression is a classic argument, and I do not blame my mom or many adults for attempting to shift the blame for alcohol abuse away from their bright-eyed sons and daughters. However, I think it is time that we take a step back and acknowledge that the administration can only respond to the community which it hopes to oversee. More ...

Re-thinking our alcohol policies and assumptions
April 3, 2015

Alcohol will always be a part of college life, but the recent, destructive abuse of alcohol has transformed several elements of student life. The changes to Senior Week, and the subsequent conversation that ensued, are just one example of the budding pressure from the administration to change alcohol culture on the Hill. Beyond the understandable student backlash, there may be other strategies we are not exploring. In fact, we may be creating solutions based on incorrect assumptions, and a schematic shift in our conception of drinking could create comprehensive policies that attack the problem in more efficacious ways. More ...

Hamilton’s misguided sexual assault policies
March 6, 2015

It is abundantly clear that Hamilton College needs to improve when it comes to sexual assault adjudication, especially against the backdrop of the federal investigation of Title IX violations against the College. There are many flaws in the policy—for most of which there is no clear answer at the moment—but I want to discuss one glaring fault in the sexual assault policy that is not explicitly stated or made known to students, which is problematic in itself. More ...

Hamilton needs to increase interfaith dialogues
March 6, 2015

When you hear the word “interfaith,” on what part of the word do you focus? Do you hear “faith” and think, “oh, no, I am not religious, this could not apply to me!” Or do you focus on the prefix “inter” and think about how we could more cohesively “all get along like we used to in middle school,” as that one character says in Mean Girls. More ...

Students’ mental health lacks institutional support
March 6, 2015

This year, I have struggled profoundly for the first time in my life with anxiety and depression. It has been a frightening and difficult experience, but I feel blessed to be in this place and surrounded by people who go out of their way to understand and support me. I am glad that I have friends who know when to listen, what to say and where to send me, parents that are always available to talk and offer advice over the phone and faculty members in whom I can confide and depend. More ...

Special Feature: Free Speech at Hamilton
February 27, 2015

This week, The Spectator is publishing a Special Feature to contribute to the campus-wide conversation regarding free speech at Hamilton. These three articles address this important topic. We hope they will spark meaningful conversations and add new opinions to the ongoing debate. Increased conversation will lead to better understanding, by Cesar Renero '17 Political correctness must not hinder debate, by Evelyn Torsher '17 Free speech is never free, but the price is worth paying, by Leonard Collins '15 The First Amendment of the United States Constitution Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. More ...

The Soapbox: Debunking the myth about the rise of China
February 27, 2015

Americans seem to be fond of panicking over losing their global dominance. In previous years, the rival has been the United Kingdom, then Germany  and then the Soviet Union. Currently, the newest challenger is China. However, in the immediate future, there is no possible way for China to overtake the U.S. as a new global superpower. This is due to two inherent economic paradoxes, compounded by overwhelming U.S. soft and hard power and the prevailing U.S. geopolitical supremacy. More ...

Re: Polarized Campus
February 20, 2015

The Spectator reported the following on February 13: “Almost every copy of Enquiry went missing this week.”  This is totally unacceptable.  First, some disclaimers: I myself published an article in Enquiry last spring and I do believe that conservative voices have often been marginalized on this campus.  Moreover, I have had several of the editors of Enquiry as students (and would welcome them in my classes again) and do not mean any remarks here as a personal attack on them.  That said, I have come to find Enquiry’s coverage of certain issues deeply offensive and infuriating.  This prompted a letter from me to the Spec in December.  I also know that many students regard Enquiry as hate speech, and I am beginning to wonder if the editors are determined to provoke outrage for its own sake. More ...

Future FebFest needs expanded programming
February 20, 2015

Bringing comedy, male fashion and fine foods to campus, FebFest is often one of the more celebrated weeks of the year. The Social Traditions Committee, Student Assembly and the Campus Activities Board work hard to put together FebFest every year, but there is always room for improvement. More ...

Diversity requirement will help build a better Hamilton
February 20, 2015

People do not truly understand themselves unless they understand others. However, people’s social and intellectual growth is stunted when they are not required to frequently engage with people different from themselves. According to a study by Professors Thomas F. Nelson Laird of Indiana University and Mark E. Engberg of Loyola University, “embedding diversity within the core curriculum indicates that knowledge about diversity is an essential component of a college education” because it opens students to a wide-ranging world of perspectives. However, Hamilton College’s lack of a diversity requirement prevents its students from enjoying the abundance of experiences that people of different backgrounds can offer. More ...

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