The Spectator - Opinion - Hamilton College

Opinion

We must end bottled water use at Hamilton

October 6, 2016

On Sept. 20, Student Assembly members unanimously approved a resolution encouraging Hamilton College to reduce its consumption of single-serving bottles of water from over 40,000 to just 4,000 bottles per year by 2020 (excluding emergency-related purchases). For the past few years, the Hamilton Environmental Action Group (HEAG) has run “Take Back the Tap,” a campaign aiming to reduce bottled water consumption on campus and increase access to tap water. “Take Back the Tap” became HEAG’s primary focus at the beginning of the Spring 2016 semester. Bottled water represents a perfect storm of environmental issues. Both the production and shipping of bottled water consume an immense amount of fossil fuels, which contributes to climate change by adding even more greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. Also, many bottled water companies extract groundwater from low-income and minority communities, which depletes local water supplies. This exemplifies environmental injustice, an unfortunate theme of climate change. More ...

The Soapbox: Does democracy still work in a post-neoliberal world?

October 6, 2016

2016 has been a trying year for democracy across the globe, challenging the Western world’s most common solution to mass organization. Referendums in Britain, Colombia and Hungary—where 98 percent voted to exclude refugees—demonstrate how people in these countries seem to be choosing undemocratic options. What is clear, however, is that they are anti-neoliberal. How will democracy prosper in an age where we must accept a new horizon of globalized trade and labour, along with their consequences? Trying to reverse neoliberalism would be as useful as reversing Fordism in America and import-led substitution in Latin America. To say it’s a done deal does not mean the passage of time will stop as well. What we have learned from 2016 so far is that there is a rapidly growing percentage of people in Western countries who are strongly challenging the status quo. Neoliberalism has changed trade relations between countries and labour relations between individuals and their societies. As a result, the framework of democracy has been affected. More ...

The chaining down of the Hamilton College student body

October 6, 2016

The McEwen Rock Swing was once a wonderfully odd hanging fixture that could be gradually raised to the second floor, provided that there were four individuals standing equidistant around the circular platform, swinging in synergistic harmony. This echoed the collaborative nature of its creation as a joint thesis project between a Kirkland art major and a Hamilton physics major. It likewise reflected the greater Hamilton values of risk taking, cooperation, and intellectual curiosity that transcend mono-disciplinary boundaries. Indeed, the College not only empowered but also encouraged students to pursue their freedom to choose their respective educational paths. But the iconic, formerly interactive Rock Swing has been chained down—and so too have we. More ...

Equal points for alcohol and marijuana

September 29, 2016

Starting fall semester, Hamilton College announced changes to its disciplinary points system, which included a reduction in the number of points assigned for underage drinking and marijuana use. Possession of alcohol under the age of 21 was dropped to one from two points, while “marijuana use or possession” was lowered from three to six points to two. The one- point difference between alcohol and marijuana may seem benign at first but it reflects a general trend of stigmatization and willful ignorance of the relative effects of each substance. To inherently characterize marijuana as more serious or “wrong” by assigning it more points than alcohol is to turn a blind eye to scientific knowledge concerning the drug, especially as it compares to the dangers and effects of alcohol. Plain and simple, marijuana and alcohol should be weighed equally in the points system. First, the dangers of using alcohol are far greater than marijua- na. Let’s look at it on the national level. In his article, “Alcohol or Marijuana? A Pediatrician Faces the Question,” Aaron E. Carroll cites a National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence report that states, “Alcohol use is a factor in 40 percent of all violent crimes in the United States, including 37 percent of rapes and 27 percent of aggravated assaults.” Marijuana, on the other hand, has never been linked to any sort of comparable violence. In fact, the only criminal activity ever associated with the drug is illegal distribution. More ...

Being anti-Trump doesn’t make me pro-Hillary

September 29, 2016

The 2016 Presidential Election is the first presidential election that I will be able to vote in. While this might seem quite nerdy, it’s is a day that I have been eagerly awaiting since I fell in love with politics. As the date has drawn nearer and the 2016 election has unfolded, Tuesday, Nov. 8, has become a date that I am se- riously dreading. The thought of casting my ballot for Hillary Clinton makes me a bit queasy, but the thought of voting for Donald Trump is downright frightening. It feels like we are stuck between a rock and a hard place. With about six weeks until the elec- tion, I cannot believe the place that we are in, and the decision we voters are going to have to make. While it was al- ways pretty clear that Clinton would win the Democratic primary, the Republican primary was up in the air for most of it. Bernie Sanders put up a bigger fight than many expected, but Clinton had the party backing and didn’t have to work too hard to clinch the nomination. More ...

College debating is arduous but fun

September 29, 2016

A couple of weeks ago I was sitting idly in a lecture hall at midnight at Barnard College, New York City. As I rolled over my bloodshot eyes I saw a swarm of young adults holding up their phones facing a screen with bated breath. A split second later the room was in uproar as the motion for the next round was announced. Alright, another domestic policy prompt in which I don’t recognize most of the words. I picked up my binder and joined a stream of people as they chattered along, walking towards the door. That was my first debate tournament since starting college life. Held by Columbia University, the tournament was a platform where varsity teams from all over the country compete against each other. I was eager to get a taste of college debate, so I joined the team and hopped on the jitney to the City. I had done some practice before yet still I felt a mixture of pressure and excitement as adrenaline flooded my brain just before the first round. Despite being somewhat of a veteran in high school debate, I had an eye-opening experience competing against varsity teams as they mercilessly tore down the arguments I so painstakingly constructed. I was amazed just how many words a person can say in a mere eight minutes while still making all of them sound intelligible. I was inspired by the magnitude and depth of the ideas some debaters came up within a very limited amount of time. More ...

Environmental groups continue to push administration on sustainability policy

September 22, 2016

Divestment is nothing new on the Hill. In December 2013, Student Assembly passed a resolution calling for the divestment of the Hamilton endowment from fossil fuels. After months of contentious debate, the administration announced in March 2014 its distaste for divestment and unwillingness to move forward with the proposed plan. Divestment at Hamilton seemed dead. The following fall however, the conversation continued. Hamilton hosted a debate amongst four accomplished economists in September 2015 weighing either side. The opposing side highlighted the administration’s fears displayed back in March. Echoing Hamilton Trustee Investment Committee Chair Henry Bedford in his 2014 letter rejecting divestment, they argued that the financial portfolio must remain committed to the highest achievable economic growth. In order to provide the best education possible to Hamilton College students, he argues, it must be unbound by moral considerations such as divestment. More ...

Counseling Center: an invaluable resource for students

September 22, 2016

Hamilton is known for the many resources the College offers to students, from career counseling to off-campus study programs to various community service opportunities. Whatever interests or needs a student might have, our college finds a way to cater to them. But of all these resources, I’ve noticed that the Counseling Center seems to be one of the most underappreciated resources on campus. Compared to many colleges, Hamilton’s counseling services are extraordinary. Not only is there a full staff of counselors, but I was pleased to learn that there is a trained psychiatrist on campus as well. This speaks volumes about Hamilton as an institution, exemplifying how high of a priority mental health services are on our campus. More ...

Safe spaces and trigger warnings do not limit academic freedom

September 22, 2016

This past August, as an incoming class of first year students were getting ready to matriculate to the University of Chicago, they received a blunt message in a letter from the Undergraduate Dean of Admissions, Jay Ellison: "Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not support so called 'trigger warnings,' we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove controversial, and we do not condone the creation of intellectual 'safe spaces' where individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own." I believe that Dean Ellison's message displays ignorance in regards to what safe spaces and trigger warnings are and how they function. Additionally, this message perpetuates stigmas surrounding mental health, and in contrast to his stated commitment, actually limits academic freedom for many students. More ...

First-year virgins and college dating: what to know and what to expect

September 15, 2016

Last year, I entered college as a virgin. I was frightened that my lack of sexual experience would both isolate me from my peers and hinder my ability to engage in romantic relationships in the future. I was not opposed to the idea of having sex in college, but I was anxious about being behind the curve compared to others in the first-year class. Portrayals of teen sex in popular culture only exacerbated my anxiety. Movies such as American Pie, Easy A and Superbad all suggest that sex is directly attached to one’s emotional maturity and social status. Likewise, songs such as Sam Adams’ “I Hate College” made it seem as if sex was one of the only enjoyable parts of an undergraduate’s life. He sings, “I hate college but love gettin’ laid.” By these standards, if you are not having sex, you are missing out on a vital part of the college experience. More ...