Opinion – Northern Iowan

Bennethum: we are living in weird times

March 29, 2020

There is no doubt about it that life is really weird right now. Our normals and consistencies have been torn away from us, leaving uncharted territory to be explored. I, along with the rest of my peers have felt this to an extreme and there is no doubt about it that I have been struggling to grasp o...

Seybert: don’t be racist during COVID-19 pandemic

ADDI SEYBERT, Opinion Columnist

March 29, 2020

As nearly everyone in Iowa may know, we are currently in the midst of one of the scariest and most uncertain times to date. People are getting sick with a disease that we barely understand, let alone know how to contain. Others are being laid off, kicked out of housing and facing legitimate illness i...

Biden: a return to the Obama presidency

MOHAMMED RAWWAS, Opinion Columnist

March 12, 2020

There are a multitude of reasons that Biden is a terrible candidate. From his Iraq War vote to his record of attempting to cut Social Security, not to mention his work with segregationists in opposing mandated bussing in order to desegregate public schools. Furthermore, his more recent comments regar...

Why would fans settle on crowning the NFL’s GOAT?

NICHOLAS SCHINDLER, Opinion Columnist

March 12, 2020

Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth, Serena Williams. All of these athletes are the best to have ever done it in their respective sports. There is zero debate about it. When we look to the NFL, there has been much debate between fans as to who is the greatest of all time for the National Football League. An...

CRISPR and the future of gene-editing

EMERSON SLOMKA, Opinion Columnist

March 9, 2020

Since its discovery in 1993, the CRISPR family of DNA sequences has made headlines on a near-constant basis, cited as a revolutionary development in gene technology. With CRISPR returning to headlines this past month with an ambitious application-- the first human trial in a potential cure for geneti...

Wellness Services: stay safe this spring break

Guest Column

March 9, 2020

Editor’s Note: The following guest column was submitted by Student Wellness Services. Whether you’re planning on vacationing somewhere tropical or stay-cationing in Cedar Falls, consider making a spring break safety checklist this March to ensure you are able to have a fun and safe time away fr...

‘Super Tuesday’ leaves uncertainty

COLIN HORNING, Sports Editor

March 5, 2020

With all the hype surrounding Super Tuesday and its plethora of delegates to be handed out for the Democratic presidential nomination, the day has finally come and gone. With that, we now have a clear picture of how this race is shaping up and the candidates who will be in it for the long haul. Right...

Netflix reality series questions if ‘Love is Blind’

ABIGAIL BENNETHUM, Opinion Columnist

March 5, 2020

On Feb. 13, Netflix aired a show called “Love is Blind.” This show is an experiment where the scientific question asked is if love is blind. During the show, men and women of all colors, socioeconomic backgrounds and sexual orientations are placed in pods and go on dates. Removing all the physic...

Democrats should not divide the vote

ADDI SEYBERT, Opinion Columnist

March 2, 2020

Lately in left-wing politics, there has been a lot of discourse over which candidate would make the best nominee. Disagreement is great when it comes to politics; it is what makes the country function. There has to be some disagreement, or policies would always remain stagnant. There would be no push to...

What is the XFL and why is it destined to fail?

NICHOLAS SCHINDLER, Opinion Columnist

March 2, 2020

We now have four weeks in the books for the XFL and there is a lot to be encouraged by. Put the quality of play aside, the new rules and the unbelievable on-field access to players for just a minute, which are all very interesting. I’m sure many of you have one big question; what is the XFL? Well, t...

Fascism, neoliberalism and oligarchy

MOHAMMED RAWWAS, Opinion Columnist

February 27, 2020

In 1992, Francis Fukuyama declared “the end of history,” in which the decline of the Soviet Union heralded the end of ideology as such and the triumph of Western capitalism and liberal democracy. (It is important to note that the declaration of the “end of ideology” is, of course, ideology at its...

‘Star Trek’ and progressive representation in television

EMERSON SLOMKA, Opinion Columnist

February 27, 2020

“’Star Trek’ was an attempt to say that humanity will reach maturity and wisdom on the day that it begins not just to tolerate, but take a special delight in differences in ideas and differences in life forms.” — Gene Roddenberry Few works of fiction have the power to challenge our notion ...