Author: Zak Sonntag
Diversity in danger?
In the 2003 vote in a decision that upheld Affirmative Action as constitutional, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, said, "We expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest [of diversity in higher education.]"But now the issue is before the Court again, and some experts think O’Connor’s estimate may get cut in half as the Su...
One justice at a time
The death of Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court’s most devout conservative and “originalist,” has disrobed the last layer of congressional professionalism and laid naked the ugly partisanship plaguing Capitol Hill. The former justices’ body was practically still warm when Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell declared, come hell or high water, President Barack Obama’s replacement nominee w...
Up he goes—for democrats, opposites attract
Bernie Sanders is the oldest candidate in the presidential race. If elected, the self described “democratic-socialist” will be the oldest U.S. president ever to serve—strange, considering his campaign is being carried aloft on the avid gusts of the electorate’s youngest, an alliance that conjures images from Disney/Pixar’s “Up.”Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, finds her strongest support with t...
In defense of The Donald
Donald Trump has offended so many people in the U.K. that, this month, the parliament debated measures to ban him from entering its country. In the U.S., on the other hand, Trump has offended so many people that the electorate is strongly considering letting him run the county. Only in America.As the presidential primaries rapidly approach the early voting states, Trump is exactly where no one tho...
Sex education in college: too much or not enough?
Students in college use condoms. Some use them rarely, others more often, and then there’s a few who use them a lot.“Do you know how long it took me to use a thousand condoms?” asked Taylor Parkinson, senior. “Twenty hours. It was really fun.” I know what you’re wondering—and the answer is 50 times an hour—but that’s asking the wrong question. Yes, those condoms were worn, just not how you’re thin...
SAC’s annual Casino Night
Westminster students tested their card-counting prowess and luck with the dice at “Casino Night,” one of SAC’s largest annual events, which was hosted Nov. 4 at the Draw.They called, raised and folded at Texas Hold’em, split stacks at Blackjack and shot craps with outsized exuberance—all the while knowing that they might win big or win nothing at all, but knowing foremost they had nothing to lose....
The craving for real haunts: A visit to Asylum 49
Outside Asylum 49, the self-described “full contact haunted house” built into the old Tooele hospital, a doctor in bloody scrubs challenges me to a game of rock-paper-scissors. I can tell right away by his maniacal stare that, even if I win, I’m going to lose. Sure enough, he shows scissors. I show scissors. Then someone unseen shows me the inside of a canvas bag, which is cinched around my ...