Columns

KOWALEWSKI | Reflections Of A Cornell Democrat

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Soon, I will leave Ithaca. Accordingly, this column is the end of my time at The Sun. So I ask you to forgive me as this graduating Democrat takes a moment to reflect upon his values and his four years on Cornell’s campus. When I started my freshman year, I was already a progressive who kept a close eye on politics. I didn’t quite need the stereotypical college experience of “awakening” to the world around me.

Columns

MALPASS | Toeing the Party Line

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Look how the Democrats handled the past election. Ever since Obama was elected president, they have been pushing the same Hillary 2016 agenda. There was never any choice in the matter, after Obama we were to have Clinton. End of discussion. The DNC actively worked against the Sanders campaign when he threatened to take away the nomination from Clinton and promote actual progressivism to the party.

Columns

FORKEN | Non-Democratic Country Calls for Democratic Nominating System

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Alas, the Big Apple is finally a political epicenter in national politics. Given a prolonged Democratic race that few foresaw mere months ago, along with the potential for a contested convention on the Republican side, New York finds itself playing host to scrambling candidates grasping to secure delegates. Though Manhattan typically provides substance for a national media, it is the surrounding countryside that the candidates have crisscrossed the state to reach. If you’ve happened upon Republican front-runner Donald Trump (R?) or insurgent Democratic candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in the Upstate area over the past weeks, chances are you’ve heard about how the elites and/or wealthy have corrupted and perverted our supposed democratic nominating system. Take Trump in reference to a would-be contested contention, “But I will say this: It’s a rigged system.

Arts & Culture

BROMER | The Backlash is Yuge

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There’s a great moment in Woody Allen’s Manhattan where Woody’s character Isaac chats with socialites at a cocktail party and he brings up a Nazi march coming to New Jersey. Isaac suggests that those at the party “get some guys together, get some bricks and baseball bats and really … explain things to them.” A partygoer responds that there was a devastating satirical piece on the march in the Op-Ed section of the New York Times. Another argues that “biting satire is always better than physical force.” Finally, Woody retorts that physical force is always better with Nazis, “because it’s hard to satirize a guy in shiny boots.”

I thought about that scene on Sunday night, when John Oliver went on TV to propose a solution to Trump’s domination of the GOP primary: #MakeDonaldDrumpfAgain. Since actually calling out Trump for his pandering and lies achieves absolutely nothing, since he can and will say anything with the knowledge that he has a reputation for speaking the truth among those voting for him, Oliver proposed taking away his last name — a word which evokes triumph and trump cards, not to mention decades of mostly effective branding — and replacing it with Drumpf.

Columns

LETTER TO THE EDITOR | Cornell is not a Democracy

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To the Editor:
Recent university policy changes have caused a rift between students and university administrators. Disagreements over student health fees, the formation of the College of Business and non-renewable energy divestment have provoked criticism from students, putting University administrators on the defensive. It seems that students need to be reminded that they do not direct University affairs, and students do not need to be consulted when these types of decisions are made. Not to downplay the student perspective, but it’s mostly important for recruitment. Prospective students look at financial aid packages, future job prospects and university rank when shopping for a college.