Columns

MEHLER | The Case for Moving New York State Primaries

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New York State currently holds its primaries on the last Tuesday of June. I believe moving the primary date would facilitate more civic participation among all age groups, demographics and New Yorkers. New York State will be hosting its primary this year on June 28, 2022. While the primary has been held on the last Tuesday of June for decades, recent internal and external factors present a strong argument for moving our primaries earlier into the year. 

The deadline of a general election happening anywhere between Nov. 2 to Nov.

2020

Why Urban America Can’t Forget Its Farmers

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Why do agricultural issues matter to young cosmopolites attending an Ivy League institution and who quite possibly are from a family in the top one percent? Besides being consistently ranked as one of the top agricultural schools in the country and the world, Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences conducts an enormous amount of research and outreach to help end food insecurity, combat climate change and, most recently, protect food production workers against COVID-19; just check out the litany of innovations here. Cornell is in a unique position to conduct its research; unlike many of its peers, it’s role as a land-grant institution informs its involvement in communities surrounding it. 43 percent of the counties in the Southern Tier are classified as rural. If you include upstate micropolities, such as Corning and Cortland, as semi-rural, that figure jumps to 57 percent.

2008 presidential race

BERNSTEIN | If You’re Voting Biden/Harris in New York, Do So on the Working Families Party Line

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The Working Families Party in New York State is at risk of losing its spot on future ballots if it doesn’t reach 130,000 votes for President. This third party is a left-wing advocate for social democracy and progressivism and it’s best known for its support of democratic challengers to moderate incumbents across the state. With new rules raising the minimum votes required for a third party’s spot on the ballot, WFP is at risk of fading away. In 2019, Governor Andrew Cuomo formed a commission to reform the campaign finance system in New York. One of the commission’s decisions was to increase the threshold of votes necessary to keep a third party on the ballot in future elections.

Dining

A Local Restaurateur’s Look at Influx of Students

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Carriage House Cafe, John Thomas Steakhouse and Ten Forward Cafe.  These are just a few of Ithaca’s restaurants forced into early closings by the COVID-19 pandemic. Suddenly, Ithaca business owners had to reevaluate as they faced massive losses in revenue; as it is estimated that Cornell students spend around $4 million every week in Ithaca, the loss of this steady income took its toll. Yet as Cornell students begin to interact with the greater Ithaca community once again, how are local restaurateurs reacting to our return? Is it a welcome change to have the students back in town once again, or has our arrival made some Ithaca business owners’ jobs even harder?

camping

Gen-Z: COVID Killers or Good Samaritans? — Reflections from an Atypical Quarantine

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Boredom — modern man’s worst fear. Typically it’s avoided by countless hours of swiping left and right through cookie-cutter Tinder profiles in hopes of securing a post-quarantine hookup, scrolling through meme feeds on Instagram that no longer make you laugh, browsing your favorite subReddit in hopes of finding a new post since the last time you checked (two minutes ago) and sending pictures of your blank face to other expressionless victims of the same archaic curse. How else is a Gen Z-er supposed to pass his time when forced live like a Band on the Run? Any way you look at it, quarantine presents a psychological and social quandary of the likes my generation has never had to deal with. Solitude.

Across Cultured Oyster Company

Not Always as Happy as a Clam: The Cultural Clashes Underpinning Long Island’s Shellfishing Industry

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Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article misrepresented a source. The year is 1686. King James II looks on anxiously from his plushy throne in England as his New York colonial subjects become increasingly unruly. To tighten his grip on the settlers and quell whispers of rebellion, he appoints Thomas Dongan, a Royalist military officer, to govern the New York territory and issue decrees known as Dongan Patents for the creation of trustee-run towns across the royal province. One of these towns was Long Island’s Town of Brookhaven.

Dining

Cornell Dining Quarantine Meals Report

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When stuck inside with nowhere else to go, food may be the only exciting part to a student’s day. The rush of dopamine and their taste buds return to life when eating vibrant, tasty food can motivate a student to push through another day of quarantine. One opening of the lunchbox could reveal a variety of cuisines ranging from pasta to tofu scramble … at least that’s what students hoped for when picking up their Cornell Dining meals, provided three times a day by the University during students’ mandatory 14-day quarantine upon reaching campus. Instead, one word described the quarantine meals given to students: Repetitive. As students began to move in on Aug.

Cafe Grumpy

(Coffee) Love in the Time of Corona: The Pandemic’s Effects on New York Coffee Culture

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Coffee has long been a New York City staple and a treasured morning ritual for many of the city’s inhabitants. Aside from the usual chains—Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, among others—the city is famous for its plethora of hipster, local coffee shops. In the height of COVID-19, however, many of the city’s beloved spots have been forced to temporarily close. A recent New York Times article titled “Coffee Is One Routine New Yorkers Won’t Give Up” describes how customers and baristas alike have dealt with the crisis. Even with stay-at-home orders firmly in place, New Yorkers have clung onto their caffeine rituals in order to maintain a sense of normalcy in their daily lives.