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CHANCELLOR | Everyone is Religious
Every dog has its day, just as every religion has its rise. However, in modern times, especially in places like the university, we claim this is no longer true. We claim that we have evolved past the primitive superstitions of millennia past. When we look up at the sky, we no longer see the stars as gods; we see nuclear fusion. As 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, “God is dead” and “we have killed him.” Modernity claims to have no religion. Is this true? Is this even possible? The answer to both questions is no. Everyone has a god, whether money or themselves, because everyone believes in something. Religion…
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PREVIEW: Men’s Lacrosse Prepares to Host Ivy League Tournament, Face Yale in Semifinal Round
Last year, the Red saw its postseason cut short in the first game of the Ivy League Tournament. This year, it enters the semifinal not only as first in the Ivy League, but first in the country. With its victory over Dartmouth last weekend, the Red earned the status of first seed and host of the conference tournament. Play kicks off Friday, when Cornell faces No. 4 Yale in the first semifinal, a match which will be followed by the second semifinal between No. 2 Princeton and No. 3 Harvard. “Every team’s different year after year, but within the league, I think all these teams are pretty well understood,” said…
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FARAJ | Leveling the Play Field for All: Athletics Must Protect All Sports’ Team Budgets
The landscape of college athletics is shifting. Since the NCAA’s landmark policy change in 2021 allowing student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness — commonly referred to as NIL — deals, college sports have become increasingly commercialized, blurring the line between amateurism and professional sports. With record-breaking viewership, multimillion dollar sponsorships and a surge of public interest in athletes like Caitlin Clark and Paige Beukers — and for women’s sports overall — it felt like equity was finally within reach. But now the ground is shifting again. The Trump administration has intervened by rescinding Title IX-based federal guidance that had ensured NIL compensation was distributed equitably across men’s and…
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SCHWARZ | U.S. Universities in Crisis: The Implicit and Explicit Threat of Nationalization
Using the threat of withholding research funds and taxing endowments, Trump and his acolytes are trying to nationalize universities. Under the guise of fighting antisemitism, they want to put universities under the auspices of various kinds of monitors, perhaps in some cases judges, who will control what universities do. Disregarding democracy, autocrats are bullies who stifle dissent and debate to impose their worldview. The Trump administration lives by intimidation, whether it be directed at the press, the legal establishment, cultural resources or the media. Defending the right to express fact-based opinions and different interpretations of the same facts, universities must resist intimidation by an authoritarian regime that seeks compliant silence…
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SEX ON THURSDAY | Am I Straight Shy? Intimacy and the Naked Gaze in Shared Spaces
It is well established by now that I am somewhat of a slut. From my sexual escapades out and about, to my adventures in open spaces, having sex where others can catch a glimpse — or load. I have engaged in the arts of performing sex. While I don’t think of others as an audience, I am always enthralled by the idea of being seen and perceived in a sexual context. Mostly because I always catch a good compliment — or dick — when I do, but also because it enhances my sexual experience when I lose myself in the inhibition of all my carnal desires. But I realized fairly…
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Lana, Come On: A Review of Lana Del Rey’s Latest Releases
Ever-infamous for her delayed releases and unpredictable timelines, Lana Del Rey finally dropped “Henry, Come On,” the lead single of her 10th studio album. Originally entitled Lasso, then The Right Person Will Stay, Del Rey first teased the album in 2021 when she announced that she had recorded an entire cover of country music songs based on two singles she released in the 2010s: “Ride” (2012) and “Video Games” (2011). In an interview with Mojo, Del Rey stated, “I went back and listened to ‘Ride’ and ‘Video Games’ and thought, you know, they’re kind of country. I mean, they’re definitely not pop. Maybe the way ‘Video Games’ got remastered, they’re…
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Vladimir Nabokov, Our Great Immigrant Novelist
In the introduction to his essay collection Reflections on Exile and Other Essays, Edward Said states that if the immigrant writer “cannot take for granted the luxury of long residence, habitual environment, native idiom, and you must somehow compensate for these things, what you write necessarily bears a unique freight of anxiety, elaborateness, perhaps even overstatement.” Though Said wrote this to analyze exile’s role in artistic production and criticism, its sentiments carry forth to the everyday experience of immigrants in the United States. With their right to exist threatened daily, the immigrant must face a new challenge, one wrapped with anxiety and uncertainty. Having to move away from their old…
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SUNBURSTS | Flinging Into Spring
From Last Lecture to lacrosse records, campus has been abuzz in the last few weeks until Summer recess. SLOPE STUDIES | Students study, nap and relax on Libe Slope ahead of a long week of prelims and finals preparation. (Sophia Romanov Imber/Sun Staff Photographer) SENIOR SEASON | With spring finally in the air, graduating seniors took time to get grad photos in their caps and gowns, snapping a few selfies along the way. (Aerien Huang/Sun Staff Photographer) FIRST (LAST) LECTURE | Outgoing men’s hockey coach Mike Schafer ’86 gave his “Last Lecture” to Cornellians on Wednesday evening. (Stephan Menasche/Sun Assistant Photography Editor) CAPACITY | Schafer’s highly anticipated lecture filled a…
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A Letter to Incoming Transfer Students: What No One Tells You
By Rachel Eisenhart Dear 2028 transfer students, Hi! My name is Rachel, and I’m a transfer student in the Class of ’27. I’m here to be your guide, cheerleader and friend as you enter this next phase of your college experience. Be warned… It’s going to be a confusing one. As I’m sure you remember, the college process is grueling, from the stress of getting applications in on time to waiting for decisions, opening them and stressing about which school to attend. At your first school, you probably had your fair share of “freshman year mistakes,” from unplanned adventures that end in stories you’ll never stop telling to planned nights…
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Cornell Student Organization Campaigns to Reduce Plastic Waste on Campus
Just inside the entrance to the CALS Zone in Mann Library, between the gray trash can and blue recycling bin, sits an unassuming white bin — one of many that can be found across campus. These bins are part of the Society for Natural Resources Conservation’s TerraCycle initiative. TerraCycle is a private US-based company that helps individuals and organizations recycle items that cannot be recycled through traditional municipal recycling programs, such as plastic packaging and wrappers. As a student organization at Cornell, SNRC takes part in several recycling programs from TerraCycle, aimed at reducing campus waste and providing non-traditional recycling options for students. Among various recycling initiatives, SNRC participates in…