Category: Opinion

OPINION: Should college athletes get paid?

By Natalie Heavren, Staff Writer Fourth Estate’s sports writer Natalie Heavren weighs in on fair pay for student athletes March Madness is circled on the calendars of people around the world. This tournament is hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic…

OPINION: 2018 Loyola-Chicago vs. 2006 George Mason

By Domenic Allegra, Contributor The lauded tournament run of the 11-seed Loyola-Chicago Ramblers (32-6) has come to an end after their loss to 3-seed Michigan in the Final Four. Loyola was in familiar territory in the Final Four, as their…

OPINION: The Fairfax Blackouts

By Alexander Kenny, Columnist  Spring in Fairfax welcomed us with 6” of snow. We shoveled, we received an irritating email about “make up days,” but this was a breeze compared to the nor’easter that knocked us back to the Renaissance…

OPINION: There’s no such thing as a free Scantron

By Dominic Pino, Columnist It’s midterm season, aka scantron season.  We all love scantrons because it means there is a multiple choice exam on the horizon.  We also love these little green or blue slips of paper for their low…

OPINION: Language: More than a Gen-ED

By Susan Katherine Corkran, Columnist Here’s an experiment: Walk from one end of Mason’s campus to the other and count how many languages you hear your fellow Patriots speaking. The long hours of pouring over vocabulary flashcards, translating simple texts…

OPINION: Guilt-free snow days are justified

By William Barnhart, Columnist With the recent closure and delaying of university operations, there has been a great deal of discussion of the choices made by the university. It is undeniable that the school was justified in closing Wednesday. But…

OPINION: Russia’s Ban from Pyeongchang

By Chris Kernan-Schmidt, Columnist Following an investigation into systematic and state-sponsored manipulation of anti-doping laboratories, the Russian Federation was barred from competing in this year’s Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Russia was not permitted to send any athletes to…

OPINION: Good Cops, Bad Cops

By Dominic Pino, Columnist On Feb. 14, a gunman opened fire and killed 17 people at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.  This we all know.  However, there was a lesser known event on Feb. 20 that allows for…

OPINION: Think bigger than beer pong

By Alexander Kenny, Columnist Beer pong (BP) is either the party’s thrilling main event or an uncreative party killer. At the mention of BP, Mason students react –let’s say all polled are 21 or older– with dreamy nostalgia for last…