Category: Opinion

Letter From the Editor

Dear Patriots, This marks our last issue for the school year as well as my last letter from the editor to you all. Needless to say, this is very bittersweet. As I myself come close to graduation, I am feeling…

Letter From the Editor

Dear Patriots, I’ve worked at Fourth Estate for about two years now—half of my college career, and the majority of my time at Mason. I was first a staff writer covering movies and politics. My first big story was about…

Leadership is Paving Pathways and Opening Doors

BY ELIJAH NICHOLS, STAFF WRITER For too long, I’ve seen a rise to power by those who’ve had the voice for a rally, but truly lack the stamina to strategically and empathetically organize both with and for their community. This…

The Balance of Mental Health

BY SUSAN KATHERINE CORKRAN, STAFF WRITER I think there’s something almost soothing in naming fears. The  Greek classifications of the myriad of phobias from which countless human beings have suffered places those fears in the same realms as the monsters of…

Arlington Shuttle

No student should have to worry about how to get to class each week BY IZZ LAMAGDELEINE COPY CHIEF Earlier this week when I was in my Ethics and Human Rights class on the Arlington campus, my professor made a point…

Kavanaugh’s Hiring is a Part of a Bigger Issue at Mason

BY BASMA HUMADI, MANAGING EDITOR Since the news broke that Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh will come to Mason as a distinguished visiting professor with a three-year contract, the pushback from the community at large has been overwhelming to say the…

The Importance of Masonomics

BY JACE WHITE, STAFF WRITER Mason has a unique position in the world of economics. “Masonomics” is a well-defined school of thought that believes in free markets and free people. Its emphasis on market-oriented solutions means that the policies it promotes…

Will Raising the Minimum Age for Tobacco Stop Underage Use?

BY OWEN FERGUSON, STAFF WRITER On Feb. 21, Virginia governor Ralph Northam signed HB 2748 into law. This bill changed the minimum age for the sale and possession of tobacco and nicotine vapor products to 21, excluding active duty military personnel….

The Exploitation of Workers with Disabilities

BY SARAH PATNAUDE, CONTRIBUTOR Everyone has that one thing that fires them up. For me, it’s knowing that I am not protected under the law as I enter the workforce. The government continues to systematically discriminate against me and my peers…