Opinion

College life in a landmark

By Kelly Gibbs | gargoyle@flagler.edu

When I moved to St. Augustine from Gainesville two years ago, I never dreamed I’d one day sit on a sidewalk shooting the breeze with two older black men taking pictures of a former slave cabin and sharing neighborhood gossip.

I was excited to find my own cheap apartment down the street from campus in Lincolnville in August 2009. I was told I was moving into a “mixed neighborhood” by my landlady, but didn’t understand the phrase.



Florida educators hurting because of government

By Mari Pothier | gargoyle@flagler.edu

Florida’s done it again, shooting itself in the foot when it comes to public education.

The state already struggles in this department, but Gov. Rick Scott signed into law the Student Success Act that will make standardized tests like the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test the basis for teacher evaluations and pay. Also with the act, new teachers coming into the system will not be able to receive tenure.



Mental disorders or mad gifts? Reflections from a dysfunctional graduate

By Cal Colgan| jcolgan@flagler.edu

I am about to graduate college, and I can’t even sleep soundly in my own bed. My bedroom makes a homeless camp look like a palace: dirty clothes seem to creep out of every corner and nook. Papers, posters, Power Bar wrappers and old Arizona Tea cans cover the floor, and I create “walking space” just by shifting the pile of refuse from one end of the room to the other.

My room is a testament to my life: a disorganized, erratic mess. I’ve been this way ever since I can remember.


Veg-head learns moderation through meat-eating

By Caroline Young gargoyle@flagler.edu

I looked up at my boyfriend’s face and then back down into my bowl where the dead bird was floating. It was day one of seven in my omnivorous experimentation after being a vegetarian since I was 12-years-old, which was ten years ago.

My first meal was organic chicken and dumplings. My boyfriend, who is a proud meat-eater and believes we are made to eat flesh, decided to order tofu. I am not sure if he was actually in the mood for the soy meat substitute that usually serves as one of my main sources of protein, or if this was some sick joke. Nonetheless, I had committed to eating this chicken, so I took my first bite.


Business mentality to blame for college students’ lack of learning

By Cal Colgan | jcolgan@flagler.edu

The eggheads are at it again.

The New York Times recently review a book published by two professors called, “Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses.” In it, the authors found 45 percent of current college students show no gains in critical thinking during their first two years at college. According to the Times article, the study also found that 32 percent of students surveyed did not take any courses with a significant amount of reading per week, and half of them did not take any courses with more than 20 pages of writing per semester.

In other words, the students want a degree, not an education.


Everything’s OK … or at least it’s gonna’ be

By Victoria Hardina | gargoyle@flagler.edu

In one week I will be a senior at Flagler College. To be specific, I will be 18 and a senior at Flagler College. Usually I get mixed reactions when I tell people this. Most are surprised, many are in awe, but lately the response I get the most is ‘you are crazy!’

I’m starting to think they’re right.


WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE: My Journey into Newsageddon

By Michael Newberger | gargoyle@flagler.edu

The world is in flames! Muslim extremists are going to use the popular uprisings to spread their doctrine and institute Sharia law in the US and Europe so your daughter will have to wear a burka to prom! The vast right-wing conspiracy run by the ominous Koch brothers are planning to take all the unions away!