What is your preferred source of news?
Charisma Santa ’28: The [New York] Times, because I’m from New York City. I think that it’s been fed to me for a really long time in school, so I trust it.
Bidhata Pathak ’27: So, some days, I doomscroll a lot. Instagram tends to be my news source. Not reels, but like CNN, BBC or other stuff, but on Instagram. But we have access to the New York Times [through the college], so I go there a lot, so I would say that’s my primary resource.
Charles Gullung ’28: I think my primary source is probably Bidhata [Pathak]. Also, I check the New York Times sometimes, and random creators who make political stuff.
Emma Henderson ’27: I feel like I see a lot of stuff on TikTok, and that’s how it gets me to look up stuff. I think otherwise, looking at articles online, I don’t watch the TV news.
Json Tan ’29: I read the New York Times a lot, but also Instagram. I do read The Phoenix too, if my friends are writing articles. More recently, with the midterms, I’ve been reading The Washington Post and also Fox News, just to compare what different sources were saying.
Yasir Anderson ’28: Social media. People probably hate TikTok, but my career is based on media, so where I get my information and learn how the world works is through different social media platforms.
Ella Johnson ’29: Lately, I haven’t been engaging in news as much as I want to. At home my parents played a lot of CNN but I’m kind of iffy on their stuff. I used to read a lot of the AP, but now not so much. Also, I’m a peace & conflict major and we cover a lot of current events, so I get some of my news there too.
Pre-registration for courses starts November 17. If you could take a class on any subject, what would it be?
Emma Henderson ’27: I heard there was a witchcraft class. [Nasrin: What department is that?] anthropology, I think. I really wanted to take that, but specifically, Black witchcraft: Voodoo and other black magic. It seems like the class was more about people who were accused of being witches, but I would be interested in real witchcraft.
Charisma Santa ’28: The psychology of the criminal mind, or maybe like a public health class.
Bidhata Pathak ’27: I always wanted to take sculpture. Some of my friends are taking it right now, and I’ve heard good things about it, but I cannot fit that into my schedule, and I’m a senior in my final semester. It’s very sad, and I can’t. But that’s okay.
Json Tan ’29: I really haven’t looked at classes other than the ones for my major. Maybe a class about comics. Right now I’m doing a class called War Games with Tierney, and it is an awesome class. So something like that basically, where we get to play board games in class all day.
Yasir Anderson ’28: To be honest, I’m just here to make it through.
Ella Johnson ’29: I would really like to learn a new language — I honestly wish I took more Spanish, so maybe that. Also part of me wishes there were more metalworking classes here.
Charles Gullung ’28: When I was a freshman, there was a political science class that visited prisons. I didn’t take it then, and I really regret it.
What are your thoughts on the recent midterm election results?
Charles Gullung ’28: It went as good as I could have hoped. I try not to be super optimistic, and I try not to put too much faith in the Democratic Party, but it is the best outcome I could vote for.
Emma Henderson ’27: I was really surprised … Very proud of Kansas! I am from Kansas and Mississippi. Very proud of both of them [Brandon Castano ’27: Has Mississippi finished counting?] No. Texas flipped overwhelmingly. I never thought I would see that in my lifetime. [Brandon Castano ’27: Texas became blue before GTA 6.]
Json Tan ’29: I’m really excited about it. I’m an international student, and I think Trump did something to not allow us to work. It was something like we needed to pay $70,000 to complete OPT [Optional Practical Training] to do an internship. It’s crazy. So hopefully that gets overturned. Hopefully something happens.
Yasir Anderson ’28: Hmmm, no comment.
Ella Johnson ’29: I was very pleased. It’s definitely a step in the right direction. Of course, it’s great that a bunch of states turned blue, but we also can’t ignore that there are issues with both parties, and there’s still an ongoing genocide. So I think this election definitely doesn’t mean we don’t have any more work to do.
Charisma Santa ’28: I didn’t expect a lot of states to go blue. I feel good about where we’re going. From now on!
It’s No-Shave November! If you had to give something up for a whole month, what would it be?
Yasir Anderson ’28: Anxiety. [Rafi: That’s great. You know, usually it’s something you don’t want to give up, but you have to.] I just wanna give it up. I’m just tired of stress. So if I could give it up, I’d give it up in a heartbeat.
Json Tan ’29: The hashbrowns at the DCC. No Hashbrown November. I have them every morning. It’s so unhealthy. I need to stop.
Charisma Santa ’28: Um … my phone. I feel like it distracts me too much. I think it decreases my ability to interact socially sometimes.
Bidhata Pathak ’27: I want to quit scrolling on Instagram. Yeah, sometimes I scroll a lot on reels. That’s something I’m trying to stop.
Emma Henderson ’27: I don’t know. Um … I guess maybe, skipping class, or … ? Oh! Do you guys know the app Costar? I need to get rid of it. There’ve been moments where I’m looking at it to see what my future’s gonna be. I get addicted. Yeah.
Ella Johnson ’29: I’m kind of doing this myself: giving up the DCC for a month. [Rafi: Where have you been going instead?] I just cook my own food.
Charles Gullung ’28: I guess for me, it would have to be to stop staying up past midnight.
