Opinions / Columns

“I mean, I voted, but why does it matter? London will never listen.” When I asked my new Scottish friend about the United Kingdom’s recent election, he responded with pure ambivalence. He truly cares about the issues at hand, but he, like many other Scots, has long struggled with misrepresentation in government. And this feeling […]

Dear Ben Shapiro, You have been completely wrong since May 10, the day after Trump fired Comey. In the June 8 episode of The Ben Shapiro Podcast, one of the most popular conservative podcasts in the nation, you declared you were “exactly correct” in your wildest theory to date — that Donald Trump fired James […]

It’s halftime during the Pitt vs Duke game at Heinz Field. The photo room is warm and abuzz with chatter — most Pittsburgh-based photographers know one another and are sharing inside jokes and quips as they upload their first half shots to their respective publications. I felt remarkably out of place for no discernible reason. […]

When Tamesha Means entered labor with her first child in 2016, she was only 18 weeks pregnant — not even halfway through her pregnancy. So she did the logical thing and rushed to the nearest hospital. When she arrived at the Mercy Health Partners hospital, doctors diagnosed her with preterm premature rupture of membranes, meaning […]

Two months ago a couple from Lower Burrell mourned the loss of their son who didn’t live to see his 25th birthday. David Makara’s refusal to get treatment drove him to move out of his parents home as he could not pass a drug test to get a job. Without any notice he moved out […]

Its thunderous footsteps can be heard the instant it decides to return from the kitchen. Approaching the worn leather couch, it loses its balance. Flailing for a moment, then collecting itself, it manages to plop down onto the cracked sofa cover, slowing sinking into the cushion with a mumbled chuckle and a quick flash of […]

There’s the roommate that has super loud FaceTime conversations with their significant other, the one who never showers and spews an unfavorable odor wherever they go, the one who is too clingy and over-involved in your life and the one that snores like a chainsaw or talks in their sleep through the night. Nobody thinks […]

If there’s one thing that movies get right about college, it’s that people have sex. In fact, in one study published in the Review of General Psychology, over 60 percent of college students in North America reported having some kind of sexual “hookup” experience. But of course, there’s the other 40 percent. For any number […]

There were too many people, the music was too loud, the cooler was empty and it smelled like sweat. I think that might describe every party I attended my first year of college. No matter where it was or who was there, I have no fond memories of piling into someone’s basement with what seemed […]

I could keep the lights on whenever I wanted. I could listen to music and not have to bother with pesky headphones. I could toss my clothes in the corner and worry about them in a few weeks. I could nap at all times of the day, have people over whenever I wanted and be […]