Opinion

OPINION: The liberal arts hold significance not measurable by conventional statistical analysis

Perhaps the most common and most bothersome question every student is asked, starting in the latter years of high school and ending—I hope—after college graduation, is in regard to one’s intended area of academic pursuit.

“ What is your major?”

“ What do you want to study?”

OPINION: The problematic stigma associated with mental illness

Think back to a time in your life when you were emotionally distressed. Maybe your romantic partner broke up with you, or maybe you were the subject of nasty rumors or bullying; maybe you were having trouble coming up with money to pay your tuition only a month before the deadline. What sort of emotions were you experiencing then? Were you sad, angry or did you feel lonely, helpless, hopeless? If so, what played the biggest role in helping you through that difficult period?

OPINION: Apathy about campus architecture

There was a time when buildings were not built in the ugliest and most offensive manner possible. That time is now past, and its passing is in few places more apparent than on the contemporary college campus. When our nation’s capital was being built, the architects looked back to the experts—to Rome and Greece—for inspiration. They built columns and arches and domes; they raised up out of the earth the most beautiful ruins man has seen. What, then, is the muse of our modern builder?

OPINION: Unpaid internships are something to avoid

Students, professors, columnists and social scientists are all talking about the rise of the so-called “new normal” is the unpaid internship.

Unpaid labor has always been in existence, yet, more than ever, the unpaid internship has taken a prominent position in American economic culture.  

According to the Association of Colleges and Employers, over 63 percent of the nation’s class of 2013 had an internship or “co-op” of some kind. Of those who had an internship, 48 percent worked without monetary pay.

OPINION: Why America needs the conversations started by Miley Cyrus

Everyone loves a hot mess. Whether it’s Britney Spears shaving her head or Amanda Bynes’s newest tweet, we—including myself—love watching our favorite Hollywood starlets take a ride on the struggle bus. If it is not for the pure entertainment, it is in the hopes that someday they will get their act together; And I’m still rooting for team Lindsay.

OPINION: Degree value rises with Mason stock

Another year, another increase in rank of George Mason University on the US News and World Report rankings of Best Colleges in the United States. According to the report released on Sep. 10, 2013, Mason is ranked in their top 150 universities in the country.

My Two Cents: Will Rose

Will Rose is the Opinion Editor at Connect2Mason. He studies Government and International Politics and, in this semester's last Two Cents, gives some friendly advice for finals week.

OPINION: "The Diary of Anne Frank" is not inappropriate, but rather realistic and relatable

Anne Frank seems to be making a lot of headlines recently, but for all the wrong reasons. Initially, her name popped up in the press when Justin Bieber visited the Anne Frank home in Amsterdam and left a message in the guestbook, stating that he “hoped she would have been a belieber." As soon as the backlash from Bieber’s egotistical moment died down, a mother from Northville, Michigan filed a formal complaint with her child’s school system for including “The Diary of Anne Frank” in the syllabus, citing it as “pornographic.”

OPINION: Power and femininity are not mutually exclusive

During my senior year of high school, I was required to write a research paper on the topic of my choice. I chose a subject regarding the expression of feminism in America. I focused on situations in which women took over a more masculine role than was traditional, such as in the popular musical “Chicago,” where the women murder their significant others. As I reflect on that paper, I realize that I do not agree with my previous viewpoint on what constituted feminism. Being a feminist is not synonymous with acting like a man.

OPINION: Mason should offer a greater variety of courses in the arts

Though George Mason University is not an art school, it needs to have more options to fulfill the general education fine arts requirement that all students must complete before graduation. Mason should offer classes that both fulfill the arts requirement and appeal to a greater variety of students’ interests.

Right now, Mason offers art courses that involve art history, dance, music, theater and art and visual technology. Basically, you can sing, dance, draw, paint, act, play with Photoshop or sit through a boring lecture.