Harriet Tubman has the nation inverted over the twenty-dollar bill’s new facelift

[Photo taken by Zoe Roswold]

Shocking news that Harriet Tubman will be the new face of the 20-dollar bill has recently been circulating the nation. This news seemed to come out of nowhere.

“When I found an article on Facebook about it, I had to continue reading because I didn’t believe it was a real article,” said Meghan Angley, a Junior and MFJS major here at DU.

The Dutch propose a ban on all gasoline and diesel sales, could this be the worlds most progressive law?

DENVER- The Dutch Parliament passed through legislation on March 30th to ban the sale of all gasoline and diesel cars by 2025, according to DutchNews.nl. This is one of the boldest moves to reduce harmful emissions by any country in the world maybe ever.

Nevertheless this bold move in legislation has not gone without opposition many are calling it unrealistic and outright stupid for the Dutch economy. Halbe Zijlstra, leader of the parliamentary VVD party a right wing dutch party stated, “It seems crazy to me to go ahead with this plan. I believe we should withdraw from the energy agreement.” The agreement he is referring to is “energy agreement” the government made with around 40 organizations to promote green energy and reduce carbon emissions.

While there are no major automobile makers in Holland there is one very historic one named Spkyer. They build crazy high-performance machines that look like the 70’s mated with an alien. The automaker would surely go out of business if this legislation goes through.

I ask some DU students what they thought of such a law being passed here in Colorado.

Alex Rupp

Sophomore, Undeclared

What would you think about a ban on all gas and diesel cars in Colorado?

“There’s no way that could ever work here… I like the concept but it isn’t at all practical.”

 

 

 

Eric Hall

Sophomore, Marketing

Could you live with an all electric car in Colorado?

“No chance, as of now the technology is no where near what it needs to be for my weekend trips to the mountains and the greater southwest”

 

 

 

 

 

Clay Castano

Freshman, Undecided

The Dutch are trying to ban all non-electric car sales by 2025 do you think it possible?

“I think its a good idea but practically I don’t think it will work… their economy is sure to take a massive hit as well as upset many large oil producers.”

The Dutch as we speak continue to draw up a contingency plan to make this a real law and the first of its nature at that. It seems the passion to stop climate change has gained greater ground than it ever has before. This law would surely be the one of the most revolutionary environmental law of the 21st century.

Chinese Students Bring the Foreign “Fever” to US Colleges

DU CSSA (Chinese Students and Scholars Association) Free Mother’s Day Gratitude Card Even in front of Strum Hall. Image took by a staff of CSSA.

According to the Project Atlas, there are almost 975,000 international students in the United States Colleges in the last academic year of 2014-15. And among the 975,000, over 31 percent of them are from the same country, China. Or we can think about it from a more direct way, if you talk to three international students in the US, then one of them will have a Chinese Passport. 

Bringing climate change home at DU

(Photo by Jack Roberts)

Denver, Colorado, April 25, 2016 – Climate change is considered to be one of the greatest threats to humanity we currently face.  With the scope of potential ramifications still unknown, it is difficult for people to imagine what Earth will look or be like in the future.

More frequent natural disasters like the earthquakes in Japan and melting glaciers in Greenland are just early indicators of what may be coming, and affecting everyone.

Still, students at DU, and across the country do not think of their actions, and their impact on the environment, because none of these signs of climate change have truly effected them on a personal level.  Unfortunately, as a nation and global community it may be too late to reverse some of the negative impacts in the near future.

Is it too late to save the ocean?

A group of surfers off the Santa Barbara Coast. Photo by Amanda Roesser

The ocean may not be able to hold out much longer as over 80% of marine pollution comes from land activities. According to WWF Global oil, fertilizers, garbage, sewage disposal, and toxic chemicals pollute the ocean daily; and the pollution does not seem to be stopping. The amount of pollution affecting the ocean currently, can affect what the ocean holds for us in the future, and the rest of the world’s biodiversity.

According to a survey done by the NOAA, most ocean pollution begins on land, and the biggest source is nonpoint source pollution. Nonpoint source pollution includes a plethora of small sources, but the main source is motor vehicle engines, which drop oil each day onto roads and parking lots. The oil then finds its way into the ocean, harming animals and humans.

Segregation still an issue to school diversity?

The Tennis Courts of University of Denver. Photo by George Vanderkloot

Denver is a very ethnically, and culturally diverse city. Yet, its own the University of Denver is far from it. College Factual reports that DU ranks 913 amongst universities on a national scale, both lacking strong faculty and student ethnic diversity.

Pointing to the importance of multicultural excellence, on the University of Denver’s website, Chancellor Rebecca Chopp writes, “In an organization so reliant on its people, creating a diverse and inclusive community isn’t only the right thing to do; it’s critical to the successful implementation of our mission.” The issue to include more diversity on Denver’s campus, therefore, is a group effort between faculty, staff, administration, and students based off of the school’s mission. So where do the mission’s deficiencies come from?

Drones in Colorado raise concerns about safety and privacy

Photo from Fastcompany.com

Drones have been a hot topic in Colorado over the past few years and many people are not sure what to think. There are benefits and drawbacks to drones for almost every practical use. Drones might be in a time of transition where they cant be taken too seriously or it may lead to further problems the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).

In todays world it is very easy to buy a drone and fly it freely around the US but that soon may change. Every year there are new problems arising with publicly and privately owned drones. In the ski town of Vail, Colorado we see a trend emerging among skiers and snowboarders and it involves the use of drones.

Colorado locals protest overwhelming media coverage of Trump

 

Photo courtesy of Jake Pemberton

There is an unwritten rule in which media are to be fair by providing equal coverage among diverse parties. Although, Donald Trump has clearly been the focus of the media since the presidential race began, sparking criticisms from students and professors of the University of Denver.

Since the race began, Trump has been mentioned in media twice as often as Hillary Clinton, and that amount is even higher compared to the mentions of Bernie Sanders, according to the TV News Archive. Whether or not one supports or opposes the Republican’s views, there is a nationwide consensus that Trump has been receiving significantly more media coverage than the other presidential runners.

The Internet Archive TV News Archive released data portraying that in 2016, Trump has been mentioned 50% of the time among Republicans, while the candidate with the second-most mentions is Jeb Bush at 11%. Such statistics have generated criticisms as to why Trump is receiving such an excess amount of media coverage, and if this coverage is fueling his presidential race success. 

Supreme Court to determine if states can imprison drivers for refusing Breathalyzer

A dangerous combo that can land you in prison for more than one reason. (Photo by Donovan Rice)

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently deciding on a case considering the constitutionality of a state imprisoning or fining an arrested drunken driver for refusing to take a Breathalyzer test without a warrant.

In the oral argument for Birchfield v. North Dakota and two other cases last Wednesday, the Court heard if a state can criminally punish someone for what the petitioners would like to call the assertion of one’s constitutional right, referring the Fourth Amendment’s warrant clause. The respondents, however, look at it as punishing drivers for not following an implied contract made with the state.

“One way of looking at what the State is doing is not to criminalize the assertion of a constitutional right, but to criminalize reneging on a bargain,” said Justice Samuel Alito to the petitioners during the case. “The bargain was, we give you a license to drive, and in exchange for that, you consent to a blood-alcohol test under certain circumstances.”

Rocky Mountain high population: Colorado’s population increase impacts natives

Colorado’s Rocky Mountains attract thousands of visitors each year. Now some of those visitors are staying for good. [Photo by Chaye Gutierrez]

It’s almost impossible to drive from Denver to Boulder, from the Front Range to the mountains or even to the grocery store without seeing the infamous “Native” mountain sticker slapped across the bumper of some Subaru when cruising around Colorado. If you don’t see that one, you’ll definitely see the “Not a native, but I got here as fast as I could!” edition somewhere along your drive.