The other night my roommate and I discussed ethnic slurs. He claimed that since people gave words their power, people could take it away. Using the “N” word, for instance,…
To trim or not to trim
It seems to me that few topics involving sex draw as much ire, rancor and judgement as the issue of women’s pubic hair. Just the other day, a very feminist…
Fire and brimstone: An apology
No matter your religious affiliation or lack thereof, the street preachers who appear on campus are an unwelcoming sight. I, like most people, prefer not to be condemned to hell…
Somalis: A misrepresented people
Somali piracy in the Gulf of Aden has become a prominent topic in the national conscience as a result of the film Captain Phillips. Before that, when someone thought of…
Chinese revisionist history
China is an enormous country. For anyone interested in getting a sufficient taste of the country’s food, history and culture, even several months of travel are not enough. For anyone…
The positive side of routine
What did you do this morning? What did you eat for breakfast? Did you shower, exercise or read? Whatever you did, it is likely that you had some sort of…
Sex shop date night
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the term “sex shop?” Skeezy middle-aged virgin men? Tons of porn? Fleshlights? Real dolls? The “jack-shacks?” I come…
Breaking free from the one-word curse
An interesting but little remarked-upon phenomenon occurs when most people try to learn a foreign language. In an attempt to make learning easier for ourselves, we begin to think of…
Different than fiction
After watching 12 Years a Slave, I’m sort of confused about how the public has responded. Lots of people are calling the film “torture porn.” Others concentrate on the film’s…
In memoriam: Philip Seymour Hoffman
If you love film, theater or great performances in general, then no one needs to explain to you the enormous void left by the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He…
The sex habits, they are a-changin’
It is undeniable that any long-term—and sometimes short-term—relationship will alter you a bit. You rub off on your partner, and they rub off on you. You both pick up habits,…