Opinion – Page 13

A Sentient Roomba’s Guide to Music: Little Simz and Solange drop the first great albums of 2019

30Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

A Sentient Roomba’s Guide to Music: Little Simz and Solange drop the first great albums of 2019

By KYLE KERSEY The Beat Report is a bi-weekly music report on some of my favorite new stuff music has to offer, as well as some great albums celebrating anniversaries. Little Simz – GREY Area (Hip-Hop) “I’m Jay Z on a bad day, Shakespeare on my worst days” is a bold statement for anyone to open their album with, no less an underground rapper. Boldness is a running theme on the London rapper’s third album, and Little Simz makes good on her braggadocious opener “Offence,” delivering the rare album that’s directly inspired by classics – she cites “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” and “Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City” as examples – without sacrificing its voice. On an aesthetic level, one might miss the presence of such influences. It’s hardly a West Coast gangster story album with Dr. Dre ...

A Sentient Roomba’s Guide to Music: How I learned to stop worrying and love The Roots

14Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Arts & Entertainment, Opinion

A Sentient Roomba’s Guide to Music: How I learned to stop worrying and love The Roots

By KYLE KERSEY In case you didn’t know by now (or haven’t been paying attention, which, I mean, fair enough), The Beat Report is a bi-weekly music report on some of my favorite new stuff music has to offer. It will also will feature retrospectives on great albums celebrating anniversaries this year. No genre is off limits. Everything written about is recommended and encouraged. And if you don’t know, now you know. Something New: Ariana Grande – “Thank U, Next” (Pop) Let’s talk about the chart-topping elephant in the room: It’s similar to last year’s “Sweetner,”, an incredibly clean pop album that checks all the boxes: it’s catchy, it’s energetic, it’s … catchy. Oh, and it’s vulnerable. Very vulnerable. “Ghostin’” stands alone as the zenith of vulnerable pop, a ballad that runs over a ...

14Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

Dating in college, maybe?

By ALEXZANDRIA MARTINEZ As my dramatic life progresses and another failed attempt to form a relationship results in the heartache of unrequited love, my sitting on the couch repeatedly watching “Dirty Dancing” days are questionable. Why should I care to create this deep bond, when I haven’t even figured out who I am yet? As many before me, I’ve been told, “You will meet your love of your life in college.” Today’s young people often succumb to the growing popularity of “hookup culture,” or in my case, guys being straight-up assholes. There’s the difficulty of getting into a relationship, but it is also difficult to maintain one because of life’s stresses. In fact, it seems like most college students prefer to go on casual dates and not maintain any emotional connection than to be in...

14Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

It’s more than a feeling

By PARKER BROCK Love has been a key component of human culture and society since the beginnings of civilization, helping guarantee the continuation of our species. Our modern understanding of love and romance is tied to the formation of romantic relationships in 18th Century Europe. The societal norm of two partners per relationship derives from here. The basic concept of a person finding an attractive mate to then later procreate and create lasting relationship with is heavily reinforced in our society, typically between a male and female. Recent social movements have begun re-integrating the concept of homosexuality and polyamory, a relationship with more than two partners, into mainstream society. Some struggle to understand how homosexuality is possible because it doesn’t...

14Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

Desperation or the pursuit of love?

By COSTA B. PAPPAS A few decades ago, online dating was nonexistent. Sure, some people met through sketchy chat rooms back in the late ’90s, but online dating was nowhere near what it is today. A few years back, people were forced to form solid connections through face-to-face interactions or risk being single. The world was a sea of possible opportunity where singles could meet a potential soulmate through bar nights, blind dates or by sitting next to them at a coffee shop. Fast forward to 2019: We’re in a world where blind dates are virtually nonexistent, bar nights are spent surrounded by your closest friends with little to no awareness of potential suitors around you and coffee shops are a lot more silent …it appears that live interactions are dead. With our generation no longer...

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR- The Mystery of Shatner

14Mar

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR- The Mystery of Shatner

By JOE GIDDENS William Shatner. One of Canada’s finest exports turns out to have as many careers as he has had wives. You’ve seen him fight men in rubber monster suits, helm the Enterprise and sell you on travel websites. Now it’s time to allow the man to grace your playlists as well. Shatner released his first spoken word album, “The Transformed Man,” in 1968. Strip away the music of The Beatles and trade John Lennon’s singing for deadpan dramatic reading of the lyrics to “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” and you get what would be the prototype of Shatner’s album-making career. Shatner’s discography is an exercise in irony. It mirrors the late comedian Andy Kaufman, in that the listener is never sure if Shatner’s spoken word is intentionally done for comedic effect or if he’s completel...

Five great albums snubbed at the Grammys

28Feb

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Arts & Entertainment, Opinion

Five great albums snubbed at the Grammys

By KYLE KERSEY February’s no fun. Football season is over. Arizona has yet to reach peak surfing weather. There isn’t much new music. Oh, and the Grammys happened. That’s bad, too. 1. Pusha T – “Daytona” (Hip-hop) Boomers will deride it as everything that’s wrong with hip-hop culture. I’ll praise it as a pugnacious poem to sinning that’s no different than the excess of ’80s hair metal except it’s actually good. Pusha’s latest record isn’t going to blow anyone away with an ambitious concept or deep themes. It’s as straightforward as it gets. “Hello,” he says. “My name is Pusha T. I deal drugs and hate Drake. Here’s some songs about me dealing drugs and hating Drake.” Simple, yet effective. Kanye provides some of his grittiest production to date to back the pugnacious Pusha T. It’...

The Designated Hitter is dumb and stupid and I hate it

28Feb

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Athletic Voice, Opinion

The Designated Hitter is dumb and stupid and I hate it

By KYLE KERSEY For the uninitiated, here’s scripture: “The designated hitter rule allows teams to use another player to bat in place of the pitcher. Because the pitcher is still part of the team’s nine defensive players, the designated hitter -- or “DH” -- does not take the field on defense.” This is the official MLB glossary definition. The DH is a rule exclusive to the American League, adopted in 1973, a time of national confusion due to the unpopularity of the Vietnam War and a burgeoning oil crisis. Baseball is a fundamentally ridiculous game, a game filled with unbalanced rules - sometimes unwritten rules - that are treated as the word of god by fundamentalists. Like many religions, it’s the fundamentalists who care the most, those who scoff at the idea of pitch clocks and mound v...

Clouded judgment: raising the vaping age

28Feb

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

Clouded judgment: raising the vaping age

By COSTA B. PAPPAS With the Food and Drug Agencies crackdown on Juus to lower the amount of underage vapers in late 2018, many were shocked to find that their beloved mango-, fruit- and crembrulet-flavored pods were no longer sold in stores. The motive behind this decision was to eliminate young audiences from being attracted to these flavors. “Our intent was never to have youth use Juul products,” Juul CEO Kevin Burns said, taking responsibility for the underage crowd getting hooked on vaping. “But intent is not enough, the numbers are what matters, and the numbers tell us underage use of e-cigarette products is a problem.” But the change doesn’t stop there. With California, Maine, New York and Hawaii among the states that have raised the minimum age to purchasing vape products to 2...

28Feb

By Pima Post Editorial TeamNo Comments

Opinion

Letter from the Editor

By AMARIS ENCINAS Starting this semester, I was not sure I was going to have the ability to be the editor of the Aztec Press. But after much thought and consideration, I threw myself into it. This is mostly due to the support of my amazing friends, including Josh, Erik, Andrea and the support that I have found here in this newsroom by my fellow Co-editor Joseph Giddens, my adviser Valerie Vinyard and the Aztec Press’ business manager, Joshua Manis. These people stand tall behind my efforts, and I am eternally grateful for everything they have done for me. To most people, becoming editor of their college newspaper isn’t a big deal, but it is to me. I have never done anything like this before, so I thought it was only appropriate to make my first letter to the editor a list of grati...