On Friday, April 19, the Boy Scouts of America proposed to lift the organization-wide ban on children who identify as gay while keeping the ban on gay adults as scoutmasters and other leaders. With growing pressure from outraged activist groups and increasingly negative attention from the media, some would consider the century-old organization’s proposal to be a compromise between traditional values and progressive inclusivity. Gay children are taught the importance of proper knot-tying without the Boy Scout’s conservative blessing when the time comes for them to actually tie the knot later in life. Everybody wins, right? The editorial board thinks otherwise. If passed, this decision would be one small step for LGBT equality and one giant leap backward for the mental well-being of queer children within the organization. In addition to making children who identify as gay feel inadequate, scouts will now have the luxury of being indoctrinated to believe that homosexuality is merely a childish phase one must inevitably grow out of. The organization is suggesting that like magic... ...

Haven’t we all pined over a sexy TA? The way they push their glasses up the bridge of their nose and come in front of the class, all charismatic and just irresistibly adorable? If your heart is totally fluttering now, then you’re probably envisioning your respective TA hottie. But is that allowed? Can our somewhat X-rated fantasies become reality? And what’s the deal with the forbidden fruit complex regarding student/teacher relations? What are the rules and limitations in these sexualized “power positions”? Dating an authority figure — someone who has the ability to hire you, fire you, flunk you or pass you — we find this attractive. How can we not? As human beings we are inherently attracted to power. But under UC Davis rule, more specifically the Graduate Student Employment Handbook for Teaching Assistants and Associates, you can’t bite into that forbidden fruit and they can’t bite into yours. This power that gets us all hot and bothered is described as heightening the “vulnerability of the student and the... ...

It might surprise you to know that marijuana is somewhat legal here in California. With a doctor’s recommendation, you can legally buy weed at shops known as collectives or dispensaries, and you can even grow a good number of plants in your home. Controversially enough, it is not at all difficult to get your weed card, so long as you’re willing to be open and honest. Physicians can recommend marijuana for any serious condition which they believe might be alleviated by getting high. This initially meant that patients of cancer, AIDS and other chronic illnesses could use marijuana medicinally. However, more and more doctors now agree that there are a number of patients with other conditions who might also benefit from smoking weed. Patients who suffer from arthritis, migraines, insomnia, glaucoma, nausea and mood disorders also have the option of treating themselves, not with pills or pharmaceuticals, but with all natural, delicious marijuana. The “ease” of getting a recommendation has understandably caused some concern among people who believe it might... ...

Recently several senators, including prominent Republican Senator Marco Rubio, have been working to devise legislation concerning immigration. Included in their most recent plan is a $2,000 fine illegal immigrants must pay before they can even begin the arduous process of applying for citizenship, as well as greater “security” along the borders to restrict human movement. I’m not really interested in the various reasons that these senators are giving for punishing innocent and often hard-working members of our society — although I think part of it is a vague concern that “people are paying illegal aliens less than American workers” (which, if true, is an expression of the freedom of employers). Instead I want to raise questions about what the recent debates about immigration legislation imply. This shouldn’t be about whether we are granting “amnesty” to those who have broken the law; it should be about whether those laws are justified in the first place. Immigration really just means the movement of people to a country for the purpose of residence... ...

If you have internet, a photo of your genitals and a little bravery, you can be like some of the other UC Davis students who have found connections online. The Davis “Down To Fuck” Facebook page (Davis DTF) receives approximately one risque post a day, including details about the student poster, a description of their perfect potential mate and their contact information. For example, anonymous Italian DTF poster No. 1 loves to eat both pasta and pussy and is looking for a “little slap and tickle between classes,” while anonymous Latina DTF poster No. 2 is fun loving, but can kick ass when necessary. She wants a lover who can “take all [her] crazy” and still appreciate her. If students aren’t DTF, but rather DTR (down to relationship), they might find it helpful to scan recent Davis Craigslist postings. UC Davis students Juliet, a 21-year-old communication major, and Romeo, a 23-year-old computer science major, are a couple who regularly use Craigslist’s online classifieds to search for partners who enjoy threesomes.... ...

Have you ever wondered how much you pay for tuition in comparison to your friends each quarter? Certainly, California residents pay way less than nonresidents. Yet, local students moan about the tuition hike and how much it hurts Californian families. How about nonresidential students? Simply, if you are not a California resident, you get charged with a higher price for the same education. Although California residents pay taxes to fund California universities while nonresidents and international students do not have to, the tuition for non-residents and international students is still unfairly high. Perhaps, American students still get financial aid support. International students especially suffer the most of all. If you took a basic microeconomics class, the case of imposing two different tuition prices is the perfect illustration to explain the abstract concept of price discrimination. From the start, UC Davis tuition discriminates into two sub-categories: California residents and nonresidents. The nonresident and international student’s tuition includes the amount that California residents pay, plus the “Nonresident Supplemental Tuition,” costing $22,878 yearly.... ...

There have been some rumors circulating recently that there will be a new pub opening at UC Davis. We just want you all to know that this is, in fact, true, and it will be located in the East Wing of the Memorial Union where the Post Office is currently located. Soon, instead of sending a letter to a loved one, you can drink the pain away like a true adult. While many of the Aggie staff members are thrilled to have a bar so close by — even Hemingway said to write drunk and edit sober — we had a few questions about some of the important details of the new pub. Looking at the popularity of the current pub on campus, Gunrock Pub, we have to ask ourselves: Will anyone actually go to a bar on campus? We think yes. It will just be harder and harder to find time for all these classes between beer breaks. Will the new pub be open on weekends? That would be... ...

In Tristan de Liege’s April 11 Op-ed, “Capitalism and the poor,” an attempt is made to justify laissez-faire capitalism. The justification rests on two faulty premises: that capitalism is justified by the alleged benefits it brings, and that in a capitalist society wealth is distributed on the basis of voluntary choice. Firstly, economic and political systems cannot be justified solely on the basis of the benefits they bring. Even if we were to accept, as de Liege asserts, that capitalism will improve the standard of living for the majority of individuals, this is no justification. Slavery certainly “improved” the standard of living for slaves and their masters. It is common knowledge that immediately after slavery was abolished in the South, many former slaves found themselves worse off than they did when they were still slaves. Does this justify slavery? Certainly not. Secondly, wealth has historically not been distributed on the basis of voluntary choice in capitalist systems for multiple reasons. First, capitalist systems ignore past involuntary wealth transfers. Even Robert... ...

People love doctors. And, more importantly, people love TV shows about doctors. “ER” ran for 15 seasons, launching George Clooney’s career. “Grey’s Anatomy” introduced M.D.s nicknamed McDreamy, McSteamy and Katherine Heigl. She doesn’t need a nickname; she’s perfect the way she is. These TV doctors solve so many problems: Gregory House, for example, can deduce in a trivial 45 minutes that Patient A does not have an antibiotic-resistant strain of Ebola, but suffers from hypochondria. Yet for all their knowledge of disease, doctors — real and fake — are not able to solve the most diseased part of our healthcare system: its costs. Earlier this year, Steven Brill published a special report in Time Magazine to answer one question: Why does health care cost so much? Essentially, he found out, because it does. Hospital prices are based on a centralized document called a chargemaster, which lists prices for every procedure or service. But I’m a vibrant, youthful 18 to 25-year-old, you say. This doesn’t affect me. I thought the same... ...

This Saturday, April 20, is Picnic Day, and like all red-blooded UC Davis students, The California Aggie editorial board is stoked for a full day of campus celebration and cheer. Since many of us have gone through the wringer a few too many times, we would like to give fresh-faced freshmen (our main reader base) a full 7 inches of tips, tricks and protocol to make 98 years of past Picnic Day-ers proud. Since past editorials have focused on campus safety and behavior, we won’t waste too much space reminding you that under no circumstances should you hang out with visitors from Woodland. Do not invite these people into your apartment. Do not tell them “where the party’s at,” and do not, DO NOT get into a friendly brawl with these visitors on Third Street. This rule applies to visitors from nearly every regional suburb, though is especially true for citizens of any town that can be reached via Hwy 113. If you want champagne with your orange juice, buy... ...

When I write the word “virginity,” you won’t reach for the dictionary in confusion. The word is well-known, and most people assume they know what a virgin is: one who has not had sex. And for many, the proof of one’s virginity lies in an intact hymen. This assumption raises a myriad of issues. For one, it places the importance of virginity solely on the woman, the keeper of this mysterious membrane. In many societies, women are expected to retain their virginity until marriage. For men, on the other hand, this expectation is far less extreme. The importance of an intact hymen also objectifies women who are to be married, like checking a horse’s teeth before buying it. In this case, a woman’s worth is only as good as her ability to prove that she is “pure.” Defining virginity with the hymen also creates a very narrow (and very heteronormative) definition of sex. Many people, especially in our generation, hold the view that oral sex does not “count” in regards... ...

Some readers might take my statements against Sam Harris, atheist author and pseudo-philosopher, as an indication that I am a theist. I am not. In fact, I take any opportunity to assault religious thought to its maximum. However, some anti-religious arguments are absurd, and much worse, others accidentally endorse extremely anti-human thought. That second category has been skillfully, masterfully brought to a glorious apex by Harris, most of all in his recent writing on Islam. The mainstream discourse on the topic of religion, especially in regards to what is “politically correct,” is very blurry. Before excavating the blatant stupidity of Harris’ writing, it will be necessary to dispel some of the falsities built into the discourse in which he and most Americans are operating. It is a credit to the propaganda machine of elite institutions that such confusion can exist in a society of literate people. One glaring and ridiculous mistake is that people either assume that criticizing Islam is always Islamophobic or it never is. The real answer —... ...

My folder hit the head of the gentleman in front of me with a thud. To be fair, I was attempting to save him from malaria. I am a regular traveler on the Unitrans J-line. The other day I was sitting in my seat, looking over my transcripts to ensure I had met all my graduation requirements. The bus was packed, and I sat enraptured in my planning for a majority of the ride. However, a sudden motion caught my eye as the bus entered a roundabout. A massive mosquito had just landed on the head of the passenger directly in front of me. I watched as the bug tucked in his wings and allowed his mud-brown legs to rest upon an unsuspecting college student’s head. I knew it would only be seconds before the young man would become a meal that would allow this large insect to subsist. A million thoughts raced through my head as I contemplated my course of action. Should I ignore the insect? Would I... ...

There is a time and a place for protest on the UC Davis campus. Or so it seems, as from January to August there is nary a picket sign in sight. But this past Saturday was Decision Day, when hundreds of potential students walked around campus to decide if UC Davis is the place for them. Decision Day is the single most perfect and underutilized opportunity for student activism in Spring Quarter, and it passed. UC Davis very well may be the best choice for these up-and-coming tuition payers, but such a decision would be incomplete without information on the many problems with attending UC Davis. To name a few: Students fees are still going up. The quality of education is still going down. And the administration works for corporations, not students. Though shouting such things at prospective Aggies is not the most eloquent form of communication, UC Davis tour guides were eager to dismiss my personal protest, sometimes going as far as mocking the idea of police brutality. In response... ...

Last week, a group of international students sent a letter that detailed their difficulties with integration and expressed disappointment with the community’s lack of support. As the number of international students grows on campus, so does the importance of this issue. Currently, we host over 2,000 international students, with the 2020 Initiative intending to bring in thousands more in the coming years. For Fall 2013, UC Davis received 6,747 freshman applications from internationals — a 65 percent increase from the previous year. Members of the editorial board have studied abroad and are preparing to study abroad in the near future. We understand the importance and allure of global education. And more than that, we understand what it’s like to drop everything you know, immerse yourself in a foreign country with bizarre customs and suddenly find that you can’t communicate as well as you thought you could. It’s what we, as internationally-minded students, sign up for. As sad as it is to read that our foreign comrades feel disconnected, we also... ...