Opinion
OPINION: Friday’s Film Forecast
By Elaina Johnson | April 7The Front's opinions editor Elaina Johnson discusses "Juno" in her weekly opinion column: Friday's Film Forecast.
Opinion
Opinion
OPINION: It’s time to educate the next generation on the world’s biggest threat – climate change
By Katie McNabb | March 18Climate-related deaths are increasing globally at a terrifying rate. Whether it’s the result of food insecurity, extreme weather events, lack of access to clean water, rising temperatures or any of the other dangerous side effects of climate change, people are dying. Yet there are still many who have never received any formal education in environmental science.
Opinion
OPINION: 'Queer' is an empowerment
By Madison Roper | February 4The year is 2009, and Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” blasts from the radio. My friend and I are listening to the song, blissfully unaware of the innuendo that is cherry chapstick.
Letters to the Editor
Response to the "We need to change the stigma around sexual assault" column
December 14The assertion that Bellingham is an intolerant liberal echo chamber is made often, and it can be valid – but more realistically, many members of the Bellingham community feel that they cannot speak against social warriors. The silent majority of Western students are not committed to the brand of social justice that some Western students are selling.
Letters to the Editor
Response to "We need to change the stigma around sexual assault" column
December 14Addressing the topic of sexual assault in an ethical and comprehensive manner requires diligence, empathy, sensitivity, courage and nuance. It is a difficult topic for anyone to write about. As a disclaimer, my perspective on the recent opinion piece is inevitably informed by my personal experience. I am fortunate: I have not experienced sexual assault.
Opinion
OPINION: Antisemitism is on the rise; Western needs to fight back
December 10On the week of Oct. 20, two antisemitic displays were found on the “free speech” board in the Viking Union. The first depicted an antisemitic caricature, and the second was the Nazi dog whistle “1488.” This understandably affected the Jewish student body at Western Washington University, and unfortunately, this kind of antisemitism is nothing new in our culture or at WWU.
Opinion
OPINION: Casual Games: Rated E for Everyone
By Jacob Mina | November 30When I was in high school, it was common to be considered a nerd if you played video games. At Western Washington University, you walk five feet and you overhear someone talking about Animal Crossing or Minecraft.
Opinion
OPINION: The top shelf: mansplaining, manipulating, marginalizing
By Milo Openshaw | November 23I like to think that I’ve read more “classic” books than the average person. English major solitude has run through my veins since high school. I have tasted revenge with “The Count of Monte Cristo,” I have experienced the pangs of love in “Jane Eyre” and I’ve fought alongside the gods and men of “The Iliad.” I can say with 100% certainty that the majority of “classics” are overrated and bland.
Opinion
OPINION: Want to help yourself and the planet? Try going vegan
By Chloe Nelson | November 19When some people think about vegans, the image of a dreadlocked, Birkenstock-wearing, van-owning white man may come to mind. While there are certainly vegans who fit this stereotype, going vegan can be for everyone.
Opinion
OPINION: Grief does not have a timeline
By Olivia Carda | November 16During my first year of college last year, I dropped to my knees in the parking lot at Mathes Hall as my mom broke the news to me that my dad had died. It felt like I was in the movies. You know, that moment when the main character finds out that someone close to them is dead and all they can hear is ringing and their vision becomes blurry.
Opinion
OPINION: Need work experience? Play Dungeons & Dragons
By Jacob Mina | November 10Dungeons & Dragons is a tabletop roleplaying game where players are put into the shoes of adventurers, taking on quests of varying length and scope. Think of something like the first Lord of the Rings movie. Unlike other board games, Dungeons & Dragons requires that one person playing the game have a different role from the rest of the players: the dungeon master, or DM. The DM guides the other players through the adventure, which is usually made by the DM themself. They also play the role of all the characters and enemies the players encounter.
Opinion
OPINION: Whatcom County leaders urge ‘yes’ vote on EMS levy
October 20A levy request in November is a matter of life or death. For decades, Whatcom County has enjoyed exceptional emergency services, but the Emergency Medical Services’ (EMS) primary funding source is up for renewal in Whatcom County. We encourage everyone to support the continued funding of this program. When you call 911 with a medical emergency you expect the ambulance to come as quickly as possible. To maintain the county’s rapid, effective service, we must vote YES for the EMS levy on the ballot. Our EMS program saves lives.
Opinion
OPINION: Biden’s foreign policy is an embarrassing mess – the fist bump isn’t helping
By Finn Kurtz | October 5In July, President Joe Biden visited the Middle East, in what appeared to be an attempt at soothing relations with petrol power-brokers during a time of global economic crisis. What attracted most attention – and most criticism – was his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and his bizarre decision to fist bump him.
Opinion
The mystery of dating while asexual
By Milo Openshaw | September 30Asexual people are starting to be recognized on the official queer spectrum and with more visibility comes more questions from the rest of the queer community. I tend not to share the fact that I’m asexual; more often than not, a dozen clarifying questions are attached to it. “That means you … don’t like sex, right?” “Wait, what does that mean again?” “So you, like, don’t ever want to date? EVER?”
Arts & Music
Review of new Lizzo album, 'Special'
By Rowan Westwood | July 31“In case nobody told you today… you’re special,” said Melissa Viviane Jefferson, or as most people know her, Lizzo. She’s the queen of spreading self-love and positivity through her music. Lizzo released her fourth studio album, “Special,” on July 15, 2022, and it’s her most empowering one yet.
Opinion
Letter from the editor | July 24
By Jenelle Baumbach | July 24Have you ever wished that you were born in a different generation? Ever wished that you could escape the phone addicted era that we reside in?
Opinion
Letter from the editor: 6/15
By Milo Openshaw | July 19I’ve been self-conscious about my art ever since I was a kid. My parents sent me to art classes when I was really little, but I fell out of the art scene after that, around the time when I became too shy to share what I created. I wondered if I was “good enough.” And what happens if I’m not good enough? Will people laugh at me? Could my ego take a hit like that? The answer is that nobody is “good enough.” An artist who paints in the classical style and an artist who arranges junk into an abstract sculpture have the same chance of success, because there is no good or bad art. There is subjectivity and open-mindedness, but no set standards.
Opinion
Existence in a forbidden body after Roe v. Wade
By Milo Openshaw | July 11The female biological body is a vessel, the Republican party declared, which the male biological body may open and close and store and steal at will.
Opinion
Letter from the editor | July 11
By Aria Nguyen | July 11Being an editor means that I am allowed to share my personal experiences with my reporters and that I can be vulnerable in every way which may help guide them in a more diverse direction.
Opinion
Letter from the Editor | June 1
By Emily Bassett | June 1I have a dilemma. A moral quandary, if you will. I’m an English major, so you’d think I would be good with words, right? Wrong.
