Alexa Thomases

OPINION 9/13/22 11:10pm

Don’t skip the 2022 midterm elections

By Alexa Thomases

With no presidential election at stake in 2022, do this year’s midterm elections even matter that much? I wasn’t sure until I saw the complete list of offices up for election in Texas this November. Most notably, the midterm election will determine the next Texas Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, both chambers of the Texas Legislature and all 38 U.S. Representatives. 

OPINION 8/23/22 9:23pm

Let’s show our gratitude for campus staff

By Alexa Thomases

“If Seibel serves PAOW one more time, I’m dropping out.” It’s all too common for Rice students to gripe about the food and facilities. I know I’ve been guilty of it. In my experience, complaining sometimes becomes an easy bonding opportunity amongst students: lulls in the conversation are frequently filled with hyperbolic jokes about food at North being inedible or about dorms the size of shoeboxes. I don’t want to dismiss the legitimate difficulties that students with dietary restrictions or accessibility needs face at Rice. However, the majority of complaints I hear seem to come from students who expect luxury but overlook the employees who work so hard to provide for our every need. Rice’s campus staff is incredible and I urge us all to show them more respect and gratitude.

OPINION 1/19/21 5:54pm

Let’s heal how we talk about food

By Alexa Thomases

How should we discuss food, then? I don’t want to be misunderstood as advising against all food-related conversations. I feel quite the opposite: eating is one of humanity’s oldest social rituals. It’s meant to bring us together. We’re at our best when we engage in conversations that center the enjoyment of food rather than its nutritional content. 

OPINION 10/20/20 10:24pm

The Green New Deal is no more radical than our planet demands

By Alexa Thomases

The time for tepid environmental regulations is behind us. As the climate crisis grows more acute by the day, our planet desperately needs sweeping legislative action. 

OPINION 3/31/20 3:55pm

No, mainstream media isn’t sensationalizing COVID-19

By Alexa Thomases

We’ve seen it happen time and again: clambering for attention in our click-driven world, major news outlets cherry-pick sensational stories and dramatize their headlines. This tactic has blown countless news stories out of proportion — but COVID-19 isn’t one of them.

OPINION 1/21/20 10:06pm

Deadly shooting at Bellaire High School highlights need for tighter gun control

By Alexa Thomases

Fourteen days. That’s how long the U.S. went before its first fatal school shooting of 2020. Two weeks into the new decade, 19-year-old César Cortés was shot and killed at Bellaire High School, about five miles southwest of Rice. He was a Junior Reserve Officers Training Corpsmember who was enlisted in the Army and had aspirations of serving his country. His death is heart-wrenching. It was also preventable.