By Julianna Lopatin Ethics describes the system of moral principles that govern our internal thoughts and external actions. Sometimes the term “ethics” is used interchangeably with the terms “moral principles” or “moral philosophy.” A few questions I have held within myself since I first began to consider this subject are What ethics means to me and why does it matter? Which is of greater worth: knowledge or happiness? If knowledge, what kind of knowledge? How is it attained? And if happiness, would that be of my own? My family’s? Or the happiness of all? Below I will consider several ethical issues in the hope that engaging with them will gradually…

By Rose Gildersleeve Let’s bring back the Fairness Doctrine and while we’re at it, let’s talk policies, not party affiliations. With the two most recent presidential elections (2016 & 2020), I think most Americans agree that the United States is starkly divided. But the truth is that our nation has always been divided. Aside from our geography, social class, and diversity, looking back to Civil Rights, Women’s Suffrage, war protesting of Vietnam, gay rights and abortions, was there ever time when we weren’t starkly divided? We now have access to more information than ever before, from heavy leaning right or left wing news media, to misleading information being pumped out…

By Zoe May The United States is known for being a technology giant in the global market, yet the use of smartphones to track the spread of Covid 19 is virtually nonexistent in comparison to the rest of the world. Why is this technology not being used in the United States? This may be because the United States does not have a national health care program, so decisions like this are done on the local level and often not prioritized.  Smartphones already have the capability of GPS tracking, including “how close you’ve been to other people, for how long and keep a detailed log of everyone you’ve been around for…

By Violet Yeaton I have seen time and time again that our students leave the village to pursue higher education in hub cities like Anchorage and Fairbanks. They travel out-of-state to attend schools like Harvard, Stanford, Princeton and once they complete their academics, they see no future in their villages and look for work in the cities. I did not realize this was an issue, until I had an opportunity to listen to Father Oleska’s presentation at a seminar in 2010. I was serving on the Parent Advisory Committee for the village of Port Graham, and I was elected as the representative to attend the Indian Education meetings with the…

By Lucille Berliant The First Amendment reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” (2) It’s not a simple sentence and, as a result, interpretations of it have varied over the centuries. New laws surrounding what defines free speech are continuously made, for example, a threat is not protected under free speech. (7) Does Colin Kapernick kneeling during a football to protest human rights count as free speech? (8) In a publicly…

By Garrett Butts As a newcomer to any team or group, you are not sure how things will unfold. Luckily for me, the APU Elite Ski Team has been nothing but joy to be a part of. As for most athletes at this current time, we are all experiencing a break from our normally scheduled race season due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but despite having the remainder of the 2019-2020 racing season come to an end, we have had numerous grand adventures and experiences, non the less. When I arrived in September, our training year was well advanced and we were fast approaching the race season. Having trained by myself…

by Luke Graupmann As a young Alaskan I have become increasingly concerned with our state’s interest in socialism. Governor Dunleavy promised to provide strong conservative leadership, instead he is promoting socialism. His main campaign pledge, entitling Alaskans to $3,000 a year, is universal basic income in action. I intend to call out Dunleavy, for Governor Dunleavy is a socialist. What is universal basic income and how did Governor Dunleavy win his campaign on the issue in one of the reddest states in the country? Universal basic income is a proposal popular among socialists that entitles every citizen to a financial handout from their government. The idea of universal basic income…