When Donald Trump formally announced his bid for president in June 2015, few people took him seriously. As months of his hateful and violent rhetoric escalated and continued on with few consequences, it became increasingly clear that Trump was not only here to stay but also in the lead within the Republican party. Today, Trump holds the current title of President-Elect of the United States.

The Democratic party opponent, Hillary Clinton, was no newcomer to politics. She was a veteran to the field since her undergraduate college education. Serving as Secretary of State for four years, Clinton was more than qualified for the job. However, on Nov. 8, this did not seem matter.

Now that one of the most suspenseful presidential elections is over, Clinton supporters feel the loss as well the devastation and confusion. It leaves room to wonder, how did this happen?

While Clinton did hold avid support, it is no secret that some felt that casting their vote in her favor was leaning towards “a lesser of two evils” rather than the candidate they felt was right. It was not until a Trump presidency became a real, viable threat that we saw political involvement among not necessarily Clinton supporters but Trump protesters.

The effort came much too late and endeavors on voting day were not nearly enough.

Voter turnout hit its all-time low in nearly two decades with only 53.5 percent of eligible voters turning out. In the primaries, this dipped to 28.5 percent. A small number in comparison but average for presidential primaries.

Although there was an increase in voters within the 18-29 age range from the last election, the turn out still sat in the lower number of 19 percent of that demographic. Even though Clinton held 55 percent of this demographic, the numbers were not enough. Young Democrats were just not there for Clinton when it came to election day.

Clinton supporters, Democrats and anyone else who opposes Trump have another important question that needs answering. What now?

Support for Clinton came too little, too late or not at all. Not only does there need to be more support, but also earlier, active involvement. Showing up on Nov. 8 is going to earn you that “I Voted” sticker, but primaries are just as vital to our elections.

A culture of political involvement beyond your personal favorite candidate was needed more than ever in this election. “Feel the Bern” certainly felt great while it lasted, but without the Democratic nomination, the flame that was Bernie Sanders wore out. With it, a good amount of Young Democrat support followed.

Trump’s presidency is also accompanied by a threat to marginalized groups. Abortion, civil and immigration rights are all under threat due to most, if not all of Trump’s  previously stated political ideals threatening women, racial minorities, LGBTQ+, etc. Volunteering your time or donating money to non-profits who seek to support the groups of people that Trump threatens is crucial now more than ever.

But perhaps the most important action to take is two years from now. Currently, the Senate and House of Representatives are majority held by the Republican Party. With a Republican Senate and House of Representatives, Trump has more freedom and room to push his party’s agendas. If we can change that in 2018, his presidency may become much less of a threat.

Stay informed and be ready to vote once again. It is no presidential election, but midterm elections matter just as much, if not more.

Elections may be over and it may feel as if a battle has been lost, but this cannot be the end of the Democratic political involvement. It may be a long four years before we have another chance to change the president, but all actions in the meantime will make a big difference.

The post Trump won: how and what now? appeared first on The Retriever.

Free Zipcar membership plus $20 in driving credit for UMBC!

UMBC has 6 zipcars available for rent by the day or hour for all ages!

In support of our continued campus sustainability initiatives, Zipcar is offering all faculty, staff, and student employees a free Zipcar membership plus $20 in driving credit!

The Baltimore Choral Arts Society is one of Maryland’s premier professional cultural institutions. The Symphonic Chorus, Full Chorus, and Chamber Chorus perform throughout the mid-Atlantic region, as well as in Washington, DC, New York, and Europe.

Whether one listens to the radio or reads a news article, it sometimes seems nowadays as if there is nothing left in this world worth being grateful for. It is because of this ever-present negativity that one must look that much harder within themselves to recognize and be thankful for what makes them happy.

With Thanksgiving day soon approaching, one is left to wonder what makes people grateful in a world where it sometimes seems as though many people are as far from thankfulness as the East is from the West.

When thinking about what college students are thankful for, one might assume that the list simply includes things such as nights with no homework, higher education, cancelled 8 a.m. classes, snow-days and care packages from mom and dad. While these predictions may seem simplistic, they reflect the stereotypes surrounding college students.

To see if these stereotypes are actually accurate reflections of students today, UMBC students were recently asked to record on a poster board the thing for which they are most grateful. Contrary to often purported stereotypes, the majority of students recorded that they were most thankful for the support and friendship of their peers and parents.

Zhenhui Li, a sophomore, stated, ” I am thankful for my loving friends and their support.” He also echoed a line from the holiday classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”, noting that “each life touches the lives of so many others.”

Confirming one positive stereotype, freshman Eric Connor, stated “I am thankful for a great school.” Connor’s sentiment was repeated several times on the poster board.

One student, a junior and a retired Army soldier who wished to remain anonymous, “I am thankful for my friends who sacrificed their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. I still don’t know why I lived and they did not. I will never forgive myself.”

Being grateful for what one has is effortless when times are good, but when times are tough it is easy to lose sight of the good things in one’s life that deserve their thanks. Developing a reserve of gratitude can help one to get through difficult times and lead them to an overall more positive outlook on life.

Cultivating an attitude of gratitude can begin with something as simple as counting one’s blessings. Writing down any people, places and things that one is grateful for is another way to remind oneself of the many features of one’s life for which they have to be thankful.

Keeping a written record of things that one is appreciative of is a great way of reminding oneself that even in hard times, there is still much to be thankful for. Looking over gratitude lists can reduce stress, lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart related illness.

Having an attitude of gratitude is a choice. In this world plagued with so many sources of negativity, it is important to remember that each rose has thorns, and for every dark and cold day, there is a warm and bright day coming.

The post Attitudes of Gratitude appeared first on The Retriever.

Many Americans are afraid of the promises Trump made during his campaign, but it is more than likely that these are just mere words that will not find their way into future policies. Photo courtesy of Gage Skidmore via Creative Commons.

Some say Trump won because of an appeal to the working class, others say he won because of deep-seated racism and even more say he won because there was a need for an anti-establishment leader, especially after Bernie’s “revolution.” 

According to an Associated Press poll released this April, almost eight in 10 Americans are dissatisfied with their government and the way it works.  Yet, Americans are some of the most passive citizens in the globe. 

Alexis de Tocqueville, a French diplomat best known for his anthropological analysis of America in its infancy, knew what would tear the nation apart. He said, “The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.” 

Both political parties major standing points dealt with taxes, with Clinton trying to convince the middle class that she would run the country with the rich’s money and with Trump trying to convince everyone that somehow he would lower taxes across the board.

To his supporters, Trump is a politician who is obviously imperfect, whose flaws are apparent, but who is not afraid of anyone.  There are many promises Trump has made to the American people; however, he will not be able to keep most of them.

The American public is sick of something that seems good but is not.  President Obama promised a country for all, in which he would welcome the undocumented. Under his administration more immigrants were deported than under any other administration in the history of the United States.  

Many think that they have been cheated under a Democratic administration made of glass. What seemed like a utopia in bringing free health care to all turned into chaos for some. The Affordable Care Act denied many their current health care provider and raised costs for numerous others.  

Liberals blindly embrace the statistic that unemployment went down and the economy thrived, but this is another fallacy. The new jobs brought in have not been analyzed thoroughly and they may be underpaying employees and undermining the economy.  

Americans believe that politicians are unable to keep their promises. Major media outlets, like CNN, have already front-paged a headline reaffirming that Trump will not be able to repeal ObamaCare on his first day in office.  

If Trump does repeal ObamaCare, then he will have had to first come up with a better plan with Republicans in Congress. Trump will likely not be able to fund a wall, because true conservatives in the legislative branch seek a balanced budget. Also, his administration will most probably not be responsible for more deportations than Obama’s.

As can be seen with the multiple examples above, there is no point in placing our faith in the words of a politician. Trump’s words have been destructive, but he will not be able to instill detrimental policies as president. The United States is a nation that cannot be run by a dictator or singular and narrow-minded political agendas unless its citizens allow for it. 

The post We must never put our faith in the words of a politician appeared first on The Retriever.

Nobody ever got compliments over a great dinner if they didn’t first boast about how much work they spent to get it all together. It’s even more fun when you can brag about the setup of your house when you trapped your last dinner guests and how each one fell into a different trap to prepare them for cooking. And then watch your present guests laugh nervously when they ask if you were talking about the animals you cooked last dinner and you replied with a succinct “sure”.

Most people like to use vegetables like carrots, peas, and celery. Bread crumbs are also customary. But why do you think you’re limited to edible foods? Give your guests a little taste of Christmas with stuffing your stuffing as if you’re stuffing their stockings! You only need to use broken up charcoal pieces because your guests have been naughty and don’t deserve a real meal. They’re about to be the dinner soon, anyways.

Americans these days like to keep the skin on everything, but you don’t realize how much fat you ingest from all the meat you eat or how many pesticides and chemicals are dumped on that stuff. If you like the skin on potatoes, then keep it. But nobody likes charred human skin; it gets a little bitter and the fat isn’t even the good kind of fat. So do yourself and your guests a favor and skin your dinner meat.

Remember that skin that you peeled off in that last tip? Well there are a bajillion uses for it. One useful tip is to tan the skins and make them into lampshades or seat covers as party gifts for your guests. You can also use old finger and toe nails as decorative pieces and make your own mosaic! If you drain out the body’s blood then you can use that as a dye for those lampshades and seat covers. The world is yours and so are all of the other parts you didn’t get to use for dinner. Just use your imagination.