Somewhere along the way, Christian music lost that edge. The industry leaned hard into worship pop, the kind of music that works well for congregational singing but leaves little room for anything else. Those songs have their place; they’re accessible and uplifting. But when they become the entire identity of Christian music, something important gets lost. Faith isn’t always neat, and the music should reflect that.
Browsing: Opinion
Editorials and opinions from the Lariat staff and readers.
The association of reading and school work killed many of our desires to get lost in a good piece of literature. That association only grew stronger as we entered college, with numerous pages of reading assigned each night. Not only did we lack any desire, but now we had no time in which we could.
People often dismiss theater with the excuse, “This major is easy.” That’s such an oversimplified and unfair way out. The truth is, no major is easy. Every major faces its own challenges, pressures and unique demands.
While people outside of the fanbase see us as poor, unfortunate souls grasping onto false hope, they overlook the characteristics that make a Cowboys fan a Cowboys fan — and believe it or not there are many appealing characteristics and qualities about us.
At its root, whimsy is not an aesthetic. True whimsy is older, deeper, stranger than that. It is the astonishment that we are here at all, alive, breathing, conscious, inside a universe that by all accounts should not have rolled the dice in our favor.
People now turn to AI as a data analyst, tutor, dietitian and surprisingly even for emotional support. But play therapist? That’s where things get dangerous. At first glance, this may sound reasonable. After all, AI doesn’t judge or bring its own feelings into the mix, but that’s the problem. AI isn’t capable of emotions or empathy, qualities that are essential in therapy.
At the edge of a black hole, we will drag ourselves into a pit that we or our mockeries of creation will not escape. We will have given consciousness to something that cannot think, eyes to a being that will never truly see and a mouth to something that will never be able to scream.
I used to think you had to be a fraternity DJ to enjoy house music. Now, the genre claims a spot on my Spotify Wrapped every year. As an ex-hater, let me convince you why house deserves a place in every person’s playlist.
The hardest lesson may be permitting yourself to grieve in a place that constantly tells you to achieve. Grief does not fit neatly between midterms and extracurriculars. It interrupts. It blurs. It breaks schedules and refuses productivity.
In an EDM-focused culture, it’s time for the college rock band to return. The next time you’re making weekend plans and thinking of attending an event based around a homemade YouTube trap mix, consider searching out your local college band instead. Go to a show and belt your heart out to a cover of Drops of Jupiter with your friends.
College isn’t only about grades; it’s about connection. It’s about knowing you belong somewhere, not just in a classroom, but in a community. Transfers bring resilience, fresh perspectives and determination to succeed, and it’s time for us to be fully included in the community.
Understanding where we go from here is pivotal. If we treat every life lost as nothing more than ammunition for ideological battles, we deny the sacredness of human life itself. This is not the time for rash remarks or partisan point-scoring; it is time for genuine change.
The only thing that comes into fruition from the medium of violence is a wounded side and a less wounded side. No one comes out on top. There is no victory in destruction — only pain. And pain is the only thing that will continue in this country until we return to empathy.
As we reflect on the impact social media has had on our 2025 minds, it is much less positive. Social media has produced an anxiety-ridden, disconnected and apathetic generation. Our minds are filled with constant noise and comparison. Every major and minor tragedy is broadcast to us in grotesque detail.
Come Friday afternoon, Barfield Drawing Room will be teeming with parents, tickets will be sold out for Baylor football’s non-conference clash with Samford and families clad in green and gold will flood 5th Street. For many, the promise of Family Weekend brings eager anticipation.
As stated in The Oxford Blue, “Music from the past is music with history, music that creates more than a desire to dance, it creates specific feelings of a particular moment in time, even if we weren’t necessarily alive at the time.”
Since mankind has been able to fly, companies have been looking at ways to capitalize on it. Howard Hughes had his Spruce Goose, Jeff Bezos has Blue Origin and Elon Musk has SpaceX. The United States is embarking on a unique era of space travel. We aren’t competing with the USSR to put a man on the moon anymore; the entire paradigm has shifted to looking for the most affordable and accessible ways to get people into space.
As we begin a new academic year, it’s an honor to step into the role of student body president. My top priority will be to represent my peers as the chief advocate for the student voice. Baylor is a special place that we are blessed to call home, and having been a Baylor fan for most of my life, I could not ask for a better way to spend my final year in Waco.
Picture a mischievous, weird-looking creature sewn into softness — bat-wide ears, marble-round eyes and a row of tiny needle teeth curving into a cheeky grin, all wrapped in shaggy, candy-colored fur. That is a Labubu: part gremlin, part rabbit, part sugary fever dream, designed to look both adorable and a little dangerous, like it might steal your heart and money in the same breath.
I’ve spent years trying to find a faster way to learn the ins and outs of a class, but every time I try something else, I come back to writing everything out. No matter the subject matter or the type of class, writing things out helps me keep everything clear in my brain.
As someone who recently moved to Texas from the Northeast, I had only heard murmurs about a gas station known as Buc-ee’s. I knew that they had hundreds of gas pumps and real Texas brisket, but I had no idea what I was in for. I didn’t grow up in the neon glow of the yellow beacon on the side of the highway that told me that paradise was at the next exit.
In our current culture, doomscrolling has become a derogatory term, attached to several physical and mental health issues. While it is quite indisputable that doomscrolling reinforces negatives, what if it is not the source of them?
The biggest problem with movies flopping today is not viewership or critical reception; it’s something more controllable and preventable: the money. Budgets have ballooned to the point where it’s tougher than ever to make a profit.
In 2019, a study showed that 41% of students drop a class during their first two years at a four-year university. The majority of students reported three different reasons for their drop: not liking the course, not liking the instructor and being unsatisfied with their grade. This study also showed that “a student’s preparedness is not a driver of course dropping,” showcasing that academic inclination is not as important as we think.
Self-Care September has arrived, and with it come questions about what self-care means and how to implement it effectively in your life. In a culture that’s become centered on self-help and improvement, it’s essential to learn how to take time to take care of your mental health.
It seems that Baylor’s happy-go-lucky, rainbow-sunshine demeanor is restricting people from telling the truth about their lives, for fear of being judged by the seemingly picture-perfect peers that surround us. This phenomenon seems unique to Baylor.
With roommates, not only did I have a solid, close-knit group of friends already established, but they were literally close enough that I didn’t have to worry about getting too far out of my comfort zone or even leaving my room.
It’s hard to deny the power of television, and reality TV is today’s cultural epidemic. And if you’re among the rare few who don’t watch, I envy your freedom. Reality TV is an entirely different ballgame.
In a world where classrooms and social media compete for our attention, it’s hard not to wonder who shapes us more: the traditional education system or the influencers we follow. Both play a major role in how we see ourselves and the world around us, but the balance between them is defining Gen Z as they enter the workforce.
Periods shouldn’t be embarrassing, but they are, so how do we change this?
