+ MONDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2014 PAGE 4 + TEXT FREE FOR ALL "Do I have enough time to eat and catch a bus to class?" The answer is usually no. Text your FFA submissions to (785)289-8351 or at kansan.com Yes, I'm wearing a top hat. Since when has it been wrong to wear a top hat? Aw man if only I had a Royals shirt!! Go KC. Just so everyone knows, it's illegal to shoot off fireworks in Lawrence. Not that that's ever stopped anyone before... Stats Class: Where 2.5 games of pool is a real thing. How do you have 2.5 games of pool?? After handing out flyers at Mrs. E's, I have a new found respect for the people that do it on Wescoe all the time. It sucks so much. I'll happily take their papers from now on. Has anyone else ever been scared to open your laptop in class because you were afraid the last thing you looked at was porn? Calls the Campanile the "bell tower" #NotaKUstudent I am 100% positive that there are UDK fairies. I mean has anybody ever seen the UDKs being delivered? #Magic All majors viewed equally? They aren't in the real world. Some majors have higher starting pay. It's harder to attain or is seen as more valuable to society. There is something about math that makes me really sleepy ... A huge thank you to the GTA who lets me occasionally take naps in the back of the class. It's halfway through October and I already have Nutcracker music stuck in my head. Royals are in it to win it!!!! KU needs to put together an EDM Enthusiasts club. Because we all know us ravers could always use a few more connections. My TA has no idea what he's talking about. I'd be better off teaching this class myself. Walking through the swarm of bees by Lindley Hall is like Fear Factor...every.day. Going to a football game where they don't wave the wheat after touchdowns was a hard transition. KU life alert: Help I'm at the bottom of the hill and I can't get up! I got some sweaty rainbows on my arms from the color run!! I think they're permanent My friend thinks Stephen Hawking currently goes to KU. Being an environmentalist should not be polarizing Last Sunday, I flipped on the radio for my daily National Public Radio intake and heard a captivating piece about how millennials do not identify as environmentalists. According to a March 2014 Pew Research study, only 32 percent of millennials, ages 18 to 33, identify as environmentalists. Although the study did not ask why, the NPR piece offered a few insights. Young interviewees claimed the term "has been corrupted" and is "immediately polarizing." One girl went as far as to say she would not call herself an environmentalist "just anywhere." Although the radio piece was intriguing and insightful, I cringed at my peers' words reverberating through the car. Millennials must own the term environmentalist and shift its social construction from something negative to something unifying. The 1960s and '70s brought major strides for environmentalism such as widespread media coverage of industry pollution, the first Earth Day and sweeping federal environmental regulations. However, roots of the environmentalist movement formed long before these events. In the 1800s, naturalists like Henry David Thoreau and John Muir dedicated their lives to understanding and By Gabrielle Murnan @GabrielleKansan preserving the natural world Countless environmentalists followed in the intrepid footsteps of these men by fighting for the rights of nature. Since then, national and international figures such as Rachel Carson, author of "Silent Spring," a book that exposed the chemical industry, and Chico Mendes, a Brazilian rainforest activist who was killed by agriculture supporters, relentlessly fought for the protection of the voiceless environment. voiceless environment. All of these people are environmentalists. All of these people sacrificed some part of themselves to protect the ecological integrity of the nation and world. When millennials flippantly call themselves "social entrepreneurs," rather than environmentalists, they capitalize on the work and success of past naturalists without acknowledging any of the consequences and struggles they experienced. Disregarding the term environmentalist disregards the history, integrity and strife of those who fought and won us luxuries such as clean water and air. For all you millennials out there who ride orkes to school, dream of solar panels on your future home and cringe at the term "clean coal," I implore you to own the term environmentalist and all of its connotations. Acknowledge the hard-won battles of our past and work to change the social construction of the term environmentalist. In no society should a term that, at its core, exemplifies harmony with all things, be considered polarizing or out of touch. I am an environmentalist and I am not ashamed of the historic significance and weight of that title. Gabrielle Murnan is a junior from Pittsburg studying environmental studies Moped riders must wear helmets A few weeks ago, I spent a weekend visiting a friend in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I expected to be surrounded by cowboy boots and a desert, but was surprised to find myself in a beautiful region of the country that was hilly, open-spaced and green (with the city even having a "hipster" vibe). What surprised me most, though, was the amount of moped riders on the University of Arkansas' campus. As a rider myself, I am pretty familiar with the moped culture in Lawrence. To me, it seems mopeds are slowly gaining popularity here, but still are not considered main modes of transportation. A good number of people, especially students, ride them in nice weather, but I feel lonely in the winter when I'm the only one bundled up on this two-wheeled vehicle. I also noticed the people who do ride mopeds rarely, if ever, wear helmets. At the University of Arkansas, I worried about the amount of mopedriders who weren't wearing helmets — which was basically all of them. Even though there are fewer mopedriders here, the same problem exists. Maybe people feel safe on campus because they equate riding a moped to riding a bike. But whatever the case may be, the helmet-wearing culture needs to improve. There can be several fatal, or near-fatal, incidents involving mopeds and bicycles. Two years ago as I was riding my moped on Iowa Street, I witnessed another moped rider get hit by a jeep; since then, I try to avoid main roads. There is an inevitable risk involved with the pleasure of riding a moped, but wearing a helmet reduces this risk. This is obvious to everyone, but continues to be neglected. So, I find it important to keep appealing to KU moped riders in order to improve a culture of precaution. I've noticed that most helmets look "lame" or are too bulky to use with mopeds or even bikes, but it is easy to shop for a helmet you like with many cool options online. It's also easy to convince yourself there is a small chance of anything really happening to you, especially if you're just riding on campus. But in reality, most people who see you riding without a helmet will wonder why you're not wearing one. Wearing a helmet is the least you can do for yourself, and can definitely be "cool," especially if you have a helmet with a design as wicked as my Italian flag target design. Sebastian Schoneich is a senior from Lawrence studying biochemistry and philosophy FFA OF THE DAY I want a CWB (cuddler with benefits) which is really me calling you to cuddle, watch Netflix, eat pizza and we both don't wear pants. That's it. Eating gluten free is a fad diet that must stop If you walk down the aisles of any grocery store nowadays. store nowadays, you may notice several of the items are marked gluten free. But having gluten-free foods was never the norm before, as it is today. Day by day, more people are jumping on the gluten-free diet bandwagon. It seems like everyone has a gluten allergy. Going gluten free isn't a lifestyle change, but a fad diet for at least 30 percent of adults, according to a 2013 study conducted by the NPD group. Apart from those who physically cannot eat gluten, like those with celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity, the majority of people who cut gluten out of their diet do it to lose weight. Just like other fad diets, the gluten-free diet will mostly shed water weight. Fad diets are advertised as being a fun, easy and fast way to lose weight. Regardless of what the media or your peers say, most people need gluten to maintain a healthy diet. Consuming a balanced amount of whole grains can reduce your risk of heart disease, constipation and helps with weight management, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. By cutting out gluten from our diets, we are missing a large chunk of the food pyramid. Besides the health concerns of going gluten free, the diet can take a toll on your wallet. Gluten-free products are usually more expensive in comparison to other foods. Companies that sell gluten-free and organic products know they can raise the prices on their items because people will still purchase them. Instead of spending money on expensive, wheat-free food, you should spend your grocery money on food from every part of the food pyramid to maintain a healthy diet. I know that as college students, we have all put on some version of the freshman 15, but you don't need to lose that weight by cutting out gluten. Although it can be beneficial for people with gluten sensitivity, it has turned into a fad diet technique that does more harm than good. Instead of trying to lose those last five pounds by cutting out wheat or starving yourself, maintain a healthy diet and exercise. We don't need to be going on extreme diets. Madeline Umali is a sophomore from St. Louis studying journalism CAMPUS CHIRPS RACK @lauwrenorder What would you do to get a ticket to the World Series? A lot... But I'm okay with a home viewing with lots and lots of snacks. @coatkneeee the same things that I would do for a Klondike bar HOW TO SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR Send letters to opinion@kansan.com. Write LETTER TO THE EDITOR in the email subject line. Length: 300 words The submission should include the author's name, grade and hometown. Find our full letter to the editor policy online at sansan.com/letters. Emma LoBauh, editor-in-chief elegault@kansan.com Madison Schutz, managing editor mschultz@kansan.com Hannah Barling, digital editor hbarling@kansan.com CONTACT US Cecilia Cho, opinion editor ccho@kansan.com Cole Anneberg, art director canneberg@kansan.com Christina Carreira, advertising director ccarreira@kansan.com Follow us on Twitter @KansanOpinion. Tweet us your opinions, and we just might publish them. Scott Weidner, digital media manager sweidner@kansan.com Tom Wittler, print sales manager twitter@kansan.com Jon Schlitt, sales and marketing adviser jschlitt@kansan.com . THE KANSAN EDITORIAL BOARD Members of the Kansan Editorial Board are Emma LeGaunt, Madison Schultz, Cecilia Hohn, Hannah Barling and Christina Carreira. +