Staff writer April Pfrogner writes why she’s against the protests against Donald Trump while Editor In Chief Rachael Kriger writes about why she supports the protests.

Against Protests: “Suck it up, buttercups” by April Pfrogner

As I watch the protests and riots going on in Chicago, Hollywood, Philadelphia, Seattle, Portland, Fort Lauderdale, etc., I become more and more proud to be a Republican and a Trump supporter. I know many who were depressed, including myself, when President Obama got re-elected however I did not see any rioting in the streets by conservatives.

We just moved on and lived our lives as usual. What is shocking is the stark contrast coming from the liberals who pride themselves on being inclusive, accepting, and tolerant of all people, yet here they are rioting. One person has been killed and police officers have been injured. This doesn’t sound like a peaceful group to me. It sounds like a group of whiny college kids who can’t handle the truth.

President Obama has expressed that he will ensure a peaceful transfer of power. Hillary Clinton came out and gracefully conceded to President-elect Trump. However these protests and riots continue. Stories have come out showing that some protesters have even been paid which doesn’t surprise me.

As a full time student, knowing how much college tuition costs and goes up every year, it sickens me to see that money be wasted on placating cry- babies on campuses. Bobby Kaufmann has the right idea though. He is the Chairman of the House Oversight Committee in Iowa.

Kaufman explained his plan to co-sponsor the “Suck It Up, Buttercup” Bill. The proposed legislation would identify the monies spent by state schools on activities deemed to be a waste of money. The state would then penalize those schools by cutting triple the amount of money wasted from the 2017 budget.

If academia continues to baby millennial while in college, what happens when we graduate and real life hits us in the face? Are we going to run home to mommy crying because we feel left out or didn’t get our way? Life isn’t fair as much as the liberals would like it to be. Life is competitive. College is supposed to prepare the youth, not hinder them from growing up.

The mainstream media plays a large role and has played a large role in this protesting and rioting by insulting and bashing Trump from the day he announced his candidacy. Most media outlets took great pleasure in twisting many of his statements, calling him names and laughing off his chances of winning. Because the media is so out of touch with the average American, all their indicators told them Trump had no chance. Had they fairly reported and fairly polled America from day one of his candidacy, we wouldn’t have this polarized aftermath. Perhaps they’d have seen and reported that he actually did have a chance to win.

I think it’s amazing that The New York Times came out with a (weak) apology to President-elect Trump and promised to rededicate themselves to unbiased reporting. It’s a shame they couldn’t have done that all along. Perhaps they noticed the decrease in their profits or perhaps it was an attack of conscience.

I don’t like the things that Trump has said about women and minorities during his candidacy. I hope those comments will cease. I also know that the media has portrayed him in a false light many times, only giving people a sound bite instead of the entire context to which Trump was speaking. He has been painted to be a monster by the media and it is simply not true and on Nov. 8, it was obvious that half of the country agrees.

He said he will be deporting illegal immigrants from our country. I am o.k. with that. He will not be deporting people because of the color of their skin or their ethnicity but because they are illegal. My reasoning behind that is the mass immigration and problems going on in France right now. Mass immigration was a reason for the Brexit in the U.K.

It doesn’t matter to me who Trump may hate. What matters is will he do his job fairly for all Americans? Each of us has inalienable rights as afforded to us by the U.S. Constitution. I am a citizen of the United States of America. I strongly believe that my rights and the rights of all Americans will not be infringed. I hope that the protesters will eventually come to that realization as well. What’s done is done. We have a new president. No amount of protesting or rioting is going to change that fact.

Martin Luther King Jr looted nothing, burned nothing and attacked no one yet he was able to change the world.

For Protests: “Keep ’em coming, America” by Rachael Kriger

I am no expert on American law or politics by any means, but I do strongly believe in justice and I believe the people’s vote should matter. The latter, the votes, was made clear to me in this election that my vote does not matter. I remember being in Civics class my freshman year of high school and AP Government my senior year of high school and being told by both of my teachers that my vote matters.

“It always has,” Mr. Samek (Civics teacher) told me and my fellow classmates at Hopewell Senior High School. “And it always will.”

So then explain to me why my vote, and the many other Americans that voted for Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump, did not matter in the long run? Clinton won the popular vote, but the Electoral College took Trump over Hillary? I’ve never been a fan of the Electoral College, and I never will be. It’s unjust to me.

But that’s not what the focus of this article is about. That’s just the background. What the point of this is the protests in wake of Trump winning the election.

If I didn’t work an evening shift and could make it to the protests in downtown Pittsburgh, you better believe I would be joining in. And keep in mind, I’m saying protests. They’re not riots. Some are, but that shouldn’t take away from the entire process as a hole. One bad apple shouldn’t ruin the point that the entire group is trying to make.

Many aren’t happy with the Trump election victory, so we’re making our voices heard. That’s what living in the United States of America is all about right? I’ve mentioned many times about me being from Russia. Would I have the opportunity to speak my mind against Vladimir Putin the way that I can about Trump? Absolutely not. That’s the beauty of America: being able to speak your mind and peacefully protest.

America and the people who are protesting, keep it coming. There’s a lot more protests that are surely to come. I’m behind them 100 percent. The people out there protesting (I wish I could join, and if I can, you know I’ll be out there), keep it up. And if someone decides to get physical, then that’s where self defense comes in. Don’t ever let anyone harm you for your beliefs.

That goes to the Trump supporters as well. I don’t agree with Trump supporters at all, not one bit. But I can respect that they have an opinion. April, the person above my section here, is a Trump supporter, but she’s one of my dearest friends. We might not have the same opinion or political beliefs, but that shouldn’t make us hate each other.

Hate isn’t going to solve anything. But protesting isn’t another word for hate. It’s just people making their voices heard.