Becoming a parent is often seen as one of the greatest milestones in a person’s life. However, becoming a parent is not something that should ever be taken lightly. For some, it’s a natural instinct. It’s something that they feel they are biologically and emotionally prepared for. For others, it can seem like a distant possibility that people may not fully grasp onto until it is thrust upon them.

This idea that parenting is a natural, instinctive role and is an essential part of life is something that simply isn’t true. That idea overlooks not only the emotional, physical, and financial toll it typically takes, but it also overlooks the current state of society. While it’s true that becoming a parent can be one of the most rewarding experiences of life for some, it’s also equally true that it can also be overwhelming. 

Social media is a key aspect in our world that has greatly impacted parents and the following generations of children. And let’s not forget the pandemic and how its impact has changed how adults and children view the world. In times like those, it emphasizes just how demanding the responsibility of raising a child is.  

If you can’t handle these aspects of parenthood, then maybe it’s time to reconsider whether you should be a parent at all.

Social Media

With the rise of the new digital age of social media, parents are often relying on social media to help or even to monetize off of their children. There are far more dangers to this and many parents have started to recognize this, but the damage is already done.

Unfortunately, there are many creeps out there that have access to the same information as you do. Being behind a screen, there’s no true way of knowing who’s there and for what reason. Now, I don’t say all of this to instill fear into others, but rather, to make parents and soon-to-be parents more aware of the dangers in putting your child on social media. 

When your child’s face is posted on the internet, it increases the risk of their lives being put in danger. More particularly, if they are posted often and in common/identifying locations. Click here for more information about social media risks and tips.

Even as children get older, it’s still important to teach your child the dangers of the world instead of trying to hide it from them. That way they understand the harm that can arise from social media and can remain safe without limiting them to a box. 

 Children want to be free and want to explore and learn about the world around them, so keeping aspects of the world hidden from them isn’t the way to go. It just means they’ll learn from those who may not know much better, or they’ll learn on their own in an unsafe manner. 

This is one of the key reasons why I believe if you can’t handle the responsibility of protecting your child and take precautionary actions in raising your child, then you shouldn’t have one. 

What it Means to Raise a Child

Children are very complicated. Adults are complicated as well. But bringing a child into the world means you’re responsible for far more than just the bare necessities of food, water, clothes, and shelter. 

There are people who thought they’d never be parents or didn’t want a child at the time but decided to keep it anyways and now their child is the best thing that could have ever happened to them. But it is a selfish act, regardless of your intentions. Hence why it’s important to recognize that raising a child isn’t something that everyone can nor should do.

 It’s often said that the people who don’t want children the most are the ones who would be the best parents. This is because these people recognize the atrocities of the world and know that they can’t handle and/or don’t want to deal with raising a child. 

Responsibility

The true responsibility lies in guiding a child through life and helping them navigate the complexities of the world. Parenting involves significant emotional, mental, and even societal responsibilities that go beyond mere survival. Watching the shifts in parenting methods over time, along with observing the outcomes in my peers and younger generations, has provided insight into how challenging yet rewarding raising a child can be.

Parenting is more than following intuition or relying on one-size-fits-all advice; it’s a deeply personal and evolving journey that requires knowledge, patience, and understanding. Not everyone is suited to parenthood, and it’s important to acknowledge when one may not be ready or able to handle the full responsibility of raising a child and that’s okay. 

There shouldn’t be any pressure to have children for the sake of religious or cultural beliefs. It’s already an unfair world to live in, so why take the risk at caring for a completely separate life than yours if you’re mentally, financially, and emotionally unprepared for it?

Negative Impacts of the Increasing Population

Even with the rate of adoption increasing, the population is ever growing. And this negatively impacts the world we live in. 

According to the Population Matters website, it says, “As the population grows, the demand for resources such as land, water and energy increases, leading to deforestation, loss of biodiversity and increased carbon emissions. The strain on the environment has led to severe consequences, including climate change and widespread habitat destruction.” 

Many people don’t care or don’t realize just how significant this damage is to Earth, but it’s a factor to consider when it comes to introducing a child into the world. Giving life to a child and they’re being raised in an environment that is constantly being damaged doesn’t make much sense. 

This is not to say that people should stop having children because the world is awful to live in, but it means that there should be far more consideration into how to raise your child and what you should do to be able to maintain your well-being in order to continue raising them.

Counterargument: Struggles Are a Part of Parenthood

Some might argue that struggles are simply part of the parenthood experience—that no one is ever truly “ready” for the challenges of raising a child, and that it’s through facing these challenges that individuals grow into better parents. They might say that it’s natural to experience difficulties and that these struggles teach important lessons in patience, resilience, and love.

While it’s true that parenthood involves growth and learning, the idea that struggles should be accepted without question overlooks the very real risks that can come with being unprepared. Struggling isn’t inherently bad. Everyone goes through tough times. 

But in the case of parenthood, those struggles can affect a child’s emotional and physical development in ways that may have lifelong consequences. It’s one thing to face the typical stress of parenting and another to be unprepared for the monumental demands that come with it.

Not every parent has the support system or resources necessary to navigate these challenges. Many parents rely on extended family, community support, and social programs to help them raise their children. Without these resources, the struggles of parenting can quickly become overwhelming. People may not deem it to be necessary but as many say, it takes a village to raise a child.

Final Thoughts

In today’s world, the pressures of parenthood are immense. Yet, people often fail to acknowledge the enormous responsibility it entails. While parenthood can be an incredibly rewarding journey, it should not be entered into lightly. If you’re not prepared to handle the emotional, financial, and mental toll that parenting requires, it’s crucial to step back and reevaluate your readiness. 

This isn’t just about you—it’s about the future of the child you would bring into the world. Taking the time to ensure that you are equipped for the responsibility of raising a child is not only a decision for your well-being but a gift to your future family.

INTRO: (Dramatic music with voiceover and text popping up saying ‘Zodiac Signs? Racists? Racism? Discrimination?’; images of zodiac signs, birthday party stock images, girls sitting with crystals/images of crystals)

VO: “Zodiac signs? More like birthday racism. (mimic commercial speaking)  Have you or a loved one been in the crossfire of a zodiac believer’s insults? Well, so have I!”

ON SCREEN: “Hi. I’m Tanaya and if you couldn’t tell by the intro, I’m gonna be talking about the blatant discrimination against birthdays.”

PART 1: General Statements

[low background music]

“Now, I will agree that there are personality traits that align with a person’s zodiac sign, but it’s not like it’s foolproof. It’s not completely accurate as the breakdown of the signs are meant to be general descriptions of people that were born between a certain time frame. Overall, just something that categorizes people for the sake of wanting to belong.” 

FADE TO: caveman stock image/art

VO: (Airy tone) “Something people have naturally desired since the beginning of time.”

PART 2: Complete and Utter Confusion

(image of a silhouette of wolf sitting on ledge at night, moon in background; add howling)

CUT:

“What the hell is a rising moon? Why are there so many possibilities of having eight different zodiac signs? Doesn’t that just defeat the purpose of declaring yourself a zodiac sign.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I like zodiac signs on the surface. I like having an assigned creature to the day I was born. It’s cool.” 

(Insert image of Cerberus because why not)

“But what I don’t understand is why it’s become such a big deal.” 

(Slow fade in transforming me into a judge; adding white wig, judge robe, and gavel. Lasts until end of next sentence)

“Some people outright judge you simply because of the day you were born. I don’t get to choose what day to be born on. And I like my birthday. Don’t be mad because you don’t like it. I don’t even know you so why do you care?”

“There’s some people that are really chill about zodiac signs. Those people I can understand. But the others? Well let me tell you about a specific moment I think of every time zodiac signs are mentioned.” 

CUT TO: Story Time title screen w/title screen music

PART 3: STORYTIME

[back to original low background music]

“It was the day of my friend’s 16th birthday.”

(start stock image/illustration birthday sequence during VO: show road leading to house with person moving to it, cut to interior of house with people sitting at a table)

VO: “I was at her house with some of her other friends and we were sitting at the table. Everything was chill, we were just relaxing and talking to each other, when all of a sudden, the question of “what’s your sign?” came up.” 

(make a person’s mouth move like a puppet to say “what’s your sign?”)

“I thought, “Oh god. Here we go.” So I listened to everyone list off their signs. But not only did they list their zodiac signs, they started talking about their rising signs and moons and such. Of course, me being me, I sat there in confusion as they talked about the different variations of signs they supposedly had.” 

(insert confusion gif or meme; lasts until “…engaged in the conversation.”)

“I took note that nobody mentioned they were my sign, so I wondered what they’d have to say about mine. Especially since I didn’t know much about it. Not that I cared to know, but I was trying to be engaged in the conversation.”

“Finally, it gets to my turn to say my sign. I’m the last person to go so all eyes are on me. I say what my sign is, and you wanna know what I hear?

[stop music]

CUT TO:  Black screen 

VO: ‘Oh…’ I hear an ‘oh’ and then complete silence.”

ON SCREEN: “Can somebody tell me what in the world am I supposed to do besides get up and leave? Like, what in the world was that? I literally didn’t do anything wrong, and yet, I got such a visceral reaction from everyone besides my friend.”

[low background music comes back]

“Thankfully, she came back shortly after and we moved on from that, but it shouldn’t have gotten to that in the first place. Instead of assuming our personalities are just “incompatible,” how about you attempt to have a conversation with me before assuming you know me because an app told you about the alignment of the stars and planets?”

WIPE TRANSITION: 

PART 4: I’m Done

“Anyways. At the end of the day, I’m not going to bash people for believing in horoscopes and living their lives based on it. You do you, it has nothing to do with me. However, let’s stop the birthday racism. I’m over it. I’ve had enough, and if anything, it’s a step backwards so keep your beliefs to yourself and stop judging people based on a spiritual belief. Judge them based on their character. Or maybe just don’t talk to people. I don’t know. I don’t control your life.”

CUT: 

“You know what? Why don’t you guys take a guess at my sign? Go ahead and use whatever system, app, or whatever it is, and take a guess and explain why in the comments down below. And since you’re already down there, why don’t you like and subscribe. Please.”

OUTRO: “And with that, I’ll see you guys next time. Goodbye.”

When a student enrolls in college, most of the time, they plan to live in a dorm on campus. However, at Ringling College of Art and Design, students wait anxiously for their winning ticket in the housing lottery.

Their Office of Housing claims to be committed to providing housing options for all students, but with its increasing student body, is there enough space for everyone to live on campus?

As the housing demand rises, students are left wondering whether the college can truly accommodate all who wish to live on campus.

(Tanaya Williams) Goldstein Hall, one of the two first-year dorm buildings, located behind the student recreation center.

Acceptance Rate and Housing Demand

According to Prepscholar, Ringling’s acceptance rate is 64.7%. This number shocked students as they said they felt Ringling accepts far more students than they can house. As stated on Ringling’s diversity page, roughly 20.3% freshmen of the 1,660 students are international students.

Ringling also states, “Since the Spring semester of 2024, the Committee has begun identifying ways for Ringling College to further embrace and share our campus culture as one of inclusion and support for the diversity of all people within our campus community.” 

Many who don’t receive housing struggle to find a place to stay near campus. It’s clear that diversity is welcomed, but is Ringling doing enough to support its diverse population?

Laura Pressley, a rising sophomore student, expressed her concerns for international students by saying, “What do you mean you’re gonna go to a different country and pay so much and dedicate your time to this school, and they can’t even ensure you have a place to stay?”

Housing Options and Conditions

At Ringling, there are many different housing options available both on and off campus. On the campus, the first year housing buildings are the Goldstein Hall and the Greensboro Hall–centrally located on campus for convenience.

(Tanaya Williams) The front of the Bridge Apartments, a 3-story, on-campus building that houses juniors and seniors.

(Tanaya Williams) The back of the Bayou Village Apartments; a 3-story, on-campus building that typically houses juniors and seniors, a few sophomores if they join a group with upperclassmen.

There are 6 on-campus buildings and 2 off-campus buildings for upperclassmen. This seems like an adequate amount of housing options for the roughly 1,660 students, but students say there’s barely any room for everyone. 

Marisa Medina, another rising sophomore, said, “You could literally end up homeless or even in more debt just so you can go to school and it’s not fair.” Unfortunately, that statement isn’t far from the truth. A photography senior also revealed they heard about a few people being homeless while going to Ringling because they couldn’t receive housing under the housing lottery system. 

Housing Lottery Experience

The overall process to enter the housing lottery is quite simple. Under the ‘Housing’ tab on https://ringling.erezlife.com, a student makes an account, fills out basic information, and completes the application. Once complete, they can decide to room with up to 3 others. Then, you make a roommate group, select it as your preferred group, and wait for an email to tell you what time your lottery slot is.

This system, however, raises some questions. Students wonder “Why is there even a lottery?” and “Why isn’t housing guaranteed for everyone who pays tuition?

Costs

Outside of inadequate space for students, the cost is another variable that increases frustration with the housing lottery system. Under Ringling’s tuition and fees page, it says that tuition, tuition fees, and room and board totals to $76,570 for the 2024-25 first year students. About 25% of that total is the price of housing–$18,670 per year. The cost of housing per semester ranges from $4,120 to $9,505. 

Even when students are able to secure housing, oftentimes, they have to pay for a meal plan that they don’t need because it’s required. This increases frustration and forces students to pay for a resource they don’t use.

The Future

So if there’s not enough housing for everyone on campus to live in, then what should Ringling do? Some students suggested getting rid of the lottery system entirely and replacing it with a system that’s similar to registering for classes. Other suggestions were to only accept as many students as they can house or make more dorm buildings. 

Conclusion

Many students have expressed their concerns over the availability of housing and the lottery system. The general consensus is Ringling doesn’t have enough to fit their students’ needs. Reducing the acceptance rate and building more adequate housing options are the most plausible solutions. In order to meet the needs of its diverse student body, it’s clear Ringling needs to reassess its housing system to ensure every student has a place to stay while pursuing their education.

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