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Sumit Bedi

Sumit Bedi is a School of Arts and Sciences sophomore majoring in philosophy. His column, "Through a Glass, Darkly," runs on alternate Tuesdays.

BEDI: Free speech is more complicated on internet

Free speech is a doctrine that has been fairly contentious in the past few years. Much of the discourse surrounding it has focused on physical locations — colleges or meeting halls, for example. But the key 21st-century issue regarding free speech has less to do with what is said and more with where it is said.Feb 10 2022

BEDI: Meanings of political labels shift with time

I have written before about the nebulous nature of the terms “Left” and “Right”, but if there is a pair of terms that have been used and abused in American political discourse more than that unhappy couple, it is “capitalism” and “socialism.” It seems like every day we are subject to polemics surrounding “the slide toward socialism” or “the crisis of capitalism”.Jan 27 2022

BEDI: US cities must do better for homeless individuals

Over the course of the last month, the city of Houston, Texas, implemented a program that sought to close and clean up homeless encampments located around the city and move those who resided there into permanent housing.Dec 7 2021

BEDI: Why politicize art?

BEDI: Elections show proof of cultural shifts

Election season is never over in America. Sure, the voters themselves may go back to brunch, focus on other matters and return to normal but the two parties that define American political life never stop their outreach. Policies are debated and shot down at the highest organizational levels, marketing consultants are brought in to sell ideas better and finances are organized and delegated between states. Nov 9 2021

BEDI: Psychedelic decriminalization offers research opportunities

Lady Lucy, acid, LSD. Blotters have been having a bit of a moment recently, with acid use in America having shot up 56 percent between 2015 to 2018 (not among Generation Z though, its older members have actually seen a decrease in use). Oct 26 2021

BEDI: Commit to your community, wear your mask

What is a fact? Is it just a vulgar term for something which can be simply demonstrated within reality? This seems to fall flat. Suppose I saw a man point a gun at a woman’s head and tell her to kill another person. Was I to tell you that I saw that woman kill a man, would I really be stating a fact? If I was, would that fact have any real relation to the truth? Robbed of the truth, what is a fact really good for?Oct 12 2021

BEDI: Rutgers bus woes point to larger issues with public transportation

We have all experienced the horrors of Rutgers' bus system. Whether it is missing a class because the buses to Cook and Douglass campuses arrived late or being packed in on the LX, taking a ride on the bus is never a pleasant experience at the University. But this is true across the nation: public transport is not great anywhere in America, and there is a long history behind it.Sep 28 2021

BEDI: Defining liberal or conservative values is not as simple as it seems

Anyone familiar with any level of political discourse is aware of the terms “Left” and “Right”. It is politics 101. But more often than not, these terms are applied to movements and people in a wildly incorrect manner. Language matters. Apr 20 2021

BEDI: Heightened American partisanship creates issues for democracy

For most of the latter half of the 20th century, in times of peace, stability and economic growth, at least, “majority rule” was based on the idea that, through rational argument and national appeal, the political outs could replace the ins, eventually, and every coalition had the opportunity to nudge the nation in its particular direction.Apr 6 2021

BEDI: To understand faults in liberal democracy, we must understand republicanism

Since the end of World War II, liberal democracy has been ascendant, eventually standing victorious over all its rivals — fascism, communism and more. As Francis Fukuyama, inspired by the mid-century Marxist Alexandre Kojève, noted in his book, “The End of History and the Last Man,” it seems as though liberal democracy is the last political system humans will ever see.Mar 23 2021

BEDI: U.S. government must develop new methods of regulation for social media giants

There is a relatively simple principle that dictates how policy is created and disseminated in the world today. What social demands or obligations governments will not fulfill, the private sector will. Just because the government does not stop you from doing something does not mean you can do it. Mar 2 2021

BEDI: Chinese domestic policy impacts global politics

Something is rotten in the U.S. In the midst of widespread chaos here in America — between riots and popular financial rallies — it might be useful to see how other societies are chugging along. Where better to look than to our greatest geopolitical rival: the People’s Republic of China (PRC)?Feb 16 2021

BEDI: U.S. government, unchanged for centuries, is due for reform

It increasingly seems to be the case that the U.S. is a 21st century nation with an 18th century government. In the heyday of liberal political economy, the age of John Stuart Mill, Henry Clay and Adam Smith, Panglossian presumptions about how the economy and state interacted were taken mostly for granted. Feb 5 2021

BEDI: Trumpism will not die with Trump

President-elect Joe Biden won the most votes of any presidential candidate in history, with 51.3 percent of the electorate giving him more than 81 million votes. President Donald J. Trump, garnering 46.8 percent, won the second most at 74 million votes. A historic election year, for sure, but not the landmark repudiation many Democrats were hoping for. Dec 9 2020

BEDI: Pope's involvement in contentious issues is not heretic

Pope Francis has long been a controversial figure in the Catholic Church, with many conservative critics decrying his focus on migrant rights, environmentalism and interfaith dialogue. Nov 4 2020