The Smiths Station High School seniors, like most others, decided to come together and get pull a senior prank - to the point where the school was "vandalized", officials say What do you think?
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Looks like the "rare" Adelie penguins are no longer rare at all - the complete opposite, actually. Because of the remoteness of the island, scientists had never been able to access the island before, but the treacherous journey was made when NASA scientist Matthew Schwaller found guino spots on satellite images, hinting that a large population was settled there. Not only did they find the penguins, but they also found that the penguins had not suffered population decline due to climate change. How do you feel about the discovery of these penguins? In October 2017, Harvey Weinstein was the subject of an international debate on the topic of sexual abuse and oppression in Hollywood after dozens of women took to social media to tell their horrifying accounts of sexual misconduct, sparking the #MeToo movement. Women all across the world rose from the shadows and told their stories. Actors and actresses have taken to mass events, such as award shows like the Golden Globes, to show their solidarity with sexual abuse victims everywhere.
This week, the Academy has expressed their disdain towards the platform activism and has issued a statement that the actors and actresses are not to express their issues at the Oscars. Do you agree with the Academy? Why or why not? Australian biologists have created an app in order for Australian citizens to record any and all the frog sounds they hear. Whether they be croaks or chirps, in the backyard or in public, they want to collect recordings as part of a conservation awareness effort. There have been over six thousand submissions, with some even containing the sounds of extremely endangered species from northern Australia.
The recordings have also helped with issues that the biologists had encountered in the past. Due to the vastness of the continent and lack of resources, the team has not been able to do an in-depth study of the frogs present on the continent, but this app has allowed them to analyze frogs that they would otherwise spend months trying to track down. The app allows for the user to record a twenty-second clip of the frog and uploads it along with a geotag. The team will then explore in order to find the frog in order to ensure the preservation of the species. What do you think about this? We live in a world in which platforms like Instagram and Snapchat are services available to everyone, despite of whether we have AT&T, Comcast, or any other company as our internet service provider. However, a time may soon be upon us in which we may have to pay extra if we want to watch Netflix but we do not have Comcast.
So, you might ask: why is this an issue today? Well, on February 26, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted in favor of keeping strong net neutrality rules in order to make the internet accessible and free for American users after holding an open forum in which millions of Americans expressed their desire to keep net neutrality. This was a move that the Obama Administration had been pushing towards since his early campaigning days. On June 14, 2016, a federal court of appeals ruled in favor of retaining the FCC's rule. The FCC has advocated against a regulatory power over internet users since then. However, FCC chairman Ajit Pai has proposed a set of governing rules so that the FCC may gain power over the accessibility of the internet. Several internet services have taken to expressing their opinions, one such being Netflix. Netflix - despite having a contract with Comcast Corporation to provide better services to customers with their subsidiary internet service provider company, Xfinity - has stated its opposition to repealing net neutrality protections. The FCC has stated that they will repeal net neutrality protections in the following month, so if you only have one internet service provider where you live, as over 70 percent of Americans do, then you will be missing out on some of your favorite services. Zimbabwe has had increasing political tension in recent weeks. 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's leader since it gained independence from Britain, has been taking steps toward ensuring that his wife, Vice President Grace Mugabe, takes power after him. Last week, he fired his other vice president on the grounds of witchcraft, and many have concluded that he did so to pave the way for his wife to take over.
Mugabe's rule has been nothing short of tyrannical, with allegations of human rights violations and falsifying poll results. In 2005, Zimbabwe suffered from a famine, so he ordered that food was to be denied to his opponents and their supporters. There are numerous other incidents in which he has violated the human rights of his people, creating an increasing unease amongst the Zimbabwean people. The coup d'état, led by General Moyo, has put world leaders on edge. South African president, Jacob Zuma, went to visit President Mugabe, who has now been placed under house arrest, and has stated that despite the circumstances, the president is safe. Despite the coup, the Zimbabwean people are carrying on with business as usual, with shops and banks still open. Do you believe that what Mugabe is doing is democratic? Do you believe that it is time for the Mugabe family to step down from power? Read the fine lines on your Terms of Employment forms, guys, because you can get fired from a social media post. In fact, that's precisely what happened to Rachel Burns. She got fired for posting a photo of a resident singing at their care home's musical night on her Facebook wall. The care home, owned by Surrey County Council, gave her an ultimatum: she would either accept a demotion with a serious pay cut, or she would accept her dismissal. Burns went to her doctor at the same time due to high stress, and her doctor suggested that she not make any life-altering decisions, a suggestion that Burns relayed to her employer - only to get a call two days later stating that she had been dismissed. She proceeded to file charges against Surrey County Council for unfair dismissal - and she won. Twenty months without income, £50,000 ($65,700 USD) in credit card debt, and 14 months of unpaid mortgage payments later, the court sent her a letter stating that although she admitted to breaking Surrey County Council's terms of employment, they did not give her enough time to consider their offer. She will return to court on November 13, 2017, in order for the court to settle how much money she is owed.
Do you believe that Burns's dismissal was unfair? Why or why not? At the end of September, numerous women released their personal accounts of sexual assault from Harvey Weinstein, a prolific Hollywood producer. Kate McGowan, mostly known for her role as a witch on Charmed, spoke out about a desperate attempt on Weinstein's part to keep her from talking.
McGowan was assaulted in 1997 by Weinstein, but they eventually reached a settlement of $100,000. However, this past June, McGowan's lawyer informed her that there was no nondisclosure clause in the settlement, so she set to expose him along with the other victims. Weinstein offered the unemployed actress $1 million, an offer that many around her told her she shouldn't refuse. She demanded $6 million in order to agonize Weinstein, but she revealed that she had no real intention of accepting another settlement and just wanted to draw out Weinstein's torture. There have been at least seven other similar cases of settlements with hush money from Weinstein. Do you believe that Weinstein should be punished legally for the sexual assaults? What do you think about his decades-long trail of hushed sexual assaults? A woman - only described as having the surname Kim - died in the hospital six days after being bitten by a French bulldog. The dog's owner, Korean actor and idol Choi Siwon, stated that his dog had been roaming outside of his apartment without a leash. Choi has apologized for the incident on social media, stating, "This is Choi Siwon. I bow my head in apology to the bereaved family, who must be going through great shock and sorrow right now. I feel very apologetic for the incident that our family's dog, was recently involved in. I extend my sincerest condolences to the family of the deceased. As a member of a family raising a dog, I feel a great sense of responsibility. I should've kept close supervision at all times, but my carelessness led to a horrible incident and I am deeply reflecting. I will make sure this doesn't happen again. I apologize for causing trouble. May she rest in peace." The victim's family has accepted the apology, and they have decided to not press charges. Choi has only been fined for not restraining his dog.
Would you have forgiven Choi? Would you pursue legal action? Do you believe his apology was sincere? Deemed an American classic upon its release, To Kill A Mockingbird has been read in classrooms across the United States for decades. However, the Biloxi School Board has deemed that To Kill A Mockingbird should not be used for assigned reading material. Kenny Holloway, the Vice President of the Biloxi School Board, stated that there had been complaints about the language making the eighth grade class uncomfortable with the use of dated racial slurs such as ¨¨ni**er".
Do you believe that schools should ban historically set books? Do you believe that the students should read it regardless? Why or why not? |
Gracemarie Cepero-LopezJust a high school senior trying to pass with all A's. |