Falconer December 2020 Issue

Vol. 46, Issue 2, 20 pages

Friday, December 18, 2020

No Vacancies COVID-19 HOSPITALIZATION on A4

The biggest problem I would say is running out of beds. [With] this new surge [of cases] in the last few weeks, we’ve had to use measures we wish we really never had to use.

Dr. Neil Kalra HOSPITALIST

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december 18, 2020

TPHS updates reopening and attendance plans Katie Flint

ASSISTANT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

As the Falconer was going to press, the SDUHSD Board voted to offer in-person learning five days a week starting second semester, Jan. 27.

All SDUHSD school sites plan to move to level 3 on the Return to Campus Plan on Jan. 4, when students can attend school in person once a week.

Administrators are waiting to see if the spike in COVID-19 cases in San Diego Co. will affect reopening plans.

“I’m remaining cautiously optimistic we can continue with the plan,” Principal Robert Coppo said. “But I’m also very ready to pivot if we need to go back to full-time distance learning.”

A recent student interest survey found that, of the 775 respondents, 50.1% preferred to stay at home while 49.9% favored returning to campus. The results prompted TPHS administrators to go forward with the reopening plan. “[The survey] allows us to start planning what the alpha breakdown would be in classrooms and making sure we’ve got all the safety measures in place for roughly 300 students on campus every day,” Coppo said.

The results of the survey show students are split in their opinions on returning to campus.

“I decided to stay home because I want to protect my family and the community,” Emma Lee (12) said.

The decision has been especially hard for the senior class.

“Of course, as a senior, I’d love to do all the fun things seniors do for their last year,” Ilinca Feliciano (12) said.

“But, I don’t want my interactions with others to harm my family members.”

The plan states that all students will learn from home on Mondays, and students that chose on-campus learning will attend class once a week based on cohorts organized by last name.

As of now, cohorts will be divided as follows: last names A-F on Tuesday, G-L on Wednesday, M-R on Thursday and S-Z on Friday*. Priority groups like special ed students will attend school twice a week in two cohorts.

By completing the TPHS return to campus binding survey by Dec. 7, students committed to continue with distance learning full time or access on-campus learning once a week.

Regardless of their choices, students can still participate in extracurricular activities and sports held on campus.

Students who chose in-person learning on the survey may opt-out at any time or defer their choices until Jan. 27, 2021.

Students who choose to learn from home full time are bound by their decision through the third quarter, or April 2, 2021, and may not return until the fourth quarter, or April 12, 2021.

All staff and students returning to campus must follow the SDUHSD reopening plan and screen themselves

for COVID-19 symptoms.

For teachers unable to return to campus, substitute teachers will fill in to facilitate in-person learning.

“Substitutes work with the teachers prior to them leaving so that the transition can be as seamless as possible,” Coppo said.

In the meantime, the state of California recently implemented document tracking, which requires teachers to record the instructional minutes, lesson plans and students’ levels of engagement for each class they teach every day.

English teacher Lisa Callender finds that personally reaching out to a disengaged student is more useful than tracking him or her in order to prove engagement.

“That time to me is far more valuable than doing this daily tracking, which I find incredibly cumbersome,” Callender

said. “And, in some ways, I feel like it is an affront to my professionalism as a teacher.”

In addition, CIF delayed the start of season one athletics until at least Jan. 1. Other after-school activities, like art and academic clubs, are starting to hold meetings on campus while following the California Department of Public Health guidelines.

To return to campus, club advisers should contact administrators for health protocols and additional facility requirements.

TPHS ASB is also returning to campus to perform specific tasks.

“I have to provide reason to the administration as to why I am bringing kids on campus,” ASB adviser Austin Wade said. “Since we’ve been working on student connectedness days, they allow access to make videos to promote connection for students.”

photo by jessica yu/falconer

Companies race to develop COVID-19 vaccine in 2020 Dixie Wallerius

STAFF WRITER

After 16 million COVID-19 cases have been reported in the U.S., the FDA authorized the COVID-19 vaccine made

by Pfizer for emergency use for at-risk individuals, who started receiving the vaccine in the past week.

Vaccines typically take years to develop; however, the COVID-19 vaccine was different. Scientists began work on a vaccine before the virus even reached the United States, allowing them to produce a vaccine at record speed.

There are 55 vaccines in clinical trials; Moderna and Pfizer are frontrunners.

Moderna, which is partnered with the National Institute of Allergy

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and Infectious Diseases, has developed a vaccine reported to be 94.5% effective.

Pfizer, which partnered with the German firm BioNTech, claims that its vaccine is about 90% effective.

The extent to which the vaccine will affect TPHS reopening plans is still unclear.

“It would impact it. Whether that will mean everybody can come back right away is hard to tell; we would have to have very clear proof that it was effective,” Principal Rob Coppo said.

Pfizer and Moderna research centers are in the early, limited approval phase.

This phase involves safety surveillance and more technical support for the vaccine even after being granted approval to sell it.

Moderna and Pfizer’s vaccines have side effects.

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Both firms claim trials revealed no serious safety concerns other than minor inflammatory responses. Pfizer vaccines have reportedly can cause fatigue, chills, fever and Bell’s Palsy, a temporary facial paralysis. Side effects during Moderna’s trials included muscle aches at the injection site and headaches.

“I would feel very comfortable going back to school if there was a vaccine, even with some reported side effects.”

Max Franklin (9) said.

Pfizer’s vaccine has to be stored at -70 F, which many hospitals cannot accommodate since no other vaccine in the U.S. needs to be kept at such a cold temperatures, so Pfizer has designed its own packaging using dry ice so the vaccine can be stored without specialized freezers. On the other hand, Moderna’s vaccines can be stored at -4 F. Moderna’s vaccine also can be stored in a refrigerator for 30 days, while Pfizer’s vaccine can only be stored in a refrigerator for five. Facilities that administer the vaccine are more likely to favor the convenience of Moderna’s vaccine over Pfizer’s, according to Dr. Paul Kilgore, senior investigative leader on the Moderna trials.

“It’s possible [to distribute the Pfizer vaccine], but it’s definitely going to be much more expensive and difficult,” said Debra Kristensen, a 30-year veteran of vaccine innovation and supply chains, currently with PATH, a non-profit public health agency.

Now that the FDA approved emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech

vaccine, at-risk groups will receive the vaccine as soon as possible.

Based on projections, by the end of 2020, there is hope that Pfizer and Moderna will be able to provide 20 million people with vaccinations. Both suggest two doses, but with different timeframes; Pfizer’s injections will be administered three weeks apart, while Moderna’s are to be spaced four weeks apart. Healthy young adults and teenagers may be able to receive the vaccine in middle or late 2021, if approved. Since children under 12 years of age were not included in the Pfizer trials, they will most likely be the last group vaccinated.

“I think once the vaccine comes out, it will be safer to go back to school and to have a more normal school year,” Lauren Nelson (10) said. “We just need to take everything super slow to prevent more outbreaks.”

It is difficult to calculate how long the vaccine-induced immunity will last because trials have not been going on for long enough. According to the Centers for Disease Control nd Prevention,“both natural immunity and vaccine-induced immunity are important aspects of COVID-19 that the CDC and experts will continue to update the public on.”

The government has made prepurchases of the vaccine with taxpayer money, vowing to make them free.

Regardless of the vaccines, mask mandates and social distance precautions are still advised. It will take time to immunize enough members of the population to reach herd immunity.

Department of Justice launches suit against Google Jasmine Criqui

OPINION EDITOR

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Google on Oct. 20, alleging that the company obtained a monopoly on search engines through improper means.

As the company that processes about 90% of all online searches in the U.S., Google is being accused of anticompetitive practices like manipulating search results to give priority to its own products, as well as making exclusionary deals with manufacturers of electronic devices to ensure that Google is the default search engine for those devices.

“Search distribution is the tip of the iceberg,” Albert Jen (11) said. “The DOJ and state attorneys general have their work cut out for them: 20 years of antimonopoly law enforcement to catch up on.”

A verdict in the case is not expected to come quickly. The case could drag on

for several years.

“The merits will be understood over time; these things take time to rumble through the courts,” said Steve Gray, who has used his technological background to testify in numerous federal court cases concerning intellectual property. “There will be a vigorous defense by Google and the results likely won’t be clear cut.”

The DOJ lawsuit is the culmination of an ongoing investigation into Google’s business practices, which was spearheaded by Attorney General William Barr last year.

“Since my confirmation, I have prioritized the Department’s review of online market-leading platforms to ensure that our technology industries remain competitive,” Barr said in a DOJ press release. “This lawsuit strikes at the heart of Google’s grip over the internet for millions of American consumers, advertisers, small businesses and entrepreneurs beholden to an unlawful monopolist.”

MYANMAR

On Nov. 8, Aung San Suu Kyi of the National League of Democracy was elected to serve her second term as State Counsellor in Myanmar’s second general election, However, the military Union Solidarity and Development Party rejected the results, claiming unfairness, and demanded another vote. The results were criticized for the smaller voter turnout due to COVID-19 and the disenfranchisement of over a million minority voters.

CHINA China’s Chang’e-5 spacecraft successfully collected 4.4 pounds of rock from the moon and returned to earth on Dec. 17, becoming the first mission in more than 40 years to bring back lunar rock samples for analysis. Chang’e-5 targeted a region on the moon with younger rocks compared to previous American and Soviet missions.

Scientists will use these samples as a data point to help determine a timeline for events in the inner solar system.

Information from PBS, Washington Post, NPR, CNN, New York Times, BBC, and the Guardian.

It is unclear how the billions of regular Google users will be impacted.

Despite the recent scrutiny, Google maintains that its users choose Google because of the search engine’s merits, not because they have a lack of alternatives. Dylan Thomas (11), who has previously used Ecosia as an alternative to Google and found it unimpressive, echoed these sentiments.

“Monopolies might be bad, but what other search engine are you going to use?” Thomas said. “Do you want to use Bing?”

Google’s current predicament has been compared to a similar antitrust case in 1998, when Bill Gates was called to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding Microsoft’s dominance of the computer software market. While a court initially ordered Microsoft to be split into two different companies, Microsoft appealed and eventually reached a settlement with the U.S. government.

“I would expect that [the Microsoft

and Google cases will] turn out similarly,” Gray said. “It won’t be ‘Google’s wrong and they have to break up,’ it’ll be something more subtle.”

The October lawsuit could be just the beginning of the battle for tech giants. On Dec. 9, the Federal Trade Commission announced a similar lawsuit against Facebook for anticompetitive practices.

BRAZIL

The wildfires in the Amazon rainforest that began in Jan. 2019 are still burning in 2020, becoming the worst wildfires of the past decade. The ongoing drought causing the wildfires has left little hope for the Amazon rainforest to recover completely from the damage. President-elect Joe Biden has offered to commit $20 billion to end deforestation in the Amazon, another cause of the wildfires, and pressure Brazil into taking more action against wildfires.

POLAND

Around 430,000 people protested in Warsaw, Poland, expressing outrage over the court’s decision to ban nearly all abortions.

The protests were the largest Poland has seen since the fall of Communism in 1989. Protesters felt that the decision stripped hard-won freedoms achieved following the post-Communist era. The majority of the protests have been peaceful, with some exceptions. words by katie flint, viyang hao, jacob zhang, and dixie wallerius

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december 18, 2020

“

how have hospitals been impacted by COVID-19?

Care across the board is deteriorating. We have to make the choice to cut corners. If it is an overwhelming day, I’ll update the families, put in the right orders, give them the right care, but I will do my paperwork much faster than I usually would.

It affects documentation, and if somebody’s following up with the patient in the future, it might be harder to understand.”

Dr. Neil Kalra, M.D. Hospitalist at Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla, CA

Between Nov. 8 and Dec. 7, the number of confirmed patients hospitalized in SoCal hospitals with COVID-19 increased by

208%

As of Dec. 6, the average ICU capacity of hospitals in Southern California is

94.7% ICUs are considered functionally full at 85% capacity.

“

The fear is rising that we’re going to run out of people just to help take care of the patients.

HOSPITAL

Dr. Neil Kalra, M.D.

AMBULANCE

Information provided by the County of San Diego Emergency Operations.

infographic by mirabel hunt/falconer

91%

of prospective U.S. citizens who take the 2008 version of the test pass, as of Sept. 2020.

By contrast, a 2018 study found that just

39%

of American adult citizens could pass the same test.

ART BY AMANDA SALATINO

Information provided by USCIS and Woodrow Wilson Foundation.

USCIS announced changes to the United States citizenship exam, which took effect on Dec. 1. In regards to encouraging civic engagement and avoiding potential political biases, is the updated exam a positive change?

Kelsie Park

STAFF WRITER

On Dec 1., the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated the official U.S. naturalization test, specifically the civics portion, for the first time since 2008.

This revision makes the civics section longer and more complicated than before.

The previous version was an oral test that included being asked 10 questions from a list of 100, requiring the applicant to answer six of those questions correctly in order to pass. In the 2020 version, the applicant is asked 20 questions from a list of 128, and 12 correct answers are required to pass. This revision was made in order to better enforce the required understanding of American government and history, having an overall positive effect on aspiring citizens.

The change eliminates unnecessary geography questions and increases the focus on more important information. This allows for applicants to better understand U.S. civics, which prepares them to more effectively participate in American democracy.

“U.S. citizenship is the most significant immigration benefit our country offers,” Sharon Rummery, a USCIS spokeswoman, said. “Preparing for the naturalization test helps aspiring citizens fully understand

the meaning and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship. This allows them to become successful, assimilated citizens who share the fundamental values that unite all Americans.”

The new test ensures that the applicants learn about civics and history, rather than just memorizing names and dates.

It is important for citizens to fully understand their government in order to participate in the democratic process and contribute positively to their country.

Having citizens who are better informed about their government will increase voter participation and understanding of politics.

Those against the test revision argue it was a last minute effort by Trump to make claiming citizenship a more difficult process for immigrants.

“We think that it’s a way to discourage people from applying for citizenship,” Bethzy Garcia, who coordinates naturalization assistance at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights in Los Angeles (CHIRLA), said. “It’s a way to intimidate people. As it is, many of our applicants feel very anxious about going to the test.”

However, the USCIS has been working on revising the naturalization test since 2018, incorporating the opinions of experts on adult education in order to make this change fair and transparent.

Immigrants who want to become a citizens of the U.S. should fully understand the American government and democracy. Though the test consists of more challenging questions and is more difficult to pass, it will be a positive change.

The new version of the naturalization test will benefit the test-takers as they learn about the nation they are becoming a part of.

Helene Gao

STAFF WRITER

According to a 2018 national survey by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, about one in three Americans could pass a multiplechoice test consisting of items taken from the citizenship test. To be a U.S. citizen certainly does not require more extensive knowledge of the country’s history than even American-born citizens know. This notoriously difficult civics test has recently been updated.

The new naturalization test has been effective for all aspiring U.S. citizens who apply after Dec. 1, 2020. The applicants are now required to answer 12 out of 20 questions correctly instead of six out of 10; these questions are drawn from a bank of 128 questions, an increase from the previous 100 questions. This is the first time the test has been revised since 2008 and adds one more barrier for immigrants who hope to become permanent legal residents.

The civics test was created to comprehensively assesses applicants’ knowledge of American history, government and values and supports assimilation. However, the changes to the test don’t seem to have any real purpose and only serve to promote the Trump administration’s agenda to restrict

immigration. In addition to the increased cost of applications for citizenship and suspension on the issuance of green cards, the revised test only increases the burden on hopeful immigrants who go through the legal process to become citizens.

In addition, the English proficiency level has become more advanced, requiring more extensive studying and increasing the naturalization wait time and the time each Citizenship and Immigration Services officer spends testing applicants. Test-takers often have to attend classes to improve their English and broaden their knowledge of the test to prepare for questions that a majority of Americans do not know. The test should prioritize helping applicants learn their rights and responsibilities as a new U.S. citizen.

Furthermore, the revised test includes answers that exhibit political bias. To illustrate, one question asks, “Who does a U.S. Senator represent?” While the correct answer for the old test was “all people of the state,” on the new test, applicants are encouraged to answer with “citizens of their state.” Members of Congress represent everyone who lives within their district, regardless of citizenship status. The Trump administration has manipulated a previously accurate response to the question to push their narrative of assigning congressional seats. It is unclear if President-elect Joseph R. Biden will reverse the changes made to the test.

In summary, the new naturalization test is biased, misleading and illogical. There is no legal or regulatory reason for the test to be changed after such a long period of time; to change it for political reasons harms immigrants hoping to become citizens.

A6 the falconer

opinion

december 18, 2020

What I Learned From Deleting My Social Media

Srishti Thapar

FEATURE EDITOR

I remember waking up every day eager to venture into the virtual world full of relatable Tik-Tokers and my favorite celebrities. After all, how could I miss those monthly Timothée Chalamet Instagram posts and constant updates from hundreds of acquaintances who I didn’t care much about? Weeks after deleting all of my social media, my FOMO became obsolete.

After watching “The Social Dilemma” on Netflix, I, along with the rest of my family, became convinced of the harmful aspects of social media. As someone who had accounts on Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Twitter, I was a perfect example of a victim of the brainwashing and subtle manipulation that these companies enable.

Now, I could go on and provide research stating all the reasons why social media has been proven to be harmful, but the statistics didn’t convince me, so use my experience as evidence instead.

One of the most interesting changes I noticed immediately after deleting social media was that my need for a routine vanished. Was the reason I needed so

much structure in my days (specifically in the mornings) a way to physically separate myself from the apps that had so much control over me? Every morning, I would pledge not to go on my phone as soon as I woke up because it would set a negative tone for the day to come. So, I forced myself to wake up, make my bed, go downstairs and stretch for five minutes, and only after I had completed those tasks could I check my phone. And a routine isn’t in itself a bad thing, but the concerning part of mine was that it was strictly created as a physical separation between myself and the harmful qualities of social media. So, although I created this routine for myself, it was inadvertently created by these apps.

Another one of my main concerns with deleting social media was that I would lose touch with some of my friends. This was far from true. In fact, my relationships with the people who I actually enjoy spending time with have only strengthened. I am now having more meaningful conversations with people rather than the usual disjointed conversations I would have on Snapchat.

As someone with a significant amount of social anxiety, I can happily say that I do not get as anxious thinking about future social events anymore. I spent some time questioning why my anxiety levels had gone down, and I realized that as soon as I would see a TikTok, Instagram post or Tweet specifically about one of my strange anxieties, it meant that my irrational thoughts were validated by outside sources (people on the internet).

Instead of discussing this possibly harmful anxiety with my therapist, I would see

these qualities in others and immediately believe that it was normal and common and not attempt to fix the issue. This cycle traps people in an echo chamber full of people who are like them and therefore, their potentially destructive behaviors are validated by people on the Internet.

And, speaking of echo chambers, political polarization is highly unregulated and even encouraged by these platforms.

In the prime of my TikTok use, I remember harboring feelings of hatred toward people with different political views from me. I realize now, after much introspection, that those feelings were problematic. I would never act on such feelings of hatred, but

there are plenty of people who are violent and would — which is very concerning.

And while I certainly didn’t touch on every negative aspect of social media, of which there are many, I hope my experience can encourage you to delete your own social media platforms and see how it feels; you may be surprised.

I am elated to have more time in the day to do things I actually enjoy that involve me being present.

Even if you are hell-bent on keeping your accounts, I still suggest becoming more aware of what these corporations are actually doing, so you can — at least somewhat — mindfully scroll away.

ART BY ISABELLA ZABARSKY

100%

The U.S. could benefit from ranked-choice voting

Nolan Ezzet

SPORTS EDITOR

At a time of record-high political polarization in the U.S., Americans are becoming increasingly concerned about the future of major party candidates.

Americans are also upset about the lack of diversity and creative proposals among political candidates. Fortunately, there is a simple solution: ranked-choice voting (RCV).

In a RCV system, citizens rank all the candidates in order from most favorite to least favorite. If over 50% of “firstpreference” votes go to one candidate, he or she wins. In the likely scenario that no one earns a majority, the candidate receiving the least amount of first-preference votes is eliminated. Ballots with the eliminated candidate ranked first then get redistributed to the second choices. For instance, if your first choice was Candidate A, but they get eliminated, then your vote would go to your second choice. Then, the votes are recounted. This process continues until a candidate receives a majority of votes.

The ranked-choice voting system encourages voters to vote for who they

truly want to see win rather than their favorite of the main candidates. For example, Joe Biden and Andrew Yang were two of the only moderate candidates in the 2020 Democratic Party primaries.

According to Business Insider, Yang is an innovative and less divisive candidate who many undecided voters support; on the other hand, according to Vox, Biden is a less exciting candidate who few Democrats suport more than other major candidates like Bernie Sanders. However, because Biden was one of the front-runners from the get-go, a Yang supporter may cast their vote for Biden if they feel that voting for Yang would be a “wasted vote.” A RCV system would allow voters to cast their first-preference votes for who their first choices really are. If their first preference is eliminated, it is no big deal. Their second choice now receives their vote.

This RCV system rewards candidates with broader appeal rather than those attempting to gain support from a specific demographic. For instance, in the 2016 Republican primaries, Donald Trump won with 1,542 total delegates. A delegate is elected by a group of people to represent that group when voting in certain elections.

FairVote surveyed 1,000 Republicans and independent voters, asking them to rank their choices for the Republican primaries. After the initial voting, Trump received nearly 35% of first-preference votes, which was the most by far. However, in a RCV system, that 35% would not declare Trump the winner. Eliminations must happen until a candidate receives a majority of the votes. Using the results from

this survey, it would take nine elimination rounds and, according to the Director of Communications for Maine’s Secretary of State, Kristen Muszynski, 1.5 weeks for a winner to be declared. That winner would be Ted Cruz, with a majority of 50.68%.

Despite Trump having a larger fanbase of super-supporters, Cruz has more support from the general population. Catering to the needs of only one small group increases political polarization, but RCV ensures that politicians are not rewarded for doing this.

Another cause of increasing political polarization is the two-party system. But, RCV allows third-party candidates to earn more votes, decreasing this polarization.

Especially in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, many voters did not feel compelled to vote for the Republican or Democratic candidate. Some preferred Green Party nominee Jill Stein in 2016 or Libertarian nominee Jo Jorgensen in 2020.

However, most voters did not vote for thirdparty candidates for the same reason that they did not vote for Yang in my previous hypothetical example: they don’t want to waste their vote. Someone who supported Stein more than any other candidate in 2016 may have voted for Hillary Clinton after realizing that Clinton was still in the race, but Stein was not. A supporter of Jorgensen in 2020 may have voted for Trump in order to not waste his or her vote. However, RCV changes all of this. Voters are not penalized at all if their first-preference vote goes to a candidate who gets eliminated early. They will still have a vote for the final count. If parties other than the Democratic and Republican parties can win local, state

or federal elections, political polarization would decrease across the board.

Some may oppose this system because the elimination rounds could take around one and a half weeks. Although this is a valid point, there is no need to declare a winner on election day. If the ranked-choice voting system were to be implemented into the presidential election, for instance, this delay would be irrelevant since the president takes office on Jan. 20 — over two months after election day.

The U.S. political system is broken. RCV is a reasonable and effective system to repair it.

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A7

Declining trust in national media is concerning

Viyang Hao

STAFF WRITER

There is such a variety of ways we consume media today, particularly news.

Major news outlets such as The New York Times, NPR, USA Today, Fox News and CNN dominate journalism. I mainly read from the Associated Press and the New York Times, while my parents stray away from any major news publications, leading to tension and discrepancies between the “facts” we believe to be true. The cause of this familial strife is the extent to which we trust the media.

Trust in mass media has slowly declined over the past decade. According to a 2020

Gallup poll, in 2010, 43% of American adults said that they trusted mass media a “great deal” or a “fair amount.” The same poll then reported that in 2016, only 32% of American adults trusted in the media in either category; this percentage jumped back up to 40% in 2020. Despite the increase in the past four years of Americans who trust mass media, being skeptical of the mass media as a reader is not as bad as it may seem. In fact, our concern should go beyond the outlet’s political bias.

In 1983, there were 50 companies that controlled 90% of American mass media; by 2012, only six companies controlled that same percentage: Comcast, Disney, 21st Century Fox, Time Warner, Viacom and CBS. Media consolidation (also known as media ownership) by these six companies only became possible through the enactment of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, in which President Bill Clinton allowed for companies to own multiple media corporations.

For example, Comcast owns NBC News, Universal Studios, USA Network, Dreamworks, CNBC News, E! News, Vox

Media and BuzzFeed, to name a few.

Another example would be Disney and its streaming service, Disney+. On Disney+, not only do you have access to Disney movies, but you also have access to the Star Wars franchise, Marvel and Pixar movies, ESPN and National Geographic — all of which were purchased by Disney at some point.

This limited number of news outlets places restrictions on which stories the media reports and subsequently shapes how we perceive certain communities; the agenda-setting theory describes this phenomenon. A perfect example is CNN reporting on politics. In 2017, CNN’s president, Jeff Zucker, claimed that CNN treated politics as a “game of sports.” While this may be fine for other topics, such as cooking competitions or game shows, approaching politics with irresponsibility can blur the lines between fact and fiction easily.

Additionally, mass media’s sensationalizing of petty news could divert readers’ attentions away from more important global events. For instance, I

Happy

Holidays

fr om

! f f the Falconer sta

Thank you for reading!

We wish everyone a safe, happy and HEALTHY holiday season.

bet you didn’t know that the Pope recently announced plans for Vatican City to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2020.

While we cannot completely detach ourselves from mass media, and politicians are still debating about media consolidation regulations, there is an alternative news source: local newspapers.

Despite the fact that 71% of U.S. adults believe that their local newspaper reports the news accurately, according to a 2019 Pew Research Center study, local newsrooms have been dwindling in numbers. Nearly half of U.S. counties are labeled as news deserts, communities with limited access to local newspapers.

The main contributor to local newspapers shutting down is lack of funding, especially compared to that of their large corporation counterparts. The COVID-19 pandemic has also furthered strained local newsrooms as more and more employees are being laid off. While we can catch up on the latest gossip from major news outlets debunking President Donald Trump’s tweets, local newspapers still continue to earn the trust of the majority of Americans.

opinion

A8 the falconer

STAFF EDITORIAL

The Electoral College is no longer a valuable asset to American democracy

There aren’t many topics as controversial and politicized as the Electoral College. What started as a political institution praised by our founding fathers has, over time, become a hot button issue.

The Electoral College is simply just outdated and unrepresentative of who the people truly want as their president in each election.

If we trace back to the origins of the electoral college we see that it was a compromise between large and small states with more homogenous voting blocks. We already have a compromise between the house and senate between big and small states, so why the need for the Electoral College? Many do not understand why the Electoral College still exists. They are frustrated by the Electoral College and feel that since states are less homogenous now, the Electoral College doesn’t represent everyone. Since the election of 2000, the Republican party has only won the popular vote once (in 2004). People believe that the Electoral College is not representative of the true feeling of Americans. Having a popular vote, on the other hand, would be a perfect representation of how people feel.

The power of a vote is too dependent on a voter’s district or state; for example, your vote doesn’t matter as much if you are a Republican in California, a deeply blue state, or if you are a Democrat in Louisiana, a deeply red state. You should be able to live anywhere and feel like your voice and values do matter. Shifting to a popular vote would enable people from all across the nation to go out and vote regardless of the general political affiliation their state holds.

Some say that the Electoral College is tradition, as the founding fathers laid it out in the establishment of this country. Regardless of “tradition”, the Electoral College is outdated and has not adapted well with the times. People in favor of the Electoral College may counter that it is unclear in what ways the Electoral College does not serve us anymore.

The Electoral College has failed to bring the American people justice, for it has prevented some of the most exciting campaigns from ever getting a shot at improving the country. There have been one too many questionable and detrimental presidencies that we are still recovering from. With the one voter one vote system, a lot of what’s gone wrong with past presidencies could have easily been avoided.

Without the Electoral College, the goal would be to get the most total votes, forcing candidates to appeal to the needs of the country as a whole.

It incentivizes them to not campaign in certain

states over and over again, because the value of swing states would drop substantially. This in turn would change the entire dynamic of how presidents choose to campaign. Not only this, but there’s even potential of candidates having to be more assertive and clear with their agendas.

They can focus more on explaining their policies on the issues themselves, rather than focusing on campaigning in certain states to appeal to specific people.

With the Electoral College currently in place, candidates highly prioritize catering to swing states such as Michigan and Wisconsin. Should the premise of trying to win the election really be all about swaying random states to side with one party? Wouldn’t it be more productive to do away with this entirely, giving other states an equal say in the issues at hand? For instance, California has been suffering at the hands of climate change as of recent with all the fires going on.

As important of an issue this is, candidates aren’t trying to appeal to these concerns as much, due to the fact that they are almost certain which way California will lean. They instead will turn to the swing state voters, and focus more on their issues, since we are in a winner take all system.

Those against the abolishment of the Electoral College claim that the Electoral College can make policies to benefit smaller or less densely populated states, making sure that every state will feel and be important to the vote.

In reality though, we have state governments to deal with more local issues. The general election has an inherent obligation to serve the needs of the country as a whole. And by playing around with this awkward and uneven system, we aren’t partaking in a “general election”.

Regardless of which direction we go as a country moving forward, we have to get everyone on board with a system that represents the true feelings of American voters, unlike the Electoral College.

-The Falconer Staff

PHONE: (858) 755-0125 x2245 FAX: (858) 523-0794 E-MAIL: falconer.ads@gmail.com WEBSITE: www.tphsfalconer.com

In Sept. 2020,

61%

of Americans surveyed said they were in favor of abolishing the electoral college

2 4

The Falconer is the student newspaper of Torrey Pines High School. Its content, which is the responsibility of the Falconer staff, is not subject to administrative approval. Unsigned editorials represent the opinions of the staff, while opinion columns represent the writer’s perspective. Advertisements do not represent endorsements. The Falconer, an open forum, welcomes signed letters or guest editorials on pertinent issues from the TPHS community, which may be submitted to room 102, via email at falconer.ads@gmail.com or to Mia Smith’s mailbox in the administration building. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

of the most recent presidents have won the electoral college but not the popular vote

student voices The Electoral College was made because the government didn’t trust Americans to be informed enough to cast a direct vote, but that point is completely invalid today.

Swing States

We, the Falconer staff, are dedicated to creating a monthly newspaper with the intent of encouraging independent thinking, expanding our knowledge of journalism, and providing the TPHS student body and community with a truthful, unbiased news source, in accordance with our First Amendment rights.

3710 Del Mar Heights Road San Diego, CA 92130

december 18, 2020

- Katie Wang (12) The Electoral College does not benefit the US electoral system nor its voters due its nature of making the value of individual votes unequal to each other.

- Toby Thorpe (11) Editor-in-Chief Assistant Editor-in-Chief Buisness/Managing Editor News Editor Opinion Editor Feature Editor Entertainment Editor Sports Editor Copy Editor Staff Writers

Kevin Song Katie Flint Micah Levy Neha Pubbi Jasmine Criqui Mirabel Hunt Srishti Thapar Amy Ge Nolan Ezzet Brandon Raimo Piper Levy Helen Gao Viyang Hao Matan Morris

Kelsie Park Dixie Wallerius David Zhang Jacob Zhang Photographer: Jessica Yu Adviser: Mia Boardman Smith

2016

M

W

NH 4 VT 3 MA 11 RI 4

UT 6

MN 10

SD 3

CO 9

WI 10

IA 6

NE 5 KS 6 OK 7

NM 5 TX 36

AK 3

ME 4 MI 16

NY 29 PA 20

OH 18 WV VA MO KY 5 13 10 8 NC TN 15 11 AR SC 6 9 MS AL GA 16 9 LA 6 8 FL 29 IL 20

IN 11

let’s break it down...

NJ 14 DE 3 MD 10 DC 3

PE

ND 3

WY 3

AZ 11

2020

2020

N

NSYLVA

2016

2020

A NI

A

RIZONA

2016

N

CA 55

MT 3 ID 4

NV 6

2020

ICHIGA

CT 7

WA 12 OR 7

2016

N

the electoral college let’s break it down:

ISCONSI

ORGIA E G 2016

2020

HI 4

The electoral college is an integral, but potentially confusing part of the American democratic process. The electoral college was born from the nation’s constitution, and like our constitution, it came with compromises.

The country had just separated from Great Britain, and citizens were decidedly against the monarchical rule they had been subjected to since they broke shore on the New World. At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, 55 delegates gathered with the goal of creating a constitution.

The idea of the people electing their president was foreign at the time, so naturally, some were wary of the idea. Those people, called the Federalists, feared the idea of “mob democracy”, in which the “uninformed” people would vote with an angry mob mentality and create chaos as a result. The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, were wary of a strong central government, as they feared the potential rise of a new monarchy.

To settle this, the delegates gave each state a number of electors proportional to the population of the state, who would then each cast a vote for a president on behalf of the state’s citizens. In most states, electors are bound to vote for the popular vote winner. The first candidate to 270 electoral votes wins the election.

Fast forward to the election of 2020, and that same system still stands, but not without detractors, who argue that the electoral college has failed to reflect the popular vote five times in our nation’s history, hardly the picture of democracy.

In the election of 1824, Andrew Jackson won the plurality of the electoral votes, but not the majority, so there was no clear winner. The 12th

Amendment states that, if a clear winner isn’t determined, the vote will be sent to the House of Representative, which can hand the outcome of the election to the majority party in the House.

Henry Clay, the speaker of the house at the time, threw his support behind John Quincy Adams, as, according to speculation, Clay was promised a job as the Secretary of State if he did so.

The election of 1876 went to Rutherford B. Hayes three days before the inauguration through a series of partisan deals when the electoral vote proved inconclusive.

The electoral college was born with the nation’s Constitution, and like our Constitution, it came with compromises.

In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won the presidency despite the fact that incumbent Grover Cleveland won the popular vote.

President Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 was decided the same way Harrison’s was in 1888; he lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million votes.

The election of 2000 between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore was a mess all around. Though Bush was holding his lead in the electoral college, Gore was winning the popular vote by about 500,000 votes. Eventually, the

election’s outcome rested on Florida, an infamous swing state. Disputes over ballot markings agitated an already tedious recount until Dec. 12, 2000, when the U.S. Supreme Court ended the recount in Florida and secured Bush’s victory.

Going into the 2020 election, both incumbent Trump and Democrat Joe Biden’s campaigns spent considerable time and money in the hope of winning key battleground states like Florida, Texas, Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio.

Of these states, Trump won Ohio, North Carolina, and two of the three main toss-up states, Florida and Texas. Both North Carolina and Texas had a higher proportion of blue voters, but they didn’t quite make a big enough dent to fully turn their states blue in the 2020 election. The remaining states were awarded to Biden, including Georgia and Arizona, both of which had not gone blue in 20 years. In this monumental election, Biden’s increased campaigning in swing states helped him achieve his victory. Biden was able to improve on Clinton’s margins in metropolitan and suburban areas. These swing states may not be the most populous states in the country, but in close elections like this one, they may end up deciding it all. Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes pushed Biden to the 270 threshold, and, in the end, Biden won the electoral vote, 306 to 232, as well as the popular vote, 81,282,903 to 74,223,030.

Yes, the electoral college may cause you to lose faith in the democratic process, but the fact remains that we all have a duty to be informed and vote in every election.

by Mirabel Hunt

feature

A10 the falconer

december 18, 2020

catching up with Clubs have always been an important part of the TPHS culture, and these student-run groups have continued to prosper and help the community, even during a pandemic.

by Piper Levy and David Zhang

clubs

Members of Letters to Strangers club walk for suicide prevention at Del Mar Beach in October.

Letters to Strangers

Robotics

Letters to Strangers is a global non-profit that was founded in order to raise awareness of mental illness and offer support to communities. The new Letters to Strangers club at TPHS has focused on sending letters to women in women’s shelters as well as healthcare workers who have been working on the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its central goal is to support the community’s mental health, especially during the trying times many are going through.

“Letters to Strangers was started by a woman who suffers from bipolar disorder, and it basically seeks to send personal stories of battling mental illness to various organizations,” Chapter President Ashton Nguyen (11) said.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, monthly meetings have been held virtually, but the club members have also managed to hold several outdoor events, making sure to follow social distancing and masking guidelines. Connectedness and communication are very important to the leaders of the club.

“We have a group chat where anyone can send questions or concerns about things that they are dealing with,” Nguyen said.

“All of my club members have my personal phone number as well, so I’m always there if someone needs it.”

Nguyen is looking forward to eventually planning larger events and getting more people involved with the new club.

Because the club has been very successful, with 40 dedicated members in its first year, Nguyen believes it has the potential to become the perfect way for students to get involved and to make people in the community smile.

The TPHS Robotics club is all about the teamwork behind imagining, constructing and competing with robots. School teams are challenged to build robots that score the most points while staying within certain parameters. The robots are scored on their efficiency in completing certain tasks, such as collecting balls or boxes.

The Robotics club strives to attract more students interested in engineering and STEM subjects. The club has different department heads who specialize in categories such as computer-aided design, coding, electrical engineering, scouting and public relations.

Robotics requires a lot of teamwork and building. This, however, cannot be done in person due to the ongoing COVID-19 guidelines.

Nonetheless, club meetings are held online through Zoom and have focused on teaching the skills needed to build a robot as opposed to hands-on building. By spending this time on the theoretical side of building a robot, the team hopes to have more experienced members who can apply what they learned in the off-season when they are eventually allowed back on campus.

“We have monthly meetings, but on top of that, all department heads are responsible for setting up meetings with their specific department to work on different assignments,” Club President Athena Vargas (12) said. “We’re also doing several virtual workshops that other teams can show up to as well, in order to connect with other teams.”

If you’re interested in any STEM-related careers, want to be involved in a team, or love to get hands-on with building, Robotics

Photos courtesy of clubs. Club breakdown information provided by TPHS ASB.

is the club for you.

feature

tphsfalconer.com

the falconer

A11

Service dog onstage at one of Key Club’s Kiwanis Meetings.

Mock Trial The TPHS Mock Trial club is known for its competitive spirit and reliance on collaboration. However, the COVID-19 outbreak has required its members to adapt.

Mock Trial is a club similar to Speech and Debate, but focused more on law. At the beginning of each year, the team receives a case packet that includes the stipulations for the case, witness statements and evidence. Each club member either acts as a prosecutor or a defense attorney. There are various roles like lawyers, bailiffs and witnesses. Then, at competitions, they face other high school students who are arguing for the opposing side, ultimately conducting a fake, or “mock”, trial.

“I honestly think Mock Trial would be a great fit for a wide variety of people,” Co-President Ashley Pham (11) said. “It’s not only about those interested in learning about law, but it’s a great opportunity for actors to play a hard witness part, or for anyone who is looking to improve their public speaking skills.”

KeyClub

[Mock Trial] is perfect for anyone...looking to improve their public speaking skills.

KeyClub is a student-led nationwide organization split into multiple sections that interact with one another. Torrey Pines KeyClub, located in Division D-37 South, hosts a wide variety of students interested in volunteering and helping in the community. The club’s main goal is to promote leadership and character skills through community service.

KeyClub hosts and attends a variety of events, most of which have been virtual this school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Board executives have been forced to be flexible and creative in dealing with the new restrictions, which has resulted in unique events such as virtual WalkA-Thons, neighborhood cleanups and letter and package deliveries for people in the community.

“Anyone can join KeyClub as long as they have a desire to volunteer and further secure their school’s influence on the community,” Club President Patrick Zhang (10) said.

“Not to mention, KeyClub has a very good reputation which can help when writing college applications.”

Meetings are currently held monthly. Each meeting counts as one hour of community service, and the club is open to any new members who are ready to become involved in KeyClub year-round.

Ashley Pham (11) Co-President

Being in Mock Trial requires extensive teamwork, which is a challenge during the COVID-19 outbreak. Due to COVID-19 safety guidelines, Mock Trial club meetings and competitions have been conducted online. So far this year, TPHS has scrimmaged against one other school, when they noticed the complications that arise with virtual competitions, such as the difficulty of objecting and interacting with the judge and jurors. Technical issues such as poor internet connection have made it harder to interact with judges and jurors, or object on time which can be crucial in proving your opponent wrong. Finally, it is much harder to tell if a person is acting in a composed manner or not through a screen.

All in all, the COVID-19 outbreak has proven to make things rather difficult for Mock Trial members.

Robotics Club members discuss robot repairs in the team pit at Regionals.

Ashley Pham (11) and Albert Jen (11) pick up Mock Trial papers at the Courthouse.

TPHS club breakdown

academic

24% 31% 39% 5%

common interest community service political

A12 the falconer

feature

december 18, 2020

teacher feature While all TPHS classes have moved online for distance learning, the transition has proven especially challenging for hands-on classes like Culinary Arts. Michael Lopez, who teaches Culinary Arts I, (along with Biology!) has adapted the class and curriculum to do what has never been done before: teach high school students how to cook online through Google Meets.

Instead of performing live demonstrations in the classroom, Culinary Arts teachers like Lopez are now experts in video editing, production, and setting up a studio.

“I got a phone stand so I could record in my kitchen better instead of sticking my computer up on a ladder like before,” Lopez said. “It was a lot more difficult setting up the production for an at-home studio.

I’ve gone through several pairs of headphones and microphones.”

For Lopez, mastering the art of production and cinematography was a challenge, to say the least.

“Doing the video demonstrations, in general, had the biggest learning curve, because I found out that it takes hours and hours of editing time to get somebody to look good and different ways of, you know, importing clips and stringing them together,” Lopez said. “I’m discovering that recording a live Google Meets is the worst way to show a cooking demonstration because it’s interrupted by lots of questions and lots of glitches,.”

Lopez has had his fair share of bloopers and accidents.

“I had my dog chew up an AirPod, so I exist with one less now,” Lopez said.

Lopez’s pre-recorded demonstrations give students the ability to pause and rewatch, something that wouldn’t be possible in the classroom.

“Preparing previously recorded cooking demos is going to help us out a lot in the future. Being able to post the recordings after demos so students can rewatch them and be able to pause and as necessary will be a benefit for future students,” Lopez said. “I’m getting better at video editing so they’ll be like those cooking videos on YouTube that you can’t stop watching, but the production value is like 1% of their quality.”

Mr. Lopez supplements his own pre-recorded demonstration videos with online videos, including clips from YouTube cooking channels.

Another element of the class that has changed with distance learning is the recipe preparation. In person, students would have cooked in the kitchen classroom, but now, Lopez premeasures the ingredients that students pick up from school and cook in their own kitchens. Students now also have to produce short films of them cooking the recipe, akin to an “audition for the Food Network.”

“The class is performance based,” Lopez said. “To give [students] the opportunity to show their performance, we’ve had them record themselves presenting what they prepared at home, cooking and posting those short videos that we can see and grade.”

In many ways, the transition to distance learning has meant that Lopez is doing more work than he normally would.

“Like all the other classes, it’s more work because we’re doing a job that we aren’t normally doing. So we’re recreating a lot of new materials. We’re doing a lot more of curriculum writing, but we’re not doing, probably the most fun part, but the hardest part of our class which is running the culinary labs,” Lopez said.

The format of the class has also shifted with distance learning.

“I’m actually doing a lot more content like integrating a lot more of Google Forms, Google Docs, and online testing that I would never have used before,” Lopez said.

Though Lopez has become an expert in cooking show production, he has also faced challenges with distance learning.

“We’re a full unit behind because it’s been slower getting out content and information,” Lopez said. “Second, we haven’t had the students do as many recipes, because it’s been difficult getting ingredients to students.”

As the Culinary Arts class transforms into the Food Network, Lopez has adapted content and format to help students become the next Bobby Flay or Dominique Crenn.

by Neha Pubbi

MICHAEL Lopez

stay at at ho-ho-home Dec. 1-30

Dec. 18

Dec. 5-24, 26-30

Winter Wonderland at Belmont Park Beachside

Sweet Home

Del Mar Fairgrounds’ Holiday in Your Car

Outside winter-themed activities and entertainment

Netflix’s live-action TV series based off the drama/horror webtoon by the same name

December

6

7

Drive-through holiday light show; admission costs $1

1

2

3

4

5

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9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Dec. 21

Dec. 25

Dec. 25

Jeopardy! Tribute

We Can Be Heroes

Wonder Woman 1984

Series of late Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek’s best episodes, hosted by ABC

Netflix’s live action sequel to the classic movie The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl

Sequel to Wonder Woman (2017), based on DC Comics’ character Wonder Woman

Dec. 20, 24 Old Globe Theatre: How the Grinch Stole Christmas Audio Available on KPBS Radio 89.5 FM, through their website or app

Dec. 19 - Jan. 1 The Nutcracker Project 2020 30-minute online performance streaming from Dec. 19 to Jan. 1; admission costs $5

INFOGRAPHIC BY AMY GE AND VIYANG HAO/FALCONER

entertainment

A14 the falconer

december 18, 2020

SUBSCRIPTION BOXES Daily Harvest Because I juggle a full-time job, a sport and online school, my weekday meals are all about efficiency. I usually meal prep dinners on Sundays so I can reheat them throughout the week. All things considered, I felt like I was the right customer for Daily Harvest.

Daily Harvest is a nutritional subscription box service that delivers frozen produce and organic ingredients, such as fruits and vegetables, for customers to create organic fruit-and-veggie-based recipes.

When I signed up for Daily Harvest, I could “build a box” by selecting how many “cups,” or food items, I wanted (nine, 12 or 24) and how often I wanted them delivered (weekly or monthly).

These dish options include a variety of smoothies, harvest bowls, soups, protein bites, lattes, oat bowls and chia bowls.

I chose the nine-item weekly box and saved $25 using a coupon I found online, so the total cost came out to $40.91.

My box arrived just three days after I purchased it online. Everything I needed for these three to five-step recipes were

in the perfectly portioned, multicolored cups and bowls, excluding liquids the recipe called for such as water or milk.

My favorite dish in the box was the Green Chickpea and Turmeric Soup. The ingredients included green chickpea, parship, kale, mustard seed, turmeric and fenugreek. All I had to do was add one cup of water and microwave the bowl for five minutes. As I took my first sip, I could taste all the spices and protein in the broth. There was a perfect ratio of steamed vegetables, spices and protein to water. This was definitely an easy way to get my greens in and definitely appeased my appetite. It was filling and could definitely replace a full meal. I would give this meal a 10 out of 10 and recommend it to anyone looking for a quick and healthy meal on a cold day.

My least favorite item in the box was the Artichoke and Spinach Flatbread. The ingredients included broccoli, artichoke, spinach, cauliflower, tahini and thyme. The recipe instructed me to heat the flatbread in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 450 degrees which

nearly burnt the flatbread! It was bitter, and the broccoli and artichoke overpowered the other ingredients. I normally love flatbreads and I often order them as an appetizer when I eat out; however, I didn’t like that it was plant-based and vegan. However, I would still give this a 4 out of 10 because I appreciate Daily Harvest’s attempt at creating a plant-based, vegan flatbread alternative that is simple to make.

The dishes I received from Daily Harvest are probably healthier than anything I would cook at home from scratch. After my week-long trial, I felt healthier, too, because I was eating more fruits and vegetables instead of relying on carbs and extra proteins to fill me up.

by Micah Levy

When the box arrived, I opened the insulated packaging to find three neatly folded brown paper bags, each labeled with the name of the meal it contained. Also included were three brightly colored recipe cards. On the front, the cards had pictures of the finished meals and on the back, there were step-bystep recipes, complete with photo references.

My favorite of the bunch was definitely the black bean soup. It was spicy, smoky, comforting and perfect for a cold night. It was also surprisingly easy to make. After I prepared the ingredients, it was only a matter of throwing them in the pot at the right time. My positive experience making the black bean soup even inspired me to try out more soups on my own.

While subscriptions like Hello Fresh are great options if you only plan on eating the meals once, things become a little trickier if you want to make them again on your own.

For key ingredients, particularly spice blends, there’s not enough information provided to

accurately recreate them. While it is possible to estimate the quantities of each spice in the blend, for such a key factor in the taste of the recipe, I wish that Hello Fresh gave customers the tools to recreate meals.

Despite that, I still think Hello Fresh has a lot of merit. Its customizable options, tasty food and ease of preparation are all important qualities in a food subscription box. It’s also given me a better understanding of how to utilize ingredients in my fridge, particularly vegetables, to make something the whole family can enjoy.

by Jasmine Criqui

Hello Fresh After seeing the number of ads for food subscription boxes skyrocket in the last few years, I was thrilled to be able to try out Hello Fresh for this month’s Falconer issue. As an aspiring home cook, I was looking forward to learning some new recipes and skills that I could take with me to college and beyond.

The Hello Fresh website was very straightforward and user-friendly. I began by customizing my meal plan, which let Hello Fresh know what kind of recipes to send me, how much food I wanted, and how often I wanted it. I chose the Veggie option for three meals a week, each with four portions.

From there, the website directed me to the fun part: choosing my specific meals. I was pleasantly surprised by the wide variety of vegetarian options available to choose from, as I had expected them to be automatically chosen for me. For my first box, I picked out the crunchy curried chickpea bowls, Mexicali black bean soup and balsamic tomato parmesan risotto.

entertainment

tphsfalconer.com

the falconer

Netflix’s documentary film “BLACKPINK: Light Up is a fresh reminder that celebrities are humans, too Released on Oct. 14, Netflix’s documentary “BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky” is an hour and 19 minutes of pure pleasure for the K-pop group’s fans, called “BLINKS,” to rave about. However, the documentary also serves as an endearing introduction for newcomers who aren’t familiar with the group, making it an interesting watch for anyone.

BLACKPINK burst onto the global stage in 2016 and has continued skyrocketing in popularity, consistently shattering its own records with each new music release. The group was the first Korean group to perform at Coachella, achieving what K-pop has struggled to do for decades: breaking into the Western mainstream music industry.

But, K-pop is notoriously “manufactured,” in the sense that everything has a purpose and every K-pop star has a certain role to play — nothing happens by accident. This is no different for BLACKPINK, where each member has a specific role: Jennie is the leader and main rapper, Jisoo is the “visual” or the member that fits Korean beauty standards the best and therefore serves as the face of the group, Rosé is the main vocalist, and Lisa is the main dancer.

In the public eye, the members of BLACKPINK

flaunt their fierce stage presence and carefully curated personas, but many wonder — who are they, really?

“BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky” answers that question.

Of course, the documentary is, at its core, a marketing tool; YG Entertainment (YGE), the company managing BLACKPINK, wouldn’t have authorized the documentary’s creation if there wasn’t significant money to come out of it. But, director Caroline Suh’s greatest challenge was ensuring that the documentary didn’t just feel like an hour-long advertisement for the group.

Suh manages to do so easily by weaving together clips from concerts, interviews, events and staged interactions to piece together a lighthearted yet impactful narrative. There is a particular emphasis on the individuality of each member which serves to humanize them, revealing a little bit of who these stars really are as people.

For example, Suh takes us along to one of Jennie’s pilates sessions with

her private instructor where we learn who Jennie really is: a girl who, despite having such a demanding career, is shy and easily tired. We follow Jisoo to her makeup session, where she reflects candidly on her lack of friends and reveals that her makeup artist is among the few she has. We watch Rosé sit on a floor with her guitar, where she reminisces about times when she had more freedom to sing on her own. We follow Lisa to a shopping spree in a vintage shop, where we see her rave over an old cereal box.

There is an undeniable sense of wistful nostalgia in each individual member’s spotlight. While the four are pop royalty now, the sacrifices that they have each made along the way aren’t as obvious as their glowing achievements.

In order to become K-pop stars, young hopefuls, typically middle or high schoolers, audition for entertainment companies; if accepted, they must leave their families to live at the companies and undergo the

grueling, competitive and stressful training alone.

“A lot of people make memories as a high-school student, but I never had that,” Jennie says as she recounts moving from New Zealand to Korea on her own.

Rosé concurs politely, saying that the trainee era “wasn’t a very happy vibe” for her.

These are just a few of the many jabs the documentary takes at the cynical side of the K-pop industry: the bleak job prospects, the harsh training and the overbearing control that entertainment companies exercise on their contracted artists. I was surprised but pleased to see this subject matter being discussed, as it is often swept under the rug. Being BLACKPINK is not all sunshine and roses, and each member’s humble beginning will never truly be lost, no matter how hard YGE tries to mold their idols into marketable commodities.

It’s easy for the average person to feel alienated from celebrities, but “BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky” forges a rare intimate connection between fan and band. Seeing the members candidly discuss their past in the back of a car, or watch old performances together, reaffirmed what originally attracted BLINKS like me to the group: their charm, their genuineness, their chemistry, and, of course, their talent.

by Kevin Song

A15

entertainment

A16 the falconer

december 18, 2020

Call of Duty: Black Ops-Cold War is Activision’s latest addition to the iconic first-person shooter franchise After its launch on Nov. 13, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War has made its way into the homes of video game connoisseurs and casual players alike. Treyarch and Raven Software have teamed up with Beenox once again to develop another installation of the epic game franchise. But, is the game truly worth the $60 price tag? Set during the Cold War in the early 1980s, the campaign of the game is, unfortunately, nothing special.

The game takes place between Black Ops and Black Ops 2 in terms of the COD timeline and begins with a unique shot: New Year’s Day, Amsterdam, 1981. There was a clear ‘80s vibe to the setting.

I began by picking up my weapon of choice and storming the house of a stereotypical COD bad guy: a MiddleEastern terrorist by the name of Qasim Javadi. After finally

catching him, I decided what happened to Javadi nex; as the player, I could dictate the direction the story took.

After completing the first few missions, I filled in my own personal touches to join a task force. I was challenged with saving the world from the infamous “Perseus”. Assigned the codename “Bell”, I chose a character profile along with two abilities that could give me boosts including better reload speed, improved resilience or even more grenades! My quest consisted of investigating during missions while I pieced together the story and unlocked side quests such as Operations Red Circus and Chaos.

Despite all of this action, as the game progressed, the boring and irrelevant dialogue took a toll on my intrigue.

The next-level graphics and intricate landscapes, as well as the weights, superb lighting effects and shooting mechanics of the guns, were all spot on. However, the lack of substance in the story

itself detracted from some of the plot’s climactic moments.

With minor glitches from time to time that are standard for a newly released game, the campaign generally met my expectations: a fun grind with a basic storyline that provided jolts of excitement but largely failed to leave me with a memorable experience.

After reviewing the campaign, I had the opportunity to check out the Zombies mode as well. In its long-awaited return, the cooperative Zombies mode in Black Ops Cold War had a remarkable new story.

The consistent structure of a wave-based survival endeavor reigned supreme once again, and with good reason. With the right ratio of playful interjections to difficulty and repeatability, I was glued to the screen for hours trying to improve my record of survived rounds.

Of course, I’d be remiss not to include the incredible and consistently entertaining Multiplayer mode.

The

weapons in the game weren’t anything different from what I’d seen in Call of Duty before, with realistic and satisfying shooting sounds.

The signature Multiplayer was world-class as usual, with a range of different modes along with customizable loadouts and an updated progression system.

All in all, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was a satisfactory game. It excelled at what the COD franchise has done best: developing a first-person shooter game that will keep players occupied until the next COD game is released. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is now available on Xbox, Playstation, and PC for download.

by Matan Morris

Nolan Ezzet

SPORTS EDITOR

Give the Refs a Break Photo courtesy of Cleveland

Brandon Raimo, Nolan Ezzet and Amy Ge SPORTS EDITORS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Competitive sports get very intense, and many games come down to the decisions made by the officiating crew. This puts immense pressure on the referees to always make the correct calls, no matter the circumstance.

Their mistakes are often magnified by players, coaches and fans, making their jobs extremely difficult.

Being an official starts with knowing the entire rulebook and keeping up to date on rule changes.

“You have to do a certification,” ice hockey referee Chip Beebe said.

“Every year, you go and sit in a class with all your buddies and you go over a couple of new rules because every year, a couple of rules change.”

Because of those requirements, referees are usually able to make the correct calls, even if the players disagree.

“So, if you know the book, you shouldn’t be afraid to [make calls] because you know the rules and the rulebook backs you up every time,” Beebe said.

Nonetheless, knowing the rules does not mean officials are perfect.

“Referees are going to miss calls,” Beebe said. “We’re not going to get every call right.

That’s just part of the game.”

Referees need to own up to their mistakes, especially since making mistakes is inevitable.

“I think it’s better to go tell the coaches [after the game], ‘Hey look, I thought this was a call that I thought I should have made and I realize it wasn’t,’” Beebe said.

It is important for viewers to understand how difficult it is to make calls.

“There are tons of replays and different camera angles that [viewers] are exposed to,” youth basketball coach and sports fan Bain Higgins (11) said. “Automatically, people who are watching on TV get a better perspective than the refs. If there’s anything that goes wrong, it’s more likely that a viewer will catch it than a referee.”

It may be frustrating when referees make a call that is difficult to agree with, especially when it greatly affects the outcome of the game. These high-stakes situations often inspire tension and even screaming.

“I’ve had players yell at me,” Beebe said. “I’ve had an instance where we had to kick the guy off. He started cursing at me and going off.”

Fans often overreact to small mistakes. It is important for them to remember to stay calm.

“Just relax. It’s just one pitch,” TPHS varsity baseball

player Zach Isaacman (11) said. “If an umpire calls it a strike [if it is] an inch outside or a ball that’s right on the black, just give him a break.”

Baseball umpires are often criticized for being too emotional and ejecting players frequently, although multiple factors can play into this.

“The type of past that umpires had with that team or player [affects how easily ejections are given],” Isaacman said.

Although umpires may be too quick to eject team members, they are often justified in their actions.

“When a player or manager starts arguing with the umpire, they know they’re running a risk of getting tossed out of the game,” Higgins said. “It’s not like they don’t know what’s going to come to them. I may disagree with a lot of the times they get thrown out, but there’s a precedent there, so I don’t think it’s necessarily unjustified.”

Parents often become too

involved in youth games and can get carried away with criticizing the officials or their own kids.

“Parents take it really seriously,” Beebe said.

“It stinks because they’re yelling at their kids and the refs. It’s just sad sometimes to see how over the top parents go.”

At the end of the day, the most important thing for everyone involved to remember is that referees and umpires are human and subject to making mistakes, especially in high-pressure situations, just like anyone else.

“Referees are going to miss calls. We’re not going to get every call right,” Beebe said. “ That’s just part of the game, we’re not going to be able to see every call.”

Officiating is the only job in sport in which perfection is expected. Refs are ridiculed, mocked and heckled, and almost never praised. But, they still manage to find ways to do their jobs as effectively as possible.

Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh expresses his frustration and disagreement with two referees.

Photo courtesy of Yahoo Sports

The Kyle Shanahan era in San Francisco has had its fair share of injuries. After quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo lit it up when arriving in San Francisco in 2017, he played just three of 16 games the following season due to a torn ACL, forcing Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard to lead the 49er team that would end with a 4-12 record. Niner fans may have been upset that year, but this year has been infinitely more frustrating for them.

Coming off a loss in the Super Bowl, the 49ers had high expectations for the 2020 season. However, it did not take long for concerns to arise.

Star cornerback Richard Sherman injured his calf in Week 1 and would not return until Week 12. Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle suffered a knee injury in Week 1 and returned in Week 4, but fractured his foot in Week 8, which may force him to miss the remainder of the season.

As if this was not enough, in Week 2, Garoppolo, running backs Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman and 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Bosa all got injured. Garoppolo and Mostert returned in Week 5, and Bosa is out for the remainder of the season. Coleman returned in Week 8, but re-injured the knee he sprained in Week 2. This re-injury kept Coleman out until Week 13.

The 49ers’ top receiver, Deebo Samuel, missed Weeks 1 to 3 with a Jones fracture and hurt his hamstring during Week 7, sidelining him until Week 12. Fortunately, rookie Brandon Aiyuk has been able to fit into Samuel’s role effectively.

But, Aiyuk was forced to miss Week 12. On his first play of the game, Samuel, playing through a foot contusion, went down with an injured hamstring in Week 14, which could be season-ending.

Starting linebacker Kwon Alexander missed Weeks 6 to 9 with a high-ankle sprain suffered in Week 5. Another defensive starter, cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, also missed several games. After exiting his Week 3 matchup against the New York Giants early, he sat out Weeks 4 and 5. He also got injured mid-way through his Week 12 game and missed Week 13.

Impressively, the 49ers have still mustered a 5-7 record despite their players’ injuries and the competitiveness of the NFC West division. The 49ers are an incredibly talented team who put up a fight against the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV last season. Despite injuries spreading throughout the NFL, no team has suffered more from this than the Niners. The core of their team have missed several games, resulting in a subpar record of 5-7.

A18 the falconer

sports

december 18, 2020

DAY IN THE LIFE After committing to the University of Pennsylvania to continue playing field hockey, Philine Klas (11) was “really excited” to finally announce the news. Making the commitment official and telling her friends and family was exciting because Klas’ family and friends were “super supportive and happy” for her.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the recruiting process looked very different than in previous years. The inability to make on-campus visits, meet coaches or tour communities made it difficult to land on the right school.

“My recruiting process was probably very different due to the pandemic, and it was really hard to decide because I couldn’t go on any campus visits,” Klas said. “I met the coaches, team and support staff over Zoom and they gave me virtual tours of the campus and athletic facilities.”

The restrictions put on the athletic commitment process this year were challenging to overcome — but challenges were nothing new to Klas. Before the pandemic, Klas was playing at RUSH, a field hockey club in San Diego, up to three times each week with her teammates. Unfortunately, the virus turned her team workouts and games into playing and practicing with her sisters for a few months, but she is now able to practice with her team again.

“It was really weird at the beginning since I was only allowed to practice with my sisters for a couple of months, but it has gotten more normal,” Klas said. “We are lucky to be back at practice with the whole team again.”

Now that Klas is able to practice with her team, the bonds between her teammates are crucial. Team chemistry usually influences how individuals play and how well the team coalesces. Finding a good balance between being supportive and pushing each other is something Klas and her teammates understand because it can play an important role in the outcome of a game. Since Klas has been playing since age eight, she is aware of the great role and impact team camaraderie has in games.

“All my teammates have always been very supportive, so we connect better during the game, but at the same time, we are able to push each other to become the best players on the field,” Klas said.

It’s not uncommon for an athlete to lose enthusiasm for a sport that has dominated his or her life, but Klas is an exception.

“I grew up playing field hockey multiple times a week, so I couldn’t imagine not playing it anymore,” Klas said. “It really clears my mind. It teaches you teamwork, and I met many of my best friends through the sport.”

During the school year, balancing academics can be difficult with games, practices and conditioning, but Klas handles it with grit.

“In a way, having a tight schedule forces you to stay organized and not procrastinate,” Klas said.

“It’s not that hard once you get used to it.”

Before a game, Klas says that “good music and good food” are crucial, along with the mindset of “always giving 100% and never giving up.” Win or lose, she spends time listening to her dad’s “post-game talks” while on the way back home from a game. Even after playing for so many years, her mindset has continued to be giving everything she can, “especially since field hockey isn’t that big on the West Coast and there aren’t a lot of opportunities to be seen by college coaches.”

Despite the difficulties in being recognized by colleges while playing field hockey on the West Coast, Klas is patiently waiting both to meet her Penn teammates and coaches and to live on the East Coast.

“I’m really excited to meet the team and coaches in person once I’m allowed to visit UPenn’s campus,” Klas said. “I was born in Philadelphia and already love the city and East Coast in general, so I’m excited to have a great college experience.”

Even with the many challenges she has faced during her field hockey career, Klas continues to work hard in the hopes of reaching her dream of being on the U.S. Development Team or National Team for field hockey.

by Dixie Wallerius

PHILINE KLAS

sports

tphsfalconer.com

the falconer

A19

Golf interest rises unexpectedly during pandemic Jacob Zhang

STAFF WRITER

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed over 1.5 million people worldwide, 2020 has seen a considerable increase in golf participation, according to data collected by the National Golf Foundation (NGF).

The sport received an immense boost from the pandemic, which shut down a variety of recreational activities, including golf in March and April. As golf courses slowly reopened, people found the sport a safe, socially distanced hobby to pursue.

“I’ve seen a huge increase since all other sports are canceled because of COVID-19,” Luke Bailey, a member at La Costa Resort, said. “I have seen this a lot at courses like Encinitas Ranch and St. Marks, which are easier courses.”

The sport saw an additional 7-8 million rounds played in June 2020 compared to June 2019, and even with the 42.2% decrease in golf rounds played in April, this year might witness more golf played than 2019, according to the NGF. “I had people that have never played golf ask me to play golf with them because they have nothing else to do,” Bailey said. “A lot of people start because golf is a very mental sport… and it’s hard to reach perfection.”

Most golf courses require social distancing and mask-wearing to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Some have

replaced bunker rakes with foam noodles in cups to prevent transmission through touch.

“These [restrictions] make me feel safer because instead of reaching down to the bottom of the cup with our whole hand, we can just take the ball out with two fingers to minimize contact,” Spencer Zhang, a member at Bernardo Heights Country Club, said.

However, with more players and a decreased capacity at many courses, tee times and range spots are limited and harder to find than before the pandemic.

“It’s good to see the amount of golfers increase, but it really restricts us [junior golfers] from practicing,” Johnavon Kim (11), a member at Bernardo Heights Country Club, said.

Still, Kim found the pandemic a perfect opportunity to play more golf during online learning. He spent more time preparing for golf tournaments, which also shut down for some time between March and May. “I had a lot more time without being actually at school,“ Kim said.

“I definitely practiced more and got better.”

Research conducted by the NGF concluded that the golf industry is booming. The 14% increase in golf rounds played in June alone translated to a $400 million increase in revenue for courses across the U.S.. Golf DataTech, which has been tracking equipment sales since 1997, recorded the highest

total sales in July, Aug. and Sept.at $1 billion.

The NGF also predicts that 20% more junior golfers will start playing by the end of 2020 compared to 2019.

“It’s always good to grow the game, especially for younger people,” Kim said. “It’s a game that you can play for a long time, and it teaches a lot about your character because you have to trust the process and stay patient.”

Celebrity golf matches, such as “The Match: Champions For Charity” featuring pro golfers Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson and future Hall of Fame

7 to 8 million more rounds of golf were played in June 2020 compared to June 2019

There was a $400-million increase in revenue for golf courses across the U.S. in June 2020

There is a 20% projected increase in junior golfers by the end of 2020 compared to 2019

EA Sports: it’s not in the game Brandon Raimo

SPORTS EDITOR

Way back on July 1, #FixMaddenFranchise became Twitter’s top trending hashtag in the United States, amidst a global pandemic and numerous social justice movements. The movement gained so much traction that Electronic Arts (EA) released a video apologizing to fans for the pathetic state of their newest release, Madden NFL 21. But this was more than just a reaction to a single game; this was the result of years of EA Sports alienating their customers and producing low-effort, low-quality titles.

T h e downfall of the Madden s e r i e s b e g a n in 2004,

when EA negotiated a deal with the NFL that gave them exclusive rights to NFL teams, players and stadiums, effectively ending any competition from other companies in the football gaming industry. Since then, EA has been consistently stripping away features from the once-great game, reducing it to a bare-bones shell of its former self. Most longtime gamers agree that the Madden series

has still yet to surpass the NFL 2K series, which was discontinued over 16 years ago.

EA’s FIFA series has also seen a drop in quality during recent years, though their profits reflect the opposite.

The game’s most popular (and most advertised) mode, Ultimate Team, is a virtual card-collecting game that has generated over $6 billion in revenue through in-game purchases since 2015. This pay-to-win gamemode has not only made its way into Madden, but also into other companies’ sports games as well, such as MyTeam in NBA 2K and Diamond Dynasty in MLB: The Show. The

quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, promoted the sport to its 5.8 million viewers while also raising more than $20 million for COVID-19 relief efforts.

“It’s not that hard to start playing,” Kim said. “People can just pick up their golf club, go to their local range and swing away.”

Golf has slowly grown over the years, but this year has seen an unexpected increase among both the old and the young. Entering Aug. 2020, 98% of U.S. courses were open, and the number of new players continues to rise.

predatory luck-based system that EA uses to lure children into spending thousands on virtual card packs have them facing numerous lawsuits, and have even gotten the entire mode banned in certain countries.

Despite this, EA has continued to thrust Ultimate Team into the faces of FIFA fans. Even in Madden, where Ultimate Team is not nearly as popular as other modes, it still receives frequent updates and gets advertised regularly.

Meanwhile, the game’s most played mode, Franchise, hasn’t been touched in nearly a decade. For years, all fans wanted were improvements to Franchise, and EA has instead devoted its resources to adding modes that nobody asked for, such as Longshot, Superstar KO and Face of the Franchise.

This perfectly illustrates the problem with EA; it places its own needs and wants before those of its customers.. The company’s concern for customer satisfaction ended a long time ago, and since then, its only focus has been to squeeze every last penny out of consumers, no matter how awful its product becomes.

Meme Review Brandon Raimo

SPORTS EDITOR

To most football fans, the thought of an NFL game in which neither team has a quarterback may sound intriguing, but the Week 12 matchup between the New Orleans Saints and Denver Broncos is clear evidence that quarterbacks are indeed necessary.

The Saints’ “quarterback” was Swiss Army knife Taysom Hill, who filled in for the injured Drew Brees.

Meanwhile, all four quarterbacks on the Broncos’ roster were ineligible to play due to contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19, so they turned to rookie wide receiver Kendall Hinton, who last played quarterback at Wake Forest University in 2018.

Predictably, Hinton struggled against the vaunted Saints defense, completing only one of nine pass attempts. Hill didn’t do much better despite having more experience under center, throwing for 78 yards and an interception. The two teams combined for a mere 75 net passing yards, as the Saints leaned on their running game en route to a 31-3 victory.

Many Broncos fans questioned why the game was played at all, since other games were postponed for similar reasons. As a Saints fan, I can concur; this game was a joke from start to finish, and should have been rescheduled.

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A20 the falconer

one word. LIARS.

my

december 18, 2020

the radical left

how dare they try to give people rights?

masks are useless. prove me wrong, and then we’ll talk.

R O T I A R T

ok, Hope gave me COVID, but c’mon! how could u be mad at that face?

Robert deserves SO much better.

Ivanka... she’s the best.

by Donald J. Trump Mary, no one likes you.

screw dem. voters. No — screw democracy. it’s the reason i didn’t win. who cares if the AP declared it? I won.

This page is entirely fictional.

STOP THE COUNT. Photos courtesy of Getty Images, LA Times, Fiercepharma, Marie Claire and the White House.