October 2015

October 2015 • Estd. 1892 • Vol. 123 #7 • Published Monthly • www.ihstattler.com Ithaca High School, 1401 North Cayuga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 • FREE

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE

2015-16

Local and Global Initiatives Aim to Decrease Food Waste

By MADGA KOSSOWSKA Every year, one trillion U.S. dollars’ worth of food is thrown out, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The world produces 2640 calories worth of food per person per day—more than enough to feed the entire human population.

Meanwhile, over 800 million people are malnourished worldwide.

World hunger has been brought to the attention of world leaders, causing new laws and regulations to be put in place. Ending hunger is second on the list of 17 goals to which world leaders have committed at the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Summit last month.

Because most scrapped food is not composted, it poses a strain on the environment. Edible material makes up 21 percent of landfills and produces methane and 3.3 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year.

To combat scaped foods, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency announced the nation’s first-ever national food waste reduction goal in September, calling for a 50 percent reduction in food waste by 2030. As part of the effort, the federal government will lead a new partnership with charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, the private sector, and CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

Activists present to third graders at BJM on September 18, 2015.

Community Erupts against Pro-Palestinian Guest Speakers at BJM

By MAX FINK and JOHN YOON Questions swept Ithaca noting a recent event at Beverly J. Martin (BJM) elementary school: controversial activists spoke to the third grade about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as guests on September 18.

This incident was first addressed

by Superintendent Luvelle Brown at a BoE meeting on September 22 as “something that I’m not happy about, nor should anyone be happy about,” as the guests were “very controversial figures invited unbeknownst to the principal.”

Brown’s comment was made in response to outcry from many parents and Ithacans over the guests’ controversial stances. Online comments, and allegedly, emails sent to the superintendent ranged in tone

from outrage to confusion to threats involving Governor Cuomo’s office.

On September 25, Brown released a statement verifying that the guest speakers originally were to discuss human rights and peace but instead gave a “politically skewed, inflammatory” talk in support of Palestinians.

It featured a video of a Palestinian girl referencing Israelis killing Palestinians and a closing statement about how students could help the speakers’ cause.

Bassem al-Tamimi is internationally known for organizing protests against Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, where he has organized proCONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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OPINION

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Editorial:

Shedding Light on the Flipped Classroom

In 2007, Jon Bergmann and Aaron Sams, two teachers from Woodland Park, CO, came up with the idea of a flipped classroom as an easy way to help students who missed class. This project soon became a popular teaching method that made its way across the country.

In a “flipped classroom,” short lectures are pre-recorded and are watched online by students every evening. The next day, students come into class and participate in discussion, practice problems, and group projects about the material learned at home.

Something similar seems to be happening at IHS. Even before the rollout of Chromebooks and the Google Apps ecosystem, many teachers had been using classroom portals to share class materials, which many students who missed class have found useful.

Now, although not for all of us, the flipped classroom has made it to IHS. Whether every one of us supports the flipped classroom or not, when teachers adopt it in their classrooms, we are having to evolve and change our way of learning.

We don’t have a choice to opt-out of it. It is therefore important for teachers to understand that the theoretical advantages may be outweighed by the drawbacks of using this model.

Several math teachers at IHS have adopted the flipped classroom model. Their students now learn the information and mathematical concepts at home using online resources, and then they work on problems from the textbook in class, honing their understanding through application.

In theory, this gives students a lot more control over what we spend our time studying. In math classes, we need teachers present to answer questions or to provide help if we get stuck on an assignment. With a digital textbook or video recording, we can pace ourselves and spend more time on material that is difficult. Doing problem sets is absolutely better with a teacher who can help when we are stuck. In class, we even have peers with whom to work together.

But when watching a video, the teacher can’t answer more fundamental, higher level questions about the material or connect concepts with other fields of study spontaneously. Asking during the learning process is as valuable and important as it is when students apply the learned material to solve problems. The value of a live teacher, able to take questions and explain things in different ways or make tangents to other interesting perspectives from which to look

at the concepts, is underrated. Lectures by a real teacher help us understand concepts far more intuitively and with excitement than videos, which are static and fixed, and often made by complete strangers to us.

A passionate lecture by a live teacher in a classroom is the best quality student-teacher time possible.

When teachers use class time to reinforce concepts in students’ weak areas through projects and discussions, the flipped approach does allow teachers to be available to answer questions as they arise. In the traditional model, teachers may incorporate time for questions into their daily lectures but students are left in the dark about homework until the next day.

In practice, we students often find ourselves with our hands raised up at our desks, waiting for the teacher to finish helping out another student. One teacher simply cannot possibly answer individual questions to all 32 of her students. There is a limit to how efficient individualized learning can be. The time could be better spent with an activity or a moderated class discussion to answer common questions and misconceptions and extend our understanding of what we learned at home.

Ironically, contrary to its basic goal of “individualizing” the learning process, the flipped classroom still seems to disadvantage a large group of students. When an entire course is converted into a flipped classroom model, it disadvantages those of us who process information best through hands-on experience and demonstrations.

Videos are only appealing to auditory and visual learners.

As with any new teaching program, there are both benefits and disadvantages to a flipped classroom. Some students really enjoy it, others don’t. There are downsides to shifting control from teachers to students.

The model requires us to be responsible for learning the material at home and paying attention to the videos. Though the teacher’s life is still no easier than before since to achieve good results, teachers do just as much preparation as they would traditionally.

Where appropriate, and if integrated into a teacher’s curriculum, style, and pedagogy properly, there is potential in the flipped classroom for enhanced, personalized, and efficient learning, but not without acknowledging the inherent and practical flaws in the approach.

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Faculty Advisor

Deborah Lynn advisor@ihstattler.com The Tattler is the student-run newspaper of Ithaca High School. It was founded in 1892 and is published monthly.

As an open forum, the Tattler invites opinion piece submissions and letters to the editor from all community members.

Drop off submissions in E25, email them to editor@ihstattler.com, or mail letters to: The Tattler 1401 North Cayuga Street Ithaca, NY 14850 The Tattler reserves the right to edit all submissions. Submissions do not necessarily reflect the views of editorial staff.

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THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

NEWS IIMAGE PROVIDED

The Annual Prepares Its 101st Edition

By CHLOE WRAY

Travis Hyde’s proposal for the old library building space on Cayuga St.

Future of the Old Library?

By REED WOLFE WAWRZYNEK What’s up with the old library?

You’ve probably seen the structure on North Cayuga Street. It’s famous for a massive mural of Ithaca, featured in the background of countless profile pictures. However, the interior of this building is hardly ever talked about in the high-school community.

The 38,630 square-foot building has been used as a Community Justice Center since the library moved to the Green Street building several years ago, but deciding on its future use has been quite a tumultuous journey.

A request for proposals was put up for the old Tompkins County Public Library building in December 2013. Three proposals were received, and soon Tompkins County had set up a committee to review each of them.

The first, from Rochester’s Cornerstone Group Ltd., proposed to demolish the old building and build 63 senior rental units, as well as a space for Cornell Cooperative Extension to deliver services to the seniors.

The second plan, from Travis Hyde Properties, was to deconstruct the old building and build 60 senior-focused apartments, new facilities for Lifelong (an organization striving for

senior health and wellness that coincidentally neighbors the old library), and office space. The last proposal, from Franklin Properties, was to create 22 apartments, medical offices, and a cafe. Franklin Properties’ proposal was the only one in which the building would not be demolished.

In May 2014, the committee met and heard all three proposals. Each proposal was discussed but a decision could not be reached, as eight votes were needed, and no choice received more than six votes. By the end of last year, things were starting to look as if nothing was going to be decided and the building would remain in partial disrepair.

However, the committee reached a decision in August, with eight members voting for the Travis Hyde proposal. Multiple members shifted their vote, citing that a bad decision was still better than no decision at all. The proposal is currently being passed through a few bodies connected to local government, including a historical preservation society and the State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR), but the mixed-use center for apartments, offices, and wellness is on its way to reclaiming the old library.

The production of IHS’s 101st edition of The Annual is well underway.

Prestige Portraits is offering free senior portraits to all seniors, which will ensure that everyone has a high-quality picture for the Senior Gallery of the Annual.

This picture is different from the Lifetouch picture that is taken for school ID cards. Please note this is not mandatory, but recommended.

The next session will take place from November 9–10. To schedule a time slot, please call Prestige at 877-498-0909. Any proceeds from families who purchase additional photos supports the Annual’s efforts to offer discounted books to families who receive free and reduced lunch, so we ask that you take advantage of this opportunity.

If you are submitting your own senior portrait, please send it to ithaca.yearbook@gmail.com by November 1. If your senior portrait does not meet our size or quality requirements, we will let you know with enough time to schedule an appointment with Prestige. The Annual also welcomes photo submissions for all parts of the book from jobs, candids, summer, and Halloween.

The Annual is already on sale for $60. Be sure to order a copy at www.ybpay.lifetouch.com using the school code #12224516 before prices rise to $80.

More information on the book can be found on the ICSD website or on our Facebook page, “IHS Annual.” Feel free to contact The Annual at our email.

NEWS

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THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

IMAGE BY JOHN YOON

The High Tunnel.

IHS’s New Greenhouse: the High Tunnel

By TRISTAN ENGST To those who haven’t walked into the nearly-enclosed space outside the art wing, it may just have gotten a lot more interesting. There’s now a greenhouse, dubbed the “High Tunnel.” I emailed Mrs. Kiechle, one of the primary collaborators on the project to find out more about it.

The whole thing is part of a joint project between the Science Depart-

ment and the Special Education Department, which both “wanted the space to enhance teaching and provide hands-on programming,” according to Mrs. Kiechle, a special education teacher planning to use the High Tunnel in her Secondary Transition Program Science class. Mr. Tuori will also use the space in the spring to teach Sustainable Agriculture, and

CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

PROVIDED BY WE ARE NEON

Ithaca Youths’ Colorful Start-Up: We Are Neon

Mrs. Kiechle told me “When both our classes are using the space, we will plan to find opportunities to integrate them and support each other's farming projects.” Additionally, Cooperative Extension Food Gardening Outreach Educator Josh Dolan, and Damon Brangman, a Gardening Specialist, “will be guest educators in my

By EMMA KARNES

“We are neon; we are bright and unafraid of our own brightness; we are unignorable; we are pointedly piercing to the senses; we will grab your attention and, once we hold it securely, we will tell you something worthwhile.”

So signifies the title of LACS students Esmé Saccuccimorano and Marlena Doerr’s new magazine, We Are Neon (WAN), which aims to “empower youth through the showcasing of their art, literature, music and various innovative endeavors.”

Mainly focused as a combat to ageism, the magazine seeks to present young people’s art as legitimate and valuable in society, even when compared to the art of older and professional artists. The first issue of WAN was published in August, and the magazine is planning to release another issue shortly.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

A We Are Neon emblem.

NEWS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

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IHS’S NEW GREENHOUSE: THE HIGH TUNNEL CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4.

LOCAL AND GLOBAL INITIATIVES AIM TO DECREASE FOOD WASTE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1.

classroom, teaching lessons from the NYS Agriculture Curriculum and providing additional support with our High Tunnel projects.”

While the High Tunnel is built to enhance education, the plants grown in it will be put to good use.

Some plants that are planned for the High Tunnel are kale, romaine lettuce, spinach, arugula, and tulips and daffodils. The plants are supposed to help fund the space: “The greens will be sold to the cafeteria (at a low price), so the cafe can offer quality greens and we can sustain our program … we will also be selling bulbs in the fall (soon) and cut tulip and daffodils in the spring.”

Regarding funding, Mrs. Kiechle told me that the project was funded with roughly $10,000, about half from an IPEI Connecting Classrooms grant and the rest from a Toolbox for Education grant from Lowe's.

Mrs. Gray, Mr. Tuori, Mr. Breigle and Mrs. Kiechle, and Chris Wein, a professor of Horticulture at Cornell, collaborated on the first grant. Margie Shaw and Mr. Sevilla also joined the team after the first grant was received.

But there was more than grant-writing: “I can honestly tell you, moving all that dirt was extremely hard work. I worked with my students every day to get the structure ready before the end of the school year,” wrote Mrs. Kiechle when I queried her about how the High Tunnel was built. Mr. Tuori’s AP Chemistry classes, the STP Tech class, and the STP Science class erected the basic frame of the High Tunnel. Additionally, Mrs. Kiechle told me “The framed area was then surrounded with landscape fabric and crushed stone (donated by ICSD Facilities). We also had to fill the structure with tons of topsoil and compost.”

The overriding goal of the High Tunnel seems to be to allow students more, better options for hands-on learning. Mrs. Kiechle told me it would provide a space for a long term science elective, and “a project-based curriculum for our Secondary Transition Program and technology classes.” Additionally, it “will create the infrastructure necessary to support work-based learning necessary for the new CDOS (Career Development and Occupational Studies) graduation credential.”

So when you eat vegetables from the cafeteria later this year, consider that you may have seen the farmer in the halls just last period.

local, state, and tribal governments to reduce food loss and waste in order to improve overall food security and conserve our nation’s natural resources.

Efforts to decrease food waste are not just national.

Last May, France passed a law forcing its large supermarkets to donate their leftover food to charities and farms in an effort to decrease the 7.1 million metric tons of food wasted in France annually. Before unsold food reaches its expiration date, supermarkets must donate edible food to those who cannot afford it. Inedible food is to be given to farms as animal feed or compost.

The French legislation will also enforce education on food wastage in schools and businesses. In wealthy countries where consumers are accustomed to buying unblemished produce, fruits and vegetables that look irregular or are discoloured but still edible are thrown out without being sold. Moreover, supermarkets have been discarding food around their “best by” or “sell by” dates before the food has spoiled. A lot of perfectly good food is thrown away because it is thought to be less desirable.

Several food pantries and organizations in and around the Ithaca community have used this French model to reduce food waste by distributing unconsumed food to those in need of it. Approximately 30 of these organizations are connected to the Friendship Donations Network (FDN), a program that has helped collect food from donors such as farms, supermarkets, and Cornell University.

The FDN redistributes about 600,000 pounds of food each year. Along with helping to avoid wasting food, these programs have aimed to educate the population about how food wastage is harmful to health, economy, and environment. This summer, FDN worked tirelessly with the Farmer’s Market to save, according to FDN volunteer Celia Clement, “really good produce, fresh lettuce heads, beautiful cherry tomatoes.”

Meanwhile, some claim that only forcing supermarkets to donate unused food may not be a very effective solution to the problem of food scrapping. Out of the yearly 1.3 billion tons of wasted food worldwide, distributors waste only about 20 percent. Consumers throw out about 60 percent of wasted food. But any social-minded citizen—Ithacan, French, or global—should attempt to reduce food waste for the benefit of the world. As Owen Zhang, FDN dock volunteer and Tattler alum, put it: “Food justice is often overlooked when people think about social justice.”

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PAGE 6 COMMUNITY ERUPTS AGAINST PRO-PALESTINIAN SPEAKERS AT BJM CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1.

tests almost every week for two and a half years against the takeover of land. These protests often turn into clashes between stone-throwing youths and Israeli soldiers routinely firing tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets. While alTamimi claims he supports nonviolent, passive resistance, he has been arrested by Israeli authorities over a dozen times, including in 2012 when he solicited protesters to throw stones.

More controversially, however, footages of these confrontations have raised debates worldwide on social media, where supporters of both sides have interpreted them in different ways. Images and videos of these incidents, usually involving youths harassing Israeli soldiers, were recorded by Palestinian and Israeli activists and reporters from multiple angles. These films have been broadcasted repeatedly on Israeli and Arab television, and viewed more than eight million times on Facebook and YouTube, according to The New York Times.

Supporters of the Palestinian cause say the images of an armed soldier placing a 12-year-old boy in a headlock is important evidence of the brutality of life under Israeli rule.

For many supporters of the Israelis, the footages look like attempts by the al-Tamimi family, the organizers of the protest, to provoke Israeli soldiers into using excessive force just to generate images that could harm Israel’s reputation.

A law professor at Cornell, William A. Jacobson, wrote in his website Legal Insurrection, “Tamimi’s children and other children from the village of Nabi Saleh are encouraged to confront Israeli soldiers in the hope of provoking a reaction.”

He added, “This all is a very dangerous exploitation that puts the children at risk. Yet Tamimi glorifies and encourages the use of children for such purposes.” Jacobson also filed a letter to the district demanding answers to questions to the district’s policies on Israel and Palestine and aspects of political discourse in ICSD. One parent wrote on ICSD’s Facebook page, “Beverly J Martin Elementary is an absolute disgrace to host a hatemonger and anti-Semite like Bassem al-Tamimi.” “What a shame that a public school is teaching and supporting hate and anti-Semitism,” another said.

In the press release, Brown apologized for the anti-Israeli comments made by the guests. “We recognize that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is very sensitive to many members of our community,” the news release said. “We also recognize that this delicate topic was not presented in a manner consistent with its importance. We sincerely regret that this has occurred.”

He added that the talk was “not developmentally appropriate for third graders” and that the district will review policies and procedures for guest speakers and visitors, as well as how to teach human rights in alignment with the New York State standards.

Meanwhile, the controversy over whether the guest speakers were appropriate for the elementary school students continue to develop. Jacobson’s article included a statement from BJM Principal Eschbach that stated, “There were many adults present in the class and at no time was there an anti-Israel, anti-Palestine, anti-Jewish, or anti-Muslim stance.”

And in reaction to Jacobson’s article and the uproar against the incident, al-Tamimi made a post on his Facebook page on September 21: “When your enemy becomes nervous this means you are in the right direction.”

NEWS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com ITHACA’S YOUTH’S COLORFUL START-UP: WE ARE NEON CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4.

Funding for an arts-based not-for-profit project like WAN is usually very difficult to obtain. Saccuccimorano and Doerr used GiveGab, a local organization that collects donations online. In addition, a community board (sourced with funding for youth endeavors from the United Way) awarded the project $500 after being pitched WAN’s sustainable business plan and mission statement.

This money propelled WAN through the printing of its first issue; however, funding future issues depends entirely on profits from the first. Saccuccimorano and Doer are selling buttons and patches as a supplementary income source, and hope to host community events designed to showcase youth art in an even more vibrant way—this could enhance the execution of WAN’s mission statement as well as provide yet another source for press and profit.

The style of WAN is undeniably bold, reason enough for attention. Esther Frank Doyle, a 17-yearold from Gainesville, NY, writes about passion in a way that is both intelligent and brutally honest; Francesca Merrick examines growing up black in a sea of white. The writing included is raw and uncensored, a refreshing contrast from the dry, thoroughly-edited writing high school students are encouraged to write in school. In terms of aesthetics, colorful photographs, drawings, and paintings offer visual intermissions between text.

The youth art culture in Ithaca that WAN represents is thriving. Thanks to the support of institutions such as LACS and other youth-focused organizations, Ithaca is bursting with young artists, musicians, and writers actively participating in the culture of community art.

Copies of We Are Neon can be found at the following locations: Buffalo Street Books, Petrune, Angry Mom Records, McNeil Music of Ithaca, through 73 Records Label/Disco, and at some Ithaca Underground shows.

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

OPINIONS

PAGE 7

Animal Experimentation: Immorality in the Name of Science

By EMILY HONG

IMAGE PROVIDED

Dogs being used for experiments.

Since 500 BCE, numerous animals have been used as tools for the benefit of human society. Today, an estimated 17– 100 million animals are confined in laboratories every year, born for the sole purpose of serving as a test item.

Is animal experimentation the best way of ensuring the safety of commercial products and medical treatments for humans?

Although the federal Animal Welfare Act (enforced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)) is believed to have strict regulations which would prevent the mistreatment of animals, only 5 percent of animals in our nation are protected by it. This means the other 95 percent, including birds, rats, and mice bred for research, can be irrationally tortured.

One example of the exploitation of animals in 2010 is the 97,123 animals who had to withstand pain while being tested without anesthesia. Animals have no Bill of Rights to protect themselves, so it is not a crime to inflict pain on them if they are unprotected by the government; this encourages scientists to continue their experiments.

Animal testing has risen up to 73 percent in the past 15 years, according to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which means more animals are suffering.

For instance, many mice have been killed right after birth if they had undesirable features that they inherited from their parents—who had those characteristics because they were

experimented on.

It has been proven that animals can experience emotions, and more importantly, pain. They are living with thoughts just like ours. Although they don’t share our way of living, we have no right to control their lifestyle. It is unjustifiable to perform a harmful exercise or experiment on humans— so why is the suffering of animals widely accepted?

Animals share oxygen with the human race, and were placed on this Earth for a reason. To drown them in such a hostile environment violates their living rights and destroys their healthy mentality. In addition, there are many unnecessary experiments conducted that do not benefit people medically, which wastes money that could be used for other research. It is expensive, and unreliable; only 6 percent of drugs that have passed on animals have been successful on humans.

If animal experimentation is inefficient and inhumane, why are we doing it? Are the lives of other species less important than ours? Our knowledge of medicine and the human anatomy has advanced progressively over the centuries, with just a little help from our lab creatures, but only a few serve to impact our lives now. Is animal experimentation really necessary for us to continue our civilization?

OPINIONS

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THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Presidential Candidates: The 2016 Elections Bernie Sanders: A Socialist Has My Vote (If Only I Were Eighteen)

By JAMES YOON “Feel the Bern” is not just a catchy slogan. It is the representation of millions of Americans’ burning desire to bring up the standards of the working middle class and to give more opportunities for everyone to grow and reach their full potential.

We’ve never had a candidate like Bernie. The senator from Vermont began his campaign as a democrat in May and has been gaining on Hillary Clinton, his biggest competitor, since then. What’s more interesting is that Bernie, a self-described democratic socialist, has been drawing crowds of thousands across the country, most notably in Portland, Oregon, where 28,000 gathered in support of his campaign.

A socialist? Although Americans may be trained to flinch at the word, Bernie has overtaken Clinton in New Hampshire and Iowa in the Democratic nomination. Stephen Colbert, the new host of the “Late Show,” was baffled. He asked, “You are a liberal and you are a socialist. Why will you not accept those two terms as the insults they’re meant to be?” Bernie, laughing, leaned towards Letterman’s refurbished desk and explained in his rough Brooklyn accent that as in Nordic countries such as Denmark— where everyone has health care, people can get a higher education for free, and wages are higher—the United States government should represent the working class rather than large campaign donors.

This seems to be a large part of what Bernie’s campaign is founded upon and what has gotten the democratic blood flowing and thousands of passionate, pumping fists in the air. Bernie knows that American politics shouldn’t be run by billionaires, but by the people. He is the only candidate without a Super PAC other than Donald Trump, who has a net worth over 1000 times that of the average presidential candidate. Bernie, as senator, voted for the Disclose Act in 2012 as a first step in ending

the outrageous amounts of money spent in our politics. Subsequently, his people-oriented campaign is largely funded by small individual donations and official merchandise sales. “If you’re not wearing a Bernie button, you’re out of uniform. We’re not gonna win this election by outspending the opponent. We’re gonna win this race by talking to people,” said Bennet Weiss, a proud supporter of Bernie. Bernie and his supporters want buttons, not billionaires, and to revive America’s democracy.

Bernie has a passion for issues that appeal most to the working people and the middle class. As a socialist, Bernie is part of the enlightened few who have realized that it is pointless to have a few individuals working hard and becoming extremely wealthy, when the community as a whole doesn’t work smoothly. He strongly believes in reducing income and wealth inequality by implementing his twelve-step economic agenda for America, which includes investing in rebuilding the United States’ infrastructure and creating 13 million decent paying jobs, raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour, demanding large corporations to pay their fair share in taxes, and providing free healthcare to everyone as a right. There is no other candidate who has a plan as practical yet ambitious, because Bernie knows that radical steps must be taken to make radical improvements.

A bulk of Bernie’s campaign addresses economic issues, but he cares no less about social issues such as racial justice. There was a period in Bernie’s campaign during which people doubted that he was qualified to advocate for criminal justice reform, as it pertained to the U.S. black and Hispanic communities.

In fact, protesters from Black Lives Matter shut down one of his events in Seattle, because they saw no clear sign in his campaign of a strong call to justice reform. Since then, Ber-

nie’s campaign addressed the issue by forcefully expressing his support for racial justice. Bernie has worked race issues into all of his speeches, added a “racial justice” section to his campaign website, and reached out to Black Lives Matter activists. Deray McKesson, an activist with a large social media presence, has tweeted that “the first draft of [Bernie’s] racial justice platform has promise.”

One of the things Bernie is known for is his endorsement of Jesse Jackson’s presidential campaign in 1984 and 1988. He was among the few white politicians who were brave enough to “cross the color line” to support Jackson. He has since then maintained a close relationship with Jackson.

Although Bernie may not have drawn the full attention of voters of color for a period of time, he has attracted many female voters. One reason for this is that his campaign has placed a huge emphasis on women's rights. Since the 90s, Bernie has either voted for or co-sponsored every major bill that advanced women’s rights, including the Equal Pay Bill of 2008 and the Protect Women’s Health From Corporate Interference Act of 2014. He also knows that the Equal Rights Amendment has been critically overdue and will fight to pass the bill.

Shockingly, many former Clinton supporters have turned to Bernie over the course of his campaign.

Clinton’s campaign, according to the Washington Post–ABC News poll, saw a drop in democratic-leaning female voters from 71 to 42 percent in 8 weeks. Clinton’s female supporters are now almost neck-on-neck with the male.

All of his campaign philosophy and policies aside, Bernie’s middle-class upbringing, dedication, and genuineness are parts of his ethos that appeal a great deal to people.

Unlike many of his counterparts, Bernie has been consistent in his beliefs.

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

OPINIONS

PAGE 9

IMAGE PROVIDED

Senator Bernie Sanders at work.

A distinguished example is showcased in footage of him in 1995 responding to Representative Duke Cunningham, who criticized the idea of what he called “homos in the military.” Bernie, infuriated, scolded Cunningham, saying, “You have insulted thousands of men and women who have put their lives on the line.” Not only did that remark show his bravery in speaking his mind about issues that might be contrary to popular belief, but also the fact that he has been consistently speaking up on issues that he truly believed in. From watching his speeches, it has never crossed my mind that he said things to try to be “politically correct” like many politicians. He has always been a progressive and he has been speaking from his heart all along.

Also, Bernie’s middle-class upbringing enables him to be a relatable candidate, more so thanmost of his opponents. He is the son of a New York–born mother and Polish-Jewish immigrant father who worked as a paint salesman for most of his life. Bernie claimed that his youth in Brooklyn taught him the meaning of economic insecurity. He is among the least wealthy of the current presidential candidates. Working people and the middle class tend to have a more positive emotional response to politicians they know will understand the harsh financial situations of citizens. Bernie is a candidate the middle-class people and students can trust.

Bernie may be old, but he’s not obsolete. He has gained the support of many young people largely due to his views on higher education. Bernie is a strong advocate of free public tertiary education. He believes that students’ financial conditions should not be a bridge that they must cross to get a higher education. Also, Bernie has

had a much more active social media presence than most other candidates. In virtually all of today’s most popular social media platforms, Bernie has shown his rigor, his energy, his progressive mindset, and his dedication that has sparked an inspiration to many young people that there is still hope for America.

The United States is in dire need of a political revolution. And there is no presidential candidate out there that can lead that revolution as well as Bernie can. It is his kind of rigor and enthusiasm that will bring jobs, fix the obscure wealth balance, and bring everyone together.

You don’t need to be a democrat or a socialist to Feel the Bern. You just need to believe in progression and advancement.

He may call himself a socialist and much of America may not yet be ready for his radical ways, but Bernie is more ready than ever to take on America.

“Presidential Candidates” is a recurring column that anybody can write.

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OPINIONS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

The BEST:

Farmer’s Market Stand

By CHLOE WRAY On any given weekend from early April to mid-December, the aisles of the Ithaca Farmer’s Market may be lined with upwards of 75 vendors. From veggies and flowers to clothing and cheese to apples and dumplings, it’s no wonder our farmer’s market has a reputation for excellence.

With the goods and treats luring in locals and tourists alike, many find it hard to pick a favorite booth. From all these choices, however, one in particular stands out.

Calling to customers with its mouth-watering smells, popularity, and appealing looks, Khmer Angkor Cambodian Food is the best booth at the Farmer’s Market.

Unique and with undeniably delicious cuisine, this booth stands out for those as well as for attracting attention for its outrageously long line. The line may seem never-ending, but as those who have tried anything this booth has to offer know, it is worth your while.

Khmer Angkor Cambodian Food brings to Ithaca what the Asian food scene had been lacking. Cambodian food is a rarity in comparison to the abundance of Japanese, Korean, Thai and Chinese cuisine that can be found throughout Ithaca and Collegetown, yet it is distinct in flavor and style from other Asian fare.

This family-run enterprise has stuck to a simple menu that

has seen little change since it started at the Farmer’s Market in 2001. The menu usually totals to about 12 items, the best of which is the Khmer Pancake.

This thin egg pancake is cooked to order, adding to the wait, but once your name is called you’re blessed with a delightful bundle of crispy joy. The pancake cracks open to reveal rice noodles drenched in a light sauce, along with your choice of meat and an assortment of other veggies.

While everything else on their menu is spectacular and sure to make you want more, the Khmer Pancake is set apart by its unique shell, sweet rather than spicy seasoning, and enticing presentation.

With the Farmer’s Market being a must-see for many out-of-town visitors, Cambodian food is always a number-one suggestion. Once you have tried it, you may end up thinking of ways to order in large enough quantities to take home and eat for the rest of the week or giving generous tips in hopes that your contributions will help the owners open a restaurant one day.

Either way, the food will draw you in and will soon have you coming back for more. If you have yet to try Khmer Angkor, you can do no wrong when ordering, making this Cambodian food stand the absolute best at the Farmer’s Market.

Earning Potential: A New Ranking System for College Entrance?

By ANNIKA PINCH Historically, attending college has been about a simple concept—the pursuit of knowledge. People studied systematic and rational information about the world in order to become better-informed citizens. Yet in our modern age, it is no longer just about becoming enlightened: some people plan their education based on earning potential.

Recently, a New York Times article entitled “Gaps in Earnings Stand Out in Release of College Data” showed the different earning potentials of students after graduating. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the average national salary is about $34,000.

On their site, College Scorecard, one can search for any school and find a predicted earning potential. For example, if one attends Cornell, the average graduate’s expected salary ten years down the line is $70,900, for Ithaca College students, it is $50,400, and at TC3—which is only a two-year college—$29,900.

But what do these statistics really tell us? Like all ranking systems, this one substitutes numbers for a complex social reality. For instance, this data doesn’t account for all

the different majors. Cornell has thousands of students in its well-known law and medical schools, both fields that produce highly-paid professionals. Surely this should be accounted for in the statistics, as there is generally a gap between the earning capacities of, for instance, an English student and a Law student.

How much you earn is very context-dependent; aspects such as living expenses, what you study in college, and gender all play a role. The data on College Scoreboard does include gender and confirms that no matter what school you go to, the earning potential is almost always higher for men than women.

It seems to me that one’s college choice shouldn’t be based on a bunch of numbers as they decontextualize the complexities of how much you earn. Yet for the people who have economic rationality as their prime motivation and are already being forced to take out loans upon entering college, it seems sensible that they can access these CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

OPINIONS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

PAGE 11

Opting Out of Standardized Testing: A Way to Put Off Learning What You Need to Learn

By STERLING WILLIAMS-CECI If you received your elementary and middle-school education in New York State, you will certainly remember the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics tests from elementary and middle schools.

The recollections that many of us have of taking these tests are not usually very fond: starting from the third grade, we were expected to sit for three straight days, two weeks in a row, examining passages that we may or may not have been interested in, and doing careful calculations—all culminating in two numbers, which would determine our “level” of performance. Well, as despicable as those tests may have been, my view is that opting out of taking them does you no favors.

The exams have stressed out families ever since statistics came out in August 2014 that, among the ICSD test takers in spring 2014, only 44 percent passed the ELA exam and 46 percent passed the mathematics exam.

In spring 2015, we saw an increase to 47 percent of students passing the ELA, and 54 percent of students passing the math exam. These pass rates are still scarily low and make the tests seem unreasonable. Thus it’s no wonder that many families in the district opted out of having their children take the tests.

But we need to be more forward-thinking, because the future only holds more tests. Think about all the tests that you are forced to take in your classes: not only do you have unit tests for core subjects, but your year would typically culminate in at least a Regents Exam, which is not optional if you want to graduate with just minimal requirements. And what comes after you move on from the Regents? More tests! All juniors are encouraged to take the PSAT and many college-bound juniors and seniors decide to take the SAT or ACT, as requested by some schools. And just when you thought you were done, students who are in both the Regents and Honors classes can choose to take Advanced Placement classes starting as early as Freshman Year. Like many of the courses offered at IHS, these classes usually expect the

participants to take the AP exams, which are offered to students all over the world.

Beyond the world of high school, those of us who decide to go to college will be required to take tests once more: the amount can vary, depending on what each individual specializes in (for instance, an Engineering student most likely takes more formal exams than a Creative Writing Major). But no matter what you go into for a living, you will generally be expected to take a test at least once. GREs are often recommended if you decide to pursue a field of study that requires graduate school.

And farther in the future loom many professions that require you to complete state-administered tests if you want to get licenses or degrees (such as the Bar Exam for lawyers). The bottom line is this: tests are a constant of education, whether or not we fully agree with this fact on personal levels.

When kids are opted out of the earliest tests available, they have nothing but more tests in their futures, and consequently will have to start learning how to take them later on. Basic rules of psychology show that behaviors taught earlier on in one’s life lead to better cementation of them. The tests given at the elementary and middle schools are good ways to prepare for what we encounter later down the path of education, and refusing to take part in the valuable, although somewhat vexing, process will only result in more stress for the more important tests down the road.

This isn’t to say that I endorse how we use tests to measure ability—I believe that people can have wide ranges of abilities, many of which are not always shown accurately by numerical values. Nonetheless, no matter how irritating the ELAs and math tests are, they provide kids with valuable practice for other exams. So next time that you think about whether or not your elementary/ middle school-aged relative should opt out of the ELA and mathematics exams, think twice about what that will mean for their preparedness later on.

EARNING POTENTIAL: A NEW RANKING SYSTEM FOR COLLEGE ENTRANCE? CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10.

statistics on their projected earning potential.

Perhaps my perspective is skewed; I am a middle-class IHS student who still, perhaps naively, thinks that one should choose a college based on a variety of factors. My definition of success is not to have a high income, but to feel fulfilled and satisfied with what I am doing.

Against my better judgment, however, it’s hard not to be influenced by the numbers. So maybe I’ll be applying to Cornell after all.

This is how the annual costs, graduation rates, and salary after attending compare for Ithaca-area colleges.

OPINIONS

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THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

America and the Migrant Crisis

By VAYNU KADIYALI In recent months, international news headlines have been dominated by images of desperate Middle-Eastern migrants seeking to enter the European Union illegally. Migrants, most commonly those who experienced revolutions and power shifts in the 2011– 2013 Arab Spring uprisings, have been seeking sanctuary from war, starvation, and turmoil in their respective nations.

Inequalities and old ethnic animosities were suddenly exposed and the inexperienced new democratic politicians were no match for the violence that ensued in Libya, Yemen and Egypt.

Instead of transitioning easily to democracy, the nations of Syria, Egypt, Libya and Yemen all became hotbeds for insurgency as the various minorities who had been persecuted under former military dictators all fought for absolute power in their respective nations.

Instead of pushing for states that represent equality and democracy, these new regimes have persecuted minorities and women to an even greater extent than the dictatorial regimes that predated them.

This has resulted in a massive migration of minorities and citizens fleeing the wars in their home nations.

Currently, 4 million refugees, or about one-sixth of the total Syrian population, have fled from Syria alone to the neighboring nations of Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt.

WIth these neighbors unable to provide sustainable funds and resources for the refugees, many have attempted to take the risky journey to Europe. European nations are finding themselves unable to accommodate any more refugees, and now, the world looks increasingly to the United States to solve the refugee crisis.

America has a long history of being a welcoming nation, and as the result of its refugee-friendly policies, the American culture and economy benefited greatly. Migration during the early 1900s brought hardworking migrants who provided the necessary labor to power the booming economy of industrial-revolution era America; migration during World War II brought some of America’s finest intellectuals, including many rocket scientists, physicists and engineers. The steady stream of

Asian immigrants following the loosening regulations of the 1970s has powered America’s engineering sector as well as intellectual institutions. Essentially, every large migration to our nation has been a net benefit, whether or not we realized it at the time.

Similarly, I believe that if we allow a large number of migrants to resettle in America until conflicts in their home nations cease, then our economy and humanitarian standings in the world will increase drastically.

However, a large percentage of the American public is opposed to a mass migration of foreigners to the US. With anti-immigrant sentiment quite high, frequent terrorism scares, and millions of illegal immigrants residing in the USA, the government would have to make a more elaborate plan to support refugees. Firstly, supplying monetary aid to the governments of nations experiencing the full brunt of the migrations is an ideal way to gain significant humanitarian standing in the international community and fulfill our commitment to support the rights of those who had been denied, all without having to deal with the legal and social implications of actually accommodating refugees at home.

The second part of the solution would be to force the Arab states—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman—to accommodate at least some refugees.

These nations are all currently refusing to allow any refugees within their borders. However, these nations all suffer acute labor shortages, and rely on migrants from South and Southeast Asia to fill agricultural and construction jobs. In addition, nations such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, and Brazil are slated to face increasing labor shortages, and allowing refugees to resettle could be an easy fix for this problem. To conclude this point, the U.S. must use its influence to convince our allies with labor shortages to accept migrants, and we must also prove to them the benefits of accepting refugee populations.

The last stage of a good plan to end the refugee crisis would be to accept a larger number of refugees. A large portion of the Islamic State’s power comes from a major flaw in the American inva-

sion of Iraq: American leaders decided to completely remove the power of the nation’s former Baathist Armed Forces, resulting in large scale unemployment, discontent amongst those disbanded, and a lack of proper law enforcement in Iraq.

All of these factors play hugely into the recent insurgence of warring militias in Iraq, Syria, Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and Libya. The American public must acknowledge its folly in a similar manner to how it did in the Vietnam War, where more than a million Indochinese were resettled in America as an acknowledgement of poor military decisions during the war.

If America takes similar precautions as they did in resettling Vietnamese, a migration of refugees to America could be safe and beneficial. Firstly, allowing only families to relocate to America would drastically increase the feeling of security amongst sceptical American citizens and would also double to ensure that we help the most needy.

Secondly, we must try to educate the migrants with useful vocational skills.

Educating migrants in agricultural practices and other skills required in understaffed sectors of our economy could prove to balance the costs of helping migrants relocate here. Lastly, in sponsoring migrants to relocate to America, accepting the arguably most needy orphan populations in this crisis would be hugely beneficial in creating capable, forward-thinking minds to power the future equivalents of the nations and communities they left behind.

It must be recognized that it is not necessary for us to accept the same numbers as in the Vietnam refugee crisis, as many more nations are inclined to assist refugees in this migration.

America must realize that in being the world’s superpower, many responsibilities exist, including helping the poor, starving and deprived migrants emerging from this crisis.

As CNN’s Kathleen Newland put it, “We would be a poorer country—in pocket and in spirit—if we had not taken [refugee populations of the past] in.” This should be the mindset of our nation as we face this major upcoming moral debate.

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

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PAGE 13

Why You Hate Chromebooks

By JONATHON HAWTHORNE You come into school on the first day with two parallel expectations. Either you’re optimistic about new experiences, or you’re part of the majority: the cynics.

Needless to say, it’s hard to be in the former of the two groups with what public schools have thrown at you, but maybe this time it will be different.

Maybe this time the barrier will be broken. You won’t slump out of bed every morning, aimlessly groping around your kitchen to put together four cups of coffee for the day. When you go outside, you’ll embrace the frigid Ithacan air. Whichever way you get to school, you’ll have one thing on your mind: “I will defeat this difficult day in my difficult life.”

The day rolls on quite smoothly. It’s eighth period now, meaning PE is your final task for the day. You didn’t have to change this time because you’ve been cooped up with your fellow students to go over all of the technicalities and clear all the boring stuff. You’ll get over it, though. You can push through! Remember your mantra.

Whatever high school throws at you will be caught and thrown right back at it. You’ll be on your A-game this year. Appreciation is the origin of positivity, meaning you won’t take what you’re given for granted. You’ll ace your APs and your BCs. Then, the Chromebook is in your hands. Now you remember. Last year you were told about these stupid things. Teachers talking about how annoying conversion would be and fellow students talking about how “the money shoulda’ been spent on the bathrooms, am I right dude?” It’s going to be a daunting experience. Something you’ll hate for the entirety of your school career. Reluctantly, you plug the charging cord into an outlet. For a brief moment you hope that there’s some sort of error with your computer—anything to get you away from this awful Chromebook.

There are many reasons to hate these Devil-devices: perhaps the fact that they reduce overall paper usage

in the school (ball is life, and you hate the fact there’s a less competitive paper-tossing environment). Maybe the fact that they give an equal playing ground to the many underprivileged students in the school (this particularly angers you as you have enjoyed your time above others).

The lack of Netflix usage is definitely up there as well.

It only gets worse from here. You notice that websites such as Facebook are taken down. How are you supposed to message your friends in school now? You wanted to throw them a funny message about how you’re “sending this from the Chromebook!” It’s blatantly unfair that you are unable to do that. You deserve much more than a device to aid you in your time at school: you deserve something great!

The worst is yet to come. One September night, you turn on your Chromebook. You go to check your homework (at around 10 pm, as you were too busy doing other things to care about school), but something’s not working. Scratch that, everything’s not working. Google Classroom won’t even load! You feel offended deep down. A few of your precious hours have been wasted by this awful device. Technical difficulties should not be allowed.

And so you begin to piece together the reasons as to why Chromebooks are the worst thing that could ever happen to IHS. You question the integrity of the school district. The futility of the situation only worsens that awful feeling in your stomach. However, not all hope is lost. There are still things you can do.

First off, tell everyone how awful Chromebooks are.

It’s important that half of the discussions in your friend group focus on this pressing issue. Bring it outside of your friend group as well, though. As a matter of fact, reader, I urge you, please further advance the cause by telling the student with the reduced lunch fee how awful Chromebooks are every day. Come on, why can’t people just get their own computers?

ILLUSTRATION BY JENNY YOON

Tell everyone how awful Chromebooks are and how long it’s been since you turned yours in for repair.

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FEATURES

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Teacher Feature:

Nicki Zawel

By VEDA CHICKERMANE

Veda Chickermane ’19 sat down with IHS band director Nicki Zawel to chat about her experiences as both a musician and a teacher.

Ms. Zawel has been a music teacher and band director at IHS for over five years and directs the concert band, pep band, pit orchestra, and various chamber ensembles. She earned a Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University and a Master of Music in Music Education from Ithaca College. Before coming to IHS, she was also band director at other high schools in New York and New Jersey.

Ms. Zawel is very active in organizing events for the New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) and her students frequently perform well at regional, state, and national level band events. In addition, her students get an opportunity to work with nationally and internationally recognized musicians such as Joseph Alessi, Emanuel Ax, Richard Stoltzman, and Frank Battisti (a former IHS band director).

When asked about childhood experiences that inspired her to become a musician, Ms. Zawel said that she had great teachers.

“From elementary school through college, I had teachers who inspired and challenged me and exposed me to world-class musical and learning opportunities,” she said. “They were masterful players and engaging teachers, and they believed in me.”

Now, she is an inspiring teacher for all of the band students here at IHS—especially the incoming freshmen.

Her favorite memory from her teaching career happened just last spring and she fondly recalled this very touching and uplifting incident.

“On the second to last day of school, my seniors told me that they would not be in class for the first 20 minutes and that halfway through the period I should bring the entire class into Kulp.

I was wary, but I trusted them so I went with it. I escorted the class into Kulp and found all the seniors sitting on stage with their instruments, looking as though they were about to give a concert.

“The stage lights were on, the sound shells were in place, and

there were four students equipped with video cameras. We all took our seats and the seniors performed a piece by Aaron Copland entitled ‘The Promise of Living,’ complete with student conductor. They had secretly rehearsed over several weeks and prepared this exquisitely beautiful and complicated piece as a gift to me. Most students in band take the class for all four years, so I had known these beautiful people since they were 13 or 14 years old. My heart was full on that day! What made it even better was when they presented me with the compiled video footage along with a personal message from each of them.”

Ms. Zawel said that all teachers hope that they can make a lasting and meaningful difference in the lives of their students, but the difference students can make in their teachers’ lives is just as significant.

On the downside, teaching in a publicly-funded high school comes with a fair number of challenges. In Ms. Zawel’s opinion, the top three are budget constraints, scheduling, and apathy.

None of these is insurmountable, but together they can pull a committed teacher’s focus away from actually teaching.

Outside of school her main interests are centered around her family. She has three children, and in her words, “Whatever they are into, I am into! Right now it's soccer, piano, trombone, baseball, crosswords, Napoleon, and basketball. When I have time, I really enjoy cooking and have even thought of pursuing it beyond the hobby level,” she said.

On the topic of how to inspire students to stay on top of their work and practice hard, especially when they have so many conflicting priorities at school, Ms. Zawel offers advice useful even outside of music.

“I try to choose quality repertoire that engages and inspires students to practice,” she said. “The community that we have in band hopefully inspires each student to trust and be trusted and requires thoughtful and consistent preparation on everyone's part.”

Her parting words of wisdom for the readers: “On all days, in all ways, be excellent to each other.”

Write for the Tattler!

Send submissions to editor@ihstattler.com

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

FEATURES

PAGE 15

First Impressions of an Intrepid Freshman

By FELIX SHI I’m not entirely sure how anyone can get past the crowd of students at the bottom of the G-building staircase.

The minutes between periods helps keep the panicky sense that I am going to be late to class in check, but the claustrophobia induced by 100 people thinking the same way is almost unbearable. Multiple lanes of busy traffic weave unevenly through the hallway. On occasion, I see my friends flash me a quick smile before disappearing behind the backpack of someone in the fast lane.

It comes with the territory: IHS is large and sophisticated.

Classes are scattered across the California-style campus, necessitating the full use of those precious 5 minutes. During our first few days, we used either our maps or our knowledgeable friends until they were tired of being the locomotive of a 10-person train.

Getting lost seemed too easy. A group of friends and I would find ourselves near the library during the short walk from K to first-floor G, feeling a wave of relief when we finally panted into the classroom.

It is also not uncommon to feel lost in class. The teachers here have no problem with casually saying, “My assessments are difficult. If you get a 75, that will probably be curved up to an A.” Trying to absorb all of the material in all of your classes can feel like drinking from a fire hose. The periods are longer, but the teachers will still try to use as much of those 45 minutes as possible. Homework accumulates quickly, which means that procrastination is not an option.

In middle school, we could typically get away with holding off that essay until the night before it was due.

This is not the case in high school.

Students walk through a crowded hallway in G Building.

One of my friends, a noted procrastinator in middle school, could only manage 2 hours of sleep one night during the first week of school as a consequence of his bad habits.

On a more positive note, IHS exercises a level of school spirit unheard of in middle school. Students are proud to call themselves Lil’ Red, and school spirit events are well-supported and heavily advertised. It’s nice to see an assembly-bell schedule, which indicates an ample amount of schoolwide events.

However, differences are not limited to in-school affairs. There is a much larger variety of clubs and activities offered at IHS. From Code Red to Model United Nations, there is a place for everyone. You can even form your own club, spending some time after school to have fun with your friends; all you really need is an idea and a teacher who is willing to advise for you. A kind of freedom that never existed in middle school exists here.

A blend of these great and notso-great features makes for a busy school day. Even with a zero period, I quickly find myself at the end of the day in sweltering upstairs G, where Mr. Benjamin pelts us with course material. The time between the end of school and the morning bell almost seems to be nonexistent.

This cycle continues day after day, but manages to be different every time. In high school, every day brings something different. Whether it’s a new project in your tech class or four quizzes in a row, these moments gradually add up and define our educational career.

High school is not something that will be forgotten easily, as our experiences will shape our future selves.

I may have just started, but I am excited to see what the next four years will hold.

Alyse Kinsinger, Social Studies

I hope to learn more about this area.

I’m from Utica originally and I want to get more immersed into the community and the culture here.

Rachelle Walsh, Psychologist

I hope my students feel engaged and challenged in my classroom, and come out more prepared for next year.

I hope to become more connected to the IHS community by working with the Response to Intervention (RtI) team in order to help all students succeed. I would like to familiarize myself with community resources in Ithaca in order to best facilitate the home school community connection for all students.

Jeff Manwaring, Director of Athletics

Being an interim athletics director, I hope to make sure that we follow all of the guidelines and regulations that we’re supposed to for athletics and give as many kids an opportunity as we can to participate in athletics.

Benjamin Eckley, librarian

I’d like to learn as many names as I can. I worked at Northeast where I’d have to remember about 400 kids’ names per year. What’s another 1000, right? I also want to help make the library a chill and welcoming place for students.

Jonathan Gordon, English To survive.

Jonathan Shyne, technology

I want to do a good job for my students. As a new teacher taking over a huge program, I need to be on the top of my game and working hard every day for my kids and coworkers. One of my old principals once said to me, “Anyone who thinks that teaching is like a 9-5 job is dumb.” What he means by this is that there is always something outside of the regular school hours that you will need or want to be doing to improve your teaching.

You cannot become a good teacher if you only work during school hours. So I am going to use those hours to be better for the students.

Kari Krakow, ENL

I would like to get to know my students and help them learn English.

Becky Charsky, counselor Cindy French, custodial Nittaya LoPinto, cafeteria Alex Rojas, Special Education Kem Tabone, custodial

I hope to connect with my students and instill the love for mathematics. I also hope to create a connection with the school in a different way since this is where I graduated.

Jill Kautz, Social Studies

Unpictured

Emily Grippin, Math

Center Spread

New Staff of IHS

What are your hopes and goals for this year?

INTERVIEWS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY BRIDGET FETSKO, MAGDA KOSSOWSKA, DAVID SHENG, LUCY WANG, CHLOE WRAY, AND JAMES YOON

Stephen Beamish, Director of Fine & Performing Arts

My goal for the year is to identify the Fine and Performing Arts program needs and wants of the students and through the instructional staff, provide the resources and opportunities to facilitate the implementation of these needs.

Debbie Reynolds, Acct Clerk Typist

I’ve been here 26 years and never worked in a building with students. So my goal is to get better acquainted and involved with students.

Katina Scavuzzo, Social Worker I live in Newfield, but I haven’t had the opportunity to work in Tompkins County. So my goal for this year is to connect with staff members here and students and just make those face-toface connections, to start.

Keith Harrington, Ninth Grade Dean of Students

I would be happy if I felt like I was part of a process that made the transition from middle schools to the high school an easier and enjoyable process. I saw what Link Crew did on Freshman orientation day. And I thought, “That’s It.” Now, how do we keep that momentum going for the rest of their high school career?

Raissa Farmer, Science

This year, my goal is to become more of a part of the IHS community. I hope to meet more people, staff and students, and find my place here.

Matthew Fellman, Science

I’m excited about making the science class that the most students want to take: conceptual physics.

Patrick Hovey, Math

I’m hoping for the Bills to make the playoffs and for all my students to pass the regents.

Matthew Prokossh, Social Studies

Kyle Erickson, Social Studies

Some of my hopes are to get to know the student body and my coworkers better to figure out what I can contribute.

I place a lot of emphasis on creating a really strong rapport with my students and I really want to get them comfortable with talking about the more difficult aspects of history, that are often shunned away from. I want to create an open classroom environment, where kids are not afraid to speak their mind, and others won’t judge them for it, and quite frankly, have a little bit of fun with it too.

FEATURES

PAGE 18

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Hall Monitor

Interviews conducted by DAVID SHENG

What are you looking forward to the most this year?

Leeann Graw ’18​: “Meeting new people and making good memories with friends.”

Tommy Jordan ’18​: “Christmas vacation.”

Minnie Jung ’16​: “Getting into college.”

Sherrie Qian ’19​: “The sleepless nights...!”

Justin Tan ’19: “Extracurricular activities.”

Gabe Owh ’17: “Gee, that’s a tough one… seeing how great the Chromebooks are?”

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

FEATURES

PAGE 19

10 Jobs for Inspiration

By CLAIRE SALOFF-COSTE As college applications are kicking off for seniors, it’s impossible not to think of what comes next. Here’s some inspiration.

Good luck!

Underwater archaeologist: It is what it sounds like: your job is to explore shipwrecks and drowned cities for research, museums, and the advancement of science.

JENNY YOON

Food truck owner: Apparently, Rupert Grint got an ice cream truck with his money from the Harry Potter films. It gives you the chance to be completely individual with your cooking style. Plus, if Ron does it, it must be a good idea.

English teacher in another country: If you’ve dreamed of living in another country, but you’re not sure how to do it, consider being an English teacher. You’re immersed in the culture and the learning is a two way street.

Computer animator for films: It’ll be your job to make sure the animation runs smoothly. It requires a lot of math, but there is certainly gratification from knowing it’s your work. Elsa’s snowflakes will have nothing on you!

ILLUSTRATION BYJENNY YOON

Video game voice actor: It’s up to you to make sure the gamer is completely involved with the story and characters of the game. In some cases, you could even do motion capture, like Ellen Page in Beyond: Two Souls. You could literally play as yourself.

Crossword Puzzle Writer: Hide whatever secrets you want in there, it’s entirely up to you!

Window designer: Use a mixture of advertising skills with interior design to create a perfect shop window. Create a composition that shows off what the shop is selling while adding your own artistic flare. You could work with anything from designer brands to biking gear or china plates.

Furniture designer: Use architecture and physics to form the ultimate functional craft: furniture. This ties closely in with interior design, but in this case, each small detail, chair, and rug would be personal to you.

Paleopathologist: You would be studying ancient diseases. Use its previous path to predict its future. This mixes science, history and archaeology in a very unique way. It’s a way to get closer to the past,while also helping to make a safer future.

ILLUSTRATION BY JENNY YOON

Props Master: You have to acquire, buy, or somehow manufacture all the props needed for whatever film, TV show, or stage production you are working for. You would have brought the chocolates to Forrest Gump, Sting to Bilbo, and every wand in the Harry Potter movies to their owners.

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THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Go Set a Watchman Review

By DANIEL XU the novel begins by describing her return to her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama. Upon her return, she walks around, talks to some people, walks around some more, and talks to some more people, all the while with embarrassingly unrealistic dialogue. Uh, ok.

The book also has a habit of ran-

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First off, I want to make two points clear. One is perhaps fairly obvious: don’t read Go Set a Watchman if you haven’t already read To Kill a Mockingbird; you will be bored out of your mind. The second is that I do not recommend this book to anyone who treasures their images and memories of the characters in Mockingbird.

If you do wish to read Watchman, it’s best to proceed with patience and an open mind.

Go Set a Watchman is not actually a belated sequel to Mockingbird—it is the manuscript for Mockingbird’s first draft. Harper Lee, now 89 years old, nearly blind and deaf, and confined to assisted living, had apparently consented to publish this manuscript (having previously stated that she would never publish another book) after her longtime guardian, Alice Lee, died.

If the situation is scrutinized, it looks rather like a case of exploitation and elder abuse on the part of HarperCollins: several investigations were launched in April 2015, but Lee was found “capable of giving consent.” The company denied all accusations.

Still, there were numerous boycotts and petitions against the publishing of Go Set a Watchman, and one bookstore in Michigan—Brilliant Books— began offering full refunds for it after receiving a complaint from a long-time customer that the novel was not as advertised. The controversy surrounding Watchman may compel some to avoid reading it purely on an ethical standpoint, and I can’t blame those who do so.

The book itself is not poorly written per se, but definitely reads like an unpolished and unedited work. It is best divided into two halves, both of which have a fatal flaw—the first half, constituting about 140 pages, has literally no plot whatsoever.

The grown-up heroine, Jean Louise Finch (formerly known as Scout), had been living in New York City, and

Cover of the recently published novel by Harper Lee.

domly time-skipping back to when Jean Louise was still Scout, the kid we all knew; those scenes actually have some of the best writing in the novel and make me wonder why the whole book wasn’t written from that perspective (oh wait).

Once the reader plows through the somewhat pointless exposition, though, the second half of the novel kicks in, and this part just hurts. All the beloved characters of Mockingbird

are revealed to have changed drastically in the twenty years since we first met them—Atticus and his sister Alexandra are both revealed to be racists, Calpurnia is disillusioned and isolated, even Jean Louise’s boyfriend Henry (who was not, incidentally, in Mockingbird) is a white supremacist.

Even having been informed beforehand that this was the case, I was still shocked.

“Do you want Negroes by the carload in our schools and churches and theaters? Do you want them in our world?”

Atticus asks Jean Louise. This is the same man who staunchly defends the black man for justice in Mockingbird, who is sneered at by vituperative whites as a Negro sympathizer but idolized by his family and peers.

What’s even worse is that this shock value is the only memorable part of Watchman. The flashback scenes are well-written, sure, but those belong more in Mockingbird and make the pacing of this novel awkward. Atticus is so difficult to sympathize with after reading the things he says that it makes one wonder how exactly Lee expected first-time readers to do so, like Jean Louise does in the end, while writing her manuscript; only after reading Mockingbird does one feel any such inclination despite the fact that the Atticus there is essentially a different person altogether from the Atticus in Watchman.

And yet, Watchman is hardly even a finished novel without the companionship of Mockingbird.

I have to admit I did enjoy the second half of the novel by itself, connecting the characters to Mockingbird while simultaneously treating Watchman as a separate entity. But it’s not worth the moral and spiritual cost. If you must read the novel, keep your expectations low and an objective viewpoint, and you may not end up too disappointed.

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

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Duffet’s Buffets: Atlas Bowl

By GABRIELLE DUFFETT

Sixteen years ago, the first installation in the Duffett legacy of restaurant reviews was published in the Tattler under the name Duffett’s Buffets, written by my one and only brother Christian. I have decided to continue this legacy with one slight change: I don’t plan on ever reviewing or attending any buffets, as unlike him, I am not a high-school football player and such establishments, in my mind, are revolting.

For my first installment, I decided to make the lengthy drive up to Trumansburg with a couple of buddies to check out the Atlas Bowl Restaurant.

I had already been to the restaurant twice before to bowl, though this was the first time I had actually eaten a full meal. When you first enter the door, you are offered the choice between just dining and bowling. We chose the latter as it allows you to order food while you bowl. Tots and throwing a couple of strikes; I mean, who could say no?

What surprised me the most about the place is the fact that it provides an excellent bowling environment with a sort-of-totally rad 70s discoesque decor, though it also has quite the extensive dining selection. The menu ranges from Totchos (tater tot nachos) and deviled eggs to pan-roasted salmon, all of which are prepared with wonderfully fresh ingredients. There are not many places in Ithaca that can combine entertainment and dining as seamlessly as Atlas does.

I decided to stick with the basics and ordered a cheeseburger topped with the usual lettuce, tomato, and onion, though I also went a little wild and added some crispy onions and avocado. They did not ask me how I wanted the burger prepared, but that didn’t end up being an is-

sue, as when it arrived it was done medium rare: the way I like them. They forgot to add my avocado, though, which I also decided not to complain about, as I was able to fill in its absence with the Earth’s one and only blessing: Sriracha.

The meat itself was pretty average: a simple thin patty that I would have preferred to have been on the thicker side. However, what made the burger stand out was the bun, which had been perfectly toasted on the grill to give it a nice crunch, as well as some tasty kale and spinach.

Although my burger wasn’t completely amazing, the tater tots were really what hit the spot. If you are a fan of tater tots who even jumps for joy when the cafeteria serves them (like me), then you will absolutely fall in love with the tots from Atlas. They were crunchy and crispy with the correct amount of seasoning, leaving your stomach completely satisfied. My friends ordered the Totchos and Chicken Fajita Tacos, both of which seemed to be very well put together.

Overall, the food was rather tasty, though what really inclines me to recommend it is the fact that you can bowl at a place that has both a decent setting and pretty solid food, something I can’t say about the other bowling places in town—which either smell like pool or are highly in need of a renovation. The groovy tunes of the Arctic Monkeys and Passion Pit only added to the ambient atmosphere. So the next time you find yourself on the couch on a rainy day, call some friends and head over to the Atlas Bowl Restaurant; you’ll find yourself pleasantly surprised.

Rating: 4.5 Duff Buffs.

Visit our website. www.ihstattler.com

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FEATURES

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Not Your Grandma’s Halloween

By BENJAMIN SALOMON

The weather is getting colder, football has started, and the holiday season has begun.

Some holidays are anticipated more than others, yet I am almost constantly excited for Halloween. But almost everyone has that moment when their parents mention that they’re too old to dress up.

Well, this top ten “Where did you come up with that one?” list of costumes should give your parents more than one reason to reconsider asking that question.

ILLUSTRATION BY JENNY YOON

ILLUSTRATION BYJENNY YOON

10.Cereal Killer : A very simple idea, all you need is a cereal box and a spoon. Carve out a hole in the box and pretend to eat some “guts,” or frosted flakes if that’s more appetizing.

Cost: It depends on what kind of cereal you get. $2–$5.

8. Steve Weissburg : Most people have had him, or at least heard of him. Wear a plaid flannel shirt with chalk dust–covered jeans and converse sneakers. This could even become a tradition: last year, IHS alumni Olivia Salomon ’15 and Jessie Liu ’15 chose to dress like him. The one question is, who is more Steve then Steve?

Cost: Depends on how many of the listed items you have. If you have a flannel shirt or converse the work is all done for you, but if you don’t it could get a bit pricey. $0–$100.

7. Chick Magnet: Some might say it is the classic.

Staple, glue, or tape a bunch of stuffed baby chicks or paper cutouts of baby chicks to your pants, shirt, and shoes. You can walk around school getting sarcastic or sympathetic laughs because “you’re just so gosh darn funny.”

Cost: Cheap—just paper and ink, a few stuffed animals, and assembly materials. $2–$20.

9. Quote : Get a few of your friends and write a quote.

Each person takes one word from a famous quote and writes it on a black shirt. A good example might be “Wherefore art thou Romeo?”. Unfortunately, if one member of the group decides to not do the costume, it ruins the whole idea, so choose your group members wisely.

Cost: You just need good shirts and some paint. About $10.

6. Stuffed Grape Leaf: Don’t shower for three to four weeks before Halloween so you can get all slimy and oily.

Then take a green blanket, preferably a thin one, and wrap yourself in it. No need to worry about duplicates, I’m sure not many others will be using this one.

Cost: It costs merely your pride. Not showering can cause you to be a bit foul and unenjoyable to be around. On the bright side, you find who your friends really are.

5. Captain Obvious : Wear a sailor’s hat and walk

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

FEATURES

around school pointing random, obvious things out to strangers. When you walk into a room, yell “CAPTAIN ON DECK”. Name tags can help with your identity, seeing as it might not be obvious who you are.

Cost: The sailor’s hat can be bought for maybe one dollar at the Salvation Army, or it could be bought at one of the numerous Halloween costume stores that emerge every year at the Triphammer Mall. $1–$10.

4. Pikachu : The beloved animated character is a worldwide phenom, so why can’t you be one too? Just dress up like Pikachu and it’s pretty much the same thing. Onesie recommended.

Cost: Depends on your choice of design. The onesie can be expensive, but if you choose to paint your face and wear just yellow, it could be slightly cheaper. $10– $30.

ILLUSTRATION BY JENNY YOON

3. Smeagol : First, get a bald cap and shine that sucker until it is brighter than the future of an APUSH student who actually did the homework. Then find a ring—it can

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be a ring pop, you can go to Jared, anything works. Treat it as if it were your life: pray to it, clean it, and sleep with it. The suggested way to do this is to go to a local cave (deeper is always better) and live there for five days and five nights. This is one of the more demanding pieces seeing as you need to pay for not only the bald cap, but for counseling sessions post-Halloween to fix you and adjust you back to normal society. Not for the faint of heart.

Cost: To be honest, it’s a toss-up depending on how strong one’s mental state is: the therapist could be pricey and the bald cap could be hard to find. $5–$5000 2. Walter White : Anyone who has seen Breaking Bad remembers that iconic image of Bryan Cranston standing outside of his van in just a solid green button-down shirt and his tighty whities. To pull this one off you’re going to need a pair of leather boat shoes, a pair of brown-patterned socks, a long-sleeved solid green button-down shirt (don’t forget to tuck the shirt in in the back), and a pair of tighty whities and glasses. If you really want to make it obvious who you are, get yourself a black Porkpie Hat. Cost: The socks, shoes, and shirt can be borrowed from a parent or bought at a store, ranging in price. $0–$100 1. Stormtrooper: Find one online and order it as soon as possible. Even if you miss the deadline for Halloween, you can use the costume on the opening night of Star Wars Episode VII, because, I mean, who isn’t excited for that? However, this costume is either a hit or miss, and as most of the troopers in the movies do, most people don’t quite hit the mark on this one. You can’t make your own out of cardboard because it will look cheap and rushed. The only way to go is buy it all online, forcing you to pay sometimes quite a bit of money.

Cost: The online price may vary depending on what website you buy the costume from, but if you feel the need, go all out. $50–$800.

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ARTS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Met with Success So Far, Netflix Experiments Further

By LIZ ROSEN On September 20, Andy Samberg hosted the Primetime Emmys in Los Angeles. The ceremony was exactly what you might expect from a self-congratulatory event, although there were a few surprising moments. For starters, Samberg gave out his HBO Now username and password to the millions of people watching.

This unexpected move—Samberg being of digital fame himself—only highlighted the renown and success of companies such as Netflix and Amazon in the glamorous world of award-winning television.

The theme of the night was “change,” in both diversity and video distribution.

Netflix’s Orange is the New Black, which won only one Emmy with Uzo Aduba as Best Supporting Actress, can be credited with advancing both causes. Although Netflix had few wins, it competed with

major cable networks like Fox in terms of nominations. In fact, Forbes is predicting that online platforms such as Netflix and Amazon are setting themselves to lead the pack of Emmy winners next year.

As Netflix shows achieve more and more critical acclaim, the company is getting more and more daring. On October 16, Netflix’s first feature film will premiere. The movie, titled Beasts of No Nation, stars Idris Elba of Luther and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and will be released simultaneously on the silver screen and the small screen. For the first time ever, viewers will be able to choose between forking over $11.00 for a movie and watching it at home on their Netflix account. Netflix is revolutionizing the entire movie experience.

Personally, I can imagine no reason

to see the movie in theaters rather than at home. If most of the movie’s viewers come from Netflix and if Netflix doesn’t make the movie restricted VIP content, it’s difficult to imagine how the company could make money off of this movie.

Arguably, the movie doesn’t have to make money for it to be a worthwhile endeavor—Elba is an amazing actor and this movie, though intense, promises to shine light on African conflicts through the lens of African protagonists—but if the movie fails to make back its budget, it may be a long time before Netflix chooses to go out on a limb again.

All that remains to be seen, but Netflix and similar companies are thriving, and hopefully their success at the Emmys will provide support for continued experimentation.

Why You Should Listen To Playlists (Complete With A Playlist)

By JASPER MINSON In its last issue, the Tattler reported the results of the survey it undertook to determine some information about its reader base.

One fact that I found extremely disheartening: 34 respondents said that they “strongly disagree” in response to an inquiry of whether they listened to Tattler playlists. A mere two respondents selected “strongly agree,” with the majority resting somewhere in the middle.

As Features Editor James Park ’17 pointed out in his summary, this isn’t entirely unexpected. It’s tough to take the time to really listen to a whole curated playlist—you already know what you like, and have Pandora Radio and other apps to provide you with new music.

But I would like to make a brief appeal to the benefit of peer-curated playlists before sharing what I have been calling my “Fall Feels” playlist with you lovely people. I know this little appeal will almost certainly fail to gain much more listenership, but why not give it a shot?

In short, a peer-made playlist provides you with music that is in its very nature more personal. While it may not fit your immediate tastes, it is compiled for the sole purpose of expanding your horizons in an enjoyable way.

Further still, it’s a product of your direct environment, thought out by someone who walks the same halls and attends the same classes as you, and who can understand the vast array of weird, uncomfortable, unique, and sometimes beautiful feel-

ings that IHS has to offer.

This music is community music, it’s music you’ve likely never heard of, it’s music that is often vastly diverse in its genres and styles and background, and it’s right here in a tidy organized list for your listening pleasure! (Also, I tried to include artists with really bizarre and interesting names to catch your attention!)

So please, find someplace cozy, locate your nearest glass of apple cider and drink it because apple cider is excellent, put on this playlist, and enjoy.

1. Ducktails: “Surreal Exposure” 2. The Zombies: “Time of the Season” 3. The Smashing Pumpkins: “Luna” 4. Broadcast: “Echo’s Answer” 5. Monster Movie: “Waiting” 6. Disco Inferno: “Can’t See Through It” 7. Helvetia: “Nothing in Rambling” 8. Four Tet: “My Angel Rocks Back and Forth” 9. The Books: “The Story of Hip Hop” 10. The Books: “Free Translator” 11. Deerhunter: “Breaker” 12. Helvetia: “Crumbs Like Saucers” 13. The Radio Dept.: “Peace of Mind” 14. Nick Drake: “Place to Be”

ARTS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

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Emmy’s Style

By CHLOE WRAY & AMALIA WALKER

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“Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?” Joanna Newsom said to the horrendous oval-shaped accoutrement adorning her chest. As if wearing grandma’s prized Easter platter wasn’t enough, Newsom decided that she might as well be the Ambrosia salad destined to be served upon the platter itself. Like the Pagans, from whom the Easter traditions originated, Newsom let her spirit flow below the knees. Overall, it’s safe to say that Newsom would probably be the first egg found on Easter Morning. Like the Last Supper, however, whether it be avant-garde or a page from the scrapbook your aunt made when you were born, this is art in its own pastel right.

Amy Landecker: an appropriate name for one who appears to have rolled around on the land beneath the deck, if not the forest floor. This dress has the potential to bring on a whole new era in the world of camouflage. Landecker’s shoes may be hidden, but chances are they’re bright orange. This appears to be the couture of the forest, an accomplishment in and of itself, but what’s more: it’s art in that it leaves nothing to be desired.

Heidi Klum, just as the flower blooms, you have hatched … into Big Bird. We all channeled Elmo once or twice, and with this outfit Klum gave the world a crossover of everyone's favorite avian and their favorite swine, Miss Piggy. The diva is shining through and although Heidi clearly has little to hide, there is no way she could evade the clear comparison to Big Bird. Elmo taught us how to finger paint, and Big Bird taught us how to be ourselves, so Klum is a true visionary.

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Jill Soloway, you may have gone solo(way), but you’re never truly alone with all those dots.

Nazanin Boniadi, we’ve got a bone to pick with you. Is this dress the bone out of your leftover prime rib from steak at Chili’s that you brought home to your rat terrier–jack russell terrier–yorkshire terrier–wheaten terrier “mix” last week? Or is it the fatty strip of bacon that no one takes from fear that it is too chewy and would forever ruin their view of a delicacy? Either way, like the split personalities this dress highlights, for all the wrong this dress does it’s almost good.

Maisie Williams: Is that a terrycloth robe missing sleeves, or is it the plastic coated, quilted insulative material from the inside of a second grader’s lunch box? She completes the game of dressup with a popular last touch— those pink plastic furry sandals that must look cute, otherwise how could one ever withstand the pain and the likelihood of a twisted ankle?

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ARTS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Wind-Up: Part 1

By JAMES PARK

Wind-Up is a fictional, 9-part series.

At the end of the dim corridor stood the door, bare except for two words engraved into its wooden paneling: Detective Winder. Lieutenant Nate, after a brief glance at me, turned the brass knob and entered without a word. With some hesitation, I followed him into the room.

It took me a second to adjust my eyes to the dark room, but from the light cast from the corridor I saw the outline of a man bent over a desk, dark hair spilling over his face. Winder, the man himself. Over 200 cases in the last seven years. He was a genius in his field, but not in geniality; I personally knew at least three other detectives who held a grudge against him, and no officer would ever dare to be caught with him. He was still, as if deep in thought, not even glancing towards the door as we entered. I felt a sudden urge not to disturb him, but Nate obviously had no such thoughts.

“Wake up, Detective,” the lieutenant growled at the unmoving figure. He wasn’t too fond of him either. “Thought you were lonely, so I brought a good officer of mine.”

The man started, a slight shiver going down his body, and angled his head just slightly upwards. As if suddenly forcing himself to move, he pushed off from his desk and rose to his feet, staring at us with evident annoyance. His face came into focus in the light, and I was surprised by what I saw: instead of a gritty, stubbled face like so many of my superiors, I saw a young, handsome countenance, two brown, serious eyes glancing first at the lieutenant, then at me.

“Didn’t expect you to be here so early, Nate.” The detective strode towards us and gave a small smile that the lieutenant did not return. “How’s your latest case going? Found the vandal yet?”

The lieutenant grunted. “You know damn well how it’s going. Found another lovely work of his this morning. Painted the Mayor’s statue bright pink.” He sighed and held out a document.

“Here’s your new kid, all her files and that crap. Listen, I need to go turn in a report, and I’m sure you two will get all nice and cozy by yourselves. Have fun planning the downfall of the entire force.” With that he was into the hallway, slamming the door behind him.

The detective stared after him for a few seconds, muttered “Asshole,” then switched his eyes back to me. Nervous but defiant, I returned the gaze, stretching out the silence. At last he blinked and turned, returning to his desk. He vaguely gestured to a chair opposite from him. “Come take a seat,” he said.

I sat and glanced around as Winder’s eyes flickered back and forth from me to the opened document, his fingers thumbing through its many pages. The room was spartan, with another desk in a corner, likely for me, and a coat stand near the door with an overcoat and the detective’s trademark hat, a grey fedora. The entire room seemed diluted; only the sunlight from the window provided a monochrome contrast.

“Are they all like that to you?”

Winder’s dry voice brought me back. He had set the folder down and was staring at me with crossed arms. “I asked you a question,” he said impatiently. “Are they?”

I found my voice. “Well, yes,” I admitted. “The lieutenant’s actually one of the better ones. He doesn’t get too worked up

about everything I do. But then the others, well. You probably know how bad they can be. And it’s all just because I’m—” “—a female, and so an obvious inferior in this society,” Winder cut in. “And, it gets even worse, you’re smart. Really smart. Solving the Tarot Scandal six months after you joined the force? No wonder they hate you. But you’re right, they aren’t fond of me either. Which is why instead of giving you a decent promotion, they had the wonderful idea of kicking you here.

Probably taking bets on how long we’ll last together. But don’t think that you’ll have an easy time just cause I feel a shade of empathy for you.” He rummaged under his desk and came up with an old cardboard box. “We’ll have to leave soon, so here’s your new equipment. Don’t use anything the force gives you; they even stick trackers in the hats.”

I opened the box and examined the items inside: a worn coat, a tarnished revolver, and a fedora just like Winder’s, along with some ammunition and other “new” paraphernalia. I lifted the weapon with interest. “I thought I wasn’t allowed to use lethal weapons until my second year.”

Winder was at the door, slipping into his own coat. He shrugged. “Did they make that rule? You’ve had arms training, right?”

I nodded. “Top of my class.”

“Of course,” he muttered. “Well, I can’t shoot to save my life, so if we get into any trouble you’re going to have to back me up with that thing. You all set?” I shoved the fedora over my head and followed him as he stepped into the corridor. As we walked to the stairs, I noticed a heavy metal rod hanging from his belt.

“Where are we going, anyway? Somewhere dangerous?”

Winder frowned. “Well, it shouldn’t be that bad. You ever seen a murder scene before?”

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

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“So it goes”: Kurt Vonnegut Art Exhibit

By JAMES PARK ings are done in felt- tip pen. Vonnegut himself stated that he found oils too much of a commitment and watercolors too bland.

Even with just colored pens, however, Vonnegut was able to add his own personality and style into his creations. His drawings frequently represent faces or still lifes, but are characterized by abstract representations.

Seemingly simplistic at a brief glance, closer inspection can reveal them to be startlingly intricate.

For instance, a combination of colored triangles and rounded polygons come together to resemble a bespectacled man in one picture, while in another a series of loose, wobbly scribbles form a flower in a vase next to a window.

Others are simply just shaded curves and lines on a blank canvas, marked by a simplicity akin perIMAGE PROVIDED

Well known for his novels like Slaughterhouse Five and Cat’s Cradle, most people only remember Kurt Vonnegut for his brilliant writing.

And yet, writing is not the only activity that Vonnegut took great passion in.

During the 1980s, Vonnegut produced a surprisingly large amount of drawings for his own satisfaction, though very few were released to the public.

This August, however, over 30 of Vonnegut’s drawings were provided by his daughter Nanette for the exhibition “So it goes” at the Johnson Museum of Art. (Vonnegut attended Cornell and was an editor for The Cornell Daily Sun.) These drawings, as the museum’s site states, offer “another way of getting to know this beloved, quixotic author.”

The entirety of Vonnegut’s draw-

haps to the works of Piet Mondrian.

Along with these drawings are additional pictures of Vonnegut and his family, letters written from and about him during his lifetime, and even an original script for his play Penelope.

A wooden bench sits in one of the rooms, a quote from Thoreau having been carved on its surface

by Vonnegut himself. Several quotes from the author/artist are displayed above the exhibition, each yet another indication of the man’s sardonic wit.

Though it spans only a few rooms, “So it goes” reveals much about the famous American author and is definitely worth a look for any Kurt Vonnegut fan or art aficionado. The exhibit will continue until December 20, so there’s plenty of time to stop by and take a look.

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Writer Kurt Vonnegut.

SPORTS SPORTS

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Tom Brady: A Controversial Star

By QUINN COX

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

2015–16 Sports Predictions

By MARLO ZORMAN

Wrestling Despite the loss of not one but two sectional champions, Ithaca Varsity Wrestling is approaching the season with hope. “We need to recruit people.

We’re missing a lot of weight classes,” Alex Rateb ’17 told me in the middle of trying to do exactly that. The team can only be expected to up its recruiting intensity as we draw closer to the start of the season, so it’s heavily recommended to avoid all wrestlers unless you want to learn about how “there is nothing better to do this winter than wrestle.”

Prediction: Richie Burke will come back as a super-senior and win another five sectional titles.

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Tom Brady is pissed off. He was suspended for the first four games of this year’s season without pay.

Tom Brady is renowned nationwide. He’s the quarterback for the New England Patriots and more recently has been involved in the “Deflategate” incident, wherein the team was exposed using slightly deflated footballs to increase their chances of getting into last year’s playoffs.

Brady was suspended for the first four games of the 2015–16 season without pay and the Patriots were fined $1 million. Although he may not have been the one physically deflating the footballs, it is highly likely that he was aware of this and did nothing to stop it.

Boston, and New England in general, was not happy about this at all.

Deflategate became a common topic amongst many people. But then something happened that caused New England great joy and angered every other football fan in the country: U.S. District Court Judge Richard Berman ruled to nullify Brady’s four-game suspension, meaning that on September 10, he could play.

The reasons for Judge Berman’s decision seem to follow the line of the NFL’s process in Brady’s case being flawed and the fact that the two sides wouldn’t reach a settlement. At this news, Boston cheered.

Brady fans plastered shirts with his face and phrases such as “‘Free!” in bold colors. They thought it was only right, only just. In Maine, Dunkin’ Donuts is offering Judge Berman free coffee for life because of the acquittal.

But is it really fair for Brady to get away with a mostly clean slate after this incident? From hearing talk around the halls in school, it’s clear that hardly anyone is pro-Brady. Walking out of class, I’ve heard kids talk about the “Deflatriots”, and even kids who couldn’t care less about football are arguing against him.

I personally am from New England and therefore should be all proBrady, but it feels wrong to let someone get away with cheating in something as big as the NFL. It seems that Brady should still have been suspended from the games, even though he was a big football star. If Brady stays “Free!”, as Boston puts it, and if the Patriots do well this season, only time will tell.

Boys’ Lacrosse Although Varsity Lacrosse did lose eight seniors, players are confident that the rising classes will be able to fill the empty spots. “We didn’t lose too many starters, so it’s not a big problem,” Matt “The Tank” Pagliaro ’17 said. A new senior class with a roster deeper than Kendrick Lamar’s new album will undoubtedly propel the team to the powerhouse status it once had. Expect to see every home game to be nothing less than a shutout.

Prediction: 2+ goals per game by up-and-comer Jack Cesari ’16.

Boys’ Basketball Boys’ Varsity Basketball may have lost seven seniors and almost every starter, but it is unlikely that they will lose a single game this year. Up-and-comer Jordany Marte ’18 is predicted to triple-double in at least four different games and will likely dunk at least twice in every home game. The real star of the team, however, is the crowd. With fans having nothing better to do when the weather is horrible, attendance will likely be at an all-time high.

Prediction: Halfway through the season, Turner Depalma ’17 will declare NCAA eligibility and leave Ithaca to play for Duke.

Track and Field After the loss of more than a dozen seniors on the boys’ side (four of which were Dan Dracup ’15), up-and-coming runners will need to fill in the gaps.

“The girls’ team will be just as strong, but the boys will have to step it up,” Ainslie Denman ’17 said. By far the most devastating losses, however are Matt CONTINUED ON PAGE 29

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

SPORTS

PAGE 29

Fantasy Football: Duds and Delights

By BENJAMIN SALOMON

Each year, the fall season brings back many American favorites: pumpkin spice lattes, Thanksgiving dinners, jumping in the leaves, and most importantly: Fantasy Football. To some people, it’s just a joke—those people are wrong.

Fantasy football is not just a game or a hobby, it is a way of life. Every Sunday people have their eyes glued to the TV, then the computer, then back to the TV, constantly checking the scores.

People are at their desks at work, looking around for their bosses as they try and watch the game. Leagues have started up, friendly rivalries have began, and Tom Brady isn’t suspended.

What else could you wish for?

The season has started and as such, people have already drafted their teams and eagerly await the weekly results. However, some draft picks are always less than ideal. Here’s a list of some of the top draft-day duds, and some of the top draft-day delights.

DUDS QB: Drew Brees Easy, Breesey, Beautiful. Right? Wrong. Brees was projected to be a top-five fantasy quarterback this season, even without his number-one receiver from last year, Jimmy Graham. It looks like those projections were wrong. Graham is missed in the Big Easy, with the Saints having a slow start to the season. Brees’s new number-one receiver, Brandin Cooks, is also hurt, and also not producing the numbers he was projected to get. Cooks managed to hurt himself losing to Tampa Bay, dampening his prospects of turning his year around.

RB: Demarco Murray Last year’s leading rusher, with 1,845 rushing yards on 392 carries is not having the same success this year. The new Chip Kelly offence, which many thought Murray would thrive in, has been less than optimal for him. With a very poor showing at the start of the season, Murray needs to step it up in order to increase his fantasy worth. The potential of Murray as a fantasy running back is unquestionable, but some people (including myself) drafted him very early on expecting to cash out only to be disappointed.

WR: Andre Johnson A veteran wide receiver who did well in Houston despite not having a good quarterback comes to Indianapolis to play with Andrew Luck—sooooooo much potential. Instead of having a Renaissance season, though, Johnson is virtually invisible in the fantasy game. Although Luck has not made things easy for him, Andre Johnson was still a wasted pick by someone hoping for more than they would get.

DELIGHTS QB: Tom Brady HE’S NOT SUSPENDED!!! No one was expecting that at the be-

ginning of the season. Those who selected Brady as their potential backup for later in the season hit the jackpot when it was announced that his four-game suspension for involvement in “Deflategate” was proven null in federal courts. With Gronkowski and Edelman to aim for, Brady just might be the best fantasy player in the league. Make as many jokes as you want about deflated manhood or how he’s a dirty lying cheat, but there is no arguing his talent and how happy I am that I drafted him.

RB: Lesean McCoy Last year he averaged MAYBE 7 points a game after being projected to be one of the top five backs in the NFL. This year, he left the city of brotherly love for Buffalo and he's been doing much better. Unlike Murray, McCoy has benefited from his change in scenery. An added upside is that he was injured during the preseason, making it questionable that he would play in the team’s first game. This caused some people to draft him in a later round of the draft, like Kevin Klaben ’17 … kid stole my pick.

WR: James Jones Dropped by one team at the end of last year, then another the day before preseason games started, Jones’s prospects on playing in the 2015–16 season were not looking so hot. However, his old friends in Green Bay (GO PACK!) decided that they wanted their ex-receiver back. In the absence of Jordy Nelson, and the slight injuries to both Cobb and Adams, Jones has seen increased targets and increased touchdowns. Similar to how McCoy was chosen later in the draft because of his injury, Jones was selected, if at all, very late as a filler player because no one expected him to play at all.

2015-16 SPORTS PREDICTIONS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 28.

Lin ’15 and Conor Coutts ’15. The new senior class will need to fill the massive leadership shoes left behind by Coutts and Lin, the two major forces of motivation.

Prediction: Members of the team will continue to do nothing but play frisbee at meets.

Boys Swimming Like its female counterpart, IHS Boys’ Swimming has consistently dominated its section. Some questioned whether Ithaca could remain on top after the loss of the Michael Phelps–like Ryan Nicholson ’14, but Nicholson and his seemingly dozens of state records live on through the several state places the Boys’ Swim Team managed to secure last year. “If we keep at it, sectionals won’t be far away,” Francis Schickel ’16 said as he listed the dozens of invitationals the boys won last year.

Prediction: Kevin Miller ’16 will finally manage to replace his Twitter banner picture.

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SPORTS

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

Team Spirit

By SOPHIE BECRAFT

Here's Maya Rutherford ’16, Lizzy King ’16, Meredith Salmon ’19 and Erin Dracup ’19 from the varsity girls’ soccer team wearing all white for their “white out” team spirit before their home game.

Nick Pagliaro ’18 and Max Milton ’18 represent the JV football team in their away jerseys and matching Sperrys.

Alex Patz ’17, Jacob Cummings ’17, Theo Cowett ’17 and Zeke Estes ’17 showing off their jorts and bucket hats for “Dress Like Coach Day.”

Micaela Moravek ’17 and Rachel Lamson ’16 had the best outfits of the fall sports with their “Boy Day” spirit—cargo shorts, T-shirt, mids, and a teenage-boy mustache.

PENULTIMATE

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

PAGE 31 JENNI LI

DRAKE HOWARD

The view from a trail at Fillmore Glen.

A colorful sunset over Burlington, VT.

BRIDGET FETSKO

September in Pictures

Murals at Get Up State on September 23, 2015 in Ithaca, New York. The weekend event included some of the top Graffiti artists in the world.

MAGDA KOSSOWSKA RUTHER WITMER

MAGDA KOSSOWSKA

BRIDGET FETSKO An artist looks over his work during Get Up State on September 23, 2015 in Ithaca, New York. Some of the top Graffiti artists came to Ithaca for the weekend event.

The IHS Quad as seen on a rainy day, September 29, 2015.

The IHS parking lot covered in rain and fog on September 29, 2015.

PEARSE ANDERSON ALYSSA WITCHEY

Noah Mattice of Ithaca competes in a cross country meet in Syracuse, NY on September 19th. The IHS Cross Country Team won the race.

Tristan Ferris of the Ithaca High School Football Team stands on the field before a game on September 23, 2015 in Ithaca, New York.

A high school student in the Cedar Valley Polo Club competes in the Dave Chase Memorial Polo Tournament at the Preble Valley Field on September 5th, 2015.

PAGE 32

THE TATTLER • OCTOBER 2015 • ihstattler.com

BACK PAGE BULLy Taurus. It’s ok to be clumsy, like a bull in a china shop, but don’t go chasing every red thing you see. Because who knows, Taurus, it may just be a red rose. Don’t let yourself become a Spanish bull, blinded by red or anger. See the love in red and in yourself, not just the fury.

Horoscopes

By CHLOE WRAY Aquarius Jan 21–Feb 19: Aquarius, you are a water sign. Hopefully you splished and splashed all summer long, whether in the great big blue or the kiddy pool. But now playtime is over. Winter is coming. As Kanye says, “Work it, make it, do it, makes us harder, better, faster, stronger!” ... And you know Kanye has your back, Aquarius, because he and Frank Ocean are pals. And Frank Ocean is basically the patron saint of the Aquarius clan. #swimon(throughthesnow)

disciple of Virgil, Vir-GO find an epic adventure to explore on your own, and who knows? You may become the next Roman Classic.

Libra Sept 24–Oct 23: Be careful, Libra. The scales that you have tried to balance for so long are tipping.

It may be that you’ve tried to keep them steady atop your head.

Silly Libra. Your head is round, and like the world, it will start to spin, faster and faster out of control. Try to keep it together, Libra, or else heads will roll.

Gemini May 22–June 21: “I LOVE SCHOOL WOWOWOOWWWWOW!!!!!!! BEST YEAR EVER CAN’T EVEN WAIT FIVE MORE MINUTES.” ...

“KILL ME NOW OH WAIT I’M ALREADY DEAD THIS SCHOOL IS WORSE THAN MEDIEVAL TORTURE!” Gemini, make up your mind already.

(I’m sure by midterms, you’ll all be positive.)

Scorpio Oct 24–Nov 22: Scorpio, go back to Arizona and try to stay out of my shoes. Your sting is fierce, and some people just can’t handle you. Don’t release your venom on unsuspecting victims, save it in your stockpile until you truly need it for your worst enemies.

Cancer June 22–July 22: We get it, Cancer, you’re just a little crabby. But under the hard-to-crack, better with butter, crustacean shell, your sweet crabmeat is sure to please any crowd. Beware, you may make a few enemies along the way, but for those with a shellfish allergy it’s a shame because they’ll never get to see your best side.

Pisces Feb 20–Mar 20: Just keep swimming against the current. Like a river, school will never end. It will be miserable, and you’ll have to fight, but be the salmon; find the salmon within you. Don’t let it get to you, Pisces, don’t let them make you into sushi. ...

Unless it’s spicy salmon sushi, because that is delicious and maybe it’s better to be sushi than ceviche.

Sagittarius Nov 23–Dec 22: Your symbol is a centaur. J. K. Rowling knows that centaurs are totally badass and she had them save Harry all the time, and they were tight with Hagrid. If J. K. Rowling believed in you, Sagittarius, you can do anything, because once J. K. was broke, but then she created the best series ever. So basically you have the power to be the next J. K. Rowling.

Leo July 23–Aug 21: You Leos should band together and stand up not only for poor old Cecil the Lion, but all the other lions out there on the savannah who are threatened by bullies and dentists from Minnesota alike. Leo, it’s your turn to fight for justice and your kind.

Aries Mar 21–April 20: It’s okay Aries, I’d want to punch everyone in the face too, if I were you. The fire within will inevitably rage, but take a trip to the Sciencenter and let it all out in the scream chamber. While you’re there, make a pitstop by the reptile cages, because even when you feel trapped you don’t have it as bad as the corn snake.

Capricorn Dec 23–Jan 20: Corn has been a sustenance crop for many a culture, generation after generation.

And corn = maize. So basically, CapriCORN, you are aMAIZEing. Go get ‘em.

Virgo Aug 22–Sept 23: Virgo is like Virgil, who wrote The Aeneid.

So because you’re basically a

Taurus Apr 21–May 21: Don’t be a

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