Vol. 19 - No. 3

THE HOWLER MARCH ISSUE 2017

MONARCH HIGH SCHOOL

VOL. 19 - NO. 3

A HOUSE DIVIDED? 16-17

THIS IS WRESTLING 12-13 OFF IN LA-LA-LAND 14-15 WORTH OF THE NAME BRAND 18-19 SAT SWITCH 20-21

“Best Wings in Boulder County!”

Mudrocks Tap & Taveren 575 E South Boulder Road Louisville, CO 80027 www.mudrockstapandtavern.com 720-890-7900 Justin’s proudly supports Monarch High School www.justins.com 02 www.mhshowler.com

March 2017 - Issue 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS FEATURES Saying Goodbye 4 Challenges and Change 6 Carpe: A Photo Essay 29 CULTURE Origin of Saint Patrick’s Day 7 Living in the Age of Airplanes 28 Must Reads: Jazzy’s Faves 30 OPINIONS Water is Life 10 Staff Editorial: Unreliable Measures 22 Whistleblowers 24 Diary of a Teenage Black Girl 25 SPORTS Learning the Slopes 9 Racing Towards Success 27 The Howler reserves the right to refuse advertising which does not adhere to the publication’s standards, particulary in reference to good taste and to products and/or services that are illegal and/or immoral for the majority of high school readers. Guest contributions sent to The Howler which do not adhere to the publication’s standards may be turned down for publication.

The Howler strives to inform, educate, and entertain the student body of Monarch High School as a student-produced maagazine and open forum for student expression and opinions. Expression made by students in The Howler is not an expression of Boulder Valley School District Board policy and the School District and its employees are immune from any civil or ciminal action based on any expression made or published by students in The Howler.

cover by mandy matteson photo by andrew patra

NEWS Solutions to Climate Change 11 What Trump Has Done So Far 26 GUEST WRITER Love Transcends the Illusion of Separateness/ Marly Ruprecht 23 03

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ALWAYS PUSHING FORWARD

Features

A Conversation about Dr. Anderson’s Past, Present, and Future

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fter nine years, Principal Dr. Jerry Anderson is leaving Monarch High School to be the new principal at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Illinois.

Anderson has been a defining leader, working with both faculty and students to push Monarch forward in academia and in community engagement. Under Anderson, Monarch was ranked at 356 in Newsweek’s Top 500 High Schools for 2015. I got the opportunity to sit down with Anderson and learn about some of her favorite memories of Monarch, what she hopes her legacy will be, and what she hopes to bring to her new school.

Throughout our interview, Anderson would refer to the idea of Monarch being an inclusive community. She sees Monarch as a school that was able to come together to be one cohesive unit created by our students, staff, and families. Whether it is students helping each other on a peer to peer basis or parents pitching in to volunteer at the library or building props for the performing arts program, these examples of Monarch coming together stood out the most to her.

“I have seen people in this community rallying around families that need support, kids that need support. We’re doing something, we’re trying to accomplish something here,” Anderson said.

This is an idea, a motif, that Anderson has carried with her through her professional life. She has tried to expand the bubble of “home” to incorporate the many different cultures that make a more cohesive, blended society.

Her first teaching job in Paraguay allowed her to bring a greater sense of cultural understanding to her future career as an administrator.

“We have to be more cognizant of people’s culture and have a more open mind,” she said, describing what the experience had taught her.

As we continued to talk about the growth that has occurred over her tenure as principal, we began to hit on the idea of always pushing forward, as a school and just as people. It almost turned into a slogan for the conversation. She is a firm believer that there is always something to improve. She would try to push teachers to see how they could do something better, but also to see if she could improve herself. Anderson hopes to see those ideals continue after she has left the school.

“I hope that we continue our tradition of excellence,” she said. “I hope we will begin to address the social and emotional needs our students have because it truly impacts how you learn, how you feel about yourself, how you feel about where you are, and how you feel about being accepted and integrated into this community.”

We returned to the idea of community and making sure that each individual felt connected to their peers. In an October Howler article, Anderson talked about growing up in a stillsegregated community at Denver’s George Washington High School in 1976. Similarly, her experiences of being the “only African-American in Paraguay” allowed her to experience the differences that exist between people, and drove her to try to create a learning enviroment where there was more than just a single culture and where an open mind would be able to thrive.

“It’s not just about teachers or just about the students or just about the parents,” she said. “It’s not just about math or social studies, it’s about all of

it, working in sync with one another.

[Being an administrator] helps you see that, helps you see the details, but you always have to keep the big picture in mind. Here’s the good. Now we need to get to the great. I hoped that I’ve helped to create a strong, caring community that helps the students. It’s our vision statement, ‘creating bright futures, one student at a time’ and I hope that is my legacy and that is what we continue to try to do.”

As we close on the last few months of Anderson’s time here as a principal, her efforts in creating a place where students can succeed and a place that is unified has come to fruition. And while she moves on, an expectation has been planted in her wake to inspire Monarch not only as students but also as people, to become better and to always be pushing forward.

- Andrew Patra/Editor in Chief photo by Andrew Patra

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Features

CHALLENGES AND CHANGE Students and Teachers Examine the Tradition of New Year’s Resolutions

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grow out my hair, maybe get a mullet hen people get frustrated with going. I think I’m just gonna let it what’s around them or want grow out, though, keep it clean, let to experience something new, they make New Year’s resolutions. People it grow for the most part. At a point challenge themselves with resolutions if it gets too messy and I decide that that influence the way they think every I don’t like it, I might just go back to short hair,” Harris said. day and the way they see the world For some, New Year’s resolutions around them. mean simply changing the little “[My resolution] was to be things in their day-to-day routines. vegetarian. I don’t like the idea of For someone who pays attention eating animals and the abuse that to the news often, they sometimes goes into it,” freshman Mia Coronelli know what is happening in certain said. places of the world and the news can New Year’s resolutions are hard affect them in ways that they may not to follow through independently, notice, like putting fear or frustration so some students get support from in one’s mind. What teacher James their friends. This is how sophomore Kelpy did for his resolution was to not Isabella Lincoln is achieving her goal let the news affect him. for the year.

“I used to wake up and check the “[My New Year’s resolution was] news straight away, to be healthier. I “It should be an and I realized that was would probably try to get other people to ongoing process, affecting my mood throughout the day, do it with me, so I’d it doesn’t have to so what I decided to remember and have support and not [be] be a New Year’s do is wake up, relax, go about my morning the only awkward thing.” routines, do a little one doing it. Making more of a routine, so - Keith Mainland meditation and check the news a little bit I follow through on later in the morning, more [and] actually do but before I used to sort of live on stuff,” Lincoln said. the news, you know checking it Remember the stories parents relentlessly. Now I check it a few times tell you about famous styles in their a day,” Kelpy said. time before you were born? Junior New Year’s resolutions can be Nathan Harris went back in time and big or small, to try a new hairstyle made his New Year’s resolution to or to challenge yourself and friends try something new… a new retro to make the world a better place. hairstyle.

However, there is never a bad time “My New Year’s resolution is to 06 www.mhshowler.com

to change your life or habits or seize the day. Don’t wait for next January to accomplish your goals.

“If you’ve got resolutions, if you’ve got ideas about how you should change your life or whatever, then it should be an ongoing process, it doesn’t have to be a New Year’s thing,” teacher Keith Mainland said.

- Phil Phronesius/Staff Writer

THREE GOAL-SETTING TIPS AND TRICKS 1. Set a realistic goal. Don’t set out to do something you know you won’t accomplish. The more ambitious your resolution is, the more quickly you’ll get discouraged and the more likely you are to give up.

2. Tell your friends and family.

If your friends and family know about your resolution they are more likely to help you when you need help or mess up. They could even join in are your goal, and you could be in it together. This extra support can go a long way.

3. Break it down. If you have set yourself a big goal for the end of the year, break it up into smaller ones. A mini resolution for each month to make your daunting goal more approachable is a good

Culture

ORIGINS OF SAINT PATRICK’S DAY How One of the World’s Favorite Holidays Came To Be

St. Patrick’s Day used to be a dry holiday until 1970, when it became a national holiday The shortest parade is in Hot Springs, AR of only 98 feet The biggest St. Patrick’s Day parade is in New York City

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t. Patrick’s Day, March 17, is widely celebrated in our modern day world, with large parades and parties being some of the most extravagant for the holiday.

However, most people have no idea how the holiday began. All they know are modern day traditions such as wearing green and consuming alcohol.

St. Patrick’s Day actually began as the feast day of St. Patrick, who is patron saint of Ireland. He was chosen as a patron saint because he is credited with converting the Irish to Christianity, and is celebrated on March 17, the day of St. Patrick’s death.

Many stories surround St. Patrick as well, including driving the snakes out of Ireland. He is also said to have used the Shamrock as a symbol of the Trinity of the Christian church.

His contributions to Ireland and Christianity are celebrated in Ireland on this day, but the Irish immigrants in America are the reason the holiday exists as it does today.

The holiday today is mostly secular, and has turned into more of a celebration of Irish culture than a celebration of Irish Christianity.

Celebrations originally consisted of large feasts, but over time the celebrations have become bigger and more commercialized.

Cities with many Irish immigrant descendants hold the largest celebrations, with the largest parades and parties being in Boston and New York. Chicago even dyes their river green to celebrate.

The practice of wearing green and holding large celebrations was mostly fueled by the tourist industry, with the real meaning of the holiday being thrown by the wayside.

Although the traditional green theme and partying holds much amusement during the holiday, the origins of St. Patrick’s Day aren’t as familiar to the average American.

The original color associated with St. Patrick is blue 83% of Americans wear green on St. Patrick’s Day

- Brian Dumpert/ Staff Reporter illustration by Mandy Matteson

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Culture

TEEN LANGUAGE The Nuances of Communication in the Millenial Age

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n the weird world of internet comments, you’ll find a strange creature. It’s nestled between the comments of someone who is absurdly angry and the person who comments heart eyes. This strange creature uses a hashtag and the word “goals”. #Squad goals, #body goals, #hair goals, #relationship goals, these are some of the variations of this creature. Sometimes it manifests as a pastel colored compliment, but other times it’s a green seed of envy. It’s more internet teen lingo, a foreign language that no one is truly fluent in, as new words and phrases seem to be added daily and appear out of nowhere. This is only one of the more recent “teen buzzwords” that BuzzFeed will decode and Forever 21 will slap on a tee shirt and effectively kill off the entire trend. Nice work, Forever 21.

While some will write off teen slang as they did texting lingo a few years ago (incidentally used mostly by parents), this is just another stepping stone in the evolution of language, an evolutionary process that has been occurring for years and years.

As language and literature grew, it would always be scrutinized by more “traditional” people. Take Shakespeare, for example.

Today we hold him to be the pinnacle of the English language, yet in 1672, John Dryden, in his book Defence of the Epilogue, would claim that Shakespeare’s writing would “in every page [contain] some solecism of speech, or some notorious flaw in some sense.”

This doesn’t sound too different from modern day criticism of the lingo that many teens use. “Teenspeak” is either unprofessional, or, in some cases, utterly incomprehensible. But to linguists, this is actually quite interesting as teen language can show the progression of English and other languages with the influence of technology and a more connected culture.

This presents an interesting challenge to those who catalog language in a dictionary or those just trying to keep up with the times. New words are popping up and

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traditional dictionaries are struggling to keep up. Lexicographers, who were employed to gather word data, are left scrambling at the whim of technology which sees no incentive to slow down. This leads to words being used that aren’t even technically words at all. Words that seems so commonplace to us, such as “podcast” (which wasn’t even an official word until 2008), slowly enter into dictionaries rather than immediately appearing. In December of 2016, “YouTuber” became an official word, and was only possible because of the internet.

Now, let’s look back at “goals”. The definition hasn’t entirely changed, nor has its use. Yet its context is very different from either sports or the “S.M.A.R.T” goals we are taught to set. It’s current use carries a different connotation, tinted with an edge of jealousy veiled by a happy compliment.

This sort of nuance wouldn’t be picked up if it were presented to someone outside the social media loop.

For what it’s worth, those who still believe that the slang that modern teenagers use is absolute gibberish, technically, it is. But each generation pushes language forward until that “gibberish” is just another part of everyday speech. Our slang words today will probably seem like the stuff only old people say 60 years from now and there will be a new generation of internet trends and silly teen language that we will probably shake our head at and say, “Back in our day, kids actually knew how to talk.”

- Andrew Patra/Editor-in-Chief photo illustration by Levi Wood

Sports

LEARNING THE SLOPES S(no)w Party like a Ski Party

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iving so close to the mountains has its advantages and the ski team has certainly taken them up. Each season Monarch, Nederland, Fairview, Peak to Peak, Centaurus, Broomfield, Justice and Boulder High all come together to form the BVSD co-ed ski team, hosted by Nederland High School.

Throughout the season members traveled to Eldora Ski Resort, just miles from the host school, several times a week to practice.

Earlier in the season, before snowfall, members would have dryland practices at North Boulder Park.

Traveling was one of the unique experiences of ski team. Members were required to ride the bus to all races and competitions and had the option to take the bus to any and all practices. Getting up as early as 4:30 a.m., quiet bus rides, and long hours are all worth it to these skiers.

Members get plenty of time to rest up before the meets as well as bond with their teammates.

“Everybody is asleep and they all have their blankets, but it’s kind of nice and peaceful,” sophomore Sophie Baur said.

They visited all of the major ski hubs around: Loveland, Winter Park, Steamboat, Aspen, with their home base being Eldora.

Ski team allowed members the opportunity to explore Colorado while doing something they love.

Ski team holds certain events to make

skiing more than skiing. Many of these events consist of themed costume days such as Cowboy Day, where all the members dress up as Texans, wear jeans, cowboy hats and go skiing.

“Dressing up is a lot of fun,” junior Casey Zukosky said.

Skiers typically wear a ski suit underneath their costumes and have numbers pinned to their backs while racing. Other themes include underwear day and halloween costumes.

One team being made up of so many schools provides members with the opportunity to meet all kinds of people.

Zukosky has been on the team since he was a freshman and loves the experience.

“It’s fun getting to know different people and meeting new friends,” Zukosky said.

Skiers get the opportunity to not only meet new people, but race against other skiers and teams from all over Colorado as well.

“There are a lot of great teams out there,” Zukosky said.

Ski team offers a completely unique experience for members that allows them to explore Colorado and meet lots of people with similar interest within the district.

“It’s a party,” Zukosky said.

The ski program has been growing each year and in 2016 there were about 40 people on the team.

Baur has been skiing since she was five.

when asked by a family friend to join the team, Baur jumped at the opportunity. “I tried it out, and ended up really loving it,” Baur said. Baur now considers skiing to be her favorite sport and really likes the whole ski community.

If you love skiing and costumes, perhaps ski team is the place for you.

“I’d love to have more people from Monarch on the team… It would be great to have more people come in,” Baur said.

- Kanika Hicks & Sarah Schemmerling/Staff Reporters Photo courtesy of Casey Zukosky

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PWATER IS LIFE

eering past the the wispy white tear gas engulfing a mass of shadowy figures, native elders andRock water protecThe Fight at Standing torseering stand, burning beating past the thesage wispyand white tear gas drums that resonate the chest with engulfing a mass of shadowy figures, determination also a deep fear. native elders andand water protectors, fighting An officer standing stagnant for clean water stand, burn sagebehind and a concrete lined with wire beat drumsbarrier that resonate the razor chest with determination.

The crowd of people are at aims a rifle loaded with rubber bullets facing officers positioned behind a Native woman on her stagnantly knees praying, aunarmed. concrete Oneida barrier lined on both sidesSteven with people activist razor wire.

An officer is equipped with military Jeffery Chrisjohn begins to livestream grade protection and a rifle that is aimed the conflict, but representatives from a directly at at a Native woman on her knees government hesitation to praying. She isagency unarmedhave and no harmless.

Oneida spray him with a water hose in below 20 people activist Steven Jeffery Chrisjohn begins

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to livestream the conflict, but the National Guard have no hesitation to spray him with a water hose in below 20 degree weather.

A woman yells at another officer holding a loaded rifle, “You invaded our home. You’re on cultural land. I ain’t going nowhere.” As the negotiation begins to go nowhere, the woman is pepper sprayed while young man behind her cries, “What are you doing?” The pleas are unheard as the officer points the loaded rifle at her and begins firing rubber bullets. She is unarmed. Another water protector, with his hands up, approaches the razor wire screaming, “Stop shooting. These are unarmed people. We don’t have helmets on. If you hit somebody in the head, they could die.” With his hands still in the air, pacing in circles, a police officer takes aim and fires at the unarmed man. He lets out a faint, muffled scream as he slowly stumbles to the freezing ground, unable to do anything but moan in pain while the entire encounter is documented on video.

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degree weather.

Far left: Militarized police force moves in on the Water Protectors on highway 1806. Middle photo: Riot Police A woman yells within at anthe officer holding a Sakowin Camp. Far right: “Happy” Ammerican Horse Jr maintaining a formation boundary of the Oceti loaded rifle hopes ofequipment sympathizing locked down onin construction to preventwith workers from finishing the pipeline. him, “You invaded our home.

“Mni Wiconi,” meaning “waterYou’re is life” inon with full riot gear, rifles, rubber bullets, tear cultural land.

I ain’t going nowhere.” the Lakota language, is a phrase that will As gas, armored vehicles, bulletproof vests the negotiation begins go nowhere, forever resonate with the to people of Standing and to add the cherry on top, they have 24 the woman is pepper sprayed when a Rock. hour surveillance of the camps and signal For the year, water protectors jammers. young manpast behind her cries, “What have faced off withThe militarized police in an are you doing?” pleas are unheard attempt to discontinue construction For the full story scan the barcode below. as the officer points athe loaded rifle andof the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).

The begins firing rubber bullets at her. She is pipeline is backed by the company Energy Transfer Partners, and spans 1,172 miles from North Dakota to Illinois, transporting Canadian Bakken shale oil across the United States. Morton County Police Department has called in reinforcements from multiple different states, including the National Guard to account for the amount of people that have come to support the movement. These officers are loaded from head to toe

- Levi Wood/Opinions Editor Eleanor Guanella/Staff Reporters All photos courtesy of Rob Wilson

To reach and support those locked to equipment, Water Protectors march down the path carved by DAPL through sacred ground.

News

SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE Steps You Can Take To Help

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ow more than ever, climate change is being talked about in the political sphere.

Since President Trump took office, the White House introduced the “America First Energy Plan” that emphasizes lower energy costs and utilizing energy reserves in the United States.

According to NASA, 97 percent of active climate scientists agree with the concept of human-caused global warming. Many scientists and environmental activists find Trump’s plan concerning because it will likely lead to using more fossil fuels and increasing the global carbon footprint. In the wake of this decision, there are many small things that individuals can do to make their lives more sustainable.

There are always small actions that a household or a single person can take to help the environment and limit their contributions to global climate change. Efforts like recycling, driving less, and biking to nearby places help the environment significantly.

According to the EPA, each gallon of gas releases upwards of 8,000 grams of carbon dioxide. A typical car releases 4.7 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. Cycling, carpooling and taking public transportation like buses or subways can also help. These solutions are mainstream and commonplace in society. Despite this fact, most people make these changes far less than is necessary to make a significant change.

A lesser known way to help the environment is to consume fewer meat

products. According to One Green Planet, animal agriculture has been proven to be less efficient and sustainable because it requires a lot more water, land, and other resources than other types of food. It is also the largest source of greenhouse gases and rainforest deforestation. The carbon footprint of fossil fuels used in many aspects of our everyday life is still less than the animal agriculture industry.

Methane that cows produce is 30 times more destructive than carbon dioxide according to Princeton University. The UN states that 65 percent of all emissions of nitrous oxide come from livestock. Nitrous oxide is 296 times more destructive than carbon dioxide and therefore contributes more to climate change.

All of these facts might make the problem of climate change seem daunting, but there is an easy way to limit your carbon footprint. Eating a vegetarian or vegan diet is more sustainable and contributes less to the global environmental crisis. The United Nations reported that vegan diets can also feed more people than an animal-based diet.

If one person eats vegan for a year, they would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 1.5 tons according to University of Chicago researchers. The diets of people who consume animal protein creates seven times the amount of reenhouse gases. It may be difficult for people to eat a vegan or vegetarian diet, but even swapping out a few meals a week, like Meatless Mondays, for

a plant based alternative can really help the environment.

Political activism is also a great way to spread awareness and bring about change in the world. On April 29th, the People’s Climate Movement is organizing marches all over the country to bring light to climate change. Participating in this march could help bring attention to the issue, and make a difference in the world. If people from all over the world decide to change their lifestyles in small ways like this, we would be looking at a better and brighter future for all generations to come.

- Carmen Harris/Culture Editor photo illustration by Levi Wood

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THIS IS WRESTLING A Different Kind of “Real”

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rofessional Wrestling. Some may think, “I used to watch that as a little kid,” or “That’s that fake stuff on TV, right?” or maybe, “What does that even mean?”

Professional wrestling truly is a profession, fueled by passion and hard work. Its performers accomplish death-defying stunts and tell emotional, primal stories to entertain anyone from a few dozen people in a high school gym to a sold-out stadium containing tens of thousands of people.

Yes, pro wrestling matches are predetermined. The outcome has been decided before the contest even starts. No, the competitors don’t really want to hurt each other and they don’t actually hate each other.

Some people may ask, “If there is no real contest, no ‘genuine sport,’ who would want to watch this?”

The answer is millions of people and that’s been the case for over a century. Since the dawn of the 1900s, wrestling has featured matches with the ending already determined, and yet it produced superstars renowned the world over. Wrestlers like Frank Gotch and George Hackenschmidt were idolized as heroes. Theodore Roosevelt even once said, “If I wasn’t President of the United States, I would like to be George Hackenschmidt.”

By the 1920s, pro wrestling was establishing its now famous style of larger than life characters, heavily structured matches and rivalries, and permanent rosters of regular wrestlers.

In the mid 20th century, pro wrestling’s

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popularity was expanding, not just within the borders of the U.S., also nations, such as Mexico and Japan. Pro wrestling wove itself into the fabric of any culture and country it touched, giving each nation their own style and stars. El Santo, Mexico’s greatest luchador, was considered a folk hero, appearing in movies, starring in his own comic book, and never taking off his trademark silver mask. Santo was so dedicated to his profession that he only revealed his face to the public a week before his death in 1984 at the age of 66. He was buried wearing his mask.

By the 80s, the United States had established a regional territory system for wrestling and it was a staple of cable television. Vince McMahon, owner of the World Wrestling Federation, which would one day become the WWE, took his promotion national and became king of wrestling in America. Stars like Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, and “Macho Man” Randy Savage became household names.

McMahon’s reign as king would be challenged by the rival World Championship Wrestling, a Georgia based promotion company that was backed by the passion and funds of the billionaire media mogul Ted Turner. Throughout the 90s, the two companies battled for the title of the world’s premiere wrestling organization. Their flagship television programs, WWF’s Raw and WCW’s Nitro, aired in the same time slot during prime time every Monday night,

fighting tooth and nail to score higher ratings than the other. Workers bounced companies to prove they could be stars for their former employers competition and for better pay.

These Monday Night Wars provided some of the most memorable moments and greatest stars the business would ever see, like The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Goldberg, Triple H and Bret Hart. Wrestlers who had already established themselves, like Sting and Ric Flair, found their careers revitalized. This period’s end saw the bankruptcy of WCW in 2001, swiftly followed by its acquisition

by WWF, and the beginning of WWF’s dominance of the wrestling world.

As the new millennium continued from its emergent years, the WWF became the WWE and created its new generation of main event talent, like John Cena, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Batista, and CM Punk.

In recent years, the WWE has been the face of professional wrestling, often being the first thing that comes to mind when the profession is mentioned.

However, the “independent” scene of wrestling has exploded in popularity and scale, to the point where it is unfair to only think WWE when the meaning of pro wrestling. In the U.S., promotions such as Ring of Honor and Lucha Underground have provided characters and events on par and even surpassing that of WWE. In Japan, companies like New Japan and All Japan Pro Wrestling have dominated their nation’s

Sports wrestling scene and are looking to expand globally.

Most recently, the United Kingdom’s pro wrestling industry has been thrust into the spotlight, with its expanding popularity, growing promotions, and homegrown talent becoming the latest chapter in the book of wrestling’s globalization. This boom in British wrestling has seen the rise of companies such as Progress Wrestling, Insane Championship Wrestling, and What Culture Pro Wrestling.

The rules and traditions of a pro wrestling match seem simple at first. Two competitors combat each other using any combination of strikes, grapples, holds, and aerial attacks.

One wrestler wins when he is able to pin the other’s shoulders to the mat for a referee’s count of three, or when they place their opponent in a particularly painful hold that causes them to submit or “tap out.”

A wrestler can also win by disqualification if the other is found guilty of cheating or by count-out if their opponent doesn’t return to the ring before the referee’s count

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of ten. However, once interfering allies, eye pokes behind the ref’s back, and the introduction of a steel chair manifest, these rules and traditions can quickly become an afterthought.

Matches can be made of teams of two vs. two, take place inside a steel cage, or even feature 30 men throwing each other over the ropes of the ring with the last man standing earning a world championship opportunity.

These matches can offer the reward of title contendership, bragging rights, pride, or the satisfaction of defeating a hated rival.

The tone of pro wrestling can vary wildly.

Some matches and rivalries can be brutal and bloody. Ring ropes have been replaced with actual barbed wire, tables have been set on fire before a man is slammed through them, and in 1995 in Japan, the world’s only “Barbed Wire Rope, C4 Explosive, Time Bomb” match was held. The ending saw C4 explosives detonate outside the ring as the wrestlers huddled in the center.

Other times, wrestling can provide comedic, lighthearted moments.

DDT Pro Wrestling, a company in Japan, has the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship, which is defended 24/7, anytime, anywhere, against anyone.

Notable ‘unorthodox’ champions include several schoolchildren, three different ladders, a bus, and the 1000th champion, the

physical belt itself.

Pro wrestling isn’t all fun and games, though. Although the goal of wrestlers is to look like they are hurting their opponent while keeping any actual harm to a minimum, accidents and injuries do happen. People have been concussed, fractured bones, separated shoulders, broken necks, and, on very rare occasions, even died. Performers can literally risk their lives every time they wrestle.

Above all, pro wrestling is about telling stories. It features timeless tales of good vs evil, right vs wrong. It is a form of entertainment where it is impossible to know exactly what’s coming next. At one show, fans could see an anti-corporate redneck fight an egotistical movie star, while at another they could see a masked luchador take on a seven foot tall maniac. You can laugh, cheer, boo, and scream at any given moment. It provides an escape from reality into a world where nothing is too outlandish and nothing is impossible. Wrestling is, like most other successful shows, a scripted adventure that takes its viewer to wherever they want to go.

- Treyton Williams & Ian Fowles/Staff Reporters photos by Rob Brazier Photo courtesy of Progress Wrestling

Features

OFF IN LA-LA-LAND Why Students Aren’t Participating in Class, and How to Change That

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ll students can be found guilty of not paying attention in class at least once in their life. Teachers often assume it’s because the students are daydreaming and have their heads in the clouds, but that’s not always the case. Students have more than just school going on in their lives. They could have jobs, be involved with a sport, or be in clubs. Since the life of a student is busy, it seems as if there’s not enough time in one day to get everything that needs to be done, done.

“I zone out when I’m tired because I didn’t get enough sleep. I have homework to do and am also in [Winter] Guard,” junior Riley Nussbaum said.

Overscheduling can lead to lack of sleep and when adding in a class that doesn’t allow for moving around, students are definitely going to zone out. According to Discover Magazine, students’ minds wander an average of 5.4 times in a 45-minute session when they are just sitting and listening.

“If I involve [the students] and I’m not just lecturing, then I think there tends to be more engagement,” said Language Arts teacher Kate Lunz.

Although there are students who learn well by just sitting and taking notes, there are others that struggle with that and need to move around and be active with the way they learn or by playing games, like Kahoot. “[A teacher can help me participate more by] being more interactive, like including more activities and [getting] the class moving around more instead of just us sitting around and listening to them lecturing us,” junior Millie Zhang said.

Not all students who zone out are bored, though. Sometimes, it’s just

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Junior Lauren Merhoff watches The Office on Netflix during her off period in the library. “I think [students] zone out because they’re tired from doing a lot of homework and paying attention all day,” Merhoff said.

because of the time of day.

“If I fall asleep in certain subjects, it’s more the times of day, not the actual subject themselves, [that] make me fall asleep. [I’m most tired] mid-day and when I first get to school since my energy hasn’t kicked in yet,” junior Cyrus Evans said.

The way the teachers set up a classroom also affects how well students pay attention. Low lighting, especially in the beginning of the day when students are still waking up, can make students feel more sleepy and less likely to pay attention in class, and can also cause zoning out at the end of the day when students are worn out after a long day of classes. Some students have all their core classes in the morning, therefore making them more tired in their afternoon classes which in turn may cause them to participate less. There is also the fact that

the later the classes are, the more likely the students will be less engaged because they might have just come from taking a test from their last period, or doing a presentation, or even a project and are mentally tired from their work.

Fortunately, the school is working on plans to alter the schedule in 2017-2018 to better fit the needs of students, which will hopefully help with the lack of attention during the day. Teachers have collected surveys from students, teachers, and parents to determine scheduling values and strategies that work and don’t work for a school day.

“One of the things that students said was that they were having a hard time making up work when they were absent.

They also felt that they wanted a break at some point during the day because it was just too much sitting in one class to the next class; and they wanted a time other

Features

than just the morning or [afternoon tutor times] in the middle of the day where they could talk to teachers,” said Science teacher Kristin Donley, who has been on a committee developing the proposed schedule.

One new schedule being considered for 2017-2018 would reinvent the scheduling and use of Tutor Time.

“So we’ve come up with this idea of having a little bit more Tutor Time, placed in the middle of the day so [it can be used] to make up class work, to make up tests, but we’re hoping we can use it very creatively for kids who always have to ride the bus, they could never do clubs [and it would be] a bit of a mind break,” Donley said.

So teachers, until next year, the next time the students are zoning out in class, remember all that is going on in students’ lives. Feel free to take a little break, move around, or make the lesson interactive; that way, the students still manage to learn but are still energetic and will participate more. There will be fewer dazed faces and more attention towards you.

Sophomores Patrick Sternberg, Kylie Dietz, Addison Nakari, Kaylina Dyce, Trinity Jackson and Andrew Nieusma demonstrate the social aspect of work time.

- Claire Clarissa and Sali Castro/Staff Reporters photos by Claire Clarissa

Technology is not always a distraction to students. In fact, some teachers allow students to use technology as part of their lesson; sophomore Kyra Alexander uses her phone to look up maps for her World History project.

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A HOUSE DIVIDED?

Can We Make It Stand?

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he United States of America has been a democracy for as long as it has existed.

Democracy, by definition, is a form of government empowered by the individual.

Those eligible get one vote, each one meaning as much and carrying as much weight as everyone else’s. As with everything made for the individual, democracy is full of different ideas and opinions, with people often feeling the exact opposite about an issue as someone else. This extreme variance of ideas has led to a contemporary America that exists in a state of massive political division. Its two main political parties, the Republicans and the Democrats, contest for control of Congress, the Supreme Court, and the White House. In the present day, the political climate of the United States feels like a citizen must choose a side in a civil war of ideals, lest their voice be unheard.

Many people across the nation, including within the walls of Monarch High, remain hesitant to discuss anything political. “I feel like [politics] aren’t something to be really proud of, to talk about,” sophomore Andres Mena said.

Some fear a hostile response to their opinions and beliefs, even in a social, peer-oriented environment like school. “At school, I don’t think, especially with relationships, you don’t really need to discuss politics, especially if they would get you into arguments. Certain people can be so hostile about politics,” junior Houston Lair said.

The lack of willingness of Americans to come forward with their beliefs is exceedingly common and becoming more so. The threat of backlash is just too great.

“There’s just not too many people that I’d feel free to open up to and talk about [politics] with,” senior Matt Reimann said.

It seems that many people fear that, an open voice won’t be met with an open mind.

“People have a lot of different opinions and obviously I have my own opinions, but I tend to not voice them out as much just because I feel like people will look at me and think that I’m biased or they’ll get all crazy about it,” junior Zikra Hashmi said.

The recent Presidential election only furthered this extreme fracturing of the political middle ground of Americans. With two of the most divisive candidates in recent

memory, voters either flocked to a definitive side or sought refuge with an independent choice.

“If I would have voted, I probably would have voted for a third party candidate,” says senior Lili Dutka, who missed the chance to vote by less than a month. Dutka, a selfproclaimed independent, couldn’t see herself voting for and aligning herself with either the Republican or Democrat choice for president.

“Choosing a black or white option when there are so many grey areas in between, it doesn’t make any sense,” she explained.

Some Americans felt that the main two candidates weren’t the right fit for the job or were just too off-putting to really back. “Both of them didn’t seem like the best president we could have,” says Hashmi.

Meanwhile, members of one of the dominant parties are also feeling the divide.

“I’ve actually been called some pretty mean names just because I affiliate with the Republican Party,” says junior John Kelsey.

John is a member of a family of Republicans and has felt aligned with their values and ideas for as long as he can remember.

On the other side of the spectrum is Houston Lair, himself a Democrat and a member of a Democrat family. Despite his apparent opposite political alignment from Kelsey, he doesn’t view members of the Republican Party as all having the same view. When asked if he thought badly of Republicans because of their political views, Lair responded with a genuine and firm “No.” These supposed ‘battle lines’ between the Republican and Democrat parties serve to create a strict and often combative divide between Americans. While there are people who look down on the opposing party and its members with great disdain and even outright hostility, this feeling of opposition is not always the case. “I know some Democratic people who are open to discussion about politics and will actually sit and talk about their views,” says Kelsey.

This great divide exists, that much is certain, but how certain are we that it can one day be closed?

Perhaps the most hopeful thing about democracy and the variation of its individuals are that everyone has an idea on how to bring people back together. “We all have different

ideas and brains; we all don’t think the same,” Mena said. That is democracy’s greatest strength and weakness.

So how would one bring the political climate of the country to an environment of understanding rather than one of conflict?

“Explain the reasoning behind my views and not argue back; listen, and take in what they’re saying, even if I don’t believe in it,” Lair offered.

His view conforms nicely to that of others, ironically the basis for the political parties that often divide voters. “I think just everyone needs to open up and listen to what everyone has to say. Don’t be so defensive and eager to shut down the other person’s argument.

Take in what they have to say and try to stand in their shoes,” Reimann said.

Coming together doesn’t mean abandoning your ideas if they stand with a particular party. “Honestly, I think that the political parties should try to find some kind of common ground,” Dutka said.

This view is shared between members of parties as well as independents. “I’d just change the hate. I don’t care if you’re liberal or conservative, you have to respect everyone… you can’t be all about hate,” Kelsey said.

America seems to be more divided politically now than ever. When people want to voice their opinions, they may feel hesitation, doubt, even fear. The funny thing about democracy is that leaders are temporary. As of this moment, the divide is great. Democracy is all about the future, though. The goal of all new leaders is to improve on the world the former ones left behind. That goal can apply to voters and citizens as well. When two politically opposed people vote, they align, if only once. They believe in democracy, in the rights of the individual. They both believe so strongly, they walk to the same booth and vote the same exact way, the only difference being the name on the ballot. At the end of the day, Republican or Democrat, far left, far right, or somewhere in between, they both cast a vote for the future. In that future, hope. In that hope, unity.

- Treyton Williams/Staff Reporter

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WORTH OF THE NAME BRAND The Cost of Making the Cut

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was walking into school with two of my best friends the other day and realized we were all wearing the same thing: an Eddie Bauer down jacket, American Eagle jeans, and Steve Madden (specifically Freebird) boots. On any other day you could catch us in a Love Your Melon beanie, Lululemon leggings and Birkenstocks. My brother would wear a Vineyard Vines shirt, Lululemon pants, and his Timberlands.

I know, I just described the most expensive outfits of all time. But they’re cool, right? It’s worth it, right? Lately, the cost of my clothing has got me questioning the point of all this name brand business. I would rather save my money most of the time than spend it on...

What? A label? C’mon. The fact is, I could get all of my clothes and other name brand items at a lower cost, the catch being that there isn’t Nike or North Face written across them.

Not every kid can afford name brand clothing. If you can’t afford high end prices, buying knockoffs could be the only way to keep up with trends. At the same time, a lot of kids these days wouldn’t be caught dead wearing knock off clothing. When you live in such a affluent area, you get more heat wearing a knock off versus not wearing a style all together.

This is because originality is important.

If people spend the money on a Patagonia jacket, they get mad when people get away without paying the same amount. It’s like plagiarism--knockoff brands are essentially copying someone’s idea. It’s cheap on three

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different levels: literally cheap, cheaply made with poor materials, and cheap because the company is unethical for reusing someone’s original idea and design.

But why are these brands so popular, anyway? Kids these days don’t use products enough to make the durability they advertise worth it. Some products don’t even make that much sense as to why we use them. For example, Sperry is a brand that produces wear specialized for boating. In Colorado, you don’t see kids boating all that often, yet Sperry is one of, the most popular shoe brands for high school boys.

Sure, quality products are a priority for many people, myself included. But the price of these items is so unreasonable that there are many other products for me to choose

from that cost less and get the job done just fine. So why do I choose the more expensive one? Because it’s a well-known name brand, of course. I’ve made so many fashion/life decisions like this, that nearly my entire wardrobe is composed of name brand clothing. All my favorite accessories are name brand as well, all the way down to my planner and the candles I light in my room.

I want to present myself in a way that would make people think I care about what I look like. But the way I dress doesn’t say anything about how smart or kind or fun I am. Wearing name brand clothes just says something about how fashionable I am, or that I have enough money to afford these clothes, or that now that I own a piece of clothing I’m included in a certain group of

people… Should that be a priority for me? I could save the money I spend on clothes and spend it on a trip, or new hiking boots, or pizza night with my friends.

So why do I prefer materials that people know of, versus those that people don’t? I guess it’s because I think it doesn’t matter how cool or functional I think what I’m wearing is; if it isn’t a well known brand, it’s not making the cut. Society has conditioned me to believe that name brand items are important.

This conditioning has made me want people to know how much money I’m spending on these things, because the amount of money I have will translate into my social status. I unconsciously think people will like me more if I have more money, and I prove that to them by the things I buy.

In my future of shopping (which is a bright one) I want to look for clothing that isn’t simply a label that conveys my social status. I will buy pieces that I think are cool, not pieces that just my friends or peers think are cool.

I will save the excessive money that I spend on needless accesories like water bottles or stickers or bracelets, and spend it on things a little more worth my while.

- Rachael Jacobs/ Features Editor photos by Rachael Jacobs

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1981- John Katzman, creator of the Princeton Review, begins his tutoring business

1995- Because of “recentering” SAT scores, for the first time students can miss a few questions and still earn a perfect score

1990- Ten students out of 1.2 million taking the test get a perfect 1600

1975- The US Federal Trade Commision investigates Kaplan, a major testing company, for false claims in its advertising

2001- The ACT becomes the official state test for Colorado juniors

1975- About 32% of all graduating seniors take the SAT 1959- University of Iowa professor develops the ACT to compete with the SAT

1926- the College Board first administers the SAT to 8,000 students. The test contained 315 questions, taking 97 minutes total (about 20 seconds/ question)

THE SAT 1938- Stanley H. Kaplan begins tutoring students as preparation for standardized testing

THE ACT AND SAT: A BRIEF TIMELINE

BY THE NUMBERS 3 hours and 50 minutes1000- average SAT score, out of 1600 length of the SAT, not including breaks

points

26- average ACT of a student

1540- average SAT of a student accepted

accepted into CU Boulder

into Harvard

25- percent of students that received a fee waiver to take the SAT in 2015

59- percent of the graduating class that took the ACT in 2015

$56.50- cost of the ACT with writing 20- average ACT score, out of 36 points 6.9- average score out of 12 on the

$54.50- cost of SAT with writing

ACT writing section, for the class of 2015

1120- SAT score that corresponds

with a 65% probability of a first-year college GPA of a B- or higher Credit: https://www.reference.com/education/many-students-sat-test-year-508841c9be880c36, http://www.chalkbeat. org/posts/co/2015/12/15/testing-giants-vie-to-provide-colorado-high-school-exams, http://www.edweek.org/ew/ articles/2015/09/09/2015-sat-act-scores-suggest-many-students.html

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Thirty juniors wait silently in even rows of desks, pencils aligned vertically with their test booklets. “Please remain in your seat. Once finished with the test, you are permitted to check your work in the current section, but do not turn to previous sections”. These are the same standardized testing instructions these juniors have been hearing since elementary school, but the stakes are now much higher.

The SAT is the primary standardized college admissions test, with over 2 million students taking the test every year. With individual school standards varying greatly between states and even districts, in some cases, colleges value the SAT (and its counterpart, the ACT) more than ever.

Juniors have taken the ACT as the mandatory test in Colorado since 2001, and even before that, the ACT was typically preferred for applying to instate schools. In 2014, 55,000 Colorado students took the ACT, as opposed to only 6,500 who took the SAT. In December 2015, students throughout Colorado were shocked to hear that, rather than taking the ACT the coming spring (as juniors have since 2001), the state had made a sudden switch to the SAT. The reason for the switch was money.

“It is money, because what happens is the state, every few years, they have to open it up so that other companies can have an opportunity to do the testing for the state assessments,” Counselor Jill Benisch said

2005-The college board announces that Pearson, the company that scores the exams, scored 5,000 tests incorrectly

2004-2005- 49% of seniors have taken the SAT at least once

SWITCH “And so they bid to get each state, and that’s how it’s decided.

CollegeBoard won because their package was cheaper than the ACT,” Benisch said.

Many juniors had spent months preparing to use the spring of 2016’s mandatory ACT for their college applications; there were also concerns about how teachers and administrators would prepare for and implement the SAT with such short notice. Amid formal protests from a group of district superintendents, education officials soon began working to delay the switch to 2017.

Spring 2016 became the final ACT for Colorado juniors. In one month, tens of thousands of juniors will take the SAT as the mandatory test of spring 2017.

“Now that it’s not a shocking lastminute change, I don’t think anybody’s even thinking anything of it for this year,” Benisch said.

“It didn’t really make a difference to me, to be honest with you, because it’s just another option. I think, because I see it in a different lens, where colleges accept either one. It wasn’t really as shocking as it was for students having to make that adjustment,” Benisch said.

-Tori Armitage/News Editor

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Class of 2006 Preferences: Red=ACT, Blue=SAT Credit: https://commons. wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SAT-ACTPreference-Map-2006.svg

2010- for the first time, more students are taking the ACT than SAT (1.57 million vs 1.55 million, respectively)

December 2015Colorado announces the switch to the SAT

PLANNING AHEAD: WHICH TEST TO TAKE Do future juniors have to worry about another sudden switch in standardized testing?

It’s not likely. Because of the state’s five-year contract with College Board, the makers of the SAT, the PSAT and SAT will remain the official state test until at least 2022. In the meantime, students and parents alike will have to work on differentiating between the two tests and determining which assessments are right for them. Though the only free test is the SAT that students take in April of their junior year, most high school students take one or both assessments multiple times. Which assessment they choose depends both on which colleges they are considering, and which test emphasizes their academic strengths.

“I took the PSAT, and I liked the ACT better because the PSAT had a section with math, without a calculator, and I can’t do math in my head, so I preferred not to do that section,” Jasmine Johnson said.

Students should consider doing significant research on each test before deciding which to take, and what to focus on when studying beforehand. “The ACT has a little bit more math. You have to know a little bit more math, get into trigonometry a bit more, than you do with the SAT. The ACT you also have to move faster through the problems, so if somebody’s personality is that they get stressed out or they freeze a little bit, or aren’t as comfortable focusing for that long, they might not score as well on the ACT,” said Benisch.

“[If I could change the process] I’d make standardized testing a more secondary thing. I feel like grades in individual classes are more important.”

-Nikki Gander Beyond the question of which test to take, many question whether standardized testing should be such a major part of the college application itself.

“I feel like colleges are definitely trying to make the move to reviewing people more holistically…. There are so many different things you can look at. If people are just really, really bad standardized test takers, that shouldn’t decide whether or not they get into a college,” Nikki Gander (11) said. “[If I could change the process] I’d make standardized testing a more secondary thing.

I feel like grades in individual classes are more important. Individual classes aren’t prepping us for the SAT necessarily. I wouldn’t make it the epitome of what colleges are looking at, for you to get in,” Gander said.

The impact of the SAT switch remains to be seen. Though the test a student chooses to take is very dependent on what colleges they apply to, the decision to use the SAT in Colorado does still affect over 50,000 students this year alone. High school GPA, as well as rigor of courses taken, remain the best predictor of college success. However, the subjectivity in grading among high schools means that the ACT and SAT won’t be going away any time soon.

Opinions

STAFF EDITORIAL: UNRELIABLE MEASURES The Problem With Standardized Testing

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MAS, PARCC, SAT, PSAT, ACTwhy do we have to take all of these standardized tests? In 2002, No Child Left Behind (NCLB)was signed into law, requiring standards in reading and math for children all around the country. Provided that a student could achieve an agreeable score on a state standardized test, it would mean continued federal funding for the school, student, and teachers.The justifications were simple: to allow for a more comprehensive understanding of each pupil’s proficiency in education as well as areas for improvement and to allow the government to assess whether students nationwide were receiving an equitable education.

Standardized testing seeks to eliminate any subjectivity which may occur in the classroom.

It is understood that a teacher’s grading policy is by no means unfiltered in attitude, student-teacher relations, or error. By assigning similar testing environments, similar test questions, and like-minded evaluators, standardized testing seeks to eliminate any error which may occur along with providing a blind, objective grader. Having established a standard scope for students, standardized tests allows for comparability between students and schools.

Determining the average score of each grade level and comparing it to the state standard allows for specific areas in which the school needs improvement, and encourages schools to look for a more direct cause of low scores. This may result in the firing of employees, re-allocating resources and much more to improve a school’s score.

Objectivity in the evaluation of a student’s

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performance is important, but as the expression goes, you cannot judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree. The truth of the matter is that no one child thinks like every other, and this is where the problem with standardized tests come into play. Standardized testing would only truly achieve its aims in circumstances in which all children not only were put into objectively similar atmospheres, but also if they objectively thought the same. This also interferes with the comparability of each student. The lives of each student are subjective, and in attempting to make tests unbiased, tests are in fact simply disregarding the many circumstances involved in a student’s basic learning. There is a clear separation between learning and practice; for example, students learn about sex education--they do not practice it. Parallell to this case, students end up practicing the test, not learning the information on it. When it comes to evaluation, a standardized test is less likely to test the student’s true ability and more likely to test the student’s ability at taking the test.

Because these tests are fundamentally unreliable due to the subjectivity of learning, teachers who are more than able to teach and schools which are more than able to provide a substantial amount of resources for each pupil are purged of doing so. If the tests are yielding inaccurate results, the action of overhauling or “reforming” schools is therefore unreliable. Standardized testing takes not only months of time, but money as well. According to education

research firm Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, Colorado spends roughly 78 million dollars every year on standardized tests alone.

By investing millions into standardized testing, states are bypassing larger issues such as unequal learning facilities, dwindling teachers, lack of resources and more.

Standardized tests are no use to schools that are already aware of problems they need to solve.

In addition to expenses, standardized tests are responsible for the disruption of a lot of the rhythm that is involved in curriculum during the spring. Weeks have to be set aside to dedicate to standardized testing, and it is because of this that teachers are often forced to purge units from their curriculum.

As citizens, we have a duty to provide the best and most effective education for our students in order to preserve the integrity of not just our political system, but the basis of argument and creativity. Innovation is what drove this nation forward from the beginning to modern times. Assessing the question of whether standardized testing has a place in education is tricky because, in order for a compromise between standardized testing, and no standardized testing to be met, the way in which standardized tests are given would have to be reformed. Although there is no clear-cut solution thus far, testing would have to take into account the many aspects of each student’s learning as they strive to become active participants American society.

Assigning an objective test to students who are subjectively influenced by differing circumstances results in poor assessment.

- Howler Editors photo illustration by Mandy Matteson

Opinions

LOVE TRANSCENDS THE ILLUSION OF SEPARATENESS - Marly Ruprecht/Guest Writer

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egardless of creed or faith, I believe that we are all one universal consciousness dwelling in different physical entities. Our unique and often opposing personalities and opinions are formed and shaped by our experiences and traumas. This brings to mind the necessity of compassion and empathy for others because if we had the same experiences and genes as another person, we would not be so different than them. It is similar to the philosophy of not judging a person until you "walk two moons" in their shoes.

I love so many people with drastically differing ideas on touchy subjects. You know, the things you aren’t supposed to bring up because they tend to be followed by a power-struggle-thunderstorm of anger.

These topics, you may have guessed, are things like politics and religion. Both religion and national pride are supposed to be uniting factors, but in reality they often bring out our tribal instincts and territorial aggression. In their hearts, I think that everyone wants peace and freedom for all members of the human race.

The spirits of human beings are a wide network of interconnected roots like those beneath a forest of trees. Unfortunately, humans have a tendency to disbelieve what they cannot see. Often, people are warped by the horrors of the world, but most at least

photo by Andrew Patra

desire peace and freedom for themselves.

What differs in us is the way in which we think that peace and freedom can be achieved.

I believe we are not as separate as we think. I believe there is no such thing as bad people and good people. I believe there are only people broken by their circumstances.

The belief that we are separate is like the water that creeps between the cracks of the sidewalks and freezes, creating a barrier that can only be broken by warmth. Our first instinct is always judgement when someone does something we disagree with. If we spent more time contemplating why they did it, and exercising empathy and compassion, disagreements could be solved in a much more productive way. The notion of separateness is contradictory to the achievement of peace.

Maybe it’s not as complicated as we think. (Maybe thinking is what makes it so complicated.) All I know is that people are broken and built by their experiences, and this fickle cycle is universal to all of us. Our circumstances do more than just break and build us, however. Over time, they also construct our perspective and view of the world based on our own personal experience of it. Every life is endlessly different and the complexity of this causes the severe divides which constitute the illusion of separateness.

But a few elements of existence are universal.

The languages of love and art are universal, and pain and suffering are universal.

If we can recognize that while surface aspects of our lives may be different, the core and the truly invaluable constituents of the human soul are universal, then we can have peace through compassion and understanding.

There is a great camaraderie in the sharing of these things. We often underestimate the power of love, the light it brings, and how it connects us.

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Opinions

NECESSITY TO DEMOCRACY Whistleblowers Maintaining the Conscience of Society

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ruth is coming, and it cannot be stopped,” said Edward Snowden, a whistleblower who took it upon himself to call out the NSA on their extensive surveillance of American citizens. Despite the NSA’s justification of doing so for the sake of national security, many viewed the surveillance as a clear violation of privacy rights. Even worse, the NSA had been doing this in secret. This was seen by as profoundly undemocratic.

Because of his courage and success in revealing injustices, Snowden is considered a hero to many. But some want nothing more than to see him imprisoned for treason.

A whistleblower is someone who discloses wrongdoing and corruption. The latter usually applies to large and powerful agencies. No matter what, it involves risks (such as getting fired, expelled, or even deported). High stakes whistleblowing could involve a lawsuit or even arrest.

Though Snowden anticipated he was risking his own life and freedom in the process, he believed the pros in the situation outweighed the cons -- the rights of the masses were more important than his own.

Why did his disclosure spur such huge backlash (not just from the government, but also from U.S. civilians)? Simple - people are confused. They don’t know who or what to trust. In the name of public security, did the government really have the right to intrude in personal lives of its citizens and violate the Fourth Amendment?

Some poeple believe that government should be as trasparent as possible, but is

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hiding more than it should. Snowden’s leaks have solidified that opinion.

As a matter of fact, these leaks have been ongoing and haven’t necessarily been publicized. Information that isn’t necessarily meant for the public could still be transported to the press via congressional hearings.

Not all of these informants get themselves into a serious legal case -- what they are doing shows that these are normal signs of democracy.

It isn’t as if the government ignores the necessity of whistleblowers. The Senate had even passed a resolution that marked July 30, 2014 as National Whistleblower Appreciation Day. It stated that it was the personal duty of all members in service to the country to report any fraud or misdoing by others in service straight to Congress.

Many believe that our government is supposed to be by and for the people, and that no one is above the law just because they are holding government power. This makes sense. In order to fulfill its duty of protecting the people, the government needs to keep certain things classified. There’s a reason why ordinary citizens don’t all have positions in federal office. However, the government has no right to keep their people in the dark when it comes to huge policies that directly threaten their day to day lives. Cases like the one Snowden revealed are a direct example of the NSA taking advantage of the public’s ignorance, and that isn’t justified.

Whistleblowers remind government official of their jobs -- to be by, for, and open with the people, not against them. Whoever

dismisses Snowden in saying that “privacy is dead” is far from correct. It’s true that many social media sites allow us to share our daily lives with our followers, but this seemingly harmless information could be used by the government and other organizations for their own means. You may not like this, but the law isn’t on our side. The Privacy Act of 1974 (a law that governs the distribution of individuals’ personal information) does not apply to private companies like Facebook, and Twitter. Even if companies explicitly state otherwise, your information may not be as private as you think.

It was necessary for Snowden to reveal information in order to prompt change.

Though they may mean well, the federal government and other organizations most definitely shouldn’t be allowed complete free access to citizens’ personal data. As we saw with Snowden and in many other instances, the government is not guranteed to uphold it’s promises Although they may not expect much, whistleblowers maintain the conscience of the government and other major organizations.

In fact, the very prospect of what the democracy United States fought for is threatened if people didn’t stand up for the truth and call out injustices. This is a sign of a healthy democracy.

- Sneha Varanasi/Staff Reporter photo illustration by Levi Wood

DIARY OF A

Opinions

TEENAGE

BLACK GIRL Boxed in by Assumption

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ver since I was little, I’ve been a black girl in a white world. I’ve grown up in predominately white communities and neighborhoods. I never really saw a difference between me and the kids and families that lived around me until I reached high school. I just let the subtle things from middle school and elementary school build up, and by high school I a had chip on my shoulder. More people were able to come and just ask me questions. I began to recognize a lot of assumptions about black people in general and black culture.

The problem is many people base their judgement on stereotypes they see in the media. So if someone sees a black girl with a weave on TV, they assume black girls always wear weaves, or if they see black people on TV or social media talking a certain way, their assumption is that all black people speak this way. This can be extremely annoying, because everyone is different even when they are the same race.

But some assumptions bother me more than others. Take the classic “Is that your real hair?” Yes, it is my real hair; is that your real hair? Why would someone assume that my hair wasn’t real? Is this something that you would ask to someone who is Asian or Latina? When I respond to people in this manner, most go on the defense. “Well, it’s just so long I’ve never seen a black girl with such long hair.” Well, just like anyone who ever wanted longer hair, I grew it out for months, and it wasn’t easy because my hair requires so much attention. But, because I wanted it, I did it. It becomes really frustrating when someone just assumes that this isn’t my real hair. It’s like if you worked hard on a paper for weeks and when you turned it in your teacher accused you of plagiarism.

Another thing that bothers me is the comment “You don’t talk black.” Do all black people have to talk the same? But the real

question is what exactly is “talking black.”

That is classifying a group of people as being all the same; it’s like saying all blondes are the same or all Asians are Chinese. Yes, there is a black vernacular that a lot of black people use, but if a black person hasn’t grown up in an area that used that vernacular then why would they use it?

When, if I don’t get the “you don’t talk black,” I get “you don’t act black.” I have to act black to be black? It’s all over my skin but I have to act a certain way? But what does acting black mean. Doesn’t everyone act in a unique way? Or are everyone’s actions cookie cuttered into their race? The way I act is me-it’s not because I’m black and not because I grew up in a white area. It’s just who I am; the same goes for every person in the world.

I am frustrated when people just don’t seem to fully grasp this, like no matter what I do I’m not a unique individual. I just “don’t act black.” Or the things I accomplish are just because I’m black, I have been told by some people,“Because you’re black and tall,

you should be good at sports.” But it’s not true; nothing about being black genetically enhances me to be better at a sport than other people. I’ve just given my all to what I do which has made me good. But tosome people, it’s just because I’m black.

I know that people just assume because they don’t know any better: if you don’t grow up with a lot of black friends, how would you know? But try to form your assumptions not from what you’ve seen on the media, but from how someone acts towards you. You wouldn’t want someone to make assumptions about your identity- you don’t want to be assumed to be anything but yourself.

- Jasmine Jeffcoat/Sports Editor Illustrations by Mandy Matteson

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News

WHAT TRUMP HAS DONE SO FAR BEGAN ROLLING BACK THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT Only a few hours after taking office, Trump issued an executive order which started the process of rolling back Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act). Since Obamacare had to go through Congress and is a law, Trump’s executive order can’t change it, but he has started the process of repealing parts of the Affordable Care Act. Trump hopes to repeal Obamacare and replace it with something he hasn’t detailed yet, but which he claims will be capable of covering all Americans. The House of Representatives has approved a budget measure which will allow Congress to repeal parts of the ACA, but has not released a new health care bill.

The executive order can’t do much to the act. More than 20 million Americans who depend on Obamacare will still be covered while Trump’s administration tries to transition to new legislation.

While Republicans in Congress work on a new plan, it could take more than two or three years for agencies to pass new regulations, and insurers to issue new policies, even once a law is passed.

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WITHDREW FROM THE TRANS PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP (TPP) One of Trump’s campaign promises was to “bring back jobs”. As part of his plan to do so he withdrew from the Trans Pacific Partnership during his first day in office. The TPP was a trade deal between twelve different countries which Obama had initiated early in 2016.

The TPP involved Australia, Canada, Chile, Peru, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, New Zealand, Brunei and the United States. All of those nations contributed to make up to 40% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product. The TPP would benefit consumers greatly with lower costs on goods, and a larger variety, since the trade deal eliminates many tariffs (taxation on imported goods). The TPP would be the largest trade agreement in the world, and promised to boost economic growth while strengthening relations with Pacific nations.

Now that America has been removed from the TPP, Trump will try to demonstrate his campaign promise of bringing jobs back to America. Though many believe that increased involvement in the global economy is beneficial, Trump justified the removal by stating that American workers are now protected against competition from lowwage countries.

PLANNED TO INCREASE BORDER SECURITY An aspect of Trump’s campaign that really appealed to many people was his promise of a strong arm when it came to immigration.

Trump kicked off his plan to build a wall along the US-Mexico border by instructing the Department of Homeland Security to begin construction of the almost 2,000 mile long wall.

Trump wants to use existing federal funds to start the construction of the wall, but where funds will come from is still not clear. Funding for the wall would need to be approved by Congress. Hypothetically, it would create jobs.

Trump also wants 5,000 more patrol officers to work at the border, which means a lot more deportations.

Trump targeted “sanctuary cities” which are cities that shield immigrants from deportation. This includes Boulder, San Francisco, and many other major cities.Trump plans to withhold federal funding from these cities. He ordered 10,000 more immigration officers to enforce immigration law and work on more deportations.

IMPLEMENTED TRAVEL BAN A controversial move Trump has made is the travel ban (often referred to as the Muslim Ban) he signed off on. The executive order indefinitely banned Syrian refugees, and further limited the amount of refugees entering the United States from all other countries. The ban was set into motion to stop immigration from countries the administration identified as“terror prone” countries, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia.

Backlash from the ban was huge with protests in many large airports (including DIA) as people were being detained when they landed.

- Estelle Silk/Staff Writer Image Credit: The White House

Sports

RACING TOWARDS

SUCCESS

K

Rieder; An Award Worthy Coach

ent Rieder, the head coach of cross country and track, had a successful cross country season to say the least. He led the boys team to their first ever state title and that was not unnoted by the running world.

The United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association chooses one coach of the year for cross country for each state, each year for boy and girls.This year, Rieder was recognized as the Coach of the Year for all of Colorado on the boys’ team.

This was not a first for Rieder, though, as he was also voted the girls’ Colorado coach of the year in the past. Rieder has been the Head Coach for Monarch’s boys and girls programs since 2005, and has led his teams to four state titles overall. Every year since he took over the program, both teams have made it to the state meet in Colorado Springs, which is no small task. This means that both programs were in the top of the their regions and state each year.

Rieder was an avid pole vaulter and vaulted through high school at Wheat Ridge and continued his pole vaulting career at the University of Colorado at Boulder. His experience within the sport has drawn out success in many athletes throughout his coaching career.

“Somehow he figured out how to get me to try, and the last couple years I’ve tried and I have not regretted it,” said senior Zach Litoff,

a member of the state squad.

This year, though, he says that Coach Rieder didn’t merely want greatness; he expected it. He knew what the Monarch boys’ team was capable of and he saw their potential. Every day and every race he held the team to that.

“He’d be like, “Hey, you guys should win this race, you should all be in the top ten,’” Litoff said.

Rieder developed many athletes of differing abilities, but this year he has a handful of seniors who are debating running collegiately, including many of the state team members. However, he always inspires his younger runners to have success as well. Logan Weber, the top freshman runner through the cross country season, experienced this throughout his first season.

“He really connects with us and is great at making workouts,” Weber said.

The team and Rieder have been the basis of multiple articles on Milesplit.com this year praising the boys due to their impressive season, rising from sixth in the state last year to state champions this year.

“Coach Rieder has always been working with them, but this year especially they took the reins, and Coach encouraged that,” said Assistant Coach Kevin Lowe.

The boys made an effort to really become a strong bonded team this year, to find it

within each other to keep themselves going, to encourage their teammates to keep digging, and Rieder didn’t object.

“It’s well deserved. I think it’s because we’ve come from a program that was good to a program to that is constantly great for both boys and girls. Monarch has become one of the national teams to watch,” Lowe said.

The girls’ team has also flourished under Rieder with three state championships and garnered much of the attention in years past.

These boys have always been good, however they were never able to obtain the ultimate prize at the state meet. This year they took that good and made it great, finally bringing home the trophy. Rieder focused on a team environment this year for the program. Not just looking towards one runner to place well, but for them all to work together and find success within each other and the team.

Rieder said he focused at the goal at the end of the season, not every individual long run or meet, but the prize at the finish line of the season. He knew the other teams would fluctuate throughout the season and it was important just to keep looking towards the end.

This approach worked out for Rieder; he brought home a state championship and raked in a Coach of the Year for Colorado award.

- Anna Wexler/Staff Reporter Photo courtesy of Mohi cross country

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Culture

LIVING IN THE AGE OF AIRPLANES “The airplane became the first World Wide Web, bringing people, languages, ideas, and values together.” – Bill Gates Rarely, if ever, do we think about where some of our daily household items might come from. National Geographic’s Living in the Age of Airplanes offers to change all that by giving us a glimpse at how far humanity has progressed over the last 200,000 years in regards to travel. Directed by Brian Terwilliger and narrated by Harrison Ford, Living in the Age of Airplanes offers a fresh new perspective on aviation. With the hassles of air travel, it’s hard to see anything other than the numerous delays, missed flights, missing luggage, etc. Featuring a majestic score by James Horner and impressive visuals by cinematographer Andrew Waruszewski, the film aims to change that sentiment by taking viewers on a journey through 18 countries on all seven continents to illuminate how much the airplane has impacted the world.

Separated into five chapters, the film dives straight into the history of humans and how the average speed of travel has increased over the last 175 years, especially after the invention of the steam engine.

“Since we were all born into a world with airplanes, it’s hard to imagine that jet travel itself is only 60 years old, just a tick on the timeline of human history,” director Brian Terwilliger said. “But our perception of crossing continents and oceans at 500 mph has turned from fascination to frustration. I want to reignite people’s wonder for one of the most extraordinary aspects of the modern world.”

As I watched chapters two through four, I gained a better understanding of how deep of an impact aviation has made on mankind.

In particular, a scene featuring the journey of a flower grown in Kenya and being shipped to the flower hub of the world, Amsterdam, was one of the highlights for me. Flowers have a limited lifespan, so they must be picked, sorted, and be set to arrive within a couple of days, some with destinations thousands of miles away.

“Flowers are extremely perishable, so of course the speed of transportation is really

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important. Because most people don’t know about this huge market, I thought it would be interesting to follow the story of how something otherwise very ordinary comes into your home in a quite extraordinary way,” Terwilliger said.

The final chapter will make you want to rethink your position on aviation. Sure, there will always be the headaches and frustrations, but next time you take a trip on an airplane, step back and take a good long look outside your window.

“My hope with this film is that it inspires audiences to see aviation with a new sense of appreciation and awe. If somebody goes to see Living in the Age of Airplanes and comes away thinking ‘I’ll never think about flying the same way again,’ then it worked,” Terwilliger said.

In a world in which we take air travel for granted, Living in the Age of Airplanes does a fantastic job of sparking wonder in a topic that has lost its luster among the public.

Living in the Age of Airplanes is available to purchase via the iTunes store, and on Blu Ray/DVD on Amazon.

- Kevin Wu/ Staff Reporter photos courtesy of Living in the Age of Airplanes

Carpe Diem.

A phrase thrown around so much, but do we know what it means? What is seizing the day? The moment?

Some say it’s holding those you love. Others say it’s feeling the rush of doing something you love. It’s holding on to something that isn’t physical. It’s holding on to an emotion. But maybe, it’s the moment that seizes us. What holds us is what makes us human. Carpe Diem is a call to action, and a life motto. A call to get out into the world and just feel.

- Andrew Patra/Editor-in-Chief

29

Culture

MUST READS: Jazzy’s Faves The Sun is also a Star by Nicola Yoon

T

his is a must read if you love love.

This story takes place in one day.

There is Natasha, a strong independent girl, someone who works so hard for everything she’s ever gotten. And it’s all going to be taken away from her. The problem is Natasha is an illegal immigrant from Jamaica. Although she has been living in the United states since she was two, she’s going to have to give up everything because she is going to be deported that day. Then there is Daniel, an AsianAmerican boy getting ready for his college interview with Yale. Daniel is just trying to do his best to please his parents after they were ever so disappointed by his brother, who was kicked out of Harvard. While that Natasha is trying to do everything she can to not get deported and Daniel is trying to get into Yale, their paths cross and Daniel falls in love with her. But Natasha … not so much. Daniel begs her for the chance to make her fall in love with him that day but Natasha really doesn’t have time for it. I would give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

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Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland

A

I

nother must read by Nicola Yoon, she gives more of an adventure in this book. Madeline has suffered from a disease for 18 years now: she’s allergic to everything. She hasn’t been outside her house; she’s basically a prisoner of her disease. She has no real friends except for her mom and her nurse Carla. Well, that’s before Olly moves in next door. Olly is just so intriguing to Maddy, she can’t help but watch him. Olly finally catches Maddy watching him and he is just as intrigued by her as she is by him. They start talking over email, and Maddy just can’t stop thinking about him, so she does the unpredictable: she meets him in real life. Olly makes Maddy feel like she’s outside, which makes Maddy question her sickness. If outside could make her feel like Olly makes her feel, how bad could outside really be? I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

f you love books like John Green’s Fault in Our Stars or Rainbow Rowell’s Eleanor and Park, youare going to love Our Chemical Hearts. A high school senior, Henry Page, has never been in love, or loved anyone, well that’s until Grace Towns, who came to school dirty, with her hair in knots and oversized clothing, waltzed into his life. It wasn’t love at first sight but it was definitely curiosity at first sight-- Grace was so mysterious and secretive and Henry had to know more. And the more he found out, the more he realized that she was broken.

Henry spends all his time and energy trying to love and fix Grace. But can you really fix someone who doesn’t want to be fixed? I give this book 3 out 5 stars.

- Jasmine Jeffcoat/ Sports Editor

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STAFF Andrew Patra/Editor-in-Chief Carmen Harris/Culture Editor Rachael Jacobs/Features Editor Levi Wood/Opinions Editor Jasmine Jeffcoat/Sports Editor Tori Armitage/News Editor Mikayla Dudek/Web Editor-inChief

Monarch High School 329 Campus Drive Louisville, CO, 80027

Matt Keenan/Associate Editor Staff Reporters Emma Baziuk Sali Castro Claire Clarissa Bryan Dumpert Ian Fowles Hannah Gross Ellie Guanella Zikra Hashmi Kanika Hicks Nick Kauza Phil Phronesius Maddie Rumbach Sarah Schemmerling Estelle Silk Chase Standerwick Sneha Varanasi Aidin Velick Anna Wexler Samantha Wexler Treyton Williams Emma Wolters Kevin Wu Advisers Bonnie Katzive Emily Stanley