views of better candidates after Super Tuesday

POINT GL BE’S THE

The Globe has TikTok

Yes, you read that headline correctly. The Globe is now on TikTok.

During the past few weeks, we at The Globe have been wondering how we can expand our social media presence. This year, we have toyed around quite a bit with different efforts, such as merchandise giveaways and horoscope readings. However, our social media efforts have been missing a certain je ne sais quoi. We wanted to be able to create content that lets our audience get to know the staff personally, and what better way to do so than on TikTok?

So get on TikTok and follow The Globe @ppuglobe.

We promise to not make content that is too cringey or dumb, and we promise to represent the students of Point Park well on the platform. We hope that anyone who follows enjoys our content and gives us feedback directly. If you have any suggestions or ideas for the account, feel free to let us know by emailing globe@ pointpark.edu.

Never fear, Pioneers, just because we are expanding to TikTok does not mean that we will be abandoning our audience on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. You can still find us on those platforms and we will still be producing regular content and updates.

We look forward to interacting with you online! Safe browsing!

Point Park Globe globe@pointpark.edu

Calling all conspiracy theorists, there’s a new one popping up on social media. Apparently, every US election year there has been a new virus that sweeps the globe. The viruses are listed as follows: SARS – 2004, AVIAN – 2008, SWINE – 2010, MERS – 2012, EBOLA – 2014, ZIKA – 2016, EBOLA – 2018, CORONA – 2020. Is this a coincidence? I think not.

Now, many of these viruses may have not originated in the U.S. My thought, however, is that the United States conspires to allow the virus to penetrate into not only the American immune systems, but the American minds to produce sickness, but even more unfortunately to produce anxiety and chaos. Think about it, the election years are hectic enough with dealing with changing political climates and candidates who love By Shannon Hartnett Co-Opinions Editor money far more than the idea of winning the election. Let’s face it, politics are more evil than good. When candidates step up to the platform, they preach their standpoints and how they will fix America at large, but underneath all of this they fear the public eye watching their every move.

As the population gears up to vote in April and then again in November, I believe that politicians fear they will be publicly smeared, and in retaliation, attempt to scare the public eye into focusing on something else. We see this tactic used all the time in politics against one another, who is to say they wouldn’t use it at large to help them win an election. While the citizens of America are distracted by the coronavirus, the political parties are creeping around trying to upset the competition.

As politics become the new religion of America and news outlets run 24 hours a day, it has become harder and harder to make mistakes and play dirty as a politician, without the American people noticing. I log onto Twitter and all I see are coronavirus stories. Every possible angle, idea and thought about the virus is published. I think this is an attempt to distract people from the upcoming election. One thing that I truly believe is that there is not a single politician rising to power simply because they are perfect people who only care about helping others.

Therefore, to distract the public from the morally wrong and illegal things that they do, they publicize viruses that have the potential to scare people enough to turn away from politics for a certain period of time.

Shannon Hartnett snhartn@pointpark.edu

Super Tuesday: Joe Biden superior

Within a twenty-hour time period, two Democratic candidates, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar, joined the long list of failed campaigns. Although many predicted Klobuchar would not last much longer, with polls not favoring her victory in the 2020 election, Buttigieg halted at a time of personal success. Was this decision made because of self-doubt or to – once again – rip the election away from Democratic leader, at the time, Bernie Sanders? The evidence is there to support both theories, though it is clear what transpired.

Ironically, both Buttigieg and Klobuchar suspended their campaigns before one of the most important days of the primary election, Super Tuesday.

On this day, 14 states had the opportunity to cast their votes towards the President they want to see in the White House. Before Buttigieg and Klobuchar dropped out of the race, voters had numerous options in the moderate candidate category, as these two politicians are not as far-left compared to Sanders, for example.

With the removal of these two options, former Vice President Joe Biden is now in the spotlight. After experiencing a major victory in South Carolina, receiving 48.4-percent of the votes, it has become clear that he has a better chance at the nomination than people expected. For this reason alone, something is not adding up.

As stated before, Buttigieg halted at a time of personal success. Caucus after caucus, he continued to surprise the nation, performing above expectation. In New Hampshire, Buttigieg placed second within two percentage points of Sanders. The Nevada Caucus highlights this failed candidate in the top three. Even after the disaster in Iowa, one thing is for sure, he did a lot better than people imagined.

What would a successful candidate do in response to heaping support and vote counts? Continue, right? In Buttigieg’s case, not so much of Klobuchar’s, his campaign was suspended.

Looking back at Biden’s victory in South Carolina, puzzle pieces start to fit together.

Buttigieg and Klobuchar do not want Sanders to be the nominee, so they ended their campaigns to aid in Biden’s.

By dropping out before Super Tuesday, Biden’s door to the Democratic nomination opened all the way.

As of March 5, Biden currently leads with a total of 595 delegates with prior leader Sanders not far behind with 526. Although the race is close, it was assumed Sanders would lead, up until the dropping out of Buttigieg and Klobuchar.

By the end of Super Tuesday, people now know this is a race between Sanders and Biden. Bloomberg placed third in numerous states, leading voters to believe that he will continue his campaign; however, this is far from the truth.

Bloomberg not only joined the failed candidates list but added his name to the list of Biden endorsers. In a statement made on March 4, Bloomberg shared: “While I will not be the nominee, I will not walk away from the most important political fight of my life.” Bloomberg is ready to aid in Biden’s campaign to ensure the prevention of another Trump term.

Elizabeth Warren, a candidate with similar policy plans as Sanders, followed Bloomberg’s fate on March 5. Her refusal to immediately endorse a candidate should worry Sander’s supporters. Why wouldn’t she express her approval of Sander’s campaign, seeing that her plans would be passed anyway?

Even as a Trump supporter, I feel bad for Sanders and his campaign. This is the second election in which the Democratic party is shutting out an effort with major support. Although I believe his policies have no place in the United States, people on the other side of the political spectrum seem to relate with his message, which is what this country needs. Looking at Biden’s campaign, I start to worry. At the end of the day, Buttigieg, Klobuchar and Bloomberg have turned the tables for the Democratic party. Voters now have a big decision to make: a left-leaning democratic-socialist or the moderate candidate who most likely has a better chance of obtaining Republican voters. Covering the world of Point Park University news since 1967 Logan Dubil lmdubil@pointpark.edu By Logan Dubil Staff Writer

Bernie Sanders:

the better choice

By Jake Dabkowski Co-News Editor

Picture this: it’s Nov. 3, 2020. You’re up late, watching CNN with your friends. A pizza box and empty White Claw cans decorate the depressing scene as you watch Joe Biden lose to Donald Trump by 200 electoral votes. Your uncle shoots you a text reading “Still your president! MAGA!”

By the end of Trump’s second term, the Supreme Court will lean 7-2. Justice Jeanine Pirro will cast the deciding vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. Irreparable harm will have been done to the planet and we will no longer be in a position to stop the climate catastrophe. Don Jr. is Secretary of State and Eric is Postmaster General. Ivanka will run in 2024 and become the first female president, because #Resistance twitter accounts will claim that Democratic candidate Rashida Tlaib is too angry.

We wash, rinse and repeat this cycle for the next twenty to thirty years until rising sea levels cause the collapse of global society and we all die.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The night before Super Tuesday, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar dropped out of the race and endorsed Joe Biden. Beto O’Rourke skateboarded out of hiding to endorse Biden and threw away all of the credibility he’d built up with his “for the people, not PACs, campaign.” Then, on Super Tuesday, Biden won ten states. After Super Tuesday, Mike Bloomberg dropped out and put his billions of dollars and vast media empire behind Joe Biden.

Elizabeth Warren has since dropped out, and despite Biden suggesting J.P. Morgan’s CEO to be Secretary of the Treasury and Bloomberg to be in charge of the World Bank, she says she is unsure of who to endorse.

Now, unlike some of my fellow Sanders supporters, I still respect Warren. I think she made some bad calls late in the race, but I still think she would have made a great president. So here’s the pitch:

It is time for progressives to unite. If you’re a Warren supporter considering supporting Biden, then you clearly never actually cared about her policies, but simply her aesthetic. If you are willing to give Bernie Sanders a chance, and lend your support to the movement, we can win this thing.

The establishment will do everything they can to stop Sanders, and the only way that he can win is by continuing to build the historic coalition that he is building. They have hundreds of millions of dollars at their disposal. We will have the people. When the Not Me, Us Movement beats Trump and saves this country, those who doubted and fought against us will claim to have been with us. Our movement will be big enough to let them.

Warren and Sanders supporters are in the same fight, and both groups must come together to build the largest progressive coalition in history. As Senator Sanders said when he endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, “We are stronger together.”

Jake Dabkowski jcdabko@pointpark.edu

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All In with Allison

By Allison Schubert Sports Columnist

For Crying Out Cloud

It is no secret that Pittsburgh is a rainy city.

The United States average for days with precipitation is 106.2; Pittsburgh comes in well above that at 140.4.

Similarly, the United States average for sunny days is 205; Pittsburgh is not even close with just 160 days with sunshine per year.

Baseball, especially here in Pittsburgh, is very weather-dependent.

Last year, the Pirates had one rain delay that lasted twice as long as the game itself, and our own Pioneers had to cancel seven games and postpone two, all for weather-related reasons.

That’s not to mention the amount of delays that were sat through before play resumed or started in some cases.

I was reading an article written by a former collegiate baseball player the other day, and it began a circle of questions in my head about how those delays affect athletes.

Before a game, players warm up, have batting practice, take the field and focus to get in the right headspace for the game they are about to play.

When a delay hits, the flow of the game is compromised and that pregame ritual is repeated after however many innings are already played.

Not only is it annoying to the players and coaches, but that break in play has the ability to switch the momentum completely or throw off a team’s style of play.

Right now, the Pioneers sit at 9-3 overall with a 4-2 record in River States Conference (RSC) play.

Point Park has 23 games left in March and 22 scheduled for April before postseason.

The month of March sees an average of 4.3 inches of rain, while April sees 4.5 inches on average.

2019 was the third-wettest year in Pittsburgh, which recorded 52.34 inches of rain. The wettest year on record for the city was 2018, which saw 57.83 inches of rain.

With climate change looming over everyone’s heads, the precipitation levels in the city are only rising, which results in an increase in delays and cancelations for the Pioneers.

The coach from the article I mentioned earlier also brought up the struggle of keeping athletes’ heads in the game during an hourslong delay, especially when there is not much else to do. The conversation is one not had often, but just some food for thought; the next time there is a rain delay at the ballpark, think of how hard it is for the athletes to adapt. It makes them more impressive, honestly.

Allison Schubert alschub@pointpark.edu

Pioneers one of only twelve teams to advance to nationals

By Zoey Angelucci Staff Writer

The competitive dance team won the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Competitive Dance Southeast Regional title, giving them an automatic bid to compete in the NAIA National Championship.

Two weekends ago, the Pioneers competed in Montgomery, Ala. against teams from five different conferences. They won single-handedly with a final score of 81.71. A team’s final score is determined after averaging the scores out of 100 from both (or all) rounds of competition.

“The experience of winning our region for the first time was extremely rewarding and exciting, especially as one of the senior dance members on the team,” senior dance captain Jeannea Cobb said. “With that said, I am really looking forward to competing with some of my best friends for one last time in the NAIA. Everyone works so hard in and out of practice so being able to see our hard work payoff is very satisfying.”

The Pioneers started out with a score of 75.33 in Friday’s preliminary round and scored an 81.30 in the second round. For the third and final round, they scored an 83.83, resulting in the final average score of 81.71. The team entered regionals ranked 12th in the NAIA and came out on top. “The team has been practicing skills and choreography on top of workouts, performances and appearances since the beginning of September,” head coach Bettina Herold said. Submitted | Point Park Athletics The competitive dance team is one of just 12 teams across the nation that will advance to Nationals later this week.

This is the team’s first regional championship in program history and its third appearance at the national competition. The Pioneers will be one of just 12 teams in the nation competing in the finals.

“This whole weekend was definitely something I won’t forget,” junior Jayci Ross said. “We went into finals in second place knowing we had a chance to get first place. We went downstairs before finals and had a team pep talk, walked into the floor and performed better than we ever have. We knew during announcements it was going to be close. When they announced second place and we found out it wasn’t us, our entire team looked at each other shocked. I never thought that during spring break our team would not only compete at regionals, but win the entire competition. It was crazy.”

The NAIA Competitive Cheer and Dance National Championship will take place at Lee Lohman Arena on the campus of NAIA school St. Ambrose University in Iowa. Preliminaries will be held on Friday, March 13 with the finalists competing again on Saturday, March 14.

“The athletes in our cheer and dance programs have worked so hard all year,” Herold said. “Their strong performances at Regionals this past weekend showed the payoff for all of their dedication. I am so thankful to have the opportunity to represent Point Park every year and to work with these outstanding athletes.”

Zoey Angelucci zaangel@pointpark.edu

Athletes gain national honors in last indoor meet of season

By Allison Schubert Sports Editor

The men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Indoor Track & Field National Championships in Brookings, S.D. last week, taking home multiple national honors.

The women saw action on the first day of Nationals last Thursday, when the distance medley relay ran in the preliminary round, but missed the finals by just three spots. Freshman Kiera Cutrigh, sophomore Alyssa Campbell and juniors Alyssa Boyd and Reba Bartram were the quartet that made up Point Park’s distance medley relay team, which came in at a time of 12 minutes, 25.85 seconds.

16 total teams competed in the distance medley relay, with eight teams in each of the two heats. The Pioneers placed fifth in the second heat, finishing in 11th in the country overall.

Since only the top eight teams move on to the final round, Point Park did not advance, but only missed out by eight seconds.

This is the third consecutive year that the Pioneers’ distance medley relay team made the trip to nationals.

Representatives from both the men’s and women’s teams competed on Friday, the penultimate day of Nationals.

The women had two athletes competing in prelims: Bartram in the 800-meter event and Campbell in the mile.

Like the distance medley relay that both athletes ran in the day prior, only the top eight spots in the 800-meter advance to the finals; the top ten times in the mile event advance.

Bartram was seeded 19th going into Nationals, but set a new personal-record of 2:16.77 to place ninth overall

in the 800-meter. That time was just 0.15 seconds short of eighth place (2:16.62), edging her out of advancing.

The story was similar for Campbell, who ran a time of 5:07.49 in the mile and placed 14th in the country. This time was within three seconds of the advancing ten, but not enough to move on.

The men saw a bit more success with their first day of competition in the national meet.

Senior Xavier Stephens ran in the preliminary round of the mile, placing third in his heat and sixth in the country with a time of 4:17.09.

Placing sixth overall was good enough to move onto the finals on Saturday with a chance to make NAIA All-American status for the third time in just as many appearances at Nationals.

Stephens was the only Pioneer to compete on Saturday in the final round of the mile, in which he placed tenth in the nation with a time of 4:34. This was Stephens’ third top-ten national finish of his career, the other two coming from the indoor 1,000-meter and outdoor 1,500-meter last year.

Next up for both teams is the outdoor track and field season, which begins on March 21 at the Geneva Golden Tornado Classic in Beaver Falls.