Talon November 2016

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Talon ISSUE 85 / FALL / 2016

LET’S TALK ABOUT POLITICS

INSIDE: FEATURE

INTERNATIONAL

SPORTS

WHO WILL YOU S(ELECT)?

BUILD BRIDGES NOT WALLS

BELICHICK FOR PRESIDENT

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PAGE 36

PAGE 42


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talonnewsmagazine@gmail.com

06 LIFESTYLE

6 ADULTING 101 | 7 IF I WERE PRESIDENT | 8 GREEN PARTY CANDIDATE | 9 KEEPING AN OPEN MIND | 10 MR. TWEET & MRS. EMAIL | 11 THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY | 12 WOMEN WILL REMEMBER COME NOVEMBER | 14 WHAT’S IN YOUR YARD? | 15 TRUST THE RAINBOW | 16 ARE YOU WITH HER, OR HIM? | 18 WHO WILL YOU SELECT? | 21 SHATTERING GLASS CEILINGS | 22 YES HE DID | 24 THIRTEEN MOVIE REVIEW | 25 LIVING IN A HOUSE DIVIDED

20 INTERNATIONAL

28 YOU SHOULDN’T VOTE FOR TRUMP | 29 SPANISH TRANSLATION | 30 STRAIGHT OUTTA OPTIONS | 32 THE GOVERNMENT REGIMES | 33 ARABIC TRANSLATION | 34 OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY | 35 ARABIC TRANSLATION | 36 BUILD BRIDGES NOT WALLS & ARABIC TRANSLATION

32 SPORTS

40 THE YELLOW FLAG | 41 NOT EVERYONE DESERVES A MEDAL | 42 BELICHICK FOR PRESIDENT | 43 TIM TEBOW RULE | 44 REMEMBERING A YOUNG LEGEND| 46 POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN SPORTS | 47 RED VS BLUE | 48 CHAMPIONS AND THE WHITE HOUSE | 49 THE SAGA CONTINUES | 42 CANDIDATE PHOTOGRAPH SPREAD

Want to read more content? Visit us online at Talonnews.360.net, or see our interactive side of the magazine online at Talon.tv. Here you can find videos, interviews, and other special content!


CONTRIBUTORS EDITOR IN-CHIEF CASEY LEE MANAGING EDITOR GRACYN REED SPORTS EDITOR RYAN MEYER INTERNATIONAL EDITOR MOHAMMED ALABDULLAH COPY EDITORS BRIANNA PERALTA KYLEIGH ZOLTEK ZACH MIZE PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR JESSICA ALBINA

ADVISOR DR. J ANTHONY SNORGRASS TALON TEAM LEXI CLARY DIXIE ROBINSON MACI HODGES SCOTT BOWER KYLEIGH ZOLTEK ZEFF LEWEY YESSICA RAMIREZ

BANDAR ALHAIDARY DANIEL GALLEY ZACH HOEFLICKER TREY BALES

KEATON STEWART STEPHEN CONWAY TYLER KING DEVON HALL ATSUSHI HIDA

STAY CONNECTED Download the QRReader app to stay connected with the Talon. Scan our QR Codes to take you directly to our Website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

ON THE COVER & BACK: COVER: Photo by Photography Editor Jessica Albina BACK: Photo and photo illustration by Photography Editor Jessica Albina


&

Not voting is a vote WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DON’T VOTE?

educate YOURSELF

Voting is one of the cornerstones to a representative democracy, such as the United States, but the last time over 60 percent of the population turned up to vote for the presidential election was in 1968. Changes in everyday people’s lives are in danger of going away if we don’t vote and make it clear we want these changes to grow, and even more so, we are ready for more change.

HOW WILL MILLENIALS IMPACT THE ELECTION? It’s the power millenials don’t know they have. Presidential candidates go hard after millennial voters because they know they have the power not just to shape, but to sway, entire elections. In the primaries, former Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders won over the millennial vote in a landslide, earning more votes from people under 30 than both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump combined. This just goes to show how much of a tipping point millenials will be for this years election.

M

“Every election is determined by the people that don’t show up.” -Larry J. Sabato

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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

The election is just around the corner. For some, this is their first time voting. For others, their third or fourth. Either way, we could all say this is one for the books. I know there’s been fair discussion amongst my friends. Sworn Republicans and Democrats are struggling with which side to pick, and are even considering voting third party. This isn’t like any election we’ve seen before. That’s why we were so excited to make an election issue. We knew there was going to be great content, and so many different opinions. Through this we hope to create discussion and let our readers view this election from all perspectives.

Erin Casey Lee, Editor-in-chief

OTHER PHOTOGRAPHS

f

All photographs of Barrack Obama, Jill Stein, Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, and Donald Trump, as well as Election photographs, came from the media on their official campaign websites.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Talon News Magazine is produced by students of Avila University. Opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Talon News Staff, the Trustees, administration, faculty, or staff of the University. The Talon News Magazine encourages letters to the editor. These may be submitted electronically or in writing and should include the writer’s name, address, and telephone numbers for verification purposes. Letters can be mailed to the Talon News Magazine Editor, Avila University, 11901 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145. The Talon reserves the right to edit letters for reasons of space, clarity, or inappropriate language. Copies of the Talon News Network Operational Guidelines may be requested by writing to the above referenced address.


ADULTING 101 Dress to impress: Dressing for an interview Brianna Peralta & Gracyn Reed

We’ve all been in the situation where we had to go in for an important meeting or job interview and we felt like we had no idea what to wear. Tip 1: Dress for the job you want. Research the company that you are applying to work at and mimic what they are wearing. If you want to play it safe then wear professional attire. Ultimately, you want to dress in a way that you show off your best self to your possible future employer. Make a good first impression. Tip 2: Make sure you’re comfortable. An important part about going into an interview confidently is making sure you pick an outfit that is appropriate yet comfortable

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attire for your interview. Interviews can last between 30 minutes and 2 hours so make sure you’re prepared. Tip 3: Invest in a power outfit Suits and ties will never go out of style. We suggest you take the time and look for a few comfortable, professional outfits that stand out. They may cost more, but they may be useful if you are called back for multiple interviews. Tip 4: Play it safe with ink, piercings, and facial hair. If you aren’t 100% sure about the company policy then cover everything. You never know how your interviewer will react to piercings, facial hair, or ink, even if these things are becoming more acceptable in a work environment.


if i were president What would you change? Keaton Stewart

With the presidential election coming up I have recently heard numerous people say how terrible the candidates are. In response, I asked, “What if you were President?” First, I interview a Kansas University graduate. Q: If you were president what change would you make to improve the United States? A: I would change our military, make better relationships with foreign countries, and also change our gun laws. Second, I interviewed a personal trainer in California. Q: In the inner city what change would you make as President? A: If I was president, I would enforce school uniforms. Due to all of the bullying and violence, kids tend to bully each other by what they wear and how they look overall. And in the inner city it is all about colors “red, purple, blue etc.” for a type of gang. Uniforms

would be able to somewhat slow the gang violence down. Lastly, I interviewed a student attending a California junior college. Q: As president what is one of the first things you would like to do? A: First thing will be for the people who were sent to jail for [the] 3 strikes law, [I would] bring them home. A lot of people heave their 3rd strike from stealing food or something, so I would bring them home. I also would make sure all the cops that got off from killing innocent minorities would [be] sent back to trial with a whole new judge and jury. Through these interviews you can see people that come from different backgrounds have different opinions and different focal points for the U.S. In response, we can continue to grow and eventually, one of us can take over as president. ISSUE 85 |

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Neither Trump nor Hillary

I would be happy Green party candidate: Jill Stein Lexi Clary to run a Party is the left-wing group of the Democratic race with Party.TheTheGreen Green Party has 10 main key values: grassroots democracy, ecological wisdom, social justice and equal Hillary opportunity, nonviolence, decentralization, community based economics, feminism, respect for diversity, personal and Clinton global responsibility, and future focus and sustainability. The any time.” Green Party believes these are the key values for building a solid foundation for world peace. They truly think they can -Jill Stein make a difference in the quality of lives and the environment. On August 6th, Jill Stein became the Green Party presidential nominee for 2016. She is a mother, doctor, and a hard-core advocate for environmental health. According to an article written by Mark Weiner, Jill Stein has received the most votes for a female candidate in the general election. Stein has helped lead, “initiatives to fight environmental racism and injustice, she promotes healthy communities, she has helped with campaigns in the financial reform, and she has helped [the] clean up of coal plants and toxic threats.”

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KEEPING AN OPEN MIND You don’t always have to agree Kyleigh Zoltek I know it is habit to either shut down and be quiet, or blow into a heated argument over certain issues, including politics, but is that exactly necessary? Is it necessary every time someone disagrees or presents a different point of view? The opinion on the matter is yours; however, it’s also best to keep an open mind regarding such issues or topics of discussion. Regarding the election, the two presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the same still applies. Try to keep an open mind. Try listening to what the other side has to say, even if you don’t agree with it. Most times, it’s best to hear both sides of an argument rather than just your own. Not only does it force you to think more, it also allows you to see where you stand on certain issues. Hearing both sides – in this case, hearing what each candidate has to say and offer – allows you to do the same. When hearing your opposition, you could be paying attention to the criteria presented and thinking about the discussion or debate. You could formulate your argument, and see how it stands alone without the assistance of others. Granted, there are times when hearing the opposition is not necessary. For most cases, though, it is. Your argument can grow through the introduction of both opinions, not just one. Regarding both presidential candidates, try listening to the topics discussed by both their positions on certain issues, and their goals for the country if they become president. Each factor should be taken into consideration. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to agree with what they say. It can be tough hearing any opposition but 99.9% of the time it’s necessary.

To know the good from the bad, study a man or woman’s history of actions, not their record of intentions.” -Suzy Kassem ISSUE 85 |

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MR. TWEET & MRS. EMAIL A battle of media wits or lack there of Trey Bales In this day and age, the media has grown bigger than ever. It has even come to play a huge part in this presidential campaign. On one side we have a candidate who takes to twitter to rant in 140 characters. On the other, we have a candidate who can’t seem to grasp the whole e-mail concept. For Donald Trump, twitter has become a campaign tool. Whether this is genius or it turns out to be his Achilles heel, is yet to be determined and will only be determined after the election. It comes as no surprise that Trump is just as outspoken on twitter as he is in real life. On September 29th Trump tweeted “Wow, did you see how badly @CNN (Clinton News Network) is doing in the ratings. With people like @donlemon, who could expect any more?” Some of his tweets lead you to think, are you serious? Is America being punk’d by Ashton Kutcher? Regardless if you’re for Trump or against him, you have to admit he is keeping it rather entertaining. On the other end of the spectrum, we have Hillary Clinton. During her tenure as

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Secretary of State, she exclusively used her family’s private email server for official communications, rather than official State Department accounts maintained on federal servers. Thousands of emails Clinton sent and received were marked “C”. The “C” stands for classified. Clinton claims she didn’t know what the “C” stood for, and she may not have. However, odds are she knew what it meant. If she didn’t, you would think she could come up with a better lie than that after all of the previous lies she has told. This world never ceases to amaze me. Out of everyone in this country we managed to have it come down between a guy that has to shorten “you” to “u” just to get his point across in 140 characters, and a women who “doesn’t know” that “C” stands for classified. If it were my choice, I would say let’s not elect either of these two clowns. I say we give the rest of the world the cliché “we have to work on ourselves (U.S.) before we can work on us (rest of the world).” Let’s just take these next four years to relax and then start back up fresh.


THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY? Many millenials still feeling the Bern Casey Lee Bernie Sanders. He completely stole the millenial and youth vote. A recent survey by TIME Magazine revealed, “1,000 Americans aged 18 to 26 found that he is the most respected political figure, and that more would prefer to have dinner with him than Beyonce, Kanye West and Justin Bieber.” What’s going on? How did a 75 year old, white male, gain the vote of our youth? Let’s talk about Millenials. We have overwhelming student debt, high unemployment, and we feel as though we’ve received this huge mess from older generations. For most of us, there hasn’t been a time the United States wasn’t in war since we’ve been alive. Nikhil Goyal, American journalist, said, “Our institutions and the political and economic establishment have been royally screwing us over, and we’re not going to take it anymore.” That’s just it. We’re not going to take

it anymore. We’re not going to sit back and shut up, while older generations talk about how privileged, lazy, and narcissistic we are. We are not as irrational and immature as adults seem to think. We’ve grown up with financial crises and accept that most of us will be unemployed. Most of us are cynical and pessimistic because of the environment we’ve grown up in. We’re the unemployed generation and the indentured generation. Bernie is the only one that has taken the issues facing our youth seriously. He’s the first candidate to really push the problem of student debt, and is able to recognize the economic challenges we face. Bernie Sanders is every millenials dream. He fights for oppression, the working class, the little guy and the middle class, and realizes that our society is rigged for the rich. You’re damn right he caught our attention.

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WOMEN WILL REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER Trump’s locker room talk is swaying the female vote Casey Lee I was hoping that it wasn’t true. That if there’s a chance this man could become President, that it wouldn’t be true. “Grab her by the pussy.” Wait, what? “… When you’re a star they let you do it. You can do anything.” And there it was. A recording was obtained from 2005 where Donald Trump can be heard talking to Access Hollywood host Billy Bush. The explicit and uncensored audio revealed some previous comments made by Trump about women. But he apologized. Sure, he apologized, writing it off as “locker room banter”. But that was ten years ago. He was a different man then, wasn’t he? In 1991 in an interview with Esquire magazine, Trump commented on the media, “You know, it doesn’t really matter

what [they] write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.” In 2011, Trump told a lawyer she was “disgusting” when she excused herself to use a breast pump. In 2013, during a taping of “Celebrity Apprentice,” rock musician Bret Michaels told Donald Trump his fellow contestant Brande Roderick had dropped to her knees and begged to be the project manager. Trump said, “It must be a pretty picture. You dropping to your knee.” But he was a different man then. And it’s just locker room talk, right? The men that are actually in the locker room seem to disagree with that. London Fletcher, former NFL Linebacker, said, “Somebody wasn’t talking about sexually assaulting someone. That’s what Trump was talking about, in my opinion. To label that as

“I suppose I could’ve stayed home and baked cookies and had teas.” - Hillary Clinton 12

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MEMBER

locker room talk was reckless. He is trying to get people to dismiss what he was talking about. He talked about Hillary Clinton being in jail. He should be in jail for what he was talking about doing.” Eric Weddle, safety for the Baltimore Ravens, said, “In my experience, there isn’t conversation like Trump was talking about or conversation that looks down on women. It’s kind of odd that he would put that in context with us, or any locker room. If women are brought up, it’s more relationship-type stuff, or night-out-type stuff, but never in the way that it was brought up in that context.” What about the women in the locker room? Would they be so quick to jump to the defense of these players? Jen Welter, former assistant coaching intern for the Arizona Cardinals would. “I can honestly say in my entire time with the NFL, not one guy disrespected me. People underestimate the caliber of men who play in the National Football League.” Calling this sort of conversation “locker room talk” is doing an injustice to these men. Michelle Obama blasted Trump. “The shameful comments about our bodies. The disrespect of our ambitions and intellect. The belief that you can do anything you want to a woman? It’s cruel. It’s frightening. And the truth is, it hurts.” “Boys will be boys.” “All guys talk about that stuff.” This is it. This is rape culture. This is why rapist Brock Turner only served three months in jail after sexually assaulting a woman behind a dumpster. If you didn’t know this, Trump grabbing a woman’s pussy without consent is criminal sexual contact. Trump is the embodiment of rape culture. The Trump campaign is downplaying assault, denying women’s stories, and attacking them for coming forward. Implying that this talk is simply “locker room banter” is normalizing a toxic form of masculinity that tells men they have a right to women’s bodies. Since the release of this tape, several women have stepped forward with sexual assault allegations. More and more women are coming forward with their own stories of harassment from Trump throughout the years. Bush was released after this tape was released. There will be no repercussions for Trump. Trump feels like he has the right to grab women by the pussy because of his status. Imagine what he’ll think he has the right to do if he becomes president. ISSUE 85 | 13

“The trump campaign is downplaying assault, denying women’s stories, and attacking them for coming forward.”


What’s in your yard?

KEN BONE THE HERO WE NEED, NOT THE HERO WE DESERVE Audience member Kenneth Bone asked a question related to energy and became an Internet meme after the second presidential debate. He received praise for his red sweater, and has since gotten his 15 minutes of fame in an IZOD add, telling American’s to vote. After the debate, he became a meme overnight.

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TRUST THE RAINBOW Syrian refugees downgraded to candy

HERO WE DESERVE

Gracyn Reed Syrian refugees have become a large part of today’s communities. As problems continue to rise in the Middle East, our politicians find new, convincing ways to turn us against the Syrians. Donald Trump Jr. posted a photo on Twitter that read, “If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you. Would you take a handful?” His caption with the Tweet says, “The image says it all. Let’s end the politically correct agenda that doesn’t put America first #trump2016.” He received loads of backlash from celebrities as well as the entire Twitter world. Jon Favreau had tweeted a photo of an injured little boy and said, “This is one of the millions of children you compared to a poisoned Skittle today.” All of this discussion really makes you think about the entire skittle scenario. What if you knew that a small amount of berries in a bowl could kill you, but if you didn’t eat the berries other people would die too? It’s a simple analogy, but the meaning behind it makes sense. Yes, a small scale of Syrian children can be recruited by ISIS to bomb parts of the United States, but that doesn’t mean we should leave all the Syrian children to die. In this world, life is fragile; people can only bend and break before it’s too much to handle. Stop comparing Syrian children to poisonous Skittle’s and start teaching adults what is appropriate and how to conduct themselves on the internet.

Let’s end the politically correct agenda that doesn’t put America first.” -Donald Trump Jr.

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ARE YOU WITH HER? o Breaking down Hillary Clinton

Dixie Robinson For years people have recognized her as the woman behind President Bill Clinton. A younger generation may know her for battling Barrack Obama for the Democratic Candidacy in 2008. Although she ended her campaign then, she has returned to the race. This time against the Republican Candidate, Donald Trump. Clinton went to law school at Yale where she was one of 27 female graduates. She became the first female associate and first female partner for Rose Law Firm. Hillary wanted to fight for health and education systems and did so when she became First Lady of the United States in 1992. In 2000, Hillary became the first female U.S. senator from New York. After losing to Barrack Obama in 2008, she became his Secretary of State. Equal rights, tuition-free college, helping small businesses, gun control and violence prevention, universal

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healthcare, support of our veterans, sexual assault on college campuses, immigration reform, paid medical leave, and animal protection are all ideals at the forefront of her campaign. She has based her campaign around helping the “little people” in our society, and has focused on their equality for most of her life. The major issue voters have with her is they don’t feel as though they can trust her. This came to a head when it was announced she used a personal email account to deal with official government communication. She also deleted emails from this account which has brought doubt to the voters. Hillary Clinton could become the first female president this November, and although you shouldn’t vote for her based on her gender, know that it has a huge role to play in how she views the world.


?o

OR HIM? n

Is Trump on track to making America great again? Maci Hodges Donald J. Trump, chairman and president of The Trump Organization, is the presidential Republican candidate for 2016. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of Finance in 1968. He is well known for his portfolio of real estate developments around the world. Donald’s latest White House run is officially on. Trump states, “Sadly the American dream is dead…but if I get elected President I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before.” His slogan for his presidential campaign is, “Make America Great Again.” Although there are multiple political issues in the race for president, two of the most debated issues are the economy and immigration. According to Trump’s official website, his vision on the economy is to “create a dynamic booming

economy that will create 25 million new jobs over the next decade.” Trump’s vision on immigration is to “promote a system of legal immigration that serves the well-being of the American people.” Trump frequently posts on social media and participates in interviews promoting the issues of his campaign such as free market, the importance of a strong family, a culture of life, and a strong military. He feels that all of these issues are important to making America great again. Donald Trump entered the race for presidency believing that a change was needed in our government. He believes his results-driven success in business is what is needed to change from being ran by agenda pushing lobbyists and career politicians. Will Donald Trump make America great again? America needs to decide.

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“z

“If people can just pour into the country illegally, you don’t have a country.”

Deport undocumented immigrants? Clinton

“I grew up in NYC, a town with different races, religions, and peoples. It breeds tolerance.”

“There has to be some form of punishment for women who seek abortions.”

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who will you s(ele No

Trump

Yes

Increased gun control? Yes Trump Clinton

No

Increase in military spending? Clinton No Trump Yes Keep abortion legal? Yes Trump Clinton

No

Aborting if the women is at risk, if the pregnancy is due to rape or incest, and restrictions on late-term abortions? Clinton

Yes

Trump

Yes

Should Social Security be cut? Clinton

No

Trump

No


who will you s(elect) w

documented immigrants? Yes

No

Yes

Should the retirement age be raised? Clinton No No Trump Same sex marriage? Yes Clinton

Trump

No

Transgender bathrooms? Yes Trump Clinton

No

Believe in climate change? Yes Trump Clinton

No

Should the minimum wage be raised? Clinton

Yes

Trump

No

Support the death penalty? Clinton

Yes

Trump

Yes

Trump

“The American people are tired of liars and people who pretend to be something they’re not.”

“Human rights are women’s rights, and women’s rights are human rights.”

Yes

Should police body cameras be mandatory? Clinton

No

“Gay rights are human rights.” ISSUE 85 |

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SHATTERING GLASS CEILINGS Hillary Clinton could become the first female President Casey Lee

Her nomination put a crack in the glass ceiling, and her victory could completely shattered it. Hillary Clinton became the first ever female presidential nominee, and she could become the first ever female President. Before this, we’d seen 43 white, male presidents. We hit a milestone when Barack Obama became the first African American president of the United States. We got to experience history in 2008, and we have the potential to witness it again in November. Whether or not you’re voting for her, or agree with her, you still have the ability to be a part of history. After Clinton won as the Democratic nominee, she said, “And if there are any little girls out there who stayed up late to watch, let me just say I may become the first woman President. But one of you is next.” She’s setting a path for women for many generations to come. She’s setting an example. She’s teach young girls that they can do anything. Fifty years ago no one would’ve imagined a woman president. What about ten years ago? She’s shattering the ceiling that’s held women back for so long.

Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world.” -Hillary Clinton

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YES HE

DID

While everyone is preparing for a new family in the White House, the Obama’s are finishing their legacy Dixie Robinson

When a president wins the election and is voted into the White House, the expectations for the next four years are high. Are they going to do what they promised during their running campaigns? Are they going to make the right decisions for our country? Are we going to regret this decision? When President Barrack Obama won the election in 2008, the stakes were never higher. Eyes were already on him for being the first African American president. Add to that the crash of the housing market, a recession, and a major national debt, and you have a feat strong enough to hinder anyone.

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Sometimes it’s not easy through all of the negative issues to see the good things a president has done for our country. However, Barack and his wife, Michelle, made many accomplishments during their eight years in the White House. One of the most well-known and notable accomplishments President Obama had in office was the Affordable Health Care Act. People are still highly torn on this issue because it’s not a perfect solution. Basically, the Affordable Health Care Act made it to where all Americans would have access to health care. Within the act there are stipulations


that help education such as providing billions in Pell Grants and debt relief, but many people aren’t aware of this because of how much controversy surrounds the AHCA. Other accomplishments the Obama’s have had include allowing LGBT’s to serve in the military and get married. Insurers can’t deny people based on pre-existing conditions. According to Politico Magazine, “Solar energy installations are up nearly 2,000 percent and carbon emissions have dropped…Even Republicans like Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio…have been complaining on the campaign trail that he’s accomplished most of his agenda.” The list of accomplishments continues, and would be even longer if he wouldn’t have had such high opposition from other politicians. The Obama family only has a few months left as the head of our country and although their success is disputed, they can continue on their journey with integrity and strength.

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” -Barrack Obama

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thirteenth A review of the Netflix original

Tyler King Thirteen, A Netflix Original documentary provides insight on slavery, criminalization, and Jim Crow laws, connections between racial inequality and political and economical beliefs and drives. It is a touching, astounding, eye opening documentary where the camera never leaves the faces of the victims. It is overloaded with facts of our history. The U.S. contains 5 percent of the world’s population, but 25 percent of the world’s prisoners are in the United States of America. “The land of thee free.” In 1972 there were 300,000 prisoners, and in 2016 there are currently 2.3 million. The US has the highest incarnation in the world! The amount of sincerity and the connection of the speakers of the film spoke volumes showing the importance of movements and people such as “The Black Panthers” and “Willie Horton”. The Civil War ended, leaving the southern economy in tatters. Four million people who were slaves were then freed. America needed a way for the economy in the south not to plummet, so they devised a plan of action that would continue to suppress African Americans. They were arrested in mass, other wise known as the prison boom. These events led to situation awareness that went negative with a domino effect. This inspired the film “Birth of a Nation” which was believed to have inspired the “Ku Klux Klan”. The KKK, in others words, another form of terrorism, soon became outlawed. Thirteen brings awareness to the events that have, and are currently, happening throughout history. A must see, and a very interesting topic that could be discussed for days.

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LIVING IN A HOUSE DIVIDED I didn’t inherit my parents’ politics Brianna Peralta

When I was a kid, all I wanted was to be exactly like my parents. I wanted to be a nurse just like my mom. I wanted to be as easy going as my dad. I wanted to be republican because that’s what they were. It wasn’t until the 2008 Presidential Election of John McCain v Senator Barack Obama that I realized I would probably have different ideals than they did. I always found Obama’s campaign to be an interesting one. The way he reached out to different audiences of old and new voters. I felt like he really wanted to live by his campaign slogan “Yes We Can.” Even though my parents wanted McCain to win that election I secretly was ecstatic to see Obama take office. It took a couple years of learning about the two party systems and what it truly meant to be Democrat or Republican. When I turned 18 and it was my turn to register to vote I chose the party that had values that I thought best represented me as an individual; I registered as a

Democrat. Let me be the first to tell you that living in a house divided by parties is not the easiest thing. It’s a lot of awkward conversations where we avoid talking about recent “he said, she said” topics that have been in the news. It’s making passive aggressive comments about candidates that we aren’t voting for. You can say that the election has really tested the relationships in my family. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t excited for all the political talk to end. The biggest thing that I took away from this is that I am extremely grateful to live in a family that lets me express my opinion if it’s different than theirs. It taught me to be open minded, to look at different perspectives and to not be so quick to judge a book by its cover. I would be lying if I were to say that I wasn’t excited that the election season is almost over, but even through it all I’m grateful for my little house divided. ISSUE 85 |

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INTERNATIONAL SECTION

INSIDE: FEATURE

FEATURE

FEATURE

YOU SHOULDN’T VOTE FOR TRUMP

GOVERNMENT REGIMES

BUILD BRIDGES NOT WALLS

PAGE 28

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NAL SECTION

Contents

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BRINGING THE WORLD TO AVILA AND AVILA TO THE WORLD

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YOU SHOULDN’T VOTE FOR TRUMP I COULD GIVE YOU A MILLION REASONS WHY STRAIGHT OUTTA OPTIONS NOT CHOOSING EITHER CANDIDATE THE GOVERNMENT REGIMES WHO WILL BE THE NEXT PRESIDENT? OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY INTERNATIONAL VIEWS OF THE ELECTION BUILD BRIDGES NOT WALLS BUILDING WALLS ONLY SEPARATES US

ON THE COVER: Photo courtesy of: news website Edge Events LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

No matter what we face in our daily life, each day we have tests, presentations, research papers and exams. Getting out of your comfort zone would allow you to have some peace of mind from all the noise around us that stops us from seeing the road of life. Having a vision and keeping yourself reminded, is what going to get you to the end of that road, successfully. Mohammed Alabdullah, International Editor


I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall.” -Donald Trump

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YOU SHOULDN’T VOTE FOR TRUMP I could give you a million reasons why Yessica Ramirez I could write a million reasons why Donald Trump shouldn’t be president, but I only have one page to do so. I am, in a way, still amazed by the fact that people take Trump seriously. It is mind blowing. I can’t wrap my head around the idea of Trump, a man with such ignorance, becoming president. I’m seriously amazed by his stupidity. His supporters use him as a way to finally have the chance to speak up in what they truly believe in. Since Trump speaks his mind, his supporters have someone to basically back them up about their views. He has exposed the racism that still exists in this country. “Oh finally someone who has the same views as me! Now let me speak up as well!” I’m not claiming that everyone that supports Trump is bad. The one’s who support him show all of this negativity towards undocumented immigrants, Muslims, African Americans, etc. There were Trump supporters that tore a poster a lady held that simply had the word “peace” on it. How ridiculous is that? You may ask, now, why do I not like Trump? Not only did he bash my people, he also said these exact words: “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending the best. They’re not sending you, they’re sending people that have lots of problems and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists…And some, I assume, are good people.” Please care to explain this... I honestly don’t even know what to say. The amount of videos that I’ve watched where people hold all of this anger towards another individual for speaking other languages is insane. How are you going to tell someone to go back to their country because they’re speaking another language? This not only hurts me, but it hurts my parents, my family, and anyone who relates.


VOTE FOR TRUMP

lion reasons why

Podría escribir un millón de razones por Donald Trump no debería ser presidente, pero sólo tengo una página para hacerlo, por lo tanto, no puedo. Soy de una manera todavía sorprendido por el hecho de que las personas tomen a Trump en serio es exorbitante. No puedo hacerme a la idea de que Trump, un hombre tan ignorante, se convierta presidente. Deberas que estoy asombrada por su estupidez. Utilizan a Trump como una manera de tener por fin la oportunidad de hablar de lo que realmente creen en. Como Trump dice lo que piensa, sus partidarios tienen a alguien en que respaldarse y piensan que tienen el derecho en decir sus puntos de vista. Se he descubierto el racismo que todavía existe en este país “Oh, finalmente, alguien que tiene los mismos puntos de vista que yo! Ahora voy a hablar también!” Ahora, no estoy diciendo que todos los que soportan a el Trump son malos. Las personas que lo apoyan muestran mucha negatividad hacia los inmigrantes indocumentados,

Musulmanes, Afroamericanos, etcétera. Había partidarios que desgarraron un cartel que decía “paz” en una de las manifestaciones de Trump. Qué ridículo es eso? Usted puede preguntar, ahora, ¿por qué no te gusta Trump? No sólo ofende a mi gente, también dijo estas palabras exactas: Cuando México envía su gente, que no están enviando los mejores. Ellos no enviar más, que están enviando las personas que tienen un montón de problemas y que van a traer esos problemas con nosotros. Están trayendo las drogas. Están trayendo crimen. Son violadores ... Y algunos, supongo, son buenas personas. Por favor, explica esto… Sinceramente, no sé ni qué decir. La cantidad de videos que he visto donde la gente tiene toda esta rabia sobre otra persona que habla otros idiomas es una locura. ¿Cómo vas a decirle a alguien a volver a su país porque están hablando otro idioma? Esto no sólo me duele, pero duele mis padres, mi familia, y todo aquel que se relaciona

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Straight outta options When you’re not feeling either presidential candidate Daniel Galley This upcoming presidential election is one of the most talked about elections in the history of this country and the most worrying election for the rest of the world. Both Republican and Democratic parties have voiced their opinions and strategies on how they would, in Trumps infamous words, “Make America Great Again.” Though to say that they are capable of doing this would be somewhat of an outrageous claim. As an international student who has been studying here since 2012, I have never worried about myself staying in the country after college until now. With some of the policies certain candidates are suggesting they will bring to the Oval Office, I’m sure I am not alone in thinking that it would be a frightening thought to what type of laws would be introduced on foreigners visiting or living in America in the foreseeable future. The suggestion of “building a wall” and the idea of isolating the country from those who have helped it develop

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and grow as a nation is a scary and all but too realistic scenario which may come to fruition. America is not made up of TRUE Americans, especially those who are trying to control and seek higher authority over people of different ethnic backgrounds. It is known as a melting pot and has been since its independence. The America in which we know today was first settled by English, German, and Dutch, just to name a few of the many nationalities that decided to call this land, home. In my honest opinion I believe that any country could not survive without the immigrants and what they contribute to the economy is crucial. The political power in which America holds across the world is something that is incredibly respected by all and the president has arguably the most powerful position in the world. When we think of Clinton, although she may not be the best at what she does or the best person for the position, the world


“ options

sidential candidate

We are going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good.” -Hillary Clinton

sees her as a politician and knows what they will get with her. Straight forward and sitting on the fence on all decisions trying to get the approval of all parties involved unless given no other option to choose a side. Trump on the other hand is perceived as a loose cannon and with being at the helm of the largest army and most political sway. He genuinely does not seem as if he is the right person to lead this country and represent them as their chosen President. The area that concerns me most at this stage, is the “debates” that are occurring between Trump and Clinton. In these debates all we are hearing about is what has happened in the past or what the other has done trying to bring down the individual. They are turning the most anticipated and most prestigious election into something of a laughing stock. Although the latest debate was the most watched in history, for myself, I knew that I was watching it for the comical value it may have held. Imagine watching the news and finding out that it did not present the news or the weather, but made a joke of all the horrible situations happening through the country. People would be furious and would want answers to why they were not receiving what they were expecting. America should be demanding that of the Presidential candidates.

Bing bing, bong bong, bing bing bing.” -Donald Trump

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THE GOVERNMENT REGIMES Who will be the next President? Bandar Alhaidary The presidential election is surrounding our daily lives and is the main topic of conversation these days. We should look into and have knowledge to know what the governmental regimes are and how they work. It will be a great idea to know the regimes utilized around the world including the US government’s system. There are positive and negative aspects for all of them. Let’s go together to learn about these systems, I will write briefly about three different types. The Democracy is a system of government by all the eligible members of a society or allows for each individual to participate and to be a part of the political system. We often hear the United States referred to as a democracy. Sometime it is a system in control of an organization or group by the majority of its members, like companies or schools, to make decisions for the organization. From time to time, it is hard to collect every person’s opinion. The Republic is a system of government where the government remains mostly subject to those governed. The power in a republican government is held by the people and their elected representatives,

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the elected representatives elect the president rather than the people themselves. Many types of republics exist, such as Crowned, Single Party, Capitalist, Federal and Parliamentary. That means that the government is subject to the people, and the administrator can be recalled. The Monarchy is a government in which the monarch is not chosen by people. It is often the head of the kingdom and is inherited through family ties. The monarch will reign until they abdicate the throne or are deceased and the next person in the family will inherit the position of leader. The benefit of hereditary rule is that the monarch can easily change the system and policies. The monarch has the final word and complete discretion in how the rules are enforced. Around the world, there are five commonly used governmental systems and I mentioned three here including Democracy, Republic, and Monarchy. Each country has their own system to use, maybe you like the system in place in your country or you could prefer another country’s system over your own, you may even prefer none of the systems.


‫‪T REGIMES‬‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺃأﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺳﺗﺻﺑﺢ ﺍاﻟﺭرﺋﻳﯾﺱس ﺍاﻟﻘﺎﺩدﻡم‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺑﻘﻠﻡم‪ :‬ﺑﻧﺩدﺭر ﺍاﻟﺣﻳﯾﺩدﺭرﻱي‬ ‫ﺍاﻻﻧﺗﺧﺎﺑﺎﺕت ﺍاﻟﺭرﺋﺎﺳﻳﯾﺔ ﺗﺣﺎﺻﺭر ﺣﻳﯾﺎﺗﻧﺎ ﺍاﻟﻳﯾﻭوﻣﻳﯾﺔ‪ ،٬‬ﻭوﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﻣﻭوﺿﻭوﻋﻧﺎ ﺍاﻟﺭرﺋﻳﯾﺳﻲ ﻓﻲ ﻫﮬﮪھﺫذﻩه ﺍاﻷﻳﯾﺎﻡم‪ .‬ﻳﯾﻧﺑﻐﻲ ﻟﻧﺎ ﺃأﻥن ﻧﻧﻅظﺭر ﺇإﻟﻳﯾﻪﮫ ﻭوﺇإﻥن ﻳﯾﻛﻭوﻥن ﻟﺩدﻳﯾﻧﺎ ﻣﻌﺭرﻓﺔ ﻋﻥن‬ ‫ﻛﻳﯾﻔﻳﯾﺔ ﻋﻣﻝل ﺃأﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم‪ .‬ﺳﻭوﻑف ﺗﻛﻭوﻥن ﻓﻛﺭرﺓة ﻋﻅظﻳﯾﻣﺔ ﻟﻣﻌﺭرﻓﺔ ﺃأﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم ﻓﻲ ﺟﻣﻳﯾﻊ ﺃأﻧﺣﺎء ﺍاﻟﻌﺎﻟﻡم ﺑﻣﺎ ﻓﻲ ﺫذﻟﻙك ﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم ﻓﻲ ﺍاﻟﻭوﻻﻳﯾﺎﺕت‬ ‫ﺍاﻟﻣﺗﺣﺩدﺓة ﺍاﻷﻣﺭرﻳﯾﻛﻳﯾﺔ‪ .‬ﻫﮬﮪھﻧﺎﻙك ﺃأﺷﻳﯾﺎء ﺇإﻳﯾﺟﺎﺑﻳﯾﺔ ﻭوﺳﻠﺑﻳﯾﺔ ﻟﻛﻝل ﻭوﺍاﺣﺩد ﻣﻥن ﻫﮬﮪھﺫذﻩه ﺍاﻷﻧﻅظﻣﺔ‪ .‬ﺩدﻋﻧﺎ ﻧﺫذﻫﮬﮪھﺏب ﻣﻌﺎ ﻟﻠﺗﺭرﻛﻳﯾﺯز ﻋﻠﻰ ﻫﮬﮪھﺫذﻩه ﺍاﻷﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺗﻲ ﺳﻭوﻑف ﺃأﻛﺗﺏب ﻧﺑﺫذﺓة‬ ‫ﻣﺧﺗﺻﺭرﺓة ﻋﻥن ﻛﻝل ﻭوﺍاﺣﺩد ﻣﻧﻬﮭﻡم‪.‬‬ ‫ﺍاﻟﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺍاﻟﻣﻠﻛﻲ ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﺃأﻥن ﺍاﻟﻣﻠﻙك ﻻ ﻳﯾﺗﻡم ﺍاﺧﺗﺎﺭرﻩه ﻣﻥن ﺍاﻟﺷﻌﺏب‪ .‬ﻏﺎﻟﺑﺎ ﻣﺎ ﻳﯾﻛﻭوﻥن ﺍاﻟﺭرﺋﻳﯾﺱس ﻭوﺭرﺙث ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم ﻣﻥن ﺍاﻟﺣﺎﻛﻡم ﺍاﻟﺳﺎﺑﻕق‪ ،٬‬ﺛﻡم ﺍاﻟﺫذﻱي ﻳﯾﻠﻳﯾﻪﮫ ﺑﻌﺩد ﻣﻭوﺗﻪﮫ ﺃأﻥن‬ ‫ﻳﯾﺗﻧﺣﻰ‪ .‬ﻓﻭوﺍاﺋﺩد ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم ﺍاﻟﻭوﺭرﺍاﺛﻲ ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﺃأﻥن ﺍاﻟﻣﻠﻙك ﻣﻥن ﺍاﻟﺳﻬﮭﻝل ﺃأﻥن ﻳﯾﻐﻳﯾﺭر ﺍاﻟﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﻭوﻫﮬﮪھﻭو‪ ،٬‬ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﺍاﻟﻣﻘﺭرﺭر ﻭوﺻﺎﺣﺏب ﺍاﻟﻘﺭرﺍاﺭر‪ .‬ﻭوﺍاﻟﺗﻲ ﺗﻌﻧﻲ ﺃأﻥن ﻟﻠﻣﻠﻙك ﺍاﻟﻛﻠﻣﺔ‬ ‫ﺍاﻷﺧﻳﯾﺭرﺓة ﻭوﺍاﻟﻧﻬﮭﺎﺋﻳﯾﺔ‪.‬‬ ‫ﺍاﻟﺩدﻳﯾﻣﻘﺭرﺍاﻁطﻳﯾﺔ ﻫﮬﮪھﻲ ﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺣﻛﻡم ﻣﻥن ﻗﺑﻝل ﺟﻣﻳﯾﻊ ﺍاﻷﻋﺿﺎء ﺍاﻟﻣﺳﺗﺣﻘﻳﯾﻥن ﺃأﻭو ﻳﯾﺳﻣﺢ ﻟﻛﻝل ﻓﺭرﺩد ﺃأﻥن ﻳﯾﺷﺎﺭرﻙك ﻓﻲ ﺍاﻟﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺍاﻟﺳﻳﯾﺎﺳﻲ‪ .‬ﻛﺛﻳﯾﺭرﺍا ﻣﺎ ﻧﺳﻣﻊ ﺃأﻥن‬ ‫ﺍاﻟﻭوﻻﻳﯾﺎﺕت ﺍاﻟﻣﺗﺣﺩدﺓة ﺍاﻷﻣﺭرﻳﯾﻛﻳﯾﺔ ﺍاﻟﻣﺷﺎﺭر ﺇإﻟﻳﯾﻬﮭﺎ ﻛﺩدﻭوﻟﺔ ﺩدﻳﯾﻣﻘﺭرﺍاﻁطﻳﯾﺔ‪ .‬ﺃأﻭو ﺑﻣﻌﻧﻰ ﺁآﺧﺭر ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﺍاﻟﺳﻳﯾﻁطﺭرﺓة ﻋﻠﻰ ﻣﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺃأﻭو ﺟﻣﺎﻋﺔ ﺑﺄﻏﻠﺑﻳﯾﺔ ﺃأﻋﺿﺎﺋﻬﮭﺎ‪ ،٬‬ﻣﺛﻝل‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺍاﻟﺷﺭرﻛﺎﺕت ﺃأﻭو ﺍاﻟﻣﺩدﺍاﺭرﺱس‪ ،٬‬ﻟﻠﺑﺕت ﻓﻲ ﺍاﺗﺧﺎﺫذ ﺍاﻟﻘﺭرﺍاﺭرﺍاﺕت‪ .‬ﺃأﺣﻳﯾﺎﻧﺎ ﻣﻥن ﺍاﻟﺻﻌﺏب ﺟﻣﻊ ﻛﻝل ﺍاﻷﺻﻭوﺍاﺕت‬ ‫ﺍاﻟﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺍاﻟﺟﻣﻬﮭﻭوﺭرﻳﯾﺔ ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻡم ﺍاﻟﺫذﻱي ﻻ ﺗﺯزﺍاﻝل ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻭوﻣﺔ ﻓﻲ ﺍاﻟﻐﺎﻟﺏب ﺗﺧﺿﻊ ﻟﻠﻣﺣﻛﻭوﻣﻳﯾﻥن‪ .‬ﻭوﺍاﻧﻌﻘﺎﺩد ﺍاﻟﺳﻠﻁطﺔ ﻓﻲ ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻭوﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺟﻣﻬﮭﻭوﺭرﻳﯾﺔ ﻫﮬﮪھﻭو ﻣﻥن‬ ‫ﻗﺑﻝل ﺍاﻟﺷﻌﺏب ﻭوﻣﻣﺛﻠﻳﯾﻪﮫ ﺍاﻟﻣﻧﺗﺧﺑﻳﯾﻥن‪ ،٬‬ﻟﻠﺷﻌﺏب ﺗﺭرﺷﻳﯾﺢ ﺭرﺋﻳﯾﺱس ﺑﺩدﻻ ﻣﻥن ﺃأﻧﻔﺳﻬﮭﻡم‪ .‬ﺃأﻧﻭوﺍاﻉع ﻋﺩدﻳﯾﺩدﺓة ﻣﻥن ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻭوﻣﺔ ﺍاﻟﺟﻣﻬﮭﻭوﺭرﻳﯾﺔ ﻣﺛﻝل ﺍاﻟﻣﺗﻭوﺝج‪ ،٬‬ﺍاﻟﺣﺯزﺏب ﺍاﻟﻭوﺍاﺣﺩد‪،٬‬‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺍاﻟﺭرﺃأﺳﻣﺎﻟﻳﯾﺔ‪ ،٬‬ﺍاﻻﺗﺣﺎﺩدﻳﯾﺔ ﻭوﺍاﻟﺑﺭرﻟﻣﺎﻧﻳﯾﺔ‪ .‬ﻳﯾﻌﻧﻲ ﺫذﻟﻙك ﺃأﻥن ﺍاﻟﺣﻛﻭوﻣﺔ ﺗﺧﺿﻊ ﻟﻠﺷﻌﺏب‪ ،٬‬ﻭوﻳﯾﻣﻛﻥن ﺇإﻗﺎﻟﺔ ﺍاﻟﻣﺳﺅؤﻭوﻝل‬ ‫ﻓﻲ ﺟﻣﻳﯾﻊ ﺃأﻧﺣﺎء ﺍاﻟﻌﺎﻟﻡم ﻫﮬﮪھﻧﺎﻙك ﺧﻣﺳﺔ ﺃأﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﻟﻠﺣﻛﻡم ﺫذﻛﺭرﺕت ﻣﻧﻬﮭﺎ ﺛﻼﺛﺔ‪ ،٬‬ﻭوﺗﺷﻣﻝل ﺍاﻟﺩدﻳﯾﻣﻘﺭرﺍاﻁطﻳﯾﺔ‪ ،٬‬ﺍاﻟﺟﻣﻬﮭﻭوﺭرﻳﯾﺔ‪ ،٬‬ﻭوﺍاﻟﻣﻠﻛﻳﯾﺔ‪ .‬ﻛﻝل ﺩدﻭوﻟﺔ ﻟﻬﮭﺎ ﻧﻅظﺎﻣﻬﮭﺎ‬ ‫‪ ‬ﺍاﻟﺧﺎﺹص‪ ،٬‬ﺭرﺑﻣﺎ ﻛﻧﺕت ﺗﺭرﻏﺏب ﻓﻲ ﺃأﺣﺩدﻫﮬﮪھﺎ ﺃأﻭو ﻛﻧﺕت ﺗﻔﺿﻝل ﺍاﻷﻧﻅظﻣﺔ ﺑﻠﺩد ﺁآﺧﺭر ﺃأﻱي ﻧﻅظﺎﻡم ﺑﻠﺩدﻙك ﺃأﻭو ﻻ‪.‬‬ ‫‪ ‬‬

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OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY International views of the U.S. election Scott Bower Have we ever thought about what other countries think of our system and candidates? I sat down with Kotaro Chiba, Kota Hiraaki, and Erica Vallone to discuss U.S. politics and the way elections work in their countries. Kotaro and Kota are from Tokyo, Japan and Fukuoka, Japan. Erica is from Bergamo, Italy. I asked about what they knew about the election. “I know that the election is very important here,” said Kotaro, “the U.S. president is in office for at least 4 years.” Kotaro and Kota didn’t have much to say about Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but Erica knew a little about them. “I know that Trump and Hillary fight a lot.” She affirmed, “I know that Trump wants to build a wall.” “Of course I am against the wall. I think the wall would be a good idea if the U.S. was at war with Mexico, but they aren’t,” said Kotaro. Erica added, “I don’t like the idea. It’s like Germany with the Berlin wall. Every country has good and bad people, but that doesn’t mean we should keep everyone out.” I asked if the candidates for president make the U.S. look bad. “I think every election in every country

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makes them look bad,” she explained, “there is always fighting and there are always scandals.” Next, I talked with everyone about the way elections work in their countries and the systems in place. Kota Hiraaki explained, “In Japan, we cannot vote to choose the Prime Minister. But we can vote for a counselor.” Kotaro added to the comment saying, “Each year, our congress can change the Prime Minister if they want.” When it came to Italy, Erica said, “There are people who work in Parliament, but they don’t work. They just sleep and do nothing for the population”. Lastly, I asked if young people in their country cared about elections. “I don’t know why, but I think it’s because of the system in the Japanese election. Young people don’t care as much,” said Kotaro. Erica briefly said that young people care in Italy, but only because, “If we want something, we have to participate for change.” Hopefully, these perspectives will offer valuable insight to everyone. This restores a little bit of hope for me, it is good to know that this is normal, and that politics are like this in pretty much every country. Maybe it’s not as bad as we like to think sometimes.


FAR AWAY

見出し:丘の上遠く タイトル:米国の選挙の国際ビュー

米国の選挙は非常に明らかに米国の市民のための大きなことです。しかし、我々はこれまで、他の国が我々のシステムと候補者 の考えるものについて考えていますか?さて、私は持っている、私は米国の政治や選挙は、その国での作業方法を議論するため に千葉光太郎、平秋浩太、エリカ・バローネは座りました。光太郎と浩太は、東京、福岡、日本出身です。エリカはベルガモの イタリアからです。 私が尋ねた最初の事は、彼らが選挙について知っていることです。 「私は選挙がここに非常に重要であることを知っている」 と光太郎は言った、 「米国の大統領は、少なくとも 4 年間、オフィスにある。」と述べた光太郎と浩太はドナルド・トランプやヒ ラリー・クリントンについて言うべき多くを持っていなかったが、エリカは知っていましたそれらについて少し。彼女は「私は トランプが壁を構築したいと考えていることを知っています。」当然、肯定「私はトランプとヒラリーは、多くのことを戦うこ とを知っている、私の次の質問は、壁を構築するためにドナルド・トランプの計画についてでした。 「もちろん、私は壁にし ています。私は、米国がメキシコとの戦争にあった場合の壁は良いアイデアだと思うが、彼らはありませんが」光太郎は言いま した。エリカは、私がアイデアを好きではないと付け加えました。これは、ベルリンの壁とドイツのようなものです。すべての 国は、良い面と悪い人を持っているが、それは我々が誰を締め出すべきという意味ではありません。私はそれをフォローアップ し、大統領候補は米国が悪く見えるようならば彼女に尋ねました。「私はすべての国のすべての選挙は彼らが悪い見えるのだと 思う」と彼女は「いつもの戦いがあると不祥事が常に存在している。」と説明しました 次に、私は選挙が所定の位置にそれぞれの国やシステムで作業方法についてのみんなと一緒に話をしました。浩太は、「日本で は、我々は内閣総理大臣を選ぶために投票することはできない」と説明しました。しかし、 「我々はカウンセラーのために投票 することができます。」光太郎はコメントを追加、彼らがしたい場合は、内閣総理大臣を変更することができます。私たちの議 会、議会で働く人々がありますが、それはイタリアに来たときは、エリカは言いました、しかし、彼らは動作しません。彼らは ただ寝ると人口のために何もしません。 自分たちの国の若者が選挙を気場合最後に、私は彼らに尋ねました。アメリカの若者と高齢者があっても、この選挙で投票を気 にしないかのようにそれはそうに、これは私には特に興味深いものでした。 「私はなぜ知らないが、私はそれが日本の選挙で あるため、システムのだと思います。若い人たちが同じくらい気にしない。」光太郎は言いました。彼は先に説明したように、 あなたは、日本の総理大臣のためだけにカウンセラーを投票することができず、議会は毎年首相を変更することができます。エ リカは簡単に若者がイタリアで気にしていることを言ったが、「私たちが何かをしたい場合は、我々は変化のために参加しなけ ればならない。」 うまくいけば、これらの視点は、すべての人に貴重な洞察を提供します。どのようなこれらの学生に話をしながら、私に最も逃 げられてしまうと、エリカは、「私はすべての国のすべての選挙は彼らが悪い見えるのだと思う」と言ったものでした。いつも そこに戦っていると不祥事が常にあります。その文は、これはかなり正常であることを知って良いですが、私のために希望の少 しを復元し、政治はほとんどすべての国でこのようにしていること。多分それは我々が時々考えたいほど悪くはありません。

Translated by Atsushi Hida

ISSUE 85 |

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BUILD BRIDGES NOT WALLS

Building walls only separates us from one another Bandar Alhaidary What is the advantage of making an Why should we be building bridges, rather than walls? Should we pay enemy? When we fear to love, we don’t attention to the voices around us? Why make friends by building walls and we will we do care about each other? Many make more enemies that we don’t want. questions come to mind. Sometimes we Take the risk and be more reasonable find answers and sometimes we do not. and sit to talk and listen about issues. Do we forget that we are of one kind? Take the time to understand each other, We are all one, despite our differences as that leads to benefits for both sides. In this year, with the presidential in religion and skin color. By building walls we will be lonely. We election, we see how the media need to see and look on others and not became warm after one of the electoral only ourselves. The person or country candidate’s speeches. They were talking who fortifies themselves from the world is about immigrants and some religions isolated and wrapped up in their own and how he will not allow them to enter selfish interests. It is important to look to the US soil. Should citizens listen to outside in order to learn and improve him or not? I will leave the answer to you. Finally, we are all one. There is only ourselves. We all have common interests, one kind of human being, and there will whether it is political or economic. G Go to other countries for business continue to be so. No one will change or travel and tourism. Look into different our beliefs. Just listen to this humanitarian ‫ﺟﺪﺭرﺍاﻥن‬ ‫ﺟﺴﻮﺭر ﻻ‬appeal ‫ﺑﻨﺎء‬ and treat each other with cultures, we need to emphasize with understanding and respect. other’s needs besides our own. ‫ﻛﻠﻨﺎ ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ‬ ‫ ﺑﻨﺪﺭر ﺍاﻟﺤﻴﯿﺪﺭرﻱي‬:‫ﺑﻘﻠﻢ‬ ‫ﻟﻤﺎﺫذﺍا ﻳﯾﺠﺐ ﻋﻠﻴﯿﻨﺎ ﺑﻨﺎء ﺟﺴﻮﺭر ﺑﺪﻻ ﻣﻦ ﺟﺪﺭرﺍاﻥن؟ ﻳﯾﻨﺒﻐﻲ ﺃأﻥن ﻧﻮﻟﻲ ﺍاﻻﻫﮬﮪھﺘﻤﺎﻡم ﻟﻸﺻﻮﺍاﺕت ﻣﻦ ﺣﻮﻟﻨﺎ؟ ﻟﻤﺎﺫذﺍا ﻧﺤﻦ ﻧﻬﮭﺘﻢ ﻟﺒﻌﺾ؟ ﺃأﺳﺌﻠﺔ ﻛﺜﻴﯿﺮﺓة‬ ‫ ﻭوﻧﺤﻦ‬.‫ ﻻ ﻧﻨﺴﻰ ﺃأﻧﻨﺎ ﻣﻦ ﻧﻮﻉع ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ ﻭوﺃأﺏب ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ؟ ﻛﻠﻨﺎ ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ‬.‫ ﻓﻲ ﺑﻌﺾ ﺍاﻷﺣﻴﯿﺎﻥن ﻧﺠﺪﻧﺎ ﺇإﺟﺎﺑﺎﺕت ﻭوﺑﻌﻀﻬﮭﺎ ﻟﻴﯿﺲ ﻛﺬﻟﻚ‬.‫ﺗﺠﻮﻝل ﻓﻲ ﺃأﺫذﻫﮬﮪھﺎﻧﻨﺎ‬ .‫ﻣﺎ ﺯزﻟﻨﺎ ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ ﺣﺘﻰ ﻟﻮ ﻛﺎﻥن ﻟﺪﻳﯾﻨﺎ ﺩدﻳﯾﻦ ﻭوﺃأﻟﻮﺍاﻥن ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ‬. ‫ ﺑﺤﺎﺟﺔ ﺇإﻟﻰ ﺃأﻥن ﻧﺮﻯى ﻭوﻧﻨﻈﺮ‬،٬‫ﻣﻦ ﺧﻼﻝل ﺑﻨﺎء ﺍاﻟﺠﺪﺭرﺍاﻥن ﺳﻮﻑف ﻧﻜﻮﻥن ﻭوﺣﻴﯿﺪﻳﯾﻦ‬ ‫ ﻟﺪﻳﯾﻨﺎ ﺟﻤﻴﯿﻌﺎ ﻣﺼﺎﻟﺤﺔ‬.‫ ﺍاﻟﺸﺨﺺ ﺃأﻭو ﺑﻠﺪ ﺍاﻟﺬﻱي ﻓﻲ ﺍاﻟﺤﺼﻦ ﺃأﻭو ﻣﻌﺰﻭوﻟﺔ ﻋﻦ ﺍاﻟﻌﺎﻟﻢ ﺃأﺭرﺍاﺩد ﻟﻨﻔﺴﻪﮫ ﺑﺎﻷﻧﺎﻧﻴﯿﺔ‬.‫ﻟﻶﺧﺮﻳﯾﻦ ﻭوﻟﻴﯿﺲ ﻷﻧﻔﺴﻨﺎ‬ ‫ ﻧﺤﻦ ﺑﺤﺎﺟﺔ ﺇإﻟﻰ ﺍاﻟﺘﺄﻛﻴﯿﺪ ﺣﺎﺟﺎﺕت ﺍاﻵﺧﺮﻳﯾﻦ‬،٬‫ ﻧﻨﻈﺮ ﺇإﻟﻰ ﺛﻘﺎﻓﺎﺕت ﻣﺨﺘﻠﻔﺔ‬.‫ ﻟﻠﻌﻤﻞ ﺃأﻭو ﻟﻠﺴﻔﺮ ﻭوﺍاﻟﺴﻴﯿﺎﺣﺔ‬.‫ ﺳﻴﯿﺎﺳﻴﯿﺔ ﺃأﻭو ﺍاﻗﺘﺼﺎﺩدﻳﯾﺔ‬،٬‫ﻣﺸﺘﺮﻛﺔ‬. ‫ ﻭوﺳﻨﺒﺬﻝل ﺍاﻟﻤﺰﻳﯾﺪ ﻣﻦ ﺍاﻟﻌﺪﺍاء‬،٬‫ ﻧﺤﻦ ﻻ ﺻﻨﻊ ﺍاﻷﺻﺪﻗﺎء ﻣﻦ ﺧﻼﻝل ﺑﻨﺎء ﺍاﻟﺠﺪﺭرﺍاﻥن‬،٬‫ﻣﺎ ﻫﮬﮪھﻲ ﺍاﻟﻤﻴﯿﺰﺓة ﻟﺼﻨﻊ ﺃأﻋﺪﺍاء؟ ﻋﻨﺪﻣﺎ ﻧﺨﺸﻰ ﺃأﻥن ﻧﺤﺐ‬ ‫ ﻭوﻫﮬﮪھﻲ ﺳﻮﻑف‬.‫ ﺣﺼﻮﻝل ﺍاﻟﻔﻮﺍاﺋﺪ ﻣﻦ ﻛﻼ ﺍاﻟﺠﺎﻧﺒﻴﯿﻦ‬.‫ ﻧﻔﻬﮭﻢ ﺑﻌﻀﻨﺎ‬.‫ ﺑﺎﻟﻤﺨﺎﻁطﺮﺓة ﻭوﻧﻜﻮﻥن ﺃأﻛﺜﺮ ﻋﻘﻼﻧﻴﯿﺔ ﻭوﺍاﻟﺠﻠﻮﺱس ﻟﻠﺘﺤﺪﺙث‬.‫ﺍاﻟﺬﻱي ﻻ ﻧﺮﻳﯾﺪ‬ .‫ ﺍاﻵﺑﺎء ﻭوﺍاﻷﻣﻬﮭﺎﺕت ﻣﻊ ﻷﻁطﻔﺎﻟﻬﮭﻢ‬.‫ﺗﻜﻮﻥن ﻣﺜﻞ ﺃأﻧﻔﺴﻨﺎ ﻣﻊ ﻋﺎﺋﻠﺘﻨﺎ‬. ‫ ﺭرﺃأﻳﯾﻨﺎ ﻛﻴﯿﻒ ﺃأﺻﺒﺤﺖ ﻭوﺳﺎﺋﻞ‬،٬‫ﻓﻲ ﻫﮬﮪھﺬﻩه ﺍاﻟﺴﻨﺔ ﻭوﻣﻊ ﺍاﻻﻧﺘﺨﺎﺑﺎﺕت ﺍاﻟﺮﺋﺎﺳﻴﯿﺔ‬ ‫ ﻭوﺃأﻧﻪﮫ ﻟﻦ ﻳﯾﺴﻤﺢ ﻟﻬﮭﻢ ﺑﺎﻟﺪﺧﻮﻝل‬.‫ ﻋﺒﺮ ﺍاﻟﺤﺪﻳﯾﺚ ﻋﻦ ﺍاﻟﻤﻬﮭﺎﺟﺮﻳﯾﻦ ﻭوﺑﻌﺾ ﺍاﻷﺩدﻳﯾﺎﻥن‬.‫ﺍاﻹﻋﻼﻡم ﻣﺸﺘﻌﻠﺔ ﺑﻌﺪ ﺧﻄﺎﺏب ﺃأﺣﺪ ﺍاﻟﻤﺮﺷﺤﻴﯿﻦ ﺍاﻻﻧﺘﺨﺎﺑﻴﯿﻦ‬ ‫ ﻫﮬﮪھﻞ ﺳﻮﻑف ﻳﯾﺴﺘﻤﻊ ﺍاﻟﻨﺎﺱس ﺇإﻟﻴﯿﻪﮫ ﺃأﻡم ﻻ؟ ﺳﺄﺗﺮﻙك ﺍاﻹﺟﺎﺑﺔ ﻟﻬﮭﻢ‬.‫ﺇإﻟﻰ ﺍاﻷﺭرﺍاﺿﻲ ﺍاﻷﻣﺮﻳﯾﻜﻴﯿﺔ‬.

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!‫ ﻓﻘﻂ ﺍاﺳﺘﻤﺎﻉع ﺇإﻟﻰ ﻧﺪﺍاء ﺍاﻹﻧﺴﺎﻧﻴﯿﺔ‬.‫ ﻻ ﺃأﺣﺪ ﺳﻴﯿﻐﻴﯿﺮ ﺇإﻳﯾﻤﺎﻧﻨﺎ‬.‫ ﺳﻮﻑف ﻧﺴﺘﻤﺮ ﻛﻤﺎ ﻧﺤﻦ‬.‫ ﻧﺤﻦ ﻧﻮﻉع ﻭوﺍاﺣﺪ ﻣﻦ ﺍاﻟﺒﺸﺮ‬،٬‫ﻭوﺃأﺧﻴﯿﺮﺍا‬

| ISSUE 85


WALLS

ISSUE 85 |

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ISSUE 85 / FALL / 2016

SPORTS SECTION

INSIDE: FEATURE

FEATURE

FEATURE

THE YELLOW FLAGS: ROGER GOODELL

TIM TEBOW RULE: DOUBLE STANDARD?

REMEMBERING JOSE FERNANDEZ

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Contents

16

CAPTURING THE LIVES AND INTERESTS OF AVILA’S STUDENT ATHLETES

40 41 42 43 44 46 47 48 49 50

THE YELLOW FLAGS ROGER GOODELL AND THE SYSTEM NOT EVERYONE DESERVES A MEDAL POLITICAL CORRECTNESS IS EVERYWHERE BELICHICK FOR PRESIDENT THE HERO WE WANT TIM TEBOW RULE DOUBLE STANDARD? YOU DECIDE. REMEMBERING A YOUNG LEGEND JOSE FERNANDEZ WILL FOREVER BE REMEMBERED POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN SPORTS PLAYERS USE THEIR STATUS TO PERSUADE RED VS BLUE SPORTS DIPLOMACY RELEVANT AGAIN CHAMPIONS AND THE WHITE HOUSE A TIMELESS TRADITION THE SAGA CONTINUES AVILA ATHLETES TAKE A KNEE FOR THE ANTHEM CANDIDATE PHOTO SPREAD

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Although the highly anticipated election is around the corner, football season is in full swing. Tom Brady has returned from his suspension, and Carson Wentz has taken the NFL by storm. In this issue, you will read about the legend of one of baseball’s brightest stars, how kneeling during the national anthem has made its way to Avila’s campus, and how political correctness plays a role in youth sports. The Chicago Cubs have made it back to the world series for the first time since 1945 and look to win the world series for the first time since 1908.

Ryan Meyer, Sports Editor


...he doesn’t understand. He’s just a face. He’s just a suit. He’s never stepped foot on the field and understood...” -Richard Sherman

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THE YELLOW FLAGS Roger Goodell and the system

Zach Hoeflicker If you want to celebrate or express yourself in the NFL, you better be comfortable with getting a penalty or fine because it’s probably in your near future. Whether or not players like it, there are yellow flags being thrown left and right. These individuals that want freedom are frustrated with the league and the head man, Roger Goodell. Even with the flags and fines, players consistently go about their business. Fans love it, so why can’t the league? Football is fun to watch. I enjoy it and so does a variety of people across the country. When it comes down to it, I really enjoy the little things that players do to express themselves as individuals. You may find yourself watching videos of celebrations on Twitter or seeing which athletes are wearing what cleats. It’s something that adds to the game. For the NFL, that could be as much as waving your finger as to say “no more”. It’s considered taunting and that’s not allowed. Dancing in the end zone for too long is not allowed. Wearing certain cleats that the NFL doesn’t like is not allowed. Players are frustrated with the system and the man who runs it. They don’t even get to vote for the guy or have a voice regarding the leadership. Lots of players are reaching out towards the management of the league saying that it is absurd that they get penalized and fined so much. The players want a voice and it’s difficult with the way the system is set up. Not being able to vote personally for a commissioner is the first problem and changes are hard to make with little power. I think the NFL should adapt to the new age of athletes and the way they express themselves, allowing the game to advance and grow. So enough with the yellow flags, keep those in your pockets.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE


W FLAGS NOT EVERYONE DESERVES A MEDAL

he system

Political correctness is everywhere Trey Bales This world is turning into a, “can’t say or do anything that someone may find offensive” world. It’s a real shame that telling stuff the way it is, is frowned upon. I never intend to offend anyone but some of the things that were once fine are now the worst things in the world. I think the worst part of all is that political correctness (PC) is starting to make its way to the sporting world. The PC movement has started to take its toll on the sporting world. Names of sports teams are becoming a big deal; as names of rivalry games are being changed to the PC way. The Washington Redskins, who have had their name for over 80 years, are among the teams under pressure to change their name. Rivalry games such as The Red River Shootout between Texas and Oklahoma, and The Border War between Kansas and Missouri have also been under scrutiny to change their names. Apparently you can’t associate sports with a “shootout” and a “war” because people don’t want to associate sports with guns and violence. Sports are a big teaching tool to young kids. Sports teach you how to win and be successful through hard work. It teaches you how to lose and overcome adversity. Times are changing and people believe everyone has to get a trophy. The issue with this is that with

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE

the “everyone wins” attitude, kids aren’t learning how to lose. If you lose and you are rewarded for it, you are going to grow up thinking that you deserve something for doing nothing or for not doing as well as other people. This type of political correctness leads to people

“You have to constantly make sure everything you do doesn’t offend someone.” who think they should get just as much as the person who works harder. This world we live in is becoming softer and softer. You have to constantly make sure everything you do doesn’t offend someone. I think that things need to go back to how they were when everyone didn’t get a trophy for showing up and you could speak your mind without any negative repercussions. Maybe this PC lifestyle is responsible for some of our problems in this country. Everyone needs to realize that you can’t please everyone and not everyone is going to like or agree with you, big deal. Speak your mind and be yourself, not who society says you should be. ISSUE 85 |

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BELICHICK FOR PRESIDENT Give us the hero we want Zeff Lewey With the impending election looming on the horizon, Americans are once again divided in the political sphere and debating on the future leader of America. Through the debates, the political and social ills facing this country, and the protests which have infiltrated the sports world, let’s consider the hypothetical leader of the sports world. Could it be a supreme athlete such as Lebron James? A timeless icon like Derek Jeter or Kobe Bryant? Or maybe a man that has stood the test of time. A man who has won despite criticism and lack of star power, and true to a politician’s form, a man who has controversy surrounding his career. I’m referring to Bill Belichick, fearless and soft spoken leader of the New England Patriots who has built an undeniable and unprecedented dynasty in the NFL.. A dynasty that will likely not be replicated any time soon. He has proved he can lead an organization to victory time and time again despite various detrimental

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circumstances. Belichick won Super Bowl titles in 2001, 2003, 2004, and 2014. He has coached his way to a .771-win percentage during his time in New England while weathering the controversy of Spygate and Deflategate, growing a household name in Tom Brady, and leading a team that has lacked the star power that is otherwise needed to sustain long-term success. And let’s not forget he has also popularized the sleeveless hoodie. This year may be his masterpiece though, as Belichick continues to win despite losing Brady to a four game suspension spurring a four-week carousel at the quarterback position. Yet, the Patriots are 3-1 and sitting atop the AFC East. Innovation in terms of new schemes, vision in terms of long term success, and unconventional in terms of a Doug Flutie drop kick and the minimal use of verbiage in press conferences has made Bill Belichick the front runner for the leader of the professional sports world.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE


3:16

TIM TEBOW RULE Double standard? You decide. Maci Hodges

Politics are everywhere these days, even in sports. The public seems to be all ears when athletes talk. According to the article, The Power and Politics of Sports: Why Games Aren’t Just Games Anymore, athletes might actually have more power than politicians. This could be the reason for the long list of rules incorporated into the National Football League. One of those rules is about eye black. This rule states that eye black cannot have writing on it. Tim Tebow was most well-known for his religious beliefs. He was praised by many when he knelt down in prayer before games, as well as when he expressed his faith through bible verses on his eye black. Tebow believes that God used him to spread his word. Tebow did this through writing Bible verses on his eye black during NFL games. The article, Tim Tebow: Don’t Underestimate God, Who Used My John 3:16 Eye Black to Reach 94 Million People, explained that Tebow was called to spread the Lord’s word and he stated, “In the end, football is just a silly game. Greatness comes from serving.” Players are allowed to express their personal views by kneeling for the National Anthem. What is the difference between expressing religious beliefs on eye black? There appears to be a double standard in the NFL when it comes to freedom of expression. It is hypocritical to allow one but not the other. One might say this goes as far as infringing on first amendment rights.

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE

As a football player you have a platform. And it’s so much more important than any touchdown or trophy or anything you could win with a football.” -Tim Tebow ISSUE 85 |

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REMEMBERING A YOUNG Jose Fernandez will forever be remembered Ryan Meyer

Often times in sports we see political and racial differences between fans, players, coaches, and front office staff. Colin Kaepernick has taken to the main stage the protesting of the national anthem by kneeling before kickoff. We’ve recently seen cases of racism off the field; Riley Cooper of the Philadelphia Eagles received severe backlash for using a racial slur in a snapchat video and received no formal punishment from the NFL. Riots have recently started a discussion whether or not football games would be played due to the safety of the players and the public. Even last year, with the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, the Orioles played the Chicago White Sox with no fans in attendance due to safety concerns. The world of sports has seen a turn for the worse in the past few years, however one event helped

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bring the world of sports together. Jose Fernandez was a young, energetic pitcher who enjoyed life just as much as he did the game of baseball. His girlfriend had just announced a week prior to the horrific incident, that she was pregnant with his child. Jose Fernandez, who defected from Cuba at the age of 15, and on his fourth attempt, had to miraculously save his mother when she fell out of the boat. Fernandez was a young star in the universal game of baseball, and was looked up to by many, especially his native Cubans. Abandoning Cuba was no easy feat for Jose, and once he arrived in the U.S. he knew he would never be able to see his grandmother again. The Miami Marlins front office knew how much she meant to Jose. They were able to get his grandmother a twoyear visa into the United States to


PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MAJOR BASEBALL LEAGUE

RING A YOUNG LEGEND surprise the young pitching star while doing an interview with the team. Fernandez was not only a great baseball player, he was a great person. Whether it be donating his time, or his money, he made sure he passed along his monetary wealth as well as his wealth of baseball knowledge. Fernandez died early Sunday morning on September 25th, thus causing the Marlins to cancel their game against the Atlanta Braves. However, the Marlins would play the next day at home against the New York Mets. Dee Gordon, who was one of the closest teammates and friends to Fernandez, hit in the lead off position, per the usual that night. He took the first pitch from the right handed batter’s box and wore Fernandez’s helmet in tribute. Gordon then swapped out helmets and got into the batter’s box already down

a strike. In the prior 303 at bat’s Gordon had in the 2016 season, he had yet to hit a home run. On the second pitch, Gordon hit the farthest ball he said he has hit in his entire life for a no doubter into the right field stands. In one of the most amazing moments in sports history, Gordon trotted around the bases with tears flowing in his eyes. They continued to flow after he reached the dugout. Another very important person in Jose Fernandez’s life was Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz who grew up on the same street and the same little league together. Diaz returned to the Cardinals club after paying his respects to Fernandez’s life to hit his first career grand slam. For a moment, maybe even longer, we are able to stop and think about what truly is important in life.

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POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN SPORTS

Players use their positions to persuade their followers Daniel Galley With professional athletes being amongst the highest paid around, and having such a stronghold on the devoted millions of fans, does politics ever play a part in a clubs point of view or the way in which they all conduct themselves? Many athletes are very outspoken in today’s society about topics outside of their respected field of play and can have such an influence over the massive numbers. Do they use the sporting icons as their pawns in an attempt to brainwash us in the world of persuasion and politics? Many of the top athletes are spokesmen and women of renowned campaigns. Campaign creators do this as a way of connecting with the mass audiences in order to try and gain their vote of confidence. If they are looking to create a following and a way to stir up their topic, they will use these athletes and fans will see a familiar, famous face and most likely stop and listen to it. If you were to see a regular face on a TV screen or an ad in a magazine you may be less likely to stop and read it compared to someone you feel a connection with every week while watching your favorite team/sport. Your mind starts to think if it is what the athlete believes, then in some way you are now similar to the star you

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have always admired. We are all guilty of doing this, It could be something as simple as wanting the same cleats as my favorite player. Why? If you see that player wearing these particular cleats then you feel if you buy them it may help you play like them or even become them. It works 99 times out of 100. With the vice-like grip that social media has on todays younger

“You have to constantly make sure everything you do doesn’t offend someone.” generation, it is only influencing more people quicker and more effectively. Open Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, and within minutes you will find a commercial with a sports star sponsoring a product. It goes to show how much society depends on politics to help sell something. There is no stopping something as soon as it goes viral on the internet. That will give you an edge over your competitors. Any publicity is good publicity.


IN SPORTS RED VS. BLUE

How sports diplomacy has once again become relevant Zeff Lewey There was a day when American sports were pure and free of the stain that politics leave on so many of our institutions. Sports represented a step outside of the political realm for a time, and a “playing field” in which political stances were forgotten and set aside for the duration of competition. Today there’s a sort of stigma surrounding American sports and that stigma consists of opinions surrounding political issues and social ills. The end result is that politics have bled into the sports world. Is it wrong that athletes use their fame as platforms for political change? No. But is it wrong that politics have invaded game day, taking away from the nature of American Sports? I think yes. This isn’t new, just more prevalent today, and technology and mainstream media have a lot to do with that. And the issues facing Americans today are arguably more controversial than ever In 1967 Muhammad Ali famously proclaimed, “I ain’t got no quarrel with those Vietcong” in reference to the Vietnam war and his refusal to enlist in the U.S. military. Those actions were met with consequences, but it also created a baseline example of how the American pop culture fad enables athletes to advance their political stances.

Fast forward to 2012 when the Miami Heat posted a photo of several players in black hoodies, a protest of the shooting of Trayvon Martin. Then in May of 2013, Robbie Rogers of the L.A. Galaxy publicly announced he was gay, making him the first openly gay athlete to compete in a North American sports league. In late November of 2014, five St. Louis Rams entered the field with their hands up, a protest of the Ferguson shootings that furthered the political and social divide in America. And this year, Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the National Anthem, sparking a nationwide debate of the fundamental rights of Americans to protest. Maybe it’s the level of credibility afforded to athletes by society that have people agreeing with their favorite athletes on major political issues. Or maybe it’s based on how professional athletes have an unprecedented nationwide platform that allows them to state their stance on political issues. Either way, it is clear that American sports and politics no longer exists as autonomous entities but rather as coexisting platforms that further perpetuate pop culture as the forefront of political issues. ISSUE 85 | 47


...these sports teams come to the White House to honor their championship...” -Frank Benenati

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CHAMPIONS AND THE WHITE HOUSE A timeless tradition Lexi Clary Starting on August 30, 1865, President Andrew Johnson made it a tradition for championship teams to visit the White House to honor and celebrate their accomplishments. We all remember the fantastic season the Royals had last year, claiming their well-deserved title of World Champions in 2016. That win got them a ticket to meet President Barack Obama, and in return the Royals gave Obama, and several other politician’s, a signed team jersey. Another college team that has visited the White House four times within seven years of President Barack Obama’s two terms is the Alabama football team, Crimson Tide. As anyone would imagine, being invited to the White House is a great honor. Although through the years, there have been a few teams who have the title of champion and did not make the trip. Matt Brick, a player for the Ravens did not go to the White House in 2013 because he disagreed with Obama’s support for planned Parent Hood. The Chicago Bears of 1985 were invited by Obama in 2011 to celebrate their victory of the time. The team could not make the trip in 1985 due to the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. Although politics and beliefs do play a role in some of the players attending the invitation, it is still quit an honor to make that special trip and to be recognized by the leader of the U.S.


HE WHITE HOUSE

THE SAGA CONTINUES Avila Football players take a knee for the National Anthem Scott Bower In the previous Talon, there was an article discussing the 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick started making headlines when he began sitting, and sometimes kneeling, for the National Anthem during football games. It didn’t take long for this trend to spread like wildfire among all sports teams. It also didn’t take long for it to reach Avila University. For the past few games, some of the football players have been taking a knee during the National Anthem. Kaepernick sat for the anthem because he said that he didn’t want to, “Show pride in a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” When players decide to take a knee during the anthem, they’re doing so because they support Kaepernick’s claims. How successful has the protest been? Apart from becoming widespread, the protest hasn’t solved any problems. In all fairness, one thing that Colin Kaepernick has brought to the table is attention to an issue. Police brutality and racism were already being discussed in the mainstream media, but since Kaepernick’s protest, the media can’t seem to get enough of it. However, that seems to be about all that it has accomplished. Ever since Kaepernick’s protest, there have been another 3-4 fatal police shootings of civilians. One of

the more recent shootings in Charlotte, North Carolina was when Keith Lamont Scott was shot after refusing to exit his vehicle and drop his weapon. That specific instance was even a black officer who shot a black civilian. Every

“You have to constantly make sure everything you do doesn’t offend someone.” police shooting should be looked at as a separate situation with different circumstances, which is what I feel like the protests are missing. On the brighter side, the form of protest happening at Avila is peaceful and is not causing any problem for anyone. There haven’t been any unnecessary feuds or tension on campus and I think that we can all respect that. In the end, many agree and disagree with the protest, but we are all level headed enough to understand how to handle problems. With that being said, I’m proud to go to a University that can coexist with difference in views on issues. ISSUE 85 |

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“

When a new president comes in, a new president gets to clean house.� -Hillary Clinton


Perhaps I shouldn’t campaign at all, I’ll just, you know. I’ll ride it right into the White House.” - Donald Trump


“POLITICIANS AND DIAPERS MUST BE CHANGED OFTEN, AND FOR THE SAME REASON.” MARK TWAIN


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