September 2016

September 2016

VOLUME 13 • ISSUE 1

Racial Tensions in America

Pulse Nightclub Shooting

7

AS WELL AS:

Britain’s Exit from the EU, 8

Rio Olympics Impact on the Poor, 12

The Path to Self-Driving Cars, 14

THE CHARIOT

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Isha Gupta (‘17) Maggie Wang (‘17) SENIOR EDITOR Nicholas Chung (‘17) FUNDRAISING DIRECTOR Joanna Huang (‘16) SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR Jackie Cherry (‘17) CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Advait Arun (‘18) Emily Cao (‘16) Stina Chang (‘17) Nicholas Chung (‘17) Claire Hu (‘17) Stephanie Jackson ('19) Siddharth Jain ('19) Arjun Prabhaker ('19) Caroline Ro ('19) Shannon Yang (‘17) Dana Zhao (‘17)

FOUNDATION/GROUP SPONSORS Adobe Systems • Daughters of the American Revolution • Palo Alto Lions Club PATRONS ($100+) Lauren Michals and Vinod Bharadwaj • Patricia Bruegger • Steven Guggenheim

The Chariot would like to thank Advisor Justin Brown for his support.

2

DEAR READERS,

W

elcome to the start of the school year! At The Chariot, we have worked hard to deliver pressing content from around the world to your fingertips. The mission of The Chariot, Gunn’s leading political magazine, is to provide political and social commentary through the perspective of passionate Gunn activists. From the Republican and Democratic National Conventions to the Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, this summer has yielded a multitude of political, social, and economic developments in the international community that all promise to have significant implications.

As Plato wrote in The Republic, “The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.” Political apathy is one of the biggest problems threatening the world today, as shown by the infamous “Brexit” vote in which Britain left the European Union largely due to indifference by more than 30 percent of citizens. In this growing globalized world, the events of Brexit affect the global economy in ways that will reverberate for generations to come. It is our hope at The Chariot that you use this opportunity to take a glimpse of the world around you and immerse yourself in the lives of others far away. We thank you for the time that you have taken to support this publication and encourage you to join our team. Sapere aude!

Sincerely, Isha Gupta & Maggie Wang EDITORS-IN-CHIEF

Front cover artwork is courtesy of Jonathan Bachman/Reuters.

ABOUT US The Chariot is intended to create and promote political discussion at Gunn and make people aware of issues that matter. We ask that you respect all opinions which are reflected in our publication, and write letters to the editors if you wish to voice your opinion. The views expressed do not reflect that of The Chariot, but rather those of the individual writers.

The Chariot was originally founded in 2001 as The Partisan Review by Gunn alumni Ilan Wurman (‘06), Channing Hancock (‘06), and Sarah McDermott (‘05).

Visit our website, gunnchariot.com if you wish to view any issues from previous years or for more information about us. Any questions, comments, suggestions, or requests to join can be sent to gunnchariot@gmail.com.

If you’d like to make a donation or subscribe, please send checks to: Justin Brown Re: The Gunn Chariot 780 Arastradero Road Palo Alto, CA 94306 Checks can be made out to Gunn High School with “The Chariot” on the memo.

SEPTEMBER 2016

CULTURE

Hamilton: the musical heard around the world

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

Creative Commons License

Emily Cao Contributing Writer

"

Hamilton," the critically acclaimed Broadway show, has blown us all away with its impressive accolade of prestigious awards, cast of seasoned veterans, and catchy hip hop tunes. Its greatest accomplishment, however, is its ability to weave meaningful political commentary into an incredible musical.

"Hamilton" teaches its viewers about the importance of having beliefs and pushes for the empowerment of women.

Aaron Burr is one of the most prominent antagonists, constantly clashing with the protagonist, Alexander Hamilton. The primary distinction between Burr and other villains such as King George III and Thomas Jefferson is his lack of political beliefs. Burr purposefully re-identified himself as a Democratic Republican in order to run against Hamilton's fatherin-law. Subsequently, when asked to vote between Burr and Jefferson for the Election of 1800, Hamilton said "Jefferson has beliefs, Burr has none" to make his decision. Furthermore, Burr claims himself that he desperately attempts to clamber up the American political ladder for no reason other than "to be in the room where it happens" and that being a Democratic Republican has "put him in the up and up again."

This dialogue emphasizes that for Burr, running for office is to push one's personal agenda or even to receive glory in the public eye. "Hamilton" urges that the purpose of running for political office is to fight for one's beliefs in order to make tangible national change.

The final political position that "Hamilton" espouses is intersectional feminism. Every single cast member is of color and producer Lin-Manuel Miranda ensured that women are equally represented. The soldiers of the Colonial Army that fought for the American Revolution consisted of both men and women, which is accurately

depicted in the musical. Additionally, the leading ladies of "Hamilton," specifically, Angelica and Eliza Schuyler, completely transformed the perception of women in modern media forms. They are powerful, educated, inspirational, dimensional, and dynamic forces within the "Hamilton" storyboard. For example, toward the beginning of the musical in hit song “The Schuyler Sisters,” Angelica sings, “We hold these truths to be selfevident that all men are created equal.

And when I meet Thomas Jefferson, I will compel him to include women in the sequel.” Within this lyric, Angelica asserts that both men and women should have equal rights.

In addition, "Hamilton" endorses strong, healthy relationships between women and girls. For instance, when Eliza marries Alexander, Angelica suppressed her feelings for him in order to make her sister happy. “At least my dear Eliza’s his wife, at least I keep his eyes in my life,” she says in ballad “Satisfied”. Angelica is also positive that Eliza would jeopardize her relationship for Angelica’s contentment as well: “If I tell her that I love him, she’d be silently resigned, he’d be mine, she would say ‘I’m fine’, she’d be lying.” This unspoken trust and love between Angelica and Eliza changes the perception in modern SEPTEMBER 2016

media regarding relationships between women when both of them are more than willing to sacrifice their personal comfort for the happiness of each other.

For example, Angelica defends Eliza by stating, "I know my sister like I know my own mind, you will never find anyone as trusting or as kind ... I will choose her happiness over mine every time". Despite the fact that Angelica and Hamilton had a close relationship, the elder sister chose her sibling’s side over his. Another moment in “Hamilton” that shows the independence of women is in solo “Burn,” when Eliza discovers that Alexander was infidelitous in their marriage. She is very self-aware when she severes herself from the relationship by claiming, “You forfeit all rights to my heart, you forfeit your place in our bed, you’ll sleep in your office instead”, by understanding what belongs to her with “my heart” and separating herself from what they share in “our bed” The musical has promoted feminism by valuing personal empowerment in addition to collaboration.

"Hamilton" breaks every barrier, shatters every expectation, and moves every mountain in more ways than one.

It defies controversy by altering the perceptions of and relationships between intersectional women.

3

THE CHARIOT

CULTURE

Slaying the tiger parenting myth

ians, similar to the Asian actor in the TV series video clip. “The question is: Is this a fair assessment? And what does it mean to Asian teens?”

Recent studies have shown that the Nicholas Chung “Tiger Mother” caricature is more meSenior Editor dia type and myth rather than reality. In 2013, The Asian American Journal of PsyAn A-? That’s just like an F! In our chology devoted a special edition on Tiger family, everyone gets an A!” Parenting. Six different empirical studies This past summer, in a Living found that most Asian-Americans are not Skills class, students were shown a video Tiger Parents who recognize that the stewhere an Asian mom loudly berates her reotypical harsh parenting style of Tiger young daughter in a restaurant for get- Parenting is not healthy for children. In ting an A-. Everyone can hear the Asian 2014, Stanford Professor Hazel Markus mom shrilly disparage the girl over and and PhD student Alyssa Fu found that over again. Unknown to the other din- the Asian-American style of parenting ers, this is a staged act, part of the “What was based on interdependent relationWould You Do” TV series where under- ships while European style parenting was cover cameras are used to record bystand- based on independent relationships and ers’ reactions to various situations. Even- that both styles of parenting were effective tually another diner, a Caucasian woman, at motivating children. Fu writes, “While confronts the angry mother, ultimately European American parents give their screaming “You are a disgrace!” children wings to fly on their own, Asian The “Tiger Mom” controversy stems American parents provide a constant from Amy Chua’s book Battle Hymn of wind beneath their children's wings.” A The Tiger Mother, a self-described per- study by the American Psychological Assonal memoir about her experiences as a sociation found that most Asian parents parent. Ms. Chua intended the book to be were not tiger parents and fell under the taken in a self-deprecating manner; The auspices of a category they described as Wall Street Journal and the publishers of being “supportive.” the book sought The tiger parto sensationalize enting stereoit to garner more type, however, sales and publicpersists. A friend ity. Titling an of my family was article promotonce accosted by ing Chua’s book a total stranger “Why Chinese who asked hesiMothers Are Sutatingly and apperior,” the Wall p r e h e n s i v e l y, Street Journal “Are you . . . a hoped to provoke Tiger Mom?” an outcry and Creative Commons License In my brother’s included only middle school, excerpts from the first half of the book, Asian students were derided by another which focused on Ms. Chua’s extreme child who smirked “I know why you don’t parenting technique, ignoring the second have any fun on weekends! It’s because all half of the book where she ultimately re- you do is work!” treated from her earlier harsh methods.

The danger in this negative stereoNow, the words “Tiger Mother” have typing is that it worsens Asian teen selfstuck, and the prevailing stereotype is that esteem. Research has established that Asian parents are strict, harsh disciplinar- perceived ethnic identity pride affects

“

4

SEPTEMBER 2016

Creative Commons License

personal self-esteem, can help buffer the negative feelings of discrimination, and as a result, lessen depressive symptoms. In fact, in a study published in the Journal of Youth Adolescence, Professors Deborah Rivas-Drake, Diane Hughes and Niobe Way found that Chinese American youth with higher levels of ethnic pride were less likely to show symptoms of depression.

Interestingly, the Living Skills students were not given the full context of the video where the producers explained the staging and the baiting of the onlookers.

In addition, the students were not shown the follow-up segment where Caucasian actors were cast as the angry mom and child. In that video, there was a kinder and more soft-spoken response from fellow restaurant-goers.

Our school needs to recognize that anti-Asian stereotyping harms student health and as educators, find ways to stop perpetuating this myth and stigma.

I wrote to Dr. McGee to find out why this video was shown, but he could not be reached for comment.

Can we slay the Tiger parenting myth?

Take a look at this video produced

by NBC, called Voices: Do You Have A 'Tiger Mom'? (goo.gl/8cGgo1) and then write back to the Chariot at gunnchariot@gmail.com and let us know what you think.

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

2016 P RESIDENTIAL E LECTION Trump and Clinton accept their party's nomination

a murderer who deserves to be sitting in jail people, dismissing the scandals as nothing but and not running for President. right-wing hate. Using her personal history as When Donald Trump stepped on the a backbone, they made sure all viewers were podium to accept the aware of everything she has nomination, his speech was done to help the American nothing like that of Ronald people and how her mission Reagan in 1980, George took her from a lawyer H. W. Bush in 1988, or in rural Arkansas to First Advait Arun George. W. Bush in 2000.

Lady and Secretary of State.

Contributing Writer When Ronald Reagan, They listed every single arguably the mascot of one of Trump’s negative uly 28 was a historic day. For the first conservative values, called qualities while highlighting time in the history of the United States, America a “shining city on everything Clinton could a woman has accepted a major party’s a hill” in 1980, he meant it. and would do to fight him. nomination for the President of the United Donald Trump called it the On Thursday, Mrs. States. The previous Thursday, July 21, was opposite; he emphasized Clinton accepted the Creative Commons License similarly historic — a candidate who has that the state of our nation nomination. On Thursday, never served in public office or the military has never been worse, and he genuinely she cracked the famous “glass ceiling” she became the presidential nominee of the other meant what he said. He talked about rising referred to in 2008, when she lost the major party. All our readers should know who crime, rising terror, fewer jobs, lower quality nomination to then-Senator Barack Obama. is being referred to here — they are none of work, and overregulation by the Obama She profusely thanked everyone who came other than our former First Lady, Senator, Administration, Democrats, and career to the DNC to support her, while making and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and politicians across Congress. Donald Trump, a plea to Bernie’s supporters and rallying all the anti-establishment billionaire Donald J. towards the end of his speech, proclaimed, the Democrats around her movement. She Trump.

“I am your voice!” to a crowd of cheering painted Trump as a racist and xenophobe Various speakers spoke on the behalf of the supporters. And with less than 90 days until and highlighted her strengths to counter Republican nominee, Mr. Trump, last week Election Day, this will be the spiel given by Trump’s qualities. Mrs. Clinton made herself at the Republican National Convention. This Donald Trump. the candidate of progress and of America, lineup included major political figures who At the Democratic National Convention, denouncing Trump as a national disaster. endorsed Trump early on in the state primary Hillary Clinton accepted the Democratic With under three months until Election Day, contests and many members of the Trump Party’s nomination for the President of the this will be her stump speech. family. Notable speakers included New Jersey United States. The week of the DNC, we At the point of publication, Mrs. Clinton governor Chris Christie, right-wing celebrity had speaker after speaker tell the world why has a significant lead over Mr. Trump, Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson, his wife they placed their confidence in Mrs. Clinton. between 7 and 15 points. Most still think Melania, daughters Ivanka and Tiffany, and Compared to the Republican Convention last that the election could go either way, but sons Eric and Donald Jr. Notable absences week, we heard from many more politicians, most also agree that each candidate has their included the Bush family, Ohio current and former. Included significant advantages and disadvantages in Governor John Kasich (an were Senators Cory Booker terms of appeal to voters. Trump has always opponent in the Presidential and Elizabeth Warren; former been polarizing, landing him on the front Race), and other mainstream presidential candidates page of most major news institutions in Republicans who ran against Howard Dean, Martin America every time he makes a controversial him like Marco Rubio.

O’Malley, and Bernie Sanders; statement. But, in spite of this coverage, he has The speakers present former President Bill Clinton; no stable campaign organization below him painted Trump as the savior Vice President Joe Biden; to get the word out door-to-door. Meanwhile, of America, the antithesis to First Lady Michelle Obama; Clinton has a juggernaut of a campaign establishment politics that has Vice Presidential Nominee organization, and her voter outreach is dominated the government Tim Kaine; and President extremely sophisticated and technologically for the past decade, and an Barack Obama. Various high- advanced, drawing on her 2008 campaign astute businessman who is profile celebrities and speakers experience. However, she has to overcome a exceedingly qualified to make from around the country also widespread feeling of distrust and antipathy deals. They were convinced voiced their support. toward her, mainly due to her distance from that Donald Trump would, as Creative Commons License Despite the praise, there the media and the scandals she has faced in President, tear down the oppressive policies was still the fact that Mrs. Clinton has been the past year, and commonly about her emails of the last eight years, undo the harm done marred by scandal since she entered the and involvement in Benghazi. by the Obama administration, and create public eye 40 years ago. All these speakers It’s up to Clinton and Trump to convince a new conservative movement in America. emphatically pushed the audience to voters that they are the right choice for this Many of Trump’s supporters bashed Hillary remember Clinton’s long history of public nation. There’s less than two months. Ready?

Clinton as a corrupt politician, career liar, and service and continuous dedication to the Set. Go!

J

SEPTEMBER 2016

5

THE CHARIOT

NATIONAL

Tensions run high between black community and the police

A

Dana Zhao Contributing Writer

s the summer draws to a close, we look back on a few months that have been filled with violence, protest, and tension. Tensions between the black community and the police are running high, and sides are being taken — but until we look below the surface on this two-sided issue, we cannot blindly throw accusations and calls for action with hopes of them making a positive and realistic difference.

On July 5, 2016, Baton Rouge police officers received a call that reported the caller being threatened with a gun while buying CDs in front of a Triple S Food Mart. When the two officers arrived, they forcefully detained the alleged threat, a 37-year-old black man named Alton Sterling. Immediately, Sterling was tasered to the hood of a silver sedan, then to the ground. The two officers pinned Sterling to the ground, trying to pin down his flailing arms. Under the belief that Sterling was going for his gun, an officer sitting on Sterling’s chest fired six shots directly at Sterling’s chest. Afterwards, the officers retrieved a firearm from Sterling’s pocket and radioed the EMS. On July 6, 2016, 32-year-old Philando Castile was pulled over by two St. Paul (MN) police officers for, according to a police radio, “look[ing] like [the suspects] that were involved in a robbery.” After being asked for his license and registration, Castile told police officers that he had a license to carry concealed weapons and currently had one such weapon in the car. Castile was immediately told to put his hands back up, and while doing so, was shot in the arm and side four or five times. The video of the shooting was live-streamed on Facebook by Castile’s girlfriend, who was in the car at the time along with her four-year old daughter. Castile later died in the hospital at 9:37 P.M., about 20 minutes after being shot. Later uncovered by court records and an NPR analysis was the fact that ever since he had obtained his permit, Castile had been stopped by police 46 times and accumulated more than $6,000 in fines, and that “of all stops, only six of them were things a police officer would notice from outside a car — things

6

like speeding or having a broken muffler.”

Black Lives Matter, a national organization working to promote the “validity of Black life” through increasing conversation about the deprivation of rights from the black community, organized a peaceful protest in Dallas, Texas the following day. During this event, an Army Reserve Afghan War veteran named Micah Johnson fired on a group of police officers monitoring the protest, killing five and injuring nine officers. Johnson reportedly stated that he was angry over police shootings of black men, and wanted to kill white police officers.

About two weeks later, on July 17, in a Baton Rouge shopping mall, three police officers were killed and three were injured. At least one of the officers was African American. The shooter, named Gavin Long, was reportedly working alone. In the following week, however, four more suspects were arrested for plotting to kill Baton Rouge police officers.

And still, more instances of violence between the black community and police are inflaming racial tensions in the US. The Chicago shooting of 18-year-old Paul O’ Neal; Acquitted officers in the Baltimore Freddie Gray case; the North Miami behavioral therapist shot in the leg while attempting to calm his autistic patient; all instances contribute to a mounting sense of pressure for social and legislative change.

In response to these tragedies, the pendulum of public attitude has been swinging between sympathy for the black community and sym-

pathy for the police community. In light of the concurring presidential race, both presumptive nominees have made their opinions known; Clinton condemned the escalating violence, calling the chain of attacks “madness” and pledging to reform the criminal justice system in a way that roots out “our implicit bias” and stops the violence. Trump blamed the Black Lives Matter movement, saying that the group is a threat and is “essentially calling death to the police”. He also posted vague content on Twitter in the aftermath of the Baton Rouge shootings, asking “How many law enforcement and people have to die because of a lack of leadership in our country?” Both candidates agree that something needs to change. But what exactly needs changing — current legislation, police training, gun control, or national race relations?

The answer to that question is still unclear, but unless our nation makes it a priority to alleviate racial tensions in one way or another, nothing will progress. Blaming the Black Lives Matter movement and tagging them as a hate group will get us nowhere; BLM makes it clear that it is not anti-police, anti-white, or anti-government, and that it is simply continuing the conversation for racial progress as our nation moves forward. What we can do now as citizens and as hopefuls for a better future is to remain peaceful in our protests and raise knowledge-backed awareness of the issue — by adding our individual voices into the collective, we can create a stronger outcry for equity, peace, and justice.

Creative Commons License

SEPTEMBER 2016

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

NATIONAL

Pulse nightclub shooting Siddharth Jain Contributing Writer

O

n June 12, 2016, the Pulse nightclub, a gay bar was attacked by Omar Mateen, a 29 year old security guard.

Several minutes later, 49 people were dead and 50 people were wounded, making the attack the deadliest mass shooting in American history.

With the gunman pledging allegiance to three Islamic terror organizations, people were quick to assume that he had been affiliated with a militant group. As such, anti-Islam rhetoric followed. Even more controversy followed when the Department of Justice redacted some sections of the 911 call made by the attacker which comprised of the attacker pledging allegiance to 3 terror organizations. and people were quick to blame the Obama administration for this attack with his lax immigration policies. When the shooter’s religion surfaced, politicians and people blamed lax immigration controls and Arabian refugees. Politicians used this shooting to prove their political points or advance their own agendas. This act of terror put two controversial topics up for debate in the United States: Arab refugees with ties to terror groups and gun control policies. With the general election coming closer, politicians on the Democratic Party and the Republican Party used this tragedy to prove their rhetoric.

Arab Refugees The Republican View With the two parties having opposite views on Arab refugees fleeing the unrest, terror groups, and civil wars in the Middle East, this tragedy was political gold to the Republican party. The Republican nominee Donald Trump used this tragedy to advance his immigration stance. Trump’s current stance on Arab refugees has historically been to ban all Muslims entering from countries that have been ravaged by or have ties to Islamic terrorism, or vet with extreme background checks. In a tweet responding to the attack with his political rhetoric, Trump stated, “Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don't want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. We must be smart!”

Even when evidence arose that the attacker was born in the USA, and that the shooter pledged allegiance to three terror organizations, which were all at war with each other, Republicans blamed the attack on lax immigration laws.

However, many of them were quick to disavow the nominee after his response invoked harsh

criticism. Republicans in Congress attempted to halt or severely limit the influx the amount of refugees coming into the United States, however no bill went through the house.

The Democratic View The Democrats have historically maintained the policy of keeping US borders open and are known to welcome refugees with open arms.

President Obama has called for the naturalisation and acceptance of 15,000 refugees in this year alone. Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee, took the opportunity to say that accepting more refugees would not change the national security of the country. Clinton calls for a 550 percent increase in the number of refugees integrated into American society. Without blaming the refugees, Clinton stated: "This was an act of terror. ... This was also an act of hate."

Gun Control The Republican View Republicans have been notoriously against any form of gun control. The shooter used an AR-15 (ArmaLite Rifle), a gas operated, magazine-fed, air-cooled semi automatic rifle. Since the AR-15 is no longer in military service and the stock weapon only has a semi automatic weapon, Republicans have taken the blame off of the lax gun laws common in Florida. Trump has stated that concealed carry permits should be valid in every state, and that any law abiding citizen should be able to own the gun of their choice. He has also stated that high-capacity magazine bans are ridiculous and should not be continued in the United States. Trump’s position on gun control has not been to ban guns, but to ban certain people from obtaining guns, through universal background checks. He has also stated that if there had been guns carried by law-abiding citizens in the nightclub, that many deaths could have been prevented. Other Republicans responded by protesting against any form of gun control, stating that extra guns will keep people safe.

The Democratic View The Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, immediately pounced on this tragedy for universal background checks. Clinton advocated for a national database for which to register offenders, or people with a history of mental health problems. She has acknowledged that gun bans will not work, as criminals will find a way to procure armaments in any way. However, their counterparts in Congress were less progressive and instead staged a sit-in in Congress, impeding any action for several days. This sit-in was to demand a solution to the epidemic of gun violence. The sit-in dissipated a few days later, with several laws taken to restrict the buying of guns even more, other state legislation followed suit.

SEPTEMBER 2016

The Actual Problem Mateen was not a refugee of Middle Eastern origin. He was originally born in the United States. According to his co-workers, he was considered mentally unstable by his co-workers and was a bigot to every class of people. Loved ones, mainly his wife, reported him as abusive, and he constantly hit and verbally abused her for the lightest infractions. Parents and classmates noted that he was extremely violent and would commonly use anti-gay language. Mateen took a job as a security guard, which was contracted out to the NYPD to hold suspects. He was known to beat down suspects with extreme prejudice. He had firearm training and had a concealed carry permit. The FBI took notice, when his workers had reported him to the FBI when he stated that he had ties and affiliations to Hezbollah and Al Qaeda, organizations which are at war with each other. About 2 years later, he was the subject of another FBI investigation when he made similar claims. Regardless, he managed to buy several semi-automatic weapons. The fact that a person can buy a gun while under the scrutiny of the FBI is disgusting and is the reason that this shooting happened.

The Solution Mateen was considered mentally ill by his coworkers. Currently the mental health system of the United States is extremely damaged. Instead of helping these people, we treat them as the worst of society and lock them up in prisons and asylums. These people are subject to terrible conditions, courtesy of the US criminal justice system, and will most likely continue their impaired behavior due to the lack of treatment given by the system. Instead of treating the mentally ill like criminals, we as a nation need to increase mental health awareness and fund free treatment options to make sure that the ill get the treatment they need. With this policy, the US will be able to track these people and can further ensure their safety by putting them on a national, nobuy list, preventing them from buying firearms.

If law-enforcement agencies had compiled a national, no-buy, list of criminals and suspects, this tragedy could have been avoided. Simply banning firearms of every type will not solve the problem. The United States has about 70 million gun-owners, some of which will go to great lengths to get the weapon of their choice.

Banning weapons will result in the creation of a black market and illegal weapons in which the US government will have no control over. We can not let perfect be the enemy of good. We must not ban firearms for every gun owner, instead we must bar the gun owners from acquiring firearms. The government must not see the worst of a population as a representation of the whole and should instead focus their efforts on that small percentage.

7

THE CHARIOT

WORLD NEWS

"Brexit" has implications for the UK & EU Arjun Prabhaker Contributing Writer

O

n the morning of June 23, the shocking outcome of the Brexit referendum was revealed to the world. Many were in disbelief when it was announced that the UK had voted 51.9% to 48.1% in favor of leaving Source: Council on Foreign Relations the European Union. The referendum had immediate consequences, as Prime Minister included vetoing a treaty for the first time David Cameron resigned and the value of and demanding to renegotiate their terms the British pound crashed. of membership. However, any government The relationship between the UK and frustrations with the EU were minor comEurope has been precarious since the Treaty pared to the growing movement for naof Paris created the European Economic tionalism and independence among British Community (or the EEC) in 1957. French people. Consequently, the radical UK Inleader Charles de Gaulle was concerned dependence Party gained enough political about the influence the UK would have, support to spearhead a successful “Leave” so their initial applications for membership campaign. into the EEC were rejected. Once they were UKIP, led by Nigel Farage, and others eventually able to join in 1973, UK citi- designed the “Leave” campaign to exaggerzens became frustrated with the autonomy ate problems that British people faced and they were giving up and lobbied to leave blame them on the European Union. First, the EEC. Two years later, the government Leave highlighted that EU membership cost caved into the demands of a growing politi- the UK 350 million pounds per week that cal movement for independence and agreed could be spent on healthcare. Government to hold a referendum. UK citizens voted in finance committees deemed this claim inacan overwhelming majority to remain in the curate, but it was a memorable and persuaEEC and give up some independence to sive statistic for UKIP. Next, Leave centered earn the benefits that an economic union their propaganda on fears about immigraprovides. In the tion. They blamed 1980s, under Brexit will have key ramifac- migration problems Conservative PM tions for the UK, Europe, and on the EU and emMargaret Thatcher, phasized that indeUK allies. the UK lobbied to pendence from the limit their financial EU would mean that commitments to the EEC, which further the UK could actually control immigration damaged their relationship with Europe. . While the Leave campaign was able to conAs the EEC became the modern European nect with voters, the “Remain” coalition, led Union in 1993, more regulations came into by most of Labour and some Conservatives, play that infuriated British MPs and manu- was quite ineffective. PM David Cameron facturers who had to modify their goods. In staked his entire political future on the outthe 2000s, the UK took a more hardliner come of Brexit and pleaded with voters to approach to dealing with the EU, which give him the benefit of the doubt, but his

8

SEPTEMBER 2016

rocky relationship with members of his own party severely limited his power in the situation. Most notably, outspoken Conservative MPs Boris Johnson and Michael Grove both backed the Leave campaign. Furthermore, although Labour MPs were firmly in support of remaining in the EU, they failed to convince their voter base of their position on the issue. So, despite the obvious concerns of Britain’s economic future without the EU, voters who should have been convinced by their MPs in the “Remain” coalition were the ones who sealed a victory for “Leave.”

Brexit will have key ramifications for the United Kingdom, Europe, and UK allies.

First, the breakdown of Brexit polls shows that Scotland and Northern Ireland voted in favor remain in the EU. Scotland held a referendum for independence from the UK in 2014 and the outcome of Brexit can reignite protests for another referendum. Furthermore, as nationalistic parties gain more power in Eurozone nations, they can look to Britain as encouragement to lobby for their own exit referendums. Brexit will also affect world finance, as news of Britain leaving the EU caused steep declines in the value of the British pound. As Theresa May assumes the position of new leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister, she must decide when the UK will set Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon into motion to officially leave the EU. The reverberations from this vote will definitely be something to watch for.

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

WORLD NEWS

International elections reveal instability around the world Nicholas Chung Senior Editor

W

hile Brexit and the upcoming US Presidential elections have captured the attention of most of the world, there are three other countries where significant instability could ensue in the coming months: Italy, Austria, and Japan.

In Italy, there is a constitutional referendum in October aimed at reforming the current parliamentary system. The reforms would significantly reduce the influence of the Italian Senate by cutting the number of Senators from 315 to 100 and allowing the government to pick Senators from regional councils.

Matteo Renzi, the Prime Minister of Italy, has promised to resign if his proposed reforms fail. If he resigns and his government falls, the most likely candidate to succeed him would be Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement, a populist and anti-European Union (or anti-EU) party which currently polls 0.8 percent ahead of the ruling Democratic Party’s 29.8 percent. After Britain’s ‘No’ vote, fears have arisen that anti-Euro sentiment could rise, further bolstering the chance that Italy will leave the Eurozone. According to HSBC, a prominent London-based bank, surveys suggest that Italy has the lowest level of support for the Euro among the members of the single currency and also has one of the highest share of the population that claims the country would be better off outside the EU. This May, Austria’s Constitutional Court ruled that their Presidential elections would have to be repeated in October after claims of irregularities.

The far-right and Eurosceptic Freedom

Party challenged May’s results in which Alexander Van Der Bellen, the Green Party candidate, beat the Freedom Party’s candidate Norbert Hofer by 0.6 percent. In recent polling, Hofer has a four percent lead over Van der Bellen.

At the end of June, Hofer warned that his country could hold a referendum on EU membership within a year, which means that come October, there could be two substantial threats to the Euro.

If either of these countries leave the European Union, the departures could further compound on Brexit and mark the beginning of the end for the Euro.

At the very least, both would roil markets and create even more political and economic uncertainty in the world.

Meanwhile in Japan, voters gave the Liberal Democrats and their allies more than two-thirds of the seats Top: President-elect Alexander Van Der Bellen, in Parliament, a supermajority that Bottom: Prime Minister Matteo Renzi could allow Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to achieve his goal of revising Article 9 of Japan’s Constitution, which that already has multiple territorial disrenounces war, as a step towards mak- putes, including the Senkaku Islands ing Japan a global power. dispute between China and Japan. In Even without constitutional revision, particular, China and South Korea have Abe’s supermajority is likely to further expressed disquiet over a more powerful unsettle an increasingly tense region and assertive Japan abroad.

Creative Commons License SEPTEMBER 2016

9

THE CHARIOT

WORLD NEWS

Another terror attack strikes France

inspectors have yet to prove any ties between the suspect and ISIL. It has been stated that Mohamed Bouhlel was radicalized rapidly, but it is still unclear whether he received a direct order from Stephanie Jackson ISIL or was simply acting on his own.

Contributing Writer Following the attacks, six people are now in custody due to possible connecastille Day in France was a day tions to the attacks. Mohamed Bouhlel’s of independence of a people, wife and mother of their three children celebrations across the nation, was released after two nights without and pride in what it meant to be French. charge. Her attorney stated that she However, the sounds of fireworks and had not contacted Bouhlel because they joy were were going joined with The people of France have been the through with g u n s h o t s target of multiple terror attacks, and a divorce. and screams The aton July July 14th marked yet another tragic tacker was 14th. incident due to an individual and his shot dead by A truck the police afneed to satisfy his cruel desires. carrying ter his truck guns, amslowed to a munition, and explosives entered the stop on the Promenade. He had driven promenade in Nice and sped toward the down the road for about a mile, crushcrowds of cheering people on the street. ing and hitting people who had come Hundreds of people fled the streets and to watch the fireworks. More than 200 ran for their lives. Tragically, 84 people people were injured that night. were killed by this horrid attack, and 50 President Francois Hollande stated, more were critically wounded.

“Young children who had come to watch A boy at the age of 19 witnessed fireworks with their family, to have joy, the attack and stated, “...people dead to share happiness, delight, amazement, on the floor. There were people in- and who were struck, struck to death, jured and who needed help, but no one merely to satisfy the cruelty of an indicould help them because everyone was afraid.” A 16-year-old, who lives and studies in Nice, is recovering from her injuries at the Fondation Lenval, the children's hospital near the Promenade.

Her mother, Edvige Torres, said, "The most awful thing for her, amidst all this is ... she was telling me: 'Mum, there are dead everywhere, severed heads, severed people, there's blood everywhere, mother, come.'" Some 50 children, like this 16-year-old girl, have been taken to the hospital, and for many of them, their parents have not been found.

The suspected driver of the lorry was a Tunisian nationalist named Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel who has only been convicted once in the past for road rage. The Islamic State has claimed that he was one of their soldiers. However,

B

10

SEPTEMBER 2016

vidual — and maybe of a group.” After mourning for the innocent French lives that were lost on Thursday, the President submitted a law to parliament extending the state of emergency for three additional months. This state of emergency was enforced following the terror attacks in Paris last November. This State of Emergency implies that under certain circumstances the executive branch will be granted special powers during that time. Following the Charlie Hebdo and Jewish supermarket killings in France, the Prime Minister has received extreme criticism because many people believe he has failed to provide security to his people.

Terrorists and extremist groups continue to repeatedly attack all peoples from all different countries. The people of France have been the target of multiple terror attacks, and July 14th marked yet another tragic incident due to an individual and his need to satisfy his cruel desires.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and the loved ones of those killed. During these troubled times where many devastating killings have occurred, we can support the courage and resilience of the French people and their ability to stay strong through these times.

Creative Commons License

WORLD NEWS

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

Economic crisis in Venezuela remains unresolved

around 128 billion USD, compared to companies such as Saudi Aramco, which has a revenue of 478 billion.

The perfect storm — Stephanie Jackson low oil prices, a drought, Contributing Writer and political unrest in the streets — has been buildn the city of Cumana in Venezuela, ing up ever since 2013, over 200 people were arrested after when Nicolas Maduro the military flooded the streets dur- was elected President. ing the recent riots and lootings of the local The Maduro Adminissupermarkets and stores. Several people were tration has attempted multiple times to tamp reportedly shot on Tuesday, July 15th. On down the hyperinflation in Venezuela by imJuly 9th in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, plementing excessive price controls continudozens of people looted a food delivery truck ing Hugo Chavez’s policy of nationalization of on the street. The mod dispersed after gunfire. private industries, and imposing a wide range These cases are only a small part of the turmoil of tariffs. are predicted to have caused GDP to that has erupted across Venezuela due to po- contract by about 10% by the end of this year. litical and economical issues.

President Maduro has tried to convince Firstly, due to the climate effects of the his supporters that this is a net result of conEl Niño, a drought has hit Venezuela. This spiracy and economic warfare from Venezudrought has caused Venezuela’s hydroelectric ela's political opponents, namely, capitalists. dams to run dry, reThe ongoing riots and Outside the government, many economic uncertainty sulting in an energy shortage.

Venezuelans have turned against have put the political Second, low oil opponents of Maduro their President and have been prices have hurt in a position close Venezuela’s econ- blaming him for everything, from enough to obtain a omy. Oil accounts two-thirds majority, inflation to poverty to hunger. for 94% of Venezuwhich is needed to ela’s exports and usually provides a large por- change the condition and hold a referendum tion of the country’s federal budget.. Oil ex- to reduce the length of Maduro's term in ofports however, have not brought much profit fice. to Venezuela in recent years as oil prices have Due to the government prices controlling dropped more than 50 percent due to their certain food products, many farmers of the extremely high oil prices and their high infla- Venezuelan working class have refused to protion rates. The increasing oil prices since the duce food. Additionally, the government has 1970’s have been accompanied by the increase not been able to provide basic food necessities of inflation rates in many countries around to people because in some places the profit of the world, including the United States. The selling food is lower than what it costs to make International Monetary Fund stated that in- the food . Since there is no profit in selling flation will reach 700 percent this year and food, farmers have no incentive to produce will continue to grow rapidly. As a result of food. As a result, famine, hunger, and panic this inflation, Venezuela is not able to profit have spread throughout the country as people off of the oil that they manage to sell. have taken to the streets to loot local superVenezuela has the highest crude oil prices markets in order to provide for their families. in the global community, but major oil com- As evidence of this, crime rates have soared. panies in Venezuela do not produce nor sell The horrible living conditions in Venezuela as much as their international competitors. have caused people to turn against each other PDVSA, the state-owned oil company, is one and their government. of the largest in Venezuela and its revenue is The Chinese, who own a majority of the

I

SEPTEMBER 2016

Creative Commons License

stores in Venezuela, have been targeted and blamed as the source of the famine. Some Chinese have been isolated from their communities due to this perception. President Maduro has continued to blame capitalists, the US government, and the Venezuelan elite.

Maduro has called for a state of economic emergency in Venezuela and will possibly issue an executive order that will force farm workers to produce food in order to battle the extreme food shortage. Outside of the government, however, many of the Venezuelan people have turned against their President and have been blaming him for everything, from inflation to poverty to hunger. Riots have broken out on the streets of the cities and people are uniting against Maduro. They are calling for a referendum on the Presidency and are demanding that Maduro steps down from office. President Maduro refuses to do so.

Creative Commons License

11

THE CHARIOT

WORLD NEWS

Rio's favela residents evicted for the Olympics

Creative Commons License

Caroline Ro Contributing Writer

I

n preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, the Brazilian government has evicted over 75,000 citizens, often forcefully, from their homes in Rio de Janeiro.

Throughout Rio there are over 1,000 favelas, or unplanned slum communities, whose citizens possess legal rights to their land. Since as early as 2010, residents of these favela communities began to receive eminent domain eviction orders from the as a city of the elite, of good taste... For state, with promises of compensation from this reason, it needed to be noble housing, Rio’s mayor, Eduardo Paes. Many families not housing for the poor,” he said. have complied and left their homes for the Vila Autódromo, one favela commusubpar public housing, but some of these nity in Barra, is receiving global media agreements have gone unfulfilled. Certain attention for its citizens’ longstanding opresidents, on the other hand, haven’t been position of the government’s agenda. Prior so lenient. to preparations, it was home to over 600 Brazil’s wealthiest and most influential families. 20 families now remain, and have landowners and developers have set their managed to finally come to an agreement attention on certain neighborhoods of with the state. Vila Autódromo is directly favelas, such as Barra da Tijuca in the west next to the Olympic Park, and the governof the city, due to its profitable location. ment was determined to increase space In this case, it was chosen as the construc- and beautify the area. Many of the families tion site for the who have fought Police have worked to Olympic Park. to remain in their intimidate the residents, even homes have lived This building, resorting to usage of batons, along with the there for several pepper spray, and rubber bullets. decades and have athletes’ village, will be mostly built their homes sold as luxury housing now that the games with their own hands. It is a safe commuare over. nity free of drug trafficking and relatively Starting in 2015, Brazilian real estate close tobusinesses and schools, which is mogul Carlos Carvalho spent near to $1 hard to come by in the lower class neighbillion in investments to bring his visions borhoods of Rio. for Barra to life. He explained in interOn several occasions, police have views that he wishes for his finished prod- worked to intimidate the residents, even uct to act as a beacon of an admirable Rio. resorting to usage of batons, pepper spray, Barra “could represent on the global scene and rubber bullets. Rebuilding and up-

12

SEPTEMBER 2016

grading the homes is the condition for remaining in the area, but the locals nonetheless feel as though a part of them has been taken away. All of the other homes have been destroyed by earth removers, leaving piles of rubble, televisions, and clothing— a wreck resembling a war scene. One Vila Autodromo evictee, Sandra de Souza, 48, expressed her resent at how unfair the whole ordeal was. “It is an event by the rich for the rich,” she said.

Although Brazil’s image is understably one of the government’s highest priorities, the way the government has handled it’s issue with poverty raises questions as to whether they are ready for such global attention. The world knows southern Rio, which boasts the highly photographed beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, along with the infamous Christ the Redeemer. However in the thick of deep recession, political unrest, and a Zika virus outbreak, the state is working fiercely to polish and reconstruct its most popular city while sweeping the less glamorous parts of the city under the bed. Only time will tell whether this year’s Olympics will indeed bring a legacy of tourism to the Rio, or impoverish its working class.

WWW.GUNNCHARIOT.COM

WORLD NEWS

Creative Commons License

Turkey coup ends as quickly as it started

O

Isha Gupta Editor-in-Chief

n July 15, 2016, Turkish military troops launched a coup d’etat, or a forcible takeover of the country, against the Turkish government of President Recip Tayyip Erdogan. While it was short in nature, it is fuelled by longterm problems, and promises to also have long-term consequences.

On the evening of July 15, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced that there was a coup d’etat underway in the country. This statement came as Turkish troops blocked prominent bridges in Istanbul, amid reports of gunfire, fighter jets and helicopters being witnessed in the Turkish capital of Ankara and other parts of the country. There was confirmation of the military takeover when the army went on state media to declare that it had staged the coup in reaction to the authoritarian policies of President Erdogan, specifically stating that its actions were designed to protect democracy. Additionally, the

Turkish military stated that it had instituted martial law and a curfew for the time being, while a new constitution was being drafted.

While many experts sensed quiet unrest in Turkey, many did not expect a full takeover of the government due to President Erdogan’s history of crushing dissenters.

Indeed, President Erdogan was on holiday in the southwest of Turkey (though some reports claim that he was abroad in Europe or other parts of the Middle East) when the coup d’etat manifested, but responded quickly to the attacks on his government.

While President Erdogan’s response was initially hailed as weak by critics, his government crushed the military uprising within a matter of hours after it had started in the next morning of July 16. At the start of the coup d’etat, President Erdogan used Facetime on his iPhone to broadcast on state media a message to his followers to take over the streets and gather around the Istanbul airport. While using Facetime, technology like many that Erdogan has sought to curtail in the past, seemed to be a humiliation on the part of the government, Erdogan’s message was effective in bringing his supporters to the streets of cities across Turkey. However, this did not stop damage from being inflicted on Parliament and government buildings and a military helicopter being shot down. Furthermore, the head of the Turkish armed forces, General SEPTEMBER 2016

Hulusi Akar, was taken hostage by revolting members of the military. However, by the morning, the general was freed and Prime Minister Yildirim declares the coup to be over with the mass surrendering of multiple military leaders in Istanbul.

Though the coup d'etat was over, that did not stop the speculation of who exactly was to blame for inciting unrest in the military and why it did not succeed for longer. The government was quick to point fingers at Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric based in the United States who allegedly fuelled unrest. However, Gulen denied the claims and condemned the coup. The government has also arrested around 6,000 people in connection to the military takeover, including high ranking soldiers and judges. The coup d’etat is known to have not succeeded because it was neither that popular amongst citizens nor had extensive military backing. In fact, the military group, who called themselves the Peace at Home Council, was only a small faction of the army. Many soldiers claimed that they thought they were participating in military exercises when they were accused of participating in the coup. Usually seen as a beacon of stability in these tumultuous times of the Middle East, the world will continue to monitor Turkey as President Erdogan keeps an iron grip on his nation once again.

13

THE CHARIOT

TECHNOLOGY

The road to self-driving cars in the wake of Tesla crashes Maggie Wang Editor-in-Chief

O

n May 7, Joshua Brown was killed while using the Autopilot feature of a Tesla Model S electric sedan in Florida. Brown was reportedly watching Harry Potter and driving at 65 miles per hour when a tractor-trailer made a left turn across Brown’s Tesla. The system failed to see the white truck against a bright sky, and the brakes were not applied. According to a Tesla statement following the crash, should be fully autonomous or not at this was the first known fatality in over all. Especially when naming the semi130 million miles where Autopilot was autonomous feature “Autopilot,” Tesla activated — compared to one fatality in should know that customers will push every 94 million miles of regular driv- the limits of the system. There are many videos posted on Youtube of drivers ing.

Another crash occurred when a Tesla with their hands off the steering wheel, Model S swerved off the road and into playing games, and even climbing into a guardrail, bloodying the driver’s nose. the backseat while on the freeway.

In addition, even if drivers do have The driver, Mark Molthan, admitted to their hands on the wheel as Tesla incleaning the dashboard before the colstructs, we cannot ascertain that their lision.

The Autopilot feature is a limited reaction time is enough to prevent a semi-autonomous system that allows crash. In an emergency situation, drivcars to keep in-lane, adjust its speed ers may have one second or less to transition from autopiin accordance back to manual to other cars These crashes show the need lot control. on the road, to remove the gray area of Self-driving cars change lanes, will certainly beautonomy — cars should be scan parking prevalent spaces, and self- fully autonomous or not at all. come around the world, park. Thus, the changing transporModel S is not a driverless car as being tation forever.

According to the Nadeveloped by Google and others, and Tesla makes it clear that drivers must tional Highway Traffic Safety Adminisbe aware while using the Autopilot fea- tration (NHTSA), human error is the ture. In a June blog post, Tesla stated cause of 94% of car crashes. Although it that it “disables Autopilot by default is still unclear how much safer self-drivand requires explicit acknowledgement ing cars will be — that would require that the system is new technology and “tens and sometimes hundreds of years,” still in public beta phase before it can according to a report from research firm RAND Corporation — self-driving cars be enabled.”

These crashes show the need to re- in a confined area with a fully autonomove the gray area of autonomy — cars mous system could potentially reduce

14

SEPTEMBER 2016

Courtesy of Forbes

the rate of automobile-related deaths and even reduce the rate of traffic and congestion.

While the technology for self-driving cars is coming, there are still no federal rules for partially or fully autonomous vehicles on the road. NHTSA has stated two years ago that it will decide “whether it should encourage and/or require application of the most promising crash avoidance technologies through regulation.” Only Nevada, California, Michigan, Florida, and Washington, D.C. have created laws to regulate the testing and consumption of autonomous vehicles, but these laws are inconsistent. While some argue that variation in safety standards allow for greater innovation and that uniform regulation may create more harm than good, it is also important to define and measure autonomous vehicle safety across states.

Just like the internet, the technology itself will ultimately govern what the law dictates. While these Tesla crashes were not the first and will certainly not be the last, government policies must create better regulation while still allowing for growth and efficiency. Selfdriving cars have the potential to save us a large amount of time and eliminate accidents — but first, the government and industry must work together to make this happen.