Chari t T
H
E
Delivering Gunn’s Culture and Politics
January 2010
TO BE OR NOT TO BE... VACCINATED PAGE 5 What You Should Know About... H1N1 Brittany Cheng Page 6
H1N1: Swine Flu Alice Li Page 7
Vaccine Injured Yoyo Tsai Pages 7-8
Vaccinations Save Lives Daljeet Virdi Pages 8-9
Volume 6 Issue 5 SOLO PIECES An Obama Guantanamo
Roxanne Rahnama Page 5
Health Care Bill Tommy Huang Page 9
Sports are Fun… Right?
Corey Breier Pages 12-13
No Excuses
Max Lipxcomb Pages 13-14
Pirates vs. Ninjas
Kevin Yang Pages 14-15
The Droid
Saurabh Radhakrishnan Page 16
iPhone vs. Droid
Scott Wey Page 16
THE REGULARS Copenhagen Conference
Page 4
Finals Before Break
Robert Chen Page 5
An Everytown Experience Brian Zhang Page 10
Political Correctness
Aaron Guggenheim Page 8
The True Value of Everytown Andrew Liu Pages 10-11
Exclusive Inclusivity Max Lipscomb Pages 11-12
CAMP EVERYTOWN PAGE 10
Photo: Priya Ghose
The Chariot Editors-in-Chief Robert Chen Aaron Guggenheim Senior Editors Ben Bendor Andrew Liu Sarah Zubair Copy Editors Andre Garrett Tommy Huang Graphics/Layout Brittany Cheng Scott Wey Alexandra Yesian Circulation Jacob Guggenheim Publicity Priya Ghose Contributing Writers Ron Ackner Yoni Alon Arjun Bharadwaj Neil Bhateja Corey Breier Will Cromarty Naor Deleanu Henry Gens Tara Golshan James Gupta Anish Johri Ryan Lee Alice Li Max Lipscomb Jeff Ma Sam Neff Saurabh Radhakrishnan Roxanne Rahnama Hina Sakazaki Yoyo Tsai Daljeet Virdi Ian Wilkes Kevin Yang Stanley Yu Ethan Yung Omer Zach Kevin Zhang Foundation/Group Sponsors Adobe Systems Daughters of the American Revolution Palo Alto Lions Club Palo Alto Roller-Masonic Lodge Patrons ($100+) Lauren Michals and Vinod Bharadwaj Steven Guggenheim Shirley Zeng and Yajun Liu Sponsors ($50-99) Contributors ($21-50)
Special thanks to Advisor, Marc Igler 2
January 2010
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 2004 as the Partisan Review by Gunn alumni Ilan Wurman (‘06), Channing Hancock (‘06), and Sarah McDermott (‘05). Visit our website, www.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: Marc Igler 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. Dear Readers, We would first like to welcome you to the new year and also thank you for your continued readership and support. It means a lot to all of us who work on putting The Chariot together that we have people who are actually interested in the reading the magazine. This issue, our focus shifts to Camp Everytown. In light of the return of recent Everytowners, we wanted to evaluate it: discuss pros and cons as well as talk about what exactly goes on in this mysterious woodland camp. Also, in our new issue is a discussion on swine flu and a debate over the benefits vaccinations. We hope that you enjoy this new issue and as always, keep an open mind and write us if you want your opinion on what we have published heard. Until our next release in March, Aaron Guggenheim and Robert Chen Editors-in-Chief
The World in a Blurb
“ “ “ “ “
You are not in Kansas anymore. You are on Pandora, ladies and gentleman. – Colonel Quaritch, Avatar
I know that the American people will appreciate their sacrifice. I pray that the government they serve does the same. – Unnamed US official, in response to the killing of eight Americans in an Afghan CIA base bombing
Those who fell yesterday were far from home and close to the enemy, doing the hard work that must be done to protect our country from terrorism. – CIA Director Leon E. Panetta
The fundamental task for ensuring peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in the rest of Asia is to put an end to the hostile relationship; between North Korea and the US. – Statement issued by North Korea
We are at war, and when President Obama pretends we aren’t, it makes us less safe. – Former Vice President Dick Cheney
British Man Executed In a surprise move on December 29, the Chinese government executed British Akmal Shaikh via lethal injection for drug trafficking . He was the first European to be executed in China for nearly 60 years, inciting a firestorm of criticism. In September 2007, Saikh was arrested for carrying 4kg of heroin, with possession of over 50 grams resulting in
The Chariot
death. After 30 minutes of deliberation, during which Saikh was not allowed to plead insanity, he was sentenced to death. His family claims that he was mentally ill and had been tricked into carrying to drugs by a gang. The case was sensitive to both Chinese and British governments. The Chinese are tackling growing heroin problems in the Xinjiang providence near Kazakhstan, and it brings up memories of the opium war begun by the British a century earlier. The British are incensed that Chinese judges refused to allow Saikh to be evaluated mentally for the claims that he had bipolar disorder and delusions. The court backed its decision, stating that it had no reason to suspect Saikh of mental illness because he had no previous history. His execution was conAkmal Shaikh demned by many around the world, including British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, “I condemn the execution of Akmal Shaikh in the strongest terms, and am appalled and disappointed that our persistent requests for clemency have not been granted.” Bombing Attempt In an attempted bombing on December 25, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab tried to set off explosives on his flight, inbound to Detroit from the Netherlands. His plan was foiled as nearby passengers noticed him and took him down. He had attempted to blow up a syringe full of PETN, an explosive used in the past by terrorists, which he says he received from an al-Qaeda bomb maker in Yemen. Immediately following the attempt, airport security was sharply increased. Among the changes implemented were increasing the screening, limiting passengers to only one carry-on, and restricting movement around the plane for the last hour of the flight. The government’s no-fly list has come under scrutiny for failing to be effective in blocking Abdulmutallab from boarding the flight. January 2010
3
The Chariot
The World in a Blurb
(Continued)
Health Care Bill Clears Senate The new 871 billion dollar health-care bill was finally passed through the Senate. It promises to expand coverage from 83% to 94% of legal residents. The provisions of the new Senate health-care bill make it so that by 2014, insurers can not deny customers coverage due to a pre-existing condition and that employers must provide affordable health care coverage to their employees or face penalties. The senate bill also makes for a state-based health-insurance exchange that would enable people without employee coverage to become covered. It is estimated that by 2019, some 30 million people will be covered under this option. But, under this new bill, there will be no public option. The differences between the Senate and House health-care bill still need to be hammered out before Obama signs the new bill into law. Obama hopes that this new bill will be signed into law before his State of Union address in January. Pope Attacked As Pope Benedict XVI delivered his Christmas Day address, a woman bypassed Vatican security barriers and knocked down the Pope. The 82-year-old pontiff was thrown to the floor, but was unhurt and was able to continue the services. The assailant, an unidentified Swiss-Italian woman known to have a history of mental illness, also attempted to get to the Pope last year at his Midnight Mass. She is now in the custody of the Vatican police who are now reviewing security procedures to find out how their perimeter was breached. Iran Protests On December 30, Iranian government backers demonstrated support for their leaders in Tehran. Iran has faced days of intense anti-government protests after the government tried to restrict funerals for Hossein Ali Montazeri, an important Shi’a cleric and anti-government figure. Mr. Montazeri was originally designated as the successor to his mentor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, but fell out of favor with Khomeini as a result of disagreements over human rights abuses. These protests take place in the holy month of Mu4
January 2010
harram, which for Shi’a Muslims recognizes the martyrdom of one Hussein, a relative of Muhammad and leader of the Shi’a movement. Some protests have become violent, though it is unclear whether this was before or after aggressive police action, which overall has killed 8 to 10 people. Furthermore, the nephew of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi was killed in an apparent assassination. Some protestors have been using religious language tied to the month of Muharram, likening Supreme Leader Khamenei to the killers of Hussein.
What’s That?
Copenhagen Conference
Leaders of 192 nations met in Copenhagen, Denmark, from December 7-18 to find an international consensus on how to tackle global warming. The leaders agreed to a statement of intention that generally fell short of expectations of the summit, and United Nations climate change official Yvo de Boer said that the accord, while “politically incredibly significant,” did little to advance the treaty process from where it was two years ago, when countries pledged to reach a binding agreement in Copenhagen. The deal, written by only five countries (including the United States), includes provisions for major emitters to cut emissions, to help developing nations develop expensive clean-energy technologies, and to aid states vulnerable to the effects of climate change, but none of these measures is legally binding. “We have a lot of work to do on the road to Mexico,” said de Boer, referring to next year’s conference in Mexico City. Even this small deal required substantial political maneuvering and was stalled by differences between developed and developing nations, as well as long-held mistrust of the United States, which remains the only “Annex I” industrialized country that has not ratified the decade-old Kyoto Protocol. Different blocs, including the developing Group of 77, African Union, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, and developed countries, made the debate difficult and impassioned. A Sudanese delegate even compared the effect of the accord on poor nations to the Holocaust.
An Obama Guantanamo Roxanne Rahnama Contributing Writer Soon after his inauguration back in January 2009, President Obama ordered the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba. With this order, the President asserted that the Cuban prison, which has been operating since 2002, would be closed within the next year. He also reiterated the point that the closure process would not be a simple task, citing the relocation of the inmates as a primary challenge. President Obama proposed the potential relocation of Guantanamo inmates to facilities on US soil as a possible solution. This tentative course of action would only begin after thorough investigation of the legal, logistical, and security issues at hand. Many concerns and questions have been voiced since the closure of Guantanamo Bay was first ordered, ranging from where those charged would be tried to where those freed would be sent. Then, there is the issue of the 250 confirmed and 21 pending detainees accused of being connected to terrorism. To this day, 215 inmates remain behind the walls of the detention center, while approximately 565 have been released or transferred out of the prison. Of the transferred prisoners, only one was relocated to the US. He is presently anticipating his trial in New York. There are also about 65 cases which have been deemed feasible for prosecution in federal courts or by military commissions. Furthermore, 78 inmates have been
The Chariot
cleared for discharge by a government task force. At the rate that the closure process is moving, it is clear that the deadline will be considerably prolonged. Nonetheless, President Obama is still resolute in his decision to close Guantanamo Bay. Despite his continuous efforts, there are several underlying factors that have hampered the speed and efficiency of the process. One key factor is the resistance of many countries to take in the detainees. Obama has not been able to persuade other nations to harbor the prisoners. This refusal to accommodate the detainees, however, is rather justified since Washington will not accept them on US soil. According to a Columbia Law School professor, Mathew Waxman, “It’s very difficult to persuade third countries to accept the political or security risks involved, especially when the United States has been unwilling to accept that risk itself.” Thus far, there have been a very few European nations that have agreed to take in detainees, including Portugal and Ireland. Another cause for delay is the pending decision of where to try the 40 to 60 prisoners accused of terrorism. In spite of the obstacles standing in the way of the successful closure of Guantanamo Bay, Obama has made some improvements since he took office. The detention center’s population has been diminished by a few dozen. In addition, Obama’s administration announced that five of the most high-profile inmates who were supposedly engaged in the September 11th attacks, would be tried in a New York civilian court. In the end, the blame for the delay of closing Guantanamo Bay cannot be directed at a single person or nation. Ultimately, the collaborative support of both Congress and US allies in the world are required to terminate the existence of the unjust prison camp.
Gunn Update Finals Before Break Robert Chen Co Editor-in-Chief
Simplify the school calendar by making finals and the end of the first semester before Winter Break. With this, we would get an actual “break” free from worries of imminent tests and last-minute gradeboosting. Without these nagging thoughts, we could enjoy a truly relaxing break. It is inevitable that students forget much of what they learn over the break. Everybody knows of the slight brain leak that happens every weekend. And Winter Break is a fourteen day weekend. The ban on homework over the break has been ineffective because it is too easily bypassed. Many teachers assign the work for January instead, hinting that much of it should be completed over the break. Why not give us another way to start anew come the New Year?
January 2010
5
The Chariot
Brittany Cheng Graphics/Layout
6
January 2010
TO BE OR NOT TO BE... VACCINATED H1N1: Swine Flu Alice Li Contributing Writer Since its outbreak in Veracruz, Mexico, in March of last year, H1N1 has driven people and governments across the globe to scramble for cover. Some of this agitation is justified; everyone is susceptible to the new viruses that cause flu pandemics. Since pandemics typically come in two or three waves, the world will still have to be alert and wary in the coming year. Bird flu frightened scientists into looking out for possible new pandemics, so we were well prepared for one at the outbreak of swine flu. There is already substantial knowledge about the H1N1 virus and the progression of symptoms. We know that the majority of the infected will be the young, who will recover completely and quickly after experiencing only mild symptoms. With only 12,121 confirmed deaths, H1N1 currently causes only a fraction of total deaths from influenza. Some, such as those who are pregnant or have underlying conditions, will be at increased risk, but the virus will not come close to being as deadly as the 1918 Spanish flu, which left over fifty million dead. Future disruptions from H1N1 will be brief, lasting only four to six weeks, but areas that had evaded infection are likely to be affected in the next wave as it falls from the northern hemisphere to the southern. The pandemic will continue to overtax the world’s healthcare systems. The few who will need intensive care will place a large burden on already overstretched hospitals, while the uneven distribution of vaccines (with most concentrated in the richer Western world) and the limited number of
vaccines will ensure that several billion go without needed vaccinations. It is the developing world, areas without the adequate infrastructure, supplies, or sanitation, that will fail to provide medical care and will suffer the most from this pandemic.
Vaccine Injured
Yoyo Tsai Contributing Writer As flu season comes around, the spreading H1N1 virus takes the vaccine debate to a whole new level. Even though most people in the world believe in the safety and effectiveness of a vaccine, oftentimes there are reports that say otherwise. I do believe in the improving medical world and I hope to join it soon after college; however, I refuse to inject within myself with dead viruses for a flu vaccine with relatively little efficiency. The immune system of anyone is limited to the extent of how much white blood cells can be produced within a certain amount of time. With a deadly new virus going around, there’s simply so much panic spreading that rationality disappears. While there are numerous vaccines with proven usage and efficiency, the flu vac-
The Chariot
cine is least studied and tested. Within every couple years, a new strand of viruses spread the world during “flu season.” From experimentation to test trials to distribution of new drugs and vaccines, the process can take years for it to be approved by CDC. Then how reliable can a new flu vaccine be? In order to measure efficiency, trials must be done to imitate what would most likely occur in reality. Taken directly from the label of the flu vaccine FLULAVAL, it says “…and there have been no controlled trials demonstrating a decrease in influenza disease after vaccination with FLULAVAL.” No controlled trials mean no proven statistics on the efficacy of the new vaccine and why take a vaccine with no effect? The American Medical Society conducted a study that showed only 1 out of every 100 people are actually prevented from getting the flu after getting a flu shot. Simply said, all that the scientific studies have shown us are the relatively little scientific studies done on the flu vaccine. When commented on the relatively little efficacy of a flu vaccine, health care officials simply say that it takes approximately three weeks for the vaccine to go into effect, meaning that there is still a strong likelihood of getting the virus even when you believe that you are protected. However, there are still two points in which health officials do agree on. First of all, vaccines are made in advance and scientists must predict the strain of a virus that will emerge nine months ahead. This can only be accurate to some extent, further decreasing the efficacy of the vaccine. Secondly, even if the virus and vaccine do match, the response is not 100%. Ironically, those who need the protection January 2010
7
The Chariot
The Life
Political Correctness Aaron Guggenheim Co Editor-in-Chief Political correctness is defined as narrowing the range of acceptable opinions to those held by a small group that enforces them. It makes any ideas outside of those considered politically correct thought unacceptable. I am all for ridding the world of derogatory opinions that hurt or oppress people. I believe that it should be wrong for people to use racial slurs and the like. But, I want for everyone to loosen up a little bit on being politically correct. Being politically correct does not mean that you are being right and should not be used as justification for doing something wrong. For example, when enslavement was legal, it was viewed as being politically correct. Freeing the slaves was thought of, by those who held them, as a derogatory view and therefore, an evil. But, slavery is wrong and by making it politically correct, it was protected and nurtured. Only when those who thought independently, outside of the acceptable public opinion, was this injustice righted. The other problem with modern political correctness is the oversensitivity with which people adhere to it. A recent example would be when an author tried to publish a book based off the classic fairy tale about the three little pigs. The book was judged unsuitable because of concerns about offending the Asian community and the cultural issues the subject matter raised. This is a ridiculous example of strict adherence to political correctness overriding simple logic. The author was trying to get his book published, not hurt people. The short of it is, be politically correct when the matter being discussed is derogatory, but don’t let strict adherence to being politically correct blind you. Evaluate each side’s opinion, whether or not they are considered to be politically correct, and don’t become so oversensitive that it limits our freedom of speech. Independent thought is the cornerstone of freedom from oppression. Just because they say it’s good, doesn’t make it so. 8
January 2010
the most (the sick and elderly) are least likely to get a protective antibody response. As both sides of the extreme pile facts, statistics and outrageous claims upon the average American, it is hard for someone to decide whether a vaccine is worth it. While sympathetic that it really is hard to come up with just the right flu vaccine that works on most everybody at the right time, health officials and pharmaceuticals simply push the vaccine upon us and hope that we’re protected, going on the little substantial evidence that it may work. With the accumulating ridiculous amount of side effects that could result and little proven data, I would find it hard to believe in the current medical knowledge on flu vaccines. Sometimes it’s better to let the course of nature run its path. We were given bodies with sufficient ability to protect ourselves; thus, there’s simply no need to dash off towards a flu vaccine that may end up doing more harm than good.
In Defense of Vaccination Daljeet Virdi Contributing Writer According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the risk of a serious reaction to the H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine is approximately one person every million vaccinated. In the 1976 Swine Flu vaccination, approximately 48 million Americans were given the vaccine. Of those 48 million, 532 developed a serious life threatening disease. That means one out of every 90,226 people was infected with a serious life threatening disease. In the 1970s, media reporting of the adverse effects of the whooping cough vaccine led many parents to not give the vaccine to their children. The caseload for the whooping cough rose dramatically—there were 100,000 more cases from 19771980. Only when confidence in the vaccine was regained was there any significant drop in the number of cases. Vaccines are not perfect, but they are useful and have made a positive impact in the health of our community. The greatest benefit is the collective protection built up by mass vaccination. The benefits of preventing suffering and death from serious infectious diseases greatly outweigh the risks of rare adverse effects following immunization. Vaccines have been very successful since their creation. Mass vaccinations have almost completely eliminated polio and have
helped eliminate smallpox, which had been killing every seventh child in Europe. According to research published in Time Magazine, vaccinating all U.S. children born in a given year saves an estimated 33,000 lives and prevents 14 million infections. But opponents of vaccinations claim that these figures are flawed—that the successes in the field of health are not due to vaccinations. Some argue that a reduction in overcrowding and poor sanitation is the true reason for the successes; others say that immunity given by vaccines needs booster shots and is too weak to stave off harm. They say that surviving a disease is better because it gives permanent immunity. But proof that vaccinations are dangerous, rather than ineffective, is hard to come by. Many other times, the studies that point against the effectiveness of vaccines are conducted in flawed manners without accounting other biasing factors. It seems most logical to conclude that vaccines, though their effectiveness is ambiguous and depends on many factors, is a positive safeguard that should be used. In fact, there is much evidence that shows the negative consequences resulting when there are no vaccinations. In 1873 in Stockholm, due to religious objection, people stopped taking vaccines. Consequently, later that year, a major smallpox epidemic took off. The epidemic ended when there was a rise in vaccine usage. Just recently, in the early 2000s, a conservative leader in Nigeria spread suspicion of western medicine, namely vaccinations. Consequently, polio reappeared in dozens of previously polio-free neighborhoods and Nigeria now accounts for over half the polio cases in the world. With the H1N1 virus looming, a vaccine shot is a good idea. Data shows that it is very rare to get a serious reaction from the shot and that otherwise, getting the shot is extremely beneficial. So, it is my sincere suggestion that you walk into your local hospital, hold tough, and get your shots.
Health Care Bill Tommy Huang Copy Editor President Obama has said that his number one priority was to fix the health care problem in America. Clearly, Obama has kept his promise in that respect, as he has been fighting for the passing of the health care bill since mid-July. The bill narrowly passed through the House of Representatives on November 7th by a 220-215 vote, and has recently passed through the Senate. Each of these were hard-fought victories for the health care bill due to unanimous Republican opposition. But is this health care bill really what this nation needs? Only minor details were altered in the Senate and the House, with only slight discrepancies as to which year each plan would be implemented. Obama’s $871 billion health care bill not only has been held mostly intact, but also seems to cover everything that he planned for. There are plenty of longterm benefits that won’t be taken into effect until 2014 or later, while there are also plenty of short-term benefits for the impatient. Republicans have claimed that this health care bill is a type of layaway plan, where money is spent now and benefits are seen later. Also, if no benefits are seen early, it could cause unrest in the American population for seeing no change arise from the elevated taxes they are seeing. Health care coverage would vastly improve under this new health care bill, as it is expected to increase coverage of legal Americans from 83% to 94%. The bill does this by requiring Americans who currently do not have health insurance to take the government-run health insurance plan. Originally, there was to be the public
The Chariot
option, meaning that the uninsured individual could have a choice to go with a private competitive plan or with the government plan. However, this option was removed in the passing of the health care bill through the House. By requiring health coverage, this will help millions of Americans who have never had health insurance finally get the coverage that they need to pay off regular physicals, doctor appointments and prescription drugs. In addition to this, the new health care bill will give cheaper, more affordable health insurance to those with disabilities and those who have an extensive medical history. Private health insurance companies have shied away from providing coverage to such individuals due to the huge cost of keeping them under plan, but the new health care bill promises to give them affordable health care and protection in the case of an accident. Obama plans to accomplish these hefty feats through increasing the excise tax and laying a heavier tax on those with higher income. All in all, the health care bill, despite its huge expenditure over the next few years, will actually decrease the debt that the government has amassed in the long run. In addition to limiting the income tax deductions that the affluent claim, employers and companies will also be required to help pay for health care for their employees. The health care bill may not be perfect, but the Democrats and President Obama are taking a strong step in the right direction. It has been a goal of the Democratic Party since FDR to accomplish some sort of national health insurance. Obama is admirably making his number one priority come true for many currently uninsured Americans. January 2010
9
CAMP EVERYTOWN The Chariot
An Everytown Experience Brian Zhang Guest Writer “A stranger is only a friend you haven’t met.” This quote from Camp Everytown epitomizes my experience at this year’s camp. Everytown fosters a community of openness where attendees build friendships and develop personal pride. Camp Everytown is a program developed by Silicon Valley FACES that serves many local high schools including Gunn. This year, Gunn sent around 70 students, whom were nominated by staff members and previous student campers, to the camp. They board buses on a Wednesday after school and return Saturday afternoon. Everytown is in some sense a utopia. Retreating into the Santa Cruz mountains, the students and staff participants are isolated from the demands of school, so they can focus on the time spent with others. Confidentiality of specific camp proceedings is stressed to protect those who share and so future campers can have a firsthand experience, without having had the activities spoiled by a friend. To create an open environment, students are encouraged to sit with new people during meals and give hugs. Though the attendees represent a diverse population of the student body, their common Gunn background draws them together. Staff members are able to share insights from a different stage of life. Discussions of the activities performed take place in large as well as small groups so individuals can feel comfortable sharing. 10
January 2010
Let me give an overview of the themes discussed at Everytown without revealing too much. First, there is the issue of racial stereotypes. By hearing how others have struggled to cope with the stereotypes placed upon their race, the campers are more motivated to halt the circulation of these messages, starting with their own words and actions. However, I often hear eliminating racism cited as the primary purpose of Everytown, yet I feel it falls short of summing up what the program accomplishes. Rather, I think Everytown works toward the goal of building personal pride, and so stereotypes are covered for the reason that they diminish the self-worth of those who don’t fit the generalization. By looking past their prejudices, the attendees can see each other as they really are, and over the course of the camp this creates a very tangible atmosphere of acceptance. Everytown also addresses gender stereotypes. This discussion focuses on the messages we hear from TV, music, and those around us about men and women’s proper gender roles, and how they have made us feel. A third topic is family values and relationships. I feel we are generally hesitant to talk about our families with others, but Everytown brings this issue out into the open. By communicating this area of their lives, students can feel supported by their peers despite possible family flaws. Through these personal discussions and the time spent with others, it should be of no surprise that most attendees make many new, close friends. When the camp draws to a close, it is hoped that these connections can be sustained to provide encouragement to those who need it.
The True Value of Everytown Andrew Liu Senior Editor When I returned from Camp Everytown several weeks ago, I found myself looking at life through a different set of lenses. Society’s problems—violence, stereotypes, and prejudice—were no longer removed from me like the tragic, faraway stories on the national news, and I became keenly aware that social barriers and biases continue to divide and misguide us. Even here in the United States, a republic founded on principles of democratic equality, we are troubled with discrimination and ingrained stereotypes despite the substantial progress that we have made in the past two centuries. It is exactly this awareness and motivation to change that Everytown sparked in me. While it is a stretch to say that Everytown completely changed my life, Everytown certainly did transform my perspective and kindle inside of me a new fire to inspire. Everytown has had similarly profound effects on many of the other student participants, as well as Gunn and community facilitators, and has empowered many of them to bring the message of acceptance to the communities around them. There is no doubt that Camp Everytown is an invaluable positive force, not only an eyeopening experience for the individual participant, but also an engine for change in the community. Everytown largely benefits the participants through several facets. First, Everytown makes participants aware of the biases around and within them, shows the impacts of prejudice in violence and social divisions, and helps to dispel these biases in the individual. But on an even larger
The Chariot
scale, Everytown develops honesty and leadership by fostering open communication on traditionally suppressed subjects like racism, sexism, and family relationships, and empowering a community of leaders to reform the problems around them when they return. All the while, participants bond tightly with their peers and teachers and face the social reality that is often eclipsed by the academic and extracurricular rigor at Gunn. These components make up the cliché “amazing experience” that is Camp Everytown. In many participants, the change from those four days of camp remains for years in character and behavioral changes, simply because the experience is so unique and stirring. But Everytown also advances the communities of those whose lives are touched by the experience. Gunn, which has participated at Everytown many years, enjoys a tolerant community atmosphere, as evidenced by the harmony within a diverse student body, organizations like the GayStraight Alliance, and events like Not in
Our Schools Week. Everytown plays no small role in this, by inspiring returning students to reach out to the estranged, mix groups, break down barriers, communicate honestly, and lead by example to positively influence others’ behavior. Everytown’s benefits, however, extend far beyond the school community. Everytown participants return to their families, sports teams, churches, and other social groups with the same intent – to spread the message of social justice. They become especially powerful agents of change among their close Priya Ghose friends, families, and mentors, who are all more inclined to listen to more intimate calls for change that start from right within close circles. Additionally, Everytown is one “of the most effective crime prevention programs we have,” according to police chiefs across the Silicon Valley. Everytown is instrumental in tackling violence that often emanates from ignorance or prejudice, and strives to stop the cycle of crime and abuse among youth, during a crucial period of development. Some say that Everytown, in pursuing a message of inclusivity, unintentionally excludes those who are not chosen, starting as early as the selection process and ending with the close-knit community that forms afterwards. But the reality is that only so many students can attend Everytown in a given year and that “exclusion,” if judged by this unfair criterion, is inevitable because there will always be some students left out. Furthermore, Everytown students return to actively break down barriers and make it
a goal to reach out to include those who do not go, leading to more inclusivity, not exclusivity. The nomination process, contrary to what some see as exclusive, is a result of the limited number of students Gunn can send to Everytown. It chooses students who will get the most out of the program and make an impact on the community. One image of Everytown that stuck with me occurred on the first school day after camp. Many of us had been uncomfortable returning to reality after living in a near-utopian community for four days and rising to impossibly sublime heights. But then, during that first brunch, I saw several of my Everytown friends greeting people that they had never met before, smiling at and hugging each other and others that had not gone. To me, this vignette is the spirit of Camp Everytown, one that is undeniably a positive force in our community.
Exclusive Inclusivity Max Lipscomb Contributing Writer I want to add a small disclaimer before I start this article. My purpose is not to degrade Camp Everytown in any way. I support both the camp’s purpose and practice and I would have gladly attended it myself. While it is admittedly tough to have a friend return “significantly altered” after a few days in a forest, I think it is a testament to Camp Everytown’s general success that only a handful of alumni over the past few years have spoken badly of the camp or its activities. Unfortunately, there is not enough forest for everyone and the camp’s continued exclusiveness impedes its goals of acceptance and understanding. It is difficult not to notice the numerous pieces of camp paraphernalia sported by the newly graduated alumni in the weeks following Everytown. Though appreciably reduced this year, the sight of friendship necklaces, name tags, and T-shirts bearing the camp’s name proclaim differences created where there were none a few days January 2010
11
The Chariot
prior. Unfortunately this unification comes at the expense of the school’s solidarity as the student body is temporarily split into two factions: the campers and the noncampers. Many of our peers whom we have known for months or years prior to their camping escapade return from Everytown and start to criticize the use of words they had used not a week before. They no longer laugh at jokes they previously found hilarious because these same jokes have now become inconsiderate and politically incorrect. They now look at the world through rose-colored glasses with hopes to change it for the better, despite the fact that Gunn students have been attending Everytown for over a decade. While these changes are good at face value, I think the problem, which most students have found is that an exclusive group begins to preach inclusiveness with the expectation that their Everytown experience will do nothing to bar the understanding of other non-attending students. Apart from being paradoxical, it tends to create division between campers and the rest of the student body. This brings me to my main problem with the camp: admission. I’m not bothered by the “superior” actions and attitudes of returning campers because they are rooted in nomination-based admittance. Telling people they have been selected for something from which their fellow classmates have been excluded bestows a certain feeling of advantage, often seen as a sense of superiority. Although nominations are completely sensible for academic based school activities, Everytown and is not, in the words of my fellow writer Anish Johri, “an experience for everyone.” Replacing the nominations with a firstcome first-serve or lottery system would eliminate the perceived superiority and the disconnection between groups of students. There would be nothing separating a camper and non-camper other than the fact that the camper had signed up or been favored by chance. No more supremacy. Other than providing equal access, this system would give Gunn students with the most interest in the camp the opportunity 12
January 2010
to attend it. After all, those people should stand to gain the most, as they’ll be receptive to the camp from the get-go. No matter from which angle I analyze the admissions process, I see no reason for the continued use of the nomination system other than the inclusion of certain individuals who teachers may feel “need” the camp. However, to say that the system should be interest-based is not to say that teachers cannot make recommendations or that a small number of spots could not be put aside for teachers to nominate those individuals who would be especially affected by it. This year’s Everytowners have done a good job in attempting to correct what many Gunn students consider to be an undeniably undesirable experience in dealing with the demeanor of returning Everytown students. Despite this effort, little further improvement can be made without the adjustment of this camp to a model which unifies the entire school, and not only those who attend it.
Robert Chen
Sports are Fun… Right? Corey Breier Contributing Writer I have been a busy athlete throughout my high school career. Not quite as busy as I could be, perhaps, but I believe that I have sweated enough to earn the “jock” label. My sports were drastically different from each other: lacrosse made me run, water polo forced me to swim, and wres-
tling taught me to stay completely alert while exhausted. But all three were similar in one respect: they tried to take over my life. It wasn’t always blatant, except when it was. My lacrosse coaches would make offhand references to “Fall Ball” that implied that everyone on the on-season team was still playing lacrosse in the off season. In that respect, it wasn’t forced upon us. Wrestling was similar, but not quite as expected: Coach Horpel would simply keep us aware of off-season wrestling opportunities, but he didn’t tell us to specifically attend them. It was water polo that was the most overt. I remember my coach telling me sophomore year that I would be drastically hurting my future prospects on the water polo team if I did not join the swimming team. “I hate swimming!” I would say, “Why would I ever join the swim team?” “To get better, of course,” was always the response. Now, it is at this stage that we enter a slippery slope of priorities. I root for Gunn teams of all kinds (I would hope that goes without saying) and wish them the best. But there is a fine line between necessary team conditioning, and conditioning that only exists in order to make us win more. For example, could our water polo team, with harder and longer practice, have gone farther in the Central Coast Section (CCS) tournament? Certainly. But would the payoff be worth the effort,with the loss of sleep, decline of grades, and general student stress that would follow? No. There may be certain students who would welcome such a tradeoff, but my bet is that the majority of athletes would not. The coaches always say, “You’re students first and athletes second,” but a rigorous program of season-long, four-times-aweek, 6:00 AM morning practices does not seem to jive with such a statement. One should not have to choose between sports and schoolwork. Here in Palo Alto, we are fortunate to have access to world class athletes to teach our young athletes. We get Stanford coaches of all kinds who volunteer their free time in order to enrich our lives. Our new
The Chariot
No Excuses Max Lipscomb Contributing Writer
Sterling Hancock
football coach has already been named Coach of the Week by the 49er foundation. Our own Athletic Director Chris Horpel is an All-American and Pac-9 Champion wrestling champion. When our previous water polo coach (who played on the US National Team as well as professionally) stopped coaching in order to raise a family, we found new ones who had played on top tier college teams. We could not ask for better coaches. These men and women know their sports intimately and love them – which makes these mentors uniquely qualified to bring that love of the game to the next generation. But that may be exactly the problem. These coaches have grown up with their sports, competed at the highest levels, and given their all to athletics. But here at Gunn High School, I hope I speak for more than just myself when I say that my highest priority is not becoming a better (fill in blank) player. I don’t plan on playing in college; I don’t even play in the offseason. I play sports to have fun. But that mindset seems to have become defunct somewhere in the past few years. The goals of playing a sport are now to win and to get better so that some college
will offer a scholarship. Both of these are great goals to have, but they are not necessarily goals that all of us share. Sports are supposed to be recreational and fun. We live in a world where sports are also professions, which is fantastic for both those talented enough to play professionally and for those who love watching them play. But we would do well to remember that at the high school level, we are not playing to earn a living. We play for many other reasons: for sportsmanship, for a workout, for entertainment, or for self-improvement. But there is no one reason why we play. All coaches should remember that.
Despite America’s place as the “richest” country in the world, presidents dating back to Eisenhower have been repeatedly calling for an end to budgeting and spending as the American people have now come to know them. Years of swiping credit cards and overdrawing bank accounts have cemented in our minds that credit can be considered as good as cold, hard cash. Just as the average citizen of our country has the ability to finance everything from a house to a new plasma screen television, our government has been able to get seemingly infinite loans on new military technologies, health care, and social security. This has created a culture of debt, encouraging excessive borrowing while issuers such as Countrywide and Bank of America made unprecedented loans to the riskiest candidates without a second thought. Cue October 2008 and the collapse of Lehman brothers, initiating the crisis which has brought the economy to the forefront of every American’s mind. As our total debt nears ten trillion dollars, the question has been increasingly asked: Will America ever become debt free? Well, no, we won’t, and in my opinion we shouldn’t. Low levels of federal debt are beneficial to a country because they can keep borrowing rates low, and, when combined with slight inflation, offer favorable interest nullification. Before anyone breathes a sigh of relief or disregards this article for its lack of importance, I want to clarify that we still have a problem. Though the average person might not know it, a stop by Wikipedia or the Congressional Budget Office’s website will reveal that our fiscal situation is much worse than advertised, and that if action is not taken soon, irreversible damage will be caused to our economy and livelihoods. Unfortunately, our debt is not low and looks as though it will keep on rising. Currently, the national public debt stands at around 70.2% of our GDP, which by itself January 2010
13
The Chariot
is not terrible. However, appropriations such as the stimulus package, while necessary, have contributed to a sharp increase in our projected debt, which is now predicted to rise to 15.7 trillion dollars (100% of our GDP) by 2011. Furthermore, our fiscal hole, or our total money owed which will eventually be due, will total more than 60 trillion dollars in the same year. Now take that into account with the remainder of America’s economic standing; we are superpower in decline with an unfavorable balance of trade and a weakening currency threatened with replacement as the world’s reserve standard. Up-and-comers such as China, India, and Brazil threaten to outpace us in production in an increasingly competitive market through their low labor costs and government support to the private sector. The United States cannot be expected to be a legitimate competitor in this market if it is tied down by public debt greater than the country’s economy as a whole. The necessity of alterations in this country’s fiscal policy is unequivocal, but the past 40 years have given little hope for American budgetary sustainability. Allowing debt to continue its pileup will eventually create political instability as less and less of America is owned by its own people, and international powers compete for their own interests in our country. Printing money will only depress the dollar and harm not only our economy but that of the entire world. The answer to this complicated question is incredibly simple, increasing my frustration with lack of success on the subject. The seemingly elusive answer was articulated well by the chair-
14
January 2010
man of the Concord Coalition, Robert Bixby, who said, “budgets are like a diet,” you have to ensure that you take in and let out the right amounts. To help do so, United States Citizens must demand reform and truth from our politicians. Health care was our most expensive budget item in 2008, making its recently passed reform crucial to cutting our spending. Social security and tax reforms must follow however, and for them to be successful, the public must ignore the politicians telling them they can have their cake and eat it too, instead supporting those who are truthful and honest. Just because a man is president does not mean that he can enact numerous pieces of expensive legislation while magically cutting our budget. The money has to come from somewhere. Our predecessors’ practices may have proven successful in the short run, but in a longer stretch they will have disastrous results for America and its people. In our youth it is easy to ignore these problems or even be completely oblivious of their existence, but we must acknowledge that this debt will one day become ours. Eventually, we will be the ones owing foreign countries trillions of dollars, and we should begin taking the steps reduce those trillions now. The best thing to do is register to vote when you turn 18, then actually vote and make educated decisions when doing so. Our debt is the largest long term challenge facing the United States by far, and if it is resolved, we will succeed in the future. But to reap that eventual benefit, we can accept no excuses now.
Up-and-comers
Marcus Hadlock’s Pirates vs. Ninjas
Pirates vs. Ninjas Kevin Yang Contributing Writer Turn on the TV, pull open a newspaper or continue along this page and you will read, hear, and learn about conflict. Conservative vs. liberal, Republican vs. Democrat, Stanford vs. Cal. Our lives are rife with the constant collision of opinions. A great number of these questions hold solutions to significant problems in the world. Each side has staunch proponents and vocal critics. All have two things in common: neither position has been conclusively proven wrong and people get very angry defending their beliefs. So, in the spirit of holiday togetherness, let’s take a look at an unresolved conflict to which everyone can relate and over which no one loses sleep, and maybe we’ll learn a bit about ourselves. No, I’m not talking about interventionism vs. independence, or sleep vs. grades, or Edward vs. Jacob. I’m talking about the millennia-old battle between forces of questionable good and evil. On the left, you have your ragtag band of seafaring brutes. Armed with everything from swords and arrows to assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades, pirates have sailed the seven seas since man learned to float on a log. These ex-landlubbers have fought for everything under the sun, from England and Queen Elizabeth to coastal protection from encroaching nations. They are numerous and disorganized, as it takes little more than half of a man to make a pirate. Peg-leg technology has made quantum leaps over the years, after all.
The Chariot
On the right, you have the stealthy, secretive ninja. His tools include the ninja star and the trusty blade. Legend has it that ninjas can disappear into thin air and climb walls with no tools. Most are wellhoned survivalists, and some are rumored to be even capable of magic. They are hard to spot and even harder to kill. Motivated by gold and gold alone, the ninja’s loyalty is, and has always been, tied to the coin. Ninjas are few and far between, but make up for their scarcity with training and discipline. Instead of postulating ludicrous theories about each faction’s unbeatable strategies as we are wont to do, let’s look at the facts. The pirates win the size battle—recruitment is easier because the entry requirements are lower. Ninjas, however, are more disciplined and better trained—there is no pirate handbook, and pirate clans are small and fragmented. Ninja stars, however accurately thrown, cannot hope to compete with automatic and explosive weaponry. That, and there are also no known records of ninjas swimming. However well ninjas fight, pirates are simply too numerous and too well armed to overcome decisively. Neither side is capable of annihilating the other. When facts fail to provide the desirable outcome, people and pundits turn to reason. If you can’t win on the physical field, why not claim victory morally. “It can’t be done without sacrificing our humanity! It’s irresponsible and immoral!” Neither pirates nor ninjas can claim higher ground. Pirates may fight for a worthy cause, but their methods are inherently disruptive. Ninjas may follow strict spiritual guidelines, but they exist to break the traditional rules of engagement. At the end of the day, neither party can claim superiority. Both ninjas and pirates still exist at varying levels of visibility and functionality, and there seems to be an unspoken non-aggression pact in place. Like most other conflicts, there is no immediate resolution. Roles will shift and the debate will evolve. Like Whigs to Republicans, and Republicans to Democrats and Dixiecrats to Republicans, in a hundred years space pirates will be battling cyber ninjas. Unless the ninjas spike the rum.
Which one is the ninja?
Motorola DROID Saurabh Radhakrishnan Contributing Writer After years of disappointment, it’s about time that Motorola came up with a phone that’s really worth buying. Yes, they had the Razr, but after that, their phones really haven’t been in much demand. Now, they’ve come up with something that might just be able to compete with the iPhone. Motorola has paired up with Verizon and Google and released the DROID, one of the few phones which runs on the Android operating system. This is where Google comes in. For the people who aren’t tech nerds, Android is the operating system for cell phones that has been created by Google. Much like the iPhone software, you can create and download apps for your phone. The major difference: Android is open source, meaning the source code for the operating system is freely available, and Google encourages people to improve the code and submit it back into the community. The phone itself is quite a seductive piece of work. Unlike many of the new phones, it doesn’t have the smooth, round curves. Instead, it is all hard edges and angular slopes. It fits perfectly into your hand, and it has a sensuously heavy heft to it. Combine that with the soft-touch materials and the cold highlights, and the phone is sleek and definitely a must-have. It has two parts: the keyboard and the screen. The 3.7 inch screen completely covers the top, filling from edge to edge. Surprisingly, the DROID lacks multitouch in the United States, but a version of
the DROID released in Europe does have mutlitouch, so we know it is completely multitouch capable. The second layer has a QWERTY keyboard that is again, against convention. Unlike the silky snap back most phones with a QWERTY keyboard have, the DROID requires a bit of force to open and close. The top of the phone has a 3.5mm headphone jack and a power/sleep button, along with a 5 megapixel camera with flash. It has picture and video capabilities, both being better than that of the iPhone. In addition, it has a 16 GB music capability. The speakers on this baby are amazing. They are definitely louder and clearer than the iPhone. They really make it worth the effort of putting music onto your phone. The best part of the DROID is that it can multitask. On the iPhone, you have to kill one program to go to another, but for the DROID, you can keep multiple programs open. It’s like a computer, except considerably sleeker. The “app store” for the DROID, called Android Market, doesn’t have the same caliber of apps the iPhone does. For apps, developers are necessary, and for developers, publicity is necessary. The iPhone developer ecosystem has a 3 year head start, so it will be difficult for the Android developer ecosystem to reach that level, but I think that in a few years, it is possible. Price wise, the DROID is exactly the same as the iPhone. $199 with a Verizon contract or $599 without the contract. So you may ask, why should I buy the DROID over the iPhone? For now, there is no comparison, and the iPhone is better, hands down. But because this is due to the number of apps, buying a DROID phone will be well worth it when the developer ecosystem for Android becomes considerably better. So go out, find a Verizon store, and try out the new Motorola DROID.
January 2010
15
iPhone 3GS
The Chariot
Scott Wey Graphics/Layout
By Apple. Released June 19, 2009
COMMON POINTS Cost: $199 with contract $599 without $3,799 for a 24-month 2.4"
unlimited plan
Input: Capacitive multitouch screen Virtual keyboard Sensors: Three-axis accelerometer Proximity sensor Light sensor
D
4.5"
Key
ep "
.48
:0
th
Weight: 4.8 oz.
3.5" 3.7” 320x480 pixels 854x480 pixels 163 pixels per inch 265 pixels per inch
Software
"
.54
:0
5.0 hrs. talk 270 standby
th
115,000+ apps 20,000+ apps
ep
D
iPhone OS Android 2.0 Multitasking iTunes App Store Android Market
Apple iPhone 3GS Motorola Droid
Weight: 6.0 oz. 4.6"
6.4 hrs. talk 300 standby
2.4"
+ Flash
Megapixels
3.0
5.0 16/32 GB 512 MB + Up to 32 GB
16
January 2010
By Motorola. Released November 6, 2009