BRANDON ZHANG
Days before the pause on student loans that began in 2021 was set to expire in August, President Joe Biden announced plans to cancel up to $10,000 of student debt for low and middle income families, a plan welcomed by millions of Americans. Many around the country view this plan as a significant acknowledgement of a serious problem — college is too expensive, a sentiment echoed by many Peninsula students and staff.
“The biggest benefit is the larger conversation that has taken place and is taking place regarding the cost of higher education,” Financial Aid and Scholarship Coordinator Nancy Shafer said. “Instead of loan forgiveness in the future, the Department of Education is contemplating raising the income level for students receiving Pell Grants, lowering the cost of higher education for students coming from middle income families.”
The problem addressed by this plan is obvious: an entire generation struggling to pay off debts that are years, even decades old. In the years following the 2008 Recession, the federal government expanded access to loans by lending directly to student borrowers through the U.S. Department of Education. Coupled with the amount of people leaving the workforce to go back for higher education and the rising expense of attending college due to the slashing of state education budgets, the amount of federal student debt accrued by American students has tripled in the last 16 years (The Guardian).
To address this pressing issue, the Biden adminitration’s plan involves the following components: a final pause on existing loan repayments, a new income-driven repayment policy to reduce future monthly payments, a plan to raise the maximum income level for those receiving Pell Grants and debt cancellation for borrowers earning less than $125,000 a year. Those who qualified for Pell Grants, which are grants awarded to students exhibiting exceptional financial need, will receive up to $20,000 in debt relief (The White House).When viewed in context, these separate but related measures are all poised to alleviate the impact that debt, inflation and the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have had on those seeking to enter the U.S.’s burgeoning middle class. However, while these steps are hailed
by many as a momentous step towards making college affordable, policymakers, students and parents should still exercise caution when tackling the issue of financing higher education. Simply, debt relief is a lot more complicated than it might seem, and at best, is a stopgap measure meant to partially alleviate economic strain until a more comprehensive solution is passed in Congress.
The most straightforward benefits of Biden’s plan come in the form of direct financial assistance, which would immediately give borrowers and their families substantial breathing room by making it easier for them to buy homes, save up for retirement and pay off other expenses. More generally, the administration’s plan could contribute towards broader economic growth by making it easier for college graduates to obtain business loans and open their own small businesses, generating jobs, economic output and consumer spending — in effect, creating a ‘trickle-up’ effect. These benefits are projected to be even more pronounced for people of color, and would narrow the racial wealth gap. According to a study conducted by the Urban Institute, debt forgiveness programs targeting those who received Pell Grants while in college advance racial equity because Black students are more likely to have to borrow for school and twice as likely to have received Pell Grants compared to their peers.
“This program is a sign that the country and its government are beginning to take steps toward making higher level education more affordable and accessible, creating a path towards a middle class life for those that need it the most,” Economics and Advanced Placement Economics teacher Allen Aronson said. “By going to college, students are making the choice to invest their time and effort into increasing their human capital. This is an effort that [the] government perhaps one day should support by making [kindergarten through college] free.”
However, federal student loan debt cancellation is not without its own problems. In the spotlight is the massive price tag that comes with it — an estimated $300 billion. The bill from this program alone would negate the projected savings from the Inflation Reduction Act passed in August, a recordbreaking piece of legislation that took aim at issues such as climate change, inflation, healthcare and the national deficit. Between other government
stimulus packages and high oil prices caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, loan forgiveness would recklessly pour gasoline on the fire of the monumentally high inflation rate.
The issues are not just limited to economics either, as there are many concerns regarding the fairness of such actions. To Americans who have already paid off their student loan debts and are now dealing with mortgages, car loans and credit card debts, forgiveness is not an option. Nor is it viable for those that never had the opportunity to attend college in the first place, but still work hard to make a living. The plan might also set a dangerous precedent, one that might influence the decisions of students attending college in the future. Forgiving outstanding federal student loans gives the wrong idea to students that the government will continue to act the same way in the future, encouraging them to take on additional debt with the false presumption that it will be eventually forgiven. The problems that debt relief seeks to resolve are all made under a single assumption — that all student debt is bad. Though this is true the majority of the time, if used wisely, debt can in fact be a powerful tool to generate financial leverage.
“The principal misconception within this debate is the negative stigma surrounding debt,” senior Jacob Lee said. “Although debt does indicate an absence of money, the purpose of debt is often overlooked. If interest is charged at a low rate, borrowers might be able to pay less in the future due to the effects of inflation.”
As such, student loan debt is not only often manageable, but actually profitable for many considering the fact that the average four-year degree holder makes six to seven figures more in a lifetime than those with only a high school diploma. That being said, what should students make of the administration’s plan? The answer, as with many other policies, is complicated. The central issue is not just student debt — it involves changing the mindset that people have, convincing the citizens and lawmakers of our country that higher education is a valuable public good that the government should provide. If this fundamental belief is not established, Biden’s forgiveness plan, and other measures like it, will be the governmental equivalent to giving someone who has just been shot in the chest a band-aid.
KIARA LEEWhen Buckingham Palace announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 8, the U.K. entered a 10 day period of mourning in which many of its functions were halted. The 10th day, the queen’s funeral, was recognized as a national holiday causing food banks, supermarkets and National Health Service appointments to shut down on short notice (National Broadcasting Company). However, in the wake of the queen’s death, it must be noted that her reign was marked by frequent, inhumane violence against the people of Britain’s colonial territories and that many communities were directly harmed by her policies. Those who pointed out this fact online were met with vitriol. For people to expect others to mourn a monarch who caused immense suffering is unreasonable and absurd.
The atrocities committed by the British monarchy throughout history continued under Queen Elizabeth’s rule. When Elizabeth became queen in 1953, the British Commonwealth consisted of over 70 territories, and many of them were treated horridly. The Mau Mau movement in the early 1950s—the militant resistance to British control in Kenya—was brutally put down (The Guardian). While the BBC reports that 32 white settlers were killed in the conflict, the Kenya Human Rights Commission says that 90,000 Kenyans were killed or tortured. The treatment of the Kenyans was not an isolated incident. In the late 1950s and into the 1960s, resistance in Cyprus and Yemen against British control led to detainment and murder of native inhabitants (Encyclopedia Britannica). Unquestionably racist actions occurred during her reign as well. The Guardian reports that until the late 1960s, “colored immigrants or foreigners” were not allowed to serve in clerical roles in the royal household. More recently, Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex and the first non-
white person to marry into the royal family, revealed that racism felt from other royals was the driving factor behind her and Prince Harry’s decision to leave Britain and “step back” from their official roles (TIME).
It is understandable that many people felt no sorrow over the queen’s death. Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) professor Dr. Uju Anya, whose native Nigeria was decimated by a civil war exacerbated by Britain, tweeted that the British monarchy was a “thieving raping genocidal empire” and wished that the queen’s pain “be excruciating.” However, instead of receiving sympathy for her family’s trauma, she was met by intense backlash. Jeff Bezos posted a belittling tweet responding to hers, which amassed over 70,000 likes and hordes of people subsequently sent her racist and threatening messages. Rather than defending their faculty member, CMU distanced themselves from and condemned Anya’s comments. That Bezos contributed to the hate directed toward Anya and that CMU enabled it is despicable.
The root of this behavior is that too often, the British monarchy is romanticized as a pinnacle of elegance and luxury. There is a certain irony in the vast amount of royal Crown Jewels originally taken from Britain’s former overseas territories. Since artifacts of brutal imperialism are flaunted as royal status symbols and displayed as objects of pride, it is unsurprising that people feel no remorse for wishing the queen a painful death. When a ridiculous expectation to celebrate monarchical structures is indiscriminately imposed upon people, those who suffered directly from Queen Elizabeth’s reign should be allowed to mourn their personal losses—the loss of family, of generational wealth and of culture. People must remove their lens of societal fascination with inherited wealth and status to better comprehend the violent repercussions of British dominance over the world.
ANGELINA WANG
Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, numerous U.S. colleges have been experiencing a massive ongoing housing crisis that has left many students effectively homeless. When schools shut down, many students moved out of their dorms — into nearby housing or back home. When schools reopened, the number of students exceeded the amount of dorms available, as many colleges underestimated how many students they had admitted. As a result, many University of California (UC) schools have been forced to either switch some students to online school for a semester or cut the number of their student admissions. The situation has gotten so extreme that some students have resorted to living in their cars, because off-campus housing is too expensive (San Francisco Chronicles). On-campus housing needs to be guaranteed for all students as it plays a crucial role in students’ decisions for college; without it, students do not have as many opportunities to achieve their goals.
“[Affordable housing] is a high priority because offcampus housing is expensive and most students have trouble affording [it],” senior Megan Eng said. “[If cheap housing is not an option], it would affect my decision making because if I had to [live off campus] for the first year, I would have to think about transportation and other expenses on top of my studies and that would negatively affect [my overall college experience].”
Housing plays a major factor when students are choosing a college; having the option to live on campus gives students a sense of safety and security. In addition, good, affordable housing can improve people’s physical and mental health as it reduces stress levels and disease (Housing Forward Virginia). Living on campus eases
students into living independently, as living off campus can come with many more responsibilities, which can potentially be overwhelming.
“[Living on campus] is important [to me],” senior Jett Carstetter said. “Since I [most likely] cannot afford to live off campus, I will not [consider] going to a college [that cannot guarantee dorms on-campus] because I am not going to [spend] a lot of money on [tuition and] housing. Guaranteed [living] on campus is a good long-term solution because students will not [have] additional stress.”
In order to guarantee residence for students, UCLA has repurposed buildings that were built for the 2028 Olympics into dorm buildings, since they finished construction early (Newsroom UCLA). Additionally, other colleges like the University of California, San Diego are currently constructing new dorm buildings that are set to open in the fall of 2024 (10 News). However, since most of these new buildings will not be finished for a few years, current college students will face this housing crisis for most, if not all, of their college years. Many incoming college students have never lived on their own — they will not be prepared to deal with this situation. To solve this, colleges should be implementing more solutions such as constructing additional dorms, and not cutting student admissions. The number of student admissions should be increasing at the same rate as the global population, or many students may not get the education they deserve.
“When I heard about UC Berkeley cutting [their] admissions, I was [worried] since it is one of the schools I am interested in,” senior Emilia Oginski said. “The fact that they have to cut [their] admissions because they are unable to provide housing is unfortunate. A lot of people will not get the education that they worked very hard for, and that, in itself, is very demoralizing.”
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COVER DESIGN BY SAKURA SASAKIMidterm elections are nearing, and major political events are often accompanied by a wave of conspiracy theories. Following President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021, believers of the QAnon conspiracy movement circulated claims about how the Act of 1871, through several layers of misinterpretations, justified citizens committing crimes. They also claimed that presidents elected after the act, such as Biden, are illegitimate (Rolling Stone). Among the most major instigators of conspiracy theories spreading is TikTok, whose short-form videos with limited engageability do not have the space and time for developed political conversations, according to Harvard University’s Technology and Social Change Project researcher Kaylee Fagan. For example, more than 60% of videos with harmful misinformation in the first quarter of 2022 were viewed before being removed (New York Times). Regarding this year’s midterm elections, Republicans are using the slogan “stop the steal”, previously a slogan used by Trump supporters for voter-fraud conspiracy in 2020 elections, to share complaints about the upcoming elections being based on a corrupt voting system (New York Times). In response to conspiracyrelated content like this, TikTok has been cracking down on baseless hashtags as well as tinkering with their algorithms in an effort to contain the spread of misinformation. However, this has been mostly unsuccessful due to workarounds via minor spelling changes. After #StopTheSteal was shut down, content relating to it circulated under the hashtag #StopTheStea1111 instead. This altered phrase garnered nearly a million views before it was disabled.
More recently, TikTok has taken drastic measures in order to counter misinformation by prioritizing
funding machine-learning algorithms as well as factcheckers, to name a few examples. In spite of the company’s recent detailed documentation of the measures they are taking, there has thus been no confirmation of their effectiveness and their effect on the midterm remains to be seen.
Using TikTok trends is not a new tactic for Republicans and right-wingers. According to Vox, Republicans and right-wingers have been using charismatic right-leaning influencers and content creators to garner support, which has been the most successful on TikTok due to the platform’s short format. Freshman Henry Shim believes this sentiment wholeheartedly and is concerned about this strategy.
“Conspiracies, misinformation [and charismatic] figures [spreading misinformation] have been prevalent in right-winged media, and they are one of the major driving forces of the Republican Party,” Shim said. “The conspiracies also have a major influence in the South, especially the deep South. [Overall,] I believe they are a major [influence and problem].”
Columbia Broadcasting System News also states that political analysts and other experts are concerned due to the fact that TikTok videos seem to gain much more traction than media on any other app and have been used to successfully spread political misinformation in the past. In 2016, the conspiracy Pizzagate had amassed 82 million views on the platform (New York Times). Pizzagate is a disproved theory that circulated in 2016 about an alleged sex trafficking operation disscussed in a leaked governor’s emails, amassing one supporter who even fired a rifle in a pizza joint while claiming to investigate its supposed illegal activities (Time). Although it has been proven false, the New York Times states that the conspiracy has recently been rekindled on TikTok. Despite numerous instances of theories amassing thousands of sometimes extreme
followers, several students do not agree that the rapid spread of misinformation through social media is a serious problem. For instance, freshman and debate team member Mason Kim, believes that the misinformation and theories are not numerous enough to have any major effect.
“Conspiracy theories and misinformation on apps such as TikTok have so far only been a minority,” Kim said. “I do not believe that they will have a major enough influence to turn the tide of the [midterm] elections. [They] do, of course, have some level of influence, but I do not think it is enough to change anything.”
The statement is not baseless, as recently, political conspiracy theories have been overshadowed by other factors like accusations of untrustworthiness in the government. For example, according to Business Insider, several congressmen were recently caught committing fraud by using their positions to have leverage whilst trading stock. Research by the International Society of Political Psychology indicates that scandals and controversies have had significant and sometimes catastrophic effects on political events in the past. Meanwhile, research published on SAGE Journals found that conspiracy theory articles and media only had standard effects on the beliefs and actions of 200 participants in a study. This has been echoed by Advanced Placement European History and U.S. Government teacher Donald Frazier, who believes conspiracies are not the only problem in the political landscape.
“Anything that makes people question the legitimacy of the election is a problem,” Frazier said. “Our whole system of [government] is based on trust – our money is not backed by gold. So it [does not] help that Congress and politicians have made [poor decisions] in the past. Who needs to believe in conspiracy theories when corruption is already rampant?”
LYNN TAKAHASHI
AARUSHI CHAUDHARI
On Sept. 5, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 257, also referred to as the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act). As specified by the act, the Fast Food Council, a group of qualified individuals who will regulate certain laws in fast food chains, will be created. This council will set industry-wide standards for wages, working hours and other working conditions related to the health and safety of fast food workers. In the council, there will be 10 members: four of them will be industry representatives, and another four will be reserved for worker advocates. The other two members will consist of one representative from the Department of Industrial Relations and another from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. An additional duty for council members is to hold public meetings at least once every six months and conduct a full review of fast food health, safety and employment standards every three years. From these meetings, the Fast Food Council will form recommendations which would be sent to the California Legislature
and would automatically become effective as a new state regulation (California Legislative Information). Junior Aazaan Chhabra supports the creation of a Fast Food Council, but believes there should be different areas explored in the FAST Recovery Act as well.
“I definitely think it is a good idea to have a group of people who address the unhealthy factors of fast food chains,” Chhabra said. “[However,] even though this could cause change in fast food places, there should be a broader [council] that includes all restaurants because the issues that the Fast Food Council addresses could be applied to other restaurants.”
The FAST Recovery Act also establishes several new clauses, the most prominent being an increase in minimum wage for workers under fast food chains with fewer than 100 restaurants. Currently, California has 556,000 fast food workers working in well-known fast food chains, earning minimum wage at $15 an hour. Under the FAST Recovery Act, the minimum wage of fast food workers will increase to $22 per hour by 2023. This act also addresses procedures for harassment and abuse of power within fast food chains; food employers are prohibited from discharging, discriminating or retaliating against employees who participate in the Local Fast Food Council, a smaller version of the broader Fast Food Council for cities with over 200,000 residents, or make a complaint to a person of authority (National Law Review). Junior Lia Osipyan supports the promptness and the benefits of the FAST Recovery Act.
“It is time that fast food workers get paid more since a minimum wage salary is unsustainable for paying for your own expenses,” Osipyan said. “There has been a well-known history of abuse in many fast food workplaces, so workers definitely deserve to be compensated for their contributions to where they work.”
A potential unintended effect of the FAST Recovery Act, however, is that fast food prices may increase as a result of minimum wage increasing. Since more money would be allotted toward minimum wage, fast food chains may be forced to either reduce employment or take a hit to their profits as less customers will be driven to purchase from the “cheap and convenient” option (Foundation for Economic Education). For this reason, there are opposing views about the usefulness of the FAST Recovery Act. For instance, the California Department of Finance opposes the legislation because of the cost it would have on the state, which is already struggling to keep up with the business of California’s bureaucracy (U.S. Chamber of Commerce). Junior Rylee Izumo supports the benefits of the Act but feels wary of the potential effects of increasing wages.
“Workers deserve higher pay, but I also do not think fast food prices should increase,” Izumo said. “I say that because [fast food chains] are making a lot of profit off of their prices. If you looked up the cost it took to make a burger versus what they are sold at, the prices are probably vastly different. So the FAST Recovery Act does have its benefits, but it also causes other economical problems.”
SIVAN STOLER
On Aug. 29, heavy rainfall caused the Pearl River in Jackson, Mississippi to overflow, leading to a water crisis in the city (National Weather Service). Cable News Network (CNN) reports that the storm took out water pipes in the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant, which was already dwindling in quality for years, causing an extreme drop in water pressure throughout Jackson. This sudden drop led to Jackson residents being without clean drinking water for nearly two months (CNN). The city was under a boil water notice until Sept. 15, meaning that any tap water had to be boiled in order to be safe for consumption (CNN). Jackson suffered immensely during this period of time, as schools were forced to switch to remote learning because toilets would not flush, residents had to purchase bottled water since tap water was a murky brown and restaurants closed their doors because they did not have clean water.
Elsewhere in the U.S., California experienced a record-breaking heat wave during the week of Sept. 4 that featured some of the highest temperatures in state history and intense wildfires. Temperatures reached up to 116 degrees Fahrenheit in Sacramento and 110 degrees Fahrenheit in LA, according to The Washington Post. The rise in temperature has also sparked wildfires, the two biggest wildfires being the Mosquito Fire, spanning 48,700 acres with only 16% being contained throughout Northern California and the Fairview Fire, covering 46,000 acres close to Hemet, California (CNN). Freshman Valerie Chia Mendez recounts a time she and her classmates were affected by a wildfire.
“In fifth grade, my school was at a science camp in Malibu and had to leave because wildfires were happening close by,” Chia Mendez said. “I specifically remember feeling the ash on my face and looking up to see a completely gray sky before we got evacuated. It was scary and showed me how dangerous weather can be. I hope something can change soon so wildfires will not happen as often as they have in the past few years.”
The effects of the California heat wave were exacerbated as some schools in California have never had air conditioning installed, or they were broken, as stated by the LA Times. At Peninsula, many classrooms did not have air conditioning or had to wait in order to have it repaired.
“It was very hard for me to focus in classes without air conditioning because all I could think about was how hot and uncomfortable I was,” freshman Kylie Johnston said. “It was honestly just a really bad experience.”
Due to many people using air conditioning and electric fans at home, the California power grid was in danger of shutting down. In addition, smoke and fog from wildfires obscured sunlight which reduced the solar energy that California relies on, causing the power grid to suffer. On Sept. 6, California residents were issued an emergency warning urging them to reduce nonessential power to ease the pressure on the power grid. The alert
was a success, allowing for the avoidance of a severe power outage (Marketplace). The future of California and other states’ power grids as temperatures rise and wildfires take place at alarming rates is still unknown.
The recent situations in both Mississippi and California have shown the immediate effects of climate change, which is the cause of this extreme weather. Beyond access to clean water, climate change has also affected factors such as the rate at which wildfires take place. Compared to 2010’s 150,000 acres burned from wildfires, 2021 had 2,489,405 acres burned (Weatherspark).
Underprivileged communities are generally hit hardest by climate change. During power outages, a lack of power causes refrigerators to shut down, leading to perishable foods or medicine that must be refrigerated to spoil. People who already struggle to purchase these necessities must find a way to buy the items on a limited budget during a power outage (San Francisco Chronicle). Similarly, after the water crisis, residents of Jackson agreed that problems like these reflect that predominantly Black and underfunded cities like theirs have historically had their infrastructure neglected (TIME). The mostly-white nearby suburb of Madison has never struggled with access to water, despite being just a few miles north of Jackson. Furthermore, the effects of racist policies such as redlining, or refusing to give someone a loan because of the area they live in, still linger in Jackson. Residents of redlined areas did not have the resources to efficiently run public infrastructure leading to a disinvestment of water treatment facilities, like the O.B. Curtis Plant (National Resources Defense Counsel). In order to stop such issues, action against climate change must be taken, and the needs of underprivileged communities should be considered. As the Californian heat wave that sparked multiple wildfires across the state began to fade, on Sept. 9, California governor, Gavin Newsom, signed Senate Bill 852. This bill enables cities and counties to create climate resilience districts. These districts will work against both heat waves and wildfires, as well as other effects of climate change. Helping communities recover after disasters and reducing the risk of a disaster before it occurs will be the main goal of the districts. Newsom also added that the heat wave was a reminder of the painful impacts of climate change (LA Times). Senior and Sustainability Club president Owen Oschman listed possible solutions to slow climate change.
“To combat global warming there are a plethora of things we can be doing, but to keep it simple I like to stick with the three S words: speak up,
spare cattle and save energy,” Oschman said. “When we speak up about sustainability and climate change, we alert others to the global troubles we are facing as a whole, and we can get them involved in our fight against global warming. Sparing cattle and reducing the meat and dairy we eat greatly reduces our individual and communal environmental impact. And finally, saving energy is a no brainer. It allows us to conserve natural resources and reduce air and water pollution.”
As global temperatures gradually increase by the decade, case studies suggest that it is crucial for the world to be keenly aware of the countries most vulnerable to climate change (World Economic Forum). One such country is Pakistan, as it is currently suffering from floods that completely engulf a third of the country. With no hope of reaching full restoration of infrastructure anytime soon, Pakistan will continue to undergo devastating losses and flood victims will suffer from a lack of resources (U.S. Institute of Peace). Since the flooding started, unforgiving rains have displaced over 660,000 individuals in record time. According to the Center For Strategic & International Studies, around 1,500 individuals have been killed with the majority of
survivors forced out of their homes. Considering factors like emergency relief efforts and damage to infrastructure, scientists estimate that the cost to provide for flood survivors and rebuild will be over $30 billion (Project Syndicate).
The cause of the flash flooding in Pakistan is dense monsoonal rainfall. A monsoon is defined by National Geographic as a seasonal change in the strongest winds of a region which brings heavy rain to certain parts of the region. The determining factor of how heavy an interval of rainfall becomes is the amount of the sun’s radiation that breaches Earth’s atmosphere (National Weather Service). Scientists say that greenhouse gasses, a man-made factor of global warming, increase the amount of infrared radiation reflected in Earth’s atmosphere (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). This aspect of long-term heating induces even warmer winds to travel towards tropical countries, resulting in denser, more rain-filled monsoon seasons like Pakistan’s.
Gaskov provides insight on factories and the difficulty in decreasing their carbon emissions.
“Fossil fuels are the main culprit [of these carbon emissions],” Gaskov said. “I would say it is hard to analyze what causes the most emissions and contributes the most to climate change. It is really hard to track since everything uses fuel. Coal energy and gas usage is everywhere.”
According to the Institute of British Geographers, the crisis in Pakistan is one of many incidents caused by the Global North and South Divide. Regions shaping the Global North, or countries with socioeconomic advantages, resources and up-to-date technologies and infrastructure, are urged to take accountability for their contributions to climate change as effects like the flash floods impact developing countries. The Global South is defined as countries having lower income and less resources than those in the Global North (DBpedia). A major factor that holds more developed countries to blame for global warming is their abundance of factories and manufacturing. According to Advancing Earth and Space Science, a total 92% of excess carbon emissions in the atmosphere can be traced back to those countries. This harmful production process ultimately transforms weather patterns across the world and brings annual temperatures to new extremities. Senior Vsevolod
The U.S., a major contributor to climate change and part of the Global North, is currently providing food and shelter assistance to Pakistan in their time of need (ShareAmerica). National contributors such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, are reported to provide necessities such as emergency relief supplies, shelter assistance and support for the livelihoods of flood victims. To account for waterborne diseases, there are organizational sanitizing provisions as well as clean water access to flood survivors. To many, this is only considered a stepping stone to how the nation can truly change their means of production for the better. Junior Peyton Khorey gives her stance on how impactful the U.S. is on a global scale.
“Sending the emergency aid is a start,” Khorey said. “However, the U.S. still needs to be held accountable for the effects they have on the environment that have led to this in Pakistan. It does not really serve anyone if we ignore the problem until it explicitly involves us. By then, it will be too late.”
National agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Pew Research Center are working to improve public awareness of climate change throughout the country. In addition to providing credible statistics and sourcing, the EPA conducts research on climate change to understand its impacts and help manage its risks. The Pew Research Center produces observational articles in their “Climate, Energy & Environment” publications. Junior Clare Bailey thinks the U.S. provides ample support in circulating environmental awareness, though she believes it can vastly improve on reducing industrial emissions as well.
“The environmental awareness in the U.S. has risen rapidly, providing hope of environmentally aware citizens specializing in and leading major industries [that] currently contribute to global warming and negative effects felt internationally,” Bailey said. “[Still], the U.S. needs to take more urgent action in shifting major systems towards decreasing emissions if they want to minimize international effects and continue to support places experiencing crises such as Pakistan.”
Khorey recommended two organizations to donate to that she feels will use the funds most effectively: Islamic Relief USA and the International Rescue Committee. The website for Islamic Relief USA explains the current humanitarian crisis so the donor is more informed of the organization’s cause and the International Rescue Committee is characterized by its good track record when it comes to financially aiding Pakistan.
In early August, members of the Drama department flew to Edinburgh, Scotland to participate in the world’s largest theater festival, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. At this festival, they performed the play “Road to Paradise,” which was written by senior Alison King. King has been involved in theater since her time at Miraleste Intermediate School, which led her to join Peninsula’s Drama department as a freshman in high school. She has also been an avid reader since her childhood and developed a love for telling stories that later contributed to her play-writing ability. Seth Cohen, director of the Drama department and “Road to Paradise”, sees King’s ability to write a clear and intelligible script at her age as a special talent.
“In my mind, [one of the] qualities for a good writer [is] the ability to create characters that are identifiable to a large swath of viewership,” Cohen said. “[In addition], the ability to develop the relationship between those characters within the text [is essential]. Most [important is] the ability to not stay married to one or two pieces of the script if they are not serving the whole script. I think [“Road to Paradise”] definitely had a lot of [these] elements in there.”
In past years’ trips to Edinburgh, Cohen had wanted to put on a studentdrafted show, as he believes original pieces best suit the festival. Despite Cohen’s encouragement, no prior student had been interested in writing a script for the trip before this year. Therefore, when King took initiative and offered to create a script, Cohen was very impressed. “Road to Paradise’’ tells the story of Hazel and Ivy Flynn obtaining a chance to go to “Paradise” after winning a lottery ticket. Hazel and Ivy meet new friends and reignite relationships with old ones while unknowingly being pawns in a grand scheme set forth by Clarisse Roberts, the owner of the fake paradise island “Isle Mirage.” She chooses specific people each year to win a lottery ticket to her island, where they will then be kidnapped to rehearse an underground musical production to indulge her love for theater. In her script, King aimed to incorporate LGBTQ+ characters without making the play centered around issues regarding the LGBTQ+ community. King steered away from stereotypes and focused on creating unique characters that could embody her vision.
One of the challenges King encountered was finding time in her schedule to fully dedicate herself to writing this play. She also worried frequently about making everything she wrote perfect, but she gradually learned that she could simply go back and edit the parts she did not like, which made the process smoother. After King finalized the script and it was performed at Peninsula on July 27, the Drama department was ready for Scotland. On July 29, they
left the U.S. to fly to London. After spending three days there, the group made their way to Edinburgh on Aug. 2 and came back on Aug. 12. Junior and Drama department member Delaney O’Conner went on the trip and played Logan Knight, an innocent and optimistic character who later turns out to be a cunning backstabber. O’Conner and King were grateful for the opportunity to meet so many people who shared their passion for theater and described their time as a wonderful experience.
“I do not even know where to begin with [the] Scotland [trip],” O’Conner said. “It is [difficult to] explain, but it was a beautiful and incrediblely life changing experience.”
With a turnout of 50 people, the performance at the theater festival turned out better than they hoped, since it was a far greater number than they had expected. When seeing her scripts performed, King is filled with pride and happiness.
“The best way that I can describe it is exhilarating,” King said. “It is one thing to write the whole script and hear all these lines in your head, but [it is different] when people actually say them and when [the show] is in front of an audience. When the audience is engaged and enjoying it, it is euphoric, exciting and [most of all], validating.”
JACELYN CHEN
On July 29, senior Alexander Marsden released his long playing (LP) record called “Lucid Memory’’ on all music streaming platforms. An LP is used to describe an album that contains more than eight song tracks. “Lucid Memory’’ consists of 10 guitar and vocal tracks that range from alternative pop to indie pop. “Lucid Memory” became the title of the album because many of his songs were written from past experiences–both in school and in his process of being a musician–that distressed him mentally or emotionally. With the help of his record producer, Billy Mohler, and guitar instructor, Shawn Flemings, it took Marsden more than two years to complete and produce his album. Fleming admires Marsden’s growth in becoming a more advanced guitar player.
“Xander is just a fantastic guitar player,” Fleming said. “As a musician, [Marsden] has blossomed as a multi-talented artist. Excelling in songwriting, singing and being an impressive bandleader, he is always willing to learn new things and take on new challenges.”
Marsden initiated “Lucid Memory” before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit. His initial objective was to start constructing random chords to create a melody, which then led to the creation of songs that only contained instrumental music. Ultimately, they became five songs that were finalized with both chords and added lyrics. The lyrics to Marsden’s songs were created through a stream-of-consciousness writing technique. This is shown in the song “Make Amends” as he wrote down his initial thoughts and then developed them into the lyrics “Too late to say goodbye in the end / We drown sometimes just to make amends.” During COVID-19, he began to focus on producing more songs in his home studio to add to his LP album. Eventually, he made five new ones for a total of 10 songs that he hoped would be professionally produced.
“I started focusing more on music during [COVID-19],” Marsden said. “Lyrics were just flowing [out of me] as I played my guitar.
Many of the lyrics took [one attempt] to assimilate intothe finalized song. I showed my music to Billy Mohler and I think we clicked immediately.”
Marsden’s record producer, Mohler, is a Grammy nominated songwriter who has worked with music artists such as Lady Gaga, Sia, Kelly Clarkson and many others. He established a relationship with Marsden through Flemmings, which led to Marsden sending his song “Townsleep” to Mohler. Mohler saw enormous potential for Marsden’s talents, prompting them to start songwriting together and putting professional touches on Marsden’s songs. Mohler is thrilled with Marsden’s growth and development as a musician through the production of “Lucid Memory”.
“I am [extremely] proud of [Marsden’s] artistry and complexity [in his] music,” Mohler said. “He really stood out to me as a prodigy guitar player and is never afraid to let his music speak for itself. I can feel the story behind his lyrics and seeing him grow to his potential is very [captivating].”
Currently, Marsden is playing at gigs and venues such as “The Mint LA,” where he performed on Sept. 20 for his LP’s release party By playing at more gigs, he hopes to showcase his love for performing music. He feels an overwhelming joy for his success with “Lucid Memory” and is hoping to continue his music career as he works on a new album. Mardsen intends to pursue music during college, but is currently undecided as to whether or not he will major in music.
On Sept. 2, American tennis player Serena Williams retired from professional women’s tennis after a 27 year career. Williams was a dominant figure in her sport and is the only woman in the Open Era to win 23 Grand Slam titles. In the August edition of Vogue, Williams wrote to explain her decision to retire, mentioning how she had been struggling with various issues over the past several years. Some of these issues included injuries like the severe ankle sprain that forced her to miss the 2021 U.S. Open, outside commitments like her venture capital firm and not getting enough time to spend with her family and daughter. Williams told Vogue, “I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family. I do not think it is fair.” As a result, Williams decided that the 2022 U.S. Open would be her last tournament, where she advanced to the third round until losing to Ajla Tomljanovic. Junior and tennis player Sydney Ivravanchy expresses how Williams took an important step to retire and how it will benefit her in the future.
“It was a good decision for Williams to retire from tennis so she can move on to do other things in life apart from tennis,” Iravanchy said. “She is a mother of a young child and it is really important that she gets to spend more time with her daughter and family to form memories that she can cherish.”
Williams began her tennis journey at the age of three and was coached by her father, Richard
Sports Programming Network, during one of her matches at the 2001 Indian Wells tournament, fans booed her family and yelled racial slurs throughout the match. Williams proceeded to boycott the tournament for 14 years due to the racism that her family endured and still feels haunted by the experience. Furthermore, Williams was criticized by many commentators including public figures like John McEnroe due to her hairstyle and her attitude toward umpires and other players; the commentators thought her hairstyle was a distraction because the beads from her hair would often fall out. As mentioned by American Broadcasting Companies News in 2018, Williams was also treated poorly by the U.S. Open umpire, Carlos Ramos, during the tournament final against Naomi Osaka. After receiving one warning and another penalty, Serena confronted Ramos which caused him to issue another penalty to Williams for abusing an umpire or official. This led many of Williams’ supporters to point out the unfairness of such penalties: while male tennis players are often praised for snapping at umpires and protesting their violations, Williams was heavily criticized and belittled for opposing Ramos. However, despite these racist and sexist incidents, Williams still played through every issue and continued to
young athletes across the globe.
“Williams is such a huge idol for so many young players like me,” Gonzalez said. “It was so inspiring to see how she continued to play so many tournaments after the birth of her child and at her age. It teaches us young players to learn how to fight and never give up in the game of tennis like she did.”
Emerging female tennis stars like Coco Gauff, a 2022 French Open finalist, have also mentioned how Williams inspired them to start their tennis journeys. Gauff explained that Williams taught her to never settle for less, especially as Black women are often told to be complacent with racism and sexism. Senior Allie Dzida was similarly inspired by the journey of Williams, explaining how the tennis world will be different after Williams’ retirement.
“I think that with the end of Serena’s professional career, it will change the world of
