Issue 3

FIFA-FO-FUM

What has the World Cup become?

SPORTS PAGE 11

ALL TALK, NO ACTION

M.U.N IS F.U.N

Peninsula Hosts Its First Ever Rotary Peace Conference

IS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION ARCHAIC?

BRANDON ZHANG

On Oct. 31, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to decide whether race-conscious admissions programs at two of the nation’s top post-secondary institutions — Harvard College and the University of North Carolina (UNC) — are lawful. Whether or not academic institutions should consider race in making admissions decisions has been a topic of contentious debate both socially and legally for decades now, ever since its implementation. Originating from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Affirmative Action aims to address underrepresentation of certain groups of minorities in higher education. Specifically, this means increasing the number of people of color accepted at selective colleges through the consideration of ethnicity as an admissions factor.

Today, the fate of the movement towards educational equity is in the hands of the Supreme Court justices, who recently heard challenges to Affirmative Action in two cases: Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina. Many legal experts say that the ruling, given the current 6-3 conservative supermajority, is likely to overturn the longstanding practice and would have far-reaching implications for diversity on college campuses as well as in the workforce pipeline.

While these policies, also known as race-conscious admissions, are implemented with a laudable goal in mind, their execution is far from perfect. Though Affirmative Action in its current form may increase minority representation in U.S. universities, it does so unfairly at the cost of Asian Americans and Caucasians, many of whom work just as hard as other racial groups to earn themselves spots at prestigious universities.

“Different people excel at different tasks,” junior Harley Qiu said. “Colleges, and by extension, society and the workforce, should be getting the most

qualified individuals, the color of their skin aside. College admission decisions should be made not on the basis of ethnicity, but on each and every applicant’s unique talents and abilities.”

These sentiments are not isolated. They are representative of an underlying uneasiness and frustration felt by students at Peninsula, one of the top ranked public schools in California, especially those vying for a spot at elite U.S. universities. Affirmative Action has the right spirit in trying to increase diversity in education, but is executing it in a manner that, at least to Peninsula students, feels more racist and stratifying than not.

“I think Affirmative Action is very, very unfair, particularly towards Asians,” senior Fiona Cho said. “Diversity is important, but so is qualification, and setting almost-quotas on race is inherently racist. Additionally, minority races who do work very hard do not receive the credit that they deserve, as the automatic assumption by the general public will be ‘oh, they only got into Yale because they are [part of a minority group].’”

It is not that students from underrepresented groups are necessarily worse at school compared to their Asian and Caucasian peers either, as race alone is rarely the determining factor for success. Hard work, natural ability, socioeconomic status and parental support all play equally large, if not greater roles in determining student success (American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers). As such, institutions targeting education inequality, and consequently, employment inequality, should not target race as a factor. Instead, it should take a back seat to these numerous other variables.

“The intention behind Affirmative Action is good, as a major purpose of education is that it is supposed to level the playing field (not just in education but for better future economic access and prosperity as well).” senior Kara Lo said. “If we are talking about class/ wealth-based Affirmative Action I think it is generally fair, but race-based Affirmative Action is a very flawed system, since schools create quotas or caps to

generate a more diverse student population. That is not a bad thing, but colleges should be admitting those who are qualified based on their merit, which should be defined as how hard they have worked given the resources available to them.”

Instead of Affirmative Action starting with college admissions, it would be better to start equalizing the playing field earlier, by providing more opportunities and support for ‘disadvantaged’ or underrepresented groups earlier on in life so that ethnicity becomes less of a determining factor in a system that is supposedly nondiscriminatory. Of course, these problems lie in the way schools themselves are funded: almost half of a public school’s funding is obtained through property taxes on the residences in which their pupils reside, resulting in an obvious problem — schools in affluent areas obtain more funding, while schools in impoverished ones are left on shoestring budgets (Public School Review). In the state of New York, for instance, the most well funded public school districts spend almost 50% more per pupil compared with less privileged districts (United States Census). This does not even touch on the difference in resources that students at private schools enjoy. By waiting until college to provide a false sense of ‘equality,’ the current system is neglecting the needs of children growing up in disadvantaged communities and refusing to acknowledge the hard work and effort put in by those who are not.

However, even if the U.S. Supreme Court does strike down Affirmative Action at Harvard and UNC, it will not be the end of the story. After all, educational inequality is a prevalent issue in the U.S. and demands a solution. At least in the short run, a better and more fair solution would involve income, or socioeconomic affirmative action, admitting students who made the best use of the resources they had access to. Even still, serious change is needed in the long run — both in the way people think about educational inequality and in the way it is addressed.

CAORI DEGUZMAN

IT IS TIME TO DEFY AI ART

The emergence of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has signaled a drastic shift in the way many industries function. In a creative industry such as art, the negative effects of this powerful technology are expansive, frightening and near-inevitable. From casual portraits generated on Lensa to award-winning paintings created with Midjourney, AI art has become increasingly entrenched in the mainstream over the past few months. AI art may appear attractive in its limitless possibilities, but it is precisely that quality which makes it dangerous.

Even if AI generated art is visually appealing at first glance, it is impossible to consider it as fair and original work. AI models in general require massive amounts of data points to learn from. In the case of AI art generators, these data points are human-made art, like the billions of images collected by German company LAION that trains models like DALL-E (Los Angeles Times). The fact that these “creations” are purely ripped off of other peoples’ art, whose creators oftentimes did not consent for their work to be used as data, renders them as soulless theft. While artists certainly draw inspiration from various sources, they also add their own original ideas and styles. This important step is what progresses the evolution of art, makes the art the new artist’s own and prevents it from merely being plagiarism. It is also a step that is unable to be done by AI models.

Beyond the fundamentally unethical methods of AI art generators, they are also a powerful tool with nasty potential consequences. They compete with human

artists for opportunities; there has been an increased trend of AI art winning art competitions, being published in magazines and displayed in galleries. Not only is this morally questionable, but it will come with the inevitable consequence of human artists being hyper-scrutinized and students being placed under intense regulations. Moreover, AI will always reflect the biases of those who made it and the source material it draws from. The internet’s sexualization of young girls has been reflected in the art generated by AI machines.

Proponents that equate AI art generators to any other industry where technology has replaced human workers miss the entire point of art. The beauty of art comes not purely from its aesthetic appeal, but from the process of creation and emotional nuances. Art is not like other industries where mass production is necessary and betters society; the value of art is not to produce the most of it, or necessarily the best. Rather, art is how people express themselves and interpret the world around them. By disregarding the value of the artistic process, AI contributes to the dehumanizing commercialization of art. Art is a culmination of the artist’s lived experience, evolution of style and time. The value of art comes from the fact that it is created by humans—human storytelling and expression. Creating art with AI is therefore a blatant contradiction of that ideal. It may be too late to limit corporate development of AI art, but platforms such as DeviantArt have protections in place to block third-party data scrapers and the media company Getty Images has banned AI art entirely. Individuals can reduce their personal impact by not monetizing art created with AI and being transparent if they choose to do so.

CALLING OUT CLIMATE ACTIVISTS

ALESHA PARAMASIVIUM

Since the beginning of May 2022, climate change protesters have been throwing soup on famous works of art and gluing themselves to museum walls to protest fossil fuel extraction and other actions that damage the planet. “Mona Lisa” by Leonardo da Vinci, “The Scream” by Edvard Munch and “Sunflowers” by Vincent van Gogh are all artworks that have been targeted. Fortunately, reports say that the historical paintings have not been permanently damaged due to their protective glass casing (USA Today). Despite the motive behind the protests, the activists’ tactics were drastic but ineffective; defacing famous works of art does not contribute to the effort of mitigating climate change.

“[Throwing soup at famous works of art] serves for shock value and shock value only,” sophomore Neekta Bahoolizadeh said. “Seeing someone defacing important cultural symbols is not going to give climate activism any better a name.”

That is not to say that climate change is not an issue. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), record-high temperatures have been recorded in the past decade. Reports mention concern about how the high temperatures have led to drought in many places, including the western U.S. and Mexico. The droughts have increased the risk of wildfire, an impact that California has felt greatly. In 2022 alone, 104 buildings in CA were damaged and 722 were destroyed completely because of wildfires. To prevent further harm being done to the planet, people must bring attention to the problem and protest the inaction.

The activists that threw soup over famous artworks were right in calling attention to the problem of global warming. But despite their intentions, the activists’ protests were fruitless and hurt the movement to decrease global warming more than it helped. Paintings such as the “Mona

Lisa” have long been a part of a country’s cultural history, whose citizens are proud to boast about such achievements. By defacing their paintings, the activists were essentially insulting the culture’s achievements and pride. Additionally, it is not as if damaging artwork does anything to benefit the planet; they are unrelated to the declining health of Earth, which is what made the protest futile.

“The soup did nothing besides creating a negative view on [the activists],” sophomore Suhani Parekh said. “It is the little things like [recycling and reducing food waste] that matter [instead]. If everyone does their part it adds up.”

Rather than protest in disrespectful and unproductive methods, individuals can work toward improving the environment by monitoring their carbon and water footprint — the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere and the amount of water used on a day to day basis. Some easy ways to do this include cutting down on food waste and recycling. By reducing food waste, less crops and meat are wasted, leading to a decrease in the amount produced. Recent studies show that the average U.S. citizen throws away 40% of the food they buy; by purchasing less, carbon emissions would be reduced. Recycling is another huge factor in reducing carbon emissions as reusing resources lessens the amount taken from the environment. Additionally, demonstrations go a long way to bringing attention to the problem. However, defacing priceless art and culture does not encourage people to support a cause because it insults different cultures and has the adverse effect of giving a negative reputation to the cause. Instead, petitions and organized protests can bring positive awareness to the problem of climate change.

“I think [the activists] give out more hatred and negativity by drawing attention to themselves in the media instead of protesting in a civil and nonviolent way that educates people to join their cause,” junior Vayuna Pradhan said. “Ultimately, [they] hurt people [that] cherished the irreplaceable artwork.”

PALOS VERDES PENINSULA HIGH SCHOOL

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EDITOR: McKenna McCallister

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT/SPORTS

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AARUSHI CHAUDHARI

On Nov. 19, 2022, a mass shooting occurred at Club Q, an LGBTQ nightclub located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where five people were killed and at least 20 others were injured. The gunman was identified as Anderson Aldrich, according to Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrien Vasquez. Aldrich used a long AR-15-style rifle and two additional firearms were found at the scene. The violence reportedly lasted for almost five minutes. The shooting ended when Aldrich moved through the bar and towards a patio where he encountered Richard Fierro, a U.S. Army veteran. Fierro, who said he went into “combat mode,” charged across the room and tackled Aldrich to the ground, causing the rifle to fall out of his hand and preventing further harm. He was assisted by two other patrons, one man who moved the rifle away to safety, and a transgender woman who used her high heels to help disable the shooter and hold him down until the police arrived (New York Times).

CRISIS AT

shooting will increase the likelihood of events like it. Other people like [Aldrich] will see that [he] was brave [enough,] or stupid enough, to do this, and they will get the courage to do it as well.”

Following the Club Q shooting, Colorado District Court Judge Robin Chittum ordered Aldrich’s arrest documents to be released to the public after a motion by the District Attorney’s office. These documents revealed that Aldrich was previously arrested in June 2021 for allegedly keeping his own grandparents hostage in a basement and a bomb threat (National Public Radio). In accordance with Colorado law, the charges from the 2021 case were dismissed and all related records were sealed. The DA’s office had to say that these records did not exist until Judge Chittum’s order in December 2022. For this reason, Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen was unable to prosecute Aldrich on those charges. After the Club Q shooting, Aldrich was put in custody of the El Paso County Jail. His most recent court hearing in December 2022 charged him with 305 criminal counts which include first-degree murder and attempted bias-motivated murder against members of the LGBTQ community (Colorado Public Radio). Sophomore Skye Smithman deeply condemns Aldrich’s actions and is not fully content with the media coverage on this matter.

“Overall, I have only seen the media condemn Aldrich but I do not see it as much as I should,” Smithman said. “It is good to see popular opinion being against the monster that took the lives of innocent people, regardless of gender and sexuality. There could have been more media attention on the shooting since not a lot of people knew about it.”

On the day of the shooting, the club was reportedly hosting a drag night with a drag brunch to follow the next day, with the intention of celebrating Transgender Day of

Remembrance. Many people also reported that local LGBTQ people in Colorado Springs were already on high alert for homophobic and transphobic behaviors; others expressed that prior to the shooting, Club Q was the only place they had felt safe in the city (Teen Vogue). In a 2019 survey conducted by One Colorado - an advocacy organization for the LGBTQ community - more than 71% of people in Colorado reported experiencing anti-LGBTQ verbal abuse, and more than 15% reported experiencing anti-LGBTQ physical abuse. Furthermore, Colorado Springs is a historically homophobic city where many residents face homophobic encounters. For instance, Emmitt Davis, a transgender man, was sitting in his fenced-in yard with his partner when two men came running through his yard and started yelling homophobic slurs in 2019. When Davis attempted to stand up for himself, one of the men punched Davis, fracturing his nose (The Denver Gazette). If u need to cut, get rid of this Therefore, many patrons who were at Club Q the night of the shooting were not too surprised by the matter (KQED Radio). Junior Max Conrad feels upset and frustrated about how the incident at Club Q affects the LGBTQ community.

“We live in a world where LGBTQ people cannot go to clubs without fear of never coming home,” Conrad said. “What happened in Colorado is nothing short of a tragedy, but even after five people are dead, a large percentage of the population still holds hatred for queer people. The massacres will not stop until we put an end to this hatred.”

KIARA LEE

TEARS ON MY TICKETMASTER ACCOUNT 5

Swift fans riot after ticket-selling site malfunction

Monopolies, or business ventures with complete control over certain areas of the economy, are among the greatest enemies of the free market. In terms of monopolistic control, the ticket vendor company Ticketmaster is comparable to the likes of business giants Amazon, Standard Oil and AT&T (Investopedia). This was recently exposed once again to the general public after the poor ticket sale process for the upcoming Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour. There were reports of resale tickets selling for ten times the original price and complaints of never receiving their tickets due to faulty transaction processing algorithms (Business Insider). Many were quick to blame Ticketmaster for these problems, a sentiment well documented on Twitter and other social media websites. The backlash soon led to widespread calls for reform and breaking up of the Ticketmaster monopoly. However, some members of the local community and experts do not agree with the rigorous criticism toward the company.

In the book “Ticket Masters: The Rise of the Concert Industry and How the Public Got Scalped,” authors Dean Budnick and Josh Baron lay out the argument that, while still partly responsible, Ticketmaster is just one part of a bigger, overall problem of the music industry. They claim that artists are incentivized to sell tickets for their events at well below market value and leave

it to Ticketmaster to inflate the price up to industry standards, so that Ticketmaster acts as a scapegoat shielding music creators and publishers from backlash. Questions of Ticketmaster’s accountability were also expressed by sophomore Landon Seidel, a devoted Swift fan who had trouble acquiring presale tickets for the tour.

“If Ticketmaster is dissolved, another company much like it will just replace it,” Seidel said. “Of course some ticket prices were quite insane, but for how big of a name Swift is, the tickets are obviously going to be expensive. Since Swift [was] performing in the new SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, I am not surprised to see a bump up in prices, considering how expensive the new venue [was].”

Another reason for Ticketmaster’s infamy and solid foundation in the industry is their willingness to work with ticket resellers, a fact supported by a 2016 undercover investigation conducted by reporters from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the Toronto Star into an international ticket scalping convention held in Las Vegas named Ticket Summit. The investigators found officials from Ticketmaster attending, and the subsequent report suggests that Ticketmaster was violating its own terms of service for the benefit of a specific minority of mass ticket resellers who were earning outrageous amounts of profit. Junior Charlotte Flusser, however, claims that the company does try to fight against scalping,

with mixed results of success.

“I think that Ticketmaster tried to manage the amount of ticket resellers by allowing fans to apply for their verified fan [presale], but [did not] execute this plan well,” Flusser said. “Anyone who applied for the [presale] and was randomly chosen by Ticketmaster was able to buy up to six tickets for that show. This was a mistake because many people bought all six tickets even if they [did not] need them all and re-sold the extras after.”

On the other hand, many online critics believe that Ticketmaster is an inherently evil business incapable of committing actions solely from goodwill. Wired has released an article titled “Everyone Hates Ticketmaster – But No One Can Take It Down” that claims Ticketmaster is despised, vile and unstoppable. In addition, the article claimed that Ticketmaster’s business practices are built on inimitable foundations that are years in the making, leading to their system being practically impossible to be replicated by competitors. Junior Ivana Bilicic condemns allegations of the corporate giant’s shady business practices.

“Personally, I [do not] like Ticketmaster’s approval of resellers,” Bilicic said. “Tons of these resellers buy semi-affordable tickets from the real fans, only to sell them at insane amounts. This deprives so many true fans of getting to experience their favorite artists in concerts and [it is] honestly quite sad.”

Prior to the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans were confident that their party would gain many new positions in Congress, referred to as a Red Wave, in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Republicans ended up winning a slim majority in the House, receiving 221 seats, which is three more than they needed to be the party in power. This is a nine seat increase from what they had in the 2020 elections. Despite their win in the House and other small victories, the Red Wave never came, leading to the midterms being seen as an overall loss by many Republican leaders (The Guardian). Meanwhile, in the Senate, Republicans won 49 seats, giving Democrats the majority. Opinions on key issues such as abortion rights and the impending recession steered many voters to the left, resulting in less Republican votes than they hoped, one polling expert told The New Yorker. Senior Arman Omidvar gave another reason for why Republicans did not live up to their expectations in the midterms.

“Republicans performing how they did in the midterms was surprising to many people,” Omidvar said. “A reason for their loss is many Republicans have gotten tired of the Trump-like posturing in the party, such as Trump criticizing the military for warmongering and adventurism while he, himself, oversaw expansion of the military and orchestrated drone strikes, leading to less Republican votes from people who normally lean to the right.”

According to the New York Times, the slight majority Republicans hold in Congress will decrease the Republican Party’s, or GOP’s, chances of successfully passing legislation. On one hand, it is much more likely for bills backed by Democrats to be passed since just a few Republicans voting in favor of it would count as a majority. There are also severe factional divisions between moderate and extreme Republicans which cause inter-party conflict in Congress. The House Freedom Caucus, a faction of 40 far-right Republican lawmakers including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Rep. Lauren Boebart of Colorado, has garnered a reputation for voting against its own party’s bills and often not compromising on their ideals, making it difficult for Republican legislation to be passed. Freshman Karissa Galatsis agrees that the House Freedom Caucus will lead to many challenges in the House.

“Since the Republican majority is so weak, all the party members need to be on board in order

GOP, GOP, GOP, GOP

HOUSE HELD HOSTAGE

to successfully pass legislation,” Galatsis said. “Extreme representatives like Marjorie Taylor Greene will give the leader of the party a hard time since they have very extreme demands that most Republicans do not agree with.”

The Caucus created an issue when former House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy vied to become the Speaker of the House after Republicans won the majority. In order for him to be elected speaker, more than half the House needed to vote for him, including the Caucus. McCarthy has been in Congress for 16 years and has been vocal about his pro-life views and loyalties to former President Donald Trump, at a time when the Republican party is especially divided over their views on Trump (Washington Post). When the 118th Congress convened for the first time on Jan. 3, McCarthy did not receive enough votes to be elected speaker. This made Congress unable to function for several days since the House could not do anything until a speaker was chosen. Due to this, a second ballot took place which also ended without a speaker of the House. After 15 rounds of voting, McCarthy won the position. As predicted, members of the Caucus voted against McCarthy because they felt that he is not conservative enough and will not make serious changes in the House (British Broadcasting Corporation). It was only by agreeing to support lowering government spending bills and giving members of the Caucus key roles on House committees that they agreed to vote in his favor.

Despite Republicans not winning the strong majority they hoped for, they will still try to pass several reforms, led by their new committee leaders such as those from the House Freedom Caucus. These leaders will shift their committee’s focus to issues that Republicans have been vocal about for years.

Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers will head the Energy and Commerce Committee, planning to scrutinize the origins of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and investigate TikTok’s data sharing and privacy guidelines.

Congressman Jim Jordan

of Ohio is set to be the chairman of the Judiciary committee. A staunch supporter of Trump, Jordan plans to investigate the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which he believes has become increasingly “politicized” after the seizing of several classified documents at Trump’s home (New York Times).

While the Republicans boast a majority in the House, the Democratic party is in control of the Senate, so Congress will be divided (The Associated Press). In order for legislation to be passed, both the House and Senate must have a majority in favor of the bill. Both parties being in favor of the same bill is unlikely, so passing bills will be a challenge for Congress. Sophomore Lucy Chai commented on the struggles a split congress will bring.

“Republicans will likely get to set the legislative agenda and chair all the committees which deal with issues like oversight, the economy and labor,” Chai said. “But honestly I think there will be a lot of challenges for Congress to pass necessary functions like funding the government; it will likely be turned into massive battles as Republicans and Democrats use deadlines for leverage.”

SIVAN STOLER

JIHEE SEO

TO THE TOP (NOT)

BASS MAKES TOP BRASS

Emerging victorious out of two mayoral candidates, Karen Bass became the first woman and second Black person to be sworn in as the Los Angeles mayor. On Sunday, Dec. 11, Bass shook the hand of Vice President Kamala Harris, making history as she became officially recognized as the 43rd mayor of LA (New York Times). With six years of experience as a member of the 47th California State Assembly, supporters expect Bass to excel in her new position and eventually even assume the nation’s vice presidency. With her mayoral

responsibilities assumed almost two months ago, Bass and her promises to LA will likely be carefully monitored by both her supporters and opposers before the end of her four-year term.

Before earning the title of LA mayor, Bass served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2010. Many think that Bass will be the one to solve LA’s most prominent issues, since she has been consistently active in providing for residents of the city. So far, Bass has worked with the City Council to fund pandemic relief services, housing assistance programs and economic relief to LA small businesses as well as those seeking work (The Clerk). Since Bass is a Californian Democrat in a prominently Democratic environment, many LA residents who identify with that party hope to feel more significant changes in their communities with Bass in charge. Senior Charlotte Chiang relays the principles of Bass’s plan in her recent political work.

“One aspect of Bass’s political career I found admirable were her efforts in providing resources back to minority communities during times of distress,” Chiang said. “We saw her do a lot of work during the pandemic when she managed to provide not only physical resources such as vaccines, but also financial ones like funding.”

Recognized by many as a passionate advocate for social justice, Bass’ political career transcends her former position as Congresswoman and current role as LA mayor. In the early 1990s, Bass founded the Community Coalition with the goal of supporting those suffering from effects of the drug-induced health crisis (LA Times). Additionally, during the 1994 protest against California’s Three Strikes law, a regulation that imposes greater punishment for crimes committed by individuals who have been convicted of more extreme felonies in the past, Bass announced to news reporters how the policy racially targets Black and Latino individuals and focuses on keeping them in prison (The Guardian). Bass’ drive for social reform carried into her recent political career with her emphasis on ending the homelessness crisis and the need for more accessible means of commute.

However, others argue that Bass’ political rivals are more capable of repairing LA’s rough spots than her. One rival of Bass is Rick Caruso, the runner-up for the role as LA mayor, and founder of Caruso Affiliated. While Caruso received a voting percentage of 45.2%, Bass won the race by 89,144 votes. Despite Caruso and his recognized acts of charity and commitment to supporting LA,

others think that Bass held the advantage of having more connections and government experience as a former Congresswoman and founder of Community Coalition (National Broadcasting Company).

Caruso also had connections as an award-winning contributor to organizations providing more water to the city, protecting the environment and aiding the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). As president of the Police Commission in 2001, he significantly reduced the city’s crime rates by cooperating with officers at LAPD as well as city leadership and community leaders. In the end, Caruso’s contributions for the city’s reform did not successfully defend his mayoral campaign, which promised to decrease homelessness and put a halt to gun violence if he were to be elected. Junior Edward Lin compares both campaigns on their eligibility and how effective they would be in rehabilitating LA communities as a whole.

“Caruso’s plan [said he would] declare a state of emergency on his first day, appoint a citywide homelessness coordinator, institute accountability and issue an audit to end waste,” Lin said. “He would build 30,000 shelter beds in 300 days while implementing construction of additional long-term affordable housing. This plan would cost around $800 million in the first year without including the operating costs. I believe that Bass’ plan is better because it forces our government to work together for a solution rather than the disorganized sections working by themselves.”

Despite the close race against Caruso, Bass was the candidate who came out on top. With pressure being applied citywide on her to sufficiently improve the lives of homeless people and supply them with stable housing, Bass has begun to collaborate with the Biden administration to provide immediate change. The outcome of the LA mayoral election has created high expectations for the victor, and it can also be viewed as an opportunity to display the power of democracy. Junior Michelle Batbayar shares specific qualities voters most likely looked out for while electing the former candidates.

“When I think of the most important aspects of a mayor, what comes to mind is their ability to provide to the public what they promised in their campaign,” Batbayar said. “Whether that is helping LA’s underprivileged communities acquire better healthcare and education or making sure proper sanitation services are properly installed throughout the city, a good mayor follows through with their campaign’s message and does more than leaving promises to city residents unfulfilled.”

CAORI DEGUZMAN

PENINSULA DELEGATES ROTARY PEACE CONFERENCE

On Oct. 22 of last year, the Model United Nations (MUN) program hosted the inaugural Rotary Peace Conference. MUN is an educational organization that serves as a simulation of the United Nations (UN), where students perform in ambassador roles while debating global topics. Each delegate researches their country’s involvement regarding the assigned topic and discusses global solutions that will resolve the issue. This can enhance their knowledge of diplomacy, international affairs and world issues. MUN conferences cover many subjects surrounding current or past global issues such as artificial intelligence, nuclear proliferation and the Russo-Ukrainian war.

The Rotary Peace Conference was the first MUN conference held at Peninsula after the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The gathering was sponsored by Rotary, an organization that provides service to others through the fellowship of community leaders, and Best Delegate, one of the largest MUN organizations in the nation. It was a historical conference discussing topics that revolved around the theme of peace, touching on aspects such as nuclear disarmament and international armed conflicts. The conference was split into two divisions, Novice and Advanced, with each consisting of the League of Nations, UN Human Rights Council and Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC). In addition, the Advanced committees also had the China-Japan Executive Committee and the Nuclear Disarmament of the Korean Peninsula Committee, which combined as the Nuclear Disarmament Joint Committee for debate. DISEC was the first committee of the MUN assembly to address issues related to global security and threats to international peace. The student delegates presented their ideas to the committees and

address issues related to global security and threats to international peace. The student delegates presented their ideas to the committees and formed resolution groups with other countries to find a new solution that delegates voted on to pass. Senior and Undersecretary General of Communications, Irene Oh, was given the chance to chair the Nuclear Disarmament Joint Committee.

“I am extremely grateful to [have been] a participant in this year’s Rotary Peace Conference,” Oh said. “Being able to chair the Nuclear Disarmament Joint Committee, I was able to [exercise] my public speaking and also [increase] my global awareness of the topic. Being in the conference required me to have an [immense] respect for other countries and speakers.”

Preparation for the conference included a great amount of planning and organizing funds. The Secretariat Generals, seniors Jessica Espinoza and Jennifer Espinoza, as well as Peninsula MUN’s head adviser, Dr. Jim Dimitrou, spent many hours inviting other high schools to participate in the conference. A total of nine schools came from across southern California to participate in the Rotary Peace Conference, which summed up to 106 delegates, 37 chairs, 10 school advisers and other parent volunteers and guest speakers.

Notable guest speaker, Kevin Chan, who is the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of

the program Best Delegate, engaged firsthand in the Rotary Conference by speaking about his youth experience in MUN and how he hopes to inspire participants to challenge themselves and keep an open mind during the conference. The MUN Board helped with logistical organization aspects like making posters, printing campus maps and researching committees to chair the conferences. Jessica Espinoza details the process of commencing the Rotary Peace Conference.

“Getting the [Rotary Peace Conference] off the ground was a very tedious but [rewarding] process,” Jessica Espinoza said. “The hardest part of the [task] was finding schools that were interested in the conference because not many schools in the South Bay were granted the opportunity to have the Rotary Peace Conference. Though, in the end it was a great turnout considering it was the [school’s] first conference.”

The Peninsula MUN team has fewer delegates this year after decreasing participants from previous years, but they have been able to maintain a strong reputation among the local and global MUN community. The team continues to be nationally recognized and Dimitriou has the honor of being an official Global Educator. They hope to build stronger team spirit and continue to participate in conferences along with carrying on the tradition of the Rotary Peace Conference.

“As MUN is becoming one of the highest grossing clubs in the nation, our club is always open to new conferences and opportunities,” Dimitriou said. “This year’s Rotary Peace Conference was a huge success and we will definitely be doing more in years to come. We also have many more exciting conferences coming soon like [ones at] the University Of California, Berkeley and University of Georgetown.”

JACELYN CHEN

HANA FUJII

PHANTOM BOTZ IS BACK IN BUSINESS

On Dec. 4, the youth robotics team, Phantom Botz, qualified to compete at the state level of the First Lego League (FLL) robotics competition. The Phantom Botz is composed of 10 students from Ridgecrest Intermediate School and Palos Verdes Intermediate School and is mentored by Peninsula’s robotics team, Phantom Catz. FLL targets students from elementary and middle school by having teams build robots with Legos, making it easy and safe for younger participants. During a competition, teams use their robot to move and store energy units, cylindrical Lego pieces scattered throughout the course, that the robots must collect in order to complete certain tasks. Another significant aspect of FLL is the presentation where teams present their robot to the judges with a five minute speech and respond to the judges’ questions. It involves a combination of preparation and creativity to earn a high score in the presentation which makes up three-fourths of each team’s total score. At the regional competition held at West Ranch High School in Santa Clarita, they placed second in presentation and 10th in completing the missions, allowing them to qualify to

the state championship as one of the top seven teams.

The Phantom Botz was founded five years ago, but during the coronavirus pandemic the team struggled to find a mentor, forcing them to take a break. This season was their first year back from retirement under the mentorship of the Phantom Catz. There are a total of seven mentors from the Phantom Catz, including four technical mentors and three research mentors. Currently, senior Charlotte Chung is the head of the Phantom Catz FIRST Alliance and the head research mentor who helps the teams prepare for the presentation process.

“Middle schoolers are in that stage between being an adult and a kid,” Chung said. “But they are also really determined to win, work and learn. Sometimes you might not think letting the kids do what they want is the best idea, but they know what they want, and when they put their mind to something, it usually turns out great.”

One of the biggest struggles the Phantom Botz faced was lack of time for preparation as they started to get ready a few weeks later than most teams and only had the chance to meet three times before the regional round. When they qualified for Regionals, many members did not expect to get to the state level. To help the team feel less nervous and to motivate them, the mentors promised they would dye their hair blue if they qualified for States. Junior Ricardo Escalante, one of the research mentors, was both delighted and surprised by the outcome.

“At first, I was in disbelief,” Escalante said. “It

took me a few seconds to realize we had moved on. I was scared this would be the last time I could mentor the kids, but the fact that we could enjoy more moments with each other [preparing for the next competition] made me feel very excited.”

On Dec. 17, The Phantom Botz competed at the state championship that took place at University of California, Riverside, but failed to qualify for the world championship. Sophomore Ethan Legaspi, one of the technical mentors, explained what a joy it was to work with young engineers.

“It is fun to see their faces light up whenever they complete a mission,” Legaspi said. “Sometimes they can be a handful, but it is great for training myself to be more assertive. Overall, I like to prioritize the aspect of fun while we are working because it will allow them to find joy in engineering and pursue it.”

JIHOON

SAKURA SASAKI

ONE PIECE’S LONG-AWAITED RELEASE

ONE PIECE’S LONG-AWAITED RELEASE

On Nov. 4, the long-awaited 15th “One Piece” film, “One Piece Film: Red” made its North American debut. The film has broken multiple records, as it is currently the fifth highest-grossing Japanese film of all time and the sixth highest ranking anime feature (Variety). The release was a momentous occasion for “One Piece” fans because they got to see their favorite characters in action on the big screen once again.

The “One Piece” world has existed since the manga series’s Japanese release in 1997; after receiving overwhelmingly positive reception, the anime was released two years later. Both the manga and anime are known to be extremely long, spanning over 1000 chapters and episodes. Subsequently, there are many devoted fans who have followed the series for decades and plan to see the story to its end, which is estimated to be in about three years. The general premise of “One Piece” follows Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat pirate crew as they seek the One Piece, a treasure left behind by former Pirate King Gol D. Roger. To become the next Pirate King, Luffy, and the other pirates in the “One Piece” world plan to find this treasure (One Piece Wiki).

“One Piece Film: Red” is not part of the official canon storyline, but it still provides a great story with impressive visuals. In this film, Luffy and his crew are on the Island of Music, Elegia, to watch a famous singer named Uta’s first live performance. It is revealed that she is Luffy’s childhood friend, and also the adoptive daughter of Shanks, a mysterious and powerful pirate in “One Piece” who gave Luffy his signature straw hat and inspired him to want to be the Pirate King. Uta’s main goal is to achieve worldwide peace and happiness through the eradication of piracy, which causes a lot of pain for many of her fans. To achieve this goal, she intends to make the concert last forever and trap everyone in her own reality using her singing powers. The film follows Luffy’s group as they evade Uta and attempt to break everyone out of her false reality. Junior Erika Novitsky watched the film because of a friend’s recommendation, and believes fans who have not yet watched the movie have much to anticipate.

“I first heard about [‘One Piece Film: Red’] from my friend who told me to get caught up with the series after the announcement of the movie,” Novitsky said. “I ended up really liking it and [was excited] to go see the movie. While the plots in anime movies are [usually] very straight to the point, [‘One Piece Film: Red’] had a pretty good twist that I was not expecting and the animation was insane. [Fans] of the show will probably like the movie, [and will] be looking out for a powerup that Luffy gets.”

Although “One Piece Film: Red” is the 15th “One Piece”

movie, it differs from its predecessors in its level of success and refreshing twists that bring new aspects to the series. It also has a higher level of personal involvement from Eiichiro Oda, the creator of “One Piece.” While working with the film’s director, Goro Taniguchi, Oda decided on making a female character have a central role in the story to break up the monotony of typical “One Piece” villains. Fans were aware of this contrast as Uta is a young and charismatic pop singer, standing in stark contrast against the “gruff” male archetype that usually fill out villainous roles in “One Piece” (Slashfilm). This film also stands apart with its striking visuals and seven original songs, making it an immersive experience for viewers. One of the main reasons longtime fans were drawn to this film was because of the involvement of Shanks, a character that was known to be shrouded in mystery. This character is intriguing to fans due to his low level of screen time in the anime, making this film a must-watch for anyone interested in learning more about Shanks and his crew, the Red Hair Pirates. Junior Simon Ackermann enjoyed how the film was both nostalgic and refreshing.

“This movie firstly attracts [people] due to its wonderful and breathtaking animation, [but] the covering of Shanks who has had little screen time [previously] makes it much more alluring,” Ackermann said. “Having Shanks in the film was great and seeing just how strong he is is very satisfying. The way he interacts with certain characters [also] makes him more human. [This film] was very nice as it was not exactly [battlepacked] like most of ‘One Piece’ is, yet viewers still got to see a lot of old characters [return].”

“One Piece” has been ongoing for around 25 years, and it is finally coming to an end, with Oda planning on finishing the story in around three years. The series has been met with wild success, with the manga selling over 500 million copies, and is set to eventually surpass the sales of “Harry Potter” and “Batman” comics, which would be a monumental way to end the series (Comic Book Resources). Many feel that this is sad but timely, and cannot wait to see what is next for the characters and plot. Junior Kana Fujimoto-Taitano is sad at the news that “One Piece” will soon conclude.

“I feel like ‘One Piece’ has been around forever,” FujimotoTaitano said. “Because of this, the fact that [it] will end eventually, possibly soon, is dreadful because there will not be any new episodes or chapters to anticipate. For the future of ‘One Piece,’ I would like to know if everyone in the Straw Hats will actually reach their goal they had since the beginning of the anime, [so] it would be nice to see how [everything] ends.”

TESSA KANG

CONTROVERSIES IN QATAR 11

NEHA SAMBANGI

The 2022 FIFA World Cup, one of the world’s biggest sporting events where 32 countries’ national soccer teams compete, began this past November and concluded in December. The tournament was hosted by Qatar, marking the first time in history that the exciting event was held in the Arab and Muslim world. In the World Cup final on Dec. 18, Lionel Messi and Argentina were crowned champions after defeating France. However, many of the biggest storylines of the tournament involved the human rights abuses that occurred off the pitch.

The World Cup was only possible in the first place because of migrant workers from countries like India, Nepal and Bangladesh, who played an integral role as they helped construct the eight new stadiums built for the tournament, hotels, airports and other infrastructure (Cable News Network). Many of these migrant workers died due to injuries and harsh working conditions. According to Human Rights Watch, in the 10 years following 2010, when Qatar was awarded rights to the 2022 World Cup, around 15,021 migrant workers died. Critics have claimed that Qatar authorities have collected a significant amount of further data on this issue, but do not want to share it with the public due to fear of outrage. Many families from India have not been able to understand why their family members simply died due to “natural causes” (The Guardian). Senior Allie Dzida expresses disappointment with the minimal concern and attention that families got from FIFA officials.

“The deaths of the stadium workers are really devastating to their families,” Dzida said. “It is wrong to see how many people died with little recognition and the ambassadors should take this issue seriously. These workers are incredibly important and fueled the ability for the World Cup to take place.”

Anti-LGBTQ policies implemented by the hosting nation Qatar have also been highlighted throughout the controversial tournament.

According to CNN, in Qatar, people can expect up to three years in prison for committing acts of homosexuality.

Many of these policies in Qatar existed before the country was chosen to host the World Cup; for this reason, many questioned why FIFA selected Qatar. During the tournament, Qatar also prevented many people from speaking out by banning international fans from wearing rainbow shirts. If the fans were caught with LGBTQsupporting clothing, stadium security would confiscate them. In addition, many

national teams were warned from wearing rainbow “One Love” armbands. Designed in September 2022 by the Dutch Football Association, the “One Love” armbands are used to promote inclusion. During the group stages of the tournament, FIFA alerted all teams that their captains would receive a yellow card at kickoff if they chose to wear this armband. Following this, countries including England, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Denmark issued a joint statement that they would not wear the armbands as they previously planned. Junior Vayuna Pradhan elaborates how this behavior directed to the LGBTQ community is immoral and upsetting.

“The treatment toward the LGBTQ fans of the World Cup is very disheartening and horrible to see,” Pradhan said. “The way this group of fans is being treated ruins the enjoyment that people have for the game of soccer. It only makes the existing bias for this community worse when World Cup ambassadors behave in such a way on a high-level platform.”

The various controversies surrounding the 2022 FIFA World Cup are no new story. Since 2010, FIFA World Cup officials have been at the center of various cheating and corruption scandals. In 2014, Brazil hosted the World Cup and thousands of poor, workingclass Brazilians were forcibly removed from their homes in order to make room for new infrastructure for the tournament. Similarly, in 2018, many questions were raised against Russia’s hosting rights after FIFA was revealed to have a very close relationship with authoritarian leaders like Vladimir Putin. This year’s World Cup was no different, and the United States Department of Justice has made allegations that Qatar bribed FIFA officials into securing hosting rights for the World Cup (The New York Times). Qatar, a small country that has never qualified for the World Cup, spent around $220 million in their bid for hosting the World Cup. The nation’s victory was highly questioned when it defeated global sporting

powerhouses like the U.S., Australia and Japan. Qatar had to construct an immense amount of infrastructure like the stadiums and transportation in order to support all the players, staff and fans who came for the event, something established sporting countries would already have had. Many have argued that Qatar hosting the World Cup was a case of “sport washing,” in which they tried to improve their reputation and distract attention from other controversies through the popularity of the giant sporting event. Junior Sophie Torres explains the importance of the World Cup and how its corruption is causing detrimental effects.

“I think all of the corruption and violations of human rights that are happening within the World Cup needs to come to an end,” Torres said. “This is such a beautiful event because all the countries come together to play the sport and it builds a community among fans. The corruption ruins the atmosphere and the unity between fans, so this issue needs to be taken seriously going forward.”

SHAI BECKER