The Merionite
Ardmore, PA, 19003
October 31, 2016
The official student newspaper of Lower Merion High School since 1929 www.themerionite.org Volume 88, Issue 2
Police strive to improve community relations Molly Cutler ’19 Arts and Entertainment Editor In light of the recent incidents of police brutality across the nation, discussions are emerging about how to improve police-community relations. The Lower Merion Township Police Department (LMTPD) is trying to acknowledge these sentiments. LMTPD, along with school officials, have implemented a new program at LM, beginning this school year, to strengthen ties between community and police. “Beat officers”—the officers assigned to a certain area of the township—will be visiting LM in a new effort to bridge the gap between police and students. Captain Frank Thomas, one police officer who is involved in the police presence program at LM, says that the program will allow officers to “just be seen and get a comfort level with everybody, and be available to answer any questions, and to have a conversation…between the students and the officers.” There will not be specific organized presentations or instruction that the officers will be leading, but they will be open to answering questions and having discussions with students. Officer Josephine Murray adds, “We’re just trying to have an open, positive relationship with the students, and a lot of that will come from any challenges that they’re facing. It could be drug and alcohol related questions. It could be issues with conflict resolution. [We’re here to help students] through whatever struggles or challenges that they’re going through.” LM is not the only school to which LMTPD is reaching out. The program extends to Penn Wynne, Cynwyd, Belmont Hills, and Merion elementary schools; Bala Cynwyd Middle School; and private schools including Waldron
Photo by Staff Senior Terrell Jones and Captain Josephine Murray exchange pleasantries in Aces Atrium.
Mercy Academy, the Shipley School, and Torah Academy. In addition, officers will be meeting with the principals of several other schools, Harriton High School among them, to discuss implementing the program there in the future. Officers also visit daycares in the township to connect with children, beginning at an early age. Captain Thomas cited the beneficial relationships between students and police that developed from working together in the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, and explained that the police department wants to re-establish those relationships. After LMSD stopped funding the DARE program, Captain Thomas said, “There was a period of time where we didn’t have officers in the schools. We have community meetings, and one of the things they say is the community doesn’t know their officers anymore. Because of DARE and [similar programs], the kids and young adults would see an officer and know them by name. And that’s kind of gone away and we’re trying to get back to that.” Officer Murray, the primary officer involved with the program, continued, “We just want everybody to know that we do care, we’re just trying to mentor students, [and] keep [them] out of trouble.” Building better relationships with the LM community is an important goal for the LMTPD, and Officer Murray and others felt that one of the best ways to do this would be to start in schools and connect to young people firsthand. Over the summer, the police department had also been trying to build positive connections with the community by visiting camps, libraries, parks, and other places where Please see POLICE PRESENCE on page 4
Local gang stirs up trouble
LM alumna plans Black Lives Matter march
Ziwen Zhou ’19
Kathy Yao ’18
The Main Line has long had an outstanding reputation as an excellent place to live due to its low crime rates, excellent secondary school institutions, and close proximity to a bustling city. Residents therefore received quite a shock when a gang dubbing themselves the “Boys from Ardmore,” or the BFA, were arrested after a series of violent assaults. These wrongdoers were not foreign to the community: the trio consisted of graduates from Harriton High School. Two brothers, who are 24 and 22 years old, and another man from the gang, who is 23, were arrested for a string of incidents that were tied back to them after a lengthy investigation. The BFA, if convicted, are expected to spend many years in jail. The gang was already investigated in a previous case for possessing illicit drugs. Police conducted a raid after reports of marijuana distribution from their house in early 2015. The latest criminal activities are reported to have started on the afternoon November 26, 2015 when it is alleged that the BFA trailed a victim from Bryn Mawr Park back to his residence, and then attempted to engage in a fight. The reason behind the confrontation is unknown except that the victim seems to have been familiar with the BFA. When the victim refused to leave his house, gang members are alleged to have broken in through a window and exchanged words. About twenty minutes after the incident, the same victim claims to have been ambushed by the members of the gang while walking on West Lancaster Avenue. The victim was knocked over and kicked repeatedly, but was able to escape unharmed. Later that day, a cousin of the victim and a few other relatives, after learning about this incident and its
Two hundred fifty people gathered for Lower Merion’s the responses to the event that she had expected. She Black Lives Matter March on July 10, 2016, in South describes, “I expected backlash, but being that I am a part Ardmore Park. The march was organized by Blessing of the Lower Merion community, I didn’t think it would Osazuwa, a 2016 graduate of LM, who is now a freshman be that bad coming from the people who live here.” The at Drexel University. Osazuwa has always been an activist. negativity mostly came from the Facebook post. She was While at LM, she worked within the district, as well as with accused of being anti-police and not caring about “Black the Girls Leadership on Black crime.” On Council. Osazuwa was the afternoon of the inspired to hold this event, the negative march after the shootcomments continued ings of Alton Sterling to cause a problem. and Philando Castile, She recalls, “It got so as well as the deaths of bad that I cried my police officers in Dallas eyes out and wanted earlier this year. Osato collapse.” But Osazuwa says, “I wanted to zuwa decided to conbridge the gap between tinue with the march, the two and show that because, she recounts, we don’t have to be for “I felt it needed to be one or the other, we done. I didn’t know can support the police how many people while still fighting rawould turn out, if any. cial injustice and holdPhoto by Cameron Pollack ’14 I just kind of went out ing criminals accounton a limb and walked able for their actions.” Protesters gather with posters in South Ardmore Park by faith.” The march was or- for Lower Merion’s Black Lives Matter march. When Osazuwa arganized on July 9, 2016, rived at the event, she the night before the event actually happened. Osazuwa was overwhelmed with the turnout. From the reactions created a Facebook event and shared it with her friends that she had received online, Osazuwa had expected no and family, who then shared it with their friends. The one to show up. She was so pleasantly surprised, saying, “I event ended up on the Lower Merion Community Net- realized how much our minds tend to focus on the negative work Facebook page. Osazuwa, however, did not receive when there is much more positivity around.”
Please see BOYS FROM ARDMORE on page 2
Please see BLACK LIVES MATTER on page 3
NEWS Snake lost within LM
FEATURES Patriotism at LM
Julia Ochroch ’20 reports on Mr. Burch’s lost garter snake, Smeadley. page 2
A look at LM’s perspective on patriotism and the Colin Kaepernick controversy. page 8
OPINIONS LM’s thoughts on the candidates Read different opinions about three of the major candidates as they vie for the presidency of the United States. page 7
A&E
Mural Arts Month Looking for some local excitement? Philadelphia is offering special tours in honor of the murals located throughout the city this month. page 11
SPORTS LM Field Hockey
Read about the field hockey team and how they have made it to the District One home game for the first time in LM history. page 14
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News
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
Lunch and Learn transformed
Lost snake in LM
Alex Welsh ’19
Julia Ochroch ’20
Remember asking your friends whether they had On the other hand most freshmen have strictly negaA, B, or C lunch? That struggle is long gone, as last tive views on the updated system. “I think it’s useless year LM implemented a new program called Lunch because I would rather do what I need to do and we and Learn. The program created a one-hour period shouldn’t have to pay for what the previous freshman during the middle of the day where students can eat have done” says Jeffery Dang ’20. Freshman Noah lunch, see teachers, work on homework, and study for Spergel adds, “I don’t like our system because I don’t upcoming tests. have the same lunch as my friends, and I sometimes Our school is now in the process of refining our miss my teachers’ office hours when they conflict with new Lunch and Learn program. “From the beginning my lunch period.” of last year, we said that we would take a look to see One change that affects the entire students body is what worked and what we would want to add,” said that many academic departments have created spePrincipal Sean Hughes. At the end of the 2016 school cial offerings during this time. “A major focus during year, students and teachers completed a survey per- Lunch and Learn for the English department is to fostaining to Lunch and Learn. This survey provided ter creative writing and provide enrichment opporconstructive feedback on how to improve the program tunities for students outside of class,” stated English for the Lower Merion school community. With this in department head Brian Mays. In order to mind, there fulfill this need, have been a group of stusome minor dents created changes made Second Stage, this year. supported by One prithe English mary comdepartment. ment from the The program, survey was managed by the idea of English teacher creating quiet Jeanne Maszones, which triano, is run now allow stualmost entiredents to study ly by students Photo by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff to in silence or encourage have a quiet Hoping to build on the success of last year, the second stage creative writplace to get leaders meet to plan future endeavors for the lunch activity. ing in all forms: work done. In poetry, prose, order to allow students to productively study during drama, music, etc. Many English faculty includLunch and Learn, LM designated the learning cen- ing Laura Stiebitz, Hasham Bhatti, and Humanities ter and multicultural library as official quiet spaces. Supervisor Dr. Leslie Pratt attended the club’s “First Enforcing this culture, students can no longer play Friday,” an open-mic session that runs the first Friday music without earphones in order to create a quiet- of every month during Lunch and Learn. er environment around the school. Another change The Social Studies department has new additions made for sophomores, juniors and seniors is that they to lunch, as well. It has begun to host speakers as an cannot eat in the hallways, which was a popular spot academic activity during lunch and learn, too. Last for students to spend their time last year. Students week, Penn professor and previous LM parent Jon also may no longer sit in any stairwell, because the Zimmerman spoke about his new book, Campus Polfire department deemed it a safety hazard. itics, which examines the social and political climate The largest revision affects the freshmen. Admin- on college campuses and issues such as race, gender, istration has scheduled both a lunch and a learn pe- politics, microaggressions, and trigger warnings. Furriod for each incoming student. Ninth graders now thermore, math teacher John Vaccaro added that spend half of their lunch and learn in the cafeteria, “the Math Department is having groups of student go and the other half in an assigned teacher’s room to to Cynwyd Elementary school to teach fifth graders study or complete homework. Hughes explained that programming.” The physical education teachers also “We wanted to have (at least for a quarter or so) a continue to open up the gym, pool, and weight room structure for the freshmen students so that we make for students to utilize during lunch and learn. sure they eat and gain a better understanding of the The Lunch and Learn program will continue to use of time and the concept or privilege of Lunch and evolve as students and teachers experience these Learn.” Freshman Joey Litvin believes that “it’s bene- changes and provide feedback at the end of this acficial for ninth graders to ease into Lunch and Learn.” ademic year.
A snake is roaming LM, and nobody knows where it is. On October 5, biology teacher Elliot Burch brought in and subsequently lost a garter snake named Smeadly that he had found in his yard that weekend. Burch presented his non-poisonous new friend in class for a “show-and-tell” activity, his intention being to have a fun addition to biology class and give students a small scare without harming them. The surprise was successful for his first few classes of the day, but he was not able to complete his activity with his afternoon classes. When Burch returned to grab Smeadly after lunch, he was gone! The moment the class realized the snake was missing, students attempted to search for the lost garter snake. Colleen Wang ’20, a student in Burch’s set seven biology class, recalled, “[Burch] was relatively calm when he realized Smeadly was missing, so everyone assumed it was a joke.” Burch explained to the class that garter snakes are nearly harmless, and are not poisonous. Burch gathered that the snake was actually able to reach the lip of the bucket and slither out by itself, and could have escaped in any direction. Burch’s plan is to “get volunteers to watch through days and days of campus surveillance videos to spot little Smeadly scooting down a hallway under the cover of night.” He admits, though, that he doubts that the task will be permissible or easy. He has set up a trap device in his room—nicknamed the “Burch trap-o-ramma”—consisting of a small heating pad (which would attract a snake), a bucket on its side with leaves in it, and a blanket. These components are the perfect way to entice little Smeadly back to his loving family. Although the snake has not yet been found, Burch hopes that Smeadly “made his way down the stairs and found a crack under a door.” Burch did not want to hold Smeadly in captivity for more than a day, anyway, so maybe letting him roam free is giving Smeadly the independence he deserves. In the meantime, LM students and faculty should look out for a fourteen-inch long harmless snake who may be slithering down the halls. If you should see Smeadly, wave to him and let him know that Mr. Burch misses his dear friend.
LM’s homecoming debut Dora Nathans ’18 News Editor For most high school students across the country, the fall season brings many fun activities, one of the most notable being the Homecoming dance. Up until this year, LM was unique in that it did not partake in this tradition, but this year, everything has changed. LM’s first ever Homecoming occurred on Friday, October 28 in the Kobe Bryant Gym from 7-10 pm, and was considered by the senior officers to be a smashing success. After many years of not having a homecoming, the senior class officers eventually decided to implement it as a way to “combine everyone from all grades and get hype for the new school year. We wanted to honor the homecoming court at the dance,” senior class secretary Sam Gamberg explains. The senior prom is being funded in part by the money from the event, which was implemented in place of the previous back to school dance, because of small attendance and little profit. The officers had never planned a homecoming before, but they did have experience from planning the junior formal last year, as well as from their cur-
rent planning of the senior prom. One thing that many people did not know about the event is that it was planned to be the kickoff for Radnor week, a spirit week that leads up to the annual football game against Radnor. The week consists of five different spirit attires for five different days, as well a hallway decorating competition between grades. The senior officers deliberately posed the idea to Student Government and the other grade officers in order to get their support in using this event as the kickoff for the spirit week. As junior class secretary Catherine McFarland pointed out, “We were so excited to hear about this event, and we hope to continue this next year.” Based on presales, many students are expected to attend. Tickets costed $10 beforehand and $15 at the door. The attire is semi-formal, and because it is in the gym, everyone has been asked to wear socks rather than heels. As senior officer Emily Harnett expects this to be “the best BYOS (“Bring your own socks”) event I’ve ever been to.”
Photo by Nisha Arya ’18/Staff Biology teacher Elliot Burch acts out how Smeadly, his garter snake that is currently lost in LM, would slither back to the trap-o-ramma.
Boys from Ardmore Cont. from BOYS FROM ARDMORE, page 1 perpetrators, visited the BFA brothers’ house on Walnut Avenue in order to confront them. A fight ensued shortly after their arrival—gunshots were heard by neighbors. The police were soon called in, and encountered a scene of chaos where many people were fleeing, and the cousin of the victim needed medical attention after being beaten with a bat. Luckily, no fatalities were reported. It seems, based on the next couple of events, that the members of the BFA went from the house directly to the victim’s house to exact retribution. Several cryptic phone calls were made to the house, threatening the victim. Apparently, the victim did not know why he was being targeted, as the only explanation the BFA gave was, “You wouldn’t understand, I’m [a] BFA. I have to do this.” The calls stopped soon after the victim left his house to go to Wawa, which makes it likely that the BFA had started following the victim. The victim was assaulted by four people, three gang members and another man, when he
walked out of Wawa, and was robbed of his phone and five hundred dollars. After that crime spree, an isolated incident on April 23, 2016 was tied to the BFA. Here, they attacked a man walking out of American Legion Post in the early morning with a brick. The BFA was finally arraigned, despite certain difficulties with uncooperative witnesses, after a grand jury investigation. The BFA, in total, is accused of committing six prosecutable crimes, including many unexplainable assaults. The evidence is strong in this case, with camera footage and different witnesses who could potentially put the gang at the scenes of the crimes. A conviction is likely to be made by the district attorney, although the legal process can be dragged out for quite a while with appeals and motions—so, expect to hear more about this legal case. Of course, this case is shocking to the LMSD community, as our core motto is “Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve”, which is utterly the opposite of what these Harriton High School graduates may have done.
News
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
Black lives matter
Police presence
Cont. from POLICE PRESENCE, page 1
children and young adults would gather. This system received a lot of positive feedback, so program coordinators decided to expand into schools to continue to maintain those relationships. “Really, it all comes down to relationships,” Captain Thomas said. Nationally, “some bad things are happening… but the only way we’re going to repair this is with relationships with the community and the people we serve, and that’s what our ultimate goal is here.” There are some additional benefits of the increased involvement of police officers in schools within the township. When beat officers spend more time in school buildings, they gain general knowledge about the schools’ inner workings and structure. If there were an emergency, it would be important for officers to know how to navigate around the school, and the increased time spent in the building will lead to greater familiarity. Security is also a consideration, although Officer Murray clarifies that the officers aren’t “looking for anything. [LMHS has] campus aides to keep [students] in line. We will be present during basketball games, activities, practices, [et cetera.] We want to help motivate [students] and encourage [them] to do well. We’re not looking for anything.” However, not all students at LM feel comfortable with the increase in police presence. Juliet Bogan ’19
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Cont. from BLACK LIVES MATTER, page 1 says, “I think it’s cool that [the police] want to have a relationship with the community, but they should do it in the right way. At least make the school aware that this is happening—otherwise we just have a bunch of confused and suspicious students with increased paranoia.” Sam Gamberg ’17 raised the topic of police brutality, especially towards African Americans, continuing, “Almost every two weeks I see a video of a black individual getting shot by a police officer on my timeline. So far this year police officers have shot over 100 black individuals. If the LM police department wants to better their relationship with the community, they should create school-wide and community-wide dialogues about these recent events. If these officers aren’t going to create this type of dialogue at LM and our administration isn’t going to let students know why we might run into a gun-toting officer at the bottom of the stairs on our way to gym class, then there isn’t a need for their militarized presence here.” While there are strong opinions on both sides of the issue, Officer Murray has also noticed that a lot of students seem to be confused about why the officers are there. “We do want students to be comfortable in their own school,” she said. “We want to help them maintain their privacy.” The officers hope to expand the program to more schools as time goes on.
Parents, students, and children gathered at five p.m. in South Ardmore Park to begin the march, which ended at Linwood Park. Joel Herbert ’18 recalls, “The march was lined with police cars and led by a police car, so it really showed that our police recognized the issue and were willing to work hand in hand to better our community.” Overall, the march was a success, with 250 people coming out to support the Black Lives Matter campaign. The atmosphere was filled with positivity and support, even from the police officers. The Black Lives Matter campaign this summer had a significant impact on the Lower Merion community. Olivia Malloy ’18 explains, “This march was important to me because I obviously will never understand what it’s like to be on the receiving end of the racebased police brutality. The march was a way for lots of people to show that they stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.” People of all backgrounds came out to the event in support of one idea: equality for all. It is an affirmation of all that African Americans contribute to our society. The movement is a way to acknowledge, respect, and celebrate both differences and commonalities. Herbert states, “Even though the march was quick, it signified that Ardmore and all of Lower Merion are committed to working towards reaching equality for all.”
Community reacts to district lawsuit Kelsey Stanton ’18 Copy Editor
The LMSD School Board filed an appeal on September 9, 2016 concerning the Montgomery County Court’s August 19, 2016 decision that prohibited LMSD from collecting taxes for the 2016-17 fiscal year that exceed a 2.4 percent increase over the previous year’s taxes. The district upholds that its tax increases were the direct result of enrollment growth and other costly needs, and that it should be allowed to set its own taxing rate for the upcoming year. On September 12, 2016, the district held a meeting focused on the district’s taxing practices. The meeting was open to the public for comments either for or against the district.
“
[The board] should be ashamed that it took a lawsuit and the sworn testimony of [its] own business manager to uncover a ten-year scheme of over-taxing the community.
”
— Stephen Gleason The audience of the board meeting was split about fifty-fifty between supporters of the district and supporters of the plaintiff. Arthur Alan Wolk Esq., the man who filed the lawsuit against the district, attended the meeting and said that he supports the students in the school district but does not support “falsifying information” and “increasing taxes illegally.” He asserted that the purpose of the lawsuit was
to correct the “81 million dollars’ worth of false claims” of deficits made by the district in the last six years, asking the school board to “give us back our money” in reference to himself and other taxpayers in the area. Supporters for Wolk’s case included Catherine Wayne, a district alumna and district parent, who voiced her concern that as a result of the high taxes, many of her friends “simply can’t afford to stay here.” Another community member in favor of Wolk was Stephen Gleason of Rosemont, who believes the board, “should be ashamed that it took a lawsuit and the sworn testimony of [its] own business manager to uncover a ten-year scheme of over-taxing the community.” Plenty of community members came to the meeting to voice their support for the district, too. LMSD parent Jane Broderson thanked the board “for the greatest gift [it] could ever give our children: an excellent education,” asserting that Wolk’s vision would mean that the district would be able to offer “no AP, no IB, no honors classes, no athletics, [and employ] fewer teachers” because “none of that is mandated by the state.” Broderson is also the creator of a petition that urges community members to support the district. In response to Wolk’s statement that the lawsuit was filed on behalf of the taxpayers in the area, community member, fellow taxpayer, and parent Regina Brown pointed out that “Property taxes are a deduction,” asserting that any tax cuts from the district would be made up in taxes to the IRS. She went on publicly disagree with the the no-
The clown craze
“
[The board gave] the greatest gift it could ever give our children: an excellent education.
”
— Jane Broderson Though community members are split in their view with the lawsuit, it is generally accepted that if the appeal is unsuccessful, the district will see changes over the next few years—if the appeal is lost. Which areas of the budget will lose funding is not yet clear, but Lower Merion Education Association resident Chris Santa Maria explained that the teachers’ union plans to renegotiate their contract salaries in June “regardless of the status of the District’s appeal.” Another factor that will likely be impacted by this lawsuit is the upcoming School Board elections, which are to be held in 2017. Based on the public comments made at the board meeting, it is possible that the lawsuit has inspired community members who share Wolk’s point of view to elect a new Board of School Directors. Any repercussions from the suit are speculations at this point, though, as nothing has been decided and the appeal has not yet been heard.
News In Brief
Euna Carpenter ’19 Mass hysteria has gripped the nation— especially via social media— due to recent concerning clown sightings in many different parts of the country. This all started in South Carolina in late August when someone reported a person dressed in a clown suit attempting to lure young children into the woods. From there, these sightings have spread throughout the nation— from Alabama, to Wisconsin, to Pennsylvania. The clown reports have been mainly nonviolent, and are instead intended to scare adults and children alike. However, the idea of “bad clowns” is not a new one. This phenomenon might have stemmed from the story of John Wayne Gacy, a happy clown in Chicago (circa 1975), who was known to be good and wellloved but was actually systematically
tion that LMSD “impermissibly expanded into the arena reserved for private education” or that a public school education should be defined by the “basic minimums dictated by the state.”
killing and raping young boys. Recently, a thirteen-year-old girl made threats of the clowns coming to schools in the Philadelphia area. She and a school friend created an Instagram account and posted pictures with captions telling its followers that the clowns would be in Philadelphia, and would be kidnapping children at five o’clock p.m. Even in Lower Merion, people remained frightened: “Ever since people started posting about them on social media, I’ve been scared because even though I know they are harmless, the idea of them chasing me is creepy,” says Melissa Gingold ’19. This type of prank is not a new fad, and it will hopefully die out quickly. But until then, the clowns will continue to scare many children and adults across the country.
Fire on Montgomery Ave Julian Ginzburg ’19 Copy Editor
While students were enjoying their day off or observing Yom Kippur on October 12, a telephone pole on Montgomery Avenue between Booth Lane and Grey Lane burst into flames. According to a service provider at the scene, an underground PECO electric line caught fire. A PECO crew responded very quickly to this incident to facilitate repairs. According to George Frazier, the Director of Information Systems for the district, “repairs continued well into the next day. Crews were still working 24 hours after the fire.” He asserts, “Service providers like Comcast and Verizon were not permitted to work on restoring service on the tele-
phone pole until PECO [had] completed their work,” because PECO owns the pole where the fire took place. This incident left many people throughout the township without internet access for an extended period of time. It is not known how many people in the township were affected. The evening, following this incident, the District issued an alert, letting people know that “LMSD telephone, internet and email services are currently unavailable.” While the internet is functioning, currently, LMSD is still working on fixing the damage from the fire.
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October 31, 2016
Opinions The Merionite
The Merionite Official newspaper of Lower Merion High School since 1929 www.themerionite.org Columbia Scholastic Press Assocation Silver Crown 2013 Editors in Chief Simone Burde ’17 Deepika Jonnalagadda ’17 Managing Editor Isabella Dumitrescu ’17 News Editors Nisha Arya ’18 Catherine McFarland ’18 Dora Nathans ’18 Op-Ed Editors Michael Cheng ’18 Nina McKay ’17 Sophie Roling ’18 Features Editors Bethany Eldridge ’18 Alexandra Hummel ’17 Julia Rosen ’18 A&E Editors Molly Cutler ’19 Molly Gonzales ’17 Claire Ochroch ’18
Editorial: free the freshmen After a mostly successful first year, Lunch and Learn has returned to LM. For the past few weeks, LM students have benefited from a 63-minute free period in the middle of the day, during which they can socialize, finish a homework assignment, meet with teachers, or play frisbee in the courtyard. However, freshmen do not fully enjoy the freedoms that Lunch and Learn offers. Instead, they must eat in the cafeteria for half of lunch, and stay in an assigned teacher’s room for the other half. While this system understandably minimizes the chance of disciplinary issues occurring during lunch, the editors of The Merionite believe that this system penalizes freshmen without due cause. The new system was created in response to certain disciplinary issues that some freshmen had last year during Lunch and Learn; some administrators feel that freshmen are unable to maturely handle the freedoms of Lunch and Learn and are in need of an eased transition to a free period during quarter one. However, the current system with assigned Lunch and Learns assumes that none of the freshmen
Graphics Editors Sam Gamberg ’17 Vanessa Roser ’17 Web Editor Noah Rubin ’17 Business Manager Bradley Kaplan ’17 Advisor Charles Henneberry Assistant Advisor Laura Stiebitz Business Advisor Sean P. Flynn, Esq. The editors believe all facts presented in the newspaper to be accurate. The paper acknowledges that mistakes are possible and welcomes questions as to accuracy. Inquiries regarding accuracy should be directed to the editors of the paper. Editors can be contacted via e-mail at merionite@gmail.com or in Room 200A. To represent all viewpoints in the school community, The Merionite welcomes all letters to the editor. Letters can be sent via e-mail or dropped off outside the Merionite office. The Merionite reserves the right to edit letters to the editor for length or clarity. All unattributed images are courtesy of WikiCommons.
longer available during study halls, being assigned to a learn session and forced to eat in the cafeteria gives freshmen little opportunity to explore the LM library and use it to work together with peers in collaborative spaces or to conduct research. Furthermore, having an assigned Lunch and Learn session reduces the time that freshmen have to get to know not only their classmates, but also upperclassmen. Since freshmen are unable to leave the cafeteria for lunch, it is much harder for them to make friends with upperclassmen who could help them adjust to high school or assist them with their classes. Moreover, since each assigned learn session only has a few freshmen, freshmen are unable to get to know many of the students in their grade. Therefore, while The Merionite understands that disciplinary concerns are important, The Merionite believes that Lunch and Learn should not be restricted for freshmen. Unsigned editorials reflect the general opinion of the staff and not the opinion of any single editor.
Outdated field hockey uniforms must go
Sports Editors Matt D’Aquila ’17 Kelly Harrigan ’17 Zack Slogoff ’18 Copy Editors Julian Ginzburg ’19 Kelsey Stanton ’18
are trustworthy or responsible enough to handle themselves appropriately during Lunch and Learn. Considering that only a small portion of the freshmen class last year had disciplinary issues, it makes little sense to punish the entire freshmen class this year for the deeds of the minority. The Merionite agrees that if some freshmen have disciplinary issues, then they should have a more assisted transition. However, the vast majority of freshmen are able to handle themselves during Lunch and Learn and deserve the opportunity to utilize their lunch period as they choose. Having a restricted Lunch and Learn for freshmen raises issues around the various meetings that take place during that hour. In order for freshmen to be excused from lunch, they need a pass. This system requires that club advisors write a dozen or more passes for any given lunch meeting, which has caused some hassle. Restricting Lunch and Learn for freshmen has made it harder for them to join clubs and get involved in the school that they will be part of for the next four years. In addition, since the library is no
Julia Rappaport ’18 “Don’t hate us because we play harder, hate us because we do it in skirts.” Most present-day field hockey players can relate to this quote for various reasons. In the early 1900s, Constance Applebee introduced field hockey to various colleges across the country. This was a time when women could not vote and were not allowed to wear pants, so naturally, women wore skirts while playing. Since then, times have changed. Women are now allowed to vote and are also able to wear what they want without worrying as much about modesty. However, field hockey uniforms are still stuck in the past; players wear uncomfortable skirts to show off their femininity, which sexualizes the sport. Because of this tradition, girls are not being observed for their raw, natural talent for field hockey. Instead, fans are paying attention to their short skirts. Obviously, there is no better way for women to be overshadowed by their ability to play the game than by making them wear skirts to prance around, flaunting their femininity! It is time for LM, and eventually the National Field Hockey
team, to come into the twenty-first century by disposing with skirt uniforms. Because our society has changed tremendously over the past century, skirts no longer serve the same purpose. Most skirts do not even come past the knees, which, one hundred years ago, would have been necessary to hide a woman’s figure. Instead, the skirts now lie mid-thigh and continuously ride up throughout play. Due to this issue, girls are now forced to wear spandex, which are not supplied by the school, in order to cover themselves and to increase their comfort during a game. Without spandex, women’s thighs would rub together throughout the game, causing them to be even more uncomfortable than they would already feel. This idea of spandex brings up a whole new issue. Unlike tennis uniforms, spandex are not connected to the skirts that field hockey players wear. This means that players need to separately buy another undergarment to wear, or else they cannot play. Overall, the whole idea of having to wear skirts with spandex underneath does not make sense for practical reasons. No longer are women being modest with skirts. Instead, they are actually being less modest because the skirts are sexualizing players. On top of all of this, the skirts are also promoting gender roles by forcing girls to live up to stereotypes. For example, women are not composed like men and develop different types of biological muscle. However, this does not, and should not, change how women are viewed in the sports world. Instead, they should be praised for their contrasting abilities to men.
Sports should be a place where men and women are treated equally. The purpose of a sport is to provide an outlet for people and to allow them to take a break from their work lives. By promoting the gap in genders, we are only hurting the whole idea behind sports equality. Field hockey needs to realize that not all traditions are good traditions. We need to start treating women with the same amount of respect as men. The faster LM, and the professionals recognize this, the faster society will continue to grow and recognize how incredible women can be even without scandalous skirts.
Leona Fisher ’18 models LM Field Hockey’s typical uniform with spandex that are necessary. Photo courtesy of Leona Fisher ‘18
Letter-to-the-editor: Ghostwriting not so scary To the Editor, In the September edition of the Merionite, there was an article in the OpEd section in which ghostwriting was deemed unethical and dishonest. This fallacy makes nearly every corporate head, famous scientist, and celebrity guilty of dishonest and unethical behavior. Ghostwriting is not lying, because the named author’s ideas are still incorporated into the book. This means that the named author still contributed. If I were to write a book,
I would own the rights of my book. Since I am able to sell my property, it is logical that I would be able to sell my book’s rights. I would benefit because I would get paid by the named author, who would also benefit because they would be able to put forth ideas that they were previously unable to share. Most importantly, society would benefit, because of the introduction to a new political, economic, or scientific concept, which it would never have been exposed to without the help of ghostwrit-
ers. Ghostwriters help people who are too busy to write a book share their ideas with the public. Ghostwriting is not an immoral practice, because it aids the circulation of ideas. Due to the principles of ownership, the fact that the named author’s ideas are in the book, and the positive effect ghostwriting has on society, ghostwriting is neither dishonest nor immoral. —David Sommer ’19
Opinions
October 31, 2016
5
The Merionite
The safety of maximum firepower
Ellis Kelsey ‘17 I’m what you would call a pessimist. What does that mean? Glass half empty? No, not exactly. The pessimist doubts, while the optimist trusts. Call it backlash of my trust issues, but I don’t like trusting. Trusting leads to backstabbing, thieving, and delusion. And maybe I have some untreated lasting paranoia—I find myself alienated in a Christian nation, stranded in a liberal wasteland—but I look at the paper every morning as I eat my eggs and deduce that people are generally bad. I see death, dying, murder, assault, blood, gore, violence, and I think: “It’s all coming to an end!! Oh, the Humanity!!” However, I always try to remember that these are freak accidents in a stable country, not common accidents in a freak country. Life goes on in America even if someone was murdered the day before when a medium-sized rock was taken to their head. People today wake up and make it their passion to try to ban medium sized rocks, now that it has been discovered that they kill people. Wait…rocks? Really? Are you sure the rock killed that person… I mean, I’m pretty sure that the mentally sick person is responsible for that freak accident, as we live in a country of many, many, safe and stable rocks. But rocks are a promised freedom here—let’s not forget—and if you show that you are able
to stand, walk, talk, and stay out of trouble just fine by adulthood, rocks are available to you in America. Congrats! Remember to be thankful, because in North Korea, they have no rocks to throw at the royal palace. Instead, they eat pigeons, because their authoritarian leader took all the rocks and killed anyone who opposed his economically self-destructive state. Go look up Saddam Hussein—he did it too. Now, pause and go re-read this paragraph, replacing “rock” with “gun.” Remember now that “arms’’ are a liberty promised in the Constitution, which, need I remind you, is the law of the land crafted by the most ingenious philosophers of the quarter millennium, who somehow gathered in the right place at the right time. I trust them. And if they put the right to bear arms at number two on the list of TOP
the legal firearm. The difference is that I am an existential pessimist, not a political one. “No”, I say, ”No, we shan’t run our country like a basketball team,” making every citizen run a suicide for each foul another citizen commits. Punish the whole for the actions of the few? This doesn’t sound very democratic to me. What happened to “majority rules”? I say quite the contrary, “maximize rights and minimize crime” —not “minimize rights TO minimize crime.” The political left overlooks this seemingly obvious duality, falsely attempting to correspond the accountability of the individual with the privilege of the many. This is absurd logic, and any logistician would call out this erroneous thinking faster than you could say Clinton—Kaine. Instead, focus on the real problems: mental health, bullying, systemic racism, illegal
Graphic by Vanessa Roser ‘17 TEN MOST IMPORTANT RIGHTS—the Bill of Rights—then, it’s my first amendment right to say that I’m inclined to believe that it should stay that way. But, people still die from guns. It is our Democrats who continue to beat around the bush and blame guns for the deaths on US soil, in order to rationalize some deluded philosophy on human optimism, as if people are just thoughtless, amoral idiots just waiting to be seduced by the evil temptations of
guns, and radical Islam (to name a few). It seems that the left wing is too caught up in its web of political correctness to address the actual issues and that it is more concerned on re-election. Instead of holding real, actual warm-blooded people accountable for their actions, these gutless politicians again and again resort to the horribly apologist practice of scapegoating. After every single tragedy catapults, yet again, into another “gun control” filibuster, the left ends up blaming
the gun instead of the person, demonizing the NRA, and ushering in their trademark “common sense” gun control laws. How about blaming the person, which would teach the youth of America the right American morals? In this way, I find them much more pessimistic than me. Let’s suppose for a second that the left bans all guns, Trump wins the White House and the day after his inauguration, a jihadist in Michigan shoots up a mall in Detroit with a medium-sized gun. Suppose Trump then calls in the national guard to round up all the Muslims in the state, as he well could. Innocent Muslims and their noble sympathizers would simply not be able to resist the massive firepower of the guardsmen. And this is where the ultimate injustice lies: in this great democracy of ours, why is it that the governing body, the people—you, me, us—couldn’t even compete with the power of our elected officials? Surely, since WE elect OUR leaders, we would expect them to refrain from touching the Second Amendment and to save the ultimate power of possible militarization for their own, governing people. This remains the grand, perplexing paradox of the social left—that in their strife to be “liberal” and “progressive,” they leave behind the MOST important, most crucial doctrine of legal self-defense from an unlawful intrusion of basic rights and liberal values. People MUST always have the safety of maximum firepower, and diluting this basic RIGHT by punishing the law-abiding citizen does nothing but spit on the holy, excuse me, secular parchment of the Constitution. When I say I dislike trusting, I mean I distrust Washington when it attempts to confiscate our only tangible means of safety. And that, my friends, is reason enough.
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October 31, 2016
Opinions The Merionite
Stalemate in North Korea
Andres Bermudez ’19 In a secret underground facility in North Korea on September 9, an explosion took place that not only shook the ground around for miles, but also the foundation of the relative global peace and prosperity of the last two decades. On this day, a nuclear test reportedly took place in a known test site in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. This test, which seismologists in South Korea detected as an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.3 on the Richter scale, was the fifth North Korean nuclear test, with the first having taken place in 2006, during the Bush presidency. The most recent nuclear device tested is said to have a force equivalent to that of 10 kilotons of TNT— this is nearly double the force of the device in the last North Korean test and half the yield of the device tested in the Trinity Test in New Mexico in 1945, which ushered in the nuclear age. However, the increase in the payload of the device is not the most important aspect of this test; rather, the most troublesome aspect of this test is the consistency and standardization of these devices. Surprisingly enough, even with North Korea’s nuclear capabilities increasing at an alarming rate, US-North Korea affairs seem to be in the same deadlock that they have been in for years because of the radical differences in each country’s priorities as well as in their systems of government. The overarching theme of US-DPRK relations throughout the Obama administration has been that of “strategic patience,” according to the Council on Foreign Relations. While at first it may seem that the more intelligent approach would be a more active one in which the United States and its allies offer incentives, this method seems to have been tested and found to be an utter failure. In fact, in his 2008 inaugural address, a hopeful President Obama made a promise in reference to dictatorships with which the United States had adversarial relations, saying that he would “extend a hand” to those who would “unclench their fists.” An Obama strategist reportedly said, concern-
ing the Yongbyon nuclear facility, that “Clinton bought it once, Bush bought it again, and we’re not going to buy it a third time.” This nuclear plant is where the DPRK repurposes spent nuclear fuel into weapons-grade plutonium and is therefore a key element to denuclearizing the DPRK. The strategist was referring to previous negotiations that had happened before Obama took office in which the US made deals with the DPRK and came to an agreement that North Korea would shut down the plant. However, the DPRK did not keep its promise, even when the US held up their side of the bargain. The underlying problem, that seems to create most of the deadlock in this issue, is the fact that the extremely violent and unstable dictatorship of North Korea plays a key role in keeping the balance of power in East Asia. By taking up a strategic place in the northern half of the Korean Peninsula, North Korea keeps its southern neighbor, the Republic of Korea, which has a strong relationship with the United States, from extending all the way up to China. This means that the DPRK stands between China and any military movement from the Pacific and up through the Korean Peninsula. For this reason, China is extremely motivated to keep the DPRK from collapsing in order to prevent the United States and its allies from gaining a foothold in East Asia. Thus, the Chinese are opposed or at least extremely reluctant to take any action that could lead to the collapse of the dictatorship. Therefore, all actions taken against the DPRK by the US and its allies must be conducive to maintaining peace with China, at least for now. Because the DPRK is a dictatorship and Kim Jong-un will rule for the remainder of his life, all actions taken by the international community are utterly in vain unless he changes his opinions. With all peaceful and non-peaceful actions off the table, there seems to be nothing that can be done within the peaceful boundaries that must be observed in East Asia. Because of the deadlock created by the futility of all possible solutions, the frustration surrounding this issue has mounted with each new test. In the end, one must wonder if by continuing to push the envelope and cross the rules and regulations drawn by the international community, the DPRK is enticing something in the established global community to unravel or break— this something being the relative peace the world has become accustomed to in the last two decades since the end of the Cold War.
Decoding Syria
Caleb Shack ’19 The Syrian Civil War is currently the largest international puzzle our nation is trying to solve. Since 2011, Syria has been immersed in brutal conflict, with no obvious sides for America to take. The one true answer for our involvement is not a direct one, for we should not support a single side. Instead, we must act as a neutral force that will only worry about ISIL, so the war will go undisturbed. On one hand, we have the Syrian government led by “daddy’s boy” Bashar Al-Assad, who is the current President of Syria. This government is also heavily supported by Russia, who has lost almost all of its allies in the Middle East since the Arab Spring and the assassinations of countries’ former rulers. Syria is Russia’s last life in the Middle East, as it provides ports for ships and trade, which Russia lacks. On the other side of the civil war, we have the rebels. Unlike the American Civil War, the Syrian Civil War is not a two-sided argument; the rebels come in groups. The Islamic Front, Jaysh Al-Islam, and the Syrian Islamic Liberation Front (SILF) name just three of the thousands of known rebel groups lying in Syria— and they do not get along peacefully. Lastly, there is the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a large contributor towards global panic and the deaths of thousands—an obvious side not to take. ISIL is a militant jihadist group that wants to create a new nation out of Iraqi and Syryan land based strictly on Sharia Law. If they manage to obtain control of Syria then they will have full access to European borders, diminishing the global economy and creating a world more prone to terrorist attacks. Tackling this problem is not easy in any way. First of all, the US cannot just “nuke them,” as I have heard in conversations in the hallways and even from adults outside of LM. Dropping nuclear bombs upon Syria is the worst idea one could imagine, because it would most likely start a nuclear war between Russia and the USA. With the two
most hegemonic powers of the world battling in an extreme war, one has reason to believe it would cause the end of humanity. This brings us to the biggest question: who should America side with to make a better Syria? Supporting Assad is neither something we could nor should do. He has been blamed for the expansion of ISIL. He has used chemical warfare against his own citizens and has caused over three million refugees to flee Syria, yet all of this would never have happened if it were not for the Arab Spring. Middle Eastern rulers are known for their cruel acts against opposition, but the majority of them have kept their countries stable. For example, Saddam Hussein kept all his people in line and made sure terrorists were not present. Post-Hussein’s hanging, US forces stayed in Iraq to make sure it was secure; they also trained and armed the citizens. After we left, however, ISIL came and took the weapons we had left for the Iraqis, creating another issue. If the Arab Spring never happened, then Assad would have never panicked and massacred his people. If Assad ends up being defeated, it should be with the bullet of a Syrian, not an American. History has proven that a country is able to stand on its own if it is willing to fight for itself. Siding with a rebel group is also a bad idea because a lot of them are either somewhat interconnected with ISIL or are terrorist groups of their own. The ones who are not inducing terroristic ideas are fighting the other rebels and ISIL. All rebels are fighting Assad. By siding with a non-terroristic group, we are also stating we are willing to fight every opposition to them, including ISIL, Assad, and Russia, creating another proxy war against Russia and entering a battle we will never win. America needs to side with no one. We should not state an alliance towards any rebel group nor Assad. Instead, we must destroy ISIL and any other major terrorist groups in Syria. By preventing Islamic extremists from interfering in the civil war, we would act as a catalyst towards the progression of the conflict. If the civil war continues without ISIL’s involvement, then it will just be a battle between the government and the rebel groups. Although this is not a great answer, the paradoxical conflict does not come with any good ones. Right now, America’s main priority must be defeating ISIL and other terrorist groups; we must not support a side, but support the war.
How to Fix the Parking Lottery
Maxwell Roling ’17 Upon entering their final year of high school, seniors enjoy a variety of new liberties for the first time in their lives; these students are more independent and self-reliant than they have ever been before. For most LM students, driving is the staple of that independence. Students who can drive are no longer reliant on rides from friends or parents. Many of them are in multiple activities, and the autonomy they gain from driving is critical for their development as independent young adults. Logically, students should be able to express their independence by driving to and from school. Unfortunately, LM has limited parking, so the administration must allocate parking spaces to students since there are many more students who wish to drive than there
are spots available. Our school has traditionally solved this problem with a parking lottery where students interested in driving meet in the LGI with lottery tickets and wait for their number to be called. A select few randomly get the privilege to drive to school, with no consideration given to external variables. While this system works, there are better ways of distributing spots to students. Administrators could consider assigning these spots to seniors based on merit. Students’ GPAs, teacher recommendations, or class attendance could be used to determine parking spot allocations. This solution would incentivize students to work harder and achieve better grades. Such a system would also reward students for their hard work in high school. Senior Evan Hassman comments that “a merit based system is the fairest as it gives passes to students who need them the most.” This is a viable solution that allows for a non-random allocation of spots. Alternatively, seniors could be assigned a parking spot on a semester basis. Students would have the option to choose which semester they would like to drive to school. If extra spots remain, a lottery could be held to decide which students receive the privilege of driving for the entire year. This solution is
unique in that it allows all seniors who wish to drive to school to do so for at least a semester. Seeing as most clubs and sports do not require students to stay late for the entire year, students would have the ability to tailor their driving privileges to their schedules.
“While our current lottery system works, there are definitely more effective ways for LM to allocate parking spots.” Finally, spots could be allotted to seniors based on their demonstrated needs. In order to confirm these needs, students wishing to drive would need to submit a brief explanation of the activity and how driving would be advantageous for their participation, as well as a signature from an adult supervisor for that activity. A parent signature would not suffice. Students who participate in sports and extracurricular activities or who stay longer than the late buses would have priority over students who arrive when school starts and leave promptly when school ends. Additionally, students tasked with driving their peers to and from school could be
more strongly considered for a parking spot. An anonymous student argues that “if you are doing something for school which requires you to stay late all year, then you deserve a parking pass.” Luke Miani ’17, a current LMHS television anchor, maintains that “the parking lottery should prioritize those who need to drive for school activities and extracurriculars.” Miani needs to be reliably early to school in order to prepare for announcements each morning. However, he did not receive a parking pass using the current lottery, despite his clear need for it. Each of these solutions is more effective than our current lottery system. Perhaps even a combination of these ideas and others could be employed to best assign spots to students. Although the lottery is technically fair, it does not consider student circumstances. Students who need a parking space may not receive one, while students who rarely drive to school may be awarded a spot just because they are lucky. An anonymous senior agrees that “the people who need the spots don’t have a high chance at receiving one, while many students who don’t necessarily need a spot not only receive one, but waste it.” While our current lottery system works, there are definitely more effective ways for the LM to allocate parking spots.
Opinions
October 31, 2016
7
The Merionite
Elections: Opinions of LM
Truth trumps lies
Claire Ochroch ’18 Arts and Entertainment Editor I will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. This is what people swear when they testify in court, and it is what both presidential candidates should have done before each debate. There were so many lies being told that I had no idea if any of what the candidates were saying was true. In the end, while both candidates lied at some points, Trump was clearly more dishonest. This is a huge issue, because voters need to know the truth. If they do not know all of the facts, then how can they be truly informed when voting? I am here to set the record straight and show the extent of Trump’s lies. In watching the three debates, there were some discrepancies that every voter should be aware of. While most voters can figure out that exaggerations like Clinton has “been fighting ISIS for her entire adult life” are untrue, Trump has made many statements that are not immediately obvious as false. One of these occurred when Mr. Trump said “Ford is leaving... thousands of jobs are leaving Michigan, leaving Ohio.” What Mr. Trump describes is almost entirely untrue. Ford is moving the manufacturing of some smaller cars to Mexico, but has ensured that the move will not cause net job losses in the United States. The Wayne, Michigan plant that currently manufactures two of the Ford models that will move to Mexico, will instead start building other models. Ohio and Michigan have, indeed, suffered manufacturing job losses over the last generation. Yet last year, Ohio has gained 78,300 jobs and Michigan has gained 75,800 jobs. In August, the unemployment rate was 4.9 percent in Michigan
and 4.7 percent in Ohio, both in line with the national rate of 4.9 percent. Voters need to know that what Trump is blurting out is untrue. No presidential candidate should be able to get away with such blatant lies. Throughout the debates, Trump also employed various false statistics as fact. At one point, Trump claimed that the murder rate is up in New York City to justify his assertion that African Americans and Hispanics are “living in hell.” However, crime statistics show that the number of murders at this point in time last year had reached 257, while this year there have been 246. A spokesman for the New York Police Department tweeted that “#NYC is on pace to have one of the safest years on record for crime.” Trump also said that “we have a trade deficit of almost $800 billion a year,” which is not even the right number. The United States’ trade deficit was about $500 billion in 2015, but Trump was likely referring to the trade deficit in goods, which was $762 billion. However, Trump left out the fact that this trade deficit was balanced by a $262 billion surplus in services. The United States imports more physical goods than it exports, but it exports more services, such as financial services and software. Trump is exaggerating the facts on a scale of hundreds of billions of dollars, which would be ridiculous if he was running an actual company with his “great business skills.” It seems like bad business to tell others that you are making around $200 billion less than you actually are, especially for someone who claims to be able to fix America with his finance skills. You cannot have a president, or a candidate for that matter, who spews out such grossly untrue facts about our country; it makes both him and our country look bad. Throughout the debates, Trump fabricated facts and statistics to make America look worse. It seems that Trump is trying to vilify the current America, so that he can be the hero, to make it seem like only he can “make America great again.” In reality, the only kind of President that can make America even greater is the kind who actually tells the truth, admits to mistakes, and is educated on what is being discussed.
The better of two evils
Randy Cheloha ’17 With the election coming up, most people are asking themselves, “Who do I want to be the next president of this great nation?” Well America, we’ve been given the choice between Donald J. Trump, a man who thinks that building a $25 billion wall between us and Mexico will solve our problems, and Hillary Clinton, a corrupt woman who models her fashion after that of Kim Jong Un. Clearly, my opinion regarding these candidates is not high. The debate confirmed my belief that we chose the worst two possible candidates. It wasn’t really a debate. It was more just Trump being hilarious as Clinton attempted to show how serious she was about her profession. Okay, the first real option that we have: the Republican candidate, Donald J. Trump. When he entered the race, most people thought it was a joke. Admittedly, I was one of those people. I tuned into Fox News and laughed as Trump mocked Rubio for being a sweaty guy. I thought to myself “boom roasted,” then turned my TV off and thought it wouldn’t go any farther. The GOP Establishment would surely put him down, right? Wrong. The “Alt Right” won, and now we are stuck with this guy. Yet how do his policies sit with me, a vocal establishment Republican? First, gun control: he’s pro conceal and carry, he doesn’t think people on the FBI Terrorist Watch List should have access to guns, and he believes there should be a longer waiting time and more background checks when buying “assault” weapons. Next, the environment: everything is fine, nothing bad is happening. On the economy: low interest rates, China is winning the trade war, end our debt. I agree with his economic policy and his gun policy, but global warming is a thing, and I don’t trust this guy with foreign policy because he’s a wild card. Still, I like him more than the other option…
The second option, whose name makes me cringe, is the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton. It fascinates me when people get mad when I say “I would vote for Trump over Hillary,” because she’s a liar. She has dirt under her nails. There are two big controversies that are elephants in the room: the attacks in Benghazi coordinated by Ansar al-Sharia and the email crisis. The short version of this is that Crooked Hillary used a private email server instead of one issued by the US Federal Government, through which she sent emails that were classified as top secret, secret, and confidential. People say to me, “What did you think was even in the emails?” I don’t know, and I shouldn’t know, that’s why they were classified; they could negatively affect national security. Hillary also deleted all the emails and destroyed the private servers, which is an obstruction of justice. This all came to light during the Benghazi situation, when she was Secretary of State and had a direct impact on the lack of security at the compounds. There were 600 requests for additional security at the compound and yet none of them were met, leading to the deaths of four American citizens. If you can seriously say you can vote for that woman, I don’t know what to say to you. Maybe, you should think about those who died in Libya; I know I do. Hillary is a corrupt figure who is in the middle of an FBI investigation and is unfit to be president. Well, I don’t like either of these people, and third party candidates are just not a real option, despite the optimism of the Internet. So who would I vote for (I can’t vote)? Well, if I was a good American citizen (which I think I am), I would vote for Donald J. Trump and then just lie and say that I have voter apathy and stayed at home. If I was a bad American citizen, I’d write in “Meyer/ Saban 2016” because America deserves a ticket that wins and is regarded highly on the Internet. Or, another write-in option would be “Ken Bone/Harambe 2016” because Ken Bone would know how to lead this country and Harambe died so that we could all live. If you have any complaints about my opinions, you may contact me face to face, not post vague social media about me. Graphics by Christopher DeSantis ‘20 (L) and Vanessa Roser ‘17 (R)
Supporting Gary Johnson? Think twice.
Lewis Kothmann ’20
This election cycle has been a mess. Donald Trump, a self-absorbed businessman, has made many controversial comments on topics ranging from immigration to beauty queens. On the other hand, Hillary Clinton, a narcissistic politician, has had more than a few scandals in recent months. Both of these candidates are anything but perfect, which is why it is so easy to support Gary Johnson. Johnson, an intelligent lawmaker, is a
sensible, clean, scandal-free, and (mostly) controversy-free candidate. However, there are two important things to know about his campaign before you support it. The first is that a candidacy like his undermines the electoral process by preventing any one candidate from reaching a majority of votes. Second, because a plurality of Johnson’s supporters would be Clinton voters if he were not running, a vote for Johnson is actually a vote away from Clinton. Even though Johnson appears to offer a great third choice to voters, all he really does is sabotage not only Clinton’s campaign, but also American democracy. The American electoral system is convoluted, but overall, it has one goal that it almost always achieves: the person with the majority of votes wins. The system has succeeded 79 percent of the time—of the 56 presiden-
tial elections in history, 43 presidents have been elected with the majority of the popular vote. However, independents undermine the system. In fact, third party candidates corrupted all thirteen of the elections where candidates won without a majority. How do they corrupt and undermine the election? They create a system where a candidate can win while the majority of the country voted against him or her. For instance, look at the 2000 election. Ralph Nader, the Green Party nominee, got 2.74 percent of the popular vote. Both Gore and Bush received about 48 percent, meaning neither had the majority. Yet because of Nader and his candidacy, Gore lost Florida and thus the election. It really is that easy for independents to ruin our electoral system. Not only does a vote for an independent like Gary Johnson damage our democratic
process, but it is actually just a vote taken from Clinton. Clinton usually has a bigger lead when Johnson is not included in polls in multiple states, including very important swing states such as Nevada, North Carolina, Georgia, and Ohio. These states could decide the election! Clinton’s campaign could be in trouble, thanks to Gary Johnson’s candidacy. Gary Johnson is a great candidate. He speaks his mind and has a wonderful political record. He appears to be just what America needs. Nevertheless, his candidacy is not all that it seems; his campaign does not support a better America; his campaign destroys our democratic system and supports Trump. So, as some of you go to the polls and vote, and some of you simply voice your support online or out loud, be sure that before you stand behind Gary Johnson, you think twice.
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Features
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
The History of the Pledge of Allegiance Emma Riverso ’18 Every morning, in schools across the nation, students recite an age-old covenant to our country. Automatically we stand, our mouths move—the words spilling out robotically. It is second nature. When someone speaks out against a social norm as accepted and ingrained in our national tradition as standing for the Pledge of Allegiance, questions are raised. Why do we recite the Pledge of Allegiance? Who created this pledge? What does it mean? What are we really standing for? In 1892, the pledge was written by a man from New York named Francis Bellamy, in hopes that it would be put to a more universal use—any citizen in any country could say it to pledge their allegiance. Over the years, various changes have been made to the Pledge of Allegiance to make it more specific to the United States. For example: “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” has been changed to “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” While the pledge did not specify any single country in years past, the United States has adopted it. The pledge has become the symbol of American patriotism that we know today. One change is the removal of the salute that used to accompany the pledge. It was first adopted in 1887, and dubbed the Balch Salute. Due to the resemblance it bore to the Nazi salute, Congress later replaced it with the hand-over-heart gesture that we use today. The pledge contains much controversial language, but there is one phrase in particular that has caused large amounts of dispute since it was added over sixty years ago. Congress added the phrase “Under God” to the pledge in 1954. It was originally added in the face of communism, which was thought of as Godless. This phrase has been the subject of much scrutiny, and some LM students take issue with it. “I skip that part of the pledge when I say it,” says Alexandra Hummel ’17, “I think it’s kind of weird that religion is referenced at all. You can be an atheist and a patriot at the same
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time, and there’s nothing un-American about not being religious, in my opinion.” In 1940, a Supreme Court case, Minersville School District v. Gobitis, ruled that students in public schools could be forced to swear the Pledge. Jehovah’s Witnesses, for example, considered the Pledge to be idolatry, but were still required to recite it. Eventually, this ruling was overturned. A mere three years later, in the West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, the Supreme Court ruled that it was not constitutional to force children to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Roxanna Pasquier ’17 asserts that, “in the true sense of American liberty, it is not disrespectful to protest the pledge. By doing so, you’re actually honoring that ideal. By abstaining from a pledge you disagree with, you are exercising the same liberties that the pledge stands for—the right to free speech.” Many students find it unthinkable that this was ever an actual law. “I barely ever stand for the pledge. Not because I’m protesting it, but because I usually don’t even notice it’s happening. Most other kids in my classes don’t do it either,” said Daniel Tsai ’17. While some teachers ask their students to stand for the Pledge, many do not. Mandatory recitings of the Pledge of Allegiance happened until very recently in Pennsylvania. In 2002, Pennsylvania schools were required to lead students in the Pledge of Allegiance. While students were allowed to refrain, their parents would be notified. Former LM student Maxwell Mishkin, who was sixteen at the time, said that the parent notification “was clearly designed to stop kids from not saying the pledge...I really like the Pledge of Allegiance, but I think it is wrong to force kids to say it.” Maxwell and his parents challenged the law and it was overturned. Overall, our Pledge of Allegiance has had a pretty lengthy history. The intent of the Pledge of Allegiance is to bring forth a sense of patriotism, loyalty, and unity. Whether or not you choose to stand for or recite the Pledge of Allegiance, it is clear that it is an integral part of our national and local stories.
Colin Kaepernick is a name, that of late, has been surrounded by much controversy. Kaepernick, a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, made the decision to not stand for the national anthem at a game earlier this season, and has continued to do so ever since. His reasoning regards racial inequality and oppression. Kaepernick describes his reasoning as follows: “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” This is a statement that nationally has spiraled into a much larger political discussion, met with backlash and support alike. The ensuing controversy has raised a pertinent question: is refusing to participate in a show of patriotism simply disrespectful, or an exercise of free speech, our Constitutional right?
In support of free speech Melissa Bell ’20 Colin Kaepernick embarked on his journey to fight for equality on August 14, when he sat during the Star Spangled Banner at his first preseason game. At first, he went unnoticed. Another game came and went, and again, Kaepernick chose to sit. Again he went unnoticed. Finally, on August 26, he gained attention, thus starting rampages of criticism, articles that chastised him,
happen to be racist, part of that same anthem is bigoted. Why should our country be affiliated with something that promotes the murder of a group of people in our nation that should be treated just as equally as everyone else? How are we supposed to be “the great American melting pot” if we are condoning the oppression of 13.2 percent of the population? This is not anti-
and burnings of his jersey. This inspired several other players to join him in sitting or kneeling during the Pledge. Two days later, he made an official statement to the media saying, “When there’s significant change and I feel that [the] flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it’s supposed to, I’ll stand.” He also made an emphasis on the fact that he supports and respects the US military troops, the police, and America. He is using his social power as an NFL player to try to make a positive change in the world, specifically by trying to stop black oppression and police brutality—an important change that needs to be made in America. We have been brought up to blindly memorize and recite patriotic poems and songs like mindless drones, but do we know what they really mean? Most Americans are only familiar with the first verse of the national anthem, but are unaware of the 3rd verse, which heinously states, “No refuge could save the hireling and slave from the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave, and the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” This verse was written by Francis Scott Key, a slave owner, during the Defense of Fort McHenry in the War of 1812. During the war, the British offered freedom to American slaves who joined their side and fought. Key describes his excitement in killing the slaves on the opposing side of the war with this verse. Even though we do not always recite the whole national anthem, and the section that we do sing gleefully before sporting events does not
patriotism, but is an example of someone utilizing their right to free speech. American citizens continue to criticize Kaepernic and tell him to love his country when he refuses to take part in a song that promotes the murder of African Americans, using his First Amendment right. Kaepernick is doing what our founding fathers wanted. He is using his constitutional right to stand up for an issue he believes in, protesting police brutality and black oppression, an issue that just should not exist in this day and age. Black people are three times more likely to be killed than white citizens. In addition, 30 percent of the 346 black people that were killed in 2015 were unarmed (that number is suspected to be higher). There have been thousands of these vicious and disgraceful stories, but some are exceptionally horrendous. In November of 2014, twelve-year-old Tamir Rice was shot by a trainee police officer, Timothy Loehmann. Loehmann claimed that he shot Rice because he had a gun, but the investigation found the alleged gun to be toy. Two months later, a grand jury declined to indict Loehmann and his trainer, Officer Frank Garmback, calling it a “perfect storm of human error, mistakes and communications”. These are the exact reasons that Kaepernick is taking a stand. He is trying to eliminate these circumstances and to make the thought of them equally absurd, which they truly are. Kaepernick’s choice to take a stand by sitting down is completely valid and should be celebrated, rather than attacked.
there’s a significant change and I feel “ When that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent...I’ll stand. ”
October 31, 2016
My story
What do we think?
Claire Ochroch ’18 Arts & Entertainment Editor
*All quotes are anonymous responses from LM students and staff.
Would you punish a student for not standing/ refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance?
Faculty responses
“Our students are disrespectful in many areas — it’s their opinion or nothing — no tolerance for anyone not agreeing with their stance.” Do you find it disrespectful when students do not stand for the pledge of allegiance?
“I think the traditional ritual of pledging to a flag is an antiquated tradition that no longer holds value to the newer generation.” Faculty responses
What do you normally do for the Pledge of Allegiance?
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“I will not stand for a flag that promotes violence, sexism, the Student responses enslavement of one race, and the massacre of another” “If you don’t like or respect this
country feel free to leave. ”
It was first set. I had not finished my physics Webassign the night before, so I was finishing it up as my substitute turned the projector off. She was annoyed because the majority of our class had not stood up for the Pledge of Allegiance. She said that we were being disrespectful of the United States of America. Specifically, she said that if “we had been bombed during 9/11, we would be standing and saying the Pledge.” I was shocked. Personally, I almost never stand the Pledge, for no particular reason other than personal preference. I have never thought about my choice as being much more than that. My substitute seemed to have a very different, concrete opinion. She seemed to think that ignoring the Pledge was insulting, a slap in the face to all the people that fought for our very right to stand. After she voiced this opinion, I respectfully disagreed with her. I argued that it was our constitutional right to say or not to say the Pledge. She conceded, but added, “If it were twenty years ago, we would all be standing, there simply would be no question about it.” The mentality behind this is that traditions like saying the Pledge are followed just because they are socially normative practice which is completely outdat-
twenty years ago... “ Ifthereit were would simply be no question about it.
”
ed. Every tradition should be challenged by the people who are told to conform to it. For a truly free America, children need to be taught to question what they are told to do, or else we risk conforming to ideals that do not put freedom first.
In support of patriotism Ziwen Zhou ’19
Graphic by Vanessa Roser ’17/Staff
During this year’s NFL preseason, Colin Kaepernick, a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, sparked a discussion over police brutality and the oppression of minorities in the United States by first sitting and then kneeling during the national anthem. While I respect him for drawing attention to the matters important to him, I believe that refusing to stand for the national anthem was not the correct way to establish his viewpoint. In addition, several other prominent NFL players have taken notice of Kaepernick’s protests and have also chosen to kneel for the anthem or raise a fist in solidarity with Kaepernick’s cause. Athletes, from other sports, have also knelt for the anthem, including Megan Rapinoe, the star midfielder for the US soccer team; various NBA players have promised to take action once their regular season starts. There has also been a trickle down effect of sorts, where athletes at an amateur level, including some high schoolers, have also chosen to take a kneel in protest. Many do so without fully knowing the ramifications of what they are doing in refusing to properly respect the flag. So, what does the flag represent? To many Americans, the flag is a symbol for all the men and women who have given their lives in order to ensure that we have liberty, peace, and the inalienable rights that our founding fathers gave us. We stand at attention in order to honor everyone who has selflessly served us and risked their lives in order to ensure ours. The flag also represents everything that is amazing about our country. From our storied history, to the unlimited possibilities that are in store for our future generations, the flag represents it all. It signifies the opportunity that our country holds for each and every person, and serves as a way to unite every single person under a common denominator. Too many people have fought and died for everything the flag represents for us to simply cast it away as something we can turn our shoulder to. I also disagree with Kaepernick’s reasoning in saying,
that by choosing the flag, he was choosing a symbol that he cannot honor. He has said, “There are a lot of things that are going on that are unjust,” as part of the reason for why he cannot stand for the flag of a country that permits these injustices. While I cannot deny that there have been many horrific acts committed by police towards minorities that validate his statement, I cannot agree with his attempt to typecast the flag as a symbol of all that is wrong in America. If justice truly was all the flag stood for, no one would be able to stand for the anthem, as there is no such thing as a perfectly just world. There will always be injustices committed, and even atrocities. However, the majority of the population stands because the flag represents the service and sacrifice of our soldiers mentioned above: something that we will forever be grateful for. Kaepernick’s decision to kneel for the anthem has brought attention to issues he would like to highlight, but it has also caused serious division among our population. Most people are finding themselves either strongly in support of him, or against him. There has been more focus and argument over his actions than the cause he is championing, and as a result not enough has occurred to truly change laws or procedure. I would also say that there are better and less controversial ways for Kaepernick to bring issues important to him into the national discussion than the violation of the sanctity of the flag and the anthem. One way would be to lead by personal example; with the fortune he has amassed playing football, he could donate to help the plight of the people he is advocating for, or devote some of his time, which I am sure is quite valuable, to this cause he so strongly believes in. Seeing a celebrity such as Kaepernick getting involved would surely bring attention to his issues, and would result in his loyalty to his country being questioned. I hope that before the next time Kaepernick chooses to kneel for the flag, he thinks closely about what exactly the flag represents to the people of the United States, and if there are not better ways to highlight what he finds problematic with America.
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Arts and Entertainment
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
Fall into the Arts Aces’ Angels returns
Yusef Shah ’20
Marli Weisman ’18
Cartoon and anime visual art When did your passion for art begin? Second grade. Where do you see art in your future? Being a video game designer and being able to create characters. If you were trapped on a deserted island and could only bring five things what would you bring? A solar generator, TV, fridge, router, and a PlayStation
Maddie Baker ’18 Treasurer of the PLAYERS board, actor in The Addams Family musical, and tenor voice in Aces’ Angels
Art by Yusef Shah ’20 Do you have a favorite song you like to sing? I don’t have a favorite song, but I love to sing jazz. My go-to audition music is usually from Annie, though. Couldn’t tell you why, it just works for my voice.
What do you like about PLAYERS and a capella? PLAYERS has opened my eyes so much to the entirety of the craft. I love that I can hold different positions for every show and spend hours doing what I love. We get so close during the show process and rehearsals that we make amazing friends. I love a cappella because we really get to sing a wide variety of music! Who is your biggest inspiration? Lin-Manuel Miranda is such an incredible role model. The dude writes plays…and then stars in them. He has made American history relevant to all who have seen the show or heard the music of Hamilton. On top of that, he has broken many gender and racial stereotypes in his shows.
Photo by Claire Ochroch ’18/Staff
Amanda Steinberg ’17
The Aces’ Angels are back in session! Similar to the popular movie Pitch Perfect, the LM all-girls a capella stars are ready to sing and dance. They have been preparing for the long season ahead. The songs they will perform range from modern pop to Metallica, and will include a blast from the past as they turn “Breathless” by the Cores into an a capella melody. In order to become a member of Aces’ Angels, an audition is necessary. According to some girls on the team, the tryout process is intimidating initially, but progressively becomes easier. The advice from most Angels is to make sure to prepare for the audition, where you must sing a verse from a song of your choice. In addition, you must perform a song that Mr. Hunnex assigns, to show your ability to read scales and music. Once the team is determined, Hunnex will assess each member’s voice level to see where she will be placed: as a soprano, alto, tenor, or bass. To be an Aces’ Angel, you must be willing to work hard and be determined. Taking a song and changing the arrangement to fit an a capella style requires a lot of creativity. Much improvisation and trial-and-error is necessary to find the perfect pitch and the melody that works for that specific song. The practices are a combination of fun and laughter, with a lot of effort and a huge sense of purpose from the members. This year, performances and competitions will increase from what they have been in the past. The dress code for recitals are usually left up to the girls— it is often classy, with skirts and dresses as the typical attire. For this year, they aim to host more competitions by inviting other schools’ a capella groups to have
a sing-off. Dancing is not required to be a member of Aces Angels, but the ability to move and groove is usually necessary. The a capella team is led by a few officers. The president is Katherine Villarin ’17, who manages the Aces’ Angels. Lizzy McAlpine ’18 is the vocal director and typically answers questions about the music. Catherine Schnarr ’17, also known as the “archangel,” connects the traditions and peppy environment of the old Aces’ Angels to the present. Villarin and others are working on making Aces’ Angels popular again, and the goal of the Angels is to cover as many time periods as they can. When asked about singing a capella, the seasoned Aces’ Angels’ faces light up. They appreciate the opportunity to combine their creativity and friendship in a celebration of music. As I talked with McAlpine, she mentioned how rewarding it was to sing and put music together with her friends. Consider yourself lucky to see the Aces’ Angels in action and to share in the fun and magical experience they create. The performances are usually in the winter, so get excited to see these talented girls put on an amazing show!
Mal Beineke (Jake Pavlow ’17) is kind of a skeptic. When Wednesday attempts to bridge the gap between her family and Lucas’s, things do not go exactly as planned.
thing to the cast and crew, [and it] should feel very realistic and really wow the audience.” She also spoke about how excited she is for this production: “I love how this show really stretches the limits of what Players can do and makes us think creatively... which has led to some really cool new things being incorporated into the show. Watch out for some really awesome effects!” Pickering’s job adds a special touch, and you can expect the effects to transform the show and take it to the next level. Whether you are craving a love story that is not The Notebook, brilliantly entertaining music numbers, or chaos that will not disappoint, The Addams Family Musical is sure to provide it all. Come support your friends while enjoying this fantastic production on November 17, 18, and 19 at seven pm, or the matinee show Sunday at one pm. Tickets can be found on lmplayers.com or can be purchased at the door.
Graphic courtesy of Aces’ Angels
Jazz band and orchestra (trombone)
What is your favorite part of playing trombone? Being an important part of something that can sound beautiful is definitely one of my favorite things about playing the trombone. But I also like that I am one of the only girls I know that plays this specific instrument. What is one of your favorite memories of jazz band and orchestra? Going to Italy with the jazz band and performing all over the country. How has playing trombone impacted your life outside of the music classroom? Playing the trombone has completely broadened my musical interests (my Spotify has artists like Tchaikovsky, Borodin, Charles Mingus, and many more.) From being a part of musical ensembles, I have gained good multi-tasking skills, awareness, and the importance of hard work. Photo courtesy of Amanda Steinberg ’17
The AddamsFamily Claire Phillips ’19 and Pamela Li ’20 This fall, LM PLAYERS brings The Addams Family Musical to the stage. This exhilarating show features a zany family living in a gothic mansion. Gomez and Morticia Addams, played by Ellis Kelsey ’17 and Katherine Villarin ’17, are the proud parents of Wednesday and Pugsley Addams (Liana Giangulio ’17 and Lewis Kothmann ’20, respectively). Their oddball family is rounded
out with their debatably-insane grandmother (Izzy Margulies ’17), Uncle Fester (Emily Harnett ’17), and the faithful butler, Lurch (Tim Askey ’18). Everything is going just swimmingly in their gloomy corner of Central Park until Wednesday falls for a mild-mannered Ohio boy named Lucas Beineke (Karl Meyer ’18). Lucas’s parents are not exactly Addams Family compatible; Alice
This show is not just about the amazing actors, though. The costumes have a wide range that comes with having over twenty cast members, and it is a tough job for the designers. The prop designers also have to make sure every object fits in with the aesthetic of the show, deciding what a prop will look like depending on which characters are using it. The set designers have to make the Addams house creepy, like a place the death-focused, macabre family would live, and it comes to life in a captivating two-story set with perfect mood lighting. The show orchestra has a wide variety of music to learn, from Latin to classic rock, and the soundtrack ventures into the territory of underused instruments like the ukulele. There is even a SnapChat filter to use during show nights. Every single member of PLAYERS is working hard to bring these eccentric characters to life. The Addams Family also called for a job entirely new to Players, special effects. Lucy Pickering ’19, the Special Effects Designer for the show, says “I take [the] props and effects that are out of the ordinary and make sure they work and look really great. Making this production as good as it can be means every- Graphics courtesy of Olivia Bartrand ’19
Arts & Entertainment
October 31, 2016
11
The Merionite
Mural Arts Month in Philly Aviva Weinstein ’19
Have you ever taken a long, leisurely drive through Center City, Philadelphia or spent a night strolling the wide paved streets of the City of Brotherly Love? If you have, chances are you have seen bits and pieces of the large, beautiful murals that line the various buildings throughout our home city and make up the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program. Our Mural Arts Program was the first of what are now many similar programs in various cities throughout the United States. The program is more extensively celebrated every October, which is Mural Arts Month in Philly. Before 1984, the year the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program first began, people across the streets of Philly had been drawing graffiti sketches and spray-painting all over buildings and bridges. The Philadelphia Mural Arts Program created an outlet for those people to express themselves artistically around the city, without actually committing vandalism. It was founded in 1984 by artist Jane Golden, who spearheaded the effort to clean up Philadelphia by reaching out to graffiti artists and encouraging them to redirect their work towards these public (and legal) art displays. The very first mural was installed using the “parachute cloth method,” a method now commonly used by mural artists. This method entails using Polytab, a non-woven, very light fabric known as Parachute Cloth, as a canvas to paint in a beautiful way. The title of the piece was Dr. J, and it was created by muralist Kent Twitchell in 1989. The piece lines the entire side of a tall house displaying a picture of a tall, black man wearing a beige suit. This method of mural installation was used to help add the 3,600 murals that help define Philadelphia’s unique identity today. The Mural Arts Program’s mission is to “create art with others to transform places, individuals, communities, and institutions, while valuing equity, fairness and
progress across all of society,” according to Mural Arts Philadelphia website. Over the years in which this program has been in place, the magnificent murals throughout the city have helped residents of Philadelphia find
Graphic courtesy of Amy Xi ’19 common ground. The murals are a symbol of unity and hope for many. Some murals have even become significant landmarks of Philadelphia, such as Meg Saligman’s Common Threads, which is eight stories high on the corner of Broad Street and Spring Garden street. The project attracts many people from all across America and the world. A variety of walking tours, trolley tours, and even tours to see murals on the rooftops of buildings have all become popular things to
do in Philadelphia nowadays. Artist Steve Powers has recently created a project called A Love Letter For You—a series of over fifty rooftop murals and street signs. These murals can be explored by anyone willing to tour. A new addition to the project in recent years is the “Mural Finder Mobile,” a mobile app used to tour and look more in-depth at the mural collection, including the stories behind the city’s history. Additionally, many of the artists who have helped contribute to murals all over Philadelphia have gone on to hold unexpected careers afterward. Many of them have left behind their troubled youths and, through the help of this program, have become teachers, administrators, and more. Some have even introduced the Mural Arts Program all across the country. The program has spread to other cities and states across America, helping steer people away from graffiti, in a fun, creative way, that helps lighten up a city. The month of October, Mural Arts Month in Philly, is a time to get a closer look at all the beautiful murals as the city really highlights the interesting process that it took for the Mural Arts Program to begin, and where the participating artists, as well as the overall program is headed in the future. To celebrat this, Mural Arts Month’s official Kickoff Party 2016 was held on September 30 on the corner of Snyder Avenue and Swanson Street. It was a night full of art, magic, music, and food, as attendees walked to see various murals in the nearby area. Closer to home, LM students have, over the years, created unique murals and pieces of artwork of their own that can be seen throughout the building, and are also displayed in district and city art shows. So next time you are in Center City, make sure to take a look around for the beautiful murals lining the buildings, and keep an eye out for LM students’ artwork more locally! Happy Mural Arts Month!
The ocean is calling you to see Aviva Schuh ’19 Moana, Disney’s newest animated film, is set to ly in the costume one would be, as writer Mikki Kend- their Polynesian background, and their body types are be released this November 23. Disney fans across all tweeted, “Wear[ing] another culture’s skin.” Maui’s ones not often seen in most animated films. Moana is the country have been buzzing with excitement since tattoos are individual and personal, especially because not the usual unrealistically-proportioned Disney printhe movie’s announcement in 2014. Moana is so Maui is a real figure in Polynesian mythology, and like cess like many before her, such as Ariel or Jasmine. Also highly anticipated because of its diverse cast and most Pacific Islander tattoos, his tattoos represent who unlike most of the princesses, Moana does not have a unique storyline. It tells the story of a Polynesian he is, and are not a costume. It would be extremely in- romantic interest in the film, supporting the notion that princess from Motunui island, Moana Waialiki, voiced sulting and trivializing for someone else to wear them. girls do not need a romantic sub-plot. The push for body by Auli’i Cravalho, and her quest across the ocean to save Disney recognized this mistake and continues to try to positivity and seeing more realistic body types in aniher people and to truly find herself. A born navigator, be more inclusive and respectful. This is a newer side mated movies has garnered increasing amounts of supshe is accompanied by demiport, but we still have a long god Maui, voiced by Dwayne way to go. Just off the top “The Rock” Johnson. At fifof your head, can you think teen years old, Cravalho is of a Disney character not the youngest actress ever typically ‘thin’ or ‘dainty’ to voice a Disney princess. that had a purpose othMoana (pronounced Mo-aher than comedic effect? nah) means “ocean” in MaoDespite any differencri and Hawai’ian. Cravalho, es Moana might have from born November 22, 2000 typical disney princessin Oahu, Hawai’i, was in es, the movie itselflike her freshman year of high any other Disney movie in school when she auditioned terms of soundtrack. The for Moana. After an Oahu artists who created the mutalent agent heard her sing sic for Moana are Mark at a charity competition, Mancina, who worked they encouraged Cravalho on The Lion King; Opto audition, and she endetaia Foa’i, a Samoan ed up getting the title role. musician; and HamilGenerally, in previton’s critically acclaimed ous Disney movies, stocomposer Lin-Manuel ries about people of color Miranda. Miranda’s HamMoana and Maui embark on their great adventure Graphic courtesy of Disney have been skimmed over in ilton co-star, Phillipa Soo, favor of stories about white people, and Moa- of the company, because when they have tried to em- also has a cameo as the voice of a Motunui villager. na’s representation of Pacific Islanders is a great brace other cultures in the past it has not gone well. Overall, Moana’s release is exciting for myself change of pace. Cravalho is a native Hawai’ian, and Previous Disney princesses of color like Jasmine, Poca- and so many others. Finally, Pacific Islanders are Dwayne Johnson is half Samoan. Consider this hontas, and Esmeralda were not as well-received by getting the representation they deserve, more diin comparison to past movies about Hawai’i, like actual people of color. The princesses were more heav- verse body types are shown as normal, and we get Lilo and Stitch, in which Lilo is played by a white ily sexualized than white princesses; a lot of empha- to watch the adventures of a strong Polynesian girl actress, despite the character being a native Hawai’ian. sis was placed on them being “unique,” “exotic,” and trying to find a mystical island and save her people. Moana is directed by Ron Clements and John “different” rather than them just being normal people. Though we are still far from having equal represenMusker, who took a trip to some South Pacific islands Moana is computer-animated, in the same tation for people of color and various body types in to learn about Polynesian culture and how to correctly 3D style as its Disney predecessors Frozen and the media, Moana is incredible progress. Girls all represent the people of the South Pacific. However, Dis- Big Hero 6. The only part of the movie that is not CGI over the world who did not have a Disney princess ney faced backlash for portraying Maui as overweight, (Computer Generated Imagery) is Maui’s tattoos, which they could identify with will now be able to imaga common stereotype of Samoans, and also for a Maui are hand-drawn. Disney was commended for not mak- ine themselves standing next to Moana, someone costume (since pulled from the online store) that was a ing some characters’ faces look exactly the same, as if just like them. The film is sure to be remembered bodysuit of Maui’s skin and tribal tattoos. It was deemed from a blueprint, a choice they had faced criticism for as a beautiful work of art, and a wonderful story. I brownface and culturally appropriative, since essential- in Frozen. Moana and Maui’s facial features represent know what I will be going to see on November 23.
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October 31, 2016
Arts & Entertainment and The Franchise Expansion
Harry Potter
Apparate over to King’s Cross now because the Hogwarts Express is leaving the station! It has been quite a year for Potterheads all around the world with the release of a brand new sequel play, two new Pottermore quizzes, and a prequel movie. Nine years have passed since we left Harry on Platform 9¾ watching his sons leave for Hogwarts as we closed the door with a satisfied “all was well.” This past July in London, that door burst open with the premiere of the new sequel play, The Cursed Child, and I assure you all was not well. Set 23 years after the Deathly Hallows, it begins with Sam Clemmett as Albus Severus, burdened by the Potter name clashing with his placement in Slytherin. To make matters worse, his only friend is wizarding outcast Scorpious Malfoy, who is of a death eater family, played by Anthony Boyle. Albus and Harry have furious arguments that drive their relationship to the breaking point. After stealing an illegal Time-Turner, Albus and Scorpius set off to prove themselves by correcting one of Harry’s biggest regrets—the death of Cedric Diggory. Of course, the time travel goes awry, and Albus has to fight through several terrible alternate realities to fix his mistakes and ultimately repair the root of all his troubles, his relationship with his father. Overall, the play was definitely an extension of the Harry Potter world, but was not the eighth Harry Potter book. While entertaining to read, it seemed unlike an official installment of the franchise. Among other things, it was missing the iconic magical setting of Hogwarts, which appears in every other book and makes its readers feel like they are home. The play also could have been longer and used more character development, as plot points often felt rushed and major changes would suddenly materialize, leaving the reader confused. The Cursed Child may have left readers with many questions, but Pottermore has cleared up two big ones
The Merionite
Kathy Wei ’19
with the release of the highly anticipated patronus quiz and an Ilvermorny sorting quiz. The patronus quiz was a truly magical experience, with beautiful animation and haunting music. Most people are happy with their outcomes, but there has been dissatisfaction from
four houses. Each is said to represent a different part of the ideal wizard. Horned Serpent, favors scholars, representing the mind. Thunderbird favors adventurers, representing the soul. Pukwudgie favors healers, representing the heart. Wampus favors warriors, representing the body. There is no specific correlation between Hogwarts and Ilvermorny houses. As a Ravenclaw, I would have expected to be in Horned Serpent, but surprisingly I was sorted into Thunderbird. Log into Pottermore now to find your own place, read interesting articles written by J.K. Rowling herself about the Harry Potter world, and view sneak peeks for the new movie. The upcoming prequel spinoff film, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, cannot come fast enough. Starring Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, Hufflepuff naturalist, the movie follows Newt’s adventures in New York City seventy years before the events of The Sorcerer’s Stone, when he accidentally sets loose a menagerie of dangerous magical creatures. He could not have come at a worse time, as the wizarding community of America is hiding from the No-Majs who have formed the New Salem Philanthropic Society, or NSPS, with the purpose of killing witches and wizards, led by Samantha Morton as Mary Lou Barebone. Katherine Waterson is set to play Tina Goldstein, employee from the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA) and friend of Newt’s, along with Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski, a No-Maj that Newt exposes to magic. Colin Farrell was cast as Percival Graves, a high-ranking Auror for MACUSA with an ulterior motive of Graphic Courtesy of Sihan Wu ’19 establishing complete wizarding rule. The name people such as Evanna Lynch, the actress who played “Grindelwald” was mentioned in the last trailer and the Luna Lovegood in the movies, who got the salmon. time period of the movie coincides with the terrorizing I am happy with my tortoiseshell cat, but even I envy reign of the worst wizarding elitist before Voldemort, people with magical creature patronuses like the uni- which leads to intriguing theories about other conflicts corn or Ilvemorny house animal. Ilvermorny is the in the movie. November 18 marks the release date for American wizarding school which, like Hogwarts, has the first of this five part series and we cannot wait.
The Mysterious Toynbee Alexandra Gordon ’17
You are walking down 8th Street towards Market in Philadelphia. You pause at the corner before crossing, and while waiting for the light to change, you briefly glance at your feet. Speckled tiles in the asphalt seem to be arranged in some odd pattern, and as you continue to look, you realize these shapes form words. You read them: “TOYNBEE IDEA IN KUBRICK’S MOVIE 2001 RESURRECT DEAD ON PLANET JUPITER”.
That seemingly mysterious tile is actually closer to something out of a science fiction novel than one might think. Found in approximately thirty cities in the US and South America, these tiles, called Toynbee Tiles or Toynbee Plaques, have been popping up since the 1980s. The artist behind them remains unknown, but people have suspicions that they are from Philadelphia, because this is where a majority of the tiles can be found. There is a worldwide search for the creator of the Toynbee Tiles, but most potential clues lead to dead ends. One tile, in Santiago, Chile, mentions a specific address in Philadelphia: 2624 South 7th Street. However, the current residents of the home know very little about the tiles. They suggest that the previous owner was the mysterious artist, but this has not been confirmed. The folklore and mystery behind the Toynbee tiles lead many to suspect that there is more than one artist. When tiles get paved over, a new one, no matter what city, usually appears within a week. The tiles themselves reference a few different works of science fiction. A documentary, aptly named Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of Toynbee Tiles, claims that
“Toynbee” is a reference to a twentieth century British historian named Arnold J. Toynbee, whose twelve novel anthology, A Study of History, details the rise and fall of civilizations. Others claim it is a direct allusion to Ray Bradbury’s short story, “The Toynbee Convector.” Bradbury’s story is about a time traveller who, in a device called the Toynbee Convector, travels hundreds of years into the future to see advancements in civilization. Additionally, “Kubrick’s 2001” is a reference to Stanley Kubrick’s movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which a man makes a journey to Jupiter. Other more indirect source material may exist, including Arthur C. Clarke’s short story, “Jupiter V,” which mentions Toynbee and includes elements that influenced Kubrick’s film; and David Mamet’s 4 AM, which is a play about building a civilization on Jupiter (this work was influenced by Arnold J. Toynbee’s novels). While most of the tiles read the same, different ones make political statements about the USSR and jour-
per wore away. He realized that this creates the “cracked” effect, and also resolved the mystery of how the tiles end up embedded in the middle of streets. While the mystery behind many of these tiles still remains unsolved, the interest and folklore surrounding them only seem to increase as time passes. Many
local tiles contain some variation of “TOYNBEE IDEA IN MOVIE `2001 RESURRECT DEAD ON PLANET JUPITER.” Others, however, read “HOUSE OF HADES I MAKE + GLUE TILE WITH THE BONES OF DEAD JOURNALISTS,” although many of those are found in western cities. On a cool fall day, try to hunt down the tiles located in Philadelphia at these locations to experience the mystery yourself: 19th and Vine St. nalism. A famous tile in Brooklyn, NY reads, “HOUSE OF HADES ONE MAN VERSUS AMERICAN MEDIA IN SOCIETY ‘2011 - I MUST WORK HARDER”. Artists worldwide have attempted to figure out the process of how the tiles were placed in asphalt, which is a troublesome task to do. Luckily, one Philadelphia-based Toynbee investigator, named Justin Duerr, noticed a new Toynbee tile, which had been placed on top of asphalt and covered in tar paper. The pressure created by cars driving over the tar paper pressed the tile into the ground and the tar pa-
20th and Chestnut St. 10th and South St. 9th and Chestnut St. City Hall Northwest Corner 15th and Arch St. 8th and Market St.
Features
October 31, 2016
13
The Merionite
Culture is not a costume Aly Hummel ’17 Features Editor
Spooky double standard Molly Gonzales ’17 Arts and Entertainment Editor
There have been lots of attacks on “politically correct culture” mostly concernAs I peruse the aisles of the Spirit of Halloween Store, there is something that really sticks ing the debate over free speech. A major controversy has emerged in recent years out to me. No, it’s not the creepy old dude buying a $500 clown costume; it’s the difference surrounding something rather pedestrian: Halloween costumes- specifically, cosbetween men’s and women’s costumes. All of the women’s costumes contain about a half tumes that take bits and pieces of another culture. These types of costumes have yard of fabric, mostly either lace or mesh, and are named “Slutty Dark Witch” or “Arrest Me been labeled as cultural appropriation. While it might seem ridiculous that a HalCop.” If I want to be a cop for Halloween, it would mean wearing skintight booty shorts and a loween costume could be offensive, it crop top with a badge. If a guy wanted to do it is an unfortunate reality that we must he would have the freedom to wear, say, a full face. Some claim that finding a cospair of pants and not freeze to death. tume offensive is just another examEvery girl can agree that it is hard walkple of hypersensitivity muzzling free ing into a costume store and seeing the opexpression, but it is never ok to wear tions for female costumes. As a homemade an aspect of someone’s identity as a costume kid, my first adventure to the coscostume. tume store was in second grade for additions In many cases, the people sporting to my Hermione Granger look. I thought, offensive costumes are not actively “Where are all the girls’ clothes? What’s a trying to offend others. But no one’s ‘slutty nurse?’ Are they different than regular identity should be a punchline. Dressnurses? Do they require the same medical ing up as a member of another cultraining?”Young girls are continually exposed ture without poking fun at it is harmto oversexualized images of grown women, ful, too. Chances are, costumes such year round. In their minds, this is the norm. as these are inaccurate and perpetuOversexualization of women can lead to apate stereotypes. One costume cannot pearance anxiety and body shame. It has represent an entire group of people, been connected to negative mental health so it’s undeniable that dressing up as outcomes among girls. While changing the a member of another culture unfairly standards and pressures of Halloween cosgeneralizes a major group of margintumes clearly would not solve this widespread alized people. issue, it is a start. Sometimes, it can be difficult to There are no female-specific costumes that know whether or not a costume is are not risqué. The men’s department is full offensive. A good rule of thumb is: if of “ketchup bottle suits” and “grandma cosyou need to ask whether or not your tumes,” while the women’s version of a ketchcostume is offensive, it probably is. up bottle suit is just two ketchup bottles tied If you are still not sure, do some retogether with string. “Don’t try and be funny search. The University of Washington on Halloween, Molly, just wear a crop top and made a video called “What is Cultural some ears like everyone else!” a guy friend told Appropriation?”, and the dean of the me when I asked what he thought of my burUniversity of Michigan has a webrito costume. Many women’s costumes have a Graphic by Vanessa Roser ’17 page dedicated to this. If you are still “sexy” slant, whether they are supposed to be not sure, ask somebody! funny, or just interesting. “Sluttniess” seems to be an acccepted prerequisite. If you want to find out more, there are lots of online resources that you can To be clear, I have no problem with anyone wearing two ketchup bottles tied together with use to educate yourself. Doing some research and changing your costume idea a string, because anyone should be able to dress however they want, whenever they want. may be inconvenient, but it is nothing compared to how someone might feel What gets me is how guys can have fun with their costumes at a Halloween party, while girls when they see a costume that appropriates their culture. Have a happy and face the pressure to fast for weeks and visit multiple malls just to find the perfect pair of thighhigh fishnets to wear with those two ketchup bottles. It is a completely different ball game. respectful Halloween!
14
Sports
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
Boys’ soccer powers to Districts Zach Simons ’18 The Aces Varsity soccer team is close to ending their regular season and ence on the team has also helped the Aces tremendously - the team has a very boasting a very successful 2016 campaign. As always, the Aces have been large number of returning varsity players, which is apparent by their composed practicing hard since the end of summer and it has shown in their record. playing on the field. Senior captains Alex Moureaud and Sebastian Jenkins, who Although soccer might not be the most popular sport at the school, it most definitely is drawing attention statewide as the team is ranked 29 in the have been a part of the team for the past couple of seasons, are helping to develstate according to MaxPreps.com. LM has exceeded expectation this sea- op some of the young talent like sophomores Tim O’Hare and Harrison Bloch. As of the writing of this article, the son with an astounding overall record of 11-1-2 overall record and Aces are making a final push toward Photo courtesy of The Enchiridion an 8-1-1 record in conference. They playoffs and are hoping to find success sit in second place in the Central in the District rounds. Their playoff runs League, right behind an undeof late have been subpar for a team lookfeated powerhouse in Conestoga. ing to ride the experience of the seniors The two teams played on October 18 in a decisive game that deto another title. Som Safavi ‘17 says, termined the winner of the Central “Walking down the hallways, it feels League. Last season, Conestoga won good to know that everyone is rooting for the Central League, so the Aces were us to do well. It’s the school that makes looking for revenge to hopefully ruin us want to play better and succeed. The their momentum. The game was tied 1-1 at the end, and unfortunately the soccer team might not draw the biggest Pioneers pulled away in overtime crowds, but it does mean a lot to us when and gave the Aces their second loss. we see a nice student section cheering LM played an outstanding game, us on.” Head coach Nico Severini and though, and received great practhe team is always working hard to suctice for their playoff games to come. The team hudles up for their usual pre-game pump up. This has This season, the team has been become a tradition among the players in line with their “Team ceed to be better on and off the field. stellar on defense allowing only sev- Together” motto. Recently, the team motto for the en goals throughout the entire season; they have scored a total of 37 goals, which is a remarkable for/against Aces has been “Team Together” and they really do express that message in ratio. Not only that but the offense has had a nice variety of goal scorers the way they play and encourage each other. (N.B. this article was writincluding David Novacich ‘17, and Max Shapiro ‘16. The amount of experi- ten prior to the outcome of the District game on Thursday, October 27.)
Field hockey’s program growth continues Photo courtesy of The Enchiridion
Julia Kreuzer ’19
Before taking the field each game, the spirited and hardworking field hockey players gather together to share compliments and inspirational comments. Every player supports and cheers on the team during the various games. Even if a teammate may be playing the same position as someone else, the LM field hockey team is clearly bonded strongly on and off the field. This season, girls’ field hockey has a new leader, Coach Racheal Bloemkr, whose leadership has shown positive results already. Bloemkr is a skilled instructor who pushes the girls and sharpens their skills. Co-captain Annie O’Connor ’17 describes her new coach as “intense but supportive. She helps us focus on the key parts of the game that we need to work on.” Having created a youth field hockey program at the Philly Hockey Club, the team’s new coach has mastered teaching techniques to increase the players’ proficiency and strategy before games. During practice, Bloemkr focuses on players’ shooting and defense. She has
evolve into a real contender in the Central League. The new tactics implemented by Bloemkr have given the team an immediate positive outcome. The athletes began the season with eight consecutive wins and one tie. This long string of back to back wins landed the team a second place rank in the Central League. By focusing on specific elements of the game and remaining consistent in their play, the athletes have accomplished greats feats so far this season and show no sign of stopping anytime soon.
Photo courtesy of The Enchiridion
Senior Samantha Bruttomesso-Clarke goes for a crucial loose ball on the LM turf, a main focus of the coaching staff this season.
the players do drills to emphasize these aspects of the game and weaves in occasional running simulations as well. Before games, Bloemkr’s strategy shifts depending on the opponent. One such strategy is to have players move up the sides of the field instead of the middle, allowing for a more effective game. These tactics have molded the team into a fighting machine. During the beginning of the season, two games particularly stood out for the field hockey team. The players demonstrated LM’s superb playing in their games against Harriton and Upper Darby. They faced Harriton in late September, winning 1-0. In overtime, Sam Scimeca ‘17 scored, helping the team to their victory. Bloemkr describes the game as “a night game with a lot of energy. The girls played to their full potential against a well matched Harriton team.” The Aces then defeated Upper Darby 6-1, where they dominated the field, while exhibiting hard work and skill. In both games, a variety of players contributed to the team’s impressive victories. Starting at defense, Eleanor Gaddy '17 fiercely protected the goal, keeping rival players and the ball at bay. Sophomore Sophie Shaffer stands out among the midfielders. She helped advance the ball up the field to assist the forwards, such as Danielle Geis ’18, who maintained the momentum created by the midfielders and skillfully guided the ball to the goal in hopes of scoring. All of the team’s talent came together during those games. Bloemkr shares, “Our greatest strength is teamwork. Every player on the team contributes on and off the field. The girls’ trust and understanding of each other help them to work better together for a common goal.” A big focus for the girls this season had been building on the success the program had last season. For the first time in recent years, the team qualified for districts during the 2015-16 season. The goal is to now build upon that success by creating a winning attitude among the squad. In order to continue success into future seasons, the team must go into every game with confidence, knowing that they are on the rise as a program. This attitude has really translated onto the field, showing in the gritty play and determination of the team as a whole. It has been fun to watch the team grow and
Freshman Sarah Gallagher dashes past a defender during a big game. Gallagher has been a very consistent, dependable addition to the team this season, contributing quality play in her first year with the team.
Sports
October 31, 2016
15
The Merionite
MLB mourns fallen star
Boys’ XC makes LM history Kelly Harrigan ’17 Sports Editor
Benjamin Schmid ’19 On Sunday, September 25, the MLB lost one of its biggest stars: José Fernández, a beloved starting pitcher for the Miami Marlins, who suffered a tragic fate when he and two friends crashed into a jetty in Miami Beach. Fernández decided to go boating after the Marlins’ victory over the Atlanta Braves. His next start was supposed to be that Sunday, but was delayed until Monday, allowing him to stay out late Saturday night. Following a fight with his girlfriend Maria Arias—with whom he was expecting a baby he hoped to call Penelope—Fernández felt the need to destress. Fearing such an incident, his friends tried to convince him to relieve his stress on land in a safer way. Ignoring their dissuasions and travelling at maximum speed on his SeaVee powerboat just after 3:00a.m., Fernández was unable to see the sharp rocks that loomed ahead. Fernández had an exceptional career, earning the 2013 Rookie of the Year award and the title of two-time All-Star. The Cuban refugee was drafted in 2011, the fourteenth overall pick. He spent 2012 in the Minor Leagues, posting an ERA (Earned Run Average) of 1.75 and becoming one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball. He skipped Double-A and Triple-A, going directly to the Major Leagues in 2013 where he allowed just 111 hits over 28 starts. Fernández came in third for Cy Young voting that year, winning the Rookie of the Year award. Temporarily halting his run of victories, Fernández found out that he had a torn ligament in his elbow in mid-May of 2014, and needed Tommy John surgery. He returned to the baseball scene in late 2015 to have a strong finish to the season. In 2016, he was dominating with an even higher strikeout rate than before the injury but, sadly, did not get to finish out the season. Even though he cannot be there to receive it, Fernández is currently in the running for the 2016 Cy Young award (given to the best pitcher in the league). Of all qualifying Major League pitchers, he had the second highest WAR (Wins Above Replacement), the highest K/9 rate (strikeouts per 9 innings), and is on the leaderboard for many other notable statistics. Jon Lester, another candidate for Cy Young, says that Fernández is deserving of the honor. Many people think
Freshman Aviva Kosta
that the heartbreaking events may help his chances of winning. Either way, he was a very well-respected player that everyone adored. His career accomplishments will always be remembered. After cancelling their game on September 25, the Marlins resumed their season the following day. Before the game, Fernandez was honored by teammates who were all wearing his uniform number, sixteen. In the first at-bat of the game, Marlins teammate Dee Gordon hit a home run for the former pitcher, just the ninth of his six-year career. After beating the Mets, all of the Marlins placed their hats around the pitching mound in remembrance of their fallen teammate. The Marlins also announced that they will retire the number that Fernández wore. Number sixteen will be the first retired number by the Miami team. Jose Fernández left a major impact on our national pastime and will never be forgotten.
Fernández, former pitcher for the Miami Marlins, passed away this September from a boating accident, leaving behind quite a legacy complete with the honor of making the MLB All-Star Game in 2016 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Sophomore Davon Tate
What sport do you play? What sport(s) do you play? Soccer and basketball Football What was your best Halloween costume What is your favorite Halloween candy and why? and why? One year I was an inflatable cow because my friend My favorite Halloween candy is definitely was a farmer. I decided to be an inflatable farm animal Almond Joy because I love almonds. What’s been your favorite highlight of the because why not. What’s been your favorite highlight of the season so far? season so far and why? My favorite highlight of the season has been A few games ago, we played Conestoga playing with my brothers. and almost won. I learned a lot about the meaning Are you a fall or winter person? Why? I’m a fall person because I love the weather. of LMGS spirit and our team’s relentlessness. It’s not too cold or warm. Are you a fall or winter person? Why? I’m definitely a fall person; It’s soccer season, my birthday month, and I love the weather.
Photo courtesy of the Enchiridion
Unlike past years, Neckowicz (pictured) and the rest of the runners are on track for their goal of qualifying for states as a team. LM is no stranger to successful sports teams and league championships, but a new team recently joined that circle of greatness: boys’ cross country. Apart from winning the Central League title, they went undefeated in the league and are entering districts as a competitive and confident force of fast-footed athletes. Since the end of the last school year, the team has been preparing for a strong season. In May, they decided to aim for “winning Central League Champs and making States as a team,” according to Charlie Herrmann ’19. While many teams set high goals, boys’ XC focused on their goals throughout the offseason and has been quite successful in their pursuit of those objectives thus far, as proven by their in-league season record. Captain Teddy Neckowicz ’17 comments on this determination: “Starting in early June, the team has been training with more intention and focus than I had seen in any of my previous XC seasons.” Especially in cross country, a strong mentality is key to victory. For the entire 5K, you have to be in the right mental state and convince yourself to keep going strong. Training with such a mindset since the summer, as the boys’ team has done in preparation for this season, has seemed to only bolster their mental state and, expectedly, their performance throughout the season.
Junior Adi Segal
In addition to mental training, strategizing has been pivotal in the boys’ accomplishments this fall. While the team has been training more intensely this season during practices, they have also developed some new racing techniques. Herrmann explains one such technique: “This season, our team has started to ‘pack run’ a whole lot more. This helps my teammates stick to their pace while providing motivation for the whole pack to pick it up when the situation calls for it.” Even though they compete as a team, cross country is also an individualized sport, where it can be easy to feel as if you are in the race alone. Tactics such as starting to “pack run” may help the runners feel less isolated and encourage them to keep going for their teammates and increase the overall morale of the team mid-race. Another strategy the boys have picked up this season is manipulating their timing during races. The team has taken note of timing tendencies of some of their teammates and discovered techniques to morph these inclinations into accomplished strategies. One habit of some of the runners, Neckowitz comments, is “to run the first mile of every 5K race very fast, making them need to slow down and recover in the middle half of the race.” Explaining a solution the team has found for this specific tendency, Captain Evan Hassman ’17 states, “Every race, we try to run the last mile the fastest and try to catch those who went out too fast. It has worked out very well so far this season.” Focusing on these strategies and effectively implementing them into their weekly races has clearly worked, as the team currently bears the Central League title. This season has been historical for the XC boys, since this is the first time the team has gone undefeated in the league. Now running through the crisp autumn air, the athletes are motivated to continue the season as long as they can. Hopefully with the perpetuation of their strategies and determined attitudes, we will see more success from this team in the rest of the season and in future ones as well.
Senior Maxwell Koerner
What sport do you play? What sport(s) do you play? Crew Volleyball What was your best Halloween costume What is your favorite Halloween candy and why? and why? My favorite Halloween candy is Milky Way because The time I wore a suit made completely out of old neckties, just due to the absolute absurdity I love chocolate. of the costume. What’s been your favorite highlight of the What’s been your favorite highlight of the season so far? season so far and why? One of my favorite highights from the season was Finishing in the top half of the varsity four senior night because it was a really fun and energetic game. boats at the Navy Day Regatta. Are you a fall or winter person? Why? Are you a fall or winter person? Why? I am a winter person. I love skiing, hiking, I am more of a fall person because in the winter I always slip on the way to the bus stop. and warming up by the fire after a long day of shoveling snow.
16
Sports
October 31, 2016
The Merionite
Volleyball
Photo courtesy of the Enchiridion
Number of hits Adi Segal ’18 had to dig to break the LM career record.
Football
Cross Country (boys) Cross Country (girls)
Touchdown passes Matt O’Connor ’19 has thrown this season.
Photo courtesy of Enchiridion
Meets the boys’ cross country team lost in the Central League this season.
Personal record time for girls’ XC 2nd Team All-Central League nominee Rowan Hassman ’19
Photo courtesy of PenntrackXC Photo courtesy of the Boys’ XC Boosters
Alexa Cotler ’17 dribbles past a defender on the way to the goal.
Rashone Cooke ’17 makes a catch over a Conestoga defender.
“The key to our success was giving 100 percent every game and working all of the season. We had a lot of games that were dependent on battling for fifty-fifty balls and tackling hard and we were always there with our hussle to do that. The amount of heart we all had when we put our jerseys on made the team come together and be successful, you won’t find a team with more heart and passion for the game. Out on the field we always gave it our all no matter what. Whatever it took, we did it.” — Soccer Captain Lizzy D’Alonzo ’17 Jenna Mancuso ’19 sets up to return a forehand.
“Girls’ tennis just finished our 2016 season, the last season for nine members of our team. Working hard through preseason heat, and battling matches until the very end, the team showed tremendous heart and resilience in every match we played. From beating those who had never lost a league match, to coming back when we were five games down and winning the match, everyone on the team made themselves proud and represented LM in the best way possible each time they stepped out on the court. Everyone pulled together on senior day to win a resounding victory against West Chester Rustin, while celebrating our seniors. Whether someone was new to the team or had been on it for four years, Lower Merion Girls Tennis is a great family to be a part of. Congrats to the seniors and good luck to the future team!” — Senior Tennis Captains
“The best moment of our season so far in my opinion happened during the Delaware Country-Christian game. During the middle of the game, quarterback Matt O’Connor ’19 threw a deep pass that was tipped by the other team and caught by myself for a 30-yard gain. It was a battle the whole game, and we were on top in the fourth quarter. The defense made a crucial stop on fourth and 1 to take all the momentum and secure the win. At that moment, the whole team was united and hyped up. Ask me again in two weeks after Harriton and Radnor though, and it may be a different story...” — Football Captain Ben Rubin ’18