The Lance: October 2016 Issue by Lancer Media

We Believe.

THE LANCE

We Will Succeed.

The student newspaper of Linganore High School Volume LIII, Issue 2

12013 Old Annapolis Road Frederick, MD 21701

Lancer Media Kitchen: Halloween Treats

October 2016

Alicia Nasto Editor-In-Chief

Chocolate bundt cake with marshmallow fondant made by staff member Emily Reed.

Spider cupcakes made by staff members Kaycee Morris and Jacob Bolger.

Dracula's Dentures put together by adviser Natalie Rebetsky.

Local Summers Farm celebrates their 20th annual fall festival Bailey Davis Reporter

Autumn is here, and Summers Farm is opening its doors for the 20th season, inviting everyone to celebrate the fall season by participating in many events and activities on the farm at this Fall Festival. With over 30 different activities to choose from, there is no better way to open up the fall than this oldfashioned harvest festival. A very popular activity at Summers Farm is the 12-acre cornfield maze that has 2.5 miles of paths, “The corn maze is so fun. It is absolutely huge and was really easy for me to get lost in. That was what made it so thrilling.” said Aaron Davis, a middle school student. The cornfield maze is divided into different phases, a smaller maze for younger crowds and a larger maze for guests who want to take on the challenge of a maze that has a high chance of getting lost in. Each year, Summers Farm changes the theme of the popular corn maze. This year, the theme features the Baltimore Orioles! The pathways through the tall corn stalks go in the shape of the oriole bird, and even write out the famous chant “Lets Go O’s!” But you can’t have fall without pumpkins, and Summers Farm does not disappoint. It has a 15-acre pumpkin patch, making it an ideal

place for harvesting pumpkins. Activities for little kids are endless at Summers Farm. There are two jumping pillows that they will fall in love with hopping on, rubber duck races, giant slides, rides on a pumpkin train, pig races, and so

courtesy of the SK&A Group much more. Jim Starcher, the father of two young girls, said “I think that the activities offered at Summers Farm meet my younger daughter’s age group more than the older. It seems that most things there are geared towards younger children.” However, Madison Starcher, Jim Starcher’s oldest child who is a member of the Class of 2019, disagrees. She said, “There are many activities that I feel can entertain older kids at Summers Farm, such as the hay ride, pumpkin picking, feeding the animals, and of course, the corn maze. But as it is with any event,

there is always a question of safety, especially when there will be many young children running around. Jim Starcher said, “Summers Farm seems pretty safe for small kids to me, as long as an adult stays with their young child or close by, and never leaves them alone in the corn maze or on the jumping pillows where their could be bigger kids.” Tickets for admission into the farm are on sale now for a great price, the cost varies depending on the day. On Mondays through Thursdays from 1-7 pm, and on Fridays from 1-4 pm, tickets cost $8.95 for kids and adults, $7.95 for Seniors ages 60 and up, and children that are two years and under get in for free. Ticket prices from 4-10:30 on Fridays and Saturdays are $13.95 for kids and adults, $7.95 for Seniors ages 60 and up, and children two years and under get in for free. If you would like more information regarding ticket prices at Summers Farm, click here. Summers Farm is the perfect place to celebrate the autumn season, and the fall festival that has been going on there for 20 years now will not disappoint. “Even as an adult, I will continue going to Summers Farm and have a great time

Trick-or-Treat: Send Lancer Media your throwback Halloween costume photo Grace Weaver Editor-In-Chief

Do you wish you weren’t too old to Trick-or-Treat? What was your favorite costume as a kid? You can win a Halloween candy bucket from the Lancer Media giveaway! To enter the drawing, you must meet these criteria: 1) Be following LHSJournalism on Instagram or Twitter, or like Lancer Media’s Facebook page 2) Obtain parent permission to post a picture on social media. 3) Post your picture (no high school photos) on one of the three social media sites listed above and tag @LHSJournalism— Each social media site counts as one entry. (Max. of three entries, one per site.) 4) Include your name, how old you were (costume), what you were dressed as. 5) Include the hashtag #LHSHalloween All entries must be submitted by Monday,November 1, 2016, and the winner will be announced Tuesday, November 2, 2016.

Read more at http://lhslance.org/5faib

SMH Cartoon: Remember when you were Halloween cute?

Amanda Anderson Editor-in-Chief

The Lance

Features

October 2016

Why I don't stand for the Pledge of Allegiance Summer Etzler Reporter Ever since the beginning of my junior year, I stopped standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. I was hesitant to do this because I was worried about what others would think of me. I knew it would be a risky protest, but I want to make others aware of why I am protesting. There has been a controversy in the media about 49ers quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, who in the beginning of September kneeled during the national anthem and continues to do so. In an interview with NFL media after the game, Kaepernick explained why he took the actions he did. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder,” said Kaepernick in the interview with NFL media. I stopped standing for the pledge last year and just recently stopped standing for the national anthem when I heard about Colin Kaepernick doing the same thing. One reason

why I stopped standing is because we’re never taught what the Pledge of Allegiance actually means. We start saying the Pledge of Allegiance in kindergarten. We’ve been saying it for so long, I think we’re saying it without knowing why. It’s just something we say every day because it’s a social norm. I think we should be educated

"We can’t rise above our differences if there are still powerful people in America being discriminatory against people of different faiths." about the pledge and then have the choice whether or not we want to say it instead of standing at such a young age without knowing what it means. Another reason why I stopped standing was because of the line in the pledge “One Nation Under God.” I think this is discriminatory towards people who don’t believe in God or believe in multiple gods. “One Nation Under God” was added by Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1954 be-

The Nightmare Zone:

A chilling fall production Emma Wynkoop Reporter

Photo by Emma Wynkoop Garrett Wiehler and Elise Fenstermacher perform a scene.

Instead of one fall play, the drama department this year will be producing three short one-act shows, each running about half an hour. These one-acts include "The Lottery", "Mind Games", and "The Actor’s Nightmare". Each show has a creepy and frightening theme to it, giving inspiration to the night’s overall theme, The Nightmare Zone. "The Lottery" is directed by Cassia Connolly and Eileen Rich. "Mind Games" is directed by Garrett Wiehler, and "The Actor’s Nightmare" is directed by Emma Wynkoop and Lincoln Robisch. Overseeing all three shows are longtime director Damon Norko, new theatre teacher Angela Smithhisler, and drama club president and Class of 2017 member Sarah Maerten. Rehearsals began in early September, and the show opens on November 10th. "The Lottery" features the largest cast of the three shows, and includes members from all grades forming the small town presented in the play. "Mind Games" features a small cast of several grades, with senior Lincoln Robisch and junior Christian Howard as a psychiatrist and his patient. "The Actor’s Nightmare" is the only of the three shows that has an all-senior cast.

Norko in the brain behind the idea to branch out into individual one-act shows for the first time, as well as the theme of the night. He chose the theme to accompany the band and color guard’s Twilight Zone theme this season. The idea for one-act shows gives opportunities for more cast members to be involved, since the shows all have different casts, and gieves more seniors to have a chance to student direct. This production is Smithhisler’s first experience with the drama department.“My first experience as director is going wonderfully,” Smithhisler said. “My favorite part of directing is seeing the journey the actors go on. We start with such a rough version with the actors just reading out of their book, and by the end it’s grown into something everybody is comfortable with, and something I can be proud of too. It ends up being a beautiful masterpiece.” Smithhisler says audiences can expect “a good overall theme of weirdness, with a bit of everything. They’ll laugh; they’ll be weirded out; they may be a little confused, but at the end they’ll be left with a good final product I think they’ll be very happy they came to see.” The Nightmare Zone opens November 10th at 7:00pm, and will have performances on the 11th at 7:00, the 12th at 2:00 and 7:00, and 13th at 2:00. Tickets are available now for online purchase at showtix4u.com for a price of $10, and will be available at the door at each performance. Read more at http://lhslance.org/rsj8n

cause of national fear of the threat of Soviet Communism. We no longer live in 1954. I think this part of the pledge helps extremist politicians and preachers validate that those that don’t believe in God don’t belong in America. This contradicts the part of the pledge that says “indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Indivisible means we can rise above our differences. We can’t rise above our differences if there are still powerful people in America being discriminatory against people of different faiths. “Liberty and justice for all” is not provided for minority groups in America. For example, members of the LGBTQ community are refused service in some areas of the country. Also, immigrants who live in Louisiana can’t get married. There are also injustices against African Americans and other races who aren’t white. Some include recent shootings of Freddie Gray, Laquan McDonald, and Samuel Dubose. Many people have called me out for sitting for the pledge, including teachers. The question I get asked often by other students is “Do you hate your country, is that why you’re not standing?” No, I don’t hate my country. I’m one of the privileged people in this

graphic by Tory Spruill

country because I’m white, my family isn’t poor, I get my education, and I rarely face discrimination. So how could I hate living in this country? I just don’t agree with positions our government and our society have taken. What I hope to achieve when I sit for the pledge is to make other people aware of why I’m sitting. I like when people ask me why I sit so I can educate them about my concerns with this country and hopefully make them look at things from another point of view. I want this country to be more progressive in working towards equality. I don’t think I can solve the world’s problems just by sitting for the pledge and national anthem. Read more at http://lhslance.org/qp7mi

Take a second look at secondhand clothes Cassie Harris Reporter Roll up your sleeves. Open up your mind: let’s go shopping! Oh, but wait. We aren’t going to the mall. The real treasures can be discovered in secondhand shops. If you are still wary, here are all the reasons to take a second look at secondhand. Larger chain thrift stores such as Goodwill and Salvation Army occupy huge retail spaces due to the constantly growing inventory. Organized by color, size, and type of garment, the clothes can range from vintage wedding dresses to simple t-shirts. Experimenting with different pieces is easy to do with the vast array of options.

Goodwill and other thrift stores carry garments across many generations and brands. You are never short of inspiration and nostalgia. In contrast, most clothing stores target a specific customer and style. Fast fashion is designed to get cheap and trendy clothing out to the public as fast as possible, so quality is sacrificed for profit, but there are more drawbacks than just a lower quality. According to The True Cost documentary, the average American tosses 82 pounds of textile waste per year, 65 pounds coming directly from clothing. However, up to 50% of the clothing we throw away could be reused, recycled, or brought into a secondhand environment. Reusing the garments re-

duces the amount of trash in landfills. Dyes, bleaches and countless other chemicals go into the production of cheaply made clothing. In landfills, the chemicals can leach through the landfill, therefore making the landfill more toxic. Even clothing made from natural fibers such as cotton and linen in landfills cannot decompose the way other natural substances can because they have been manipulated by manufacturing. Synthetic fabrics like polyester and rayon (any fabric that stretches is made of synthetic fibers.) often contain an indirect form of processed petroleum, or plastic. Plastics take hundreds, even thousands of years to decompose. Lower Cost, More Clothes Because secondhand doesn’t require production of new clothing, prices are often extremely low. Consignment stores tend to have higher price points than thrift stores because consignment stores cut a part of the profit out for the seller. Depending on the condition, consigned garments are sold at 25-45% of the retail price, and the seller keeps on average one half of the selling price. If a shirt retails at $20, a consignment store could sell it at $7, and the seller would pocket $3.50. Thrifted clothes are priced low enough to be available for all budgets, but high enough to pay for employee salaries, transportation and processing costs, and maintenance. In Goodwill stores, coats have the potential of being the most expensive items; their maximum price is $40, higher than any other article of clothting . All clothes sold are clean, but wash your clothing before wearing. Read more at http://lhslance.org/pxfjx

October 2016

The Lance

Reviews

Book Review: All American Boys takes a close look at racial profiling Elizabeth Anderson Reporter

Eric Garner. Michael Brown Jr. Tamir Rice. Freddie Gray. Keith Lamar Scott. These are just a few of the many African American victims of police incidents reported and sensationalized in the news. And yet with all of the attention this subject is getting, I have never found a book about it until now. It’s amazing to read a novel that looks at all sides, beyond the publicity, hysteria, and misinformation. All American Boys is that novel. Written by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, it was selected as the 2016 One Maryland One Book for its hard, but fair, look at racism in law enforcement. The novel follows the stories of 16-year-olds Rashad Butler and Quinn Collins after Rashad (who is black) is beaten badly by a white police officer. He is wrongly accused of attacking a customer and stealing a bag of chips from a convenience store. While Rashad deals with his injuries and the problem of convincing others to believe what he says really happened, Quinn, who witnessed the event, weighs the decision of telling the truth and being ostracized from his circle of friends. “There is a real issue with law enforcement [currently],” said social studies teacher Jamie Hendi, who recently read the book as well. “Not only with racism, but with keeping respect for police officers who are innocent. It was a realistic and relatable book.” There are definitely multiple angles to the argument, and it is necessary that the novel take a look at all of them so that readers can get the full picture. This novel makes us consider that many people choose to take one side. The story forces readers to consider the many issues that lead to violence, such as the Baltimore riots of 2015. This is an example of why All American Boys is so objective in its approach, and so educational as well. Much of it is devoted to discussion about peaceful protest and finding common ground when situations such as Rashad’s occur. Quinn’s basketball coach plays a big role in the story in this way, continuously enforcing the words “team” and “together.”

The phrase “Rashad is Absent Again Today” begins to appear on chalkboards, sidewalks, and posters, much like the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter seemed to appear overnight. To be honest, I don’t think there were any characters in the book that I truly loved or hated, which I believe is a good thing. Every single character had strengths, and every single character had flaws. No one was assigned the title of protagonist or antagonist. They all displayed human emotions and reactions to their experiences.

drawing by Elizabeth Anderson

The idea for All American Boys sparked when Reynolds and Kiely shared a room on an author tour during which officer George Zimmerman was acquitted of murdering Trayvon Martin. Both were very upset, and about a month later, when Michael Brown was killed, they decided to write a book about the topic. “[Reynolds] said that he’s had bad experiences with the police since he was a kid,” said Anna Bennett, a Walkersville High student who was able to see Reynolds and Kiely speak when the authors came to Brunswick High to speak. “He’s gotten pulled over and interrogated more than a few times for no reason, and he’s had his car trashed. Apparently it was a pretty ‘normal’ thing in his neighborhood.” Read more: http://lhslance.org/pr6in

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children: A movie with no magic Beau Cameron Editor

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs took the literary world by storm when it was released in America in June, 2011. After only one book, readers fell in love with the series, and the following two novels had fans head-over-heels. The story follows Jacob Portman after the death of his beloved grandfather. Desperate for closure, Jacob journeys to the children’s home off the coast of Wales where his grandfather was raised. However, he soon realizes that the house is populated by magical children, known as Peculiars, living agelessly in a time loop. And they need his help. Now, with the trilogy complete, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children has been adapted for the big screen. However this is a movie that can only be enjoyed by someone who has never read the series. courtesy of Emily Reed I’m a fan of director Tim Burton’s work. A comparison of Miss PerNightmare Before Christegrine's Home for Peculiar mas, Coraline, and Alice Children, book v. movie. in Wonderland are all brilliant movies with a healthy dose of whimsy. Burton’s latest work on Miss Peregrine’s was no different. The movie’s scenery is phenomenal. From the plain beige walls of Jacob’s everyday life to the ivy crawling through the decrepit children’s home, Burton transports viewers to the Peculiar world.

The pacing at the beginning was a little too fast, but Burton made up for it with his grotesquely animated hollowghast. Sadly, the movie has a major flaw: it’s nothing like the book. In the lovable trilogy, Emma Bloom is a brash girl with fire at her fingertips. Olive is a child who is lighter than air. Burton not only switched these characters’ abilities, but he also made Olive the same age as Emma. In the film, Olive was suddenly a teenage girl with fiery passion. Enoch, another Peculiar teen, became this originally pre-pubescent girl’s love interest. While this pairing fit well with the context of the movie, it was a far cry from the original series. Miss Peregrine’s main character is Jacob Portman, a peculiar boy who thinks he’s normal. Burton changed the character’s name to Jake, for no apparent reason. The movie had other inconsistencies as well. Fiona, who is canonically mute, became quite the Chatty Cathy. Bronwyn, a girl with incredible strength and originally a ‘mother-figure’ to the other children, couldn’t have been more than eight. The movie also concluded the entire trilogy in a single movie. The Peculiar children not only save Miss Peregrine and her fellow ymbrynes, but also foil the series’s main villain, Baron. Baron himself is another issue. While the character is excellently portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson, he is also the only person of color in the entire movie. It is the least diverse cast I’ve seen in ages. Read more: http://lhslance.org/e4svw

graphic by Emily Reed

MacGyver– necessity is the mother of re-invention Emily Reed Editor

It’s time to go dust off your old beaker and test tube set because MacGyver is back with some new tricks up his sleeve. Reviews of the MacGyver reboot, airing on CBS, have fans divided like oil and water. Some say the show does not adhere to the original show’s principles. Others welcome the reboot’s major changes that were made to modernize everyone’s favorite troubleshooter. One of the biggest problems with the new MacGyver is that supporting characters from the original have different personalities in the reboot, and there are completely new characters that have no roots in the original series. In March 2016, Lucas Till was announced as the new MacGyver and George Eads as the new Jack Dalton.With James Wan as director of the reboot, they changed Jack’s first name to Lincoln and gave him a new personality as a conspiracy theorist who was also a legitimate government employee. As MacGyver once said, “I’ve found from past experiences that the tighter your plan, the more likely you are to run into something unpredictable.” For Wan, the unpredictable part was when CBS decided to scrap the pilot in June 2016. Peter Lenkov, a creator of the original MacGyver, is now the director of the series. Lenkov announced that Till will still play MacGyver while Eads plays a version of Jack that’s much closer to the original which ran from 1985-1992. Till’s version of MacGyver radiates the same boyish charm of Richard Dean Anderson’s original portrayal of the iconic character. The one difference is that Till’s MacGyver is not a lone wolf like Anderson’s MacGyver. MacGyver now has a team at the Phoenix Foundation. The only casting change no one is complaining about is that the Pete Thornton from the original series, who was a balding senior citizen. She is now Patricia Thornton and played by the lovely Sandrine Holt. Patricia has the same personality as Pete, an ex-field agent. One thing that has not changed is that at the Phoenix Foundation, MacGyver’s job is to go on secret government missions and succeed by using anything from tree branches to chewing gum. Often the best part of the show is seeing what crazy trick MacGyver uses in each episode.

“...the tighter your plan, the more likely you are to run into something unpredictable.” What’s really impressive is when MacGyver’s tricks are scientifically sound. In the reboot’s pilot, the science is very weak. Some tricks were already used in the original MacGyver. No surprises. However, the third episode of the reboot shows promise in the tricks department. In the episode, MacGyver performs a chest drain procedure in the back of an SUV. He cuts the injured man open with a swiss army knife and spreads his ribs apart with a tire jack. Then, the excess blood is sucked out of his chest using a tube connected to the windshield wiper pump. The writing for the show has gotten progressively better in every possible way. The plot of the episodes make more sense, the characters are no longer one dimensional, and the tricks are starting to become impressive. I estimate that the creators will have perfected the formula for a great remake around halfway through the first season.