Richland Chronicle December 07, 2021 Issue

CHRONICLE Richland

Vol. XLVIII Issue 9, December 7, 2021

Richland professor takes the spotlight Pg. 5

• 2021: year in review • Christmas comes early at the Arboretum • Enrollment takes a hit RichlandStudentMedia.com

Richland Student Media Media

@RLCStudentMedia

Pg. 2 Pg. 4 Pg. 6 Richland Student Media Richland Student Media

2 NEWS

December 7, 2021

2021: Turbulent times, COVID-19, political strife January •

• • •

Supporters of Donald Trump storm and occupy the U.S. Capitol as Congress confirms President-Elect Joe Biden’s electoral victory.

Joe Biden is inagurated as the 46th President of the United States of America.

Kamala Harris is inagurated as the 49th vice president and first female and of Black/Asian descent as VP. Gamestop stocks rise with the efforts of the subreddit “wallstreetbets.”

February • •

• •

Myanmar’s government is taken over by a military coup.

A major winter storm hit the United States. The State of Texas faced crippling power outages due to a snowstorm.

U.S. COVID-19 death toll surpassed 500,000.

The United States rejoins the Paris Agreement, an international treaty to combat climate change.

March • • • •

The Texas Heartbeat Bill is introduced.

Beyonce breaks the record for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist.

Eight people were killed in a shooting in an Atlanta parlor with six of the victims being Asian-American women.

The cargo ship “Evergreen” is stuck in the Suez Canal, stalling international trade in the area.

April • •

•

Officer Derek Chauvin sentenced to 22 and one-half years in prison.

Daunte Wright was killed by officer Kimberly Potter in a traffic stop.

Protests against police brutality across the nation ensue.

Over 200 million vaccines have been administered in the U.S.

May •

• •

•

Colonial Pipeline, an oil pipeline system, suffers a ransomware attack that forced them to shut down their operations.

Remains of 215 children were found in unmarked graves at an indigenous school in Canada.

The Israel-Palestine conflict has a surge in violence where Israeli police raid a mosque and bombardments occur for several days.

Atlantic hurricane season begins with tropical storm Ana.

June • • • •

Dallas College announces all seven campuses are fully open to the public for in-person classes and assistance.

A luxury hotel in the Miami suburb of Surfside, partially collapses. 98 died and 11 were injured.

Juneteenth is now officially a federally recognized holiday.

Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven resigns.

Photos The Associated Press

Trump supporters climb the west wall of the U.S. Capitol to storm the building on Jan. 6.

July • • • •

2020 Summer Olympics open in Tokyo, Japan.

Texas democrats leave the state and stay in Washington D.C. to block the voter restriction bill.

President Biden announces vaccine mandate for federal employees.

Evergreen cargo ship is freed from Suez Canal.

August • • • • •

Classes resume and in-person classes begin for all campuses since March of 2020.

Taliban forces capture Kabul and Afghani government collapses.

Hurricane Ida strikes Louisiana.

IPCC releases a report stating human activities are responsible for an increase of temperatures.

A 7.2 earthquake strikes Haiti, killing over 2,000.

RichlandStudentMedia.com

September •

• • • • An Israeli strike on Gaza City.

Mounted border patrol agent in Del Rio.

Gov. Greg Abbott signs SB 1 into law, introducing new voting restrictions despite efforts from Democrat officials.

The Texas Heartbeat Act, an abortion ban after six weeks of pregnancy, goes into effect.

Haitian refugees land in Del Rio. California Gov. Gavin Newsom wins the recall election, staying as the governor of California.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudaeu wins re-election.

October • • • •

•

•

El Centro professor Richard Menchaca polled a “No Confidence” vote against Chancellor May. COP26, a climate change summit, begins in the United Kingdom.

State Fair of Texas reopens after closing in 2020.

Cargo ships on the Port of Los Angeles are kept waiting to drop off cargo, causing a supply issue across the nation.

In the film set of “Rust,” Alec Baldwin fires a gun as a prop with a live round, killing Halyna Hutchins and injuring Joel Souza.

Former Richland College president, Stephen K. Mittelstet died at age 78.

November • •

• • •

Texas Constitutional Amendment election ends with all eight amendments passing.

A crowd crush occurs in the Astroworld Festival, an annual music event in Houston, from rapper Travis Scott. 10 were killed in the crush and hundreds were injured.

Oxford High School shooting leaves four dead and seven injured.

Judge ends consevatorship of Britney Spears.

The World Health Organization discovers a new COVID-19 variant from South Africa and it is named Omicron.

December •

Barbados becomes independent.

December 7, 2021

OPINION/WEATHER 3

Opinion: Abortion rights are human rights

Photo The Associated Press

Abortion rights advocates hold signs as they demonstrate in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Fiona Forney Staff Writer

Abortion is one of the most emotionally potent political controversies of the last half century. The issue that raises such visceral reaction is the status of the fetus and its right to life. The position of many anti-abortionists is that life begins upon conception, and therefore, abortion is murder. The issue of abortion thus forces a delineation of the nature of an individual and the associated rights. The rights and the autonomy of the pregnant individual must not be considered in abstraction from the consequences of defending the right-to-life of the fetus. The end-goal of The Texas Heartbeat Act—the most restrictive abortion law in America -- can be distilled to government-mandated forced births rooted in religious tenets that serves to threaten foundational human rights.

The Texas Heartbeat Act is predicated on the state’s proclaimed “compelling interests

from the outset of a woman’s pregnancy in protecting the health of the woman, and the life of the unborn child.” This law fails to separate church and state, and by restricting abortions at such an early stage, Texas has legislated morality. In a free society, there is a distinction between morality and legality.

At times, the laws governments create overlap with moral injunctions, such is the case with murder. However, the outlaw of murder is less concerned with what is right and wrong, such is the scope of morality, than it is about the promotion of a proper functioning of society. The intersection of morality and legality must not conflate the concepts of murder and abortion. The latter seeks to define the circumstances of one’s own life, and many times considers the quality of life for the fetus, such is the case in therapeutic abortions upon detection of severe genetic abnormalities. The former simply involves the extinguishing of another life.

Modern anti-abortionists would argue

that both simply involve the extinguishing of another life. This logic follows that upon conception, a new life has been formed. Life is sacred and must be protected. Abortion ends the new life and therefore must be outlawed.

This perspective is valid in that one is free to make sense of the universe in the way that best serves them. However, it is when the extension of a belief system is codified and extends to affect the behaviors of people that it becomes a violation of religious liberty, including the freedom to practice no religion at all.

It can be argued that the fabric of society has long relied on religion to assist us in building the framework of society. However, civilization has by and large evolved beyond necessitating this as the core. The viewpoint regarding the sanctity of life is valid, however, the preclusion of another choice by those who do not subscribe to this belief system, or for whom their personal, private circumstance dictates, is an aberration of freedom.

It could be argued that there are more ways to take control of one’s reproductive health than abortion. However, there is a correlation between states that are apt to restrict abortion access and those whose education systems fail to equip their citizens with the necessary tools for reproductive responsibility aside from abstinence-only tactics, thereby generating an ill-prepared populous requiring alternate solutions.

Moreover, many people seeking abortions are those who already have children, implicating nuanced financial motivations that sweeping legislations ultimately fail to address. Without debating the disparity of access to birth control, even proper application of prophylactic measures is not infallible.

Furthermore, in lieu of robust social systems of support for prospective parents, as well as deeply flawed adoption systems, the decision to bring a pregnancy to fruition requires tremendous emotional, mental, physical and increasingly unattainable financial capacities.

This decision must remain within the private domain of the individual experiencing the

pregnancy and be allowed sufficient time for cogitation. The individual then retains sovereignty not only over their medical condition and reproductive care, but over the decision of parenthood.

The choice to terminate or proceed must be made upon one’s own volition, and while regulation is ruled legal such that undue burden is not caused, to usurp this act of reasoning on the grounds of fetal rights as harbored in the Texas Heartbeat Act defies every measure of privacy and violates the statutes which enshrine the freedom of religion in our nation’s Constitution. The Texas Heartbeat Act, replete with the post-Roe statutes, combined with other current Texas legislation sets the stage for future legislation potentially criminalizing this choice for all parties involved were Roe v.

Wade to be overturned.

In 2003, the Texas legislature redefined “individual” as a live human being, “including an unborn child at every stage of gestation from fertilization until birth.” Another amendment defined “death” as including, “for an individual who is an unborn child, the failure to be born alive.”

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, under the Texas Feticide laws, the destruction of an embryo or the death of a fetus at any stage of development is murder. Few exceptions are provided by the state, including “legal” procedures. Were the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision to be overturned, there would be no legal protections in place from the entity of the state creating legislation that allows the prosecution of abortion as murder, which is punishable by death in the Texas. This would pose a litany of human rights abuses, particularly if a similar civilian mode of enforcement were to be strategized.

To read the full version of this column, visit our website at www.richlandstudentmedia.com.

Alex Ortuno

Managing Editor The winter season is known for its cold days with holiday decorations and snow. For North Central Texas this winter season, people may end up in shorts and floral button-up shirts rather than parkas and winter boots.

According to the Climate Prediction Center, North Central Texas is projected to see a 68% chance of above average temperatures.

While temperatures may not be as cold for our festive holidays, precipitation may not be expected to bring days of rain and snow.

The region is expected to see a 48% chance of below-average precipitation.

Bianca Garcia, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Fort Worth, said that the projected conditions are expected due

to La Niña, a climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean that brings warmer temperatures and less rain in the Southern United States.

“We do have a La Niña condition in effect so most likely we’ll have above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation for our area.

While warmer temperatures are expected across the region, they are only a possibility and not a certainty. Cold days are still a possibility.

“What they’re forecasting is an average over that scene of a time period but there are times where cooler temperatures occurred in that three-month period. Just when they average out, it ends up being warmer overall,” Garcia said.

Other weather events are still a possibility, such as a cold snap, but all depends on the

conditions and if they are favorable for such events to form.

“We say that periods of colder weather are always possible, regardless [of whether] we are in La Niña or El Niño. And that just depends on the conditions as we go through the season.

It’s very difficult to say whether it will be no colder than average temperatures or snow or anything like that right over the next seven to 10 days,” said Garcia.

Even during the winter season in North Central Texas, severe weather can still be a threat. An example being the EF-4 Rowlett tornado that struck only a day after Christmas 2015, leaving 10 dead and $26 million in damage, according to the National Centers of Environmental Information.

“Severe weather can happen any time of the year, not just in the spring or in the fall. So if

the conditions are favorable, we’ve got a lot of warm moist air coming in from the Gulf and the stronger system and those conditions align and it’s possible to see strong or severe weather.

But those finer details aren’t worked out until the shorter term,” Garcia said.

Droughts can happen from warmer conditions and a lack of precipitation.

“We’re under La Niña and winter conditions.

It can sometimes result in increased fire weather threat and increased drought conditions due to drier and warmer weather, further lack of precipitation. So it is possible that drought conditions may develop over the next few months,” said Garcia.

Many counties under an “abnormally dry” situation and some far eastern counties are under a “moderate drought,” according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

RichlandStudentMedia.com

Warmer than normal winter expected for region

4 LOCAL

December 7, 2021

Christmastime comes to the Arboretum

Animatronic drummers keep their beats.

Cottages with festive decorations for visitors to interact with at the Christmas Village.

Staff Photos Trang Nguyen

A festive cottage named for Rory Meyers.

Nutcracker stands guard in front of a shop.

Build a Bolder Future with a degree from Texas Woman’s

As the nation’s largest public university system focused on women, TWU prepares today’s learners to be tomorrow’s leaders.

Smaller class sizes, more student diversity and focused attention on student success provide greater opportunities.

Learn more at TWU.edu

Jars of candy stand on display in the shop.

The Dazzling Musical Tree plays tunes.

December 7, 2021

CAMPUS 5

Barroso II by Marian Ichaso de Lefelod

“Barroso II,” one of Ichaso de Lefeld’s paintings on display at the Latino Cultural Center.

Barbara Gandica Martinez Editor-in-Chief

After two years of hard work, Richland’s art Professor Marián Ichaso de Lefeld is opening a local exhibition at the Latino Cultural Center.

Her exhibition Tierra de Gracia explores the history of Venezuela, her home country. It will be open to the public through Feb. 26, 2022 at the Latino Cultural Center in Downton Dallas.

“Every single time I had free time, [it] was spent in the workshop painting,” said Ichaso de Lefeld. The exhibition was delayed by a year, as part of the Latino Cultural Center response to the pandemic.

“I wanted to present on the Latino Cultural Center the point of view of Venezuela” said Ichaso de Lefeld. She said Latin American countries that are closer to the U.S. are usually represented more.

“It is natural, perfectly natural but our Venezuelan immigrant population is growing more every single day.”

Through a deconstructive style, she renders memories of her country, which transformed from an advanced modern nation to its current “dilapidated” state.

“How does a country that was so advanced, which so much progress, can be so dilapidated today?” Ichaso de Lefeld said. “The system that is currently present in Venezuela, didn’t come out of nowhere. That has an origin and the only way to understand it is by reading a bit of history, studying it.”

Ichaso de Lefeld said she wants to share the origins of the current Venezuelan crisis through the Latino Cultural Center as a platform. “Not just the crisis because it is really important to

Staff Photo Shannon Adams

Professor Ichaso de Lefeld in one of her classes, cleaning her brush.

see the area of the modernity and we were a great nation.”

While working on the exhibition and through her career, Ichaso de Lefeld has focused on Venezuela. She grew up in Lencheria, a town in the state of Anzoátegui but later moved to the capital of Caracas.

The capital became the main inspiration and model of her painting in the Tierra de Gracia.

Ichaso de Lefeld focuses on modernity to share the story of her family in Venezuela. Her father and paternal grandparents immigrated to Venezuela from Spain.

“In the ‘50s after a Civil War in Spain, the Second War World, they arrived to work like burros like now Venezuelans arrive to this country,” said Ichaso de Lefeld. “In a way I want to show what my dad lived in the [1950’s], He was a little kid of 12 years old.

What he lived? The modernity.”

As part of her research she reconnected with the history of her country, and inspired paintings such as “Barroso II” in the oil boom in Venezuela during the 20th century. The painting makes reference to the 1922 explosion of the oil well Barroso II in El Rosa sector in the Zulia state. The event kickstarted an oil boom in the country which lead to advancements in infrastructure and technology.

“It completely changed the direction where the country was headed, from agricultural country its economy was based in the production of coffee and cacao [to an economy based on oil].”

The exhibition also showcases the fall of modernity in Venezuela.

In her painting “Pirámide Invertida,” which translates to “Inverted Pyramid,” Ichaso de Lefeld paints an architectural project

by Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. “La pirámide invertida” (the inverted pyramid) is really important to me since that is a project that carried out.” The architect is best known for his work designing Brasilia, the capital of Brazil.

The painting stands out within the collection as its limited color palette differs from most of the exhibition to represent the decline of modernity.

“For me it was really important to connect with the history of my country. It is really important to know where one is from,” Ichaso de Lefeld said.

RichlandStudentMedia.com

Professor’s solo exhibition opens at the Latino Cultural Center

6 CAMPUS

December 7, 2021

Enrollment down across Dallas College CHRONICLE Richland

Ryan Bingham Duff

Online/Special Projects With the fall semester drawing to a close, potential students are filling the hallways at the advising office of Richland Campus of Dallas College to prepare for the spring semester.

According to Success Coach Erica Cumby, the numbers of students enrolled are returning to where they were before the pandemic.

“There has been a decline because, when the pandemic hit, we all had to go virtual, so, there was a lot of people that were not used to virtual.” She added, “There were students that didn’t have access to computers or the internet. And then once we got into the rhythm of being virtual it [went] back up.”

According to Alex Lyda, senior director of communications for Dallas College, enrollment across the campuses was at 82,825 in 2019.

The total number of enrollments for the Fall 2020 semester is approximately 74,800, or a drop in enrollment of approximately 10 percent from the last pre-pandemic semester.

Cumby said that there are a large number of potential students ready for spring.

“Our numbers are looking pretty good,” Cumy said.

“I think they’re going to be higher [for next semester]. For instance, right now my caseload of students - I have about 342 students

on my caseload; I only have 107 that are not registered.” These are the number of students assigned to Cumby for this semester.

For students struggling with direction on campus, classes, services and various other endeavors of next semester, Cumby advised, “Well, what I tell all my students: ‘If you don’t know, ask.’ – I’m here to make you successful.” She added, “So, if you don’t know, it does not hurt to ask the question. Don’t think it’s a dumb question. Don’t think, you know, ‘Oh, they’re not going to answer me because I’m asking this.’ Always ask.”

According to Cumby, students don’t always know the difference between enrollment and registration. “Enrollment means enrolling into the school through admissions and student records,” she said.

“Once you’ve completed your enrollment steps, that’s when you see your success coach [for registration].”

“So, people are used to the old way. ‘I’m brand new, I don’t know what to do.’ They reach out to advising first, it’s always been that way.” Cumby said that she has to explain to potential students that they must complete the enrollment steps first before starting with registration.

Timothy Sielbeck a drop-in sitting in Thunderduck Hall intending to register for spring courses said, “I will be more than likely enrolled by at least the last day before

the spring semester, which I believe is January 12. Right now, I am interested in taking the machine shop courses.” Sielbeck said that they were no longer offered at Eastfield but the course is now offered at Richland.

“I wanted to learn how to do the CAD and the stuff on computer and then I wanted to learn how to take it and do it on the machine as well as doing it the old-fashioned way which was using a lathe and a mill to make everything and learn how to incorporate what I learned in CAD, translate it into cam and take it to CNC machining.”

When Sielbeck studied the course at Eastfield “more than six years ago,” he had to drop out due to medical and family reasons. “Now I’m bored out of my gourd and I need to do something.”

Tam Bui, is a student looking forward to starting next spring, but her major is undecided.

“Right now, I’m not really sure but I will major something in science, probably in neuroscience or something in biology.”

Bui has already finished her first ever semester this fall. She is planning on going to UTD or UNT once she finishes Richland.

“Actually, my plan is to enter med school if that’s possible. And if not, some of my alternate plans are doing physician assistant or …”

She paused trying to think of the correct term, “occupational therapy.”

STUDENT MEDIA LEADERS

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Photo Editor Design Editor Entertainment Editor Online/Special Projects Online/Special Projects

Barbara Gandica Martinez Alex Ortuno Trang Nguyen Barbara Gandica Martinez Ricky Miller Ryan Bingham Duff Damon Craig

ON THE COVER Staff Photo: Shannon Adams

BACK COVER Staff Illustration: Angelo Diaz

COVER AND FONTS Certain cover fonts are provided by the following www.nymfont.com – www.bvfonts.com

STUDENT MEDIA STAFF Meshack Mashua Fiona Forney Davis Oyola Jason Ryer Angelo Diaz Victor London David Acosta Noah Holt Shannon Adams Jerry Weiss Yessi Lipscomb Grey Schessler Haley Aguayo

Ryan Bingham Duff Damon Craig Alexis Rodriguez Saint Garcia Barbara Gandica Martinez Alex Ortuno Kendra Bailey Kimberly M. Gabino Adam Koch Trang Nguyen Eden Belete Shakir Acrey Lizbeth Nava

STUDENT MEDIA ADVISERS Erica Edwards

Tim Jones Larry Ratliff

ISSUE DATES January 18 February 15

February 1 March 1

March 15

April 5

April 19

May 3

May 10

STUDENT MEDIA AWARDS Student Organization Community Service Award, 2019 Student Organization of the Year, 2019 CMA Pinnacle Two-Year TV Station Award, 2018 CMA Two-Year Radio Station Award, 2018 ACP Newspaper Pacemaker Winner Award, 2016 ACP Best of Show Award, 2015 ACP Photo Excellence Award, 2015 CMA Newspaper of the Year Finalist, 2014 1st Place – TCCJA Overall General Excellence, 2014 2nd Place – Pinnacle College Media Award, 2014 1st Place – TIPA Sweepstakes, 2005 3rd Place – TIPA Online, 2005 & 2006 Over 270 Texas college journalism awards since 2000

CONTACT INFORMATION El Paso Hall, Room E020, 12800 Abrams Rd., Dallas 75243 Newsroom: 972-238-6079; richlandchronicle@gmail.com Advertising: 972-238-6068 Email: Advertise@dcccd.edu

“FRANKLY, I HOPE YOU’LL HAVE A FUN VACATION, EVEN THOUGH YOU WON’T BE GETTING OUT MUCH.”

“YES, THEY’LL RECOGNIZE YOU EVEN WITH THE MASK!”

Staff Cartoons Jerry Weiss

Staff meetings: Monday and Wednesday at 2 p.m. in E020 Letter Policy Letters to the editor may be edited for space. They will be edited for spelling, grammar and malicious or libelous statements.

Letters must be the work of the writer and must be signed. For identification and verification purposes, letters also must include the writer’s classification (grade level), full name, address and telephone number, although address and telephone number will not be published.

Editorial Policy The Chronicle is the official student-produced newspaper of Dallas College, Richland Campus. Editorials, cartoons, columns and letters are the opinions of individual students and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of other individual student writers, editors, advisers or the college administration. © Richland Chronicle 2021

ENTERTAINMENT 7

December 7, 2021

For better or worse, Pokémon remake faithful Jason Ryer

Staff Writer “Pokémon Brilliant Diamond” and “Pokémon Shining Pearl,” released Nov.19, come straight forward in remaking the DS “Pokémon Diamond” and “Pokémon Pearl” games of 2006 to even the smallest detail.

The story hits beat by beat that of the original games and there isn’t much in regard to story improvements for “Brilliant Diamond” and “Shining Pearl.” What you see is what you get; A classic approach for Pokémon as a whole.

Those expecting “Pokémon Emerald” content to be used as a finalized definitive Pokémon Generation 4 experience may be disappointed, though. That is not to say the game hasn’t added new things to make the game stand out from the DS titles.

The first of which being the controversial chibi, smaller model, art style for the overworld which takes some time to get used to since the camera is in the same angles as the DS games for most of the overworld travel.

Battles are set in a more traditional style of 3D over a 2d to a locked-in-place 3D background that Pokémon is known for.

The structure of the game is set very similar to the DS with you doing the gym challenge while stopping Team Galactic from taking over the world. One of the improvements to the game not seen in the original is the size and scale of the Grand Underground.

This series of underground caverns will have the player spending hours mining walls for items for their bases, fossils and various stones needed for progression in the game. The game now adds Pokémon dens to the underground to which Pokémon spawn and can be hunted for a shiny form of the selected monster for better status points. These Pokémon are all over the Grand Underground and level with the player as the game progresses. It also helps solve one of the original games’ biggest problems, a lack of usable fire types in the game by adding Houndoom as a Pokémon the player can catch.

Pokémon contests are back in Hearthome City to which the game focuses on the use of the player’s Poffin case, baked treats based around berries found in the wild, for the Pokémon. They raise status point for the desired contest entry, as well as stickers for the Pokéball that will be used for the contest to give the player a leg up. ILCA added a rhythm

game to the contests as well for those interested in contest battling to take a detour from the main story.

Friendship is something that has been improved vastly in the game as there has been added a new mechanic to which the Pokémon do better in battle based on how high its friendship level is. The Pokémon can shake off being Poisoned, for example, because it doesn’t want the player to feel sad with the right friendship points.

The walk-with-me feature from Pokémon “HeartGold” and “SoulSilver” comes back as well as a means to raise these points. The game also has added the Fairy type to the list

of types covered in the game. Fairy was not in the original games so it makes Pokémon that were benched useful.

The negatives of the games are that there is a definite spike in difficulty in the later game after the last Team Galactic fight through to fighting the Champion. The item experience share has been coded into the games to be permanently on, which some players may not like. The Pokédex functions the same as the DS titles with the game having 493 Pokémon.

Overall the games do the originals justice but don’t add as much some fans may want for the price tag.

Grade: B-

Photo Courtesy Nintendo Everything

Dawn, one of the protagonists of “Brilliant Diamond” and “Shining Pearl.”

Ricky’s Best of 2021 Here are my top movies of the year.

2. “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” - This is an engaging Marvel entry that finds Simu Liu’s Shaun taking on his father Xu Wenwu (Tony Chiu-Wai Leung) in this fastpaced fantasy-actioner. With Awkwafina, Ben Kingsley and Michelle Yeoh.3. “The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun” -- The great and intriguing Wes Anderson directed this comic romantic drama that finds multi-layered crisscrossing tales with a satisfying conclusion.

3. “The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun” - The great and intriguing Wes Anderson directed this comic romantic drama that finds multi-layered crisscrossing tales with a satisfying conclusion.

4. “Stillwater” - Matt Damon portrays a father who travels to France to visit his estranged daughter (Abigail Breslin), who is accused of murdering her girlfriend. Directed by recent Oscar-winner Tom McCarthy (as co-writer of “Spotlight”).

5. “Spencer” - Kristen Stewart will probably be nominated come Oscar season as Lady Diana, who faced quite a few predicaments and scandals in her lifetime that was cut short by a horrific auto crash.

6. “Godzilla vs. Kong” - This all-new adventure featured stars of the previous entry, “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” from 2019 with Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler. This entry is part of the MonsterVerse saga that will be ongoing in future entries. Directed by Adam Wingard.

7. “King Richard” - Expect Will Smith to be nominated come Oscar time as the patriarch of the tennis phenom Williams sisters, Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena (Demi Singleton).

8. “Belfast” - Kenneth Branagh wrote and directs this real-life slice-of-life tale that follows the events that occurred across the pond in Ireland in the mid-1960s. With great performances from the entire cast, especially Caitriona Balfe as Ma. With Oscar-winner Judi Dench and Ciarán Hinds.

9. “Pig” - Believe it or not, Nicolas Cage is very subtle in this tale of a chef who loses his truffle pig. Directed by Michael Sarnoski.

10. “Nightmare Alley” - One of my favorite directors, Guillermo del Toro, tackles this story about a traveling circus and all the oddities that occur within. With Del Toro regular Ron Perlman along with Richard Jenkins, Rooney Mara and Toni Collette. Opens in theaters Dec. 17.

-Ricky Miller

Christmas Edition “Lethal Weapon” (1987) - Richard Donner directed this tale about a suicidal cop played by Mel Gibson teaming up with his complete opposite, Danny Glover, in a tale of high stakes corruption and double crosses galore.

“Die Hard” (1988) - TV actor Bruce Willis segued from the small screen to the silver screen overnight in this tale of Big Apple cop John McClane ( Willis). He takes on baddie Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman). Stars Bonnie Bedelia, William Atherton and Reginald VelJohnson.

A+ “Scrooged” (1988) - Richard Donner directed Bill Murray as a disenchanted TV executive whose network is producing “The Night the Reindeer Died” with Lee Majors. Nifty retelling of the Ebenezer Scrooge tale for modern audiences. With Carol Kane and Karen Allen.

A+ “Arthur Christmas” (2011) - This jovial animated tale comes from Aardman Animations studio, which did the engaging “Shaun the Sheep” movie a couple of years back. With the voices of James McAvoy, Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton and Jim Broadbent.

B

B“The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two” (2020) - This follow-up to the 2018 original finds Kurt Russel’s Santa teaming up with Goldie Hawn’s Mrs. Claus to save the magic of the Yuletide season once again.

-Ricky Miller

B-

RichlandStudentMedia.com

1. “Raya and the Last Dragon” - Disney knocked one out of the park with this tale of young Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), who befriends a cheeky and snide dragon (voiced by Awkwafina).

8

December 7, 2021

s y a

o r f

Media mythology, spooky stories and folk lore

RichlandStudentMedia.com

Hap

py

Ho

lid

S m

t n e d tu

See you next semester!

RichlandStudentMedia.com

Richland Student Media

@RLCStudentMedia

Richland Student Media