Volume 109, Issue 1 by The Stuyvesant Spectator

The Spectator The Stuyvesant High School Newspaper A&E

OPINIONS

Highly Stigmatized, Hardly Recognized

Crazy Rich Asian-ish?

In her article “Highly Stigmatized, Hardly Recognized,” Sophomore Kaylee Yin discusses the social and cultural norms surrounding obesity, advocating for a more accepting and holistic view of this medical condition.

Junior Jevina Wong reviews the summer blockbuster “Crazy Rich Asians” in her article “Crazy Rich Asianish?”

see page 9

Volume 109  No. 1

“The Pulse of the Student Body”

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stuyspec.com

September 7, 2018

Elena Sapelyuk / The Spectator

Eric Contreras Resigns as Principal of Stuyvesant

By MADDY ANDERSEN and ERIN LEE Principal Eric Contreras announced his resignation after two years at Stuyvesant High School on August 27. He will aid in the process of finding an interim acting (IA) principal as his replacement. Once an IA principal is found, Contreras will assume his position as Senior Executive Director of Curriculum, Construction, and Professional Learning at the New York City Department of Education. Contreras’s departure comes at

a controversial time, especially considering the amount of attention the SHSAT and Stuyvesant have been attracting recently. “Since specialized schools are coming under attack, having a principal leave who is in support of the SHSAT is definitely going to draw a lot more attention, not only from students, parents, and administration, but also from news websites or other political figures. I think this is going to become more of a political thing,” Student Union President William Wang said. With rumors circulating, many students are wondering whether or

not it was Contreras’s own choice to leave Stuyvesant. “The fact that he was offered the job at this late of a time—September is a dangerous zone for the DOE to be making changes— [...] I think it was a push more than it was a swim. They knew what he wanted, they offered it to him, he would obviously say yes,” Wang said. “I don’t think it was just coincidence that they offered him this job at this time. I feel like time is a major factor [...] which can tell you how deeply rooted this all has been planned.” Whatever the case for the change in administration, it is likely that the Stuyvesant community will need some time to adjust to the new IA principal. “Change is always difficult, especially since we’ve just changed two APs […] This period of change isn’t blessing anyone. All the parents are especially nervous about it, and I can understand how students are also nervous about it, especially seniors and juniors,” Wang said. For the seniors, the new IA principal will be the third principal they have had while at Stuyvesant. “Last year, he applied to be principal, and he got it. This would have been his first full year as principal. Unfortunately, he moved out of Stuyvesant, which I am proud of him for, but it’s also a weird time for all students,” Wang said. However, Contreras leaves behind many lasting achievements. Contreras was formerly the Executive Director of Social Studies for the New York City Department of Education, where he helped to expand the social studies curriculum. “When Contreras came in, a lot of parents, as well as students and also administration, were uneasy about having a humanities principal come into a STEM school. […] People were worried he was going to cut off STEM programs for humanities, but instead, he learned how to take his humanities expertise [...] and helped out the STEM departments a lot more than people expected. He gave the humanities the same amount of respect. He man-

aged to even it out, and he made Stuyvesant stand out even more in the last few years,” Wang said. Senior Caucus President Amit Narang said, “[Stuyvesant] has always [been] viewed as this one-dimensional STEM school, but [Contreras] brought different perspectives to that.” However, Wang feels that Contreras’s role in the Stuyvesant community extends beyond extending the curriculum. “He clearly did a lot of work on STEM and humanities, but I feel that [...] any principal can make changes to [the] curriculum. Contreras was different. He would always be walking around trying to teach students, even though he wasn’t a teacher himself,” Wang said. “His role in the community is something that cannot be ignored or denied. He was really a special man.” For many students, Contreras was a friendly face in the hallways as well as an effective and helpful administrator. “As principal, Mr. Contreras has gone above and beyond to work with all stakeholders to bring new changes. His active involvement in the school community—his handshakes in the hallways, being at dances and plays, cheering on our teams from the bleachers, and attending other events—has put a smile on many students’ faces,” Sofat said. “He’s not only been a leader or a teacher, but he has also been a friend to all students. [...] He knows [students’] names, he goes to sports events unlike some of the other past administrators,” Wang said. Narang agreed. “You could tell he loved to be a part of the Stuyvesant community, and that was really refreshing for administration,” he said. Contreras also ensured that parents were involved and up to date in the Stuyvesant community, hosting events with the assistant principals such as Breakfast with the Principal. “His Parent Breakfasts have allowed parents to have a forum to voice concerns and ask questions,” Sofat said. In addition, Contreras aided in the execution and function of many

events, projects, and organizations, and worked closely with students. “[Contreras] always takes the best interest in Stuyvesant’s community and [makes] sure that he enriches it to the fullest extent he can,” senior Raunak Chowdhury said. Chowdhury is a cofounder of Pegleg Prep, an organization that aims to improve accessibility of the SHSAT and its resources to socially and economically disadvantaged middle school students. When Contreras caught wind of the idea, he gave his unofficial endorsement and even proposed funding for the website. “It’s a testament to what he thinks what [Stuyvesant] should be: a launchpad, essentially, for any and all ideas that [Stuyvesant] students have,” Chowdhury said. Narang also received support from Contreras for the Career Fair he organized last spring. Contreras provided a conference room and spoke with alumni during the event. “Out of any of the administrators I worked with on a professional capacity or a personal level, he was definitely the most fun and the most helpful to be around,” Narang said. Additionally, Contreras worked closely with the Student Union on projects such as C30s, CitiBike X Stuy, and StuyActivities even when classes were not in session this summer. “He always laid out everything for us, so that we could easily make changes and move along with our project. [...] He has always been responsive, made time to call or meet with me, and came in especially to help us move along with things,” Sofat said. There is no doubt that Contreras is a prominent figure at Stuyvesant that will be missed by the student body. “If you can see the way that Stuyvesant reacted after his announced departure, you can see that a lot of students were disappointed by the fact that he was leaving, but not because they wanted him to stay as principal, but because they wanted him to stay as a friend and a teacher to shape them into better human beings,” Wang said.

New Online Talos System Goes Live at Stuyvesant

By ERIN LEE and JAMIE ZENG

The new Talos website, created by developer Rodda John (‘17) on behalf of the Program Office, went live for Stuyvesant students in the early spring. It was originally launched on March 20 specifically for AP course selections, but was relaunched on April 30 for elective selections. Talos was originally built to replace Datalyst, a system that used to program schedules until it was no longer maintained. Talos has since expanded to cater to other student and faculty needs, such as program changes, document uploads, and internet connection requests. Since its launch, students and staff alike have used Talos for its services. Students mainly use Talos for course selections and programming changes, and many have experienced the advantages as well as the disadvantages of the new system. Junior Alan Bunyatov appreciates the time-saving digital transcript feature that aids students in selecting

classes. “I personally find it really convenient,” Bunyatov said. “Having all your grades available for selecting your electives and APs is a really nice tool.” With the digitalization of transcripts, students, parents, and faculty can now easily monitor student academic progress. A significant function of Talos is its effect on program changes, a tedious and tiring experience as well as a common source of stress for both students and administration. Though in-person program changes are inevitable, Talos’s approval interface will now efficiently address most program changes online. “Hopefully, a lot of the headache is reduced, because I feel like a lot of students spend time running around the building getting approvals from various people,” John said. Though students benefit from the various tools of Talos, they only have access to about 10 percent of the system’s capabilities. Talos programs schedules for the student body, manages AP requests for assistant principals, and allows admin-

istrators to access data efficiently in real time. “The system is not really for the students. It’s going to be helpful for the students, [...] but it’s not saving the students that much time—it’s saving the administrators a lot more time,” John said. Assistant Principal of English Eric Grossman reflected on the increased efficiency that Talos provided during AP course selections in the spring. “[Talos] was really helpful in AP registration. It allowed me to add kids to AP courses, [...] see their selections, filter their choices, and add them without having to do it manually—without getting a printout and going to eSchoolData, looking at transcripts and grade point averages, and then writing down names and handing those names or e-mailing those names to the Program Office,” Grossman said. He believes that Talos will continue to serve Stuyvesant administration and students well in the upcoming school year. “It’s going to help streamline program changes. [... It will] be useful to have one system to serve all of

those needs and functions,” Grossman said. Assistant principals can see a student’s current and previous courses, grade point average, and eligibility for a class all in real time through the site. In addition, they can also apply the grade point limit for AP courses, a requirement that administrators were not able to put in place before. “[The grade point limit] is very unwieldy to enforce if you have no system by which to check it,” John said. Computer Associate Sydney Lindsay has taken advantage of Talos’s capacity to enforce regulations on the entire student body by integrating Argus, a new feature on Talos that guarantees access to school Wi-Fi for all students. Previously, students needed to connect to the school Wi-Fi before first period in order to have access for the rest of the day. Argus now allows each student to connect one device to the Wi-Fi. However, only devices such as laptops and tablets will be permitted. Argus, which was originally cre-

ated by Lindsay as a separate program, was incorporated under Talos in an effort to centralize all of the school’s management systems. “We keep having systems that do little things, [...] but the problem is none of these systems talk to each other, and none of them talk to the DOE,” John said. Talos allows for data to be available in one place instead of scattered among several. “It’s a general centralization of information by a lot of people that will integrate many systems,” John said. Despite the positive feedback that Talos has received, some have issues with certain aspects of the system. Argus does not allow phones to connect to the Wi-Fi, which sophomore Vincent Gao found issue with. “Over 40 percent of the school is on reduced or free lunch, [...] so a lot of people can’t afford tablets or laptops that are the only beneficiaries of the Wi-Fi program,” he said. continued on page 2

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Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and NASA

WORLDBEAT Republican Senator John S. McCain passed away on Saturday, August 25 at the age of 81. He had suffered from a malignant glioblastoma since 2017 and had recently ended his treatment. He was buried on Sunday at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. Authorities have revealed that the suspect in the killing of 20-year-old college student Mollie Tibbetts of Iowa is an undocumented immigrant from Mexico. As a result, Iowa’s Latino communities have been targeted by rising anti-immigrant sentiment. Tibbett’s father is urging people to stop the politicization of his daughter’s death.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Bronx-born member of the Democratic Socialists of America and community organizer, defeated Republican Congressman Joseph Crowley, a 19-year incumbent who had not faced a primary challenger in 14 years.

A head-on boat collision along the California-Arizona border on the Colorado River left two missing and 13 injured. Divers are continuing their search for the two missing people who are now presumed dead. A 19-year-old Afghan citizen allegedly had a terrorist motive for stabbing two Americans at Centraal Station in Amsterdam. The suspect is now in custody and being questioned. The two wounded Americans are expected to make a full recovery.

Argus is not the only Talos service that has received criticism from students. During course selections, students flooded their respective Facebook groups with different technical and individualized concerns. The comments regarded errors students encountered when they tried to fill up their list of seven electives. At one point, the Class of 2021 encountered a minor bug in Talos that caused every student to have Biology and Chemistry Teacher Gilbert Papagayo listed as their chemistry teacher. After enough students noticed the discrepancy, it was quickly resolved. Others, particularly students who have experience with computer science, have criticisms of Talos from a programming standpoint. Reflecting on the developer choices of Talos, senior Raunak Chowdhury said, “The website overall could have been implemented better. […] Talos’s kanban board [...] while I applaud it for its creativity, it’s really not going to be effective overall.” Chowdhury was referring to the kanban board, or drag-anddrop columns, in Talos’s elective selection page, which he found was prone to unintentional resets and inconvenient to maneuver around. As an alternative to how Talos could have executed AP and elective selections, he alluded to the drop-down selections that Google Forms uses. Regarding the development of Talos and the addition of new features such as course requests over the summer, senior Bill Ni

said, “I’m definitely sure that if the CS department had some input, the site would be more organized and the backend data output would be more streamlined towards the Programming Office.” As one of the developers of Talos, John said that he strives “to be responsive with people when they come to me with reasonable [requests for] change. But, I have to make a list of priorities as to what gets accomplished.” With that established, John maintains communication with faculty and students in order to understand how they are using Talos and how to improve the system for future use. Students have ideas for how Talos could further develop as the sole system that Stuyvesant uses. Gao believes that Talos has the potential to become a universal grading platform utilized by all teachers—an idea that many students advocate for, but has never come to fruition. “When we have the opportunity with this new website, I think we should totally seize that,” Gao said. Chowdhury recommends creating an anonymous survey form so users can voice their concerns and suggestions for Talos. “That way, you can get feedback instead of running marketing [or] feedback runs [on Facebook],” Chowdhury said. “Instead, you could just have [the survey form] activated throughout the year so that the website can be adjusted based on what seems to be the problem.” Grossman provided a different perspective on the process of incorporating administrative and student feedback into the development of

Talos. While he and the rest of the Cabinet have already discussed their suggestions for Talos with John, “it doesn’t even feel like a question of suggestion, which is a good thing. [...] Each step of the way, [John]’s asking for our feedback,” Grossman said. While Grossman is satisfied with John’s work and his receptiveness to administrative feedback, he has one concern about the future of Talos.“Hopefully, [John] will be around for a long time to come, but he’s a sophomore in college, and his life could take him in any number of directions,” Grossman said. “If he does go abroad [...] what does that mean for Talos? [We’d need to make] sure it continues to run smoothly.” John has been training the administration to use Talos, which Grossman hopes will help Stuyvesant maintain the website as its central management system in the future. “The best thing that somebody who builds something can do is render themselves superfluous, and not have the success of the system rely solely on their presence of actions, but make sure there’s others who can step in. [...] [John]’s on the road to doing that,” Grossman said. In order to successfully maintain Talos, Rodda John intends to reach out to the Stuyvesant community throughout the school year. “A lot of the problems with the systems already in place is the developers tend not to be in contact with people who are actually using them,” John said. “I’ve been trying to short-circuit that by keeping in contact, talking to them, making sure the system is doing what they want it to do. Let’s see what happens in the first few years.”

Stuyvesant’s Summer of 2018 By JAKOB GORISEK-GAZZE and NEIL SARKAR With the start of a new school year, Stuyvesant students prepare once again to dive into their academic and extracurricular responsibilities, leaving behind the summer of 2018. However, the experiences and the memories of the summer are far from lost. Here’s what some of the student body was up to this busy summer.

Breakdown of Responses by Grade:

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What did you do this summer?

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If you stayed in the city, what did you do?

Did you stay connected with peers?

If you did stay connected, how?

“I was able to shadow several doctors and scrub in on surgeries. The most interesting part was the atmosphere in the OR, how we prepared, how we cleaned up. This one time, I got to choose the music, and I put my playlist on shuffle, and each song that played was explicit, and all the doctors and nurses ended up singing along, even the curses.” —Mashzida Matin, senior “I worked at an archaeology dig at a 1st-2nd Century C.E. Roman village in Israel.” —Jonathan Schneiderman, sophomore “I did an electronics-based project at Cooper Union’s Summer STEM Program. My project was a solar-powered array of lights which grew progressively brighter in dark rooms and dimmer in bright rooms (which saves energy used by the lights).” —Saahir Ganti-Agrawal, senior

“One of the writing prompts I gave [the children I tutored this summer] was to create an invention no one had ever made before. While many of them wrote about teleportation or time travel machines, one created a ninja exoskeleton suit for pandas, equipped with a grenade launcher. His drawing was absolutely adorable, and it made my day.” —Jasveen Wahan “I was studying abroad in Paris this summer and I was there when the World Cup finals were happening. It was a really interesting experience because France’s Independence Day was on July 14, and the World Cup finale when France won was on the day after. On Bastille day (their Independence day) there was a parade on Champs Élysées, which is a really large street leading up to the Arc de Triomphe. [...] On the Eiffel Tower, there were also animations to accompany the music playing. They told stories [...] using dancing. After the fireworks show was over, the animation changed to some text that said, “Allez Les Bleus,” which translates into: “Go The Blues.” Les Bleus is what their soccer team was called, and it was referring to tomorrow’s World Cup finale. Immediately everyone started chanting along, “Allez Les Bleus! Allez Les Bleus!” The streets were filled with people, and so was the metro; we ended up getting home at 2:00 a.m. that day.” —Abir Taheer, sophomore

Locations Where Stuyvesant Students Traveled this Summer: • Athens, Greece • Crete, Greece • Paris, France • Boston, Massachusetts, USA • Pennsylvania, USA • England, UK • Wales, UK • Utah, USA • Ithaca, New York, USA • Taiwan, China • Oslo, Norway • Mexico • South Korea • Austin, Texas, USA • St. Louis, Missouri, USA • Australia • Minnesota, USA • Poland • Germany • Vienna, Austria • Holland • Ljubljana, Slovenia • Israel • Huntsville, Alabama • Dover, Delaware • India • Washington D.C., USA • Swiss Alps • China

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Features From Stuyvesant Student to Dear Class of 2022, The SOPHOMORES Have Advice! By KAELIANA YU

Find a support system! High school’s just generally an emotionally charged time, and everyone’s hormonal and sad, so it’s always important to have friends that you know can support you. —Jasveen Wahan Buy Muji notebooks; those are super skinny. —Palak Srivastava This is super generic and everyone says it, but seriously manage your time. In the beginning it’s so hard to get to sleep late if you aren’t used to it. So, if you have a lot of homework and you’re adding on extracurriculars, you really need to learn how to make sure you are performing the best that you can in every way. That way, you won’t just walk through the whole day like a zombie because that’s what I did during [last year’s musical], “1776” before I learned how to balance everything. —Emily Gillies

Join a sports team or a club or something that makes you happy in the stressful environment that you will have to deal with. Don’t stress yourself based on grades of other people around you, because you can always ask for help and improve; sometimes [grades] may also be due to the teachers you have. —Suhani Agrawal I wish I knew not to make toxic friends. I also should have used ARISTA. —Abdullah Alam Work on your time management! That’s the best way to not have to pull allnighters, besides not taking AP Human Geography. —Bryce Lin If a friendship is toxic, drop it. Don’t desperately try to fix it. You don’t have time for that stress. Find people that make you happy for who you are. —Nozima Nurullaeva ADVERTISEMENTS

I wish I knew not to care about what other people thought, [and] not to let other people’s opinions affect me. —Claire Shin I wish I knew sooner how nice the teachers can be. They do not have anything against you. They’re just doing their job. Try your hardest! —Jessica Kim

I wish I used Quizlet more. Generally, just quizzing as a study method is super effective, so I wish I studied like that from the beginning. —Brianna Leung

Find something enjoyable to do in your free time and find nice people to hang out with. Don’t stress too much and just try your best. Grades aren’t everything and just try to have a good time. —Anna Moiseieva

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Features What Did You Do This Summer? By THE FEATURES DEPARTMENT This past summer might’ve followed the routine of attending prep school, volunteering, and working. But looking at another definition of summer has allowed us to learn what Stuyvesant students do outside the routine. We interviewed only a number of students but garnered responses that create a vibrant collage of the summer of 2018.

Phoenix Zhang, senior Japan, studying abroad

Victoria Wong, junior Paris

I’m so glad I decided to study abroad for a month this summer in Tokyo with CIEE. We stayed at a campus-like center right next to Yoyogi Park and had Japanese classes at the center. We usually had classes in the morning so that we could use the rest of the afternoon to use what we learned in class in the community. On most days, we would have planned activities such as taiko drumming or a tea ceremony. On other days, we would have the afternoon free to ourselves. We could take the train anywhere as long as we were in groups of at least three people and back by 8:00 p.m. On those days, I often went to Harajuku, Shinjuku, and Akihabara with my friends. We didn’t have classes on Sundays so some of my friends even decided to visit Tokyo Disney Sea! Unfortunately, we were only able to stay with a homestay family for a weekend, but it was an extremely fun experience. I was able to learn a lot about Japanese families. Toward the end of the program, we left Tokyo and went on an excursion to Tohoku for four days and three nights. We visited several places but the most memorable place for me was Rikuzentakata in Iwate. The city was severely damaged by the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011. There aren’t many natural disasters here in New York so being able to see how much damage can be caused was breathtaking. Studying abroad in Tokyo with CIEE was such a valuable experience, and I would highly recommend it to anyone thinking of studying abroad!

Yaru Luo, junior Quebec

I went to Paris for a little over a week in early August. On our first day there, my cousin and I climbed the 700-something steps to the top of the Eiffel Tower, which was really tiring but fun and also cheaper than buying elevator tickets. We also went to a chapel called the Sainte-Chapelle. The stained glass windows there were so beautiful, especially since the summer sun was filtering through them. I went to the Catacombs too, which are part of an underground tunnel system where the bones of dead people have been held and arranged. It was probably the most morbid thing I saw in Paris, but it was interesting. On our last day in France, my family and I drove from Paris to Versailles and toured the Palace and Gardens of Versailles. The Palace is really stunning and luxurious, and the Gardens are filled with pretty flowers and fountain shows.

Ian Fried, junior Vermont

I went to Montréal, Quebec, a downtown urban area similar to New York City, except that the train is much cleaner and faster, and that there’s a mountain in the middle of the city. The mountain is called Mont-Royal, and the view is so stunning that I hiked to the top once in the daylight and once after sunset. I also went to the Montreal Botanical Garden and the Notre-Dame basilica. I learned that the basilica is not a cathedral because the bishop was allegedly kicked out when it was built. I was recommended this lunch place called Burger Royal, where I tried some delicious poutine. The most amazing part was when I simply went outside and just walked for hours down Saint Catherine’s street; there was a pride festival with rainbow balloons and satirical art everywhere. There’s so much wall art all over Montreal that I was able to watch some street artists at work on one block. I stayed in an Airbnb and was really lucky to have met some super kind people who were my neighbors. Canadians really lived up to their reputation for being kind.

I went to the Stellafane Astronomy Convention in Vermont and took a trip to Bermuda. The astronomy convention is held in Springfield, Vermont and it is a dark sky site. People from around the country come to build telescopes and discuss astronomy with one another and to spend the nights looking up at the Milky Way. [I visited] Crystal Cave, [which] is a cave with many crystals. The cave was mostly filled with beige stalactites and a large underground pool that feeds into the ocean. I also helped host public stargazing at the Highline and other parks around the city. The most notable person I met at Stellafane was a systems engineer named Mark Sproul, who worked on the Arduino Project source code and was a former professor at Rutgers University. I had the chance to talk to him over the course of four days. He was really smart, and he taught me a lot about how computers generate sounds, mainly those of musical instruments.

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Jenny Chong, senior Rome, Italy

Kayla Lew, senior Seville, Spain

In July, I went on a three-week study abroad program in Rome, Italy to learn about art and history. Prior to this program, I had never been outside of the United States, let alone gone on an airplane, so this was a whole new experience for me. The program that I participated in, called Exploring Rome Through the Arts, dealt more with hands-on activities and excursions than with in-class learning. While we did have multiple basic Italian language and Roman history lessons in a classroom setting, we primarily experienced Roman culture by visiting famous landmarks, making our own pizza and pasta, and learning how to sing Italian pop songs, dance the Tarantella, and create mosaics and frescoes. We would have a professor give us lectures while we toured museums and historic monuments like the Vatican Museums, the Colosseum, and the Uffizi in Florence. On other days, the 19 of us high school students would roam the streets with just our two program leaders to get a taste of gelato, relax by a pool or a park, and shop at piazzas. One of my favorite activities was climbing St. Peter’s Dome, which has a total of 551 steps. Climbing up was the hardest part, but the view overlooking the Eternal City was well worth the exercise. Spending three weeks with complete strangers sounded pretty scary at first, but soon enough, I was able to make 18 new friends. We slept in a hostel only a few blocks away from Vatican City where the Pope lives, and I had an unforgettable time dorming there. I became good friends with all of my peers, many of whom I still keep in touch with. Though this trip did have its ups and downs, like the time I got an allergic reaction to five mosquito bites and had to go to the hospital, or when my luggage was delayed for a week, I managed to do something that I had never thought I would have. These three weeks abroad made this summer the best I ever had, and I hope this won’t be the last time I study abroad.

Ever since I was in middle school, I had dreams of studying abroad. I believe studying abroad is a valuable experience that allows one to grow as a person. Though I thought living somewhere out of the U.S. and far away from my family would be challenging, I knew such an opportunity would be academically, culturally, and personally fulfilling, as it would push me out of my cultural comfort zone and motivate me to explore and appreciate. I finally decided to apply during my junior year to CIEE’s High School Study Abroad Program: Language and Culture in Seville, Spain. When I learned I was accepted and even received a scholarship, I was extremely excited. I would spend four weeks living with a host family in Seville, immersing myself in the Spanish culture, improving my Spanish speaking skills, and meeting incredible peers from around the U.S. A typical day included eating breakfast with my family, going on excursions with the program leaders, eating tapas for lunch, taking a siesta (nap), going to three-hour Spanish class, and wrapping up the night with dinner with my family. After this experience, I can say I’ve definitely gained many perspectives on the Spanish culture and even on life. I’ve visited beautiful attractions, interacted with many locals, and developed strong relationships with my peers, teachers, and host family. Academically, it was very challenging but very worth it. We were advised to speak Spanish basically 24/7, and even after studying Spanish for five years, it was difficult to communicate. I often couldn’t understand what my host family said and couldn’t speak to them without formulating the sentence in my head, hoping it would turn out grammatically correct. However, I eventually realized that this is all part of the learning experience. Studying abroad really allowed me to try incredible things that I wouldn’t be able to experience at home, and I am so grateful I was able to participate in the program.

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Chris Boodram, junior Greece This summer I went to Greece with a tour group. We started in Athens where we went to the acropolis and viewed the Parthenon, a temple dedicated to Athena. It had a very nice view of the hills on one side of the city and then the water on the other side. Throughout the week that I spent there, the most interesting part of the trip was going to the Olympia, where the Olympics originated and got its name from. It was really amazing to just walk through the ruins of places where star athletes of the time lived and trained, and to stop and think that people back then could accomplish such great physical feats. It also represented the coming together of city-states sponsoring their own athletes, and though it may not have been as cosmopolitan and inclusive as we would like, it was these initial attempts at unity, sportsmanship, and ethic that we praise to this day. Walking around some lame ruins doesn’t really give you that much insight into what it took to be an Olympic athlete back then, but running back and forth across the same field they did really does. I don’t consider myself particularly athletic, but I’m no slouch when it comes to athleticism, and let me say running back and forth across that field made me sweat 10 times more than the 95+ degree weather did. The landscape is very hilly, typical of Greece, a common factor mentioned as to why Greece was inclined toward city-states in ancient times. There were also lots of olive tree groves. The food was okay—my favorite dish was definitely the gyros (either the pork or chicken variation) where they put the fries inside, with tomato and lettuce as well as a yogurt sauce; it tastes amazing, but aside from that, there was some monotony in the food options and the food didn’t really suit my palate. An underappreciated part of Europe is its superior soda, being that they have more restrictions; it has actual sugar, and bottled Coke is more popular there so the soda is high quality.

Michelle Lai, senior Seattle

Caroline Magoc, junior Crete, Amsterdam, Slovakia

No planes were stolen when I arrived at Sea-Tac Airport earlier this summer. This was my first time on the West Coast, and it was probably one of the most relaxing vacations I’ve ever had. My family and I visited the Space Needle, the infamous tower shown in nearly every iCarly episode, and it was here that my parents yelled at me for leaning against the glass walls located 605 feet above ground. Seattle is known for its coffee, and I decided that waiting in line for 45 minutes to order a grande iced “whatever” macchiato at the very first Starbucks would be worth it—it was. That Starbucks was located in Pike Place Market, a crowded area full of fresh seafood and cheap bookstores. I left a piece of chewed gum on the Gum Wall in a nearby alley, which was filled with tourists doing the same. The Chinatown there was uncrowded, quiet, and clean compared to the one in New York City, but the dim sum and boba proved to be of equal affordability and deliciousness. Perhaps the best part was just sitting on a ferris wheel and watching the sunset from the highest point as my dad tried to assuage his fear of heights.

This year, I was afforded one of the few privileges a divorced family obtains: not one, but two summer vacations—they couldn’t have been more different. With my mom, her boyfriend, and my sister-in-law, we had each day planned out: eight days in Crete, four days in Amsterdam. Each day featured a new activity, a new location in Amsterdam. I went to three museums: the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, and Rembrandt’s House. After visiting, I became curious; I wanted to know more about the art, the techniques, and the artists. Similarly, hiking and snorkeling in Crete made me eager for more adventure. With my dad, I experienced a different kind of curiosity, a different sense of adventure. After nine hours of flying, two bus transfers, and a train ride, I ended up in Žilina, Slovakia, the city where he grew up. I met my grandmother, who I hadn’t seen for six years. I visited family members, attended a wedding, and most importantly, found some embarrassing pictures of my dad as a teenager. Though my dad and I constantly argue today, I couldn’t help but be intrigued by who he once was. It was just as much of an adventure talking to my grandmother, trying to get my message across in a broken Slovak, as it was hiking gorges and discovering obscure networks.

Category

Letter Grade

Comments

Student Relations (Do we like him?)

Students appreciated his kindness and personability despite his somewhat political affect. Students appreciated that he took time out of his schedule to develop relationships with them by making an effort to remember their names and who they were. He was also omnipresent at student activities, from making speeches to just coming to participate. One of the most memorable instances was his actions during the walkouts. He was very supportive, excusing our absences from classes and being emotionally present for students during a rough time. We are unable to come to a conclusion about his handling of the SHSAT situation as he wasn’t very public with the students about how he was dealing with it or what his opinions were.

Politics (Was he a smooth operator? Did he handle rough situations well? What about the SHSAT?)

New Initiatives

Human Resources (Hiring/Firing)

A+

A-

He did a lot of work to expand the humanities, music, and arts programs (balancing out the values of recent principals). He also worked very closely with the Student Union this summer on multiple projects like StuyActivities and CitiBikexStuy. I’ve only been at Stuyvesant for a year, but it seems like the transitions in APs have all been very smooth and well thought out. Note: A lot of students have had some rough transitions between counselors or have had to change counselors an unreasonable amount of times in the last three years. *However, this should not be counted against Contreras because the DOE hiring freeze on non-DOE counselors has made counselor-hiring very difficult in recent years (The Spectator will cover this in more detail in coming issues).

Student Accomodations (How well did he accomodate the needs and requests of the student body?) Transparency (Was he a shady character?)

A+

He was open to students’ input and supportive of their ideas and wishes. Some students report that he provided funding, extra time, and space. The Student Union also said that he helped walk them through different procedures like C30s, and he often responded to their messages right away. We predict that had his time at Stuyvesant been longer, we would’ve seen and experienced more transparency. His door was always open, and it was a lot easier to reach out to him about a new policy or plan compared to Principal Jiang. He was friendly, open to conversation, and seemed genuinely happy and interested in his work at Stuyvesant. As for The Spectator, he was the most accommodating to our frequent requests for interviews. We hope that future principals continue to be open, genuine, and interested in student input.

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Arts & En t e r t a i nm e n t Ed i to rs

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

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Opinions Highly Stigmatized, Hardly Recognized By Kaylee Yin Growing up living several 100 miles away from the rest of my family for years, I can recall the scents permeating the houses of my relatives when I came to visit. I can remember the smell of traditional Cambodian food stinking up the house as my baby cousins chased each other until they fell to the ground and karaoke music blasting through the windows, loud enough for me to know which house was my family’s when I was a block away. But more importantly, I can vividly remember the horror on my aunts’ faces as they commented on the amount of weight that I had gained since the last time I visited them. From a young age, fat people are made to feel ashamed of their bodies. And unlike most other highly stigmatized conditions, such as depression, where the manifestations are capable of being concealed or are, by natural means, invisible, people who are fat have to physically exhibit their fatness, often leading to greater criticism and stereotyping.

Obesity in Eastern Asian Countries America devotes a substantial amount of time and anxiety toward the topic of fatness, whether it be legitimate or imaginary. Throughout our lives, we have been exposed to a plethora of facts and statistics on obesity and ways to prevent and treat the disease. We have seen countless advertisements on social media and even the subway, featuring the latest diet teas or trending workout programs promising to make us feel slimmer and hypothetically healthier and happier in order to benefit companies who are looking to make money from people’s insecurities. We have been taught that being even slightly fat is unideal and ugly, while simultaneously learning that the word itself is shaded with such a negative connotation that it can be used as an insult. And in many countries today, particularly in eastern Asia, being fat is even considered a sin and the difference between being unattractive and beautiful. Being slim, as opposed to being fat, in eastern Asian countries is a social norm and means of acceptance, and in some instances, it may even be recognized as an obsession. For example, in recent years, there have been various viral challenges in China pertaining to determining whether or not one is skinny enough to be approved by society. Such a fad includes the “belly button challenge,” which requires one to stretch their right arm across their back so that it goes around the waist and reaches the navel in the front. Despite the fact that this challenge is largely dependent on one’s flexibility and arm length, many Chinese people still choose to believe that a woman who is unable to accomplish the task must be fat and should lose weight. It is misinterpretation and infatuation like this that perpetuates the negative outlook on fat people, extending the definition of “fat” to the point where people who simply aren’t emaciated are associated with the matter. In fact, Cambridge University Press published an article on a study done in February that focused on determining the impact that exposure to images of thin people had on women’s body image. As predicted, the results concluded that the women who were exposed to pictures of skinny people had lower weight satisfaction and higher self-objectification as a result. Another challenge that has gone viral in China is the “A4 waist challenge.” Similar to the belly button challenge, women, and sometimes men, attempt to completely hide their waists behind a vertically-held A4 piece of paper, which is roughly the size of a sheet of American letter paper. Though some are successful, the challenge sets a frightening standard for waist size. According to The New York Times, tripling the width of the paper to approximately 25 inches

so that it measures the average circumference of women’s waists in China still leaves the waist to be 10 inches smaller than that of an average American woman. In spite of the ludicrous expectation of an A4 waist, people have only continued to maintain the popularity of the fad, with even People’s Daily, the flagship newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, dubbing it as a “fitness challenge.” Much of the fascination with being skinny in China comes from a socially constructed notion that being thinner is more attractive. This concept derives from a long history that dates back to King Ling of Chu, the emperor of the Zhou dynasty from 540 to 529 B.C. During his rule, many women participated in waist-cinching and eventually starved to death in an attempt to appeal to King Ling because of his predilection for small waists. And while the desire to be skinny in China is not solely because of a king’s fixation on female bodies from over two millennia ago, the impact that King Ling left continues today. In a country where “Have you eaten yet?” is used as an everyday greeting, it may seem striking that there has been a rise in eating disorders for the past decade in that very region. However, that is just the case with China. A group of medical professors and university counselors conducted a survey in 2013 to establish the prevalence of eating disorders among female university students in Wuhan, the capital of China’s Hubei province. The study revealed that the illness, which has been stereotyped to only occur in white female teenagers, was almost as widespread as it was in western countries. Despite the levels of eating disorders surging across China, the recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of the illness continue to lag behind. When asked about whether or not there are sufficient services for those with eating disorders, Li Xueni, director of the Eating Disorder Center’s inpatient unit at Peking University Sixth Hospital, responded, “Are there enough treatment centers? Of course not.” And according to The Los Angeles Times, the hospital opened the nation’s first closed ward dedicated solely to eating disorders just seven years ago. Because they don’t have the necessary resources, it is hard to institute another facility at the hospital, leaving the ward to be the only one of its kind in China. Before the 1990s, eating disorders were seldom studied or even spoken of in the east Asian region. However, with modernization and the increasing infatuation over being slim, people are willing to undertake self-destructive approaches in order to lose weight. For many Asians, the incentive for obsessive weight loss is more often inspired by the high standards held by society than it is by the desire for a healthier lifestyle. In fact, many Asians feel constantly obligated to lose more weight when they are already within their healthy weight range. For instance, in South Korea it is not rare to find people who may skip meals or do extreme dieting in order to reach a certain weight. Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted an online study in 2014 and found that 45.1 percent of teenage girls and 23.1 percent of boys tried dieting, with some 18.8 percent of girls even purchasing weight-loss medication and laxatives. Though many Koreans are naturally thin due to a healthy lifestyle, consisting of mainly low calorie and nutritionally dense foods

Anika Hashem / The Spectator

Obesity as a Medical Disease The American Medical Association (AMA) declared obesity, the medical term for having a BMI of at least 30, a disease in 2013. Well-intentioned at first, the goal of the AMA’s proclamation was to categorize obesity as a medical condition in order to bring about more attention to the issue and to induce more insurers to help with costs for treatment of the disease. However, obesity, and fatness in general, have only received more negative appraisal ever since, with councilmembers from the Food and Drug Administration even stating that making obesity a disease could worsen the stigma around being overweight and result in some patients constantly being nagged about their weight, even if they were already healthy or had lost enough weight to better their health. In comparison to patients who suffer from other diseases, such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease, obese people aren’t sent get-wellsoon cards, given flowers, or kept in people’s prayers. Instead, they are ridiculed. They are stereotyped as lazy and sloppy, often seen as unattractive and lacking willpower. Health Education Research, an academic journal published by Oxford University Press, conducted a study in 2000 that examined whether altering children’s assumptions about the controllability of obesity would reduce their negative outlooks toward fat people. The investigation found that while children’s presumptions about the controllability of obesity are capable of being changed, reducing their negative stereotyping of obese people is not as easy. People often believe that being fat or obese is simply a matter of self-control, which is what distinguishes stereotyping of fatness and obesity from the stereotyping of other diseases and physical features. Different physical attributes, such as height and race, and illnesses, like allergies, are all incapable of being altered by the individual. On the other hand, many people perceive fatness as a direct result of the individual’s choices, resulting in it becoming looked down upon. However, it is a misconception that fatness is directly related to a person’s decisions. According to the World Health Organization, being fat is reflective of various and many circumstances from the mo-

ment children are conceived, born, and raised. Such circumstances include environmental, cultural, lifestyle, and nutritional factors as well as genetics, age, gender, other medical issues, and so on. Nearly every aspect of life is capable of having an impact on whether or not a person is fat. And while stereotypical factors, such as a high caloric intake combined with a low amount of exercise, do play a role in fatness, it cannot be forgotten that there is a list of other factors that can explain why a person may be a certain size—not just mere laziness and overeating.

combined with regular exercise, that does not prevent them from wanting to be even skinnier. Especially with the rising popularity of Korean pop in both South Korea and western countries, many Korean natives are often inspired by their favorite idols, who are almost always slim. However, many Korean idols have been able to achieve their current bodies through unhealthy methods, and some are even several pounds underweight consequently. Korean boy group BIGBANG’s T.O.P is well-known for the outcome of his dramatic weight loss through extreme dieting. Prior to his debut with his group, T.O.P weighed just over 90 kilograms. But after auditioning for YG Entertainment, YG’s founder, Yang Hyunsuk, told him that he weighed too much to be an idol. However, Yang promised T.O.P that he could debut if he lost weight, which motivated him to lose 22 kilograms (approximately 44 pounds) in just 40 days by drinking water and eating only unsweetened jelly. Though T.O.P only extreme dieted once, many other Korean celebrities will constantly go in and out of the process. Jimin, a member of the boy group BTS, is quoted as viewing himself as ugly because he is “fat.” When Jimin appeared on JTBC’s TV program Please Take Care of My Refrigerator, he said that “I came to think that I want to become handsome while looking at the mirror during ‘Blood Sweat & Tears’ practice.” He then revealed, “So then I went on a diet; eating only one meal a day for 10 days.” No matter how intense his dieting was, however, he always continued with it, motivated by his desire to become handsome. In BTS’s WINGS Concept Book,

Jimin also disclosed that he often passed out during dance rehearsals as a result of his severe dieting. Strict beauty standards in Asia have become so serious that beyond extreme dieting, blatant work discrimination exists in some places. Many Asian employers demand their employees to meet a certain beauty criteria, which almost always calls for the worker to be within a certain weight range. For instance, China Southern Airlines, which is one of China’s leading carriers, requires that women who are looking to work as a flight attendant must have straight legs and fit within a restricted weight-to-height ratio. Obesity in America In spite of the immense pressure placed on beauty in Asia with weight being especially emphasized, western countries have been much more accepting of fat people in recent years. Ashley Graham made history in 2016 when she became the first plus-sized model to be featured on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Vogue even gave Graham the title of “2016’s Breakout Supermodel,” with her accomplishment shattering the boundaries of a beauty world once dominated by size zeros and skinny jeans. Ivan Bart, president of IMG Models, said that “[Graham] has challenged not only the fashion and modeling industry but also the nuances of what acceptance of beauty means in our culture today.” And with an increase in the number of plus-sized models being embraced across various social media platforms and fashion campaigns, it is clear why Bart has chosen to praise Graham.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Opinions Highly Stigmatized, Hardly Recognized continued from page 9 When asked to think about some of the most famous stars in pop culture today, people tend to think of celebrities like Nicki Minaj and Kim Kardashian, who have managed to make a large portion of their popularity and image revolve around their enviable bigger bodies. Through subtle changes like this, Americans are gradually making progress toward a more acceptable and diverse society. However, the progress that America has made cannot mask the progress that it has yet to make. According to Time Magazine, it is currently legal in 49 states to fire an employee solely based on how much they weigh. Though some cities, such as San Francisco

and Binghamton, have passed legislation that allows for the prosecution of employers who discriminate based on weight, the only official state that has a definite law doing so is Michigan. Federal law prohibits people from being dismissed on several bases, including race, age, gender, religion, natural origin, and ability. These laws do not acknowledge fat people, despite there being past studies showing explicit work discrimination against those who are fat. Vanderbilt University conducted an investigation in 2014 and found that across various industries, overweight women were paid less than their male coworkers. In addition, in 2008, researchers at Yale University found that 10 percent of women and five percent of men experienced weight bias with some people even being rejected from getting a job as a result. Much of the lack of recognition of the weight bias that is so preva-

lent in America is a consequence of the issue being so socially stigmatized yet formally unrecognized. Not many people tend to think about fatness as a topic surrounded by stigma, and in 2016, an investigation published by the Journal of Health Psychology found that stigmatization of obese women has dramatically increased in the last two decades compared to what was previously thought. Past research revealed that people typically only experience negative weight-related stigmatization several times in their lives. However, the study showed that in a single week, 50 women experienced a total of 1077 stigmatizing experiences—an average of three a day per woman. Fat people are stigmatized partially because there are various health problems linked to being extremely fat, such as high blood pressure and heart disease. However, it isn’t necessary for society

to consistently comment about the matter. Simply telling people that there is an issue with being fat and ridiculing those who are fat does not do anything productive. Rather, it exacerbates the problem and fuels the stigma surrounding fatness, inducing fat people to become more self-conscious, unmotivated, and anxious. In fact, a 2017 study done by the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity showed that weight teasing and bullying in adolescence resulted in higher BMIs 15 years later and dangerous behaviors like induced vomiting. Changing Our Perceptions Though we’ve made some advances in terms of accepting fat people, we still have a long way to go before completely erasing the issue. We have only managed to mitigate the problem in a limited number of ways, but it is time to begin eradicating the issue from its very

roots. Beauty is socially constructed, and we can take steps toward altering the unreasonable standards that have been created. One way to create change is by discrediting the origins of stigma. For instance, microaggressions, such as saying things like “Do I look fat in this?” and allowing for the A4 Waist Challenge to go viral, are exactly what have stigmatized fat to the point it is today. We have to stop letting things like these just pass us by without saying anything about them. It may be hard to completely change our mindsets because we have been taught to look at society through the lenses of the culture in which we have grown up in, but it is not impossible. Being considered fat is an attribute that is hard to love about one’s self, but no fat person is entitled to lose weight or be ashamed of themselves.

The Steadfast Sex Struggle of STEM By Kristin Cheng Amid tax cuts and deregulation, business is booming—America’s GDP is growing rapidly and its unemployment is at an all-time low. Yet Trump’s long-simmering trade war threatens to erase these gains as tariffs continue to escalate, threatening higher prices and more market uncertainty. Amid these concerns, it’s easy to lose sight of an even more insidious threat—China’s effort to gain control over U.S. companies and citizens. China’s one weapon in this battle is its control over the world’s third largest market, after the U.S. and the European Union. As American companies have seen slowing growth in existing markets, they’ve hoped to foster growth by embracing previously neglected regions. China, with its rapidly developing economy and billion-strong population, has been the main target. But for Western companies, business in China comes with strings attached; the Chinese government leverages its power to bend companies and even governments to its wishes. Apple, for example, was only able to sell iPhones by censoring references to Taiwan, which China considers its territory. It was even forced to remove the island nation’s flag emoji from iPhone keyboards. Those concessions enforced China’s control over its citizens, who end up seeing that even foreign products are consistent with their government’s ideological positions. Companies refusing to comply with Chinese censorship have been forced to cede ground to Chinese rivals. Google left the country in 2010 rather than censor its search engine to comply with the Chinese government. However, that allowed Chinese search engine rival Baidu to gain dominance to the point that most Chinese consumers were unaware

of foreign competition. Facebook was similarly banned and lost dominance due to its failure to curb Xinjiang independence advocates’ discussions. On a broader scale, China has censored or blocked the majority of Western services through its “Great Firewall,” allowing it to control information but also encourage the growth of Chinese companies at the expense of American ones. Despite Google’s and Facebook’s previous refusals to do business in China, both have since been trying to regain influence in the country in an effort to regain access to China’s rapidly growing economy. Google has been working on a censored version of its search engine and has opened a self-driving car subsidiary as well as an artificial intelligence research center in Beijing. Facebook also attempted to open a subsidiary, which Chinese officials briefly approved. But only an hour later, they rescinded that approval, a sign of the tight control the Chinese government is maintaining. That control is only increasing as China attempts to grow its technology and advanced manufacturing industries. Currently, the bulk of Chinese manufacturing consists of consumer goods, including clothing and consumer electronics. But the design and production of more complex products have remained centered in Western countries. China has aimed to develop its own competition through traditional measures like protective tariffs and heavy subsidies for domestic com-

panies. However, it has also used its economic control to effectively force Western companies to give up technology and intellectual property at their own expense. In certain sectors, Western companies are forced to form International Joint Ventures (IJVs), in which

forcement of existing protections, the status quo still favors Chinese corporations. Increasingly, China is also using its trading clout to increase its geopolitical control. China has used its economic pull to force Pacific Island nations to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The nation of Palau benefited from heavy Chinese investment, but due to its continued backing of Taiwan, China banned all tourism to the island. That meant a loss of half of its tourists, and with them, a major revenue source.

Michael Hu / The Spectator

they pair up with local companies in order to do business. For that arrangement to work effectively, the foreign company will often need to share trade secrets. In a country with weak copyright and patent protection, that leads foreign companies to risk losing control of their most valuable assets. In fact, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer estimates that U.S. companies lost about $50 billion to China due to intellectual theft. And while the Chinese government is attempting to address some weaknesses in its en-

Through these hardline tactics, China aims to slowly erase Taiwan’s very existence. In a similar vein, China banned most tourism to South Korea after it installed a U.S.-developed Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) nuclear missile defense system. China considers such systems a threat to its geopolitical goals, as they weaken its nuclear capabilities. However, China’s tourism ban had such a harsh economic effect on South Korea that it was forced to agree that it will not deploy further missile defense systems, will

not join a region-wide U.S. missile defense system, and will not form a joint military alliance with the U.S. and Japan. China has already weaponized its trade to the point where it can neuter other countries’ abilities to defend themselves and counter China’s growing military power. In its race to supplant the U.S. as the world superpower, China has been weaponizing its growing economic power to gain control. While the U.S. has remained committed to offering freedom to foreign corporations and has maintained a level playing field between foreign and domestic companies, China has tilted it to benefit its own domestic companies. Trump’s trade war attempts to turn China’s own weapon around back on China. With a booming American economy less dependent on China than China is on America, the Trump administration has chosen a prime time to try and force China to play fair in the global economy. However, Trump’s effort is drastically weakened by his antagonism toward U.S. allies worldwide. European and Asian countries are similarly hurt by China’s aggressive trade tactics, but threatened tariffs by Trump make them unlikely to join the U.S. in the trade war against China. And Trump’s indifference to the World Trade Organization, which aims to uphold free trade, delegitimizes his efforts. These weaknesses will potentially allow China to shift its business to our allies, undercutting our economy and allowing China to continue its anti-competitive practices. Instead, the U.S. should strengthen its hand by embracing its allies and working together to reign in China.

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

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Opinions The Case Against Kavanaugh By Jonathan Schneiderman After Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement, President Donald Trump nominated U.S. Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh to fill his seat. Given Trump’s history of making unqualified and otherwise bad nominations, this news was received very well by the legal community. Legal scholars and journalists have written a barrage of articles praising Kavanaugh’s nomination and defending him against criticism, often from liberal journalists. Kavanaugh’s standing in the legal community is well-earned. A New York Times Op-Ed by Yale professor Akhil Amar lays out the best arguments for Kavanaugh: he’s a legal giant, as an appellate judge whose reasonings have repeatedly been adopted by the Supreme Court, and he’s a serious scholar, engaging intensely with the legal academic community through teaching and writing for law reviews. Amar, who taught Kavanaugh, writes that “he is an avid consumer of legal scholarship. He reads and learns. And he reads scholars from across the political spectrum.” The legal community’s choice to defend Kavanaugh is correct―as a potential Supreme Court Justice, he’s a fantastic conservative pick. He would consistently rule in favor of conservative results because he would genuinely believe those results were the lawful and constitutional ones. Of the current Justices on the court, he’d probably most resemble Chief Justice John Roberts, a reliable conservative vote who crossed political ideological lines in 2012 to uphold Obamacare and whose conservative opinions are grounded in nonpolitical, thoroughly legal reasoning. The Supreme Court could use more Justice Roberts. While the left may not like the way he votes, he brings to the court a nonpartisan dignity and genuinely legalistic philosophy. Kavanaugh would likely be another Roberts.

mune from the law—which is especially concerning to these critics in light of Trump’s presidency. These concerns are misguided. In addition to the fact that Kavanaugh appears to be, at least based on a report from the Hill, walking back his earlier position on immunity, that earlier position was not a constitutional one. The 2009 Minnesota Law Review article by Kavanaugh that has attracted unease argues not that the President is constitutionally immune from criminal investigation and civil lawsuits, but that given how difficult the President’s job is, Congress should pass a statute temporarily protecting the President from the law until the end of their administration—that’s it. It was a policy suggestion, not a judicial theory. Given that Congress has not passed a statute granting blanket temporary immunity to the President, there is no reason to believe that Kavanaugh would rule in favor of such immunity. Some have attempted to paint Kavanaugh as a hypocrite for taking this position nine years after having played a substantial role in Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr’s investigation of President Bill Clinton. But Kavanaugh is not a hypocrite; he’s someone who had a change in opinion following an experience. Kavanaugh wrote in that 2009 article, “This is not something I necessarily thought in the 1980s or 1990s. Like many Americans at that time, I believed that the President should be required to shoulder the same obligations that we all carry. But in retrospect, that seems a mistake.” He wrote that his opinion had changed after he spent time serving in the Bush Administration and personally saw how difficult the President’s job was. Let’s be very clear: people who hold an opinion, see evidence against that opinion, and openly change their minds are not hypocrites. They are intellectually honest people who reject the sort of zealotry under which evidence that is contrary to one’s worldview is rejected out of hand. And we should ab-

Kennedy “would never accept absolute presidential discretion to declare a U.S. citizen an enemy and lock him up without giving him an opportunity to be represented and heard.” A Justice Department investigation, however, found no grounds for criminal prosecution (Kavanaugh was under oath, so he would have perjured himself had he lied). Given that said investigation was from the Bush Administration, though, some have expressed doubt, including Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), who plans to question Kavanaugh about it during his confirmation hearing. This could become a serious problem with Kavanaugh, but it’s not as of now. Other criticisms of Kavanaugh focus on what the results of his jurisprudence as a Justice would be. The most prominent of these criticisms focus on abortion and gun control. On abortion, Senate Democrats have characterized Kavanaugh as a hardliner who would overturn Roe v. Wade the minute he is given the opportunity. But Kavanaugh has expressed agreement on Roe v. Wade with Roberts, who has described it as “settled law.” And the Roberts approach to settled law is to uphold it, as he did in 2018 with Pavan v. Smith, where he essentially voted to maintain nationwide marriage equality despite having voted against it in 2015. The gun control criticism is more reasonable. Kavanaugh is strongly supported by advocacy groups like the NRA and argued in a 2011 dissent that “a ban on a class of arms...is equivalent to a ban on a category of speech.” Additionally, he believes that the

Critics of this from the right and the left will argue that this is fighting fire with fire. And to that, I say that this is an accurate characterization, but that the alternative is being burnt to a crisp.

And though they often voted together, the writing styles of Roberts and the late Justice Antonin Scalia could not be more different. Whereas Scalia was a firebrand, employing phrases like “jiggery-pokery” in his opinions and dissents, Roberts is far gentler, expressing no uncertain terms of disagreement with his dissenters but never framing their arguments as absurd. Despite the value he would bring to the Court, some have criticized Kavanaugh for his expansive view of Presidential immunity—the idea that the President is, to some degree, im-

solutely not punish those people for being open to changing their minds, as that would encourage zealotry and discourage intellectual honesty. There is also concern that Kavanaugh may have lied in his 2006 Senate confirmation hearing for the judgeship he holds now. Kavanaugh told the Senate that he had not known about the Bush Administration’s torture policies until the news reports started coming out, but it was revealed a year later in a Washington Post story that Kavanaugh had argued while serving in the White House that

only permissible gun regulations are longstanding ones, a philosophy that could stop innovative gun policy. All this is legitimately concerning, but Kavanaugh’s jurisprudence on guns is limited, and while Senate Democrats should press Kavanaugh hard on gun control during his confirmation hearing, they should hold back on judgment until then. With that said, Kavanaugh’s view of the Second Amendment could turn out to be a deal-breaker. What is certain, though, is that he will disagree with the liberal interpretation—and that alone

is not a good reason to reject him. If Kavanaugh’s view is truly fringe, as it may turn out to be, the Senate may reject him. But if Kavanaugh’s view is in line with contemporary conservative jurisprudence, Democrats should overlook them; after all, liberal favorite Ruth Bader

Ginsburg was confirmed to the Court 96-3 when the Senate was only 56-44 Democratic. By and large, Kavanaugh is, intrinsically, a solid nominee, and criticisms of him are either exaggerated, unfounded, or awaiting further inquiry at the hearing. But despite all his superb qualities, Senate Democrats should fight his nomination for one simple reason: Merrick Garland. President Obama, a secondterm, fourth-year President, nominated the well-qualified and left-of-center Chief United States Circuit Judge to replace Associate Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016. But the Senate not only rejected Garland’s nomination, but it also refused to hold hearings for him. Senate Republicans refused to recognize Garland as a legitimate nominee. Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution states,“[The President] shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint...Judges of the supreme Court [sic].” By refusing to let Obama meaningfully nominate a Justice, Senate Republicans stopped him from performing his basic Constitutional duty and essentially denied the legitimacy of his presidency. After Trump had nominated U.S. Circuit Judge Neil Gorsuch a year later, the Senate confirmed him, filling Scalia’s seat with another Republican-appointed hardline conservative. The Republican justification for doing this to Garland was that it was an election year. The American people were deciding who the next President would be when Scalia passed away, so the American people ought to pick the President who would pick his replacement. In addition to the fact that several Republican Senators later said they would also refuse to consider nominees from Hillary Clinton should she win, shedding some suspicion on the Senate Republicans’ intentions, this reasoning was facially illegitimate. For one thing, it was unprec-

edented. Four Supreme Court nominations have been made by presidents not running for reelection during the last years of their presidencies; one was confirmed and became Justice John Catron, one was confirmed but turned down the position, one faced hearings and was brought down by ethics concerns, and one was nominated to fill a seat that it became retroactively clear would not be vacated. For another, the Senate’s actions were deeply troubling on constitutional grounds. Nominating Supreme Court Justices is an essential part of the President’s job. If that can be denied during an election year, so can any other part of their job. If it is indeed the case that during an election year presidents are less constitutionally able to do their jobs, then the President of the United States is to some degree illegitimate a quarter of the time. That’s patently ridiculous. There is nothing, in the Constitution or elsewhere, suggesting that the President is any less the President every fourth year than they are the other three. “It’s an election year” is as good a reason to deny the President the ability to do their job as “the Attorney General has blond hair” or “traditional Western chord progressions are boring.” The illegitimacy of the Senate’s refusal to give Garland hearings, combined with statements of intent by some Senators to do the same to any Clinton nominees, reveals the real reason for the Senate’s blocking of Garland: President Obama was a Democrat, and they didn’t want him to tip the Supreme Court in the Democrats’ favor for the first time in half a century. We urgently need a national conversation in which everyone admits that Senate Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat from a Democratic president and handed it to a Republican president. Merrick Garland should be on the Supreme Court right now, and Neil Gorsuch should not (had the Senate given Garland hearings, he would very likely have been appointed). Until that conversation happens, Senate Democrats should fight any and all Republican Supreme Court nominations. Critics of this from the right and the left will argue that this is fighting fire with fire. And to that, I say this is an accurate characterization, but the alternative is being burnt to a crisp. If the current political situation is such that Republicans will block Democrat-nominated judicial appointments, Democrats would do better to reciprocate than to magnanimously let Republicans take over the judiciary and tilt the entire Judicial Branch in Republicans’ favor for generations to come—an outcome that would be not only bad for Democrats but also fundamentally opposed to the ideally nonpartisan character of the judiciary. Until we recognize the implications of Senate Republicans’ actions in 2018, Democrats need to fight fire with fire and reject Kavanaugh’s nomination.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Opinions The Case for a Chinese Trade War By Darius Jankauskas Amid tax cuts and deregulation, business is booming— America’s GDP is growing rapidly and its unemployment is at an all-time low. Yet Trump’s long-simmering trade war threatens to erase these gains as tariffs continue to escalate, threatening higher prices and more market uncertainty. Amid these concerns, it’s easy to lose sight of an even more insidious threat—China’s effort to gain control over U.S. companies and citizens. China’s one weapon in this battle is its control over the world’s third largest market, after the U.S. and the European Union. As American companies have seen slowing growth in existing markets, they’ve hoped to foster growth by embracing previously neglected regions. China, with its rapidly developing economy and billion-strong population, has been the main target. But for Western companies, business in China comes with strings attached; the Chinese government leverages its power to bend companies and even governments to its wishes. Apple, for example, was only able to sell iPhones by censoring references to Taiwan, which China considers its territory. It was even forced to remove the island nation’s flag emoji from iPhone keyboards. Those concessions enforced China’s

products are consistent with their government’s ideological positions. Companies refusing to comply with Chinese censorship have been forced to cede ground to Chinese rivals. Google left the country in 2010 rather than censor its search engine to comply with the Chinese government. However, that allowed Chinese search engine rival Baidu to gain dominance to the point that most Chinese consumers were unaware of foreign competition. Facebook was similarly banned and lost dominance due to its failure to curb Xinjiang independence advocates’ discussions. On a broader scale, China has censored or blocked the majority of Western services through its “Great Firewall,” allowing it to control information but also encourage the growth of Chinese companies at the expense of American ones. Despite Google’s and Facebook’s previous refusals to do business in China, both have since been trying to regain influence in the country in an effort to regain access to China’s rapidly growing economy. Google has been working on a censored version of its search engine and has opened a selfdriving car subsidiary as well as an artificial intelligence research center in Beijing. Facebook also attempted to open a subsidiary, which Chinese officials briefly approved. But only an hour lat-

Chinese government is maintaining. That control is only increasing as China attempts to grow its technology and advanced manufacturing industries. Currently, the bulk of Chinese manufacturing consists of consumer goods, including clothing and consumer electronics. But the design and production of more complex products have remained centered in Western countries. China has aimed to develop its own competition

through traditional will measures like ofprotective tarten iffs and heavy subsidies for need domestic compat o nies. share However, it has trade seDarren Liang / The Spectator also used its ecocrets. In nomic control to effectively a country with weak copyright force Western companies to give and patent protection, that leads foreign companies to risk losing control of their most valuable assets. In fact, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer estimates that U.S. companies lost about $50 billion to China due to intellectual theft. And while the Chinese government is attempting to address some weaknesses in its enforcement of existing protections, the status quo still favors Chinese corporations. Increasingly, China is also using its trading clout to increase its geopolitical control. China has used its economic pull to force Pacific Island nations to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The nation of Palau benefited from heavy Chinese investment, but due to its continued backing of Taiwan, China banned all tourism to the island. That meant a loss of half of its tourists, and with them, a major revenue source. Through these hardline tactics, China aims to slowly erase Taiwan’s very existence. In a similar vein, China banned most tourism to South up technology and intellectual Korea after it installed a U.S.property at their own expense. developed Terminal High Alti-

“These weaknesses will potentially allow China to shift its business to our allies, undercutting our economy and allowing China to continue its anti-competitive practices. Instead, the U.S. should strengthen its hand by embracing its allies and working together to reign in China.”

control over its citizens, who end up seeing that even foreign

er, they rescinded that approval, a sign of the tight control the

In certain sectors, Western companies are forced to form International Joint Ventures (IJVs), in which they pair up with local companies in order to do business. For that arrangement to work effectively, the foreign company

tude Area Defense (THAAD) nuclear missile defense system. China considers such systems a threat to its geopolitical goals, as they weaken its nuclear capabilities. However, China’s tourism ban had such a harsh economic effect on South Korea that it was forced to agree that it will not deploy further missile defense systems, will not join a region-wide U.S. missile defense system, and will not form a joint military alliance with the U.S. and Japan. China has already weaponized its trade to the point where it can neuter other countries’ abilities to defend themselves and counter China’s growing military power. In its race to supplant the U.S. as the world superpower, China has been weaponizing its growing economic power to gain control. While the U.S. has remained committed to offering freedom to foreign corporations and has maintained a level playing field between foreign and domestic companies, China has tilted it to benefit its own domestic companies. Trump’s trade war attempts to turn China’s own weapon around back on China. With a booming American economy less dependent on China than China is on America, the Trump administration has chosen a prime time to try and force China to play fair in the global economy. However, Trump’s effort is drastically weakened by his antagonism toward U.S. allies worldwide. European and Asian countries are similarly hurt by China’s aggressive trade tactics, but threatened tariffs by Trump make them unlikely to join the U.S. in the trade war against China. And Trump’s indifference to the World Trade Organization, which aims to uphold free trade, delegitimizes his efforts. These weaknesses will potentially allow China to shift its business to our allies, undercutting our economy and allowing China to continue its anti-competitive practices. Instead, the U.S. should strengthen its hand by embracing its allies and working together to reign in China.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Arts and Entertainment Get A Life: The Back to School Edition

Events Calendar ONGOING

September

ART SHOW Giacometti @ The Guggenheim Museum until 9/12

FILM SCREENING “I Am Not a Witch” @ BAM Rose Cinemas until 9/13

FASHION SHOW New York Fashion Week @ Lincoln Center until 9/14

COnvention Photoville @ Brooklyn Bridge Park until 9/23

festival Brooklyn Music Festival @ Governors Island

18 art show Everything Is Connected: Art and Conspiracy @ The Met Breuer until 1/06/19

20 film screening Kino Polska: New Polish Cinema @ Brooklyn Academy of Music until 9/23

ART SHOW Warhol, Basquiat, Haring, and More @ The Peninsula New York until 10/31

15 convention Honey Fest @ Governors Island

18 art show The Charterhouse of Bruges: Jan van Eyck, Petrus Christus, and Jan Vos @ The Frick Collection until 1/13/19

20 performance art A Spy in the Desert @ The Bell House until 9/21

21 food Brooklyn Night Market @ The Well, Brooklyn

film screening September 21 “Colette” @ UA Sheepshead Bay Stadium

ART SHOW The Long Run @ The Museum of Modern Art until 11/04

ART SHOW September 14 Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power @ Brooklyn Museum until 2/03/19

ART SHOW The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Chinese Art Initiative: Final Exhibition @ The Guggenheim Museum until 10/21

PERFORMANCE ART BAM Next Wave Festival @ Brooklyn Academy of Music until 12/23

concert Childish Gambino & Rae Sremmurd @ Madison Square Garden until 9/15

album release “Collapse” by Aphex Twin

art show Photoville @ Brooklyn Bridge Park until 9/23

ART SHOW Room For Tea @ Room For Tea NYC until 9/24

ART SHOW Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture, 1963-2017 @ The Metropolitan Museum of Art until 12/02

ART SHOW Canova’s George Washington @ The Frick Collection until 9/23

ART SHOW Devotion to Drawing @ The Metropolitan Museum of Art until 11/12

Film screening Movies Under the Stars: “Beasts of the Southern Wild” @ Blake Hobbs Playground, Manhattan

film Coney Island Film Festival @ Coney Island Museum until 9/16

ART SHOW 29Rooms @ 588 Baltic Street, Brooklyn until 9/16

ART SHOW Through a Different Lens: Stanley Kubrick Photographs @ Museum of the City of New York until 10/28

festival Washington Square Park Folk Festival @ Washington Square Park

21 concert Trifonov, Beethoven, and The Rite of Spring Concert by the New York Philharmonic @ David Geffen Hall until 9/25

22 food truck festival Vendy Awards @ Governors Island

23 parade 44th Annual Atlantic Antic @ Downtown Brooklyn

22 convention World Maker Faire New York @ New York Hall of Science until 9/23

Page 16

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Arts and Entertainment

Art

By Chelsea Cheung

Jianyu, Cao Fei, Wong Ping, Lin Yilin, and Samson Young, all of whose works are known for their critique of the Chinese social scene. The gallery bustles with visitors whose attention is drawn to three distinct installations. One of these installations is the array of colorful oil paintings by Duan Jianyu, and the aesthetic theme is evident: outlines of birds, muted pastel suns and full moons, women playing traditional Chinese instruments, clusters of flowers, various small animals, male beggars, half-man-half-animal creatures, and to top it off, human figures rolling on gym scooters on their stomachs. Traces of traditional Chinese painting style embed itself in its undertone, creating for a chaotic, dreamlike effect. These paintings intend to depict the marginalized—those left behind and set adrift by displacement as China transforms into a globalized and economic powerhouse. Duan’s way of giving attention to those who are often on the sidelines is mesmerizing and hauntingly beautiful. His paintings are imbued with melancholy and an ethereal quality that depicts a world of neglect and attempted survival. Below one wall of paintings is a group of anthropomorphic carrots positioned around a picnic basket, with no clear-cut explanation to visitors as to why. To the left of that same wall lies a display case holding a pair of traditional embroidered shoes with a catch—the soles have a compartment with batteries and wires popping out of it.

The combination of these two opposing ideas is disconcerting, pointing out how technology has managed to infiltrate every facet of Chinese life. Taking up one corner of the room is artist Wong Ping’s display: a large viewing screen playing a colorful, animated short film with a viewing bench in front of it. Lined with both Chinese and English subtitles, an aging widower spends the few years left of his life living with his son and daughter-inlaw while hoarding a collection of VHS porn tapes and secretly lusting over his daughter-in-law. He calls the youth hedonistic and cynical, and justifiably so (though he is just as hedonistic and cynical himself), as his son ironically uses his apartment to run a profitable nursing home. Soon afterward, his son moves out with his wife and leaves him behind. When the elderly man dies and is moved to an online tomb (due to the lack of land space in Hong Kong), paying tribute becomes a chore for his son as he ultimately forgets the password to the tomb. This Kafkaesque satire teems with a lewd and dark sense of humor and features disturbing, pixelated videogame-like animations to match. While providing a funny and bizarre experience, one cannot shake the underlying truth that permeates the film—to some extent, the fate of the widower is a real possibility for many elders living in the overpopulated city of Hong Kong. Behind the TV screen are hundreds of miniature gold wind-up teeth scattered about the floor, inviting both adult and

Courtesy of Guggenheim

child

Music By Yasmine Chokrane

Panic! At The Disco released its sixth studio album, “Pray for the Wicked,” on June 22, with the same energy and eccentricity so characteristic of the now 13-year-old band. The band’s evolution is epitomized in this album with a new baroque pop sound and the slightly chaotic feel that longtime followers have

Courtesy of Guggenheim

“We know what two hands clapping sounds like, but what is the sound of one hand clapping?” I’m not really sure. What about you? This old riddle used in Zen Buddhism provides the source of inspiration for the cryptic title of the Guggenheim exhibit, “One Hand Clapping.” While breaking the confines of logic, it encompasses the line of abstract thought one is encouraged to explore as they set foot in the exhibit. Located in the small, discreet Samuel J. and Ethel Lefrak Gallery on the fifth level of the Guggenheim Museum, the exhibit offers a refreshing respite from the old and homogenous Giacometti artwork on display in the rest of the museum. This comparatively more contemporary and vibrant art aims to shed light on the tenuous relationship between the old and new in China and Hong Kong, particularly how the aging population struggles to maintain a grip on a society that is leaving it behind in its fast-paced evolution. With a nation bending to the will of its youth and their technology, numerous questions are to be asked: How do we care for those who are left behind? How does it feel for a group of people and their culture to descend into obsoletion? How will thousands of years of tradition survive the inexorable speed of globalization within modern, technological society? Organized by the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation, “One Hand Clapping” features five native Chinese artists: Duan

1-800-ARE-YOU-CLAPPING

visitors to wind them up and observe them chattering about their own random paths. Attached to the TV installation is a rotating LED structure in the shape of a cabbage with multiple faces protruding from its side. The wind-ups are meant to represent the things that still take up space and exist even after they are discarded, and the cabbage head is a “sage” projecting its consciousness on the TV screen, essentially being the aforementioned film itself. Though this extension of Wong Ping’s installation is intriguing, the underlying meaning is confusing, difficult to grasp, and connected to the tangible objects. At the other end of the exhibit lies artist Lin Yilin’s VR simulation test. A video of a man rolling his body up the spiraling levels of the Guggenheim Museum projects against one wall, and a video of a drone repeatedly throwing a basketball toward the ceiling of the museum projects against the adjacent wall. Visitors line themselves up waiting to test out a virtual reality, where one suspends their disbelief and transforms into a basketball that Chinese-American basketball player, Jeremy Lin, bounces and tosses around. This installation attempts a unique use of technology to create more empathy around relationships where one can “become” the actual subject. Yet this part of the exhibit piqued remarkably less excitement than the others, as the mundane videos played listlessly on and lacked a defining connection to the overall theme of the exhibit. Its idea of empathy is too general and does not make a specific case for who or what group we as humans should empathize with more. However, this exhibit does an overall good job of creating awareness around one of

the primary issues plaguing Chinese society, where aging and rural populations are uncared for and left in the dust. This problem is unprecedented and frightening as a culture that stressed importance on reverence for elders and ancestors since the beginning is now shifting toward apathy. The exhibit also helps visitors reframe their view of China by providing nuanced insight into the complexity of the nation’s social scene, which is often depicted one-dimensionally and sensationalized in the media. Moreover, “One Hand Clapping” is relevant to American audiences since a substantial part of globalization and its detrimental effects stem from America itself. One scene of Wong Ping’s animation humorously depicts the father’s disappointment when the son no longer offers steamed buns and pork and instead offers him the hallmarks of the trendy American foods: kale and avocados. With today’s growing awareness of how Asian art is and isn’t represented, “One Hand Clapping” is another step forward in terms of bringing Asian art into the limelight. It is so rare for contemporary Asian artists to receive widespread attention and be given a direct platform to American consumers. For this exhibit to be thoroughly embraced by the public only shows the growing demand for similar art. In contrast to a woman’s bitter complaint to a museum staffer that “this type of art doesn’t belong in a museum like this,” “One Hand Clapping” certainly succeeds in proving that contemporary Chinese art does have a place within the American art scene. Chinese voices are indeed worth listening to, and Chinese art is relevant and visionary—not that it needed to prove itself in the first place.

A Wickedly Theatrical Album come to know so well. Born out of Brendon Urie’s 10-week run as the main character, Charlie, in the musical “Kinky Boots,” the album is vibrant and full of color, especially in songs such as “Roaring 20s” and “High Hopes,” which are reminiscent of classic Broadway shows. The album incorporates a variety of instruments in unique ways, particularly in

“The Overpass,” which opens with a brilliant trumpet sound, and in “Dying in LA,” a desolate ballad that ends with a beautiful string section. The dynamic use of instruments and ecstatic feel is what makes this album stand out amongst its predecessors. Some argue this album is simply a continuation of “Death of a Bachelor” (2016), as the hedonistic theme that

unifies this album is similar to that of the band’s fifth album. Nevertheless, “Pray for the Wicked” remains an impressive feat of artistry from Urie. He wrote all of the songs, played most of the instruments, and showcased his impressive vocal range, once again, by hitting an A5 at the end of “Say Amen (Saturday Night),” which became Panic! At the Disco’s first number

one single on the Billboard Alternative Song Charts in June 2018. A musical ode to the theater, “Pray For The Wicked,” with its lyrical dexterity, glittery sound, and classical undertones, proved to be a great way to start off the summer and the title of its third track to be true (“Hey Look Ma, I Made It”).

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 17

Arts and Entertainment

Film By Lena Farley

Starting with a faraway view of the fictional island Kalokairi, the camera shows arid island greens surrounded by a sapphire blue ocean before panning to the starkly white hotel. The vibrant manner with which “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” begins continues throughout the entire movie. Viewers who have been missing the scenes of the original “Mamma Mia!” (2008) are suddenly transported to that energetic and iconic world once more. My first time watching “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again,” I was so transfixed by the colors and costumes in the film, I didn’t even focus on the acting or the plot. Similarly to the first “Mamma Mia!,” the camera is used to draw the viewer in with the cast and follows the cast around in an almost flowing manner. In one scene, the camera twirls along with a young Donna (Lily James), the American owner of a Greek hotel, with her long orange dress flowing around her ankles, matching the trees bountiful with oranges surrounding her. Not only do the cameras capture the constant movement of the film, but the beautiful set creates a look that carries on from “Mamma Mia!” and keeps viewers entranced. The set mainly consists of rugged mountains, dusty towns, and Greek-style houses, similar to the setting of the first film. However, viewers also get a taste of different sets, such as places in Oxford and Paris. These new sets have a slightly bohemian vibe, with quaint hotels and an apartment covered in funky blankets. This style transfers into the costumes, which are a mix

Culture By Miranda Lepri

The past few years have been groundbreaking for cinematic diversity. With an increasing number of female directors gracing the big screen and dominating film festivals, and the premiere of “Crazy Rich Asians” as the first film by a major Hollywood studio to feature an all-Asian cast since “The Joy Luck Club” in 1993, it would seem that the entertainment industry has finally started to recognize the audience appeal diversity delivers. The multitude of comedies starring more and more women is a welcome change. But even sitting through “Crazy Rich Asians,” a groundbreaking film in its own right,

“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again”: A Whirlwind of Colors, Music, and Happiness

of ‘70s flair and modern minimalism. Though the minimalist overalls-and-T-shirt style of the first film carries over to this film, viewers are also hit with bright colors and plenty of bell-bottom jeans. The costume designers use vibrant striped jumpsuits, chunky jewelry, and funky hats to fully tie together and incorporate the new plot that is brought up in this film. The story of “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is told through a mixture of flashbacks to a young Donna (Lily James) in the ‘70s, which show the backstory of her hotel, as well as the modern story of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), the daughter of Donna (Meryl Streep) who struggles in her pursuit to make her mother’s hotel a success. Though the hotel links the two characters t o g e t h e r, the two different stor ylines s e e m worlds a p a r t . However, the film successfully ties tog ether the costumes and the sets, so the movie doesn’t seem like two completely different films; the connections are apparent. In one scene set in the modern day, Sophie sings “I’ve Been Wait-

ing For You” (a song Donna used to sing occasionally), while wearing a retro jumpsuit reminiscent of what young Donna wears in the opening scene. While Sophie’s jumpsuit is much more muted and slightly more modern than Donna’s brightly colored, striped, and unapologetically ‘70s jumpsuit, Sophie’s jumpsuit is still of the same style and allows us to reminisce about the vision of her mother. Despite being absolutely lively and captivating, the set and costumes are nothing compared to the soundtrack of this musical movie. The songs of A B BA , t h e same ‘70s

Darren Liang/ The Spectator

Swedish pop group who cre-

ated the songs for “Mamma Mia!,” once again make up the soundtrack of “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.” Though most of the songs are the same catchy, beautifully sung tunes from the original film, there are a few new additions that fit in well to the poppy showtune style of the movie, such as “Angel Eyes.” New cast member Lily James has a particularly beautiful voice— one that trumps that of Meryl Streep, who plays the older Donna, any day. The songs continue the trend of a fun-filled and problem-free life. Even songs that are used in somber scenes, such as “One Of Us,” are still catchy and unable to put anyone in a bad mood, regardless of the context. Songs like “Waterloo” and “When I Kissed The Teacher” add to the absurdity of the movie with lyrics that seem like they could never fit into the film, yet somehow do. What make songs like these even more amazing are the dance numbers that come along with them: overexaggerated twirls and synchronized routines that make one wish life itself was a musical. The only downfall of “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is the plot. It lacks substance, and the problems that do come up—such as dealing with the death of an important character—are looked at in a comedic way, with characters joking about reactions to the death. When describing the film to a friend, I realized that what had stuck with me was the vibrancy and the songs— not the actual storyline. All issues were resolved quickly, and by the time a musical number was over, everyone was happy once

again. While this is a musical movie and more emphasis is understandably put on the film’s songs rather than a serious plot, the film’s storyline might have been more memorable had the characters struggled for a bit longer and their issues been built up more. Despite this, the film was clearly enhanced by the the presence of Lily James. James has a magnetic onscreen personality. Though her quirkiness and carefree ways occasionally felt forced, her acting is consistent with the rest of the film. Lily James is successful as young Donna the same way that Meryl Streep was as Donna in the original film: her charisma and ability to draw you in makes an otherwise unbelievable character enticing. Her portrayal of young Donna manages to draw you in and make you feel as if you’ve entered a world where the sole issue is a goat chasing you during your morning session of orange picking. “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is the definition of a feel-good movie. Following young Donna’s tales of love and adventure on a beautiful new island, one views a life full of songs, heartbreak that’s easily solved, and cool ‘70s outfits. And transported back to the life of Sophie, we are reminded of the importance of friendship when family can’t be there for you and the continuation of your dreams, no matter the obstacles that arise. If you’re in need of one last taste of summer and can’t make it to a remote Greek island, “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is bound to transport you from the dreariness of school starting and will allow you to forget your stresses for at least two hours.

Reviewers Still Aren’t Ready for Raunchy Women what has become increasingly clear is that though the most successful of these movies feature women, they are the objects of ridicule, not the agents of the comedy. And it’s not hard to feel just a bit slighted by an audience and a host of reviewers so willing to laugh it up at desperate women being catty, or getting caught up in bitchy hijinks (the socially acceptable type of female humor). That’s not to say that it’s not funny, nor that it’s inherently sexist. In theory, it should be fine to have movies where women are comedic objects as long as there are also movies like “Rough Night,” a femaleled film more in the realm of the raunchy style of comedy traditionally dominated by

men. The movie puts a bachelorette party in the role traditionally starring a group of men, filled with vulgar jokes, drunken missteps, and nearslapstick humor. The role reversal is only exacerbated as the bachelor party has wine tastings and overanalyzes texts from their significant others. It’s funny in its own right, but the aspect of it that was most compelling was that the humor lacks some of the jokes common in male comedies that can fall kind of flat to the female audience: cracks at being married and at nagging, tiresome wives or stuck up girlfriends. The diversity that it brings to humor opens a hilarious genre up to a massive group. The issue is that the two

types of female comedy are not granted even a similar level of respect by critics. When one looks at the reviews of recent femaleled comedies, something becomes glaringly obvious. There’s little variation in terms of the critical reception, even between movies that clearly differ in quality. “Rough Night” received terrible reviews, with a 44 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and countless critics calling it highly derivative of “The Hangover”: poorly written, unable to balance clashing tones, and too dependent on stunts and raunchy humor. Almost every review said that for a movie that was supposed to be empowering, it didn’t deliver.

I read the reviews after seeing the movie. It was jarring simply because as a longtime fan of similar types of movies, from “Step Brothers” to “The Hangover,” I and everyone in the theater thought “Rough Night” was hilarious. What was more troubling, however, wasn’t that I thought the reviews were too critical. It only became clear after seeing “The Spy Who Dumped Me,” a more recently released spy comedy. “The Spy Who Dumped Me” and “Rough Night” received disturbingly similar reviews despite the fact that the films were obviously of differing quality. The former lacked plot structure continued on page 18

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Arts and Entertainment

Film By Jacqueline Thom

thinking he’s speaking to a white man, but it also brings up the stereotype of how people of certain races speak. Like the recent absurdist film, “Sorry to Bother You,” “BlacKkKlansman” attempts to explicate the various advantages that come with bidialectalism: being able to alternate between ebonics and a stereotypically “white” voice when speaking to white people. Through this effective strategy of masking his voice, young Stallworth unexpectedly gets a call inviting him for an in-person meet with some Klan members. Because he’s black, Stallworth enlists the help of his Jewish colleague, Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver), to pose as Stallworth and help him infiltrate the KKK. The story of a black man successfully infiltrating the “secret empire” of the 1900s should already make for an intriguing biopic on its own. John David Washington does well as Ron Stallworth, rocking groovy outfits and a perfectly-

Darren Liang/ The Spectator

If there’s ever an appropriate time to laugh at the sometimes bumbling antics of the KKK, it’s now with the return of Spike Lee and his dramedy rendition of the 2014 memoir, “BlacKkKlansman” by Ron Stallworth. “Based on a crazy, outrageous, incredible true story,” the movie stars John David Washington as Stallworth, a young “soul brother”of the ‘70s who became the first African-American to join the Colorado Springs police department and infiltrated the Klu Klux Klan. The story follows Stallworth as he starts out at the police department, first working a bland job at the records office before being transferred to intelligence. He sees an advertisement to join the Ku Klux Klan and as a joke, leaves a message for the local Klan leader. Throughout the film, Stallworth uses a sarcastic “white” voice when communicating with the KKK. Stallworth’s fake voice is significant, not only because it helps him fool David D u k e into

Making America Great Again

Culture continued from page 17

and faced the admittedly difficult task of melding comedy with the extreme violence of a spy thriller. Everything that critics disliked about “Rough Night” should have been attacked tenfold in reviews of “The Spy Who Dumped Me” if they were to legitimize their methods of judgment, but instead the criticism was basically identical. The problems appear to be twofold. It’s increasingly apparent that the majority of movie critics have an inherently negative opinion of raunchy comedies with female leads, or enough of one that difference in quality between such movies isn’t even addressed. It’s as if the movies are being rated based on

shaped Afro every day, giving extra personality to his wisecracking yet serious demeanor. Adam Driver, meanwhile, has to literally act like two different people in the film. He banters easily with Stallworth at the police department before managing to impersonate him as a mostly convincing God-fearing Christian Aryan man during Klan rallies. Even minor characters like that one really drunk guy at Klan meetings are well-developed and add momentum and humor to the story. Spike Lee has always centered his movies on black empowerment and heavy subjects like racism, gun violence, police brutality, and the oppression of cultures. The director’s real trademark, however, comes from his welldeveloped sense of humor, which gives Lee’s characters vibrancy and his audiences an emotional attachment to those characters who work so hard to right society’s inherent wrongs. His imagining of white culture is terrifying, hilarious, and seemingly outlandish at times, but it is a welcome shift from the shallow tropes of people of color that have dominated cinema until now. On the technical side of things, Lee hasn’t deviated from his use of provocative beginnings to his films, as the very first shot of “BlacKkKlansman” includes a crane from the 1939 drama, “Gone With the Wind,” featuring a Confederate flag and a disturbingly romantic view of the Confederacy. This and a brief racist tirade carried out by a fictional Dr. Kennebrew Beauregard (Alec Baldwin) within the first five minutes of the film teaches viewers how to watch Lee’s latest work: laugh openly, but be prepared for some heavy-hitting

commentary on society’s systemic racial issues. Lee continues to experiment with high-contrast footage, occasionally static, continuous shots, and some questionable fade-ins and outs throughout the movie. They work to bring back that filmlike quality of motion pictures back in the late 20th century with Lee’s own twist, further immersing viewers in the story. Lee’s famous use of the double dolly (moving characters on top of a platform with wheels) makes a return as characters Stallworth and Patrice Dumas (Laura Harrier), his girlfriend and local black student union president, look out a window to take note of a Klan cross burning. Like in many of Lee’s other films, the characters are stone-faced as they’re literally pushed toward an important event. When it comes to portraying the times as they really were, “BlacKkKlansman” fails to bring back the seemingly uncontrolled violence that is present in Lee’s older films, such as in “Do the Right Thing,” which features a mostly black community’s uprising against the local pizzeria’s racist owners. Though the films take place a little over a decade away from each other, they’re both very much rooted in intricacies of racism. Perhaps Lee wanted to focus on the heroics of the “Stallworth brothers” and the irony of the KKK, whose members preach for a whiter and smarter America but are often less educated than the minorities. Lee could have hit home with a more realistic view of the violence that occurred during the 1970s and ‘80s. It was a time when the Black Panthers were making headlines every day and David Duke was preparing for his presidential run. Bigotry against minorities was outstanding and white America had all but fallen into the hands of a charismatic KKK

Grand Wizard. With Lee’s watered-down version of racially-inspired violence, it is only that much harder to understand the risks Stallworth faced in the line of duty. The film is appropriately accompanied by a moody series of jazz scores by trumpeter Terence Blanchard, whose music not only pulls from that of film noirs, but also adds to the tone of discretion that Stallworth and Zimmerman constantly harbor. Adding to the success of “BlacKkKlansman” is the cinematography of Chayse Irvin. Irvin, who shot for Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” and Kendrick Lamar’s “m.a.a.d.” short film, was picked by Lee specifically for his stunning visuals and ability to create emotionally evocative imagery. Amid continuous shots and close-ups that work to increase drama and comedic effects, Irvin brings not only immersive and beautiful shots, but also an open-minded approach to filming. More than anything, this biopic is more like a witty spy movie than an action film or comedy. The film does well to establish its light nature at the offset and continuously drops a good dose of unexpected jokes from Zimmerman along with a well-paced buildup of suspense to a climax that admittedly could have been more dramatic. “BlacKkKlansman” is undeniably a Spike Lee joint. His outrageous humor is a constant presence throughout the film. Almost all the members of the KKK are idiots, but only the audience knows it, and the characters’ performances are carried out with such graveness that it’s hard not to laugh despite the context of the situation. From what could have been a dark movie, Lee’s unique sense of humor has created a memorable drama that doesn’t want or needs to be overly serious.

Reviewers Still Aren’t Ready for Raunchy Women their genre, not their merit. It can’t be assumed, as it can with most movies, that the critical consensus regarding these movies is mostly accurate because it seems that at the heart of all of these critiques is the truth that maybe critics just aren’t ready for women in bawdy comedy. The top 25 highest-grossing R-rated movies are filled with raunchy movies, but “Bridesmaids” is the only female-led one to even crack the list. The standards that these movies are being held to are unique to this genre. No raunchy comedy is entirely original, or even mostly original; it’s the nature of the genre that there is a basic setup and type of humor that is similar across the board. To call “Rough Night” unoriginal is

entirely unfair. By that measure, most comedies, romantic or otherwise, should’ve been horribly received. They weren’t, because a very basic similarity within genres is widely accepted as a given most of the time. But while it’s rightfully overlooked in the case of most movies, it is capitalized upon in these reviews. What’s worse, it seems that every movie with a mainly female cast is supposed to further the feminist agenda. The criticisms that come along with these feminist critiques are that characters aren’t deep enough or are too ridiculous. But what reviewers fail to understand is that it’s impossible for a raunchy comedy to remain comedic while also featuring

the high standard of character depth and professionalism demanded. No male comedy has been criticized for such a failure. The double standard is remarkably obvious. When “Bridesmaids” was released and became a success, people seemed to think that we had finally pushed past the ever-present stigma regarding women being “crude” or “lewd” in movies and in life. But it seems that every time the next “Bridesmaids” is released, it becomes a whole new referendum on the genre, and thus we get cookie-cutter reviews that all say the same thing. The movies are “derivative,” either of male counterparts or of one of the only successful female-led comedies of the genre. Basically, it’s not as funny as it was with

guys, and it’s not as funny as that one good movie they made, so it’s just not funny. Ironically, many reviews call movies like “Rough Night” not empowering enough. But if this trend continues, Hollywood may cease to finance movies in which women are agents of comedy, something that has just begun to gain traction. Cinema may be growing more diverse, but the presence of women in comedy doesn’t matter much if it’s only perpetuating an age-old stereotype of the uptight woman either working alongside zany guys or messing with others as a punchline. That’s why it’s so dangerous to implicitly trust the reviews; we’re pinning the legitimacy of a genre that women need on a broken system.

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Arts and Entertainment

Film By Yasmine Chokrane

Music

By Laura Ilioaei Bring some of that sugar rush into your music playlist! Inspired to uplift the spirits of her fans in the aftermath of the 2017 Manchester attack, Ariana Grande dropped her “Sweetener” album in midAugust. The pop-disco track

his obvious messiah complex, Thanos is a sympathetic villain: his motivations are understandable, and his empathetic nature is accentuated by the exploration of his complicated relationship with his adopted daughter, Gamora (Zoe Saldana). Just as the movie-going experience is heightened by the relationships the audience makes with all the characters, it’s the bonds forged between these characters that make the movie. The relationship between Peter “Starlord” Quill (Chris Pratt) and Gamora from the “Guardian of the Galaxy” series— whose friendship has been full of romantic subtext— has blossomed into a fullblown relationship, complete with romantic banter and in-law drama. In addition, the father-son relationship that was evident in “Spiderman: Homecoming” (2017) between Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Peter Parker (Tom Holland) flourishes in this film, becoming a satisfying arc for Tony and Peter, who have both lost family members. However, it’s the camaraderie and new friendships between both the Guardians and the Avengers that add a bit of lightheartedness to the dismal tone the film takes. The dialogue largely contributes to that feeling of lightheartedness as our characters continue to quip in the midst of heavy situations. A humorous tone is largely maintained by the more comedic characters. Characters like Drax (Dave Bautista) and his entertaining tendency to take sentiments literally, Peter Parker and his pop culture references, and Rocket Racoon (Bradley Cooper) and his slightly sadistic sense of humor all continue their wisecracking ways throughout the film. Additionally, the film creates new amusing rivalries with the clashing of characters from different series, such as Starlord and Thor (Chris Hemsworth), as well as Doctor Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Tony Stark. However, the muted shades of the planets our characters explore make it clear that this is the darkest Marvel film to date—fitting, considering Thanos is also the

Aries Ho / The Spectator

Three phases, 18 movies, and 11 television series after the film where it all started, “Iron Man” (2008), we see the culmination of a 10-year journey for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU): “Avengers: Infinity War.” Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, who also directed “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (2014) and “Captain America: Civil War” (2016), this film remains both unprecedented and unique. The Russo brothers managed to take over 40 characters, keep them consistent with the personalities in their stand-alone films, and incorporate them authentically into a coherent storyline, which clearly attests to their great skill. (Not surprising, considering the nearly $4 million budget, making it the second most expensive film of all time.) But this movie doesn’t jus “work”: it surpassed expectations, breaking the records for biggest domestic opening, biggest worldwide opening, best advance ticket sales for a superhero movie, fastest movie to gross $1.5 billion globally, and fourth highest-grossing film of all time, earning over $2 billion. This can be attributed to the film’s appeal to viewers of any Marvel movie, though the film may be disorienting to those who have not watched all 18 Marvel films beforehand. “Avengers: Infinity War” wastes no time with explanations and dives straight into the main conflict: Thanos (Josh Brolin) is set on balancing an overpopulated and resource-lacking universe. He sets off to collect the six Infinity Stones (movie MacGuffins that essentially grant the beholder infinite power), which will allow him to rid the universe of half its population with the snap of his fingers. Thanos is a refreshing addition to the MCU, as it has been said that two-dimensional villains are often the weak point of these movies. However, with the success of Killmonger—the antagonist of “Black Panther” (2018)— and now Thanos, the future of Marvel villains is looking bright. That is because, despite

Avengers: Infinity War—A Movie 10 Years in the Making

most powerful Marvel villain to date, evident in his path of destruction. The planet Titan is bleak, the orange and red hues of its atmosphere are intensified, and its structures are left obliterated, with their remains lying hopelessly on the ground. Blazing fires and wreckage are scattered across the planet Knowhere. Even in the opening scene, a sense of dread is established on the Asgardian ship, where Thanos massacres half the population while searching for an Infinity Stone. The blues and greens coloring the ship are dampened as blood paints the floor and corpses are strewn across debris. Along with that, the somber soundtrack composed by Alan Silvestri generates intensity and a sense of urgency. The use of heavy percussion and intense brass sounds contributes to the anticipation, as there are points where the large orchestral sounds stop and a few instruments are singled out. For instance, “Undying Fidelity” is played when Loki proves his loyalty and cements the brotherly relationship he has built with Thor, which, until the near-end of “Thor: Ragnarok” (2017), had been oscillating between sibling rivalry and pure antagonism. Seldom does the score undercut what’s going on in the film, and every so often the soundtrack reaches a thunderous, almost overwhelm-

ing sound. “Even For You” remains especially unforgettable, partly due to the scene during which it plays: Thanos is forced to pay “a small price,” and the consequences of his ambition catch up with him. It’s a chilling sound, roaring with a tinge of despair, and it’s goosebumpinducing. And the inclusion of the iconic theme, “The Avengers,” throughout the film creates a nostalgic feel, as we are once again reminded of the journey we’ve gone on with these characters. There are clear stakes in this film, the weight of which is clearly encapsulated by the nuanced yet spectacular performance of Robert Downey Jr., who has been with us since the beginning and captures the internal struggle Tony Stark faces. He maintains a contemplative demeanor— with the exception of a few snarky comments—and it’s evident through his tonal work that the weight of responsibility looms over him, especially now with Peter Parker’s presence, a teenager whom he has decidedly taken under his wing. Nevertheless, this film is only half of a larger story, and so we are left on a massive cliffhanger. Perhaps some are less than satisfied with the “conclusion” of the movie, but all are eagerly awaiting “Avengers 4” (initially titled “Avengers: Infinity War—Part 2”), which is

set to be released in the US in April 2019. This is not a perfect movie—far from it—but the film’s existence is a success in its own right. Extensive planning went into “Avengers: Infinity War”: consulting other directors of stand-alone films on the characters, traveling around the world (Atlanta, New York City, England, and Scotland), and going through the trouble of writing fake scripts in order to prevent spoilers. Even the planning before writing the screenplay and beginning production was immense: bringing these superheroes together, referencing other characters in stand-alone movies, finding enough cameos to fill the void, and more. It’s incredible and deserves to be applauded, regardless of what you may think of the MCU. “You’ve become part of a bigger universe, you just don’t know it yet.” Those were Nick Fury’s words to Tony Stark during the post-credits scene of “Iron Man.” Audience members left the theater, nervous yet excited for a new era of filmmaking, with an interconnected universe that would contain extraordinary characters and endless adventure. But little did the audience know, we became part of a bigger universe as well, and that is something to Marvel at.

A Grand(e) Album With Sweet Beats “no tears left to cry” alone accomplished this feat. It won international acclaim, hitting top charts in countries across several continents. Nationally, it was an album that enabled Grande to win numerous awards at the MTV VMAs that commemorated her accomplishments this year.

Though Grande is most commonly associated with the pop genre, throughout the course of her discography she has demonstrated a willingness to fuse genres in her songs. The trap music in “God is a woman” made it her album’s experimental piece. Despite temporary

backlash over the suggested blasphemy of the track, it’s a song that bears the orgastic, sexually empowering vibes from Grande’s previous album, “Dangerous Woman.” Regardless of whether “Sweetener” is to your musical taste, it’s undeniably one of the most emotion-

ally charged albums of 2018, if not of Grande’s career to boot. These passionate heights, coupled with an ethereal musical atmosphere induced by the timbre of Grande’s voice, are more than enough to have fans wondering what she’ll procure from inspiration next.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Arts and Entertainment

Art By Lea Shvarts

Declan McKenna’s music video for “Brazil” starts out with him sitting underwater wearing a cat mask and playing vinyl records. The rest of the music video is equally full of expressive but seemingly random imagery. There’s him dancing around in a dark room, with a single light source shining warm orange on his space-helmet covered face. Then in the next scene, he seems to be pasted in front of images of mountains. The clashing warmth and coolness of the bright images that resemble shiny cutouts from magazines mirror the juxtaposition in the music—music that is both familiar and ingenuitive. Declan McKenna is an English singer and songwriter who won the Glastonbury Festival Emerging Talent Competition in 2015. Glastonbury Festival, which celebrates contemporary performing arts, is an important part of British pop culture, and the winner of the Emerging Talent Competition gets to perform at one of the largest stages at the festival. After his win, McKenna’s song “Brazil” caught global attention, reaching first place on XM Radio Alt Nation countdown and 16th on U.S. Billboard alternative songs. Last year, he released his debut album “What Do You Think About the Car?” at the age of 18. McKenna wrote the songs in his first album during the core years of his adolescence, a time in life commonly seen as the first instance of selfawareness and discovery. This certainly comes through in his music, as his raw lyrics about himself and society are both new and specific in their por-

Culture By Laura Ilioaei

Three decades have passed since the publication of “M. Butterfly,” but the “international rape mentality to-

trayal of the modern teenage experience. They are deeply personal, familiar, and timeless in their encapsulation of the feelings of hopelessness, disillusionment, and reinvention that transcend a single time period. It is this feeling and tone that has moved countless reviewers to label McKenna as “the voice of a generation” and to compare him to David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen. McKenna himself believes that the label is cliché and overused, and that the generation should really be defined by a multitude of voices. McKenna shares these voices in his music video for “The Kids Don’t Wanna Come Home” that starts and ends with video and audio clips of various teens sharing their opinions on the world. In a comment on the website Genius, McKenna explains that the titular phrase refers to the way today’s youth don’t want to continue making the same mistakes of older generations. He sings about the way in which the old- e r generation assumes that teens don’t care about the world outside their phones; in reality, young people simply don’t have a voice in politics where all the decisions are made for them. The song alone is an indication that McKenna breaks that stereotype. McKenna describes this disappointment with and distance from modern govern-

ment in several of his other songs. “Brazil,” the song that skyrocketed him to fame, signals FIFA’s corruption and decision to have Brazil host the 2014 World Cup despite political and economic devastation in the country. The chorus goes, “I heard he lives down a river somewhere/With six cars and a grizzly bear/ He’s got

Darren Liang/ The Spectator

eyes, but he can’t see/Well, he talks like an angel but he looks like me.” The words seem nonsensical, but in fact comment on the economic disparity between Sepp Blatter, FIFA president at the time, and the poor people of Brazil. Similarly, many of McKenna’s songs have lyrics that seem fun or lighthearted but have a deeper meaning. One of McKenna’s more

personal songs is “Humongous,” which expresses the power and effect of social media and crafting a self-image. McKenna repeats throughout the song, “I’m big, humongous, enormous, and small.” While his image is inflated online, McKenna admits in an interview with Billboard, he is still a teenage boy who has a hard time taking what is written about him—good or bad. It is when he seems most vulnerable that his lyrics come out most simple, honest, and poignant. His sudden fame with his first album and many tours around the world has heavily impacted him, and McKenna appears laid-back but tired in recent interviews. When asked about his sexuality during an interview with Attitude magazine, McKenna explained, “I don’t know, I’m seeing. I could put a label on it if you want, but at the minute, I’m learning about a lot of things.” However, this openness with himself and exploration of who he is doesn’t end with his sexuality. McKenna breaks gender norms by wearing nail polish and glitter around his eyes. He also experiments with diverse topics that are just as striking as his lyrics. In addition to covering politics and disillusionment, he sings about religion and LGBT issues. “Paracetamol” was inspired by the 2014 suicide of Leelah Alcorn, who desired to transition but was denied and sent to conversion therapy instead. “Bethlehem” is about the way religious speakers justify war and hate, while McKenna believes in love for all. His songs don’t come across as didactic, though, and he writes about what is currently on his mind, whether it is po-

litical, deep and meaningful, or simply fun. That’s why it comes across as so honest and relatable. McKenna juxtaposes political commentary with deep vocals and experimental chords. His voice is smooth, vulnerable, and raw, but also deep and mature. The first time I heard his voice—his song “Humongous” playing in the background of a YouTube video—I had thought the song was from the ’80s and performed by a grown man. McKenna embraces and builds his songs around this nostalgic feel and connection to the past. Yet, each song is different, spunky, and fresh, including offbeat synthetic loops and catchy beats. McKenna experiments with the electrical pitches of an organ and the versatile strums of a guitar to create provocative and playful tracks. “Bethlehem” has him singing in a deep and slow voice; “Listen to your Friends” starts out with stretched words and has a whole segment where he recites the lyrics almost as a poem rather than singing; “Paracetamol” includes a trippy fast-paced experimental riff; “Why Do You Feel So Down?” is uplifting and cheerful. McKenna’s songs all show his determination to take action and discuss serious issues. He voices much of the concern of the younger generation and also provides the hope that if we pay attention, we can change the world. His first album “What Do You Think About the Car?” is engaging, inspiring, and packed with complexity. It sets McKenna up for a promising journey, and I’m excited to see where it will take him.

Forget The Prom Dress, Throw Out The Whole Fetish wards the East” that Hwang exposes in the play is not an obsolete concept restricted to the days of colonization and international warfare. A history of racism and repression lives on in the fetishization of Asian culture. It’s how American culture continues to preach a cosmopolitan attitude when really it is ignorant, hypocritical, and closed to all who aren’t partly Eurocentric and primarily Americanized. This fetishism is modern day imperialism. There is a fine line that divides appreciation and preference from fetishism. Appreciation and preference involve being principally drawn to a component of something or someone while also accepting whatever accompanies that component. Fetishism is being abnormally focused on that component, usually to the point where the component’s accompaniments are

thrown off to the side and considered irrelevant, regardless of the consequences. Pornography is one of the most explicit portrayals of fetishism. Go on any porn site and there’s usually an “Asian” category. Surf through it and you’ll find that a significant amount of the content involves women being submissive to the point of subservience, shy but sexually coy, silent until a sex act causes her to squirm and squeal. It promotes a homogeneous “exotic” stereotype that ignores the complexity and diversity of women from 48 countries in a single continent. The fact that the “Asian” category is usually limited to East Asian actresses, with some sites even putting non-East Asians into separate categories, only emphasizes this homogeneity. There is nothing inherently wrong with having a preference for submissive women;

Andrea Huang / The Spectator

“The West has an international rape mentality towards the East...Basically, ‘Her mouth says no, but her eyes say yes.’ The West thinks of itself as masculine—big guns, big industry, big money, so the East is feminine—weak, delicate, poor...but good at art, and full of inscrutable wisdom—the feminine mystique.The West believes the East, deep down, wants to be dominated… You expect Oriental countries to submit to your guns, and you expect Oriental women to be submissive to your men.” (David Henry Hwang, “M. Butterfly”)

Artist Profile: Declan McKenna

this article isn’t meant to be kinkshaming. However, there

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Arts and Entertainment

Film By Jevina Wong

couple as the focus. It is high time that Hollywood producers and execs pick up on the fact that Asians can be more than just robotic characters devoid of any social skills, written into a film or TV show just to be laughed at or for diversity’s sake. Ken Jeong would know. While gorgeously shot in Singapore, the film’s less extravagant budget does show at times. Aside from Nick’s gargantuan childhood mansion and the stunning costumes, the film doesn’t deliver on the filthy rich overspending and opulence that is very carefully detailed in the novel. Colin Khoo’s bachelor party on the cargo ship is painfully synthetic-looking, and Araminta’s spa getaway doesn’t stand out as particularly grandiose. A major part of the original plot is the shellshock Rachel experiences when she realizes Nick’s identity and witnesses the millions of dollars that the Singaporean elite can blow in single shopping sprees. Neither Rachel nor the audience is particularly overwhelmed by Nick’s “crazy rich” circle. A large reason for the missing wealth is the way the movie is structured. Kwan’s novel mixes the plot with very elaborate descriptions of the different members of Singaporean high society, how they came into money, and the juicy dirt on them. In the film, we follow Rachel and her fish-out-ofwater experience, which excludes our following of the intricate workings of Nick’s relatives. This makes the inclusion of Astrid’s marital issues jarring—while it’s a major part of Kwan’s story, Michael’s infidelity is unrelated to Rachel’s journey and seems strangely tacked on for the sake of drama. This also waters down Nick’s actual importance because we know he’s Asia’s most eligible bachelor, but we don’t really know why. All of this poses the question: Is “Crazy Rich Asians” really an Asian rom-com? The film has been met with glowing reactions and overwhelming support from the Asian American community. But what is left unsettling is the missing culture—the specifics. Aside from the interspersed language changes and the generous amount of cooking shots, there isn’t much in the movie that speaks as particularly Asian. The cast could easily have been replaced by some ritzy white family, the Singaporean landscape subbed out by some high class estates in Europe, and it wouldn’t have made a difference. In a movie that is supposed to be an entrance into the splendor of Singaporean wealth, being limited to Rachel’s perspective also limits what makes

Anika Hashem / The Spectator

Bright, boisterous, and “Bok-bok, b*tch.” These are only a few takeaways from “Crazy Rich Asians,” this summer’s hit rom-com that featured an all-Asian cast and looked oh-so-tasteful doing it. In Jon M. Chu’s adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s 2013 novel, we follow Asian American Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) as she heads to Singapore to meet the family of her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding). Rachel is thrown into a whirlwind of luxury and pressure, seeking acceptance from socialites, family members, and Nick’s most disapproving mother Eleanor Young (Michelle Yeoh). And while our hearts soared everytime Golding went shirtless and our mouths watered at the many food porn shots (the whole movie was really a whole snack, overall), the film didn’t satisfy in one important regard: the Asian of “Crazy Rich Asians.” First, its accolades: The film excels with its colorful cast and chemistry. Wu plays Rachel as the steadfast and sure leading lady with a touch of sassiness, which pairs well with Golding’s oozing charisma. In his acting debut, Golding is a natural as the lowkey extremely privileged and most eligible bachelor of Asia. The pair brings the “rom” part to life and centralizes the feel-good sappiness of the movie. The supporting cast is even better, with Gemma Chan exactly like Kwan described her character Astrid Leong-Teo in the novel, from her looks to her quiet strength and grace. The absolute scene stealer is Awkwafina as Goh Peik Lin, who arguably has even better chemistry with Ken Jeong—who plays her tacky father Goh Wye Mun—than Wu and Golding. As Rachel’s friend and Singaporean guide, Peik Lin is the jaded, uncouth aunt who we all want in our lives. This wide array of characters is the film’s ultimate strength in Asian representation, successful in demonstrating that Asians can play charming, funny, and powerful roles. In fact, when we meet Wye Mun, he introduces himself with the old exaggerated Asian trope until he assures Rachel in perfect American English, “Just kidding. I went to Cal State Fullerton.” And while earning an uproar of laughter from the audience, this parody of a parody is a message: “Yeah, Hollywood, this is old. Is this the best you can do?” What makes “Crazy Rich Asians” a triumph is how seamlessly it normalizes Asians in all of these roles. It is a rare sight indeed to see an Asian play the main love interest, much less an Asian

Crazy Rich Asian-ish?

this world unique. We miss how these socialites and hotshots came into money, how it passed on in different generations, and even the social hierarchy within the top of the social hierarchy (which would explain just how elite the Young name is and why Rachel had so many expectations pushed upon her). All of these attributes and more are what make them distinctly Singaporean. The book sets up the film to be a celebration for Asian audiences and an insight for non-Asian viewers, bringing to life real Asian culture, not the bastardized Hollywood version that is so often played out. Many have criticized the film for its portrayals of Asians in this light of extravagance and affluence that is unrepresentative of the majority. Director Jon M. Chu addressed this in a press conference. “We decided very early on that this is not the movie to solve all representation issues,” he said. “This is a very specific movie, we have a very specific world, very specific characters.” Just because this is the first all-Asian cast feature film in over 20 years doesn’t mean it has to please everyone. In fact, it is beneficial for this film to use the allure of lavish living for

Asian representation to be able to hit the ground running. However, while I agree with Chu that this film can’t meet everyone’s expectations, it should have been able to at least hit the target on being a specific world—accurately portraying Singaporean opulence and Asian family dynamics. It was only in the dumpling-making scene that I truly responded to the movie. Seeing the number of generations in the room, from Ah-Ma to Astrid’s little son Cassian, sitting together and carefully sculpting the dumplings into perfect shape puts together a true picture of the Asian home. Though we wither with Rachel under Eleanor Young’s icy gaze, the tenderness of tradition and family sentiment that is so prevalent in the scene could only have been perfected by the minds and hands of those specifically Asian. But there’s no denying that the film is truly uplifting. The authentic emotions and themes make it more than just a rom-com. After enduring toxic socialites and an antagonizing mother, Rachel emerges proud of her identity, with the realization that she is enough. It’s funny, it’s

sappy, but I don’t think anyone expected the film to be so heartwarming. A new Asian dawn is on the horizon. “Crazy Rich Asians” was a high-stakes movie seen by many as a determining factor for studios to give other Asian American projects the greenlight. Suffice to say, “Crazy Rich Asians” has smashed the box office with a #goldopen. With $34 million in its fiveday launch and earning its title as the current number one movie in America, it is all the evidence that Asian and Asian American stories are compelling and desired. There is such a strong sense of pride that invigorated many Asian viewers who walked out of the theater. I felt it too. There was something about the closing scene, with all of these Asian characters together, celebrating. It was truly something I had never seen before. But with its sequel, “China Rich Girlfriend,” already confirmed and the film’s recognized success, it might be something we’ll be seeing a lot more often. And that is worth celebrating.

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Culture continued from page 20

is an issue with how this porn contributes to the societal problem with how minorities are treated within the dating pool. For an Asian, it’s either being DMed with something backhanded (“I’ve never f**ked an Asian before!”), outwardly racist pickup lines, or something that leaves them unacknowledged (South Asians are frequently underrepresented in the Asian community, therefore often being bombarded with “you’re not REALLY Asian” comments). Being appreciated as an individual is difficult enough; having to dodge toxic fetishists in a world where the tables are not in your favor is something the word “unfair” can’t even fully encompass. But what about Asian men? Unlike their female counterparts, they’re typi-

Film

By Andrew Ng

Film

cally not hypersexualized. However, American beauty standards have implicitly cast the idea that because Asian men’s characteristics differentiate from Eurocentric ones, they’re deemed “inferior,” or at the very least “less masculine.” This, coupled with stereotypes that further portray them as “less than ideal” (ex. the “small penis” stereotype, the “feminine guy” stereotype, etc.) lead to them being ostracized in the dating pool. Recently with popularization of K-Pop idols and more representation of Asian men in Hollywood films, this has begun to change. Unfortunately, this most likely means Asian men are going to be resigned to the same fate of being fetishized as their female counterparts due to the tendencies of Koreaboo, Weaboo, and similar communities to outwardly fetishize them because

of their (usually warped) obsession with the entire country. What’s worse, fetishism extends itself into violating entire cultures. Fashion is known for breaking tradition, but it can easily be iconoclastic, stepping way over the line of what’s respectful and into the realm of culturally appropriating pieces of traditional significance. Traditional wear can’t just be seen as something “exotic” and then have its designs and cuts be manipulated for the purpose of consumerism, especially if the mentality of consumerists is warped by fetishism. Yet if you pop into popular costume shops around Halloween season, you’ll usually find at least one sexualized “geisha” costume resembling NOTHING of what this woman of the arts would traditionally wear. Various non-Southeast Asians

wear bindis, henna, and nose chains, ignorant to the themes of womanhood that they represent. Hell, a Caucasian high school student even attended her prom in a qipao/ cheongsam dress, completely disregarding that it was both insensitive and inappropriate in context. The tragic irony is when such articles are not being culturally appropriated, the wearers risk being met with mockery and racial slurs. This leads to either abandoning tradition and assimilating in order to avoid being disrespected, or paying respects to tradition but being shamed for it. It’s hopeless. While America has begun to increase representation of Asians in popular media, this has done nothing to eradicate the issue of fetishization. For as long as Asians are being primarily portrayed through a fetishist’s lens, they will only

be perceived as subhuman playthings, malleable to the fetishist’s personal agenda. Our first step then is to return to the idealistic principle that our nation was supposed to be founded on: allowing people the opportunity to forge their own destiny, regardless of their identity. This means acknowledging our identities and being able to live amongst one another not despite who we are, but because of who we are. Most importantly, it means being able to respect what is tied to our identities without violating another’s. It might sound utopian to the point where it’s too unrealistic, but it would be better for our nation to crumble in an attempt to achieve a romantic ideal than for it to implode under its own corruption, with many of its citizens filled with resentment for its hypocrisy.

Dreams Do Come True This feel-good romance is illuminated by Etsy-inspired sets. The sets featured in the movie are exactly what you’d imagine dreamy upper-middle class suburbia in Virginia to be: large streamlets with DIYstyle teenage bedrooms. Lara Jean’s room is incredibly large, which is expected, taking into consideration its role as a focal point in the plot. Though unrealistic in style, her room is every hippie teen’s dream: angelic teal drapes, dim strings of lights, scattered potpourri, and a roomy, large closet. The ethereality of the set sets a dreamy tone that the movie itself is meant to evoke. It’s hard to deny the immediate chemistry of the cast, which features Lana Condor (who portrays Lara Jean), Noah Centineo, and Israel Broussard (who play her two main love interests, Peter and Josh, respectively). Condor, Centineo, and Broussard bring to life the characters of the novel and make them feel genuine. Anna Cathcart brings to life Kitty, Lara Jean’s younger sister, with her witty and spunky attitude. The cast is generally strong in embodying the essence of

the characters from the novel; some, however, miss the mark, such as Margot (Janel Parrish), who is Lara Jean’s older sister. In the novel, Margot is firm, yet affectionate. In the movie, Margot feels more like a sickly sweet sister, lacking the firm edge present in the novel. Throughout, she lacks the overprotectiveness she exhibits with her two sisters, like when she doesn’t seem to be as shocked about Lara Jean dating Peter in the film as she did in the novel. To add on, Lara Jean’s dad, Dr. Covey (John Corbett), feels more chic and extroverted than the novel makes him out to be. This Dr. Covey is talkative and confident. Nevertheless, these differences from the novel do not detract much from the overall strength and accuracy of the cast in replicating the dreaminess of the novels that made it so successful. It’s notable that Lara Jean, who is half-Korean, is portrayed by Lana Condor, who is also Asian American. The cast is a strong step for diversity, an important issue in the arts and entertainment industry at the moment. After the recent release of “Crazy Rich Asians,”

Anika Hashem / The Spectator

“So love and dating? I love to read about it, and it’s fun to write about, and to think about in my head, but when it’s real...” Lara Jean is a shy, starry-eyed sixteen-year-old that lives in her own fantasies. Whenever she has a crush so strong that she feels she must get over it, she writes a letter, addresses it, and stores it in her secret teal hatbox. These letters, of course, aren’t meant to be sent to their respective recipients; they are more of a coping mechanism for her to get over her infatuation. One day, when her letters—five in total—get sent, her dreams of romance can no longer be a figment of her imagination. Lara Jean, the girl who lives in her dreams, is suddenly forced to confront her past love interests. “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” brings to life the bubbly, dreamy love story of Lara Jean, based on the novel of the same title by Jenny Han. The plot is, at times, predictable, but the movie effectively draws the audience into a dreamy daze of romance with the chemistry of the cast and the carefully designed sets.

Forget The Prom Dress, Throw Out The Whole Fetish

the first movie in decades to feature an all-Asian cast, the story of Lara Jean, a normal teenage girl living in the suburbs, is yet another testament to the fact that Asian American representation matters. In addition, “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” is not, and was not intended to be, a blockbuster movie. With a modest release as a Netflix Original, the film is meant to be a casual romance. It’s definitely refreshing to see Asian Americans in a teen romance after growing up with scarce teen romances to begin with, all of them featur-

ing a white guy and girl. “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” is monumental in terms of what it brings to the table in diversity—but that isn’t supposed to be the main focus of the film. Bringing to life the light, sweet romance story of Lara Jean, a regular teenage girl in suburban Virginia, the film hopes to normalize Asian Americans in romance films, and all genres, for that matter. “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” draws you into its world of naïve romance and dreamy sets, and is definitely worth a watch.

Summer Film Round-up By The Arts & Entertainment Department

If you spent the summer studying for SATs, writing college apps, or working job and internship shifts and haven’t had the time to hit up a movie theater, you’re in luck—here are our critiques of five of this summer’s biggest and most-anticipated theatrically released films.

Incredibles 2 By Thomas Chen Just 14 years after Brad Bird’s “The Incredibles” (2004), America’s favorite superhero family returns with yet another comedic, action-packed story—complete with some extremely timely themes and messages. The film is set right after the events of its predecessor, beginning with the Parr family going out of hiding during an attempt to stop the Underminer (John Ratzenberger), causing tons of damage to the city and getting the Parrs into legal trouble, as superheroes are still mistrusted by the general public. Fortunately, wealthy entrepreneur and superhero fan Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk) and his genius sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener) plan to change public opinion by recruiting Elastigirl, also known as Helen Parr (Holly Hunter), and publicizing her heroic acts of fighting crime. In a twist of gender dynamics, Bob Parr (Craig T. Nelson) ends up becoming (and struggling as) a supportive stay-at-home dad, while remaining conflicted with the idea of not being chosen for the job. However, the film manages to find much comedy in his antics with his three children and their issues, especially with baby Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile) discovering his new powers. While the film does try to cram very much into the span of only two hours, resulting in some aspects disappointingly not receiving much attention (such as the many new different superhero characters introduced in the film), “Incredibles 2” remains one of Pixar’s greatest—or rather, most incredible—works yet.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Arts and Entertainment Summer Film Round-up (cont’d) Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Christopher Robin By Laura Ilioaei

By Jiahe Wang The fifth movie of the “Jurassic Park” film franchise, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” is an unimaginative cliché that will hugely disappoint its fans. “Fallen Kingdom” seems to be more of an action thriller than a sci-fi film. Though there are several points in the movie where the plot employs some hallmark sci-fi themes—such as the ethical problems of genetic technology, the greed of big corporations, and the implications of weaponizing clones—the inclusion of such subjects in the film is marginal at best, and the majority of the moral questions touched upon in the movie are left unanswered. It feels more like a setup for yet another installment in the series, rather than something into which an interesting narrative idea is directed. In addition, the majority of the characters are flat and lifeless; they are only there to move the story along. One such plot-centric character, Maisie (Isabella Sermon) ends up being extremely two-dimensional. The audience is forced to believe in the credibility of her character, despite the fact that they are given virtually no background information on her other than the fact that she is the granddaughter of the wealthy philanthropist Lockwood (James Cromwell), who happens to have worked with the original creator of Jurassic Park. In addition, her actions are peculiarly mature and unrealistic for a young child, especially toward the ending, and her supposedly mysterious origins end up being underwhelming and far-fetched due to the film’s many unsubtle hints. The original “Jurassic Park” displayed interesting themes regarding humanity’s relationship with nature and our desire to bring it to heel throughout. This latest installment is rather conspicuously lacking in that department. Instead, we simply get scenes of wanton slaughter and a cool movie monster, and while that may seem compelling, the film ultimately disappoints and fails to live up to its potential.

Children are often inclined toward fantasy, giving life to the inanimate and shaping their perceptions of our complex world into something they can understand. The mysteries of aerodynamics can be explored through sitting in a cardboard box and flying through extraterrestrial worlds; the peculiarities of motherhood can be explored through dolls and automatons; the things in life that repress us and depress us—our inner demons—can be given a physical, monstrous form that members in the 100 Acre Wood call “Heffalumps.” In the somber, bittersweet landscape of the film “Christopher Robin,” the protagonist of the same name (Ewan McGregor) returns to the Wood in order to bring Winnie the Pooh (voiced by Jim Cummings) home. But Robin slowly discovers that while Pooh had lost his way, so had he himself, trading the lighthearted naïveté of youth for the weight of life and its responsibilities. Robin realizes that he has allowed his work to consume him, prioritizing it before all else. It is with Pooh’s return and observation of the world with an innocent perspective that Robin finds that everything in the 100 Acre Wood was never really imaginary; it was only a place that contained symbolic interpretations of reality. The film’s trailer did reveal a somber mood through the setting along with the eerie character designs for the stuffed animal characters that reminded me of something out of a Tim Burton film, but I initially chalked these judgments up to my own biases. I had read the original A. A. Milne stories. Surely this was to be a saccharine movie that would cause me to simultaneously grin and giggle and eye-roll over how unrealistically utopian a plot could manifest, especially considering Disney movies’ outrageously happy endings. Not with this one, though. Indeed, it did end on a positive note, but not before it exposed various themes surrounding the idea of metamorphosis of one’s inner demons as they go through various life stages leading up to and including middle age, all without compromising the characteristics of the characters as they were made in the original novels.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Eighth Grade By Paulina Klubok

By Isabelle Sanderson Just as a spoonful of sugar can help the medicine go down, a few minutes of good-hearted laughs can help the dramatic truth of conversion camp sit well in the minds of the general audience. Starting in 2012 as a 480-page book banned from certain schools, the story has since been slimmed down to the bare minimum. Its last few chapters now lie reimagined in the hands of director Desiree Akhavan. Akhavan manages to portray the life of Cameron Post (Chloë Grace Moretz) and the challenges she faces during the summer of 1993 in a completely refreshing manner. Instead of a dated story skirting around the issue and trying not to upset anyone, “The Miseducation of Cameron Post” gives a sense of timelessness and gets right to the point, accomplishing this in enough of a lighthearted manner to be fit for the main screen. It all begins when Cameron is sent to the fictional camp God’s Promise by her conservative aunt. She soon makes friends with the outcasts of the group, Jane and Adam (Sasha Lane and Forrest Goodluck, respectively). A few classic soul-baring, weed-smoking moments later, the characters have found themselves and the audience can leave feeling they learned something about teenagers, the LGBTQ+ community, and the complex motives behind the adults working at a place like this. However, despite the wonderful efforts of the director and cast, it still remains that the best part about this movie is the very fact that it exists at all. The fact that it went unrated, avoiding the certain fate of all LGBTQ+ movies: getting rated R because a girl kissing another girl is somehow more risqué than hetero sex. The fact that millions of Americans are seeing the trailers that interrupt their morning news, the posters all over the streets, and the ads on the internet. And most importantly, the fact that a movie has been created to talk in place of the people that try to ignore it.

“Eighth Grade” by Bo Burnham is a startlingly honest portrayal of growing up in the age of the internet. The movie revolves around 13-year-old Kayla (Elsie Fisher) in her last week of middle school. Kayla struggles with confidence issues and social anxiety; she makes videos as a way to help others overcome the insecurities and anxieties that she herself faces. Burnham shines in creating a seemingly simple plot that manages to feel both intense and real. As Kayla attends a pool party, visits her future high school, and tries to make friends, the acuteness of her emotions is felt by the audience. It’s how aptly both Fisher, through superb acting, and Burnham, through carefully chosen camera angles, are able to wordlessly portray Kayla’s inner struggles that makes “Eighth Grade” compelling to watch and allows it to resonate so deeply with viewers. In what appears as a radical move on the big screen, the characters speak and look like eighth graders. This is a far cry from typical Hollywood movies in which teenagers are often played by actors older than the ages they are portraying. Protagonists seemingly look flawless without any effort and are always witty and eloquent. Kayla portrays the reality of being a teenager much more aptly. She struggles with acne, stutters, peppers her speech with “um” and “like,” and uses modern slang. Kayla is also immersed in technology, spending her nights scrolling through Instagram and her mornings taking “#wokeuplikethis” selfies in full makeup. The unfiltered authenticity in which Kayla is shown trying to understand herself and the world crafts a powerful and beautiful film.

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The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Humor These articles are works of fiction. All quotes are libel and slander.

IHOP Renames Itself Yet Again to OURHOB By Victor Kuang and Tony Moh To promote their new “Comrade Bread” menu item, IHOP has now christened itself Our Unitary House of Bread (OURHOB for short). Unlike the infamous “IHOB” publicity stunt pulled off earlier this year, this new name change is said to be permanent. Last week, The Spectator News field reporters sat down for an interview with now-OURHOB CEO Julia Stewart and President Darren Rebelez to get inside information on this revolutionary decision, from the reason for their sudden demographic shift to the thought process behind their controversial “Starving Citizen” advertising campaign. “Our team was struggling to figure out what to do with the 50 metric tons of burger buns we had left in stock.” Stewart responded. “Everyone was shooting ideas, but none of them were good. We had ideas like smashing the buns into pancake shapes and marketing them as ‘salty pancakes,’ and one

intern even suggested donating our supply to a homeless shelter. Utter nonsense. Who in their right mind would ever donate food to someone?” “It took an awful lot of thinking,” Rebelez said. “But as I thought about donating food, I realized that people are suckers when it came to free stuff. So to solve our crisis, we created the Starving Citizen campaign. With this strategy, we made everything free as long as the customer was willing to do some intensive manual labor. If they fail to meet our lenient ‘sliceper-bun’ customer production quota, we simply shackle them into a kitchen assembly line and work them until they either die or produce at least quadruple their original order. One of the interns claimed we were turning our restaurant franchisees into miniature collectives, but I like to see it more as progressive thinking: by removing the paying part of our company and making ev-

Incoming Sophomores Brace for Incoming Irrelevance By Chrisabella Javier

Jade Lo / The Spectator

corrupt capitalist system! After all, why should it be about ‘I’ when it’s ‘OUR’ Unitary House of Bread?”

Under the new system, the bread will be advertised similarly to their seasonal “endless pancake” deals, but with some major adjustments in decor and food distribution—namely, the replacement of their original smileyface logo with a yellow sickle and a red background. Once they enter the restaurant, patrons will be guided to already-occupied tables and crammed in with the thenhealthy customers until said tables are filled to three times the legal limit. Customers order food and spin a wheel to be placed in a labor site.

Once they finish their task, “volunteers” are allowed to eat the crust off of one burger bun before the rest of their products are shipped back and resold in frozen food aisles as OURHOB-brand French toast. This way, the multi-million dollar conglomerate can continue to exploit more slave labor without fear of government backlash. This strategy has received mixed reviews from the public. “This is the best thing that has happened to me since I discovered Communism itself last year,” junior Steve Wang said. “Who cares if people get threatened at gunpoint for free food? It’s still free!” “I don’t care if it’s free! The bread is terrible,” junior Ruby Huang commented. “Not only does it look like a hastily drawn math teacher Aziz Jumash, but the bread’s also harder than his tests. I mean, what the heck?” With its updated image, OURHOB has continued to generate profit at an alarming rate and is currently trying to expand its services to Moscow.

Stuyvesant Hires Greek Gods To Run School By Abir Taheer

In a school as vast and as prone to complaining as Stuyvesant, many staff members have found themselves unable to handle the heat. APs and the Program Office alike are known to develop nervous twitches and a dependency on comfort food come September. To help the struggling Stuyvesant officials, a decision has been made to hire Greek figures to serve the school. Apollo: Recently hired to monitor the escalators, he has quite the resume. He is the God of the Sun (something students say they haven’t seen in years), knowledge, and medicine (something Asian parents think they know too well). Despite his prowess in medicine, he is still not able to come up with a cure for Ligma. Since his birth, he has been involved in something called “the slaying of the python,” which we assume is a metaphor, referring to his Intro to Computer Science class. Like a lot of Stuyvesant students, when it came to extracurricular duties, Apollo forgot about monitoring the escalators and spent half the year chasing the freshman nymph Daphne to ask her to prom. With the skills she picked up from bi-

Vanessa Man / The Spectator

It’s that time of year again. As the summer comes to an end, the students at Stuyvesant High School return to their respective niches: the freshmen, to call themselves the next Einstein or whatever, the juniors, to be perpetually stressed and on Adderall, and the seniors, to reliably stop caring about anything and to sell the juniors the aforementioned Adderall. But as a new cycle of depression and suffering begins, the new rising sophomores become fearful of their inevitable fate: being totally irrelevant with regards to anything ever. “It’s not fair!” Generic Sophomore #69 said. “I go through all this trouble in freshman year to be the most intelligent, be in the most extracurricular activities, apply to all 11 Ivy Leagues, be the most depressed and anxious student, drive the most teachers to start drinking, and all around be the most pretentious person, yet I am still relegated as just another generic sophomore? Why? And stop referring to me as Generic Sophomore #69! I have a name! My name is [Generic Sophomore #69]!” Generic Sophomore #69 then proceeded to have a generic mental breakdown, to the apathy of those around them. Generic Sophomore #69 is not

alone in their frustration. While there is not a single 10th grader whose “thoughts” or “feelings” matter, The Spectator is unfortunately duty bound to report their whining. “Us sophomores are not irrelevant! Okay? You know what? To prove it, I will mess up these lowly freshies better than any junior or senior here could ever. I’ll crush their wheeled backpacks! I’ll eat their homework and set their houses on fire! I’ll plant drugs in their lockers and frame them for academic dishonesty! I’ll bribe the Programming Office into scheduling them for swim gym!” said Generic Sophomore #666, in a desperate attempt to impress the nearby upperclassmen. Coincidently, Generic Sophomore #666 had decided to be oblivious to the fact that they were also a “lowly freshie” not even just three months ago. As many sophomores lament the fact that they are the incredibly useless middle child in the dysfunctional family that is Stuy, some have decided to accept their fate. One of these students is Generic Sophomore #420, who, when asked for their opinion on their new, negligible role, only had this to say: “Eh, what the heck, I’ll be too high to care anyway. Now that I’m buying [totally not illegal drugs] for $50 per eighth, I’m getting a much better deal.”

ery customer work for their food, we’re fighting against the

ology, she turned herself into one of the seventh floor “DO NOT TOUCH THESE” plants before Apollo could embrace her. The 7-9 escalators haven’t worked ever since. Talos: Technically not a god, Talos was a giant bronze man who guarded the island of Tribeca by throwing complex equations at the ships of unwanted visitors: Brooklyn Tech students. They say when you look into his eyes, you can see your deepest and darkest fear, your freshman ID photo. He was brought in to improve communications between students and the Program Office. We tested out his

program requests feature and can verify that it went much better than previous communication attempts; we attempted to drop P.E. and got the response “Papagayo.” Legend says that he had one vein running from his neck to his ankle, carrying the blood of the gods: Starbucks dark roast coffee. His eventual death occurred when the Student Union could no longer afford to pay for Starbucks every day and switched to Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee. Argus: A 100-eyed giant was sent down by the Stuyvesant gods to slay the snake people who disguise

The Elite School (Of Fish) By Laura Ilioaei Stuyvesant alumna and marine biologist Serena Sardina was sent off on an assignment to investigate aquatic fauna at the Chelsea Piers. Having only found petri dish collections of plankton, assorted strains of polluted kelp, and the remains of Peter Stuyvesant’s corpse, Sardina deemed the area too boring for research. However, she couldn’t abandon her assignment. So like all Stuyvesant scholars, she chose to procrastinate. Old habits die hard after

all.

Though she had despised the school during her time as a student, Sardina found herself traversing the Tribeca Bridge, as nearly all alumni who swear to ne,ver return inevitably do. She walked through Stuyvesant’s entrance, nostalgically reminiscing of her past. From her report cards in high school leading into the missions of her professional life, she always seemed to be below sea level. Her former friends had often joked that this descent began with a Waxman exam “and the rest was history,”

but the idea of her alma mater bestowing a curse that was currently preventing her from ascending the ropes of her career wasn’t a notion she was willing to drown herself in misery over. Sardina forced her mind to swim away from the Mariana Trench of unresolved ego-related conflicts. There were bigger fish to fry, like uncovering the reason why the Senior Bar was abandoned, with the half floor eerily empty. She tiptoed warily across the hallway, wondering why an ominous vibe seemed to emit from the other side. More-

over, why was it so enticing? The doors leading to the other side of the hallway were secured shut, and Sardina could not peek through the glass to see what was on the other side because it was covered with Chouberalian fire-safety propaganda (that was most certainly a fire hazard). She pressed her ear firmly to the wall. Muffled sounds emitted from the other side. How fishy. Her fingers hovered over the doorknob. Should she... “Oh, what the hell?” Sardina was aware that hesitation

was one of the greatest forms of inhibition, and with regards to overcoming it, she was a decade overdue. She yanked back the doorknob. It was as if she’d obliterated a dam, for a deluge of students consumed her like a tsunami. Pity that she didn’t have the hindsight that sardines have more wiggle room in their cans than Stuyvesant students have space to breathe when waiting to request program changes. She didn’t die of asphyxiacontinued on page 25

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 25

Humor By Anika Sujana

Incoming Freshmen Follow Facebook Advice

As September nears, incoming freshmen are at a loss for how to prepare for their first year of high school. Both eager and anxious to thrive in a school as massive as Stuyvesant, these students seek a safe haven, open arms willing to accept and help those of all kind: Dear Incoming Stuyvesant Class of 2022…WE HAVE ADVICE!. Freshman Imnew Anderson was particularly nervous regarding how massive the school actually was. “10 floors?” exclaimed Anderson, seemingly out of breath from those two words alone. “I don’t think I’ve walked up that much in my life!” Lucky for him, incoming senior Angelo Lan was generous enough to leave him some advice through Messenger. “Once you notice that the escalators are usually more often broken than working, getting around the school can be somewhat difficult,” said Lan, much to Anderson’s displeasure. To ease the boy, Lan offered to sell him an elevator pass. Through a $20 transaction via Venmo, Anderson received an e-mail with an attached document of a poorly drawn elevator pass, which he excitedly printed out. On the first day of school, he was unfazed when seeing that

his third and fourth period classes had a nine-floor gap. No one seemed to notice Anderson striding toward the elevator. Much to his confusion, he met a security guard

ed on showing the same drawing as an excuse. “Based off the poor drawing, it seemed important to get the boy to his Art Appreciation class immediately,” officer

what to wear on the first day of school, she was soon contacted by sophomore Eliesabeth Sanderson, informing her that Stuy had a uniform policy. This policy stated that no matter what you

Darren Liang / The Spectator

o n t h e fourth floor who instructed him to exit the elevator, and much to the security guard’s confusion, the boy insist-

Amy Kavinsky said. While freshman Phrightened Lu was engaging in an open discussion with her friends on

were wearing to school, you must wear or carry at least one item purchased from Stuy’s school store. Lu then proceeded to buy apparel of every color available, much to her mother’s credit card’s disapproval.

On the seventh day of school, Lu was struck with fear once she noticed that she forgot to wear her Stuy apparel. Running to the school store, she spent the $7.00 given to her for emergencies on a Stuy mug that she made sure to carry with her to all of her classes, refusing to even put it down while doing push-ups during P.E. in fear of getting dresscoded. Incoming freshman Lana Fisher was curious about how difficult it would be to make friends. To calm her worries, senior Taylor Chung informed her that building relationships was the easy part and that clubs at Stuy allowed you to make friends from all grades. Chung told Fisher to look out for freshman hunters in particular, since they might as well be her ticket to the most enjoyable high school experience she could have. “Juniors are the jackpot when looking for freshman hunters, they’ll give you high school fun all four years,” reassured Chung, much to Fisher’s confusion. She soon learned that it would mean JProm and Senior Prom her first two years and then another JProm and Senior Prom the next two years. She began her search for the perfect prom dress excitedly. After days of fake elevator passes, mugs in P.E. classes, and freshmen tailing the upperclassmen, a petition was released to shut down Dear Incoming Stuyvesant Class of 2022…WE HAVE ADVICE!.

The Elite School (Of Fish) continued from page 24

tion, but she did need to butterfly her way through the school, taking care not to smack any of its members in the face. Her body was eventually catapulted out of the doors, similar to the manner in which a whale ejects poop through its blowhole.

Dazed, she noticed the head of a figure looking down from above her. When her eyes focused, she wanted to wallow into the Hudson’s polluted depths and perish in shame. It was her boss. “Wasting precious hours at my alma mater, are we?” He snatched her camera and looked through its contents. Gradu-

ally the anger on his face melted into a shrug and a nod of acceptance. “Not necessarily the school of fish we were looking for, but make the description sound poetic and all the philosophy majors will be baited. Hook, line, and sinker.” He turned the camera to show a photo of a freshman’s face pressed up

against the lens, resembling an overinflated pufferfish. Sardina slowly stood up before quietly addressing her boss by his first name. “Yeah?” He was clearly annoyed by this informality. “Our alma mater,” she laughed ruefully and began to walk away before momentarily

stopping to glare at her boss. “Don’t think I don’t remember you cheating from my bio final.” Though she’d gotten the last word in, it was a Pyrrhic victory. Whether she chose to live her life honestly or not, some sardines are bound to always be at the bottom of the food chain.

How Watwood Feels About Back to School By Beaux Watwood AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

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Courtesy of Watwood

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The Spectator â&#x2014;? September 7, 2018

Photo Essay: Summer Photo Abroad

Courtesy of Vivian Crib

Courtesy of Fion Sin

By THE PHOTO DEPARTMENT This summer, members of the photo department traveled to far corners of the world and documented their experiences for the Spectator. This photo essay is comprised of their pieces, whose subjects range from the wilderness of Alaska to the metropolis of China.

The Spectator â&#x2014;? September 7, 2018

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Photo Essay: Summer Photo Abroad

Courtesy of Joseph Yu

Courtesy of Emily Siew

Courtesy of Caitlin Chao

Courtesy of Christine Yan

Courtesy of Tiffany Yee

By THE PHOTO DEPARTMENT

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 28

Sports Football

Pegleg Preseason: “Hell Week” and Preseason News

By Max Mah

On a cold, dark night at Pier 40 last November, Stuyvesant football fans gathered to watch their Peglegs face Frederick Douglass Academy at Stuyvesant’s homecoming game. The event had a positive, encouraging feel as the Peglegs received support all around from parents, friends, alumni, and staff. Various senior players were commemorated by fans and their teammates, marking a fulfilling close to each of these players’ journeys. It seemed the Peglegs were destined to win when Principal Contreras and head coach Mark Strasser gave inspirational speeches, firing up the team and the crowd alike. However, it was not to be. The disheartening loss capped off a 0-9 season, and the Peglegs were subsequently moved from the B division down to the C division. While the future of Stuyvesant football certainly didn’t look bright after last year’s homecoming, there is every reason to be

hopeful for the upcoming season. A solid team has been in the making this summer, harnessing new talent from the upcoming junior and senior classes to fill positional gaps left by last year’s senior class. These new starters will certainly have their work cut out for them, as last year’s captains were extremely talented with Matthew Au as the offensive guard, Akhotsang Rigneyla as the quarterback, and Tahsin Ali and Perry Wang as running backs. During the Peglegs’ rigorous preseason workouts, appropriately dubbed “Hell Week,” various players have shown promise. Junior and current starting quarterback Lucas Dingman has stood out during practices, stepping up to take charge of the offense. Juniors Henry Liu and Evan Wong show much potential on the front lines to fill the gap that Au left behind. Finally, seniors co-captain Tim Marder and former JV star Kevin Chan are sure to fill the positions of last year’s running backs. “The captains this year are

definitely looking to tear up the field, and there are very skilled junior players as well,” senior cocaptain and center Eddie Zhu said. Zhu believes that while last year’s team had better individual players, this year’s chemistry is a lot better. Many of the current varsity players were part of the same JV team that had a successful regular season with a 6-2 league record a couple years ago. The Peglegs have implemented changes in playing strategy to overcome the challenges they faced last season and to utilize the different positional strengths of this year’s players. In the B division, the Peglegs were overwhelmed by the superior physical talent of their opponents and struggled to compete. Pass protection was pervious, leaving the offense vulnerable to multiple opposing rushers, especially up the middle. Rigneyla’s completion percentage and passer rating suffered as a result (45 and 46 percent, respectively). The offense was unable to gain significant distance each down, and any pass-

ing was limited to quick-hitting screen passes. On numerous occasions, the Peglegs failed to put any numbers up on the scoreboard and were defeated by wide margins. “We had strong guys, but not many. They held their ground but unfortunately couldn’t focus on their own job well while helping their teammates who weren’t as strong,” Zhu said. Strength and size were not strong suits for the Peglegs last year, who were beat on both offense and defense ends. Therefore, the Peglegs are moving back to up-tempo strategy that they used in the past, the idea being that linemen quickly get set up against the tired defensive line while the fast receivers outrun the opponents’ worn-out defenders. “Our speed and conditioning will allow us to outplay opponents and last much longer during games,” Zhu said. In addition, the Peglegs have been tightening up their pass protection and defense. Senior and veteran offensive guard Damian Wasilewicz and Liu are excelling

in the strength department in holding blocks on the line. On the defensive side, the Peglegs have strong defensive linemen, such as senior Andrew Park, to stop passing plays at their core. Meanwhile, senior linebacker Ian Sulley will keep inside runs in check. While the Peglegs’ shift to Division C after last season can be degrading, it actually presents a new opportunity for the Peglegs. Historically, Stuyvesant was seen as a championship level team in Division C—they had competed in the championship for two years in a row and made the playoffs multiple times before that as well. A shift back down to Division C will allow the Peglegs to be more competitive and participate in the championship hunt. The Peglegs are very confident in their current lineup against Division C schools. “I’m confident that my teammates and I have the desire to dominate this season, and that we will bring prestige back to the Stuyvesant Peglegs’ name in Division C,” Zhu said.

Girls’ Tennis

Lady Lobsters Look to Succeed With Young, Talented Roster By Ariel Glazman and Jared Asch After a strong comeback season for Stuyvesant’s girls’ tennis team, the Lady Lobsters will need to work hard to maintain their streak of success. They recovered from a disappointing record of 5-7 two years ago, bringing up their record to 6-4 this previous year and finishing third in their division. Though they easily defeated Hunter College High School in the first round of the playoffs last season, the Lady Lobsters have seen their progress stagnate at the first round for several years. Their division features two powerhouse teams: Beacon High School and the Bronx High School of Science, which have dominated the division for the past few years. Both strong teams will maintain the majority of their rosters, with each team only losing one or two starters out of seven total. However, with a strong group of upcoming players and experienced seniors, this could very well be the year the Lady Lobsters go deeper into the

playoffs. The team will look to rally behind rising senior and cocaptain Celina Liu, who has been a member of the team since her

as last year, she bumped her way up to first singles as a junior on a team heavy with seniors. “Celina’s an amazing captain. She’s been playing tennis for over

tices and our practice matches,” rising senior and co-captain Lily Yan said. Yan and Liu have also made it their goal to promote the overall fitness of the team and are

“Liu, Alyssa, and Talia are all very aggressive players. Alyssa hits every shot with so much power. Celina and Talia know how to put pressure on the opponent and are never afraid to run up to the net and end the point with a well-placed volley.” —Lily Yan, rising senior and co-captain

freshman year. Liu has found herself in the starting rotation ever since she joined the team, a nod to her overall tennis talent. Nonetheless, she has continued to work hard since freshman year,

a decade, so she has an endless wealth of tips and pointers for the team. She’s so passionate about the team, and her infectious energy always makes the team more spirited during prac-

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taking a new approach to practices. “In the past, our team practices mostly consisted of everyone just rallying with each other. This year, Celina and I have organized our practices by including time

for drills and conditioning, so everyone on the team is more fit and agile,” Yan said. The goal is for these new methods to push the Lady Lobsters past the first round of the playoffs. The Lady Lobsters also possess a few promising underclassmen members, such as rising junior Alyssa Pustilnik, who played third singles, and rising sophomore Talia Kahan, who played first doubles this past season. “Liu, Alyssa, and Talia are all very aggressive players. Alyssa hits every shot with so much power. Celina and Talia know how to put pressure on the opponent and are never afraid to run up to the net and end the point with a wellplaced volley,” Yan said. Both will likely see their positions in the starting lineup rise this season, allowing them to contribute even more crucially. This will be a watershed season for the Lady Lobsters, and their results during the playoffs will indicate whether they rallied behind their captains and rising stars, or were once again unable to break the first round wall.

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 29

Sports Sports Editorial

The French Crowned Kings in Russia

By Artem Ilyanok, Ahmed Hussein and Sunan Tajwar

France

France won this World Cup and rightly so. France was looking to win the World Cup after a disappointing defeat to Portugal in the 2016 UEFA European Championship. A squad containing elite players in every position and headlined by attackers Antoine Griezmann and breakout star Kylian Mbappe was touted to win it all this time around. They took a few games to click, narrowly beating Peru and Australia before playing out a boring draw against Denmark. Manager Didier Deschamps’s pragmatic, defensive style of football seemed to clash with the youthful exuberance and playing styles of many of his players. True to form, Kylian Mbappe began to show his pace and flair when Deschamps gave him more freedom. He ran riot around defenses, becoming a nightmare in the process. Deschamps’s ability to adapt his tactics to every team he faced helped France beat Argentina, Uruguay, Belgium, and Croatia as it lifted the World Cup for the second time. Having overcome such great teams to make it this far, the squad showed their incredible ability to adapt to any curve ball thrown at them. More importantly, though, players no one expected to do well stepped up. Players like Benjamin Pavard and Olivier Giroud played with heart for their team rather than for themselves. Pavard, France’s right back, was very solid defensively, and his ability to read the game was crucial for France’s defense. To the untrained eye, Giroud may have had a disappointing World Cup for a striker, scoring zero goals. However, his hold up play was crucial to France’s transition into attack because he gave his teammates enough time to support him by making runs forward. Giroud is definitely not fazed by critics of his goalless tournament. “No, no, no, because I have been criticised a little bit in France as well. Because I didn’t score in the World Cup. I have received a lot of messages from people who know football well, lots of French supporters. They saw the work I do for the team, and a lot of people wanted me to score in the final. I said, ‘Yes I hope so but even if I don’t score and we are world champions it will be the best thing that has happened in my life,’” said Giroud in an interview with The Telegraph. With this selfless core of players who will do anything for their country, it’s no wonder France is the best team in the world. The future looks even brighter for France. As one of the youngest teams at the tournament (the average age is 26), France will be looking to defend its crown in 2022. With another four years of experience under their belts, this team will be even more formidable.

Russia:

Russia was undoubtedly the World Cup’s fairytale. After coming up empty-handed after seven exhibition games leading up to the tournament, expectations were low, with most tipping the hosts for a group stage exit. However, relying on a defense led by the 38-year-old Sergei Ignashevich, Russia thrashed Saudi Arabia 5-0 with Denis Cheryshev scoring two goals that the Saudi Arabian defenders are still blushing about. For his first, the skillful winger lifted the ball above the tackle of two defenders before dispatching it past a helpless goalkeeper. His second was equally as impressive with an outside of the foot shot from outside the box that curled right into the top corner. They followed it up with a comfortable 3-1 win over Egypt before losing 3-0 to Uruguay. Few gave Russia much hope against Spain in the round of 16, but in the biggest

Croatia:

Croatia was the most entertaining team in this competition, dishing out thriller after thriller for their fans and coming out on top in all but one game. The Croats did not lose or draw a single game until losing to France in the final. In the group stage, they scored seven and conceded just one to earn the top

match. In the last 10 minutes, the game went back and forth, and both teams were creating chances. Egypt needed someone to finish their chances, and fans held their breath for Salah’s arrival for the last few minutes. His substitution would have attracted defenders toward him and created space for his teammates. Hector Cooper thought otherwise and left Salah on the bench, seemingly looking toward the future. Egypt conceded later on to a header by Jose Maria Gimenez and were defeated in a heartbreaking game. Next came Russia, who were not short of confidence. Despite Salah starting, he was obviously not himself, scoring a consola-

had to be the biggest disappointment of the 2018 World Cup. They came into Russia along with Brazil as the overwhelming favorites. The Germans were the defending champions, who arguably came into this year’s tournament with a better team with more depth than they had in 2014 when they won it all in Brazil. But in Russia, the Germans came out looking sluggish and uncoordinated. A shocking 1-0 loss to Mexico put a German team and fan base so used to success and consistency in panic. It didn’t help when they went 1-0 down in their second game against Sweden due to a careless pass in the midfield and sloppy defending. But a desperate Marco Reus goal in the early second half gave the Germans a pulse, and a dramatic last minute, curling, freekick beauty from midfield maestro Toni Kroos calmed their nerves. Now, all they had to do was beat South Korea, a team that up to that point had underperformed. But they made the same mistake they did against Mexico; they went there expecting an easy win against a team that was confident. They arguably looked worse against South Korea than against Mexico, and it finally caught up to them when South Korea scored two late goals to put the final nail in the German coffin. It’s the curse of the champions, as Germany, like Spain (defending champions in 2014), had gone from top of the world to bottom of the pack in a matter of four years, finishing last in their group. This was expected, though. History has shown us time and time again that the Germans never win in Russia.

Argentina:

Rebecca Collins / The Spectator

Winners:

upset in tournament history (by FIFA rankings), Russia won a game in which it only managed 22 percent possession on penalties. After taking Croatia to penalties in the quarterfinals, Russia’s luck ran out as it lost 4-3 in the shootout. Nonetheless, Russia greatly exceeded expectations, capturing the heart of a nation (and world) in the process.

spot more than comfortably, five points ahead of second place Argentina. With one of the most technically gifted midfield lines to ever grace the World Cup, including Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Milan Badelj, Marcelo Brozovic, and Mateo Kovacic, the Croats could play their way out of all types of pressure and play the ball to their experienced forwards in Ivan Perisic, Mario Mandzukic, and Ante Rebic. When they couldn’t break down the opposition, their defenders, Domagoj Vida and Sime Vrsaljko, were extremely reliable. Playing against France was a different story, though, as the French knew how to beat the Croats at their own game. The game was very close, but some questionable refereeing decisions in France’s favor as well as an own goal may have left the Croatians feeling hard done. Despite the disappointing ending, Croatia are winners in our book.

Losers:

Egypt: Egyptian fans came into this tournament praying that their prolific winger Mohamed Salah would feature in the World Cup. Still nursing an injury sustained in the Champions League final one month earlier after a tangle of arms with Sergio Ramos, Salah’s full fitness was in question for the Egypt’s World Cup opener against Uruguay. Relief filled Egyptian hearts when Salah trained with the team a few days before the first game. Despite training, Salah was benched in a questionable decision by Cooper. Egypt defended well and created some chances that they could have taken, but the score remained level until very late in the

tion penalty after Egypt’s defense conceded three shambolic goals. Egypt were all but knocked out at this point and were playing for pride against Saudi Arabia. Fans came in droves, expecting Egypt to win their first world Cup match. Essam El-Hadary started, marking his name in the history books as the oldest to ever play in the World Cup at 45. As was the trend throughout the competition, Egypt missed chance after chance before conceding a late goal that saw them defeated in a game they expected to win; This was a disappointment from any viewpoint, especially for Hector Cooper whose job search now commences.

Spain:

One of the pre-tournament favorites, a star-studded Spain squad was expected to go far in the tournament. However, rocked by the sacking of manager Julen Lopetegui a day before the tournament, Spain struggled to get going under Fernando Hierro. An unlucky but thrilling 3-3 draw against Portugal was followed by a narrow 1-0 win against Iran and a disappointing 2-2 draw against Morocco. Still topping the group, Spain were expected to find their rhythm in the round of 16 against hosts Russia. Despite dominating possession and completion of over a thousand passes, Spain struggled to break down the Russian backline, losing a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in extra time. This Word Cup was undoubtedly a devastating tournament for Spain, as they only won one game.

Germany:

Undoubtedly, the Germans

Argentina has always produced attacking talent with Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona, Sergio Aguero, and Angel Di Maria all perfecting their craft in the streets of Argentina. They have struggled, however, to find solid defensive players to field, and their defensive woes have cost them repeatedly. But, like always, they were expected to go far relying on their deadly attack. This World Cup was different, though, with something obviously off. The Argentinians couldn’t seem to string together three passes. An explanation soon arose in the form of manager Jorge Sampaoli with many players speaking out against his tactics and losing respect for him. Argentina drew to Iceland before losing to Croatia in a 3-0 drubbing. With one game remaining, Argentina needed to beat Nigeria and hope Iceland did not beat Croatia. So Argentina needed a hero, and naturally, Lionel Messi stepped up, leading Argentina to a 2-1 win with Marcos Rojo scoring late to seal the deal for Argentina. In the knockout stages, Argentina hoped to show they were still one of the world’s best by beating France. Mbappe’s pace and Pavard’s Goal of the Tournament proved too much for Argentina, however, with the game ending 4-3. Losing to the eventual World Champions is no shame, but the Argentines were a disappointing team for most of the tournament.

Honorable Mentions: Uruguay:

Coming in as the tournament’s “dark horse,” the world class Uruguay squad headlined by a strike partnership of Barcelona’s Luis Suarez and PSG’s Edinson Cavani looked to make waves. A defense consisting of the experienced Diego Godin, his club teammate Jose Gimenez, and a number of others was arguably the best in the tournament. This combination worked as Uruguay topped their group without conceding a single goal—a remarkable feat. Drawn against Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo in the round of 16, Uruguay’s defense again carried the day as it survived a Portuguese

onslaught to secure a 2-1 win. Ultimately, Uruguay’s overreliance on defense was exposed by eventual champions France in the quarterfinals, as it was undone by a set piece and a goalkeeping error. Uruguay will be disappointed that its golden generation failed to take its best chance at a deep World Cup run.

Belgium:

Belgium came into the tournament with great expectations, as they were in the midst of their golden age with players like De Bruyne, Hazard, Lukaku, Mertens, and Courtois. They used this talent in the group stages, finishing at the top of their group easily. In their first game, they comfortably defeated Panama by a 3-0 margin with Lukaku making an early bid for the golden boot with two goals. In their next match, they showed off an even greater display of offensive versatility and explosiveness, tallying up five goals against Tunisia and winning in the end, 5-2. Lukaku added two more to his tournament tally, while Eden Hazard scored two of his own, putting in an early bid for the golden ball with his prowess on the ball, precision passing, and ice-cold finishing ability. Their next game against England was hyped to be one of the best fixtures of the group stages, with both teams in good form and having world class talent over the pitch. Having already qualified for the round of 16, Belgium sent out their “B-team” against England, and it was still enough to beat the three lions 1-0. That last win solidified their position on top of the group, and showed the world that they had now truly emerged as an international footballing powerhouse. Their next real challenge came in the quarter-finals against Brazil, where they upset the favorites with a blistering counterattack spearheaded by Hazard and De Bruyne. But in a scrappy encounter against the French in the semi-finals, the Belgians were eliminated via a 1-0 scoreline, finishing third after going out to the eventual champions and beating England in the third place match.

England:

English fans were both optimistic and pessimistic as ever, both excited about the new young talent spread across their starting lineup and worried that this team would be like every other English team in the past two decades—full of potential but embarrassingly disappointing whenever it mattered the most. But in their first two games, this English team, like the Belgians, showed their class. England played an attractive offensive style of play against Tunisia that we hadn’t seen from previous English teams in recent history, with Harry Kane scoring a brace to lead England as captain to a 2-1 victory. His good form continued and so did England’s, as Kane scored a hat-trick in England’s route of Panama in a 6-1 victory for the Three Lions, which was the greatest margin of victory in the tournament. And Harry Kane, like Lukaku, had his eye on the golden boot. Though they lost their final game to Belgium, the second place finish gave England a more favorable seeding in the knockout rounds where they ironically played weaker teams than Belgium, who finished first. After getting by Columbia in a tight game, which ended in England, finally breaking their penalty shootout curse, they comfortably beat Sweden in the quarterfinals. But football’s coming-home party was spoiled by Luka Modric and Croatia, who stole the final spot in the finals with an extra-time winner. But this tournament reinvigorated a sense of hope in the English national team that had been lost for the better part of two decades. It did not come home, but it was a hell of a try by the Three Lions.

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 30

Sports Athlete Profile

Athletes of the Issue: Touché Albert Zhang

By Allison Eng

Alex Lin

It’s pretty hard to do because the hand is the most guarded part of the body, so it’s one of the coolest.

ficult move. 6. What’s the funniest thing that has happened while you’ve been on the team? Actually, it’s a very embarrassing story; basically, my sneakers had air cushions in the soles designed to be easier on the feet. So during practice one day, the sole popped and there was a leak. So every time I took a step there would be a very loud and audible wheezing sound, where air would flow in and out of the shoe. During the entire practice it was just the sound of my teammates straining to do drills… and the occasional wheezing followed by massive laughter. One captain even said, “We can tell how fast Alex’s pitter patter (a certain footwork drill) is by how many whoo’s his shoes make.”

7. Which of your teammates is the funniest? This dude named Alex Lin. Don’t really know him that well but he seems to be a really ATTRACTIVE and funny guy! He’s a great dancer and is never shy to show anyone his infamous “Whip and Nae Nae.” I don’t know how he does it, but he’s really good! Definitely ask him to demonstrate. 8. Proudest moment? Winning second in the citywide championships in 2017.

Grade: Senior Height: 6’2” Hair color: Black Eye color: Brown DOB: 09/02/2001 1. How did you get into fencing? Fencing seemed like a really cool sport! 2. How long have you been on the Stuyvesant team? Three years. 3. Do you fence outside of school? Yes, we strongly suggest everyone on the team to fence outside of schools at fencing clubs. 4. What are your aspirations for this PSAL season? To keep the streak going and to improve my fencing skills. 5. Explain the coolest trick you can do while fencing. One of the harder things to do in fencing, the coolest thing I can do, is scoring a point by getting a touch on my opponent’s hand.

9. How do you balance schoolwork and being on a team? What advice can you give others? Practices are pretty long so I take any chance I get to finish homework before practice starts. During my lunch and my free periods, I spend my time doing homework from classes taken earlier in the day. This way, when I get home after practice, the load would be lightened and there would be less homework to do at home. 10. How do you try to constantly improve yourself ? I keep going to club and look for my own mistakes and fix them. Choice drink: Water Favorite food: Fried chicken Motto to live by: Go big or go home. Fun fact: I used to do ballet.

Girls’ Soccer

Coming back from a successful last season in which they went 5-7, the Mimbas, Stuyvesant’s girls’ soccer team, are confident in their ability to improve despite the departure of a few crucial seniors. “We have a bunch of newer players to fill [the spots of the seniors] so it doesn’t seem like we will be affected greatly,” senior and captain Allison Eng said during the preseason workouts and practices. “We only lost two starters who played midfield and defense.” This is very promising for this upcoming season and for many seasons to come, as the incoming freshmen are always very crucial for a team’s future. In addition to these incoming freshmen, the Mimbas have a strong list of returning players as well. For instance, junior Selene Kaehny scored nine goals in 41 shots last season, including the playoffs. Junior Eve Hausman scored eight goals in her third season on the team, while sophomore Aki Yamaguchi had a stellar season, scoring eight goals and adding five assists. Eng scored one goal before her season was cut short by a devastating ankle injury

7. Which of your teammates is the funniest? Albert Zhang of course.

Grade: Junior Height: 5’9” Hair color: Black Eye color: Brown DOB: 09/17/2002 1. How did you get into fencing? I mean, who doesn’t like to play with swords? 2. How long have you been on the Stuyvesant team? Only one year so far. 3. Do you fence outside of school? Yes! At New York Fencing Academy. 4. What are your aspirations for this PSAL season? Hopefully to be able to play as many games as possible and represent the team as best as I can. 5. Explain the coolest trick you can do while fencing. The coolest trick has to be a parry flick to the back. I have to admit I personally haven’t achieved such a feat, but seeing other teammates do it makes me very jealous. Basically, when an opponent attacks, you would block his or her blade with your own and then in a fraction of a second curve your own blade onto your opponent’s back torso. A very cool but dif-

8. Proudest moment? My proudest moment was probably when I assembled my very own blade for the first time. I get that same sense of adrenaline rush as you would by assembling a bicycle or skateboard. By the time I broke my second blade, I knew I couldn’t screw up a third time. After countless tries, I was able to get the circuits right, and I was so glad I took the time to do so. It was like completing a personal project. I know everything that happens from there on out is because of my own actions. And I’m proud to take responsibility for that. 9. How do you balance schoolwork and being on a team? What advice can you give others? I usually start my assignments as soon as possible when given time to do so. Which obviously doesn’t mean sacrificing lunch to crunch down on homework. I would advise to set up a mental schedule; it basically all comes down to self control. Should you be napping in your free period, or should you be working on your English essay? 10. How do you try to constantly improve yourself ? I’m always looking for new ways to improve or adjust myself. I always squeeze enough time for a quick practice. Constructive criticism is also very important factor for me to learn and grow. Choice drink: Aloe drinks Favorite food: Chicken nuggets Motto to live by: Always treat yourself like you are the human equivalent of the 100 percent emoji. Fun fact: I was actually born in the Netherlands (What!? Crazy, I know).

Boys’ Soccer

Mimbas Hope to Improve on Strong 2017 Season By Franklin Liou and Jooahn Sur

Elena Sapelyuk / The Spectator

6. What’s the funniest thing that has happened while you’ve been on the team? There’s a technique in fencing called a flèche. In basic terms, it’s a transfer of weight from the back foot to the front. Usually, this technique takes three or fewer steps and the point should be made. However, in a bout, I managed to force my opponent from one end of the strip to the other end just with a flèche. I took a three step action to a 10 step action.

that left her sidelined for the rest of the season. The goaltending was very strong as well, as junior and goalkeeper Emory Walsh had a 0.72 save percentage on the season. Because of the young talent being injected into the team, they expect to do better than last year and make the playoffs once again. The Mimbas will look to their star players, seniors Allie Lennard, Eng, and Lumi Westerlund to lead them to the playoffs and hopefully to a championship. “Right now we are working on ball control, communication, and strategy. We’re realizing little kinks during practices and trying to fix them immediately,” Eng said. As the temperatures rise in this intense summer heat, the Mimbas are ramping up the intensity of their practices as well, eager for a playoff berth. By fixing the smallest of mistakes so early in the season, the team is able to pay very close attention to detail while building team chemistry. With an excellent blend of strong leadership, young incoming talent, and a strong work ethic, the Mimbas look destined to go far in the playoffs this upcoming season.

The Stuyvesant Peglegs Ready to Improve and Excel Performances

By Elias Ferguson

The Stuyvesant Peglegs, the boys’ varsity soccer team, will be looking to build on last season’s performance. After finishing the season second in their league with a solid record of 8-2, they went on to lose in the first round of the playoffs to Newcomers High School. The Peglegs finished just after Martin L. King High School, which boasted an undefeated record of 10-0. During the regular season, both of the Peglegs’ two losses were handed to them by Martin L. King Jr. High School, the defending city champions, who crushed the Peglegs 4-0 and 5-0. Coach Vincent Miller will look for improvement against Martin L. King this year, which will be important in a division where there are several new teams, including Louis Brandeis High School and The Columbia Secondary School, schools that are replacing The Frederick Douglass Academy and The Julia Richman Education Complex and have not seen great success in their division. Columbia went 2-10 and Louis Brandeis went 3-9 last season. The Peglegs are confident that the two schools’ integration into the Manhattan A League will

not distract from their main rival, however, which remains Martin L. King High School. Following in the footsteps of last year’s captains, Michael Gillow (‘18) and Sunny Levitis (‘18), seniors Kevin Mitchell and Jeffrey Shen have large shoes to fill. Last

only played four of the ten games last season and did not make an appearance during the playoff game, his leadership will be important to the team’s success this year. The leadership of new captains will be integral to the success of this new season. “We want to go 8-2 this

“We want to go 8-2 this season. There were a lot of seniors that left last year, so this year, some of the younger players [will] have more time.” —Jeffrey Shen, senior and co-captain. year, Shen was a mainstay in the Peglegs roster. He played in the team’s only playoff game and in nine of the ten games during the regular season. He had an admirable goalscoring record. In the span of nine games played, Shen scored three and assisted one goal. Even more impressive is that the three goals came from only six shots. While Mitchell

season. There were a lot of seniors that left last year, so this year, some of the younger players [will] have more time,” said senior and co-captain Shen. After a solid season last year, the Peglegs will be looking to replicate the same form during the regular season. However, they will hope to push further into the playoffs this time around.

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 31

Sports Sports Editorial By Jeremy Rubin With both teams fighting for control of the National League West division, resurgent veteran Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers stepped up to the plate against the Arizona Diamondbacks’ relief ace Archie Bradley on the mound in the bottom of the eighth inning on September 1. On a 82-mph curveball that hung in the strike zone, Kemp drove the ball into deep centerfield, clearing the fence by at least 20 feet. His home run gave the Dodgers a 3-2 lead. They would go on to win the game and tie the Diamondbacks atop the division. Not to be forgotten, the Colorado Rockies are only half a game back from both teams in the division. This race, along with many others, will come down to Game 162. Here, I break down who will reach the postseason and who will win the coveted World Series.

National League St. Louis Cardinals vs. Arizona Diamondbacks Despite being neck-and-neck with the Dodgers, the Diamondbacks have one of the most difficult schedules for the rest of the season. They will falter but still hold on to claim the second wild card spot from the Milwaukee Brewers. In a pitching duel of Zack Greinke and Miles Mikolas, Matt Carpenter and the Cardinals will stake out an early lead. However, as the game turns to the bullpens, the advantage shifts to Arizona, as Paul Goldschmidt and David Peralta will go hard off the shaky Cardinals ‘pen. Cardinals center fielder (and Horace Mann alum) Harrison Bader will do all he can in the outfield, but the Diamondbacks will squeeze out the win. 4-3, Diamondbacks. Division Series

American League New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox This is a fun series. It is a new era of a storied rivalry with fresh faces and different team personalities. However, per usual, it will come down to the wire. Assuming Chris Sale comes back healthy for the Red Sox, and Chapman and Gregorius are back for the Yankees, the series will go five games. The X-factor will be Aaron Judge and the health of his wrist. He is currently on the disabled list after breaking his wrist on a hitby-pitch in July. Judge at 100 percent makes the team much more dangerous. While the Red Sox have their trio of B’s in the outfield of Andrew Benintendi, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Mookie Betts to go with potential triple-crown winner J.D. Martinez at DH, the Red Sox boast one of the strongest lineups in the MLB. However, they are flawed. The bullpen is a mess outside of Craig Kimbrel, and the starting pitching is a huge question mark outside of Sale. I might be a Yankees fan, but the Yankees will torch the Red Sox bullpen in all series. In an era when the team with the best bullpen usually wins the most in October, the Yankees move on to face the winner of Houston/ Cleveland. Yankees win series 3-2. Houston Astros vs. Cleveland Indians In another exciting matchup, the Astros look to defend their 2017 championship led by their young superstars including Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman, and George Springer. With a 1-2 punch of Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole atop the rotation, their pitching is nothing to make light of. They should be able to handle the Indians. Headlined by Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and recently acquired Josh Donaldson, the Indians are a very strong team. Coupled with their stellar outfield and the pair of Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez, they will steal a game or two. However, they have not been healthy and their bullpen has many holes, setting up a rematch of 2017’s ALCS. Astros win series, 3-2. National League Chicago Cubs vs. Arizona Diamondbacks The “Lovable Losers” no more, the Cubs have become one of the most formidable teams in the MLB. Now, with the meteoric rise of superstar Javier Baez, Chicago becomes that much more daunting. This team has no holes in the field and can hit 1-9 in the order. Addison Russell and Ian Happ, two would-be starters on most teams, are coming off the bench. The depth is incredible. With Joe Maddon at the helm, this team has no glaring weakness outside of a slightly questionable bullpen. On the flip side, having burned through Zack Greinke in the Wild Card, the

Jason Lin / The Spectator

Wild Card Games American League New York Yankees vs. Oakland Athletics As the season begins to come to a close, it is more and more evident that the Yankees and Athletics will not catch their division leaders, the Boston Red Sox and the Houston Astros, respectively. In this do-or-die one game playoff, the Yankees will send out ace Luis Severino to pitch while the A’s will counter with… Mike Fiers? With Sean Manaea on the disabled list and unsure about a return this season, the Athletics don’t have a true ace. Despite Severino struggling in the second half of the season, he has begun to find his form. He’ll be able to go six innings before handing the ball off to the vaunted Yankees bullpen, and the lineup will hit their way to a victory. 6-2, Yankees.

MLB Postseason Predictions

Diamondbacks will go with Patrick Corbin and work from there. They will win a game, but the Cubs should cruise to a series victory. Cubs win series, 3-1. Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Atlanta Braves The Dodgers are heating up at the right time. New acquisitions Brian Dozier and Manny Machado are fitting in nicely with the team, and Clayton Kershaw and the pitching staff are rounding into form. After a year of being decimated by injuries, the Dodgers are getting healthier and stronger for the stretch run. They will knock off the Braves. While the Braves have been a great feel-good story, they are still a year or two away from seriously contending. Ronald Acuna Jr. and Ozzie Albies have stepped into their own, and Freddie Freeman continues to a consistent presence at first base. However, Atlanta doesn’t have the starting pitching or bullpen to compete with the Dodgers. Next year might be a different story, though. Dodgers win series, 3-1. Championship Series American League New York Yankees vs. Houston Astros This is the series we’ve all (at least all of us Yankees fans) been waiting for. At long last, it’s time for redemption. Again, the X-factor of the series is Judge. Working under the assumption that he’s almost completely healthy and back to be-

ing a dominant force in the lineup, the Yankees team can hold their own against anyone. Despite a rotation made up of Verlander, Cole, and Dallas Keuchel, the Yanks will overpower Houston, hitting home runs in crucial moments late in the game against the Astros bullpen. Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez will find his stroke and prove to be the difference maker in the series. Yankees win series, 4-3. National League Chicago Cubs vs. Los Angeles Dodgers The Dodgers are a flawed team. They lack a stable bullpen besides closer Kenley Jansen, and their defense up the middle is not the best. As well as Machado can hit, he is the worst defensive shortstop in the MLB (-16 runs saved according to FanGraphs). However, they can always rely on their starting pitching rotation of Kershaw, Alex Wood, Rich Hill, and Walker Buehler (side note: Walker Buehler is a great name). This rotation will do its best to slow down the Cubs. The return of Kris Bryant from the disabled list and new additions Daniel Murphy and Cole Hamels will be too much, though. The Cubs are the more complete team and will send the Dodgers home early once again. Cubs win series 4-2. World Series New York Yankees vs. Chicago Cubs This is such an intriguing match-

up. Jon Lester vs. Luis Severino in game one, followed by Cole Hamels vs. Masahiro Tanaka in game two. The Yankees are similar to the Cubs of two years ago with new and upand-coming talent. Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres are the two frontrunners for rookie of the year and will not shrink away on the biggest stage. Giancarlo Stanton will show Yankees fans why the Yankees traded for him. The biggest weakness for the Yankees is their starting pitching and, more recently, their bullpen. However, this is just a rut for the Yankees’ bullpen, and the Yanks will once again return to dominance in the late innings of ball games. This, in turn, will help rectify their biggest issue of starting pitching, as starters will only be needed for five innings. On the flip side, as previously mentioned, the Cubs’ depth will be on full display this World Series. For the third straight year, the World Series will go seven games. If Yu Darvish were healthy for the Cubs, this might be a different story. Instead, in a third matchup of Severino against Lester in game seven, both teams will go to their bullpens early. It is here the Yankees’ strengths will shine through. Gleyber Torres will hit a critical home run to break it open. Didi Gregorius will be flawless in the field. Aroldis Chapman will shut down his former team in the ninth. The Bronx will end up on top for a 28th time. Winner: Yankees in 7.

Sports Editorial

Predictions for the 2018 US Open By Celina Liu This year’s US Open is filled with generations of champions. Former champions and top players including Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka, who is coming back after a hip replacement surgery and a knee injury, are making their comebacks to the sport at the last grand slam of the year. The tournament also marks a year since Serena Williams gave birth to her daughter, Alexis Ohanian Jr. The top seeds of both the men’s and women’s singles draws are feeling the pressure to perform above and beyond their competitors. However, the first week at the Open unexpectedly knocked out the top two seeds in the women’s draw and multiple five-set matches on the men’s side. On the first day of the Open, first seed and this year’s Roland Garros champion Simona Halep was knocked out in the first round by Kaia Kanepi 6-2, 6-4. Halep has

always been a bit of hit-or-miss player in the slams. For whatever reason, whenever she’s the top seed at a tournament, she tends to buckle under the pressure. However, looking at her Instagram stories after her loss shows she is already hitting the grind on her home courts. Similarly, the second seed and former US Open champion Caroline Wozniacki was knocked out in the round of 64 by Lesia Tsurenko 6-4, 6-2. Wozniacki was definitely a fan favorite for this year’s Open but her and Halep’s upsets have definitely allowed for more competitive matches at the tournament. Other fan favorites this year include new mother Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, last year’s finalist Madison Keys, and defending champion Sloane Stephens. Williams recently defeated her older sister Venus Williams in a clean 6-1, 6-2 match. Fans were pumped up to watch the two sisters play each other for the 30th time and were stunned by Serena Williams’s aces and win-

ners. With Serena Williams sporting Virgil Ablo’s custom designed tutu dresses, she definitely seems like a true “Queen.” If Serena Williams is able to continue serving up aces and striking the ball the way she is now, she has a clear shot at this year’s trophy. Sharapova has been greeted with the loudest applause at Arthur Ashe this year. Now into the second week of the open with a 22-0 record at nighttime Ashe matches, her match against former Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko showed her best performances yet, ruthlessly slamming winner after winner and punishing Ostapenko’s serve. Sharapova may soon meet Madison Keys in the quarterfinals, a match that fans will definitely be excited for. Defending champion Stephens had a tough time adjusting to life as a Grand Slam champion after last year’s US Open. She was on a eightmatch losing streak before finally

making it to the finals of this year’s Roland Garros. However, she soon lost unexpectedly in the first round of Wimbledon. That being said, if she continues to perform the way she has been at the US Open, she should be able to defend her title. On the men’s side of the draw, multiple top seeds have already had upsets. Murray lost in the second round against Fernando Verdasco in four sets, ending the Brit’s debut tournament early. Stan Wawrinka also lost in straight sets to Canadian Milos Raonic. Just recently and most surprisingly, fourth seed Alexander Zverev lost to fellow German Philipp Kohlschreiber in four sets. Last year’s finalist Kevin Anderson pulled through from a five-set match against up-and-coming Canadian star Denis Shapovalov. Anderson is scheduled to play Dominic Thiem on Louis Armstrong, a matchup that could go either way depending on Anderson’s serve and Thiem’s onehanded backhand. However, the three-man rivalry

continues this year at the US Open as current world number one Rafael Nadal, the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) Roger Federer, and the unforgettable Novak Djokovic have all made it through the first week at the Open. Nadal was able to overcome Karen Khachanov in a tight four-set match, while Federer has yet to drop a set. Djokovic has been able to prove throughout the week that he is back in the race for this year’s trophy as he grinds through two fourset matches. Though Federer and Djokovic may have the chance of meeting earlier because they are on the same side of the draw, all three players must persevere over the next generation of top players in order to once again meet at Arthur Ashe. All things considered, here are my picks for the finals: Serena Williams versus Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal versus Roger Federer/ Novak Djokovic. This year’s finals are set to be action-packed and competitive like never seen before.

The Spectator ● September 7, 2018

Page 32

The Spectator SpoRts Sports Editorial

NFL Crystal Ball: What Will Happen this Season?

By Franklin Liou and Jooahn Sur

could, the Titans could become a top 10 team in the NFL.

Power Rankings 1. Philadelphia Eagles 2. Minnesota Vikings 3. New Orleans Saints 4. Los Angeles Rams 5. New England Patriots 6. Jacksonville Jaguars 7. Pittsburgh Steelers 8. Atlanta Falcons 9. Green Bay Packers 10. Los Angeles Chargers 11. Houston Texans 12. San Francisco 49ers 13. Carolina Panthers 14. Kansas City Chiefs 15. Tennessee Titans 16. Oakland Raiders 17. Detroit Lions 18. Baltimore Ravens 19. Dallas Cowboys 20. New York Giants 21. Arizona Cardinals 22. Denver Broncos 23. Seattle Seahawks 24. Indianapolis Colts 25. Chicago Bears 26. Buffalo Bills 27. New York Jets 28. Cincinnati Bengals 29. Cleveland Browns 30. Washington Redskins 31. Miami Dolphins 32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

New York Giants The Giants finished the 2017 season with a record of 3-13, their worst in franchise history. A lack of accountability and leadership, combined with several devastating injuries, were responsible for such a poor season. The franchise was dysfunctional, with head coach Ben McAdoo never having total control of the locker room and veteran quarterback Eli Manning being scapegoated for the team’s struggles. Star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who plays a huge role in the team’s offense, suffered a broken ankle, which made it even harder for the team to recover from its 0-4 start. The team hired former Vikings’ offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur to replace McAdoo as head coach, while the former Panthers’ general manager was hired to improve the roster. Gettleman’s plan was clearly to surround Eli Manning with more talent, as he drafted running back Saquon Barkley with the second overall pick in the 2018 draft instead of Manning’s successor and bolstered the offensive line through free agency and later rounds in the draft. The team also signed linebacker Alec Ogletree and drafted many defensive linemen to improve a defense that ranked 31st in the league last season. With a much improved roster loaded with talent, the Giants have a lot of potential to return to the playoffs after an abysmal 2017 season.

Teams that will Rise in the Power Rankings by the End of the Season Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns have the potential to win at least six games this season. That might not sound like a lot, but it is a drastic improvement for a team that has won just one game in the past two seasons combined. The team certainly had a busy offseason, signing quarterback Tyrod Taylor and drafting quarterback Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft with the hopes of finally ending the team’s quarterback woes that have been going on for 20+ years. The receiving corps greatly improved with the signing of receiver Jarvis Landry and the return of talented receiver Josh Gordon, who has struggled with drug and alcohol abuse for the past four years. The defense will improve on its abysmal 2017 team ranking of 31st overall with the return of defensive end Myles Garrett from injury and the addition of cornerback Denzel Ward with the fourth overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. The Browns will not make the playoffs this season, but they will take a step in the right direction as a franchise and see the biggest jump yet in the power rankings by season’s end.

Teams that will Drop in the Power Rankings by the End of the Season Oakland Raiders The Raiders finished the 2016 season with a record of 12-4 with hopes of winning the Super Bowl before then-MVP candidate and quarterback Derek Carr suffered a serious leg injury. Though the Raiders were eliminated from the playoffs in the wild card round, many people felt that they had a bright future. The very next season, however, the team failed to make the playoffs, largely due to Carr’s struggles and a defense that ranked 23rd in the league. This offseason, the front office did not do much to improve a weak roster, as they made many questionable decisions in the draft and did not make many improvements through free agency. To top it all off, the team decided that 2017 Defensive Player of the Year linebacker Khalil Mack did not deserve the money that he demanded. Mack was traded to the Chicago Bears, further depleting a roster that lacks the talent to compete to begin with. In a competitive AFC West, the Raiders are expected to struggle, and they may end up being the worst team in the league by the end of the season.

Tennessee Titans Though the Tennessee Titans made the playoffs last season, they did not prove to the world that they could hang with the big boys, which is why they are not ranked as high as they could be. Their offense has a bunch of potential to surprise, especially at the running back and wide receiver positions. With the departure of Demarco Murray, their 2016 second round draft pick and former Heisman Trophy winner, Derrick Henry, will be given the opportunity to get the bulk of the carries for the Tennessee offense, not to mention their 2016 first round draft pick, Corey Davis, who has not had the opportunity to show his skills yet due to injury. The Titans’ offensive line, led by Jack Conklin and Taylor Lewan, has been strong for the past two years, providing great protection for quarterback Marcus Mariota and support for the run game. Their defense is a little lacking, especially in the front seven, which is a cause for concern. However, with the reunion of former Patriots cornerbacks Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler, and the return of Kevin Byard in the secondary, the Titans’ defense is no pushover. If the young Titans offense can live up to its potential this season, which very well

and failed to lead his team to the playoffs. Superstar running back Ezekiel Elliott was suspended six games while receiver Dez Bryant showed that he was undeserving of his lucrative contract yet again. This offseason, reliable tight end Jason Witten retired while Bryant was released by the team and (at the time this article is written) has yet to find a job. The Cowboys replaced Bryant with receiver Allen Hurns, who has been hampered by injuries throughout his career, while failing to fill the large hole left by Witten at the tight end position. With a lack of receiving options surrounding Prescott, as well as the team’s long history of players who break the law, the Cowboys are expected to finish in the bottom half of a strong NFC East and the league. Breakout Players Patrick Mahomes II, QB, Kansas City Chiefs In the 2016 NFL draft, the Kansas City Chiefs surprisingly traded up to select the second quarterback in the draft, Patrick Mahomes II, at 10th overall. Last season, the Chiefs stuck with veteran quarterback Alex Smith as their starter, and Mahomes II spent the season on the pine to learn and develop his skills before he took over the quarterback job. His extremely strong arm, combined with Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill’s speed, should prove to be a lethal combination this year. Corey Davis, WR, Tennessee Titans Though Davis did not have the rookie year he was hoping for in the 2017-18 season due to a hamstring injury which sidelined him for five games, he seemed to make progress over the course of the season and gain the trust of his manager and quarterback. Now, heading into the 2018-19 season, the former fifth overall pick is the Titans’ number one receiver and should finally reach his full potential after a year of experience and some improved chemistry with Marcus Mariota. David Njoku, TE, Cleveland Browns Before the 2017 NFL Draft, David Njoku was considered by many analysts to be the best tight end in the entire class. He flashed lots of potential in his rookie campaign, compiling 32 receptions and 386 yards in 16 games even with poor quarterback play. The 6’4”, 286-pound tight end is expected to take a massive statistical leap this season, as new general manager John Dorsey made many improvements to the team’s roster, most importantly at quarterback with the signing of Tyrod Taylor. Njoku will greatly feed off of a rejuvenated Cleveland Browns team and improve in every statistical category.

Marquise Goodwin, WR, San Francisco 49ers Philadelphia Eagles In 2017, wide receiver Marquise The reigning super bowl champi- Goodwin’s role in the 49ers’ offense ons, the Philadelphia Eagles, come into was to stretch the field with his blazing the season ranked as the best team in speed, as shown by his 17.2 yards per the league. However, before the season catch, while Pierre Garcon was viewed has even started, the Eagles have looked as the team’s number one receiver with a little shaky. Their star quarterback and 67 targets in just eight games. This MVP candidate, Carson Wentz, does season, however, Goodnot look ready for win is the clear-cut their season opener, number one wide and their top receivreceiver, as er, Alshon Jeffery, is Garout for at least the con’s first two weeks of the injuseason. Under these ries circumstances, it conis expected that t i nu e the Eagles will to pile get a slow up as he start to the enters his season and age-32 sealikely drop son. With in the power a full trainrankings being camp and cause of it. preseason to build more chemistry with Amy Lei / The Spectatorquarterback Jimmy GaropDallas Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott re- polo, who was acquired towards the end gressed significantly from his magical of the 2017 season via trade, Goodwin Offensive Rookie of the Year award- will evolve into a more well-rounded winning 2016 season, as he finished receiver who will surprise many people 2017 with a quarterback rating of 86.6 with his stellar numbers.

CALENDAR

september

wednesday

@ 4:00 Girls’ Soccer vs. Bard High School, Randall’s Island Field 74

thursday

@ 4:00 Boys’ Soccer vs. Louis Brandeis HS, Riverside Park (107th/108th St)

friday

@ 4:00 Girls’ Tennis vs. Eleanor Roosevelt HS, Hudson River Park

Thursday

@ 4:00 Boys’ Soccer vs Martin L. King HS, Randall’s Island Field 70

Thursday

@ 4:00 Girls’ Golf vs. Fort Hamilton HS, Dyker Beach Golf Course

14 friday

15 saturday

@ 4:00 Football vs. Adlai Stevenson HS, Adlai Stevenson HS Field

@ 4:00 Girls’ Soccer vs. NEST + M HS, Randall’s Island Field 82