The Appalachian March 5, 2021

The Appalachian

March 5, 2021

A necessary step: Fair housing task force, town council prevent anti-homeless architecture Xanayra Marin-Lopez | Multimedia Editor Ethan Hunt | Reporter

The Boone Fair Housing Task Force lobbied for and passed a resolution through Boone Town Council to ban anti-homeless architecture.

According to Macmillan Dictionary, examples of anti-homeless architecture include slanted bus shelter seats, benches with bulky armrests and studded window ledges.

The resolution, written by Dalton George, passed on Feb. 16 with four yes votes and one no from council member Connie Ulmer. A resolution means that the council agrees to not pass anything that would go against its contents.

George, an App State alum, is the founder of the Boone Fair Housing Task Force. He recently served as president of College Democrats and canvassing director for the Watauga County Democratic Party. He also worked toward similar causes as an

App State student.

George said he has had family members experience homelessness.

“I think in Boone we sometimes forget that we do have a sizable population struggling with houselessness,” George said. “Even though we may not see it directly, it is there. For me, it is really nice to just have (the resolution) there.”

According to the resolution, Boone is in a seven-county region in North Carolina with the third-highest rate of homeless families in rural America. In January of 2019, the state had 9,314 people experiencing homelessness, making up a little less than .01% of the population. In 2020, 397 of those people lived in the High Country region.

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Wrestlers tie school record, claim SoCon individual titles

Student leaders lobby for mental health days amid pandemic

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Graphic by Efrain Arias-Medina Jr.

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News

March 5, 2021

Student leaders push for mental health wellness days for students Xanayra Marin-Lopez | Multimedia Editor

After talking to several people who all felt “burnt out,” Riley Cullen started a petition in fall 2020 to gauge if students would benefit from mental health days.

Kara Haselton

UNC Chapel Hill held wellness days for students on Feb. 15 and 16, with more planned in March and April, something the university did not build into this semester’s schedule. App State’s SGA is pushing to change that.

A bill, originating from the sustainable development committee, would allow students to choose their own mental health days.

Students Matthew Mair and Connor Ranes proposed the bill.

They brought it to the committee’s attention, which wrote it together. The group introduced the bill to Senate, sent the bill to the rules committee.

The rules committee sent the bill back, saying its content needed to be strengthened.

The bill now outlines that students can select three mental health days in a semester for the remainder of the pandemic. The university won’t choose the days, and they can be used at students’ discretion.

The Senate voted with 83% supporting and 9% abstaining, according to Devin

Mullins, director of sustainable development.

Student body president Michael Davis signed the bill.

“Mental health, you can’t control when those issues arise for you,” Mullins said. “The bill specifically says that we would like students to be able to choose when they take those days.”

The bill is currently in its implementation process, when other areas of the university should look at the bill and work together to make sure it gets done. For example, Faculty Senate made a resolution in support of the bill.

Mullins said to use a mental health day, students must contact their professors at least 24 hours in advance and cannot take them on days when students have exams.

Bailey Gardin, director of academic affairs, advocates for the mental health days as well.

“If Chapel Hill and NC State are having these discussions and they ultimately figured it out, why can’t App State model their

system?” Gardin said.

An SGA senate junior class representative, Riley Cullen started a petition in the fall semester, titled “Give Students a Break at Appalachian State.” It has approximately 1,330 signatures.

The petition’s description reads that students have only been given one day off – Labor Day – since the beginning of the 202021 academic year. There was no fall break and students also will not see a spring break.

It advocates for some type of consistent break for students in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, two student deaths and a heavy online workload.

“Because of the lack of a fall break from last semester, because of a lack of spring break this semester, you have students taking four to six classes,” Gardin said. “That’s a lot of work that’s easy to pile up with no official schedule-mandated break.”

Read more online at www.theappalachianonline.com

SGA reintroduce pass/no credit option Xanayra Marin-Lopez | Multimedia Editor The Student Government Association has again pursued the pass/no credit option for the spring semester.

A bill by the academic affairs committee is currently in SGA. The committee is structuring the bill, researching and reaching out to administrators for support.

“Why not do it again? Let’s go down swinging. No matter what admin and faculty say, it can’t hurt,” said Bailey Gardin, SGA director of academic affairs.

A few channels within the university can propose this including SGA, graduate SGA, faculty senate, council of deans, council of chairs, or through an academic department, program, college or school.

None have done so yet.

Members of those groups must report to the academic policies and procedures committee, which makes curricular changes. The committee is made up of faculty and undergraduate students.

At an SGA meeting March 1, the academic affairs committee decided to move

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forward with passing the initiative.

The pass/no credit option was first offered in the spring 2020 semester in response to academic hardships caused by the pandemic and classes transitioning online.

After it is complete, it will go through SGA and be voted on by the Senate. If it passes, a representative from the academic affairs committee will go to the academic policies and procedures committee and advocate for the bill.

Academic policies and procedures will then vote on pass/no credit.

On Feb. 23, the U.S. surpassed 500,000 deaths from COVID-19.

“You never know who that’s impacted.

For all I know 10 App students could have had family members pass,” Gardin said.

Without mental health days and relaxed attendance policies, Gardin says the only other way to help students during the pandemic is to offer pass/no credit.

Schools like UNC Chapel Hill have their own wellness days for their spring se-

mester. They are held on different days of each month and are meant to take the place of a spring break. App State also doesn’t have a spring break.

SGA’s academic affairs committee will look at last semester’s pass/no credit bill and update it as needed to reflect last semester’s issues.

Gardin said that university administration saw that some students weren’t taking advantage of the policy, accepting F’s instead. To this, Gardin suggests implementing the policy earlier, providing an instructional video on using the option and having advisers speak to students about the policy.

The bill will be sent to SGA Senate and the committee will fight for it throughout the month of March. Upon its approval within senate, it will make its way to the academic policies and procedures committee, Gardin estimates, by the first week of April. They will be the last to vote on enacting the policy.

Bailey Gardin, is a part of App State SGA. Gardin is one of the many students that is pushing for the pass/no credit for the spring semester of.

Becca Bridges

News

March 5, 2021

University expecting first COVID vaccines next week Emily Broyles | News Editor COVID-19 vaccines are making their way up the mountain in time for those eligible to be vaccinated next week – on campus.

After receiving approval to be a community distribution site for vaccines last week, the university is expecting its first shipment early next week, Chancellor Sheri Everts announced in a campuswide email Tuesday.

The 500 vaccines will be used at App State’s s first vaccine clinic

March 11.

“We will continue holding clinics and following the state’s prioritization plan to ensure everyone has access to receiving a vaccine,” Everts wrote.

The doses are arriving after Gov. Roy Cooper announced all frontline essential workers were eligible to receive the vaccine Wednesday.

College workers and university faculty and staff who must work in person are included in this group.

People who work in environ-

ments where physical distancing is difficult, such as residence hall staff and food preparation positions, can get the vaccine first, along with faculty members who are teaching in person, according to Everts’ email.

Students, faculty and staff will receive an email from the university when they can schedule a vaccine appointment.

“Guided by the state’s prioritization system, the university will use the information provided by human

resources, employees and all divisions to determine who currently falls into each phase of the rollout,” Everts wrote.

As the state moves into Group 4 on March 24, Everts encourages students to read her updates and view App State’s vaccination website. Students who do not qualify because of a job or medical condition in Group 4 will be eligible for a vaccine when North Carolina begins vaccinating Group 5.

“On behalf of the university’s entire COVID-19 response team, I would like to thank you for your cooperation and encourage your patience as we work to ensure every staff member, faculty member and student has access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” Everts wrote.

For more information about North Carolina’s vaccine distribution plan, visit the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ COVID-19 website.

Jewish organizations sponsor Holocaust scholar’s talk

Cady Haller, member of Jewish campus organization Hillel, introduced professor Havi Dreifuss March 1. Haller believes that focusing on relearning history is really important right now, especially with the recent increase in anti-Semitic acts.

Kara Haselton

Sabrina Hess | Reporter The Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies held a virtual lecture Monday about the April 1943 uprising that took place in the Warsaw Ghetto in Poland during World War II. Havi Dreifuss, a historian at Tel Aviv University and director of Yad Vashem’s Center for Research on

the Holocaust in Poland, joined live from Israel to speak about her latest research on the uprising.

Yad Vashem is the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Israel, and it works to preserve the memory of the Holocaust’s victims and heroes.

The event had App State was co-sponsored by Hillel, a Jewish social club, and Alpha Epsilon Pi, a Jewish fraternity.

The Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies works to increase knowledge about Jewish culture and Holocaust history, in hopes that raising awareness will promote peace and prevent future genocides.

One of the center’s main objectives is to have international scholars of Jewish or Holocaust Studies come on campus to speak. It is part of the center’s recent push over the last few years to internationalize its scope.

Dreifuss drew upon research from her latest book, titled “Warsaw Ghetto — The End (April 1942-June 1943),” which has just been accepted for publication and recently won the Shazar Prize for the Study of Jewish History.

Dreifuss discussed what day-today life was like for Jews during the April uprising in the Warsaw Ghet-

to. During the uprising, many Jews came together to form the Zydowska Organizacja Bojowa, or Jewish Combat Organization, which fought back against Nazi soldiers.

On April 19, 1943, the Shutzstaffel, an elite Nazi Corps, was sent into the Warsaw Ghetto to fight the ZOB. Several hundred ZOB resistance fighters were able to successfully fight off the Shutzstaffel for nearly a month, despite having little manpower and a limited number of smuggled weapons. The ZOB had formed as a reaction to the Nazi deportations of Jews to Treblinka, one of the major Nazi concentration camps.

Less than one month later, on May 16, 1943, the Nazis regained control of the Warsaw Ghetto. They blew up Warsaw’s Great Synagogue as a symbolic gesture.

“It’s surprising that anybody actually survived,” Thomas Pegelow Kaplan, director of the center, said of the uprising “The entire ghetto was razed to the ground.”

Dreifuss used a collection of photographs, diary entries and drawings to help illustrate what life was like in the Warsaw Ghetto during the uprising. She drew from diary entries

of ZOB resistance fighters such as Zivia Lubetkin.

One excerpt from Lubetkin’s diary reads, “It was in this uprising that we fired our first shots. Jews realized that not only is it possible to kill Germans, but that you can even stay alive afterwards.”

“Of the thousands of men and women (living in the Warsaw Ghetto), old and young, the desire for resistance was born,” Dreifuss said of the ZOB resistance.

Cady Haller, public relations chair of Hillel, attended the lecture and spoke on its value.

“I think that learning about the Holocaust is extremely important. I think that especially now more than ever, with an increase in anti-Semitism, I think it needs to be learned about because we’ve already had this extreme. I’m scared we’re going to inch back towards it.”

Read more online at www.theappalachianonline.com

Havi Dreifuss spoke on the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto, using maps to explain how many people were in the city.

Sabrina Hess

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News

March 5, 2021

Continued from page 1 Boone Fair Housing has passed resolutions in the past with the council. This is the first one the task force wrote and presented to the council, as opposed to drafting alongside the council.

There is no constructed architecture in Boone that qualifies as “anti-homeless.” The resolution was passed to make sure it doesn’t happen.

COVID-19 has increased the number of people experiencing homelessness who require assistance from organizations like the Boone Hospitality House. Since the pandemic began in March 2020, Hospitality House has seen a 196% increase in food costs, said Todd Carter, director of development.

Carter said he applauds the resolution’s adoption.

“It’s great that we’re doing this so it won’t become an issue,” said Carter. “It’s like they’re working to stop a problem before it starts.”

Carter says the Hospitality House has historically received a lot of support from the town. In 2008, the Hospitality House moved from West King Street to its current location, using a $3.5 million grant from the town. Watauga County donated the land for its construction.

George mentioned that moving the Hospitality House makes homelessness “out of sight and out of mind.” He said it is easy for students to forget about Boone’s homeless population with the separation between campus and community.

Anti-homelessness architecture goes against the Hospitality House mission of dignity, Carter says. “(It’s) bigotry and it’s traumatic, and I’m glad that they took this step to pass a resolution against it,” Carter said.

It may be some time before Boone’s neighbor Blowing Rock takes similar steps, however. Blowing Rock Town Council member Sue Sweeting says that homelessness has never been an issue in Blowing Rock and she does not see the need to pass a resolution for something that hasn’t happened.

“Right now, we are very fortunate to not have a ‘homeless problem’ (sic). I have been reading about the resolution that Boone passed and feel if the need arises, we also would be looking into it,” said Doug Matheson, Blowing Rock council member.

Since the resolution’s passing in Boone, George will work with Boone’s planning department to ensure all of their policies align with the

No architecture in Boone qualifies as “anti-homeless,” but the Boone Fair Housing Task Force passed its resolution through the town council to make sure it isn’t built in the future.

Caroline McNair

resolution.

After the adoption of the resolution, the town council requested that the planning department work with the planning commission.

The planning commission is made up of appointed citizen vol-

unteers. They will review, clarify and bring a work product with details of the resolution for further consideration by the town council.

The work product will outline what needs to be done by the planning department, which is currently

in the process of making it.

“It is the bare minimum, I understand it’s not ending homelessness.

Anything that I think makes somebody’s existence a little easier is a necessary step,” George said.

AppalCart offers community transportation to vaccination sites Jake Markland | Associate News Editor AppalCart is offering free transportation to and from COVID-19 vaccination appointments at the Watauga County Recreation Center.

Announced on their website and Twitter, those in need of transportation can contact the AppalCart dispatch office to schedule a pickup.

“Transportation is not a barrier,” said Craig Hughes, transportation director. “There’s not really a reason for anybody not to get the vaccine.”

AppalCart requires proof of

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appointment to avoid people without COVID-19 vaccination appointments using the service just to go to the recreation center, which opens on April 26. Through a separate program, however, people over the age of 60 can access rides to senior centers, doctors’ offices and grocery stores.

The new initiative is funded through the North Carolina Departments of Transportation and Health and Human Services. AppalCart received roughly $18,000.

“They sent it to us for a reason, let’s use it up and get as many people vaccinated as possible,” Hughes said. “I’m hoping people take advantage of it.”

Getting as many people vaccinated as possible will stop the spread in the Boone community and bring everyone another step closer to preCOVID-19 life, said Hughes.

“Anybody that wants the vaccine can get it now,” Hughes said. “Obviously, when their group comes up.”

Bus drivers converse at the College Street traffic circle. Despite maintaining regular routes and times, ridership has decreased due to online learning.

Max Correa

A&C

March 5, 2021

Reading research: Visiting professor explores the paths of classic novels Sabrina Hess | Reporter Before World War II, “The Great Gatsby” had fallen out of print. However, during WWII, the novel’s fate was forever changed by the Armed Services Editions. These were free pocket-sized paperback books sent to U.S. soldiers during the war to encourage them to read more. The ASEs circulated world literature, and one of the novels it popularized was “The Great Gatsby.”

Anna Muenchrath, current visiting assistant professor in the Department of English, believes that if the Council on Books in Wartime, which was the committee that decided which books were selected to be ASEs, hadn’t chosen to include “The Great Gatsby” in its circulation, the book might not be the popular novel that it is today.

Muenchrath is studying how novels such as “The Great Gatsby” have become popularized due to choices made by people.

Muenchrath began her research project as a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2016. She wanted to think about how choice has and continues to affect the circulation of world literature across the globe. She has taken what she calls “bite-sized pieces,” focusing on different situations where people’s choices impacted world literature circulation.

“I started thinking about, ‘well, what if we don’t only think about what world literature is, but we think about why it exists, like why do we read things from other places?’”

Muenchrath said.

Soon after the ASEs were sent out, the Council on Books in Wartime started to get letters from soldiers, requesting that certain books they liked be included in the circulation, or even for their own books.

“There was a guy who wrote to the ASEs saying that he would like to be published in the ASEs, that he would like to write an autobiography of his experiences,” Muenchrath said. “He’s lying in a foxhole, and he’s writing this on a paper bag saying that he would like to write his story and be included.”

The ASEs were even able to circulate books that the U.S. had censored.

“One of those (books) is called “Strange Fruit,” which is a really interesting one because it’s about an interracial romance, which I guess is why it was deemed to be ‘too lewd’ for the population in the U.S., but the soldiers apparently loved it,” Muenchrath said.

Instantly a bestseller upon publication in 1944, “Strange Fruit” was popularized thanks to the ASEs. “It’s all these little stories about how the circulation of these books affected people that I’m just riveted by,” Muenchrath said.

Muenchrath plans on bringing her research to the present, studying what choices are being made when circulating world literature today. For example, she will be studying Oprah’s book club, which circulates world literature by introducing novels from around the globe to an

Books on “The Great Gatsby” at Anne Belk Library. “The Great Gatsby” is one of the American classics that visiting assistant professor Anne Muenchrath is researching.

Ansley Puckett American public, much like the ASEs did.

Shabrina McPherson, who took Muenchrath’s “World literature Since 1650” class in the fall, said that Muenchrath’s enthusiasm “rubs off ” on her students.

McPherson said Muenchrath connects old texts to the modern day in the classroom, much like Muenchrath connects her research from World War II to today as she studies Oprah’s Book Club.

“It was really cool that she took something that was so much older and showed how relative it is even today,” McPherson said.

It’s all these little stories about how the circulation of these books affected people that I’m just riveted by.

Anna Muenchrath, a current visiting assistant professor in the Department of English. Muenchrath’s research focuses on how some novels became wellknown classics.

Courtesy of the Anna Muenchrath

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A&C

March 5, 2021

Late to the Party “Promising Young Woman” Lily Kincaid | Reporter “Promising Young Woman” is an in-your-face, unapologetic thriller that offers a slightly reimagined take on the familiar genre of vigilante justice.

The film is about Cassie, a 30-year-old woman who dropped out of medical school after a traumatic event. She spends her days working at a coffee shop and her nights seeking revenge on predatory men at bars.

Though the film is categorized as a thriller and dark comedy, the overarching themes are quite heavy.

During their time in college, Cassie’s friend Nina was sexually assaulted by one of their classmates at a party. After an inadequate investigation into the assault, the school and police took no action.

The sexual assault, worsened by the fact that everyone but Cassie brushed it off, led Nina to drop out of school. Cassie, her lifelong best friend, dropped out as well to take care of her. The movie makes clear that Nina died, though the circumstances of her death are never discussed.

The film was released in January 2020 at Sundance, an annual film festival typically hosted in Utah. Emerald Fennell directed the film starring Carey Mulligan. It became available to stream in the United States in January 2021 and still has a place in the spotlight over a year after its initial release.

Fennell was one of three women nominated for best director at this year’s Golden Globe Awards. Though the Golden Globe Awards have been around for over 70 years, only five women have been nominated for best director before this year. While Fennell has been a part of the film

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industry for years, director is not a role that most people are used to seeing her in. With the release of “Promising Young Woman” and her aforementioned nomination, that is likely to change.

The film’s nomination is not the only reason it has found its way into the public eye over a year after its initial release. Late last year, Carey Mulligan addressed a review published by Variety just after the film was released. The reviewer wrote that while Mulligan was a “fine actress,” the role seemed like it was initially intended for Margot Robbie, a producer of the film.

Many readers, including Mulligan herself, were outraged by the implication that Mulligan was not attractive enough to play this role. This review frustrated many readers, as the film was intended to empower women. Variety soon after added an editor’s note to the review apologizing to Mulligan for “minimizing her daring performance.”

Audiences anticipated the film long before its release and Fennell’s subsequent nomination, but between the explosive trailer and mixed receptions, some may still be reluctant to watch it.

From the synopsis, it’s easy to understand why some audiences may have been hesitant about watching the film right away. The trailer makes Cassie’s journey to seek revenge seem a lot more violent than it truly was.

Cassie took a route of fiery vigilante justice but used very little physical force in her process. Instead, she relied

on the emotions of the people she was targeting, teaching them a lesson by forcing them to see things from another perspective. Cassie wanted everyone to see things from not only the eyes of Nina, but also the eyes of every woman who has been accused of “crying wolf,” as the film puts it.

Cassie devoted her life not only to making those who never believed Nina understand the pain they caused, but also to scaring men into understanding the pain they could potentially cause.

A glaring problem with the narrative of this story is its failure to address sexual assault against men.

While women may be more likely to be victims of sexual violence, that does not mean that men cannot be victims.

In that same breath, the movie fails to address the fact that women can also perpetrate this type of violence. Considering that this film is primarily about female empowerment, it is likely that Fennell wanted to focus on the specific scenario depicted.

However, the film’s message would likely have been strengthened by at least mentioning the fact that sexual assault comes in all shapes and forms.

If for no other reason, Carey Mulligan’s performance alone is enough to make “Promising Young Woman” a must see. Mulligan truly masters every piece of this role, from the snarky but seemingly normal barista to the party-crashing, vengeful candy striper. On top of that, the film finds a nice balance between offering comedy and a tasteful approach to a serious issue. Overall, this film is well worth the watch and really sets the stage for Fennell’s career as a director.

PLAYLIST OF THE WEEK Zoe Zink Reporter

Graphic by Camryn Collier

In 1909, The United States held the first Women’s History to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the garment workers’ strike in New York City.

Since then, women’s rights have come a long way, but there is still work to be done. Now, we celebrate and applaud women for an entire month – not just one day.

In honor of Women’s History Month beginning March 1, we created a playlist full of songs about women’s empowerment and girl power.

Classic artists like Aretha Franklin join Beyonce, Ariana Grande and Kesha to show women that they are strong, capable and empowered.

This year, spend Women’s History Month jamming out to these songs that embody what it means to be a woman destined to make history.

A&C

March 5, 2021

on record

Department of Theatre and Dance explore race and biases in new production

“Little Oblivions” Aubrey Smith | Reporter

The performers of “This Is Not The Play.” The Department of Theatre and Dance performed the play virtually last Thursday through Sunday.

Courtesy of Gina Grandi

Sabrina Hess | Reporter The App State Department of Theatre and Dance was one of the first to perform a currently unpublished play called “This Is Not The Play” virtually last Thursday through Sunday. The play is set in a Black playwright’s brain and centers around her difficulty in making her imaginary white characters cooperate with her as she tries to write a play about them.

Latavia Owens, who goes by she/hers and they/them pronouns and played the playwright in “This Is Not The Play,” said she thought the play lent itself well to a virtual performance.

“It kind of helps with the aspect of allowing it to come off more as being in the playwright’s brain instead of something that’s being acted out, because on screen we’re all in this one little area,” Owens said.

The play explores themes of racial prejudice, bias and privilege. In one scene, a character hovers above the cast clad in a clean blue shirt, black tie and equipped with a cheerful smile. The character explains to the cast how uniquely qualified he is to be a literary agent simply because he is white.

“Most white people,” he says, “have no idea (about being uniquely qualified) because we’re just sort of passively, blindly, reaping the benefits.”

The reason for the play’s emphasis on high-

lighting white privilege is found in its origins. A theater troupe called Mad Dog Theatre Company originally commissioned playwright Chisa Hutchinson to write the play. Hutchinson, who primarily writes for people of color, was surprised when she realized Mad Dog Theatre Company’s theater troupe was mainly white.

Describing her process of writing “This Is Not The Play” as similar to delving into “uncharted territory,” Hutchinson ended up turning her process of writing the play into the play itself.

Hutchinson said the play was “pretty autobiographical,” as she based the character of the Black playwright on her personal experiences.

The Black playwright even grew up in Newark, New Jersey, just like Hutchinson.

Owens said they felt like she could relate a lot to the character.

“Even though she is surrounded by a bunch of white actors or white characters that she’s creating, she’s still kind of confined the relatability to them,” Owens said, “and is able to understand (the white actors and characters) and where they’re coming from, and is not coming in biased.

And that’s how I’ve always been because I always went to majority white high schools.”

Read more online at www.theappalachianonline.com

Julien Baker has returned with the release of her long-awaited third studio album.

The 25-year-old singer-songwriter released “Little Oblivions” Feb. 26, four years after her last solo album release.

“Little Oblivions” is a profound and honest record. All 12 tracks are engulfed in confessions. The album touches on addiction, mental illness, insecurity and religion.

Baker released her first album, “Sprained Ankle,” in 2015, and her sophomore album “Turn Out the Lights” in 2017. The singer also collaborated with fellow artists Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus in 2018 on the successful EP “boygenius.”

Baker began releasing singles for “Little Oblivions” back in December. The singles, “Faith Healer,” “Hardline,” “Favor” and “Heatwave,” are all perfect excerpts representative of the comprehensive record.

The record runs 42 minutes long, and every minute is worth listening to. Baker opens up more and more on each song throughout the record, providing an intimate and memorable listening experience.

The instrumentals are powerful, but many of the elements are similar track to track. Despite the similarities, Baker’s unique vocals and outstanding songwriting are what truly stand out from “Little Oblivions.”

Baker begins the record with the self-confessional track “Hardline,” singing about insecurity and touching on the seemingly inescapable circle of addiction. The instrumental builds up into a guitar and drum-heavy track, and many of the rest of the tracks on the record follow this structure.

Baker’s raw and intimate vocals pair incredibly well with the clashing of drums and amplified strumming of guitars, beautifully displaying the heavy and emotional lyrics of

the record.

In “Ringside,” Baker opens up about feeling embarrassed by habits and emotions that are out of her control. Baker has a few tics that come with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, she said in an interview with Apple Music, one of them being punching herself in the head. She references the tic with the opening lyrics, “Beat myself until I’m bloody.” The track captures the fears and doubts of many who struggle with mental illness, like being embarrassed by their struggles and not wanting to drag others down with them.

Baker takes a calmer, slower change of pace on tracks “Crying Wolf ” and “Song in E.” Singing about some of the challenges that come with sobriety on “Crying Wolf,” the track is simply composed of Baker’s vocals layered with light harmonies, airy sounds echoed from a hazy guitar and a gentle but powerful piano accompaniment.

“Song in E” is the most instrumentally bare track of the record. Slowing down with a soft piano accompaniment, Baker sings about wanting to have someone to blame instead of herself for the pain she is going through and about not wanting to appear weak. This is one of the best examples of Baker’s voice on the record. With little instrumentals, you can hear how unique her voice is: it’s raw and entrancing.

“Little Oblivions” is Baker’s most outstanding work yet. Lyrically it’s incredibly impactful, as she opens up about her deepest insecurities and struggles. Instrumentally, it’s beautifully composed and carefully crafted.

“Little Oblivions” stands out strongly for its honesty and raw display of emotions, making it an incredibly memorable piece.

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Sports

March 5, 2021

five wrestlers claim individual socon titles, tie program record I Silas Albright | Sports Editor

n the first overtime period of the 2021 Southern Conference 157-pound title match, App State redshirt junior Cody Bond hopped around the mat, precariously balanced on his left leg with his right leg suspended in Campbell senior Benjamin Barton’s grasp for what felt like an eternity.

In reality, those 15 seconds that Bond miraculously fought off his opponent’s takedown gave him the chance to extend the match, which was all he needed to secure an emotional title match victory.

“Shoutout to (Jonathan Millner), because he does that to me, that exact same thing,” said Bond. “I’ll pick up his leg, and he will somehow fight his leg back down, so I was just trying to hone in on my inner ‘Jon-Jon.’” The Mountaineers claimed five individual conference championships on Sunday at the Holmes Center in Boone,

tying a program record set in 2003. With two of App State’s top-25 ranked wrestlers not winning their respective brackets, the team has a chance to break a program record for most NCAA qualifiers in a single season, if both redshirt sophomore 165-pounder Will Formato and redshirt senior 174-pounder Thomas Flitz earn at-large bids to the tournament.

“Obviously, we’re disappointed we didn’t win the team title because that’s the main goal,” Bentley said. “But it’s hard to hang your head when you’ve got five champs and, likely, should have maybe a program record NCAA qualifiers.”

In Bond’s clutch, late championship win, he opened the second overtime period with a chance to go on the offensive, securing a monumental four-point near fall.

“I heard someone say ‘just go with it,’ or like ‘tilt him,

App State redshirt junior 141-pounder Anthony Brito claimed his first career individual conference championship on Sunday with a 7-3 decision over Campbell’s Shannon Hanna.

Max Correa

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grab a wrist and go,’ and I was like ‘alright,’” Bond said. “At that point, I had nothing to lose, so I just sent it.”

Bond kept Barton from scoring points for the rest of the match, claiming his first individual SoCon title with an electrifying double-overtime 10-5 decision victory, also automatically qualifying himself to compete as an individual in the NCAA Championships in St. Louis March 18-20.

“For me, it was really emotional. I had tears in my eyes, and I don’t know — I mean, I typically don’t react like that after someone wins, but man, it was just so much emotion built up,” App State head coach JohnMark Bentley said.

“I’ve coached all-Americans, I’ve coached numerous conference champs. That’s one of the most rewarding wins to ever coach, for me.”

After going 1-2 as a freshman in 2017-18, Bond spent the 2018-19 season away from the team. He said during that time, he had to find his love for the sport again, and when he got back on the roster he fully bought into the program.

“I just couldn’t be more proud of him, we had a long embrace there after the match,” 12th year head coach Bentley said. “Those are the moments that — it’s why I coach.

There’s a lot of lows, but moments like that remind me why I coach, for sure.”

But that’s still not all that’s noteworthy about Bond’s championship. After the preliminary rounds, App State was in second place in the team standings, trailing Campbell 83-72. Thanks to individual titles from redshirt junior Jonathan Millner, redshirt senior Codi Russell, sophomore Sean Carter and redshirt junior Anthony Brito, the Mountaineers shortened the deficit.

Going into Bond’s match, which was the seventh out of 10 championship matches, App State trailed Campbell by just two points at 86-84. The victory earned 3 points for the Mountaineers, giving them an 87-86 advantage with three matches to go. Although App State ended up placing second in the team standings, Bentley was proud that Bond helped give his team a legitimate chance at the title.

At 149 pounds, App State’s No. 14 Millner opened the championship round with a 2-0 win over Campbell’s No. 11 Joshua Heil.

“I don’t worry about rankings too much. When you wrestle somebody, it’s a different feel, especially when you wrestle somebody like me,” Millner said. “So the number goes away whenever you get into a weird position, especially wrestling me.”

Sports

March 5, 2021

Those are the moments that — it’s why I coach. There’s a lot of lows, but moments like that remind me why I coach, for sure.”

App State redshirt junior Cody Bond embraces head coach JohnMark Bentley and assistant coach Ian Miller after winning an individual SoCon title on Sunday night in Boone. Bentley said part of the reason the match was so emotional was because of how far Bond has come on his journey at App State.

Courtesy App State Athletics/Jay Crain

In his two years as a starter, Millner has amassed a 20-0 record in SoCon duals and tournament action. The redshirt junior from Greensboro qualified for NCAAs for the second time, after winning last year’s SoCon title as well.

App State’s No. 18 ranked 125-pounder Russell claimed his second career SoCon title with an 11-4 decision over Campbell’s Zurich Storm to qualify for the NCAA tournament a third time. After finishing second at 133 pounds at last year’s SoCon tourney, he earned an atlarge bid.

“Honestly, this one felt a little bit different, just coming from losing last year, and then making the sacrifice to drop down to 125,” Russell said. “It’s hard to celebrate the win though, because I just thought we were going to win the team title.”

After the match, Russell said he plans to come back for another season next year, made possible because the NCAA granted another year of eligibility for all winter sport athletes.

In the 133-pound weight class championship, Carter defeated The Citadel’s Jake Rotunda by a 3-1 decision to claim App State’s third individual title of the night and the first of his career.

“I wanted to score more points than I did, but I just got the job done,” Carter said. “This year, I had to go up a weight class, (there were) tough guys that I wrestled, but still, it means a lot to get this.”

Anthony Brito, App State’s 141-pounder, knocked off Campbell’s Shannon Hanna by a 7-3 decision in the championship match to set the table for Bond’s lead-taking victory. In his first year as a starter, Brito didn’t want to let the opportunity slip away.

“It was exciting, because I’ve been around this tournament for the past two years now,” Brito said. “I’ve been helping get these guys ready, and I’ve been itching to participate in it myself.”

Now, the Mountaineers have a little over two weeks to prepare for the national tournament. The NCAA plans to release the full bracket of automatic and at-large qualifiers on March 10.

“We’ve gotta have our best wrestling together when we get to St. Louis in a couple weeks, and I really think that some of our guys are really starting to kind of fire on all cylinders,” Bentley said. “I’m excited about our chances in St. Louis.”

App State redshirt senior 125-pounder Codi Russell won his second career individual SoCon title on Sunday, knocking off Campbell’s Zurich Storm in the title match by an 11-4 decision.

Max Correa

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Sports

March 5, 2021

More than an athlete:

Black Student Athletes Association panel discusses race, perception Jhyrah DeLapp | Reporter App State Black Student Athletes Association held a Zoom panel titled “Together We are More!

More Than a Student-Athlete,” with panelists from various sports, speaking on what it’s like being Black in a predominantly white institution. The discussion included how to handle different situations with non-Black students and various emotions that arose in the past year.

BSAA’s president, Kyndavee Bichara, asked questions of the panel. The panel consisted of former football standout and current NFL safety Doug Middleton and student athletes Demetrius Taylor (football), Maya Calder (women’s basketball), Ana Moleka (women’s soccer), and Peighton Simmons (women’s track).

One of the points the panelists hit on was the transition from predominantly Black high schools to a predominantly white university. Taylor, a star defensive lineman on the App State football team, expressed his experience

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and

how he dealt with the change. at school, but in life and the workplace. This helps “You have to talk a certain way so you won’t me recognize what I need to do to better myself.” be necessarily seen as a threat and learn to be calm,” Hitting on the title of the discussion, Simmons, Taylor said. “You have to learn how to be comfortable a senior sprinter and jumper on the track team, in uncomfortable situations, and that’s a talked about how she is more than an athlete. hard adjustment to make going from “In high school, I never had to being around people who look like explain that I am an athlete, and I’m Most of the time you to suddenly the minority.” also smart, but being in college, people aren’t Bichara, a junior sprinter and it’s like they think we’re all dumb purposely trying to jumper for the track and field jocks,” Simmons said. “Yes, we team, asked the panel if going are athletes, but we also are a part disrespect you, they to a PWI has negatively affected of lots of clubs and have high just are ignorant their mental health. Moleka, a GPAs too, we aren’t just athletes.” on topics and need sophomore soccer forward, said the The panelists also talked to be educated to experience has done the opposite. about how a lot of people “Being at a predominantly understand... still don’t support the Black white school has definitely made Lives Matter movement.

The me stronger because it is preparing student athletes were irritated about me for life,” Moleka said. “This is setting how people would rather be quiet about me up because this is a struggle I won’t just have issues than speak up and fight for what’s right.

Graphic by Efrain Arias-Medina Jr.

“It was frustrating, coaches even had to have conversations about if players and teams could protest because they didn’t want their white players to be pressured into something they didn’t want to do,” Simmons said. “I was like ‘Why are they on your team if they aren’t standing in solidarity with their Black teammates wanting equality?’”

Doug Middleton, former App State and current Jacksonville Jaguars free safety, explained what the process of educating non-Black teammates and friends looked like for him.

“You have to do it one-byone and be open to making that first contact and listen to why they have the feeling,” Middleton said. “Now, they are more open to listening to what you have to say because you listened to them. Most of the time people aren’t purposely trying to disrespect you, they just are ignorant on topics and need to be educated to understand what Black people are trying to achieve.”

Sports

March 5, 2021

former Lees-McRae all-American leads “Best one-win season I’ve ever been Appalachian FC as first ever head coach part of:” volleyball coach reflects

on COVID ups and downs Dan Davidson | Associate Sports Editor

Appalachian FC, Boone’s new soccer team that’s set to start play in May, announced its first head coach: former NCAA D-II all-American at Lees-McRae Dale Parker. “Providing the community with a great soccer experience that fills the gap from App State men’s soccer cut is the number one goal,” Parker said.

Graphic Courtesy Appalachian FC

Alex Urquiza | Reporter On February 1st, Appalachian FC announced Dale Parker as their first-ever head coach, beginning a new era for soccer in the High Country. This Saturday, March 6th from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. club will be hosting its first open try-outs.

“It’s an honor and exciting project, it’s an area that’s close to home for me, ” Parker said.

It’s been nearly a year since App State cut its men’s soccer program, a huge loss to soccer fans in the Boone area. However, good news emerged in November 2020 after the National Premier Soccer League announced that a new team was set to join their league: Appalachian Football Club. Appalachian FC will be part of the East Region and South East Conference of the NPSL and is set to start competing in the 2021 inaugural season starting in May. The NPSL is a fourth division soccer league and is a member of the United States Adult Soccer Federation, therefore being associated with the United States Soccer Federation.

Former App State men’s soccer coach and Appalachian FC owner Jason O’Keefe had high praise for Parker, saying in a press release, “We are excited to announce the appointment of Dale Parker as the first head coach of Appalachian FC. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience which will help the club build and develop our team for the inaugural season and beyond.”

Parker moved to North Carolina from En-

gland to play soccer for Lees-McRae College. It was a strange transition for him, moving from a small, heavily populated town in England to Banner Elk, the complete opposite of what he’d experienced prior.

“It was definitely an eye-opener moving here,” Parker said. “You see the U.S. on TV and build a picture of what it’s like, then you come to Banner Elk, North Carolina and you see the real America.”

Parker stumbled upon the coaching world when he started a player/coach role for LeesMcRae. After that experience, he took a fulltime position as a director of coaching for a soccer club called Chesterfield United Football Club in Richmond, Virginia.

“I wanted to stay in the game that has given me so much over my life and give back to the game, with coaching naturally being the best way to give back,” Parker said.

When speaking about coaches in his time that have inspired him, Parker mentioned Chris Whalley, his former head coach at LeesMcRae. “Chris Whalley was a big influence for me at Lees-McRae College, transforming how I look at myself and push by barriers and achieve things I didn’t think I could as a player,” Parker said.

Read more online at www.theappalachianonline.com

Despite finishing the season with a 1-15 record, volleyball head coach Matt Ginipro was happy with how his team handled an unprecedented season as the Mountaineers dealt with numerous qurantines, a delayed start to the season and eight postponements.

“Through all of the insanity … everybody was great,” Ginipro said. “That’s the biggest positive I take out of this whole thing. That it was the best one-win season that I’ve ever been a part of.”

App State completed its two-match spring season on Feb. 18 after the team fell on the road to North Carolina and Duke on back to back days.

“We’re not in the shape that we normally are,” Ginipro said. “That goes all the way back to the summer. We missed the whole month of July, and then we didn’t start when we could’ve started.”

The Mountaineers took on the Duke Blue Devils in Durham to tip off their spring season.

After falling 25-17 in the opening set, App State held a 22-21 lead in the second frame before the Blue Devils scored 4 of the final 5 points, securing a 2-0 set lead.

“We played a great match against Duke, and

if we had taken that second set, I think it would’ve been a completely different story,” Ginipro said.

The third and final set was similarly tight, but Duke edged out a 25-21 victory to win the contest 3-0.

“I had zero issues at all with that Duke match,” Ginipro said. “We did everything we could. We did exactly what we needed to do, we just didn’t win against a really good team.”

After playing its first game in 90 days, the Mountaineers took on North Carolina just 22.5 hours later. The Tar Heels won the match in three sets: 25-15, 25-14 and 25-13.

“Our hitters really struggled around their big, huge block, but we were just completely gassed,” Ginipro said. “We were a completely different team the next night. We’re just not in shape.”

Throughout the season, the team experienced the full chaos COVID-19 has wreaked upon college athletics. Several positive COVID tests, not being able to play the same player in consecutive sets, and constant uncertainty caused the Mountaineers issues all year. two ACC teams.

Read more online at www.theappalachianonline.com

App State volleyball players huddle up during a match against Coastal Carolina on Oct. 31 at the Holmes Center in Boone. After an unprecedented season dealing with the pandemic, head coach Matt Ginipro is proud of how the Mountaineers handled all the adversity, despite an overall 1-15 record.

Max Correa

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Opinion

March 5, 2021

guess that overall crime has fallen by a lot since 1993. According to Pew Research, the violent crime rate fell to 49%; Robbery declined by 68%. Murder fell by 47% and aggravated assault is fell by 43%. Additionally, property crime fell by 55%, especially in rates of burglary which declined by 69%, motor vehicle theft declined 64% and larceny went down 49%. (See ref. 1) While there was a rise in homicides in 2020, it remains improbable that we will see a 180-degree turn and witness high crime rates like we had in the past.

caleb’s

CONCEPTS

The united states’ best days are still ahead Caleb Garbuio | Opinion Editor New research tells us that COVID-19 has reduced the U.S. life expectancy by about a year, lowering the average life expectancy to about 77 and a half years. While there is an improvement, the unemployment rate is still above 6%, and U.S. children from third to eighth grade have suffered a drop in their math test scores.

COVID-19 has made life difficult for everyone and some go so far as to label 2020 the worst year ever. But is the world today worse than it was 50 years ago?

Regardless of how bleak COVID-19 makes things appear, the world is far better than it has ever been. Below are five areas that the U.S. has made progress in despite COVID-19:

Life Expectancy

In the 1960s, the average life expectancy was just under 70 years. Despite living through a

pandemic that has killed over hundreds of thousands of our fellow Americans, we still live, on average, 7.48 years longer than we did 50 years ago. Based on the U.S. Census projections, the average person in the U.S. should live past their 85th birthday by 2060. While COVID-19 has shortened our life expectancy by slightly over one year, this should not affect the long-term improvement in life expectancy. This is because we have access to better medical technologies and policies like the Affordable Care Act that give millions of previously uninsured Americans access to health care services.

IQ scores

Current generations are typically smarter than previous generations. IQ testing can help determine an individual’s different intelligence types. Tests are typically conducted on a sam-

Gender Equality

ple of children and then standardized, with average intelligence falling around 100. Future generations are then given new tests, and their scores usually fall on the same pattern. However, intelligence researcher James Flynn asked “How does each subsequent generation place on the previous generation’s tests?” Flynn’s findings, known as the Flynn effect, demonstrate that each subsequent generation did significantly better than previous generations at the time of his study.

While recent events suggest that many people are still pretty dumb, the actual data tell a different story. From 1909 to 2006 the U.S. gained 32.6 IQ points, the highest of all the listed countries, which means that an average person in 2006 would have been in the 95% percentile in 1909.

Poverty

Data obtained from the U.S. Census shows us that in 1959, 39 million people lived in poverty, representing 23% of the population. Fast forward to 2019, and 34 million people live in poverty, or around 10.5% of the population.

The effects of COVID-19 backtracked recent progress.

However, this isn’t unusual. Poverty increased dramatically during the 2008 Great Recession, only for it to fall dramatically shortly after. The difference between COVID-19 and the Great Recession is that the 2020 recession was not derived from a functional issue within the economy. Rather, it was governors choosing to prioritize the lives of their constituents over continued economic growth. Like everything in life, there are trade-offs and poverty will probably continue to rise until COVID-19 is back under control.

Crime

If you watch Fox News, you would probably never

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According to Pew Research, in 1950, women made up 29.6% of the workforce. Fast forward to 2018, and women composed 46.9% of the labor force. The pay gap has also shrunk from $6.94 in 1980 to $3.23 in 2018 and women now outnumber men in college degrees obtained.

While many strides have been made in closing the gap, COVID-19 has caused many women to lose employment. According to the Brookings Institute, many women were concentrated in low-income and face-toface jobs, which have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19. This negative impact on female wages is not a functional problem with the economy. Rather, it is a temporary problem resulting from politicians choosing to prioritize people’s lives over people’s pockets. When COVID-19 is over, we should expect to see the long run trend pick back up again.

Conclusion

2020 was not the worst year ever like many people claimed. The U.S. is a much better place to live in now than it was 50 years ago. Donald Trump ran a campaign in 2016 stating that we should make America great again. Yet, we were better in 2016 than we had been in previous generations. The U.S. is a safer, smarter, healthier, less poor and more equal place. The long run trends show that sparring a long-term cataclysmic event, we will rebound and continue toward a better future.

Opinion

March 5, 2021

“Fate: The Winx Saga” is a Frankenstein’s Monster of Teen Fantasy Tropes Chase Miller | Opinion Writer Here’s a story you’ve probably heard before. Our main character has lived their entire life in the human world, unaware of the supernatural’s existence. When their innate abilities manifest and endanger a family member, it isn’t long until they’re invited to attend a magical school in a secret parallel realm. As it turns out, they are no ordinary adolescent, but a prophesized chosen one, inextricably linked to the force of evil they are quickly tasked with defeating. Our humble protagonist serves as a vehicle for exposition and worldbuilding, allowing the audience to learn about this fantastical world alongside them. Ringing any bells yet? No, not those old Bible stories with the boy wizard and magic fascists. It’s “Fate: The Winx Saga.”

This show is yet another installment in the recent wave of aged-up drama adaptations of aging children’s properties—think “Riverdale” and “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.” Though these ventures have proven profitable, it’s an interesting subgenre to unabashedly adhere to, considering its modern blueprints demonstrate such lackluster writing. The primary hallmarks of Iginio Straffi’s “Winx Club” source material are its candy-colored aesthetic, light-hearted tone, zany magical exploits and the deep friendships bonding the titular girl gang. The new Netflix adaptation not only lacks these aspects, but goes enthusiastically to the opposite extreme, seeping this sunny world in angst, death and darkness.

This is a symptom of a deeper problem, essentially the hollow core around which the rest of the show collapses: “Fate: The Winx Saga” has no original ideas. It is a sloppy patchwork of plotlines, settings, character dynamics and aesthetics gleaned from various prior supernatural teen dramas with nothing uniquely its own.

The show’s creator, Brian Young, spent the majority of his antecedent career as a writer and producer for “The Vampire Diaries,” and this is his first project since the CW show ended in 2017. Why he wasn’t tapped to reprise his role in the writers room of the spinoff “Legacies” that premiered the following year and featured a cast of inhuman high schoolers training their magical abilities at an anachronistic boarding school is a mystery. But one can only assume he was torn up about it, considering he subsequently attempted transforming a different property into exactly that show. After a decade working on arguably the most quintessential Twilight remake—don’t cry, E.L. James—Young now possesses an encyclopedic familiarity with the contemporary tropes of his chosen genre, and the bulk of his creative process as showrunner seems to be arbitrarily including as many as he can in as small a space as possible. An em-

barrassing percentage of his plot beats couldn’t even be justifiably labeled as “tropes,” which would imply they’re staples that have seen repeated use. Rather, he often just outright borrows identical specific scenarios. The primary threat in the first installment is a spy that has inflitrated the school to revive a more powerful secondary antagonist (“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”); a mind reader initially avoids and antagonizes their bookish roommate because of their anxiety-ridden inner monologue (“The Magicians”); the singular overweight character forms a friendship with the closeted character that evolves into an unrequited crush, culminating in her romantic humiliation. The following love interest for the latter is none other than the upperclassman bullying him for his sexuality (“Glee”); there is an expansive barrier that is allegedly supposed to safeguard from evil creatures, but because it has been many years since one has been sighted, younger generations have now grown up without any evidence of their existence and do not believe the warnings of their elders (“Game of Thrones”). If you choose to undertake the agonizing experience of watching, know that nothing that happens in the cumulative 6-hour runtime will be something you haven’t seen multiple times before, like refrigerator magnet poetry made of fragments of better television.

Countless contrived examples make up the backbone of the narrative, and little space remains in the script for this show to have a personality of its own. The characters, if you can even call them that, considering their homogenized dialogue and complete lack of interiority, are essentially static across the board. It is implied that they are friends, but you hardly see them interact beyond discussing the events of the plot, much less spend time together and form genuine relationships.

All over the place there are unanswered questions about the world these characters inhabit: its history, its culture, how things work there, why the fairies have no wings. In a world supposedly comprising seven realms—and considering the original “Winx Club” setting was across several planets and dimensions, this does appear to be directly out of “Game of Thrones’’—only one is described to any degree, and that degree is small. If you start the next episode, expecting answers, you’ll consistently come up empty-handed on the other side of mandatory beer pong scenes and child soldier training montages. In attempting to cherry pick from its predecessors and create an irresistible hybrid, “Fate: The Winx Saga” tries to be a dozen different shows, and ends up being none of them. And, luckily for audiences everywhere, Netflix recently confirmed they’ll be doing it all again in season two.

Spending on space is a waste of tax dollars Ella Adams | Associate Opinion Editor Since NASA’s Perseverance Rover landed on Mars last week, it seems like space has been on everyone’s minds. There’s no doubt about it, space is cool. The idea that we are one tiny speck in the ever-expanding universe is hard to wrap our heads around, but humans are naturally curious creatures, so we are inclined to try. The U.S. may be a prominent figure in space exploration but is sending robots into space the best use of our tax dollars, especially with the serious challenges our country faces such as COVID, climate change and income inequality?

Since the founding of NASA in 1958 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, federal dollars have been going toward researching and exploring space. A little over a decade later, the U.S. landed a man on the moon – or maybe not depending on who you ask.

Space exploration is incredible, but we have to remember that NASA’s funding comes from the pockets of everyday Americans.

The U.S. is the richest country in the world, but that’s not to say it doesn’t have problems. In 2020, more than 50 million Americans experienced food insecurity, which increased due to COVID-19. Closer to home, Watauga County experienced a food insecurity rate of 16.8% last year. The pandemic has been hard on Americans and food insecurity is just one example of how people are struggling.

With people struggling to eat in the richest country in the

world, is exploring space how our tax dollars should be spent? About 5.9% of the federal budget is spent on Medicare and health care, 5.7% is spent on housing and community and 6.3% on education. Spending for these programs is in the single digits so where is all our money going? The military which receives over half of all discretionary spending. Of course, America’s outrageous military spending is a whole different issue. Only 0.5% of the federal budget goes to NASA but 0.5% of a $4.5 trillion budget is a lot of money, $23.3 billion this year to be exact. $23.3 billion is a lot of money for NASA, which has little to no direct impact on everyday Americans’ lives.

Sure, space is cool to learn about and the advancement of science and technology is very important, but parents who can’t feed their children probably don’t care about some rocks on Mars.

NASA should not be a priority when issues such as poverty, food insecurity and homelessness exist in America. Our tax dollars should be spent on us – improving our infrastructure, helping the poor, bettering education and solving climate change. To be clear, government funding for research is very important and NASA should not be abandoned. Knowledge should be accessible and space shouldn’t be treated like a personal playground for the ultra-rich. Right now we need to focus on fixing the problems here on Earth before we try to figure out the age-old mysteries of space.

Graphic by Efrain Arias-Medina Jr.

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Et Cetera

March 5, 2021

Sudoku

Fill in the blanks so that each row, each column, and each of the nine 3x3 grids contain all of the digits 1 through 9.

JACKIE PARK EDITOR IN CHIEF

editor@theappalachianonline.com

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Previous Week’s Answer Key

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The Appalachian is the award-winning, independent student-run news organization at Appalachian State University, published since 1934. The student staff maintains all editorial discretion, and there is no prior review by university faculty, staff or administrators. The Appalachian strives for accuracy in newsgathering and reporting. If you think we have made an error, email editor@theappalachianonline.com.

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