Daily Archives: May 7, 2020

COVID-19, National

How racism and poverty made Detroit a new coronavirus hot spot

Leave a comment
Image taken from: https://www.wxyz.com/news/coronavirus/reopening-small-businesses-in-detroit-post-covid-19-may-be-difficult

By: Yanyoua Xiong

A report found in March, from the Pew Research Center, said that nearly 50% of black people, compared to 20% of white people, see coronavirus as a major threat to their health. Detroit has one of the largest African American populations in the country with 79% of the population African American. Even though African Americans make up only 14% of the population in Michigan, they make up around 40% of the deaths that occurred in that state.

Black people, of all ages, die in disproportionately higher numbers than white people in Detroit, due to asthma, heart disease, and other chronic lung disorders. Fabiola Cineas says the reasoning is because “hundreds of years of slavery, racism, and discrimination have compounded to deliver poor health and economic outcomes for black people.” 

Michigan’s governor, Gretchen Whitmer, commented on the difference in treatment of people of color and non people of color, “From basic lack of access to health care, transportation, and protections in the workplace, these inequities hit people of color and vulnerable communities the hardest. This task force will help us start addressing these disparities right now as we work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Michigan.” 

In the ‘50s and ‘60s, Detroit was mostly white but we can start to see a shift in demographics with suburbanization and “white flight.” For some reason though, that didn’t decrease redlining and black people are still more likely than whites to be denied a loan today. 

However, it’s not just in Detroit but across the United States where inequalities between skin colors lead to experiencing higher numbers of COVID-19 cases. The death rates from COVID-19 are also disproportionate (by race) in places like Milwaukee, Georgia, and New York City.

Evidence of disadvantage is everywhere in Detroit: there are dozens of food banks, empty homes, and thousands of water shutoffs due to people being unable to pay their water bills. Detroit has remained one of the most segregated cities in the country despite being in a pandemic and it really shows.

Movies/TV/Theaters, Tech/Games

‘Pokémon’ overview

Leave a comment

Pokémon is an anime series based on the popular Game Boy game Pocket Monsters. It is centered on fictional creatures called Pokémon, which humans, known as Pokémon Trainers, catch and train to battle each other for sport. These children raise up to six Pokémon that they train to fight other Pocket Monsters.

The franchise has its roots in a gaming magazine in the early 1980s in Japan—Game Freak, started by Satoshi Tajiri and Ken Sugimori. Tajiri was the writer, while Sugimori was the illustrator. Pokémon has since gone on to become the highest-grossing media franchise of all time, with $90 billion in total franchise revenue. February, 26, 1996 marks the debut of the Pokémon franchise in the form of both those games on the Game Boy in Japan. At the heart of Pokémon are the games Pokémon Red and Pokémon Green which were a very basic Japanese role-playing game. 

You play as a Pokémon trainer travelling the world and capturing every single Pokémon for research and putting into a Pokédex. A Pokédex is a digital encyclopedia created by Professor Oak, a CPU character. It is an invaluable tool to Trainers in the Pokémon world. The Pokédex can be used to give background or important information on a specific type of Pokémon that you have encountered. 

As you progress throughout the story you are training your Pokémon in battles against other Pokémon. Soon you find about Gym Battles which is a series of tough trainers you have to defeat to get to the Elite Four. The Elite Four is the top four strongest Pokémon trainers in the region. Then you face the champion, the top trainer in the region. Once you defeat him/her you become the champion and you win the game. After that you can play the game openly like a free world. There are multiple regions which relate to different Pokémon games like Pokémon Sun and Moon.

In all Pokémon has a lot of video games and tv shows. It is a really big and great franchise that is open to all ages. Depending on the game there’s a lot of customization and story development. I personally love Pokémon and any of their games are great and fun to play since you can play it competitively or for fun. They are still coming out with new games today with new Pokémon being added to the overall Pokémon in the game. 

Image taken from: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2518797/apps
Editorials/Student Voice, Tech/Games

The addiction of social media

Leave a comment

Zakianna Johnson

Image taken from: https://www.sciencefocus.com/future-technology/trapped-the-secret-ways-social-media-is-built-to-be-addictive-and-what-you-can-do-to-fight-back/

Introduction

There’s been many things going on in social media these days. But the addiction to the apps we all have is really bad. Apps like Snapchat, Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, etc. are all of our lives, especially teenagers.

Now-a-days teenagers don’t know what it was like to just go outside and have fun. And many of them are always at home on their phones on social media. Yes, sometimes it’s fun, but other times it can be affecting their physical and mental health.

How it affects our lives

Social media is like drugs; you get addicted easily. Everyone has some sort of social media on their phone. Whether it’s to stay in contact with friends or family, or to have a laugh or two. But we don’t understand what the effect is on our minds and bodies.

I myself spend about almost a whole day on social media. I spend about 17 hours a day on my phone: texting, scrolling, liking and reacting to people and things on social media. Kids these days are addicted to the app Tik Tok, teens are addicted to Instagram and Snapchat, and adults are addicted to Facebook. 

These apps are toxic, but we love them. We try to take breaks, but it doesn’t work.

I spoke to my parents and asked them, “Do you guys have an addiction to social media?” My mom responded with, “Yes, I do have an addiction to social media because I get on because I see my family members on and that’s the way I communicate with them because I’m far away.”

My dad responded with, “I used to be really addicted to it. Like I used to not be able to sleep without it. But now I usually only go on social media when I do my live videos, and I speak on reality and show my family. You know, because I’m showing a side of me and my family and our morals and values.”

As I sat to finish writing this story, I came to realize that maybe I could take a break from social media. I mean, the apps that we have can really damage us and take us off our game. 

National

Couple arrested for selling tickets to heaven

Leave a comment

Image processed by CodeCarvings Piczard ### FREE Community Edition ### on 2018-07-07 21:58:21Z | http://piczard.com | http://codecarvings.com

A couple in Florida, Tito and Amanda Watts, were arrested for selling tickets to heaven. They sold each of the tickets for $99.99. They claimed the tickets were real gold, and all you had to do is show the tickets at the pearly gates at the entrance of heaven, and you would get full access to get in. They made over 10,000 dollars in cash from selling those tickets.

When searching their home, the police also found a baby alligator. No one knows where they found this alligator, but a witness said that they picked it up from the ocean. 

The spokesman for the Jacksonville Department said that “You can’t sell something as gold when it’s not. That’s where the Watts crossed the line into illegal.” 

In the police statement, Tito said, “The tickets are solid gold. And it was Jesus who gave them to me behind the KFC and said to sell them so I could get some money to go to outer space. I met an alien named Stevie who said if I got the cash together he’d take me and my wife on his flying saucer to his planet that’s made entirely of crack cocaine. You should arrest Jesus because he’s the one that gave me the golden tickets and said to sell them. I’m willing to wear a wire and set Jesus up” 

In Amanda’s statement, she said that “We just wanted to leave earth and go to space and smoke cocaine. I didn’t do anything. Tito sold the golden tickets to heaven. I just watched.” 

The couple has been charged for illegal possession of an alligator, several accounts of cocaine in their possession, and also for false advertising to hundreds of people.

For more information, please visit: http://news-af.feednews.com/news/detail/36f2f8934bbc1877a8594075bb3ea873?client=news

Tech/Games

Zoom

Leave a comment

By: Vivian S

Image taken from: https://www.newsweek.com/how-use-zoom-while-were-trapped-home-online-classes-meetings-1492239

During this time of social distancing, many things have changed and new services have gained notice and importance. One new company that has become well-known is Zoom.

Zoom is an app/website that can be used for video conferencing, which has become much more important now that nearly all meetings have to be held from home using a computer. While all of us are social distancing, many people have turned to Zoom to continue holding classes, seminars, and meetings.

You might notice that Highland Park Senior High is not one of those places using Zoom, and Self Service does not even allow you to download Zoom, so you may not have used Zoom yet.

As Zoom grew more popular, misuse of the app grew as well. People took to intruding into the meetings of others, and messing with the meeting. Some people even posted passwords to the meetings online so that more people would join in. These disruptions have been termed “Zoom-bombing” and they are probably the reason that SPPS is not using Zoom.

Zoom-bombing has become so popular and well-known that there is a Wikipedia page about it, which I was not expecting to find during my research.

Zoom has responded to these mass-disruptions and has been working to further secure meetings. On their website, you can find a list of tips of how to secure you meetings.

It seems like many video conferencing apps have been struggling under the weight of all the new users using video conferencing, and while Zoom is one of the most popular, other apps are also experiencing problems and are working to address them.

While more and more security issues are being fixed, we all just have to be aware of any possible security risks (such as a meeting being public – allowing someone uninvited to enter, or a password being shared on the internet) and take steps to minimize those risks with the services these apps are offering and improving.

If you want to hold a Zoom meeting, please read the security guide they provide here: https://zoom.us/docs/doc/Securing%20Your%20Zoom%20Meetings.pdf.

Uncategorized

Animal poaching

Leave a comment
Image taken from: https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-poaching.html

Animal poaching is when an animal is killed illegally. It can also be defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals. These animals are killed for something that holds value. In some cases, it can be an animal’s fur or ivory. Some people believe that the rhino horn is important for medicinal purposes but in reality it has no significant use. 

Animal poaching happens mostly in the country of Zimbabwe. A country in Africa. Kenya comes in second place when it comes to poaching. The pattern that appears here is that most animal poaching happens in Africa because that’s where most of the rare animals are.

There can be many reasons as to why people decide to poach animals. One of the reasons people poach animals is because of their religion. Their religion can sometimes have obligations and/or traditions that involve poaching animals. Another reason can be for necessity or beliefs. Some poach animals and use them for their hides, skins, and the remaining parts are used for things such as clothing, food, or medicine. While some people have beliefs that it’s okay to poach animals.         

The most poached animals are elephants, walruses, rhinos, bears, and white-tailed deer. Elephants and walruses are poached for the ivory in their tusks. Their ivory tusks are often carved into jewelry and ornaments. Rhinos are poached for their horns. Its common use is to have it as a display to symbolize how successful and wealthy a person is if they have it. The American black bear is poached for its body parts that are used for exotic foods, they can also be used as aphrodisiacs. White-tailed deer is poached for its antlers and its meat. 

According to Onegreenplanet.org, there are many ways you can help stop the poaching of animals. One way to help is by signing petitions. There are many petitions that serve different purposes such as enacting wildlife protection or to end wildlife crime. Another way is by donating to foundations and volunteering. 

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘The Office’

Leave a comment
Image taken from: https://www.ebay.com/itm/The-Office-Sign-Self-Adhesive-9-x-3-Inch-Black-White-Mount-on-Door-or-Wall-/202838936604

The Office is a 2005 television show that revolves around a hilarious boss named Michael Scott and his efforts to run a branch of a paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. This show is pretty popular, and you’ve probably heard about it before, and probably have seen it before too.

The show has a total of nine seasons, and what it does really well is distinguish them from each other. Looking back, you can remember moments from certain seasons because of how the characters acted in each season. This show is anything but repetitive, and the gradual shift of the characters throughout the show is one of the greatest things about it.

Still, The Office has a great idea of it’s humor through its characters. Michael Scott, the boss, is hilariously oblivious to everything around him. He has a certain kind of charm and always says the wrong thing in every situation, leading to all sorts of hilarious hijinks. The single worst part of The Office as a whole is when he leaves the show in Season 7.

There’s also memorable characters such as Jim and Pam, who have a will they/won’t they sort of relationship, because Jim likes Pam but Pam is engaged. Once again, this storyline develops naturally and is mostly resolved after season 4, so it doesn’t get old or unrealistic.

One of the more unique characters is Dwight Shrute, a paper salesman who is Jim’s rival/friend. Dwight is kind of hard to describe, but to sum it up: he’s a man with a lot of pride. He is also very gullible, and falls victim to Jim’s pranks all of the time, which always end up being hilarious and unique.

However, this show isn’t for everyone. It’s rated PG-14, and if you don’t like shows that deal with sex or cursing, this probably isn’t the show for you. However, it’s certainly not overrated like a lot of the haters of this show say. The plot is solid, the characters bounce off each other in a realistic way, and the show could easily drive itself on humor alone, but has several storylines that are entertaining in their own way.

My final rating for this show is a 10/10.