Category: Opinion

  • SLATT+^!

    Playboi Carti is undeniably the best artist at this date and time. Playboi Carti brings out so much energy of any person who listens to his music. Jordan Carter (Playboi Carti) does not  have the best lyricism but when paired with the right elements such as a great producer, like Pierre Borne to make wonderful beats and set up Playboi Carti’s delivery, it becomes a wonderful combo.

    His music is even better live because everyone there in the crowd matches the same energy.

    His music is so good that people hack his laptop to leak his music all time which also contributes to his fame as well because he has a consistent flow of music always coming out. He also has a role in the fashion world such as modeling for Off-White, Alyx Studios, and Dior.

  • Not So Fast R.Kelly!

    In the more recent updates of the captivating R.Kelly news, it seems like Kelly finally got what was coming to him as he turned himself into the Chicago Police Department after being charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. The charges involve four alleged victims with at least three being children older than 13 but younger than 17. The alleged assaults occurred between May 26, 1998 and Jan. 31, 2010. At a press conference held on Friday, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said that aggravated criminal sexual abuse is a class 2 felony. R.Kelly was reported to face up to 70 years in prison.

    Justice couldn’t strike Kelly fast enough as his bail was posted on February 25, 2019 at a whopping $1,000,000. Ironic enough, Kelly was released on bail. Valencia Love, a fan who is an apparent friend of the singer, posted Kelly’s bail and did an exclusive interview with Fox32’s Tia Ewing. Love’s day job is at a Chicago childcare facility and she has said that she does not support pedophilia.

    “Let him have his chance in court to prove if he’s innocent or guilty. As a friend if he says he’s innocent, I can only believe that he is innocent,” said Love.

    Personally, I cannot believe that a woman who works with children can support a person with the history of R.Kelly. Imagine, if that was your daughter in the grasp of R.Kelly’s molestation. What has the world come to?

    In lighter news, R.Kelly was also arrested and brought to court for not paying $161,000 for child support according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in Chicago. Ha! What a bum. I hope he gets locked up forever.

  • The Best Cartoon Ever.

    Avatar: The Last Airbender is one of the greatest cartoons of all time. Avatar has great consistency and strong storytelling. It paints a vivid picture of how a good cartoon should be.

    Most cartoons are very random and have no formula. But Avatar has a consistent story that keeps the watcher at the edge of their seat and leaves them wanting to watch more. It is a timeless piece in history that will never be forgotten. Nickelodeon has received so much praise for  this show and even had a remake called the Legend of Korra that also has great ratings.

    This cartoon has many of the characteristics of anime, it’s emotional, and it has great dialogue. It even won the Emmy Award for Individual Achievement in Animation for one of the final episodes – “Lake Laogai” – which featured an incredible fight scene between Azula and Zuko.

    Avatar also makes me wish that those different tribes and elements were implemented in the real world. Like, honestly bending fire is so sick! You can make food and fly with firebending. Firebending can also conduct lightning which is super beast. My favorite element would have to be water because it’s very resourceful. For an example, characters in the show can get water from sweating and from the moisture in the air. They can also bloodbend to control people’s movements. Earthbending is an ok skill, but not as exciting. Characters can build houses and bend metal. With airbending, you can basically fly and do other stuff like that.

    While the original Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon series ended in 2008, Netflix has announced a live action version that is beginning production this year, but there is not yet a release date.

  • This Is Innocence

    More people are hopping on the Michael Jackson hate train since the premiere of the Sundance documentary Leaving Neverland.

    The film follows the alleged victims Wade Robson and James Safechunk as they go over in detail the experience and trauma they endured in their relations with Michael Jackson. Now, reports of Michael Jackson sexually abusing children is not a new claim, in fact Robson was the first witness in Jackson’s 2005 trial.

    I’m not going to tell anyone what to think, or in any way try to discredit the film’s work, how can I when I never seen it. All I’m offering is my own personal opinion and how the facts that are presented to me support that.

    I’ve been hearing Michael’s name come up a lot more often now ever since that R Kelly miniseries. Now, I’ve defended Jackson numerous times and will continue to do so until someone can give me any substantial evidence.

    R Kelly has had so much evidence put against him for decades and is barely getting any consequences this year, while Michael’s entire reputation and career was tarnished after just hear say. And to this day no significant  evidence has been found to support the idea of Michael Jackson being a child molester. Headlines had before claimed to have actual proof, such as last year’s “Child Pornography Found in Jackson Home” which turned out to be a book of art containing 1 page of a shirtless boy brushing his teeth. People of course only remember the headline, not the actual story.

    Another questionable aspect is the fact that most alleged victims never really pushed to go to court and opted rather to settle out of court. If I were a parent and my child was sexually assaulted, I would rather have justice than money in the bank. These men are coming out now to tell their story and I’m not saying that you shouldn’t hear them out, I fully intend to as soon as the film is made available.

    Just to be completely clear, I’m in no way, shape, or form trying to call all the real victims of sexual assault liars, if you experience something please report it, the world deserves to hear your story, and if it ever comes out that Michael Jackson was in fact a child molester, it will be a hard pill to swallow, but I will admit my wrong.

  • Go For Gold

    With graduation vastly approaching, seniors and their parents are starting to plan out their celebrations. It might even feel as if some parents are more excited than their student.

    The pressure to meet your parents expectations is, I assume a life-long struggle. I am not yet prepared for the anxiety I will receive walking across the stage, and the confusion on my family’s faces when wondering why my cap and gown is green.

    My aunt Marie attended Poly, so naturally I had to as well. There is a framed photo of my family hero glued onto my grandmother’s wall, it’s there that she taunts me, smiling in her pure gold cap and gown. I’ve stared at that picture my whole life, waiting for mine to be glued up next to it.

    This of course will not happen, since receiving a gold cap and gown is not easy. It’s a way to praise the perfect attendance, 4.0, cookie cutter scholars, while the the rest of us normal folk rock the standard green. Don’t get me wrong, those students do deserve it. They’ve given their all and sacrificed a lot to be on top, but you know what’s a great reward for that? Going to your dream university and having a successful career. I mean, that’s what they do it for, not to make a fashion statement.

    If we are all scholars and champions, then maybe the school should start treating us all like that. Instead of promoting elitism, can’t we all just celebrate together, so my dad won’t be ashamed of me? Don’t set me up for failure, that’s what college is for.

  • Anti-Vax Ignore All The Facts

    A very vocal and very ignorant minority of people keep spouting their stupid beliefs, spreading both misinformation and diseases, diseases that we have had vaccines to protect against for as long as 100 years.

    Measles is a respiratory infection that weakens your immune system and causes a total-body skin rash. Polio causes flu-like symptoms and potentially paralysis, which could be fatal. Cholera causes severe diarrhea, which often leads to severe dehydration and possibly death. Most people would agree that having to deal with these diseases would suck and would do anything they can to prevent themselves or their families from catching . That’s why most sane people get vaccinated and get their kids vaccinated.

    The fact that thousands of parents around the world willfully choose not to save their kids from now easily preventable, life-threatening diseases both astounds and absolutely disgusts me. A totally false, totally harmful misconception we hear from people arguing against vaccines is that they cause autism, which is just plain wrong on so many levels. First of all, this claim stems from one outdated study that’s been proven inaccurate dozens of times, so no one should be basing any beliefs off of it. Second, almost any parent would say they love their children unconditionally, and their health and well-being is the top priority. If that’s truly the case, it is unfathomable to me that some parents would rather risk their kids catching a life-threatening, nearly extinct disease than have them be born with autism; some parents really believe autism is worse than death, and that is seriously jacked up. Babies born with autism (not that vaccines cause autism, but let’s just say they do) can easily grow up to live healthy, successful lives. Babies who aren’t vaccinated and die within a year of whooping cough cannot grow up to live healthy, successful lives.

    Other opponents of vaccines (it’s absurd that they exist in the first place) think vaccines are made just for profits and refuse to give money to greedy, evil Big Pharma. In actuality, a 2015 statistic of the top 20 highest-earning products for pharma companies does not list any vaccines–they don’t make a lot of money. Even if they did, anyone refusing to protect their children against potentially fatal diseases just because of their principles is a lunatic and not fit to raise a child.

    The only sane, relatively reasonable argument against vaccines is that they’re too expensive. It’s understandable to want to avoid any unnecessary spending, but if you just compare the cost of a vaccine to the cost of treating its associated disease (along with the threats to health it could bring), the vaccine becomes well worth the cost. For reference, a whooping cough vaccine costs about $100, while treating it can cost over $10,000, as well as your life.

    If people just stopped clinging to the first bit of information they hear and if they stopped unquestionably believing whatever they’re told and just did a little bit more research, we could reduce the insanely high number of babies dying of diseases we’ve been vaccinating against for decades.

  • A Social Virus

    I personally think social media is a virus to our mental health. It is a magnet for us to compare our lives to others instead of focusing on our own. We idolize celebrities and influencers for living extravagantly, literally wasting money because they can. I am tired of the constant hype for new fashion trends and sales plastered on my feed. It’s like we never get a break to enjoy the current season before the next is shoved down our throats by ads for new makeup palettes, shoes, and clothing.

    Majority of us look at our phones as soon as we get up to see what happened while we were sleeping. A lot of the time using social media for an excessive amount of time can cause us to have a lower self esteem, decrease the amount of time for self improvement, disrupt our sleeping patterns, and cut us off from socializing in person.

    Instead of living in a materialistic society, always worried about the next big thing, we should just use social media as a way to connect with people and send a positive message. Lets bring eachother up and use platforms to educate ourselves on what is going on in the world around us.

  • Ain’t Nothing Wrong With Community College

    A concerning, disgustingly large amount of high schoolers scoff at the idea of community college. A few weeks ago, this one ignorant, ugly 12th grade boy named Peter (I can name him. He doesn’t go to this school, it’s fine) asked me what colleges I applied to. I told him I only applied to LBCC, and this absolute cretin responded, “Ugh. That’s so basic.” Another said, “Ew. Can’t imagine.”

    Four year universities are great for a number of reasons. It’s understandable why a lot of people want to go straight to a university. That’s cool; there’s nothing wrong with that. However, there’s also a myriad of benefits to attending a community college for two years then transferring, or just staying there the whole four years. It’s not as financially burdensome than most universities, and most employers don’t often weigh into account where you get your major, only what you major in and what experience you have.

    Some people might think the education is just inherently better at universities, but professors at community college can often be more focused on their teaching because the ones teaching at universities have all their obligations to the university, all the studies and research they have to conduct. Professors at community college can focus on their class more.

    There’s this stigma around community college, this idea that it’s just inferior to any four year university and a waste of time. A lot of it might have to do with pride. Some people might want to go try and attend a university just because it’s more difficult; they want to go to a college they had to work hard to get into, because that automatically makes it better. I’m positive not everybody thinks like this, but I’m sure there’s a good handful that do, which is unfortunate.

    Some people want to live the college life, get away from home and reside in a dorm for four years. That sounds fun, and I’m glad some people will get to enjoy all that, but is it really worth the extra thousands of dollars? People need to take these things into consideration and stop so easily dismissing community college, especially since LBCC will have free tuition for two years starting this fall 2019 semester.

  • The Importance of Black History

    It’s the month of February! What do you think of when you think of February? Valentine’s Day? President’s Day? Or do you think about the appreciation of the black culture?
    Yesterday, I was having a conversation with my sister. I asked her if she knew who Malcolm X was. She said no. I asked if her if she knew the history of where her ancestors came from and if she knew the obstacles they had to overcome for us to be treated the way a human being should be treated? Of course, she gave me a confused look and responded that she didn’t.
    Black History Month doesn’t get the same recognition for younger students as much as it did when I was in elementary school. Many students entering middle school still don’t even know who Malcolm X is. To this day, people still say “MLK died for our rights.” MLK did not die for our rights. He was assassinated. Many of our people were killed just for us to receive the same rights as everybody else. Younger students should know that by now!
    Even though, our culture should be celebrated all year long, it should at least be recognized more during the month that was dedicated to the culture. Can we please acknowledge the greatness of black culture?

  • Sir Savage The 21st

    Recently 21 Savage has been issued to be deported from the United States for being  here illegally, since he immigrated here from the UK and the age of 7. Ever since the incident, 21 Savage and his team have been working through the process to keep 21 living in the U.S. His visa expired 13 years ago. Soon after, memes has continued to rise up from people all over twitter and even celebrities such Demi Lovato. She got major backlash for doing the same thing that numerous people have done which was making fun of 21’s situation. The rapper is still being held by immigration services for questioning. His career is at stake, since a majority of his fans and cash flow are in the United States. I believe he should be allowed citizenship in the United States since he has been living here for such a long time and he has already established a career and contributed society. Also his visa expired when he was young so there was nothing he could do about it. 21 Savage should be made an exception to these harsh immigration laws. #free21savage.

  • Wrap It Up!

    I remember the last time I took sex education, it was in my seventh grade health class. I was surprised to find out in highschool that sex ed was not a required class. Sure, health is taught but not necessarily enforced. I was supposed to take a semester of health in biology freshman year, but it seems like my class barely skimmed over it.

    Recently, I was curious about the STD rates in America and I was shocked to find out how high the numbers were. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there are more than 110 million STIs and various STDs among men and women in the US. Alaska, Mississippi, and Louisiana are the top three states in the nation harboring STD ridden fools. Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and HIV are some of the most prominent sexually transmitted diseases in America. In California specifically, the STD rates have increased 7% from 2017 to 2018. A staggering 218,728 cases of chlamydia alone, has been reported in California in the year of 2018. Not surprising, high schools are diseased cesspools of horny teenagers! 46% of American high school students have had sexual intercourse and potentially are at risk for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and other STDs. Leading to,  1 in 4 teens contract a sexually transmitted disease every year.

    Back to sex education classes, I’m not quite sure why they aren’t a requirement. I feel like it is a necessity for teenagers to be educated about safe sex and the consequences that may come with it, due to the high rates. Surely STDs won’t go away, but it can be highly diminished amongst high schoolers if they knew more about the risks of unprotected and unsafe practices of sex.

  • Hello Valentines Day!

    Valentine’s day. February 14th. Day of love? Wrong. More like the day of reminding people that they’re not loved. Who decided that this will be the day where people will remember to love their significant other’s? Or maybe I’m just not loved. Either way, Valentine’s Day is trash.

    Why do I feel this way? Well, for the last couple of years, I’ve spent this holiday crying, being neglected, and envying those who had boyfriends and girlfriends to bring them nice gifts. I especially hate the boys who would flood the hallways with the PINK bags in hand and red chocolate heart boxes. Talk about disgusting! These kids should be buying books to read, not underwear for their girlfriends!

    Even when I am in a relationship, Valentine’s Day is still a horrid day for me. I find it quite hilarious when people in relationships purposely start conflicts with their significant other’s as an excuse not to treat them out for Valentine’s Day (If you’re someone who doubts that this actually happens, I can assure you it is not a myth. It’s happened to me.)

    Anyway, couples should not wait until one out of the year to love each other. Surprise your boo every single day! Buy the love of your life flowers every once in a while! Show them you love them everyday! Not just Valentine’s Day, hat’s mad corny! Valentine’s Day is just a regular day. The whole concept is super cringey. Maybe I am just a loser who no one loves but at the end of the day, I said what I said.