Opinions

Photo representation of Governor Wolf and his friends celebrating during quarantine. (Photo edited by Tanner Schmitt)

The Wolf of Pennsylvania

By Tanner Schmitt

Graphic Design, Treasurer

If you are one who believes we are reopening too soon, then stay inside and let the rest of us move on in our lives because if anything - this opening is long past due. For example, any sort of sanity or creativity has been stripped from our young, growing minds, and it's all due to the circumstances. From online “learning” to bonding with our families, it’s turned to a crap show. The reasons for this are “because humans want two things in life: human interaction and money. Unfortunately neither of these are possible to do or obtain during this lockdown,” as senior Mike McVay says. “Wolf is messing with the bag.”

While our families are struggling to get through these times financially and metally, our beloved governor has taken his time to open up and not likely go to golf courses (because those are necessities). And even though we’re all rocking a Gary Busey hairstyle, Mr. Wolf always appears to have a freshly cut head of hair, for where he has hair. Currently he is the Jordan Belfort (The Wolf of Wallstreet character) of Pennsylvania, and he is walking on sunshine and fairways while we struggle to get by.

Too Much Hype for Covid!

By Sarah Makar

Photography Manager, Opinions Editor

COVID-19 ruined the remainder of the Class of 2020’s senior year, whether they be in high school or college. Has social media and reporting hyped up the virus too much? Personally, I think it has. The media gives the coronavirus too much attention. It’s good that the media can quickly inform society about the coronavirus, but at times it is extremely overdramatized. Members of the media have a huge impact on how society reacts to the news, especially fear and panic. It doesn’t always have the right facts and misleads people at times by what is actually going on. Senior Bri Savko states,“I agree that the people should be informed of this matter, but people stockpiling canned food and toilet paper and other necessities have left other people with nothing.” The coronavirus is a scary thing and shouldn’t be taken lightly, but responsible reporting is vital.

The graph depicts the drop in Covid-19 cases, yet media organizations continue to make it a big deal. (Photo from Google COVID-19 updates)

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

By Nick Ross

Reporter

After Hempfield’s generous two-week break in March without schoolwork, Superintendent Dr. Tammy Wolicki announced that teachers would use Google Classroom to communicate and assign work for their students. Although online schoolwork is easier, nothing compares to learning in front of a teacher. Students are more motivated in an actual classroom rather than sitting in front of a computer screen; especially seniors. Schoolwork has become exceptionally doable because teachers understand that students receive an excessive amount of emails from their other teachers throughout the day. “Teachers give too much busy work and don’t condense the important information into easy learning,” says Senior Cole Graham. Students miss being in a classroom in front of their favorite teachers. Learning is just not the same.

Junior Sarah Melko prepares for her dreadful AP exams. (Photo by Sarah Melko)

Junior Year Just Got More Awful

By Leyla Pehlivan

Reporter

The Class of 2021 will be a historic group of students as more colleges are being forced to adjust their standards and strategies due to the coronavirus. Several colleges and universities in recent weeks have announced that they won’t require SAT or ACT scores from this year’s high school juniors to be considered for admissions in the fall of 2021. The coronavirus pandemic upended life for anxious high school students working to get into college, and taking a standardized test for college admissions should not be at the forefront of their thinking. Both ACT and the College Board, which administers the SAT, have canceled their tests until early August, meaning some juniors could have trouble taking, or retaking the test before applying in the fall. That seems unfair. It’s already a stressful time to be a kid, then you throw a pandemic at them. Regardless, pandemic or no pandemic, junior year is still hard.

The current situations have hurt juniors immensely. Unfortunately, seniors will have the unknowingness of graduation, prom, and other activities. But, it’s important to remember that almost all current seniors know their plan for the future whether that means college, the service, employment, and so forth. Almost all seniors have gotten the opportunity to take their SAT and ACT exams. Current juniors have not. They are at an extreme disadvantage by pushing exams until late August. How are juniors supposed to retain the information they learned months ago? How are juniors supposed to receive a score they desire within a short couple of months considering that most college application deadlines are in the months of early fall? AP exams are now shortened and are perceived to be “easy,” but that makes it a lot more difficult as well. AP exams tend to be about three hours long and filled with multiple-choice questions and essays. Now, most exams are condensed into one free-response question. Having your college credit depend on one essay response is nerve-racking and difficult. Junior Olivia Shafer said, “I feel like they should count to an extent. The scores should be recognized but shouldn't establish if you get into college. They should include extracurricular activities and other grades.” SAT, ACT, and AP scores should not have to count for current juniors. They are not given the same opportunities that other students had. The College Board making accommodations for current juniors is appreciated, but it doesn’t change the fact that they don’t have the same resources or time to perform as well as they could have. The Class of 2021 has a lot on its plate, and no one should be allowed to add on to it.

Losing Sleep Over COVID-19

By Lillian Schwartz

Copy Editor

During summer vacation, a person’s sleep is usually dependent on how late you can stay up and how early you can get up. However, during self quarantine, sleep schedules have reached a new level of messed up. Aside from the abrupt end to physically going to school and the natural relaxation that ensued, many students of Hempfield are still suffering the results of that initial break, almost two months later. In a lot of ways, this is a direct result of the boredom, stress, and natural sleeping patterns of teenagers.

The main difference between quarantine and summer vacation is that there is absolutely nothing to do. During summer vacation, people have jobs, travel, and enjoy fun activities with friends and family. During quarantine, everything has been shut down because of the coronavirus.

Finally, the same thing that intrudes on teenage sleeping schedules during the typical school year is still consistent with teenage sleeping schedules during quarantine. In order to enter REM sleep, the serotonin and melatonin levels in the brain must even out. Teenage hormones already make it severely difficult to fall asleep before 11:00 p.m., and the addition of stress and boredom are making students nocturnal. Wonder when we’ll ever get back to a “normal” sleeping pattern?

(Photo by Korvit at Depositphotos)

Quarantine Causes Insanity

By Rachel Ryan

Reporter

In the past two months, the United States has been under a lockdown since COVID-19 hit hard in mid-March. The quarantine was issued to keep citizens from contracting and spreading the virus. However, over these past couple of months, the states have seen the insanity that happens when people are forced to stay home. From over-stocking on hand sanitizer and toilet paper to having a protest against the virus, people have been losing their minds.

The stay-at-home order has been somewhat lifted in many states, partly because of the protests that have been organized by mostly conservative groups, business owners, and individuals who believe in the social and economical damage of the stay-at-home order lasting too long. One of the first protests was in Michigan on April 15 by a Facebook group called “Operation Gridlock.” This group ended up storming the capital building in Michigan causing some of the restrictions to be lifted. Some restaurants and other businesses have reopened and the amount of customers has skyrocketed. However, in some cases, deaths from COVID-19 virus have increased. According to WHO, at least 4.8 million people around the world have been diagnosed with COVID-19 with more than 321,000 dying. In Pennsylvania alone, more than 4,500 have died according to the CDC. According to junior Alexander Golden, “If this doesn’t end soon, I’ll have to put myself in a psych ward.”

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