 Kenison Garratt
Editor-in-Chief and A&E Editor Explosions hit Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the headquarters of the European Union, on March 22. There were at least thirty-one killed, and more are injured. Brussels went on lockdown immediately following the first bombing. All airports, metro stations, and other public buildings and transportations were shut down or relocated. The French and Belgian border was also closed. The first two blasts were at an airport in Zaventem, the main airport of the European capital at about 8 A.M. The first target was the departure hall. The second explosion followed minutes later in another area of the airport. It has been confirmed that one of the explosions was carried out by a suicide bomber, and allegedly, there were shouts in Arabic heard before the bombs were detonated. A Kalashnikov AK-47 rifle and undetonated explosive belt were found at the airport.  Henry McKeand
Editor-in-Chief and A&E Editor One of the most controversial issues in President Barack Obama’s second term started when Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away on Feb. 12, leaving a vacancy in the Court that many Republicans did not want to be filled until after the upcoming election. On March 16, however, Obama nominated Merrick Garland, a respected federal judge who has been praised as a unifying, level-headed force in Washington by members of both parties. Justice Scalia, on the other hand, was a more aggressive, divisive judge who was not afraid to ruffle feathers. He was also a conservative, giving the Republicans a 5-4 majority in the court. Republicans are currently doing everything they can to stop Obama from putting in a more liberal judge and giving Democrats the majority. There is no doubting Garland’s credentials, but there are still many detractors on the right who feel as if the appointment should not be made by a president in his final year in office as his decision will not necessarily be in line with the upcoming leadership change. Now, after Obama’s nomination of Garland, Republicans are refusing to confirm him as the new justice. “All we are doing is following the long-standing tradition of not fulfilling a nomination in the middle of a presidential year,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. “The principle is the American people are choosing their next president, and their next president should pick this Supreme Court nominee.”  Sophia Shaikh
Staff Writer On Mar. 15, sometimes referred to as a second “Super Tuesday,” another round of primaries took place. States included were Florida, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, and our home state of North Carolina. The week before that, early voting was an option, available locally at the Apex Community Center. The rest of voters placed their votes on Tuesday at their local designated voting centers, also known as precincts. The winner from each party will face off in the general election in November. This election year has been especially dramatic, and these results have had a big impact on the candidacy. In North Carolina, both parties had fairly close calls. On the Republican end, Donald Trump took the majority vote with twenty-nine delegates versus Ted Cruz’s twenty-seven. Marco Rubio has officially dropped out of the election after this round of losing. Among Democrats, Hillary Clinton beat Bernie Sanders with a larger lead, fifty-nine to forty-five. Currently, Trump and Clinton both lead the primaries for their respective parties. By the looks of things, they will most likely be going head to head in November.  Naima Muminiy
Staff Writer The second Captain America: Civil War trailer that debuted on March 10 has already received over thirty-eight million views on YouTube. This trailer gained popularity after Spider-Man made his first appearance in a Marvel Cinematic Movie film. Sony had rights to the character of Spider-Man until the unsuccessful production of 2014’s Amazing Spider Man 2, where they then decided to make a deal with Marvel to co-produce the character. This is a major leap for Marvel films and for fans of Marvel alike. Spider-Man represents the new wave for the Avengers as we see a transition to a new cast of Ant-Man, Spider-Man, and other new Avengers replacing the old cast. This also contributes to tying up the storylines of characters such as Captain America and Iron Man. Spider-Man is the token character of the transition and was predicted to possibly be the central character in resolving the conflict between the Avengers. Kevin Feige, the president of Marvel Studios, said that Spider-Man would be torn between superhero ideologies. “Does he want to be like these other characters? Does he want nothing to do with these other characters? How does this impact his experience, being this grounded but super powerful hero? Those are all the things that Stan Lee and Steve Ditko played with in the first ten years of his comics, and that now we can play with in the movie,” said Feige. The addition of Spider-Man as well alters the way Spider-Man will be portrayed with a new actor taking up the role as the helpful vigilante.  Dylan Snyder
Staff Writer As many people know, the communist country of North Korea is one of the most secluded and isolated places in the world. It is a place that only a few get the privilege of visiting, and if they do, they must be accompanied by several guards. Some of these travelers include journalists, students, reporters, educators, photographers, and government officials. North Korean people are taught from birth to hate and not trust Americans or any outsiders. They follow strict rules that permit them from voicing, printing, or arguing against their government. The officials take any action that would go against or expose the flaws in their government very seriously with harsh punishment. Whatever is necessary to make sure that the government is respected and not spoken against is done, and the people are told it is in their best interest. People may be thrown into poorly conditioned prisons or hard labor camps, which must be served in for three generations.  Drew Chegash
Staff Writer On Thursday, Mar. 17, 2016, Secretary of State John Kerry states that ISIS is responsible for genocide. This is the first time that the United States has declared an act of genocide since 2004, in Darfur. Although this does not mean we have to take action, this certainly puts a great deal of pressure on the Obama administration to do something about it. However, this declaration politicizes the issues more, making involvement less of an opinion because it is officially labeled a genocide. "My purpose here today is to assert in my judgment, [ISIS] is responsible for genocide against groups in areas under its control including Yazidis, Christians and Shiite Muslims," Kerry said during a news conference at the State Department.  Dylan Snyder
Staff Writer The fact that our parents hate our music seems to be a trend. You may think it is just this generation’s music because of how profane or obscene it is. That might be somewhat true, but even in the past most adults hated or strongly disliked their children’s music. In the 1950s, parents did not like Elvis because they did not approve of his dancing. The same was true for Michael Jackson in the 1980s. The late 1960s and early 1970s were a shock for the older generation because they were not used to hearing songs all based on drugs and sex. There is, or should be, a difference in what a ten year old listens to as opposed to what a seventeen year old does. Most people are set in their ways, and they resist change because they do not think the change is for the better. Naturally, parents will not allow their kids to do something they think is not for the better or would be harmful in some way. Not ALL adults hate modern music; some listen to it themselves, and others can put up with it in the car with their kids because the content or language does not offend or affect them.  Kenison Garratt
Editor-in-Chief and A&E Editor Astronaut Scott Kelly has returned from space, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has announced he plans to retire April 1. The 52 year-old spent nearly a year at the International Space Station (ISS), which is about five thousand trips around the Earth or some 143,846,525 miles. Kelly’s mission was to renovate the ISS while participating in experiments to test the prolonged effects of microgravity on the human body and how the impacts may be counteracted. The astronaut returned to the surface March 1, and while he plans to retire, he will continue to aid other scientists in research by providing periodic samples and being present for occasional testing. “My career with the Navy and NASA gave me an incredible chance to showcase public service to which I am dedicated, and what we can accomplish on the big challenges of our day,” says Kelly. “I am humbled and excited by new opportunities for me to support and share the amazing work NASA is doing to help us travel farther into the solar system and work with the next generation of science and technology leaders.”  Drew Chegash
Staff Writer In Mar. of 2006, three young college men were involved in a scandal that captivated the entire country and has ultimately split Durham since. On Mar. 13, ESPN released yet another one of its well acclaimed 30 for 30 episodes “Fantastic Lies”, which outlines the Duke Lacrosse rape case that happened on March 13, 2006. This case was the perfect storm for the media to self-indict three young Duke students before they were ever found guilty. Riots sparked from all forms of life and drew a clear barrier across the country. On the night of March 13, 2006, some Duke Lacrosse players decided to throw a party, which consisted of alcohol, and two “exotic dancers.” One dancer, Crystal Mangum, an African-American twenty-eight year-old mother of two, accused three players of allegedly raping her during the party. The three players were Dave Evans, Reade Seligmann, and Collin Flannerty. As a result, Durham’s racial tension snapped, and according to News & Observer columnist Ruth Sheehan, the allegation was like a “Molotov Cocktail that landed in the community.” It was seemingly obvious that these party-going, privileged, white, and young lacrosse players were without a doubt guilty of the horrible crime.  Cameron Goz
Sports Editor March Madness officially kicked off Sunday with the conclusion of conference tournaments, and the bracket has been announced. This year’s festivities begin with the First Four round on Mar. 15 in Dayton, Ohio. Along with the insanity that comes this month, there was plenty of shock and controversy once the seeds were made public. A few conference champions were granted one-seeds in the likes of Kansas, UNC and Oregon while the Jayhawks were named the number one overall seed. Virginia claimed the final controversial spot on the top line, edging the B1G Champion Michigan State Spartans, who claimed a two-seed. With brackets released, fans have started zeroing in on the most likely upsets to expect come Mar. 17. No. 10 Temple looks like a candidate to knock off the superior Iowa Hawkeyes, slotted at No. 7. Also coming from the South region, No. 9 Connecticut looks like it could reasonably be favored in their matchup against No. 8 Colorado in lieu of their American Athletic Conference Championship. Out west in Anaheim, No. 13 UNC-Wilmington prepares for in-state foe Duke, attempting to knock the Blue Devils out of the first round for the second time in three years. No. 10 VCU looks like another team playing an inferior team ranked higher, with No.7 Oregon State on the slate for them. While other games can and will have non-expected outcomes, these are some of the more prominent upset bids on the bracket. |
