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Home , A Holly Dolly Christmas, A Million Lights, Naughty List, Nutcracker

TheThe JuntoJunto December 2020

I had form’d most of my ingenious acquaintances into a club of mutual improvement, which we called The Junto. -Benjamin Franklin 1 People The Junto December 2020 Teacher Holiday Interview

Mallika Pal // Places Editor Although this year’s holiday season is looking different from the past years, the EAHS staff has made sure to stay in touch with their holiday spirit! Here are some of the staff members’ favorite parts of the holidays:

Ms. Egberts: Biology and Anatomy teacher, Officer Siegfried: Security case manager, NHS advisor Holiday movie: vacation Holiday movie: Elf Holiday song: from the Holiday song: Kinks Tradition: “Every year, I watch the peace Tradition: “I enjoy my candle lighting with my family.” cigar.”

Mr. Kanusky: History teacher, JV baseball Dr. Wascura: French teacher coach Holiday movie: is Coming to Holiday movie: Scrooged Town Holiday song: Melekelikimaka Holiday song: The Christmas Cancan Tradition: “I set up an calendar Tradition: “Going to church on Christmas every year for my kids. I also proposed to my Eve!” wife with an -- I put her ring in the Christmas eve slot!” Ms. Capecci: English teacher and Junto advi- sor Mrs. Santiago: Guidance Secretary Holiday movie: Christmas vacation Holiday movie: Charlie Brown Christmas Holiday song: Winter Wonderland Holiday song: O Holy Night Tradition: “My family does the feast of the Tradition: “Family vacation” seven fishes on Christmas eve. We also celebrate my Dad’s birthday!”

2 Places very The Junto December 2020 A covid christmas

Sienna Walenciak // People Editor

With the December holidays rapidly approach- has resulted in a much more sober Christmas ing, countries around the world have had to for its citizens. A partial lockdown has been in- make hard decisions to try to salvage the holi- stituted across the country, as well as a travel day spirit while keeping citizens safe from ban. Citizens are also not allowed to leave their COVID-19. As restrictions are put in place, cel- hometowns on Christmas and New Years. A ebrations will be quite different from years curfew from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM has also passed. been implemented. Similar to Germany, Italian Christmas markets have also been shut down In Germany, non-essential shops and schools for the season. will be closed over the holiday season. The country’s popular outdoor Christmas markets, Not all countries, however, are tightening re- featuring vendors selling food, gifts, and other strictions. France has lifted its lockdown, as well provisions, are also closed. The closure will as its ban on travel for Christmas though travel- cause a significant decline in Germany’s econ- ers must still comply with strict restrictions omy, which booms from the opening of the while they visit. A curfew from 10:00 PM to markets. Germany has also ordered a hard 6:00 PM will be placed for all tourists and citi- lockdown over the holidays, allowing each zens, and restaurants, shops, and cinemas will household to host only four family members be shut down for the season. France’s popular from other households from December 24-26. ski resorts have also been closed following strong debates over whether European resorts The Netherlands have entered a similar lock- should remain open. They are set to reopen in down phase following a surge of COVID cases January. in the country. For five weeks, all non-essential businesses will be closed, including cinemas, Holiday COVID rules and regulations are caus- hairdressers, and gyms. These restrictions will ing sadness and anger around the globe, but it be lifted briefly to allow Dutch households to doesn’t have to be this way. Find the joy, em- host three guests instead of the normal two. brace the light, and have gratitude for all you Dutch cities have also asked people to stay away do have. With a positive attitude, a little creativ- from popular shops and citizens have been told ity and out-of-the-box thinking, we will find to refrain from any unnecessary travel to and ways to celebrate the holidays safely and in a from the country. way that enables us to connect with those we hold most dear. Who knows? It may end up be- Italy has been experiencing the highest number ing our most memorable and treasured holiday of COVID deaths since the end of March. This season yet!

3 Places The Junto December 2020 A Bright Christmas Alania Mariano // Editor-in-Chief Are you looking for some fun Covid-friendly holiday activities to do with your family over break? Well lucky for you, you can find them here! Below lists three places known for their extraordinary lights during the holidays. What: Winter Light Spectacular Where: Lehigh Valley Zoo The Lehigh Valley Zoo is continuing their Winter Light Spectacu- lar this year by transforming into a winter wonderland! Brightened When: Now- January 2nd by more than a million lights, you can take a stroll through the zoo and view several light displays. They also have live performances, family photo opportunities, fire pits, and hot chocolate stands. This year they are taking precautions by requiring masks, social distanc- ing, and limiting the amount of people in the zoo. You can go to the Lehigh Valley Zoo website for more information and to reserve your tickets!

What: Koziar’s Where: Bernville, PA Another fun trip you could take with your family is going to the When: Now- January 2nd Koziar’s Christmas Village. This village is a family owned business and people travel from great lengths to visit every year! Within the village you can find Santa’s post office, an old-fashioned bakery shop, the kissing brdige, a manger scene, a toy shop, and more. With safety precautions, you can walk around and look at all the lights, as well as go inside shops. Go to their website to find more information about the village and get your tickets!

What: A Longwood Christmas Where: Longwood Gardens If you are looking to take a day trip to Philadelphia, Longwood Gardens is the place to go. Here you can find outside light displays When: Now- January 10th on towering trees that touch the sky, as well as magical tunnels of light. Although the conservatory is closed for safety reasons, they have fire pits to warm you up while walking around. After walking around, you could also dine at their outdoor restaurant! For more information and for ticket options, visit their website.

4 Places The Junto December 2020 Visiting the... Easton Winter Village Colette Potter // Copy Editor

Downtown Easton’s Winter Village has been open since November 27th, and will continue to stay open until December 31st. There are 20 vendors in white and red huts around the Easton Circle. I was especially interest- ed in the Easton Baking Co. hut. One of the main at- tractions is the ice skating rink near the Easton Indoor Public Market. The rink is made of synthetic ice. Skates can also be rented. The Shop & Skate is open every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, as well as the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday leading up to Christmas. It is free for residents, and five dollars for non-city residents. The Winter Village was started as a way for Easton lo- cal businesses to be able to sell their products safely. The Winter Village is all outdoors. The Little Brass Band of the Lehigh Valley has also performed at the Winter Vil- lage, and there were even people on stilts walking around the Circle. The Winter Village was quite pretty at night. After the large snowstorm on December 17th, the hut roofs were covered with snow and looked very cheerful. The lights all around the trees surrounding the area light up the Winter Village with a nice glow. Even when the Winter Village is not open, it is still a festive area to walk around. I think it is a fantastic idea to bring some cheer to an otherwise somewhat dreary holiday season. The Winter Village seemed to be modeled off of European Kris Kringle Markets, and I would say it worked well. The lights, the red hut roofs, the Peace Candle, and the skating rink all contributed to a fun, new scenic attraction. Points Of View The Junto December 2020 The Covid-19 Vaccine

Steven McDonald // Copy Editor

After months of talking about a vaccine being being researched before millions of doses of the the most reasonable solution to the pandemic, vaccine are shipped is what component could and waiting in our homes for such a thing to be be causing such reactions. created Pfizer, an American pharmaceuticals company, has created exactly that. The Pfizer There is of course also the question of how Covid-19 vaccine boasts a 95% immunization much can be shipped and when, which will rate in people aged 65 and older, and will hope- primarily be based on how many companies fully be delivered to about 21 million people can produce their own vaccine, and how many working in healthcare come this January, after production facilities there are, take for instance which it will be given to essential workers. Once the Russian vaccine. Russia has also created a the front line workers vaccine dubbed the have been vaccinated a Sputnik-V vaccine, focus will be put on old- which works in about er citizens with respira- 92% of cases, and has tory issues before every- been shipped all over its one else is vaccinated. home country with plans being that every The FDA’s vaccine advi- Russian citizen is im- sory panel passed the munized. Both Sputnik- vaccine in a vote of sev- V and Pfizer's Bn- enteen to four earlier T162b2 vaccine show this month for emer- similarities in their suc- gency use, but one of the most prevalent ongo- cess rates but what they also show a similarity in ing fears from the vaccine is its safety. There is that both need a second shot about two weeks have been multiple cases of allergic reactions af- after the first, effectively doubling the amount ter being given a dose leading to worry that of work necessary to immunize each individual. more people might suffer from similar symp- The current goal is for about 60 million doses toms considering how this vaccine was intro- of the vaccine to be shipped worldwide to get duced relatively quickly. A reason that this the process started. might have gotten under the radar is that Pfizer disallowed people with histories of severe aller- The current estimate for when the general pop- gies from participating, but this might really just ulation will be able to get a vaccine is currently be an unforeseen side effect. Luckily there were May to June but you never know, as this time already orders that you would have to stay in will still depend heavily on whether other com- place for about ten to fifteen minutes, making panies can create their own vaccines, or if there sure that whoever received their shot would not might be some issues with the current shots, but show any symptoms before leaving. This of things are at least looking up quite a bit. Stay course means that one of the main things that is safe because things are finally starting to look up everyone. 6 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Our December

Nailah Lockhart // Photography Editor Since COVID-19 took over, its like the whole world shut down. Kids are not going to school and adults are not going to work,but we all found a way to make our self busy during this quarantine. The same goes for music artists. Now that they cannot go on tour or do special events, they use this time to write more music. That means new hol- iday music! Below are some of our favorites.

Lil Nas X - Holiday The new rapper had an outstanding year with hits like “Old Town Road” and “Panini” in 2019. Now Lil Nas X is back with a Christmas song called Holiday, a catchy, futuristic track that will be stuck in your head this December.

Meghan Trainor- A Very Trainor Christmas With “All About the Bass” putting her on the map in 2014, she has had an amazing career so far. She put out a Christmas featur- ing some old classic Christmas hits like “Silent Night” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” She also wrote her own song, “I Believe in Santa.”

Jonas Brothers- I Need You Christmas Our childhood favorites came back with another holiday song this year, following last years “Like it’s Christmas.” Their new song, “I Need you Christmas,” is a romantic track that you can listen to sitting next to the fireplace with some hot chocolate.

7 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Continued...

Liam Payne - Naughty List feat. Dixie D’Amelio Now a solo artist, made his first release song of 2020 a holiday song. Featuring TikTok star Dixie D’Amelio, a pop style song you can sing out loud and listen to with your friends in the car.

Dolly Parton - A Holly Dolly Christmas Country icon came out with her third Christmas album, “A Holly Dolly Christmas.” This album features big artists like her god-daughter, , and another country icon, . The old and young generation can listen together while opening presents this year.

Mariah Carey- Oh Santa! Feat. Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson has been the queen of Christmas music ever since she released the biggest song in Christmas history, “All I Want For Christmas Is You.” She wrote “Oh Santa!” on her second Christmas album, “Merry Christmas ll You” in 2010, but she spiced things up this year by putting some of the most powerful voices in the music in- dustry, Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson, for the tenth- anniver- sary of the song.

8 Points Of View The Junto How Is Hurting Small Businesses Colette Potter // Copy Editor

Amazon hurts small businesses, malls, and, I would go as far as to say all brick and mortar stores. And some may say that Amazon is a good thing, especially with the current COVID- 19 pandemic. To this I would say, it’s a great way for people to stay safe. But, once the vac- cine is distributed and the pandemic fades into memory, small businesses and malls may be shutting down in great numbers. This hurts our local communities. In a real pinch, you may need to go to the mall for a last minute birthday gift, or to get a phenomenal mall pretzel.

Amazon has expanded too far. According to an article by In These Times, Amazon may be lowering its prices and hiding profits until the competition is extinguished, which is when they will jack up the prices. Amazon makes the most money through its marketplaces and the businesses that sell their products on Amazon, which means that they are getting their biggest profit margin from small businesses trying to sell their products through Amazon. Yet another Amazon con is its environmental waste. Though Amazon is trying to reduce its car- bon footprint, as many as one billion trees a year are killed to make Amazon boxes.

So what can you do? This holiday season, consider supporting small and local businesses when shopping for gifts. Amazon can be a valuable resource, but if you can, try looking for your holiday gifts elsewhere. Downtown Easton has many small businesses, and so do some malls. If you are worried about safety with the coronavirus, try curbside pick-up or shopping in the off hours. There are large shipping delays at the moment, so upon the decision to buy some last minute gifts, try going to some nearby stores!

9 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Family Traditions

Kellie Painter // Off Leash Editor

One of my favorite family traditions during sights and sounds of the city. Some of our the holidays is going to New York City. Every traditions are impossible to do, such as going Christmas Eve, my family braves the cold and to St. Patrick's Cathedral and walking around typically rain too, to see all that the Big Apple Times Square. Also, famously from Tik Tok, has to offer. Depending on the year, we will the Rockefeller tree has fallen victim to the sometimes go to see the Radio City Christmas pandemic as well. When the tree first arrived Spectacular at Radio in New York City, social City Music Hall. My fa- media users showed vorite part of the show viewers the tree, that is the Rockettes. I may compared to recent not fit the rigorous phys- years, looked sparse and ical requirements to be a sick. However, not to Rockette such as height worry, the 75-foot Nor- or stamina, but I always way Spruce is being enjoy envisioning myself livened up by workers as one of them up on who are hand laying stage. An annual must- branches to make it look do, however, is seeing more full. I have not the at been to the city since Rockefeller Plaza. Pic- the start of the pandem- tures are a must and it's ic but my hope is the so fun to see the twin- streets will not be as kling lights, it is a place busy as in past years to reflect on how much with the pandemic still has happened in that buzzing. This year’s past year. There are al- New York City trip may ways quirky parts of the be different than it has NYC trip too such as been in past years, but I the time when my dad am going to embrace it. had us walk what felt like fifty blocks just to During 2020, I have spent much more time see the famous wooden escalators in Macy’s. with my family and I feel that we are closer This year's trip will look a bit different but than ever. While our trip may be different, as hasn't everything in 2020? We plan to con- long as I am with my family, this year’s adven- tinue our yearly excursion, but it will be so- ture will be just as special as any other year. cially distanced-style; we will rather drive This will surely be a Christmas to remember. through New York and look from afar at the

10 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Evermore

Julianna LoPiccolo // Off Leash Editor

In July, 10x Grammy Award winner Taylor Swift surprised the world with folklore, her eighth studio album. Two weeks ago, just before her 31st birthday, she did it again after posting on her social media giving Swifties a day to prepare for the midnight release of evermore, her ninth studio album. The announcement included the cover and tracklist of the album—15 songs and two bonus tracks on the deluxe version. At midnight, a music video for her single, “willow”, premiered on YouTube. The music video itself was a continuation of the video for her last single, “cardigan”, off of her previous album, which meant evermore as a whole would be a continuation of folklore. The two are referred to by Taylor Swift herself as sister — they were written by the same people, and recorded at the same place in the same era of her life making them similar in composi- tion both lyrically and instrumentally. Folklore is, in my opinion, a 10/10 album—not a single song misses. And, admittedly, I premature- ly began comparing evermore to folklore, and my first listen was… disappointing. Track 5 is fa- mously Taylor’s saddest song on each of her albums, but “tolerate it” didn’t do anything for me; “willow”, while catchy, was no “cardigan”; “cowboy like me” and “marjorie” were sleepy at best; and “no body, no crime (ft. HAIM)” felt like a knockoff version of The Chicks’ “Goodbye Earl”. Now, though, that I’ve had time to learn the lyrics, and hear the background and intent of each element, it is hard for me to listen to any other album. The bridge of “champagne problems” is just waiting to be blasted going 70 down the highway; “cowboy like me” goes way deeper than I origi- nally thought; “long story short” is as fun as any song off of 1989, yet fits perfectly into the aesthet- ic of the sister albums; “‘tis the damn season” is a story many I know can relate too all too well; and “happiness” is an ironic masterpiece riddled with heartbreaking lyrics. After almost three weeks, my favorite song has stayed consistent as “champagne problems”, because that bridge! Also at the top of my list are: “long story short”, “ivy”, “coney island (ft. The National)”, and I have a fresh soft spot for “cowboy like me”. All in all, I’d rate evermore 9.5/10, losing points purely because of the instrumental of “closure”. All of that to say, I am not a musical genius, nor am I a hardcore Swiftie, so take everything I say with a grain of salt. If you want to hear some heavily investigative Swifties break everything down, @stevensully1 on TikTok is a great source. Evermore is available to stream everywhere you listen to music, and stream folklore if you haven’t! 11 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Elliot Page

Branden Cunard // P.O.V Editor

“I am transgender.” These three words change a person’s life, and in my eyes, for the better. On December 1st of this year, Elliot Page, formerly known as Ellen Page, came out as transgender on Instagram. Many know him from his cinema and television works, such as Vanya from The Um- brella Academy, Juno in Juno, Treena Lahey in Trailer Park Boys, Inception, the X-Men series, and many other movies and TV shows. This is not the first time Elliot has come out as well. Back in February of 2014, Page publicly came out as a lesbian woman at a conference they were attending. At that time, they were seen as a trailblazer for people to look up to and inspire them to come out of the closet. 2014 became a huge year for celebrities, influencers, and people overall to come out, and Page was undoubtedly one of the firsts. Now that he came out as transgender, a whole new light is shown, but with that comes controversy. People started speculating what would be happening with Page’s character Vanya in The Umbrella Academy since Vanya was portrayed as a woman who had a gay story arc. Questions were being raised, such as “Would Vanya be recast?” “Would Vanya become a male character?” “Would the show even go on?” These speculations, needless to say, are quite harmful and damaging. A character should not have to be recast in order to please the public. If people do not like that Vanya will still be played by Page, then so be it and tough nuggets. His acting will not change, and if anything, he will be more comfortable with himself and become one of the greatest actors our country has seen. There is a world of possibilities open for Elliot Page. Since he came out as transgender, the amount of love and overall support even has me shocked. It shows that we are coming a long way from where our country used to be towards transgender folk and the LGBTQ+ community as a whole. Do not let it fool you, however, since we still live in a world where hatred and oppression are prevalent, but now there are more and more voices to combat it. If Elliot Page were to see this, I hope he knows he has become a revolutionary, a trailblazer, and I am so proud of him! Keep slaying king :)

12 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 gift ideas Gabriella Feltmann // Copy Editor To everyone stuck at home right now, wondering what to get your families this year, I am in the same boat. So here’s a few ideas I had about what to get my fami- ly. Maybe you’ll get some ideas of your own.

For my mother: Since the beginning of quarantine, my mom has been way more active in the . She’s been….experimenting, and she needs more than just recipes off the internet. SO a cookbook would be a good gift for her. Maybe if you’re on a budget, some cheap kitchen supplies, like utensils and things, would make a good gift.

For my dad: Dad never really wants anything. My mom usu- ally gets him shoes or something like that. My gifts for him since I started giving him gifts of my own have been mugs and gag gifts. Occasionally I’ll get him something Steelers re- lated, because that's his favorite football team. But really, when in doubt, get him a mug. One can never have too many #1 Dad mugs.

For my brother (a.k.a. Headache #1): Let me tell you, my brother is borderline obsessed with sports. Football is his thing. So if I need to get him something and I’m not sure what, one of those foam foot- balls or a Steelers pillow is my go to. Of course, if all else fails, just grab a bunch of your sibling’s favorite candies and put them in a fes- tive bag. For my sister (a.k.a, Headache #2): Makeup. All the makeup. It may sound stereotypical, but my sister loves the stuff. I could get her some blush, eyeshadow, brushes, whatever. I don’t know that much about makeup, but she loves it. And again, my backup plan is candy. Works every time.

13 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Big Tech Censorship Isaak Torres // Copy Editor One of the most problematic issues facing America is not what you think. Although one may think of racial injustice, or the coronavirus, another real, yet hidden problem, is Big Tech Censorship. Current- ly, big media platforms like Facebook, Youtube, and Amazon are censoring Americans on their sites. The problem is that this ability to censor people or groups of their choosing is wrong and has become controversial because of who is getting censored. Currently our country is divided between Democrat and Republican. Unfortunately it seems that these platforms seem to fall on the side of Democratic ideas. Thus, those getting censored are the ones speaking out against Liberals, and the government. When this country was founded, the idea of speaking for what you believe in was a natural right that all citizens should have. Now, these platforms are beginning to take this away. This needs to stop. No matter race, religion, gender, party, etc, Americans on public platforms should be able to express their ideas. So what exactly is happening? This all started during the 2016 election when many people accused the Russians of swaying the election through the media and ways of voting. It is a fact that the Rus- sians would actually have actors set up media pages through big tech media platforms that would spew out misinformation and propaganda to one side to the left or right in order to cause voter chaos (CNBC). So with this in mind, the heads of huge corporations like Facebook, began to censor their users during our current election. At first it was to counteract potential foreign meddlers but has now spilled into Americans who are against popular opinion. One popular opinion is that Joe Biden should be president. When less than positive news came out regarding his son big tech stepped in. In October of this year, the New York Post released incriminating photos, and files on Hunter Biden. Immediate- ly, Facebook and Twitter either restricted, or blocked the entire link from the public. The media saw this incriminating evidence against Joe Biden and stepped in. However, when Donald Trump is being accused of tax fraud, where is the media then? Clear bias. People who disapprove of the government's handling of the coronavirus have also been censored. For example, Alex Berenson, a Ex-New York Times reporter, had his book blocked from being sold on their site because it spoke out against the use of masks. It was, however, sold on Amazon later but only after Berenson posted this all over social media causing an uproar. These large media platforms are turning into monopolies with their own agendas rather than a free space to exercise one's first amendment right. The bottom line is that America is slowly straying away from the rights that we believe in; the rights that our founding fathers believed in. Big Tech companies censoring Americans is not okay and should not be tolerated. Protecting the freedom of speech should be of the utmost importance. We need to make a change before it is too late.

14 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Dancing through the holidays Julia Vinci // Copy Editor When the holiday season is in question, the first thing that comes to my mind is The , a timeless Christmas classic. The fairy tale ballet premiered in 1892, a week before Christmas, at the Imper- ial Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The first perfor- mance outside of Russia occurred in England in 1944. The NYC ballet began performing it in 1954, and it’s still a very popular holi- day attraction today. Though quarantine has taken its toll on every sports community, as they say in the theatre, the show must go on, and the ballet can still be viewed in a streaming event that began on December 11th and will run through the 3rd of January, 2021. Another great example of holiday dance would be the annual Radio City Rockettes performance. They only perform at the end of the year. The RCR have been shining through the Christmas season since 1925, when they were founded in St. Louis, Mis- souri. Since 1932, they have called the Radio City Mu- sic Hall in NYC home. There are a total of 80 rock- ettes, and only 36 perform on stage at a time. All of the rockettes are in the same height range. It's an audition requirement, so that during performances the dancers look uniform. Unfortunately, they will not be perform- ing this year for the first time since their founding, due to COVID. Those two are the obvious, but there are so many great shows to be seen around this time of year. Quarantine might cause some complications, but the arts will find a way to persist. In case you or your family is interested in watching a ballet for free at home, The Royal Opera House will be Streaming Don Quixote and Mozart’s The Magic Flute on YouTube. For those in our community that do not celebrate Christmas, neither of these shows have anything to do with the holiday! It’s the perfect opportunity to indulge in the arts with- out ever leaving your home. In any case, however you and your family spend winter break, be safe, and be merry.

15 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Lack of Data Rights May Destroy A Generation: Short Analysis of The Social Dilemma Julianna LoPiccolo // Off Leash Editor In the long line of documentaries Netflix has acquired over the years is a newer one, released the first week of September—The Social Dilemma. Having watched The Great Hack, I was already in- vested in data rights and issues involving social media, but this one was different in that it focussed more on the personal rather than political—and being part narrative and part documentary, it was even more entertaining.

Jeff Orlowski’s The Social Dilemma follows a bevy of social media developers in all aspects of the business as they narrate the conflicts of interest and morals within whatever company they were a part of, from Google LLC to Pinterest; as they narrate, we see a scripted portrayal of a family with few of the main issues relating to addiction to social media. Although viewers are introduced to a number of men and women in the field, one of the first peo- ple we meet is Tristan Harris, formerly of Google, a whistleblower for the addictive nature of, be- lieve it or not, email. What is most interesting though, is the fact that he was one of the people who programmed it to be addictive through a number of techniques including positive intermittent rein- forcement, which is, as a Google Experience Design Consultant explains, “You pull down and you refresh, it's gonna be a new thing at the top...every single time, which in psychology we call positive intermittent reinforcement.”

16 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Continued...

Everything you do—including likes, comments, time spent looking at a picture or video, people you follow, and your searches—on an app is recorded and made into a model that is continuously updat- ed as your scroll, making it able to predict what you do and may be interested in. (So when you think your device is listening to you, it might be, but more likely it is just predicting what you want to see by what you have seen.) So, in short, apps build profiles for people to feed them content and ads that they will keep their attention. Mining peoples’ data and building profiles makes big tech able to sell the profiles that fit the target of whatever company is marketing on the platform, and that is how they make their billions. And they can. There are no laws prohibiting these companies from taking our data for them to make money all at our expense. While they make their billions, consumers are suffering with a whole new set of issues. As Randima Fernando says, “The most dangerous piece in all this is the fact that it's driven by technology that’s advancing exponentially… from the 1960’s to today processing power has gone up about a trillion times… our brains have evolved not at all.” The psychologist featured in the documentary explains, “[Gen Z] is more anxious, more fragile, more depressed. They’re much less comfortable taking risks. The rates at which they get their driver’s licenses have been dropping. The number who have ever gone out on a date or had any kind of romantic interaction is dropping rapidly.” Obviously, these are major problems for our society, but it will be extremely difficult for change to happen. Because the margin of profit for big tech is so large—Facebook made $55B (that’s $55,000,000,000) in a year—that makes them heavily involved with political leaders’ campaigns, who in turn will turn a blind eye for their friends in big tech. Capitalistically, it doesn't make sense to put regulations on mining of personal data from social media apps—it's only the greater good of so- ciety, what's that to a profit. Therefore, until the health and stability of a nation ranks higher than money on lawmakers list of importance we have to listen to people like Jaron Lanier who provides the important takeaways from The Social Dilemma: 1) get rid of social media or 2) turn off your notifications for your social media, and 3) limit your time on social media. Honestly, getting addicted is merely a pebble in the ripple of the issues stemming from unregulated capitalization of social media, and I would like to write more about it. I could talk about data rights, social media addiction, and how social media is destroying our democracy for hours—and Kellie and I do (for 16 minutes) in our new episode of the Junto’s podcast, Off Leash, Social Media v. Gen Z. If you would like to hear more about the issue of social media and technology click the link, and definitely watch The Social Dilemma on Netflix.

17 Points Of View The Junto December 2020 Lani’s Limelight

Alania Mariano // Editor-In-Chief This holiday season looks a lot different for me this year. Every Christmas Eve my entire family of 42 people, including both my mom and dad’s side, come together at my house and have the classic seven fishes dinner. My dad and I normally spend the whole month of December decorating the house, putting together our iconic 8 foot tree, making cookies for family, and setting up a long table for this night. Except, this year we did not. It was tough to get past the fact that the Christmas Eve I have experienced every year since I was born will not happen this year, but my family and I found ways to cope with it. Instead of our nor- mal tradition of building our (fake) Christmas tree, I was able to go with my sister to get my first real one! When I was staying at her house for the weekend we found a house nearby that said “Christmas Trees Sold Here.” We were confused at first because it was at a house, until we drove into their backyard. There were acres and acres of trees of all shapes and sizes. The family told use we could pick whatever one we want and gave us a saw to cut it down. Although I was freezing, we walked around to find the perfect one. We found one that was on the smaller side, or at least we thought it was outside, and brought it home. The tree was huge. It took up half the living room, but we still were able to make it fit! Another new tradition I created with my family is taking Christmas photos of my niece! This is my niece’s first Christmas and I was so excited when my sister asked me to take photos of her. It was so fun to capture these memories so I can show her them in the future.

This may not be the Christmas I imagined it would be, but I am so thankful to be able to create new traditions with my family. Have a safe and relaxing break Easton! 18 Staff-Ed The Junto December 2020 what do WE think? If we are going remote again, then why did we go back to school in the first place?

Rachel Arzoumanian // Copy Editor This year has undoubtedly been a strange one for everybody. Our daily lives have changed drastically, from the way we do work and learn, to how we socialize, to the way we shop and recreate. Masks are required when going out and social distancing is an im- portant expectation. Aside from creating a health crisis and damaging the economy, COVID-19 and the limitations it’s placed on us has flipped our lifestyle around and un- questionably will change the way we do life forever. Students have felt the blow of COVID-19 in that we do much of our learning virtually, using Zoom, Google Classroom, and other online platforms to meet and complete schoolwork.

As is the case with all American school districts, Easton Area School District has been playing everything by ear. At the beginning of the school year, the plan was that half of the school would go in Monday and Tuesday, while the other half would go in on Thurs- day and Friday, with Wednesday being a virtual day. Students could choose to do this “hybrid” schooling or go fully remote, doing all learning and school work virtually. This plan was going relatively smoothly until just before Thanksgiving, when higher numbers of cases started to pop up among the student body. This also correlated with the rise in cases in the country as a whole. A large number of people had to quarantine at home.

The week before Thanksgiving, it was announced that the school district would be going fully remote, and that we’d return to school following the break. After the break, A-K kids have been able to attend school on Monday and Tuesday but L-Z kids have not returned as school has happened to have gone remote on Thursdays and Fridays due to spikes in cases. It has been very touch and go with going to school in person and being fully re- mote. Staff-Ed The Junto December 2020 Continued... Following Thanksgiving, many students have chosen to go remote, or have been forced to go remote because of required quarantining, and the same goes for administration. Just before we went completely remote until mid-January, there was only a handful of people in school.

There are mixed opinions on the issue of whether administration was right to keep some kids going to school in-person following Thanksgiving and the spike of cases in America. First of all, there is no dispute that the back and forth Easton has been doing with remote and hybrid has been frustrating and confusing. Many believe that following the spike and the holiday we should have gone fully remote. They argue that there is no point in attend- ing school when it can be done fully online, and that it is unsafe and unethical to have students in school when Turkey Week was cancelled, gyms and restaurants are being closed and restricted, and cases are at an all time high. In fact, many students are thriving through remote learning are able to do school just as well virtually.

On the other hand, many, including Easton administrators, stress the importance of in- person learning. Many have a hard time learning and focusing at home, and a lack of so- cial interaction and structure can have a negative impact on mental health. Younger stu- dents in particular are having a hard time completing their work-some have a hard time attending zooms and completing assignments at all. They say that school in-person school is important and that going to school in between Thanksgiving and Christmas was need- ed to wrap up loose ends. It is argued that attending school has a relatively low risk factor regarding the spread of COVID-19, and that hybrid school is a safe and necessary op- tion.

As of right now, Easton hybrid students will be going back to school in the middle of Jan- uary. However, things could change at any moment. No one really knows what to do right now-when was the last time we experienced a global pandemic? Who knows-in a year from now we could be back in school, or still doing remote learning. What do you think? Is it important that students attend school, or should we emphasize and continue to im- prove online learning? The Junto December 2020 hits & misses

Spotify Wrapped 2020 was just as perfect as the past years!

Covid-19 vaccines are being distributed!

College Admissions Decisions are rolling out.

Grammy Nominations. Enough said.

We are back into remote learning till mid-January.

Multiple NBA games are delayed due to Covid-19.

PA Covid-19 Total Case Count- 577K U.S. Covid-19 Total Case Count- 18.3M

The Junto has a podcast! This month hosts, Kellie and Julianna, talk about social media and its effects on Gen Z! They will also be releasing a “Year in Review” New Year episode where they will speak on all 2020 events to wrap up the year. You can listen to new episodes now by clicking the link featured on the Easton Area High School homepage, as well as , Anchor, Google Podcasts, and more.

21 People The Junto December 2020 The Staff of the Junto

Advisor - Jeannine N Capecci Editor-in-Chief - Alania Mariano Points of View - Branden Cunard Places - Mallika Pal People - Sienna Walenciak Photography - Nailah Lockhart

Copy Editors Colette Potter Gabriella Feltmann Isaak Torres Rachel Arzoumanian Steven McDonald Julia Vinci

Off Leash Editors Kellie Painter Julianna LoPiccolo

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