The United States government has been shut down since midnight of Saturday the 22nd of December 2018. This has been the longest recorded time that the government has ever been shut down. The reason for this shutdown is due to a disagreement. Our president, Donald J. Trump and Democratic Congress have not decided on whether or not to fund the U.S.-Mexico border wall. The Democratic Party is a no go for the wall as opposed to Trump’s yes. So far Trump has pinned the all the fault on the Democratic Party. Workers have been furloughed for over three weeks now. No matter who’s fault it is, we are definitely in the midst of a crisis. I could not imagine not being paid over such an infantile dispute. People have literally missed rent payments as #ShutdownStories fills social media pages to prove so. I understand that Trump must fill his promises regarding his candidacy but that does not make him just in shutting down the government. That does not allow him to force federal workers to struggle in effort to pay rent or go into bank accounts with money saved up for emergencies when such an ordeal could be settled in a whole different manner. Now I'm not too invested in the world of politics but I do know that the furloughing of federal workers could have been avoided if the funding of the wall had been passed. This would be the best way to go because the wall would not be finished by the end of Trump’s term. As of right now after all Trump has gotten himself into, I do not believe that he will be re-elected. Thus, the funding can be cut by the next president and we lose money as opposed to having workers either not work or work without pay until we(democrats) agree to fund the wall. The repercussions for this were not properly weighed out on both sides of the argument. As for the shutdown, it occurred in a hasty decision as would be expected of President Donald J. Trump. Reporter: Makai Walker
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After hearing arguments what category cheerleading falls into, as in sport or not, I came to a conclusion that cheerleading is absolutely a sport. Cheerleading meets all of the athletic specification, but because the primary purpose of cheerleading is to support schools’ athletic teams, competition comes second. In other words, cheer is more than a sport. When asked about her opinion on why cheer is a “sport,” Natalie Hutchinson, a senior and cheerleader at Estancia High school, stated that people who claim it is not a sport, “...probably haven’t taken into consideration comp[etition] season, which takes up majority of the time. Comp[etition] team, also at Estancia, travels to local and out of state competitions to compete against other teams with stunting, jumps, dance, and (sometimes) tumbling.” Recently, cheer has been signed to classify competition cheer as a California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) sport beginning of the 2017-2018 school year. A sport is defined as an increase in breathing and heart rate, the ability and capacity acquired through effort to smoothly and adaptively carryout complex activities, effective and efficient combined action from a group of people, and the action of providing amusement or enjoyment. For practice, cheerleaders are required to frequently exercise and go over cheers or performances which all involve physical activity. Along with learning new cheers, dance routines, and being spirit-full, all involve skill in order to fulfill their performances. It also takes a certain skill level to flip multiple times, stick the landing, and then immediately do it again; jump multiple times, doing different variations, and land perfectly. On top of their stamina, strength, and commitment, they add excellent choreography and yell through the majority of it. Not only that, but cheerleaders must work together to stay in the right count, lift a flyer about 10 feet in the air, sometimes throw the flyer in the air, and catch her without her falling to the ground and getting hurt. Senior and cheerleader at Estancia High, Micaiah Patterson exclaims, “We sweat, we bleed, we win, and we lose; The only difference between us and any other sport, is we look good while doing it! So is cheer really a sport? Sure you could say that, but to me we are more than just a sport.” Reporter: Guadalupe Olivares
Each year, hundreds of thousands of wild animals around the world are killed for their heads, hides, pelts and other body parts. This is known as trophy hunting which has been around for decades first popular amongst presidents, kings, wealthy sportsmen, few women and nowadays even doctors, dentists, and accountants who can afford it partake in this activity as well. In 2015, a lion named Cecil who was a major attraction of the Hwange National Park and also part of a long term study by a research team of the University of Oxford, was cruelly murdered by Walter Palmer, an American dentist. The death of the loveable lion shed light on trophy hunting and sparked international outrage. The Safari Club International (SCI) holds a convention every year for hunters. The convention occupies 650,000 square feet of exhibit space. SCI members go to book hunts, shop for the latest guns, and hunting equipment. A succesful 14 day hunt for a rhino costs $66,790 including trophy fees, the smallest of a hunt which is 5 days in New Zealand for an elk will cost $24,000. Hunters argue that their activities actually support conservation by boosting local economies and “providing incentives for the preservation of land and wildlife for high-paying hunters.” According to the article, Exclusive: Hard Numbers Reveal Scale of America’s Trophy-Hunting Habit written by Rachael Bale, many Conservationists, animal welfare advocates, and many scientists argue that hunting for sport in fact puts pressure on vulnerable populations, disrupts social networks, and doesn’t pump money into local economies as much as hunters believe. Sabrina Corgetelli, a self titled, “Italian Huntress” and accountant posts numerous photos of herself on her social media with her trophy kills. On a particular kill of a giraffe she exclaims, “Day #2 I got an amazing old giraffe. Such an amazing animal!!!!! I couldn’t be happier.” After receiving backlash from animal rights activists she defended her posts by saying, “There is a connection to the animal, and just because we hunt them doesn't mean we don't have respect for them.” While trophy hunting is legal in many countries the hunting and killing of innocent animals remains a very controversial action. According to The Humane Society of the United States, 1.26 million wildlife trophies were imported to the United States between the years 2014 and 2015. That averages 126,000 a year and 345 trophy imports a day. Over 1,200 species are hunted and killed as trophies including Africa’s Big 5 which include buffalo, elephants, leopards, lions and rhinos. And only 9 states have banned the sale of ivory to protect elephants from hunting and poaching. On January 12, in Pan Pacific Park , LA there will be a rally held to protest trophy hunting. Show support for those vulnerable and endangered species by coming along. Bring a friend and be a part of the change. Reporter: Claudia Arce
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