Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons via Marvel Entertaoinment and Sony Pictures

Your Summit Weekly Briefing

By Ashwath Vimal, Lia Bhas and Angela Hwang

Staff Writers

Disclaimer: Though the Weekly Briefings are no longer tagged in the Opinions section of Summit News and we try to remain as unbiased as possible, our opinions may show through in this article, especially in the “Actions” section.

Summit:

We hope that everyone has a great and relaxing Thanksgiving break! The weekly briefing will also be taking a break next week, but be on the lookout for one the week after! In the meanwhile, check out this article by Prep writers Carysa Argueta and Anthony Garcia on Summit Prep’s art club. If you are not from Prep, reading the article could also inspire you to pursue any artistic aspirations in school or outside of school. For Prep students, the article includes information about the club if you may be interested in joining.

General News:

The consequences of the capitol riot on Jan. 6 have the possibility to be very severe, as Jacob Anthony Chansley (or QAnon Shaman) has been sentenced to 41 months in prison with three years of parole and a $2000 fine. Chansley was one of the most prominent rioters, arriving at the Capitol shirtless and wearing face paint and horns, and spreading hateful messages across social media prior to the riot. However, he seems to have regretted his actions, saying that his behavior was “indefensible” and that he has a personality disorder, with his defense also saying that a big reason why he was at the riot was due to mental health issues. He is among the 132 out of the 650 people that have been charged who have pleaded guilty.
Muhammad A. Aziz and Khalil Islam (deceased) have both been exonerated from the conviction of the assassination for Malcolm X, after nearly 57 years. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, who led the investigation that led to the revelation of their innocence, apologized for the “failure of law enforcement”. Other attorneys stated that the wrongful convictions were “miscarriages of justice” and “robbed” both men of their freedom. Despite Mujahid Abdul Halim, the other man involved, declaring that Aziz and Islam were innocent, nothing was done even though there was no tangible evidence linking the men to the crime. Lawyers for the two will be moving forward with annulling the convictions.

Covid-19:

California:

As of November 16, all adults who are 18 years or older in California can get the COVID-19 booster shot. They are eligible only if they have been vaccinated for at least six months. Almost 25 million people are fully vaccinated and about 4.2 million of those have received a booster. Health officials say that the booster is the same amount as the initial dose for Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson. For Moderna, the booster is about half the amount. California is having people get the booster shot before the holidays, so there won’t be an increase in cases.

Washington:

The Seattle School Board urges the state Department of Health to mandate COVID vaccines for students. They want to urge students 5 years or older to have a vaccine requirement before going to school once it is approved by the FDA. All school age students are eligible for the vaccines as of now. Many protesters sood outside the board meeting room and could be heard inside the board room shouting “No vax mandate!” About 189 COVID outbreaks have occurred in K-12 schools since Aug. 1, making this an urgent issue.

Politics:

The COP26 conference ended in negotiators agreeing to fight climate change by pushing governments to come back next year with better plans and asking wealthier nations to contribute more funds to fight climate change. The deal’s outcome will not depend on the conference, but rather on whether each individual country decides to honor their commitment, though the deal has set rules to make each country’s actions more transparent.
On Friday, an appeals court extended the block on vaccine mandates for large employers. The three judges believed the challengers to the vaccine mandate would likely succeed in their claims that “it was an unlawful overreach”. Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt wrote, “The public interest is also served by maintaining our constitutional structure and maintaining the liberty of individuals to make intensely personal decisions according to their own convictions — even, or perhaps particularly, when those decisions frustrate government officials.”
3) Congresswoman Liz Cheney is no longer a Republican. This follows the vote in February which censured her, and the vote in Washington in May that removed her from a leadership position. All three events are reprimands for her continued opposition of Former President Trump. There are at least four Republican opponents for her seat in 2022, one of whom is endorsed by Mr. Trump.
Remember that giant argument over whether Congress would raise the debt ceiling a while ago? On Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Jane Yellen informed Congress the U.S. would need to default on its debt after Dec. 15 if the debt ceiling isn’t raised.

Sports:

NBA:

Golden State Warriors swingman Klay Thompson has been cleared for full contact as he continues to rehab from his torn Achilles that he suffered in 2020. He tore his ACL in 2019 when the Warriors were playing against the Toronto Raptors in the Finals. This was a blow for Klay and this clear for 5-on-5 play is extremely important for Klay’s progress and what he is able to do in the future. In other Golden State news, center James Wisemen is getting closer to a return on the court. He suffered a meniscus tear in his right knee last April.
In LA, Staples Center is getting a new name, and by Christmas Day, it will be called “Crypto.com Arena.” The home to the Lakers and Clippers will change its name after 22 years. Crypto.com is paying about $700 million to rename the building. Crypto.com is a cryptocurrency platform headquartered in Singapore. The company has sparked sponsorship deals with Formula One, the UFC and the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens. They also purchased the Philadelphia 76ers’ uniform sponsorship patch. Many players were not afraid to react to the name change, and Paul George said that “it’s kind of like just stripping the history here by calling it something else”, and Reggie Jackson expressed that “it’s going to be hard to not call it the Staples.”
Milwaukee Bucks forward Khris Middleton is practicing with his teammates again and expects to play Wednesday against the LA Lakers after missing eight games due to a positive Covid test. The Bucks’ coach, Mike Budenholzer said Middleton will gradually work towards his usual playing time.

NFL:

The NFL issued a memo detailing the change in Covid-19 protocols. There will be mandatory testing for all players and staff on the Monday and Wednesday following the holiday. There is going to be mandatory mask wearing for all players and staff while in the club facilities from Nov. 25 to Dec. 1. By Nov. 29, all NFL teams will have video cameras in their weight rooms as well as cafeterias to ensure Covid protocols are being followed. Unvaccinated players will be tested every day and wait for their test results to come negative before they can come into the building. Vaccinated players are tested once a week.
Cleveland Browns’ Jarvis Landry says the departure of Odell Beckham Jr. was “something that hurt”. It stung to see his wide receiver leave and found it startling why it could not work out between the team and OBJ. Beckham has now signed with the LA Rams and the Browns are now 5-5 without him.

NCAA Football:

Upcoming Games;

Michigan State v Ohio State; OSU -19.0

Wake Forest v Clemson; CLEM -4.0

Illinois v Iowa; IOWA -12.0

Georgia Tech v Notre Dame; ND -17.0

Arkansas v Alabama; ALA -20.5

Syracuse v NC State; NCST -11.5

Vanderbilt v Ole Miss; Miss -36.5

Entertainment:

Warner Bros. has officially announced they will be moving forward with a new Harry Potter project, dubbed “Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts”. It will be released on HBO Max on Jan. 1 of next year, with fan favorites Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Robbie Coltrane, Tom Felton, Jason Isaacs and more coming back for this throwback event. Author J.K. Rowling is most likely not a part of this because of her controversial views on the transgender and queer communities. Despite this, the special has been described as “an enchanting making-of story through all-new, in-depth interviews and cast conversations” and a “tribute” to the fans, cast and crew. An exclusive teaser will air during the “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses” (a quiz bowl of sorts) on Nov. 28.
The second and final “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (NWH) trailer was released this past Tuesday, confirming many fan speculations. At least five villains from the past Spider-Man movie series will appear in NWH: Norman Osborn a.k.a. Green Goblin, Otto Octavious a.k.a. Doctor Octopus and Flint Marko a.k.a. Sandman from Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. Dr. Curtis Conors a.k.a. The Lizard and Maxwell Dillon a.k.a. Electro from Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man will also appear. The trailer also revealed more details about Dr. Stranger’s botched-up attempt to make everyone forget Spider-Man’s secret identity after it was leaked to the public, leading to tears in reality that allowed Spider-Man villains from other universes to come to this one. We also get more scenes of Tom Holland in the black Spider-Man suit and see a sequence that is a callback to “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”, where instead of Gwen Stacy falling off of a ledge it’s Michelle Jones (Zendaya), with her fate being unknown. NWH, which releases Dec. 17 in the U.S., sets the basis for “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” and the rest of phase four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Weather:

Atlas (West Seattle): Highs will rise slightly this week: 44oF on Thursday, 46oF on Friday, 48oF on Saturday and Sunday, 51oF on Monday, 49oF on Tuesday and 48oF on Wednesday. Lows will follow a similar pattern: 40oF on Thursday and Friday, 39oF on Saturday, 43oF on Sunday, 44oF on Monday, 43oF on Tuesday and 44oF on Wednesday. It will rain on Thursday, Friday, Monday and Wednesday. The rest of the week will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the mid 40’s, lows in the low 40’s, rain and clouds.

Olympus (Tacoma): Highs will rise slightly this week: 45oF on Thursday, 46oF on Friday, 49oF on Saturday, 48oF on Sunday, 51oF on Monday, 49oF on Tuesday and 48oF on Wednesday. Lows will follow a similar pattern: 40oF on Thursday, 38oF on Friday, 39oF on Saturday, 41oF on Sunday, 44oF on Monday, 42oF on Tuesday and 43oF on Wednesday. It will rain on Thursday, Friday, Monday and Wednesday. The rest of the week will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the mid 40’s, lows in the low 40’s, rain and clouds.

Sierra (Seattle): Highs will rise slightly this week: 44oF on Thursday, 46oF on Friday, 48oF on Saturday and Sunday, 51oF on Monday, 49oF on Tuesday and 48oF on Wednesday. Lows will follow a similar pattern: 40oF on Thursday and Friday, 39oF on Saturday, 43oF on Sunday, 44oF on Monday, 43oF on Tuesday and 44oF on Wednesday. It will rain on Thursday, Friday, Monday and Wednesday. The rest of the week will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the mid 40’s, lows in the low 40’s, rain and clouds.

Denali (Sunnyvale): Highs will hold pretty steady this week: 67oF on Thursday, 66oF on Friday and Saturday, 70oF on Sunday and Monday, 67oF on Tuesday and 66oF on Wednesday. Lows will also hold pretty steady: 49oF on Thursday, 51oF on Friday, 48oF on Saturday and Sunday, 49oF on Monday, 48oF on Tuesday and 49oF on Wednesday. It will be partly cloudy most of the week, except Sunday when it will be sunny.

Summary: Highs in the upper 60’s, lows in the upper 40’s, partly cloudy.

Everest and Prep (Redwood City): Highs will rise then fall this week: 64oF on Thursday and Friday, 67oF on Saturday, 69oF on Sunday and Monday, 65oF on Tuesday and 64oF on Wednesday. Lows will hold pretty steady this week: 51oF on Thursday, 52oF on Friday, 51oF on Saturday, 50oF on Sunday and 51oF from Monday to Wednesday. It will be cloudy all week, except on Sunday when it will be sunny.

Summary: Highs in the mid 60’s, lows in the low 50’s, partly cloudy.

K2 (El Cerrito): Highs will rise and fall this week: 61oF on Thursday, 62oF on Friday, 66oF on Saturday, 67oF on Sunday, 66oF on Monday and 63oF on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lows will fall slightly this week: 51oF on Thursday, 50oF on Friday, 49oF on Saturday, 47oF on Sunday, 49oF from Monday to Wednesday. It will be partly cloudy all week except Sunday when it will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the low 60’s, lows in the mid 40’s, partly cloudy.

Tam (Richmond): Highs will rise slightly this week: 61oF on Thursday, 62oF on Friday, 66oF on Saturday, 67oF on Sunday, 66oF on Monday and 63oF on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lows will fall this week: 51oF on Thursday, 50oF on Friday, 48oF on Saturday, 47oF on Sunday, 48oF on Monday and 49oF on Tuesday and Wednesday. It will be partly cloudy all week except Sunday when it will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the mid 60’s, lows in the upper 40’s, partly cloudy.

Shasta (Daly City): Highs will rise slightly this week: 59oF on Thursday and Friday, 63oF on Saturday and Sunday, 65oF on Monday, 60oF on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lows will hold pretty steady this week: 50oF on Thursday, 51oF on Friday, 49oF on Saturday, 48oF on Sunday, 49oF on Monday, 48oF on Tuesday and 49oF on Wednesday. It will be partly cloudy all week except Sunday when it will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the low 60’s, lows in the upper 40’s, partly cloudy.

Tahoma (San Jose): Highs will rise then drop this week: 69oF on Thursday, 67oF on Friday, 68oF on Saturday, 72oF on Sunday and Monday and 67oF on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lows will drop slightly this week: 50oF on Thursday and Friday, 47oF on Saturday and Sunday, 48oF on Monday, 47oF on Tuesday, and 48oF on Wednesday. It will be partly cloudy all week except Sunday when it will be cloudy.

Summary: Highs in the upper 60’s, lows in the upper 40’s, partly cloudy.

Cooking: Old Fashioned Pecan Pie

By Andrea Albin on Epicurious

Serves 8

Ingredients:

Pastry Dough:

1¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
¼ teaspoon salt
3 to 5 tablespoons ice water

Pie filling:

¾ stick unsalted butter
1¼ cups packed light brown sugar
¾ cup light corn syrup
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon grated orange zest
¼ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
2 cups pecan halves (½ pound)
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (for serving; optional)

Instructions:

Pastry:

Blend together flour, butter, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps.
Drizzle 3 tablespoons ice water evenly over mixture and gently stir with a fork (or pulse in processor) until incorporated.
Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn’t hold together, add more ice water, ½ tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until incorporated, then test again. Do not overwork dough or pastry will be tough.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together, with a pastry scraper if you have one, and press into a 5-inch disk. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

Put it together:

Preheat oven to 350°F with a baking sheet on middle rack.
Roll out pie dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 12-inch round and fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim edge, leaving a ½-inch overhang. Fold overhang under and lightly press against rim of pie plate, then crimp decoratively. Lightly prick bottom all over with a fork. Chill until firm, at least 30 minutes (or freeze 10 minutes).
Meanwhile, melt butter in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add brown sugar, whisking until smooth. Remove from heat and whisk in corn syrup, vanilla, zest, and salt. Lightly beat eggs in a medium bowl, then whisk in corn syrup mixture.
Put pecans in pie shell and pour corn syrup mixture evenly over them. Bake on hot baking sheet until filling is set, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Cool completely!

Actions:

Editor’s note: The “Actions” section includes petitions to sign, prompts and scripts to write officials with as well as other opportunities to engage in your local, national and global communities.

This actions section will be in light of Thanksgiving:

When you celebrate this holiday, you should make sure to know the history behind it and why it may be offensive towards Native American people. Celebrating Thanksgiving to show gratitude and spend time with family is not in itself what does this, but the origins of it do. One reason we have this holiday is to essentially celebrate the arrival of settlers from Europe. Why might this be offensive, you may ask? Well, European settlers treated Native Americans horribly, and we are inherently celebrating the genocide and abuse of the Indigenous People. Instead of celebrating just Thanksgiving, also partake in the National Day of Mourning, which honors the Native American lives lost during American colonization.

And, as always:

Watch or listen or listen to this playlist. All advertisement revenue goes to Black Lives Matter. Do not skip the ads, the donations will not go through otherwise.

Watch or listen to this video. All advertisement revenue goes to various aid organizations easing the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. Please note it is blocked on school-issued Chromebooks due to being in the “Entertainment” category
- Learn more about the crisis at www.monareliefye.org/.