Your Summit Weekly Briefing

By Ashwath Vimal, Angela Hwang and Ethan Ignatovsky

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:

Summit Denali: Check out these articles from Denali!

Summit Tahoma: Check out this Article from Tahoma!

Tariffs and Chip Shortages Are Affecting Several Important Industries

Summit Prep: Check out this Video on Prep’s Pi Day Celebration

General News:

Two cousins, 12-year-old Paris Harvey and 14-year-old Kuaron Harvey, were playing with a gun on an Instagram live stream before Paris shot her cousin and proceeded to shoot herself immediately after. The fatal event occurred at a St. Louis apartment last Friday, where officers responded to an alert about a shooting at 2 a.m. The incident was ruled a murder-suicide; however, family members called the death a “freak accident”, saying that after Paris unintentionally shot Kuaron, she dropped the gun and picked it up by the barrel causing it to go off. An investigation is ongoing, with the origins of the gun being unknown. See the St. Louis Police Department tribute here.
Social media platform TikTok has been sued by two of its former content moderators, Ashley Velez and Reece Young. The reason is the “trauma” they experienced while reviewing “disgusting” content (i.e., rape, torture and death) because of a lack of methods to protect and support moderators before and after the fact. This continues the increased criticism TikTok is facing for its content, which has been made worse with hoaxes being spread about the war in Ukraine. Furthermore, TikTok is also facing other legal troubles, as they are currently being investigated for their impact on teenagers by many state attorneys. While this is the second lawsuit that TikTok faces for this reason, the first one has already been dropped. Velez and Young seek to turn this into a class action along with additional complaints made about the extraneous workload and non-disclosure agreement to not share what they see in banned content.

Covid-19:

The proposed second booster shot for adults 50 years old and older has now been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. This second booster will be available from both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna and can be received as early as 4 months after your first booster dosage. Americans who got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as their primary vaccine can choose between Pfizer or Moderna for booster shots. This decision was made in tandem with the decision to allow up to 5 doses for Americans who suffer from a severely compromised immune system as long as they are older than 12 years old. The decision was made with information available from multiple studies including one that showed that out of over half a million Americans who received the fourth dose, the death rate decreased by 78% compared to those who only had 3 doses.
Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca’s antibody-drug Evusheld has been approved in the European Union. The drug can be taken by anyone over the age of 12 in the form of two injections. In trials, Evusheld reduced the risk of developing symptoms after contracting covid-19 by 77%. Evusheld is targeted at those who had a weak response to the mainstream vaccines, and those who are immunocompromised. The Biden administration has ordered 1.7 million doses of Evusheld in January, however, most Americans are still not able to get the drug.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House Chief Medical Advisor said on BBC’s “Sunday Morning” that we need to be prepared for another variant of Covid-19, and if one arises then we might have to go into another period of rigid restrictions. Covid-19 cases have been falling since the surge in winter, and now nearly 55% of all Covid-19 cases around the world are the BA.2 omicron sub-variant.

Politics:

Ukraine Important Events: The negotiators at the Russia-Ukraine talks appear to have suffered symptoms of poisoning. Ukrainian troops appear to be retaking some of the land Russia’s troops have taken during the conflict. USA Today reports Russia claims to have “‘drastically’ reduced its activity” around Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital; however Russia continues to bomb Kyiv. The U.S. will send Ukraine an additional $500 million for “budgetary aid”.
On Monday, Honduras’s Supreme Court allowed former President Juan Orlando Hernandez’s extradition to the U.S. to stand trial for drug trafficking and weapons charges. Hernandez claims innocence, but Honduran Security Minister Ramón Sabillión, who was fired by Hernandez, says the former president caused “great harm” to the nation. Hernandez’s brother has been named as a co-conspirator and was sentenced to life in the U.S. prison.
The U.K. has had judges serving on Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal since 1997 when the U.K. gave Hong Kong back to China. The move was meant to ensure the law was upheld in Hong Kong. However, the British government has withdrawn its judges from the court because leaving them there would “legitimize” the increasing oppression China has forced on Hong Kong.
Spotlight: The Taliban have imposed an increasing number of restrictions on women and girls in Afghanistan. Some of the new restrictions are related to travel, entertainment, work and education. For example, women can no longer travel long distances without a male relative, girls can no longer go to higher education and many women are no longer allowed to work. BBC reports that the Taliban have previously promised, “Women are going to be very active within our society” and requested for women to join the new government.
Snippets: President Biden signed the Emmett Till anti-lynching bill into law; those killings are now federal hate crimes. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed the Parental Rights in Education bill into law. The White House has requested $5.8 trillion for the budget in 2023.

Sports:

NFL:

The reigning Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams and eight-time pro-bowl linebacker Bobby Wagner have agreed to a five-year $50 million dollar contract with up to $65 million in incentives, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Wagner leaves a Seattle Seahawks team that has gone into rebuild mode to join a fierce Rams defense with Aaron Donald, Leonard Floyd, and Jalen Ramsey. Wagner, who has had 10 consecutive years with 100 or more tackles, is coming off a year where he made a career-best 170 tackles, good for 3rd in the NFL.
After 3 years and a Super Bowl win in Tampa Bay, the self-proclaimed “Quarterback Whisperer” Bruce Arians has decided to step down as a Head Coach. Arians will still be a part of the Buccaneers organization, as he will be transitioning to a front-office role as a Senior Football Consultant, and is expected to play a key role in the evaluation process for draft picks. Todd Bowles gets the promotion to Head Coach, after spending time with the Bucs as their defensive coordinator.
Safety Malcolm Jenkins has announced his retirement from the NFL after 13 years. Jenkins is a three-time pro-bowl player and a two-time Super Bowl winner, once for the New Orleans Saints in his rookie season of 2009, and once for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017. Jenkins spent 5 years with the Saints who drafted him in the first round in 2009, before spending 6 years with the Eagles. Jenkins returned to the Saints to finish his career in 2020.
Cornerback Patrick Peterson who is a three-time all-pro and eight-time pro bowler announced he has re-signed with the Minnesota Vikings on a one-year deal.

NCAA March Madness:

March Madness is coming to an end with the Final Four set for April 2nd. The Villanova Wildcats will face the Kansas Jayhawks, and the North Carolina Tar Heels will face the Duke Blue Devils. The winners of the two games will then face each other on April 4. The biggest story going into the Final Four is UNC vs Duke, the two teams have one of the biggest rivalries in college hoops, yet this will be the first time they play each other in the NCAA tournament, and it comes during the final season for legendary Duke Coach “Coach K” Mike Krzyzewski.

NCAAW March Madness

Women’s March Madness is also coming to an end with the Final Four set for April 1st. The South Carolina Gamecocks will face the Louisville Cardinals, and the Connecticut Huskies will face the Stanford Cardinals. The winners of the two games will then face each other on April 3.

Entertainment:

The 94th Academy Awards (The Oscars), hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes, were presented this past Sunday. “Dune” took home the most wins of the night with six technical awards, with “CODA” and “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” the only other films to win multiple recognitions. However, none of these award-winning moments were as memorable as Will Smith slapping Chris Rock and aggressively swearing at him after the comedian made a joke about his wife on stage. While Smith did apologize for his actions during a speech he made after he won “Best Actor” for his work in “King Richard”, many, including actor Alan Ritchson, have harshly criticized Smith’s deed and hollow speech. They cite that he never actually apologized to Rock and that Smith himself initially laughed at the joke made about his wife. The organization that runs the event, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences condemned Smith and is reviewing the incident to explore further consequences. Note: See a full list of winners here; Update: Will Smith has officially issued an apology towards Chris Rock and the Academy, stating that he was “out of line”. What happens next remains to be seen.
Taylor Hawkins, the drummer for the rock band “Foo Fighters” unfortunately passed away on Friday, March 25. During a tour in South America. Preliminary tests on his urine found 10 different brain-altering substances, amongst them being marijuana, opioids and antidepressants. The drummer passed after Bogota’s (the city he was currently in) emergency center had attained information that someone was experiencing “chest pain”, A private ambulance was already on the scene, however, and they were unable to revive Hawkins. As of Monday, the tragedy is undergoing an investigation to pinpoint the cause of death. This will be the second time Dave Grohl, the founder of the “Foo Fighters”, will have experienced the death of a bandmate, as his former bandmate in Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, committed suicide in 1994.

Weather:

Atlas and Sierra (Seattle): Highs this week will fluctuate: 53℉ on Thursday and Friday, 56℉ on Saturday, 54℉ on Sunday, 49℉ on Monday, 52℉ on Tuesday and 58℉ on Wednesday. Lows will generally hold steady: 41℉ on Thursday, 44℉ on Friday, 42℉ on Saturday, 44℉ on Sunday, 41℉ on Monday, 39℉ on Tuesday and 42℉ on Wednesday. It will be cloudy every day except Saturday, Sunday and Monday when it will rain.

Summary: Highs in the low 50’s, lows in the low 40’s, rain and clouds.

Olympus (Tacoma): Highs will fall overall this week: 55℉ on Thursday, 56℉ on Friday, 57℉ on Saturday, 55℉ on Sunday, 50℉ on Monday, 53℉ on Tuesday and 59℉ on Wednesday. Lows will hold relatively steady this week: 40℉ on Thursday, 43℉ on Friday, 41℉ on Saturday, 44℉ on Sunday, 41℉ on Monday, 37℉ on Tuesday and 42℉ on Wednesday. It will be cloudy all week but it will rain on Sunday and Monday.

Summary: Highs in the mid 50’s, lows in the low 40’s, clouds and rain.

Denali (Sunnyvale): Highs will fluctuate a bit this week: 68℉ on Thursday, 72℉ on Friday, 73℉ on Saturday, 65℉ on Sunday and Monday, 69℉ on Tuesday and 80℉ on Wednesday. Lows will rise slightly: 45℉ on Thursday and Friday, 48℉ on Saturday, 46℉ on Sunday, 48℉ on Monday and Tuesday and 53℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

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

Everest and Prep (Redwood City): Highs will fluctuate this week: 66℉ on Thursday, 69℉ on Friday, 72℉ on Saturday, 64℉ on Sunday, 65℉ on Monday, 69℉ on Tuesday and 79℉ on Wednesday. Lows will rise a bit this week: 46℉ on Thursday and Friday, 48℉ on Saturday, 49℉ on Sunday, 50℉ on Monday and Tuesday and 53℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

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

K2 (El Cerrito): Highs will rise then fall this week: 64℉ on Thursday, 66℉ on Friday, 70℉ on Saturday, 64℉ on Sunday, 65℉ on Monday, 69℉ on Tuesday and 78℉ on Wednesday. Lows will rise this week: 44℉ on Thursday, 45℉ on Friday, 47℉ on Saturday and Sunday, 48℉ on Monday, 49℉ on Tuesday and 51℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

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

Tam (Richmond): Highs will rise then fall this week: 66℉ on Thursday, 68℉ on Friday, 71℉ on Saturday, 66℉ on Sunday, 67℉ on Monday, 70℉ on Tuesday and 79℉ on Wednesday. Lows will hold relatively steady this week: 47℉ on Thursday and Friday, 48℉ on Saturday, 49℉ on Sunday and Monday, 50℉ on Tuesday and 52℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

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

Shasta (Daly City): Highs will hold relatively steady this week: 59℉ on Thursday and Friday, 62℉ on Saturday, 57℉ on Sunday, 59℉ on Monday, 61℉ on Tuesday and 69℉ on Wednesday. Lows will also hold pretty steady this week: 45℉ on Thursday, 46℉ on Friday, 47℉ on Saturday, 48℉ on from Sunday to Tuesday, and 50℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

Summary: Highs in the upper 50’s, lows in the upper 40’s, clouds.

Tahoma (San Jose): Highs will hold relatively steady this week: 71℉ on Thursday, 76℉ on Friday and Saturday, 70℉ on Sunday, 68℉ on Monday, 74℉ on Tuesday, 83℉ on Wednesday. Lows will rise overall: 45℉ on Thursday, 46℉ on Friday, 50℉ on Saturday, 47℉ on Sunday, 49℉ on Monday and Tuesday and 53℉ on Wednesday. It will generally be partly cloudy most of this week, but there will be a few days when the sun will be out.

Summary: Highs in the low 70’s, lows in the upper 40’s, clouds.

Cooking: Misir Wat

By Kimberly Killebrew on Daring Gourmet

Serves 6

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons niter kibbeh , divided
Homemade Niter Kibbeh (strongly recommended)
1 large yellow onion, very finely diced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 Roma tomato, very finely chopped
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons bebere , divided
Homemade Berbere (strongly recommended)
1 cup red lentils, rinsed
2 1/2 cups Aneto All-Natural Chicken Broth
Vegetarians: use Aneto Vegetable Broth
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

Melt 3 tablespoons of the niter kibbeh in a medium stock pot. Add the onions and cook over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes until golden brown.
Add the garlic, tomatoes, tomato paste and 1 tablespoon of the berbere and cook for 5-7 minutes. Reduce the heat if needed to prevent burning.
Add the lentils, broth and salt, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cover and simmer the lentils, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes (adding more broth if needed) or until the lentils are soft.
Stir in the remaining tablespoon of niter kibbeh and berbere. Simmer for a couple more minutes. Add salt to taste.
Serve with Ethiopian injera.

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 honor of the devastating crisis and war ongoing in Ukraine. Please, keep yourself informed on the events and make you are self-aware about events such as these that impact countries on a global scale.

Donate to the Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund by Global Giving, a non-profit whose goal for this project is to reach $30,000,000 in support to provide humanitarian relief in Ukraine.
If you cannot donate, watch this video by Russian-American medical YouTuber Doctor Mike, who will be donating all proceeds from the video to the fund. \
Donate to UNICEF to make sure the people who are suffering the most, the Ukrainian children, can be protected from the current atrocities

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