Summit Weekly Briefing of 1/9/23

Your Summit Weekly Briefing

By Jovani Contreras, Ethan Ignatovsky, Sean Quigley and Ashwath Vimal

Staff Editors

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.  

Content Warning: Mentions of explicit themes occur in the third section of “General News” and in “Actions”. 

Summit:

1. College Application season is almost over! This is the final stretch, and by Feb. 1, most applications, except ones that are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis, should be due and submitted. Jan 15th., which is this Sunday, is one of the main deadlines left, along with Feb. 1. If you are applying to schools such as USC or UNC Chapel Hill, make sure you are finishing those up!
2. There will be no school this coming Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day to recognize the influence the civil rights movement leader had on society. Please, even just for a couple minutes, refresh your memory on what he did when he was alive and think about how you can implement his teachings in your own life. That way, his presence and impact is still felt even over 50 years after his death. 
3. Summit Public Schools has officially announced the closure of Summit Denali after the ending of this school year. From what the administration has said, this is because of a lack of funds that Denali has been struggling with since its opening. A large part of this is due to the fact that Denali has been operating largely on donations and because of the expensiveness of their new campus. A silver lining amongst this sad news, however, is that Summit Tahoma will be welcoming any current students at Denali to join their campus next school year. We hope this news does not diminish the atmosphere at Denali for the rest of the year and that students can enjoy this last semester. 

General News:

1. On Jan. 6 a first-grader at a Virginia school shot his teacher in the chest with his mothers gun. The firearm was legally purchased and registered to the student’s mother. 25-year-old Abigail Zwerner, elementary school teacher and victim of the shooting, was struck in the chest and is now facing life threatening injury. Virginia Police Chief Steve Drew has described the shooting as intentional. It is unsure what the charges will look like for the elementary school student or the student’s mother. A Virginia law prohibits leaving a loaded gun anywhere that could be accessible to a child under 14 as a misdemeanor charge. The district now plans to install metal detectors to prevent future tragedies. A judge will determine what is next for the child who is currently being held in emergency custody. 
2. Ezra Miller has been the center of controversy for some time now. Most recently, Miller accepted a plea deal to avoid jail time on a trespassing charge. “Miller agreed to a suspended sentence of 89 to 90 days in jail for the misdemeanor of unlawful trespass” according to a plea deal filed with the Vermont Superior Court in Bennington. In October, Miller pleaded not guilty to trespassing and stealing liquor from a neighbor’s home. This charge is one in a long string of charges the former “Flash” actor is facing. He was arrested twice last year in Hawaii for multiple charges including disorderly conduct and harassment. The recent plea deal includes a 500$ fine and a 192$ supercharge. Miller will also be placed on a probationary period for two years.

Health/Medicine: 

1. President Biden’s administration has extended the Covid-19 public health emergency once again. The public health emergency has been extended every 90-days since January 2020. Ending the emergency will cause hospitals to lose their staff flexibility, add extra beds, and care for a surge of patients. Millions of Americans will also be kicked off of their insurance once the emergency ends. With the XBB. 1.5 Omicron subvariant being the most transmissible variant yet, it makes sense to keep the emergency ongoing for the time being. 
2. Due to advances in treatment, early detection, and better habits, cancer rates in the United States have fallen to 33% for the first time since 1991. The fall to 33% means that around 3.8 million deaths have been averted, according to CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. The rate has shrunk by 1.5% between 2019 and 2020. The American Cancer Society attributes the reduction in cancer to breakthroughs like the HPV vaccine, which lowers cervical cancer. Some cancers though are unfortunately rising. Breast cancer rates have been increasing by around 0.5% a year since the mid-2000s. The White House Cancer Moonshot Coordinator Dr. Danielle Carnival said the report shows “great progress” as his team works to reduce cancer deaths by 50% over the next quarter century. With this information accessible it’s also important to note the racial disparity in cancers. The overall risk of cancer for black Americans is 12% higher than for white Americans. Dr. Ernest Hawk, Vice President of cancer prevention and population sciences at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center said in an email to CNN that “with deliberate and devoted effort” these disparities can be eliminated. 

Politics:

1. A U.S. attorney is reviewing documents marked classified found at a Joe Biden think tank. Attorney General Merrick Garland assigned the attorney after the documents were found at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington D.C. Roughly 10 documents were found in president Biden’s vice-presidential office at the center, sources say. The FBI is also involved in the attorney’s inquiry, according to CBS News. The material was identified by two of Biden’s personal attorneys in early November, as confirmed by Richard Sauber, special counsel to the president. It has not been revealed what the documents contain nor their level of classification, just that they do not contain nuclear secrets. Sauber also stated that the day the documents were found, Nov. 2, the White House counsel’s office contacted the National Archives. The attorney Garland assigned to find how the classified material ended up in Biden’s office was John Lausch, the attorney for the Northern District of Illinois who was appointed by former president Donald Trump. Lausch briefed the Attorney General recently and is expected to end the investigation soon. The Penn Biden Center is a think tank about a mile from the white house in D.C. that is associated with the University of Pennsylvania and named for the sitting president. The Presidential Records Act requires all presidential and vice-presidential documents to be given to the National Archives. A source has stated that Biden is unaware of the document’s contents. Both the Penn Biden Center and the National Archives have yet to respond for comments.

Sports:

NBA: 

1. The Miami Heat created history Tuesday night in their 112-111 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. In a game where Jimmy Butler was the Heat’s only regular starter playing, he dropped 35 points, and went 23-23 from the charity stripe, contributing to the team not only winning, but going 40-40 on free throws. The perfect 40-40 score broke the previous record of 39, set by the Utah Jazz in 1982, by just one. It’s not the most exciting record to break, but it is still very impressive, especially when you consider that the Heat on average only shoot around 22 free throws a game, one of the lowest numbers in the league.

NFL:

1. Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin was discharged from Buffalo General Medical Center/Gates Vascular institute on Wednesday. Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest during the Bills away Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, and his heart had reportedly stopped for nine minutes. Hamlin was kept at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in critical condition, before recovering enough to be considered stable, and was transferred to Buffalo on Monday. It hasn’t been publicly announced what caused Hamlin to experience cardiac arrest, but he has made a remarkably quick recovery. Hamlin needed a breathing tube, but that was removed the Friday after the injury, and he started walking with assistance. His organs were all stable before his Monday move. Hamlin is also neurologically intact, and was in good spirits watching the Bills 35-23 win against the New England Patriots Sunday. Bills head coach Sean McDermott, said Wednesday, “His health is first and foremost on our mind as far as this situation, and then when he feels ready, we will welcome him back”. 
2. The NFL playoffs are starting this weekend, with six matchups set for the wildcard round. In the NFC the 14-3 Philadelphia Eagles get the first round bye, and in the AFC it’s the 14-3 Kansas City Chiefs. In the NFC the Seattle Seahawks (7) play the San Francisco 49ers (2) on Saturday, on Sunday it’s the New York Giants (6) vs. the Minnesota Vikings (3), and the Dallas Cowboys (5) vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4) on Monday. In the AFC it’s the Los Angeles Charger (5) vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars (4) first, then the Miami Dolphins (7) in Buffalo against the Bills (2), and the Baltimore Ravens (6) vs. the Cincinnati Bengals (3), both of those games are on Sunday. We don’t know how the playoffs will play out, but from the Bills trying to win for Damar to the 49ers entering the playoffs with third-string, Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy starting at QB, to Tom Brady going for one more (final?) Super Bowl. There are lots of storylines to keep track of as this year’s playoffs get underway, and it should be quite the exciting time, with multiple teams having realistic chances at going all the way. 

MLB:

1. On December 13th, Carlos Correa agreed to a 13-year, $350 million contract with the San Francisco Giants. However, during the physical process the Giants discovered concerns over his right ankle, the one he injured all the way back in 2014. Correa and his agent, Scott Boras, quickly moved on, agreeing to a 12-year, $315 million contract with the New York Mets around a half day after the deal with the Giants fell through. Then we heard that the Mets also had concerns with the same ankle. Correa, 28, has had injury problems during his 8 year career, but none were concerning the ankle he injured during his time in the minors. It’s worth noting that Correa did momentarily hurt the ankle last season, but he didn’t miss time, and his play didn’t diminish. Correa and Boras felt that he was perfectly healthy, but two smart organizations where very worried with how the ankle would hold up in the years to come. This led to Correa to sign with a third team this offseason, and for a massive pay cut, he re-signed with the Minnesota Twins for six years, $200 million, with options that can make the deal 10 years long, for $270 million. Correa passed his physical with the Twins on Wednesday, ending this crazy saga. Correa said during his introductory press conference, “I had a lot of doctors tell me I was fine. I had some doctors that said it wasn’t so fine”. We’ll just have to wait and see if the Giants, and later Mets, made the right call, or if the Twins got away with robbery. 
2. Longtime San Francisco Giant and self proclaimed captain of the team, Brandon Belt, will be joining a new organization for the first time in his career after signing a 1-year, $9.3 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. Belt, 34, was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 5th round of the 2009 MLB draft and made his MLB debut in 2011. In his time with the orange and black, Belt became an All-Star and was an integral part of their 2012 and 2014 World Series wins. Belt has been one of the most underrated first basemen of his generation, and while he didn’t play well in an injury plagued 2022 he combined for a 165 OPS+ across 2020 and 2021. Injuries have always been an issue for Belt, but he will almost certainly be playing mostly DH for the Blue Jays which should help regulate his issues. 

Soccer:

1. The face of the United States men’s national team, Christian Pulisic, will be out of action for around two months, after suffering a knee injury in the first half of a premier league game last week where his depleted Chelsea club fell to Manchester City. Pulisic, who was previously linked to move to Newcastle and Manchester United on a loan deal will be staying with Chelsea for the time being, but it seems manager Graham Potter never wanted Pulisic to leave the club anyway. Pulisic’s injury makes him unlikely to play in the CONCACAF Nations League matches taking place in March where his USMNT will face off against Grenada and El Salvador. Even without Pulisic the US should be expected to win those games, but the injury is still a blow for his nation, and his club. 

Entertainment:

1. Dr. Dre will be selling music assets to Universal Music Group and Shamrock Capital. The combined sale price for this deal is said to exceed $200 million. Shamrock will reportedly be inheriting assets in Dre’s artist royalties from two of his solo albums, his share of N.W.A. artist royalties, his producer royalties, and the writers share of his song catalog where he does not own publishing. UMG has reportedly obtained the master recordings from his 1992 album The Chronic, which is possible as the rights to the album are reverting from Death Row Records to Dre in August of 2023. UMG will also obtain Dre’s share of Kendrick Lamar’s releases through the Top Dawg Entertainment deal with Interscope and Dre’s Aftermath imprint. Dre will retain his stake in his album The Aftermath. Dre’s sale of assets comes after the cease-and-desist that his lawyers sent to congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green who used Dr. Dre’s song Still D.R.E. in a video posted to Twitter. It is unclear to what extent Dre will be able to limit anyone from licensing his music after the sale. In 2020 Shamrock Holdings—a company originally founded in 1978 by Roy E. Disney—acquired six Taylor Swift albums from Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings.
2. Robert Pattinson’s Batman universe has been confirmed to run separately with James Gunn’s DCU. Matt Reeves confirmed that he was actively working through the script for the sequel to his 2022 film The Batman. At the same time however, James Gunn and Peter Safran are rebooting the DC comics cinematic universe, which fans worried could get in the way of Reeves’s independent project. In an interview with Yahoo dispelled this worry when Reeves stated that his upcoming projects will exist alongside Gunn and Safrans universe of films. Reeves also noted that he was scheduled to have a meeting with the two CEOs later in the month. Gunn has previously admitted to enjoying Reeves work, which is likely a large factor in why his work will not be scrapped along with many other DC projects following Gunn and Safran’s takeover of DC Studios. Two shows for HBO Max are also planned to take place in the same universe as The Batman including The Penguin and an unnamed show based in Arkham Asylum. The sequel to the 2019 film The Joker will also remain alongside the main DCU along with Ta-Hehisi’s untitled black Superman project which is currently in development.

Cooking: Homemade Dumplings

By: AllRecipes

Prep time: 5 minutes  Cook time: 15 minutes  Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon margarine
• ½ cup milk

Instructions

1. Stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. 
2. Stir in milk and mix until a batter forms that is thick enough to be scooped with a spoon. Allow batter to rest for 3 to 5 minutes. 
3. Drop batter by spoonfuls into boiling stew or soup. Cover and simmer without lifting the lid for 15 minutes.
4. Serve and enjoy!

Calories: 105

Protein: 3g 

Fat: 2g

Carbs: 18g

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.

Contribute directly to “Doctors Without Borders” Staffers with the medical relief organization remain in Ukraine and are “seeking ways to respond to the medical and humanitarian needs as the conflict evolves.” Offer your support here.

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