CURRENT EVENTS

ONE: If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?

On August 7, 2018, a group of teens were hanging out on a bridge. Despite signs that prohibit jumping or diving from the 60-foot bridge, it is a popular spot for general shenanigans.

Many of you may have already seen it, but there is a video circulating that shows 16-year-old Jordan Holgerson hesitating to jump from the bridge, when suddenly, her “friend”, 18-year old Taylor Smith, pushes her off the bridge. Unprepared for her entry into the water, Jordan broke six ribs, punctured both of her lungs, and received many other internal injuries and severe bruising as a result of her impact with the surface of the water.

TL;DR: Jordan could have died.

At first, Jordan didn’t want her “friend” to get in trouble but now would like to see Taylor sit in jail and think about how Jordan narrowly escaped death. Taylor “feels really bad about what happened” and she didn’t mean to hurt her, but is that a good enough excuse for her behavior?

Teen Ink wants to know your thoughts on this situation. Could you be friends with someone who pushes you off a 60-foot bridge? Is it ok to engage in this kind of recreational activity? Should Taylor be forgiven, or should she go to jail? Have you experienced a similar situation? If so, what was the outcome and how did you handle it?

Share your thoughts with us by submitting your writing, art, and photography to www.teenink.com/submit

TWO: LeBron James’ I Promise School: Dream or Reality?

LeBron James is usually in the news for his on-court basketball performances, consistently battling for the title of GOAT (greatest of all time). He has also had a strong giving mentality off-court in his local communities through his foundation, the Lebron James Family Foundation. The most recent initiative is called the I Promise School which has just started its inaugural year with 240 third- and fourth-grade students.

The I Promise School’s goal is to help underachieving students succeed in a public-school setting, and not just academically, but also in life. Students of the I Promise School will receive the following:

-          Free tuition

-          Free uniforms

-          Free bicycle and helmet

-          Free breakfast, lunch, and snacks

-          Free transportation within two miles

-          Food pantry for families

-          GEDs and job placement services for parents

-          Guaranteed tuition to the University of Akron to every student who graduates

The school will also be staffed at a 20:1 student to teacher ratio and provide a plethora of other resources to children such as English language teachers, crisis counselors, STEM-based curriculum, physical fitness trainers, and much more. The year-round school calendar will be used where students attend school throughout the year with more frequent and shorter breaks.

Teen Ink wants to know your thoughts on LeBron’s I Promise School. Is this too good to be true? Do you believe in the long-term success of this initiative? Do you think more celebrities and athletes should invest in similar educational initiatives? Are you satisfied with your school? Do you think that creating better public-school systems is the most important priority or do you think other things are more important in today’s world?

Share your thoughts with us by submitting your writing, art, and photography to www.teenink.com/submit

THREE: Freedom of the Press: Collaboration or Collusion?

On Thursday, August 16, 2018, hundreds of nationally and locally recognized newspapers published articles defending the rights to free press against President Trump’s claims that the press is the “enemy of the people”. They followed the lead of Marjorie Pritchard, the deputy managing editor of The Boston Globe, who asked the following of other newspapers:

“We propose to publish an editorial on August 16 on the dangers of the administration’s assault on the press and ask others to commit to publishing their own editorials on the same date…”

It’s not new news that President Trump and his administration have been at a war of words with the press since the beginning of his political career. People who are on the side of the President rally around the sentiment that the media is constantly pumping out fake news to shed negative light on the President and his work, while those on the side of news media insist that news is not “fake” simply because the reader does not agree with what is reported.

Teen Ink wants to know your stance on ethical journalism and the idea of “fake news”. Is the President’s rhetoric against the media justified? Do you believe that the press is the “enemy of the people” or are they necessary reporters of the current times? Have you ever questioned the truth of what is reported in the news? Do you think this group effort by newspapers is ethical journalism or manipulative collusion?

Share your thoughts with us by submitting your writing, art, and photography to www.teenink.com/submit

IN THE NEWS

:: Did you know that it’s almost impossible to break a dry spaghetti noodle into only two pieces? Well, MIT mathematicians figured it out. Learn more: news.mit.edu/2018/mit-mathematicians-solve-age-old-spaghetti-mystery-0813 ::

:: Christine Hallquist has just become the Democratic nominee for governor in Vermont; Christine is also the first transgender woman to be nominated by a major party. Learn more: nytimes.com/2018/08/15/us/politics/transgender-christine-hallquist-vermont.html ::

:: Crazy Rich Asians is the movie people are raving about for its all-Asian cast in an industry where Asians are not as well represented! Check out this review by Teen Ink’s JWANG: teenink.com/reviews/movie_reviews/article/1000055/Crazy-Talented-All-Asian-Cast-Why-Crazy-Rich-Asians-Matters-To-Me ::