by Sefarina BenavidesAmong Us, an internet game that allows us to determine the temporary fate of a complete stranger. Jury duty, a government system that allows us to permanently alter the fate of a complete stranger. How are they different? How do they connect? Why can't we see it? What is among us? Among us, as most of the population knows, is an extremely addictive and popular game. It is a multiplayer interactive game where people can log and play mystery games with their friends or people on the server. The game consists of colorful characters trying to survive the round of play on a spaceship, with the constant threat of danger and death that comes from the notorious Imposters. One to three imposters are chosen at random at the beginning of each round, and their objective is to kill everyone on the ship and sabotage the completion of the crewmembers’ tasks until time runs out. Now, right off the bat, there is some debate whether or not players are protecting the right people. After all, what kind of imposter would have full access to all of the ship’s controls, as well as the ability to disengage certain actions within the game (such as Coms) or lock the doors behind them? It seems as if the crewmates are the true imposters, stowaways who have made their way onto the ship and are in a constant race to hotwire and overpower the ship. But that’s a debate for another time… The game was first released in June of 2018 and has become widely popular now in 2020. With high profile Youtubers jumping on the trend. From live streaming themselves playing the game, to basing recipes off the characters, and even to makeup challenges. Among Us has definitely made its mark in the cyber world of 2020. What is Jury duty?
Citizens of the United State are summoned for jury Duty at least once in their lives. It is an obligation that all people must comply to. The people are randomly selected to participate, and are given brief training on how to be a just juror. According to the United States Courts, there are two circumstances in which a jury is present; the first being a criminal trial, where an individual is accused of committing a crime and a unanimous decision from the jury is required to convict the person on trial as guilty. And “the government must prove the crime was committed ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ Guilty pleas and plea negotiations reduce the need for juries in criminal cases.” (Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on behalf of the Federal Judiciary) Some citizens await the day they are chosen for jury duty, it's one way where they feel as if they are participating in the government's decisions, and feel as if their time is valued and important. Not to mention the days off of work. But for others, this day is an inconvenience and should not be mandatory. They receive less pay for work, sometimes have to suffer emotional baggage from heavy cases, and lose time from other higher-priority tasks, like caring for their families and going to work. While in jury duty, citizens are briefly trained for the procedures that a juror must follow through. The selection part of the trials include something called a voir dire. The judge will make an introduction to the case and the lawyers will disclose any immediately important requirements. The lawyer might ask questions, for example if you intend to be honest to them throughout the process, and if you might have any bias towards the trial. (Law Firms. The legal Processes) Implications Psychology The general population tend to like to follow leaders, whether it be subconsciously or intentionally. This phenomena is known as countertransference (Michael Maccoby, 2004). In almost every human environment, whether it be business or leisure, requires an agent who is deemed the leader of an organization of one who knows answers. Sigmund Freud was the first person to provide explanations for how a follower’s unconscious motivations function. A follower-leader relationship between two people is not always positive; this occurrence is called “transference”. An example of this negative alteration of occurrences if found within the jury system, when being told accounts of first-hand interactions of whiteness. Example of player blaming another without proof We find this pattern on accusation and systematic accusal within the game Among Us. This game gives us a perfect example of how transference could go horribly wrong. When a person in Among Us believes someone else is Imposter, all they have to do is comment on the color of that character the next time a meeting is called or a body is reported. By simply saying “Orange did it”, or “Orange is suspicious”, the other players in the game tend to fall in line—free of questions. Rarely do people ask for proof, and when they do, they often don't receive it. Yet they still end up voting the accused person out of the active game, giving the true Imposter an advantage. Having to defend yourself It can be very discouraging when you know you are not guilty of any crimes, yet you get voted off the game by your peers. I'm sure it has happened to most everyone who has played the game, you get blamed for traveling through vents or killing someone when you've been the perfect little crewmate—completing your tasks and minding your own business. Letting your fate be determined by a bunch of strangers is nerve-wracking. Imagine how people who have their fate are determined by a jury of their peers feel. This of course does not warrant a direct and indisputable comparison, but it surely can be used for food for thought. Sometimes the only defense for yourself is “I didn't do it” or “It wasnt me”. Unfortunately, those defenses don't usually hold up. Literal death penalty, but in real life you dont get to complete your tasks as a ghost, you’re done. As much as humans take pride in their integrity, we are a very influential species. Damasio is a term used to describe how a person's emotions influence their decisions. When someone upsets you or irritates you, you might want to take vengeance (vote them off). Oftentimes jurors are subject to the tactics of framing effects from lawyers and attorneys. This means that when information is presented in a certain way, a more favorable way, people are more likely to side with it. This is a dangerous tactic to be dealing with, especially when a person's life is at hand. Next time you're determining someone's fate, make sure you know how you're being influenced by leaders around you, and make a rational decision that's not based on emotion or convenience, but on fact. Lowkey, Orange is kinda sus tho...
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by Gabriella HartlaubIn 2020, election day turned into election week. From the voting day on Tuesday, the results of the presidential election weren’t announced until the Saturday afterwards, which took the focus off the normal election day party that usually happens. While a lot of people in this country were waiting for the election results to pour in on November 4th, I participated in this election by spending the day working at my local polling place.
For a poll worker, the election day starts at 6am, when all of the voting booths, the voting machine, the registration table, the check in table have to be unpacked. This year we had to set up everything with special COVID regulations, such as everything had to be six feet apart and there were barriers put up at the registration tables. The polls open in Wisconsin at 7am sharp when the Chief Election Inspector announces, “Hear Ye, Hear Ye, the polls are now open.” At my polling place, we had a huge morning rush and lines out into the lobby of the high school we used. People came up to the line, showed the check in workers their ID’s, and then received their ballots to vote. Not only were people voting, they were also registering to vote. Wisconsin has same day voter registration, which means that people can come in and register to vote on election day, then be able to cast their ballot. As I was directing people to voting booths I overheard a man at the registration table explaining why he had come out to vote. He said that he hadn’t been inspired by any of the campaigns but he’d woken up on election day and decided that it was his civic duty. Although at that point I was beginning to get tired, hearing him say that really kept me going through the long day. What would’ve happened if there had only been five polling places open in the city like there were in April? Would he have felt the same way, and braved the long lines to cast his ballot? Throughout the day, I was reminded of just how important the job is. We had at least ten first time voters, some who had just turned eighteen but some who were old and decided that this election was the one where they needed to get involved. Everytime a first time voter put their ballot in the machine, they were greeted with a round of applause from all the workers congratulating them on contributing to our democracy. There was a young man who was having trouble getting the identification needed to vote, who left but then came back a couple of hours later with everything ready to go and was able to cast his ballot. Watching people come and vote really reminds you of how important voting is to democracy. It’s so easy to get caught up in the big fights, in the supreme court, in the parties going against one another, in the negative ads, scandals and power plays but in the end, it’s all really about one person and one vote. Democracy is about voting, it’s about making your voice heard whatever it takes. As I watched people cast their ballots, I thought about those who had voted early and waited in the long lines to do so. I thought about those who are still disenfranchised because of a previous criminal conviction, or voter suppression measures in their state. I thought about everyone who died for everyone to have the right to vote. All of which to say, if you can vote you should vote. In every election primary elections, special elections, not just the general election because putting that one ballot into the machine means everything. But also make sure that you put your ballot in the right way, because as someone who had to climb into the voting machine to release a ballot that got stuck it is very claustrophobic and dark. And if you can, become a poll worker. This experience was so interesting and rewarding for me. The satisfaction that I felt from registering people to vote, marking people’s number in the poll book, and double checking names in the poll book so that there were no discrepancies or fraud is something that felt so good and like nothing I had felt before. At 8pm, the Chief announced, “Hear Ye, Hear Ye, the polls are now closed.” A couple of people were still inside voting as we began to take down the tables, and the barriers, and begin the paperwork that would need to be completed by the time we left. The poll books needed to be double and triple checked, the voters for each and every ballot assigned, the voter registration forms matched with the list of registered voters for the day. The ballots were all packed into bags, and all of the workers for the day, and the poll watchers for each party waiting for the Chief to announce the results from the voting machine. When all the write in votes were written down and categorized (just so you’re aware you have to write in a registered voter for it to count, anything fictional characters or dead people will be discontinued immediately) the day was finally over. It was a long day, but at the end we could be sure that the votes we facilitated would be counted, and the voters we registered were able to vote for years to come. It’s pretty cool to think about the fact that the vote total from all 300 of the voters we saw got put into the county total and eventually the state total all the way up to the national popular vote. It is less than one year from now that I will be an eligible voter, and I am going to participate in democracy by working and voting. I will not just post my thoughts on instagram because I know now more than ever that there is work to be done to make a Democracy. by Gabriella HartlaubIt’s no secret that a lot of students have been struggling with the transition to virtual learning, and sometimes feel like they have no avenue to share their comments and concerns with their teachers. The Junior Board attempted to remedy this with a forum for junior students and staff held two weeks ago on November 4th. This event was planned to allow a conversation to happen between students and staff, and for students to propose solutions for issues that they are facing.
The idea came from the junior board members, who wanted there to be an open line of communication between students and staff. “We know that a lot of staff members are looking for student interaction on their lessons,” Vice President Jordyn Czyzewski said, “So we wanted to give the students a chance to give that feedback in an environment where they were less nervous.” Before the event, students signed up to speak on a google from where they listed their area of concern and their name so that they could easily be called upon during the meeting. Overall, about ten students were able to speak to a panel of teachers that included Mr. Tillman, Ms. Briethbarth, Mr. Murphy, Ms. Jamieson and representing the administration, Ms. Sato. Going into the event, Junior Board President Daisy Kiekopher expected it, “to be hard to talk to everyone at first. Mental health is a topic that has had serious taboo for years. Only recently has it been acknowledged as a true problem in our community.” Student stress was a topic that was talked about multiple times, with both staff and students giving out solutions and support to try and remedy the epidemic of stress that students are feeling during virtual learning. Student’s spoke about their own struggles with virtual learning, things that did and did not work for them, and offered solutions to the panel. Teachers also shared things they have been struggling with during this virtual semester, offering the floor to students to give suggestions for them as well. When asked if she considered this event a success, Ms. Czyzewski said, “I think it was a success. We wanted students to be able to communicate with staff in an effective way which they did.” Ms. Kiekopher agreed adding, “I’m hoping this is the first step of many to help students and teachers adapt to digital learning.” The junior board hopes to hold more events like this in the future, and possibly go into the holding board meetings that are open to the junior class to make their voices heard. “Virtual learning is not going to work unless everyone is in constant communication with each other," President of the Board, Daisy Kiekopher, said, “I believe we’re making progress in adapting effectively to digital learning. We have a long way to go, but if we want to support our students and value their mental health, we can’t stop looking for a solution.” by Maria PattersonAs long as time, people felt as if their voices weren’t being heard. It is important to make sure we are all heard in order to have a strong community. To make sure that we all have a voice, we have to have a strong understanding of who we all are. We also have to show respect and let others know that we care. This series dives into the depths of unheard voices and why we should actively care about what others have to say. We will hear from strong leaders and the determined youth to create a more advanced knowledge of why we should listen and be there to support others.
We will provide voices by interviewing others and informing our community. Each Edition of the Husky Howler will have new voices spreading awareness. So make sure you are tuning in and continuing to read our articles. You may learn more about what others have to say, and if you speak out, you may even be featured in the upcoming articles! The whole idea of this series is to make everyone feel that their voice matters, and that includes you. So, if you have anything you would like to get off of your chest, or just speak out about what is important to you, fill out the Google Form for others to hear your voice. Go to https://tinyurl.com/huskyvoicesmatter to have your opinions expressed. We hope to hear from you soon! by Maria Patterson On November 17, 2020 Reagan had it’s first Freshman Lunch of the 2020 school year. Around 60 Freshman participated and got to join in on the fun. Some people watched Anime, played Among Us, and participated in Kahoot. Of course this experience wouldn’t have happened without the Freshman Board and one member was so kind to speak out.
After interviewing Suheidy Montenegro Nevarez, a member from Freshman Board, we got to learn more about the behind the scenes and we got insight on someone who participated both in Freshman Board and Freshman Lunch. Suheidy worked with the Among Us group and had nothe=ing but good things to say. By participating, she got to meet new people and make friends just like other participants. The interactions were great and it was an awesome way to communicate with friends and classmates. Suheidy joined the Freshman Board with the experience and interactions. She wanted to take part of this amazing opportunity and just wanted to participate. As this was a great way to communicate, this is a great way to meet your classmates. It’s hard making friends in a virtual world, so joining these lunches is the perfect way to meet new people. Let’s take a deeper dive into the process of creating the lunches. According to Suheidy, the Freshman Lunch took about 1-2 weeks to devise. She said that after all the stress of putting together the lunch, it was nice to have fun. It was an exciting way to meet new classmates and see old friends. If you would like to be a part of Freshman lunch, stay tuned because there may be one coming your way! |