On the first day of Christmas my teachers gave to me…
Madeleine Kemper, Staff Writer
December 19, 2019
Remember that glorious day in December when the final bell rings and it's officially winter break? That feeling of not having anything to do for almost two whole weeks and knowing that you can go home and watch as many movies as you want? I certainly remember that feeling from about four years ago. As I...
Make your mark
Carly Wheeler, Perspectives Editor
December 18, 2019
One quick scroll through the news, and it’s not hard to see that our world is flawed, to say the least. Just in the last couple of weeks, news broke that China has detained millions of Uyghur Muslims in “re-education” camps where they are being tortured. This weekend, violent protests concerning eco...
The Grinch of Sioux Falls
Ree Baireddy, Staff Writer
December 18, 2019
The month of Dec. usually correlates to the holidays, a.k.a. the season of giving. Holiday fanatics use this time to spread their holiday cheer by volunteering at homeless shelters, decorating trees, spending time with family and, most importantly, putting up holiday lights. At night in Sioux Falls, one can drive south...
TikTok trouble
Slater Dixon, Perspectives editor
December 17, 2019
TikTok seems to be in a bit of hot water. In February, its parent company received a $5.7 million fine from the FTC for COPPA violations, in November Reuters reported that the U.S. government is opening an investigation into the app and parents are increasingly vehement in their opposition of the app. ...
Oh, Peloton… what did you do wrong?
Sara Croghan, Staff Writer
December 17, 2019
Context: Peloton, a company notorious for their arguably overpriced but luxurious stationary exercise bikes, released its holiday commercial campaign in early December, setting into motion a wave of controversy over, well… something. The ad features a young woman receiving a Peloton bike for Christmas on...
Late night: America’s best informer
Landon DeBoer, Sports Editor
December 6, 2019
With an increase in misinformation and lies in the world, it is becoming more difficult for news organizations to give proper coverage to the issues that matter. In a time of disarray like the time we’re in now, late night shows ultimately do a better job than the news in conveying information. Not o...
A better way to vote
Daniel Bethke, Staff Writer
December 4, 2019
In the modern political landscape, so much of the debate surrounds the Electoral College that little attention is given to how the ballots themselves in all races are counted. For all national and most state races, the U.S. uses first-past-the-post voting, which effectively means that the candidate...
The NCAA receives backlash after suspension of James Wiseman
Hunter Hauck, Staff Writer
December 2, 2019
While resolve regarding athlete’s pay in the NCAA is starting to come to fruition, controversy involving money allocation is still a prominent issue within the organization. James Wiseman is a freshman basketball player at Memphis who was believed to be the best recruit in the 2019 class. Recently, h...
Brands you didn’t know that test on animals
Chloe Hartje, Staff Writer
November 8, 2019
Most people think that major companies have converted to cruelty-free methods of testing their products, but this is not the case for many. In fact, most drug and retail stores carry brands that either test on animals or finance animal testing. Some of these brands include Gillette, Maybelline, Crest, OP...
Where are your clothes really coming from?
Chloe Robinson, Staff Writer
November 4, 2019
More often than not, we find ourselves buying the $10 t-shirt rather than the similar-looking $30 one. It would be silly not to, right? But, if we look deeper than just the price, we might see that spending that extra $20 can make a world of change to many people. Buying that $10 shirt might cost less upfron...
Applying for college
Spencer Wasmund, Staff Writer
November 4, 2019
Trying to figure out where to go to college can be one of the hardest decisions a high schooler has to make. During senior year, all anyone wants to focus on is having fun and enjoying high school for one last year. But in the back of everyone’s head, they know that graduation is just around the c...
We are running out of sand
Cameron Rhode, Business Manager
November 1, 2019
Our lives as we know them are screwed. Economic development through the 20th century has caused a massive shortage of sand. Shortage of sand? Yes. That stuff that is all over near water is running out. Everything in a city - concrete, cement and glass - is made from sand. In 2015, the U.S. produced appro...
Cathleen Weng, Editor-in-Chief
January 6, 2020
When junior Tori Raveling first began to make TikToks a couple of months ago, there was no way she could have predicted what would happen. On Dec. 31, Raveling decided...
Statesman holiday gingerbread house competition
December 20, 2019
December 19, 2019
There are some instances in life that are simply unavoidable, no matter how hard we try to be perfect or to minimize our mistakes....
December 19, 2019
Bob Ross is widely known as a highly skilled and extremely talented painter, thanks in part to his show, “The Joy of Painting.” But just...