Month: November 2022

Global Stocks all over the place due to Inflation and Virus Concerns

Business

Jorden McVeagh, Editor

https://www.medicaleconomics.com/view/positioning-in-a-chaotic-stock-market-with-key-sectors

Stocks on the Asian market have declined as of Mon., November 14, 2022, while European and American stocks open higher due to the optimistic views on inflation in the US and virus cases spanning over China. Last week, US inflation reported at a lower rate than in the prior weeks which caught the attention of investors all over the world. They hope that this hints that the FED will rethink its plan to continue to raise interest rates to help fight rising inflation. However, industry workers such as Venkateswaran Lavanya of the Mizuho Bank believe this is not an accurate measure as to what is coming. In an article published by US News, Lavanya said, “It is far too hasty to declare a decisive conclusion to inflation risks.” Meaning, that reports can come in on a daily, but we cannot assess these as true indicators as to what the FED will do with interest rates in the future. This still did not stop the various markets from around the world from responding to this news. Exchanges such as the FTSE in London saw a 0.8% gain, the DAX in Frankfurt just behind them at a positive 0.7% gain, and Paris’s CAC 40 jumping 0.5%. However, not all markets responded in a way that would reflect this optimism. In the US, the S&P 500 dropped 0.2%, with the Dow Jones dropping 0.1%. These numbers still should not be looked at as a representative value for the entire US stock market. While the markets did see a slight drop, the S&P jumped 5.5% on Friday alone. This ends a great week for the US markets, which saw all three exchanges ending in the green. Last week was also a big week for the US political economy with the congressional elections being held, which found Republicans likely to take control of the House of Representatives, and the Democrats taking the Senate. In Asia, concerns of COVID are still high. The Nikkei 225 out of Tokyo dropped by 1.1% while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong went up 1.7%. With the news of the Chinese government making the decision to reduce the economic cost of their Zero COVID policy are primarily the reason behind the major shift of the markets. Finally, in Seoul, the Kospi dropped 0.3% with the S&P-ASX 200 following with a 0.2% drop. The FED will meet again in December once again to discuss interest rates. Investors expect another rate hike however this time only by half a percent in comparison to three fourths of a percent that was seen with the last four hikes. It will be interesting to see what the markets continue to do in the coming weeks leading up to the meeting. As talks of recession creep into the conversations in America more often, it may get worse before it gets better, but we will not know until more plays out in the coming weeks.

Men’s basketball plucks the Seahawks at Homecoming.

Sports

Enrique Carrasco, Editor

Courtesy of La Salle Men’s Basketball

On Sat., Sept. 12, the (0-1) La Salle Explorers Men’s basketball team faced off against the (1-0) Wagner Seahawks in their homecoming game. The Explorers lost on the road against the nationally-ranked Villanova squad last week, and Fran Dunphy was looking to gain his first win as the Explorer’s head coach at home. Luckily for him, the Explorers were able to overcome the Seahawks and come away with the win. 

The Explorers were off to a quick start at the beginning of the game, immediately putting pressure on the Seahawks. Senior Guard Josh Nickelberry and Senior Transfer Hassan Drame put up 5 points each within the first 10 minutes of the game, allowing the Explorers to get an early 19-8 lead over the seahawks. The Explorers continued this trend during the rest of the half and were able to go into half-time with a 39-26 lead. The Explorers made a statement at the end of the half, with a dunk coming from Senior transfer Fousseyni Drame. The Explorers went 15/30 (50%) on field goals and 3/9 on three-pointers (33%) in the half. 

The Seahawks came out of the half with much more energy than in the first half. Within the first few minutes of the half, the Seahawks could lower the Explorer’s lead to only 5 points. The Explorers, however, would not allow this comeback to continue and answered with their own 3-pointer bringing the game into a media time-out. The explorers continued their momentum, bringing their lead to 51-40. The Explorer’s defense held the Seahawks for the rest of the game while the offense continued their momentum throughout. The Explorers went off to win the game 77-69. This win marked Fran Dunphy’s first-ever win as the head coach of the Explorers. 

The Explorer offense has been off to an explosive start thus far this season. The Explorers scored an impressive 68 points against a nationally ranked team and showcased this at home with their win over Wagner. Sophomore Guard Khalil Brantley scored 22 points against Wagner, an impressive show of skill. Brantley seems to have flourished more under Fran Dunphy, and it’ll be interesting to follow his progress throughout the rest of the season. If the Explorers can continue to play games like this, many more wins will be coming to 20th and Olney, and hopefully, a bid to the 2023 NCAA Championship.

Review: “Decision to Leave”

Arts & Entertainment

Anthony Pantalone, Editor

*Spoiler-free Review*

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend a Philadelphia Film Festival screening of legendary director Park Chan-wook’s new film “Decision to Leave.” This new entry into Park’s filmography tells the story of a detective attempting to solve the murder of a businessperson and his widow that draws forth both his suspicion and affection. As the detective slowly falls in love with this suspect, her connections to the potential crime only deepen. This film draws upon various elements of Park’s stylized filmmaking such as fast paced hyper-violent action as well as complex interesting characters. In other aspects though, Park is attempting to tell a slow sensual story in which details are slowly revealed to the viewer—one in which the audience is rewarded for continuing to watch. Before delving into my review, I would be remiss to forget to mention that Park Chan-wook won the Best Director award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for “Decision to Leave” and that the film will be South Korea’s entry for Best International Film at this year’s Academy Awards.

“Shattered”

“Decision to Leave” offers viewers a spell-binding romance that should not feel as compelling as it is. The viewer is masterfully drawn in by Park and made to feel “shattered” along with its characters as the story slowly unravels. The relationship that blossoms between this married detective and the widowed suspect fundamentally is set up for failure and will breed toxicity, yet the viewer is nevertheless enthralled by the development of their relationship in the first half of the movie. The midpoint of this screenplay then provides an important twist after which both characters find themselves spiraling because of their toxic relationship. This spiral then offers the viewer Hitchcockian suspense—that also feels somehow romantic—before resulting in a climax and finale that leaves you pondering for hours afterwards. This story of love, infatuation and longing thus leaves both main characters and the audience completely “shattered” by the end of its 138-minute runtime.

A Brief Cinematic Inquiry Into Online Relationships: Film in the Digital Age

A viral tweet in recent weeks had pointed out how many modern films do not utilize social media or cell phones in storytelling effectively, and many people in response highlighted “Decision to Leave” as a good example of a movie that does. Technology holds a pivotal role in this screenplay as the story continuously progresses forward through the use of smartphones. Within this modern romance-noir film, it is necessary for a smartphone to track a person’s steps all day. Also, voice recordings, another attribute of cell phones, are pivotal to Park’s newest film as—without spoiling any important plot point—recordings of conversations on the phone affect the crux of this movie. The viewer is also able to see different dimensions of these characters and their relationship as they can share text messages and continue to communicate while not exactly together in the same location. Not many movies can effectively convey how computers and technology have changed the nature of love and relationships between people, but “Decision to Leave” effectively highlights its profound modern-day impact.

Live and Die by the Edit

Editing holds a profound effect on the success and coherence of a movie, as film editing is an art form inherently connected to cinema and motion pictures. It can elevate a viewing experience and how one understands the moving pictures to new dizzying heights. At the same time, a lazy or messy edit of a film can single-handedly ruin that movie and make a film unviewable. Therefore, it is so important to discuss the editing of “Decision to Leave,” because it is simply so exciting and captivating. This film has likely the best editing I have had the pleasure of seeing this year—even beating out the wonderfully fast-paced and chaotic editing in “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” One scene depicting a police chase across rooftops was edited so perfectly to affect the viewer that I audibly gasped in the theater—which I usually do not do. While the Academy will likely only recognize American films in Best Editing category, one could only hope some recognition is given to Kim Sang-bum whose work is incredible in this film.

Russia Retreats from Kherson

international politics, Politics

Elizabeth Boyle, Staff

Another retreat by the Russian military, this time from Kherson. This past week Russian troops were ordered to evacuate from Kherson. Kherson is a port city located where the Dnipro River meets the Black Sea, and it was a central focus in Russia’s attempt to control the southern coast of Ukraine.

When Russia initially assaulted and captured Kherson it tried to assimilate the people into its sphere. But the Ukrainians of Kherson fought back and would not accept Russia’s efforts to strip the city and region of Ukrainian language, currency, and education. When Russia claimed to “annex” parts of Ukraine including Kherson, after a sham election, the citizens of Kherson stood defiant. This past week as Russian troops evacuated and Ukrainian soldiers entered the city the people of Kherson celebrated their return to Ukrainian control. One townsman reported to a New York Times reporter on scene, “people walk on the streets and congratulate each other, it’s just a holiday!”

There are a few schools of thought forming over Russia’s retreat. Some believe that Russia is moving to regroup and reposition its soldiers before the incoming winter, and in doing so avoid personnel and equipment losses from Ukrainian attacks and its own inability to adequately sustain forces over an extended battlefield. By moving its troops to the eastern side of the Dnipro River which borders Kherson, Russia is attempting to improve the survival odds for its troops using the river as a defensive barrier. 

President Biden spoke about the Russian retreat during a Press conference on Nov. 9 when he also answered questions about the midterm elections. Biden seemed to insinuate that the timing of the Russian retreat was linked to the US midterm elections. He pointed out that he thought it was interesting that Russia waited until after the US congressional election was complete to announce the retreat. Biden said, “it’s evidence of the fact that they have some real problems with the Russian military. 

In addition to this retreat, Russia is having problems on the home front. Hundreds of thousands of men have fled the country to avoid the draft. As of Nov. 4 the Kremlin reported over 700,000 men had left in approximately two weeks. Many believe Russian President Putin’s announcements that new military conscripts will not be sent to the vicinity of Kherson and that college students would be exempt from the military mobilization are an effort to deflect some criticism of the Russian military’s ongoing failures. Despite the tensions in Russia Putin has still managed to fill his military personnel quota to sustain his so called “special military operation” in Ukraine. Putin spoke to the media in early November saying that “mobilization is complete.” Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also claimed that Putin’s goal of calling up 300,000 reservists had been achieved. However, as Ukraine continues to push back, a portion of the Russian public and military are not happy. 

To show his support for ongoing Ukrainian military advances and to celebrate the liberation of Kherson, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Kherson on Monday, Nov.14. Zelenskyy commented that he believes this (i.e., the liberation of Kherson) is the “Beginning of the end of the war.” Zelenskyy continued, “Ukraine was ready for peace, but peace for all of our country, all of our territory.…That is why we’re fighting against Russian aggression.” Now that the Ukrainian flag once again flies over Kherson and Zelenskyy has visited to celebrate the Russian retreat, morale is high in southern Ukraine. Zelenskyy’s presence continues to be motivating to Ukrainian citizens. He is a symbol of the resilience and courage of Ukraine as demonstrated in Kherson when Russia was firing missiles at entrenched troops less than a mile away.  

Financial Aid Office Celebrates Two Weeks Technology Free with a Pizza Party

Satire

Ethan McGlone, Staff

via dreamtime

Reliance on cell phones and technology is a serious pandemic that plagues our society. People are being transformed into incoherent zombies while scrolling through their “For You” pages on Tiktok watching other zombies dance for a living. However, La Salle’s own Financial Aid Office has combated this issue head first in a truly inspiring fashion. For the last two weeks they have vowed to put the phones and computers away and enjoy life as it was meant to be enjoyed. “We really feel as though computers have become our whole life; our job even. This had to change,” someone close to the situation explained to me. They continued, “Why sift through email after email when we could be outside tossing a frisbee and admiring mother nature?” The Financial Aid Office is now two weeks clean of the filth that was their job of the past, and while many emails have gone unread and unanswered, many lifelong memories and friendships were made outside of the office. 

The office had a pizza party to celebrate this great accomplishment; the pineapple pizza was the big hit of the night. Of course, the only rule at the party was no technology. “Do we miss our old life? From time to time we get the urge to check our phones and scroll through our emails. However, we quickly remember that many people rely on us to do that, so we decide not to. It’s truly for the best in my opinion,” another participant in this technology cleanse told us. The night concluded with a bout of karaoke, with songs ranging from the ever so popular “Dancing On My Own” by Callum Scott to “Dior” by Pop Smoke. Even with the lack of phones, computers, and technology in the office that night, the environment and overall emotions shared were truly electric.

“Disorderly Conduct”

Satire

Emily Allgair, Editor

This article is inspired by a conversation that was held on the mobile app ‘Citizen.’

I’m not saying that we were in the right, but we definitely weren’t in the wrong in any way. The alley isn’t on any property that belongs to people other than the students. We don’t have to worry about non-La Salle affiliates living in our neighborhood, especially considering that the alley belongs to us and not those who also pay to live there, too!

If for some reason people in the neighborhood forget that they live across from a college, they should probably pack up their entire lives and find a place that is way cheaper, you know, like anywhere in the increasingly gentrified areas of Philly. It’s not like the people who aren’t affiliated with La Salle plan on being here longer than four years. Haven’t they ever heard of seniority?

Plus, La Salle is a dry campus. I know that you’re probably wondering how they were serving alcohol on 20th this past weekend and at sports games if that sentiment is true, but trust me, no one is allowed to drink on our campus – just ask the security guards that don’t let the townies inhabitants bring in six pack after six pack through the gate! So, we have to drink in the alley – it’s quite literally the only place that alcohol is allowed to be consumed throughout our dry campus, not to mention that drinking in the alley is our God-given right.

And if your main concern is the littering that occurs, in a small amount may I add, don’t worry! Often enough for the people of Olney’s neighborhoods to notice, we hold trash bashes and community clean-ups to better the environment of our campus. If we aren’t in the classroom, we’re walking up and down Olney with trash bags in-hand! 

As for our participation in the community, La Salle students are arguably more involved in the neighborhood community than they are in school-affiliated extracurriculars. We attend every single neighborhood-sponsored community outreach and community clean-up. We feel a strong connection to our neighbors and look forward to building this sense of community, offering them our personal beer, liquor and a bunch of food, and especially when speaking to them on threads about us on Citizen!

If you take one thing away from this article, I hope it’s that La Salle students view this neighborhood as way more than a place to use at the expense of those that live here, but rather as a place that we should leave better than we found it. And if you’re struggling to find my article to be a dependably accurate reflection of the feelings of those within the neighborhood of Olney, just check our Instagram pages, a social media platform (run by us) that is way more reliable than the voices of those who share our community!

via Citizen App

La Salle Homecoming weekend 

News

Kylie McGovern, Editor

La Salle University’s family and homecoming weekend began on Friday Nov. 11 with events all over campus for different groups at La Salle to enjoy. Treetops Cafe welcomed families for a family dinner on Friday night at 5 p.m. In addition, La Salle University hosted the Alumni Association Awards which are held each year. This year’s award ceremony,  hosted in Founders’ Hall, honored Br. Gerard F. Molyneaux, ’58, M.A. ’59, FSC, Ph.D. with the John J. Finley, ’24 Award for his tireless volunteer work and support of La Salle. In addition, the Alumni association also presented the Signum Fidei Medal, to Liguori Academy.

In addition, La Salle’s Swimming and Diving hosted a Tri-meet on Friday evening. In addition to athletics other talents of La Salle’s students were on display during homecoming as the Masque performed their production of Drop Dead. This production was performed throughout the weekend and following the show on Saturday many joined Late Night La Salle for an after-show party in the lounge. 

The homecoming activities continued into Sat. with a block party on 20th. The block party was a free event with entertainment, food trucks and drink options. Students, alumni, faculty and families sprinkled the street while enjoying food, friendship, music and fun until the 3 p.m. men’s basketball game. 

The La Salle Explorers defeated the Wagner Seahawks with a 77-69 lead. This student section was packed and electric this Saturday afternoon. The pep band, dance team and cheerleading team kept this energy alive throughout the game. Head over to our sports section to read more about the game. Following the basketball win, fans headed to Deke’s BBQ for Post Game Happy Hour. 

Sunday Morning began with mass celebrated in the De La Salle chapel by Father Frank. Students and alumni read and brought up the collection during mass. In addition, two seniors Trevor and Frankie spoke about what family and the La Salle community meant to them. 

Following mass, families and students were welcomed to family brunch at treetops dining hall. Students could use meal plans for brunch and families paid at the door. Students spent time catching up with their own families while also getting to know their friends’ families. 

Homecoming weekend concluded with the Golden Explorers 50th Reunion tour and dinner. The class of 1972 met on the Hansen Quad and attended a special tour of La Salle’s campus. The tour stopped at the Alumni House and included a view of the 1972 Archives display in Connelly Library. Then, members of the Class of 1972 joined their classmates for cocktails, dinner and commemorative medallion presentation in recognition of their golden anniversary.

Overall, homecoming weekend was a chance for all members of the La Salle community to enjoy a beautiful day on campus. 

American Indian Heritage Month

Health and Wellness

Kori Deibert, Faculty

November is National American Indian Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the rich histories, diverse cultures, and significant contributions of our nation’s first people. The Lenape were Philadelphia’s original inhabitants. They were hunters, fishers, and cultivated the area along the banks of what is now the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. They believed in a holistic healing approach, that connection with the spirits is what made healing so powerful. Most descendants of the Lenape now live in Oklahoma and still follow their ancient healing traditions. Several common plants with medicinal properties used by the Lenape that are found in the Northeast include birch, cattail, dandelion, sassafras, sumac, and wild grape.

  • Birch bark is used to make tea for treating coughs and colds.
  • Cattail pollen can be applied to wounds to stop bleeding. If ingested, it can help with menstrual pain. Mashing the cattail roots can be applied to treat blisters, boils, cysts, stings, and infections.
  • Dandelion is rich in vitamins and minerals that can be made into tea to treat the liver, cleanse the blood, and clear skin conditions. The plant also acts as a gentle laxative to help with digestion and elimination.
  • Sassafras root can help reduce blood pressure by acting as a blood thinner.
  • The white part of the sumac root can help treat a toothache or canker sore.
  • Wild grapes have antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties for the heart. They are also a great source of dietary fiber, providing a laxative effect. The juice is rich in Vitamin C, E, iron, and niacin.

Elon Musk looks to rehire some of the staff he booted last week.

Business

Jason Ryan, Staff

Twitter Inc. is heading into its second full workweek under Elon Musk with half its workforce, mounting losses and a couple of expected reversals to its plans\

The social-media company, Twitter Inc. laid off close to 3,700 people on Friday, only to reach out soon thereafter to dozens of employees where it was decided they were either fired in error or are just too essential to the changes the billionaire businessman, Elon Musk, wanted to make. 

The layoffs hit across many divisions, including the engineering and machine learning units, the teams that manage content moderation and the sales and advertising departments.

These stroke events, as described by people familiar with the situation or in an internal company memo posted on Slack, follow Musk’s own acknowledgment in a tweet that the company he and wealthy partners bought for $44 billion is losing $4 million a day.

Twitter Inc. decided to go after its workforce  to trim costs following Musk’s acquisition, which finally closed in late October. Many employees learned they lost their job after their access to companywide systems, like email and Slack, were suddenly suspended. The sudden requests for employees to return to office demonstrate how rushed and disorganized the process was.

Some regions were hit harder than others. For example, the company fired more than 90% of its staff in India over the weekend, severely depleting its engineering and product staff. The job cuts left the company with a little over a dozen staff in the growth market.

That being said, Twitter is rolling out new features such as its Twitter Blue subscription plan. To elaborate, Twitter will issue the new blue verification check marks to users who pay $7.99 a month for the service starting on Nov. 9. The company had previously planned to roll out the subscription feature Nov. 7, the day before the election; however, one of Musk’s early goals for the company is  delayed until Wednesday to avoid potential chaos during the U.S. midterm elections.

The company received internal and external feedback that the verification process for its Twitter Blue subscription program could be prepared for abuse. This has raised concerns that candidates and other political figures might be impersonated on site in the days before the US election. 

Late Sunday, Musk said Twitter would ban accounts that impersonate others, after several high-profile users changed their names and pictures to match the billionaire. Any name change at all will cause a temporary loss of a verified check mark.

Though the company needs some technical staff to return, the platform is not likely to be forgotten about. They surely need to figure out a way to get out of this mess and control Musk’s short temper.

  ryanj21@lasalle.edu