Today, at 2:18 p.m. ET, President Donald Trump will send you a text (if you have a US phone number). This text is part of the Integrated Public Warning System, in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It gives the White House the ability to notify the entire country of an issue in an efficient way. It can be expected to mimic an Amber Alert or Emergency Weather Warning, but there is no reason to be alarmed. Two minutes following the text, FEMA will also test it’s emergency alert system on TV and radio.
Junior Helen Christ said this test makes her uncomfortable because, “If they can send us texts, what else can they do through our phones?”
Sophomore Luca Castronova believes that this text is the most effective way for emergency information to get to people this day in age.
“People still use televisions and radios, but not as frequently. Almost everyone has their phone on them, and a text can give specific information on an emergency instead of just sounding an alarm.”
John Jiler • Nov 3, 2018 at 8:22 am
GUNS MATTER!
Dear Editor;
Autumn is deepening, and seniors are seriously thinking about their next step. For many of us, your generation is the hope of the future. The Parkland high school shootings galvanized young people across the nation to passionately advocate for common sense gun laws. Now, as your attention turns to college, we want to turn our admiration into action.
With the help of the Brady Center, the new Gabby Giffords consortium, Everytown for Gun Safety and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, we’re reaching out to high school journalists across the country with our list of the NOTORIOUS NINETEEN—the states with dangerous, inadequate gun laws. Many of them condone the open carry of weapons on college campuses, but even those who don’t have encouraged or tolerated a state-wide, lawless violent culture. Our mission is to make these states known to high school seniors, whom we encourage NOT to apply to college in:
ALABAMA, ALASKA, ARIZONA, ARKANSAS, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, IDAHO, KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MISSISSIPPI, MISSOURI, MONTANA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NORTH DAKOTA, OKLAHOMA, TEXAS, UTAH, WEST VIRGINIA, OR WYOMING.
We’ll be following up with letters to the Governors and legislators of the “Notorious Nineteen.” If they’re curious why their state-wide college applications are down this year, we’ll be happy to tell them!
Thank you for considering the publication of this letter in your newspaper. This is how the world changes. Good luck throughout senior year…… and beyond!
Best,
John Jiler,
Coordinator,
Committee for Scholastic Action On Guns