Gambino released a formal untitled EP on March 8 this year. The release was soon followed by Gambino’s first official album, Camp,  released on November 15th. After a couple listens through, my feelings are mixed.

Gambino begins Camp with the reflective “Outside,” featuring a soft organ, a big hook sung by a gospel choir, and rhymes about his childhood, which is directed at a unnamed cousin of his who wasn’t as fortunate as him and ended up on the street. The song’s concept has promise, but the intro drags on for more then a little bit too long.

From there, the pace picks up with the boisterous “Firefly,” and a trademark Gambino torrent of references to all things pop culture on “Bonfire,” the lead single. Both songs are entertaining, but they’re missing the lyrical flair he had in his past releases.

The next track is easily the strongest of the album: the majestic “All the Shine.” It starts out with a simple kick-snare drumbeat, which acts as the backdrop for the lead-in of a cascading guitar line. The song then gains life, switching to a simple hand-clap and some beautiful violins, very reminiscent of Tan Dun’s soundtrack to the Jet-Li classic “Hero.”

The lyrics showcase Glover’s clever wordplay and introspective slant, with Glover dropping gems like “I ain’t Curren$y/ but if there ain’t money in my name please murder me” throughout, coupled with a stadium filling chorus for a song very reminiscent of “All of the Lights” in its grandeur.

Unfortunately, after “All the Shine,” the magic ends for Gambino. A few of the remaining songs are passable, with the “Monster”-like larger than life braggadocio of “Backpackers” and the almost offensive wit of “You got me,” which is eerily reminiscent of Jay-Z and Kanye’s “Niggas in Paris.”

I think that’s the main problem. Gambino has gained such a cult following because he’s not afraid to admit he’s not exactly what you’d imagine as a popular rapper. But those statements seem hollow here, because they’re juxtaposed next to bouts of boasting, giving the whole album a hypocritical irony. To be great, he needs to find an identity, something I previously thought he had down pat.

I have to admit, I was very excited for this album, which may be why it disappointed me so much. Most of the old Gambino I know and love is absent, which cuts into a lot of his charm. I would be lying if I said I won’t listen to it again, I’ll just do it halfheartedly.

For those who number among his ranks of fans, keep faith. Many indie artists struggle in the jump to an actual label. I have confidence that Glover will fix his mistakes and live up to his full potential.

But for now, I’m not impressed just yet.

A house across the street from Garfield has been inhabited by Occupy Seattle participants and is being used as a temporary home and  billboard to spread word of their beliefs. Calling themselves Turritopsis Nutricula, a type of jellyfish that is in theory immortal, 9–10 people, many of whom met through Occupy Seattle, spend their nights and much of their day at this house with no electricity, heat, or running water.

“We wanted to symbolically show that there are buildings empty while people are forced to sleep on the street,” says one squatter, all of whom declined to give their names.

The Occupiers said their movement started “accidentally.”

“We thought police were going to kick us out, but they didn’t,” says one member of Turritopsis Nutricula.

The member declined to name the current owner of the house but said that “it looks like it’s owned by someone who doesn’t care about it anymore.”

According to the Seattle Times and the Central District News, the foreclosed house was owned by a couple who had a multimillion dollar house located on Mercer Island foreclosed on them and owns other properties in the area; Mr. Denmark West purchased it for $425,000 in 2006.

But Garfield’s administration does not seem the least bit worried about it.

“No, I don’t even know what it is over there. I have no idea and was never concerned about it,” said Mr. Howard. “They have a right to assemble, but they can’t come on to school and district property.”

“Some anarchists were part of that group and police were concerned, so I sent some stuff off out to parents just to be on the safe side,” says Howard. “I have to set all my political views aside.”

Calls to police weren’t returned.

Turritopsis Nutricula members attest and relate with the Occupy Seattle message that the current sociopolitical system is broken.

“People took our land, resources, time, and lives. That’s why you get stuff like poverty and hunger,” said one member. “People need to learn to fight back. That’s what we’re doing here, and encourage others to do,” added another.

However, the squatters were quick to distance themselves from their Occupy Seattle counterparts.

“We don’t want to completely dissociate ourselves from Occupy Seattle,” said one squatter. “But at the same time, we don’t want to say that we are a facet of occupy Seattle, because we aren’t.”

“Solidarity is when you have different tactics, goals, desires, but you find the ways that you can work together and you support one another,” said another. “I want to be in solidarity with Occupy Seattle.”

They stressed the need for diversity and differing opinions within their movement.

“If everyone’s thinking the exact same thing then you’re not going to be able to react and act in accordance with this really divergent set of circumstances we call reality,” said one member.

“It’s unrealistic to pretend that everyone is going to be on our side, because some people do support the system that we’re fighting against,” said another member.

They encourage students to have a dialogue with them as they look towards the future of their Occupation of 23rd Avenue.

“Stand up for yourselves. The examples that your actions set are much more powerful than [just] asking nicely,” said one squatter. “It’s surprising no one’s been over here from the high school.”

With 8 million Americans suffering from eating disorders according to the State Department of Mental Health, Seth and Eva Matlin decided it was time to take action.

As founders of the Off Our Chests magazine and fashion label for women, the Matlins are trying to pass their new Self-Esteem Act in congress.

If passed, this act would require that all images of models in digital or magazine media be accompanied by a disclaimer if the image is significantly altered. Just a simple statement telling the reader that the image was edited.

“The Self-Esteem Act isn’t about judging, it’s about clarifying. If you’re not comfortable declaring it, don’t do it,” said Seth Matlin in a Huffington Post Article.

Sophomore Murphy Mathers agrees that photoshopped pictures should include a disclaimer, but  does not feel personally attacked by the media.

“I look at pictures and think ‘man that girl is photoshpped.’”

Though Mathers understands that media is edited, many girls aspire to these false images of perfection.Nevertheless, she admits that sometimes she too compares herself to the models she sees.

“It’s hard not to,” says Mathers.

The bill would not prohibit photo-shopping, butit would require a disclaimer stating it had been changed.

“It would remind people that you don’t have to be photoshopped to look beautiful,” said Garfield junior Maddie Canty-Gill.

Prior to the Matlins’ action in the U.S, two L’Oreal ads were pulled from the British Media because they were deemed overly photoshopped. Julia Roberts’s face had been so airbrushed that the ad campaign was cited as promoting a negative body image.

“You see a picture like that and you get an idea of what you are supposed to look like,” said Canty-Gill of the L’Oreal campaign.

The Self Esteem Act was created in response to the staggering amounts of insecurity and low self-esteem among females in the U.S. According to the Self-Esteem petition, 50 percent of 13 year old girls in the U.S. are unhappy with their bodies, and by high school, approximately 70 percent are unsatisfied. By 17, this number reaches nearly 80 percent.

According to the Dove Self Esteem Bill, it doesn’t end with teenage years, as 80 percent of women in the U.S reportedly felt worse about themselves after viewing unrealistic media. Media that is meant to entertain is actually leading to depression and eating disorders.

Though not exclusively, most female cosmetic ads highlight inadequacies, while ads for male viewers tend to emphasize enhancement. Women are bombarded daily with messages that tell them they are not good enough in American media.

“You constantly see what perfection looks like, and so you ask yourself why you don’t look like that,” said Canty-Gill.

The player is immediately thrust into the dangers of the war-torn province of Skyrim through the brilliant opening scene, which features the unnamed player on a wagon cart driving to his or her own execution. Needless to say, not all goes according to plan, and the hero soon escapes, sent out into the lush, magical land in which the game takes place.

What I soon discovered while playing this game is that not only can you make many choices within the main questline, but the game completely backs this freedom up by giving you countless paths to take in your journey to becoming a fearsome warrior, powerful mage, cunning assassin, or basically anything else you can think of. The main storyline is interesting, but I was blown away by the time and effort put into the random tasks that you are given by the inhabitants of the land.

My journey to become a top-notch assassin started with one of the darkest moments I’ve seen in a video game, and continued with a solid day of missions. What has hindered games with this ambition in the past is that while there are many jobs to undertake, after a point, most of them feel very repetitive.

Skyrim’s avoidance of that common problem is probably the game’s biggest strength. Skyrim excels at giving quests that are not only fresh, but often delve deeper than what I previously thought possible. A murder investigation turned into a jailbreak and uprising, which turned into… I don’t even know how to describe it. This is made possible by  Bethesda’s innovative Radiant Storytelling, which allows for characters to treat you differently according to the choices that you make, which creates the illusion that they are actually thinking for themselves. It also sets up the non player characters to interact with each other, providing the mind-bogglingly cinematic moments where you can hear intelligent conversation occurring by just being a fly on the wall.

The problem I have with Skyrim and games in its vein is that they are almost too engrossing.

As video games become more life-like, I feel like I’m losing the desire for real life. Who needs high school girls when I can marry a huntress? Why go to class when I can study to be a sorcerer or a bard?

Looking back on my honeymoon with Skyrim, and subsequent lost Thanksgiving break, I’ve decided that it’s too much of a good thing. Do we need games to be giant and limitless? The answer is no. Despite Skyrim’s brilliance, I almost miss the times when the deepest game on the market was Metroid Prime, and I spent countless hours playing Goldeneye with my cousins. Let’s bring that back.

The Verdict: Is Skyrim awesome? Yes. It is the most interesting and impressive place a video game has ever taken me, and I plan to spend countless more hours playing it when I should be doing homework or having friends.

With that said, there is no need for a game that’s bigger. Skyrim has been everything I wanted and more, but it’s also my ceiling. Video games are supposed to help you escape from reality, not create a whole new one to live in. So thank you, Bethesda, I am forever in your debt. But please, no more.

Beginning in January, the Garfield lunchroom will be paperless, reverting back to classic plastic trays.

“We will need student cooperation because the trays will need to stay inside,” said Debra, the Garfield lunchroom manager. “But instead of cutting down trees to make 450 paper trays a day, will will be washing plastic ones instead.”

With Garfield’s water efficient dishwasher, Debra says, the switch will save a lot of trees and be more environmentally friendly.

If students want to go outside, they can ask for a paper plate, but Debra says that they expect most students to use plastic.

“The next step would be compostable utensils,” says Debra, “but it’s great to be starting out the new year with this change.”

Last week, the Seattle School Board announced preliminary plans to ease up on vending machine restrictions.

Since the Board’s introduction of health restrains on what kinds of snacks can be sold, Seattle high school ASBs have dropped from the $214,000 they made in 2001 to only $17,000 last year.

While benefiting students’ health, the allowed products just don’t sell very well.

“Right now, vending machines are a good option to increase revenue without risking students’ health and safety,” says ASB President Grant Bronsdon, who spent the past few months lobbying the Board to relax their vending machine policy.

“Students can and do go off campus for lunch,” says Bronsdon. “We’re not asking for a return of candy bars or junk fod. We are asking for Cheez-Its, Yogurt, Skinny Cow Ice Cream; healthy alternatives that students actually like.”

Ask any student what their favorite vegetable is, and you might here answers like “carrots,” “celery,” or “potatoes.” But one thing that they will never say is “pizza.”

Currently, the tomato paste on pizza is counted as a vegetable serving in school lunches nationally — something the U.S.D.A. is trying to change. In a recently proposed bill, national standards for school lunch health standards would be changed so that lunches would have less salt and fewer starches, as well as more fruits and vegetables.

It would also mean that the one-eighth cup of tomato paste that currently counts as a vegetable would have to double.

Unfortunately though, the bill was not passed. Corporations responsible for the salt, potatoes, and other ingredients that would be cut would have lost money and eventually convinced Congress not to pass the bill.

“It’s a shame that Congress seems more interested in protecting industry than protecting children’s health,” Margo G. Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit research group, said to the New York Times.

However, we at Garfield are luckier than most as far as school lunch goes. Each day, we have two options for fresh vegetables and two kinds of usually local, fresh, fruit. All of our breads and rolls are whole wheat, and have low sodium.

“We really go out of our way for quality,” said Debra. “We even try to have lots of ethnic variety, from cous-cous to curry.”

Seattle Public Schools is doing a lot to improve its lunches. In the 30,000 served each day, as many local ingredients are used as possible, lunches are made as healthy as possible and more and more meals are being made from scratch.

The new year brings some big changes for the way we eat at Garfield, but some not-so-big changes nationally. Our lunches are going paperless and we get decent food back in the vending machines, but pizza is still a vegetable.

Ben Woletz: What is unique about you?

Alan Carpenter: I spent 25 years in the real world and did engineering and interacted with adults on big dollar projects. I’ve done solid waste projects, nuclear plants, and all these huge energy jobs. And when we hear teachers talking about the environment, you know, I was out there — I did it. I’ve been on field trips to nuclear power plants — crazy things like that — so I have this background that is HUGE in what I teach in, whether it be engineering or physics.

BW: What do you do in your free time?

AC: Tear apart computers. But almost all of my life is interwoven with physics. I read physics. I read physics at levels much higher than I teach. The more exotic the physics, the more interesting it is. You never stop pursuing something you really really want to know. Its like an artist: you’ve never painted your best picture, I’ve never learned my last physics.

BW: What was your childhood like?

AC: Oh, God, I had the All-American childhood. I had mother, father, older brother, lived out in the country, had room to roll, went fishing, and did whatever we wanted to do all summer long. I had a perfect, All-American, Leave-it-to-Beaver childhood, and my father made things available without ever forcing any of us to do things. The one thing that he had that I always loved was the short-wave radio. We had this short wave radio — I could sit there and listen to squeals and Radio Moscow and stuff, and my brothers all hunted and fished and loved to go do things outside. And I’d be in there turning the knobs and it wasn’t like Dad was like “Get the hell out there and go huntin’!” he was like “Oh, well have you tried this?” and then he’d show me something and then he’d go away.

BW: How do you like living in the city now?

AC: I don’t. I still like to focus in on infinity and drive down the road and have everybody wave at you. It’s really weird. I just go back to Iowa. I’ll rent a car and I’ll drive out in the country, and the first thing somebody’ll do… you do finger waves. You’re driving down the road, you got your hands on the wheel, and you pass a car and you just raise your finger., and if you don’t do it it’s really rude.

BW: How do you treat your students?

AC: I want students to be able to say “Ok, I don’t care about physics — I DO not care about physics — but I’m getting the tools.” Just like if I was going to Schuck’s and buying a wrench — I don’t care how that wrench was built, I don’t care what the metallurgy of it is — but I know that that wrench is gonna open something for me.”

And that’s what physics does, it opens things, because its a great tool… And one of the things that you’ll never hear me tell a student, no matter what they are or who they are: “You should become a physicist. You should go to college and major in physics.” You’ve heard teachers say, “Aw, you’re such a good writer. You should go and be a writer.” I never tell students what they should do.

BW: What changes would you implement in our school if you had the ability?

AC: Oh wow, about everything. There isn’t much about modern education that I like. I would start with making, basically, a free market. Just like you choose your dentists or your doctors, I think students should be able to choose teachers, and I think the good teachers and the bad teacher’s would shake out. I have no doubt that students would go looking for good teachers and not easy teachers, because I walk down the hall and tell people, “Take my class, its the hardest one in school.” And they’re all full, so nobody is trying to duck hard classes. Students want good teachers, the same way they want good dentists. If I tell you your teeth are fine but, in fact, you need expensive work, did that do you any good? No.

BW: How do you get kids to listen and respect you?

AC: Respect them. I try to teach students like adults and expect now and then that they act like kids, and I think a lot of teachers treat students like kids and expect them to act like adults. Don’t raise your hand. You’re equal. You’re the reason I’m here. Making this transition is dangerous, into the next life, when you do become a member of a team. You don’t raise your hand in the middle of a business meeting, you just speak your mind when the time comes. That’s what I want people to begin to get used to. It’s your turn.

BW: What’s special about physics?

AC: It’s really, really good at quantifying problems and explaining things at very deep levels.

Conversely, I give you the least amount of information and then I can explain everything; and that’s the best part: That with almost no information input, I can simply start telling you all kinds of stuff about what has to happen, because the laws of physics are solid.

BW: What’s your favorite snack?

AC: Actually, it’s cashews and almonds.

BW: Not frozen marshmallows?

AC: Ahh, well, Frozen marshmallows are good, yeah. But you really can’t — there’s no justification for eating frozen marshmallows.

BW: How’d you come up with freezing marshmallows?

AC: Oh, one of the biology teachers used to use them for some experiment and they kept them in their freezer and she gave me a couple. Gave me a couple and I popped one in my mouth and: “Damn, this is entirely different.” So now I keep a couple bags. They taste better.

BW: What do you think of CollegeBoard?

AC: It sucks, although; I’m not too bad on AP [Physics] B, because it covers a lot of topics. All of the teachers will say, “Well that’s too many topics. We oughta cut that down.” That’s algebra-based physics and there’s an AP test for that.

BW: Do you have anything else you’d like to say?

AC: You know what I tell parents? This is not just a good school, this is a great school. Not every class is good, not every teacher is great, but any student who wishes to learn has an opportunity, everyday, to learn something. When you guys walk in here everyday, I’m proud to be up front. I take it as a huge, huge responsibility.

You know I really am awed by the responsibility of standing up there and teaching something this complicated to this many bright people and not having Mr. Howard get 14 phone calls from irate parents every day. Mr. Howard’s not getting those phone calls, so I must be doing something right, and yet I’m not like any of the other science teachers.

BW: What do you think it is that you’re doing right?

AC: I’m giving them content without silliness, and that I don’t make people fit into boxes. I’m not sitting there saying, “Well you guys have to have some more partners.” How you work is entirely your business.

The internationally acclaimed Sanyo band made quite an impression on the Garfield population in their short time here, performing twice at Garfield events, once for the entire school.

“The Sanyo band was better than a Sanyo TV!” says junior violinist Steven Li. Most members of the group don’t speak a word of English, but their music hit deep, proving once and for all that music is a language of its own.

Farewell 999

Herman “we need a leader not a reader” Cain recently announced his decision to suspend his campaign for the Republican primary race for the presidency. Plagued by sex scandals for months, the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza quoted the end credits of the Pokemon movie during his announcement in an effort to encourage his followers to stay strong: “Life can be a challenge, life can seem impossible, but it’s never easy when there’s so much on the line.” It’s not the first time Herman Cain has been inspired by Pokemon as he’s certainly applied the phrase “gotta catch ‘em all” to his private life. BOOM!!!

∫e^x

Our elite mathematicians made Garfield proud at the state math competition in Moses Lake, with Gabe Lesnick winning the individual state competition, while the entire team took the gold in the elite group division. “Everyone knows Garfield is really smart, but it’s good that we validated it,” says junior Tavish Fenbert. We were represented by the fearsome foursome of Ed Strong, Grant Bronsdon, Gabe Lesnick, and Kenneth Truong. Watch out ladies, these guys can derive more than just numbers.

Dealz

The historic Kalakala ferry, a vessel which nobly served Seattlites for over thirty years until 1967, has been put on sale for one dollar by its owner. It’s been docked in Tacoma since leaving our own Lake Union a few years ago, and is now beginning to sink. Though the current owner will not sell the boat without a promise to renovate it, Garfield junior Steven Li is one prospective buyer. “The Kalakala is an integral part of our history” he says. All of this for the same price as a McChicken, though it likely has a shorter shelf life.

No Russian

The negative stereotypes that have plagued Russia for years have come true in their latest “democratic” election, in which allegations of massive corruption and voter fraud have led to some of the largest protests of Vladimir Putin’s long reign as prime minister. His United Russian Party received suspicious votes throughout the country; in Moscow alone, they received 46 percent, despite only getting 27 percent in exit polls. My only personal experience with Russia is through the COD games, and this is certainly not helping their rep.

Celina Jackson: How do you remember Garfield students?

Michael Erickson: Well, after my first year, Garfield elected its first black student body president. Even though the school had a black majority for years, a white minority had continued to dominate elective office. Students spun 45’s during lunch hour, playing Motown hits. The dances, everything changed. It was a wild, dangerous, exciting time, and I’m glad I was there to witness it.

CJ: How did the Civil Rights Movement affect your own high school experience and the experience of other Garfield students during this time?

ME: The Civil Rights Movement had a huge impact on Garfield and the entire community. There were racial incidents both within the school and at home and away sporting events. Garfield teams and students were sometimes not well treated at away games. I can remember incidents in Ballard and West Seattle that were shameful.

Certainly, the tensions and antagonisms that were manifested in the nation were present in the school. Violent incidents on school grounds were common and led to an atmosphere that was sometimes tense.

In the spring of my first year, I remember standing in the journalism classroom and seeing a car pull up to the high school. Several young men got out of the car with baseball bats and entered Garfield. They went through the school hunting down several white students and beating them with the baseball bats. Within days most of the school’s white students had left, never to come back. A couple years later I talked to some of the students who had left Garfield. From what I could piece together, the attacks were drug related and not racial in origin. But at the time people viewed the attacks as racially motivated. White flight.

CJ: What was the school day like?

ME: My best classes were in history and political science. Garfield had some of the best faculty in those areas. I was at Garfield for 2.5 years, the fall of 1966 to January 1969. With the Civil Rights struggle going on as well as the Vietnam War and the sexual and cultural revolution happening, there was a lot to explore and talk about. Our class discussions were intense and vital to say the least. Nobody was sleeping.

A lot of students did leave the campus to eat. Some went to the Bulldog Drive In across the street.

CJ: How were the sports teams?

ME: Garfield always had excellent teams, particularly football and basketball.

CJ: What kind of reputation did Garfield have throughout the rest of Seattle? What was the quality of education like?

ME: Garfield’s rep had taken a nosedive by the time I got there. It had been a highly regarded school, but by the late 60’s things began to change. Very few students wanted to go there. People who were in the Garfield district used a number of ruses to get themselves assigned to Franklin, Queen Anne, Lincoln, and other schools.

There were no AP classes, but Garfield did have new academic program called Phasing that started when I started at the school. Students were sorted by skill level into 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th Phases, 4th being the highest. If you were in a Phase 3 algebra class and did well, you might get promoted to a 4 class during the semester., so there were these periodic shuffles of classes. It quickly became obvious that there was a racial fall out of the classes that looked bad. It became a form of academic Apartheid. After two years it was abandoned.

A magnet program in fine arts was started to attract more white students to the school. It had a limited amount of success. By the time I left, Garfield had lost a number of strong teachers. New teachers would come and last a year (sometimes not even that long).

CJ: How was your experience on Messenger staff? 

ME: There was a great sense of camaraderie working on the paper. The older students really helped the younger students learn how to assemble and put out the paper. Miss Yates, our advisor, was an incredible and inspiring teacher. We were not only learning the art and craft of journalism, but also social responsibility. Miss Yates encouraged us to explore and investigate in our writing.

I covered sports events, wrote features and profiles, and wrote news articles. I covered a draft resister’s trial in the Federal Courthouse,  and I was even thrown out of Federal Court one time for not standing when the judge entered. I interviewed members of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) on the UW campus. I even interviewed the Chief of Police at the time about the Seattle Police response to rioting in the Central Area. My status as a reporter for the paper got me into a lot of places I would never have had access to otherwise.

When our stories got too political for the school administration to tolerate, Jennifer Jones, Christine Skeels and I started a miniature version of the Messenger that we typed up and ran off on a mimeograph machine in a closet on the third floor of the high school. It was our version of an underground press.

CJ: What was your best memory of the time you spent at Garfield?

ME: Definitely working on the Messenger staff.

“This isn’t an article so much as it is a cheap, shallow attack on BHS. You make a lot of poor points, such as you say ‘when something like a fight happens, it is never just one team’s fault. Especially against Ballard, when it’s always their fault.’ The last part basically contradicts what you said about how fights aren’t just one teams fault.

YOU WEREN’T EVEN THERE! What business do you have ranting about how much you hate BHS for something that you didn’t even see?”
–Drew Powell, Ballard, commenter on Messenger Website

“I like how it says that The Seattle Times was really biased towards Ballard and how wrong that was, but then her article was written in complete bias towards Garfield.”
–Nick Nestingen, Roosevelt

“Beat the Beaver” was placed in the op/ed portion of the Sports section, printed in the format that accompanies subjective articles. As an opinion piece, it represents only the opinion of the writer, and not the viewpoint or policies of the Garfield Messenger.

When Annie wrote: “it’s always their fault”, this was an exaggerated punchline, not a suggestion of truth. While we agree that “Beat the Beavers” was far from unbiased, the writing was done in a satirical way. See: “we are better at everything, including sportsmanship.”

That being said, many students from Ballard were offended by the content, and we would like to use this opportunity to extend a hand of cross-town brotherhood to our friends in red and black. It was glib, and the humor wasn’t worth the harm it caused.

Here are some other responses:

“It was directed towards an audience of Garfield students, to talk about the fight that took place at the football game. In the process [Annie] made fun of Ballard in an over the top way that was meant to be taken as sarcasm. I guess if you think high school rivalries are inappropriate you could argue that this isn’t okay, but you have said just as many bad things about Garfield in this thread alone.”
–Haley McFarland, Garfield

“I don’t think anyone at Garfield actually cares, and then there’s this girl.”
–Jeanne Currie, Ballard

“Nobody from Garfield took this seriously because we knew that we had lost and it was just for entertainment, and that’s why so many people are saying you need to relax and understand sarcasm.”
–John Trupin, Garfield

“You mentioned that your school is better than Ballard in every way, but just a quick question, who won the game? Ballard? Oh yeah. I guess being better means losing.”
–Jon, commenter on Messenger Website

“Was this article poorly written? Yes. Was it overly harsh and somewhat rude? Yes. Was it meant in jest? Yes. I get why you’re mad, but please remember that it was written with a Garfield audience in mind and it wasn’t meant to be offensive (although it turned out to be).”
–Grant Bronsdon, Garfield

“Wow, one Facebook message to one player, very in-depth journalism. Maybe someday you’ll become a tabloid magazine journalist.”
–Anonymous Comment on Messenger website.

“It is a big movement,” said Darren. “It doesn’t have a central message because there are a lot of little things screwing a lot of lives up.”

For Garfield teacher Jesse Hagopian, one of these “little things” is public education. A prominent participant in the Occupy Seattle movement, Hagopian has given numerous speeches advocating for education and conducted a teach-in at Chase Bank where he tried to educate the bank’s employees about their effect on the economy.

“We dared them to open the doors and face the truth. Like some of the most difficult students however, they’re having a hard time listening,” said Hagopian at a Chase Bank protest on October 29.

“But as an educator, I believe that all children can learn.”

To the delight of a growing crowd, Hagopian went on to discuss how the  lack of income tax in Washington State hurts the poor. According to Hagopian and other teachers at the protest, the wealthiest 1 percent of Washington pays only 2.3 percent of their annual income in sales tax, while the poorest 20 percent are forced to pay nearly 17.5 percent.

Like Hagopian, many people are frustrated with society and have turned to the Occupy movements around the country to affect change. The Occupy Seattle effort parallels other grassroots groups that have sprung up around the nation to protest the growing wealth gap between the 99ers and the wealthiest 1 percent of the nation.

99ers, as they are called, represent the 99 percent of society that has been hurt by bank bailouts and the faltering economy.

“Workers are the 99 percent, we are the 99 percent,” shouted the Occupy Seattle crowd.

Since the protests began in September, occupiers have hosted many different events to address the plethora of issues at hand. Currently, many of these occupiers are living outside Seattle Central Community College in a small tent city.

Filled with makeshift shelters, the encampment hosts a kitchen, an information booth, and a medicine store to help occupiers survive the cold winter months. These amenities will likely increase the longevity of the movement  and allow occupiers to protest through 2017, as their website suggests.

Arriving just before 2 p.m. on Wednesday, November 2, we were swept into the crowd of protesters already gathered on the corner of Pike and Broadway. Some held signs reading “Bail the people out. Tax the 1 percent.” Others chanted into megaphones, “Hey hey ho ho capitalism has got to go.”

Flanked by policemen and walking in front of oncoming traffic, we marched with the procession north on Broadway towards the Chase Bank. Here the crowd stopped to occupy the bank and congregate around its entrances.

Later we learned that five people had arrived earlier at the bank to lie on the floor in protest. With the expectation of getting arrested, these protesters believed their efforts would help bring more attention to the 99ers’ cause.

“We, independent members of the occupy Seattle movement, are occupying this Chase Bank to interrupt business as usual. We are here to show you that the polished, sanitized spaces of our day to day lives are places of horror,” read a protester named Carson from the occupiers’ statement.

As police barred entrance to the bank, the occupiers continued to chant, accusing Chase Bank CEO Jamie Dimon of “committing crimes against the people.”

“Are you going to arrest Dimon?” demanded some.

Later that evening, Garfield parent Jayne Foy was participating in a different protest against Jamie Dimon when she was brutally forced out of the Sheraton for atempting to listen to Dimon’s speech. Others were pepper sprayed by police who were attempting to clear an entrance to the hotel, and six were arrested. Foy was removed from the premises for not having a name tag.

“I felt it was so ironic that he was receiving a leadership award,” says Foy. “I just wanted to hear his speech.”

Foy says that it was her interest in non-violent civil disobedience that drew her into the Occupy Seattle movement. She hopes to get trained in de-escalating crowd aggression and other important aspects of non-violent protest.

“You have to know which rules you can break, and which are not worth fighting,” she says.

Former Garfield student Fiona Gaffey has attended many Occupy Seattle events over the last few weeks and was protesting outside Chase Bank with her family.

“I think it’s very important for our future to be present here,” says Gaffey. “The biggest concern is fixing the economy in ways everyone can benefit from. We are stuck until the wealth is a little more balanced out.”

Gaffey argues that educating ourselves is the first step to making our contribution to the Occupy movements.

“Young people need to be aware of what’s going on,” she says, “even if they don’t actively participate.”

In addition to the many protests that occupiers hold, they also host General Assembly meetings to discuss issues related to the movement. These public assemblies are held nightly to organize the Seattle chapter through discussions, presentations, and education in non-violent civil disobedience.

However, Garfield student Asher Wycoff feels the movement lacks effectiveness. “The specificity of some of the points makes the overall message a little unaccessable for high school students,” says Wycoff.

Though many high school students may not feel connected to the occupy movement, Hagopian believes that we will nonetheless experience its effects.

“As college tuition rises to make higher education out of reach for many, an increasing number of students are demanding that our society put the needs of youth before war funding and Wall Street bailouts,” says Hagopian.

Hagopian and other occupiers are committed to improving our society and say they will return to Chase until their message is heard.

“The people are too big to fail,” says Hagopian.