Author: empireposts

With Election Day just around the corner—New Yorkers will have the opportunity to vote in various congressional races, the presidential election, and the Senate election. Additionally, they will face an often-overlooked decision on the ballot: whether to support or oppose Proposition 1. Proposition 1, also known as the New York Equal Rights Amendment, proposes the following: – Establishment of constitutional protections against discrimination – Protection of abortion rights and access to reproductive healthcare, including birth control and IVF – Safeguarding the rights of LGBTQ+ New Yorkers – Protection of older, disabled, pregnant, and LGBTQ+ individuals – Ensuring access for older and disabled New Yorkers – Prevention of discrimination against all individuals Opponents of Proposition 1 present several arguments against it: They contend that the wording of Proposition 1, specifically the phrase “any such class is granted equal protection of the laws,” is ambiguous and could lead to various interpretations. Critics warn that the amendment’s provision against discrimination based on “national origin” might create confusion and open the door to loopholes that could be exploited to advance specific agendas. One prominent concern is that the proposal could be used to grant noncitizens the right to vote. Additionally, there is controversy surrounding the possibility that this legislation might allow biological males to compete in women’s sports, according to critics of the proposition. Finally, detractors argue that the act is unnecessary, as protections for LGBTQ+ individuals and abortion rights have already been established and remain in effect in the state. I invite the reader to draw their own conclusions, as the implications of these decisions can be far-reaching. Elections have consequences that extend beyond the immediate ballot choices, and propositions like this one—though often overlooked amid the excitement and attention given to more high-profile races—deserve careful consideration and scrutiny. It is essential to recognize that every vote contributes to shaping the future and that seemingly minor measures can have significant impacts on our rights and freedoms. Thus, I encourage a thoughtful examination of these issues so that informed choices can be made, ensuring that all voices are heard in the democratic process.  

Article written by editor in chief Benjamin Dominguez – Volpe   As the 2024 election cycle heats up, many Americans find themselves grappling with a disheartening reality regarding the candidates they have to choose from at the ballot box. The candidates vying for office from both the Republican and Democratic parties often seem to misrepresent voters’ ideologies. Voter dissatisfaction is palpable, with polls indicating that a significant portion of the electorate feels trapped between two unappealing choices. In the presidential election, which is undoubtedly the most anticipated election in November, it is clear that undecided voters and independent voters are the ones left out in the cold the most. Both candidates have shown they would rather continue to appeal to their base and wait for undecided voters to flock to the lesser of two “evils” than to reach out and attempt to appeal to the crucial voters who will ultimately decide who occupies the White House for the next four years. For Republicans, the problem is more visible in statewide races than in the presidential ticket. A common notion since roughly late 2021 is that a majority of voters are dissatisfied with the Biden administration, and Republicans were able to capitalize on that dissatisfaction in statewide elections, such as the race for governor of Virginia in 2021. However, in the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans let one of their biggest opportunities to take back the House and the Senate by large margins slip away, resulting in a razor-thin House majority. The President had been suffering from record disapproval, and Republicans were poised to take back both legislative chambers and leave President Biden in a bind. What happened? The answer is simple, the lack of adequate candidates. Two notable statewide candidates who ran as Republicans in 2022 were a television doctor and a football player, both of whom ran in elections that could have most likely been won by any other nominee. However, they fumbled the chance and handed Democrats the Senate. While not as significant an issue as it was in 2022, candidate quality remains a concern. For Democrats, their strategy revolves around changing the narrative. In an era where the incumbent Democratic President, Joe Biden, is still widely disapproved of, the current Vice President, who is part of this unpopular administration, is trying to distance herself from the controversies surrounding it. Harris is attempting to convince voters that she is a completely different person and that, if elected, she will accomplish great things for the country. Many of the promises she and Joe Biden made four years ago are being repackaged and used again as talking points for the upcoming election. If messaging is truly the key to success for Democrats, then they are not exactly excelling at it. Rhetoric from former President Barack Obama serves as a perfect example of this. Obama pressured and shamed a voter bloc they are trying to court—Black male voters—by guilt-tripping them into voting for Harris. Obama emphasized that reluctance to vote for Harris was coming from “the brothers” (meaning black male voters) with his exact quote being as follows: “Part of it makes me think that, well, you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that,” While there must be some reasoning behind this approach, it is safe to say that it does not appeal to undecided voters. Ultimately, both the statewide and nationwide elections will likely be decided by a slim margin, regardless of which party ends up winning. While most voters have already made up their minds, it will be that crucial handful of undecided voters who determine which party controls the executive and legislative branches on Election Day. The narrative that will sway the election in favor of one candidate or the other is still unknown. However, if one had to guess, a strong narrative would likely consist of a candidate tapping into the majority of voters’ disapproval of the current administration, the less-than-stellar economy, the crisis at the southern border that has funneled illegal immigrants into the country, and the U.S.’s standing abroad regarding our involvement in foreign wars and our ability to project strength on the world stage

Article written by Katherin Jaen 7th grade Much is at stake in the upcoming elections, control of the house of representatives, control of the senate and the most awaited edition : control of the presidency. Empire Posts took an oppotunity we were given very recently to visit and tour some of the buildings that run this country amidst the upcoming election cycle. While in Washington DC area we got the opportunity to pay a visit to Arlington Cementery where we got a reminder of how much our men and women in the armed forces do for us all throughout different time periods all to secure the safety of the union. We also got to see up close the final resting place of 3 Kennedy brothers which included John, Robert and Ted Kennedy and the final resting place of former President William Howard Taft. We also got a look at the famous changing of the guards at the tomb of the unknown soldier. A day later Empire Posts were able to get a tour of the U.S Capitol Building through a congressman’s internal office. The tour led us through the capitol rotunda, the old senate floor, and a limited but clear view of the current house and senate floor where some of the most significant legislation has been passed, the true heart of the country and decision maker in terms of economic, crime and educational issues among many others. An outside view of the department of education gave Empire Posts a glimpse of the building where America’s educational system is run. Returning to the intial theme of this article, with the elections coming up a visit to the capitol city reminded us of all of what was at stake this election, control of the legislative and executive branch and indirectly control of these smaller yet equally significanr departments that make up the president’s cabinet, Empire Posts will be there to cover the elections every step of the way. BELOW ARE PHOTOS EXCLUSIVELY TAKEN BY EMPIRE POSTS IN AREAS WE WERE ALLOWED TO PHOTOGRAPH

Article written by Richard Perez, 8th grade Just a few weeks ago America witnessed what had the potential to be a history altering event, Former President Donald Trump was inches away from becoming the first Presidential nominee to ever be assassinated mid election, and the fifth president to ever be assassinated. This event sparked a question within the Empire Posts’ organization : could tragedies and near tragedies like the one that occured a few weeks ago be preventable had the perpetrator recieved mental help through parental and societal means?  While much is still unknown over Thomas Matthew Crooks (the man that tried to assassinate Donald Trump), some information on his parents tells us that they were social workers, while potential mental health problems could be to blame the parents once again come into question : what exactly did they know about their son’s mental health status, if no clear indicators of mental illness where shown then how present were the parents in this person’s life? Could this near tragedy have been avoided if it wasn’t for a lack of concern by the parents?  While this near tragedy is yet to get a difinitive answer, Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook shooter presents a perfect example of the question we are trying to present. Lanza had a troubled upbringing with limited parental supervision and support, particularly after his parent’s divorce. This lack of parental presence and guidance has been cited as a contributing factor in his severe mental health issues and eventual violent actions which resulted in the tragic deaths of 26 people including 20 children. It is quite obvious reading about this person’s life that the right parental guidance could’ve led to him recieving mental help and preventing the nationwide tragedy that occured that day.  As a popular saying goes – “It takes a village”, it takes multiple different people and precisely the right guidance for a decent human being to be raised, when either the school system, a social services system or the guidance and supervision of a parent is cut off then a severe risk is being taken in the upbringing of a child. So, tell us what you think : could the crime rate in this country be reduced with the simple help of social services or parental intervention?

Written by Maggie Johnson, 9th grade America’s judicial system was mapped out by our founders to be one of total impartiality, a system that can be relied on to settle cases in the correct manner. However, now more than ever in recent history, people are beginning to question how exactly unbaised is the judicial system, not the system itself, but those who run it. Most of these questions have been brought up by the trial of Former President Donald Trump, who was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records which is a felony in New York. Regardless of your opinion about the Former President it is important to take into account some strange circumstances in which the trial was held. One example includes the location, New York and specifically New York City is known to be a heavily Democratic stronghold, therefore it already raises a suspicion about the jury’s possible bias. Another example includes the judge himself, a self described Democrat it is clear that doubt over how exactly impartial this case isn’t exactly unreasonable. A recent talking point that does bring up an interesting question is “if they can do this to a multimillionare who also served as President what could they do to a regular American who might not have the credentials or the money to defend himself?” This case does beg one final question, how hard exactly would it have been for the trial to be held in an impartial state or even just an impartial county in New York with an impartial judge where any rulling against the Former President could be easily respected without any possible ammunition for doubt? The judicial system is supposed to be one that is completely impartial, blind of who you are, however many are questioning how fair exactly was this trial?

Written by Emily Thompson, 12th grade On Sunday April 29, 2024, we sent out an Empire Posts representative to a local rally for Independent Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Our media outlet had a goal of interviewing a presidential candidate in 2024 and interview one we did. Our representative reported that after about an hour long speech by Mr Kennedy he took to the photo line where with the press pass in hand he intented on completing Empire Post’s task at hand. Getting to ask Mr Kennedy at least one question.  Our Empire Post representative was granted backstage access thanks to the press pass which allowed them to meet Mr Kennedy. Knowing his views on issues such as vaccines, we decided to ask him a question regarding vaccine mandates in our schools. Across the country, including New York, many families have decided to pull their children out of the school system because of the mandates. Our question for him went as follows  “As a candidate for the presidency, what is your stance on vaccine mandates in our schools, something that has caused many parents to opt their children out of the school system” Mr Kennedy responded by saying the following  “I think the whole thing with Covid, vaccine mandates and the closing of schools should never have happened. Parents should be able to make their own decisions on their children’s health. I am against the mandates, it is hurting our children and our education system and it is against our values.” Stay tuned for more interviews and articles on the Empire Posts website, with elections at the federal and local level kicking off we will have interviews coming soon with many of the candidates in these state and local elections. Our Empire Post representative was able to get ann interview with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Article written by Madelyn Thompson, 8th grade One of the most important avenues to our wellbeing, which is medicine, is facing trouble in the United States with a report by the AAMC written as of March 21st 2024, showing continuing projected physician shortages in the U.S. In addition, the engineering and architectural sector is also facing challenges with the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting that a third of new engineering roles are unfilled and architecture leaders face a resource shortage with 10 to 20 open positions for every available architect One may be asking, why are we bringing in all these seemingly foreign topics in an article regarding America’s educational system? The answer is simple, Engineering, Architecture, Computer Science, Medicine, it all goes back to core educational subjects including math and science! We’ve all seen the statistics, the United States ranks number 1 in education in the world, however while compared to other countries this may be true, these statistics fail to highlight the large cracks on the surface of a seemingly “high quality” educational system. Research sites that the United States has a number of students from more socio-economically advantaged backgrounds meaning that American students are generally better off compared to their counterparts in the average OECD country. However, the US has many educational problems including but not limited to the following :  Standardized testing – “Critics argue that standardized testing is one of the biggest problems in American education, suggesting that the pressure to produce high test scores leads to a teach-to-the-test approach and reduced focus on non-tested subjects like art and music.”Unequal distribution of school funding – “property taxes are the primary source of funding for public schools but this method disproportionally benefits wealthier communities.” Other problems with our educational system include Overcrowding of classrooms Outdated textbooks and inadequate supplies School safety Disciplinary policies Common Core Teacher salaries Lack of proper funding technological challenges in education Violence in schools   An often overlooked solution to some of the problems listed above which is often used in the special education system is a peer to peer teaching system where younger students excelling in their own class have the option to tutor students of their own age who may not be advancing at the required rate. As I close out this article I will leave you the reader with a few more overlooked solution that could be a step in the right direction for fixing our broken educational system. Homeschooling, an alternative that many choose voluntarily and others in some states, are forced to choose due to vaccine mandates would be a way to alleviate overcrowding and level out the teacher-student ratio. Addressing the lack of adequate funding in the educational system is key to solving our broken education system because higher wages should promote more competent teachers filling the void of vacancies due to low salaries, where would this money come from? We pay taxes on everything, so aside from our property taxes we should have a choice where our taxes go, in this case education.

Article written by Vivek Khan, 7th grade On June 13th 2019, just a few months prior to the Coronavirus outbreak (that would go on to change the course of the world significantly), the religious exemption to the requirement that children be vaccinated against diseases to attend either public, private or parochial school (for students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade) was removed. The removal of this exemption meant that children attending public, private or parochial school could no longer be exempt from being given vaccines for illnesses such as measles. With that exemption now null and void, a bill to shield the MEDICAL exemption from facing the same fate as the religious exemption has been put forward by New York State Senator Monica Martinez (D-Suffolk County).This bill, formally named (S7168), aims to protect the medical exemption from vaccine mandates by restoring the clear intention of the letter of law. As well as make sure that the medical judgement of a child’s physician prevails ensuring that their decision will not be overridden by school or public health authorities. It is important to note that New York has the lowest rate of medical exemptions of any state with roughly 1 in 1000 students recieving it according to the CDC. S7168 would take school administrators and the NYS and NYC departments of health out of the decision making process placing it wholly under the control of the attending physician. As this article is written, this bill is still active meaning a decision on the bill’s fate has not yet been made, with that in mind we at Empire Post urge anyone living in New York to contact their local State Senator and ask them to vote in favor of bill S7168.