Orange And Black

On January 27, GameStop’s stock price rose to $347.51 due to a reddit group pushing a message to buy it up.

The primary reason for GameStop's sharp increase in price was primarily due to a Redditt group called r/wallstreetbets. The slew of individual investors decided to focus their buying powers and short squeeze the stock. A short squeeze occurs when there is a lack of supply and an excess of demand for a stock. This “squeeze” forces the price to go up which makes short sellers mad because they make money off a stock’s decline which GameStop’s stock was in the decline for a while until this sharp rise.

A young adult who knows much about this market situation Jesse Talyor said, “The GameStop stock going up revealed the true nature of stock apps such as Robinhood and their true intentions. As long as you’re rich you can manipulate the market against others, but as soon as the market is manipulated against them for once they get angry and start claiming the same stuff they do is bad and illegal when others do it.” This is true in the sense that it revealed that this market can be manipulated by anyone. It’s not just the “higher-ups” that can do it, it’s anybody. This whole situation led to big losses with hedge funds investors. Hedge fund are people who use high risk methods to make money in the market i.e., the short sellers.

Robinhood, as Jesse mentioned above, is a 100% free commission stock trading app that most of the GameStop’s stock was traded on in this short squeeze. Due to all the conflict and the fact that the higher ups lost a lot of money Robinhood, restricted the trading of GameStop's stock, as well as other stocks that this group planned to go for next. They only allowed investors to sell the stock not buy or trade. Which this forced people who held the stock to sell because eventually the price would go down because nobody can buy it.

MHS student Cannon Evans stated, “GameStop stock price was fun to view from the outside. Though, purposely crashing the market is unsafe. This is a sign that the internet can take control of something quickly, and I’m interested to see when they’ll strike again.” This group of people is very interesting in that they basically just had a mass coordination to buy up that one stock. Then again, a lot of people lost money because of this because they didn’t hop on this “trend” sooner. This group may have been stopped in their tracks from apps such as Robinhood, but they are still a very dangerous group that can heavily influence the market with acts such as this.

Joe Biden’s executive orders have the potential to impact all Americans. The executive orders have covered the topics of climate change, immigration, rebuilding, medical insurance, new COVID-19 safety implications, workforce protection, preventing discrimination of gender identity or sexual orientation, and racial justice. These new executive orders have raised lots of question from the public. Questions directly toward the number of executive orders signed in the short time and what the executive orders stand for.

Joe Biden has signed 30 executive orders in his one month of presidency. In the first two weeks in office, he had signed 28 executive orders. According to NPR broadcast, “In his first two weeks, President Biden has signed more executive orders than most recent presidents did in their first month. He has signed nearly as many executive orders as Franklin Roosevelt did in his record-breaking first month.” The recent presidents' executive orders in the first two weeks were, Donald Trump with 12, Barack Obama with 16, and George W. Bush with seven. Joe Biden has signed more executive orders compared to most presidents in the past.

Joe Bidens executive orders consist of many new important policies. Biden’s new orders for immigration are EO 14012: Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans, EO 14011: Establishment of Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families, and EO 14010: Creating a Comprehensive Regional Framework To Address the Causes of Migration, To Manage Migration Throughout North and Central America, and To Provide Safe and Orderly Processing of Asylum Seekers at the United States Border. These orders help immigrants to be able to have help and come to the U.S. safely (https://www.federalregister.gov/). Immigrant representation was his most urgent policy and he stated after the signing, “We are going to work to undo the moral and national shame of the previous administration that literally, not figuratively, ripped children from the arms of their families,” Biden said, as he signed the three immigration-related executive orders at the White House. New orders also target American workers and soldiers to have opportunities, fair treatment, and protection for all. These include EO 14005:Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All of America's Workers, EO 14004: Enabling All Qualified Americans To Serve Their Country in Uniform, EO 14003:Protecting the Federal Workforce, and EO 13999:Protecting Worker Health and Safety. Many other executive orders were signed for the effects of Covid-19 and healthy. Biden also made orders to protect minorities from discrimination through workplace, military, and services.

Joe Biden has made lots of new and improved changes to American policies. Many of the new policies will help struggling Americans. Biden’s executive orders have also been the most out of any president in two weeks of presidency. The new executive orders contain a lot of important information for all Americans to know. These orders will make a big impact on all Americans no matter the race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion. The orders are in place to help with the protection of everyone and individual groups. The executive orders will have a big place in the history of the United States.

Black History month was created by black teachers and students at Kent State University in February 1969. The first celebration was held from January 2 to February 28, 1970. This was a big step for African Americans to have a dedicated month all about how far they have come and how much they have achieved.

There are many people who have also helped with getting the black people to where they are now. People like Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Malcom X, Jackie Robinson, Ruby Bridges, and so many more. Thanks to these brave people who have took chances and used their voices so that blacks can have the freedom that they have today. There are so many people that haven’t really been recognized for what they have done like Ella Baker, who was one of the main people behind the civil rights movement. She has never been talked about because she didn't do something that, according to history deserves attention. Another person is Bobby Seale, who was the political activist during the Black Panther party but yet still he is never talked about. These are some of the people that had an impact on how blacks are treated today.

We have one of the biggest black history locations right in our backyard, Harpers Ferry in Jefferson County, West Virginia. One of the main events that happened there was the John Brown raid because he was trying to free all the slaves in the south because he believed that they are people not property. During the fight 16 people died including 10 of Brown’s men . John Brown, Aaron Stevens, Edwin Coppoc, Shields Green, and John Copeland were taken to jail.

Harpers Ferry also has the jail where they held the slaves who broke the law and they have signs with the rules and the enlistment papers. They have the very first black college and the very first black cemetery. They have the place where the first black church was at before it got burned down and the second one they built. They have the place where the slaves were sold and where the white people owned the slave market. They have a slave house and it shows how they lived and what the living arrangements were. You can go into one of the buildings and you can see where the slaves lived and where the masters house was. You can see the Potomac river where the boats that contained the slaves would dock.

You can learn a lot from Harpers Ferry and all of the history that has occurred there.

The 2nd Impeachment trial of former President Donald J. Trump transpired from February 9th through the 13th. The purpose of the trial was to determine whether the former President was guilty or not guilty of the Article of Impeachment passed by the House of Representatives. The House's article of impeachment centered around the former President’s actions in the months preceding and on January 6th that incited a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

On January 9th, the House Managers and Trump's defense attorneys argued whether the impeachment trial was unconstitutional or constitutional. A key part of the President's attorneys’ and supporters' opposition was that the Senate Impeachment trial was unconstitutional because the President was no longer in office . According to House Manager, Joe Neguse, “If Congress were to just too stand completely aside in the face of such and extraordinary crime against the republic, it would invite future presidents to use their power without any fear of accountability. Presidents can’t inflame insurrection in their final weeks and then walk away like nothing happened.” To resolve this issue, the senate decided to have a vote on the constitutionality of the trial. The bipartisan vote of 56-44 decided the trial was indeed constitutional, meaning that the senate had jurisdiction to impeach Trump even though he is out of office.

The House Managers had Wednesday and Thursday to prove why Trump should be convicted of inciting a violent insurrection. The House Managers showed the senators many of Trump's tweets and speeches from the before and after the election and on January 6th. The managers highlighted Trump’s baseless and repeated claims of a fraudulent election and his constant encouragement of supporters to fight to “stop the steal” and “take back your country”. The House Managers showed Trump supporters reading Trump’s tweets during the insurrection to try and prove that Trump incited violence and that the insurrectionists were there because Trump told them to be and that they were actively responding to the former president’s words. The House Managers also showed videos of people storming the capitol on January 6th and explained and showed senators timelines of what happened on January 6th after Trump’s speech at the White House. House Managers even showed videos of how close the rioters in the Capitol were to people like Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Mitt Romney. They also showed all the people Trump attacked and threatened from state voting officials, senators, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensburger, Nancy Piolosi, and Vice President Mike Pence. According to House Manager Joaquin Castro “Mike Pence is not a traitor to this country - he is a patriot. He and his family, who was with him that day, didn’t deserve a president unleashing a mob on them. Especially because he was doing his job.

On Friday, Trump’s defense attorneys had the opportunity to prove that former President Trump was not guilty and should be acquitted. The attorneys argued that the impeachment trial violated Trump’s due process because the vote to impeach was rushed through the House of Representatives. According to Trump Defense Attorney David Schoen “The rush to judgement for a snap impeachment in this case was just one example of the denial of due process”. Also Trump’s defense team argued that the trial was still unconstitutional even though on the first day of the trial the senate voted and declared it was constitutional. The defense also showed a video of democrats saying the word fight to prove that others encourage violence as well. The defense then argued that Trump encouraged peaceful protest on January 6th. According to Trump Defense Attorney Bruce Castor Jr. “But here, the president’s speech called for peaceful protest”.

The final day of the Impeachment trial was on Saturday, February 13th. The House Managers and Trump's Defense Team got to lay out their closing statements and answer questions about information and evidence that they went over in the trial. The House Managers continued to try and prove to the senators that Trump incited a violent insurrection. According to House Manager Jamie Rasken “Trump’s refusal to not only send help, but also continue to further incite the insurgence against his own vice president, provides further decisive evidence of both his intent to start this violent insurrection and his continued incitement once the attack began to override the Capitol”. Then Trump's defense team tried to dispute every point the House Managers made in the Impeachment Trial. “At no point did you hear anything that could ever possibly be construed as Mr. Trump encouraging or sanctioning an insurrection. The act of incitement never happened. He engaged in no language of incitement whatsoever on Jan. 6 or any other day following the election.” said Trump Defense Attorney Michael van der Veen.

In conclusion, the Senate voted on Saturday whether to convict or acquit the 45th President of the United States of America Donald J. Trump. The vote was 57-43 in favor of convicting former President Trump, but that did not meet the two-thirds needed for conviction. A number of Republicans believed that Trump was guilty, but they still thought the trial was unconstitutional. “Former President Trump’s actions that preceded the riot were a disgraceful dereliction of duty. Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the mob” said Republican Senate Minority leader Mitch Mcconnell. Mitch Mcconnel still voted to acquit Trump because he felt it was unconstitutional. Even though Trump was acquitted it was still the most bipartisan impeachment votes ever in both the U.S. House and Senate ever.

Taco Loco is a new Mexican restaurant that has recently opened in The Commons here in Martinsburg. I am here to answer any questions you may have about this new local establishment, such as the atmosphere, prices, and overall taste of the food.

I must say Taco Loco pegs an eight out of ten for the taste of the food. I ordered the fish and shrimp tacos and they were both cooked near perfection. All of the toppings tasted amazing as well, the corn, the sour cream, and the salsa were outstanding. They offer other options such as chicken, carnitas, and steak. Taco Loco provides with you great taste, but is the bang worth your buck?

Where Taco Loco excels in taste, I’m not entirely sure if the price is on the same level. For twelve dollars you can get four small tacos, which compared to other Mexican-style restaurants in the area is not great. Compared to other restaurants in the area, the price is higher but the overall taste and the high quality level of service make up for that higher price.

Another aspect that helps make up for the higher prices is that the atmosphere in there is nice. They play music while you eat, which is always a plus in my book, and the décor on the walls are pleasant on the eyes. The atmosphere adds to the experience and in my opinion allows me to enjoy the food a little more.

Taco Loco gets my stamp of approval. But don’t take my word for it, go on out and try it yourself. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

By Haley Stotler

Money makes the world go round, but what happens to those that don’t get it? One of President Joe Bidens’ promises was another stimulus check, but currently it is now Biden VS. GOP plans. This will determine how much everyone gets, if you even do. President Joe Biden wants to send most Americans new stimulus checks $1400 per person, while some senators are instead calling for $1000.

Research shows that the average payment per household is $2,273 under Biden’s plan, versus what the GOP proposal, which would be $982. 10 Republican Senators have proposed their own stimulus plan. Their plan would cost $618 billion, instead of Joe Bidens $1.9 trillion plan, but would it really be as effective? The GOP package would also reduce the size of the next round of stimulus check to be, $1,000 per adult, instead of Biden’s $1,400 per adult. The Tax Foundation’s calculations are being based off the data by the IRS. It does not include the estimated 30 million non-filers, who could be eligible for the payment plans. If the income has stayed the same as the first two rounds of the stimulus, individuals who earn up to $75,000, and married couples who file jointly earning up to $150,000 would be eligible to the full amounts. A single person will get the full amount if you're yearly income is under $75,000. Anything over, will be cut some.

So, who won't get the stimulus check? People who do not file jointly and claim a dependent with an AGI (adjusted gross income) of $150,000 will not be receiving the full amount. If you are a married couple with an AGI of $200,000 or higher, you will not be eligible for the third stimulus. If you are included in the Non-United States citizen by the IRS, you will also not be eligible. However, under Biden’s plan, mixed-status households with at least one family member that has a social security number could be eligible , assuming they meet the other requirements. If you are a nonfiler and typically are not required to file income taxes, you’re probably eligible to receive the stimulus, unless you're missing money from a previous check. As of right now, independent and older college students may be able to get the stimulus package, however that is still in the works and will be determined shortly.

Ian Fleming, a former MHS student, says he hopes Joe Biden plans passes because it will be beneficial to those who need a little more than $1,000. ‘’I feel fine about potentially not being able to receive the stimulus. I really do not need it, and I never got any past ones either’’ Ian states when being asked about how he feels about the new plan.

With the third stimulus still being considered, we can only hope it will benefit all of us and will go out to the people who need it most.

By Amira Gladwell

This year has been challenging for everyone. Due to COVID-19, Berkeley County and many other counties in West Virginia have not been in school since late November. This has been a big impact for students and their learning. I spoke with various people from different backgrounds about how COVID-19 has affected them individually

According to Bryce Kilmer, a private student from St. James, an institute in Hagerstown, Maryland they attend school differently than we do. One week they attend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The following week they attend Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Kilmer, a junior at the institution, shares his thoughts on how he thinks his learning is going.

“Attending St. James this year and even the end of last year, has been complicated. The outbreak of COVID-19 resulted in attending school virtually. In the past, St. James has always had a hands-on and discussion-based approach to schooling and education, however, we were unable to interact in this way. COVID-19 hindered learning for students, like myself, who enjoy the hands-on learning. The ideas that would typically be brought to class by students have simmered away,” said Kilmer.

Another student, Kam Shallis, a sophomore at Martinsburg High School agreed with Kilmer’s statement about “COVID” learning. Kilmer’s ideas were backed up by an article from Economic Policy Institute. According to many studies, while students’ studies in English and reading stayed at a constant, math studies had a bigger factor. Many students’ percentile dropped 5 to 10 points in comparison to students from the previous year. Therefore, what’s really failing students? The teaching or their own work ethic?

According to Tania Cobb, "learning isn't going too great for her in her classroom." Mrs. Cobb is a local first grade teacher at Rosemont Elementary School. Her opinion on how challenging this year has been gives enlightenment to the subject.

“Students have been forced to learn at home with an iPad, which has given teachers a huge undertaking. We have to try to keep kids on level with all the other kids. I have brick kids and click kids, but I always have to try to keep everyone on the same page. The children should be learning a lot more than they are right now, but our goal right now is to try to teach them the skills they need to be successful for the following year. However, you also have the problem of the brick students having a lack of consistency, which equals lack of motivation. Many of the students who have chosen ‘click’ for that short period of time, lacked parental supervision because it was unexpected that they wouldn’t be in school. Very rarely did I have students do their work."

Ms. Cobb continued by saying, "I also have my click students at home. Many parents did not want their children in school for various reasons. I have many children who show up for meetings and do no work or students who are so far below level that the parents do the work for them. These students look like straight A students, yet they do not know their basic sight words.”

This year has been challenging for everyone. There is not one person who is struggling more than the other. However, everyone is just trying to get back to some form of normalcy.

The NASA Mars 2020 mission landed on Wednesday Feb. 18, 2021. This mission was launched from the Florida Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on July 30, 2020 by NASA’s Mars exploration program. The rover Perseverance and robotic helicopter Ingenuity were sent in hope to collect samples, look for habitability, and prepare for humans. This mission was a huge accomplishment for potential future human expeditions to Mars. If you missed the landing or are interested in any updates on Perseverance, you can visit NASA’s website.

The rover will be collecting Martian rock and soil with a drill and store them in tubes. These particles will be analyzed back at Earth for past microbial life. Tests for producing oxygen in Mars’ atmosphere will be conducted for potential astronauts as well. Other environmental conditions such as subsurface water, dust, and terrain are also being observed for future landings. The helicopter, Ingenuity is strapped to Perseverance in hope to be the first powered flight on Mars.

Perseverance was launched on an Atlantis V-541 rocket from Launch Complex 41. Its landing consisted of a parachute and descent vehicle which provided for a precise landing for the heavy rover. Unlike the previous Mars rovers, Perseverance has Terrain-Relative Navigation. This allows the rover to avoid hazardous terrain and for engineers to observe its health. The Mars 2020 mission duration is 687 Earth days or one Mar’s year.

MHS senior Xavier Jenkins stated, “I’m glad that space exploration is again gaining mainstream attention. There is a good chance that Perseverance is a domino that causes more investment into the space exploration we’ve been lacking for years.” While MHS senior Damien Angle stated, “The Perseverance rover landing is just one of the many missions that will have a large impact on space travel. With all of the advanced technology we have now the possibilities are limitless.”

Most of Perseverance’s design was based on the Curiosity rover, which allowed for minimal costs and risks. This mission will test Mars’ natural resources for potential life support and transportation. The Mars 2020 mission is not only an achievement for Mars travel, but also for all future space exploration.

Covid-19 has affected everyone and everything. Since the pandemic started everything has changed. Everyone is required to wear masks whenever they are out around people and must remain at least 6-feet-apart. The past two school years have been different than what we are used to. A normal school year is what everyone is used to, but since Covid hit, we have been back-and-forth between online and in school. Even though everyone is required to wear masks and school has been rough, sports are a huge thing that has also been affected. Jim Justice, the governor of West Virginia, previously made an announcement in December that affected the start of winter sports, which little did we know would affect spring sports too.

The announcement the governor made was that winter sports would-be-put-on-hold until January 11. At this point, everyone was hoping we would be back in school and having a normal start to the season. As the weekly color maps continued to be updated, all schools in the county were still red and the number of cases kept increasing. Soon enough Jim Justice made another announcement delaying the start of winter sports once again to March 1. With winter sports starting even later than expected, spring sports were affected too. Winter sports like basketball and wrestling could begin practice on February 15. The matches and games take place the beginning of March. Spring sports started conditioning on February 22. Since the seasons overlap, athletes that play both winter and spring sports can choose to attend both practices if they want to. Or, athletes can choose to finish their winter sport then focus on their spring sport afterwards.

The seasons of both winter and spring sports are shorter than usual. Winter sports get as few as 14 games, when they usually play at least 20. Spring sports have fewer games this year also. Once winter sports have their last seasonal game they move onto sectionals, regionals, and states. Coach Triggs, the head coach of the girls’ basketball team, stated, “The official start of winter sports sectional games will be held on the week of April 12-17. The regional game will be held on April 21 and states will be from April 27-May 1.” Once those games take place athletes that play winter sports, can focus on their spring sports. Spring sports have their states around the end of May. Due to covid the number of people allowed to attend these games, matches, and events are limited. Berkeley County is limiting fans to just parents, grandparents, and family members within the players household. This rule is applied to coaches and staff members also.

On February 4th, a new Weis Market opened across from the Commons shopping center. Located at 400 Enterprise Circle. The 66,000 square ft store has been in the building process since 2016 and is progressively going to get bigger. The store has hired over 170 employees for different departments in the store such as; organic produce, a beer and wine department, a full service seafood department, a full service meat department, sushi prepared in store daily, a deli with a big selection of sliced meat and cheese along with a meal center with a large variety and a full florist department.The store also haas 13 self checkout lanes. It has a full service pharmacy and a fueling center along with Weis 2 Go online ordering with curbside pickup.

Junior Ella Hensell recently visited the store and said, "The store was really nice and well organized. I found everything that I needed. The organic food section was also really nice and had lots of options."

The ribbon cutting ceremony took place on a Wednesday. Martinsburg Mayor, Harriet Johnson, helped cut the ribbon that officially opened the market. The first 100 people to shop at the new grocery store were given coupons and gift cards upon entrance. I recently visited the new grocery store and was impressed. There were lots of different varieties of different food, including a deli you can order fresh sandwiches, salads, etc. My favorite part was the sushi selection that they offer and make fresh daily. All staff were welcoming and organized. Along with the new Weis opening, there are an additional eight spaces for more companies to purchase. As of right now they are working on a Home Goods that will open in late March. Homegoods is currently in the hiring process and is accepting applications Monday through Friday. I recommended checking out the new Weis store if you're looking for quality groceries.

By Addie Hughes

High school jobs are popular amongst students, giving them a view into the real world. Students often get jobs to either have spending money, grow their savings, or help their families at home. With virtual school beginning last spring, jobs quickly became something people could still do. According to an article in the Washington Post, “Teenagers have become even more important as their hours are increased in the absence of school during the day.” Listed below are a few local jobs currently hiring teenagers and their starting pay.

• Part-time cashier at Aldi’s food market- starting $11.00/hr

• Part-time stocker at Aldi’s food market- starting $11.00/hr

• Ross’ Retail Associate- average pay at $11.00/hr depending on experience

• Hobby Lobby Associate- starting $11.00/hr

• Petsmart Seasonal Associate- starting $9.55/hr

• Chick-fil-A daytime team member- starting $9.00/hr

• Cracker Barrel dishwasher- $10.00/hr

• Dollar Tree Sales Associate- starting $8.75/hr

• Wendy’s team member- starting $9.00/hr

All of the jobs listed above can be contacted by phone, email, or in person. All retail positions have online applications as well as paper copies in person.

The Orange and Black Record News Staff

Advisor: Ms. Rhonda Foreman, NBCT

Editor: Emily Beck

Reporters:

Andrea Allen

Jason Bednarski

Valerie Claubaugh

Joshua Garrido

Amira Gladwell

Elizabeth Hausafus

Addison Hughes

Jadelynn Joseph

Colin O'Kelley

Jaelyn Stely

Haley Stotler

Jakob Zittle