2022 Hot Takes: Raider Review

Jonny Jablonski, Super Senior -Everyone under 25’s soul is formed by Social Media
Here’s a secret? Teens loved the quarantine. They got to sit on their phones and let the algorithms of tech-bros form their identities. Teens are no longer experiencing the world around them and learning about other people from actual experiences; instead their identities and values are being formed by whatever posts will make Mark Zuckerberg or China richer. Anecdotal videos and assuming the most outrageous people represent entire groups now forms teen views on social issues. There’s still hope though. Teens can get off their phones and experience real people in the real world. They should make mistakes, fail, and even feel uncomfortable at times because that’s how you become a better person, not by being an online victim. You’ll be surprised how wonderful different people are and how much we actually have in common or you could let TikTok tell you what not to think.

Landen Norman, 11th: Modern day schools set students up for failure
Modern day schools set students up for failure more than they do success. To attack this hot take let’s look at the origin of school as we know it. Children during these times were sent to school with the expectation that they worked labor heavy jobs in the fields or the factories after. How can an institution based off of this evolve into the idea that it has today? It hasn’t and that’s the problem. The rate of kids graduating high school to work entry level, low paying jobs has been higher than ever. Most high schools don’t offer any truly useful courses, courses about building credit or businesses. Courses about law or anything in the medical field. I think of the majority of high schools as breeding grounds for average ambitions. An even higher rate graduates high school and doesn’t attend college at all. Many can’t see the point in paying thousands of dollars for unqualified positions, or don’t want to put themselves in debt for the remainder of their lives for something they didn’t even want to do. Our educators themselves are even fed up with the system and its treatment of them and their students. Change needs to be made, to the way schools function and the consequences students receive for not doing their best in a system that arguably doesn’t do the same for them.

Hayley Thompson, 11th: Burgers suck.
Although burgers are the most famous American meal, they’re really not as good as everyone says they are. It’s mashed up beef topped with ingredients that you also put in salads (which aren’t that good either). And yes, you can choose what you want on it, but let’s all be honest with ourselves, no matter what you put on it, it’s never a good combination. Many people wonder why others become vegetarians when burgers are the direct answer. While eating your next burger, think about the slaughtered cow that was now squished in your mouth trying to cover up the disgusting taste with as many condiments as possible.

Ione Narajka, 11th: Crocs are uncomfortable
Crocs are often known as comfort shoes, but that can’t be farther from the truth. Crocs are incredibly uncomfortable and I don’t understand why anyone would choose them over another shoe. I will admit I haven’t worn a pair of crocs with socks, which is the current trend, and I haven’t worn a pair for a number of years. That doesn’t matter. The stupid ridges on the bottom and all of the holes are terrible sensory wise. And that material they’re made of, whatever it is, provides no support for your foot. Why have they come back? Why are we back in Croc Hell? I just don’t understand.

Jenelle Moreno Fernandez, Junior: Brazil deserved to be eliminated!
One sentence. THE SOUTH KOREA VS. BRAZIL GAME WAS RIGGED! On December 5th, South Korea went against Brazil. While watching the game you could tell that something wasn’t right. Naymar tripped over nothing but air and he got a penalty kick?? Every time someone from Korea’s team got knocked down by Brazil, the ref would turn a blind eye. Personally, I feel like it was unnecessary because Brazil does have good players! If they played a fair game, they wouldn’t have lost the game against Croatia on December 9th. That was just karma coming to settle the score.

Aubry Vigil 12th: Neymar is NOT attractive!!!
With the world cup going on this year there has been a sudden surge of fangirls. With almost every team having at least one attractive player on their team ranging from South Korea’s number 9 Cho Gue-Sung or Portugal’s João Félix everyone knows who they are. As for the most popular man in all of soccer not for his amazing soccer skills but his looks… Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior. If we’re being honest Neymar is not the most attractive person in the world cup, not even in the world. He looks like a man who can’t accept that he’s aging with his non stop hair bleaching and to be honest ALMOST every haircut throughout his career did not look good except for a few like his dark curly hair era. Neymar has the personality of a player and a soccer one which gives most the ick even me. I don’t blame you if you find that attractive to each their own but mix his personality, sportsmanship, constant over exaggeration trying to get a foul, and his terrible haircuts, you get the most unattractive attractive person in the world cup and in soccer. The ick man Neymar.

Isaih Cornejo 11th : PIZZA IS REPULSIVE
Pizza is a dish that’s extremely popular. A frequently asked icebreaker is, “what’s your favorite food?” Constantly, the answer would be “pizza” as you traveled around a classroom of mindless students. Pizza seems to be the dish that the majority loves, and so all are subjected to the torture that is pizza. You chew it and it feels like wet slop traveling across your tongue as the tomato-soaked bread gets covered up by the oily cheese, bunching up as if it’s being churned in your throat. It’s always a disgusting experience to be forced to eat it because of its commonality. Every birthday party, every class celebration, every ‘dinner’ during an after-school event; everyday subjected to the same recommendation of “let’s get pizza!” Pizza completely undermines other cultural foods that could easily take its place. Why not have a ramen party or a tamale party? We often conform to the norm so that everyone feels comfortable, but we have yet to ask, who are we making comfortable? With pizza, it’s always the popular choice, and if we replace it with another popular cultural food, the main concern would become “some people might be scared to eat it.” This completely alludes to the comfort of white people. Pizza’s popularity isn’t warranted because it’s repulsive, and it’s just generally overrated and overused during any event. Pizza is a burden.

Sariah Williams, 11th: Bullying is needed.
Children need to be bullied. Imagine if we let children think it’s ok to bark or pretend to be animals. We’d have an entire population of furries. I think bullying is needed to an extent and should only be allowed under certain circumstances. Bullying people over things they can’t control such as their race, religion, and sexual orientation is stupid and over played. Grow up. However bullying-or I’d like to call it being honest- is needed for people who can change certain things about themselves, like wearing crocs on purpose.

Paula Villalon (Junior): Green is the best color.
There are so many colors out there and everyone ends up choosing a favorite, whether it’s more common or complicated. The only valid color, that rises from the rest and should be truly declared as the best color, is green. Some of you might say that green tends to represent the emotion of disgust, or is just a weird color overall. And that may be true, but green also represents some of the greatest things in our world like money, good grades or credit scores, and even nature. Green is the color of grass, leaves, and the general color of good. Green is the color of peace and nature, and is very clearly the best color out there.

Christopher Tubig, 12th: Flying is better than road trips
With the holidays approaching quickly, families go on trips and have a difficult struggle, to fly or to drive? While there are many factors to consider, flying is something that is more convenient, faster, and less struggle. Some cons to road trips are consistent stops for gas, restroom, snacks, rest. Limited room for an extended amount of time. The worry of a car breakdown. Flying eliminates those struggles as you can relax in (somewhat) comfortable seats, provided drinks and food, a restroom, and your time is cut by hours or even days. You just have to find a good airline.

Connor Shea, 12th Grade: Marvel is Overrated
Marvel movies started true to the original comics and appealed to die hard superhero fans, but the company has turned to blatant cash grabs in recent years. Since Endgame, there’s been a noticeable drop in the quality of the special effects, overuse of CGI and green screens, and the exact same formula has been used for almost the last decade. After Endgame, Marvel and Disney realized that their fan base will buy into even the most unfunny, copy and paste entertainment worse than the Pokemon games.

Myles Chapman, 11th grade: Rod Wave is overrated and he sucks
The “rapper” AKA autotuner Rod Wave sucks. He does not deserve all of the fame and success that he has. I would describe Rod Wave as a big, fat, autotune, crybaby. In all of his music he whines and cries about his heartbreaks, and the autotune he uses makes it worse. It’s like he has no actual talent and his performances suck. I would never pay to see that man perform, he literally broke a stage. The basis of Rod Waves songs is either heartbreak, crying, and money. I feel like if you’re going to rap about surface level things, at least have some talent. I would entitle Rod Wave as an autotuner and not even as a rapper or a singer. He has no bars, hooks, or anything enticing in his music. He cannot sing either and only uses autotune. It’s like his music is sort of tech-no music. His music is just not for me and it does not do anything for me. If you’re a fan of him, do you, but this is just my opinion of him as an artist. I’m pretty sure he’s a nice person, but the talent, from my perspective, just isn’t there.

Isabel Campbell, Grade: 11 – Sagging your pants is stupid
People who sag their pants are the epitome of fashion failures. No one wants to see or smell your boxers. Having your “ass” hanging out of your pants has never been attractive or cool, and wearing a belt with it just makes it look even more ridiculous. The “style” originated in prison where people were given clothes that didn’t fit them, and weren’t allowed belts, why would anyone want to replicate that? Nothing is tough or gangster about showing off your poop stained underwear.

Diego Cisneros, 12th Grade: Pop Tarts have more gross flavors than good flavors.
When shopping at your local grocery store, there’s a high probability that there’s at least a whole shelf dedicated to a variety of “scrumptious” toaster pastries ready to be bought and devoured throughout America. The variety of these pastries ranges from a simple blueberry flavor to as wacky as frosted fudge sundae! Pop-Tarts come in all sorts of colors and flavors, over 30 to be exact, and most of which all taste surprisingly the same in my opinion. Especially the sweeter they are, they all have an unbearable sweet taste that’s so strong, it’s sickening. Sure, there are a few good Pop-Tart flavors, brown sugar and strawberry to name a couple, but with the numerous other flavors on the market, there’s not much recognition given to the good Pop-Tarts compared to the unique one of a kind Pop-Tarts, which end up being too sweet.

Mikayla Brown, 12th grade: Pie is the superior dessert.
When you’re done eating dinner, the first thing that comes to your mind for dessert is probably ice cream, cake, cookies, or even brownies. While these might be valid options, they are also the most basic options as well. The most superior dessert, however, is pie. When you’re eating pie, you’re not just getting a fateful of frosting like you do when you eat cake, it never gets soggy, and it doesn’t melt after five minutes. With certain desserts, all you eat is sugar and you end up feeling bloated and awful after you finish it. With pie, you don’t run into any of these problems and you feel content after you’re finished. Pie is also one of the most versatile desserts, meaning you can add many different toppings to it from crumbles and meringues, to whipped creams and compotes, to ice cream and berries. Not to mention the different flavors of pie you can choose from, like strawberry, apple, pumpkin, pecan, blueberry, pumpkin, cheesecake, and key lime. At the end of the day, there is nothing better than biting into a warm piece of pie with the crunch and texture of the crust; the feeling is simply unmatched.

Avery Salas, 12th Grade: Fighting is necessary
Growing up you would hear from parents, teachers, and administrators that fighting is unnecessary and that you should be able to talk it out. Although some things can’t just be talked about, and talking doesn’t work for everyone to get their anger out. Psychologically it’s better for a person’s mental health to relieve anger instead of continuing to have it build up inside. Talking isn’t everyone’s way of releasing stress and anger, so to help build up a person and help people’s mental health, fighting can be necessary. 😉

Nataly Leon, 11th grade: Orange juice is better than apple juice.
The debate of Apple juice vs. Orange juice has been going on for too long. Although several people agree apple juice is better, orange juice is simply superior. The taste of orange juice is refreshing while also containing vitamin C. When someone wants orange juice they can easily cut an orange and squeeze it, but when trying to think on how to make apple juice no one knows how to make it. Orange juice goes with breakfast, but also can be a drink you can just reach for in the middle of the day. For orange juice there is a variety of brands to choose from, each tasting a little different, but for apple juice, every brand tastes the same.

Angel, 11th: Waffles are disgusting
While waffles are one of the most popular food items on a breakfast menu because of their popularity, it’s honestly disgusting. Most would disagree with me on this topic because waffles are just like pancakes but guess what, pancakes are also disgusting. First, let’s start off with how dry and weird the texture of a waffle is and adding syrup only makes it worse. It takes time to swallow a waffle because of how dry it is. Lastly, it’s boring. The shape of a waffle isn’t original at all. It triggers my trypophobia because of how many squares are together and it’s weird. I happen to find waffles completely repulsive.

Janyissa Bannister Grade 11th: Hallway Whistles are necessary
With many students going out to eat lunch, Rangeview deans decided to use whistles to make students listen and encourage them to attend and be on time for classes. While many students at Rangeview High School don’t agree with the noisy whistles in the hallway, they’re necessary. By which I mean, the lunch rates and amount of tardies and absences after lunch is excessive. Many students may think that it is annoying, but maybe it’s because they’re the problem, or maybe it’s because they’re the ones that need to get to class. Their main goal is to try to get Rangeview’s tardies and absences after lunch to a reasonable number.

Yebella Melaku (11th): Beyonce is Overrated
There is no artist in my opinion that is more overrated than Beyonce, and I live to tell you about it. I can understand why this might be a controversial topic, but when you think about it, Beyonce is on too high of a pedestal and doesn’t deserve all of her hype. However, I can understand where the opposing side is coming from. She was a staple piece in music for the early 2000’s, and influenced many unique styles in music. But honestly, her music isn’t that good for people to literally praise her like she’s God. Her older music was so much better. These past years, she has been on such a decline with her popularity and I think it is important that people open their eyes and see that they only like her because society says so.

Vivien Grable, 10th Grade: People under the age of 18 should not be allowed to use social media.
We as a society are dominated by Social Media. Nearly 90 percent of the US population uses Social Media actively. This may not seen like a problem until you see that 46% of teens in the US use Social Media “constantly.” Social Media is known to cause anxiety and depression in teens, as well as increase chances of bullying and peer pressure. Teens shouldn’t have to worry about showing people their life, rather they should focus on their school work. Until they graduate high school teens shouldn’t have to keep their online appearance up, they shouldn’t use social media.

Hunter Pearce 12th grade: Dogs are the best pets to have (Cats are Mid)
This may seem a bit over the top but all cats do is lie around and eat. It is rare to find a cat who is active, but its rare to not find an active dog. When it comes to any other pet a dog is the superior choice. Dogs are loyal and protective. A stranger comes into your house and a dog will alert you or fight back. A cat will assume it’s another person entering the house. Dogs may seem annoying for barking at strangers but their instincts tell them to protect you. Anything is better than a cat at the end of the day. If you’re looking for something similar to a cat then get a ferret. They are a significant improvement from fur balls on your carpet.

Naya Furqan 11th: Taylor Swift is overrated.
Honestly, Taylor Swift is overrated.Her heartbreak albums at the beginning of her career carried her persona and her newer songs aren’t as good as people claim they are and this just leads her to be hyped up for no reason. “Blank Space”, “Wildest Dreams”, and her older songs were so much better than her entire newest album all together. She is an artist that is meant for the early 2000s-2016 aesthetic rather than the early 2020s and there is no need for her to be revived. Blank Space has won 11 grammys and her album 1989 has won three. It has been nominated for over 10 awards and honestly it’s her best album to exist. Her newer songs are repetitive and boring. She either needs to find a new concept so that she deserves to be hyped up as much as she is or she needs to leave it in the past.

Abigail Gardie 11th : Cane’s is overrated.
Canes was added to the shopping center in front of the Aurora mall a few years ago. After that they have been appearing all over Colorado. Everyone reacted to it as it was the most amazing restaurant to ever exist. The menu consists of two things; bread and chicken. At the hefty price of $6.98 you get 3 chicken fingers, fries, toast and some Cane sauce. For the limited menu, it should not have the fame it has. Many other fast food restaurants offer a variety of options yet they’re not given the same support. If you want dry chicken where you need to drench it in sauce to make it decently good, then Canes is for you.

Paula Villalon (Junior): Apple music is better than Spotify.
Two of the biggest music platforms are Apple Music and Spotify, and for good reasons. But recently Apple Music has been declining compared to Spotify, because so many people prefer the service that gives you things like the special Spotify Wrapped. But Apple Music is actually way better than Spotify for a couple of reasons. Apple Music has a far simpler layout, making it easier for so many people to use. Apple Music also has Apple Replay, which comes out earlier than Spotify Wrapped, and updates every week so you don’t have to wait to get your results. On top of that Apple Music offers more songs. Apple Music offers about 90 million different tracks while Spotify only offers 82 million music tracks and 4 million podcast tracks. Apple Music is so much superior to Spotify and people should recognize it.

Saron Mentesinot 10th: fast fashion is an up and coming epidemic
Besides having low-quality items, clothing items that are bought through fast fashion continue to enforce mass consumerism. With popular retailers like Shine producing thousands of cheap fashion trends, mass consumerism is at its height. With that, you get issues like consumers having no sense of personal style and wasting their money on low-quality items which go out of style faster than their packages arrive. Fast fashion also is a big contributor to pollution. With thousands of goods being produced, this industry releases 8-10% of carbon emissions. The industry itself also exploits undeserved communities, who are underpaid and working in dangerous environments.

Taliyah Brown, 12th: Christmas over any Holiday
That time of the year has come again and the best holiday ever is making its grand entrance into the 2022 year. It is a time for giving and receiving, what more could you possibly ask for? Of course there’s the people who pick holidays like Thanksgiving and Halloween over Christmas. Halloween is a day full of sugar rushes and overrated scary movies, Thanksgiving is a day for feasting and spending time with family members you only ever see once a year. December 25th is an all in one food, family time, gifts, and day full of joy. Christmas is the BEST. HOLIDAY.EVER. Basic? Yes. Lie? No.

Ione Narajka, 11th: Christmas is overrated
I don’t understand why people love Christmas so much. People will post on their SnapChat stories things like “5 months until Christmas!” and not blink. I don’t understand why people love it so much when it’s literally just a holiday. People treat it like it’s a lifestyle and it’s… dumb to say it nicely. I was thinking I’d get excited about it after Thanksgiving and get in that holiday spirit, but I’m still over here feeling like the Grinch. Christmas is mid, and it should be treated as such. I’m tired of seeing candy canes and Santa hats everywhere I look. I mean seriously, you can’t swing a cat without hitting something Christmas related in the months of November or December. Not to mention that Halloween is better. Argue with me all you want, you know I’m right.

Naya Furqan 11th: You should sleep with your socks on.
People who sleep without socks on are crazy. You need socks to sleep because your toes can get cold so easily. It helps regulate your temperature as well, since when you are cold your fingers and toes lose cold faster than the rest of your body. Toes are also just ugly and you should not just have them out like that. They especially need to be put away when someone else is sleeping next to you. Putting cold feet on someone is just hateful and you need to keep them covered. Keep your toes in your socks since it’s better for your health and the people around you.