February 2012 - Mount St. Mary Academy - Website

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PAGE 6 THE MOUNT ISSUE 3 A Stone of Hope in a Mountain of Politics By Maggie Nichols ‘12 Last year Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was immortalized in a great stone monument in Washington D.C. He stands as a symbol of strength at an impressive thirty feet tall before formidable stone mountains. The idea for this awe-inspiring tribute to the late Dr. King derived from his 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech: “out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.” This concept brought forth Dr. King‟s image out of rock, making him literally the stone of hope of which he had spoken. In light of his recent day of remembrance and a hectic year of politics ahead, it is fitting to consider where the United States stands regarding civil rights issues. Dr. King gave his life to the cause of improving the treatment of African Americans during the sixties, and today many causes are reaching a similar prevalence as the 2012 Presidential election approaches. Although the argument stands that racial equality still requires much attention, much progress has been made since the days of King. As it has been drastically improved, there are many issues that have taken center stage in recent years. Today turning on any of the major news stations like Fox or ABC guarantees hearing the vibrant, controversial debates between potential Presidents on the social issues of the times. Some examples of these important issues are as follows: gay rights, abortion, immigration, and unemployment and growing poverty. These issues and the positions candidates take on them will be key factors in the decision process of who will be in the White House next year. The questions voters must ask themselves is: who can be a stone of hope in a struggling bipartisan government The country is experiencing trying times; it is hard to decipher whether any of the Republican candidates or the current Commander in Chief even have a game plan for the future of the country. This is where a leader like Martin Luther King Jr.is desperately needed. His strength and ability to spark cooperation between even the most different people is necessary in a country where people struggle to work together. It becomes clear that politicians are more concerned with their own importance. They seem to have forgotten that the issues are not just vessels to their inauguration after party, but problems plaguing the country. This is where we need a “Stone of Hope”. We need someone that will stand up and tackle the topics and defend the people in need. Martin Luther King Jr. Day should stand as a day of remembrance for a man that went above and beyond the call to do what‟s right. He pushed the country forward, and it‟s clear to many that the United States needs a great big shove regarding many, many issues that make up our modern day mountain of despair, but with the hope and perseverance that Martin Luther King Jr. Day represents, the politics of this year may be translated into solutions if the people demand more than just a race to the White House.
PAGE 7 THE MOUNT ISSUE 3 New and Improved By Cally Cochran ‘14 Mercy In Technology, or MIT, was introduced as a new program at the beginning of this school year. According to the MIT handout given to parents of MSM students, its purpose is to, “expand on Mount St. Mary‟s existing technology education by giving immediate access to a wealth of information that is available on the internet.” However, the technology department ran into some problems. The computers, which were Dell Latitude 2120s, were breaking. The main problem with the Dell 2120 was its screen. “It was a defect in the computers, they just couldn‟t handle being open and shut as much as they had to. Because of this, after repeatedly opening and closing the laptops a wire running from the base to the screen would snap causing the screen to malfunction,” Mr. Stevens explained. “There were 120 computers with a screen defect!” added Mrs. Beazley. These computers were also extremely slow and bulky. As soon as it was evident that problems occurring could not easily be fixed, Mrs. Beazley, Mr. Stevens, and Sr. Lisa decided it was time to take the next step. Luckily, after explaining the situation to Dell, the company apologized and offered to send Mount St. Mary 270 brand new laptops of a different type, an exact exchange for the old laptops. These new Latitude 5420s were set to arrive in early November, however, a temporary dispute regarding additional payments arose and the laptops didn‟t arrive until November 28th. On the arrival day many students were “overjoyed” as Kimberly Jones ‟14 puts it, “because we finally had working computers!” No longer was Mount to have “toy computers,” as Claire Wewers ‟14 called them, “we have big, working computers now.” Anna Sharabura ‟14 stated, “These computers are far more stylish and can rock the Starbucks tables!” These laptops also run better, “They have 4 gigabytes instead of just 2 and are four times faster than the 2120s. The Dell Latitude 5420s are also capable of being upgraded, unlike the other laptops. So it is possible to make them even faster in the future than they are now,” says Mr. Stevens. The major problem of the malfunctioning computer screens was finally fixed. “My screen is just beautiful,” sophomore Halley Angel declared. Though these new computers seemed almost perfect in the beginning, they too have their draw backs. “They are big,” says Rachel Lorsbach „14 “but at least they aren‟t as small as the old ones. They are also smooth and pretty, not bulky.” Though she loves the new computers, sophomore, Mary Cate Connell, says, “I still miss the touch screen sometimes. It made it easier to draw during homeroom. With a mouse you just can‟t get straight lines!” In response to students missing the touch screen, Mr. Stevens replied, “The touch screens were just something we had to give up because it caused the computer to be slower and it would have required the parents buying the computers to pay more.” All in all, the majority of the freshman and sophomore class believe this was a great switch. Who knows, if we still had the old laptops, “I think many of [the computers] would have been thrown off the Big Dam Bridge by now,” says Alex Glenn. Halley Angel added onto this statement saying, “I‟m pretty sure we would either not be using them, or we would all have gone insane trying to.” Photo by Katherine Penney „14
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February 2012 - Mount St. Mary Academy - Website

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