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The Warrior • Opinions

December 19, 2024

STAFF

Editor-in-Chief ........................................... Audrey Farris ‘25

Managing Print Editor ....................... Evelyn San Miguel ‘26

Managing Online Editor .................................... Ziv Golan ‘26

Print

News ..................................................... Evelyn San Miguel ‘26

Opinions ............................... Seph Fischer ‘25, Cliff Vacin ‘25

Pulse ............................................................. Maya Dorsam ‘27

Spotlight ...................................................... Audrey Farris ‘25

Humor ........................................................ Declan Rooney ‘25

Entertainment ........ George Awkard ‘25, Jordan Costolo ‘25

Sports ................................Cara Farr ‘27, Andrew Fenner ‘27

Copy and Content

Director of Copy & Content ................................ Katie Ng ‘25

Copy and Content Editor ............................. Justin Lakso ‘25

Business and Social Media

Director of Social Media ............................ Declan Rooney ‘25

Director of Advertising ............................. Jordan Costolo ‘25

Photography

Photographers ..................... Cliff Vacin ‘25, Zach Geller ‘25

Matthew Leighton-Jones ‘25

Staff Writers

Taylor Adams ‘27, Madelyn Awwad ‘27, Lilah Boig ‘26,

Reid Duvall ‘27, Jack Engelhardt ‘25, Ryan Green ‘26, Nick

Hammond ‘25. Matilda Hawkins ‘27, Paloma Illanes ‘25, Nisha

Khatri ‘26, Isabella Landaverde ‘27, Miriam Lev ‘27,

Emma Link ‘27, Fiona Lipczenko ‘25, Aby Lo ‘26, Shannon

Naas ‘26, Laurika Pich ‘27, Josh Pulaski ‘25, Molly Schecter

‘27, Deepika Shrestha ‘26, Chase Sondike ‘26,

Rachel Themistokleous ‘26

The Warrior serves as Sherwood’s news source,

receiving numerous state and national honors

over the 46 years it has been in circulation.

With a staff of 37 students under the guidance

of Peter Huck, The Warrior keeps the Sherwood

community informed about local and

national events. All opinion articles represent

the viewpoint of the writer.

The Warrior staff invites feedback and corrections

to printed inaccuracies.

The Warrior reserves the right to refuse advertisements

and other promotionals.

No, Really, What Can We Do?

by Nick Hammond ‘25

Especially since the past

Presidential election, many students

have been feeling demotivated

to vote or participate in

the political process, or even pay

attention to the news, for a multitude

of reasons. While most high

school students are too young to

vote and for many the current

state of the world may seem rather

bleak, there are still a plethora

of ways to contribute and influence

your and others’ lives by focusing

on a smaller scale.

Obviously, most of us simply

don’t have enough time to fully

and consistently commit to all of

these things. However, the reality

and hope that there are actual

steps we can take to influence our

daily lives. The following strategies

are ordered based on level

of effort and the level of outreach

from smallest to greatest. Try to

find ones you may be interested

in, and apply them to your own

interests and situation.

Helping other peers or

friends on a personal level with

struggles: striving to be personally

vulnerable yourself and also

supportive to friends and family

is a great start and can help you

learn what you and others around

Mid-Atlantic Energy Company

Unveils Invasive New Power Line

by Fiona Lipczenko ‘25

Public Service Enterprise

Group (PSEG), a Mid-Atlantic

local energy company, has proposed

the Maryland Piedmont

Reliability Project (MPRP), consisting

of constructing a 70 mile

long power line throughout Western

Maryland. PSEG claims the

project is necessary for power

grid reliability and affordability,

though landowners, economists,

and environmentalists have

voiced concerns against MPRP.

Maryland must find more environmentally

sustainable solutions

to its energy needs.

Maryland’s power grid is the

most congested in the Mid-Atlantic,

due to limited transmission

infrastructure and recent power

plant closures. PSEG claims the

power line project is necessary

to meet Maryland’s growing

consumer demand. According

to MPRP Project Director Jason

Kalwa, “there will be rolling

brown-outs and blackouts if this

project is not placed in service by

June of 2027.” PJM and PSEG

are pushing for rapid progress in

the project’s development.

However, not everyone

shares such perspectives on the

power line. Local homeowners

and farmers have expressed

you care about most.

The next level is to reach out to

people and support those who are

not as close to you, such as peers

at school who seem to be struggling,

those on social media you

may not know as well, reaching

out and checking in on extended

family etc. Being open to others’

perspectives and feelings about

the current world will help you

to have more productive conversations.

Additionally, engaging and

learning about our local government;

taking time to learn about

perspectives by talking with

friends and family, and doing

things like reading this newspaper

to learn about student, teacher,

and administrator perspectives

and about well-researched topics

relevant to our student body all

are great choices. Furthermore,

researching local officials, offices,

and representatives can help you

learn who is responsible for what

in our area, and who to contact if

you have any concerns you’d like

addressed by the county or state.

While Olney and surrounding areas

do not have town councils or

a town government, we still have

a strong and active County Council

with elected representatives.

Taking the time to share your

unease about the possibility of

PSEG invoking eminent domain,

forcing them to abandon their

livelihoods. Frederick County

Council wrote to PJM and PSEG

to advocate for more transparency

and inclusion of residents

in the development process. According

to a letter from one such

exchange, “the new transmission

lines … will directly and negatively

impact current homes, businesses

and farms (many of which

are in agricultural preservation

programs utilizing state and/or

local funds), historical preservation

sites, and will diminish

the property values of thousands

of Frederick County residents.”

Numerous affected counties actively

oppose MPRP, though their

County Councils cannot prevent

the power line from being built.

It is up to residents impacted by

MPRP to speak out.

The proposal to build such

a power line also raises environmental

concerns. It is still unclear

what route the power line will

take, but it will most likely transmit

power from a nuclear or coal

plant. Coal power is notorious

for contributing to air pollution

and nuclear power furthers global

warming through thermal water

pollution. PSEG claims to be devoted

to clean energy; however,

opinions and ways to improve

your community can lead to direct

benefits for you and others

in your life. Though national politics

can feel difficult to influence,

you have much more weight over

your local government, and thus

will have more control over your

daily life.

Trying things such as creating

or signing petitions, joining

protests, volunteering for nonprofits

or community groups,

or even going door-to-door or

calling in support of a candidate

who may especially resonate with

your beliefs all could impact results

in the next election. By attending

or watching town halls

and council meetings online, you

can learn about what is currently

being acknowledged, worked

on, and recently achieved in your

community.

Look into even one of these

strategies and try your best to

get your voice heard. You never

know what can come from a single

conversation, call, email, or

even message! By gradually engaging

more and more over time

within our communities, we can

help to keep our futures from sifting

through our fingers before we

know it.

the energy they utilize may not be

so environmentally friendly as intended.

What Maryland needs is a

transition away from non-renewable

energy and pollutants, towards

green energy sources, such

as geothermal. If PSEG is truly

dedicated to alleviating unreliability

and high expenses, green

energy will serve them better in

the long run. Though more costly

upfront, renewable energy sources

save money over time. They

also protect the sustainability of

the world.

Due to the number of Maryland

power plants being retired, it

is still uncertain whether MPRP

will even fix the problem at hand.

According to Kalwa, “MPRP is

the first of several transmission

line projects across Maryland that

aim to bolster the reliability of

the state’s power grid.” Maryland

may be in for more future energy

projects than anticipated, which

could mean negative impacts for

residents of many other counties,

including Montgomery. Invasive

power lines and non-renewable

energy does not only affect Western

Maryland residents. Soon, it

will affect everyone. Maryland

residents must stand up for themselves

and for the greater good of

the planet.

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