Feeling Pressure from Older Siblings
Eileen Lincoln, Staff Writer
September 15, 2019
Three siblings, all attending Brown University. Coming from a family of high expectations, my parents expect nothing less than an A, countless extracurricular opportunities, and more than eight AP classes during high school. While this may only be my first year at Oakton, I am already beginning to feel ...
The True Cost of National Security: Our Privacy Online
Chris Hillen
June 5, 2019
Civil liberties and individual rights have long been prized possessions of the American people, from the formation of the U.S. Constitution to the ratification of the 19th amendment. While this ideology hasn’t changed throughout multiple centuries, the mediums in which we express ourselves have dram...
The Truth Behind Genetic Modification
Tal Saadia
June 5, 2019
Humans have been altering foods to their liking ever since the Prehistoric Era. Crops have been cross-bred with other plant species to create a more desirable product to satisfy ever-evolving tastes and desires. The culture of alteration changed forever when scientists Cohen and Boyer were the first ...
A sheltered life in Northern Virginia
Ashleigh Tain, Editor-in-Chief
June 4, 2019
In my English class, my teacher often projects bellwork prompts and assigns the class to inquire about our insight and scribble down our thoughts. Often we are asked to answer methodical questions that gauge our understanding of the class content or simple and surface questions that relate to iden...
The Dangers of Pro-Choice “Armchair Activism”
Emily Bach, Editor-in-Chief
May 19, 2019
When Alabama passed the nation’s most restrictive abortion ban in decades, it was almost impossible to miss the outrage on social media. Colorful pro-choice illustrations emerged in almost every corner of the internet, from the bans like Alabama's will not be tolerated. Taking away the effectiven...
Why the History of Our Past Will Dictate Our Future
Cole Starmer, Staff writer
May 7, 2019
The ideal student is a well-rounded individual who is knowledgeable about many subjects and can make wise predictions about the future using information learned about the past. Optimally this info is learned in history class, but despite being a long-standing core class, recently it seems to be doing m...
A Case for Compassion: The Movement Against Solitary Confinement
Emily Bach, Editor-in-Chief
May 6, 2019
Around 80,000 people in the United States are currently trapped in a room no larger than 10 feet long. For reference, that’s only a little bit larger than Oakton’s bathroom stalls. Many of them haven’t seen another person in hours, even days. The lights in their room glare against their plai...
Top 5 Underrated Early 2000’s Shows
Alexandra Martschenko, Staff Writer
May 6, 2019
Roswell: This angsty teen drama stole the hearts and attention of many fans when its first episode aired in 1999. Perhaps too far in the past for most current Oakton High Schoolers to remember the original airings, the reruns gave a hint of the dramatic and somewhat comedic plot line....
All American: Summary, Ratings, and Rumors
Sara Boddie, Staff Writer
May 6, 2019
Inspired by the real story of a Super Bowl champion, Spencer Paysinger, All American is an inspiring story about about a high school football superstar. Spencer James enters a new world when he’s taken out of the hood to play on the Beverly Hills football team. With his mother and brother ...
Blake Lane Park Shouldn’t Become A School
Sahithi Jammulamadaka, Editor-in-Chief
May 6, 2019
As Fairfax County is looking to deal with major overcrowding problems and, one park right next to Oakton looks like it may be a solution. Blake Lane Park which is the largest open space available for public use in the Oakton area and is home to the only off-leash dog park in Providence District...
What I learned being off social media for three months
Emily Richardson, Editorial Board
May 2, 2019
In my experience, maintaining a highly-manicured Instagram theme to a T is a more than common practice of my peers. I have to believe the reason for this is that it’s a relatively simple way for us to control our perception by other people, to put our lives under a rose-colored lense; this is what social medi...
Why Democrats Shouldn’t Impeach Trump……Yet
Sahithi Jammulamadaka, Editor-in-Chief
April 27, 2019
The “I” word has been thrown around the House and Senate floor for months now and in light of the redacted Muller report recently coming out, many Democrats have been jumping on the train of impeachment. While the debate has been vigorous, it has quickly receded recently with many people askin...
