Erosion of Democracy
Jack Wilmerding '19, Assistant Opinions Editor
February 5, 2019
Filed under Groton, Opinions, Politics
A recent Groton alumnus, Victor Liu ’17, is currently forbidden from leaving China, with no charges against him. The Chinese authorities are after his father, Liu Changming, an alleged $1.4 billion fraudster who has evaded authorities for years, and they are using Victor and his sister as hostages...
Should We Livestream Chapel?
Lars Caspersen '19, Humor Editor
February 5, 2019
Aren’t you tired of waiting in line to get in to chapel? I sure am. So I decided that I might improve upon the engineering class’s best efforts to reduce this wait. To streamline logistics Groton needs to get with the times and allow students to enter chapel virtually. We should live-stream chapel. The...
Why I Would Send my Daughter to Groton
Lilias Kim '19, Arts Editor
February 5, 2019
Last night my mother called. She asked me, “Would you ever send your daughter to Groton?” After a long pause I replied, “Yes.” The silence on her end told me she was surprised. And I understood why. A few years ago were St. Paul’s sexual assault case and the Boston Globe Spotlight ...
Actually, Legacy Preference Is a Good Deal
Brooks Anderson '20 and Andrew Porter '20
February 5, 2019
Legacy preference, the practice of an institution giving admissions preferences to children and relatives of alumni, has recently come under fire in the media, especially because of the ongoing litigation surrounding the admissions practices of Harvard University. Legacy preference is oft lambasted for...
Time to Abolish Intervis
Abby Kirk '19, Assistant News Editor
December 18, 2018
Intervisitation is a broken system that actively prevents the formation of a healthy culture around sexuality at Groton. Intervis is intended for members of the opposite sex to visit in each other’s rooms while a faculty member is on duty, the door is propped open, and the lights are turned on. ...
Peer Counseling: An Analysis
Yumin Shivdasani '20, Assistant Opinions Editor
December 18, 2018
The peer counseling program undeniably maintains and promotes the mental wellbeing of students on the Circle, but shortcomings in the system prevent certain groups of students from reaping its benefits. Lower Schoolers have observed the efficacy of peer counseling; for example, Jacinta Lopez Guzman ’22...
Catastrophic Global Warming: President Trump, Just Stop It
Brooks Anderson '20, Columnist
December 18, 2018
Wildfires. Earthquakes. Hurricanes. Flooding. The consequences of climate change and global warming are nigh. It’s impossible to claim that only in a few decades this will be a real problem. It’s a real problem right now. We are killing ourselves. Greenhouse gas emissions are expected to be up...
Vaping in America: a Buzzing Issue
Jack Wilmerding '19, Assistant Opinions Editor
December 18, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
Vaping, particularly Juuling, has wormed its way into high school and college campuses across the country. While the explosion of Juuling is unhealthy for all age groups, it is especially damaging to minors due to nicotine’s effect on developing brains. Per Business Insider, Boston Children’s Hospital...
Politics at Groton: A Classless Debate
Brooks Anderson '20, Columnist
November 10, 2018
There is a crisis of free speech at Groton. More and more, student’s views and opinions are being stifled, especially in classrooms in which politcs are a consistent topic of discussion. After the election of President Trump, many teachers began infusing more politics into their curriculums. If done...
Khashoggi: Free Speech Martyr or Another Forgotten Victim?
Jack Wilmerding '19, Assistant Opinions Editor
November 10, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
Jamal Khashoggi is dead, murdered by the government that he so rightfully criticized. He entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul under the premise of getting divorce papers (papers which were redirected from the embassy in Washington, DC) for his upcoming wedding and never left the compound. This was not an “a...
Two Views: Affirmative Action at Harvard
Andrew Porter '20, Derek Hu '21, and Powers Trigg '21
November 10, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
Days ago, Harvard University completed defending itself against a lawsuit alleging that it discriminates against Asian American applicants. The suit, undecided at the time The Circle Voice went to press, has invigorated a debate about the merits of affirmative action, a preference given to students fr...
Revisiting Trump’s Letter in the Wake of Midterm Elections
Powers Trigg '20, Assistant Sports Editor
November 10, 2018
Filed under Groton, Opinions, Politics
Groton has always had a history of public service. There is perhaps no greater emblem of that tradition than the letters and portraits from the last nineteen presidents of the United States that line the halls of the History Wing. Since the election of Donald J. Trump in the fall of 2016, a debate has ensued a...
The Right to Be “Part of the Resistance”
October 19, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
In early September, the New York Times published an anonymous op-ed essay from a senior official of The Trump Administration. It disclosed the dilemmas the President was facing, and how the author believed Trump was not a suitable decision maker for the US. If the identity of this official is disclosed,...
Buddhist Sangha Fails to Meet Student Needs
October 19, 2018
As a new Fifth Former, I signed up for Hindu and Buddhist Sangha as my religious requirement. I hadn’t known what to expect, so on the first Sunday of the school year, I was perplexed to find myself arriving for a religious service at the Campbell Performing Arts Center (CPAC), of all places. Mo...
Ecocide in Groton’s Backyard
Robin Huntington '22 and Jacinta Lopez '22
October 19, 2018
Loggers have chopped down large numbers of trees in the Keyes Memorial Forest, home to rare species and valuable wetland habitat just across the street from Groton School. Currently, 20 of its 57 acres are being leased out to Thayer Wood Energy, a logging contractor, for a project that will take six...
Democratic Victory: Blessing or Curse for Left?
Brooks Anderson '20, Columnist
October 19, 2018
Although seizing control of the House of Representatives is the primary goal for the Democratic party this November, such a victory would actually have some unforeseen repercussions going into the presidential election year of 2020. Currently, the Democrats have a roughly 80% chance of retaking the House...
Two Views: Should the Headmaster Be Able to Overrule the D.C.?
Tyler Weisberg '22 and Jack Wilmerding '19
September 13, 2018
Yes. by Tyler Weisberg '22 The current Disciplinary Committee (DC) process is Groton’s best attempt at incorporating the following concepts: due process, democratic and diverse decision-making, and just punishment. Sometimes there are situations involving a subjective judgement call that only t...
SAT-Optional Admissions Will Fail the Test
Andrew Porter '20, Assistant Opinions Editor
September 13, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
Last July, the University of Chicago announced that it would be enacting the UChicago Empower Initiative, a test-optional admissions policy mainly intended to serve underserved applicants. This change reflects a growing trend, inaugurated in the late sixties, for colleges to consider ‘the whole studen...
Kavanaugh: Disaster or Opportunity?
Brooks Anderson '20, Columnist
September 13, 2018
Filed under Columns, Opinions, Politics
The Supreme Court is arguably the most powerful national institution; justices’ immense authority coupled with lifelong terms allow a small group to influence American society for generations after their time on the bench. Any change in its makeup consequently has far-reaching effects – the future of the S...
Finding Your Space in Third Form
Halle Livermore '19, Columnist
September 13, 2018
Filed under Columns, Groton, Opinions
After sports and dinner, a pack of third formers plop down on the mall couches. It’s 6:30, so there is plenty of time before study hall. What better way to spend it than crammed among new friends? Spending time in the mall is a rite of passage for third formers. It is where they introduce themselves...
Should Senior Prefects Campaign? Two Views.
Halle Livermore '19 and Katie Reveno '20
June 2, 2018
Yes. by Halle Livermore '19 Imagine a presidential election in which campaigning is prohibited. Upon voting, you are provided a list of all eligible candidates, and from this list you must choose the leader of the free world. Your favorite actors are eligible, so you circle them and proceed to circle othe...
The Scourge of Fortnite in Lower School
June 2, 2018
The gaming industry, rapidly increasing in size, surpassed 100 billion dollars in revenue in 2017. The impact of this growth has started to seriously affect Groton students. Usually, gaming at Groton has not been too problematic, but the game Fortnite has become an epidemic in the Lower School boys’ dor...
Where We Need Work in the Exchange Program
May 30, 2018
This past spring break I traveled on a Global Education program to India. We saw classic sites like the Taj Mahal and the Ganges, but we spent the bulk of the trip at boarding schools in Dehradun – the girls at Welham Girls’ School, and the boys at The Doon School. During my exchange, I recognize...
Where Groton Failed in the #NeverAgain Movement
May 30, 2018
Filed under Groton, Opinions, Politics
When Annabelle Mata, a close friend and former teammate of mine, walked into school the morning of February 14th, 2018, she didn’t expect anything other than a normal day of classes. She didn’t expect to hear screaming and gunshots while making Valentine’s Day cards in her freshman English class. ...
To Snitch or Not to Snitch: On Cheating and Trust
May 30, 2018
have cheated at least once in the past year. This shocking number suggests an increased pressure to get good grades and enter top universities. Especially in a school as competitive as Groton, most students feel the need to earn the best grades possible as they are given high expectations by their pare...
Yes, Mandatory Afternoon Activities Are Important
May 30, 2018
Most everyone, at some point in their Groton career, has wished that they were not required to participate in an afternoon activity. Sometimes there is nothing worse than the feeling of trudging to a sports field or the Performing Arts Center to practice something that you are not passionate about. F...
Chelsea Manning: The Best Senate Opinion?
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions
Perhaps the strangest match-up in the upcoming 2018 Senate elections will take place in a Maryland Democratic primary, between transgender activist and former leaker Chelsea Manning and epitome of the deep state establishment, the incumbent Ben Cardin. The election reverses the usual national security iss...
Trump’s Visit to Parkland Only Added Insult to Injury
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions
On Valentine’s Day, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz pulled the fire alarm of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and fired his AR-15 rifle as students and faculty fled into the halls. Seventeen people died at the Parkland, Florida high school in the deadliest school shooting since Sandy Hook in 2012. &...
A Not-So-Balanced Budget
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
Oh where, oh where have the deficit hawks gone? I can tell you this much: they’re certainly not on Capitol Hill or in the White House. On January 31, 2010, Representative Paul Ryan said the following about the federal budget: “the debt and the deficit is just getting out of control. And the ad...
Why Slut-Shaming Is Still an Issue
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions
Generally, Groton culture emphasizes treating one another with respect. After all, how many schools still have students shake teachers’ hands every night? But there is one significant exception: slut-shaming. How many of us have been in conversations where a specific girl was described as a “slut...
Medical Marijuana Shouldn’t Transplant Patients on the List
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions
This past March, the Bangor Daily News reported on Garry Godfrey, a father of two, who suffers from Alport disease. His condition eventually resulted in renal failure, and his case rose to prominence across Maine. After waiting eight years on the organ transplant list, he was promptly kicked off. The ...
A Joint Korean Team is a Step Toward Unity
March 2, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
On January 17, North and South Korea agreed to march together under one flag and field a joint women’s ice hockey team in the 2018 Winter Olympics. The Koreas’ agreement to field an Olympic team under a flag of unity is a tiny step towards a peaceful resolution of tension on the peninsula. The a...
The Right Way Out of Hookup Culture
March 2, 2018
In a society that is very conducive to a thriving hookup culture, Groton has done a remarkably good job in fostering relationships that are constituted by an attraction greater than one that is solely physical. Despite the world and culture around our community, Groton is not a place where hookups ar...
Essential Enviro
March 2, 2018
The yearlong Environmental Science course is often overlooked by Groton students. Many never step into Dr. Black’s classroom, opting for courses that are more popular and sometimes considered more useful. This year, for example, only 12 students take Environmental Science – far fewer than, say, Chemis...
The Case for Ending Fourth Form Study Hall
January 19, 2018
It’s 7:55 on a Thursday night. After a long day of classes, sports practice, dinner, and a club meeting, you realize you have a math problem set due tomorrow and virtually no idea how to solve it. If you are in fourth form, instead of seeking out peer or teacher help, which would be the most time-ef...
When the FCC Got Its Way, We Lost More Than Net Neutrality
January 19, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
What is the Internet? It is a tool for discovery. It is a tool for creators. It stimulates and facilitates modern human progress. The Internet is not only wonderful, but also a necessity in this day and age. This necessity led the net to be classified as a Title II service under the Obama administration,...
Under The New Tax Bill, Everybody Loses
January 19, 2018
Filed under Opinions, Politics
The recently passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is remarkably equitable in its effects. If you live in a high-tax blue state, you lose, because you can no longer deduct your state and local taxes from your federal tax return. If you are a teacher, you lose, because you can no longer deduct teaching-related ...
A Chapel Talk for Every Sixth Former
January 19, 2018
Filed under Columns, Groton, Opinions
The chapel talk is arguably the most important tradition at Groton. It is the one time when a senior has the attention of the whole school, free of any prompt or guidelines beyond basic decency. It gives each student the chance to reflect, open up to their peers, and inspire others — certainly an opportu...
The Wrong Way to Acknowledge Yom Kippur
October 26, 2017
Filed under Opinions
Groton’s website asserts that the “Groton Difference” is that “the School’s intimacy and ideals foster inclusion.” The overlying ideas of diversity and inclusion that produce this “Groton Difference” have gained immense notoriety in recent years. However, even though the School has stri...
Taking Shots at the Gun Lobby
October 26, 2017
Filed under Opinions
Charleston, South Carolina; San Bernardino, California; Orlando, Florida; and now Las Vegas, Nevada. These sites were subject to some of the deadliest mass shootings known to man, all in the last 3 years. Time and time again, we send our thoughts and prayers, fly flags at half mast, and barely get in...