2018 Solebury Township Midterm Election Results

Amy Tao and Marina Skuban

Staff writers

Scott Wallace, Brian Fitzpatrick, you’ve heard the names. This election is one to remember.

Democrat Bob Casey, seeking his third term, ran against Republican Lou Barletta, who is currently in the House of Representatives, for the US Senate race. Casey easily won with 55.6% over Barletta’s 42.8%, so he will keep his seat for another six years. Pennsylvania’s other senator is Republican Pat Toomey, which gives Pennsylvania one republican and one democrat in the Senate.

Current governor Tom Wolf, seeking a second term, was challenged by Scott Wagner, who aims to free business owners from state regulations for job growth and higher paychecks. Wolf won 57.6% over 40.8%, remaining governor for another four years.

Candidates for Senator in the General Assembly of the 10th District were Steve Santarsiero, aiming to rebuild our economy, and Marguerite Quinn, who prioritizes the education system. The two were battling for the open seat after Chuck McIlhinney did not run for reelection. Santarsiero won the showdown by over 6,000 votes.

Helen Tai and Wendi Thomas ran for the open seat in District 178. Thomas, the Republican candidate, defeated Tai, a resident of Solebury township and the current Democratic incumbent, by fewer than 1,000 votes.

Brian Fitzpatrick and Scott Wallace ran for the 1st Congressional district in a highly watched race. Wallace caught up to Fitzpatrick, the republican incumbent once considered unbeatable, in the polls. However, Fitzpatrick was able to pull off the win.

The 2018 Midterm elections have been one of the most important elections of our time. With a 188% increase in young voters since 2014 and a record breaking amount of women and people from other minority groups elected to the House and Senate, this has certainly been an election for the history books. Our country will continue to change, but only if people get out and vote. 

Whiskey the Whippet Wins National Dog Show

Caroline Donado

Editor-in-Chief

The National Dog Show took place on Nov. 22 (Thanksgiving day), awarding a Whippet

named Whiskey, Best in Show. The show, run by the American Kennel Club, featured thousands of dogs from across the nation and five international entries. 185 breeds were represented including the Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen and Nederlandse Kooikerhondje which were featured for the first time. The dog show has seven groups with the Whippet winning the Hound Group, Doberman Pinscher for the Working, Pembroke Welsh Corgi for Herding, Chesapeake Bay Retriever for Sporting, Lhasa Apso for Non-Sporting, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel for Toy, and the Wire Fox Terrier for the Terrier Group.

    Whiskey’s handler said to NBC that “[he’s] an outstanding example of what the ideal Whippet would look like.” Whiskey beat Doberman Pinscher, Irupe, for the first place ribbon. This is his 20th Best in Show. “First and foremost he is our companion and pet,” the handler’s wife says. “We love him.”

Amazon Raises Their Minimum Wage

Connor Fitzgerald

Staff Writer

On Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2018, Amazon had released a statement that they are raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour for United States employees. The raises apply to part-time workers and people hired by temporary agencies. Amazon has also said they believe the American minimum wage should be raised.

The current minimum wage in the U.S. has been around $7.25 for almost 10 years or so now. The new minimum wage from Amazon will affect approximately 250,000 employees and to 100,000 more workers they plan to hire for the holiday season.

This change in pay will start on Nov. 1. Jeff Bezos has always received criticism for Amazon’s low pay. After Bezos announced this, Target stated they would raise their minimum wage to $15 by 2020. Walmart also exclaimed they would raise their minimum wage to $11 an hour in January.

“We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead,” Amazon’s executive, Jeff Bezos, had stated. “We’re excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us.”

Amazon has significantly changed the retailing industry in the past couple of years. Amazons’ high popularity and sales have caused many businesses and stores in the sectors Amazon disrupts to go out of business. One example of this is the closing of the toy store company Toys “R” Us. President Donald Trump is not a fan of this and believes that it is ruining the industries.

New Hope Fugitive Captured

Will Kelley and Kel MacDowell
Staff Writer

Over the past week, New Hope has been the temporary hiding spot of David Allen Hamilton, 47. According to the Solebury Township Police, Hamilton has been on the run since last week. He was charged with two counts of rape and sexual assault on two different young women.
     On September 21, Hamilton tried to take a New Hope Borough police officer’s gun. He was unable to get the gun and has since disappeared into the woods. Hamilton is suspected to be a 20-year military veteran. Additionally, Hamilton will be charged for aggravated assault.He is suspected to be armed and dangerous. Currently, there is a $1,000 reward for anyone that can give information leading directly to his arrest.
     After a few weeks on the run, Hamilton was caught Friday, September 28, in a bedroom closet in Aston, Pennsylvania. Aston township Police Detective said, “We received the tip this morning that David Hamilton was on the 100 block of Roberts Road here in Aston Township.” He was found hiding in a second-floor closet of his relative’s home in Aston township, Pennsylvania. David Hamilton had a lot to say while being taken in by authorities about the accusations. Hamilton states, “I am innocent until proven guilty and I hope there is a good lawyer out there who will help me.”

Instagram Founders Resign, Facebook’s Downfall Continues

Matthew Bracco

Staff Writer

Instagram’s co-founders, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, are choosing to resign, which may be a troubling signal for Facebook, who owns the app.

    Kevin Systrom, Instagram’s chief executive, and Mike Krieger, it’s chief technology officer, have resigned and plan to make their departure in the coming weeks. “We’re planning on taking some time off to explore our curiosity and creativity again,” Systrom said. “Building new things requires that we step back, understand what inspires us and match that with what the world needs; that’s what we plan to do.”

Instagram was purchased by Facebook in 2012 for $1 Billion. However, Facebook has been on a continuous downward spiral. Facebook’s stock hit a peak low in July after it’s second-quarter earnings report showed slowed revenue growth and they haven’t necessarily recovered from that drop yet.

Facebook had barely any new users since their second-quarter and actually lost some users in Europe and Canada. Investors are worried about the future of Facebook, and Instagram’s co-founders making an exit does anything but aid Facebook’s growth. According to the Wall Street Journal, Instagram’s co-founders battled with Facebook leadership, including Zuckerberg. One person familiar with the matter told the Journal the relationship had become “tense” in recent months.

“Kevin and Mike are extraordinary product leaders and Instagram reflects their combined creative talents,” Zuckerberg said in a statement. “I’ve learned a lot working with them for the past six years and have really enjoyed it. I wish them all the best and I’m looking forward to seeing what they build next.” Although their ties are cut, Systrom and Krieger remain “excited” for the future of both Instagram and Facebook.

Attempted poisoning of government officials

Lauren Walinski

    Ricin is a deadly poison derived from castor beans which, once ingested, injected, or inhaled, causes the body to stop making proteins. Once it is  in the body, it takes anywhere from a few hours to a few days to work, depending on the concentration and dosage. A lethal dose of  purified ricin powder is only the size of a few grains of table salt. This is what it seems William Clyde Allen III had intended to send to the Pentagon and to the White House.
    The Pentagon received two envelopes containing a strange substance, and the White House a third. This substance was later revealed through FBI testing to be a concoction made of castor beans. While not technically ricin, it could still be dangerous to ingest.
    The White House envelope was addressed to President Trump. The two envelopes to the Pentagon had been addressed to Jim Mattis, the Defense Secretary, and Adm. John Richardson, chief of the US Navy. The would-be assassin, Allen, served in the Navy for four years.
    Allen was arrested in Salt Lake City, Utah, after his envelopes were intercepted by the Pentagon and White House mailing facilities. He has been indicted on seven counts.

Cosby receives three- to 10-year sentence

McAfee Madding
Staff Writer

The first high-profile conviction since the #MeToo movement put an international spotlight on women’s stories of abuse. Bill Cosby, comedian, creator and star of many long lasting television shows, started his career in Stand-Up Comedy in the 1960s before creating his own sitcom, The Bill Cosby Show in 1969. Cosby was sentenced to  three to 10 years for drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand in 2004. In 2015 New York Magazine published an issue with 35 of the 46 accusers of Cosby, giving those victims a platform to tell their stories. These incidents happened between 1965 and 2008
Bill Cosby was one of America's greatest comedians, so when these victims stories came forward in the mid 2010’s, not only was it surprising because it was a sexual abuse scandal, but in this case the abuser was often nicknamed “America's dad.” Cosby has been affiliated with Temple University decades, he served on the board of trustees before resigning in 2014. In 1991 Temple University awarded Cosby an honorary doctorate, but they have finally decided to strip him of that title.
Cosby's first trial in June of 2017 ended in a mistrial, the latest trial in Norristown, Pa., took place on Sept. 24, 2018. “Bill Cosby took my beautiful, healthy young spirit and crushed it. He robbed me of my health and vitality, my open nature, and my trust in myself and others,” Constand commented about the incident. Constand was the only accuser that came forward and pressured any kind of charges towards Cosby. In this new age of the #MeToo movement created by, Tarana Burke, this is a small step towards justice for all victims of sexual assault.