In the most recent issue of the Update, both a story and an editorial piece concerning the Midland Bubble were run. The Midland Bubble is an effect described by many where people in Midland feel separated from the world outside of the town. There are lots of differing opinions on the matter, ranging from the extent of its presence to the consequences it may hold for the town. In the wake of the publication being released, there were a lot of opinions from the people of Midland about how they felt in the so-called bubble.

One of the key points of contention on the topic is why the Midland Bubble exists in the first place.

“Well it generally comes about in small towns and other isolated places,” junior Raifton Bartling said. “It’s sort of the same mindset where you think ‘you’ve got a future in the factory, son’, like you’re gonna work there when you grow up, and it’s a lot easier to really think that you’re the center of the universe.”

People also believe that the bubble holds negative effects on their viewpoints by skewing their perception to concentrate more on the inside than the outside.

“It makes it harder to get perspectives on what the real world is like,” senior Abby Farnum said.

There’s also the belief that the Midland Bubble insulates itself against whatever is happening elsewhere such that the people inside of the bubble are not well-informed about the news outside of Midland.

“When there’s a storm, the bubble kind of pushes it away,” Joey Essenmacher said. “Since we’re on the edge of the second valley, then we’re in a spot where when a storm starts to come down into the valley, it kind of splits away from us.”

The people of Midland hold differing opinions on what degree it influences life in the town as well as what sort of effects is has. Overall, Midland as a town has many people in it who hold a variety of views on what sort of news it should filter in and pay attention to.