Thursday, September 11, 2008
The Smoke Signal
Closed campus projected to begin Fall 2009 By Anastassia Tselikova Staff Writer MSJ went through a series of major renovations and changes in the past few years, and it is probable that the campus will close once certain criteria are met. Despite the fact that the school is going through extensive renovation, “…it is uncertain when the campus would be closed for lunch,” said Principal Sandra Prairie. After the Fremont Unified School District (FUSD) Health and Safety Bond was passed on March 5, 2002, MSJ, as well as all other schools in the district, received funding for various health and safety improvements in
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Web Design Club launches web portal
tion and expansion of the kitchen and the construction of the new cafeteria in the B-Wing have a projected completion date of fall 2009, it is still unclear as to when the campus will be closed. The school has decided to also construct more B-Wing classrooms and a new teacher lounge. “This is an issue that is still under review by the school board and no specific date has been determined,” said Prairie. Before the bond of 2002, FUSD had only passed one other bond. Due to this, and because there are a lot of small facilities located close to one another, FUSD had gotten behind on renovations, functioning graphics editor cici cao
From left to right: Seniors Raymond Chou and Robin Chang. created an online club directory to promote communication between clubs and the students.
graphics editor cici cao
A bulldozer digs up trees in front of the B-wing to make room for the new cafeteria.
schools, including seismic and traffic upgrades. MSJ was given $8.9 million in May 2007, $4.9 million of which was allotted for the construction of the new cafeteria. When the new dining facilities will fit a set number of students, MSJ will close its campus. The construction of the new cafeteria was planned in 2005, and the work began August 2008. Though both the moderniza-
in termite-infested buildings, using 30-yearold restrooms, working with barely adequate heating and air flow. The bond had been expected to raise $157.2 million for the district, aiding in the construction of new facilities district-wide and renovation of the old ones. The construction is planned to finish in February 2009. ▪
Recession cuts into education budget By Megan Bernstein Staff Writer As the school year begins, many parents, students and teachers have been left questioning the changes that will be brought about by even more budget cuts being proposed by California legislatures. California spends an estimated $50 billion a year on public education; however, on Aug. 12th Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that the state needs to take care of a budget shortfall estimated around $17 billion. In addition to the proposed cuts, the governor has urged the state to implement a new algebra requirement that could cost an additional $3 billion or more. With the recent surge in gas and food prices, as well as the struggling economy, the new cuts and requirements are expected to hit schools and students hard throughout the state. California residents will not only have to deal with bigger class sizes and fewer counselors, but rising food costs and bus fares. Residents have seen food costs jump between 12 and 20 percent and gas prices have close to doubled in the past year. Due to the shaky economy, students and parents in many districts have seen school lunches increase another 50 to 75 cents and bus fares seem have doubled. In the Bay Area alone, several districts have
seen extreme price increases in bus fares. For some districts, parents who once paid nothing for yearly bus rides now pay around $200. The California budget can no longer accommodate the $400 to $500 tanks of gas needed by school buses and in the Fremont Unified School District, a double in annual fees to almost $700 is currently being put into consideration. Other school districts across the nation have been pushed to even more extreme measures to combat the sky-high gas prices. In one school district in Minnesota, the schools have cut down to four day weeks to reduce gas used on school buses. Over 14 different districts have followed suit, saying one less day each week can save up to $65,000 of fuel. Districts also have been forced to cope with the economy like California schools, by cutting electives and extra after school programs. Besides the increased food prices and bus fares, MSJ will be seeing larger class sizes of up to 34 to 35 students in the upcoming year. Despite rumors of counselor cuts, MSJ will continue to have counselors on staff. However, other MSJ staff positions will no longer have substitutes available. “Custodial, clerical and administrative subs will not be available this school year,” said Principal Sandy Prairie, “We need students to help keep the campus clean.” ▪
By Amanda Kwan Centerspread Editor On August 10, Web Design Club launched www.msjclubs.net, an online directory of all the clubs on campus. By clicking on the name of a club, site visitors can view club descriptions, meeting dates and times, and contact information for the club’s officers. The site also includes a calendar of campus events, covering both school-run and student-run activities. In addition to updating MSJ students about various campus clubs, Web Design aims for the directory to facilitate communication between clubs. Club officers can, for example, access the site to view event times of other clubs and plan their own club’s events accordingly. Key Club, one of the first clubs to submit its information, plans to use the calendar to advertise club events. “We can’t reach everyone by word of mouth, so it’s a good way to have information out there for everyone to see,” said Key Club President Senior Stephanie Cheung.
The website is currently maintained by Web Design’s five officers. The layout is primarily managed by Web Design CoPresidents Seniors Robin Chang and Raymond Chou, while all officers contribute graphics, write and edit consent forms, and communicate with participating clubs. As the site grows, Web Design plans to form committees led by club officers to manage different aspects of the site. While information for only a few dozen clubs is currently online, Chang hopes the site will eventually be a useful tool for students looking to join clubs. “There are way too many clubs on campus, and we thought that if more students knew about club activity, they would be more interested in joining,” said Chang. When the site is further developed, the club plans to increase interactivity by allowing clubs to update parts of the website themselves and by installing a forum to ease communication among the student body. ▪
4 Opinion
the
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The Smoke Signal
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Smoke Signal
Mission San Jose High School Est. 1964 Vol. 44, No. 1 | September 11, 2008
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41717 Palm Ave. Fremont, CA 94539 (510) 657-3600 Editors-in-Chief Sophie Diao, Mala Neti News Vidya Mahavadi, Amy Mao Opinion Julia Harrell, Marianna Mao Feature Lena Liu, Hannah Scobel Centerspread Amanda Kwan, Natalie Yang A&E Vicraj Gill, Eric Sun Sports Ryan Tanakit, Audrey Tseng Graphics Cici Cao, Jerry Ting Web Raymond Chou, Lucy Liu Tech Abhay Malik, Albert Yuan Ads Rebecca Gao, Sargunjot Kaur Business Victoria Gu Circulation Derek Yueh Events Megan Bernstein, Clara Ma Writers & Photographers Andre
Abrahamians, Sandhya Chandrasekaran, Monica Chen, Victor Chen, Christine Cheng, Michelle Chu, Ankur Dhar, Hannie Dong, Michael Feuerman, Peter Gao, Alissa Gwynn, Niku Jafarnia, Henna Jethani, Sonya John, Cynthia Kang, Karen Lin, Yvonne Lin, Gina Liu, Mickey Liu, Tanu Patel, Joseph Teng, Elisa Ting, Anastassia Tselikova, Jane Wang, Anthony Wu, Jonathan Ye, Jordan Zhang
Adviser Sandra Cohen Send letters to the editor to opinion@the smokesignal.org. Letters under 300 words may be considered for publication and must include a full name and school affiliation. The Smoke Signal reserves the right to edit for clarity and length.
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MAOTH off!
Jules of Wisdom
LIVE FREE OR DIEBOLD
An American Girl in Paris By Julia Harrell
By Marianna Mao
Opinion Editor
Opinion Editor
This past August, I left my family and friends, boarded a plane, and made a 5,000 mile journey to France. During the three weeks I was there, I lived with a French family, spoke only French, and, I’d like to hope, lived like a French citizen. The experience was without a doubt one that has changed my life and has given me a clearer view of what the rest of the world is actually like. The people I met and the conversations I had were some of the most interesting (and confusing) that I have ever experienced. Though I hope that the majority of my trip will be forever catalogued in my memory, there is one aspect that I will never forget. On more than one occasion, I got into a discussion of current events and politics with my host family and after each conversation, I was left with the unsettling feeling that America will never be able to get back its good international standing. As an American individual, I didn’t have a particularly hard time in France, but once or twice, I saw someone give me a nasty look when I pulled out my American passport or when I spoke French with an American accent. Embarking on the trip, I knew that the US didn’t have a fabulous international reputation, but getting glared at simply for carrying an American passport is a little extreme.
Incidents such as this made me realize just how severely the Bush administration has tarnished America’s international standing, and frankly, it pissed me off. The fact that I can’t travel outside of the country without getting funny looks because of my citizenship is absurd, and the current administration should be ashamed of its complete incompetence in international relations. Globally, our government is seen as a selfish bully whose policies are finally catching up with it in the form of an economic recession. In one conversation, I heard someone say of the American government, “What kind of country just invades another after the international community has strongly advised against it?” Unfortunately, I had no answer to this question. One thing that the rest of the world and I are looking forward to and are following closely is the November election. While other countries may follow American politics as a kind of sport, what I am hoping for is a President who can begin to restore America’s good standing in the international community. When I travel overseas, I don’t want to feel glares in my direction or see raised eyebrows when I pull out my passport. I just want to get on the plane and fly. ▪ Send letters to the editor to opinion@thesmokesignal.org
A Plea for the Trees By Jerry Ting Graphics Editor
I’m not a tree hugger. Really, I’m not, but I have enough brains to realize something is awfully wrong when I see it. Walking home from school after a morning of Link Crew, I was exposed to the horrific truth that the majestic trees outside the Bwing were reduced to mere stumps. Living in a world already short on a supply of trees, I truly did not expect four trees of this stature to be cut down, especially at the highly educated campus of Mission San Jose, in a society making it a point to be eco-friendly. The removal of the trees that were on campus before Mission was even founded in 1963 was due to the fact that there are water, gas, and electric lines underneath the B wing that are able to support the construction of the cafeteria in the future. This will enable Mission to become a fully functional closedcampus facility. The decision of the placement of the future cafeteria was made by the school district and not by the MSJ faculty, which actually properly opposed removal of the trees. When asked about this ordeal, Vice Principal Zach Larsen stated, “Those were some beautiful trees. It’s awful; you should have seen how long it took for them to cut
them down because of how big they were.” The decision to destroy the Bwing and the trees that enclose it was not presented to the student body and parents in the monthly newsletter. Nor were there any announcements appropriately publically declared to the MSJ community.
could have been rerouted. MSJ’s campus may be old, but it is teeming with culture and tradition. MSJ would not be itself without the bell tower and the rambling facilities. As a part of that tradition, the trees that prospered on our campus for more than half a century contributes to the definition and openness of the MSJ campus.
A construction worker demolishes a tree outside of the B Wing.
To add to the overall calamity of the situation, the destruction of the trees, along with the future destruction of the B-wing, could have been avoided. The cafeteria could have been built in the spacious area outside the main gym and beyond the E-wing. Instead of destroying the B-wing and therefore having to build more classrooms in the future, the water, gas, and electric lines
graphics editor jerry ting
The removal of the decades-old trees was a mistake. In their place, rubble and construction workers hide inside covered fences as sounds of construction ring through the air just in time for the start of school. Now as I walk to school, I am greeted not by a sense of friendly natural openness but instead by the striking prominence of construction. ▪
In August, Diebold acknowledged that its electronic voting machines, used in 1,750 jurisdictions across 34 states, contain a ten-yearold programming error which can cause votes to be dropped while being transferred from memory cards. The logic error tends to affect large jurisdictions uploading data from multiple memory cards. As recently as May, though, Diebold had asserted that its voting machines were bug-free, blaming skewed results in the Ohio primary on an anti-virus program or human error despite long-standing statements from researchers that the voting technology used by Diebold is vulnerable, at high risk for compromise, and does not meet minimal security standards. Conspiracy theories aside, in a nation where the will of the majority prevails, the fact that voters have been using a faulty voting system is appalling. The revelation of a ten-year-old error in the system compromises the integrity of the democratic process upon which our government is based. Although many states have safeguards in place to prevent voting fraud and catch machine errors, election security should not have to depend on such procedures. If such a critical problem has gone overlooked in tested election machines for ten years, it is clear that federal certification procedures for voting machines also need to
undergo revision. The Election Assistance Commission, which sets standards for elections at all levels of government, needs to put in place more thorough testing, stricter certification procedures and more stringent standards for optical scan systems. Though Diebold has expressed “confidence” that its faulty software has not skewed any election results, in order to restore confidence in electronic voting for the November elections, a paper trail needs to be established. Current voting machines do not return any form of confirmation to the voter, but if receipts were printed out, cross-checking votes with the electronic total would be straightforward, even if other vulnerabilities exist in the Diebold systems. Unfortunately, corporate greed has already infected American democracy. According to a leaked internal memo from 2001, when Maryland election officials requested a receipt feature, Diebold planned to “charge them up the wazoo.” “Do not to [sic] offer damaging opinions of our systems, even when their failings become obvious,” another internal memo reads. Something has clearly gone wrong in our democracy if such a company has been entrusted with voters’ voices for decades. ▪ Send letters to the editor to opinion@thesmokesignal.org
FBI Regulations Loosened By Marianna Mao Opinion Editor
Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey is pushing for a Justice Department plan that would expand the investigatory powers of the Federal Bureau of Investigation as part of its transition from a domestic crime-fighting agency into one whose emphasis is counter-terrorism. Under the new guidelines, the FBI would be empowered to investigate someone without any evidence or leads, but based solely on a profile of “suspicious” traits such as ethnicity, family members, travel abroad, and access to weapons or military training. Agents would also be permitted to use investigative techniques that are not normally authorized for warrantless investigations. Mukasey said of the new policy, “The new consolidated guidelines will … integrate more completely and harmonize the standards that apply to the FBI’s activities.” Those words seem to be a tacit acknowledgement that the FBI is already following such a policy in violation of its own guidelines. Though Mukasey denies that the policy would lead to violations of First Amendment rights, senators and members of the ACLU have rightly expressed concern over the new policy. In particular, the guidelines seem to jus-
tify racial profiling: characteristics such as ethnicity and religion seem to have become probable cause for terrorist activities. The American pursuit of happiness has been transmuted into a retreat from the undercurrent of stereotyping and bigotry perpetuated by the government itself.
Attorney General Mukasey
druglaw.com
In light of objections from members of the Senate, Mukasey has agreed to wait for a Congressional hearing to pass the policy, though he remains “determined” to have the guidelines in place by October 1. It is ironic and disappointing that the Attorney General of the United States, a supposed champion of justice and accountability, is advocating a policy in the name of “safety” which, in reality, only tramples over civil liberties and the inalienable right to be defined not by one’s birth but by one’s character. ▪
Thursday, September 11, 2008
The Smoke Signal
It Ain’t Easy Being Green
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SAT Overrated
By Vicraj Gill
By Julia Harrell
A&E Editor
Opinion Editor
There’s no debating that the green movement has merit; but the fever we’ve been swept up in may be doing the cause more harm than good. Perhaps the greatest bandwagon that amateur adherents have to jump on is the push for a corn-based ethanol substitute for fossil fuels. Many of these proponents have lauded cornbased ethanol as the fuel of the next generation without knowing the hazards of its use, or even that there are any. The industries that support the switch to corn-based ethanol think only in the short term: blending petroleum and corn-based ethanol fuels lead to a more long-lived oil industry, less pressure on automobile makers to decrease environmental impact, and increased grants and subsidies for farmers. And the government’s recent push for increased production of corn-based ethanol stems not so much from concern for the environment as from the desire to appease “greenies” and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil. While it’s great that these groups are pleased with the direction the movement is taking, none of the goals they’re trying to reach necessarily fulfill the original objective of “going green”—a healthier earth. And the fact of the matter is that taxpayers, who should be the ones benefiting from a greener world, would still suffer. A gallon of gasoline takes less than a dollar to produce; the same amount of cornbased ethanol costs nearly two. The production of the corn from which the ethanol is made and the increases in soil erosion and groundwater usage due to corn production tack an-
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When can we find a green solution?
other 23 cents on the overall cost per gallon. Ironically, corn-based ethanol also takes fossil fuels to make, as it’s too expensive otherwise. The method of corn ethanol production used also, in the end, makes no dent in the amount of greenhouses gases in the air; quite the opposite. The carbon debt that would result from processing corn ethanol, scientists of the Nature Conservancy predict, could take up to 300 years to pay off. And this is just for America. Add other nations to the mix, and the potential cost of an ethanol-only or even a blended petroleum-ethanol fuel source overwhelm many of the benefits. If those jumping on the green energy bandwagon actually took a good look at the whole of environmentally-friendly energies, they’d find ethanol made from sugar cane rather than corn to be a vastly better alternative. The method by which it’s produced is not as wasteful as that of corn-based ethanol, and it would provide benefits to nations with high production rates of sugar cane as well as developing countries looking
for a way in to America’s markets. Using switchgrass- or cellulosebased ethanol is another option being explored by scientists. Upon closer examination, however, the production of cellulosic ethanol leads to many of the same problems as that of corn, and may be another burden we’d be better off not shouldering—again reinforcing the point that there are no easy answers for the green energy question, which is what many who seized so quickly onto the concept of corn-based ethanol were hoping for. In the end, the search for a solution remains just that, a search, and possibilities must be thoroughly researched and explored rather than being thrusted blindly to the political or social forefront. Going green should not be a bandwagon to jump on or a competition to see who can be more frugal and therefore more fashionable. It should be a series of gradual, longstanding changes with tangible effects that both undo the damages we’ve incurred on our environment and preserve the earth not only for now, but for generations to come. ▪
Phelps Phrenzy By Hannah Scobel Feature Editor
Did you know that the US made a clean sweep of all the medals in women’s’ fencing? If so, do you know any of their names? How about that Kristin Armstrong received gold in cycling? Oh, and Aaron Peirsol and Matt Grevers placed first and second in the men’s 100 backstroke? No? Well, did you hear that Michael Phelps received 8 gold medals? Of course you did. Even my dead grandmother has heard about the mighty swimmer Michael Phelps and his quest to bring home more golds than anyone ever has before. He’s amazing and deserves respect for his accomplishments, but other athletes deserve a share of the news coverage that Phelps has had cast on him, and only him. For example, after the Men’s 4 x 100 freestyle relay, when Jason Lezak swam the most amazing anchor leg of a relay imaginable, the limelight was on him not because he pulled his team to victory from behind, but rather because he helped Phelps along to another gold medal. One reporter asked, “How does it feel knowing that you will go down in history if Phelps succeeds in obtaining all eight gold medals?” Lezak should go down in his-
getty images
USA teammates Garret Weber-Gale and Michael Phelps celebrate after an amazing comeback in the 4 x 100m freestyle relay. The spotlight, however, was focused on Phelps alone.
tory regardless of Phelps. He should be remembered forever for his own accomplishments and success, not because he played a role in Phelps’ glory. Michael Phelps has acquired many adjectives to his name. He has been described as majestic, perfect, a god. He probably isn’t even classified as a human anymore. Some reporters have taken it so far as to call him an extraterrestrial. Newspapers love the man. Every day after one of his golds he was on the front page of the sports section, or sometimes the front of the entire paper. Somewhere underneath his huge picture would be a much less flashy article about other US gold
medalists. But of course, they are not Phelps, the US’s dream athlete, so their gold medals apparently do not mean half as much. Maybe Phelps has the right to be so loved and worshipped by all. Maybe it’s proper that all the focus was on him throughout the games. Maybe all those gold medals suggest that he is not human-like. Yet I keep thinking back to a commercial in which Morgan Freeman talks about how they’re human, and we’re human, and when they succeed, we succeed. Well, Phelps has a way of rewording that phrase. We’re human, and Phelps isn’t, and when he succeeds, everyone else is simply forgotten. ▪
Opinion 5
The College Board is a misguided institution that has brainwashed teenagers, parents, and admissions officers into believing that the SAT is a tell-all test that can accurately predict how well a student will perform in college. I may sound like an overstressed Mission student ready to snap under the weight of my SAT prep books, but my point is valid. Why do we as high school students so fervently support an organization that promises to act as a stepping stone for our success in the world of higher education, but that really only eats up money and causes unhealthy amounts of stress and anxiety? According to the College Board, we do this because the SAT acts as an indicator of how well we will do with college-level course work. While this may have been true in the 1960s when the test was first introduced, the SAT has morphed into a test that literally measures how well students can take the SAT. Proof lies in the multiple rows of study guides at book stores and in the ridiculous amounts of money parents spend in private tutoring and SAT prep courses for their children each year. This being the case, it seems logical to conclude that the SAT is an indicator of socioeconomic status rather than of aptitude. Statistically, students from higher economic statuses receive better scores on the SAT when compared to students in inner city high schools. The reason for this gap is mainly due to the fact that affluent students have parents who can afford to send them to
The clarion call in the news these days is “the call for change,” but at MSJHS there has been a change that is a real shame. Last year’s Mock-Con didn’t go well, and there is no Mock-Con this year. The irony is that in the last 6-12 months, we’ve seen an incredible surge in participation in politics among young people. It’s been an embarrassment that our nation’s foreign policy is characterized by pontificating over the virtues of democracy while we frequently have only around 50% participation in our own elections. But maybe that’s changing. This general election will be over before most seniors turn in their community service hours, but the issues that are being debated and the decisions that will be made in the next four years will have profound impacts on all our lives. Maybe a school-wide simulated convention isn’t practical at this point, but that doesn’t mean that
private prep classes and purchase every score-boosting book on the market. Courses costing anywhere from $800 to $2,000 promise to raise a student’s original test score by at least 100 points overall. The bottom line is that a good SAT score can, and in most cases is, bought. With wealthier students so obviously having the upper hand in the test, why does it continue to be regarded as a legitimate component of the college application process? Many prestigious colleges have actually begun to disregard the SAT as a factor in admissions altogether because of its unreliability in predicting how well a student will perform in college. Universities such as Sarah Lawrence College, Lewis and Clark College, and Hamilton College have eliminated standardized test scores from their application completely and instead focus on academic achievement via grades, rigor of course selection, and participation in extracurricular activities. This type of selection process allows schools to gain a clearer picture of what a student is actually like instead of allowing applicants to be defined by, or hide behind, a score. These schools are finding that their freshmen classes are just as successful as students at colleges which take SAT scores into consideration in admissions decisions. The SAT is an antiquated means of measuring a student’s preparedness for college-level course work, and until a fairer and more accurate test is designed, its place in the college admissions process should be dramatically reduced, if not ignored altogether. ▪
our student body wouldn’t enjoy and benefit from an opportunity to engage in the democratic process. Global warming, renewable energy, balancing civil liberties with national security, protecting the middle class, promoting racial equality—these will ultimately be solved by today’s youth. For this reason, we should have a school-wide forum for students in all classes (faculty and staff too?) to ask questions, seek answers, persuade others, and cast a vote. And it would be great to see it created by a student who hears this clarion call personally. Is there a student here at Mission who is clever and motivated enough to tap into the passions that have been wakening all across the country? Show me such a student, and I’ll show you the type of person to eventually resolve these issues for the benefit of everyone. John Boegman, English Teacher
6 Centerspread
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The Smoke Signal
Thursday, September 11, 2008
By Amanda Kwan and Natalie Yang Centerspread Editors
Homecoming Week and Game (Sept. 29 - Oct. 4)
Homecoming Week is one of the year’s most anticipated events. It kicks off with a Homecoming assembly, which then leads into freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior performances during lunch at the amphitheater, in that order. At the end of the week, the popular Homecoming Dance and the Homecoming Game (this year against Irvington) wrap it all up, and the Homecoming King and Queen are crowned. Participating in Homecoming is a great way to bond with other members of your class. Even though most airbands practice during the summer, there’s still time to help with decorations and fundraisers. If you can’t contribute any time, show your Homecoming spirit by wearing your class t-shirt and color and cheering for your class during the Homecoming skits. Freshmen and sophomores, you’re the first ones on stage, so work hard to rev up the crowds. Juniors and seniors, expectations are high, so use your experience to give the school a spectacular performance. Even though Homecoming creates class rivalries, the main point of the week is to unite all classes against our Homecoming Game adversaries, the Irvington Vikings. Wear green and white to the game on Saturday and cheer MSJ’s football team to victory!
Drama Performances (Nov. 7, 8, 14, 15, Mar. 19 - 21, 26, 27)
The fall play and spring musical change every year, but each one is spectacular. The cast and crew put months of work into each, often staying at school until late at night, and the fruits of their effort show clearly in a magnificent whirlwind of talent and creativity. The performances are fun to watch, but it’s even more fulfilling to take part. Whether your skills lie in acting, singing, dancing, painting, design, or another part of production, don’t miss a chance to contribute to two of the best showcases of MSJ talent. Auditions for the fall show are currently taking place, and auditions for the musical begin December 2nd.
Drivers Ed
There is a positive correlation between the hours you have your car and the amount of freedom you have. The ability to drive means off-campus lunches, weekend road trips, the good life. Plus, you don’t want to still be getting out of your parents’ car every morning your senior year. Just be sure to follow the rules of your particular license or face the very expensive consequences.
Homework
While homework may seem to contribute little to your grade, it is assigned to prepare you for upcoming tests. By not completing your homework, you may be missing out on important information your teacher does not mention in class. You could also be lacking practice for skills that are required to pass the course. If you slack off now, it will be harder to get back on track later. Do yourself a favor and don’t fall behind.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
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Centerspread 7
Winter Ball (Dec. 19)
The only formal dance for all grade levels, Winter Ball has some of the best decorations MSJ dances have to offer. The combination of beautiful decor and formal wear creates the perfect atmosphere for a romantic night, whether you have a date or not. It’s a dance you’ll have to attend at least once before graduation.
Sadie Hawkins Dance (Feb. 20)
As in previous years, the Sadie Hawkins Dance will be hosted by the junior and sophomore classes. Couples and groups of friends at the dance often dress up in matching costumes according to the theme, which will be decided by class officers later in the year. Guys, tradition allows you to sit back and relax because it’s the girls’ turn to ask you to the dance. Girls, this is your chance to show off your creativity and wit. Everyone, grab some t-shirts, paint, and a date or friend for an easy matching outfit. --Staff Writer Clara Ma and Centerspread Editor Amanda Kwan
Multicultural Week (Apr. 20 - 24)
A welcome break late in the year, Multicultural Week consists of four extended lunchtimes during which clubs sell foods representative of cultures all over the world, followed by the Multicultural Assembly, featuring ethnic performances as diverse as Tahitian Hula and Tae Kwon Do. Take a break from school lunches, support MSJ’s clubs, and try something new every day. You may surprise yourself with a new favorite food. While you’re at it, stick around at the amphitheater to watch the lunchtime performances. Seniors, take part in the Senior Bhangra; it’s one of the last things you’ll do with your class.
Volunteer Hours
Forty hours of community service are due by third quarter of senior year. Although this may seem like plenty of time, do not underestimate the importance. These hours are required to graduate. Service clubs, such as LEO Club, Interact, and Key Club, provide numerous opportunities to earn service hours. Information about service opportunities can also be found in the display case by the back door of C4.
Clubs
MSJ has an enormous variety of student-run clubs. Listen to the morning announcements for information about club meetings, find some that interest you, and narrow those down to a few to which you can be devoted. Getting involved in a club will allow you to make new friends with similar interests, develop club-specific skills, and learn to work in a team beyond school projects.
Part-Time Job
With all the dances, performances, and school supplies to pay for, high school can get expensive! A part-time job will provide you with not only more spending money but also work experience that will help you in your future career as well as on college and job applications. Go to the career center to apply for a work permit or to find information about job openings for high school students. photos from archives and by graphics editors cici cao and jerry ting
8 Feature
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The Smoke Signal
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Summer Activities
This summer, several students went above and beyond the call of duty, turning a few months off into a journey of a lifetime.
Rebecca Gao: Thailand By Amy Mao News Editor
staff writer riebecca gao
This three-year-old was abandoned by her parents, who were caught up in drug trafficking.
Instead of taking SAT courses over the summer with her fellow juniors, Junior Rebecca Gao opted to travel abroad with Wisdom Culture Education Organization to film a documentary about the lives of children in Thailand. Smoke Signal: Where did you go over the summer? Explain what you did. Rebecca Gao: From August 13-22, I visited the Samuel Home in Chiang Rai, Thailand. Chiang Rai is situated at the junction of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, called the Golden Triangle, [which] used to be a major opiumtrafficking hotspot until 2003. The trip to Chiang Rai brought us to Operation Dawn Facility’s Samuel Home, a refuge for children whose families were torn apart by drug abuse. Our stay was designed to acquaint us with the children and the environment at Samuel Home, but our main objective was to film a documentary on the children at the orphanage Samuel Home and raise money for them. SS: What is this organization called? How
did you become involved in this organization? RG: I received an email notice from Wisdom Culture Education Organization. I sent in my application and was selected among 11 others. [We] then had to attend training for our trip. Our group leaders, the three adults, then chose seven of us to go on the trip this year. SS: Why did you decide to go? RG: Quite a few people have participated in service missions,so I asked myself,‘why not grab this experience and explore Thailand as well?’ SS: Do you feel that your work was worthwhile? RG: What we’ve already accomplished has definitely made all the long hours of effort put into this project worthwhile. I never thought that a few scraggly visitors from the U.S. like us could bring them happiness. Our goal is to raise at least $6000 on our own, which we can then match to Microsoft on a 1:1 ratio. If just 50 cents a day can send a kid to school and $1 more can feed and clothe him, think how much we could still accomplish. What we’ve already done is fine by itself, but the thought of what we can still do is exhilarating. SS: How did you conclude your trip? RG: The trip ended on a bittersweet note. In the morning before we left, all the kids crowded up to the van and pleaded for us not to leave, surrounding the windows and running after us for awhile before we lost sight of them. Quite frankly, I hope this experience hasn’t ended. Only the first half of our mission has really been completed. We had a scheduled press conferences on August 30 with Channel 26 KTSF, attended by Bay Area media staff. The conference was at 10:30 AM on September 6. We will be making private presentations at our respective schools starting October 2008. ▪
Madhu Narasimhan: Rasam Kitchen By Amy Mao News Editor
From left to right: Seniors Rishi Parikh, Jonathan Ye, Madhu Narasimhan, Monil Patel, and Tony Jin.
This summer, seniors Madhu Narasimhan, Monil Patel, Rishi Parikh, Tony Jin, and Jonathan Ye traveled to India to work at Rasam Kitchen, a charity soup kitchen they founded in 2007. Smoke Signal: What is Rasam Kitchen? Madhu Narasimhan: Rasam Kitchen is a student-led non-profit dedicated to developing soup kitchens and other food and water programs for sustaining underprivileged communities across South Asia. By partnering with these communities, we seek to eliminate hunger and despair, allowing people to realize new opportunities outside of poverty. SS: Why did you decide to create Rasam Kitchen? MN: In 2001, I started Universal World Foundation with the idea of creating a world that is free of the major socioeconomic disparities that we face today. In 2004, along with fellow visionary Monil Patel, I completed a fundraising project for the UNICEF Water Fund. In 2006, after a couple years of researching poverty and non-profit management, we assembled a team with our passionate friends – Rishi Parikh, Tony Jin, and Clara Ma. We incorporated UWF in the
Lalita Yang: Guatemala By Lucy Liu Web Editor
This summer, Senior Lalita Yang went to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala to volunteer at a school for mentally challenged children. Smoke Signal: What made you decide to go to Guatemala to volunteer? Lalita Yang: I didn’t have anything to do over the summer so somebody mentioned volunteering abroad, so I researched that and I found a good program and decided to go to Guatemala. SS: Why Guatemala? Was there anything specific in Guatemala that you wanted to experience? LY: I wanted to go to a Spanish-speaking country because I took Spanish for awhile. SS: What did you do in Guatemala? LY: I spent nine days there and of the nine, I spent five days volunteering at a school for mentally challenged kids. Each of the five days, I spent three hours fixing the walls of the music room and one hour interacting and playing with the kids. When I wasn’t volunteering, I would be with the rest of the group (which was 13 other teenagers) and we’d be touring the city or doing other stuff. We had a salsa class [and a] Spanish class. We shopped and went to a hot spring SS: What is your best memory there? LY: I’d have to say the hot spring because it was pretty cold in Quetzaltenango because the city is in the mountains, and the water was [always] warm. SS: Where did you all live? LY: We lived in this house that was turned into a dorm-like place. It was actually pretty nice and comfortable. SS: Could you describe the school where you
volunteered? LY: It was really small. It’s like the size of [Mission’s] bell tower quad. There are about five class rooms and a small playground. The playground wasn’t very stocked [with equipment]. There were two swings and tires.
courtesy lalita yang
Lalita Yang with one of the many children she worked with.
SS: How did it affect you, socially and emotionally? LY: Socially, it made me more open minded and I try to understand people better and be their friend. Emotionally, it made me more solemn, especially because I worked with mentally challenged kids. It was hard to watch them struggle to take care of themselves. Even watching people on the streets was depressing because some people had to walk miles without shoes. SS: What do you think you learned from these experiences in Guatemala? LY: How to take care of myself better because I went alone – without friends or parents. I also learned how to bargain. SS: Do you plan on going abroad in the future, based on your experiences this summer? LY: I don’t have any plans for next summer, but I would like to go again some day. ▪
Cena Barhaghi:
Pink Dolphin Clothing By Eric Sun A & E Editor
courtesy rishi parikh
State of California, obtained IRS tax exemption and 501(c)(3) status, and initially set out to establish a school or orphanage in India. But after two project “failures” we returned to our key concern – food and water. In fall 2007, we changed our name and switched gears to Rasam Kitchen. Then we raised loads of money around the SF Bay Area in order to support the project. SS: What exactly did you do in India? MN: On July 1, our International Team opened Rasam Kitchen’s flagship initiative in a small rural village in Tamil Nadu, India. We served 25 senior citizens, handicapped individuals, and children, and dubbed our new location “Project Annan Kovil,” after the name of the village. From August 7 to 24, our Leadership Team from the US was in India, working on Project Annan Kovil, while filming a documentary about our story. We spent several days in the village, served the needy, and spoke to everyone about their lives. We learned about the needs of the underprivileged and impoverished, people who earn less than one or two dollars each day, people who lack the absolute essentials for sustaining life, people who have nothing in common with us except for their humanity. ▪
When he’s not designing webpage layouts for money, making beats for Bay Area rap artists, or managing and promoting his friend’s rap group, MSJ senior Cena Barhaghi serves as the vice president of the new clothing company, Pink Dolphin. Barhaghi is one of three shareholders of the company, which was started by Young L, a producer and member of the hit rap group The Pack. With Pink Dolphin’s fall line on the verge of release, Barhaghi sits down to share his experiences and goals. Smoke Signal: How did you get the vice president title for this company, and what does your job entail? Cena Barhaghi: Well, I got the job because [Young] L’s a good friend of mine, he wanted to do this clothing line for a long time, so he came to me for help. Me, L, and E.Z. [the other financier] all come up with ideas for designs, but it’s my job to get deals and estimates from companies that make the shirts, do promos, design ads, and handle customer service. SS: Why the name Pink Dolphin? CB: It’s unique, just like our designs. Plus the name sticks out. SS: With this clothing line, are you trying to set a new trend? CB: We’re basically trying to set the Based Movement trend with this line. The apparel is a cross between Japanese street wear, urban clothing, and a bit of Bay Area. SS: Care to describe the Based Movement? CB: Being “based” means being in your zone, whatever that may mean to you. SS: Have you released any samples of your line yet? And if so, what’s the public’s response to them? CB: We released 200 promo tees, and they
pinkdolphin.bigcartel.com
Limited Edition t-shirt from Pink Dolphin Clothing, $35.
sold out in two weeks. Also, L previewed one of our tie-dye hoodies in videos and pics, and now people are dying to own one. SS: Where is Pink Dolphin stuff sold? CB: Right now, it’s exclusively online at pinkdolphin.bigcartel.com, but we’re about to put it on KarmaLoop.com too and [we] hope to eventually be sold in stores. SS: Since this is your senior year, will you have to abandon your V.P. position for college? CB: No, this is really just a hobby, and we’re at the point where it’s well-established. From now on I have less work to do than I did over the summer. And even if Pink Dolphin blows up the way we want, I’m still gonna go to college. SS: Why should consumers purchase from your company, rather than larger ones like Parish or Rocawear? CB: Because we’re unique. Since there’s only 200 [of each design], if you rock it you’re probably going to be one of the few who’s rockin’ it. If you’re trying to look real fresh, wet dipped, make sure to cop a garment! Hit up pinkdolphin.bigcartel.com! ▪
9 Arts & Entertainment
www.thesmokesignal.org
The Smoke Signal
DOES THE MEDIA BLUR LINES BETWEEN FICTION AND REALITY? By Natalie Yang Centerspread Editor
For the average American, the media is the ultimate escape from reality. After a stressful week, many people drive to the theaters to see the latest Hollywood release or go home to watch the latest episode of their favorite sit-com. They become immersed in someone else’s troubles and forget their own. However, for children between the ages of five and ten, there is no actual escape. Reality and imagination are mixed together like different colors of paint. When the media shows a weapon-filled, gut-wrenching, full-out action film or interactive video game, a child absorbs it. Give him a few more glimpses of bloody scenes and he will take it as a part of life. This process, called desensitization, is analogous to what new recruits have to undergo during military training. In fact, the US Marine Corps and the US Army often use games like Doom to train troops to use firearms. Nonetheless, the conditioning of army rookies to war is wildly different from the way children are desensitized to violence on-screen. While rookies are old enough to be able to separate the real and the fake, children are still mentally unable to differentiate between right and wrong. So ten years later, if the child becomes a rebellious teen, he is finally able to act on impulse. If the teen
feels unsatisfied with life, he may take his anger out on another person, as seen on television, on the big screen and in video games. Why don’t young adults premeditate before acting on violent impulses? Aren’t teens, who are able
homicide rate in the United States. Now, with the level of violence in media having increaased dramatically from 50, 30, or even 10 years ago, the desensitizing effects are more devastating than ever. Although we know why violence
Could the violence in video games and other media make kids just as vicious?
to reason efficiently by their age, capable of differentiating between reality and illusion? The fact of the matter is that the media often makes it incapable for its public to distinguish between fiction and real life. From an early age, adolescents are exposed simultaneously to news broadcasts of homicides in homes and stabbings at schools in conjunction with Hollywood’s latest psychological thrillers and horror movies. The effects of this immersion in violence are undeniable. In 1992, the Journal of the American Medical Association concluded that the introduction of television in the 1950s doubled the
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nationally and internationally is exponentially increasing, it’s almost impossible to stop this rise. All the news broadcasters and entertainment executives are doing is catering to the population. The average person naturally shows more interest in a broadcast concerned with the latest mystery killer than in a report on Brazil’s rising economy. But there is a shred of hope in this vicious cycle. If the media stops glorifying violence and parents start taking more control of what their children watch, violence may start to wind down. But people being able to cooperate with these measures, now that's fiction. ▪
NEO-PATRONAGE: THE NEW FAN-ARTIST CONNECTION By Victoria Gu Staff Writer
Radiohead’s famous October 2007 pay-what-you-want-forit album, In Rainbows, sparked a growing trend among indie and mainstream artists alike. More artists are now forgoing the music label route in favor of neo-patronage, the concept of self-promotion and consumer connection without the middleman (the music label). Neo-patronage was first introduced into the publishing industry by online publishing company Another Sky Press, who offer their books both for free in PDF format, and at-cost in the form of an actual book. The trend has also revolutionized the world of music. Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor was one of the first artists to catch on to the trend, releasing the band's two newest albums, Ghosts I-IV and The Slip, for any price via the internet in March and May 2008, respectively. Unlike Radiohead, however, Nine Inch Nails used a system in which a higher price paid
constituted better quality audio. While Nine Inch Nails distributed their newest albums through its website, there are also websites solely dedicated to paywhat-you-want music. The label Illegal Art’s releases are all paywhat-you-want and are available on their website, illegal-art.net. Long known for its indie artists, Illegal Art is home to acts like Christopher Penrose and Girl Talk. Other artists, including Prince, the Charlatans and hip-hop artist Saul Williams have dabbled in various forms of neo-patronage. The aforementioned attempts at neo-patronage hint at the success of the concept in the music industry. Doubters say that if bands offer their music for free, people will not buy it. Yet, this has been proven completely wrong, especially in the case of Radiohead. By the time Radiohead removed In Rainbows from its website, 40 percent of downloaders offered some sort of payment. The average price paid was six dollars. Even after In Rainbows’ journey as a pay-what-you-want endeavor ended, Radiohead still made money.
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With the advent of neo-patronage, CDs like these could be sold free or at-cost, recorded and produced without the help of a record label.
When the band released the CDversion of In Rainbows, the album placed number one on the Billboard chart with 1.2 million copies sold. The revenue a band generates using neo-patronage is incomparable to that of a band with a record deal. Under a recording contract, bands are paid only a small fraction of the royalties from record sales. Considering that the cost of production to release an album online is practically nothing, the pay-back is enormous. Neo-patronage significantly increases the amount of exposure an artist receives for upcoming albums and concerts. For instance, after Coldplay released “Violet Hill” for free downloading in May 2008, it was downloaded more than 600,000 times on the first day—Coldplay’s website traffic jumped 1,800 percent. Their following album, Viva la Vida, was placed number one on music charts in 36 countries. Though critics often doubt that neo-patronage will be as successful for indie artists as big-name ones, indie acts like the Arctic Monkeys and Lily Allen have long been using the internet to gain a larger fan base. With the power of the internet combined with the ideas behind neo-patronage, indie acts can meet the influence of top-selling mainstream artists like never before. While using a neo-patronage system, artists of all types can develop a better connection to their fan base. Donations serve as incentive for artists to put out good music. Offering many benefits for both artists and music lovers, neo-patronage is sure to be more than just a passing trend. ▪
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Disney: A Flawed Entertainment Empire By Victoria Gu Staff Writer
They are everywhere. On magazine covers, clothing, TV, and school supplies—Disney’s newest crop of starlets is completely monopolizing the tween market. Although Disney stardom constitutes a family-friendly image, these tween machines aren’t necessarily good influences for young children. Disney franchises like Hannah Montana, the Jonas Brothers, and High School Musical represent all that is abominable in modern-day society—over-capitalization, materialism, and immaturity. Though it appears to older audiences that these starlets lack acting and vocal talents, Disney has capitalized on their popularity and “good looks” by establishing multimillion dollar franchises with their names. Parents pay upwards of two thousand dollars for Hannah Montana tickets, just to satisfy their children. These stars also promote consumerism. For her upcoming 16th birthday, Miley Cyrus, who made a reported $25 million last year, is having a party at Disneyland. A party that anyone can attend—if they pay $250. Keep in mind that this is a party for a fifteen-year-old who splurges on thousand dollar shopping sprees, as video from Hollywood.tv proves. The Jonas Brothers are no different. With their tight jeans, expensive haircuts and love of loafers, the Jonas Brothers bring a whole new meaning to materialism. The band’s passion for upscale fashion designers like Alexander McQueen is showing tweens that the more expensive material goods you have, the cooler you are. The Jonas Brothers might seem like the next big thing, but there is no way they could ever be revolutionary with such a clean-cut, risk-free musical lifestyle. Those in YouTube debates who compare the Jonas Brothers to the Beatles are completely ignorant of what the Beatles really did to the music industry, using sound effects and unusual instruments to create a whole different type of music. The Jonas Brothers could not be farther from revolutionary; they sound like every other pop artist on the radio. With lyrics like “You gotta be, be good to me/I’m gonna be,
be good to you,” the Jonas Brothers write songs that are, at best, elementary. Unlike the Beatles, the Jonases do not treat their music like art, they treat it as only revenue. The Jonas Brothers are not even talented musicians. Two of the three brothers did not even learn how to play an instrument until Columbia Records was interested in a record deal. Joe Jonas, the middle brother, has even said that he wanted to become a musician to pick up girls. When it comes to quality of music, Miley Cyrus is just as bad as the Jonas Brothers. But combine this with her naïve personality, and “Smiler,” as she calls herself, becomes the epitome of immaturity. Cyrus appears on the internet in a series of YouTube videos in which she and her best friend Mandy Jiroux poke fun at fellow Disney Channel stars Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, mocking their clothes, looks, and speech—a prime example of how juvenile Disney stars can be. Often, these child stars rebel against the Disney mold. Shia Labeouf, a former Disney star, was recently arrested on DUI charges.
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Is Vanity Fair a sign of things to come?
Nude photos of Vanessa Hudgens, of High School Musical fame, recently surfaced on the Internet. And Miley Cyrus herself recently posed for her Vanity Fair pictures bare-backed. It’s true that Disney child stars like Labeouf, Hudgens, and Cyrus have long been subjected to impossible standards; perhaps they feel that they need to express their individuality at times. As Miley Cyrus told Seventeen magazine, “I didn’t want to be pretty anymore, I wanted to be hardcore!” But given the fact that they’ve already taken control of the tween market, the influence of this rebellion on the audiences they hold in rapture could be devastating. Disney prides itself on its cleancut shows and stars. But with so many of its stars rebelling, it looks as if the wonderful world of Disney isn't so wonderful at producing role models after all. ▪
SPOOFS| "Comedy" At Its Best continued from page 1 their least entertaining movies, weeks when teenagers cannot find a good place to carelessly dispose of their excess money and time. These are the weeks that the “Movie” movies can capitalize off of. With a well-directed ad campaign, promoters can convince adolescents that the spoofs are at least kind of funny, and that during the unfunny parts the teens can just make out with each other or throw popcorn at sleeping old people. And if the critics point out that Date Movie is “About as humorous as taking a stapler to your nuts.” or snidely remark that Meet the Spartans is “an inspiring movie…as it inspired me to claw my f@%kin’ eyes out!” ignore them, as loyal fans of the spoofs will fervently defend the films by declaring “I love these
movies because they're simple and don’t require me to use my brain!” Who are these wonderful fans, you ask? Well, they’re the same people who believe that if you just shoot three ducks, you will get a free iPhone. So, the future looks bright for films made entirely of “doggy doo.” Just remember that science has its limits, so these feces-formed features can only sustain if they are consistently imprinted with poor acting, overdone slapstick, and “dirty” jokes stolen from an elementary school playground. Any slight exposure to comedic timing will automatically ruin the film, as will any decent cinematography. To ensure the popularity of these films, preserve them in an ignorant society. ▪
Thursday, September 11, 2008
The Smoke Signal
www.thesmokesignal.org
Movie | Life for Sale
lifeforsalemovie.com
By Gina Liu Staff Writer
Director Kimberly Zou's Life for Sale is a documentary that explores problems in today’s healthcare, including the early discharge of patients for profit. Fremont’s Washington Hospital is the main focus of the film, although the filmmakers claim these issues occur nationwide. Many of the doctors and medical consultants featured in the documentary are from the Bay Area.
The movie begins with Fremont residents being interviewed about their negative experiences with Washington Hospital. All these residents claimed that the hospital discharged them or their relatives who still needed care and hospitalization. The film then continues with other issues in our nation’s hospitals, such as sham peer review, unqualified nurses, and unethical doctors. These issues surrounding the nation’s healthcare have been highlighted before the release of this
Movie | Ben & Arthur
CD | Slipknot By Rebecca Gao Staff Writer
The band Slipknot returned to their home state of Iowa to find inspiration and record their latest album, All Hope is Gone. Apparently the influence of their native environment has been good for the band, as they sink deeper into their infamous darkness with their heaviest album yet. Band members separated to create songs individually or in pairs before meshing together ideas and sounds to form a complete track. Accompanied by a more open schedule than the band was previously used to, the management of this latest production granted the artist’s a looser reign for more experimentation. Clad in new masks and uniforms and fresh with new producer Dave Fortman, Slipknot opens the album with an experimental piece, “.execute.,” an acoustic opener mimicking the disorienting noises and disjointed voices of a crime scene. And the album only gets edgier from there. The tracks “Sulfur” and “Psychosocial,” rife with undulating chords and eerily irresistible guitar and drum lines, toy with misdirection and memory. “Psychosocial” spins off its final with one of the group’s famous, inexplicably complicated guitar/drum combinations, an apt prelude to the arcing guitar solo in “Deadly Memories.” The track “Vendetta” was little more than a loop of repetitive war chants of “Are you ready?”, but “Butcher’s Hook” redeemed its somewhat lackluster companion with soaring vocals over an underscore of raw anger, exemplifying both the band’s death metal roots and some new, startling changes. As a point of comparison between their past and present musical styles, a melodic vocal line
film, but if I hadn’t heard of them before, Life for Sale would not have convinced me that there was a problem. The documentary is extremely one-sided and amateurish. It seemed more like a forum for doctors and patients to complain than a documentary that takes the audience on an informative journey. Some of the complaints are from second-hand sources—one person begins her story with, “My friend, who is a doctor, told me that one time…” The film only gives one viewpoint; Washington Hospital
officials and others accused of poor patient care were not inter vie wed. After medical consultant Dr. Evelyn Yi listed all the ways Washington Hospital retaliated against her decision to cancel an early patient discharge, the documentary dedicated several minutes to promote Li, showing interviews of patients who said Li was a wonderful doctor. The editing of the film is also done poorly. The topics are presented with no introduction; at one point, the issues jump from infant mortality rates to sham peer review to ethics. Music is played in the background constantly, sometimes drowning out the words spoken. Opera starts to play whenever an interviewee is describing a painful experience, making me feel that the director was trying to use music as an emotional tactic rather than the power of words. Whenever the narrator was shown, her head was always cut off, and she spoke looking down at the camera rather t h a n face-to-face. Overall, Life for Sale was an unsatisfactory film. If you want to learn about the alarming issues in today’s healthcare, find a more skillfully made documentary to watch. Rating: D ▪
By Abhay Malik Staff Writer
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reminiscent of their earlier albums appeared in “Snuff ”, oddly enough one of the more tangential pieces, deviating far from Slipknot’s comfort zone. Upon paying closer attention to the lyrics, the crooned vocals offered unexpectedly dark twists. “I only wish you were my friend/ So I could hurt you in the end/I never claimed to be a saint…. You sold me out to save yourself.” Perhaps the only problem with All Hope is Gone is a noticeable similarity between many of the tracks. Repeated chords and rhythms in “Sulfur,” “Wherein Lies Continues,” and “All Hope is Gone” lend a remote feeling of déjà vu. But toward the album’s close, Slipknot slipped in their most paranormal piece, “Gehenna.” Offering an unsettling mixture of dark crooning and gothic undertones, “Gehenna” certainly pointed towards a more unique direction. Overall, Slipknot’s bold dive into the unfamiliar paid off nicely with what is possibly their best album to date. While some attempts at spinning things towards a new divergent went marginally awkward, Slipknot’s plunge into uncharted waters proved very rewarding. Said singer Corey Taylor, “This record is another diagnosis of our insanity.” He’s right. Dementia never sounded so good. Rating: B+ ▪
Occasionally when watching certain movies or listening to certain artists, a question comes to mind: Why? Why was so much time and money wasted on this? Why? Ben and Arthur, which held the #1 spot on IMDb’s worst movies list until only Disaster Movie got rated lower, is without a doubt one of those films. However, the movie's so-bad-it's-good quality will cause you to burst out laughing, entertaining you in a way it didn't intend to. The movie is about a homosexual couple that goes through various obstacles on their journey to matrimony. Though the film has an honorable subject matter, the plot is pathetically executed, and the production quality is equal to that of a video made by a pair of 16 year olds for history class. Even for an amateur film, the movie is below average. There is a lot of unintentional camera movement, as well as extremely awkward angles. The lighting is very inconsistent, adding to the cheap quality of the presentation. The use of lipstick as blood and visibility of the camera in mirrors does not help much. In part due to the wretched production, the actors’ performances are difficult to take seriously. Even though they are speaking about such serious topics, one can’t help but burst out in laughter at all the wrong times due to the poorness of the performances. Ben and Arthur’s acting is at times reminiscent of the videos found on smosh.com. The funniest parts tend to be the “intense” scenes, when the characters burst out cursing or are flailing around. There is even a clearly faked punch thrown in, and I can’t forget to mention the gay “love scene.” The director, Sam Mraovich, still seems very proud of his efforts, as
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his name appears in the credits a countless number of times, and he has gone so far as to say that his film sparked the gay marriage movement. I still wonder if the director even saw the film after he made it… Mraovich has also exaggerated the enemies whom Ben and Arthur (the couple) face. The couple’s prime nemesis is Arthur’s brother, Victor. Victor is a devout Christian and is against his brother’s homosexuality. The director portrays Victor, as well as all other Christians as psychopathic murderers who see no reason. It gets so biased and ridiculous that Victor’s priest is shown helping him find a hit man to murder his brother. Though the film is blatantly pro-gay marriage, it does such an unbelievably ignorant job of conveying its message that it ends up hurting the cause instead of helping it. The film comes through as a homosexual love story portrayed so ineptly that it seems to be a stereotypical mockery. If you’re insanely bored or feeling particularly adventurous, you can check out the film in its entirety on YouTube. Just know exactly what you’re getting yourself into and don't get mad at me if you end up feeling that it was a waste of your time. Rating: F ▪
10 Arts & Entertainment
Movie |Traitor
By Lena Liu Feature Editor
imdb.com
Traitor, an espionage film, stars Don Cheadle as Samir Horn, a devout Muslim and CIA agent with connections to a terrorist organization that is responsible for multiple attacks in America. This movie chronicles the events and actions of Horn that result as he tries to infiltrate and bring down the terrorist organization while simultaneously using his expertise in weaponry to carry out bombings in several countries. Other notable actors in the movie include Guy Pearce who plays an FBI agent hunting down Horn, unaware of Horn’s double role, and Jeff Daniels as Carter, the only CIA agent who knows of Horn’s mission. Despite this potentially interesting and action-packed plot line, Traitor fails to provide the thrills and edge-of-the-seat-excitement espionage films are expected to deliver. Instead, audience members are forced to sit through a dull, boring movie where even occasional bombs and special effects can’t deliver excitement or engage the audience. The all-star cast also fails to deliver. Bad acting combined with inadequate time for character development just adds to the blandness of the movie. The audience, instead of rooting of Cheadle, find themselves both indifferent and unsympathetic to his character. Nevertheless, Traitor delivers a powerful and important message that is not missed by viewers. This movie showcases Horn’s willingness to sacrifice his own life to save others. A devout Muslim, his faith motivates him to undergo this dangerous mission. In short, while Traitor has all the makings of an exciting summer movie, terrible execution and an underdeveloped plot ultimately killed the film. The only thing Traitor manages to do well is lull the entire audience to sleep. Rating: C+ ▪
Next Issue: under the radar
Foreign and Independent Media Coverage & Editor Columns
Thursday, September 11, 2008
www.thesmokesignal.org
The Smoke Signal
Tech based world records
By Raymond Chou Web Editor
The Beijing Olympics are infamous for its technological innovations in the opening and closing ceremonies. But with countless world records broken in the National Aquatics Center and at the National Stadium, viewers can’t help but wonder if there is some technology contributing to these athletic feats. The 2008 Olypics featured light and more streamlined sportswear. Team USA’s Nike Swift tracksuits featured dimpled fabrics on the sleeves to reduce air drag by 19%. Similarly, the Speedo LZR Racer swimsuit, worn by record-breaking gold medalist Michael Phelps, was welded ultrasonically to compress the body to reduce water drag. Nike Aerographics, used by the gold-winning US basketball Redeem Team, helps vent moisture and sweat. Footwear was also modified to aid athletes. 400m silver medalist Jeremy Wariner wore the Adidas Lone Star: shoes with spike patterns leaning to the left, allowing for faster speeds at turns. The USA track team also sported Nike’s new Flywire Zoom Vic-
tory shoes that weigh only 93 grams, much lighter than those of their competitors. Plates were added in cycling and rowing shoes for more direct transfer of power from the athlete to their vehicle. The sports equipment used was altered for better gameplay.The Australian Olympic cycling team used bikes with aerodynamic frames tested in wind tunnels, and the United States cyclists are using new VT-1 wheels in cycling that are stronger and more aerodynamic. In tennis, Dunlop and Head created aerogel rackets to allow for more powerful hits without added discomfort. The high-tech stadiums may also have contributed to new world records set at the Olympic games. The National Aquatics Center has a pool about 10 feet deep, which is 3 feet deeper than most pools. This, in addition to lane lines that dissipate turbulent waters, moves water away from the swimmer, allowing for faster times. Also, the Beijing Olympic Green Hockey Stadium features denser artificial turf so field hockey players can keep on a straight path easier. Still, with all these technological updates, a place on the podium is not guaranteed. Australia was
Sports Editors
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only able to capture a silver medal in cycling, and Jamaica’s Usain Bolt still had a huge lead in the 100m and 200m finals even though his Puma Theseus II shoes weighed almost twice as much as the Flywire shoes worn by Asafa Powell and Walter Dix. In addition to this, tools for judging are becoming more advanced, with the HawkEye line judge system and slow motion cameras that verify a difference of one hundredth of a second. In the end, it all comes down to the athletes’ skill and training that determines who gets the gold. ▪
NORCAL OLYMPIANS | Local athletes compete at the Olympic Games continued from page 1
Jason Kidd Age: 34 Sport: Basketball Now residing in Dallas, Texas, star athlete Jason Kidd is well known in the Bay Area as a Cal Berkeley Basketball icon and an Oakland native. This year he helped lead the US Men’s Basketball’s star-studded team to a gold medal victory over Spain. Kevin Tan Age: 26 Sport: Gymnastics Born and raised in Fremont, Kevin Tan is an MSJ graduate that was a part of a bronze medal effort from the US Men’s Gynmastics Team. Tan is considered one of America’s best on the still rings; unfortunately with disappoint-
ing scores on the rings and pommel horse, he was not able to gain that title at the games this summer. Kerri Walsh Age: 30 Sport: Beach Volleyball Saratoga native and Stanford graduate Kerri Walsh and her part-
Saratoga’s Kerri Walsh in action.
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Poor Sports By Ryan Tanakit & Audrey Tseng
Michael Phelps models the LZR Racer.
ner Misty May-Treanor pulled off their 108th consecutive win at the Olympics this summer to win the United State’s 14th straight gold in beach volleyball. The pair was an unstoppable force that dominated the competition to win their second Olympic gold together. Gerrick Meinhardt Age: 18 Sport: Fencing The youngest fencer in the summer Olympics, San Francisco native Gerrick Meinhardt is one of the rising stars in Bay Area sports. Although he only placed 10th out of 29 competitors, Meinhardt was the only US foil fencer to qualify for the 2008 games and is expected to have a promising future in the sport in Olympics to come. ▪
11 Sports
The games of the 29th Olympiad started with a bang, blowing past opening ceremonies away. Thousands of volunteers displayed the spirit of the Chinese in breathtaking performances. Unfortunately, many athletes of the games did not take this spirit with them to compete. Throughout the Olympic Games there were numerous instances of unsportsmanlike behavior from those who should have had the best sportsmanship. Jamaican track and field superstar Usain Bolt is quite possibly the world’s fastest man. He set world records in both the 100 and 200meter events and did so with ease. In fact, it seemed as if he wasn’t even trying, especially in his 100meter sprint. Bolt had time to look around and even celebrate before crossing the finish line. His arrogant behavior detracts from his record breaking sprints. How can one praise an athlete when they choose to run around boasting and bragging? There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance, and Usain Bolt has undoubtedly crossed it. Another shocker came when
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Usain Bolt’s infamous celebration.
Cuban Taekwondo specialist Angel Matos contested a referee’s call in his own way. Winning 3-2 in a match against Kazakhstan’s Arman Chilmanov, Matos was knocked to the floor but took over a minute of injury time and was disqualified. Infuriated with the decision, Matos protested by pushing a judge, spitting on the mat, and then delivering a swift kick to the ref ’s face.
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Matos shows the ref what he thinks about the call.
As a consequence for his actions, Matos and his coach, Leudis Gonzalez, both face lifetime bans from the sport. Despite the horror of the IOC and pretty much everyone else, Cuban ex-president Fidel Castro has stepped up to defend Matos claiming that the fighter had a right to be angry over the calls. In fact, Gonzalez claims that the Kazakhs had tried to bribe him, leaving Matos prepared for unfair reffing. Castro continued saying “I saw when the judges blatantly stole fights from two Cuban boxers in the semifinals,” suggesting a larger conspiracy against Cuban fighters. Additional controversy surrounded reffing occurred earlier in the games when Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian also displayed his displeasure in a rather unusual way. Furious over a penalty that decided his semifinal match--he also lost a semifinal match in Athens due to a penalty that dashed his gold medal hopes (leaving him with the bronze)--Abrahamian waited to make his statement at the medal ceremony. When presented with his award, Abrahamian stepped off the podium and dropped his medal in the middle of the mat, waved to the crowd, then angrily stormed off. ▪
Olympic games push athletes too far
By Jerry Ting Graphics Editor
The Olympic Games are a rare time of tranquility as athletes from around the globe gather for 18 days of friendly sport and competition. Yet do the Olympic Games end up promoting placidity or do they instead encourage athletes to break the boundaries of nature and throw themselves into a hell of unimaginable torture and pain? With the growing number of athletes and coaches willing to do whatever it takes to take home the gold, the Olympic Games have become far from the original realm of fair play but instead, and have evolved into a monster that tortures its athletes into doing inhumane actions to represent their country and themselves at all cost. Perhaps one of the most inhumane ordeals of these Olympic
Games occurred when Hungary’s 77kg weight lifter Baranyai tried to lift 148kg which resulted in the worst injury in Olympic weight lifting history. As he tried to lift over twice his body weight, his right forearm bent backwards and his elbow was turned inside out in the socket. Baranyai fell to the floor screaming in agony as the weight fell and hit him on the back. The competitive nature of the Olympics and all-or-nothing attitude of the athletes force them to attempt tasks that are too dangerous and barbaric. This year’s Olympics promotes extreme acts of danger with the change in scoring of gymnastics. The perfect 10 that has been used to evaluate gymnasts for over 80 years has been replaced by a system that has no roof and rewards gymnasts for trying more dangerous stunts. In effect, the rate of injury has increased as well as the athletes’ coercion into attempting
sometimes life threatening maneuvers. Both Paul Hamm and his twin brother Morgan Hamm were injured so severely that they were unable to participate in the Olympics which would have given the United States a much needed boost. In 2008 Olympic Basketball alone, Argentina’s Manu Ginobili and China’s Yao Ming continued to practice brutishly with their international teams after suffering injuries during their regular NBA season. Suffering from a jammed ankle from the Western Conference Finals while playing for the Spurs, Ginobili went against the advice of the Spurs’ franchise and continued to play until he reinjured his ankle again while playing for Argentina in Beijing. Houston Rockets’ all-star Yao Ming suffered from having a surgery on his left big toe, right knee, and left foot, all in the last three seasons. Despite having a season ending injury
Baranyai shouts in agony as the weight crushes him.
this season with a stress fracture on his left foot, Ming returned months before he was medically cleared to play in hopes to represent China in its Olympic Games. As athletes risk everything every four years for a mere few days, they jeopardize their entire career and health. Athletes are expected to be hard working and to have blood,
telegraph.co.uk
grime, and sweat on their backs when they leave their games or practices. However these same athletes should also be allowed to have a break every once in a while and to be safe. The Olympics has transformed sports to be so competitive that athletes no longer value their health and life but instead have their eyes only set on the gold. ▪
12 Backpage Special
www.thesmokesignal.org
The Smoke Signal
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Meet the Editors
Editors - In - Chief Though we don’t herald from Italy or carry out horrific deeds in the back alleys of urban America, there is absolutely no question that Mala + Sophie = MAFIA. Look for us in N9, commandeering the backroom and taking over the section computers. We’re working to bring the Smoke Signal to new heights this year. Help us out by contacting us at eic@thesmokesignal.org.
News We’re fly and so is our paper (no not like fly paper), reach for the sky like planes. If you catch us at the border, we got press passes in our names. If you come around here, we report all day. We write stories in a second if you wait. Sometimes we feel like picking your brains. Every chance we get, we’re on our game. Everyone’s a winner now we’re making the fame. Bona fide editors making our names. Catch us at the border, send us an email at news@thesmokesignal.org
--Mala Neti & Sophie Diao
Feature There once was a girl called Scobel. Whose intentions were always noble. Yet alone she would work, And inevitably went berserk, So her plans would melt down like Chernobyl. And then there was a girl by Liu. She too worked without a crew. So she labored and toiled, Though her work was all foiled, Because everything just turned out askew. But alas! They knew just what to do. Together, they’d form ScobelLiu Mediocre apart, Amazing together Their solo work bumped up to two. Hannah Scobel and Lena Liu, Bringing the best section to you feature@thesmokesignal.org --Hannah Scobel & Lena Liu
Sports There’s no section like the sports section. It’s the definition of perfection. We live in the pool. We’re too cool for school. We don’t try to impress. We just know we’re the best. Y’all better recognize That our skills reach past the skies. Rocket and Oddy, Tanakit and Audrey. If sports is your passion, Welcome to Athletic Ascension sports@thesmokesignal.org --Ryan Tanakit & Audrey Tseng
-- Vidya Mahavadi & Amy Mao
Centerspread One day, a princess named Natalie was strolling through the forest when she came across a time-travelling can opener named Amanda. This can opener had come from the future to warn Natalie of the aesthetically displeasing two-page layouts which would soon crush mankind. Throwing her hands up in horror, Princess Natalie resolved to save the world. They teamed up, and together they make the crime-fighting, leapfrogging, object-nudging Centerspread editors. Caught in a perpetual state of Photoshop-ism, they see the world in themes, layers, and blending options. On good days, they can be found prowling around campus or people-watching on the grass. On better days, they hide in the dark corners of N9, making the world more beautiful with the click of a mouse. Contact them at centerspread@thesmokesignal.org. --Natalie Yang & Amanda Kwan
Graphics
Opinion Julia was born into a clan of traveling circus performers where she became skilled in the art of tightrope walking and lion taming before age 5. Her excessive exposure to clowns and the Hall of Most Unusual things severely stunted her growth and she now rests close to the ground at 5”1. At age 14, she ran away from her circus life to recruit members for an electric kazoo group. Eventually, she stumbled upon MSJ and discovered the incredibly brilliant yet slightly insane Marianna Mao. The two decided to scratch the electric kazoo plan and instead joined forces to create the amazing 08-09 opinion section. For those who don’t read the op section, just remember, resistance is futile. opinion@thesmokesignal.org
--Julia Harrell & Marianna Mao
Arts & Entertainment Eric is ambitious, but always ends up procrastinating like Clockwork. Due to his laziness, he’ll probably end up working as a Clerk or Taxi Driver. But he’s sensible enough to never get into committing Crimes and Misdemeanors, because he’s always trying to Do the Right Thing. He hopes to one day move to the city north of the Garden State, vacation about the beaches of Brazil, and meet the kind southern folk of Fargo. When given the chance to be the A&E editor, Vicraj jumped at The Proposition. Being in the Smoke Signal is much safer than, say, a Fight Club or being The Machinist, not to mention easier than trying to figure out how to get through Pan’s Labyrinth, what’s behind the concept of Eternal Sunshine, or studying The Science of Sleep. But she should probably be careful--being dragged too far into the editorial Undertow might make her Choke. entertainment@thesmokesignal.org --Vicraj Gill & Eric “Boyang” Sun
Web
Click, click, flash, flash, Jerry and Cici are back for another year of photography fun. Now armed with a whole new swarming staff of J1, always look your best because there will be photographers in bushes and trash cans 24/7. In her spare time, Cici enjoys lounging by the pool sipping a lemonade while mentally graphing the simple genome of Vidya Mahavadi. In his spare time, Jerry enjoys looking amazingly attractive as he walks around memorizing SAT words and correcting other people’s grammar. Both Cici and Jerry agree that Nikon is much better than Canon and that the Nikon D50 is godly compared to the D40x. Combined, graphics is rockin’ the Smoke Signal with pictures of good looking people. Contact us at graphics@thesmokesignal.org.
Normally, Raymond and Lucy are slaving away at the computer updating the Smoke Signal Online website thesmokesignal.org, but with the convenience of modern technology, they don’t have to! Why spend those long hours adding articles online when they can use monkeys! These primates are capable of adding new online exclusive articles without even breaking a sweat. Thanks to this new innovation, you, the reader, can expect more homecoming coverage and breaking news online as it happens. Contact Raymond and Lucy at web@thesmokesignal.org
--Jerry Ting & Cici Cao
--Lucy Liu & Raymond Chou