Tornado Times, October 2018

Seniors need to shape up Pompano Beach High School October 2018 Vol. 10, No. 2

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Time to Grow Up Technology teacher David Holley’s kids, Brooke and Blair, hold a ballot to encourage people to vote.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID HOLLEY

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October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

news

Smoke and mirrors Bathrooms used for ‘hitting Juuls’ PHOTO BY JAVIER GARCIA

By Javier Garcia, Asst. Section Editor

The e-cigarette trend known as “Juuling” or “hitting the Juul” is legal only for ages 18 and older, but younger high school students are getting their hands on them, lots of

them.

“I have at least seen 40 different kids that own their own Juul,” a source that remains anonymous for their own security said.

Students reported that kids will often use a bathroom pass or a quick run to the water fountain as an excuse to get behind closed doors to use their Juuls.

“Literally every time I see an average of like three guys meeting up in the bathroom all to hit their Juul,” another anonymous user said.

Users are not trying too hard to hide their practice from other stu-

dents.

“In the girls bathroom on the first floor there is a message written that says, ‘If you’re not Juuling get out,’“ sophomore Lia Mirza said. “All the girls will walk in there in a line giggling about it.”

Because the device used for Juuling requires charging, users are taking advantage of its resemblance to a USB drive to charge them using school computers.

“Users have been abusing computer labs... to charge their pens,” senior Jason Nguyen said. “Tech teachers have issued regulations regarding the usage of flash drives in order to prevent the abuse of schoolissue technology.”

The security staff is aware of the issue of Juuling on school grounds and is working to combat it.

“If we run up on a kid that has one of those vapor pens, we take the kid down to the front office,” campus monitor Jamesey Stone said. “We confiscate it... we call their parents and ask them if they have any more or (if) they know anyone that has it.”

Because there is no set location or time at which such illegal activities occur, it is difficult for staff to identify all the students involved.

“It’s kind of hard to crack down on because you don’t know the times they’re doing it,” Stone said. “You just have to take a guess, walk in the restroom, and see what you can catch.”

Future for pep rallies not cheerful

By Emily Powell, Web and Business Editor

This year’s first pep rally may be its last.

“It’s been in talks to not have a pep rally again,” Assistant Principal Jill Samaroo said. “The rumors are true.”

Samaroo mentioned that the number of pep rallies per past years used to be up to five, but due to incidents similar to this year’s Homecoming pep rally on Sept. 22, the number has been

reduced to two. The incidents that occurred this year included a dodgeball war in the stands between underclassmen, chants with curse words and

Stephany Pizarro, sophomore, holds up the “P” sign in the pep rally cheerleading routine. Pizarro started the Pompano chant.

Brielle Flanigan, sophomore, is hoisted up by her teammates to perform a stunt at the pep rally. Flanigan was one of three fliers to perform the stunt.

PHOTOS BY MATTHEW SHANBOM

almost the entire student body rushing to get through the doors before dismissal time, causing a teacher as well as some students to almost fall.

“There needs to be a punishment for the underclassmen because they were the main ones who were involved,” senior SGA member Kennetra Harvey said regarding the dodgeball incident.

Dodgeball was one of several games that were played on the floor, not always by those who belonged there.

“There was some debate (among SGA members) because a lot of the upperclassmen were say-

ing that there were some seniors on the floor who shouldn’t have been down there anyway,” Harvey said. “So maybe SGA needs more security on the floor.”

Questions about the status of the Class of 2019’s Senior Send-Off still stand, but so far, it seems like it’ll still be happening with a few changes. Students from SGA have many different suggestions as to making the pep rally less problematic, including removing the underclassmen as a whole.

“They (SGA) were saying for the Senior Send-Off that it should just be the upperclassmen, juniors and seniors, but then the gym would be pretty empty,” Harvey said.

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

Seniors gearing up for life after high school

By Jessica Buchanan, Editor in chief

Seniors have been meeting with their guidance counselors during October to receive their transcripts and discuss fulfillment of graduation requirements. “(The counselors) gave me reassurance that everything would work out and I was more clear on how to get transcripts and recommendations,” senior Jessica Romer said.

This session allowed Mia McFadden, the BRACE advisor, to show students how to be eligible for a Bright Futures scholarship, request teacher recommendation letters and transcripts and start filling out the FAFSA application.

According to a survey taken on Oct. 18, 96 percent of seniors have met with school counselors, teachers

or administrators to discuss college.

McFadden said she is available to help seniors with “logging into the Common Application as well as the Coalition” and answering “questions like self-reporting over one school or another” as those are some of the main concerns.

It seems that these sessions may have gotten seniors to begin the college application process, because according to a survey taken on Oct. 18, 40 percent of seniors started applying to college last month, and 20 percent started applying last week.

“I didn’t even think about applying to college before (October),” senior Madison Van Dreason said. “I think I was planning to get used to my classes and get through the start of senior year and then it hit me that I

needed to start applying.”

Seniors were reminded of their progress on graduation requirements, such as a 40-hour minimum service hour requirement, at the session.

According to McFadden, everyone is on track to graduate, but there are still some seniors with zero service hours.

The process of applying to college is long and some seniors have been proactive.

According to McFadden, seniors have been “outlining and reviewing the process of the test scores, ACT and SAT, and making sure that those schools meet the requirements of what they currently have and if not they are planning to retest and prepare for the upcoming exams.”

news

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“Some students are really handson and getting prepared,” McFadden said. “Senioritis starts to kick in mid-year.”

However, according to a survey taken on Oct. 18, 20 percent of seniors haven’t applied to any colleges yet.

Senior Kaelib Measil hasn’t applied to college yet since he plans to attend Broward College, but he is working diligently to research scholarships that correspond with his credentials and talking with McFadden to get “every scholarship possible” so that he can graduate in two years debtfree with an AA and transfer.

Read more at thetornadotimes.org

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October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

opinion

Grow up, seniors, grow up

With two months already down the drain, and less than two weeks to go until the closest deadline for college applications, seniors desperately need a wake-up call.

The year that we’ve all been anticipating since freshman year is finally here. However, before you become mesmerized by the whirlwind of excitement, you must stay focused and on task or else you’ll drown in the sea of homework, events, and college applications.

Senior year is not the time to kick back and relax. In fact, it’s the opposite. While it is the last time that you will be experiencing what it is like to be in high school, now is not the time to settle down and take everything lightly.

The decisions that you make in these next few months will impact the path that you will take after graduating high school; therefore, it is imperative that we focus hard enough now so that the rest of the

“best year of our lives” can be smooth sailing.

There’s a myth that colleges stop looking at prospective students in their junior year but that is definitely not true.

They may not look at all of what you do this year but they still look at your classes and how you’re doing. Thus, the first step is to make sure that your grades are still up to par.

While colleges are originally only able to see your grades from the first semester, it does not give you a free pass to not care about your grades from the second semester. Colleges will be able to see all your grades from all four years of high school when your transcript is submitted.

Having unsatisfactory grades during your senior year can prevent you from attending the college of your dreams as the college can turn you away even if you have already been accepted.

Ending the school year on a strong

CARTOON BY JULIA LATCHANA

note, while keeping up with extracurriculars and student events, and by keeping your grades up will prove to colleges that you are mature enough to manage the course load that you will be met with when you go off.

The second step you should take from falling off the right track is to fight senioritis, the bane of every senior’s existence. Whether it hits you mid-semester or near the end of the semester, there is a likely chance that you’ll catch it.

Although it’s popular to joke about having senioritis since your junior year (or earlier), it really isn’t that funny. Your grades will suffer from it and it can ultimately lead to colleges taking away their offer of acceptance.

Not only will you be turned away from the college that you have decided to attend, but you will be grossly unprepared for college since college isn’t about the bare minimum.

The last step is to just become more organized. Balancing out all your classes, applications for college, clubs, sports and fun senior activities like yearbook portraits, homecoming, prom and Grad Bash will be challenging, but not impossible. We should’ve learned to manage our time wisely in freshman year, but if you haven’t, now’s the time to learn.

Although it is common to have mixed emotions and indecisions about venturing off into the real world, no one is alone during this process. Senior year will involve plenty of growing up in a brief period of time, but by the end of it you will be ready to continue on with the next chapter of your life.

After you walk across that stage at the end of the school year, you will be thankful that all your hard work throughout high school finally paid off.

Jessica Buchanan, Editor in chief Alexis Schatten, Managing Editor Charlotte Hood, Section Editor Jordan Brown, Section Editor Emily Powell, Web and Business Editor Eduardo Andrade, Asst. Section Editor Andra Danu, Asst. Section Editor Javier Garcia, Asst. Section Editor Kayla Gayle, Asst. Section Editor Julia Latchana, Asst. Section Editor Matthew Shanbom, Asst. Section Editor Delaney Staples, Asst. Section Editor Madison Tappa, Asst. Section Editor Kimberly Scanlan, Staff Intern Dr. Andrew Shipe, Adviser Tornado Times is produced by: Pompano Beach High School 600 NE 13 Ave. Pompano Beach, FL 33060 Phone: (754) 322-2000 Email: pbhsnewspaper@gmail.com Website: thetornadotimes.org Twitter: @TornadoTimes Print issues in the 2018-19 school year are planned for October, January, March and May. Online issues are planned for September, November, February and April.

For students, parents and teachers who need to be informed about what’s happening in and out of the school that affects them, Tornado Times is a print and web publication that provides timely multimedia and interactive coverage. Unlike social media, our product is focused around school events from the perspective of the bigger picture.

Tornado Times is a public forum for student expression. The newspaper staff is responsible for determining what subjects are to be covered and warrant placement in the newspaper.

As a public forum, Tornado Times welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and sent to pbhsnewspaper@ gmail.com. The staff reserves the right to edit letters for poor taste, libel and space.

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The opinions in this publication are not necessarily those of advertisers, Pompano Beach High School or Broward County Public Schools.

Tornado Times is a member of the Florida Scholastic Press Association.

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

opinion

Hearing proves men get free pass By

Julia Latchana,

Asst. Section Editor

The Senate committee hearing to evaluate the suitability of then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh to get a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court brought forward many emotions, whether it was anger directed at either side or sadness from the final decision to confirm. One thing was clear: sexism is alive and well.

Despite anyone’s beliefs about the trial or what happened that night 30-something years ago, some of the responses were very discriminatory against women.

During the actual trial, none of the Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee ever questioned or talked to Dr. Christine Blasey Ford themselves and instead hired an outside female counsel, so that they themselves wouldn’t get any backlash. However, when it came to Kavanaugh’s testimony, the counsel barely spoke and the Senators chose to use their time to praise

Kavanaugh. Their line of questioning clearly showed how they all felt about the case: that Kavanagh was the actual victim, not Ford.

During his entire testimony, Kavanaugh acted like a toddler, shouting and throwing a temper tantrum, a sharp contrast to Ford’s appearance during her testimony, where she was polite and answered questions.

Kavanaugh’s actions brought no backlash because people justified it as anger due to being falsely accused of a crime. However, if Ford had given the same reaction there would have been much more backlash.

Kavanaugh is allowed to scream and be sarcastic toward senators, while Ford has to be demure or else they would tear her apart.

Another wave of sexism was unleashed at one of Trump’s many rallies where the president mocked Ford’s testimony by mimicking her statements. He constantly ridiculed her testimony by using a high pitched tone and repeating “I don’t remember.”

In response to the president’s mocking, Sen. Lindsey Graham said, “I thought she was handled respectfully. I thought Kavanaugh was treated like crap.” Graham’s use of language is a key to knowing his opinion on the entire subject. Kava-

naugh is entitled to be treated like a human being, while Ford should be “handled” like an object.

Ford is not a piece of property; women aren’t objects. They aren’t allowed to be used and humiliated and told that it’s their fault.

Who cares if it happened 30 years ago? There’s no time limit on traumatic experiences. They’re called traumatic for a reason; they can haunt you for the rest of your life.

Just because you only now have the courage to tell someone about sexual assault doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen. Just because it happened 30 years ago and they’re “better people now,” means nothing. If someone was murdered and 30 years later the murderer is found, does that mean they can get off scot-free? No one should be exempt from a crime, no matter how much time has passed.

“I think that it’s a very scary time for young men in America when you can be guilty of something that you may not be guilty of,” Trump said.

When asked about women he responded, “Women are doing great.”

Donald Trump, women are not doing great.

Women don’t have the right to control their own bodies. Women are paid less. Women can be raped and harassed by men with power and

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told that it is their own fault — that they dress too provocatively, that they wanted to be raped, that it was such a long time ago it means nothing.

Women are told not to come forward because it will ruin these men’s lives.

What about the victims’ lives?

Women that have to suffer through rape and harassment have to live with that trauma every day of their lives, while the men get to go on with their lives and act as nothing happened.

Women and other rape victims have to suffer because “they were asking for it.”

Meanwhile, society tells us that this is normal behavior for men. That they are allowed to rape and harass women because it is in their nature.

They get to have power because it happened a long time ago and it doesn’t define them.

“This is a very, very -- this is a very difficult time. What’s happening here has much more to do than even the appointment of a Supreme Court justice,” Trump said.

If men are scared, they should be.

If they’re scared, it’s because they are guilty. It is because they know that they are losing their power and that women aren’t going sit back and let men oppress them.

Does ‘Hello’ help? Being nice hard to enforce By

“Start with Hello Week,” a week dedicated to creating a socially inclusive enAsst. Section Editor vironment for the students at lunch time and throughout the day, was implemented here Sept. 24-28.

It didn’t work.

“Even though we had a program to help us make new friends, people stayed mostly with their regular groups,” sophomore Eden Wright said, although she did mention having seen fewer people sitting alone that day.

The program was started by Sandy Hook Promise organization, which formed after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012 with the purpose of lowering the threat of school violence,

Delaney Staples,

like the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting, by trying to eliminate social isolation.

“Start with Hello” works to help students interact by having a week where students wear name tags and try to sit with people who may be sitting alone, or simply sitting with different people in general.

But did this really happen?

Teenagers -- like adults -- naturally arrange themselves into cliques. Because of this mindset, people find it harder to leave their cliques and speak to someone new or to be addressed by an “outsider” without feeling annoyed or offended.

“For people that don’t need it, it’s just really weird,” senior David Dunham said. “The only way these programs are effective are if people want to, and a lot of times they don’t.”

The conception people have in their heads when coming up to someone who is sitting alone to begin a conversation, is that it will be awkward.

“It’s hard and weird to branch out and sit with someone else even though it’s what we should do,”

Wright said.

Our generation is also growing up during a time with advancing technology. The majority of kids and teens have a phone or access to an electronic device.

“Kids are so absorbed in electronics, they haven’t learned how to deal with other people,” tech teacher David Holley said. “The studies have shown that social media has made people feel lonelier, more disconnected.”

“It depends on the people,” Wright said.

“A lot of people don’t have home training,” Holley said, and because of this, kids will learn most social behavior outside of home.

The implementation of programs like these are “good in theory but not really in practice,” Dunham said. The idea of creating a more socially inclusive environment to help others feel safe and accepted is great, but the people in the social environment may choose not to try.

Read more at www.thetornadotimes.org.

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October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

“I am pretty pro-DeSantis because he’s a Republican and is more conservative. I would rather have Adam Putnam, but I do support DeSantis. Gillum is way too strong on taxes. He would increase taxes 40 percent for businesses. My parents own a business and it would cripple their business. He’s for accepting far-left radical opinions like abolishing ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and wants to expand Medicaid, so I don’t think he (Gillum) would be a good candidate. I strongly favor DeSantis but I would rather have someone else be the nominee.”

DeSantis plans to keep Florida great

By Kimberly Scanlan, Staff Writer

Ron DeSantis, Republican candidate running for Florida governor, plans to improve the Florida education system while refining the health care system, improving the job market and creating safer communities.

DeSantis has a plan to allocate 80 percent of education funds to inside the classrooms while cutting administrative and bureaucratic costs.

According to Stephen Lawson, a spokesman for DeSantis, raising this to 80 percent would put another $1.38 billion into the classroom.

DeSantis believes in a health care system that allows citizens more choices.

“Floridians have more choices in pick-

ing out their cell phone plans than their health insurance plans,” DeSantis wrote in a proposal posted on his campaign website. “Every day in the grocery store, we make decisions about what we want to buy, weighing price, necessity, and quality, and deciding what’s right for us, but, when it comes to something as important as health care, we have fewer choices and less information.”

His plan includes expanding the direct primary care bill passed in March allowing doctors and other health care providers to contract directly with patients without being subject to insurance regulations.

DeSantis says he also values the ability of an individual to protect themselves from danger with their right to bear arms.

In an interview with Dr. Frank Luntz, Fox News commentator and Republican political consultant, DeSantis expressed his dislike towards Rick Scott’s firearm bill restricting gun purchases, passed in the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting on Feb. 14, and said we should focus more on school security and mental health issues, rather than trying to take firearms away from law-abiding

Ethan Cronk, Senior

citizens.

DeSantis also proposed that businesses be able to decide if they want to implement all-inclusive restrooms.

“Getting into the bathroom wars, I don’t think that’s a good use of our time,” DeSantis said when asked about a proposed bathroom bill during a primary debate.

He has expressed that he is aware that many Florida counties have made it difficult for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to do their job.

“There will be no sanctuary cities when I am governor,” DeSantis said.

These jurisdictions require signatures from federal judges in order to relinquish custody of an illegal immigrant from the sheriff’s offices to the U.S. Border Patrol.

DeSantis says that if he is elected, he will use the Trump administration’s watch list in order to find and repremand the city officials that choose not to comply.

“I am committed to reversing the Obama agenda and reasserting American sovereignty, limited government principles and religious freedom,” DeSantis said during his campaign for U. S. House of Representatives in 2012. “I will be guided by the core values that have made America great.”

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

PHOTOS BY ANDRA DANU

centerspread

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“I like that he (Gillum) at least seems more inclusive. I feel like DeSantis is just going to pursue policies that the Republican Party has traditionally pursued, and I don’t think that they are good for people on lower incomes or women. I don’t think that their policies are good for safety in schools, with gun violence and everything. I’m not cool with that. With all of those factors, I don’t think that I can vote for DeSantis.”

Kylie Severine, Senior

By Matthew Shanbom, Asst. Section Editor

Andrew Gillum won the Democratic primary in August to become the first African-American nominee for governor.

A Florida native, Gillum started his political career at 23 when he was elected Tallahassee city commissioner. He served 11 years as commissioner before running for mayor. In 2014, he was elected, winning 76 percent of the vote.

Gillum says Florida has one of the worst education systems in the country, and he will fix that. Gillum has proposed a $1 billion investment in schools to improve teachers’ salaries and increase “SHOP 2.0,” vocational training which includes computer education.

Gillum has suggested legalizing marijuana and taxing it in addition to raising the corporate income tax from 5.5 percent to 7.75 percent.

All of these would work to raise teachers’ starting salary to $50,000.

Gillum also does not support forprofit charter schools that on his website he says “want to use public dollars to enrich their executives.”

Gillum supports stronger gun control, seeking a ban on assault weapons from civilian use. He also supports banning bump stocks, which when convert semi-automatic

Gillum looks for new Florida

weapons to automatic. Gillum supports universal background checks for buying a gun, pointing out that the Florida Department of Agriculture chose not to perform federal background checks on tens of thousands of people who had applied to buy a gun.

On his website he states that he believes that “healthcare is a right.”

Gillum believes the problems that exist in the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, can be fixed, and it will be a better healthcare system than the American Healthcare Act proposed by the Trump administration, but not passed by the Senate, supporting people with preexisting conditions.

Gillum also seeks to expand Medicaid, another governmental insurance program to provide healthcare to low-income Floridians.

Gillum also supports sanctuary cities, or cities that protect undocumented immigrants. An estimated 450,000 undocumented immigrants live in south Florida, according to Pew Research. Because immigrants, both documented and undocumented, comprise 20.2 percent of Florida’s population, according to the American Immigration Council, Gillum sees immigrants as necessary to the economy not bad for it.

On the heavily controversial topic of abortion, Gillum supports women having the right to choose.

Gillum supports funding Planned Parenthood, which provides women with low-cost preventive health, testing for sexually transmitted diseases and services related to contraception and abortion.

Gillum also supports gay marriage. While mayor of Tallahassee, he welcomed gay couples into his city to be married. He also supports passing state policies to protect people who identify as an LGBTQ individual to not be discriminated against.

During Hurricane Michael, Gillum took an 11-day break from the campaign trail to help his city of Tallahassee recover.

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October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

student life

Nemnarine wins writing award

By Eduardo Andrade, Asst. Section Editor

Senior Ashley Nemnarine won the Florida Council of Teachers of English (FCTE) award for her personal narrative, “Pictures? Or Reflections?”

Her piece reflected on the value of pictures and how their importance has changed over time, and how one photo in particular has made her think about how she has grown as a person.

“I had this one picture that really means a lot to me because pictures of our past can really reflect on how much we can change and grow,” Nemnarine said.

Her inspiring picture was her freshman class photo, which she noticed in her room and gave a concrete direction to what was just a rough idea at the time.

“I was in my bedroom on my laptop, and I look over and I see the picture and I think, ‘Oh, I think I can really write about this,’” Nemnarine said.

Nemnarine will attend the FCTE Awards Ceremony, which will be held in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Youth writing conference on Nov. 3.

She will be published in “Gulfstream 2018,” a publication provided by the FCTE, and will receive a $100 cash prize.

Ann Wilson, who taught Nemnarine, will also be going to the conference.

“Ashley is the top writer for personal narrative for the entire state, based on the readings of English teachers across

[Florida],” said Wilson.

The award came as a surprise to Nemnarine, who submitted two additional pieces for the competition: one

an argument calling into question the morality of charities, and the other a short story about the effects of colorism, the discrimination based on skin

Ashley Nemnarine poses for her freshman photo. This photo inspired her to write her personal narrative, “Pictures? Or Reflections?”

PHOTO COURTESY OF ASHLEY NEMNARINE

GRAPHIC BY JESSICA BUCHANAN

tone, often within a race.

“They were more deep,” Nemnarine said, “I thought I was going to win for the other pieces but surprisingly this was the piece that I won for.”

It is uncommon for Nemnarine to share her writing, and she has largely kept the news of her accomplishment to herself.

“I don’t really show anybody any of my writing,” Nemnarine said.

So far the only people she has told about the award are her parents.

Even her friends haven’t been told about the award.

Nemnarine wrote and submitted the narrative during her junior year, but only recently found out she had won the award. This is the second year Nemnarine has competed in the FCTE Awards, but it is the first time she has won.

“We did it two years ago, and Ashley didn’t win, so she looked at me and said, ‘I’m doing it again,’ and she won,” Wilson said.

Nemnarine hopes to be a writer in the future, and winning the award has given her confidence and motivation.

“The fact that I won actually encouraged me to continue writing,” Nemnarine said. “This really pushed me towards really considering an English major.”

watch

Starr shines in ‘Hate’

decides to fight for justice.

The movie shows all the emotions “The Hate U Give,” released in select and thoughts that black people in theaters on Oct. 5 but available at most this country deal with daily. Racist on Oct. 19, faces the challenge of being stereotypes, statements like “I don’t as good as the popular book it’s based see color” and white people trying on. Thankfully, it succeeds. to “act black” are all discussed in With a 96% “Certified Fresh” rating the film. The writers even included on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie contincomments close to #BlueLivesMatues to spread the importance of equal ter from Starr’s white best-friend, rights and the consequences of racial Hailey. profiling.

Although the film did not cover Based on the best-selling youngsome of the topics deeply, the movie adult novel by Angie Thomas, the film was amazing and is a must-watch. shows the journey of sixteen-year-old “The Hate U Give” will be relatable African-American Starr Carter. to many black people in this counStarr, played by actress Amandla try, but will also touch the hearts Stenberg, witnessed the death of her of everyone in this world. A lot of friend Khalil Harris. Khalil, played young teens, and even some adults,

by Algee Smith, was wrongfully shot will find themselves within Starr. She and killed by a white police officer in a inspired me when I read the books “traffic stop gone wrong.” and even more seeing her on the big Starr is forced to deal with the conscreen. sequences of being the only witness and separating her home life from her school life.

With the pressure from the media and the people around her, Starr

By Kayla Gayle, Asst. Section Editor

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

entertainment

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‘Venom’ slithers into box office with $376 million

By Jordan Brown, Section Editor

“Venom” debuted on Oct. 5 and with this film, Sony can finally be compared to the comic book titan Marvel Studios.

Directed by Ruben Fleischer, the film is Sony’s third attempt at a comic book movie (the first two being “The Amazing Spider-Man” movies) and tells the story of how Eddie Brock comes into contact with Venom and the rest of the symbiotes.

Tom Hardy makes his superhero debut as the title character’s host Eddie Brock along with a number of film veterans like Michelle Williams (“The Greatest Showman) and Riz Ahmed (“The Night Of”).

“Venom” was produced by a studio that missed the bullseye with its first two superhero movies, so going in, I thought it was going to be another miss and more unfair hate on the top-billed actor. Thankfully, I was proved wrong.

The caliber of acting from Hardy and Ahmed made this the solo film the iconic anti-hero deserves.

Venom hasn’t had any silverscreen time since “Spider-Man 3,” where he got lost in the chaos that Sandman and Green Goblin brought to the table, so it was like he wasn’t even in the film.

Even in “Venom,” the title character has to share the spotlight with Eddie; that’s the whole point of Venom finding the perfect host.

Hardy did an amazing job of bringing the symbiote to the forefront while maintaining Brock’s humanity, completely shattering my expectations.

Ahmed, as the antagonist, does a good job of portraying a soulless CEO with a God complex. When he bonds with Riot, they’re so alike in their disregard and disgust for normal human beings that it’s kind of hard to tell them apart, but the pairing makes for a good contrast with Eddie and Venom.

This movie has the kind of humor that you’d expect from Deadpool: mature, over the top zingers.

What makes this film interesting isn’t its almost perfect balance between comedic zings and serious plot advancement or its odd but fitting tone throughout the film, it’s the fact that critics absolutely hated this film before it was released to the public.

A Reel Place blogger dubbed the film as “chaotic, noisy, and in desperate need of a stronger attachment to Spider-Man,” and Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 30 percent.

Even so, it opened at the top spot with $30 million, $6.5 million more than “A Star is Born,” which has a 90 percent rating on the same site and is “Certified Fresh.”

What could explain the drastic range of opinions between the general public and the critics? Critics usually have no sense of what the current demographic of the public is and what we like. They’re the same type of people that gave Best Picture to “The Shape of Water” over “Get Out.” My advice to the people looking at the Venom showtimes and debating if it’s worth it: it most definitely is.

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October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

Touch-down for the count

Other sports can replace football By

Charlotte Hood, Section Editor Several rumors regarding the football team have been circulating around the school, such as the team being disbanded due to members either transferring to more sportsoriented schools or deciding to end their football careers all together.

The thought of losing our precious football team has led students to ponder the possible solutions to this lack of players. But who can we expect to fill the relatively tiny shoes (or cleats) of the previous players?

Who else possesses such agility and raw power? Who else has the courage to brave a field full of opponents

The girls golf team finished its regular season with a record of 7-3.

At regionals, the girls were defeated by Archbishop McCarthy and American Heritage, but individually, sophomore Heidi Christensen advanced to the state finals on Nov. 2 and 3 at Mission Inn Resort, Howeyin-the-Hills.

The boys golf team finished the season with fifth place at regionals.

“They’re a great team,” Coach Billy Hammond said. “The best team I’ve ever coached. Unfortunately, the team won’t be the same next year with two seniors leaving, but the

primed to bulldoze anyone between them and the end zone?

At first glance, it seems that no group of people is qualified to take on such a role, but if we take our eye off the field and turn it toward the sideline, we find our answer. Those who have been to every game, are in peak physical condition, able to analyze and examine every component of the opposing team’s strategy from their prime position, and the only ones capable of continuing our school’s reputation on the field: cheerleaders.

Cheerleaders show no fear, performing death-defying stunts that feature members flying through the air at incredible heights. They are the only ones with the courage to step onto the field and face opponents head on. What’s a 200-lb linebacker to a girl who has stared death in the eye during every routine?

The cheerleaders also have an impeccable understanding of football and its complex strategies and movements. They have sat on the sidelines at every game, watching, examining and critiquing every move made by the home and opposing teams.

They are able to see how the game is played and learn what it takes to actually win. That’s how they know what to cheer and when. I mean, it would be embarrassing to cheer, “Block that kick!” when we line up for a field goal.

I feel it is also important to mention the physical strength requirement of football. Players must be in top condition if they hope to score even a single point for their team.

(Yes, I know there’s no way to score just one point -- it’s an expression.)

The endurance it takes to run along with the brute strength needed to

team can still be as good as it is this year.”

“I feel like our season had a lot of ups and downs,” senior outside hitter and middle back defender Madison Bobes said. “We did not play as well as expected, but we always have a good time playing together and all are basically a family.”

The girls volleyball team lost the regional quarterfinal playoff 3-0 against Suncoast on Oct. 24.

“Although we lost I feel like we played really hard as a team,” senior setter Gabriella Justamante said.

“We had our mistakes but we encouraged each other to do better, and we all had a positive attitude both going into and leaving the game, even though we ended up losing.”

The scores of the three sets were 25-15, 25-21 and 25-19.

The girls swim team lost its last regular-season match 105-90 against Cardinal Gibbons on Oct. 10.

The boys swim team defeated Gibbons 133-45. The district meet will be Nov. 3 in Jupiter.

tackle another player leaves most students -- really, like all but about 15 -- out of the running for a spot on the team, but again we see the cheerleaders rise to the occasion. Their activities require them to be able to throw members into the air and support the rest in various position and routines. Their teammates’ lives depend on their ability to catch them as they fall back to the ground after being launched into the air.

If our football team does lose its members, I believe that even they would be proud of their cheerleading replacements. The ferocity and power hiding behind bright smiles and ribbons could be our rise to glory if the cheerleaders stopped celebrating on the sidelines and instead basked in the adoration of the audience cheering them on from the stands.

The football team is 0-9 with one game remaining.

“We have to play as a team,” junior wide receiver Alec Goldman said.

“We have to keep picking each other up and keeping our heads up while at it.”

The team’s final game is Senior Night at 7 p.m. on Nov. 1 at home against Northeast.

sports11

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

XC teams race to end of season

By Alexis Schatten, Managing Editor

Junior Fabiola Saint-Hubert runs in the 5,000-meter (3.1-mile) girls district race on Oct. 23 at Tradewinds Park. She placed 67th with a time of 36 minutes, 19.40 seconds.

PHOTO BY ALEXIS SCHATTEN

The cross country teams competed in districts at Tradewinds Park on Oct. 23. The boys team finished in seventh place, while the girls team did not place because they didn’t have enough team members competing.

Districts marked the end of a season full of hard work and long hours of practice.

“We do either long runs to the beach or we do sprints and stuff around the track to practice,” sophomore Mya Brown said.

In spite of the challenging practices runners said getting to know the team members have helped make the workload more fun.

“Getting to know the team (has been my favorite part of cross country),” sophomore Morgan Reid said.

“They’re really nice.”

Aside from the team being nice, getting to know each other makes them want to do better and therefore run much smoother, on and off the track.

“Getting to know (my teammates) and how they operate helps me try to elevate myself to their level,” junior Vincent Shipe said.

Coach Didymus said he tries to encourage runners constantly to make the environment, both for practices and actual meets, much more positive, and allows runners to truly reach their full potential.

“The most important part about coaching is building up the athlete’s self esteem mentally, physically,” Coach Didymus said. “You know, sometimes they’ll think they can’t do it, so you always gotta keep motivating them.”

12 last look

October 2018 • thetornadotimes.org

Vote seniors, vote!

Senior Darlie Ibrahim, student assessment specialist Arif Mumtaz and (name withheld on request) engage in a conversation about one of the amendments on the sampling voting ballot. Students were informed that they did not have to place an answer for every question on the official voting ballot.

(name withheld on request) helps senior Edward Jaramillo research questions about the amendments on the sample voting ballot. Nine students from a U. S. Government class attended a field trip to Emma Lou Olson Civic Center on Oct. 25 to participate in early voting for the midterm election.

PHOTOS BY ANDRA DANU

Senior Ronald Hache studies the sample midterm election voting ballot to make sure that his selections are final. The nine students that attended the field trip to Emma Lou Olson Civic Center on Oct. 25 were required to fill out a sample ballot before filling out the official ballot.

PAGE DESIGN BY ANDRA DANU