The Poly Spotlight- January 2012

THE POLY SPOTLIGHT

Volume 91, Issue 5

Written by and for the students of Riverside Poly High School

Friday, February 3, 2012

AP

policy changes SCHOOL: Poly High School is making changes to the AP administrations system.

Aysouda Malekzadeh

STAFF WRITER

P

Contributed by tikimachine.blogspot.com

The tenth Anniversary of the Riverside Arts Walk on March 1 will include displays of local art at numerous venues in Downtown Riverside.

Riverside arranges an artsy anniversary DOWNTOWN: Riverside Arts Walk celebrates its 10th anniversary on March 1.

Suzanne Becker

STAFF WRITER

T

he Riverside Arts Walk, a monthly showcase of numerous artists in Downtown Riverside, will celebrate its tenth anniversary on March 1.

The Arts Walk takes place the first Thursday of each month, and lasts from 6 pm to 9 pm.

Programs include live music, film screenings, curator-led gallery tours, cultural cuisine and a wide variety of other creative exhibits.

The walk includes over twenty participating locations in downtown Riverside, where about 1,000 to 1,500 visitors take in new performances and hands-on activities.

The Arts Walk is hosted by The Riverside Cultural Consortium, a collaboration of community organizations promoting local arts and culture.

According to Riverside Cultural Consortium Marketing Chair Natasha Ferguson, the Consortorium continues to grow in its scope of influence and impact upon the community.

"The Consortium, under the

leadership of current chair Patricia Korzec, is developing a strategic plan for growth and development and looks forward to continuing to advocate the importance of arts in the community as a major economic driver for the City," Ferguson stated.

To commemorate the tenth anniversary of its inception, the Consortium will hold a special ceremony from 5 pm to 6 pm at the Life Arts Center in downtown Riverside.

The event will recognize select participants and supporters who have significantly contributed to the Arts Walk.

Poly's Photo Club will participate in the Arts Walk in June by displaying selections of student

photography.

This will be the Photo Club's fifth year in attendance.

As club advisor, Matthew Schiller sees the Arts Walk as a good opportunity for students to display their work.

“I think Arts Walk is a great way for people in Riverside to be exposed to new and established artists in the community,” Mr. Schiller stated.

Over the past 10 years, the Riverside Arts Walk has grown extensively in scope and participation.

This year, coordinators hosted a competition for a new logo to reinvigorate the image of the Arts Walk.

Students and artists across Riverside received flyers promoting the contest.

The winning logo will be unveiled on the day of the Arts Walk by members of the Consortium.

Riverside businesses, galleries and churches are pitching in and hosting part of the Arts Walk in their establishment Special art exhibits will be shown in The Universalist Unitarian Church, Back to the Grind, The People’s Gallery, Relish Delicatessen, Healthy Heritage Wellness Center, First Congregational Church, T.S. Elliott’s Studios and Oscar Capelli’s Salon.

After 9pm, attendees are welcome to attend the Arts Walk 10 Year Anniversary Celebration after-party at Back to the Grind, which will include live music and a DJ.

Poly’s homepage gets an update WEBSITE: RUSD plans to make major changes to district schools’ hompages.

Daniel Chung

STAFF WRITER

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he Riverside Poly High School website received a major update and a new URL (http://rusdlink.org/Domain/48) on January 20.

The update was part of an initiative led by the Riverside Unified School District (RUSD).

The changes followed updates made to rusdlink.org, RUSD’s website, which focused on making the website more accessible to students and parents.

The new Poly website ties in major social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and may include Flash plugins and video in the near future to further enhance the site.

Students are now able to sign in using a single login name and have in-

stant access to Haiku, Aeries and other RUSD accounts.

This is done to create a more personalized experience.

The site itself is tied to the RUSD website, managed by John Schreck, Director of Publications.

The website is organized into eight sections that deal with different aspects of Poly. Sections include About, Athletics, Activities and Academics.

Assistant Principal Brian Frost and Computer Teacher Sydney Llera manage, publish and monitor the entire site.

The Academics, Activities and Athletics sections are managed by Robert Johnston, Michael Breyer and Robert Ritzau, respectively.

“We hope to have all our clubs’, athletic teams’ and teachers’ Haiku pages connected to the website,” Principal Wade Coe stated.

School administrators want students to utilize technology more for school purposes, and the website is another step towards that goal.

“I have been adding content to the school Facebook and Twitter pages whenever I am told about an event, award, or achievement. I will monitor the site and the Administra-

Welcome to the New Year

Jillian Rausa/ The Poly Spotlight

Computer teacher Mr. Llera, one of the administrators of the new website, browses the homepage on his desktop.

I N D E X The Poly Spotlight Online:

Take a look ahead at 2012 in the fields of science, politics, sports and economics.

NEWS............................1 NEWS OPINIONS.....................2 OPINIONS FEATURES.....................3 FEATURES FOCUS........................4-5 FOCUS

-pages 4-5Access our new online paper at www.polyspotlight.com

tive Team will discuss the ‘highlights’ on the home page,” Mr. Frost said.

Some students feel that the update is for the better.

Many felt that the old website was too unorganized.

“It can be difficult to navigate at times, and the way they set it up is really just lists of information and hyperlinks. I think it could be improved” said Poly student Cody Van Amburgh (11).

In response to such reactions, Mr. Frost replied that he would “like to form a Student Technology Advisory Group, which will make recommendations to the administration regarding all technology at Poly, including the website […] Our longterm goal is to have every organization in our school publish an information page.”

Mr. Frost also added that “Our plan is to have the home page news and announcements match the information posted on Facebook and Twitter to give our community more options.”

He wants the site to become a website that not only students use, but one that the whole Poly community will join together and bring Poly High School up-to-date in technology.

rincipal Wade Coe has recently informed teachers that an AP teacher can no longer be the test coordinator for AP testing.

The administration is changing Poly’s protocol for AP testing in order to adhere to the College Board’s policy.

The College Board believes that by instituting this rule they will avoid any conflicts of interest between the teacher and the testing system, specifically the perception of misconduct when handling test materials.

In the past years math teacher, Roslyn Jones, was the test coordinator, but now the school has to train and prepare a non-AP teacher for the position.

Ms. Jones’ retirement next year has reintroduced the change of plans in the AP testing progress.

Poly English teacher Catherine Murray took an interest in this position for the upcoming years.

Ms. Jones will return next year to help prepare Mrs. Murray for the AP testing process by teaching her how to deal with timing the test and handling the test materials.

In addition, the payment of the teacher in charge of the tests will be altered.

Originally an Advance Placement Incentive Program (APIP) grant, given by the school district funded the test coordinator’s salary.

Normally grant money is money that is given to an organization by a foundation for the school to use for a certain purpose over a certain period of time.

The time period ended last year, but there was leftover money that allowed RUSD to continue with the APIP program this year.

Since there is not enough money to last for future years, the APIP grant is being cut by the district.

Poly has chosen to pay the test coordinator’s salary with the APIP grant for the past four years in order to have more money available for eight dollar rebates, which pay for student scholarships.

It was actually the amount of money the College Board allows schools to keep in order to administer the exams.

It covers buying equipment needed for the testing, paying the proctors and buying snacks.

With the changes, the test coordinator will be paid from a time card, which pays the teacher by the hours he or she has worked.

Before the APIP grant, the teacher was paid in this fashion.

This means that the school will not have as much money to put into the scholarships because there will be no more rebate fund. Only the money left over from previous years will go towards the scholarships.

Ms. Jones says , “If the money is dealt with carefully, there will not be too much of a decline in the scholarships.”

SAT Dates

PHOTO ESSAY................6 ESSAY March 10, 2012 DIVERSIONS...................7 DIVERSIONS Register by Best of 2011............7 February 10, 2012 SPORTS..........................8 SPORTS

Good Luck!

OPINIONS

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THE POLY

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012

Future Floosy

Through The Looking Glass SOPA:The bills, Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect Intellectual Property Act have the potential to change the Internet as we know it.

Isabel De La Garza

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Contributed By Rachel Yuen

STAFF WRITER

OPA and PIPA began with somewhat harmless origins.

They were meant in all basic terms to put an end to online piracy and infringement of copyrighted works. Many would say that a system is already in place for that, which is true− the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA).

This act, made effective in 1998, allows copyright owners to file reports against a violator and allows the accused party time to take down the offensive material or else file a counter report and fight the accusation in court.

Usually, new acts are put in place when old ones fail, but this system works fairly well as demonstrated by all the videos that have been removed from YouTube for copyright infringement. It does have a few flaws, however, as online users sometimes “claim” the rights of a Nintendo character, for example, for the sole purpose of reporting a YouTube video just to add a strike to a hapless user’s account.

Another problem with the DMCA is that actual corporations sometimes file ludicrous claims as well. For example, stating that a character is based off a copyrighted character and the video it belongs to must be terminated. Luckily, this act actually has a way out as the defendant can appeal against the claim in court.

SOPA and PIPA, however, contain most of the flaws of the DMCA but with stricter consequences and less room to escape wrongful accusations. Under SOPA and PIPA, the time to file and resolve a counterclaim is a mere five days. In this time, the accusing corporation can censor a site from search engines and social networking sites and report it to payment companies, which will suspend funding to the site. These strict bills ultimately constrict a site until it breathes its last breath.

It does not even matter how little a site is engaged in piracy or infringement either. If there is even one unchecked user engaging in infringement, the whole website can be terminated in a matter of days. Why? The supporters of these bills believe that if there are users who engage in infringement then the site obviously endorses or encourages piracy and copyright infringement, and for them, even derivative (fanfiction, artwork, poems etc.) or similar works count as infringement.This means that most websites on the Internet, both social networking and nonsocial sites alike, can be terminated for the actions of a few individuals.

This threat has caused over 6,000 websites, including Google, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Tumblr, Yahoo, WattPad, 4Chan, Mozilla and Disqus, to oppose the bills. Wellknown organizations that also oppose the bills include Creative Commons (an organization dedicated to protecting online works against copyright infringement), The Huffington Post, Paypal and The American Library Association. These organizations helped to raise awareness of the bills through temporary website shut downs, linking to petitions and informing users of the bills’ potency and how to oppose them.

Luckily all this organized opposition and online citizen protest has shelved the two bills for the time being (although PIPA was still up for voting two days longer than SOPA).

But we must remember them if they are up for consideration later.If Congress really wishes to protect freedom of expression, it should consider the consequences of proposed laws more thoroughly.

aren’t allowing me to have my freedom of expression. I think the administration is wrong in this situation, School’s Yearbook staff was and I don’t want this to happen to right to refuse student Sydney other people.”

Spies’ picture.

I am not sure what Ms. Spies was trying to express, unless she thinks it is her calling to be a prostiEmilie Bean tute when she is older. Many felt that STAFF WRITER she looked extremely inappropriate, an anonymous blogger even wrote, ydney Spies, a student at- “Why do I see a pole and clear heels tending Durango High in her future?”

School in Colorado, submitThere is a large gap between exted her senior picture to the school’s pressing oneself and wearing practiyearbook. The yearbook staff rightly cally nothing for a school photo. Day rejected the photo for being too re- after day, more young people are vealing. walking around “We are an awardThere is a large gap looking like little winning yearharlots. between expressing book,” Brian Ms. Spies fiJaramillo, a student nally relented and oneself and wearing on the yearbook decided to submit a staff, said, “We practically nothing different photo into don’t want to dithe yearbook. not minish the quality with something surprisingly, this picture was also rethat can be seen as unprofessional.” jected. Ms. Spies was wearing a When she found out that her pic- strapless black cocktail dress, but was ture would not be published, Ms. standing provocatively; the yearbook Spies, her mother (Miki Spies), other committee rejected it for being to students and some alumni protested provoctive. Ms. Spies is serious about outside of the school, demanding that fighting back and decided to sue. I Ms. Spies’ picture be included in the doubt she will win seeing as the yearbook. Ms. Spies and her mother Supreme Court previously ruled that are now vowing to fight the school’s under certain circumstances student administration over the picture and editors and school officials can cenannounced that they hired a civil sor photos. lawyer.

Outside of campus, I do not care Ms. Spies was posing in a short how people dress, but while they are yellow skirt and nothing but a black at school, students should show a litshawl tied around her chest. No stu- tle modesty. It is okay to dress in dent should be allowed to wear re- your own style, but when all you are vealing clothing for a yearbook photo. wearing is a scarf and a belt, it is no Ms. Spies argued, “I feel like they longer cute; it is trashy.

SKIMPY: Durango High

Redefining Rape CRIME: The FBI is on the brink of expanding its drastically outdated definition of rape.

Kayla Chang

I

STAFF WRITER

t is presumed that rape has existed as long as sex has. But throughout history, society has made a marked improvement in eradicating, or at least suppressing, this horrendous act. And since vigilantism is illegal and this is not 14th century England, when a victim of rape could rightfully gouge out the perpetrator’s eyes and/or remove his testicles from the scrotum in which they rest, we naturally look toward the government to provide us with protection from these violations.

Since 1929, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has defined rape as the “carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will.”

This more-than-80-year-old definition aged not like a fine wine, but like the flesh of the recently deceased. The FBI’s Criminal Justice Advisory Policy Board voted in December of 2011 to recommend broadening the definition of rape, to which FBI Director Robert Mueller signaled his approval.

The revised, long-overdue definition covers any gender of both the

victim and the attacker and includes not only instances in which physical resistance was involved, but also those in which the victim was incapable of giving consent due to the influence of drugs, alcohol or age. Any vaginal or anal penetration by any object or body part is to be considered a rape act.

This broadening will allow national rape statistics to more accurately reflect the frequency of the crime, which, in turn, will direct legislators and public officials when using crime statistics to allocate resources for prevention and victim assistance. Unreliable data on rape’s occurrence misleads the public about the prevalence of the crime and impedes funding opportunities for enforcement and treatment programs.

Although the FBI already has a National Incident-Based Reporting System that recognizes a more encompassing definition of rape, the system requires such labor-intensive data gathering that the majority of states, including California, does not participate.

A revamped definition would also facilitate a change in statistical accounting at local law enforcement agencies that have yet to modernize their definitions, bringing muchneeded change to both the city level and the federal level. An urgent alteration is needed lest other assaults,

S

“

such as sodomy or forced oral penetration, fall into lesser crime categories.

The horrors of sexual assault lie not necessarily within the physical act itself, but within the ensuing psychological trauma. Physical force may not always be used, and physical injuries may not always be a consequence, but sexual violence of any kind damage mental health and social well-being.

To treat one act of sexual violence as less severe than any other is to undermine one victim and support the other, both of whom were victims of the same crime.

And since we cannot always rely on rapists to take a pair of garden shears to their own genitalia, we commend the FBI for stepping in and (metaphorically) doing it for them.

.”

Recent Political Quotes “I have decided that I will not be

seeking the 2012 GOP nomination for president of the United States.”

-Sarah Palin

“I disagree with many of the president’s policies, but I believe he is a patriot.”

-John McCain

NDAA RIGHTS: The National Defense Authorization Act takes away the rights of American citizens who are suspected terrorists.

O

Emilie Bean

STAFF WRITER

n December 31, 2011, President Barack Obama signed into law H.R. 1540, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012.

The bill suspends due process and allows the military to detain American citizens suspected of terrorism. The bill would give the military the power to arrest anyone they suspect to be a terrorist, therefore robbing those of due process laws.

Due process baisically means that a person cannot be deprived of life, liberty or property without appropriate legal procedures and safeguards. Although the NDAA is meant to help locate and detain suspected terrorists, it does not give the government the green light to strip them of their rights as American citizens.

Many are calling for an uprising, but others, such as myself, are just blatantly shocked at the newest bill the government passed. Instead of going through the entire process of writing up the bill and voting on it, the government might as well have just drawn a large X over the Fifth Amendment.

This has happened before. During World War II, Japanese-Americans were hauled off to internment camps without probable cause. It was a horrible act before, and it is no better now.

After signing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, President Obama issued a statement that backed the law, though he said he did not agree with all of its provisions.

“The legislation does nothing more than confirm authorities that the Federal courts have recognized as lawful under the 2001 AUMF. I want to clarify that my Administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens.”

President Barack Obama’s statement eased some tempers, but it does not make the law constitutional. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argued, “The statute contains a sweeping worldwide indefinite detention provision... [without] temporal or geographic limitations, and can be used by this and future presidents to militarily detain people captured far from any battlefield.”

The ACLU added that “while President Obama issued a signing statement saying he had 'serious reservations' about the provisions, the statement only applies to how his administration would use the authorities granted by the NDAA. The breadth of the NDAA’s detention authority violates international law because it is not limited to people captured in the context of an actual armed conflict as required by the laws of war.”

The the National Defense Authorization Act is unconstitutional needs to be suspended. Although America is technically in a time of war and those captured would be suspected terrorists, they are still American citizens and have the right to a trial.

THE POLY SPOTLIGHT Riverside Poly High School 5450 Victoria Ave., Riverside, CA 92506 (951) 788 - 7200

James Webb, Editor-in-Chief Johnny Demshki, Copy Editor Gabrielle Corrica, Copy Editor Anna Herzog, Copy Editor Breana Tavaglione, Design Editor Connor Pollard, Technical Editor Suzanne Becker, Business Manager Robert Ayres, Adviser

Taylor Cranor, News Editor Samuel Russell, Opinions Editor Kristina Jorgenson, Features Editor Angela Mihelich & Alyssa Drachslin, Focus Editors Caleb Lick, Diversions Editor Connor Pollard, Photos Editor Erik Kaye, Sports Editor Yzzy Gonzalez, Photographer Anna Herzog, Photographer Jillian Rausa, Photographer Isabel De La Garza, Technical Assistant

REPORTERS: Kayla Chang Jillian Rausa Alejandro Alva Desmond Ho Olivia Childers Daniel Chung Griffin Ferre Aaron Sanders Mathea Elnar Hanna Bernbaum Emilie Bean Isabel De La Garza Aysouda Malekzadeh Rachel Yuen Suzanne Becker Isaiah Murtaugh Leti Bernard Yzzy Gonzalez

The Poly Spotlight is published monthly by and for the students of Poly. Signed editorials represent the opinion of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the other staff members or the adviser. Unsigned editorials represent the position of the paper as determined by a consensus of the Editorial Board.

Spotlight endeavors to produce the most accurate publication possible. If an article contains incorrect information, Spotlight will issue a correction. Clarifications will be issued for an article containing information that the Editorial Board judges to be either misleading or insufficient.

The Spotlight staff encourages readers to voice their opinions on any topic in the form of a letter to the editor. All letters must be signed and written in good taste. The staff reserves the right to edit submissions without the consent of the author as long as the meaning remains unchanged. Letters to the editor may be brought to Room 110 or sent to polyspotlight@gmail.com The Poly Spotlight is printed by SoCal Commercial Printing.

SPOTLIGHT

FEATURES Poly Superstar

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012

ALUMNUS:A former Poly Bear is now an actress and advocate for the mentally disabled.

Mathea Elnar

E Photo courtesy of people.com

Lauren Potter stands beside her co-star Jane Lynch on the set of “Glee.”

STAFF WRITER

very person has something he or she wishes to accomplish, some sort of goal or objective that he or she attempts to work toward. Unfortunaltely, obstacles usually stand in the way of accomplishing most goals. People like Lauren Potter, however, toss these hurdles aside and achieve what they want despite the difficulties at hand.

Ms. Potter, a young woman with Down Syndrome, graduated from Poly High School in 2009. While attending school, she enjoyed going to prom and loved her friends. She even hoped to become a cheerleader; un-

fortunately, this dream was not realized during school. Little did she know, however, that soon after graduating she would play the cheerleader with Down Syndrome, Becky Jackson, on the hit TV series “Glee.” In fact, after her audition with casting director Robert Ulrich, Ms. Potter was in almost every episode of the show’s second season.

“I did dream of being a cheerleader, but I didn’t make the team. I guess I’m making up for that now on ‘Glee,’” Ms. Potter stated.

Though her role on “Glee” is a major accomplishment, it is not her only one. She has traveled to various countries and has spoken out against bullying.

Ms. Potter hopes that people will learn to treat each others well and stop using the “R” word. She is even on the International Board of Best Buddies, a nonprofit organization that en-

courages volunteers worldwide to help create opportunities for friendships, integrated employment and leadership for people with mental and developmental disabilities.

“Words hurt so be careful of the words you use! We have to stop using the ‘R’ word because it hurts me and there are better words to use,” Ms. Potter explained.

In addition, President Obama admitted Lauren Potter into the Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities. Sworn in by Mayor Ron Loveridge at City Hall, she is the first member of the committee with a mental disability.

Created in 1961, the committee advises the President and Health and Human Services secretary about problems and situations that affect the lives of those with mental disabilities.

With Ms. Potter’s insight and personal experiences, she will influence

changes made in the next year regarding jobs, education and housing for those with disabilities.

“I’m honored that the president has faith in me and trusts me to help him to make the world better for people with disabilities. I’m part of the executive branch of our government! Wow,” Ms. Potter exclaimed.

Ms. Potter has done great things since graduating and accomplished her dream of becoming an actress; she even attended the Golden Globes this year.

Despite her disability, she has become successful and inspires many to do the same. Ms. Potter has not let anything hold her back and is even helping others with disabilities.

By publicly speaking out against bullying, accepting a position on The President’s Committee and being a part of Best Buddies, she helps change lives.

Float to the Finish BUILDING : Two Poly students helped create floats for the Rose Parade.

Leti Bernard

E

STAFF WRITER

very year on New Year’s Day, the Rose Parade takes place in Pasadena, California. Thousands of people flock to Pasadena to watch it live, and even more people watch it on television.

This year was the 123rd parade, themed “Just Imagine,” and the Key Clubs of North, King and Poly High School sent some of their members to build and decorate the floats. The Poly Bears who participated in float building, are Katelyn Adams (12), the president of the Key Club, and Anca Boca (9).

Because there are many elabo-

rate floats featured in the Rose Parade, much preparation was necessary to keep this annual production running smoothly.

The volunteer day lasted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The student volunteers were only allowed one lunch break in order to keep the building process running at a timely rate.

“I found out that they are very serious about their floats. We weren’t allowed to listen to our iPods and use our phones, but that just gave us the opportunity to make friends and find other ways to have fun while working,” Ms. Adams stated.

These new friends included volunteers who came from as far as San Diego to help make this spectacular display possible.

The floats required about 50 to 60 students to work on each one.

There were three shifts throughout the day to accommodate the number of

volunteers. Ms. Adams and Ms. Boca worked on the American Honda float, titled “Sweet Dreams,” and the Kiwanis float, which is the adult division of the Key Club. In fact, Honda was not only the subject of an amazing float, but also the sponsor of the entire parade.

Everyone participating cut flowers of all varieties. This job could not be taken lightly because the flowers are the prominent component of the floats.

Some flowers featured included carnations, roses and orchids. Poly’s Key Club members also trimmed tree bark and pasted it on the float to make shingles for a house display.

“My favorite float in the parade was the Honda float. Not only did I get to work on it, but it also came out looking amazing,” Ms. Adams expressed.

The “Sweet Dreams” American

Honda float was an obvious success and led the parade this year. However, it was not part of the judging process, it only introduced the theme.

The hard work of all the volunteers, including some of our Poly Bears, paid off. The Rose Parade was an incredible production and the Honda float was a glorious display of thousands of flowers and various decorations.

“I would definitely do this again; it was an amazing experience that I would recommend to anyone. It’s a great time to work on your social skills and step outside of your comfort zone,” Ms. Adams expressed.

The Rose Parade was, once again, a great success. We should all feel proud of the Poly Bears who participated in this amazing event. They did a fantastic job decorating the floats and were a great contribution to the historic parade.

Photo Courtesy of Katelyn Adams

Anca Boca (9) cuts flowers used to make float decorations.

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Aotearoa

Land of the Long White Cloud FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012

THE POLY

DIVERSIONS

SPOTLIGHT

7

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012

A t t he C in eplex :

The D e vi l In sid e a nd U n d e r wo r ld : Aw ake ning The Devil Inside When it comes to found-footage Paramount Pictures’ recent movie The Devil Inside disappointed films there are two classifications: the millions during its premiere weekend. good and the bad. The Devil Inside Although the film was incredibly glo- falls into the latter.

The Devil Inside documents a rified, it failed to deliver the fear that superficial Isabella Rossi (Fernanda exorcist enthusiasts were hoping for.

The film is about a young Andrade) as she and her trusty camwoman named Isabella (Fernanda An- eraman (Ionut Grama) travel to Vatidrade) seeking help and understand- can City on a mission to uncover the ing for her mother who, Isabella truth behind her institutionalized believes, is possessed. Set in Vatican mother Maria Rossi’s (Suzan CrowCity, the film offers insight into the ley) insanity with the help of rogue world of exorcisms. Isabella makes exorcists Ben (Simon Quarterman) the acquaitance of two local priests, and David (Evan Helmuth).

Devil’s real issues surface when Ben (Simon Quarterman) and David (Evan Helmuth), who seem to be ex- it attempts to explore the ambiguities perts in exorcisms. Throughout the of demonic possession. Instead of the film there are a few exorcisms per- film addressing both the possibility of formed, one of which is on Isabella’s mental instability and demonic possession, it exclusively mother. While the affirms paranormal inprocess of releasing the fluences as the only demon, all of which is force to be dealt with. recorded by the cameraOlivia’s Verdict In spite of wooden man Michael (Ionut acting and character moGarma), is successful, tivational inconsistenthe demon simply cies, The Devil Inside transfers to another Aaron’s Verdict becomes unexpectedly body. As the demon reentertaining, like a car locates to David’s body, the others start to realize the priest is wreck from which you cannot look not himself when he tries to drown a away.

Sadly, once the film finally baby during a baptism. Throughout the film, the evil spirit passes through catches its stride, it shoots itself in the a couple more bodies before the film face with such a hilariously abrupt ending that I thought the projectionist reaches its anticlimactic ending.

In the end, there is very little had shut off the movie mid-scene.

Aside from setting a record for positive to say about this film. The only memorable scene is of a girl con- best opening ever in the first week of torting in a basement. The rest of the January with a staggering $34.5 milfilm made me close my eyes, but not lion, The Devil Inside is an all-around from fright. The hand-held style nau- disappointment. Because of its inabilseated and reminded me of another ity to deliver genuine scares through letdown, Paranormal Activity. The frivolous execution, the film never acting was terrible, and the ending manages to fully articulate the horror was ridiculous. The audience’s reac- extravaganza promised in the effection assured me that I was not the only tively frightening trailer. The Devil Inside gets a thumbs down. one possessed with this opinion.

Review by Aaron Sanders Review by Olivia Childers

Underworld: Awakening

The Devil Inside Directed By William Bell Screenplay By William Bell and Matthew Peterman Starring Fernanda Andrade, Simon Quarterman, Evan Helmuth and Suzan Crowley What It’s About A young woman travels to Rome to document mutiple exorcisms with two rogue priests.

2 of 5

1 of 5 1 of 5

Before there were sparkly vamBeing the fourth film in the franchise, viewers should already know pires, there were vampires that used exactly what to expect when walking violence to sustain their place in the into Underworld: Awakening: Kate world. The fourth film in the series, Beckinsale in tight, black leather Underworld: Awakening follows the spandex running from scene to scene adventure of vampire Selene as she slaying hordes of werewolves with fights against lycans, also known as two guns in slow motion. Other than werewolves, and humans alike, while that, this movie accomplishes nothing protecting her vampire-lycan hybrid and does not add anything to the se- child. While this film might not be too confusing for viewers that are new to ries.

The plot line consists of humans the Underworld series, it manages to discovering that there are vampires distract the viewer with its lack of plot and lycans on earth and deciding that and substance.

For a feature length film, Underthey must be exterminated from the planet. So, Kate Beckinsale, as Se- world: Awakening is extremely short lene, must slay them. Selene is frozen at 88 minutes, so it is no surprise that and reawakens 12 years later as a sci- the film manages to skip entirely ence experiment to cure the vampire through the plot. To know what is actually happening, the and lycan virus. So, Seviewer is forced to make lene must slay them. immediate assumptions, The vampires are still at not knowing what is war with the lycans. So, Caleb’s Verdict right or wrong. As if to Selene must slay them. cover all the plot holes, While she is frozen she actions scenes are has a daughter, who the placed wherever humans and lycans Yzzy’s Verdict deemed necessary, want. So, Selene must which is apparently the slay them. Get the picentire film. Because of the short runture?

Despite the fact that this movie ning time, none of the characters were contains no real substance, it is still a impressionable and showed no ton of fun. This testosterone saturated growth of any kind, which made the film is filled with enough monster- viewer feel disconnected.

Graphically, Underworld: Awakon-monster violence, gore and explosions to keep the adrenaline pumping ening is impressive due to terrifying through the audience’s veins all the creatures and gory set pieces that way through its mere hour and a half make the viewer squirm in his or her duration. It is only when the violence seat. The movie had a nice dark color stops and the actors start talking that scheme, which was the only successthe film shows how terribly written, ful constant throughout the film.

Though this film could have acted and directed it really is. But all of that does not matter because peo- been a crowd pleaser for teenage boys ple came to witness monsters tear with an interest in action fantasy, Uneach other apart limb from limb and derworld: Awakening dissolves too Underworld: Awakening certainly de- quickly for its target audience to immerse itself. livers in that respect.

Review by Yzzy Gonzalez Review by Caleb Lick

1.5 of 5

Underworld: Awakening Directed By Mans Marlind, Bjorn Stein Screenplay By Len Wiseman, John Hlavin, Allison Burnett and J. Michael Straczynski Starring Kate Beckinsale, Michael Ealy, Theo James, Stephen Rae and India Eisley What It’s About After the discovery of the existence of vampires and lycans, humanity wages war to eradicate both species.

2012 Movie Preview

Best of 2011 Movies

Midnight in Paris

Woody Allen’s latest effort tells the story of Gil (Owen Wilson), a vacationing screenwriter who travels to Paris for inspiration for his developing novel and enters a time portal, which transports him to the roaring 20s. In the finest performance of his career, Wilson perfectly embodies a wandering soul born into the wrong era.

Marvel’s long awaited superhero film, The Avengers brings together Captian America, Thor, Hulk and Iron Man.

Legendary filmmaker Ridley Scott returns to the cinemaplex with Prometheus, a space epic on the origin of man.

Cristopher Nolan concludes his acclaimed Batman trilogy in The Dark Knight Rises.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

When first revealed, the catchphrase for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was “the feel bad good movie of the year,” and this film definitely lived up to that statement. Taking “murder mystery” to a new level, TGWTDT makes the viewer feel uncomfortable with its graphic scenes, impressive actors, plot twists and amazing cinematography.

Music

Bon Iver

Peter Jackson returns to direct The Hobbit, a twopart prequel to the epic fantasy series The Lord of the Rings.

Pixar’s latest film, Brave, tells the tragic tale of Scottish princess Merida.

The Hunger Games, a romantic dystopian adventure, is the newest book to screen adaptation.

The self-titled, sophomore album to For Emma, Forever Ago is peaceful and has received positive reviews from many sources. Lead singer Justin Vernon hired many musicians to work on this album, and it paid off. Though there were not many great albums of 2011, Bon Iver gained the title of one of the best.

M83

The French electronic band, M83, has crafted a sixth album, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, which draws comparisons to My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless. Right away the album establishes itself as an epic, combining glacial synthesizers with ambient strings and orchestrations. M83 set the bar high with this album, only to go above and beyond.

Television

“American Horror Story”

The first show of its kind, “American Horror Story” was the most bizarre and addictive show of 2011. From the writers of “Glee,” this show evoked legitimate horror, surprise and intrigue. With each new season set in its own independent location and with a new cast, “American Horror Story” will continue to haunt America in 2012 and beyond.

“Homeland”

“Homeland” is a gripping thriller that explores the mental distortions that result from war and orchestrates them into a complicated web of conspiracy. “Homeland” revolves around an American prisoner of war (Damien Lewis) who is believed to be a terrorist after eight years of imprisonment by a bi-polar CIA analyst (Claire Danes).

SPORTS

8

THE POLY SPOTLIGHT

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012

Super Bowl XLVI Preview

Shoot At Your Own Risk GOALS: The girls’ soccer team has only allowed eleven en route to a league high fourteen shutouts.

Isaiah Murtaugh

STAFF WRITER

vs.

Why the New York Giants will win

Why the New England Patriots will win Erik Kaye

Griffin Ferre

STAFF WRITER

SPORTS EDITOR

ast year, the sixth seed in the NFC, the Green Bay Packers, went on to win the Super Bowl. This year, the New York Giants, who were the sixth seed in the NFC this year, are hoping to do the same. They are going to be attempting to make history repeat itself in this rematch of the Super Bowl from four years ago against the New England Patriots. The team is lead by steady quarterback Eli Manning, their two bruising running backs, Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs and speedy wide receiver Victor Cruz, who is having a breakout season.

Much like the Packers last year, the Giants had to win their last game of the season just to get into the playoffs. However, once they did so, they proceeded to defeat the Falcons, Packers and 49ers, securing for themselves a berth in the Super Bowl. The last obstacle remaining in their way is the New England Patriots, a very formidable foe. The Giants are the clear underdog in this matchup, however a Patriots victory is by no means a foregone conclusion. For the Giants to win this game, they will need to exploit the Patriot’s suspect defense, which ranked 31st in the league during the regular season, by taking full advantage of their offensive weapons.

If their offense plays up to what it is capable of, and the defense can slow down Tom Brady and the Patriots offense, the Giants just might be able to recapture the same magic from four years ago and be crowned Super Bowl champions.

f you were to ask any football fan who is the greatest team of the past ten years, you would be hard pressed to find someone with an answer other than the New England Patriots.

Yet again, Tom Brady and his patriots have managed to craft an impressive 13-3 regular season record and edge out two post season wins to secure the Patriots their fifth Super Bowl appearance in only ten years.

For much of this season, however, the Patriots seemed to just be, well, ordinary. Several crippling injuries to their offensive line and a defense ranked second to last spelled disaster for the once dominant team. An up and down start to the regular season culminating in a loss to the Buffalo Bills all but ruled out the Patriots from any serious playoff contention.

Yet there is something about the mind of Bill Belichick and the undying fight of Tom Brady that just would not let this season die. Ignoring a lack of talented receivers and a virtually nonexistent running game, the Patriots utilized another aspect of the offense – tight ends. Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez headlined nearly every Patriots victory and were invaluable in dismantling a much feared Ravens defense.

So where does this “rebuilding” year leave the Patriots? Exactly one victory away from claiming Tom Brady’s fourth Super Bowl victory.

All that stands in their way is a Giants team who stole the Patriots’ chance at perfection four years ago.

L

I

O

ne year ago, Poly girls’ soccer took the Big VIII league by surprise, not dropping a game on the program’s way to a first place tie with heavily favored Santiago High. After graduating a large senior class, this season should have been a rebuilding year for a young team with four seniors, five juniors and a whopping thirteen sophomores and freshmen. So far, it has been anything but. At midseason, the Lady Bears have continued last season’s success and remain at the top of league standings, despite a lone loss to Roosevelt High.

The season kicked off with a bang for the Lady Bears, who after a single loss at the Ocean View Tournament (December 2 and 3) in Orange County, dominated their own Riverside Poly Holiday Classic (December 16 through 19), reeling off four straight victories and outscoring the competition 11-0 to win the tournament title. Even in the prestigious North Orange County Tournament

(December 27 and 28), only one team was able to muster the strength to defeat the Lady Bears.

The team’s high achievement is largely thanks to a defense that has allowed a league low eleven goals in the span of twenty one games, including only three in league play.

Goalie Crystal Allen (12) and a back line of team captain Haylee DeGrood (12), Cheyanna Hern (12), Taylor Russell (9), Mckenna Mackey (11) and Jourdan Santibanez (10) have recorded twelve shutouts .

boys’ basketball team is looking to extend their hot start all the way to a CIF playoff berth.

Griffin Ferre

with a very deep bench that includes guard Garrett Henninger (12), center Aaron Coyoca (12), guard AJ Meadows (11), forward TJ Riser (12) and forward Matt Murray (10), the team is a formidable force.

At the helm this year for the

Photo courtesy of Sharada Beck

W ho ’s Ho t

Boys’ Basketball

The team has been led this year by Noah Prouse (12) and Jeff Gonzalez (12), who have both been forces to be reckoned with in the middle, racking up points, rebounds and blocks for the team. So far, the Bears have compiled 13 wins, including two victories over North. With two games left in the season, they are fighting to secure a playoff berth.

Bears is Coach Mark Vanta, who Mr. Stuart says “runs a complicated offense and stresses trusting our teammates.” The team began its season on a positive note, kicking off its season with three successful preseason tournaments. The highlight of the tourna-

STAFF WRITER

J

ohn Stuart (12) knows how to take a few hits. Having just finished playing for Poly’s football team, there is not much that basketball could throw his way that could faze him. In fact, all five starters know a thing or two about the game of basketball. All of the Bears’ starters are experienced seniors, which traditionally leads to successful seasons.

“Having all senior starters is great because it means we have lots of experience and good chemistry with each other” Mr. Stuart commented.

The starting unit consists of point guard Jake Ritter, who is a great ball handler, shooting guard Ryan Mouton, who has a knack for scoring in the clutch, and forwards John Stuart, who provides great hustle and intangibles, and Noah Prouse and Jeff Gonzalez, who have both been huge presences in the paint. Combined

Go F i g ur e

our five freshmen and has given us vision in the central midfield developed through play with her age group national team. Victoria Gama is a sophomore who has been on varsity two years and has given us the work ethic we need,” Ms. DeGrood said.

The Lady Bears wrap up their league title defense with a home game today against Norco as well as another home game on February 6 against Santiago and a season finale at Corona on February 8; all games are at 5 o’clock.

Midfielder Peyton Perea (9) goes up for a header during a league match with Corona.

Girls’ Soccer

The team has only lost one Big VIII game so far behind a defense that has allowed a league low 11 goals and has a league high 14 shutouts.

The Lady Bears dispatched rival King and 2011 league co-champs Santiago early in the season, shutting out both. The team continues its title defense today at home against Norco.

Boxing Out the Big VIII GAMETIME: The Poly

“The reason why we are so successful is defense. I believe that defense wins championships, and we are hard to beat if the other team can’t score. Our back line is really solid and works well together,” head coach Jaimi Brewer said.

Another big contributor is the hard work and talent of several underclassmen.

“Jonnae Joseph is one of our new freshmen and has given us the speed and tenacity we have been missing. Peyton Perea is also one of

Ysabel Gonzalez/The Poly Spotlight

Jeff Gonzalez (12) lays the ball up during a recent league game against Corona.

ment stretch was the team’s coronation as champion of the Riverside Kiwanis Tournament in which it defeated Great Oak in the title game.

Now, the team is heading into the heart of league play. It is currently battling its way through a grueling schedule in which every team it plays is a daunting opponent. The team started off its Big VIII League campaign with a 2-1 record including victories over North and Centennial.

However, the team stumbled a bit when it lost key player Noah Prouse to an injury for three games. The team lost all three games that he was out. The schedule did not ease up however, with Mr. Prouse’s return.

The team has since gone 3-1 to bring its total season record to 14-8. However, the team has not been deterred by its struggles, “We still believe that we can win the league,” Mr. Stuart added. The team hopes to regain its early momentum and play up to its potential.

It has proven that it has the pieces in place to have a successful season this year. If it can mitigate its brutal Big VIII league schedule and remain healthy for the remainder of the season, then it can challenge for a league title, if not a berth, in the CIF playoffs.

Boys’ Soccer

Boys’ soccer has steamrolled its way through the Big VIII schedule. Despite an uncharacteristic setback at Santiago, the team remains atop league standings thanks to a 4-1 romp over previously unbeaten rival King. The Bears finish out their season with a match today at Norco as well as two more away games at Santiago and Corona

Poly Signees

On Wednesday, five Poly seniors signed letters of intent to play college sports: Haylee DeGrood, Soccer University of Portland Maddy Fedoruk, Golf Dixie State College of Utah Will Weggeland,Water Polo Naval Academy Lauren Finwall, Water Polo UC San Diego Jeremy Moreno, Baseball Cal State San Marcos

Winter Sports Standings Overall Record and (League Record) as of January 31

Boys’ Basketball

Girls’ Basketball

Boys’ Soccer

Girls’ Soccer

6th in Big VIII League 14-8 (5-5)

1st in Big VIII League 14-3-3 (8-1-1)

4th in Big VIII League 16-6 (5-5)

1st in Big VIII League 16-3-3 (8-1-1)

61

33.6

2

4

14

Goals scored by girls’ water polo Lauren Finwall (12) this season

Percent of Three point !ield goals made by the girls’ basketball team this season.

Times Poly boys’ basketball beat crosstown rival North in league play

Goals scored by boys’ soccer against crosstown rival King

Complete game shutouts by the girls’ soccer team this season.