The Smoke Signal Vol. XLV No. 4

VOL. XLV, NO. 4

MISSION SAN JOSE HIGH SCHOOL

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2009

Chris Brown’s

“Projecting” Love One Warm Coat Drive

By Alissa Gwynn & Cassie Zhang Feature Editor and Staff Writer MSJ English Teacher Joyce Wong and her three periods of Juniors have recently collaborated to create Project Love, an organization that strives to locally serve and “project” love to the community at large through service projects and monthly small acts of kindness.

The idea behind the creation of Project Love originated after the classes read Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a story that explores discrimination and the impact of societal divisions among blacks and whites in the mid-19th century. Upon

STAFF WRITER JUSTIN SHA

See PROJECT LOVE, NEWS Page 3

By Diya Roy & Ginger Werner Staff Writers We’re all excited for this coming Christmas, but for the more than 35,000 people living without homes in the Bay Area, Christmas is one of the hardest times of the year. We may complain about the cold and the rain, but imagine all the people without the thick shirts and warm, fuzzy jackets we enjoy.

That’s why this year, Peer Resource and Leadership 2 are working together to make it a joyful and bright Christmas for the people on the streets of the Bay Area. This combined effort between the two organizations shows school unity which

See CLOTHING DRIVE, FEATURE Page 10

PHOTOBUCKET.COM

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF JERRY TING

Warriors compete in distant tournaments Survivor speaks at MSJ

Sophomore Maya Ramachandran prepares to speed past an opposing player.

By Grace Han Staff Writer From December 3-5, the Boys’ and Girls’ Basketball teams had a chance to display a hint of what is to come this season as each played in their first tournament of the season. The boys participated in the High Sierra Showdown in Reno, Nevada while the girls stayed closer to home, taking part in the Sonora Kiwanis Invitational in Sonora, CA. In past years, Boys’ Basketball also played in tournaments in Hawaii and Colorado to compete against different teams from around the nation. In their second year at Reno, the boys looked to rebuild after losing six seniors by taking advantage of their hard work during the off season and coming out ready to play. Led by Coach Pete Vaz, the team fought through obstacles such

COURTESY GORDON MAH

as high altitude and put up praiseworthy efforts.

In their first game against Galena, the Warriors stayed neck and neck with the Grizzlies for much of the game and led by one point with a quarter left. However, the team was outscored 21-15 in the last eight minutes and suffered a tough 49-44 loss. Besides struggles on the court, the boys also had to play without a shot clock because of technical difficulties, which made the situation harder.

Facing Atwater in the next matchup, the team rebounded and pulled through 54-40, aided by a team-high 15 points from Junior Eric Yai. To cap off their tournament, the Warriors played against a resilient team in Merced. “This was a tough match up for us; [Merced]

By Mekala Neelankantan Staff Writer From November 30 through December 4, the Ethnic Race Relations Committee (ERRC), an organization whose purpose is to promote cultural and racial awareness in students, hosted Genocide Awareness Week. It was the first time ERRC arranged this event, at the suggestion of English Teacher Jennifer Moore last year. Their main goal was to make students aware of past and present genocides. “People sort of overlook the fact that we don’t have any racial problems on our particular campus, but they are actually quite pervasive. So as members of ERRC, we try to promote respect and tolerance for all cultures,” said Senior Anjana Bala, co-chair of ERRC. The posters informed students about genocides that occurred throughout the world, including statistics stating that over 83 million people have died in past

‘Graffiti’ Disappoints

genocides. ERRC also distributed white ribbons during read meetings, which symbolized support for the people that suffered in past and present genocides, and represented a general sign of peace.

ERRC hosted a presentation in conjunction with Genocide Awareness Week, as well. The club arranged for Chivy Sok, a survivor of the Cambodian genocide to come speak at MSJ. She described how she was separated from her family at the early age of six, when soldiers from the Khmer Rouge regime drove them out of their home.

Helpless and alone, she was forced to work laboriously in the rice fields of Cambodia. Yet, Sok did not dwell in the past for too long, and soon began speaking about her current life, and how she has dedicated her life to preserving humanity and encouraging young people to take action and make a difference in the

See GENOCIDE, NEWS Page 2

By Megan Bernstein News Editor After garnering much public speculation, Chris Brown released the highly anticipated Graffiti just weeks after Rihanna’s Rated R and only a few months after the controversial assault charge that sent waves through the legions of both Rihanna and Chris Brown fans alike. Though early statements by Brown reported “a great response” from fans, Graffiti is largely a hit or miss album, and does not contend with the appeal of his previous Exclusive that put out hit after hit and garnered crowds of screaming fans.

Brown attempts to take on a more mature sound with the new album, branching out into more new-wave electric beats and even rock riffs behind his usual R&B sound. The electronic sound comes off as catchy and upbeat in the tracks “I.Y.A” and “Pass Out,” bringing out the strong, smooth voice that Brown is known for. Unfortunately, many of the other tracks like “What It Do,” “Famous Girl,” and “Pass Out” fail to follow suit with an electric, auto-tuned sound that becomes monotonous and just plain boring. The constant repetitions of the lyrics coupled with empty beats are unremarkable and are doubtful to make any headlines.

See CHRIS BROWN, A&E Page 13

See BASKETBALL, SPORTS Page 14

THE SIGNALS

December 18 • Minimum Day • Winter Ball 7 pm in the Gym December 21- January 1 •Winter Break NO SCHOOL January 13 • Cash for College Workshop • Library 7 pm - 9 pm

NEWS EDITOR MEGAN BERNSTEIN

Special guest Chivy Sok, a survivor of the Cambodian Genocide, speaks to students during Genocide Week.

STAFF WRITER MATT FARBEROV

2 News

WWW.THESMOKESIGNAL.ORG

News in Brief Facebook gives users privacy control

On December 9, Facebook revealed their new privacy settings that they believe will give users more control over what they share online. The new settings are “simplified,” and therefore more people will be able to control who sees what and what information goes public. Facebook is allowing users to be more restrictive about information, as well as have more say about what they want people to see. For example, users under 18 may only share their information with friends and people in their registered “network.” However, the mandatory changes have undone any previous restrictive settings users may have set, users should be sure to return and reselect settings of choice.

SEOMOZ.ORG

Facebook’s new privacy changes, gives users more control of who can see their profile.

The Smoke Signal

New two-story building plan in progress

By Rishi Das & Tanu Patel Staff Writer and Web Editor As a part of President Obama’s federal stimulus bill, the school administration has announced plans in progress to build a two-story building for use in the next academic year.

The project is to be funded by The American Recovery and Re-investment Act (AARA), which allocates $787 billion for federal stimulus funding. Schools everywhere across the nation are receiving funding to build and renovate classrooms and provide programs for disabled students. With an average of 8.5 to ten special education classes in high schools across California and only six at MSJ, one of the main intents of the construction project is to create a forum to greater serve the needs of special education students in our school.

The new building is currently planned to be built on the same site where some of the P-Wing portables currently stand. The rooms which are likely to be relocated are P 1-4, 12 and 13. The first floor will be designated for special education, and the second floor will hold classes previously administered in the portables of the P-Wing. According to Principle Sandra Prairie, four special education day classes would be held on the ground floor,

and six regular education classes would be held on the second. In addition to two day classes for mild to emotionally disturbed handicapped students, two new special education classes would be added for physi-

WEB EDITOR CHRISTINE CHENG

GENOCIDE | Speakercontinued at from MSJ page 1

world.

“I liked her insight and her dedication into how she decided we could help […] she told us of ways we can be useful so that we spread the word, get better insight, and also contribute to the eradication of

genocides, ” said Sophomore Vipin Dulam, who attended the event.

ERRC plans to continue Genocide Awareness Week in the years to come, and hopefully, students will be urged to improve their world through their actions and voices. ▪

LOOKHOTTOYS.BLOGSPOT.COM

Zhu Zhu pets are safe for children.

Stanford creates paper batteries

On Monday, Dec. 7, scientists at Stanford University reported they have created a new “paper battery.” By using paper coated in silver and carbon ink, this lightweight battery could one day be used to power devices and even be useful in hybrid vehicles as well. In the near future, scientists hope to replace current batteries with this low cost, high energy-storage, and light weight batteries.

cally and severely handicapped students. All in all, the school may have two more special education classrooms and one more regular class room than it currently does.

Construction for the project will

begin immediately at the end of the school year, and its projected deadline is August 2010. School officials plan to have the classrooms in use during the 2010–11 school year.

However, not all have shared the enthusiasm of the new project coming on campus. Some teachers feel a bit disgruntled, having to pack up their classrooms only to unpack the next year away from a classroom set up and location they were familiar with. “I like the portables and its location away from the main school.

It is quite peaceful, and I am now used to this kind of environment,” said Social Sciences Teacher Cate Ruebling. Principle Sandra Prairie, however, feels more optimistic about the move and is confident that the teachers will adjust to their new set up and share her enthusiasm.

Special Education Department Chair Larry Polon also has high hopes for the project. “Hopefully this [building project] will provide these special day class programs with not only newer facilities, but with an opportunity to do more departmentalizing, sharing of materials, and easier flow from class to class. My hope is that it will also provide better interaction between our regular education and special needs populations.” ▪

By Sloka Gundala Staff Writer Science Teacher Peter Geschke is trying to make his class lectures and discussions a more enjoyable and engaging experience using the new Turning Technologies Response Card and its corresponding software, a set of small palm-sized remotes with a USB radio receiver that enables the teacher to design questions and surveys on their computer.

The Response Card and its software not only lets teachers create questions electronically but also records the students’ responses, which are entered into the remotes through the USB radio receiver, and instantly displays what percentage of students choose each answer. It also uses a tracking device that lets the instructor know which students have not entered anything at all.

Despite the current budget cuts, Geschke managed to secure this new technology for his classes through a grant from Lam Research and generous student donations. Although he received the Response Cards just three weeks ago and has yet to truly explore other opportunities the program has to offer, he feels that so far it seems to be a valuable tool to assist teachers in finding out

what concepts the class has trouble with, as well as what the students thought about a certain lecture or lab experiment. Most importantly, it allows timid students to participate in class without feeling embarrassed or nervous.

Geschke said, “Many times, there is a student who is reluctant to talk in class and usually doesn’t speak up. This system, especially with the response tracking feature, encourages them to voice their opinion.”

However, like any other electronic tool, these cards do have flaws. Junior Jacqueline Chu said, “While it was more fun to use than just raising your hand or taking a quiz, it didn’t have room for flexibility. Everyone had to write all the questions beforehand, and only multiple-choice questions can be asked.”

Although this tool is currently limited to the Science Department, Geschke believes that it can be utilized in other subject areas as well and has offered to let other teachers see the equipment. Overall, he thinks that this new technology has promising potential to make classrooms a livelier and more interesting place for both teachers and students. ▪

The blueprint and the location of the proposed two-story builiding.

Popular Zhu Zhu Toys Safe

Earlier this month, the Zhu Zhu hamster toys were criticized for being unsafe for sale, with allegedly high levels of antimony.

However, on December 7, US safety regulators found that the toys were safely within the limits of dangerous metals in toys. The Zhu Zhu toys are expected to be one of the hottest buys this holiday season.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Dear Students and Staff of MSJ, The HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system at MSJHS has not been functioning correctly as you well know. Staff from the facilities department in Fremont Unified School District have been analyzing the HVAC system to determine what the problems are and have found that the main boiler room is not moving enough hot water through the system to heat rooms in time for the start of the school day.

We are in the process of hiring a boiler contractor to make the necessary changes to the pump and the piping to allow hot water to move in a timely way to heat classrooms at the start of the school day. Once we have secured a contractor we will, working with the contractor, develop a timeline to complete this project. We will keep the administration at MSJHS informed of this work and ask them to pass this information along to students and staff. We will make every effort to have the contractor complete this project as quickly as possible.

As superintendent I apologize to any students and staff members who have been uncomfortable because of this HVAC problem.

Cordially, Milt Werner, Ed.D. Superintendent

GRAPHICS EDITOR ALBERT YUAN

New tech upgrades class

CORRECTIONS IBTIMES.COM

Standford researchers have developed a new battery that hopes to revolutionize battery energy.

COMPILED BY STAFF WRITERS AUDREY WU, JOY XU, AND VISHAL YADAV

• On News Page 2, in the article “Thoughtful students fold a thousand cranes for Mrs. Graves” all of Teacher Evangeline Sugden’s students should be credited for folding cranes.

• On Photo Page 12, in the caption for photo 3d, it should state that Nicholas Lam is a sophomore.

• On Sports Page 20, the photo caption for Boys’ Water Polo should say “Freshman Jerry Wong looks for a pass.”

Senior Tian Tian Zeng uses a Response Card to answer a question.

STAFF WRITER JORDAN ZHANG

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Smoke Signal

WWW.THESMOKESIGNAL.ORG

PROJECT LOVE | Invisible Children continued from page 1 will be volunteering with the Family Giving Tree, an organization that works to fulfill holiday wishes or provide backpacks filled with school supplies for children. Project Love will set up three different booths at the Family Giving Tree Holiday Party and host various activities like face painting, STAFF WRITER CASSIE ZHANG ornament making, Project Love students and English Teacher Joyce Wong gather for a picture. and cookie decorating for kids in need. finishing the text, Wong showed her classes So far, Project Love is still in the beginthe film Invisible Children and assigned a ning stages of its existence. The group has research project about a modern human in- been relying on student donations to purjustice to help her students make a real-life chase materials like paper, scissors, and other connection with the novel. materials needed at the booths for the Giving After completing their projects, which Tree event. covered topics ranging from human traffickMembers of Project Love meet every ing to albinos in Africa, the students were in- other Thursday in Wong’s room, B-18, to disspired to take their newfound knowledge and cuss ideas and plan the logistics of the events. apply it to benefit others in their community. Some recent ideas have included volunteerJunior Sean Luis said, “At first, I signed up ing at the Alameda County Food Bank and not knowing what I was getting myself into, with an organization called “Teen Challenge.” but once I started going to meetings, I actu- However, right now, Junior Isabelle Yi said, ally wanted to give instead of get; I actually “Our main communication is through our wanted to do things for other people.”

Facebook group, because it’s hard to gather Similar to the movie Pay it Forward, the everyone every week.” The Project Love Facestudents plan on committing one small act book page, created by Junior Ashlyn Iwatani, of kindness for one day every month, such is open to the public and has things such as as buying a cup of coffee for the person be- minutes posted from each meeting and links hind them in line at Starbucks or saying hi to to volunteer-opportunity websites. As of Desomeone they don’t normally talk to. Mem- cember 7, the group had 57 members, but as bers of Project Love have broken up into time progresses the students hope to expand groups that are responsible for deciding what and get people outside of Wong’s classes inthe small act of kindness will be for their spe- volved as well. cific month, and they will inform the rest of Wong said, “It’s one person, at one time, the members who will then perform the act student-by-student, doing something outside on the designated date. They will also hand of their self. And to be honest I don’t think out Project Love “business cards” to encour- we know where this is actually going to go… age people to pass the good deed along. and if anything, if it goes nowhere, it’s the exIn addition to the small acts of kindness, perience that [we’ve] had that will stick with on December 23, members of Project Love [us]…This is a really special group of kids.” ▪

Patterson Ranch causes concern

News 3

MSJ Wi-Fi network goes down

By Roger Chen Staff Writer

On Nov. 30, 2009, laptop and iTouch users came to school and discovered that a password prompt had been placed on the school’s once-open wireless network “MSJ-guest.”

The wireless network was closed in response to a vulnerability within the school’s network that was recently brought to the attention of the Technology Department staff.

This flaw in the system could allow people to access sensitive school-related information over the Internet without permission. This was demonstrated by a tech-savvy friend of one of the teachers at MSJ, who was allegedly able to demonstrate how he could compromise the internal school network from his house. It was a serious enough threat that the district was forced to take the wireless network off the air for a brief period and restore the password protection on “MSJ-guest” when it went back online. Students were completely locked out of the network, while teachers who requested wireless internet access had the passkey entered into their laptops for them so they could access the internet.

However, security was not the only issue found in the wireless system. In a pending investigation opened in response to the security issue, initial tests indicated that the vendor had incorrectly installed the equipment. In addition, the wireless system was found to be adding a significant load on the existing bandwidth, which is already insufficient for current loads. “Even if students or teachers are using it at this time, we have the right to bring it up and down for testing because the wireless is not fully functional yet,” said David Hotchkiss, Chief Technology Officer at Fremont Unified School District. Testing is still ongoing, and until user acceptance testing is completed, the network will not be officially announced. The district offered no timeline as to when MSJ-guest would be reopened, citing that it was an ongoing investigation and until the security problem was found and the necessary countermeasures were taken, the network would remain closed. As of Dec. 9, 2009, the investigation is still ongoing.

Two wireless networks had initially been established as part of a pilot for a company’s new wireless infrastructure: “MSJ-guest” and “MSJ-wireless.” “MSJ-wireless” is meant for staff use while “MSJ-guest” is for student usage. “MSJ-guest” will only allow access to the internet whereas “MSJ-wireless” will allow staff to access district business applications.

Despite widespread usage of the wireless networks already, the wireless system has never been approved for student and faculty use, explaining the lack of official news in regards to its existence. “We have to make sure it is a safe and secure environment before teachers use it,” said Hotchkiss. However, students at MSJ have already made the wireless network a part of their school lives, using it to do everything from reading articles online to checking email. “When I’m not sure about something, I often go onto Wikipedia with my iTouch to check with the articles there,” said Junior Douglas Chu. Despite the benefits that come with a school wireless network, it also comes with problems, such as instant messaging and online gaming during class. Although these may seem like major problems, forms of these already exist and consistently occur during classes, such as texting and playing calculator games. However, Vice Principal Zach Larsen said, “We will not shy away from technology because the good that can come from it far outweighs the potential negatives.” Students will still be required to adhere to the technology usage agreement that they have signed at the beginning of the year. “Nothing will really change for you guys because it is a tool,” said Larsen. Guest access will be expanded to students once the technology department from the district is able to do so.

In an article published on Oct. 8, 2008, the Smoke Signal reported that a wireless network would be established across campus in the hopes of “culminating in the integration of active computer usage in the classroom.”

Despite the problems that have been encountered, a future where all students bring laptops to school may not be far off. According to Principal Sandra Prairie, incoming freshmen in the fall of 2011 will be bringing laptops to school or be provided with one, and by the start of the 2014 school year, the school will have undergone a full transition to become a “wireless school.”

Hotchkiss fully supports and is collaborating closely with Principal Prairie in her vision of a wireless network, calling it a “state of the art plan” that is “very worthwhile.” “My job is to ensure the goal is accomplished in a manner which provides safety and security to district assets, safeguards student and personnel data, is well defended against cyber attacks and can reasonably accommodate the data circuit bandwidth going to campus,” says Hotchkiss. ▪

Fremont grieves for fallen officer The Patterson Ranch Development sits alongside Coyote Hills Regional Park.

By Michelle Chu Staff Writer The New Patterson Ranch project is a developmental proposal, currently being reviewed by the City of Fremont, concerning the Ardenwood area next to Coyote Hills Regional Park. It will provide 878 new housing units, two churches, an elementary school, and an active sports park on the undeveloped lands of Patterson Ranch.

The land, originally used for agriculture, comes from the Patterson family. However, agriculture has not been a lucrative pursuit recently, and the family has decided to invest in residential development. This developmental property is unique because it is extremely close to the protected Coyote Hills Regional Park and also contains portions of wetlands, flora, and fauna which are important to the environment. Because this area of land is the last open area available for development in Fremont, the Patterson Ranch development is highly controversial.

After this project was proposed in October, the Fremont Unified School District (FUSD) met on November 18 to discuss this development. They came to the conclusion that the New Patterson Ranch development would have a detrimental impact on the Fremont schools in that area. The additional

BLUEGREENBLDG.ORG

878 housing units would also mean approximately 350 new students who would attend the Ardenwood Elementary School, Thornton Junior High School, and American High School. These schools are already overloaded and at their maximum capacity.

The developer offered the FUSD $9 million and sufficient land to build a new school to hold these incoming students. However, FUSD claims that the $9 million amount offered cannot fulfill $20 million dollars or more needed to build an adequate school for all the students.

Another problem is that the land offered by the developer for the school is at high risk of liquefaction during an earthquake. In the state of the current economic recession, neither the state nor the district has enough money to build the new classrooms and provide the other materials required.

However, public comments also included people who were in full support of the development. “We feel the plan not only meets the rights of the owners, they’ve been very proactive in meeting the needs for the community,” said Josh Roder, a pastor of nearby Morning Star Church. The developer and the city staff are working together to create a functional plan that they will present at a future city council meeting. ▪

Police Officers from around the Bay Area arrive to pay respects to Officer Roger Kellmann.

By Matt Farberov Staff Writer Police Departments from around the Bay Area assembled to honor fallen Fremont Police Officer Roger Kellmann on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009. Kellmann, who was only 48 years old, died after suffering a heart attack on November 24 at his Newark home.

Nearly 100 uniformed officers lined Stevenson Blvd. outside the Fremont Police Station early on the morning of December 2 and presented arms as the funeral procession drove past. The motorcade, which included around 50 police vehicles, made its way through Fremont and Newark shutting down intersections as it passed. At two points along the route to St. Edwards

STAFF WRITER MATT FARBEROV

Church in Newark, Fremont and Newark Fire Departments suspended massive flags from fire trucks over the street. Officers of all ranks including police chiefs from Fremont and Newark gathered to pay their respects as Honor Guard folded the US flag over Kellmann’s casket.

Officers from Pacifica, Union City, Livermore, Newark, Benicia, and Hayward were present among others. Kellmann, an avid outdoorsman, was a 20-year veteran of the Fremont Police Department, described by fellow officers as a great man who went out of his way to help others. “He was the one you wanted on your team,” said Officer Teresa Martinez. He is survived by his wife and three children. ▪

4 Opinion

the

www.thesmokesignal.org

Just

Smoke Signal

Mission San Jose High School Est. 1964 Vol. 45, No. 4 | December 17, 2009

Editors-in-Chief Hannah Scobel, Jerry Ting

News Megan Bernstein, Sargunjot Kaur Opinion Rebecca Gao, Jane Wang Feature Alissa Gwynn, Sonya John Centerspread Karen Lin, Tina Tseng A&E Niku Jafarnia, Cynthia Kang Sports Joseph Teng, Anthony Wu Graphics Elisa Ting, Albert Yuan Web Christine Cheng, Tanu Patel Tech Roger Chen, Raymond Zhong Ads Gurleen Chadha, Jamie Lin Business Henna Jethani Circulation Anastassia Tselikova Events Michelle Chu, Hannie Dong with Michael Feuerman

Writers & Photographers Rishi Das,

Chelsea Dass, Sonia Dhawan, Rebecca Dutta, Matt Farberov, Amisha Gandhi, Matthew Gosen, Sloka Gundala, Grace Han, Arthur Jeng, Ravneet Kaur, Mary Lan, Sarah Li, Aileen Lu, Megan McLaughlin, Mekala Neelakantan, Amit Patankar, Diya Roy, Justin Sha, Ginger Werner, Audrey Wu, Joy Xu, Vishal Yadav, Stephenie Yuan, Cassie Zhang, Jordan Zhang

Adviser Sandra Cohen Send letters to the editor to opinion@the smokesignal.org. Letters under 300 words may be considered for publication and must include a full name and school affiliation. The Smoke Signal reserves the right to edit for clarity and length.

To advertise in the Smoke Signal, e-mail ads@thesmokesignal.org. Advertising that is included on the pages of, or carried within, the Smoke Signal, is paid advertising, and as such is independent of the news and feature content.

The Smoke Signal’s right to freedom of speech and press is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution.

Beccause

Sharing is Caring?

www.thesmokesignal.org

41717 Palm Ave. Fremont, CA 94539 (510) 657-3600

By Rebecca Gao Opinion Editor

MSJ has a problem in moral relativity. Moral relativity suggests that absolute “rights” or “wrongs” fail to exist, and we students have adhered to this theory too religiously.

We cheat, but we don’t really “cheat”- or so we say. Cheating has somehow meandered its way into a nebulous gray area between right and wrong; what teachers consider cheating, we call teamwork. The disconnect for what is categorized as “cheating” is unsettling.

What happened? The policy at MSJ appears strict enough, with a zero on the first offence and an automatic failure for any repeat performances. This academic honesty policy has largely deterred any “major” cheating, such as overtly texting answers during a test or stuffing old-school cheat-sheets up sleeves.

However, there exists an environment in which “mild” cheating seems inconsequential because it’s a commonplace occurrence. In fact, cheating can sometimes seem like a survival skill. If other people copy homework or discover what sections to study for the test, they will gain an edge over honest students.

And if the cheater gets the grade and you don’t? Tough luck.

But while cheating may grant short term benefits, we’ll pay dearly later. If we cheat at MSJ for college admission, then cheat in college for graduate school, what next? Should we go on to commit fraud and lie in our future jobs as well? Should we emulate Wall Street executives and scandal-plagued politicians and just cheat our way through life?

Cheating, like lying, can increase

exponentially as we sink ourselves deeper into a muddy quagmire. If we copy a night’s homework off a friend and rationalize with “I had a huge project due today” or “Something came up, and I just didn’t have time,” we’re not practicing the problems in the assignment. When quizzes and tests pounce, we might find ourselves wishing we had legitimately completed the work.

And I hardly need to reiterate how academically driven MSJ is.

Some may disregard “minor” transgressions towards the ultimate goal: the grade. High expectations and pressure cause some to capitalize on academic shortcuts, and it may seem as though there is no choice but to cheat. Rutgers University studies show that 95 percent of high school students admit to cheating, and 68 percent believe that successful people must lie or bend the rules.

But we can reverse this trend.

Parents could reemphasize core values like integrity instead of the “B students don’t go to college” speech.

Teachers must accent the importance of honesty and understanding the material – and follow through.

When we don’t get caught, we are invited to cheat again.

As students, we can stop programming notes into TI-84s or parceling out homework among friends and actually act mature enough to accept the consequences of overscheduling or procrastinating.

In the end, the final move is ours.

Sharing may be caring, but if you really cared, you would understand that cheating is not an option. ▪ Send letters to the editor to opinion@thesmokesignal.org

Troop escalation is not a welcome event.

Unfortunately, President Barack Obama has decided to send even more soldiers to Afghanistan. The dozens of presidential meetings, diplomatic conferences, and passionate speeches culminated in Obama’s official speech on Dec. 1, 2009 to the public

nytimes.com

70,000 US troops are currently deployed in Afghanistan.

explaining his decision to send 30 thousand additional troops into Afghanistan.

As impressive as Obama’s speech was, the logic behind it seemed less than convincing. He insisted that we had to prevent Afghanistan from succumbing to a Taliban resurgence, stating that “the common security of the world” would be at risk, and even invoking an image of the extremist group with nuclear weapons.

Quite frankly, a situation involving the Taliban waging a nuclear war is highly un-

InJanenious Can We Say FOB?

likely, and the cost of the deployment - both in lives and in dollars - is far too high. The fact is, we need to shift perspectives on the war. Instead of focusing on the Taliban for fear of compromising our national security, we should enlist the help of and seek to empower the Afghan people, whose national security (or lack thereof ) speaks for itself.

Empowering the people of Afghanistan will be a win-win situation: a more stable country, both politically and financially, will result in a people who can successfully battle the Taliban on their own with minimal help from other countries. Of course, winning over a country’s people will require a lot more work than merely deploying more troops. It would mean constructing schools, navigating a diplomatic minefield, and learning from those who have already successfully managed to acheive substantial results in Afghanistan.

Ironically, the results of such a strategy are in front of us: the Taliban is already pursuing a similar approach, and have consistently been gaining the trust of the Iraqi citizens.

We will have to work fast to undo the damage; we have already seen what American unpopularity can do in the Vietnam War. We have focused our resources on expanding brute force for too long with minimal results. We cannot afford to spend 30 billion dollars on a strategy that doesn’t work. President Obama should seriously reconsider sending out 30 thousand more troops when 300 diplomats might work better. ▪

Opinion Editor

In the past month, more people branded me with the “fob” label than I care to recall in my entire life. Not because I was born in Finland, nor because I’ve lived in both China and Canada, nor because my registration papers classify me as an “immigrant” until age 14, but rather because of a short -lived but whirlwind fling with - brace yourselves - Korean pop.

Now that I’ve come out with my deep, dark secret, I’m guessing that your perceptions of me have already changed. One minute I’m your friendly, neighborhood columnist, and the next, I’m a pale-faced weirdo with broken Shanghai accent, misspelled faux designer t-shirt, handheld skin whitening cream, and, if you’re especially conservative, maybe some devil’s horns and a forked tail to match.

Being “fobby” has always been a stigma associated with people who recently immigrated from another country and so “must” be ignorant of mainstream American culture.

Even more than a stigma, it has become a low-blown insult, a social taboo, because there’s no denying that being packaged as “fresh off the boat” is simply uncool. After all, it’s downright embarrassing to be caught sporting an Asian face visor or prowling crunchyroll.com in pursuit of the latest segment in Ming Zhong Zhu Ding Wo Ai Ni. But as the previous examples illustrated, the smallest quirk can be labeled as “fobby.” Love drinking milk tea? Speak Farsi at home?

Guess what? You’re now a “fob.”

It’s bad enough that this is tak-

ing place in America, the country founded on ideals of tolerance, even worse in a school district where over 82 percent of the student population comes from minority descent. Maybe if we had tried a little harder to understand the traditions of Native American tribes, we wouldn’t have nearly eradicated their peoples from the face of the earth and driven them to little pieces of unwanted territories.

Of course, our situation isn’t quite the same. Asian “fobs” are hardly being forced to march 850 miles across the American Midwest at gunpoint, but that doesn’t make condescension to them any less demeaning. We laugh at fobs all the time, and though it’s kind of in good humor, it’s still no compliment. I’ll admit that even I feel bad when someone calls me a “fob,” but that’s not the way it should be. If we were truly tolerant of others, we wouldn’t harbor this narrow-mindedness at all. Plus, no one said that listening to Jay Chou automatically bars us from liking Jay-Z. Sometimes we fail to realize that it’s possible to adopt more than one culture at a time.

In the end, the only crime anyone can accuse a “fob” of committing is embracing a culture unfamiliar to the one he or she is already surrounded by – be that through music, food, film, or language. And if that’s all there really is to being fobby, well, then we could all use a little more “fobbiness” in our lives. ▪ Send letters to the editor to opinion@thesmokesignal.org

Graphic Opinion

30,000 additional troops Staff Writer

Thursday, December 17, 2009

By Jane Wang

Dead End Escalation

By Gurleen Chadha

The Smoke Signal

staff writer chelsea dass

centerspread editor tina tseng

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Smoke Signal

Seeing Red

By Justin Sha Staff Writer

In the words of South Park fourth grader Eric Cartman, gingers (a.k.a. pale, freckle-faced redheads of suck) are soulless and sunavoiding freaks. In other words, they’re vampires – just without the fangs, the coffin, or the Edward Cullen sex appeal.

Nearly 5,000 teenagers affirmed this maxim when they clicked “accept” to a 14-yearold’s South Park-inspired Facebook event.

Although many rejected and condemned the invitation, the rest became attendees and kicked a ginger on “Kick a Ginger Day”, November 20. Across both the U.S. and Canada, these compliances resulted in the verbal and physical abuse of thousands of innocent, red-headed victims.

Those of the Los Angeles school district were no different. At A.E. Wright Middle School, three boys and four girls suffered undeserved assault, with a substantial majority having been taunted, punched, and kicked on that Friday. The perpetrators of the harassment are currently facing mere disciplinary actions, ranging from paper-pickups to five days of suspension.

Young adolescents’ susceptibility to a bully-clique mentality may shock many. After all, who would have suspected that a small wave

of peer pressure could give way to a new great flood of “Redhead Bashing”? Simple: “Kick a Ginger Day” is just another rationale for kids to put others down to make themselves feel more secure.

Sadly, MSJ students do not escape this pitfall. More often than not, this reiteration manifests in cyber-invitations to “hug” rather than to hurt.

Although seemingly harmless, with events such as “Hug an Asian Day” or even counter-event “International Hug a Ginger Day”, Facebook invites typically compel members to focus on differences rather than on similarities. And, really, what is the difference between staff writer audrey wu “Hug an Asian” and “Kick a Ginger”? Both segregate a minority in an act of otherization (the categorization of the “other” from the “us”), and this mentality fuels a cycle of hate crimes.

And in the Internet realm, with examples like AIM conversations, rude invectives are often quickly followed by innocent smiles and JKs, technology has definitely taken a turn for the worse.

The only thing for sure is that something like “Kick a Ginger Day” should never be allowed to occur again. After all, people are just people. No matter your ethnicity, ideology, or hair color, we as human beings are all equal. ▪

www.thesmokesignal.org

From ABC’s to SATs

By Aileen Lu Staff Writer

Although MSJ is renowned for its excellent yet tear-inducing academics and stress, most of us had surprisingly carefree childhoods. Handball at recess, eating truckloads of candy, and avoiding cooties were the only things on our minds. As we begin to encounter SATs, APs, and college applications, it’s slightly discomforting to find our five-year-old counterparts being sucked into the higher-education preparation hype with us.

The Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT) is used by school administrators to weed out “average” kindergartners. As a result, children adopt test-taking mentalities earlier by practicing proper bubbling techniques and identifying parallelograms when they don’t have the foggiest idea what “identify” and “parallelogram” mean.

To keep up with the pace of examinations, concerned parents are shelling out hundreds for test preparation. Their intentions are to give their child an edge on the OLSAT and the title of “gifted and talented kindergartener”. Ironically, a significant number of parents found that their kindergarteners failed to score proficiently even after undergoing the KTSS (Kindergarten Test Study System), a popular OLSAT study program. Honestly, if kindergarteners can’t comprehend the fourth-grade level vocabulary

staff writer michael feuerman

of test questions or would rather play Pokémon than take tests, no prep program will help. Parents are squandering their hard-earned incomes that could have gone towards a college fund. The KTSS is just another money-making scheme.

Sure, parents know best for their kids, but they overestimate their judgment in enrolling their children in KTSS. Some MSJ parents dole out thousands for SAT prep classes, but we may need the extra boost at a stage in which test scores are necessary for college admissions. Kindergarteners, on the other hand, still have their entire childhoods. A single test should not determine their prospects and abilities twelve years into their life.

When I glance at my little brother, now at the perfect age for OLSATs, I can’t imagine his hand clutching a testing No. 2 pencil instead of a Lego piece. He shouldn’t have to worry about important standardized assessments determining his future before he begins to worry about his first crush. If such a test-based attitude is here to stay, schools will no longer be fostering my brother’s love of learning and creativity, but encouraging him to close his mind and blindly learn to conform to examinations.

Now that is one future nobody needs to look forward to. ▪

“New Universal College Test”

By Anastassia Tselikova Staff Writer

Due to the extreme work overload for college admissions officers, all current applications will be gotten rid of and instead replaced with a test called the NUCT, or the New Universal College Test. This multiple choice exam will cover all necessary aspects of any typical college application, making the boring, outdated one obsolete. Students will sign up for this online test and will be given an hour to complete it, expediting the tedious and repetitive application process.

The first part of the test will be an oath to swear by the gradebook to tell the truth, the whole truth, and mostly the truth. Thus, satisfied with the truthfulness of the truthful students, the colleges will no longer require transcripts or any contact with high schools at all.

The next portion is multiple choice. This 100-question test will cover all the sections that the col-

lege applications have previously covered. It will test both the students’ academic and extracurricular abilities. “How many hours of community service have you done? a. 10000, b. 1000, c. 100, d. 10, e.

N U C T

If any two students’ responses are the same, then, to avoid confusion, the earliest one will be accepted. As this submission is done exclusively online, many parents have already made accounts for their kindergar-

N U C T

photo from dreamstime.com, illustration by centerspread editor tina tseng, opinion editor rebecca gao

None of the above” or “What is your average grade in class? a. A, b. B, c. C d. D, d. F”. The greatest number of favorable answers guarantees the student admission.

The last part of the test will be a written statement of no more than 50 words and must be typed, to avoid discrimination based on handwriting. The prompt is: “What is your favorite cookie, and why?”

Opinion 5

teners to give them a head-start.

The vast number of applicants not only overwhelms admissions officers but also teachers and counselors. Frustrated, they refuse to write more letters, as no health insurance covers the cost of the mysterious hand-cramped-from-writing-waytoo-much-too-fast syndrome. This opened a breakthrough system in which the student just has to print

out a pre-written letter and have the teacher sign it. Downloads of various letters will be available online, and prices will vary proportionally to the quality of recommendation, so students will not have to worry whether the teachers like them enough to accept letter requests.

Instead of Early Action and Decision, a new program will come into play called the GRASP: Giving Really Awesome Students Preference. However, early decision applicants will have only thirty minutes to complete the test.

The difficulty of the NUCT has inspired a new line of prep books, called the SITTING: Standardized Individual Testing Taken In Normal Gravity. These comprehensive booklets will have all the guidelines for answering the questions and writing the personal statement.

They will be available online and in bookstores. Prices will vary. ▪ *The NUCT does not actually exist.

This article is meant to be a satire.

At what age is it too early to start preparing for the SAT?

staff writer cassie zhang

“I remember there was an eighth grader in my SAT prep class, and she hadn’t even taken Geometry yet, so she was really lost. I think you need to take at least Geometry and Algebra 1, or else you’d be really confused.”

- Surabhi Narain, 10

staff writer jordan zhang

“Contrary to popular belief, the SAT was originally designed not to take entire summers to prepare for…but to actually test a person’s intelligence - with almost no preparation. However, with the new, longer SAT that is easier to study for, getting a high score is easier than ever. Using this logic, parents push their children into classes or dump 600-page books on them when they aren’t even in high school. Summer vacation is called vacation for a reason - it’s not so that you can make your kids go to school again for another three months.”

-Tom Li, 11

staff writer jordan zhang

“Personally, I started studying in the womb, but if you want to score higher than me, I’d recommend starting before conception.”

– Carl Gao, 11, 2400

staff writer jordan zhang

“I see seventh and eighth graders preparing for the SAT, and I think, ‘Why now?’ They should take the time to relax and mentally prepare themselves, instead of studying a workbook 24/7.”

- Cyrus Lin, 9

8 Centerspread

www.thesmokesignal.org

The Smoke Signal

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The year 2009 is finally coming to a close, but what exactly happened?

Here are 2009’s best and worst events, tools, and more.

Worst Health Crisis Nations responded in uproar to the H1N1 virus as it swept over the global population.

H1N1, more commonly known as “swine flu”, originated from Veracruz, Mexico. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the rapid spread of swine flu a pandemic on June 11, 2009. From the time of its outbreak until December 1, there have been 9,634 reported deaths as a result of the virus. Vaccines are being administered to priority groups including health care workers, pregnant women, and young children from the age of four months to four years. This flu spreads in the same manner as the seasonal flu. Stay healthy this holiday season by washing your hands, not touching your face frequently, and covering your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.

Best Words of 2009 From the Internet to the VMAs, 2009 has given birth to a medley of phrases which have comfortably planted themselves into everyday vocabulary.

What is political conversatio Something a Garden mee and Sergeant dubbed the “ to shed light the president it only dre made his Most sc while fur

QQ epic fail

boss Obama

tweet

you’re a jerk

stimulus

I’m on a boat

FML

friend (used as a verb) like/dislik MLIA

king of pop healthcare

swine flu

vampire

change furlough budget cuts

Best Tech Tool Etherpad is an online text editor that lets you type on a text document, working with people as if you were sitting next to one another.

Starting from www.etherpad.com, it takes one click (no signup required) to create a new document.

Inviting collaborators is as easy as sending them the URL over email or IM. Then, the text that each user types will instantly appear on everyone else’s screens, highlighted in a color of his or her choice. Users have access to basic formatting, a chat box, and a “Time Slider” that replays the creation of the document, keystroke by keystroke.

In December 2009, Google acquired Etherpad to support its new project, Google Wave, but announced that it would shut it down. Fear not, though: all features will remain fully functional until April 2010, and Google is taking steps to ensure users can find a replacement.

Worst Fashion Trend The year 2009 brought back the 80s and (even worse than shoulder pads) the metallic leggings. Any type of leggings, especially pleather metallics, should stay leggings and not become pants. These popular skintight staples make cute outfits with skirts, dresses, and tunics, but no matter what they are with, always keep them covered and in combination.

Leggings create an unseemly silhouette on the crotch and the behind, so why flaunt the faux pas to the public? The garish metallic spandex does nothing but attract more attention to unwanted areas.

Too shiny and tight to be chic, leave these tragedies to Lady Gaga; at least she has her music to defend herself.

Best Fashion Trend Scarves, big or small, square or circle, are the quintessence of versatility and easy yet costfriendly accessorizing. Seen on both guys and gals continuously throughout the seasons, these ubiquitous neck warmers are the ultimate trend for 2009. Whether it’s a summer boho-chic, a silky chiffon number, or a voluminous winter wool knit, scarves easily add personality and panache to any lackluster outfit. Such affordable accessories, adorned by both celebs and students alike, can also be worn in a multitude of ways, such as in a single knot, a criss-cross, a double wrap, or freestyle. From dainty patterns and prints, like plaid and peace signs, to endless fringe to plain solid colors, the diversity in its design assures that there is a scarf for everyone.

Worst A

After w students w US History t was postpone why the test w released except th College Board. Th pleasant surprise t disappointment to test. The change o to add to their st US History teac year projects practice tim hold eve

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Smoke Signal

www.thesmokesignal.org

Centerspread 9

Best Green Achievement

This year has seen officials developing new renewable energy projects, Obama commanding developers to consult environmental experts, and the administration rolling back numerous Bush-era decisions on pollution.

But ironically, the best green achievement of the year may be from the misfortune of the recession and the stimulus bill that resulted.

Of the $787 billion distributed in the stimulus bill, more Worst Presidential than ten percent went to clean energy, including investments Political Moves in new technology and grants for improving energy efficiency. s a political cover-up parading as a Best TV Show Death But this is only a start. The biggest chunk of money for green statement parading as an ordinary energy in the stimulus bill went to upgrading the nation’s If you’ve been immersed in on parading as a miniature beer fest? electric grid, and even that will only pay for a tenth of the school work and haven’t had the along the lines of President Obama’s Rose $100 billion expected cost. Still, it’s a start. While the chance to catch up on your favorite TV eting with Professor Henry Louis Gates recession ended jobs and livelihoods for many, it shows, keep reading to spoil yourself. The best t Jim Crowley, which has been commonly means a new beginning for those working death of 2009 is… *drum roll*… Dr. Kutner on “beer summit”. Though the intention was to improve the environment.

House *cymbal crash*. Kutner’s suicide, a gunshot on a current issue as well as to down-play to the head, came as a complete surprise, and the t’s former comments on the arrest of Gates, remainder of the season drew from each character’s ew more fire towards the president and reaction.

House, in particular, went into withdrawal s policies seem even more wishy-washy. and developed psychological problems. Other cool coffed at the significance of the event, deaths include Izzie and Georges’ on Grey’s Anatomy e others used it as ammunition to (although their “deaths” are questionable), Nathan rther attack President Obama’s Petrelli’s on Heroes (his wasn’t nearly as good as standings on other issues. the others because his death was leaked a month before the episode was released), and Juliet’s on Lost (also another apparent “death”).

Best MSJ Student Actually, anything can happen on that show; Worst Scandal I’m still convinced Michael Dawson Achievement survived that point-blank C-4 There’re probably more top contenders in The five finest young physicists from the explosion in season four. this category than the Smoke Signal can count, United States represented our country in the Inbut the biggest of them all is Bernie Madoff ’s ternational Physics Olympiad last summer. Two Ponzi scheme. Madoff is believed to have started of them came from Mission San Jose High School. his Ponzi scheme in the 1980s, using investors’ money to Bowei Liu, currently a junior, and Marianna Mao, now pay others in the cycle. The amount missing from clients at Harvard, competed at the event held in Merida, Mexico. totaled nearly $65 billion, the largest scam in the history of To compete, they took a series of tests starting with an Wall Street. His scheme was discovered in March 2009; as open exam in the spring taken by 18 MSJ students. Afa result, Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison (the ter two more exams, Bowei and Marianna qualified for longest sentence possible) and is expected to be out on Nov. the training camp held for the top 24 students in the 14, 2139. Honorable mentions include Tiger Woods with country, from which the top students were chosen. his relationship numbers above par and two politicians, In Mexico, the physics team went sightseeing, reJohn Ensign and Mark Sanford, who were laxed at the beach, and participated in 10 hours charged with sex scandals this year (both of exams from which they took home called for Bill Clinton’s impeachment four gold medals and one silver. after the Lewinsky scandal).

ke

Academic Fiasco

weeks of preparation, MSJ were shocked when the AP test scheduled for May 8, 2009, ed to May 20, 2009. Details as to was moved to a later date were not hat the action was a direct order from he rescheduling of the test came as a to those who were unprepared but a o the students who were ready to take the of the test date not only caused students tudy schedules but also forced the AP chers to move around the end-of-thes in order to accommodate more me. Hopefully, next year will not an unfortunate academic ent of such magnitude.

Best Campus Food Best Student Tool Need to check the latest scores of a UEFA match? Forgot what the math homework was? When a computer or iPhone may not be accessible, an iTouch is convenient. It doesn’t just play music and videos; its wireless internet capabilities allow users to check web pages anywhere with wireless access, namely school.

Numerous applications available provides anything from geometry help and periodic table information to amusing games for those blessedly carefree post-AP class periods.

Concerned about the price tag? Try your hand at Facebook poker, accumulate enough virtual chips, and you can cash in for a free iTouch.

The student store has offered a variety of appealing snacks throughout the years, but one treat out of many stood out from its neighbors this year. It is evident from the long lines in front of the slushie machine that the sweet drinks are quite popular amongst the student body. The quality and the prices of the drink make it the best student store snack of 2009. The slushies come in two colorful flavors: lemon lime and strawberry-kiwi. The small size costs $1.50, the medium size costs $2.00, and the large size costs $3.00. Don’t forget to try the slushies next time you plan to buy a snack from the student store.

Worst Campus Disaster Though there were plenty of other fiascos that happened in the past year, the overflowing of the N-wing toilets in November topped them all. While it has been widely known that the facilities at MSJ are sub-par, having the plumbing back up and regurgitate bodily waste was unacceptably horrendous. As a result of this, the bathrooms were shut down and students were forced to use the M-Wing bathrooms instead. Thankfully, the N-Wing bathrooms have since reopened. We can only hope that a repeat will not be coming soon.

backgroundlabs.com, wordpress.com, forever21.com, facebook.com, tmcnet.com, flowtv.org, digitaljournal.com, graphics editor elisa ting

Thursday, December 17, 2009

1a

The Smoke Signal

www.thesmokesignal.org

1b

Photo 11

1c

2a

1d

1 2 3

Winter Wonders Fall Sports Assembly

a. Sophomore Madison Hirsch accepts her “Athlete of the Season� plaque. b. Senior Candice Koh gets her arm signed. c. Mr. Jeffers competes in the Teacher versus Student activity. d. Coach of the Season Coach Marden makes an acceptance speech.

Young Life Tree Lot

a. Seniors Jocelyn Ho and Anjana Bala tend to a Christmas tree.

3a

3b

Winter Concert

a. Mr. Aucoin plays the piano while the choir and choral sing to his melodies. b. The girls of the choral harmonize together. c. Members of the musical theater strike a pose. d. Choral members play the flute.

3d

3c photos by staff writers joy xu, matthew gosen, megan mclaughlin, editor-in-chief jerry ting

12 Arts & Entertainment

www.thesmokesignal.org

The Smoke Signal

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Entertainment highlights of 2009

By Niku Jafarnia, Cynthia Kang, Mary Lan & Vishal Yadav

A&E Editors and Staff Writers

Top Ten Albums

10. Billy Talent Billy Talent III Contrary to what the lackluster title suggests, Billy Talent’s fourth studio album has a new and improved distinctive sound that stands strong throughout the entire set. Though the band took a risk in straying away from their original sound, it worked out in their favor.

9. Jay-Z The Blueprint 3 Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z returns with The Blueprint 3. At the age of 41, Jay-Z brings what most other rappers in the industry cannot: experience. This is evident throughout his album, with tracks like “Empire State of Mind” and “Run This Town”. With 11 albums and counting, Jay-Z proves he is still the King of Hip-Hop. 8. Phoenix Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix Playful, daring, unique, melodic – all of these describe Phoenix’s latest effort, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. This is alternative rock at its finest. From start to finish, the Grammynominated album brings forth an infectious energy and catchiness. Seriously, listen to each song. Each one is pure perfection.

7. Silversun Pickups Swoon An obvious improvement from their debut, Silversun Pickups have a far smoother and refined sound in Swoon than the distorted noise they’ve been previously known for.

Swoon, instead of taking one beat and sticking with it, keeps listeners interested with a variety of songs.

6. Muse The Resistance One of the most anticipated albums of the year, The Resistance does not disappoint. Muse draws in influences from other artists, such as Queen and Depeche Mode, but continues to experiment, evident in the three-piece “Exogenesis Symphony” masterpiece. With such a powerful album, the trio successfully holds on to their old fans and draws in new ones.

a&e editor cynthia kang

Top Ten Films

10. District 9 The threat of alien invasion is a topic all too explored in science fiction films. District 9, however, is possibly the first to deliver both spectacular special effects as well as compassion on behalf of the extraterrestrials. Finally, the other side has a story to tell and it is a heart-wrenching one indeed.

9. Whip It Bliss (Ellen Page) longs to break free from her mother’s insistence on entering endless numbers of beauty pageants. She eventually finds her call: roller derby racing. The movie theme borders on cliché, but self-discoveries tumble together in freewheeling spirit with an unfamiliar, but original subject.

8. The Blind Side A football team is connected with the idea of a family; a left tackle covers the quarterback’s blind side. The Blind Side, based on a true story, is a touching drama that brings forth compassion without cheesy sentiments and stars Sandra Bullock and Quinton Aaron.

7. The Hangover The Hangover is about a group of buddies on a search to find their lost friend. Trouble is, none of them remember what happened the night he dissappeared. What follows is a hilarious journey that involves a tiger, a baby, and a naked Asian man. Oh, and don’t watch this R-rated flick with your parents.

6. Fantastic Mr. Fox In a time when most animated films are CGI, Fantastic Mr. Fox is a breath of fresh air with its stop-motion animation. Based on the novel by Ronald Dahl, it is a witty tale about Mr. Fox (voiced by George Clooney), a family man who returns to his old ways as a chicken thief, and takes his community and the audience on a wild ride with its star studded cast.

5. Metric Fantasies Simply put, it is impossible not to fall in love with Fantasies. The versatile album delivers something for everyone, from the fast-paced “Gold Guns Girls” to the hauntingly beautiful “Collect Call”. Every track is perfectly pieced together with poignant lyrics, Emily Haines’s magnetic voice, and glittering hooks.

5. Star Trek I know what you’re thinking: Star Trek is boring and caters to nerds and old people. But you couldn’t be more wrong. Star Trek has all the explosive action and special effects to fit in Hollywood, but what makes Star Trek stand out is the brilliance each actor brings to his role. In short, even non-Trekkies will actually enjoy Star Trek.

4. Mika The Boy Who Knew Too Much No more rhapsodizing about philandering gay men or big girls for this Lebanese pop star. Rather, his sophomore release delves into the realm of teenage angst while maintaining the quirky yet addictive beats he is known for.

What results are tracks that are catchy and shamelessly fun to dance to.

4. (500) Days of Summer Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Boy and girl run into a bump in their relationship but live happily ever after. Finally, a romantic comedy without the same plot we’ve all seen is shown on the big screen with (500) Days of Summer. The amazing acting and truly interesting plot make this movie memorable.

3. Kid Cudi Man On The Moon: The End Of The Day Debut albums are supposed to be rather experimental, a test run in the tough music industry. On the contrary, Kid Cudi’s true talent shines through in Man On The Moon: The End Of The Day with such skill that listeners will find it hard to believe that this is his very first studio album.

3. The Soloist Based on the memoir by L.A. Times columnist Steve Lopez, The Soloist focuses on Lopez’s (Robert Downey Jr.) attempt to seek help for Nathaniel Ayers ( Jamie Foxx), a schizophrenic musical genius who casts away a promising future for homelessness. Foxx’s earnest and touching performance is ultimately what makes the film so memorable.

2. Lily Allen It’s Not Me, It’s You Lily Allen’s soft, honest voice, leads to expectations that her songs are sweet. But pay attention to the unexpected lyrics, and do a double take. Her comments on society’s drugs, materialism, and wists of relationships clashes with the happy, whimsical background music in a beautiful way.

2. Inglourious Basterds Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) is prepared to scalp some Nazis with his moustache, killer accent, and a team of Jewish American soldiers. Director Quentin Tarantino tells the story of World War II in a way it’s never been told before, fantasizing the murders of the entire group of Nazi leaders, all in a hilariously gory fashion.

1. Yeah Yeah Yeahs It’s Blitz!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs has come out with a disco 1. Up pop fusion of genius. Everything strays from Up is brilliantly done, revolving around una repetitive tune of mainstream and becomes expected heroes: an old man, a stowaway boy, catchy and creative. The mix is like electro- a talking dog, and a mythical bird creature. nightlife at a vintage club. A variety of songs The creativity is what Pixar is all about: a new pull together in a theme of funky instrumen- perspective. This adventure breaks boundaries in a fun, crazy, but bittersweet story. ▪ tal dance music. ▪ Agree? Disagree? E-mail us at entertainment@thesmokesignal.org

a&e editor cynthia kang

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Smoke Signal

www.thesmokesignal.org

30 Seconds of Glorious ‘War’

‘Brothers’ Reveals the Aftershocks of Combat

By Amit Patankar

Staff Writer

last.fm

By Jordan Zhang

Staff Writer

After four years, 30 Seconds to Mars are back and ready for battle with This is War. In their latest release, 30STM returns from post-grunge to a more progressive style, resulting in a highly artistic album.

The majority of the instrumentals are optimistic, with fast drumbeats and energetic guitar riffs, but many tracks have mellow quiet bridges and feature piano and violin. “Hurricane,” a collaboration with Kanye West, has a rolling piano and strings undertone that works surprisingly well with Kanye’s lightly auto-tuned voice.

Innovative sound effects compliment the instrumentation and help bring out the band’s new style. “Kings and Queens” opens with the call of an eagle and the smooth French bridges contrast well with the driving drums in “Night of the Hunter.” The title track “This is War” features the military staccato of a snare drum and a compelling final chorus, with vocalist Jared Leto crying “a brave new

world” to a choir of 1000 of 30STM’s fans that had all the power of an army charging victoriously through the battlefield.

Lyrics such as “we were the kings and queens of promise” (“Kings and Queens”) give the album a sentimentally romantic feel that Leto’s breathy voice delivers well. Most of the lyrics do not play on the war theme subtlety, going straight out with lines like “this is a call to arms.” (“Vox Populi”) Unfortunately, some tracks really fall short.

Of all the things to put in the 52 second intro to “L490,” they just had to choose 52 seconds of aggravating feedback loop. “Stranger in a Strange Land” fares no better as it features the jarring and unnecessary line “f*** you like the devil.” Also, adding a cheering crowd in a non-live album is lame and killed “100 Suns.”

This is War has the artistic quality to be one of the best albums of the year, but not all of the songs meet the high standard and the album as a whole falls just short. ▪ Rating: B+

Arts & Entertainment 13

Brothers, directed by Jim Sheridan, chronicles the story of Marine Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire) and his troublemaking ex-convict brother Tommy ( Jake Gyllenhaal). About to embark on another call of duty to Afghanistan, Sam leaves his family behind after his brother is put on parole.

In Brothers, Tobey Maguire, who plays Sam, finally grows out of the usual Spiderman character that we have come to know him by.

Because Sam’s helicopter is shot down in the Middle East, he is presumed to be dead. His widow Grace (Natalie Portman) is devastated and forced to move on without her husband.

After Sam’s death, his underachieving brother, Tommy, matures overnight and is always there to give a helping hand to Grace whenever she needs it. Jake Gyllenhaal’s portrayal of Tommy, the reformed convict, is excellent, and it is a refreshing change from his other performances.

As Tommy and Grace grow closer, we find out that Sam is in fact alive and has been kept a prisoner of war and has been rescued after enduring two months of atrocities. Sam’s return marks the turning point of the film and his transformation from a caring father to a depressed soldier is what gives the plot meaning.

Brothers tries to convey the stories of numerous marines who were captured in the

Middle East and what they were forced to do in order to survive. Armed with the hope of meeting his family again, Sam never breaks, but the Taliban tortures him brutally, ultimately coercing him to perform horrendous acts to survive. A combination of PTSD, guilt, and a lack of medical treatment lead him to clash with his family members and evoke feelings of suspicion and paranoia. Sheridan paints a picture of war with survivors who are emotionally scarred for life due to the horrific circumstances they have faced.

The film excels in its depiction of the lack of available treatment given to soldiers who return home and the difficulties they face when they live with families that don’t understand the pain and suffering they have gone through. However, the ending is much too abrupt and leaves many questions unanswered.

Although Sheridan’s newest film is a parallel to the real world, it lacks in entertainment value and loses its flair halfway through as it takes a predictable turn. But Maguire redeems the movie with his versatile acting, Hi ability to play a compassionate father and a distressed POW in the same movie is noteworthy. Though this movie lacks the action you’d expect from a war film and might not appeal to the typical definition of drama, its message is certainly one you won’t want to miss. ▪ Rating: B

Chris Brown| ‘Graffiti’ is a Mess continued from page 1 Brown also branches out into more rock beats in “I Can Transform Ya,” and while catchy it lacks enough of Chris Brown’s talented voice to be remembered as one of his greatest hits.

Despite the loss of his signature charm, it is likely to get the most radio play along with “Crawl,” the track on the album most true to his famous voice, and “Wait,” featuring Trey Songz and the Game, the most upbeat and original of all the tracks.

He includes two other ballads titled “Lucky Me” and “I’ll Go” that reveal a greater sense of honesty than the typical lyrics presented in the more upbeat tracks. Brown references and

alludes to the Rihanna incident many times throughout the album yet there seem to be contradictory messages of accusation and forgiveness.

Overall, Chris Brown’s album largely fails to impress with its repetitive phrases and lack of vocal diversity. While he may be able to gain a few radio hits with the more upbeat tracks, the lack of originality will leave audience empty-handed. Perhaps if Brown had waited longer to release Graffiti rather than distributing the album right after Rated R, he may have had a better chance at producing a top-rate R&B album rather than a jumble of electric beats and empty vocals. ▪ Rating: C

wicked’’ casts a spell

‘

By Sarah Li

Staff Writer

There’s a certain charm to retold fairy tales. Their new perspectives on quaint, often irrelevant stories provide us with a breath of fresh yet familiar air. But most of all, we’re curious: we want to know what others have seen in a story that has been so permanently chiseled in our minds.

Fortunately, Wicked, Gregory Maguire’s novel-turnedmusical, doesn’t disappoint in arousing our curiosity about what truly happened before Dorothy dropped in.

Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why audiences from all over have flocked to see the Tony Award-winning Wicked, which has returned to the Orpheum Theater since

its 2003 SF debut. It has certainly lived up to its hype and seems to contain something for everyone. Family friendliness? Check.

An amazing soundtrack? Check. Romance?

Comedy? Political satire? Oh, my, indeed.

After all, just stepping into the theatre gives the audience a feeling that they’ve already been whisked off to Oz (no tornado required!). Just a few minutes into the musical, though, and audiences can tell this isn’t the Oz they’ve always known. Elphaba (Angel Reda), a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West, is introduced as a misunderstood, outspoken, bright nowt2do.co.ukm and verdant adolescent, alienated from society and, sadly, her family. Through her persistence and integrity, though, she later discovers the true wickedness (oh, the irony!) and corruption lurking beneath the glimmering green surface of Oz.

watchbrothers.com

Sam (Toby Maguire) and Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal)) act out a touching display of brotherly love.

Wicked’s strong focus on the friendship of Elphaba and Glinda the Good (Kendra Kassebaum), though, detracts from their relationships among the other characters. Even Fiyero (Nicolas Dromard), Elphaba and Glinda’s love interest, seems to be forgotten in the witches’ outpouring of emotion.

Despite that, though, the superb vocal and acting talents of the actors make Wicked undeniably extraordinary. Though Kassebaum’s singing seems to be rather strained at times, her portrayal of the annoyingly pampered and popular Glinda is spot-on. And who can contest the brilliance of “Defying Gravity,” the musical number that concludes the first act, as Elphaba soars above the stage, bringing the hearts of the audience along for the ride?

At a superficial glance, Wicked may seem like an elaborate tale of friendship and intrigue set against the backdrop of L. Frank Baum’s classic children’s story. However, even the most flippant of audiences must get the feeling that there’s something more going on below the surface. And, perhaps, that is exactly what Maguire was attempting to get across through his story. ▪ Rating: A

Music Picks from the Editorial Board

This Month: Best of 2009 Albert because of you by after school Alissa And I’m Telling you I’m not going by glee cast Anthony you belong with me by taylor swift Christine Sunset Glow by Big Bang Cynthia 1901 by phoenix Elisa bad romance by lady gaga Hannah feel good drag by anberlin Jane love story meets viva la vida by jon schmidt Jerry straight through my heart by BSB Joseph forever by drake ft. eminem Karen fallin’ for you by colbie caillat Megan starstrukk by 3oh!3 ft. katy perry Niku resistance by muse Rebecca 99/100 damashi no tetsu by UVERworld Sargun if i had eyes by jack johnson Sonya tie me down by new boyz ft. ray j tanu hai guzarish by ghajini ost Tina little bribes by death cab for cutie Mrs. CoheN Empire state of mind by Jay-z graphics editor albert yuan

14 Sports

www.thesmokesignal.org

BASKETBALL | MSJ Teams Travel for Tournaments continued from page 1 played a different style from what we were used to and was more athletic,” admitted Vaz. Still, MSJ put up a good fight and had nothing to hang their head about in a 54-45 loss.

courtesy rachel tsao

Senior Captain Sherman Sandhu jumps during tipoff at the Valley Christian Tournament.

Even though they finished the tournament with a record of 1-2, the trip to Reno was definitely not a waste. Senior Captain Brendan Tsao said, “The tournament allowed many players to get more experience at the varsity level and learn more about the team’s identity. We built a tremendous amount of team chemistry on and off the court.”

A week later, the boys played in the Valley Christian Tournament in Dublin. Led by Senior Captain Paul Chen and Senior Albert Koh, the boys beat the competition and won first place. Chen and Koh earned All-Tournament honors for their performances. Koh also received the title of Tournament MVP. With the Don Nelson Tournament coming up, Boys’ Basketball looks to continue its success.

Meanwhile, the Girls’ Basketball team was a couple of hours drive north in Sonora, a city not far from Yosemite. Playing Lodi in the first round, the energized girls showed no signs of fatigue from the trip and came out with perhaps their best half of the early season, sailing into half time leading 39-9. Al-

though the second half didn’t go as smoothly, MSJ easily finished off the Flames 61-28.

There was no time to relax as the Lady Warriors had to face five-time tournament champion Del Oro, a top ten team in the San Joaquin Valley. Despite out hustling their opponents and being down by only six at the half, the girls could not overcome committing sloppy turnovers and a cold shooting day in a 47-36 loss.

But in their final game, the squad came out pumped and ready to battle after a good night’s rest. Playing the tournament host team of Sonora, the Warriors fought through home court advantage and sent the Wildcats a message with a 59-28 beating. Senior Rohini Jain led MSJ’s winning effort with 17 points, which later helped her earn an All-Tournament Player award. Senior Captain Rachel Chang said, “We really showed our determination and skill this tournament with two blowout wins and a great effort against a talented Del Oro team.”

Coach Doug Sakamoto stated he was satisfied with winning two out of three games and being competitive in the loss, but there is always huge room for improvement. “It’s still early to tell what results will be like during league, but the players’ hard work in the summer and fall has paid off,” said the secondyear head coach. Off to a great start so far, the team is ready for a shot to add to the Girls’ Basketball board on the gym wall by winning its first outright MVAL title in 38 years.

courtesy gordon mah

Senior Keila Mah shoots over an outstretched defender.

All in all, it looks like our basketball teams are off to a competitive start. Make sure to go to their games and cheer them on as both teams battle tough opponents this season. ▪

The Smoke Signal

Thursday, December 17, 2009

BE A MAN, BENCH YOURSELF

By Megan McLaughlin

Time magazine reports that “a concussed athlete … is left more susceptible to a slew of other injuries, including another concussion.”

We all want to be warriors, but even Many athletes don’t realize the severity of warriors can get hurt. Injuries separate the their injuries, and if they do, they try to downwise athletes from the foolishly confident play the effects. 41 percent of high school ones who ignore them. Just because your athletes returned to the field too soon after brain thinks you can recover quickly doesn’t a concussion, and 16 percent of football playmean that you can or that you should. ers returned to the field the same day of their Unfortuconcussion. nately, the “be Jaquan Waller, a man” mena high school tality pressures player, died in injured ath2008 after he letes to play was tackled in through the a game two pain and to days after bewait until the ing concussed. game, or even San Jose High the season, is Academy over to see a football player, doctor. (For Matt Blea, sussports.yahoo.com readers unfa- The physical nature of football puts Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner in tained a skull miliar with this danger of suffering head injuries every game. fracture and expression, it is a familiar catchphrase in both a concussion during a Thanksgiving rivalry girls’ and boys’ sports, and pertains to ignoring game. He was promptly taken to the hospipain rather than gender.) This peer and coach tal and received neurosurgery. Had he not pressure is evident from high school sports to been taken to the hospital immediately, his the pros. In the NFL, players, especially rook- doctor commented that he would have died. ies, are often regarded as cowardly if they sit This past season, Senior Danny Tieu sufout to heal. Arizona Cardinals quarterback fered a concussion during a football game Kurt Warner agonized over his decision not against Hercules. After smashing into a Herto play after a concussion. He said, “The easy cules player during the kick return and leaving thing to do is play. The hard thing to do is the field, Tieu said, “Everything went black.” to make the decision where you feel like you His coaches quickly sent him to the trainer, could be hurting your team…whether [or who recommended that he go to the emernot] you’re putting yourself at risk.” Obvious- gency room. Tieu was out for a week until docly, Warner agrees that the mantras “suck it up” tors cleared him to play. He said, “The other or “walk it off ” do not always apply to inju- players didn’t know what happened, but when ries. They can result in further medical issues they found out they didn’t pressure me to play.” or even death. The next time someone tells Concussions can happen everywhere and you to ignore pain, ignore them; play it safe. are not limited to boys’ sports. Girls have a Teenagers are not invincible, despite their higher incidence of concussion than boys, eagerness to believe so. “Being a man” has no and younger athletes are more susceptible to correlation to asking for a Band-Aid, or re- a concussion from a second impact. They are questing a visit with a doctor. In fact, it takes common in all sports, ranging from hockey far more courage to bench yourself than it to football and from volleyball to basketball. does to play through pain. If you think be- Therefore, leagues and coaches must take ing the best you can be is “being a man,” care of their players and ensure their safety. you won’t be one very long. Recklessness Athletes like to regard themselves as gladileads to injury, and injury leads to the be- ators but shouldn’t always be treated as such, ginning of a long friendship with the bench. because the consequences can be deadly. ▪ Staff Writer

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Smoke Signal

www.thesmokesignal.org

Sports

15

CHRIS TURNER: GYM DOMINATOR FEAT. MASTA A & DOCTA J Track 4: “Severe Punishment”

By Joseph Teng & Anthony Wu Sports Editors

This month, Masta A and Docta J are switching roles to keep things fresh. Hope you enjoy this temporary change.

courtesy kristie turner

Senior Chris Turner performs a routine on the rings, pushing himself up with his arms before doing mid-air spins and twists.

By Niku Jafarnia A&E Editor

When he’s not busy working hard in his classes or chilling with his friends, Senior Chris Turner can be found in a gym perfecting his routines. This year, he’s ranked third in the 16-18 age group for United States gymnastics. He is currently getting ready for next year’s college gymnastics at Stanford, where he has already been accepted.

Smoke Signal: So what was your most recent gymnastics camp or competition?

Chris Turner: I was in Colorado Springs for an Olympic training camp where the top seven US gymnasts in each age group competed against gymnasts from Canada and Germany.

SS: What do you think is your best event?

CT: Probably the pommel horse. But it’s normally a gymnast’s worst event, so I’m sometimes really good and sometimes not. It’s unpredictable. Parallel bars is another event that I’m pretty good at.

SS: How did you get into gymnastics?

CT: I started doing gymnastics in the August before third grade when I was about seven or eight years old. I always liked to climb up stuff and do handstands, and my mom heard about a free trial at this place called “Top Flight,” so I went for a day and the coach said I had some potential and he wanted me on the team.

SS: What’s your future for gymnastics?

CT: I’ll try to do well in college, and after that, I guess we’ll see. It’d be super cool to go to the Olympics, but I would have to apply and live at the Olympic training center for a few years, so I’m not sure.

SS: How does gym affect your school work?

CT: It’s tough because for the first one and a half months of school, I haven’t gone to a full week of class. I have to admit I’m kinda… confused… in a few of my classes (laughs). But you kinda have to deal. I still procrastinate sometimes, but after pulling an all-nighter at my last tournament because I had procrastinated, I learned my lesson.

SS: Have you ever wanted to quit gymnastics?

CT: There’s been a few times, actually. Every once in a while, I’ll go through a slump, where I can’t really learn anything or do what I normally can, and I just feel like crap.

SS: How do you move past those “slumps”?

CT: I just keep going, every day, and hope things get better. I’ll finally get one skill back and think, “If I can do that, I can do the rest,” and I push forward. I have to think positively.

SS: Do you have any pre-competition rituals?

CT: Before competitions, I usually don’t talk to people a lot. I just try to get into the zone.

When people talk to me, I’m like, “Mehhh, I don’t want to talk to you.” I sort of just stare at the bars, the pommel horse, etc. and try to picture myself on them. I just… look at them.

SS: Do you bring anything with you for luck?

CT: I used to carry around a doorknob (laughs). I found this doorknob in fifth grade and somehow it ended up in my gym bag, so everytime I went to a competition I would be like, “Okay, I got my grips, I got my wristbands… where’s my doorknob?” Even my parents would ask me, “Do you have your doorknob?” before competitions. I actually haven’t seen it recently… I need to go find that doorknob! ▪

Coaches’ Corner: Wrestling

By Matthew Gosen Staff Writer

Having coached 40 state qualifiers, seven state placers and two state champions, Coach Tom Thomsen has been a key figure in MSJ Wrestling for 30 years. Coach Thomsen sat down with the Smoke Signal and shared his thoughts on this season.

Smoke Signal: How did you first get involved with wrestling?

Tom Thomsen: My whole family was involved in wrestling when I was little. My dad was the first wrestling coach at Chabot College and three out of my five brothers wrestled. Wrestling in my family even goes back to my grandfather and uncle who were professional wrestlers in carnivals and sideshows in San Jose. After 27 years at Mission, I am still having fun coaching.

SS: What are your expectations this season?

TT: This year, as always, I want to win league and have every weight qualify for NCS. I also want the seniors who have wrestled for four years to qualify for state. My goals for all the young wrestlers are to continue to develop throughout the season and have some success.

SS: What is a typical training day?

TT: They go in the wrestling room and warm up. Then they work on new techniques and drill their takedowns. They also review the techniques of the previous day. The next phase of practice entails doing a lot of pushups, climbing ropes, and running. As far as wrestling itself, at the beginning of the season, they wrestle live for fifteen to twenty minutes each day. But by the end of the season, I expect them to be able to wrestle for at least an hour straight. Once they can do that without stopping, they will be ready for a tough six minute match with their opponents.

SS: Is it true that you turn up the thermostat to 100 degrees during practice?

TT: No. We keep the room at a warmer temperature to keep the mats soft and to prevent injury, since wrestling on cold mats increases chances for injury. The warmer temperature is also to help facilitate sweating, but this is not as important as keeping the mats soft.

SS: Did you enjoy being Darth Vader in the Class of 2010’s Junior Homecoming skit?

TT: Yeah. It was definitely cool to be a part of the junior skit. I enjoyed having the opportunity to be involved in Homecoming last year. ▪

The Issue All athletes strive to achieve glory and fame Those are the main goals for every game.

Practice is needed for success to be seized Practice so tough that all drop to their knees.

If they slack off, then it’ll show on game day A big loss is the price that they must pay.

Don’t try to protect them with mercy rules, Pity just makes them look more like fools.

Masta’s Diagnosis Some people feel the need to show compassion toward players and teams being dominated by their opposition. But receiving such pity is actually punishment that causes the defeated parties to develop mercy rule dependence, which prevents them from correcting their flaws and maintaining their dignity.

Docta’s Analysis We’ve all heard of the mercy rule; if a team is pushed past the point of no return, this rule comes into effect. Certain restrictions are now placed on the winning team. People have to hold back their offense and stick with defense. The rule supposedly gives the losing team a chance to claw its way back into the competition.

I beg to differ – the mercy rule is only for statistical reasons. It does absolutely nothing to help the other team. In fact, the mercy rule embodies humiliation and defeat.

There is no official mercy rule in professional sports, but society expects teams to back down after forcing opponents to eat their dust.

For example, there was a huge uproar in the sports community when USC speared UCLA 28-7 in a vicious football game by throwing a touchdown pass late in the game even though they were clearly ahead. Sports fans and critics bashed on the Trojans for running up the score rather than following the unofficial mercy rule. In this case, I feel that USC had every right to throw the final touchdown pass. They played incredibly well, coming up with defensive stops and attacking aggressively on offense. If UCLA couldn’t handle the game, they deserved to lose, and lose badly they did. Don’t blame the winning team for competing; blame the losing team for playing so badly and expecting the mercy rule to bail them out from an ugly loss.

Public opinion considers running up the score as a breach of sports etiquette. But the definition of sportsmanship is conduct befitting athletes, demonstrating courtesy, competitiveness, and grace in defeat. Nowhere do I hear anything remotely close to the mercy rule. If it is implemented, athletes and their standards are lowered. No longer are they competing to the full extent of their abilities; instead, they are backing off to spare their opponents from suffering the humiliation of losing by a wide margin.

Is this respect or is it actually more humiliating to acknowledge the fact that your opponents must step down because you can’t compete at their standard? If a team does not compete to its full capability, it is blatant disrespect.

Looking from my perspective as a competitive athlete, if I am on the losing end, I don’t want officials to take pity on me. I’ll fight to the end however badly my team may lose by. If I am winning, I can always play sub-par to show that you aren’t at my level or I can continue to give one hundred percent.

It’s your call. ▪

16 Sports

www.thesmokesignal.org

Cal’s season was a roller coaster of euphoric optimism and hopeless despair.

It began with Cal expecting to compete for the conference title and a berth in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1959. Star running back and early season Heisman candidate Jahvid Best was expected to determine whether or not Cal was ultimately successful.

The year started with three blowout wins, capped off by a five-touchdown performance from Best.

But poor games by quarterback Kevin Riley resulted in crushing losses to both Oregon and USC. Not even the defense, led by (arguably) number one college cornerback Syd’Quan Thompson, could keep the games close.

Just like that, Cal’s aspirations came crashing down.

But then Cal went on another three-game win streak. Just as Cal’s hopes The former powerhouse of Pac-10 football, USC lost the death grip that it had on the conference for the last seven years. Their performance was disappointing; many experts predicted that USC wouldn’t lose more than one game, yet they have a final record of 8-4. However, USC still proved to be a tough team to beat under coach Pete Carroll, who has won an impressive 84% percent of his games at USC. The Trojans restructured their team this year, starting true freshman Matt Barkley as quarterback and rebuilding their defensive line, as most of the linemen from last year entered the NFL draft. They dealt with injuries, including the ac-

for redemption began to take shape, however, Cal was outplayed by Oregon State.

During this game, Best was hit in mid-air after leaping for a touchdown, landing on his head and suffering his second concussion in two weeks. Best was released from the hospital the next day, but head coach Jeff Tedford ruled him out of the remainder of the season for his own safety.

Without its top running back, Cal was viewed as easy prey. But second string running back Shane Vereen carried the team to two straight wins against Arizona and Stanford. The win over archrival Stanford in the annual Big Game was especially sweet as the Bears were projected as severe underdogs but managed to beat the Cardinal in a wild finish.

Sticking to this season’s trend, Cal followed up its big wins with a loss. Washington’s cident in which running back Stafon Johnson’s throat was crushed while lifting weights.

As a result, the Trojans fought through a rocky road led by Barkley, a talented rookie with incredible potential. Running backs Joe McKnight and Allen Bradford were able to slip through defensive lines when the passing game wasn’t working, and when Barkley was successful, wide receiver Damian Williams was able to catch and finish. However, Barkley couldn’t make longer passes, committing many turnovers.

When opposing defenses played closer to the line of scrimmage, it was tough for USC to complete their offense. Despite this, USC had a decent finish.

USC’s defense was weaker. There were exc e p t i on s , as safety Ta y l o r M a y s dominated his sections of the field.

stellar play was too much for the Bears and dealt Cal a disappointing end to the regular season.

“I’m pretty disappointed because Cal wasted its potential and all of its Pac-10 losses were blowouts,” said MSJ Class of ’09 alumnus Victor Chen. Although Cal did not achieve its expectations, the Bears will play in a bowl game. Now they must win the game, learn from this year’s mistakes, and regroup for next season. Even if Best joins the NFL, Vereen’s rushing will pace the team and continue to prove that UC Berkeley is more than just academics.

For the most part, however, USC wasn’t able to come up with the tackles and sacks needed to limit stronger offenses, resulting in blowouts by Stanford and Oregon. But give USC some credit, considering that the defensive line was relatively new.

Hopefully we will see USC at the Holiday Bowl.

Expect to see USC bounce back next year, stronger than ever. With experience, the players should capture the Pac-10 and return to national contention next year.

“Our game was heavily flawed and when we faced better teams, we were exposed. We have talent, so we will come back strong and win the Pac-10 next year,” said MSJ Class of ‘06 alumnus Dipayon Roy.

The Smoke Signal

After not being a conference contender for years, Stanford smashed its way onto the scene this season with its physical style. Behind the Pac-10 record-setting performance of running back and Heisman contender Toby Gerhart, Stanford was, at one point, considered the hottest team in the country. Not to be forgotten was the efficient play of quarterback Andrew Luck, a redshirt freshman who did incredibly well.

Stanford began the season moderately well, winning against San Jose State, Washington. and UCLA. Then S tanford

UCLA has always been a winning program in college basketball. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the football team. Its final record was 6-6.

Bruins head coach Rick Neuheisel couldn’t settle on one lead quarterback, switching between quarterbacks Kevin Prince, a redshirt freshman with promising potential who was taken out early in the season with a broken jaw and came back, and Senior Kevin Craft.

Prince, the starting quarterback, just couldn’t hold the offense together or command the team as he should have. Instead, he committed too many mistakes, failing to capitalize on opportunities to score. However, this can’t be blamed only on the quarterbacks. The offensive line and running game proved to be good enough when play-

Thursday, December 17, 2009

dropped into a rut, falling to Oregon State by 10 and Arizona by 5, but both games could’ve gone either way. A yielding defense was their downfall.

But the Cardinal came roaring back, prevailing against its next three opponents. Two of those victories were against Oregon and USC, which were considered the top teams in the Pac-10 at the time. Stanford scored over 50 points in both games, attracting the attention of all sports fans.

Then came the Big Game versus Cal. “That game was the most emotionally involved I’ve ever been for a sports event. When we scored, it was crazy, and when we got scored on, it was devastating,” said MSJ Class of ‘09 alumnus Tony Jin. Stanford narrowly lost, forfeiting the coveted Axe to Cal for the seventh time in eight years. With this defeat, the Cardinal’s streak ended and so did their chances of playing in the Rose Bowl.

Despite the loss, Stanford was determined to end its season on a high note. When ing weaker teams such as San Diego State, but they completely deflated when playing against tougher teams such as Stanford or Cal. On the other hand, credit placekicker Kai Forbath for being ridiculously good.

The Bruins’ defense tried to step up this season in order to fill the gap created by their offense. They faced challenges, as they lost star safety Rahim Moore to a concussion, but the defense performed well above average. UCLA forced many turnovers and made numerous important stops. But without an offense, the Bruins were forced to rely on the defense to score, which didn’t happen.

In UCLA’s rival game against the USC Trojans, the Bruins were obliterated, the final score being 28-7.

UCLA was unable to get payback for USC students sneaking onto the Bruins’ campus and giving their mas-

Notre Dame came to Stanford Stadium, the Cardinal overcame the Irish with a gritty, offense-powered effort. Gerhart’s outstanding performance of three rushing touchdowns and one passing touchdown led to the Irish’s fourth straight loss and boosted Gerhart’s Heisman Trophy chances.

Stanford’s campaign will be remembered as one of great success as they refused to settle for meager expectations. How Stanford will do next season depends on its ability to replace the graduating Gerhart, but with Luck leading the way at quarterback and prestigious head coach Jim Harbaugh guiding the team, Cardinal fans can be certain that there will still be much to cheer about in the years to come. cot a paintjob earlier in the week. But controversy was born as a result of UCLA taking an unneeded timeout in the final minute of the game, provoking USC to call a long pass play and score a touchdown.

UCLA fans are wishing that Prince will not get injured next year. Armed with this year’s lessons, Prince should be able to meet his high expectations and direct the offense to perform much better. But the fact is that UCLA needs to find at least one more player who they can rely on to step up during crunch time “We have talented players from rising quarterback Kevin Prince to unstoppable Johnathan Franklin.

The Bruins have heart,so it’s no wonder that we are better than that other team in LA, ” said MSJ Class of ‘06 alumnus Alan John.

layout compiled by editor-in-chief jerry ting, centerspread editor tina tseng & sports editors joseph teng and anthony wu