Opinion the Stagg Line
2 EDITORIAL
I
05.13.11
Striving towards ‘magnificent’
t’s a beautiful Saturday morning, with the sun rising in the sky and a breeze blowing through the air: perfect for a rally. Everyone is smiling. Everyone is laughing. Everyone is showing their pride. Everything is “magnificent.” On April 23 the Stockton is Magnificent rally, hosted as a backlash to Forbes Magazine for ranking Stockton as No. 1 on the Most Miserable Cities list, proved itself to be a fun, peppy event. Citizens of Stockton came out and supported their city by buying bright t-shirts and having fun. The excitement lasted from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and then it faded away along with the smiling people. The laughter on Miracle Mile became mute and the pride … well, that was captured in pictures and filed away as a longlost memory. Among those memories is one that refuses to be forgotten. One man. A man walking the street with his head held high. A man earning glares from the smiling people that surround him. A man that wears a shirt with three significant words: “Far From Magnificent.” To outsiders, Stockton is known for its crime and unemployment. Yes, we do have these elements, but so does every other city around the world. What Forbes and others fail to see is that Stockton is full of culture and diversity. It’s a community made up of so many different ideas and people. Stagg is a mirror of Stockton. We’re one student body made up of so many diverse individuals. Everyone has their own appearance and personality. But as a student body we look past this, because everyone has a story and lessons to
teach. We learn from one another. It makes us think; was Forbes right in naming us the most miserable city? No. Was Forbes wrong in naming us the most miserable city? No. We all live in Stockton and walk through the halls of Stagg five days out of the week. We all have friends and family that live in this town with us. As a student body we need to recognize that Stockton and Stagg are a big part of our lives. And once we recognize this we need to defend and improve it. We need to stop throwing trash on the ground. We need to stop vandalizing the walls. We need to stop hurting the people around us. We need to stand for something and have pride for what is a part of us. We know that Stockton isn’t the most miserable city in the United States, but we also understand it could use im-
art by Alisya Mora
provement. No matter how diverse we are as a community and a student body, we need to remember that we all have one thing in common. Stockton belongs to all of us and instead of adding to the “miserable,” we should strive towards the “magnificent.”
Student breaks away creating a new reality
“M
usic is my escape.” How many times have you heard that phrase this school year?
10? 20? More? Not that it’s a bad or good thing to say, or that it’s untrue. But it’s starting to get a little old. Perhaps it’s time for a different escape. But what is an escape? A chance to run away to a completely different world. A fantasy land where you can be the hero (or villain) of your own story. The one that you write. That’s right. The one that you write. Writing is my escape. I started writing to escape when I was 10. I was being picked on and bullied every day at school, and I wanted so badly to be like the heroes in the comic books I read. The first time I used writing as an escape I created a short comic book where I was the hero. I still remember feeling a kind of power while I wrote. Like this was my world, and I could make anything happen. I liked this feeling, so I kept writing. A comic book series called “The Adventures of Super Team,” two books about a female rock star and her dysfunctional family, and several class freewrites later, I entered the ninth grade and began to write my first real novel. In four years I’ve gone from writing stories about the evil Dr. Atom to composing tales of a little girl with blonde hair and a black hoodie running around with some guy twice her age. Writing has always provided a home away from home inside of my head, giving me a place to run to
the Stagg Line Amos Alonzo Stagg High School 1621 Brookside Rd. Stockton, CA 95207 (209) 933-7445 ext. 8487 The Stagg Line newspaper is a member of the National Scholastic Press Association and the California Newspaper Publishers Association. Awards and recognitions include the following: XX 16 consecutive NSPA All-Americans XX NSPA Hall of Fame, 2005 XX 5 NSPA First-Place Best of Show awards XX JEA Impact Award, 2002 Stagg Line student journalists have won many awards and scholarships over the years, including California Journalist of the Year, National Story of the Year, and National Photo of the Year.
Shelby Hightower when I needed to get away from everything and everyone else. My fictional characters keep me company and give me guidance. They truly have been my friends. But writing has helped me in another way as well. All the practice I did by just writing for fun prepared me for my writing assignments. I looked forward to using my writing skills to get a good grade. All of my practice built up my descriptive skills. Instead of just saying “she stood there menacingly,” I would say “she stood there, her hair tossing in the wind, and frowned ominously.” A little more interesting, right? I taught myself how to do that just by writing for fun. I’ve also found that writing can help you deal
Mikeala Axton Editor-in-Chief
Taylor Hurles Editor-in-Chief
Don Bott Adviser The Stagg Line newspaper is published monthly and distributed free of charge to students and faculty. Our newspaper is a long-standing open forum for free student expression. Student editors and reporters make content and style decisions with the adviser offering guidance. Editorials reflect the view of the entire editorial board and therefore are unsigned. Opinion columns reflect the view of the writer. Readers are welcomed to write letters to the editor. We will make every effort to print any letter as long as it is not libelous. Letters longer than 250 words may be edited. Unsigned letters will be printed only in unusual circumstances, and only when we know who the writer is. Letters may be brought to the newspaper room, A-8, or emailed to dbott@stockton.k12.ca.us
art by tiffany pech
with your problems. If you’re having trouble, incorporate that into a story, like how I did when I was being bullied. For example, if someone just died, you can write a story about reincarnation and bring that person back from the dead.
Gabriella Miller News Editor
Nicole Lawrence Opinion Editor
Kristin Acevedo Features Editor
Annamarie Cunningham Entertainment Editor
Reanna Rodriguez Sports Editor
Seyma Tap
Graphics Editor
Harmony Evangelisti Photo Editor
Damon Heine Blog Editor
Writing is a great way to escape from this world and into a new one. One that you create. So with pen in hand and paper in front of you, build your own story. Your second life. And make it the way you want it to be.
Staff
Faith Harris Annamarie Rodriguez Mia Torres
Journalism 1-2 contributors Shelby Hightower Jessica Mangili Adrianna Owens Viena Palacio Brian Walker Chao Xiong
Senior staff Chelsea Collura Jeremy Dela Cruz Jera Machuca Missy Rae Magdalera Alisya Mora Tiffany Pech Michelle Pheav Lissette Rodriguez Claire Scheffer Erica Trevino Xe Xiong