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Pa g e 6
Busy work often assigned by
teachers wastes students’ time
by AARIf mAsANI
amasani.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
We will never need to know how to
make a poster. It will never benefit
us to watch Meet the Fockers in
Health and Safety class, and coloring
in our world studies composition
book will not enhance our understanding
of the world.
Yet, we are forced to do so
anyway. It seems that sometimes,
teachers get caught up in the thrill of
influencing future generations and
forget about what they are supposed
to do – actually provide us with the
tools and knowledge necessary to
succeed in the future. An innocent
mistake, I suppose, but a costly one
Renovations will provide
an improvement to the
RHS campus environment
by NIkkI lukAsko & shAyNA powlEss
nlukasko.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
spowless.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
Roseville High School has long
been in need for remodeling. It is
evident that our school has needed
improvements, not only in buildings,
but also in the foundation our
school is laid upon.
Every time it rains, RHS has puddles
covering the campus. We can
understand a few, but this excessive
amount makes getting to your next
class harder than it should be. This
school already has a ton of students
and avoiding running into someone
is difficult enough. On rainy days,
puddles are almost unavoidable and
students who are unlucky enough
One man’s journey to vegetarianism
is more challenging than anticipated
After two weeks, he resolves
to continue to remain faithful
to his meat-free lifestyle
by tylER mIllER
tmil.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
Two weeks ago, I embarked on
an arduous journey, wrought with
bravery, despair, and a little bit of
magic. This journey was called
vegetarianism. As crazy as it seems
to most people (judging by the surprised
looks I get when I ask for that
same dish, but without the meat),
the thought of me eating a cute and
cuddly little chicken, or even a cow,
no longer holds appeal to me.
I had thought of doing this ear-
opinion.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
nonetheless.
As modern students, we face
academic stresses that no other
generation had the misfortune to
encounter. We are told to balance
extracurriculars with AP classes,
sports, and volunteering hours. The
extensive use of busy work, therefore,
clearly hinders our success
by its very nature. It just wastes
time and doesn’t provide students
with any additional knowledge
whatsoever.
At RHS, like other schools, busy
work runs rampant. Students in
world studies classes, for example,
are required to color in their composition
books. If they fail to do so,
their grade suffers. In other words,
students are evaluated on their
artistic abilities in a history class.
Similarly, certain health and safety
teachers compel their students to
color their journals. Apparently,
coloring is a very useful skill that
we will all need in the competitive
world that awaits us beyond high
school.
And then, of course, there is the
to soak their shoes from stepping
in them come into class wet and
uncomfortable.
The blacktop near the
900s and the football field
has had a puddle so deep
that some students call it
the “lake” or “pond.” This
is understandable because
it is so deep that you could
literally put fish in it. With the
new renovations the “lake” will be
covered by a new gym, which will
improve not only the look, but the
quality of our school as well. Since
several buildings are going to be
remodeled, the drainage issues will
cease.
Some buildings, including the 600
wing, create a waterfall-like effect
because of the poor drainage system.
When students walk through
Senior Square while coming from
the direction of the pool, many
have to walk under this area and
are occasionally drenched from the
lier and I tried it out for a bit once
before, but never made a serious
attempt. My motivation behind it
wasn’t to follow Upton Sinclair and
it definitely wasn’t to stop the meat
industry. It was more of an attempt
to get my parents to stop cooking
meat every night, mainly because
it became ridiculously disgusting
after 17 years of having it every
single night and also to start cooking
pasta more often, which is my
favorite kind of food. It also made
eating with friends a lot easier, because
nearly all of mine seem to be
vegetarians or vegans. Steakhouse,
anyone?
Morally though, it sucked for me
to eat food and think about the living
thing that they murdered to provide
us sustenance, when we can easily
find food that gives us the same
nutrients that the meat would give
us, without the killing. It just seems
OpiniOn
endless stream of unrelated, useless,
time-squandering movies that
teachers attempt to pass off as real
lessons, either showing them in
class or when there is a substitute.
To make matters worse, students
almost always have to answer
questions on these movies, which
often have nothing to do with the
class itself.
Of course, if ‘busy work’ actually
had to do with the class, it wouldn’t
be busy work. Coloring in Art 1, for
example, or watching a movie about
chemicals in a chemistry class can
hardly be considered busy work. But
such cases are rare.
Instead of busy work, teachers
should provide free time – time that
should have been ours anyway, had
the administration not stolen the incentive
based PAWS schedule from
us. Free time would let us catch up
on classes that we are having trouble
in, or simply allow us to relax and
slow down in a fast-paced world.
Either way, it would be exceedingly
more valuable to students than busy
work.
unexpected waterfall. Although this
does occur on most buildings when
it rains hard, water that pours from
the roof at RHS is drastic.
Not only are there problems
outside the buildings, but existing
ones inside also.
When a basketball hits the wall
inside of the small gym, paint, and
sometimes pieces of the wall, fall
off. This is ridiculous and is an obvious
reason why our school needs
renovations. Not only could this
become a safety hazard for students
inside the gym, but also makes our
school look bad.
With the new remodeling plans,
the small gym along with other
buildings will be redesigned, giving
the school a more modern and
appealing look.
By renovating certain areas of our
school, RHS will become cleaner
and safer. Our overall school look
will improve and it will give us a
better environment.
a bit asinine to me that while I can
survive completely fine by eating a
set of meals that have been planned
out to provide all my nutrients, other
people keep killing animals.
Don’t get me wrong, when I see a
juicy, beautiful double double from
In-N-Out, I definitely think about
asking for a bite, because no matter
how strong your morals are, good
food smells good. I bet this is what
R. Kelly was talking about when
he said his mind was telling him
no, but his body, his body. I think
it really comes down to how strong
your tolerance is for good smelling
fats and food that you would typically
find in restaurants, or for how
many of your friends leave their
third period classes each day on fast
food runs.
I think I proved my true devotion
last week, when I asked for some
pizza from my friend, put the bite in
my mouth, then immediately spat it
out once I tasted pepperoni. She told
me I’m not allowed to eat any of her
food anymore, but my morals stand
ironclad. I’m not even sure which
animal a piece of pepperoni comes
from, but it can’t be any good.
I’m probably the last guy that
would ever write an article that
concerns religion. Without boring
you too much with me, I’ll just say
that overall I don’t care for it. People
can, for the most part, believe what
they want to believe, as long as they
don’t get near me with it. But this
is something that so goes beyond
religion that I have no problem
spewing my venom toward these
hate filled bigots.
The Westboro Baptist Church
is an extremist Baptist organization
located in Topeka, Kansas who gain
notoriety for picketing military funerals,
among other things, profess
God’s hatred of minority groups,
like “Jews,” “Fags” and Obama.
They especially emphasize their
hatred of homosexuals.
The church was started by a nutcase,
excuse me, a man named Fred
Phelps and the 70 or so members
of the church are almost all family
members or family friends of the
Phelps’ family, a fact which they
acknowledge. More recently, one
of his 13 children, Shirley Phelps-
Roper, has become the iconic public
figure who supports the churches
activities publicly whenever she
can, having appeared on Fox News,
by RIANNA REED
rreed.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
CNN and the Tyra Banks Show.
These people seek out military
funerals of fallen soldiers, gay or
straight and protest that their deaths
are God’s way of punishing America
for allowing homosexuality to be
“socially acceptable.” They chant
and hold up signs reading such
things as “Thank God for Dead
Soldiers,” and “Fag Enablers,”
and “Thank God for 9/11,” and
“America is Doomed.” They claim
they are legally professing their
interpretation of the Bible and that
God is sending messages that these
tragedies are a direct result of our
tolerance for the things they preach
against. They claim their right to
picket is protected by their First
Amendment right of free speech.
The church recently sprung up in
the news with the ruling of Snyder
v. Phelps, a major Supreme Court
case in which they were the defendant.
The case essentially concerned
whether the free speech rights of
protesters were more important
than the privacy rights for grieving
families or mourners attending the
funeral of a loved one.
Matthew Snyder was a member
of the U.S. Marine Corps when he
was killed in Iraq in 2006. Following
the picketing of his funeral by
the WBC, his father, Albert Snyder,
sued the church for defamation, intrusion
upon seclusion, intentional
infliction of emotional distress, civil
conspiracy and publicity given to
private life.
Earlier this month the Supreme
Court ruled 8-1 in favor of the WBC
and the Phelps’ family. Chief Justice
John Roberts released this statement,
“What Westboro said, in the
whole context of how and where it
chose to say it, is entitled to ‘special
Ma r c h 14, 2011
“Free Speech” should not
protect hate filled bigots
by zAch ANDERsoN
zanderson.eyeofthetiger@gmail.com
protection’ under the First Amendment
and that protection cannot be
overcome by a jury finding that the
picketing was outrageous.”
Okay I’m done being the teacher;
I’m going back to opinion writer
now. This is wrong, and this is sick.
I consider myself a pretty strong
“Constitutionalist,” but I also believe
in rationality and common
sense. This ruling by the Supreme
Court lacks the latter two.
The WBC preaches nothing but
hate. They are a delusional, hate
filled group, monitored by the Anti-
Defamation League, who legitimately
has nothing else to do than
bring every person they can down
in order to feel important. They do
what they do for publicity. The decision
made by the Supreme Court
gives the image that disturbing the
peace is okay, and preaching hate
and causing conflict and emotional
distress is acceptable. It undermines
every soldier’s life that has fought
to defend the very Constitution that
is technically disrespecting their
sacrifice. It gives off the notion
that the Federal Government views
tragedies like 9/11 as trivial. Ruling
for Snyder would have destroyed
this Church, given off a positive
message and been the flat out right
thing to do.
I am disgusted. I’m willing to bet
that almost everyone agrees with me
as well. I send my condolences to
the Snyder family and every single
person who has been unnecessarily
put through distress by these idiots.
I’ve personally seen them picket as
a former resident of Kansas and it
is as bad as it sounds. There are sick
people out there that do this kind of
thing. Hopefully someone will have
the courage to put this to an end.
Bowl-a-thon is a helpful, much
needed fundraiser for AP students
The pressure of getting higher
than a 4.0 grade point average is
extremely high. Many students are
struggling with their AP classes
because they want to go to an acceptable
college. Students that
might only be able to go to college
through financial aid are also taking
AP classes, but they struggle with
paying the fee to take AP exams.
We teenagers are constantly doing
homework, studying for tests,
stressing about college, trying to
get a job, worrying about our parent’s
income, etc. Worst of all, we
worry and then we stress about it all
over again.
Some students go home and
they stress out about how much
they should eat, because there is
not much food in the house. If students
are stressing about not having
enough food, something that makes
them hurt even more is telling their
parents that they need $90 for a
school exam. Parents can become
upset because their child cannot
take the exam with the rest of their
classmates simply because they do
not have any extra money.
AP exams are just around the
corner at Roseville High School.
Seeing as not every student has 90
spare dollars lying around, an AP
bowl-a-thon took place in order to
raise money for the exams.
The bowl-a-thon encouraged
people to donate to students that
dream of having a successful education,
regardless of their social class.
I believe that every student should
have equal opportunity to reach
their dreams of going to college,
so this bowl-a-thon was definitely
an example of how education is
being improved, by allowing not
only wealthy students to earn AP
credits, but also students with low
income as well.
Being a student of an AP European
History class, I am facing the
strain of paying $90 for the exam.
I want to take many AP exams and
go off to a college where I can earn
a solid degree. I believe that the
bowl-a-thon was a great opportunity
for those in need to meet these
exam fees.
Lack of money is not an excuse
to not go to college, especially when
financial aid is being provided to
those that need it, or in this case, a
bowl-a-thon fundraiser. It may be
hard to reach the goals that teenagers
want to achieve, but the whole
world is not against you achieving
them. With the creation of a fundraiser,
it took an ample amount of
stress off of many teenagers’ backs,
which will allow students to attain
success in their future.
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