Obama or Romney? - St Paul's High School

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Volume 66, Issue 2 October 31, 2012Isaac WeldonContributorThe story of AmandaTodd has become a contemporaryexample of several controversialtopics. Among the notable are theeffect of bullying, the power of themedia, the side effects of media,and lastly the role of adults in teenbullying.By now I’m sure that youhave heard the story of AmandaTodd, but a lot of people don’t hearthe dark sides of the story. In hearYouTube video, Todd admits thatshe has done bad things. It can beargued that the hardships she facedwere repercussions of her ownactions. Nonetheless this in no waycommends the reaction of her peers,or her own actions. Regardless ofher misdeeds and the misdeeds ofher peers, this outcome in popularityof the Amanda Todd suicide caseraises two issues I have about themedia. Firstly, the temperamentalnature of the media, and secondly,the potential detrimental side effectsthat the publicity of this situationcan induce.Student VoiceThe Story of Amanda ToddAmanda Todd wasn’t the firstteenager to kill herself; unfortunately,people kill themselves every day, infact, according to the World HealthOrganization someone commitssuicide every 40 seconds. The factthat people are focusing on this onedeath and not the thousand othersis evidence of the temperamentalnature of the media. Don’t get mewrong, suicide is a sad reality, butthis whole Amanda Todd issuehas been blown out of proportion.This is the first suicide I have seenpublicized to this proportion in mylife, but certainly, Amanda Toddwas not the first and is not the onlyperson to ever commit suicide dueto bullying. Honestly, I believe thatthe story of Amanda Todd’s suicidewould not have been shared if therehad something else to talk about inthe news. Why else would they runAmanda Todd’s story and not thestories of thousands of other suicidecases? The publicity that surroundsthis situation leads to my secondissue.Before her suicide AmandaTodd was very isolated. She facedR.I.P. AMANDA TODDmany difficulties in her life, wasnever taken seriously, and receivedlittle to no sympathy. After shecommitted suicide, now, she isfamous, she is popular, peopleare talking about her, people aretaking her story seriously, she hassympathy, and she is someone.Though the power of the media tobring attention to matters (importantor not) is often positive, in thissituation it is not. In fact, this couldbe very detrimental. Teenagers insimilar situations, who struggle withbullying, unpopularity, and selfworth,might see Amanda Todd’sstory as an example of how to dealwith their issues. They might seesuicide as a way to become popular,to receive sympathy and to becomefamous, and that is a bad thing.One last thing that I thinkneeds to be said is that a lot of theblame should be put on the adultsin Amanda’s life. I believe that ifAmanda had better role models shewould have: one, flashed people onthe Internet, two, dealt with it better,and three, not have committedsuicide.20
Volume 66, Issue 2 October 31, 2012Student VoicePrenovault’s Politics: Justin TrudeauEl SalvadorIsaac WeldonContributorThe son of P.E.T. is making political wavesThis summer the El SalvadorProject visited the community of SanRafael in La Libertad Province of ElSalvador for the first time in the historyof the project. The villagers met us withlove and kindness, and had set up anafternoon of presentations. Throughtheir presentations it became clear thatthe community was in dire need ofservice.The village of San Rafael hasa history of suffrage and poverty. Thevillagers moved to the location andsettled on the land approximately 20years ago, but unfortunately they didnot have enough money to buy theland. In spite of the fact that they didnot own the land, they made it theirhome. The land they settled on wasowned by a wealthy baron, who did nottake kindly to the people settling on hisland, he often harassed the villages tomove, threatening to call the army. Afew years ago, the baron mortgaged theproperty to the bank; this would furtherthreaten the way of life of the villagers.Recently, the baron has not made hismortgage payments and has thereforforfeited his right to the land. Goodright? Wrong. The bank is auctioningoff the land to the highest bidder, whowill certainly try to remove the villagersfrom their homes. The estimated costof the land is $40 000, which is a lot fora poor village. It seems like all hope islost for aiding this village as $40 000 istoo much money to raise in such a shorttime.Even though the village hasbeen struck with poverty and hardship,they did not fail to be kind hosts. Theytreated us with fruits, tortillas, andcold Pepsis, while their communityperforming arts group performedSalvadorian cultural dance.Although it is hard, we haveto remain positive in a situation likethis. We have to believe that God willprovide, like the villagers our faith inGod must remains strong. You can helpby raising awareness of the situation inSan Rafael, as it is not the only villageundergoing hardships. The reality isthere are many villages all over theworld in need of our help, even inCanada. Raising awareness in our owncommunity plays a major role in aidingcommunities all over the world, andis the key to preventing situations likethis from occurring in Canada.Aidan PrenovaultPierre!Justin!From 1968-1979, andagain from 1980-1984, PierreElliot Trudeau led Canada with agovernment from the Liberal Party.Now, after almost 4 decades ofbeing away from politics, anotherTrudeau is a member of the LiberalParty of Canada. This time, it is hisson, Justin Trudeau, and he has thesame aspirations that his father had.Justin Trudeau only beganhis political life in 2006, whenhe became President of the YouthLabour Group ofthe Liberal Party’sRenewal Commission.In 2007, Trudeaubecame the LiberalMP for the Papineauriding, only to havebeen defeated in the2008 federal election,then having regainedthat riding’s seat inthe federal electionfrom May, 2011.When the LiberalParty dismissedformer leader MichaelIgnatieff after the2011 federal election,there was a lot of buzzwithin the party as towho would becomethe next leader. LiberalParty members wereindicating it shouldbe Justin Trudeaubecause he was,and still is, seen asthe Party’s saviour.Although, it would behard for someone likeTrudeau to becomeleader of a federalparty, especially thestruggling Liberals,because he would faceconstant comparisonsto his father.According to Radio-Canada, one ofTrudeau’s politicalpriorities is bilingualeducation. On a visitto Saint John, NB inMay 2007, Trudeausaid that 2 educationsystems (one inFrench, the other inEnglish) is too costlyfor a government.Unlike his father, who had declaredEnglish and French Canada’sofficial languages in the Charterof rights and Freedoms, Trudeauwould prefer an education system inonly one language, mainly French.With such a significant differencebetween father and son, it is hard todetermine if Justin Trudeau will everbecome the kind of Prime Ministerhis father, Pierre, was.21
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