Vol 28 issue 8

Page 1

\ olume 28, issue 8 .lanuary31,1992

South wordS

Maine South II S, PaikRidj;e, n

Arrests made in pipe bomb case The pipe bombings that have rocked Park Ridge and Niles since mid-December have recently ended with the arrest of the four teenagers believed responsible. Matthew Kusar, 17, and Matthew Kelly, 17, along with two juvenile ages 15 and 16 were arrested after admitting to the six bombings. The first two bombings occured in Niles. The first explosion occurred on December 13, under a car on the 6900 block of Birchwood Avenue. The second took place a day later at Joswiak Park in Niles destroying a telephone booth. The four bombings in Park Ridge all took place around the Uptown area. The first was in an open area in the 200 block of North Northwest Highway. It was followed by an expolosion in front of the Baskin-Robins 31 Flavors at 100 Main Street on December 30, just after closing. The bomb was placed in a garbage can, which was destroyed, shattering a number of store windows. Another bombing occurred in a stairwell of the Touhy Avenue raikoad viaduct and the final explosion was under an automobile on the 200 block of South Cumberland. The trunk of the car was destroyed, but the gas tank did not ignite. The total damage in Park Ridge was estimated to be between $4000 and $5000. The bombs were allegedly manufactured

The Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop in Park Ridge was one target of several recent pipe bombings.

in Kusar's basement at his family's home on the 7300 block of West Fitch Avenue in Chicago. Both Kelly and Kusar attended St. Patrick's High School. Neither have previous police records and students at St. Pat's were surprised and shocked by the news. A neighbor of Kusar was also suprised, saying she was "flabbergasted." The arrest of the four teenagers ruled out the possibilty of any connection with a number of blasts that have rocked Hammond, Indiana since late last month. Kusar and Kelly will be tried as adults

while the two juveniles will be tried in Juvenile Court. Kusar and Kelly will be charged with two counts each of arson, possession of explosives, and criminal damage to property. If convicted, they could receive up to seven years in prison for each count of criminal damage and arson. Possession of an explosive, a misdimeanor, carries a penalty of one year in prison. The two teens were released after posting 10 percent of their bonds in cash. Both are confined to their homes, except to attend school.

South students test diplomatic si<ilis As you read this article, twenty Maine South students have been transformed into Zairians, and are currently debating world politics in the United Nations. Well, not exactly. Right now, twenty Maine South students are currently representing Zaire at the University of Chicago's annual Model United Nations at the Palmer House. These students have been turned into diplomats for the weekend, and as such, are debating world issues within the confines of a large, posh, hotel in the heart of a metropolitan center. That, basically, is what Model United Nations is all about. In order to increase students' awareness of geopolitical, economic, and social events, conferences such as the U. of C. one have been set up around the country. The purpose of these conferences is to totally immerse the high school students within an atmosphere of world politics, and in doing so.

open up the students' eyes to many of the conflicts facing the world today. The Model U.N. process started for the students last November, when they received their country assignment. After receiving the African cound^ of Zaire, the students then had to pick from a numerous number of committees. Just like countries in the real U.N., countries in the M.U.N. are only represented in certain committees; thus, the M.S. students could only choose from committees in which Zaire was truly represented within the U.N. However, regardless of the country assignment, delegates get to choose from a multitude of topics; for the Maine South delegates, topics as diverse as arms proliferation to environmental problems were available for consideration. After picking their committees, the students then researched the topics and wrote up position papers detailing Zaire's

positions on the problems. Thus, with their research completed, the students were prepared to represent Zaire at the conference, which is what they are doing right now. Although the preparation for this conference may have taken some time for many of the students, most of them find the U.N. atmosphere at the conference enlightening as they discover the complexity of world issues. Even though the University of Chicago Model U.N. is the largest one in the area, it is not the only one Maine South is attending. Right now, the M.U.N, sponsor, Mrs. Bondi, is preparing to take more students to a smaller M.U.N. at Northwestern University sometime in spring. Due to its small size, the Northwestern conference is perfect for the inexperienced, and any person interested is encouraged to talk to Mrs. Bondi.


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