Vol 48 issue 5

Vol. 48, No. 5

The truth behind the declining use of cursive in classrooms Page 10 Welcome to Aspen!

The ins and outs of the new portal

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Hello, my name is...

No SOPA for you

A compilation of the odd- The newest anti-piracy est celebrity baby names legislation is unjust

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Wrestling success

GRAPHIC BY ADRIAN ADAMIEC

1111 S. Dee Road • Park Ridge, Illinois 60068

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February 17, 2012

Eight wrestlers qualify for Sectionals

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NEWS

| February 17, 2012

Illinois no longer to fund ACT writing Written portion of exam no longer included in PSAE

Jason Tan

Staff Writer he Illinois state government has decided to stop funding the writing portion of the ACT during the Prairie State Achievement Examinations (PSAE) that takes place in April. The Prairie State Achievement Examinations typically occur during the third week of April over the course of two days. Juniors take the ACT on the first day and the WorkKeys—which is used to grade the progress of the schools in Illinois—on the second day.

In past years, the state has funded the writing portion of the ACT dur-

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ing the PSAE. However, in an effort to save money, the state will cut the writing portion out of the statewide ACT, saving around $2.4 million.

Taking the ACT a second time to fulfill the writing requirement could prove difficult for some students, since about three-quarters of the districts in Illinois consist of lowincome families, according to the Chicago Tribune.

For quite a few juniors, this ACT taking place during the PSAE is their first encounter with the writing portion of the test. This new testing change will obligate juniors to take the next ACT in June or September, if they have not taken the test before the PSAE. The writing portion is required when applying to many of the top

universities in the country. These colleges typically require their applicants to complete the writing portion at least once, which students used to be able to take for free during the PSAE. Now students will have to take the ACT a second time, this time paying the $49.50 testing fee.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign previously required the writing portion of the ACT from their applicants. However, with the change in-state funding of the PSAE, it has decided to stop making the writing section a requirement for students applying there. This should be implemented by 2013.

On the other hand, other top-tier universities, like Northwestern University, still value the writing section and will require it on their applica-

tions.

This change’s effect on Maine South juniors is diluted, however, as many of them plan on taking at least another ACT besides the one during the PSAE. “No, this does not really affect us much because most of us planned on taking multiple ACT’s in the first place,” said junior Georgio Ronis. “I was already planning on taking the ACT on the national date in April as well.”

The ACT does not allow students to only take the writing portion of the test, which would only take a half hour. Instead, students must go through the full three hours of testing that includes the English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science Reasoning exams.

Aspen Replaces SIS as Student Portal New system introduced second semester to mixed response

Amanda Svachula

Staff Writer n Jan. 27, the Maine South Technology Department oversaw the launch of Aspen, the new Student Portal. Launched in the beginning of the second semester, Aspen features tools such as a customizable homework planner and calendar, and the option for students to digitally turn in their homework.

Maine South bought the entire school information management system from Aspen with many of its own specific customizations that were initially requested from the manufacturer. Changes to the program are still being made, however, and there is ongoing communication between teachers, their respective departments, the Technology department, and Aspen.

Because Maine South is one of the larger schools using the program, which is still in its early development, Aspen has looked to the school for suggestions on what its staff needs or would like it to add to the next software update.

Aspen, in contrast to the old system, takes more steps to integrate administrative and classroom information.

“All staff, regardless of whether

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you’re a teacher, a TA, special ed, a dean, a counselor, we’re all on the same system,” said social science teacher Mrs. Kaye, “It was not that way before; there were technically two systems—there was a grade book and an administrative system.”

“Now as a teacher, if you’re my student and on my class list and gone for a suspension, I can pull up the dean’s report and find out why. Before I had to find that out through other communication—through email or a counselor.”

Two years ago, the creator of the old portal announced that it was no longer supporting the type of software used at Maine South, so the technology team started searching for a replacement system. After a year spent evaluating different products, Aspen Student Information System was chosen for use.

For the past year, the Technology Department has been transferring information into the new system from as far back as 1983 to prepare the program for student use. Aspen also uses the same username and password synchronized to students’ school sign-in and email.

“Aspen is a system that is poised to grow quickly, and students will see many new features in the coming year,” said Chief Technology Director Dr. Thiele.

Many students appreciate the single sign-in that they can now use for

WELCOME TO THE NEW PORTAL

Aspen offers various features not previously available on the old SIS Portal system, such as a and a daily homework planner and calendar, as well as groups that each student is involved intouches that offer a more personalized approach to a student portal.

anything related to Maine South, and view the planner as a helpful tool.

Others, such as sophomore Marissa Sulek, disapprove of the organization of information on the new portal.

“I liked the old portal because it was easier to navigate and more user friendly,” said Sulek. “The new Aspen system is confusing, especially when looking at specific assignments.”

There have been glitches with the system—especially for teachers— although it seems easier to adjust to than the old system.

“I went to the workshops, followed the instructions page-by-page

with instructors talking,” said social science teacher Ms. Koshgarian. “I asked questions when I didn’t understand things and my grades still haven’t been sorted out yet; I have people who are getting A’s with B’s by their names, people who are getting C’s that don’t have grades by their names.”

“Last time we had a new system, we all had problems with it too. It was very confusing. It’s just a learning curve, I’m sure it’ll all get sorted out in the end. I’m not that upset about it, but I’d like to feel like I know what I’m doing and not messing up my kids’ grades.”

February 17, 2012

| NEWS

Republican Primary Candidates So, who’s

income. Gov. Romney is anti-gay marriage, and is in favor of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Romney wants to reduce the capital gains tax, and would like to set the top income tax at 25%. If elected, Romney would use John Novak a military philosophy that President Staff Writer Ronald Reagan used in the 1980s: “peace through strength,” the goal he Iowa caucuses, held on Tuesof which is to create peaceful interday, Jan. 3, officially marked the national relations by having a very beginning of the 2012 Republican strong military. presidential primaries. It took until early Wednesday morning to declare a winner, and former governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney, was eventually declared the victor by a slim margin. But after a recount in certain precincts, the Iowa Republican Party officially declared former Pennsylvania senator, Rick Santorum, the actual winner of the Iowa Caucuses.

A breakdown of the race for Republican Nominee

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be the ultimate Washington outsider and, ironically, has been in government for over 20 years, is Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. Paul is outspoken in the Republican Party when it comes to foreign policy. He believes that the United States shouldn’t worry too much about foreign countries and should only focus on problems within the United States. Rep. Paul is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms.

Paul would like to repeal the 16th Amendment, which allows Congress to levy income tax without apportioning it among states or basing it on Census results. Paul is also against tax increases, approves of legalizing medical marijuana, and believes that the United States should end the federal war on drugs.

out?

These candidates had high hopes for nabbing the presidency, but couldn’t quite make it...

Michele Bachmann Initially thought to be a front-runner after winning the Ames Straw Poll in Iowa, Bachmann came in sixth in the actual caucuses. A day later, she dropped out of the race.

The Candidates

PHOTOS CREDIT GAGE SKIDMORE

Four candidates remain today: Gov. Mitt Romney, former Speaker Newt Gingrich, Senator Rick Santorum, and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas.

The field formerly included Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Gov. Rick Perry, and former Gov. Jon Huntsman of Utah.

Almost every candidate in the race to be the nominee for the Republican Party has been at the top of the polls at one point.

Mitt Romney

Gov. Mitt Romney has long been the front runner in the race after his failure to win the Republican bid in 2008. He was the governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007. Although Romney comes from wealth and is a part of the “1%,” he has made the middle class a clear point in his platform, and tends to downplay his

Newt Gingrich

Newt Gingrich saw himself on top of the polls after a decisive South Carolina primary victory. Gingrich was Speaker of the House from 1995 to 1999 during President Bill Clinton’s term. If elected President, Gingrich said he would implement a 15% flat tax. He supports the elimination of the capital gains tax in order to encourage investing and is also in favor of a Social Security system modeled after Chile’s version, in which young people would have a choice between using their own personal Social Security savings account or staying with the current system. Newt Gingrich is a strong proponent of space exploration and has said that he plans on establishing the first permanent base on the moon by his second term.

Rick Perry Infamous for forgetting one of the

government agencies he would eliminate during a CNBC debate, Perry dropped out shortly after finishing fifth in the Iowa caucuses.

Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum served as a Senator of Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007. He is pro-life and is against gay marriage, which has earned him the support of many devout Christian conservatives. He nabbed the Iowa caucuses from Mitt Romney in early January due to intense campaigning throughout Iowa. In 2006, Santorum voted in favor of reauthorizing the Patriot Act, which greatly lessens restrictions on United States law enforcement agencies in gathering intelligence and in detaining immigrants suspected of terrorismrelated acts. Santorum voted against preserving habeas corpus for Guantanamo Bay detainees. He is also in favor of retaining reduced taxes on capital gains and dividends in 2006 and would like to decrease the number of tax brackets from six to two.

He would also establish the top inRon Paul come tax at 28% and the bottom at The candidate who is considered to 10%.

Jon Huntsman Although Huntsman was at first

considered a major threat to the Obama campaign, he found the presidential campaign process a difficult transition from his prior work in international diplomacy.

Herman Cain After an unlikely surge due to his

debate skills and his victory in the Florida straw polls, Cain’s campaign faced controversy after allegations of sexual misconduct.

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NEWS

| February 17, 2012

School Board eliminates class rank Decision reverses earlier reinstatement Katherine Miles Staff Writer

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fter months of deliberation, the District 207 School Board has decided to eliminate class rank for the 2012-13 school year. This policy will be applied to Maine South, Maine East, and Maine West, the Youth Campus and the Alternative Resource center. Officials from District 207 consulted other suburban school districts, area colleges and universities, as well as the National Association of College Admission Counseling, before making the final decision.

As a result of unifying application tools like the Common Application, college applicant numbers have risen exponentially over the last few years.

This is particularly relevant for large universities for whom class rank can be a simple factor by which to reduce the number of students that they seriously consider.

However, Maine South counselor William Milano notes that class ranking can actually hurt a student’s chances for getting into some larger colleges and universities.

tials, some of which might include recommendations, extracurricular activities, test scores, community involvement, essays, course load, no importance: academic standing of the school 15.0% Considerable importance: the which they attend, and grades in 21.8% each class.

“Elimination of class rank will allimited importance: 25.9% low our students to better compete with other college applicants because moderate importance: of the greater focus on our college 37.2% preparatory curriculum and our students’ cumulative grade point average,” said Milano. * National Association for College Admission Counseling Students have received the news GPA for Class of 2011 at Maine South of the elimination of class rank with Weighted: 3.22 mixed responses. Those that view

Percentages of colleges attributing importance to class rank (2010) from NACAC*

Unweighted: 3.13

“Why should a solid B student suffer, in a sense, because they are not in the top half of their class?” said Milano. “Education is progressive. You’re going to get better at the next level. Our kids go off to universities and do fine. They’ve been taught proper study skills and can read, write, and do math well. Here in high school, they’ve learned those skills and how to improve those skills.”

School officials have determined that by doing away with class rank, college and university admission officials are forced to take a closer look at the student’s overall creden-

What colleges look at, besides class rank: her recommendations teac • • extracurricular activities • standardized test scores • transcripts and grades • grade point average • community involvement • essays • the difficulty of the classes ool • academic standing of the sch • interviews IARSKI

GRAPHICS BY AUSTIN BRYN

it as a motivating factor in earning good grades see its removal as detrimental to their college admissions process, while those that dislike the idea of being compared to the rest of their class based on GPA welcome the change.

“I like class rank,” said sophomore Kelly Kons. “It makes me want to do better in school and have a good class rank. It makes me set a goal for myself.”

However, some disagree. “What do I have to say about class rank?

Well, I’m happy they are getting rid of it,” commented sophomore Yavor Todorov.

Others are more indifferent.

“There’s no problem with it,” said sophomore Brian Johnson. “It really doesn’t hurt anyone.”

Even with the disappearance of class rank, academic achievement will still be recognized at Maine South.

“One thing that we will continue to do, is each school will continue to name ‘Maine Scholars’ that consist of the top one percent by (grade-point average),” said District 207 spokesman David Beery, “So students who really are at the very top of their class in terms of GPA will still have the distinction shown on their applications.”

Evidence of continuing pest problem arises Kristen Van Tine Staff Writer

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fter food inspectors examined Maine South’s Quest food service, the cafeteria received a letter grade of “D.” This was due to evidence of pest and rodent activity. However, the cafeteria was not fined or closed after receiving a poor grade.

In the kitchen, inspectors observed dead roaches. These specimens were discovered in the dishwasher room as well, along with mouse droppings located near the dishwasher. More mouse droppings were noted in the dry-storage room, and rat droppings were found in the

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salad bar and pizza lines.

According to Ann Benson, the Director of Quest Food Services for District 207, Maine South and Quest promptly responded jointly to remedy the situation, and upon inspection the next day, the cafeteria was given a report stating that there was no evidence indicating that any rodent or pest activity was still occurring.

Benson reports that in order to address food temperature concerns, handling procedures were altered, the labeling of times and temperatures was made more specific, and metal containers replaced some plastic ones. Additionally, equipment repairs and upgrades—replacing older door gaskets, and installing a refrigerated cold unit in the salad bar and new shelving in the walk-in cooler— also helped.

A pest-control company was em-

ployed to ascertain that all pests and rodents were terminated. To prevent future pest complications in the cafeteria, the company was also hired to put devices in the cafeteria to stop pests and rodents from getting into

the food service’s kitchens and service lines.

“We believe, and the health inspector has indicated, that we have successfully resolved the matters in question,” said Benson.

PHOTO BY DORA BIALY

Rodent droppings found in Maine South cafeteria

KITCHEN NOT-SO-CONFIDENTIAL

Upon kitchen inspection, dead cockroaches and mouse droppings were discovered in the vicinity of the dishwashers. After receiving a “D,” a pest-control company was called in to maintain a cleaner environment.

February 17, 2012

| ENTERTAINMENT

Creativity stirs at Flat Top Grill Nicole Shammo

Celebrity parents bring about life of ridicule for children

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Entertainment Editor s many of us are aware, Park Ridge provides us with many restaurant options. While Panera Bread, Potbelly, and the newborn Chipotle are acceptable places to gravitate to, let it be known that there exists a world of countless cuisines beyond our borders.

Over in the North Shore, a wide variety of foods caters the college students that occupy the Northwestern campus. A student favorite happens to be the “build your own” stir fry restaurant, Flat Top Grill.

Flat Top is busiest around dinner time, and even busier on the weekends. While most of the guests are college students, a handful of high school students fill the tables making it a great environment for all young adults.

Reservations may only be made after 9 p.m. There is usually a wait time, which varies depending on the time of day; however, it’s nothing to fuss about. If anything, there are many other things to occupy that time in the surrounding area, as it is in the heart of Evanston.

The waiters are quick to attend to each table, despite their minimal duties. They simply serve drinks and the potential appetizer to the table.

That being said, the visit to Flat Top is not too lengthy.

The quality of the food is dependent more so on the patron than the restaurant itself. With a plethora of ingredients available to add to your bowl, it will likely be different than anyone else’s. Certainly, some things may taste better together than others, but there is not much room for error in creating a personal bowl of stir fry.

The station offers recommended sauce combinations for the culinarychallenged or overwhelmed newcomer. Also, at the end of the station is a number of colored sticks that correlate to other items that can be added to your bowl, such as a shrimp skewer, roti bread, and soup.

Expert tips:

• Regardless of the amount of food

you take the price is the same. Fill it up and embrace the leftovers.

• Don’t go easy on the sauce. You will not taste it if you ladle it on only three times.

• Flat Top Grill is known for its roti bread. Try it.

Caela Ancona Staff Writer

s we all know, Hollywood is notorious for the latest and coolest trends. Whether it is in fashion, food, music, or anything in between, the public always seems to be following the paths of the celebrities.

The stars of Hollywood have started a new trend—absurd baby names.

Check out the weirdest and wackiest of them all.

1. Beach volleyball Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh and her husband Casey Jennings welcomed their little bundle of sunshine into the world in May, and named him, accordingly, Sundance Thomas.

2. Some of you may be familiar with the celebrity chef Jamie Oliver; if you’re not, he’s British, sarcastically funny, and cooks. He just had his fourth child, Buddy Bear Maurice, to add to his other three kids, Petal Blossom Rainbow, Daisy Boo Pa-

mela, and Poppy Honey Rose.

parents of the most fashionable five year old I know of, Suri Cruise! (Not 3. The fashionable Nicole Richie and to be confused with the new iPhone husband Joel Madden just welcomed feature, Siri). their second child Sparrow James Midnight, brother to Miss Harlow 8. Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie have a Winter Kate, who was born just in whole flock of kiddies with atypical time for the winter. names—Pax, Thien, Knox, Zahara, and Shiloh.

4. Singer/songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film di- 9. Michael Jackson’s kids will never rector, Frank Zappa, has two kids forget their gem of a father. But, really, they can’t. Every one of them is named Moon Unit and Dweezil. named after him. Michael Joseph 5. Most of you probably know singer Jackson, Jr. (a.k.a “Prince”), Paris M.I.A. from her ever so popular hit Michael Katherine Jackson, and my “Paper Planes” and her Super Bowl personal favorite, Prince Michael halftime show scandal. Well, she and Jackson II, or just “Blanket.” her husband recently just had child Ikhyd. The name has no origin and 10. Arguably the most famous celebis completely unique to this child. rity baby, and the youngest for that matter, is Blue Ivy Carter. A true heir 6. Orange? Banana? Grape? No, wait, to the hip-hop throne as the daughter Apple! The lovely Gwyneth Paltrow to the gorgeous Beyonce and husband and husband Chris Martin of Cold- Jay-Z. No matter how ridiculous this play, have an adorable daughter, with baby girl’s name is, she was born a a very unique name, Apple Martin. star. Jay-Z even recorded a song for her, featuring Blue Ivy herself crying 7. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are at the end of the song.

Retweets, reblogs, and now... repins?

Maddy Vogg Photographer

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ther request an invite from the website (which can take up to a couple of weeks to be approved) or have an alreadyactive pinner send you an invitation, allowing you to join right away. Once on the site, the pinning begins.

Pinterest, at a glance, may look like just another Stumbleupon, but it combines some of the best elements of other popular sites to create a personalized page. You “follow” other people, which allows you to see their bulletin boards—essentially

their walls. You yourself are allowed to follow other people and view their pins, which you can repin, adding them to your own personal collection.

Pinterest is a great place to find and organize new ideas. Pins often lead to blogs, which lead to stores, which lead to endless possibilities. So whether you are figuring out how to deck yourself for prom, or gather a collection of funny pictures and videos, Pinterest has all the answers.

acebook, YouTube, and Twitter have all ruled the social media world for years. Now, they are finding the need to step aside and welcome in the rapidly growing website Pinterest.com, who, according to tracking firm Hitwise, has been ranked one of the web’s top-10 social networks.

Pinterest is a two-year old website that has quickly gone from taking baby steps to large strides, with about 11.7 million active users—and growing. It serves as a visual bulletin board for the web, where people are able to create multiple boards full of pictures and videos of things that they like, want, or find inspiring. It features a range of content, but tends to be dominated by home decor, fashion, food, crafts, DIY’s, photography, and unique hair ideas.

The website’s audience is dominated by females, but males can too be found using the site. However, one thing that makes Pinterest different than most social networking sites is that it is private, so in order to PIN IT A typical pinboard looks like the above. They are essentially visual bookbecome a fellow “pinner” you must ei- marks, and each pin may be clicked to take you to the site it was originally posted.

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ENTERTAINMENT

| February 17, 2012

Winter Indie Music Wrap-up Hawkoscopes Joshua Timm

Soren Ramsey

Commentary Editor

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The Joy Formidable

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onventional wisdom would tell you that a grueling year of touring would leave a band worn out and ready for a winter break from concerts. Clearly, conventional wisdom does not apply to the members of The Joy Formidable, who powered through a packed, 75-minute set on Dec 14. With shows ranging from the parking lot show of Bonnaroo to an opening act slot for Foo Fighters, The Joy Formidable have experienced a roller coaster of a year.

Previously an indie rock gem, the Welsh trio has developed a solid core of fans in Chicago. The band made appearances at Lollapalooza and as an opening act for Foo Fighters.

Promising a return in March, singer/ guitarist Ritzy Bryan made it clear that The Joy Formidable would be a regular sight in the venues of Chicago.

Any thoughts of local overexposure, however, would have been wiped away as the band once again swept away the crowd with roaring choruses and piercing guitar solos.

At first glance, The Joy Formidable looks to be a very eclectic group of people. With her short blond hair and her purple sequined dress, one would never expect Bryan to have such control over a crowded venue or a sprawling festival. Her looks hide the fact that she possesses the voice of Joan Jett and the mouth of a sailor. With his tight button-down shirt and plaid hat, bassist Rhydian Dafydd looks as if he should be in a Celtic punk band, rather than a roaring shoegaze trio. Drummer Matt Thomas, who looked like a cross between Weird Al and Russell Brand, looks more appropriate as the wildhaired drummer of an indie group.

Despite their ragtag appearance, each member of the band brings something unique to the table. Bryan brought swirling layers of distortion and fuzz from her guitar, which melded with the restless movement of the bass. Thomas added bursts of double bass pedals, which are unusual in most music outside of metal. The band often seemed to let their sound get carried away, ending songs with lengthy jams and formless sound.

Part of the reason for the band’s success is due to the wide range of songs contained by a single album.

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Entertainment Editor Aries: Your relationship thrives on adventure and going out.

When your car is impounded, though, your boyfriend dumps you for Amy Kishins; she has a Camaro.

Taurus: You like to shower your girlfriend with gifts, but your plans usually go awry as most girls don't see World of Warcraft gold as a real gift.

Gemini: One person isn't enough for you. You go through boyfriends like the University of Illinois goes through applications from Maine South students.

Cancer: You put up walls to keep yourself from being hurt until you meet “the one.” However, when she sees the real you, she'll dump you after seeing what you've buried under the porch.

Leo: You're a natural flirt. You find high school relationships easy, and use your natural charm to earn a higher grade from Mrs. Pewterschmidt.

Virgo: You gravitate towards people that need a support net, but your relationships become catand-mouse games of control as you help your partner gain independence and then take it away.

Libra: You’re too focused on school. You ended your last relationship with a post-it-note in his Physics book, but he hasn't found it yet, so things are still awkward.

Scorpio: You aren’t afraid to look for love. However, actively looking for it disrupts the universe and you will never meet him, leaving you to live the rest of your life with your other love—your 19 cats, all named Milton.

Sagittarius: You accept all your boyfriend's flaws. Maybe you’re too accepting, as you frequently lie to the police for him.

Capricorn: You take romance seriously, but guys don't appreciate your use of graphs to show how much love you’ve lost for him.

Aquarius: The most important thing about a boy to you is his mind. After getting serious with him, you will realize that you actually love books, and leave him for Mark Twain. After you’ve realized he’s dead it will be too late.

Pisces: You know that your girlfriend is the one for you; you hope to marry her as soon as you meet in real life.

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PHOTO BY SOREN RAMSEY

U.K. PUNK AND GLOCKENSPIELS Los Campesinos! powered through a packed, 70-minute set full of pent-up rage, and poetic angst.

Their reportoire is dominated largely by roaring guitar-oriented anthems, but songs like “I Don’t Want to See You Like This” show the band’s more philosophical side. The trio backs up lyrics of a parent’s declining health with a mournful guitar part and resounding three-part harmonies.

Overall, the band put on a fantastic live performance, foregoing fancy effects and theatrics in favor of a raw, stripped-down sound. The buzz of the post-show crowd was infectious, as though people were already anxious for the band’s return.

Los Campesinos!

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os Campesinos! took the Metro stage on Jan. 27th as a very different band from previous Chicago appearances. Gone was the peppy violinist, who left the band to return to school. Gone was the original drummer, replaced by one who looked as if he’d be more at home across town at the Rise Against concert. Gone, too, was the kind of wry, tongue-in-cheek persona that always made Los Campesinos! fun to watch. The name of the game used to be songs filled with sex-driven teen angst, and a live show characterized by band members who were too busy to grow up. The majority of the band’s music was guitar-driven punk songs about failed relationships.

This new edition of Los Campesinos! seemed more subdued, more interested in writing serious songs about heartbreak and life. Of course, the older songs were just as depressing, but that sadness was coupled with lyrics about the detrimental effects of reading “Jane Eyre,” or musing on the stupidity of man.

Though the band’s trademark glockenspiel stayed off to the side

for most of the show, the energy radiating from the stage captivated the sold-out venue. As opening act Parenthetical Girls predicted, LC! was “very quaint, very charming, and very Welsh.” Singer Gareth Campesino!, (a last name the band members have given themselves), was constantly bantering with the crowd, calling the audience a “pit of despair,” and saying anyone who brought a girlfriend to the show was “missing out on the misery.” The band played almost all of their most recent album, “Hello Sadness,” but made sure to touch on their more popular older songs as well. Though new songs such as “By Your Hand” were well received by the crowd, it was clear that the crowd was waiting for old favorites such as “You! Me! Dancing!” and “The Sea is a Good Place to Think of the Future.”

The band’s newfound success is largely due to the band’s take on songwriting. Anyone can write songs on crushing breakups. It takes talent to write of the irony and the humor of it, and sing of that irony with a chorus of uppity pop-punk. However, their success has caused concerns among fans. It’s great to see one of LC!’s best songs, “You! Me! Dancing!,” used in a beer commercial featuring shots of Wrigley Field. However, when the band changed the line “Every single one of us is twisted by design” to “Every one of us, Budweiser till we die,” the thrill wore off.

The change put a sour note in the show, and tainted an otherwise great set. It almost sounded like the band was on the brink of selling out. Nevertheless, the show was one filled with passion, heartbreak, and wit. It showed the life of the local music scene despite piracy and a drop in record sales, and was hopefully a good omen of things to come.

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February 17, 2012

| ENTERTAINMENT

(Im)possibly the best Valentime of your life Adrian Adamiec Production Head

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onight, in a tale not for the faint of heart, we follow two separate parties and their markedly different V-Day adventures. The first, a teenage face-a-vore couple (whose natural habitat includes crowded high-school hallways) which will be referred to as “C” while the no-girls-allowed crew is from here on dubbed “A” for awesome.

6:00 P.M. C: He arrives 14 minutes later than agreed upon. Another seven pass before the awkward textmessage exchange of “U can come out now” and “kk.” A nervous father will secretly follow them in a suspicious white van he borrowed from his brother Ted, a plumber. His disgruntled child spends the ride to dinner thinking about how Romeo failed to escort her from door to automobile.

His excuse (after sincerely asking what was wrong and receiving a loaded answer of “Nevermind”) will be “I forgot an umbrella. Do you see how hard it’s raining?”

Her verdict: she must be getting fat.

A: Your friend got his paycheck. Your other friend also got his paycheck. This all coincides nicely with the paycheck in your pocket. Ideas are thrown around, such as Laser-tag. Laser-tag?

Oh, yeah. Laser-tag.

6:48 P.M. C: The dinner is all gone. Kind of like any hope

that our man can compensate with today for a missed, all-important, two-week anniversary he gets grilled about through the second to fourth courses (when his date wasn’t joining herds of migrating women en route to the bathroom). Soon, only the latest Rom-Com is on our couple’s agenda; a flick starring one-liners to make the Governator groan, a plot thinner than your great aunt’s hairline, and not a single T-shirt.

A: You and your friends burst out of the Laser-Zone—still clad in cheap plasticky armor—and drive away into oncoming traffic

(for added adrenaline).

9:06 P.M. C: Well, that cinematic disaster settles it; she’s dumping her man. Apparently, he isn’t enough “Like Edward,” a superhumanly strong, fast, pale, super-sensitive mythical being who sparkles under the UV lamps during indoor miniature-golf and will never die (eHarmony had better deliver). She was counting on hitching a ride with Pops (knowing he follows her everywhere), but the latter is in a bit of a pickle with police officers.

Apparently, the law looks down up on Middle-aged m e n c ov e r t l y spying on children in parking lots.

A: So far, the lefthand lane hasn’t

gotten you into any accidents, and you’ve also caught 27 consecutive green lights. Seeing as chance appears to be on your side, the three of you pitch in for a $15 scratch-off-card at 7-Eleven and end up winning $234,000,000, or what Bill Gates refers to as “fireplace-kindling.” With it, you take a Dreadnought Battleship off the Navy’s hands, which will be used as a security system for an island the three of you purchased and christened “Manland.”

10:38 P.M. C: After a drive home in silence, 15 minutes of arguing and 39 minutes of crying (by both individuals), the gentleman, against all intelligence, goes in for a kiss. On his first attempt, he misses completely.

On try #2, he smooches the girl’s eye.

Still fuming, our lady exits the vehicle, angrily slamming the car door on her own high-heeled shoe and tripping face-first into a puddle. It starts raining again.

A: “Manland” now has the world’s 9th largest economy. . . . O k a y, s o p e r h a p s a handful of people out there are in happy (mentally) stable relationships. The moral is simply that there’s SO much consumerism hype, so much comparing and c ompl ai n i ng w e’ v e f o r g o t t e n why Valentine’s Day exists.

Honestly, if you do have a special someone, please find an enjoyable or relaxing way to spend this lovely, romantic evening (read: good luck).

‘The Tempest’ takes Maine South by storm Danielle Soldat Staff Writer

M

a i n e S o u t h’s T h e a t e r Department is taking on the challenge of “The Tempest,” by William Shakespeare, for the winter play. Although the mere mention of Shakespeare automatically conjures thoughts of “Romeo and Juliet,” “The Tempest” is considered one of his finest works.

T h e s tor y c e nte rs arou n d Prospero, the former Duke of Milan, who is stranded on a magical island with his daughter, Miranda, for many years. The island is home to magical spirits, nymphs, and even a monster. The primary magical

being, Ariel, works with Prospero to cause a shipwreck. The ship belongs to Antonio, who initially stranded Prosper on the island; after Antonio’s ship of royals crashes on the island, three story lines emerge.

First, a goofy butler and his jester friend come in contact with the monster on the island, Caliban. Next, love grows between the king’s son, Ferdinand and Miranda.

Senior Sean Cahill-Lemme, who plays Ferdinand, notes, “Shakespeare throws in an interesting dynamic by making [Ferdinand] the only man Miranda has ever seen besides her father.”

The third and final plot to visit the island is that of the sinister duo,

Antonio and Sebastian. The two work together to kill Alonso, the king, and Gonzalo, a kind-hearted advisor and helper of Prospero and Miranda.

Speaking of the challenges of “The Tempest,” senior Matt Bonadona, who plays Prospero, commented, “Acting Shakespeare really is a challenge unto itself. Not only do you have to convey the emotions of the story, but also the meaning of the words themselves.”

The actors, however, aren’t the only ones noticing the difficulties in creating the show.

Another creative outlet put into the creation of the show is music.

Senior Alex Pantazi pieced together music for the show using mostly his own compositions.

“It’s such a cool and unique experience to be playing Alex’s beautiful music for ‘The Tempest,’ said senior Faye Levin-O’Leary. “Plus, we are going to be playing on stage which is going to be fun.”

She plays along with many other of Maine South’s musicians, including: Kyle Besetzny, Matt Coglianese, Britta Hoiland, Renee Kumon, and Pantazi himself.

“This is a show for all audiences,” said Cahill-Lemme. “ There is something in it for everyone: revenge, love, magic, comedy, and much more.

It is a wonderful classic that should not be missed.” The show opens on Thurs., Feb. 23 and closes on Sat., Feb 25.

SouthwordS 7

FEATURES

| February 17, 2012

HOW TO DO Spring trends for girls’ fashion LAUNDRY: their way onto runways, but it is important to wear them in a soft way, juxtaposing their obnoxiously bold qualities. Wearing them in an elegant silhouette gives the neon a more mature, thoughtful look.

Jason Wu executed this perfectly, closing his Kelsey Eichman show with an electricStaff Writer yellow gown with the ith an unseasonably warm most feminine ruffles winter, it’s easy to have shorts, and shape.

Floral prints were all sandals, and beachwear on your mind. Spring is just around the corner over every storefront, which means spring trends, arguably runway, and outfit last the most exciting and easy to wear spring and summer, styles, are just appearing in stores. an d t h e y are n ot With so many stores keeping up-to- going anywhere this date with runway fashion, it’s easy to spring. The majority copy runway looks for a fraction of of designers included the price. When shopping, some of some floral print in their the key trends to keep in mind are collections, but it differed from last colors such as azure, mint green, and year in that it was more tropical this red, prints such as tropical florals year. Many of the prints look like and tribals, and ladylike shapes they came off of the shirt of a father having a mid-life crisis in Hawaii. reminiscent of the 1940s.

Key colors this spring season Dolce & Gabbana, Proenza Schouler, include color options for both classic Alexander Wang, Altuzarra, Rodarte, a n d m a ny m o r e and wild styles. If designers used going for a this kind of more classic tropical, floral look, pastel p r i n t . It h a s sorbets are been interesting easy to find. to see how some Mint green was PHOTO CREDIT MANGO.COM of the most stylish used by several industry professionals have designers, including Proenza Schouler, Yves Saint Laurent, and interpreted this trend. Most noted Marc Jacobs. Fortunately, you do not are the people that wear the have to wait until next spring for this florals in an unexpected special color to trickle down into way, such as on a jacket. department stores…it’s already here. Also, mixing floral shorts Opt for a pair of mint green jeans at or pants with a striped Madewell ($88) or a mint green tie top is not overwhelming blouse from Topshop ($24). For a or clashing when done in bolder look, try red or orange. Red the right way. This trend made a huge arrival last fall and winter certainly has spring written (which means it has already made all over it.

Many designers, its way to stores) and continues to hold its ground in several designers’ though not all, focused on an hourglass shape collections.

Also, colorblocking, introduced reminiscent of the 1940s several seasons ago (most notably and 50s. The peplum in Gucci’s Spring 2011 collection), became a widely used continues to be present in collections, tool to create this shape. ad campaigns, streetwear, etc. To A peplum is a short create a more “springtime colorblock blouse that extends look,” 3.1 Phillip Lim used soft greens, from the waist of oranges, and pinks that successfully a garment to the gave a fresh air to an otherwise familiar hips. Acne used trend. Neon colors are still finding both neon pink

A guide for MS students A Southwords (Don’t lie—you know you need this.)

Separate colors from whites.

If ambitious enough, separate darker colors from lighter ones. Your boss will not appreciate your tie-dyed khakis as much as your friends will.

Note: If an item is just recently purchased, it is best to wash it by itself.

The ink on new clothes has a tendency to run when tossed around in water for an hour.

2

Turn washing machine on. To decrease this load’s carbon footprint, put your washing machine on its coldest function. After the water has started running, put in the desired detergent and its proper amount. Southwords suggests adding a touch of Downy for that comfycozy feel.

Note: Pay attention to labels. If ignored, a clothing item not meant to be washed or dried will turn into your dog’s Halloween costume.

3

8 SouthwordS



Once cleaned, transfer wet clothes from the washing machine to the dryer (still paying attention to the label.) Place one or two dryer sheets in with your clothes to optimize softness and that ‘fresh laundry’ smell.

Turn dryer on. Run clothes through on the normal cycle.

Note: Ladies—don’t run any “unmentionables” through the dryer.

The heat will ruin them.

PHOTO CREDIT TOPSHOP.COM

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1

W

ET.CO

ith approximately 600 of us heading off to college next year, the art of washing clothes will soon become a necessity. Unfortunately, as our mothers and fathers will not be joining us in our collegiate journey, it is imperative to understand just how this process works and how to replicate it. Fortunately, however, the act of doing laundry, once mastered, is a quick and effortless procedure.

TARG

W

CRED IT

Features Editor

guide for girls on this spring’s fashion dos and don’ts

PHOT O

Ally Stevens

and a peplum to create a top that has been buzzed about by the likes of Vogue a n d H a r p e r ’s Bazaar as the musthave top for spring.

Peplums g ive a feminine, flattering shape to tops and dresses, and easily dress them up.

However, other desig ners have been referencing the 1920s more.

Both Tory Burch and Marc Jacobs featured shift dresses, dropwaists, and sequins in their shows. Even ‘20s-esque hats were present in several shows. The Row, Oscar De La Renta, Marchesa, and Ralph Lauren all featured gorgeous gowns full of feathers, sequins, or beaded fringe that would have had any 1920s socialite swooning. Although these gowns may be a little out of reach for the average high-schooler, it is not hard to find affordable shift dresses or sequin styles.

To finish off a truly stylish spring look, accessories are essential. Earthy, woven accessories were featured in many designers’ collections. Burberry designed a brown wedge with braided leather that has set the tone for all other accessories to follow.

Simple, woven purses are a great option for someone looking for an affordable, casual, summer-ready option.

Most importantly, a new pair of shades marks the beginning of a sunshine-filled, warm season. This season, go bold with a pair of “out-there” sunglasses featuring crazy shapes and colors. A round-eye or a bright color might just be the perfect frame to a perfect view of springtime flowers and sunshine.

theFashionisto

February 17, 2012

| FEATURES

Editor-In-Chief hile Southwords has had a handful of fashion tips for girls throughout the years, we figured that we should even up the score and offer some advice for the guys at Maine South. Luckily, Southwords has found a resident fashion expert on staff in Charlie Vinopal, and he’s going to supply you with anything you’ll ever need to know about dressing for success.

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The Sporty Look

Don’t have time to shoot back home to grab workout clothes to go tone that six-pack you’ve been working on? No problem. Just bring the workout clothes to school—on your body. Throw on a pair of gym shorts, a white Hanes T-shirt, and a hoodie, and you can do anything from running a mile to doing your math homework. Helpful hint: While some like to pay extra for luxuries like pockets in their shorts, there’s a far more fiscally-responsible option. Cut a hole in the exterior layer of your shorts near the waistband and it creates an efficient and, most importantly, free pocket to hold your things while you max out that lat pull.

The Classic “SweatshirtSweatpants Combo”

Everyone has those mornings: you stayed up far too late the previous night, and you are just not “feeling it” in the morning. Luckily, looking good doesn’t require you to be fully conscious. Just pull on a hooded sweatshirt or a noodie and some old, tattered sweatpants and

What’s your Maine South fashion pet peeve?

Charlie Vinopal

“When kids wear their pants really low.”

- Matt Urbanski ‘15

“Kids who make the effort to wear hats between classes.”

- Jimmy Mroz ‘14

“Translucent leggings.”

-Jane Acker ‘13

Formalwear Your Way

Look, I understand how hard it is when girls can’t help but ask you to every dance, but you have to go—and when you do, you must arrive in style. We all know the worst part about dressing up for dances is the tie; it takes forever to get it just right, and even then, you take it off about three minutes into the dance. Luckily it doesn’t have to be this way. Zipper ties or clip-ons provide a wonderful alternative to the traditional neckwear and come in a variety of colors and styles (Kohl’s, $5). Pair that with the same suit coat you wore to commencement in eighth grade (because saving money is fashionable, too) and you’ll be the belle of the ball.

“Dave Sonnicksen getting a haircut.”

-Mady Baer ‘12

SouthwordS 9

FEATURES

| February 17, 2012

Penmanship becoming extinct Alex Heyde

Staff Writer hese days, we have dozens of options at our fingertips. We email, we text, we tweet—the world has transformed, and schools like Maine South are quickly catching on. Teachers strive to find new and creative ways to integrate technology into the curriculum, and as a result, students are handwriting less and less.

For centuries, penmanship was a key subject in school. Some even considered it an art form. Most of our parents and teachers can remember spending hours a day practicing their cursive in grade school, and when word processing and personal email were only just beginning to emerge, good handwriting was vital.

These days, though, it seems that schools have largely expelled penmanship from the curriculum. Sure, the second and third graders over in District 64 and other neighboring districts must still go through the tedious routine of copying words and sentences from dotted line to dotted line, but by the time they reach high school, many students have gone years without writing a single cursive letter.

Many teacher continue to threaten that students with statements like, “soon enough, you’ll have to write everything in cursive, so you better learn now” but that day never seems to arrive. At Maine South, most students still exclusively print, and teachers simply could not care less.

“I honestly don’t care if an assignment is written in cursive.” Mrs. O’Donnell, a fifth grade teacher at Roosevelt, stated. “To me, it’s far more important to be able to read what the student has written. I’d much rather read something written neatly. I do think it’s important for everyone to know how to write in cursive, though.

A beautifully written page in cursive

PHOTO BY DES MUSTAFA

T

SCRIPT FOR SUCCESS

According to a study at Indiana University, children with the ability to write in cursive have ‘more enhanced and adult-like” neural activity compared to those who don’t.

will warm any teacher’s heart.”

A similar phenomenon is happening across the nation, and, consequently, fewer and fewer students are choosing to write in cursive. A 2007 report by the College Board found that only 15 percent of SAT test takers opted to write the required essay in cursive, while the other 85 percent chose to print. In part, this may be because students with less practice in penmanship can take up to twice as long to write in cursive than in print, depleting valuable time that could otherwise be used to add examples or develop a conclusion.

But some claim that, in a roundabout way, standardized tests themselves are at fault for the decline of handwriting ability in schools.

Pressured to prepare students for assessments like the ISAT and the ACT, many teachers and school districts feel that there simply is not enough time to spend teaching penmanship. And with many standardized tests shifting to a computerized system, including the MAP test and an increasing number of AP tests, writing tests may soon

all be typed anyway.

So is penmanship dead, then?

Perhaps cursive is indeed less useful today than it was some decades ago.

Regardless of the trend, though, some still prefer cursive.

“I like it because it simply seems quick and more sophisticated,” said senior Patrick Wohl.

Typing is one of the most popular summer school courses for incoming freshman at Maine South, and for good reason: not only do most teachers prefer to read typed work, but in today’s world, many employers consider typing ability to be essential or, at the very least, highly relevant.

Nonetheless, few would consider penmanship an entirely pointless skill. Students who have been practicing cursive for years can often write quickly and fluently. They also can more easily read cursive written by others, a helpful skill according to Time Magazine, which reports that over 35 percent of adults still primarily use cursive when writing by hand, despite the rapid decrease in its exclusive use since the 1980s.

“I like to write in cursive because I find it easier and more efficient than printing,” sophomore Jenny Wessel stated.

And when writing essays, good handwriting may be even more valuable. Studies on what has been termed the “handwriting effect” continue to suggest that a student’s handwriting can affect the grade that a teacher awards one of his or her essays by upwards of 20 percent. So students who learn penmanship early on may be at a significant advantage later in life.

Although it is now left to choice, studies demonstrate that handwriting better develops a child’s brain. In a study done at Indiana University by neuroscientist Karin Harman James, results show that the brain of a child who learns to write in cursive develops fine motor skills faster and more efficiently than the brain of a child who doesn’t.

While few students at Maine South use it, most us have learned how to write in cursive and have, in that sense, already reaped the benefits of penmanship.

Name that handwriting Generally speaking, studies have shown that a discernible difference exists between male and female handwriting. Can you correctly determine the gender of these 11 Hawks by their script?

10 SouthwordS

GPA’s negative effects

February 17, 2012

| COMMENTARY

Being overly concerned with their GPA can prevent students from truly experiencing high school ried about their GPA. High school is supposed to be hard, but you should Staff Writer still be able to have fun,” said sophos of last month, the school board more Maggie Schmit. decided that class rank won’t be In addition, the way the system reported on students’ transcripts. Re- is set up can be unfair. Sophomore moving class rank may end students’ Molly Butler says, “It’s not a reliable obsession with competition among way to assess a student’s ability: an A their peers, but it doesn’t change the in Accelerated History is worth the fact that students are still fixated on same as an A in AP Euro. It doesn’t their grade point averages, or GPAs. reflect the effort students put into “Are students obsessed with GPA? hard classes.” GPA doesn’t take into Yes. But is it justified? Yes,” counselor account the difference between AP Ms. Terry Rausch said. Beginning and accelerated classes even before high school, students foSo, what now? Because colleges cus on raising their grades to get into are still using GPA as a major admistop classes and, hopefully, to get into sions factor, there’s no easy solution. top colleges.

GPA is here to Why is this stay, but there are a problem? Stu- “People get so worried things that students realize about their GPA. High dents can do. the impact that Many colleges their GPA will school is supposed to be provide the ophave on them hard, but you should be tion of an interfor the rest of view or a letter able to have fun” their school cato explain why reer. “GPA can GPA may —Maggie Schmit ‘14 your pretty much not match your determine true potential. where you go Generally, colto college,” said leges will not imsophomore Frank Lally. “It’s getting mediately disregard a well rounded to have too much influence, and it student with a slightly lower GPA. doesn’t show anything about your Also while you’re still in high character.” school, choose your classes carefully.

While GPA isn’t the only thing If you don’t actually like computers, that colleges consider, it’s one of the don’t take AP Computer Science just most important. One bad semester for your GPA. Find something you’re can seriously hurt a student’s chances interested in, and take that instead, of getting into a school of his or her even if it’s non-AP Drama or Fashchoice. ion. You might find something you “Sometimes, it gets hard not to really like, and that’s far more imporobsess over my grades,” said sopho- tant than one simple number. more Lily Elderkin. This obsession Furthermore, it is possible that can cause students to manipulate the school could stop calculating their schedules to keep their GPA as GPA on transripts. Colleges should high as possible. A student might be look at a student’s high school able to take Calculus BC, but choose coursework and the grades earned to drop down to Calculus AB be- in specific classes to judge for themcause they’d have a better chance to selves which A’s and B’s should be get an A and keep their GPA up. held in higher esteem.

On the other hand, some students Grades are important, but stufeel pressured into the hardest class- dents need to calm down. Colleges es for the GPA boost. For three-sport want students who are well-rounded athletes, members of multiple clubs, and active in their schools and comor others who are very involved in munities, not students with perfect extracurriculars, this can be too GPAs and no extracurriculars. It’s much. This can cause students to time to worry about everything that give up their other activities to pre- makes you appealing to a college, not serve their GPAs. “People get so wor- just your GPA.

Jenna Galuska

A

SouthwordS 11

COMMENTARY

| February 17, 2012

STAFF EDITORIAL

Students versus staff The root of the most familiar high school conflict is simpler than it appears

T

he lack of respect between staff and students at Maine South is a rather constant feature of the school.

Whether it be in the form of talking back to teachers, ignoring hall monitors, or mocking librarians, most of the disrespect comes from the students, whether or not we recognize our actions as disrespectful.

Our own sense of entitlement is the real root of the issue. We have grown up believing that respect must be earned, and we don’t seem to believe that many members of the staff have earned that respect. While this justification makes sense to many students, it only works where there is equality.

Whether we like it or not, we are not on an equal level with the school’s staff. They have the ultimate authority over us. If school is to function properly as an institution, they must have this authority. Maine South’s staff does not have to earn our respect—by providing us with an education, they are already entitled to it.

The students’ sense of entitlement seems to cause much of the disrespect. Many students argue that the staff does not treat the students with the respect they deserve. It is not un-

common to hear students complaining about teachers who they claim have treated them unfairly or a librarian who “has it in” for them. While it is true that students are sometimes treated unfairly by staff members, these allegedly unjust situations are usually just instances in which special exceptions to rules were not made.

“Good kids” get irritated when staff members treat them like “bad kids.” They feel like staff members assume that they are going to commit a crime before they do. For this reason, many of the rules put in place may seem ridiculous to students. Locked doors and restrictions on the number of students allowed into the library set students off on angry rants. We come into high school and are expected to act like adults, but we are still treated as children. Our frustration makes sense. Even so, that’s no reason for us to disrespect the staff.

It’s important to remember that the rules enforced are not made up by the staff. It’s the staff ’s job to enforce the rules. We also have to keep in mind that there are over 2,000 students in Maine South, and it’s impossible for the staff to distinguish between which students are “good kids” and which students are going to cause trouble. While only a handful of kids would actually abuse special privileges or exemptions from the rules, it’s necessary that the staff assumes that all students would abuse these privileges if they want to keep the school

from falling into chaos.

It’s also important to note that the more “ridiculous” rules set in place are often due to a lack of resources.

The limit on the number of students allowed into the library and the locking of the doors to the writing lab are necessary because the school doesn’t have the staff needed to monitor larger numbers of students each period.

This lack of resources is frustrating to both students and staff, and it most certainly isn’t the staff ’s fault.

We must also realize that staff members have lives outside of school.

It would be unfair on our part to expect them to be completely courteous towards everyone in the face of personal crises that could be happening in their personal lives. It doesn’t even have to go that deep—perhaps they had to deal with a particularly obnoxious student earlier in the day.

As students, we are not above the rules, whether they make sense to us or not. We are not above the system, no matter how desperate we are to hate it. Our refusal to recognize our increasing disrespect only makes the relationship between the staff and the student body more volatile, and student behavior is downright embarrassing.

As long as teachers give us their time and energy, we should give them our respect. If there is to be any change in the relationship between staff and students, it has to start with us.

Maine South High School 1111 South Dee Road Park Ridge, IL 60068 Signed letters to the editor should be delivered to LRC1, given to a member of the editorial staff, or e-mailed to southwords@ maine207.org. Southwords reserves the right to edit material for clarity and brevity and to reject obscene/libelous submissions.

Editors-in-Chief Jimmy Loomos Charlie Vinopal Managing Editor Austin Bryniarski Production Head Adrian Adamiec News Editors Dora Bialy Caroline Murphy Sarah Tarabey Entertainment Editors Nicole Shammo Joshua Timm Features Editors Des Mustafa Ally Stevens Commentary Editors Gianna Carrozza Sarah Hands Soren Ramsey Sports Editors Hope Allchin Nicole Johnson Erin Martelll

12

SouthwordS

GRAPHIC BY SARAH HANDS

Photography Editor Josie Fioretto Copy Editor Adam Smith Adviser Mr. Stathakis

February 17, 2012

| COMMENTARY

Technology truly makes the user disconnected Charlie Vinopal Editor-In-Chief

U

ntil a couple weeks ago my phone was a small rectangular piece of plastic that could send texts and make calls. That was it. Literally. There was one background option (blue sky with some grass), and there was obviously no room for a camera, as that space was taken up by the rotary dial on the front of the phone.

The tipping point for me came when I realized that I couldn’t save contacts into my phone and had to rely strictly on muscle memory. So, after numerous failed attempts to commit my home phone number to memory, I decided it was time to upgrade to a smart phone.

When I finally decided to buy it,

I thought everything was going to be great. After years and years of having to deal with increasingly bad phones, I have a top of the line smart phone equipped with anything I could ever need: Facebook, Twitter, ESPN, and a cast of other apps were in the palm of my hand.

I have found, however, that having such a high level of accessibility on my new phone has made me more distant from the world around me. Before I can really accomplish anything, I have to check my notifications on Facebook, see what’s trending on Twitter, and study my ESPN app to see if the Cubs have made any recent transactions. Reality has now taken a back seat to technology in my daily routine.

A few nights ago I realized that I had a couple of games to finish on Scramble With Friends. I finished my final round in the game, and then took care of a couple other things on my phone. When all was said and done,

the clock read 9:30 and I had been on for two-and-a-half hours. There are so many more productive things like my homework that I could have accomplished in that two-and-a-half hour span, but I chose to waste it by playing a game and watching three episodes of “Mad Men” on Netflix.

Don’t get me wrong, I think having all of these amenities so readily available is amazing, but I also believe that there can be too much of a good thing.

Why should I wait to talk to someone tomorrow when I can text them now? That is the main problem with the advent of all the technology that is supposed to make communication and our lives in general much easier; we are losing the necessity for human interaction.

In English last year we studied transcendentalism, which is a phi los ophy t hat pre aches t he importance of living simply. One of our assignments was to create a

transcendental challenge for ourselves and report back a week later. I chose to deprive myself of Facebook for an entire week.

For those seven days, I felt completely disconnected, but I also felt a sense of freedom. I was no longer bound to the media outlets that so dictated my life and I was in turn able to be more productive with my time. When that week was up, however, I found myself once again completely tethered to all of my social media outlets.

Technology will only become more readily available as time goes on, but our challenge as a society will be to not let that dictate how we live our lives. I’m not saying we should pull a full “Walden” and go live out in the woods, but I feel that limiting the amount of time we spend with technology could bring great benefits.

Now, if you will excuse me, I think I just heard my phone go off.

copyrighted sites.

The Internet has become a necessity for 21st century high school students, and there are many benefits to an unregulated Internet. Facebook, Apple, and other companies have grown tremendously and have provided jobs for thousands of people because there are no boundaries to the Internet.

“The Internet is the most powerful tool we have for creating a more open and connected world,” said Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

“We can’t let poorly thought out laws get in the way of the Internet’s devel-

opment.”

Although the SOPA and PIPA acts were rejected, proposals for more extreme Internet regulations, like ACTA and OPEN, have emerged.

Piracy is theft and should be prevented. However, Internet censorship is not the solution to limiting piracy. The first step should be to educate the public about the issue.

Rather than passing new laws, the public should be informed of what piracy is and its negative effects on large industries.

Some people commit acts of piracy and don’t even realize it. If users become more educated on piracy, they can take action to report websites to notify the government of wrongdoing. Secondly, the producers of copyrighted materials should improve the technology of their products by making them more piracy-free.

Just as credit card companies and banks have developed better technology against thieves, the media industry should improve the copyrights on their products.

We should be more focused on limiting the “Internet pirates’” capabilities instead of limiting all of the Internet users.

Marisa Sclafani Staff Writer

H

ave you ever downloaded a movie from the Internet without paying? How about copying your friend’s music CD onto your iTunes? Most people who have used the Internet are guilty of retrieving copyrighted content for free; technically, even using a search engine like Google to find free information is a form of file sharing.

But consider this on a slightly smaller but more illegal scale: every day, hundreds of millions of people around the world view and share protected files for free on the Internet—a collective action better known as piracy.

By hosting only free material, these companies were able to evade prosecution for copyright infringement and piracy for an impressively long period of time. Entertainment is one of the main industries in the United States as well as one of the main targets for piracy. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), reported that 58 billion dollars were lost to the U.S because of pirated software.

Realizing that they cannot stop piracy, the media industry has pushed the government to pass laws limiting

user’s activities on the Internet. Although this may help protect artists from losing income, the legislation may end up causing more negative than positive effects.

Wikipedia users recently discovered the site replaced by a grave message; “Imagine a World Without Free Knowledge.” This powerful statement was an attempt by search engines to demonstrate what could happen if the laws are passed.

Current sophomore Emily Vaughan experienced this first hand. “Wikipedia is a great place for general information; it’s a quick search that is easily accessible and provides an overview of what I am looking for,” said Vaughan After being confronted with the black screen, she too was worried that Internet censorship would become “out of hand.”

Wikipedia sponsored this “blackout” in order to raise awareness about two Acts proposed by Congress-the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). These acts would limit the Internet by blocking websites that violate copyright rules and allow corporations to sue search engines that contain

GRAPHIC BY ADRIAN ADAMIEC

Internet freedom is important to students

SouthwordS 13

SPORTS

| February 17, 2012

Karen Solari, ‘08

Jackie Rieger, ‘09

Juan Dias, ‘11

Michelle Tourtillott, ‘08

Joe Brewster, ‘10

Andrew Salomon, ‘11

Mark Corsello, ‘07

Chris Brassell, ‘09

Kevin Polston, ‘10

Boyan Savici, ‘11

Allison Groessl, ‘08

Colin Baer, ‘09

Brandon Yagihashi, ‘10

Michael Williams, ‘11

Sport: Basketball Illinois Wesleyan University 324 Career points (90 games)

Here is a look at a few talented Maine South athletes competing in college.

Sport: Wrestling Elmhurst College (IL) 3x All-American Wrestler

Sport: Basketball Carthage College (IL)

Exercise and sports science major

Sport: Basketball Saint Xavier University (IL) 5’10” starting guard

Sport: Wrestling St. Cloud State University (MN) 2011 Academic All-American

Sport: Wrestling Elmhurst College (IL) 2-3 Record, 157lbs (2010-11)

Sport: Basketball Western Illinois University Communications major

Sport: Wrestling South Dakota State University Redshirted for freshman season

Sport: Swimming Ripon College (WI) Record for 200 freesytle relay

Sport: Water Polo Michigan State University Chemical Engineering Major

Sport: Wrestling Lakeland College (WI) Career ambition of a DEA

Sport: Swimming University of Chicago First year freestyle competitor

Sport: Wrestling Triton Jr. College (IL) Wrestling at 174 lbs.

Sport: Wrestling Triton Jr. College (IL) Wrestling at 141 lbs.

Hope Allchin

Sports Editor ike most of her peers, sophomore Athena Cruz deals with the typical stresses of high school. Unlike her peers, though, her sport of choice is not basketball or soccer. Instead, Cruz is a competitive fencer.

“In second grade I was obsessed with the movie ‘Parent Trap’ with Lindsey Lohan,” she said. “At the time, she was my idol. I told my mother I wanted to do fencing like the girls from the first camp scene in the movie. Just a few weeks after my telling her I was interested, my future fencing coach became one of her clients, and that’s how I started fencing.”

Cruz has now been fencing for eight years, but she has not been able to fence as often due to school and other activities. She used to fence for the Illinois Fencers Club (IFC), a private club in Mount Prospect. She has competed in local tournaments in Evanston and Chicago.

After four years, Cruz progressed into fighting with an Epee sword, instead of a Foil sword, which is used by beginners. The Epee sword allows fencers to attack the entire body, whereas a Foil sword limits the athlete to the chest area. She considers

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this one of her major accomplishments and a remarkable aspect of the sport.

“I think the most interesting part of the sport is that there are only three swords and they have different types of grips. You know a person’s level by what grip they use,” says Cruz. She began fencing using the French grip, but advanced to the more difficult Pistol grip, which is more accurate and most often used on the competitive level.

A typical workout for Cruz is a quarter mile run, stretches, a footwork warm-up, and a jump rope session. She then gears up to fence for an hour to 90 minutes. Although she has suffered lots of small bruises on her arm and rolled ankles, she has never had a serious injury from fencing. She attributes the risk of injury as one of the reasons that fencing is not a common sport in the United States.

“It’s not as popular here as it is in Europe and a lot of people are scared that you can be seriously stabbed, but there is a lot of protection like a mask, plastic chest protectors, extra arm padding and gloves with an enormous amount of padding,” remarks Cruz.

Despite the risks, Cruz loves the

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ATHENA CRUZ

South student competes as fencer A typical mask worn by fencers when competing. In addition to the mask, fencers take many other precautions to prevent injury. Cruz poses in her fencing uniform.

sport and appreciates the friends that she has met.

“Meeting new people is always a bonus. Since we are such a small community, you pretty much know who you fence and the pros and cons about them,” she says. Each person has an individual style and discovering her competitors’ fighting techniques is one of Cruz’s favorite parts of the sport.

The rarity of the sport and people’s reaction to learning she is a fencer is another aspect that Cruz enjoys.

“I like that I’m involved with it because when I tell people I fence they either think I build fences or just sword fight and it can make me chuckle at times. When I tell people that I do sword fighting, they always

respond ‘that’s so cool,’” she says.

Cruz is unsure if fencing will be a part of her future, but for now she will continue to fence in the summer. She hopes that the popularity of fencing will continue to grow, but for now she is content being one of the few Maine South fencers.

February 17, 2012 | SPORTS

Kay Thursby Staff Writer

“Y

ou play football, you play baseball, you play hockey. You don’t ‘play’ wrestling. It’s a lifestyle,” said head coach Craig Fallico, soon to be an inductee into the IWCOA (Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Assosciation) Hall of Fame.

This year’s boys’ wrestling team went from being underdogs, with a predicted win percentage of .500, to the second-best team in the Central Suburban League South conference.

The wrestlers fought their way to a 17-6 record overall with numerous impressive accomplishments.

With seven All-Conference wrestlers, the Hawks “really came together,” according to Coach Fallico.

A season highlight for the team was their success over winter break.

They went undefeated over that stretch and beat highly-ranked Notre Dame.

At Regionals, the Hawks placed second with a total score of 161 points, losing to favored Maine West

Dan

BREWSTER

who earned a total of 218.5 points.

All of the athletes wrestled to their seed and four even wrestled above, according to Coach Fallico.

Despite several disappointing matches in the final round of the tournament, eight members of the team progressed to sectionals with hopes of competing at state.

“I’m happy with the way the season ended up,” remarked Coach Fallico. “The last month and a half has been a total flip-flop. It has been one of the hardest first halves of the season [I’ve coached].”

Senior captain Tony Mastrolonardo also believed that the season was a success.

“As a team this year, we had a lot of doubts because we lost a lot of seniors and starters last year. We worked really hard and definitely earned the respect that we deserve,” said Mastrolonardo.

The 2011-2012 boys’ wrestling season was not only a success on the mats, but also in the community.

Like past years, the wrestling team volunteered their time for an annual

Year: Sophomore Record: 32-7 Weight class: 145 lbs.

Season highlight: Winning the Batavia tournament

“EARN IT” Senior Mike White pinning a Maine East wrestler at the recent

Regional event. White went 30-8 this season and was one of nine Hawk wrestlers who went to Sectionals.

community service trip to help the homeless. This year, there were a record 300 people served.

This yearly trip and the season has helped shape the wrestlers.

“They should be proud of themselves,” said Coach Fallico of his wrestlers. He also noted that the seniors stepped up this season and “truly developed as great leaders and good men.”

Terry

CALKINS

“This wrestling season has changed my life,” senior captain Mike White said. “It has taught me the true meaning of sacrifice, determination, and hard work. I can only say thank you to the coaches for everything, especially to wrestle for the Hawks.

I will miss the team and everything that goes with it deeply.”

Sectional

SPOTLIGHT

Year: Junior Record: 21-15 Weight class: 106 lbs.

Season highlight: Placing second in Regionals

JoAmNarZilI

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Tom B

REWSTER

Year: Junior Record: 35-4 Weight class: 120 lbs.

Season highlight: Winning Regionals

Year: Senior Record: 28-11 Weight class: 138 lbs.

Season highlight: Winning the CSL tournament

Zach TA

NicCkHAEFER

ALMAN

Year: Junior Record: 24-14 Weight class: 160 lbs.

Season highlight: Receiving All-Conference Honors

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Year: Senior Record: 25-12 Weight class: 285 lbs.

Season highlight: Going out to eat with the guys after tournaments

PHOTO COURTESY MRS. WHITE

Maine South wrestling shines at Sectional event

Tony

Year: Senior Record: 29-11 Weight class: 126 lbs.

Season highlight: Wrestling at Regionals

MASTROLONARDO

MikHeITE

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Year: Senior Record: 30-8 Weight class: 195 lbs.

Season highlight: Achieving most of my set goals

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boys’ basketball

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girls’ gymnastics

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wrestling

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girls’ basketball

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boys’ swimming

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cheerleading

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hockey

Erin Martell Sports Editor

W

ith their 22nd place finish at the state competition in early February, the competition season for the Maine South Cheerleaders came to an end. Although they were hoping to finish in a higher place at the competition, they still consider their season an overall success with several top finishes at various competitions throughout Illinois.

Their initial goal as a team was to place fifth or higher in every competition. They went beyond this, placing in the top four teams at each of their competitions, as well as placing first in their conference.

“We had great competition results,” says the team’s youngest-ever captain, sophomore Sarah Otis. “We scored in the high 80s and low 90s at all of our competitions. Though winning our fourth consecutive CSL conference champion title was thrilling, winning first place out of 22 teams and beating the first and second teams in the state

was by far the greatest achievement yet.”

Indeed, placing so well in the Grayslake North Invitational was quite an achievement. The Hawks placed first out of 22 teams, beating 2011 state champs, Lake Zurich, and 2011 state runner-up, Conant.

“At the competition, we really didn’t expect to place all that well,” says senior captain Katie Solberg. “We had just switched around our routine that week. However, we ended up hitting a perfect routine. It was absolutely amazing to hear our name called as the champions.”

But cheerleading at Maine South goes beyond their competitive success.

There is also much to be said about the bond formed after practicing day after day, year-round. The cheerleaders train for many different aspects of their competitions, including voice volume.

Often, they will be required to cheer while completing a workout on the track. They also are required to keep a GPA of 3.0 or higher in order to remain a member of the squad.

“I love the people,” says Solberg.

What would be the location of your dream date?

Who is your celebrity crush?

What is your favorite romantic comedy?

What is the most romantic thing you have ever done?

PHOTO COURTESY KATIE SOLBERG

Competitive cheer season ends

FIRST PLACE

The cheerleaders finished first at the Grayslake North Invitational. They finished atop the 22-team field, which included the former state champion.

“Although it’s not always fun to have to do drills at practice, my squad always makes me laugh and I’ll miss them a ton next year. I also love performing the routine at competitions; it’s amazing when a stunt hits perfectly, and you hear the crowd go wild.”

Of course, a close-knit team is the product of coaching. The team is led by head Coach Pati Coy, who has been at Maine South through their past three years of continued improvement.

“We must balance our cheer support for the Maine South basketball teams with practices and choreography for the IHSA cheer competitions while exhibiting positive attitudes, teamwork, school pride and academics,” says Coy. “In order to receive high scores for competitive cheer, our athletes train to improve their skills in tumbling, stunts, pyramids (connected stunts), jumps, motion technique, & dance while cheering.”

Regan Carmichael

Mike Dobben

Molly Gaughan

Matt Lahey

Dinner downtown

A riverboat downtown

Somewhere in Mexico

A beach

Derrick Rose

Selena Gomez

Ryan Gosling

Megan Fox

“No Strings Attached”

“Hitch”

“Bridesmaids”

“Hangover 2”

serenaded someone with a song

made duct tape roses

ice skated in Millennium Park

bought a nice bracelet