Oct FINAL - FreedomForum

Transcription

Volume 44 Issue 2
October 2010
Freedom High School - 3149 Chester Avenue - Bethlehem, PA 18020 - freedomforum.wikispaces.com
Fall Sports Goes Out With a Bang
BP Oil Spill
Effectively Dead
By Mike Vitoroulis,
Staff Writer
Remember how vacation in
June was postponed due to the
oil spill? It was postponed once
again in mid-July, and then all
together cancelled because the
Mexican Gulf was overflowing
with millions and millions of
barrels of crude oil.
As of September 19, 2010, the
BP Oil Spill has officially been
declared effectively dead by the
government.
The spill, which started on
Photos Courtesy of Sean Cassidy / Photo Editor
Above: The girls’ tennis team finished their 2010 season winning second place
in the Lehigh Valley Conference. Marielle McIntyre, junior, finished in third
place in singles districts, and junior Julie Boylan placed second at the LVC.
Top Right: The boys’ cross country team finished in fourth place in the Lehigh
Valley Conference Championships. Josh Ehret finished in third place and Nathaniel Palmer finished in fifth place out of 114 competitors. Shana Peterson
and Alexa Deemer were voted “honorable mention” for the girls’ cross country
team.
Right: Senior Steven Kluemper finished in sixth place in the District 11 tournament, allowing him to qualify for the East Regional tournament.
FHS Teacher Runs On
November Ballot
By Julie Boylan,
Asst. Features Editor
Charles Moyer is known at
Freedom High School for his
role as a special education
teacher and debate coach.
But this November, he‘s becoming known for another
role entirely – candidate for
State Representative.
Moyer, a member of the
Green Party, is running this
year for the office of State
Representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly
in District 145. The current
holder of that seat is Republican Paul Clymer.
On his website, Moyer
states that he is running because he wants a better government, ―a government
whose purpose is to protect
and empower its people.‖ Moyer also strongly
believes that the two party
system has become corrupt,
hence his candidacy with the
Green Party, a third party.
―I don‘t think the Republicans and Democrats can do
anything,‖ says Moyer. ―The
corporate parties are too tied
to corporate interests…I
think there‘s a lot of solutions we could be doing, and
we‘re not doing it because
they‘re taking corporate
money.‖
Instead of writing letters or
petitioning, Moyer has chosen to run for office to show
FHS Cracking Down on
Healthy Dieting?
By Navea Frazier,
Staff Writer
As the bell tolls for lunch,
many students at Freedom
High School are sighing not
in relief, but in exasperation
at the new and healthier
school lunch that they are
being made to consume.
It is easy to see why the
Bethlehem Area School District has enacted this healthier lifestyle regime for the
kids that attend their schools.
According to the Trust for
American‘s Health (TFAH),
the state of Pennsylvania
during the year of 2009 recorded 29.7% of the children
populous of the state had a
weight standing at obese or
overweight. However, a
number of students at Freedom are pondering whether
the switch to supposedly
Andrew Mattei / Staff Photographer
Freedom’s right-side cafeteria glistens in the sunset.
wholesome meals is the right
change that will save their
lives.
A good number of students feel that the new
school lunch will have a
miniscule effect in deterring
the sugar and salt craving
taste buds of the student
body. Plus, with the banning
of bake sales and adventures
to the school store during
lunch, kids are finding dif-
Sean Cassidy / Photo Editor
A BP worker holds oil tar balls
on the gulf coast in Florida.
April 20, 2010 (nearly six
months before it has been resolved), was triggered by the
explosion of a drilling unit which
eventually started leaking. The
leak resulted in roughly
180,000,000 gallons of oil being
deposited into the Gulf of Mexico — leaving behind an undeniably detrimental impact on the
environment and surrounding
wildlife.
The nature of the spill has let
the oil spread across an area of
roughly 180,000 square miles,
harming the environment at an
alarming rate through the formation of slicks, making it nearly
impossible to clean. These oil
slicks will eventually split, and
the oil will continue drifting in
different directions, ultimately
reaching coastlines and disturbing the ecosystems within the
areas.
The spill in the Gulf is threat(Continued on page 2)
(Continued on page 2)
(Continued on page 2)
Inside This Issue...
Art Funding vs. Sports Funding
Halloween at FHS
Charlotte’s Web Preview
Fashion Week
2 News
The Freedom Forum - freedomforum.wikispaces.com - October 2010
The Freedom Forum
A Publication of
Freedom High School,
Bethlehem Area School District
3149 Chester Avenue
Bethlehem PA, 18020
(610)867-5843
freedomforum.wikispaces.com
Editor-in-Chief
Jasmine Ameerally
Photo Editor
Sean Cassidy
Assistant Photo Editor
Giovanni Saldutti
Layout Editor
Tyler Alicea
Assistant Layout Editor
Michael Newman
OIL
MOYER
ening the national parks such
as the Everglades, as well as
harming the local animals.
Birds have been rendered immobile due to the excess
weight from oil stuck to their
bodies, and entire ecosystems
are in grave danger as certain
species are now on the brink
of being endangered. This
public relations nightmare for
the London-based fuel company has cost over 1000 billion dollars, yet that is still a
small price to pay for the long
lasting negative impact the
spill will have on the environment.
his displeasure. He also cites a
reason for running as to be an
inspiration to others, especially to the younger citizens
that he interacts with everyday.
Moyer echoes his dissatisfaction with the two-party system in one of his platforms,
Election Reform.
In particular, Moyer throws
his weight behind Ballot Access Reform, a measure designed to help third parties like
the Green Party get on the ballot.
Being a teacher, Moyer also
has a strong stance on education. ―I think education is taking a hit right now,‖ says
Moyer. ―Education is more
about inspiring kids to be motivated.‖
According to his election
website, inspiration is far from
the curriculum deemed by the
PSSAs and the Race to the
Top program. ―We are boring
students and demotivating
them by emphasizing so much
reading, math, and testing,‖
says Moyer on his website.
On the currently contentious
issue of healthcare, Moyer
advocates a single-payer
healthcare system, where one
entity (a government run organization) would collect all
healthcare fees and pay out all
healthcare costs. According to
Moyer, this system would en-
sure healthcare for all citizens,
and cost much less than what
citizens collectively pay now.
If Moyer wins his election,
he won‘t be able to teach anymore, but Moyer says that his
running is ―not about not liking my job and wanting another one. It‘s about government.‖
However, even if Moyer
doesn‘t win his race, he still
hopes his candidacy will succeed in inspiring others.
―I just want others to say, ‗He
did it, I can do it,‘‖ says
Moyer. ―It doesn‘t take much.
You don‘t have to spend
money, and you don‘t have to
be corrupt.‖
HEALTHY
value of fat. One worker at the
early morning stand, senior
Shane Wright, does not see
getting the student body to eat
healthy as the school‘s responsibility, saying that ―[the foods
at the coffee shop] are all of
the breakfast foods that kids
are going to eat at home anyways.‖
Another retrospective that
some students have on the new
healthy dieting plan is that the
school should live by the idiom ―quality, not quantity.‖
―[The BASD administrators]
should improve the quality of
the food, not the quantity, because giving kids an inadequate amount of food won‘t
help anything,‖ requests Benjamin Loh, a sophomore. The
majority of students seem to
share the same sentiments as
Loh, believing that eating only
four breaded chicken nuggets
instead of eight is not going to
make a large difference in
health.
On the other hand, there
does exist a few students that
are on the healthy lunch band-
wagon. ―I believe [healthy
lunches] are a good thing because the current state of youth
is obese, and there needs to be
something done,‖ replies
sophomore Alexa Deemer.
Yet, as a general consensus,
most students just want their
lunches to be the same as they
were last year.
―Where‘s the ketchup?!‖
tenth grader Dalton Laut exclaims. Now that is the true
topic that the BASD administrators need to tackle next.
(Continued from page 1)
News Editor
Neela Saraswati
Assistant News Editor
Luisa Marin
Editorial Editor
Kayleigh Birdsong
Assistant Editorial Editor
Tyler Alicea
Features Editor
Dhanu Thiyagarajan
Assistant Features Editor
Julie Boylan
Entertainment Editor
Mary Harvilla
Assistant Entertainment Editor
Courtney Barrow
Sports Editors
Mike McGinty
Kevin Woodring
ferent ways to get their fill of
the foods they crave.
―[Because of the new school
lunch] more people are buying
food from the snack line,‖ is
what Brianne Giangiobbe, junior, explains. In addition to the
snack stand at lunch, kids are
eating lunches composed of
goodies from the vending machines and coffee shop. Speaking of, the coffee shop carries
―health‖ foods such as PopTarts, which contain 28% of
an adult‘s recommended daily
Centerspread Editor
Soham Roy
Pates’ Post Editor
Gianfranco Lentini
Assistant Pates’ PostEditor
Monique Latourette
Business Managers
Samantha Chu
Abhinav Ranagarajan
Adviser
Mrs. Karla Erdman
Freedom
High’s Field
Hockey Team
Congrats to the FHS Field
Hockey team for a successful
season.
Principal
Mr. Michael LaPorta
Superintendent
Dr. Joseph Roy
Tips Line
Do you know about something
going on in our community that
you would like to see in the next
publication of The Forum?
Find us on Facebook
or email us at
[email protected].
Freedom
Fun Fact
The Boys‘ Cross
Country team has not
been successful in
defeating Liberty for
over 14 years, until
this year. Congrats to
them on their victory!
Sarah Harrington / Layout
Obama’s Sinking Approval
By Jasmine Ameerally,
Editor-in-Chief
Two years ago, the country‘s hope for President
Barack Obama seemed to be
at an all time high, but now,
the President‘s approval rating seems
to
be
mixed.
A CNN/Opinion
Research Corporation recently reported a 42 percent
approval rating for
Obama‘s performance these past two
years; 54 percent of
Americans are said
to have disapproved of his performance.
The war‘s continuance in Afgha nis t a n,
t he
dwindling economy, and an unemployment rate stuck
at 9.6 percent are said to be
the primary causes for
America‘s mixed feelings.
However, according to a
CBS News Poll, only 5 percent of Americans blame
Obama for the economy,
while 6 in 10 Americans say
he has not improved it.
With a short time until the
congressional elections,
Obama hopes to keep the
democratic majority in congress by reinstating hope
within democrats who voted
him into office. However,
the recent ratings are said to
have an effect in November,
with voters giving the GOP a
53 percent lead in the polls.
In general, the American
population is questioning the
hope Obama had promised
two years ago, for the reason
that an increase in the
amount of jobs has not been
seen, as neither have any
general benefits for blue collar workers.
Not only is the country‘s
feelings split on his performance, but Freedom High
support,‖ says Hardman.
―The media is focusing all
the attention on the negative
outcomes his actions have,
and people's ideas are
shaped by the media‖
On the other hand, Senior
Joseph Rivera thinks
the displeasure with
Obama‘s first two
years is just a phase.
―I believe he is
losing support, but
that is politics,‖ says
Rivera. ―You gain
support and you lose
support. Right now,
I do believe Obama
is losing support, but
in another 6 months
from now I won't be
surprised that his
approval rating increases.‖
As for the rest of
our students, some
have a pessimistic
Courtesy of newsone.com
view when it comes
School students also have to the political scene.
mixed feelings when it
―I think America is filled
comes to the President‘s per- with idiots who watch too
formance.
much TV; they follow the
Senior Emily Hardman leader,‖ says Nic Rogalefeels another source could be wicz. ―Even if that leader is
blamed for critical com- paid for by the Republicans
ments on his performance. or Democrats.‖
―I feel like he is losing
Stress for Students and Staff
By Samantha Chu,
Business Manager
As teachers and students finally begin to shift
from their summer mindset into the swing of Freedom High School, issues
of great stress begin to
arise; ranging from job
security to college admission. But the question is,
Who is more stressed?
The teachers or the students? Because of recent
economic and political
events and the ever rising
competition of college
applications, an aura of
pressure and panic seems
to veil Freedom‘s teachers and students.
In terms of Freedom‘s
teachers, recent education
reform by the Obama administration and the goal of
Freedom being taken off
corrective action has most
definitely increased the pressure.
Honors human anatomy
and environmental science
teacher, Mr. Eric Baltz,
agrees. ―Definitely, there is
pressure. You don‘t want to
be the district that doesn‘t
make it. And you sure...want
to be the last school that
one of the primary
stress points.
―It‘s that uncontrollable variable,‖
explains biology and
genetics teacher,
Ms. Amber Zehner.
―I can do PSSA
styled warm-ups,
[and] I can practice
graphing with the
students, but if that
student comes in and
says ‗Why should I
care?‘ is that the
teacher‘s fault?‖
Although we cannot foresee the future of Freedom
High School‘s student performance,
Zehner comments,
―I feel like I do a
Andrew Mattei / Staff Photographer
good job. And a vast
doesn‘t,‖ referring to the majority of Freedom‘s teach―Race to the Top‖ competi- ers are doing all they possition implemented by the bly can.‖
Obama administration.
As for the own students,
As Freedom High School particularly the seniors,
did not qualify to enter the these upcoming months see
competition for the 4.35 bil- much stress; balancing
lion dollar grant for educa- school work, countless
tion reform, teachers are clubs, sports, work, and colheld responsible for improv- lege applications.
ing student performance. It
Senior Kaleigh Hudak,
seems the relationship be- who juggles Freedom varsity
tween teacher accountability volleyball, basketball, stuand student motivation is dent council, S.A.D.D, and
Future Educators of America, feels the pressure of her
schedule and workload.
―Figuring out what I‘m going to do about college. Doing well on my SATs. It
stresses me out to talk about
stress.‖
As Hudak says, stress and
pressure to achieve seems
like a endless journey. Additionally, as the competition
to get into the best colleges
increases, students are being
overwhelmed with having to
put their best effort into
school work and applications.
Fellow senior Sabrina
Mastronardo can relate. ―It‘s
really overwhelming to have
college stuff and on top of
that have teachers assign
things that are so difficult.
It‘s hard to stay organized,
keep your grades up, and put
your best effort into your
college [applications] at the
same time.‖
Unfortunately, with the
economy in an uphill struggle and education reform in
top priority, stress will continue to surround Freedom‘s
students and teachers—and
for that matter, the entire
community.
News 3
The Competition
for College
By Courtney Barrow,
Staff Writer
As another year begins, the
pressure mounts for graduating
seniors in their final high school
year to get into the colleges of
their choice.
―You always feel like you‘re
competing against your peers,‖
says Justin Agren, a senior at
Freedom. ―At the same time, it‘s
what stresses you in school.‖
―Everybody‘s just trying to do
their best to get into the school
they want,‖ adds senior Ryan
Swigert.
As more and more teens get
ready to leave the nest and head
off to universities across the
country, behind the scenes is
always that hidden competition
among students to stand out. After all, there are certain universities that dozens of Freedom students apply to, such as Penn
State, Westchester, and Temple.
Part of this competition is being part of various student organizations in high school as to
impress the admissions office of
the ―dream‖ university. Some
students join every possible extra
-curricular they can fit in their
schedule—varsity sports, band,
clubs, and so on. The problem is
that having one‘s hand in every
different pot doesn‘t allow one to
be committed to one thing and
continues to pile on the stress.
Grades, obviously, also play a
major factor in admission. Allnighters are not totally uncommon in high school when students spend hours and hours perfecting that last-minute project or
essay. And not only does the
pressure load up with school
work, but standardized tests can
turn hair gray with worry as
well. ―[The competition between
peers] is stressful; it affects my
SAT scores,‖ says Ashley Wodzicki, another senior.
Others don‘t feel the pressure
since they don‘t see a degree
from their dream school in the
future, and many times it‘s because of lack of finances.
―Some people can‘t afford to
go to [their] choice college,‖ said
senior John Distefano. ―If not,
t h er e‘ s a l wa y s N AC C . ‖
It‘s only the beginning of the
year, and that pressure is already
being felt. ―[The competition] is
what motivates you and drives
you to do well,‖ says Agren.
Indeed, it‘s that push that
keeps the students on their toes
in the hope of achieving their
goal—acceptance into the perfect school.
4 Editorials
All Tricks, No Treat
By Mary Harvilla,
Remember when Halloween was a holiday that allowed us to dress up as our
favorite monsters, TV characters, princesses, or
whatever else our young
hearts desired?
Those were the good
old days. The days when
the fantasy and imagination of our costumes reflected our innocence.
However, times have
surely changed, and innocence, unfortunately,
barely exists anymore. It
seems as though lingerie
and outfits that lack fabric have been deemed as
the new Halloween costumes within the past
few years, leaving the
creative aspect of Halloween in the dust.
A holiday once cherished has turned into an
event worthy of an XRating. Girls of the current
generation have ruined the
spirit of Halloween with
their desperate need to be
over-exposed and ‗sexy‘.
And on that note, I propose
three questions: When did
girls decide that it‘s okay to
degrade themselves? What
ever happened to class? And,
what kind of influence are
we having on our younger
generation?
The girls prancing around
half naked who consider
themselves to be a ‗sexy little Red Riding Hood‘ or any
other ridiculous character,
are not only exposing themselves in a negative light and
practically asking for criticism, but they are also set-
ting a bad example for
young Halloweeners. How
much longer will it be before
we see elementary school
kids dressed up in suggestive
costumes while marching in
their Halloween Parade?
go back to having a positive
influence on our youth.
Some may say that dressing up as monsters, ghouls,
and other frightening creatures is not exactly a positive
influence on the current
youngsters either.
However, despite
the fact that the
characters themselves may be a bit
controversial, the
imagination and
effort put into the
costume is something well worth
preaching.
Besides, isn‘t that the
whole point of
Halloween? Being
scary and creative
is the nature of the
holiday.
Quite frankly,
those who are
sporting trashy
costumes are doCourtesy of www.aftonapple.com
ing it all wrong. If
Sounds bizarre, but the fu- you are one of those people,
ture of this holiday is truly please, for the sake of huspooky. As we all know, manity, regain your innoyounger kids look up to their cence, class, and creativity
older peers. The skimpy cos- so the world can go back to
tumes worn by girls today enjoying Halloween without
are teaching them that being worrying about seeing your
risqué is okay. We need to private parts.
Why You Should
Care About
November's
Elections
By Anna Thomas,
Staff Writer
Global issues from terrorism to
healthcare are concerns that affect Americans of all ages. Why,
then, do so few people choose to
voice their opinions on these
concerns at the ballot box?
The 18 to 20-year-old demographic has the lowest overall
voter turnout when, in fact,
America‘s youngest voters
should be embracing the new
opportunity to have their voices
heard.
High school students, especially, are not the teenyboppers
that they once were in middle
school, and they have the resources to be informed along
with the abilities to formulate a
position for each of the issues
that concern them.
Charles Moyer, special education teacher on the Freedom faculty, is running for State Representative this November. He believes that a significant reason to
vote is the simple symbolism of
making your voice known. It is
his personal opinion that stu-
How Big is Your Internet Footprint?
I can certainly tell you that
this means you‘ve just given
Facebook your soul and
Teenagers on the Internet
have gone up about two shoe
are similar to the abominable
sizes.
snowman, not in the respect
Another worry teens
that they are non-existent,
should have is as to who is
but in that they leave huge
viewing content they post on
footprints everywhere they
the Internet. It is important
go.
that you watch your privacy
That‘s right. Every
settings
on
time you register for a
social
netwebsite or post a picworking webture on Facebook,
sites such as
you‘re contributing to
Facebook or
your ever-growing footforums.
print on the web. SimiFinally, it‘s
lar to your carbon footimportant that
print, the amount of
you don‘t post
greenhouse emissions
a plethora of
you send into the ati n f o r ma t i o n
mosphere, your Internet
about yourself,
footprint can help colyour
lover,
leges, employers, and
your family, or
other people decide
your cat. Bewhether they like the fit
cause sooner
of your shoe.
or later, you‘ll
Of course, I‘m not
start to look
talking about your aclike
the
tual shoe size—the only
abominable
employers that take into
snowman, and
account that are circus
employers and
Anmol
Kaur
/
Staff
Photographer
ringleaders looking for
colleges
do
clowns with large feet Senior, Alyssa Lambert, using the internet during class.
not want to see
(I‘m done with the meta- use what you upload in royalty-free, worldwide li- that. We‘ll leave the abomiphors, I promise.). Instead, whatever way they want. In cense to use any IP content nable snowman searching to
your footprint represents all their Terms of Service—you that you post on or in con- Yukon Cornelius.
of the information you post know that giant wall of nection with Facebook.‖
on the Internet. This can in- meaningless text that even
While I am neither a lawclude anything you post on lawyers have trouble deci- yer nor an English professor,
By Tyler Alicea,
Layout Editor
Facebook, emails you create,
or anything you have on
your Google account. While
you may believe that all of
this information is private,
you are mistaken.
Let‘s start with Facebook.
Every time you upload
something to Facebook, you
give Facebook permission to
phering—Facebook blatantly
says that.
It specifically says, ―For
content that is covered by
intellectual property rights,
like photos and videos, you
specifically give us the following permission…you
grant us a non-exclusive,
transferable, sub-licensable,
Courtesy of phillyimc.org
dents should get involved in the
voting process so that when they
become older, they will be able
to run for public office.
While not all Americans need
to run for public office to make
their beliefs heard, it is important
for us to keep in mind that all
Americans possess a valuable
tool in the law-making process
by having the vote to choose the
representatives that make them.
It is incumbent upon us as
American citizens to assume
ownership of the direction in
which the country is going. The
only way to condition ourselves
to have this awareness is to take
an interest in the issues and in
the electoral process.
It is equally important for teenagers who cannot yet vote to still
get involved in this year‘s November elections. An educated
and well-informed electorate
starts with youth who care about
their communities and country as
a whole.
It is imperative for teenagers
to get educated about party options and platforms so that when
the time comes for them to vote,
they will know exactly how to
wield their power.
Editorials
5
The Truth…Or Lack of It
By Kerry Darragh,
Staff Writer
servative ideals and nothing
else. There are plenty of liberal-leaning broadcasters as
There was a time when it well, such as MSNBC‘s Keith
was easier to discern truth Olbermann.
from lies. We could trust our
There is nothing wrong with
gover nment,
we
could trust the news,
and we could trust
the people that delivered the news to
the public.
Sadly, it seems that
time has passed. In a
world where people
are bombarded with
advertisements, public campaigning, and
news stories from all
around the world, the
lines between truth and
falsehood are more
blurred than ever.
Bias in the news has
become almost as common as seeing Snooki
drunk on Jersey Shore.
Instead of the facts, the
public is given slanted,
one-sided arguments that
greatly affect our views.
This is especially prevalent when it comes to politics. being open about your views;
FOXNews is probably the in fact, that is your right under
most well-known example of the First Amendment. The
biased news—conservative issue that does come up, howbroadcasters preaching con- ever, is the affect that it has on
the public‘s perception of the
truth when it comes to news.
Real newscasters are objective. Talk show hosts are the
ones that debate over certain
issues. It seems that in today‘s
Senior Emily Young agrees.
―It seems that America has
become a nation of mindless
followers being led by their
media source in the direction
of what‘s popular,‖ she says.
News logos courtesy of Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN
world, there is far
too much overlap
between the two,
so much that the
facts can be lost.
―People believe what you
want them to believe and what
you show them,‖ comments
senior Alyssa Lambert.
Journalists and news broadcasters have the responsibility
to defend freedom of speech
and the public‘s right to know.
However, if what the public
knows isn‘t the truth, it is only
a matter of time before society
is completely disillusioned.
Just think of the current politi-
cal atmosphere. The divisiveness between Democrats and
Republicans has resulted in
uncompromising polarization
that only seems to lead to
more arguments instead of
solutions to problems.
―I feel that strong party
issues have caused every
news station to feel the
need to pick one side or
another,‖ says senior
Sarah Harrington. ―The
news stations are supporting partisan views
and pushing the two parties further apart.‖
Where we get our
news affects our views
of it. In order to know
what is really going on
in the world, the public
needs to hear the facts.
Only when the truth is
known can people decide
what they want to do
with it.
So, be wary when listening
to the likes of Glenn Beck, or
any other openly biased
broadcaster, regardless of personal ideology. If you are
looking for real information,
consider looking elsewhere.
Four Loko Controversy
By Amanda Murphy,
Staff Writer
―Going to get Loko tonight.‖ ―Oh Four Loko, I
love how you get me drunk.‖
Those are just two of the
many posts on Facebook
pages for the alcoholic beverage, Four Loko.
Chances are that many
have heard about Four Loko
before. The caffeinated malt
beverage hit stores in 2005,
and it has been raising controversy ever since. Selling
at a cheap price and in a
decorative, flashy can, there
is no wonder why it has risen
as an easily accessible drink,
especially for teens. Served
in a 25 oz. can (equivalent to
3 beers), packed with 660
calories per can, and loaded
with numerous health concerns, I wouldn‘t recommend it.
First of all, the people
drinking Four Loko are generally underage. Even
though it is an alcoholic energy drink, the can is decorated like an other energy
drink. Therefore, it is been
easier for teens to acquire
them due to the cheap price
and their general appearance.
The company‘s objective market is not a secret. From far
away, it is said that the cans
But, the health concerns ―Just the fact that it‘s comlook more like an Arizona with the drinks are more dra- pared to cocaine says enough.
Iced Tea or Energy drink. matic than just who is just It‘s definitely dangerous.
More people
should realize it,‖ said
senior Dave
Rodriguez.
The nervous system
receives the
effects
of
the stimul a n t
(ca ffei ne)
and the depressant (the
alcohol),
which can
cause a mix
of signals,
dehydration,
lack of coordination,
etc. The caffeine in the
drink masks
the affects
of the alcohol,
additionally putting some
people
at
severe
risk
Courtesy of djwiky.com
They are thriving in popularof alcohol
ity with many underage teens, drinking them. Deemed as poisoning. Likewise, there has
especially with its 2.99-3.99 ―liquid cocaine,‖ the loaded been a study by Wake Forest
price.
drink contains 12% alcohol University showing that stuand is mixed with caffeine. dents who drink alcohol and
caffeine are more at risk for
alcohol related injuries than
those who drink simply alcohol.
For a cheap and quick fix,
it‘s a college student‘s dream.
But, due to the numerous
health concerns and multiple
incidents where Four Loko
has been consumed, many
colleges are banning the drink.
Stores are prohibited from
selling it in many states, as
well. Slowly, they are moving
forward to diminish it completely.
This may be accredited to
the company‘s refusal to release all the ingredients in the
drink. The company has never
released what alcohol is contained inside the drink, as well
as how much caffeine is in
each serving. Senior Jaime
Deleon believes that, ―they
should be illegal if they refuse
to unveil the true ingredients.‖
There will always be situations where alcohol is present.
The easy option is simply to
stay away; but as teenagers,
we know there is always that
pressure to experiment. To my
fellow classmates I say, just
be safe. As for me, I‘d rather
remember my night.
6 Editorials
Technology:
The Time
Killer
Obsession With Labels
By Amanda Molinaro,
Staff Writer
You‘re sitting at your computer and waiting for the progress bar to move from 0-100%.
You begin repeatedly clicking
your mouse, eventually giving
up and moving on. Why? Why
are we so impatient? Why do we
expect everything in life to occur
instantaneously? And why are
the inventions that were created
to save us precious time taking
all of it away?
To put it simply, we live in the
21st century. We‘ve become so
accustomed to being able to
communicate quickly (24/7) that
we‘ve forgotten, or never knew,
a time before Blackberries and
Facebook. Countless hours YouTubing, picture-taking, playing
Halo, and finding directions to
go anywhere in the world with
the click of a robot-voiced GPS
all add up to a generation that
literally cannot function without
technology. If you‘re honest
with yourself, you have to admit
that we rely entirely too much on
technology. But where do we
draw the line?
As my novel-reading, language
-loving father would say, ―Get
off Facebook and get your face
in a book!‖ Most adults, my father included, don‘t understand
the ―no patience for a loading
bar‖ issue. They grew up in a
completely different time, and
most are still fascinated by
Google‘s existence. Yet, they
too have fallen under technology‘s spell, which has altered
our perception of time and shortened our attention spans.
There‘s no escaping this: technology will only progress and
multiply as time goes on. Our
grandchildren will most likely
have a touch of ADHD and rehabs will begin for video game
junkies.
We need to remember that our
obsession with technology
causes major chaos in our lives.
We should learn to appreciate
the natural things in life that
were here long before we polluted space with satellite dishes
and fought the battle of keeping
our IQs up and our monthly
phone bills down. Occupy yourself with something nontechnological. If we don‘t stop
the addictions now, will we
ever? If December 31, 2011
doesn‘t kill us off first, technology just might be the death of us.
Tyler Alicea / Layout/Asst. Editorial Editor
By Nicole Giles,
Staff Writer
Walk through Freedom
High School on an average
day, and you‘ll most likely
spot a few girls (and maybe
even guys) wearing or carrying a designer item. The obsession over fashion labels
seems to be increasing continuously, leaving many of
us wondering why. What is
the obsession with these labels? Why do some of us see
them as a necessity? What
makes one label different
from the next?
One reason many buy a
label that is considered
―better‖ is based off of quality. As the old saying goes,
―you get what you pay for.‖
Many consider this to be true
of certain labels. Although a
purse or a pair of shoes may
be expensive, we trust that
they will last awhile because
of their promised quality.
If you read the most recent
issue of The Freedom Forum, you may have seen the
articles on school uniforms.
One of the arguments
against having to wear uniforms was the fact that it
―cramps‖ many of our styles.
Most of us rely on clothing that Hollister t-shirt repreto represent who we are and sents whom that person is.
what we stand for.
Whether you like those types
of labels or
not, there is
no denying
that these
labels may
be a representation of
that person.
M a n y
would say
that labels
and different
logos
have led to
distinction
between
s o c i a l
classes.
Some lab els / logos
are
more
ex p en s i v e
than others,
leading to
the distincbeGabby Manganiello / Staff Photographer tion
tween the
Dooney & Burke labeled wallet and purse.
students
Certain labels represent who can afford those clothes
different things, and this can and the students who can‘t.
be seen as one of the reasons This also causes the probwhy people choose to wear lems of stereotyping, disspecific labels and logos. criminating, and bullying.
Maybe that Coach purse or While labels and logos may
have the benefits of expressing who we are and what
styles we like, they may also
lead to more hurtful, negative
scenarios, especially at the
high school level.
A lot of students, whether
they admit it or not, buy
items with different logos on
it in order to fit in. As junior
Sarah Kirk states, ―People
are so obsessed with designer labels because everyone tries to keep up with
their image.‖ But what image is that? That we are capable of mimicking each
other?
My advice to any student,
whether they wear the popular labels or not, is to wear
what makes you feel confident in yourself. If a pair of
jeans from Abercrombie
makes you feel good, by all
means, go for it. If a t-shirt
from Wal-Mart makes you
feel like yourself, please,
don‘t hesitate to wear what
you feel most comfortable
in. Because at the end of the
day, what really matters
most
is your opinion of yourself,
not how others define you.
The Un-American Way
By Neela Saraswati,
News Editor
When it comes to historical achievements, there are
few things America hasn‘t
done. In fact, we‘ve pretty
much done it all—from flying the first airplanes to
building the world‘s largest
fast food chain. In the international hierarchy, America
lives on top: having the biggest, the brightest, and the
best of the best. A little pride
is expected, I think.
The world, however,
seems to disagree. According to the international platform, Americans are rude,
arrogant, and ignorant. We
have little regard for social
etiquette; our culture is saturated with overexposure of
undeserving individuals
(apparently the cast of Jersey
Shore make bad role models.
Who knew?), and in our
eyes, infamy is the new fame
(Lohan‘s latest media woes
are obviously more important than national disasters).
The truth? The world is
right.
Two hundred years ago,
the American way was this:
we were oppressed, so we
rebelled. We became a con-
glomerate of other nations‘
children and strove for equal
opportunity and the right to
pursue life, liberty, and happiness. We held ideals that
surmounted the suppressive
ways of all others and forsook harsh governmental
discipline for liberation.
Today, when things don‘t
go our way, we file lawsuits.
Our children are having children, and equal opportunity‘s best example is affirmative action. In this devolving economy, life, liberty, and happiness are just
too expensive, so free WiFi
people complain that foreigners‘ views of the nation
as a whole are appalling;
yet, how many are doing
anything to change that?
How many people are forgoing a trip to McDonalds
for a trip to the grocery
store instead? Picking up
the local newspaper rather
than the latest gossip magazine? Listening to music
that isn‘t riddled with callow lyrics?
Personally, I don‘t mind
the saturation of puerile
goods in today‘s media—
clearly the rest of the world
Andrew Mattei / Staff Photographer doesn‘t either, if our music
and movie industries‘ sales
and welfare will have to do. are anything to go by. But
And in terms of government, for those who are bothered
well, this is America, and by it, doing anything to
Burger King says it best: we change the declining intelwant it our way.
lect of our society would be
It‘s a shame the world has akin to proposing we ban all
garnered such a negative our liberties. Any censorship
perception of us, considering is too much censorship bethe successes we were built cause Americans demand
on. Some could argue our their rights.
reputation is self-created, but
Besides, trying to discithe only thing that matters pline ourselves when we‘ve
now is whether it‘s self- always been spoiled by our
maintained—which it is.
catered-to whims is just not
The problem isn‘t that the the way we do things, and
world hates America. It‘s calling out on our alarming
that Americans seemingly arrogance is simply put: unhate themselves. Plenty of American.
Online Public Schools
By Ashley Eichlin,
Staff Writer
Today, most teenagers
will (try to) wake up early
in the mornings on the
weekdays and get themselves ready for school. On
the other hand, some students will get up whenever
they want, go to school in
their pajamas, and work for
only a few hours a day!
Whether for sports or for
other reasons, roughly 1.2%
of students in the U.S. have
enr olled in c yb er schooling.
Sure, you can set your
own schedule during the
day, but cyber-schooling is
not the best option for numerous reasons—such as
the lack of a social life in a
school setting and the lack
of school hours leading to a
deficiency in the student‘s
curriculum.
A person who is cyberschooled is a student who
doesn‘t see his/her friends
very often and has to sit in
front of a computer to learn
what every other student his
or her age is learning. No
offense to anyone who has
ever been cyber-schooled,
but, that student potentially
may not be strong when it
comes to social skills. Of
course, we have the whole
summer to hang out with
our friends, but as soon as
school starts, we are always
near our friends. School
definitely gives us the opportunity to socialize and
meet new people. However,
if you are cyber-schooled,
you are probably stuck at
home, listening to a computer trying to explain the
Pythagorean Theorem instead of talking to your
friends about the latest gossip.
Emily Gundrum, a sophomore at Freedom, had been
home schooled, and she
knows what it feels like to
be away from her friends.
Emily says, ―Well, when
you‘re at home, you don‘t
get to be with your friends
or meet new people.‖
Despite all of my complaints about school, I‘d
much rather stay at school
and see my friends than sit
at home and stare at a computer screen all day.
A
popular
sit e,
www.k12.com, is a cyberschool for those who prefer
to be homeschooled. Don‘t
get me wrong; this website
is legit. However, do you
really think anyone can sit
at their computer and learn
for almost six hours a day?
Especially with technology
such as Facebook, iPods,
and texting, learning would
become much more diffi-
cult for those who are cyber
-schooled.
Granted, I can see students doing well with this
program, considering it is
usually one-on-one, and
they can focus on certain
subjects that they are finding difficult or are struggling in. However, you
don‘t really have a ‗teacher‘
to monitor your progress
like a teacher in school
would. It is unlikely that
every single student who is
cyber-schooled has a parent
who is a teacher, so they
aren‘t exactly the best
‗teachers‘.
Cyber-schooling can be
beneficial to those who are
extremely serious with
other activities, but really,
school should be a numberone pr ior ity. Cyber schooling isn‘t always the
best route to go.
The Art of Funding
By Giovanni Saldutti,
Asst. Photography Editor
Today, more than ever, the
arts are needed by students
as a harbor for true expression, communication, exploration, imagination, and understanding.
In addition to this personal
and social development, the
arts can also increase intellectual and educational
growth in students. It is,
therefore, exceedingly important that art programs
receives funding in order to
continue developing the students‘ minds and creativity.
In art classes, students are
given countless opportunities to make artwork that is
expressive and personal to
them. This expression allows
students to channel their
feelings into something safe
and productive, instead of
reverting to less healthy
forms of expression.
Art also provides students
with a chance to develop
creative skills, imaginations,
and to think outside of the
box. Senior Emily Liuzza
comments, ―People need to
be well-rounded, and [art]
allows students to explore
new areas that they normally
wouldn‘t.‖ This is true as
students involved in art try
new mediums, new styles, or
new music every day, causing them to be more diverse
individuals who explore
every aspect of themselves.
Giovanni Saldutti / Assistant Photography Editor
Senior Art 4 student Katherine Peters works on a painting during class.
Art can also help improve
students‘ studies in other
subject areas at school. Research confirms that art and
music education strengthens
student problem-solving and
critical-thinking skills, adding to overall academic
achievement, school success,
and preparation for the work
world.
Also, due to the collaborative nature of art, students
develop crucial skills in cooperative decision-making,
leadership, and complex
pr oblem-solving whil e
working with others. For
some students, the arts are
their motivation for coming
to school and are an area
where they excel, providing
an important balance in their
total educational experience.
These are all very important
skills to have in and outside
of school, and they are skills
that sports cannot provide.
Funding should be focused
on the arts because they provide so much more than
sports. Whether it is fine arts
or music, art allows for creativity and growth, and students take pride in that they
have made something beautiful or played a song that
was first challenging to
them.
Art continues to inspire
students in new ways that
sports never could, and this
can always be accomplished
if there is enough funding.
Editorials
7
The Sport
of Funding
By Ryan Shaikh,
Staff Writer
An average high school in this
country has about 20 athletic
teams, and they receive higher
funding than arts programs
through the school. Freedom
High School has 23 athletic
teams and should receive more
funds than the arts programs by
the school.
The only events I watch at
Freedom are the athletic events
because I love sports. Sports
mean action, and as a fan, I can
get involved by cheering and
screaming my lungs out to show
enthusiasm for my favorite team.
Sports bring the student body
together.
Students put their negative
feelings with each other aside
during the game to cheer for the
high school they go to each and
every day. When watching
sports, people have a feeling of
togetherness when sitting in the
stands, looking crazy, or cheering for Freedom because they
know that people around them
are behaving in a similar manner.
Many people don‘t recognize
the fact that most of the money
athletic teams make is through
fundraising by the students—like
buying shirts at a football game
or having a car wash. Arts programs that complain about not
having money should blame
themselves for not doing enough
fundraising to keep their programs running.
Also, the only events that are
heard around the school year are
the sporting events. The only arts
events students hear are the plays
that happen twice a year, and the
art show that happens once a
year. If you want people to come
to your events and make money,
you need to market it around the
school. There are a lot of ways to
market in Freedom. You can
post fliers, use Facebook, and
make announcements.
Freedom High School should
not stop funding the arts programs for the school. Freedom
High School should just fund the
athletics programs more.
Senior Freedom Soccer player Lucas Panick kicks
the soccer ball during a game.
8 Pates’ Post
Alison’s Web
By Anna Thomas,
Staff Writer
Senior Alison Vreeland has
been cast as Charlotte in the
Freedom High School Theatre
Company‘s fall production of
the play Charlotte’s Web.
Alison first got involved in
theatre when she was six
through a summer acting camp
in Phillipsburg, which she continued to attend for six years.
Alison credits her stepmom,
a theatre director, as the person
who encouraged her to get involved in acting.
Although she considers getting a non-lead to be just as fun
as getting a lead, Alison is de-
lighted to play Charlotte in the
upcoming production and says,
―It‘s nice to be able to get a
part that has such a huge direct
involvement in the show.‖
Although Alison has yet to
determine whether or not she
wants to pursue theatre as a
career, she knows for certain
that her college education will
include the stage, as she plans
to double major in communications and theatre.
She eventually hopes that her
acting abilities will take her to
a place where she can share
her passion for it with the
world.
Sarah Harrington / Layout
Setting the Stage for Freshmen
By Gianfranco Lentini,
When Fr eedom High
School‘s Theater Company
held its auditions for the Fall
play Charlotte’s Web, many
old and new faces were called
to the stage to demonstrate
their talents. But the limelight
fell upon three of Freedom‘s
youngest actors. Ellen Lee,
Daniel Youngelman, and
Andy Moeller, all freshmen,
managed to land a role in their
first ever Freedom performance, beating out all the other
upperclassmen along the way
for the spots.
Ellen Lee, best known for
her role as the Cat in the Hat
in East Hills Middle School‘s
Suessical, was both surprised
and shocked when she found
out she had landed the role of
Fern Arable, Wilbur‘s owner
and the second most important
female character in the play.
When asked how she had developed an interest in theater,
Ellen recounted the first show
she had ever seen at 5 years
old, PYT‘s Alice in Wonderland, saying, ―I knew I wanted
to act.‖ Afterwards, she then
went on to make her debut
performance in 3rd grade in
PYT‘s The Chronicles of
Narnia - The Lion, The Witch,
and The Wardrobe. When
asked what it was like to get a
leading role as a freshman,
Ellen confessed that her audition was nothing more than
―experience‖ than anything
else to get to know the Freedom Theater Company and
Ms. Wescoe. ―This is a bonus!‖ Ellen stated; When
comparing herself to that of
Fern, she also mentioned matter-of-fact, ―I‘m the only one
that really looks like an 8 year
-old.‖ Finally, when the talk
of college and a career came
up, Ellen listed her future
plans: go to Juilliard and end
up on Broadway, ―every actor‘s dream!‖ Her choice to
pursue an acting career after
high school has her saying,
―[It will] come as it comes,
and if it works out, that would
be fun.‖ Who knows? We
may see Ellen Lee revisiting
one of her previous roles, but
this time in New York City.
Daniel Youngelman, or
Danny as everyone calls him,
is no stranger to the Freedom
stage. Ever since 4th grade
when his Farmersville chorus
teacher told him about an
open spot for Jojo in Free-
Wilbur the pig. Explaining his
reaction to when he found out
the news, Danny stated ―[I
was] really, really, really,
really excited and grateful,
especially as a
freshman! I just
wanted to be part of
[the show]! Now, I
just want to portray
Wilbur as honest
and innocent as I
can.‖ He mentioned
that after so many
auditions he had
more of an idea as
to how the audition
process
worked,
who Ms. Wescoe is
as a teacher, and the
mental focus necessary to do a job well
done. Hoping to
impress his audiences with his first
legitimate Freedom
production, Danny
will continue to
audition for every
play and musical
that comes his way.
And for Danny, too,
the talk of college is
a big one for him.
His dream to pursue
acting as a career
will hopefully take
him to New York
City as well where
he wants to attend
NYU for college
Sarah Harrington / Layout and earn a role on
Broadway. But no
dom‘s production of Suessical matter what, Danny always
in 2006, Danny has made a keeps in mind that he will
return almost every year land- ―always have theater.‖
ing a role in previous producAndy Moeller, who made
tions of Bye Bye Birdie, The his debut alongside Ellen Lee
Wizard of Oz, and most re- in Suessical as Jojo, will be
cently The Sound of Music. taking up a similar role in reBut now, Danny has received lationship to Lee as Avery
leading role this year as Arable, Fern‘s brother and
Wilbur‘s nemesis. Practically
bursting with enthusiasm at
every rehearsal, Andy has
been a fan of theater for a
while. Beginning in 7th grade
when his mother took him to
see Chicago in New Jersey,
Andy became instantly
―impressed‖ and was right
there and then convinced to do
Suessical for East Hills. When
he was cast, the only way
Andy knew how to describe
the feeling was ―Awesome! [I
began] jumping in the air, and
as soon as I told my mom, she
did the same!‖ Having his
doubts about ever getting the
chance to be cast compared to
the upperclassmen, Andy didn‘t expect much but decided
he ―wanted to get the experience.‖ But it wasn‘t just Ms.
Wescoe who believed he
nailed the role of Avery. According to the rest of the
Theater Company, ―Andy was
Avery!‖ Now with this character under his belt, he is
looking toward the future stating that he will continue music and theater hopefully at his
college of choice, NYU. He
had plans to end up acting
together with Ellen Lee
whether it is on or off Broadway. However, planning for
bumps in the road ahead,
Andy would gladly be employed by Ellen‘s Stardust
Diner (a restaurant and theater
combined), but if that still
doesn‘t work out, he reassures
that ―I have a Plan B and a
Plan C, too.‖
All we can say is best of
luck freshmen!
Through the Camera Lens
By Jasmine Ameerally,
Editor-in-Chief
Senior Sean Cassidy has a way
with photography – I mean, come on,
have you seen the guy‘s photos?
We‘re lucky to have this talented guy
pegged as our photo editor, but when
did he really started getting savvy
with the camera?
―I've enjoyed photography ever
since I was young,‖ says Cassidy.
―Just recently, about ninth grade, is
when I got serious about it after taking photo 1 with Mr. King at Freedom.‖
His weapon of choice (I mean, his
camera of choice)?
―I use Nikon camera gear, and I'm
very familiar with Photoshop.‖
His love for taking photos is not
just a hobby—it‘s also a day job.
―I've been working at Christmas
City Studio for about a year now. I
take sporting event pictures, like
football, soccer, field hockey, etc. for
Freedom and other local schools in
the Lehigh Valley. An amazing opportunity arose this past summer
when I had the chance to photograph
senior portraits in their studio.‖
Cassidy‘s job at Christmas City
acts as good practice for learning and
practicing all aspects of photography.
―Christmas City liked what I had
been doing for them in terms of my
sporting event photo work and
thought that for me to get trained in
doing studio work would be a good
idea. I learned
how to utilize
different lighting
techniques, different poses, and
other
camera
settings. I was so
lucky to have
the opportunity
to work and do
something I love
at my age.‖
His
photos
aren‘t just taken
here in Bethle-
hem; he‘s captured some global shots
as well.
―This past summer I had the opportunity to travel to Switzerland and
Scotland. It was a photographers
dream to be able to photograph different cultures and capture the unforgettable moments. Probably my favorite images I've shot.‖
Sean says there are two important
people in his life were tremendously
helpful by acting as inspiration for
him.
―My brother was involved in photography at Freedom when he went
there. He took photos of sports and
worked on the yearbook. I always
wanted to be able to be involved in a
way that he was involved,‖ says
Cassidy. ―Mr. King, the former
photo teacher at Freedom, was also a
big inspiration. He has always been
supportive of what I've done and
challenged me to my potential.‖
The million dollar question – will
he continue to pursue a career in
p hot ogr ap hy in t he f utur e?
―At this moment I want to [either
be] a photographer or being involved
in photography in a marketing or
media degree. I plan to attend college, just not sure which one is right
for me at the moment.―
Cassidy says he will continue to
keep his hobby as a passion.
―I will always know that I will
enjoy photography in some capacity.
Once you‘re into photography,
you‘re hooked.‖
Pates’ Post 9
The Blammo God
each other, and he wanted to create
something that would help students
meet others like them, make new
Soham Roy, a senior, became friends, and interact with all four
known as ―Blammo God‖ after the classes. The idea for the game origicreation of the interactive game Free- nally came from a summer camp that
dom loves. This game in essence is he attended a few years ago.
organized stalking used to promote He thought back to Freedom and
peer-to-peer interaction throughout created a set of rules that would be
students.
used for school purposes.
This game started at the beginning Every player is given a spoon and a
of last year, when Soham heard some target, the objective being to get the
friends complaining about how boring target out. To do this, the player must
and ―monotonous‖ school could get. catch his or her target without their
He realized he could liven school spoon, tag them with the spoon, and
spirit with a game that gave the stu- exclaim, "Blammo!" causing them to
dent something to think about. The get out. The player then gets the vicfour grade levels also rarely talked to tim's target, and the game continues.
You must turn your ―kills‖ in
within the time limit. With
some strategy, you could be
the next player given the title
of the Blammo champion for
the round.
Soham encourages everyone to get involved in
Blammo while attending
Freedom. There's a surprise
twist that he has been working on with a friend that
might come into play next
round. It will involve playing
in teams, making the game all
the more exciting! Don‘t just
take his word for it. Ask the
many students, teachers, and
even Mr. LaPorta for yourself!
Courtesy of The Freedom Forum photographers
By Faarah Ameerally,
Staff Writer
Twirling with a Smile
By Kaleigh Birdsong,
Editoral Editor
Joe Mulacheski / Christmas City Studios
National Merit Scholarship Winners
Chad Dolak / Yearbook Adviser
Keith Bell, Soham Roy, and Terese Nelson won the National Merit Scholarship Award, and Jasmine Carter and Kaleigh Birdsong received the National
Merit Achievement Award.
Senior Ali Lynn is an athlete—and
a very dedicated athlete at that who is
involved in a unique sport. Lynn, captain of the FHS Twirlers, the Band
Front of the Freedom High School
Patriot Band, is committed to her talent of twirling, which incorporates
both dance and
gymnastics. For
seven years, Ali has
been passionate
about her sport,
competing (and
winning) in many
events. Her most
treasured accomplishment is being
the reigning "2010
Pennsylvania State
Queen."
Ali got her start at
a
young
age.
―Growing up,‖ she
reflects, ―I watched
my friend perform,
and I thought it
would be something fun to try.‖
But, it has been
no easy journey for
Lynn. In order to
keep her technique
and routines strong,
Lynn must practice
dancing and twirling 7 days a week.
It is no wonder why
Ali has found such tremendous success – her hard work is reaping bountiful rewards.
In the future, Lynn hopes to twirl
for a university throughout her college career. Her advice for other
twirlers and athletes is this: ―Good
sportsmanship is the key to being successful; the win isn't always important.‖
By Stephanie
Perez,
Special to The
Freedom
Forum
Halloween Candy: A Danger in Disguise?
By Maggie Bruce,
Staff Writer
Everyone loves to eat a ton
of candy during the Halloween season. Whether it‘s obtained through the act of trickor-treating or just due to the
discounts on bags of ―funsize‖ candy bars at supermarkets, Halloween is known for
its handfuls upon handfuls of
sugary delicacies. While in
most cases, it‘s probably perfectly safe to consume a controlled amount of candy, one
must not forget the treachery
lurking beneath those crinkly
wrappers.
Large amounts of sugar can
wreak havoc on the human
body. First off, let‘s not forget about the familiar feeling
of a stomachache. Overeating
of any sort can upset the stomach, but eating too much sugar
creates an acidic environment
in the intestines, since sugar
isn‘t easily digestible in its
commercialized state. Consequently, it takes a while for
sugar to digest through the
body, and therefore a large
amount of it is often converted into fat. But everyone
dangers are waiting
behind sugar‘s sacchar ine
facade?
Over time, sugar
can rot the teeth and
inflame the gums. If
sugar remains on
any oral cavity (pun
intended) for too
long, it speeds up
the processes of decay and infection.
Also, sugar
can destabilize the
body‘s glucose levels, leading to things
like headaches and
mood swings. On an
even more serious
note, too much sugar
Gabby Manganiello / Staff Photographer could
potentially
weaken the body‘s
knows that eating too much immune system. The bacteria
sugar could possibly nudge and yeast in the bloodstream,
someone into the ―over- essentially all the dangerous
weight‖ classification on a stuff, feed on sugar. When
body mass index calcula- there is too much glucose in
tion. But what other hidden the body, the bacteria are able
to nourish themselves and
multiply until there are
enough of them to start attacking the body‘s set of self defenses.
Sugar also has a few mental
effects that must be mentioned.
Unbalanced sugar
levels in the body can make
students feel fatigued and
stressed out, which could detract from the learning and
enrichment that takes place
here at Freedom High
School. In addition, elevated
levels of sugar can affect the
mind‘s cognition, and its ability to remember and recognize
information.
All in all, however, sugar is
okay in moderation.
But,
while it may seem like a good
idea to gorge oneself upon
Halloween indulgences, the
side effects are indeed at least
somewhat hazardous.
The Origins of Halloween
By Soham Roy,
Centerspread Editor
A cold breeze chills the night.
You startle awake with a
fright. Outside the full moon
is shrouded with dark clouds,
and a wolf howls mournfully
in the distance. Suddenly a
meow by your feet makes you
jump, and you see the glowing
eyes of your cat stare back at
you through the dark. A shiver
races down your spine as you
realize that it‘s Halloween
night.
Many people have this connotation when they hear of the
spooky holiday of Halloween.
Others take a more pleasant
approach and imagine costume parties, jack-o-lanterns,
and trick-or-treating with
friends. No matter which imagery comes to mind though,
nearly no one knows the history of this holiday and how it
came to be.
Although you may wrinkle
your nose at the mention of
history, the origins of Halloween are actually very interesting. This holiday can be
traced back to the Celtic festival of Samhain, or ―summer‘s
end‖. The Celts believed that
From left to right:
Colleen Chemidlin,
7th grader East Hills
Middle; Kelly
Chemidlin,
Sophomore; Justin
Alicea, 8th grader
East Hills Middle;
and Tyler Alicea,
Junior.
during this time when the
lighter time of the year came
to an end and the darker part
began, the border between the
real world and the Otherworld
would come at its closest, allowing spirits to traverse onto
the Earth. To protect themselves and ward off the harmful spirits that would sometimes cross over, the Celts
would wear costumes and
masks to disguise their identities among the spirits. They
also celebrated the night of
October 31st by building great
bonfires, practicing divination, and slaughtering their
livestock to prepare for the
long months of winter. After
the Roman empire conquered
the Celts, this holiday turned
into Feralia, a day when the
dead would pass. Under the
pope, Christian influences
soon mixed with the initial
pagan origins of this day, although it continued to be celebrated in costumes, bonfires,
and parades.
It wasn‘t until the migration
of our European ancestors that
Halloween first came to the
United States. However, when
it did reach the ―New World‖,
the holiday took on a life of
Junior
Courtney
Barrow at
age 7
dressed as
the Power
Puff Girl
Blossom.
Julie Boylan and Shaleen Oza, Juniors
its own, maintaining some
traditions such as costumes
and parades, but also creating
others like trick-or-treating
and haunted houses. The Halloween you and I know today
is very different from the Halloween that existed over 3000
years ago. However, if I could
choose, I would pick the contemporary candy and scary
movie filled Halloween any
day!
Decades of Playing Dress-Up
By Kelly Curran,
Staff Writer
Excit ement is r is in g
throughout Freedom High
School for Halloween. From
1960 to 2010 Halloween costumes have changed according
to what‘s new. In addition,
each year brings creative new
styles in Halloween costumes.
Teachers, students, and faculty members have seen these
October fashions change
throughout the years in their
neighborhoods every October
31.
―Harry Potter. Around 2005
there were a lot of Harry Potter costumes,‖ Mr Michael
Evans, a 9th grade history and
11th and 12th grade psychology teacher, answered when
asked what popular costume
he had seen a lot of in a specific year.
―The best costume I ever
made was a slot machine.
When people pulled my handle, chocolate coins came out
the slots,‖ Mrs. Karla Erdman,
an English and journalism
teacher, said. Another anonymous teacher had stated that
she had seen ghost costumes
for several years.
When asked the coolest
costume ever seen, Alexis
Broennle, a junior at Freedom,
said that the coolest costume
she had ever seen was her
friend‘s mom dressed up as
Glinda the Good Witch from
the Wizard of Oz. ―About 2
years ago everyone was
dressed up as The Joker. I
think that was when the new
Batman movie came out,‖ she
continued.
Megan Hunsberger claimed
that the best costume she had
ever worn was when she
dressed up as a band-aid,
while Meghan O‘Toole, a
freshman, said that her best
was Pikachu in kindergarten.
When students,
teachers, and faculty members were
asked opinions on
their predictions for
most popular costumes this year,
most students answered vampires.
―Vampires because
of the Twilight
movies,‖ Meghan
O‘Toole explained.
According to
ABC news, for the
past 5 years National Retail Federation has ranked
witch costumes #1
in their survey of in
-demand adult Halloween costumes. The reason is because
the styles are constantly
changing on these costumes to
suit the current fashions.
Additionally, ExtremeHalloween.com has been holding
online surveys each year since
Photo provided by Navea Frazier / Staff Writer
2004 for most
popular costumes for teens to
adults. Results show that for
guys, pirates such as Captain
Jack Sparrow were the most
popular in 2004, 2006, and
2007, while during 20082009, The Joker reigned su-
preme. In both 2006 and 2007
pirate costumes were popular
for girls while in 2008 and
2009 black widow costumes
took the stage.
What are You Afraid of the Most?
With Halloween just around the corner, it seems that everyone is game for a little scare. Horror movies, haunted houses, and freakish costumes always manage to
send a shiver down one‘s spine, but it turns out that what most people are afraid of do not have anything to do with the usual supernatural, creep-crawly stuff that
often accompany the arrival of Halloween. When a few Freedom High School students were grilled on what really terrifies them the most, they gave some pretty
surprising (and funny!) responses.
“Failing an honors class, or getting hit by a car, but
surviving.” - John Buchner, Junior
“I’m afraid of becoming fat.” - Anonymous
“Failing as an adult.” Ashley Wodzicki, Senior
“TARANTULAS! Either
that, or midgets. And
Dr. Krieger!” - Mike
Romanelli, Junior
“I’m still scared of the dark.” - Emily Gardiner,
Junior
“Getting injured and being crippled
because of it.” - Danny Csakai, Junior
“Becoming a writer for the National Inquirer!” Jasmine Ameerally, Senior
By Allison Conzola, Staff
Photographer
“Emma Watson dying or ceasing
to exist in this world.” - John
DePadua, Junior
“Nothing! I’m fearless. Oh wait, I’m
kind of scared of planes and bridges.
Also, there’s pencil sharpeners, the letter F, rodents, pearls, holes in the
Ozone layer, Cat-Dog, and gum. And
you know what else? Rob DelFranco,
the FBI, escalators, piano players, and
AP Calculus. Is this supposed to be like
a Halloween thing? I’m afraid of children throwing candy at me and children running through the streets exclaiming ‘trick or treat’. Oh my God,
and stink bugs. Those freak me out. If
I could wish death upon anything in
life, it would be stinkbugs.” - Aubree
Guidon, Senior
Mike McGinty, Junior
Gabby Manganiello, Sophomore
Faarah Ameerally and Steph Mccoe, Freshman
Dhanu Thiyagarajan, Senior
12 Features
Best Local Places to Celebrate Halloween
nights to $32.99 on Saturdays
and Sundays (buying tickets
online will get you a better
As it gets later into fall se- price).
mester, students have a few
different autumn events on
their minds such as homecoming, Friday night football
games, and of course Halloween. Even if one doesn‘t go
trick-or-treating, there are tons
of different attractions in the
Lehigh Valley to have fun on
fright night.
Other than massive steel
coasters, Dorney Park is especially popular around Halloween for boasting what may be
some of the best haunted attractions in the Lehigh Valley. Everyone is familiar with
Dorney‘s Halloween Haunt
which began the 24th and will
run until the 31st of October.
Some attractions being featured this year at Dorney include The Mansion House
Hotel, The Backwoods, Club
Blood, Pirates Passage, Deathtrap, Asylum, Corn Stalkers,
Headstone, Hollow, and PsyPsycho Circus not your
cho Circus. ―There are a lot of thing? There‘s always the anreally cool new attractions,‖ nual Bethlehem Halloween
says Jessica Stives, jun- parade. Held the weekend beior. ―It‘s lots of fun for every- fore Halloween, it features
one, and you always have a local school bands, tons of
really good time.‖ Pricing free candy, costumes, and
ranges from $23.99 on Friday floats. ―It‘s always really
By Mackenzie Liberatori,
Staff Writer
fun,‖ exclaims junior Kellee
Edmund. ―I like seeing everyone dress up and all of the free
candy.‖
There are of course pumpkin patches, a popular one
being Klingel‘s located between Wind Gap and Saylorsburg. A fun and free way to
have a great time, guests can
pick their own pumpkins, get
funnel cakes, French fries,
FHS Future Educators Association
Teacher Spotlight: Ms. Stauffer
Editorial Editor
If you have ever had Mrs.
Illona Stauffer as a teacher for
Spanish, you likely agree with
the sentiments of her many
students who do nothing but
rave about her.
―I love Mrs. Stauffer!‖
Brianna McCullough, senior,
continues, ―She is a big part
of the reason why I have a
passion for Spanish.‖ Senior
Lindsay Riley explains, ―If
she pretends that she hates
you, she really loves you. She
is a tough-love teacher. I love
her!‖ Others, like senior
Magda Kedzior, reflect, ―In
the three years I‘ve had Mrs.
Stauffer, I‘ve learned that she
is the best Spanish teacher
ever!‖ ―She is stinkin‘ hilarious!‖ exclaims Taylor Brown,
senior. Overall, it is clear that
Mrs. Stauffer is well loved by
all of her students.
For 26 years, Stauffer has
taught in BASD, and in that
time, she has discovered that
her favorite aspect of teaching
is ―the kids of course. [They
are] always interesting and
always teaching me something and keeping me young!‖
She adds, ―Summers off aren't
too bad either!‖ During her
free summers, Stauffer is
known to be a talented golfer.
―It's great exercise (I walk and
carry my clubs), and every
round is different and challenging. It's something I can
do alone and still enjoy,‖ she
says of golf, her passion.
Stauffer was raised in the
Lehigh Valley where she attended William Allen High
School.―Way
back when I
graduated,‖ she
remembers,
―most girls either went into
teaching or nursing. [We] never
gave
mu c h
thought to what
else was available to us.‖ Pursuing a major in
Spanish and a
minor in French
in order to become a teacher
opened
many
doors of opportunity
for
Stauffer. ―Once
I started studying the language, I realized
I really loved
learning foreign languages... [I] lived five
years in southern Spain, and
three years in Italy…[and I]
learned to speak and write
that language as well.‖
We are glad that her journey
led her here, to Freedom High
School, where we are privileged to have her as an esteemed Spanish teacher.
candy apples, and tons of Mazezilla.com). The maze
other junk food; watch the operates on select dates until
pumpkin launch; and go on the 31st of October from 6-10
hayrides.
PM and admission is free.
―Mazezilla is a fantastic
corn maze,‖ says junior
Robyn Collette. ―There
is a different theme to it
each year, so it‘s always
an adventure to walk
through it.‖
If you don‘t mind driving a little further for
your fun, Jason‘s Woods
in Lancaster offers some
creepy attractions. The
park features nine attractions with names like
Barn of Terror, Pitch
Black, Escape from Oz,
and Lost in Jason‘s
Woods. The events start
on October first and include live shows, battle
of the bands, celebrity
meet and greets, talent
competitions, various
contests, and a Freak
Show.
Ticket prices
Courtesy of flickr.com/people/dogboi/ start at $25.00. Jason‘s
Wood‘s is open every
Corn mazes are popular too; Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
one being Mazezilla, also lo- from 7-10 and 7-9 PM.
cated in Wind Gap, which
Halloween is a short but
changes every year, always sweet season; make sure to
with an incredibly intricate enjoy it however you spend it.
pattern (this year‘s theme is
Dinosaurs, check it out on
University of Pennsylvania
By Giovanni Saldutti,
Asst. Photography Editor
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Acceptance Rate: 18%
A private, coed, four-year college.
A residential campus in an urban setting located in a large city,
less than one mile from downtown Philadelphia.
The most popular majors are business/marketing, social sciences, engineering, and health profession.
Tuition and Fees: Students who are both in and out-of-state pay
$ 40,514 in tuition fees.
Admission Requirements: A general college essay as well as
the university‘s supplemental essay is required for admission. Like many other schools, the SAT Reasoning Test is
required, but two SAT Subject Tests are also needed. This
university also considers character/personal qualities, rigor
of secondary school record, standardized test scores, extracurricular activities, work experience, academic GPA,
alumni relation, and class rank.
Facilities: An anthropology museum, contemporary art institute, arboretum, astronomical observatory, large animal
research center, undergraduate research center, the Kelly
Writer's House, and the Hillel Foundation.
For more information, go to www.upenn.edu or contact the
admission office at [email protected].
Giovanni Saldutti / Asst. Photo Editor
Courtesy of flickr.com/photos/maskology/3470388681/
Features
13
Profile: Student Body President
By Navea Frazier,
Staff Writer
A new year at Freedom
brings a new Student Body
President, and this year the
title goes to Brianna McCullough. Brianna is not the senior who thrives on ―senioritis‖ or overworking herself
into oblivion. McCullough is
in a class by herself, doing
what she loves to do, taking
care of others along the way.
After talking with Brianna,
it should not be a surprise that
she is the president of the
school, considering it is in her
blood. Well, sort of.
―My dad was class president
of his high school and college,
so I am kind of carrying on a
family tradition,‖ says McCullough. She also explains that
her father is a major role
model and inspiration to her.
Brianna McCullough is an
inspiration to others who are
considering joining student
council, telling them to ―have
confidence and totally do it to
help people and make a difference and impact.‖ Brianna‘s
impact is being seen throughout the school year. ―My main
goal as president is making
the student body happy, bridging the gap between them and
faculty,‖ she says.
Next to bridging gaps,
Brianna McCullough‘s passion has to be performing.
Brianna has incredible talent,
par ticipating in extr a curricular activities such as
Les Chanteurs and Freedom
High School Theatre Company. She is, in addition, a
devout Christian spending
much of her time at her
church where she dances,
sings, and is—big surprise—a
part of the youth council.
Once her senior year is
through, Brianna has no plan
at stopping.
―My dream is to go to
American University, double
majoring in Spanish and political science. I later want to
go to law school and become
a district attorney and eventually a judge,‖ says McCullough as she tells of her many
future plans.
Brianna McCullough declares, ―the point of being
[student body] president is
that when you leave the
school, people will still remember your name.‖
Student Body President Brianna McCullough
Play Preview - Charlotte’s Web
By Michael Newman,
Asst. Layout Editor
Charlotte’s Web has been
chosen this year to be produced by the Freedom High
School Theatre Company, and
it‘s bound to be a hit.
The play is based on the
book of the same name by
bestselling children‘s author
E.B. White, who is also
known for writing Stuart Little. The novel is about pig
named Wilbur and a spider
named Charlotte whose
friendship is put to the test
when a farmer wants Wilbur
to be slaughtered.
The book, first published in
1952, is a landmark in rhythmic writing style and has become a classic in children‘s
literature. Also the novel has
gained popularity in recent
years which has led it to be
turned into a movie starring
Dakota Fanning and Julia
Roberts in 2006.
So it‘s not surprising that
the Theatre Company has decided to produce Charlotte’s
Web - in fact it‘s about time.
Freedom High School has
been fortunate enough to have
one of the best Theatre Companies in the area.
The Freedom High School
Theatre Company has produced many plays in the past
and they have won a prestigious amount of Freddy
Awards. A few of the titles
produced in the past by the
Theatre Company are You’re
a Good Man, Charlie Brown,
Into the Woods, Seussical the
Musical, West Side Story,
School House Rock and many,
many, more which are on
view outside of the school
auditorium.
Not only is the school‘s
Theatre Company busy producing play after play, they
have also won Freddy award
after Freddy award in categories of Best Overall Musical,
Outstanding Choreography,
Outstanding Costume Design,
Best Production Number, and
the list goes on and on.
Freedom High Theatre
Company member Sam Fedorchik, junior, says that the
play will be ―very audience
engaging, have a great cast,
and isn‘t just for kids!‖
Also, she added that being a
part of the Theatre Company
team is ―always a lot of fun,
and we are always looking for
more help.‖
Everyone in the Theatre
Company seems excited about
the play, reciting their lines,
setting up the props. Everything just looks like it is going
great and is ramping up to be
another entertaining and
worthwhile experience for
both the cast and audience.
So come on out and see the
play which is
slated to show
in November
on the 12th,
13th,
and
14th. Parents
can come too
as well as
family
and
friends. Get your tickets as
soon as you can because they
have sold out in the past and
sold out quickly. Seeing a
play is a fun experience and is
a great break from modern
entertainment such as TV,
video games, and the Internet.
What I mean is, how many
chances do you get to see a
play, if you have seen any at
all? Give it a try and get out
there; it looks like a lot of fun.
Fresh Faces in Freedom
Faculty: Part Two
Editorial Editor
This year introduced a variety of new teachers to Freedom High School. Here is a
glimpse of just how much of a
variety we acquired: There are
five new math teachers, four
new science teachers, two new
language teachers, one new
English teacher, one new art
teacher, and one new gym
teacher. That is a total of 14
fresh faces walking the halls of
FHS! Last month, you met a
few out of the bunch, and this
month we are introducing a
couple more.
New to the business department is Mr. Andrew Osisipower. He is a Bloomsburg
grad hailing from Liberty High
School (but, we won‘t hold
that against him.). In high
school, he describes himself as
both outgoing and studious. At
Bloomsburg, he played water
polo, which now makes him
the perfect addition as an assistant coach to the FHS swim
team. Thus far, his experience
here at Freedom has been a
positive one. ―The kids are
great, and the staff is really
exciting to work with.‖
Ms. Kelly LaTourette, one of
our new math teachers, had
some adjustments to get used
to when she came to FHS after
teaching 7th grade math and
algebra in Northeast Middle
School. One aspect of the high
school atmosphere she is looking forward to is ―teaching
higher level mathematics than
I taught in middle school,‖ she
says. ―Right now I am teaching Calculus and Algebra 3,
which are both great!‖ However, she also admits that FHS
is ―much bigger and more
crowded than the high school
that I attended, [Honesdale
High School].‖ LaTourette
claims she chose to become a
teacher because ―I love to
learn and wanted to help others learn!‖ She continues,
―The best aspect is when a
student says, ‗I get it!‘‖
Freedom High School is
excited to have so many new
educators to join the ranks, and
we all wish them a wonderful
experience!
Jasmine Ameerally / Editor-in-chief
Kate Dawson and Greg Adams practicing for
their upcoming play Persistance
Ms. Kelly LaTourette
Mr. Andrew Osipower
14 Features
Easy (and Drug
Free) Ways to Stay
Awake
SAT vs. ACT
By Amanda Molinaro,
Staff Writer
By Dhanu Thiyagarajan,
Features Editor
Now that a few months have
gone by, we‘re all accustomed to
rolling out of bed before the sun
comes up, right? NO. It can be
easily deciphered that many of
us at FHS are not ―morning people,‖ and whether it‘s the 8th or
80th day of school, I don‘t think
we ever fully adjust to the alarm
ringing at 6:00 in the morning. So I‘ve come up with a few
things that might keep you from
sleep walking during our long
and seemingly never ending
days.
Not a coffee drinker? Try
brewing tea before school and
bringing it with you in a portable
mug like sophomore, Kelly
Chemidlin does. The sugar and
caffeine will give you an energy
kick, but too much isn‘t good for
you.
Playing upbeat music on the
ride to school will get you out of
your sleepy mood and energize
you for the day.
Breakfast truly is the most important meal of the day, so make
sure you eat a healthy and energizing one. Consider eating
healthier snacks throughout the
day, unlike 5-hour energy drinks.
Having a phone blockage may
seem unfathomable, but it may
help you get more sleep. ―Past
eleven o‘clock, my phone
‗blocks‘ all texts and calls, and I
receive them the following
morning. It allows me to sleep
without the distraction of communication,‖ says sophomore
Olivia Kolis.
Simply having a positive attitude and smiling can keep you
stress free and brighten your
sleepy mood.
Exercising on a daily basis
gives you energy and keeps you
motivated. You need to use energy in order to gain it back.
The most obvious advice to
follow is to simply get more
sleep. ―This year, I‘m trying to
get at least eight hours of sleep
every night. So far, it‘s been
working!‖ says Caterina Atiyeh,
sophomore.
Atiyeh also states that
―Participating in class, rather
than just listening and staring
keeps me involved in my schoolwork and more alert.‖
Stop checking your phone
(which is ―in your locker‖) every
fifteen minutes and keep your
eyes off the clock, so your
classes seem shorter.
The easiest advice to follow? Everything in moderation. Stay active, but don‘t strain
your body. Get involved, but
don‘t overwhelm yourself. Eat
healthy, but don‘t refrain from
the chocolate cake, and enjoy
being a carefree teenager without
losing hours of sleep.
As juniors start off their
tough year of testing, many
are wondering whether to
take the SAT or ACT. Both
nationwide tests taken by
high school students to get
accepted into colleges have
many differences and various benefits to different
types of students. Although
the SAT is more popular on
the east coast and the ACT
in mid-western America,
many colleges will accept
either test. Most colleges
have the condition of taking
the SAT with two or three
subject tests or the ACT plus
writing. Each college has
their own requirements, so
using collegeboard.com to
find out particular colleges‘
necessities is recommended.
While the SAT is offered
in the months of October,
November, December, January, March, May, and June,
the ACT is offered in September, October, December,
February, April, and June.
No matter which test or
month, both of these tests
take about three and a half to
four hours to complete on a
Saturday morning.
The structures of these
tests vary greatly. The SAT
covers Critical Reading,
Math, and Writing. There
are a total of ten sections:
three sections Critical Reading, three sections Math,
three sections Writing, and
one experimental section.
The writing section also contains a required essay to be
written. Critical Reading,
Math, Writing, and Science
are covered on the ACT.
There is one section of each
subject, and the writing section contains an optional
essay.
The scoring for both tests
also differs. On the SAT, a
quarter of a point is taken off
for every wrong answer, so
guessing for questions is not
recommended, but using the
process of elimination
method is suggested. No
points are deducted for an
incorrect answer on the
ACT, so guessing for questions is preferred. Each topic
on the SAT is scored out 800
points for a total of 2400
points. Some colleges put
emphasis on the SAT out of
1600 taking into consideration only the Critical Reading and Math sections, since
the Writing section is fairly
new. The ACT final score
consists of a composite score
of 36. Each of the four sections is also scored out of 36.
Essays on both tests are
scaled on a range of 0-12
where two scorers will grade
the essays and their individual scores will be combined
together for a total score.
Relating to the basis of
content, SAT is known to be
more of an aptitude test
where students are tested on
their test taking abilities, and
reasoning skills. On the
other side, the ACT is more
of a knowledge-based test.
The SAT contains many
tricks in questions‘ word-
ings, whereas the ACT is
more direct. SAT places an
emphasis on vocabulary, and
the ACT on grammar and
punctuation. More commonly known, the ACT is
said to be aimed for students
that are more talented in
math and science than reading and writing because not
only is there a science section on the ACT, but the
math content is also harder,
and the reading and writing
content is said to be easier
than the SAT. As senior Jamie DeLeon says, ―I think
it‘s a lot easier to do well on
the ACT which are more
knowledge based.‖ On the
contraire, senior Emily
Young says, ―I have met
people who have achieved
better on the SAT than the
ACT.‖
All and all deciding which
test to take is based upon an
individual‘s own opinion
and preferences. One should
do a couple of practice problems from both tests on each
section and see what he/she
is more comfortable with
and also what the colleges
p r ef er . P l ea s e v i s i t
sat.collegeboard.com for
more information on the
SAT, and
www.actstudent.org for
more information on the
ACT.
VIA Walk & Clothing Drive
By Jasmine Osley,
Staff Writer
This year, the Freedom
chapter of the National
Honor Society has teamed
up with the VIA Foundation
to serve our community and
provide for others less fortunate.
On Saturday, October 23,
2010 at 6 P.M. National
Honor Society will be holding a 5K sunset walk and
clothing drive to benefit the
VIA Foundation. The objective of the walk is to fundraise by getting others in the
community to sponsor the
walkers in the hopes of collecting money to later be
donated to the foundation.
When asked what would
become of the donated clothing, National Honor Society
President, Alyssa Lambert,
senior, replied, ―After collection, the clothing will be
donated to the VIA Foundation where they will distribute the clothing to thrift
stores and internationally to
underprivileged countries.‖
National Honor Society
advisors Mrs. Donna Roman
and Mr. John Wallaesa along
with the 2010-2011 officers
Alyssa Lambert, Jaime
DeLeon, Dhanu Thiyagarajan, and Giovanni Saldutti
have devoted a lot of time
and hard work into planning
and making this one of the
most successful National
Honor Society service projects to date.
National Honor Society is
an organization dedicated to
recognizing and rewarding
students who demonstrate
the four pillars of NHS,
which are scholarship, leadership, service, and character. ―Scholarship is characterized by a commitment to
learning. Service includes
the willingness to work for
the benefit of those in need
without compensation or
recognition of any kind.
Leaders take the initiative to
aid others in a wholesome
manner. Students with good
character demonstrate respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, fairness, caring,
and citizenship in all of their
actions,‖ reads a document
further detailing the four
pillars of NHS. President
Lambert strongly believes
that the Freedom chapter of
NHS fully encompasses
these four pillars and says
the mission of NHS is to
―serve the school community
as well as the outside community and to give back in
different ways.‖
The VIA Foundation‘s
mission is to assist people
who are trying to make a
positive change in their community. VIA says that they
do not offer charity, but instead offer
poss ib ilit y.
Their goals
are to ―help
people who
are trying to
help themselves, but
are unable to
do so alone,
to create opp or t u n it i es
for
those
who wish to
offer effective, meaningful
assistance to communities in
the Czech Republic, and to
assist in the creation of an
environment that allows individual and community initiatives to succeed.‖
The VIA walk and clothing
drive is for a good cause,
and anyone who would like
to participate is welcome to
do so. NHS President Lambert says, ―Anybody from
Freedom [should] feel free
to sign up for the walk; support and join the walk, and
bring clothing.‖ In the end,
every bit helps.
The start of the 2009 Via Walk
Entertainment 15
Viewers “Like” The Social Network
By Rob DelFranco,
Staff Writer
With social networking, the
masses of the world can stay
together with the click of a
button. It‘s a civil norm for
society to have something like
a Facebook, and when someone mentions that they do not
have a site like this, it‘s almost incomprehensible. Facebook connects everyone in
this generation; it‘s almost a
requirement to have a Facebook in today‘s society. But
how this phenomenon began,
how 500 million users in the
global community, is the story
of Mark Zuckerberg and The
Social Network.
Mark Zuckerburg (Jesse
Eisenburg) can sometimes
be… well, a jerk. But a jerk he
may be Mark is naturally brilliant and talented. After his
girlfriend, Erica Albright
(Rooney Mara), breaks up
with Mark at a Boston bar, an
intoxicated and scorned Mark,
his best friend Eduardo
Saverin (Andrew Garfield)
and his roommates hack, program, and create facemash.com, a website that
compares the attractiveness of
Harvard undergraduates and
acquired 22,000 hits in the
first few hours of it going
online.
Facemash,.com began it all.
After the creation of facemash.com, Mark is approached by the Winklevoss
twins, Cameron and Tyler
(Both portrayed by Armie
Hammer) to create an exclusive website that connects users in the Harvard network,
aptly called the Harvardconnection.com. Mark agrees to
look at what the Winklevoss
twins have, but with the beginnings of an idea in mind,
Mark goes to Eduardo with an
idea to pitch the social networking college creates onto a
website, called thefacebook.com.
What followed could be
seen as a phenomenon. Mark,
Eduardo, and a team of programmers soon expanded thefacebook.com to many
schools and increasingly large
amount of users daily. Expanding to the West Coast
also got Eduardo and Mark in
touch with Sean Parker (Justin
Timberlake), the creator of
Napster.com. With Sean‘s
guidance and ―suave-ness‖,
what is now called Facebook.com (as it is commonly
seen today), popularity and
fame grew to its founders
and all was going well.
But as the poster befittingly puts, ―You don‘t get
to 500 Million Friends without making a few enemies.‖
Following the creation of
t h ef a c eb o ok. c o m, t h e
Winklevoss twins began to
create a plot for a lawsuit
against the Intellectual property they claim Mark stole
from them. Even Mark‘s
best friend Eduardo drifted
apart to the point where
Eduardo filed a lawsuit
against Mark for the transgressions against him.
Director David Fincher
has told the story of Facebook.com in a few different
perspectives, thus creating a
movie that entertains, tells a
story, and provokes thinking
at the end that has left audiences and critics in ―Like‖
with The Social Network.
Whether the events are
dramatized or not, the creation of Facebook makes for
a noteworthy movie that
people of this decade are
going to connect and take
interest in.
Halloween TV Traditions
By Dhanu Thiyagarajan,
Features Editor
Family features The Pirates of
the Caribbean, The Curse of
the Black Pearl, Corpse
Bride, The Haunted Mansion,
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Practical Magic, The
Mask, The Spiderwick
Chronicles, The Haunted
Mansion, and Van Helsing
along with many other classic
Halloween movies. While
premiered, and many all-day
marathons are being shown
with various shows, Disney
Channel has on their schedule
many classic Disney Halloween movies. These movies
consist of Halloween Town,
Halloween Town Two, Halloween Town Three, Twitches,
and Twitches Too along with
many other classic movies
that are shown
yearly.
This year‘s
Halloween TV
premiere
is
sure to be a hit
for all ages. On
ABC Family,
Disney Channel, and many
other channels,
many
great
movies
and
Ha lloween
Courtesy of abcfamily.com
related shows
Monday through Friday is are being premiered. Everyonly a feature of one movie a body enjoys a great scare
night, Saturday and Sunday is once in a while, and what betaction packed with multiple ter time to enjoy this adrenamovies throughout the day.
line rush than during the wonSimilar to ABC Family‘s
schedule, Disney Channel is derful month of October?
Halloween is not only a
time for fun costume parties
or free candy, but also a time
to get a great scare! While
playing pranks on people is
fun, the thrill of watching
scary movies and shows provides excitement to another
level. While scary
movies or specifically
Halloween movies are
shown throughout the
year for random enjoyment, the month of
October provides for
the ultimate showing of
various movies and
Halloween specialized
shows. Different channels have different
marathons and various
movies, but ABC Family‘s ―13 Nights of
Halloween‖ and Disney Channel‘s ―October
Takeover‖ are namely the
most famous marathons.
ABC Family‘s annual ―13
Nights of Halloween‖ is filled
with tons of classical Halloween movies along with some
movies just for pure entertainment. The ―13 Nights of Hal- following a very similar
loween‖ occurs from October schedule. While many new
19th to 31st. This year ABC Halloween episodes are being
Courtesy of screenrant.com
Maroon 5 “Hands All
Over” CD Review
By Edwin Mejia,
Staff Writer
Before listening to this album, I didn‘t really pay much
attention to Maroon 5. I didn‘t listen to their newest releases, aside from the singles
like ―Makes Me Wonder‖
and ―She Will Be Loved.‖
But now, I have a newfound
appreciation for their style. I
really don‘t even know what
it is, but it‘s either lead singer
Adam Levine‘s unique singing, or the music behind the
main man.
Some of the songs on this
new album are straight up
funky, and I find no other
words to describe them. The
ones like ―Give A Little
Mor e,‖ ―Miser y,‖ and
―Stutter‖ had me bobbing my
head and bouncing my shoulders, while others like ―How‖
and ―Just A Feeling‖ were on
the softer, more sensitive side
of the band both lyrically and
musically. Nonetheless, they
kept me interested in what
they had to say.
I always think about
whether or not I would play
an album in my car and drive
to it. I feel like this album is
worthy of that ―honor‖ and
hopefully in the near future, I
will be popping ―Hands All
Over‖ into my CD player.
Overall, I would give the
whole album an ―A-‖ and I
would tell a listener that it is a
step forward for
Maroon 5. It is a
great first album
to listen to if
you‘re new to
the band, and I
am expecting to
check out their
previous work if
it is anything
like this.
Courtesy of coverlandia.us
16 Entertainment
Harry Potter:
The End Is
Near
By Mary Harvilla,
After more than a decade of
enchanting lives with fantasy and
wonder, the infamous Harry Potter Series is officially coming to
an end.
Even though the novels written
by J.K Rowling have already
ended back in 2007, the movie
series has continued to be made.
However, on November 19th, the
end of an era will begin. Since
the last book, Harry Potter and
the Deathly Hallows, has such a
great significance to the series,
director David Yates has decided
to split the movie into two parts.
Part one of the movie, coming
out in November, will cover
events from the beginning of the
book up until chapter twentyfour. Then part two of the movie,
coming out in 2011, will cover
from chapter twenty-five until
the very end.
Faithful followers of Harry
Potter have mixed emotions
about the series ending. While
some are excited to see how the
story unfolds, others are feeling
rather solemn about the event.
―It‘s sad because [the series] has
been going on since all of us
were little, so it‘s almost as
though we‘re accustomed to it by
now. [Harry Potter] has been a
part of our lives for so long that
it will be weird not to have it
around anymore,‖ says senior
Dana Wetmore.
Unfortunately, the end is coming regardless of your feelings
towards the situation. Without
spoiling what‘s in store, it‘s easy
to say that the upcoming movie
will leave viewers on the edge of
their seat.
In one of the most epic battles
of good vs. evil, the final chapter
of the Harry Potter series will
surely be unforgettable. Potter
fans, it‘s time to gather together
and prepare for the very end of
an era. Have a box of tissues
handy.
Paranormal Activity 2: The Scare Returns!
By Gianfranco Lentini
formation that‘s been given,
mainly the Paranormal Activity 2 movie trailer, it looks
The grip of fear that came as if Katie makes a return to
over moviegoers last Octo- what was once her house,
ber could only be summarized up into two words:
Paranormal Activity. And
now, just as we thought it
was all over, that fear returns
this October with a vengeance and the title Paranormal Activity 2.
But the news of a sequel
has audiences scratching
their heads nationwide. We
all saw the ending of the first
Paranormal Activity, so how
will Director Tod Williams but Micah is no where to be
and Producers Oren Peli and seen. What can be seen
Jason Blum extend the story though is a nursery, and in
of Katie and Micah who are, the nursery, a baby and a
to the audience‘s belief, dog keeping watch. Thanks
dead?
to the magic of ‗pause,‘ what
Well, from what little in- can be seen in various scenes
is that one moment this new
baby will appear in both his/
her crib and the reflection of
a mirror across from his/her
crib, but in a split second,
Courtesy of imdb.com
he/she will vanish, but his/
her reflection will remain.
Another disturbing fact is
that the guard dog and the
baby are both obviously
aware of this new demon‘s
presence, being able to see it
Jon Stewart's “Rally to Restore Sanity”
By Tyler Alicea,
Layout/Asst. Editorial Editor
Comedian Jon Stewart is
fed up with the status quo
and has put together a call to
action: ―The Rally to Restore Sanity.‖
Stewart, host of The Daily
Show on Comedy Central,
will be hosting ―The Rally to
Restore Sanity,‖ a satirical
movement mocking the Tea
Party protests in Washington
D.C. The rally will be taking
place on October 30, the Saturday after Stewart hosts his
show in D.C. for the week.
What does Stewart plan to
achieve with this rally?
He hopes that Americans
from all over the country
will be able to assemble together for a few hours to
FHS
Varsity Ice
Hockey
Schedule
have their voices be louder
than those who are the focus
of the mainstream media.
Whether it be loud racists,
insane politicians, or just
misguided plumbers, Stewart
hopes that ―The Rally to Restore Sanity‖ will be a success.
Stewart, however, is not
the only one holding a rally.
Partner in crime, Stephen
Colbert will be holding an
additional satirical rally at
the same time as Stewart‘s,
known as ―The Rally to Restore Fear.‖
In addition to the rally,
Stewart wrote a book titled
Earth (The Book). The story
describes the planet Earth
years after humanity has
died off to foreign aliens.
The book which
came out on September 21 also
mocks
culture
and tries to explain human actions to foreigners.
The
Daily
Show with Jon
Stewart
hosts
Monday through
Thursday nights
at 11:00 pm on
Comedy Central.
Courtesy of comedycentral.com
HOME
11/01/10
11/08/10
11/15/10
11/22/10
11/29/10
12/06/10
7:05pm
7:05pm
8:50pm
7:05pm
8:30pm
8:30pm
Steel-West
Steel-West
Steel-West
Steel-West
Steel-East
Steel-East
Freedom
Freedom
Quakertown
S. Lehigh
Freedom
Freedom
Just Surrender w/ Phone Calls From Home, and The
Scenic - 11/03/2010
A Day To Remember w/ Underoath, and The Word Alive 11/06/2010
Never Shout Never w/ The Maine, Carter Hulsey, and I
Can Make A Mess Like Nobody's Business -11/20/2010
Courtesy ofbackseatcuddler.com
clearly. And to top everything, the makers of Paranormal Activity 2 have hidden a secret message into the
trailer for all viewers at
home. Before the trailer ends
and the baby has vanished
but his/her reflection remains, if you look at the bottom of the mirror, an upside
down message is written
across the floor, and it reads,
―What is happening to
Hunter?‖
Who is Hunter? Is the
baby that is playing mirror
tricks Hunter? And if so,
what do they mean ―what is
happening‖ to him/her? Only
time will tell when October
22 rolls around just in time
for Halloween, and maybe
finally all of our questions
might be answered... Might.
AP Tour: August Burns Red, Bring Me
The Horizon, Emarosa, and Polar Bear Club - 11/27/2010
AWAY
Parkland
Emmaus
Freedom
Freedom
Liberty
S. Lehigh
Crocodile
Rock
Listings
Entertainment 17
Fashion Week
By Mike Vitoroulis,
Staff Writer
As the stiletto-scuffed halls
of New York‘s Lincoln Center
are rebuffed, and last year‘s
faux fur is swept from its corridors, now is the best time to
take a break from the craziness that is fashion week and
reflect on some of the highlights and trends on New
York‘s runways for this spring
season, as well as take get an
exclusive sneak peak at
Manuel De La Cruz‘s spring
collection presentation.
This season‘s collections
still retain a bit of last years
conservative ―tailored classics‖ mindset, but that being
said, the streets come springtime will be far from boring.
Pattern-on-pattern garments,
varying levels of fabric transparency, and hot (albeit somewhat excessive) amber were
seen throughout a number of
collections—all the while retaining the chic femininity
that New York‘s runways
haven‘t been keen on
(especially when compared to
Milan).
Band of Outsiders
Band of Outsiders revived the
über-cool prep aesthetic in its
collection, which was a mix of
both menswear and its
womenswear line, ―Boy‖ by
Band of Outsiders. The color
palette stuck to spring basics
—whites, yellows, and
splashes of blue or red
thrown in. This collection‘s most interesting
aspect was not that it
featured pieces that were
covertly revealing (those
white sheer tops are
definitely going to be
turning heads for the
wrong reason), but the
fact that the womenswear was incredibly
feminine, a Band of Outsiders first.
Charlotte Ronson
English designer Charlotte Ronson felt a bit
anachronistic and somewhat confusing. Butch
and hard, yet feminine
and colorful, Charlotte‘s
models pranced down
the runway parading a
look slightly reminiscent of
the 90‘s, yet styled in a super
modern way. A majority of
Ronson‘s looks sported colorful patterns which were occasionally paired with another
pattern that contrasted harshly
(flowers under plaid? What
gives?!) with the initial. It
sounds horrid in words, but is
absolutely brilliant in the photos.
Diane von Furstenburg
Diane von Furstenburg‘s col-
lection oozed swagger. Bold
patterns in even bolder colors
portray a certain sense of confidence that is hard to attain
without coming off as snobby
or sartorially disabled, but
somehow Yvan Mispelaere
(the line‘s designer) managed to pull it off in an alluring and sensual manner.
The collection focused on
expert tailoring—some garments could pass as couture with a bit of extra refinement.
Manuel De La Cruz
When it comes to inside
looks, the Freedom Forum
doesn‘t come across all that
many—but I had the privilege of being invited to
Manuel De La Cruz‘s
spring collection presentation and managed to snap a
few photos of the looks
while attending the presentation. As my first legitimate experience at a fashion week event, I had no
Courtesy of fashionrules.com
idea what to expect. All I
lection was appropriately knew when I stepped through
named ―Goddess,‖ and it the doors of Chelsea‘s Metroclearly managed to live up to politan Pavilion was that my
the goddess-like status of the name was on the list and that
Diane von Furstenburg line some beautifully designed
itself. As much as I hate the garments would be on a dozen
word, every look in this col- or so pin-thin models standing
on a platform. When I walked
in, I was greeted by security
who directed me to an intern
that confirmed that my name
was on the attendee list. I was
handed a gift bag and folder
and was told to enjoy the presentation. As I made my way
through the room, filled with
300 or so people, I inched my
way closer to the row of models sporting Manuel‘s spring
looks. I was in awe. The collection was beyond impressive—featuring beautiful
shades of mauve and sky blue,
ingenious details that could
have easily been overlooked. I
had to pick up my jaw from
the floor. This spring‘s looks
were inspired by the traditions
of Cruz‘s native Guatemala,
Semana Santa, during which
the townspeople prance
around depicting various religious scenes. The inspiration
was clearly there, with rosary
and old school basics heavily
present. My favorite piece
from this collection was a
belted black and midnight
blue dress constructed of a
lace-like material; très chic
and versatile, it could have
been worn and layered a
dozen different ways. If only I
cross-dressed...
Top Five Horror Films
By Mike Vitoroulis,
Staff Writer
Horror movies, who doesn‘t
like them? They touch on our
most primal fears of claustrophobia, the fear of the unknown and bodily harm. Here
is a list of my top five favorite
horror films.
5. Alien (1979)
Directed by Ridley Scott
Upon its release in 1979,
Alien was a disturbing sight to
behold and still is for that
matter. With its ominous designs and expert direction by
Ridley Scott and Sigourney
Weaver, the strikingly beautiful female-hero, Alien, was a
shock to audiences when it
was released. The film‘s plot
is pretty straight forward. The
crew of the deep space mining
ship Nostromo is awoken
from their hyper sleep to investigate a strange signal from
a nearby planet. While investigating the signal, they discover it was intended as a
warning, and not as an SOS.
What follows is 117 minutes
of gut wrenching suspense.
There are two major reveals in
the film – one involving how
the alien life from matures in
a host and the other, ones fear
of the unknown. The bottom
line is Alien is a must see. The
actors are great. The special
effects are strikingly realistic
(especially considering it was
made in the late 70‘s). The
sets are magnificently detailed
and the slow build up is a nail
biter. This science fiction/
horror thriller is not for the
ADD type of movie viewer.
4. The Evil Dead (1981)
Directed by Sam Raimi
The Evil Dead was Raimi‘s
first feature film as a director,
and what a first it is! The Evil
Dead is an extremely graphic
film about five college students that decide to vacation
in of all places an isolated run
-down cabin deep in the
woods. Their quiet stay becomes gruesome when they
find an audio tape in the
cabin‘s basement that releases
evil spirits, upsy-daisy. Raimi
and company secured the
films shooting budget of
$375,000 and shot the entire
movie in one year. The Evil
Dead is the apex of what they
call ―spam in a cabin‖ flicks,
another example would be Eli
Roth‘s Cabin Fever. So, for
all of you people that enjoy a
heavy amount of campy looking gore and an atmosphere of
claustrophobia, The Evil Dead
is the right movie for you.
3. Hellraiser (1987)
Directed by Clive Barker
This film is a total mind
bender. Clive Barker‘s story
of the cenobites (demonic beings) who visit a person when
they solve a mysterious puzzle
box. Hellraiser is a good old
fashion horror film complete
with a terrifying psychedelic
atmosphere, a motley crew of
characters, and a man with no
skin. Yes, a man with no skin.
Check it out; you won‘t be
sorry you did.
2. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Directed by
George A. Romero
Ah, Dawn of the Dead, another nasty from the legendary
horror director George A. Romero aka ―The Godfather of
the Zombie.‖ Dawn of the
Dead is a true classic that
takes place entirely in a shopping mall infested with hungry zombies. Just be sure not
to eat anything before watching this movie.
1. The Thing (1982)
Directed by John Carpenter
The Thing is a film of raw
unaided horror and paranoia.
The film revolves around a
group on American researchers in Antarctica who happen
to cross paths with a defrosted
alien—an extremely angry
alien for that matter. The
Thing is probably one of the
most horrifyingly violent hor-
ror flicks ever
made and has a
very nasty antagonist that can
transform itself
into any intelligent life from.
It‘s guaranteed to
not disappoint.
Courtesy of imbd.com
18 Sports
College Football
By Mike McGinty,
Sports Editor
Another season of college
football is now underway. The
same old BCS, Bowl Championship Series, is being used,
and unlike most seasons, there
are 2 Non-BCS qualifying
teams in the Associated Press
Top 5. Those two teams, the
TCU Horned Frogs and the
Boise State Broncos, played
each other at the end of last
season in the Tostitos' Fiesta
Bowl in Glendale, Arizona in
which Boise State won 17-10.
This season, the Broncos
return 21 of their 22 starters
from last year and have already beaten two teams that
were ranked in the Top 25.
The Horned Frogs, on the
other hand, return 16 of 22 of
their starters. Kellen Moore of
Boise State and Andy Dalton
of TCU are both upperclassmen eager to cause chaos in
the BCS this year and lead
their team to a first ever National Championship appearance by a non-BCS qualifying
team.
The rest of the nation's elite
teams are historically prestigious teams, such as Alabama
and Ohio State. Alabama
leads the pack with the number one overall ranking in the
Top 25. Ranked number 2,
Ohio State is trying to win
their first national championship since 2002, behind junior
Terrell Pryor in his third year
starting.
Another team to watch is the
Oregon Ducks, who are the
number one scoring team in
the nation with 57.8 points a
game. Oregon also is playing
in the Pac-10 conference that
is not as powerful this year as
they have been in years past.
As far as BCS conferences,
the SEC has 6 teams in the
Top 25, the Big Ten has
6 teams, the Pac-10 has 4
teams, the Big 12 has 3 teams,
the ACC has 2 teams, and the
Big East has no teams. However, non-BCS conferences
occupy a good portion of the
Top 25. For example, the
Mountain West and WAC
both feature 2 teams in the
poll.
The Bowl Championship
Series creates 5 match-ups for
the major bowl games: The
Rose Bowl, The Orange
Bowl, The Fiesta Bowl, The
Sugar Bowl and the National
Championship Game. Other
than the National Champion-
ship Game, which is a matchup between the number one
and number two ranked teams
in the country, the other
games are chosen by becoming an automatic qualifier
from the BCS Committee. The
two top ranked teams are
guaranteed a BCS National
Championship berth, and a
team is guaranteed one of the
four remaining BCS bowl
games if they are the champion of a BCS Conference
(ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big
East, Pac-10 and
SEC). In addition,
no more than two
teams from the same
BCS conference can
receive a BCS bid,
and two non-BCS
Conference teams
from the same conference may qualify.
Somewhat confusing, this system has
shown at times to be
ineffective and very
controversial.
"Teams outside the
Top 25 who are still
good football teams
suffer from the system. Not being
ranked makes it
hard to qualify for
End of Freedom’s Golf Season
By Samantha Chu,
Staff Writer
With a record of 8-7 and averaging 420 strokes as a team,
Freedom‘s golf team ends
another great season. The
team‘s coach, Mr. Michael
Evans, seems enthusiastic
about the season‘s turn out.
The team of ten golfers never
gave less than their all. One of
the most memorable matches,
Freedom versus Pen Argyl
was won through ―total team
effort,‖ and Coach Evans and
the team were very proud that
they ―used all 8 positions to
score.‖
The team also accomplished
a great win against Liberty on
September 29th. In terms of
districts, a requirement of an
average of 81 strokes to qualify, Freedom saw two of our
senior golfers to the competition. The two, whom are
among the team‘s most influential players, senior Steve
Kluemper, averaging 73
strokes, and senior Kyle
Balga, averaging 81, were
excited for district qualifiers.
―It was a good year,‖ says
Balga. ―At points our team
came together, and we won
matches. I just try to stay focused and do my best. And
I‘m looking forward to districts.‖
With the requirement of 84
strokes or under, Kleumper
continued on to the district
competition. Regionals began
October 19th, and took the
top 10 of 50 golfers, and the
State competition will follow
on October 25th, with the top
24 of 68 golfers.
Unfortunately, the team will
be saying goodbye to 7 graduating seniors, leaving only 4
returning players. So if you‘re
into golf and interested in becoming the next Tiger Woods,
Coach Evans encourages underclassmen to try out next
year for the golf team for 8
varsity positions.
Senior, Andrew Spruck, hits out of the sand during a match in the season.
the BCS which limits recruiting opportunities and national
recognition for these teams,
but a playoff system might
make it easier for these teams
and make college football
even more competitive," said
Kyle Spina, a junior and Freedom football player.
Lastly, the prestigious Heisman Trophy is up for grabs
once again this season. Some
contenders for the trophy are
last season's winner Mark Ingram of Alabama, the explo-
sive dual-threat quarterback
Denard Robinson of Michigan, the clutch and experienced Kellen Moore of Boise
State, third-year starter Terrell
Pryor of Ohio State, the true
freshman Marcus Lattimore of
South Carolina, and the very
impressive Ryan Mallet. Let's
just hope whoever wins the
Heisman this year doesn't
have to return it as Reggie
Bush had to just this year.
Courtesy of clevelandleader.com/node/12487
End of Girls
Tennis Season
By Samantha Chu,
Staff Writer
The girls‘ tennis ends another
great season as the summer
comes to a close. The girls‘
tennis team took on a tough
season, with a current record
of 4 wins and 5 losses. Nevertheless, the team, a medley
of freshman, juniors and seniors, had exceptional teamwork, which helped them
when it came to matches.
As senior, Jenna Lastres
said, ―We work really well
together; we get along so
well which helps us improve.‖ Therefore, the team
never lost their edge when it
was game time or their enthusiasm for team bonding
activities such as trips to
Taco Bell or pasta night.
The team had a triumphant
win against Liberty on October 7th, dominating with a
team score of 6 to 1. The
team also had high hopes for
first and second singles,
Marielle McIntyre, whose
only loss was to B.E.C.A,
and Julie Boylan, undefeated,
as they entered into singles
districts. The two, who must
have won at least 8 matches
throughout the season, were
very excited. ―I‘m confident
in going to districts. I hope to
do well. I hope to walk away
wit h a ―W‖ [ win].‖
The competition ended on
October 11th. McIntryre finished third in the district,
playing her own teammate,
Boylan, in the quarterfinals.
Doubles finals ended October
18th with a Freedom loss to
Stroudsburg in the quarter
finals.
Team districts began October 19th with a winning
match against Parkland.
After a great season and
exceptional performance in
districts, sadly, the team is
saying goodbye to four seniors, Roshni Desai, Emily
Luizza, Dhanu Thiyagarajan,
Jenna Lastres, who have all
had great experiences on the
team. They will forever remember their times on the
tennis team and will hopefully continue to succeed in
future endeavors.
MLB Postseason
Expectations
NBA Preview
By Kevin Woodring,
Sports Editor
By Roshni Desai,
Staff Writer
It‘s finally October, and for
major league baseball, this
means playoffs. With a wide
range of teams in the MLB, the
fight for a playoff spot always
seems difficult.
Every year, eight teams are
eligible for postseason play. In
the MLB, there are two leagues
through which the teams are
separated: the American League
and the National League. Within
these leagues, there are three
divisions: East, West, and Central. One team in each division is
given the opportunity to be in the
playoffs, as this team must always be the division leader with
the best record. Teams that are
not sufficient enough to lead the
division still have a chance by
winning the wild-card, which is
nothing more than the best team
out of all other teams that did not
lead the division.
Over the past few years, teams
like the Phillies, the Yankees,
and the Rays have shown they
have what it takes to dominate in
the postseason. This year, there
hasn‘t been much of a change.
Winning their division for four
years in a row, the Philadelphia
Phillies are one of the top teams
in the National League expected
to advance far in the playoffs.
Other division leaders include
the Minnesota Twins and the
Texas Rangers, who may also
pose a threat in the postseason.
The New York Yankees, last
year‘s World Series champs, are
also expected to make their way
to the top. Their cumulative batting average of a .267 proves
they can be really tough to defend. In the same division, the
Tampa Bay Rays is another team
that has the ability to easily succeed in the playoffs. With more
than 90 wins, the Rays won‘t go
down without a fight.
Considering all of strong teams
in the league and the challenges
that lay ahead, the 2010 MLB
playoff race will definitely be
exciting from now all the way
until the World Series held in the
beginning of November.
Each year, devoted basketball fans wait and anticipate
how the new season will
play out. The 2010-2011
season is promising to be
one of the greatest seasons
ever due to the new arrangements of players within the
respective teams. But every
season, the same question is
debated and eventually answered, ―Which team will be
the champion, and who will
take home the MVP title?‖
With Carlos Boozer and
Kyle Korver moving to the
Chicago Bulls, the Utah Jazz
is no longer a legitimate
team. The Denver Nuggets
look strong again, especially
after signing Al Harrington.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, led by star Kevin Durant
is on its way to become the
new bastion of the Northwest division.
As usual, the Los Angeles
Lakers will be the team to
beat as long as Kobe Bryant,
―The Black Mamba,‖ is with
them. With the gain of
T yr ek e E va ns, t he
2009/2010 NBA Rookie of
the Year, the Sacramento
Courtesy of flickr.com/photos/adwriter/
Sports 19
Kings may have a better
chance at having a successful season, but not successful
enough to advance to the
playoffs.
After acquiring guard Tony
Allen and re-signing Rudy
Gay, the Memphis Grizzlies
should return to the playoffs
this season. The San Antonio
Spurs acquired 6'11" forward Tiago Splitter from
Brazil, who will definitely
be an added bonus to the
already well established
team. Replacing Erick Dampier with Tyson Chandler
didn't make the Dallas Mavericks better, but they resigned star Dirk Nowitzki.
The addition of Shaquille
O'Neal to the already superb
trio of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett
makes the Boston Celtics
nearly invincible in this division. All you depressed
Knicks fans can be a little
more optimistic because the
team may improve this season, after signing Amar'e
Stoudemire and Raymond
Felton. Drafting Evan
Turner put the Philadelphia
76ers on the right track, although not on the winning
one, yet. Unfortunately, the
New Jersey Nets couldn't
land a superstar, so their
chances to advance are once
again very slim.
The Orlando Magic's three
-year run of division titles
should come to an end, but
after keeping J.J. Redick and
Vince Carter, they're still a
prevalent threat. Out of respect for Cleveland Cavaliers fans, not much should
be said about their 20102011 season, only that it will
be a short one for them.
Keeping this same respect in
mind, not much should be
said about the Miami Heat's
2010-2011 season, only that
it will be an extended one
for them. With the dynamic
trio of Dwyane Wade,
LeBron James, and Chris
Bosh, the Miami Heat will
enter the 2010 season as the
favorite to win the title.
Courtesy of Flickr.com/photos/jjubela/
Courtesy of flickr.com/photos/judxapp/
Freedom Football is Ready to
Dominate the City
By Kaelee Alpha,
With the talk buzzing Freedom having a chance. no way were going to win.
Special to The Freedom Forum around town that Freedom Freshman Logan Close Liberty will win just like
The game is on. The fans
are going crazy and rumors
are spreading around the
city. It‘s the annual showdown: Freedom Patriots
against Liberty Hurricanes which
takes place
at the Fred
Banko Field
on November 6.
This football game is
so
significant that it
becomes the
highlight of
many
students‘ school
years. Freedom
and
Liberty are
cr os s -t ow n
rivals
that
are both in the Bethlehem
Area School District. Liberty
has won the past eight years,
and this year, Freedom has a
chance to prove themselves
to Liberty and be the champions.
has the chance to beat Liberty this year, the students in
Freedom are ready and excited to see the outcome.
Students that have been in-
terviewed in Freedom want
their school to win, although
only fifty percent of students
believe that the win for Freedom is achievable.
The opinions of the students are very strong about
stated, ―Freedom is going to
win because we haven‘t won
in awhile, and it‘s our turn to
be on top; we can do this.‖
Seniors are even more ready
they do every year, and all
we‘re doing is getting our
hopes up,‖ an anonymous
junior stated.
Even with uncertainty, the
football players
are ready to
prove all of the
doubters wrong.
The
football
team is preparing by reviewing film, perfecting
plays,
and putting their
full effort in
practices
and
games leading
up to the event.
Each day is
getting closer to
the biggest rivalry game of
the
year.
Whether
the
winner is Liber t y
High
Sean Cassidy / Photo Editor School or Freeto win because, ―It‘s
dom
High
my senior year and we‘re School, each school makes
going to [win]. There‘s no the other stronger. In the
other option,‖ stated senior words of sophomore Claire
Mike Derrico.
Sullivan, ―Liberty better
However, it‘s not all- watch out. It‘s on.‖
positive feedback. ―There‘s
Courtesy of The Freedom Forum photographers

Oct FINAL - FreedomForum

Transcription

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