- TEEN SEX ISSUE! - MR. URBANA! - APRIL FOOLS ISSUE!

URBANA HIGH SCHOOL’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
URBANA HIGH SCHOOL’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
- MR. URBANA!
- TEEN SEX ISSUE!
- APRIL FOOLS ISSUE!
- ANNA NICOLE SMITH EXPOSED?!?
VOLUME 95
ISSUE 6
URBANA HIGH SCHOOL, 1002 S. RACE. URBANA IL
PHONE: (217) 384-3544. WWW.USD116.ORG/UHS
COVER ART BY AMY SAMPSON
ECHO, APR 20, ‘07 - Pg 2
Mr. Urbana: A New Tradition?
by Gretchen Booth
THE ECHO STAFF
Editorial Staff
Erik Allgood - Editor in Chief
Robert Kahn - Editor in Chief
Sarah Hoyle-Katz - Copy Editor
Amy Sampson - Buisness Manager
Duat Bui - Photo Editor
Jake McGinty - Photo Editor
Margaret Fitzpatrick - Faculty Advisor
General Staff
Sam Hasset
Kevin Lawanto
Vincent Flores
Jay Watkins
Katya Cummins
Brian Lee
Cara Siegel
Jeremiah McCarthy
Gretchen Booth
A
nd the winner is. . . Jared Kimball
(’07). Will the Mr. Urbana Pageant become Urbana High School’s
newest tradition? Tradition is defined
as a continuing pattern of culture, beliefs, or practices. Mr. Urbana gives all
the outgoing guys with the most school
spirit a chance to be rewarded for loving our school. Will this pageant for
guys have what it takes to stick around?
The first and hopefully annual Mr.
Urbana Pageant was held on Friday,
March 2, 2007, at 6:00 p.m. in the UHS
auditorium. Contestants were Erik Allgood (’07), Mikey Beckwith (‘07), Chris
Brown (’07), Kevin Erickson (’07), Jared
Kimball, Thomas Pickering (’07), Shagun Pradhan (‘09), and Michael Wayman (‘07). Each of them prepared a talent ahead of time. Each also had to come
up with a tiger pride outfit to wear while
answering the question part of the competition. “I’ve been working on my talent
and thinking of my wardrobe for a solid
month,” said Jared Kimball beforehand.
ACT: Easy as 1, 2, 3!
by Sarah Hoyle-Katz
A
pril is here, and along with it, the
ACT. Though there is still time
to study, some juniors have already
done so by taking advantage of Urbana High School’s ACT prep classes.
The classes have been meeting after school on Wednesdays and Thursdays, with a section each for English and
Math/Science, according to class instructor Dr. Geiger. Using The Princeton
Review Guide to Cracking the ACT , he
says, “we help the students review [the
tests’] content, and teach them strategies
to get a few more points on their score.”
Though Dr. Geiger says he cannot
know for certain if the prep classes will
raise students’ scores on the ACT, the stu-
dents feel otherwise. “I’m pretty sure the
more practice in a certain time limit I get,
the better I get at doing it,” says Athena
Liao (‘08). As well, at least one senior
with a score in the high thirties attributes
some of her testing success to the prep
classes. “There are lots of practice tests
so you’re prepared for the real thing,” she
says. “The help tips made it really easy.”
If you have not signed up yet for
the classes, these students suggest
you do so if you still can. The classes are expected to continue next year.
“Is it not better to enjoy the gift of light that adheres, than
to seek a darkness you are spared?”
- Master Poe from Kung-Fu
“To hold a pen is to be at war.”
- Voltaire
Mr. Urbana opened
with hosts Liesel Booth
(’08) and Nancy Miller
(’07) welcoming everyone to the first annual
Mr. Urbana Pageant.
The show was very fast
paced and went straight
into the talent portion.
Each contestant had
two minutes to show
what he does best. The
talents were varied, including a poetry reading by Mikey Beckwith,
a saxophone performance of “Mary Had a
Jared Kimball, Mr. Urbana
Little Lamb” by Kevin
Erickson, and an electric guitar performance
er. This year, as she took the president poby Jared Kimball. By far the most en- sition, she was determined to make it haptertaining was the remake of Youtube’s pen before she graduated. With planning
greatest, “Shoes,” when Thomas Pick- by Business Club and the cooperation of
ering, dressed in drag, dancing around Drama Club for the space, everything
the stage, won quite a few laughs. was pulled together in a few months.
Next came the serious part. The talWhether or not this becomes an annual
ents were over, and it was time to see how event really depends upon the student
the guys
response. “We had a
w o u l d
little over a hundred
strut their
people in the auditiger pride
ence. From up there
down to
it looked like everyreceive
one really enjoyed
their questhe show,” said cot i o n s .
host Liesel Booth afSome contestants did the always classic terwards. Judging from the way audience
polo or dress shirt in orange and black. members talked afterwards, Business Club
Most used paint face, while one, wearing might have no choice but to do it again.
only a pair of shorts, painted his entire
The most common audience comment
body. Bringing us back to Urbana Mid- was that the pageant was over too soon.
dle School days was Shagun, our former Business Club says that they’ll think
mascot, who resurrected the tiger suit. about adding more competitions, and
All contestants were asked two ques- if the show is long enough, in the futions. The first was a personal question. ture they may have an intermission with
Of Mike Wayman, the hosts asked about food. Their ideas for improvement can
his childhood memories. He told about liv- only make it better for next year. “For a
ing next to Kirby Johnson (’07) and fight- first ever, I think it went fairly smoothly,”
ing over a bush they used for play. Jared Business Club executive Maheshie CaKimball was asked about what he did in braal (‘08) concluded. Sounds as if next
his free time. He responded with play- year, same time, same place, the 2nd aning his guitar and keeping it real with his nual Mr. Urbana Pageant will be held.
dogs. The questions were answered with
funny stories to keep the audience laughing. Then came the final question that
all were asked, “Why should you be Mr.
Urbana?” Responses included, “Because
I’m a stud” (Beckwith), “I think the audience has the answer to that one” (Kimball), and “Um, I’m the tallest” (Allgood).
Business Club began the pageant as a
fundraiser, but it ended up being more
of just a fun activity. The pageant, under
consideration for the past three years, has
been the pet idea of member Nancy Mill-
And the winner is. . .
Jared Kimball (’07)!
ECHO, APR 1, ‘07 - Pg 3
Photo Opinion Poll
Underage
by Kevin Lawanto
Each year, underage consumers spend
billions of dollars on alcoholic beverages.
The results of underage drinking have
both monetary and societal repercussions.
While many factors contribute to underage drinking, unintentional marketing to
underage consumers by companies within
the alcoholic beverage industry might be at
least partially responsible. Magazines are
a popular and prevalent medium through
which these companies advertise, to legal
and underage consumers alike. The study
provides insights into how some print advertisements can be perceived as targeting underage consumers. Seventeen-yearold “holy-spider” said, “I start drinking
when I was fifteen, and I become addicted
to it. I think we should ban under-age
drinking, because after you become addicted to it, you just start drinking and
drinking again and it is hard to stop it.”
It is said in one of the websites that
early alcohol use may have long-lasting
consequences. People who begin drinking before age fifteen are four times more
likely to develop alcohol dependence at
some time in their lives compared with
those who have their first drink at age
twenty or older. It is also said that, by
the time they reach the eighth grade,
nearly fifty percent of adolescents have
had at least one drink, and over twenty
percent report having been “drunk”.
Here are some of the injuries and social consequences for underage drinking:
Drinking and Driving. Motor vehicle
crashes are the leading cause of death
among youth ages fifteen to twenty. Adolescents already are at increased risk
through their relative lack of driving experience, and drivers younger than twenty-one are more susceptible than older
drivers to the alcohol-induced impairment of driving skills. The rate of fatal
crashes among alcohol-involved drivers
between sixteen and twenty years old
is more than twice the rate for alcoholinvolved drivers twenty-one and older.
Suicide. Alcohol use interacts with
conditions such as depression and stress
to contribute to suicide, the third leading cause of death among people between
the ages of fourteen and twenty-five.
In one study, thirty-seven percent of
eighth grade females who drank heavily
reported attempting suicide, compared
with eleven percent who did not drink.
Sexual Assault. Sexual assault, includ-
ing rape, occurs most commonly among
women in late adolescence and early
adulthood, usually within the context of
a date. In one survey, approximately ten
percent of female high school students reported having been raped. Research suggests that alcohol use by the offender, the
victim, or both, increases the likelihood
of sexual assault by a male acquaintance.
High–Risk Sex. Research has associated adolescent alcohol use with highrisk sex (for example, having multiple
sexual partners and failing to use condoms). The consequences of high-risk
sex also are common in this age group,
particularly unwanted pregnancies and
sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. According to a recent
study, the link between high-risk sex
and drinking is affected by the quantity
of alcohol consumed. The probability of
sexual intercourse is increased by drinking amounts of alcohol sufficient to impair judgment, but decreased by drinking
heavier amounts that result in feelings of
nausea, passing out, or mental confusion.
Alcohol also may cause brain damage,
as it is a central nervous system depressant. In small amounts most people experience sensations of relaxation as the
alcohol “depresses” brain activity. As
more alcohol is consumed and levels of
alcohol within the body rise, certain parts
of the brain are affected and declines in
functioning occur. It leads to a loss of
coordination, poor judgment, slowed reflexes, distorted vision, memory lapses,
and even blackouts. “You think you can be
cool when you try to drink. But the fact
is you can’t. Drinking just makes your
days miserable, but not just that: alcohol
also can destroy your body parts” said “JJ.”
“Beer or any alcohol is like the police
when you’re caught by them – the cops will
put you in jail and you will never get out,”
said “Chris.” Now it is your turn to decide.
The Question: If you were to make up a photo opinion poll question,
what would it be?
“Who would win in a no-holds-barred cage
match between Snow White and Cinderella?”
- Louis Beuschlein, Physics Guru
“If you were knew what sesquipedalian
meant, would you be descirbed as such?”
- Matt Rosenberger, ’07
“Could God make a burrito so hot even he
couldn’t eat it?”
- Juan Carlos, ’10
“101111000110100 100110011 10
10000101001010110011 10?”
- Patrick Smith, ‘07
“Why can’t Mister Fork and Mister Electrical Socket be friends? :(”
- Randy McCarthy, ‘10
F R E E o nlin e t u t or s for U rb a n a s t u d e n t s!
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Math, Science, English, Social Studies
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367-4057 • urbanafreelibrary.org
ECHO, APR 1, ‘07 - Pg 5
Diet-Free Diet
by Cara Siegel
“T
hin is in!”
That single phrase is drilled
into every adolescent’s mind over and
over by fashion companies, diet agencies, and peers. This drives many young
females, and a few males, to obsessively
watch what they are consuming every day,
practicing their own self-control, perhaps
even to the point of an eating disorder.
There are three main types of eating
disorders. One is anorexia nervosa, another is bulimia nervosa, and the last is bingeeating disorder. 20-25% of untreated eating disorders end in death, and there are
an estimated eight million people in the US
that suffer from some type of eating disorder. Although eating disorders are considered a “female” disorder, around 10% of
those with anorexia or bulimia are male.
Anorexia nervosa and other eating
disorders are primarily psychological.
Anorexics withstand voluntary starvation and purging to maintain a low body
weight. Bulimics will binge-eat, then
purge or exercise excessively (exercise bulimia). Those with binge-eating disorder
will binge like bulimics do, but they will
not purge - they just gain weight. Usually
bulimics have an average to subaverage
body weight, binge-eaters are typically
overweight to obese, and anorexics have
a body weight below 85% of the average.
Eating disorders wreak havoc on the
body. If your body burns through all of
your fat, it will begin to consume your
muscles and tissues. Blood pressure is
raised, and an irregular heartbeat is common. All eating disorders cause some
form of depression, driving the victim farther into the disorder, as if a leaner body
will make them less depressed. Malnutrition is almost a given – and all sorts of
destruction stem from that, ranging from
simple vitamin and mineral deficiencies to
death. Binge-eaters’ bodies usually have
the typical diseases for one who is overweight, such as diabetes and hypertension.
Eating is a chore for those who suffer
from anorexia - it becomes an obsession
for them. A recovered anorexic/bulimic
described how it felt when she ate, saying,
“I could feel my stomach physically getting fat – or at least I imagined it. During
the beginning of the illness, I felt hungry
but would not let myself eat. As time
went on, I didn’t feel hunger anymore.
The thought of food made me so anxious
that it was difficult to eat when I had to.”
A UIUC Psychology graduate, Brian Masciadrelli, describing the normal
thoughts of sufferers, said, “The majority of the people I’ve worked with who
have eating disorders tend to view themselves in unrealistic terms. By unrealistic,
I mean distorted in the way that is found
with body dysmorphia. When that occurs, individuals no longer have a rational
image of their own body. Instead, he or
she only sees his or her body as “fat” and
is unable to recognize how thin he or she
is/has become. In fact, when you question some eating disorder sufferers as to
whether or not they can literally see their
bodies becoming fatter with each mouthful
of food they swallow, the answer is usually yes and they mean it very literally.”
When binge-eaters eat, they usually feel
depressed or guilty about it afterwards.
The bingeing is done in private, where others cannot view or diagnose their disorder.
The majority of interviewed female
students at UHS believed that they
should be skinnier than they already were.
When asked why, they could not come
up with a convincing reason. “Because
I’m too fat!” was the most popular response, even when it was completely false.
Eating disorders are a very serious
thing, and you should be alert to the signs
of them in your friends. A few of those
for anorexia or bulimia are a negative body
image, an intense fear of gaining weight,
unhealthy focus on body shape or weight,
self-induced vomiting after eating, and excessive exercise. For binge-eating disorder, a few symptoms are no control over
eating, shame or guilt after eating, and episodes of overeating followed by not purging. Tell them about the risks of what
they are doing, and try to get them help.
Those of you who are thinking about a
diet right now, think about whether or not
you really need to. There are two types
of fat, and one is not dangerous, merely
cosmetic. This fat is called subcutaneous fat - it is stored right below the skin.
All it does is store extra energy from the
food you consume. The non-healthy fat
is called visceral fat, and that is stored
packed around your internal organs,
harming them. Visceral fat causes cysts,
gallstones, cancer, and increases your
risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease,
and heart attacks. If this unhealthy fat
is what you are concerned about it, talk
to your doctor to find out what diet plan
is best for you. Luckily, visceral fat is the
easiest to lose. But if it is just the subcutaneous layer you are concerned about,
don’t worry about it – that fat does more
good than bad. Besides, does everybody
really have to be super skinny in order
to fit in with society? Of course not!
all. Passing period is seven minutes long,
and most lockers do not have locks. Yup,
the lockers are like the ones in the PE
changing rooms: you push up a little lever
to open it, and there’s a hole between the
level and door to fit a lock so you cannot
open it while a piece of metal is in there.
Well, with the exception of a couple here
and there nobody has locks on their lockers since the school does not supply them.
Weird. I keep nothing valuable in my locker, so I am going to leave it unlocked too....
but it seems unnerving. Your browser
may not support display of this image.
Another thing I forgot to mention: camo
is a rather popular fashion choice here. I
bet everyone except me has something that
is camo-styled. (In case you do not know,
camo = camoflauge, a rather unappealing in my opinion- combination of teal green,
black, and brown. Some even go ahead
and wear stuff with actual designs of
fallen trees, leaves, and other forest stuff).
After three weeks here I feel that I could
make a general summary of people here:
in Tennessee (in this town anyway) people
are NICE. Like really nice; everyone talks
nicely, and there is no general chaos anywhere, even in the lunch room. There is
hardly any kind of law enforcement here,
as I have only seen one cop here, ever. And
I believe I have already mentioned the lack
of hall passes. I can count on one hand the
number of swear words I heard in the hallway in my three weeks here. A total of two.
What can I say.... wow. It still amazes
me, but I am quickly adapting… I have no
problems getting along with people here,
but I have to say this school is STRICT.
If I get credits for every class I take here
on out I will barely graduate with around
three extra credits. And I am ranked 4th
in UHS.... guess what would happen to the
really lower ranked people in my grade if
they transferred here their senior years....
Tennessee
by William Yue
F
ormer UHS sophomore William Yue
moved to Tennessee last semester.
His impressions of the state that boasts
both Graceland and Dollywood follow…
The town here is small, but not small
enough to not have its own little wellfunctioning community. There’s one
main road where it’s like campus town
and there are businesses every three
yards. Several smaller business roads
exist, but that’s the main road. All others are either residential or lead to
somewhere in the woods. Your browser
may not support display of this image.
Yeah, I said woods. There are lots of
woods and lakes here; I could get lost very
easily. My dad has to drive through twenty minutes of paths twisting around in a
forest to get to UTSI (University of Tennessee Space Institute). My dad guesses
that this obscure location is because during the Cold War the Americans somehow got it into their heads that building
everything so close to each other was not
a cool idea, especially military stuff, so
the Russian’s bombs wouldn’t cause too
much collateral damage. So everything
became way off in the woods somewhere.
…I will mainly focus on the experiences at school, though I will gloss over
the general community otherwise, as 1)
it’s not very interesting and 2) I’ve had
limited contact with society here outside
of school and shopping. The public library here is extremely small; the one in
my high school is bigger by a long shot.
(But they do have DVDs and videos).
The school system is weird; they go by
what they call a “block schedule” where
the classes are one and a half hours long
and only four classes a day. You get your
credits after the semester and take four
new classes next semester. Summer vacation is only two months long, but they
stick in more random holidays and schoolouts for no apparent reason (for example,
spring break is two weeks long). The
administration seems overly trusting of
their students, and passes do not exist at
The WORLD Today!
Anna Nicole Smith.... EXPOSED?!?
D
by Robert Kahn
Illuminati were following him, trying to get
the rock star to lead
them to Rufus, so that
they could control him.
The Illuminati had had
little sucess in selling
their new products,
Coke and Pepsi, to the
Rastafarian community at large. If Rufus
was their spokesman,
they reasoned, they
would be able to market far better than
Anna Nicole seen with Elvis in this rare photo.
(Images courtesy of cbsnews.com and elvis2k.co.uk)
they ever had before.
It was because of
The Anna Nicole Smith trial is indeed
a travesty. A travesty that she died. the Illuminati’s ineptitude in selling
A travesty that the court has embar- their product that Anna Nicole Smith
rassed itself, becoming a media circus. found out about Elvis’s whereabouts.
A travesty that the media has divested While doing a commercial for Pepsi’s
such interest in this meaningless case. new product, Crimson Surprise,
That being said, I know exactly and at the same time for Coke’s new
where Anna should be buried. She product, Red Unexpected Event, Mrs.
should be buried with Elvis, who is en- Smith overheard two of the executerred just outside of Anchorage, Alas- tives present discussing their plans
ka, having lived with a tribe of Inuit for Elvis. She immediately flew up to
sled runners for the last twenty years. Anchorage to warn Elvis. There, she
After faking his death to escape had an affair with the rock star, and
nosy reporters and the FBI who want- so was Dannielyn Stern born (any
ed information about his involvement DNA tests to the contrary are lies,
with the Black Panther Society, Elvis perpetuated through the Illuminatimoved up to Anchorage, figuring that controlled media by evil corporations).
Unfourtunately, as soon as Anna
it was the last place anyone would look
left
for the set of To the Limit, Ilfor him. He was also pursuing the deity Rufus, a god he had discovered luminati shock troops swarmed in
among the teeming Rastafarian com- to kill her new lover, who had been
munity of Knoxville. “Those were some living under the name Smut Hennerough times,” said Rufus, when asked rson. Anna gained nothing from
to comment on the pop idol’s death. the relationship except for a child,
What Elvis did not know was that the and twenty more words for “snow”.
From that day forward, Anna
was pursued by the Illuminati. Every time she stopped at a vending
machine, the secret cameras recorded her face, and sent it back to
the nerve center of this conspiracy
- the IHSA. That’s right. The IHSA.
She managed to survive the twelve
years between To the Limit and now,
an impressive feat, considering how
the Illuminati’s ninja assasins and
football recruiters invested so much
time and energy into plotting her
death. But time, and the Pepsi delivery
trucks, caught up with her eventually.
They don’t want me to tell you this.
I’ve already been visited by a football recruiter, and believe me, it wasn’t about
my incredible touchdown passes. But I
know that you, the non-voting minor
population of Urbana High School, needed to take action against this travesty.
Let’s hope we’re not too late, because
if Dannielyn, the child of Anna Nicole
Smith and Elvis, falls into the hands
of Howard “Killer” Stern or Larry “the
Terminator” Burkehead, all is lost.
ISCLAIMER: The editors
of the Echo would like to
inform you that if you honestly believe anything in this
section, there’s something
seriously wrong with you.
The Geico Gecko. (courtesy of adweek.blogspot.com)
Geico: Real Service, Real
Savings!
by Sarah Hoyle-Katz
The Geico gecko was arrested
in the Bermuda Triangle this past
weekend for soliciting prostitutes
and driving under the influence.
The gecko’s spokesperson was not
available for comment, but it appears
the gecko was on his twelfth martini
of the night and thought he was lizard
enough for seventeen courtesans. The
police were contacted when the gecko
passed out in the act and had no more
than five bucks cash on him, which
was woefully under the asking price.
The Geico car insurance company
was unavailable for comment as to why
their representative was driving drunk.
Dick Cheney
Cold, Gray...
An Immodest Proposal
by George Cruickshank
by Jake McGinty
Seeing, the killer approach, Cheney bared
teeth ready to strike back...
(Image courtesy of wilsonsalmanac.
blogspot.com)
In a huge blast of 400 meter-persecond pellets of irony, Dick Cheney
was mistakenly shot in the face
by Hillary Clinton. Says Clinton, “I
thought he was a walrus.” Legal action taken against Ms. Clinton is yet
to be announced, but Scooter Libby is
expected to release any names relating to the case within the week. Mark
Foley is also planning on sending
out emails to his “acquaintances” to
gain grassroots support for the Bush
administration in its time of need.
Rumor has it that Tony Snow is going to announce his time for considering announcing the announcement
next Thursday, but only time will tell.
Until then, Bush is going to have to
appoint a new vice president; analysts
predict his choice of Rex W. Tillerson,
Chairman and CEO of ExxonMobil.
Is this thing yars?
(Image courtesy of earthmusicnetwork.com)
It is relatively common knowledge
that on St. Patrick’s Day and Unofficial St. Patrick’s Day in America most
people (including, sadly, many students of our fine school) who choose to
celebrate these holidays celebrate by
drinking themselves (if not entirely)
half to death. Last year, a University
student was killed on a motorcycle after engaging in such activities. Every
year, hospitals prepare for the influx
of alcohol poisoning that inevitably
entails these two holidays. Honestly, I
wonder why. Indeed, as part of Darwinism, natural selection shows that these
people should die. Throughout my entire philosophy, it only makes sense
that if you drink yourself to death, you
should die. However, due to recent advances in medical technologies, those
unfit to survive as according to the
natural order of life are being revived
to pass on their genes to create even
more hard-drinking ignoramuses.
I wish to clearly state that I have no
moral opposition to any people reading this who enjoy the occasional
drink, even to achieve full inebriation, as long as a certain degree of
moderation is applied to your enjoyment. Although I harbor no ill will
towards these people, I am in stark
opposition to people bar-hopping and
binge drinking to the point of physical
harm. In addition to alcohol poisoning, many people, when inebriated,
take part in various sexual relations,
leaving us with an exponentially increasing overpopulation problem.
As a solution to these problems,
I have prepared a modest proposal
based on the unmistakably noble
public works of Jonathan Swift to
combat these issues. As opposed to alcohol, usually consumed in the form
of hard liquor or beer, a more economically viable resource should be used:
baby’s blood. Although many may jump
at this discovery, I would like a forum
to state my case. In recorded history,
not one human being has ever been
poisoned by drinking the fresh blood
from a newborn baby, as opposed to
thousands of deaths from alcohol poisoning each year in the U.S. alone.
A major complaint would be lodged
that the baby’s blood is not green and
therefore not festive for the time. A
simple remedy could be administered
in breeding the children from birth
with breast milk dyed green, in addition to feeding the child many other
green food items, and then dying the
blood green through a distillation
process before the holiday. Naturally,
baby’s blood contains no alcohol content, but the blood could be fortified
by administering a large amount of
alcohol directly in to the bloodstream
as a method of killing the babies.
This would leave the baby’s blood at
relatively low alcohol content when
compared to hard liquor, even less
than the amount in beer, ensuring
that people can drink to their heart’s
content, while still allowing hospitals
to breathe easy, as multiple gallons
of baby’s blood would be necessary
to kill a person by alcohol poisoning.
Indeed, baby’s blood would be a readily available source due to the amount
of people having babies out of wedlock
due to a sexual appetite which seems
insatiable, particularly when fueled by
alcohol. All babies conceived during
these drunken coital practices would
provide the blood with which to drink,
meaning potatoes and barley could be
reserved to feed the poor. In fact, many
of society’s problems could be readily
solved by this proposal. I beseech you,
the average student, to accept this
proposal. If accepted, it could help the
entire world, and save many lives as
well. Thank you for hearing my case.
ECHO, APR 20, ‘07 - Pg 8
The African Connection
Jenny Byelick and other UIUC students visited Ms. Fitzpatrick’s 1st and
3rd period World Studies classes to raise awareness about the genocide in
Darfur. For homework, students were required to dial 1-800-GENOCIDE
to voice concern about the events in Darfur with various politicians. Rep.
Tim Johnson volunteered to come to the school and meet with the students
in April.
At “A Teleconference from South Africa”, which took place Mar. 5th, 6th and
7th in the lecture hall, students of Ms. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Freedman, and Mrs.
Kinoshita spoke live with students from Cape Town, South Africa. UHS Students
were surprised to learn about the cultural diversity in South Africa, and the
progress that has been made since the ending of the dismantling of apartheid.
Pictured from left to right are delegates Hassan Khan, Nick Fisher, Kirstie
Ruthstrom and Clair Williams.
St. Patrick’s Day
Kevin Lawanto was looking suprisingly Irish.
Ms. Fitzpatrick’s 3rd period AP Prep World Studies English class celebrated
St. Patrick’s day with this brownie, reading “Happy Ms. Fitzpatrick’s Day”.
Pictured, left to right, front: Peter Floess, Ryan Domier and Mary Danner.
Standing, from left, Aubrey Morse, Samirah Ali Jake Tammen, Clair Williams,
Cara Siegel, Ms. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Fisher and Judy Gaylen.
Kirstie Ruthstrom pays respect to the land of the Leprechaun.
ECHO, APR 20, ‘07 - Pg 9
Zodiac: Unfortunate
Above: A scene from the film
Zodiac. (From: www.popmatters.
com)
Below An update for a popular
movie to suit today’s popular music (From: www.1up.com)
volvement of Robert Graysmith,
played by a Jake Gyllenhaal fresh
by Robert Kahn
off the ranch. Working at the San
If only my horoscope had
Fransisco Sun Times, Graysmith
said “you will not see Zodiac tobecomes obsessed with the Zodiac.
day.”
His story is interspersed with
But it didn’t, so I ended up at
that
of the killer himself, who we
Savoy 16, watching a murder myssee kill most of his victims. In the
tery without an arrest, and wonkilling scenes, no hold is barred,
dering when it became acceptable
but director David Fitcher shows
for people to be stabbed to death
a sardonic sense of humor, leading
on screen. An earlier, or more
the audience on to several killsheepish film would simply have
cut to the next scene, with perhaps ings that never come, and several
suspects who quite simply aren’t
a couple seconds of screaming.
the Zodiac.
But not Zodiac!
But there are weaknesses. The
Let’s back-track a bit. Zodiac
movie
focuses on almost everyone
is a film about a serial killer of
involved with the Zodiac case,
the same name, who was active
Dave Toschi (played by Robert
during the late 60’s in Northern
Downey Jr.), the cop in charge of
California. It focuses on the in-
the investigation, to Melvin Belli
(Brian Cox), the defense lawyer
the Zodiac contacted on TV. This
gives the movie a grand scale, but
it means that, because of the limits of time, several of the characters are reduced to tired clichés.
Then there is the simple fact
that a movie about a serial killer
who was never caught will always
have problems with a cohesive plot
line. There’s no arrest, no punishment. No retribution or release.
It’s almost impossible to leave an
audience satisfied without these
standards, and, although Zodiac
does try, and try hard, it simply
can’t finish the movie for its audience.
MUSIC AND FILM
Must Be Emo
by Erik Allgood
With hip-hop and rap experiencing a 20% loss in sales and the
success of pop and mainstream
rock being a hoax perpetuated by
Clear Channel, the real popular
music of 2007 would probably
be emo music. But wait, doesn’t
everyone say they hate emo music? No, they are just a very loud
minority. As Jay Z said in his version of “Brooklyn High,” “Men
lie, women lie, but numbers don’t.”
Classical music and alternative rock, which emo is classified
under, were the only two genres
of music that reported a boost
in sales in 2006, thanks to bands
like My Chemical Romance (“The
Black Parade”), Panic at the Disco
(“A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out”),
and Senses Fail (“Still Searching”).
But what exactly falls
under the category of emo? Some
people would say the bands listed
above are not emo at all, but any
of many other different subgenres
of alternative rock. The fact is
that there are so many subgenres
that whether or not a band is classified as emo is really based on
each individual’s opinions of what
it means to be emo. The style has
been branching off in every direction since it was created in the
Washington D.C. music scene in
the early nineties. Some of those
branches include screamo, hardcore, grindcore, emocore, postpunk, and post-hardcore.
That loud minority, which
I am part of, doesn’t see any real
emotion in emo music. Emo music’s detractors are usually bothered by the clothing style which is
associated with emo music (albeit
not necessarily fairly associated,
as not everyone who enjoys emo
music dresses in the emo style).
The loud minority (myself included) sees the emo sound as whiny
screaming. Anti-emo sentiment
has risen with the genre’s popular
ity, as early as 2002, the anti-emo
sentiment was lighthearted and
self-effacing but now the intensity
of the sentiment has risen and includes homosexual slurs directed
at male emo fans. The detractors
do not necessarily hate the emotions being portrayed in emo music, as they are present in all forms
of music, but the manner in which
they are presented. Another argument against emo music is that too
much of it sounds the same, and
the most interesting difference
between each song is the creative
–and pretentious– title.
Although I can’t say I
enjoy emo music that much –except for the Get Up Kids, but they
barely qualify as an emo band– I
acknowledge that it will probably
end up being the music my generation is associated with. Although
many people dismiss emo music as
pop trash, hey, so were the Beatles.
In the 1960’s many critics complained that the Pink Floyd sound
was too loud. In an age when the
quality of music was based on
its complexity, many big band
musicians were disgusted by the
relative simplicity of most rock
compositions.
Maybe –while looking back
on the 2007 music scene in 2047–
I’ll have a different opinion of the
emo scene. Musical tastes change,
and if history repeats itself, we
can all look forward to something
worse.
ECHO, APR 20, ‘07 - Pg 10
TRACK PRACTICE
Boys’ Track members practicing hard. They still have
a lot of meets left in the season and need your support.
All Photos
By Jay
Watkins
ECHO, APR 1, ‘07 - Pg 11
SPORTS
BOY’S TENNIS
Saturday
Thursday
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March 31
Edwardsville Invitational
April 5
Normal University High
April 7
Bloomington Invitational
April 10
Normal Community West
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Centennial
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Moline Invitational
April 17
Danville
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Eisenhower
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Centennial Invitational T
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St Theresa
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Normal Com. West (JV)
April 30
Central(JV)
May 1
Central (Varsity)
May 3
Mattoon
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Rockford
May 5 Freeport Varsity Invitational
May 11-12
Big 12 Conference
May 15
Danville
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GIRLS’ SOFTBALL
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GIRLS’ SOCCER
Thursday
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Tuscola
Mahomet-Seymour
Eisenhower
Central
Central
Normal
Open
Monticello
Normal Community
Centennial
Centennial
Bloomington
Danville
Danville
MacArthur
Mattoon
Mattoon
Charleston
March 20
March 27
April 2
April 5
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April 28
May 1
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May 5
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May 10
May 12
May 15
May 17
Monticello
Westville
Charleston
Tuscola
Pax.-Buc.-Lo.
MahometMattoon
Decatur
Open
Centennial
Normal West
Unity
Mattoon
Central
Normal
Danville
Open
Bloomington
Centennial
Mattoon
MacArthur
Central
Danville
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BASEBALL
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April 10
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April 19
April 21
April 23
April 26
May 1
May 3
May 5
May 7
Mattoon
Monticello
Danville
University High
Central
Normal University
Normal West
Fralish Cup @
Carbondale
Mahomet-Seymour
Normal Community
St Thomas More
Bloomington
Centennial
St Teresa
Eisenhower
Charleston
MacArthur
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