Life after graduation

Ending grade school after 12 straight years is perhaps the greatest achievement and relief of high school graduates, but now there’s this whole college thing. Meh. Fortunately, now that students are adults and have a high school diploma or GED, they have free range to their future: university, community college, vocational school, military, and even […]

Sweet ignorance

One of the latest health crazes is the anti-high fructose corn syrup movement. The greatest fears are obesity, hyperactivity, and the general anti-heavily-manufactured-food idea. The greatest fault, however, is the ignorance of why it may be unhealthy. While high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is definitely heavily manufactured, it is not a direct cause of obesity […]

Your school meals

The poor, over-beaten topic of school meals and how they are essentially colored cardboard is hardly the case for KISD and deserves more credit. First, schools must abide by federal regulations enacted by old men in Congress. After that, schools must operate and purchase food within their budgetary limits. Since this is the U.S. where […]

No such thing

1999, Nauvoo, Alabama – I’m hiking through the 1100-acre woods at the Camp McDowell environmental center. We had hiked over a river, up hills, around countless waterfalls, and a green diversity I’ve never seen before. Suddenly, rounding a rock formation, we saw light ahead; the woods seemed to simply stop, as if the earth had […]

We're still in Afghanistan?

It seems that since Obama’s move to Pennsylvania Avenue, the Iraqi parliament’s troop pullout deadline, and Bush’s escape from the daily headline punching bag, Iraq has faded out as a major subject of debate. Most tasks in the blunderful war in Iraq seem to be on a (though still vague and easily fudgeable) track; however, […]

Oh! The places $787 billion will go

“Recovery won’t happen overnight, and it’s likely that things will get worse before they get better,” said President Obama in his weekly radio address. With the economy suffering, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will create or save three to four million jobs over several years, according to Obama. The total cost of […]

Life and times of a detention center

The Guantanamo Bay detention center currently imprisons approximately 245 people, held on various charges related to terror (they’re militants, bombers, bomb-makers, drivers, etc.). This imprisonment also clearly violates the Geneva Conventions and the morals of the highly touted nation of freedom and justice. I believe that everyone, regardless of nationality, should be held to justice […]

Nations ununited

The United Nations has been less than united lately, detracting from its mission of world domination of peace. The problem lies in its own enthusiasm to be world police, world bank, and world peace generator. It needs to get its act together before (though it seems it already has) it reverts to the League of […]

Cabinet updates

The Presidential selection of the Cabinet is not always a smooth process. Obama’s pick for Secretary of Commerce Bill Richardson and his pick for CIA Director Leon Panetta have both tripped before they even reach their confirmation hearings. New Mexico Governor, and former Secretary of Energy, Bill Richardson withdrew his from his nomination for Secretary […]

Renewed conflict rages in Gaza

Israel continues air and ground attacks in the Gaza Strip, pursuing the Hamas militants who have fired 3,278 rockets and mortars into Israel just in 2008. Though Israel officially handed off control of the Gaza Strip to the PLO, most aspects of life depend on Israeli military policies. Since Israel controls the sea, air, and […]

Cutting through the haze

Students learn from health class/parents/commercials/Mr. Mackey that marijuana bad. Mmk? Yet, it is still one of the most abused and most politicized drugs. A simple Google search on marijuana shows how polarized the debate is. Pot is no longer a G-Man vs. Hippy issue; scientists have stepped up the debate with libraries of studies and […]

Know your cabinet

So far, President-elect Obama has appointed most of his cabinet and several non-cabinet positions: Secretary of Homeland Security – responsible for national security organizations like the Coast Guard, border patrol, FEMA, and Secret Service – will be Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano. Secretary of Veterans Affairs – responsible for military veterans benefits like healthcare, medical facilities, […]

Politics in school

The youth vote has spiked lately, with participation in primary elections just shy of the record set when the voting age was first lowered to 18. What’s more intense is the youth political movement, with some form of political discussion common in the everyday high school conversation. To provide a more engaging environment for these […]

Get your own bird

True, Whole Foods groceries does have fresh fruits and bread, and your family cooks a feast from the wrapped and pre-stuffed turkeys from HEB, but the surest, direct-from-the-source-fresh main food for Thanksgiving is acquired by hunting your own turkey. This is not a call to all the gung-ho families to grab a shotgun and storm […]

Back to Hogwarts

Listen up, Muggles, the wizard community has allowed the non-magical world to play its famous game of Quidditch. The newfound sport found almost exclusively at schools is “Muggle Quidditch,” the Harry-Potter-derived sport for the magically disinclined. Founded at Taylor by Andrew Beckstrom, sophomore, the club is still writing a constitution to make it an official […]

GPA bill causes strife

“I don’t like the proposal,” said Katy ISD superintendent Alton Frailey about the proposal to make a major change to how GPA is calculated throughout Texas high schools. School administrators and students alike are polarized by the Texas Legislature’s bill requiring the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to come up with a way for all […]

You want experience?

Presidential candidate Barack Obama declared Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his running mate via text message early Saturday morning, August 23. Later that day at the public announcement of his selection, Obama said, “[Biden] is that rare mix. For decades, he has brought change to Washington, but Washington hasn’t changed him. He’s an expert on […]

Fear and Loathing in Venice

Shakespeare presents Othello in a way that highlights villainy and jealousy in normal, domestic circumstances that destroys the reputable. Topic sentence summaries Domestic scale – topic summary Reputation – topic summary Jealousy – topic summary Shakespeare’s other works showed the main conflict on a grander scale; Othello puts tragedy and intense villainy equal to that […]

Renewed conflict rages in Gaza

http://kisdwebs.katyisd.org/campuses/THS/StudentZone/Documents/Mane%20Event%20Jan%2030%202009.pdf Israel continued air and ground attacks in the Gaza Strip until January 18, pursuing the Hamas militants who have fired 3,278 rockets and mortars into Israel in 2008 alone. Though Israel officially handed off control of the Gaza Strip to the PLO, most aspects of life depend on Israeli military policies. Since Israel controls […]

Selective Service

As quoted from the Thirteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude . . . shall exist within the United States.” Mandatory military service is, in a way, forced servitude in compliance to any decision by the commander-in-chief. Selective service is unconstitutional, outdated, and far too morally unacceptable for the modern […]

Misdirection

Our minds, now outfitted with the v-chip (standard), May learn how to properly live, according to your ideals What you do, what the media reports, Reports far more than it reveals   We know how a modern human ought to live, But the larger action conceals the smaller. We accept what we see as reality […]

There is a difference, you know

Communism Socialism Command Economy Organized anarchy, collectivism; relies on total societal cooperation Transitional tool that organizes and stabilizes government to be handed over to public control; very delicate, requires trust and honor of the goal Total centralization of economy, agriculture, industry, welfare, and employment; Soviet Union style economics glorified by the Red Scare Since the […]

How the Candidates Deal With Gas

The Situation Gas prices have inflated to extreme levels lately – nation at $3.61 and San Francisco average at $4.00 – and voters have a few plans laid before them by presidential candidates Clinton, McCain, and Obama. The Facts Clinton Obama McCain Impose windfall profits tax (tax on a profits from a product that suddenly […]

Environmentalism

Our “elected” leader’s good old boys truly endeavor to please our nation’s source of power and affected eminence: the corporations. A more reasonable, cost-efficient strategy for the government is to simply abandon any prospects of preserving the Earth for our posterity. Why should such trivialities as the environment or the world’s future concern our surely […]

Costumed Children Amassing For Halloween Terrorism

At a press conference held this weekend, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino addressed possible national security threats for this Halloween. Perino said, “Most threats are groups of three to eight children ages 8-13. For example, last October, Virginian officials detained three adolescents who attempted to extort candy on the threat of a “trick” from […]

Candidates at a Glance

The next presidential election in November 2008 will be the first change in presidency since 2000, when most THS students were still in elementary school. This election will also be the seniors’ first chance to vote in an important governmental election. 17 presidential candidates have taken their first steps in campaigning for the presidential race; […]

Iraq after five years of occupation

So, after over five years the U.S. has yet to establish what Bush originally intended: “to remove a threat and restore control of that country to its own people.” Even Dick Cheney knew such an idea was implausible, saying in 1994, “Once you got to Iraq and took it over, took down Saddam Hussein’s government, […]

Your Websense policy blocks this article at all times

We all recognize that notorious “Blocked by Websense” page jeering, “Katy ISD’s Internet use policy restricts access to this web page at this time.” But where are the limits for this policy? KatyISD’s website boasts that its internet filtering blocks “more than 25,000 inappropriate websites each day.” Of course this is a bona-fide effort to […]

Under the Spotlight

After only a few months in the presidential election primaries, only Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Mike Gravel contest for the Democratic Party’s nomination, while Republican John McCain already won the Republican nomination after the March 4th vote. To finalize a party’s ticket to a single candidate must win the nomination of his or her […]

The front lines of the "War on Terror"

Since the commencement of the “War on Terror,” the U.S. has by far been its most enthusiastic advocate. However, following the quagmire that is Iraq, President Bush has noticeably fallen behind in the management of the operation pursuing the greatest modern enemy of America: Osama bin Laden. In fact, at a 2002 news conference, Bush […]

Happy Chrismahanukwanzakah!

An international fervor of political correctness, intended to be universally pleasing by stifling attempts at religious expression by public establishments, instead tends to offend religions, ideologies, and those endowed with common sense. Representing various religions and holidays in a public display is a respectable gesture; however, some instances of political correctness may make some cringe. […]

Affirmative Action

For those of us approaching the end of high school, we are faced with the scramble for college admission and financial aid. A significant consideration in both admission and financial aid is affirmative action. Affirmative action, in its general form, is a method of granting minority populations a higher priority for admission to education or […]

Humanitarian Crisis in Burma

Political oppression of dissident citizens and minority ethnic groups by Burma’s governing military junta (who changed Burma’s English name to Myanmar) has recently increased in intensity. Burma, a rice-producing nation in Southeast Asia, is one of the poorest countries in the world. Roughly 25% of the population lives on less than one dollar a day. […]

Narrative of an Interrogation

Margaret Atwood’s novel Alias Grace, published by Anchor Books, is a historical fiction novel that aims to recount the trials of Grace Marks more accurately than the original chronicler, Susanna Moodie, who tended more toward theatrical than factual events. Atwood explains the Grace Marks story via Grace Mark’s own account (in as much fact available […]

Letter to the Editor

Watching the movie Hotel Rwandavindicates my conviction of the futility of present international relations in this new age of factional conflict. The plight of Rwanda, in international context, is frustratingly minor due to its largely subsistent and politically volatile population. A comprehensive aid package – addressing security, stabilization, and commerce – is necessary to quell […]

Environmental Politics

In a clear presentation that elucidates the deleterious result of the human’s pollution on the global environment, the way humanity thus reaps its rotting fruits must maintain the only known platform for its basic existence: Earth. The source of pollution is not just a chimney on the White House, but the parasitic mutualism of international […]

Death of a Moth

Virginia Woolf relates to this hay-colored moth on a personal plane; she discerns her own ultimatum of life from how this moth opposes its natural course. “… I watched these futile attempts for a time without thinking, unconsciously waiting for him to resume his flight, as one waits for a machine… to start again without […]

The Failed Policy for the “War on Terror”

The “War on Terror,” the Bush administration’s chimerical attempt at a positive legacy, is an entirely unconventional war that the government has struggled to adapt to as it employs tactics of conventional warfare. Whereas terrorism has no centrality, no common goal, no single leader, and no possibility of complete disestablishment, the government continues to shun […]

Mandatory Patriotism

Mandatory civil service, though largely beneficial to the country’s infrastructure, is not a plausible feat for this generation. “Service in America is so vital because it is decentralized and privately organize, addresses perceive needs, and grows out of people’s sense f duty and compassion” (B). The idea of the U.S.’s society shows that patriotism may […]

Divine Distortion

“Intelligent design” is this epoch’s religious effort to fill in scientific gaps and simplify complexities; theology has no function in a scientific setting despite the idea of incorporating all ideas, for if that were the case, the solid, proven foundation of science would be compromised by contradictory ideals. “…Intelligent design is science, not religion. It […]

Democracy in Inherit the Wind

A democracy, a system of government by the people and for people, so dedicates itself to the principle of social equality; yet, such an integral tenet seems to lose itself in translation. “In a true democracy, every man and woman is taught to think for himself or herself.” Brady’s condemnation of Cates’ pedagogic duty to […]

Sensationalism

Mixed cultural signals often appear via media outlets, especially advertisements appealing to a targeted audience. Stereotyped races are most often applied by the media to target a specific issue in the narrowest span of time, despite the equally narrow perspectives of a race so commonly implied. The media’s underlining motive for the stereotype is, as […]

How to Efficiently Destroy Your Planet [while keeping promises to oil lobbyists]

Our “elected” leader’s good old boys truly endeavor to please our nation’s source of power and affected eminence: the corporations. A more reasonable, cost-efficient strategy for the government is to simply abandon any prospects of preserving the Earth for our posterity. Why should such trivialities as the environment or the world’s future concern our surely […]

Finding the Soul, a Chimera

Surgeon-poet Richard Selzer, the author of The Exact Location of the Soul, narrates his fruitless quest in pursuit of the location of the soul. He explains the soul’s elusion, “No one but the poet [sees the soul], for he sees what no one else can.” The soul eludes him, yet he still espies it in […]

Without Civil Restraints

Nazi Germany’s secret police operated as the government’s mob to locate and destroy any political opponents of the new totalitarian regime. Under the aegis of Hermann Göring, appointed to minister of the interior of Prussia at the time of the Gestapo’s inception, the Gestapo, acronym of the Geheime Staatspolizei, established itself in 1939 Nazi Germany […]

Tale of the Wilderness

I awaken in a puddle of my own sweat and a thick layer of dust on the solid, granite floor. This ancient citadel, dating back to the 3rd age, was home to the Monks of Malus. Large stained glass windows, depicting the numerous deities of the lands, allow one shaft of light piercing through the […]

Income Tax Reform in Alabama

Income tax reform is sorely needed in a state that requires a person to pay income tax at only $4,600 in annual wages. Income Tax Definition Where does it come from What it is used for Nationally Locally Regressive Tax Structures Definition Manipulation by the state Proportional realities Alabama’s National Ranking Sales tax Property Tax […]

The Ghostly Pitch

Though all activity has ceased on the now vacant pitch, the moonlight through the branches has wrought its own ghostly players upon these eerie grounds. The once resounding cheering from the crowds has long since ceased, and all that is deafening now is the silence. These seemingly Herculean bleachers that before supported not only the […]

Godzilla vs. The Boy Bands

The sophisticated Italian returns! You should know I’m not a Birkenstock-wearing-country-loving-guy-who-shops-at-Dixie-Oufitters kind of person. When talking about me, prepare to enter the realm of pasta-guzzling, Latin operas, and death-matches involving the Backstreet Boys. OK, jumping right into it, Hot Topic is my favorite source for wonderful sarcasm based text T-shirts. With shirts saying something like, […]