Competition in Our Classrooms Rep. Ford Addresses Chapel
Transcription
Competition in Our Classrooms Rep. Ford Addresses Chapel
V O L U M E X L I X M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 N Senior Lounge Injustice Mandatory Civic Service? Oscar Roundup PAGE 4 PAGE 6 PAGE 12 U M B E R 9 Rep. Ford Addresses Competition in Our Classrooms Chapel BY JESSE MAHAUTMR Every MUS student in his BY CLINT COWAN AND AN- knowledge and perspective of freshman year encounters John our backgrounds and respon- Knowles’ A Separate Peace, DREW MANUGIAN sibilities: he initially challenged a novel in which the protagoFor the first time in several grades 7-12 to make use of our nist is compelled to push his years, MUS was honored, on educational blessings to change friend off a tree because of an February 11th, to receive U.S. our nation’s future. Ford’s intense competition he feels to Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. theme was largely one of col- exist between the two. Initially, Ford, the newly re-elected laboration; while delivering a this story did not appeal to me Congressional Representative short message, he repeatedly greatly; as a freshman, I saw for Tennessee’s ninth district, referred to group effort and co- the idea of students competing met with students and faculty operation as the solution to against each other, especially in in the Humphreys Administra- America’s social and economic terms of grades, implausible tive Wing prior to taking the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 and ludicrous. Little did I know stage at Hyde Chapel. Anticithat such pation was evident, and Ford competitive took the podium with confisentiments dence, relying on the oratorido permeate cal skill and style that has the halls of worked so powerfully in the MUS much U.S. House. Rep. Ford began more often with encouragement to MUS than they for its work in the Memphis should. community. He, a former preIn a paratory school student at St. t e a c h e r ’s Albans, clearly possessed the Rep. Ford talks with interested students dream, students would MEMPHIS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL NON-PROFIT go to classes and learn purely 6191 PARK AVENUE ORGANIZATION MEMPHIS, TN 38119-5399 for the sake of learning; howU.S. POSTAGE PAID ever, this scenario is called a MEMPHIS, TN dream for a reason. In almost PERMIT #631 every class, our grades weigh heavily on our minds: we pull out calculators to see what we need to make on the next test to maintain an “A” average; we ask our teachers whether ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED there’s going to be a curve; we check our progress report grades online and hope that our parents forget to do so as well. With the implications that grades have on our futures immediately after high school, it is only natural for us to develop a mindset focused heavily on the number at the top of the test. But alas, having such a strong focus on our grades sometimes leads us to compare ourselves with each other, which in turn can create an unnecessary competition in the classroom. The period of time after a test is passed back is usually filled with the same series of events: we look at our grade, flip through the test to see what questions we missed, and, most of the time, engage in conversation with those around us to see how everyone else scored. Usually this discussion is merely an innocent way to gauge how we did compared to the rest of the class, to see if the test was as easy or as difficult for them as it was for us; however, every so often, our competitive juices begin to flow if we find out that someone who supposedly “should not” have scored higher than us did, especially if the same individual continues to do so on a consistent basis. Though we may not like to admit it, thoughts such as “I have to maintain a higher average than he does for the semester” periodically appear in the back of our minds. If it is competition we seek, we should contend with the material being learned: our opponent should be the textbook, not the guy sitting two seats down from us. If our goal is to be above a fellow student, to be ranked higher than he is, then a mindset may develop where the ends justify the means; such a mode of thought is dangerous, for it condones the belief that the path we take does not matter as long as we achieve the desired outcome. However, if we choose to contend not with our fellow classmates but rather with the material, then the means will justify the ends; in other words, putting in hard work and striving to do our best against the material will determine the end result most representative of us, and, whatever it may be, we should be proud of ourselves. Any accolades, honors, or high class ranks we may achieve are nice but should not be our goals; they should merely be an indication of our effort, hard work, and determination. Now, I am no saint, nor do CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 P A G E 2 T H E O W L ’ S H O O T N e w s Editors-in-Chief Clint Cowan Andrew Manugian Associate Editors Ben Bleustein Parth Sheth Technical/Layout Editor Roger Chu Michael Fong Cartoonist Zach Glover News Editors Alex Chinn Charles Askew Sports Editors John Taylor Josh Evensky Viewpoints Editors Warner Russell Amusements Editors David Minervini Peter Zanca Columnists Marshall Bartlett John Daniel Preston Dennis John Hammons Walter Klyce Aaron Struminger Photographers Neely Mallory Mike Montesi Worth Morgan Hank Wynn Faculty Advisor Mr. N. Thompson Quiz Bowl Buzz BY CHRIS FREEMAN This article concerns perhaps my proudest accomplishment as a student. For the past two years, MUS has had a Quizbowl team. The team became a reality gradually over the course of last year. Through pressure from its founder, Sashank Karri, practice time became regular, and teachers became regularly involved. Our efforts finally paid off when we won third in our first tournament, giving us high hopes for next year. This year, we lost a brilliant competitor in Austin Chu, but that loss has not been the only challenge: practices have been tough to schedule, and participation is never constant. But despite these obstacles, three devoted seniors have nursed this club into a budding success. Sashank Karri, The founder and president, Chris Freeman, vice-president and captain, and Aaron Struminger, vice-president, have been there since the club’s beginning, and thanks to our efforts, our club now has three tournaments under its belt and a promising group of juniors and sophomores that will inherit it next year. The members themselves are not the only people working hard. Without the help of the club’s coaches, it would have been impossible to have had the success that the club has enjoyed in its tournaments, in which the team has made it to the final bracketed round every time and garnered two individual awards. These wonderful people have given up their time to help us practice, even when attendance is marginal. Mr. Berman has graciously hosted our earliest practice; Mr. Russell has given up his Wednesdays’ 7th periods; and Mr. Clifft has come early Thursday mornings. The administration has also been highly accommodating by giving the team permission to travel almost anywhere to compete and buying practice questions for it. The librarians have also helped us by purchasing questions and proctoring when the coaches were not available. The best part about our club’s success, however, is not the results of the tournaments or even personal Quiz Bowl team practices with Coach awards, but the Clifft official establishment and continu- FORD’S VISIT ills. Accompanying his theme was a serious concern over President Bush’s recent Social Security proposals. Outlining the program’s intended purposes (work-injury relief, survivor benefits, and retirement), Ford warned of massive deficits: “The program, in the next thirteen years, will be spending more than it takes in.” President Bush’s plans, according to Ford, will require around two trillion in borrowed funds to begin the program of private retirement investment. Rep. Ford warned “If we don’t get ation of the club. Nothing is final yet, but I can say that you should look to see Quiz Bowl as an official, faculty-sponsored club next year like Knowledge Masters or TEAMS. What started as one person’s attempts to continue something that he did before MUS will soon become an official club and maybe even a fixture that people will begin to associate with MUS. Who knows? And I get to say that I had some small part in the founding. This year’s seniors will likely be remembered for a long while, perhaps as state champions, perhaps as the smartest class to not get into college. The class that started MUS Frisbee? Again, who knows? But these things are just some of the marks we’ve left on MUS (some good, and some not). I doubt we will be remembered as the founders of Quiz Bowl, but I am proud that I have helped make one of those good marks on this school, and my deepest gratitude goes to everyone who has made the club possible. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 an answer for this thing, sooner rather than later, then we could find ourselves in a huge economic bind.” Taking into account recent tax cuts, rising life expectancy, and U.S. war efforts, Ford held that the money just isn’t there to undergo such a massive change in infrastructure. Much of Ford’s brief address, however, dealt with American foreign image and what can be done to increase global cooperation. Hailing the U.S. as “the greatest nation on the face of the earth,” Ford mentioned a great international responsibility, one requiring a foreign policy of mutual aid in global improvement. Addressing specifically Iraqi reconstruction, Rep. Ford favored a combination of resources, beyond the military, to incite the participation of Iraq’s citizens in democracy. “The military can’t do it all alone” he stated plainly; reconstruction in Iraq “takes a combination of resources that will give everyone ownership in what we’re doing.” Ford’s belief is that if we as a nation can get Iraqi citi- zens involved in their country’s reconstruction, “bringing them to the table,” we will see strength and stability in the future. Having a desire to involve students and faculty in his message, Rep. Ford left plenty of time for questions. Responding to a student’s concerns about the Memphis City Schools and failing students, Ford declared that early childhood education must be the priority: “From [age] two to five brains develop in powerful CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 P A G E 3 N e w s Consolidate This BY JONATHAN WOLF As the governments of the City of Memphis and Shelby County together with the Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools face near budgetary crisis, Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton is advocating the very controversial consolidation of the Memphis City and Shelby County school systems in the hopes of creating a more cost-effective structure for public education. Opponents of the Mayor’s plan claim that such a maneuver would not only achieve the direct opposite but would be detrimental to the County Schools. Critics also claim that this unification of the two school boards would be the first step in Herenton’s admitted master plan for complete consolidation of the Memphis and Shelby County governments. School Board Member Deni Hirsh even has hope that Mayor Herenton would resign to achieve consolidation. The Mayor’s battle for consolidation will not be an easy one. The County school board along with its chairman, David Pickler, is dead set against the Mayor’s plan for consolidation. They fear that taxpayers could actually end up paying more in taxes if county salaries had to be raised to equal those of the city, as was the case when Knoxville and Nashville consolidated their respective city and county school systems years ago. In the meantime, Mayor Herenton and the City of Memphis have some tough decisions to make. The City School system is reportedly running a thirty million dollar deficit, amid stories in the not-too-distant past of proposals to spend fourteen million dollars for airconditioning a single school and millions in unbudgeted overtime pay. Mayor Herenton has recently proposed withdrawing another eighty-six million dollars from the City Schools. The City itself faces a thirty million dollar budget shortfall. In recent days the Mayor has pro- posed layoffs of thousands of City employees in an effort to save. Even Memphis’ finest are not immune to the slash and burn budget tactics, as police director Larry Godwin, in conjunction with Mayor Herenton, proposes the abolition of the “Thirty-year Captain” rank in the M.P.D. The approximately ninety affected police officers are challenging the measure in court. Some politicians believe that a property tax increase is inevitable. Businessmen counter that such a tax increase will drive down property values, further aggravating the need for even higher tax rates and creating a spiral that kills both investment and job creation in Shelby County. It would appear that politicians should attempt to break this vicious cycle by seeking to eliminate duplication of services and wasteful spending, while identifying the best practices of quality education for the students. Their goal should be assuring the citizens of Memphis and Shelby County that their hard-earned tax dollars are going to create the most efficient school system their money can buy, whether through consolidation, unification, or just good old-fashioned management. a bye in the third round, provided they advanced past rival Germantown in round two. However, in a match advisors have described as “unfair,” judges made a highly questionable ruling against the MUS team. The guys from MUS took quite a blow from the loss of both of the captains. Despite the loss, Team Q, the MUS B team, rumbled on to round three. Round three treated the MUS team surprisingly well. In this round, the MUS defense took the stand against the prosecution of St. Mary’s. After much deliberation, the judges ruled in favor of MUS. The victory was particularly nice for the witnesses and attorneys from MUS, for in this match they had defeated the same team who knocked MUS out of the competition during last year’s tournament. After having sent the Turkeys home with nothing to comfort them but the tears in their eyes, “Team Q” took a night out on the town to relax. Over several plates of barbeque at the Rendezvous, the team further discussed the case material. Somewhere between the coleslaw and the sausage plate, the attorneys found several different angles from which to attack. The guys devised a few new objections, thus putting a few tricks up their sleeves. After good preparation, good rest, and good barbeque, Team Q advanced to the semifinals of the city tournament. MUS squared off against the team from Westminster Academy. In a riveting match involving many objections, questionable extrapolations of the case material, and passionate rhetoric, “Team Q” once again emerged victorious. By defeating their rival, MUS now advanced to the city champion- ship match. The championship match pitted MUS against St. Mary’s. Although the Owls impeached each of the St. Mary’s witnesses (showed that they had lied on trial), won twice as many objections, and held their ground during cross-examination, the judge ruled against the Owls in an unexpected heartbreaker. The Owls were forced to settle for second place in the city of Memphis, but they have earned the right to compete at the state level. Now the Owls and the Turkeys will work together as Memphis representatives in preparation for the State Tournament in Nashville, which occurs in several weeks. Although the city competition was bittersweet for the Owls, the season is not over yet, and we hope to hear great things from Ms. Crosby and Team Q. Trial By Combat BY DAVID MINERVINI After weeks of preparation of case theory, legal proceedings, and case exhibits, the MUS mock trial team entered the county courthouse for the Memphis High School Mock Trial Competition. The Owls, under the leadership of captains Aaron Markowitz and Alex Chinn, fielded two separate teams in the tournament-style competition. In order to keep the judges of the competition objective, each team and school name was replaced with a letter of the alphabet. What had been previously known as “the MUS A team” was renamed “Team P,” and what had been previously known as “the MUS B team” was renamed “Team Q.” Thus, opponents of the Owls were told that they should always “mind their P’s and Q’s.” The first round of the com- petition involved a pair of matches between two teams, with each team given a chance to serve as both the prosecution and the defense. In round one, both MUS teams defeated their opponents soundly. Over a span of two nights in the courtroom, Team P defeated both the prosecution and the defense of the Hutchison team, thus eliminating our female neighbors from the competition in one round. In the same manner, Team Q defeated both the prosecution and defense of Central High School, thus quickly knocking the reigning city champions out of the tournament. Because of the stunning performance that each MUS team offered in the first two matches of the tournament, MUS became eligible to receive a bye in the next rounds. Team Q drew a bye in the second round. Team P was guaranteed P A G E 4 T H E O W L ’ S H O O T V i e w p o i n t s Mandatory Spanish: Mal Idea BY PARTH SHETH Over the past school year, I have heard students, parents, and even teachers talk about downsizing or removing the MUS French and Latin programs to make room for a mandatory Spanish program throughout the school. However, while Spanish is becoming more widespread throughout the southern United States, there are several reasons it should not be mandated at MUS. Latin I has been a requirement at MUS for many years. This class not only provides students with an introduction to one of the most influential and widespread languages ever used, but it also helps their English skills, as much of English vocabulary and grammar comes from Latin. Furthermore, this class, one of the hardest in eighth grade, serves as a sort of rite of passage for lower schoolers before they can enter the MUS Upper School. . Mandating Spanish in ninth grade at the expense of the other languages taught at MUS would also be a mistake. The ability, for the first time, for a student to choose which language he wants to take allows him to choose the class in which he is most interested. Removing this freedom to choose and forcing students to take classes they do not wish to take, especially when a viable alternative is available, will only turn students against these compulsory classes. Students who would rather take Latin or French, but who are coerced into taking Spanish, are much less likely to have a genuine desire to learn the language and, as a result, will not put nearly as much effort into Spanish as they would have into French or Latin. Furthermore, the current French and Latin education at MUS is superb, and there is no reason to discontinue instruction of these languages. More important, both of these language programs often develop in many of their students a deep love for the language. Personally, I enjoyed French and Latin so much that I was willing to take six classes for two years so that I could stay in both languages; I took Latin IV and am currently enrolled in French IV. Of the approximately 20 freshmen in our 9th grade French I class, 8 have continued to AP French IV. And 10 out of the 20 students in Latin II (the first Latin elective at MUS) continued into AP Latin IV. On the other hand, only 3 students are currently enrolled in AP Spanish IV, even though the vast majority of MUS freshmen take Spanish. Forcing students who are genuinely interested in French or Latin to take Spanish would do nothing but prevent genuinely motivated students from further exploring subjects that truly interest them. As a student of both French and Latin at MUS, I feel that it would be a travesty for the school to remove these outstanding language programs. Injustice: Not a Lounging Matter BY PRESTON DENNIS About five weeks ago, there was an incident between the senior class and the lower school. While watching a movie in the senior lounge, some of my fellow classmates and I were quite surprised to notice a large flock of seventh graders crowded around the bay window making noise and staring intently at what was happening in this sacred place. Now, these actions were merely distracting and not worth any attention. But, when one student decided to open the lounge door, the line had been crossed. We seniors agreed that if these kids were so mesmerized by the lounge, they should see it in person. We proceeded to grab two kids who were walking by and brought them into the lounge. We did not hit them, throw them in a trash can, or even verbally abuse them. We merely set them on top of the two vending machines and told them not to move or say a word. Our actions only attracted more lower schoolers, and numerous boys began opening the doors. We grabbed more kids but never once hurt any of them. The most damage done to a kid was being sat on by a rather large senior. For most, we would pull them in and just let them leave. However, these kids began to taunt us and even started to tell us which of their classmates to grab. Everyone was having a good time. By the end of the incident, around 10 to 12 kids had been pulled into the lounge. We seniors started to settle back into our seats to continue watching Blade 2 when, suddenly, Coach Ray walked in, accompanied by Mr. Broer, and asked us to turn off the TV. He proceeded to tell us that he had heard about some lower schoolers’ being pulled into the lounge. We calmly confirmed this statement. He then asked which of us had ripped one of the kids’ ties and broken another’s watch. To this query we had no answer. Not one kid while in the lounge said anything about a tie being ripped or a watch being broken. Coach Ray then told us to pick up the trash in the lounge and “Vacate the premises.” He also said that we needed to find somewhere else to commune for the time being. For the next two weeks, the lounge was gone. Back when I was in the Lower School, my classmates and I were very intimidated by the seniors. Having to walk through the Upper School to go eat in the Clack was a harrowing ordeal. The Upper School students would not do anything but stare at us. I went near the lounge maybe three times each year I spent in the lower school, and that was only to buy pizza. We respected the seniors and even approached them with a sense of awe. So, what has happened to that sense of deference? Why, all of a sudden, do the lower school students, in particular the seventh graders, have the idea that they can do as they please? These kids are just spoiled. Earlier this year one seventh grader came into the lounge after school and took one of the DVD’s that a senior had brought. When confronted, he initially lied, and then finally said that he had taken the DVD only because he didn’t have any money to go to Blockbuster. During the 1st semester, seventh graders would take residence in the lounge before school by playing Playstation 2, foosball, and ping pong. In our lower school days, had we even thought of entering the lounge uninvited, we would have been in a trash can or put in our places in other ways. Ask any alumnus and he will remember seeing his classmates “B.F.I.’d” or thrown into the holly bushes. I believe that these kids are disrespectful because they are not punished. Natural law has been thrown out the window. It’s no longer survival of the fittest, but survival of who can tell his parents most quickly. The reality of the situation is that these kids have no sense of respect for older classmates. Where past lower school students knew not to mess with the upperclassmen, these seventh graders think it is funny to push the buttons of the seniors. So, as Socrates put it, “What is justice?” The senior class was not formally addressed about the loss of the lounge until the next Wednesday. When Coach Ray did explain why we lost the lounge, we were surprised to hear that the main reason wasn’t the incident with the seventh graders. In fact, we lost the lounge mainly due to it being “trashed.” The senior class was accused of not taking care of the furnishings in the lounge. This accusation proves that the senior lounge has not been visited by the administration at all. Last year’s senior class, if we can call them that, thought it CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 P A G E 5 V i e w p o i n t s A Look Back at High School: Part 2 BY WARNER RUSSELL After reading this article, you are probably going to think I am a professional brownnose, but what I am honestly trying to express with this article is a point which is rarely given enough attention. That point is that the faculty of MUS is a true blessing in every one of our lives. The teachers I have had have guided me in ways that they won’t ever know, both inside and out of the classroom. While there are over seventy members of the faculty, I will attempt to show their incomparable attributes and characteristics with a three short anecdotes: one serious, one funny, and one scholarly. I will begin with something from earlier in the year. I sat down at my computer to write an article that many of you may remember, “Chapels: A Christian Bias?.” After an hour or so of writing, I had an article thoroughly lacking in substance. The next day, after taking a class cut in Christian Theology, I asked Mr. Smythe whether he had a moment to chat about the article. He said he gladly would have a few seconds to spare to discuss what I had thus far. Over an hour later I exited his office with a new outlook on how to write my viewpoint and a new respect for a man I had seen previously as quite distant. In our discussion, he told me things that shocked me as far as MUS and his life were concerned. He honestly cared about what this article meant to me and showed a real desire to help. He gave me ideas, proofread my progress, and attempted to make small changes in the editorial. The next day he even asked me how the article turned out and expressed his excitement to see it in print. There are very few people with whom I am close who would help me to that extent, let alone someone with whom I had never had a deep conversation. To think that someone as busy as an MUS teacher would sacrifice the majority of an afternoon to do something for which he would receive no credit is nothing short of amazing. That afternoon will forever go down as one of the most meaningful experiences in my high school career. Anyone who has ever had Mr. Shelton as a teacher will tell you the proper response to the greeting “howdy” in the MUS halls is no doubt “doody”. The spring before my junior year I applied, and somehow gained admission, to AP English. Not knowing what I was getting myself into, I bought the books and attended Mr. Shelton’s 2nd period class. A year later, I have a ticket out of college English, a significantly lower GPA, and a teacher whom I will never forget. In the spring, after having coming out with an average “C” for the 1st semester, I was asked, along with the rest of the class, to write an in-class essay on Dilsey, the strongwilled servant of Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury. I did what most students would do if they had not read: I rewrote the question as much as I could and used copious amounts of rhetoric, hoping merely to scrape out an 80 or so. I turned in about a page-and-a-half of this rambling, and a week or so later received a stellar 68 or 70. I wasn’t too upset. I mean I didn’t even read so I guess I got what I deserved. It wasn’t until I looked at Jonathan Barnes’s paper that I saw the irony. I had written over a page of intellectual words and everything, and he wrote a quarter of a page and in large (roughly equivalent to Microsoft Word 36 Font) capital letters wrote “ouch” and received a 78. His better grade wasn’t a slap in the face as many people would take it; instead, the event was simple proof that B.S. never really works, because teachers can read directly through it and perhaps resent you for making them read so much garbage. Mr. Shelton’s snappy, almost unrecognizable witty remarks made that class the highlight of my day, every day, no matter how bad my grade became. I learned so much just by listening, and my AP exam grade was all the proof I needed of this instructor’s incomparable quality. In the past few years, Mr. McCarroll and I haven’t ever really had a conversation outside of simple greetings, but in 9th grade, as a lowly freshman, I had one of my most heated debates in his class. I don’t even remember how it started, but before I knew it the entire class was listening to Mr. McCarroll and I discuss the morality and ethics of homosexuality. It wasn’t that we were ever going to get each other to believe the same thing. That seemed evident. It was the fact that he listened so intently to what I had to say that shocked me. For all he knew, I was some kid that had no idea what I was talking about, but instead of dismissing me as uninformed, he paid honest attention to my view and, in turn, gave me his sincere opinion. When I attended other schools, I, being the stubborn, opinionated person I am, often found myself in similar arguments; however, my former teachers and administrators often took the approach opposite that of Mr. McCarroll. While they dismissed me as an uninformed kid and went about their business, Mr. McCarroll gave me ample time to express my views. I don’t even know whether anybody outside of myself remembers this class period, but having a such a friendly, yet extremely intense, debate with such an intelligent man my freshman year showed me that MUS is a place that encourages such interaction. This exchange stimulates the mind and makes the students feel respected by the teachers. The faculty and administration of MUS genuinely care about each of us. They, whether we think so or not, want what’s best for us. These three instances are only a sampling of how great the teachers here are. Don’t take these people for granted, because they are here out of a love for MUS and its talented students. COMPETITION I pretend to be one; I too in the past have harbored competitive feelings, and thus I speak on such a topic with experience. However, in recent years, I have come to realize that how others do on tests does not and should not affect my grade in any way. I now understand that I essentially con- LOUNGE FROM PAGE 4 would be hilarious to break everything in the lounge, smashing a hole in the back of a TV, breaking every couch and a Playstation 2, and destroying the legs of the ping pong and foosball tables. The couches have not been able to withstand the constant sitting in their weakened states. As the famous poet Johnny Cochran said, “ If the glove don’t fit, you must acquit.” Had the administration seen the lounge after last year, they would agree that we have tried to make the lounge look decent. Worth Morgan even donated an expensive ping-pong table, and many other seniors have brought in posters, movies, and Playstation 2’s or Xboxes. The senior class merely issued a warning to these kids. I think I speak for the whole class when I say that losing the lounge was an injustice. The seventh grade students deserved more than what they received, and we merely gave them the attention they obviously crave. Instead of being punished, we seniors should be recognized for teaching the young boys a life lesson. We merely showed them what could and will happen if they continue to be a nuisance and ignore the respect upperclassmen deserve. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 trol my own destiny; if I put in my best effort and strive to master the material, I can rest knowing that everything will take care of itself. I firmly believe that if we at MUS seriously examine our approach to grades, we can take huge steps toward preventing the malevolence described by Knowles. P A G E 6 T H E O W L ’ S H O O T v i e w p o i n t s Commit to Serve Through Requirement BY HARRY MAYFIELD A few years ago, MUS had a civic service requirement that asked students to give a certain number of hours during the year for various community services. Hutchison and St. Mary’s have this requirement, so why shouldn’t we? Dr. Rick Donlon, a guest speaker at the recent Service Over Self (S.O.S.) Retreat, really challenged our definition of service. As a resident of Binghampton, he argued that service was not cute little Christmas baskets that we donate to the Salvation Army once a year or a one hour clean-up session downtown. Those things make us feel better and send our conscience on vacation until next holiday season, but we really have not done anything to help our fellow Memphians. In fact, Dr. Donlon believes that acts like these hurt those in need rather than helping them. No, service takes form in a larger, more meaningful commitment to our community. And I truly feel that we at MUS can make this commitment with a civic service requirement. As the third principle of our Community Creed, service plays a large role in defining what it is to be an MUS student. Ideally, every MUS stu- At the recent SOS retreat, Dr. Rick Donlon challenged students’ views of service dent would be filled with a sense of social duty that would eliminate the need for a service requirement. But this is not the case: there is simply not enough participation in projects like Emmanuel Center and KIPP Academy tutoring. I understand that athletes cannot squeeze tutoring in with practices after school, but there are plenty of other students who can give an hour or two of their time but just do not want to do it. It is tough to beg people to come to events like these and a service requirement would solve this. Participation would increase and we could honor our long term commitments to institutions providing the most critical, elementary-level education. Regardless of whether or not people would want to do service work, there would Service Comes From the Heart BY PRICE EDWARDS Civic Service has always been one of the pillars on which MUS has laid its foundation. Our Community Creed states “An MUS student contributes his time and abilities to the welfare of his school and of the greater community.” I think the key word there is “contribute.” Oxford English Dictionary states that to contribute is “to give or supply in common with others,” and this is what MUS’s service is all about. Giving our time, our resources, and our abilities to help others is the essence of service. Nowhere in MUS’s creed of service are the words “mandated” or “required” used. The fact that MUS’s service is voluntary makes this service truly meaningful. There are many critics of MUS for not requiring service hours each year. There are many other private schools in the area that require service hours each year for grade completion. What I think these schools are ignoring is the most important aspect of service: it is voluntary. Service is about a person freely giving of his or her resources to help someone else. I guess there are positives for required service hours like having good public relations for the school, teaching the joys of service to its students, or even the school’s genuinely wanting to help people, but MUS should stand strong in its conviction that service should not be required. I would love to see everyone willingly involved in service, but I would certainly not require it. MUS has tried to create a school where self-discipline is necessary to survive. Self-discipline is required to keep up in readings when no one is reminding you, finish a workout when no one is watching, or independently get up early on a Saturday to tutor. Throughout life, service, although expected, is not something that is required of MUS alums. These alumni spend time in their community helping many who are less fortunate than they are through programs like STAX, SOS, and many smaller programs. Whether an MUS student should serve his commu- nity is not the question. Instead, the question is whether to require the student to serve. I believe that a group as blessed as MUS should help as many people as they can, but I do not think helping should be a requirement. I feel as an MUS student that I am sometimes running down a checklist. I have to make the grades, have solid extra-curricular activities, and be involved with the school. Having a required number of service hours would only add to this disease from which many already suffer. Service is a chance for a student to give out of his own heart, and I hope it stays that way. be more bodies helping out. And I believe that this requirement would spark enthusiasm among students (especially underclassmen) who have thought about participating but never followed through on their thoughts. By being placed in service roles, students could see first-hand the joys of community involvement and even develop a lifelong love for those less-fortunate. It is also probable that enthusiasm would snowball over the years, eliminating the need for a requirement. I do not think that service is a big enough part in our lives at MUS. In reality, not just in the ideal form of the Community Creed, this involvement should receive the same emphasis we currently place on honor and scholarship. M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 P A G E 7 s p o r t s Swim Team Dives Into Competition BY HAYDEN PENDERGRASS The least respected sport at MUS has again proved worthy of its varsity status in the athletics program. This year’s group of ragtag PE-dodgers, professionally known as the swim team, has proven to be the most formidable lineup since the addition of swimming as a varsity sport in 2002. The MUS Varsity swim team finished the county swim season with an overall record of 46-4 and a second place finish at the county championships, which ties the highest finish at the county meet in the team’s history. The only losses were to the annual powerhouse Christian Brothers, who has had the dominant team in the county for the last several years. Another impressive fin- ish included fourteenth place at vitation to the Germantown the McCallie Invitational. MUS Winter Invitational. These high was the only team from west finishes were all due to the exTennessee to earn an invitation, tra effort that the team gave as and in their first trip to the pres- a whole this year. However, intigious meet, fourteenth place dividual efforts were just as imwas an impressive finish in a pressive. Individual efforts accounted field of twenty-two teams that included the annual Georgia for the school records that and Tennessee state champi- were smashed this year. The ons, Westminster of Atlanta two hundred yard and four hund r e d a n d McCallie, y a r d freestyle as well as relay m a n y times other elite were swimming broken programs f o u r f r o m times around Captain Hank Wynn adds each. At the Chatsignificant depth to the Aquatic t h e tanooga Owls county a r e a . More impressive was the sec- meet, when the four hundred ond place finish in our first in- yard relay time was broken for the last time, the relay team broke their own record by five seconds, an incredible improvement. The two hundred yard medley relay time was also broken this year. Individual records broken this year included fifty and one hundred yard breaststroke records broken by team captain Hank Wynn and one hundred yard freestyle record broken by Daniel Harriman. Some of the most impressive stats from this season are the county and state qualifying times accrued by the team. The thirty-one swimmers combined for 141 county qualifying times, and everyone had at least one event that he qualified in. Of the thirty-one, eight swimmers combined for twenty state qualifying times, a number which dwarfs last year’s total of three state cuts. With the increased participation at the state meet, the team hopes to make their best showing yet. With this season coming to a close, one must begin to look to next year. Although the swim team will lose many seniors (Hank Wynn, Cody Mayer, Aaron Struminger, Tommy Horton, Parth Sheth, and Jonathan Barnes), this season’s incredible improvements over last season make next season even more promising with current juniors Daniel Harriman and Dex Witte as well as current sophomores John Goldsmith and Erim Sarinoglu. Hopefully they will finally be able to give CBHS a formidable challenge at the county meet. The future looks very bright for the Aquatic Owls. Carlsen Takes Third at Racquet Club BY WORTH MORGAN The titans Roddick and Haas fell as Mirnyi rose to the occasion. Once again this year, at the newly sponsored Regions/Morgan Keegan Tennis Championships, the top seeds failed to reach the finals. Roddick and Haas, both formerly ranked #2 in the world, were the highlighted players in the men’s draw. Roddick, the crowd and tournament’s favorite, attracted thousands of fans with his powerful playing style and trucker hat attitude. Also entering the tournament with wildcards were Zach Dailey, former MUS standout, and Brian Baker, a young gun from Nashville. I was particularly impressed with the play of both. Zach Dailey came into the tour- Baker lost 7-6 (1) 6-7 (1) 7-6 nament ranked 851st in the (9) with three unconverted world (usually a player ranked match points. For those of you 100 will still need to qualify) but who have no idea what those numbers was able to mean, that’s hold his own against as close as a match can a very good Ginepri in get. Even though he the first failed to win round. a match, the Brian Baker 1 7 3 r d opened eyes across ranked Brian Baker the tennis circuit with had a great tournament his first appearround loss ance, and I to the #8 was personseed, Max Photo Courtesy of Regions/ Morgan Keegan Mirnyi. The ally glad to Kenneth Carlsen took his loss was exthird ATP title with a win see his sucpected, but over Max Mirnyi cess, given my past experience with him: just six years ago I beat his younger cousin Adam Baker while Brian watched in total despair. As anticipated, Roddick cruised through his first two matches and was well on his way to a third until he turned his ankle in an awkward misstep. At that critical moment the crowd fell silent. Although he struggled through the rest of the match and came away with a close victory, Roddick, with much apology, withdrew from his semifinal match against the 87th ranked Kenneth Carlsen from Denmark. On the other side of the draw, Mirnyi struggled through every match on his way to the semifinals while Haas waded across his side of the bracket. Although Mirnyi’s style consists of little more than a rare serve and volley combination, he was able to dismiss Haas with ease in order to advance to the Men’s Finals. Carlsen then defeated Mirnyi 7-5, 7-5 in a not-soepic final match, claiming the third ATP title of his rapidly ascending career. Under new tournament director Phil Chamberlain, the pro tournament had yet another record year in ticket sales and increased prize money for the players. The tournament’s chief success, though, lies in its continued support of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. I believe every fan in attendance can be proud of that special legacy. P A G E 8 T H E O W L ’ S H O O T s p o r t s Giving Fans the Cold Shoulder? BYAARON STRUMINGER For the first time in almost one hundred years, Lord Stanley’s Cup will not be awarded to the best hockey team in the National Hockey League. Unfortunately, on February 16, 2005, the NHL owners decided to cancel the season because of labor disputes. Leading up to the cancellation, the negotiations seemed to be reviving, and a season appeared to be in the American hockey future. However, the hopes of Mario Lemeiux, Wayne Gretsky, and others did not amount to any agreement by Saturday, February 11. Now, the season, instead of a Jaromir Jagr slap shot, has definitely been put “top shelf.” The heart of the dispute was a salary cap and a revenuesharing program that the owners wanted. Instead, the players wanted things to remain the same. On one side, the own- to the bargaining troubles, ers were losing money, televi- many of the players had alsion ratings had plummeted, ready started playing and makand the owners did not have ing a living overseas. The enough money to pay salaries. leagues in Russia, Finland, and On the other side, the players many other countries decided did not want a salary cap, and to give the players what they they refused the revenue shar- wanted. Especially in Russia, ing program that the owners where huge companies back wanted. Eventually, the own- hockey teams, teams started ers dropped the revenue shar- giving players only a small pering program, and the players centage less than what they agreed to a salary cap. In the were making in the NHL. In end however, the two sides addition, the foreign leagues were about 5 million dollars per were willing to let the NHL stars visit home team away throughout the from reaching a year and to give deal. That the stars many money might extras that the seem minusNHL would have cule, but when expected their you multiply players to pay for that by 30 themselves. teams, the These foreign sides end up leagues have being about been very suc150 million dolPhoto Courtesy of AP lars apart. Fan bids NHL a sad cessful because farewell hockey has better In addition fan support around the world than it does in the United States. Although hockey does have better international support around the world than in the U.S., America can offer one thing that many other countries cannot—revenue. Television contracts, advertisements, and the price of tickets make America the greatest country in which to have professional sports. However, the lockout has made many owners lose customers. Many fans, especially in the North, have expressed their spite of the NHL by purchasing “End the Hockey Lockout” bumper stickers. They have also written local and national newspapers saying that they will never buy tickets for a hockey game again. So, the question becomes, “Who should get the blame?” In this type of situation, both sides are to blame. Having said that, in my opinion, the players should have accepted the last deal proposed by the owners before the cancellation of the season. Ticket prices have skyrocketed because of the owners’ need to pay the player’s salaries, but the players do not seem to realize that fact. The NHL is losing money, and someone has to pay; whatever its source, the greed must stop. Hockey in America has changed before our eyes. There used to be superstars like Bobby Orr, Gordie Howe, and Wayne Gretsky. Now relative “no namers” like Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Danny Heatley, and Jerome Iginla rule the sport. Hockey as we used to know it is now dead in North America, and the question for the owners and the players is whether it will be revived. Only an end to the lockout will answer that question. Mulder and Tim Hudson, and it has a staff of unproven arms. The Rangers’ offense remains one of the most powerful in the game, but its weak pitching staff will keep them from contention. The Mariners are coming off a ninety-nine loss season and the Angels should once again reach the playoffs. greatly improved its pitching staff with the addition of Tim Hudson. The Mets opened their checkbooks with the signings of Pedro Martinez and the most sought after free agent; Carlos Beltran. The Phillies should rebound from their disappointing season last year, and even the Nationals could pose a threat. But the Florida Marlins are the best team by far. The signing of Carlos Delgado adds power to an already speedy lineup, and the team’s pitching staff remains the best in the majors. The Marlins should win the division. The NL Central is basically CONTINUED ON PAGE 9 The National Pastime BY ZAK KISBER This winter has been a roller coaster ride for Major League Baseball. After the Red Sox stunned the world by winning their first World Series title since 1918, things stayed just as exciting. Although talk about the steroid controversy dominated the headlines for much of the winter, this offseason saw its fair share of trades. Many big name players relocated, shifting the balance of power across the league. Now, with spring training finally underway, it’s time to start thinking about predictions: The AL East has the peren- nial contender: the New York Yankees. But the Yankees might have their work cut out for them this season in defending their division title. The Baltimore Orioles added Sammy Sosa to an already potent lineup and will be a major threat, not to mention that the Red Sox are fresh off a World Series title. However, since the Devil Rays and Blue Jays are non-factors and the Red Sox’s and Orioles’ pitching are still in question, the Yankees will win once again. Next up to the plate is the AL Central. This division has three teams with legitimate shots at the crown. Cleveland’s well-balanced offense and solid rotation could bring them back on top. The White Sox added Orlando Hernandez and Jose Contreras to their rotation and could also make a run at first place. Although Minnesota lost a lot of its big names, its rotation makes for one of the best in the majors and will lead to yet another division championship in 2005. The AL West should be quite entertaining this season. Last year’s AL West race went down to the last day of the season. This year, however, it should be much easier for the L.A. Angels to win the title. Oakland shipped off Mark My AL Wildcard: Boston Red Sox The National League should be quite competitive this season. After a very active winter, the NL East is by far baseball’s most improved and toughest division. Atlanta M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 P A G E 9 s p o r t s Swords and Projectiles BY WALTER KLYCE I’m sometimes amazed at how many things go unnoticed at this school. Last week, several students spoke to me expressing their interest in the Mock Trial team; until then, they hadn’t realized what it was all about or, in some cases, that we even had a team. Although the MUS student body eagerly supports the football and basketball teams, far fewer students can attest to having actually been to a baseball game or a tennis match. And meanwhile, other sports pass completely under the radar. Specifically, I’m referring to two sports: the fencing team and the Frisbee team. Although the fencing team is far PASTIME a two-horse race. Cincinnati and Pittsburgh should have better years, but still are too young to make that big of an impact. Although they still shouldn’t be ruled out, Houston lost many of its big names, including Jeff Kent, and it also has many questionable pitchers. The defending champs, the St. Louis Cardinals, added Mark Mulder to an already good pitching staff, but expect for Chris Carpenter to have a soso year. Their middle infield is bad both offensively and defensively, making room for the Cubs to win the division. With a healthy pitching staff anchored by Kerry Wood and Mark Prior and a more balanced offense, this team might finally break the curse and dethrone the Cards. The NL West also saw a lot of player movement this smaller, it is probably more well-known, thanks to team captain and club president Greg Jones’s showdown during halftime of the CBHS basketball game. Despite Greg’s unlucky defeat in this epic epee battle, the crowd was supportive and excited. Since its founding last year, the fencing club has been practicing every Saturday each semester; furthermore, the team placed well in a tournament at Rhodes last fall and is looking forward to several more this semester. The team originally began training with foils, the lightest weight and strictest style of fencing sword, but quickly focused in on epee, the more popular and mainstream blade. However, club member Joe Hooker has CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 offseason. The Rockies are a no-name team full of rookies that will have another rough season in Colorado. The Diamondbacks are hoping to improve from their 111-loss season with the additions of Shawn Green and Troy Glaus. The Padres added speed to their lineup, but their pitching staff has no real ace and will struggle. The defending champion, the Los Angeles Dodgers received a major face-lift, adding Jeff Kent, J.D. Drew, and Derek Lowe, but the Giants will be too much. Moises Alou should have a major impact, and their dominant starting rotation will clinch the division title. shown his fervent desire to dash his opponents with a saber, the heaviest and most brutal fencing weapon. Nowadays, points can be recognized by an electronic system which registers each hit. At this time, the team has about six fencers and is coached by local champ Brad Kroeker, who has placed third at the national level. If you’re interested in joining up, see junior Greg Jones for an application form (he’s the tall guy). The Frisbee team is currently entering its second season as a club sport. Although the official season began just this Saturday, at the annual Jamboree Kickoff, these guys can be found playing Ultimate outside the lower school every single week of the year. Now that the season’s actually started, practices will be held every Wednesday and Friday after school, in addition to the games themselves (on Saturdays), to ensure that both our Varsity and JV teams make a good showing in the Memphis Frisbee League. Under the leadership of Coach David Stenberg and several hotshot seniors, such as Jordan Crawford, Hank Wynn, and Parth Sheth, each team has done well in the past and will hopefully continue to flourish. For more information about the League, visit the official league website, memphisfrisbee.com, or simply ask one of the players. Now comes the real ques- tion: when will these teams become recognized MUS sports? School policy requires that a club sport exist for two years before being recognized—by fall 2005 this will hold true for both fencing and Frisbee. Both sports have club fees, official uniforms, qualified coaches, and scheduled practices. And clearly, these guys are representing the school just as well as anyone. Perhaps we should consider acknowledging their efforts and showing that we appreciate them too. It happened for swimming and lacrosse—maybe it’ll happen for fencing and Frisbee, too. Wrestling Grapples State BY FRANK JEMISON This year’s wrestling season culminated in a great individual state tournament. MUS wrestling has reached new heights this year, winning its first state match and finishing above CBHS, and we have done it with a varsity line-up that combines first-year wrestlers with five-year veterans. Despite all this success, the entire team knew the true test was to come at the state individual tournament. We went into the competition with many medal-hopefuls. Top-ranked wrestlers Andrew Gordon and Mason George had their eyes on state championships, while My NL Wild Card: St. many other wrestlers sought Louis Cardinals lesser places. The tournament, which was double elimination, began on Friday morning. Throughout the morning MUS and CBHS were neck and neck in team points, yet there would be three MUS heartbreaks before the day was over. Andrew Gordon (275 lbs), who had entered the tournament ranked number one, lost a close match that made his prospective state championship impossible. Nelson Rainey (152 lbs), who had looked as though he would medal, suffered a concussion as a result of a head butt. Mason George, ranked number two, also sustained a head butt that, besides slicing Mason’s brow open, caused him to lose a heartbreakingly close match. Both Mason and Andrew went on to take third place, while Nelson was too injured to continue. Seniors Josh Hall (145 lbs) and Joey Friend (215 lbs) both fought their way to fourth place, while Senior Sloan Abernathy (171 lbs), despite being unable to practice for several weeks due to a broken nose, took fifth place. The final medal was for sixth place and went to sophomore Zach Gordon (160). Although only the top-six places receive medals, eighthgrader Barrett Folk (103 lbs), sophomore Ken Haltom (119 lbs), and junior Frank Jemison (140 lbs) finished in the topeight. These nine wrestlers, as well as the others, helped MUS secure its seventh place spot, the highest team ranking MUS has ever received at the Individual State Tournament. Thanks to the coaches and wrestlers (particularly the seniors), this wrestling season has been one of MUS’ best! P A G E 1 0 T H E O W L ’ S H O O T a m u s e m e n t s Digital Music Creates Opportunities For Everyone BY ANDREW OLINGER Since the millennium, the way people create music has been drastically revolutionized. Nowadays, people have become increasingly dependent upon computers for their everyday lives. If people will use computers for everything from shopping to sexual satisfaction, why not use the computer to create music? Any musician knows that music in its simplest form is a combination of rhythm and melody. When people turn on the radio, they often pay attention to the lyrics of the music, disregarding rhythm, chord progression, or melodic development. One of the foremost genres of music in pop culture is hip-hop. When the radio is tuned to a rap station and Snoop Dogg is blaring, people listen to the rhyme scheme, but the musical arrangement is often ignored. Pop culture has forgotten the simple fact that essentially, Rap and hip-hop are just groups of beats put together to create a catchy rhythm. On the other hand, alternative rock tends to place musical emphasis upon the melody. But whether you ride down the street bumping Snoop Dogg or the Foo Fighters, people generally assume that musicians create the music using instruments and a recording studio. The first genre of music to utilize computers for making music was (appropriately named) Electronica. Electronic music combines the heavy rhythms of hip-hop with the captivating melodies of rock and roll. The driving beat of electronic music (often known as Techno) makes it a style of music that suits many different scenarios: one can run, dance, drive, or work out to Techno music. Not only is the music appropriate for many situations, but it also can evoke a wide range of emotion. The enthralling melodies can make techno either relaxing or exciting. When most people think of rap, hip-hop, techno, or any other genres of music, they usually assume that musicians made the music in a recording studio. That assumption is not always true, however. In reality, one does not need to be proficient in an instrument to compose electronic music. There are many computer programs on the market that allow people to create rhythms and entire songs simply by clicking the mouse on their computer. Such programs include Fruity Loops, CuBase, and Acid Pro. As opposed to dedicating years of practice to mastering an instrument and spending thousands of dollars on recording equipment, one can reap the benefits of technology and make music from the comfort of one’s home. After a few quick tutorials someone can be well on his way to making unique and expressive music. Personally, I am experienced in creating music both digitally and manually. For creating music electronically, I use the program Fruity Loops. The premise behind this program is to have multiple “loops” of music that are played at rhythmic intervals to compile a song. Fruity Loops, unlike similar programs, is very user-friendly as well as versatile. It is generally convenient to begin by creating drum loops and bass lines. Then one can adjust the timing and the accents on dif- ferent beats to make the rhythm more complex and realistic. The drum rhythms in Fruity Loops are often so realistic that it becomes difficult to tell the difference between digital and live music. The melodies in Fruity Loops are also simple to use but just as impressive. Within the program, the instrument, pitch, note length, and overall blend are each adjustable. There are an infinite number of ways to generate melodies and then manipulate them to your liking. Once the rhythm and melody of the song are established, one can spice up the music using digital effects. When it comes to effects, Fruity Loops has it covered. There is a wide array of effects at your fingertips such as reverb, flanger, phaser, “wah”, filter cuts, beat slicers, and parametric equalizers. Each of the effect in Fruity Loops manipulates the sound wave in such a way that it can add a personal touch to any song. If a person is not interested in creating an original song from the ground up, Fruity Loops can accommodate. Fruity Loops allows users to import previously recorded sound clips and manipulate, add to, or distort these files. For example, a person can import music from the Sesame Street soundtrack, add a heavy techno beat, slice or distort the vocals, and add effects to create “The Club Vortex Sesame Street Techno Throw-down” remix. By using Fruity Loops you can customize your music in a whole new way. Fruity Loops, Cubase, and Acid Pro have revolutionized the way the professional world thinks about music. For people who are tired of the same monotonous music on the radio, Fruity Loops provides an opportunity for a person to create his own music. Opinions vary concerning the new age of digital music. While some would say that these programs are pandering to a society that is already lazy enough, others feel that with new levels of technology, new levels of creativity can be attained. Personal opinions aside, the programs are entertaining at the very least. For more information, search for these programs and others on the Internet. Robert Rodriguez (Once scheduled to come out May 6. Upon a Time in Mexico). Unleashed: This underKingdom of Heaven: Rid- ground British crime flick stars ley Scott’s second war-epic, Jet Li as a pit-fighter who has but this one is based on the cru- been trained as a mob boss’s sades in the 12 th century. dog his entire life. After Li’s esSooner or later, the public will caping, a pianist played by have to realize that epic war Morgan Freeman takes him scores and trailers don’t nec- under his wing and shows him essarily mean the movie will be what it means to be good. Stars Orlando Bloom human...until the boss comes and Liam Neelson, and is looking for revenge. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith: Hopefully, it will be better than Episodes I and II, and the trailer looks pretty cool. Nathalie Portman, Ewan McGregor, Samuel L. Jackson, Hayden Christensen star in the third movie of the second Star Wars trilogy. Debuts May 19. Scarlett Johansson in the third, and most likely the worst installment of the Mission Impossible series. The plot twists have been just too obvious since the first movie. Opens May 25. Movie Outlook BY BEN BLEUSTEIN Sin City: The most anticipated film of 2005 opens on April 1. Based on the graphic novels by Frank Miller, Sin City looks to break new ground in filmmaking. It brings black and white back to the screen with a little bit more…also, it has Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Benicio Del Toro, Clive Owen, and Nick Stahl. Directed by The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: Based on the Bestselling Sci-fi Adventure Mission Impossible 3: novel of the late and great DouTom Cruise is back with glas Adams. Stars Warwick CONTINUED ON PAGE 11 M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 P A G E 1 1 a m u s e m e n t s MOVIES FROM PAGE 10 Davis (he played an ewok and Leprechaun in the Leprechaun series, also professor Flitwik in Harry Potter.) Opens June 3. Batman Begins: Batman Begins tells the story of Bruce Wayne’s venture into crime fighting. It is the most highly anticipated Blockbuster of the summer and has an all-star cast including Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe (Last Samurai), and Liam Neelson. Many expect this movie to be the best Batman installment yet. Opens June 17. War of the Worlds: Based on H.G. Well’s Sci-fi Action thriller, and also considered one of the biggest Blockbusters to date, War of the Worlds stars Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning (the little girl in Man on Fire), Miranda Otto (Eowyn in Lord of the Rings), and Tim Robbins. Directed by Steven Spielberg, War of the Worlds opens June 29. Fantastic Four: Another feeble attempt at turning a great comic book into a movie. We can only hope it’s more like XMen and Spiderman and less like The Punisher or the Hulk. Stars Jessica Alba and FX’s Michael Chiklis (The Shield) and Julian McMahon (Nip/ Tuck). Opens July 1. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Tim Burton’s latest movie, based on the imaginative novel by Roald Dahl. Johnny Depp stars as Willy Wonka. Burton’s taking a radically different approach from the classic, and I don’t think Depp can fill Gene Wilder’s shoes. Opens July 15. Ong Bak: A Thai-nacious Thriller BY ANDREW MANUGIAN champion, and when a henchman of a ruthless Bangkok The trailer for Ong Bak crime boss steals the statue’s promised Tony Jaa to be the sacred head, Ting promises to new martial arts superstar, reclaim his village’s pride and comparing him to the likes of joy. Of course, this exposition Jet Li, Jackie Chan, and finally takes under ten minutes—just Bruce Lee. At first, I was more enough for me to do my math than a little skeptical, not only homework and be back before of this rising star, but also of the the movie really started. Ting claim that all his stunts and goes to Bangkok and meets martial arts are done with no George, a native villager who computer graphics, no wires, has abandoned the religious and no safety nets. After view- rural life for a fast-paced one ing it, I can say that Ong Bak of scamming in the city. I’m sure is one part Fists of Fury, one there’s some sort of prodigal part Rumble in the Bronx, and son story embedded in his exone part Kickboxer, and it de- istence, but by this time, the livers. I, for one, disapprove of director must have realized that the growing Hollywood trend most of the audience will be towards digitally enhanced almost asleep. To compensate fights scenes. Admittedly, I for an initially slow plot, the diliked Hero and House of Fly- rector makes sure that Ting, on ing Daggers, but this trend his quest to recover the towards ridiculous wire-fu and Buddha’s head, gets forced implausible fights stops with into various scraps in fight clubs Ong Bak. The lack of effects and the streets of Bangkok with gives the movie a gritty feel not seedy men, each with strange unlike some of Bruce Lee’s hair, aviators, Serpico t-shirts, best, and the focus on raw or any combination of the fights and physical ability dis- aforementioned. The contrast plays physicality not seen in between the simple life of the most Hollywood attempts at village and the dirty back-alley life of Bangkok crime syndikung-fu. Ong Bak tells the story of cates is actually done quite Ting, an orphan raised at the well. Admittedly, Ong Bak may temple of Ong Bak, a Buddha not win Best Screenplay; like statue in rural Thailand. Ting Jaa, however, the film gets the has grown into the village’s job done without an ostentatious presentation. Viewing Ong Bak enabled me to see firsthand the merits of Jaa, the Photo Courtesy of movies.yahoo.com Tony Jaa prepares for mortal combat n e w martial arts superstar touted by critics as the “new Bruce Lee.” After seeing this movie, I don’t doubt that some critics will be calling Bruce Lee the “old Tony Jaa,” and I can see this talented individual being a big star in his future, which may be short judging by the risks he is taking with his own stunts. However, he has by no means reached the amiability of a star like Jackie Chan, for he is generally soft-spoken and uncharismatic in his acting. This unassuming demeanor is completely cast aside when he fights, for he becomes a visceral fighting machine. The most striking element of Jaa’s martial arts is his almost uncanny speed and brutality, and his eagerness to show the world his mastery of Muay Thai fighting style is quite apparent. The driving techno beat that exists in every fight is plain, but the soundtrack choice proves effective for the waves of goons through whom Jaa skillfully cuts. Throughout many of the actions scenes, I could not believe what Jaa was doing to both his body and those of the unfortunate stunt goons he thrashed: throwing himself and them through windows, tables, walls, and floors, kicking a man with legs on fire, and even kneeing a man off of a moving motorcycle. Obviously, my expectations were not high for the plot, and since the movie is pretty much an exhibition for Jaa’s raw physical ability and gravity-defying kung-fu, I was somewhat glad the story was meager and rushed. The fights are where Jaa’s acrobatic physicality really shines, from one of his first with a man who could only be described as Weird Al on steroids to his climactic fight in front of a Buddha statue with the crime boss’s henchman, a villain reduced to a frenzy by strength-enhancing drugs. Jaa is lightning fast and the scenes were delights to view: the movie promised no Hollywood action, and the fights seemed as if I were watching a live extreme martial arts event. The stunts were also very impressive, especially in a chase scene on foot where Jaa jumps over, under, and through just about anything one could imagine. I was a little thrown off by the footage of moves and stunts repeated from multiple angles (reminiscent of Walker Texas Ranger’s spin kicks), but some of the absurd stunts actually warranted two or even three viewings. Even though Jaa’s stunts are expertly choreographed beforehand, the uncanny dexterity of the man is enough to put special effects guys out of business. One buzz killer in the movie’s fast-paced action was the less-than-highspeed vehicle chase through the city: call me jaded by big budget effects, but a chase at 15 mph just doesn’t excite the typical action moviegoer. The boss’s voice was also more annoying than intimidating, and his evil plot was completely nonsensical. Minor setbacks aside, Ong Bak is the pure action movie fans have been awaiting, and hopefully, bigtime Hollywood directors might take a hint from the unrefined action Tony Jaa offers. Andrew’s give the film 4 out of 5 buzzards. P A G E 1 2 T t h e H E b a c k O W L ’ S H O O T - M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 5 p a g e Peter Zanca’s Oscar Roundup Best Supporting Actress Cate Blanchett, The Aviator Laura Linney, Kinsey Virginia Madsen, Sideways Sophie Okonedo, Hotel Rwanda Natalie Portman, Closer Best Cinematography The Aviator House of Flying Daggers The Passion of the Christ The Phantom of the Opera A Very Long Engagement Best Supporting Actor Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby Alan Alda, The Aviator Thomas Haden Church, Sideways Jamie Foxx, Collateral Clive Owen, Closer The supporting actress award was a tossup between Cate Blanchett and Natalie Portman. While Portman’s performances get better with every role she plays, Blanchett’s incredible portrayal of Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator won her the Oscar. She successfully embodied Hepburn’s mannerisms and gave her character great depth. Best Animated Film The Incredibles Shark Tale Shrek 2 Thomas Haden Church’s performance in Sideways was both entertaining and well done. However, the Academy very seldom gives awards to newcomers. This year’s supporting actor Oscar went to veteran actor Morgan Freeman for his performance in Million Dollar Baby. Best Picture Million Dollar Baby The Aviator Finding Neverland Ray Sideways Best Actress Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby Annette Bening, Being Julia Catalina Sandino Moreno, Maria Full of Grace Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake Kate Winslet, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind While Annette Bening and Imelda Stauton both gave terrific performances, Hilary Swank was the heavy favorite in the best actress category. Swank won the Oscar for her portrayal of a scrappy boxer in Million Dollar Baby. Best Actor Jamie Foxx, Ray Don Cheadle, Hotel Rwanda Johnny Depp, Finding Neverland Leonardo DiCaprio, The Aviator Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby While all five of these men played terrific roles in their movies, Jamie Foxx’s tremendous portrayal of Ray Charles won him the best actor Oscar. Best Original Screenplay Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind The Aviator Hotel Rwanda The Incredibles Vera Drake Best Adapted Screenplay Sideways Before Sunset Finding Neverland Million Dollar Baby The Motorcycle Diaries This past year was an excellent year for cinema. Although each of these films was great, Million Dollar Baby was by far the year’s best film and fittingly won the best picture award. Best Director Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby Taylor Hackford, Ray Mike Leigh, Vera Drake Alexander Payne, Sideways Martin Scorsese, The Aviator This category became a head-to-head competition between Clint Eastwood, who has had a stellar directing career to follow his incredible acting career, and Martin Scorsese, who has been nominated for this award five times, but has never won. In the end, Eastwood’s superior work in Million Dollar Baby won him the best director award. FORD’S VISIT, CONTINUED ways; the question we have to answer is what to do for kids who don’t have a [parental] support system at that age.” Ford feels that much of our city’s learning problems occur because small children are neglected, left without mentally stimulating interaction with parents. But, he cautioned, “until the outcry gets loud enough, and people are willing to spend money, we will be asking these same questions [about educational gaps] for awhile.” Ford went on to address Mayor Herenton’s consolidation plans and stated plainly that he, as a fellow taxpayer, understands the outrage of many citizens. Stating that no one would refuse to pay for performing schools and services, Ford shifted the blame to government and moved to focus on how to improve the delivery of CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 services. Equality in Memphis was also a focus of Ford. Extending his theme of collaboration, he outlined his plan for government investment in America’s youth. Ford’s Aspire Program would allocate $500 to each person at birth, depositing the funds in a government account to stimulate parent/child investment in lower- and middleclass homes. “When you bring people to the table, giving them ownership,” Ford stated, “they will act differently.” These citizens would then, at age thirty, return the $500, showing allegiance and responsibility to the country. “We gotta get people something earlier in life, something they can build on and use to compound,” he said; throughout his description, the goal of giving kids a head start was apparent. Ford’s message encouraged every student to take seriously his role in America’s future. The responsibility is ours “to create a more perfect union” and make America better, both for its citizens and in the eyes of the world. Rep. Ford’s challenge will certainly remain in our minds for years to come.