Crazy addictions

Transcription

Crazy addictions

Rodriguez High School
RHS wake up
call: a new
‘red’ flag
By Jerron Herman (’09)
and Destiny Elmo (’10)
Incidents earlier this month in which a
student waved a Confederate flag and another
displayed a brown teddy bear with a noose
around its neck continue to have reverberations on campus.
Thursday night, the NAACP held a community forum at a local Fairfield church in
which a packed house voiced their concerns
about whether there was racial inequality at
RHS.
“The executions of laws at RHS are given
disproportionately. I think if what happened
was to occur in a 180-degrees difference, the
church wouldn’t have invited us because no
one would care,” said Michael Jenkins, one
of many African Americans in the audience
who challenged the administration’s arguments.
Some speakers pushed for the firing of
school administrators, particularly Principal
Amy Gillespie-Oss. They also suggested a
change in the school board.
Earlier Mrs. Gillespie-Oss had apologized
for the incidents that led to the meeting.
“The incident was horrible and atrocious.
There is no room for hatred at RHS. I’m here
to teach respect and tolerance. I hope to create a legacy of tolerance,” she said.
Students took a more conciliatory tone.
“We don’t need to stand divided and blame
others,” senior Caitlin Rich, who is a member of the Coalition that supports tolerance
on campus.
“We don’t need another Jena six,” said
sophomore Brianna Stewart, referring to the
Continued on page 16
Artist
of
The
Month
Page 2
April 2008
Volume VI Issue VIII
Get ready for
STAR testing
By Mark Arce (’08)
Later this month, most of the RHS study
body will take the STAR test. And according
to school administrators, the results are more
important than ever.
“If we do not score high enough on our
A.P.I. (academic performance index), we will
be involved with remedial courses and even
lose existing elective courses,” said Assistant
Principal Lisa Wilson.
That’s because the Fairfield-Suisun Unified
School District is in “school improvement,” a
designation given to schools by the state that
have not made enough progress toward their
goals.
RHS is one of the few schools in the disPhoto/Jordan Miranda
trict that has not yet succumbed to the state
Terrance White, Kieren Broussard, Beau Posadas, and St. Ives Gamble
intervention program. But that could change
show off their own individual addictions.
if too many students do poorly on the annual
test — or don’t take it at all.
That means more remedial classes with
more students forced to take extra English,
math, science, and history classes. It also
means fewer electives — such as video proBy Jordan Miranda (’08)
burden is worth bearing, says the self-con- duction, photography, and art.
The administration doesn’t want a repeat
“Hi, my name is Beau, and I’m a shoe- scious junior. However, Beau is not alone in
of
an
incident that occurred last year when a
head.”
this addiction. RHS seniors AJ Ramos, TJ
parent
passed out fliers across the street from
Welcome to “Shoeheads Anonymous” a Teding, and Alexis Galang also claim a shoe
the
school,
urging students to boycott the test.
rehab center for people addicted to shoes. In fetish particular to number 23, which was the
Some
students
are opposed to the test because
Beau’s case, Jordan’s are the nicotine to his star basketball player’s number.
they
say
they
are
tested out. Besides, they say
shoe collection. Of course there is no such
Shoe addictions aren’t the only obsessions
the
test
doesn’t
affect
their grades.
place, still, a number of RHS students claim sweeping RHS.
“I
think
it’s
pointless
because it doesn’t help
unusual addictions.
Some RHS students pine for the sweet
us
academically,
so
what’s
the point in trying
Waking up at 2 a.m. on a Saturday to cop taste of ice cream. One such student is senior
hard
on
it?”
said
freshman
Esme Mondragthe freshest pair of Jordan sneakers is a regu- Damola Fashokun. Although he is an avid
on.
lar occurrence for Beau Posadas. His addic- track runner who understands the benefits of
That could change. State education offition has become so bad that he often skips healthy eating, his love for ice cream overcials
are discussing possibly putting STAR
lunch in order to save money for his expen- whelms his will to eat right.
test
results
on high school transcripts, meansive habit.
“I usually have a bowl of ice cream every
ing
that
colleges
would have the ability to
“The most I’ve spent on a pair of Jordan’s day at the hut,” said Damola.
Continued
on
page
16
Continued
on page 16
is $700,” said the RHS junior. The financial
Crazy addictions
Shoes, ice cream grab students’ attention
Car
of
The
Month
Page 3
Staff/
student
game
Index
School News: 1, 2, 3,16
Entertainment: 4, 5, 6,
7
Opinion: 10, 11, 12, 13
Page 8-9
Sports: 8,9,14,15
Artist of the month
April 2008
Tattoos and drawings
are her main thing
By Amy Liem (’08)
Senior Martha Lopez is definitely “drawing”
attention.
In her art classroom, there is poster board
and other papers placed on the tables to protect
them from paint spills or from people drawing
on the desks themselves.
There is not, however, a rule that there cannot be drawings on the paper themselves.
Without a doubt, there are many drawings
on the table in the front of the room where Lopez and her friends sit.
Next to one of her drawings, students in
other classes have been known to write things
like “Martha draw more!” To which Martha
happily obliges.
Martha Lopez took AP art this year not on
a whim. Lopez has basically taken every art
class offered here (with the exception of ceramics) having completed art 1 and art 2.
This year she is taking on both AP art and
art survey. She admits the struggle to do both
is very trying.
She plans to take art classes after high school
to see where it takes her. Like most AP art students the idea of a tight deadline can sometimes take away from the fun of it.
“She works at very artistic paces…when she
does finish her projects it’s really a reward to
be able to see the finished product,” said classmate and fellow senior Kate Pelto.
If you get lucky enough you might even be
able to sport one of her designs on your arm
or ankle.
Having a tattoo like a bracelet on her own
ankle, Lopez enjoys drawing tattoos for people.
Here is more information on Martha Lopez:
Photo/Amy Liem
Martha Lopez is well known for her amazing drawing talents.
Examples of Martha’s work can be found around the art classroom.
The RHS faculty recently voted history
teacher Mr. Zach Pless as the teacher of the
year for the 2007-2008 school year
“It feels good to be recognized by the
staff. This year I’ve done a lot of work, being head of SAS (School After School) and
Cyber High. I got to get closer with the office
staff and cutting their workload,” he said.
Mr. Pless has been teaching sophomores
and freshmen for more than six years, teaching world civilization, world geography, and
this year he has been leading SAS and Cyber
High.
The voting took place over a period of a
couple of weeks. First the teachers get togeth-
Back to school:
Teachers work
to earn advanced
master’s
degrees
16
Imagine going back to the studying and late
nights, the books and the lugubrious essays after you have graduated and gone on with your
life. Imagine the trek from your seat to the professor’s desk — you being a teacher — term
paper in hand, the sweat rolling down your
forehead; you are extremely nervous.
Imagine that for an instant, after 10 years of
being out of college, you are sucked back in.
For several RHS teachers, this is their life
and their choice. Four are getting a master’s in
education from UC-Berkeley. Others are getting their degrees at Chapman and other local
colleges.
Ms. Sarah McLaughlin, Mr. Zachary Pless,
and Mrs. Evelyn Nadeau are all students at
Berkeley attempting to enhance their teaching
experiences. All said they would like a position in administration, namely as an assistant
principal.
The extra work has taken its toll.
“I missed many of my children’s events due
to the rigorous course,” Mrs. Nadeau said. She
said her course work entails three days a week
to commuting from Fairfield to Berkeley. It demands essays and a final thesis, she said.
Ms. McLaughlin referred Mr. Pless, 2008
teacher of the year, about this program, as did
she to Mrs. Nadeau. The process began by attaining the many forms that would allow them
entrance. Much of the process mirrored that of
the senior’s time in applying.
Regardless the difficulties, the teachers interviewed said their hard work will pay off the
moment they step across the graduation podium to receive their degree.
What is your favorite color? Blue.
What is your preferred medium? Oil paint.
Who is your favorite artist? My favorite
artists are Connie, Blaine, and Kate (mem-
bers of her AP art class.)
er and nominate who they think would be
good candidates for the honor, then e-mails
are sent out to all of the staff, and they vote
on the nominees. This year’s nominees were
Mr. Pless and English teacher and baseball
coach Mr. Jason Chatham.
Mr. Pless said he put a lot of work this
year into heading up the after school programs focused on getting students back on
track with their credits. As head of School
After School and Cyber High, he has been
able to meet more students and help them
out with their studies.
“It makes me feel good to know I can help
everyone out there who needs the help.”
He also stated that if he wanted to, he
could go for the title of district teacher of the
year, but feels that having the teacher of the By Lacey Brooke (’11)
year title is enough.
RHS raised $2369.16 in its annual Pennies
“If I wanted to go for that award I would, but for Patients drive that raises money for the
I’m happy with this award that the school has Leukemia/Lymphoma Society.
nominated me for.”
Activities director Mrs. Stella Shamieh said
that the students usually come up with about
$3000. to $4000. “But every penny counts,”
she said.
The winner of the drive was the class of Mr.
Jason Agan with a total of $900.43, winning
a pizza party. Coming in second place was
Ms. Jennifer Hampton with $232.23 winning
pizza party as well. Ms. Delicia Gomez came
in third place with $189.85 winning an icePhoto/Caitlyn Young
cream party.
What career do you plan on pursuing after
high school? I really want to be a boxer, and
hopefully also become a tattoo artist.
Mr. Pless chosen Teacher of the Year
By Matt Jirasritumrong (’08)
2
Pennies for Patients
earns $ for Leukemia
April 2008
A strong truck for strong-minded individual
Car of the month: Romero’s ‘Big Romie’
By Nicole Williams(’08)
Tough guys need strong cars. Not every
guy has to be tough or strong to have a good
car, but he does need to be strong-minded and
intelligent.
There are not many guys around to fit that
criterion.
But there is still one who is setting the
bar.
Senior Daniel Romero has one of those
cars that people stop and take notice.
He has a 2009 mineral gray Dodge Ram,
which is a truck perfectly suited for rugged
terrain.
He received it as a Christmas gift for doing
well in school. He loves his vehicle.
What makes his truck different from other
cars is that he has bumper stickers that say
El Salvador, which is the country his mom
was from.
A cross hangs from the rearview mirror.
Everything else about the truck is as he got
it.
Romero’s Dodge Ram was the standard
2008 edition and didn’t come with any special features, but that doesn’t stop him from
loving his truck.
Romero thinks that the part of the car that
represents him is the hemi-engine.
“I’m pretty powerful,” the football athlete
said about himself.
Romero’s friends like his car and thinks
that it’s cool and pretty incredible one of the
reason’s being because it’s new.
Finally, what comes with getting the car
is the naming of the car. Romero has named
his car “Big Romie,” because it is a bigger
representation of himself, he said.
Romero says he has not had any major accidents, and hopes to keep it that way.
Daniel Romero does a strong pose by his ride.
Photo/Zach Meyers
Many women wonder: What is the perfect body?
By Alexa Alejandria(’09)
Picture these: unsatisfied women paying thousands of dollars for cosmetics-from
makeup to breast augmentations.
Self-conscience men consuming pill after pill to achieve that “all-natural” male-enhancement.
Young girls causing huge amounts of selfinflicted pain only to reach America’s idea of
the “perfect” body.
Although we weren’t able to capture all of
America’s opinions about the “perfect” body,
we were able to at least get some views from
RHS attendees.
Many views included opinions like junior
Matthew Engle’s.
He said girls who care too much about
their looks aren’t as attractive as those who
are more laid-back with their appearance.
Don’t get him wrong; he still appreciates
physical beauty.
Senior Chad Pinguelo said that big lips,
pretty eyes, cute clothes, “cakes,” and an
amazing personality are what make a girl
beautiful.
Yet, not all guys value the same traits.
Sophomore Nicolas Blumenblat prefers pronounced physical traits.
“Pamela Anderson – oh my god,” Blumenblat said, with an exasperated gasp, when
asked what his idea of the “perfect” body
was.
A good personality is not important as long
Society dictates that girls should be slender.
Photo/Alexa Alejandria
as they have good looks, he said.
Guys, on the other hand, should be tan,
tall, and tough, according to juniors Alexandra Martino and Zoë Bierfreund.
They also need a great smile, to be in shape
and not only do they need the walk, they definitely need the talk to go with it.
“People are pretty with confidence,” Alexandra said.
“But no piercings on the face,” Zoë firmly
added.
But just because a person looks good,
doesn’t mean that they’re good inside too.
Teacher Karen Cooper used to weigh about
325 lbs. before she decided it was time to
change her appearance and health status.
After many years of determination and
self-discipline, she now weighs 125 lbs and
is very proud of that fact.
Cooper advised that people shouldn’t focus on looks alone, but should center their
goals on being healthy.
Good looks usually accompany good
health.
“You shouldn’t judge on image,” Cooper
said.
So many people, young and old, put themselves through much trouble for the sake of
appearances.
Yet, all of those interviewed agreed that
every person should be happy with what they
have been given.
April 2008
4
Marines video continues to inspires viewers
selves.” These words are drawn out and leave
dramatic pauses to show you how much honor
and pride the Marines truly have. The commercial consists of the Silent Drill Team tapping
their rifles and simply looking amazing in their
dress blues.
The commercial was filmed in 10 different states and features 15 different locations.
The only location they had a problem filming
in was the last shot of the commercial: Marines
near the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge.
San Francisco objected to stopping traffic for
the commercial, which in all honesty it did not
matter. They could have filmed without stop-
there are no mistakes. You are either afraid to
join the Marines, or completely inspired and
ready to leave for boot camp immediately.
There is amazing landscapes and a dramatic
score. Then the voiceover pitches in with “they
have always defended this nation…they still
do.”
When all of this is combined, you almost
get teary eyed. You realize that the Marines
is more than just a military branch; it’s a way
of life. The last shot shows the Golden Gate
Bridge with all the Silent Drill Team members
and the ever so famous voice ends with “The
few, the proud, the Marines.”
And the key ingredient: Love
Drain most of the juices from the beans.
While you are cooking, pour some of the liquid with the beans, so you don’t deprive the
dish of moisture.
Slice the bell peppers in thin long slices
and then cut them in half. Mix all together,
including the salsa, but hold off on the spices. Put the temperature of the stove to about
medium, and then work your way up to medium-high.
Cook the beans until they soften and the peppers are the to point where they can be cut in
half with a spatula. Through the cooking process add the spices.
Make sure you DO NOT burn them, so watch
carefully.
They will take the maximum of about 15
minutes to fully cook. Once you have finished,
put them on a plate and allow the platter to cool
for a few minutes.
Enjoy this healthy and easy to cook meal. I
Given the recent controversy in Berkeley
with all the protesters in front of the recruiting
offices, it’s easy to say that the Bay Area is not
exactly the most supporting group of people
for the military. This does not dampen the active duty patron’s spirits for one second. One
video is proof of this fact and that video is the
new United States Marines commercial. The
same voiceover that has been doing the Marine
Corps commercial chimes in once again for the
“Americas Marines” TV spot.
“There are those who dedicate themselves
to a sense of honor, to a life of courage and a
commitment to something greater than them-
ping cars.
After watching the commercial, one realizes
By Olivia Chu (’09)
Ingredients:
Recipe of the month: bean & bell pepper spice dish
This recipe comes from my own personal
cookbook. I have cooked this dish for myself
on countless occasions.
Not only is it appetizing but it’s also a wellbalanced meal, meaning it’s quite beneficial to
your health. I can’t help but love it, so I make
it frequently. It’s very colorful, making for a
beautiful presentation along with the sheer
tastiness. I hope you enjoy my own personal
dish.
1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange/green bell pepper
Non-stick spray (or olive oil)
Two teaspoons of rosemary
Emril’s Original Essence (found at any supermarket)
½ cup of salsa
May 2008
5
Teen moms struggle to live normally
By Joshua Maddox (’08), Elise
Boersma (’09), and Ma. Criselda
It will be a busy summer for “Jasmine.”
The RHS freshman is eight months pregnant,
expecting to have her baby in mid-June.
If you’re thinking that this baby was an unplanned mistake, conceived in an ill-prepared
moment of passion, you would be wrong.
Jasmine (not her real name) says she
planned this pregnancy. She desired a child
of her own.
She and her boyfriend, who attends Armijo,
decided to become parents.
Jasmine says she loves children and is “glad
that I am having this God-blessed child.” She
has no regrets, and says her boyfriend is supportive.
Jasmine is one of the 820,000 teens who become pregnant each year in the United States.
While that may seen like a big number, the
teen birth rate has been slowly declining during the last decade.
According to Family First Aid, a web site
for troubled teens, eight in 10 of these teen
pregnancies are unintended. And while most
of these teen mothers will complete their
high school education, less than 2 percent
will ever graduate from college.
And the bad news doesn’t stop there. Teenage mothers are more likely to end up on welfare.
Their babies will more likely suffer from
lower birth weights. In addition, these children are more likely to perform poorly in
school, and they are at greater risk of abuse
and neglect.
Jasmine is undeterred. Jasmine plans to
keep her baby even though she has no concrete plans.
“We seriously do not know what’s going to
happen to us in the future, but whatever it is, I
have the feeling that everything will turn out
OK. We just never really talked about anything about our future years. We just go with
the flow.”
Jasmine does plan to continue her schooling. She expects to complete her high school
education at Sem Yeto, the continuation
school, because it offers day care.
Then she would like to get a bachelor’s degree at a college. Eventually, she would like
to go to medical school and become pediatrician.
Being a D student and pregnant hasn’t deterred her from dreaming.
When asked about who will be taking care
of her child while she finishes her studies, she
replied, “Truthfully, I’ve wondered about that
myself. I’ve spoken to my mother about that,
Photo illustration/ Joshua Maddox
Mothers claim they don’t regret their decisions to keep their children.
and she’s willing to take care of him while
I’m away.”
Jasmine lives with her mother. Her father
died when she was 2 years old.
Her mother has no problem with her having
a child as long as she maintains her studies,
she said.
Last month her friends gave Jasmine a
baby shower.
“It was surprising. All of those cute baby
clothes and toys; it was all just too amazing!
Just another month to go!”
While pregnancy is unusual on campus,
Jasmine is certainly not the only girl who has
ever become pregnant.
“Maria,” became pregnant while a student
at RHS, Now 18, her baby is six months old.
It has been a difficult time, she said, especially since the father of the child is not
around.
“I told him what had happened and the
situation, but he never called back — never
messaged or anything.
After a few weeks, I just took it that I wasn’t
going to see him again.”
There was never a question in her mind
what she would do.
“I never believed in abortion and why
should he (the child) pay for my mistakes.”
Maria dropped out of school and is jobless.
She is living with her parents who were
very supportive throughout her entire pregnancy. The baby’s grandparents provide the
baby’s basic needs, she said.
A 17-year-old RHS junior, “Kayla, just celebrated her son’s fourth birthday. She and her
son live with her grandmother. Kayla works
two jobs to support herself and her son. Her
grandmother watches the boy while she is at
school and work.
Like “Jasmine,” she says she has no regrets.
“I have never wanted anything else really,”
she said. “I’ve loved him from the moment I
saw him.”
At first, her parents disapproved, but the
grew to be more accepting. She was forced
to move in with her grandmother because she
said her parents worried about how the pregnancy would affect her younger sister.
“I’ve never thought of giving him up for
adoption, and an abortion would be the last
thing I would do.”
The birth of her son had not affected her
education or her communications with her
close friends, she said. Her goal is to complete high school and then graduate from a
four-year college. Being an average B student
for the past two years, she sees no reason to
not complete her college education.
“I want him to have a good future, and I’m
willing to give him that.”
Yearbooks are coming soon
By Lacey Brooke (’11)
One of the highlights of the end of the year
is getting the yearbooks. This year’s book
will be distributed on May 29.
One item in the yearbook many students
enjoy is the DVD yearbook.
It includes all of the sports teams and
events, powder-puff and sports rallies, senior
interviews and dances.
“Last year’s yearbook was roughly 500
pages, and this year’s will be somewhere
around there as well,” said Nick Hagler.
The yearbook’s theme will remain a secret
until its distribution.
All of the money collected from the DVD
yearbook goes toward the broadcast studio
fund.
Yearbooks are still available for $90 and
can be purchased at the treasurer’s window.
Hannah Wang:
Me without You
May 2008
6
If you haven’t heard of Hannah Wang yet,
then you are missing out on some acoustic
loving, quality tune-age. If you go to RHS,
then you really have no excuse since Hannah
is a junior here.
Hannah has been playing the guitar for six
years, and her demo clearly shows both her
vocal ability, and her own brilliant abilities in
music composition. Hannah herself describes
her EP “The Autobiography of Me Without
You,” best.
“(The EP is) acoustic, chill, and passionate.”
The six-song demo is a precursor to a
14-song CD, and is completely acoustic.
It sounds like an unplugged version, where
artists release songs they’ve done with an
emphasis on the back to roots atmosphere. I
actually prefer it that way.
The guitar isn’t over powering, and, to me,
was an equal vibe to early Jack Johnson, but
deeper, which contributes to the fact that it
is “chill.”
The “passionate” aspect of the EP is extremely prevalent. The lyrics to “Blue Eyes,”
the first song, aren’t just your typical love
song. For one thing, it’s a huge role reversal
to hear a girl writing about how she “I just
can’t resist those blue eyes.” I’m reminded of
a Cary Brothers song featured on the “Garden State” soundtrack with the same title.
You can tell even without knowing any details that there is a definite pattern to the song
list. “Blue Eyes” opens like a story. It’s the
first inklings of love. It’s the whole idea of
not being able to think of anything or anyone
else but that one person.
The next song “Eyes on You,” opens the
chorus with “I’m so in love with you” and repeats the line again, and again as if to somehow
make the whole situation disappear. There
is a hint of longing and despair in the line
that seems to just touch a collective subconscious. You
instantly
remember
that
first
love and it
just goes to
show Hannah has a universal appeal, not just with her
own age range.
Hannah’s passion doesn’t just stem from
the romantic relationship aspect, but also
from her personal relationship and walk with
God.
There is a definite tone shift in the songs
from one of desperation for trying to make a
physical relationship, boyfriend/girlfriend, to
that of being desperate to know God more.
“Home From Calgary” (my personal favorite) has my favorite line, “Believe me now,
I’m fine, I’m finally aligned” Something
about the rhyme, and the way it’s sung with
Hannah’s signature switch from alto to falsetto soprano on the ending notes just fits. “Me
Without You,” also is a favorite of mine.
“The Y is capitalized” explained Hannah
to represent the fact that it’s not me without
another person, but me without God.
Perhaps the coolest thing about Hannah
isn’t just her music, which is amazing, but
her own personal attitudes towards fame, and
her own musical aspirations.
She plays music, “ because I feel that when
my friends, or even people I don’t know, lis-
ten to it, they take away a part of me that people don’t see often. It expresses my inner self
that I can’t even portray in a conversation.”
If you’d like to listen to Hannah’s music,
check out myspace.com/hw15music.
Also, if you’d like to purchase Hannah’s
music, try to find her on campus sometime.
The EP is $6 (what a steal!)
if that doesn’t work out I’ll try being an actress. Over the summer, I plan to spend time
with my boyfriend.”
Michael Baroja said he would be attending UC-Berkeley and major in engineering.
“I plan on getting a summer job to help pay
for college,” he said.
Track star Vijay Tidwell hopes to continue
running in college. “I plan on attending Kentucky State University and majoring in sports
medicine, and, hopefully, if I’m still running
track by the time I graduate, I want to participate in the 2012 Olympics.”
Vijay has won many awards in his tenure
with the RHS track team and is ranked as one
of the top 10 track runners in the state for the
800-meter race.
Parker Rike said he was undecided on what
he wanted to do.
“Well, I’m going to attend Solano for
two years and transfer somewhere later, but
I don’t really know what I want to do. Maybe
major in music, but at the moment I just want
to live life.”
One student interviewed, Christian Suyat
was put in a position this year, which will
result in him attending Solano, “Originally
I was going to go to San Jose State, I got
accepted and everything but due to money
constraints I opted to go Solano instead be-
cause it was better for me and my family financially”
While the College and Career Center collects information on students’ plans, that information isn’t yet available for the class of
’08. Mrs. Sandy Anderson did have information on last year’s graduates.
“Out of 408 students surveyed, about 35
percent planned to attend a four-year college,
while 51 percent planned on attending a twoyear college,” she said.
Senior Joseph Rodriguez plans to attend
San Jose State University “I’m gonna become a freshman again but also a Spartan as
well.”
Hannah appears “chill” as she shows off her EP.
Photo/Amy Liem
End of the road for RHS seniors mark plans for future, still to unfold
As the end of the year approaches, many
graduating students are pondering what they
will do once school is over. Of the handful of
seniors interviewed, some knew exactly what
their plans were; others had no idea.
Senior Damola Fashokun sees ice cream in
his immediate future.
“I want to get a job at the local ice cream
shop just so I can be around ice cream every
day.”
Other seniors, such as Natalie Walton, have
more serious plans.
“I plan on attending Fresno State University and majoring in veterinarian sciences and
May 2008
30 essential hip-hop songs you’ve never heard
Hip-hop. What does this simple word make
us think of?
Usually, it makes us — as in YOU, not me
— think of violence, drugs, gangs, etc.
I took the job of doing rap reviews in order
to negate the misconceptions that outsiders
often hold over the genre.
In other words, there is much more to hiphop than you think.
In no particular order, I leave you with 30
somewhat lesser known songs that I feel best
capture the ENTIRE essence of a misunderstood style of music.
That means all the ignorance, wisdom,
hate, love, etc. is represented in this list. No
words are needed to describe these songs;
just sit back, listen, and enjoy.
Oh, and one more thing. Go pick up Atmosphere’s new album! This is Anthony Wong,
signing off for the last time.
Eric B. & Rakim – “Lyrics of Fury” – Follow The Leader
Cannibal Ox – “Iron Galaxy” – The Cold
Vein
Obie Trice – “Cry Now” – Second Rounds
On Me
Methodman & Redman – “Da Rockwilder”
– Blackout!
Mac Dre – “There Is a Song For You” featuring Mac Mall, P$D & Dubee – Genie of the
Lamp
LA Symphony – “Give” – Disappear Here
Souls of Mischief – “Step To My Girl” – Hiero Oldies, Volume 1
Termanology – “Watch How It Go Down”
– Hood Politics IV
Danny! – “Fly, Part II” – Charm
Bizzy Bone – “Way 2 Strong” – The
7
P.J.’s: Original
Soundtrack
Dahlak – “My
Baby” – Dual
Consciousness
Elohim
Marino – “This Is
Home” – Son of
Hip Hop
Evidence – “Mr.
Slow Flow” – The Weatherman
Marco Polo – “War” featuring Kardinal Offshall – Port Authority
Ras Kass – “Interview With a Vampire”
– Rassassination
Atmosphere – “The Woman With The Tattooed Hands” – Lucy Ford: The Atmosphere
EP’s
Ladybug Mecca – “Oh Poor You” – Trip
The Light Fantastic
Killer Mike – “That’s Life” – I Pledge Allegiance To The Grind
Del The Funky Homosapien – “If You
Must” – Both Sides of the Brain
The Coup – “Me and Jesus The Pimp In a
’79 Granada Last Night” – Steal This Album
The Pharcyde – “Runnin’” – Bizarre Ride II
The Pharcyde
Big Daddy Kane – “Ain’t No Half Steppin’”
– Long Live The Kane
Young Lay – “Got 2 Survive” featuring Ray
Luv, Mac Mall & 2Pac
Aesop Rock – “Daylight” – Labor Days
Cage – “Agent Orange” – Movies For The
Blind
Immortal Technique – “The 4th Branch”
– Revolutionary, Volume II
The Jacka – “Hey Girl” (Remix) featuring
Husalah – The Jack Artist
Tech N9ne – “My World” featuring Brother
Lynch Hung & Dalima – Everready: The Religion
Shock G – “Keep It Beautiful” featuring
Keith Porter – Fear of a Mixed Planet
And perhaps the most important song of
all...
Teriyaki Boyz – “Tokyo Drift” – The Fast &
The Furious: Tokyo Drift
Whether it’s over work, school, or things at
home, it’s taking its toll.
You need to take sometime to just hang
out and relax!
Libra (Sept. 23 - Oct. 22)
Relaxing and just hanging out with your
friends is pretty much a typical weekend for
you.
Yes, it can be fun, but it also gets old. Try
doing something else; it will be worth it in
the long run.
Scorpio (Oct. 23 - Nov. 21)
There may be something you’ve really
wanted to splurge on lately but you might
want to save up for something else.
Waiting could make you a little anxious, but
you’ll be satisfied.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 21)
Summer is right around the corner and
school’s coming to an end.
You’ve distanced yourself from friends
lately, so let them know everything’s OK.
Make the effort to hang out and be around
more.
Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 19)
Instead of dwelling over friends leaving
and being gone for the summer, do something where you guys can hang out and stay
in touch. Everything will be fine.
Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 18)
You are extremely outgoing and full of
energy.
When making plans for the next couple of
months, be careful; don’t overwhelm your-
self.
It’s OK to relax and take a little break.
Pisces (Feb. 19 - March 20)
Life comes at you fast; you never know
what’s going to come your way.
You are a strong person. Keep your head up
when things get tough.
Always remember your friends and family
are here for you.
Aries (March 21 - April 19)
You have high expectations for others and
yourself.
You really can’t always judge a book by
its cover.
Don’t be so quick to judge others; you’ll be
surprised how things can turn out OK.
Taurus (April 20 – May 20)
You strongly believe in the decisions you
make.
If you are going to do something that may
hurt someone in any way, you may want to
think twice.
Some things are just better left unsaid.
What’s fate got in store for you? See your horoscope
By Alexa Shilich(’08)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEMINI (May 21June 20)
You are a really fun person and your friends
and family love being in your presence.
You always strive to go above and beyond.
Everyone appreciates all that you do for
them!
Cancer (June 21 - July 22)
Everyone’s heard the saying, “looks can be
deceiving.”
Befriending someone in the near future
may end up backfiring on you.
There’s nothing wrong with being nice but
just be careful.
Leo (July 23 - Aug. 22)
Most of the time you’re a pretty go-withthe-flow type of person.
No need to stress over plans. You’re
friends or family may want to make some
major plans, and you should go for it!
Virgo (Aug. 23 - Sept. 22)
Lately you have been stressing a lot more
than normal.
...but what the
stars have in store
for ALL of you is
a WONDERFUL
Summer Vacation!!!
May 2008
8
New album by ‘Say Anything’ builds success
This month instead of giving one suggestion of an artist to try out, I thought I would
wrap up the end of the year by providing to
you two options.
Say Anything… is a band from Los Angeles that has one previous CD in stores titled,
“Is a Real Boy.” The band built upon its
success by touring and releasing more than
one single off the CD.
The band likes to release two CD’s in one
for the same price, so it gives you more than
other bands do.
I suggest that you get its newest release
called, “In Defense of the Genre.”
Say Anything’s … sound consists of a pop
melodies, but it also has immature, but sometimes-serious lyrics.
This band is highly creative because none
of its songs sound the same at all, but you still
know that it is Say Anything. I give the new
CD five stars and I do it with benevolence
because every song is worth listening to over
and over again.
The second CD I suggest you get is a bit
older, but it still has not received as much attention as it deserves. Everytime I Die has a
Spike TV is a channel for men who like
to leave the toilet seat up for once and watch
movies and TV shows that make them feel
like testosterone is being pumped into them
by the second. With a channel like Spike TV,
it’s no surprise that “The Ultimate Fighter” is
in its seventh season.
“The Ultimate Fighter 7” is a reality show
newer CD already in stores named “The Big
Dirty,” but the CD it released before that —
named “Gutter Phenomenon” — is definitely
worth listening to. I give it only four stars because of the lack of creativity in some songs.
The CD has great lyrics that are about partying and other typical “Band on Tour” stories
and events.
Much of “Gutter” has been made into sin-
gles through music videos and radio. “Kill
The Music” has a great Southern-metal melody through its guitar riffs Another song that
is well known from the CD through sales on
many charts is “The New Black,” which is a
’70s rock ‘n’ roll influenced sound fused with
modern metal.
Say Anything... and Everytime I Die both
will be at Warped Tour this year, so I suggest
you pick up both CD’s and that you see these
bands on the road.
The music and lyrics that Say Anything
and Everytime I Die are very similar because
they take situations that were known as “hard
times,” but use optimism to write good stuff.
The music of Everytime I Die may be
heavy, so if you like music of a more mellow
nature I suggest Say Anything.
that shows men literally fighting for the right
to stay on the show and win a chance to get a
six-figure contract signed with the UFC. The
show consists of two professional heavyweight UFC fighters who coach the teams
that compete. Forrest Griffin and Quinton
Jackson both fight each other at the end of
the season, debuting on pay-per-view for
UFC 86.
Both coaches have an outstanding résumé
and both bring something different to the
team they coach. Forrest Griffin has 15 wins
and only 4 losses bringing no surprise to the
audience due to his well rounded fighting
techniques and good grappling skills. Griffin
was the winner of the first Ultimate Fighter
season of the light heavyweight class. Griffin
went to the University of Georgia and got a
bachelor’s political science.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has 27 wins
and 6 losses. With a record like that anyone
would be proud to have him as a coach. Jackson is well known for his strength, wrestling
and slamming ability. Jackson has been successful in the ring and it’s a good thing considering his past. He is a construction worker
with no college education at all. But Jackson
must be doing something right with 27 wins
and one of those wins being Chuck Liddell.
Although Jackson has more wins than Griffin, Griffin’s team has been doing a lot better
than Jackson’s team on the show.
Most reality shows are not even competitive anymore and just show the lives of
young teenage girls who are spoiled beyond
belief, hoping to catch 15 minutes of fame on
a pointless show much like “The Hills.” The
Ultimate Fighter flips that idea on its side and
shows young men all fighting for different
reasons and earning their pride and glory to
get what they truly believe will make them
happy. For a show that documents ground
and pound full-fledged knockouts that will
make one turn his head away from the TV
and wince, it actually has its light-hearted
moments. All the men on the show cannot be
in contact with the outside world or receive
any information about their loved ones. This
particular variable in the show makes it all
the more interesting to watch the fighters cry
over females who they think might be doing
who knows what. It’s almost like the military; you don’t know what’s going on back
home, but you need to stay and fight for what
you believe in.
A lot of the men are well educated as well;
some have even graduated and received a degree from a distinguished university. But they
all still end up on the show and fight because
that’s what certain men do; they believe in
it.
Every episode entails one of the coaches
picking two fighters from opposite teams.
Those fighters train and then the last quarter of the episode shows the fight and who
gets eliminated from the show. Interestingly
enough, this is how every episode is, and it
never gets old.
Episodes air at 10 p.m.Wednesdays on
channel 45, Spike TV.
Ultimate Fighter shows young men earning pride
May 2008
‘Baby Mama’ tops with hilarity and fun
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are the hilarious duo in “Baby Mama,” a film about a successful businesswoman who is incapable of
having the one thing she desires most of all
– a baby – because of her T-shaped uterus.
She decides to hire a white-trash surrogate
mother.
Yes, the irony and contrast, as well as
any T-shaped uterus, are overwhelming, but
the film is more than the hysterics that accompany their trials and tribulations in living
together.
It also has some serious drama and a
poignant moral regarding the commonness
of basic human emotion, and helping one an-
other to change for the better, learning from
each of our hardships.
This is what makes the movie so great,
as opposed to films that present nothing more
but pointless, ludicrous, and juvenile antics;
this film has a depth that balances out its comedic aspects.
Amy Poehler particularly contributes
This is my final column. I hope you’ve
enjoyed my column this year. I figured since
this is my last review, I’ll mix a little new
school with old school R&B.
R&B is meant to be from the heart —
emotional and revealing. It should allow you
to peer deep into the singer’s heart.
But not all R&B music is depressing or
gloomy. It can be smooth, fun and entertaining, too.
My first artist this month is Janelle Monae, whom Diddy regards as his biggest sign-
ing since Notorious B.I.G.
Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has
a new protégé, and he seems to be more excited about her than he has been about almost
any artist since B.I.G. was alive.
Diddy said that he thanked God for blessing him with an artist like Janelle Monae.
Janelle, who’s signed to Bad Boy via
her own imprint, Wondaland Arts Society, is
set to re-release her Metropolis Suite EP in
June. Then her solo debut album, Metropolis,
comes out in September.
9
to the humor, coming from “Saturday Night
Live.” I even got teary-eyed from laughing
so much. It definitely has a lot of adult humor (rated PG-13), especially for moms, as
it portrays the pain of delivering a child in a
comical fashion
“Give me drugs!” cries out Poehler, being rolled to the delivery room, flailing her
arms helter-skelter and swatting down everything in her reach.
The film also pokes fun at a woman in
her 50s, who ironically is constantly having
babies.
“She’s expecting,” remarks Fey, softly.
“What’s she expectin’? A Social Security
check?!” bursts out Poehler, perplexity and
disgust beaming from her twisted countenance. You have
to be there and see
it to truly appreciate it.
Topping the
box office charts
on its debut, and
presenting an entertaining story with a
balance of ardency
and humor, I give
the film five out of
five stars.
Her Bad Boy debut single is called
“Many Moons,” which is quirky, creative and
catchy. It is kind of like a solo female version
of OutKast.
My next song “I’m Gonna Be,” by Donell
Jones is only a few years old but it is a classic
that many people have never heard.
This song is not only about love, but also
about devotion, and is regarded by some to
be one of the top 10 love songs of all time.
Jones was born in Chicago, and had
a very rough upbringing. He struggled between wanting to be a musician and to be a
member of a gang, but thank goodness he
chose to be a singer.
Mix old, new R&B for a heartfelt sound
Crossroads guitar festival
raises money for rehab center
By Tyler Fernandez (’11)
In 2004 and 2007 there was a summer
concert that featured all the world’s greatest
guitar legends. This is the Crossroads Guitar Festival, hosted by Eric Clapton to raise
money for his drug rehabilitation center,
named Crossroads Antigua.
This three-day concert draws crowds
of thousands every year, which flock from
around the country to see their heroes play.
Sadly, most of the world’s greatest guitarists are old and will probably all be dead in
the next 20 years, which makes it more of a
must-see concert.
Some of the regular guitarists featured
are: Eric Clapton, John Mayer, B.B. King,
and Buddy Guy, basically any one who has
contributed to making the electric guitar what
it is today.
Unfortunately, a lot of people haven’t
heard about the festival unless they are fans
of whoever is performing, or happened to
stumble across it on youtube. The festival has
‘Most of the world’s
greatest guitarists ... will
probably all be dead in
the next 20 years...’
been going on annually since 2004, drawing
massive crowds every time.
There is also something at the Crossroads Guitar Festival called The Village,
which includes guitar seminars, guitar displays (which have featured legendary guitars
such as Stevie Ray Vaughan’s, Lenny and
Eric Clapton’s, Blackie), and tons of unknown performers putting on mini concerts
of their own.
Altogether, the Crossroads Guitar Festival is a great show that contributes to a good
cause.
Watch for the dates and venues for this
amazing music festival.
Editorial
April 2008
10
Hate should not be tolerated
Martin Luther King Jr., the civil rights leader who preached racial equality, was
assassinated on April 4th 40 years ago.
On April 4, 2008 at RHS, two students rode through the parking lot waving a
Confederate flag. The day before, students drove through the lot dragging a teddy
bear with a noose around its neck. Administrators quickly rushed to put an end to the
obvious display of racism. But not for the reason many of us might have suspected.
Instead, the students were stopped for the simple reason of driving recklessly.
Freedom of speech may have protected their actions, but that doesn’t mean that
students should behave in such a manner. While we do have freedom of speech, administrators are in their legal rights to stop any such speech that disturbs the school.
The teddy bear and noose incidents did in fact cause disruptions.
These were racists act on a day that many deem as a triumph over that very evil. Do
any of you students believe that these students were just being proud of their Southern
roots, and it was just a coincidence that they decided to strut their pride on that day?
It is an example of an unfortunate truth: Racism is difficult to stamp out. This action
was an obvious display of hatred.
We stand before you, disgusted with the students who did these idiotic stunts. At
first we were concerned with the “punishment” of one Saturday School administered
by school authorities. But demands by some to fire our administrators are foolish.
Since then, the administration has taken more proactive steps, and has admitted their
initial mistakes. They have announced that hate, discrimination, and racism will not
be tolerated on campus. They have held meetings and rallies with interested students
and staff. They have supported the forming of a coalition to promote dialogue.
These are all good steps.
However, let us keep some perspective as well. The above-mentioned actions were
by only a couple of boneheaded students. Let us not label our school as racist or
unsafe because of a couple of students’ actions. Unfortunately, there will always be
ignorant people. Our goal should be to educate ourselves to not be among them.
America is a country that prides itself on its diversity, the polar opposite of racism.
What happens to that pride when we give in to the other side? We lose the definition
of what we truly are. Equal.
Letter
to
the
editor
Confederate flag has no place on campus
On the morning of the 40th anniversary of
Martin Luther King’s assassination, a disturbing event occurred in the Rodriguez student
parking lot. A large red truck blazed around
the parking lot with a male student sprawled
on the roof, flying a confederate flag screaming “white power.” The day before someone
had hung a black teddy bear in effigy. Though
the students involved did receive Saturday
school for reckless driving along with being
ticketed by the police, many members of the
student body, including myself, don’t feel that
this punishment is nearly severe enough.
One may argue that flying a Confederate flag is protected by freedom of speech,
however the deep hatred that is historically
associated with thus flag borders on that of
a threat, which, combined with reckless driving around a parking lot full of one’s peers,
is harassment — an offense that warrants a
three-day suspension on most occasions. To
have allowed the students involved with this
to only receive Saturday school for reckless
driving, and to ignore the more hideous offense that occurred, shows students of all
ages that it is OK to hate and that is unacceptable.
Though the Confederate flag was originally
made during the Civil War as a decoration of
the slave-holding states who separated from
the United States in support of a state’s right
to make decisions for themselves, it has become a symbol of something more violent:
white supremacy. When the Ku Klux Klan
(KKK) was formed in the 1860s, it adopted
this flag to represent their group, along with
the white sheets that became the trademark
to their hatred. To fly this flag on any school
campus is inappropriate, nevertheless on the
anniversary of MLK, the most influential man
involved with the civil rights movement.
It is hard to believe that the boys involved
with this event were unaware of the historical
background of this flag. It is impossible that
those boys have not seen pictures of members of the KKK, gathered in all white, listening to their leader preaching in front of the
Confederate flag. How can one not be aware
of the literally thousands of innocent people
that were beaten and attacked with dogs and
water cannons to oppose racism and advocate
equal rights for all people? And even if they
somehow managed to avoid these history
lessons, ignorance is no excuse to disrespect
not only a national leader of a movement that
changed the lives if millions of people but
also the hundreds of students that attend Rodriguez High School.
At school every person has the right to feel
safe and to learn without fear of racial hate or
discrimination, and allowing those students
to get away with flying the Confederate flag
not only violates this right but also has caused
tension within the student body. Diversity is
one of Rodriguez’s strengths and though I
know that the school administration must allow the law, I ask them to consider what they
are actually promoting on the campus.
Sincerely,
Ally Rosemond (’09)
April 2008
11
Keep up on your graduation credits
Ten hours of community service. A
through G classes, and you must pass with no
less than a C in each. Think a D is enough for
you? Well, think again. These are the requirements for anyone to graduate high school.
For seniors who have not completed
these requirements, they will have to attend
summer school.
Sadly, they will not be able to walk or
attend the senior ceremony.
For those who are in danger of not grad-
uating, my suggestion is to sign up for classes at Solano College, night school, or Cyber
High. For juniors, I’d take poor progress report
grades as a warning. Check the graduating
requirements listed in the agenda.
If you are missing credits, or if you have
not taken the classes needed to graduate, talk
to your counselor immediately. You might be
a candidate for summer school too. Solano
College and Cyber High might also be options for you.
Sophomores and freshmen still have a
chance to catch up even without taking sum-
mer classes. Cyber High will still be going on
next year for sophomores who are going on
to be juniors. Freshmans are lucky enough to
have three years to catch up.
Still, if I were you, I’d maintain decent
grades so that I could enjoy my summer. Stay
dedicated and focused to achieve your academic goal of graduating with your class.
If you want to stand next to your friends
on the stadium for graduation, make sure that
you complete all your requirements.
Abortion creates strong reactions
We should not ban choice
By Jeff Rutland (’08)
Abortion is one of those hot-button subjects that Americans have strong feelings
about. It all depends on the person’s moral
beliefs. Because of that, I believe that abortion should be legal — to an extent.
For thousands of years, women’s rights
have always been limited — from the right
to vote, to how they use their bodies. People
who think abortion should be outlawed need
to remember that there have always been
abortions.
Women who do not want to be pregnant
have found ways to end it. Unfortunately, it
sometimes meant the end of the woman’s life
too.
Those so-called back-alley abortions led
to more enlightened laws regarding abortion.
In 1973 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled
that women could have abortions.
Because of that ruling, coat hanger operations and the need to travel across the
country to find a doctor to perform an abortion ended.
Court should outlaw procedure
Abortion became legal and
more readily available.
Whether
to
have an abortion
should be a decision by the woman and no one else. The government should not tell women what to do
with their body or to continue a pregnancy.
Those who oppose abortion say it is murder. I disagree. It comes down to an age-old
question. Is an embryo alive and deserving
all the rights of a human being.
Of course it is alive. But a developing
batch of cells that cannot live outside the
wound is not the same as a living, breathing,
functioning human.
I agree with former president Bill Clinton’s view when he said that abortion should
be rare but legal. As a society we should do
all we can to reduce the number of women
who want and an abortions. But we should
not ban the choice.
By Chris Turley (’08)
forts of the Wayan brothers. I am not saying
that all sequels are bad. The Matrix trilogy
had a great connection and style.
When I watched the second and third
“Spider-man,” I felt like I was watching
something entirely different from the first
film. I think production companies that allow
filmmakers to spend millions of dollars on a
film that gets no profit from box office sales
in return should come to an end. Production
should closely examine the script and make
sure that it remains in good hands. “Step Up
2” is a great example of a sequel that should
have never made the silver screen. The film
had an entirely new cast plus and story line.
The movie only has one similarity with
the original — dancing. Who pays almost $8
to watch this stuff? And that is for matinee! I
know that some RHS students will disagree.
Instead of wasting your money on this junk,
read the reviews on the Internet or the newspaper. It may make you think twice.
PRO
Today in the United States abortion is
allowed in all 50 states. Some states have
restrictions, but all allow it in some form. Is
this right?
Abortion is allowing the death of a human being who does not have a choice in the
matter.
How would you feel if you were trapped
in a room and tied down and someone entered
to kill you? That is the same issue with a baby
in the mother’s womb.
Abortion should be ruled illegal as soon
as possible. Some may argue that some woman could have been raped.
I believe that a woman who is raped
should have the right to have an abortion because she then does not have to accept the
consequences of pregnancy that resulted
from a violent crime.
Those who are pro-choice say a woman
should have the right to choose. I think it is
wrong to give any woman the right to execute
a baby before it is born.
Movie sequels: Are they worth it?
Do you remember how excited you were
when you saw the first “Scary Movie?” How
about the first “Spider-man?” I can tell you
how unexciting it is to watch something that
totally takes away the story from the first
film. “Scary Movie” is now up to four movies: Is this really necessary?
The parody of many movies wrapped up
into one is now an old idea. “Epic Movie,”
“Scary Movie,” “Not Another Teen Movie,”
and many others have diluted the earlier ef-
Within
two
weeks of conception, the fetus has
a heartbeat and a
brain.
In about a
month, the baby already knows the mother’s voice. The issue of
abortion takes lives away that do not need to
be taken away.
Why is it that America would make marijuana illegal, but allow murdering babies? I
think that America needs to closely examine
these issues and make better decisions.
The Democratic Party fights to continue
to keep abortion legal.
“Maybe she can’t raise the baby,” they
reason. The solution for a woman who cannot
support a child is to give it up for adoption.
There are many in this country that are
incapable of bearing children. They would
love to adopt.
Some argue that a baby is not a baby until
it is born. By that reasoning, should a mother
who wants to have a baby call her shower a
fetus shower?
Teens who want to abort their babies often do it because they don’t want their parents to find out.
But the parents’ job is to help their children make the right decisions and cope with
the consequences when they don’t.
I ask all of those who are pro choice, how
would you feel if your mother once pondered
aborting you?
I hope to hear some answers and I am
curious to arguments disproving that abortion
is murder.
CON
April 2008
Page 12
Does America need to have gunNocontrol?
real benefits
Weaponry have
been there since the
birth of our country
to bearing arms
By Ma. Criselda David (’09)
The headlines have become all too familiar. A shooting at a school campus has left
several dead and others wounded. A deranged
or disgruntled student is to blame.
It makes me wonder why nothing could
be done to stop these deranged gunmen before the massacre started.
If someone else had had a gun would he
have been able to stop the madness? Utah allows its university students to carry concealed
weapons to school for that very purpose.
Our Constitution states in the Second
Amendment that we have the right to bear
arms.
Still, we are having
this long, strenuous debate about guns that has
been brewing at least
since President Ronald
Reagan and his press
secretary James Brady
were shot in 1981.
Some consider gun ownership vital to
ones self-defense as a preventive of crime.
Others say it is a menace that goes along with
crime.
I believe that any law-abiding American
citizen who wants to own a gun should be
able to have a gun.
If someone is responsible, obeys the law,
is a mentally healthy individual, and pays
taxes to the government, shouldn’t he or she
be able to own a gun for protection?
PRO
Especially when the government is unable to protect us. The Second Amendment
states that it is the right of the people to bear
arms and not necessarily regulated to a militia.
The U.S. Supreme Court is debating the
issue right now. Washington D.C. has one of
the strictest gun control laws in the country,
where handguns are banned in the city. Some
residents have sued, saying the Constitution
gives them the right to own hand guns. They
say guns are needed for self-defense.
So many crimes could be prevented
if the victims had guns. According to a police statistics in 2002, more than 1,200 U.S.
women were killed by their partners, accounting for 30 percent of the 4,006 women
murdered that year.
The advocates of gun rights claim that
the gun is an equalizer against abusers and
could prevent such instances of abuse and
murder.
The whole gun issue is one of the fundamental things Americans have had ever since
the country’s beginnings. Weren’t the battles
at Lexington and Concord fought because
the British authorities wanted to take away
the guns from the colonials?
Guns have been there since the birth
of our country. If we are to take away guns
from the populace, are we undoing something that has been with the country since its
beginnings?
America has always had people with
guns, sometimes in the right hands and
sometimes in the wrong.
I think banning guns from the public is
like racial profiling; we shouldn’t discriminate against everyone just because there are
crazy people out there who committed massacres. It’s not the guns that kill people; it’s
the people who kill people.
How to contact us
Do you have an opinion about an
important issue? What do you think
about the war in Iraq? Or the Olympic torch controversy? What about
school or district policies?
The Stampede wants to hear
from you! We only have one issue
left this school year. Now is your
chance to sound off.
Put your letter in the Stampede
box in the library. Or drop it off in F106. Make sure to write legibly and
sign your name.
On March 19, the U.S. Supreme Court
took up the issue of a right to bear arms.
Specifically, it is reviewing whether the
District of Columbia had the right to pass a
law banning handguns.
On one side of the issue are gun owners
who say that the right to bear is embedded in
the Second Amendment, which was ratified
in 1791.
Others say they would rather live in a
non-violent society rather than one swarming with guns.
I agree with
them. There is no
reason for the average person to
own a gun.
When the Second Amendment
was passed, the
United States had no real military or army,
unlike today.
The country relied on its citizens to
make sure agriculture maintained its stability.
Other than that, the 2nd Amendment
specified that only a “well regulated militia”
were the ones who were allowed to have
guns in their possession.
But what did the framers of the Bill of
Rights mean? Were they referring to a citizen army? Or did they mean that individuals
could own guns?
There are no real benefits to having citizens carry guns if they are not part of a government system.
Do we really want some fanatic threatening us with guns?
People are killed or injured by guns every day in this country. It needs to stop. Approximately 42,000 were killed in America
by guns in 2007. That is too many.
During the past 30 years, several gun
control laws have passed — such as requiring background checks for buyers and safety
locks on guns — in an effort to curtail the
bloodshed.
Those efforts were a good start, but they
have not been enough.
The court should let the District of Columbia’s law stand. Then it should go even
further to make sure those who are mentally
ill do not have access to guns.
CON
Class Question:
“Do you think the dress code for prom is too
strict? Why or why not?”
Caitlyn Young (’09)
Freshman
“A little, because
prom is meant to be
fun for the students,
and it shouldn’t
remind of us of
school.”
— Jo Lagrassa
Sophomore
“Yes, because if
someone is willing
to spend the money,
they should be able
to wear whatever
they bought.”
— Haylea Redfern
Junior
“No, because the administrators at prom
are pretty lenient
and the rules are
just meant to make
sure no one shows
up inappropriately
dressed.”
— Hannah Wang
Senior
“No the rules aren’t
strict enough! I
don’t want to see a
bunch of girls provocatively dressed
at prom.”
— Jason Plough
Teacher
The dress code for
prom is actually not
strict at all. Girls can
wear spaghetti straps,
strapless, even short
dresses. The only
time we intervene
is when the dresses
are completely tasteless, which includes
showing body parts.
Keep it classy RHS.
—Stella Shamieh
Rodriguez Highschool
April 2008
April 2008
13
What do the stars have to say for RHS
By Alexa Shilich (’08)
HAPPY BIRHTDAY ARIES ( March 21
- April 19) — Your persistence has definitely started paying off! When you want
something, you won’t hold back. Whatever,
or maybe even whomever, you want is in
your reach. Just play it cool, the best is yet
to come.
Taurus (April 20 - May 20) — With careful
preparation on any big projects, comes impressive results, you can help others but don’t
feel bad about wanting to be more successful
than everyone else. You have a very strong
work ethic and that’s something to be proud
of.
Gemini (May 21- June 20) — You have
the ability to see all of the different sides
of a situation. When friends ask you to play
peacemaker you may want to think twice. It
may take some time but let them figure things
out.
Cancer ( June 21 - July 22) — If you feel like
you haven’t been giving things your best lately, it’s never too late to go back and fix them.
Don’t get discouraged, you’re a hard worker.
Sometimes you get easily overwhelmed.
Leo (July 23 - Aug. 22) — Don’t be afraid
to second-guess yourself. If you have questions about something, it’s best for you to go
straight to the source. Once you gain insight,
you’ll start to feel more confident in your
work.
Virgo ( Aug. 23- Sept. 22) — You know what
you’re capable of; don’t ever let anyone discourage you or make you doubt yourself. You
can be pretty tough on yourself, don’t worry
about it too much as long as you know you’re
doing your best that’s all that matters.
Libra ( Sept. 23 - Oct. 22) — Make the effort to get along with a close friend or family
member. Even if it means biting your tongue,
try to help them relax, and make sure they
know that you’re there for them no matter
what.
Scorpio ( Oct. 23 - Nov. 21) — It’s always
a good time for a change, how about now?
Whether it’s a makeover on your looks or
personality. Maybe even try doing things a
little different. People will notice and be very
impressed!
Camping with friends at Stoneyford
An idea came to me one day after watching
the classic favorite “The Sandlot.” They had
a campout so why couldn’t I? I got two of my
best friends and we hit the road to Stoneyford.
Gas was even expensive up there. That the
residents living there, which consist of only
75 old people, love to get gas because it’s a
hip thing to do. The site was beautiful — trees everywhere
and clean water surrounding my eyes. Bubba
and Rhombus pitched the tent while I played
hunter.
I had me about 70 pellets and I shot all of
them. My record of hitting things was about
10. I accidentally killed a bird because it was
in my line of fire.
The jackrabbit that stupidly ran from cover
was just asking to be shot. I was having a
field day. I couldn’t wait for the great outdoor
cooking.
We were having hot links, burgers, beans
and to top it off…S’mores. I was having a
wonderful time. I was thinking to myself how
it would be so nice to take a girl camping and
just enjoy the view.
Go on the boat feel the wind hit your face
and not care about Fairfield or anything that
would distract you.
Life was on the menu and it felt good.
‘Honestly, dates
are overrated,
and that is why I
stopped for a bit.’
Dates are not all about scoring. They really
don’t have to be dates. You can just hang out.
Honestly, dates are overrated, and that is why
I stopped for a bit.
You seem to get the ones you want when
you don’t try. So don’t stress when you get
rejected or when a girl gets your hopes up.
Just enjoy what you have and what will come
13
Rodriguez
Sagittarius (Nov.
22 – Dec. High
21) —School
Your
positive energy is very contagious, you really know how to put a smile on just about
anybody’s face. People enjoy your presence
and just being around you in general. That’s a
great quality to have.
Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 19) — You’re
friends and family can’t get enough of your
company. Others may not know exactly how
to say it but they truly depend on you for advice. You care a lot about others and that’s
something you should be proud of.
Aquarius ( Jan. 20 – Feb. 18) — Things may
be going great for you. School, work, friends,
everything at home. However, a friend may
start getting a little bit envious of you, spend
some extra quality time with them, everything will be fine.
Pisces (Feb. 19 - March 20) — There’s
something you really want, but you may not
be quite sure. Figure out what it is and then
you can come up with ways you can get what
you want no matter whether it’s something
you want to buy or accomplish as a personal
goal.
to you.
As the day was slowly ending, the star show
was beginning. It was a show that we didn’t
pay for.
I swear I made 10 wishes that night. I slept
after I snacked all the Doritos and the last of
the Arizona ice teas.
Waking up was very refreshing. The camping was over and the day was just beginning.
The drive home was amazing listening to
the New Radicals and feeling good.
So I decided to tell my friends that I wanted
to scream and let myself go.
So I started screaming and they caught on.
We felt that we matured right then and there.
This was the turning point to my life. This
was my best spring break yet.
Need advice?
Submit your
questions to Jim
Mitelka
14
April 2008
Page 14
Student of the month
loves track and ‘CSI’
By Jordan Miranda (’08)
Photo/Zach Myers
Junior, Geno Escalante gets ready to make a big swing and to score for his team
Boys’ baseball resurrects its
ultimate winning streak
By Frankie Garcia (’08)
After the first playoff appearance in school
history and a season in which many school
records were broken, the RHS baseball team
seemed to be headed in the right direction.
But the team got off to a rough start, losing five of their first eight games. But when
things seemed their worse, the team pulled
together and turned their season around, winning 10 of their next 11 games.
Sparked by the return of varsity basketball
players Mike Johnson and Cameron Richmond and improved offensive production,
the team has now gone undefeated in league
play — and has even won a game over Division 1 powerhouse De La Salle. This team
has extremely strong pitching lead by seniors
Esteban Guzman, Michael Johnson, Andre
Garcia and Johnny Scholtens
Senior Johnny Scholtens, acknowledged
the disappointing start, saying the turnaround
was attributed to them “ coming together as a
team, being molded together by their coaches, and finally playing to (their) talent level.”
He recognized that they had high expectations for the season and “ had to learn the
hard way that wins aren’t just handed out.”
The team has eight remaining league games
and is looking to finish the season strong, to
setup a deep playoff run. Important games
include two games a piece against baseball
juggernauts Benicia and Vanden.
RHS Mustangs are easily
splashing out the competition
By Alexa Alejandra(’09)
The 2008 swim season has been an aggressive one as RHS swimmers blow former
school records out of the water. Returning
swimmer, senior Matthew “Red” Lodge
made breaking freestyle records look easy
as he crushed the previous times in the boys
100-yard freestyle with a time of 50.84 seconds and the boys 200 yard freestyle with
1:51.58. And not only did Lodge break two
records, he also swooped up the March Athlete of the Month. Freshman Alex Mendoza
has certainly drawn attention to himself by
breaking three school records individually and the 400-yard freestyle relay record
(3:34.53) with seniors Nicholas Shwarzbach,
Jacob Susskind, and Matthew Lodge. During
his very first year of high school swimming,
Alex whipped through the boys’ 100-yard
backstroke (1:00.95), boys’ 200-yard individual medley (2:08.38), and the boys’ 100-yard
breaststroke (1:09.11). “I’ve been on a club
team since I was 6. I’m glad it’s finally paying off,” Mendoza replied after being asked
what helped him accomplish this.
The RHS varsity boys have remained undefeated in league meets also beating Benicia
High School’s varsity boys’ team for the first
time in RHS history. Varsity girls have only
suffered one loss, and the whole team has
an excellent chance at placing in this year’s
SCAC league championships. When most people think of track and
field, they vision a sprinter crossing the finish line at blazing speed. The runners get all
the glory while the throwers get no love for
their displays of strength and power. Senior
Christian Suyat, a thrower for the RHS track
team, hopes that people will start to realize
the brilliance in the art forms of shot putting
and discus throwing.
“Throwing is a form of poetry much like
dancing,” said the senior, “the techniques
involved need to be executed at perfection.”
With no specific throwing coach and as the
track and field team’s most experienced
thrower, Christian has been appointed into
the coaching position by head coach Wes
Childs. With several newcomers to the team,
Suyat has had his hands full all season. As
one of the best throwers on the team, fellow
track members respect the advice given by
Christian. He has helped most of the throwers improve their measurements week after
week.
“What I tell these young cats is that
technique will overcome raw strength any
day,’ said Christian. He has won events in the
shot put and discus at many meets relying on
technique alone, often besting throwers 100
pounds bigger than him.
Nicknames: Suyat, Big Daddy
Age: 18
Photo/Zach Myers
Senior, Christian Suyat represents the
strength and egility of RHS track team
Sports: Track and Field
How Long Played: four years
Other Sport: Football, basketball, volleyball, star gazing
Awards: All-League Cross Country, MVP
two years in track
Favorite Team: Phoenix Suns
Favorite Food: Competition, water
Favorite Movie: “Casablanca”
Favorite Artists: Da Vinci, Van Gogh, Gabe
Bondoc, and himself (guitar)
Favorite Athlete: Georges “Rush” StPierre
Favorite TV Show: “CSI”
Role Models: Mr. Dexter, Dr. Phil, his family and friends
Track team runs for second
The track team has been two months out
the blocks and is now sprinting towards
the head of the pack. Convincing victories
against Vallejo, Hogan, and Bethel have let
it be known that the RHS track team is prepared for its competition. Sprinters, long-distance runners, jumpers, and throwers have
all played their parts in leading the Mustang
stampede past the opposition.
Not only has the team faired well against
local competition, but also success has been
found at big meets such as Deer Valley’s
Invitational and the Oakland Relays. These
meets have over 20 teams that participate
from all across theBay Area. The Mustangs
came home with second place overall prizes
in both meets. Some individuals and relay
teams are ranked among the top in the state
in their respective events.
The 4x400 meter varsity boys’ relay team
has come close to breaking the school record
already early in the season and is on track to
make the state meet. The 4x200 meter varsity boys’ relay team is ranked among the top
20 in California. The 4x100 meter varsity
boys’ relay team is among the best in the Bay
Area.
The girls have fared well also with consistent performances from individuals such as
Nicole Terrell, Simone Robinson and Shay
Conley.
Vijay Tidwell, Damola Fashokun, St
Ives Gamble, Kieren Broussard, Rahsaan Allen, and Otis Felder have blazed the track for
the boys with great performances as well.
Page 15
April 2008
Tennis brings ‘A’ game to the court
By Alexa Shilich (’08)
After only sending two singles — then junior Alex Puleo and senior Tyler Loney — to
League last year, the tennis team is hoping to
send more.
The plan is to earn another banner to the
collection hanging on the tennis courts.
After the first few matches were canceled,
team members thought they might have been
at a disadvantage since their first match was
against one of the strongest teams, Vanden
High School.
“Playing Vanden will let us know how we
stack up against one of the best teams in the
league,” said Alex, now a senior.
Softball Dominates
Unfortunately for the Mustangs, it was a
pretty tough loss to the Vikings with a score
of 7-2.
However with a strong defeat over Vallejo
High (8-1), the team wasn’t going to let Bethel High (5-4) take another win from them.
The team has been able to stay strong and
pull through with a few more wins.
Since last year’s team was composed mostly of seniors and juniors, this year’s team
needed rebuilding.
With freshman dominating the team this
year, the players are working hard to cement
as a team.
Varsity is 12 strong with six singles and
three doubles. Captains Aaron Levin and
Lawrence David said they want to make the
Photo/ Frankie Garcia
Brianna Knight prepares to bat.
The offense is strong, but the pitching is the
backbone of this team. Adrianna Collins has
been just dominating with an ERA of .417
and 71 strikeouts and Megan Layne has an
ERA of 1.626 and 54 strikeouts.
The team has eight games remaining,
only three at home, and the biggest challenge looks to be their two remaining games
against Vallejo, who we narrowly beat 2-1 in
the first match up.
Photo/Charlotte Galzotte
Students smile for the camera after they recieve their honor roll.
best of the rest of the season, especially since
it’s their last.
Girls soccer kicks butt
By Samantha Krome (’11)
By Frankie Garcia (’08)
A team that has 17 wins and only one lose,
usually gets a lot of recognition — especially if that team is undefeated in league play
thus far. But that’s not the case for the RHS
softball team. The team has been dominating the competition, and most games aren’t
even close, with scores like a 25-0 win over
Bethel, a 14-0 win over Pleasant Grove while
outscoring their opponents 130-28.
Their success hasn’t come easy, every win
has been earned, and every game had been
hard fought. But their success isn’t due to a
singular player; their success is truly a team
effort. Brianna Knight leads the team in batting average and homeruns, but six other
players are batting over .300 and three others
have at least one homerun.
Senior Megan Layne said that their success
is due to having “12 girls who are extremely
talented and experienced, and have played
together for many years on summer traveling
teams.”
Photo/ Frankie Garcia
Senior Maxwell Gregory executes a forehand approach.
Last year the soccer team won nearly all
its games. This year’s goal is to score more
points than last year.
The varsity team has had five leagues wins,
two ties, and two losses. The team is made up
of nine sophomores, five juniors, and seven
seniors.
Senior Kristin Moody is the main goalie
with nine shut outs and 26 saves. Senior Hanna Bennion and Junior Allyson Rosemond
are the top scorers for the varsity team with
14 goals and 13 goals. The team started conditioning in late January and ended in February.
Around 80 girls went out for both JV and
varsity with 16 girls making JV and 21 girls
making varsity.
The season is from late February to late
April.
The junior varsity coach is Vince Cowan.
“Vince is really cool, and a good coach.
He loves soccer and he makes it fun,” said
freshman Brianna Alatorre.
The JV team is made up of seven sophomores and nine freshmen. Most of them
played on a traveling team.
The goalkeeper for the team is sophomore
Alyssa Rhodes.
The junior varsity team has won every
game except one, which was against Benicia
on March 5.
Varsity coach Mike Viri is stricter than
Cowan but a good coach nonetheless, the
girls said.
By Zach Myers (’09)
golf over the summer.
The player with the best record to date is
sophomore Vohn Dumdumaya.
Coach Bryan describes his most cherished
memory of the season as the win against Benicia High, on Benicia’s own golf course.
Coach Bryan says he enjoys each season; this
season is his favorite so far. Coach Bryan,
who played golf his freshman year of high
school, said he believes the varsity boys golf
team is only headed up.
“We are going to go onto the Division 3
tournament. We are moving up, with a chance
to do even better and go farther.”
This year the gold team
is hitting in the green
It seems every year. the sports teams of
Rodriguez consistently achieve a better and
more honorable status among the California
division leagues.
The football team won the SCAC title and
the wrestling team won the section title. So it
should be no different for a sport of gentlemen — golf. This spring the varsity boys golf
team is in second place in Division 3.
The driving force behind this success is
the athletes’ determination, according to Mr.
Rick Bryan. To prepare for this spring season,
many of the golf team practiced and played
April 2008
Star testing...
(from page 1)
Photo/Kathleen Engle
Kathleen Engle at flying lessons.
Soaring to new heights
Student of the month
By Jerron Herman(’09)
While flying, suddenly she hears the beeping sounds of the emergency protocol mediations.
“Danger, Danger: Check oil.”
In a rush, Kathleen Engle pulls up the nose
of her helicopter, to avoid crashing.
Her instructor advises its time to land.
Minutes after the ordeal, Kathleen is safely
on the ground, successfully completing one
of her helicopter flying classes for her pilot’s
license.
At under 5’4’’ this RHS junior exudes the
ambition of someone twice her size — if integrity was constituted by height.
Ever since the fourth grade — and more
fervently after 9/11 — Kathleen knew that
she wanted to 1) go to the Naval Academy in
Annapolis and 2) serve her country.
She is in leadership positions in eight or-
ganizations, including Ventures, a branch of
scouting that encourages exploring the outdoors.
With her 4.3 cumulative GPA, Kathleen
has received up to 30 awards in academic
and extracurricular activities.
Kathleen uses her four AP classes, which
include physics and chemistry, to advance
her goals. Her dream of attending the Naval
Academy will come to fruition this summer.
West Point’s naval summer program accepted Kathleen to its prestigious program.
Kathleen, however, is still waiting for other
programs’ acceptance.
Kathleen decided to start regularly attending classes at Solano Community College
next fall, and does not plan on returning to
RHS for her senior year.
“If you really want to do something, do
it.,” she states.
Addictions...
(from page 1)
A similar problem is the fast-food dependence of sophomore Kieren Broussard.
Despite being a star athlete, Kieren finds
himself eating at the nearest McDonald’s after almost every practice.
Another common addiction spreading
across the home of the Mustangs is the infatuation of video games.
Students such as Demetric Gamble find
themselves playing Super Smash Brothers
Brawl into the “Wii” hours of the night, perfecting their craft.
These addictions can be hazardous to a
student’s health, grades, or social lives, but
the aforementioned students seem to be coping.
There are also healthier addictions such
as Jordan Coffey’s addiction to cleaning,
especially mopping, and Lawrence David’s
addiction to watermelon.
For many, an addiction fulfills a constant
hunger for satisfaction, affording the person
immediate gratificatopn. but if it gets out of
hand, some might just need rehab.
...openly review the scores of a student,
as they would for SAT exams.
Officials say that if the STAR test were
taken to that level, students would see
the test as something more important and
try harder on it.
“I would definitely try harder on the
STAR test if they put it on my high
school transcript.
I won’t take chances on my college career by blowing off this test,” said junior
Brian Damelio.
“Every student should try hard on the
STAR test to help keep the state out of
the curriculum,” said Kiani Garcia. “As
a freshman, I don’t want my electives
taken away just because of people not
trying on the test.”
Although many students will take the
Red flag...
(from page 1)
incident in Texas in which racial unrest
occurred after a noose was tied to a tree
on a school campus by white students.
“Everyone makes mistakes and the
only way they could accomplish anything
is to join together and help the person who
erred,” said junior Roman Robinson. “It’s
like when a baby falls. Mrs. Gillespie is
that baby and we are the big hand that
picks her back up,” he said.
The flag incident occurred just before the
school day began on April 4, the 40th anniversary of the death of the Rev. Martin
Luther King. That was when two students
in a truck were erratically driving around
the student parking lot. One student
was waving the flag as stunned students
watched. Administrators quickly arrived
on the scene and stopped the spectacle.
The offending students only received Saturday School for reckless driving. Junior
Felicia Williams, who witnessed the act,
spoke about it at a special meeting of the
Black Students Union on April 9.
“I feel disgusted and disturbed; the disturbance comes from both the act, but also
the administration’s ‘lack’ of action.”
Some students attending the crowded
April 9 meeting expressed shock that the
punishment was Saturday School and not
suspension. Various students, white and
black, made comments condemning the
“racially disgusting” incident. Assistant
Principal Kristin Witt told the Stampede
earlier that while administrators do not in
any way condone the boys’ actions, they
can not legally stop someone from flying
a Confederate flag. Flag waving is a form
of free speech covered by the U.S. Con-
16
STAR test, a handful of students won’t because it’s not mandatory.
“We need to have close to 100 percent of
the students to take the test, or else we will
be penalized,” said Mrs. Wilson.
In order for RHS to avoid the threat of
state intervention, the school, as a whole,
must score higher than the previous score of
715.
“We have always scored better than the
other (high) schools in the district, but scores
have gone down.
Our goal to reach this year is 800, which
would put our school in the ‘Proficient’
range, the administration and myself simply
want our school to be the best,” she said.
This year’s testing period will begin on
April 28.
Unlike previous years, seniors are expected to attend school during the testing even
though seniors do not take the test.
stitution.
Ms.Felicia Killings, the Black Student
Union adviser, invited her father, a minister,
to address the incident at the special BSU
meeting. The Rev. Henry Killings repeatedly urged togetherness and discouraged the
students to act with any malice against the
offenders.
“They’re not going to be the last ones; it’s
not what they do, but what we do.”
He urged them to not seek revenge. The
Confederate flag has long been considered a
symbol of a segregated South and the slavery
that preceded the Civil War in this country.
However, some also consider it a symbol
of southern pride not affiliated with racism.
The Confederate flag still flies above the
South Carolina state capitol.
After the meeting on April 9 and an afterschool rally on April 11, Principal GillespieOss sent a phone message to the homes of all
RHS students in which she apologized for
the incident and the initial lack of attention
to it.
Later, the students involved were suspended for five days, and signed a contract stating
that they could lose the privileges of walking
at graduation, attending prom, and going on
the senior trip. The senior who was punished
for waving the flag, expressed remorse as he
recounted the incident.
“In regards to our actions Friday the fourth,
nothing was meant to be taken as a racist way
and we are sorry if it was taken that way.
It needs to be known that we are proud to
be part of a country (where) everyone has
equal rights. From deep down in our hearts,
we apologize for not being aware that it was
Martin Luther King’s memorial day. ”
He has since left RHS and moved from
the area after receiving death threats, several
students told the Stampede.
May 2008
17
America comes down with Obama fever
Deep in the hearts of Americans, hope is
there. In every primary and caucus there is
the search for change. As we near the end
of the primary season, a buzz of excitement
hums on every face.
Much like how the East Germans might
have felt as their walled existence from the
outside world was lifted or the happiness a
“Negro” boy might have felt as he watched
his father vote in Mississippi for the very
first time, America feels an excitement and a
readiness for change.
At this point and time, “change” is being
seen in one candidate: Barack Obama.
Barack’s upbringing may not enlist people
to consider that he had grown up without a
father, yet that small disadvantage did not
leave him displaced in anyway.
He was validated through his education
at Columbia and Harvard University; he
protected the rights of his Illinois residents
through his passion in law.
Now, as a presidential candidate, he is galvanizing the hearts of Americans from “sea
to shining sea.”
Never since the historic executive terms
of “Ol’ Hickory,” (Andrew Jackson) have we
truly seen a national candidate capable of
“rocking the vote.”
Many have speculated that through his
middle name, which happens to be Hussein,
Obama is in some way affiliated with terrorists.
That is preposterous. Shakespeare once
asked: “what is in a name, lest that rose by
any other name would smell as sweet?”
In layman’s terms: Does a name, a jumbled
mass of letters, really incite terrorist idealism? I say no!
This is just another ploy to obstruct the
sanctity of the political race and diverge the
only showed love to those who hated him.
The actions of protest by some of those offended by the actions of those two students in
no way represented peaceful protest.
One of the students received so many death
threats that he decided his only option was to
leave California.
While I do not condone his actions, it is
clear that he had no intention of physically
harm others around him.
Yet, many people claim that what these
two students did constituted a hate crime.
The teddy bear episode of April 3 clenched
the deal.
The day before the Confederate flag issue,
the same two students dragged a stuffed bear
by a strap on the back of a truck.
I admit that that seems to fit the image of
a hate crime.
I believed this until someone explained
that, according to the student’s friends, the
teddy bear was being dragged not to represent hate of a race, but to antagonize the
student’s ex-girlfriend who had given him the
teddy bear.
I attempted to argue back. There was no
doubt in my mind that these students were on
track to join the KKK.
Until I actually started arguing, did I notice
a major flaw in my convictions. That is simple this: No one knows. The army of people
who scream hate crime do not know the motivations of the two students.
The KCRA 3 News who reported the
events incorrectly do not know.
I do not know what happened. I saw it
from a distance. With all of the ruckus caused
by ongoing police investigations and the involvement of the various advocacy groups, I
suspect we will never know the truth.
We all over reacted. What those boys did
is wrong.
But we should not aim for blood or reprisals or expulsions, or blame, or firings, or the
humiliation of the students.
We should aim to fix the problems that underline this situation. First of all, why is the
Confederate flag not banned from the dress
code?
Second, what is it that makes us want to
persecute people who have problems, such as
the need for attention that waving a Confederate flag would bring?
Why do we have to demean? Rehabilitation
has been made impossible.
Do you think these students will go on to
cherish everyone for their differences, when
they have been persecuted for making a dumb
mistake that should have been punished in a
much different manner?
When was it that children, still under the
wings of their parents, have no leeway to
make mistakes?
The wound that these boys made was deepened by the people who had looked to fix it.
Shoot, I don’t even want to have this
published for the fear that even considering
a different idea than one promoted to me by
photo/www.google.com
people from the real issues at heart.
Yes, I support Barack Obama because he is
the first viable black candidate for the presidency.
His intelligence and character were, I must
admit, close afterthoughts.
Yet, that’s my story and I’ll stick to it. The
need for change, and Obama’s approach to
enact it, are ample reasons why I support
him.
‘At this point and time,
change is being seen in
one candidate: Barack
Obama.’
Flag causes major freak out
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, a German
scientist during the 1700’s, once said, “A
person reveals his character by nothing so
clearly as the joke he resents.”
At this point, it is safe to say that nobody
resents their joke more than the two Rodriguez students who, hate crime or no hate
crime, poked many people’s buttons by raising a Confederate flag on one of their vehicles
on the anniversary of the day Martin Luther
King, Jr., was assassinated.
It is despicable what these two students
did, even with humor intended, but just as
equally wrong was the actions of many people around the students.
Martin Luther King was a man of peaceful
protests.
No matter how angry he was inside, he
‘What they did was wrong,
but was solvable —
until everyone with an axe
to grind got involved and
twisted events to promote
their own self-interest.’
photo/www.google.com
the media, advocacy groups, and the angry
public.
What they did was wrong, but was solvable — until everyone with an axe to grind
got involved and twisted events to promote
their own self-interest.
I may be upset about what I saw, but those
two boys will never, escape their actions in a
beneficial way.
In a way, the blood-thirsty mob has won;
they killed the possibility of a positive future
of two students, and negatively impacted
many by giving the false impression that
RHS promotes racism and violence.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Electives…not Enough?
By Nicole Williams (’08)
In addition to the required high school requirements, we all have electives.
These are classes that are designed to not
only allow you to perform better in the career
you choose and to help further your chances
of entering into a college of your choice but
also to give you some enjoyment while at
school.
The question is this: Does Rodriguez have
enough electives to choose from? If not, what
can we do about it?
Neighboring schools Armijo and Fairfield
High have various electives such as Future
Farmers of America (FFA), ROTC, auto shop
and woodshop.
Rodriguez does not have those types of
electives because our focus is supposed to
be on technology. For example, we can take
photography, desktop publishing, and video
production.
In addition to the technology classes, we
have the usual foreign language classes of
French, German and Spanish. We can even
take higher levels of those subjects.
For example there are honor classes you
can take for languages if you feel the need to
be challenged more.
And then there is also ceramics, theater and
various band and choir electives. Still, are
students satisfied with the choices?
Ms. Linda Mitchell, the assistant principal’s secretary, says Fairfield high schools do
not purposely offer different electives.
Goodbye RHS, Hello Summer!
Finals, CAHSEE, STAR, AP tests, projects, homework, incomplete assignments —
we are conquering it all. Congrats, RHS! It
has been really tough this year for many of us
— or maybe even ALL of us. Yet, we pulled
through. Sadly, this will be the last month
you will receive my advice. I am sad to see
my creation — my baby — end. Maybe I’ll
be back next year. There is always an end to
everything, so why not end it very stylish? Of
course not, it’s time to be serious.
I am sure many of us have summer classes
to attend, whether it is to make up credits or
just to do better in a certain subject. All I’m
trying to say is: let us not lose focus. I know
it is going to be hard giving up your summer
vacation to attend summer school. Believe
me; summer school is beneficial regardless
of your reasons for taking the classes.
You’ve made it through tougher situations,
I am sure this won’t bring you down. Summer
will bring very hot weather, so watch your
health. Be sure to always carry a water bottle
with you. For those of us returning next fall,
we will be in for another year of challenges
and rewards. The best advice I can offer is to
listen to your own good instincts. It’s time to
close this chapter and prepare to start anew.
By Ma. Criselda David (’09)
Although, that is only my opinion; there
are others who likes RHS new ‘healthy’ food
and beverages.
RHS students like freshman Kiana Garcia, believes that the change in RHS lunches
are for the best whether or not they are very
tasteful. “I saw no difference in the school
lunches really. It’s still food.”
While junior, Emily Hicken says otherwise, “ The lines are always long and sometimes they’re not even nutritious.”
It is very understandable why some stu-
Criselda David
May 2008
18
“Rodriguez is known more as a technology
school,” she said.
Some students see Armijo as the school that
prepares students to learn a trade. Fairfield
High is viewed as more of an arts school. For
example, it offers culinary classes.
Regardless of what the school is considered, we should be able to have the same programs offered as other schools.
Some teens have suggested that what ever
money is left over from school budget should
be used to help get more electives to help students prepare for the real world.
Other teens have said that we should offer
auto shop and home economics. Still others
want more physical education courses.
“Boxing would be not only fun and en-
tertaining to have but it would help teach us
self-discipline and how to protect ourselves,”
said sophomore Martha Lopez.
“Woodshop would be a good elective because it would help us to learn a trade and a
profession that we may like,” senior Edward
Patterson said on what electives we should
have.
In my opinion, there should be a lot more
electives offered here at the school to help
students achieve what they want to get out
of highschool.
We should start by approaching the school
district with out concerns. It may not be
fixed exactly the way we want, but perhaps
we could come to some sort of agreement or
compromise on the lack of electives.
By Anthony Wong (’08)
There are more than 6 billion people in the
entire world.
If we were to simply glance over their
faces, all we would ever see would be just
that, their faces. We would never know what
made these people individuals, what made
them different from everyone else.
But for all our differences, there is a common obsession that encompasses all of us:
music.
Music expresses feelings and emotions
that cannot be painted by words alone. It is
meant to bring people of all types together, in
order to feel the emotions that we all share.
Yet somehow, people have found ways to
make it separate us.
We have seen people point their fingers
at us and yell, “That’s not music!” I think I
speak for everyone at this school when I say
that most of us listen to a kind of music that
other people may not exactly be fond of.
Music is largely the definition of who each
of us are, so when other people disrespect the
music you listen to, they are disrespecting
you. None of us wants to be disrespected, and
we know the truth when people attack our favorite genre of music. We know that when
they attack us, they are basing their opinions
on something they know nothing about.
However, this works the other way as well.
When our music is attacked, we retaliate by
attacking their music. And that is wrong. The
most important thing that comes in listening
to music is to keep an open-mind. No one is
saying you have to like it. But you should still
give it a fair chance, because who knows?
You might just find the song that defines
the next chapter of your life. And it could be
in the place you least expected it.
dents would love to have a better lunch in
school, but at the same time it is all right to
have a healthy meal.
But truthfully, I think the change in the
lunches is the reasons why students in school
bring food from home.
If the school were to bring back some of
the food that has been banned such as Cup
of Noodles or Garlic Bread, many students
wouldn’t be sneaking food in school campus.
It isn’t as so bad that the school lunch has
changed, but prices seem to be the problem
too. They are too expensive for the quantities
they carried.
For example, students pay $2.50 for a slice
of pizza while you could buy an entire small
pizza for just $7.50 at Pizza Hut.
Not just that, they always seem to run out of
food to supply the entire school if the entire
student body decides to buy school lunches.
“There’s not enough food. They also run
out too fast,” said junior Brian DaMelio, “and
it doesn’t even fill me up.”
Music celebrates life
School lunches are just not good enough
Burger King, In and Out, Jack in the Box.
All of these fast-food restaurants all have
something in common. Our taste buds like all
of this food.
Ever wonder the differences between
school lunches this year and the coming years
in high school?
Sadly, I have; a lunch at RHS this year
was not very ‘tasteful’ as my previous school.
I’ve never eaten lunch in RHS for the past
year, as far as I’ve remembered.
14
May 2008
Page 19
The Badminton team goes out with a ‘BANG!’
The inevitable has occurred. The RHS
badminton team has, once again, claimed its
rightful title of League champions.
As the year comes to an end, the players
can take pride in the fact that they finished it
with a bang. BANG!
“We won our banner for our season and
we’re über proud,” says freshmen Margaret
Aberin, “and we looked cute in our outfits.”
Softball’s hard
work pays off
They won four singles matches and three
doubles matches in the league tournament.
They were clinching yet another big “W”
for the school in what has already been a successful year in sports.
Singles winners were Neo Thao, Nan Thao,
Adrienne Conde, and Anna Chao. Neo took
third, Adrienne took fourth, and Nan took
fifth.
In doubles, winners were Nancy Conde
By Destiny Elmo(’10)
and Charlotte Galzote(’11)
This season was the most action-packed
season the RHS Softball team has ever had.
The Varsity team worked hard, and it showed
when the girls won the SCAC title for the
first time ever.
“I think that we have enough talent to make
it to the championship,” said freshman Kiara
Garcia.
Winning the SCAC isn’t the only award
that came from the team’s hard work and
dedication. They had another first time ever.
They were ranked 2nd in the State Division.
The girls were also very excited about competing in the playoffs, which were last week.
The players have improved since the beginning of the year, they practice every day and
some of the girls also practice weekends.
Who are the star players?
“All my players are really good. That is a
hard question to answer,” said coach Tracy
Cordes.
This season met everyone’s expectations.
“ I was expecting to do good from the start,
so when we won league it was: ‘wow, we finally did it,’” said pitcher Andrianna Collins
stated.
and Deepika Lomba, Natalie Celarbo and
Josephine Zuniga, and Shirley Serrano and
Margaret Abu-Dawood.
Nancy and Deepika took fourth, while Natalie and Josephine took fifth.
The team is obviously very proud of its
triumph.
In a season filled with joy and positive
feeling, it was only a matter of time before
the team claimed its ultimate victory.
“This experience for badminton was awesome, especially because of all the friends I
made,” says freshman Cindy Choi.
While it may be too early to say now, the
RHS badminton team seems to be starting a
tradition of win after win season after season.
It’s probably safe to say we can remain
confident that this will continue next year.
RHS Boys Golf team ties
for League championship
The JV team also had a good season and
went 14-2.
“We did good for a fresh team and we
slaughtered all the competition,” said freshman Jenna Balestra. Their biggest competition this year was also Benicia.
They lost the first two games, but the final game against Benicia was a turnover and
dominated the game 7-0.
It was such an excitement because it was
the first time the JV softball team has beat
Benicia in four years.
“We never gave up even when we were
down by a couple of points,” Jenna said.
They won their final game was against
Vanden 17-1 on May 8.
“We’ve come a long way and I’m glad
I met a lot of people this year and I’m veryhappy for this experience,” said freshman
Nia-Rye Ceasar.
By the end of the golf season, the only
plausible word head boy’s varsity golf coach
Rick Bryan could use to describe the overall
successful year was, “Great!”
The varsity boy’s golf team tied for the
League championship after winning the
League tournament by 24 strokes, and placed
third in the Division 3 masters tournament.
Next year, there is a large possibility that
Rodriguez Varsity Golf will move up a division.
“I guess during the history, our golf team
did the best it ever had,” said sophomore
Vohn Dumdumaya, who was voted MVP.
“ I feel proud of myself because I was
there when this was accomplished.”
Vohn, who has played for 14 years, says his
average is 38 for nine holes.
He received the athlete of the month award
in April from RHS Athletic Director Mr. Bob
Pickett. Coach Bryan said this golf season
has been the best season yet.
His favorite tournament this season was
the League tournament. He found the adding
of the score the most tense and nail-biting
moment.
A teacher of math, Coach Bryan became
Viri helped the team work its way to championships where the Mustangs lost against Rio
Americano in the first round. RHS ended up
coming in second overall in the championships and Benicia took first.
“We could have beaten them. Next year
will be better,” said defender Victoria Buck-
ley. The girls team received many new players, which the team had a hard time getting
used to playing with.
The loss of a few players impacted the
team’s performance as well.
Top scorers included Hannah Bennion,
Allyson Rosemond, Elizabeth Mangini, and
Photo/Zach Myers
Softball girls still working hard
after earning their title in the SCAC
Photo/Zach Myers
Senior Garett Lash concentrates on
putting during a SCAC tournament
the head golf coach in 2001.
Coach Bryan believes the SCAC tournament has been the best representation of the
ability and potential of the boy’s varsity golf
team, with every golfer playing to the best of
their ability.
He hopes this year’s success will be the
start of a tradition.
“Hopefully this will be our new tradition, to
win every SCAC league tournament ever.”
Girls soccer started and ended the season strong
By Elise Boersma (’09)
The girls really kick started the season with
a handful of wins. The season began strong
and the girls were confident. The only competition, Benicia, was a tough team to beat,
but after tying and losing RHS finally pulled
up the strength to beat Benicia. Coach Mike
Yvette Correa. Goalie KC Moody played
strong also.
As the season went along, the team’s force
improved.
Their power brought them much success.
Although they lost championships, next year
has a great deal of potential.
Page 20
March 2008
Male athlete of the
Female athlete goes to
year to Mike Johnson Kelley Zimmerman
Was there really ever a question? Were there
any other viable candidates to contend for the
title of athlete of the year? Michael Johnson
has dominated every single sport he has played
for all of his four years at RHS. Following in
the footsteps of his older brother, Eric Johnson,
Michael will have his name printed on the
Male Athlete of the Year banner in the gym.
High school sports movies depict the starting
quarterback, the starting point guard, and the
ace pitcher as the town’s superhero. Michael
has played all three positions as he displayed
his supreme talent on the football field, basketball court, and on the pitcher’s mound.
Countless front page news articles have
made him a local celebrity. He has helped
lead the varsity boys’ basketball team to the
school’s first two SCAC league titles in back
to back years. He broke numerous records
and achieved several honors while guiding
the football team to the section title. Batters
trembled in their cleats as Michael pitched
the baseball team into the playoffs for the
past two years.
Now he will take his talent to the collegiate
level at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas
as he plans to take his dazzling talent to the
home of the Rebels. If his four years there are
anything like his four years in high school, it
would be no surprise to see “The King” blazing
Mike Johnson
Photos/Jordan Miranda
the highlight reels on ESPN.
Nickname: The King
Age: 17
Sport: Football
How long played: “Since freshmen year.”
Positions: Quarterback, running back, safety,
and cornerback
Favorite Sport: “It depends on the season.”
Other Sports: Basketball, baseball
Awards: All League selections, MVP awards,
“too many to name”
Favorite artist: Lil’ Wayne
Favorite TV show: “Desperate Housewives”
Favorite teams: Raiders, Warriors
Favorite athlete: “Me”
Favorite part of football: “Scoring touchdowns”
Role model: Family
RHS football rings
For a very select few, high school sports
are a launching pad to successful professional
sports careers. For most, high school sports
will leave nothing more than great memories
that taught them the concept of teamwork and
dedication on their path to achieving their
educational goals. However, many student
athletes struggle to set their priorities and allow their extra-curricular activities to hinder
their performance in the classroom.
This has never been a problem for Kelley
Zimmerman.
During her four years at RHS, Kelley has
been a consistent performer in the classroom as
well as on the field. That’s why it’s no surprise
she has been named the Scholar Athlete of the
Year. While participating in cross-country,
track, and soccer, “Kelz” has maintained a
4.0 GPA.
“It’s healthy and I learn how to manage
my time,” said Kelley when asked how high
school sports have affected her. She has been
an outstanding runner in both track and crosscountry as well as a star on the soccer field.
Despite her success, high school might be the
end of sports for her.
“If I do play sports in college, I’m just gonna
walk on,” said the senior.
Classmates, teammates, and coaches will
always remember Kelley as the dedicated
Photo/Frankie Garcia
person she is. Her legacy will leave a lasting
mark on this campus. But what will Kelley
remember most?
“I’ll always remember running in Disneyland with the cross-country team.”
Here’s some more information about Kelley.
Age: 17
Nickname: “Kelz”
Sports: Soccer, track, cross-country
Favorite sport: Cross-country
Awards: MVP for cross-country every year
Favorite artist: Dashboard Confessional
Favorite movie: “Hot Fuzz”
Favorite team: RHS track team
Favorite TV Show: “Lost”
Favorite teacher: Mr. Jason Chatham
Favorite subject: English
Favorite Actor: Johnny Depp
Seniors leaving creates a wave of
sorrow for the swim team next year
By Alexa Alejandria (’09)
Boys flash their division three section championship rings.
Kelley Zimmerman
The RHS 2008 swim season has finally
come to a close. Many senior swimmers
came, “swam,” and conquered. Now they are
preparing to leave for college but will not be
forgotten; their names will be remembered
forever.
Even though the team is losing many valuable athletes, there are still strong underclassmen swimmers that will remain for next
year’s season.
A few RHS swimmers from various grades
made an appearance at the 2008 San Joaquin/CIF Section Finals, including Matthew
“Red” Lodge (’08), Stephanie “Stu” Meyers
’08), Nick Schwarzbach (’08), Jacob Susskind (’08), Bryan Fryberger (’09), Courtney
Ridens (’09), Haylea Redfern (’10), Alex
Mendoza (’11), Rachel Ballela (’11), and
Maya Moten (’11).
Many ferocious races were swum and
many losses endured, as Alex Mendoza was
the only Mustang to take home a first place
consolation victory in the 500-yard free and
second place consolation in the 100-yard
back.
Although Mendoza was the only one to take
home titles, senior Red Lodge broke RHS’s
and his personal record for the 100-yard freestyle three times.
“I think we did pretty well for a not so
“swimmy” school,” said freshman Alex Mendoza with a note of optimism.After all was
said and done, the ’stangs were not sorely
disappointed because all were happy for the
opportunity to swim and compete.
14
May 2008
Page 21
RHS boys tennis team has come a long way
It now prepares for new generation of players
By Mark Arce(’08)
Boys Varsity Tennis has come a long way
from being just a small rookie team.
Their uphill struggle has not only made
them a success, but also a group of talented
individuals who see each other as an extended family as well. They are more than just
teammates. They are brothers.
Though the season has come and past,
they reminisce about their most memorable
games, most of which claim the shutout
match against Vallejo High and the grudge
match, along with the devastating upset loss
to Benicia High.
Under the direction of head coach Sebastian Remy-Drysdale, the team finished with
nine wins and six losses and sent two players,
a doubles team, to SCAC sectionals. Both
who placed second.
Not only did the tennis team achieve the
privilege to take part in the SCAC league sectionals, an interesting record was broken.
Varsity player Brandon Fong achieved the
record for the fastest victory in a tennis match
in the district, a win in seven minutes.
Oddly enough, he did it while trailing behind his opponent.
Starting his first set down by twop points,
Brandon prepared his serve. As he tossed the
ball into the air, a police officer entered the
court and introduced himself to Brandon’s
opponent.
As he reached to shake the officer’s hand,
the officer put handcuffs on the opponent and
took him away.
“I didn’t really know what happened at the
time, but I guess it just means that no mat-
Photos/Frankie Garcia
Brandon Fong prepares to strike
the ball.
ter what you’re doing, anything can happen,”
said the senior.
Twelve seniors are saying goodbye to RHS
tennis. For a few of them, it is nowhere near
the end of their tennis career.
Senior Carlo Cruz has been playing tennis
for five years, and has been playing for the
Mustangs his entire high school career.
“I plan on playing while I’m in college,
either on my own or for UC-Irvine,” he said.
Not only does next year’s tennis team have
an experienced coach, but a few Varsity players are returning to help train RHS’s new
generation of tennis players.
Though the seniors are departing, coach
Remy-Drysdale is prepared for next year’s
challenge.
“It sounds crazy, but I’m confident that we
can make it to number one with a brand new
team,” said coach Remy-Drysdale.
Lawrence David strikes the ball.
Maxwell Gregory positions himself.
“I have some players coming back to help
with training, and our attitude is to play only
for first, and second place isn’t an option,”
he added.
with great performances by Zanay Philips,
Simone Robinson, Tamika Scott, Nicole Terrell, and Zurii Collins.
They proved many skeptics wrong by pulling off upsets in many races.
Vijay Tidwell has had an outstanding season as he cracked the top 10 list in the state
for the 800-meter run and will be running at
the state meet.
Sophomore Kieren Broussard will join
Vijay in the 800-meter run as they both advanced to the Section Masters meet.
Vijay also anchors the 4x400 meter relay
team, which shattered the school record, and
will also be advancing to the state meet in
Los Angeles.
Also on the relay are John Harts and seniors
Brandon Davis and Adedamola Fashokun.
The 4x100 meter relay team has also broken the school record.
They will be advancing to the state meet
with Jordan Morrow, Rahsaan Allen, John
Harts, and Demetric Gamble.
Roman Robinson shattered the school high
jump record and also was successful in the
long jump.
This year’s track team sure is the fastest we
have had so far at RHS.
RHS runners, throwers finish season strong
By Jordan Miranda(’08)
There’s fast, and then there’s faster than
fast.
The varsity boys’ RHS track team captured
the SCAC league title after going undefeated
in its dual meets.
They have worked hard all season and have
become harder, better, faster, and stronger.
Thanks in large part to head coach Wes
Childs, sprinters’ times have dropped, distance runners’ endurance has increased, and
throwers have been throwing farther.
Discipline has been a key factor to the track
team’s success.
The team’s bad behavior during the beginning of the season might have worked in
its favor as the punishments have helped get
them into shape.
Throwers received an unexpected boost
mid-season as a new coach was hired to help
guide them as far into the playoffs as they
could.
The improvement was immediate as discus and shot put measurements increased significantly.
Standouts include Joel Hudson, Matt Bowen, John Harts, and Lauren Mendez.
The girls’ team has also been impressive
May 2008
Former RHS student starts fresh
Prison sentence initiates incentive for a more successful future
Aside from all of the sports, we also
shined academically. The class of ’08 was
recognized as one of the smartest classes
teachers have ever seen, even if they don’t
show it on paper.
“They are an ‘A’ average class who does
‘C’ work,” said Mr. Tom Manglona, who
teaches economics. That description, of
course, didn’t apply to the honors students,
teachers and students.
The seniors described their class in various
ways. Some of the adjectives that came up
were “sexy,” “awesome,” and “better than all
the other future senior classes.”
“We are a class that doesn’t care about
most things,” senior Kimberly Rose said.
“We are the party class,” said senior Levi
Burridge.
Psychology and English teacher Ms. Angela
Ortner may have captured the staff’s view
best, when she described the students “a class
that needs to pull their pants up.”
it to playoffs for the second year in a row.
This season, “will go down as a year
where we came close, but fell just short of
our goals on the field,” said coach Jason
Chatham. “We dealt with a lot of adversity
this year and a host of several significant injuries, but still found a way to compete. In
the end, we came one win away from our
school record for most wins in a season
and our schedule was loaded with some of
the best competition in California. We have
a solid nucleus for the future, and all of our
seniors will be playing baseball in college
next year. They left it all on the field, and
that’s what you ask of your players.” Mr.
Chatham said Patrick Johnson was MVP.
“He did things on defense that no other player
has, and no other player will,” Mr. Chatham said.
Johnson batted .434 for the season; lead the
team in slugging percentage and was second
on the team in stolen bases and third in RBI’s.
Johnson, who plays shortstop, got a full
ride scholarship to South Alabama State.
Senior Esteban Guzman will be attending
Oregon State. He is waiting to hear back from
the school to see if he will also be attending
on a scholarship.
IMAGINE you have been sentenced to three years
in jail. The time moves far too slowly, and you are left
with nothing else to do but clutch tight to your humanity.
The guards look at you as if they were children at a zoo, ridiculing
your misfortune. You’re cold. And worst of all, you’re alone.
Finally, after your time is done, you are given your freedom.
But that freedom is bittersweet. People don’t look at you the way
they did before. You find it hard to find a decent job. People judge
you before they actually know you. You realize that things have
changed.
This was the fate of former RHS student Trevor Beard.
Almost always exhibiting a friendly and honest demeanor, many
might be surprised to find that Trevor Beard has actually spent time
in a cell. Trevor had his first brush with the law at age 16 when he
brought a knife to school. Along the way he also was convicted of
assault and driving under the influence (DUI).
Cycling through three different youth correctional facilities,
Trevor has more knowledge of what it’s like to be locked away than
any normal person would ever want.
“You’re not a man in there,” Trevor said. “You’re an animal in a
zoo. There’s someone always telling you what to do.”
And that’s not even mentioning the danger factor, “The most dangerous neighborhood is nowhere near as dangerous as five minutes
in a cell.”
But Trevor persevered, and he was able to reach the other side of
the bars before it was “too late.”
Yet even though he was finally free, there was something that
made things seem not “free” enough.
One of the consequences of having a record is the difficulty in
finding a good job.
Trevor works at Denny’s, and is more than aware that he is capable of much more. Many businesses aren’t interested in hiring
people with records.
Courtesy Photo
Former RHS student Trevor Beard gets his life together.
This fact has given Trevor a burden that many teenagers will never
know.
The moment Trevor was released in the July of 2006, he realized there
was also something that had changed within himself.
“When you get a long sentence, you start to put more value on the little
things, not just the big things.
You appreciate your family, your friends, and your freedom.
But at the same time, you appreciate just being able to walk, just being
able to breathe.”
He’s 19 now, still trying to make the most of his life. Those who know
Trevor know for themselves the injustice that has been done to him by
society.
Trevor’s experience is reflective of a problem that continues to poison the minds of people everywhere to this day. “Society is messed up,”
Trevor said, “they think just because you’ve been convicted, you’re an
evil person. And that’s wrong.”
Class of ’08 says it is better than the rest
Every year the senior class leaves behind
a legacy. One legacy of the class of ’08 is its
athletic prowess.
“When you say Rodriguez, people recognize
us as an athletic school,” said senior class
adviser Mr. Jason Agan.
This year’s Varsity Football team became
Division III champions while the basketball
team played at the Arco Arena for the first
time in school’s history.
Dorothy Edwards
senior
of the year
It is rare for a student to come along that
is as dexterous and varied as senior Dorothy
Edwards. She is bright, influential, and purposeful, but the truer sense of Dorothy is her
insightful outlook on life.
“I feel relieved because I’m closing the
‘show’,” Dorothy said referring to her upcoming graduation.
Unlike the fictional character from the
“Wizard of Oz,” this Dorothy can’t wait to
leave Kansas, or in this case Rodriguez, to
go onto bigger and better things; and bigger
things surely do await her.
After her acceptance into UC-Berkeley,
Dorothy received an e-mail enclosing her financial security for college.
The Level Playing Field Institute awarded
Dorothy with a considerable aid to offset
Berkeley’s steep tuition.
The institute seeks to help qualified candidates attend their desired college.
Yet, others have helped Dorothy to this position, though inversely.
Dorothy will be the first in her family to
graduate with a degree from a college like
Berkeley.
While some may consider Dorothy’s Oakland roots a negative, she sees them as a key
factor in her achievement.
“I have to break through this ‘wall’ to
break my family’s mental slavery,” Dorothy
said.
The “wall” she refers to is her family’s
stagnation in their education.
“Choices, not chance, determine destiny,”
she says. She seeks to change her destiny.
As Dorothy prepares to close the high school
chapter of her life, she offers some advice for
those still reading this familiar book.
“Take advantage of the resources that are
afforded you. Mentors, teachers, especially
Mrs. Anderson, of the College and Career
Center.” With four AP classes, plus working
as a support attorney in Oakland, plus getting
ready for college, Dorothy is exceptionally
busy.
“I’m ready to go to sleep,” she said laughing.
By Jeff Rutland (’08)
22
Baseball ends year with a slam dispite number of injuries
By Lacey Brooks (’11)
Going for the League title was an opportunity that doesn’t come around
often for the RHS Baseball team.
Although the team got knocked out in
the first round of playoffs, the boys were
still able to come in 2nd place in the league.
The team finished 11-4 in league and made
June 2008
page 23
May 2008
Page 24
RHS valedictorians earn highest honors
The highest honors that graduating seniors
can earn — valedictorian and salutatorian
— have been announced. They are Andrew
Crutchfield and Kayla Busby respectively.
“I pretty much knew that I was the valedictorian since my sophomore year,” said
Andrew.
The two front-runners of the senior class
both had the same weighted GPA of 4.4, but
Crutchfield was given a higher ranking due
to his AP test scores.
Kayla was pleased with her honor as
well.
“It felt good.
My parents were
proud.”
In addition to GPA,
students’ extra curPhotos/Josh Maddox
ricular activities are
Crutchfield
also considered
when awarding valedictorian and salutatorian.
Andy is known for his participation on the
Speech and Debate team.
He also is a former anchor on the weekly
Sports finish strong...
(from page 1)
Volleyball won the SCAC title went 26-4
for the whole season, and were undefeated
in league play, but unfortunately lost in the
first round of the section playoffs to Merced
High.
The rest of the sports didn’t perform too
badly; girl’s golf, boy’s soccer, and girls tennis all finished second in the SCAC.
Then came probably the most dominant
season of all: winter. Every sport either won
the SCAC outright or tied for first place.
This year, the RHS varsity-wrestling team
took first place in the SCAC League Championship for the first time ever.
None of the varsity wrestlers took anything below third in the league tournament,
and many took first. Every varsity wrestler
went to sections having placed above fourth
in competition.
The boys basketball team was the other
team in the winter season that won the SCAC
title outright. Junior Cameron Richmond
was the leading scorer, and seniors Mike
Johnson and Marcel Jenson, led the boy’s
team to the playoffs.
They finished their remarkable season 267, with a trip to the section tournament.
They won every game on their way to Arco
Arena, and eventually landed themselves in
the championship game.
The girls basketball team tied with Vanden
for first place in league and shared the league
championship.
The girls team was lead by Khristina Hunter, who averaged 17.1 points, 9.1 rebounds
and 2.1 blocks per game.
The spring sports had huge expectations,
and exceeded them. Arguably the most
dominant team was softball. The girls had
a record 25-2 and went undefeated in league
play.
They outscored opponents 211 to 30, but
lost a heartbreaking game to Inderkum High
School in the first round of the section playoffs. Freshman Cheyenne Cordes won the
SCAC most valuable player and head coach
Tracy Cordes won coach of the year in the
SCAC thanks to the girls’ success.
The boys’ track team went undefeated
in league competition and won the SCAC
championship.
Vijay Tidwell was ranked as high as number 8 in the 800-meter run, and sophomore
Jordan Marrow is ranked number 6 in the sate
for the 100-meter dash for sophomores.
The 4-100 and 4-400 relay teams both broke
school records and have so far advanced to
the master’s section meet.
The boys golf team went 10-2 in league
play and tied for the League championship.
The boy’s baseball team finished an impressive 17-win season with a trip to the section tournament. The boys placed second in
league play and made a second consecutive
trip to the playoffs.
They finished 11-4 in league play and
have two players, Esteban Guzman and Patrick Johnson who will be playing at the next
level.
Boys swimming won the SCAC title and
the girl’s finished second, swimmers from
both teams made it to sections.
Boys tennis placed third in league play and
Maxwell Gregory and Alex Puleo. Badminton won
The SCAC championship and singles winners were Neo Thao, Nan Thao, Adrienne
Conde, and Anna Chao. Neo took third, Adrienne took fourth, and Nan took fifth.
Girls soccer placed second in SCAC and
made it to section playoffs, but lost in the first
round.
This has been the most dominant season
for sports in RHS history, and hopefully has
laid the foundation for an even more dominant future.
RHS broadcast.
Kayla is involved in leadership.
“I am proud of my achievement. I feel that
I earned it. My parents pretty much knew
about my placement in my class as first,” said
Andy.
Both Kayla and Andy have plans to attend
four-year universities.
“I am going to UC-San Diego in the fall
to study biochemistry. I will attend UC-SD
for four years, but maybe longer because they
have a master’s program,” said Kayla.
“I want to become a pharmacologist, or
anything else that
is involved in biostudies,”
Kayla
said.
“I am going to
Georgetown University for four
years,” said Andy.
“ Afterward, I am Kayla Busby
going to either attend Harvard or Yale to begin a career in law and politics.”
Andy and Kayla will speak at the RHS
graduation ceremony on June 5.
By Samantha Krome (’11)
emphasis on vocals, at either UCLA or an East
Coast music school. After college, he wants to
sing in operas while pursuing a record deal for
pop/ R&B music. He also wants to tryout for
“American Idol,” sometime after he has completed high school.
“My biggest supporter is my mom, she does
everything for me when it comes to music,
and she has always encouraged me,” the junior exclaimed. Taylor has recorded two songs
— “Baby Girl” and “Not Alone” that can be
heard on his myspace profile (www.myspace.
com/taylorthompson). He is working on his
third song.
“I’m really excited to complete my demo,”
he added.
RHS Idol crowns its top winners
Junior Taylor Thompson has claimed first
place in the annual RHS Idol contest.
“I actually hadn’t planned on competing; a
friend signed me up,” he said. His prizes include a $25 iTunes card and bragging rights.
Second place went to senior Christina
“Sunshine” Chiles, who won a $15 iTunes
gift card. Third place went to Cheree Stewart
who also received a $15 iTunes card.
First-place finisher Taylor Thompson started
his career as a 4-year-old singing in church.
Later he participated in school music programs, where he discovered his true passion
for music, he said. His talent and skill led to
a national performance — singing the “StarSpangled Banner” at San Francisco’s 49ers
football games three times in front of over
25,000 people in the stadium.
Thompson plans to major in music, with an
Graduation...
(from page 1)
as students enter the stadium, followed by
the Advance choir performing “The StarSpangled Banner.”
The final practice will be at 8 a.m. at the
RHS football stadium.
After practice, students can leave school,
but they must return at 4:30 p.m. Graduation
will begin at 6 p.m. After receiving diplomas
and the turning of tassels, the last chance to
be together is “grad nite.”
The gym will open at 9 p.m. for entertainment that includes Sumo wrestling, a
hypnotist, a mechanical bull, casino tables,
carnival games and dancing.
Activities will wrap up about midnight.
Senior sunset will be this Thursday. Bright
and early Friday morning all seniors attending the senior trip to Great America will
report to the multi-use room at 8 a.m. for
breakfast. Buses will start loading at 9 a.m.
and return home around 12:30 a.m.
Flag drama...
(from page 1)
dents as they wish for more normality.
Is RHS racist? A loud, emphatic “yes,” said
a group of five of African American students
in unison when asked that question.
“You can’t avoid racism,” said senior Krizel Kok, who is Asian. “Hate is as natural as
love.”
English teacher Mrs. Marcia Garcia said
that most of the students reprimanded at RHS
for behavioral issues are deserving of their
punishment. Some students like freshman
Alyssa Saunders are simply glad this whole
ordeal is over with.“What those boys did was
them, not the entire school. I don’t think RHS
is racist,” Alyssa said.
Recently, the NAACP filed a written complaint against RHS to the Department of Education about its policy on the definition of a
“hate crime.”
“I believe there are discrepancies in how
[students] of color are treated through the
district,” said Ms. Felicia Killings, an RHS
English teacher.
“We should never forget what happened,
but we should learn about and get educated
on diversity.”

Crazy addictions

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