The effort and commitment thatRiverside has taken to bring technolog-ical transformation throughout thecommunity has led it to become one ofthe world leaders in municipal innova-tions. As a result, Riverside wasgranted the Smart21 CommunitiesAward, which recognizes the top 21most advanced communities in theworld, and named one of the Top 7 In-telligent Communities for the secondyear in a row.

One of the steps Riverside has takento create a technologically advancedenvironment is the implementation ofSmartRiverside. SmartRiverside is afree Wi-Fi service offered to residentsthroughout Riverside County.

With the free Wi-Fi network,SmartRiverside reaches out to its com-munity with the hope of increasingtechnology literacy, attracting and re-taining high technology companies aswell as identifying new programs tofoster cutting edge innovations. Thisservice provides coverage for 78 per-cent of the city’s developed areas.

Many of North’s students recognizethe impact that SmartRiverside has ontheir community but some worry aboutits economic cost. Junior Alexis Lopezsaid, “This project seems way toocostly for Riverside. To provide freeInternet service to everyone seems like

The final proposal to modify theRiverside Unified School District(RUSD) high school graduation re-quirements was presented on Feb. 6 tothe Board of Education.

It has been resolved that beginningwith the Class of 2016, 220 credits willbe required for graduation rather thanthe current 215 credits.

Beginning last November, taskforces or groups dedicated to imposingalterations on the graduation require-

THE NORTH STAR1550 Third St. Riverside, CA, 92507 Friday, February 10, 2012 www.thenorthstaronline.net Volume XXVII Issue 6 Voice of the Huskies

J o h n W. N o r t h H i g h S c h o o l

A&ENEWS 1OPINION 2FEATURES 3CENTERSPREAD 4-5A&E 6SPORTS 7BACKPAGE 8

PAGE 6

SAT I and SAT II Dates:

46 F

TEST DATE: REGISTRATION:

March 10 February 10

Saturday Sunday

CenterspreadLearn the price that our environmenthas to pay for us to look good. Beautyis far more costly than we think.

PAGE 4-5PAGE 3

Features High Low

49 F 76 F

High Low

Read about the history of Riverside’sFox Theater. Find out whether or notthis month’s movies lived up toeveryone’s expectations.

80 F

INDEX

Discover how students dealwith their grades as reportcards arrive home. Preparefor Valentine’s Day byfinding out who your per-fect match is.

Claudia Barrientos / The North Star

MARCHMarch 1 House of Advisory @ Rm. 323March 6 Husky Pride Day

Husky Pride NightMarch 8 Jostens Ring Order @ LunchMarch 9 Registration Deadline for April ACTMarch 10 SATMarch 11 Daylight Savings Time BeginsMarch 13-14 CAHSEE ELA and Math (10 and 12 Grade)March 15 Senior Exhibition Advisement (Portfolio Due)

PTSA @ Rm. 156IB Theatre Show @ Little Theatre

March 16 Blood DriveIB Theatre Show @ Little Theatre

JOHN W. NORTH HIGH SCHOOL

Husky Calendar

On Jan. 28 the annual Inland Empire Asian Pacific Lunar Festival and Parade was held in downtownRiverside. This community event featured Taiko drumming, unicycle demonstrations, sumo wrestling, Bol-lywood dancing and dragon dancers. Asian specialty foods and crafts were also sold at the celebration.

News in Brief

Bomb ThreatsTwo bomb threats in downtown

Riverside led to the evacuation of threeRiverside County courthouses on Jan.19. The first call came in before 8 a.m.from a pay phone in Bloomington, SanBernardino County, threatening the SanBernardino Sheriff Department andcounty jails. Officials conducted asearch of these areas but no evacua-tions were made.

The second call warned of a bombin the Riverside County courthouses.Hundreds were evacuated from theHall of Justice, the Family Law Courtand the Historic Courthouse at approx-imately 9 a.m.

The Riverside Police Department’sHazardous Device teams handled theinvestigation and detonated two suspi-cious packages.

There was no evidence of explo-sives in the packages. As no explosivedevices were found, the courthouseemployees resumed their duties.

The Riverside Courthouse bombthreats are not the first bomb threats inthe Inland Empire within the last sevenmonths. Just last September a bombthreat was made against North. How-ever the bomb threats have all provento be false.

IB ClubOn Jan. 31, the International Bac-

calaureate (IB) Club held their firstmeeting led by Co-Presidents AmaraChanner and Ganiyah Thurston alongwith Vice President RondelineWilliams. The trio presented the vari-ous anticipated plans and objectives ofthe club, including free Scholastic Ap-titude Test (SAT) preparation seminarsand a trip to visit University of Califor-nia, Los Angeles (UCLA) in May. Eachof the club officers and the co-advisors,English teacher Ann Camacho and IBcoordinator Christine Schive were in-troduced at the meeting as well. Atten-dees were given the opportunity toestablish their own goals for the currentsemester.

The club was formed when Chan-ner, Thurston and Williams wanted tocreate a community where IB studentshad a chance to come together as agroup, much like that of AdvancementVia Individual Determination (AVID).“We were tired of not having enoughsupport through the actual IB programso we decided to tackle the problemourselves,” said Williams. “We hopeIB students can help each other out andunite as a whole through this club.”

Winter Sports AssemblyThe United Student League (USL)

held the annual winter sports assemblyon Feb. 3.

Boys and girls basketball, boys andgirls soccer, girls water polo, AcademicDecathalon and Mock Trial were intro-duced and acknowledged for their ac-complishments at this assembly.

Students had the chance to show offtheir positive school spirit by partici-pating in three class activities includingdancing to the Macarena, taking part ina basketball shootout and cheering inthe traditional class competition.Teachers participated in the basketballshoot-out as well.

The energy in the gym fueled posi-tive behavior and excellent sportsman-ship during all three class competitions.Unlike at the midwinter assembly, theseniors took a step back, sporting a re-spectful demeanor towards the under-classmen.

Freshman Beatrice Ortega said, “Atfirst I felt weird when I got booed inthe assemblies but since it stopped, the[assemblies] have been more enjoy-able.”

Their positive attitude paid offwhen they were named the winners ofall three class competitions.

Despite minor technical difficultieswith the sound system, the assembliesran smoothly and ended on a goodnote.

ments began to advance proposals tothe Riverside Board of Education pre-senting the proposed changes.

Before formulating a final proposal,the task force confirmed that stake-holders, such as the Student AdvisoryGroup, the counselors and the cabinetwere all consulted. “This has been along process that has involved every-body who is going to be affected by it;teachers have been involved in the dis-cussions, students have been involved,parents have been involved, boardmembers, district level personals, siteadministrators — everyone has been

involved in this conversation,” said As-sisstant Principal Megan McGroarty.

United Student League (USL) Pres-ident Kevin Perez was a part of thisprocess as well as Principal TrevorPainton who was a member of the taskforce guaranteeing a Husky voice inthe matter. Task force members at-tempted to arrange a balance of creditsrequired for each subject.

McGroarty said, “It is always a hardline to walk. You want to increase rigorand you want to increase standards butyou don’t want to just pile on moreclasses just for the sake of saying, ‘look

departments’ standards were not al-tered. English remained at the neces-sary 40 credits, Social Sciences at 30credits, Sciences at 20 credits andPhysical Education at the present 20credits.

Currently the Mathematics require-ment falls 10 credits short of the 30credits recommended on “A-G.”Therefore, the Board has approved el-evating the requirements for this cate-gory.

Geometry teacher Maria Cochransaid, “Throughout education it hasbeen said that kids are lacking in mathskills so this extra year of requiredmath is going to, hopefully, enhancetheir skills. Though there is also adrawback because even now with[only] two years required math thereare a lot of kids that have difficultiesmeeting those two years.”

However, the current proposal in-volves lowering the required 70 elec-tive credits to 50 credits. The 20 extracredits will be aggregated with the cur-rent 10 required credits for Visual andPerforming Arts (VAPA) or a foreignlanguage. The task force continues toseek to combine the VAPA, foreign lan-guage and Career Technical Education(CTE) to only require 30 credits in totalfrom this new category.

Students would be required to earn20 of the total credits in the same area.For instance a student would need toearn 20 out of 30 credits strictly in For-eign Languages and the other 10 fromCTE or VAPA. This new approach al-lows an increase in flexibility in thestudents’ schedules.

Furthermore, if a student success-fully passes an Algebra or higher levelmath course or a foreign languagecourse before becoming a freshman,the credits earned will be visible ontranscripts and included in the 220credit requirement which would con-tribute to the graduation requirement.

The RUSD high school graduationrequirement changes continue to bestudied. Finalized decisions areplanned to go into effect in the 2012-2013 school year commencing with theClass of 2016.

how much we are making our studentsdo.’”

In order to gain an accurate judg-ment of what changes should be made,RUSD compared its existing require-ments to those of surrounding districtssuch as Jurupa and Val Verde. “Thetask force has been very deliberate inwhat they’ve done and in the time thatthey have taken to figure out whichchanges would benefit our students themost,” said McGroarty.

To uphold the “A-G” University ofCalifornia System Requirements, theEnglish, Social Science and Science

Graduation requirements undergo changes

Principal Trevor Painton discusses the planned proposal with Assisstant Principals Richard Davis and Megan McGroarty.Roberto Gutierrez

STAFF WRITER

Emily Chen / The North Star

it will cost the government quite a lot.Even though it’s a good idea, I feel likeit might lead to tax increases if morecommunities try to follow.”

Additionally, the current ongoingeconomic recession is persistentlycausing students to feel as if these ad-vancements, though beneficial at first,will have a negative impact in the longrun. Sophomore Daniel Wilson re-flected on this concern. “It’s a goodidea but not well-executed. With ourbad economy, what will happen to theRiverside budget if it falls to a deficit?Many people will lose their connec-tion,” said Wilson.

Furthermore, while the success ofthe SmartRiverside network bolstersthe advancement of technology, thequestion of security still troubles manyresidents. Although SmartRiversidehas claimed to provide means to pre-vent hackers, spammers, denial of serv-ice or any other threat to users, thesemechanisms will be limited so that itwill not interfere with the users of thenetwork.

Huskies are worried that this freeWi-Fi network is unreliable. “It’s veryuseful but there’s still the matter of pro-tecting personal information. Free In-ternet could enable people to accessyour personal information,” said fresh-man Ryan Valadez. Despite its cons,the SmartRiverside network ensuresthat through its system, a stronger andmore innovative city will emerge.

Riverside ranked astop intelligent city

Kazi MahmudSTAFF WRITER

FEBRUARYFebruary 11 ACTFebruary 14 Valentine’s DayFebruary 17 Lincoln’s Day (School not in session)February 20 President’s Day (School not in session)February 21 School Site Council @ Rm. 157February 23 Senior Exhibition Advisement

Roberto Gutierrez / The North Star

THE NORTH STAR FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012OPINION2Take timef o r s o m eperspective

TURNING THE TIDE

NOAH MYERS-GILPIN

This column rotates among The North Star’sopinion staff to give a platform for our views.

Sometimes I wonder what thewhole point of school is. People willtell you that it is in your best interest togo to college so you can get a good joband have a successful and happy life.But I have to ask, does it actually worklike this? For once, I would like to hearthat you could be successful and happywithout missing out on the smallthings.

The daily grind starts early. In highschool, we all believe we are so closeto freedom: freedom from parents,school, etc. In reality, the true price of“freedom” is becoming a victim of theadult world. We have been force-feddreams of going to a college of highprestige and gaining a quality educa-tion, only to realize that getting this“high class” education is going to putus in debt for the rest of our lives. Thenwe will have to spend all of our timedevoted to paying off these studentloans by putting in dramatic excessesof time into the “dream jobs” we mayor may not have acquired.

Although having stability is impor-tant, we need to find a balance.Throughout adolescence, it’s easy tomiss many things, like time with ourfamilies. Most of us have been pushedto want the college experience but atthe back of our minds we want to knowwhat we are missing. “What else is outthere? What have I not tasted? Whathave I not seen? What have I not expe-rienced?”

Sometimes we get so lost in worry-ing about the future that we forget tospend time with friends or visit newplaces — just the simple adventures oflife. We drown in the sea of others’ ex-pectations, like our grades. Time isvaluable but we waste so much timedevoting it to our “future.” Isn’t thepresent important too?

I do not see any sense in howtoday’s society bases everyone’s intel-ligence or future success off a simpleset of letters. Letters given over thecourse of a few years, years in whichstudents are finding themselves andbarely waking up to the world’s reali-ties, both harsh and pleasant. With allthese concerns about standardizationchildren are categorized based on a fewtests and letters before being shoveledout into the world.

There are so many things we (in-cluding myself) have missed. Thefreshmen have barely begun, seniorsare (supposedly) ready to embark onthe challenges of real life. The rest ofus juniors and sophomores have manymore sleepless nights ahead of us. I’mnot saying that school is unimportantor that what we learn has no value butmust we kill ourselves over what some-one else has established as “impor-tant”?

Your needs are what you want themto be and your life can be what youmake of it. When it’s all said and done,you do not want your only memories ofyour young life to be the nights whenyou nearly ripped your hair out or thedays you could barely stay awakethrough first period. You want to re-member the good times, the times youhave with your friends, going tomovies or maybe even that day youwent fishing with your dad or the timeyou took your mom out to dinner.

Slow down and think about theseopportunities that will never comeagain. The next time you are goingsomewhere, maybe a route you havedriven thousands of times, ask yourparents to slow down. Slow yourselfdown if you are the one driving. Lookout the window and see how manythings you have never noticed, eventhough you have traveled this path be-fore. If we try to live up only to the ex-pectations of others we are afflictedwith tunnel vision. It’s just a boring carride if you don’t take it all in; if you gotoo fast the moment has little point toit. There has to be more to it than justwhere you’re going. It’s where you aretoo. It’s about the journey. Slow downand look around you. See how manythings you are missing and go experi-ence life. School is not everything. Donot let your happiness slip out of yourhands and into the control of another.

JOHN W. NORTH HIGH SCHOOL 2011-2012

CORRECTIONSThe last issue was Volume XXVII Issue 5 (1).Alicia Fan is a junior (7).Ashleen Lai is a sophomore (7).Junior Jennie Fan was misidentified as a sophomoreJennifer Fan (7).Melanie Truitt’s name was misspelled (8).

STAFFAlicia Alvarado, Anum Arshad, Claudia Barri-entos, Maxene Denholtz, Salam Elchami,Tiffany Fors, Roberto Gutierrez, SelenaHoward, Serena Howard, Jose Jimenez,Gabriela Kreszchuk, Arthur Love, Kazi Mah-mud, Gilberto Melendez, Alissa Murphy, NoahMyers-Gilpin, Zahab Qazi, Sabrina Quillen,Cesar Rivas, Emily Roose, Marlyn Sanchez,Nancy Valdovinos.

The North Star

Tyler DavisFalon Opsahl

Kaitlyn Lozano

Kaitlyn Lozano

Emily Chen

Alice Koga

Amanda Valdez

Kara BillingerKudo Sung

Dominique De La Rosa

Usman Siddiqui

Caitlin Redak

Usman Siddiqui

Kathy Rossi

The North Star is the recipient of the River-side Inspirational Youth of the Month awardfor October 2009, the NSPA All-AmericanAward 2002, the NSPA Best of Show AwardFirst Place 1998, Third Place 2006, FourthPlace 2010, Fifth Place 2004, Tenth Place2007, the NSPA Special Edition Best of ShowEighth Place 2002, the Los Angles TimesHigh School Journalism Awards Third PlaceAward 2002, International First Place Quilland Scroll award 1996, 2002, 2004, 2007, TheColumbia Scholastic Press Association GoldMedalist 2009, Silver Crown 2003, 2010 , theOveral Design Second Place, the JEANCMulticultural Journalism Award 1995, theAmerican Scholastic Press Association FirstPlace with Special Merit 1993, 1996, FirstPlace award 1995, 1998, the Inland JEA FirstPlace Sweepstakes 1998, Second Place Sweep-stakes 1990, 1996. The North Star is a non-profit publication created by the Journalismstudents of John Wesley North High School,1550 Third Street, Riverside, California, 92507.The telephone number is (951) 788-7311, x 63117.Our website is www.thenorthstaronline.net.The North Star is printed by Gardena ValleyNews Web Offset Printing Press and has a cir-culation of 2500. Letters to the editors are welcome and en-couraged. Letters should be accompanied bya full name and signature. All letters may beedited for clarity and brevity. Please direct allresponses to room 322. Advertisements, com-mentaries or political cartoons do not necessar-ily reflect the opinions of the paper, the school,the writers or cartoonists. Unsigned editorialsare the views of a simple majority of the editors.

EDITORS

Editors-in-Chief

Managing Editor

Business Editor

News Editor

Opinion Editor

Features Editor

Centerspread Editors

A&E Editor

Sports Editor

Backpage Editor

Web Editor

Adviser

The Occupy Movement: revolution or chaos?

In high school, students caughtcheating often receive a failing mark inthat class, while in universities cheat-ing in all its forms is usually groundsfor dismissal.

Although cheating is not to be con-doned, can it be considered a crimeworthy of imprisonment?

Students get caught cheating all thetime but rarely do the consequencesreach the criminal judicial system.

At the end of January, New YorkSenator Kenneth La Valle proposed abill that would penalize individualswho facilitate fraud in educational test-ing.

The difference, especially with theScholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) andAmerican College Testing (ACT),would be a matter of fraud if studentspay another individual to impersonatethem and take the test for them,whereas forging your own test wouldbe a misdemeanor.

La Valle’s bill calls for these stu-

dents to be identified to the public andblacklisted among colleges. It alsopushes the company that makes SATtests, College Board, to step up their se-curity.

Nassau County, New York becameone of the few municipalities to filecriminal charges in a cheating scandal.High school students have paid currentor former students between $500 and$3,600 to impersonate them on theSAT and the ACT.

These tests, of course, are the twomost prominent tests that colleges re-quire prospective students to take.

The five individuals who were paidto take the tests are facing felonycharges including scheming to defraudand criminal impersonation and willface up to four years in prison if con-victed.

Although dubious in degree for acrime which, while fraud, still boilsdown to kids cheating — there is va-lidity in the accusations made againstthe College Board and the Educa-tional Testing Service (ETS) the twoentities responsible for making and

Cheating on the SAT and ACT has criminal consequencesArthur Love & Cesar Rivas

STAFF WRITERS

State of the Union address goes online to YouTube

A very special kind of school spirit

REVOLUTION CHAOS

Salam ElchamiSTAFF WRITER

administrating the SAT and ACT re-spectively.

There is something ridiculouslyeasy about impersonating someone andtaking the SAT or ACT. It is relativelysimple to fake a student ID.

Students also often take the examsat schools other than their own, wherethose administrating the exams won’trecognize the imposters.

To add to this farce, prosecutors saythat they are barred from identifyingthose students because they are beingprosecuted as juveniles and thereforeunable to notify colleges of the cheat-ing allegations because of privacylaws.

Still, it is bordering on the extremewhen former director of the FederalBureau of Investigation (FBI), Louis J.Freeh, is working with the ETS to offersecurity recommendations.

It’s almost too easy to imagine fin-gerprints and DNA testing instead ofthe easy mimic of reciting someoneelse’s birthday and presenting a fakestudent ID.

Although ridiculous, such measures

may serve as an effective deterrentagainst cheating, simply because it iseasier and cheaper to just study for thetest yourself.

One of the few things that cannot bebought is someone’s knowledge.There is something to be said abouttimes like these when students feel des-perate enough to dishonestly buy theirway into college.

In the hype and strain of appearingattractive to admissions officers, it iseasy for students to become detachedfrom the real consequences of their ac-tions.

Like access to any other preciousresource, the right to participate inhigher education must be earned.

Perhaps in the future, the require-ments to enter such an institution willbe less daunting and everyone will beable to have the experience of highereducation.

In the meantime, we will have tomake do with making things as fairas possible, even if that means harshpunishments to deter future offend-ers.

Compiled by opinion staff

Some people protest special educa-tion students at school “having to”clean the campus during fifth period.However this is not the case at all.

During their fifth period, specialneeds students have a vocational edu-cation class as part of their life-skillsprogram. This class’s goal is to devolopstudents’ independence and entry leveljob skills.

Often they are recycling for theirprogram when they “pick up trash.”Out of the kindness of their heartsand like any other group thattakes pride in North’s cam-pus, they help out and oftenpick up lunch trays andtrash.

This is the fourthyear that North’sspecial studentshave been recy-cling and they have

actually earned around $1,700. Thisisn’t the only thing that they help outwith at North. They also help count in-ventory for school lunches, recyclecardboard boxes and sweep the arcade.Through a Riverside EducationalEnrichment Foundation(REEF) grant theyestablished amuch-neededg a r d e n .Helping

to pick up trash once in a while is notat all required but is something done by

individual students whochoose to help during fifthperiod.

Not only is campuscleanliness an

issue of schoolspirit, it also

c a u s e sproblems

for our

school’s custodians as well as foreveryone who has ever stepped in litter.Students in wheelchairs often get trashstuck in their wheels. This is a legiti-mate safety issue that needs to be ad-dressed. We have to wonder what kindof message a dirty campus sends toNorth parents and our community.

Admirably, this group of studentshas taken it upon themselves to helpcome up with a solution. Think of howmuch better our campus could be ifmore Huskies were just good Samari-tans. Special education teacher AngelaWashington uses the expression “one

man, one tray” to demonstratethis idea of working together

to improve North: Theissue of cleanliness

would be erasedif all stu-dents sim-ply threwa w a yt h e i r

own trash.

People often criticize what they do not understand. The naysayers claim that the Occupy Move-ment has no substance, no focus. What they fail to realize is that however disorganized it may appear,this international movement has at its heart a wish to oppose tyranny and promote social and eco-nomic equality. Its proponents hail from all countries and classes and from many different walks oflife. This is not a weakness but a strength. Occupy exists around the world, proving that it is not anact of simple, chaotic defiance but an example of fighting for equality on a larger spectrum.

As Americans we should realize that this degree of political involvement is a good thing. It iswhen the people are apathetic and uninformed that corruption goes unchecked. This is why the slo-gan “We are the 99 percent” has such impact and resonates so strongly. The very fact that so manypeople are standing up for social and economic equality all around the world has to be first. Whenwhole populations stand up and say that they’ve had it with the way the government is handlingthings, that is a force to be reckoned with. There is truth in those slogans shouted by students occu-pying the University of California campuses, “Show me what democracy looks like. This is whatdemocracy looks like!”

This may seem like lyrical idealization of some thousands of people sitting around in tents butit remains true that raising awareness is the first step toward change. With the sheer number ofpeople involved, the media coverage and the response of politicians, it is obvious that the Occupymovement has achieved this. Without demonstration of public concern and understanding, it is fartoo easy for corrupt individuals to control and abuse the public, whether through denying education,instituting censorship, or through class or economic inequality.

People may criticize Occupiers as a public nuisance causing traffic problems but Occupiers areexercising their right to peaceably assemble as guaranteed by the Constitution. If we believe in theprinciples outlined in the Constitution, then people have the duty to keep their governments in check,to make sure that the government acts for the good of the people and secures their rights. Thoughnot at war with an outside power, Occupiers are acting to change the policies of their governments,asking for reform and the security of freedom. People must ultimately govern themselves and arenow asking to do so. What else can this be but a revolution?

It is easy, even popular, to proclaim support of the Occupy Movement and its various disorgan-ized causes. No one seems to be able to give a precise description of just what is being protested.The common factors in all definitions seem to be some mish-mash of being against the bank bailouts,cries for healthcare reform, changes to the cost of higher education and demanding some kind of“Robin Hood” tax that would take from the rich and give to the poor — or in this case the alleged99 percent. Each country seems to have its own spin on the movement, Occupiers promoting changein things like immigration laws and censorship, not just economic issues. With no unified goal andlittle central organization, just what can be gained?

In all this chaos and confusion, what has been accomplished beyond getting attention? If any-thing, by drawing massive negative attention to their cause, the proponents of the Occupy Movementare causing public opinion to swing against them. True, there is merit to the saying that in order toget anything done you have to cause a big enough problem for those in charge. However these prob-lems should be legal ones placed in front of administrators, politicians and legislators, not excusesfor disturbing the peace.

Whatever you think about the myriad of causes endorsed by Occupiers, there is much to be dis-cussed concerning their methods of protesting made infamous by their namesake: “Occupy.” If weevaluate the effectiveness of protestors by the saying that you need to make problems for those incharge, then the University of California (UC) occupiers have done so admirably, sometimes “occu-pying” administrative offices. However this is somewhat undermined by the fact that the protestsoften degenerated into full-blown riots, including the recent one at UC Riverside’s regents meeting.

Just as it comes down to matters of practicality, a movement must be judged on its methods and how ef-fective it is. How effective is mass protesting? It ultimately amounts to media fodder and traffic jams. It istrue that as a nation we have a right to peaceably assemble but there is nothing saying that we have the rightto cause problems for the general public. While the government in the United States is supposed to be heldaccountable by its citizens, the relationship goes both ways. In the true pursuit of social justice we have tounderstand what it is to be a dissenting citizen. It may be that dissent is patriotic but there is merit to John F.Kennedy’s request, “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.”

THE NORTH STARFRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012 FEATURES 3

By: Telepath Emily Chen & the Great Seer Amanda Valdez

Aries March 21-April 19Did you know that Aquarius and Aries make the best couplesbecause of how compatible they are with each other? They’resuch a perfect match.

Taurus April 20-May 20You’re cute, Virgo is cute. You two should get together and livehappily ever after. But don’t you dare forget to invite us to thewedding! We want to see your cute babies in the future.

Gemini May 21-June 21 Take a chance. The past is a nice place to visit but it’s not a niceplace to stay. It may be the hardest thing in life but you need tomove on. Go find an Aries, they’ll make you happy.

Cancer June 22-July 22Sometimes you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. So suck it upand do all the things you’re afraid to because in the end, it willpay off and that Libra will adore you for it.

Leo July 23-Aug. 22You live across the street from a really great mall with all kindsof rich fancy chocolates. Do you realize chocolate is like thegolden ticket to a Taurus’ heart? Forget about trying to bake abatch of their very favorite cookies and get them a box of Ghi-rardelli sweets instead.

Virgo Aug. 23-Sept. 22Roses are red, violets are blue, wow is that Gemini sure into you!We like you two for each other. We think you’re soul mates.

Libra Sept. 23-Oct. 23Seriously, just stop doubting yourself. Get over it and confessyour feelings to that special Capricorn because no matter whatyou’ll feel great afterwards.

Scorpio Oct. 24-Nov. 21If you’ve found the love of your life hold them close. You don’twant to end up like Katy Perry singing about the one that gotaway 60 years from now when you’re old and gray pining overthat Cancer. That would just be a shame.

Sagittarius Nov. 22-Dec. 21Pisces know that when they compliment you, you don’t believethem. But when they see you smile, there’s not a thing theywould change because you’re amazing just the way you are.Now go hug ’em! They’re so totally into you it’s adorable, whichmakes us pretty jealous.

Capricorn Dec. 22-Jan. 19Do you want a date? Go talk to that really cute Sagittariusyou’ve had your eye on forever. You two can go bowling ormaybe ice skating or something. That might work out okay.

Aquarius Jan. 20-Feb. 18The pain took you by surprise and now you’re heartbroken. Youmay not be in love anymore but deep down inside you know it’sfor the best. Just throw on your biggest, brightest smile and pre-tend like everything is okay. Trust us. That Leo isn’t worth it.

Pisces Feb. 19-March 20Make the first move. Do it! Here’s what will happen: You’llmuster up the courage to do what you’ve always wanted to do,which will make that wonderful Scorpio fall deeply in love withyou. It’ll be oh so sweet.

Did you know that 1.7 million people in 119 countries work

for a McDonald’s company? Well Senior Brandon Ro-

driguez has been a part of the leading global food service

business for three months now. What he has to say about his

job, however, does not necessarily prove that he’s lovin’ it.

The North Star: What is your part-time job? Brandon Rodriguez: I work at Mc-

Donald’s doing the register, making

the fries and cleaning tables when they

ask me to.

NS: How did you get hired? BR: I walked in after I took my senior

portraits while I was wearing a suit.

They thought I wanted the job since I

was dressed up for it so they gave me

an application and the test right on the

spot. I was just lucky.

NS: Do you like your job? BR: It’s a job. Nobody likes to work.

You get some of the weirdest cus-

tomers ever and some really strange

people. They’ll say things sometimes

that I don’t even understand. It gets tir-

ing and there’s some rude costumers.

NS: Where does most of your paycheck go? BR: My phone or on everybody else

but me. I’m saving up for prom be-

cause they didn’t pay me early enough

and I didn’t get to go to midwinter. I’m

not good with money and I buy the

dumbest stuff. I’ll admit it, I bought a

ShamWow just because I was curious

… I wanted to be amazed. Two easy

payments of $19.95. I’m telling you,

I’m really bad with money.

NS: What’s your favorite part ofworking there?BR: My break. I change my twitter

status, I tweet, tell everybody how my

life is or how much I hate my job. It’s

only around 15 minutes out of about

four hours but t hat’s my life.

Minimum wage memoir:

Emily Chen / The North Star

You’re sitting on your bed enjoying

the day when your friend calls you in a

hysterical tone alerting you that report

cards have come out. In one moment

you burst out of your room, fly down

the stairs and out of the door until you

reach the mailbox. There, right on top

of the pile of junk mail is that official

white and blue John W. North envelope

that determines your fate.

In a way grades are like a box of

chocolates: You never know what

you’re going to get. All semester, stu-

dents think they have plenty of time to

do their homework, study for the next

test and improve their grades but far

too often they find themselves doomed,

worrying and dreading until the mo-

ment their official grades come out in

the mail.

Working harder in the last two

weeks they struggle to bring up their

grades until it’s too late. On Jan. 27 stu-

dents had the day off to give teachers

the time to finish their grading. By

Wednesday, Feb. 1 they were sent into

the district to be processed, allowing

report cards to be mailed out by the fol-

lowing week.

Since grades are now finalized and

all chances of improving them are

gone, students are waiting in suspense

for report cards to come in the mail.

Junior Andrew Gomez said, “I’m a lit-

tle nervous for my grades to come out

because a couple of my grades were

pretty close to the next grade up and

I’m not sure if I got the extra push or

not.”

Coming soon to amailbox near you

Fortunately for some, not all par-

ents are aware that grades can be

checked online via Aeries. “Thankfully

my parents don’t have an Aeries ac-

count so I don’t have to worry about

them checking my grades constantly.

Throughout the semester whenever

they ask me about my grades I always

tell them that they’re good. But after

reports cards are mailed out I’m scared

that they’re going to get to them

[first],” said sophomore Gabriela Jor-

rin.

A number of students are expecting

a not so good outcome and once their

parents find out how they did at the end

of the semester they can kiss their so-

cial lives goodbye. “I didn’t really do

too well this semester,” said freshman

Amber Olson. “When my parents find

out they’ll probably take my phone

away and give me a speech on how im-

portant grades are to colleges and for

my future.”

For most, parents have a huge influ-

ence over grades because they are often

the reason we try so hard. Whether they

encourage students by giving a reward

for As and Bs or punishing them for Ds

and Fs their reaction determines how a

student feels about their personal

achievements.

Senior Umair Asad said, “[My mo-

tivation is] my parents. They expect me

to get good grades because I’m the old-

est and to avoid getting in trouble I

need to do well in school. I don’t ex-

pect anything for getting good grades;

I know that my parents expect it from

me and getting good grades for me is a

reward in itself.”

Regardless of being at the top or

bottom of the class, nearly every stu-

dent is eager to see what exactly they

get in the end. A report card is some-

thing that is always highly anticipated

and is eagerly awaited.

Even if you check your grades on-

line every 10 minutes you never know

exactly what you get until you’re hold-

ing them in your hands. If you’re

counting down the days and checking

the mailbox every few hours, take

comfort in the fact that you only have

a few more days until the big day ar-

rives.

If you see that your grades are

lower than expected, don’t

worry. It’s not the end of

the world. You al-

ways have next se-

mester to start again

and do better. If

your grades are

higher than ex-

pected maybe

wait until you’re

inside of the

house before

you do your

c e l e b r a -

t o r y

dance.

NS: How do you manage your timethen? BR: I pick my hours so that around

4:30-5 p.m. I go in for my shifts. They

don’t give me many hours. I only

work for three to four hours a day so

they give me my schedule and I’ll

work till maybe 9-10 p.m. at the latest.

I’ll go home, drink a lot of coffee and

then do my homework … I only sleep

a couple of hours a night.

NS: What’s the most challengingpart of your job? BR: Not going crazy and standing on

the table yelling, “I quit.”

Anum Arshad &

Amanda Valdez

STAFF WRITER & FEATURES EDITOR

Something is wrong with our magic ball and all we can see are pink swirls

and candy hearts. It makes us gag but we’re sort of expected by now to tell

you the future. Have a nice Valentine’s Day!

THE NORMIDDLE EARTH4

the price

Feather hair extensions are currentlyprized by fashionistas across the coun-try as a trendy way to adorn theirlocks. Originally produced in rela-tively small quantities as tackle for flyfisherman, they are now being mass-produced as a fashion accessory withtragic consequences. The roosters usedto produce the feathers are either eu-thanized or perish in the feather pluck-ing process, leading us to the question:Is the death of a creature really worthtwo months of trendy dead bird hair?

Fur ads you see in magazines and commercialsportray fur coats as a symbol of elegance. Butthese ads fail to show how the original owners ofthese coats met their gruesome deaths. Millions offur-bearing animals are killed each year on furfarms by electrocution and in the wild by drown-ing, trapping or beating. These methods are not100 percent effective and some animals "wake up"while being skinned. Many animals are endan-gered or extinct because of this practice.

One of the trends that has returned from thepast is the huge, poofy, bouffant hairstyles pop-ular in the 1960s. It's pretty obvious that theonly thing keeping those towering beehives andbumps from falling flat is copious amounts ofhairspray. The main chemical in hairspray pro-pellant, chlorofluorocarbon, attaches to ozonemolecules and destroys them, weakening theozone layer. The ozone layer blocks ultravioletlight from the sun which is damaging to life onEarth. So next time you're going for that retrolook, try cutting out the hairspray.

“I have not thought about it. I hon-estly don’t have the time to thinkabout how my clothes affect ourenvironment. I decide [by] thebrand of the clothes. I also look atthe price. I don’t like to spend a lotof money on my clothes.” — Freshman Courtney Kammerer

“Now that I have a clear aware-ness of how clothing can harm theenvironment, I plan to recycle anddonate clothes that I do not wearto thrift stores. The next time I buymakeup I would make sure it iseco-friendly.”— Senior Jennifer Cisneros

Although Nikes are frequently seen as thestandard of fashion for sport footwear, Nikehas a long history of allegations of sweatshopabuse. Since 1990 Nike has been under firefor paying workers less than reasonable livingwages, hiring child laborers and conractingwith factories with sweatshop conditions forits workers. In July of 2011 Indonesiansweatshop workers manufacturing Nikeproducts complained of verbal and physicalabuse by employers. Next time you’re outbuying yourself a new pair of sneakers, takeinto consideration these allegations.

Feather Hair Extensions

Many teens these days have resorted toacrylic nails in order to have that fresh,glamorous look while still keeping up withtheir busy lives. However few know of thecostly effects of this look. Acrylic nails cancontain chemicals such as toluene, formalde-hyde and dibutyl phthalate which are all haz-ardous chemicals. Furthermore they don’thave many recycling options, meaning thatthey fill up space in landfills. Alternately,nice manicures go with almost anything.

Do you buy clothing and

beauty products from

eco-friendly, cruelty-free or

sustainable companies?

Fur

Hairspray

Acrylic Nails

Nikes

J e i r u J q m t o l d

Have North students thought about the environmen

Su wa ho da an be

Compiled from:

Animal Legal and Historical Center, Marketplace

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

Encyclopedia of the Earth, International Labor Rights Forum

RTH STAR FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012 5

e we pay

Polyester may be cheap and commonly found in cloth-ing but it’s something that’s difficult to recycle. Mostpolyester – 70 million barrels worth – is manufacturedspecifically to be made into fibers and then clothes.Polyester is synthetic and is manufactured through atoxic process which makes it neither eco-friendly norhealthy. Most of the socks we wear are a polyesterblend so choosing socks or undergarments made withless synthetic fabric and picking some made with or-ganic natural fibers is good for the planet and goodfor us.

Clothes from Abercrombie and Fitch andtheir sister brand Hollister may be cute butthey sure come at a price. Abercrombie andFitch was ranked among the top companiesin the International Labor Rights Forum's2010 Sweatshop Hall of Fame for import-ing migrant laborers and forcing them towork long hours under restrictive condi-tions under threat of deportation and man-ufacturing their clothes in sweatshops inSaipan. Additionally, Abercrombie andFitch refuses to take responsibility for thedeath of 28 workers in a factory fire inBangladesh in 2010.

No one can be very sure when they buy a leatherjacket or leather shoes what type of animal skinthey're buying. The truth is, there are a numberof animals that leather can come from, includingpigs, cows, goats, even dogs and cats. The animalsthat are killed for their skin are often over-crowded, underfed and cruelly mistreated. Not tomention that the toxins released from tanning areharmful to the environment. So next time youwant that nice leather look, go for the fake. It’smuch more eco-friendly and cheaper too.

“I’ve never thought about how myclothing can affect the environ-ment. When I am buying clothes Ilook for good prices and anythingthat suits me and my personality.It’s all about feeling good and com-fortable with the things you wear.”— Sophomore Adan Chavez

“I don’t really think about it. Idon’t usually wear leather but if Isee a leather jacket I really like I’llbuy it even though it might be realleather. I have a style and I like tobuy clothes that fit that ... I like af-fordable fashion.”— Junior Andres Guzman

Nobody can deny that using cologne isa great way to keep yourself smellinggreat. Unfortunately some brands ofcologne and body spray like Axe andOld Spice test their products on animalsin cruel and painful ways. Thousands ofprimates, rabbits, cats, dogs, mice andrats are forced to undergo toxicologytests in which harsh and dangerouschemicals are injected or applied to theeyes or open wounds. These tests arefrequently unreliable or produce uncer-tain results. Companies like Cliniqueand Coach produce great scents that arecruelty-free.

Of North Students do not

know where clothing and

beauty products come from

Polyester

Leather

Clothes from Abercrombieand Fitch and Hollister

Axe and Old Spice Products

Jeans

Jeans are comfortable, durable and they go witheverything. It may be hard to believe but this go-toitem in all of our closets is very harmful to the envi-ronment. Production of one pair of jeans involves theuse of massive amounts of water and polluting dyes.Jeans that are “denim washed” or “distressed” are fre-quently created by using toxic chemicals and heavymetals which not only pollute rivers but create addi-tional dangers for workers. Buying jeans made withorganic cotton or less water, like Levi’s Water<Lessline of jeans, Arizona Jeans and Quiksilver jeans re-duces pollution.

ntal consequences of clothing and beauty products?

ure, everyone wants to look their best as they make theiray into the day. We all think about how we look and how weope to be perceived. Yet many people do not realize that ouray-to-day clothing has significant effects on the environmentnd that there is a cost to the world around us for looking ourest. This is the price we pay for our desired appearance.

Compiled from:

International Institute for Sustainable Development

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, Green@work

Encyclopedia of the Earth, International Labor Rights Forum

After a projected release date in1992, "Red Tails" was finally released20 years later, a work of its celebratedexecutive producer George Lucas. TheStar Wars legendary creator began de-veloping the film in 1988.

Red Tails follows the story of theTuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American men in the United StatesArmy Air Force (USAAF) duringWorld War II.

During that time, racism was aharsh reality of American society andthese airmen endured many prejudicesfrom the people surrounding them. Be-cause of this, the government did nottrust them with any major taskslike protecting bomberplanes, as they werenot thought to have the level of intelli-gence or the reflexes needed to protectwhite pilots and their cargo.

While the movie follows this entiresection of the USAAF, the main focusis put on the characters played byDavid Oyelowo, Nate Parker, TristanWilds and Elijah Kelley along withtheir commanding officers Cuba Good-ing, Jr. and Terrence Howard. Othernotable actors are Bryan Cranston andNe-Yo.

During most of the movie Col. A.J.Bullard, played by Howard, is busy try-ing to get the airmen jobs that are morehonorable and fulfilling than blowing

The Fox TheatreThe Fox Performing Arts Center in

downtown Riverside welcomes theaterfanatics to experience a wide variety ofperformances including Grammy nom-inees such as Natalie Cole.

This beautiful building has heldyears of performances, special appear-ances and Riverside’s history.

The founder of the Fox theater wasWilhelm Fried, born into a Jewish fam-ily in Hungary. He came to Americaand at the age of nine months his namewas anglicized to William Fox.

Fox’s Riverside Theater opened in1929 as a cinema and vaudeville the-ater house. Built with a Spanish Colo-nial Revival style it instantly attractedpopular performers such as BingCrosby and Judy Garland. It was eventhe site of the first public screening of“Gone with the Wind.”

The theater was built in the late1920s when the Great Depression hitthe United States and has enduredmany obstacles since, including differ-ent owners and performances that havechanged theater history.

Fox Theater was designed by LosAngeles architects Clifford Blach andFloyd E. Stanberry.

It was a part of a chain called “WestCoast” that constructed theaters allover Southern California throughoutthe 1920s.

This group then sold an interest toWilliam Fox of Fox Studios. Due to fi-nancial difficulties and antitrust regu-lations the corporation went intobankruptcy in the early 1930s.

In early 1932 it became part of theNational Theaters chain, the largest andmost successful chain in U.S. history.

Throughout the 30s and 40s the the-ater was used by the Hollywood film

Claudia Barrientos STAFF WRITER

The tale of the Red TailsGabby Kreszchuk

STAFF WRITER

“Man on a Ledge” was released onJan. 27 through Summit Entertainment.The flick takes its viewers through thetwists and turns of a man standing onthe ledge of a tall building in New YorkCity. An ex cop and convicted felonNick Cassidy (Sam Worthington) iswrongly charged with theft of a 45 mil-lion dollar diamond and sentenced toprison for 25 years. Having escaped hebecomes hell bent on proving his owninnocence. The most logical solution?Climbing on the ledge of a building tocreate a distraction while his brotherand brother’s girlfriend steal the miss-ing diamond.

Though an interesting setting thismovie falls flat on delivery. It’s a cleveridea but the movie itself is far toocliche. It’s exciting yet confusing andat t imes unclear. A big problem of this

Tiffany Fors

“One For the Money” was releasedon Jan. 27 and is an action comedyfilm. The movie, directed by JulieAnne Robinson, is based on JanetEvanvoich’s novel of the same title.

Stephanie Plum, played by Kather-ine Heigl, is a lingerie saleswomanwho has been out of work for sixmonths. Her financial desperationdrives her to a job at a bail bond com-pany.

The fact that she knows absolutelynothing about being a recovery agentdoesn’t stop her from accepting the job.Plum hits a slight snag when she findsout that the convicted murderer she isafter is Joe Morrelli (Jason O’Mara),the guy who broke her heart in highschool.

A movie with an ex-lingerie sales-women playing a recovery agent is ex-pected to be entertaining. And themovie did have its brilliant comedic

THE NORTH STAR

CULTURE CORNERNANCY VALDOVINOS

Far away across the Atlantic awaitsa place known as Nigeria. Nigeria isabout one-third larger than Texas andis one of the most populated countriesin Africa.

Freshman Uwakmfon Ibekwe’sparents were born and raised in Nigeriaand have passed down their culturethrough their daughter. Though Ibekwewas born in the United States, her par-ents are natives of the city Ukanafun,located in the state of Akwa Ibom. Asa small child she visited Nigeria duringher summer vacations.

“The last time I went it was pouringrain,” said Ibekwe. In Nigeria there arenot the traditional four seasons thatpeople in the United States have cometo know and recognize. In fact, thereare only dry seasons and rainy seasons.Ibekwe believes that the geography ofNigeria would not correlate with peo-ple’s expectations of the country.“There are a lot of palm trees and openareas but it’s not like flat plains withzebras running around [as peoplemight expect],” she said.

Even though Ibekwe hasn’t beenback to Nigeria in a long time she stillkeeps in touch with her roots throughher grandmother. “My grandma comesback and forth from Nigeria to Amer-ica,” she explained.

Her grandmother runs a farm inNigeria so every time she visitsIbekwe, she brings a taste of Nigeriawith her. Through her grandmother sheis able to keep her ties with her her-itage. For instance when her grandmais there she wears the traditional cloth-ing of Nigeria.

In Nigeria, perhaps the most visitedplace is Lagos, the commercial capitolof the nation. “[In Lagos,] there areskyscrapers, big buildings kind of likein New York. People go there to havefun,” said Ibekwe.

Ibekwe said that she always eatsNigerian foods like fufu which is athick paste and Garri, another verycommon food in Nigeria. “They’reboth a moldable type of food that canbe shaped into a ball in your hand andthen dipped into a soup,” she said.

Ibekwe and her parents also stayconnected to their culture by attendingmeetings called Annang where peoplefrom the same areas of Nigeria cometogether and talk about issues relevantto their community. These meetings areheld once a month on a Sunday in var-ious locations. They talk about thingsthat are going on in Nigeria but it is asort of religious event as well since thepeople in that area are Christian. Inshort, these meetings are a combinationof church and culture.

In Nigeria, one special holiday isthe Nigerian Independence Day onOct. 1. “It’s just like the fourth of Julywith big celebrations and parties [andthings of that nature],” said Ibekwe.

According to Ibekwe, nearly anyevent is turned into a huge celebrationin Nigeria. “Weddings, baby dedica-tions, funerals you name it. All areturned into big parties. Since peoplethere often go to church and hang out,there are a lot of celebrations at church.People there love to have fun and partyat festivals,” she said.

While Ibekwe does not know anyother Nigerians at school she believesthat they are easy to single out in thegeneral public. “You can always tellthat someone is from Nigeria. Theyusually have an accent, they’re reallyhardworking and they carry themselvesin a certain way,” she said.

Even here in America, Ibekwe isable to find traces of Nigeria. “There’san African radio station that playsNigerian music. [Nigerian music] hasa certain flare that American music justdoesn’t have.” To pick up on Nigerianmusic, Ibekwe emphasizes that all youhave to do is listen out for drums.Drums form an integral part of Niger-ian dances and music.

The beats and the rhythm of Niger-ian music are definitely culturallybased. They are upbeat and excitingand they get their listeners moving. InNigeria, modern music and dances area major aspect of daily life.

All in all, as Ibekwe would affirm,Nigeria is a nation with a rich culturefull of interesting people.

“Peoplethere love tohave fun.. .”

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012A&E6

NORTHSTAR

MAN ON A LEDGE

ONE FOR THE MONEY

Zahab QaziSTAFF WRITER

moments but for the most part the com-edy in the movie was not very subtleand seemed repetitive.

The movie was not one whereviewers are leaning forward and bitingtheir nails in anticipation and suspense.The twists and outcome of the movieare rather expected.

Director Julie Ann Robinson failedto capture the colorful fun attitude ofthe plot line.

The movie is supposed to be set ina working class neighborhood of NewJersey but the setting and backgroundin the movie didn’t deliver.

Overall the acting in the movie wasrather cheesy and the movie itself wasbland.

There should have been a certain airof charisma andspunk present inevery character yet itwas nowhere to befound. It was anokay movie butnothing special.

movie would have to be the charactersthemselves. The characters in thismovie are given very interesting per-sonalities and diverse qualities.

The setting changes so fast that theaudience can very easily find them-selves dizzy. It’s like each scene is adistraction from another.

The visuals are bland by compari-son. Everyone knows New York looksbetter at night but the director couldhave done something to make the visu-als a little more interesting.

The setting and lighting really does-n’t add to the movie. It seems more likeit’s just there rather than there to servea purpose. movie would rely on suchweak ideas when toit had such an origi-nal idea to start with.

The movie isn’tthe worst and enter-taining enough to beworth the money.

Reviews

If you like this try...“The BountyHunter”

“27 Dresses”

“The Ugly Truth”

Claudia Barrientos / The North Star

The Fox Performing Arts Center is located in downtown Riverside.industry to show previews of future re-leases before final editing.

In 2007 the city began to com-pletely restore the theater to make it thecenterpiece of an art and culture scene.

After the last 1,300 visitors tookone final tour through the theater thedoors were closed for restoration. Itshistoric structure had been reinventedand the completely new design calledfor adaptation.

This included a new stage floor,seats, lighting, a restored decorative

ceiling and a refurbished lobby. It now has 1,600 seats and still cap-

tures the grandeur of the original build-ing in 1929. After three years ofwaiting the theater was re-opened inearly 2010 and it welcomed the yearwith a weekend of two shows by Sh-eryl Crow.

Bill Cosby will appear in Marchand for the Broadway Season “ForeverPlaid” and “Smokey Joe’s” are sched-uled. Fox’s legacy and Riverside’s his-tory live on in the Fox Theater.

Feb. 7: The One That I Want: novel

written by Jennifer Echols

Feb, 7: Overbite: novel written by Meg

Cabot

Feb. 14: This Means War: starring

Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine

Feb. 7: The Darkness II Limited Ad-dition: Playstation 3

Feb. 10: The Vow: starring Rachel

McAdams, Channing Tatum and Sam Neill

Feb. 7: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reck-oning: PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360

Feb. 10: Grand Slam Tennis 2:Playstation 3 and XBOX 360

Feb. 14: Bewitching: novel written by

Alex Flinn

Feb. 17: On the Ice: starring Frank

Qutuq Irelan, Adamina Kerr and John Miller

Feb. 24: Wanderlust: starring Jennifer

Aniston, Paul Rudd and Malin Akerman

Feb. 28: Pandemonium: novel written

by Lauren Oliver

Feb. 24: Gone: starring Amanda Seyfried,

Jennifer Carpenter and Wes Bentley

Feb. 7: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reck-oning: PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360

Feb. 12: Zumba Fitness Rush: XBOX

360 (Kinect)

ENTERTAINMENT

STAFF WRITER

was the leader of a group of TuskegeeAirmen who struggled with alco-holism. The grief he feels for his mis-takes is shown so realistically that it ishard not to want him to succeed as aleader.

Though the movie is good it stillhas its flaws. "Red Tails" showcasesmany stereotypes of African-Ameri-cans during that time period al-most to the point of beingoffensive. At times

the charac-ters that the audi-

ence are supposed to careabout mimic the attitudes to-

wards African-Americans that arefrowned upon today. Yet, these stereo-types inevitably show how African-Americans were seen during that time,which detracts from the negativity oftheir inclusion.

Overall the movie is worth seeing.It is a history lesson acted out withfighter pilots and believable acting.The costumes and language used at thetime made the film seem like an au-thentic representation.

Though there are stereotypes in thefilm that do not sit well with somemoviegoers, they allow the audience tohave a better understanding of the so-cial attitudes towards African-Ameri-cans during that time, rendering themas a useful addition to the film.

After such a long delay in its pro-duction, this movie was certainly worththe wait.

up enemy trains and trucks. The air-men, however, also must face their ownpersonal issues that occur because ofthe war itself.

This movie is a direct parallel to thetime period in which it is set. It is in-formative about the struggles that thesemen endured without being repetitiveor uninteresting. While the difficultiesfacing the men intheir personal liveswere certainly aprevalent part ofthe film, action

scenes helda far larger portion of thefilm's running time. These particularscenes were all created with computer-generated imagery (CGI) and greenscreen work.

While the use of occasional comedylightened some of the sadness in thefilm, it was certainly a serious movie.There was an abundance of fightscenes in the air between the TuskegeeAirmen and the enemy.

And, while there are a few bloodyscenes, their purpose was to show thedanger of war, a purpose that was wellachieved.

One of the best performances of themovie came from Nate Parker whoplayed Martin "Easy" Julian. “Easy”

If you like this try...“Enemy of theState”

“The Negotiator”

“U.S. Marshals”

C A L E N D A R

Forward Marcus Baugh became akey player towards the end of thegame. As the game came down to thewire with 1:37 remaining and theHuskies up by one, forward AaronPeck made a layup with a foul whichgave the Huskies a lead that they neverlost. On a later play after a timeout,Baugh blocked a layup by Santiagoguard Alex Blumenfeld that wouldhave cut the Huskies lead to just twopoints.

Last Friday, the boys basketballteam edged out a 53-48 victory overthe Corona Santiago Sharks and se-cured the number one seed in the BigVIII League. This victory improved theHuskies league record to 10-2 and theiroverall record to 19-5. The victory alsodropped the Sharks record to 8-4 inleague and to 17-7 overall. North isnow guaranteed participation in theleague championship and the top spotin the league playoffs.

The Huskies have recently been ona roll, winning seven of their previouseight games by a 17 point average mar-gin of defeat. The one game theydropped was to the Riverside PolyBears, a team they were unable to beatin both meetings this season, by elevenpoints.

North began the game well and fin-ished the first quarter leading 12-4 butSantiago bounced back and outscoredNorth by 11 points in the second quar-ter to take a three-point, 24-21 lead athalftime. The Sharks started the secondquarter with nine unanswered pointswith forward Dorion Barnett scoringseven of his nine points in the period.

The game stayed fairly close in thethird quarter as only one point sepa-rated the two teams. The fourth quarterwas a totally different story, however,as the Huskies’ late free throws fueledthem to a nine-point advantage in thequarter and hoisted them over theSharks for a five-point victory. Bothteams fought as hard as they possiblycould but North came out on top de-spite their struggles throughout thegame.

“We got off to a pretty slow start.We were down by three at the half andbegan to realize how hungry Santiagowas,” said guard Marcus Fuller. “Weleft it all out on the floor and came to-gether in the second half to battle outthe win.”

Sports in Brief Aaron Peck

On Feb. 1, senior Aaron Pecksigned his National Letter of Intent(NLI) to Fresno State University toplay football. Peck was a key player inthe success of the Huskies this past sea-son. Being 6’3 certainly has its perks,as the team discovered with Peck serv-ing as a wide receiver. Peck had a totalof nine touchdowns in the season, onerushing and eight receiving.

Not only was Peck an offensiveasset but he was also a valuable defen-sive player. He accumulated 32 tacklesand eight sacks during the season. Peckwas ranked fourth in the league forsacks, a statistic due to his speed andstrength.

A total of 13 universities were in-terested in Peck and his decision tocommit to Fresno State was due tomany factors. He visited the school andhad a chance to meet the coaches, ex-perienced the college life and liked theproximity to home. Peck’s top threeschools included Fresno State, the Uni-versity of Idaho and the University ofNevada.

“My dad [has been my greatest sup-port]. He’s always been there. He goesto every single one of my games, rainor shine. [He also] makes sure I stay fo-cused in school,” said Peck. Peck’s fu-ture with Fresno State began in earlyJanuary. In the first week of the monththe coaching staff contacted with himand informed him that they were inter-ested. The next week they offered hima full ride scholarship for football.

U.S. Women’s SoccerOn Jan. 29 the United States

Women’s National Soccer Team tookthe field in a qualifying match againstCanada. With their win in this match,the United States team secured a spotin the 2012 Olympics to be held inLondon, England this summer.

Last summer, the Women’s Na-tional team took second place in theFédération Internationale de FootballAssociation (FIFA) Women’s WorldCup in Germany. After their continuedsuccess to the final, the United Statestook a fall from glory as Japan beatthem in the final game in a penalty kickshootout. Since this devastating loss,the team has been training harder andlonger for the upcoming OlympicGames. This hard work definitelyshowed when the women blew out theCanadians with a 4-0 win.

The goals started fast as AbbyWambach flicked on a ball to forwardAlex Morgan who used her foot speedto pass the defenders and put one awayin the first five minutes. Later on, Mor-gan returned the favor and sent a passin from the right corner of the field tothe head of Wambach who got the ballright in behind the Canadian keeper.

Later in the game, Wambach andMorgan each scored another goalwhich set the final score at 4-0. Withthis win, the team won the qualifyingtournament and demonstrated why theUnited States women’s soccer team isranked number one in the world. WithWambach, Morgan and a phenomenalgoal keeper in Hope Solo, thesewomen have certainly prepared them-selves for success in the upcomingOlympics.

Super BowlOn Feb. 5 Super Bowl XLVI began

with the New England Patriots winningthe coin toss and deciding to kick off.It was a rematch of Super Bowl XLIIin which quarterback Eli Manning ledthe New York Giants to victory past theNew England Patriots to ruin their bidfor a perfect season.

Manning led the Giants again thisyear as they took home the Vince Lom-bardi Trophy with a final score of 21-17, making it the second year that theNew York Giants have defeated theNew England Patriots in the SuperBowl.

At this Super Bowl the Patriots gotoff on the wrong foot when quarter-back Tom Brady got flagged for an in-tentional grounding penalty in the endzone. The safety that resulted gave theGiants a 2-0 lead. Nonetheless, the Pa-triots bounced back and led for muchof the second half, eventually givingthem a 17-9 lead.

The entire script of the rematch wasvery familiar. The Giants looked likethe dominant team early but the Patri-ots looked to be in control after theirtwo consecutive touchdown drivesgave them an eight point lead with11:20 left in the third quarter.

The Giants had the most completeand battle-tested team from start to fin-ish of anyone in the NFL this season,something they proved with this vic-tory.

THE NORTH STARFRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012 SPORTS 7

After winning the 2011 CaliforniaInterscholastic Federation (CIF) cham-pionship game against Anaheim Esper-anza High School last June, the varsitybaseball team h as been working hard totry to keep the title they earned. Afterlosing many seniors, the returningplayers knew they had a lot to live up

to if they wanted to keep the glory oftheir rings. Some of last year’s seniors,including Steven Pena, Michael Luna,Evan Perez and Adrian Anguiano willbe missed but this year’s team is readyfor the upcoming season.

After losing these seniors, the teamhas had to rebuild themselves. Thisyear’s seniors are Gabriel Clark, An-drew Saucedo, Gabriel Franca, JackJohnson and Justin Gheorghe. The cap-

tains, Clark, Franca and Gheorghe,have been on varsity all four years oftheir time at North.

Many of the players are certainlytalented and have received attention fortheir baseball achievements. Clark hasalready signed with the Oregon StateBeavers and will attend school there inthe fall, having received a full ridescholarship. He plays mostly first basebut can also play third base and some

Softball, on the other hand, did nothave the most successful season lastyear but with a new coaching staff andrenewed philosophy of commitment,this team has prepared well for the up-coming season and believes that theyare ready.

Senior Sabrina Quillen is the onlyplayer on varsity who has been on theteam for all four years. The team cap-tains are seniors Alexus Daniels andAlexis Holman. This year, however,most of the starting lineup consists ofseniors.

In total, two sophomores, two jun-iors and five seniors make up the start-ing lineup.

The starters include sophmores Jes-sica Estrada, Kirsten Cotton andJacqueline Rodriguez as pitcher, firstbaseman and right fielder respectively,junior Apryl Aguilar as third basemanand seniors Nallely Carrillo, AndreaEnriquez, Yanessa Salgado, SabrinaQuillen and Daniels as catcher, secondbaseman, short stop, left fielder andcenter fielder respectively.

Although they may not have hadthe most success in the past, this is anup-and-coming team who hopes toprove themselves.

“I’m ready for a successful season,”said Aguilar. “I want to prove everyonewrong this year. We’ve improved a lotand have a lot of motivation this seasonthat we have never had before. We allbelieve in ourselves as well as ourteammates and [that is] going to helpus win games.”

Last year, the team had no seniors,a benefit in that the team now has muchexperience to draw from. This seasonthey have already won their first pre-season game against Ramona HighSchool with a blowout of 11-5.

The Lady Huskies certainly appearto be on their way to the top with asolid team and some fresh newcoaches.

Peck, Butler lead Huskies to lock up Big VIII League top seedUsman Siddiqui

SPORTS EDITOR

Baseball and softball prepare to have successful seasons

Junior Juan De La Cruz fields a ball as he and his team warm up during practice after school.Falon Opsahl / The North Star

Falon Opsahl / The North Star

Forward Aaron Peck shoots a three-pointer against the Norco Cougars in the Huskies’ final league game of the season.

outfield positions. Although the team has gone

through many changes, they still havethe motivation and the drive to comeout on top. “I know we aren’t the sameteam as last year but we will out hustleour opponents,” said Franca. “I want toaccomplish the same thing as last year,a Division I CIF title at Dodger Sta-dium. I know we have the heart to doit.”

Wrestling team qualifies for CIF finals

North’s wrestling team traveled toMartin Luther King High School toparticipate in the Big VIII League fi-nals on Feb. 4. At the finals only threeof North’s wrestlers placed in theirweight divisions. Freshman Bryan Flo-res-Garcia placed fourth at 113 pounds,junior Branden Vasquez placed fourthat 120 pounds and senior Adam Sincoxplaced third at 182 pounds.

These wrestlers will be participatingin the nerve-wracking California Inter-scholastic Federation (CIF) finalswhich Vasquez and Sincox have al-ready experienced but Flores has yet to

have lived through. The CIF finals willtake place in three separate schools:Roosevelt High School, Temecula Val-ley High School and Bakersfield HighSchool for individual, masters and statecompetitions, respectively.

Many wrestlers showed up at theBig VIII League finals but only eightplayers were placed in their weight di-vision. When Flores-Gacria first ar-rived at the tournament he was notentirely confident. “I felt great. I wasworried at first because I was not sure[what the outcome would be],” he said.

Though it was a returning year forhim, Vasquez still had butterflies in hisstomach going to the Big VIII Leaguefinals. He was worried because he had

matchups with opponents who hadbested him in prior matches.

Even with his losses from previousyears floating around in his headVasquez still went on to place fourth inhis weight division.

Vasquez stayed humble. “I couldhave done many things differently[such as when] I leaned too far off tomy side. This unbalanced me and ledme [to end up losing],” he said.

Despite the fact that none of North’swrestlers placed second or first theplayers are still happy and are keepingtheir minds on the match.

Most of the players are strong-willed and will not let a loss bring themdown.

Gilberto MelendezSTAFF WRITER

Freshman Timothy Lee displays his forehand technique as he andthe team practice for the boys tennis season which starts in March.

Falon Opsahl / The North Star

The Huskies went on to allow justthree more points from a three-pointerby guard Markus Thompson and, withfour more free throws from forwardDorian Butler, emerged victorious inthis hard fought game.

For North, Peck and Butler led theway with 18 points and 16 points re-spectively. Peck and Butler both got tothe free throw line many times in thegame. Peck shot 11-11 from the lineand Butler shot 8-8. The Huskies as a

team made 19 of their 20 free throwsin the final period of the game and 29of their 33 in its entirety.

The game was close and breathtak-ing but the Huskies were able to stayfirm and assertive when they got thelead and held on to win. The playerssay it is important to be able to do thisin any situation, whether it be to winthe league or a regular game. “We’vebeen in this situation before so weknow what it takes to win and didn’t

want to settle for anything but firstplace. The only way [to do so] was bywinning the game,” said guard MarriceHill.

With Peck averaging 15.5 pointsper game and Butler averaging 13.3points and 9.9 rebounds per game, theHuskies’ leadership is certainly ontrack. Coach Michael Bartee took overthe basketball program this year andhas already got the Huskies back inplayoff contention.

Emily RooseSTAFF WRITER

Protests takeplace at UCR

THE NORTH STAR FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012JUST SO YOU KNOW8

����������� �������� ��������“Just So You Know” gives an in-depth look at a particular topic that directly relates to the North community.

Time to get educated on the Master Plan The Master Plan for Higher Education was instituted in 1960 under the supervision ofEdmund G. Brown. It set up a system in which all high school graduates are eligible fora college education at one of California’s three public higher education institutions. Amain point of this plan was that the tuition and fees are low while the quality stays high.This plan relies on a high rate of funding from the state legislature and therefore taxes.

On Jan. 19, the regents of the Univer-

sity of California (UC) were the target of

a protest by the students of UC Riverside.

Students surrounded the room that the

regents were using for a meeting place

and had a sit-down protest.

The issue became so controversial

within the room that the regents and other

participants were forced to move to a dif-

ferent room.

Students were protesting the newly

raised tuition costs for students at the

UCs. Many students said that their bills

topped $30,000 a year including books,

room and food.

After the regents exited the room the

protesters held a meeting of their own in

which they locked arms and discussed

what could be cut or raised.

This protest took about an hour and

the students left peaceably afterwards.

The regents then moved back into the

room and continued the meeting they had

been having.

A second protest which was far more

active than the previous took place on the

very same day. The UC regents were dis-

cussing raising tuition when between 600

and 1,000 students gathered outside of

the meeting room and blocked off the

exits.

The protest lasted about two hours

and there were several arrests made.

The protest was still technically

counted as peaceful despite at least two

officers having minor cuts from being as-

saulted by students earlier in the day.

Several students sustained minor in-

juries as well. The staff in attendance in-

cluding Chancellor Timothy White and

the regents had been waiting two hours

to be able to exit peacefully and avoid

conflict.

The police were eventually able to se-

cure a path and lead the staff out of the

building through an alternate route when

the protests became heated. Damage was

done to several cars carrying the officials

and regents.

Although it seems for now that the

protests have not made a significant dent

in the fight for lower tuition there may

yet be hope. The regents were said to

have stated that they would consider tu-

ition over the next several months.

This issue is derived from the recent

speech by Governor Jerry Brown in

which it was noted that if taxes weren’t

raised education would be the target of

cuts. The talk of education cuts had been

lagging in recent times but this brought it

back.

Many students in colleges throughout

California fear that if tuition is raised any

higher they might not be able to afford it

and will be unable to attend the universi-

ties.

Students are trying to change this

bleak future by protesting the raises,

however, many feel that they aren’t going

to get lower tuition.

As governor Brown stated in his latest

tax speech, we have to either raise taxes

or cut education.

Alissa MurphySTAFF WRITER

Caitlin Redak / The North Star

Riverside police officers stand guard outside the University of California, Riverside cafeteria hall during the protests.

California Citizens: Everyone paystaxes to the California government.

State Legislation and Elected Assembly:

The group decides wheremoney is allocated. Some

of this money goes to education.

UC Regents: An appointed boardwho decides to which areas of

the system the money will go. It can be financial aid, construction,

student resources or anything else the university systems

would need to pay for.

Education System: Agroup of universities in-cluding California State

Universities (CSU’s),Community Colleges

(CC’s) and the Universi-ties of California (UC’s).These institutions train

students so that they canearn degrees and join the

workforce.

Graduates: Students with andeven without degrees go on to

join the workforce and be-come taxpayers.

California