oiceTheihsvoice.com Volume 16.1 October 9, 2007

I r v i n g t o n H i g h S c h o o l - F r e m o n t , C a l i f o r n i a

News 1-2Opinions 3Features 4-5Entertainment 6Sports ....7Humor 8

INSIDE4

Learn whatʼs hot on Fall television

Get to know the new ad-ditions to the staff

Salman assaults the administration’s removal of soda and sweets; Britney responds on their behalf Opinions 3 | Sri explains the Top 10 things that she likes to do with her friends in Wal-mart Humor 8

Web site fi nally up so check out articles and other cool features online

Girlsʼ tennis team beats Logan for the fi rst time in eight years

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A crowd of enthusiastic supporters waved signs with sayings such as “Clinton Country” and “Women for Hillary.”

Over 14,000 people attended a block party held on Sunday, Sept. 30, where presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (D-NY) spoke and received support from other government offi cials, declaring that she was “ready for change and ready to lead.”

In her speech, Clinton complimented California residents, admiring their efforts to reduce energy consumption.

She was introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and spoke about issues including healthcare, affordable college education, ending the war in Iraq

By Shalika GuptaDemocratic presidential hopeful makes first public Bay Area appearance since announcing candidacy

Hillary Clinton Hosts Oakland Block Party

and environmental sustainability. The main event was

preceded by performances by a gospel choir, local artists and various cultural entertainment groups.

The event was called Club 44 as Sen. Clinton would be the 44th president if elected next November, and it was held both to generate support for the candidate and to serve as a low-dollar fundraiser where she could elaborate on her positions.

Prominent guests included California Sen. Dianne Feinstein and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.

“Seeing Hillary Clinton was an unforgettable experience. I got to see someone who might become the fi rst female president,

and that is priceless,” said Irvington senior Dan Nguyen after attending the event.

The event was free for all people under the age of 18, and there were also $20 tickets available for those over the voting age.

People over 18 could also use free tickets, however, they were not guaranteed entry if there were too many attendees.

Among the attendees were many volunteers from the San Francisco offi ce, called HillStars, and people who wished to learn more about Clinton’s presidential platform.

“The rally was historic, whether you are a Clinton fan or not, it was an unforgettable event. Hillary Clinton was electric. It is

the kind of live event that makes people want to participate,” Irvington teacher and We the People coach Ms. Cheryl Cook-Kallio said when asked about Club 44.

Another Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama, chose the same day to host the opening party for his new Oakland headquarters, but was not present himself.

The offi ce opening was planned after the announcement of Club 44, which has been in the works since August.

Another Club 44 event was held in Washington D.C. in June 6, 2007, and approximately 8,000 people attended.

A fi ght between two students at John F. Kennedy High School resulted in a stabbing on Thursday September 12. The victim, a sophomore at Kennedy, was stabbed in his chest and left bicep during the fi ght. Immediately after, a friend of his transported him to the Washington Hospital. The victim’s artery and the lining of his heart were severed deeply, but luckily, he is recovering quite well.

The victim’s friend, after attempting to escape, was

By Annie Lee & Rajeswari Ramanathan

J.F.K. Sophomore stabbed during gang-related fight; victim alive and well, assailant in police custodyw

Kennedy Student Stabbed on Second Week of School

As the new school year starts, one of the major problems the Irvington administrators are dealing with is the lack of lockers in the school. With an approximate 1745 working lockers and 30 broken ones, 255 students either have to carry all their study materials to and from school everyday or share a locker with someone. The majority of these students are freshmen, because they went to Maze Day last.

“[The main reason is that] the school grows,” said Principal Mr. Pete Murchison. “We got big over the last couples of years, and so far we have to share lockers.”

The school is trying their best to fi x as many broken lockers as possible. At the same time, they are waiting for the district to provide more lockers. However, the expensiveness of the new lockers is a problem that has to be considered.

“The district may buy 100 more lockers,” said Mr. Murchison. “[However,] if a hundred lockers cost 13,000 dollars, it would cost at least 130,000 dollars just to buy the lockers.”

The school is temporarily sharing lockers as a solution to this problem, while waiting for more lockers from the district. “We are trying to work with all the ninth grade freshman teachers to make sure that everyone has a partner, so that [there is] nobody without a locker,” said Mr. Murchison.

As the school is using this temporary solution, many students still choose to carry all of their materials to school everyday. Sharing lockers is a sensitive situation, and some people do not want to share their lockers with another person.

“It is convenient, but not that convenient,” said freshman Cedric Chan, who does not choose to share a locker. “If your friend knows the code, and he is busy [at some point], you cannot get your stuff out of it. If both know the code, then the protection can be broken.”

Another rising problems regarding lockers is vandalism. There are people coming in the afternoons and nights to break the locks and stealing.

However, this only occurs to locks that are not standard. According to Mr. Murchison, it is advised that students should get an American lock for the best sercurity.

“If students have valuable items in their locker, they should get a good lock,” said Mr. Murchison.

Irvington short on lockers

Got Lockers?

stopped by one of the offi cers at the emergency room. He was then brought to the police for interrogation regarding the incident. Police and detectives identifi ed the assailant to be a 16-year-old former Kennedy student from Union City.

Students were able to leave the campus safely after a ten minute lockdown. Since the incident, the school has been given extra security with the help of more supervisors.

“I feel scared that it might happen at Irvington,”

freshman Prithvi Bomdica said. The incident has

resulted in differing opinions amongst students at Irvington High School. Some feel that it has increased awareness throughout the school, while others remain feeling safe and unaffected by the occurrence.

“I personally don’t think that this stabbing affected me or Irvington in any way,” senior Jaimie Chan said. “I feel safe and secure where I am.”

About a year ago, Kennedy experienced a similar

stabbing in which a 16-year-old student was stabbed by a gang member near the school offi ce. However, with this recurring incident, FUSD Communications Offi cer, Nicole Steward agrees that the two stabbings were planned fi ghts.

“Many people who join gangs think that the other members in it will take care of them,” Steward said. “It is really sad how many students tend to think that gangs are a cool way to be ‘in’ or that it is considered like a family.”

By Tuan Dang

Photo: Milan Kantaria

N2 | The Voice 16.1

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The Center for Creative Arts (CCA) at Irvington has recently received two grants worth a total of $25,000, which will be used to improve the current program. The CCA is a magnet program in which visual and performing arts are incorporated into traditional English and history classes to enhance the curriculum taught. “I think it’s a nice gesture on the part of the Board of Trustees at recognizing the quality and excellence of the students and staff, who have made a real effort with the program,” said principal Pete Murchison. The California Board of Education granted the CCA $15,000 per year to support the magnet program. This will result in the purchase of new materials and facilities, as well as provide funding for staff training, field trips, and Art Immersion Days, where professional artists are brought in to the school to provide CCA students with hands-on instruction.

The second grant is the $10,000 Specialized School Program grant. This grant not only provides more funding for the CCA, but also presents Irvington with the opportunity to expand the program. Visiting schools will be given the chance to sit in during a CCA class and observe the program in action. In addition, this coming spring, some of Irvington’s CCA teachers will be traveling to San Diego to attend a conference where they will be promoting and introducing the CCA program to other educational institutions. “I’m excited to see what the new funding will do for us,” said Bryana Gable, 11, a student who transferred to Irvington in order to participate in the CCA program. Many hope that this increased funding will lead to an expansion of the program here at CCA, especially in terms of increased enrollment. “If you’re into art, why not join CCA?” said junior Alvanny Guerra.

By Linda Dong

Plans to expand the program to new heights

CCA Brings Home the Bacon

Recent decisions by the Fremont Unified School District ordered that certain school boundaries shall be changed to accommodate the overflowing number of students in particular elementary and secondary schools. According to Assistant Principal Steve Musto, “Irvington was not affected by the boundary change, but some Mission students will be going to Kennedy.” Mission San Jose High School is not the only school to be affected by this boundary change. Grimmer Elementary

School will now be an overload school for Leitch/Warm Springs elementary school. Furthermore, Durham Elementary School will be the designated as the overload school for the Mission Attendance area. This means that all students who are labeled as overload in the Warm Springs and Mission areas will go to their respective overload schools. Due to the overcrowding in the Mission Attendance Area, the school board decided to setup community meetings throughout the 2007-2008 school year to

solicit input from community stakeholders. Although the outcome of the boundary changes of the FUSD seem up in the air, the school board released a newsletter where they reassured that, “No decision for any long-term recommendations will be made until each elementary attendance area school has had an opportunity to give their input into a solution(s).” For the students that are going to the overload schools, hopefully this issue will be sorted out in the near future.

Fremont school board changes boundaries to accommodate more students

Boundaries Bound for ChangeBy Shawn Li

To many clubs at Irvington, being able to raise $3000 in a day is a dream they all share. For the High Tech Militia club, however, that dream became reality. On September 8th, two dozen club members, including club advisor Clint Johns and C&T Recycling, spent the entire day collecting used electronics to raise money in IHS’ second E-Waste Fundraiser. In partnership with C&T Recycling, the company from the previous E-Waste, HTM raised over $3,000, hauling in more than 12 tons of old

computers, monitors, and even big screen tvs. When asked why he chose an E-waste for a fundraiser, Mr. Johns said, “This event truly is environmentally friendly. Over 99% of all materials collected are being sold to recycler, reseller, and/or smelting companies and not being shipped overseas to unsafe conditions polluting local ecosystems.” Part of the success was due to the event coinciding with Irvington’s Chinese School class dates. After classes were released, cars were lining up on Blacow Rd. just to turn into the

main parking lot. “I never

thought so many people would show up,” said club secretary Junior Jonathan Lei. “What surprised me even more was the amount of electronic trash they brought with them.” “We feel that the most significant achievement of this year’s fundraiser was the reception the event got,” said HTM president Junior Tarry Chen. “We’ve been so successful that we’ll be holding more e-waste fundraisers throughout the school year.”

HTM Club Holds E Waste Fundraiser$3000 raised in a single day of recyclingBy Daniel Nguyen

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EditorialOctober 2007 | 3s

The VOICE is a student-run newspaper with the sole purpose of providing an open forum for student expression. Anything printed represents the opinion of the writer, but not necessarily that of the VOICE staff, the administration or faculty of Irvington High School, or any person affiliated with the Fremont Unified School District. The VOICE does not discriminate against race, political orientation, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or dis-ability. Although the VOICE will never refuse to publish student guest submission based on the aforementioned factors, we reserve the right to edit or not publish them.

ADVISOR MATTHEW PHILLIPS

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF: Mishu Sharma* CARTOONIST: Yu-Hsuan Lin* STAFF WRITERS:

Annie Wang* BUSINESS MANAGERS: Shawn Li Linda Dong

NEWS EDITORS: Shalika Gupta* Yu-Hsuan Lin Britney Green

Salman Qasim* HISTORIANS: Tina Karimi Daniel Nguyen

FEATURES EDITORS: Annie Lee* Rebeccah Warmack Phi Nguyen

Rachel Li* SENIOR COPY EDITOR: Kriti Gupta* Raji Ramanathan

ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS: Tuan Dang* COPY EDITORS: Shalika Gupta

Ashwin Shanker* Rachel Li

SPORTS EDITORS: Teresa DeLuz* WEB EDITOR: Annie Wang

Kriti Gupta* PHOTOGRAPHER: Milan Kantaria

HUMOR EDITORS: J.R. Yonocruz* ASST. PHOTOGRAPHERS: Samiha Baseer

COLUMNIST: Tina Karimi* Sri Ravipati

staff@ihsvoice.comhttp://www.ihsvoice.com (510) 656-5711 ext. 46398

*Deadline Workers

POLICY STATEMENT:

Disagree with the writers? Bring your letters to the editor to room 223 or e-mail them to staff@ihsvoice.com. We welcome all

comments.

VOICE STAFF 2007-2008

By Britney Green By Salman Qasim

I used to wait for the lunch bell every Wednesday with one thing on my mind: DECA cookies. Three warm chocolate chip cookies for a dollar? Count me in. I might buy a bag of chips as well if I wanted more substance to keep me fueled. Was it good for me? Absolutely not. But does that give the administration the right to bring the hammer down on a club’s f u n d r a i s i n g events, or to raise the prices of most of the food on campus? Absolutely not. In case you have not noticed, clubs are no longer allowed to sell items such as candy or cookies. Even the DECA cookies, a staple of Irvington’s history, were not safe from the blind eradication of all sweets from campus. Sodas are gone from vending machines, replaced instead with iced teas or juices. Not bad enough? The prices have also shot up by 25 cents to a $1.25. It might not seem like a big deal, but when you compare it to the 79 cent soda bottles you can get at Walgreens you’ll notice the problem. Chips sold on campus have also seen a 25 cent price rise up to a dollar. Mind you, this is for small, half-fi lled bags that were hardly worth the 75 cents they used to cost.

What do these drastic measures do? Some might say they’re good for us, because they erase our options of unhealthy food. Au contraire. We are not going to stop eating what we want because the school isn’t providing it. Instead, students will be leaving campus more frequently, or bringing junk food from home. All the school is doing, in

effect, is shifting the blame for obesity off itself without taking real action. If I want to eat unhealthy food, that is my p r e r o g a t i v e . E r a s i n g the option c o m p l e t e l y does nothing but infuriate students like

myself without solving any weight problems. If the school is really determined to keep us from drinking soda and eating junk, they should provide a good and tasty alternative. Instead, the administration has left us high and dry without any options. With the closed campus looming ever closer, eradicating our on campus food options was not the ideal move, especially now that students will only be able to get sugary goodness from off campus. The Sugar Act was one of the events leading to the American Revolution; hasn’t the establishment learned from its mistakes?

Administration Recieves Bittersweet Response

There is Life Outside Your Computer

The Israel Factor

By Yu-Hsuan Lin As of July, the “War on Terror” has cost the United States over $610 billion, 4,200 lives and loads of international credibility. This is just the latest of the U.S.’s costly intervention in the Middle East. The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, by John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, describes how policymakers in Washington D.C. are being infl uenced to “advance the interests of another state”—namely, Israel. The “Israel Lobby,” the collective term for pro-Israel factions in the U.S., is accredited with giving Israel the monetary, political and military support of the United States while impeding American interests. The authors argue that the alliance with Israel is not strategically important to the U.S. and creates anti-Americanism in the Middle East. While the book has been criticized as a conspiracy theory and being “anti-Semitic,” it is well regarded by experts such as Daniel Levy, a former advisor in the Israeli government. We have to wonder why America is such a stalwart supporter of Israel. While American aid of Israel in its fl edgling days was a gesture of kindness, the situation has long changed. The 1948 exodus of Palestinians, aptly named Al Nakba (“the catastrophe”), affected the lives of more than 700,000 Arabs and their millions of descendants. Israeli atrocities rivaled those of Arabian terrorists in their cruelty and frequency. Still, the U.S. grants Israel $3 billion a year, despite Israel’s vigorous economy and possession of a nuclear arsenal in direct violation to the U.N. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. What does America gain from its support of Israel? U.S. intervention in the Middle East on the behalf of Israel (and oil) has earned us the ire of Muslim Arabians, who believe that their Holy Land is being invaded. By meddling in Middle Eastern affairs, we have become the world’s clown: laughed at and despised. The U.S. has overstayed its welcome in the Middle East. Why throw away $3 billion annually to fund someone else’s war when the U.S. is in an $8.9 trillion debt? The United States government must fulfi ll its mission to its people and resolve urgent domestic matters before even considering messing around abroad. After fi fty-nine years, Israel should not expect the United States to be its watchdog anymore, and neither should the American people.

new identities online. The truth is, these days;

everyone has a blog, or at the very least, an account on a site like Facebook or the mother of all social networking sites, Myspace. It’s not “cool” or even remarkable. Your Advisory teacher probably has a Myspace.

Our generation does not have a unifying cause, or an all-encompassing war with the outside world. We have gone from trying to change the world to having an obsession with documenting it.

Everyone considers his or herself the new Anne Frank—going through struggles ignored in the present, but leaving

behind a record that will be vital to the understanding of our time. It is the hope that we will be understood as deep, sensitive, suffering souls by someone, someday.

With the advent of modern technology, our self-awareness has only increased.

Our modern philosophers are rock bands and the kids who worship them, and bitter white-collar offi ce workers; our tomes of philosophy are on cyberspace. History has never seen as many writers at one time as there are fl oating on the internet today.

Our generation is considered lucky to be well-

informed; having easy access to the latest information on each new disaster in the world.

We are so well-informed, in fact, that we are able to let the information slide out of our minds and onto our websites.

You do not see kids outside protesting these days. We are busy complaining about injustice on Myspace.

There is nothing wrong with introspection when it leads to resolution and awareness.

But when all you are getting out life is self-awareness, it is time to ease yourself out of your swivel chair and step back timidly into the light of day. You can get back to your blog tomorrow.

By Tina Karimi

What has led to our disastrous foreign policy?POINT COUNTERPOINT

Recently, Irvington has emptied all of the soda out of the vending machines and replaced them with water, juice and tea. There has also been a ban on selling any food, including candy, during school hours. These rules are not restricted to Irvington, but to all schools in the state of California. This new law puts clubs and other campus o r g a n i z a t i o n s at a fi nancial d i s a d v a n t a g e because in previous years, clubs have counted on the revenue of food sales, specifi cally candy, to fund many of their activities. However, I feel that this is an overall positive change that will show us a healthy outcome, as obesity is a prevalent problem in our country. Of course, to solve this problem, we have to go to the root of it: childhood. We take our bad eating habits from highchair to high school. I am very much for freedom of choice. When faced with two decisions, a person should have the right to choose either the right one or the wrong one. However, if we make the wrong choice less accessible, students are more likely to make the right choice. There is no person of authority standing over him or her shaking a fi nger and saying there can be no soda, candy, and or any junk food allowed on campus ever.

You still have the choice to bring these desired items from home, or even walk across the street to get them from Walgreen’s or the gas station. Yet, with these implemented rules, I’ve seen little to no Pepsi, Dr. Pepper or Mountain Dew Code Red bottles in the hands of our students; instead I’ve seen Aquafi na, Tropicana

fruit juice and Lipton’s Iced Tea. Students seem to be adapting to the change quite nicely, whether they realize it or not, and it has only been a month. I’m sure the teachers are enthusiastic about this change as well. Many teachers complain of hyperactive students bouncing

off the walls from sugar highs. With these new implemented rules, this should no longer be a serious problem. Clubs and other school-wide organizations can work on coming up with other ways to raise money. Though the ever-so-popular car washes have also been prohibited, there is also the idea of selling creative, non-food items such as t-shirts, or key chains. Fundraising does not have to stop at edible items. Rules like these will not make America’s health problems disappear, but they will spark a change that will lead to a healthier, brighter future.

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What was your most embarrassing moment in high school?I got caught kissing a boy by my friend’s dad at a party.How would you compare the environment here to that of Kennedy?There are more things going on here, more extracurriculars [and] support from other teachers.What were you categorized as in high school?I was a punk rocker in high school. I was a weirdo and I was also in drama.

eatures: The Secret Lives of Irvington’s HeroesFMs. Friend (English) Interviewed by Tuan Dang

What was your most memorable moment in high school? I graduated early and started at-tending college at 16. I was barely 17 when I graduated.

What was your first impression of Irvington High School?From what Mr. Bailey had told me, I had very high expectations for the students and the school. The teachers are awesome and my expectations have been met.What are your interests outside of teaching?I love cheerleading and I have been doing it for eight years. I fig-ure skate (four years) and I am also been part of a softball league (two years). I just like sports.

Ms. Ryan (Health)Interviewed by Annie Lee

What was your most embarrassing moment in high school?I was part of a show choir and at one of the performances we had to change outfits between the songs. One part of our performance called for us to swivel on one heel and... it was at this point that I realized my dress was still unzipped all the way.What was your first impression of Irvington High School?I was overwhelmed by the amount of school pride and unity I saw here at Irvington. Not just amongst the students, but amongst the teachers and the rest of the staff as well.

Ms. Mangiardi (English)Interviewed by Milan Kantaria

What were you categorized as in high school?Well, its hard to say, I played sports, but was also part of the choir. I guess I was kind of a floater between lots of the groups.

Mr. Silvernale (History)Interviewed by Linda Dong

What was your high school stereotype?Jock. Didn’t have much say in the matter. I was football quarterback, and I also played baseball.Is there a reason behind the facial hair?Shaving hurts. It’s my giant chick shield. Otherwise I’d have to peel the girls off one by one.Who is your celebrity crush?That chick from A Knight’s Tale and 40 Days and 40 Nights. She’s just weird enough to be hot.

Ms. Cohen (English)Interviewed by Daniel Nguyen

What were you categorized as in high school?I was kind of all over the place… a social butterfly. I was friends with everybody.If IHS were to form a hardcore metal band, who would be the lead singer and why?Mr. Murchisn, I bet he’s got a rocking soul.

What would your personalized license plate say?DOYRHMK (do your homework)

Ms. McCallum (PE)Interviewed by Rebeccah Warmack

What was your most embarrassing moment in high school?While performing a skit and dance, I went to do a cartwheel and fell.What job did you have prior to IHS?I was a nutrition educator at the Dairy Council of California.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?A shrimp boat captain.

Ms. Miller (History)Interviewed by Kriti Gupta

What do you like about Irvington?The students and staff are warm and embracing. It’s an open community that’s very artsy and creative, and I like that.What were you classified as in high school?I was friends with a lot of different groups, so I’d say I was a “cute grunge.” Do you have any embarrassing moments from high school?I once got into a car accident in the parking lot! My friend and I were just driving and.. before I knew it, wham.

eatures: The Secret Lives of Irvington’s Heroes

Mr. McCall (Computer Tech)Interviewed by Annie Wang

Where were you before you came to Irvington High School?Running my own business, Tech Action, but my son runs it now so I can teach.What was your first impression of Irvington High School?Great high school. I first met Murchison and I love that he cares [so] much. I thought, ‘he must have a lot of quality people around him’ and I wanted to be part of that.

How do you think your photo in the newspaper will turn out?I’ll probably look like a propeller head.

Mr. Willer (Math)Interviewed by Phi Nguyen

What were you categorized as in high school?An athletic nerd. I was a competitive swimmer, but I also loved school a little too much.Where do you see yourself in ten years?Eventually I want to run for political office, nothing big though, or write a book.Do you have anything interesting you would like to tell The Voice?I took Algebra 1 twice, Algebra 2 twice, Geometry twice, Pre-calculus twice, and calculus twice... because I wanted to.

Mr. Domingo (Spanish)Interviewed by Samiha Baseer

What were you categorized in high school?I moved from Guatemala in my last year of high school. I considered myself the foreign kid.What was your first impression of Irvington?The students are goal-oriented and focused. For example, at American High School you have to motivate a stu-dent, but here the students are more self-motivated.What do you like to do in your free time?I love to dance salsa. I go out and dance at a club in Berkeley every Wednesday.

What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?We went rafting in Nepal, and I jumped into the water before I realized I wasn’t a swimmer. I was alright, though.

Where is the most interesting place you have been and why?Jaselmaer, India because there were deserts and we camped out at night, I enjoyed the food and dance.What do you like about Irvington?I think it’s great! Everyone helps, has a good attitude toward newcomers, and the students are fantastic.

Ms. Sharma (Science)Interviewed by Kriti Gupta

Mr. Phillips (English)Interviewed by Annie Wang

What were you categorized as in high school?I was more of a jock in middle school. In high school, I was more into skating and bothering my teachers. My friends were kind of nerds, but I wasn’t one.How do you think your photo in the newspaper will look?Fierce and bushy.

What was your most em-barrassing moment in high school?It was at the final round of a speech and drama meet, where I inadvertently made fun of a guy with no legs. I was mortified when I real-ized what I had done.

Ms. Pardini (French)Interviewed by Raji Ramanathan

What were you categorized as in high school? I was pretty active, and I did do drama and music. I was part of the French Club. I also started the GSA Club in high school.What did you do before you came to Irvington?I sold Vector CutCo® Knives in college and during the summer. It was an excellent business.What are your hobbies?I love to travel. France is an amazing country to go to. If you go there , make sure you try some French cheese. They are the best!

Ms. Russell (History)Interviewed by Sri Ravipati

What was your most embarrassing moment in high school?When I ran for student body president, I ran on about a platform of including shorts in the dress code. I was the only person in four years to get a detention—and the reason was because I wore shorts!What were you categorized as in high school? I went to a small high school, so there weren’t any categories, but I’d definitely say a drama, nerd, forensics geek.

How do you think your photo in the newspaper will turn out?Horrible because I’m seriously having a bad hair day. Also, I have no color in my skin... when I go to a club, if there’s a black light, I glow!

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By Shalika Gupta

And the winner for Best Actor in a Drama Series goes to James….Spader? Who the heck is James

Spader? James Gandolfini, who

ntertainmente 6 | The Voice 16.1

4) Argue to your teacher that it is only 4:35 a.m. in Honolulu.

2) Skip brushing your teeth and doing your hair.

1) Catch a ride with a teacher on your way to school.

3) Turn back all the clocks on campus.

By Marlo Yonocruz

The Sopranos went home with Best Drama Series, which was a relief after they somehow managed to lose oth-ers. America Ferrera deserved her win as Best Actress for a com-

edy series, which was the show’s only big award. Also, Katherine Heigl surprisingly won for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama. Heigl managed to beat her own costars Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson.

HowToBeAtSchoolOnTime

Neil Patrick Harris, from How I Met Your Mother, deserved to go home with the Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy. Brothers and Sis-ters is not very popular, yet Sally Fields won for Best Actress in a Drama. While she acts amaz-ingly in the show, she has won enough already.

Fall TV Necessities

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

By Ashwin Shanker

The Good

The Ugly

The Bad

Photos: Milan Kantaria

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Kavita GaddamStore Owner

3948 Washington BlvdFremont, CA 94538P (510) 226 6550 F (510) 226-6659E kavita@cwfremint.com

This years fall telivi-sion is going to be good. New and returning shows are prov-ing to be very promising. The Reaper (Tues-days 9:00, CW) focuses on a 21-year old Sam (Bret Har-rison) and his life after his parents decide to sell his soul to the devil. While his parents have their own reasons for this sudden change, Sam is terri-fied by his new responsibilities, which include helping return escaped souls to hell. Greatly adding to the show’s comic relief is Sam’s best friend and sidekick Sock (Tyler Labine). While the supernatural theme has been prevalent, much due to the success of the sci-fi hit Heroes, The Reaper offers more than others in the sci-fi genre by bringing humor into the mix, making for one of the best bets for this season. Private Practice (Wednesdays 9:00, ABC) was another highly anticipated show this season, however, af-ter receiving mediocre reviews after its “pilot” episode last spring, the show’s creator and producers decided to make some changes in casting, in-cluding adding Audra Mc-Donald to fill the role of Dr. Naomi Bennet, main charac-ter Dr. Addison Shepherd’s best friend and colleague. The show did not seem to have anything new to offer, and the storylines were little more than slower paced cases from Grey’s Anatomy. While the

character Addison (Kate Walsh) is beloved by many Grey’s fans, she may not be enough to draw viewers for a whole season. As for returning shows, Heroes, seems to be off to a great start again, as its season premiere drawing over 10 percent more viewers than last season number and receiving great reviews from its viewers. Critics were wary that the show would be able to main-tain its viewership, but the two episodes so far has proven that Heroes will continue to be one of the most watched shows on television. The season premiere began with the introduction of a slew of new characters, including Maya Herrera (Dania Ramirez). The show kept to its slow pac-ing as before, focusing more on reacquainting viewers with each character’s new storyline after they saved the world four months previously.show when it was revealed that Takezo Kensei (Da-vid Anders) was not exactly the Japanese hero that Hiro (Masi Oka) had imagined, but a drunk English sailor who came to Japan to find riches. Fall’s most anticipated series premiere, Pushing Daisies (Wednesdays 8:00, ABC) lived up to the hype, as the first episode was truly like nothing else on television. From the vivid sets to the bizarre plot, the show is in-teresting to watch. While the, at times, ironic sense of humor may not be for everyone, the show was engaging, and the plot line seems limitless. The plot focused on Ned (Lee Pace), a man who

can bring the dead back from life with one touch, however, another touch and the now-living will be dead again and this time for good. Ned is a pie-mak-er, and runs a somewhat controversial side business: touching dead people to find out who murdered them to collect their re-ward money. This odd occupation results in Ned’s discovery that one of his friends has been murdered. He rushes to save her, but after bringing her back to life and helping to solve the mystery behind her mur-der, he has to deal with the reality of never being able to touch her again. This show proves promising for the future. The Office (Thursdays 9:00, NBC), was off to a weak start with the season premiere, however, the show seems to be returning to its previ-ous glory after the second episode. With the depar-ture of Karen, Pam and Jim began rebuilding their new relationship. Unfortu-nately, everyone’s favorite couple, Dwight Schrute and Angela Martin (Dwangela) split up after the death of a beloved pet. Awkward humor and an amazing cast continue to keep The Office among the ranks of the television elite.

With two highly suc-cessful albums under their belt, the Canadian band Hot Hot Heat headed back to the studio to try again. Yet, after the new record’s release, it would appear they lucked out. Though the CD does include some pleasing, perhaps even jumpable, tunes like “Let Me In,” “Give Up,” and “My Best Fiend,” its overall presenta-tion fits together awkwardly. It would appear that the band was going through an innovative

stage and decided to try out a few different genres at the same time. As a result, the record has several different types of songs and the transitions are somewhat disagree-able. These mishaps might be the result of the lead singer’s recent breakup with his long time girlfriend, which resulted in the album title and song Happiness LTD. Whatever the case, the new compilation, with a few shining exceptions, does not match the band’s previous records.

By Rebeccah Warmack

Hot Hot Heat’s CD falls flat

Music Review

was the amazing lead in The So-pranos, managed to lose to James Spader, who I did not even know was nominated. Then, Best Actor in a Comedy Series was given to Ricky Gervais (Extras), while I believe that either Alec Baldwin or Steve Carrell should have gone home with the award. Best Com-edy Series went to 30 Rock, which is critically acclaimed, but watched by a dangerously low number of people. I was expecting Ugly Betty to win, but I was hoping that The Office would win (come on, who doesn’t love The Office). And Ryan Seacrest was annoying, as usual.

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Rating: ★★✩✩✩

Tips to avoid a lunch detention

By Shalika Gupta

SSPORTOctober 2007 | 7

The word “pressure” is often misunderstood and misused. To some people, pres-sure is the impending doom of getting a B+ in calculus; others eat, drink and breathe pressure to perform sports at their best. We’ve all been there:the last penalty kick, the game winning free throw, or even the championship point of a ping pong tournament. Facing ridicu-lous odds, we can’t help but to be swayed by pressure to succeed. Pressure is an interesting physiological phenomenon, be-cause when you think of pressure, you’re already thinking of the possibility of failure. So in theory, if someone is one hundred per-cent confident of his or her skills, then there ought to be no pres-sure. Realistically, however, we can never ever be one hundred percent confident in any sport. Speaking from past experiences and past failures, I can confidently say that pressure has not helped me in the most crucial moments of my bad-minton career. When the whole match comes down to the last couple of points, it is important to push pressure aside and focus on winning one point at a time. Though it sounds cliché and simple, most people are not capable of doing this, including myself. Often times, when you feel pressure to win, your op-ponent feels exactly the same way. At the end of a match, it is not a competition of skill and fitness anymore; it is a competi-tion of mental strength. The person who can focus better than his or her opponent has the better chance of winning. As athletes of all sorts of sports, we share the same drive to win. It is vital to know that in the midst of competition, we should not let the outcome of the match deter us from performing our best. I cannot say how to over-come pressure in all instances, but what I know for sure is that we all either give in to it or face it.

By Shawn Li

Photo: Neal Patel

and ThinkReady, Set

I H S F O O T B A L LQ: What’s the one thing you do before every game to help you get ready?

“I put my left shoe on and then the right. I also like to lay out all my gear; it helps me stay organized.”

“I stretch and listen to music by myself. It helps me keep my focus.”

“I always say a prayer, ‘let my reads be true and my tackles be strong.’”

“I like to run the plays through my head, which helps me keep my head in the game and it motivates me.”

Brittley Tringali

Mark Gailey

David Blondin

Kurt Kaufman

Girls crush Washington and Newark as season begins

the varsity girls as a whole are solid. “I’m very pleased,” said coach Skye Kovach. “We’ve made more progress than I could have foreseen. And with a few injuries on the [girls’] team, we have yet to run 100%.” The remainder of the team was defeated by Newark, with the Frosh Soph boys and JV girls only narrowly losing. The girls have even been shining at prominent invitationals such as Ed Sias and De La Salle. At Ed Sias, the first race of the season, the girls placed ninth out of 18 teams, and at De La Salle they placed 12th out of 33 teams. Rebeccah placed 16th out of 125 and 24th out of 225 runners, re-spectively. Where the girls are headed from here is yet to be seen. Their eyes are set on the biggest prize. “My goal this year is for the girls to make it to state. I’m excited that we’re so close!” said Haley. The varsity girls are on the course toward a legacy; they just need to keep their pace for the long road ahead.

Lately, the varsity girls’ cross-country team as been set-ting an even greater pace than usual. Last year, varsity runner Catherine Crinigan reached the state level, a first for Irvington. On top of that, the varsity girls collectively placed second at MVALs, with Washington being the only team to beat them. Well, the girls got sweet revenge on Sept. 18, when they demolished Washington 19-39 (lower score wins). Juniors Rebec-cah Warmack, Haley Smolinski, and Catherine Crinigan placed first, second, and fourth, respec-tively, with sophomore Renee Tran rounding out the top five. The JV girls also beat Washington by the narrow score of 29-27, while the Frosh Soph, JV and Varsity boys’ teams lost. On Sept. 26, Irvington raced Newark, soundly beating them 23-33, with juniors Rebec-cah Warmack and Haley Smo-linski once again placing first and second. With Rebeccah and Haley smoking the competition,

By Salman Qasim

Varsity Girls’ XC Reaches Full Stride

Photos: Teresa DeLuz

Irvington Girls’ Tennis Creates a New LegacyBy Mishu Sharma

The Lady Vikings started their season off with a smash, earning themselves a league score of 3-1. Girls’ ten-nis beat Washington, Newark Memorial, and American, but were defeated by Mission 3-4. The coaches anticipated the girls doing well this season, but the Lady Vikings managed to go above and beyond dur-ing their match against Logan. On Oct. 2, the Lady Vikings took on the Colts and defied history. Even though matches started late due to delays, the motivation of players from both teams did not diminish. During the first hour of play, Irvington managed to get in the lead because of the wins contributed by junior Tara Kuri-hara and senior Sonam Malhi. As more and more matches started getting off the

courts, the Vikings proved to be triumphant. The number one doubles and number two doubles teams won their matches, in-creasing Irvington’s lead to 4-1. Even though Irvington had secured a victory as soon as they won four of their matches, the remaining varsity games were nonetheless entertaining. Both freshman Niveditha Pura-nikmath and sophomore Lucia Wang annihilated their oppo-nents, boosting up Irvington’s score to 6-1. It was the first time in eight years that girls’ ten-nis defeated Logan. Savoring the mo-ment, the Vikings went crazy and screamed for three minutes continuously. “I am so proud of my girls,” said Coach Amber. “I know they worked hard and they deserve their victory.”

Senior Sonam Malhi prepares to smack that all on the court!

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Sopho-more Renee Tran speeds to the finish line.

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By Teresa De Luz

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Humor8 | The Voice 16.1

The worst nightmare just came true. Yes, DECA cookies have disappeared from Irvington High School. WHY, STATE OF CALIFORNIA, WHY? I speak for every IHS student who has ever tasted a DECA cookie when I say, “PLEASE fi nd a place in your heart to give us back the cookies.” We raised our STAR testing scores, so we deserve these little morsels of goodness. Every Wednesday, hun-dreds of students report to the courtyard to get a sniff of those oh-so-good cookies. This year, many will be bitterly disappointed as they drift about, searching for the bits of heaven in vain. The Class of 2011 is perplexed about how a simple cookie could claim the hearts of a whole student population. Irvington’s campus has become full of suddenly overweight students who need

By Ashwin ShankerDECA Cookies are… GONEWill Life Go On?

After fi nals, the P.E. teachers use the swimming pool to make Jell-O and give it to the students with the best Buum times.

Nobody dresses up for Home-coming Week.

October 17 is international Bring Your Pillow to School Day.

Irvington Tube Sock Apprecia-tion Club meets in the new caf-eteria during lunch on Tuesdays.

Some girls’ bathrooms are equipped with a gum ball dis-pensing machine.

There is a fl ush button at the bot-tom of the swimming pool in case the water gets too dirty.

“Irvington,” once rearranged, spells out “I am meaty”.

Most English teachers accept es-says written on Post-It notes, but make sure it’s in pen!

By Rachel Li

Tips for incoming freshman and ignorant seniors

Did You Know?

their cookies. Many have gained pounds due to detrimental ef-fects of lack of chocolate. Some students have even started trans-ferring to Kennedy, who is known for secretive sales on campus. DECA, a business-orientated club, is equally tor-mented. Due to regulations from the big bad State of California, this club might lose their profi t source. DECA is contemplating selling t-shirts, but they know no one gives a #%*&, unless they’re made of sugar. A group of students have decided to argue this trag-edy in court. These students all claimed that while DECA cook-ies were still being sold, they all had maintained good grades and were quite skinny. Now that they can’t get their weekly dose, they have all ventured out to try every other type of cookie out there. The result? They are now all fat.

Zune releases Zune Nano, Apple claims foul play

Irvington switches school colors to black and white to save costs

Facebook creates new applica-tion: online dating service

Student caught using steroids for sixth grade spelling bee; banned for two years

New record highs for benchbuild-ing attendance; four students

New teacher stuck teaching on tennis courts because of lack of rooms

Voice staffer writes mediocre headlines

By Phi Nguyen

Monthly Headlines

Photo: Phi Nguyen

Local student to get pwned at Halo 3.

Half of student body absent on Sep. 25; other half do not know the signifi cance of date

10. Run into Wal-Mart and yell, “I’m okay!” and run out again.9. Hide in the clothing racks, and while people are shopping say things like, “pick me, pick me.”8. Load shopping carts with the most random stuff you can fi nd, and place them in strategic loca-tions.7. Walk up to an employee and tell him in an offi cial tone, “I think we’ve got a Code 3 in house wares,” and see what happens.6. Play some ghetto music in the music section and go dumb.5. Follow an employee around the whole day and constantly ask them what they’re doing .4. Ask male employees if they know where the tampons are.3. Granny panties! Put them in people’s carts without looking; drape them over everything in the store.2. Set off alarm clocks at intervals of every ten minutes.1. While handling guns in the hunting department, suddenly ask the clerk if he knows where the anti-depressants are.

Top 10 Things to Do at

Wal-MartBy Sri Ravipati

Sophomore Lavanya Kumar knows how to have fun at Wal-Mart.

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This year, Irvington High School surprisingly has myriad optimistic students from the class of 2011. Their plans not only include doing well in class, but also winning the Spirit Week competition. There is speculation about freshmen actually winning the Triple Crown from the senior class, a feat without precedence. “Anything is possible if we believe hard enough,” said two zealous freshmen in unison as they frolicked across a meadow of blooming daisies, surrounded by unicorns and rainbows. “We are the most spirited freshmen EVER.” “That’s nonsense, blas-phemy and madness all in one,” said a senior. “When I was a freshman, my class lost to the se-niors in a game of ‘Who Can Act

The underclassmen think they can win over the seniors

Reality Check To Freshmen

By Marlo YonocruzMore Like Freshmen.’ That really chapped my behind. Our impres-sion of freshmen looking lost in the courtyard during lunch was way better than their impression of freshmen looking lost in the courtyard during lunch, and yet, they still won. Now that we’re seniors, we plan on actually win-ning something.” Even the faculty believes that the freshmen class owning the seniors is nearly impossible. “Yeah, I doubt that,” said new teacher Mr. Larry Ngo. “It doesn’t matter how fast you are or how cool you look when you solve a Rubik’s Cube; if you are com-peting against seniors, losing is inevitable. Seniors win no matter how lousy their performance is. But freshmen winning the Triple Crown? Sorry guys, but that’s just impossible.”

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The most creative designs get extra credit.

“Son, if you really want some-thing in this life, you have to work for it. Now quiet! They’re about to announce the lottery num-bers.” - Homer Simpson

“Hard work never killed anybody. But why take the chance?”- Unknown

“I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.” - Yogi Berra

“Smoking kills, and if you’re killed, you’ve lost a very impor-tant part of your life.” - Brooke Shields

“I respect knowledge of the psyche. I would be a therapist if

Random Words of WisdomI wasn’t an entertainer.”- Jessica Simpson

“Half this game is ninety percent mental.” - Danny Ozark

“If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?”- Unknown

“Never pass up an opportunity to keep your mouth shut.” - Paul Miller

“Like many women at my age, I’m 28 years old.” - Mary Schmich

“People always ask me: “Were you funny as a child?’ Well, I was an accountant.” - Ellen DeGeneres

By Mishu Sharma

Photo: Marlo Yonocruz