Monday, Oct 31

Today in class we discussed the article in the NYT titled "Cruel Trick of Weather Sows Havoc in the East" and I had planned on writing about it here anyways because it definitely caught my eye. The article was about the October snowstorm that hit on Saturday and went into early Sunday morning. It explained that in some places, damage was worse than the damage after Hurricane Irene. In CT, where I'm from, Governor Malloy even declared a state of emergency (there were 12+ inches in some places which is wild because up until this point in time, the record for that day was less than 1/10 of an inch!). What I really found interesting was how the reporter first discussed the damage, then Halloween, and then global warming. At first glance, I thought this was really neat how the reporter showed a bigger picture than just another storm. The article explained that this doesn't prove or disprove that global warming is real and happening and I thought that weaving this into the story of a current event was very creative and appealing. It showed that this one event might be part of something bigger, or hey, it might not be.

Monday, Oct 31 In-class exercise

Rare spotted leopard cannot be found in Durham Zoo

By Cady Kolnaski

DURHAM - Confusion and contradiction surrounded the Durham Zoo this morning when Fluffy, a rare spotted leopard, could not be found and zoo officials and police tried to explain what was going on to visitors and local residents.

Fluffy, a 10-year-old, 146-pound Romanian spotted leopard was reported missing by a visitor to the zoo at 7:30 a.m.

The zoo was closed by nine a.m. to allow for searches to take place. Police and zoo employees were dashing frantically around the zoo, some carrying high-powered rifles and others clutching their holstered pistols, searching everywhere for the spotted leopard.

James Petronkis, a resident of Newmarket and daily visitor to the zoo, said when he arrived at Fluffy’s cage he knew something was wrong. “She usually draws the straw up into a nest when she sleeps, but there was no nest – there wasn’t even any straw.”

He further explained that he was dismissed by a guard when he expressed his concern, causing him to pull the fire alarm to get the attention of the directors and employees.

 Petronkis was told she was in her “little house” and to not worry. Thirty minutes later, when Fluffy still hadn’t made an appearance, employees checked the house and found that Fluffy was not there.

“All hell broke loose,” Petronkis commented.

Gerry Durrell, the director of the zoo, explained during a press conference this morning that they were doing everything possible to find Fluffy and bring her back. “We love that cat,” he said. “We don’t want to lose her.”

He explained that everything in her cage seemed normal, adding that “the door was shut and did not appear to have been tampered with.” 

Employees were searching the grounds of the zoo, but Police Chief William Blair stated that if they could not find her in the zoo, they would begin searching the neighborhood.

“We are concerned because this is a residential neighborhood with an elementary school and we don’t want Fluffy wandering around after the kids get out of school,” Blair explained.

According to Kitty Smith, the zoo’s chief biologist, the animal is “extremely dangerous,” adding that these leopards were on the brink of extinction in Romania “because of their appetite for young children.”

Officials are hoping to find the leopard before three p.m. or else “it could be a very messy night,” according to Blair.

Blair has asked the New Hampshire State Police and the state wildlife department to aid in the search for the missing animal. Officials will search every inch of the zoo before moving outward, farther and farther away from the zoo until she is found.

The National Guard is supplying five helicopters with infrared sensors to help locate her.

“We’re gonna find this cat if it kills us,” Blair added before leaving to aid in the search.

Wednesday, Oct 26

I keep seeing articles with the name Perry in the titles, specifically in the Nation section of the NYT, so today I decided to read one and see who exactly this Perry character is. Apparently, he is a Republican and Governor of Texas and he is running for the office of President in 2012. Until I started reading the NYT, I had never heard of Perry and my only knowledge of politics in Texas is about the Tom DeLay messiness that went on at least five or so years ago. I found two articles in the NYT about Perry today and I chose to read "Perry’s Emphasis on Birther Issue: A Wink at the Right?" because it sounded interesting - I mean, what on earth is the "Birther Issue"? Apparently Perry believes President Obama was not born in the United States and he, along with members of the "birther movement", think that Obama occupies the presidency illegally. Personally, I find it pretty amusing that people are questioning the validity of Obama's birth certificate and what not because in reality, we voted him into office so hey if he for some reason really is in there illegally, whose fault is that? I just think it's funny but more sad and discouraging how willing people are to slander one another in pursuit of their own goals and aspirations. Since when is it acceptable to dirty someone's name in order to get what you want? I understand that that's politics and the society in which we live, but it just doesn't seem right or fair. Just another thing to think about!

Tuesday, Oct 25

After yesterday's article about more animals dying and being slaughtered (even with bans prohibiting that and what not) I was relieved to see no articles about animals today - whether good or bad. I did, however, come across an article about children spending too much time in front of screens (TV screens, iPad screens, video game screens, etc). I found the following quote to be pretty interesting... "Despite the American Academy of Pediatrics’ longstanding recommendations to the contrary, children under 8 are spending more time than ever in front of screens..." Personally, I've seen so many children under the age of ten or so given "iPad time" for the more affluent or "TV time" for the less affluent (according to the article that is how the break up between screens is made) whether it be when I'm babysitting or teaching tennis lessons. I taught lessons to a family from NYC this summer and the mother always came and watched the lessons on Saturdays and Sundays. She usually brought her daughter along to the tennis courts and if she behaved, she was rewarded with five or ten minutes on the iPad. I just remember always being outside and doing things when I was younger and rarely remember being rewarded with TV or computer time even though I know it was common even then. I'm interested to see how the "app gap" as researchers are calling this age group of children with so much technology will diff from other generations. Who knows!

Monday, Oct 24

I couldn't help but notice another article about the slaughtering of animals on the front page of the NYT today. Just last week the Times featured an article about an exotic farm owner who released his animals (tigers, lions, bears, leopards, monkeys, etc) before committing suicide. More than 48 of his animals were killed by police following "shoot-to-kill" orders. Although I understand the animals could've been dangerous, I wish they had been tranquilized or something because the thought of those animals dying kills me. In this article, the victims are horses. I didn't even realize horses could be (and are) consumed by people. What are "tare de cheval" and "basashi sashimi" and if there is a ban on the slaughtering of horses, how come they are still being consumed in other countries? One of the latent dysfunctions of this ban on horse slaughter is that just as many horses are being "destined for dinner plates", just not in the U.S. The article features a breeder who takes in starving horses and he even said that the ban hasn't improved the lives of horses. I understand the need for newspapers to report all the news that is out there - we need to be aware of what is going on in the world around us - but please, no more stories about animal slaughter (or at least I hope not).

Thursday, Oct 20

The NYT usually has a few light-hearted (or at least not super negative) stories in it every day, maybe to balance out the amount of negative news stories and events going on in the world around us. Today, however, I struggled to find something optimistic. There was a story about exotic animals being killed after they were released onto an Ohio reserve, which I didn't read because anything having to do with hurting animals really bothers me - I just don't have the stomach for issues with animals. There were a bunch of articles in the National section about the upcoming election, which I can't believe is in about a year! It seems like only yesterday I was a senior in high school, anxious for the presidential (and even local) election so that I could vote for the very first time. Many of the articles featured stories about candidates and the "bad blood" between certain ones, among other things. I'm starting to realize how much work really goes into putting a newspaper together because the massive number of stories written on such vast topic areas is unbelievable to me, and the fact that they produce this paper every single day is remarkable. I think I have taken for granted the fact that newspapers do all of this hard work to provide us, the readers, with information they've deemed necessary to give us. Just something to think about on this rainy day!

Tuesday, Oct 18

I couldn't really find anything that I wanted to read in the NYT today, at least in the sections that I usually browse and read from like the front page, the world section, the U.S. section, (and lately the business day section), etc, but today I figured I'd take a look at the science-based section of the paper, section D I believe. Most of the articles sounded too advanced for me, even though I've heard that the NYT is written at a third-grade reading level (I could be wrong though). An article in the section, "Not Such a Stretch to Reach for the Stars", caught my attention initially simply because of the title. When I started reading the article, I couldn't believe what I was reading was real because it discussed visiting the stars (in the future, of course), what it would take to create an engine that could propel a starship, the fact that an engine like that could destroy the planet, and so much more. None of the information made sense to me because although I realize technology has made amazing advances in this field, it's crazy (but I guess not too crazy) to think that traveling to the stars is possible in the somewhat near future. The article mentioned that NASA's future is uncertain, but the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Darpa, is the organization heading this possible century-long space project. The name of the organization, specifically the word "defense", makes me wonder what we are defending ourselves from... Anyways, it's articles like this one that make me realize just how small our world, and even our planet, are!

Monday, Oct 17

There was an article in the NYT today about Amazon encouraging writers of all genres to "cast aside their publishers" and join up with them instead. The article, "Amazon Signing Up Authors, Writing Publishers Out of Deal", says that this fall alone, Amazon will publish 122 books of various genres in both physical and e-book form. This will cause Amazon to be in direct competition with top publishing companies and I'm interested to see how the big publishing companies and publishers respond to this. I, personally, love love love to read and have for years. I remember laying in my bed with a flashlight balanced on my shoulder trying to stay awake and finish another chapter in one of the Chronicles of Narnia books, among countless others. For a little while, I've thought about entering the publishing world after college and pursuing a career in the field. It's strange to think of Amazon possibly being a publishing powerhouse because it's such a successful company already. Who knows if it'll do well but with the amazing success of the Kindle and other e-readers, as well as e-books, Amazon seems to be heading in the right direction with acquiring writers and authors as well.

Monday, Oct 17 In-class exercise

Proposal for Saturday detentions sparks controversy

Portsmouth – A motion to approve a new policy on Saturday morning detention sessions for students with disciplinary problems was presented at a Portsmouth School Board meeting, meaning students would be trading in sleeping in their beds for sitting at their desks.

Tim Steele, the board member who made the motion, explained that the policy would require students to attend Saturday detention sessions from 8 a.m. until noon.

During discussion of the proposal, Peggy Bacon, a parent, said she was not in favor of the new rule. She commented that it is hard enough to get her son off to school five days a week and that parents shouldn’t have to worry about doing that on Saturday as well.

“I just don’t think it’s going to make any difference,” she said. “The parents are going to pay for it – in higher taxes as well as in ruined Saturdays.”

The new disciplinary measure is being proposed in an effort to reduce the number of in-house suspensions. Students in in-house suspensions are not allowed to make up class work they missed during that day. Students caught smoking in the high school bathrooms are automatically given in-house suspensions, meaning they miss an entire day of class time and work.

Proponents believe this will ultimately help students because they would not miss class time or class work.

Furthermore, Steele hopes the threat of Saturday detentions will cause students to re-think breaking school rules and policies.

Resident Bob Farley, a proponent of the proposal, said he liked the idea of the new rules and commented that it was time for parents in America to take responsibility for their children.

“That’s the whole problem,” he explained, “parents aren’t teaching their kids any discipline, so the kids have no respect for the rules.” He believes that if students have to sacrifice a few Saturday mornings then maybe they will start acting appropriately.

If a student chooses to skip a Saturday session, however, “he or she would not be allowed to return to school until the detention has been served,” according to Steele.

Lisa Gallagher, a senior who attended the meeting, responded to the repercussions for missing a Saturday session, saying “What are they going to do, make them stay all weekend?”

Gallagher believes the point of the new rule is make life easier for school faculty, meaning they won’t have to deal with detentions during the school week.

The school board voted 5-3 to table the issue until the next meeting, March 7, when Steele is to return at that time with figures on in-school detentions for the current school year.

Friday, Oct 14

The article "Eating Disorders a New Front in Insurance Fight" caught my eye this morning when I picked up the paper from my local market because I came home for the weekend. I was hoping to find some articles on the protests going on in Hartford and Boston because my brother told me a lot about them last night and I wanted to learn more but this article seemed interesting just by the title. When I was in high school I found out that one of my close friends had an eating disorder, and luckily, she received help and has been on a healthier track ever since. However, the focus of this article is how people with eating disorders, like anorexia, are having trouble getting the support they need from health insurance in order to go to in residential treatment centers. This goes for other mental disorders as well. The article states that insurance companies have "re-emphasized" that they do not financially support people like this. There was a decision made in California that insurance companies have to pay for in residential treatments but that case has now gone to appellate court so it will be interesting to see how that plays out!

Tuesday, Oct 11

In the article "Stutterer Speaks Up in Class; His Professor Says Keep Quiet" a student was told not to speak during class because of his noticeable (and apparently distracting - words of the teacher, not mine) stutter. From what I can tell, this professor is painted negatively by her mistreatment of the student but the article also says that students really like her and respect her. For that, I think the writer deserves some credit because at first it seemed as though the article was very much against the professor, but by showing her respectability it gave the article less of a critical-sounding element. I do, however, think it is unbelievable that an educator would deter students from participating in a class by asking questions and answering questions. I understand the points made in the article about how there is an interesting and complex balance between the needs of an individual and the good of a group, but I feel bad for Garber, the student featured. He should not be discriminated against for his disability - if I can even call it that since I guess it is not recognized as a disability by most universities - especially since he is willing and eager to participate in the learning environment. I found this story somewhat discouraging because I believe in the power of teaching and education and this educator seems to have made a mistake that turned out to be more serious than I'm assuming she expected it to be. I'm interested to see where this issue goes. I wonder what UNH's response the this article is...

Tuesday, Oct 11 In-class exercise

The following is my article for the in-class writing exercise we did today. My outline looked like this:
- Main point: A young man saved an elderly man's life this morning
- Next point: What happened first? (Laboke's role)
- Next point: What happened next? (Paradiso and the role of the police)
- Next point: Status of the victim
- Final point: Afterthoughts on the incident (Laboke's thoughts, comments on his character from his boss)

And here is the article I came up with...

Old Orchard Beach - James Laboke, a resident of Old Orchard Beach, Maine for three years, wakes up at 5 a.m. every morning and walks four miles to his job at the Eezy Breezy Restaurant on East Grand Street waiting on tables.

This morning, however, Laboke came across a car that was stalled on nearby train tracks with a driver who appeared to be unconscious. He ran 100 yards to the police station on Pier Street where he reported what he saw to officials at 6 a.m. The police report said Laboke “pounded on the window but the driver remained unconscious”.

Janet Paradiso, a captain on the police force, was a mile away from the railroad crossing when she received the call on her cruiser’s radio about the stranded vehicle on the train tracks. She arrived at the scene at 6:05 a.m., five minutes before the scheduled 6:10 a.m. Amtrak Downeaster train was due to pass through Old Orchard Beach.

Upon arrival, Paradiso heard the approaching train’s whistle and later explained that she “knew there was no time”. She knew she needed to do something.

Chief of Police Brian Paul explained that Paradiso then rammed her police cruiser into the stationary vehicle, pushing it from the tracks.

Thirty seconds later, the scheduled train passed through the railroad crossing at 40 miles per hour.

“It was that close,” Paul said.

The driver of the vehicle was 80-year-old Francois Truffault, from Quebec City, Canada, who said he has been coming to Old Orchard Beach since he was a child.

He was brought to Southern Maine Medical Center after the incident where he said that he did not remember a thing. He also added that he was a diabetic, which could have caused him to go into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing in his vehicle.

Truffault was listed in stable condition.

Laboke, a 17-year-old refugee from Afghanistan, told police he never thought about his actions. He continued, “I couldn’t let that man get crushed by a train.”

Laboke’s boss and owner of the Eezy Breezy Restaurant, Charles Champaigne, commented on his employee’s actions, saying “That young man is one of my most responsible employees.”

Monday, Oct 10

I keep finding myself reading articles about the media, whether it be how the media is affecting the protests and rebellions all over the world or how the media affects education and children, etc. Today I chose to focus on an article from the Business Day section (a section I rarely pay attention to as I mentioned in an earlier blog simply because I never really find articles that I find interesting in it, but lately I have). The article "A Protest's Ink-Stained Fingers" was about the Occupy Wall Street demonstration in Zuccotti Park where demonstrators have created a newspaper and have been handing it out to city-goers on Wall Street. The Occupied Wall Street Journal is a four page document of the demonstration which began almost a month ago. The part of this article I really liked was a few paragraphs in where the writer discussed how uncommon print newspapers are becoming but how this particular publication has been "eagerly received" in the city. The following paragraph is what I really liked about the article. It reads: "Forgive an old newspaper hack a moment of sentimentality, but it is somehow reassuring that a newspaper still has traction in an environment preoccupied by social media. It makes sense when you think about it: newspapers convey a sense of place, of actually being there, that digital media can’t. When is the last time somebody handed you a Web site?" How true is that? I thought the writer did a great job of creating a little bit of sarcasm here about handing someone a web site, but maybe I only found that comment amusing because I, too, suffer with technology and its advances. All in all, it's obvious how present the media is on our lives and this story was just another example of it but in a new, refreshing way because it showed how this small publication is doing well in a time when everything seems to be going paperless.

Wednesday, Oct. 5

I wanted to write about the Amanda Knox case today because there was another article in the NYT about the trial, her image, and what not. This article, titled "A Court Fight and a Tireless Battle Over an Image" had a lot of similar elements to it as the one I read yesterday in the paper but what I thought was really interesting about this one was the focus on the media. In general, I think the media is a fascinating thing and the way it has developed over the span of my short 20-year life is unbelievable (but by no means am I saying it has only positives and no negatives). Whether Amanda Knox committed the crime she was acquitted of or not, her image to the people of Italy and more specifically Perugia, will always be tainted because the media coverage on the incident was insane. She was portrayed as a "she-devil" during the trial but her public relations company specializing in crisis management has helped portray her in a better light now. Moral of the story, I am amazed at the power the media can play and for Knox's sake, I hope the media in the U.S. is a little less critical of her now that she has been acquitted.

Tuesday, Oct 4

I was instantly drawn to the article about Amanda Knox and the verdict of her trial for many reasons (besides the fact that it has been in the news for awhile now). For instance, I found her case both interesting and confusing because she is pretty close in age to me, she was studying abroad when her life began spiraling out of control, and much more. The fact that something as scary, confusing, complicated, etc. as this trial and all the events that brought on the trial could happen to someone just like me was hard for me to wrap my mind around. I really can't say whether I believe she is innocent or guilty and I think the writer of this article deserves some credit for that. Povoledo did a very good job of staying unbiased and presenting both sides of the trial and overall story, leaving me with only my views and beliefs to decide whether or not I agree with the appellate court ruling or not. Povoledo makes a good point at the end of the article when she writes that the Italian justice system will most definitely be facing some scrutiny for holding two innocent people in prison (and especially Knox because she was away from home the entire time) for the entirety of the court and trial proceedings. All in all, I enjoyed this article because I felt like at the end of reading it, I was left with only my judgment to decide whether I agree or disagree with the ruling and I was not swayed either way throughout the entire article.

Monday, Oct 3

Today I had trouble finding articles that I was genuinely interested in and wanted to read in the newspaper today. The front page didn't really have anything I was interested in - an article on tax breaks, another on Mexican immigrants resuming lives in the U.S., and many more. I turned to the Business Day section, a section I NEVER read just because I never seem to understand the things discussed in it, or maybe I just thought I wouldn't understand the things discussed in the section. Nonetheless, I figured I'd try it out today and actually found an article called "Social Media News Site Gains Clout". One quote that I found especially interesting was the following: "Mr. Wiesel, who wondered aloud during the talk what might have happened if Moses - and also Hitler - had used social media tools to get their messages across, was trending worldwide on Twitter." I wrote on my blog last week about an article about the unrest and rebellion happening in countries all over the world and how technology has played a role in grouping people together in order to gain power. It's crazy to think about the power the Internet and social media tools have and could have if people used them in unintended uses or functions. Just food for thought!

Monday, Oct. 3 In-class exercise

After refusing to divulge the names of the perpertrators of the prank on Headmaster Trask, Charlie Simms, the headmaster recommended to the disciplinary committe that Simms be expelled.

Outraged at the apparent injustice, Lt. Col. Frank Slade, sitting beside Simms, exclaimed that Simms was "not a snitch" before continuing on to passionately defend his decision to not give up the names of the perpertrators.


Slade warned the prep school to be wary of the kind of leaders they are making at the establishment, explaining that they lack leaders with integrity and courage. Furthermore, he says that Simms is symbolic of the leaders they should be creating.