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Trick or treat!

Those three words fill the streets once a year on the last day of October. Kids of all ages walk through neighborhoods decked out in all sorts of costumes from vampires to superheroes. No house is left unchecked as children run from street to street ringing door bells and lugging bags or candy; that grow increasingly heavy as the night progresses. But at what age should the magic fade- if any? When should kids grow up and leave trick or treating to a younger generation? For many teens that question still has no answer as they continue to go out with friends and ring doorbell after doorbell in search of candy.

But is that right? While it may not impact the lives of people in the community it is still an issue worth pondering. It may be great to see teens having fun and running around but at some point the illusion dies and all that's left is grown "kids" in too tight costumes. It's kind of like the Dad that tries to be young and "hip" and buys himself that muscle car that he's convinced will make him look 20 years younger. The reality is that no one's fooled. Whether it be a car or a costume, objects don't hide your age- they only emphasize it. Eventually the costumes just don't fit. Even though it may be fun to pretend to be 10 again and run around in a Cinderella costume, at some point everyone needs to make the transition from getting candy to handing it out.

The stories about Central's flu hoax have gone too far. Why don't people believe that there were actual sick students? On Wednesday around 23 percent of students were out at the high school. So, maybe a few of those students wanted to get school canceled and stayed home on purpose. But, as a Central student who is ACTUALLY sick, I can tell you that I heard nothing of a planned sick-out.

All of these articles and blogs are making Central kids look like liars. Also, one blog I read just moments ago, mocks us for not pulling off this flu hoax. I really don't appreciate being called a liar or being mocked for something I didn't even do. I've been home sick this past week. Honestly, I'd rather be in school. I don't like lying around worrying about the workload I'm going to have to make up come Monday.

Most of my friends were out sick this past week as well. Yes, they were actually sick! It's sad because the media have made the flu hoax seem like fact and the actual flu seem like fiction.

We can't even prove that there is a flu problem since local doctor's aren't testing. Apparently, we all have "probable swine flu." They don't want us going around saying we have swine flu because, people panic. The whole situation is just a mess.To all you people writing about the "flu hoax," maybe you should do your research before pointing fingers at students who did nothing wrong.

Half empty classrooms, the sound of coughing fills each room, and hushed talk of who'll be the next to have swine flu; these are the things that my day contained.

I must be oblivious, because I didn't have any friends who skipped school because they wanted to close it for a week. Would you like to know why? Because none of us were naive enough to think that was true, and none of us wanted to come back for a week in the summer. I had ten people in my English class today, in a class which usually has 18 people. The field hockey team had to cancel a game because half of them were sick. Do we see a pattern? Central York has a flu problem.

I personally am one of the lucky few who are avoiding catching the flu from those who come to school sick. People who come to school functions sick, such as homecoming, are the reason nearly 25 percent of my classmates were absent today. Contrary what the school district told reporters, this had nothing to do with some freshman trying to get people to skip school.

So Central students, drink your orange juice, cover your cough, and avoid sick friends; but don't worry we don't have a flu outbreak. Apparently, we all had planned to get the flu so we could come back for a week of school over the summer.

Well Fall has finally arrived and that means one thing...the Homecoming Dance! During this time the hallways are usually filled with endless chatter about finding that perfect dress, which then leads to the just the right shoes, jewelry, and so on. Every other girl is freaking out about what hairstyle looks best with her features and of course what guy will ask her to be his date. While there are some benefits to going as a couple such as discount tickets and corsages galore, the reality is having a date just adds unessasary tension and stress. My school just had our Homecoming over the weekend and while a couple of my friends went with dates most of us decided to go as a big group instead. In particular, the hostess of the pre party I attended was asked by an upperclassman to the dance. This of course led to the dilemmas of what color corsage looked best, finding a tie to match her dress and how high her heels should be. Of course all those weeks of planning and prepping didn't really matter once the actual dance began. Her date ended up being painfully shy and she spent the whole night avoiding him instead of just jumping on the dance floor and having fun. Even though she was guaranteed a dance partner for the slow songs it appeared that the girls without dates ended up having the most fun after all. Just think a roomful of single guys who may be too embarrassed to ask a girl out, but not to dance. Without a date, no one is obligated to hang out with only one person; in fact, you get the pick of the dance floor! It's much more casual and low key to be able to dance with multiple guys as friends instead of being tied together by the waist all night. Chances are twenty years from now you won't even remember your date's name but the memories and friendships you make that night will be the stories you'll tell your grandchildren. Honestly, why go with a date when it's just as cool to go stag?

First off, thank you both for reading my blog, "Why political debate in America is pointless". I'm posting my response to you here so it does not get lost at the bottom of the page.

MADISON -- you make a strong point in which I did ignore and shouldn't have. it was wrong of me to say that voicing opinion and political dissent has no value because it truly does. In fact, I am now a little embarrassed about my blog's title because it is wrong; there is some value in political debate. In democracy's most simple form, voicing opinions is what it is all about.

JAKE -- I have to say that I am quite disapointed with your post.

I understand that the United States is not a democracy and that is precisely my point!

I understand why our "elected" officials are called "representatives", but I simply think that they do not represent us.

I understand that the Founders did not want Democracy for us, but again, I simply disagree with their philosophy. You do realize that a majority of our Founders believed in SLAVERY, right? Now, it is not to say that I don't admire a lot of the Founders (for instance Thomas Paine and George Washington), but a lot of them had a poor -- or at least hypocritical -- view of liberty.

In addition, you claim that big corporations are a problem in how they have bought off our "representatives". And this is what I am talking about -- it is fairly simple to buy off 535 people, but not so much 300 million.

Your last comment insulting my knowledge of the American political system was nothing more than un-called for. I shall refrain from being nasty, but I will note that it is my understanding of the American political system that leads me to reject it. It is an elitist system and it does not value the concept of democracy or liberty. The Constitution is a fine document; it's our leaders who have failed and oppressed us for too long.

Recently, Miley Cyrus resurfaced in the news with yet another questionable choice in character.

The 16-year-old pop star has been known to take scandalous photos, post YouTube videos making fun of other Disney stars and is now being criticized for her recent performance at the Teen Choice Awards.

As part of the act, Miley dressed in a skimpy outfit and included a stripper pole in her routine.

Now do not get me wrong, it's inevitable that a teen growing up in the lime light is bound to get into a little trouble now and again. But Cyrus has repeatedly shown a lapse in judgment when it comes to her behavior. Not only is she setting a poor example for young girls across the country, she also is degrading herself and her reputation.

To me, a role model is someone who you can look up to and follow their example. To the parents of tweens and teens across the country, Miley Cyrus does not come to mind. A girl with so much talent and beauty should be using her gifts to promote self worth and accomplishment in the youth, not teach them how to take pictures in their underwear and "get freaky" on a pole.

My hope is that eventually Miley will wake up and get her act together. Otherwise, America prepare yourselves for the future Britney of pop!

I have to ask: why do people get so obsessed over politics and most recently our last Presidential election? What is the point of debating (or even worrying) about politics and government actions if people in this country do not ever get to vote on anything?

It is quite laughable when people in this country preach about how we have democracy when reality shows that is not the case. What democracy do we have in this country, really? Every two years we get to vote for our congressmen and every four years we get to vote for our President. But really, this is nothing more than voting for our own rulers. Once we vote for our President (ruler), the person that is "elected" can do whatever he/she wants and only has to abide by the Constitution (which a lot of times is also ignored). But where is the accountability in our "elected" officials?

Another myth is that the people we elect serve to "represent" us, which again is super hilarious!

In response to a question about how 2/3 of Americans say the Iraq War is not worthy fighting, former Vice President Dick Cheney was quoted as saying, "So?". The Interviewer followed up by asking, "You don't care what the American people think?" And Cheney then responded by saying, "No. I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluxuations of the public opinion polls."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SypeZjeOrY4

This disregard of of public opinion by Dick Cheney should just further prove the lack of care our "representatives" have of our opinions. In addition, to say that our new President Barack Obama does not think the same as Cheney would be very naive, in my opinion.

So, I ask everyone here: why bother debating any kind of political issues if we as a people do not hold any power to vote on laws and policy?

I'm not trying to lecture any teen about drugs. It isn't my place. That job is left up to the parents of that teenager. And lately, I feel like some parents haven't lectured their kids enough. I keep hearing stories about people- people I know that are using drugs. The stories range from a friend smoking pot, to an acquaintance dealing drugs.

Frankly, I just don't get it. At school, they are CONSTANTLY telling us not to do drugs. They hold assemblies with police officers to talk about all the consequences of doing drugs. Last year, they tried to scare us with real life stories of teens that have died or ruined their life because of drug use. Yet, none of this seems to work. I sat at those assemblies and listened to kids laugh at what was being said. They claimed, "Oh that would never happen to me." How do you know that? It very well could be your future.

So if it's not the schools fault, then maybe it is the parents. Parents, you need to be telling your teenager about drugs. Believe me, even if you're sure your teenager will never do drugs, they could surprise you. You need to teach them how to say no. If you don't do that, who will? Certainly not their friends, they're usually the ones pressuring them to do drugs. So do your job and help your kids, please.

And, to all you super cool pot smoking teenagers out there: I hear the reason behind doing drugs, like pot, is to feel that "rush". Well, if that's the reason you're doing drugs, I highly suggest stopping. If you want a rush go ride a rollercoaster. That'll give you a rush without giving you harmful consequences.

I just wanted to add my two cents about the latest Harry Potter movie. Personally, I found it not spectacular, but better than many of the others. I thought that the plot stuck to the story line pretty well, though straying here and there. It was not bad for a movie, and I enjoyed seeing it. However, I find that in practically all situations the books are so much better than their partnering movies, coming across altogether more exciting and entertaining. You do have to take into consideration that they had to remove a lot of scenes to make the movie a reasonable time (it was still 2 hours and 33 minutes), and some of the best scenes that they chose to cut remain, overall, unimportant to the plot.

crocs.bmp
Recently, my mom purchased a pair of Crocs to help cushion her feet. While I understand her reason for the purchase, I just cannot fathom their popularity.

Now, do not get me wrong; I applaud those who can pull off the rubber clog look. However, I must admit I've never found a pair attractive and I doubt I ever will. Honestly, I'm baffled as to why people flock to the nearest store for florescent fashion nightmares.

My belief is that there is a happy medium when it comes to fashion and comfort. Perhaps an L.L. Bean sandal or a padded walking shoe? With these selections why would anyone choose the synthetic deathtrap?

If the rubber and sickenly bright color options weren't enough, you also have pins known as "Jibbitz" that can be purchased and placed on your Crocs! Just think, now you can personalize each and every shoe as if it were a charm bracelet.

Furthermore, to those who are more fashion forward, Croc now offers an array of heels and wedges for a night on the town. Please! To the proud owners of Croc products, I offer my most sincere apology regarding their naive belief that plastic shoes are cool.

As everyone knows, Michael Jackson passed away last month on June 26. Arguably, one of the great -- if not the greatest -- musicians and performers the world had ever seen, Jackson lived and died as a legend. But as the media circus surrounded his nationally televised funeral, everyone seemed to either forget or ignore the past controversy that he was involved with less than five years ago.

Yes, I am reffering to the child molestation charges that were brought against him.

Now, personally, I tend to believe that he was innocent (and he was found innocent by the courts, of course), but the fact of the matter is that he was a truly troubled, disturbed and weird man. There is no other way to classify the behavior of having sleepovers with 10-year-old kids, which involved sleeping in the same beds, when you are 40 years old! It was clearly predatory behavior and very disturbing.

But people seemed to forget about this after his death. Those that would bring up his past creepy behavior were shamed by the mainstream media. It seemed as though people were understandbly uncomfortable about some of his past actions -- as if people wanted to forget about them. But his controversies cannot be forgotten, nor should they be. It would be revising history. It would be propping up a mythical version of Michael Jackson; it would be inaccurate and an incomplete portrait of the man.

Although Michael Jackson was and still is a legend, he was not a perfect man by any stretch. Any description of him being perfect is an insult to his history. Like all who have passed away (celebrity or not), Jackson deserves to be studied and judged objectively. Anything else, whether it be unfairly positive or negative, is disrespecting his legend.

RIP

Yes, the untimely departure of this pop culture icon is monumental and a major moment worth documenting and reporting. But really? The amount of media coverage on this topic is borderline ridiculous and quite unnecessary. I acknowledge the fact that Michael Jackson's death was something that is a big enough deal for people to cover it on news shows and the music channels. I guess that each channels conglomeration or documentary on Jackson's life were to be expected. Though each one said the same exact thing and showed the same clips of his life.I got a tiny bit annoyed when my favorite news channel, MSNBC, felt the need to make any new development on the death into a big deal.

But today was my breaking point. Michael Jackson's memorial service was today if you weren't aware when I'm not sure how you couldn't know. Its not like at least six channels weren't broadcasting it live and doing before memorial coverage- oh wait they were. I don't mean to sound bitter but I do not understand why so many stations need to broadcast the same thing. I wasn't surprised when channels such as E!, MTV, and VH1 were showing it, I mean that is their sort of thing. But when legitimate channels like Fox, MSNBC, and NBC were showing it I was genuinely displeased.

I'm done hearing about Michael Jackson's tragic childhood ion the spotlight, his pet chimp named Bubbles, how he was 'the world's greatest entertainer', how he was a beautiful and charitable person, or how his music was overshadowed by his erotic behavior and the media's perception of him. If I hear 'They don't care about us' or see the videos for 'Thriller' or 'Beat it', one more time I may just refuse to ever watch TV again because that'd be the only way to escape this.

Recently, Central York High School authorities captured the public's attention when they chose not to recognize their top two students as Valedictorian and Salutatorian. Naturally, many citizens wanted to know the purpose behind this injustice. One response was that competing for grades created an unhealthy environment for the students. Therefore, by ceasing to award specific students above their peers, there would be no tears and hard feelings.

Sadly, this creates a completely opposite atmosphere compared to the everyday work life. After high school and college are over, these students will be flung into the everyday workforce. There, competition is key in order to remain on top. If hard work is not acknowledged in school, how can our society expect it to be obtained in later years?

The time honored tradition of Valedictorian and Salutatorian not only promotes the idea of striving to achieve your best but also simulates a work environment. In closing, the leaders of our country were those who chose to strive for excellence and at some point or another were given credit for their success.