November 16, 2007 -Vol. 36 Issue 5
Editorial: Economy becomes
important part of teenage lifestyles
By Emily Hauser, sr.,
For the editorial board
Although very few high schoolers may truly understand the inner
workings of the U.S. economy, it is something that affects everyone trying
to buy food, clothing, or gas. The value of the dollar continually decreases,
prices for everything increases, and wages and salaries stay the same.
As the holiday shopping season nears, expert analysts are keeping a careful
eye on the losses and gains in the stock market. Gifts are bought and wrapped
sooner each year, but despite the early start, it is predicted that 2007 will
post the least amount of revenue.
Cartoon by Haley Huffman
Retailers are expected to slash prices to combat consumer’s
dwindling spending money supply caused by high gas prices and bursting housing
costs. Almost $100 million that could be used to buy presents is instead going
toward filling up the vehicle used to drive to the shopping center.
It is only a matter of time before the economy corrects the steady rising
it has been experiencing.
Otherwise, the stock market will begin to go down due to credit problems and
a weakening dollar.
It is time to start paying attention to the state of the economy. Everything
depends on money, and if smart spending and careful saving become a common
practice, an economic fall will be less catastrophic than if such habits continue.
Conservation will efforts
pay off in long run (pro)
By Bethany Wolverton, sr.
Feature Editor
People use energy every day, watching television, turning on
a light, driving to a destination, or even running a bath. All of these everyday
tasks are important to people, but without energy none would be possible.
That is why people need to do their part in conserving energy.
There are many small ways to conserve energy in a house, like turning out
house lights before bed, or turning off the television when it is not being
watched. Unplug chargers when they are not being used to charge anything.
Every house contains chargers for cell phones, digital cameras, PDA’s,
cordless tools and other personal gadgets. Also, put computers on “sleep
mode” when not in use.
There are more ways to save fuel than cutting down how much a person drives.
It has been said that the windows of the vehicle should be closed while traveling
at high speeds because open windows can cause air drag reducing the mileage
by 10 percent. On long stretches of highway driving, cruise control can save
fuel by helping a car maintain a steady speed. Under inflated tires and using
the air conditioner can cause an increase in fuel consumption. Another way
to save fuel is carpooling.
Not only does energy conservation save money, but it also reduces environmental
and social cost as well. People should spend time each day to help the environment.
Why not take care of the Earth, since it is the only Earth we have.
Conserving
energy proves to be an unhelpful task (con)
By Haley Huffman, sr.
Editor-in-Chief
Many people think that everybody needs to do all they can
to help conserve and save energy. However, how many people actually do this?
That is the problem with all of the “conserving” our economy
thrives for. People have to actually do it in order for it to work.
Society makes it hard to drive vehicles when gas prices are sky high, so
they come out with hybrid cars. Really, it is going to end up costing people
more to buy a hybrid car than the ones they already have, so people do not
even bother.
Electricity bills for someone who owns a hybrid car would almost be worse
than watching the price meter on the gas pump go up faster than the energizer
bunny.
Many individuals would argue that using corn produced ethanol in place of
octane gasoline would help with the price of fuel for their automobiles.
This has not really seemed to change the prices much from what I have seen.
Also, by making farmers produce all the corn to make ethanol, it hurts the
soil and takes place of other important crops such as wheat and barley.
When this happens, the prices of the replaced crops increase.
So, if the gas price has not gone down by using ethanol, plus other materials
with deprived crop placement goes up, then people pay more for everything
else, which does not help.
In this feat to try to find the best way to help our economy, are people
really helping, or are they only helping one area, while making other areas
worse? Maybe living lives just the way they are is the best answer at this
time.
Review:
New comedy, success at theaters
By Seth Morton, sr.
Reporter
Mr. Woodcock, stars Sean William Scott playing the loving
son, John, who went through many unfortunate mishaps as a child in Mr. Woodcock’s,
played by Billy Bob Thornton, gym class.
After his hard childhood and the loss of his father, John wrote a book entitled,
“Letting Go” designed to help people cope with past difficulties
for a better tomorrow. All was going well until his return home to accept
an award from his hometown. Upon visiting his mother, he discovered that
she, played by Susan Sarandon, has been dating someone for about five months.
Just about the time she said that he knew her boyfriend, in walks Mr. Woodcock,
bringing back painful childhood memories for John. As the story progresses
John and Woodcock discover their past dislike for each other.
After Mr. Woodcock asks John’s mom to marry him, John throws away
everything he teaches in his book to seek revenge. He receives help from
childhood friends to get back at the man believed to “ruin an entire
generation.”
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Some of the language was a little
harsh, but it did not detract from the obvious humor of the movie.
At the movies.
Showtimes
for Nov. 16
Information compiled by
Michelle Sollars, sr.
From www.bbtheatres.com
Roxy Cinema 4 Chanute |
Sterling Six Cinemas Iola |
|
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (G) 4:25, 6:40, 9:00 Beowulf (PG-13) 4:15, 7:15, 9:45 Fred Claus (PG) 4:05, 6:50, 9:25 Bee Movie (PG) 4:10, 6:55, 9:10 |
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (G) 4:25, 6:40, 9:00 Beowulf (PG-13) 4:15, 7:15, 9:45 Fred Claus (PG) 4:05, 6:50, 9:25 |
American Gangster (R) |
Cub Voices
What
do you spend most of your money on? Why?
 |
 |
Joab Barr, sr., “I spend
most of my money on my truck. I have payments, taxes, and insurance.
That doesn’t even include gas at over $3 a gallon.”
|
Shelley Herder, jr.,“I
spend my money mostly on clothes
because I don’t like wearing the same things every day.” |
 |
 |
Elijah Friederich, so.,“I
spend most of my money on energy drinks and fast food. I like to get
energy drinks because they make me hyper, and the fast food is just
really good.”
|
Amanda Maxton, fr.,
“Whenever I get the money from my mom, I like to spend
it on clothes, accessories, and shoes because I like to shop and look
cute.”
|
 |
|
Gracie Newman, Language Arts Teacher, “I spend most of my money on bills made by family and students.” |
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