It's time to Vote!

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It's time to Vote!

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• Publié par: ebovogyc
• Nombre de lectures: 76
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

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Volume 11 Number 3

Downingtown High School East Campus

November, 2008

2008-2009

The News: Read or Watch?

Chocolate Scare

Cell Phones Thwart Terrorism

Switch to Tap Water

AIDS in Africa

The Palin Phenomenon

PSSA Testing

Hats On Day

Fall Sports Recap

Girl’s Cross Country

NHL Preview

Another Y?

me to Vote!

It’s time to Vote!

On Friday October 24

th

,

Downingtown East High School

welcomed its very first set of

French exchange students in a

program originated by nearby

Westtown School. Twelve students

from Institut Montalembert, will

participate in the program, which

will continue through November

7

th

. The DEHS advisors for the

program, Madame McFadden

and Madame Gayl, have planned

several exciting excursions

including ones to Washington

D.C., Philadelphia, and the Amish

Country for the hosts and their

partners. In addition, the pairs can

travel independently to cities as

close as West Chester, or for those

looking

for a little

more hustle

and bustle,

New York

City. Also

scheduled are

Halloween

related

activities

including

field trips to the Bates Motel, the

likes of which the French students,

who celebrate this holiday in a

very different way, have never

seen. This exciting academic and

social opportunity has required

extensive planning, much of which

our school’s French students

have been involved in first hand.

After applying and receiving

acceptance into the program, host

students were given the chance to

match themselves with a French

counterpart based on compatibility

in interests and personalities.

Senior participant Ilona Miller

says of choosing her partner

Claire, “I wanted an exchange

student who was really outgoing

so that we could spend tons of

time discussing our contrasting

cultures.” Ilona was also excited

about introducing Claire to

American politics. “This is such

an important election, I’m glad

that Claire will be able to see our

democratic practices first-hand.

We definitely plan on following

the election on television.” In

addition to nail-biting television

and spooky hayrides, American

life offers tons of new challenges

for the French students. Luckily,

come April, they will be given

the chance to turn the table on the

Americans,

making the

transition

from guests

to hosts.

From April

6

th

to the

10

th

, over

our school’s

spring break,

eleven

cougars will be temporary

residents of Nogent-Sur-Marne,

twenty minutes outside of

Paris, France. “I can’t wait to

go to Paris! I mean you see it

on television and in the movies

and it’s just so beautiful and

glamorous. Plus I’m excided

to meet Miley’s family,” raves

participant Sarah Wronski. It’s

obvious after talking to them,

that the other students share her

excitement. Danielle Reach sums

up the group’s attitude with a giant

smile on her face. “This is a once

in a lifetime opportunity.”

By Lauren Silverman

Coming to America

You know elections are

nearby when every time you

turn on a TV, another political

campaign ad blasts through the

room. As Election Day comes

closer and closer, the number

of ads will only increase. The

number of negative ads also

grows as candidates try to throw

in last minute information

about their opponent to change

voters’ minds. Does aggressively

attacking the opponent’s

character really affect voters?

Negative campaigning

has been around since the

very first election in 1792.

John Kerry was not the first

candidate labeled as a flip-

flopper; Abe Lincoln also

earned that title by saying he

did and did not support slavery

in the election of 1860. And of

course, negative campaigning

has been an important strategy

for the 2008 election. McCain

has run ads comparing Obama

with celebrities Paris Hilton

and Britney Spears. Obama

constantly mentions McCain’s

connections with the current

Bush regime. Sarah Palin just

recently accused Obama of

“palling around with terrorists.”

Negative ads are all part of the

campaign in order to convince

voters to stay away from

one’s opponent, but how do

people feel about these harsh

exchanges?

“Personally, I just

zone them all out,” says an

anonymous junior. “I figure

whatever the ad says is such

an exaggeration of the truth

that there’s really no substance

in what it’s saying. This is

where the mute button comes

in handy.”

However, research

by Newsmax.com shows

that many voters actually

use negative campaigning as

another source of information.

Despite complaining about how

annoying they find negative

ads, people believe negative

campaigning is an excellent

way to expose one’s opponent.

“They have a way of getting

your attention,” says Senior Sam

Srolis “It’s like a juicy piece of

gossip you can’t ignore.”

Generally, when a

candidate starts losing voters,

he or she increases the amount

of negative ads for his or her

opponent. Since McCain has

been behind in recent polls, the

Wisconsin Advertising Project

reported that almost 100 percent

of his campaign’s ads were

negative during the week of

September 28 through October

4. The Obama campaign

only had 34 percent negative

campaign ads during that time.

The bottom line is voters

should not depend solely on

what they hear from campaign

ads to make their decision.

Candidates are throwing every

little condescending piece of

information they find out to the

public, whether it be a major

exaggeration or truth. Before

you drop your ballot, or push

your beliefs on someone who

will, makesure you have your

facts striaght.

Smack Talk

By Parisa Salavitabar

hether it be a majo

“It’s like a juicy

piece of gossip you

can’t ignore”

d