The Como Crier » News

The Earth, E.U., and You!

cbrown — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:45:46 +0000

With all this talk of global crisis going around, it is easy to be confused, confounded, and just plain complacent about the state of the international economy. One of the main subjects concerning this topic has been the financial problems the European Union has been experiencing, Greece for example, so here is an easy breakdown of the situation! In 2007, numerous factors worldwide contributed to the emergence of what has been pegged a “global financial crisis”. One of the main factors contributing to the crisis was a loss in confidence from U.S. investors in sub-prime mortgages. Basically this means investors were less willing to lend money to those who wanted to buy a house. This led to a decrease in the value of houses, negatively afeecting the “housing bubble”, and led to vast numbers of repossessed houses. This chain reaction has placed a high burden on banks not only in the U.S., but globally. This all seems very worrying, but there is one thing to keep in mind Cougars: this is not the end of the world. Daily life will go on, wild men will not run amok in the streets, and classes will still continue (much to some students disappointment). Although the financial future of the global economy is uncertain, it is clear that this generation must prepare to “clean up” the mess that has been created by our predecessors.

The Story of Christmas

Clarissa Climer — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 03:52:58 +0000

Everyone knows that every December 25th is a time for merriment, happiness and family togetherness. But for Christians, it holds a more powerful meaning. In the Bible it is said that a young woman named Mary, who was engaged to Joseph, a carpenter, and was in fact a virgin (which is why she is well known as the Virgin Mary), was visited by an angel who explained to Mary that she would conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit, and that once he was born she shall name him Jesus.
Mary was shocked and confused, since she was a virgin. The angel told her that the baby would be God’s only begotten son. Mary was in awe and believed the angel of God and rejoiced. Mary became pregnant by the Holy Spirit. When Joseph found out she was pregnant he felt disgraced thinking Mary had an affair.
Joseph knew that the child was not his and wanted to break the engagement. But he did not want to cause her any more shame. The Jewish laws at the time said that an adulterer/ adulteress could be sentenced to death by stoning. So Joseph treated her with acts of kindness and goodwill and he kept it quiet.
One night God sent an angel to Joseph to tell him that Mary was telling the truth and that helping her would be God’s will. The angel told Joseph that the baby was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and that they should name him Jesus, and that he would be the Messiah.
The couple had to go to Bethlehem to be counted for the census and when they got there they looked for a place to sleep. The innkeeper said that there wasn’t any vacancy in the inn and they couldn’t stay. Joseph, knowing his wife needed rest, begged for any place to sleep. The innkeeper said that they could stay in the barn on some hay. Soon after they settled down Mary went into labor and soon delivered a healthy son. They remembered the angel, and named him Jesus.
Christmas is celebrated by millions of believers as the birth of Jesus, but his exact birthday is really unknown. They know he was born in the wintertime but that’s pretty much it. The name ‘Christmas’ was made by Christians in the Middle Ages. It literally means “Christ’s Mass and it marks the Christmas Eve midnight service. That is how its name came about. However you choose to celebrate the season, have a Merry Christmas Cougars.

Penguin Love Isn’t All Black and White

blanger — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:35:19 +0000

We’re here, we’re queer, and we’re penguins! This could well be the sign hanging out front of one animal exhibit, the home of Buddy and Pedro, at the Toronto Zoo. The burning passionate love of these two penguins is enough to melt the polar ice caps. This penguin love is legal on only one continent, Antarctica. Penguins Buddy and Pedro, of the Toronto Zoo, have been recently labeled “gay.”
They caused quite the uproar when officials at the Toronto Zoo tried to separate the two from each other during mating season. Other people said the penguins should be separated in order to “preserve the endangered species.” But the Toronto Zoo could not separate these two, and right after they decide to mate with female penguins, they will be brought back together to be happy and merry.
Believe it or not, these two penguins are actually infamous in the Zoo for stealing unhatched eggs and raising them during hatching season. What has surprised people at the zoo is just how good the boys are at caring for and raising the little ones.
Zoo keepers have even taken baby penguins whose mothers are having problems raising them and given them to Buddy and Pedro to raise! These two eat together, sleep together, and even make “mating” noises to each other. The Crier wishes the fellas well and reminds them… It gets better.

The End Is Near! (In A Year)

cbrown — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:20:10 +0000

As December comes to a close, with New Years just around the corner, humanity is once again reminded that we only have one year left. If we are to believe the ancient Mayans (have they ever lied to us before?), 2012 will bring us the end of the world! So what should we do with our last 365 days?
Suggestions from Como Park students ranged from “Sleeping in everyday,” “Refusing to wear shoes,” to how about just “Dropping out” while we’re at it.
Although all of these choices, and many more, share a certain appeal to the average Cougar, there is one goal that the staff wanted to emphasize for our last year of existence; good grades! If we are going to go out, why not go out with a bang (figuratively and literally speaking)? Earthquakes are a piece of cake compared to the AP tests, so just get the hard part over with and buckle down and study.
A wise faculty member put it best saying, “If you’re going to be turned into dust, why not be dust with an A average and college credit?” Happy last year Cougars!

History of Thanksgiving

whageman — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 00:40:19 +0000

The time is nearly upon us when thanks are given, stomachs are filled, and families are united as a part of the holiday dubbed Thanksgiving.
The origins of this centuries-old practice date all the way back to the united feasting of the Natives of America and the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth in 1621. However, the tradition as it is known today wasn’t started until 1863 when Abraham Lincoln made it a national holiday. This was in adherence to Mrs. Sarah Josepha Hale who had been lobbying for it’s observance since 1827.
This was the beginning of the annual practice that would take place every 5th Thursday of November before being moved to the 4th Thursday in 1941 by Franklin D. Roosevelt, who happened to be a descendant of a settler from The Fortune, the second ship to land at Plymouth shortly after the Mayflower.
The cuisine served at Thanksgiving has definitely gone through some changes over the centuries. Today’s common dishes seen on our tables are usually turkey, or the occasional ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, a possible roll or two, cranberry sauce and any type of vegetable that can be found. This is quite different from the five deer, several turkeys and other fowl, along with some marine life such as bass, cod, mussels, lobster and the like, with just some vegetation like corn, peas, wheat, and barley that was seen at the original dinner.
This holiday has evolved so much since its early origins that it can be easy to lose sight of what it really was and how it was actually practiced. The original reasoning behind the feast was as a type of peace offering between the two groups of people, but has been turned on it’s head to become a time of stuffing ourselves and watching football or any other television program that has become synonymous with Thanksgiving.
So enjoy Como Park. Eat and be merry, but just don’t forget to appreciate your heritage even if this isn’t the exact meal of the Pilgrims and Native Americans.

A Man Was the Message

mclausen — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 13:51:25 +0000

When Apple co-founder Steve Jobs returned to the company in July of 1997, it marked the beginning of Apple’s resurrection. After 12 years of financial loss, Gil Amelio was ousted from the CEO position. Steven Jobs took the interim position and was tasked with major restructuring, out of which a partnership with Microsoft was formed.
Jobs humbly explained: “If we want to move forward and see Apple healthy and prospering again, we have to let go of a few things here. We have to let go of this notion that for Apple to win, Microsoft has to lose.” As he spoke these words, Jobs was both booed and cheered.
The iMac, introduced in 1998, was the solution. The unique design was created by Jonathan Ive, who also designed the iPod and the iPhone. Ive reinvented the “boring beige box” and for the first time, you could actually see a computer’s guts. The all-in-one iMac sold nearly 800,000 units within its first five months.
Steve Jobs reportedly called a meeting at Apple, sat everyone down and said, “You know what’s wrong with this company? The products SUCK — there’s no sex in them.” Jobs’ decision to throw resources into a new, futuristic computer model drew people’s attention to Apple, and it paid off.

“The Medium is the Message,” said professor Marshall McLuhan in 1964. Few people have done more to illustrate that than Steve Jobs, the visionary founder of Apple, who died on October 5th, at 56. Apple’s products have changed not just how we communicate but what we communicate and even, arguably, what we think.
Jobs’s approach had a visual dimension. “A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them,” he once said. With his products, the medium often made the message. The glossy white or black aesthetic is just the surface of Apple’s deeper design principle; that cutting-edge technology should be easy to use.
Even for people who have never owned an Apple product, it isn’t necessary to have an instruction manual to use one. This should be the aim of all mainstream technology. The Mac, I-Pod, and I-Pad were just the medium; the message is that technology should be intuitive and fun. Steve Jobs, more than any other single person, made that the industry standard.

“The New 52″ Explained to You

mclausen — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 21:21:43 +0000

Ask any Average Joe on the street about the publisher of DC Comics and you might get a facial tabula rasa. Most of the populace here in the land of the free doesn’t know that DC Comics invented superheroes with BATMAN and SUPERMAN in 1938 in an effort to chronicle the epic essence of the second “Great War.”
If the extent of your knowledge ends at Kryptonite and all the colorful cretins Adam West “POW”ed, or just at Batman and Superman in general, then you know neither the Dark Knight or the Man of Steel, or their universe. But don’t feel too down. It’s a fictional history that was seventy years in the making.
On September 31, 2011 that history was unmade. In an attempt to save the industry that is comic books from society’s abandonment of print, DC has erased everything that ever happened to its superheroes and taken it back to basics. For those interested parties who’ve wanted to get into comics but never knew where to start, this’ll be your best chance until 2084.
The re-launch has been going on for nearly two months now with each of the “52″ titles coming out on a monthly basis, every Wednesday at $2.99. Has “pressing the reset button” opened the door to new readers, or closed one to longtime collectors? DC reports their “best sales in more than 20 years.” Overall, comic book sales have risen over 31% since October of last year.
Our Top Recommended “52″ Picks: BATMAN- Is it any surprise that DC would put their best writer on this one? Scott Snyder aims to change Gotham forever. So far, he’s done it.

SWAMP THING- Some writers deserve a second mention. Snyder will make you take this forty year-old horror story seriously. Also check out heavily tied-in ANIMAL MAN.
JUSTICE LEAGUE – Watch the world’s premiere superheroes clash in an ego war. What can I say about Jim Lee’s pencils? His art alone sells this book.
BATWOMAN – There’s no bat-bias here. W. Haden Blackman and J. H. Williams III create the perfect combination of writing and art. This is the essence of comic books.
GREEN LANTERN- Hal returns to Earth without his ring. He’s hopeless and homeless, due to his most hated enemy having replaced him as guardian of Earth. A realistic take on a superhero losing his powers and realizing his civilian identity is gone.
The reboot has been a giant success so far and it will be fun to watch where it goes from here. Come along for the ride!

The Great Wall Of Como

scollins — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 21:31:13 +0000

This year, lunch detention moved out of the In School Suspension room and into the cafeteria. For students who are not very observant, there is a new structure in front of the lunch detention table. It is a wall. It was placed there Monday, October 25th. Como Park High School’s administration had requested the wall before the school year had started, but it didn’t arrive until the last week of October.
“There wasn’t room for lunch detention, that’s why it’s in the cafeteria, and it’s easier for the students to get their lunch,” said Administrative Intern, Nicole Bates. “We are hoping that it will be a tough enough consequence to students so they would try not to be assigned lunch detention.” Students are given lunch detention if they are late to class. The administration hopes that the wall will shut students off from their friends and that they will want to do everything they can to avoid that.
The wall has been up for a few weeks now, and Ms. Bates said lunch detention has improved. “It made lunch detention a little quieter, and it has kept other students away.” Some students have complained about there not being a good reason to put up the wall, and that it makes them feel lonely being separated from their friends. But hey Cougars, if you don’t want to get detention, all you have to do is get to class on time.

Como Wins the Devil Dog Classic

chanson — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:55:11 +0000

On Saturday October 29th Como Park hosted the Devil Dog Classic for JROTC. Nine schools participated (3 Marine, 2 Navy, 2 Army, and 2 Air Force). The schools were mainly Minnesotan, but there was also one from Iowa and one from South Dakota.
They competed in seven categories; Physical Fitness, Uniform Inspection, First Year Cadet Drill, Color Guard, Unarmed Varsity Drill, Map Reading, and Exhibition Drill. The Devil Dog Competition is taken very seriously by Como Park’s JROTC students. Como is the only school to have teams in all seven categories. Major John Foley said that it was the first time he had seen a school compete in every category. Because of that, he gave a lot of credit to the students for their commitment to the event.
Como won the competition in great fashion. Como’s students dominated the Physical Fitness section by earning the top three spots for both males and females! The students who earned this were Sheng Xiong, Fiona O’Leary, and Der Vang for females. The males were Ching Fang, Roosevelt Yang, and Andy Moua. Ellen Vue earned Como 1st place in Unarmed Varsity Drill. Ger Lor took 1st place in First Year Cadet. And in Map Reading, Cadets Clover Eckert and Abdullah Ali came in first. Kashesha Xiong came in at a strong 3rd place in Color Guard.
Not only did Como Park dominate the competition, but instructors from the other schools were impressed by how good they were. Como Park’s JROTC program has definitely earned the respect of all the other programs in the state. Congratulations.

Big Brothers Big Sisters

britta scott — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:37:45 +0000

Big Brothers Big Sisters is a volunteer program started over one hundred years ago in New York City. We sat down with Yangmee Lor, a School Match Coordinator, and asked her about the Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) Program in St. Paul.

Crier: What is the program all about?

Yangmee: It’s a mentoring program that high school students do with elementary school students to help the elementary school students stay focused.

Crier: Why is it called BBBS?

Yangmee: Because when highschool students come in, they act like big sisters or big brothers. They are like role models.

Crier: What kinds of activities do you guys do?

Yangmee: A lot. There are varieties of games, arts and crafts, sports, and we do a lot of those based on the holiday. We also sometimes focus on academic skills.

Crier: When do you guys meet?

Yangmee: For Como, every Thursday from 2pm- 5pm after school, Bigs meet in Ms. Bades room and talk about how things are going with their little.

Crier: Who’s allowed to be in it?

Yangmee: Anybody in 10th- 12th grade. Think about it for next year Freshmen! There is an application process; interview, training, and background references.

BBBS does not have a cost, and another cool thing is they have a program for the “Bigs” (volunteers) that will help them with a scholarship for those who need it. There is also help keeping the volunteers on track to college, and they go on campus tours once a month so volunteers can see which college would be the best fit. Any students interested can call Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities at (651) 789-2400.