tigertimestexas high school • 4001 summerhill rd • texarkana, tx 75503 • www.tigertimesonline.comvolume 51 no. 2 • nov. 11, 2011

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DIVERSITY“The real death of America will come when everyone is alike.” -James T. Ellison

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2 news tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

mark your calendarNOV. 17 College Night will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Dan Haskins Student Center. Students will have the opportu-nity to visit with representatives from more than 60 colleges and universities. In addition, there will be information about the college application process and scholar-ships.

GOT TALENT The first round of the Tigers Got Talent show will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday in the John Thomas The-atre. Tickets, which will be sold at the door, are $5 for adults and $3 for students. Proceeds will benefit the StuCo We Are 2012 program. The second round will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 18, and the final round will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 9.

ON SALEYearbooks are still on sale for $55. The price will increase to $60 after Christmas break and then to $65 once they arrive in May. Students are encourage to purchase the books early. Order forms are available in Room 50.

Representative George Lavender is to an-nounce the launch of the 2011-2012 High School Aerospace Scholars (HAS) program. HAS enables selected Texas high school juniors to explore new frontiers and become a part of NASA’s plan for space exploration.

Selected students will apply their math and science skills to complete 10 web-based assignments during the school year and then travel to Johnson Space Center in Houston during the summer to put those skills to use. At Johnson, they will design and propose a mission focused on deep space exploration alongside their peers as well as NASA scien-tists and engineers.

Students interested in participating are nominated by their legislators and selected

by NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC). High school juniors interested in applying for the 2011-2012 program should visit: http://HAS.aerospacescholars.org/

This year students must submit their applications directly to JSC by Dec. 9. Leg-islator nominations of submitted applicants will be completed and returned to JSC by Dec. 16.

Eligible students are required to meet the following criteria: U.S. Citizen; Texas resident; current high school junior; inter-ested in science, math, or engineering; able to commit to a relationship with Johnson, including a one-week residential experience during the summer; access to the internet and e-mail (home, school, or public library).

The State of Texas, in partnership with Johnson and the Texas educational commu-nity, developed HAS in 1999 to encourage students to pursue studies and careers in science, technology, engineering and math-ematics. More than 6,500 students from across the state have participated. Additional partners include the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, University System and Rotary NASA.

For additional information, please contact Noah Gilliam in Rep. George Lavender’s office at 903.791.0386 or noah.gilliam@house.state.tx.us

-from staff reports

Deadline nears for aerospace program

John David Goinsnews editor

The Texas Association of Stu-dent Councils 76th Annual Con-ference that Texas High Student Council is hosting will be holding auditions for dance groups to per-form in front of more than 4,500 students this coming April.

Those who might be interested in performing dances in front of thousands make sure to be at the audition on Dec. 5. You need to bring tap, ballet, hip hop, jazz and/or lyrical shoes.

“It’s going to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” student council sponsor Susan Waldrep said. “And you will get to work with an excel-lent dance teacher and a produc-tion company out of California.”

The dances will be created by Marti Clary, who will act as the dance teacher for student council.

For more information, contact Waldrep in Room 23.

StuCo seeksdancers forconference

Proceeds fromdinner benefitStuCo campaign

Members of Student Council are currently selling tickets for dinner at Outback Steakhouse during the week of Nov. 13-17.

The proceeds from the dinner will go to toward the Texas Asso-ciation of Student Council’s 76th Annual Conference that Texas High will be hosting. The school has to raise $50,000 for the event.

“We are currently working towards our goal as quickly as possible in order to put on the best conference,” junior John Da-vid Goins said. “There’s a lot of pressure on us to put on a good conference.”

The tickets are $10 for a meal that consists of a choice between sirloin, chicken breast or salmon, along with two sides and a drink.

“You’re paying $10 for a ticket for a meal that is worth $15,” Goins said. “So, we need at least 500 participants to meet our goal. If everyone shows up, we will raise $2,500.”

To purchase a ticket, ask any Student Council member or go by Room 23.

SENIORSThere is still a small amount of senior ad space available in the yearbook. The space will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis. Ads range in price from $40 to $300. For more information, please see any yearbook staff member or come by Room 50 for an order form.

-from staff reports

3newstiger timesnov. 11, 2011

“It shouldn’t be like that be-cause we are all smart in a way and we all have the capabilities. It shouldn’t be based on ethnic diversity because we are all equal.”

Dulce Guzman, 11

“No, because God made every-one equal. Ethnicity and race shouldn’t play a factor in that.”

Warren McDaniel, 10

“No, just because you’re a cer-tain color or ethnicity doesn’t mean that you will always meet the certain requirements that they have. Just because you’re black or white doesn’t mean anything. Everybody should have a fair chance at something like this.”

Akia Scott, 12

“Well I feel it should be a fac-tor. I don’t necessarily think it should be the main factor, but it should definitely be a consider-ation, I think. You need a diverse world of students in a university or something.”

DJ Ingram, 12

Should ethnicity be a key factor in college admissions and scholarships?

what YOU THINK

a PAWS-itive differenceClasses seek donations to help local animal shelter

The Veterinarian Medical Application and Small Animal Management classes are seeking donations during Nov. 28-Dec. 7 to help the local animal shelter.

“We learned about the prob-lems that the animal shelter was facing when our teacher, [Eric] Norton called the animal shelter and found out that there was not enough food, which means they had to put more animals down,” junior Kara Crane said.

Norton said that around the

holiday season, people tend to cut down on giving to the animal shelter because of the many other charities in need. His class is hop-ing to help fill in the gaps for the shelter during this time.

Items needed include: dog food/treats, towels/blankets, Fabuloso, cat food, laundry de-

tergent, cat litter, cat toys, animal shampoo, water buckets leashes/collars.

Donations can be dropped off at the front office or taken to Room 216.

“I really enjoy being able to help these animals who don’t have a proper home,” Crane said. “It is making me want to pursue the possibility of me volunteering more at the animal shelter.”

-from staff reports

Graduate named as commended scholarEllen Orr, a 2011 graduate,

was recently named a Commend-ed Student in the 2012 National Merit Scholarship program.

About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the na-tion were recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Commended Students placed among the top 5 percent of more than 1.5 million students who

entered the 2012 competition by taking the 2010 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

A Texas Early Graduate, Orr is the daughter of Dr. Robin Rogers and Keith Orr. She was awarded the Nancy M. Christian Endowed Scholarship to Centenary College which is the highest academic award recognizing scholarship,

leadership and service. The Nan Christian Scholarship covers tuition, fees, room and board for four years.

Orr is currently the young-est student attending Centenary College and is a member of the Centenary Ladies Soccer Team and Zeta Tau Alpha.

-from staff reports

4 viewpoint tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

tiger times editors in chief Emily Hoover

Carlye Hudspeth

managing editors Elizabeth CookAshley Diggs

advertising manager

Natalie Banks

news editor John David Goins

viewpoint editorBrianna Sellers

feature editorWynne Tidwell

sports editorAutumn Sehy

entertainment editorsMary Claire Boudreaux

Davis Payne

photo editorHannah Patterson

staff writersZachary BakerAngela DerrickChristina Harris

Jacob HillCasey Hitchcock

Shayla JamesShelby Kelley

Josh KleinDawson McGonagill

Abigail O’GormanDaniel Pellegrin

Taylor PotterRiley Rogers

Isabella SaporitoSydney SchoenMadison SewellHannah Wren

photographersRuth ArnoldKatie Black

Taylor ColemanAllison FahrniAlex Garner

Casey HitchcockAmy McCoy

Claire Norton

Caroline PrieskornHaley RushingBrianna SellersHailey Woods

advisersRebecca Potter

Clint Smith

principalBrad Bailey

membersILPC, NSPA, CSPA

The Tiger Times is the

official student publica-tion of Texas High School. The primary purpose of the Tiger Times is to in-form the students of the school, while practicing the ethical canons of jour-nalism.

Letters to the editor may be dropped off in Room 50. Each letter must be signed and include the student’s grade. Letters are subject to editing.

Texas High School4001 Summerhill Rd.Texarkana TX, 75503

( 903 ) 794 - 3891F ( 903 ) 792 - 8971

The Tiger Times is a student-run pub-lication. The contents and views are produced solely by the staff and do not represent the opinions of the faculty, ad-ministration or TISD board of trustees.

The buzz in the last month has been about the execu-tion of Troy Davis, a man found guilty in Georgia of killing a police officer during a fight outside of a Savanna Burger King. Nine witnesses came forward during the trial and said Davis was the one responsible for the killing. The jury took two hours to convict him of murder, and 7 hours to find that the death penalty was a suitable punish-ment for his crimes.

Since the trial in August 1991, his lawyers began appealing on multiple grounds, but it wasn’t until 2007 that evidence turned in Davis’ favor. Seven of the nine witnesses in the trial who testified against Davis recanted their testimony, claiming they weren’t as sure of Davis’ guilt as the prosecution wanted. No weapon was ever found to match the ballistics of the shooting.

Many keynote figures ranging from Former President Carter to Archbishop Desmond TuTu to Pope Benedict, all came out in support of Davis. The final appeal was filed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but was denied and Davis was executed Sept. 21.

“Well, first of all I’d like to address the MacPhail family. I’d like to let you all know, despite the situation -- I know all of you are still convinced that I’m the person that killed your father, your son and your brother, but I am innocent. The incident that happened that night was not my fault. I did not have a gun that night. I did not shoot your family member. But I am so sorry for your loss. I really am -- sincerely. All I can ask is that each of you look deeper into this case, so that you really will finally see the truth. I ask my family and friends that you all continue to pray, that you all continue to forgive. Continue to fight this fight. For those about to take my life, may God have mercy on all of your souls. God bless you all”- Final Words of Troy Davis.

The country is divided over the issue of Davis’ guilt, one side saying his execution was warranted because the evidence wasn’t conclusive enough to grant an appeal, and the other side saying that there was too much doubt in the evidence for anyone to be sure enough to kill a person.

Living in Texas, you don’t have to go far to see what side of the fence we rest on. In 2010, Texas accounted for a third of executions in the country, and another third of all executions in the United States since 1976. Texas has executed 475 defendants, while the next highest ranking state, Virginia, has executed 109. Something doesn’t really seem to add up at this point. California, with a larger population, has only executed 13 people since 1976, while Texas executed 450 people. Are the criminals somehow worse here?

Since DNA evidence has been introduced in court pro-

ceedings, 117 wrongfully convicted citizens were released from death row; however, only 12 of these were from Texas. Knowing this, it is hard not to think that a state like Texas, which in 2004 performed half of all executions in the country, that the courts may have wrongly convict-ed someone at some point in time. It’s not a fun thing to consider that the Texas taxpayers may have inadvertently funded the killing of an innocent person.

The cost of executions is substantial. In Texas, an ex-ecution costs the taxpayers $2.3 million, three times more expensive than paying for a life in prison. Most of the cost is in the appeals process, which is in place to prevent an innocent person from execution.

The Texas Supreme Courts are also called into ques-tion. While 49 other states have one state supreme court to handle all cases civil and criminal, Texas has two: the Texas Supreme Court that handles non-criminal cases, and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals which handles all criminal appeals. The court organization has met intense scrutiny, and is alleged to only be in place in order to speed up execution sentences.

The court seems to have the judgment part down fine, though. From 1995 to 2000, the court heard 270 appeals to overturn death sentences, and in those 5 years, they granted new trials to six defendants.

Six out of 270.The state is most definitely in favor of the death pen-

alty, and they have the right to be. It has been ruled legal

since 1976. But when a state is able to account for one-third of all executions, there must be something up.

Remember, this is coming from a state which has ruled that a sleeping lawyer isn’t necessarily incompetent council--the defendant has to prove they were sleeping during the important parts.

Texas seems to be playing fast and loose with death penalty cases, and our majority political views seems to be unified in favor of Texas’ practices no matter the con-spicuous amount of data we have in our knowledge. It’s what our parents and grandparents all grew up with, and therefore, accepted as okay.

The death penalty has been embedded in Americans’ roots since the early building of the country. We have always believed it was a deterrent from crime (newer stud-ies say no, and in some cases they say that increases the chance for violent crime) and we carried it out, with the idea we were safer having it. But how is life without parole any different to society than the death penalty? Either way, there is no chance of danger to the welfare of the people.

Maybe instead of jumping to the rash and often con-troversial step of killing inmates, we should just put them in jail forever. This way, no one is killed before they can prove themselves innocent, and the tax-payer doesn’t have to fund a state sponsored homicide. Maybe it’s time to air on the side of caution when a human life is at stake. What do the citizens have to risk? It’s the innocent defendants that have everything to lose anyway.

And Justice for Y’allstaff editorial

Texas isn’t responsible enoughto keep death penalty

photo illustration by brianna sellers

5viewpointtiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Music is a beautiful thing. Songs that we listen to have memories

associated with them.I plug in my headphones and go back

in time. A specific place, a moment, clear as day.

I associate memories with songs and all the sights, smells, and feelings of that instance.

No matter if it was my favorite song at the time, what I was listening to when something happened, or the music play-ing in the car.

It’s truly a wonderful thing.Some songs I don’t even want to listen

to unless I’m in certain moods. Some remind me of bad times, while

others just pump me up and bring back great memories. Here are some examples:

***“Movin like Bernie”: This song makes

me happy. The dance, the idiocy, I love it.

I knew it long before the memory it’s associated with it, but none the less, every time I hear that song, I’m trans-ported back.

It’s late February last year, the day of my first track meet of the season and of the Sadie Hawkins dance.

The meet was in Royce City, two and a half hours from Texarkana.

I just wanted to get it over with make it to Sadie.

I rush through my race, which was scheduled at 6 p.m, wash my hair in the Royce City Stadium bathroom sink and load up in my mom’s car with Autumn Sehy to race back to Texarkana.

All the while, I’m crying.Not because I’m stressed or sad, but

because I’m allergic to the stupid artifi-cial turf. My tears don’t stop, even after I get the dance at nine.

That’s right, an hour before it ended. I was annoyed, but I was determined

to make this dance the best in my life.

Anyway, I’m dancing having the time of my life, and the whole time, people ask me why I’m crying.

I WASN’T CRYING. Stupid turf. “Lean your head back like a nose

bleed coming through.” I dance with my friends, tears run-

ning down my face, so very happy, but my eyes say otherwise.

Oh the irony. ***

“Remind Me” by Carrie Underwood: Anyone who’s heard this song knows that it’s kind of depressing. However, when-ever I hear it, I think of Olivia Norton.

No, I’m not creepy. She has a version of this song that got

sped up on her iTunes, so it’s extremely funny.

We listened to this “remix” version, belting it out as loud as we could, on the way to and from Jefferson, Texas.

Why Jefferson? Well it was for our best friend Abbey

Norwood’s eighteenth birthday surprise, though all we did was be rude and make sarcastic remarks to each other, in the most loving way possible of course.

“Baby remind me...” ***

“Come Together” by The Beatles: Well, it’s time for me to get all sappy. It

was going to come sooner or later, so if you don’t want to throw up because of the cuteness, skim on.

This isn’t even a lovey dovey song, but immediately when this song plays, I think back to sophomore year driving down North Kings Highway with Matt Cox before he had his license. Yeah, it was that long ago.

I had listened to the Beatles in middle school, but my craze kind of died down.

Well, I had this strange desire to listen to that song one day, so I dug out the old, blue CD that had simply been titled 1966-1970 to play it while we drove, and so the obsession began.

Matt hadn’t really listened to much of it and after taking him home, I gave him all the Beatles’ CDs I had. Soon after, it was Beatles, Beatles, Beatles, for both of us.

Beatles rock band, Beatles books, anything Beatles, and it still continues to this day.

We buy each other albums, buy albums for ourselves and exchange them. I think of the Beatles as “our” band, and this song started our 1960s flower child movement.

Whenever a Beatles song comes on I can’t help but smile and remember driving around for hours listening to one CD screaming out the words with the windows rolled down.

“Here come old flat top he come, groovin up slowly...”

***Music. It has the capacity to pump you up,

make you want dance, make you cry, make you laugh, and bring back memo-ries. Without it, life would be dull and boring. You can scroll through all the songs on my iPod, and every one of them has a memory.

As Kid Cudi says, “This is the soundtrack to my life.”

The soundtrack

in my opinion

madison sewell/staff writer

Speak Out

“I’m for it. People who are considered on the list for the death penalty have no respect for human life. I have no problem with them being killed. It sends a message to people who may commit murders in the future.”

Gabriel Thomas, 12

Do you think there shouldbe a death penalty?

“We shouldn’t because so may people who are innocent get killed. I feel that staying in jail your whole life is a worse punishment.”

Mackenzie Sangalli, 11

“It’s difficult because if you’re on the side of the victim, of course you want them to die, but if you’re an out-sider looking in, you wouldn’t want to make that choice.”

Jalissa Trotter, 9

“We shouldn’t because if they die, then they don’t learn from their mistakes. They don’t get to suffer for what they’ve done.”

Ashton Latham, 10

I think that no one should get the death penalty. It’s an endless cycle of killing people. There are better punishments that can be enforced.”

Bruno Castro, 12

compiled by madison sewell

to my lifeMusic has ability to help us relivespecial moments in our lives

6 viewpoint tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

“Em...Emily. Wake up, baby.”My mom’s voice, but not her regular

one.This is the voice she uses when kids

come into her office, upset about their dog dying or their father sniffing coke again.

They don’t know that it’s not normal; they don’t know that it’s filled with a mix-ture of pity and empathy that will make them feel better without knowing why.

But my mom is my favorite person, and I know her.

Her voice, not only too calm, is also too close; she’s right next to my bed.

Panic grips my throat. Oh God, please, anything but this. I can’t handle this. Not again.

Who is is this time?I yank my eyes open. I know I’m right;

it’s too dark, it’s too early. But I can’t talk, I can’t make a sound, I can’t even move.

She’s paused, trying to figure out how to tell me.

I know her, and I know this situation more intimately than I’ve ever known anything.

I could recite her next words with her, if only I could breathe, if only it were funny.

“Sweetheart, I just got a phone call...”It wasn’t as early as I’d thought, really

almost six-thirty.Mom told me in that same voice that it

was my uncle—my father’s brother—and he’d suffered a heart attack.

I didn’t hear anything else, I didn’t care.I just turned my head into my pillow

and cried harsh, hot, silent tears.My mother tried to soothe me, patting

my back and talking in the smooth, calm-ing voice she’s perfected.

It didn’t help.

So she gave up and left me alone, be-cause she knows me, too.

When my crying jag ended I felt completely empty, as though someone had ripped everything inside of me out and left a blank cavity.

But it wasn’t peaceful. I was on shaky ground and I knew it; a random word, the wrong thought, and I would be gone again.

Mom asked if I was going to stay home.I hate missing school in general; I’m a

nerd who truly believes that missing days puts you behind, and I generally refuse to be gone unless I’m so sick I’m delirious.I couldn’t face it.

I was in a bubble, the hiding place I’d found after the third death in my family. But the bubble wasn’t thick enough yet.

I refused to break down in front of my classmates.

Needing to be with my family, and hoping I could somehow help ease the nightmare, I ended up at my aunt’s house.

Sharon is what I can only describe as a real lady, always sweet but with a layer of steel underneath. I never see her break, never see her stumble, but that day she had taken on more than she could handle.

Over the past decade she’s lost a moth-er, son and husband, and two brothers.

Loss and pain are not new experiences, and she bore her latest heartbreak with a weary face, only occasionally sliding toward hysteria.

Sharon broke my heart.Sharon handled everything robotically;

call the newspaper, the funeral home. Have someone in the house at all times to speak to kindly neighbors leaving muffins. Make sure relatives and close friends are alerted before they hear it somewhere else.

But always that undercurrent of extreme pain, that voice I could almost physically see, screaming in her head, “I just lost my baby brother!”

Luckily, she’d been in this position enough times to know exactly what to do.

Luckily, planning and worrying about what had to be immediately addressed made Paul’s sudden death more like the running of a business than the loss of a loved one.

Really, but weren’t we all just so incred-ibly lucky?

Left behind, to mourn while the world closed in too tightly; a searing pain so far from understanding as to be horribly com-

ical. Every day, the same...no I won’t ever see him again. When was the last time I saw him? What did I say? I was distracted--I hugged him and then left. Why would I do that? What was I thinking?

I can’t do this. I can’t live through this. Make it stop.

Going back to school was hard; the funeral was harder.

I did a good bit more crying, but I did survive.

Well-meant words made it worse– “Paul thought the world of you, he bragged about how smart you are—he was so proud of you.”

Usually I couldn’t answer, and I spent more than a few minutes wiping raccoon eyes off in the bathroom.

But Paul hadn’t just told people that he loved and was proud of me.

In publications, we are required to sell ads–to me, this is a fate worse than death. Begging people to give me money for something I know they don’t want or need...it goes against my nature; not only do I hate asking for favors, I’m almost too shy to do so. I spent months wondering what would happen if I didn’t sell any. I almost couldn’t bring myself to ask, and when I did, it came out something like, “I’m in publications...and we have to sell ads...I know you don’t want one, but...”

The summer before, Paul bought my first ad from me when I’d stumbled, ner-vous and confused, into his office.

He spent $100 on an ad he’d never see, and I saw him for the last time.

About three days after his funeral, my adviser had me add “In loving memory of Paul Hoover” – his birth and death dates, on the ad he’d bought solely for me.

So, in the end, he gave me that as well.

Uncle leaves more than simple legacyin my opinion

emily hoover/co-editor in chief

“Left behind, to mourn while the world closed in too tightly; a searing pain so far from understanding as to be horribly comical.”

7student lifetiger timesnov. 11, 2011

MustListTHE

The top 5 things to watch for in NovemberBy Mary Claire Boudreaux and Riley Rogers

1Finally puberty! Although many know and make fun of Justin Bieber because of his girly attitude and love for purple, his new song Mistletoe shows us that either his voice has gotten deeper or auto-tune has really stepped up it’s game. If you’re buying the album because you’re a hard core Bieber fan or you just want to make fun, it’s a great buy either way.

JUSTIN BIEBER’S NEW ALBUM

2 BREAKING DAWN: PART 1

If you are one of the people who believe that Twilight is better than Harry Potter, then you are really excited about the Nov. 18 movie pre-miere of Breaking Dawn: Part 1 and probably already have the midnight showing tickets. Even if you’re not a huge fan, this movie will be obsessed over for months--either way you will know will know the story line by the end of the week.

3

4 LOSE THE 5 POUNDS YOU GAINED DURING THANKSGIVING

NO-SHAVE NOVEMBER

Shaving is such a hassle. Not shav-ing in November cancels of one of your daily routines. Not only does this event save you time, but it’s for a good cause. The movement began in 2007 to raise awareness for pros-tate cancer. Encourage your friends and family to not shave. It’s all fun and games till a girl joins the pact.

ARKANSAS VS. LSU

Whether you’re a die hard Arkansas fan, you bleed purple, or you just want to watch a football game with your family the day after Thanksgiving, the rival Arkansas v. LSU game is a must-watch. The game is always intense with obnoxious fans, too much pride and a rivalry that dates back to 1906. With LSU being on top and living in a city where the majority of people are Arkansas fans, this a game everyone will remember. Don’t forget to watch the game Nov. 25 at 1:30 p.m.

Let’s face it, there is NO way you can make it out of the holidays without gaining some weight. Even the most hard-core dieters crumble at the smell of their grandmother’s homemade pumpkin pie that’s only available once a year, and that is the least of your tempta-tions. There is a way to feel better coming back from the break: look better than everyone else coming back from the break. Do not do a crazy fad diet or any of that nonsense, but simply working out before will keep your metabolism up and your weight down.

5

8 faith tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Welcome to the

Bible Belt Ding-Dong, that was the

third religious representative to come by my door last summer. Everyone knows about the door to door missionaries. Being Jewish, the last thing I want is someone from an entirely dif-ferent religion preaching on my doorstep.

When people find out I’m Jewish, the usual statements follow: “I didn’t know,” “You don’t believe in Jesus?” and my personal favor-ite, “You know you are going to hell right?” I just laugh and walk away. Lately these occurrences have become a regular thing, but when you are a non-Christian minority in the Bible-toting south, you have to either adapt or cry in a corner.

Really it all began at Pleasant Grove Elementary

School in fourth grade. A few of my classmates were watching South Park and picked up a couple of in-sults from Eric Cartman. For those who don’t know South Park, Cartman is the fat kid who insults every ethnic group, race, religion, country, animal, social class and individual person. So when the misin-formed children began to call me names, I ended up getting in a heated discussion and possibly hurting their feelings.

After a brief trip to the principal’s office, I emerged with a new mentality. I realized for the first time that Jews were different. When I said I went to services on Fridays or asked about something Bibli-cal, everyone would jump down my throat saying, “Jesus died for me” and “You’re a Satan worshipping Zealot.”

Other times, people would just ask blatantly ignorant questions, the best one being, “What’s a

Jewish?” So with an onslaught of recalcitrant morons ask-

ing daily questions about my religion, I was forced to identify more with my religion, only to be able to defend it against the Baptist majority.

If I lived in New York there would not be a constant bombardment of redundant questions; in the Bible Belt, Jews are a rarity. We are hounded by constant inquiries, occasionally insulted, and more often then not, the subject of ill-founded arguments.

When I see things like “You are a great Chris-tian example” or “Jesus is the one savior,” it simply reinforces my individual identity and solidifies who I am.

Looking back, growing up in an overly Christian society was probably better than growing up in New York; the questions and insults made me the person I am today, a Jew.

‘What is a Jewish?’

josh klein

staff writer

Elizabeth Cookmanaging editor

Be a good person. Don’t lie, don’t steal, don’t judge, don’t harm others. Plenty of Christians could relate to these basic principles. Junior Taylor McKnight does, too. The only difference? Taylor is a Pagan.

“I worship Freya, the Norse goddess of beauty, love, wisdom and magic,” McKnight said. “I wor-ship her by going about my life trying to be an intellectual, learning as much as I can and really just appreciating the beauty of things around us as much as I can. I don’t have the extremist altar at home or anything. It’s really a life principle.”

Growing up, McKnight has been exposed to diverse religious beliefs.

“[My family and I] sit at dinner at home some-times and get into these debates about religion and beliefs,” Taylor said. “I used to get really angry

sometimes when I would make a point and some-one would turn around and disprove it, but then I realized all religions are basically the same. All are just going to have their differences.”

McKnight began researching different religions in the seventh grade and has since come to the conclusion that most religions have the same basic morals.

“I grew up going to church. I knew I wasn’t one for Christianity, so I started researching,” McKnight said. “All religions on a basic sense are the same. They all say be good to one-another, don’t judge, as you are not one to judge. Generally, be a good person. Just live your life. It’s the basis of every religion.”

So he found paganism. Throughout the miscon-ceptions of his religion created by media and the close-minded judgment of many people he comes in contact with daily, he has found a place for himself.

“I didn’t like being told what and how to believe

and how to practice it,” McKnight said. “Paganism can be whatever you want it to; worshipping is up to the person. I’ve had an actual small New King James Bibles thrown at me. The most common misconception we get is that of Satan-worshippers. We are not Satan-worshippers.”

Incorrect impressions for most, however, come only from ignorance. Commonly the pagan symbol, the pentacle, can be largely controversial. The five-pointed star inside of a circle is understandably confused with the satanic pentagram, which is the same symbol, only inverted.

“The pentacle is the spiritual sign for most, if not all pagans,” Taylor said. “The five points of the star mean earth, fire, air, water, and spirit; spirit being the fifth unknown element. We do not do anything evil. We’re just people who happen to worship something different than you. We have the same moral code more or less; we’re good people. Just different.”

We’re people who worship differently

9faithtiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Youth Director: DeeDee WilliamsPhone: (903) 793-1116

Email: dwilliams@hardyumc.org

OUR WEEKLY SCHEDULESUNDAY MORNING

9:45am

SUNDAY SCHOOL:10:45am

SUNDAY EVENINGSUNDAY EVENING5:00pm

YOUTH WORSHIPWednesday Evening 5pm-7pm

B.C.U. is about providing a safe and welcoming environment where young

people come to have fun and hang out with friends. Most important they come

to hear the Good News of JESUS CHRIST.

At Trinity Christian School my ex-perience was casual. I was always happy and had no real problems with any of the students and most of the teachers seemed to like me. I couldn’t complain about the environment.

Coming from the Arkansas side to fifth grade at Trinity was like going from stan-dard radio to XM. I liked what I was starting to learn and the teachers kept a personal relationship with their students. I was going though the year learning new things.

Trinity did have a different way of teaching students about subjects such as science or history than what we would see here today.

The classes were organized and con-tained similar things to TISD, but with one exception: Bible. Bible was always involved in curriculum.

But occasionally I would notice it get-ting a little overbearing and many times I felt a little drowned by it all.

2+2= Why are you doing math? You should be reading your Bible!

The student body would attend chapel every Wednesday and listen to sermons about a range of topics. Christ as your savior, avoiding peer pressure, keeping the faith, not falling for the modern falsehoods of science (i.e. evolu-tion), rarely some words on equality and tolerance, always something relating to how the world is constantly assaulting the Christian faith and how we must fight for our religion.

A majority of the students welcomed the injection of religion in everything they did with open arms, while others

felt overwhelmed by it all and took a step back to establish their own opinions.

I fell into the second group. I’m not the type of person that can be com-pletely accepting of something that I haven’t fully understood. Most of my time at Trinity was spent making sense of religion and questioning its motives and constitution, especially in the scientific field. Needless to say, my science teacher wasn’t too fond of me.

I just had a problem with not being taught all the information the other middle schools’ students were learning. And this made the transition from Trin-ity to THS even more troublesome.

The schooling at Trinity was careful to exclude any content about other cultures and faiths, and mostly dismissed them as incorrect, end of conversation.

The Spanish Inquisition. Nope. Didn’t hear about that until sophomore AP history.

The Catholic Church from 80 AD to 1600 AD and the Dark Ages, never big topics of study.

Evolution..... right...... moving on.But the entire reason from me writing

this piece was due to an assignment this year in my history class, a PowerPoint presentation over the Greek and Roman mythological gods. I had only heard lessons on them during my freshman class over Homer’s The Odyssey, and not much else along those lines. Trinity had kept the literature about mythology away from our classes.

Why? What problems would have stemmed from me learning ideas behind Greek and Roman mythology and its impact on their cultures? It’s not like it would have hurt my faith in the Chris-tian religion. They may had gone a little overboard on teaching me the religion,

and limiting other non-Christian ideas.Being that ensconced in religious

thought made me realize that religion, like politics, can be counter-productive if given too much regard in thinking and learning. We can take ourselves too seri-ously and begin letting the belief get in the way of our tolerance of others.

It’s not just Christianity, of course, but religious intolerance all together. Our country came under assault by a militant group fighting in the name of their religion on 9/11, Hitler committed his atrocities in the name of his God, the imprisonment and decimation of “sav-ages” in the United States all to preserve the concept of “Manifest Destiny,” The Crusades, the reformation genocides, the “troubles” in Northern Ireland, mass slaughters committed supposedly in the name of Allah in the Middle East, and the obligatory reciprocal retributions from one religion to the other, it’s the largest threat we have today a Holy Jihad.

Limiting our education about other cultures can wreak havoc on our level of tolerance to others and will always lead to often extreme clashes due to simple ignorance of one another.

Obviously, Trinity’s exclusive curricu-lum doesn’t directly lead to persecution, but it most definitely doesn’t help and it represents a more national issue. If we only accept one dogma as normal, we will never coexist with anyone, and we will only remain in the place we are now.

We should broaden our scope, step back and slow our pace to fit everyone on the same level. We can have our separate faiths, but we don’t have to take them to such extremes that we begin killing each other over them. Inclusive education seems to be our only path out of reckless persecution.

Private Christian education hasripple effect on global tolerance Quick Stats

The number of churches in Texarkana:

Baptist: 120

Methodist: 25

Non-denomonational:10

Pentecostal: 3

Catholic: 2

Disciples of Christ: 2

Jewish Temples: 1

Latter Day Saints: 1

daniel pellegrin staff writer

“Limiting our education about other cultures can wreak havoc on our level of tolerance to others and will always lead to often extreme clashes due to simple ignorance of one another.”

10 diversity 11

by sydney schoenstaff writer

Sarva Mangala Mangalye Shive Sarvar-tha Sadhike Sharanye Tryambake Devi Narayani Namostute. I salute to Narayani, the three-eyed Goddess, who is the most auspicious of the auspicious, who makes all desires possible, and in whom I can take refuge.

A common prayer in Hinduism, the “Devi Stuti,” is said regularly in senior Urvi Chikhliya’s home. After singing a song of praise, she extinguishes the power-ful flame emitting from her diya*. But as she proceeds to close her family’s copy of the “Mandir”**, her hand stops over the picture of Devi, a Hindu goddess, reminding her of the faith and culture she is proud to be an advocate for.

As the world’s oldest religion, and third largest, Hinduism has had a big im-pact on society, most notably in its home-land (which is believed to be in Northern India). Although most regard it only for its religious importance, Hinduism is not so easily confined.

“Hinduism is not just a religion,” Urvi said. “It’s almost more of a culture and a way of life.”

Hinduism is known for its universality, numerous beliefs, and multiple gods. Be-lief in karma, reincarnation, and dharma (virtue) are just some of the main values by which Hindus lead their life. The wor-ship of gods is not as straightforward as most assume, though.

“There are three gods that compose the Brahman [the ultimate reality],” Urvi said. “With that, there are billions of gods and goddesses in human and animal form that give a different meaning to life itself.”

While her religion and culture play a big part in her life, it sometimes leads to confusion about others’.

“Growing up in the ‘Bible Belt’ is hard. I’m not going to lie,” Urvi said. “There are things that refer to the Bible that I don’t really understand because of my religion. Sometimes teachers make biblical refer-

ences, and I either have to ask the person sitting next to me, or just act like I know what he/she is talking about.”

In Texarkana and surrounding areas, there are more Hindus than one may assume, considering where we live. While the India Association (they are all mem-bers) here doesn’t have enough people to build a temple, the crowd of about 200 will all gather for special rituals. As youth

coordinator for the India Association (where she is currently serving her second term), Urvi is proud to represent her faith and heritage.

“I’m proud of who I am, what I believe in, and where I come from,” Urvi said. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

*an oil lamp**“includes photographs of some of the

gods and goddesses and holy books

Hinduism

Hispanic White BlackPacific Islander/Native Hawaiian AsianNative American

IT’S AWAYOFLIFEEvery person stands in their own light; what makes us different should only serve to bring us together

Aliyah Epps can’t speak.It’s sixth grade and the class is participat-

ing in a seemingly harmless discussion of religion.

Key word: seemingly.I can’t say it. They won’t understand.The students raise their hands and eager-

ly speak about their churches. First Baptist, Church on the Rock, Heritage, the list goes on and Aliyah still doesn’t say a word.

Don’t do it, don’t you dare. They will ask too many questions.

Talk turns to 9/11. The class quickly deteriorates into a riot.

“Muslims, what a hateful religion. They are terrorists! It’s their fault.”

Even the teacher speaks vehemently against them. But hey, why not? They’re killers...right?

Aliyah can’t speak.She’s a Muslim.Aliyah and Tamiah, her twin, are now

juniors and yes, they are still Muslims. The discrimination is still an everyday thing. However, their faith isn’t shaken. They ac-cept the challenge Islam brings growing up in Texarkana.

“Are you really black? Are you from Iraq? Those are the questions I get. They don’t understand that not everyone is a Christian. They are clueless,” Aliyah said. “I am not a terrorist. I am a Muslim.”

Aliyah and Tamiah are true followers of the Islam faith, abiding to all the rules. The girls dress modestly, they pray five times ev-ery day, they never utter a curse, but people don’t see that. When they tell others that they practice Islam, people see turbans, Iraq, violence, and 9/11. Ignorance is everywhere. Both girls have dealt with accusations that they are terrorists.

“I am really not bothered by the people who call me a terrorist because that’s all they know,” Aliyah said. “Media shows Americans Osama Bin Laden, flags burn-ing, and 9/11. Not the good part of being a Muslim.”

Not everyone judges Islam, but as a whole, the country has taken up a rather judgmental ideology. Aliyah and Tamiayah try their best to respect Christianity and all other religions–they are used to their faith being walked over.

“I respect Buddism, Hinduism, every religion. Even if I don’t believe what you believe in,” Aliyah said. “As long as you believe. Even if it’s a patch of grass. As long as you are a good person with a good heart you are OK with me.”

Surrounded by the heresy that comes with a conservative community is enough to send a Muslim over the edge. People criti-cize them because they believe in paradise not heaven, because they call their savior

Allah not God, and because they read the Qu’ran instead of the Bible. All the while, those Christians are forgetting the universal religion- kindness.

“Some Christians don’t act like Chris-tians, and that’s what bugs me. They tell me I’m wrong and they’re right, but I look at their Facebook and I notice how they act,” Aliyah said. “One minute they talk about church and how they love God and the next they are cussing and talking about all the crazy stuff they did last Friday.”

More than anything, the girls feel the lack of representation of Islam in Texarkana. The nearest mosque is in Shreveport, so they listen to podcasts of sermons. Even the simple freedom of expression is restrained.

“I can’t represent myself. I’m scared to. In this town if I walked out with traditional Islam clothes or a flag, who knows what would happen. And sometimes I wish I could do just that,” Aliyah said. “I don’t think Christians realize how lucky they are that they can be so open about religion.”

Even though Aliyah knows life would be easier if she was like those around her, she is proud of her religion, of her heritage.

“I’m not ashamed of being a Muslim. It’s my religion, it’s who I am. Being Muslim here isn’t terrible, it’s not the best, but I manage. Maybe one day people will under-stand Islam.”

For centuries, West-erners have shrunk in fear at the word “Jihad.” The word has been associated with holy war and fanaticism. In a country forever in the shadow of 9/11, ignorance regarding the religion of Islam is at a radical high, even ten years later. In a country that revels in its reputation as the world’s leader in innovation, socially and economically, why then are we so far behind mentally?

As a nation, how comfortable are we with Muslims? How does your opinion change of your neighbor is you find out they are Muslims? Oh, and do we still shy away from seemingly Middle-Eastern men in airports? Well why wouldn’t we? They have bombs, right?

While conservative news outlets and various other forms of media spout warn-ings to the masses of impending doom, it is the job of your handy-dandy journalists to expose the most unbiased truths possible. It is not the task of the media to dictate the beliefs of the people but without all sides of the story, many people are left ignorantly in the dark with an opinion that reflects the lagging reputation of the nation.

That being said, what exactly is this “Holy War” being waged on Americans? What is this “Jihad” that is apparently com-ing for the head of western society?

“Jihad” is probably the most misunder-stood term in Islamic lexicon. Although taken to be synonymous with the phrase “holy war,” within the text of the Quran, Jihad most prominently is every Muslim’s duty, be it to improve society, preventing the exploitation of the poor or vulnerable, or just improving one’s self before the day of judgement.

The term has been misconstrued by west-erners for centuries, but the ignorance of it’s true meaning has been resuscitated in recent years with the Middle-Eastern War and 9/11. Even Muslims, like some members of Al-Qaeda, misconstrue the word to an ex-tremist aspects, not unlike some factions of Christianity. Here’s looking at you Westboro Baptist Church.

Ignorance is the most deadly epidemic spreading within our nation. The truth is out there, an unbiased truth at that. For our nation to move on, to become the in-novative patriarch of the world that we are supposed to be, we must shed the blinders and look at the world with new eyes, slowly making our way towards true equality.

Jihad does not mean the Middle East is coming to do harm

ashley diggsmanaging editorIslam

by wynne tidwellfeature editor

Skin Deep

Go to tigertimesonline.com to read a story of struggle and integrity from a interracial couple. Mixed

Editor’s Note: Teen pregnancy is a topic that many wish not to discuss. However, it is something that occurs frequently in today’s world and is a fact of life for teenag-ers around the globe. Because of this, we feel it’s an important topic to cover. It is not our place to either absolve or condemn, but it is our duty to make sure that the voices of all students can be heard.

by madison sewellstaff writer

She lays in bed, biting her lip. The inside of her body is on fire. It’s like noth-ing she’s ever felt. Nausea comes over her, over-powering nausea.

She waits to hear the click of the door, the signal that her mom’s left for work. She stumbles to the bathroom and vomits. This routine has been going on for the past three months.

The nausea doesn’t stop there. It’s all day, every day. It’s not the flu. It’s not a stomach virus.

“Jordan, you have to tell her sooner or later.”

She knows it’s true.Sitting in last period, she builds up the

courage. This will be the hardest thing she’s ever done. “If I don’t do this now, I never will,” she thinks, her heart pounding. She takes out the phone with shaky hands and sends a text that will change everything. She’s never wanted to disappoint her or hurt her. The fear is building, the sicken-ing fear. She wonders, “What is she going to think about me after this?” She clicks send. No going back now. She rereads the text she sent to her mother, “I think I’m pregnant.”

It’s taboo. What no one wants to talk about. What everyone would rather ignore, push under the bed and forget about.

Teen pregnancy.For senior Jordan Johnson, it’s some-

thing that can not physically be ignored. It’s there. The bulging belly, the hormonal changes, the looks in the hallway, the worries, the fears, the anxiety, and the anticipation. With a baby girl due anyday, she is the walking model.

Jordan heads home that afternoon in early May, the text still in her mind. “We’ll

talk when I get home.” Hours more of anticipation. When her mom finally walks through the door, the mother-daughter pair sits, discussing what had happened and what was going to happen now.

“One of the first things she asked me is if I wanted to stay in school,” Jordan said. “I was offended that she thought I couldn’t handle what people would say, much less the school part. I was going to go through with it. It’s what’s best for Tatum [the baby] and me in the long run.”

Her mom just didn’t want Jordan to stress. What’s done is done. They would accept what happened, and move on from it. That was the only thing they could do.

“So many things were running through my head [when she told me], I didn’t know what to say,” Jordan’s mother Robin Hidalgo said. “It’s not a conversation you can plan out. I had to react spontaneously, but I didn’t overreact. It was a shock, yeah, but I made sure to not say anything I would have regretted.”

Most people know about the pregnancy now. She’s only a few months along. The same word is brought up by everyone who knows about her situation:

Abortion. Many speak out against it, but many don’t.

The father wants nothing to do with it, let alone Jordan.

Even Jordan’s closest relatives want her to get an abortion.

Almost all support... gone.Even with all the negative pressures

and threats by those closest to her, Jordan has made the decision to keep her baby. It never crossed her mind to get an abortion. She is going through with it, even though she is only sixteen. Her mom keeps her strong, reminding her that her choice is the right one.

“I don’t believe in abortion,” Hidalgo said. “I would never ask or want anyone, including my own daughter, to end a life. I didn’t think it was a terrible thing. It was just at an inopportune time.”

Even though she has support from those close to her, Jordan still faces disap-proving glances by others.

“People will talk about you if you get an abortion and say, ‘Oh, abortion is bad. That’s murder.’ But people still talk about

me even though I did what everyone wanted me to do. You don’t know what it’s like until you’re in that situation,” Jordan said.

Now Jordan is eight months along. With little or no support from many peo-ple once considered close to her, she works hard, keeping the future in mind. With six AP and DC classes, Jordan takes on a full rigorous schedule to prepare herself for college and the hardships she’ll face. The senior hopes to attend the University of Louisiana in Lafayette next fall where she has already applied. UL, along with being close to Jordan’s relatives, has a dorm for single parents, a daycare program, and the major Jordan wants to work toward.

Her goals and dreams seem nearly impossible. Where many other girls would break down and drop out, Jordan pushes on.

“This isn’t the end of my life. I have opportunities and I’m going to take them,” Jordan said. “It’ll be hard, yeah. It’s not going to be easy, ever. It’s worth it in the end when you’re able to provide for your kid. I don’t want to get stuck working at

McDonald’s and barely making it.”Though Jordan is handling this with

maturity, teen pregnancy is not a glam-orous thing. The mere financial aspect would make any adult cringe, let alone a kid in high school. Diapers, clothes, day care, formula, blankets, toys. It all adds up, especially for a seventeen year old who can’t physically work a full time job and balance school, extra curricular activities, and staying healthy for not only herself, but her baby.

“The worst part is that I don’t have my own money to buy stuff for her,” Jordan said. “I haven’t even bought things for my own daughter.”

People wonder how she does it. How she walks through the halls everyday with her head held high, smile on her face. How she goes home and does that economics homework, the statistics, and makes good grades. How she hasn’t had a breakdown. How she’s doing it without the father of child helping her out. How she could pos-sibly handle it.

See UNBREAKABLE on page 13

12 student life tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

an un-breakable

Senior faces stresses of high school with a baby on the way

bond

Senior Jordan Johnson is shown prior to the birth of her daughter, Tatum. photo by alex garner

13musictiger timesnov. 4, 2011

1. Rolling in the Deep Adele- 20102. Fireflies Owl City- 20093. Tik Tok Ke$ha- 20104. Party like a Rockstar Shop Boyz- 20075. Hips don’t Lie Shakira-20056. What Hurts the Most Rascal Flats- 20067. Bad Day Daniel Powder-20058. Don’t Matter Akon-20079. Party in the USA Miley Cryus- 200910. Complicated Avril Lavigne- 2002

11. Who let the Dogs Out- The Baha Men- 200012. I got a Feeling Black Eye Peas-200913. Hollaback Girl Gwen Stefani - 200414. Hey there Delilah Plain White T’s- 200715. Apologize One Republic-200216. Poker Face Lady Gaga- 200817. Single Ladies Beyonce- 200818. Crank That Soulja Boi- 200619. All Summer Long Kid Rock- 200820. Lazy Song Bruno Mars- 2011

“Everyone asks me if I’m scared. I’m not. There’s no point. Why be scared? It’s only going to make things worse. I can’t change it,” Jordan said.

Along with this attitude, true friends and family have offered her support.

“A lot more people talk to me now more than ever before,” Jordan said. “Even

people I don’t know, just offering support. I’ll get messages from them saying, ‘I’m so proud of you with how you’re handling this or for how you stand up for yourself or for being strong through this’ or ‘you’ll be a good mom.’”

Jordan’s mom has been her rock through it all.

“I’m very proud of her for how she’s handling it,” Hidalgo said. “She’s taken on so many new responsibilities just to get ready for Tatum’s arrival. I’m proud of her for stepping up when the father hadn’t, and taking care of everything and making plans for the future.”

No matter what difficulty Jordan may face throughout this, she’ll always have that one person to give her enough moti-vation to get her through anything.

Tatum.

“I’m so ready to see her,” Jordan said. “To see what she looks like, and what kind of personality she has.”

She smiles and subconsciously rubs her belly. Whatever curve ball life may throw at her, Jordan will always have her baby, and that’s a bond that no one can break.

Tatum Denise Johnson was born on Friday, Nov. 4 at 3:02 p.m. She weighed five pounds and eleven ounces and is perfectly healthy.

Unbreakable from page 12

THAT ARE NOW BAD

MOS

T OVERPLAYED SONGSSwift ‘s Speak Now tourproves ‘phenomenal’ for all

by casey hitchcockstaff writer

The crowd was in an anxious hush. The only

sound was shuffling feet, cameras coming to life, and the gasp of 12,000 people. The curtains began to open in what seemed like slow motion, building even more anticipation.

Suddenly, a mop of blond curls appeared on the stage. Then, all you could hear was the overbearing screams of various people, ranging from 6-year-old girls to 85-year-old men, everyone was on their feet.

Taylor Swift held a concert in Shreveport, La., for her Speak Now tour. The enthusiasm Swift feels for her album shows in her tweet from October 24th, “Speak Now came out one year ago today!” Swift tweeted, “I can’t thank you all enough for how beau-tiful this year has been. I just love you all so much”

People came from all over the world, some as far as New York. They began to arrive hours in advance to find their seats, take pictures with her posters, and

buy various merchandise.The concert had a unique way of telling her

stories. The stage even began with the blood red curtains you typically see in prestigious theatres. The curtains had a storybook feel with her lucky number, 13, in roman numerals across the top. Each song had its own “set” and its own story to go with it. From a small light-up tree to the fireworks shot onstage, it was over-the-top.

Now, people would argue that her knobby knees and sweet lyrics sounded pretty bad on stage. The majority of people have seen at least one video of a Taylor Swift concert. The truth is, it sounds a lot bet-ter in the moment. Whether it’s the crowd’s excite-ment or simply the sway of the moment, it makes any possible mistakes disappear.

The performance was heart-felt. The crowd was huge and loud. And over all, it was phenomenal. The experience was wonderful and could not have been changed to be better. If you ever have the opportuni-ty to go to a Taylor Swift concert, make sure you do.

14 sports tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

by taylor potterstaff writer

Everything was gone. He and his family had lost all of their possessions. Where their home once stood, was now nothing. And they didn’t even know.

Freshman baseball player Tyler Blain’s home was de-stroyed by a fire when their water heater shorted and their attic caught on fire. The family was left with nothing.

“We were in Dallas the time that it happened,” Blain said. “Our granddad was watching the place, and he drove by one day and saw that it was gone.”

The family banded together to cope with their loss.“I felt empty. We all put a piece of ourselves into that

place,” Blain said. “We just pulled together and tried to make it through the best we could.”

Though Blain misses everything about his old home in Douglassville, there is one thing that he misses the most.

“I really miss being out in the woods,” Blain said. “It

was nice and quiet. We were away from everything. We never had to drive far to go hunting.”

Members of the community have donated items and money to help Blain and his family through their time of hardship.

“Some of my mom’s co-workers donated some fur-niture and, for the stuff they couldn’t get, they shopped around for,” Blain said. “Here at school, I received a lot of school supplies and clothes. My church also donated some clothes and other stuff.”

His teammates in baseball have also donated things to help the family.

“The baseball team brought a lot of clothes and shoes for everybody,” Blain said. “I was overwhelmed with joy. It was great to know how much people would help.”

The coaches asked the team to bring old clothes and monetary donations.

“I received an e-mail from one of the counselors informing me that his house had burned and that he had

lost everything,” baseball coach John McClure said. “We had a brief meeting with the players and talked about the unfortunate circumstances that just happened.”

The coach said the situation surprised many of the players.

“We told them that one of the freshman baseball player’s house burned down, and that his family and him-self had lost everything,” McClure said. “ I could see the look in their eyes. It was just shock.”

The team supplied the family with clothes, shoes and other basic necessities.

“We each brought about $10 or more to contribute to his family,” junior Alec Campinini said. “Coach also took us into a room and asked us to bring clothes and told us all of his sizes. We just gave as much as we could to him.”

The players have taken it into their own hands to help Blain recover from his situation as quickly as possible.

“He’s a really nice kid,” sophomore Taylor Jones said. “He really doesn’t deserve what happened.”

After the fire: baseball team helps player’s family

by emily hooverco-editor in chief

One line. 200 racers.Coaches yelling last minute reminders,

teams standing together and chanting to pump themselves up, spectators lining the route calling out to be heard.

This noise is deafening, unending.It is also cold. For spectators in coats

and jeans, the wind is a little chilly. For girls in shorts and tank tops waiting to run, the wind is another torture.

Stretch, sprint, shake your legs out.C’mon, hold yourself together. No

nerves, you can’t be anxious.Mouth’s too dry, stomach cramping.C’mon, gotta be tough. This is for you,

for your team. This is the big leagues. This

is what you’ve been working for.No matter what happens now, we’ve

made it here. Whatever happens, we won district. We’ve made it this far. WE are something special.

Line up, wait for the call.Set!Absolute silence. The only sounds

are your own heart beat and the uneven breathings around you.

BOOM!Texas High has never had a cross

country team make it past district and this year they came in first, with an undefeated season.

“We were the first ever undefeated team that’s gone through Texas High,” senior Madison Sewell said. “The team has never gone to regionals. To get to regionals you

have to at least get top three at district and we won by a lot.”

Last Saturday, the team did even better, coming in ninth at the regional meet.

“We found out when we were getting ready to leave the hotel,” freshman Jalissa Trotter said. “We all got very excited that we placed ninth out of 20-25 schools. I was proud of us, but I feel I could’ve done better and maybe gotten us eighth.”

Trotter has reason to be proud; even though this is her freshman year, she came in first place at the district meet and was a crucial member of the team at the region meet. Such amazing times were come by honestly.

“I ran in the morning, but sometimes we had rest days to relax,” Trotter said. “On normal days, it would be two miles,

but on hard days it would be three. I also used the meets to practice, working on get-ting my times better.”

The final results are from a combination of team togetherness and pushing through.

“We have bonded, we worked with each other and we pushed each other while running,” junior Erica Hardy said. “I was kind of shocked that we got that because I kind of felt that we did worse than that, but it turned out good.”

The entire cross country team has had an amazing year, breaking records and making a name for themselves.

“We were so excited,” sophomore Lind-sey Gore said. “We came into this season with winning district as our goal and then accomplishing it while being undefeated was amazing.”

makinggreat s t r ides

“We came into this

season with winning

district as our goal

and then accom-

plishing it while being undefeated

was amaz-ing.”

Lindsey Gore, 10

Members of the girls’ cross country team participate in a meet. The team won first place in district and ninth in region. submit-ted photo

Freshman Jalissa Trotter makes her way down a road during a meet Oct. 1 at Trinity Christian School. photo by caroline prieskorn

15sportstiger timesnov. 11, 2011

BOYS’ VARSITY GIRLS’ VARSITY JV/FRESHMEN

Love is basketball“I’m the shooting guard, which is where I score points for the

team.” Jacob McCloud, 12 • “I think we have a really good chance of winning district and going to playoffs.” Derrius Gooden, 12 • “I’ve been playing for eight years, and the com-petition is great. I think we are going to have a pretty good season, because ev-

eryone has been working very hard.” Jaylen Love, 12

“I’ve played for the last three years on varsity, and it [stinks] I

won’t get to play this year, you know be-ing my senior year, but I’m going to play in college.” Takia Nelson, 12 • “It’s very fun, we move around a lot, but I don’t get tired of it. When you like it that much, it’s just some-thing I like to do a lot.“ Montira Aldridge,

12 • “Coach always tells us at halftime that it’s zero to zero.”

Alli Clayton, 11

“It’s gonna be really good season as long as everyone continues to

work together and no one fails.” Eron Son-son, 9 • “I like the adrenaline it gives me, and it keeps me in shape.” Gage Martin, 9 • “ It looks to be pretty good season, if we can get everyone to work together we’ll be okay.” Nathan Reiter , 9

Basketball teams prepare for season, face new challenges

by jacob hillstaff writer

With football drawing to a close, Tiger fans are now

turning to basketball as their game of choice. With a team full of underclassmen, the basketball players will face several challeng-es, but everyone is setting their expectations high.

“We have a very young team; for most it’s their first year, and

that means we have a lack of experience,” Boys’ Basketball Coach Jacob Skinner said. “To make up for that fact, we will be doing a lot of hard work to get them into playing condition. Our team isn’t as physically strong as it was in the past, but they are all very dedicated and willing to do the hard work.”

Coach Vince Minter agrees with the plan for hard work.

“Our strength for the upcom-

ing season will be speed,” Minter said. “We have athletes who can run and play fast.”

Freshman Gage Martin is op-timistic about the team’s chances.

“I think we’re going to do good this year,” Martin said. “We have some guys that are pretty good, so we should do alright.”

The Lady Tigers’ basketball team is also gearing up.

“Our plan for the upcoming season is to get better everyday,”

Minter said. “The Lady Tigers will work hard and play hard and strive to be the best we can be. We will have a good mixture of experienced players and young players who are going to get after their opponent every game. We will play an exciting brand of basketball at a fast pace which will make us fun to watch from a fan standpoint. Come out and support us and be ready for an exciting time.”

Even in the face of grueling work, the players are happy to be on the team.

“It’s fun,” senior Montira Aldridge said. “We move around a lot, but I don’t get tired of it.”

Senior Takia Nelson enjoys every aspect of the sport.

“[I like] everything from just playing with the team to running out to the music on game day and warming up,” Nelson said. “I just love it all.”

photo hannah patterson/compiled by christina harris

16 sports tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Tigers head to first playoff gameby dawson mcgonagill

staff writer

It’s finally here. The playoffs. Five games away from making history. However, in order to win the playoffs, Texas High must beat every team it plays. This includes the first playoff game they’re going to play, John Tyler, the team that ruined their chances last year.

It was a close game. They lost 26-17 at Grim Stadium. This year, they are playing the Bobcats in Tyler, so they lose the home field advantage. They have won 7 out of the 10 games they have played to pull a (7-3) record. Sophomore Anthony Rhone is prepared for the game.

“We went back to basics trying to get our fundamentals right, working on the little stuff because little things win big games,” Rhone said. “We just started going back to two-a-days, workouts and just starting over so that way we have everything ready.”

So far this season, the Tigers have been playing pretty well. Like Tyler, Texas High has won seven of the ten games played. The defense has been stronger than the offense this year. Averaging thirty-eight points and allowing only twenty-two points a game, the Tigers have been consistent in both scoring and defending this year, especially compared to the the (4-3) district record the Tigers held last year. The past

three games they have played, they have scored 52, 49, and 48 points and allowed 14, 6, and 38 points to be gained by the opposing team, which shows that their offense and defense are syncing up in time for playoffs.

John Tyler leads the series sgainst Texas High 37-28-1, but the Tigers are hoping to cut the deficit down in the upcoming game. Blake McCown’s hopes to see his team succeed, especially since it’s his senior year.

“You know it’s big game for us,” McCown said. “The farthest I have made it since I have been on varsity is second round in the playoffs, and it would be nice to make a deep run, because once this is over, I’ll never be able to play high school football again.”

17sportstiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Swimming is a side sport to most. It is not well understood by those who are not involved and doesn’t have much of a following. This being said, it holds a value that almost all people learn one way or another. I learned it through swimming.

First thing I saw in swimming: Swimmers are the idiots. You have to get up super early year-round and swim who knows how many yards as fast as the coach tells you. The upside? The practice is only two hours in the morning. The corresponding downside? We practice 48 weeks out of the year. That was a first impression. Like most, it was horrible.

As I went through my freshman year of swimming I began to see a new side to it. It happened when one of the seniors spent pretty much the whole practice telling me what I was doing wrong. By the end of the practice he was yelling at me.

I went to the locker room after practice, ticked off to the upper level. The senior came in behind me and slapped me on the back, yelling at me again. I started to say something rude because I had just gotten past the upper level of ticked-offness when I realized he was congratulating me.

He was yelling that I had gotten what he was saying and that my technique

was looking great. It was then and there I saw the weird camaraderie that took place. He had screamed that I was a hopeless idiot when we were in the pool. Encouraging me through reverse psychology. Last thing he said to me was that I wasn’t worthy of quitting. That was one of the best compliments I ever received.

I learned the crucial lesson though my sophomore year. I was swimming, (statement of the obvious I know. Your complaint has been noted), and the lane I was in was called a simple, evil word: distance. The distance lane consists of going large amounts of yards, in a very short amount of time. In essence, on the scale of 1 to hard, it ranked at somewhere close to impossible. My coach told us that there was no technique to this, no easier way. That we just had to keep our heads down and push through it. That was something I have learned to apply in everything.

There are times in everyone’s life, in the past, present, and in the future, that there is no easy way. No short cut, cheat sheet, or tips to give an edge. Just something that you have to work through by yourself. It is a bitter realization because you will find that you are no longer in a “win or lose situation.” You find that the only two outcomes are to lose, or to lose worse. How a person handles the situation is for him or her to decide. Some will work, others will quit. This situation is not a test of skill, but a test of will.

Learn to winthrough losing

Va

rsity davis payne

entertainment editor

Clay Sandefur

Grade: 12 Years playing: 9Favorite player: Rafael Nadal Tournament: US Open

How did you start playing tennis?“It was offered at my elementary school and I decided to take it once a week there. Then I started taking group lessons at Northridge Country Club.”

What was your favorite moment in tennis this year?“Beating Frisco High ten to nine at regionals.”

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Trey Rush

Grade: 12 Position: receiverFavorite NFL team: Cowboys Favorite player: Chad Johnson

How did you get started in foot-ball?“I got started in football when I was younger, but in high school I realized that it’s what I wanted to do.”

What was your favorite moment in football this year?“The Sulfur Springs game because we banded together and acted like a team.”

ANTIQUE AUCTION

JENNIE’S ANTIQUE MALL1901 COLLEGE DRIVETEXARKANA, TX 75503

NOVEMBER 199 A.M.

For a complete listing of items and photos visit:

www.terrytidwellproperties.com

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18 food tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

It’s not the fanciest or most refined but when you walk into Zapata’s that’s not what you ex-pect. You expect to walk in and be bombarded by a chihuahua in a sombrero, but let’s face it, that doesn’t happen either. When I walk in I go for their enchiladas. They’re not just regular enchiladas you get at any Mexican restaurant, their the most mouth-watering, cheesiest enchiladas in Texarkana. The service there is always moving and is fast, and the people there are nice. So if you’re looking for a place to go out to eat one night and you’re feeling Mexican, then make your way to Zapata’s for some great enchiladas and great Mexican food.

While there are many restaurants that offer sushi, Fuji Kim’s is by far your best choice for high-quality, delicious sushi. Their sushi chef, Mr. Kim, originally worked at Shogun’s and helped it become a huge success. However, he decided to branch out on his own and estab-lished his own restaurant offering authentic sushi and other Japanese cuisine. His signature roll, the “Chef ’s Special,” is different from the chef specials of other restaurants. Instead of merely changing the dish every day, Mr. Kim will change it every order, assuring a unique and tasty experience every time you sit down at his restaurant.

People talk about Japanese restaurants such as Shogun’s or Fuji’s, but you don’t hear about Chinese. That is because there is next to none in Texarkana. For those who desire it though, Lee’s Chinese is the place to go. They give you a bowl of rice that is filled up around two inches above the bowl that tastes superb with some salt. That doesn’t compare to the shrimp and lobster sauce which seems to give your taste buds a new experience with every taste. To end it all is a fortune cookie to bring on a laugh at either the fortune or the high school dropout a table over who takes it seriously.

Our top picks cultural cuisinefor

Chinese

Sushi

Mexican

ItalianWhile you walk into the small but quaint Italian Cafe, you take in the cozy atmosphere and the smell of marinara, cheese and homemade garlic bread. Between the homemade lasagna and the chicken calebrese, you experience authentic Italian cuisine (which is rare in Texarkana). This is a great place for a date night, soft music, great service, out of this world food, and ensures that your date will go better than planned. No matter the occasion, the Italian Cafe on 4501 Stateline Avenue will make for a relaxing din-ning experience.

compiled by: Mary Claire Boudreaux, John David Goins, Jacob Hill, Davis Payne, and Hannah Wren

19moviestiger timesnov. 11, 2011

Jacob Hillstaff writer

300This movie threw in so much fake stuff, that I was genuinely surprised when the war rhinos didn’t have chainsaws strapped to their sides. While it was true that Sparta was a warmongering state, they didn’t delve too far into the more...fabulous parts of Spartan culture. The Spartan war-riors were actually known to weave flowers into their hair before battle. And that thing about bare chested men swinging swords wildly around? More like heavily armored bronze flower soldiers poking the soldiers to death with long spears.

BraveheartAll right, right off the bat I’m going to tell you they didn’t wear kilts. Kilts weren’t used for three hundred more years. The fact that William Wallace rose from nothing to lead an army is also smudged from history. William

Wallace was a knight from a promi-nent family, and his father actually helped the English instead of being killed by them.

GladiatorThe evil, creepy emperor Commo-dus was actually not really that bad of a guy. Nor did he die after a few months of being emperor in a gladi-atorial arena. Good-guy Commodus actually ruled for thirteen well-liked years before being killed by a wrestler in his bathtub. OK that last part was creepy. 2001: A Space Odyssey With an ironic twist, this last one is actually a historically inaccurate movie of the future. This movie was released in ‘68 and promised the world we would have regular space trips to Jupiter and self-aware com-puters would try to kill us. Instead, we get NASA disbanded and the cast of Jersey Shore making us wish we weren’t self-aware.

Davis Paynestaff writer

Many movies that look good fail to deliver. Some have bad actors, others don’t offer a plot worth caring for. And then there are some that just don’t deliver like they should. The Rum Diary is one of these films.

The Rum Diary tells the story of Paul Kemp, a news-writer from Miami, and his experience in working for a rundown newspaper in Puerto Rico. Kemp tries to work through his new life, but his constant abuse of alcohol threatens to send his world crumbling down upon him.

The Rum Diary has an arsenal of reasons as to why it would be considered a decent movie. The crown jewel of the movie is the star, Johnny Depp. He is supported well by actor Aaron Eckhart and the two play off each other for most of the movie. The movie also offers a great plot. It continually surprises the audi-

ence and never gives any lead as to what is to come.

The film also carries many problems. The Rum Diary has a plot that, while surprising, keeps you wondering, “What is the point?” The film also does not give a direction as to

where it is heading and, while surprising, gives mo-ments to the audience that have no explanation and no reason for their happening.

Finally, the ending of the movie creates a problem. The ending of a movie has the last impact on the audience and has the strength to ruin a movie. The ending of The Rum Diary will leave you thinking, “What now?”

All in all, I would have to rate The Rum Diary as a solid C+. The movie is decent and Johnny Depp plays his role well, but that fails to make up for the plot which seems to make no effort toward impressing the audience. The

Rum Diary is a film that I would recommend to anyone who wants to see a movie, but only if they are willing to lower their expectations.

Hollywood strikes again

Verdict: C+

Rum Diary not worth tripHistorical inaccuracies plague movies

20 feature tiger timesnov. 11, 2011

productiond a z z l i n g

1 Senior Jake Butler, who played Mor-timer Brewster, kisses Elaine Harper,

played by Danielle Leary, after he has proposed to her.

2Senior Josh Arnold, who played Rev. Harper, has tea with Aunt Abby.

3Sophomore Adam Graves, who played Teddy Brewster, protects the

“Oregon,” which his aunt wants to give away.

4Skylar Alton who plays Johnathon Brewster speaking with his aunts.

5 Senior Priscilla Butler, who played Officer Klein, sits as she listens to the

conversation.

6Junior Ramsey Anderson, who played Dr. Einstien, talks with Jonathon.

7Seniors Brooke Hubbard and Emily Rankin, who played Aunt Martha and

Aunt Abbey, are upset as Mortimer gives bad news.

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photos by ruth arnold