Kristen Gunther and Ande Withers: Staff Writers

4 out of 5 stars

As anticipated, Disneynature has once again created a masterful documentary, Oceans, which was released at the end of April. Oceans provides a beautiful display of dazzling imagery and a stunning array of underwater life. Within the first few minutes, the documentary-like film begs the question: What is the ocean?

The narrator, Pierce Brosnan, follows the lives of underwater creatures, both common and exotic. From the average sea turtle to the foreign Spanish dancer (a type of sea slug), Oceans shows a variety of thriving aquatic life in its natural habitat, successfully portraying the vastly diverse community that lives beneath the waves. However magnificent the lifestyles and activities of these species are, though the weakly expressed motive makes the point of the movie slightly indiscernible.

In the middle of the film, which seems more like an ending than a transition, the camera zooms out – so far away from the seas that the viewer is actually faced with an image of the earth from outer space. As a satellite beeps by, Brosnan begins discussing radar technology that is used to detect the paths of pollutants as they stream into ocean water. Obviously, this is a poorly constructed segue into the underlying message about the dangers of pollution. Although this is an important purport, it is not emphasized enough throughout the movie so as to be warranted a real “theme” of the film.
An even stranger aspect of the execution of the message is that after returning to peaceful scenes of sea horses and dolphins, the narrator then reverts back to the same discussion. The sparseness with which the message is delivered almost voids the purpose of the message itself.

Aside from the irksome faux-theme, Oceans offers flawless spectacles of deep-sea exploration at its best, making it a good one-time watch.

The most popular boat name is Obsession!

Mel Blanc (the voice of Bugs Bunny) was allergic to carrots!

Coca-Cola was originally green!

The original use of the magic word “Abracadabra” was intended for curing hay fever!

The parachute was invented by DaVinci in 1515!

Chimps are the only animals that can recognize themselves in a mirror!

The average number of people airborne over the US any given hour is 61,000!

The world’s youngest parents were 8 and 9 and lived in China in 1910.

Mao Tse-Tang, was a librarian at the University of Peking before his rise to power!

Henry VII was the only British King to be crowned on the field of battle!

Since the United Nations was founded in 1945, there have been 140 wars!

In Sweden there is a ski-thru Mcdonalds!

The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body!

<em><strong>Brendan Perry:</strong> Staff Writer</em>

There will be a Menchie’s frozen yogurt opening in South Pasadena on June 13th. Frozen yogurt has become very popular in South Pasadena over the past couple of years with stores like Pinkberry, Yogurtland, and Squeeze & Scoop opening in neighboring cities. Menchie’s, however, will be the first of these well-liked stores to open up a branch in South Pasadena.
On the surface, Menchie’s is most similar to Yogurtland. It runs on a mix it your self, weigh-it-and-pay system. However, Menchie’s strives to be more than just a delicious frozen yogurt store. Their goal is to become a big part of the community and a place where families can come with the dog and enjoy some great food in a friendly environment. “Menchie’s is different than the other frozen yogurt stores because we really want to focus on the community and give back,” said business owner, Lars Martin.
Martin says they chose South Pasadena for their new location because of the strong sense of community present in this neighborhood. Despite its chain-affiliation, Martin envisions Menchie’s as a friendly neighborhood store like those of 25 to 30 years ago, by which every costumer will be greeted and the employees will attempt to learn customer’s names. For this same reason, Menchie’s has elected not to supply Wi-fi connection.
Menchie’s plans to work very closely with the South Pasadena unified school district. They hope to work out an arrangement, in which South Pasadena students receive a ten -percent discount as well as an additional ten-percent going to the schools.
Although Menchie’s focuses on the customer experience, their product is second to none. They currently have 14 different flavors (all of which can br sampled) and over 60 different toppings. Menchie’s has been deemed the “Best ice cream shop in Los Angeles” by myfoxla.com’s hotlist for three years in a row.
The new Menchie’s will be located in the historic plaza next to Mike and Anne’s on west Mission. If you want to work at Menchie’s apply now and good luck. They are currently looking for about 25 people to work over the summer but have already received over 180 applications. However, Martin says, they will be accepting several students from South Pasadena.

Max White: Staff Writer

Get Him to the Greek is a fantastic comedy that strikes a perfect balance between crude humor and clever dialogue.

Although advertised as a spin-off of 2008’s Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek is an entirely different film. Those expecting a continuation of it’s largely successful predecessor will likely be disappointed.

The film is written and directed by Nicholas Stoller, with little input from Forgetting Sarah Marshall’s screenwriter Jason Segal, a difference that has a huge impact on the film. Russell Brand’s Aldous Snow is the only returning character, although Jonah Hill, who played the waiter in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, returns as the lead role of Aaron Greenburg. While equally funny, Get Him to the Greek is much more random and may appeal to a slightly different audience.

The opening montage chronicles the fall from fame of British rocker Aldous Snow, and his downward spiral into illegal narcotics. When naïve music enthusiast Aaron Greenburg proposes a concert to his boss, Sergio Roma (Sean “P. Diddy” Combs), that could revitalize Snow’s popularity and save the record company where Greenburg works, he is given a task that will make or break his career: get Snow from London to L.A.’s Greek Theatre in 72 hours.

Snow’s spontaneous and drug-addled mind thrusts the unlikely duo into a series of hilarious situations. There are plenty of side-splitting moments to keep the audience laughing, and Brand’s outrageous rocker persona keeps the movie interesting even during the lulls between actual jokes. Some parts seem unnecessarily crude and obscene—reminders of the adult nature and “R” rating of this raunchy comedy—but they are generally short lived and focus more on the characters’ reactions than what is actually happening.

Sean Combs seems to be a strange choice as Roma at first, but proves himself worthy of the hilarious supporting role by perfectly delivering some of the funniest lines in the movie.

Needless to say, those who dislike Russell Brand will like not enjoy the film, as will those who are turned off by drug-related and sometimes vulgar humor.
The previews and trailer do a great job of capturing what the film is like without ruining the most hilarious parts. In fact, very little of the advertised footage makes it into the film, which keeps almost all of the content fresh.

Although not everyone will enjoy it, Get Him to the Greek is hands-down the best comedy so far this year, and is sure to induce hysterical laughter in its targeted audience.

Jake Folsom: Staff Writer

1 out of 5 stars

Disappointment is the first word that comes to mind after seeing the Prince of Persia. The previews and trailers made it seem like an epic battle with a magical prince, when in reality it was a fast paced attempt at a thriller that lulled me into a sleepy stupor that put an end to my fun that night.

Although this movie advertises everything that a movie could offer, action, violence, magic, and ostrich races it was an absolute bore, which is similar to watching a friend play a video game, it is truly astonishing that a movie that has a 150 million dollar budget could only produce the mediocre special effects that the movie revolved around. But what is truly awful is its lack of any memorable moments throughout the entire movie. Normally when you go to a movie you walk away with several distinctive scenes in your mind that defines that movie. However, when I walked away from this movie all that I was thinking about was where the last two hours of my life went.

The opening scene starts with a cliché panning screen of the desert while a man with a deep voice speaks over it talking about the valor of princes and how this particular prince is so great. The story begins with a young boy who was fighting to survive on the street and how because of the bravery that the king observed (he risked his life to save another young boys from the guards) he adopts him.

The basic plot of the story is that he is blamed for the murder of his father and he has to prove that he didn’t do it while also trying to protect a legendary dagger that he won in battle that has the power to turn back time. The princess who is in charge of the city that they were battling is charged with protecting the dagger and spends the majority of the movie stealing the dagger back until they finally work out their differences and decide to work together.

Through the many very predictable plot twists the movie ends of course with triumph for Dastan (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) and getting the girl. It is one of the worst movies of 2010 and should not be viewed by anyone, and if I could I would use the magic of the dagger to reverse time back to before I saw the movie so I could get my precious time back and not have to sit through that appalling movie again.

Devin Mitchell: Associate News Editor

The current political environment is not good for incumbents. Governor Jon Corzine was defeated in his re-election bid in Democratic New Jersey, Senators Arlen Specter and Bob Bennett were both beaten by primary challengers in Pennsylvania and Utah respectively, numerous others are in serious danger of losing their Congressional seats, and some have even called off re-election bids altogether because of the hostile political climate. While the populist anti-Washington sentiment may seem like a good way to counteract the stagnant ways of the Capitol, the truth is that this attitude has several unintended consequences.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that was signed into law in March were inarguably the most controversial pieces of legislation that were debated in the 111th Congress. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid used his knowledge of both the arcane legislative body he leads and of his fellow Senate Democrats to pass the bill.

Reid walked a fine line, having to bargain with several members in order to ensure their support, but he ultimately managed to produce a bill that had the support of the sixty ideologically diverse Democratic senators he needed to break the Republican filibuster.

Largely due to his very public profile as majority leader, Reid faces a tough race for re-election in the November mid-terms, and most polls show him trailing the prospective Republican candidates. It took time for Reid, who has represented Nevada in the Senate since 1987, to develop the negotiating skills and knowledge of Senate parliamentary procedure necessary to secure passage of the bill. It’s unfair that Reid is being punished for doing his job as majority leader instead of being a savvy politician.
The anti-incumbent sentiment will also cause current members of Congress to hesitate before voting for legislation that could damage them in their home constituency. When members see their colleagues punished for being active on divisive issues, it will discourage them from ever taking a stand on something that they believe in. Members will vote based on polls and not principle.

This country has countless problems that need to be addressed, and if no one is willing to show courage and vote outside their political comfort zone, nothing will get done. Blindly evicting senators and representatives because of their experience enables that future.

Luka Douridas: Staff Writer

Graduation has always been known as bittersweet. But for what reasons? For most seniors across the nation, it’s because of moving on—to a new life in college, and from the school and friends you know you will miss. At our school, however, namely for the Class of 2010, this “moving on” means a lot more.

Three students from this class have lost their lives too soon. The most obvious one, that of Aydin Salek, is the most recent in our memory—the majority of this article’s readership undoubtedly will remember his passing. Yet there are two others of whom we do not speak as often: John Chavez, who spent his earlier years in our district but his last at Maranatha High School, passed away from a head injury during a hiking incident in the Summer of 2008. My own sister, Marieke Douridas—who died in a drowning accident over four years ago—is the third. Marieke was in the eighth grade and had just been accepted to LACHSA for acting.

When the senior shirts came out last month, students soon began to notice that the list of names on the backs failed to mention Aydin, John, or Marieke. Of course, nobody deliberately left out those names—it was just a quickly printed list of the current seniors—but just the sheer fact of their absence makes me reevaluate exactly how strongly these losses have stayed with us, whether they be a few years or a even a few months old. Sure, one could rightfully argue that the list should just be of the people who will actually be graduating this year—not to mention the fact that John and Marieke wouldn’t have even graduated from SPHS. But these aren’t just graduation shirts—these are shirts for the Class of 2010. Technicalities aside, these individuals were part of this class, and deserve to be remembered as such.

My experience with my own loss has also sparked some concern. After my sister’s death, the middle school put money into renovating the fountain on the quad. During the weeks before promotion, students from all three grade levels designed and decorated tiles to be placed on the fountain. Now, however, the fountain looks dismal. It is completely drained, littered with empty chip bags, gum, and soda bottles, while the exterior looks almost as if it were hacked away with a sledgehammer—large chunks of the marble are missing, while nearly every surface is covered with chips and scratches.

But there is more to remembrance than fountains. The inflow of consoling visitors to Aydin’s home started out strong, but has since been reduced to a trickle, just as it did with ours—what will happen ten years from now, when we have all gone through college and started our careers? Aydin’s Facebook page, which still gets posts every couple of days, is bound to eventually reach a standstill sometime in the future.

I know that we don’t have to pay tributes every day, or keep wall posts going until we reach old age. I know nothing can last forever. However disheartening it may be, I do accept that fact that I can’t stop names from being left off shirts, or keep preventing my sister’s fountain from being neglected. I’m only asking for us to stop and think: to look back, to remember. To enjoy graduation day not just for ourselves, but for those who we would give anything to have be there with us. Because it’s their day, too.

And then maybe—just maybe—the rest will follow.

Jim Wood: Staff Writer

It has been over a month since the offshore drilling platform Deepwater Horizon caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, springing a leak that continues to spill thousands of gallons of crude oil into the fragile ecosystem. The weeks following have been filled with name-calling, finger pointing, and general disorganization as BP and the federal government struggle to fix the leak. Political pundits have gone as far as labeling the crisis “Obama’s Katrina”. While Obama’s recovery efforts may have not been stellar, he definitely doesn’t deserve the blame that’s been heaped on him.

The media has blamed BP for causing the deadly explosion, but they were not the only corporation at fault. Offshore drill provider Transocean didn’t address safety concerns with the blowout preventer, which eventually failed when put to the test. Also, oil contractor Halliburton inserted concrete plugs that were intended to prevent gas leaks, but the job was rushed and the plugs failed when the drilling fluid was removed. In short, the corporation’s desire to maximize profits by speeding up the drilling process and taking risky shortcuts finally came back to bite them.

Recently, television and newspapers have been showing images of disgruntled protestors carrying signs that read “BP and Obama put me out of business”. However, blaming Obama for causing the Deepwater explosion would be about as ridiculous as blaming Bush for causing Hurricane Katrina. Note that while federal drilling regulations were breached, the federal government had no direct involvement in the Deepwater Explosion. The Obama administration has also been under fire for not directly trying to stop the leak, as he has left the job in the hands of BP. While we rely on the federal government for all sorts of disaster relief, the sad truth is that the federal government doesn’t know how to stop an oil leak at 5,000 feet below sea level. At this point, the best thing that Obama can do is continue to cleanup the ecosystem and make sure that BP actually closes the well. And while Obama definitely needs to overhaul the dysfunctional Minerals Management Service, the bottom line is that offshore drilling is not the place to cut corners and BP should know that best.

Kait Feldmann: Feature Editor

Every year, seniors find out that of the two cords that can be awarded, those who receive both are only permitted to wear one during the graduation ceremony. Every year those select students get upset. And every year, as soon as graduation is over, they no longer care enough to address the problem for the succeeding class. The key is addressing it early, and it is high-time someone steps in to address the issue in a form other than complaint and spiteful grumblings.

The official Quill and Scroll cord is honored for achievements in journalism. Ultimately, that means Tiger and Copa. The CSF cord is awarded for academic achievement. The requirements are simple: amass a specific amount of credits and maintain a certain GPA throughout high school, and manage to land in the upper third of the class. Students who wish to receive the cord must fill out the CSF form each semester to qualify.
This year, seventeen students have received both Quill and Scroll and CSF cords. “It sucks to have to choose because you’re proud of both things,” says Sabrina Ketel, “[Ms Anderson’s] reasoning is that it’s going to turn into a sort of arms race, but that doesn’t make sense because there are only two cords… it should be an accomplishment students can be proud of.”

Ms Anderson admits that it is a rule she inherited, not one that she created, “but I don’t say that to lose ownership of it,” she says. Though it is a rule based upon tradition, Ms Anderson essentially believes it should be maintained—“I don’t want people cord mongering.” But her strongest argument against it is that having multiple cords takes away from the sense of unity of a graduating class.

Senior Janet Xu says, “If her main argument for not wearing cords is uniform, then why wear cords at all? We might as well do off with all of that.”

Ms Anderson suggested wearing both to Baccalaureate, where the rule does not apply.
“But what’s the point of that?” stresses Aimee Fata, “What’s the point of taking it out of graduation but not Baccalaureate?”

The issue of “cord mongering” is one that circulates almost entirely among seniors and goes unheard of among the other classes, and as such each year the issue surfaces anew and then subsides again with little done to address it. Ms Anderson admits that the faculty should be addressing this topic earlier, but in reality, the senior student body should, too.

“I’m open to revisiting [the issue of changing the rules], but not in the heat of graduation,” said Ms Anderson. Hear that? Those are the winds of change. Help me keep them going.

Benjamin Winkel: Editor-in-Chief

I remember this one time I was sitting in Mr. Hogan’s room, and I was getting delirious. The newspaper was on deadline yet again, and it was late, yet again. I don’t know what set me off, but I distinctly recall saying to no one in particular, “You know that saying? What is it? Oh yeah. Don’t put your nose where it’s not your pie.”

Playing that scene back in my head, it still makes very little sense. And it does very little to sum up my time at this high school. But, you know, I’m okay with that, because these last four years have been awash with confusion and discovery, false reality and feigned perception.

I would like to thank a few people for helping me through to the other side. Some of them fought alongside me, and others fought me at every turn in the road. Thank you to Jeff Tweedy, who once said, “I’d like to thank you all for nothing.” One night, he said it to me exactly 42 times. Maestro Tweedy and his gang helped me through many a long night, their serenades intertwining with English essays and Aprato math problems.
I want to thank everyone who has had a hand in the production of Tiger Newspaper over this past year. No one sees how much work you all do.

I’d also like to thank Tufts University for giving me a place to live come September.
I really have too many people to thank, so I’ll stop. But in the course of writing this brief goodbye, I have come to a realization: I have left this school very much like I found it.

I made some friends and learned some things, but I haven’t left much of a mark. Was it my job to do so? Should I have accomplished more? Or should I be happy knowing I received one of the best educations one of the lowest performing states in a nation far below comparable western democracies has to give? Yeah, I’m pretty happy.
It’s June, and I’m happy. I’m not sure it’s the type of rational happy you read about in health magazines, but it’s what I’ve got.

Come to think of it, like my saying above, this doesn’t make much sense either. That is all. Go forth.