The Hoofprint – December 19, 2003

Thirty-one percent of students polled believe that Buffalo High School does not recycle. These students have been misled.
The school, in fact, does recycle. The school recycles paper, cardboard, paint, florescent light bulbs, cans in the kitchen, old textbooks, batteries, and computers. This information was confirmed by the custodial staff, and members of the administration.
Randy's Sanitation, the company that handles the recycling for the school, said that BHS has been recycling for the past decade, and that they have never turned a load of recycling from the school away.
However, the school does not recycle glass or plastic because there is simply not enough of it to pay for the recycling itself. Also, there are no facilities in this area that will recycle commercial plastic. Randy's Sanitation cannot recycle plastic. The City of Buffalo does recycle plastic through its curbside pickup program, but it is only allowed to handle residential areas. Buffalo High School is classified as a commercial business and therefore has to find its own way to dispose of plastic and other recyclables.
For now, students wishing to recycle glass and plastic can bring containers home. Principal Dr. Nick Miller said he would not be opposed if a student led group started a plastic recycling program.
Ninety percent of students believed that, if the BHS did recycle, the school recycles paper. Thirty-eight percent believed that cardboard is recycled, glass came in at 17 percent, and plastic at 15 percent.
Some other things that students believed to be recycled were pop cans and food.
"How else do you have chicken four days a week?" said Junior Jesse Holm.
Ninety-one percent of students believe that the school needs to have a recycling program.
"Yes, our natural resources are just that -- natural," said Freshman Lea Ann Rein. "We can't use it up."
"They better [recycle], because they have the big red bins with recycling on it and the trash cans that say save our earth," said Junior James Huff. "Otherwise they're basically being hypocrites and good schools aren't hypocrites."
The administration also believes in recycling.

After living his life in horrible circumstances—being discriminated against, tortured, and starved—you have to wonder how someone could go on to tell other people about his experiences in the Holocaust.
One man did just that: Henry Ortelt. On December 3, Ortelt made a visit to Mr. Gerard Rohl's World Studies classes to share his experiences with students.
Ortelt went to some of the most horrifying detainment camps in Poland. One of them was the most well known concentration camp—Auschwitz, which happened to be the largest killer of people during the Holocaust.
While Ortelt was in Auschwitz, his mother and other relatives were murdered by the Nazis.
Throughout his presentation, Ortelt stressed the fact that the Holocaust was built on deception. He said that the Holocaust was inflated because of Adolf Hitler's lies. He highlighted the fact that Hitler made people believe that Jewish people and anyone who might have something to do with them were immediately known as bad people who deserved nothing less then to be killed.
"If you tell a lie enough times, people will start to believe it," Ortelt said.
When Ortelt was twelve years old, in 1933, when Hitler took control of Germany, Ortelt didn't understand what was happening or why anyone would want to do this to people.
The Jewish people started to disappear over the night from his town and no one knew where they had gone. After some time, Ortelt came to find out that the SS officers were going to houses in the middle of the night, taking families, and telling them that they had 15 minutes to pack only one suitcase.
Ortelt's family waited patiently for it to be their turn to "disappear." Ortelt experienced many different, grotesque, situations in his life that most people will never have to experience.
He went to death camps and made it out of every one. He took more horrible experiences with him in his life.

With the media attention given to the disappearance of the North Dakota University student Dru Sjodin and the attempted kidnappings of two different teenage girls in Minnesota, some people, especially young women can't help but wonder: what if?
"[Feeling safe at night] depends on how late it is and if it's in a public place or not. I always check my backseat at night before I get in," said Senior Katee Hall.
Safety concerns have risen since Dru Sjodin was abducted. Being alone at night isn't the only time students feel unsafe.
"When me and my friends go out, we always have really strange guys hit on us, they'll tell us where they live and tell us to come over, we never do," said Junior Rachel Oas.
Tips for being safe:
*If a robber wants your purse or wallet, throw it opposite the way you plan to run.
*If you are going out to your car alone at night, ask a manager or security person to walk you out, or carry pepper spray.
*If someone is following you NEVER go to your house. Go to the police station and honk your horn.
*If you are thrown into the trunk, kick out the taillight and wave through the hole.
*If you are at home alone and you hear a strange noise, immediately call 911 and keep the door locked.

From the hearts to the homes of those who have loved ones in Iraq, the battle is ongoing. One of those individuals going through this tough time is Freshman Nicole McGraw.
With her stepfather, Michael Thiesfeld, overseas, off the border of Kuwait in Iraq, her family is in a worried state. Going from being gone for two week periods to not coming home for a year, the family struggles with the separation.
"He's been the one who's told me what to do and how to do it. He taught me stuff and taught me how to defend myself," said McGraw.
Nicole is used to change; she has gone from living in Kentucky to South Carolina for three months, to Buffalo. She is definitely not a new comer to relocating, with her step dad being based around the country.
"It was a big change because, you are moving half way across the country without family or anyone," said McGraw.
Of course, Nicole isn't alone. At home she has two younger sisters, Jamie, 4, Megan, 9, and her mother, Allison, as well.
"He was always like Mr. Strict on rules and getting homework done, I can tell by my grades that I've slacked off a little bit," said McGraw.
Ranking as a captain, her stepfather is in high demand. Keeping the soldiers in check, he is required to hand out weapons to soldiers and teach them how to use them.
McGraw said her family is willing to make sacrifices. Without being able to come home for visits, even on holidays, the sacrifice is big.
"I know there's going to be a lot more tears," said McGraw.

Michael, left, is currently serving in the armed forces in Kuwait while his family awaits his return.

In just about two and half quarters, the school year will be over. Eighth graders will be looking forward to their first year of high school. Freshman will be happy to not be the little guys of the school any- more and sophomores will be moving up to be upperclassmen. The juniors will be ready to finish their last year of high school. But, what about the seniors? When they graduate, what are they going to do? Where will they go and what are their plans for the future?
One option for seniors, which is becoming more and more popular every year, is college. Ninety-five percent of BHS seniors plan on going to college, but only 66 percent know where they are going. Seventy-eight percent know what they want to do for a living already. While many students participate in some type of a sport during high school, only 24 percent plan on continuing it after graduation.
This is a story about two BHS seniors and what they are doing to prepare for graduation. These are the plans of Tyler DuSchane and Megan Quinlivan. It tells where they are going, what they are doing, and how they are feeling about graduation.
Tyler DuSchane is looking forward to getting out of high school, getting out of his house, being on his own, going to col- lege, and eventually making some money. He is definitely excited to graduate, yet realizes that there will be some setbacks. He is not looking forward to basically starting all over again, having to make new friends, and having to pay for a lot more of his own expenses.
"Paying for expenses will be tough," said DuSchane. "I will need federal and state grants, loans, and a little help from my parents. Of course, I'll graduate in debt."
DuSchane is not doing a ton right now to prepare for college. He is enjoying his senior year in high school and kicking back. His plans for this summer are to work and play in his band. He plays the piano for his band, Godspeed, which con- sists of Juniors Mike Christensen, Ben Blizel, and Ryan Auger. He is also a fiber- glass technician at Marine Max.
"Hopefully, Godspeed and I will get a chance to play a few small venues over the summer," said DuSchane. "And, of course, I always look forward to cruising in the Z [his car]."
Next year, DuSchane plans on going to college at the Art Institute in Minneapolis. He is going for web design and multimedia. He does not plan on liv- ing on campus because of the costs, but is considering living with his dad in Plymouth.
"I'm going to college because I really don't feel like working just yet, and I might as well be learning something instead of just sitting around," DuSchane said. "So, I picked something that I thought would be fun and that I wouldn't get sick of. That way, when I'm out of col- lege, I can get a much better paying job, or hopefully, work for myself."
Megan Quinlivan is also looking for- ward to getting out of the house, getting out on her own, and going to college. However, she is not looking forward to the expenses and having harder work at school. While the thought of being on her own may be frightening at times, she is excited and ready.
"You can't live at home all your life," said Quinlivan.
Quinlivan has been researching intern- ships and how to be successful in interior design. She has also been shopping for supplies that she will need for her new home when she moves out. Her plans for this summer are to have fun and enjoy her time before school. She will also be going to the Czech Republic to visit her dad, who has been there for a couple of years teach- ing English as a second language.
"I want to visit him and see what it is like over there," said Quinlivan.
Quinlivan will be going to NIFT in New York City next year. She will study interior design.
"I'm going to college because I want to be able to have a good career and do something for myself," said Megan.

Bookstores are fascinating places -- a wealth of knowledge and different perspectives from all manner of people. They're a place where everyone can find both something they can relate to and many more things they've never experienced before. However, not every item you'll see on the shelf is entirely worth your attention.

I'm referring to certain political books that, instead of presenting their opinions in civilized, intelligent ways, spew line after line of angry and ultimately useless slander towards another political group. They can rant and rave like Adolf Hitler on crack-cocaine, but they almost always fail to present the author's own viewpoint on the issue at stake. Instead of providing me with a clear idea of how they feel on the subject, they resort to accusations and insults that usually disgust me so much that I slam the books shut and angrily walk back towards the sci-fi/fantasy section.

Authors of these books include Ann Coulter (Treason: Liberal Treachery form the Cold War to the War on Terrorism), Michael Savage (The Savage Nation), Al Franken (Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right) and Michael Moore (Dude, Where's My Country?). Most of these books have been or still are New York Times #1 bestsellers, and Michael Savage is even heard daily on over 300 radio stations nationwide. Hate, it seems, sells better than respect.

What is it that makes these judgmental, narrow-minded people so incredibly popular? They aren't changing things for the better with their repetitive rhetoric of hate. Come to think of it, when has hate ever solved anything?

Many of our loved ones are dying and nobody can do anything to stop it. The war in Iraq has been going on for about a year now and people think that everything is ok there, however, they are wrong. Recently, more people have been dying in Iraq since the war ended. People who do not have loved ones fighting don't know how dreadful the battle is.

September 11th was a devastating and tragic event that nobody will ever forget. This event has lead us to the pointless war in Iraq where even more people are dying to this day.

There are people that are pro war who think that going to Iraq will make peace within their country. Tell me this, how would it help the situation for us to travel to their country and try to "fix it"? Only they can't fix it, even if they really wanted to. Our people are suffering all for nothing and we can't do anything to stop it.

Osama Bin Laden was the person we were trying to kill, not half of the Iraqi population. People should NOT get revenge by killing others and destroying their country for something most of them didn't do. Why sink as low as the terrorists? Why be so cruel?

This war may last another day, another month, another year, or even another decade. Our lives are too short to be suffering like most individuals are in Iraq. We should be living our lives to the fullest and not have to worry about how our loved ones are doing or if they are deceased. This is something nobody should go through in his or her lifetime, but half of us do.

In conclusion, all I want to say is that hopefully all goes well and maybe we will have peace soon.

Teenage girls all over the world are reading and re-subscribing to beauty magazines such as YM, Seventeen, Cosmopolitan, Jane, Sassy, and Vogue. Personally, I think they are the worst things ever for us, (me being a teenage girl myself). The society and public gives girls a bad self esteem as it is, but then they get them to buy and enjoy something that is full of a bunch of models saying "I'm prettier than you, and if you want to look even close to as good as me you need all this makeup and all these tips." After reading these magazines for so long and looking at all those models showing off their makeup and clothes you automatically are going to wish you look like them, because they are classified as "pretty".

Some girls buy these magazines because they say it gives them makeup tips and shows them how to do things like that. Well, if you haven't noticed, all the pictures of their eyes, with the great makeup job, are lighted just perfectly and mostly computerized. The makeup would not look like that on an average real girl.

It is statistically proven that if you see and hear something a repeated amount of times you are eventually going to believe it. If girls are getting a magazine every week or month telling them how they can look more like the models or improve their looks, after so long, they are going to think they are ugly because they do not look like a Super Model. Two of my sisters got a new magazine every month that they loved to read and look at. My other sister wouldn't even look at them because she feels the same way I do, and I took after her and wouldn't read them either. Just a couple months ago, I figured they couldn't be that bad, but after just flipping through the pages, I already felt like crap. But they don't care because girls will buy the magazine anyways because it is "helping them". All I'm saying is that if you don't like yourself as it is now, I definitely would not read a beauty magazine, it will only make you feel ugly. It will not help you, it will only make it worse with out you knowing it.

A lot of you may know who I am most of you may have heard about me. My name is Jaimie Duthoy and last year, as a freshman, I was suspended for the last month or so of school for the possession and sales of marijuana on school property.
There have been many things that have happened since then. Obviously, one major thing being that legal consequences do apply to a charge like that. I'll start from the beginning though and let you know how it all started.
I used marijuana for the first time when I was eleven years old. After that I only used occasionally but I thought I was really cool and bad because I was so young and doing things that older teens do. When I started to get really heavy into using was in eighth grade. That was also when I sold for the first time. When I did it then it wasn't to make a lot of money or anything but more that I had a connection that nobody else had. Eighth grade came and went and I was still a straight A student and felt that I had things under control. Then I was a freshman, using as much and I was making an attempt to quit using completely. My grades were good and I just decided that I didn't want to use anymore. That worked for a while but I was getting bored with the whole sober scene so I started using again. In April of 2003 I came across a new, very reliable connection and was able to get large amounts of drugs for close to nothing. That's when I started dealing. I asked my connection to just bag it to be ready to sell and if needed I would just split or double a bag. Things were going well, I was making a lot of money, I was pushing a lot of drugs, and people started to find out that they could come to me for marijuana.
Then, the day that I was caught, I was just sitting in class and I was called down to the office. Needless to say, I was scared out of my mind. The day before I had been talking to someone in a different class about buying some. Mrs. Swaggett and Ms. Geisler met me at the office and asked me to show them my locker. Obviously, I did and they found nothing. They told me that someone had reported me into the office for possibly selling drugs. I denied the whole thing just like anyone would have done.

Aha, the death penalty, everyone's favorite topic to debate about. Well, from the start, I'll let you know this is a conservative column and I am 100% for the death penalty. So if you're the conservative type then you will enjoy the next few words and will be able to relate to it. If you're the liberal type then.....well.....read it anyways and maybe you will be able to think clearly after you finish reading.
Our governor, Tim Pawlenty, has said that he is thinking about bringing the death penalty to this state of ours. With the numerous sexual assault crimes and repeat offenders, Pawlenty has noted that he is sick and tired of the results that they get from putting these criminals through therapy and time in jail. Repeat sex offenders are always repeat sex offenders.
I agree with Pawlenty all the way. Ever since I knew what the death penalty was, I thought it was the correct way to deal with criminals. When someone kills someone then they shouldn't have the chance to live. Pawlenty's idea to put sexual offenders to death is not the same as putting murderers to death, but has the same general reason. Most repeat offenders are not curable. These people should not be able to be free because of the things they do and the harm they inflict upon society. As pointed out, therapy and jail time do no good for these people and they should be put to death.
Raping young children and women repeatedly is just plain sick and these idiots that commit these crimes are truly the scum of the earth. If these criminals were put to death then the cases would occur less frequently. It may even deter sexual offenders from performing these heinous acts all together.
Ok, now if you're the "feel good, put them in therapy, do anything but kill them" type, this is for you. When the death penalty comes to mind, you probably think of all of the reasons that it's wrong. For example: if you kill someone by the death penalty then you telling others its ok to kill. When a person murders another person, someone has to enforce laws and regulations. The government's job is to take care of criminals appropriately. When someone takes another person's life, they shouldn't ' have the chance to live their life. When these criminals kill people its against morals and basic respect for human life. The government doesn't use the death penalty just to say, "look, we're killing people," the government has the power and the right to keep this country safe by getting rid of criminals.
And for these sex offenders, it's almost as bad as killing someone. These criminals deserve nothing and should be put to death. I know you people that are against killing people are feeling all mushy toward these criminals. I guess that you will always be feeling sorry for them until a crime hits close to home. Then maybe you'll change your mind.

When asked who the best player is for the Minnesota Wild, the majority of people would respond with the answer of Marian Gaborik. In most eyes, he is the superstar, the only one worth watching, and by far the most valuable player on the team. But, is Gaborik really that good, and does he really deserve being considered the best one on the team? Is he really worth the millions he is asking for?
When watching hockey, most people, especially those who do not know a lot about the sport, tend to look only at the guy who puts the puck in the net, or the one who makes the beautiful pass to set the whole thing up. And in previous years, Marian has often been that guy. Does anyone pay attention to the player who just worked his butt off to get the puck out of his own zone? Does anyone see the player who was playing his position the whole time and forced the other team to throw the puck up the ice? These guys deserve some credit, too. Of course the person who scored the goal worked hard for it, but don't forget the other five players on the ice.
In every sports store you walk into, there are jerseys from all sorts of teams. When you start to sort through the Wild jerseys, the majority of them are likely to have the name Gaborik on the back. If you are watching TV and see a commercial for the Wild, you are very likely to see Gaborik scoring a goal. Everyone knows his face, his number, his position, and everybody loves him! I was at a Wild game just this past week. During intermission, they interviewed a little 5 year old boy over the loudspeaker. When asked who his favorite player was, his response was Gaborik. I have nothing against Gaborik, I think he is a great player, but does he really deserve all of this publicity? I believe that one player can not make or break a team and I think it would be great to see the other players getting some more credit.
The thing that made me most upset was the fact that Gaborik held out for the beginning of the season, because he wanted a three-year contract worth at least $6.5 million per season. He is showing right there that he thinks he is better than any of the other players. If all he wants to do is play, like he says he does, he should be happy to receive the same amount of money as the rest of the players.
When Gaborik can prove that he makes this team what it is, I will be ok with him being the most popular player on the team. I will say that he deserves all the money that he wants. But, by the way he has been playing lately, with only a small amount of points and less ice time than last year because of him not staying in shape, he sure does not seem to be the best one out there.
Like I said, a single player can not make or break a team. If they could, then the Wild would not need any other players. They could just send Gaborik out there on his own to take on other teams.

The late 90's and early 2000's have produced the worst music ever. The music industry has been content publishing trendy garbage, guaranteed to find its way to the ears of the blissfully uninformed population. However, under the pop-culture radar, a massive amount of talent is swelling, ready to overflow the sluice manned by the corporations.

Ahead of the charge is The Mars Volta, a progressive rock outfit based in San Diego, California. They are leaders of their own independent label, Gold Standard Laboratories (www.goldstandardlabs.com). If 70's progressive rock had kept progressing, it would sound like TMV.

Although they definitely have punk and blues undertones, TMV conjures up a style all their own. They have been compared to Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Fugazi, blending torrents of high-pitched lyrics with a rhythmic-slamish, a constant onslaught of musical ecstasy.

Seeing them live was a dream come true for me. Their debut CD, Deloused in the Comatorium, is approximately one hour long. The show lasted for over 2 1/2 hours. When performing, TMV plays extended versions of their songs; heavy improvisations make it seem more like a private jam session than a club gig.

WARNING! TMV is not for the musically light-hearted, empty-headed, or anyone afraid of the different and strange. TMV is anything but conventional, so don't bother to check them out if you're expecting the same processed garbage on 93X.

Right: Singer Cedric Bixler pours his heart into the music.

Below: De-Loused in the Comatorium album cover.

Staff Writer

As the excitement subsided and the pressure set in, the four Buffalo swimmers knew the time had come to prove themselves against the state's top swimmers.

Anita Isch, Kate Higley, Sarah DeVore, and Kelly Strait felt this pressure as they represented Buffalo's top swimmers at the State swim meet. The four all went to State for the 200 and 400 Freestyle Relay.

"You can't just swim to go to State, all that work you put into swimming you can't just put that into one meet," said Isch.

The Buffalo 200 free relay team placed 17 and the 400 free relay placed 18 overall, on the first day of the State meet, making them unable to return for the second day of Relays at State, due that they did not place in 16 place or higher. But there were also three swimmers out of the four that made it to State for individual events too. Isch went to State in the 100 freestyle, Strait went for the 100 fly, and DeVore went for the 500 freestyle and the 200 freestyle.

DeVore placed 17 in the 500 and 200 freestyle, making her unable to return to the second day of sections. DeVore's season was highlighted by her outstanding records that she broke and continued to re-break over the season, culminating in her first experience at State this season. Isch and Strait would be the two Buffalo swimmer's returning for the second day. Isch returned for the 100 freestyle and placed 16 at the end of the day. Strait returned for the 100 fly and placed 14.

"I was hoping to place in the top eight but it was really, really fast this year," said Strait.

The girls spent the week physically and mentally preparing for their races on the upcoming Friday, with their fellow team mates.

"We spent the week mini tapering, very, very, mini," said Freshman DeVore.

Although, none of the girl's placed top eight, they walked away with smiles.

"I wanted to beat my Section times, and I'm happy with the times I got," said Isch.

Staff Writer

Gymnastics involves flips and jumps and great stuff like that, right? Well this year the team had an extra thing to do. Avoid the falling ventilation. Last month during practice one of the ventilations in the ceiling at the Middle School fell just missing some of the gymnasts. Some think it might be because of there had been water pipe problems, but until it gets inspected and repair they get to practice at GymNation. Things are still going well for them though.

"If anything, we should do better this year. I think we have more depth. It will be difficult to make a Varsity roster week to week with all the girls and their skills," said Coach Jon Holtz when asked how he thinks they will do this year.

There are 5 with Varsity experience from last year. Senior Vera Labute, Senior Chelsie Tapio, Junior Ashley Loebertmann, Junior Sarah Person, and Sophomore Brianna Emmel. They expect help from Sophomore Brittani Matzke, Sophomore Karin Rossin, and Freshmen Lauren Rohlin. 72% of the team this year is a Sophomore or younger. Only 7 upperclassmen. The 3 seniors, also captains, all had a comment on the team.

"We Have a Strong Team," Labute said.

"We'll have a good year. So many Sophomores with good skills,"said Tapio.

"We have 7 upperclassmen which are good leaders and role models," said Miranda Jans.

Their first competition was away at Owatanna on December, Friday 13th. The varsity team lost with 132 points. JV won with 128 points. Their next meet is home against Moorhead. It will be taking place at BCMS, tonight at 6:00pm.