The Hoofprint – March 8, 2004

Staring down at the all-too-familiar green Scantron sheet, the student prepared to take the Math MCA test. As he read through the questions the student threw down his number two pencil in frustration. "Who cares?" he thought to himself, "these tests aren't important." He smiled and began to fill in circles randomly.

While only 47 percent of students admitted to doing their best on the MCA tests last year, it is no wonder BHS had the lowest reading and math test scores within a 100 mile radius, excluding Minneapolis and St Paul. This could have been prevented if students and staff would have viewed the tests more seriously.

"If we took the tests seriously, teachers would be able to know what areas that need improvement," said Junior Megan Ruter. "If students did their best, then we would be able to see how smart our school is overall."

Since more than half of the students did not take the MCA tests seriously, Buffalo's scores did not quite measure up. Buffalo's average math score of 1527 was below the state average of 1546. On the reading test, Buffalo's average score of 1537 was also below the state average of 1615. Eighty-seven percent of students did not believe the test results were an accurate indication of the school's intelligence.

"I don't think the test results are accurate at all. Nobody cared about the test, it didn't affect them so they didn't care," said Junior Jesse Holm. "Students might take it a little more seriously this year, but it still doesn't affect whether they graduate or not, so some students will still blow it off."

This concept may change due to the fact that Dr. Nick Miller and others in the district office have decided to put test scores on students transcripts.

"It is our expectation that each of our students will take this test seriously," Miller said, "because it gives them an indication of their skill level and it helps the school examine the curriculum."

Senior Nathan Walker was one of the many students involved in the Tri-M Variety Show on Saturday, February 28. Some of the other acts included an impersonation of Aretha Franklin, a drum set solo, a tap dance routine, and a rendition of the song "Beautiful." The Variety Show is Tri-M's largest annual event. Proceeds from the show will be used for various music camp and voice lesson scholarships.

Buffalo's top varsity Knowledge Bowl team walked away from the North Suburban Conference meet on February 10 in St. Francis with first place honor.

With a new season and the loss of last year's senior state attendees, the KB team coach Peggy Pasche says they are looking strong. This year's Varsity teams are compiled of just seniors and juniors. Joining the upperclassmen is Sophomore Bryant Torkelson.

"Bryant Torkelson is just an amazingly smart student that we are glad to have along this year," said Pasche.

With evenly strong teams, Varsity captured first, third, and fifth at the NSC. Practices are successful because the teams perform at the same level.

"My greatest moment for KB this year was our home meet," said Senior Chris Nelson. "We..." [unclear]

New businesses in Buffalo are creating a mixed opinion. While finishing touches are being established, students are looking outside of Buffalo to spend their spare time.
"Buffalo has never been good for a fun city, so we are used to going places like Maple Grove or even Ridgedale." said Junior Drew Hanson. "It will take a while for Buffalo to attract anyone."
64% of students said they will check out the new shops but will continue to travel to bigger cities to do their shopping.
"It would be great to have something to do here in Buffalo but I don't think it will be as good as Arbor Lakes or a Mall of America." said Junior Emily Weis.
Coffee shops are now becoming a hit in the twin cities as well as many larger cities such as Eagan or Edina where coffee shop sales are esti-
mated to be up 23% from 2002.
Buffalo is now following this trend. Opening this spring will be Dunn Brothers and possibly a Starbucks which was proposed in the Target addi-
tion. The Dunn Brothers is located on highway 25 near Dominos and should be opening this spring.
In the Wal-Mart expansion stores that are already opened or are suspected to open this spring include, Maurice's, Kat's Music, Papa Murphy's, Forever Tan, Travel Agencies, Factory Brand Shoe, Great Clips, Hallmark, Play It Again, and Quizno's.
Last year Wal-Mart began its superstore proj-
ect after being in Buffalo since it's opening in 1991.
"We thought Buffalo would be a good town to focus on due to its expanding population." said Mary Evans, a spokeswoman for Wal-Mart. "Competing is always a number one priority."
Coming this spring Target will look to start its expansion of about 35,000 Sq. ft. It would include the possible Starbucks and a Pizza Hut.

Not often does a band have a second album gain as much success as the first. The Lost Prophets have proven that they don't fall in to that category. These guys just might be the UK's best kept secret. Their first single, "The Last Train Home" is the third song off of their sophomore album, Start Something. The band consists of Ian Watkins on vocals, Lee Gaze and Mike Lewis on guitars, Mike Chiplin on drums, Jamie Oliver on turntables, keyboards, and backing vocals, and Stuart Richardson on bass. Being a big name in the UK's music scene for quite sometime has opened a lot of doors for them.

It's quite difficult to compare this band to any other band. In an industry full of corrupt labels focusing on money and not talent, this band stands out. They have created their own unique sound. Ian Watkins and Jamie Oliver are the tireless force that has powered the band's vision since its inception. They spend 24 hours a day, seven days a week creating the majority of the music, often writing full songs between the two.

Structured by key songs such as the powerful radio hit, "The Last Train Home," the slower, more melodic "Hello Again," and the fast-paced, hard-hitting "Start Something," this album has a little bit of something for everyone.

If you don't have this album yet, it's a must for the true rocker.

Over one million children around the world die each year from starvation. This statistic is completely preventable. There is no reason why these children should have their lives taken away from them over such a simple matter as food.

The reason this is happening is because multinational companies, such as Wal-Mart, are taking over smaller companies, such as Cub Foods and Ace Hardware, leading children and their families to run out of work. These people, such as those in China, are working for these multinational companies for a measly $0.33 an hour because they have no where else to go. They are controlled by those who have more power than themselves.

Of course, that is how our world functions, we have powerful leaders and we have their followers, not always by choice. What makes me melt with sympathy for these people and burn with guilt is the fact that I know I have everything that I need to live a healthy life and they do not.

We work for the largest wage we can to feed our family and put a roof over their heads, but so do these poor people. Their children even work to help feed their family and give them the nourishment they need to survive. What we would call child labor is everyday life in these impoverished places such as India, Africa, and Bangladesh, etc.

When I look at the society in which our children are being raised it makes me sick. With children over seas who are starving to death, have no home to live in, warm, clean clothes to wear, or soft cushioned beds in which to lie we still complain that we do not have enough. So many times we take for granted everything that we have, forgetting about those who have less than us. When we have too much we start to buy accessories such as DVDs, stereos, trampolines, and swimming pools.

So next time that you're eating Christmas dinner with your family or watching a movie down at the theatre, think about these children and what you could do to help make their lives more enjoyable. Making a difference begins with a thought. Make it yours.

This piece is in direct response to the opinion piece Senior Ryan Hendrickson wrote for the last edition of The Hoofprint. This piece, like Ryan's, is in regard to Governor Tim Pawlenty stating he would like to kill repeat sex offenders, even if they have not killed anyone.

Throughout the piece Ryan used emotional ploys to try to get us to think like him instead of using factual statistics.

"Raping young children and women repeatedly is just plain sick and these idiots that commit these crimes are truly the scum of the earth."

Well, duh. There isn't a single person in this building that would argue against that. At least I hope not. By constantly laying insults upon sex offenders (not that they don't deserve it) Ryan makes it seem like anyone who is against him is for sex offenders. That just isn't true.

Case in point: Me. I'm definitely anti-sex offender. Yet I am also decidedly anti death penalty. See? As a matter of fact, I am so anti sex offender that I think women who are the victims of sex offenders, and become pregnant as a result of a rape, should be allowed to kill the baby (pardon my use of anti-choice vocabulary) of the sex offender in order to ease the psychological trauma that could come as a result of delivering the baby of a sex offender. That's pretty anti-sex offender.

Speaking of psychological stuff, in the column Ryan also made a point that I find to be, well, completely false.

"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"

The problem with that is that it assumes sex offenders are in a logical state of mind in which they could weigh the pros and cons of their actions before raping someone. I think we could all agree that sex offenders are not in a logical state of mind when they commit their crimes.

So here is how I would argue my point coherently, unlike Ryan. In Texas, murderers are put to death. Here they are not. According to Ryan's logic, since Minnesota doesn't use the death penalty its homicide rate per 100,000 inhabitants should be higher than Texas's because the threat of the death penalty doesn't hang over the heads of murderers here like it does in Texas. Right? Wrong!

According to the disaster center Minnesota has 3.1 murders per 100,000 people. Texas, on the other hand, has almost twice as many with 5.9 murders per 100,000 people. Evidently, Ryan would want or state to more like Texas, which is usually a bad idea no matter what the issue is.

To be fair, there could be other mitigating factors that play into those statistics other than just the death penalty, but it doesn't change the fact that when you spend state money to avenge human misery rather than to prevent it, human misery goes up. Governor Tim Pawlenty even admitted on January 27 that the legal cost of putting someone to death would probably be greater than that of locking them up for the rest of their life.

And one more thing; towards the end of the article Ryan threw a partisan attack at us liberals that I would like to deflect.

"I know you people that are against killing people are feeling all mushy towards 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."

Ouch! Does anyone have any ice for that burn?

Good thing I'm a radical, and not a liberal, otherwise I could be offended!

But just to prove Ryan wrong, I'll issue this following statement: Should Mr. Pawlenty manage to get the death penalty enacted, and then afterwards I, myself, fall victim to that of a murderer I hereby ask all students in this school to fight to save that person's life!

As you can see, I, unlike Ryan, know that using violence to avenge violence is the world's main problem. I will not be a contributor to that of bloodlust.

“Hola Amigos,” is how all customers of the new Mexican restaurant in Buffalo, Rancho Grande, are greeted. Rancho Grande is located near Arby’s, in the old Subway building off of highway 55.

“The neon signs are a nice touch and it made it kind of fun to eat there,” said Senior Gordy Menth.

The authentic food and festive paintings of Mexico’s history covering the wall create a very real atmosphere. The oversized sombrero and neon signs bring out the soft Mexican music that flows from the kitchen. Although the Rancho Grande is fairly new, some of the seniors at BHS have already discovered this piece of Mexico here in Buffalo.

“The food was very authentic,” said Senior Emily Kumpula. “The atmosphere was very realistic, even though the waiter did- n’t understand the concept of ice.”

It is obvious that this restaurant is no Taco Bell or Taco Johns. Rancho Grande is not con- sidered fast food, but the food seems to come quickly. It consists of higher quality food than the Mexican restaurants around, and the prices show it. At any Mexican fast food restaurant the prices for a meal range from about three to six dollars. Here, the average lunch costs about six dollars and dinner meals average around nine to ten dollars. A single portion consists of at least three different kinds of food. The dif- ference in cost verses quality is an issue for the consumer.

“I thought that the prices were fair consid- ering the quality of the food,” said Kumpula. “I would definitely go there again.”

Rancho Grande is a great place to go for a quick meal or a night out with the family to eat some genuine Mexican food without the annoying Chihuahua.

This season, the Blades team watched their goal of winning the North Suburban Conference vanquished before them.
"To win conference for the fifth year in a row was one of our main goals," said head coach Bob Driver.
Despite this, the team advanced to the section finals, were in the first round they played St. Cloud Tech. The Blades won 3-2 advancing to the second round to play Elk River. The Blades lost to Elk River 8-0 ending their season.

The Boys Hockey team has gone 4-2-1 this season.
"One of our goals that fell through was a winning season," said coach Tom Walker. "We're in a developing period."
Due to graduation, the squad lost eight of its main players. However, they gained seven sophomores and a freshman.
The team has been working on goal production and a winning attitude.
"We need to work on mental toughness to do the things it takes to win," said Walker.
As Junior Mike Mortensen agreed, "We just need to believe that we can win."
The team won their first section game against Hopkins (sealed eighth) 5-4 in overtime on Tuesday Feb. 24. On Thursday, Feb. 26 they played Wayzata, bringing their season to a close.

Photos by Melisa Miller. Basketball photo by Tim Kolehmainen

For one week in February, the school sets aside its mundane routine to take a break from the dull winter and has Snow Daze. With lots of work and determination, members of NHS came up with numerous ideas. The week long celebration included dress up days, music in the halls during passing time, and student vs. staff games.
To organize Snow Daze, individual committees were set up to handle certain parts of the event.
"I helped with it this year and it does take a lot of prep time," said Senior Megan Morris.
With the goal to make this year better, students put more thought went into Snow Daze. Decorations were created to entice the students along with the dress up days.
"I think that they put in a lot of thought into what they are going to do," said Junior Meghan Bruggeman.
The dress up days this year ranged from support your favorite activity to dress up like any teacher or staff.
"Unlike other years, this year I dressed up," said Senior Becky Frendendall.
"I don't even remember last year," said Junior Gretchen Otness. "This year had memorable moments."
After school, students were able to continue celebrating with activities such as broomball at the ice rink and ice fishing at Buffalo Lake. This had both positive and negative reaction from the students.
"Having broomball this year was a lot of fun," said Senior Ryan Strugar. "You need ice to play, so the gym wouldn't have worked. Having it at the rink made it possible."
Some students felt that participating had nothing to do with the atmosphere, rather, it's what class students were in. Even then thoughts differed.
"It's more for lower classmen and I'm a junior this year so I had more fun last year," said Junior Julia Carlson.
Some people felt that the hard work didn't pay off.
"I would help make it more than just balloons and colored paper" said Junior Anna McCarty.
The week ended on Friday with a casual dance in the cafeteria. It provided a night time activity that students from all grades could participate in.

He anxiously awaits his race as he stretches behind the starting blocks. The announcer calls his name and he steps up onto his block. The deep voice of the official sternly says, "Take your mark", and with the ring of the starter he dives into the water. He finishes hard and can now say he was one of the first boys to finish a race for the Buffalo High School Boys Swimming team.
With enough interest expressed, BHS will offer Boys Swimming as a winter sports option in the 2004-2005 school year. Over half of the North Suburban Conference schools offer Boys Swimming, so Buffalo is opening up to the possibility. Presently, Monticello, Spring Lake Park, and Centennial schools all have teams. Other prospective opponents are Fridley and Columbia Heights.
"With the growth we have been experiencing, there is no reason the team would fail," said Activities Director Tom Bauman. "And with the excellent facility we have, why not?"
In the fall, the Girls Swimming and Diving team uses the pool for a portion of the afternoon and community education uses it for the rest of the evening, leaving no room for WAVE to practice.
"It annoys me that all the girls get to chance to get ahead in their swimming ability and I'm stuck with nothing in the fall," said Freshman Collin Temry, a WAVE member for seven years.
Past efforts of creating a team did not succeed due to unknown reasons, but future team members have ideas of how to make the team go places.
"We need to get people to join the team by promoting it verbally," said Sophomore Casey Radtke.
The teams will most likely start out as a club sport. In case an interested coach would be hired to simply supervise. When it turns into an actual activity, a qualified coach would be sought out to lead the team.
"We'll look for possible coaches in prospective teachers," said Bauman.
Radtke, who swam for WAVE, the local swim club for three years, listed off multiple reasons he thinks swimming is "a great sport" and reasons why students should join.
"It really gets you in shape, you use every muscle you have, and you learn what you are capable of," said Radtke. "And most of all it teaches discipline."