The Banner

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Want more Banner?Head to bobcatbanner.com for the latest news, Banner-sponsored events, and stories not featured in this edition.

Editors-in-ChiefVictoria Karatza

Emily Higham

News EditorsJulie Nichols

Brianna Buzzell

Sports EditorsTyler Fee

Griffin HowellKirsten Holz

Feature EditorSara Diesel

Opinion EditorAashima Sarin

Entertainment EditorPedro Marin

Design EditorAnna Konieczny

Photography EditorOlivia Mitchinson

Media EditorRylie Daniels

Staff Listing

The Bobcat Banner is produced by Nick Popadich’s fourth hour class.

West Campus EditorKayla Robinson

Copy EditorsJake Young

Sarah StricklandStephanie Marceau

Morale ChairWhitney Whitehead

ColumnistsKyle Goldstein

Daniel NorthrupMarta Werbanowska

PhotographersMegan Buck

Morgan HerzogDahjuanna JonesKelsey Rodriguez

Staff WritersAusten Boillat-ClineChristine Pittenger

Amanda Thompson

12500 S. Holly RoadGrand Blanc, MI 48439

Have an opinion?Send comments, sug-gestions, or letters to the editor to [email protected]

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pg 13 - The Misconceptions of Islam

pg 15 - The Pros and Cons of Winterfest

pg 18 - The Flint Local 432

the


&

Victoria Karatza & Emily Higham

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

In this issue we bring you guns in the classroom, Winterfest, Super Bowl excitement, love on Valentine’s Day (or lack there of), and a new semester. These past few months have been full of chaos from the new year to the stress of finals week and everything in between. A big change rolls around with the excitement of snow days and the feeling that it’s finally winter, even if it is every other day. Se-niors are finally starting to get wrapped up with their college applications and decisions while juniors have begun to think about the ACT. Freshmen are finally getting the hang of the high school schedule while sophomores already have a countdown to Graduation. Though we speak for the majority of the student body when we say that we are not the happiest with our Sadies replacement; Winterfest...we hope that it starts a chapter in the history of Grand Blanc High School that we can all embrace. As we get past the halfway mark to the end of the 2012 - 2013 school year, we have great things to look back on and memories to look forward to. But, for now, sit back, relax, and take the year as it comes. Hopefully, in this season of love, you, our dear readers, can fully enjoy your Single Awareness Day, or Valentine’s Day to its very fullest... not to mention the greater activites going on throughout school. No matter what the rest of the school year has in store for you, stay positive and do what feels right. Everything will turn out all right in the end. Have fun while the winter season lasts!

Dear Students and Staff,

Until next time,


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It’s the Wednesday before break, Dec. 19. Everyone is bustling with excitement, ready for that week off of school and family cel-ebrations. Sitting in 3rd hour, classes are going nor-mally and anticipation is rising for the break. Suddenly, over the PA system comes an announcement. The school is going into a lockdown for the rest

of the week. Why? Because of threats of a “student revolt,” in-volving various students bringing weapons into the school on Friday. This threat comes less than a week after the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, which put schools na-tionwide into high alert on all security threats and unusual activity. According to various stories and articles, the threats focused on the idea of Friday, Dec. 21 being the end of the world. This rumor had survived all year and started due to the end of a cycle on the ancient Mayan’s calendar. Since Friday was portrayed as the end

ofworld anyway, people reasoned that they should take the chance to take out their “en-emies.” By fourth hour, the East Campus was told to stay in class while the West Campus building went into a total code-red lockdown. While all the drama was going on at West Campus, East remained relatively calm.

Ac-

cording to authori-ties, two stu-dents sent false text messages to their parents saying that there was a shooter in the building, which, consequently, caused the parents to call 9-1-1. Police responded and when the students were confronted, they report-edly stated that it was “just a joke.” Through all of the stress of one day in lockdown, two false re-ports of shootings, and all of the threats focus-ing on Friday, Genesee County superinten-dents met at 4 p.m. and

elected to shut down school for the next two days. Posted on the Gene-see Intermediate School District website was the following message:“We have discussed information from local law enforcement, the realities of being able to investigate every threat, information related to district sensitivities, and our concerns about whether a normal

in-struc-tional day could be achieved. Our conclu-sion is that canceling school is the appropriate thing to do.” Students had various opinion on this, some in support of the school and others against. “I think things got way out of hand and the overreaction of the community was enough

to justify canceling school,” junior Rachel Kish said. While some agreed, others had opposing thoughts. “I think it was ridicu-lous for being in code yellow on Wednesday, although I liked not having school, I don’t think canceling was the right thing to do,” junior Devon Perry said.

And those students

who made

the false reports to their parents? “The disciplines ranged from 5 days suspension to expul-sion,” said principal Dr. Jennifer Hammond. There have been talks of criminal charges being pressed on the students.

NEW

S RAMPANT RUMORSA breakdown of Wednesday’s fiasco

Megan Buck | PhotographerBrianna Buzzell | News Editor &


“Ding,” went the seatbelt sign on the plane. My movie turned off and the generic Air France screen ap-peared. Outside the window I could see the city lights of New Delhi fill the dark sky. I was in India, the land of my ancestors and the birthplace of my parents; the country which was once cherished and respected by its citizens. My flight landed at 11:04 pm and my excitement was uncontrollable. Stepping out of the airport and see-ing the awaiting eyes of my family was a priceless moment. While my family was rejoicing, the family members of another young female were praying for her survival. On Dec. 16, 2012, a 23-year-old female faced the monstrous ac-tions of mankind; she was beaten and raped and thrown out onto the streets for everyone to see. On this day, the unnamed female innocently

stepped out of the house to go on a casual outing to the mall and the movies with her male friend. Upon their return, at about 9:30 pm, they boarded a bus that appeared to be identical to the rest of the public transport buses in Delhi. Aboard the bus were five men who appeared to be average pas-sengers but in reality in on a master plan. When the girl and her friend sensed the route straying from normal, they questioned the bus driver- who was also in alliance with the five men. Immediately, the female began to be harassed. When her friend attempted to protect her, he was severely beaten with an iron rod. Not only was the female raped and tortured, but she and her friend were also thrown out of the bus unclothed -- not with the intentions to embar-rass them, but to run them over with the bus to erase any proof of the oc-

currence. You may be thinking that in such a populated country, why was there

was no one who immediately re-

ported the in-cident, or even bothered to

drape the

vic-tims?

When the police arrived, they took the victims not to the closest hospital but to the furthest one. Upon medi-cal investigation, the doctors decided her survival depended on treatment in Singapore. Two weeks later she died of cerebral edema, swelling of the brain at Mount Elizabeth Hospi-tal and her body was brought back to the country the next day. The arrival of the dead body initi-ated an uproar in the country leading to protests and riots. The people of India were upset with the govern-ment and how something like this happened under their control. The streets of Delhi were jammed with traffic and the time it took to travel a distance of 5 kilometers took over 45 minutes. Visiting India after two years, my father was looking forward to visiting his favorite aunt who was getting older everyday. Due to the unstable conditions of the state, we were un-able to do so, in the fear of endanger-ing our lives. There is no doubt that rape is a

recurring crime all over the world but the intensity of this incident has increased awareness. TV sets of all Indian homes were overcome with the trau-

matic news of this devastating incident. Every conversation entailed the brutalities of humankind at its

worst. Be it the groundbreaking story of the year, it has united the citizens of India to stand against

the government.Even though I am an American-born Indian, I pray that on my next trip back, the country becomes a safe environment for its women.

JOURNEY TO INDIAStudent reflects on trip marred by scandal

Editor Aashima Sarin recounts her experience in India. During her time abroad, a startling account of rape occured in the city where Sarin was residing.

Personal Narrative

Aashima Sarin | Opinion Editor

Phot

os: B

anne

r/ S

arin

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SPORTS

Ever wondered whether or not your teachers are real people with real lives? We did. So, we went out and asked them if they celebrated the Super Bowl in

the same way as the rest of the population.

Teachers

english teacher Charles Corazza

history teacher Heather Grzym-kowski

math teacher Nancy Elledge

math teacher Michael Arbit

substitute teacher Tiffany Kelley

history teacher Adam Reed

math teacher Chad Carney

english teacher Allyson Walroth

Do you have any traditions?

What team would you like to see win?

What is your favorite part?

Do you have any money involved?

Having friends over to watch the game and hang out.

Goes to friend’s house.

Hangs out with family, buys footlong subs, enjoys cheese puffs.

Goes to lakehouse with friends.

Makes queso dip in crockpot.

Makes a fantastic Super Bowl cake.

Cheesy dip with meat in crockpot.

Watches game with friends.

Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore

Who cares?

San Francisco

Who cares?

Commercials

Commercials

Eating, friends, food, and watching the games

Food, commercials, and the flyover

Food and commercials

Entertaining game and defensive teams

He and his upstanding citizens do not partake in illegal activity.

Square buying

Square buying

Square buying

Square buying

Square buying

Square buying with M&M’s

No money involvedSan Francisco

San Francisco

Commercials

Commercials

SUPER SUNDAY CELEBRATIONS

Math teacher Nancy Elledge told us that one of her favorite Super Bowl traditions was making a cake for the Super Bowl - hence the name “Super Bowl Cake.” The recipe given below is courtesy of Elledge. Enjoy!

1white cake mix prepared according to directions in a rect. pan

1 six serving size chocolate instant pudding prepared according to direc-tions

1 large Hershey with almonds candy bar, chopped into small pieces

1 sixteen oz. Cool Whip

Put half of cake, broken into small pieces into a large bowl, then half of pudding, then half of the Cool Whip, then half of candy bar. Repeat. Best if it sits overnight or at least 4-5 hours.

Tyler Fee | Sports Editor

with contributions by: Whitney Whitehead, Jake Young, and Griffin Howell

SUPER BOWL CAKE Ph

otos

: Ban

ner/

Whi

tehe

ad

FEAT

URE

Sara Diesel | Feature Editor

Photo: Banner/K onieczny

with Sara DieselTHE 810 CRAFTY

1. Form twinkie mold using aluminum foil (approx. 10 12X14 inch each) to mold around a standard spice bottle.2. Follow direction on back of Red Velvet cake mix box, but beat eggs separately, then combine.3. Pour mix into your molds, filling them ¾ full.4. Once baked, take toothpick and make hole through center.5. Make filler with top secret recipe.6. Fill the twinkie and decorate the top.

Top secret twinkie-filler

recipe Courtesy of: Todd Wilbur

from topsecret recipes.comIngredients:

2 tsp. hot water, ¼ tsp. salt, 2

cups marshmal low creme, ⅓

cup shortening, ⅓ cup powdered

sugar, ½ tsp. vanilla

Instructions: 1. Combine salt and hot water and let cool. 2. Combine

marshmallow creme, shorten ing, powdered sugar, and va

nilla. Mix until fluffy.

3. Stir the mix tures together.

For Him: Red Velvet-tine twinkie

Feb. 14, a day anticipated by few and despaired by many more. A day contributing to spiked flower and chocolate sales, and even some cringe-inducing cards. But here’s the truth: even if you find Valentine’s day a horrible mashup of needy, sad people and stale sweet tarts, there’s still a chance to appreciate this mid-month holiday... because everyone needs a little “corny” in their life.

1. Choose an old sweater from your closet abyss that could use some TLC.2. Select a wool for your patches.3. Place a heart shaped cookie cutter on the elbows of the sweater.4. Push wool into cookie cutter.5. Stab the wool through the sweater with a needle.6. Spray area with water and iron dry.

For Her: Heart on your sleeve elbow-patches

Photo: Banner/ Diesel

Photo: Banner/ Diesel


DATE NIGHT

For many the combina-tion of cars and art would seem like an odd pairing; however, senior Emiri Nishihira found inspiration between the two. In fact, she won the “Best Use of Color” Award from the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) as well as a cash prize of $250. Nishihira, who spent a over four hours on her piece, is thrilled to have her art internationally recognized and awarded. “It makes me really happy,” Nishihira said. “It’s also an international show, so it’s not just someone from Grand Blanc that likes my work, it’s people from all over who can give me an

honest opinion.” NAIAS is an auto show that has been held annually in Detroit since 1907. Nishi-hira’s piece was in the 2013 Poster Category and accord-ing to NAIAS website it was a “unique oppor-tunity for students to become involved in our world premier auto show, while gaining experience in creative competition.” The poster contest was open to Michigan students in grades 10-12. Nishihira’s poster was judged by an “independent panel of recognized members of the local art commu-nity.” Grand Blanc High

School was one of 86 schools that had students participat-ing the in contest. When asked if she wanted to pursue a career in art, Nishihira said she wanted to

be a manga artist, which is a “comic artist in Japan.” This year marked the 25th Anniversary of the NAIAS’ poster contest. Since Nishihira is a senior and isn’t eligible to enter again, her advice to aspiring artists is to “be creative. I entered an auto show, but I can’t draw cars well.” Nishihira thought outside of to box and instead choose to draw a female racecar driver. “I wanted to target men,” Nishihira said. “I made [her] an appealing woman.” She found a way to make her poster auto related without having to draw a car and ended up a winner for it.

“Date night” is here. A totally original column that gives guys and girls alike adorable date night ideas for spending time with their significant other, best friend, those just-friend dates and every thing in between.

Classic date night ideas for common couples

Spicy Chicken RigatoniIngredients:¼ Cup extra virgin olive oil1 Clove of minced garlicSalt & pepper¼ Teaspoon of crushed red pepper (more if you like)½ Pound of Rigatoni pasta

Going out Staying inIce Skating“The Rink” at campus Martius ParkHours:Monday-Thursday 11a.m.-9p.m.Friday 11 a.m. - midnightSaturday 10 a.m. - 11 p.m.Sunday 12 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Prices:Adults - Ages 13 to 49 - $7Children - Ages 12 & under - $6Skate rental $3

Phone number:(313) 963-9393

800 Woodward Ave. Detroit, Michigan

Go during the day time for sure because you know, its Detroit!

Directions:1)Preheat oven to 4252)Boil water in large pot3)Add olive oil and spices to warm skillet4)Brown garlic in oil and spices5)Cut chicken breasts then add to garlic mixture6)Allow chicken to brown and fully cook

7)Add sauces to chicken mixture8)Put garlic rolls in oven for 3-5 minutes9)Drain noodles (rinse with hot water)10)Combine noodles and chicken mixture into your large pot11)Remove garlic bread from ovenServe hot! (Add cheese or more red pepper flakes if desired)

¾ Cup of marinara sauce ½ Cup of alfredo sauce Parmesan cheese (optional)2 Chicken breasts chopped into small squares2-3 Garlic rollsEstimated total price = $8.57

Zachery Manes | Guest Writer

AUTO SHOW WINStudent wins contest

Julie Nichols | News Editor

Phottos: Banner/Manes


Anna Konieczny | Design Editor

A DLY O OSC PESWhat to expect for your Valentine’s Day

Single: You will spend a lovely evening watching “The Note-book” with your cat. Couple: Your part-ner will forget about you, but don’t worry, there’s plenty of fish in the sea.

Single: It’s better to be single/alone and happy than with someone else and miserable. You just keep telling yourself that... Couple: Your imaginary relationship with Zac Efron or Megan Fox doesn’t count. See single horo-scope.

Single: You will get a lovely gift from your grandmother. Couple: You will go on a nice date and possibly hold hands (if you’re lucky).

Single: Your bus driver will give you candy. Couple: Don’t expect too much, your part-ner secretly despises you, they will try to ruin you.

Single: You’ll get a strangely creepy mes-sage from a middle-schooler on Facebook telling you that you’re attractive. Couple: Your valen-tine may not be ex-actly what you need... MOVE ON.

Single: Your teacher will wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day, that’s all you’re going to get. Couple: You will find out that your part-ner is a cheater. See single horoscope.

Single: You’ll have a nice intimate evening with your sweethearts, Ben and Jerry. Couple: Your date will come over for dinner... only to be scared away by your dad.

Single: Unfortunately for you, you seem very unappealing to the op-posite sex. Try shower-ing more often, that might help (no guaran-tees). Couple: Your partner will give you a box of expired chocolates. Now Valentine’s Day is Puke-ntine’s Day for you.

Single: Stop imagin-ing that you’re in a relationship. It’s really sad and never going to happen. Couple: You were caught texting your ex. You are a terrible, manipulative person, therefore you are go-ing to be dumped. See

Single: You’re going to have a bad hair/face day, and everyone will hate you more, sorry. Couple: You’re that one lucky couple that gets married after high school, you’ll have five kids, but your marriage won’t survive. Hope it’s fun while it lasts.

Single: You will spend a sad evening alone after you dis-cover that your pet fish died. Couple: You will be so swamped with homework that you can’t do anything for Valentine’s. Day. Your valen-tine will then leave you to do your work and hang out with their other more attractive friends. You will die alone. Goooooooood luck.

Single: You will gain four pounds today just from stress eating. Couple: The stars are showing that you will most likely fail a test, and it will ruin your grade. One does not simply date failures. See single horoscope.

ARIES TAURUS

LEO VIRGO LIBRA SCORPIO

GEMINI CANCER

PISCESAQUARIUSCAPRICORNSAGITTARIUS

Dahjuanna Jones | Photographer


Q: Why did you want to get on iTunes? A: I wanted people to hear my songs, and I felt that it would be cool and professional.

Q: How did you get started? A: I started singing solos in church and singing with my mom.

Q: How do you think of lyrics? A: I usually just write down what I feel, then try to arrange it to the rhythm.

Q: What equipment do you use? A: I use Protools, Bluebird Mic, Maschine Mikro, and my Yamaha key board.

Q: What are your songs? A: “Brionna” and “So Fly”

Q: What do your songs mean to you? A: They mean the world to me because they took so long to make and it’s from my personal experiences.

Q: How far do you want to get? A: I want to go as far as it takes. Hopefully a Grammy!

RISING STAR Singing her way to the top of the charts

Throughout the world, countless beliefs have proliferated society for centuries. From polytheism to monotheism, Judaism to Christianity, religion isn’t just something that brings people closer together, it’s a lifestyle. Yet changing demographics from around the world have brought greater tensions between religious groups and the communities they inhabit... particularly in the misinterpreted religion of Islam. Increasing to over 2.1 billion followers since it’s founding, Islam is the largest religion in the world, around 30 percent of its popula-tion. On a smaller scale, the Muslim population makes up 2.11 percent of the popula-

tion of the United States, even though that may seem small, it’s nearly 3.12 million people. Around 170,000 call the state of Michigan home. Despite being so preva-lent, Muslims are constantly discriminated against. Even though the United States has more diverse cultures and religions than any other country around the world, many individuals fail to see the basics of the religion. Christians and Jews across America know very little about something or someone that is so close to them. Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are all Abrahamic religions, tracing back to the prophet Abraham. Abraham made a

covenant with God, and later became the father of the world’s three monotheistic and most popular religions. All over the United States, there are misconceptions as to what the Islamic religion really is and who Muslims really are. “People tend to in-

terchange the words Arab, Muslim, and Islam,” se-nior Nabeal

Aljabban ex-

plained, “Islam is our religion, Muslims are people who follow that religion, and Arabs are just people that are from countries that speak Arabic.” Some people even go as far as to assume that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews, when in reality, they don’t. “We be-lieve in the same God, but we also believe Muhammad was his last prophet,” said senior Yamann Sahlool. Though there are many disagreements between the three groups, they all have one thing in common, “The most important thing is faith in God,” senior Faiha Osman said.

ISLAM

BRIONNA STINNETT

Common misconceptions of the religion

Photo: Banner/ Pittenger

Emily Higham | Editor-in-Chief

Amanda Thompson | Staff Writer

Phot

o: B

anne

r/Ka

ratza

Senior Faiha Osman is one of four main leaders of GBHS’s MSA.

OPIN

ION Ask Angie

Angie

Dear Angie, My girlfriend and I have been dating for almost a year, and I want to do something special for her this Valen-tine’s Day. Do you have any suggestions?

-Anonymous

Dear Anonymous, First of all, congrats on sticking with this girl for so long. I know how high school girls can be. Secondly, if this is your first Valentine’s Day, keep it sweet and simple. Most girls love the cliché “I love you” bears and chocolates. You don’t have to go overboard with the romantic-comedy-esque hot air balloons or a sunset picnic. Especially since that’s not even realistic for someone in the suburbs of Michigan with temperatures in the low 30s. If you really want to do something special for her, surprise her with a corny card on her desk in class, or spend more time with her than you normally do after school or before school at breakfast or getting coffee. Tell her how you feel and compli-ment her on this day, make sure to compliment her. With a few admirations like, “Your eyes sparkle in this flourescent lighting,” you’re golden. Unless she’s a more needy girlfriend, then you’ll need at least a single red rose and some of those heart-shaped candies (because, let’s face it, everyone loves those).

Good luck,

Kyle Goldstein | Staff Writer

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

There is very little in this world that so profoundly dis-gusts me and makes me question whether there is any good like Valentine ’s Day does. Whether it’s stupid jewelry commercials, the eternal cliché of buying chocolates and flowers, or constant face-sucking in the hallways, it all leads up to a lot of scars from pounding my head repeatedly against a desk, hope-fully causing me to lose con-sciousness and be free from how stupid everyone except me is. What difference do flowers on a car, a porch, or in some-one’s house have? The answer is that they’re all the same gift, but in different locations. Yet, with this logic in mind, it’s difficult to under-stand why every girl falls for the old chocolates and flow-ers trick. As if giving gifts that every male in the last 100 years has given wasn’t obnox-ious enough, it doesn’t help that this is literally one of the worst gifts one can give. It’s like saying “Oh hey, babe, picked a bunch of weeds for you that’ll die in a week, Happy Valentine’s Day! And better yet, it’s on your desk instead of in your car like last year! Aren’t I thoughtful?” Of course, these gifts just lead up to an even greater offense on mankind: public displays of affection. There’s nothing wrong with a little smooching of course, as long as everyone remembers that no one wants to see it. But, if Grand Blanc students remembered even the simplest things, there wouldn’t be a bomb or shooting threat

every five seconds. So, this being a season of love, PDA is going to be at a yearly high, again. We’ve all been ex-posed to a lot of horror through movies and TV, but nothing makes us sicker than a bunch of kids going Hannibal Lecter on each other’s faces. Even with all these atrocities, the thing I hate the most about this Hallmark holiday is “Singles Awareness Day.” At first, I laughed along with everyone else at this little joke to make those

Valentine-less feel a little better. But that was before every girl without a boy-friend began to recycle the joke over and over again, repeating it every

single Valentine’s Day. And

then it’s on Twitter,

Face-book

and every other social networking

site we have, and then be berated by it

again on TV. However, after reflecting upon all this, that I may be in the wrong. Perhaps I’ve missed the point of Valentine’s Day. Perhaps, Valentine’s Day isn’t really about jewelry and cards, but it’s about how it brings people close, and gives us a reason to be that close. Perhaps, in a world as torn and shattered as this one, love and a reason to love is really all we really need. Or maybe Valentine’s Day really is just an absurdly obnox-ious holiday encouraged so that Hallmark can sell more cards and goodies than people would normally buy. Yeah, probably the last one.

And it’s choking me

Photo: Banner/Mitchinson

15banner2012//@BobcatBanner

GUNS IN THE CLASSROOMStaff Editorial

IS WINTERFEST A GOOD IDEA?Stephanie Marceau | Copy Editor

PROS

A couple of mass shootings and the whole country erupts. Many people believe that they have found the one simple solution to stopping these killers. In order to stop school shootings, some people are willing to allow everyday school teachers to have weapons in the class-room. Others to-tally oppose this scary thought. Prior to the most recent school shooting that took place in Newtown, Conn, there were 18 states that al-lowed adults to carry a

firearm in schools with little or no restrictions. After the shooting that

claimed 26 lives, many more states immediately tried to pass laws allowing the same. The bill was

approved by top lawmakers but was later vetoed by Gov. Rick Snyder.

No matter who you are or what you think, the reality of

the situation is that there is no simple solu-

tion to save lives or keep guns out of

schools. However,

giving teachers a firearm in the classroom is simply not a good idea. Acci-

dents really do happen even when somebody has good intentions. Which leads to

the fact that even trained

police officers cannot be trusted to hit their intended targets 100 percent of the time. A study by the New York Times on NYPD officers was done in 2008. This study revealed that throughout the years 1996-2006 when the officers had to shoot a firearm in the field, they only hit their intended targets about 34 percent of the time. These statistics do not comfort the average parent, student, or co worker. A follow up study was done by the RAND Center on Quality Policing, and this data revealed that during a gunfight when the subject was return-ing fire at an officer the accuracy of the trained, NYPD officers dropped down to only 18 percent. So do you really believe that your teachers should be the ones protecting your life?

1. Saving money on dresses, suits, dinners, and corsages

2. Less date centered

3. Not weird or awkward to go single, or with a group of friends; casual

4. Bungee Basketball, Bungee Run, Karaoke, Wrecking Ball

5. Cold Air Blasters for when you get hot

6. It’s not like you have anything better to do...

CONSOlivia Mitchinson | Photography Editor

1. Formal dresses girls dream of are now replaced with jeans

2. Dancing detoured by bounce houses

3. Would inappropriate danc-ing with ‘casual clothes’

be much difference?

4. Monitoring students may become even

more difficult to do

5. If we are expected to learn val-ues such as how to be understand-ing, shouldn’t the school model that behavior, attempt to level with us maturely?

Photo: Banner/Tykocki

Photo: Heart Breaker Entertainm

ent

ENTE

RTAI

NMEN

T COMING SOON TO YOUA timeline of what’s to come in February and March

TV Shows

Albums

Books

Concerts

Key:

Movies

Games

8

“Side Effects”

“Identity Thief”

“Top Gun”*Rerelease

“The Playroom”

“The Indigo Spell” by Richelle Mead

Three Days Graceat Dow Event Center

Shinedownat Dow Event Center

P.O.Dat Dow Event Center

12

“Escape from Planet Earth”

“A Good Day to Die Hard”

“Beautiful Creatures”

“Safe Haven”

“Zero Hour”

Maroon 5 at the Palace

Neon Trees at the Palace

Owl City at the Palace

14

“Snitch”

“Dark Skies”

“Bless Me Ultima”

22 26

“Optica” Shout Out Louds

“Street King Immortal”50 Cent

“Golden Boy”

with contributions by: Morgan Herzog, Jake Young, Victoria Karatza, and Kelsey Rodriguez

Pedro Marin | Entertainment Editor

FEB

RU

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Y

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With the start of the new year, comes new entertainment. The entertain-ment franchise strives for success. Throughout February and March, many new books, albums, movies, games, concerts, and TV shows come out. Each one battles it out for your approval to receive good ratings. Whether you only watch movies or you only listen to music, there’s al-ways something to look forward to in the entertainment universe.

MA

RC

H

5

“Requiem” by Lauren Oliver

“Nanobots” They Might Be Giants

12

“Hit the Waves” The Maryonettes

“God of War: Ascension”

19

“The Clock-work Princess” by Cassandra Clare

“Gears of War: Judgement”

26

“What About Now” Bon Jovi

“Lover at Last” by J.R. Ward

“BioShock Infinite”

Imagine Dragons at the Fillmore Detroit

1


THE FLINT LOCAL 432 The city of Flint has accumulated a variety of reputations over the years. From being known as the birthplace of General Motors and playing a vital role in the automotive industry, to taking the number one spot on the “Most Violent Cities in America” list and repeat-edly being called out on how dan-gerous the city is, Flint is not the first choice that most high school students consider when making plans for the weekend. With a lot of the youth in Gen-esee County disregarding Flint as a spot to hang out, they are not allowing themselves to explore the culture-filled and unique locations and activities Flint has to offer. Besides the Flint Cultural center which includes institu-

tions such as the Flint Institute of Arts, the Longway Planetarium, and The Whiting as well as restaurants like The 501, The Flint Crepe

Company, and Cork, Flint is also home to the newly revived Flint Local 432. The Local originally opened as an actual venue for local music in 1995. Initially, it served as an attraction in Flint that could provide young people a safe, comfortable,

and unique place to go to experience new

music. After clos-ing due to lack of funding in 2005, The Local re-opened in April of 2012 in hopes

to not only again provide an all-ages music venue to Flint, but as an outreach effort for the youth of the area in order to help build an improved community.

Dan Moilanen, current club manager for The Local, along with other staff and volunteers have been put-ting forth much effort in making The Local gain the popular-ity it once had. Build a band workshops have started up to aid local bands with merchandise sales, publicity, and perform-ing. Also, The Local is look-ing forward to starting work with a possible zine and series of web shows that will include

live performances taped at the venue. Though The Local is not as populated on the weekends as it used to be, Moilanen is relying on word of mouth and connections with differ-ent high schools to spread word about its re-opening. His goal is to see The Local reach its peak in success and for the young people of the area to realize how great it is to have a place like The Local nearby, just as he did years ago.

Victoria Karatza | Editor-in-Chief

GBHS STUDENTS ON THE LOCAL

“The Local is a place that breaks the norm on what we’re used to. The music is literally local, but it’s good and you get a look at a side of Flint that you don’t normally see.”

“The Flint Local is just a really awesome place to be. The vibe there is always so welcoming and fun. It gives a place for bands just starting out a chance to get their name out. One of my favorite bands started off playing there so I just re-ally love every-thing about what they do there.”

“I really gain from the Local more than I could gain from most things back in Grand Blanc because at the Flint Lo-cal, you are surrounded by people who all share one genuine interest and bond through music.”

-Rachael Vogt, senior

-Joshua Hatfield, junior

-Megan Baughman, senior

The Local aims to bring back a younger generation to Flint

Phot

os: B

anne

r/K

arat

za &

Bau

ghm

an

Local band, Hyper Lytics, played at The Local on Friday, January 11. The Local features bands each weekend.

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