News Log #7

Alexa Holzberg

Journalism Period 1

5/29/09

 

Gay Male Voted Prom Queen in L.A.

National News/Weird News

http://news.aol.com/article/gay-male-teen-prom-queen/502830

 

In Los Angeles, California, an openly gay teen was voted prom queen at Los Angeles' Fairfax High School in a campaign. The campaign first began as a stunt but ended up igniting discussion on the campus about gender roles and teen popularity. Sergio Garcia, 18, was crowned queen Saturday night at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. A few days earlier Garcia said, “At one time, prom may have been a big popularity contest where the best-looking guy or girl were crowned king and queen. Things have changed and it's no longer just about who has the most friends or who wears the coolest clothes," Garcia told a gymnasium full of seniors. "I'm not your typical prom queen candidate. There's more to me than meets the eye." He also added, “"I will be wearing a suit," he said. "But don't be fooled, deep down I am a queen."

 

I think that what Garcia said was a really good statement. Prom queen/king really is so much more than who is the best-looking person. I think that it was very brave of him to accept this award, knowing that it would stir up a lot of conversation. I wonder how the kids at his school felt and if they were opposed to the idea, or supported it. 

News Log #6

Alexa Holzberg

May 28, 2009

Journalism Period 1

 

States: No smiling in license photos

By Matt Helms (Free Press)

http://www.freep.com/article/20090527/COL12/90527073/1081/States++No+smiling+in+license+photos

 

Some states are not allowing people to smile while they are getting their pictures taken for their licenses. USA reports that in Arkansas, Indiana, Nevada, and Virginia, this has become enacted. Every other state so far in the United States doesn’t have this law. It may sound silly, but it’s a matter of national security. USA Today says facial-recognition computer software used to stop one person from taking out multiple licenses works best if the facial expression is the same.

I think that this article is unusual. Everywhere else in the United States you are allowed to smile in your license picture. I wonder if they’re going to make this rule mandatory for all states. If it’s for a safety purpose then I think that it should apply to all states and not just those 4. Lastly, I don’t understand why somebody would want more than one license. I guess people can use it to accomplish bad things. 

News Log #4

Woman, 39, Was First to Die in Outbreak

www.new.aol.com/article/first-flu-death/454895

By Olga R. Rodriguez

39-year-old Adela Maria Gutierrez was the first person to die in the swine-flu outbreak in Oaxaca, Mexico. When she was rushed to the hospital with blue feet and hands (because of oxygen-starved blood), and gasping for air, doctors couldn't imagine what was wrong. The doctors tried to help in every way they could but Gutierrez just progressively got worse. The antibiotics distributed to her caused her to become more ill, and the ventilator that they later hooked her onto didn't help either. She was moved to an intensive care unit and a saliva sample was sent to a local private lab. The test results indicated it might be coronavirus — a highly contagious disease associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. A few days after the tests came back, she unfortunately died. Medical teams then did intensive studies and found that the cause of her death and sickness was a mutated swine flu. 

I think it's a shame that Gutierrez passed away. As I read more and more into the swine flu, I hear of more cases every day. At first, I thought that it was just an ordinary flu that people were getting out of season. But now that I'm hearing of all of these deaths that are occurring due to the disease, I'm convinced that it's a lot more serious. I'm actually very scared of the swine flu because I have a very weak immune system and I'm constantly catching every little thing that comes along. I really, REALLY hope that I don't get sick at all. I also hope that nobody in our district gets the swine flu either. I just hope as time goes on things only get better and not increasingly worse.