inventory_2 Archive: Fall 2010 - Spring 2014
Indulge in today
Perhaps what we need is a little reality check and here it is: tomorrow is not a promise.
New schedule comes with new headaches
Being thrown headfirst into final exams after an extended break is unrealistic and does not prepare us for college, where finals precede winter break.
“No Future”: start of a bright one
“I feel genres are restricting. If there was a genre for the sounds that are in my head, I would call it that,” Santo said about his album. Take for example, “Canyonsolstice.” Featuring good friend and college roommate Gary Zanello on guitar, “Canyonsolstice” has an '80s hip hop beat with a jazzy swing and laser beam sounds.
All the Grid’s a stage — for robots
Daft Punk return as orchestral maestros for "Tron: Legacy"
An honorable solution to tracking
A broader honors program, properly managed, might alleviate the disparity between advanced and regular classes.
Letter to the Editor
Reflecting on his Latino roots, Leslie Wells discusses the offensiveness of the 2011 theme “Juan Juan.”
Voters “McCann’t” say no to this argument
Like Moses, I have heard the cries of my people, and contrary to Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman, I’m prepared to morph California from a land of deficit and sin into a land of milk and honey. (Mind you, this will be untaxed milk and untaxed honey).
A fight to the death — and we are the casualties
This election is not the first political race to use these smear tactics, nor will it be the last. However, our new age of media has catapulted them to astronomical levels. The accessibility to the public that viral ads offer to candidates has incredible potential, and if used properly could be an invaluable way of educating the public. Instead, candidates like Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman use the airwaves to distort the image and character of their opponent instead of expounding upon their own political opinions, ideas and plans.
Editorial: Hear it. Cheer it. Spirit.
Chanting is the one spirited activity that arises spontaneously, and is therefore the only one we truly feel a motivation to participate in.
"Write About Love"
If I were young and hip and having a party in my high rise apartment in New York City, Belle and Sebastian's new album "Write About Love" would be the first thing to come to mind for excellent background music. I'd also crank up the volume the next morning in my Prius for a perfect road trip theme song.
The Big Draw
From crude drawings on the sides of dusty caves to the iconic murals of the Sistine Chapel, art has been our way of marking history. Before language and individual letters existed, drawings and symbols were the only means of communication. This October, the act of drawing and making marks is being celebrated in Los Angeles with The Big Draw arts festival, occurring at several museums throughout the month.
Turntable soul music just got amplified
After hearing several KCRW DJ’s play Belleruche’s “270 Stories” more than that many times over various broadcasts, I guessed this had to be a must-hear record. Anyone with even an inkling of soul in them will agree.
Plugged in, tuned out: Does technology cripple human contact?
Laughter is the best medicine. LOL doesn’t always cut it.
Teachers should be judged by their merits and not just by their scores
LAUSD teacher’s suicide causes people to reconsider the methods used to rate teachers.
“Never Let Me Go”
“Never Let Me Go” presents elements of passion, fear and empathy in a way that although sometimes falls flat, generally is always haunting and emotionally absorbing.
Islamic cultural center affirms American values
When I first heard about it, the idea of building a Muslim mosque near Ground Zero rubbed me the wrong way. But after I calmed down, took the initiative to listen to what American Muslims were saying and further researched the issue, it became apparent that allowing the Muslim center to exist in lower Manhattan is exactly the kind of thing that makes us a free country. We are a democracy founded on freedom of religion. We build synagogues next to cathedrals and Mormon temples next to Buddhist temples.This is America!
Bang for your buck? How college tuition shoots the middle class down
As if that weren’t enough, the cost of private tuition has gone up 154 percent since 1979, and 186% for public tuition. This would be fine if family income increased at this rate as well. Unfortunately, it hasn’t. Since 1979 family income has only gone up by a measly 10%, according to the US Census Bureau and the College Board.This means that while college is getting ridiculously more expensive and students are expected to pay thousands more than they were ten years ago, income isn’t making any sorts of leaps or bounds to meet that gap. The estimated undergraduate tuition is slipping farther and farther away from what families can pay.
Label Me Not: Bad Teacher
The reasons behind all this fright are the stories that follow certain teachers. Sometimes those are just as, if not more, vicious than the stories and rumors that follow student. They can also thoroughly sway a student’s decision to take a teacher’s class.Here’s the thing about rumors: they’re hardly ever true. And I’m speaking from experience.
Label This
Without labels, there would be mayhem in the streets, people not knowing which car was theirs, which home was theirs, or even which children were theirs (well, they may be able to deduce which child was theirs, but there is no way of knowing for sure).
Label Me Not: Ginger
As a pale-skinned, freckle-faced, redhead I have been privy to all the labels. In grade school, I was the girl under the hat, and I got a lot of looks, mostly from mean girls donning Limited Too. When we went on class field trips to the beach, I wasn’t in my “itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini.” I was dressed in full combat gear, fighting a battle against the sun. Tights covered my legs, long sleeves my arms. No one dared to be different then. Standing out meant you were out.
Label Me Not: Nonconformist
I’m sorry to disappoint, Californian nonconformists, but nonconformity is a label, too.
Label Me Not: Different
The separation between Special Education and General Ed. has created an environment where we view each other not only as people with slight differences, but as people part of two entirely different species.
Label Me Not: Fat
As teenagers, our job is to experiment, make mistakes, and be judgmental. We find ourselves casting stares upon our classmates, envying their toned waistline or clear skin. Many teenagers jump to conclusions when noticing someone’s physical appearance. They assume that people are fat because they eat too much, or that skinny people don’t eat at all.
Fall TV Preview – “Boardwalk Empire”
Created by Terence Winters, the pen behind more than a few episodes of “The Sopranos,” this latest drama by HBO follows Atlantic City, New Jersey Treasurer Enoch “Nucky” Thompson (a spot-on Steve Buscemi) in his crooked life as a mastermind political boss and cutthroat gang leader during the early years of Prohibition.
Fall TV Preview – “Undercovers”
You know that the acting is sub-par when the first aspect of a character you can remember were those moments when he or she was topless. The main characters are gorgeous, and Steven Bloom is a complete hunk, but acting skills? Nonexistent. A wooden cast of his body could do just as well.
Catch of the day: Catfish
From its truthful, humorous beginning to its disturbingly realistic climax, “Catfish” dives the viewer into the desperate heart of our Facebook generation.
Fall TV Preview – “Outsourced”
But Outsourced just falls flat. Each joke is a simple one-liner, meant to attract the least educated, most primitive of viewers. It fails to deliver the same intelligent comedy that makes How I Met Your Mother fun, yet intriguing.
Fall TV Preview – “Event”
Although I have my own reservations, The Event is a solid show. It feels like 24 because things are constantly happening. The plot never stops moving, it changes each week, and asks more questions, allowing the show to grow.