Review: Seckman High School's Li'l Abner

By: Autumn Hill

Seckman High School’s Jaguar Theater recently put on the play Li’l Abner.

As Sadie Hawkins Day approaches, Daisy Mae hopes to win the hand of Li'l Abner by catching him in the traditional race. Meanwhile, a senator comes to visit to tell the residents of Dogpatch that their town is to be used as an atomic bomb testing ground, unless they can find something “necessary” about the town. Could Mammy Yokum's Yokumberry tonic (which Abner has taken every day since he was a baby) be the key?

The theatre members worked on putting this play together for months. “It was a blast having a part in the Li’l Abner cast. We truly are a family and I’m so proud of everyone in the production,” Katelyn Brannan said about her great experience with the cast. Wesley Killbern added, “You know, I just expected to be working backstage, but then I became an understudy for one of the lead roles. Then, that lead ended up not being able to follow through with his character, so I ended up playing a lead part my freshmen year. It was a blast, I’m so proud of the cast.” Mollie Kurtz agreed, saying, “People don’t understand how hard the cast works to perfect this production and how far we’ve come. It’s  really awesome and the people in the cast all really get along great.”

The 2014 production of Seckman’s Li’l Abner had audience members surprised left and right as well as in awe. Thursday’s production was a bit rocky near the beginning the ending came together very well. The stars of the cast were Katarina Kutilek (Mammy), Cole Wright (Pappy), Tommy Heaney and Kameron McClinton (Li’l Abner), Alyssa Byerly and Zoei Tyler (Daisy), Scott Lunte (Marryin Sam), Wesley Killbern (Earthquake McGoon), Jon Hanks (General Bullmoose), Maranda Melton and Melissa Nyga (Appassionata), Drew Pinson (Senator Phogbound), and Autumn Hill (Dr. Ramona T. Finsdale).

Everyone in the crowd seemed very interested in the music and many came back to see it more than once. The cast put on the play from February 5-9 at Rickman Auditorium. The audience was delighted with the characters of Pappy and Marryin Sam, who kept the audience truly interested.

On the last day of the play, the senior cast members had a moment to talk about the memories they had and how great of a time they had while doing it. Though many of the seniors were new to the musicals, they had a blast in the end; what great memories. The director, Mrs. Julie Norris, sat proudly in the audience while watching the cast perform.

In the end, the play came together splendidly and everyone truly acted as if they were a family off stage.



Chaos in Ukraine

By: Peter Lewis

Since the spring of 2011, waves of demonstrations by citizens opposing their governments have spread across the globe.  While taking different approaches worldwide, such as Occupy Wall Street and the Egyptian Revolutions, it’s becoming apparent that citizens of countries are becoming much more aware of what their governments are doing.  More and more citizens are asserting their control of the government and fighting the powers that have plagued and corrupted their governments.  

In the Ukraine, a country still set in the background of the days of the USSR, demonstrations and civil unrest have risen against the government.  Western media covers their idea of “important” stories, such as Justin Beiber’s antics or dog shows, instead of the protests and what their implications hold for the world, but these things are important and need to be known.  As video and pictures of the protests have shown, these protests are becoming almost apocalyptic and it’s important to know what caused this.

The events of the protests can be somewhat traced back to 2004 and the Orange Revolution.  In November 2004, incumbent Prime Minister and Pro-Russian candidate Viktor Yanukovych won re-election; however, it quickly became apparent that the election had been rigged and Yanukovych had used state security forces to silence the opposition.  Once word came out, Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, and cities around the country protested peacefully.  These protests lasted two months until the Ukraine Supreme Court ordered a re-election where pro-Western candidate Viktor Yushchenko won and a new Constitution was drafted.  Yet, widespread election fraud returned for the 2010 election, which saw obvious Russian puppet, Viktor Yanukovych, become president.  Since Yanukovych clearly didn’t serve the Ukraine people, it became inevitable that more protests would arise.

Since March 2013, the spark needed to get Ukraine protesting again was set off.  The Ukraine government halted Ukraine’s introduction to the EU (European Union) and Russia put new import regulations on Ukraine, which caused Ukraine profits from importation to drop 10%.  With this, small, peaceful protests began to show up in Kiev, starting on November 21.  By November 24, that number increased to between 100,000 and 200,000, with former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko joining the protesters.  From the 21^st to 29^th, the protests remained peaceful, but that would soon change.  On November 30, the Ukraine government rejected joining the EU and the next day police attacked the protesters in Kiev, injuring 79.  The next day riots erupted in the capital and the protests became much more deadly.

Throughout December, the number of protesters and cities with protests began to rise.  The Statue of Vladmir Lennin, former communist leader of Russia, fell on December 8.  This event has since become a symbol of the protests, that the people of the Ukraine wish to go to the EU versus be Russian puppets.  At that time, over 500,000 protesters were in Kiev, government buildings had been taken over, and barricades were placed between the protesters and government.  As clashes were rampant throughout December, Ukraine and Russia began planning to control the protests.  On January 16, the Ukraine government outlawed protesting, but, with millions protesting around the country, this did little to halt and even escalated the situation in many cases.  As January came to a close, police attempting to enforce the new law created larger clashes and full scale riots.  These events have been the most violent and deadly as pictures of these clashes look to be almost anarchic.  Since then, the protests continue with no signs of slowing down.

The demands of the protestors are well known: Ukraine signs with the EU, Yanukovych resigns, new elections, re-adoption of 2004 Constitution amendments, as well as ending agreements with Russia.   



Winter Olympics take over Sochi



By: Peter Lewis

From now until February 23, the world’s attention will be on Sochi, Russia, for the twenty second Winter Olympics. Sochi, a town of less than 350,000 in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, along the Black Sea, will host the first Olympics held in Russia since the 1980 Summer Games in Moscow.  Since Sochi won the rights to host in 2007, beating out Pyeongchang, South Korea, and Salzburg, Austria, they began planning and constructing the venues for the games.  In modern Olympic tradition, the Russian government approved billions for the projects to make the city presentable.  After seven years of constructing and the typical Olympic controversies surrounding the builds, the games are now underway.

Ninety nations, competing in 98 different events in seven sports, have met at Fisht Olympic Stadium to open the most expensive and modern Olympics in history.  For the events, hockey will probably be the most watched.   Canada, Russia, and the United State , as in years past, are the expected top contenders and all seemingly having legitimate chances at gold.  The US defeated Russia in a memorable qualification game, where the US Women’s team will meet Canada in the gold medal game.  Other events like snowboarding, skiing, bobsleighing, skating, and curling will be on hand with the most popular athletes in those sports competing under their nation’s flag. 

While the Winter Olympics are not as popular as the Summer Games, they are not immune to the same controversies. While the money and building controversies are expected, protests grab most of the negative press in Sochi.  The Olympics, good or bad, have become grounds for citizens of the host country to bring attention their country’s problems on the world stage.  Leading up to the games (the past two years), it has been no different than the protests surrounding the 2008 Beijing Summer Games.  The Russian government has been arresting those speaking out against the government.  While neither side is 100% right in many situations in Russia, the fighting has brought attention to Russia’s human rights issues.  In the summer, LBGT (Lesbian/Bisexual/Gay/Transgender) rights became the most controversial topic, so much so countries like the US were in consideration of boycotting the games.  While no country did, the view of these games has become less positive.  Some Western leaders, including President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, are not attending games.  While neither country has admitted to this being a boycott, the Russian Government and President Vladimir Putin are calling this a symbolic boycott and the Kremlin believes it to be an event to downplay Russia on a world stage.

However, these issues have become short lived since the Kremlin made security threats public.  Since the 1972 Munich Summer Games and aftermath of 9/11, security has become a top concern, but Russia may be caught in a very bad position.  As the games got closer, terrorist attacks outside Sochi (by Islamic radicals) made the reputation of the games seem more unsafe.  As threats mounted, Russia ordered 40,000 police and soldiers to patrol the area in Sochi, known as the “Ring of Steel.”  While the village looks to be in safe hands, the area outside the “Ring of Steel” is a major question for athletes and fans.  The day of the opening ceremony a failed hijacking attempt on an airline to Sochi was foiled, which made the question of security a topic that will stay through the games.  While no attacks have occurred as of now, Russia is not letting up at all.

Yet, with the structural imperfections and rushed development of venues causing the most stir, it seems so far these games may not be the most highly regarded games in recent memory.  Unless the astonishing events take place, and with winter sports usually not being the most popular sports, the games’ legacy are going to be hard to judge.

2014's new technology



By: Brad Tripp

Little Jimmy runs to his mother. While running, phone in hand, he trips over a small stump in the yard. The dinosaur of a phone flies from Jimmy’s hand, then lands in the salt water pond. Jimmy is devastated to have his phone destroyed, but lucky enough he is due for a free upgrade with his phone provider. Later that day Jimmy arrives at the electronics store where he can purchase a new phone. He looks around to see shelves and posters displaying amazing new phones, televisions and more. The digital age is no longer part of our imaginations. The digital age is here and growing every single day. Here are some innovations we can look forward to in 2014:

This year, there will be many phones introduced and upgraded, such as the new Samsung Galaxy S5. According to Whistleout.com, the Samsung Galaxy S5 will be introduced around April and have iris detection technology and a different phone style. Like the iPhone 5s, the Galaxy S5 will come in two models, one being a cheaper model. The iPhone 6 is expected to be released around October or November this year, but specs and features are currently unknown.

What else will be unveiled this year in the electronics department? Macrumors.com says a new IOS is supposed to be released this year. Apple’s operating system is now in the fourth beta stage (testing and compromising for issues). According to Bloomberg.org, Apple is also working on a sixty five inch Apple Television, featuring ultra hi definition and device sync for Apple devices. On the other half of the competitive side, Samsung is working on a bendable television screen to be released by the end of the year.

What’s new for computers and gaming? The Gaurdian.com states the Valve Steam Machine computer is set to be released soon. This gaming computer is said to beat almost all other game consoles and gaming computers, with more than 3000 downloadable games and more than fifty million users.

 In console gaming, according to CNN.com, the Ps4 sold 4.2 million consoles the day it was launched and Xbox One sold 1.2 million. Latinpost.com (a forum on gaming) says that sometime this spring Xbox One will be launching a new update to fix issues with the online parties and Microsoft will also be releasing the Xbox One in white. Many electronics and updates are to be released this year. What will you choose?