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Mane Event

The NBA doesn’t want students to play in

the league right out of high school, so the commis­

sioner has changed the age requirements to twenty

years of age. The NBA want the recruits to have at

least two years in college or has to be twenty years

or older. The league believes this should be so be­

cause they think students need their education be­

fore going to the pros.

What the NBA doesn’t know is that the

league needs the young talent on the NBA floors.

NBA stars such as Tracy McGrady,

Kobe Bryant, Amare Stoundemire,

Jermain O’Neill, Kevin Garnett, and

LeBron James all skipped college

and went to the NBA right out of high

school. Paul Harris from Niagara

Falls could have gone to the NBA

but was stopped by the new age re­

quirement. Now he has to go to a prep school in

New Hampshire.

Tracy McGrady is one of the All­Stars in

the NBA that kids try to be like because

he came right out of high school and

went straight to the NBA. Student in

high school dream to one day be like him.

The NBA stops this from happening be­

cause of the new age limit.

Some fans of the NBA think they should have

this age requirement, but most of them think it is a

really dumb idea. Seventy percent of the NBA’s play­

ers opposed this minimum age. The NBA really needs

the fresh talent coming up to play because the NBA

wouldn’t be good at all if they didn’t have younger

players on the court to liven up the game.

High School Basketball

Players and the NBA

Antoine Alford, Senior

With so many teen athletes throughout the

United States deciding to take steroids, it has be­

come the most widely used drug among teens. Be­

cause schools aren’t testing their athletes for steroids,

young athletes are mislead into thinking that by tak­

ing steroids they will become better athletes without

consequences.

Many people think that steroids are benefi­

cial, but in fact, they can do more harm than good. A

lot of you don’t realize the health risks involved with

taking steroids. Steroids can cause heart damage by

causing an enlargement of the left ventricular, which

is the part that pumps oxy­

genated blood throughout

the body. Steroids can also

cause confusion throughout

the body because of the

extra testosterone it gives

off. The extra testosterone that comes from steroids

can cause facial hair growth in girls and deepen their

voices. In addition, steroids can cause severe mood

swings, as well as, aggressive behavior, which is also

known as “Roid Rage”.

Teen boys will also see the harmful effects

steroids give off. The use of steroids can cause shrink­

age of testicles as well as breast enlargement. Ste­

roids can also cause death, which was a reality for a

high school student named Taylor Hooton. Hooton

was a former steroid user who hung him self because

of the depression caused by steroids. The good news

is there are ways of preventing teens from using ste­

roids.

A program called

ATLAS

(Athletes Training

and Learning to Avoid Steroids) is set up to raise

teen’s awareness about steroids. ATLAS can be

taught in schools, as well as, recreational centers. It

also teaches teen’s skills on how to refuse steroids if

someone is pressuring them to use. A new program

is being set up called

“Make the Right Choice”

,

which is set up to distribute brochures, posters and

DVD’s to teens and their parents. The program is

set up to give medical information and make teens

aware of the harmful effects that come from steroid

use.

If you or anyone you know is using steroids

and feel that there is a problem, be sure to contact

the parents, school nurse, principal, or coaches.

Steriods can kill!

Steroids in High School

Ben Follette, Senior

how will they prepare if we were to experience an­

other natural disaster, such as a hurricane, a blizzard

or an earthquake? Will they respond poorly or will

they be prepare ahead of time? Will they enforce

evacuations? Will they have systems and precautions

to follow?

It is clear that the government needs to make

improvements because the death toll is continuing to

rise and the damages are tremendous. More and more

people are going to continue to die from storms, like

Katrina, if we do not more efficiently prepare ahead

of time.

Division I college athletes should not be paid

because the athletes are receiving a free education

which is worth around $42,000 per year. Other stu­

dents have to pay for an education, yet some boost­

ers, former college athletes, and former coaches still

think these athletes should be paid.

Do you think college athletes should be paid?

At a Division I school, such as Syracuse, it costs some

where around $42,000 per year with the tuition, hous­

ing, meals, supplies, books, lab fees, etc. A Division

I scholarship player gets to go to school and not pay

anything, and people still think they should be paid!

College athletes are considered amateurs,

and if the NCAA were to pay these athletes, then

they would lose their amateur status. College sports

would then turn into farm teams for the pros. In due

time this would also eliminate the responsibilities of

being a students because the main purpose would no

longer be to get an education first. The main reason

these athletes are not paid is because the NCAA feels

that a long­term education is better than a short­term

financial reward.

The boosters, former college athletes and

former coaches that want these athletes to be paid

don’t realize that paying these athletes would result

in a handful of schools receiving the best athletes.

The boosters, former college athletes and coaches

also brought up the proposal that the athletes should

be allowed to make money off of endorsements, such

as shoe, clothing and television contracts. The prob­

lem with this is that only the star athletes would make

money. The athletes, whether the star or not, all have

the same schedules and have to follow the same rules,

so if one athlete is paid, then they all have to be paid.

The money that the universities make off of

college sports should be used to benefit all the col­

lege sports not just individuals. The student athlete is

a part of the university just like any other student is

even if they don’t play any sports. All students have

needs that need to be fulfilled, and the only way to

pay these students and athletes is to distribute the

money evenly throughout the university. Overall, I

think that getting scholarship and having a college ex­

perience is definitely compensation enough for these

athletes.

Show Me the Money

Isaiah Scott, Senior

Hurricane Katrina makes a powerful argu­

ment for not sacrificing disaster preparedness. Katrina

killed and wiped out hundreds of people, flooded

New Orleans, left more than a million people home­

less, and did many billions of dollars worth of prop­

erty damage.

There should have safe places already set up

with increased amounts of food, blood, water, ice

and supplies ready in the region while preparing for

this disaster. There should have been doctors, Red

Cross workers, officers and any type of law enforc­

ers helping the survivors. These things should have

been in place before or at least immediatley after the

disaster due to the fact that there were many women,

men, and children who needed aid because of the

storm or the violence that occurred after it. This vio­

lence included people being robbed, killed, and raped

in addition to the many people who were dying due

to sicknesses and injuries brought on by the hurri­

cane.

In an

ABC News/Washington Post

poll,

67% of the people surveyed said the federal govern­

ment should have been better prepared to deal with

a storm the size of hurricane Katrina. Many Ameri­

cans felt that if the government cannot be prepared

for this type of catastrophe, then what will they do or

Taken by Storm Or

by Government?

Lateishia Mason, Senior

The government fails to aid those in need

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Teens need to look into religion more today

because it can become a positive force in their lives.

Having a spiritual side can help you feel more at peace

because having faith can see you through difficult

times. It’s a way to live that is better.

Not only do you learn how to respect and

carry yourself in a morally right and proper way, but

you can also create long lasting friendships. Churches

Can Religion be a

Guide to a Better Life?

Crystal Foster, Senior

and other places of worship are more upbeat for the

younger generation. Having a combination of wor­

ship services and friends go hand in hand. When no

one is there or you can’t seem to find anyone to count

on, your faith can become what you lean on.

The

Bible

is a really good example of that; it

sets kids on the right path of life. Scriptures in the

Bible

, even though they are based back in Biblical

times, can be used in current situations because most

conditions that teens experience today aren’t that dif­

ferent from tribulations and obstacles that people faced

throughout time.

Having a set base faith is all up to you. No­

body can decide for you if you believe in religion or

not. These are only some benefits you can get out of

having a belief system. Our lives need guidance be­

cause guidance is a key to a prosperous future. Hav­

ing a spiritual side to you can build a constructive and

promising life because it gives you a better under­

standing of what to do in your lifetime. You are your

own person. Religion is just one thing you should have

because you can become a better and more well­

round individual.