Malden Stuffs Medford On Thanksgiving

Day Game on page 20

Photo by Lauren Benoit

http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
Malden High School Our 94th Year
Volume 94 Edition 3 December 2009
GAGA CONCERT

Bright Future for Mhs REVIEW ON PG 16

Give Blood,
GIVE Life
Sharon Lee
Reporter

Senior Martin Doan giving blood at

the MHS Blood Drive

“ You know one donation could

save as many as three lives,”
says Alan Towne as he encourages
three hesitant blood donors on
the morning of Thursday, Dec. 10,
2009. That day 57 students, staff
members, and local citizens ar-
rived to give both time and blood
The renovations done on our school auditorium. Photos by Lynn Tran and Lauren Benoit
to save the lives of others at the
American Red Cross Blood Drive.
For more pictures and information go to page 14 The coordinators of this event
were Robin Doherty and Jennifer
On Friday Dec. 4, 2009, State Treasurer and Chairman of the
Paige Yurek Amanda Adams Eby, and Alan Towne, a donor
Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) Tim Cahill, and
recruiter formerly working for the
Reporter Reporter Katherine Craven, MSBA executive Director, presented Malden
American Red cross for over 20
High with a check for 69 million dollars.
years. Part of Towne’s job is to or-
ganize blood drives in school and
communities as well as recruiting

ANTIGONE: FAIREY GOOD

donors, and that’s exactly what he
did to bring this life-saving event
to Malden High.
Similarly to last year the Finn
Xavier Leo Gym was split so a portion of the
Copy Editor gym could be used for the blood
drive. “Absolutely. [I am] very sup-

M alden High School’s Play Production class, taught by

Mr. Sean Walsh, put on yet another grand performance
in their most recent play, Antigone. Rather than performing
portive of the blood drive and we
all need to give a little. I believe
that I can speak on behalf of the
a rendition of the original play by Sophocles, Walsh chose to whole P.E. staff.” Within the space
perform the 1940’s adaptation of the same play, by a Frenchman provided for the blood drive, there
named Jean Anouilh. were many stations set up includ-
Preparation began for the show a few weeks after the start ing registration, waiting, medical
of this school year. According to a recent e-mail from Walsh, “I history, blood drawing, and a can-
originally wanted to do The Trojan Women - but could not find teen to recuperate afterwards.
a translation that I liked. I decided to do the Anouilh version To be able to give blood, you
for two main reasons: It is a show most of the school popular have to meet certain requirements
was familiar with [and] I thought it would be an appropriate
continued on page 14
challenge for the actors I had coming back.” In addition to
regular class time used to rehearse, the cast was expected to
run through their lines at home as much as possible so as to
create a smooth show as soon as possible. Up until the week of Table of Contents
the show, some cast members were asked to stay once a week Opinion p.3-5
after school to have a group rehearsal. However, as soon as the World p.6-8
week of the show came around, everyone was asked to stay
three hours after school all week to finally rid themselves of all
Local p. 10-14
the kinks and, more importantly, get a feel for their new venue Entertainment
at the Malden Senior Center. Regarding the new location of this p.15-17
continued on page 15 Sports p. 18-20
Thanh Nguyen as the chorus leader in front of
artwork based on visual artist Shepard Fairey
Photo by Joao Nascimento
2 Editorials
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
Nuclear power, not flower power
Malden High School
The Blue and Gold A s the world’s fossil fuels diminish at an
astonishingly rapid pace at the hands of
voracious industrialized nations, the search
77 Salem St. for alternative, clean, and renewable sources
Malden, MA 02148 of energy is unnervingly understated. Even
after the first omens of impending oil short-
ages in 1973 when gas prices spiked due to a
trading embargo between the United States
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF and the Organization of Arab Petroleum
David Riemer Exporting Countries (OAPEC), scientific re-
Ayoub Kourikchi search was never accelerated on the premise
of looming urgency. Instead, the country’s
MANAGING AND DESIGN EDITOR fossil fuel intake has grown over the years, at
Lynn Tran a frightening speed. The worst thing? Hardly
anyone is afraid.
COPY EDITING DIRECTOR Maybe there is hope to be found in one
An Holmqvist of the only human creations to emanate panic
across the entire globe: the atomic bomb.
ONLINE EDITOR The advent of atomic and nuclear en-
Alexandra Mathieu ergy brought with it a torrent of guilt and
fear, sweeping across the world with the
HEAD LOCAL NEWS WRITER realization that man finally possessed the
Nidale Zouhir technology to eradicate himself. J. Robert
Oppenheimer, the renowned “father of
HEAD ENTERTAINMENT/ OPINION atomic energy” expressed his regret for hav-
Brittany Foley ing been largely responsible for bringing
such destructive power into the world. And
HEAD SPORTS WRITER yet, this power which has scorched cities to
Alfonse Femino the ground, effaced walls, melted cars, and
immolated innocent citizens within minutes
HEAD OF BUSINESS may be the force which is key to the estab-
Haley DeFilippis lishment of a permanent form of infinitely
renewable energy.
COPY EDITORS Amidst the clamor for comparatively
Dan Holmqvist minute advances in other technologies, the
Omar Khoshafa fervor for atomic energy had declined in the
Xavier Leo US since its pivotal role in the Cold War. Al-
Brittany McFeeley though there has been considerable progress
Joao Nascimento made in harnessing solar, wind, and geother-
mal power, as well as crucial developments
REPORTERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS in bio-diesel fuel technology and recycling
Amanda Adams procedures, scientists have not been able to
Lauren Benoit run as fast as the world’s hunger for oil in this
Kayla Bramante
Christopher Brown
Freddie DiPhillipo
Natalie Fallano
Alexander Gennigiorgis
Megan Kelly
Joshua Kummins Editorial Policy
Johanna Lai
The Blue and Gold is an open forum for
Sharon Lee student expression. It is produced by students
Cristina Peters for the school and the community. The views
Catherine Poirier presented in this paper are not necessarily those
Brendan Provitola of the advisor or the school administration. The
Reginah Sanyu views presented in the editorials are those of the
Joel Stevenson editors-in-chief or guests. The goal of The Blue
Alicia Young and Gold is to inform and entertain students as
Paige Yurek well as the community regarding issues that we
feel are important.
We strongly encourage readers to respond
ADVISOR
to material printed in the form of signed letters to
Ryan Gallagher
the editors. No libelous, malicious, defamatory,
obscene, or unsigned material will be printed.
Established in 1915 The Blue and Gold reserves the right to edit the let-
ters. Names may be withheld upon request. Not
Check out our online edition: all letters will be printed.
Although The Blue and Gold appreciates the
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/ support of advertisers, we may refuse any ad-
vertisement that violates the above policy or that
promotes products questionable to student use.
Any correspondence concerning this publi-
cation should be directed to Mr. Ryan Gallagher’s
room in A103 or to his mailbox in the main office.
The Blue and Gold
c/o Malden High School
77 Salem Street
Malden, MA 02148
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
race toward oblivion. Atomic energy, on the
other hand, could be just the sprinter human-
ity needs to win.
The question is, however, if we are ca-
pable of taming such a tremendous force and
domesticating it for our use. The Chernobyl
disaster of 1986 speaks to the contrary of that
hope.
In the Ukraine, then part of the Soviet
Union, the Chernobyl plant explosion led to
a worldwide criticism of harnessing nuclear
energy. The cataclysmic meltdown resulted
in the direct deaths of only about 56 indi-
viduals, but is estimated to have caused over
800,000 deaths overall due to the extensive
radiation poisoning experienced by Ukrai-
nian residents around the site. Today, nearly
23 years after the disaster, the area around
the plant is so radioactive that it has been
deemed too dangerous for humans to in-
habit. The town of Prypiat, located just miles
from the Chernobyl plant filled with vacant
apartment buildings, mangled playgrounds,
and even a forgotten amusement park, stand-
ing testament to the devastating potency of
atomic energy.
This disaster, however, should be
learned from and reflected upon, but not
feared. Yes, the research regarding nuclear
energy holds the highest price for the slight-
est mistake, but this once-evil force has the
propensity to further change the world as we
know it, and redefine itself as a force of cre-
ation and progress rather than that of quint-
essential and ultimate destruction. The force
that has drawn our wide-eyed terror and
coaxed the wildest of apocalyptic nightmares
from the most obscure corners of our collec-
tive dreams has the capacity to cleanse the
world of the political and economic clashes
which occur in the struggle for control of
fossil fuel resources and release the vice grip
with which oil suffocates diplomacy.
David Riemer
Co-Editor-in-Chief
Corrections:
The date of the issue should have been No-
vember 2009, not 2008, on page 1.
The style article is on page 16.
The Payroll Statistics on page 8 were created by
Megan Kelly, and Joshua Kummins. The statis-
tics were created on BostonHerald.com using the
area code 02147.
Taylor Wrice’s name was spelled wrong on page
16.
The Hall of Fame pictures were taken by Anita
Caceda and Megan Kelly on page 18.
The cheerleaders went to Regionals, not Sec-
tionals, on page 18.
The Thanksgiving game was against Medford,
not Everett, on page 18.
The Boys Soccer Record should be 9:1 on page
19.
Immaculate Mutebi’s name was spelled incor-
rectly on page 6.
The 2012 class president is Nina Ho and the
vice president is Jessica Hien on page 6.
Corrections to the editor can be submitted to
theblueandgold@gmail.com
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009 Opinion 3
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

A World Power Letter to the Editors

no more? By Rick Tivnan’s Justice and Government Class
“Unhealthy,” “greasy,” and “nasty” are words that Malden High students use to describe
their food. One class in your very own school is working on bettering school lunch for all stu-
An Holmqvist dents.
Copy Editing Director
In Mr. Tivnan’s Justice and Government class, we are trying to change our school lunch by

I s ­­­America no longer the world

power that it once used to be? Are
we no longer the influence on which
making a brochure and distributing it to the whole school. We’re gathering students’ personal
opinions, providing students with nutritional facts about their food, and comparing our food
to other schools’ foods. We also created a survey about what students would prefer in the caf-
all the rest of the world leaned?
In his mission to bring back confi- eteria and then we conducted the survey during lunch.
dence in America’s foreign policy,
President Barack Obama began to The goals of our project are:
wean – especially on his trip to Asia, - To improve the food on the school cafeteria’s menu
during which the Western media - To bring awareness about food quality to the student body
went into a frenzy of criticism. The
Economist called him the “quiet
- To give students voice in the process
American,” a weak voice in the face
of an immense economic power.
The trip to China may not have
affected Americans in their daily
lives, but a reflection upon China’s
prominence in the global economy
might explain why Obama was so
careful not to lose approval from
America’s strongest economic rival.
Obama barely stood a chance
against the menacing cover-up that
was his public visit to the People’s
Republic of China. Obama barely
had the opportunity to speak to the
people of China – his television ap-
pearances were few, and were often
presided by Chinese officials to en- T he program Generation Citizen has helped us come together as a class, despite how different we all may
be and has helped us organize a way to take action against a problem we have chosen in our school. The
program calls for the class as a whole to come up with something we would like to change about their school.
sure that he would not say anything
that would stir an uproar. According After we came up with the topic, we had to think of how we could change the problem. We brainstormed a
to Eswar S. Prasad, a China special- number of ideas and came up with a strategy to take action. As a class we eliminated ideas we felt wouldn’t
ist at Cornell University, “China ef- work well and implemented ideas we thought sounded appealing. We ended up making a survey and asking
fectively stage-managed… Obama’s our fellow students for their opinions.
public appearances [and] got him to Our class wants to work towards getting better, healthier options during our lunch period. We have each
make statements endorsing Chinese taken the initiative of gathering our school food nutritional facts, collecting information on food from other
positions of political importance to schools, or asking the students/staff at Malden High their opinions on the food and recording their state-
them…” What more could we have ments. We are working on a pamphlet to show students what the food here is like compared to other schools.
expected? China rarely loosens its Our program is designed to help us change things that we feel is our right to have a say in. Generation
grip when it comes to foreign poli- Citizen has given us that chance, and so we decided to talk about our school lunch and how it needs improve-
cy. Their explosive growth is some- ment. We are hoping to catch the attention of the administration and show them how concerned we feel about
thing they seek to protect – and this. At the same time, we appreciate how difficult it is to feed so many students at one time, and we know
not loosen their hold on economic how hard the cafeteria staff works to accommodate everyone in a short period of time.
dominance. Regardless of whether We hope that our work will make the school realize that we need to change our daily meals, and this may
China is laden with corruption and benefit both us and schools around the region. Please help us reach our goal by talking to parents, members
abuse of government power, no of the administration, faculty and anyone else you think might be interested in our project. Thank you.
Western leader would be able to
stand up to such a stringent culture.
Send letters to editor to
In Asia, we need a de-
theblueandgold@gmail.com The Chorus
termined leader who can Which Holiday Greeting Do you Prefer? Holiday Concert
take down devious ways
of gaining a profit and an Date: Tuesday,
upper hand.
December 22, 2009

Although one must forgive Time: 7:00pm -

Mr. President for not being able to
address issues such as human rights
10:00pm
and corruption, we have a right to
be disappointed with a leader who
is not able to assertively defend
Location: Malden
the best interests of the nation. As High School Gym
Prasad continued in his statement, Street:77 Salem
the Chinese effectively “shifted the
public discussion from the global Street
risks posed by Chinese currency
policy to the dangers of loose mon-
etary policy and protectionist ten-

Chart created by Kayla Bramante and Natalie Fallano. Sur-

continued on page 4
veyed random participants at all four lunches on December 4th.
Layout By David Riemer
4 Opinion
Climate Change (Data Alteration)
Sharon Lee
Reporter
Source: http://en.cop15.dk/
homepage for Climate Consor-
tium in Denmark
L ately all you hear about global
warming, climate change, and
greenhouse gases are how all the
data has been altered by those evil
scientists, but how evil can they
actually be? If people take a second
to look at this differently they may
come to find that in reality our envi-
ronment is actually in as much dan-
ger as those “evil” scientists say so.
Each day the average person takes
approximately 26,000 breaths and
Plan for Afghanistan Draws Attention
Xavier Leo
Copy Editor
I n short, the plan goes like this:
eliminate terrorist safe havens;
work with Pakistan to unseat the
Taliban in the country; help Afghan
security forces establish a stable
government that has the support of
a plurality of Afghanis; and finally,
bring our troops home.
Despite its months of delib-
eration, the Obama administra-
tion left some important questions
unresolved in its new plan for Af-
ghanistan. In part, this was because
of unsettled differences among
administration policy-makers; in
part because agreements are lacking
continued on page 5
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
in each breath you are inhaling not
only oxygen but also a mixture of
gases including nitrogen, water, ar-
gon, carbon dioxide and trace gases.
Each year at least fifteen polar bears
die from global warming and the
dramatic increase in climate change.
Now how different is what we are
told by scientists from reality.
Scientists from the University
of East Anglia (UEA) have altered
the original data taken at several
weather stations all over the world.
The data was used to determine the
long-term rise in temperature over
the next 150 years. The exaggeration
that the scientists used have made
the increase in temperature seems
more drastic, but making the situ-
ation seem worse than it is may be
the push we need to start thinking
of our future.
In fact, is not there always an
exception to when you can or cannot
exaggerate the truth to help others?
Wouldn’t this be one of those times?
Instead of characterizing them as
despicable, unreliable, or untrust-
Cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in West Point,
N.Y. listening to Barack Obama.
Source: www.whitehouse.gov - Obama Administration’s homepage
worthy people, shouldn’t they be
awarded? Truthfully all their doing
is making the rest of us take precau-
tions that we should have been do-
ing already. According to benefits-
of-recycling.com there has been a
100% increase in the total amount
of recycling in the United States in
the last decade. Why do you think
Malden just started the pay-as-you-
throw program? These are simple
ways to save our planet and without
the fear that scientists have embed-
ded in us we would not be on our
way to a greener, more eco-friendly
Earth.
If it was not for scientists, we
will all still be polluting the at-
mosphere with dangerous fumes,
not reusing or recycling items like
plastics or paper, and not being real-
istic to the cry for help from Mother
Nature. All we’ve thought of was
how scientists have altered data of
climate change and manipulated the
real facts and research but I think its
time we thank them for giving us a
warning of what is yet to come.
A Cartoon by Jeri Scibelli
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
continued from page 3
dencies in the U.S.” China’s cur-
rency policy is one controversial,
yet valid reason as to how they
became such a formidable capi-
talist influence over the rest of
the world, but how could Obama
let that issue slip through his
fingers? In Asia, we need a deter-
mined leader who can take down
devious ways of gaining a profit
and an upper hand. We also need
a leader who will show us how
we can live with this reality on
the home front.
In light of the holiday sea-
son, Americans cannot ignore
that China’s take-over of our
market economy has long taken
its toll on our job count. The slow-
down of America’s economical
decline has caused some shop-
pers to perk up – and perhaps
return some of the profit that our
country has needed over the past
year. However, most products
on the American market are still
originally manufactured in Asia,
and still take away from our
country the manufacturing jobs
that so many workers in America
are lacking. This is something
that Americans have been mad-
dened about for decades – ever
since the “Made in China” sticker
became a ubiquitous presence on
everything we bought and sold
during 1990s and continue to buy
and sell now. But as China’s gar-
gantuan economic power contin-
ues to eat into the global share of
As the holder of some $800
billion in U.S. debt, China
holds some important
cards that America cannot
afford to ignore.
money-making, America has to
persist in finding its balance and
its new place in the world.
Granted, Barack Obama did
make more than just one or two
great strides on his trip to Asia in
November. He did address issues
on carbon emissions, nuclear
disarmament in North Korea
and Iran, and he did successfully
include the country in the G20
meeting – a group of influential
countries gathered to discuss and
solve global problems, especially
regarding finances. However,
we need a stronger presence in
Asia. As the holder of some $800
billion in U.S. debt, China holds
some important cards that Amer-
ica cannot afford to ignore. In
foreign relations, we may praise
Obama for giving the world a
better reputation, but he should
not be forced to bow too low to
Asian leaders.
Layout by David Riemer
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009 opinion 5
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

Blue & Gold

Endorses
Coakley for
MA Senate Seat
Nidale Zouhir
Head of Local News

B acked by former President Bill Clinton

and green organizations from all over the
nation, and with a resume boasting jobs with
esteemed law firms all over Massachusetts ,
Democrat Martha Coakley hopes to become
Massachusetts’ first female United States
Senator.
An advocate of equal and social rights, President Obama in the grand foyer of the white house on June 1, 2009
Coakley, the former Massachusetts attorney Photo by Samantha Appleton aWhite House photographer
general, lies firmly on the socially liberal side
of the political spectrum. In the past, Coakley,
in cooperation with the National Federation continued from page 4
of the Blind, has worked with Apple, Inc.
to redesign Apple’s iTunes music software operations that helped make the surge in Iraq
to increase its accessibility to the blind. She with allies. If these gaps are not filled in the a success. Even if that obstacle is overcome,
has also filed a lawsuit in the United States next several months, the Afghanistan strategy the US civil operation is still not integrated
District Court that challenged the legality may fail well before the July 2011 date that with those of the more than 40 other nations
and constitutionality of the Defense of Mar- President Obama set for beginning a U.S. involved in the Afghan mission. That should
riage Act, which unfairly excluded same-sex withdrawal. be a priority of the international conference
couples; this made Massachusetts the first Obama has stated that he plans to turn that European leaders want to hold on Af-
state in the nation to challenge the legislation, the fight against Taliban units over to the ghanistan in the coming months.
echoing its status as the first state to legalize Afghani military, but there has yet to be any The most serious remaining problem is
gay marriage. significant training put towards the Afghanis. the lack of a clear agreement between the ad-
In terms of economic policies, Coakley Theater commander General Stanley A. ministration and Pakistan on eliminating Tal-
is similarly liberal, hoping to improve and McChrystal proposed expanding the Afghan iban bases. Though Pakistan is now engaged
reform financial regulatory policies. Her sup- army and police to 400,000 members in the in a ferocious battle with Taliban groups
port of health care reform—specifically the next several years, and in his testimony to based in its tribal territories, it has refused to
proposed public option—makes Coakley a Congress he indicated that he still supports act against key Afghan Taliban groups it once
suitable successor to the late Senator Edward that plan. However, questions were raised as supported. According to the New York Times,
Kennedy. If elected, Coakley says she will fo- to how this proposal would be funded, and the Obama administration has threatened
cus on the economy first, before moving on to according to The Washington Post, the White U.S. military action against those targets if
health care. House has only promised one year of fund- Pakistan’s refusal continues.
Dedicated to supporting and protecting ing. When Obama took office less than a
the elderly, children, and veterans, Coakley Every review of Afghanistan has pointed year ago, there were only 32,000 US troops
promises emphasis public safety, as well as to a second issue: the lack of coordination be- in Afghanistan. By next spring, there will be
Social Security and health care options such tween the international military and civilian 100,000.
as Medicare. missions. Gen. McChrystal and Ambassador Those troops will have to eliminate
Coakley disagrees with President Barack Karl W. Eikenberry told Congress that they al-Qaeda, degrade the Taliban, stand up the
Obama’s planned troop increase in Afghani- had prepared a detailed civil-military plan Afghan National Army and police, provide
stan; rather, she believes that the US should several months ago and would now update the space and security for development and
begin to bring the troops home. Coakley also it to reflect the strategy review. But some delivery of services to the Afghan people -
advocates a two-state solution to the Israeli- members in Congress are understandably and then get out.
Palestinian conflict, as well as remaining concerned that reported tensions between It’s a tall order and it may not all be
allied with Israel. Furthermore, Coakley sup- the two men and their staffs will continue to achievable within the given time frame, so no
ports Obama’s plan to withdraw American impede the integration of development proj- pressure, Mr. President.
troops from Iraq by 2011. Additionally, Coak- ects and political work with military clearing
ley opposes Iran’s development of nuclear
weapons, believing that a nuclear Iran would
be a threat to the security of the Middle East
and the United States. Generally, Coakley un-
derstands that a stable and safe Middle East is
necessary for a secure US.
Coakley defeated fellow Democratic
candidates Representative Michael Capuano,
Alan Khazei, and Stephen Pagliuca during the
primary on Dec. 8, 2009 in a landslide, taking
47 percent of the vote.
Winning would make Coakley the 39th
female US Senator, and the first from Mas-
sachusetts. When accepting the Democratic
nomination on Dec. 8, 2009, Coakley’s speech
focused on breaking this barrier. “They said
women don’t have much luck in Massachu-
setts politics,’’ she expressed. “We believe that
it is quite possible that that luck is about to
change.’’

Layout by David Riemer

6 WORLD news The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

denmark: Happiest country in the world

Megan Kelly
Reporter

Literacy of # of Robberies Denmark has topped the charts

Unemployment # of Murders a Year for the happiest country
Pop. a Year
in the world for the past 3
years, what's their secret?

Information and
Chart by Nationmaster

O ut of the 195 countries in the

world, Forbes chose the happi-
est of them all: Denmark. The oldest
monarchy in the world has ruled
the list for the past three years after
shoving Costa Rica from the top spot
in 2007. The top five countries on
the list are Denmark, Finland, Neth-
erlands, Sweden and The Republic
of Ireland coming in fifth. Factors
included satisfaction with life, Gross
Domestic Product Per Capita (GDP)
and unemployment rates. So how
does Denmark stay at the top?
Inside the borders of the Scan-
dinavian nation, 5.4 million Danes
who live here committed a stun-
ningly low 3,238 robberies and 56
murders in the past year. The low
crime rates were also a factor in how
the countries were ranked. Denmark
also has an 18 way tie for their lit-
eracy of the total population which
is 99 percent, an unemployment rate
of 2 percent, a GDP of $68,362, and
a high satisfaction with life which
makes the nation very stable. But
where does the happiness come
in? Karen Buentens, a therapist in
Private Practice quotes “That more
stability in their lives helps life satis-
faction”, and life satisfaction plays a
key role in the ranking. The other top
three countries on the list which also
had a similar profiles, being hap-
pier caused less crime. The second
happiest country Finland had 2,120
robberies and 132 murders and the
Netherlands who came in third had
21,389 robberies and 157 murders.
Buentens commented on the crime
rates with “The higher the satisfac-
tion with their life they’re less likely
to engage in illegal behavior. They
don’t want to risk that satisfaction.”
Another connection made be-
tween the ranking factors is the two
percent unemployment rate which
is three percent lower than the U.S.’s
current 5 percent. With more people
working and creating financial sta-
bility for themselves they will feel
an improvement with their satisfac-
tion with life. Though the countries
unemployment will be higher if the
literacy of the population is lower,
Buentens explains “Education and
training is linked to more job oppor-
tunities. And more job opportunities
allows more financial stability, a part
of satisfaction with your life.” The
countries in the top three of the list
with the lower unemployment rates
also are in the top 15 for secondary
education (High School/Techni-
cal Schools) enrollment, allowing
graduates a chance for higher life
satisfaction. So with more stress on
education for a students future what
is Malden doing to help their youths
future life satisfaction?
The City Council’s plan for
leading youth to a better future is
enforcing a curfew for anyone un-
der the age of 17. The plan is that the
curfew will have students out of any
public area by 11 p.m. which will
have them home safe and sound so
that they will either not have a crime
committed against them or commit
a crime, be able to obtain enough
sleep so that they will preform at an
exceptional level during school and
to also to keep students in school. So
will this help students? If they are
staying home completing homework
and achieving better grades this will
give them a sense of pride helping to
raise their life satisfaction. Buentens
explains “We know that kids who
are involved in activities (sports,
clubs, volunteering) that they have
a positive sense of future and also
if there is someone who cares and
has high and realistic expectations
(teacher, parent, coach). With these
factors kids are less likely to be in-
volved in risky behavior that jeop-
ardize their future life satisfaction.”
Though Buentens feels that without
things for these kids to do such as
sports or clubs so that they aren’t on
the street they won’t have a positive
social structure which without is a
loss for life satisfaction and will do
the opposite of what the curfew is
meant to do, “Gangs develop when
there isn’t positive social structure.”
So Denmark has claimed the
title as the Happiest Country on
Earth once again because of the low
crime rate and economic stability.
With the new curfew could Malden
achieve the same and be happier? If
the proper steps are taken and the
city pays greater attention to educa-
tion as well as laws, Malden’s could
potentially be as happy as Denmark.

CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY: THE MOST DANGEROUS CITY IN AMERICA

Natalie Fallano
claimed this title when the number training, and
Reporter of murders dropped and major opportunity,”

I magine living in a city that has
been in the top ten of America’s
most dangerous list for more that
half a century. That is what it is like
for the residents of Camden, New
Jersey. Nationally, They rank first
in murders and robberies, sixth in
assaults, eighth in rapes and mo-
tor vehicle thefts, and forty first in
burglaries according to CQ Press
which bases their list off crime data
compiled by the FBI and population
figures. It has also topped the list in
2003, 2004, and 2008. Last year in
2008, Camden had 2,332.6 violent
crimes per 10,000 people, which
was almost five times the national
average of 454.5. In 2004, Camden’s
murder rate was cited almost nine
times the national average of 5.7 per
10,000 people.
This half century of violence
and crime started in Camden back
in 1949. An unemployed Howard
Unruh murdered 13 people in
twelve minutes, which set a sad re-
cord at the time; killing more than
one person per minute. This became
the first known single-episode mass
murder in America’s modern his-
tory.
The tragic part is Camden still
changes were made in their police
department. These changes include
requiring state troopers to be pres-
ent to back up the local police. So
far in 2009, the murder rate has de-
creased fourteen percent and there
has only been 31 homicides under
Chief Scott Thompson. According
The Daily News, Camden Police In-
spector Mike Lynch stated “There’s
been a significant progress over the
year. While there is still work to be
done, the reality is that Camden is a
much safer city statistically through
the eyes of the residents.”
The extreme amount of street
violence in Camden have made the
police step it up over the years, which
has made the citizens wondering if
the police think it will prevent crime
rates. When people commit crimes
they are fined but can not afford to
pay it. Their arrests are put on their
records which makes it harder for
them to get job. With a city full of
so much crime, it is hard for these
people to get job and then the un-
employment rate goes up. With no
jobs people commit more crimes so
in the end the police being stricter
does not factor into the crime rates.
“We must give our people jobs,
stated City
Council Mem-
ber Ali Sloan-
El while speak-
ing before the
public back in
2005. It was
also identified
that Cam-
den’s poverty
and unem- Photo of the Welcome to New Jersey Sign photo by Cicotello
ployment
rate are the ran a stolen car into three police-
most important factors that feed the men. On Aug. 16, 2009 an Everett
community’s high crime rate. This man, 20, was shot in the leg near a
ties into the fact that Camden is not 7-Eleven store on Salem Street, in an
only the most dangerous cities in incident police called drug related.
America but also one of the poorest Finally on the night of Aug. 27, 2009
cities in America. Camden may be a 35-year-old Malden man was shot
the most dangerous city in America, in front of his Beach Street home.
but it is starting to make changes This many shootings in a month is
that will make it safer, but it will not common to Malden, and that
take a lot more work to do this. worried residents if the city was
Malden, Massachusetts is defi- becoming an unsafe one to live in.
nitely not as dangerous as Camden, Police denied it was a “crime wave”
but the city did experience a “crime but that did not change the mindset
wave” this summer. In August, of the residents who thought so.
Malden encountered three shoot- Malden is far off from being as dan-
ings. The first incident was on Aug. gerous as Camden, but any city can
3, 2009 when police were forced to become the most dangerous city in
shoot a 20-year-old man from East America.
Sandwich on Salem Street, after he Layout by Lynn Tran
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
Minors make major crime
Violent teenage crimes on rise in the US
Freddie DiPhillipo
Reporter
T here has been an increase in
adult crimes committed by
teens. These are such serious crimes,
that teens who commit them are
usually tried as adults. So far one
of the really serious crimes commit-
ted by youths this year are the gang
beating to death of a Chicago honors
student. There was also a young boy
from Florida who was set on fire
by other teens. Lastly, there was a
girl from California who was gang
raped by teens at her school dance.
In Deerfield Beach, Florida
fifteen year old Michael Brewer was
lit on fire by five thirteen and fifteen
year old boys. All of the five teens
were charged with attempted mur-
der. The reason why these five teens
say that they did it was because they
wanted his new bicycle. Brewer was
found by police in a pool nearby that
he jumped into to get rid of the fire.
Earlier this year, on Oct. 26,
2009, in Richmond, California, a 15
year old girl was beaten and raped
outside of her high school during
their homecoming dance. This attack
happened the victim had drunk a lot
of alcohol with the six teen suspects
that attacked her. The ages of the six
Have the atheists stolen christmas?
Paige Yurek
Reporter
T he Christian religion has been a
major part of Italian history, cul-
ture, and identity for hundreds of
years, so what would happen if the
cross was banned from being dis-
played in the public of Italy? This is
a debate stirring controversy in the
sacred country. As Paula Newton of
CNN reported, “According to judges
from a European panel, the Italian
government should consider taking
down the cross in some public spac-
es, in particular in schools...Saying
the cross violated the principle of
secular education in public school.”
Changing religious traditions, par-
ticularly Christianity, seems to be a
necessity these days, because others
feel that these traditions are wrong,
or politically incorrect.
Christians, however, are not
the only ones to suffer legal discrim-
ination. The banning of symbols of
faith comes in all types of culture
and religion. In 2004, France put a
ban on headscarves. According to
BBC news, it not only affected Mus-
lims who wear head scarves, but
“large Christian crosses and Jewish
skullcaps are also banned as almost
certainly are Sikh turbans.” This
can be considered an act of discrimi-
nation or it can be considered politi-
cally correct through another point
of view, but these battles take place
worldwide. In the US Constitution,
the First Amendment states, “Con-
WORLD news
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
suspects ranged from the ages from
16 to 19 years old.
Those are just some of the most
violent crimes committed by teens
this year. However, most of the ju-
veniles who commit crimes share a
lot of the same characteristics. Most
youths who act violent are usually
living with a dysfunctional family.
When teens grow up without a fam-
ily that spends a decent amount of
time with them, they feel like they
have been abandoned. When they
feel like they do not have family to
turn to, they turn to friends who are
in the same situation. This is also
when most youths in this type of a
situation join street gangs, as a sub-
stitute for a family.
However, there are some al-
ternatives to keep teens away from
crime. One way is to make sure that
youths have someone to talk to. Also
encourage them to do well in school
and perform positive activities.
Discipline is also important when
needed. Another way to keep youths
on the right path is to make sure
that there are after school programs
available to them. For example clubs
and sports are a good way to keep
The Last Supper by Leonardo Divinci depicting when Jesus dined with his
twelve apostles
gress shall make no law respecting
an establishment of religion, or pro-
hibiting the free exercise thereof; or
abridging the freedom of speech.”
although reasons given for banning
religious symbols are often because
people feel it is “politically incor-
rect.”
With the holiday season around
the corner, this debate only increas-
es. The most common question here
is whether or not it is politically
correct to say “Merry Christmas.”
Many people feel it is offensive to
say “Merry Christmas,” because
they do not celebrate, nor believe
in the holiday or beliefs. Others,
however, do not mind what holiday
greeting is spoken. It may be surpris-
Photo of a police car in Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
youths out of trouble.
Malden High School Athletic
Director, Dan Keefe says that he
believes that sports keep teens out
of trouble. He says that being on a
sports team keeps you occupied.
A lot of time is spent playing and
practicing, and by the time they are
let out, they have to do their home-
work. That keeps teens busy and
ing to find that it is not always those
who celebrate Christmas that do not
mind how they are greeted during
the winter Holidays. Ben Stein, fa-
mous actor, writer, comedian, and
political commentator once said,
“I am a Jew, and every single one
of my ancestors was Jewish. And it
does not bother me even a little bit
when people call those beautiful lit
up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees.
I don’t feel threatened. I don’t feel
discriminated against. That’s what
they are: Christmas trees. It doesn’t
bother me a bit when people say,
“Merry Christmas” to me. I don’t
think they are slighting me or get-
ting ready to put me in a ghetto. In
fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we
7
away from crime. Keefe also says
that being on a sports team teaches
how to act during certain situations
and discipline. Keefe also says that
joining a sports team teaches re-
spect. After asking Keefe if sports
are a good way to let out anger,
he replied by saying, “Without a
doubt. Competition is a great stress
reliever.”
are all brothers and sisters celebrat-
ing this happy time of year.”
Malden High School students
participated in a survey to find out
what they think of the situation.
With a total of 286 voters from
MHS, a surprising 200 of those vot-
ers, making almost 70 percent, agree
that “Merry Christmas” is their pre-
ferred holiday greeting; while 86 of
those voters, only making about 30
percent, believe “Happy Holidays”
is the appropriate salutation. Even
in a public school, when it comes to
a debate such as this, everyone has
their own opinion, and they must
decide based on what they believe.
Battles over religious and cul-
tural traditions have led to many
debates over many centuries, time
and time again. Common arguing
of whether or not it is appropriate
to display a religious symbol, say
“Under God” in the Pledge of Alle-
giance, pray in public, wear cultural
clothing or even speak of religion
and culture have all caused contro-
versy in many places of the world.
It is often hard to tell whether any of
these conflicts will ever be resolved,
because there will always be dis-
agreements. As long as there is a hu-
man population, there will always
be differences.
Layout by Lynn Tran
8 WORLD news The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

WORLD AIDS DAY

HIV/AIDS: A MONSTER THAT SEEMS TO BE AROUND FOREVER.
OTHER AIDS AWARENESS DAYS
Reginah Sanyu
Reporter FEB 7TH: NATIONAL BLACK HIV/AIDS AWARE-

T
NESS DAY
he world AIDS day is observed is easily transmitted through: anal,
MARCH 10TH: NATIONAL WOMEN AND
every year on December 1. The vaginal or oral sex, blood transfu-
GIRLS HIV/AIDS AWARENESS DAY
World Health Organization estab- sion, from infected mother to child
MARCH 20TH: NATIONAL NATIVE HIV/
lished this day in 1988 to provide at birth [there are safe ways to give
AIDS AWARENESS DAY
governments, national AIDS pro- birth without transmitting] or expo-
MAY 18TH: HIV VACCINE AWARENESS DAY
grams, faith and community orga- sure to any bodily fluids. AIDS can
MAY 19TH: NATIONAL ASIAN AND PACIFIC
nizations and individuals education be prevented by simply practicing
ISLANDER HIV/AIDS DAY
about HIV/AIDS. safer sex methods or even better, by
JUNE 8TH: CARRIBEAN AMERICAN HIV/AIDS
HIV is the virus that causes abstaining from sex, also by getting
DAY
AIDS; they are not the same things. tested daily because it is better to
JUNE 27TH: NATIONAL HIV TESTING DAY
AIDS is the sate of being infected know when it is not too late. Right
OCT 15TH: NATIONAL LATION AWARENESS
with HIV. Although HIV kills and now, it is really up to us the youth,
DAY.
has no cure, medicines the future of tomor-
are administered to row. AIDS can stop
LETS SUPPORT PEOPLE BOTH AFFECTED AND IN-
an infected person for torturing with only
FECTED BY HIV/AIDS JUST BY ORBSERVING THESE
them to live a longer this generation that it
DAYS.
life. Malden High has affected because
School health and well- all the youth need
ness teacher Arlene to do is get educated severe epidemics in Africa.
Ceppetelli agrees, that and help the broth- It has killed over two mil-
the medication helps ers and sisters who lion African adults and has
a person with HIV. "A have been victim- left over one million chil-
brother of a close friend ized by it. Ceppetelli dren under 18 years of age
was diagnosed with says, “Education is orphaned. There are safer
AIDS but lived a longer very important. It ways a mother could give
happy life because he will help you make birth without transmitting
was taking the medicine The Red Campaign which a good decision for it to the baby at birth. There
he was given.” The only donates profits to aids in your health and well- are children whose parents
catch with that medicine Africa ness.” died from AIDS but did not
is that it is too much and Over 33 million get the virus.
one has to take it every day of their people are HIV positive worldwide This day is advocated
entire life, but apart from that, you but the biggest parts of them are to educate people about
get to live a normal happy life. based in Africa. Apart from Af- HIV/AIDS and support
AIDS is not contagious; it is not rica being a third world continent, those who are either af-
like the flu that you can get it from: it has been hit by many epidemics: fected or infected by HIV/
kissing or even sharing a cup of cof- poverty, war to mention but a few, AIDS.
fee. Although it is not contagious, it however, HIV/AIDS is one of the Map of people affected with aids in Africa
by Camino Nuevo Radio Reasource

UN Climate Change Conference May Determine Fate of the World

Dan Holmqvist
Hope of Global Treaty lost
Copy Editor

S
from being published, and manipu- believes that “the country whose to suffer the consequences of global
hould over 200 countries decide
late scientific evidence over these e- emissions are going up dramati- climate change.” She also agrees
to cut carbon emissions and curb
mails, in an effort to make global cli- cally, really dramatically, is China that more money should be given to
the effects of global climate change?
mate change appear stronger than it and that’s the reason that we can’t developing countries to start their
Or should these countries save the
actually is. Some, like Saudi Arabia’s have an agreement that doesn’t have own climate programs because “[in-
capital that would be required to
climate negotiator, Mohammad Al- a real commitment by China.” But dustrialized nations] are the ones
take action? These and many other
Sabban, have cited what has become the United States, so far, has not causing most of the problems and
questions are trying to be answered
known as “Climategate,” hoping promised any kind of monetary developing countries barely have
by hundreds of world negotiators
that the incident will have an effect compensation to Chinese, and with- enough money to support them-
at the UN Climate Change Confer-
on the Copenhagen conference. But out this money, China is refusing to selves.” Junior Anthony Nguyen,
ence in Copenhagen, Denmark. The
thus far, this has not been the case. strike any agreement. secretary of the MHS Environmen-
Conference, which runs between
Instead, the main conflict at Heading into the final week of tal Club, agrees with Liao, but also
Dec. 6 and 18, hopes to achieve its
the conference has been what to do negotiations, many conference orga- thinks that developing nations still
primary goal of negotiating a deal
about carbon emissions and how to nizers have given up hope of sign- need to be more “progressive in
between nations that would replace
achieve it, rather than about the ex- ing a global treaty. Amid unwaver- their own countries,” if they really
the Kyoto Protocol and cut carbon
istence of man-made global climate ing political stances, violent street intend to stop emissions.
emissions, but several different ob-
change. The problem has been that protests, and contradicting scientific At MHS, the Environmental
stacles are standing in the way.
poorer, undeveloped nations, lead evidence, many have reluctantly Club, despite seeing a drop in its
Even before the conference
by China and India, have asked for called for a treaty to be signed 6-10 number of members, has been try-
began, many nations began to ques-
aid from richer, industrial countries months from now, despite the fact ing to increase student awareness of
tion the legitimacy of man-made
like the United States and members that many prominent world leaders, climate-related issues by recycling
global climate change after a hack-
of the European Union. They argue including President Barack Obama, bottles, cans, and glass in addition
ing incident at the University of East
that they need capital in order to will be flying to Copenhagen at the to paper and by holding a “shoe
Anglia in Norwich, United King-
establish the programs that are nec- end of this week. drive” in January. And even if the
dom. A group of individuals report-
essary to keep carbon emissions low Junior Mandy Liao, who is brightest world leaders are having a
edly stole thousands of e-mails that
and recoup the losses reforms will vice-president of Malden High hard time enacting change, the Club
were sent over the course of thirteen
have on their economies. School’s Environmental Club, be- still encourages individual students
years; controversy arose, however,
President Barack Obama’s chief lieves that the United States needs to make a difference by doing the
when allegations were made that
negotiator, Todd Stern, has been try- to invest time and money into cut- three Rs - recycling, reducing, and
some university scientists tried to
ing to encourage China to cut down ting carbon emissions because “the reusing.
delete scientific data, stop other data
on emissions in Copenhagen. He entire world will eventually have
Layout by Lynn Tran
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
Local news 9
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

No Surprises for Class of 2013 Elections

U.S. Senate Primary president Lisa
in Massachusetts Delacy

Vice
President
Vladimir
Winners of last week’s primary election: former Attorney General Martha
Coakley (left) and Representative Scott Brown (right). Savlidis
Photo by Wikimedia Commons and www.scottbrown.com
Chris Brown Malden High School history
Reporter teacher, Ben Max believes that Brown
is definitely the best candidate to rep-
O n Dec. 8, 2009, it was announced
that Massachusetts Attorney Gen-
eral, Martha Coakley won the Demo-
resent the Republicans. However, he is
unsure that Coakley is the best choice Secretary
for the Democrats, even though he vot-
cratic nomination for the late Senator
ed for her. “I don’t know if she [Coak- Sharon Lee
Edward M. Kennedy’s seat. Massachu-
ley] is the best, she’s good, but it’s re-
setts State Senator Scott Brown won
ally up for the everyone to decide. I am
the Republican nomination for the
glad to possibly have another woman
seat. Coakley won with 47 percent of
in Congress though,” Max stated. Max
the vote, followed by U.S Representa-
also believes turnout was particularly
tive Michael Capuano with 28 percent,
low because people aren’t used to a
City Year co-founder Alan Khazei with
having an election in December and
13 percent and businessman and Celt-
people may be focused on the holidays
ics co-owner Steve Pagliuca with 12
percent. Brown overwhelmingly de-
right now. He wasn’t surprised by the Treasurer
turnout or the results and was disap-
feated businessman Jack E. Robinson
pointed by the turnout either. “I don’t
Caitlin Cala
III with 89 to 11 percent. Every pre-
think it is dishonoring Ted Kennedy by
primary poll conducted indicated that
not voting and I believe there will be
Coakley and Brown would win their
a fair turnout in January for the gen-
party’s nomination and these samples
eral election because there is more at
proved to be correct. Polls also suggest
stake,” Max explained.
that Coakley will easily defeat Brown
Fellow MHS history teacher, Rick
in the special election coming on Janu-
Tivnan agreed with Max about the
ary 19, 2010.
turnout, the reasons why it was so low
Coakley had received key en-
dorsements over the course of the cam-
and that the results were no surprise. Historian
“Brown’s win was definitely not sur-
paign so far including former President
Bill Clinton, who had recorded phone
prising because his Robinson has run William
for high offices before and lost, he ba-
calls encouraging the citizens of Mas-
sically had no chance,” Tivnan stated.
lombard
sachusetts to vote for Coakley. Mean-
“Coakley definitely had the name rec-
while, her closest opponent in the polls,
ognition, so her win wasn’t a surprise
Capuano, won endorsements from U.S
either,” he added.
Speaker of House Nancy Pelosi, and
Coakley and Brown will have
former Massachusetts Governor and
about a month to campaign until the
First Lady of the Commonwealth Mike
January 19th election. The special elec-
and Kitty Dukakis. Voter turnout was
tion is to fill the seat vacated by Senator
expected to be low and many Massa-
Ted Kennedy who died of brain cancer
chusetts citizens did in fact, stay home
last August at the age of 77.
rather than vote. Publicist
HOW MHS STUDENTS VOTED IN THE PRIMARY ELECTIONS Daniel Vo

Captain of Homeroom
All photos by
Sharon Lee
Reps Jacqueline Galvez

Chart created by
Kayla Bramante and
Natalie Fallano.
Surveyed Mr. Max’s
and Ms. Mastromau-
ro’s classes.

Layout by AN HOLMQVIST
10 LOCAL news The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

S I
P I
R T
Nidale Zouhir Brittany Foley
Head of Local News Head of Entertainment/Opinion

K icked off on a cloudy Monday morning that seemed well-suited to Malden High
School’s traditional pajama day garb, 2009’s Spirit Week was pumped full of pep rally
upsets and wacky tacky clothing. The school-wide competition led to the usual senior
class victory, with sophomore class coming in second, the junior class coming in third, and
the freshman class trailing into fourth place.
Although it is designed to encourage MHS unity, Spirit Week , as usual, served to
increase class rivalry; at the same time, however, junior Jenna Delaney felt that an MHS
camaraderie was evident, stating, “Even if you don’t know everyone in the school, you
still feel like you’re bonding.” The rivalry came to a climax on Blue and Gold Day, when
seniors narrowly beat out the sophomores for first place after a riveting day of activities
including tug-of-war, basketball free throws, and human pyramids.
Perhaps one of the most jaw-dropping of the events was the freshmen’s shocking vic-
tory over the seniors at tug-of-war; immediately after his team’s loss, senior front-tugger
Ariel Hurts gasped, “That was not supposed to happen! I’m speechless!” Afterwards, the
juniors were defeated by the sophomores. In an epic show-down of rope-tugging abilities,
the seniors won over the juniors, while the sophomores defeated the freshmen, thus earn-
ing themselves first place at the event. Another of the more notable events was the human
pyramid, which the junior class completed in five seconds, scoring first place, with the
seniors coming in second.
The days preceding the pep rally were likewise pleasantly hectic; Wacky Tacky Day
was vastly enjoyed by MHS students, with junior Jeffrey Chabre liking “the fun of dress-
ing up without the criticism.” Junior Daniel Amerena agreed, stating that it was “cool to
be applauded for dressing in a way that [people] normally can’t.” Similarly, senior Diana
Gonzalez enjoyed “seeing everyone dressed up for Wacky Tacky Day.”
Even some of MHS’ teachers participated in the absurdity. Spanish teacher Diane
Wade wore a floor length nightgown on Pajama Day. Others, however, were less spirited,
history teacher Rebecca Johnson rhetorically asked”You think teenagers would take me
seriously wearing pajamas?” She refuted this statement the next day, however, dressed in
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009 LOCAL news 11
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

Students showing their spirit on

Pajama Day, Wacky Tacky Day,
Blue and Gold Day, and Spirt Day
Photos by Lynn Tran, Catherine
Poirier, Sharon Lee, and Lauren

W
Benoit

K Layout by Lynn Tran

E E
MHS’s typical wacky-tacky uniform. However, school spirit avenged over naysayers on
Wacky Tacky Day, when all of the teachers in the D-House fourth floor hallway dressed
up as English teacher David Londino, who refused to show any school spirit.
Junior Kyra Savlidis was overjoyed at “winning the hallway decorating contest and
having [the juniors’] hard work pay off,” with the class of 2011 winning the hallway
competition. The hallways, always a Spirit Week favorite, did not disappoint this year.
Although the juniors’ Mario-Brothers-themed hallway took first place, all four parts of
MHS that were transformed awed students and faculty alike. The sophomores’ X-Men-
themed hallway and the seniors’ Sesame-Street-themed hallway tied for second, and
the freshmen Las-Vegas-themed hallway came in last, but the large group of students
that worked into the evening hallway-decorating for their classes were just as proud of
their products as the juniors. On the final day of spirit week, everyone enjoyed exploring
competing classes’ creations. Junior Christine Doan had a relative view of the week,
expressing that “sharing the spirit together regardless of the wins and losses” was a
definite highlight.
Meanwhile, Junior Andrew Terenzi “liked that [students] got nothing done in class.”
Junior Samantha Saggese, however, simply called the entire week “awesome.” It was a
sentiment shared by many, and the school-wide affinity was perhaps best expressed by
the seniors, such as former Blue and Gold staff member Ashley Ngo: “Spirit Week is one
of the few weeks that are worth the year-wide stress...It’s a wonderful way of getting a
chance to celebrate how far you have gotten through high school with people you have
basically grown up with. For freshmen, it’s a nice way to bond with the people they will
be spending the next four years with...Once you’re a senior, it’s just so exhilarating and
nostalgic, knowing that this is your last pep rally, your last pajama day, and all that.
That’s probably why seniors always win.”
Of course, many believe that there is a more sinister reason as to why the seniors
always win - but that is another story altogether.

slideshows can be found on the online Newspaper:

http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
12
Marching Into the Holiday Season
Kayla Bramante
Reporter
D espite the stormy weather and
difficulty in raising funds as
compared to years past, the 2009
Parade of Holiday Tradtitions was
a sucess,” stated Ward One City
Councillor Gary Christenson. It
marched all the way from the Sa-
lemwood School on Salem Street
down to the end of Malden High
School where it was greeted by a
stage of people giving speeches and
telling the audience about the par-
ticipants of the parade.
There were thoughts of not
having a parade this year because
of the economic issues that Malden
faces. But the city felt the parade
was a must to “raise the pride and
spirit in our community,” according
to Christenson. This years parade
may have been smaller than in pre-
vious years but the spirit that it took
to make it happen, was greater than
usual.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Kelley
have dedicated loads of time by
helping the Malden community.
They have served on various clubs
and committees such as the Rotary
and Zonta Clubs, and this year they
were pleased to have the Grand
Massachusetts’ Own Polar Express
Decorations inside of the Polar Express ride.
Photo by Lynn Tran
LOCAL news
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
More photos of the Holiday Parade can be found on
the online newspaper
Marshals title in the 2009 Holiday
Parade.
The annual holiday parade
started off with Malden Police Com-
missioner Craig Spadafora and
continued on to the Malden High
School Band. Senior Keith Newman
stated that the Holiday Parade was
“was only a couple of weeks after
the Veterans Day Parade, but it defi-
nitely had a much livelier crowd”.
He also says that “A big part of that
experience is the familiar Christmas
tunes that the band plays, so I think
the three bands are a big contrib-
uting factor to the parade. In our
culture, these Christmas songs have
become less and less about religion
and more just a celebration of happy
times.” Senior Keith Newman seems
to be very pleased with the band so
far this year. Sophmore Dylan Sad-
owski stated, “The parade was fun
and hanging out with the kids in
band was the best part.” As you can
tell the band members put on a great
show that the people of Malden
seem to love by the cheering they
get when they play some of their
songs at the Holiday Parade.
Coming along after the band
were the Aleppo Shriners Clowns,
the FOOGI fortress and the Malden
The Malden High School Band marching down Salem Street.
Photo by Sharon Lee
YMCA, which is also celebrating its
125th year in business. Other par-
ticipants also included dance classes
and the Ferryway Corvettes, where
sixth grade teacher,Tim Rufo, was
spotted driving a 1991 Corvette and
assistant principal, Michael Chi-
ampa, was driving a 1972; both cars
belong to Chiampa.
MHS freshmen band member
Joel Stevenson
Reporter
O n Nov. 28, 2009, the Visiting
Nurse Association of Boston
with the help of students from
Malden, Melrose, and Reading, was
able to pull off another year of the
Holiday Express Train Ride. This is
the sixteenth year the Visiting Nurse
Association has pulled off such an
event as this. Over 2,000 children as
well as their parents would take a
“magical” journey to the North Pole.
As the families boarded the
train and it took off, teams of stu-
dents of about 2-3 would go to each
car to decorate, to add the required
Christmas spirit. As some of the stu-
dents got into costumes, to entertain
the kids, English teacher Nierika
Nims stated “The kids went crazy
when they saw the characters, but
I would have to say Elmo was their
favorite.” As the train progressed,
members of the Literary Society
read The Polar Express to the chil-
dren and walked up and down the
aisles to show the pictures. On the
way back, gift bags, milk and cook-
ies were distributed out to the kids.
The whole day was a huge success
for MHS and the Visiting Nurse As-
sociation on another year of helping
to spread the Christmas spirit. As
Nims recapped the whole event as
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
Elyse Valente said, “Every year the
parade gets colder and colder.”
Despite the cold weather, she still
seems to show her school spirit and
have fun in the parade for her fifth
year in it.
Wrapping up the 2009 Parade
of Holiday Traditions was Mr. and
Mrs. Claus on a horse-drawn sleigh
getting ready for Christmas.
a “success, the students were amaz-
ing, everybody had a good time,
and they are all excited to do it again
next year.”
This event was mainly com-
posed of Literary Society members,
including anyone else that wanted
to get involved. President of the Lit-
erary Society Jackie Tynes stated, “It
was good, [but it was a] little differ-
ent from last year.” Advisors of the
Literary Society, Nims and Yahaira
Marquez, were happy to see their
students getting involved. The MHS
Literary Society is like no ordinary
English class, and it is the second
oldest literary society in the country,
and The Oracle is the oldest literary
magazine published by High School
Students. In Literary Society, they
discuss books and written pieces, but
the atmosphere is what makes this
club unique. There is no pressure to
say the right thing or answer in the
right way. It is all about discussing
writing in a relaxed manor. There is
no pressure to answer any questions
right, or say anything any certain
way. The advisors are looking for-
ward to another great year, and are
proud to be part of the second oldest
literary society in the country. The
two advisors are planning on going
up and beyond. At the time, the club
is working on having an open mic
night. Only time will tell how far
this club will go.
Layout by Lauren Benoit
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
LOCAL news 13
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

Crafts Fair Shows Holiday Spirit

Amanda Adams
Reporter

O n Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009, Malden High School held a crafts fair in cafeteria A and
B. Both cafeterias were packed selling and purchasing holiday items. Students had
definitely played their parts in this event by helping set-up, sell the products, and clean up.
The crafts fair was a family event and an opportunity to do start Holiday shopping. Cute
accessories, Holiday Décor and raffle tickets were amongst the things that were sold. The
Crafts Fair was extremely filled with people, so it definitely was a successful way to raise
money. Everyone had enjoyed themselves in this bright and pleasant environment. Harris
Zhao, a sophomore who had participated in this event, stated, “There was a lot going on,
a lot of clubs had very fantastic stuff and seeing so many parents and families come in to
see what our school has to present was really exciting.” Nina Ho, the sophomore class
president, had affirmed, “It was great, very successful. It brought a lot of people together
in the community.” Juan Watson, a sophomore who had also volunteered asserted, “It
was a fun event. I love helping out at it. Everyone gets to hang around and have fun while
helping their class or club. I can’t wait until next year so I can help at the Crafts Fair again.”
Henry Jovel, a volunteer from the Latino club appeared to have the same opinion as
Nina. He stated, “I think it really brought the community together.” Heba Khurram the top: Malik Blue as Santa Clause; Stephanie Apollon,
secretary of the Fine Arts Club and also a volunteer declared, “The crafts fair went well for Kellie Leonce, and Sarah Caesar as elves; Marthikula
the Fine Arts Club, we raised a decent amount of money and it was fun. The Fine Arts Club Konomi as Mrs. Claus
worked together as a club and created scarves and a quilt to raise money. And, all the clubs
were grouped together and we all had a good time. We also learned a lot about each other’s
club and our goals.” The MHS clubs worked to make this event happen. The crafts fair was
MHS’s way of raising money to support clubs, classes, and to welcome the merriment of
the holiday season.

A display at the crafts fair

Seniors Cristina Valente and Elaine Tam volunteer for

the class of 2010 table
MHS senior Jamie Lam and the Winner of the Interact
Club Gift Basket

LOCAL NEWS BRIEFS

City Council Update Bake Sales Banned
Omar Khoshafa Catherine Poirier
Reporter Reporter

• On Tuesday, November 24, the Malden City Council met to

discuss a possible curfew for minors 17 years and under.
• The proposed curfew had several purposes:
1. Protect children from criminals.
2. Help parents control their children.
3. Help keep students in school.
4. Help ensure children obtain enough sleep to perform well
in school.
5. Stop the potential dangers of minors who are out late at
night or early in the morning.
• Basically, no minors are allowed to be on the streets between
the hours of 11:00 P.M. and 6:00 A.M. on weekdays and between
midnight and 6:00 A.M. on weekends.
• Each offense to this law will result in a $50.00 fine.
• After one year of enacting this law, the city council will meet
again to compare the results.
D uring the past few years, bake sales have been a frequent
occurrence at lunches in Malden High School. Recently,
the cafeteria staff has been enforcing laws that prevent student
organizations from hosting these bake sales.
According to the Malden Public Schools Wellness Policies,
“There will be no fundraiser sales a half hour before school and
a half hour after children are dismissed.” This city ordinance is
supposed to keep the students in Malden healthy and safe, but
their proposal affects several clubs’ finances.
Bake sales were a main source of many club’s funding at
MHS, and now some clubs are thinking of new ways to create
a profit. The Key Club and the Breast Cancer Awareness Club
(BCAC) teamed up to discuss new ideas. They came up with
the Karaoke/Guitar Hero Night on Dec. 11, 2009. The clubs are
also having a bake sale during the event; since it is hosted after
school, the fundraiser will be allowed.

Layout by Megan Kelly

14 LOCAL news The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

6 hours + 57 donors + 65 pints = 195 lives saved

continued from page 1

regarding your gender,

age, and height. If you are
eligible to donate blood,
you then can choose
whether you want to be
a double red-cell donor
or a whole blood donor.
To be a double red cell
donor you must have a
blood type of O-positive,
O-negative, A-positive,
or B-negative. Otherwise
you are a good candidate
for whole blood dona- Volunteers for the MHS blood drive: Nicolette
tions. Tallent-Maldonado and Megan Young.
Jake Pellegrini, a double red cell donor, donated 2 pints of
Blood is drawn blood only to get back 1 pint of plasma and platelets
from the same station
but your blood may be
drawn differently depending on
what type of donor you are. If you resident by the name of Marie Mala-
are a whole blood donor, then your chowski who has actually donated
blood will be drawn quicker and blood in the past but this would
only one pint of blood is drawn. If be her first time at Malden High.
you are a double red cell donor like Malachowski says “the procedure is
Luke Nguyen, a senior at Malden very smooth and it feels good giving
High School, then the needle is blood. I plan to continue every three
smaller, the process may take up to months.” On the 10th of December
thirty minutes longer, and 2 pints of as many as 57 donors were generous
blood are drawn but all platelets and enough to give life which brought a
plasma along with some additional total of 65 pints of blood by the end
saline will be returned to maintain of the day. This remarkable, six-hour
hydration. “All I know is that even life saving event could save up to
though I push so hard every single 195 people. Now that’s a lot of lives! Jillian Dervishian, a whole blood donor, laying on
day, trying to make it to the top. [To- the table ready to donate her blood to the MHS
day], sitting on that seat made me blood drive
feel really great about myself that i
could do something to give back to
this world,” says Nguyen after mak-
ing his very thoughtful donation. slideshows can be found on the online Newspaper:
The very first pint of blood http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
was donated by a local Malden

The School Renovations

Paige Yurek Amanda Adams
Reporter Reporter

continued from page 1

The class officers of 2010, 2011, and 2012 had a chance to

Mr. Brown Speaking at the Podium with the 2010, 2011, 2012, class
Officers to his right
meet Cahill and Craven and take an exclusive tour of some of the
sections of Malden High School, which are currently being reno-
vated. The renovations will be completed in 2012, but sections of
Jenkins House are expected to be finished after February vacation.
The Auditorium is being designed to resemble the 1930’s version
of the MHS auditorium, with a 2009 twist. With one thousand
seats and a new handicap-friendly feature, the auditorium is ex-
pected to be both beautiful and convenient. The auditorium has
been an important symbol of MHS since its beginnings in 1857.

The Treasurer and the Senior class officers: Samuel Warton,

Elaine Tam, Jimmy Vo, Stephanie Apollon, and David Riemer Layout by Lynn Tran
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009 local news 15
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

AntigonE Steals the Show

continued from page 1
year’s fall production and the 15 new members in PlayPro,
senior Keith Newman stated, “It was a very different experi-
ence, mostly because the show itself is kind of fractured. At the
beginning of the production process, it felt really separated.
Principal [actors] worked on their stuff, and chorus worked on
theirs. We had a lot of people who had never been on stage
before, and the stage itself had no wings or curtain. It took
some getting used to, but usually everyone comes together like
a family for our spring production.”
Sophomore Mary Stathos, a new member of the PlayPro
class, stated that the year so far has been an enjoyable one.
However, like everyone else, she had the jitters the night of the
premier; “On Friday I was more nervous, but on Saturday it was
better because I knew what to expect.”
Not only were countless hours put into rehearsing the lines
and blocking (positioning of actors) of the show, but costume and
set design were also arduous tasks, especially for senior Thanh
Nguyen. Nguyen made the dresses for Jenna Delaney (who
played Antigone) and herself from scratch, a trade that was com-
pletely new to her; “I never learned how to make dresses, I just learned
how to use a sewing machine in middle school and followed directions
on making the dresses.” Nguyen spent eight hours on her own dress
and an estimated two days on Delaney’s dress.
The set of the play was limited, comprising only of a few chairs,
a table, a lamp, three large canvas paintings, and other miscellaneous
items brought in by cast members during the play. The canvases were
made with a special theme in mind, that being the animation style of
graffiti artist Shepard Fairey, who is regarded as one of today’s best
known and most influential street artists. Some of his more notable
works include the Barack Obama “HOPE” poster and his “OBEY” insig-
nia. Nguyen drew the 5x13 canvases herself, which took about five days
in class, then others joined in and finished painting them. The set served
as an extremely versatile component of the play; every scene used the
few items available in various manners and kept the audience
unaware that the set was basically the same for the duration of
the entire play.
Once the night of the show did come around, the PlayPro
class did not disappoint. The play was divided into two acts,
each ending on perfectly placed pauses that kept the audience’s
attention until the very end. The play did a phenomenal job of
capturing the essence of each character as well as throwing a
little comic relief into the mix with some select characters. The
internally troubled Creon is portrayed brilliantly by senior Sam-
uel Warton, particularly during his quarrelsome scenes with the
young and rebellious Antigone.
Although the play consisted of numerous tense moments,
Newman, as well as several other guards provided some flashes
of humor with their distinct personalities. In between scenes,
the chorus performed vignettes to introduce the next scene or
to further explain previous events that had occurred on stage.
These proved to be very helpful, as it further developed the au-
dience’s understanding of why each character was behaving as
they were.
The play was received in stupendous fashion by the audi-
ences on both nights and the PlayPro class is now beginning
their preparation for its next production, Romeo and Juliet. Ac-
cording to Warton, “This production is go-
ing to have a special twist.” If the
recent school plays are any indica-
tion of what is yet to come from the
PlayPro class, everyone is surely in
for a good show.

From the top to Bottom:

Jenna Delaney as Antigone backed

by the chorus, featuring 1940s in-
spired costumes.

Jenna Delaney and Samuel Warton

as Creon in an intense moment.

Samuel Warton backed up by the

chorus.

The cast with background props

inspired by Shepard Fairey.

Photos by Joao Nascimento

Layout by Joao Nascimento
16 Entertainment The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

Lady GaGa Puts On a “Monster” of a Show

Joao Nascimento
Copy Editor

C ongratulations to you if you managed to pass by the summer of 09

without “Poker Face” stuck in your head. The smash single that
topped the charts all over the world consecrated Lady GaGa as one of
the most promising artists in the music business, and also one of the most
profitable.
The Fame, GaGa’s blockbuster album, has sold over four million cop-
ies worldwide. When its fourth single, “Paparazzi,” climbed the charts,
GaGa became the first artist in history to notch four No. 1 singles from a
debut album in the Pop Songs chart.
To support her massively successful debut album, GaGa was set
to embark on a tour alongside rapper Kanye West. At least, that
was the plan until the MTV Video Music Awards, where West
had the audacity to interrupt Taylor Swift during her acceptance
speech for “Best Female Video of the Year.” Consequence? West
was dropped from GaGa’s tour, causing its unforeseen cancellation.
Two weeks after the infamous “Beyoncé had one of the best vid-
eos of all time!” line was uttered by West on MTV, GaGa announced
that she would headline the “Monster Ball Tour,” a 38 concert tour that
would kick off four days after the release of The Fame Monster, GaGa’s
reissue of her debut album that also includes eight killer new tracks, one
of them being GaGa’s most recent chart topper, “Bad Romance.”
It came as a huge shock when the Wang Theater was named as the
venue that would host the now most anticipated tour in the world. Al-
though GaGa scheduled performances for Dec. 1 and 2 in Boston, fans
had the sudden realization that two dates in a theater that has the
capacity to sit only around 3,600 spectators would not suffice. The
high demand for the tickets and their predicted scarcity rocketed
the prices up to $365.
Proving to be a very loyal fan base, GaGa followers crashed
the Citi Center website the day tickets went on sale. Tickets sold
out quickly: the fans that did not make through the grueling
ticket buying process would either have to succumb to inflated
prices at second hand ticketing retailers or take their chances
outside of the Wang Theater, hoping someone would be able
to sell them an extra ticket moments before the show began.
When I stepped inside the Wang that cold Wednesday
night, I instantly understood why GaGa had decided to play
in a theater instead of the TD Banknorth Garden, the venue
of choice for artists of her caliber. The Wang, which opened
in 1925 and since has been hosting ballet recitals, operas, and
Broadway shows created an immediate contrast with GaGa’s fu-
turistic electro-pop and provided an intimate setting for her fans:
at least they would be able to see her, which is not a guarantee at
large stadium concerts.
The main lobby (aside from the architectural gorgeousness and over-
sized chandeliers) looked pretty much like any other pre-concert room
in the world: barricades of security guards, stands selling overpriced
memorabilia, and photographers. The only definitive distinction between
the GaGa pre-show scene and any other shows’ is how fully committed
her fans are to the concert experience. It’s not because hundreds of them
lined up to pay $40 for a poorly manufactured cotton shirt or $15 for a tin Lady GaGa amazed audiences the Wang Theater on Dec. 2. Intricate produc-
necklace, but because hundreds of them dressed up as Lady GaGa. I wish
I could say that they went for a “dress plus crazy wig” ensemble, similar tion mixed with performance art catapulted her performance to a new level.
to MHS Principal Dana Brown’s during Spirit Week, but no: they spent Photo found on lady-gaga.net
hours in front of the mirror trying to perfectly recreate GaGa’s trademark
thunderbolt under their right eye and spent good money on outstanding and her singing ability epitomized in an unrecognizable piano version
replicas of GaGa’s eye-catching ornamental costumes. of “Poker Face” and an elongated version of “Speechless.” She dared to
The opening acts of the evening, Semi Precious Weapons and Kid change arrangements for her songs, and while they did not sound exactly
Cudi played short but enjoyable sets, but their performances were not like the album’s versions, they offered an equally brilliant musical experi-
good enough to distract the audience from GaGa’s now unfashionable ence. The night came to an end with GaGa positioned inside a metal ball
one hour delay. For commuters like me, being stranded in Boston on a singing “Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)” and to overwhelming ovation,
school night was becoming a reality much too quickly. “Bad Romance.” When GaGa left stage for good, the sweat on our clothes
And then the lights dimmed. The Lady herself appeared behind a was testament to the concert’s effectiveness: no one could stop dancing to
green laser video screen sporting a silver leotard, singing her new track her songs. The optical extravaganza, aside from enhancing the concert ex-
“Dance in the Dark” while dancers in white skintight jumpsuits moved perience, will surely generate a whole new era of artistic and technological
freakishly around her. As fog consumed the front of the stage, GaGa performances.
apologized for her delay and announced that her manager had just in- It is hard to believe that two years ago in her pre-Fame days Lady
formed her that The Fame had garnered five Grammy nominations. And GaGa only sang at underground New York City clubs. Although the GaGa
just like that, the prospect of missing a train did not sound so bad. phenomenon took the world by storm, she is still heavily criticized, often
After a quick intermission supported by upbeat dance music and a labeled as another manufactured pop star. Matthew Tavares, the Malden
video of the singer vomiting a blue substance, “Just Dance” began with High School band teacher, begs to differ. Under his direction, the MHS band
GaGa standing on top of a large transparent box placed center stage. In played “Bad Romance” and “Paparazzi” during the Spirit Week pep rally
the middle of the song, GaGa is transported inside the box with her danc- and received an overwhelming positive response. As students sang along
ers, and then exits to show off her new costume covered with blinking to the melodies, Tavares was surprised that “people picked up on it so fast.”
lights. Lady GaGa’s artistic merit relies on the fact that the singer writes and
The three large screens positioned strategically on both sides and composes her own music. Showing great diversity from song to song, the
center of the stage were the source of the color explosion that invaded the singer takes pride in this quality that sets her apart from other pop stars. A
auditorium. Sometimes sporting random colorful patterns, the screens firm believer that GaGa “is a bigger musician than people give her credit
also showed thematic videos that matched perfectly with a song being for,” Tavares explains that “[GaGa] uses chord progressions that are musi-
performed. During “Monster,” a close-up video of a raven was displayed, cally significant” and “writes in keys that are very unusual.” The subtle
and GaGa performed the song dressed up in a costume inspired by the musical complexity and GaGa’s current iconic status blend to make a per-
bird. During elaborate costume changes, the screens would show clips of fect choice for the band. Senior drum major Keith Newman admits that “it’s
GaGa dancing or posing (or vomiting or getting slapped), but the most always fun playing something you recognize and there’s also a sense of ac-
graphic and memorable clip was the one showing GaGa getting a heart complishment when creating something more traditional out of something
tattooed on her shoulder. contemporary.”
“Paparazzi” was GaGa’s most theatrical moment onstage. Sporting If it is for her outrageous outfits or candid interviews, Lady GaGa
Rapunzel-length hair braids, GaGa slowly crossed the stage with her remains in the spotlight. After the show in Boston, she proved that she is
back up dancers carrying her hair. Towards the end of the song, other much more than the image she created for herself. Musically and theatri-
back up dancers invaded the stage holding oversized scissors that were cally gorgeous, GaGa’s concert is proof of why The Washington Post pro-
used to cut her hair. claimed her “the future of pop.” As her songs continue to climb the charts,
Throughout her performance, GaGa proved why she is singled out we remain at the mercy of this singer whose music and charms we have no
from other pop stars of the decade. Her vocals were consistently strong, means to resist.
Layout by Joao Nascimento
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
Queen of
Talk-Shows
Calling it
Quits in
2011
Reginah Sanyu
Reporter
N ot very many people in the en-
tertainment industry have had
the impact on the American public,
or the rest of the worldd as Oprah
Gail Winfrey has. Although Winfrey
did not have the easiest childhood,
that did not stop her from doing
what she wanted to do: help people.
Since the first show aired in 1985,
Winfrey has talked about anything
that one might ever imagine. She
has interviewed almost everybody
in Hollywood and has touched
many peoples’ hearts. Nobody can
do what Winfrey did. Many call
her a hero for giving to those who
are unfortunate, building schools in
Africa, listening to, relating to and
even crying over the problems of
others. The woman has a beautiful
heart and she truly deserves a Noble
Prize.
Winfrey is leaving the show at
a point when her universe of fans is
asking for more. However, she has
given viewers time to adjust to the
fact that there will be no more of
The Oprah Winfrey Show, waiting
to cancel until the fall of 2011 [as
if the world ending in 2012 is not
enough].
During the 25 years that the
show has been airing, Winfrey has
dedicated most of her shows to
teach her audience about wellness
and health and how to live a better
positive life.
Winfrey’s departure might not
be noticed by her viewers since she
will be replacing the existing Dis-
covery Health Channel with a chan-
nel of her own simply known as the
Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN)
which will be airing shows helping
people live better lives and showcas-
ing people in real-life situations. The
shows featured are not going to be
just more reality shows, though.
It would surprise few if over
the next couple of years, Winfrey
became involved in politics and so-
cial determination.
With her own magazine called
O and other projects that she is
working on,Winfrey just gets better
and better as time goes by, but one
thing for sure is that Winfrey will
not be retiring any time soon.
Entertainment
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
Vampires, Warewolves, and Taylor Lautner’s Six Pack
Haley DeFilippis
Head of Business
T he adaptation of the second
book in the Twilight Saga by
Stephanie Meyer, New Moon, has
exceeded expectations that were
based off of the first installment of
the saga, Twilight.
While New Moon is the least
liked book in the saga due to Ed-
ward Cullen’s (Robert Pattinson)
departure, fans still raved about the
adaptation on screen.
The beginning of New Moon
starts with Bella Swan (Kristen
Stewart), Edward’s lover, quoting
Shakespeare during a nightmare
that leaves her confused. She awoke
to her 18th birthday, an even bigger
nightmare in her opinion, because
it officially made her a year older
than her undead boyfriend Edward,
frozen in a flawless state at 17 years
old since 1918.
Bella and Edward swoon over
each other up until Bella’s birth-
day party held by Edward’s ener-
getic and lively sister Alice (Ashley
Greene), takes place. Bella, being the
ultimate magnet for danger, gives
herself a paper cut. Less than three
drops of blood ooze out from her cut
before Jasper (Jackson Rathbone),
Edward’s brother and Alice’s love,
loses control over his “vegetarian”
vampire diet and pounces towards
Bella.
The danger of Edward’s world
Family Fued Fuels Conflict
Nidale Zouhir
Head of Local News
R
eleased only three days after
President Barack Obama deliv-
ered a speech outlining the United
States’ future in Afghanistan, Broth-
ers details the effects of a soldier’s
deployment, both on himself and
on his family, managing to express
the difficulty of war without directly
preaching pacifism to its audience.
Despite beginning almost
playfully with respectable, clean-cut
marine Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire)
and his convicted armed robber
brother, Tommy Cahill (Jake Gyllen-
haal), Brothers quickly transforms
into the dramatic and compelling
story of Sam Cahill’s disappearance
and torture at the hands of the Tal-
iban in Afghanistan as well as his
brother’s slow redemption with and
eventual attraction to Sam’s wife,
Grace (Natalie Portman); Sam’s
return brings his new, traumatized
persona into his family, throwing it
off-kilter as he hides the details of
his torture from both his family and
his fellow marines, bringing the film
to a disturbingly intense climax.
Based off a Danish film called
Brødre, Brothers is very character
driven, yet its plot remains power-
ful, managing to simultaneously
portray the heroism of the Armed
Forces and the harrowing effects
of war. Its anti-war undertones are
and lifestyle lead him to break up
with Bella. She immediately falls
into a deep depression from No-
vember to January.
Although Edward promises
fragile Bella, “This is the last time
you’ll ever see me,” Bella learns that
she can see visions of him whenever
she gets her adrenaline pumping
while doing something dangerous.
Bella also learns how quickly
Jacob (Taylor Lautner), her Quileute
friend, suddenly begins to grow and
build muscle. Bella and Jacob form
a bond and become extremely close.
Jacob, however, feels strong, admi-
rable emotions towards Bella which
she does not feel in return.
Through confusing and mis-
leading events, it is discovered that
Jacob can turn into an exceptionally
large werewolf with his fierce pack
at a moment’s notice. Their one and
only prey is vampires, whom they
kill in order to keep humans safe.
Bella, who desired to see and
feel the presence of Edward once
again, decided to dive off a cliff in La
Push. Edward’s mind-reading sister
Alice watches Bella and is forced to
conclude that Bella has committed
suicide.
Edward receives a phone call
from his vampire sister Rosalie Hale
(Nikki Reed) that informs him of
Bella’s false death. Edward decides
most often displayed through Sam
Cahill’s daughters, who oftentimes
beg him to remain at home instead
of returning to Afghanistan. At one
point, Gyllenhaal’s character asks
who “the bad guys” in the war are,
with Sam’s daughter replying, “The
ones with beards.” However, the
film’s strongest themes lie in the
possibility of redemption, even after
an act that one might deem unfor-
givable; the two brothers exemplify
this, both of them seeking and ob-
taining redemption by the end of
the film.
Brothers is director Jim Sheri-
dan’s first film in four years (2005’s
Get Rich or Die Tryin’ was his last),
and easily his most poignant, with
a well-chosen cast that displays the
deterioration of a family that was
once picture-perfect. Gyllenhaal Layout by BRITTANY FOLEY
17
to make a dramatic and life-chang-
ing action to provoke the Volturi
and their followers in Italy, but Bella
races him there in order to show
him she is alive.
Its opening weekend made a
whopping $142,839,137, which was
$40 million more than predicted.
Fans scrambled to find themselves
advanced screening tickets held on
Nov. 18 and Nov. 19, while still $26.2
million was made for midnight
showings alone. The Twilight Saga:
New Moon’s midnight showings
broke Harry Potter and the Half-Blood
Prince’s $22.2 million set last sum-
mer. Like Twilight the movie, the
audience was left with a cliff-hanger
during the final scene of New Moon.
and Maguire make a believable set
of brothers, with Gyllenhaal playing
the family’s bad egg who redeems
himself in the eyes of his sister-in-
law and Maguire playing the stead-
fast marine whose post-traumatic
stress turns him into a man who is
simultaneously cold and insane.
Perhaps the film’s biggest flaw is its
lack of interaction between the two,
whose relationship heartwrench-
ingly mirrors that of Sam Cahill’s
daughters. Carey Mulligan, who
plays Cassie Willis, wife of the fallen
soldier Joe Willis (Patrick Flueger),
steals every scene that she is in, flaw-
lessly portraying the pain of losing
her husband. Meanwhile, Portman
is brilliant as marine wife Grace, and
Gyllenhaal is lovable as ex-convict
Tommy. Maguire, however, stands
out in his role, delivering one of the
most intense performances of his
career, clearly beating out his por-
trayal of Peter Parker in Spider-Man
3.
Essentially a film about post-
traumatic stress disorder, Brothers
expresses insanity, love, and war
throughout its 110 minutes of screen
time, earning its R rating for its emo-
tionally distressing scenes while
also providing the occasional comic
relief that helps it to achieve a bal-
ance of intensity and light-hearted
family moments.
18 Sports The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

MHS CHEERLEADING KEEP HIGH SPIRITS

Haley Defilippis
Business Manager

O n Nov. 15, 2009, the Malden High School fall cheerleading squad was scheduled to compete at Regionals, a huge competition which the cheerlead-
ers make every effort to reach. When MHS cheerleaders found out they qualified for Regionals, they were ecstatic; it has been years since an MHS
cheering squad has carried on so far.
Athletic Director Daniel Keefe stated proudly, “It was the first time a squad has qualified [for Regionals] as long as anyone can remember.” However,
the annual Senior Game had fallen on the Sat. of that same weekend, but moved to Sunday due to rain, causing the cheerleaders to withw from the
competition they had strived for so hard to get to.
The majority of the cheering squad happened to be seniors for the fall season. Keefe and head coach Colleen LeShane thought it would be best if the
cheerleaders went to the senior game thus they could have the opportunity to walk out with their parents onto the football field.
The “Senior Game” is the last home game of the season. All the senior cheerleaders and football payers walk out onto the field individually with their
parents, guardians, or family members to be recognized and take a group picture. It has been an annual event at MHS for several years.
Senior cheerleader Mary Morani expressed her opinion on what had occurred by saying, “It was disappointing but there was nothing we could do
about it. The decision was made for us. I feel bad that the winter team isn’t competing, but it was a fun season.”
Although MHS cheerleaders were not pleased to miss Regionals, they did support the football players on Nov. 15 and had a memorable time at the
game. “No matter what, you’ll always have people who don’t like your decision.” Keefe stated.
Although there is most certainly going to be a winter cheering squad for this upcoming basketball season, no cheerleaders will be competing in any
event. Competitions for the winter season have not included MHS cheerleaders for a few consecutive years. Despite there will be no prize for the upcom-
ing season, the cheerleaders will keep their high spirits.

Last year is history, the future is a mystery

Joshua Kummins
Reporter

T he Malden High School girls’ basketball team is in rebuilding mode this season, as they look to improve upon their 9-11 record from last season.
Returning head coach Joe Levine said that the team is “looking to reload” over the course of the season. Levine stated that the team’s main goals are
to qualify for the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) playoff tournament and to have an injury-free season. Levine said his goal
for the season is “to [provide the girls with] a good experience” on the court. The team lost six players from last season to graduation and Levine said that
they “are expecting a lot from [the team’s] returning players.” Junior center Fillette Lovaincy and senior guard Casey Willcox will lead this year’s team.
Both Lovaincy and Willcox agree that making the Greater Boston League (GBL) tournament is the team’s main goal, but Willcox stated that becoming
“GBL [champions] would be [even nicer].”
Lovaincy said that the team is looking good in the early stages of the season and Willcox said that they “can do damage, but there is a lot of work to
be done.” Both captains also noted that the girls are looking to improve upon team chemistry and now that everyone has made the team, Lovaincy said,
“[the girls need] to step up and show why.” The team’s leaders also said that there are quite a few young stars on the team that could play an even larger
future impact, which included freshman Bridget Furlong and sophomore Kiara Amos. Lovaincy said that the team has “a lot of potential” this season,
despite their rebuilding mode.

Losing is not an Option

Cristina Peters
Reporter

A s the smell of chlorine

wraps its way down
from the basement up to-
wards the gym, it’s safe to
say the swim season is near.
After returning from two
remarkable seasons in 2007
and 2008 with the consecu-
tive title as the Greater Bos-
ton League Champions, the The Malden High swim team diving against Medford.
team’s success has carried
into their 2009 season, with Freshman Michelle Dang in the 100 meter back stroke.
a 104-64 win against Medford on December 14. Outstanding performances included sopho-
more Eddie Lee, placing 1st in the 200 meters race, and junior Jeffrey Chabre, placing 1st in the100 meter freestyle.
After losing some of their best swimmers in the class of 2009, such as Matt Zunich, Tayla Damon, Ramilo Santana and Greg Deangelis, the team has
a lot of work to do to maintain their title as GBL Champs. Hao Loung, the Malden High Junior who broke the 100 meter fly record, 500 yard freestyle, and
the 100 yard backstroke records as a sophomore is not returning due to personal commitments. After being given the title of “The Great One” he is much
a loved teammate and will be greatly missed. “It’s going to take a lot more effort this year to get the GBL Champs title again,” states Junior Samantha
Saggese, “but it’s still absolutely possible. We truly need to focus and put all our strength into our workouts and our meets.”
Although in the past, the MHS swimmers have relied on the upperclassmen to pull through and put in the most effort into the season, this year has
started off to be a complete turnaround. Several freshman have joined, who have trained at least a full year before joining the MHS swim team. Freshmen
Catherine Poirier, Amalia Quesada, and Michelle Dang swam together on the Mystic Valley Swim Club. Mathew Zunich, a former MHS student and
member of the MHS swim team, states, “Even with a substantial amount of ‘09 seniors who held key positions gone, the team still has a good number of
highly talented swimmers. Anything is possible, we have no idea how losing last year’s graduating class effected any of the other teams we swim against,
and as always you never really know just how talented some of the newcomers are right off the bat. I am optimistic, however and expect the team to
have a great season.” He is not the only one with high hope though, as the majority of the Malden High alumni believe that this year’s team will be just
as amazing as the last, with new members.
Heading off to their first meet with such high hopes, it is expected that the MHS swim team will surely put in every extra ounce of strength and effort
to make this season another to remember, hopefully as GBL champs once again. “We’re all going to have to work together and swim our hardest to win,
and if that’s what it takes I’m willing to do it. Last year, they had a great season and none of us want to stop this year from being just as great,” remarks a
new addition to the swim team, junior Andrew DeLacey.
Layout by Lynn Tran
The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
TIGERS WOODS
Caught In the
Rough with the
Media
Alfonse Femino
Head Sports Writer
On Friday, Nov. 27, 2009, at
2:30 am, Professional golf icon Ti-
ger Woods crashed his SUV into a
tree and a fire hydrant, resulting in
minor facial injuries and a trip to a
local hospital. Though physically,
Woods was not harmed much, it is
his reputation that has been taking
the full effects of the crash.
Woods’ wife, Erin Nordegren,
supposedly rushed to the scene of
the accident, smashing the windows
of the vehicle with a golf club to help
a weary Woods out, and proceeded
to get neighbors to call 911. The me-
dia, however, has not followed such
a basic story, stating claims such as
Nordegren beat Woods with the golf
club after finding about an alleged
mistress.
Woods’s attorney, Bill Sharpe,
denies all accusations of foul play,
stating that Woods’s injuries were
“consistent with a car wreck, incon-
sistent with him being beat up,” in
interview with Mike Schneider of
the Boston Globe. Also, the neigh-
bors to Woods claim that when they
came out of their homes in the gated
community of Isle Worth, Califor-
nia, they saw Nordegren kneeling
next to her husband, clearly upset
about his injuries.
Though the views of Woods’
neighbors and attorneys point to
his wife just helping her wounded
husband, speculations of Woods’
mistresses have arose greatly. Texts,
calls, and video mails have been
found involving an alleged mistress,
Racheal Uchital. Also footage point-
ing to Woods having an affair with
a women named Jamie Grubb about
how “days after the accident, foot-
age surfaced that suggested Woods
might be having an affair with a
woman named Jamie Grubb.” sur-
faced days after the accident. Along
with these shocking truths, Woods
has admitted, and apologized to
having an affair, quoting that he “re-
grets those transgressions with all of
my heart,” and that he has not been
“true to his values and the behavior
my family deserves.”
Just because Woods proved to
be a human by making a mistake, it
is unjustified for media and pappa-
razzi to strip Woods of his clean im-
age, forcing him to take an indefinite
leave from golf temporarily, looking
past all the good he has done, serv-
ing as a role model for so many, not
to mention creating the Tiger Woods
Foundation, a foundation simliar to
the Make a Wish Foundation.
Sports
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/
BOYS BASKETBALL leaps into new Season
Brendan Provitola
Reporter
T he Malden High School boys’
basketball team has high ex-
pectations this year despite the
loss of many key players that had
been vital to the team’s success in
previous seasons. Coached by Don
Nally, the Golden Tornadoes will
begin their season against Minute-
man High School in Lexington.
After having a successful sea-
son last year with a record of 17-3
and a run in the playoffs ended by
Andover High School, the team
believes they have a great shot to
go far this year. The captains for
this season are seniors Nathan
Freni and Ramon Viches.
“I believe we have some new
additions that will make our team
better”, quoted Freni. Everybody
on the team will contribute to the
team because of the skills that they
possess and the effort they put into
Boys and Girls Track Trains Hard
David Riemer
Co-Editor-In-Chief
O n the cusp of a brand new sea-
son, the Malden High School
Boys and Girls Indoor Track teams
are looking forward to this year’s
bout of sprinting, jumping, and
throwing. Training hard in the
weight room each day after school,
senior discus thrower Malik Blue
stated that he “can see that the year
is already off to a great start just
by the amount of pre-season work
being put in by everyone.” Indeed
the coaches have been adamant
GBLS, GENDER, GYMNASTICS
Alicia Young
Reporter
N ov. 31, 2009 was a much-antic-
ipated day for the members of
the gymnastics team. It launched
the beginning of their winter sea-
son. This will be the team’s last
year in the Greater Boston League,
so they plan on “working together,
[getting] along and [trying] hard.”
stated one of the team’s captains
Stephanie Dervishian, junior at the
Northeast Metro Regional Voca-
tion School. A student athlete from
a different school earning the spot
as a captain on the Malden Gym-
nastics Team is perplexing, but
her school does not have a gym-
nastics team so a waver to do the
sport at her main school allowed
Dervishian to pursue her passion.
All her hard work since freshman
year eventually paid off when she
received the title of captain.
This year, the team seems
to be a mixture of girls with a
large amount of boys than previ-
ous years. Whether they are doing
gymnastics to meet new people or
Senior Ernst LaRochelle drives the ball against Junior Vernon Sanvail
practice.
Although Malden lost to a
strong Everett team twice last year
Freni believes that the outcome of
the long awaited games will be in
Malden’s favor this season. He said,
“We lost to Everett twice last year,
about keeping their athletes busy
even before the meets begin. “Due
to the dedication and athleticism
we have this year,” expressed head
distance Coach David Londino, “my
expectations are very high for both
the boys and girls teams.”
Although the Greater Boston
League has shrunk considerably
over the course of the last few years,
losing teams like Peabody, Arling-
ton, and Waltham, senior distance
runner Rosalinda Aguilar, who can
to pursue a longing passion, they
are working hard and showing true
dedication. This year the team’s
main advantage is that they are the
only gymnastics team around that
has two or more guys on it. The
male’s enthusiastic spirits influence
the hope that the team will rock the
GBL’s. Majority of the guys on the
team are using gymnastics to help
with their break dancing. A couple
of gymnasts are on a break danc-
ing crew called Air Bound, includ-
ing Joel Stevenson, Justin Pham,
Keyshaun, Tai Phan, Vincent Ngu,
and Long Lu. When talking about
it Stevenson states, “were good . .
. Were on Youtube [.com]!” Some
moves can be used in both sports
such as the “flare.” This move is
done on your hands (close to your
chest) while your faced down on the
floor and you spin with your legs
lifted off the ground as well as your
hands between each spin so your
legs can get through. Pham joined to
“improve [his] break dancing” and
19
and I know this year everybody
wants it more than anything”. It is
clear that Freni is confident in his
new team. Malden will compete
in the competitive Greater Boston
League (GBL) conference and will
fight for a possible league title.
be seen daily doing laps around
the school, feels that “it puts more
pressure on us as athletes to shine
more in a league that keeps getting
smaller. For some people, it’s just
that extra push they need to reach
that next level.”
Empowered by a greater spirit
of competition, the track coaches
reflect their students’ enthusiasm.
“I honestly believe,” Londino con-
cluded, “that this team could be
GBL champions this year.”
never gave up because his “friends
had also supported [him].”
The team has four events;
floor, beam, bars, and vaults all
coached by Katie Bowdridge. The
team practices constantly working
their body and then eventually do-
ing back flips, handsprings, and so
many more challenging exercises
and finally the team will become
ready for their meets. Since there-
only four events they have to have
a limited amount of people. There
can only be six people to an event
and that leaves only 24 spots. An-
other downfall of this season is the
fact that Junior Varsity is gone due
the budget cuts and there will only
be a varsity. The newly found male
members contribute greatly to their
chance at performing well in the
GBLs because just like everyone else
they love what they do. The boys
bring just as much enthusiasm and
skill as the girls, so the captains are
sure that having all the new guys
could only benefit the team.
Layout by Lynn Tran
20 Sports The Blue and Gold
November-December 2009
http://www.maldenblueandgold.com/

Malden Stuffs Medford on Thanksgiving Day Game

Brittany McFeeley Malden lines up on defense at the ten yard line during their Thanksgiving
Copy Editor game against Medford.
All photos by Lauren Benoit

O n Thursday morning, Nov. 26, 2009, Medford High School hosted the annual Malden versus Medford
football rivalry.
Since 1889, Malden High School and Medford High school have had their annual football game on Thanks-
giving morning. This year marks the 121th ritual game. The Malden vs. Medford rivalry is one of the oldest
rivalries in the nation, and it is the 12th ranked greatest rivalry in the country. Before the 119th game and since
1889, Malden has had a record of 56 wins, 52 losses, and 10 ties. However, after the game, the record now stands
at 57 wins, 52 losses, and 10 ties.
On the cold and cloudy Thanksgiving morning, hundreds filled the stands in either their Medford or
Malden attire. The stands were divided in half with Medford fans filling the right side and Malden fans to the
left. Not only were the football teams competing against each other, but also so were the fans; both sides were
trying to scream even more loudly than the other side.
To start off the 119th game, Malden kicked the off and Medford returned the kick to the 25-yard line.
Malden was able to hold Medford, forcing them to punt the ball. Malden was then able to march down the field
due to many rushing plays by the offense. Soon, with a few more plays Quarterback Shakarus Semexant threw
to senior Ramon Viches for Malden’s first touchdown of the game, making the score six to zero. Captain Nicky
Hoyt made the extra point, putting Malden up seven to zero.
Medford started off the second quarter with a big loss of yards. But that did not stop the Medford offense
from driving down the field. Medford was swiftly approaching the 20-yard line when Malden was charged
with a huge penalty, moving Medford closer to the end zone and giving the a fresh set of downs. Then Quar-
terback Anthony Tortora of Medford and Captain Alex Krasco completed Medford’s first touchdown. Making
the score seven to six. Then with the extra point, Medford tied the game.
They punted the ball back to Malden and Hoyt was able to bring it to the 50-yard line, giving Malden a
short field to start with. Malden kept driving forward but was stopped around Medford’s 10-yard line, with an
incomplete pass to Viches on fourth down; Malden was forced to hand the ball over to Medford.
Nicky Hoyt looks for a whole in
During the third quarter, Medford’s defense stepped it up a notch, making it difficult for Malden to drive
the defense.
the ball. Malden was able to make their way down the field by notable catches from Captain Herbens Antenor,

and great rushing plays by Captain David Console and Hoyt. With a great QB sneak, Semexant was
able to bring Malden to Medford’s five-yard line. Hoyt was then able to run it in for Malden’s second
touchdown, putting Malden up 13-6, after a missed extra-point.
With a scoreless fourth quarter, Malden won the game. But in the fourth quarter, it could have
been anyone’s game. Malden committed numerous penalties, pushing Medford down the field.
However, with their swarming defense and a game saving block by Frankie Dunn in the end zone on
Medford’s fourth down with 18 seconds left in the game, Malden was able to secure the win
over Medford.

David Console
charges towards the
sidelines.
Drew Mcfarland wrestles Medford’s Giovanni Sanders to the ground

Layout by Sharon Lee