In an America dominated by the Bush administration, a strengthened Republican presence both in the Senate and House of Representatives and a right-leaning Supreme Court, the Democratic Party has struggled to keep its message heard. As a party fighting for public support and an image of themselves as something besides simply the "Anti-Republican Party," the Democrats need to return to their original base of definitive liberal ideals and grassroots politics to once again make an impact on the American political spectrum. By taking definite stances on current issues, reflecting these opinions in a new platform and creating public support networks to spread their message, the Democratic Party can once again return to its standard of being a voice for the voiceless.
An A in English, a B in math, a C in history and another A in Spanish. But in that new category on the top of the report card - what is that, a 31.2 in...obesity?
He was in the headlines for 55 years, glorified in the fight against Israel and known for violent tactics and hard-line ideology. To some he was a romantic revolutionary, the Middle Eastern counterpart to Communist poster-boy Ché Guevara and a hero to the Palestinian people. Now, Yasser Arafat's death has left a question mark in the middle of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He was in the headlines for 55 years, glorified in the fight against Israel and known for violent tactics and hard-line ideology. To some he was a romantic revolutionary, the Middle Eastern counterpart to Communist poster-boy ChÈ Guevara and a hero to the Palestinian people. Now, Yasser Arafatís death has left a question mark in the middle of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
You could say that the first mistake director Arthur Laurents made was the choice to use a projector screen as a background, instead of a real set. Or, perhaps it was his repetitive use of the same clichéd jokes and dialogue in the script. In fact, you could blame the lackluster Hallelujah, Baby on a lot of things, but to cover them all, Laurents isn't the only one at fault"practically everyone in the production is.
You would think that more than a hundred years after Oscar Wilde wrote The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People, the play would have lost some of the clever charm that made it one of Wilde's most popular works. This assumption is proved wrong, however, in the hilarious, charismatically kitschy Arena Stage's production of Earnest, directed by Everett Quinton.
"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue—Columbus was brave and he was bright; we cheer for him and say hooray, especially on Columbus Day.” Unfortunately for kindergarten classes everywhere, the truth about Columbus Day is much different.
Put together a noirish plot, a dash of Kubrick-like production and an emaciated Christian Bale, and what do you get? A dark, intense film entitled The Machinist, which tackles the subjects of self-inflicted suffering and existential ideals with a moody, magnetic approach.
You would think that with an ex-vampire slayer, a haunted house, and a menagerie of angry spirits, The Grudge would be a nightmarishly scary, right? Wrong—and too bad, because even with all the proper elements for a terrifying movie experience, The Grudge can't fully deliver.
A world tour later and with a platinum-selling Bleed American under their belt, Jimmy Eat World returns from their two-year hiatus with the more earnest, less pop-centered Futures. A less frenzied, more sprawling album, Futures continues Jimmy Eat World's steady streak of positive, ambitious emo by incorporating new elements such as intricate vocal harmonies, epic ballads, and more prominent guitar solos.
Call it clichéd, predictable, yet another teen movie, whatever – anyway you cut it, Raise Your Voice is a sad attempt by Hilary Duff to win the hearts and minds of prepubescent teen girls everywhere. With trite dialogue, obvious plot twists, and a sickeningly sweet performance by Duff, Raise Your Voice falls flat before it ever gets a chance to fly.
Before Cuba, Castro, and the CIA, when the world had never heard the name "Che,” Ernesto Guevara was but an idealistic medical student in Argentina, trying to discover both the world and himself. The Motorcycle Diaries, directed by Walter Salles, centers more on Guevara's path of self-discovery than his eventual revolutionary status, but is successful in conveying the wide-eyed optimism and fiery determination that made Guevara the worldwide icon he is today.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. On the Road. Catch-22. Arrow of God. The Lost Steps. To the average Blazer, the names of these novels don't ring a bell, not because these books are unpopular but because they don't seem to exist within the walls of Blair's English department. Instead of teaching contemporary, multicultural or controversial literature, Blair forces students to read novels which are so outdated and irrelevant that the average Blazer cannot relate to them.
Unlike other MCPS policies on school safety and discipline, the search and seizure policy is wholly ambiguous. "It has no real set standard,
Where only first names have been used, names have been changed to protect the identities of the sources. Junior Michelle's eyes shift back and forth, stealing a glance behind her. She shoves her hands deep into her pockets and walks nonchalantly to the back of the store, where the jewelry is on display. Reaching up, she grabs what interests her—a bracelet here, a ring there—and thrusts the items into her coat. Michelle has shoplifted before and does not see it as a big deal. For her and countless other Blazers, shoplifting is more of a hobby than a crime.
"Iraq is steeped in history. It is the site of the Garden of Eden, of the Great Flood and the birthplace of Abraham. Tread lightly there.” On March 20, 2003, Lieutenant Tim Collins gave this advice to his battle group, the 1st Battalion of the Royal Irish at Fort Blair Mayne desert camp, 20 miles from the Iraqi border. Collins' words of advice to his troops could not be more correct—our involvement in Iraq should have been done with care, finesse and expertise. Instead, we refused to "tread lightly” and have tried to force our democratic ideals on a nation that continues to staunchly refuse them. In fact, the use of guerrilla warfare now by insurgents threatens to turn Iraq into another Vietnam.