Opinion

Although controversial, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is beneficial to Americans who previously went without health care due to high costs or ineligibility. 

Now that I am a second-semester senior, I spend my time doing, well, nothing except for what is required to maintain decent grades in school.

The shrill beep of the school bell reverberates throughout the halls, signaling the start of tutorial. Succumbing to ritual, upperclassmen rush to the cars and some gather in circles throughout the lot while others enter the warmth of their motor vehicles.

Saratoga High is known for its high-aiming students and equally high levels of stress. To add to the competitive atmosphere, a select group of high-scoring seniors with soaring GPAs each year become contestants in one last competition: the race for valedictorian and salutatorian.

Enter many high school classes, and you’ll likely see a teacher pacing in the front of the class, lecturing while students frantically try and scribble down notes. This lecture-driven style drives many school systems around the world (most notably China), and these schools are lauded for producing “smart” students en masse.

 It’s early August and sleepy-eyed students walk toward the Small Gym. Falcon Fest 2014 has begun: Students are eager to learn what classes they’ll have with friends, but are at the same time dreading the start of a new school year.

American journalist Chris Hedges wrote, “We live in a society where doctors destroy health, lawyers destroy justice, universities destroy knowledge, governments destroy freedom, the press destroys information, religion destroys morals, and our banks destroy the economy.”

When I tore open a flat, long box in the mail that was labeled “Airsoft GI” and lifted out my $218 airsoft gun for Christmas, I was ecstatic. Once I ordered the safety equipment, I could have battles at nearby airsoft fields with my friends.

In early February, with the Super Bowl still fresh in the minds of football fans, Michael Sam decided to make history. Sam, an NFL draft prospect, came out as gay, and if signed by an NFL team, will be the NFL’s first active homosexual player.