The Holiday Behind St. Patrick’s Day

by Doug

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Saint Patrick’s Day is an Irish Dublin cultural and religious holiday celebrated on March 17^th. The tradition first came about during the instigation of the Knights of St. Patrick. The feast day of Saint Patrick appealed to both Roman Catholic and Irish Protestant traditions in Ireland.

The modern day Saint Patrick’s Day usually starts out with the attendance of church services wearing green attire and the lifting of Lenten restrictions.

In Ireland Saint Patrick’s Day is a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland. This holiday is not only celebrated in Ireland but is also widely celebrated across the world in places like Great Britain, Canada, United States, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand, among others. Over the years Saint Patrick’s Day has become one of the most popular holidays and is still growing.

In Argentina a parade is celebrated in downtown Buenos Aires to celebrate the feast day of Saint Patrick’s Day. The reason why the Argentinians have a historic tie to Ireland is because one of Argentina’s forefathers, Admiral William Brown, who was born in Foxford in 1777, commanded a squadron of seven ships on Saint Patrick’s Day in 1841.  He then captured the fort of Martin Garcia, called “The Gibraltar of the La Plata”.

Saint Patrick’s Day in the United States first starts it celebration with a traditional parade from Irish performers who march in New York City in the honor of celebrating the feast day of Saint Patrick’s Day. The rest of the day is followed by the constant celebration in the streets. The reason why Saint Patrick’s Day is so widely celebrated in the U.S is because there is such a high amount of Irish immigrants and those of Irish descent throughout the country.

Why are Leprechauns and Shamrocks so important to this holiday? The reason for this is because the, shamrock was chosen as Ireland’s national emblem. The legend started by St. Patrick  illustrated the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity is the idea that God is really three-in-one: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Leprechauns are a mystical creatures that have human like characteristics but this theme of tiny men was created for the mind of the child it is said if one of these Leprechauns is caught that they will have to give you their pot of gold as a reward for catching them.

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An Open Letter to Smart Phone Users

by Doug

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Dear smart phone users,

Recently have noticed that a lot  of you have been attached to your smart phones.  Many of you are constantly looking at them non-stop without even paying attention to what you are doing.

What people tend to do is use these devices constantly and ignore everything that is going on around them. This is both rude and a safety issue.  Some of the people that use these smart phones don’t use them to call or text anyone. They simply play games on them like nerds. I mean, seriously, don’t you have anything better to do than play Angry Birds or Temple Run on your smart phone?

Do you have any idea what it’s like to try and talk to somebody when they are too busy in their own little world fumbling around with their smart phone?  It is such a huge distraction because you never really know what the person is doing.  They could be texting mean things about you, listening to music, or playing a game out of sheer boredom. You never know what the person may be doing but all you know is that the person seems to be more concerned with their phone then your conversation.

I actually saw a guy walk into a stop sign because he was playing around with his phone.  The makers of these phones create a lot of crazy applications; surely they can make a program that makes the phone sense danger and gives the user a warning.

Some of these programs these phones offer are very good tools to use in your everyday life.  But that’s if you don’t use them brainlessly.

Sincerely,

A Normal Cell Phone User

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Picture from: http://www.libertymobiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Smartphones.jpg

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What’s Up With That?! The Ups and Downs of the 2012 NFL Season

by Doug

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Philadelphia Eagles

Why is it that some really good football teams are playing really badly this year, and why are some of the bad teams playing really well?

Some of the teams that did not make the playoffs this year lost games that they should not have lost due to injuries. An example of this would be the Eagles. Because the Eagles were missing some of their important players during winnable games this season, they ended their season with  7/7 as their final record.

The teams that did really well this year were the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos. In past seasons, these teams were usually the first to be knocked out of playoff contention because these teams are typically terrible.

Buffalo Bills

Maybe it is because these teams now have decent quarterbacks who actually know how to throw the football instead of throwing incomplete passes and interception opportunities. Tim Tebow #15, quarterback of the Broncos, played for the Florida Gators and won of a Heisman Trophy. Ryan Fitzpatrick #14, QB of the Buffalo Bills, graduated from Harvard. Matthew Stafford, #9, of the Detroit Lions, was another major contributor this season.

Let’s talk about New York.  There are three New York teams and most of the people who live in New York are either Giants or Jets fans.  But no one really cares about the Buffalo Bills even if they did beat Tom Brady and the Patriots. What  I find really odd is that the Buffalo Bills do not get the recognition that they deserve most of the time. The Buffalo Bills are a New York team, yet even if they won the Superbowl they would be forgotten the next day.

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Pictures from:

http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/021/e/3/Eagles_Logo_wallpaper_by_graffitimaster.jpg

http://www.nflfootballstadiums.com/images/Buffalo-Bills-Logo.gif

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Cars: Domestic and Foreign

by Doug

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Honda CRV

Around the time of Halloween and Thanksgiving, various car companies from around the world release information about their newest models. These companies try to sell you these new cars which vary from low to high prices. The quality in these cars are excellent but my question to you is: Why do you think foreign cars are more popular than American cars in the United States?

I have noticed that many foreign car companies tend to make and advertise their cars as luxury vehicles, yet also more affordable than the average American car.  Foreign companies such as Toyota and Honda tend to have cars and SUVs priced between $25,000 and $35,000.

These days, you tend to see more foreign cars in the U.S.  This is because foreign cars have been easier to come by and more affordable than an average American made car. Foreign car makers try to make their vehicles as luxurious and affordable to all Americans as they possibly can.

Ford F150

Lately foreign car companies have gained the most success in selling their cars due to their decent prices of their vehicles. American car companies tend to show off how strong their cars are built by over advertising huge massive trucks that apparently can carry heavy loads and even pull an airplane.

Cars like the Ford F150, Dodge Ram 1500 and the Chevy Silverado are cars that cost a lot of money to buy and to maintain, meaning that these gas guzzling machines can run you broke. Most American car companies are more bent on making huge cars that are economically not friendly and less time making cars that are economically friendly.  These American car companies might as well be making freight trains because these behemoths are expensive and powerful.  Foreign companies that make huge trucks like this try to make their trucks drink less fuel and still be able to get the job done with less use of fuel.

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Pictures from:

http://carissued.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Honda-CRV-2010-LX.jpeg

http://media.ed.edmunds-media.com/pictures/VEHICLE/2012/Ford/2012.ford.f-150.20395290-300×189.jpg

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Financial Literacy a New Course At RFH

by Doug

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The 2011-2012 school year at Rumson Fair Haven Regional High School has welcomed many changes, including the addition of Financial Literacy, a state mandated course for all sophomores.

Mo money, mo problems

Financial Literacy is aimed toward giving students anI understanding of money, investing, insurance, marketing, and so on. It also teachers students  how and why the stock market goes up and down on a daily basis.  Most teens understand the importance of making money, but not of saving it and planning for the future.

The course seems most suited for sophomores.  Freshman are too young because  most are around the ages of fourteen and fifteen, and are not allowed to have jobs yet.  Sophomores, however, probably around the ages of fifteen and sixteen, may be starting to work for the first time.

This class is offered during 9^th period, and lasts for one marking period.  Mr. Petruzella, Mr. Lanza, and Mrs. Cimerosi all teach the course, and have various experiences and backgrounds with business education.   Mr. Petruzella worked on Wall Street for 45 years and has a lot of experience in the business field, which means he really knows what he is talking about.  Mr. Lanza has taught AP Economics for many years, and has a similar knowledge.  Similarly, Mrs. Cimerosi has taught business courses at the high school, and advises FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America).

Mr. Pettruzella believes in the purpose of this new graduation requirement, as well as the expertise the staff at RFH has: “A necessary requirement for teaching this class is an education in business and the experience of working on Wall Street.”

Mr. Pettruzella also believes this class is an important way for young teens to understand basic things like writing checks, balancing a check book, and doing taxes. “All of basic stuff I am teaching these kids is simple and easy to learn, but they just have to pay attention.”

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Video Games: They May Not Turn Your Brain to Mush After All

by Doug

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Are video games an annoyance or a positive influence on today’s youth? In my opinion, video games have a positive influence on children because they help them develop problem-solving and use their common sense.

People do not really understand that there are good games for children and young adults to play, depending on his or her age and what parents let them play. No matter the rating of the game, all these video games have educational components to them.  Even if the game has to do to with war or violence, it gives kids the chance to use their common sense in order to solve certain problems as part of the game.

For example, Modern Warfare 2, is a war game that requires the player to act quickly during an assault, as well as develop strategy.  He must think before he plays, considering weaponry for various types of terrain and battles.  In most Call of Duty games, players can pick and choose their own classes.  This means that players can pick their own weapons and can customize them anyway they want.  Aside from MW2, there are many other educational games, most of them based on various action films.

One of my favorites out of all of them is Mafia 2. This game gives the player the chance to roam around NYC through the 40s and 50s and find various ways to survive.

Another educational and healthy alternative to shooting games is the Kinect for Xbox 360. The reason why the Kinect is considered a healthier alternative is because it allows the player to actually get out of their seat and up moving around.  Many are exercise-themed and require players to do something instead of moving their thumbs for a couple of hours on a controller.

Kinect

There are certain types of games which involve a lot of strategy and planning.  Such games include Rainbow Six, Vegas 2, and Ghost Recon 2.  These games are not something to be laughed at; they are for advanced players who do not merely rush at enemies.  These games allow the player to take control and plan what they want to do.  In other words, the character you use can command his or her team to perform certain tasks like move to a particular position or breach a certain door.

Studies have shown that when children and young adults play video games, they tend to think more outside the box compared to what they would do during other activities. Parents may not like it, but video games can be mentally stimulating to a child’s mind.  So go play.

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Images:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/db/Modern_Warfare_2_cover.PNG/256px-Modern_Warfare_2_cover.PNG

http://www.lionsdenu.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/kinect.jpg

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‘NCIS: Los Angeles’ is Still Alive and Kicking

by Doug

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This is the fifth season of NCIS: Los Angeles.  It is a continuation of last year’s season finale, shown on CBS on Tuesdays at 9:00 PM. This new season has a lot to do with how the main character, Callen, played by Chris O’Donnell, is about to find out who he is, who his family was, and what country he came from.

In the last season we found out that Callen, his mother, and his sister came from Romania. However, Callen’s mother is murdered by a family called the Comescu’s. Alexa Comescu is the head of the Comescu family and she had all of the information about Callen’s past.  Before Callen’s mother was killed, she had been in contact with a CIA agent who was going to help Ms. Callen get out of Romania and give her asylum in the United States as a citizen.  However, before this happened she was killed on a beach right in front of her five year-old-son, Callen.

This family was involved in many things such as money laundering, human trafficking, and drug dealing. The reason why Callen’s mother was killed was because the Comescu family wanted to get back at Callen’s grandfather for killing specific members of the Comescu crime family. The Comescu’s were after Callen in the last season because he was one of the last living descendants of the OSS agent who killed some of their family.

In my opinion I feel that this season has been the best one yet, mostly because of the secrets that have been revealed about Callen’s past.  As this season started the audience knew that a lot of things were going to happen due to the cliffhangar of the last season.

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Image:  http://sharetv.org/shows/untitled_ncis_spinoff

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