Discovery Space Shuttle Flies into History

Third period PE students were able to catch a glimpse of the space shuttle Discovery as it performed flyovers around the DC metro area prior to landing at Dulles Airport Tuesday morning. Discovery flew into Dulles Airport on the back of a 747 airplane April 17. Discovery will be part of a permanent display at the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Center near Dulles.



Photo Courtesy of Brad Snyder



Music, Artists, Both Lacking Individuality

By Drew MacFarlane

Staff Writer

As many may have noticed, the popular music out there has undergone some big changes in the past few years. It was only relatively recently that you heard names like Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Mac Miller, and others. When I say music has changed, I do not say that in a good way. The quality of music is on the decline, from the lyrics to the artists to the songs themselves. I am deeply worried about the future of music. It is growing increasingly difficult to find decent music on the radio, TV, or other media outlets. What’s worse is people applaud these artists, and they are serving as role models and sources of culture for our youth. I am not against progress, but at this point popular music is simply growing worse and worse.

People may say that times have changed and we should embrace the future, but why should we be settling for less? There is good music out there; it just hasn’t been realized quite yet. If you were to do a little bit of digging, you would find lots of great music by artists that draw their inspiration from some of the greats. Such artists would be The Smiths, The Smashing Pumpkins, New Order, and so many others. Like I said before, I am not against progress in music; I think Indie Rock and Dubstep is some of the best music out there, and it won’t be long before they’re recognized for their greatness. Also, Alternative music serves as a candle in the dark, as it takes what great artists of the past did right, and uses that as their cornerstone. Quality music has not disappeared, but it is definitely harder to find than it was before.

Until the day comes when we wake up and realize how good some bands out there are, we’re stuck with what we have now, which is quite disappointing. Steadily, music has become less about the strength of the song as a whole, but more about being just ‘catchy’. What I mean by this is that if a song has a good beat, cheap lyrics, and a mediocre voice (autotune took care of that too) they consider the song good as a whole.

 If you were to take a look at the lyrics in lot of the top songs today, you would notice some common themes. Such would be partying, drinking, and ‘love’ songs that don’t do the word justice. This is not the only trend though; it has become more and more popular to go by just a singer’s name and not recognized an actual band. Look at the top charts, and you see names like Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, and Kelly Clarkson. In my opinion, it is selfish to not recognize your band, as the music is as important as the singer.  This is partially due to the fact that lately music has become less of a song, but more of a performance. Many pop singers lip-sync anyway, so a concert is more acting than anything else.

The fact that the actual music is bad is one thing, but it seriously annoys me to see how disrespectful pop has become. We got a great example of this at the 2012 Grammys. If you remember Nicki Minaj’s performance, you probably remember her mocking Catholicism with her performance partially inspired by the 1973 movie, ‘The Exorcist’. I for one, found this very offensive, and it is only one example of how insulting pop is becoming. Also, in too many songs today I find loads of cursing and immoral themes, some of which I listed above. I am not saying that they shouldn’t be permitted to put what they want in their songs (those who actually write their own songs), as it is their right. However, I do believe it is wrong to put disrespectful lyrics in songs that millions of people listen to.

The quality of music is undoubtedly on the decline, but there is definitely still hope. There is lots of superb music out there, and unfortunately it falls on deaf ears. I genuinely believe it won’t be long before the true artists are recognized, and they are the ones we see on the top charts. Despite this, our radios spew out cheap, disrespectful, fake music by musicians that couldn’t make quality music to save their lives. I am not saying music should not change through time, it does, but change must not be confused with weakening.

Pink Slime Affects Country

Pink slime, the artifical filler known to be added to many meats, was recently exposed in an investigation. Through many press conferences and articles, there is still much controversy over whether the filler is actually safe to be consumed or not.

Read more here, and tell us your opinion:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/what-pink-slime-tells-us-about-industrial-food-safety/2012/04/09/gIQAWs7M6S_blog.html

Students Respond Silently

South County students show their zero tolerance towards violence against women.

Poetry Slam Prose Prevails

The annual South County Poetry Slam was held the evening of Tues., March 20. Students performed original poems in front of a live audience. Winners were: 1^st – Maggie Dickinson, 2^nd – Kristy Parman, 3^rd – Anthony Alvarado.

Changes in Traffic Patterns Around South County's Perimeter Occur

When South County Secondary School opened in 2005, much of Laurel Crest Drive was considered a private road.  This designation meant that the Fairfax County police were unable to enforce many of the Virginia State Code traffic violations that have become routine since the opening of the school.  For example, stopping on a highway, discharging passengers while stopped on a highway, making improper lane changes, and, making a u-turn across a double yellow line are all illegal.  Yet, all of these happen in the morning when some parents drop-off students in the deceleration/turn lane to the bus lot, or make a u-turn at the end of the median after exiting the Kiss & Ride.  Despite numerous reminders to the community in the past, parents have continued these illegal practices.  Now, the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office has given the Police Department authority to enforce all Virginia State Code traffic violations on Laurel Crest Drive.

What does this mean for parents who choose to drive a child to school?First, parents should adjust the time leave home to ensure that their student(s) will not be late.  Late arrivals due to traffic are unexcused (a student on a late-arriving school bus will be excused).  Keep in mind that there will be road construction associated with the new middle school.  Second, use one of the two designated drop-off locations (the Kiss & Ride at Entrance 11, accessible from Laurel Crest Dr, and the Silverbrook Road Morning Drop-off by the learning cottages).   Honor the sign and turn right when exiting the Kiss & Ride, as there have been several serious accidents involving people making a left turn out of the Kiss & Ride.  To return to Silverbrook Road from the Kiss & Ride you must use a) the traffic circle as a turnaround, or b) continue to a right turn on Hooes Road to return to Silverbrook Road.  Finally, adult drivers can use an alternative location off school grounds as a drop-off point.  For example, use Laurel Crest Elementary School as a drop-off with your child using the crosswalk at the intersection (the crossing time has been extended to allow ample time for crossing Silverbrook Road).

What does this mean for student drivers? 
Students need to account for the proper amount of time to get to school before the warning bell.  They should leave home five to ten minutes earlier than they currently do.  Students may also use the entrance from Silverbrook Road to access the student parking area rather than waiting in the traffic on Laurel Crest Drive. Keep in mind that parking on school grounds is a privilege and that being late may result in loss of a student parking pass.

If parents or students have any questions, they may contact Safety & Security Specialist RC Gamble through the main switchboard.

~Information provided by the Administrative team

Winter Strikes Back!