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5EditorialMay 25, 2012

Iliad

Mitt Romney’s reign as the leader in the Republi-can primaries developed a new and improved man, a neutralized candidate. It seems as if to appeal to the people of the United States, the modern candidate has to diverge to middle-of-the-road politics.

As the general population moves towards moder-ate political values, elections have decreased the role of the political party even further.

Recently, Romney gave his introduction to the new him, the candidate not concerned with single issues, but rather a slight conservative platform with the vague and general basics.

In a speech addressing the National Rifle Associa-tion (NRA), Romney showed off his one glimmer of Republican flare by stating, “instead of expand-ing the government, I’m going to shrink it” and “in-stead of raising taxes, I’m going to cut them.”

According to National Public Radio’s report on the speech, “Romney Talks Freedom At NRA Con-ference,” Romney spoke for 17 minutes before even addressing guns, and even then did not discuss his stance on gun laws.

The months before this point in the election, Romney embraced his conservative side. He debated against rival conservatives and was often scrutinized for being flip-floppy on issues, which deemed him the more liberal candidate.

Yet, it is this liberalism that might give him the edge in the general election. Ever more increasingly, Americans find themselves in the middle of issues when it comes to politics. Many who claim them-selves conservatives will qualify, “well I am fiscally conservative, but socially liberal,” and those who claim themselves liberal may disagree with a large majority of the Democratic Party Platform.

It is rare nowadays to find a die hard Republican or Democrat, and presidential candidates have con-formed to the people’s moderate values.

A political party is a tool used to band together a group of people in order to accomplish favor-able interests to a group, so these parties organize, campaign, and elect representatives that will support such issues.

Many people used to blindly vote for a candi-date simply because they were branded by a major party. However, as candidates stay away from the “hot” political topics, such as abortion, in order to gain support, the more similar they become, and the more vague their political agendas remain.

Political parties are meant to put strength behind a set of values, not to elect representatives who strive to be the most conventional, holding back their be-liefs for the sake of votes.

President Obama has served four years in office, however it was only recently (and with the Vice-President’s forcing hand) that he publicly announced his support for same-sex marriage.

Such a liberal viewpoint may damage his voter base for those more socially conservative Americans, however for those more liberal voters it served as long-overdue recognition to an issue supported by the President’s own party.

If America has reached the point where the pub-lic is unsure of what should be guaranteed stances within a political party, then what is the point of even having a party system?

Americans can no longer be sure that their Dem-ocratic president will support same-sex marriage initiatives, or their Republican nominee will remain pro-life throughout his term simply based on politi-cal party affiliation. The party platforms have been diminished to the most simplistic of values: Repub-licans support smaller government, and Democrats support larger government.

It seems as if the American people have moved away from the political party, which begs the ques-tion, when will politics do the same?

“A clap to teachers with easy finals. I hate being stressed about tests!” ~Avery Foncerrada, 10th

“A clap to summer. I can’t wait to go to the beach.”~Grace Barioni, 9th

“A slap to social media. Get some real life friends.”~Jordan McKee, PHS teacher

“A slap to the driving program to park. It’s not going to help me park any better.” ~Chase Cullen, 11th

“A slap to senior detentions. Why is everything so last minute?”~Kristin Cooper, 12th

Fight for financial aidLack of aid causes some students to give up on college dreams

What is success? Society tells us it is graduating high school, going to college, getting a job and having a fam-ily.

Yet, for many, success has a very different definition. In the halls of high school, the future is always at the forefront of everyone’s minds. We take classes to ful-fill A-G requirements, and enter incredible amounts of clubs and activities to boost our college résumés . Yet, at the end of the year, where does this leave us?

Despite the unarguable importance of keeping the future in mind and constantly striving for success in school, many students lose sight of themselves in the daily grind. Between classes, homework and activities, many students forget to take time for themselves and do what truly makes them happy. We follow the rules, yet

rarely follow our bliss. The reality is that there is no “right” or “wrong” way

to approach the daunting adventure of life. While col-

lege might be the “right” path for some, for others, this concept is extremely subjective. People may dream of

traveling to far off places or starting a business. Some may join the Peace Corps, or engage in missionary work. And, some may just get a job and proceed to do the things that they have always wanted to do, yet have never had the freedom to.

Despite what society says about our futures, these plans are all okay. And it is time that we focus more on living life in a truly, personally fulfilling way, rather than living the life we are expected to.

Success is subjective, and, while philosophies may dif-fer, there is no “right” or “wrong” to what constitutes a successful life. People say ‘YOLO’ jokingly— yet, in its own way, it is true.

As we begin to anticipate, and for many seniors, dive in to, our futures, it is important that we never lose sight of ourselves and our dreams. In doing so, we can each attain a personal success that will allow us to live life free of regrets.

The search for self-fulfillment MADISON CHAPMANBusiness Manager

Since the beginning of advertising, there have been thin, perfectly airbrushed models used to sell products. Sales statistics and independent studies alike have shown that although models may not be an accurate representa-tion of the average consumer, their appeal is undeniable. However, in the past years the modeling industry has come under fire for too-thin models that seem to pro-mote an unhealthy body image. Some regulations have been put into place, but the modeling industry still has room for improvement.

Earlier this year Israel passed a law stating that no model should be used if her BMI is less than 18.5, the medial limit for “underweight.” The law also ruled that

the advertiser must state if any computer alterations were made to cause the model to make thinner. This law was a big step forward for the modeling industry; critics were finally getting heard and important changes where being made. Along with new laws, there was also a large societal push to begin using “real” models. Several de-signers, such as Jean-Paul Gaultier and John Galliano, used “real” models in their runway shows, and compa-nies such as Dove have used average sized women in their advertisements.

Crystal Renn, a previously anorexic print model, also joined the fight against too-thin models. She spoke out about her disorder and encouraged industry leaders to impose more restrictions on models’ weight. Renn seemed to be making an impact when several companies hired average weight, known in the modeling industry as

“plus-sized,” models to use in their ad campaigns; how-ever, lately, Renn has faced some criticism for her recent weight loss. The once curvy model was recently seen looking thinner than usual. It seems rather hypocriti-cal that Renn, who wrote her memoir “Hungry” about coming to terms with her weight and eating disorder, would defend this weight loss by saying she was happy with her weight loss and new body. Renn had become a spokeswoman for a healthier modeling industry and a role model for young women, but all of that was made void when she went against her previous statements and gave into societal pressures.

While some improvements to the modeling industry have been made, they still have a long way to go. Making changes is crucial to set a good example for young girls and society in general.

As the school year comes to a close, thousands of high school seniors across the country are preparing to head off to a four-year university. However, as the cost of attending college increases, many are left wondering how they will pay for their next four years of school. Although many students apply for financial aid, it is be-coming next to impossible to receive all of the financial aid that a student needs.

Here is how financial aid works: every year, college students fill out a FAFSA (Free Application for Fed-eral Student Aid) application. This application allows students to give information such as their parents’ an-nual income, the number of family members living in their household, and the taxes their parents pay. After this application is completed, FAFSA gives the student an EFC (Expected Family Contribution), which is then subtracted from the total cost of attending that college. The resulting figure is the amount of need-based finan-cial aid the student qualifies for.

Colleges often give need-based financial aid through loans, grants and scholarships. The difference between the three is that loans must be re-paid, whereas grants and scholarships are free money. Grants are given out based on financial need, whereas scholarships are given out based on academic, athletic, or even artistic accom-plishments.

Unfortunately, it is the college that decides how much of the financial aid they are willing to give each student. For example, a student who qualifies for $20,000 in fi-nancial aid may receive less than $5,000 (or even less),

and this money is often handed out through loans only.This is extremely unfair; it is getting to the point where

students have to worry about not only getting into a col-lege, but about whether or not they will be able to get financial aid.

In addition, colleges have been increasing their tu-itions five to ten percent each year. The current in-state tuition for UC schools is about $12,000 per year, but a mere 10 years ago, the tuition was only $4,500 per year.

Also, many colleges offer most of their financial aid through loans, which must be paid back after graduation along with interest that is often between five and seven percent.

In addition, even when colleges offer need-based grants, it is extremely difficult to qualify for these; the maximum annual income that a family can have and still qualify for a grant is $80,000 per year, and students that come from families that make barely more than this cut-off are only offered loans.

Some students, despite getting into some of the top colleges in the country, are forced to attend junior col-leges for two years, which takes away the full college ex-perience that many students dream about.

The best thing for students to do to pay for college is to look for outside scholarships. These are usually won through essay competitions, and students from any high school grade can enter. Also, save as early as possible.

Summer jobs are very helpful for raising college mon-ey, and during the school year, babysitting and tutoring are easy jobs that don’t require working long hours.

Colleges are getting more and more expensive every year, so start saving early in order to avoid stress when applying.

ETHAN DECKERFeature Editor

Teens should consider happiness before financial success

Modeling industry struggles to improveELIZABETH GALLAGHEREditorial Editor

KitchONpolitics