Intimidation Leads Prep School Football Team to a Victory

The Lawrence Academy football team prepared to rack up their second victory against St. Georges in as many years. But to Lawrence Academy’s surprise, they wouldn’t even have to play the game to get the division win.

St. George’s school has withdrawn from Friday’s game against the defending Independent School League Champions, Lawrence Academy due to health concerns. Lawrence Academy has been on top of the ISL for the second year in a row winning games easily and by large margins. The Spartans defeated St. George’s 48-15 last year and went undefeated blowing out every team that they faced. For the 2010 season, the Spartans have been ordered by school officials to keep the scoring down.

“I met with out headmaster and the decision was made not to play them,” said Athletic director and Head football coach at St. George’s. “As for the reasons why, you can draw your own conclusions.”

The vague statement by coach Mackay definitely turned heads around the ISL. Lawrence Academy is being looked at under a microscope by not only the entire league, but also within the program. The powerhouse football team is being criticized for allegedly running up scores and being too physical while doing so. Lawrence Academy’s Athletic Director Kathy Noble commented on allegations and criticism saying, “Our goal is to promote sportsmanship and that’s something everyone here wants.”

Another major factor that contributes to Lawrence Academy’s success and other teams complaining is the size of the players. The Spartans have three starting linemen who weight 300 pounds or more. Numerous coaches throughout the league have questioned the size and talent of the Lawrence Academy players.

“This is strictly a safety issue, said St. George’s headmaster Eric Peterson. “We are trying to keep our kids reasonably safe in a game that can be terribly exciting but has risks.”

Lawrence Academy will be credited with the victory but it’s unsure as to how the St. George’s record will be affected. Spartans coach Mike Taylor commented on the issue saying, “We’re disappointed because kids want to play. This is a St. George’s decision, not our decision.” The Spartans have come off back-to-back victories beating Thayer Academy 43-8 and Nobles & Greenough 38-7. Lawrence Academy will host Belmont Hill at home on November 5^th. It will be interesting to see if teams will take on the powerful Spartans or if they will back down because of safety issues.

Ditch the Workout, Join the Party

New Rochelle, N.Y.-- Ditch the workout and join the party. This is just one of the slogans that are attracting people to fitness facilities nationwide for Zumba classes. This latest fitness craze is a Latin-inspired workout class that uses almost every muscle in your body as you shimmy and shake your way fit for about an hour each class.

Alberto Perez, a former aerobics instructor from Colombia founded Zumba in 1999. Realizing that he forgot his usual aerobics music at home one day, he improvised using his favorite Latin salsa and meringue tapes from his car and thus, Zumba was born. Zumba began as a workout DVD that was featured on informercials and eventually developed into actual classes being taught by instructors. These classes cover a range of different dance styles including mambo, cumbia, cha-cha, and meringue. Zumba instructors are taught specific guidelines but each instructor designs his/her classes using their own style. Today, there are over 20,000 certified instructors in 40 countries.

"I love Zumba because it's fun and it is the most effective workout that I've ever tried," says Gabrielle Farah, a certified Zumba instructor who teaches Zumba classes at Iona College. "What I love most about being an instructor is that I get to share my passion with others and help motivate them to maintain a healthy lifestyle."

That is what Zumba is all about. It is a fun and different way of working out and being active. You don't have to be an athlete or a dancer to benefit from Zumba. The choreography is simple yet fun and you can even modify some of the moves according to your own ability. Depending on your weight and how much effort you put in, you can realistically burn about 400-800 calories during an hour long class.

"It is clear that people enjoy Zumba by the feedback I get. I have a lot of "regulars" that come to my class twice a week. Each week people bring new friends so I get about 10 new students a week. I can tell people are having fun by their reactions. There is a lot of smiling and cheering when certain songs come on," says Farrah.

Zumba is so popular because people really find it fun. Instead of jogging on the treadmill or pedaling on a stationary bike, you can forget that you're actually working out while you let loose and dance. It is a great way to break from your daily routine. When you enjoy working out, you are more likely to stick to exercising regularly and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Zumba classes are being offered at many gyms across the country, so it's about time to ditch the workout and join the party!

2010 Midterm Elections: The Campaign Season of Controversies and Crazies

New Rochelle, NY - The 2010 midterm elections will finally take place tomorrow, and a look back at the eventful campaign season yields a multitude of candidates who were controversial, gaffe-prone, and wacky.
In Delaware, Tea Party-backed Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell surprisingly won the nomination and from then on caused a stir with her controversial statements and beliefs. Old videos from Bill Maher’s HBO show “Politically Incorrect” revealed that O’Donnell dabbled in witchcraft and doesn’t believe in masturbation or evolution.
In her debate against Democratic candidate Chris Coons, O’Donnell questioned and didn’t seem to understand that the principle of separation of church and state could be found in the First Amendment.
The New York gubernatorial race was host to a diverse group of people who normally would not have a place in politics. Kristin Davis, the madam of the prostitution ring that Eliot Spitzer was a client of, tried to run under the Libertarian party but did not garner the nomination. Jimmy McMillan ran under “The Rent is 2 Damn High” party. He did not receive much attention his party’s name is basically his own platform, until the televised debate caused his campaign to go viral.
Like O’Donnell, Republican and Tea-Party backed gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino has provided controversy after controversy since garnering his nomination. He sent out a racially insensitive and sexually explicit e-mail to friends that was leaked to the press. He threatened a reporter, was discovered to have a mistress and an illegitimate daughter, and repeatedly spoke out against homosexuality and gay marriage, even criticizing opponent Andrew Cuomo for bringing his children to a gay pride parade.
One of the closest and most closely watched Senate races is in Nevada. There, Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid is fighting to keep his seat against opponent Sharon Angle. She has drawn criticism for her strict stance on illegal immigration, with some going so far as to say she is racist. She did not help matters when she spoke to the Hispanic club of a high school she was visiting and told them “I don’t know that all of you are Latino. Some of you look a little more Asian to me. I don’t know.”
The democratic gubernatorial candidate in Rhode Island, Frank Caprio, told President Obama that he could take his endorsement “and shove it” after he learned that Obama declined to endorse him. Rich Iott, a Tea Party candidate running for election in Ohio’s 9th congressional district, was discovered to be a WWII reenactment enthusiast who enjoyed dressing up in Nazi garb.
No one knows exactly why this campaign season has yielded more gaffes and controversies than ever before, but some sources point to the high level of anger and the inexperience of Tea Party candidates.
With the high stakes of the campaign and the residual anger about issues like unemployment and health care, some candidates simply may not be able to speak their minds in a healthy and professional manner. And some Tea Party candidates are unaccustomed to the pressure of political campaigns, so they are less polished and rougher around the edges.
It remains to be seen what affect these gaffes and controversies will have on the elections, but there will plenty of analysis in the days to come once results are in.
For more on this interesting campaign season, click here:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101029/ap_on_el_ge/us_gaffes_and_gotchas

-Michael O'Connor

Minors: Life After Emergence

On October 13th 2010, 33 Chilean minors were rescued after being trapped underground for over 2 months. According to CBS.com, medical experts state that the men ranging from the ages of 19 to 33, will experience a series of health complications.

According to ABC News, Dr. Schachter who is a medical director at Mt. Sinai in NYC, expects respiratory infections. Dr. Schachter is the director of respiratory care department. Such infections would due to the poor air quality in the mine.

Another concern is apparently fungal risks according to ABC News. Conditions such as "athlete's foot" and "jock itch" can potentially be experienced by the minors. Although not life-threatening such conditions are known to be extremely uncomfortable while taking months to disappear.

There's been a lot of speculation concerning the minors' eyes. Many worried that light exposure after months of darkness could result in retina damage. Yet, according to Ivan Schwab a professor of opthalmology in University of California Davis School of Medicine, their eyes should adapt over time just fine.

The last physical medical concern is the minors' teeth. Some of the minors reportedly have developed gingivitis according to ABC news. Gingivitis is the inflammation of the gums.

Other than that, the minors seem to be doing well. Doctors state that they are looking at some unknowns considering it's the first time people have been rescued after being trapped for so long. For now, they really don't know what else to expect after such a rare and celebratory event.


http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20019445-10391704.html