Should Bullfighting be stopped?
Imagine this; being thrown into a ring, with nothing but courage and hope by your side. You are played with, tormented, and then slowly ripped apart by long, sharp cornered spikes. You slowly feel them piercing your skin, penetrating your flesh, until the pain is so agonizing that you drop to the ground, dead. This is what happens to over 250,000 bulls every year. Bullfighting is a Spanish tradition that has been taking place for centuries. Bullfighting is a barbaric ritual, as bulls are simply slaughtered for pure amusement, suffer an unnecessary and painful death, and are killed by thousands. The concepts of bullfighting are cruel and brutal, as the bulls are simply murdered for fun. During a bullfight, a bull is forced to enter a ring, and fight a man, also named the matador. The stadium is filled with thousands of screaming and highly energetic people, which directly frightens and disorients the bull. Then, he is put up to an unwinnable fight with the matador, who is armed with a long sword and flesh-piercing spears. Surrounding the bull are numerous cavaliers on horses, who, with great aggressivity, puncture the bull’s body to force him in approaching and fighting the matador. This process in Spanish is called “el tercio de muerte”, meaning the third death. (Wikipedia.org) The crowd goes wild, and admires the matador, forgetting the poor and wounded bull. In other words, the bull who only had one life, died savagely by a ritual who believes that slaughtering animals is amusing. Moreover, what many bullfighting spectators forget, is that the bull goes through hell and agony before taking his last breath. Fans consider “violence and blood being part of the fiesta.” states the bullfighting critic, Antonio Lorca. (ElPais.com) The bulls get stabbed by sharp hooks in their neck muscles, leading to the bulls first great loss of blood and excessive fatigue. Later on, the matador finishes of the bull with his slaying weapon, the sword. He stabs the bull between its shoulders, “puncturing the animal’s heart and killing it.” (Livescience.com) Additionally, when the man put on a good show, he gets to cut of the bull’s two ears and tail and brings them home. Behind the show and all of the action, little do people know that the bull suffered greatly. Furthermore, as was mentioned earlier, bullfighting is a Spanish ritual that has been occurring for thousands of years. Thus, an inconsiderable number of innocent bulls have been killed by now. To be more precise, every year, “approximately 250,000 bulls are killed in bullfights.” (his.org) As bullfighting started in year 711 A.D, millions, even billions of bulls have been slaughtered in the rings of those murderous arenas. Would anyone slaughter a dog, a koala, or any other living organism that way? The simple answer is no. Then why a bull? Haven’t humans stopped gladiator and man to man slaughtering? Why haven’t they stopped bullfighting? Mankind has not yet understood the injustice of killing millions of these animals for pure amusement. Bullfighting is a tradition which has been admired for its cultural heritage and enthusiastic combats, but has never been perceived as a murderous and animal-slaughtering game. Many don’t realize how much pain and sorrow a bull goes through before it bites the dust. Some could describe it as agony, and others as hell. The arena is a one way ticket for a bull; he will enter, and never come out alive. Bullfighting consists of killings bulls for fun, making them die terrible and pointless deaths, and exterminating them by thousands. Humans want to stop wars and terrorism, but shouldn’t we start by doing something easier and more achievable, such as saving poor bulls from arena slaughtering?
Silence
The most overwhelming thing
Your feelings holding on a string
But the greatest thing is how I can only be in silence with you
And to know you’re the only one to help me through
Yet you don't know the silence I hold
The thoughts I possess that want to be told.
How you make me smile or make me want to cry.
How you're always on my mind and can never say goodbye
But my thoughts always seem to crash,
As waves of darkness start to lash
Tears want to escape my eye
As the sunset in my mind turns into the nights' sky
Clouds surround my thoughts and you're not there
I try to scream voices of despair
But it’s no use I'm stuck in silence
Yet you speak and stop the violence
As the dark clouds disappear
And I start to notice there is no more fear
Your voice broke the silence
It broke the thoughts that seemed timeless
My mind rests easy as it hears you
And my face turns into something brand new.
My love for her
My love for her might not be rare
For love has been done many times with more to spare
But I can't deny the feeling in my heart
It's like it hurts as it starts
But continues as an overwhelming feeling
I can be with you and just stare at a ceiling
And that would be the best memory ever
As I try to impress you with something clever
But my words start repeating as I think of you
So we laugh at the moment and continue
But that's not love, just joy of being with her.
So how do I express my love without seeming a moments blur?
Maybe describing her soft lips and smooth skin
Her eyes that shine like emeralds and all I can do is grin,
But she’s more than that, more than just looks
A beauty not repeated in books
Her personality shines through I spoke to her and my love grew.
She expresses how she understands but can also laugh
As she has a good sense of humor and jokes on her behalf.
Her words entice me and I'm stuck in her voice
Or maybe it's that I was her choice.
Maybe it's not my love that shines but hers
How she tells me “I'm yours”.
How she's the one that laughs at my comments
Even if what I said was nonsense. All this time my love was not rare
But hers was something you couldn't find anywhere.
Images
We’re in our car, listening to music and singing along.
We made a playlist full of our favorite songs,
You lower the window and put your hand out
I look at you and think of how much I love you without a doubt
It’s night and the red stop light shines bright.
We look at each other and feel no fright
When it’s green I grab your hand in mine
But that's not the only image I have in mind.
I see us on our couch, watching a movie or a show
I hold you close to me, I look at your eyes that glow
Now and then we exchange a kiss
Happily knowing we no longer have to miss.
We start to watch our movie list
And miss some parts of the movie cause we couldn't resist.
That's my main picture of me and you
And there's the one where we’re at the roof enjoying the view,
We can see the Ferris wheel and the sun setting. This one I’ll never be forgetting,
It’s the only image I have that is a memory
Your feelings holding on a string
But the greatest thing is how I can only be in silence with you
And to know you’re the only one to help me through
Yet you don't know the silence I hold
The thoughts I possess that want to be told.
How you make me smile or make me want to cry.
How you're always on my mind and can never say goodbye
But my thoughts always seem to crash,
As waves of darkness start to lash
Tears want to escape my eye
As the sunset in my mind turns into the nights' sky
Clouds surround my thoughts and you're not there
I try to scream voices of despair
But it’s no use I'm stuck in silence
Yet you speak and stop the violence
As the dark clouds disappear
And I start to notice there is no more fear
Your voice broke the silence
It broke the thoughts that seemed timeless
My mind rests easy as it hears you
And my face turns into something brand new.
My love for her
My love for her might not be rare
For love has been done many times with more to spare
But I can't deny the feeling in my heart
It's like it hurts as it starts
But continues as an overwhelming feeling
I can be with you and just stare at a ceiling
And that would be the best memory ever
As I try to impress you with something clever
But my words start repeating as I think of you
So we laugh at the moment and continue
But that's not love, just joy of being with her.
So how do I express my love without seeming a moments blur?
Maybe describing her soft lips and smooth skin
Her eyes that shine like emeralds and all I can do is grin,
But she’s more than that, more than just looks
A beauty not repeated in books
Her personality shines through I spoke to her and my love grew.
She expresses how she understands but can also laugh
As she has a good sense of humor and jokes on her behalf.
Her words entice me and I'm stuck in her voice
Or maybe it's that I was her choice.
Maybe it's not my love that shines but hers
How she tells me “I'm yours”.
How she's the one that laughs at my comments
Even if what I said was nonsense. All this time my love was not rare
But hers was something you couldn't find anywhere.
Images
We’re in our car, listening to music and singing along.
We made a playlist full of our favorite songs,
You lower the window and put your hand out
I look at you and think of how much I love you without a doubt
It’s night and the red stop light shines bright.
We look at each other and feel no fright
When it’s green I grab your hand in mine
But that's not the only image I have in mind.
I see us on our couch, watching a movie or a show
I hold you close to me, I look at your eyes that glow
Now and then we exchange a kiss
Happily knowing we no longer have to miss.
We start to watch our movie list
And miss some parts of the movie cause we couldn't resist.
That's my main picture of me and you
And there's the one where we’re at the roof enjoying the view,
We can see the Ferris wheel and the sun setting. This one I’ll never be forgetting,
It’s the only image I have that is a memory
Senioritis - High School Myth or Urban Truth
Every year, seniors around the United States drop their grades and attendance,
blaming the occurrence on newly popular term “Senioritis”. As defined by the latest update of the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "Senioritis is an ebbing of motivation and effort by school seniors as evidenced by tardiness, absences, and lower grades”. The colloquial term is mainly employed in the United States and Canada. However, people aren’t sure this is a legit condition just yet, or for that matter, if it should count as a valid excuse. Most high school and college upperclassmen would say the term is most definitely real. However, parents and teachers,—and even some lower class students— remain unconvinced, and blame the sudden loss of interest and apathy on laziness.
The common factor in all cases of this rare occurrence is that Senioritis seems to set in after college applications and mid-year reports have been sent in. As far as we know, college and high school seniors have either gotten really good at faking this supposed condition, or they do indeed experience a slump in their motivation that they can't find any other explanation for. On the other hand, there exists the possibility that while multiple students genuinely experience this problem, a handful of their counterparts take advantage of the opportunity to slack off given that they already have a justification for their unenergetic preferences. Furthermore, I took the liberty of asking a high school senior and one of my teachers to share their thoughts on the concept: Sofia Peres and Mrs. Maria Lugo. “Senioritis is most definitely real and I can already feel it creeping up on me” ( P. Sofia) “I definitely noticed that there is a decline
in students motivation after January, but whether this is a real condition or simply exhaustion, we might never know.” (L. Maria)
Nonetheless, as a current high school student, I can vouch for the existence of senioritis, but not to the extent of its full connotation. Although after sending in college applications and receiving mid-year reports, my productivity levels did indeed drop, affecting grades and work ethic, I knew all along why this was occurring. College preparation has proven to be exhausting and after researching, applying, and writing dozens of versions of the same essay, all thats left to do is wait. No one claims senior year is insignificant, but it is true that whatever grades you got the previous years determines your chance of admission. For this reason, after sending in all my applications, I began to slack off, in a sense, giving myself a break. Regardless, Senioritis shouldn’t be used as an excuse throughout all of senior year but students, for the most part, are not being lazy, they are taking a break well-deserved after 12+ years of preparation for this culminating occurrence that is college.
blaming the occurrence on newly popular term “Senioritis”. As defined by the latest update of the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "Senioritis is an ebbing of motivation and effort by school seniors as evidenced by tardiness, absences, and lower grades”. The colloquial term is mainly employed in the United States and Canada. However, people aren’t sure this is a legit condition just yet, or for that matter, if it should count as a valid excuse. Most high school and college upperclassmen would say the term is most definitely real. However, parents and teachers,—and even some lower class students— remain unconvinced, and blame the sudden loss of interest and apathy on laziness.
The common factor in all cases of this rare occurrence is that Senioritis seems to set in after college applications and mid-year reports have been sent in. As far as we know, college and high school seniors have either gotten really good at faking this supposed condition, or they do indeed experience a slump in their motivation that they can't find any other explanation for. On the other hand, there exists the possibility that while multiple students genuinely experience this problem, a handful of their counterparts take advantage of the opportunity to slack off given that they already have a justification for their unenergetic preferences. Furthermore, I took the liberty of asking a high school senior and one of my teachers to share their thoughts on the concept: Sofia Peres and Mrs. Maria Lugo. “Senioritis is most definitely real and I can already feel it creeping up on me” ( P. Sofia) “I definitely noticed that there is a decline
in students motivation after January, but whether this is a real condition or simply exhaustion, we might never know.” (L. Maria)
Nonetheless, as a current high school student, I can vouch for the existence of senioritis, but not to the extent of its full connotation. Although after sending in college applications and receiving mid-year reports, my productivity levels did indeed drop, affecting grades and work ethic, I knew all along why this was occurring. College preparation has proven to be exhausting and after researching, applying, and writing dozens of versions of the same essay, all thats left to do is wait. No one claims senior year is insignificant, but it is true that whatever grades you got the previous years determines your chance of admission. For this reason, after sending in all my applications, I began to slack off, in a sense, giving myself a break. Regardless, Senioritis shouldn’t be used as an excuse throughout all of senior year but students, for the most part, are not being lazy, they are taking a break well-deserved after 12+ years of preparation for this culminating occurrence that is college.
The State of Venezuela
Through the days of February 16th and the 17th of 2019 the US stood in Colombia near the borders of Venezuela's in order to give aid to the starving and troubled people desperate aid. Venezuela is a country which has been plagued by a regime and at the center of that regime is Nicolas Maduro a dictator. Under him the people of Venezuela have suffered a great deal from power outages, famine, the currency has dropped in value and there has been a lack of medication. This has caused a humanitarian crisis causing sanction atop sanction to be placed internationally on Venezuela. Maduro has blamed all these problems on the US and their neighbor Colombia, stating that they’ve been stealing their food and that the US is the cause of their power outages. The humanitarian aid which was sent in, was destroyed by the regime’s military. Juan Guiado the nations interim president has called upon help the international community and has been recognized by many countries. For the past two days Venezuela has been in a power outage for a full two days, in most of its 23 states. Power is finally returning to the country, but slowly. Leaving us all with the question. What will happen to Venezuela?
Changes in the US
It is an undeniable fact that, as of late, the United States government has been undergoing an incredible amount of unprecedented changes. Due to the combination of investigations, reforms, and scandals that now characterize the current political climate, one may find it difficult to remain cognizant of all that is occurring in both local and national circles, especially when transparency has been jeopardized by the interference of foreign parties. Recently, the imminent dissatisfaction of the American youth when it comes to the United States administration has been receiving more attention, especially in light of the catastrophes that have been affecting their ranks (school shootings, the threat of climate change, etc.). In fact, this particular demographic seems to have defied the expectations of older generations, as many of its members have sifted through the politically charged quagmire that prevents most practiced politicians from pushing their own agendas, setting their sights firmly on securing their futures. Across the nation, young protestors have been dedicating themselves to whichever causes they may deem worthy, sometimes even forgoing their educations to attend events or gather en masse outside the offices of pivotal representatives. In DC, it is even possible that teenagers will be allowed to interact with the government in a more direct fashion, as the age of voting may be pushed back two years in order to allow sixteen and seventeen year old to participate in the 2020 elections. Considering the other rights that are granted to U.S. citizens once they first turn 16, it is evident that they are considered relatively mature by the very institution they are trying to reform, and therefore should be granted the ability to communicate with lawmakers through a method trusted since the veritable dawn of democracy. In order to truly enact change within the United States, we must place our faith in the hands of its capable youth. After all, if the children are our future, then why should we prevent them from trying to shape it?
What is Bioterrorism?
Bioterrorism is referred to as the deliberate use of toxins or microorganisms with the
intent to intimidate, spread disease, kill, or damage government and social structures/
communities. Unlike other methods of unlawful use of violence and intimidation (politically or
socially-inclined), biological threats serve the same purpose while using different weapons and
procedures. These behaviors range from a simple dispersion of flu, to a horde attack of anthrax
and smallpox, and are principally motivated by constitutional, environmental, and religious
principles; therefore, it is crucial to recognize dangerous threats and how these may affect
humanity as a whole, concluding that government institutions must make reforms to advance
protection against biological threats. As countries begin to reevaluate their national security
measures and revise regulations, radical organizations continue to expand their weaponry and
prosper, with a few taking the option of using biological weapons. The use of biological threats
dates back to the fourteenth century B.C., however, it is complicated for microbiologists to
discern intentional attacks from natural outbreaks; nevertheless, only in the early 1900s have
nations experienced a noteworthy rise in modern technologies, a greater capacity of weaponry,
and an advancement in scientific intelligence. Since the remarkable improvement of the
twentieth century, bioterrorism has been an evolving form of the illegal action of brutality.
As technology advances, bioweapons tend to stand at inexpensive prices, are relatively
simple to manufacture, and can bring about horde fatalities; all of these factors play a role in the
increasing global awareness and peril regarding biological warfare for both terrorist and
domestic war attacks. Historically, governments around the world have highlighted the importance of
bioterrorism and its effects on a target, bringing upon the development and research into
biological agents/weapons. Biological warfare can be used secretly to decimate complete
populations or destroy livestock and crops, physically and economically affecting a society.
Considering this, in case of a strike, whether intentional or not, the rate of reliability, selectivity,
and effectiveness of biodefense programs, must be proficient. In this case, some informative
solutions should be taken into consideration, such as: the establishment of a computerized
network, able to stockpile or save sensitive information following attacks; the renewal and
revision of bills, conventions, and laws regarding biological warfare; and the implementation of
practice scenarios, in varying stages, to depict a real-life setting of how the public should react in
order to defend against a threat.
Following the terrorist attack on the United States in October 2001, which involved the
dissemination of Anthrax by the postal system’s distribution and processing of letters that
resulted in twenty-two casualties, the world observed an elevated level of threat from the aspect
of bioterrorism. With the interconnection of data and modern, encrypted communication
methods, the threat of extremist organizations who plan to unleash catastrophes on a global scale,
have substantially increased.
While attempting to foresee what terrorists will resort to next, the possible use of
biological weapons remains a noteworthy hazard that demands attention and consistent
monitoring
intent to intimidate, spread disease, kill, or damage government and social structures/
communities. Unlike other methods of unlawful use of violence and intimidation (politically or
socially-inclined), biological threats serve the same purpose while using different weapons and
procedures. These behaviors range from a simple dispersion of flu, to a horde attack of anthrax
and smallpox, and are principally motivated by constitutional, environmental, and religious
principles; therefore, it is crucial to recognize dangerous threats and how these may affect
humanity as a whole, concluding that government institutions must make reforms to advance
protection against biological threats. As countries begin to reevaluate their national security
measures and revise regulations, radical organizations continue to expand their weaponry and
prosper, with a few taking the option of using biological weapons. The use of biological threats
dates back to the fourteenth century B.C., however, it is complicated for microbiologists to
discern intentional attacks from natural outbreaks; nevertheless, only in the early 1900s have
nations experienced a noteworthy rise in modern technologies, a greater capacity of weaponry,
and an advancement in scientific intelligence. Since the remarkable improvement of the
twentieth century, bioterrorism has been an evolving form of the illegal action of brutality.
As technology advances, bioweapons tend to stand at inexpensive prices, are relatively
simple to manufacture, and can bring about horde fatalities; all of these factors play a role in the
increasing global awareness and peril regarding biological warfare for both terrorist and
domestic war attacks. Historically, governments around the world have highlighted the importance of
bioterrorism and its effects on a target, bringing upon the development and research into
biological agents/weapons. Biological warfare can be used secretly to decimate complete
populations or destroy livestock and crops, physically and economically affecting a society.
Considering this, in case of a strike, whether intentional or not, the rate of reliability, selectivity,
and effectiveness of biodefense programs, must be proficient. In this case, some informative
solutions should be taken into consideration, such as: the establishment of a computerized
network, able to stockpile or save sensitive information following attacks; the renewal and
revision of bills, conventions, and laws regarding biological warfare; and the implementation of
practice scenarios, in varying stages, to depict a real-life setting of how the public should react in
order to defend against a threat.
Following the terrorist attack on the United States in October 2001, which involved the
dissemination of Anthrax by the postal system’s distribution and processing of letters that
resulted in twenty-two casualties, the world observed an elevated level of threat from the aspect
of bioterrorism. With the interconnection of data and modern, encrypted communication
methods, the threat of extremist organizations who plan to unleash catastrophes on a global scale,
have substantially increased.
While attempting to foresee what terrorists will resort to next, the possible use of
biological weapons remains a noteworthy hazard that demands attention and consistent
monitoring
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Journalism Class at ISPA
At International Studies Preparatory Academy we offer a variety of programs, electives, and extracurriculars, one of these being our amazing Journalism class. In this class, students from different grades are able to develop and share their creativity with the entire student body and faculty, when it comes to writing articles on all types of topics and most especially, creating content for the yearbook. Our school offers an online newsletter, where students that are both a part of the class as well as those that are not, are able to upload content to the website. We are not only a team but a family, where we can all give off this essence of community. It is a safe environment where students can feel sure and encouraged of the ideas they would like to share with others around them. Students are given the option of writing about politics, to celebrity life and even upcoming concerts or award shows; and most particularly, on school events throughout the school year which helps everyone stay informed on events that have happened and those that will. Although we are a small school, we have been able to achieve a lot with our newsletter. Some students have even been featured on VIP303 Miami, establishing a base of credibility for our writers. Even if one isn’t the best writer, students can still spread their ideas through photography for our yearbook! Words can be very moving but a picture lasts a lifetime and it is there for everyone to remember forever which is why it is as equally as important as writing. This is also a big part of the class that is crucial for the yearbook. Apart from being able to share their thoughts in their writing, the best part has to be being able to come together as whole and contributing to our school’s annual yearbook. This is definitely one of the best parts because we all get to see something that started very small and was just an idea, come to a reality. We start off deciding a theme and as soon as you know it, the end of the year is approaching and the yearbook has to be finished! It is one of the most stressful parts that are involved in this course, but in the end it turns into a beautiful outcome which brings satisfaction to all of us. This year, our team decided that we would come up with a new theme that would go into our yearbook: “Through the Decades”. We decided to create a retro type of theme, where we would go through the lense of the years or decades. We put each class recalling the memories through the “years”, in this case the 2018-2019 school year. Along with creating amazing content and and a spectacular yearbook is an extra bonus to the Journalism class which is our new jackets! Designed by our very own classmates, everyone in the class received a jacket with the newsletter website on the back. Everyone was asking us where we had gotten them! This class has had a long lasting effect on students and we hope to continue to be able to inspire students to let their inner writer flourish.
