The Bluffer - Red Bluff, CA
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/164157
Staff Editorial Opinion Page 2 T August 30, 2013 Bluffer Mission Statement he Bluffer has been the primary news source of Red Bluff High School since 1901. From the very beginning, The Bluffer has been dedicated to getting the truth out to students and faculty members at Red Bluff High School and community members. Our motto hasn't changed one bit since then. Although Red Bluff High School is experiencing an era of change, The Bluffer's mission is to hopefully stay the same and continue to relay reliable news and information like it has been doing for many years. As long as these primary values of honesty and integrity stay intact, The Bluffer will continue to be the paper that Red Bluff High School deserves. The Bluffer staff wants you, the reader, to know that The Bluffer is not just ours. If there happens to be any mistakes in future issues, or you just have advice for us to improve any future publications, we would sincerely appreciate that you let us know. Also, if you have an opinion that you want to expresspertaining to any issue, send us a letter, and we can publish it in future Bluffer publication. Reader involvement is a very important part of the Bluffer. So get ready for another great year of news from The Bluffer! Dress code enforcement sparks debate F r i e n d zoning W hen I saw the dress code for the first time this year, I was so confused and mad! I did not know there was going to be a new dress code this year or that it would be so outrageous. Although, there are a couple good things about this whacky dress code, even if it does not seem like it at first. First of all, I think that we should be able to wear what we want all the time, but obviously there would be some problems with that. If we did not have any dress code, students would be walking around in who knows what! Seriously, some people cannot be left on their own without any boundaries or else things could get out of hand. Once you start thinking about it, you can see the good parts of the dress code. Now students might not walk around with shorts or skirts that do not cover anything and that does not leave things to the imagination. Also, it is definitely not pleasant to see things hanging out of places they should not be hanging out of. Apparently the dress code policy has not actually been changed, but that the staff is trying to enforce it more. They have all the R new signs and some of the staff has been carrying out the dress code policy more. However, some of the rules are unrealistic and unnecessary because whether some shorts are too short or whatnot is a total judgment decision, but as the saying goes "One bad apple ruins the whole barrel." So, when people come to school looking trashy with barley any clothes on, they have to make a rule that punishes them and at the same time the rule punishes everyone else. Since they put the rule in, maybe those people that ruined it for everyone one else will check themselves more often and make better choices on what they wear. Most people are fine and even if they are breaking the dress code , it is not as if they are coming to school with sleazy clothes on. So, if people were able to check their own outfit choices, then maybe we would not need a strict dress code policy. We do not want our high school looking trashy or having a degrading reputation, well at least I don't. If you agree with me, then stay classy RBHS. R ecently Red Bluff High School has amped up the school dress code. The rule states that "wearing apparel shall be clean, safe and not disruptive to the instructional process". I understand no student should have their butt, genitalia or Ceighlee Fennel Becca Blanchard Features Editor Topics Editor ecently, there has been much talk of opening up a publically accessible Wi-Fi network, or wireless internet connection, to the campus of Red Bluff High School. This would allow students and other persons on campus to access the internet on their personal devices anywhere on campus using the school's own broadband connection instead of their own. Currently, there is a Wi-Fi network already in place, but it is only accessible to the staff of Red Bluff High School. Wi-Fi? Wi-Not? Most students would agree that opening up this network would be a good choice, but I would have to disagree. Students already have a hard enough time concentrating during school hours, and opening up a public wireless network would only make matters worse. One of my largest concerns is the fact that almost every device students own would be able to connect to the internet. Currently, students can only access the internet at school on school computers, or devices with cellular connections. Opening up a wireless network would allow all devices, such as iPods, non-cellular tablets, and student laptops to connect to the internet. Almost every student at this school owns one of these devices, therefore, almost every student would have constant access to the internet, anywhere in the school. This would increase the number of students using their devices in class drastically. With access to the internet, students would be able to go on Facebook, Twitter, and many THE BLUFFER Editorial Staff News Editors Marissa Chase Josiah Vasey Viewpoint Editor Julia Liebert Tymberlyn Bealer A & E Editors Owen Ritter breasts showing. However, not allowing the showing of a back, or shoulders for example is ridiculous. I have never met somebody who saw a back and said, "I am distracted and cannot learn; that back is just too provocative." The school is so focused on looking down upon how students express their individuality when they could be spending their time improving the school. However, that will not happen when we are being shamed for showing our ankles. Personally, I will admit I have gotten in trouble for the length of my shorts before because my sweater was longer, despite being told that the shorts were appropriate and long enough less than a week earlier. However, because I grabbed one of my mother's sweaters as a walked out the door because it was colder than I expected and I was running late for the bus, I was told to not wear the shorts again. Then we have the Editor-In-Chief Marissa Chase River Mist Grey Grotke Maggie Tallan Garret Ward and Twitter, but it should remain outside of school. With a publically accessible Wi-Fi network at school, the line between personal life and class would only become more fine. P latonic friendships do exist. Sometimes, those friendships take a step forward and become romantic relationships. But is there a middle? Is there an area for those that want a romantic relationship, but their friend doesn't want the same thing, an area where the friend anticipating a relationship has the right to be angry? I say no. The friendzone assumes that one feels they are entitled to a relationship in exchange for a previous kindness or a long-standing friendship. If rejected, the other is now someone to be annoyed or angry with. Some would argue that after a long standing friendship, if a friend wants a relationship, the other owes it to them. Guilt tripping someone for not liking you back is like bullying someone for their race or appearance, qualities they can't control. Friendships are not of any less value just because an anticipated relationship was not the outcome. Friendship is not a loser's circle. As the term friendzone continues to be tossed about in the adolescent population, I find it troubling that some are more focused on finding a relationship than valuing good friends. Being attracted to someone is something one may not be able to control, just as not being attracted to someone is something one can't control. River Mist Maggie Tallan Staff Writer Staff Writer SPARTAN THUMBS Adviser Editor-In-Chief Advertising Director Kellie Rodriguez Alisa Pelanconi Josiah Vasey Staff Writers other popular social media sites on devices other than phones. Students would be unable to resist the pull of new followers or the latest tweet, increasing the amount of distracted students. Most students would argue for a Wi-Fi network, saying that it would increase their productivity at school ,and allow them to perform more schoolwork outside of the classroom at school, but the distrations would outweigh the benefits. There is no problem with students accessing sites like Facebook new rule of no running shorts. If we are going this extreme, then maybe we should compromise. If we are allowed to wear running shorts, I will refrain from using words such as melodramatic, asinine and fascist. Finally, we must point out the most common complaints. The school sent out the notice of the dress code changes far too late in the year, by this point many students had already purchased their clothes. The school is now cracking down on not only the "controversial" female attire but also the male students "bro tanks". Lastly, the school seems to have skewed priorities as nothing seems to be done about gang apparel. Yup, the school system has now taken the role of a snobby teenager in focusing on what I am wearing, rather than improving the actual school. It is good to know that the school knows their priorities, even if they crack down on involved students rather than those in gang apparel. So school, in order to end on a positive, though sarcastic note: thank you for going way overboard on a simple set of rules just so that people will forget about all of the disreputable things going on at RBHS. Cartoonist Karla Nowicki Features Editors Ceighlee Fennel Sports Editors Ryan Fisher Topics Editors Bailey Patchen Becca Blanchard Editorial Policy: Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the district, staff, or student body. We welcome signed letters to the editor. Names may be withheld upon request. We also reserve the right to edit submission based on length and/or clarity. Classier looking Freshmen Students think freshman are looking more fly each year. Salad bar Students are liking the new salad bar. No Drop off No drop off in the student or facalty parking lot Gummy Worms Vending mashine has upgraded to gummy worms. Dress Code Students think the more inforced dress code sucks *These Thumbs came from Mr. Palubeski's 6th period class.