Black Friday is approaching and Penn Manor students seem to be pretty excited to go, as they share their past experiences.
“Last year I saw two guys get into a fist fight,” said senior Dan Short. “I’m guessing it was either over something they both wanted, or they were just unhappy with each other.”
Students go for the good sales, getting their Christmas gifts at good prices, the company of friends, or just something to do.
Popular game systems can be found dirt cheap on Black Friday
Penn Manor students said they will spend anywhere from $20 to $250 on all sorts of different items.
“I usually go to get a good pair of shoes. Maybe a nice pair of Nikes,” said Brian Buckius.
Some students don’t even go to buy anything, just to walk around, meet new people and socialize.
“Black Friday is when I usually buy gifts for my family since I can get them at a cheap price,” said Jeremy Ostberg.
“I spent over $200 on Black Friday last year,” reported Abby Newport.
A lot of students go to get good prices on video games and video game systems, since the stores normally have good deals going on and these items are usually very expensive.
Black Friday gives students many opportunities, that don’t come around often.
All kinds of opportunities.
“I usually just go to check out the ladies,” said Brock Kauffman.
As they hitch hike rides into homes on clothing, luggage, and various other things, bed bugs have certainly upgraded their vaguely known name.
As of this fall, exterminators have been called out to treat bed bugs in all districts throughout Lancaster County, according to a local exterminating business, Kirchner’s Pest control.
“Over the past two years, our calls have increased majorly,” said Londa Weaver, owner of the business. “We average five calls per week. Ten years ago, we had none.
“We had four treatments done yesterday alone,” Weaver added.
Anne Butterfield, a nurse at Penn Manor High School, explained what she knew about bed bugs.
“They live in seams of mattresses and feed off human blood,” said Butterfield. “They
Bed bugs creep their way into beds. Photo courtesy of getridbedbugs.org
can give rashes as well as bites, and can survive in a whole range of temperatures. Last spring, I sent kids to their doctors concerning bites that may have been from bed bugs.
A science teacher at Penn Manor High School, Erick Dutchess, expressed his thoughts about bed bugs.
“Bed bugs are like Santa Claus, they are not real,” joked Dutchess.
“I am not worried about bed bugs because I’m clean and I wash my sheets once a week,” said senior Joey Carlyle.
“I change my sheets, and I’m not worried because I have a water bed. I suggest that everyone convert to a water bed,” said Tanner Kennedy.
Many people have that ex
Bed bugs survive on human blood. Photo courtesy of www.examiner.com
act misconception. Being clean and having water beds does not prevent bed bugs. Bed bugs can still infect water beds, according to killbedbugs.org.
Butterfield also explained the eradication procedures.
“They are pesticide and non-pesticide based, like mechanical approaches. Vacuuming, wrapping the mattress for a period of time and heat treatment,” said Butterfield.
According to bedbugplague.com, the thermal death temperature for bed bugs is approximately 125 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit.
At Kirchner’s Pest Control, they use the crack and crevice treatment.
“The guys on the job have to get rid of the infested mattresses, box springs, and any upholstered furniture,” said Weaver. ” It is much more expensive for people to have us do bed bug treatment. It’s more labor intensive and time consuming. Since bed bugs like to hide, the guys have to treat not only bed frames, but everything including picture frames that are hanging on the wall.”
It’s the beginning of the end. The end of Harry, that is.
The lines were long, but these fans thought that it was worth it.
On Thursday night, thousands – perhaps millions – of Harry Potter fans waited in line to see the penultimate installment of the Harry Potter series – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
“Everyone laughs and cries together, like a big family,” said Taylor Breidenbaugh, a Penn Manor senior who came as Bellatrix Lestrange.
The excitement for this movie was palpable.
According to MovieTickets.com, Deathly Hallows was the fourth biggest advance ticket generator in history.
The teaser clips and official poster arrived early in October, and most of the fan sites – like the Leaky Cauldron and Mugglenet – had widgets counting down till the release date.
Lancaster’s Regal Manor 16 theater was no exception.
When fans arrived at 10:30 that fateful night to see the midnight showing, they were astonished to see a line starting at one of the theaters and stretching around the corner. And around another corner. And another, until finally halting at the very rear of the building – theater 12.
Every so often, employees set up the movie equivalent of snack cart – complete with popcorn, soda, and candy, so fans wouldn’t have to step out of line to procure their favorite treats.
There were easily three hundred people in that line, and the number kept growing. According to an employee, three separate theaters had been sold out.
Most of these people were normal, average, everyday muggles out for a movie. There were some, however, that were most definitely not the kind of people you would expect to see out of Diagon Alley.
The Golden Snitch runs from her pursuer - a Seeker.
There were Harrys and Rons, Hermiones (complete with Time Turners) and Quidditch players.
The most common type of getup was simply a cashmere gray sweater over a white button down dress shirt, complete with a different color tie depending upon the house and bottoms – pants for men, skirts for ladies.
There were also wizard supporters sporting homemade t-shirts, like “Horcrux Finders Quidditch Team” and “Team Draco.”
Some fans took it to the next level, and had some crazy, creative costumes – like a golden snitch or Harry’s Patronus. Others chose characters like Dolores Umbridge, Bellatrix, Luna, or Tonks.
Once the managers started directing people into the theaters at 10:45 p.m, the fun really began.
It was one of those you-had-to-be-there moments: the girl dressed as the Golden Snitch jumped up, and saw a man sporting a broom and a homemade Quidditch (any witch or wizard’s favorite sport, a cross between rugby and soccer – oh, and it’s played on a broom) uniform. Their eyes locked. Then she took off, weaving between the aisles and leaping down stairs, trying to elude the Quidditch player who had jumped after her. The whole room erupted in cheers, almost everyone with a smile or look of pure joy on their faces, and when he finally caught the Golden Snitch, the applause and laughter would have scared any Dementor away. And this was at 11:00 p.m..
Sophomore Sarah Whyler came to the show dressed as Ginny Weasley, Ron Weasley's little sister.
A Dobby (dressed in a pillowcase) circulated through the crowd, receiving more than one cheer.
Regal occasionally changes up the sequence that appears on the screen that tells fans where the refreshments are and to be courteous to the other movie goers.
This time the fan was taken through a roller coaster ride on the screen, which sped through signs telling movie goers to silence their cells phones and looped in corkscrew like paths.
What did a third of the theater do? Raised their arms just as if they were riding a real roller coaster, and waved their arms whenever they went around a turn, ooh-ing and ah-ing at the appropriate moments.
And of the movie itself?
“I thought it was great. It stuck to the storyline pretty well and had the right amount of seriousness and comic relief,” said sophomore Cate Shipley, who came dressed as Gryffindor Lavender Brown.
“It followed the book pretty well. They did a good job, as always, at really capturing so much emotion. It is more mature than the other stories but still has fun parts. I really enjoyed being at the midnight premier because everyone is so excited and into it,” said Breidenbaugh.
Film critic Roger Ebert gave the movie a three out of four star rating, and Rotten Tomatoes gave it a rating of 78 percent. However, ninety percent of the Rotten Tomatoes audience section gave it thumbs up, with the average rating being 4.4 out of five.
Fox News gave the movie 2.5 stars, saying “This seventh film in the series (Part 2 will be released next summer) is a drag: Too little happens – and then when it does kick into gear, it stops: ‘To be continued.”
Dobby - or Brendan Kincade - came to watch the midnight showing.
Then the review goes on to say, “As for the story, well, why bother trying to explain it at this point? If you haven’t been following along, there’s no catching up. It would be like trying to explain “Lost” to someone who missed the first two seasons and wants to start with the third.”
According to MSNBC, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 earned $24 million at the midnight showing – and that’s just the domestic sales.
Over the opening weekend, the movie accrued $330.1 million worldwide – the most out of any movie in the series.
All of the seven movies so far have made $5.5 billion worldwide.
“When we started ‘Harry Potter,’ basically, the audience was driven to theaters by their parents. Today, those same kids are driving to the midnight shows themselves,” said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Brothers.
The MPAA gave Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows a rating of PG-13, for intense action violence, frightening imagery, and brief sensuality. Common Sense Media, a website that helps parents decide whether a movie or television program is age appropriate or not, gave the movie a 12+ rating – and four out of five stars.
“I thought it was a great movie! It followed to book really well with the right amount of action and funniness, and cut parts that really didn’t need to be in it out. I can’t wait till July when the second part comes out,” said Andrew Glick.
The theaters were packed with Harry Potter fans.
As one of the final scenes played out – and the significant character event that readers of the series will remember occurred – one could hear sniffles and sobs around you.
The fans were mourning – mourning the characters that they have loved and lost, the stories they grew up with, and the adventure that has to come to a final end.
With Black Friday and Christmas right around the corner, the stress of finding the perfect gift is becoming more and more of a treasure hunt.
It’s hard to know exactly what a high school student’s hoping to wake up to on Christmas morning?
Here’s a map to find at least some of the gifts teens at Penn Manor are seeking, which is not in any particular order.
1. Ugg boots seem to be a popular trend for girls. Even though many girls own a pair of Ugg boots already, they seem to want more!
“I really want a new pair of UGGS!” said Samantha McCrery.
2. Laptop computers are a popular gift for teens in high school, mostly because students are graduating and will be entering college in the near future. Laptops are a necessity for college students and are in high demand.
3. As the prices for gas are continuing to rise, many teens from Penn Manor High School are asking for gas cards or any type of money for to pay for gas.
4. Another gift requested by teens in the high school is an iTrip so that they are able to listen to their iPod while driving.
5. Kids who have older cars that can’t accommodate the newer technology, like an iTrip or FM transmitter, hope to get CDs on Christmas morning.
6. A gift request, common to all high school students, seems to be any type of game system or video game controller. For example, ps3 and xbox are on many teens’ gift lists.
7. Here’s another idea: concert tickets and game tickets, whether they are professional football or basketball tickets.
8. Some students want a sound system for their car, or surround sound for their rooms. When many seniors go to college next year they hope to have surround sound in their dorms.
9. A mall gift card is always welcome. You can use it for anything and get change back.
10. Clothes and jewelry will also surprise and delight your teen on Christmas morning. Outfits from American Eagle, Forever 21, Nike and PacSun are a few suggestions. Tiffany’s jewelry, while expensive, is a classic and sought after gift.
So Santas, get shopping. Black Friday and Christmas will be here before you know it.
Lancaster Lebanon back of the week was awarded to sophomore Daulton Parmer.
Parmer, the Comets slot back, earned himself the award not usually given to sophomores. He found out by the LL insider when they posted the award.
Parmer was evaluated during play by local sportswriters.
Parmer on top of his game. Photo by Kyle Hallett
When the comets played Cedar Crest, Parmer had 300 offensive yards along with three touchdowns.
Parmer was a key player during the game and is expected to remain valuable throughout his high school career.
“That was the most yards and touchdowns I have had in one game,” said Parmer. “I was pumped about the award and I’m really happy all of my hard work paid off.”
Parmer is a starter as a slot back and also defensive back.
“This award was a great opportunity and I love the recognition I am getting,” said Parmer.
The bridge between Millersville and Conestoga is officially open.
At 3:15 p.m. Friday, A spokesman for the state transportation office said the barriers were being dragged away to open the bridge.
It had to open in the next 24 hours for the construction contractor not to incur a daily fine for going over the Nov. 20 deadline.
“If they didn’t have the bridge open by Saturday, they have to pay a fee,” said Greg Penny, a local PennDot spokesman, who is pretty confident the deadline will be met.
So the bridge will open, for awhile and then close partially so extra work can be done, according to state officals.
“I’m excited,” said phys-ed teacher, Britney Clugston, about the bridge. “It will make getting to Conestoga more convenient, and getting to the the Y(MCA) in Lampeter.”
When the last work is done and the bridge opens, the 6000 people inconvenienced every day will soon be able to go back to their normal routine of driving straight into or out of Millersville instead of going the whole way around.
The bridge in the district has been under construction for five months. Photo by Liz Lawrence
Tons of people all over the district are excited, even if it doesn’t inconvenience them directly.
“Maybe people will start going that way instead of my way,” said Jeremy Ostberg of Willow Street.
“It’s gonna save me gas money, instead of going the whole way around,” said junior Cheyenne Weber. “It will convenience me with sports and getting to the high school.”
“My sister-in-law lives over there, so that’s the only time I go over there,” said physical education teacher David Hess. “It will be great for us because we go there for Christmas, instead of going the whole way around.”
The construction, being done by J.D. Eckman Inc, was down to it’s last step of fixing the road to the bridge and the guide rails.
“They’re still waiting for the guide rail crew to finish sometime this evening,” Penny said. “The bridge will open then but there is still work to be done.”
Penny said work on the overhang, “sort of like scaffolding” needs to be removed.
He said that work and sealing the deck of the bridge will have to wait until December, probably the week of Dec. 6.
“A lot of the guys on the crew go hunting,” said Penny. “So two days in December half the bridge (one lane) will be down in order to power wash the sealer and let it dry.”
He said the construction company would have to pay $3,500 in “liquidation damages” for every day past Nov. 20 that the bridge isn’t open.
For the most part, the construction project has proceeded routinely.
“I’m not aware of any construction problems,” said Penny, about the project’s time line.
The one big setback the workers faced throughout the last couple months of working on the bridge was when a 70-year-old elderly man died when he missed the warning signs and tried to walk across the bridge at 9 p.m. one night.
Police estimated the man had been in the water 20 to 25 minutes, according to a published report in Lancaster Newspapers.
New advances in the Internet world are being made. Expected to launch in early 2011, Super Wi-Fi will be the most recent “gadget” out there.
Even with traffic clogging the bandwidth at Penn Manor, technology experts here see other solutions to be more practical and accessible than Super Wi Fi.
Charlie Reisinger, head of the Penn Manor technology team, is well aware of the slow Internet connections at the high school.
“During marking period 1, we experienced a significant surge in Internet use” and “a large portion of the surge can be attributed to increased classroom use” of “Internet resources such as Moodle Tools, Study Island, Google Docs and streaming video sites,” said Reisinger.
“The surge in traffic exceeded our available bandwidth, which in turn caused the network to feel sluggish from time to time.”
To help fix this problem, the district has doubled the available Internet bandwidth by augmenting the current connection with additional connectivity from Comcast.
The tech staff has implemented a number of network changes to help increase web browsing speed. In the future, they are looking to expand the bandwidth even farther.
Chad Billman, a member of Penn Manor’s technology team, explained that “our Internet is provided by Millersville University. We have a direct fiber optic link to the campus.”
At Penn Manor, “we are already mostly wireless. At the high school alone we have 440 student laptops and 150 staff laptops that are all wireless,” explained Billman.
The FCC is a government agency that regulates communications. Photo courtesy of businesspundit.com
Super Wi-Fi is on the near horizon but probably not at Penn Manor, at least not this year.
“It seems very unlikely that we would utilize this type of technology for student/staff member computers. Even assuming Super Wi-Fi provided us with additional bandwidth, it will take a long time until the technology starts appearing as standard options on our laptops,” Billman said.
Even though Super Wi-Fi is not in use yet, many are already depending on its success.
Google, Dell and Microsoft are all preparing for newer developments which could possibly build into a multi-billion dollar market. This means our laptops, smart phones, and wireless doodads may see some big changes in available functions and quality of internet connections.
Many are wondering where the technology was discovered and developed. All credit goes to the Federal Communications Commission,the independent agency of the US government that works towards six goals: broadband, competition, spectrum, media, public safety and homeland security.
Just like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, the proposal given by the FCC would enable white spaces to be available for free.
To enable this technology to be used, the transition from analog to digital TV broadcasting needed to occur. Many people don’t realize that in 2009 when we had to update our televisions, we actually opened up the airwaves enough for the FCC to work with this new idea.
The problem? TV broadcasting signal disruption. This is expected to be resolved by what the FCC has been doing: mapping TV channels everywhere across the US. By figuring out where the interferences may occur, the company will set aside a few channels for minor uses of the wireless program, simply to avoid their airwaves.
Super Wi-Fi may change the way we use the internet in the future. Photo courtesy of udh.edu
The FCC is also focusing on bandwidth of Super Wi-Fi, but hasn’t increased its numbers yet. If this is accomplished, the connection will most likely catch on more quickly.
“The last I heard, the maximum bandwidth expected using Super Wi-FI is 15 Mbs-20 Mbs,” Billman said. “Even our oldest access points provide 54 Mbs of bandwidth. The current access points utilize 802.11n which theoretically provides up to 600 Mbs.”
But regardless of the current speeds and distances, this product is expected to be a great resource not just regular people, but authorities too.
Some uses such as home wireless networking, transferring videos back and forth from TV and computer, and supplying emergency services are expected by the technology companies. Another big perk would be the use of Super Wi-Fi to get high speed internet to those in places where the landlines are unable to get broadband. Also, some feeds will even include traffic and surveillance camera features.
“This will probably result in more internet enabled devices being available to the public,” commented Billman, “our new acceptable use policy would allow the personal devices to be used by students. This becomes a classroom management issue because more and more students would have access to unfiltered internet.”
Predictions have concluded that Super Wi-Fi will be just as popular as the original Wi-Fi connections.
Penn Manor sports have set themselves apart from other high schools in the area for more reasons than one.
Jeff Roth, Penn Manor’s athletic director, stood out among all others by winning not only one, but two awards, recently.
Roth recently won the Lancaster/Lebanon Athletic Director of the Year and District 3 Athletic Director of the Year award.
Penn Manor sports' biggest cheerleader may be athletic director Jeff Roth. Photo by Chassidy Sowersby
It all started in 1979. Roth had his first job at McCaskey High School where he was teaching business and also coaching basketball, cross country and track.
After that, he had the same jobs at Mansfield and Pequea Valley High School.
Roth took a break from school and took a job at RR Donnelly Printing, but it’s hard to keep this man away from sports.
It wasn’t long until Roth enrolled at Penn State to get his master’s degree in sports administration. He stayed at Penn State for four months then went to F&M to work after getting his degree. He worked in the athletic department at both schools.
Ten years ago, Arlen Mummaw (Penn Manor’s previous athletic director) took a sabbatical and Roth filled in for him. Mummaw came back to Penn Manor but decided to give up his job as athletic director and take a teaching job. Roth was then named athletic director.
“When I first started, 10 years ago, I took the job as the athletic director as well as the girls basketball coach,” said Roth. “I stopped coaching basketball because it was hard to balance all the things I do. We currently have 1000 athletes and only 80 coaches. I do the paper work for everything.”
Without Roth, Penn Manor sports would have a hard time functioning. Between scheduling contests and officials to run games and making sure there are fields to play on, courts to hold tournaments and coaches have their equipment, it’s a busy job.
“I’ve worked very hard to see our sports grow and succeed,” Roth said about his 10 years in the position. “I do more than just stand on the side-lines, that is just what everyone else sees.”
“My kids attended Hambright Elementary school when I decided to start a run for kids 20 years ago. We called it ‘The Fun Run’,” said Roth.
But after years and years of hard work toiling behind the scenes of Penn Manor sports, Roth was officially recognized this year by his peers.
Roth said he was a little surprised to get the awards.
“There were five candidates for the pool of the Lancaster-Lebanon League (award), and I was very, very surprised that I won,” Roth said.
“The award usually goes to someone at the district or state level,” he said. “The reason I think other directors and such nominated me is I am more of a hands-on type of director.”
Penn Manor's Jeff Roth has been named athletic director of the year by the Lancaster-Lebanon League and District Three. Photo by Chassidy Sowersby
Roth has been very hands-on in the realm of sports for years. He is a life-long runner himself.
Roth has coached a couple of different sports including track and field, girls basketball and even boys basketball.
But Roth is happy to work behind the scenes of the actual athletic contests these days.
“I have a great time doing my job and a great time working with the coaches and athletes,” Roth said. “I just like to help programs succeed.”
And succeed they do. Roth has been instrumental in improving Penn Manor sports for the past decade but he’s quick to not take the glory for himself.
“I give a lot of credit to the athletes and coaches,” Roth said. “I’m sure that many of our athletes here at Penn Manor will move on to play sports for a collegiate level.”
By Mike Bouder, Chassidy Sowersby and Kyle Hallett
Five years ago on May 30, 2005, Natalee Hollowaydisappeared.
Divers seem to think they catpured Holloway's remains. Photo courtesy of http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2010/03/natalee_holloway_aruba_skeleto_1.html
She was on a high school graduation field trip to an island in Aruba. No traces of her body were found except possible skeletal remains seen in a photo by two scuba divers that captured the image at the bottom on of the ocean, which turned out to be a false alarm.
Along with the underwater mystery, there was a jaw bone found along the beach of Aruba by another couple. According to AOL.com, Dutch forensic experts are testing this bone to see if it belongs to Holloway.
As a cautionary tale, as young teens already planning senior week, they should be aware that this could happen to them.
For example, in 2002, three Manheim Township graduates were charged with sexual assault of an intoxicated 16 year old girl at senior week.
Now, being five years later, another similar murder has occurred. Police chief Gen. Cesar Guardia stated that Stephany Flores, 21, was found face down in the hotel she was last seen in with Jordan Van Der Sloot.
According to Lancaster New Era, the Dutch government said Interpol, an organization based in Paris that coordinates investigations made by the police forces of member countries into crimes with an international dimension, had issued an international arrest warrant for Sloot.
Guardia then stated that Flores and Sloot were last seen entering the Lima Hotel around 5 a.m., and Sloot exited the hotel alone about four hours later.
“We have an interview with a worker at the hotel who says she saw this foreigner with the victim enter his room,” Guardia said.
Stephany Flores Photo courtesy of http://www.cbsnews.com/i/tim//2010/06/02/ramirez1_370x278.jpg
When Flores’s body was found fully clothed, they discovered multiple abrasions to her face and body with signs of trauma, the police general stated.
Some wonder what took so long for the hotel staff to check the room.
Autopsy results are still being waited on.
Guardia said that Sloot left Peru by land and his exit registered at the Santa Rosa border crossing. Sloot had been staying at the hotel since May 14 after entering the country on a flight from Columbia.
Stated in the Lancaster New Era, Sloot was found in a taxi Thursday, June 3, several days drive and a country away, and was arrested for the murder of Stephany Flores.
He put up no fight when he was detained about half way to the Pacific coast from Santiago, stated deputy Chilean investigative police spokesman Fernando Ovalle.
According to CBS News, Sloot’s Dutch lawyer said Sloot was intending on turning himself in shortly before he was found.
After the arrest and quickly into questioning, he confessed to killing Stephany Flores.
According to ABC News, Sloot grabbed Flores by the neck when he saw her looking up information about his previous case [Holloway] and then continued by hitting her.
“I confronted her,” Sloot told investigators, according to La Republic. “She was frightened, we argued and she wanted to get away. I grabbed her by the neck and I hit her.”
“I did not want to do it. The girl intruded into my private life,” said Sloot. “She had no right.”
According to Al.com, Sloot did confess but later tried to deny the whole thing. He claimed that the only reason
Natalee Holloway went missing during her high school trip and has yet to be found.
he confessed was because he was intimidated and thought he would be extradited to the Netherlands. His request to have his confession retracted was denied.
Joran van der Sloot was previously arrested twice but with little to no evidence connecting him to Holloway’s disappearance during a high school graduation trip, he was let go in 2005.
According to a Dutch television crime reporter, a hidden camera they set up captured secret footage of Sloot saying he was with Holloway when she collapsed on a beach, drunk.
After Sloot was found, he told investigators that he left Holloway on the beach drunk which implied that that was the last time he saw her.
A Dutch Newspaper reports that Sloot took money from the Holloway family in order for them to receive the location of her body. Sloot took the money but gave no address.
Natalee’s mom sent Sloot $10,000 through an FBI agent and later transferred $15,000 into his bank account. He then caught a flight to Latin America with the money.
“I wanted to get back at Natalee’s family — her parents have been making my life tough for five years,” the Dutch Newspaper quoted him as saying from prison in Peru. “When they offered to pay for the girl’s location, I thought: ‘Why not’?”
He also publicly confessed to murdering Holloway and then retracted the statements may times.
Being a law enforcement officer and Penn Manor’s resource officer, Jason Hottenstein knows all the details about safe drinking and the dangers of being with strangers.
“You have to be extremely cautious with people you don’t know,” said Hottenstein. “Trust no one that you don’t know.”
There was also a website created to petition against senior week.
The website titled Stop Senior Week claims that the results of senior week are deaths, movies that glorify underage drinking, sex
Joran van der Sloot is taken into custody Photo courtesy of http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage.jpg
and drugs, public intoxication and drug use and hundreds of car accidents and hospital visits.
According to CBS News, Tim Miller, founder Texas Equusearch, a non-profit organization that searches for missing persons, has assisted with the search for Holloway from the beginning and has become very close friends of the family.
Miller stated that Holloway’s father, David Holloway, sends his sympathies to the Flores’ family in Peru.
“(David is) talking about what a senseless death that was, that we feel as though the cover-up that went on in Aruba, with Joran van der Sloot never being arrested, that we need to hold a lot of people accountable for Stephany’s death in Peru. I mean, a very, very sad time for everybody. And now Dave is just trying to, I think, just digest what’s really happening in his life again right now. And of course it brings it all back to Dave and Beth, I’m sure that it’s like it happened yesterday. So there’s disappointment, there’s anger, there’s frustrations. And, again, Stephany, there’s no reason she should be dead today. Somebody made some huge mistakes over there,” said Miller.
Joran van der Sloot is being held in a seventh-floor cell with a bunk bed and blanket with three meals a day while he is being further questioned of the death of 21 year old Stephany Flores and the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
After a great Monday Night performance Eagles quarterback Michael Vick finds himself in a dog fight for MVP.
“It was amazing,” said gym teacher and Penn Manor football coach Scott Lackey of Vick’s Monday Night spotlight performance.
Vick who accounted for six Eagles touchdowns against the Washington Redskins on Monday Night, leads the league in quarterback passer rating (115.1) has yet to throw an interception, and has accumulated 15 total touchdowns in the six games he has played so far this year. While the stats say this will be Vick’s year, some students beg to differ.
“He (Vick) is a tank, but his luck is gonna run out”, said senior Dalton Willard.
Photo from allphiladelphiasports.com
Willard believes that right now Vick is performing great but doesn’t think he can keep the magic going through the rest of the season, and playoffs.
After Vick’s magical Monday night performance, Kevin Kolb has become a thing of the past for the Eagles and their fans.
The once future franchise quarterback, who was given a one-year extension, will now be just arguably the best back-up in the NFL for the next two years.
Lackey said, “ If Kolb is happy being the backup. Why change it?”
Sophomore Darren Weidman agreed with Lackey,” Keep him (Kolb) as a backup.”
While his performance lately has dazzled fans, it is hard for one to forget that just a mere few years ago Vick was sitting in jail for participating in a dog fighting ring. Or is it?
“He paid his debt to society,” stated Lackey, “Second chances are what they are.”
“If a player does good his popularity goes up,” said Willard
The Hall of Fame has had no problem forgetting about Vick’s troubled past, they even requested Vick’s jersey from the Monday Night game to be displayed at the Canton, Ohio museum.
While questions and doubts still surround Vick because of his past, nobody can deny the stats, and that he is a legitimate contender for the MVP award at the end of the season.
Vick has completed 62.7 percent of his passes for 1350 yards on the season, and is the only starting quarterback who has yet to throw an interception so far this season, granted he has only played six games. To go along with his superb passing stats, Vick has rushed for 341 yards and four touchdowns on 44 carries this season.
Weidman and Willard both thought, despite how well Vick has been playing as of late, that at the end of the season he will not win the MVP award.
Lackey disagreed though, when asked if Vick could win the MVP he replied, “Yep.”
While some people are not happy that Vick is back in the NFL, the Eagles are not on that list because Vick gives them a great chance to get back to the playoffs, and possibly even the Super Bowl.
