Student of the Month Lede

Who?  -Joey
What?  -Student of the Month
When?  -This week
Where?  -Bowie High School
Why?  -Exemplary grades
How?  -Teacher selection

This week, the teachers at Bowie High School chose Joey as Student of the Month for his exemplary grades.

Story:

This week, the teachers at Bowie High School chose Joey as Student of the Month because of his amazing grades.

"His grades are exemplary, and he participates in many extracurricular activities," says Joey's parents.

The teachers at the high school nominated several students to be chosen for Student of the Month, and then got together in order to decide on the one that would win the award.

"There are many other students who try to take my place," Joey says, "and I believe that they are worthy, but I am superior."

The choosing process for the school usually take a while because of all the difficult choices.  This one, apparently, didn't take very long.

"It took the school board only a few minutes because it was obvious that I was to be chosen," Joey admits.

Joey's grades are a result of his hard work and determination in class, according to him and his associates.

"If he hadn't been happy or determined throughout his years at school, he would never have gotten the award in the first place," Joey's parents say.

Joey's awarding of Student of the Month also seems to lead back to the amount of extracurricular activities he excels at.  His best friend, parents, and himself have all said he participates in many clubs and sports.

"I do all the sports here, and I participate in all of the clubs," Joey says.

Nobody seems surprised that Joey won the award, either.  It seems that his charisma in classes and his standout grades made everyone expect him to be chosen.

"We were both very proud, but obviously unsurprised," Joey's parents say, while his best friends says something similar.

Being chosen as Student of the Month can also be recognized by places further out in life than high school (such as colleges and jobs), which Joey says is the best part of being chosen.

"Colleges recognize it," Joey says.  "I'm very proud of myself and I believe that, in the future, I'm going places."

Joey's favorite class, according to him, is Journalism.

"My favorite class is Journalism because I get to write about interesting things that are happening, and it's a subject that important to my future."

Joey also says that he's good at writing, which is a part of why he likes Journalism so much.

"The class I am best at is English, because I enjoy writing and it's something that come to me very easily."

Bowie High School has been a great school for many years, but Joey says it is lacking in academic qualities by his standards.

"Bowie High School is a good school for the average student, but I'm not an average student and they need to up their standards."

-

This story was 453 words.

Additional Student of the Month Interviews

Student of the Month's parents:

1.  What were your first thoughts when you found out your son made Student of the Month?
"We were both very proud, but obviously unsurprised."
2.  How would you describe your son?
"He is very generous, and very proud of his achievements.  He works hard at everything he is assigned."
3.  How do you think you helped your son in becoming Student of the Month?
"We get the job of keeping his spirits up.  If he hadn't been happy or determined throughout his years at school, he would never have gotten the award in the first place."
4.  Why do you think your son was awarded Student of the Month?
"His grades are exemplary, and he participates in many extracurricular activities."
5.  Is your son the same at school as he is at home?
"I should like to think so; he is very polite and sweet at home."

Student of the Month's best friend:

1.  Why do you think your friend was awarded Student of the Month?
"He has really good grades, and he's in a lot of clubs and sports."
2.  How did you feel when you found he was chosen?
"I was happy for him; he works hard enough to be chosen.  It's weird walking around with everyone congratulating him left and right."
3.  Do you find that he works very hard?
"Yes, he does.  He's always doing work or clubs, and if he's done with either, he gives himself more."
4.  How did you meet him?
"I met him in class on the first day of school in sixth grade."
5.  What was your first impression of him?
"He seemed very...eccentric to me, at first."

Inverted Pyramid

My Top Story of the Century

World War I begins in Europe.  1914.

On the first of August, 1904, Russia and Germany (two more great European powers) declared war on each other.  The was the official start of the "Great War," World War I, which would bring a great loss of life (20 millions deaths).  This would also bring about the physical destruction of a large part of Europe.

This is one of the top-three most interesting (or most terrible) because this date marks the start of the first World War.  World War I was the cause of the 20 million deaths of soldiers, women, and children alike.  The start of the war is something to cringe at, for exactly that reason - it was the first moment when people knew that they were pretty much...klunked.

First jet airplane takes flight.  1941.

On the fifteenth of May, 1941, the first jet airplane took flight.  Before this plane, all airplanes were propeller-based.  The flight of this jet airplane is the beginning of modern-day airplanes.

This is one of the top-three most interesting because I see this as the beginning (as you can see, I see to really like beginnings) of something we still use in the modern day.  Humans use jet-based airplanes everyday for extensive transportation, and it's seen (for a reason that I can't fathom) as the safest form of transportation.  The flight of this jet airplane is the first flight of the safest form of transportation.  (!)

Germany invades Poland:  World War II begins in Europe.  1939.

One day in 1939, Germany bombarded Poland both on land and from the air.  Hitler had been seeking to regain lost territory and take control of Poland.  Thus, World War II had begun.

This is one of the top-three most interesting because it's the beginning (one again) of World War II, which brought about the death of over 60 million people total.  A genocide was committed by a dictator.  Everyone was pulled into the war.  And this was the start of it.

School Uniforms

1).  -students
      -teachers
      -counselors

2).
      1-  What is your opinion on the concept of school uniforms?
      2-  Why do you think school uniforms have been imposed?
      3-  What hinderances do school uniforms cause among students?
      4-  What hinderances do school uniforms cause among teachers?
      5-  Why do students generally not like school uniforms?
      6-  What is your opinion on these particular school uniforms?
      7-  Are the teachers going to have a dress code, too?
      8-  Do you believe that uniforms actually "boost people self-esteem?"
      9-  What are some good things about dress codes?
     10-  What will happen to people who don't follow dress code?
     11-  How strict is the dress code?
     12-  Do you believe a school has the right to control a student's choice of clothing?
     13-  What does dress code have to do with students' grades?
     14-  Will school uniforms make students feel more equal to each other?
     15-  Do you think students will protest to school uniforms?
     16-  Will the dress code affect ear piercings/hair colors?
     17-  Should dress codes affect ear piercings/hair colors?
     18-  Are students allowed to personalize their uniforms in any ways?
     19-  How will you get students to follow the dress code in the first place?
     20-  Do you feel that schools have more important things to worry about?

Student of the Month

Questions:

1).  Which teacher do you find has helped you the most?
"The teacher that I've found has helped me the most is my English teacher."
2).  Do you consider yourself a role model for other students?
"Yes.  I consider myself a perfect human being that others should be like."
3).  How does it feel to be Student of the Month?
"It feels great to be Student of the Month.  It makes me feel superior."
4).  What keeps you trying to be the best student you can be?
"I like to rub it into everyone else's faces, and I like the feeling of arrogance."
5).  What is your favorite class?
"My favorite class is journalism because I get to write about interesting things that are happening, and it's a subject that's important to my future."
6).  Do other students compete with you for Student of the Month?
"Yes.  There are many other students who try to take my place, and I believe that they are worthy, but like I said before, I am superior."
7).  What class are you best at?
"The class I am best at is English, because I enjoy writing and it's something that comes to me very easily."
8).  What are you extracurricular activities?
"I do all the sports here, and I participate in all of the clubs."
9).  How do your guardians feel about your achievements?
"My parents feel very happy that I'm the best at the school and that I'm finally being recognized for it."
10).  How difficult was it to be chosen?
"It took the school board only a few minutes because it was obvious that I was to be chosen."
11).  How hard do you find yourself working daily?
"Compared to others, it'd be a lot of hard work, but for me it's easy and I'm holding myself back."
12).  Do you believe that people should respect you?
"Yes.  Everyone should respect me.  It shouldn't be a choice."
13).  Have people congratulated you?
"Yes.  My friends, who I forced to be my friends (with money)."
14).  How do you feel when people congratulate you?
"I feel great, and it makes me feel superior and more worthy of the school's affection than others."
15).  How much homework do you have daily?
"A good amount of homework, and I give myself more to be more fit for college."
16).  What do you think is your best quality in work?
"My intelligence and athleticism for my age."
17).  What is the best part of being chosen for Student of the Month?
"Colleges recognize it.  It makes me feel good when I'm congratulated, too."
18).  How do you, personally, feel about your general achievements?
"Quite good.  I'm very proud of myself and I believe that, in the future, I'm going places."
19).  Why do you think you were chosen?
"Because I'm the best student at Bowie High School in every way possible."
20).  What is your opinion of Bowie High School?
"Bowie High School is a good school for the average student, but I'm not an average students and they need to up their standards."

Current Events Quiz 1.4

1).  The Pope will be in the U.S. for six days and will be visiting three cities:  Washington, New York, and Philadelphia.

2).  No more than an assembly of six people in a short-term rental house.

3).  Many of the vehicles contain software that evades mission controls, which will cost A LOT of money to fix.

4).  The Dallas Cowboys signed Matt Cassel as a back-up Quarterback.

5).  Samsung and Texas Lehigh might not expand their business if tough new emission rules are passed.

6).  Students from a Houston high school wrote a legal brief over the summer about how their lives could improve if Texas was forced to spend more on schools, since they realized that there had never been a student voice involved.  This really did bring more attention to school funding.

These students, in my opinion, are extremely intelligent.  Having students write to the court about school funding was bound to bring more attention to the problem, due to the fact that no student had ever had a say in it.  Their efforts definitely meant something; they helped.
I didn't really learn much about the system due to the fact that I find the music playing in the classroom EXTREMELY distracting.

Current Events Quiz #3

1).  The Republican party presidential debate was held as the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California.

2).  The greatest concern is that the hours of the terminal aren't beneficial for the residents of the apartments.

3).  Uber wants to extend the opportunity to have transportation no matter who you are or where you live to drivers of all backgrounds.

4).  1- say thank you.  2- keep the trains moving.  3- mend fences with the Texas eyes.  4- embrace the coaches.  5- finish the Nike deal.

5).  The sculptures are not of a specific person.  They're not of a specific object.  They're creative and abstract, and they are appealing to the eyes of humans.  The sculptures are also intended to send a message about the region's water needs.

Headlines, Links, and Photos

Top Stories:

NYC Ceremony Marks 14th Anniversary of 9/11 Attacks

News Near You:

Texas responds to bands having to buy tickets at UT games

World:

Hungary PM slams migrant 'rebellion', U.N. warns of millions more refugees

US:

California town of 2,700 told to prepare to leave as wildfire surges

Business:

Regulators find shoddy records after California oil spill

Technology:

Sony: Don't Use Those 'Waterproof' Xperias Underwater

Entertainment:

Whitney Houston to return as hologram in 2016

Sports:

Roger Federer downs Stan Wawrinka, set for final clash with Novak Djokovic

Science:

Incredible images show Pluto’s icy plains, craters, maybe dunes on planet’s surface

Health:

Collegium's painkiller gets green light from FDA panel

Spotlight:

The star pupil who scored zero in all her exams

Current Events Quiz 1.2

1).  A homeowner could save nearly $14 in savings if they have a median-valued home worth $217,367.

2).  The discovered creature is similar to a human in that it can walk upright, and its hand and feet look like a Homo Sapien's.

3).  Ben Locomte's plan to swim across the Pacific Ocean is brave and inspiring, and for a good cause.  It does seem very, very exhausting, though.

4).  The cameras on the new 6s and 6s+ have a resolution of 12 megapixels rather than the previous 8.    You can also get a preview of a webpage from a link in a message before you launch it on the internet.

5).  Out of the ten items that "Back to the Future" thought we'd have by now (in 2015), I'd like to have "smart clothing."  In all honestly, automatically adjusting sleeve lengths sounds really cool.  My sleeves constantly fall to lengths that I don't like, and I have to push them up all the time.  On the "must have gadgets for college," I would like to have the self-charging phone case.  That would be very helpful if I'm somewhere like an airplane or a restaurant.

6).  I think that Carlos Chacon should have gotten even more money.  If the case had not been dismissed, nothing would have been done about the officer using excessive force in an arrest.  "Shady" people should be a concern, but if "shady" is the only word that you can come up with to describe them, using a stun gun and beating them isn't justified.  Carlos' case was dismissed, and he got the money he deserved for being beaten by an officer.  So, yes, they should get the money if they were legitimately wronged.  The amount of money given should not be lessened if they have a criminal record, because the person with the criminal record could have changed.  Having a criminal record doesn't mean that taking a beating from an officer is right.  I know that there is a limit to how much money someone gets if they haven't died of the crime committed, but I don't know, approximately, where that is.  Being killed is "ultimate," and something needs to be done about that.  If the person was killed, their families should get the money they deserve (which I would think to be around $800,000--but then again, I have trouble understanding the true value of money).  I'm not sure why we're seeing more of this in our society today--things seemed to, honestly, be getting better.  I don't know what caused police officers to suddenly become more violent toward "shady" people, but I know it's wrong.  People officers shouldn't make assumptions about people until a trial has been held and they were proved innocent or guilty.  Using excessive force before then is almost never justified.

News Ethics

1).  Using the 'Holocaust' Metaphor

            - PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) launched a new campaign in 2003 called "Holocaust on Your Plate," which compares the slaughter of animals to the murder of 6 million Jews during WWII.  The campaign implies that, in relation to animals, all humans are Nazis.  In the campaign, two images are used:  One of animals in slaughterhouses and one of scenes of Nazi concentration camps.  The European Court of Human Rights banned the campaign, and the United States Anti-Defamation League continue to condemn the campaign as well.

            --Is "Holocaust on Your Plate" ethically wrong or a truthful comparison?

         "Holocaust on Your Plate" is both ethically wrong and a truthful comparison, but it being a "truthful comparison" does not make it okay for people to use it in a campaign.  The memory or thought of the Holocaust is painful for many people, and displaying it so bluntly and openly is cruel.  Blatantly comparing all of the human race to Nazis isn't morally right, in the sense that NOT EVERYONE slaughters animals for their own benefits.

2).   A Media-Savvy Killer

            -A killer who calls himself BTK (his own acronym for his method, "bind, torture, kill") killed six people from the years 1974 to 1986.  After sixteen years of silence, the killer sent a letter to the Eagle, apparently sparked by an entry about the thirtieth anniversary of the first killing.  His last letter was sent in the spring of 2004, in which he included photos of the 1986 crime scene, as well as a copy of that victim's driver's license.  Three writers from the Eagle were assigned to give DNA samples, in an attempt to find the killer, but did not succeed.  The killer almost seems to be using the paper as a means of communication, and some reporters are worried that BTK might target them as attention to him increases.

            --How should a newspaper, or other media outlet, handle communications from someone who says he's responsible for multiple sensational crimes?  And how much should it cooperate with law enforcement authorities?

         A newspaper (or other media outlet) should handle communications from someone who says he's responsible for multiple sensation crimes with great caution.  This person could be a threat to the person, or people, that he's talking to, but this could also lead to the capture of the killer.  As for how much it should cooperate with law enforcement authorities, it should cooperate as much as it can.  The killer suddenly deciding to communicate with a newspaper is a huge lead, in the perspective of the law, and they could use all the help they could get.

3).  A Self-Serving Leak

            -Two San Francisco Chronicle reporters were widely praised for their stories about sports figures involved with steroids.  Their investigation was even turned into a book called Game of Shadows, and they earned the respect of many journalists because they were willing to go to prison to protect the source who had leaked testimony to them.  The source itself, however, was not so noble--an attorney was using them.  He leaked the information, and then tried to get a major case against his clients dismissed on the grounds that information from the jury had been leaked.  He swore under oath that he was not the source, and the jury ordered the two reporters to be arrested.  In 2007 (three years later), he finally admitted that he was the source of the information, but the two reporters still refused to talk about it.

            --Should the two reporters continued to protect this key source even after he admitted to lying?  Should they have promised confidentiality in the first place?

          Yes, the two reporters should have continued to protect the key source even after the source admitted to lying.  The journalists had sworn confidentiality, and they intended to keep the facts of the source to themselves.  They were even willing to go to prison for the confidentiality of their source.  And, yes,  they should have promised confidentiality in the first place, if the source requested it.  Sources in articles can be put in danger if they are revealed, and keeping them a secret is an obligation if the source wishes as such.

News Values

Human Interest.

The people involved in this article are involved in emotional struggles.  The right to same-sex marriage has been a long-going conflict, and it was finally resolved, but people are still going against it.

Found at Austin American Statesman.

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE 

Ky. clerk jailed; deputies to issue marriage licenses 

ByAdam Bean Associated Press 

   ASHLAND, KY. — A defiant county clerk went to jail Thursday for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, but five of her deputies agreed to end the church-state standoff in Rowan County, Ky. 

   U.S. District Judge David Bunning said he had no choice but to jail Kim Davis for contempt after she insisted that her “conscience will not allow” her to follow federal court rulings on gay marriage. 

   “God’s moral law conflicts with my job duties,” Davis told the judge before she was taken away. “You can’t be separated from something that’s in your heart and in your soul.”    The judge later tried to keep Davis out of jail, saying she could go free if her staff agreed to comply with the law and she agreed not to interfere. 

   But Davis rejected the offer. With that, the hearing ended, and gay and lesbian couples vowed to appear at the Rowan County clerk’s office yet again Friday to see if the deputy clerks keep their promises. 

   “We’re going to the courthouse tomorrow to get our marriage license and we’re very excited about that,” said April Miller, who has been engaged to Karen Roberts for 11 years. 

   As word of Davis’ jailing spread outside the federal courthouse, hundreds of people chanted and shouted, “Love won! Love won!” 

   But Davis’ lawyer, Roger Gannam, compared her willingness to accept imprisonment to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s sacrifices to advance civil rights, and said “everyone should lament and mourn the fact that her freedom has been taken away for what she believes.” 

   Laura Landenwich, an attorney for the plaintiffs, rejected the comparison. 

   “Ms. Davis is in an unfortunate situation of her own creation. She is not a martyr. No one created a martyr today,” Landenwich said. “She is not above the law.” 

   Speaking earlier from the bench, Bunning said it would set up a “slippery slope” to allow an individual’s ideas to supersede the courts’ authority. 

   “Her good-faith belief is simply not a viable defense,” Bunning said. “I myself have genuinely held religious beliefs ... but I took an oath.” 

   “Mrs. Davis took an oath,” he added. “Oaths mean things.” 

   Davis is represented by the Liberty Counsel, which advocates in court for religious freedom. Before she was led away, Davis said the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage nationwide conflicts with the vows she made when she became a born-again Christian. 

   Miller and Roberts have been denied a marriage license four times by Davis or her deputies since the June ruling. Miller testified that one of the deputy clerks told her to apply in another county. 

   “That’s kind of like saying we don’t want gays or lesbians here. We don’t think you are valuable,” she said. 

   Rather than be fined, jailed or lose their jobs, five of the clerks told the judge they would issue the licenses. Her son, Nathan Davis, refused, but the judge said that wouldn’t matter and he wouldn’t be punished, as long as the others complied. 

   “I don’t really want to, but I will comply with the law,” said one of the deputies, Melissa Thompson. “I’m a preacher’s daughter and this is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.” 

   Davis, an Apostolic Christian whose critics mock her for being a three-time divorcee, stopped issuing marriage licenses for all couples after the Supreme Court ruling in June. Many supporters and even some Republican presidential candidates have rallied behind her. 

   “People are calling the office all the time asking to send money,” Davis testified. 

   She said she hopes the Legislature will change Kentucky law to allow her to keep her job while following her conscience. But unless the governor convenes a costly special session, lawmakers won’t meet until January. “Hopefully our Legislature will get something taken care of,” she told the judge. 

   Until then, Bunning said, he has no alternative but to keep her behind bars. 

   “The legislative and executive branches do have the ability to make changes,” Bunning said. “It’s not this court’s job to make changes. I don’t write law.” 

   Davis served as her mother’s deputy in the clerk’s office for 27 years before she was elected as a Democrat to succeed her in November. As an elected official, she can be removed only if the Legislature impeaches her, which is unlikely in a deeply conservative state. 

   Former Republican President George W. Bush nominated Bunning for a lifetime position as a federal judge in 2001 when he was just 35 years old. 

   But Bunning has been anything but a sure thing for conservative causes, ruling against a partial-birth abortion ban and in favor of a gay-straight high school club. 

A man waves a gay pride flag in front of the federal courthouse in Ashland, Ky., on Thursday. As word of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ jailing spread, hundreds of people chanted:“Love won! Love won!”TYWRIGHT / GETTY IMAGES 

Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis rejected an offer from a judge that could have kept her out of jail. 

Edgar Orea speaks to gay marriage supporters outside the federal building in Ashland, Ky., on Thursday. Rowan County deputy clerks agreed to issue licenses to same-sex couples. 

   TIMOTHY D. EASLEY / AP

Human Interest.

The person in this article is going through an emotional struggle at a young age--he was paralyzed from the waist down, and his hopes for a career playing football are null.

Found at Austin American Statesman.

HIGH SCHOOLS FOOTBALL 

JV player fights paralysis 

Sophomore from Stony Point injured on Wednesday. 

By Rick Cantu rcantu@statesman.com  

   A junior varsity football player from Stony Point High School was paralyzed from the waist down after breaking his neck in a game Wednesday at the school. 

   Jasiel Favors, a sophomore running back, lay motionless on the field for roughly 20 minutes after a helmet-to-helmet collision with an opposing player from Harker Heights, his mother, Debra, said Thursday. 

   Her son underwent surgery Thursday morning to have a metal plate placed near his fourth vertebra, she said by phone from Seton Medical Center Williamson. 

   She said her son might be transferred to TIRR Memorial Hermann in Houston next week to begin rehabilitation. It’s too early to tell whether Jasiel will be able to walk again, she said. 

   Jasiel, 16, was resting in a hospital bed on Thursday, a breathing tube inserted down his throat. A headache he suffered from Wednesday had subsided, his mother said. 

   “I’m trying to stay strong for the whole family ,” said Debra, adding that Jasiel is the youngest of her five children. 

   Favors was injured during the opening kickoff of the second half, said Christine Wilson Driskell, who attended the game to watch her son play. 

   “Everybody was very somber, very quiet, worried,” Driskell said. “The officials and higher Stony Point authorities showed up. The ambulance came, and everyone was concerned.” 

   Favors, who said she was unaware her son had a game Wednesday, arrived at the field to find firefighters and paramedics on the scene. 

   “They were pinching him on his body, trying to get him to feel something,” she said. “All he could feel was a little tingling in his hands.” 

   Stony Point principal Anthony Watson and varsity football coach Craig Chessher were among several visitors who stayed at the hospital until midnight, Debra said. 

   “We all are being very supportive of Jasiel and his family,” Watson said. 

   Austin Community Newspapers reporter Nicole Barrios contributed to this story. 

   Contact Rick Cantu at 512-445-3953. 

   Twitter: @Rickyprep

Prominence and Human Interest.

Migrants were taken to camps when they boarded the train--unable to travel to Germany.  This is an unfair emotional struggle for the migrants, and it's prominent because their prime minister (who's anti-immigrant) is intending to make the borders of the country impassible for new arrivals.

Found at Austin American Statesman.

Hungary allows migrants on train 

Decision to take them to camps met with outrage. 

By Pablo Gorondi and Shawn Pogatchnik Associated Press 

   BUDAPEST, HUNGARY — Thousands of people desperate to reach Western Europe rushed into a Budapest train station Thursday after police ended a two-day blockade, setting off a wave of anger and confusion as hundreds shoved their way onto a waiting train. 

   But instead of taking them to prosperous Germany, where they hope to gain asylum, it tried to drop them off at a Hungarian camp for asylum seekers. 

   After the overloaded train halted at Bicske, site of one of the country’s five camps for asylum seekers, one man threw his wife and infant son onto the tracks, screaming in Arabic, “We won’t move from here!” Police surrounded the prone family, pulling the husband away and handcuffing him as he wailed. 

   Other migrants refused to budge, shouting their outrage and waving tickets they had purchased to Germany and Austria. 

   The scene of desperation was just one of many that unfolded Thursday as tempers flared in Hungary’s war of wills with the migrants, a showdown with consequences for the entire continent. 

   The nation’s anti-immigrant prime minister, Viktor Orban, warned that he intends to make his country’s borders an impassible fortress against new arrivals as his government struggled to coax its thousands of unwanted visitors away from the Budapest transportation hub that has become a squalid refugee camp for people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. 

   At a meeting Thursday in Brussels, Obran and European Union leaders hotly debated the question of how to manage the crisis. Orban’s chief of staff, Janos Lazar, said 160,000 migrants had reached Hungary this year, 90,000 of them in the past two months alone. 

   “We Hungarians are full of fear,” Orban said at a news conference, warning that the acceptance of so many Muslims from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere would erode Europe’s Christian bedrock. 

   Orban confirmed his government’s plan to send at least 3,000 troops to Hungary’s southern border with Serbia, where police patrols, razor-wire coils and a 13-foot fence are already in place to deter new arrivals transiting through the non-EU member. 

A man yells at others as migrants scramble to board a train at Keleti station in Budapest, on Thursday. The migrants poured into the station Thursday morning but were prevented from traveling to Germany, and were taken to camps instead. THE NEWYORKTIMES 

Prominence.

The shooting has an impact on the family and friends of the people killed, and the government is struggling to figure out what punishment to give to the shooter.

Found at Austin American Statesman.

SOUTH CAROLINA CHURCH SHOOTINGS 

Shooting suspect to face death penalty 

Killing of 9 people in a church called ‘the ultimate crime.’ 

By Meg Kinnard andJeffrey Collins Associated Press 

   CHARLESTON, S.C. — The white man accused of killing nine black churchgoers in what authorities said was a racially motivated crime during Bible study will face a death penalty trial, even though not all the victims’ families agree with capital punishment, a prosecutor said Thursday. 

   Solicitor Scarlett Wilson said Thursday that some crimes are so heinous they require the most serious punishment the state can give. 

   “This was the ultimate crime, and justice from our state calls for the ultimate punishment,” Wilson said, reading a three-minute statement outside her Charleston office. She took no questions. 

   Wilson filed paperwork saying she would seek the death penalty against 21-year-old Dylann Roof a few hours before her statement. Her reasons: More than two people were killed and others’ lives were put at risk. 

   Roof is charged under U.S. hate crime laws as well, and federal prosecutors haven’t decided if they will also seek the death penalty. Federal authorities have said Roof wrote online of fomenting racial violence and used racial slurs in a personal manuscript in which he decried integration. 

   Survivors also told police he used racial insults during the attack. 

   Wilson said she understands the desire of some victims’ families to forgive Roof and that some do not believe in the death penalty, but she said forgiveness doesn’t eliminate the consequences of Roof’s actions. 

   “Making such a weighty decision is an awesome responsibility,” Wilson said. “People who have already been victimized should not bear the burden of making the decisions on behalf of an entire community. They shouldn’t have to weigh the concerns of other people. They shouldn’t have to consider the facts of the case.” 

   Roof’s lawyers did not respond to Wilson’s decision. 

   Thursday’s motion doesn’t guarantee the case goes to trial. In a number of other murder cases in South Carolina, solicitors have filed notices to seek the death penalty and used them as bargaining chips to get a defendant to plead guilty in exchange for life in prison. Roof’s lawyers said in federal court July 31 that he would have been willing to plead guilty to the hate crimes charges, but he wanted to wait to see if prosecutors would want to put him to death. 

   In her filing, Wilson said she intends to present evidence on Roof’s mental state, adult and juvenile criminal record and other conduct, as well as his apparent lack of remorse for the killings. 

   Roof faces state charges including nine murder counts in the June 17 slayings at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. He is expected in court again on those charges in October. 

   Public pressure and media attention on the case likely made it impossible for Wilson not to seek the death penalty, said Colin Miller, an expert on criminal law at the University of South Carolina School of Law. 

   “This has to be understood as part of a continuum,” he said. “In this case, likely this was viewed as the only acceptable path that was to be taken by the solicitor.” 

   Relatives of shooting victims spoke out at Roof’s first court appearance, saying they forgave him for his actions and prayed God would have mercy on him. 

   Wilson said she has met many times with survivors and families of shooting victims. She said their desires played into her ultimate decision, but that she appreciated that they all respected her decision to seek the death penalty. 

   “It’s definitely something a solicitor will take into account — the wishes of the family and what they desire in terms of how the case is going to proceed,” Miller said. 

   Andy Savage, a Charleston attorney who represents some of the survivors and victims’ families, commended Wilson for considering his clients’ thoughts on whether Roof should face death. Some of his clients may oppose the death penalty for religious reasons but also understood the decision was up to the state, Savage said. 

Solicitor Scarlett Wilson announces her intention Thursday to seek the death 

penalty against 

Dylann Roof (at left) in 

the killing of nine people at the Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. 

   JEFFREY COLLINS / ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Proximity.

People (here in Austin) care about what's going on with their football team (which is the Longhorns).  Austin people wouldn't usually care about what's going on with a random college football team in North Carolina (unless they have an outside connection there).

Found at Austin American Statesman.

Eyes on Texas 

New world order on the radio for Longhorns 

Brian Davis 

   Texas officials really want to get the word out that Saturday’s season opener against Notre Dame will be on a different Austin radio station. Six of them, in fact. Eight, actually, if you speak Spanish. 

   If Tyrone Swoopes throws an interception against Notre Dame, change the station. He might score on another. 

   That’s right. UT football will be on eight Austin radio stations this fall as part of the new broadcasting agreement with Austin Radio Network. The flagship station is 104.9 The Horn, an FM signal that serves as the anchor for football, men’s basketball and other top events. 

   ARN won the broadcast rights away from iHeartMedia (formerly known as Clear Channel) by signing a seven-year deal worth $600,000 annually, according to multiple sources. ARN owners Jason Nassour, Eric Raines and Bob Cole are on the hook for about $1 million annually when factoring in all the broadcast-related expenses. 

   IHeartMedia also paid $600,000 in rights fees, according to a copy of the previous UT radio contract obtained by the American-Statesman through an open records request. Two sources said iHeartMedia lowered its bid in the new negotiations, thereby giving ARN an opening. 

   “Nothing has changed in terms of the planning or execution of the broadcast. It’s all identical,” said longtime play-by-play announcer Craig Way. “From our perspective, nothing we really do is that different.” 

   This may come as a surprise, but having UT football broadcasting on eight over-the-air radio stations isn’t the most intriguing aspect of this deal. 

   Cole, a well-known Austin radio personality, pitched UT officials on the idea of streaming games over the Internet. That means getting UT sports directly on your smart-phone. 

   It’s not the future, it’s the now 

   Edison and Triton Digital research found that 53 percent of monthly radio listeners across America listen via online streaming. That’s an estimated 143 million people, and the number is only growing. That just blows my mind. 

   Why worry about spotty FM or AM signals when the broadcast comes in crystal clear on your phone? 

   Cole convinced Texas and IMG officials they can get more bang from ARN’s bucks by streaming more Longhorns sports. The possibilities 

   — like broadcasting Olympic sports, football games with student announcers, archived Way calls — are endless. 

   “It would be fair to say we were looking to go to the next level,” said Steve Hank, chief revenue officer for UT athletics. “Where we’re headed with the development of our digital access and what we’re going to be doing, it’s going to be really cool.” 

   A specialized UT radio app is on the drawing board. For now, ARN gets its chance to show off its patchwork signal strength. Or listen online anywhere in the world. That’ll come in handy in Shanghai, China, this November with men’s hoops. 

   “This isn’t the future,” Cole said of UT sports via online streaming. “This is the now.” 

   What about Way? 

   Once iHeartMedia lost the UT radio broadcasting rights, it stood to reason that Way would leave 1300 The Zone for 104.9 The Horn. That hasn’t happened, and Way doesn’t appear to be moving anytime soon. 

   Asked specifically if he was moving his afternoon show, Way said, “I’m planning on doing the Longhorn games, and the plan right now is to continue as a contracted employee of iHeartMedia to continue doing my show.” 

   UT officials were upfront about their desire to keep Way on Longhorns broadcasts. Attorneys arranged for Way to appear on another station on game days. Way said at no point did IMG try to stop him from doing games broadcast on The Horn. 

   IHeartMedia has financial motivation to keep Way under contract and well paid for years. Advertisers pay thousands of dollars to have the UT play-by-play broadcaster read ads on the air. That money would also go to The Horn if Way moves across town. 

   Contact Brian Davis at 512-445-3957. 

   Twitter: @BDavisAAS 

Craig Way will continue as the play-by-play announcer for Longhorns games despite the athletic program’s shift to Austin Radio Network. AMERICAN-STATESMAN FILE 

Novelty.

People enjoy trying new things (such as new restaurants, or technology).

Found at Austin American Statesman.

Iron Sight Brewers to open Saturday in Cedar Park 

Arianna Auber Liquid Austin Twitter:@ariauber 

   When Twisted X moved into a much larger, scenic space in Dripping Springs a couple of years ago, the warehouse its brewers left behind in Cedar Park was still outfitted to make beer — making Robert Chaney’s transition from homebrewer to commercial brewer just a little easier. 

   That made all the difference considering the difficulty he and his brother-in-law, Grady Reynolds, have had turning their vision of IronSight Brewers into a functioning business. Like other start-up breweries these days, IronSight has faced permitting delays and other problems that the two co-founders, relatively new to the industry, couldn’t have anticipated. They’re putting all that behind them, though, with the arrival of a milestone: IronSight’s grand opening is just around the corner. 

   “Finally,” Chaney said. “After a long, hard road.” 

   On Saturday, Iron-Sight will open with a big bash offering visitors first tastes of the brewery’s four core beers and a few small-batch brews made just for the party. The grand opening celebration, which requires an RSVP to attend, will also have live music from Bear Creek Wilderness and food from Mission Dogs. 

   After that, the brew ery plans to offer taproom hours on weekends 

   — Friday nights and Saturday and Sunday afternoons — and eventually also will distribute the beers in kegs and cans. The kegged beer will probably come first, and it’ll be available in the Cedar Park and Leander area until Chaney, who handles the brewing side of the business, is able to expand production far ther into Austin. For the most part, he’s got all of the recipes ready to go. He and Reynolds are starting with a cream ale, an amber, a white IPA and an oatmeal pale ale because of their “drink-ability,” a factor they sought out when choosing the brewery’s main beers. 

   “We want beers that are easy to drink, something you can enjoy after mowing the lawn,” he said. “We were also wanting beers we knew were good. Each of the four beers we’re doing have won multiple awards” from homebrewing competitions. 

   The cream ale, he said, serves as a great introduction to craft beer because it’s lightly hopped, straddling the line between ale and lager (which it balances, Chaney said, because it’s made from an ale yeast that ferments at colder temperatures). The amber, made with a West Coast-style twist for extra hoppiness, is Iron-Sight’s darkest beer, but it stays sessionable at 5 percent ABV. The unfiltered white IPA is “sort of like a Belgian white, but with American hops” for a big fresh finish, he said. And the oatmeal pale ale, so called because about 25 percent of the grain bill is oats, isn’t overly bitter, but still has nice hop aroma and flavor thanks to late-addition Citra and Cascade hops. 

   The Iron Sight Amber isn’t the only beer in the lineup that keeps the ABV relatively low; the white IPA clocks in with the highest ABV at only 6 percent. 

   “I’ve worked really hard on these beers,” Chaney said. “The two homebrew clubs I belong to, I’ve learned a lot from both. I’ll take my beer and say, ‘Here, try this.’ Hearing feedback from people who have been brewing for 20, 30 years has really been valuable.” 

   Although he hasn’t been brewing for as long as some of the other members of the Austin Zealots or the Texas Carboys homebrewing clubs, he’s picked up a lot from them. He originally started because “I thought it would be something easy that I would enjoy,” he said. 

   Brewing hasn’t been easy, but he’s hooked. So is Reynolds. He works in the oil and gas industry in Wyoming but visits Austin as often as he can to help Chaneywith Iron Sight. His role with the brewery is to handle the legal and financial sides of the business, all of the paperwork, although he’s got a beer background, too. When he was an undergraduate in business administration at Texas State University, he used to work at the Tap Room Pub & Grub in San Marcos, purchasing all the bar’s beers. 

   The native Austinites — Chaney, a safety manager for a construction company, is married to Reynolds’ sister — developed their love of craft beer together, to the point that they couldn’t resist putting together an initial business plan for Iron-Sight. 

   “I was always adventurous with beer, and I guess I passed the craft beer thing on to him. I was always having him try something new,” Chaney said. 

   Neither of them anticipated how difficult it would be to open a production brewery. Throughout the past couple of years, they’ve had torebrand Iron Sight after realizing their original name was already taken; had to find a different location for the brewery and move it to Cedar Park; and had to re-apply for TABC permitting from a brewpub to a brewery license. And all of it, Reynolds said, was funded out of their own pockets. 

   “The ultimate goal is for us to brew full-time and quit our current jobs,” he said. “But honestly, I’m just happy we’re finally getting this thing off the ground.” 

   Contact Arianna Auber at 

   512-445-3630. 

IRONSIGHT’S GRAND OPENING PARTY 

   When: Noon to 4 p.m. Saturday 

   Where: 3200 Woodall Drive, Cedar Park 

   Cost: ›15-›20 

   Information and to RSVP: Search“IronSight Brewers” on Facebook 

Robert Chaney is the head brewer and co-owner of IronSight Brewers at 3200 Woodall Drive in Cedar Park. 

   LAURA SKELDING PHOTOS / AMERICAN-STATESMAN 

These are some of the grains that Chaney used to make IronSight’s four core beers and a few small-batch brews for Saturday’s grand opening, which requires an RSVP. 

Robert Chaney shows off three of IronSight Brewer’s offerings. The brewery plans to have taproom hours on weekends. LAURA SKELDING / AMERICAN-STATESMAN

Timelines and Prominence.

This is happening this weekend!  Also, "Hamlet" coming professionally to Austin and coordinating with the Austin Symphony is a big deal to people who care about this stuff (like me).
Found at Austin American Statesman.

NEW THIS WEEK 

   DANCE 

   “Hamlet” Ballet Austin presents Stephen Mills’ celebrated adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic, with the music of Philip Glass performed live by the Austin Symphony Orchestra. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. ›16-›91. The Long Center, 701 W. Riverside Drive. 512-457-5100, balletaustin.  org  . CONTRIBUTED BYTONY SPIELBERF 

   ARTS 

   Big Medium “A Narrow Escape From History.”New large-scale works by Erin Curtis. Opening reception 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday. Noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday through Sept. 26. 916 Springdale Road, Building 2, No. 101. bigmedium.org  . 

   Yard Dog “Art and Music and 20 Years ofYard Dog”In celebration of its 20th anniversary,Yard Dog hosts a double-header with works from artists Jon Langford and Steve Wynn. Opening reception 7 to 9 p.m. Friday. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday through Oct. 11.Yard Dog Gallery, 1510 

   S. Congress Ave. 512-912-1613. yarddog.com  . 

   Gallery Shoal Creek “5 Decades”A exhibition of 50 selected works by gallery artists. Opens Friday. A evening with the artists 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 19. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.Tuesday-Friday, noon to 5 p.m. Saturday through Oct. 24. 2832 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Suite 3. 512-454-6671, galleryshoalcreek.com  . 

   WallyWorkman Gallery New works by Mallory Page. Opening reception 6 to 8 Saturday. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.Tuesday-Saturday through Sept. 26. 1202 W. Sixth St. 512-472-7428, wallyworkmangallery.com  . 

   THEATER 

   “Missionary Position: PleasureJourneys for the Intrepid Lady Explorer-Part 2” Award-winning writer and director Caroline Reck presents the second part of her satirical historical spoof that follows two Victorian-era women on a lecture tour about the first menstrual products for women. Opens 8 p.m.Thursday. Continues 8 p.m.Thursday-Saturday through Sept. 26. ›10-›26. Salvage Vanguard Theatre, 2803 E. Manor Road.  glasshalffulltheatre.com  .