Tweet Out

In sharp contrast to students who use social media to trash others, too often with tragic results (see story, pages 10-11), a teenager from West High in Iowa City, Iowa, is gaining national attention for using his Twitter account @westhighbros to send only personal compliments. According to radioiowa.com, junior Jeremiah Anthony has been spreading positivity since October 2011, but after a recent appearance on the Today show, his followers jumped from 1,600 to 4,990 as of Tuesday. A sample tweet: “you make quirky quite amazing. You are an awesome writer and you make every reader think about things in new and unique ways.” What a concept!

The Gun Debate

Reported by Celeste Brown, Newsome High, and Brian Smith, Jesuit High

After a gunman shot 20 students and six educators in a Newtown, Conn., elementary school last month, a National Rifle Association leader floated the idea of arming teachers in the classroom, and a national discussion about gun control and mental health efforts heated up anew. We asked students and a school counselor to participate in the debate.

“(Arming teachers is a) horrible idea! Some teachers are crazy and a gun isn’t the answer. Maybe if there was one in the front office, but that’s all.” —Sierra Zaner, Newsome High senior

“The odds are that any single armed guard is unlikely to be able make a difference in the face of a determined gunman. Improved screening and more in-depth background checks seem like reasonable precautions to take. The nation’s attitude toward mental health, and how we approach treatment, needs to be re-evaluated as well.” — Coyle Smith, Plant High senior

“Some teachers could handle a gun, (just) not in a classroom. But (with some) teachers, like the insane ones, we would all be dead because they don’t want to deal with us anymore.” — Virginia Anderson, Newsome High junior

“I think it is dangerous in certain schools. However, if that school is known for shootings I think it’s a good thing.” — Collin Rivera, Newsome High sophomore
“I’d say yes to armed guards.

“I wouldn’t change the Second Amendment. I think that there are good reasons to own guns, such as self-defense and hunting.”  — Parker Yount, Jesuit High senior

“I definitely don’t think solving the gun problem with more guns is the right thing to do.” — Jared Shimberg, Berkeley Prep junior

“I think some teachers should not be allowed to have guns. Especially at school!” — Matt Jones, Newsome High sophomore

“The U.S. needs to increase its restrictions on gun(s). The punishments for illegally having a gun should be greater. Manufacturers should still be allowed to make guns, but with one exception, (that) they make the firing and reloading of a bullet slower and harder to do.” — Joe Metzger, Jesuit High senior