This past Rosh Chodesh kisleiv saw MTA cele-brating its annual Chanukah Chagiga like never before. With inspirational s p e e c h e s , d e l i c i o u s food, and a live concert, the Chagiga was enjoyed by both staff and students alike, bring-ing the entire school to-gether for an e n j o y a b l e morning. The C h a g i g a brought out MTA’s vi-brant school spirit at its finest, allow-ing the students to take their minds off the looming date of finals to spend some time with their rebbeim and peers outside of the tradi-tional classroom environment. Just hearing the sounds of the MTA student body singing, one came away certain of one thing: That the lion truly roared loudly that Rosh Chodesh morning.

Upon entering Weissberg Commons, the time-honoured location of the Chagiga, the unique-

ness of the morning was palpable, and it wasn’t just from the smell of the piping hot latkes and waffles. Everyone was immediately pleased with a free breakfast of higher quality than usual. The traditional bagel and cream cheese breakfast was complimented by actual cartons of orange

juice, as op-posed to the pre-packaged plastic cups that we are a ccust om ed to. The stu-dents were also treated to the tradi-tional festive C h a n u k a h foods, includ-ing sumptu-ous potato latkes and jelly donuts. And to top it all off, there were even warm waffles

served with both chocolate and vanilla flavoured ice cream as an added treat.

With their delightfully healthy breakfast finally finished, the students were then graced by the words of our guest speaker, Mr. Alan Veingrad. Alan Veingrad is the only Shomer Shabbos Jew who sports a Super Bowl ring. While the Chag-

Continued on page 8

Continued on page 6

Restoring the Roar The MTA JV Basketball Lions truly did restore the roar this past Saturday night, win-ning the championship game of the Rubenstein Memorial Tournament.

Another Chance 2

Shlomo Friedman, member of last year’s “Mekor Chaim 10” ex-

plains his position on the ex-change program one year later

Under the Dome 16

The Academy News’s resi-dent fashionista Haim

Engelman discusses the MTA wardrobe malfunction

Keeping It Clean 10

Student Council Presidents Alex Goldberg & Yossi Aharon unveil

their plans to change MTA this year

Inside the MTA Library 7

MTA Librarian Ms. Danielle Lewis brings us up to date on the

newest features of our school’s literary home

The title “rabbi” conjures up a stereotypi-cal image in our minds, an image that if one takes a look at the pictures around a Beis Midrash would be, seemingly, accurate. A wrinkly, old, bearded man with his black hat and velvet yarmulke is the “rabbi” we have to picture. This intellectual, philoso-pher, leader and more is a man who de-mands some inherent respect upon looking into his cold, shining eyes. However, that generation of men is what once was, and, sadly, is no longer the norm.

Within the modern orthodox world, there is a large group of rabbis or rabbis-to-be who have invented a new method of rabbi-ing, courtesy of Yeshiva University. These are all fine, upstanding young men, and I’m sure that for the most part they all lead completely ethical and orthodox lives. How-ever, these men are the future leaders of synagogues, Yeshivot and communities and the flaws in their methodology must be accounted for.

From a young age we are told that, as Jews, we should follow in the ways of G-d, and in the footsteps of our Patriarchs. How-ever, we are only human. How are we sup-posed to act in a way even approaching something as abstract as G-d? Or even our Patriarchs, who we can only read about as being the holiest people who ever lived? That is exactly where the rabbi comes in, he

Rabbi Pal:

Friend or Spiritual Leader?

JV Basketball Team Wins Rubenstein

Tournament

By Dani Goffstein (‘11)

Academy News Op-Ed Editor

Continued on page 4

Two weeks ago, ten privileged MTA stu-dents travelled to Israel with the impression that they were embarking on a life-changing experience. They have not been disap-pointed. With the legendary organizational skills of Tova Rosenberg, founder and coor-dinator of MTA’s foreign exchange pro-gram, in a joint effort with MTA’s admini-stration, these sophomores are being whisked from activity to activity with barely enough time to think and appreciate the sights in between.

These ten brave souls were given no time to rest and hit the ground running with the immediate visit to Canada Park when they landed in Tel Aviv, where they learned about the historic battles of the Chash-monaim that took place nearby. From there they got their first taste of Mekor Chaim, with a special kumsitz and dinner with the Naors, their Av and Eim Bayit, their adoptive family from Kibutz Kefar Etzion, the settlement that hosts Mekor Chiam.

That was only the beginning. Over the two weeks the MTA students have been in Is-rael, they have prayed at the kotel at sun-rise, toured many sites in Jerusalem, and more, while at the same time being inte-grated into Mekor Chaim, a prestigious Israeli yeshiva, and making numerous new Israeli friends along the way.

Continued on page 6

By Akiva Blumenthal (‘12)

Academy News JV Basketball Editor

Chanukah Chagiga

A Resounding Success By Shua Brick (‘11)

Academy News Editor-in-Chief

By Doni Schwartz (‘12)

International Correspondent

The

Mekor Chaim

Experience

The Rubenstein Basketball Tournament has a new champion and it is none other than the MTA Lions. On Sunday night, January 10th, in a physical, hard fought and spirited contest, MTA’s Junior Varsity was crowned champion as it defeated The Frisch School, 45-43.

Before a packed house at SAR High School, the Lions squared off against their New Jersey rivals. Frisch entered the game with a reputation as a big and powerful team with strong backcourt lead-ership. MTA was known as a scrappy, quick unit capable of aggres-sively challenging its opponents with a tenacious defense. It was shaping up to be a battle betwe

n an immovable object and an irresistible force MTA had difficulty containing the Frisch guards during the first few minutes. After making some adjustments, Freshman guards Dave Apfelbaum and Shai Kaminetsky were able to put a better hold on Frisch’s guard play. MTA entered halftime with a slim four-point lead. Frisch knew that it needed to find a way to penetrate MTA’s stellar de-fense. Intent on pressing defense on Tournament MVP Zev Senter,

The Academy News 2 January 2010

Editorials

By Shlomo Friedman (‘11)

Member of last year’s “MC 10”

Another Chance

The emotion of being anxious or nervous is peculiar, one that occurs due to

fear of the unknown. It has the power to completely change who you are, both

negatively and positively. It also occurs at important, momentous, and often

life-changing occasions, such as your first day of school. It is at these anxious

times that one has the ability to and do something great if he overcomes this

anxiety. It was on the night of January 24, 2009, the night we ten left for Is-

rael, that I experienced the emotion of anxiety. Why? I did not know what was

going to take place during the two months in Yeshivat Mekor Chaim. I really

had no idea, no sense of what those two months would be like. It is only after

going through the experience, and coming out as a more complete person, that

I can fully understand what happened, and what might happen next.

Yeshivat Mekor Chaim is a unique place in its most singular aspect; stem-

ming from two sources, the student and the educator. The student in Mekor

Chaim is a passionate, mature young man, who is constantly striving to become

a better Jew. The students together, form the core of the Yeshiva; they are its

heart and soul. The rebbeim there are the guides, the respected individuals

who teach, lead, and show the students how to improve. Overarching all is

HaRav Dov Zinger the visionary and leader of the Yeshiva. These special and

distinctive relationships between Rebbe and Talmid all blend together to create

an atmosphere of mutual love and respect for one another, perpetually pro-

gressing and growing in their desire and ability to serve Hashem.

In contradistinction, the American student is a fine boy, yet he is content with

mediocrity, with maintaining the status quo. He does enough to get by as dic-

tated by his preset standards. On that night, we 10 Americans, awkward and

shy in the presence of such peculiar behavior, were suddenly thrust into the

atmosphere of Mekor Chaim. It was strange at the beginning. At first, like all

things, it was tough to adjust, very tough, but slowly we acclimated to the Ye-

shivat Mekor Chaim milieu. We were gradually able to tune in to the yeshiva,

and the beauty in which it served G-d. Soon, we were having the most incredi-

ble time of our lives. What was so good about it that made it incredible, you

will ask? The inspiration derived through the presence of a whole school

united in pursuit of the holiness of G-d. This phenomenon did not occur once

or twice, but every single day throughout the entire day. The students were

able to retain the feeling. I thought long and hard how this was possible. How

was each student able to keep this up? I then took a step back and it all made

sense.

I saw the kids, the core of any school, united constantly in their aspirations

of becoming Men of G-d. Everyone ate together, danced together, learnt to-

gether, and dreamt together. Across all grade lines and backgrounds, tall and

short, smart and slow, etc. The people in that school were being constantly

inspired, and therefore they did not fall prey to the human trait of forgetting

the most potent of emotions: inspiration. Everyone genuinely cared for one

another. Nobody had malice in their hearts or hatred in their blood. Nobody

was looking to embarrass you or to hurt you in any way. Everyone was ac-

cepted as a unique individual, each person having a gift and a special outlook

on life. We were thrust into this, and though we stood out, we were not just

accepted, but we were allowed to be immersed in that environment.

So we took that jump, the proverbial leap of faith, and when we landed we

looked around and felt at home. We had all overcome that preliminary anxiety

and were then able to truly experience and cherish the two months. We were

inspired by this place to do better, a lesson more powerful than any secular

class, and this had the power to break the American mentality of maintaining

the status quo and mediocrity. We wanted people to become inspired, surpass

their bounds, and fulfill their potential. It is with this thought that we wanted

to imbue upon MTA. But how? How would we 10 do this? Therein lays the

problem. It is not an easy job to inspire a school to unite in spirituality. Not

easy at all.

Now starts a new cycle. What will happen? What will the 10 boys in Israel

think? What will they take away? I am not positive, but I really believe that

they too will come away inspired. And what about me, you the reader will ask?

How does this all affect me? When the 10 return along with the six Mekor

Chaim boys, they will want to spread their ideas and message. They will want

to make our school a better place, which is not a bad thing. So now, I implore

you, the MTA student reading this article, to not just accept these boys and

their message but to implement it and actually become that ideal. You must

internalize what they say, and become inspired by them to be a better and more

able Jew. They have something special to teach us, and have the ability to give

something that will last for you and the school, but only if you are willing to

change. The student is the core of any school, and therefore if we change, the

school will change. You might have to take that leap that we all took on that

mid-winter night at the airport, but I can guarantee you that if you do, you will

grow both religiously and intellectually, seeing things in a completely different

light. I can guarantee it.

3

January 2010 The Academy News

Torah u’Madda in the

Context of MTA

We Just Need to

Calm Down

Enjoy this issue,

David & Shua

The Editors’ Desk From the Editor-in-Chief

David Weiss

From the Editor-in-Chief

Shua Brick

y now, the average MTA student has heard the slogan “Torah u’Madda” referred to in a

variety of contexts in his high school experience. The interpretation of Yeshiva University’s

founding slogan has been debated since the institution’s establishment and seems to be a

timeless concept in the Shakesperean fashion; its interpretation seems to shift in accordance

with the times, much like the Torah or the Constitution’s main tenants were also meant to

apply for future generations. Being a student of this philosophy, I will by no means seek to

present an interpretation of Torah u’Madda to the MTA student body. Rather, this editorial

will seek to explain how Torah u’Madda applies to you as a student of a Yeshiva University

High School, and the unfortunate ways in which so many MTA students stray from this im-

portant philosophical method of approaching Jewish erudition in its most pristine and un-

precedented form.

The standard and almost immediate answer to the question of “what is Torah u’Madda” is

usually responded to with an answer along the lines of “the integration of Western thoughts

and ideals into Jewish law and values,” or on a more compromised and basic level, “Torah

and secular studies.” A visit to MTA’s school website presents the following answer from our

Head of School, Rabbi Mark Gottlieb: “Our teaching reflects this commitment to the cultiva-

tion of a total, integrated human personality, at home in two systems of thought and fully

fluent in two languages of discourse, the Judaic particular and the humanistic-universal”.

MTA capitalizes on the “Athens meeting Jerusalem” concept to produce a student who is

fluent in both Jewish and Western dialectics, seeking to create future members of klal yisroel

who possess the intellectual aspiration to lead future generations using both Torah and

Madda concepts hand in hand. This definition summarizes Torah u’Madda on the most basic

of levels; the philosophical ramifications and interpretations of this term have been subject

to extensive scrutiny in various written works ever since the institution’s establishment. Yet

for the purposes of this article, and of course, for the typical student of MTA, we will use the

definition “Torah and secular studies” as our working definition of this term.

Unfortunately, the MTA student body has begun to develop factions of students who focus

primarily on only one extreme, one side of the Torah U’Madda spectrum. Some students

focus solely on excelling (or for the most part, getting a good grade) in their humanistic and

scientific studies, casting aside their morning shiurim as less significant and inferior compo-

nents of their daily curriculum. There are also students who espouse a contrary philosophy;

there are students who enter MTA each day focusing primarily on their Torah-oriented stud-

ies, rigorously extending their efforts towards their shiurim, but then completely disregard-

ing their Madda-oriented studies. These two types of students, the one who simply comes to

MTA to study the sciences and humanities, and the student who comes to MTA to primarily

learn Torah, are directly violating the primary philosophy upon which our school was

founded. To simply go through one’s day, only adhering to one extreme of this philosophical

spectrum and completely disregarding (or belittling) the other, is to gauge only half of what

the Yeshiva University experience is meant to encompass.

The philosophy of Torah u’Madda in the context of MTA has slowly shifted into a matter of

Torah or Madda, with a large majority of students unable to make it through the vicissitudes

of a four year dual curriculum. Consequentially, they sacrifice either their Torah or their

Madda, and are left with only half of what there is to offer here in MTA. I would like to urge

all of the freshmen to meticulously adhere to the philosophy of Torah u’Madda. It is through

our commitment to our tradition which has helped us thrive as a nation when, in comparison

to the rest of the world, our race should have gone unnoticed as a people, as Mark Twain

explained: “If statistics are right, the Jews constitute but one percent of the human race. It

suggests a nebulous dim puff of stardust lost in the blaze of the Milky Way. Properly, the Jew

ought hardly to be heard of, but he is heard of, has always been heard of. But he is heard of,

has always been heard of. He is as prominent on the planet as any other people, and his com-

mercial importance is extravagantly out of proportion to the smallness of his bulk. His con-

tributions to the world’s list of great names in literature, science, art, music, finance, medi-

cine, and abstruse learning are also away out of proportion to the weakness of his numbers.

He has made a marvelous fight in this world, in all the ages; and had done it with his hands

tied behind him.” It is only through the recognition of that all important conjunctional vav

that can we truly thrive as competent, Torah observing Jews in the 21st century.

B t gets to all of us at some time or another. There is no escaping the pressure caused by the education process, whether the anxiety stems from ourselves, teachers, parents or friends. We all seem to be reduced to numbers and three letter words: GPAs, SAT/ACTs and ECAs – our grade point averages, Scholastic Achievement Tests and our extracurricular activities. Inevita-bly, at some point in our life someone will bring these subjects up, and it goes downhill from there. We are not born with a natural stress about doing well. It is put on our shoulders by oth-ers. It does not need to be this way, and maybe we can learn how to help ourselves out of this mess.

Now this stress only progresses if we allow it to. It’s up to us to care enough for it to have an effect you. But without the original push, there is no source for this anxiety to start from. At some point in time someone will tell you how hard and important it is to get into a good col-lege. They will make it seem that you need a perfect average and to do extracurricular activities. But it will often seem difficult to the competition.

This stress exists in high school students throughout all grades until the college application process begins. The process itself is harmless and even beneficial to many. This stress seems to only belong to the students from the ninth to the eleventh grade before they have even begun the actual application process. Once they reach the stage of the actual application, they receive a tremendous amount of support and help from college guidance staff, and begin to have a greater of their recent teachers when they see how these teachers have their backs in this proce-dure with their moral support, recommendations and the practical help with the application essays. Not only is this a very important and necessary process for college purposes; this is also a process filled with self realization and appreciation.

However, until that time the underclassman’s notions seems to really take a toll. This unrea-sonable stress begins to build in the student’s minds from when this thought is already men-tioned to us in our freshman year. I remember Debate President Shai Chester telling me in my freshman year to start to worry about my GPA early on so that I don’t regret it later when I am applying to college three years later.

I’ve had stress workshops in school, run by the Guidance staff, since my ninth grade, the first year here for the school’s Social Worker Mrs. Tamar Scheffey. Every year since then, I’ve seen her in my class room talking about the stress that college applications cause. It’s amazing how four years of stress can be caused by a form that takes only a night to fill out.

This stress seems to be coming from many places. I t has been perceived that some teachers may use the looming threat of college as a motivator for students to put in more effort in their classes. Also, most of the information that stress these kids come from teachers. In tenth grade, for example, Mrs. Levitt showed my English class the teacher recommendation form for MIT. Hearing more and more about colleges is sometimes unnerving to some students.

Parents often pressure their children to work harder with the fear that they may not be ac-cepted to the desired college. Some parents may be pushing for financial reasons, so that we will qualify for a scholarship.

But the worst source of pressure comes from one’s peers. People feel that they are in competi-tion with their class mates. This does have some truth to it. Some colleges, and even Israel pro-grams, may not want to accept too many people from the same high school.

Well, this is the part where I finish establishing the situation and I begin to propose a plan. Here are a few tips. By the off chance that a parent is reading this, try to give your son a little space. The thing that I can brag about my parents the most is that they are never on my or my siblings’ backs about homework and test grades. They have always kept an eye on us from a reassuring distance. I know I can ask them to leave me alone about SAT scores that I do not have to kill myself to achieve. Parents should know how much pressure the kids need.

I believe teachers are well aware of the amount of pressure they are putting on their students, and have a very worthy cause for doing so. But I do think they should reevaluate the necessity of the amount, and perhaps they might find that they have done a little more than necessary. I think students are well aware that they are going to college, and that they need to take the SATs and worry about their grades. School should be about learning, not preparing kids to pass tests and meet specific requirements.

Now, I think we can all calm down. We can work together to accomplish the same goals. There are many extracurricular activities you can get involved in that match your personality. You should not join an extra curricular activity because it will look good on your transcript but be-cause it interests you. Colleges, while they have SAT and GPA requirements generally care about personality; at least once you meet certain requirements personality is what determines the amount of some scholarships. Even they are looking for real people, not perfect people. Don’t let the college process define you and what you do; you should.

I

The Academy News 4 January 2010

Op-Eds

As I was walking down the halls between periods, I came across multiple posters put up by

our Zionist club Hatzioni. One sign in particular that caught my eye was hanging on the

third floor and exclaimed in bold letters “Zionism=Racism”. At the time I didn’t consider it

of particular importance, considering all of the other similar signs. However, during a later

class the flyer came to mind again, and I reconsidered its connotations. I realized that some-

thing was clearly missing in our outlook towards Israel – namely, recognizing our achieve-

ments. I was so bothered that I left the classroom in search of a certain sign acknowledging

this momentous occasion and its effect on modern Jewry. After searching the entire school I

came to class despaired, realizing our negative and pessimistic view to Zionism.

In Israel, the only calendar that is used is the Jewish calendar, and all important events

are dated based upon it. The one exception to this rule is November 29, 1947, because of its

critical effects to modern Jewry. It was one of the most essential, if not the biggest, step that

Jews took in creating the modern State of Israel. Without it Israel would not have been cre-

ated, and instead Jews would still be mass persecuted in many different countries, without a

place to call home. Palestine would be ruled by the Arabs, and any Jews that had been living

there previously, would have been killed by the mob influenced by the poverty inflicted by

the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and his rival Muftis. Those Jews that had survived the Holo-

caust would have had nowhere to go, as no other country wanted them, and would have

been left with no hope of salvation. Therefore, November 29th, the day that the UN voted 33

-13 to create a Jewish state in Palestine, is of significance to all Jews.

To properly understand how the UN came to this vote and why it was necessary, one must

go back to beginning of Zionist movement in the late 19th century. With the growing move-

ment of nationalism in Europe, and the revival of anti-Semitism, many more Jews began to

long for a Jewish homeland. The Christians began to recreate racial stereotypes such as

large noses and baking matzos with Christian blood, and persecuted the Jews. Led by Theo-

dore Hertzel, and his book The Jewish State, the Jews of Europe began to immigrate to

Israel and pressure World leaders into creating a safe haven for them. With the advent of

the Balfour Declaration, and a growing Jewish population in Palestine, the Arabs began to

terrorize the Jews, and pressurized the British (who controlled the land from 1917-1948) to

create the White Papers in 1937. There was a wide array of Jewish reaction that went from

keeping peaceful relations with the British, to creating underground organizations to fight

them. There was the Haganah, which primarily tried to bring in “Maapilim” or illegal immi-

grants, and their fighting branch called the Palmach, Esel led by Menachem Begin who ter-

rorized the Arabs and the British, and Lechi led by Avraham Stern who created an all out

war with them. The Arabs retaliated with their own attacks led by the Grand Mufti of Jeru-

salem, Hajj Amin al-Husayni, while the British siding with the Arabs (because of their oil)

tried keeping peace in the region. This was the situation when World War II began.

When the war broke out, the Jews were again split as to whether they should fight with the

British or against the British. Members of the Haganah sided with the British as they

wanted to liberate their oppressed brethren that were persecuted in the death camps, while

Esel and Lechi fought against the British. The Arabs were persuaded by the Nazis that if

they fought the British they would be given autonomy and the Jews would be wiped out.

Nevertheless, they still were given complete amnesty by the British. After the war, the Jew-

ish underground organizations merged in common approach of attacking the British, de-

fending against the Arabs, and bringing in as many Jewish refugees as possible. Because of

the havoc in the land, the British in February 1947 called on the newly created United Na-

tions to create a solution to their problem. To the British’s surprise, the UN created a special

committee to tour Palestine and create a special report that they would present to the Gen-

eral Assembly when it reconvened in September. The Jews were thrilled and hurried to cre-

ate a committee to accompany the UN and make a favorable impression. The UN toured for

a few months and concluded that the British should end their mandate and split Palestine to

create a Jewish and an Arab state. Throughout the next two months, Jews throughout the

world pressurized their governments and sent emissaries to every country to persuade them

to vote favorably. The odds were against the Jews, as they needed a 2:1 ratio of yes to nay,

and already had 12 definite no’s from the Arabs and their allies. They were up against a wall,

yet they miraculously succeeded, and on November 29, 1947, the UN voted 33 to 13 to cre-

ate a Jewish state.

It is hard to describe the joy that the Jews at the time felt. They had been exiled from their

homeland for 2000 years and continually persecuted and massacred, and now they had a

safe haven to escape to. They could finally be in their homeland. As our very own Dr. Ed

Berliner, head of the physics department in Yeshiva University, wrote, “Those of my gen-

eration remember our parents telling us how they listened to the radio with tears flowing

as the votes were being cast and then spontaneously erupted into unrestrained simcha

when the results were announced. Some of the fellow members of my shul recount with a

bit of both amazement and pride how the radios were left on over Shabbat so that the Fri-

day night vote could be tracked.” As Amos Oz vividly recounts, the incident in that the re-

joicing in the soon-to-be declared state was spontaneous and overwhelming.

Therefore, I was disappointed when there was no flyer mentioning this historic occasion. I

do not understand why such an important event is left out. As Dr. Berliner wrote,

“Regrettably, many of our youngsters no longer know what happened on 29 November. I

do not quite know why a date of such significance fell into oblivion among our community.

Perhaps, given our new political outlook, we are embarrassed that our fathers and moth-

ers did not see the nations of the world as perpetual enemies but as resources to be culti-

vated and embraced. Perhaps we have gotten too used to being perceived as victims as is

evidenced by the recognition that it is now more common to see pictures of Jewish victims

in our schools and shuls as opposed to seeing pictures of famous Jewish scientists, jurists,

authors, etc. Whatever the reason, we must know where we came from in order to have

proper perspective as to where we should be going, Khaf-Tet November should be com-

memorated and our children should and must learn about it.”

In conclusion, this date was of vital importance to the aspiration of Zionists, which was to

have a Jewish homeland in Israel, and should be remembered by all. Next year, the school

should make this day of greater importance, and not allow it to be forgotten among the

young and ignorant future generations.

serves to be a model of the lifestyle we should appreciate, and aspire to live. That is not to

say that everyone should live the ascetic lifestyle of a rabbi; rather, we should look up to

this rabbi as a man of the righteousness we wish we could have and should struggle to

achieve. The title also comes with an element of holiness as well, a holiness that we should

envy and respect, and although he may have this “holiness”, the rabbi is still only a man,

one that eats, sleeps and breathes just like every other human being. That is what makes a

rabbi easier to relate to, and easier to take elements of his moral and “holy” lifestyle and

transpose them into our daily lives. The rabbi, although put on a pedestal, is not com-

pletely separate from everyone else.

However, based on my experience with the “new” rabbi, it appears that this man, unin-

tentionally, compromises this holiness and, once that is compromised, so is the respect

that comes with it. These rabbis are trying too hard; they seem to have this horrible fear of

not being able to relate to teenagers in order to keep them on the “derech,” so they go to

the extreme to try to relate. When teaching or giving a sermon, there are countless refer-

ences to pop culture, especially sports, to try to communicate the message in the Gemara,

or the weekly Torah portion. It is as if they need to westernize religion in order to get

teenagers interested. However, after talking to several students I have come to realize that

this method really only has two effects. First, to the more intellectual students, this

“rabbi” comes off as someone who is trying too hard, and they are offended by his assimi-

lation of the Torah with the worthless words of garbage we hear on the radio. This leads to

their disrespecting him, it seems that this man is no better than we are. Why should he be

called a “rabbi?”

Yet for the typical modern orthodox teenager, this rabbi comes off in a much different

light. If this rabbi connects to these students, he becomes what I like to call “Rabbi Pal”.

He’s just another friend to these adolescents because he relates to them too much. The

child will not disrespect Rabbi Pal, but he does not regard him as particularly holy. He has

been taken off his pedestal. He’s a pal; we talk about girls, movies, music and sports. This

rabbi is a cool guy; he doesn’t particularly care about Torah or learning.

Perhaps this methodology stems from the fact that most of these rabbis were born closer

to our generation. It makes them think they are one of us, but just more spiritual. A man

of G-d, who likes the same stuff we do.

A balance needs to be created; there is a line that cannot be crossed. No child should

disrespect anybody with the title of “rabbi,” and no child should think his rabbi is his

buddy, and that words that come out of Joel McHale’s mouth and words of Torah are one

and the same, or even similar. I, personally, am a man of the arts, and would be the last

person to say that no lessons can be learnt from movies and television. However, my ad-

vice to the “new rabbi” is to drop the pop culture from being the core of the lesson.

What if one of these “new generation rabbis” was teaching a class or giving a speech and

before he establishes the religious basis of his presentation, he begins with a reference to

western culture, which becomes the foundation of his lecture? There is no way the class or

audience of adolescents would take the lesson seriously. If the rabbi feels that a reference

to modern day western culture will strengthen his argument, that’s fine, but it must be

limited, and certainly should not be the central theme of his presentation. I believe that a

better way to create interest among the students is through more spiritual teachings, like

philosophy or mysticism. Obviously this might not be the best approach for all students,

but clearly neither is the status quo. However, when teaching the class a lesson, the class

needs to be taught as a unit, so only one approach can be taken when lecturing a class. I

believe a spiritual approach will certainly interest a larger portion of the students, and

therefore the students would give the rabbi respect as a man of Torah, who can interest

them with his teachings. Even those who may not be interested by this approach will at

least respect the rabbi for not trying too hard by resorting to pop culture references. Even

Rabbi Soloveitchik (THE RAV- for those who are unfamiliar) created his mass following

of modern orthodoxy through philosophy and intellectualism. Would he have still accu-

mulated the following that he had, if he was constantly referencing movies, TV shows and

sports in his speeches, and left out his philosophies?

Obviously, it goes without saying that all generalizations made in this article do not ap-

ply to every single modern orthodox rabbi who completed his smicha within the last five

years or so. However, based on my experiences, the accusations I make appear to be more

than just a few cases, it would seem it is a rampant and trendy approach to teaching teen-

agers. I believe this is a faulty methodology and these rabbis should use an alternative

teaching approach, one that interests students and will not cross the fine line between

rabbi and pal. Take it from a member of your target audience; you’re way off the mark.

Rabbi Pal:

Friend or Spiritual Leader?

Forgotten Jewish Events

and Accomplishments

By Yoni Zolty (‘12)

Academy News Op-Ed Editor Continued from first page

When teaching or giving a sermon, many rebbeim make countless references to pop culture, especially sports, to try to com-municate the message in the Gemara, or the weekly Torah portion. It is as if these Rabbis need to westernize religion in order to get teenagers interested.

5

January 2010 The Academy News

The Academy News 6 January 2010

State of the School

Chanukah Chagiga

A Resounding Success Continued from

first page

The average Makor Chaim day starts with

davening at 7:00 in the morning. After the

stereotypical Israeli breakfast of vegetables,

tea, bread and cottage cheese, we have

shiur. This is followed by lunch and a short

break until the school day resumes with min-

chah, English classes, maariv, and night

seder, where they learn bekius with a

chavrusah.

What makes this schedule so impressive is

that all of the American exchange students

who have been paired off with Israelis for

chavrusot have the ability to learn with them

for two hours a day, all the while being intro-

duced to the Israeli way of life through the

eyes of their class members. Furthermore, all

students are required to spend one afternoon

a week doing chesed, which can include any-

thing from painting benches at a shul to

helping around the kibutz with the garden-

ing. Naturally, as will happen when dealing

with Israelis, this schedule is revised multi-

ple times a week with additions such as mid-

night kumsitzes, late-night shiurim, and after

-school treats.

This schedule stretches from Sunday to

Thursday, with the grand finale being an all-

night mishmar on Thursday night for the

more energetic students. This mishmar is

not like any other they have experienced in

MTA. It starts off with some singing and

dancing in the spirit of Shabbos, leading to a

speech from the Rosh Hayeshiva. Everyone

there is then encouraged to stay up late

learning, with some students remaining until

daybreak.

The mishmar and end of week festivities

prepares them for the Shabbos. On Friday,

the Americans are treated to either a short

hike or tour, along with some of their newly

acquired Israeli

friends. They

are then rushed

off to their

Shabbos lodg-

ings which dif-

fers from week

to week, includ-

ing locations in

Jerusalem, with

relatives, or in

Mekor Chaim

itself, giving the

chance for these

students to ex-

perience the

land outside of

t h e Y e -

shiva. Re-

freshed from

Shabbos, the

students are

eager to begin

the new school

week with whatever surprises and challenges

it may bring

At the same time as all this is going on, the

MTA students are being introduced to a Cha-

sidic and a more spiritual way of life, as Me-

kor Chaim is generally considered a school

with Chassidic foundations. They, with the

regular students there, are constantly sing-

ing, dancing, and trying to get closer to

Hashem. Surrounded by the enthusiasm of

the other Yeshiva students, they have begun

to see how a love of Torah learning is possi-

ble even at a young age, and begin to get

excited about Torah themselves.

This aspect, besides for the efforts of Mrs.

Rosenberg, our madrichim, and the staff and

people here at Mekor Chiam, make this ex-

change program one of a kind. These stu-

dents are not just learning about the lifestyle

of a foreign country, but are learning to make

it a part of them. This is not just a study of

anthropology, but a personal learning experi-

ence from which they plan to gain as much as

they can.

The

Mekor Chaim

Experience Continued from first page

giga is generally populated by

students in the advanced shi-

urim, Mr. Veingard was never-

theless able to garner the at-

traction and attention of all of

the MTA students, regardless of

their level of education.

With a quick introduction

from Yeshiva University’s

President Richard Joel, the

crowd was ready to hear from

the legendary Jewish football

player. Mr. Veingard shared his

story of being the sole Jewish

player on the Super Bowl

XXVII World Champion Dallas

Cowboy Team in 1992. A sur-

prisingly talented and skilled

speaker, Mr. Veingrad effort-

lessly drew in and sustained the

attentions of the crowd in little

time.

Not only did he have an inter-

esting and exciting story to tell,

from a rarely heard perspective,

he also included some moral

lessons he had learned along

the way of his journey to the

NFL. One main theme in his speech was the comparison he

made between making it to the National Football League and

making it through life.

He described the non stop determination necessary to start

from an early age if you were to be thought of as a profes-

sional in your field. While he described the amount of work it

required, he made a point to stress the wisdom and method

his coach taught him. Mr. Veingrad was required to write

down, in painful detail, exactly what he did at every work out,

and what he planned to do every day of the week. Clarifying

your goals, he explained, will help you achieve them.

As an offensive lineman, he said, the only recognition he

would get were penalties from the referees. While many

would think a player in a professional league would live off

fame, he explained how that would be an impossible outlook

to have while working as a team. Offensive line men do not

get recognition, and therefore he had to be satisfied with be-

ing known amongst his team members as a great team player.

It was the only way for all of them to succeed, including him-

self.

His last remark was about his famed touchdown completion.

After a very exciting description of the entire play, he related

the feeling of accomplishment he felt scoring points for his

team while being a mere linebacker. Then he told us that this

story took place not in a real game, but during a practice, in a

kicking simulation. However, he said, “That was my touch-

down in the NFL.” He instructed us to find our own touch-

downs, whether it was in a

varsity basketball game or a

Chumash test. It’s important

that each of us have our own

Super Bowl rings. Relaying his

experiences as a professional

athlete, Mr. Veingard’s pres-

entation provided a morning

of both laughter and inspira-

tion. A dynamic and talented

speaker, Mr. Veingard then

went on to explain how the

lifestyle he fell into following

his retirement from the NFL

left a void in his life that inevi-

tably lead him to the Torah

and Mitzvos.

After a Q & A session with

Mr. Veingrad came the per-

formance everyone had been

waiting for; the inaugural

performance of the new MTA

Choir. The boys performed

surprisingly well, and showed

a truly remarkable amount of

courage in the face of a large

and daunting audience that

did not guarantee a warm

reaction.

Next came the dancing por-

tion of the Chagiga, which

was what truly made this

morning so memorable. In

addition to having the entire school dancing and singing in

unison, the experience was amplified by the inclusion of Ohel

Beis Ezra clients. The dancing was truly a meaningful experi-

ence for the entire school, with both rebbe and talmid danc-

ing hand in hand. Having a forum to spend time together

outside of class really brought out the spirit that MTA prides

itself on, and left every student positively effected and happy

at the conclusion of the morning.

Overall, the Chagiga seemed to be the greatest attended in

all of my years at MTA. The school’s spirit was brought out

like never before, with each and every member of the MTA

community dancing hand in hand. Coming away from that

morning, I knew but one thing for certain: THE ROAR HAD

BEEN RESTORED!!

Spirit of the Lion The annual Chanukah Chagiga brought the school together for a morning of singing, dancing, and inspiration, bringing out an unprecedented level of school spirit.

The Second Year The ten MTA students have been fully immersed in the Mekor Chaim Yeshiva, learning, eating, davening and rooming with the school’s Israeli students

7

January 2010 The Academy News

State of the School

This fall, the world continues to change and grow, and the Joseph Alexander Library has done so as well. These changes enable MTA students to keep up with the times while remaining true to our founding beliefs and traditions – a dynamic and creative tension that helps each student prepare to shape the educational and cultural land-scape of his world while sustaining our tra-dition’s guiding ideas, practices and vision. Among the many changes and events that have been transforming the Joseph Alexan-der Library since September, the most im-portant, perhaps, is the first MTA Student Photo Contest, themed “Your Travels: Tea-neck to Tokyo” and judged by our own Prin-cipal Ya’akov Sklar Congratulations to our winner, senior Yofiel Jacob! Yofie’s image of a shoeshine boy in his native Mumbai will share pride of place with those of our other winners – Yitzy Fuld, Grade 12; Jonathan Hans, Grade 11; and Eli Laury, Grade 10 – will also be displayed, bringing the world and vision of our students into the library itself, firing imagination and possibility. Congratulations to all who entered – MTA has a lot of visual talent!

Physically in the center of the school, the library’s architecturally acclaimed space is where mind, heart and spirit meet. Con-tinually growing, it currently houses over 14,000 volumes, embracing fiction and non-fiction from around the globe. Periodicals, test prep aids, college information, and a plethora of online and digital reference tools put the world at a Lion’s fingertips. Our Judaic collection also includes a wide range of electronic resources, indispensible for Tanakh and Talmud study. Eight sections of seforim make the library a true nexus of Torah and Madda.

The Library is brimming with new acquisi-tions. Thank you to the many students, staff and friends who have donated time,

books and DVDs, in particu-lar Rabbi Brownstein, whose generosity has enhanced our fiction and philosophy sec-tions immensely. Thank you also to those who have been replacing works of science fiction and literature lost in the flood.

On any given day, the Li-brary is full of action. Exam-ples include: (1) MTA's award-winning Debate Team prac-ticing and competing. (2) Honors College, prospective Freshmen, college-bound seniors and Rebbe-Talmid study. (3) MTA's newest stu-dent group, the High School Historical Society is begin-ning its film and Round Ta-ble/Forum events. All history buffs are welcome to join and learn about its new historical journal. Keep posted for more information!

The Library contains a plethora of resources, in book form and online, to assist MTA students for any course, standardized test or to help plan a college search. Finding aids for seforim and books in English are available and accessi-ble. Look on top of the circulation desk or ask for assistance. As your librarian, I am also your students' personal resource, ready to help them find appropriate, stimulating and challenging materials.

Our periodicals collection is growing in breadth and depth. Please let me know if there is a periodical you wish to see - Ivrit or Anglit.

Our lending library of over 250 videos and DVDs, including a classical film collection, attracts both students and teachers. Below is a sampling of our newest acquisitions:

• Battle Cry of Freedom : The Civil War

Era by James M. McPherson

• Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is

Burning: 1977, Baseball, Politics, and the Battle for the Soul of a City by Jonathan Mahler

• The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings

by J.R.R. Tolkien

• The Rise of David Levinsky by Abra-

ham Cahan

• A History of Zionism by Walter Lac-

queur (revised)

• Why Study Talmud in the 21st Cen-

tury, ed. Paul Socken

Popular Science (Periodical)

Preview of Coming Attractions: new labels for each section of the Library, new, accessible reference and test prep sections, student photo contest winners on display, Jewish artwork, and more.

Remember, your ideas and suggestions keep the Library ready and able to serve you best – so keep them coming!

The Joseph Alexander Library News & views from MTA’s literary home

By Ms. Danielle Lewis

MTA Librarian

A Literary Home The Joseph Alexander Library serves as an invaluable resource for literature, seforim, periodicals, and a practice arena for the famed MTA Debating Lions

By Shua Brick (‘11)

Academy News Editor-in-Chief

Mr. Gononsky’s AP Biology Class

Sings to the Tune of the Eukaryotic Cell

Since the beginning of the year, the 11th grade AP Biol-

ogy class has been hard at work in their study of the com-

plex mechanisms by which life processes function. To

grasp these esoteric and enigmatic concepts re-

quires many tedious hours of independent study,

as well as an unparalleled level of erudition. In

the face of the many responsibilities that come

with the Junior year, many students in the AP

Biology class have been having a great deal of

trouble understanding these concepts, unable to

find sufficient time to commit these many tedious

topics to memory. Fortunately, our esteemed AP

Biology instructor and expert college advisor Mr.

William Gononsky came to our rescue, deter-

mined to help us in our time of need. His chessed

for us was two-fold; we would be assigned an or-

ganelle in the cell, which we would have to sing a

song and dance to. Not only would this help us

understand our topics in an innovative and crea-

tive way, it would also allow us to do so in a fun

and novel fashion. So for two mortifying, yet hi-

larious, weeks, the scholars of AP Biology sung,

screamed, cried, laughed and danced their hearts

out to the tune of the eukaryotic cell.

Often referred to by the prominent letter G, Mr.

Gononsky is a veteran instructor of AP Biology,

known for his innovative teaching methods, wry sense of

humor, and expert college advice. During his tenure on

the New York City Board of Education, Mr. Gononsky

was recognized as an outstanding teacher and was ap-

pointed as a Master Mentor for incoming science teach-

ers. If he was not originally the typical science teacher, he

has now created a new genre of them. Recently, however,

he’s been showing his true colors as a man who always

wanted to go into Yiddish Theatre.

As the saying goes, those who cannot do, teach. While

he may have found happier pastures than his Yiddish

speaking peers by finding his niche as superb teacher, he

still tries to imbue the same love of music within his stu-

dents. Of course, since nothing in class can be all fun with

no intellectual gain, Mr. Gononsky added a twist to his

musical assignment. He wanted the students, in groups

of three, to not only sing an original song about an organ-

elle, but to also write a paper and present an oral presen-

tation about their organelle

There were two groups in particular that stole the show.

Nothing would top the performance and current Youtube

hit “Party in the Lysosome”. Led by professional rapper

Dani Goffstein, along with dance sensations David

Weiss and Jon Herskowitz, the group performed a

rendered combination of the The Black Eyed Pea’s

“Boom Boom Pow” and Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the

USA”. Their lyrics and choreography showed an

unparalleled level of commitment to the funda-

mentals of AP Biology.

Following this performance was the Mitochondria

dance performed by Mendy Boteach and Akiva

Rosensveig. With a creative array of dance move-

ments, complimented with the tune of the popular

German song “Dü Hust”, the performance brought

many shrieks of laughter and was enjoyed by all,

proving to be the only other noteworthy perform-

ance in the class.

On behalf of the entire Academy News editorial

staff, all of whom have had the privilege of being in

the 11th grade AP Biology class, we would like to

thank Mr. Gononsky for allowing us to take part in

this interesting way of learning Biology. Many stu-

dents came away with an overall positive view of

the assignment: “Singing and dancing in front of

my peers was a necessary evil. You gotta do what

you gotta do when it comes to getting a passing

grade,” remarked an anonymous AP Biology enthusiast.

The vibrant Biology students of the 11th grade look for-

ward to next semester, where they will have to put on yet

another theatrical performance in AP Biology on the or-

gan system of their choice.

The Chloroplast Crew Sporting an array of green colored costumes, Juniors Elan Teichman, Shua Brick, and Samuel Mirsky serenaded the class with their moving description of the Chloroplast’s key functions

The Academy News 8 January 2010

Lions Season

Update

Weathering the Storm Despite a hard fought battle against the Storm, the Lions fell to TABC 4-1

The MTA junior varsity hockey team has been having a roller coaster of a first half of the season, full of its steady climbs and plummeting drops. The team had shown great promise this year under the guidance of new coach Dovie Quint, the Director of Addmisions here at MTA and an MTA alumnus. Plus, with the addition of many new and talented players such as Gabe Rosenfeld along with his brother Eitan, the JV Lions seem to have a promising season ahead of them.

The first of the ten MTA JV games so far were against Kushner. MTA shut them out, defeating them by a score of 12-0. Raffi Wiesen was the leading goal scorer, with a hat trick. With this ‘walk off’ win the team’s moral soared. The MTA JV hockey team was on a moral high, and was looking forward to a game with a lot of hype; a game against TABC, our hockey rivals.

However, then came that Thursday night. The team came out looking sluggish as if they did not even want to be there. With a lack of hustle the team earned themselves a demoralizing 5-1 loss. The MTA team’s loss, which was supposed to be able to compete with TABC, and in which they were expecting at least a closer game, showed that they were going to need to work even harder and drive themselves beyond their limits.

However, on the following Sunday, MTA was down 1-0 while facing SAR after the first period. This caused havoc and great distress in the locker room, because it was the first time since the TABC game that MTA finished a period in the red. This caused the MTA team to really feel the importance and need to drive themselves through this game. They quickly tied it up, and the result of the game was 3-2 MTA. This win was extremely impor-tant because it was the second time that MTA had defeated a team as elite as SAR, proving that the first game was won as well as the second, out of skill and not just serendipity.

Withstanding the dramatizing huge loss to TABC, the MTA JV hockey team proved it can compete for the championship. There are many upcoming games that are expected to be easy wins, but the true tests will be the games against Frisch and TABC. If they can beat Frisch, and have a good outing against TABC, MTA will be expected to go far into the playoffs. All in all, the MTA Junior Varsity team is looking not only to make the playoffs this year, but is looking to win it all.

JV Hockey Update

By Eitan Stern (‘12)

Academy News JV Hockey Editor

Varsity Hockey

Lions Awaken With a Roar

JV Basketball

Team Wins Ruben-stein Memorial

Tournament

The Varsity Lions set out to prove to the rest of the league that they were the king, and got off to a terrific start this season. Led by captains Aaron Geffner and Moshe Jaroslawicz, the Lions aim to be the alpha dog in the Western Conference. While a tougher conference lies ahead, the Lions are prepared to meet any challenge on the path to reclaiming their rightful place on the throne that is the Yeshiva Hockey League Championship.

The Lions opened their season in the Den against a feisty Kushner squad. The Lions knew the Cobras would prove to be a tough foe, and came out flying, taking a 2-0 lead on goals by Jun-ior phenom Noah Isaacs and Aaron Geffner. MTA then added another goal in the 2nd Period from Moshe Jaroslawicz. The de-fense was superb and goalie Natan Bienstock proved that he de-serves to be the starter, letting up only a single goal. The Lions emerged as the victors, winning their first game 3-1.

MTA then moved on to Frisch to play their toughest game of the season so far. With the support of the student body behind them, the Lions played their hearts out against the Cougars. The score was tied at two heading into the 3rd Period, when Moshe Jaro-slawicz put one in giving the Lions the lead. However, Frisch ral-lied back scoring a goal, and sending the game into overtime. In the extra period, Jaroslawicz scored his third goal, giving him a hat trick and the Lions a hard-fought 4-3 OT victory.

The Lions then had a tough game hosting the JEC Lightning. The Lightning surprised the Lions, who played their worst game of the season. Goalie Natan Bienstock allowed 4 goals on only 9

shots, but the Lions propelled by a hat trick from Junior Alter Gross held on to beat the Lightning 6-4.

The Lions then traveled to Riverdale for their toughest challenge yet, a battle against their bitter rival the SAR Sting. The Sting jumped out to an early lead 3-0 and most people believed that the game was over. However, the Lions never gave up and scored 5 unanswered goals to take the lead 5-3. While the Sting scored a late power play goal to make it a one goal game, Noah Isaacs scored an empty netter, his second of the game to give the Lions a hard-fought 6-4 victory.

After Hillel forfeited the two games that they were set to play against the Lions, MTA became 9-0. Looking to clinch the divi-sion, the Lions headed over to TABC on a stormy Saturday night. Winning would give the Lions a strong chance at coming away with an undefeated season, allowing them to reclaim their spot as champions of the Yeshiva Hockey League.

Yet the TABC Storm would eventually come to prove their might against the Lions, ending their undefeated season. An early goal from Moshe Jaroslawicz gave the Lions high hopes for clinching the division. However, the MTA defense was quickly dispatched, and would be unable to weather the remainder of the storm. After a long and hard fought battle, the Lions painfully accepted their first loss of the season, losing against the storm 4-1.

Despite this disheartening loss, the Varsity Hockey Lions still have high hopes of clinching the divisional title. Their subsequent rematch against TABC ended in a second heart breaking loss, although the Lions showed great signs of improvement, and proved that they would be a force to be reckoned should the two rivals meet again.

By Natan Bienstock (‘11)

Academy News Varsity Hockey Editor

opened up the area around the basket and allowed MTA’s

guards to attack the basket. Point guards Zak Lenik and Shai

Kaminetsky spread the ball around and MTA nursed a small

lead throughout the game. With around one minute to go in

the fourth, MTA was leading 41-40 with Frisch threatening.

After a missed shot by Jacob Shapiro and a rebound and put

back by Akiva Blumenthal, MTA was up by four with less

then one minute to go. That lead proved insurmountable and

MTA held on for the victory.

MTA’s road to the tournament finals began when it de-

feated its rival, Ramaz, in the opening round and then North

Shore in the semi-finals. In the prior meeting between

Ramaz and MTA, the Ramaz team had trounced its New York

rivals. This time, every JV Lion knew that the outcome would

be different. The game had added meaning because due to an

inclement weather cancellation earlier in the season, it was

decided

that this

matchup

w o u l d

c o u n t

towards

the regu-

lar sea-

son re-

cord.

Ramaz

s t a r t e d

out with

a small

lead in

the first

quarter.

M T A

was re-

s i l i e n t

though,

striking back and attacking the basket. This effort enabled

MTS to lead by three at halftime. Ramaz was limited to only

24 first half points. Star freshman Jacob Shapiro played a

major role in this success by only allowing Ramaz’s star

player and captain, Josh Wildes, to score three points. But

with three fouls on Shapiro, MTA Coach Yossie Faber chose

Akiva Blumenthal to shut down the Ramaz captain in the

second half. Ramaz’s game plan was to look inside to Wildes

as often as possible. MTA started off the second half with a

dominating display of offense from center Zev Senter. Senter

was able to control everything around the basket and domi-

nated play by grabbing nearly every rebound. The defense

really stepped it up in the second half. Shockingly, Ramaz

scored only five points in the entire second half! Ramaz’s

Wildes finished the game with only the three points he had

scored in the first half. After losing by fifteen in the first

meeting, the tables had turned and the MTA JV Lions team

won by eighteen.

The victory catapulted MTA into the second round and a

confrontation with North Shore. North Shore posed another

set of challenges and MTA knew that North Shore had

earned its standing as an unbeaten opponent. North Shore

though was a smaller team and this allowed Zev Senter to

lead MTA to victory by scoring a tournament high 36 points.

MTA built a ten-point lead early on by pressuring North

Shore with a focused defense. In the end, MTA took control

and cruised to an easy victory.

For Coaches Yossi Faber and Josh Friedman, the tourna-

ment victory surpassed their highest expectations. They

were hoping to see their Lions polish their skills so that later

in the season, they would prove to be more formidable. In

the end, they achieved that goal and so much more as the

young Lions earned the right to call themselves champions.

Junior Varsity center Zev Senter was crowned MVP of the Rubenstein Memorial Tournament

Continued from first page

9

January 2010 The Academy News

Clubs

MTA, the founder of the Yeshiva debate

league, has topped its charts as the lead-

ing debate team for years. Last year,

MTA’s novice debaters won multiple

trophies against students two or three

years older than they are, and this year

will likely be no exception to MTA’s de-

bate successes. Although the ‘legendary’

senior debaters of last year are no longer

on the team, this year’s juniors have

quickly taken their place. The team has

high hopes for success this year, under

the leadership of co-Presidents Shmuel

Mirsky and Michael Guggenheim.

As in previous years, MTA has the honor

of hosting the largest debate of the school

year: the Great Debate. The Great De-

bate, a 21 year tradition of the debate

team, consists of three separate rounds

and is the pinnacle of the debate season.

While it has usually Yeshiva University

Admissions event, this year the Great

Debate will be sponsored by Sy Sims

School of Business and will host 18 schools,

for a total of 160 debaters debating on the

topic of the government’s restriction of ex-

ecutive compensation. While originally

scheduled for Sunday, December 6, it has

now been postponed until Febuary 7th. While

this tournament is traditional, this year’s

preparations have been anything but.

To begin their rigorous training for the

Great Debate, the MTA debate team mem-

bers were addressed by Yeshiva University’s

very own Dr. Michael Ginzberg, the Dean of

the Sy Syms School of Business, to share his

economic expertise with the team. This year

there has been a greater stress on trying to

get guest speakers to prepare the debaters

for upcoming events. In the past there have

been some sporadic visits from professors,

including a YU professor of international

politics to speak to us about NATO last year

and Rabbi Tendler the year before who

spoke on the halochik point of view on organ

donation in preparation for a debate at Ezra

Academy. However this year alone we have

already had both Dean Ginzberg, and MTA’s

own Mr. Leader, who teaches an economics

course. Dean Ginzberg, a nationally re-

nowned expert and prolific author on man-

agement information systems and the inter-

national aspects of business, was able to

shed some light on this nitrite, yet intellectu-

ally stimulating, topic with his wide span of

knowledge. With Dr. Ginzberg’s guidance,

the debaters discussed the issues especially

relevant to the debate and explored some of

the economic, legalistic, and social reasons

for and against the resolution.

After Dean Ginsberg outlined many of the

major concepts crucial to the understanding

of the resolution including ‘say on pay’,

TARP funds, and the new pay czar Kenneth

Feinberg, the debaters were able to make the

most of this unique event with a thorough

question and answer session. The debate

team enjoyed the chance to interact with an

expert in the field of economics and all of the

debaters are looking forward to using much

of what they learned to assist them in their

upcoming debates.

Not only did the team prepare with a guest

lecturer, but the debaters were also given the

chance to see this topic and these arguments

in action when MTA hosted a novice debate

tournament that sported an identical resolu-

tion to that of the Great Debate. This not

only gave the novice debaters a chance

for more experience and opportunity to

develop their oratory and reasoning

skills, but also a chance for the experi-

enced debaters who were judging the

event to see different ways to approach

this topic and to decide on a good direc-

tion.

Of course the night was not made for

the lone benefit of the experienced debat-

ers. The novice debaters gathered what

that they had learned after weeks of

training and researching to finally experi-

ence their first multi-school debate.

While there was an in-house debate ear-

lier in the year centered on the limits of

student censorship, this was their first

look at real competitive debating. The

novices were able to reap the benefits of

their hard work while enjoying a learning

experience, and in the meantime the

more experienced members were able to

offer targeted critique and instruction to

help improve the novices’ techniques and

style.

In between the two rounds of debating,

the usual pizza dinner was served. The event

culminated with a dvar torah given by

Mendy Boteach, who connected the tzohar

of Noah’s Ark to student debaters. The best

speakers and teams were announced with

the help of Tech Manager Aryeh Teifen-

brunn coordinating the technical support

necessary for the event.

While the Great Debate had to be post-

poned, the debate team is still working hard

preparing for the debates scheduled for next

semester, many being held this February.

With constant lunch meetings and after

school preparations, this team has really

shown a change from its notorious extempo-

raneous attitude of years past, and shows

great promise this season, especially for the

Great Debate, which has received an un-

Executive Compensation Caps? That’s Debatable

The Great Debaters Yeshiva University’s Dr. Michael Ginzberg, Dean of the Sy Syms School of Business, shared his economic expertise with the MTA debaters in preparation for the upcoming Great Debate

By Meir Hirsch (‘12)

Academy News Staff Interviewer

Hatzioni Representatives Join YUPAC on Mission to Washington, DC

By Yehuda Kupferman (‘10)

Academy News Staff Writer

This year’s Mock Trial team is shaping up to be

the best yet, with a new team bolstered by the addi-

tion of many new members, eager to hone their

public speaking skills in the context of the moot

court. Despite a rough start in the beginning of the

year, the Mock Trial team, which consisted of a

mere five members due to the loss of last year’s

seniors, now has a remarkable seven new mem-

bers, eager to earn join the ranks of MTA’s es-

teemed Lions of the Legal System. Junior hopefuls

Michael Guggenheim and Dani Goffstein have

joined the team this year, both looking to bring

their debating expertise to the court system of

MTA’s extracurricular department. Under the

guidance of Captain Gershi Adler, as well as our

new coach Daniel Spector, the Mock Trialing lions

are primed to bring their famed debating spirit to

the court system, perhaps even winning the first

divisional championship in MTA’s history.

Mock Trialing

Lions Prepare for the Upcoming Season

By Doron Levine (‘12)

Academy News School Events Editor

On December 2nd, five MTA Seniors joined YUPAC and stu-

dents from George Washington University on a lobbying mission

to Washington, D.C. On this full-

day trip, Hatzioni representa-

tives (Yehuda Kupferman, Zev

Newman, Avi Faitelewicz, Akiva

Ennis, and Michael Gabay) met

with members of Congress and

advocated on behalf of a bill

sanctioning all American eco-

nomic interactions with Iranian

petroleum. The bills, titled

the Comprehensive Iran Sanc-

tions, Accountability and Divest-

ment Act and the Iran Refined

Petroleum Sanctions Act, warns

Iran to stop refining petroleum

into uranium, and asserts that

America will halt Iran’s economy

entirely should they refuse.

These bills need to be passed by both houses of Congress by

springtime. If not, Iran may very well develop nuclear weapons.

The day began with introductions from a select few notable

speakers including Yeshiva University President Richard Joel and

Senator Joseph Lieberman in the Hart Senate Office Building. The

five MTA students then walked to the Cannon House Office Build-

ing to thank Rep. Jim Gerlach of Pennsylvania and his staff for co-

sponsoring one of the bills. Afterwards, they returned to the Sen-

ate Building and thanked Sen.

Barbara Mikulski of Maryland

and her staff for co-sponsoring

one of the bills. With some extra

time, the students visited the

Capitol Building and received an

incredibly generous opportunity

to look at the architecture, stat-

ues, and frescoes in the Rotunda.

The five students had an excellent

experience in the Unites States

capitol.

Overall, the trip helped the MTA

delegates develop a greater and

more profound appreciation for

our country’s hard work on behalf

of Israeli interests. It also allowed

the MTA students to actively par-

ticipate in affecting a real global concern, giving each and every

one of them an experience that will not soon be forgotten.

The Academy News 10 January 2010

This year may be the year in which MTA finally solves its

sanitation problem. The MTA student body has high hopes

that this may problem will be alleviated under the guidance of

the Student Council. At the beginning of the year, Student

Council presidents Alex Goldberg and Yossi Aharon an-

nounced that the current level of sanitation was no longer

acceptable in the school. To combat the mess that disgraces

our Yeshiva, the Student Council kicked off the “Keep It

Clean” campaign. The goal of the newly created program is to

create an atmosphere of collective ownership and responsibil-

ity for our school. Last Sunday I had the opportunity to speak

with the new face of MTA’s cleanup crew, the presidents of

Student Council.

Academy News: Last year, you became the presi-

dents of the Student Council. As presidents, what are

your responsibilities to the student body and the

school?

Alex Goldberg: I feel my job is to represent the students in

any issue that they are having and to voice those issues to the

administration and faculty. We also work to create exciting

programs and opportunities for the students to participate in.

Yossi Aharon: The Student Council’s goal is to create a bridge

between the administration and the students. It is our job as

the Student Council to communicate with the administration

what the students want and to act as a medium where both

parties can work together to actualize those requests.

What future events ,

changes, and programs can

we expect from the Student

Council?

AG: As you know, the Student

Council has recently started the

“Keep It Clean” campaign. Al-

though it is taking some time to

begin, we look forward to seeing

positive results from the large

group of students who are par-

ticipating in the program. We are

also launching various Tzedakah

drives and fundraisers.

YA: The Student Council is also

planning on inviting a few inter-

esting speakers to address the

students of MTA. We plan on

hearing from some speakers and

advocates for the Israeli army. In

addition we are going to bring in

Alan Veingrad, an incredible

speaker. The seniors will remem-

ber hearing him speak when they

were in ninth grade. He is a for-

mer offensive lineman from the

1992 Super Bowl winning Dallas

Cowboys, who will tell us his

story about how he got turned on

to Judaism. MTA will also be hosting a wide range of other

speakers throughout the year. In addition we are continuing

and improving the existing school programs.

What is the “Keep It Clean” program?

AG: Essentially the “Keep It Clean” program is a group of

volunteers led by the Student Council that will create an at-

mosphere of collective student ownership over the school.

They will do this by cleaning the school and encourage others

to do so too.

What is the inspiration for this program? Exactly

why is it needed?

AG: If you walk around the school and its classrooms, espe-

cially after lunch and breakfast, everything seems very dirty.

Students do not clean up after themselves. Kids think that

since we eat breakfast and lunch in our rooms, it’s ok not to

pick up after ourselves. Our goal is to help the students real-

ize what they are doing is not appropriate. We will try to en-

courage people to clean up after

themselves. This program would

help students clean the classrooms

and really create an environment

that is conducive to MTA style fun

and learning.

How would this program

work? How will this program

get students to become aware

of their actions and encour-

age them to clean up after

themselves?

AG: We have a number of ways of

achieving this. First, we have the

“Clean Up Crew”, a group of stu-

dent volunteers (and we are still

accepting members) who will be

divided up into teams, each re-

sponsible to clean a specific area of

the school. If they manage to keep

that area clean for an extended

period of time they will be rewarded with anything from T-

shirts to exemptions from quizzes. In addition all participat-

ing members will receive a free sweatshirt as a reward for

their work.

What are the “Keep It Clean” program’s immediate

goals and what do you see as a long term goal for this

program?

AG: Since the students have lunch and breakfast in the class-

rooms it is unrealistic to think that our classrooms and halls

will be spotless. However, we are hoping to improve in the

overall cleanliness of the school and most importantly, to

create a school atmosphere that recognizes the students’ col-

lective ownership of the school. This collective ownership will

help students realize how inappropriate it is to damage school

property, to let classrooms become filthy and disgusting, and

to do ridiculous things such as throwing toilet paper all over

the bathrooms.

Why is the Student Council responsible for keeping

the school clean?

AG: The reason why the presidents of the Student Council

have really pushed for this program is because we feel that

the administration has too much on their plate already. We

feel that teachers have already tried to keep classrooms clean,

but they are extremely busy. However since we recognize the

importance of our school’s cleanliness, we are not satisfied

with letting the cleanliness of our school fall between the

cracks. In addition, it is the students’ responsibility to keep

the school clean. We need to create an atmosphere which

reflects the fact that the student body has collective owner-

ship over the school. It is not as much a cleanup program, as

it is a student ownership program. Yossi and I have pushed to

create this program since the responsibility to create an at-

mosphere in which students feel responsible for changing

and improving their school falls solely on the shoulders of the

student body and the Student Council. The only way to fix

this problem is through a group effort.

Does the Student Council have any plans to increase

MTA’s school spirit and overall ruach?

YA: In the past years we have had many programs that create

school spirit, so we are trying to continue to improve these

programs. For example, we are going to improve the Purim

Chagigah, by adding to the liveliness and really allowing the

students to contribute more to it which will help make it even

better. We want to give more power to the students to create

these programs and to add to them.

AG: As I have mentioned, the

“Keep it Clean” program’s main

goal is to achieve a sense of

school spirit. We are also trying

organize more rallies for the

sports teams. Mainly, we are

trying to create an atmosphere

which creates school spirit not

just through a single event.

How can students get in-

volved with the changing the

school if they are not in the

Student Council?

AG: Student Council wants every

student to be involved and we

will include anyone who wants to

be involved. If you come to ei-

ther Yossi or me, requesting to be

involved or offering a suggestion

to improve the school, we will

guarantee you a chance to help

improve the school .We will put

you on a Student Council com-

mittee and you will essentially

become a Student Council mem-

ber for that specific program. We

love kids who are active in the

improvement of the school. If

someone plays an active role in

the Student Council programs we will welcome them as a

member of the Student Council and let them work with us in

achieving our shared goals.

How do you envision MTA at the end of this year,

after your changes and programs have been imple-

mented?

AG and YA: Two men will not have such a large affect on a

hundred year old institution. We are not planning on drasti-

cally changing such a great school which has produced count-

less Talmudei Chachamim and some of the greatest minds of

our generation. Our school is so rich in heritage and history

and so many things are perfect as they are. But I do hope we

will have at least a small impact on MTA. I hope the “Keep It

Clean” program continues, our classrooms become cleaner,

our days become more relaxed, and I hope that we create an

overall MTA ruach that will just continue to grow even after

we have graduated. However these contributions would not

be possible without the other Student Council members and

Yitzy Dier.

Keeping it Clean: Q & A with MTA Student Council

Presidents Alex Goldberg & Yossi Aharon

The State of the School Address

Keeping it Clean Student Council Presidents Alex Goldberg and Yossi Aharon unveil their plans for restoring the roar of MTA’s sanitation levels

By Yosef Brander (‘12)

Academy News School Events Editor

&

Meir Hirsch (‘12)

Academy News Staff Interviewer

11

January 2010 The Academy News

The Academy News 12 January 2010

The Political Bureau

Rethinking the Healthcare Debate: Are Doctors Really the Problem?

Our country is currently in the

midst of a whirling, multifaceted

debate about the healthcare system.

The cost of healthcare has skyrock-

eted over the past 20 years, playing

a large role in the growing financial

deficit and millions of dollars in

debt that Americans owe. There

have been several proposals to help

fix this problem, but there has been

much disagreement between the

competing options. Republicans

want one thing, Democrats want a

second thing, the insurance compa-

nies want a third thing, and the

Independents don’t even know

what they want. To be honest,

though, not many really know that

much about healthcare. There al-

ways seems to be some scant, fuzzy,

off-record paragraph here or there

that might actually provide some

unbiased and untouched information that

can be used to formulate an informed opin-

ion about healthcare, but for the most part,

all the chatter that’s heard in modern day

media is vague and unclear.

This is, in fact, where the real problem

lies. Nobody really knows where all these

costs are coming from. Somewhere, be-

tween where the premiums are paid to the

insurance companies, and where the doc-

tors receive their payments, the money

vanishes into thin air. Once the answer to

this question is found, a proper healthcare

system can be built.

It’s pretty clear what the initial, knee-jerk

reaction of the average person would be:

“It’s the doctors’ fault; let the insurance

companies cut their pay.” About twenty

years ago, this was the first answer offered.

Doctors were being paid big bucks and a

rash, hurried decision to cut their reim-

bursement was made. The general thought

was that this would cause costs to go down,

which would in turn cause the insurance

companies to charge smaller premiums and

thereby offering Americans cheaper insur-

ance.

In this way, doctors have been discrimi-

nated against for the past two decades. It

all began with the idea that costs were go-

ing up as a result of their salaries. So for

twenty years now, the ability of doctors to

defend themselves has been slowly dwin-

dling, in addition to their suffering salaries.

Physicians are not allowed to unionize in

any way, and as a result have no form of

public representation. The American Medi-

cal Association, also known as the AMA, is

probably the only way doctors can make

their needs known to the government, but

unfortunately it is notorious for having

completely sold out all doctors and no

longer does anything that could help them.

It has been a long time since the AMA pub-

licized any ideas that could even have a

slight positive effect on doctors.

Sadly, this is only the beginning of the

physician’s plight. Doctors usually study

medicine for an additional ten years after

finishing college. Then they apply this

knowledge to save lives all over the world

daily. Instead of appreciating the immense

amount of extra time and effort that these

people put into their job, they are discrimi-

nated against, and in more than the afore-

mentioned ways.

Nowadays, it is necessary for doctors to

buy a malpractice insurance, a reasonable

request, although it comes with a hefty

price tag. The sort of money doctors pay for

their insurance would bring just about any

other family to their knees. Yet nobody is

causing a national upheaval for their rights,

once again showing what a negative light

they have been painted in. This isn’t

even the end of it. For at least a

decade, the private insurance com-

panies and Medicare have been

steadily lowering the payments of

doctors, paying them less and less

for seeing a patient. It has come to

the point where an internal medi-

cine doctor receives approximately

60 dollars for seeing one patient.

This is not exactly a low salary, but

after paying for numerous assis-

tants, the cost of medical supplies,

and a variety of different bills

needed to keep up the office, there

is practically nothing left for the

physician to live on. The pay in

hospitals is so low, in fact, that it

will soon sink below the pay of the

average American professional.

Even now, in order to keep a steady

income, an average physician needs

to work in multiple locations.

Twenty years after the upheaval

of doctors’ pay, the healthcare sys-

tem is still full of problems and insanely

huge prices. Cutting the salaries of doctors

in many different ways didn’t do anything

to help the healthcare crisis. When one

considers all the hoops doctors have to

jump through, doctors are being paid a

disproportionately small amount, hospitals

are failing, and premiums are just as high

as ever. But still, President Obama insists

on a plan that will practically destroy the

job of physician and will dramatically

change the entire insurance business. Mak-

ing a cheap government healthcare plan

with equal coverage to insurance compa-

nies(also known as a “public option”) will

not only destroy the insurance business but

will also lower doctor’s salaries even more.

President Obama’s plan misses the point

entirely, and will create more problems

than solutions. At the end of the day, the

question still hangs in the air, as ominous

as ever: “Where has all the money gone?”

By Dovid Schwartz (‘13)

Academy News Staff Writer

Autism, Death

and Epidemics

Paul Offit is a pediatrician in Philadelphia. He is the fa-

mous co-inventor of a rotavirus vaccine that has the amazing

potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives. If that’s the

case, why does environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

claim Offit is a “biostitue” among other obscene things? Why

does Jim Carrey claim he is a profiteer, and lives by the chill-

ing motto, “Grab 'em and stab 'em?” Carrey and his girl-

friend, Jenny McCarthy, recently went on Larry King Live

and said Offit administered a certain vaccine by the name of

RotaTeq for greed, profit, and selfishness. Clearly, Paul Offit

is not exactly the most loved person in America. Type in

pauloffit.com on your browser, and you'll get an anti-Offit

website, “dedicated to exposing the truth about the vaccine

industry's most well-paid spokesperson.”

Essentially, Paul Offit is hated. He has received numerous

threats and has been called a terrorist. So why exactly is this

person hated? He had the audacity to claim vaccine does not

cause autism or any other harsh side effect. He even has the

chutzpah to back his claim up with evidence. However, when

one looks at the uneducated figures opposing him (namely

McCarthy, who has a son with autism) who claim these vac-

cines have horrible side effects, they are, for the most part,

believed. Why? Because these people include Don Imus, Joe

Lieberman, and many other influential people.

They claim that because of the high mercury content in

vaccines, taking more a vaccine will cause autism. Mercury is

found in vaccines. Mercury is capable of causing neurological

damage. But let's look at the facts. One of the high percent-

ages of mercury in vaccines is 50 micrograms per 0.5 millili-

ters. This is not nearly enough to be toxic. However, our

friend, the uneducated public, has incorrectly correlated the

mercury content with autism. In 2004, the Institute of Medi-

cine did a study, and it turns out, that vaccines don't actually

cause autism. Others claim there are extremely severe side

effects, and the chances are high that by taking a vaccine,

you will die. When people make claims like these numerous

studies are done. This is no exception. The amount of severe

side effects in relation to the millions of vaccines given to the

public every year is so small; the CDC cannot legally docu-

ment these cases as an actual statistical risk.

Autism aside, people are claiming vaccines can cause dia-

betes. This seems to be a much more plausible claim to the

outside public for two reasons. The first being they brought

evidence. The second is that diabetes is much more common

than autism, so people have become more familiar with it.

Once they are “familiarized” with the disease, they assume

the actual biological make up of the disease is simpler than a

disease they don't know about. Obviously, this is a complete

logical fallacy. So let's address the first point. The evidence

they brought turned out to be, surprise, surprise, totally

wrong. A doctor once did a study and found out that vaccines

cause diabetes. However, he failed to follow standard proto-

col, and that is why he got these results. This doctor also

made another big mistake. He forgot to calculate the obesity

rates in children, which correlates directly to diabetes. This

doctor overloaded his test with all sorts of variables and

failed to document any of them. In doing so he failed to ac-

count for them as well. So this “evidence” that was brought is

completely flawed.

Another claim is that, since these diseases that we take

vaccines for, are gone, we don't need any more vaccination.

The opposite is true. The only reason why the diseases are

gone is because we take these vaccines! If a group of people

stopped taking the vaccines, this will bring about the most

horrific diseases. The mumps can cause meningitis, which

leads to deafness, and then epilepsy, and then cognitive im-

pairment, and eventually death. Now unless you are per-

fectly happy having all these symptoms, a vaccine is highly

suggested. So essentially, anyone who claims vaccines have

harsh side effects are either uneducated or insane. So if any-

one or anything says vaccine is not a good thing, they are

under no circumstance to be believed. There have been nu-

merous tests proving that vaccines are harmless to basically

everybody (I say ‘basically’ because there is that one in 10

million person who has some negative experience).

In parts of the US, vaccination rates have dropped so low

that the occurrences of some children's diseases are ap-

proaching pre-vaccination levels, for the first time ever. The

number of people who choose not to vaccinate themselves

and their children (these people are mostly in the West, such

Continued on Page 14

Advocate President Barack Obama, shown here with Vice President Joe Biden, has taken a passive role in the health care overhaul debate, but has made a point to criticize the current cost and payment structure.

By Nathaniel Piskun(‘13)

Academy News Staff Writer

13

January 2010 The Academy News

Gilad Shalit: At Any Cost?

Conventional wisdom dictated that Bibi Netanyahu’s

current term as Prime Minister would proceed much like

the last.

The year was 1996, and the parallels with the current

situation in 2009 are quite eerie. A politically moderate

(in terms of foreign policy) American president was intent

on reaching at least a tentative peace deal. Things were

moving forward, at least by the pitiful standard set by the

decades before it. Just like now, pressure was being ex-

erted on the Israeli government to cede some ground,

both literally and figuratively, in order to jumpstart nego-

tiations.

Bibi didn’t play along. Despite the countless marathon

sessions with then-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright,

Netanyahu refused to give in on his “three no’s”: no with-

drawal from the Golan Heights, no discussion of the case

of Jerusalem, and no negotiations under any precondi-

tions. Some small progress was made, but it was clear

from the start that there was tension in the American-

Israeli relationship. Ultimately, the clash of personalities

scuttled any possibility of working out a long-term peace

accord.

Once again, 2009 brings the possibility of finally achiev-

ing the elusive goal of peace between the Israelis and the

Palestinians. There is a new, more engaged American

administration. A series of military conflicts has left the

constituencies of both sides deeply unsatisfied with the

current direction of things. There is a certain throbbing

urgency that some-

thing needs to happen.

So, true to the political

winds, there have been

talks; of course, per

the status quo, no real

progress has been

made.

Of course, political

factors have played

into that situation. In a

marked departure

from the Bush admini-

stration, President

Obama has been push-

ing for major conces-

sions from Israel re-

garding its settlements

in several areas of dis-

puted territory, includ-

ing the West Bank and

E a s t J e r u s a l e m .

Hamas has refused to

even begin negotia-

tions before there is a

complete halt in settlement developments and at least

some withdrawal. Naturally, this does not sit well many

Israelis, or Netanyahu’s Likud party.

This time around, though, Bibi knows how to play the

game. He’s not going to allow the international press to

portray him as some roadblock to piece, some zealot who

refuses to listen to opposing points of view and honestly

negotiate. Instead, Bibi is calling the Palestinians’ bluff.

Recently, Netanyahu ordered a 10 month freeze on set-

tlement expansion. He did this, presumably, because of

pressure that he received from the Obama administration,

but that probably was not the only reason that he decided

on this course of action.

It’s quite simple, really. Agreeing to comply with a de-

rivative of the stringent plan that a third party has laid out

for you it pretty conciliatory. But a key part of what

Netanyahu did lies in its timeline – not in the hard num-

ber set out, but the mere fact that it exists. By agreeing to

such tough action on the settlement issue, Netanyahu has

effectively put the onus on the Palestinian government.

Judging from the chatter on their side, they do not plan to

respond to the plan in kind. Eventually, the 10 months

will end – and the law will revert to the way it was earlier

this month. Netanyahu will be able to have his cake and

eat it, too. He will be able to honestly say that he tried to

cede ground to the Palestinians. If they do not respond,

that’s not Netanyahu’s fault. But, for once, the critical

spotlight, and the responsibility to make the next move,

might actually fall on the Palestinians. Quite different

from 1996.

Netanyahu’s Gambit

Last Father’s Day, among the cards that President Barack Obama re-ceived was one from a father in Israel. It read “From one father to another, I ask you to please use the power of your presidency to free my beloved son, Gilad. Because to have Gilad home again would make every one of my days, Father’s Day.” It was signed Noam Schalit, father of captured Is-raeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.

Early on the morning of June 25, 2006, Hamas militants ambushed Shalit’s tank while they were patrol-ling an Israeli border within Gaza. After the dust settled, two militants and two IDF soldiers were killed, while three other soldiers were injured, and Shalit was captured. The next day, Shalit’s captors released a statement offering information about their captive’s health if Israel agreed to release all female Palestinian prisoners and all male Palestinian prisoners under the age of 18. Israel refused, and on June 28, three days later, IDF forces entered southern Gaza in a campaign to search for him. Israel offered Abbas the opportunity to free him without any retaliation and threatened that the “sky will fall” if Shalit was harmed. In addition, during last Janu-ary’s Gaza war, Israel sent IDF parties to search for Shalit. It has been more than three years since Gilad Shalit’s abduction, and despite military and political efforts, Shalit still remains captive and a constant reminder of Hamas’s success. ...Since then there have been a few unsuccessful at-tempts to negotiate Shalit’s release. In the past Hamas has refused to negotiate Shalit’s release or even disclose Shalit’s status. In January of this year, Israel at-tempted to restart negotiations to procure his release. Israel was reportedly willing to trade 1000 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit. In March there were reports that his re-lease was close and that negotiations were almost finished. The negotiations failed,

however, after Israel refused to release 450 prisoners who were convicted of planning numerous deadly attacks.

While Shalit still remains in captivity, there have been reports that negotiations have recently begun to move forward and that there is the possibility of an upcoming exchange for Shalit. An Israeli government official commented that "We are currently in the middle of the efforts… Hamas is discussing the proposal, [and] we are hav-ing discussions. One must hope that a deal will ensue.” Despite this, Netanyahu has refused to confirm any details about the efforts to procure Shalit’s release. He said that “the efforts to release Gilad Shalit are continuing all the time, far away from the eyes of the media.” Egypt and Germany have been acting as intermediaries in the negotiations, and Hamas leaders are ex-pected to continue negotiations in Cairo. Israel’s president, Shimon Peres, com-mented after meeting with the Egyptian president that “there is progress and hope that the matter will come to a positive end.” A stumbling block in the negotia-tions is some of the Palestinian prisoners Hamas wants to be released in exchange for Shalit. There are an estimated 1,400 prisoners that will be released for Shalit through two separate exchanges. Among the prisoners requested by Hamas is Mar-

wan Barghouti, Fatah’s secretary general, who reportedly has expressed interest in running for the presidency of the Palestin-ian Authority upon his release. Addition-ally, there have been reports that the ter-rorists responsible for the Sbarro café bombing in 2001 and the Moment café bombing in 2002 are among those re-quested to be exchanged. Hamas has also allegedly requested for Israel to ease the blockade that blocks Gaza from getting supplies.

Even as the arrangements of this deal have not been finalized, Egypt has noted increased Hamas activity on its border. Egypt has commented that this is a possi-ble sign that Gilad Shalit is being moved into Egypt, preparing for his release. In response, Egypt has increased its security to help secure a safe passage for Shalit in the event that he is indeed being moved into Egypt.

The release of Shalit could be incredible for Israel, who could now celebrate the return of a soldier that was left behind. Shalit’s return could also have tremendous impact on the soldiers currently in Israel’s military who often question what Israel would do if they were captured. Palestini-ans also wish for this deal to go through, as many Palestinians have many relatives in

Israeli jails that they wish to see freed.

As negotiations forge ahead, a ques-tion arises. What price should Israel be willing to pay for Gilad Shalit? Should Israel be willing to open itself up to 1,400 more potential attacks? Should Israel be willing to risk an-other potential Sbarro bombing? Should Israel give terrorists a new incentive to abduct countless more Gilad Shalits? During the numerous wars and terror attacks that Israel has endured, its main strength has been the fact that it did not negotiate and compromise with terrorists. Its policy clearly stressed that it would not yield to terrorism and its demands. By re-leasing 1,400 prisoners for Gilad Shalit, Israel will show that a new

successful terrorist tactic is kidnapping. Defense Minister Ehud Barak commented on Shalit’s possible release, saying that there should be a “feasible and appropriate way, but not at any price.” He continued t say that “Israel is on a slippery slope, the slide must be stopped… With abductees, since it is very easy to kidnap, it can turn into a method to extort the State of Israel.” Terrorist leaders have taken note of this, as Hamas commander Khaled Mashaal com-mented, “We are capable of capturing Shalit and Shalit and Shalit until there is not even one prisoner in the enemy’s jails.” Daniel Bar-Tal, a professor at Tel Aviv Uni-versity, said “Here we see the basic dilem-mas between the individual and the collec-tive, and we see victim pitted against vic-tim. One side says, he should be returned at any price. But the families of those killed in terrorist attacks and the people who were wounded in those attacks are victims, too, and they say that no price should be paid to the murderers.”

At the time of this writing, Gilad Shalit has not been released. Despite that fact, a clear narrative has emerged from this af-fair: at the same time that many people are hoping and praying for the quick and safe release of Shalit, many of the same people are wondering if that would mark the be-ginning in a surge of new kidnappings.

By Yosef Brander (‘12)

Academy News School Events Editor

Brinksmanship Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Barack Obama discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the White House in May. Since then, Netanyahu has agreed to suspend almost all settlement building.

Gilad Shalit in a video released by his captors this past September

Noam Shalit, Gilad’s father, holding a picture of his son, awaiting his return

By Michael Guggenheim (‘11)

Academy News Associate Editor

The Political Bureau

The Academy News 14 January 2010

Science & Health

Microsoft: Cleaning Windows’ Pains

as Pennsylvania and Texas) continues to grow.

Counter intuitively, choices of non-vaccination

often correspond to those with a higher educa-

tion and wealth. Marin County, which is just

North of San Fransisco, has non-vaccination

rates closing in on 6%. Now consider this: the

Los Angeles Times did a study. This showed that

the 2% of children in kindergarten who go un-

vaccinated tend to hang out in clusters. There

are 10,000 of these children. Let's suppose that

in one school, ten of these children are present.

Say six of them will associate only with them-

selves, and a few other people. These other four

that are left spread the disease to whoever they

come in contact with. Now this disease can

spread to many people just from these four chil-

dren alone. But we are not dealing with a mere

four children here. There are 10,000 of these

children. Now apply that phrase to all 10,000

children individually, and right of the bat that is

30,000 people that can potentially die. And this

is only in the state of California! Imagine how

many people can die if we calculate all of Amer-

ica into our equation.

Jason Glanz did a study which showed that

pertussis, which is a highly contagious disease (it

is also 23 times more likely to be caught be a non

-vaccinated child), has jumped from 1,000 cases

in 1976, to 26,000 in 2004. Now let's assume we

get lucky for a moment, and vaccination rates

stay the same. In 2032 we will have to deal with

676,000 cases of infected children. And this is if

we are lucky. If we are unlucky the number could

easily triple.

Paul Offit used to say, “The tide would turn

when children started to die. Well children have

started to die. So now I've changed it to 'when

enough children start to die.' Because obviously,

we're not there yet.” Offit is saying how ignorant

people are being. They are claiming by using

vaccines, autism rates will climb. Even if autism

rates would climb, isn't it better that we have a

fraction of our population with autism than have

10% dead?

Let's, for a moment, assume the worst case

scenario. Vaccines are barley being used at all.

Chances are, because of the tendency to spread

so fast, the disease will penetrate MTA in a mat-

ter of days. Now, we were born in a time without

this irrational fear, so chances are we all have

our vaccinations. But this doesn't mean we won't

get sick. Our body will be fighting off the disease,

which will probably lead to the classic “24 hour

bug.” At this point in time we will be carrying the

disease, but our body will fight it off within 24

hours, usually. But suppose I come in contact

with someone who is not vaccinated. My disease,

which is essentially harmless to me, will have a

catastrophic effect on that other person. This

person would have to deal with a horrible dis-

ease. Chances are he won't die, but he will defi-

nitely not have a fun time. A handful of people

with these diseases seems pretty manageable.

That's true, unless you factor in all the other peo-

ple who will have this disease. Now the hospitals

will be swamped with people. It will be almost

impossible to get treated.

Now let's take a step back. We are experiencing

the present scenario. How does this affect us?

Chances are that it probably won't even get to

MTA. It may. But most likely not. Now again,

supposing it does, we are all vaccinated, so mini-

mal harm will come from that. And because there is a very

small amount of people who are carrying this disease, that

drastically limits how many people catch it. If less people

catch it, it spreads less. So we’re are almost in a safe haven.

But suppose we were in Marin County. An enormous chunk

of the schools' student body would be infected with horren-

dous diseases. The difference is here these people will be

easily treated, but only because the vaccination levels are

just barely under the breaking point. But only just. If we

continue at this rate, vaccination levels will exceed the time

were vaccines didn't yet exist. Essentially, this means utter

chaos.

So don't think for a second that we are in a good, or even

decent, situation. It is horrible. But because we are in MTA,

we have very little to worry about. Yet if we don't fix this,

and the situation worsens, which it appears to be doing, we

are in for a very unpleasant time.

Autism, Death and Epidemics

An in-depth look at Windows’ newest operating system Continued from page 14

After the Windows Vista disaster,

Microsoft was forced to beg its millions

of loyal users to forgive and forget. As

Vista was released, Microsoft an-

nounced a three year goal of Windows

7, perhaps hoping that those of us who

would soon make that fatal mistake of

purchasing Vista could survive the

three year nightmare without throwing

their PC out of the nearest window, or

worse, switch to an Apple Mac. In fact,

most big corporations, unimpressed

with Vista, never made the switch, and

as recently as this summer, two-thirds

of corporate computers were still run-

ning Windows XP. Windows 7, code-

named “Blackcomb” may have been a

frantic rush to the short-term deadline,

but it has managed to renew some of

the trust that has been lost ever since

Windows Vista was unleashed on man-

kind.

As evident from Windows 7, Micro-

soft learned its lesson from the Vista

failure: users need simplicity. Every-

thing from the operating system’s bor-

ing name to the new compatibility and

organizational features rings of simplic-

ity. Still, even with the new and im-

proved makeover, Windows 7 did recy-

cle some of the few things that users

liked about Vista, such as the im-

proved utilities and the generous eye

candy. Of course, the sluggishness,

steep hardware requirements, and

compatibility issues followed the

Vista Service Pack 1 out the window.

The new operating system managed

to actually live up to Microsoft’s

promises for “a more reliable, more

responsive system.” The real advan-

tage is that the polish and reliability

of Windows 7 comes at little sacri-

fice. The hardware requirements (1

gigahertz processor and 1-2 giga-

bytes of RAM) have not increased

since the release of Vista three years

ago. Finally, Windows 7 has also

improved its security capabilities.

While Vista freaked out over every

possible security threat, Windows 7

is able to determine the level of risk and

sort potential threats into 10 categories

of warnings, some of which will not

disturb the user at all. Windows 7

represents a change in Microsoft’s op-

erating system. No longer is a system’s

success measured by it the amount of

features and outward appearances.

Instead, it is judged its simplicity, or-

ganization and the optimization of

these features to create a more efficient

and user friendly system.

Of course, newly released operating

systems are never perfect, and Win-

dows 7 is no exception. One of those

ugly issues that most users will face is

the difficulty of upgrading. For many

users, the complex upgrading to Win-

dows 7 reportedly took up to 20 hours!

The consensus among Windows 7 users

is that the best way to upgrade is to first

save all data onto external storage

(memory sticks, portable hard drives,

etc.) and then begin a clean installation

(install from scratch). In fact, upgrad-

ing from windows XP will require a

clean installation, which can turn out to

be an irritating all-day hassle. Clearly,

Microsoft is assuming that most XP

users won’t bother with the upgrade.

Instead, they are hoping that the XP

users will purchase new PCs with Win-

dows 7 preinstalled. (It is no coinci-

dence that Windows 7 came out right

before the holiday season).

Second, a quick look at Windows 7

(assuming you have managed to install

it) will reveal a startling fact: Windows

Mail, Movie Maker, Calendar, Contacts

and Photo Gallery are all gone! What

kind of operating system can’t manage

photos? Fear not. You just have to

download them from Windows Live

Essentials (http://download.live.com).

However, it is slightly disappointing;

first with upgrading and then with the

old windows favorites, Microsoft still

manages to make things more complex

than they need to be. And whose idea

was it to have five editions of every new

operating system? Windows 7 can come

in Starter, Home Premium, Profes-

sional, Enterprise and Ultimate edi-

tions, with different capabilities and

prices each in either 32 bit or 64 bit

versions (except the Starter edition,

which is only available in the 32 bit

version). Users needing computer sup-

port must be able to tell Tech Support

which of the 30 permutations of the

operating system their computer runs!

Again, this is another great example of

Microsoft’s need to overcomplicate

things.

However, aside from those these few

minor pitfalls, Windows 7 is a great

operating system and a huge improve-

ment over Vista. Of course, it is filled

with a bundle of those cute Microsoft

features that really serve no true pur-

pose but are fun to play with nonethe-

less. By dragging a window’s edge

against the sides or top of the screen

you can make the window fill either

half or the full screen. If you want to

remove the clutter from your desktop,

just give shake a window with the

mouse and all other windows will be

minimized to the taskbar. The new

taskbar resembles the Dock in Apple’s

Mac OS X with the icons for both

open programs and shortcuts left

there for quick access. Dragging a file

onto one of the program shortcuts in

the taskbar will run the file using that

application. By hovering the mouse

over a program icon the user can view

miniature thumbnails of all windows

of that application currently running.

Pointing to one of these thumbnails

brings that window to the foreground.

The new library feature is another

improvement that helps bring organi-

zation and simplicity to Windows.

Libraries, virtual folders that collect

and display the contents of other fold-

ers scattered across the system, make it

easier to keep certain types of files to-

gether and is especially useful when

backing up or sharing files.

Overall, Windows 7 is a step forward

in usability, security, and support for

new technology. For laptops and net-

books, the lighter operating system will

provide extra battery life and increased

efficiency with less strain on the weaker

hardware. Windows 7 is most definitely

worth the upgrade from Vista or XP,

and although it is unlikely to win over

Mac users, its stable platform, stronger

performance, and simpler interface

makes it a refreshing Microsoft success.

Windows 7 has not only reassured the

world that Microsoft has managed to

pull itself back on track, but has very

possibly laid the groundwork for a sim-

pler, more user-friendly computer age.

By Meir Hirsch (‘12)

Academy News Staff Interviewer

Windows 7 Microsoft hopes to win back the support of its users with its newest oper-ating system in the aftermath of the Windows Vista disaster

15

January 2010 The Academy News

Arts & letters

I was a little skeptical about Avatar at first. It seemed to

be just another film with an overwhelming amount of ac-

tion and special effects and limited substance. However,

once I walked out of the theatre, James Cameron had

proved my preconceived notions to be far from the truth.

Avatar is an excellent film in almost all aspects.

The film is set in the year 2154 and humans have discov-

ered a new planet, Pandora. The natives on Pandora are a

species called the Na’vi, large blue humanoids with glowing

skin and feline characteristics. The American army begins

an imperialist voyage to conquer Pandora, in order to ex-

ploit their reserves of a valuable mineral called unobta-

nium. Since humans cannot breathe on Pandora, they cre-

ate human-Na’vi hybrids called Avatars used to explore the

land. In

order for

these Ava-

tars to oper-

ate, they

must be

linked to a

gen et ica l l y

m a t c h e d

human op-

erator. Jake

Sully (Sam

W o r t h i n g -

ton), is a

p a r a p l e g i c

former Ma-

rine, who is

recruited to

Pandora to

replace his

twin brother,

who was

trained to be

an avatar

operator, but was killed in a mugging. Jake finds a haven in

living as his avatar and having functioning legs. Jake begins

to fall in love with Pandora, the Na’vi, being in harmony

with nature, worshipping Eywa, the mother goddess, and

especially Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña), the daughter of the leader

of the Omaticaya tribe. Jake becomes torn between either

living amongst the Na’vi, as his avatar, or rejoining the

army that he came with, as an imminent war approaches

between the two groups.

Take the movie as you’d like. Obviously, Cameron had a

clear political/ ecological message behind the story. (It is a

clear parallel to the Bush administration’s invasion of Iraq

that Cameron is being critical of. However, he did come up

with the plot in 1994, so it may just be coincidence and a

little tweaking.) No matter what your political ideologies

may be, Avatar is certainly a film that will make you think.

It has a lucid plot and a deep message.

Very few movies nearly three hours long can keep a per-

son interested for its entire duration. However, Avatar

nearly succeeded in winning my interest for all of its two

hours and fourty-one minutes (with the exception of a few

moments, where it can get slow in the middle). When

James Cameron is given a $240 million budget for a movie

(the third most expensive movie of all time and most ex-

pensive film that isn’t part of a series), he knows how to

spend it. By far the greatest part of this movie was its im-

agery. If you haven’t seen Avatar in Imax 3-D, I feel bad for

you. You didn’t miss out on a movie; You missed out on an

experience. The colors, dimensions, nature, and sharpness

of it all are simply beyond breathtaking.

I’ve heard a lot of people saying that the message behind

Avatar wasn’t original and that the liberal propaganda just

doesn’t appeal to them. To be fair to those people, they’re

right, the message isn’t completely original and Avatar cer-

tainly uses some clichés of many classic films. However,

whether you like the message or not, you just have to love

the way it is presented. Pandora, the Na’vi and the Avatar

are conceptually and visually absolutely brilliant and I sa-

lute James Cameron. After 10 years in the making, Avatar

proves to be no disappointment and it will undoubtedly

grab an Oscar nomination for Best Picture and Best Visual

Effects come the end of the month.

Avatar — Another

Cameron Classic

By Dani Goffstein (‘11)

Academy News Op-d Editor

John Mayer’s Pop Continuum

The latest release from seven time Grammy award

winner John Mayer showcases the best of what the

industry and fans alike have come to expect from an

artist who has consistently displayed his versatility

for almost a decade. Recorded in a private southern

California home, “Battle Studies” contains a perfect

symmetry of catchy pop tunes, expressive belting,

and of course, the incorporation of blues inspired

guitar playing into would-be run of the mill chord

progressions.

The record begins straight away with “Heartbreak

Warfare”, a refreshingly straightforward tune about

a relationship gone awry and the resulting cycle of

forgiveness and anger. Rich, layered guitar tones

surround a well crafted melody that perfectly out-

lines a relatively simple song structure.

The record’s single “Who Says” is a playful, famil-

iar sounding take on what is perhaps Mayer’s forte;

an outrageously catchy, acoustic guitar driven song

with instantly memorable hooks and a chorus that leaves the

listener wanting to hear it just one more time as the song

fades away. Mayer proves that less is truly more on this

track, as a single acoustic guitar, piano and stripped down

drums converge to create two minutes and fifty six seconds

of airy bliss.

With vibes reminiscent of “Daughters” and “83”, tracks like

“Who Says”, “All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye”, and “War of

My Life” bring Mayer back to his original element as a singer

-songwriter, and move him away, at least for a couple of

songs, from his newfound status of blues guitar genius, as

can be affirmed by “Continuum”.

Two sure favorites on “Battle Studies” are “Half of My

Heart” and “Perfectly Lonely”. Shrewdly written and sure to

be instantly replayed, these tunes display Mayer’s great abil-

ity in combining elements of Doo Wop, old school rock n’

roll, and modern pop essentials to form a product that

sounds current, yet spans years of musical inspiration.

Four albums in, and John Mayer shows no signs of stop-

ping. He has built a name for himself as a self producing

musical powerhouse that seems to only get better with age.

In sum, there will be no surprises on this record. Wicked

guitar playing, lyrical intelligence, and an astounding sense

of melody come together to make this project, sure to pick up

another Grammy or two, well worth the three year wait.

By Dani Mandelbaum (‘11)

Academy News Arts Editor

Heartbreak Warfare Mayer’s album artwork captures his less-is-more approach, the basis for this concept record.

If there’s anything that Roland Emmerich is good for, it’s a dis-

aster movie.

He seems to have a flair for it; both Independence Day and The

Day After Tomorrow, movies that he directed and whose plots

involved quite a bit of widespread destruction, were box-office

smashes. His latest, 2012, engages in far more destruction than

its apocalyptic predecessors, and, in turn, cost much more to

make. C’est la vie.

Of course, the aforemen-

tioned destruction does not

make a good movie. Anyone

who walks into the theater

expecting a thoughtful and

intelligent movie out of

2012 will be sorely disap-

pointed. 2012 is a solid two-

and-a-half hours of mind-

less fun. After all, what can

be more entertaining than

watching the world fall

apart? The CGI effects that

facilitate this experience are

as impressive as ever, and

are used to great effect, to

Emmerich’s credit.

That being said, even a

formulaic disaster movie

needs to meet some basic

benchmarks to reach the threshold of good cinema. By most

counts, though, this film falls on its face. Its actors, save for

Danny Glover, who plays the president, and Oliver Platt, the cross

Chief of Staff, put on nothing more than so-so performances. The

script is riddled with clichés and clunky writing. All of the charac-

ters are stereotypes that have been spun out of disaster films of

years past. And, worst of all, the chief sub-plot involving the pro-

tagonist’s nuclear family is destined for an ending that is all too

predictable.

Despite these mitigating factors, there are still a few aspects

(aside from the special effects) that salvage the movie; ironically,

those very factors are also some of the most clichéd portions of

the script.

You may just blame it to the sap in me, but there was something

particularly jarring about the humanity expressed by the charac-

ters at various moments throughout the film. Of course, most of

them are delivered in trite, overused ways that most moviegoers

have surely seen before. But there’s something about the end of

the world that helps give these moments another level of effect.

Seeing a son trying to save

his father, a lover risking his

life to save his girlfriend, a

father die to save his sons, a

stranger do the same to

rescue someone else’s chil-

dren, and world leaders put

the very future of humanity

in jeopardy to save just a bit

more people – something

about that strikes a deep

chord within me. It’s not

that these episodes in the

film are delivered with a

particular amount of grace;

it’s the gritty compassion of

it all, the depiction of a raw

humanity that is not dis-

played nearly enough in our

society, which is all too of-

ten quite empty.

The emptiness of society is

more of a problem that plagues our lives rather than the movie

characters’. Still, it is quite intriguing that an apocalyptic situa-

tion brings out the humanity in people. Obviously, the film is a

fictional situation and one that will hopefully not occur in the

near future. But if there’s one positive thing to take away from

this movie – and trust me, in movies such as these, there aren’t

many – it would be to truly work on our altruism. That doesn’t

mean that we have to risk, or even sacrifice, our lives. But it

would be nice if we actually performed a good deed without the

2012: All cliché, no substance, and yet surprisingly good

By Michael Guggenheim (‘11)

Academy News Associate Editor

An Ominous Day After Tomorrow Despite being plagued by a plethora of clichés and an overall paucity of substance, 2012 neverthe-less delivers a thrilling experience

Through the use of CGI, Cameron has created an entire new world brimming with breath-takingly realistic landscapes and characters

The Academy News 16 January 2010

UNDER

the

DOME Here at The Academy News, we’re on the cutting edge of virtually everything. Writ-i n g , e d i t i n g , s e l f -aggrandizement, you name it. It’s with this in mind that we present our “Under the Dome” column, our assembly of potpourri on whatever’s occurring in MTA, the Heights, and around the world. We welcome com-ments, questions, criticisms, witticisms, praises and sacri-fices. Just make them out to “cash”.

observations

By Haim Engelman (‘11)

Academy News Science & Health Editor

notations

insights

thoughts

ideas

outs

ins

The Academy News’ resident fashionista discusses

the MTA student body’s wardrobe malfunction

Like most other yeshiva high schools, MTA has

a dress code to keep its students looking respect-

able and serious. This policy is strictly enforced

by members of the faculty, most notably by our

Dean of Students. There is, however, more to

having a clean and respectable look than merely

following the code of

rules. As Mark Twain

said, “Clothes make the

man. Naked people have

little or no influence on

society.” The way one

dresses reflects who he is,

what attitude he chooses

to project, and is a mes-

sage to those who see him that identifies him in

one way or another. One’s personal appearance

also influences the environment around him, set-

ting it to whatever tone he may choose to give off.

Thus, it is imperative to give off an appearance of

seriousness and cleanliness in all situations, but

especially in a work-like school environment.

A serious demeanor, however, is not only em-

bodied in what the student wears, but also in the

attitude he transmits, his mannerisms, and his

looks, which include both dress and personal hy-

giene. Firstly, one’s attitude or ‘swagger,’ as

some culturally savvy MTA students may prefer,

has a similar effect as his clothes, as they not

only reflect his inside and his surroundings, but

they influence them, too. Thus, it would be

proper for a student to hold himself in a serious,

yet humble manner as one who is ready to learn

and work should. Secondly, a person’s manner-

isms are the ‘make or break’ of the person’s ap-

pearance. This is due to the fact that, regardless

of the relative high marks that one would earn in

the other areas discussed previously, if he has

coarse or unbefitting mannerisms, he looses the

credibility that the rest of his look may have

gained him. The last factor to consider is the per-

son’s actual look, his hygiene and his mode of

dress. One’s personal hygiene shows, more than

anything else, how one thinks of himself and how

he prefers to be seen by

others. Therefore, there is

a great need for the stu-

dent body of MTA to un-

derstand the importance

of being neat, to wear

clean clothes, wash, and

get haircuts before it

reaches the point where

he looks as if he is homeless. The clothes worn by

students in MTA are guided by the administra-

tion’s well enforced laws, as stated in the student

handbook, Section IV: Article 1: “Students are

expected to be neatly dressed at all times. It is

the right of the administration to determine

whether or not a particular outfit is acceptable

and to inform the student of this decision.”

Restore the Roar!!!

See Pages 8 & 9 for the latest updates, statistics,

and pictures of your favorite MTA

sports and public speaking teams

“Students are expected to be neatly dressed at all times. It is the right of the administration to deter-mine whether or not a particular outfit is accept-able and to inform the student of this decision.”

- MTA Student Handbook, Section IV Article 1