On Saturday, February 4th, Tam High Mock Trial competed in the final round of the Marin County Mock Trial Championship against Terra Linda High School. Tam won by 2.5 out of 1,200 possible points. This was their 17th consecutive win at the Marin County Championship.

Special awards went to Henna Arvind, Hannah Holiday, Miriam Lester, Oliver Ramin, Elena Riccardi, Ivy Ryan, Markita Schulman, Claudia Shapiro and Lindsey Sloan.

“Some might say that I should feel relieved because we maintained the 16 year legacy, that we weren’t the year to lose it,” said senior and co-captain Oliver Ramin. “Surprisingly, that isn’t the common emotion. We are joyous, exhilarated. Our toil for the past six months led to victory, and there really isn’t anything better than that.”

“We won because every single person rose to an entirely new level of excellence,” said senior and co-captain Elena Riccardi. “In that trial you could see every hour, every minute of preparation and hard work shine through in each person’s performance. I was so proud to be on Tam High Mock Trial, I was so proud to be working with everyone on the team, and I am still so, so proud of everyone.”

The team will continue on to the state competition in March.

“Our outcome at state is a lot more subject to random luck,” said sophomore Rachael Ferm. “But if we keep on working hard and go in with the same determination and attitude we held going into county, we have fairly high chances.”

“This year the team is so bonded and filled with wonderful people. We have done so well already that….I know we are going to do amazing at state,” said Riccardi. “State is a big deal.”

A prop 8 rally in Fresno, California. Photo by: Richard Johnstone

In a February 7th ruling of Proposition 8, the ban on same-sex marriage in California, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals declared the amendment to be unconstitutional which incited massive controversy and debate. Prop. 8 supporters hope the case will be considered by the United States Supreme Court, but because of circumstances in the Supreme Court tenure system, any new president will have the potential to significantly alter the final ruling going forward.

“Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples,” said Judge Stephen Reinhardt in a statement representing the panel’s decision.

If the case reaches the US Supreme Court, a definite decision will be made, but the balance of judges could easily fall out of line if discussion begins as a new president is inaugurated. Out of the nine justices on the Court, three are nearing senior status, a form of retirement practiced in the Court in which a justice over 65 years of age with at least 15 years of service may work part-time for the same amount of money. In addition, his or her spot in the Supreme Court is marked vacant until the president chooses a justice to fill the seat.

Source: protectmarriage.com

The three judges are Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a liberal, Antonin Scalia, a conservative, and Anthony M. Kennedy, who generally votes conservatively but has been known to switch sides. Simply put, the new president will have the power to replace these justices with candidates of his personal preferences, ones that will vote in his favor. Many conservatives rejoiced in the possibility of new judges, no doubt because of Kennedy’s swing vote. But that doesn’t mean liberals are against it.

Tam senior Liza Brusman, openly bisexual and president of the Gay-Straight Alliance club at Tam, said, “I think that in some ways it would be really good if it ended up going to the Supreme Court because then we would have a very definitive answer about the constitutionality of allowing gay people to marry or not allowing gay people to marry. [Otherwise] difference states would have a harder time being able to kind of make up their own rules.”

In an informal poll, members of the GSA agreed that the majority of Tam is comfortable with gay marriage. Brusman pointed out a new characteristic about the issue, relaying a fact she read that said 71 percent of college students supported gay marriage.

P.E. teacher Lorna Sturgeon, who is lesbian, said, “I didn’t use to have a really big opinion on it [...] until I found out [...] that if you marry someone, they’re automatically on your insurance. But for a gay person, and I just found this out last month, they can’t married, so they have to be domestic partners. When they are that situation, they get insurance for their partner but the insurance is seen as income by the district and you have to pay tax on that amount. That’s not fair!”

Sturgeon brings up a good point – the economic advantages of marriage. Along with the insurance benefits, married couples can file their state tax returns jointly, are entitled to inheritance rights, and at least one of them can legally call themselves a parent. As of now, gay Californians cannot.

And lucky for those couples, opinions can change. “One of my friends is against gay marriage and we have these really nice conversations where she hears my side, I hear her side,” said Sturgeon, “When I found [out about the insurance situation], I told her and she went, ‘Oh! That’s not fair!’ And so next time voting comes up, this person who’s so anti-gay marriage might actually vote for it [...] because she now understands there’s a discrepancy.”

Senior Conner Crockett’s thoughts on this obvious discrepancy prompted another evolving point: the difference of opinion between old and young. “I always say discrimination, racism and ignorance is taught, not learned. You never see a two-year-old child turning a hose on a black person or carrying the poles that say ‘God hates fags’ because [...] they don’t know until they overhear their parents in the kitchen bashing gays, or bashing blacks, or bashing Jews.”

Senior Justice Kennedy also recognized the generational gap. In 2003, he said, “Times can blind us to certain truths and later generations can see that laws once thought necessary and proper in fact serve only to oppress.”

Crockett approaches the gay marriage question with a question of his own, and it’s something to think about: “If a gay couple halfway across the country got married, how would that affect you and your family right now?”

“Your peers have recognized you for your work and dedication that you have given to your school, community, and section,” read the acceptance letter Amoroso received. To win the Norm Mackenzie award, Amoroso went above and beyond her normal responsibilities as an athletic director. Then she was nominated, to her surprise, by the Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) commissioner. “When I found out who nominated me, I was even more pleased. It was like wow, that person doesn’t even work here and knows kind of what I’m doing.”  After being nominated, Amoroso said she needed to answer several questions from the California State Athletic Director’s Association describing her work as an athletic director. “They want to know everything that goes on besides the regular organizing games and stuff,” she says.

Amoroso’s primary job is managing and organizing all of the school’s sports. She makes sure the referees, opponents, facilities, athletes, announcers, ticket takers, teacher supervision, and everything else involved with hosting a game is ready before each sporting event. What sets Amoroso apart as an outstanding AD is that when she has time, she applies for various awards for our sports teams. The pendants hanging in the gym don’t always come automatically, statistics and applications often have to be sent in to earn them. “I think that’s how we can promote our school,” Amoroso says of these awards, “People aren’t going to know what goes on behind the scenes, they’re only going to see the pendants on the wall.”

Amoroso also started the Hawk of the Week program and helped update the school’s sports facilities. She’s made sure Tam hosts NCS and MCAL tournaments and is constantly improving.

“I don’t think there is a harder working more organized AD in the league. She focuses minor details and handles tough situations professionally and with a smile on her face.” says assistant principal Chad Stuart, who won the same award when he was Drake’s athletic director. Junior Brenden Austin comments on Amoroso’s achievement, “It’s basically like the rookie of the year award in a sport. From here Amo could either become MVP or a bust.”

Amoroso will be presented with the award at a banquet during an athletic director conference in San Diego in April. “Outstanding work as a new AD. There you have it. Done,” she says.

Jenna May

Position: Shooting guard and power forward.

Style of Play: “My main focus is to get everyone involved in every play as much as possible. I also like to drive to the basket when the jump shot isn’t open. I’m not really afraid of anything when I’m playing. I’m up for any challenge.”

Experience: “I first picked up a basketball when I was around 5 years old.”

Team Dynamics: “We have all really developed a strong bond with each other. We are very cohesive together and know each other’s strengths and weaknesses.”

Training: “I cross train with volleyball in the fall but I still focus on basketball. I go to the MVMS courts and shoot around and do some drills for a couple hours on the weekends.”

Avg. Points per Game: 11.7

Avg. Rebounds per Game: 6.7

Clay Griebel-Thorpe: Boys Varsity Basketball

Clay Griebel-Thorpe

Position: Small forward.

Style of Play: “[As a scorer], I like to get to the rim, or shoot the outside jump shot.”

Experience: “I’ve been playing since I was in 3rd grade. I went to a small school, and I played CYO with a lot of kids from Bolinas.”

Training: “I’m a gym rat, so I train and practice whenever I have the opportunity. I train every day for as long as I can. Every summer, lots of people, including European pros, come out to Stinson and play in pick-up games.”

Avg. Points per Game: 13.2

Avg. Steals per Game: 1.5

A physically small team, combined with very few experienced players, the squad has struggled thus far. The team has no seniors and only six juniors, but even so, team members and coaches believe that there is plenty of good to come of the situation.

“We are a young team, but that doesn’t seem to bother us. This is the first varsity team I have ever been on with no seniors. It is different, but I wouldn’t call it a bad thing,” said O’Boyle. “We have no trouble finding leadership and maturity within our team.”

The coaching staff also sees the team’s potential. “There are no seniors, but very mature juniors. Oliver Duler is our captain. A good thing about having these mature juniors is that next year we will get them back and [our team will be] even stronger,” coach Kelley Charlton said.

There is an agreement among the team, though, that size and age is not the true foundation of their problems; the problem is the low number of students that joined the team.

“The team is looking stronger than past years,” said Charlton. The problem, as she points out, is that the team “is missing two weight classes: 106 and 113.”

Coach Andre Salinas agrees, “If we could cover the 14 weight classes, we could beat anyone in the league. We have a quality team, but we just have too many holes in the lineup.”

And as O’Boyle pointed out, the schedule for the rest of the season is not going to be any easier, “We still have to face Redwood and Novato, two very good programs.”

“So, what are you doing here?” Brianna Vasquez asked me as I followed her through a misty courtyard to first period physics. Brianna, captain of the Tomales High cheer team, has a quick laugh and a friendly smile. I felt instantly at ease, and was glad she would be my guide during my visit to Tomales.

“Well, Tomales High is the northernmost high school in Marin, and Tam is the furthest south. I thought it’d be interesting to see how we’re different,” I said.

“Cool,” Brianna replied. But she had no idea how different her school was from Tam. After an hour and a half of driving up Highway 101, through ranches in Petaluma, and past a frosty field with perky lambs nibbling on Christmas trees, I arrived at Tomales High School, a modern concrete building in the center of a cow pasture. I’d only been there for a half hour, but I already knew this corner of Marin was much different than ours.

Brianna and I entered the steamy science classroom that looked pretty similar to the ones in Lower Keyser at Tam. I sat next to two tired looking senior girls. A tall boy in a gray sweater, unzipped fly, and grimy baseball cap, who was later introduced to me as John Dalmolin, stumbled over to our table and took a seat, saying “Well, he took my seat so that’s why I’m sittin’ here.” None of us replied.

“So, what do you guys do for fun around here?” I asked, a question I’d been dying to pose since I arrived in Tomales at 7:30 a.m and couldn’t find a single cup of coffee. Instead of a plethora of over-priced boutiques and gourmet cafés like in Mill Valley, I discovered one block with a few shops that wouldn’t open till noon and a children’s playground. The town felt spacious, surrounded by beautiful pastures and sweeping views of Tomales Bay, but I was curious as to how high school kids entertained themselves in a Marin so different from that of Tam students.

The blond girl across from me yawned and replied quietly, “We go to Petaluma, go shopping there, hang out with-”

“Actually, that’s what the gay people do,” John interrupted with surprising earnestness.

“Really John? Then what do you do?” the girl retorted in annoyance.

“Hunt. Build stuff. Poach.” John smiled.

Before I could ask what exactly he poached, our conversation was interrupted as Brianna whipped around and exclaimed, “Check out this iPhone I got! Isn’t it cool?’’ She handed me the phone.

“Yeah sweet,” I said examining the phone to see if it was different than the average iPhone. It wasn’t, and it was refreshing to realize Brianna actually appreciated the phone. I thought of Tam kids who love to curse AT&T satellites that take an extra two minutes to beam a text from orbit.

Suddenly John bellowed angrily to someone across the room, causing the girls at my table to jump. “SV can’t hold a football when there’s any water involved! …not that they can when there isn’t water.”

“SV is Saint Vincent’s, the rich kids,” Brianna filled me in. “We always beat them. They’re like our main rivals. Our last game against them is this weekend and its supposed to rain. Kinda sucks.”

“You guys are pretty into football here?” I asked, trying to remember the last time my classmates discussed the weather’s effect on the outcome of a football game.

“Oh yeah. Like, the whole town shuts down if there’s a big game. How’s your school?”

I froze, trying to remember the last game I attended three years prior. “Uhh… I think we’re doing well.”

“How do you not know?” Brianna asked, stunned.

“Dude, our school didn’t even have cheerleaders last year,” I admitted. I would later learn from my second guide that if a Tomales student doesn’t know how the football team is doing, they either “live under a rock or something is wrong.”

“Alright class, let’s talk some more about centrifugal force,” the teacher, Mrs. Righetti, said standing up and smiling. Mrs. Righetti seemed not to mind her students joking and shouting. She then began a long analogy that had to do with NASCAR racing.

“NASCAR’s boring as hell!” John screamed. Then he caught my eye and said, “They say rednecks like NASCAR, but I don’t. I enjoy it when they crash, maybe.”

Future Farmers of America

A shrill bell rang and I found the tall dark haired senior named Marcos Gonzalez I would shadow for second period. I followed him through the gleaming white hallways to the rows of red lockers that everyone seemed to be using.

“Tomales is nice,” Marcos told me. “It’s small enough that everyone knows each other, and classes are never bigger than twenty-five. You get a lot of one-on-one time with teachers. Scheduling sucks though, since the school is so small there’s only one class per subject. I had to go into calculus without taking pre-calc.”

Marcos paused to reach over three other students and throw his binders in the locker. He retrieved a navy-blue felt coat and black slacks.

“Next I have a practice FFA (Future Farmers of America) meeting you can watch, but I have to change into these clothes. You can go over there with Brianna if you want.” He pointed to a group of boys wearing the evidently popular camouflage hunting sweaters, baseball caps, and work boots. I saw Brianna among them and hurried over, wondering momentarily why the boys looked sort of proportionately different from the guys at Tam. Then I realized they weren’t sagging their royal blue Levi’s 501s.

The FFA meeting proved to be the most striking contrast to culture at Tam, even more so than Tomales’s bovine neighbors and enthusiasm for high school sports. The FFA is a national organization that helps students grow into adults, become better leaders, and be successful in their careers through agricultural education.

I entered the packed science classroom and beheld the row of seven well-dressed FFA officers standing before the assembly. They each wore the blue felt jackets with their FFA title in gold lettering, and were marked by fancy wooden plaques that read “Treasurer,” “President,” or some other official position. The officers then took their seats and began a long, scripted introduction to the meeting:

“The meeting will come to order. We are now holding a special contest meeting of the Sonoma Chapter of the FFA. Mr. Vice-President, are all officers at their stations?” questioned the president, a senior girl in three-inch stilettos. She sounded a bit like a robotic attendance lady.

“I shall call the roll of officers, determine if they are at their stations and report back to you, Madam President,” said Marcos, who was the vice-president. Marcos then focused his eyes on the back of the room and inquired, “The Sentinel?”

“Standing by the door,” reported a short brown-haired boy. He sprang from his chair and stood like a soldier.

“Your duties there?” asked Marcos.

“Through this door pass many friends of the FFA. It is my duty to see that the door is open to our friends at all times, and that they are welcome. I care for the meeting room and paraphernalia. I strive to keep the room comfortable and assist the president in maintaining order,” recited the Sentinel stiffly.

This roll call carried on through all seven officers, until the president rapped her gavel and announced that the meeting would begin. The meeting lasted approximately three minutes, during which the assembly discussed the success of “old business,” chiefly the recent parent dinner party fundraiser. After this, the meeting was adjourned and the officers launched into another extended ending script. Then a tall man in a flannel shirt, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat, who I assume was a teacher advisor, suggested the officers repeat the process.

“Why are they doing it again?” I whispered to the freshman with a buzz cut sitting next to me.

“They’re getting ready for a competition against other FFA chapters,” he said. Before I could ask him more about this, he revealed some slightly shocking personal information. “I used to be an officer for the underclassmen, but I got kicked off because I mooned this kid during a meeting. So are you a sophomore?”

Barn Parties

After the FFA meeting, Marcos took me to the steel drums (an alternative to band) room where I met Matthew Erbst, a redheaded senior with a mullet, and Juan Avalos, a tall Latino senior. Steel drums practice was cancelled, so the class of ten busied themselves with quiet activities. Except the freshman who got fired from being an FFA officer; he whipped out a bass guitar and proceeded to reproduce Sublime’s “40oz to Freedom” several times. Juan and Matthew were curious about Tam, and were most surprised by the large selection of electives and honors classes we have. They, in turn, filled me in on some qualities unique to Tomales.

“Let me ask you this,” Matthew said looking up from his computer screen and holding up one finger, “Do you have senior projects?”

“No, what are those?”

Matthew’s eyes lit up and he smoothed his mullet. “It’s a really hard graduation requirement. We have to do something big, like an internship, or build something, and write eight pages about it. I am engineering and building a windmill from scratch to power my well.”

“That sounds cool,” I said, “but what’s a well?”

“For water?” The boys gave me inquisitive looks.

“Oh?”

“Yeah okay, we’re not like you city people, our water has to come from somewhere. And no, we don’t have to pump it, it’s powered by electricity and comes through pipes in the house,” Matthew explained emphatically, making erratic gestures with his pale hands.

“Oh yeah!” I said apologetically. I felt like an idiot because I didn’t realize wells still existed in Marin. “You must be pretty smart to do that.”

Tam's field goal is a stark contrast to Tomales.

“He absorbs it through his mullet!” Juan said punching Matthew in the shoulder. Matthew laughed in agreement.

“What’s it like to live on a ranch?” I asked the boys, who all had at least a few cattle and lots of land.

“It’s pretty cool,” said Marcos smiling, “We can do whatever we want because cops never come out there.”

“Living on a ranch is much better than in a city,” added Juan as he rocked his plastic chair back against the beige wall. “I lived in Petaluma for a bit, couldn’t stand it.”

“What do you do for fun?” I asked again, hoping they could provide an answer that didn’t involve sexual orientation.

“Well, we go to each other’s houses sometimes. Watch football. Have barn parties,” explained Juan.

“What? Barn parties?”

“Yeah,” Juan chuckled, “basically you get a barn that’s far away from the road, then you make a fire, set up some hay bales around it-”

“Or you could drive a pickup truck next to the fire and sit in those,” interrupted Matthew.

“Sure,” continued Juan, “then you just hang out and listen to music. Some people drink beer.”

“Aw that’s legit. I wish we had barns,” I said, thinking of how my peers would most likely enjoy a large indoor space with fire, alcohol, trucks, and music in the middle of a ranch miles away from the nearest law enforcement.

“Besides just hanging out we also like to hunt and fish. Some people poach,” said Juan.

“What do people poach?” I asked, thinking along the lines of elephants or big cats.

“Crows. Rabbits. Squirrels. Once the whole football team chased a rabbit down and killed it with their cleats.”

“Oh. Kay. Wow. Do you guys go cow tipping too while you’re at it?” I responded. The boys started cracking up.

“Actually it’s impossible. The cows just wake up!” said Juan to my disappointment.

“Yeah,” added Matthew, “and they’re really heavy.”

“You guys have off campus lunch?” I asked Marcos as we headed down the hallway.

“Yeah!” Marcos said. I covered my laugh.

“Where is there a place to buy food?”

“We can make it to Petaluma if we have chill fifth periods. It takes like 30 minutes to get there and back.”

We passed a long line of students with cafeteria trays, getting lunch from a buffet. It was a classic high school cafeteria scene. I half expected to see the Mean Girls getting their low-fat yogurt.

Differences

After lunch it was time for me to bid farewell to my new friends at Tomales High, snap some last minute pictures, and head home. As I wound back down Highway One, I reflected on the differences between the two poles of Marin.

Tamalpais and Tomales are two very different schools with highly unique cultures. Tam kids come from the urban land of San Francisco where college, material possessions, and 4.0’s are the main goals. Tomales students, on the other hand, thrive in a town that reminds us of Marin’s roots. Hands-on learning through their senior projects, tangible responsibilities like raising livestock or designing tools, and work experience like that offered through the FFA reflect the core values of the Tomales community.

I was perhaps struck most by the huge influence that location can have over a school and its students, enough so to make schools only two hours apart as different as night and day. Different location determines a school’s funding, the students’ favorite pastimes, their cultural values, political views, the quality of the teaching staff, and ultimately the type of young people produced and the opportunities they will have later in life.

The balance of city and country culture make Marin County much more complex than residents on either end may have assumed.

Step 1. Exit the premises of the party. Wait approximately ten minutes outside. No one knows where you have gone so they may suspect you are drinking or picking up alcohol. People will not see you until your re-entry where this time you will be “intoxicated.”

Step 2. Re-enter the party with a giant idiotic smile on your face. Say hello to every single person you pass by. People you don’t know, people you don’t like, people that don’t like you, etc. You have to get in the mindset of a drunk teenager.

Step 3. Make a meal in the house you are in. A drunk teenager believes everything is theirs for the taking, therefore all of the food in the hosts kitchen belongs to you. Make the most random stupid concoction you can think of. Some ideas include watermelon and parmesan, popsicle dipped in guacamole, or cereal and soup.

Step 4. If all else fails, it’s time to get drastic. You must urinate. Yes, you heard me, you have to pee on something. Preferably urinate on an inanimate object to avoid conflict with someone who’s actually drunk.

If you are a girl and not up to this task, you might want to slap a guy or start grinding on a wall by yourself. You must do this in front of everyone.

If you are peeing, make sure the party sees that you have no regard for where you urinate. Everyone knows drunk people pee in stupid places.Find a planter or urinate off a deck. After this, doubts about your intoxication will be a thing of the past. Your peers will be saying, “Look at (your name), he’s so drunk he’s peeing on the Nintendo Wii!”

If you don’t want to drink, remember my guide; there’s no doubt that you will be fitting in at the next party.

Graphic by Sofi Aubin-Pouliot.

Earlier this month my uncle participated in the 16th annual Alcatraz Swim. While sitting in Aquatic Park, I witnessed an occurence which made me lose a portion of my hope for humanity.

A woman was standing five feet from where I was sitting, with a leashed child at her heel. The duo made their way to the sand. While the young boy sifted through the cigarette butts and bottle caps he perceived as treasures of the sand, his “leash master,” tugged him away from the pile of debris he had constructed.

After watching this event occur more than twice I was astounded at the woman’s inability to explain to her kid that cigarette butts and bottle caps found in the sand were both neither sanitary, nor healthy to play with.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, another woman approached the duo and asked, “Excuse me miss, where did you get your leash? I’ve been looking everywhere.”

The immorality of the Harness Buddy, otherwise known as the “baby leash,” greatly surpasses its ability to be cute. Coming in all colors and sizes, baby leashes are making more and more frequent appearances in parks, playgrounds, and on sidewalks. Attaching a stuffed pig to your toddler’s back looks cute, until the protruding mesh leash winds up in the hand of an unfit parent.

Dogs are leashed so they don’t sniff the hindquarters of other dogs, or begin to consume the feces of their fellow canines. The idea of a baby leash is essentially the same. You can make your kid heel, pull them away from unknown substances on the ground, and coddle them when they obey. Coming equipped with a waist and chest harness, the harness buddy is both demoralizing and idiotic.

Here are the facts on the harness buddy. A mesh leash, color coordinated to the crudely constructed stuffed animal attached to your child’s back, is to be held in the hand of the guardian. The waist and chest straps should be adjusted to fit your child snugly. This in itself adds to the cruelty of the baby leash. If your child is heavy set, not only do you get to passively project on your child that you are insecure enough to leash them to your side like a domesticated animal, but later on, while thumbing through childhood memories of barbeque block parties, and playing at the park, you get to explain to your child, “Yes, we leashed you, and yes, you were fat.”

It is baffling how adults can justify the use of the baby leash. Is it an effective way to keep a closer eye on your kid, of course.

Is it a way to make your child feel subordinate? Absolutely. The real dilemma arrives when you walk to your local Starbucks. Do you bring your kid in with you, or leash them to the nearest parking meter along with a variety of dogs?

San Francisco has always been a place of innovation and creativity. Not too long ago, while walking down the street I saw the only two adults who appeared to be utilizing the same leashing technique as the harness buddy. The only real difference was that one of the two men was an older, mid 50s, who was holding a similar style of leash as the harness buddy, which attached to his male companion, who was wearing an entirely leather outfit, walking down the street like it was the norm. Are you setting your child up for a sex life filled with sadomasochism? The answer, quite possibly, is yes.

To recap, other things people leash in order to keep them in line include; dogs, ferrets, iguanas, and apparently, their life partners. If the idea of leashing your child is still appealing, you may want to reconsider your ability to take your child out in public.

International Wonders: Tam’s team after winning MCALs in November. Photo by Chris Yip.

“At the beginning of the season, all of the kids dribbled too much, mainly because they were comfortable with dribbling and they were all good at it. People wanted to play their styles, not our style,” said senior Varsity Soccer captain Imran Nana. At the start of the season, Nana and his peers found themselves with a unique challenge. They needed to merge playing styles from all over the world and forge a working team, all in a few short weeks.

Now that the season is over, this year’s varsity soccer team has come to be recognized as one of the most culturally diverse, not to mention successful, to ever take to the field at Tam.

Soccer is a universal language capable of connecting people of all different cultures. No matter where you come from or what language you speak, you can communicate through the ball. “The way a person plays any type of sport really shows their personality.” said sophomore Jackson Wong.

Many children in other nations grow up with soccer as their first and only sport. This has a positive correlation leading to tons of success with a ball at their feet, unlike the average Marin kid who will play soccer, basketball and baseball growing up.

As Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) champions and runners-up in the North Coast Section (NCS) tournament, the Tam boys varsity soccer team is a perfect example of a successful cultural melting pot.

However, many of these international players experienced a rough transition when they first arrived at Tam. At first, the different styles clashed.

The Hawks lost two games very quickly once the season started, and struggled with MCALs during the middle of the season, in part due to not understanding each others’ styles.

“Ultimately, everybody has a different playing style, and so all of these guys have had to make some sacrifices, whether it’s seeing the ball a little bit less or changing their game to accommodate their teammates,” said varsity coach and Tam PE teacher Dustin Nygaard. “My job is to help everybody understand that it’s for a greater good and when you are able to make some sacrifices good things can come from it.”

The players are constantly learning new styles of play, and being taught new cultures other than their own from one another; they are bonding through a simple ball.

Seinor Min Ho (South Korea)

“Since the students share a lot of similar experiences and thoughts all having come from a foreign place and arriving at Tam, they have an indescribable chemistry that you can truly identify when seeing them play the game.” said junior Elliot Dorenbaum.

Nygaard agreed, and shared his thoughts on why he thought his team was so successful. “Each country, like when you watch the World Cup, has different playing styles, and different things are emphasized in different cultures in terms of characteristics for playing.”

There are many international players on the team. The seniors are attacking midfielder Gabriel Cavalcante of Brazil, and forward Min Ho Kang of South Korea. The juniors include midfielder Tesfaye Paine of Ethiopia, winger Mohammed Manneh of Ghana and keeper Ingmar Bastian of Germany. Fullback Lucas Janetos of England is the only international sophomore.

A pivotal player on the Tam team is Tesfaye Paine. Before Paine was adopted in sixth grade, he grew up in the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This is where Paine’s creativity and speed on the field were developed.

“[In Ethiopia] we had a lot of dribbling, whether it’s tricks or running past guys. There’s wasn’t a lot of passing.” Paine said. “We always played, whether it was after school, during the weekend, during lunch or breaks, and at night,” Paine said.

Growing up, soccer captured the majority of Paine’s time. “The most memorable game that I played was when I was in fifth grade. Every year there was a tournament in school during lunch. Kids got selected to play in these game and the kids chose me to play,” Paine said, “We lost 8-1 and I scored the only goal for my class. Everyone in my class was carrying me on their shoulders, and they were just having a lot of fun.”

Senior Lucas Janetos (England)

Brazilian senior Gabriel Cavalcante brings his dribbling skills to the Tam squad. Cavalcante grew up in Curidiba, Brazil, and most of that time was dedicated to soccer. However, playing on a grass field was new to him. “I played soccer my whole life; back home I played it every day,” he said. But the organization and environments of soccer can have many variations. “I always played indoor soccer; this is the first time I have ever played on grass. It’s easier because the ball doesn’t slide as fast when you’re dribbling.”

Since Cavalcante just moved to California this summer, he still has some homesickness, “I miss my friends, parents and brother,” he said. Luckily, the soccer team was a welcoming community and was more then open to foreign players. “The soccer team has helped me a lot. I feel like I know more people in America now,” Cavalcante said.

With Paine and Cavalcante so naturally smooth with their dribbling skills, they were able to become player-coaches and guide the other players during the season. They taught the players to learn the right situations to dribble past players and to look for the open man.

One of Tam’s brightest prospects, returning varsity member Lucas Janeto,s is one of Tam’s toughest players. Born in raised in London, England he rarely backs down from a challenge or threat. In one heated game against Marin Catholic last year, fed up with a bigger opposing player after a harsh exchange of words, Janetos pushed him, leading to a yellow card. Janetos gets his passion from his home country of England.

“Soccer is king there,” he said. “We played every day: at school, at lunch, after school and at night.”

Janetos’s toughness comes from playing all different social classes of kids back in England. “English soccer is rough and aggressive. It’s not based on fancy footwork. It’s all about brute strength,” he said.

Junior Ingmar Bastian (Germany)

The wide range of social class playing in England is something that Janetos prefers. “Here in America, it’s mainly upper-class; you have to pay to play. In London it’s pretty much free. There you have more lower-class players, and they care more.”

According to Janetos, soccer is not a game in England, it’s a life style. “There are a ton of fights, people care way more,” said Janetos. “[During one fight]a defender on the other team did a dirty tackle on our striker, who was a complete thug. After that our boy took one look at him and head butted him square in the face. Both teams started fighting and the coaches got involved too.”

One of the physically biggest and most intimidating players on Tam varsity is junior Ingmar Bastian, who was born in Munich, Germany. Bastian, who plays goalkeeper, loves the passion of German soccer.

“It’s more competitive [in Germany] because [soccer is] the number one sport. Everybody plays for fun at least. And when the team does well, everybody in Germany is happy and knows about it,” Bastian said. The Germans have been a dominant force in soccer history, winning the world cup three times by changing their styles around. “Counterattacks are their main style now. They used to use physical, tough soccer before.”

This brings a rare, highly physical team to Tam, going completely against the stereotype other counties have been known to use: “Marin soft”.

One of Tam’s most creative and cheerful players, and the goal scorer who sent the Hawks into the NCS finals with a goal against Marilla Carrillo, is Mohammed Manneh. Manneh was born in Ghana and moved to Senegal, and then back to Ghana before coming to the United States. “We played street soccer on the dirt and beaches barefooted. It was very fancy footwork.” “It was very fun to play there, but if [the local players] didn’t know you they would try to hurt you,” Manneh said.

One of Tams main energy sources is senior forward and set piece specialist Min Ho Kang. Kang grew up in Seoul, South Korea. He was driven by the Korean brand of soccer “(The Korean style) is hard work.” said Kang “I played all day. The first practice was at 5:30 in the morning. The second practice was at 3:30 after school and after dinner at 7:30 was third practice.” But Kang couldn’t get enough “We skipped school all the time (for soccer),” he said. With these masses of time devoted to soccer great things were expected of them and if they didn’t prevail they would be punished. “I remember we got beat up every night because that’s how the coaches are in Korea.” He said.

Senior Gabriel Calvavante (Brazil)

This combination of kids from around the world brings a unique passion to the game and can be a spark which ignites the team at any moment.

With their diversity, the Tam players have created an entertaining soccer style that incorporates all of their foreign styles with those of the American players.

“The wide variety of nationalities comes into play very often. We have so many kids from so many places, yet many of them are experiencing the same sets of emotions. That’s what brings the team together more closely and allows for better team chemistry,” said Dorenbaum. “The unique styles they bring on to the field all contribute to one overall method of playing soccer that is nothing like any team in our league has seen before. I see it as a combination of the creative Brazilian team and technicalities of the Spaniards.”

“The American style of soccer relies mostly on being athletic.” Wong said. This means more long passing, and less reliance on technical skills.

“We try to [teach them how to pass] and it tends to work,” said Junior Aiden Hersh.

“The American players are very strong and fast at marking. At first, I had not seen that. Some coaches and players taught me things like how to move the ball quickly and that helped me a lot,” Calvancante said. “[Tam junior and American] Julien Melendez helped me with everything I needed since I came here.”

Perhaps the biggest strength of the team is that the international players have been open to changing their styles of play in order to mesh well with one another. “The first year I came here I played the same way I did in Ethiopia. But then I played against Select players. I had to learn how to pass and play better defense,” said Paine.

While some may believe that this diverse mix could hinder performance, they have proved doubters wrong. Senior Seth Gillis said, “Our chemistry now is really good because we have learned to incorporate all our different styles of play and that is definitely a huge part in our success…” “[The chemistry of the team] is very good. Through hanging out with each other every day at practice you see chemistry develop quite well on the field and off the field. I think the guys enjoy hanging out with one another,” said Coach Nygaard.

While noteworthy, this is not the first time that Tam has had international students on the soccer team. “If you look at some former teams we’ve got kids from Brazil, we’ve had some kids coming in from Africa, we’ve had international kids. I think that because this school really is an English language school, we are a destination point for international students. Whether its coincidence or people coming to this school knowing there’s a good soccer program and a program here for learning English, it’s hard to say.”

After a highly successful season, Tam’s team has truly earned the recognition that they have recieved. Regardless of their reasons for coming to Tam, these players have created a unique team with its own style of playing that is unlike any other.

Graphic by Emma Talkoff.

Dear Tam News,

I have been suffering from migraine headaches that began shortly after a wireless utility “SmartMeter” was installed on my home in the fall of 2010 by PG&E. I saw many doctors, had many tests, tried medications, and kept a headache journal examining every variable in my life to try to find the source. After almost a year, I found I had no headaches when in environments free of wireless routers, cell phones, SmartMeters, etc. It seems the SmartMeter installed on my home triggered this electrosensitivity. I have a significant amount of metal in my spine from a back fusion surgery and it has been posited by doctors and electromagnetic field specialists this is likely the reason for my headache response to wireless radiofrequency (RF) microwave radiation.

Though the hardware makes me unique, I believe it has given me the opportunity to serve as one of the canaries in the coalmine that is our community. Although I am being immediately affected, I am very concerned about how everyone, especially children being born into this radiated world, are being impacted. For most, the effects of unchecked exposure may not manifest for a long time.

In the 1900s it was discovered that lead-based paint is highly toxic yet it was nevertheless widely used until it was finally banned in 1976. The health of countless individuals suffered due to the continued use of lead paint until its ban.

On May 31, 2011, the WHO/IARC (World Health Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer) officially classified electromagnetic fields from non-ionizing, radiation emitting devices as a Class 2 B Carcinogen. This means it “may cause cancer in humans.” Simply put, wireless radiation joins a list of other more commonly known Class 2 B carcinogens including but not limited to: lead, dioxin, DDT, chloroform, ethyl benzene and HIV, to name a few. Because we love our wireless devices and because the wireless industry is worth billions, this news has been about as popular as a fly in the punch bowl at a party.

Cell phones, computers, iPads, cordless home phones, and many other gadgets that operate wirelessly are not only widely accepted, but have become an integral part of our lives. Use of these devices may come at a hidden cost. All of these devices emit non-thermal, non-ionizing radiofrequency (RF) microwave radiation.

The good news is that safe Internet access is readily available through hard wired means. Just disable your wireless and plug back in. I ask us all to consider what price we may be paying for the convenience of the wireless technologies we use. Please ask yourself: do you really need to have your cell phone on all the time? Do you need to hold it up against your head? Is it away from you or off when you are sleeping? When we are clustered in large groups like in schools, movie theatres, etc. the RF is concentrated. If we all power down when in large groups our exposure could significantly reduce. Do you really want to use your laptop wirelessly and sitting directly on your lap? Cell phone radiation can penetrate approximately two inches into the human body. Where do you keep your phone during class? If the phone is sending or receiving data, it is radiating RF. I ask wireless users to consider your own exposure and, for your own sake to reduce it. It took almost a century for public policy to catch up to the science known about lead paint. For the wellbeing of us all, let’s not wait for the science to be popularized or for public policy to be in place. Take action for yourself and those around you now.

With a few simple changes, exposure can be significantly reduced. To learn more about this topic, I recommend the book “Zapped” by New York Times bestselling author, Ann Louise Gittleman.

Sincerely,

Lisa Miller

Automotive Technology Teacher