Writing Exercise: Rare Leopard Escapes From Zoo

                Fluffy a rare spotted leopard is currently missing from her cage at the Durham Zoo. She appears to have escaped from her cage sometime between 9 p.m. last night and 7:30 a.m. this morning. A thorough investigation is currently undergoing, but her location is unknown.

                When the zoo opened this morning, it was apparent immediately that Fluffy was not in her cage, said Gerry Durrell, the director of the zoo.

                “Fluffy was last seen in her cage when the zoo was closed at 9 p.m. last night,” said Durrell. “We have no idea what time Fluffy escaped or where she went.”

                James Petronkis, a daily visitor to the zoo, said that he instantly knew something was wrong when he arrived at Fluffy’s cage, but that zoo officials would not listen to him. “I told the guard [that something was wrong] and he said ‘Mind your own business.’ I couldn’t believe it. So I pulled a fire alarm and that got their attention.”

                “I waited and a half hour later I told them again,” said Petronkis. “This time they checked the house, and then all hell broke loose.”

                Kitty Smith, the zoo’s chief biologist, said that Fluffy’s cage is alarmed, but that no alarms sounded during the night.               

                Smith issued a warning about Fluffy, who she said is “extremely dangerous” and whose species is known to have an appetite for young children. “Fluffy is a wonderful, warm, gentle cat who has never hurt anyone. But if these cats are corned – or encountered on a dark night – their defense is to kill, and to kill quickly.”

                A visitor to the zoo seemed to doubt Fluffy as a threat but was unhappy with the zoo. “Fluffy would never hurt anyone,” he said as he left. “I want my money back, and then I’m never coming back here again. This place is out of control.”

                Durham Police, New Hampshire State Police, the state wildlife department, and the National Guard are all participating in the search for Fluffy.

                “If possible, Fluffy will be shot with a tranquilizer gun,” said Police Chief William Blair. “But if necessary, we will shoot to kill.”

                “We are concerned because this is a residential neighborhood with an elementary school and we don’t want Fluffy wandering around after the kids get out of school,” said Blair. “We have got to find her before 3 p.m.”

                Not only does Fluffy need to be located quickly because she is a possible threat to the public, but also because she is a priceless animal, according to Smith. Fluffy is one of only five Romanian spotted leopards in existence, and the only female, she said.

                These Romanian spotted leopards are on the brink of extinction, said Smith. Next month Fluffy was scheduled to be flown to China to mate with a male spotted leopard.

                All officials urged how serious they are about returning Fluffy to her home at the zoo. “We miss Fluffy and we want her back, safe and sound,” said Smith.

                “We’re gonna find this cat if it kills us,” said Blair, as he concluded the press conference.

Friday, October 28, 2011: The New York Times

        Today's issue of the paper featured numerous interesting articles. First of all, I thought that it was interesting that the Times featured a photo of an art exhibit as its main story on the front page. Art stories rarely make it to the front page. However, the actual story was located in the C section, Weekend Arts, but this still drew more attention to an art story than usual.
        "U.S. Economy Picks Up Pace, Averting a Stall" was a slightly positive change in the usual articles about the economy. Although this article only said that there had only been minimal economic growth in the past quarter, it is better than nothing. The article confirmed that this growth is not enough to make a significant change for the economy, but it is a start. I found this article very informative and factual, while also having a positive spin to it.
       I also thought that "U.S. Charges 11 in a Wide Disability Fraud Plot" was an eye-opening article. It is always nice to hear when criminals who are scamming other people do not get away with their crimes. I also liked that the Times has been following this story since 2008; reporting on a continuous subject or case is something that I find very important and interesting as a journalist.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011: The New York Times

        The picture on the front page showed the disaster and the help that were results of a strong earthquake in Turkey. The lighting in the colors in the photo were interesting, and made me want to learn more. Also, I liked the composition of the arms of multiple men all leaning in to assist the victim. The lead of the article also helped to describe the panic and damage caused by the earthquake. I thought the article did a sufficient job of describing the damage, the victims, the number of injured and deaths, and facts about the earthquake in a such short story. I also liked how the writer personalized the story and included a few specific stories of people who were rescued.
        Another story that I found interesting was "Outside Cleveland, Snapshots of Poverty's Surge in the Suburbs" because I can relate to it. The story talks about how poverty used to be concentrated in the city, but has increased in the suburbs because of the recent recession. The pictures above the story show abandoned homes, movie theaters, gas stations, and other business, which are sights that can be seen in my town and in towns surrounding me. I am from a suburb of Boston, which like the suburbs of Cleveland, has seen businesses shut down due to the recession. Although this story was focused in Ohio, I think it can be considered true of almost every state in the U.S. right now.

Monday, October 24, 2011: The New York Times

        The front page was not too exciting today. Many of the stories were straightforward summary lead stories, such as "European Leaders Confront Basics of Debt Dilemma" and "Tunisians Vote in a Milestone of Arab Change." The picture along side of the voting story made me want to examine it, but was not very visually appealing. It showed people waiting in line to vote, but I think the editors of the Times could have chosen a better picture showing a larger group of voters so that readers could see the vast number of people who turned out to vote.
        The article towards the bottom page, "Slaughter of Horses Goes On, Just Not in U.S.," made me aware of a disturbing issue that I was unaware of before. It began with a clear and concise summary lead to explain the problem and the results of past decisions. I thought the picture next to this story was good choice for the article; it shows a breeder with an adopted horse, and they appear to be in a struggle, a metaphorical representation of the problem of the slaughter houses in the article.

Thursday, October 20, 2011: The New York Times

        The New York Times was much more interesting today than it had been earlier in the week. A very different and interesting story on the front page was "Ohio as Veld: Lion on Loose Just the Start." The delayed lead describing the 911 call about wild animals on the loose was a great way to begin the article; an atypical story to begin with was made even more interesting by not just stating the facts right away. The thorough details, quotes, and descriptions explained every possible circumstance and angle of this story.
        I also found the photographs much more interesting than those featured in other issues this week. The picture about the strike in Greece was better composed visually and had more to do with the story. The picture on the lower section of the front page, titled "The Scarecrows Weren't Enough," is one of my favorite pictures that I have seen in the Times so far. The colors and subject matter are different from many other usual pictures. However, I'm not sure if it is quite as relevant to the story as it could be; the title of the corresponding article is "To Save Jobs Bill, Obama Calls on First Responders."

Wednesday, October 19, 2011: The New York Times

        Today's issue of the paper did not particularly draw my attention by any of the articles on the front page. The photograph at the top of the depicted an important event, the release of a prisoner, but was not especially stunning. From a photographer's point of view, the lighting in the photograph is less than ideal, which takes away from some of the meaning. In the article, it is said that the freed solider looked thin and pale, which I found hard to distinguish; yes, he did look pale, but the shadows made it difficult to truly tell. I think the New York Times could have chosen a better picture to represent this story.
        In contrast, the photograph of Herman Cain on the lower half of the page is a perfect accomplice to the story; the article is about Cain's sense of humor, which is visible in his facial expressions in the picture. I found this picture interesting because it is not the usual type of photograph that is shown of politicians, which is what the article then talks about. The writer says that his sense of humor sets him apart from other politicians, such as President Obama and Mitt Romney.

UNH Coming Out Week Brings NFL Veteran, Other Events to Campus

Student-athletes are in abundance on the UNH campus, but rarely are professional football players found in the MUB. Former NFL player Esera Tuaolo spoke to students Wednesday night about becoming one of the first football player to come out as gay as a part of UNH’s Coming Out Week.

                UNH centers its Coming Out Week around National Coming Out Day, which is always October 11. Alliance, one of the organizations responsible for these events, is a “support group for LGBTQ+,” said Kelsey Myers, chair of Alliance.

                Wednesday night’s event, Being True to Yourself with NFL Veteran Esera Tuaolo, was “a collaboration of a lot of different groups on campus,” Myers said.

                Coming Out Week is held for “exposure to the group [Alliance] and to the issues [of the LGBTQ+ community],” Nathan Laperle, Alliance program coordinator said.  Esera Tuaolo addressed some of these issues in his talk.

                Although Tuaolo was a defensive lineman who played professional football for nine years and played in a Super Bowl, he is happier now in retirement than he was playing football. “I love what I do [now] because I get to go around the country and inform [people] about the LGBT community,” he said.

                Throughout his career, Tuaolo kept his sexuality a secret, never telling a teammate in high school, college, or the NFL. It wasn’t until two years after he retired that he first said he was gay, in an HBO Sports interview in 2002. Tuaolo said he retired because he no longer wanted to keep this secret and he “wanted to be happy.”

                When Tuaolo came out as gay, “this huge burden came lifted off… I felt light as a feather.”

                Keeping his sexuality a secret hurt Tuaolo mentally and emotionally until he finally spoke the truth. The HBO Special “was probably the best thing I ever did in my life… otherwise I would be six feet under.”

                Tuaolo shared how the discriminatory jokes and taunts can upset people, including himself. “Sticks and stones may break bones, but words will never hurt me. That’s full of s**t… words kill,” he said, in reference to depression and suicides in the gay community.

                He urged students and people of this generation to make a change to these types of behavior and thoughts. “Please step up and do what you can.”

                Tuaolo’s presence on campus has already had a positive impact on some students. He said that he has been contacted by about 15 UNH student-athletes who are in the closet and are happy that he is here.

                Tuaolo’s visit and speech promote Alliance’s goals, which are “to promote a safer campus” and to raise awareness, according to A.J. Jeffries, the vice chair of Alliance.

                UNH Coming Out Week features at least an event each day; Thursday, two events were held, the Ally Rally in the afternoon and the Come Out, Speak Out event at 7 p.m. in the Granite State Room. The Ally Rally was originally planned to take place in the Murkland Courtyard, but was moved to the Waysmeet Center due to rain.

                The Ally Rally is “a public event to expose people who wouldn’t normally see that [the LGBTQ+ community],” Myers said.

                Larry Brickner-Wood, chaplain and director of Waysmeet Center, said that this is the sixth year that the Ally Rally has been held, but the first time that it has been affected by the rain. “Allies need to be visible… [and] stand with visible and vocal support,” Brickner-Wood said of the event.

                The Ally Rally is meant to attract faculty and staff, with students to stand in solidarity said a staff member from the Office of Multicultural Affairs.

                Those in attendance at the Ally Rally used this event to discuss what the term LGBTQ+ encompasses; it stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning. A.J Jeffries explained that the ‘+’ at the end of the acronym is “an umbrella, [to include] so many different terms.”

                Other Coming Out Week events continue into the weekend; Friday night’s event is Come OUT, Dance OUT, held in the Strafford Room from 8 – 12 p.m.

The final event of the week will be the Ally Brunch on Saturday morning at the Waysmeet Center at 10 a.m., instead of the usual Ally Dinner because of the shortened academic week due to Columbus Day. 

Former NFL Player Highlights Coming Out Week 

Tuesday, October 18, 2011: The New York Times

        Today's paper featured probably one of the strangest stories I have read in a while: "Amish Renegades Are Accused In Bizarre Attacks on Their Peers." The story begins with a delayed lede, prolonging the description of how Amish men attacked other Amish men and women by cutting off their beards and hair. It was said they the attackers did this out of revenge over past disagreements, but that the Amish do not usually believe in revenge. I found this article so interesting because the Amish community is so different from that of the mainstream American public, and these attacks does not seem like they would happen in the public community that I live in. Again, the writers of this article concluded it with a quote, as has been the case with many articles in the Times.
        I also enjoyed the photos and article about the Occupy Wall Street movement. The multiple images on the front page show a diverse group of protesters, which is exactly what this movement seems to be about. The quotes and opinions of an array of people are what give this story its strength and interest.

Meeting Story Exercise: Students Will Serve Saturday Detentions If New Policy Is Passed

            Students with disciplinary problems will have to return to school on Saturday mornings in a new policy proposed by a member of the Portsmouth School Board last night. The policy was imposed primarily to discourage and punish students who are caught smoking on school property.

In an effort to reduce in-house suspensions during which students miss classwork, Tim Steele, a School Board member proposed this policy requiring students to instead serve detention from 8 a.m. to noon on several weekends during the year.

In-house suspensions are given to students caught smoking inside or outside of Portsmouth High School, during which time students are required to miss class and not make up work. “I just want to keep students from smoking in the high school bathrooms. There are other problems, but smoking is by far the biggest one.”

Steele said that the new program would be an improvement because students would not miss time in the classroom. “I know this isn’t good news for parents, but I hope the threat of Saturday classes will make the students think twice before breaking the school rules.”

One of the parents in opposition to the new policy was Peggy Bacon. “I work six days a week – including Saturday morning – and it’s bad enough to get my son off to school Monday through Friday. Why should I have to worry about Saturday as well?”

Bacon was opposed to the policy not only because of the inconvenience for families like her own, but also because of the budget. Steele said that the weekend sessions would require an allocation of about $3,000 per year for staffing.

“I just don’t think it’s going to make any difference, and the parents are going to pay for it – in higher taxes as well as in ruined Saturdays,” said Bacon.

Students were also against the proposed rule. Lisa Gallagher, a high school senior and one of five students in attendance, spoke against Steele’s proposition. “In 12 years of school I’ve never served a detention, and I don’t intend to. But I don’t like this idea. I think it’s just being done to make life easier for the faculty, so they don’t have to deal with detentions during the week.”

But Bob Farley, a Portsmouth resident, said that he liked the idea. “Parents can whine all they want about this, but maybe it’s time parents in America were made to take a little responsibility for their kids,” he said. “Maybe if they have to miss a few Saturday morning cartoons they’ll start wising up.”

After the policy was discussed for a half hour, the board voted and decided to postpone the issue until its next meeting on March 7,at which date Steele was told to have figures on in-school detentions for this school year.

Monday, October 17, 2011: The New York Times

        I found the article "Pleas Unheeded as Students' U.S. Jobs Soured" a shocking story about international students who seem to have been taken advantage of in the United States. Perhaps I am simply naive, but I was unaware that a U.S. organization could deceive and mistreat so many young adults on a continuous basis. When I began reading this article, I could not imagine the severity of the claims that were to come simply from the delay lede. The reason that I found this article so shocking is because like these students, I hope to study abroad and will believe what I am told by the agencies' programs that I am participating in. These students read and thought they understood the program that they were signing up for, but ended up being deceived. With this article, I also noticed that it ended with a strong quote, like many other New York Times articles.
       As a follow-up to my blog post on Friday's newspaper, today's paper included an article relevant to next year's election: "Republican Debates Are a Hot Ticket on TV." This article shares the same idea that I proposed, that people are paying particular attention to political debates and issues, even though it is still relatively far away from the next presidential election. The ideas of this article, the viewers of debates, will be something to follow as the presidential race progresses.

Friday, October 14, 2011: The New York Times

        Looking at the New York Times today is an indication that the 2012 presidential election is starting to become more serious already. Two of the articles on the front page revolve around next year's election: "Auto Bailout Done, Obama Looks for Payback" and the photograph titled, "We Spruced Up the Park. Now Can We Stay?"
        President Obama visited Michigan for the ninth time since he has been in office, defending his decision of the auto bailout and attempting to secure the state's votes. This article predicts that in order for President Obama to be reelected, he will need to win Michigan. Beginning with a summary lead, the article presented facts about Michigan's voting patterns and the odds of President Obama winning this state.
        The other article revolved less directly around the presidential election, but is still extremely relevant to next year's election. "Tidying Up, Pre-emptively, But Showdown May Loom" was a follow-up article about the Occupy Wall Street protests and how the owners of the park where the protest is occurring are attempting to force out the protesters. The people involved with Occupy Wall Street are protesting political issues that are relevant to the candidates running in the upcoming election
        Articles like these that present political issues and topics about next years election are only going to grow in frequency as time goes on, leading up until next November.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011: The New York Times

        While reading The New York Times on a daily basis, I have begun to notice a pattern with many articles' conclusions: a majority of them seem to end in quotes. The past few days, I have recalled that many of the front page articles that I read, end in quotes. Today, out of curiosity, I counted the number of articles in the front section of the paper that ended in a quote and found 25. In my opinion, quotes can leave the reader with a strong final thought, but are not always the most effective way to end an article. Sometimes, it would be preferable to read the journalist's own words over a quote.
       I noticed this today while reading "A Year Out of the Dark in Chile, but Still Trapped." This story was an interesting follow-up of the miners who were trapped underground a year ago and how their lives are changed because of it. The article featured a delayed lede that did not let me know what the story would be about right away, which was intriguing. This story also ended with a quote that was actually very powerful and concluded the article in a definitive way. Some of the other articles in today's paper did not end with quotes that left as much of an impact as this one did.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011: The New York Times

        The Times seemed to be filled with very negative news today. While most news stories have been centered around bad news lately, today it seemed especially so. The only 'good' news on the front page was the story about how the Metropolitan Opera received a record number of donations and balanced its budget this year.
        Many of the other stories though were less positive. "States Adding Drug Test as Hurdle for Welfare" is not a bad idea, in my opinion, but may have some negative repercussions. These new policies have pros and cons, which I could argue both sides of. Yes, it does stereotype some people who live below the poverty line, but it may allow the state to provide assistance to some more deserving candidates. But at the same time, children may suffer because of their parents bad decisions and inabilities to pass the drug tests.
        Perhaps the most depressing story of the day seemed to be "Stutterer Speaks Up in Class; His Professor Says Keep Quiet." An intelligent teenage boy with a speech impediment was told that he is not allowed to voice his opinions and questions in class because he is disruptive? It is hard to believe that an educated professor can so blatantly discriminate against a student who has done nothing wrong, other than try to be an active participant in class. The introduction to this story provided a very clear picture of the ongoing situation in class, as did the quotes from the professor's emails to the student. The writer provided many details, allowing the reader to understand the situation and develop an opinion for his or herself.

The Facts of the Case Exercise

Each morning, James Laboke walks four miles through Old Orchard Beach to his job at the Eezy Breezy Restaurant. But this morning, Laboke stopped to help save a man’s life, while still managing to arrive at work on time as if it were just any other morning.

“I never thought about it. I just knew I couldn’t let that man get crushed by a train,” said Laboke of his actions.

The man that Laboke stopped to help was Francois Truffaut, an 80-year-old tourist from Quebec City, Canada. Truffaut was found unconscious by Laboke in his car which had stalled on the train tracks where an Amtrak train passes each morning.

The Amtrak Downeaster passes through Old Orchard Beach, Maine each morning at about 6:10 a.m. after it departs from Portland, Maine at 5:55 a.m.

Laboke noticed Truffaut unconscious in his car at approximately 6:00 a.m., minutes before the train was expected to pass through on those very tracks. He attempted to wake up Truffaut who was slumped over the steering wheel by pounding on the window, but Truffaut did not respond. After attempting to open the doors and realizing that they were locked, Laboke ran to get help at the police station which is only about 100 yards from the site where the car stalled on the tracks, according to a police report.

Captain Janet Paradiso, only about a mile from the scene, received the call in her cruiser about the stranded vehicle. When she arrived at the scene at 6:05 a.m., the train was so close that she could hear its whistle. With so little time to react, she rammed her police cruiser into Truffaut’s car, pushing it off of the tracks.

“I knew there was no time. I had to do something,” said Paradiso of her actions.

The train passed by Truffaut’s 1987 pink Cadillac Seville and Paradiso’s cruiser at 40 miles per hour only 30 seconds after Paradiso’s action. Chief of Police of Old Orchard Beach, Brian Paul said, “It was that close.”

Truffaut, a diabetic, was sent to Southern Maine Medical Center. According to the police report, he may have gone into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing. “I don’t remember a thing,” Truffaut said after the incident. He is in stable condition.

After the potentially fatal incident was resolved, Laboke continued on to work, without mentioning the morning’s occurrences to his boss, Charles Champaige, the owner of the Eezy Breezy Restaurant. Champaige found out about Laboke’s actions when a reporter called the restaurant that day.

“It doesn’t surprise me at all. That young man is one of my most responsible employees. He’s just a great kid,” said Champaige.

Thursday, October 6, 2011: The New York Times

       When I saw the picture on the front page of the Times this morning, I assumed that it was a picture of protests somewhere in Europe, like many recent pictures have been. Upon reading the lead of the accompanying article though, I learned that this was a protest in New York City. It seems to me that protests are much more common in European countries, so to see such a strong protest in the US, people must be extremely angry and fed up, more so than usual.
        But more importantly today, the front page featured an article on Steve Jobs, who died yesterday at the age of 56. Jobs was such an influential and innovative technological creator, that it should be extremely interesting to see what becomes of Apple in the near future. Although I was aware that Jobs had cancer, I was surprised to learn of his death yesterday, less than two months after he had resigned his position from Apple. I was unaware that he has such a short time left to live.
        Steve Jobs' obituary provided a very in-depth summary of his life and accomplishments, much of which I had read before. However, the writer included some very powerful quotes by Jobs, which I thought were a nice touch to this piece.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011: The New York Times

       The summary lead to "Taliban Using Modern Means to Add to Sway" provided a clear basis of what was occurring while also demonstrating the power that the Taliban still has in Afghanistan. If anything, this story demonstrated that the Taliban are gaining power, and not losing it, as hoped. They are less physical and violent than they have recently been, but they have more influence in other areas. The fact that they have the ability to influence and control most of the cell phone companies and towers throughout the country shows just how powerful they are. People do not trust the government, and thus are forced to do as the Taliban says.
        Having had troops stationed in Afghanistan for nearly ten years, the US would hopefully have been able to strengthen the Afghan government. However, it does not seem that his was the case. With the US and NATO withdrawing troops in the next few years, the Taliban will only gain influence and power, as this story demonstrates. This story factually showed the influence of the Taliban while combining the personal affects that they have on the lives of Afghan citizens.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011: The New York Times

        The Times featured quite a few interesting stories today. "Death Doesn't Rob Recipient of Nobel Prize" made me aware of the rule that Nobel Prizes cannot be presented posthumously. To think that the Nobel committee was considering taking back the award from Dr. Steinman because they did not realize he had died just days earlier seems almost cruel. Luckily, the committee allowed the prize to be honored in these circumstances.
        "Italian Court Reverses American Student's '09 Murder Conviction" was a compelling follow-up that has been ongoing for years. I had known of this story, but had never before read the details of the case as they were laid out in this article. The picture of Amanda Knox on the front page shows the emotion and anguish that she felt throughout the course of the trial.
        The other story that I read in today's paper was "Contraceptive Said to Double Risks of H.I.V.", which looked at contraceptive usage, pregnancy, and H.I.V. statistics in Africa. This article showed a major problem in Africa for which a solution will  need to be discovered quickly if the discoveries in this article are true. Something that seemed so progressive, contraceptives, has turned out to do more harm than good.

Monday, October 3, 2011: The New York Times

        "Crossing Over, and Over" was a very interesting and sad look at illegal immigrants lives, particularly those who have been deported. This story presented a point of view that is not usually seen from politicians. There was more a personal look into the lives of typical immigrants, and less a focus on criminals. Yes, this article addressed the issues of crime across the border, but statistics in this article showed that the crime is not as extensive as politicians show it to be.
       I found the photograph above this story a very accurate depiction of what this story was trying to show: how immigrants families' lives are affected by the increased rates of deportation to Mexico from the United States. The quote that began this story also expressed how immigrants are determined to return to the US, where their lives are now, even though they are originally from Mexico; many immigrants consider the US their home.
       Another story that I found interesting was "Incentives for Advanced Work Let Pupils and Teachers Cash In." This is a program being implemented in my home state, Massachusetts, that I had not heard of before but seems like a successful way to inspire more students to work harder in school.

Scent of a Woman Lead

       Charlie Simms' future was defined by an empassioned speech by Frank Slade and the decisions of the Headmaster, Mr. Trask, and the disciplinary committee of the Baird School at a meeting attended by the entire student body.
       Simms refused to succumb to pressure to Headmaster Trask's demand to name the students who were responsible for the prank outside of his office on Tuesday night. When Trask recommended to the disciplinary committee to expel Simms, Slade loudly voiced his opinion about how the committee would be incorrect in doing so.
       Trask, having already made his decision about Simms' future, asked Slade if he was finished speaking, to which he responded, "No, I'm just getting started."