Free Dr. Pepper!

In March Dr. Pepper promised a free soda to every American if Guns N' Roses released "Chinese Democracy" by the end of 2008. The album goes on sale Sunday, which means that free Dr. Pepper will be available beginning Sunday at 12:01 a.m.

You can get your free coupon for a free 20-ounce soda on the Dr. Pepper's Web site. They'll be honored until February 28.

"We never thought this day would come," Tony Jacobs, Dr Pepper's vice president of marketing, said in a statement. "But now that it's here, all we can say is: The Dr Pepper's on us."

Breaking the Obsession with "Twilight"

I am going to take a break from the top issues, and write about something that I am starting to notice in my own school. It seems as if the Twilight books are going to take over! I swear, I have seen that book in every single one of the freshmen girls’ hands. I admit that I read the book too, but the number of copies floating around the school is ridiculous.

I am an avid reader myself and therefore love to see a fellow classmate enjoying a good book. The only problem is this seems to be the only book that teenage girls will read! I have seen multiple book reports sitting on Mrs. Brown’s desk revolving around this vampire love story. The thing that kills me about the situation is that the girls aren’t reading anything else. They think that this is the only book that they will find that interests them. I know because my class went through the same problem. When the book first started gaining popularity, every single girl in our class read the book. They all talked about it and all wanted to find “their Edward” which, I’m sorry to say, probably won’t happen.

I think that what our school needs is a list of the twenty-five best books that teenage girls will enjoy. I don’t want just the “Gossip Girls Series” or the “Twilight Series”. I want to make a list of amazing books that will serve some sort of purpose in each person’s life.

I am going to call the list “The 20 books you must read before you’re 20.” I invite anyone to join in and add some books of their own. Later on, I’ll create description for each book, but for right now, I just want to get the titles out there.

So… drum roll please…

The 20 Books You Must Read Before You’re 20
1. “Elsewhere” by Gabrielle Zevin
2. “The Pact” by Jodi Picoult
3. “Looking for Alaska” by John Green
4. “The Princess Diaries” by Meg Cabot
5. “I Never Promised You a Rose Garden” by Joanne Greenberg
6. “My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Picoult
7. “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak
8. “The Princess Bride” by William Goldman
9. “Go Ask Alice” by Anonymous
10. “Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger
11. “An Abundance of Katherines” by John Green
12. “Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card
13. “1984” by George Orwell
14. “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert
15. “Running with Scissors” by Augustan Burrows
16. “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams
17. “Vamped” by David Sosnowski
18. “The Giver” by Lois Lowry
19. “Stargirl” by Jerry Spinelli
20. “Ella Enchanted” by Gail Carson Levine

Neiman Marcus: The Middle Class Store?

As usual, I was surfing around the New York Times site and came across a very… interesting article about Sarah Palin. I know that I must seem obsessed, but she always seems to be grabbing my attention. The latest article I found was titled “$150,000 Wardrobe for Palin May Alter Tailor-Made Image”. You have to admit, you want to read it too.

In the article, they discuss the latest antic of the McCain campaign. This time, adviser to Palin spent $150,000 on “campaign accessories”. The advisers spent $75,062 dollars at Neiman Marcus and $49,425 at Saks Fifth Avenue, all to give her that perfect “working middle-class mom” look. Am I the only one who thinks that sounds just a tad bit off? I mean, my mother is a hard worker from the middle class, and she frets about spending $100 dollars.

The worst part of the whole event is people are brushing it off like it’s nothing. The article stated that making a big commotion about the spending would be “kicking the campaign while it’s down”. Excuse me? Could someone please let me know when the media started worrying about people’s feelings? I mean, they didn’t mind tearing her apart before. Has she finally become so pathetic that even the media feels slightly bad for making fun of her so much? That within itself should be a clue that she couldn’t handle being Vice President.

What on Earth are they going to do when another nation starts to question her? If controversy starts to arise then, it really does affect the outlook of our nation. There is no way that we can let this happen. Writing as Jill Six Pack, I can’t allow someone with a suit worth more than all of my possessions pretending to be one of us. She isn’t, and she never was. This is the final step that proves she isn’t worth anyone’s vote.

Please, have some self respect Sarah Palin and save yourself the embarrassment of trying to run for President in 2012.

Breaking Down the Barrier

I read this amazing article about a school in Georgia that is specialized for teenagers suffering from autism. The school is run by a parent whose son has autism, and completely revolves around making sure that the students can learn and grow. It is one of about ten schools that specializes in students with autism. Anyone is allowed in as long as they can communicate. There are ten students currently enrolled, and all of them have moderate to severe autism, but are at different stages.

The schools has actually helped many students. Some that could not control their outbursts, can now go through an entire day without blowing up. Parents are also finding that their children are communicating more and are able to relay what they are thinking easier.

The school starts out each day with an assembly. Each student can express anything that they are feeling and share what they did the night before. Many of the students discuss something that they are exasperated about or what they dreamed about that night. For autistic teens this is a huge breakthrough. Many started with little communication skills when they entered the school.

The students are also able to choose what classes they want to take. At the end of each semester, the students vote on what new elective they want to take. These classes have ranged from “The History of Meat” to “How to Take Things Apart”.

Overall, these types of schools have helped many families with their children with autism. Each parent interviewed for the article expressed how amazed they were about the improvements that they have seen. There should be more of these types of schools throughout the nation. With the amount of children with autism rising, we need to learn to embrace this approach and try to integrate it into the public school systems. These students are like special education children.